do you tell 'em?

Do you speak of it? Disclose? Open that can of worms?

Magnum and I were talking about "icebreaker" situations - like the opening of a workshop or a class - where everyone is prompted to "tell us one/ some of your hobbies".  Or maybe it's just while sitting in the chair at the salon, meeting new coworkers, etc.

I always feel kind of "uh boy" in those situations. Around here, there's a lot of outdoorsy stuff: hiking, skiing, biking, etc. and that's fine, but what about the non-physical-exertion stuff? 

Do you tell people that you have a blog? That you like to blog and read other blogs?

For me, oh heck no.

Thinking of what I've heard from others, aside from the outdoorsy stuff, there's gardening (yes, I know that's typically outdoors), maybe scrapbooking, knitting, reading (vague), gaming (not big with the crowd I'm usually asked to share with, other than maybe Candy Crush, whatever the hell that is...)

I don't recall anyone ever mentioning blogging or even journaling. Yet here we are.

Fact is, I feel kind of strange about mentioning that I have a blog to a real-life person. Maybe it's because I don't want to deal with the potential follow-up questions. Or I just don't want real-life acquaintances coming to visit!

Anyhoo, last week, Linda Sue asked, "From where do you blog?", so here goes.

When we first looked at this house as a potential rental, this room was unfinished - cold, neglected, with a naked cement floor - in the lower corner of the garden-level.  By the time we moved in, the landlords had, most likely, DIYed it into what could be counted as a bedroom. We rented, then eventually ended up buying the house.

The room has a small closet, decent enough carpeting, and an acoustic tile ceiling - minus one light panel that the cat took out, but that's another story.

Not really a she-shed, but most certainly not a man cave. It's more of a "She-Cave". My she-cave.

I hung some shelves, a corkboard, and a whiteboard and moved on in. The drawing table is only there when inktobering or similar, but I include it here for the photo shoot.

The room is rather small, and I'm currently unable to close the closet doors because of the closet's use for meaningful storage, but it's cozy enough and I like having the big window: overcast skies, snow falling.

That's it. My office. My studio. My she cave. 

Don't tell.

meaningful

Happy 5th of July. I'm glad to be over the hump that is Independence Day in the US. I engaged in nothing celebratory, and it was another day of homeboundness.

I don't typically like to be at home so much and am not used to it. My house is now quite clean as cleaning has become an activity of choice to help chase the quarantine boredom and also get some payoff.  I'm feeling reasonably well now, but still testing positive on the home test.

And I can't smell a darn thing.

I noticed yesterday, while I was (naturally) cleaning, that the Windex didn't smell like anything. Windex typically has a distinct smell, but this time, it had no smell whatsoever.  So I then began smell testing my other cleaning supplies and got a whole lot of nothing. Even smelling white distilled vinegar was like smelling tap water. Odd feeling.

My sense of taste seems to slowly be returning, so I'm hoping the same will eventually kick in for my smell buds.  In the meantime, I've spokenn with the "COVID response team" at work, and I'm cleared to return as long as:

• I no longer have symptoms
• it's been at least 5 days since the onset of symptoms

Technically, I've still got the lack-of-smell thing going on, but they brush that one aside. 

So my next scheduled shift is this Thursday, and I'll be back at it. 🙂

But enough of Tales of the Infirm.  I don't harbor hatred for my job. It's no dream job, but it's a good fit for now. One recent day, Assistant Boss asked me if I would do his job for x-amount of money.

"PFFFT, no!", I was quick to reply.  I thought he was joking because we'd just dealt with an annoying technical issue. I felt he was playing all, "I'm out, you take over!"

But then I realized he was being serious. So I asked him, "Why? You leaving?"

He went on to explain his question by suggesting that Boss is probably on the brink of retiring, and he - Assistant Boss - would go for the Boss position, thereby creating an opening for Assistant Boss.  Would I want it?

Honestly, my answer is still "PFFFT, no!", but I told him I would consider it when/ if the time came.

I've found that most professions I would enjoy doing full-time require recent work experience and/or education that I don't have. I don't want to put money into more education at this point since I'm 57 years old, and a fresh degree/ license/ certificate is no guarantee of fulfilling full-time employment. I'm not ready to "retire".

I'm okay with the present compromise - a couple of decent side gigs in lieu of a fully satisfying front gig and time to wander around with dogs and to prattle away on this blog. 

going for cozy

This past Wednesday night was the coldest of the season so far.  It was -4F when I checked early Thursday morning.  What makes this noteworthy (maybe) is that our furnace decided to crap out Wednesday evening.  

It was about 8:30pm when Magnum noticed the furnace wasn't kicking on when he adjusted the thermostat.  

