Saffron's Threads

Circles Mark the Spot

2011-08-30T16:03:00.000-07:00

On August 13th, I got a special invitation from my friend Chloe, the owner of Reading Frenzy--take the next 17 days and make a piece of art for the shop's upcoming 17th Anniversary Party. Here was the description she gave:

"Every anniversary is a time of reckoning and potential crossroads for me. I've also been thinking a lot about memory and spatial navigation (and how they're connected), documentation and artifacts, hence the theme: MAPS.

"Your assignment, should you accept it, is to create a work of art that maps something significant to you. This map could reference a place, real or imaginary, your past, present, or future, a state of mind, a dream, a fear, a to do list. Really anything you'd like as it has something to do with mapping."

I've wanted to make something focusing on crop circles for several years now. The patterns are beautiful; the origins are mysterious. Also, a lot of crop circle manifest in England. A bit of digging and I found this site which catalogs recent crop circle activity.

As it happens, on July 26, the following crop circle was discovered near Avebury, Wiltshire, England:

What's so special about July 26? It's the day I went to Stonehenge. What's so special about Avebury, Wiltshire? It's about 25 miles north of Stonehenge. Which means that *I* was only 25 miles from this crop circle on the day it was first seen.

Let the art-making commence.

E L I Z A

All of the fabrics and trims came from my stash, so I didn't have to buy anything new. I bought the silk plaid ribbon on a vacation to Vancouver, BC in 2010. The green transparent buttons were purchased in Oxford on July 21 at a cute little shop. I often buy sewing notions when I'm traveling since they are inexpensive and small. I rarely use them so soon after the trip.

Oxford, England

So if you're up for a First Thursday in Portland, swing by Reading Frenzy to see my work and other map-inspired pieces at the X (Marks the Spot) show. Or if you can't make it on Thursday, swing by anytime in September.

Hello...Is it Me You're Looking For?

2011-08-27T15:37:00.000-07:00

December? Really? And before that only a few posts in all of 2010? These have not been very good years for blogging. I blame Facebook.

Oh, but I did blog the hell out of a month I spent in London this summer: The Book Tramp in London. Go check it out. I'll wait. (No need to bookmark it--the blog is complete.)

It's not like these were uneventful months, either. A lot has happened in my life. How do I recap more than a year of my life in the easiest possible way? Pictures!

I got LASIK and bought a red Mini Cooper.

I rented a house in Bend, Oregon for the summer

and made a bunch of art.

The skirts I designed and made were in a fashion show

and I met Seth Aaron Henderson.

I went to Vegas for the second year in a row.

I had a solo art show at Angst Gallery.

I rocked my book publishing classes

and managed the design department at Ooligan Press.

I got a tattoo of the new Ooligan logo--

together with about 10 other HOoligans.

My daughter graduated from high school,

and now attends Washington State University - Vancouver.

I spent four weeks in Europe on a study abroad program,

the first 6 credits towards my Masters in Library and

Information Studies at Florida State. But you read all about that, right?

I got another tattoo and made a crazy video about it.

I graduated (with honors) from Portland State University with a

Masters of Science in Writing/Book Publishing.

I lost at least 26 pounds.

________________
So there you have it: the entire blog updated in just twelve pictures. With some luck, I'll be back in the next few days--I'm on a roll.

Fat

2010-12-26T09:20:00.000-08:00

Today I began Medifast's Take Shape for Life program. I've eaten just one of my five Medifast meals for the day. It wasn't good. But I didn't really expect it to be delicious, so I'm okay. Chased the oatmeal with a cup of black tea hoping to mitigate the caffeine headache I'm likely to get without my morning (and mid-morning, and sometimes afternoon) cup of coffee or Pepsi.

The point of the program is to teach me a new way of eating. To erase all my previous conditioning and start fresh. My goal is 70 pounds, which is not impossible.

I also want to learn to run--and hula hoop. And swim and bike and rock climb and be stronger and healthier than I have ever been in my entire life.

Today's specific goals:

eat on plan
email my health coach, Jason
clean out the food cupboard over the stove, putting back only what my family (not me) will actually eat

Grace in Small Things #9

2010-09-19T14:51:00.000-07:00

I'm thankful

1. for off-leash dog parks

2. for handmade pillowcases

3. for my bright red Mini Cooper

4. that I get to go on vacation with really fun girls

5. that school starts again as soon as I get back

More is More

2010-08-07T14:49:00.000-07:00

In just a few hours, I'll be participating in my first fashion show. As a designer.
I spent hours today adding more beads to one of the skirts that will be featured in the show. I wish I had time to do more.There really is never enough.

Reinvention

2010-08-05T09:51:00.000-07:00

Did you come here looking for more delicious photos of my new obsession, RDJ? Sorry to disappoint, but this post is about my hometown and my feelings about being back here for an extended time.

Really? Skip the sappy nostalgia and get to the man candy? Okaayyy...

So I recently read Robert Downey, Jr. described as "sex on a stick," accompanied by this photo. And as appealing as lesbianism sounds, I look at this photo and understand myself to be HETERO. A woman with a physical reaction to an attractive man. Nothing gross, nothing....moist. Just a catch in the breath and a feeling that "I would has that."

I saw this photo, had this reaction, and used my new iPhone to find Sherlock Holmes at a RedBox near me. It was elementary, my dear Watson. (Incidentally, that line is never spoken in the movie.)

I've seen this movie before. Once in the theater, once at home. Nevertheless, I watched it twice. The pairing of RDJ and Jude Law must have really lit a fire under the Holmes/Watson fanfiction crowd. I thought they were great together.

"Under this pillow lies the key to my release."

I bet it does.

Never satisfied with a little something if I can have an overabundance (sometime I'll write about my new, and growing, collection of milk glass lamps)--I watched a bunch (multiple hours) of RDJ YouTube videos. He's a funny mix of arrogance and self-deprecation which I find endearing. And, you know, I don't have to live with him, so his past --drug use, incarceration, The Pick-Up Artist-- doesn't affect my feelings. If anything, being a comeback kid is MORE appealing than being the golden boy (coughBradPitt).

This is a man who has become more attractive with age. He's cute in his early movies; he's a heart-stopper now. I love his Tony Stark--an alcoholic womanizer who reinvents himself as a hero--it's perfect. And I think that his wife, producer Susan Downey, is Robert's real-life Iron Man suit, the armor that allows him to be something completely new, something better. He loves her--and that's sexy, too.

The interwebs are very concerned with RDJ's height--or lack of it. He, himself, jokes about how tall Gwyneth Paltrow is in comparison and how he wears lifts for his recent roles. Big deal--those of you who know me IRL, know that I'm not opposed to teh short. [The Artist's drivers license says he's 5'5" and mine says I weigh 160--we're both lying.]

I think many leading men are on the shorter side of average. And I have a theory: short guys have to try harder. Tall men get a pass; I don't think they have to have as much personality. Short men have to cultivate...something. Funny. Cute. Smart. Injured. They try on roles, and consequently, can play a variety of parts. Add a pair of platform shoes and a good camera angle, and the audience doesn't give it a second thought.

So, Robert Downey, Jr., I'm looking forward to Due Date (with Zach Galifianakis!) later this year and Sherlock 2 next year.

And readers, I leave you with this adorable clip from Ellen...

The World's Laziest Blog

2010-08-04T14:52:00.000-07:00

This weekend is BlogHer and it's in New York. Last summer, when the location was announced, I thought for a week or so that I might commit to attending. (New York! The two times I've been to NYC were really fun, if a bit hot and grimy. I glimpsed Bobby Flay while eating in his restaurant. I attended a taping of The Daily Show which had the most boring guest ever. I did a little shopping--and some work, because both visits were business trips.) But I didn't commit and, since I rarely blog, it's probably a good thing.

You'll see that I haven't actually written a post since March. Sad. I really wish I had an excuse, but no. If I'm going to entertain the idea of BlogHer 2011, even for a short while, I'd better start writing again. To ease into it, here's a summary of the past few months:

I completed another year of grad school. I should finally graduate in Spring or Summer 2011.
I bought a used car. It's not a Volvo.
I rented a house in Bend, Oregon, my home town, for part of the summer. I drive back and forth (8 hours round trip) every week to see my family.

So there are the highlights. And this officially qualifies as being the world's weakest, laziest blog post.

Tomorrow will be better; perhaps I'll write about my new obsession with Robert Downey, Jr.

Throw Out Fifty Things

2010-03-20T10:39:00.000-07:00

One of the books not in the stack from the other day is Throw Out Fifty Things, since I just picked it up at the library about half an hour ago. Apparently something is transformational about 50 things, so I'll try it.

I keep a box in my car trunk for Goodwill and I pulled out 10 things to take a photo:

1) Plastic magazine file. [replaced by many wooden magazine files from IKEA]

2) Plastic skirt hangars. [replaced by many wooden skirt hangars from IKEA]

3) Lunch box that I purposefully scammed from the kids section at Wordstock, but don't use or need.

4) Thread holders: one purchased new, one inherited, one from Goodwill (not in photo). [replaced by plastic thread cases that will be easy to transport and keep thread dust free]

5) CD crate that I hand painted with my Grandma Marge in 1989. I recently paid my son to move all my music to iTunes and have no need of this crate. Future photos will no doubt show stacks of CDs after I've decided which to purge (and how.)

6) Glass vase with negative connotations

7) Silk sweater purchased from Goodwill Outlet (clothing by the pound!). Used when I got it, now hopelessly stained. I saved the little yellow buttons.

8) Beginner tarot cards from Goodwill.

9) Power supply (nearly new) for the Mac that died last fall, incompatible with all of the 3 laptops in the house.

10) Plastic bowls from Target a few years ago.

I was concerned when I started the list that I was just replacing things, not really getting rid of clutter. But it's not too bad. I hope future photos will show more real de-cluttering. Now I just need to get this stuff out of my trunk. Then it's really gone.

What I'm Reading

2010-03-18T10:46:00.000-07:00

This is my current reading list. I'm trying to get through these books before school starts again at the end of the month.

The War of Art: Just today I signed up to do the May session of Mondo Beyondo. A link from Mondo Beyondo creator Andrea's blog led me to this book. I spend a lot of time reading crap on the internet. And refreshing my email and Facebook for no good reason. This book says I'm just creating resistance to my better life. I think I need to read more--and check out the author's blog--before I get back to my own work.

Bluebird: Subtitled "Women and the New Psychology of Happiness," this book was written by Ariel Gore, who I've loved since first reading Hip Mama magazine back when my kids were small. Ariel lives in Portland and I've been to a few readings she's done. Currently, like the rest of the world, I'm enamored by bird images.

The Courage to Start: This is a book about running. I bought it last summer and although I easily found the courage to start reading, I haven't yet finished it. Also, not yet running.

The Not So Big Life: I bought this so long ago that I'm not sure what it's about. I do remember that I paid full price, which is ridiculous for a hardback book that I didn't read. The author is architect Sarah Susanka of the Not So Big House series.

The Spark: This book got me an extra 500 SparkPoints on SparkPeople.com. I liked the first few chapters, although the paper it's printed on is really cheap. I have yet to fully commit to SparkPeople, but I'm working on it.

So apparently I'm all about self-improvement right now. Good for me. I'm trying to figure out where I'm going, what I'll do when I get there and who's coming along.

Five Days

2009-12-06T10:57:00.000-08:00

Gym today:
treadmill 60 min at 3.1 (5K in exactly an hour)

I have hit the gym 5 days this week, skipping only Tuesday and Thursday when I have class in Portland.

One of my many goals is to walk/run a 5K in 45 minutes in April.

I Want to be a Fat-Loser, Not a Fat Loser

2009-12-05T10:57:00.000-08:00

Gym today:
treadmill 12 min at 3.3, including 90 seconds running at 4.5
bike 30 minutes
strength machines

I finally caught the Biggest Loser last night, a rerun of the second to last episode of the season. Shocking to see how large these people were and how great they look now. Except that "great" is relative. Now, after losing 60 lbs, these women look like me. Still obese. Still not at a healthy BMI. Still likely to gain it all back.

It tells me that NOW is when I have to fix it. Not when I'm 50 or 60. There may not be a "too late" but there certainly is a "late enough."

So I bought a 3 month pass to the rec center and am officially a member of Weight Watchers. I went to the gym 4 times so far this week. But I don't seem to be really embracing the "bite it, write it" mantra of WW. In fact, I haven't written down anything. So that's next week's goal.

And in January my friend Sue and I are going to do a Biggest Loser challenge at the gym. I've got to make changes. I'm not happy with the body I have.

Thanksblogging

2009-11-25T11:00:00.000-08:00

I think Thanksgiving may be my favorite holiday. I love birthdays, mostly. Christmas is highly over-rated.

