stricken

I've never been a nailbiter. I know it's a thing, but I'd not given it much thought. Ever wonder where the bitten nails go?

It was back to reality this week after our DC trip. I worked Thursday and Friday in testing, and thankfully, Boss had turned off scheduling for some tests so we could ramp back up rather than have to hit the ground running. 

He and I were closing up yesterday and decided to do some decent cleaning since the place was pretty quiet. He washed chairs, I vacuumed. 

I vacuumed a fair amount of discarded fingernails. *GAG*

Some chew pencils, some muss with their hair, some rock back and forth, some chew and spit out fingernails...

I was honestly thinking along similar lines when we were out with the throngs at the various DC attractions. Here's a rundown of all the places we visited.

Outdoors:

• Washington Monument
• Lincoln Memorial
• Jefferson Memorial
• Martin Luther King Jr. Memorial
  
• Franklin Delano Roosevelt Memorial
• National Christmas Tree

Indoors:

• Capitol building
• Archives (Constitution, Declaration of Independence, Bill of Rights)
• Library of Congress
• Air and Space Museum, DC
• National Gallery of Art, East and West buildings
• National Museum of US Army
• Natural History Museum
• Air and Space Museum, Virginia

Looking back, we covered a lot of ground. While at the various attractions, I noticed all the glass, upon which people scrunch up to get a good look at things, kids plant hands and faces. 

"Dang, someone's gotta clean all this glass", I realized. I appreciate the glass cleaners. 

...and the floor cleaners, the bathroom cleaners, etc.. So many people, so much mess.

In general, every attraction was pretty darn immaculate. Oh, and I noticed this painting in the National Gallery right away. Featured recently by Fresca, I was pleased to see it in the flesh!

The Jolly Flatboatmen

I learned that the Washington Monument and the Capitol building were both struck by lightning on New Year's eve. An omen?

When seeing the Capitol for the first time, I was rather agog by the "badass" statue atop the dome. 

I wanted to learn more about The Statue of Freedom, my current favorite statue

So it was struck by lightning, and I imagine it wasn't the first time. 

But she's tough, I'm sure.

Personally, I made it to the rooftop of the National Gallery for this impressive cock.

So, a memorable and worthwhile trip.

And now... back to the nailbiters.

a gathering, a bovine, a chill dude, a flush for Friday

I went out for a brisk little run in the crisp black Friday morning air today. Apparently there was a goose convention going on at one of the local high school practice fields.

Either that or they're groundskeepers doing a fertilizer application while the kids are on break.

Christmas decorations have been making their appearance in the neighborhood. 

I came across this jolly... bull? buffalo? Maybe he's a steer considering how friendly he looks?

It was a bright sunny morning, but a frosty 20F, so coming upon a guy at the park, shooting hoops in shorts and short sleeves was a bit mysterious.

I didn't take a pic of him, but used my masterful digital imaging skills to dramatically recreate the scene.


How was he not freezing?

That's pretty much it for my Black Friday adventures. The guys had a nice time with extended family yesterday, and brought back much leftover beers - as they were in charge of supplying beer. Clearly, they brought more than necessary.

None of us are big beer drinkers. Unfortunately, unlike leftover Halloween candy, I can't just bring it to work and dole it out. Magnum says we might have to up our intake to more than the typical half a beer every couple weeks. 

Honestly, though, I get the "Asian Flush" from alcohol, and don't really like the feeling. Mainly my cheeks. If I'm buzzed, I can bet I look like I'm wearing clown makeup. 

I'm a bad boozer. Suggestions for the leftovers?

magical time

When Wolfgang goes out of town, lucky him, he has a willing person to check on and feed his cat, Maisey. That person would be me.

Maisey is not the most social of cats, but she's figured out that I'm the food person, so I think she likes me. I wish we could just have her stay at our house, but clearly, all hell would break loose if she did. Our cat is not fit to share with other cats - it's how he got booted from his first home and ended up with us. 

Bottom line, I go to Wolfgang's every day if he's out of town, which has been the case recently. 

It's a pleasant 10-mile bicycle round trip from my house to Maisey's. If I go there after work, it's more like 12 miles, mostly flat. Wolfgang lives in a modern apartment complex downtown. When I go there, I feel like one of those bike messengers, in the elevator with my bicycle, on a mission.

