I got all my paperwork together today to get a new passport. I got one in 2007 or 2008 at JD's request. We never left the country, and then we got married and I changed my name. Now the dang passport is useless. However, with $110, a new photo, and a marriage certificate, I can get one that might get me across borders, should the option ever come up again.
That was the good part of my day. The rest was anxiety and running in circles over the impending federal shutdown. I am not good with uncertainty, or situations over which I have no control. (like many people I suppose) Knowing that the jackholes holding the future hostage are people with whom I violently disagree doesn't help.
However, I am looking forward to some unplanned vacation time. Assuming congress doesn't suddenly grow some sanity over the weekend, I look forward to some sleeping in, lazy mornings with my sweetie, horseback riding, and hiking. It'll be like summer vacation except for the warm part.
(typed on my iPhone due to computer unavailability, and therefore not checked for spelling. Enjoy!)
Friday, April 8, 2011
Thursday, April 7, 2011
I wish to fall off the milkshake wagon now.
The good news: my dad's surgery went really well. And Dad is feeling pretty perky, due to what sounded like maybe really good drugs. Also JD made a fair approximation of sticky rice and mango, and it was ready to eat when I walked in the door tonight.
The bad news: (There's a lot of it, I'm going to have to use numbers.)
1) Congress canNOT get its crap together, and so I'm probably out of a job next week.
2) My government agency isn't handling it particularly well.
3) Nor is my contractor.
4) Olli is trying to kill my printer.
5) Somebody barfed on a wool rug.
6) The dog peed in the house twice -once who knows why, and once because I yelled at her.
7) Both times, she hit wool rugs.
8) The dog and possibly the cats pulled down the garbage can and had their way with the contents.
I was pretty mellow when I got home from work due to a nice after-work yoga class. But now I'm all tense and kind of pissed off. I'm thinking it's going to be one of those "take drugs to sleep" kind of nights. In my case, the drug is just Benadryl so it's not like I'm going hardcore. But it's still a drug.
Oh but in other good news? I'm half a pound lighter. You can't tell by looking, of course, but I know it's not there.
The bad news: (There's a lot of it, I'm going to have to use numbers.)
1) Congress canNOT get its crap together, and so I'm probably out of a job next week.
2) My government agency isn't handling it particularly well.
3) Nor is my contractor.
4) Olli is trying to kill my printer.
5) Somebody barfed on a wool rug.
6) The dog peed in the house twice -once who knows why, and once because I yelled at her.
7) Both times, she hit wool rugs.
8) The dog and possibly the cats pulled down the garbage can and had their way with the contents.
I was pretty mellow when I got home from work due to a nice after-work yoga class. But now I'm all tense and kind of pissed off. I'm thinking it's going to be one of those "take drugs to sleep" kind of nights. In my case, the drug is just Benadryl so it's not like I'm going hardcore. But it's still a drug.
Oh but in other good news? I'm half a pound lighter. You can't tell by looking, of course, but I know it's not there.
Wednesday, April 6, 2011
I think I got some pollen wedged in my synapses
I had an idea on the way home and I was going to tell you about it but the truly astonishing (I'd say exceptional but it really isn't, although lord knows *I* take exception to it) amount of tree sex going on in my head is preventing coherent thought from happening. Although apparently it isn't preventing run-on sentences.
It's been three days of tree sex now and frankly I'm tired of it. Oh sure, it's pretty. I like flowery external sexual organs as much as the next girl. But every time I sniff that delightful fresh spring air, it feels as if somebody has hit me in the temple with a hammer. My legs feel like I am wearing lead shoes while, simultaneously, my arms feel as if balloons are attached to them. And, of course, I'm dumb. My thoughts bubble up and then drift off into the void without connecting with anything else first. Several times today I thought of something, started to tell someone, and then forgot what the thing was before I had gotten three words out.