But what is not to love about a giant homecooked meal with the people you love? This year, as is typical, the Rancho Cherrio Thanksgiving will be just the four of us. Three who will eat turkey and gravy and one who has chosen not to have Tofurkey.

I made the menu yesterday afternoon. The Magician and I shopped at Whole Foods and Winco last night.

Turkey
Best Dressing Ever
Cranberry Relish
Garlic Mashed Potatoes
Gravy
Sweet Potatoes with Marshmallows
Steamed Broccoli
Dinner Rolls
Pumpkin Hazelnut Pie(s) with Whipped Cream

Today I will make the cranberry relish and the pies.

Cranberry Relish

2009-11-25T10:58:00.000-08:00

This recipe, or a form of it, has been traditional at Thanksgiving and Christmas in my family of origin since time began. The original recipe was my Grandma Bill's, I think. It calls for SIX CUPS of sugar. Which is just like her. This was a woman who liked to have some strawberries with her sugar, not the other way around. She is the reason that I still sprinkle sugar on my cottage cheese (negating its usefulness as a diet food.)

The recipe is simple: cranberries, orange wedges with the skin on, apple wedges ditto, sugar. And this is the only recipe I make that calls for the antique meat grinder.

I use the wedges to push everything through the meat grinder: watch those fingers!!

I ended up using the whole apple, but only half of the large orange. Then I mixed it all up with 3/4 cup of white sugar. It's best if it sits for at least 24 hours before eating. All of the flavors will meld and it will be delicious.

No (r)Egrets

2009-11-15T11:01:00.000-08:00

Last Friday I saw that Sixth Street Gallery in Vancouver was planning a "Birds of a Feather" art show for January. The submission deadline was today.

Years ago I bought a fabric sample book from The Whole Nine Yards, an upholstery store in Portland. The sample book was 150 different curtain fabrics, mostly sheer, mostly in whites and off-whites. I always planned to make a feathery skirt with all these fabrics, so this art show seemed like the perfect opportunity.

I barely made the deadline, but here is the result. Sadly the skirt doesn't fit anyone in the family. It's too big for The Star, too small for me. Probably a size 8/10.

Please Meet Art, We've Been Spending Time Together

2009-11-14T11:03:00.000-08:00

Finally my camera (recently found in my very own car after being missing for several months) is talking to my new computer!!

So, voilà! Photo blog! (Now with gratuitous exclamation points!!)

_____________________

Last weekend I took my first workshop at Oregon College of Art and Craft. I've wanted to take a class or workshop there ever since I moved to Portland in 2003. But the classes are expensive. So when better to take an expensive class, then when one is totally unemployed?!

I looked for a book arts class, but nothing fit my schedule, so I signed myself up for Handfelted Fingerless Gloves. I had some concern since there was not a photo of the project in the catalog. I'm fairly experienced in the ways of sewing and other fiber arts and didn't want to take a class that I could just do on my own. But no worries. In addition to getting instruction in wet felting and glove construction, I also met some very nice women.

On Saturday morning we made our felted yardage. We were instructed to bring lace or another thin fabric to incorporate into the felt. I brought a red and black organza. Therefore I chose a deep red wool for the gloves. I also incorporated some lacy trim that I used in 2004 to trim the bridesmaid dress I wore at Gretchen's wedding.

That evening, after my felt had dried, I quilted the yardage with a repeating heart pattern using a metallic red thread in the bobbin.

Sunday was construction day. We made learned how to insert a proper thumb into the glove. This was very challenging, but mine went much better than some of the others. I finished with a few flat circular beads on the back of the wrist. I bought these beads in Duncan, BC when we lived in nearby Mill Bay. I also used them in my Ilmatar art quilt.

Here's a photo of all the gloves from the class. I like mine the best.

I then went out and bought a book about felt. I've got a few more ideas that I'd like to explore.

_____________________

I've also completed several crafty projects in the last few weeks.

Here are pillows that I made for the new couch from fabrics that were already in my stash. The gold strip hides a zipper. The green is vintage wool from the 1960s that was once part of a kit for making a sewn skirt and knitted sweater. Many years ago I used the yarn to knit myself a vest that I still wear.

I also made curtains for our front window, also a stash buster. However I made the rookie mistake of melting a hole in the synthetic fibers. So I appliqued a cute bluebird over the hole. WIN!

Dear Nablopomo,

2009-11-14T10:06:00.000-08:00

I'm sorry I've been so distant. Thank you for your willingness to forgive and forget.

I was distracted this week by your handsome older brother, Art. It was just a fling. However, as is sometimes the case, our brief union bore fruit and I found myself creating, not writing. I'm not quite over him, so perhaps we could just live happily together, a ménage à trois, if you will, of Art and Writing and me, coexisting peacefully.

Slightly more than half of my love, Eliza

Grace in Small Things #8

2009-11-07T11:07:00.000-08:00

1. My postman

2. First workshop at Oregon College of Art and Craft this weekend (photos coming)

3. Being inspired to create art

4. Starting new projects

5. The sound of a drenching rain on a thin roof

Grace in Small Things #7

2009-11-06T11:08:00.000-08:00

1. Instant oatmeal

2. Friends who find your new blog

3. Reliable public transportation

4. Powell's City of Books

5. Sleeping for an 1/2 hour while your husband takes the puppy outside in the morning

NoBloPoMo FAIL

2009-11-06T10:09:00.000-08:00

Ack! I didn't post yesterday. Not even a GiST list.

But I did read a bunch of other people's blogs and tweets. Here's one of my favorites from Laid Off Dad:

@lod: This mo is kicking my butt. How am I supposed to wri my no *and* po to my blo?

Whale Runner

2009-11-04T11:12:00.000-08:00

I participated in my first organized run/walk on Halloween in Bend. I walked the entire thing and finished last, at 55:36. The race was called "Run Like Hell" but I joked that I'd be "strolling" like hell. But even the moms with strollers passed me. There were a few times that I thought about busting into a jog, but I'm afraid of pain in my lower leg and I wasn't wearing my new running shoes. I did enjoy the walk and the after-party (and the after-nap).

I also felt motivated to do it some more. I'm planning to go to Bend for another race in April and I want to actually run it.

With this in mind, I headed to the gym on Monday to try the treadmill. I'm slow. And the leg pain is a problem. I did some walking at 3mph (20 minute mile) and some jogging at 5mph (12 minute mile). I was on the treadmill for 20 minutes and finished with some cycling.

The running was not comfortable, so I took time on Tuesday to go back to the running store to talk about my shoes. The guy there was much nicer than the associate at the Portland store. He didn't make me feel like I was too fat to take up running. He did make me buy yet another pair of shoes and showed me how to lace them to hopefully keep my toes from falling asleep.

I tried it again today. Intervals of 2 minutes of walking at 3.0 and 30 seconds of jogging at 4.5. My short term goal is to get to the point I can start a Couch to 5K program, which starts at 90 seconds of walking and 60 seconds of jogging. I think I'll be ready in just a couple of weeks if I keep up with it.

But here's the thing: my leg still hurts and my toes still fall asleep. I've googled the hell out of this, but probably will have to go back to the store on Monday to get more advice.

Grace in Small Things #6

2009-11-03T11:13:00.000-08:00

1. Thrift stores

2. Encouragement from afar

3. Dog toys

4. Smooth legs

5. Being home alone

Grace in Small Things #5

2009-11-02T11:14:00.000-08:00

1. Chocolate colored puppies

2. Blond haired children

3. Charlie's Soap laundry powder

4. Literary arts performances

5. Love Line with Dr. Drew

Grace in Small Things #4

2009-11-01T11:15:00.000-08:00

1. High school yearbooks

2. Road trips

3. Central Oregon sunshine

4. Quilting stores

5. Coming home

Grace in Small Things #3

2009-10-31T11:16:00.000-07:00

1. Occasionally getting the bed all to myself

2. The "Happy Birthday" song

3. Morning coffee

4. Runners in costume

5. Dry mountain passes

Grace In Small Things #2

2009-10-30T23:11:00.000-07:00

1. Having an adequate number of computers for the household

2. Reconnecting with old friends

3. Becoming friends with your old friends' new friends (!)

4. Homemade Halloween costumes

5. Sugar cookies

On Writing*

2009-10-30T11:17:00.000-07:00

Leah from agirlandaboy just wrote yesterday about writing and publishing, a topic constantly on my mind. She's an actually working book editor so she sees a lot of writing--and even some Writing. She discusses whether every writer should make publishing a goal. It's an interesting thought.

One of the reasons I wanted to have a fresh start with my blog is to write consistently, perhaps even (nearly) every day. In this way I hope to find my voice. What is my style? What do I want to write about? Does a blog need a theme? Does an author? a publisher?

In addition to last week's milestone birthday, this is a good time for writing because November is both NaNoWriMo (National Novel Writing Month) and NaBloPoMo (National Blog Posting Month). These are writing challenges, either writing a 50,000 word novella in 30 days, or posting on your blog every day. In 2007 I attempted the novel and got about 5000 words into a story that I've had in my head since 2001. Last year I successfully posted on the old Cherry Bombastic blog each day in November. This year I'm making my own challenge.

Meet BloShoStoMo (Blog a Short Story Month). In the tradition of fusion cuisine and hybrid vehicles, it's a mashup. I'm going to post every day. But also try to complete the story begun two years ago as a short story in ten episodes. Two episodes are done, and several of the others have some text. At the end of November, I'd like to have the whole thing ready to be read as a cohesive whole.

One of my dreams is to produce this story myself, as a publisher. Including hand binding the book. I must think a lot of this story. That's what happens when something festers inside you for so long. It takes on mammoth proportions, gargantuan significance. Probably way beyond it's merit. (Perhaps I just won't create very many of these small books...)

You can't know if you're a Writer (or even a writer) if you don't write. I've wanted to be a writer my whole life. I stand in my own way by just not doing it. I read a lot. I admire what others write. I think about my own writing. But just don't seem to do much of it.

My new puppy doesn't usually sleep beyond 6am (except when he gets up at 4:30 and then is back to bed around 6). I'm going to use this early morning time to bust out the MacBook Pro (I love you so!) and write something. On the blog, or not. Good, or not. Just words on paper, one finger stroke and then another. With no one to judge said finger strokes, not which and certainly not how.

*This is the title of a book by Stephen King that I haven't read, but will get from the library. I've learned that I don't have to buy every book I want to read.

This is Where I Am, But Where Do I Want to Be?

2009-10-29T23:07:00.000-07:00

Last Thursday was my 40th birthday, a day I've been anticipating for several years. I had made a list of "40 goals by 40 years." I revised it. I turned it into a blog, which I then abandoned. I dreamed of a big party with a band and cocktails. Then I thought I'd just have an open house with a beautiful cake and then go out on the town with some friends. I designed invitations and researched bakeries.

And then, on September 28, I lost my job. It was a job I loved at a place I loved, with people I loved. I put in a lot of effort, but perhaps not enough. Regardless, someone else now has that office and those responsibilities. And new information leads me to believe that maybe it was not the happy, supportive environment I thought it was.

Without a job, I was less inclined to have a party. Several friends from out of town couldn't make it anyway. I allowed my son to throw himself a party that day instead. It's all good.

But I still feel like I need to take a look at what is going on with my situation. Why am I starting over, to what purpose? What do I really want to do? Am I doing it? What is working, what is not?

I'm forty. I'm unemployed.

I'm in school, pursuing a masters degree in Book Publishing from Portland State University. I should graduate in 2011. This is the fourth graduate program I've started and the one that will finally stick. I really like it, though I'm not sure what I want to do with it. Starting grad school is also one of the few 40x40 goals that I completed.

I've been married for nearly 18 years. This has not been an easy thing and remains challenging. My husband is an artist and a multi-media student at a different college. He loves me, and I...am not sure how I feel.

I have two of the best kids in the entire world. They surprise me. They amuse me. They frustrate me and challenge me. I can't imagine life without them. I always tell people, "don't fear the teen years for they can be awesome!"

I have two dogs, both longhair dachshunds. The new one is still just a puppy. We're working on house training. I think it's getting better.

We rent a house in a nice neighborhood in Vancouver, Washington, just across the Columbia River from Portland. I wish I owned my house. This goal is somewhere in my future; I just don't know when. I drive a Volvo which I'd like to pass to the kids. I dream of buying something fun and cute for myself, like a Mini Cooper. But it needs to wait until I have a job again.

I sew and knit. Sometimes I drop stuff off at my friend's gallery. Sometimes it sells. I don't think most of what I make is Art. Every once in awhile my craft crosses that line. That makes me happy, though I'm happy with things nicely handcrafted too.

I'm overweight. I joined Weight Watchers, but haven't been to a meeting since the first one. With my birthday and both kids' birthdays over, I want to try this again. People say it's a good program that really works.

There has to be more to my life than this. I want to be a writer. I want to go interesting places and have adventures. I want to make things with my own hands. I want to fall in love again. I want my home to be my sanctuary. I want friends and colleagues. I want to live a long and fascinating life.