The building has private entrances along interior hallways. Several of them have welcome mats. This one intrigued me back around Halloween.

How fun, right?

Except... I was there again this week. The Ouija board "welcome" is still there. Apparently, it's not a Halloween decoration, but a permanent fixture. Heh, those jokesters... I think

Not far from that is this set up

I have no idea the signifigance, if any, of the white wreath. But the mat reminds me of the illuminati symbol or Eye of Providence, which again, I really don't know its message. 

I guess the inhabitants just want to keep their floors clean.

In other news, the college students (and teachers and tutors, for that matter) are dragging butts to make it to fall break. After that, there's one more week and then finals. Meanwhile, I'm planning my schedule for spring semester while students are hoping to not have to retake any classes. This isn't high school. Actual failure is now an option.

Maybe they can summon outside forces for finals. Magic 8-ball?

lunch

On abreak  during work yesterday, I sat down next to this dude. He was a wonderful conversationalist.

I'm concerned that he's been working himself too hard, however. Literally, to the bone.

I should've gotten him some more pancakes.

Speaking of working too hard, Blossom continues to not. Out again Tuesday and yesterday.

At what point will it be considered just comedy?

so... what're you wearing?

Greetings from the freezer. I know we're not the only ones stuck in an arctic blast. 

Today we enjoyed some psychologically warming sunshine, and I noticed a reading of 12F on our thermometer earlier this afternoon. Strange how 12F seems so warm.

Yesterday, after I got home from work, we decided to test our outerwear on a 2-mile walk in 3F. We only got a couple inches of snow, so drifts weren't a factor.

So we bundled up, and I'm happy to report the gear did its job.

For reference, I wore:

• leggings under jeans under windpants
• turtleneck under hoodie under gore-tex parka
• balaclava under ski hat under goggles under hood
• wool glove liners under insulated trigger mitts
• two pairs of socks under water resistant hikers.

All performed wonderfully, and I remained quite cozy toasty, although I wouldn't want to make a habit of this. 

mid-week mash up

• I mentioned a while back that a childhood friend of mine was (surprisingly and strangely) running for mayor of our hometown. I didn't think he had any chance at all, and the polls returned that prediction in staggering fashion.

I took a peek at his facebook campaign page, to which I never accepted the "friend" request, and he's been profanely ranting ever since - not surprisingly.

I honestly wonder about his mental state. 

He and I have been in and out of touch over the years, mostly out. A few years ago, he'd sent a request to connect on Linkedin. His Linkedin profile was very odd, and I wondered if it was a joke or if he's off his rocker. Could go either way. I never accepted that request either.

• The assistant boss hunt is proceeding. All applicants are in, and we're poring over resume's. First round interviews likely won't happen until after Thanksgiving because of... Thanksgiving.

We have two fellow part-timers who had expressed interest in the position. One has sort of developed a reputation as a slacker, while the other has been performing really well. I haven't worked much with either of them as they are very part-time at our campus, but the others have shared their thoughts with me.

SO, turns out "the slacker" applied for the position, but the "the star" did not. I don't know if Star just changed her mind or what, but the deadline has past, and she's not in the running. I shared this quietly with both Party Girl and Sarge, both were quite disappointed.

I think I'm doing well with keeping myself unbiased despite all this chatter. Slacker is not a shoe-in, as a few other candidates look well qualified.

• Screaching tires UPDATE: recall the ongoing screaching tires Magnum and I heard on Saturday night? We did a bit of investigating during a coffee & bagel mission.

Walking across the nearby high school parking lot revealed that our assumption of someone(s) spinning lots and lots of donuts was most likely true.

I can only imagine the heat and smells that were generated. 

And if it was some kid shredding their parents' tires? Consequences?

morning balloons, night donuts

My right foot is on the fritz. It doesn't feel like running. Doctor Internet tells me I have metatarsal(s) stress/ strain. Fine, so be it.

But walking is agreeable, so my feet and I went out and did that on this sunny morning. Not long after heading out, I heard the unmistakable sound of a hot air balloon torch. I looked up to confirm my suspicions.