After fiddling around like the non-HVAC technicians we are while the inside temperature continued to drop, we decided to call someone who might actually know what they're doing.

Long story short, our furnace was back, hobbled but on the job, by around 10:30 for a "small fee".  While it sucks to lose your heat source on the coldest night of the year, I'm quite happy with how things went down because

• we  noticed it before going to bed.  Had we not, we and the pets would surely have died in the night... Okay, maybe nothing that dramatic.  BUT the house would've probably dropped into the 30s or 40s, pipes would probably have frozen, etc.
• the technician was able to find and band-aid the problem - dirty/corroded contacts on the gas valve.  Initially, he thought we might need a part that is no longer stocked because we have a geriatric furnace.
• it wasn't a total shock as we've been chipping away at projects/upgrades to our previously neglected house since we bought it a couple years ago.  Might as well do the heating system next.
  
  

So we bought a new furnace this morning - well, half of one anyways.  We'll buy the other half when it's installed next week.  In the meantime, old Bessie (current furnace) is earning her keep without complaint, and I'm hoping she can hold on for another cold week.

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Linking up this week with Mama Kat for the prompt:

2. Write about your most recent purchase.

this some good pot

I gifted myself this cutesy teapot this week.  It's the teapot I didn't know I needed.  

It holds about 28 fluid ounces. Comes with a trivet and basket infuser insert.  It's cast iron with a ceramic finish on the inside, so tea stays hot for a good long time and I can reheat it on the stove. 

Really, it's the bomb. I drink tea daily, and now with this, I may just give up coffee.

HAHAHA!... just kidding.

But still.  

I included my glasses for scale and contrast.  Contrast because I'm not as happy with my glasses as with the awesome teapot.

Supposedly, the top of my lenses are for distance vision, the middle sweet spot is for arms-length to middle distance, and the bottom portion is for close up.  

I think they work okay for distance vision, but it's a literal pain in the neck going for the arms length and closer.  Why can't I just have the eyes of my youth that worked for everything?  Is that so much to ask??

I have an old pair of prescription glasses from about 10 years ago that are better for when I'm on my computer, like now.  I'm thinking I'll bring these old glasses to work with me until I get an eye exam, for which I'm overdue, and ask for some single-vision lenses.  

The college president announced that, as of July 1st, we will no longer require masks be worn in campus buildings.  I don't plan to wear a mask anymore, and our boss said he probably won't either.  

I think one of my coworkers is a little pensive about germs, but the rest of us are ready to free our faces and work with other freed faces - coworkers and customers alike.  No more this:

.

Onto the next - clear glasses that only get fogged from my delightful hot tea.

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Linking up this week with Mama Kat for the prompt:

4. Write a blog post inspired by the word: next

what's your favorite?

I have a problem with those sites that require security questions then give a list to choose from.  For instance, they suggest "What's your favorite food?" as a security question??

Honestly,  my favorite food today might not be my favorite food tomorrow or next week or the next time I try to login to the site, y'know what I'm saying?  Similarly:  favorite song, favorite  movie, favorite celebrity... Enough with the "favorites", already!  Mine change.

So I usually end up with my childhood nickname or my high school mascot - things that plenty of people already know about me - as my security question.  Ah well, Security Schmecurity.

But here's a post of some of my RECENT favorite things

The earth's tilt.  Anyone else noticed the days getting longer?  Despite the fact that most of us were f-f-f-f-freezing last week, spring is on the way.  I've noticed I have more light during my early morning rides into work.  I no longer arrive with the stars still out, but rather with the sun just starting to peek above the horizon.  Still freezing, but lighter toward the East.

We're not quite to the point of this commute photo I took last spring, but we're getting there!

Arizona.  No, not the state.  I still have yet to visit that sunny mecca, but I've recently discovered the music group, Arizona - who by the way is based out of New Jersey?  Sample tune [here].

Local pathways.  Along the lines of brighter days, I have renewed appreciation for the local multi-use paths and their upkeep.  With the recent snows, it's nice to know that the pathways are there and will actually be plowed/ brushed right away.  I just have to figure out how to get out of my neighborhood.

Not my photo.  I  Googled

Speaking of Google... it's certainly nothing new, but let's pause for a bit of gratitude.  It came in handy at work again a couple of days ago.  Most of us are pretty well-versed in dietary restrictions and special textures commonly required by residents in our facility.  A new admit came in with something not so common, and I wanted to make sure we didn't naively give him something he shouldn't have.  

I looked to the hefty 3-inch reference binder, chock full of dietary information.  Knowing it would take me a while just to find the particular page of this guy's condition, I said, "screw it, let's google".  Long story short, I learned stuff, and we didn't send Jim to the hospital.  Took less than a minute.

