One Day Closer...

A Friendly Reminder that life never goes as planned...

2009-09-03T19:36:00.002-05:00

So evidently this...

doesn't mean a thing when it comes to getting your luggage back to the United States at the same time you arrive.

Also, what better 'welcome home' present could a girl ask for than a swimming pool in her basement?! It simply means that you end up with this in your backyard...

Wow. And this is supposed to be a GOOD week!

A Scotland Slideshow...

2009-08-26T15:59:00.003-05:00

This is just the first part of the trip! Enjoy.

(Remember to open in full screen to read captions)

First Half of Scotland - Edinburgh and Hiking

Scotland

2009-08-23T15:16:00.004-05:00

After a quick trip across the Atlantic, I touched down for a week and a half long visit to Scotland. Back in college I was lucky enough to spend some time in Edinburgh, and I've always said I would come back. So I did, but this time I headed north and west of Edinburgh, into the Scottish Highlands for a "bit of a walkabout."

A little Internet scholarship helped me locate Wilderness Scotland, a personalized outfitter that specializes in small group (5-7 people) walking tours of some of the wilder parts of Scotland. I settled on a tour that includes the northwest Highlands and Cape Wrath, which is the farthest north and west point in Scotland.

I didn't know exactly what to expect. There were about 5 other people on my tour, none of whom I'd met before, so I was curious to see who they were and what they were about. It turned out to be a great group. There are Fiona and Sandy, a brother and sister from London who were originally from Scotland; James, who makes his home in Scotland; and two retired Canadian ladies named Sharon and Judy who are traveling partners with a penchant for visiting out-of-the-way places. We're being led by Lorraine, who is a native Scot, and a spectacularly accomplished guide and walker. She knows the country, the tracks and the terrain intimately, which makes for a great trip.

My trip started in Edinburgh, with a day there to get myself acclimated to the time change, pick up some last minute odds and ends (since I didn't have a chance to do that before I left WI because of some pressing work commitments), and do some sightseeing. I'll leave it at that for the time being - I'll have pics and MOVIES to follow! :)

OMG!! Two posts in ONE DAY!!!

2009-05-20T23:03:00.004-05:00

One of my most recent adventures...Albuquerque, Santa Fe, Ruidoso, and Alamogordo with Mom. Enjoy the slideshow! :)

Double clicking the slideshow will make it bigger, and allow you to see the captions and the pictures at the same time. It's a LOT less annoying that way.

Reasons I Love Living in the Country, #307: It's FULL of Surprises

2009-05-20T20:08:00.004-05:00

You may think it's just another ordinary day - stirring of wind moving the windmill, a little dog going for a walk, a bale resting in a field of alfalfa.

Then you realize the bale shouldn't be there. It should be up here...

Ooops. :)

(By the way, we are totally into freedom of speech here at One Day Closer, so despite hubby's dictatorial opposition to the posting of these photos, here they are.)

Getting the heck outta Dodge...

2009-02-23T23:37:00.001-06:00

CH-ch-ch-changes... (Any wonder why I can't seem to post??)

2009-01-13T12:15:00.004-06:00

So last week I was in seven states, in one form or another, and ended up putting in several hundred miles of windshield time (middle-of-nowhere-Kansas, anyone?). Not my idea of a great week, but very illustrative of how 2009 is shaping up for my department at work. We managed to grow more than 30% in 2008, and we're goal setting for 2009 currently, with plans to repeat and increase that growth this year. While it's exciting to be a part of so much change and growth, my sleep deficit is well into the negative digits. For those of you wondering, it was home (WI), MN, MO, IL, TN, TX, and KS. And the next couple months look like more of the same.

It has been busy at work, but also busy at home. The holidays were a blur - we had seven Christmases in December between B and I's families, and I managed to still fit in a trip to TX. I got my tree up (with the help of darling Bother #1) and lit, but never did manage to get ornaments on. Oh well, there's next year. It was Wii bowling, movies, food, gift grabs, white elephants, toasts, excitement and bondage (family, not the other kind). Hey everybody - let's do it again next year! :)

There have also been a lot of changes happening to the circle of family and friends. Three cousins and two college friends announced babies for 2009, another announced a 2010 marriage, another a cross-country move, and I couldn't be happier for all of them. While changes create apprehension, the also create opportunity.

So here's to 2009 - already the year of changes.

Twerd

2008-10-09T21:02:00.003-05:00

I know there are a lot of things I need to post to the blog for all the hardcore "fans" out there, but I need to take a moment and discuss something I'm a hardcore fan of: the TWILIGHT books. For those of you not familiar, they are a series of books by young adult author Stephenie Meyer, and they revolve around the central character, Bella; her boyfriend, Edward; and her best friend, Jacob; and their friends and family. Sounds innoculous enough, right? Except that Bella's human, Edward's a vampire, and Jacob is a werewolf. Makes it all much more interesting! :)

So, pop culture nerd that I am, I had heard a TON about these books on various blogs, media outlets, shows, etc, and I decided I had to check it out. Last week, I started the first book. This week, all four are done. They're that good. And yes, it's official - finishing all the books in less than a week makes me...drum roll, please.... a TWERD (twilight+nerd=twerd).

The first Twilight movie comes out Nov 21 (already have plans to see that), and the first really good trailer came out yesterday. There had been others, but this one really gets your attention! Here's a link to Perez Hilton's TV channel, where you can see the new trailer (it's not even on the official Twilight website yet...!).

ENJOY! And welcome to Twerd-dom!

Lovin' this...and life updates

2008-09-06T15:54:00.006-05:00

For those of you who have been living in a box for the last week, Google unveiled a new browser - called Chrome - to compete with Microsoft's Internet Explorer. I've been running both for the last couple of days, and I am really digging the ability of the Chrome browser to get the job done without some of the aspects of IE that I found annoying or cumbersome.

One of my favorites - individual tab task management. What's that mean? It means that if you are viewing multiple sites, for instance a video in one session, flight reservations in another, an IM conversation in another, etc, and video tab crashes, it doesn't bring down the entire browser and all of your other sites. It just closes the individual tab/session that is experiencing issues. Coolness. Especially since having this happen when you have 10 different things going is a pain!

The design of Chrome is also really simple - both from a usage standpoint and a esthetic standpoint. Major kudos to Google on that.

Check Google's very good educational/marketing campaign site here.

Other things...

It's the 22nd birthday of Bother #1 today. Everybody say HAPPY BIRTHDAY, KARL!

I ran my first 5K race this morning (that's 3.1 miles for those of you who are metric-system deficient). I didn't set any land speed records (average speed was about a 10.5 minute mile), but I finished, and that was a big accomplishment for me, especially considering I've only been running for about two months. I liked it, so I'm going to keep an eye out for other events this fall. New goal - faster!

Pic is of the mother-in-law, sister-in-law, myself, and family friend after the event. The others walked the distance. I went back and found them after I finished and walked the remainder with them. Does that mean I finished twice?! (LOVE the vintage Chibardun Telephone t-shirt - thanks to my friend Terrel for hooking me up with that!!)
Had a terrible experience on the road in Arkansas this week. No, it doesn't have to do with canoes or banjos!! Very bad food poisoning, actually. And here's what I learned from this experience - don't eat fish at the Ruby Tuesdays in Fayetteville! Other than that it was a good trip. The Tulsa, OK and NW AR area is very pretty - lots of hills and water, like home.

Pictures and vids from last weekend's festivities are coming. Bear with me. :)

It's been a busy summer...

2008-08-29T10:46:00.009-05:00

I promise I'll update more a little later, including pics and things, but for now here's the status...

The rest of the trip to Italy and Austria was AWESOME! I will post some pics (and more SPECTACULAR video clips *wink, wink*)soon. Our time in Salzburg and in Venice was way too short, and left me with a desire to visit again.

On the return, it was a huge catch-up with work. Add to that time at the cabin on the St. Croix, Little Sister's 18th birthday (YAY, K!), Bother #2's birthday, Cousin Matty's birthday, Dr's appts, dentist appts, farm work (always hay, straw or cows) and everything else, and it made for a busy last couple of months

Shortly before I left for Europe, Dad was admitted to the hospital with some issues we thought were related to his diabetes. It turned out to be his heart, and he the Monday after I left he had a six-way bypass and valve replacement. It was a little scary, but he's come through like a champ! We've been taking turns running to and from Dr's appts and rehabilitation, getting him here and there.

B won tickets to the Hayward World Lumberjack Championship in Hayward, WI. Attached are a couple of vids from the pole climbers - one of the craziest things I've ever seen. These poles are 60 and 90 feet tall, and these guys scale and descend these poles in about 12-15 seconds. Absolutely nuts.

Turtle Creek Threshing is coming up this weekend, and I'll have the prep pics and vids from that coming up as well (including the cutting and binding, and the bundle loading). Check back for more! And have a great Labor Day weekend!

Swiss this, Swiss that..plus a little Deutsch

2008-06-10T04:38:00.016-05:00

We made it safely across! The trip to Amsterdam was easy, the layover was spent playing cards (did you know that Dutch cards have different symbols/words than American ones?), and the short flight to Munich was spent sprawled over three seats (I love being on short-sold planes!!) blissfully unaware of my surroundings. Everyone got their bags (which is always a good thing), and we picked up the rental car at Munich.

From Munich we traveled south and west to the small town of Fussen (imagine that the "U" has two little umlaut dots above it, and know that I'm just too lazy to type them in). Fussen is very near the Konigschlosser (King's Castles - CO-nig-shloss-er) of Hohenschwangau (HO-en-schvan-gow) and Neuschwanstein (NOY-schvan-stein). We stayed overnight in Fussen at the Hotel Kurcafe, which was the epitome of the European pension: a quirkily unique, gracefully historic bed and breakfast, with odd angles and rooms stacked willy-nilly over a variety of floors and half-floors. We walked around Fussen in the afternoon, taking in the town; catching (quite by accident) a community band concert, complete with Alp horn trio; and watching World Cup soccer preliminary matches.

Our hotel was right on the main sqaure, with a roundabout in the road on our doorstep. After Germany advanced in the World Cup race, this was the scene:

It was pretty crazy. People were hanging out of cars, yelling and screaming, waving flags, singing songs, squealing tires, honking horns - everything you could think of! Even the German canines got in on the fun!

The next morning it was early up - catching the wonderful German full fruhstuck at the hotel - and to our only scheduled activity in Germany - the Konigschlosser. We toured Hohenschwangau, walked over to Neuschwanstein and toured that, and then spent a couple of hours walking around the mountains, including taking in the views from the Marienbrucke, a 150ish-year-old iron bridge in a mountain pass high about Neuschwanstein. It was awesome!

The view of Neuschwanstein from Marienbrucke, with Bavaria in the background:A view straight down from Marienbrucke:

Then we drove (me in the driver's seat again) to Lichtenstein, just to say we'd been there. It really wasn't all that different, but we did see quite a few more vineyards than we'd seen in Germany. Lichtenstein is famous for its Rhenish wine.

It was in Lichtenstein that we saw our first views of the Alps. Once in Switzerland, the road became quite narrow, with TONS of switchbacks. By this time, Mom was driving...sorry, I had to stop and cross myself there...anyway, it was a very hair-raising experience. Needless to say, I drove most of the rest of the way out of the mountains.

Our final destination in Switzerland was the Gasthaus Aspen in the Intramen neighborhood of the rockin' little ski town of Grindelwald. This guesthouse was right on the hiking trails, halfway up the mountain, so it was a very nice choice. We spent the balance of the afternoon walking around Grindelwald town, just getting our bearings and acclimating. Grindelwald is about 3300 ft above sea level. It has beautiful flora and fauna, wonderful hiking trails, and genuinely friendly people. It's basically the PERFECT town.

Switzerland is the birthplace of that bastion of culinary luxury, the fondue. Here, I prepare and enjoy. Yes, I love it. YUM.

Kaitlyn and I during one of our walks through Grindelwald. Beautiful alpine sunshine, and the Jungfrau (Yung-frow) in the background. Jungfrau is the tallest mountain in Europe, at around 13,000 feet. Grindelwald, our hotel, and the trails we used during our stay in Switzerland all lay at the base of the Jungfrau.

All animals in the Alps must have bells, which aid farmers in finding them when storms suddenly arise, as they often do. Check this funny family action:

They also drive them home to milk, using the roads as cow paths. Not cool when you're trying to drive and all of the sudden, as the song goes, "There's a cow on the road on the right."

A few pics from our hiking excursions:

A beautiful alpine meadow, full of wildflowers. The FAM below. Little sister's arms aren't long enough...

Kaitlyn and David, voguing on one of the trails, while Mom captures more Alpine sights courtesy of Canon and the wonders of digital technology.

These slugs were EVERYWHERE. According to the owner of our B&B, they are seasonal, usually showing up in late May and lasting until July. They help to break down organic matter during the wet early summer months. And they are totally huge and disgusting.

Our hiking portion of the trip over, we left Grindelwald and Switzerland by way of the Grimsel and Furka passes. They are dizzyingly steep, with precipitous drops, and switchbacks curving over huge empty crevasses. Needless to say (for those of you who know him), David did not enjoy this portion of the trip. But it was BREATHTAKING.

A dam in the Grimsel Pass, with a lake of blue-grey glacial water at its head.

Kaitlyn and I. Not sure what I was doing here...

Mom mans the camera while the rest of us pose (above). Some of the crazily cut switchbacks below.

One of the last villages in Switzerland, before we take the Teufelsbrucke (Devil's Bridge) into Italy. Those pics, and associated lively commentary, to come...

I'm RELATED to this guy!!

2007-12-10T18:55:00.000-06:00

Duh, not Alfred Nobel.

Dr. Leonid Hurwicz.

Who's Leonid Hurwicz?

He is the husband of my grandmother's first cousin, and as it happens, just won the NOBEL PRIZE IN ECONOMICS!! Just happened to talk to my grandma tonight (it's her birthday - Happy 79, Grams!) when she mentioned one of our relatives just won a Nobel Prize. I figured it was some distant relative from Norway or Denmark, but then she told me he couldn't make it to Sweden to collect his prize (he's 90, cut him some slack), so the Nobel Foundation presented it to him today at the University of Minnesota with a live feed to Stockholm. Genius lives about an hour and a half away! Check out a cool video about him from the U of M.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=9NY5KXv4bWc&feature=related#

Not everyone can say they have a Nobel Prize Winner in the family! :)

NEW POST

2007-11-20T06:54:00.001-06:00

Hey everybody. There is a new post, but it posted the day I actually started it, which was the 10th of October. So you'll have to scroll down a bit to look at it.

Funniest video EVER!!

2007-10-22T22:08:00.000-05:00

My thanks to Perez Hilton. See more on GodTube.com.

Coming out of quasi-retirement

2007-10-10T18:48:00.000-05:00

So this morning, as I'm getting ready to leave on yet another adventure, I realize that perhaps it's been so long since I've posted that no one will read this. In that case, they'll miss out, because there's been lots going on.

Starting way back in September, over Labor Day, we have the yearly extravaganza that is Turtle Creek Threshing. Everyone's been bugging me for pictures, so here they are. So stop whining - you know who you are... ;)

The tractor line-up, which runs the whole length of the field. Some are rarities, some are more common. Some are still in active farm use, others only get to come out for special occasions. One thing they all have in common - all are remnants of an older time.

The east end of the field is where the action is. We're running two threshing machines here, one hooked to an early 1900s steam engine (more pictures of that later), the other hooked to my cousin's Farmall Super MTA-Diesel. The machines are hooked to the engines by long belts, which transport power from the engine to the threshing machines. The hay racks hold the shocks we made earlier in the summer, and they are hand-fed into the threshing machine, which separates the usable grain from the chaff.

A look at the driveway, some of the transport trailers for the machinery, and the windmill, which watches over the whole day's festivities.

It would not be threshing without the food tent. This year the donations for food were given to our local youth ministry, Youth In Christ, which tours local churches giving services based on popular Christian music and skits. They raised several hundred dollars, so it was a great fundraiser for them.

