RICE-N-GRASS

deck progress

2010-07-23T07:31:00.002-05:00

not sure i can quite call this 'progress' yet. but, moving forward, gathering materials and mapping out the spot. hoping for nice weather this weekend as i have scored a pick-up truck to use. need to get some gravel and perhaps back fill. hoping to find both of those cheap or free. but cheap and free often means a lot of work salvaging from people's yards. fingers crossed though.

i started cutting the outline out of the sod last night by hand. not fun or easy. i'll rent a hand operated sod cutting contraption this weekend. hoping i can get some helping hands to help me roll the grass (wishing this was a more entertaining form of grass rolling). then i can prep the area in the middle of the yard that was formerly and overgrown jungle and transplant the sod.

so much to do. but i'll just plug away.

yard projects

2010-07-21T09:04:00.002-05:00

my house-warming picnic is scheduled. august 21, 2010.

so, lots of work to do in the yard.

got some free pallets from my pal, tracie last night. so, went out and laid out a deck design. i'll start working on assembling the actual deck this weekend. wish me luck. how do i get myself into these things? ha ha ha.

a long weekend!

2010-07-02T06:47:00.002-05:00

i had planned to go camping all by myself. then i decided i would ask some friends to come. then i decided i would just go for a day. then i decided i'd better not camp at all. my backyard needs so much work. so, although we have a nice holiday, i'll be doing chores in the yard.

if anyone wants to help dig hostas and landscape, let me know.

hope everyone has fun wherever you are and whatever you are doing.

ps ruby should be in england by now. here starts the 11 day count down till she is back. :(

journalism at it's finest

2010-06-25T06:43:00.002-05:00

now is when my affection for magazines and writing surfaces. i am so stoked for rolling stone magazine and michael hastings. i adore when a story comes out and it generates as much buzz as the death of a celebrity. printed media is such a sick and dying industry that i love to see a victory of this magnitude.

happy friday.

welcome

2010-06-24T06:36:00.002-05:00

on tuesday cari, pauly and oliver added a fourth. congrats to all. here is a post from cari's facebook status line. cracked me up a little.

Lucille (Lucy), 8lbs 2oz, 22"

Okay - we finally have the full name for Lucy: Lucille Sydney Marie Bullemer (Lucille comes from my grandma, Sydney comes from my grandpa Sidney, Marie comes from Paul's great grandmother). We were forced to figure it out so the birth certificate lady could get her work done - I guess it's the push we needed.

i learned

2010-06-23T08:29:00.001-05:00

how to drive an ATV yesterday. or a four wheeler?? i'm not sure what they are referred to in the redneck circles. i guess there's not much too it. unfortunately, i was working rather than playing. cutting, hauling and burning fallen wood from storm damage out in plainview.

that's one good thing about NOT owning land, dealing with the clean-up.

stress relief

2010-06-22T10:50:00.000-05:00

disclaimer: this might make you dizzy (mom).

jeez

2010-06-21T06:31:00.001-05:00

i haven't blogged in ages. anyone give a crap?

weekend report

2010-04-26T06:40:00.002-05:00

didn't see too many humans this weekend. relaxed, slept a lot, drank heaps of orange juice and spring water. it was my spring cleanse. i have to say i don't like the orange juice plan as much as the crazy lemon juice, cayenne pepper and molasses one. i'll have to remember that for next year.

anyway, i'm back running again. still easing into barefoot running. i had planned to couple short barefoot runs with normal distance running in shoes. i decided against that this weekend as i am trying to change my running style to eliminate heel strike. wearing shoes will make it way to easy to fall back into old habits.

watched the following movies:
high art
away we go
an education
men who stare at goats
the lovely bones
how to be

that was my weekend in a nutshell. oh, made it to church too. i have been missing services and was pleased to hear a good message.

ok, have to finish my cream of wheat and get on with my day. happy monday.

ps i somehow got water in my ear. what am i five? sheesh. i haven't even been swimming, just showering regularly.

Behold

2010-04-22T10:30:00.004-05:00

my new running shoes. two pieces of 4mm thick vibram cut to my foot shape and about $0.50 worth of climbing rope. i know, i know. crazy right? i have been doing a lot of research about how modern shoes have caused a lot of damage to our feet in turn our ankles, knees, hips, backs.

since i have a history of pain in three of four coupled with my dislike of shoes generally i thought i'd give this a try. i have spent the last few months conditioning my legs, feet and ankles in hope and anticipation of shifting to barefoot running.

went on my first barefoot run last night. it was only a half mile, but all cement. my legs and feet felt great. also no knee pain to speak of. i had a hard time making myself stop. the key to this transition is going slowly so i don't actually bruise my feet.

if anyone reading this is actually interested in the theories behind this stuff, you can look here. this is wear i learned to make my huaraches and also where i ordered the kit.

hope all is well with everyone. not much else new to report. maybe i should post some more recent picture of alice, ruby and noah. i'll put that on my to-do list.

on the horizon

2010-03-30T12:56:00.003-05:00

i just have a few more things left to do around the house.

1. new roof
2. carport or pull aside or new garage
3. landscape backyard
4. build a patio
5. paint the whole interior except ruby's room and the bathroom
6. yank a dozen bushes and 1 tree
7. build a fence
8. replace windows in the bedrooms
9. hang a hammock
10. figure out a fire pit
11. set up my rain barrel

once i check all of these things off, i can start learning how to brew beer. just around the corner, right? sure.

Come with me to mexico...