Hot air balloons are such a strangely calming sight, quietly floating along in the early morning. If I was in that basket, however, I would be anything BUT calm. 

I'm sure the views from up there are stunning, making me a bit jealous of the non-acrophobes. I'll stick to getting awe-inspiring views from the tops of big firm mountains and foothills.

This past week was a good one - felt productive. I was able to stick to my plan of getting up an hour earlier than I had been, putting that dang time-change to good use. 

Last night, we were streaming a movie when I heard squealing tires from not far away. I figured someone was Starsky-and-Hutching it down the main drag. But then... the squealing kept on and on. It would pause then resume, pause then resume... this went on for several minutes. Finally, I paused our movie to listen. 

It was quite noticeable, and I was surprised how long it continued. We stepped outside and concluded that someone(s) who has no qualms about needing to buy new tires, was spinning donuts in the nearby high school parking lot. I'll have to go out and investigate in a little while to see if there's a mess of burnt rubber evidence. 

As far as we know, no one called the cops, although I'm sure others heard it. Maybe most, like us, figured "someone else will report it" or "as long as they're not on the street, let them have their fun". It eventually stopped. I checked nextdoor and reddit, my main go-tos for nosiness. Nothing.

That's about it for the excitement at my end: bum foot, balloon, burnt rubber.

pump-kings and inkings

It definitely feels like fall now. I had to break out long pants and long sleeves this week - fleece even!

This morning, I was out enjoying a run around town with temperatures in the 40s.  I turned a corner and came upon this rival of Charlie Brown's legendary Great Pumpkin. 

 It was just sitting there next to someone's driveway in a residential neighborhood, and I thought maybe it was factory made? But no, upon further inspection, I saw it was an actual pumpkin. It had to be at least 3 feet in diameter. What sort of hoisting equipment got it up onto that wall?

I looked to the right and saw, lingering in a mess of foliage, the pumpking's possibly bigger brother laying about.

Such a massive mound of pumpkin, it seemed freakishly huge to me. What is in that soil?  Clearly, someone there knows how to  grow a squash. 

In other news of October, I've managed to keep my head above water with Inktober prompts so far this year, managing 6 ink drawings in the first 6 days. 

Birds, bugs, and rodents seem to be emerging themes. 

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Linking up this week with Mama Kat for the prompt:

2. Share something you made progress on.

for reals

I came across this little (literally) guy this morning while out on another morning meandering.  

He seems appropriate for the Friday mood.

He is one detail in this larger... erm... yard ornament decoration thing?

It sits on a corner house, and I'd seen it before while bicycling by, but never looked at it closely before this morning.

There is a whole mess of little characters and crevices to discover.  The painted mailbox says, "Fairy and Leprechaun mail only". The main structure is part of a tree that is bolted down to a tree stump. Looks to me like the bolted down portion is part of the original tree. 

Either way, I enjoyed the morning look-like-a-runner outing as it's raining now. We're predicted to have lots of rain all day today - a rarity here. Remnants of hurricane Hilary, perhaps?

My work schedule changed slightly this week, and I'm liking the new schedule well enough. We're in the process of hiring a new boss since Boss boss was promoted to yet another layer of admin. Current Assistant Boss is in the running, but not necessarily a shoe-in, and hopefully we'll have an answer within a couple of weeks.

In the meantime, I played around some more with my little WacomⓇ tablet. I am a legit preschooler when it comes to creating digital art. Clearly in the only-can-do-cartoony-things phase.

I call this depiction "me walking the dogs while imagining me walking the dogs"

Based on a true story.

there

We were walking the dogs last night as the sun was setting. Magnum noticed the colors in the sky mixing with the clouds.

"I'd take a picture, but it wouldn't look as good"

Ain't that the truth? A (cell phone) pic doesn't do justice, and you just had to be there. So I rarely take photos just for looking at. I'm more apt to, like recently, snap a pic of my bottle of allergy medicine so I can be sure to get the same stuff when I go shopping.

That said, I'll share a couple of recent pics that you'd just have to be there for.

This morning, I was out enjoying a meandering jaunt while the temperatures were still quite friendly for such things. My meanderings took me through the university trial gardens - a happy destination. 