Anyway, the idea. I remembered it again. First, let me tell you what it felt like. (If I still remember the idea after that, I'll tell you. Otherwise make something up.) Do you ever get an idea, and then you're immediately embarrassed that you only just thought of it? This happens to me all the time. It's as if I have stepped in poop, and complained about it all day, and tracked it everywhere, and then finally after eight hours it finally occurs to me to CLEAN MY SHOE. (I would like to say that this particular example of a late idea would not happen, but with all the tree sex going on I can't really make extravagant claims like that.)
I have heard that when other people get ideas they feel happy, or proud, or smart. I am only embarrassed. Possibly this means I am incredibly arrogant. I may have been faking humility to myself all these years.
Or, maybe, I'm kinda slow.
Anyway.
My idea is that I should get off my duff and start writing. I started this blog last year with the intention of writing it for a year. To make sure I had the endurance to write a book. In retrospect, that's ludicrous. I could have been ACTUALLY WRITING A BOOK.
I can thank eArThworm for this revelation. She gave me a lovely compliment yesterday. She said she wished I had something to write a book about. I think that's what she said, anyway. It was along those lines. It got me to thinking. I had a fairly interesting thruhike, I thought. What with the dead guy and the tick and the stubby legs. But I didn't finish. Who would want to read about an unfinished hike? Because I was originally going to write about my thruhike, which ended up being only a reeeally long section hike.
But hell, that Bill Bryson guy didn't finish his hike either, and I hear his book did pretty well.
This morning I reread some of this blog (of which there is rather a lot, now) and I crack myself up. (Yeah, probably erring on the side of arrogance. I'm going to have to given up my pretense of humility.) I'm thinking I'll just keep doing that, writing things that I like. Except I won't immediately set it all free on the Internet. I'll hold some back. And then, eventually, perhaps it will coalesce into something that somebody might want to read all at one go.
It's been three days of tree sex now and frankly I'm tired of it. Oh sure, it's pretty. I like flowery external sexual organs as much as the next girl. But every time I sniff that delightful fresh spring air, it feels as if somebody has hit me in the temple with a hammer. My legs feel like I am wearing lead shoes while, simultaneously, my arms feel as if balloons are attached to them. And, of course, I'm dumb. My thoughts bubble up and then drift off into the void without connecting with anything else first. Several times today I thought of something, started to tell someone, and then forgot what the thing was before I had gotten three words out.
Anyway, the idea. I remembered it again. First, let me tell you what it felt like. (If I still remember the idea after that, I'll tell you. Otherwise make something up.) Do you ever get an idea, and then you're immediately embarrassed that you only just thought of it? This happens to me all the time. It's as if I have stepped in poop, and complained about it all day, and tracked it everywhere, and then finally after eight hours it finally occurs to me to CLEAN MY SHOE. (I would like to say that this particular example of a late idea would not happen, but with all the tree sex going on I can't really make extravagant claims like that.)
I have heard that when other people get ideas they feel happy, or proud, or smart. I am only embarrassed. Possibly this means I am incredibly arrogant. I may have been faking humility to myself all these years.
Or, maybe, I'm kinda slow.
Anyway.
My idea is that I should get off my duff and start writing. I started this blog last year with the intention of writing it for a year. To make sure I had the endurance to write a book. In retrospect, that's ludicrous. I could have been ACTUALLY WRITING A BOOK.
I can thank eArThworm for this revelation. She gave me a lovely compliment yesterday. She said she wished I had something to write a book about. I think that's what she said, anyway. It was along those lines. It got me to thinking. I had a fairly interesting thruhike, I thought. What with the dead guy and the tick and the stubby legs. But I didn't finish. Who would want to read about an unfinished hike? Because I was originally going to write about my thruhike, which ended up being only a reeeally long section hike.
But hell, that Bill Bryson guy didn't finish his hike either, and I hear his book did pretty well.
This morning I reread some of this blog (of which there is rather a lot, now) and I crack myself up. (Yeah, probably erring on the side of arrogance. I'm going to have to given up my pretense of humility.) I'm thinking I'll just keep doing that, writing things that I like. Except I won't immediately set it all free on the Internet. I'll hold some back. And then, eventually, perhaps it will coalesce into something that somebody might want to read all at one go.
