take a picture, make a show

You know how when you've had to go so long without it, that when you finally get some, it's just SO good?  This weekend was like that.

I'm sitting here in the afterglow, still feeling a bit drunk from it.

Plus, I even got some more this morning.

Gone is the cold / windy / cloudy / snowy frustration.  Here is the warm / sunny / festive release.  We took an enjoyable bike ride yesterday afternoon.  I made a sex tape helmet cam [video] to record our love.

Loitering outside 7-11
Under the "No Loitering" sign

Maybe it's my imagination, but I think the traffic was more cautious during our encounters with it than usual, thanks to the helmet cam.  I've heard that more bicyclists and motorcyclists are wearing helmet cams in full view so that the traffic knows it's being recorded.  Best to behave.

So, like the hideous crossing guard vest, the geeky helmet cam serves a safety purpose.  I take another hit for our fashionless city.






Today is "Run With Lumber" at the school.   It was supposed to be a couple of weeks ago but got postponed on account of weather to last week but got postponed on account of weather to this week.  Today should be a lovely Lumber day.  I've kept a low profile just in case my friend's Lumber victim's plans were thwarted by the multiple postponements.

And in times like these, as we bask, pillow talk turns to what's next.  Many locals now have Wednesday on their minds.  What's wrong with THIS picture?

I think I can do this, though.  I can do Wednesday.  I'm going to go outside today and be a sun camel!

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Silver Liningness Sunday

First of all, a big shout out to Mother Nature.  The weather is Gor-jous, just GOR-jous!  I ran yesterday morning OUTSIDE... in SHORTS!  SQUEEEEEEeeeeeee!

Chaco literally dropped by yesterday.  I was sitting here drawing shoes when I thought I heard Wolfgang return from his run.  Instead it was Chaco.  Apparently the March of Dimes was having some event on the college campus and decided to start by blasting through the speakers at 7:30 am right next to the dorms.  A local news personality purposely fired the crowd up to "wake up the college kids on Saturday morning!".  SO not nice.

It was such a nice day out, though, so Chaco thought he'd go for a hike (since he was awake at such an ungodly hour), and then he just ended up at our house.

Hung out, got sunburned, got me to take him shopping, played with the pets...









Magnum and I watched "Bridesmaids".  I grabbed it off the library DVD shelf.  I thought it might be too chick flickish for Magnum, but I've watched my share of guy movies in the name of motherly sacrifice, so I invited him to watch with me.

I would say that the movie as a whole is just okay, but there are some hilarious moments.  Melissa McCarthy steals the show.   I later learned that the guy who plays the air marshall is her husband in real life.





Wolfgang had another track meet where the relay team set a new PR.  Meego had his first track meet with the middle school.  They've hardly had any practice at all because so much has been cancelled from the weather.  They just sort of winged it.  Gotta start somewhere.

The rest of the week was good and productive.  I'm thinking the wintry weather is behind us?  Is it safe to say that now??
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Farewell

Wolfgang had a rare track season Saturday off today (track meet yesterday), so he took advantage by getting various pieces of "business" taken care of.  This involved dragging me around since I hold the pla$tic.

All missions were accomplished, and I managed to squeeze in an illustration for this week's Illustration Friday prompt:  Farewell.

One of our $top$ was the running store to get him a new pair of running shoes as he's sent another pair into retirement.  As I looked at his old beat up pair that has gone over 600 miles or so, I was reminded of that scene in Shaolin Soccer.  Remember the one?

The team has just made the big time and gotten a shoe endorsement deal, so they have a little ritual for their old beat up shoes.  "Today we say good-bye to our old shoes and our old way of life, so... BYE BYE!"  Then the shoes get the last laugh.

So I decided to have a little ritual for Wolfgang's old shoes and draw them as they head off into their retirement of mowing the lawn, chopping wood, cleaning the dog kennel...

BYE BYE!

something to admire

Remember when I logically predicted that this would be MY year?  My fave number is 13, I started this year - 2013 - by getting 13th place in a race, then I turned around and won a buncha groceries mainly because I didn't want to clean my house.  Add to those things our freshly acquired no-named black cat, and I'm the luckiest girl around!