This hood thing.  Lastly, I recently purchased this hood thing for myself.  It seems silly, actually.  It's like a hoodie without the sweatshirt part.  But it's SO comfy and warm!  

Just putting it on, in the house, for the excuse of taking a  photo makes me happy...

...for now.

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Linking up this week with Mama Kat for the prompt:
5. List your five most recent favorite things.

queen me already

Welp, I'm scheduled to work tomorrow at the hospital.  Remember I had a long stretch of days off?  Hoping to do something fun and/or productive with the extra time?  Reflection time...

It wasn't exactly nine days of "FREEEEEDOMMMM!" (cue William Wallace).  I had a couple dentist appointments and a coupla tutor sessions, so I did get a foothold on some dental work I was so looking forward to.  Got all inspected with the new dentist, and as we pondered a solution for my missing big honking tooth, he also discovered a tooth ready for a crown.  

Okay, fine, and now that's IT!  This will make my third crown - not counting the two front crowns - and according to my friend's crown theory, three is it for me.  Her theory is that women lose a tooth for every kid they have, based on all the calcium those babies take from us.  She had three kids and three crowns.  I have three kids, this'll make crown number three.  DONE!  

The front ones don't count because that was skateboarding trauma drama that happened before I was even of child bearing years.  

And speaking of teeth and time-off adventures, I finally got around to climbing that Horsetooth rock here in sunny Fort Collins.  

Horsetooth rock sits atop a foothill, aptly named Horsetooth mountain, overlooking Horsetooth reservoir and the city of Fort Collins.  Yes the namers really liked that Horsetooth title.  Gotta say, it does resemble a horse molar

I'd hiked the trail once before during a visit with Wolfgang and Meego a couple of years ago, but we stopped short of climbing the rock itself.  

So today, with a clear schedule, I headed to the tooth.  I knew I didn't want to go on a weekend because the trailhead gets packed, even if these COVID times.  ACK, I needed the nature fix, and the day was perfect!

I couldn't really remember how far it was from that one earlier trip since I was with the three guys and we were chatting the whole way.  Seemed like it took us a while, anyway, but I found myself at the base of the tooth more quickly than I'd remembered.

Once there, I realized it's not like mountain tops I've been on as those summits are relatively vast and can easily accommodate many hikers.  But I was reminded that this isn't really a "summit", but rather a rock formation.  

I got to the top with a bit of scrambling, thankful that I'd worn my mountain goat shoes.

Once there, I again realized there wasn't a whole lot of room to move around.  Add my persistent acrophobia, and well, I pretty much spent my whole "summit" time sitting on my butt.

This was a solo outing for me, but I knew the trail is popular and I wouldn't be all alone to be scarfed up by a mountain lion or something.  And yes, there were a handful of other friendly hikers but not so much as to feel at all crowded.

Spotted these lovebirds a bit above me on the toothtop.

Looking back, I suppose my mini impromptu vacation wasn't a total bust.  Got caught up on a few things in addition to the teeth adventures and didn't blow a bunch of money.  

Yet.

not the Robinsons

Day 2 of the siege.

Obviously, I don't mean the Covid lockdown siege.  I've lost count of those days.  I'm referring to our interior stairs rip-out/replace project siege. 

I''m hanging out in my loosely named home office with the door closed so the cat doesn't escape and get accidentally sawed in half or something.  Now THIS is how quarantine SHOULD feel.



But it's all good.  Thankfully, both the cat and I have snacks and access to a bathroom.  Not so
thankfully, the cat's bathroom is all to easily accessible for him.


The view from my hideout:


That red bandana?  That's my face mask for being holed up with a cat.  I'm wearing it as I type since I snapped the pic just a bit ago.





The project does seem to be going quite well.  I'm glad I found these guys.  They should finish up today, hopefully I didn't just jinx it.

Last night and this morning, we had no stairs in the house, which is a tri-level.  We've been using ladders to get to and from different levels.  I told Magnum I feel like we're living in the Swiss Family Robinson house, which would have been much more fun if I was about 10 years old, but it'll do.

I've been streaming random videos and doodling, and now the stir crazies are getting to me.  I'm about to bust out. 

Gotta go check the potato patch? ←← the only reference I remember from "Swiss Family Robinson" other than their tree house.

Potatoes, anyone?

one for the road

We were greeted by a white labradoodle with a tuft of bright pink hair on its head.  The pooch aptly set the tone for our visit.

The shop was filled with an assortment of Curiosities, hence the name of the place.  Politician bobble heads, shot glasses with sayings on them, socks for every occasion...