The makeshift tables. Decor was courtesy of Super Sue and her Genetically Gifted Garden. :)

The serving line, with the Step-Monster giving directions and generally heckling the crowd. Under the pink gingham is the pie table, which contained an assortment of the 20+ pies of 6+ different varieties, provided by yours truly. Yes, I'm crazy.

The steam engine. Cousin Goober manning the controls in the engineer hat and overalls.

Sometimes a Farmall M (or H, not sure) is the best place to soak it all in, get off your feet, and get a good look at the entire field.

Or just grab a corner of a hay rack and stand in a little shade from the windmill.

Belt supervisor extraordinaire Mikey. Ladies, he's single, handy, and (contrary to this picture) he cleans up ok! If you're interested, drop me an email and I'll send you his contact information. You're welcome, Mike. :)

Bother #1 hands green corn stalks to Bother #2, who, along with Papa Oink, is feeding them into a machine that makes chopped corn feed for cows and other farm animals.

Barold, B's cousin, helps the Bothers on the stalk chopper.

Here Bother #1 leans in to grab another group of stalks. You can see the chopped stalks shooting out the pipe in the back right of the picture.

This little W-9 is owned by Barold, and was being used to run the stalk chopper. I was told I had to take a picture of it, so here it is...

One of the best things about threshing is the combination neighborhood picnic/family reunion/block party atmosphere. While it is about preserving the past for the future, it's also about celebrating family ties and friendships.

Xtina, Karaban, Little John, Cousin Goober, and Mandabelle in front of the steam engine.

One of my favorite pictures from the weekend - Uncle Wayne, pitching bundles.

Again, all about neighbors, family and relationships: neighbor Mark and Uncle Wayne.

My Padre-in-law, pitching in by pitching bundles.

Family friend (and if you'll remember, shocking supervisor from earlier in the summer) Leon, inspecting the machinery row. See that beautiful little orange Minne-Mo in the front row? *sigh* I'm in love! :) She belongs to a neighbor, but I totally vow to own one like it one day. Sooo CUTE!

And speaking of cute, Turtle Creek Threshing would not be complete without the next generation. And it's even better if they're eating straw. Cousin Little John, holding court and chowing down.

The weeks leading up to threshing are always hectic, and this year was no exception. I was in Dallas, TX, the week before, and the weekends before that were taken up by a wedding, a baptism, a bridal shower and bachelorette, my grandmother's (highly successful) knee replacement surgery and a funeral, not to mention the 10,000 other little everyday things. So that means the weeks after are spent recuperating and getting life back to normal. Except for this year.

Three weeks after threshing, B had an accident. I've told the story to some people and not others so I'll reiterate. Friday, Sept 21st I was at my boss' house when my father-in-law called saying B had had an accident. He had fallen from the rafters of a building the two of them were working on, which would eventually be used to house heifers. It was one of the most surreal phone calls I've ever had, because I knew something "more than the usual" was wrong, since they had even called me, and because my father-in-law's voice was so wavery.

My boss, who was standing in the room when I got the call, decided I wasn't able to drive, so she packed me in her vehicle and we sped the 5 1/2 miles from her house to mine. When we pulled in, the ambulance had just arrived, and B was sitting against the shop wall. His face was bloody and swollen and black and blue, and he had blood all over his face, shirt, arms, and hands. He was going into shock, and the adrenaline that got him from the accident site (30 feet away) to his current position was wearing off quickly. I helped our local First Responders get him loaded in the ambulance (good thing, because one of the ladies is nearly 80) and we set off for Barron. It's only about 15 minutes away, but we called ahead to have another ambulance from the hospital meet us, because they wanted to get him on IVs, and First Responders aren't able to start IVs so we needed paramedics.

So we met them, added their crew to our ambulance, and sped toward the hospital. B was starting to get tired (an after-effect of the adrenaline surge), but I knew that we had to keep him awake as long as possible, so I was asking him all sorts of questions. I wanted to establish not only lucidity, but also memory, so I asked him how many hours are on the IH1586, a make of tractor of which we happen to have 2. He caught it immediately though, and asked "Which one?" and then proceeded to give me the operating hours on both. It doesn't seem like a lot, but him answering me that way helped my state of mind immensely, because it told me he was still "with it."

When we got to the hospital, he was wheeled into the ER immediately, and there were about 15 Drs, nurses, anesthesiologists, and assorted personnel waiting for us. They tried to intubate him while he was still awake (the rationale being that since he was so sleepy, it would be easier, and they wouldn't have to knock him out so quickly), but he was having none of that. I've never been intubated, but from what B tells me, it was the most painful thing he's ever endured. They finally realized, after a couple botched attempts, that it was not going to happen and they knocked him out.

By this time the decision had also been made to LifeFlight him to Luther Hospital in Eau Claire via MayoOne, so the helicopter arrived. Because of the head trauma, they almost always take the precautionary step of sending cases like B's to EC, where there is a Level 1 Trauma Center. They got him strapped down (and I mean strapped down - by the time they were done, he looked like a mummy in a sleeping bag) and loaded, and the Mother-in-law and I hopped in her truck and headed for EC. (She had driven up with us, following the ambulance).

When we got to the hospital in EC, a trip of about 50 minutes, my MIL's brother and sister-in-law, Randy and Cherie were there. They had already talked to the ER Drs, and trauma surgeon, and told my MIL and I that B was in the imagery center getting CT scans. After speaking with the trauma surgeon ourselves, we found that after the imaging he was sent up to the NICU (Neuro ICU), and the hospital staff took us up there. He started waking up after getting to the NICU, and he was NOT happy with the breathing tube. He told me later it was like breathing through a straw. As soon as his breathing and oxygen levels were regulated, around 10PM that night, we were able to remove the breathing tube, which made him MUCH happier. My father-in-law, some other relatives and family friends came down to see him that night as well, and it was tough for everyone, because he looked pretty rough.

MIL and I ended up staying the night, and the next day (Saturday) he was transferred over to the regular neuro floor. We had a bunch more visitors, and he felt strong enough to get up and walk around the room a little, and even take a shower and eat a little, which were both big reliefs to him. He had been without food since around 10AM Friday morning, and hadn't showered since Thursday night, so he was ready to get a little more comfortable and fill his belly, since the medications had made him sick to his stomach.

I spent Saturday night with him at the hospital, and Sunday we got word that he was able to be released. It was a long, slow trip home, since his medication made him motion-sick. He was anxious to get back to the farm, though, since we still had the building to complete and crops to get off. However, on Saturday a number of our (great, wonderful, exceptionally kind) neighbors came over and harvested all our corn. This made B feel a little better, and let him just concentrate on getting well.

He still was very dizzy, and could only be up and about for about 15-20 minutes at a time until Wednesday, when we had to make a follow-up trip to Eau Claire to see an ear, nose and throat Dr, and get the all-clear from his trauma surgeon. The ENT gave us an interpretation of the results of B's cat scans, telling us he broke his face in 4 places. The breaks were compression fractures, as a result of his face flexing as it hit the cement, and they radiated around his orbital bone (around the eye) and along the back sides of his maxillary and frontal sinuses. However, none needed to be reset, because as his cheekbone flexed back out after the impact, it set the fractures it had created upon compression. The ENT said he couldn't have set them better himself, and that at most B has a 1 millimeter deviation in the bridge of his nose, which isn't even noticable.

So the moral of this story? People can't fly, and they shouldn't try it. B is back to his regular goings-on, and things around the farm are starting to wrap up for the year. A couple of pictures of B, post-hospital stay, and after most of the swelling had gone down. He also caught himself with his left wrist, so he ended up with a pretty severe sprain there, which if you ask him was almost the most painful part. It's also taking the longest to heal.

Beatrice has been GLUED to her Daddy since the accident. I know they say dogs can sense when things are not right, and while I didn't think she was smart enough to notice, she's proved me wrong while proving conventional wisdom correct.

As kind of an illustration of how the accident happened: my picture is divided into two parts, before and after. Before is on top, after below. B was walking along the catwalk (A), when that board broke. By instint, he grabbed for a 2x4 in the rafters (B), which broke under his weight, and the force of inertia, but which succeeded in slowing him down. He was further slowed by a wire mesh cattle panel (C), which was set up directly underneath him and functioning as a temporary fence while the construction project was underway. The cattle panel caught him and slowed him down again, before flipping him onto his face on the cement (D).

The bottom version shows all the steps, post fall. However, I just noticed I forgot to show (A) as broken, which it was. But it gives you the idea. The 2x4 was broken and the cattle panel were bent as well.

We still had other things going on after the accident, including the completion of the cursed heifer shed project and the new cow-calf facility inside the barn. For those of you unfamiliar with how the barn setup works, some picts:

This is one of the freshening pens, where pregnant cows go to have their babies. We keep the cows with the babies for a little while, until it's time for the cow to go into the milking line. Then the baby goes in a little "box stall" of its own:

The box stalls are the little cubicles in the back, and if you notice on the front, they are equipped with bottle holders. This allows whomever is feeding to slide a bottle in and walk away, which is a huge time-saver, compared with having to stand there as each baby feeds. After they are too big for the box stalls, they are moved to the baby stanchions, which are in the foreground, where they are weaned before being sent outside to the new heifer shed facility. It all works very well, and B is excited for it to be completed.

B falling off the building hasn't been the only excitement lately. We also have been busy in other aspects of farm, family, work and everyday life. We recently got three kitties, all natural brothers, who are in the process of proving themselves to be able mousers, and thus endearing themselves to B. Beatrice hates them. She is sure they are plotting to move into the house and steal the affections of her mommy and daddy, and so she is completely jealous any time B or I stop to pet one of the boys.

The boys are, from left to right, Smokey, Puff and Max. They were named by B's nieces, from whom we got them. Smokey has a tendancy to climb onto the roof, Puff likes to pick fights with Beatrice, and Max plays possum whenever Bea tries to egg him into a fight.

November has brought us snow, and a lot of travelling for me. I returned to IA for Wartburg Homecoming in mid-Oct; to Des Moines, IA the last weekend in Oct for a reunion with my college friends; to Waverly the 1st weekend in November for Little Sister's high school musical (Disney's Beauty and the Beast - she was a Silly Girl, one who chased after Gaston, and she's shown here in costume with my cousin. Which one do you think is the natural redhead?!); and to Jacksonville, Florida for work, where I stayed next too and walked across this really cool bridge.

Jacksonville is a very pedestrian-friendly city, and all along the downtown part of the St. John's River is paved riverwalk lined with shops and restaurants. It's a nice town, not as shabby as some FL ones I've been to.

Speaking of FL, right before I left for the mid-70s sunshine, we had our first measureable snow.

I hadn't taken in my patio furniture yet, so I thought this made kind of a sad little picture. *sigh* The fun's done for the year.

So what is the next adventure?

Stay tuned. :)

Another Texas Epic

2007-08-30T23:57:00.000-05:00

Okay y'all, I know it's been a lifetime since I've posted, but a TON of stuff's been happening, both on the farm, and at work. Actually, this posting finds me, once again, in Dallas, Texas, which I'm beginning to fondly call "my second Dallas residence." Once I get you caught up on the happenings of the last month, I'll put up another post about my time in the Big D. But for the meantime, a pictorial of late July and August, Dority Valley-style. Apologies in advance for layout issues, but I really don't have the time or inclination to fix the spacing...sorry.

At the end of July, I started ANOTHER landscaping project on the north side of the house, in prep for a little party I was planning. As you can see, there were some hostas, a juniper bush, snow on the mountain (my LEAST favorite plant in the world) and a little migrated canary grass. Not loverly, to say the least.

As part of this garden party plan, I purchased a gazebo. Nothing fancy or really expensive, but nothing really typical either. We don't have a very big patio, so entertaining in the lawn is as good as it gets at Dority Valley Dairy House #2. Fortunately, Smith&Hawken had an AWESOME summer sale going on after the 4th of July, so I scored some great stuff for really cheap, including the stainless steel ice bucket and tray set just inside the gazebo door, and the cute little glass oil lamps on the table. The ladder is for putting up lights, which I strung through the metal latticework of the gazebo ceiling.

An outside, farther away view of everything, with Ben the Beagle at center.

A picture from the night of the festivities - a celebration on the anniversaries of the births of Cousin Goober (28) and Bother #2 (16). Notice the red item on the chair? Yeah, that's Beezus, in her bed. If she doesn't have the bed to lay in, she'll try to sleep on anyone and everyone's lap. But wherever the bed is, there also is Bea.

A night or two later, we had company again. Here we have Father-In-Law, Niece #3, Mother-In-Law, and Nephew, all enjoying dining al fresco.

Grandma, with Sooper Trooper.

The beginning of the month of August marks a birthday for B's grandma, with this year marking 71. In celebration of the day, Grandma, Mother-In-Law, some of B's aunts, and I headed to Duluth. For the record, summer is about the only good time of the year to be along the banks of Superior. Unless you're skiing, in which case late February or early March is prime.

Grandma and Mom-In-Law at the Glensheen Mansion, one of the attractions we visited during our "day away."

The side of Glensheen that faces the lake (taken from the garden/lawn area). Glensheen is famous for a couple of reasons, not the least of which is the murders that occurred there in the late 1970s, involving the last remaining daughter of the original builders of the mansion. Though unproven in trial, the circumstantial evidence points to money-lust on the part of daughter's adopted daughter. Very suspect - and kind of creepy, especially considering that unless you ask, the tour guides say NOTHING about the murders, while leading you through the very rooms in which the bodies were found.

The formal perennial garden at Glensheen. The quadrangle was set for a wedding the afternoon we were there. They do an average of 3-5 weddings a week during the summer, plus a number of other events throughout the year. At the death of the last remaining daughter, the house was bequethed to the University of Minnesota, which now handles all tours, maintenance, event planning, and historical recordkeeping.

The other thing the grounds crew at Glensheen is responsible for is the farm garden, which originally fed the 8 members of the Congdon family. Today the produce goes to local food pantries. For more on Glensheen, go to the UM-Duluth webpage for the mansion at http://www.d.umn.edu/glen/

For more on the stories of the murders, visit the wiki on Glensheen.

After our extended tour at the mansion, we headed for the shopping and entertainment district of Canal Park. Here's a cool pic of the canal walk and an excursion tugboat headed out to the lake. The bridge in the background is a lift bridge, so all traffic in the area stops when a ship tall enough to need clearance comes through.

After Duluth, it was time to start the planning process for the Threshing Bee. We had the bundles all made, dried, and gathered onto wagons by this time. The threshing is held Labor Day weekend, and is really a family effort. We expect around 200 people, and it keeps getting bigger every year, so this is the first year we've really sat down together and outlined the plan of attack. Here's the step-monster with Goober's baby, Little John, pre-meeting. LJ holds the title of the world's most even-tempered, easy-going baby. Doesn't he look it? :)

Threshing meeting was a Saturday, and the following Sunday was a little cloudy and rainy, so B and I went to lunch in a nearby town. On the way back home, I spotted these Sandhill Cranes, and we stopped to take a look and a picture. Farmers don't like Sandhills, because whole flocks of them can decimate fields, especially this late in the season. For that reason, numbers have plummeted over the past 50-70 years. With a renewed focus on conservation, numbers have been returning. We don't see as many in our part of the country as they do along the Platte River in Nebraska, where they resemble the huge flocks of flamingos one used to see in the opening credits of the Mutual of Omaha Wild Kingdom series back in the 70s and 80s.

While this busy-ness was happening, I was not getting anywhere on that landscaping project I started back at the end of July. In another form of procrastination, I entertained some of the Sister-In-Law's progeny...

Niece #3, begging for the camera. She LOVES to take pictures.

Niece #2 - what a ham. She LOVES to be in pictures. These two are a natural fit, in that way. Father-In-Law in the background

Finally, I had procrastinated enough. I finished the weeding, bought all the plants, and started arranging. The only thing I kept was the row of hostas, as they are well established and thrive in the corner where they get NO sunlight.