But wait!  There's more!

I broke a mirror.  YES!  Oh, I absolutely maimed it!

It was a couple of weeks ago.  We'd had a snow day that day.  By the evening, I was delirious with cabin fever and ventured out into the blizzard only to get into a nasty car crash!

No I didn't.

I went out to run a quick errand, and when I returned home I clipped the driver's side mirror on the driver's side garage.  WHAT?!  STU-pid!  I  BLAME  THE  WEATHER.

I have never, in 33 or so years *COUGH* as a driver, had so much as a scrape / scratch / fender bender.   Okay, I've killed a couple of batteries and once took out a Sonic tray with a truck.  But other than THAT stuff...

Alas, there it was, the mirror, or rather, pieces of the mirror scattered about the garage floor.  For the past two weeks, it's been held in place with duct tape, rounding out a nice White Trash ensemble for the Civic.  But today, that all came to an end.  I took her to The Shop.  The duct tape masterpiece was removed, and we have a boring factory mass produced driver's side mirror again.

The luck just keeps a-piling up!  As more proof of that, of our vehicles that actually have mirrors, this was the cheapest to fix.

How lucky is that, right!?  It's already working!!

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going nowhere fast

Another April day, another donning of the long johns.  I hate to keep harping about the weather, but seriously, it's snowing?  Again??

Yeah.  Okay.  Fine.  Whatever.

I can roll with it.  This morning, I layered up in my finest winter wear again.  But I refuse to wear the Frankenstein snow boots in April.  My toes froze in my hiking boots, but it's the principle of the thing.

I returned home, made some comfort coffee, and settled in for some comfort math.  But first I decided to check my facebook page. Oh great, a bunch of Colorado friends feel it necessary to put up snow pictures and (expletive laced) snow status updates.  Like I need to relive it all while back INSIDE the house during my thaw time.

Then I put a comfort camping photo for my desktop wallpaper.

Attitude is everything.

Speaking of which, I was running on the treadmill this snowy morning, trying to convince my brain that I wasn't.  I've found that treadmill enjoyment requires iTunes and daydreams.  So I was treading that mill and daydreaming about high school track days while listening to Justin Timberlake sing about me, because I'm certain that I'm his muse.  

Anyways, I'm having a good old time, and I guess I got a little too into it. I caught the cord of my earbuds with my hand.  My iPod was sitting on the treadmill console, so whacking the earbud cord pulled it off its perch, thus subjecting it to the pull of gravity, disconnecting it from the earbuds, and sending it to the speeding belt of the treadmill.  This series of unfortunate events snapped me out of my daydream and forced me to remember that I was actually on a treadmill in a little room rather than winning that big race while boyfriend Justin cheered me on.  

I was glad I didn't step on it, but I stopped running to pick it up, and I could not find the thing.  I figured it must've gone flying off the belt, landing somewhere behind the treadmill ala George Jetson, right?  Wrong.  After an exhaustive search, I found the poor thing lying in front and a little to the right of the treadmill.  How it got there is a mystery of physics.

At least the tunes fired right back up again.

And how is your day going?  

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Silver Liningness Sunday

What a week, eh?  Started with the crazy Boston Marathon bombing.  The surviving bomber - he's just a kid.  What the hell?

In the smaller circle of things, we dealt with more winteriness here.  While I'm not happy to be freezing my buns off in April, I'm grateful for the moisture.  We had a dryer than usual winter, so if we're making up for it in spring, so be it.  People out here have cows to feed and stuff.

Despite the wintry weather, it got nice enough for another track meet for Wolfgang and the team yesterday.  He and the rest of the 4x800 team are looking pretty good to be contenders at state this year.  Yesterday was the first time they've been beaten as they took second place, just one second behind the winners.




The winning team actually dropped their baton, which is an automatic DQ in the Olympics and, I think, college.  In high school, it can depend.  The officials apparently didn't see it, and Wolfgang said his team didn't want to bring it to the officials' attention because that would be admitting that a team that dropped their baton still beat them.  I totally get that!






Reese the Snake shed another round of skin this week - always a momentous occasion.  It's interesting to me how "playful" and energetic he becomes right after he sheds.  Like he's all happy with his new clothes or something.