Tuesday, April 5, 2011
Sleeping outside just seems weird, somehow
My new sleeping bag (a Western Mountaineering AlpinLite) showed up today. I'm wrestling with the idea of sleeping out on the porch tonight to test it. On the one hand, it's a good idea to find out if it's warm enough. On the other hand it's kinda noisy and bright out there from traffic and streetlights. And I'm going camping next weekend so I can test it then. And just looking at it you can see it's got more loft.
I'm kind of talking myself out of it.
On the other hand, it definitely doesn't have as much room as my stretchy bag, and if I wedge my knee up near my chest like I like to, I think I'm going to compress all of that nice loft. I tried it in the living room.
Decisions, decisions. I bet most girls never have to decide whether or not they're sleeping out on their porch in 40 degree weather.
It's looking very much like there might be a government shutdown at the end of the week. If that happens, of course, I won't get paid. But I don't mind that so much. I might mind not accruing leave during that time.. I have vacation plans, after all.
My manager asked if I'd take off on a hike during a shutdown. Probably not. The weather has been sucking great big goose eggs recently. And with a government shutdown I don't know when it will end, which makes planning pretty tricky. Still, it's an enticing idea, isn't it? If you're a crazy hiker person. Which, apparently, I am.
With both JD and I working contracting jobs, we might have to arm wrestle over who gets to leave for a shutdown. He has a significant weight advantage. And longer arms. And he's not ticklish. Dammit.
I'm kind of talking myself out of it.
On the other hand, it definitely doesn't have as much room as my stretchy bag, and if I wedge my knee up near my chest like I like to, I think I'm going to compress all of that nice loft. I tried it in the living room.
Decisions, decisions. I bet most girls never have to decide whether or not they're sleeping out on their porch in 40 degree weather.
It's looking very much like there might be a government shutdown at the end of the week. If that happens, of course, I won't get paid. But I don't mind that so much. I might mind not accruing leave during that time.. I have vacation plans, after all.
My manager asked if I'd take off on a hike during a shutdown. Probably not. The weather has been sucking great big goose eggs recently. And with a government shutdown I don't know when it will end, which makes planning pretty tricky. Still, it's an enticing idea, isn't it? If you're a crazy hiker person. Which, apparently, I am.
With both JD and I working contracting jobs, we might have to arm wrestle over who gets to leave for a shutdown. He has a significant weight advantage. And longer arms. And he's not ticklish. Dammit.
Monday, April 4, 2011
Stupid spring
Screw spring, pollen, and massive instantaneous headaches.
That is all.
Okay fine. That is all, plus this:
That is all.
Okay fine. That is all, plus this:
 |
| Skunk Cabbage |
 |
| Dog plus husband's sock |
 |
| Andy loves his new cardboard throne |
 | ||
| Olli lurks |
 |
| Nazca says that is really all |
 |
| I said good day! |
Sunday, April 3, 2011
Thinking about backpacking food
I'm feeling extremely mellow. We had beautiful weather today so my hike around the park was very pretty and enjoyable. My beloved joined me, but he is feeling slightly under the weather so it may have been less enjoyable for him. However he enjoyed the hole in the wall Muslim pizza joint I took him to afterward. It was New York style pizza, $1.50 for a ginormous slice. I'd been there once or twice before but that was years ago. It popped into my head while we were walking and I was pleased to see that it was still there, and open on Sunday.
I say it's Muslim because the operators appear to be Muslim, the clientele seems to be largely Muslim, and there are Muslim-related posters on the wall. The food tasted distinctly American, however. :) Well, the food I had. There are kebabs on the menu, such as it is. It's one of those boards up on the wall with slide-in letters. Definitely low rent, but a lot of the best food comes from places like that.