The layout on the southern side of the bed
The layout along the northern side of the bed. The plants along here actually face west, so they get a bit of afternoon sun, especially in high summer. So that makes it tricky to select plantings.

Self-portrait of a dirty, sweaty gardener. It was disgustingly humid the day I decided to do this. AWESOME choice...duh.

And just like every superhero needs to have a sidekick, so does every GG (gardening greenthumb) need a DD...

no, not designated driver...

DESIGNATED DIGGER! :0)

Miss Beezus, cute as ever, and fitting the description to a T.

For those of you who read this at work - remember Sunday, Sept. 2nd at Noon is Threshing at the family farm on County RD P north of PF. If you feel like swinging by and need directions, give me a call. This weekend should be a busy one again, so I'll have lots of pictures to post next week. Until then, stay tuned!

Thought of the Day

2007-08-02T11:36:00.000-05:00

Reach out.

It doesn't have to be much - you don't have to save someone's life, you don't have to make a grandiose gesture.

But make a life easier, coax a smile, send a note, give a hug, bear a burden, pat a back.

Compassion is what makes us human.

Lubbock or Leave It

2007-07-19T22:41:00.000-05:00

If you haven't heard the reference song for today's blog posting, check out the Dixie Chicks' latest CD, Taking the Long Way. In the song, Natalie talks about the Chicks' chilly reception in her hometown of Lubbock, and compares it to the way Buddy Holly, also a Lubbock native, was received during his lifetime. Lyrics, which pertain a lot to Lubbock, including Loop 289 and ALL the HUGE churches, are here. I really didn't like this song until I saw the Chicks do it live when they were in MSP last summer, and it's a pretty great song for a live show. The live show heightened my appreciation for it, and especially since I was in the town from which it derives its name, I had it running through my head the entire time I was in Lubbock.

Before I left Dallas on Wednesday, however, I knew I had to get to the Saltgrass for supper again. I had some really nice guy take a picture of me at the entrance. I would have taken some pictures inside, because it's decorated to the hilt, but I would have felt dumb since the place was packed to the gills. Even for single seating I had to wait almost fifteen minutes for a table, and I went around 7:30-8, figuring I'd try to miss the rush.

Anyway, had a great steak and a super-fun drink called a Texas Swirl, made with grenadine, lemon slush and Midori layered in stripes, so it looks like a Mexican flag. Why then, they call it a Texas Swirl, I haven't the slightest idea. But it's good. As Borat would say, "Yeah, high five - I likey." :) To give you an idea of the ambiance of the place, I took this picture of a plaque on the outside of the building, as you walk into the doors.

So it was up at the butt-crack of dawn on Thursday to fly to Lubbock. The Dixie Chicks song alludes to this, but Lubbock is in the middle of nowhere, and their airport is called the Lubbock Preston Smith International Airport. The irony of this is apparent when you fly in - I took a couple of pictures from the air to show - they weren't kidding about the wide open spaces. The circles are pivots for the irrigation systems, which help supply water for the main crop in the Lubbock environs - cotton. The bols haven't formed yet, but I guess it's something to see when they do - millions of little white dots all over the fields.

Windrowed clouds. They reminded me of a freshly chisel-plowed field, and they were in perfectly straight rows. It was crazy.

When I finally hit the ground, I grabbed my luggage and found a cab (finding a cab at an airport like Lubbock is about like finding a cab at the Rice Lake Regional Air Center - it just doesn't happen), and was hurtling toward Lubbock town proper. However, as the cabby was rounding the curve out of the airport drive, I caught a glimpse of something running across the dry, red dirt along the road. "Oh my gosh," I yelled, catching myself a little by surprise, "was that a prairie dog?" The cabby started laughing and assured me that yes, I had spotted one of the Lubbock area's biggest celebrities, the Black-Tailed Prairie Dog. These little buggers are the 5th most popular tourist attraction in the Lubbock area, and they have their own colony, maintained by the taxpaying citizens of Lubbock via the Lubbock Parks and Recreation Department. Not necessarily the most politically correct thing to do, as Lubbock has been the epicenter of one of the biggest disputes regarding the rodent pests since people first started settling in the area. Quite a big stir for such a little varmint.

Anyway, the first sign of family Rodentia should have been my first hint that Lubbock is a little...out of the ordinary. My next hint came at our Lubbock office. As I walked into the office building, which is shared with a bunch of other companies, I was met by a very nice gentleman who happened to look like he just walked out of The Magnificent Seven. That was, apart from his belt buckle. I was lucky I was wearing my ever-ubiquitous tortoiseshell sunglasses, otherwise I would have been blinded. I swear on a stack of bibles, the thing could have doubled as a solar panel. It was huge and shiny, and, unfortunately, I found myself staring at the guy's waistline with my mouth gaping open, until I realized how potentially awkward that could be. I think I turned about fifteen shades of red, said "Thank you" in a VERY small voice as he held the door, and ran into the building, dragging my luggage behind me. Yeah, embarrassing. But in my defense, it WAS the most ginormous belt buckle I'd ever seen in my life. He probably had to slaughter a small herd of longhorns just to pay for the thing!

Anyway, I composed myself and walked into the Lubbock office suite. Lubbock is the headquarters for our outside plant and engineering staffs, so what this means is that at lunch I found myself eating deli sandwiches in the break room with a bunch of crazy draftsmen, watching one guy shoot those fancy frilled toothpicks through a straw into the tile on the dropped ceiling. I haven't laughed so much in a while, and all the guys were great. There were a couple of jokes about me being from the "other" Dallas office, and when I told them Big D, WI, is difficult to find on a map, they shot back that they could probably locate it right down to cable maps and DSAs (that's digital serving areas, to all you non-telcom folks). They at one point started to sing the Spiderman theme song, with the very confusing and somewhat troublesome substitution of "Spiderpig," and I decided it was time to get while the getting was good.

Thursday found us doing our 2nd training session on the new CPNI rules, and that went really well. Like with any presentation, once you do it the first time, any subsequent times are smoother and easier since you know some of the questions that will inevitably arise and can address them up front, plus you can add clarifications where needed to avoid confusion. Chances are I'll be back in Texas in the near future repeating this training, since the FCC rules go into effect in December, and telcos are eager to get their practices and methodologies established before the Commission has a chance to start doling out more violations fines, which have been ranging into the 6 digits as of late.

Thursday afternoon found me again at Lubbock International, waiting for my flight. Ever flight I've ever had in, to or from Texas has been late, and this evenings was no exception. The Houston area was experiencing some bad weather, so that held all the commuter flights on Southwest up, meaning I got out of Lubbock almost an hour late. I wasn't in any hurry, since my flight back to MSP doesn't leave until tomorrow (Friday) morning, but it's irritating nonetheless. Especially in Lubbock, since the airport's pretty boring.

Sat in "first class" on my Southwest flight back to Dallas this evening. Those of you who have ever flown Southwest will understand this joke, but for those of you who haven't yet experienced the joy, here's how stuff works on SW. My boss, in her infinite wisdom, once told me that boarding for SW flights is like a cattle call. And she was right. There is no real seating/boarding pattern on SW - you are assigned an A, B, or C designation at the time of check-in (which is why one should ALWAYS do online, 24-hr in advance checkin with SW), with all passengers in the A group boarding first, followed by B, and so on. However, there may be more than half the passengers in the A group, so jockeying for position is big. Because, unlike every other airline on the face of the earth, SW does not assign seats. So the early bird DOES get the worm here. And, since yours truly is meaner than most people, I managed to sit in the very first row, right next to the window, because SW also does not believe in seating classifications. They are very egalitarian in that regard. But if you are a late-add, it means you get stuck between Big Bertha and Bigger Al in the last row, with a 30 minute connection at Dallas Love. I think I'm going to submit a new marketing slogan for SW on their website, "Southwest - the Great Equalizer." Catchy, no?

But as my flight leaves earlyish tomorrow morning, and I'll have to plan extra travel time to accommodate the crazies on LBJ during DFW rush hour, I'll leave you for the evening. Check up throughout the weekend - more landscaping and much more fun-ness is coming your way! With love from the Big D, Musings.

Y'all ready for this?! AKA "Shockin' y'all!"

2007-07-16T23:07:00.000-05:00

So, it's been a while. And, as fate would have it, I find myself blogging from Dallas, TX again. Just not at the airport this time - rather, right next to the LBJ Freeway in a hotel room, complete with noisy drunks running through the hallways. Did I mention I'm starting this blog posting on a Monday night? Do these people not have to work tomorrow morning?!

Whatever. Speaking of LBJ, I told you I would post the picture I took from our Dallas office overlooking the LBJ Freeway (BONUS POINTS for those of you who actually know what LBJ stands for...), so here it is. Fabulous, huh? Or not...

Since I last posted, SO MUCH has happened. It's been a veritable cascade of fun-ness! First and foremost I got to visit the long-lost Tennessee relations. Let me clarify the long-lost - it was ME who was long-lost, not them. They've been in the same place forever, it's just that I took a long time getting back. You know, like 10 years. Honestly. I was 16 the last time I saw those folks - do you know how much STUFF happens to a person between the ages of 16 and 26? Sit back and think about it for a while. It will astound you!

But the trip to TN, though LONG overdue, was well worth wait. The weather was wonderful, the days were full of fun stuff to do, and - oh, yeah - the people weren't half bad either! :) I got to go to a couple of antique stores in Goodletsville, got the grand tour of the drastically different White House proper, listened to great music, oohed and aahed over a spectacular fireworks show, snooped around in the relatives' houses (thanks for the tours, y'all!), took a couple dips in the pool, went golfing in Kentucky, and cheered loud - and probably fairly annoyingly - at my cousin's baseball games (x3!) It was a busy couple of days, but it was absolutely awesome to see everyone again, and I SWEAR it will not be 10 more years until I return!

My cousin, R3 or R4, batting. There are four boys, all with names starting with R, and the youngest two are twins. Can't ever remember which is older (and I think I've asked about 20 times) - sorry guys! If you follow the yellow top line of the fence across from left to right, you'll see the blur of the baseball as it came in, about 7/8ths of the way across.

Little Sister and the other half of R3/R4. Can't you tell they're both intent on watching the game?!

After getting back from TN, it was just as busy at home. Before I even returned to PF, I had a message on my VM asking if I could help organize the Variety Show for the annual Prairie Farm Dairy Days. And because I have nothing better to do, of course I volunteered. For those of you who remember "back in the day" when Conway and Loretta brought down the house (or at least Neumann Auditorium) during Homecoming at Wartburg College, you will be happy to know that Loretta is still performing, garnering rave reviews at each subsequent appearance. Except this time, it wasn't "Louisiana Woman, Mississippi Man," but rather a song normally performed by a "friend" or Loretta's - Juice Newton's Angel of the Morning.

Ms. Loretta, getting her groove on. Notice the awesome picture taking abilities of B - I didn't marry him because of his skill with a camera...

Yours truly, expressing my happieness on finally having the Variety Show behind me!

All in all, the variety show was a train wreck with a Hee Haw theme. Some of the acts were good, but others not so much, lead in part by a poor girl of about 6 who did a piano solo of the children's song E-I-E-I-O.

ALL THE VERSES.

Ad nauseam.

It was pitiful, especially considering the audience started clapping before she was done, wishfully thinking they had reached the end of a particularly painful auditory assault. She, however, was completely oblivious, hesitantly plunking away until she reached the end. Oh well, for all I know, she may turn out to be the next Van Cliburn.

Dairy Days was the weekend of the 13-15, but earlier that week the oats were ready for swathing and shocking. If you are unfamiliar with the way in which grains used to be gathered, let me enlighten y'all. When grains mature today, they are typically run through a swather, which produces windrows which are in turn run through a combine. However, in the days before combines and everything, more steps were needed to process, dry, separate, and bale grains and grain by-products. Stands of grain were processed using a grain binder (or just binder), and unusual looking contraption that used a sickle bar (similar to a long rod with multiple pairs of scissors attached) to cut grain stalks, which were laid - always grain-head side up - on a conveyor. These stalks were then sent through the conveyor system, which processed the loose grain into small bundles, tied with baling twine. The bundles are then set up into little piles, called shocks. The shocks consist of 7 bundles: a pair in the middle, a pair on the right, a pair on the left, and one bundle spread over the top. The bundles are arranged so that each is standing upright, with the grain heads tilted toward the middle, forming a sort of tunneled pyramid under the bundles. Seasoned shockers will tell you the two signs of a strong shock are a formation tight enough to support the weight of a person sitting on top, and a tunnel wide enough for a small dog to run through. After the grain has dried, the bundles are fed into a threshing machine. This machine separates the grain heads and stalks from the kernels. Kernels are kept in a hopper on the thresher, while chaff (the heads and stalks) are blown out the side or top. Once enough chaff accumulates, the extra materials is baled into bedding for animals, so that no part of the grain is wasted.

Since you're all experts now, here are a couple of picts of PF family and friends binding and shocking. Threshing happens in late August/early September . My family holds an annual event called the Turtle Creek Thresherman's, with the centerpiece of the festivities being my late grandfather's early 1900s threshing machine, usually Labor Day Weekend. This year the date is Saturday, September 1st. Typically the day is marked by antique machinery, antique people, and antique jokes. But, truthfully, much fun is had by all, and there's always something to see, someone to talk to, and pie to eat.

Cousin Goober running the binder (funky looking thing running behind the tractor) while our friend/neighbor Leon keeps it between the lines. Goob tries to gather 7 bundles on the binder before releasing them

My Da, gathering bundles

Bother #2 sets an end pair in a shock

Leon, taking a coffee break, letting B run the binder tractor.

Grandma N, bringing refreshments to the field. Lemonade and fresh (read: still melting chocolate chips) chocolate chip cookies! Grandma's cookies are so famous, they were even mentioned on Moose Country (check out the May 2007 posting entitled Holy Cow - the World's Longest Blog for more on how much of an honor it is to be mentioned on Jay Moore's morning show).

Leon, Bother #1, Grandma, Me, and Bother #2, with a shock in the front.

Who's that stud shocking bundles? Oh, wait, it's B! He's spreading the stalks on the 7th bundle to cover the six bundles underneath from excess moisture.

Three stages, right to left - standing grain, piles of bundles, and finished stocks.

Goob, say hi! B and Bother #2 in the background.

The newest member of the family, Cheeseman, shocks his first bundles. Doesn't he look like he's having the time of his life? I don't know - sure beats making cottage cheese...

Then on Monday it was back to Dallas for a presentation on CPNI (customer proprietary network information) and the new rules the FCC (Federal Communications Commission) has implemented regarding that information's use and protection. Yeah, if you're not in the industry, it's a complete snoozer of a topic, but within the industry, as I found out during today's (Tuesday's) session, it certainly is the source of a lot of strong feelings.

Also, regarding the telecommunciations industry, as couple of the TN relatives were looking for the National and State Do Not Call list numbers, to help block telemarketer calls on their home lines. The National number is 888-382-1222 or click here to register via Internet. You can do this for residential or personal wireless phones. As far as the Tennessee state list, the number to call is 877-872-7030, or register online here. Again residential land lines or personal wireless phones. It doesn't hurt anything to register in more than one spot, but just remember different states have different rules regarding length of registration, so your number may be on your state list for a longer or shorter time than on the national. When you register, the site or phone number should tell you the length of time for which your registration is valid.

Business aside, tomorrow (Wednesday) I head to Lubbock, where I'll get to meet my colleagues in that office for the first time, and then I give the presentation to another group of clients on Thursday. After that, home and more landscaping await. I'll be sure to post the before and afters. It should be quite the project.