There were several other patrons of all ages milling about, everyone scootching by each other in the tight corners of the shop. But I honestly didn't see much activity at the cash register. I also ended up not making a purchase.

We'd decided to go downtown to visit a local gift shop.  Our realtor had given me a gift card for the place, so it was an excuse to walk around Old Town on a decent weather day.

After we'd left the shop and had a mediocre lunch served by unmasked, ungloved food handlers in a restaurant with other people eating similarly mediocre food, we continued walking around other unmasked people walking around on the nice prelude-to-spring day.

At one intersection, the railroad arms came down as yet another freight train approached.  I'd recently blogged about the strange presence of trains blasting through town at all hours.  Even though we'd sort of gotten used to the trains, it was strange to have one blast through the middle of downtown. Magnum snapped a pic.

I think this was the last pic before the current lockdown became a thing.  Coronavirus and quarantines were in the news, but we were still going about the "normal" day-to-day.  Wondering about our toilet paper inventory wasn't a thing. I was working a predictable schedule at the cafe' along with tutoring a few students preparing for their April tests that didn't happen.

While I worry about the virus lingering and the effects on the economy and other ripples, I feel optimistic.  But maybe that's just my nature and has no root in reality.

I hope to someday soon be able to walk into a shop of nothing I want to buy and eat a meal at a restaurant I would not recommend.

Trains are welcome too.

------------------------------------------------------------------
Linking up this week with Mama Kat for the prompt:
3. Show us the last picture you took BEFORE quarantine. Write about that moment/day.

And maybe this prompt also applies in regard to lunch that day:
1. Write about a time you wasted your money.

a cure for the cold

This morning, I headed into the great white unknown.  Weather people said we got 12.2 inches of snow.  Important to carry out to that first decimal place so we can say, "OVER a foot!"




I've been using public transit off and on all winter.  I've mentioned here that I'm not a fan of contributing to traffic congestion.  It's one of the reasons I commute on my bicycle and plan living/working locations accordingly.



Yes, I have a car.  Yes, I have a driver's license.  I just don't particularly like driving in order to transport only myself if not necessary.  Plus, riding a bike is so much more fun.  On days when it's not, there is a very convenient bus route to/from my hospital job.






As I suspected once the lockdown order was given, ridership has gone way down, so I wasn't worried about being trapped on a bus with a bunch of breathing humans and vice versa.  This being a college town, the public buses are quite popular, and a good portion of the regulars were students.  All the schools and colleges are closed now, and I don't think there's ever been a time since when there were more than 4 riders on the bus.  Plus the buses are so clean! Grocery shopping causes more angst than riding the bus.

So anyway, there I was on the bus this morning.  I was the ONLY patron.  The driver was a trainee, possibly driving her first real route.  There was also a supervisory person riding along and offering encouragement.

It just felt kinda surreal.  There we were, three ladies on a big old bus, lumbering down the road in all it's frosty snow-covered glory with hardly any other apparent souls in the world.

As we approached my stop, I felt rather silly pulling the signal cord.  Like I should simply state, "This is my stop up next".  But I played along and pulled the cord.  We three acknowledged our appreciation for each other and wished each other health and safety.

I entered the hospital, met as always in the new normal - the nurse standing by to take temperatures.  The whole day, so far, felt like a dystopian novel.  I usually turn down the temp check, lying to them by saying I'd checked mine already.  But they've often joked that I'm taking their jobs away, so I decided to go full on dystopia and get the temperature swipe.

Nothing.

She looked at the readout and gave a little laugh.  Like, "PffffffT", then determined that my skin temperature was too cold to register.  She fanned my face for a while, strangely seeming to cool me down, then swiped again.

98.3 F and holding.

Later, in the kitchen, someone delivered a gift from Starbucks for everyone on staff.  We're a relatively small hospital, currently with reduced staffing, so this was ample:

Coffee and danish varieties all around - speaking of taking away our jobs...

But seriously, it was a much appreciated gift.  Each bag had some positive affirmations written on it.  Some might find that sappy, but it was with warm fuzzies as our small crew of four stood reading the bags...

...right before we snatched first dibs on one of the pastry bags before they headed out to the floors.

things

I called the Walmart pharmacy on Friday afternoon.

"Hi, I wanted to come in for a Shingrix booster?  Can I get that today?"

"Unghhh..... n-n-no"

"Oh, uhm. okay..."

"Now's not a good time.  Can you do it on my day off this weekend?  It's pretty crazy in here right  now and we close at 7:00"  (it was about 5pm)

"Ya think it'll be better on the weekend?"

"Yes 'cause I won't be here"

"Okay, well that's why I called.  Thanks."