How do I start?

Grace In Small Things #1

2009-10-29T23:05:00.000-07:00

1. New beginnings

2. No more family birthdays until next fall

3. Perusing the new course schedule for winter term

4. Puppies that sleep until at least 6am

5. Making things from my fabric stash

There's an App for That

2009-09-05T12:48:00.000-07:00

Steampunk cracks me up!

source: b3ta

Busy Signal

2009-08-17T20:50:00.000-07:00

I'm working six, sometimes seven, days a week right now. The grant that funded my original job is drawing to a close and I still have a lot of loose ends. So here's a lazy update of some things in my life:

I'm really going to go to Las Vegas with my friend from high school, Becky Two, and four of her friends. This is going to be a crazy busy weekend at my job and I've been thinking that the responsible think to do would be to stay home and work. But as of today I have a plane ticket, so I'm going. I'm also taking an extra day off to hit the hair salon and then drive to Bend, since my early morning flight was a two-person deal out of the Redmond airport.

I needed a cute dress for both our fundraiser at work and my trip to Vegas, so I bought a sweet little black number at Macy's, with The Star's approval. She's much better at choosing for me than I am. But my new dress is sleeveless, so I'm madly knitting a shrug (from this free pattern) to wear with it. The fundraiser is Saturday and I'm about 3/4 finished.

The Artist is finally getting some help with his mental health. I've long thought that he was diagnosable, perhaps bi-polar. He's seeing a counselor at his school weekly and has taken the first step towards medication by seeing a psychiatrist. These things are not easy when you've had a lifelong fear of doctors and no health insurance, but I hope that he will feel better soon.

Both kids got to attend summer camp this year, for the first time ever. The Star went to a two week teen writing and art program at Marylhurst University. Getting her all the way to West Linn (as far south of Portland as we are north) each day was an issue, but we were able to ride share with another Vancouver family who brought her home. This was during the Portland Heat Wave of 2009, when we had record high temperatures, so she spent her days in the air conditioned school buildings and was driven home in an air conditioned Cadillac Escalade. Plush.

The Magician participated in Project Youth Doc, a four week documentary film program. Again, not in Vancouver. Each day we'd drive him across the river to Oregon to the closest light rail station. He'd take the light rail to his program at the Hollywood Theatre and then I'd pick him up at the station again, sitting in the rush hour traffic for 30 minutes to get the 3 miles back home. I'm looking forward to the premier of his film, The H Word, on Friday. Hopefully it will get posted on YouTube, so that I can share it with you.

The Artist found something online called "100 Things in 100 Days" (no link, since I can't find what he read) that challenges you to discard stuff. I tried to make up one better--"8 Things a Week." The first week went great and I tossed a bunch of stuff that I'd been carrying around in the trunk of my car, such as our useless 2001 iMac and all my plastic knitting needles. I have a lot more stuff that I can live without, but lately seem to only be adding to the "want" list. One of the top things on that list: a new MacBook. Mine is completely dead. It's probably the power supply, since it hasn't recharged properly since I got it a few years ago. It was my dad's and he gave it to me, not out of the goodness of his heart, but as an excuse to get himself a new one.

My credit counselor says that if I pay off my debts in the next few months (a good bet thanks to my good fortune), then I should be eligible to buy a house next summer. I've never been fond of renting and would much rather have my own house. It's been six years since we sold the house in Canada, so I qualify as a "first time homebuyer" again. Let's hope the $8000 credit is renewed for 2010!

I bought a pair of running shoes and haven't been for a run, or even a walk, for about a month. I'm exhausted by long days at work and difficulties at home. The Artist has been walking the dog every morning at 6am, but I'm no longer walking with him then or in the evening.

I met one of my blog heroes this past week: Danny Evans from Dad Gone Mad. He was funny in person, too. I went out for drinks after his reading at Powell's City of Books and spent much of my evening talking with a cool couple who are both middle school language arts teachers. Now that's got to be a hard job.

Good Fortune Update

2009-08-06T17:00:00.000-07:00

I guess I'm now free to tell my loyal readers (hello, you two!) that the "good fortune" described a few weeks ago is an inheritance. From my uncle's ex-wife who took her own life. It's a rather sizable amount of money and changes the timelines for several things in my life, such as ridding myself of all debt and buying a house. Bittersweet.

Considering my tiny, tiny family, it blows my mind that I've inherited money multiple times. Of course, considering my tiny, tiny family, I guess that there is no one else to put in the will.

I'm nervous about this money. I haven't always (never!) been good with these things and I refuse to make the same mistakes. I will retain the financial planner that my aunt used in Vermont since I already have a comfortable raport with him. He gets that I want to spend some money for a "lifestyle upgrade" but that I also would like to help my kids with college and have my own retirement fund.

I have to admit that I'm excited about the possibility of owning a car (still used!) that isn't older than my daughter--and passing that old Volvo to her when she gets her license early next year.

My First Giveaway

2009-08-06T12:40:00.000-07:00

I've been reading Danny Evans of Dad Gone Mad since early 2006. Like most of the blogs I read regularly, his was probably a link on someone else's page. Don't remember who.

Danny and I have very little in common. He's a tall, skinny Jewish dude with a foul mouth and a love of all things sports. I'm not. The only wiener I blog about is my dog. But I still love his blog and the insight it gives me into the male mind.

Danny has recently written a book. A damn good book about male depression. Since I know a little something about depression, I found it insightful and breathtakingly honest. I'm fortunate that my depression was short-lived and managed easily with a few months of Prozac. I cried constantly, but still made it to work each day (while I had a job).

On Wednesday, I'll be meeting Danny in person when he visits Powell's City of Books in Portland. I'm also going to join his entourage for a few drinks.

But here's my cool idea: I'm going to have him sign his book (which I just finished over my lunch break) and then I'm going to give it away, hopefully to someone who needs it. And I'd like that person to read it and then pass it on.

I have low expectations for comments, but that's the way these things are done. I'll randomly choose the winner on Thursday, 8/13, after I've met the real Dad Gone Mad.

Good Fortune

2009-07-18T16:10:00.000-07:00

My fortune cookie on Thursday said something along the lines of "help will come from an unexpected place" and that is what I'm currently coping with. Something unexpected has happened that has the potential to be life-changing.

I had every intention of writing a serialized story this month, but then things got weird for me. I still like the 500 word episode format and will try to get back to the story sometime, just not in July.

If a Maple Fell on Fir Street...

2009-07-17T20:18:00.000-07:00

Came home to find that our ancient maple tree lost a branch, sometime between 11am and 6pm. The weather here: hot and still. So what happened?

Running Shoes

2009-07-12T15:34:00.000-07:00

I ran on Thursday after work, before the walking tour of the Land Bridge that I helped to organize. The running consisted of my trying to follow the "Couch to 5K" program, but was more like "Couch to Chair Next to the Couch." I ran only two of the 60 second segments. Otherwise walked the hills near work.

This was the second time that I added a bit of jogging to my walk. And the second time that I had pain in the outside muscle of my lower leg. A bit of google tells me that my shoes are wrong and that I'm overpronating. So I need to get new running shoes. The pair I have I bought at the Nike Outlet and I've liked them for walking. Apparently they're not right for my running gait.

I'll be going to Fit Right Northwest, which is recommended by everyone around as the best running shoe store. The do the whole video on a treadmill thing that ensures that you get the right shoes for you.

I'd be excited about new shoes (what girl isn't!) except for the money issue. Our 4th of July vacation was an out-of-the-ordinary expense and I also just paid for Harry's summer term at community college. Also am very excited about an upcoming trip to Las Vegas, but not excited about the money I'll be spending, even though it's a bargain.

Then again, it's only money. I'm not going to let my worries get in the way of getting healthy. And that's not just my body, but also my attitude.

My new scale is being kind to me. This morning I was 200 lbs even--down from 209.6 when I went to the doctor for my wrist sprain on 6/22. However, looking back through my health records I see that I was 185 when I was treated for depression in 2006. Losing my job in 2007 was difficult for me and my weight just creeped up and up.

My goal before Vegas, Sept. 18: 180 lbs.
My goal for my birthday, Oct. 22: RUN 5K

Wellness Blog

2009-07-09T15:51:00.000-07:00

Perhaps this isn't just a fitness blog, but instead about my "wellness" in general. Because I feel compelled to write about my visit to the doctor yesterday.

I had a list of things to discuss with this woman I had never met. I don't get to the doctor often, just if I have an illness or injury that can't be ignored. I went a few weeks ago when I sprained my arm and I went in November 2006 when I needed antidepressants. The doctor that saw me then has retired, so my HMO gave me someone new. And I loved her.

She allowed me to tell her that I'm overweight and ready to begin an exercise program. "Good for you!" she said. My blood pressure and heart are perfect, no reason not to sweat.

She looked over my bum arm and pronounced it "not broken," which I already knew. But she validated my concerns and suggested that if it isn't completely better in two weeks I should see her again. She told me to stretch it, but be gentle, and continue to take the ibuprofen which is not just for pain, but also inflamation and swelling.

She gave me a prescription for a steroid cream for my eczema and some specific advice about how to use it. If it doesn't clear up with this, I should see a dermatologist. In 2005 I saw a doctor about the eczema who said I should just learn to live with it.

She did my well-woman exam, which hadn't been done since 2002. I thought it was 7 years overdue, but it turns out that pap smears are now recommended every three years, not yearly. And she removed the IUD that I had inserted back in 2002 and which was supposed to be removed or replaced in 2007. My Mirena IUD kept me period and pregnancy free for 7 years, but I'm a bit excited to be off all the hormones. I'm just me now and I'll see how that goes.

When I saw the doc in the minor injury clinic about my arm on June 22, I weighed 209.5 lbs. Yesterday I weighted 206. I have a new mini-goal to lose 20 lbs by September 18.

What's special about September 18? you might ask.

That's the day I'm flying to Las Vegas for a fun-filled girls weekend! Cannot wait. I'm going to get a rockin' new haircut, paint my toenails and wear mascara. And those things may not stay in Las Vegas.

Vacation Exercise

2009-07-05T17:50:00.000-07:00

I've gotten up before the rest of the family each morning on this vacation to walk with the dog.

Friday: 1.81 miles
Saturday: 1.52 miles
Today: 1.24 miles

Still slow. No running. Also did some bipedal transportation on Friday and Saturday.

Episode Two: Kelly (1996)

2009-07-05T07:24:00.000-07:00

Kelly was just tucking Aveline into bed when the telephone rang. Jim’s brother, Dan, was calling from the hospital. Again. He’d spent years of his life there, waiting, as their mother slowly died. This time it was finally over.

Kelly didn’t really know in what way her mother-in-law, Delores, was sick; only that it had punctuated her own relationship with Jim since they first started dating. Soon after they met, Jim took her to Topeka to meet his folks. Morrie was a retired long-haul trucker who now fiddled with lawn mowers. Delores raised Siamese cats. But they weren’t home when Jim’s old car pulled into the driveway. Jim’s mother had just been admitted to the medical center with internal bleeding. They drove back home. Jim did not like hospitals.

Delores was buried in a typical cemetery with lush green grass and minimal trees. Jim borrowed a tie from Kelly’s brother when they dropped four-year-old Aveline off to play with her cousins.

After the ceremony, there was small talk, the murmuring of condolences, the sighing and whispers of “better place.” Dark suits and somber dresses. Jim stood stiffly with Kelly at his side, her hand clutched in his. They were turning to leave when Dr. Sorensen approached. He had been Delores’s doctor for many years, as well as a friend of the family.

“We did all we could.” As an oncologist, this was a common line. “Maybe if we’d been able to do the bone marrow transfer...”

“Odds weren’t good, with such a small family,” Kelly consoled.

The doctor murmured his assent. “Even if you had been her son, Jim, the chances of a child being a match are not much better than for a stranger.”

Jim furrowed his brow, clearly not understanding.

“You know, being adopted.” The doctor stopped. “Jim, you didn’t know?”

Jim grabbed the doctor’s arm and led him away from the dwindling crowd, his other hand still wrapped around Kelly’s. “I don’t understand. I’m not her son?”

“Not biologically. Simple blood typing. You’re a type AB neg, and Delores was O positive. There’s no way that you could be her child. But surely you knew. Surely Morris knows.”

That’s when the nightmares started. Finally free of his sick, pathetic mother in his waking hours, he was terrorized by her in his sleep. He woke three, four times a night, sweating, heart pounding. Kelly would hold him while he described dreams of gnawing hunger and improbable alligators.

He would stay up until the small hours of the morning, swirling acrylic paint across canvas and sipping whiskey over ice. It less than a year before he quit his job by simply not going anymore.