Everything's Bigger in TEXAS

2007-06-29T07:42:00.000-05:00

Greetings from the President's Club at Dallas-Fort Worth International Airport! (DFW, to those "in the know") I'm sitting here in relative quiet, getting free internet service and charging my laptop due to the good graces and benevolent kindness of my boss. She flies INCREDIBLE amounts of time during the year, and is able to gain access to special little enclaves like this, and she brought me with her this morning. She actually already left to board her flight, so now I'm sitting in here, feeling slightly naughty, knowing I don't BELONG... :)

But anyway, the trip to Dallas went well. Did some running around in WI before heading to MSP. It's a good thing I left plenty early to catch my flight, too. I stopped in Menomonie to meet with our printing company and go over proofs for a project, and when it took a shorter amount of time than expected, I thought "Geez, I'm going to be there WAAAAY to early." But as I was driving towards MSP on I-94, just before the River Falls exit, and just after the New Richmond exit, I encountered a HUGE accident. I can't find anything about it on the MSP news sites, so I'm not sure exactly what happened. But what I can tell you, is that it looked like one of those bales of insulation blew off the truck that was carrying it, hit a couple other trucks, smashed into a passenger truck - flattening the cab - and causing a chain reaction. There were Troopers all over the place, and traffic was backed up for miles on BOTH sides of the highway, due to debris.

When I finally got into the Cities, I headed for Bloomington, stopping at the Mall of America to pick up a rolling laptop case, which I hadn't had time yet to do and needed badly, and then to the airport. Parking was a hassle, but I actually got through security without issue, leaving me with nearly an hour and a half before boarding. I was thinking I was doing okay, until the announcement came over the speakers that our crew was flying in from Chicago Midway, and that they would be delayed. Cue mass groaning on the part of all passengers. Long story short, my 5:16 flight left at closer to 7PM. As my ever-so-caring boss put it, "Welcome to the glamours of business travel!"

Once seated on the plane, things really went from bad to badder. One of the NWA crew members ended up being placed next to me, in a middle seat. And man, he was NOT happy about it. According to him, they oversold the flight, and crew members should never have to sit in middle seats - they should always have aisles, and the booking staff was all a bunch of idiots. And it only got better after we got in the air. Mr. Happypants decided to talk to yours truly. And not about a nice, pleasantly neutral subject. No, he went right into a rampage about reading material, stating that Playboy writes the best articles of any magazine in the US, and that he's always been a subscriber and always will be, and that anybody that disagree with his beliefs on the subject is a complete idiot. I was too shocked for words. And if that wasn't enough, he segued into a total lambasting of his wife, saying she was a terrible mother, and that their son was a worthless loser at 23 because his mother didn't raise him right. At this point, I was contemplating asking for $150/hr to be his therapist. I finally pulled out my laptop out of complete desperation (and before he tipped me over the edge and I had to kill him) and worked until our descent.

Once I collected luggage, transferred to the hotel, got checked in, and keyed into my room, it was close to 10:30PM and I was bushed. But I was too tired to be tired, if you know what I mean. So I went to the (very crappy) gym at the Hyatt Regency DFW and worked out for a little while. I was proud of myself. :) I missed out on my weight lifting class back home, but still managed to get in a healthy workout, which is a goal of mine as I start to travel more for work.

Thursday brought the meeting for which I had traveled to Dallas. It was my first time meeting a lot of my colleagues, since I work remotely, and everyone was really great. I did take a picture out the window of the conference room window, which I'll post when I get back home.

Which reminds me - I **finally** got a digital camera, for those of you who have been astounded at the fact that I still used a regular one up until now. I have a camera function on my digital camcorder, and that's what a lot of my pictures on the blog have been up until this time, but now I'm moving a little further into the digital age. For those of you who are curious, it's a Canon PowerShot 750, and it's cute as all get-out.

Last night we ate at a Saltgrass Steakhouse, which from what I gather from all the Texans at work, is a Texas institution. The food was great (I had a steak, of course) and the atmosphere was fun, too. We had a great waiter named Alex, who we could barely understand, due to his Hispanic accent. He was really funny, though, and kept us entertained throughout.

After a somewhat scary cab ride back to the hotel, I settled in for a movie, since I was so full I could barely even think about going back to the (very crappy) hotel gym. I picked Pan's Labyrinth, which turned out to be a great, but somewhat freaky, choice. It's a Spanish film by Guillarmo del Toro, it won a ton of AA's last year, and it's a great story, but probably not the thing to be watching in a hotel room, late at night, by yourself, before you go to bed. The special effects are awesome, but they're also part of what causes nightmares.

Oh, well, time for the flight to start boarding. I'll post pics later.

Daiquiri or Margarita?

2007-06-26T20:21:00.000-05:00

MAN, I hate the tough decisions in life...

Food for Thought

2007-06-24T19:22:00.000-05:00

Invariably, the universe throws more at you than you expect during the week. It's just the way my weeks have gone lately. Granted, the learning curve associated with the new job, the general busy-ness of summer life on a farm, and the mundane day-to-day chores are enough to stave off boredom, but this week's additions took things a little beyond the normal range of activity.

I'm REALLY trying to hit the gym on a more regular basis, and this week I did fairly well. Besides my regular Mon/Thurs kickboxing class, I've been eyeing another class by the same instructor on Wednesday nights. It's called Body Sculpt, and I finally made one of the sessions this week. And holy crap, did I feel it Thursday. And Friday. And Saturday. And part of the day Sunday. We used muscles of whose existence I was unaware. This coming week I'll be in Dallas, TX, during the class, and after that is Fourth of July, but hopefully I'll get back on track with it after that.

Yes, there is more traveling in my future. I leave Wednesday night for Dallas, returning Friday morning. It will be a quick trip, but Thursday promises to be a full day, packed with meetings and chances to meet a lot of the main office coworkers with whom I've only ever emailed before. If I get a chance to do anything fun as far as site seeing goes, I'll post some pictures.

The family took a bit of a hit this week with the passing of my great-aunt Mable. She's been health-questionable for the last several years, due to heart problems and her advanced age of 90, but a series of small heart attacks last week proved more than her fragile system could handle.

Her death marks a milestone of sorts for our family and also for the community. PF's not a big town, so each passing creates a ripple effect for the rest of the residents. Mable was the last of the 5 original siblings of my grandfather's family, many of whom played key roles in the church and community in the area. Mable, Willis (who died in February), and my grandfather John(who died last July) were the last of their generation in our family, and to have them all die within a year of each other has made the adjustment difficult.

Her funeral also marked the last one performed by our pastor of the last 22 years, Oz. He's been a fixture at community and church events, and since his kids were close in age to my cousins and I, a family friend as well. He's retiring and moving to a lake home in Minnesota, and yesterday was his last Sunday. I've never seen so many people crying - not even at a funeral.

You may wonder why I'm putting this on a blog posting - most of you as readers don't know either Mable or Oz, or if you do, it's just as an acquaintance. But the bigger issue that hit me as I was sitting in church this afternoon is the matter of influence: how each of us does what we do, whether knowing or not knowing the effect it may have on others.

If you were suddenly gone, whether you died or had to leave, would others cry at your departure?

Thought for the Day

2007-06-16T19:28:00.000-05:00

(courtesy of Queen)

"It's a beautiful day,
The sun is shining..."

The week in pictures

2007-06-15T17:38:00.000-05:00

I LOVE the MSNBC feature called The Week in Pictures. I am a big fan of the multitude of photography projects out there: A Day in the Life, Project 365, MSNBC Photoblog, etc. But the Week in Pictures is still one of my favorites.

But TWIP's 5th picture broke my heart today. There is little wonder it's winning the weekly vote.

What happens in Vegas.. (and in Prairie Farm)

2007-06-12T19:26:00.000-05:00

Okay, enough with the calls and emails. Here's your dumb blog posting.

Between the last post and now, I've been busy. I've really had a chance to get into the full swing of the new job, and so far, it is everything I hoped it would be. Which is to say, I'm very happy with it and things are going well.

Last week I went to Las Vegas for work. I had to attend the Annual Meeting of RICA, as CHR coordinates and manages their association. This means, basically, CHR staffers do the leg work of getting the hotel contracted, lining up speakers, paying bills, ordering booklets and awards, etc - you name it, we do it. It was work, but it wasn't ALL work! :)

Thursday night I got to go out with with a couple of people from CHR: Paula from IL and Stan from TX. The ultimate goal of the night was to see Cirque du Soleil's Beatles-themed show, LOVE. But before that, we did a little sightseeing. Well, actually, I did a little sightseeing, since Paula and Stan had been to Vegas before, and I hadn't. Here's a couple of shots.

Yes, that would be yours truly in front of the fountains at Caesar's Palace.

And this would be yours truly in front of the fountains INSIDE Caesar's Palace. These are the ones that come to life and spout fire and water and steam and stuff. Pretty creepy, actually.

After the sightseeing, we headed to the Mirage and ate at STACK, which was absolutely wonderful, and the source of a couple of recent culinary experiments here at home. Then it was the show. This is a picture of me (being dumb as ever) in the hallway leading to the LOVE theater.

Isn't the floor groovy?

The show itself was AWESOME. For some clips of LOVE and to get an idea of what Cirque is like, click here. For anyone who loves Beatles music, or even knows a couple of songs from Sgt. Pepper's, this is the thing to see. Totally unbelievable, and utterly too short. I would definitely go again - there is just too much to see with one performance.

Oh, and I had a small world moment on the plane ride out to Vegas. I, luckily, was seated in an exit row with a very nice gentleman, of about late fifties, early sixties. We had an empty seat between us - again, luckily - and we both commented on it. We did the basic airplane chatter - where are you headed, what are you going to do there, where are you coming from. When we got to the last question, the gentleman said he was from Sturgeon Bay, WI. I remarked that I had an uncle from there, and that he teaches ag at one of the schools on the peninsula, and I named the school. The guy's eyes lit up and he said "D.C.? He's your uncle?! I play basketball with him during the winter. He needs to work on his jump shot." So here I was, several hundred miles away from home, talking to a guy who plays basketball with my uncle. Small world moment.

After getting back from Vegas, I embarked on a little project. Not that I need more to do, but you know. These things just sort of strike.

Project background - Our house used to belong to B's grandparents. As I've said before in previous posts, they were lovely people, but just not able in their later years to do the maintenance needed on an older farmhouse and grounds. Well, over the past three+ years of living here, B and I have been working on the farmhouse. This summer, I decided, it was time to tackle the grounds.

Here's a couple of before pictures. These are just a few of the areas.

And now, a couple of afters. Not everything is done yet, but you can kind of get the idea. The log cabin was the original house on the property, and housed 8 people at one time. It's over 150 years old, and it's starting to show its age. The wild rose bush B and I stole from a ditch near our house a couple of years ago. It's going like gangbusters now, and looks like it's been there forever.

B has been busy too. His latest project has been putting an addition on the barn. Here's a picture of the first cows in the new area.

And here's one of the many reasons we need an addition onto the barn.

Awww, isn't it cute?! One of my favorite reasons for living on a dairy farm.

So there. You all better be happy now. :) Until next time.

Busy with Busyness (AKA the world's second-longest blog)

2007-05-23T21:01:00.000-05:00

Have you ever heard that song (they used it for telephone directories when I was a kid, but it had been around forever before that) "I've Been Everywhere?" Click on the link to get the Australian version of the song, as it was originally written. It's been recorded by a TON of people, most notably Johnny Cash. Anyway it could totally explain my life the last couple weeks.

When last I left you...

I was headed for the State Track Meet in Des Moines. Little sister ran spectacularly well, garnering a couple of personal records, and ended up 5th in the Distance Medley for 3A schools, and 9th in the 4x400 relay. She had a great, great day, and I am soooo proud of her.

Also, LS had just gotten (some) of her senior pictures taken. Here's a few of the results:

This last one is my favorite. It looks fierce in black and white. She had the pictures taken because she wanted a couple with her long hair. That's right, little sister followed big sister's lead and recently donated 12+ inches of hair to Lock of Love. Proud of her for that one too. The rest of the pics are scheduled for sometime in September, and I'll put up a couple of those too, when I get an opportunity.

Another awesome part of hanging in Des Moines for the STM was the opportunity to meet up with one particularly funny friend, of whom I see far too little. Mrs. Wipperburger, I'm talking to you! We hooked up for dinner at Romano's Macaroni Grill (I'd never been there before - it was her choice. My comment about the whole thing: "How does one grill macaroni? Does it stick?). :) As luck would have it, I reached the predetermined meeting place before my friend, was escorted to a table, and proceeded to tell our waitress (a very lovely young lady named Shana) that we would be celebrating Mrs. Wipperburger's birthday. Unbeknownst to Mrs. Wipperburger, that is. You see, the actual date of Mrs. Wipperburger's birthday is in November, but as I was unable to attend the birthday celebrations the last couple years, I decided to make up for my appalling behavior by substituting it for MORE appalling behavior. So the evening progresses, MW shows up, food is ordered and appreciated, vino is imbibed, stories are told, laughs are had, and all of the sudden Shana the waitress shows up with the biggest piece of chocolate cake I've ever seen in my life. I wish to GOD I would have had a camera with me so I could have posted for the world to see the look on MW's face. It was priceless, along with the ensuing bright red flush that rose up her neck, past her cheeks, and straight to the tops of her ears. LMAO. MW was completely mortified, but to her credit, she played along absolutely wonderfully.

Back in WI, I started the new job last Monday. I met up with my new boss (who used to be my old boss - that's a story that gets a little complicated) on Sunday night and she got me some materials to give me plenty to do Monday and Tuesday, while she was out of state working with a client. I've been reviewing keynote speakers' promotional materials and creating a database for CHR to work from (for future association conferences, which CHR helps organize), reviewing competitive marketing materials and drafting a marketing strategy for a small phone company in the Phoenix, AZ area, and writing a policy manual for the same company. Plus, getting all the little things associated with working from home figured out - new printer, phone line, paperwork, etc. Wednesday morning I leave for Las Vegas, to help staff the annual meeting of an organization CHR manages. I'll be out there until Friday, and then it's back to WI. I'll try and blog from there - that is, if my laptop is here by then. Otherwise, y'all'll have to wait.

Friday the Boss let me off early. I was a little worried when she said, "Don't worry about being a few hours short this week...I'll get them out of you at the conference next week..." and then she gave me this horror-movie mwah-ha-ha kind of laugh. Ummm, yeah.

So what did I do with my Friday afternoon? Instead of getting my own stuff done at home (it's nearly midnight on Monday night now, and I'm still not exactly sure what I'm wearing to LV) I volunteered a little of my time, blood, sweat, and muscular fortitude and, as the Step-Monster puts it, "gave a haircut to a bunch of dead people." Or, in vernacular for regular folks, I mowed our local country cemetery.

A couple of words about the cemetery. The Sunset Cemetery is located on land that my great-grandfather owned, and subsequently passed down to my grandfather and father. So, in essence, my family owns a cemetery. Iiiif you want to call it that. My grandmother is the secretary for the cemetery foundation, and is therefore in charge of getting young people lined up to mow the grass and trim around the headstones. Because, bloggers, these things don't just happen on their own. Usually the Step-Monster, Dad and the Little Bothers do the mowing when the grass starts getting longish and the dandelions get out of control. But with the Memorial Day weekend, things get pushed up a little. I knew that there was a lot to do, so I went down, picked up the weed whip and the push mower from grandma, pistol whipped the elder Bother until he finally agreed to do the riding, and headed down to trim things up a bit.

Mowing a cemetery is a tedious process. First of all, mowing is NOT one of my favorite things to do. Secondly, you have to think of it not as a lawn, but more like a turf management obstacle course. The site is a couple acres, about 200 headstones, plus a bunch of trees and shrubs, and things can get a little hairy with the mowing. You really don't want to run over or hit someone's headstone with a mower - there's just something BAD about that - and some of the headstones are almost 200 years old and are getting brittle. Thus, proper care must be taken. So you push mow around the headstones (think 200+ little tiny squares, turning left constantly, and concerted, diligent attempts to miss the flowers, solar lights, and all the other crap people leave by gravestones). But, on the flip side, it does give you the nice glowing feeling of accomplishment when you get done, especially considering it's one of the only things you can still do to show your appreciation and respect for those interred there.