Similarly, I'd made a grooming appointment for this week for China, but the groomer called and said she'd injured her hand and can't work for a while, so I rescheduled.  I think China knew it was going to be cold this week and wanted to keep her long fur coat a little longer, so she set the universe in motion to injure the groomer.  Dogs can do that.

In movie news, Magnum and I watched The Awakening.  It's a ghost story.  We liked it.  I thought it was well made with good casting.  And the ending... is she?  Or isn't she?

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Train

This week's prompt for Illustration Friday is "Train".  Train is one of those words that has many meanings.

It can be a noun, as in a succession of railroad cars or a part of a gown dragging on the ground.  It can be a verb as in teaching or coaching or preparing...

All those choices left me behind, so I drew none of them.  I drew a caboose.

When I was a kid, I'd get excited to watch the trains move through town.  My hometown was a coal mining town (there's more to life than sex change operations), so coal trains moved through quite frequently.  We'd never know how many cars there would be, or if the train would come to a stop while we watched.  One thing we knew, however, was that the caboose signaled the end.

Cabooses (Cabeese??) provided shelter for the train crew and used to be required.  Now, they are quite rare.  As a mom of boys, I have been to many many a train museum, and I always enjoyed climbing around  the old caboose displays the best.  They just seemed so cozy and restful compared to the rest of the old freight trains.

So, always a fan of the behind, I do a caboose.

Now a major [motion picture]
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munchies

The word on the street - literally - is that June broke her foot.  Remember June? My crossing guard cohort? She's been out for over two months now.  Apparently it was a pretty bad break.

She's to be returning soon, however, and I'm sure everyone will be happy to see her.  June is well liked at the school.  She has a nice balance of steadfastness and kindness.  A while back, I'd asked her how long she'd worked there.  The answer converts to "forever".

I know she must be itching to get active again, but her patience has probably helped her healing.  In the meantime, her absence, I think, has been a boost for us crossing guards, a.k.a. "the forgotten ones".  In fact, I learned most about her foot situation last month when I was running that week-long ACT camp.

The ACT workshops were scheduled at a time that conflicted with my morning school zone duties, so I'd put in for coverage on those mornings.  Through slight misunderstanding, my reservist thought she had to cover both the morning and afternoon shifts.  So on that first day when I showed up in the afternoon, she was so delighted to see me and learn that her sentence was only half as bad as she'd thought.  She hugged me like a trapped cruise passenger who'd just made it back to shore.  Then she filled me in on the June situation.

All this time, the reservists have been rotating shifts to cover June's duties that also include lunchroom monitoring (no thanks!).

Admittedly, elementary school crossing guard isn't much of a glamour job.  The schedule is rigid, the weather can be a b*tch, the vest is hideous... but for people like June and me who live near the school, it works as a  nice part-time supplement.  Still, it's nice to get a day off.  Like today.

Last night after dinner, Wolfgang said he and some friends were thinking of going climbing. I thought it strange they would go climbing on a school night, but was then reminded that today is a "no student" day.



I'm not sure when it started, but our school district takes April 20th off each year.  It's the anniversary of the Columbine massacre, and it's also "marijuana day".  That combination, I suppose, made them decide to just schedule professional development every April 20th - 19th this year since the 20th falls on Saturday.

Anyway, I'm SO glad he went climbing as it served to remind me that there's no school today.  I've had a couple of other clueless close calls of going out there on no-school days and being the village idiot crossing guard.  

Another nice last minute save!  Right here in the land of legalized loco weed, no less.


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white powdery substance

Come Ona My House!

We're still fighting the snow wars, but all things considered, I rather like today.  Today is more of a typical spring snow - kinda wet, kinda fluffy, not too cold.

Way better than that cursed freezing rain driven by blustery wind that sends the ice pellets pitter pattering loudly against the hood of my jacket.




So yeah, it's actually quite pretty relatively speaking.  I took this pic a couple of hours ago, and we've actually gotten an appreciable amount of snow since then, but I don't think much more will come of it (famous last words).  And at least, it's not really sticking to the roads, just making them wet (famous last words).