2010-03-10T22:42:00.000-06:00

...stop listening to that damn radio. -leona ness

made it down here relatively smoothly. not always an easy task when traveling with 4 adults and a 4 year old. hoping the flight home goes equally well.

mexico certainly isn't what i expected. i don't know what i expected but this is not it. i'm not sure if that is a good or bad thing. i wasn't prepared for all the vendors and agressive time share representatives. every where that we walk people are jamming flyers, necklaces, hats, keychains and other hideous fares into our faces.

what i am enjoying is the architecture and colorful designs of building in traditional and old mazatlan. i have been snapping photos like crazy. i'm trying to shoot both digital and film. praying that the lomo is going to live up to my expectations. we'll see.

for touristy stuff we've spent some time down in old mazatlan, went para-sailing, walked along the monuments, visited a famous old church (i still don't know it's name), cracked beers before noon a few times, enjoyed several beach walks, sunsets and freshly cooked meals. fishing didn't work out. a zipline tour through the canopy of mazatlan is scheduled for tomorrow. hopefully the weather is nice. of course it's been unseasonably cold and windy. but seeing the sun and sand rather than snow and ice has been welcomed.

for some reason, the link to upload photos isn't working. i'll try to post a few to facebook or try again tomorrow. see you all in a few days.

hasta!

new baby boy

2010-02-24T13:30:00.003-06:00

finally, finally, finally.

noah allen lange
born 12:45am
7 lbs 11oz
20"

he came into this world against his will by c-section. just like boys being a pain. ha ha ha.

congratulations to all. everyone is doing well.

best monday pressie ever

2010-02-22T09:25:00.004-06:00

i didn't have time to go to coffee this morning, conflicting meetings, tours, classes. i got back from a meeting to find a breve, extra shot, no foam waiting for me. i <3 H, even more than i <3 this coffee.

ps good luck to the langedorfs working on getting that baby out today. hopefully i'll have news later today about a healthy new niece or nephew.

two favs

2010-02-16T06:25:00.003-06:00

sorry for the absence. i had been living out in oronoco last week. looking after 4 dogs, 4 cats, 6 birds and 2 mini donkeys. it was a long week. but i was able to find some time to relax and do some shooting. here are a couple favs.

also, anxiously awaiting the arrival of my new niece or nephew who is now fashionably two days late.

bad banana

2010-02-05T09:30:00.003-06:00

i got this as an email forward today and it really made me laugh. thought i would share.

How to tell if a banana has gone bad.....

gay news

2010-02-02T09:23:00.003-06:00

although i should be worrying about academy award nominations and the groundhog's shadow, i found myself shaking my head at the pope. a papal visit to england hasn't occurred since 1982; almost the span of my life. so, as the UK nears passing it's equality bill, he plans to become a personal cheerleader against it. nice. he is worried about his right to deny gay people holding higher positions in the church. does anyone else find this to be a teeny tiny bit hypocritical? i'll stop there as a rant would become angry and lengthly.

soon after reading about the pope, i heard a story on mpr about the military moving toward changing or eliminating the 'don't ask, don't tell' military policy. so, that is a move in a positive direction.

maybe these two efforts actually cancel each other out in the grand scheme of things. bringing to light the fact that gay people are just people. we don't care who you are sleeping with, why is it so entertaining who we are sleeping with? get a life folks.

Recent fun in photos

2010-01-27T11:04:00.008-06:00

1. learned how to shoot a handgun. not really on my life 'to-do' list, but i had the opportunity to do some target shooting. i have to admit it was fun. thanks for the lesson, ed.
2. mom took this photo while i was buying a new dryer at home depot. the sales guy totally busted us.
3. got out snowshoeing on 80 quiet acres out in plainview on a beautiful day.
4. discovered ruby's love for shopping if she gets her own cart. she followed me around letting me fill the cart. until we got to the check out aisle where she threw a holy fit. very, very unhappy that her items were bagged up.
5. ruby tried her hand at making chili. it turned out well.
6. she offered to help clean up the dishes. she loves her bubbles.
7. one afternoon ruby asked to watch nemo. i was sick and she seemed cuddly. so i popped it and we snuggled up to watch. i feel asleep and when i woke up i saw a smiley toddler sitting on top of the love sac with a mouth full of peanuts. i glanced around the living room to see the entire floor covered with smashed peanut hulls. she had used the stash she had stored the night before in her boot. i guess she wanted a snack.
8. a toddler's work is never done. stack, stack, stack. line-up, line-up, line-up.

what's new?

2010-01-14T13:53:00.002-06:00

1. my house is nice and clean. (thanks, heather)
2. today is ana's last day of chemo!
3. i have made my first house payment on my new house. i have to say it's a lot nicer living rent free.
4. work has me running like a nutbag.
5. i am going on my maiden ice fishing trip with em and pete saturday.
6. life is pretty quiet generally and that is perfect.
7. i am so happy ruby is back in town. i can't get enough of that kid.
8. i signed up for the frozen goose cancer benefit 5k in a few weeks. that will jump start my triathlon training.

hope everyone is doing well.

relatively uneventful

2010-01-04T07:39:00.002-06:00

well the new year rung in all by itself and the decade rolled over on my heart. i don't know that i have ever been so pleased to kiss a year good-bye as i was this one.

i spent christmas completely solo this year. well, miles and i. i was fine with it as the weather was weird and i had plenty of things to do around the house. christmas eve though, i was invited to my co-worker's house. i think i was the youngest one there by 15 years or so, but it was a lovely evening. the food was delicious and the company was great.

my new year celebration consisted of spending the day cleaning until daina and boone arrived. miles and i each had a friend over for the occasion. we watched movies, chatted and ate good winter foods. it was a lovely way to spend the holiday.

new year's day thru yesterday was spent in the basement. mom and dad graciously drove all the way up with a washer and dryer in the back of the truck. i was so excited to have laundry in the basement. unfortunately, after much crawling on the floor, disassembly and reassembly of the dryer we found it to be inoperable. dad thinks a bearing in the motor is shot. basically, it's a very obnoxious paperweight. i have never wanted to spend that much time with my face inside the guts of a dryer, and i hope to never do it again. bleh. i am still sore from lifting these monstrosity appliances and crawling around on the floor in an effort to complete my own private laundromat.

finally ended up running to home depot and buying a new one. it's all installed thanks to dad and running like a dream. isn't it odd that my biggest and best bright spot of the whole holiday season is being able to do laundry in my basement??? aw well, so it goes.

ruby comes home tonight from australia after 3 weeks. i have missed her terribly and can wait to get a hug and a kiss tonight.

hope everyone had a great holiday and year end.

Happy 4th Birthday!

2009-12-23T08:50:00.003-06:00

Here’s how it went today

Me: Ali, guess what!

Ali: What?

M: It’s your birthday today

A: It is????

M: Yes, happy birthday.

A: Oh, thank you!!

(pause…think, think, think)

A: I’m not 3 anymore!!!!! I’m 4!!!!!! 1-2-3-4

You are amazing and wonderful and you make me laugh every day. Thank you for the joy you bring into our lives. We are honored to be your parents.