Memorial Day in small towns like mine means that the local American Legion Post (composed of gentlemen whom, despite their collective honor of and respect for country, should probably NOT be shooting guns - blanks or not - and walking without supportive devices across the bumpy ground of a country cemetery) comes out and does an honor guard salute at all of the little cemeteries in the area that house the remains of veterans. Usually a couple of kids from the local high school band blow "Taps" at the end, and the inevitable parade of blue-haired ladies from the Auxiliary follow the guard to the next cemetery, where the whole process is repeated again. Well, many, many moons ago, yours truly participated in a Memorial Day "concert tour" of sorts. I was asked by the local Lutheran pastor to accompany the parade to four different cemeteries, singing "The Star-Spangled Banner" at each one, while the honor guard and "Taps" blowers did their things. I accepted, and found myself at Akers, West Akers (creating naming, huh? Typical Norwegians for ya...) Sunset, and Evergreen Cemeteries. Well, my grandparents (grandpa was alive back then) have never been so proud, and when I stopped by my grandma's house this morning, her request was that I repeat the performance today. So, I complied. Mostly because I know that this Memorial Day was a hard one for her, but also because it was a rather difficult one for our whole family, considering the losses of my grandfather and great-uncle over the course of the last year.

Which brings me to the last thing for today's post. Here is a link to the Wiki for "The Star-Spangled Banner." How many of you knew there were four verses? Take the time to read the Wiki, and consider the verses. And since I've given you that homework assignment, take another moment to read - out loud is the best - this poem about WWI, from which the American Legion and other veteran's organizations take the inspiration for the small paper poppies they use to raise money and awareness for veterans' causes:

In Flanders Fields - John McCrae

In Flanders fields the poppies blow

Between the crosses, row on row,

That mark our place; and in the sky

The larks, still bravely singing, fly

Scarce heard amid the guns below.

We are the Dead. Short days ago

We lived, felt dawn, saw sunset glow,

Loved, and were loved, and now we lie

In Flanders fields.

Take up our quarrel with the foe:

To you from failing hands we throw

The torch; be yours to hold it high.

If ye break faith with us who die

We shall not sleep, though poppies grow

In Flanders fields.

I know I've blogged about this before, but take the time to be thankful for the privileges we enjoy in this country, and the men and women who have sacrificed so much so that we can live the lives we do, in the manner we do. Because, as Madame Chiang Kai-Shek said, "We live in the present, we dream of the future, and we learn eternal truths from the past."

Holy Cow (AKA World's Longest Post)

2007-05-16T14:58:00.000-05:00

I say that because it's been FOREVER since I've posted. But after you read this, you may begin to understand why. To put it lightly, life's been a little busy. Here's the run down:

Weekend of April 21st (yes, it's been that long...)

My grandma Wilma, recipient of the Waverly Municipal Hospital's Volunteer of the Year Award, came to WI to visit me. She and I took B bowling, along with the little Bothers, Dad and the Step-Monster. We had a blast, and Grandma kicked our collective butts. Won $10 from the elder Bother, which is a big deal, because he's notoriously tight. So I got to rub his nose in the fact that not only did I beat him bowling, but I took his money. It was glorious.

Saturday night was the main reason for Grandma's big trip to the Northwoods. She and I made the trip to Medina, MN to see The Del McCoury Band live in concert. Never heard of the DMB? Well you should have! Shame on you! They are the best bluegrass band in the US, and as I told one friend, "If it were possible for a bluegrass band to rock my face off, they would have definitely done it!" If you have MusicMatch, they have songs on the Bluegrass channel, and their stuff is total worth hearing. They are virtuosos. Plain and simple.

The next weekend (after the week whipped through) was April 28th. I found myself in Ladysmith, WI doing a live radio broadcast with regional radio personality (and, to the little Bothers, wisest man on earth) Jay Moore, host of Jay Moore in the Morning on Moose Country 106.7 FM. Trust me, it was a big deal. I even had Jay, who was a really nice guy, sign a couple of Moose bumper stickers for me, which I in turn gave to the Bothers. They were speechless, and the talk is these priceless artifacts are headed for frames hung on their respective walls. Again, you have know idea how big of a deal this is... :)

After spending my morning with Jay, the Step-Monster and I headed for the Green Bay area to help out my cousin Mandabelle (names have been changed to protect the privacy of those involved), who, along with her husband, Physicsman, is hurtling along the path to parenthood. Bundle Of Joy is expected within the next month, so Mandabelle asked Step-Monster and I to come paint the nursery area, since we had already proved our painterly skills on the Bothers' house. Here are the results (not bad if I say so myself!):

View of the doorway before paint

The stairway before paint

The window before paint

AND NOW:

The door, after paint. The theme is Noah's Ark, so the walls are two-tone blue, with little wind-whipped waves halfway up the wall, forming a sort of a border. Mandabelle had a wall hanging and curtains already picked out, and we pulled these colors right from that.

The hallway, after paint (it's hard to tell, but it's a carmelly brown color - VERY nice)

The window after, with the inspirational curtain.

All in all, it was super fun, and Physicsman, and his brother-in-law Engineerman are spectacular cooks. Thanks for the hospitality, y'all!

After the quick trip to Mandabelle's was the beginning of an eventful week for me. After three + years of working at said regional telecommunications company, I gave my notice on May 3rd. I have taken a job at CHR Solutions, working in their telcom consulting arm with their market strategy and organizational management personnel. It was a big step for me, but a very exciting one. The new job offers lots of flexibility with scheduling, the opportunity to travel more, and unprecedented relationship building opportunities with some of the best and brightest telecommunications companies in the country. But more on that to come...

The night of May 3rd, I participated in a bowling challenge with a few colleagues, in support of our local Kinship chapter. And here's the kicker - not only did we beat our opposing team, but we WON THE TOURNAMENT!! Check out the pic below (NOT my most flattering, but I'm posting it anyway...)

The best part about this win (aside from scoring some awesome pledges for the kiddies) was that NONE of us are good bowlers. The bowling gods were smiling down on us, however, and we rocked with a combined total score of 3047. Say it with me, everybody, "Kick***."

That next weekend, May 5th, was spent with the Step-Monster again (if I didn't like her so much, I'd be REALLY sick of her by now...). Except now the focus of our attention was my house. Because of the new job, I have the ability to work part of the time from home. Which is great, except for the fact that my home previously lacked an office area. But with a lot of organization, a little elbow grease, and a couple gallons of paint, the Step-Monster and I started whipping the basement into shape as a makeshift office.

The storage room under the stairs. Notice all the bins labelled and nicely stacked in the back, plus the new Sterilite shelving unit awaiting its load. Organization is bliss!

A before shot of what will be my office area. You'll have to stay tuned for the "after" shots, since I'm still in process.

This is the are right where my worktable and desk area will be (actually, that IS my worktable under all the stuff...). Notice the dingy, grimy walls; nasty metal track shelving and general disarray. This is what my basement used to look like.

A little explanation about the basement is warranted at this point, I believe. The house we live in used to belong to B's grandparents. They were lovely people, but the maintenance on the house had gotten way beyond their capabilities (due to age), and when we moved in, there was a lot of remodeling to be done. The house didn't even have a shower. So we concentrated a lot of our efforts on the upstairs living areas, and kind of let the basement slip. It became a place to stack wood (for the wood-burning stove) and do laundry, and that was about it. We also don't have a garage, so the basement stores all of our bikes, skis, snowshoes, boots, golf clubs and other miscellaneous sporting equipment, which tends to take up quite a bit of room in an already small area. So when this job opportunity came along, the first thing was to shape up the downstairs into something livable.

That pretty much ate up the weekend before last, and last week was spent frantically trying to tie up loose ends at work before I left, which is no small task. Last weekend I was again on the road (poor car - 3000 miles in less than a month), this time heading to my sister's District track meet in Decorah, Iowa. She is a middle distance runner, and she had a great meet. A couple of personal bests helped propel her to the State meet in two events. I'll be heading to Des Moines tomorrow to see her run at the Drake track.

However, the track meet was not the only highlight of the weekend. Little sister also is a junior, which means senior pictures are on the to-do list. So we did part of her sitting on Saturday. I have a couple pictures, which I'll post once I get them ready. She did great, and her pictures really show it!

Yesterday brought my last day at the old job. It was, and still is, very hard to leave the people there. Everyone was wonderful - there was not a single person I didn't get along with. They are truly a great group of people, who are committed to their products and services and dedicated to their customers, and it was great to be a part of that positive environment. Changing jobs has really been a unique decision for me, since the jobs are so similar in focus, but so completely different in functionality. I find that it reminds me of college - something you're a little anxious to leave, but with a future lying ahead of you that begs to be discovered. You'll probably miss the old, but you'll constantly be challenged by the new, and I truly believe that is what I'll find in this situation.

Tomorrow, as I said, I'll be heading to the State Track meet in Des Moines. I'm going to try and hook up with some friends down there at least one night, so I'll have plenty to post about this weekend. Again, my apologies for not posting sooner, but I think it was worth the wait! If you've made it this far through the post, you are to be congratulated, and you'll be happy to know that this is the end. :)

Today's thought

2007-05-01T21:48:00.000-05:00

(Courtesy of Pink Floyd)

Did you exchange...
a walk-on part in the war
for a lead role in a cage?

Absence Makes the Heart Grow Fonder

2007-04-19T21:02:00.000-05:00

Soooo many things to talk about. It's been a really long time (like a week and a half-ish)! First things first:

CONGRATULATIONS TO MY GRANDMA, WILMA, ON BEING VOTED VOLUNTEER OF THE YEAR AT THE WAVERLY MUNICIPAL HOSPITAL!!!

I am so proud of her!! When she told me tonight, she was so excited. She really likes helping out at the hospital - she works in the gift shop, runs flyers all over town, and just generally is available every time their volunteer coordinator calls her. One thing that she said that struck me as so true: "It makes me feel so good." I love to volunteer, fundraise, whatever, because it reminds me that there are so many worthy causes, so many less fortunate people, and so much that each of us can do about the ills of the world. American Cancer Society, Humane Society, local mentoring programs - whatever it is, I'm in. Give a little bit of your time, but get a wonderful feeling of accomplishment, ownership, and community.

Okay, enough on that rampage. I'm going to talk about something that has been on my mind the last week or so as I've been neglecting the blog. I've really focused on those things that people, specifically me, tend to put off or whine about doing, but once they're done turn out to not be that bad. For instance:

Duh, the blog - being able to find time lately has been a killer. With things on the farm starting to pick up (B just outlined for me Tuesday night how by next fall we should have 175 head of cattle on the place - yikes!) and work being crazybusy, I get in the house at night and I'm just whipped. But tonight, I felt like I had so much to share and so many thoughts to document, that I just had to get them down. So here we are.

The gym - making myself go regularly can be difficult. I'll think, "Gee, I was really tired today. Maybe I'll just go home, get some laundry done, and call it a night." But once I lay the self-directing smack down on myself, go to the gym, work out for an hour, and THEN go home, I find I have more energy, sleep better, and get more accomplished at home. [Added benefit - less jiggly butt :)] Part of the reason for this, I think, is my procrastination reflex paired with my constant urge to cross things off my mental list. So if I go to the gym, it leaves me less time for the things I need to do at home, which means I have to work that much more diligently to shorten my list. Ah, the fine art of tricking oneself.

Catching up with friends - one of the reasons I didn't write sooner this week was a previously scheduled engagement with four lovely ladies and some margaritas on Wednesday night. I and some of my friends from my customer service department days get together one Wednesday a month to have a girls' night at the local Adventures restaurant. Why Wednesdays? Well, customer service and business unit departments both have their monthly meetings every third Wednesday. PLUS Wednesdays at Adventures happen to be Mexican night with $3 jumbo margaritas. So it's a match made in heaven. :) Catching up with friends can be difficult, especially with so many schedules involved, but it's always worth it. We laughingly call it therapy, but in reality, it's a great chance to hang out with people from work without having to pretend you're working!

Cleaning the house - Ugh. Need I say more? Spring means spring cleaning, and with a farm, it just gets all the more intense. Dusting, cleaning closets, mopping floors, organizing the basement (I should get an award for that...) steaming carpets and upholstery, touching up paint on walls - the list is nearly endless. However, I finally feel like I'm getting somewhere. Plus, I love it once it's all done...if it's all done!

Checking account reconciliation - I wish I could say that I'm one of those on-top-of-it people who reconcile their statements each month when they come in the mail, but who are we kidding?! Other aspects of savings/money management/personal finance I'm awesome at, but checking and double checking is a chore I put off until the piles of statements jar me to my senses. Hmmm...personal finance and retirement. Totally a topic for another time - once I start I have a hard time stopping.

Clothes shopping - Shopping is difficult for me because in Barron Co WI there are not a lot of options for even remotely fashionable attire, be it work or casual. Usually that type of endeavor requires a trip to Eau Claire or Minneapolis/St. Paul, but we do have one Herberger's in Rice Lake that occasional surprises. This week was one of those weeks. However, for each fruitful trip, there are 4-6 terrible ones. It's the terrible ones in between that totally turn me off.

There's my list. None of the topics are really that earth-shatteringly difficult. But for various reasons they just seem hard to get done. As I get older, however, I find myself attacking even these things with a more vehement attitude. I just want to CROSS THINGS OFF THE LIST!! (Sometimes I picture myself in some airplane movie -"Landing gear?" "Check!" "Carpet steamer?" "Check!") Maybe it's because my job keeps me so busy. Or perhaps it's because I spend a portion of my evenings without the company of my husband, so time with him I'd like to have free to spend with him. Most likely a combination of a lot of things. But regardless, tonight's blog is the culmination of a seriously long but satisfactorily completed list.

Sometimes the best thing about holidays...

2007-04-09T19:36:00.000-05:00

...is when they're over. Hope you all survived Easter.

Thoughts for a blustery spring day...

2007-04-05T19:12:00.000-05:00

Now that all the snow is melted, the sun is beginning to shine, and the grass is greening up, it's time for one of my least favorite times of spring - "Trash in the Ditch" time. There is a reason April is the home month of Earth Day (the 22nd for those of you not up on such things) - spring reminds us of new beginnings, but it also serves serves up a visual of all the things we've done in the past to pollute/tarnish/completely mess up our environment. So, on that thought, here is my new goal, and a challenge for each of you.

PICK SOMETHING UP.

Sounds really simple, but just like so many other things, if each person did just a little bit, think of the huge progress that could be made! Whether it's a road on your way home, a stretch of Adopt A Highway roadway sponsored by your employer or civic club, or even the sidewalk in front of your house, try to pick up one thing a day and either dispose of it properly, or better yet, RECYCLE IT. And since I'm big on processes, here's my exquisite representation of the various waterfall effects possible as a result this seemingly insignificant action, with an aluminum can as an example:

AND for all you overachievers out there, check out the government's Earth Day website for more tips at home, at work, and everywhere else. Remember: Earth Day, Every Day!

Listen, & say thank you

2007-04-02T20:42:00.000-05:00

You'll have to pardon the stream of consciousness entry, but this news story touched a chord with me tonight. Having lost my grandfather and great-uncle within the last year, I suppose I am particularly sensitive to the passages of time and their effect on the complacent, status quo nature of so many of our lives. My hangup is this: Do you KNOW your forebearers? I'm not talking about the relatives who came over the ship 150+ years ago. I'm talking about your grandparents, if you are lucky enough to still have them, or your parents, or aunts and uncles. These people you think have led such ordinary lives are the sources of some of the funniest/scariest/most patriotic/sadist/most inspiring stories you've NEVER HEARD. And, like so many of us, they LOVE to tell them, to reminisce about days gone by, things they've done, lives they've lived. So take the time to listen. It means the world to the storyteller, and you'll find it means something to you as the listener - it gives you a new perspective on your life, the path they've taken, appreciation of the small triumphs of the human spirit, and the best opportunity to thank those to whom you owe it all. It is an easy thing to say "Thank You," but too often it is the most easily forgotten. So do it today - it's worth is immeasurable, and you never know when is the last time you'll be able to say it.

House Update

2007-04-02T20:19:00.000-05:00

Recent pictures from the little bother's, um, I mean little brother's house. :)

Dad in the kitchen - new cabinet doors are on, and the countertop is installed, along with the new faucet.