His few attempts to learn more went nowhere. Morrie, his stepfather, claimed to be as surprised as anyone. Kelly suggested counseling, but it was met with anger and disdain. Jim painted. He drank. And Kelly quietly took over the reins of the family.

Look for Episode Three on Wednesday, July 8.

39 Minutes

2009-07-02T09:44:00.000-07:00

I got up and walked BEFORE WORK today. Go me!

My plan was to walk for 30 minutes, but it took me 39 to get back home. I walked for 1.64 miles, so that's 2.5 miles per hour. I was passed by an old man walking his pomeranian.

I wore my new sports bra and the technical t-shirt I bought at REI earlier this week. I drank a few ounces of orange juice before I left home.

Felt great.

Episode One: Raven

2009-07-02T07:59:00.000-07:00

If you lie quietly in bed in the very early morning, in the half-light before time begins, and listen carefully, the language of crows is easy to understand. "Here I am." That's really all there is to say and we say it again and again.
--Louis Jenkins

Raven made a fresh pot of tea, absently tapping the corner of the envelope on the kitchen counter. She was patient, yet curious. The thin envelope was addressed to Dr. Aveline Otis, a name she hadn’t used in years.

Tea steeped, she sat on the purple couch in the corner of the cabin and slit open the envelope. The letter was short and she read it twice before she set it aside and took a sip from the delicate cup.

Father’s birth mother. Elderly. Dying wish.

She knew nothing of her biological grandmother. Her father’s failed search for answers had pushed him away from his wife and child and into the uneasy arms of abstract art and alcohol. And then death.

She washed her teacup and prepared a checklist. She would need a sitter for the dogs, the chickens and the garden. It wasn’t a good time; it never was. Still, she didn’t hesitate. The letter was urgent. If she didn’t take this opportunity now, it was clear that there would not be another.

Raven was in her early forties. Seven years ago, breast cancer had forced her to reassess the long hours, the stress and the emotional toll of her successful hematology practice. When her cancer was safely in remission, she had moved north, to three acres on Moresby Island, a land of primordial rainforest and Haida legends.

She had felt like a ghost, chemo-thin with soft white hair just starting to curl around her ears. It was the old man at the market who first referred to her as White Raven. He would shield his face with his hand and squint, as if she were too bright to look at directly.

“White Raven is the Wonder Worker,” he said finally, without irony. “The white raven is not our Trickster, but means creation and survival. I see you have survived.”

When the long summer days drew people outside to gardens and beaches and farm stands, she introduced herself as Raven and her neighbors accepted it without question. She had been reborn and given wings.

Now she hoped she would get the chance to learn more about her roots. Her true roots, not the false stories that had been fed to her father by the woman who raised him. Not the lies.

Raven’s first clue was the letter from Camille Browne, attorney with Pearman and Browne, LLC. Ms. Browne wrote of her client, Raven’s grandmother, with obvious respect and affection. This was no crazy old lady, but a woman of substance. A woman with the power to find her granddaughter in the far-off land of mist and call her home.

Thankful that yesterday had been laundry day, Raven packed for her journey.

Look for Episode Two on Sunday, July 5.

Not My Food Diary

2009-07-01T21:05:00.000-07:00

Sometimes it's smart to cut your losses. I'm not really using myfooddiary.com, so I canceled the membership. There are other (free) online food logging sites to use when I'm ready. I don't want to be paying $9 per month for something I don't use.

Run Like Hell

2009-07-01T10:06:00.000-07:00

See the ticker above?

My goal is to RUN the Halloween-themed Run Like Hell in Portland on October 25. This is a 5K--just three days after I turn 40.

I haven't run a step, but I'm already thinking about my costume...

Declaration Editing's Super Short Summer Serial Challenge

2009-07-01T09:22:00.000-07:00

Tomorrow I will be posting the first episode of my story, The Language of Crows. This is a story I began working on in 2001 or 2002. It's never gotten very far. It was also my National Novel Writing Month story in 2007--I got to about 5000 words (of 50,000).

The challenge this month is to write a story in 9-12 episodes, each no more than 500 words. I'm going to condense my story from an Oprah-worthy epic into this short format. Just to be done with it. Perhaps then I can get on to other writing.

Look for Episode One tomorrow. In the meantime, here is a synopsis to whet your appetite:

When Jim’s mother dies, he learns that he could not possibly be her biological son. But the circumstances of his conception and birth are not revealed until his middle-aged daughter, Raven, receives a mysterious letter from a woman in South Carolina claiming to be her grandmother.

Advice I Can Actually Take...

2009-06-30T22:42:00.000-07:00

From johnbingham.com:

"If you are new to running or being active, one of the best ways to get started is to take an entire week to think about running. Each day that week, think about when and where you might have run that day. Think about how fast or how far you would run. Remind yourself that NEXT week, you really are going to run."

John Bingham writes a column in Runners World that addresses the "penguin" runner--someone who runs for the love of running, possibly slowly.

In other news, I just committed myself to volunteering at Northwest Personal Training's triathlon on July 19.

Third Verse Same as the First

2009-06-29T11:51:00.000-07:00

tap, tap, tap Is this thing on?

Okay, so today I have logged my breakfast. I didn't eat enough. I logged my snack. It was coffee with vanilla artificial creamer. And a lettuce leaf from my co-worker's garden.

Not a super (re)start, but I'm more determined than ever to get off my ass and get going. My friend Mel just posted the "Why I Tri" story I asked her to write. So inspiring, since I never would have guessed that she'd be doing triathlons at 40/41 years old.

I'm now less than 4 months until my own 40th birthday. And fat. And often unhappy, depressed. I think I hide it pretty well. But this weekend I learned that my aunt took her own life. I didn't even know she was bi-polar.

My wrist, which I sprained last Sunday, is better. I'm not sure I'm coordinated enough for tennis. I really want to learn to run. But I can't even talk to my husband about this. When I expressed that I wanted to "walk a little faster" he told me it was a bad idea and seems to take every opportunity to dis "power walking." He makes me crazy.

This isn't supposed to be a blog about my relationship, but I know that my emotions are tied directly to my eating and exercising. I need more support. When our daughter made baked potatoes the other day for dinner (with sour cream and bacon, mind you) he was so disappointed that he made me take him out for Taco Bell. I don't know if I can get healthy around him.

I'm oddly excited about seeing the doctor on 7/8. I want to have my IUD removed and see what happens with my body. I sort of want to be told that I'm not healthy and need to make lifestyle changes--doctor's orders.

It's a few minutes past noon. I think I'm going to take my hairy armpits to the store and buy a sports bra.

Smaller and Smaller

2009-06-28T21:31:00.000-07:00

Alexis was the first person I had ever met who changed her identity by changing her name. Born Linda Seymour in 1947, she chose the gender-neutral "Alexis" when she left her marriage and came out as a lesbian. Her ex-husband was my father's middle brother.

She was close friends with my mother, even long after they were no longer married to brothers. They kept in touch through my mother's second marriage--and second divorce. They exchanged letters as my mother was dying of cancer. And then she was one of the first people to write to me directly when my mom died--to offer her condolences and her friendship.

I have pictures of us together when I was very small, but I don't remember meeting her until the summer of 1990. I drove to Pennsylvania with my friend Melissa for my first Pennsic War and borrowed Mel's car to swing by Wayne, Penn. where Alexis was living with her girlfriend Val. I drank green tea there for the first time--steeping it for much too long waiting for some color to appear. I also visited the senior center Alexis directed and many of the little old ladies said they could "see the family resemblance."

We corresponded pretty regularly through my college years and when the kids were small. She even made a trip out to Kansas to see us once or twice when visiting an old friend in Missouri. When she and Val broke up, she moved to Burlington, Vermont. I always wanted to visit but it seemed impossibly far away and impossibly expensive.

By the time she moved, we were only talking a couple of times a year. We'd be on the phone for an hour and I'd realize I'd done all the talking. When I asked her about herself, she always demurred that things were the same with her as always.

In Vermont she worked for the Roman Catholic Diocese and converted to Catholicism. I think she found it difficult to square her religion with her sexuality, but she didn't say much about it.

After her father died a few years ago she left Vermont to care for her aging mother. They'd spend winters in Naples, Florida and summers in Nebraska. She was devoted to her mother and refused to even think about a vacation or respite. Her brother and sister had families of their own and Alexis felt uniquely qualified, with her Masters in Social Work and experience with geriatrics, to be the primary caregiver and companion.

You know where this is leading, don't you?

Saturday morning, in the middle of epic strawberry freezer jam making, my phone rang and the caller ID said "Pete" --my dad's middle brother, the only one of the three still alive. I didn't get to it soon enough and he didn't leave a message. It was the two year anniversary of my dad's accident, so I fleetingly thought that maybe he was nostalgic. I quickly forgot and didn't call him back.

I was napping yesterday afternoon (48 cups of jam in the freezer) when my phone rang again. It was Alexis's brother, Ron, with bad news. My favorite remaining relative, the one with whom I shared no blood, had taken her own life. Although it had been nearly three weeks, her brother was clearly still stunned. Their mother was still alive, though expected to pass at any time. Apparently the strain of caring for her, as well as her imminent death, was too much for Alexis to bear. I learned from Ron that Alexis was bi-polar, though medication had seemed to help her immensely.

As he talked I felt like I had done Alexis a great disservice by always being so willing to chat on and on about my job, my home, my family. She was the one person who really understood my complex, ambivalent relationship with my father, because she knew him. She was a great listener. But I had not made enough of an effort to listen to her.

Several times I had suggested that she move out here when her family responsibilities were over. There are no grandparents, no wise elders, in our tiny family and she did not have children of her own. We would adopt her, I said, and look after her. She could play grandma--if not to my children, now teens, then perhaps to their children. I thought this could really happen, and maybe she did too. It turns out that she left her estate--a retirement account--to me.

Ron said that she always spoke so highly of me. She loved me. And her family understood that she wanted to do what she could to honor that relationship. But I don't want her money; I just want a chance to call her and listen to her issues for once.

Our family is small and keeps getting smaller. I have an aunt and a handful of cousins, all too fundamentalist to have much in common with. The Artist has a brother who he hasn't spoken to since 2002. I have a step-mother. He has a step-father. I have an uncle; we're not close. He has a few aunts and uncles and cousins he'd be hard pressed to name. Our families of origin have not always been kind, or supportive.

Alexis was both. I'm going to miss her, and what might have been.

First Day of Summer Quarter

2009-06-23T01:12:00.000-07:00

The Artist had a long day at school. He got home at 9pm and announced that he'd like to take a vacation where "pineapples fall on the beach and pigs automatically roast themselves."

Summer at Rancho Cherry-O

2009-06-18T22:58:00.000-07:00

Today was the first day of summer. Not by the "longest day of the year" rule, but based on the kids being finished with school for the year. It feels like a new beginning, even though it was just a Thursday.

I enjoyed a nice breakfast with the lovely Rikki, in town from Kansas for a tech conference. Meetings, phone calls, meetings. Then skipped out of work at 4pm after an off site meeting and took the kids to Trader Joe's. (It always surprises and amuses me that my children love grocery stores so much.)

The Star wrote a long list of things to do this summer. What a planner.

Here's a few of mine (no particular order):

Log at least 18 more hours for Ooligan Press, so that I've earned the "A" in Publishing Lab that they've already given me.
Reupholster both the orphan dining room chair and the corner chair. Already have purchased Anna Maria Horner's Pressed Flowers for the first one. Want to use her Sketchbook fabric for the other, but am concerned that my hairy black dog will ruin it.
Participate in Declaration Editing's Super Short Summer Serial Challenge. Look for the first episode on Friday, July 2.
Paint the wall in the kitchen. I already own the paint and the wall is only about 75 sq. feet.
Finish organizing/unpacking the house while I can still call it the "new" house.
Sew curtains for most of the rooms in the house.
Take a nice vacation.
Learn to run.

Note: I've always wanted to live in a house that had a name. For several years before I knew him, The Artist and several of his friends lived in an old house in Lawrence, Kansas that went by the name, "The Ship of the Devine Retribution." He always spoke fondly of "The Ship" and it gave a lot of credence to the kids' beliefs that he used to be a pirate. So blog-wise I'll call my house Rancho Cherry-o, although it will never stick and is a little silly.

Take Two

2009-06-18T22:53:00.000-07:00

Sooo, food diary = FAIL. Haven't logged for 3 days, maybe 4. Will try again tomorrow.

But in the meantime, took an excellent walk today on my own (pup was walking with my son). Ipod with upbeat tunes.

Chose oatmeal with fresh strawberries for breakfast this morning at Bijou Cafe with Rikki. Some brown sugar and half & half, not too much.

Dinner was roasted chicken, mashed potatoes (made with soy milk since we're out of 1%), brussels sprouts.

Prefer not to talk about the ginger thins at work.