Love,

Mom & Dad

a few blurbs

2009-12-23T06:00:00.000-06:00

1. I am posting this from betty.
2. Wishing snow would come in cozy blankets of 4-6" rather than 1-2 feet.
3. Slept last night on the plush sac and woke up with my back feeling improved.
4. I love walking to work, even when it's cold.
5. I cannot afford a mac book pro. :(
6. Looking forward to a FREE washer and dryer arriving (thanks marty).
7. I love living alone.
8. Have eaten enough christmas cookies so far this year to last till next christmas.
9. I am still a believer in acupuncture.
10. I got a set of retro table/chair circa 1950. Woot!!

Have a good day, ya'll.

projects

2009-12-16T14:11:00.002-06:00

little projects and organization around the house is coming along nicely. i can't wait to get home each evening to play with miles and tick off a few more little things, often involving a drill. ha ha.

hopefully, i am coming to the end of 'going to pick things up' from menards, home depot and fleet farm as my money tree is very much in hibernation. things are comfortable there now and i am anxiously awaiting the arrival of my plush sac which will serve as my couch. i can hardly wait to see ruby playing on it and i equally can't wait to find myself falling asleep on it watching movies on the new 40" tv (thanks, lisa) hanging on my wall. i know, i know, i owe some photos. i'll try to get on that this weekend.

anyway, i was pondering how i conduct myself and was reminded of this quote. "The true measure of a man is how he treats someone who can do him absolutely no good." ~Samuel Johnson i think my parents learned me that and i feel like it's part of my nature now. that makes me smile.

missing ruby terribly. she is in australia, but i know she is having fun and am happy for her family over there getting to spend time with her. 19 more days till she is back state side.

hope everyone's christmas shopping is done. mine is. neener, neener.

HAPPY 2nd BIRTHDAY, HONEY!!!

2009-12-10T07:43:00.003-06:00

i can't believe two years have gone by. there have been a lot of big changes in our lives this year. i have to admit i have been lazy about keeping a little diary of your milestones. honestly, there are too many to list. you make me laugh and smile every day. you are becoming a silly little monkey with a scheistery spirit. it makes me so happy to see you learning, exploring the world and begining to make your own choices.

you are the best thing to ever happen to me and i cherish every single moment we have together. even when you are being a turd and throwing kleenex into the toilet or sneaking around and spitting milk all over the furniture. but especially when you cuddle up with me and sing and chatter while we rock and talk about our day.

i love you, bubbaloo. happy second birthday!!! i hope you have fun tonight at the house of bounce. and your mommy and i are even taking you to your favorite french fry joint: culver's. don't worry, you can have your own little pot of ketchup.

little fish, little fish

2009-11-20T12:42:00.002-06:00

i tagged along for ruby's swimming lesson on wednesday this week. i wasn't invited back after her very first class when she screamed the entire time. fortunately, she grew out of that. lisa had been telling me how much she loves it now. so, i wanted to get some photos. it happened to be life-jacket night. so here are a few favorites.

hope everyone has a great weekend.

bite-sip-bite-sip

2009-11-18T06:58:00.001-06:00

happy hump day!

shot an event

2009-11-13T08:39:00.003-06:00

had the pleasure of shooting the donor appreciation event for 2009 yesterday. i had an amazing time. here are just a few photos of the historical office of charlie mayo. maybe i'll get a slide show together when i have time.

happy friday. i'm off to racine solo this weekend for baby sister's baby shower. hoping for good travel weather.

at shar's country palace

2009-11-11T07:27:00.003-06:00

brought my camera to pool last night. got a few nice ones. this one is my favorite. cath ran the table, so she must have made this one.

check the crack

2009-11-10T10:32:00.001-06:00

enjoying the recent spell of mild weather. walked to the park with ruby after work. we had a nice afternoon chasing around, sliding, climbing, swinging and playing in the dirt.

i was so close....

2009-11-09T12:09:00.002-06:00

a lensbaby makes snapshot photography nearly impossible. but, it's a gamble i'm willing to take. still, can't help being a tad disappointed the peel isn't crisp. happy monday.

rekindling

2009-11-05T07:22:00.002-06:00

haven't picked up my camera for a while. i know that isn't smart. photography is the best medicine for me and i'm old enough and bright enough to know it. so, got myself back on track yesterday. assigned myself a new project. i'm not sure how long it will keep my interest but it's a focus point for now.

grabbed this shot while walking back to my car after work yesterday. happy with it. i still have a great fondness for my lensbaby, going to keep it as my primary lens for now.

happy halloween

2009-11-02T14:00:00.002-06:00

ruby is a natural at trick-or-treating. although all she would say was 'hi' to everyone. it was so much fun to see her running around with her little bird tail. we went out to pine island and ruby went with her buddy, ben. a turtle and a rooster. match made in heaven?? adorable.

just what i've been searching for!

2009-10-30T09:40:00.002-05:00

from the classifieds at work:

Apple paperweight. Heavy glass, decorative. Great for an apple decorated kitchen or dining room. $3 call and leave message. Can e-mail pictures

Contact: (507) 272-XXXX call before 9pm

the thing is, there's no way i can call before 9. i wonder if there are some cat paperweights available too??

happy friday.

in keeping with the theme

2009-10-29T10:31:00.003-05:00

a magical addition to the FOUND library. according to the blurb it's from the 1800s. i guess they didn't have the simpson's to watch......

really someone's living room?