Dad in the kitchen, looking happy that the project is getting close to completion. Behind him is a glimpse into the laundry room.

Another shot of the sink -it's kind of hard to see the the dark countertops. I love the red, black & white wall! Can't wait to get the vintage chrome and silver Formica table set in to complete the retro look...

Brother #2's bedroom - pretty hard to tell, but the walls are a medium green - a little darker than a sage.

Brother #1's bedroom - this wall color is a beautiful seashore blue - hints of green and grey. I love this color - it may be the next color in MY house! Also love the striped bedspread, and am insanely jealous of the great view - Turtle Creek and the bluffs in the background (out the window).

Gotta love Marky-Mark

2007-03-31T19:13:00.000-05:00

Wahlberg, that is. Just went and saw Shooter with the step-monster. It was very good. My favorite shot was...well, every one with him in it. Loved him in The Departed, but it was good to see him in a starring role. He is one of those actors that just gets better with age. The next Sean Connery or Clint Eastwood or Robert Redford. Mmmmmm...

M vs SP

2007-03-31T13:15:00.000-05:00

I'm guilty of it as well - lumping St. Paul in with Minneapolis, or always putting Minneapolis first, i.e. MSP. Here is a little story I found interesting, for those of you who realize each of these wonderful Twin Cities has its own unique, and redeeming, features:

http://www.usatoday.com/travel/destinations/2007-03-27-twin-cities-tourism_N.htm?csp=34

Ah, sibling rivalry! :)

SPRING!!!

2007-03-29T20:18:00.000-05:00

It's been a while since I posted, but I have an excuse, I swear. I have been enjoying the weather. I know, sounds lame, but it's the God's-honest-truth. Taking a page from a fellow blogger (shout-out, KW), here is my list of reasons why I LOVE SPRING!:

1. Green - things are starting to look alive again. Infinitesimal stages of greening happen each day. When was the last time you really noticed?

2. Warmth - it's always such a pleasant surprise when you look outside, see the sun's shining, but still - in typical winter mindset - expect it to be cold, when in fact it's beautiful.

3. Smell - There are few things in this world that smell better than spring. These candles companies might have something if they were able to bottle the smells of rain, sunshine, warming earth, emerging tulips, fresh-cut hay, etc.

4. Light - I love when I wake up in the morning to have light streaming through the windows. Again, though it happens every year in just the same way, it never seems old. Each year I find new joy in the discovery of pink and yellow sky at 6AM.

5. Birds - I have a tall juniper bush outside my bedroom window, and the birds return to it each year. Yesterday I awoke to them singing and thought it was nice to have the neighbors back.

6. Johnnie Jump-Ups - for those of you unfamiliar with this little plant, it is one of the first true harbingers of spring for me. We have scads of them around the foundation of our house, and there is something truly sweet about watching one of my nieces delight in the discovery of "flowers!" And when YOU are the first recipient of their fresh-picked gifts, it's enough to make you smile for the rest of the day.

And, because it's been a while, and because we're on the subject, a couple of flowers for the bloggers. Enjoy!

A sunflower, some roses, a couple sprigs of eucalyptus, and some hypernicum berries (some of my favorites!)

Still more roses, a hydrangea, and a couple rogue carnations.

Ysabellabrave

2007-03-25T20:59:00.000-05:00

Lazy Sunday today. I've been catching up with one of my favorite YouTube personalities, Ysabellabrave. Check out one of my favorite videos here. If you like good music, good people, and good times, Ysabella's your girl! Ysabella has a bunch of other videos - all are organized by the song titles. Have fun, and enjoy!!

Sooo Many Photos!

2007-03-22T20:08:00.000-05:00

This past Sunday I went for a walkabout, as they say in New Zealand. I tried to get B to go with me, but he was much more interested in napping. Unlike yesterday's weather, Sunday lived up to its name. Temps were warm enough that a thin long-sleeved shirt and some mild exertion were enough to keep one comfortable.

Thaw was the word of the day Sunday, and the quickly-approaching vernal sun was doing its best to achieve. The woods however, (dark and deep, as Frost so aptly put it) were not as thawed, and snow still layered most of the shaded parts. Only the more open, southern-facing hillsides were exposed, but even they were getting a head start on spring: here and there were small patches of verdancy, hints of things to come. I took a few pictures - it's amazing how just a little fresh air can give one fresh perspective!

The ice covering last year's dried grass forms some wild, jagged shapes. You can see my shadow in the background - told you it was sunny!

A well-worn deer trail. Since the new growth alfalfa in this field hasn't greened up yet, it happens to be especially noticeable.

The maple syrup lines from B's high school years. Many are still up, awaiting their next use. B and I are still discussing our return to sugaring next year. Our personal supply is dwindling, and I would like to start tapping and cooking next year to replenish our stores.

A tree that's seen its fair share of action this winter - by woodpeckers! Notice the PILE of shavings at the bottom of the tree. I saw about half a dozen like this over the course of my walk. Now, if I could only spot an Ivory-Billed... :)

A shot through the trees along an ATV trail/logging road on a neighbor's adjacent property. There was a deer here before me, can you tell?

A couple of shot along the valley on my in-laws' land. The hill I'm standing on belongs to another neighbor, and our land starts at the bottom.
Benjamin, my faithful companion on these trips, much to spoiled Ms. Beezus' chagrin. Beagle is a good walking partner: he's never too far off (unless rabbits are involved), he comes when called (exempting prior mention regarding coneys) and he's invariably eager. He really helps keep me going!

Mmmmm, yuck.

2007-03-21T19:08:00.000-05:00

For a look at today's weather in Dallas, WI, click here. Seriously.

Current conditions: Light precipitation, mostly in the form of rain or mist, with heavy fog in most areas. Roadways may become slick overnight. Temps in the mid 40s, with lows tonight around 30.

Yeah, early spring in Wisconsin rocks.

Ahhhh...

2007-03-20T21:10:00.000-05:00

Tonight, I had a massage. There is nothing like getting one, for those of you who have never had the opportunity. It is, to a certain extent, a selfish experience, but it is also a conscientious one. My practitioner uses myofascial release in her practice, and I find I feel better every time I go. I also find I feel poorly if it's been too long between sessions. I also know that my body tells me when it's time to go back even before my calendar reminds me.

Too many times people think of massage for serious athlete types, who stretch and strain muscles on a daily basis. This can be true: massage does help repair muscles by increasing blood flow to the affected areas. However, it can be just as important for those of us who spend the majority of our days staring at a computer screen, pinning a telephone between our ear and shoulder, or with our elbows and arms at unnatural 90 degree angles for hours on end. These types of repetitive motions can errode health by wearing on joints, tensing muscles without strengthening them, and holding irregular postures.

So, for your next birthday, splurge a little, and treat yourself a lot. Trust me, you deserve it.

Beezus in the morning, with sleepy eyes

2007-03-17T13:14:00.000-05:00

The little dog lay curled and did not rise/But slept the deeper... - Richard Wilbur, US Poet

And finally, the truth is known...

2007-03-14T17:31:00.000-05:00

Warning: Potentially offensive material included.

Okay, well not really, but it helps set the mood. For today's foray into the blogosphere includes the sordid details of last weekend's entry into the "POSITIVELY WORST DINING EXPERIENCES OF MY LIFE" category.

**An aside. I really think I should have my own set of dining awards for the best/worst restaurants I've ever visited. I'd call them The Nappies (short for Napkins, for the good places, the bad places would get a soiled diaper; ah, the joy of double entendre!)

I digress. It actually started at Christmastime. B and I received a gift card for a restaurant in Woodbury that the givers are very fond of. They had raved about this place, telling us we "had to go" check it out. They loved the "homemade" food, the atmosphere, and the little country store in the waiting area, full of unique country-themed gifts. So when we received the gift card last Dec25, it was a not-so-subtle hint we should stop by there the next time we're in the Cities.

As our trips as a couple to the MSP/SP area are few and far between, B and I knew that this weekend's trip was one of our only opportunities to use the GC. So, rather gamely, we decided our final meal (read: LAST SUPPER :)! ) of the trip would be lunch as we were headed back out of town. [For those of you keeping track and reading back through this post trying to find the name of the restaurant, I haven't mentioned it yet, nor will I, other than it rhymes with Sachine Mhed] It was approximately 1PM when we reached the place, and we were seated almost immediately by a young lady who was dressed like she belonged in the entry to an Abercrombie store, apart from the fact that she wore an old-fashioned, homemade looking vest made out of tractor fabric over the top of the ensemble. This should have been my first clue: how could I have been so blind! Farmer Barbie led us to our booth, which was large enough for six people, and seemed to be at the end of about 3 miles of hallways. She told us our server would be along shortly, and walked away.

So B and I are left sitting in our cavernous booth with no menus and nothing to drink, not that we had anything from which to drink anyway. We sat next to two families: Corner Table family was five in number, while Round Table family was about 10. Both were loud, with Corner Table's dad constantly yelling at his kids: "Timmy, scoot over so Robby has some room." "Robby, quit picking on Timmy.", and so on. Round Table family's grandma was delusional: she kept exclaiming, in a rather loud voice, "Oh, Joey, you are the funniest boy!" "Oh, Joey, you are the cutest boy!" when it was perfectly obvious that he was neither. He was a three-year-old demon that kept crawling from his booster seat onto the table, yelling "Look at me, Grandma!" Yeah, cute and funny.

And in such a milieu we waited for the waitstaff. And waited. And waited a bit more. Finally a younger woman made her way over to our table. "Sorry about the wait. They filled up my section pretty fast, so I'm running a little behind. I'll be back to get your order in a few minutes." She drops the menus on our table, and takes off. I look at B, and wonder if we've entered the twilight zone.

Since we've got the time, B and I peruse the menus. The food is hearty fare, and not for your vegan/vegetarian crowd. There are herds of animals being slaughtered for this place. B decides on a 1lb burger, extra bacon/no tomato (he's a huge eater) with fries and a cup of French onion soup, and I opt for (from their "Lighter Fare" category) a turkey sandwich with mashed potatoes and gravy. Ours is not an order anyone should be able to screw up. Oh, we were so wrong.

Our waitress finally comes back, again apologizing for the tardiness. She asks us what we'd like to drink. After taking that order, she says "Great! I'll be right back." And she walks away. Again. When she finally comes back, she does bring drinks, and only then does take our order, even though we've nearly memorized the menus waiting for her. However, in the interest of time, I'll skip the painful parts about how long we wait until our food comes, the crazy lady from another table that keeps staring at B and I, the continuing obnoxious behavior of our neighboring tables, and the fact that we each had three (very small) refills of soda before our food came.

When the food finally does materialize, B is missing his soup, his burger is missing the bacon but has the tomato, the waitress doesn't bring ketchup for his fries, and my sandwich is plopped down in front of me with roughly 2 inches of gravy. Over the top of EVERYTHING. It takes a couple of stabs before I even locate the potatoes. It was not a sandwich and side dish. It was a gravy lake with unidentifiable lumpy objects. B caught the panicked look in my eyes when I finally looked up. "You don't even really like gravy, do you?" he asked. Affirmative on that one.

The waitress caught us off guard with the mismatched conglomeration of our order, so we weren't able to catch her for refills on our sodas. Nor did she feel the need to check back in with us later in the meal. So we choked down the majority of our meal with no liquids. Quite a feat, let me tell you. Only as we were finishing (or rather B was finishing - I ate about ten bites of turkey rescued from the gravy flood, and that was about it) did she materialize again. But miracle of miracles, she brought B's soup. As she set it down she apologized for the third time during our meal: "Sorry it was kinda late. The cook burnt the first bowl." With that stunning insight into the culinary preparedness of the kitchen, B and I realized we had walked into a disaster zone.

As soon as she set down our bill, I had the GC at ready and presented it to her. She looked at me and said, "Wow, you guys really want to get out of here, don't you?" I couldn't believe she'd said it, but I wasn't about to disagree with her. She left to run the card, and when she came back, she said, "You've still got quite a bit left on here. You'll have to come back and see us again." Yeah, sweetheart, I was thinking, when hell freezes over.

By mutual agreement, B and I purchased the least offensive "country-themed gift" from the gift shop, a Yankee Candle, effectively using up the remainder of the GC. As we all but ran to the car, we were both laughing about the fact that there was nothing during the meal that went RIGHT! We also agreed to never come back, and B informed the party that gifted us with the card in the first place that they should donate the money to charity next year, rather than subject us to that misery again.

So what did I learn from this whole experience? Never give a gift (or GC) simply because YOU like something or somewhere. It's less painful for everyone involved! :)

More to come...

2007-03-12T18:01:00.000-05:00

I know I promised to expound upon previously posted comments regarding unbelievably terrible culinary experiences, but you'll have to wait until later this week. For now, just a couple pictures:

My new terrarium and nexus of my current horticultural aspirations. (Many thank yous extended to my parents for finally enabling me to have a "greenhouse," albeit Lilliputian, all of my own)

Plus, just in case you thought I was kidding about my previous post:

Never underestimate the importance of a good pair of sunglasses.

Notice the "Shake your Shamrocks" button by the Post-Its. St. Paddy's is just around the corner. Faith and Begorrah! (Google that if you have the chance!)

Relax and enjoy!

2007-03-11T17:44:00.000-05:00

Spent this weekend in Minneapolis/St. Paul with B. We recently celebrated three years of legally-recognized togetherness (not to mention four years of dating before that), and so we were ready to get out of Dodge. Work had kept us from doing this sooner, but it was well worth the wait.

We left Friday afternoon and drove to Bloomington. Our reservations for the weekend were at Sofitel Minneapolis, and I would recommend them to anyone staying in the MSP/SP area. They are right on 494, so it makes it really easy to get to and from everywhere you're going. Plus, the rooms are wonderful, especially the beds! Down comforters and pillows - AHHHH, the best I've slept in since staying at the Gateway Center in Ames, IA a gazillion years ago! (http://www.gatewayames.com/index.html to get to the Gateway Center's site, http://www.sofitel.com/sofitel/fichehotel/gb/sof/0539/fiche_hotel.shtml for Sofitel) Plus, Sofitel has kinda funky modern furnishings and wonderful restaurant and bakery. Really great stay! (Confidential to R. L. - now that you work there, I'd be game for some discounts!! :))

But possibly the highlight of the trip for B, as well as for myself was dinner Friday night at Ruth's Chris Steak House. WORTH EVERY PENNY!! The food was wonderful, the service was great, and the pomegranate martini brought tears to my eyes! B was a little apprehensive about going there, considering their pretty expensive menu, but we both agreed it was money well spent after a fantastic meal. B had steak and shrimp (sizzling in butter at 500+ degrees when it comes to the table), and I came away with stuffed chicken breast, which came butterflied, bone-in. They serve the sides separately, but as "family style," so we ordered mashed potatoes and mushrooms. B committed the ultimate family blasphemy by saying they were the best mashed potatoes he's ever eaten, but I totally agreed with him, Grandma N's included. Creamy and buttery - all they needed was a pinch of pepper and a fork! Highly, highly recommended for anyone who would like a five-star dining experience. Just stay away from the 100-year-old Remy Martin at $115/drink if you're counting the pennies!

