calling, falling, calling

 I got one of those texts from the eye doctor's office this morning:

"Hi, Abby! It's been over a year since your last eye appointment..."

Well, no, I was there about six months ago for an annual once over. Shelled out the money for new lenses, got told that cataracts are starting to form. 

Cataracts?? Aren't those for old people??

Anyway, their automated text was wrong. Clearly they care nothing about me as a person... but honestly, I don't get too offended with these things - a glitch in the list/ system.

This past week at work, we were tasked to make calls to students who were enrolled last semester, but had not yet enrolled this semester, which starts on Tuesday. Remind them that "registration is open and classes are filling up 😁". 

We've had to do this before, to maybe drum up more tuition money. Is it effective? I dunno. What peeves us most, though, is that several of the callees from the list - generated by whom, we do not know - have told us, "Yeah, that's cuz I graduated? Last semester?"

Ugh, how rude. They paid tuition, struggled though a program, and graduated to alumni status - only to be called about "how come you haven't registered yet, lazy slacker?!"

So I changed my script from the boring one provided - by whom, we do not know - to acknowledge they may have graduated and moved on to bigger things. My coworkers started using my script, and we're probably going to be branded Rebels of the Calling Campaign. So be it.

So yes, classes begin this week. Time to get rolling. 

Speaking of rolling, I'm thankful for the mild weather we've had recently, helping to melt old snow and ice hanging around. I was able to have a normal week of bicycle commuting without freezing. 

One morning, however, did present as The Land of Black Ice. Magnum learned of it the hard way while riding his bicycle to the gym, of all places. Rounded a corner, and *ZHOOP* , surprise black ice, and he took it on the chin, upper lip. But hey, he's got all his teeth, so what's the problem?

I did venture out that same morning, on foot. I can vouch for the slipperiness. But if one managed to remain upright, it was actually a "pretty" start to the day, and I found this hidden goose playground.

On Christmas morning a few weeks back, I was near this neck of the woods when I heard what sounded like someone either really excited or really pissed off. Like REALLY. It was an eerie sounding primal scream, and I thought, "someone's not happy with how Christmas is going".

I told the family about it later, and Wolfgang suggested it might have been a mountain lion, so we googled, and yup, I'd say that's what I heard. Ever heard one? Sheesh!

"My" rendition wasn't nearly as long as in the video, but more like one big "AAAAAAAAAGGGHHH!" at a bit of a lower timbre. Mating sounds? Okay, big guy.

crack me open so I feel the air inside me

Happy October, typically one of my favorite  months - not too hot, not too cold, not too dark, not too bright. It's the Goldilocks of months for me.

Yesterday, we went downtown to witness  our first Tour de Corgi. So many Corgis! 

We watched the cute,  slow, waddling parade, then checked out a few of the booths in attendance. 

It was a lovely day for the nice wholesome event that included a costume contest as well as the parade.

October also is the month of the inktober challenge, remember? Thirty-one days, thirty-one drawings? We're two days in, and my head is still above water.

This is good for me, I haven't touched my art toys in a long time. I literally had to dust everything off. 

Speaking of misfit endeavors, we watched the movie Dinner in America. What a hoot!

It started out feeling like a goofy, quirky, misfit movie, which it is. And it could've totally bombed. It's aggressive and edgy and there are lots and lots of f-bombs. But it has a rather deep - dare I say "sweet and meaningful"? - core to it. It's not for everyone, but I loved it.

I should go

I enjoyed an easy going run along a quiet pathway this morning after another busy week. Or I should say that this particular path is normally quiet, which was why I chose to go there. Lo and behold, not long after I hopped on the path, I was met with participants of a charitable 5k.

So I ran with that pack - them going both directions - for a mile or so before reaching their turnaround point. They seemed to be a happy crowd including some little kids and people dressed in superhero costumes. I will note that I passed Wonder Woman. 💪

I've since learned it was the 4th annual Be a Hero 5k, raising proceeds for victims of child sexual abuse. My running club was one of the sponsors, and clearly I haven't been paying attention to local charity runs. I'm glad they had a nice morning for it. Once they all turned around and I kept going on my merry way, I did enjoy the rather placid run I'd intended.