2009-10-28T09:32:00.004-05:00

so, in the midst of searching for land, painting and settling in the duplex i am also keeping an eye out on houses in the area. it's a buyer's market and all. if you've done any house shopping i'm sure you already know the wide variety of things you see. i am always interested in people's taste, the way they lay things out. how vastly different my taste is from a lot of people and specifically the generation older than i.

anyway, i can't help but to post these shots which are in the public venue, listed with MLS. it should be said that i am perhaps the most anti-knickknack person you will ever meet. i am also an anti-cat person. so this place is a double-whammy. entertaining though. (ps i have a great friend who is a cat person AND a knickknack cat person...hopefully she enjoys this too!)

to me it was a disaster

2009-10-26T12:27:00.006-05:00

emotion [i-moh-shuhn] noun: any strong agitation of the feelings actuated by experiencing love, hate, fear, etc., and usually accompanied by certain physiological changes, as increased heartbeat or respiration, and often overt manifestation, as crying or shaking.

meltdown [mělt'doun'] noun: Informal A disastrous or rapidly developing situation likened to the melting of a nuclear reactor core.

i think it's safe to say i have experience fits of sadness, dispair, anger, discontent and depression in my 33 years of life. up until yesterday, i would not have characterized any of them as emotional meltdowns. i can now check that off of the list. what do you know? the 'certain physiological changes' above mentioned were present and even in more severe form. i can understand and fully believe that it's possible for a frail adult in their 90s to die of a broken heart.

anyway, that was the worst of my weekend. but, i did get to spend some time with people i love and who love me. probably the best part was a quick hour with ruby. i enjoyed watching her cram her first tastes of poppyseed cake down her gob. it was amazing how earnestly she was eating it. very cute.

i was also privy to a great sermon at church on finances and material things. i'm a litte bit ashamed to say i had to go out shopping that evening for some stuff for the apartment, but gotta get all settled, right? ha ha ha.

also, a big shout-out to kayler for zooming over to the duplex to let me in after i locked my keys inside like a genius. sheesh.

Below, my weekend via cameraphone (crappy quality BB cameraphone, but better than a poke in the eye with a sharp stick).

1. freak snowstorm after work on friday
2. comforting gnarly trees up the bluff at quarry hill
3. the makings of an amazing sammich after hiking on saturday
4. enjoying two recreational drinks- blackberry cordial made my yours truly and a latte picked up by kayler sunday evening.

p.s. i didn't post about my emotional meltdown to get sympathy or have anyone ask why it happened. it just did, doesn't matter what triggered it. i just wanted to share my experience as it was new for me. i feel blessed that i made it this far and hadn't experienced something like that previously.

enjoyable video

2009-10-22T07:15:00.001-05:00

a friend posted this on her facebook page. i found it very amusing. thought i'd post it here. have a great day.

last weekend

2009-10-16T09:53:00.004-05:00

lookie here, i wasted another week. work has been kicking my butt though. i don't even really have time for personal emails much anymore....the horror! oh well.

so, the much anticipated mat kearney concert at first ave was last saturday. i went with a good friend. we decided to book a hotel and enjoy our time up there instead of having to drive all the way back to roch after the concert.

mat was great. he sounded excellent and the energy from the crowd was good. i have to admit i was disappointed by his stage presence. he didn't have much to say and i always love the banter that great artists have with the crowd. i want to be drawn in and learn new things or laugh. oh well. still a great concert.

i think the highlight of the weekend was the swanky hotel though. neither of us often spends the money on this kind of thing so it was a treat. valet parking, room service, mini bar, bellmen.... the whole nine. and it was great fun. we drank in the room, went to the concert and ate at the fancy tapas-style restaurant after the concert. walleye tacos, grilled asparagus with goat cheese, edemame, sweet chili shrimp and amazing cocktails. even ordered some room service cheese cake and stuff at 3am. ha ha ha.

check it out here if you like. fun place to stay and directly across the street from first ave if you ever want to catch a great show.

poems are fun

2009-10-07T11:07:00.002-05:00

this email came from a friend the other day. i know i've read these before and maybe you have too. anyway, i could help but write one for her and send it back. thought i'd share it because i thought i may have had a chance in the competition. anyway, i make myself laugh.

THESE ARE ENTRIES TO
A WASHINGTON POST COMPETITION ASKING FOR A TWO-LINE
RHYME WITH THE MOST ROMANTIC
FIRST LINE, AND THE LEAST
ROMANTIC SECOND LINE:

1. My darling, my
lover, my beautiful wife:
Marrying you has screwed up my life.

2. I see your face when I am dreaming.
That's why I always wake up
screaming.

3. Kind, intelligent, loving and hot;
This describes everything you are not.

4. Love may be beautiful,
love may be bliss,
But I only slept with you 'cause I was
pissed.

5. I thought that I could love no other
-- that is until I met your brother.

6. Roses are red, violets are blue, sugar is sweet, and so
are you.
But the roses are wilting, the violets are dead, the sugar
bowl's
empty and so is your head.

7. I want to feel your sweet embrace;
But don't take that paper bag off your
face.

8. I love your smile, your face, and your eyes
Damn, I'm good at telling lies!

9. My love, you take my breath away.
What have you stepped in to smell this way?

10. My feelings for you no words can tell,
Except for maybe 'Go to hell.'

11. What inspired this amorous rhyme?
Two parts vodka, one part lime.

here is mine:
you have sexy blue eyes and curls that are red;
the only way i'd sleep with you is if i were dead.

happy hump day.

teen council

2009-10-01T11:55:00.006-05:00

i was invited by a friend and fellow board member of GLYS to speak at a planned parenthood teen council meeting. i was exhausted yesterday and not looking forward to going. however, i always need to muster up the energy to go to speaking engagements and i am always glad i attend.

last night was my favorite thus far. the group was a great bunch of kids from all the rochester high schools. i spoke about being gay, having a family, living as a minority in rochester and custody as a separated gay parent. the kids and mentors all had great questions. i also had the pleasure of meeting jordan's (a PP mentor)uncle david who is 67 and gay. he has been with his partner, paul for 38 years. pretty amazing. he's also a very well-spoken, intelligent man. his presentation was funny, eloquent and enlightening. i had an excellent evening and was surprised how a 40 min commitment oozed into 2.5 hours ending in hugs and autographs.

also, met a new friend. jordan came up to me after we were done speaking and said he loved my wry sense of humor and would love it if we could hang out more. it was really cute. as adults, i don't think people are very good about making new friends. i clicked with him too. hopefully this will be the start of another great friendship. unfortunately, he left for china today. hafta catch him when he's back.

another little tidbit is that i was pre-approved for a land loan yesterday. i don't want to get too excited. i still need to carefully look at a parcel of land out in zumbro falls. if everything checks out, i hope to make an offer and find myself a land owner within the next few weeks.

hope everyone is doing well.

oh, apologies to josh and laura who celebrated their first wedding anniversary on the 27th and mom and dad who celebrated their 35th on the 28th. i'm so bad about remembering dates. big love to you all and congratulations on your happiness.