One Week In

2009-06-14T23:47:00.000-07:00

I have tracked my food consumption for seven days. I'm not actively changing how I eat yet, just being more conscious about what goes in my mouth. And it is obvious that what goes in my mouth is junk. This next week is the same plan: bite it and write it. Then I'm going to analyze what I'm eating and make changes.

I've also exercised nearly every day this week. I skipped the first day (June 8) and yesterday. Today however, I purchased three tennis rackets at the thrift store and the kids and I went to Lincoln School to hit balls around. We're really not very good. But it accomplished the goal of raising my heart rate and making me sweat a bit. I'm looking forward to going again.

I need access to a scale, since I'm not really sure what I weigh and I'd like to track it. I'm also going to make an appointment to see my doctor about a variety of physical issues I'm having.

Positive changes. Still no running.

My Food Diary

2009-06-11T23:19:00.000-07:00

This was the third day that I kept a food log. I have joined myfooddiary.com, which has a great database of food, with brand names, an exercise log, forums and more. Seeing people's before and after pictures is very inspiring.

I've also been reading some running blogs, but haven't actually run. My feet are in bad shape with the eczema and hurt quite a bit. I'm also worried that I don't have a sports bra and good enough socks. I'm worried that my thighs will chafe. I'm worried that I'll get injured, since running seems sort of hard on the joints.

I'm also worried that I won't ever get started.

On the other hand, I walked with The Artist and the dog for nearly an hour today. And wanted to go faster than they did. I felt very energized all afternoon/evening. Exciting.

The Beginning

2009-06-11T01:54:00.000-07:00

I moved to a new neighborhood two months ago and now walk my dog nearly every evening, a mile round trip. Just getting moving is a feat. I'm 5'4", at least 200 lbs. and 132 days from my 40th birthday.

But some of my (non-local) friends have taken up running. Friends my age. In fact, several of them used to be the chubby girls back when I was thin. And I think "I could do that, too."

I haven't told anyone. I haven't bought shoes or a sports bra. But I'm going to. And I'm going to write about it here. And then share when I feel like it's not an unrealistic goal.

Fat girls can learn to run, too.

On the Way to School This Morning

2009-06-09T14:11:00.000-07:00

Me: So I went out to dinner last night with Susan and had spinach salad.

The Star: Good choice!

Me: With bacon salad dressing.

The Magician: Good choice!

1987

2009-05-30T11:49:00.000-07:00

It is May or June, 1987. Theoretically I am a senior in high school, about to graduate and go away to college. But I've actually lived away from home for ten months now, as a Rotary International exchange student in Pargas, Finland.

On this particular day I am receiving a lovely parting gift from my school headmaster, a copy of W. F. Kirby's translation of The Kalevala. (Years down the road, in May 2009, I will do a presentation for my Archaeology of the Book class featuring this same book.)

Please take a good look at my sweater. I knit it myself after my second host mom, Gina, taught me to knit. I'm particularly pleased that my socks match exactly. I wear bright ivory eyeshadow all the way up to my eyebrows and teal (to totally match!) on my eyelids.

In Finland, the graduates from the lukio (high school) get these cool hats (on the right side of the photo). They keep them forever and wear them every year for Vappu, May 1st, a day of drinking, picnics, drinking, and drunken carousing in the streets.

Not being a graduate of the lukio, I do not get a student cap in Finland. Drunken carousing, however, did commence.

Homeward Bound

2009-05-20T12:25:00.000-07:00

Decided in just the last day or two to head over the mountains to Bend, Oregon for the 4th of July holiday.

I have many emotions about this, since I grew up in Bend and graduated from high school there. I associate this community with my mother--strongly--and just being there, in the dry desert air spiked with the smell of juniper and sage, the memories are always overwhelming.

I can count on one hand the number of times I've been to Bend since the summer after my mom died. That summer I lived with her friend Ruth, cleaned hotel rooms Wednesday through Sunday, and sorted through the mountain of household possessions she had left in a storage unit at the edge of town. I rolled and totaled my car--actually my mom's car--in July and I had a big garage sale in August. Then I headed back to school in Iowa and hardly looked back.

When we realized in 2003 that we weren't going to make it in Canada, we considered moving to Bend. But that was the boom time and there was no way to afford the housing, so we settled for Portland. Now Bend is going through a rough patch. The front page of the Sunday Oregonian this week was about the foreclosures and unemployment there. When I left Bend in 1987, the population was 17,000. Now I guess it pushes 80,000--ultimately an unsustainable growth rate.

I took the kids to Bend a couple of years ago. Don't remember why. I might have had a job interview. But The Artist has never been there. When we go to Topeka, Kansas, he has a million stories--"that's the fence I jumped when running from the cops" and "that's the office building I cleaned late at night, when I was just 13."

The places in my stories don't exist anymore. I think the Circle K is some other convinience store. The Pilot Butte Motor Inn isn't on the visitor bureau's Web site. The old lumber mill is now The Old Mill District. Even Mirror Pond is having issues with rapid sedimentation.

But I'm still looking forward to the visit. I'm hoping to stay with Ruth again, but have hedged my bets with a deposit on a vacation rental. We'll participate in the Pet Parade and see the fireworks. I'll reconnect with old friends and make some new memories with my family. Good times.

1

2009-04-29T10:10:00.000-07:00

And in other news...

Lane's Underfoot Chewbacca Rocket, AKA Arlo, had his first birthday.

39.5

2009-04-29T09:57:00.000-07:00

I'm just six months (minus a few days) from my 40th birthday!

I've been thinking about a big party with cocktails! and staged photos! and a band! and delicious food! But then Sunday we went to the beach with the dog and had so much fun that I'm considering spending my money on a family vacation instead. I'd still have a party, but it might be an "open house" at our new place with casual drinks and snacks.

I have abandoned my 40x40 blog, but I moved the countdown to the top of this page and consolidated the meager entries into Cherry Bombastic. I have indeed accomplished several more things from the list that I may or may not write about. (I would like to recommend the pancake breakfast at the Sons of Norway lodge--and eating pancakes with one of your best high school friends makes them even better.)

I'm old. But I feel pretty good and I like to think of my gray hairs as "silver"--and that they just make my head sparkle.

Happy Easter!

2009-04-11T21:37:00.000-07:00

I'm really bad about celebrating holidays. I think Christmas is too expensive. I haven't carved my pumpkin in years. I forgot to wear green on St. Patrick's Day and I totally missed Våffeldagen because of the move.

But we did buy Easter stuff this year. Chocolate bunnies, pastel malt balls, 99-cent Chinese-made baskets and plastic eggs. Festive!

Our family is faaaaar from religious. For us Easter, like Christmas, is a secular holiday based mostly on food and gift-giving traditions.

I'm off to boil eggs now...

Progressive

2009-04-10T09:24:00.000-07:00

I have a small collection of vintage wedding photos. I love the fashion and the formality of the poses. I like to see whether the brides and grooms look alike.

I ran across this yesterday and love the pictures. I couldn't find these anywhere else online in the limited time I had to look. I 'd love to see some old pictures of "lady companions."

Have Your Peeps Call My Peeps

2009-04-08T16:28:00.000-07:00

According to my daughter, who has friends of every sort, this is "Church Week." We're not a church-going family, so I was somewhat unaware that all of the seven days leading up to Easter are significant. Silly me--I thought it was just a three day thing. Isn't that how long Jesus ripened in a cave before the Resurrection?

I am well aware, however, of another week being celebrated: Peeps Week. My former college roommate, Vikki, has always been a fan of Peeps. On Sunday, she'll be debuting a Peeps movie she made and until then, each day on her blog is Peeps related. You might also want to take a look at her funny Xtranormal talk show "What's Hot?" .

Serious Eats is also celebrating Peeps Week! Check out their recipe for S'Meeps. Yummy.

Mommy's Fuzzy Wuzzy Book

2009-04-07T15:17:00.000-07:00

When I was very young, my mother read to me constantly. The Monster at the End of This Book was a favorite, as well as a selection of books from her own childhood: Big Susan, Geraldine Belinda, The Cold Blooded Penguin, Sally Goes Shopping Alone. One of her old books, however, stands out as my first memory of a book as an object, rather than just as a story.

Miss Sniff, written by Jane Curry and published in 1945, tells the tale of a mischievous black kitten that Polly Pinks receives as an Easter present. The cat causes trouble by climbing the curtains, perching on the rooftop with another black cat and eventually falling directly into a bucket of yellow paint. But it so happens that the wrong cat is rescued from the paint and Miss Sniff has exchanged places with the similar-looking “Mr. Sniff.” In time the secret is revealed: Miss Sniff comes home with three tiny black kittens of her own.

One of a series of “Fuzzy Wuzzy” books, all the cat illustrations in Miss Sniff are velvet flocked. The texture of the illustrations is the book’s standout feature, and the reason that I remember it so vividly. Additionally, the illustrations are bright and cheerful and Curry’s text asks simple questions of the reader, such as “can you guess?” The girl in the story, with her rosy cheeks and blonde hair, always reminds me of my mother, who must have looked just like that in 1945, when she was four years old.

I still have my mother’s copy of this book. Its corners are rounded and the spine is held together, barely, with crispy masking tape. The cat illustrations on the cover and inside are still fuzzy, but the pages have yellowed. Everywhere the velvet touches, a ghostly impression has been left on the facing page. However, try as I might, I could never interest my own kids in this too sweet story. Perhaps I should have tried The Monster at the End of This Book.

Bella Confronts Edward

2009-04-01T11:41:00.000-07:00

Suck on this, Multimedia Student. 1 hour, no classes.

I Make Things

2009-03-06T15:20:00.000-08:00

So, apologies to Leah for claiming that I've never really sold anything, artwise. This is not completely true: the same week that I wrote this, I sold two things at her gallery.

It is also not true that I never make anything new. I dropped off a knitted/felted purse for her just yesterday.

Now I have an entire shelf area devoted to Eliza, Fiber Artist.

I also recently attending a coptic binding workshop at Portland's Independent Publishing Resource Center. I left with a nice little handmade book. Please take no notice of the bloody smudge partway through, even experienced seamstresses sometimes poke their fingers...

Thrifty is the New Black

2009-03-04T15:41:00.000-08:00

Finally we have found a new home. It's in a great neighborhood and has nearly everything we need. Like three bedrooms and a fenced yard for the pup.

Too bad we can hardly afford it.

I've said a few times that this current economic situation hasn't affected us much. You can't lose what you don't have, after all. But that's not really the whole story.

The state of the global economy affects everyone. For our family, it means that we've been forced out of our rental home of nearly four years and into one that costs nearly $200 more each month.

I have been searching for a new house since December. And I rejected some really good houses because the rent was $1050-1100 per month! Guess what we'll now be paying...

So while it's not the small stuff that gets you, it is a place to start. We've all agreed to cook at home more (in our tiny galley kitchen) and to pack lunches. What are you doing to save?

1991

2009-02-27T19:29:00.000-08:00

One photo is not adequate to sum up my year of two loves.

This is Ryan, posing in the fog at Hebron Academy in Maine, where he attended high school. We met during New Student Days at Grinnell College and have been together ever since. While he has never specifically asked me to marry him, we both assume that is where were heading. And now that we're college seniors, that future seems inevitable.

However, Ryan is doing a 3-2 program: three years at Grinnell and two years at Rensselaer Polytechnic Institute, so he is spending 1990-91 in Upstate New York. I plan to join him there after graduation.

In the meantime, I've managed to schedule my classes on Tuesdays and Thursdays only. I take full advantage of my four-day weekends by traveling extensively to SCA events. I'm known in the Society of Creative Anachronism as Suvetar Kalevalainen.

At one of these events, I feel under the weather and realize that I've come down with the chicken pox. I spend finals week in Des Moines staying with my friend Melissa and her roommates--all of whom have already had the chicken pox. If you look close enough, I'm still a little scabby in all my graduation photos.

Most of my family, including my dad, maternal grandma, and my dad's cousin Bill, attend my college graduation. I graduate with a degree in American Studies with departmental honors. Ryan drives his Volvo station wagon from New York to receive his bachelors degree in physics.

It is at dinner that same night that I first question my future with Ryan. Although he's met my father before, their scary similarity--down to the fact that they are both left-handed physics majors--begins to creep me out. I don't want to marry my dad. Not realizing there is any problem, Ryan goes back to New York.

I move into Melissa's house for the summer and the very next weekend I meet Kalos. It's The Artist and I'm immediately attracted to him. He's nothing like any man I've me before--and specifically nothing like my dad.

By July I've broken up with Ryan and I'm exclusively dating The Artist. He lives in St. Joe, Missouri where he spends his workweek as an apprentice electrician. He spends his weekends the same way I do--traveling around the mid-west to medieval recreation events.

I love the friends I've made in the SCA, especially a bunch of people who live in Lawrence, Kansas. I move there at the end of the summer. Since this is The Artist's home-away-from-home, I see him often, but fool myself that he (and everyone else) doesn't know I'm chasing him.