After dinner Friday we high-tailed it over to the Ordway for a performance of Love, Janis, a musical based on the life of Janis Joplin and the book of the same name written by Joplin's sister Laura. The musical interspersed letters Janis wrote to her family, interviews given to various magazines, and songs from her records, and there were two actresses portraying her simultaneously - one doing the singing, one doing the letters, and each taking turns during the interviews. I didn't know how this was going to be, but it had gotten great reviews in the Pioneer Press, and I love Janis Joplin, so I bit. Turns out it was the right thing to do. We ended up with great seats (about 12 ft from the stage) and the show was electric! I've seen the footage of Janis at Woodstock, and read enough about her to know that these ladies who played her were spot on perfect. Even B was impressed, and he was really excited halfway through the first song ("Piece of My Heart") when he realized he might know some of these songs! Plus, they did "Mercedes Benz" as a singalong with the audience! It was a blast. B really liked the two 55+ drunk ladies in front of us that kept standing up and dancing during the songs. Highly amusing! ;)

Saturday was a lazy day, with nothing really planned until afternoon. Since we were already in Bloomington, we spent most of the morning at the Mall of America. We went to the Underwater Aquarium, which I haven't done since I was in grade school, and lucked out enough to be going through the tunnel as they were feeding the sharks! Pretty cool when they're thrashing about right in front of your face! As we emerged from the Aquarium, we noticed a bunch of little girls with fake curly hair running around. Turns out there was a huge Irish dance festival at the mall kicking off St. Patrick's Day week, and there were 5 different Irish step dancing schools that were doing performances until 6:30 that evening! So we watched for a while, along with half the mall! They had one little girl who was five, and she did a solo number out in front of all these people - and there must have been 500+ on all three levels. It was pretty amazing, and they were all really good. I would kill for the thigh muscles of some of those dancers!

B had a first this weekend. His back was bothering him on Saturday at the mall, so when we walked by the Aquamassage store, I told him to get one. He spent 10 minutes in there, and he said it was weird, but it really helped. I was really surprised he did it, but glad he did at the same time. If you've never had an Aquamassage, treat yourself sometime. It's a bit of a trip. However, do not attempt if you are claustrophobic. Could be a little scary for you...

Saturday afternoon was back to the Ordway for a performance of Lerner and Lowe's Camelot. I had never seen this show, and barely knew any of the songs, but again, was really glad we went. Not as exciting as Janis, but still really good. And the chick that sang Guenevere's part - holy crap. Her name was Rachel York (http://www.rachelyork.net/ - check the website for some of her songs - they play in the background after the site is loaded) and she was about as big around as my left leg, but she must have been pulling that sound from her ankles. She rocked! Michael York (no relation) was King Arthur (he's best known to our generation for his part as Basil Exposition in Austin Powers: The Spy Who Shagged Me), and while his acting was good, his singing was quiet, and not articulate enough/too British to allow you to catch every word, even though all principals were mic'd. (For a picture of Mike, check his website: http://www.michaelyork.net/)

After the show, we went to Cossetta's at B's request. He loves the place for the food, I love it for the ambiance and the great Italian market. Real prosciutto is a pleasure close to heaven! We (luckily) got a table right at the top of the stairs overlooking the line, so it was fun to eat and people watch. Minnesota was having its high school hockey championship this weekend, so there were a lot of crazy hockey fans eating pizza, since Cossetta's is only a couple blocks from the Xcel Center. Picked up a couple cans of pepperocinis and hot peppers for gifts, and then the rest of the evening was spent chilling out at the hotel watching The Bourne Conspiracy.

Sunday morning we grabbed a couple rolls from the fabulous Sofitel bakery and packed up our stuff. We set out for Grand Ave, and had ham & asparagus quiche and coffee at Cafe Latte before going to Pottery Barn and Smith & Hawken. The day was a triumph for me. I finally bought a terrarium. I have wanted one forever, and they had standing ones at Smith & Hawken that caught my eye at Christmastime. I received a birthday gift card from my parents for S&H, and it had been earmarked for this purchase for quite a while. Needless to say, setting it up was the first thing I did when I got home. For now I'm going to use it to rehab an ivy and an orchid I have that could use a little TLC, but soon it will be host to plants of its own, most likely a couple small ferns. It's tall enough for a Phalenopsis, so maybe another of those as well. Who knows?

Before I wrap up this LONG post, I have to, for your amusement, post another B first. We stopped by Dick's Sporting Goods at Tamarack to look for a birthday present, and B spied the climbing wall. Now, for those of you who remember, first-year students at Wartburg got the opportunity to go climbing at the UNI wall many moons ago. So I have been rock climbing. B has not. He decided to go today (along with ten or so obnoxious little kids who had terribly little supervision or decibel control). Can I explain to you how funny it was to see the 6.5 ft husband in climbing gear hanging from the wall next to a seven-year-old? And did I mention they didn't have a pair of climbing shoes big enough for him? He had to squeeze into a 13, which is what he normally would wear, except for the fact that climbing shoes run a size small. I apologize profusely for not having pictures. My intentions were to take some, however, my camera batteries had other ideas. You'll have to paint a mental picture, and trust me, now matter how odd that picture may seem, it's most likely accurate!

The last part of our afternoon was too painful and raw for me to post about now. Suffice it to say we had the best and POSITIVELY WORST dining experiences of our lives this weekend. More explanation to come. But for now, unpacking and laundry.

More vestiges of a snowy weekend...

2007-03-07T22:11:00.000-06:00

While not snowmobiling and snowshoeing and snowwatching and snowcursing, I did manage to sneak in a few movies. A couple good ones, a great one, and one I liked even though I (somewhat snobbishly) thought I was too old for it.

First things first - let me explain about me and Dame Judi Dench. I LOVE DJD! For a 73-year-old lady, she is lookin' damn good. And she's a fantastic actress, unfortunately probably best known as the spy-maven "M" in all the James Bond movies. Her performance (still considered by many - including myself - to be her signature) as Lady Macbeth in the BBC's 1979 production of Macbeth was unbelieveable; "OUT, OUT DAMN SPOT!" has never been the same. I credit that performance with a lot of my interest in literature, especially my love of Shakespeare. But I digress. She happened to star in two of this past weekend's showings, Mrs. Henderson Presents (for which she was nominated for an Oscar in 2005) and Ladies in Lavender, in which she costars with Dame Maggie Smith (Prof. Minvera McGonagall of Harry Potter fame), her real-life best friend and equally as esteemed colleague.

Liked both movies, but neither one was top quality. Mrs. Henderson was a little on the boring side, apart from her stellar performance - about an eccentric wealthy British widow from the 1940s who opens a theatre (that happens to employ nude performers). True story. Kinda funny at most times, and she plays the part to the hilt. The Lavender movie is a quiet, sad, kind of heartbreaking movie about regrets, and letting go. DJD and DMS are GREAT together in this movie - their interactions are so REAL.

The movie I loved was one I picked up pretty much as an afterthought. It stars two actors for whom I have never had much time: Gwyneth Paltrow, whom I've never really liked in anything, and Jake Gyllenhaal (of Jack "I wish I knew how to quit you!" Twist in Brokeback Mountain fame). But together, in this movie Proof (http://www.miramax.com/proof/) they both turn in really great performances. At several times during this movie, I actually wanted to reach out and hug Gwyneth Paltrow's character! Anyway, great story (based on a Pulitzer Prize winning play) that keeps you guessing until the end, and even after, plus the always welcomed joy of getting to watch Anthony Hopkins (in a supporting role as Gwyn's crazy mathematician father). Kind of like A Beautiful Mind with more romance and a girl as the lead.

The movie that surprised me was The Sisterhood of the Travelling Pants, with an ensemble cast of pretty unknown (at least until this movie came out) young actresses. It REALLY reminded me of Now & Then (Demi Moore, Rosie, Melanie Griffith, Rita Wilson), just updated 15 years. I expected it to be one of these foofy little tween movies like Confessions of a Teenage Drama Queen, but it was actually pretty good. And Amber Tamblyn (whose father I fell in love with a gazillion years ago as Gideon, the littlest Pontipee brother in the 1954 movie version of Seven Bride for Seven Brothers) shows why her "Joan of Arcadia" series was tops for the three seasons it was on - the whole thing hinged on her.

Alright, enough amateur movie reviewing. I have a house to clean, a toilet to scrub, and a dog who's toenail need trimming! Ahh, this really is the good life! :)

Snow

2007-03-03T19:50:00.000-06:00

So, it snowed on Wednesday. And again on Thursday. And for good measure, once more with feeling on Friday. With all this snow, Saturday found us with just one thing to do: PLAY!

This Christmas, B and I got snowshoes. I have wanted a pair forever, and just never gotten the courage to try them out. So Mom came through as usual and presented us both with a pair of TUBBS Ventures (visit TUBBS online at http://www.tubbssnowshoes.com/). Today was the first time we've had enough snow to use them. And use them we did!

We were out for almost two hours, walking around the farm, fields, and forests. We've got some seriously hilly terrain, so it was quite a workout (snow was an average of 15 inches, but the wind pushed drifts 2-3 feet or more). But it was one of those vibrantly beautiful winter days, where the snow is crisply, freshly, evenly white, and the sky is an unbelievable blue, and you could only think of getting out in it and absorbing some of the scenery. It was especially nice to get out of the house because we've been snowed in since Wednesday - no work for me, minimum of chores for B.

Once we got back to the farm, we had had enough of the workout, but not enough of the day. So we decided to fire up B's Ski-Doo snowmobile.

A side note on the snowmobile: B has had this thing since before we were dating (over 7 years, for those of you who are counting...) and up until today, I have been on it a grand total of TWO times. We just haven't had the snow for more use than that. The last time it was started was last Christmas (2005) and it took an hour, about 50 spark plugs, and three grown men to get it started. Thus, I was not optimistic today when B pulled the start.

The first pull didn't do a thing. The second brought a sputtering cough. The third time was a charm - the thing roared to life, and B yelled for me to open the shed doors. He made a couple laps in the field, getting it warmed up, and we were off. We went to Grandma N's, and since no one was home, on to Dad's. My brothers and father have an affection for old snowmobiles, so once they saw we were out, they wanted in on the fun. My father recently purchased a 1960s model Ski-Doo Olympique (the closest picture I could find is below):

With his bushy beard and the slim look of the sled, and it's big yellow front, he looks like a garden gnome that got stuck in a yellow rubber boot. Die Gelb Aufladung!

My youngest brother drive an Arctic Cat from the 70s, and it is possibly the cleanest, shiniest, nicest looking 30+ year old sled out there. It's all black, except for hot pink piping along the upholstery. Kinda looks like this one:

The other brother drives a Ski-Doo that has been sitting in the shed for the last year. I can't even begin to find a picture that does that one justice. We stopped at my aunt and uncles', and Sue made the joke that we were like a traveling snowmobile show - we had a sled from each of the last 4 decades!

We rode all over through the woods, back and forth across Turtle Creek (including, much to my anxiety, small pieces of open water). Between all the trail riding, and the ride from our house to Dad's, B and I put on 20+ miles. It was a great day, but the backs and butts are feeling it tonight.

Electricity, E-lec-tricity...

2007-02-28T17:49:00.000-06:00

In case you might be too young (or too old and forgetful) to catch the reference above:

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=G8iahHwEfNg

I have learned, in the last week, to appreciate the little things. Like light switches that actually work, toilets that flush, and water pumps that force water to flow from a shower head. In my sister's words: "It would suck to be Amish."

Winter weather in Waverly forced us to hunker down with long sleeves, sweatshirts, blankets, flashlights and firewood to survive during a four day power outage. We knew it was coming on Friday night, as we drove home from the Black Hawk Rollerdrome (ahh, sweet memories of my youth!). The ice started, and didn't stop until Saturday. Sometime around noon on Saturday, we lost power.

I was iced in- the major roads leading out of Iowa were closed by the DOT. Not even plow trucks and wreckers were allowed out. Sunday afternoon I called work, told them my circumstances, and that I would not be in on Monday. Finally Monday afternoon I was able to go home. Tuesday they got power back.

Adventurousness aside, it was really not that much fun. It was cold enough that hot food was what our bodies wanted, but not something that was very feasible. Unfortunately, today's cookware does not double for hearth usage. Same goes with frozen pizzas. Not a good idea.

However, the trip wasn't a complete loss, as I got to spend time with my sister, and I got to get my hair cut. I am a huge supporter of Locks Of Love (you can visit them here: http://www.locksoflove.org/#item2). I have donated three times in the last 5 years - my hair grows really fast - and this time was another 10+ inches. While the long hair is nice, it's pretty cool to be able to just wash, run a comb through it, and go.

And finally, I leave you with a couple of flowers: roses from Valentine's Day, and a gerbera with alstromeria, just because!

Beauty satisfies the senses completely and at the same time uplifts the soul.

- Franz Grillparzer

Every silver lining's got a touch of grey..

2007-02-19T20:28:00.000-06:00

Rather a pensive mood the last few days. February's are hard. Last February I was in a completely different place than I find myself this year, and it jolts me to the realization of how quickly our lives can change, almost before we can reconcile ourselves to the idea. I had a different job, [almost] a different car, and a number of loved ones, and suddenly this year, I'm without them. I'm richer in life, in material goods, in years, yet poorer in rays of sunshine, comfortable Sundays, and family history. I had pretty much summed up 2006 as a terrible year by the time we ended last February, and I truly feel I hit the nail on the head. The negatives far outweighed the positives.

Yet tonight, as I was driving home from the gym, I honed in on a song playing on the radio. I knew the song, but didn't know what band sang it, so when I got home, I Googled it. I never thought I would align myself with Grateful Dead lyrics, but, hey, if it's one thing I've learned in the past year, it's that you never know when life is going to throw you a curve ball...

Touch of Grey - emphasis mine

Must be getting early
Clocks are running late
Paint by number morning sky
Looks so phony

Dawn is breaking everywhere
Light a candle, curse the glare
Draw the curtains I don't care 'cause
It's all right

I will get by / I will get by
I will get by / I will survive

I see you've got your list out
Say your piece and get out
Yes I get the gist of it but
It's all right

Sorry that you feel that way
The only thing there is to say
Every silver lining's got a Touch of Grey

I will get by / I will get by
I will get by / I will survive

It's a lesson to me
The Ables and the Bakers and the C's
ABC's we all must face
And try to keep a little grace

It's a lesson to me
The deltas and the east and the freeze
The ABC's we all think of
Try to give a little love.

I know the rent is in arrears
The dog has not been fed in years
It's even worse than it appears
But it's all right.

Cows giving kerosene
Kid can't read at seventeen
The words he knows are all obscene
But it's all right

I will get by / I will get by
I will get by / I will survive

The shoe is on the hand it fits
There's really nothing much to it
Whistle through your teeth and spit
Cause it's all right.

Oh well a Touch Of Grey
Kind of suits you anyway.
That was all I had to say
It's all right.

I will get by / I will get by
I will get by / I will survive
We will get by / We will get by
We will get by / We will survive

SUCCESS!

2007-02-17T20:32:00.000-06:00

The garage sale went well on a number of levels. Most importantly, I succeed in getting rid of a lot of stuff. Secondly, I was able to make a little bit of money. So what does this all mean: people paid me for the privilege of cleaning out my closets! :) Who says the world isn't fair?!

So tonight, supper at my dad and stepmom's, with the brothers, and a minor celebration of sorts.

Signature of a Life

2007-02-15T23:37:00.000-06:00

A week ago, my great-uncle Willis passed away. For most kids, a great-aunt or -uncle is a relative on the periphary, someone seen only occasionally, and whose presence inspires a sort of curious dread (like you want to go see him/her because he/she is someone different than the usual, but you vaguely remember the last time you saw Auntie Em/Uncle Mel he/she had a nasty mustache that poked you every time he/she kissed you, and he/she kissed you a lot...).
Willie was not this way.

Since Willie and my Grandpa John lived on the same farm, Willie was another grandpa of sorts, and his house was another place to go searching for special treats, or favorite toys. Willie's basement was creepy/cool, a place to play with the handmade wooden blocks housed there, but only during the brightest daylight hours. It was a place to grab a snack of a mini Snickers bar (conveniently "hidden" in the lower drawers of the kitchen), as long as never strayed past that room, or occasionally the living room. (It wasn't until we started renovating the house for my brother that I even knew how many bedrooms were in the back).

Willie's house was like an odd musuem, full of strange head mounts of caribou, elk, and deer, whose eyes seemed to follow you wherever you went. There were momentos of countries Willie and my Aunt (his sister) Onita pledged allegiance and remembrance to, but to which my cousins and I were only partially familiar. There were books and toys that had the look of age to them, and the marks of many hands they had encountered over their lifetimes. And of course, there was the still, musty air, the frail, transluscent look, and fine sheen of dust that all things, and people, of antiquity seem to have. To this day I walk through the front door and get an instant flashback of how things in the house were when I was a child; how they continued to be, until Willie was too unsteady to live at home alone any longer, and the renovation of the house sent its varied treasures into Rubbermaid tubs, closets, and dressers for safekeeping, or to new homes among relatives.