Back in early November, I got my first hit of Shingrix vaccine - the vaccine for shingles.  I've never had chickenpox.  Shingrix is given in two hits, 2 to 6 months apart.  I set a reminder on my calendar for the 4-month mark, which fell right at the start of corona-chaos.  So, I'll wait.

On Thursday morning, I went to Costco for just a usual bi-weekly run.  Parking lot was packed, I walked in far enough to see the chaos inside and noped on outta there.  This left me salmon swimming upstream against the hoards of people entering the store, but eventually I got out.  I'll wait.

Later that evening, I talked with Chaco who'd had a similar Costco experience.  He actually got some shopping done, but they had no TP,  not surprisingly.  He felt, "well, at least there's toilet paper at work".  Subsequently, the boss shut down his office and told everyone to work from home. Heh.

At my hospital job, we need to fill out a questionnaire each morning - questions about having a fever or being in contact with anyone who might have COVID-19.  One "yes" sends you home for two weeks.  My manager was sent home because his young son has a cough. 

Magnum's mom and stepdad are self-quarantined after recently travelling on airplanes.  They're both in their 80's, so we're keeping tabs. 






So, just here checking in with my blog friends.  I hope you are all safe and healthy and well supplied!

on the subject of toilet paper

We were at a fave coffee shop recently, and as I was using the Ladies', I was struck at how soft the toilet paper roll was.  Really, I almost wanted to use it as a pillow. 

I mention this only because of the contrast.  See, Magnum and I have been using sandpapery 1-ply tissue for the past several weeks/ months.  Why do we have sandpaper 1-ply TP?  I'll mention that it's at least 20 years old.

Back in late 1999/ early 2000, we bought and moved into a house in Utah.  We discovered a good sized box of toilet paper rolls.  It was 1-ply Scott tissue. Not sure, maybe it was Y2K prepper paper?

Whatever, we kept the box in a corner as our own disaster stash.  Since then, we've moved three times, and the box of TP has accompanied us - mainly because it's kinda weird to leave a box of TP behind for new homeowners, as we know from experience.

Finally, with this last move, I decided I'm done moving a box of 1-ply toilet paper, and so we dug into our vast stash.  We're still going through it and the deprivation has started to get to me. I swear, the rolls seem endless.  One would think that, since it's 1-ply, it would go fast.  Not so, it seems.

After the revelation in the coffee shop bathroom, I decided maybe it was time for a break.  On my last Costco run, I happily headed for the TP aisle.  *SIGH* 
coronavirus = toilet paper crisis.
There was none to be had. 

Well, I bet those preppers we bought that house from in Utah are now wishing they hadn't left their stash behind. 

Not.

roses are red, violets are blue, I am not a...

One afternoon last week, I walked by my bedroom and noticed Meego zonked out in there.  A while later he emerged, freshly napped.

"Your futon is SO comfortable!", he revelationed, "I went in there to pet the cat, and next I knew..."

Reference image:  cat

No, that's not an action shot.  Napolion was perfectly still in this position for me to take his photo.

Might the cat have converted Meego into a believer?  A believer in the mighty futon?

Recall that I ended up sleeping on our living room fold-out futon back in March when Magnum came down with a Chewbacca-snore-inducing cold.  It was there that I realized how darn comfortable that futon was to sleep on.  Within a week, I think, we'd chucked out the old queen mattress and box spring and replaced it with a Japanese futon.

Of course, our kids teased us for "sleeping on the floor".  Hey, don't knock it 'til you've tried it!

So yes, we're still loving the futon and have no plans to go back to the old ways.  I sleep better and the joints, back, and neck feel fine in the morning.  Probably the biggest thing to get used to is that, yes, it is like "sleeping on the floor", so getting up in the morning is basically getting up off the floor.  I count it as yoga.

Now Meego is seriously considering getting one for the rental house he and three friends are moving into shortly.

But I am not a weeaboo.  For those unfamiliar with the term...

No, I am not a weeabo.

I just like their furniture... and their tea... and their cooking utensils... and their sushi... and their cars... and their electronics...

it's a wrap

Happy day-after, everyone.  I, for one, am glad Christmas is behind us.  Don't get me wrong, I love the seasonal break and time with family and to reflect.  I'm not a fan of the over consumption of stuff and the stress it brings to so many.  I don't participate in that part, but I know there are those who really enjoy finding creative and quirky gifts for people, though, and don't mean to spoil their fun.

We live not far from a  mall.  Although malls have lost  a lot of traffic in recent years, Christmas time seems to forget about that.  So I'm glad to have less traffic in the area now... oh, wait, there are weeks now of people returning stuff... 'tis the season.