i wanna climb

2009-09-28T10:33:00.007-05:00

went to the famous oktoberfest this weekend. had a lovely time with heather, daina, cath and crew. the weather was amazing! i think that may have been the best part. soaking up the last hours of sunlight the summer has to offer.

accomplished a few things over in lacrosse. climbed a rock wall for the first time. it was about 30 feet high. i was amazed at how much fun it was. i've always wanted to try since i have been scrambling across breaker rocks around lake michigan for as long as i can remember. so, i may have found a new winter hobby as there is a climbing wall here in rochester. just need to find a good climber to show me the ropes (pun intended...sorry).

also met a new cool kid. i've heard the name jen snook quite a few times. always followed by, who is jen snook again? then i hear, oh mako you know jen. and i say, no i don't. i've never met her. turns out she had the same thing goin' on in the vicey versey fashion. so we met, we drank, we laughed. check her out here. i'm hoping to have talked her into designing me a new tattoo to fit the spot left on my right arm. i have full confidence that she'll do a smashing job.

and finally an amazingly difficult task has been executed after perhaps 10 years. i got a photo with daina mae. she is probably one of the most anti-camera people i've ever met. for some reason, she was up for it saturday. and she hadn't even had that much to drink. maybe she did??? either way, lucky me.

brew fest

2009-09-25T14:17:00.002-05:00

headed to oktoberfest in lacrosse this weekend with the girls. i'm sure there will be some stories. hoping for good weather, but it's supposed to rain. i'm an oktoberfest virgin; time to see what it's all about.

catch you all monday!

free feet

2009-09-22T07:44:00.005-05:00

so, several weeks ago i woke up and felt emphatically against shoes for some reason. every day since then, i've been struggling and feeling really claustrophobic every time i have to put them on. i've been avoiding them at all costs. shopping at the hippy store with no shoes, wandering around everwhere barefoot. i even went to the ani difranco concert without any shoes on. kayler graciously agreed to carry them in her bag so i wouldn't get 'in trouble' if anyone noticed. don't get too grossed out, the mayo civic center is really clean. anyway, i did get into trouble when a burly butch lesbo security guard was checking me out...she noticed no shoes. ha ha ha. it was funny.

ok, i digress. so i had done some research some years ago about the benefits of playing sports and running barefoot. it was after i read an interesting article about kenyon runners and historical runners in africa and biblical times, etc. how they ran so far and so quickly over changing unique terrain with few injuries in bare feet.

i stumbled on to a magical type of footwear. they were only developed a few years ago, i think. anyway, i got a pair and hope to never have to wear another kind of shoes again. i know that's probably not possible because admittedly these things look pretty weird. whenever feasible, they will absolutely be my first choice.

check them out here: fivefingers

in the meantime, please view, welcome, get to know my new shoes. we are going steady. i hope the honeymoon stage never ends!!

a great quote

2009-09-21T13:58:00.003-05:00

the new life needs to be inspired with the realization that the new advantages were gained through great gropes in the dark by unknown, unsung intellectual explorers.

-buckminster fuller

(if you didn't know, he's the guy who came up with the geodesic dome configuration.)

new tunes

2009-09-20T16:40:00.002-05:00

had the pleasure of seeing ani difranco last tuesday evening right here in rochester. i'm always amazed when great music shows up here. i saw ani live several years ago in minneapolis. it was a great show. she is excellent live. if you ever have the chance to see her, be sure to do it.

probably more exciting was the opening artist. he was not listed on the ticket and until they announced him, i thought it was just ani. luckily, she has such great taste. i have a new favorite. for the last 3 weeks or so, i have been constantly listening to mat kearney's new album. so far hands down my pick for favorite album of 2009. now, gregory alan isakov has pitted an arguement against good ole mat. both great lyricists. both great indie-folk. check him out, you won't be sorry. here is one of my favorite songs:

had a great weekend hanging with ruby, even though we are both sick. my head feels jammed full of sweat socks again. but, hoping to turn the corner tomorrow. ok, i'm at work making up time. better get a few more things done before i shove off for the day.

sweet little girl

2009-09-15T07:31:00.002-05:00

amazing how time gets away. so to pacify all of you, thought i'd share a recent portrait of ruby. i am so happy with how it turned out. love her curly hair.

paper bag of produce

2009-09-03T06:53:00.002-05:00

what a great name for a band! paper bag of produce.... i haven't even had coffee yet either.

so, had martinis last night here with my pal, heather. where to start? i have so many blog posts in just this one evening. i'll try to pick out the interesting things and leave the things that seemed funny to us...wait maybe those things bleed together? shut up. don't read if you don't want to.

first off, i should explain that in the interest of avoiding confusion, heather vanK has now dubbed herself: bunny. i think this is funny on so many levels. mostly because it is such a ridiculous name. anyway, since i know two heathers and i text with both of them quite often i was explaining that i got confused when one interjected a text within the context of a conversation i was having with the other. (yes, i could read the last name, but basically i see heather and that's enough) so she immediately piped up: i'll be bunny. and so it was....

we had a great evening of laughing and chatting. sitting out on the patio till we were cold. wrestling because bunny said something very, very offensive to me. ripping on the poor service from the waitress who wanted to leave and the great service from the bartender. i guess i had a little bit of crush on him. bunny thought he was too skinny. i immediately said, well i don't want to sleep with him, i just like him. (thanks, mark for keeping the martini's flowing AND for putting the tab on the right card).

so, hands up whomever thinks a) winning bets while drinking is the best and b) paper napkin diagrams of lady parts makes for fun and a little bit of awkwardness. so i won't get into details about why we were drawing diagrams of lady parts on napkins, but it's not what you think, pervs. it was more a lesson in anatomy. anyway, that's really not the point of the story. the point is, the rad bartender mark walked up just as bunny was hunched over intently working on the diagram, explaining and enlightening me. she was startled and a little embarrassed when a fresh martini was delivered during the art lesson. mark being the cheeky fella he is said: oooh, that's a very nice drawing.

since bunny was 4 martini's in, she was certain mark had seen the diagram in detail. i submitted that he was too far away to see any detail. so we bet the next bar tab that he had no idea what was on the napkin. bunny was disappointed when she trotted over to the bar to find what mark had seen that i was indeed correct. so, save your pennies, kiddo. you are treating me to martini's next time.