After that we went to the REI next door and spent my 2010 dividend. I wasn't able to find any non-Keen boots that fit, and the Keens all have the same problem - the sole just doesn't last. I am spending a fortune keeping myself in boots over here. The sales guy suggested alternating pairs. He said it can take up to 24 hours for the foam in the sole to rebound after a day of wear. Doesn't sound totally unreasonable to me. It's not workable for a hike but maybe I'll do that at home. My hobbit feet just don't fit most boots very well so at the moment I think I'm stuck with Keens. I'll stay on the lookout for boots with wide toes, though.
I picked up a new, smaller Steripen as well. My old one still works, but only intermittently. I'm not sure if it's damp inside, has problems with the contacts, or what. I'm going to give it another go, though, with the newer model. It doesn't have a nifty display like my old one, but given that the nifty display started conking out after about 400 miles of trail use, it wasn't super useful anyway.
We stopped by MOM's for various organic, health-nutty type food, and then came home. Where I promptly conked out for several hours, still wearing my hiking clothes. Hope there were no ticks on them, because I was in the bed. I don't know what it is about hiking on weekends that makes me sleepy. Regular backpacking doesn't cause me to fall unconscious all the time.
JD made a really good dinner tonight, involving chicken and curry and veggies and coconut milk. I'm dehydrating a leftover portion now. I hope it rehydrates well, as I would *love* to relive this meal on the trail. While I was thinking about dehydrating, I went online and ordered some supplies. A new vacuum sealer to replace my old dead one, some dehydrated coconut milk, and a variety of meals and meal ingredients from Packit Gourmet. The thing that took me there in the first place was soy sauce powder, but I bought a variety of hard to find ingredients such as sour cream powder, vinegar powder, and worcestershire powder. I'm also trying their carrot salad. I watched Cody eat the stuff on the trail last year (slightly different recipe I'm sure) and it looked SO GOOD.
Rather than trying to find healthy dinners at stores along the trail this year, I'd like to make the majority of them at home and put them in maildrops. I seem to have an easier time with breakfasts and lunches. Dinner options at grocery stores are usually meant to be cooked (as opposed to adding hot water), and are usually heavy. I should be able to get a lot of yummy veggies into myself this way so I don't have as many cravings. Or, alternatively, I'll get to Monson and crave nothing but ramen. I guess I'll see.
I say it's Muslim because the operators appear to be Muslim, the clientele seems to be largely Muslim, and there are Muslim-related posters on the wall. The food tasted distinctly American, however. :) Well, the food I had. There are kebabs on the menu, such as it is. It's one of those boards up on the wall with slide-in letters. Definitely low rent, but a lot of the best food comes from places like that.
After that we went to the REI next door and spent my 2010 dividend. I wasn't able to find any non-Keen boots that fit, and the Keens all have the same problem - the sole just doesn't last. I am spending a fortune keeping myself in boots over here. The sales guy suggested alternating pairs. He said it can take up to 24 hours for the foam in the sole to rebound after a day of wear. Doesn't sound totally unreasonable to me. It's not workable for a hike but maybe I'll do that at home. My hobbit feet just don't fit most boots very well so at the moment I think I'm stuck with Keens. I'll stay on the lookout for boots with wide toes, though.
I picked up a new, smaller Steripen as well. My old one still works, but only intermittently. I'm not sure if it's damp inside, has problems with the contacts, or what. I'm going to give it another go, though, with the newer model. It doesn't have a nifty display like my old one, but given that the nifty display started conking out after about 400 miles of trail use, it wasn't super useful anyway.
We stopped by MOM's for various organic, health-nutty type food, and then came home. Where I promptly conked out for several hours, still wearing my hiking clothes. Hope there were no ticks on them, because I was in the bed. I don't know what it is about hiking on weekends that makes me sleepy. Regular backpacking doesn't cause me to fall unconscious all the time.