But as much as these hallmarks of the distant past shape my memories of Willis, the one thing that brought me to tears at his funeral last weekend was a relatively recent recollection. My family has been lucky and blessed enough to celebrate a number of weddings in the last few years - there have been five such gatherings, and one funeral. At each one, Willie would, as regularly as rain, show up in a blue suit, white shirt, and tie. The tie was a red silk one, slightly stained, fairly faded, and completely careworn from use during all Willie's formal-dress occasions. I can tell you from my personal experience of cleaning his closets during the house renovation that it wasn't the only one he owned, but it was the only one he wore. And it showed. But the beauty of that tie was the way in which it mimicked Willie's life - not always the most fashionable or attractive, but steady and constant; performing the required function without showiness or ostentation; fraying slightly over the years, but still showing up regularly and being presentable about it; bringing a flash of color and humor to an otherwise bland ensemble; classic enough for a funeral, yet not afraid to cut loose and have fun when warranted.

A red tie. Simple, direct, traditional, yet still the color of love, fealty, and family. Some people wear their hearts on their sleeves; Willis wore his around his neck. Good journey, Willie; we'll miss you.

Mindless Fun!

2007-02-14T19:41:00.000-06:00

Actually, this takes a lot of concentration! Something quiet you can do at work, instead of working! ;)

http://members.iinet.net.au/~pontipak/redsquare.html

Way much fun! My record was 20.969, until I had to give up and go back to getting ready for the garage sale...

"On a mission to make somethin' happen..."

2007-02-14T18:22:00.000-06:00

I am gearing up for a huge event. I have spent the last two weeks preparing: sorting, cleaning, scheduling, planning. Right now, I am so anxious for it to arrive, I can hardly stand it. I need an end to this seemingly never-ending buildup! So what could possibly illicit this sort of frenzied response?

A garage sale.

But, as you laugh about the silliness of my excitement, know this: mine is not going to be your average garage sale. First, it's in February. I am banking on all the hard-core summertime garage salers to be frothing at the bit for good sale after a winter of "sale famine." Second, my booth is going to be one of about 35 in the Barron Area Community Center on Saturday, at an event that historically brings in approximately 1500-2000 people. Location, location, location. Third, I am ready to get rid of some STUFF - no reasonable offer refused, full out inventory reduction, no-holds-barred Sale-a-bration. (In case you can't picture it, just think of the most obnoxious radio ad for a car dealership you've ever heard, then imagine the announcer screaming "SATURDAY, SATURDAY, SATURDAY ONLY!!)

Christmas was the breaking point for me. As I was getting out my Christmas decorations, I was cataloging the sheer amount of useless/unused things in my basement, and I finally snapped. I went on a cleaning frenzy about a month ago, sorting out a ton of things to take to Goodwill. That is, until I heard about the Sale. I figured this: a lot of my stuff is "leftover" stuff from combining households when B and I got married (an extra set of steak knives - when we have 3 already -, 15 wedding albums, etc); a majority of it is in new or like-new condition (unfortunately, quite a number of things are wedding presents that just didn't "fit..."); and of the things that are extra, everything is of better than usual quality (kudos to the givers for picking out good stuff). So rather than haul it all off to Goodwill right away, I figured a sale would be an opportune time to make my basement less full, while providing a treasure trove of "finds" for the garage sale inclined. Perfect solution.

So tonight finds me not (currently) with the one I love, but rather tagging items left and right, boxing up my merchandise, and getting ready for what I hope will be the SALE OF A LIFETIME!

Still Ringing True

2007-02-10T16:45:00.000-06:00

Sometimes I wonder at the serendipity of the world. Today, looking through a lifetime's worth of pictures taken by my great-aunt Onita (some of the many small treasures discovered during the cleaning out of the house blogged previously), I saw one which instantly caught my attention. It was a picture of Turtle Creek in winter, with the water still open but the shoreline covered in what appears to be a moderately heavy layer of snow.

While the picture caught my eye, it was the inscription on the back of the photo that captured my heart. Onita was famous for writing bible verses, quotations, and everyday thoughts on the backs of her pictures, and this time, in this situation, the statement on this photo summed it all up:

"In the midst of everything, take time to love, and laugh, and pray. Then life will be worth living, each and every day."

Hungry, harmonic, happy, huggable

2007-02-08T22:34:00.000-06:00

How cathartic is it to cook! After a day of downs, all it takes to elevate the mood is a chopping block and fresh ingredients. The preparation of food for the sustenance of friends or family is, when you get down to it, a remarkable honor and privilege. Yes, I know, at times when we are harried by jobs, schedules, and the assorted curve balls life tends to throw our way, cooking and meal preparation seem like just another chore - time most of us never seem to have. At those times, my previous comment seems romantic and oversimplified. But there are those other times, when we realize that the food we are making will provide joy to someone else, comfort to the ill, or a portrait of plenty when spread on a banquet. It is at these times that we realize why we cook - it is, at its basest level, a true labor of love. If you still don't believe me, look at all the holiday family get-togethers you've ever been to - if there is an overabundance of food, chances are it was lovingly prepared by someone there for the express purpose of sharing it with others they care for.

Or perhaps you have been the recipient of a bowl of chicken noodle when you were sure that nothing in the world would ever taste good again. Preparation of comfort food is the theme for tonight's culinary adventure. Lasagna and homemade chicken noodle for a friend who had her gallbladder removed today. The hope is it allows her a little extra time for recuperation - not thinking about feeding her husband and two rambunctious little boys!

Anything worth doing has a soundtrack. That said, I personally do my best cooking when alone, accompanied only by strains of classical music. I love the stimulation of a melodic line complete with counterpart, fugued continuously, each repetition a more complex, deeper interpretation of the previous one. Currently listening to a Horn Concerto by Mozart. Nothing beats a galloping French horn!

Another source of joy in my kitchen is flowers. Especially during the winter (for reasons previously discussed in this blog) the fresh smiling face of a daisy can do wonders for one's mood, not to mention serving as a reminder that there is a positive side to the thermometer! Look at this face! Can you not help but smile back?!

My "shadow" in the kitchen, taking over the roll of a Swiffer WetJet is Beatrice, canine maintenance engineer. Upon hearing that she is going to be a regular feature of this missive, Ms. Beez posed for her official portrait. Evidently, the right is her better side, judging by her predisposition towards mugging in that direction.

By identifying and cataloging the things that make us happy, I think we give ourselves the key to unlocking even the sourest of moods. It doesn't matter the size, the silliness, or the seriousness of our day-brightener. It just matters that we acknowledge it, and allow it to work its magic on us. Imagine: funny looking little dogs wearing leis, cooking coq au vin and baking pavlova...the world's looking better already! :)

Brrrr, it's cold in here...

2007-02-05T20:19:00.000-06:00

Definitely frozen in Northern WI the last couple days. What I didn't mention in yesterday's blog was the reason (read: excuse) for all of my cinematic laziness: IT WAS TOO COLD TO DO ANYTHING but HUDDLE UNDER COVERS AND LET ONE'S MIND WANDER!! To illustrate my point, and to prove the cold, hard facts (pun intended) to all readers, today's high:

That's 3.6 degrees Fahrenheit ABOVE zero. Now, for a current temp report (as of about thirty minutes ago):
Your eyes are not deceiving you. The thermometer does say NEGATIVE 14.6 degrees. As in below zero. The kicker to all this? Current temp (I just ran out to the entryway to check) is NEGATIVE 19.7. Last night's low was -32.5. Yeah, some days Wisconsin just rocks.

Today started with such promise... :)

2007-02-04T17:34:00.000-06:00

Today, I got up early (but not earlier than 8:30AM - that is the rule for the weekend) and went to do a little painting. Once upon a time, I used to be a painter. Not a exterior painter, or someone who does portraits, but an interior painter and finisher. Summers between high school and college terms I would work with a neighbor, doing painting, staining, refinishing, varnishing - you name it, we did it. So I like to paint. However, unlike my previous employer, I enjoy painting with colors (he was, sadly, from the school of "white is best.") As my brother is going to be moving into my great-uncle's old house, we have been doing quite a bit of remodeling and redecorating. I'm going to try my first attempt at attaching pictures in the blog:

It's not much to look at yet, but progress is being made:

The final product will be a retro mix of red, black, grey and chrome, complete with chrome Formica kitchen set.

The transformation of the house has been a fun project, but a long, drawn out one. My step-mother and I first started cleaning out the house in late August/early September, sorting, cleaning, and cataloging 40+ years of accumulation. So finally being able to GET to painting is a huge step, and it makes us realize how far we've actually come...

However, the downside of painting is the waiting between coats. So after 4-5 hours, most of what we were able to do today was done. I decided to come home for lunch, and in the mean time ended up becoming an absolute bum, all because of our local library.

I love the library. I was an English major (British Literature Emphasis) in college, and I still can spend hours in the bibliotheque. Well, it just so happened that I did spend about an hour there last Wednesday, and came home with four movies and four books. This afternoon, the allure of the movies scattered on my countertop became too overpowering, and I succumbed to an afternoon of cinematic laziness.

Last night's feature was Elizabethtown, with Kirsten Dunst and Orlando Bloom. THIS MOVIE WAS TERRIBLY UNDERRATED! Also has a great soundtrack - it is on my list of things to pick up from bn.com one of these days. The greatness of Elizabethtown had me stoked for today's showings, and they didn't disappoint.

First off was a bit of a frou-frou movie: Mean Girls with Lindsay Lohan and Tina Fey. Not really a big fan of either, but had heard the movie was funny. It was okay, but it was one of those movies you watch because you KNEW people like that in high school, and you can totally identify with the characters.

Next came one of my new favorites: The Seagull's Laughter. Laughter is an Icelandic film about how women in a small post-WWII fishing village band together to protect themselves from love, life, and the opposite sex. It is so very funny, and terribly dark, but the actress who plays the main character of Freya (Margret Vilhjalmsdottir) is spectacular - one of the most expressive faces I've seen in a movie in a long time. They characterize it as a romantic comedy on IMDB, but it is nothing like the drivel synonymous with most American movies of that category. Freya is paralleled by her younger cousin Agga. The way they both manipulate the males in the storyline suggests that Agga is following the same path that Freya did before her.

But enough of my amateur criticisms - Good Luck and Good Night calls to me from the DVD player!

Explanations Due...

2007-02-02T21:49:00.000-06:00

First, a caveat. I love sunglasses. I cannot exist without them. After more than a decade of wearing contact lenses, I find my eyes more sensitive to light than ever, and sunglasses are therefore essential to my day-to-day living. Also, on a more conceited note, every beauty column I've ever read about wrinkles says the number one culprit for those fine, telltale age lines around the eyes is our continual squinting on sunny days. That said, I wear sunglasses religiously. I am hardly ever without a pair, even if the weather is predicted to be grey or clouded.

And I am nearly as fanatic about the style of the sunglasses as I am about their presence. They must be:
*tortoiseshell
*WITHOUT nosepieces (otherwise when one pushes the sunglasses back on one's head, one inevitably finds them hopelessly entangled in one's tresses)
*rectangular in shape (again, the conceited part of me wants a shape that will flatter my round- to heart-shaped face)
All other colors, shapes and styles are "verboten." Case in point: a family friend and employer once made me a [terribly and inappropriately personal and exorbiantly expensive] gift of a pair of grass green metallic Oakleys. The buggy-eyed shape and the color made me look like an extra from the Broadway production of "Lord of the Flies." I know it sounds old-ladyish, but with sunglasses, I wholeheartedly subscribe to the notion of "if it fits, buy it in every color," so long as every color is tortoiseshell.

But true to the Aquarian character I've touched upon in my previous post, my need, my constant desire for sunglasses, is sometimes ummm, interrupted by my slightly scattered nature. While I may need them constantly, sometimes the pairs I own are a little hard to locate.

Such was the case today. It was the first sunny day we've had in nearly two weeks, and the snow was blindly white, which was made all the less tolerable by the dry, blowing crystals spinning through the air. My job involves a fair amount of windshield time, going back and forth from our main office to various customer locations over a four county area, so I usually have an extra pair of "Sonnenbrille" in my (COPIOUS) bag. Murphy's Law, however, was in full effect this Groundhog's Day, and I found myself without proper UV protection. All the way to my afternoon appointment I was glancing furtively in the rearview mirror, squinting, mumbling, and cursing the wrinkles I could see forming each second I was subjecting my delicate eyes and surrounding skin to the ravages of a sunny Wisconsin February day. Some irrational part of me "knows" that every line my face will ever sport is going to be a result of today's ultraviolet assault. And they thought teenage angst was bad: try pre-thirtysomething complexion complexes!

Thus, my previous post: "Never underestimate the importance of a good pair of sunglasses."

Sunglasses

2007-02-02T13:28:00.000-06:00

Never underestimate the importance of a good pair of sunglasses.

Tentative First Steps

2007-02-02T00:33:00.000-06:00

With trepidation I enter. Wow, quite a tone to that, isn't there? Thus begins my first blog entry. A bit of excitement, a bit of apprehension, the aforementioned trepidation, and of course, the hope we experience at all new beginnings, I jump into the deep end of the pool with only water wings and a prayer to keep me afloat. I have watched friends and family members make in-roads to the blogosphere, and I have finally summoned the courage/moxie/total disregard for others' opinions to start my own. A favorite junior high teacher once told me we should write something every day. This is my beginning.

I'm not sure what finally pushed me to make the decision. Perhaps the start of a new year, the birth of a baby (not mine, but of my inner circle), a birthday, my current desire to leave a mark - whether short or long term makes no difference -, the bubbling up of thoughts/emotions/opinions that have no other logical outlet. Who knows. A family member's blog noted "create" as the word she'd chosen to describe her 2007: it would serve me better as a description of my life. I've other outlets for other parts of my psyche: kitchen, piano, sewing machine, scrapbook, walls, but no other place to write. Here I hope to assuage the need, and find some peace.

But first, a frame of sorts, to hold the canvas. I am, as I have found and others have told me, truly Aquarian in nature. I tend to flow, as the water sign, but can have the rushing torrents or gentle wearing that characterize my element. I am a starter, but not always a finisher (hence my trepidation at this blog); intense and focused in times of need or crisis, but typically a procrastinator; deeply loyal, yet constantly looking to see what's new; a fierce lover and protector, but conversely (and sometimes to my detriment) as fierce a hater; a champion of what's just and fair, but still human and fallible enough to find those stringent stances compromised. My frame is, like the canvas I create, a work in progress, shifting, ebbing, flowing, mutable, worn and fashioned by forces internal as well as those of the world.

I'm primarily small-town, but with just enough urban touches to make me stick out from the crowd in my rural corner of the world. My work helps with this: I'm in sales (which is itself a slick/fast/high octane career) in the telecommunication field, so I deal with the newest in technology, and usually my company finds itself breaking new ground within the communities we serve. Sometimes the disjointed, weirdly funny juxtapositions of my job serve as the best analogy for my life: have you ever tried to sell wireless networking, voice-over-internet-protocol (VoIP) phone service, and an enhanced centrally-controlled key service unit (KSUs) to a business that sells trailer houses? Such is my life here among the cows, corn and countryside of Barron County, Wisconsin.

I'm married, no children - unless you count Beatrice, the four-legged child whom I'm sure will become a fixture of this daily missive. Both the husband and the dog are my anchors and my entertainment, each bearing their label depending on the day and the circumstances. Due to conflicting work schedules - he, a farmer, works incessantly, while I work days - there are days we hardly see each other. This would be an issue, were it not for the four years we spent in a long distance relationship while I was attending college. As with many things in this world, we know it could be worse.

So, brief outlines aside, I begin. No promises, no hard-and-fast rules of engagement, just a medium waiting for my creation. May it be worthwhile, fruitful, and satisfying.