The cat had been pacing by the back door, contemplating whether or not she would go out.  She can hear the birds and I know she wants to go hunting, but... oooh... snow...

I helped her out.  We both needed a bit of fresh air after a morning hermitage.  I rather enjoyed our little break, but she seems to share the prevailing attitude of winter in April:





I guess I can understand.  Her camouflage leaves much to be desired.
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there will be hills

I remember the first time I filed my taxes.  I was a mere teen and felt all grown up.  I had a W-2.  I had FICA!  I had no idea what FICA was, but I had it, and so I was somebody!

It didn't take long for the annual filing of taxes to lose its allure.

I think that Magnum has been the tax preparer ever since we got married.  In the early days, they were no biggie, but over time, they've gotten more complicated along with the tax laws.  Add some kids, add some investments, add some private tutoring biz, add some college...

Over the past few weekends, he's chipped away at them as the pile of documents seemed to spread like a virus on the dining table.  I did my part by staying out of the way.  Every now and then, he would announce, "Got another line filled in!"

Bottom line?  After accounting for postage, about five bucks in the black.  Gosh, what should we splurge on?!

I see that as quite an accomplishment.  We/he couldn't have hit it closer if we tried.  Sure, it's nice to get a big return check, but really that just means that the government is having to give back your own money that they shouldn't have had to begin with.

Yesterday, I went out to run some errands in the afternoon and that was the first I heard of the explosions in Boston.  At first, I thought the source was possibly one or more disgruntled American taxpayers, given the date.  Then there're the anniversaries of the Oklahoma City bombing and the Waco assault.  This is a volatile time of year.

Not surprisingly, my f_book feed had lots of "prayers go out to..." type posts.  I also saw a lot about runner solidarity.  Runners should go out and run today or wear race t-shirts - symbolically reinforce the runnerhood.  That's fine.

But I don't think this is a situation of runners vs. evil or even Boston vs. evil.  It's just more good vs. evil.  And I like to think that the good still outnumber the evil.





As it happens, I did run today.  I'd planned on running, terrorist explosions or no.



I don't often think about it, but I do feel a unity with other runners.  And when there's an act of evil against good, I feel unity with the billions of good people too.



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Wild Silver Liningness Sunday

Happy weekend.  First of all, it just didn't feel right to let an Illustration Friday go by without a proper illustration.   So  for the prompt "wild", I'm sticking with the feral man theme...  This time of year, my thoughts can drift to such things.  Y'know, camping and stuff...  Bathing outside... Watercolors...  That kind of thing...

It was a good and productive week, but I did end up spending a lot of time hanging out in my left brain.  I'm thankful for the right brain time, and my Illustration Friday OCD helps insure I get a token amount.  

We did get that snow day, and while I wasn't happy with a blustery snowstorm in April, I'm thankful I didn't have to be out in it!

As mentioned, Wolfgang and the track team had another successful meet this weekend.  It was the first official local one since another previous one had gotten canceled, and it was nice to be able to watch the fun.  

In somewhat related news, I'm glad to report that my friend has found an appropriately tallish victim to fulfill the role of Lumber for next week's elementary school fundraiser.  Poor sucker.  But at least I'm no longer being subjected to the sad puppy eyes.  

I hope it's sunny and warm where you are!  Now, go shower!

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(sort of) wild

This week's Illustration Friday prompt is "Wild".  I didn't do a proper illustration.  This is the 30-minute cartoonie version.

I saved a bit of time by not drawing the loin cloth...












We were at a track meet for most of the day.  The weather was actually decent enough to hold one,  although the morning was a veritable fog fest.







Wolfgang's 4x800 team managed to take first place again.

Later, he took 4th in the 2-mile.  His buddy Reid took first in a  *WILDLY*  exciting finish.

See that?  See what I did there??

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what are you wearing?

I had a meeting this morning.  Was told, "business casual attire".  Fine.  I can do business casual.  Or... can I?  Apparently I live in a city devoid of fashion sense.

Movoto.com basically says we suck at fashion, but at least we're not as bad as Wichita, KS.  We came in at SECOND Worst Dressed Big City in America.  What?