JD made a really good dinner tonight, involving chicken and curry and veggies and coconut milk. I'm dehydrating a leftover portion now. I hope it rehydrates well, as I would *love* to relive this meal on the trail. While I was thinking about dehydrating, I went online and ordered some supplies. A new vacuum sealer to replace my old dead one, some dehydrated coconut milk, and a variety of meals and meal ingredients from Packit Gourmet. The thing that took me there in the first place was soy sauce powder, but I bought a variety of hard to find ingredients such as sour cream powder, vinegar powder, and worcestershire powder. I'm also trying their carrot salad. I watched Cody eat the stuff on the trail last year (slightly different recipe I'm sure) and it looked SO GOOD.
Rather than trying to find healthy dinners at stores along the trail this year, I'd like to make the majority of them at home and put them in maildrops. I seem to have an easier time with breakfasts and lunches. Dinner options at grocery stores are usually meant to be cooked (as opposed to adding hot water), and are usually heavy. I should be able to get a lot of yummy veggies into myself this way so I don't have as many cravings. Or, alternatively, I'll get to Monson and crave nothing but ramen. I guess I'll see.
Saturday, April 2, 2011
Pas de deux de mud
Wow. So much has happened (and not happened) today. I'm not sure where to start.
Okay. Start at the beginning. That's usually a good place.
From the first moments of consciousness, I realized that A) the dog let us sleep in, and B) I had gotten 10 hours of sleep. I felt blissful. They say you can't catch up on sleep but "they" are so, so wrong. JD got up first with the dog, and I took my time stretching in bed and gradually getting up. By the the time I got downstairs, JD was well into breakfast preparations. Turkey bacon, eggs, pancakes, diced potatoes, and a strawberry all graced my plate. I decided I would skip lunch. :)
After that I took my car in for an oil change while JD dropped off my most recent ebay sale at the post office. (Look at me go with the ebay selling! I'm going to finally clear out all my old camping gear.) There I chatted with other customers about He-Man. Apparently old cartoons are a thing now.
I came home and swapped my shoes for riding boots. I was already wearing my full seat riding pants, something nobody at the Quick Lube had mentioned. I am always amazed when people don't notice, frankly. Full seat riding pants are some weird looking garb. And this pair is purple, even. Anyway, togged out in riding gear and bearing a mug full of Pero, I made my merry way to the barn.
Pluto waited for me at the gate. He was *filthy*. I tried to clean him but mostly settled for knocking off all the dirt in the saddle area. I think I also knocked off an engorged tick but then I couldn't find it on the ground, so.. Probably need to get the horse tested for Lyme this year. (The lymph nodes at the back of his jaw near his ears are once again swollen. These are different lymph nodes from the one that just started healing. I have no idea what is going on with his immune system.)
As soon as I got his saddle on him, it started to sprinkle. You would not believe (or maybe you would, if you've met Pluto) what I time I had convincing him to bring the saddle parts of him under the shedrow rather than just his head. I waited a few minutes, hoping the storm would pass over. Then I pulled out the iphone and checked the radar. It showed rain clouds backed up for miles. I called Tara and told her I was putting the horse away and coming down to discuss options.
I left Pluto in the field wearing his halter, so I could easily get him out again. (Then, of course, he rolled really thoroughly in the mud.) As I took off his halter, the wind started to get very loud. I glanced around for tornado signs but saw none. Still, lightning and thunder started. I ran back to the shedrow. Tara called. She had also checked the radar. As the rain turned to a steady downpour, we decided to cancel entirely. She was maybe going to come back later, but I had other plans.
I got in my car but didn't leave right away. I noticed Pluto and Mystery running around in the field. They had left the safety of their shed when I called Pluto to get his halter taken off. Apparently, already wet, they decided there was no reason to go back in the shed. As I watched they performed several paired maneuvers, including a side by side canter circle, an extended trot circle, and parallel shoulder-ins down the fenceline. I sat in my car gaping and hoping for more, but their last act was to stop together at the fenceline and stare off into the distance. And they stayed like that until after I left. Performance art?
It poured on and off for the next hour or two. JD rearranged the cat room so that the dog couldn't get into the litter boxes (we hope.) I tried on my new smaller jeans and was shocked to find them fitting. I wouldn't want to get real athletic in them, but they fit. Hrm. Now what? Wait until they're loose and then order the next smaller size?