Emerging from the tunnel access, I saw this portion being watered, and something about the sprinklers and the flowers backdropped by the gazebo got me to whip out the phone. A groundskeeper tried to photobomb from his little groundskeeper vehicle. Spy him?

The university has a strong horticulture department, and the purpose of the trial gardens is:

"to evaluate the performance of different annual plant cultivars under our unique Rocky Mountain environmental conditions"

But other than that, it is a gorgeous place to check out, hang out, run around, bring friends/ visitors, and maybe learn some stuff while you're at it. Easily accessible and free, the trial gardens are always popular in the summertime, but not so much that they're crowded and obnoxious. I'm pretty sure the bees appreciate them too.

And for extra credit, we were dogsitting Chaco's dog, Ella, again this past week. She's a good looking dog, but not an easy one to photograph. 

A Jackie Onassis of the dog world?

Especially when out for a walk, she's on a mission known only to her. Expecting her to stop moving is typically futile, let alone provide a decent profile for snapping.

Somehow the stars aligned and I managed this.

Looking at both of these photos now, I again realize, "you had to be there".

But I'd say they're at least more blog worthy than a bottle of allergy meds.

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Linking up this week with Mama Kat for the prompt:

2. Show us the last photo you took and let it inspire a blog post.

weekend bullets

And so ends another week. Time goes faster the older you get, it's true. 

• I worked at the college yesterday as my turn came up in the Saturday rotation.  I was teamed with Assistant Boss who struggles somewhat with dyslexia. He seemed more challenged than usual yesterday after a problem with an early check-in had him a bit frazzled for the rest of the shift.

He confided to me that he thinks his dyslexia is getting worse as he gets older (he's late 50's). From my observation, it seems he has developed anxiety from the potential mistakes as a result of the dyslexia. Maybe it's the compound effects of dyslexia + anxiety about dyslexia making it seem worse.  End result: it's worse, but not terrible.

On a lighter note, we had chuckles from a test candidate from China whose name was pronounced "Wrong Way" (she found it amusing too). Made us wonder if our names mean anything in other languages? Hopefully nothing embarrassing. 

• I decided to stop "drinking" a little over three months ago. At that time, the extent of my so-called drinking was splitting a lite beer with Magnum most evenings. So, I figured it wasn't really doing much for me, so what was the point? Admittedly, I did/ do miss the taste of it in a habitual kind of way, especially now that we're in the heat of summer and a "cold one" sounds enticing. 

Last weekend, we went out to eat with the guys for Father's Day, and they each ordered (not lite) beers. I got a slight buzz just from sampling them. If I wasn't a lightweight before, I definitely am now.

• 38-year-old Courtney Dauwalter from Leadville, CO won the Western States 100-mile ultra race by smashing the previous record for women. 

I enjoy running, and I have absolutely NO desire to EVER run 100 miles. I don't even have the desire to run a full marathon - something all kinds of people pay money to do. 

That said, I would happily run 100 miles through the mountains before I would ever get into a deep-sea submersible.

 

can't hurry love

 

The internet's telling me that it's raining off and on in my location. The internet's wrong. 

Looks hot and sunny to me. Ask my weather watchers

Actually, I don't think these two give a hoot about the weather, they're just being nosey regarding the neighbors.  Karen patrol.

Somebody's gotta do it.

And actually, these pics aren't very current because currently we're housing Chaco's dog along with our menagerie.

Chaco's dog and our cat are not a good mix, so are kept separated. The cat is not pleased, but Ella the pooch seems all too enthusiastic about the substitution.


So yeah, as shown, exciting times around here.


Pooch Penny is absent from window patrol as she doesn't give a hoot about any of it.

This was actually quite a busy week for me in addition to the pet duties. At the college, we're gearing up for the start of the fall semester. Our newest coworker, Sangria, is pleasant to work with but a bit slow on getting up to line speed. My usual schedule has been shifted while training her, but starting this coming week, I'm happily going back to my previous, more preferred, schedule. Sangria's out of training camp whether she likes it or not.

I've got a couple of nice, personable high schoolers I've been tutoring over the summer. School starts for them next week, so that will create more schedule shifting for me.  In the meantime, word got out, teasingly, at the college that I'm a "weirdo who likes math". 