In other peacefulness news, I decided to remove Instagram from my phone. I would habitually open it only to be hit with a bunch of ads, stupid reels, and ultra filtered "influencers" with fake faces and fake lives. I used to enjoy seeing occasional updates from my handful of non-influential friends, but now there's so much crap to get through. Plus, I rarely upload anything myself.  I had an epiphany and uninstalled. I still have an account, but its days are probably numbered.

Blogging remains my social media of choice, and I've missed catching up with blog friends this week. With the start of classes and tutor onboarding, I've been hanging out mostly in my left brain. It's good to get out for a breather.

But speaking of content creators, this week I managed to stumble upon my grandfather's IMDb page. I don't even remember what led me there, but there he was.  My dad's dad was a silent film director way back in the day, hence the IMDb page. The page doesn't have much content, but enough to know it's him, and I did watch snippets of his movies. I never knew him personally as he died a couple years before I was born.  Nice work, Gramps!

As far as updates go, I've got the cat on some new healthier food, and we're weening off the remaining Friskies. Friskies are back on the store shelves, but I'm thankful for that particular supply chain shortage. 

The cat will thank me later.

children of the sage

Greetings fellow travelers! Magnum and I recently returned from a couple of days of hippie camp. We traveled south to the outskirts of Taos, NM to live among the Earthshippers. An interesting and educational time was had!

Our hippie camp rental among the sage

We knew  there was a cluster of earthship activity just outside of Taos, but I was not expecting the sheer number  of structures.  There are six or seven that can be rented, and I was thinking maybe fifteen to  twenty altogether with rentals plus private owned?

Welp, turns out the site is over 80 earthships on 640 acres.  I had no idea there were so many in one spot. It was almost other worldly. It was nothing but dirt, sage, and earthships as far as the eyes could see!

For those who don't know, earthships are sustainable structures offering total off-grid living. They are often made from "trash" such as glass bottles, beverage cans, and automobile tires.  They utilize solar and wind for power, rain collection and cisterns for water, and greenhouses for gardening. 

We stayed in the Phoenix West studio. It was the only one available on the dates we requested. It was very nice, better than I expected actually. 

"Our" side of The Phoenix

The only drawback is that it does not have a kitchen since it's part of a bigger structure, and the kitchen was in the other half - rented by some people who rained on our parade.

The interior was cozy and quite serene.  So much so, I kinda forgot to get photos, but I swiped these from the website:

Strangely, I really loved the bathroom (?). This photo doesn't do it justice. 

Two skylights above kept the whole interior bright and cool, and that shower was better than anything Gilligan ever had on his island.

I was surprised at how hot the shower water could be. 

Not surprisingly, there are fire restrictions in place in all of New Mexico. I'd brought our camp stove to use on the patio, and we managed fine without a full kitchen. There was also a coffee maker, coffee and tea selection, and a few dishes and utensils in the studio.

So yes, hippie camp was a win! Are we going to pull up stakes and become children of the sage, ourselves?

Oh, heck no. Too "out in the middle of nowhere" for us. 

We will remain Outlanders.

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Linking up this week with Mama Kat for the prompt:

5. Write a blog post inspired by the word: Freedom

wannabe nobody with my thoughts in my room

My office/ studio/ space is the smallest room in the house - not counting the bathrooms.  I liken it to Harry Potter's bedroom under the stairs

but it's really not that small.  I don't have exact measurements, but I'm sitting in it now, and I'd guesstimate it to be about 10 feet by 8 feet.  And there's a nice big window looking into our back yard. 

It was feeling cramped and cluttered, so this week, I've been giving it the Marie Kondo treatment. It's not quite to my liking just yet - mainly because I'm sitting here typing about it instead of finishing off the decluttering and organizing - but it's got potential.

Happy first day of May.  I guess I have a "spring cleaning" bug.  I've already done smaller Kondo-izing with some kitchen cabinets and my clothes closet.  

In other organizing news, I had my annual blood screening this week.  Results came back all green, no yellows or reds, so we're keeping that drive alive.  Prior to my appointment, the website and confirmation emails stressed their mask requirement.