First of all, who the heck is Movoto?  (That's rhetorical, please don't answer).  I read some of the *hate* comments that followed their well researched article.

"Who cares if Columbia shorts and Tevas aren’t “high fashion”? They’re far more appropriate for the CO lifestyle than a pair of Jimmy Chu’s or a handbag that cost as much as my bike!"

Admittedly, I have no idea what a pair of Jimmy Chu's are.  And a handbag the price of my bicycle? What, are you crazy?!?  I put my "purse" on the counters of public restrooms, but my bicycles?  No way, those bathrooms are filthy!!

"Colorado Springs has one of the lowest obesity rates in the country. We enjoy the outdoors here and you can’t do that well in heels and tight clothing"

Again, maybe the article is onto something.  I don't even do high heels INdoors.

"As a world traveler and resident of city #2 on this list, I can attest to the lack of fashion, and self-awareness, of my fellow residents. We’re about 3 years behind either coast and about 10 years behind fashion centers in EU and Russia. I have to say, though, we can’t possibly be worse than Albuquerque… In anything really."

I dunno.  Albuquerque's got all that cool nuclear stuff... But, what is "self awareness"?  Wait, who's typing?

"What a lame story. You’re giving the internet a bad name"

I thought that's what Kardashian gossip was for.

"Wow….getting schooled from a west coast kid that writes about video games. I would trade fashion for hard work, clean living, ethics, and a moral compass any day"

Okay, that wasn't my comment.  Really.

"Well, here in Wichita we are pretty excited that we are being called a “BIG CITY.” LOL! "




Ha, I like that commentor.  Wonder if he'd come over for Thanksgiving.

take me away!

I'm sitting here in full long underweared glory and not happy about that.  I mean, I appreciate the long underwear serving its purpose, I'm just not happy with my needing its services on April freaking 10th.

Oh well, we typically get days like this in April.  Winter's way of thumbing its nose at us, not willing to just leave quietly.  It started Monday night.  In fact, I was tuting up north a few miles.  Coming home, I was practically able to just put the car in neutral and let the wind blast me all the way to my house.

Then we got a snow/wind day on Tuesday, which was appreciated, but I still came down with fever.  Cabin fever.

Magnum and I have been dreaming and talking about travelling lately.  To someplace sunny and warm and non United States.  Not any time REAL soon, but it's fun to think about and plan.

Remember I've never been anywhere.  Magnum's rich Uncle Sam sent him traveling around the world during his days in the Army.  I've never really been out of the US other than the Canadian side of Niagara Falls and Acuna, Mexico.    But I have been to The Corn Palace.  After that, what is there?

The last time I even flew on an airplane was just a few months before 9/11.  Air travel has changed since then.  And it just so happens that I share the maiden name of a known white supremacist nazi US citizen.

So there's another reason to go someplace warm and casual.  I'll be able to leave the long underwear behind in place of clothing that's easily shed for the TSA...







Earlier this week, the tutoring site asked students where they would like to go for spring break.  They got a lot of responses from tutors as well as students.  Seems like recreational travel is on a lot of people's minds.  I didn't answer because I couldn't narrow it down to just one destination.

I'll take suggestions, though!  In the meantime, I'll settle for a warmer Colorado.
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desperate times

Old time readers here might remember my days in the trenches as an elementary school volunteer.  The field days, the parties, the Thanksgiving buffets...  I was a familiar face at that school for SEVEN years, especially in springtime, because springtime is DUN DUN DUUUN - RUN  WITH LUMBER TIME!

Run With Lumber is a major spring fundraiser.  It's a full day where every grade comes out and runs laps around the school field during their PE time.  They get sponsors and collect money for every lap they complete.  I was a Run With Lumber volunteer for SEVEN years, the last THREE years, I chaired the fricken thing.





Omigosh, the work and organization, the gajillion forms, the meticulous bookkeeping, the gallons of root beer and ice cream, the scheduling volunteers, the prizes, the t-shirts, the fretting over the weather forecast...  I don't miss it.  Not one bit!

But really, all of that was doable.  The biggest pressure?  Finding someone to be Lumber.