This lead to recruitment of me into the college supported tutoring department, so now I have two part-time college jobs, each in separate departments, for HR to deal with.  It's state funded, so pay remains skimpy, but I do enjoy it well enough.  It is nice to have two income streams from one location - trickling streams though they be.

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Linking up with Mama Kat for the prompt:

3. Write a blog post inspired by the word: slow

are men more organized than women?

It's amazon prime day, whacha buying?

I went to amazon this morning, looking for a purse/bag/satchel/whatever you call these things.  Shopped around, read some reviews, got some recommendations.  Finally, I ordered one.  

The bag I ultimately selected noted that it was rated a top selection for "murse" (man purse) and is in fact noted a "men's" bag in the description.  It looks very similar to other women's or unisex bags I considered, and actually, many of the reviews I read for it were from women glowing about the bag's positive attributes and noting how "it's great for women too!"

So, what makes it a men's bag?

The most notable difference - the one that sold me on it - is that it allows for wonderful organization:  more useful pockets and compartments, handy places for everything one typically carries around.  

There was a short video on the item page showing what I assume are man hands placing man things - wallet, phone, tablet, keys, pens, earphones - in various handy compartments. Not a tampon or bottle of Midol to be had, no mascara or lipstick, no romance novels. The bag could also easily accommodate these things, but apparently women just throw that stuff in a tote so they can upend the whole thing and sort through a pile when something is needed.

Don't women also carry money, phones, keys, pens, earphones, etc.?  Don't they also appreciate good organization? I do.  Am I doing something wrong?

Oh well, I ordered me a murse

In other news, one of my coworkers is quite crafty and has created a nice little income stream from her unique facemasks.  I'm not sure if she has an Etsy shop, but I remember going to Etsy early in the mask days and not being able to make a choice.  I remember thinking, "I wish I knew someone selling these things"

Wish granted!  Plus, she brings them into work for easy access.  Looky the cute bicycle mask she made for me:

I hadn't requested a bicycle mask specifically.  I knew she offers a variety of designs and told her I'd pick from whatever she had, but she made this thinking I'd like it, which I do!

How nice when sellers clearly consider the customer.  Says the woman who just bought herself a man purse.

not anymore

Yesterday was July 11, or 7/11.  Did you celebrate Slurpee Day?  No?  Understandable since Slurpee Day became another COVID-19 casualty. 

When our kids were young and willing to hang out with us for such things, we'd make it a point to do a bike ride to 7-11 on Slurpee Day.  We never made it in time for the free ones because those came in little 7.11 oz. cups, and the store would run out quickly. 

           

Just as well because those freebie Slurpee shots would not do on a mid-July bike ride.  We were there for the full strength.

I don't remember when the last Slurpee ride was, it's been quite a few years, but I saw a headline yesterday that it wasn't happening this year - social distance precautions and all that. 

I used to think it was kind of strange the way people would flock to 7-11 for 7.11 ounces of free Slurpee, but I guess it was a big enough deal to make its cancellation a news story.

In other COVID news (as if you don't have enough), I came across this graphic today.  

SOURCE

Honestly, I didn't dig around to verify the data behind the graphic, but if it's true... time to build a moat, Colorado?

Keep washin' yo hands!

sizzlin'

A couple of my coworkers at the hospital are similar but different women.  Similar in that they both have strong personalities, are good at what they do, and have been working there since the place opened a little less than five years ago.

They don't get along.

Tee is a nutritionist/ dietitian.  Em is a chef.  Tee trained me for my job, but I work more closely with Em.  I happen to like both of them (and I think the feeling is mutual?), but I don't like being around when they're in the same room together, which, thankfully, is not often.

Em runs the show in the kitchen, is known to dance around - particularly on Friday afternoons - and make fun observations of the day-to-day goings on.  Her food is delicious, and she often whips up batches of cookies just for the fun of it while somehow completing all of her tasks as well as picking up others' slack.

Tee works mainly in the retail cafe', helping customers, making recommendations, checking that ready-to-go and buffet items are nicely displayed and up to par, and keeping the cafe' tidy and attractive.

I trained with Tee for my first two days, and I think it was day one where she told me, under her breath, "Yeah, we don't get along", referring to Em.  So I was a bit intrigued, but not wanting to get caught up in any kitchen cat fight.  What's not to like about either of them?