We had a nice day at home.  Wolfgang arrived about mid-morning.  Traditionally, we've had ham and my awesome scalloped potatoes.  This year, I replaced the scalloped potatoes with glazed sweet potatoes because lactose intolerance has infiltrated the family (Chaco, Meego).  Meego looked almost disappointed, stating, "Sometimes it's worth it".

Wolfgang brought some lemon bars, and my SIL had brought over a food-truck pie earlier in the week, so I didn't have to slave over the dessert like I usually do (go to the store, buy a pie).

There were gifts for the kids because, well, I can't resist THAT much.

We spoiled Penny, the new pooch, then the four of us went for a nice afternoon hike as the sun set.  It was nice to see others out enjoying the great outdoors.  As we walked along, we passed a few random evergreens that someone had decorated with Christmas ornaments - nice touch.  This would be a good spot for a pic of said trees, but I didn't think of it.

Use your imagination:

Plus, Wolfgang recently got a new phone that takes really nice photos.  Here's one he took of Penny that's so much better than the blur blobs from my camera.

See how his camera sharply picked up every piece of grit and grime on the rug?  We still don't know what she is, breed-wise. We've narrowed it down to some kind of hound mixed with who-knows.   I think she's just her own little melting pot.

Chaco and his girlfriend came over shortly after Wolfgang had to leave, since Wolfgang's working today.  Chaco and Jess had been up skiing, so missed all the earlier frivolity at our house.  We had a nice visit with them, and they further helped eat the food-truck pie.

All in all, a good day with much to be thankful for.  Now onto the next - New Year's resolution time! 😳

the reveal

I didn't really expect anyone to find Waldo *er*  Meego and the Panda.  But since there was sort of interest...

teacher's pet

I was giving Bella a bath when it happened.


Suddenly, there was a *snap* and the shifter wasn't shifting anymore.  I knew it wasn't something I could readily fix by myself, so off to the trusty bike shop I went. 




Bella has been a wonderful bicycle for me for twelve years now.  Dutiful, hardworking, and tough.  But truth be told, she's getting to be a bit of a granny.  She's still a joy, but little things have been going on her and needing frequent maintenance.  The shifter was just one in a long line of *snap*

Sure enough, she needed a new shifter cable.  I was just glad it happened while she was in the bath, and not while on the road.  The friendly tech was able to get her back to good in about 10 minutes.  10 minutes I had to walk around the shop...

A voice called to me from a row of bicycles near the back of the shop - where they keep the commuters. 

"Abbeeeeeeeeee.....", I heard. 

"I've been waiting for yoooooooooooo..."

"I'm on cleeeeeeeeeeeeearrraaaaaaance ..."

I followed the voice, and it got louder.  And LOUDER.  Until I was right on top of it. 

Long story short, I went in for a broken shifter and left with a new friend.  It's been a little over a month now and she's gotten me joyfully to and from work with ease. 

I think Bella was a bit hurt when I removed her commuting jewelry and adorned the new girl, so I haven't said much about it.  Out of respect.

But today, on the facebook bicycle commuter page, someone asked for pics of our bikes while we're at work, and I had to participate.  She just makes the room so much brighter - now that I park her inside my room instead of the bike rack where those hooligans broke my tail light.

Blog, meet Ariel

Best kid in class.

I'm definitely doomed now

Last night I dumped out my bicycling bag.  It normally sits in grab-n-go mode, but I decided to go through it to see if I could lighten the load any.  As I went about pulling more stuff than I thought was in there out of every pocket and compartment, it reminded me of those "what's in your purse/glove box/pockets??" blog posts I've seen recently, so for lack of any other ideas, I present

What's in Abby's Bike Bag??

Sadly, I didn't find any long lost treasures or forgotten twenty-dollar bills or such.  But as I look at it, I'm wondering if I can go without any of it.  Here's the list:

• Cable bike lock
• 2 spare tubes - one for Bella, one for Alice
• Book I'm currently reading
• Cycling gloves
• Spiral notebook
• Coupla pens
• Coupla pencils
• Eraser
• Wallet
• Big honkin' lip balm (spf 30!)
• Headband for the ears in case of unexpected cold 
• Burt's Bees Miracle Salve
• Bic lighter
• Bicycle repair kit
• Cycling glasses and case
• Tiny first aid pouch
• Peanut Butter Cliff Bar
• Swiss army knife (whose is it?)
• Spare gym ID card
• Bicycle pump
• Bag of hair things - ponytail holders, barrets
• Eyeglass cleaner wipes
• Barrier jacket and cell phone (not shown)

Sheesh, is all that really necessary?

Any one of these things on its own is not heavy or bulky at all, but it's the amalgamation that's literally like a monkey on my back.  It's not like I'm going on long commutes, a portion of them being away from civilization.