In the late afternoon JD and I headed out for our second good meal of the day. We went to DuClaw around 4, early enough that it was still quiet inside. They had several new items on the menu, making for some tough decisions. I ended up with an appetizer, sliders, a dessert, and beer. So I'm guessing today isn't a weight loss day.
Despite not getting to ride, I think today was a pretty fantastic day. I hope you had a good day, too.
Okay. Start at the beginning. That's usually a good place.
From the first moments of consciousness, I realized that A) the dog let us sleep in, and B) I had gotten 10 hours of sleep. I felt blissful. They say you can't catch up on sleep but "they" are so, so wrong. JD got up first with the dog, and I took my time stretching in bed and gradually getting up. By the the time I got downstairs, JD was well into breakfast preparations. Turkey bacon, eggs, pancakes, diced potatoes, and a strawberry all graced my plate. I decided I would skip lunch. :)
After that I took my car in for an oil change while JD dropped off my most recent ebay sale at the post office. (Look at me go with the ebay selling! I'm going to finally clear out all my old camping gear.) There I chatted with other customers about He-Man. Apparently old cartoons are a thing now.
I came home and swapped my shoes for riding boots. I was already wearing my full seat riding pants, something nobody at the Quick Lube had mentioned. I am always amazed when people don't notice, frankly. Full seat riding pants are some weird looking garb. And this pair is purple, even. Anyway, togged out in riding gear and bearing a mug full of Pero, I made my merry way to the barn.
Pluto waited for me at the gate. He was *filthy*. I tried to clean him but mostly settled for knocking off all the dirt in the saddle area. I think I also knocked off an engorged tick but then I couldn't find it on the ground, so.. Probably need to get the horse tested for Lyme this year. (The lymph nodes at the back of his jaw near his ears are once again swollen. These are different lymph nodes from the one that just started healing. I have no idea what is going on with his immune system.)
As soon as I got his saddle on him, it started to sprinkle. You would not believe (or maybe you would, if you've met Pluto) what I time I had convincing him to bring the saddle parts of him under the shedrow rather than just his head. I waited a few minutes, hoping the storm would pass over. Then I pulled out the iphone and checked the radar. It showed rain clouds backed up for miles. I called Tara and told her I was putting the horse away and coming down to discuss options.
I left Pluto in the field wearing his halter, so I could easily get him out again. (Then, of course, he rolled really thoroughly in the mud.) As I took off his halter, the wind started to get very loud. I glanced around for tornado signs but saw none. Still, lightning and thunder started. I ran back to the shedrow. Tara called. She had also checked the radar. As the rain turned to a steady downpour, we decided to cancel entirely. She was maybe going to come back later, but I had other plans.
I got in my car but didn't leave right away. I noticed Pluto and Mystery running around in the field. They had left the safety of their shed when I called Pluto to get his halter taken off. Apparently, already wet, they decided there was no reason to go back in the shed. As I watched they performed several paired maneuvers, including a side by side canter circle, an extended trot circle, and parallel shoulder-ins down the fenceline. I sat in my car gaping and hoping for more, but their last act was to stop together at the fenceline and stare off into the distance. And they stayed like that until after I left. Performance art?
It poured on and off for the next hour or two. JD rearranged the cat room so that the dog couldn't get into the litter boxes (we hope.) I tried on my new smaller jeans and was shocked to find them fitting. I wouldn't want to get real athletic in them, but they fit. Hrm. Now what? Wait until they're loose and then order the next smaller size?
In the late afternoon JD and I headed out for our second good meal of the day. We went to DuClaw around 4, early enough that it was still quiet inside. They had several new items on the menu, making for some tough decisions. I ended up with an appetizer, sliders, a dessert, and beer. So I'm guessing today isn't a weight loss day.
Despite not getting to ride, I think today was a pretty fantastic day. I hope you had a good day, too.
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