Lumber* is the school's mascot.  He shows up at pride assemblies, but other than that, he's pretty stealth.  The only other time he shows up is for Run With Lumber.  It's part of what makes it so special.  Lumber is KEY.

The kids look forward to Run With Lumber all year.  We'd put up decorations about a month before the event, so by the time the day arrived, they'd be in a frenzy.


Some showed up, game faces on, wanting to break the school record or at least get top runner for their grade.  Others just wanted to see Lumber, get a high five or a hug.


It's Run With Lumber, not Run-Around-During-PE-Time-With-Your-Teacher-And-Maybe-Mom-and/or-Dad-Shows-Up-Too.




But yeah, who is willing to be Lumber?  It's running around outside all day while basically wearing a carpet and breathing your own air.  Those last three years I was chair, I ended up breaking down and getting Chaco and Wolfgang to tag team it, bribing them with both a day off school and cash money.

So this morning out at the crosswalk, my neighbor, who just so happens to be the mom I handed all the Run With Lumber crap over to, tells me she's getting desperate.  RWL is next week and she has yet to have the crucial Lumber!  Will my kids do it?  Do I know anyone else?!

Gosh, I tell her.  I can't think of anyone.  But someone will step forward, right?  Somehow, it happens every year, right?

And, heh, I briefly got the impression that she'd like ME to do it.  Hahahaha...  No... hehe, I can't be Lumber.  I've got... stuff... going on that day.  Plus, I'm only 5'5", Lumber needs to be more of a presence.  Hah, right.  Me.

I'm not even considering it.  NO way.  I've done my time.  I'm finished, that's all behind me.  Why am I even blogging about it??  I don't know!  In fact, I'm not!!

Change the subject!  Subject changed!

And tell her to stop looking at me like this!









*name has been changed to protect his superhero identity

Silver Liningness Sunday

First weekend of April - no foolin'!

Early in the week, I got an e-mail from one of the administrators at the tutoring site I use:  "I’m writing to you because you expressed interest in helping us build our Help sections..."  

I didn't remember expressing such an interest, but it sounded possible, so I sloughed off my non-remembrance to general dementia and continued reading.   They wanted me to do some content writing for one of the math sections, so I happily agreed.  I like to teach.  I like to write.  Win win.  It was fun.

It was also a nice activity since I've already started cutting back on my tutoring load to get my ducks in a row for my own classes, and to have more time for mom duties now that spring activities are upon us.  Then another local tutor coordinator called to see if I would take on a new student, but my "say no" skills didn't fail me, and I was able to graciously turn the job down.  But it was good to be reminded that I'll still have work in case I flunk the licensing program...

Wolfgang finally had an actual track meet instead of a track meet cancelled on account of snow.  Apparently they were so glad to be competing, he and the rest of the 4x800 team took first!  

Meego also started middle school track this week.  He doesn't know yet what events he'll be doing, but for some reason, he thinks he'll be a jumper.

The weather continues to be agreeable, and I'm happily able to get stuff done via bicycle rather than via car, no offense to Ellie Mae.

Urban

This week's Illustration Friday prompt is "urban", so I painted this subway scene, complete with urban grafitti.

I've never been on a subway or in a subway station.  Well... now I have?

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where's Walter?

 I tried to catch some fog.  I mist.  HA! HA! HAHA haha.... *erm*

The above was the view of my commute yesterday morning.  While "overcast days never turn me on...", I rather like a good fogging.  It makes things feel a bit surreal and subdued, and the slightest sounds are amplified.  I listened to the pitter patter of little bird feet.

As I stood out there in the cloud, I was reminded of Walter.

I never actuallly met Walter.  I only knew him through the legend that was passed on to me.

Years ago, when I worked in the land of manufacturing, some coworkers told me The Legend of Walter.  Walter had worked in our department, but had left just before my arrival.  In fact, I remember his name was still on the department phone list when I joined the crew.  But he didn't leave in the way of typical attrition.  He simply... disappeared.

He was in his mid-50's, had a wife and a couple of daughters in their late teens.  It was supposedly a day like any other.  He got up and prepared for work, kissed the wife and kids, and headed to the office.  He was never seen again.