At the same time, who knows when I might be in dire need dental floss? (Seriously, why is that in there??)

In a satisfying move, I began by separating out the bag of hair things and the spare gym card, because really, those are mainly for trips to the gym.  I probably lost a whopping 2 ounces of weight at most.  But at least it got me going.  Other casualties ended up being

• Dental floss *eye roll*
• Cliff Bar
• Swiss army knife
• Bic lighter - for what?  Emergency barbecues?  (Yes, I know I live in a pot friendly state, but I don't partake)
• All but one pen and one pencil
• The book will only go in on an as-needed basis
• Ear warming headband goes with the book

Aaaah, I feel so light and unencumbered now (well, not actually now as I'm not currently wearing the backpack, but y'know...)

At the same time, I'm certain now that I will be stranded on my next commute and have to kill some critter to survive because I won't have even a Cliff Bar to my name. And I won't have a knife, so I'll have to use a tire wrench as a weapon, which will cause a slow agonizing and extremely messy death.  Of course, I'll have to eat said critter raw since I won't have a lighter, and of course, critter fibers will be stuck in my teeth afterward.  

...not that I'm paranoid.

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Linking up with MamaKat for this week's prompt:
5. A blog post inspired by the word: paranoid


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Silver Liningness Sunday

Happy Winter Solstice!  In the northern hemisphere, the days will start getting longer now until they aren't anymore!

We got our annual little tree yesterday.  A baby Colorado Blue Spruce.  Here she is.  Quiet, she's asleep...

...in the garage, next to the unwanted TV that, yes *sigh* is still here.  

This was another nice week of getting caught up on a few neglected things.  Oh, Christmas is coming soon too.  PEO was fun earlier this week.  No business meeting in December, just party time. 

Despite the fact that we DID go to BestBuy on Thanksgiving, we're not big into the whole retail scene at all.  Magnum and I do get gifts for the kids, but we've never done lists or Santa or any of that, and so they're actually pretty hard to get gifts for.  If they need it, we just get it when it's needed.  If they want it, they just get it themselves or come to us ready to deal.  What's left??  It's a challenge, I tellya!

As mentioned, my pedal perks leg warmers arrived this week, earlier than I expected.  Gosh, they're nice :D.  Really, I would not likely get these for myself, but since they were on the list...

Alice and I took them for a lovely ride to put them through the paces.  It was about 40 degrees out and sunny.  My fingers and toes went a little numb, but my legs were so cozy!  Recommend!

When I got home, Chaco was here, happily finished with semester finals.  He took the pics of the legwarmers.  Not only are they comfy cozy, but I think they bring out Alice's eyes.

And so we're into the final weeks of 2014.  Thank you to all of my blog friends for another fun year of blogowship (??)!  Enjoy your holidays and all the extra sunlight coming our way!

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five things

I'm linking up with Mama Kat this week for this "5 things" thing...

"List 5 things we don't know about you"

Well, that's a bit of a challenge, because I've been blogging and oversharing for quite some time, but here goes, in no particular order:

• I've never had a traffic ticket of any kind, maybe because I don't like to drive much.
• That's partly because cars put me to sleep, I  KNOW  I could fall asleep at the wheel.
• I'm currently crushing on Sam Smith - that voice, those eyes - even though he's most likely gay.

• I've been featured in advertising brochures at two different places I worked, both times as a generic minority female engineer.
• Got these new tights for practically free as a birthday thing from our friendly sporting goods store:

             I took them for their maiden run this morning and I luv 'em.  The cat apparently

             couldn't care less.


"5 things you're knowledgeable about"

• Bushcraft.  Strangely enough.
• How stuff is made via automation.  I was a (generic minority female) manufacturing engineer for several years.

• Math.  Numbers are just so trustworthy.
• Sleeping around.  KIDDING!  Just checking to see if anyone's reading after that riveting coat hanger video
• Blogging instead of doing homework, clearly.

"5 things you know nothing about"

Just five??

• Video games.  We've had gaming systems of some kind in our home for a good 12 years or so, and other than Guitar Hero, I know nothing.
• Making pie.  I've never made a pie from scratch.  Never.  Maybe I should design an automated process.
• Snowboarding.  Yes, I know I live in Colorado.
• Investing.  Otherwise, we'd be rich.
• The Kardashians, and I'm not about to start.

"5 things you believe"

• "Happiness is when what you think, what you say, and what you do are in harmony."
• "We either make ourselves miserable, or we make ourselves happy.  The amount of work is the same."
• 
  

• "In theory, there's no difference between theory and practice.  But in practice, there is."
• "If someone is nice to you but rude to the waitress, they are not a nice person."