I arrived on time, properly masked (almost forgot) only to find none of the employees were masked.  Okay.  Similar thing happened a couple of times I rode the university transit buses recently.  Masks are still "required", but hardly a mask in sight - even on the drivers.  I wonder what airplanes are like?

Personally, I don't feel a need for a mask as long as I feel fine and carry little likelihood of spreading anything.  I only wear one when required... but find myself the odd one out in those situations.  I guess I'm not the rebel I thought I was.

We'll probably go out for a coffee walk soon.  I'll make sure to jaywalk at some point.

can I run the trace of your mind

Christmas is a wrap.

We had a nice one here with the brood.  The kids are all currently single, so it was a low-key fivesome plus three dogs and a disgruntled cat.  We opened some cards and gifts, ate, walked the pooches, played some boardgames... a good day was had.

Magnum and I don't gift each other. If we want something, we buy it, no matter the date.  I'm too much of a noncomformist to make a list or such *shivers*.  But we do get SOMEthing for each of the kids to open on Christmas day.  It gets harder every year.

In my recent tidyings, I did come across someone's gift from years ago:  a GoProⓇ camera.  I dusted it off, woke it up, and bought a bicycle mount for it to use as a sort of "dashcam".  I found a handful of skateboarding videos on it and determined it was Wolfgang's.  Don't tell him I've made it mine 🙊

I took it for a test drive on Christmas Eve.  Once I put it on, I noticed that the brake cables on Violet sit right in front of the best placement for the camera, but didn't obscure much in the end result.

Don't worry, I don't plan on turning this blog into a record of boring bicycle commuting videos.  

Other commuters I know use cameras to catalog abuse from motorists, but I manage to avoid those scenarios *knock on wood*.  Respect goes both ways.

Here's a test run snippet.  I found a generic app on my computer for editing and set it to Mozart for hopeful increase in entertainment value.

We're scheduled tomorrow to begin our new window install - replacing every window in the house.  Ooh, a makeover!  It will probably the coldest day of the year, our luck.

The impending window install did spur me to take down the paltry Christmas decorations I'd put up.  So there's that.

Onward to 2022!

staying chill

Yesterday morning, I was out for a run, and I went through Mouse Town.  Earlier in the week, Magnum told me I shouldn't run over there because of the Pooper Lady.

"What?  If I see her, I'll take her out!", I replied

"No", he explained, "You shouldn't run there because people might think you're her - brunette runner lady"

"PFFFT, I don't look anything like her"

She does appear taller than me in the covert pics of her.  Plus, I don't wear the tight spandex ensemble or bright green shoes or old lady bun she's wearing in the photos either.  I also don't carry handfuls of TP... But still, I felt a bit paranoid as I made my way through the area.  "I'm somebody else with dark hair!", I felt like explaining.

At last check, her identity remains a mystery.  Charmin has even offered her a year's supply of free TP if she turns herself in, but no takers.

I also ride through Mouse Town each weekday on my commute to and from work.  Since the new park's been completed, it's even a nicer ride than before.  The job can be tedious at times, but at least there's a nice commute 😀.

I "teach" Study Hall for 10th thru 12th grade at a high school.  I don't really teach a specific subject, since it's study hall, but the students do have some requirements in order to pass and I'm there to help with homework or other stuff.  But other than doling out the assignments and grading them, I'm sort of a zoo keeper.

One of the reasons I took the job - other than the fact that I didn't have any other solid offers at the time! - was so I could explore working in a high school to see if I should go ahead and get that license.  I'm leaning toward a "no", although my supervisors have opened that door for me at this school.

I'd just forgotten how restrictive public school is, and that's what I find so tedious.  But I do enjoy the students.  They recently did a grade check and reflection for me, and as with their other assignments, I enjoy reading their comments - kinda like kid blogs

Exhibit 1 is from a girl who apparently doesn't have much faith in her Algebra 3 outlook, among other observations.  I also noted that it's another instance of a student describing me as "chill".