ok, last part. as i picked the victim up last night, she came out with a bag of stuff. it smelled like onions and i said, "why are you putting onions in my car?" she said, "don't you like onions?" i said, "i like onions, but not in my car" she said, "oh, yeah i guess. want me to leave 'em here and we can pick them up when you drop me off?" i said, "uh, kinda yeah". so after a night of chatting and drinking, i found myself standing in the kitchen munching on organic veggies. green beans, tomatoes, carrots and zucchini. what a great gift. thanks, pal for sharing with me from your garden. hope you don't have a sore head today.

favorite text of late

2009-09-01T09:42:00.003-05:00

just about to fall asleep last night and i get a text. so i pick it up to read this: ...sweet dreams darling

how cute is that? made me feel a little tiny bit sappy and all warm and cozy and loved.

tired immune system

2009-08-31T07:27:00.005-05:00

so, instead of having a quiet weekend so i could nurse this cold ruby shared, i kept busy and didn't miss any fun. friday we enjoyed the lynx game. alli loved going out to center court and she was given an autographed basketball as souvenir. anyone who knows that kid knows how much of an autograph freak she is. the lynx also spanked the monarchs, so that was fun.

upon returning to town at about 11pm, got about 5 drunk calls from a friend. so, went downtown to pick her up and give her a ride to her friend's place. dear H, don't start drinking at 6pm...and just for the record, i mentioned this before you started drinking at 6pm. ha ha. anyway, it certainly is entertaining to walk into a bar sober at about 11:30pm. i'll just leave it at that.

saturday i was feeling a little hung over even though i didn't drink. i suppose just over-tired and too much stinky smoke/bar smell. i layed around and did a whole lot of nuthin' before heading to lacrosse to hang at em's shop for a while. i emailed to tell her i was sick and tried to get her to let me off the hook. she wasn't having it. glad i went though. we had some great beer (my new fav hands-down: breckenridge 471 small batch), grilled, chatted and watched a movie. when i say 'watched' a movie it means that emily watched and i slept on the couch. i think it was the robitussin i was swigging down for my cough. anyway, it was a lovely evening. thanks for being such a great host, ms. vance.

sunday was my day with ruby. i was glad the weather was so nice. we went to the park and basically spend the whole day outside. the only time we spent inside was naptime. i used that time to watch a dexter episode and hang some laundry out to dry. the only bad part of the day came when i had to drop ruby off at lisa's and head in to work. oh well, these things happen. i was able to get so much done in the quiet, dark office that it was worth it.

speaking of work, better get some done. off to a meeting in 20 min. hope everyone had a great weekend.

dangit, anyway

2009-08-28T06:41:00.004-05:00

i have so many fun things planned for the weekend and i woke up with a sore throat today. oh well, i guess it was inevitable since ruby has had a cold. plus i haven't been exactly getting the best amounts of sleep lately.

lacrosse pride was a fun and entertaining weekend. i never did get around to posting anything. but, suffice it to say i wasn't in bed till after 4am either night. sheesh. i am way too old for that malarky. one of the highlights was a 100+ mile motorcycle ride to benefit the pride organization. the weather was gorgeous and we toured along the mississippi river. what can be better than that? it made me rethink letting my motorcycle permit expire. maybe i should have gone to the classes to learn how to ride? (hope mom isn't reading this).

this week has been a long one with the implementation of a new machine i have been working on for over a year. when i was in development i was involved with all the validation and testing, so i actually brought it in to the division. then i took the education job just in time to write all the materials, organize all the training and do all the hands-on stuff. has kept me hopping. anyway, i've been in at 5 or 5:30 all week to assist with morning quality control and get the donor center up and running. takes a lot out of a kid these hours.

looking forward to a minnesota lynx game this evening up in the cities. alli was gifted some tickets and the opportunity to talk about a camp she went to for kids with heart conditions. it should be a great experience for her. she is so looking forward to heading out to center court to talk to the whole arena. i can't wait to see it.

tomorrow i am scheduled to hit river trail cycles to get hooked up with a bike rack and perhaps fitted for a road bike. we shall see what young emily can talk me into. after that back to her house for grilling and yard games or movies depending on the weather. might see if i can hook up with a few other friends while i'm over there too. just hoping this cold doesn't become too debilitating.

sunday i get to hang with ruby. i'm hoping for nice weather so we can play out in the backyard and maybe go for a few walks.

catch you all monday.

p.s. just for the record, i am not wearging a biker skullcap on the bike, i am wearing my brewer's hat backwards. just wanted to dispell any rumors. ha ha ha.

She made me post

2009-08-21T05:20:00.003-05:00

so, life-altering events are so....um....life altering. obviously writing a blog hasn't been a priority as i try to get my life back into order, disentangling 7 years of tightly woven integration. (no that isn't meant to sound like an IT upgrade).

anyway, i'm back. single, unsteady, broken but also with eyes wide open. i'll have to fill you all in on my new adventures trying to find somewhere to live. i don't think anyone will be too surprised about what i'm planning.

the reason i'm posting today is because of a friend who has become an amazing shiny spot for me, someone who emotionally holds my hand and really, really makes me laugh. she sent me an email last night just as i was hunkering down in bed to finish a movie. it is perhaps one of the kindest emails anyone has ever sent. maybe some day i can talk her into doing a guest blog and you'll all meet her and love her too.

i am pretty good at the big picture & first impressions...it misses a lot of other shit, but i tend to get the whole pic. anyways, you are a rare gem. you will find another rare gem who gets you, appreciates you, and together you will be nothing short of paradisaical. you may not think you are girly, but your heart is....it is bulging with tenderness and compassion. you are stuck now, i am on your 6. you can't settle, life is too good to miss it.

have a great weekend. i'm headed to lacrosse to hang with old friends and go to pride fest. beer pong is on the docket, so hopefully i'll have some stories monday.

A Thousand Words

2009-06-29T10:35:00.001-05:00

hiatus

2009-05-14T06:36:00.005-05:00

i'm trying to decide if i should take a little hiatus from this blog. i'm starting the new job and have lots of things to keep me busy. not sure how much time i'll have to write. we'll see.

i should post some photos from the dells weekend. it was a great weekend, lots of fun. this year grandma and susie joined us too. it's a little getaway i always look forward to. plus we celebrated dad getting really, really old. thanks to everyone for all the planning and effort put in to make it a nice weekend for all.

here are a few favs:

UK invasion (guest blog from wifey)

2009-04-30T09:53:00.008-05:00

Hello to all of Painty's readers out there. I haven't done a guest blog in ages and I thought what better topic to talk about than the recent visit from our girls. Painty has been busy writing presentations for a job interview, and as it turns out it was time well spent. She was offered the job 10 minutes after she interviewed. Congratulations.