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4. Five Things. List 5 things we don’t know about you, 5 things you’re knowledgeable about, 5 things you know nothing about, and 5 things you believe.

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I'm a wiener!

And I got some prizes today, too!

Last month, the University kicked off "Pedal Perks".  It's... well... it's...

Specifically, it's organized by the office of sustainability, which does things to help the university be more environmentally friendly.  Promoting bicycling is just one of those things.  So anyways, about 130 people signed up, and we began recording our mileage on the official Pedal Perks club page over at Bikejournal.com.

Anywhoo, I think there was a threshold of 100 miles to win a prize each month.  I got an e-mail yesterday that I was one of the September wieners, so stop by the office  for my prize.  I strode in there today, all prize-winnerish.

There was a lone person in the office, a young woman typing enthusiastically away at her keyboard. Really, it made me wonder just WHAT she was typing.  After I strode in all prize-winnerish and the enthusiastic typer didn't seem to notice I was there, I gave an enthusiastic,

"Hello!"

She stopped typing, looked up, and gave an equally enthusiastic, "Hello!"  - lots of enthusiasm in that office, I tellya - and then continued to just enthusiastically look at me.

Surprisingly *cough*, she didn't seem to know who I was.

"I'm Abby?", I continued, "I got an e-mail that said I'd won a prize for bike month? And to stop by?"

"Oh, Hi!", said the sustainability person.  I started to realize that maybe she's just always enthusiastic and what she was typing wasn't all that exciting.  Either way, it was refreshing.

She brought out a box filled with goodies, a.k.a. "prizes of approximately $10" and told me to take my pick.  She also gave me an official Pedal Perks insulated water bottle since I had failed to get one when the thing kicked off a month ago.

I dug around in the prize box a bit.  There was an assortment of < ~ $10 goodies:  socks, taillights, coupons, more water bottles, etc.  In the end, I was torn between the socks and the taillight, but went with the light since I rarely wear socks that people can read (these said "One Less Car").

Here are the goods!

And in addition to my pedal perks prizes, while I was en route, I engaged with Mr. Happy Friendly.  Remember him?  The super speedy, super friendly one-legged bicyclist?  I actually hadn't seen him in a while.  Maybe he just rides/commutes/whatever he's up to at times other than when I do, but he did seem a bit slower than his usual super speedy self.  I was actually behind him for a while and able to keep up.  

At one point, though, he must've looped around somewhere and we crossed going in opposite directions.  

"Good morning!", was his usual peppy salute.  

Fame, prizes, and Mr. Happy Friendly.  

A good day.  

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given a choice

It started when I was about the age Meego is now.  Then, once I began working in a restaurant, there was no looking back.

Coffee.

I remember brewing up some instant one day when I had to get up early to make it to the track meet bus.  Coffee was warm and supposedly a wake-up tonic, so I made some.

Looking back, I think I'd unknowingly made decaf that morning, but it was warm and made me feel a little grown up.




When I began working as a busgirl in a hotel restaurant, coffee flowed in unlimited amounts.  That was where I discovered the fully-loaded version, with just a touch of cream.  The increase in my table-cleaning efficiency was notable after that first cuppa.  In fact, once we'd closed for the evening, busboy Jimmy and I would put our feet up for a while and enjoy a cup or two. Then we'd hit the dining room with a vengeance.

Later on, I transferred from the restaurant to the front desk where I pulled the occasional graveyard shift.

Coffee.

When I was in college (the first time) I had this little aluminum stove-top percolator.  I would load it up every evening so all I had to do was click the burner on in the morning to get my fresh-perked on before classes.  Magnum thought that very efficient of me, so much that he snapped that pic of me and the percolator in the kitchen of our college apartment.  He's easily impressed.

While I was pregnant, I'd have lucid coffee fantasies that continued through the nursing months.
At one point, I thought, hmm... am I a slave to coffee?  Just to check, I stopped drinking it for a good month or so.  The result?

NO problem.  It's more of a habit, really, than a true addiction.  I don't NEED it.  I think I just like the ritual of preparing it, whether in the percolator, the automatic, or my coffee press.  Every now and then, I do the coffee abstinence thing, just to make sure.   What gets me through it?  Tea.

I prefer tea.  Real tea - green, black, orange pekoe, whatever - not a bunch of herbs thrown together and falsely named "tea".

I know I could go on happily existing without coffee, although I might miss it a little. Take my tea, though,  and things WILL get ugly.  Just so you know.

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Linking up with Mama Kat this week for a three-way!  Choose your poison:

1.) September 29th is National Coffee day. How do you like your cup?
2.) What were you blogging about last year at this time? How have things changed?
4.) Throwback time! Share an old photo and tell us about it.