Exhibit 1

Exhibit 2 is from a boy who knows how to tell it like it is, particularly in regard to his "History" class.

Exhibit 2

I wonder what he thought zoology was?  And super nice teacher or not, he's still getting a D in speech.  Study hall is fun?

I notice that the Student 1 didn't include her grade percentages and that Student 2 included his, but put grades and percentages in the wrong columns.

A couple of rebels, obviously.  I like 'em.

larvae little Christmas

Happy post-Christmas to those who celebrate!
Happy Friday to the others!

We enjoyed a nice day of much cooking, much eating, much gaming, and much general slacking off for the five of us.  No travelling, and no visitors.





We also managed to survive another Christmas camp.  In fact, this year was not nearly as cold as last, but that's not saying a whole lot because last year was freaking freeeezing!

The trusty tent stove did its job nicely, cranking out the warmth until it didn't anymore.  Strangely, no one wanted to stay up all night to feed it.  I think  it needs a name...

We think the temperatures got down into the upper 20s.  Livable for one night, but I wouldn't want to do it on a regular basis

Long johns are our friends.

I remember waking up cold around 4 a.m.  The fire had long gone out and I was craving my hoodie, which was outside my bag.  WHY did I not tuck it in with me?  I managed to funnel it in through the small hole in my mummy bag, but had no success in actually putting it on once it was in there.  I had to sacrifice crucial body heat and loosen the bag so as to put on the hoodie, but in the end, it was worth it.

I stayed snug the rest of the night in my cocoon, hoping to emerge a beautiful butterfly.

Spoiler Alert:  it didn't work.

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could you pick me out of a lineup?

One rule for staying under the radar is to have no distinguishing marks.  I find it humorous when criminals go knock off a 7-eleven or such, and the witness descriptions include something like a dagger tattoo on the face.  Are they seriously surprised when they get busted?

I, however, have no intention of ever knocking off a 7-eleven or such, so I can feel free to get all the face tattoos I want.  Which is zero.

So I have to stand out in other ways.  Can you find my bicycle in this mob?

Yes, the lovely Tessa is back from the salon.  I just love her green highlights!  Apparently, tires other colors than black are becoming quite popular.  The tech at the bike shop really wanted me to go green.  I should mention that there was no price difference among green or black or white - the other available color.  So I said, "heck yah!"

These tires are a little thicker and more durable than the skinny ones I replaced, but I really didn't notice "feeling fat" during my short test ride.  

Hmmm... green handlebar tape perhaps?

So far, the local polling results are:  

• Meego - "like" (I want it)
• Chaco - "dislike" (it looks like a clown bike)
• Wolfgang - "neutral" (as long as it can still go fast)

I'll pose a guess for Magnum:

• "like" (if I'm happy, he's happy, know what I'm sayin'?)

And I'm happy.  So happy, I think I'll go clean the bathrooms now, so I can make my video already.

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Liquid

I thought I was going to miss another Illustration Friday, where this week's prompt is "liquid", because of a schedule that was booked "solid".  Wouldn't that be a "gas"?

Okay, sorry...

Wolfgang is at freshman orientation today, and I was half-planning to go with him.  After consulting with various expert sources (namely Chaco and Wolfgang), it didn't seem necessary.  The thing goes on ALL  DAY, and maybe 15 minutes of the parental portion would be helpful for us.  So it was that or paint these ducks.

I never had a rubber duck as a kid and was rather jealous of Ernie on Sesame Street.  But then, I had green humanoid Gumby and his talking red pony sidekick Pokey to bathe with.

My non-conformist waters run deep.  Or maybe I just watched too much TV.
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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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Whisper

This week's prompt at Illustration Friday is "whisper".  Hmmm... how to illustrate a whisper?

The word conjures images of mouth-to-ear action.  In fact, when I went to see what the prompt was, there were already many mouth-to-ear submissions.  All nicely done, of course, but I'm too much of a non-conformist to jump on that wagon.

The word also suggests images of intimacy.  Hmmm...  this is a pretty PG-13 blog, so nope.

I decided to to the mouth-to-ear whisper after all, just from the opposite end of things.  Non-conformity lives.

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