There was some investigation, and eventually it was concluded that Walter had not come across any foul play.  No, Walter had simply... disappeared....

on purpose.

He ran away without a trace.  He didn't bother with faking his own death or any of that elaborateness, but apparently, he'd been planning his escape for some time.  I wondered if his wife was in on it too and actually knew where he was.  The guys told me, however, that she was pretty pissed off and putting up a good fight to get to his retirement accounts and such.  In fact, my coworkers seemed more interested in the state of Walter's 401K than of Walter!

Still,  could've all been a ruse.  Once the wife got the money, maybe she would... disappear...  too - to some Walter rendezvous?

But I wondered about her and the daughters.  Assuming they weren't in on it, did they see it coming at all?  What drove Walter to such extremes?  When I left that company seven years later, there was still no word of Walter, and the trail, if any, had gone quite cold.

One thing I remember most, however, about The Legend of Walter was the way in which my coworkers would discuss the story.   Some of them would get this faraway look in their eyes, and I could sense their jealousy.  I could tell that The Legend of Walter had awakened something within them.  And that made me rather sad.  I honestly felt that a couple of them would do the same if they could stash some money away somehow.

This month's theme at NaBloPoMo is "Fresh", in celebration of spring.   I love fresh starts, but I can't imagine running away from family and friends.

I mean, a haircut, maybe a new spring outfit, and I'm good to go!

What makes for your fresh start?
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negotiations

First of all, for those who had troubles *ahem* finding the bulldog...

See it NOW??

I like this picture today because in real life, it's all cloudy foggy.  But enough with the weather updates.

Today is Senior Lunch day for Wolfgang's high school.  Senior Lunch is held at a fancy 5-star restaurant in a fancy 5-star hotel for seniors and parents.  It's dress up.  It lasts for hours.  It's pompous.  It's voluntary.  It's happening as I type.  I'm not there, thank goodness.

Don't get me wrong, we're very happy with Wolfgang being on the verge of high school graduation.  It's just... Magnum and I... we don't really DO pompous.

Last year was pretty easy with Chaco.  He doesn't do pompous either, nor did his techy friends.   He was happy to do Day Off from School in lieu of Senior Lunch.   I wasn't sure about Wolfgang.  He really doesn't do pompous either, but his social circle does include some pomposity.  When I asked him a couple of weeks ago, I thought I might need to do some bargaining.

But, he pretty much was in a take-it-or-leave-it position, and I had him at "day off".

Little does he know that I had a few more bargaining chips.  If he'd wanted to go, I would've offered him the cash amount of his lunch ticket.  If he'd really wanted to go, I would've offered him the cash amount of mine AND his ticket.  If he'd really really wanted to go, he would've been offered the full amount of all three of our lunch tickets.

And if he'd still wanted to go, we would've gone.

But I had him at "day off".

The rest, he doesn't need to know about.
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outside rocks!

Last week came in like a lion, but went out like a sweet little lambkin.  So we took advantage and headed for the hills.

We went to Ute Valley Park, one of my favorites.  For one, it's the home of Bulldog Arch.

See it?  See the bulldog??  (Not the figure in the lower left, that's Magnum)










This park is near the site of last summer's Waldo Canyon fire.  It's the first time we've gone hiking there since.  The burn scar reminds me of the surface of an elephant.  Gladly, the park was spared.

tenmiletravelers.blogspot.com

Many others had the same idea to spend their Easter afternoon in the great outdoors.  We crossed paths with several hikers/mountain bikers/joggers.  A couple of college-aged guys went by on mountain bikes - no helmets or pads - raising my mom senses.  But there were several other sensible ones, fully decked out (if only they'd slow down!).

And everyone seemed in happy spirits.  Nothing like some spring sun and dirt to bring out the friendliness.
















We even came upon a group of younglings having an egg hunt.  Another young guy introduced us to his shy adolescent weimaraner, commented on the beautiful day, and wished us a heartfelt Happy Easter.

He was so friendly, it made me wonder if he was always so sunshiny.





So a nice way to close out the week.  I sure appreciated it after my whinefest dissatisfaction with the weather a few days prior.  Now if I could figure out how to put days like that in a bottle.
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