So - we had an absolutely wonderful 9 days with our girls over Easter. It all started in a bit of a rush actually. We got home from work early and I checked the airline website to learn they were expected about 40 mins earlier than scheduled. We got Ruby ready and jumped into the car and headed up to the cities. It was a direct flight from London so they had to clear immigration and customs in Minneapolis. We arrived at the International Arrival Gate in, what we thought was plenty of time, only to be very surprised to see our girls beautiful faces about 1.5 mins later. I am so pleased we were there, just barely in time. The drive home was one of the more adventurous drives I have ever had.

As an aside - things always happen in a car when the 4 of us are together. Last year in May when they were here I got stopped for speeding and somehow was let off with a warning. We also got a flat tire (and soon after discovered I didn't have a jack in my car) when we were taking them up to the airport to leave. In England in September there was a little incident where someone (won't mention any names here) reversed into another car in a car park, and also Ruby threw up everywhere in the car while we were on the M40 (I think) heading to Brighton. Weird.

Anyway, I was driving and chatting to Clare and just excited they were here and all of a sudden I see the exit for Rochester on the right and I am in the very left hand lane. I think some swear words came out of my mouth. It was 5:30pm and lots of cars around so I managed to get over but missed the exit. After some humming and ha'ing and with no encouragement from anyone else, I did some off roading and crossed 2 medians and 4 lanes of traffic to get onto my exit. Very naughty and only 1 car honked their horn at me. Sorry girls - completely my fault.

The weather was perfect from the minute they arrived until our drive home from the airport after a very tearful and sad goodbye. I think it started raining about 10 mins after we got in the car and it seemed perfect as it suited our moods completely.

We had quite a few trips to the playground on the other side of the lake. Ruby loved the swing and her little shrieks of 'Eeeeeeeeeeeeee' could be heard by all. She also loved the slide and tried her hardest to walk up but couldn’t quite manage it herself.
We had a lovely meal out at the Marshall's and I indulged in quite a bit of beer and wine that night. Not sure is anyone else did or not. It seemed to set the tone for the rest of the week for me. We had a wonderful Easter and even managed to drag Ruby's god mum's to the church where she was baptised. They were good sports about sitting through Easter Sunday service and there was an Easter Egg hunt afterwards in which Ruby managed to find some eggs, which a bit of help from us all. Clare cooked up a wonderful Easter Sunday lunch and we walked it off with a wagon ride for Ruby and a run in the field for the dogs. Not sure how Clare always managed to be the one dragging Ruby around in the wagon, but she didn't complain at all.

Poor Buc managed to pick up a tummy bug and was in bed for a few days not feeling too happy. She managed a trip out to the zoo, a trip to the mall for some shopping and even a visit to Fleet Farm. Apparently if there was a coffee shop at Fleet Farm, next time she is here we can drop her off in the morning and go back at 5pm to pick her up. I big store and lots to look at.

Clare did not have any such troubles with upset tummies - even when she was changing any of the many poopy diapers she got stuck doing. Ruby loved her morning time, bath time, monkey time and dancing time with Aunty Clare. I have a sneaking suspicion that someone else may have enjoyed those times too.

It was a wonderful 9 days and I just wanted to say thanks to our girls for coming over and spending some time with us. Thanks for being there through the whole 'Tully' incident and thanks for being amazing god mummies to Ruby. We all miss you terribly and can't wait for Christmas.

Here's to too many bottles of red wine being drunk (although I think it was 1 less than it should have been). Hahahaha.

Ears, Eyes, Nose....heart

2009-04-28T07:20:00.003-05:00

so, ruby's very infected left ear continues to drain. we made it through friday and saturday and most of sunday. sunday evening we noticed a lot of green-ish mucous around her eyes. as she went off to bed, we hoped it was allergies as she had met a cat that afternoon.

i got a call monday morning from leeser reporting that shorty's eye was crusted shut. my heart just sunk. off to the doctor again to be examined and determine that she now has conjunctivitis. sweet, pink eye. so now she is leaking out of every hole in her head. puss out of her ears. snot and boogers out of her nose. mucous out of her eyes. drool from teething out of her mouth. i just feel so bad for her.

surprisingly her spirits are ok. her appetite has taken a little bit of a header and she does get a little crankier than normal. but, she is sleeping more and singing more too. so, hopefully sooner than later, i will reporting how happy and healthy ruby is.

fingers crossed.

successfully tubed

2009-04-24T10:30:00.005-05:00

we had a cranky toddler this morning since she wasn't allowed to eat. leeser and i were both pretty disappointed with the time her surgery was scheduled. we weren't due to check-in for prep until 9:15 am. L spent an hour on hold last night trying to get an earlier appt, but had no luck.

this morning i was sitting on the bed sweaty and smelly after my run and got a call from the doc's office to come in early. so we hustled buns and got there an hour early. that was nice, although having a moment of notice wasn't the most calm way to start out an already stressful morning.

ruby did fine though. she was fast friends with all the doctors and nurses. happy to smile and waive to anyone in the vacinity. coming out of anesthesia was pretty shakey. she was just so confused and unhappy. but we were able to quiet her down and even got her to drink a little water and have some of her favorite yellow oreo cookies. we got home and she guzzled her morning milk and went right to sleep.

the doc said she suctioned mucous-y infected fluid from behind her left ear and also fluid from behind her right. so, we suspect she will have lots more drainage and be feeling much better as she starts to heal.

thanks to everyone for all the well wishes, thoughts and prayers today. hopefully when she wakes up today she be feeling lots better.

TUBES TOMORROW!