Just six months after we meet, The Artist and I are married in December 1991 at the courthouse in Lawrence. No one in my family attends.

1985

2009-02-22T08:43:00.000-08:00

My name is Sue and I'm 16. I'm a junior at Mountain View High School in Bend, Oregon.

This is my social year. I spend many Friday nights at Mr. G's, an under-21 dance club. I go there with my best friends Becky and Rene, in Rene's 1967 Plymouth Valiant, the Blue Buzzard. We usually park and drink screwdrivers before staggering across the highway to the club, where we smoke Camel Lights and dance to "Rock Me Amadeus" and "West End Girls." I drunkenly make out with random boys on the dance floor.

For part of the year, I have a boyfriend. He's a second-string football player and I'm a saxophonist in the marching band. He breaks up with me for being "too liberal." Months later we go to prom together, but I come home early with a "headache." No prom sex for Doug--at least not with me.

I'm in preparation for my year as an exchange student. I attend lunchtime meetings at the Greater Bend Rotary Club. I'm usually the only female there, since in 1985 women are still not allowed to be Rotarians. I get together on a regular basis with other in-bound and out-bound exchange students and make some good friends. It's on one of these trips that I meet Wade, Student Body President at Gold Beach High School. We spend months writing deep and meaningful daily letters, but I never see him again.

I don't do much homework this year, instead I paint my nails. And I always match my clothes to the color of the polish. My grades continue to be nearly flawless, except in math where my awesome test scores don't make up for lack of homework. I end up getting a "B" in math--my lowest grade in high school. I don't really care.

I steadily lose weight this year which worries my mom. I attribute it to worry about her. Her cancer is no longer in remission and has, in fact, started to spread.

Quick and Dirty Update

2009-02-10T10:10:00.000-08:00

Car situation: After a mere $2500, my car has a new engine, heating core and headlight, amongst other miscellaneous parts. It went to Olympia (2 hours away) with no problem. When the heat is turned on high, it still smells a little like anti-freeze (sweet), but I'm not worried.

House situation: Still looking for the next rental. The current house is for sale for just $140K, but we've only had one potential buyer come through. It's a weird little house in a neighborhood that is just to the right side of questionable, so I doubt it sells before the foreclosure auction in April.

School situation: I'm taking two classes this quarter: Values Based Management and Grantwriting. Easy classes. I'm looking at the schedule for Spring to find two similarly manageable classes and then will drop to just one class per quarter for Fall 2009 and beyond.

Job situation: It's all good. I'm busy and I'm appreciated. I love my co-workers and my location. We're in a wage freeze, so my duties increased drastically in November, but my salary didn't. But I have a job!!

Family situation: The Artist is in school. He struggles with math, but is doing great with his multimedia classes. The Star is in school (sophomore). She struggles with math, but excels at literary arts, music and socialization. The Magician is in school (8th grade). He struggles with motivation, but has found a challenging, fun role as a theater tech geek.

Pet situation: Arlo is the greatest little dog! We all adore him--although I'd be happy if he'd stop stealing socks and underwear and running around the house. We're interested in getting another dachshund puppy this summer to be his buddy. The cat seems to have adopted the family across the street and doesn't even come home to eat anymore. Only The Star is sad about this.

Art situation: I have some fiber work at Angst Gallery in downtown Vancouver, but no time to make anything new. I have multiple projects partially completed. I've never really sold anything anyway.

Writing situation: I'm collecting information for the novel I want to write this summer when I don't have any classes. (Is anyone interested in going to Seattle in May to see Chinese acrobats?--it's research.) This time I really want to get the thing written. It's a new story: popular fiction rather than the literary masterpiece I had attempted before. No Oprah's Book Club for this one, but it should be fun to write. It has a smart, flexible (Chinese acrobats!), yellow-haired heroine based loosely on The Star, as well as a few historical figures such as Nikola Tesla and Lincoln Beachey. It's set in Portland in 1912.

Friend situation: Although I don't see them enough, I'd like to give a shout out to my local friends Susan and Leah. It's difficult to make friends as an adult and I really appreciate these women.

Did I miss anything? Let me know and I'll add it to the list.

1st College Visit

2009-02-08T21:17:00.000-08:00

Yesterday was Preview Day at Evergreen State College, so I took The Star on her first trip to check out a school. The result: a resounding "maybe...."

On the positive side: Programs. Evergreen offers interdisciplinary programs instead of classes. A program can last for 1-3 quarters and combines several different subjects taught by several faculty. It all fits together seamlessly which gives students the opportunity for off-campus and field study.

What? Okay, here's an example: The Ireland Program. Students have lectures on Irish history, seminars on Irish lit, try some Irish dance and learn Gaelic. And they spend the spring in ...wait for it...Ireland.

Or they have might have a Forest Ecology and Economics program in which the students learn about the life cycle of a tree, the economics of the soft wood lumber industry and the history of U.S.-Canadian trade tariffs. Fascinating.

On the negative side: moss. The campus was in a giant forest. Granted, it's February in the Pacific Northwest, but it was very Forks. The Star is a pale, pale girl. She needs sunlight and I'm concerned that Evergreen might not have enough of it.

Fortunately, she's just a sophomore and we have plenty of time to visit colleges.

obamicon.me

2009-01-22T12:23:00.000-08:00

Get your own...

Yes, Universe, I HEAR You

2009-01-15T11:57:00.000-08:00

So, remember when I was whining about graduate school? Many of my half dozen regular readers suggested that transferring to Evergreen State College--with it's 200 mile round trip weekly commute--might not be the best idea.

But I persisted in thinking that I should explore the option. So last week I was going to head up the highway to attend an information session. But massive snow melt + massive rain = flooding of I-5 halfway between Vancouver and Olympia. The highway was closed for several days and I'm thankful that I didn't get stuck on the northern side of the water.

I rescheduled my appointment for yesterday and took a half-day off in order to run some errands and get to Olympia by 4pm.

Just outside Vancouver, my car made a horrible noise, followed by a more horrible snapping sound. I pulled over to the side of the road, hoping it was a tire or a belt or something else I could identify. Nothing. I restarted the car. HORRIBLE noise. I called a tow truck.

So long story short: 1.25 hours of waiting for a tow truck gave me ample time to decide that commuting to Olympia for graduate school really was a bad idea. (Note to my friends: I'm sorry I didn't listen!) Even with a reliable car (which it mostly has been), I'd still be at the mercy of weather, traffic and other things outside my influence. To say nothing of the toll that adding 3 and 1/2 hours of driving (and getting home around midnight) to my schedule would take. Sure the program looks great, but I don't really know, do I? And what if it wasn't any better?

Besides, I'm taking a great class this quarter: Values Based Management. It's got a bit of reading, but is mostly a skills class, meaning that we'll be practicing actual supervisory skills, like feedback and listening. I'm a little anxious about role playing as a teaching method, but the instructor claims that adults need some anxiety to actually learn.

Are you dying to know what happened to the car? Because dying is about right. It threw a rod and now the engine needs to be replaced. Ka-ching.

A Reason to Be Proud of Vancouver

2009-01-09T13:48:00.000-08:00

Vancouver, Washington is often known as ""The 'Couve or "Vantucky." Not very flattering. Attemps to co-opt "Vangroovy" from the Vancouver up north have fallen flat.

Vancouver is Portland's poor red-headed step-child.

But next Tuesday America's Vancouver has a special role in the inauguration of Barack Obama. Indeed the entire Pacific Northwest will be represented by Vancouver--in the form of a marching band.

Evergreen High School's award winning marching band is one of only about two dozen bands to be chosen to march in the Inaguration Day Parade. More than 1400 schools applied.

Since 2000, Evergreen has captured the Pacific Northwest marching band circuit title four times, and finished second another three times. The band also has earned Sweepstakes awards in either Portland’s Grand Floral or Starlight parades the past five years.

Evergreen High School is not our family's school. In fact, it's not even in our school district. But Vancouver kids are headed to Washington D.C. for an experience they'll never forget and the opportunity to be a small part of a truly historic event. Congratulations!

Further proof that marching bands are awesome!

Welcome to a Whole New Year!

2009-01-01T13:41:00.000-08:00

I resolve to end the year better than I started it--richer, smarter, happier, healthier.

The end.

2008, We Hardly Knew Ya

2008-12-31T09:18:00.000-08:00

I am having a hard time believing that this is the final day of 2008. Tonight: a low-key toast at midnight, a kiss and sleep. Tomorrow is a brand new year.

While 2008 has been a horrible year for many, the Lane family has fared remarkably well. We lost Shasta in September, but otherwise no deaths, accidents, illnesses, evictions, job loss or financial ruin.

As I am every December 31, I'm looking forward to tomorrow. And I think 2009 is going to be a great year to turn 40.

Blog Failure

2008-12-25T22:07:00.000-08:00

So I haven't been to work since Wednesday morning last week. Because we have had Weather. That's right--with a capital "W." Not just the usual Pacific Northwest rain, but Wind and Cold and SNOW. (For awhile there it was approaching a typical winter in Kansas.)

So where, you might ask, is the blogging?

I've spent a lot of time thinking about clever blog posts, but it all came to nothing except the best blog title ever:

The Ham Maid's Tale

Because I had THREE spiral-cut hams in my fridge. But there's really not much to the story: we bought two, each with a $10 off coupon. And then my CEO brought over another. One, two, three. End of story. One has already been reduced to nothing and will flavor tomorrow's beans. Although first it was green eggs and green ham for breakfast. Because our teenagers are easily amused.

So I leave you with the following photo of my smiling dog:

Karen, You Inspire Me

2008-12-16T10:12:00.000-08:00

I got a notice that @karenanderik was now following me on Twitter. Do I know either Karen or Erik, from North Carolina? I don't think so.

So I went to their blog and found this, which made me crack up:

When I type “beer cozy tutorial” into Martha Stewart’s website and it returns with “Embroidered Tea Cozy Tutorial”, I feel like she is judging me.

Funny particularly since I'm considering a switch from coffee to tea--and was researching teapots. Curious about my choice?

They also apparently have recently neutered their dog:

Sweeter words were never spoken than “Yes, we have confirmed Stanley’s neuter for tomorrow morning.”

Dog balls? Is this what we have in common? Is this why we're suddenly net-friends?

No. I finally realized that in a rare moment of charity, I donated a very small amount of money to Karen's 3-Day Walk for Breast Cancer. (Please go read the recap--it's incredible.) Back in August Danny Evans, aka Dad Gone Mad, opened his comments for people to post worthwhile causes. I followed a link to Karen's fund raising site and was inspired to give a little something towards her $2,200 goal.

I don't often donate money--with one income and four family members, we are often our own charitable cause. But the breast cancer issue strikes home for me.

So, thanks Karen for your hard work and many miles. You carried a figurative torch for many women who you'll never meet--including my mom, Phyllis Sandercock, who died of breast cancer in 1988 when she was just 46.

Forclosure!

2008-12-11T11:09:00.000-08:00

Came home on Tuesday to a 3 page fax taped to my red front door. The bank is foreclosing on my house because no mortgage payment has been made since August.

Lest you be concerned, let me remind you that we RENT. This is not my beautitful house. (It's more of a shotgun shack, anyway.)

So I get to add a new responsibility to my lengthy list: find new house and move. By March--although earlier is better.

Here's what we're looking for:
--walking distance to Vancouver School of Arts and Academics
--3 bedrooms
--fenced yard (front or back)
--storage for bikes
--2 bathrooms (ideal, but not a deal breaker)
--$900-$1000 dollars

Surely this isn't impossible. Next stop Craigslist...

Seventeen

2008-12-06T21:53:00.000-08:00

Seventeen years ago today I finished sewing the buttons onto my wedding dress (while wearing it) on the way to the Douglas County courthouse. I got married in plaid. And that has set the tone for the entire marriage.

We got married on a Friday afternoon with quite a few friends in attendance. No family. Then we went back to our apartment to eat homemade pizza and drink champagne.

I had asked our friend Lars (potter, photographer, Grinnell grad) to take pictures of the wedding guests. We had everyone strip the clothes from their shoulders and have pictures taken that displayed their "unadorned essence," as he described it. The majority of the photos are in black and white, with a beautiful, soft focus.

These photos really tell a story. One couple used the occasion to declare their togetherness --they were married about 18 months later, so must have recently celebrated a 15th anniversary. Most of the other couples in the pictures are no longer together.

I didn't think to look for the photo album until tonight and I can't find it, but I did locate one of the early photos taken with the last of the color film. I was barely 22 and The Artist was 25.

Where's Arlo?

2008-12-04T08:42:00.000-08:00

That's right. Finally, our guy is getting his "socially responsible operation." (As a friend once referred to his own vasectomy.)