I've never witnessed the two of them arguing.  They are cordial with one another, and stuff gets done.  I suspect there've been open arguments in the past that have reached an agree-to-disagree status that everyone is aware of.

I think I've somewhat figured it out.  It goes back to simply, Tee is a nutritionist/ dietitian.  Em is a chef.

Tee wants recipes to be followed to the letter.  A dish calls for 5 ounces of hummus?  It better have 5 ounces of hummus, plus or minus nothing.

Em wants food that looks appealing and tastes amazing.  Hmmm, might be better with more like 3 ounces of hummus?  3 ounces it is.

Tee wants to not have to throw any food away - sustainability and all that.  Em wants plentiful portions available, plus the main dishes look nice when displayed in large, full pans.

Now, Tee is not wholly against making a substitution here and there.  And Em isn't changing things up so much as to severely alter nutritional content.

Me?  I stay out of it.  I can certainly see both points of view, but this is a semi-retirement side gig for me anyway.  I enjoy the psychological research.


What do you think?  Are you a Tee or an Em?  Or an Abby?

2018 rewind

It's time again for the year-end rewind.  Whew, 2018, we hardly knew ya!

Before charging onward into 2019, I'm recalling a few  events - mostly in pics - of the year past:

Got in the first miles and a medal on the New Year's Day "Rain, Snow, or 20-below" Rescue Run 10k.  It was chilly, but I discovered animal crackers and hot Gatorade.

Spent plenty a good time with my P.E.O. sisters...

Nearly froze again when the weather took an arctic turn during the Super Bowl half marathon.  I don't remember feeling as smiley at this point in the race.  I think my face was just frozen in this expression.

We FINALLY went mountain biking

Final prom tux rental?

We sponsored a local high schooler for a P.E.O. scholarship, and she GOT it!

Meego's high school let him graduate 😊

Chaco got a cool dog.

Wolfgang got a cool cat

Our neighborhood finally got decent-speed internet, so I could expand my nerd skills to online tutoring

Wolfgang got a new job and Meego conveniently enrolled at the university in Wolfgang's nice new hometown.  We can visit them both during not parent's weekend and otherwise.

I was thankful to trot my turkey on Thanksgiving.

And we end the year with the acquisition of sweetie pie Penny!

All in all, a good year! There was plenty more, but this has droned on long enough.  I did also make some delightful new blog friends and kept some old ones. 

I can honestly say that the highs outnumbered the lows, and I am truly blessed.  

Thanks to everyone who stops by!  Hope to see ya next year!

ugly is in the eye of the beholder

There's a quaint duck pond not far from where we live.  Magnum and I walk passed it regularly on our old folks' walks.  It's where the goose families live.  It's where kids take their prom photos. It's where Meego crashed his bicycle that time he discovered the low coefficient of friction of fresh goose poop after a rain.  It's a fave little neighborhood spot as the pond also contains fish, and cute little kids go there hoping to catch one.

During one recent jaunt, we spotted this guy:

He stood out because he looks so different from the typical population of mallards - large and spotted with a red face and bumpy thing on his nose/beak.  Not being a duck expert, I wondered if he was another breed of duck or some sort of mutant.

I tried to learn about his differentness and googled "big duck" images in hopes of tracking it down.  That led mostly to...

Uhm.... no.

So I mentioned to Magnum that I couldn't yet find out the deal with that duck (which I have since learned is the term for females.  Males are drakes).  He punched something into his phone, and in a couple of seconds said,

"It's a Muscovy duck".

I looked at his phone to see a whole bunch of images similar to the big lumbering thing at the pond.

I was all, "What did you search on??"

And he said, "'Ugly duck', why what did you search on?"

"'Ugly duck didn't seem very nice, so I searched on 'big duck'"  (Note:  be careful of typos when doing a search on "Big Duck"...)

Besides, I really don't think Mr. Muscovy is ugly.  He's sort of big and badass looking really.  To me, anyways. And I learned that they make for nice pets and don't quack-quack-quack like mallards.  I wonder if he's an escapee from someone's property as Muscovies are not typically native to Colorado.

I guess we'll never know.  He's not talking.