As recently as yesterday, The Artist was still campaigning to delay the procedure, citing how awesome Arlo is. And it's true that he's physically beautiful, mentally bright and yet pretty mellow. I'm sure his puppies would be great. But I'm really not interested in breeding puppies! And at 15 lbs. Arlo is no longer considered a "miniature" dachschund. He's too beefy to be an asset to any breeding program.

I think The Artist was just projecting his own anxiety.

The Star, on the other hand, is enthusiastic about the removal of the dog's testicles, which she thinks must get in the way of running. No Neuticles for our dog!

On to Plan C

2008-11-30T00:01:00.000-08:00

This is the third time I've started graduate school. Apparently, I really like the idea of getting my Masters degree, but not the commitment.

I started my MA in American Studies at the University of Kansas in 1993. I loved my first class, History of Education in America, but it was ridiculous to think that I could afford the time and money when I had a tiny baby to look after.

In 1999 I was accepted into a new program in KU's Journalism School, Integrated Marketing Communications. Again I was waylaid by my responsibilities to my children, as well as a serious lack of support from The Artist. (sorry, dude, but you know it's true)

So here I am again. The kids are old enough to feed themselves and provide themselves with clean laundry. They still need chauffeuring, but even that could change this summer, if The Star would get her drivers license. The Artist understands that I think I need this. But I'm about to finish my first quarter and I don't like it.

Do I
a) grit my teeth and push on through,
b) bail, or
c) look for a different program?

I'm considering going with Plan C: I met a woman in Pittsburgh who works for the convention & visitors bureau in Tacoma, Washington. She just started her MPA this fall as well--but couldn't stop raving about it. And where is this magical school, with the diverse students and the exploring and the thinking? None other than The Evergreen State College!

If accepted, this would involve driving to Olympia, about 1 1/2 hours each way, once a week for the next few years. The program is a cohort program, where you take two years of core courses with the same group of students. This was something I really liked in the marketing program at KU.

A maximum of 20 credits from PSU would transfer--so I can continue with classes next quarter, while I decide, and still get credit towards the eventual degree. Also, each credit is about $70 cheaper at Evergreen.

Regardless of whether I decide to transfer, I need to drop down to just one class per quarter. I cannot make enough sense of two classes. I'm not sure how I'm going to pay for it without the financial aid, but I'll just have to work it out.

Of course, all this presupposes that the Public Administration degree is what I should be pursuing. If I did not have to be responsible in any way, I might choose to take classes at Oregon College of Art and Craft.

______
Cut, print, that's a wrap! Thanks for sticking with me through an entire month of questionable blogging. I'm pleased to have successfully completed National Blog Posting Month.

In the Veterinarian's Parking Lot

2008-11-29T23:37:00.000-08:00

Eliza: I'm just going to run in to get some flea medicine and to make an appointment to get Arlo neutered.

The Star: So you're just going to say "My dog has fleas and balls--please help me get rid of both of them!" ?

Black Friday

2008-11-28T21:40:00.000-08:00

We usually make a point of avoiding all shopping on the day after Thanksgiving. We've hiked; we've gone to the beach; we've stayed in and watched movies.

Today, however, the kids wanted to see Black Friday for themselves. So we went to Target and Fred Meyer. They were not particularly busy. Perhaps we were supposed to be there at 5am, not 11am, to get the full effect.

We bought some wrapping paper.

No one has completed their Christmas list yet, so it's difficult to get started. We're on a budget, of course, (like the rest of America) so we need to make sure that we get things we need, or at least want.

On my list so far: pajamas.

All the Trimmings

2008-11-27T23:25:00.000-08:00

Tonight's post was going to be about Cranberry Relish. Specifically my grandma's cranberry relish. I was going to scan my mother's recipe card and then comment wryly on the 6 cups of sugar it called for. But I can't find the card. So here's how I made it early this morning:

Put 1 bag of cranberries (washed and sorted), 1/2 Fuji apple (cored only) and 1/2 large orange (seeded, not peeled) through your antique meat grinder which has been used for this purpose only for more than 30 years. Add 3/4 cup sugar and let it sit. Sitting for several days is preferable, but (apparently) unnecessary.

When my mom came to Finland for Christmas in 1986, I asked her to bring a jar of Jif, a few boxes of Kraft mac & cheese, and this relish. It's not that I'm crazy about it--it just says family tradition and holiday to me. She made it at home and carried it on the airplane.

I made the relish and the dressing (once Martha Stewart's classic stuffing, now totally mine) and The Star made the marshmallow-topped sweet potatoes. The Magician made the rest of the Thanksgiving dinner. His brined turkey was the best turkey ever--juicy, flavorful, golden brown. Also green beans, mashed potatoes, gravy, pumpkin pie, fresh whipped cream and oatmeal cookies.

It was a feast. And then The Artist cleaned the kitchen.

I'm thankful to have such a great family, tiny though it is. And new and old friends, a job I love and opportunities to learn and grow.

I Got Nuthin'

2008-11-26T17:07:00.000-08:00

No clue what to write about, so...

When I was an exchange student in Finland, this band (and this song) was huge. I saw them in concert in Hämeenlinna in October 1986.

The video speaks for itself: Finland + 80s pop = Awesome!

HOT!

2008-11-25T23:59:00.000-08:00

Our oven was repaired while I was in Pittsburgh and The Magician has been making up for lost time with cookies, pineapple upside-down cake and more cookies.

He has tomorrow off and will be starting on Thanksgiving dinner. 2 pumpkin pies and brineing the turkey. This is the 3rd Thanksgiving that he's done nearly all on his own. I'll make some fancy dressing (shallots, mushrooms, almonds, dried cherries) on Thursday.

My non-profit management class tonight focused on organizational change. Timely!

Wonderful

2008-11-24T21:24:00.000-08:00

This project, entitled Relics of Themyscira, was completed in 2007, but will be exhibited at Angst Gallery in December. It is a crown and cuffs. It also features a magic lasso. Naturally.

College Search

2008-11-23T14:15:00.000-08:00

The Star is at the age where she is starting to think about life after high school. For several years now her dad has been extolling the virtues of living at home while attending college. However I have encouraged her to look elsewhere, within reason.

She's interested in The Evergreen State College, which has a very flaky reputation in the Pacific Northwest, since it is all about interdisciplinary programs and not about grades. I think it sounds good for her; quite a few graduates of her arts school go there. I've also suggested that she look at Western Washington in beautiful Bellingham, close to the Canadian border. I visited there back in 2001 with my friend Gretchen and thought it was a great town.

Lately it has seemed like The Artist is coming around to the fact that our daughter may be best served by a school that is not within commuting distance of our home. And then yesterday he suggested BYU. That's right: Brigham Young University! WTF?

From The Princeton Review:
#1 - Stone-Cold Sober Schools
#1 - Students Pray on a Regular Basis
#1 - Future Rotarians and Daughters of the American Revolution
#3 - Best College Library
#4 - Students Most Nostalgic for Ronald Reagan

He's convinced that many creative people (he named Brett Helquist) are BYU alums. And "they're not the scary, multiple-wives Mormans." Does he like the lack of student sex on that campus? As a parent, that sounds fine. Except when you realize that this often leads to marriage at 19--with a Mormon.

Holes

2008-11-22T23:40:00.000-08:00

Today we headed to Portland so that The Star could get yet another piercing. This one is just in her ear lobe, above the first one, but nothing extreme.

It surprised her to be reminded that once I had had three holes in each lobe and one in the cartilage at the top of my ear, apparently known as the pinna. I never thought of it as "body modification"--it was the just the 80s and all those earrings helped to balance all those bracelets.

I also shared my ear piercing story:

During the summer I was 15, I was dropped off at the Bend River Mall with my best friend Becky Smith (known to my kids as Becky 2, since she was the second of three BFFs with that name) to get our ears pierced, the second set of holes for both of us. But it turns out that we needed to have a signed permission slip, since we weren't yet 16. What to do?

I had a friend who was 21 or 22 at the time who worked at the K-Mart in the same mall. The girl at the jewelry store knew him and said that all she needed was an adult signature on the forms. So we hurried to the paint department at the K-Mart, found Kelly and convinced him to sign our permission slips. Voila!

Today I had to allow my actual drivers license to be photocopied on the back side of the form that both The Star and I had to sign.

A few other things about Kelly: He took me to see Footloose on the day it opened. He drove a very old Volkswagen that had no heat. He kissed me--a few times. We went to an under-21 dance club in Portland (Confetti's?) when he was 25 and I was 18. His birthday is March 17, St. Patrick's Day. He once claimed that he was gay to get out of a difficult, intense relationship with a woman (not me). He may really have been gay.

I haven't seen Kelly since 1988. Googling him immediately brought me to his Facebook--he's still living in Portland. Funny how the holes in your past can be so quickly filled.

Vampires vs. Werewolves

2008-11-21T21:36:00.000-08:00

My flight from Minneapolis to Portland was delayed by 90 minutes, so I was very glad that I wandered all over Pittsburgh's South Side yesterday looking for the 2nd Twilight book, New Moon. I finished it somewhere over Utah (just guessing) and tried to get a little sleep. No luck. I finally was home and in pajamas around 2am PST / 5am EST.

I'd already planned to bail on work today, so I was able to sleep in and take the kids to school. The Star has a 8:25 zero period 4 days a week; Friday is her normal day when school starts at 9:35. I visited with Leah at Angst Gallery while her security system was installed.

The Artist went to see Twilight with me at the noon showing in a Living Room theater at Cinetopia, a high-end, all HD, over 21 theater with limited seating. It was about half full; all the evening shows for tonight were sold out.

I'm glad I read the book first--I always am; books are better than movies. But I thought they did a great job of capturing the essence of the story and were incredibly faithful to the Pacific Northwest. Except for one thing: the student population of the fictional Forks, Washington was multicultural. And I don't mean diversity like having vampires at the high school. In the movie the three main Forks High boys were a white kid, an Asian and an African American.

I grew up in a town in the mountains of central Oregon. My town had a population of about 17,000 in 1986 (Forks has around 3000) and there was only one African American kid in my school. I'm guessing that the real Forks is pretty damn white, too.

Of course there were discrepancies between the book and the movie. The kitchen cabinets weren't yellow. The Cullens' house looked very Pacific Northwest, but not like what was written. Minor details. The "twist at the end" that I read about in reviews was so minor you could have blinked and missed it. It was also totally appropriate.

So, about the vampires vs. werewolves...if I had a vast readership I'd take a poll to see if there is any correlation between older readers (Twilight Moms perhaps) being pro-Jacob/werewolf and teen/tween readers being on Team Edward/vampires. I think there might be a statistically significant difference. As I pressed myself against The Artist's warm back this morning, I thought how much better warm & fuzzy was compared to cold and stony. As the lover of a werewolf (in Stephenie Meyer's cannon) you get to have a family and your true love will eventually grow old with you. Vampires--not so much. Love a vampire and you either become a vampire or soon you'll be pretending to the world that you're his mother--and then grandmother. Ewww.

I'm not a fan-girl. I'm never going to buy a Forks t-shirt, stand in the rain to watch them film a movie or go to a Q&A session with the cast. I'm not going to get a Twilight tattoo. I'll be the first (not really) person to admit that Stephenie Meyer is not a great writer. But she writes a good story. And this is hopefully the last talk of vampires, werewolves and Edward Cullen on this site. Although I did buy book 3 this afternoon...

Word of the Day

2008-11-20T08:09:00.000-08:00

FUNICULAR, also known as a funicular railway, incline, inclined railway, inclined plane, or cliff railway, is a type of self-contained cable railway in which a cable attached to a pair of tram-like vehicles on rails moves them up and down a very steep slope, the ascending and descending vehicles counterbalancing each other.

The word is from the Latin funiculus, a diminutive of funis, "rope".

___________

Today I will be heading to the Station Square area of Pittsburgh to find a new book and have some lunch. I'm going to also take the Mon Incline up to the top of the bluff just for fun. It's not the Portland Tram, but looks like a mild adventure. Wish I had a camera with me...

And it Ended with a Prom

2008-11-19T19:24:00.000-08:00

Today was my very busiest day at the convention: 19 appointments with tour operators. These are seven-minute appointments, known affectionately as "speed dates." Each day there is also a half hour block of time when you can run around the floor and try to schedule other appointments; this is called "mating season." I was able to pick up several additional appointments during yesterday's mating season, but still managed to have my appointments grouped into morning and afternoon. I left the convention center at noon and was able to take a nap today before heading back for my final meetings.

I skipped lunch in favor of napping, but attended the gala dinner. I didn't find anyone I knew, however, and sat in the back of the room (table 129) with a group of gentlemen (Fred, Ad and Smi) from Michigan. Smi does carriage tours of Mackinac Island and I learned that this was the center of fur trading activity in the upper midwest (then the northwest United States) in the 1800s--at the same time my site was being settled. We had an interesting visit and he kissed my cheek after dinner when he took his leave. Old guys have funny manners.

After dinner was the dancing and drinking portion of the evening. This also happened on Sunday night at the Heinz Museum and Monday night at the Hard Rock Cafe. I didn't attend the party last night at Heinz Field (again), so I don't know if there was dancing. Drinking, however, was guaranteed.

Tonight's event is commonly called the Prom, which always closes the conference on Wednesday evening. I wore black and red business clothes all week, but dressed up tonight in a blue satin skirt and silk blouse. But the band tonight was too loud for my taste and although I looked around, I still didn't find the Washington State contingent. So I headed back to the hotel to call the family.

Tomorrow I don't even leave until 6:35pm. Northwest Airlines rearranged my perfectly good morning flight, leaving me with a day to wander Pittsburgh and a late flight home. I'm still not sure what all I'm going to do tomorrow before I head to the airport, but I do know that one thing involves buying New Moon--the continuing saga of Bella and Edward.

Friended

2008-11-18T20:31:00.000-08:00

Today I got a Facebook friend request from Teri. We went to both middle school and high school together. I have a bunch of Teri memories but three stand out in particular.

In sixth grade, our entire class took the bus from Bend to Portland for a multi-day field trip. We slept overnight in the basement of OMSI, the Oregon Museum of Science and Industry, back when it was near the zoo (today that building is the Children's Museum) and went to everything from the Oregon Historical Society to Fort Vancouver. At the Fort, Teri was very disappointed to find out that it was actually a reconstruction of the 19th Century Hudson's Bay Company fur trading emporium, not "the real thing." She pretty much dismissed the entire place. I'm not sure why this tiny incident made an impression that should last 25 years, but now that I work at this site, it seems funny to me.

Also in middle school, perhaps in 7th grade, I was over-tired and had a huge meltdown one night. I remember crying bitterly that "Teri F____ is my BEST FRIEND, and she doesn't even know who I am!" Oh, the angst that is 13. I'm sure Teri knew who I was--we were in many of the same, advanced classes--and I'm equally sure (now) that my breakdown was not directly related to her or anything that she had done.

In 1986 Teri's mother moved away from Oregon. We were both seniors in high school and I was going to be going to Finland for my exchange year. I'm not sure how it came up, but I think I was the one to suggest that Teri live with my mom that year. By this time we were definitely friends, maybe not BFFs, but close enough that I trusted her to live with my mother when I was gone. My mom was very sick by now and I thought having a surrogate daughter was a good idea. It really wasn't necessary and I don't think either of them enjoyed the situation.

I saw Teri last summer at our high school reunion. She flew in from Japan (awesome!) just for the occasion and we were able to finally talk about that time 20 years ago and about my mom, her illness and death. It always helps me to talk with someone who knew her--it seems like there are fewer of those people every day and I worry that I'm losing my own memories of my mom. I haven't been able to hear her voice in my head for a decade now, although I'm sure I would recognize it if I heard it again.

Some people are good at keeping in touch. I'm not one of them, but Teri is. She sent me a Christmas card last year following reunion--I didn't so much as send an email. But we're still friends and I have Facebook to back me up on it.

Big Stuff

2008-11-17T21:50:00.000-08:00

When I took the kids to California to see my dad in 2006, we made a point of taking photos of the giant things we saw like Paul Bunyan and a hammer. That was before we got our digital camera, though, so I'm not sure where the photos are.

I was reminded of this because tonight I was at Heinz Field, home of the Pittsburgh Steelers. They have two giant ketchup bottles over the scoreboard which tip and "pour" when the opposing team is in the red zone.

Best fact: If filled with actual ketchup, each of the Heinz Ketchup bottles on the Heinz Field Jumbotron scoreboard would contain 1,664,000 fluid ounces...enough to pour on approximately 3.2 million hotdogs!

[Sorry about the lame post. So tired. Appointments, dinner, Hard Rock Cafe', dancing.]

The One Where I Cheat Make an Arbitrary Rule

2008-11-16T21:27:00.000-08:00

It is 12:26am on Monday in Pittsburgh. But the clock in my computer says it's still just Sunday evening. So I haven't yet failed NaBloPoMo. Or at least that's my story, and I'm sticking to it. All NaBloPoMo posts will be made in Pacific Standard Time.

I'm staying at the Hilton, close to Heinz stadium where the Steelers play. Today was a home game and the hotel lobby was filled with fans, all in black and gold. This reminds me of Matt Sabo, the boy I had a crush on in 3rd and 4th grade. In 3rd grade, Mrs. Shepard's class, he was a Pittsburgh Steeler for the Halloween parade. Quick Google search only turns up that he seems to have written for the Oregonian and now may be a journalist in Virginia. Sounds right. I've always liked smart boys.

Although I bought the book in September, I had been avoiding reading Twilight (yes, sexy teen vampire lit--and no, I'm not going to link to Amazon.com, you know the book I mean). I knew that I'd be close to obsessed and couldn't spare the time from studying. So I read it yesterday on the plane--and until about 2am Pittsburgh time. I'm taking Friday off from work since I get in so late on Thursday. And I'm thinking about going to see the movie in the afternoon by myself. Clearly obsessed. Edwaaaard!!!

Snow?

2008-11-15T00:41:00.000-08:00

It occurred to me just now to check the weather in Pittsburgh, considering that my plane is scheduled to leave in exactly 12 hours.

Winter makes me SAD. And I'm leaving home when we're expecting a great weekend.

Bring on the Krazee

2008-11-14T19:49:00.000-08:00

Today has been nuts. Nearly 8pm and I'm still at work trying to complete everything for my trip to Pittsburgh tomorrow. Got a haircut at lunch. Dinner was the going away party for all those laid-off folks. I didn't cry.

I could suddenly use another week before this conference. I'm woefully unprepared. However, I do not have any appointments on Sunday, so will spend the day on my meeting preparation.

I did manage book a wedding rehearsal dinner at the museum today. The groom didn't get to have his destination wedding, but he'll at least have the rehearsal dinner in another state (they're from Portland).

I think I'm pretty disorganized, but adding this new wrinkle to my daily schedule is going to have me form-making and spreadsheeting and file management-ing like nobody's business.

23 Flavors

2008-11-13T20:24:00.000-08:00

Notice also my dog's soul patch.

Oh hai, Howie Mandel dog. Your facial hair is so 2006.

Work Crap

2008-11-12T22:58:00.000-08:00

After losing my last full time job partly because of misunderstood email, I am loathe to talk much about work on this blog. I never state the full name of my organization (although it would be easy to figure out) in the hope that my blog won't come up in your average Google search.

But today was rough. And I need to download a bit.

8:30 am: Staff meeting with now reduced staff. Two full time positions were eliminated, as well as two part-time folks. One of the women who was laid off planned to become a SAHM in January after the birth of her second baby anyway, but it's still rough. These people got no warning. The lay-off was effective immediately with 2 weeks severance pay. Friday after work we're going to meet at a pizza place to say good-by and wish them luck. I'll probably cry.

10 am: Meeting with the president/CEO. As expected, facilities rentals are now my responsibility. I'm guessing this was about 40% of what my boss did on a daily basis. I had 13 rental related phone calls waiting for me when I finally got to my desk--9 that K forwarded when he was cleaning out his office, and 4 that came in yesterday afternoon. Call back, set up a time to tour the facility, show folks around the place, sign a contract, arrange for setup/cleanup. Everything related to museum operations with now be the museum manager's sphere and the marketing will go to the communications manager, where it belonged in the first place.

10:15 am: I get handed a note that "Ralph" will be picking me up at 11:15 for the Kiwanis club meeting. Yup, K had a speaking engagement and suddenly it's mine. Gather some brochures, no need for notes.

Noon: lunch at Bill's Chicken and Steak. It sucked. I don't recommend it. The Kiwanis club members were all friendly old men who seemed happy to have me there. I spoke for 20 minutes and answered 20 minutes worth of questions.

1:15 pm: just back in the office when a bride and groom, with entourage (both moms), stops by to look at the space. I sell it--although my enthusiasm for opening the hangar doors wide to be able to view the stars falls a little flat when they tell me it's a February wedding.

2 pm: More calls. The Buick Club wants to have their car show here in August. Another bride is hoping that September 19 will work for her reception--her fiance' is in Iraq and 9/19 is the date he proposed. It conflicts with another car show, but we can make it work. Stay safe dude.

4 pm: I manage to send a few emails regarding the conference I'm leaving for on Saturday (my original job!) and request a cash advance. Checking luggage now costs additional money.

5 pm: Help the CEO set up some pop-up banners and a gift basket at the Hilton for VIP reception having to do with economic development. Food looks and smells great, but the VIPs are running late and I have to leave for class before they tuck in. I stop for a $1 burger at McDonalds, so my rumbling stomach doesn't distract my fellow students.

6:40 pm: Class. I haven't read the case study. And my paper--still not finished. Fortunately I thought to email the professor and now have until tomorrow.

9:30 pm: Visit with the professor after class regarding the shake up in my organization. Her viewpoint helps me better understand my conflicted feelings. I understand the necessity of the action, but am still disappointed that good employees were treated this way. I continue to be thankful that I have a job.

10:15 pm: My family had coffee and pancakes waiting for me at home. Daily Show. Colbert. Blog.

11:30 pm: Back to the paper. 5 of 7 pages completed.

Tomorrow at 8:20 am: Jury duty. No shit.

Oh My Gah!!

2008-11-11T17:32:00.000-08:00

Worked on Saturday, played on Sunday, read the articles for my paper yesterday.

And then my boss called.

He just wanted me to know that he--and two other people from our small organization--had been laid off. "Not for cause," he said, but for budget reasons. Our President/CEO also took a cut in pay to help balance the books.

On the one hand, this is horrible. My boss was highly successful at raising money for our little museum. He was also fun and easy to work for.

On the other hand, I know that if he had had a better job offer at any time, he wouldn't have hesitated to take it. In my Intro to Non-profit Management class we talk a lot about "heart." And I know that deep down K did not have a soft spot in his heart for the museum or our historic site. It was a job.

On the third hand (ahh, mutant!), I'm pretty sure that his duties will be divided up among remaining staff. And this helps ensure that I will still have a job, since I'll now be responsible for even more areas. My kids asked if I'd be getting compensation for my new duties (hopefully to be outlined tomorrow)--I'm just glad that I still have a job. I'm in no position to negotiate.

I've been concerned that cuts were coming for a month or so now. And I thought that it was possible that I might be considered for termination. I feel that I have the least essential job there. But my job is also partially funded by a grant, which means that I don't cost much to have around. K was the director of tourism and director of the museum. He had negotiated quite a salary four years ago when he came onto the staff. I guess in the end they just couldn't afford to keep him.

First Grad Paper

2008-11-10T11:23:00.000-08:00

For Wednesday, I have to write a 7-page paper comparing three peer-reviewed journal articles. Just so you can see how utterly fun this is, here are the titles of the articles I chose:

Assessing Public Participation in U.S. Cities
The Question of Participation: Toward Authentic Public Participation in Public Administration
Public Deliberation in an Age of Direct Citizen Participation

My undergraduate degree is in American Studies. It really was fun. I wrote papers on subjects such as the evolution of Nancy Drew. My senior seminar was "The Automobile in American Culture."

As I slooowly work on this paper today, I'm wondering why I thought a professional degree was a good idea. It's not amusing. The non-profit studies part of the degree will be much more interesting I think. But in the meantime I have to slog through classes in public policy, financial management and administrative law.

This is going to be a long three years.

Bullet the Blue Sky

2008-11-09T22:46:00.000-08:00

Spent most of today with The Star. We attended Wordstock, Portland's writing festival. I listened to newly published author Selden Edwards speak about the 34 year gestation of his little book and she wandered the exhibit hall, meeting editors and checking out colleges with writing programs. We also walked the Alberta neighborhood and checked out some boutiques run by indie fashionistas, like Frock and Donna & Toots.

Yesterday was my organization's Veterans Day parade. Most of us started work at 7am and spent a lot of the morning standing in the rain. So our office is closed tomorrow.

And good thing it is. My first grad school paper is due on Wednesday and I need to write a most of it tomorrow when the rest of the family is at school.

I've been called for jury duty again. The second time since I moved to Vancouver in 2005. My boss has lived here for 17 years--and has never been summoned. I called in today and my group is off the hook for Monday. Tuesday is a holiday, so my chances of having to show up are getting slimmer. I leave for Pittsburgh on Saturday, so I couldn't serve on any but the shortest trial anyway.

After traveling so often for my last job, this one has me staying close to home (2 miles door to door, to be exact.) However, I will be attending a big conference each year. This year it's in Pittsburgh and I'll be gone from Saturday to Thursday. I'm excited to have uninterrupted hours to ~~read Twilight~~ study on the airplane.