2009-04-23T07:40:00.003-05:00

ruby goes in tomorrow to have tubes put into her ears. everyone assures us it is a simple procedure. but as parents we worry about all the things that could go wrong. i'm sure tomorrow i'll be a basketcase waiting to see her in recovery. anyway, i'll be sure to do an update this weekend to let everyone know how it went.

i am personally hopeful that it will drain all the fluid and keep her more comfortable. these ear infections and oral antibiotics are just too hard on her little system. a nice sidebar might be that she can actually hear us and start repeating words a little better.

hope everyone has had a nice week. i do intend to post some photos and give a little update about our week off. we did a few fun things and i have some photos from the zoo, etc to share.

have a great weekend!

sad good-bye

2009-04-20T10:07:00.003-05:00

i'm back. sorry for the long hiatus. the girls were here for the week and i didn't really spend any time on the computer.

i have been dreading doing this post, but thought i should just get it over with. on monday (4/13/09), tully squeezed out of a tiny gap between the two fences in the back yard. once out, she attacked a little dog walking by. the dog will be fine, but it did require staples and vet care. although the details are sketchy since we weren't there, it appeared to be an unprovoked attack. so, we were quickly reminded that animals are animals, no matter how much we humanize them. as we watched our little 16-month old toddle around picking up blocks and gibbering away, we had to make a very sad decision to put tully down.

even though it was the right choice and we can't know what happened to tully in her life before we rescued her that might have set her off, the gross and overwhelming feelings of failure and loss and sadness still sit squarely in my gut.

luckily we had the girls here to support us and look after us. especially, clare who had to deal with all the tears and moping before and after. clare even went with to the vet to look after leeser. i couldn't even go along. (thank you, clare you were so instrumental and supportive).

so, it is with heartfelt compassion and sadness we say good-bye to a member of our family. hopefully, she has found peace and all of her doggie pals that went first: logan, blue, woof, etc. (who knew how hard it would be to lose a stupid dog??)

Joni Wray Burck

2009-04-08T13:14:00.006-05:00

anna and davO welcomed a new little burck yesterday. at 8:50pm on april 7, 2009 (one day late) joni showed up. it was a fast labour from what we hear. anna might have something to say about that, although she progressed too fast to get any drugs, so she had to do it the old-fashioned way. joni was 7lb 8oz, just like rubis.

here she is looking camera-ready, gorgeous (and far less smushed up than rubis was, i might add):

CONGRATULATIONS TO ANNA AND DAVO AND LITTLE JONI. we can't wait to meet you!

we made it!

2009-04-06T10:15:00.005-05:00

well, the weather certainly wasn't pleasant by any means. laura's husband, josh pointed out maybe that is why they call it the 'fool's five'. it is in april and historically it's not warm and pleasant out. anyway, i was very happy to have my baby sis to keep me company. even if she did want to sprint at the end and i was not having any of it. i was happy to plod along at my 10:30/mile pace. we don't have our official times yet, but we did it in about 54min 30sec (we think). so, i guess my goal of being under an hour was met. we had a slow start because we were in the 'good runners' start section and i guess we should have started at the front in the 'competative runners' position. oh well, live and learn.

we raised several hundred dollars for cancer research (laura raised twice as much as i did) so it was worth it. i wouldn't call it fun, but a worthy cause. thanks to josh, leeser and ruby for looking after us and coming to cheer. it was nice to have family there.

thank you also to everyone who donated and has been wishing me well and sending notes of encouragement. don't forget to keep ana vankoeverden in your prayers too, she's the reason i ran. have a good week.

well sha-zam, look at the progressive midwest!!

2009-04-03T12:31:00.003-05:00

i haven't had much to say this week. now i am so pleased to read about a ruling in iowa issued this morning. the iowa supreme court has legalized gay marriage. what a huge step for this part of the country. when people ask me about this topic i usually answer that i think it [gay marriage will become legal, nationally] will happen, but probably not in my lifetime. now, i am beginning to wonder how wrong i could be?

regarding the issue, i found this quote on the decision so poignant:

"We are firmly convinced the exclusion of gay and lesbian people from the institution of civil marriage does not substantially further any important governmental objective," the Supreme Court wrote in its decision. "The Legislature has excluded a historically disfavored class of persons from a supremely important civil institution without a constitutionally sufficient justification."

anyway, it will be exciting to watch this unfold and i will remain hopeful that nothing like prop8 happens here.

also, i am growing more and more dismal about the prospects of the race this weekend. seems like i will be running in the snow. hopefully i'll still have my sister to keep me company. extenuating circumstances might not let her come either and all of my work friends that goaded me into signing up have already chicken out. boo on them.

keep your fingers crossed for me as i make my way on this route sunday around 1pm:

i will be so pleased when it's all over!! have to remember who i'm running for anyway.

hello green eyes

2009-04-02T06:26:00.003-05:00

over exposed, but i couldn't delete it. she's still cute.

blah day

2009-03-27T13:26:00.003-05:00

i had such hopes for this friday. it's been ok, but as the day has progressed, i've slumped into a bit of a slump. well more than a bit of a slump, an actual hole, lined with poo. just cranky and tired, physically and emotionally exhausted. oh well, the day is nearly over.

heading to get ruby and bring her back here to the clinic for another doc appt. she has been rocking a low-grade fever for a few days and we all know this cold will likely end in an ear infection. so rather than letting it get really bad we'll have a check today.

i'm hoping if she does have one, we can get her on antibiotics right away and perhaps schedule surgery for tubes around easter since we'll have that time off anyway. we'll see how it all goes.

hope everyone has a nice weekend.

midweek update from the weekend

2009-03-25T09:35:00.006-05:00

the kontny's came to visit. haven't seen them since christmas or so. marty was so excited for the kids to play. i have to admit it was fun to see them screaming and giggling around the house. now that ruby is up running around like a mad-woman it's more fun for alice too.

we had a nice weekend as the weather was decent-er than what was predicted. we accomplished some shopping, playing, park visiting, photography, sushi rolling and wagon riding. all in all a lovely visit.

thanks again, kontny's for making the trip over.

i couldn't resist posting a few shots. as a note, alice could actually be the most difficult subject i've shot to date. you ask her to smile and she gives you the most contorted faces i've ever seen. oh alice, what do we do with you???

ever feel like someone is trying to tell you something?

2009-03-24T08:07:00.002-05:00

of course, i HAD to post this from davey and the boys over at found. this one especially rings true for me as my namesake. he he he.

hope everyone is having a better tuesday than amy.

re-do

2009-03-20T11:01:00.005-05:00

we have to take ruby in for a repeat ear test in a month. we are supposing that since she had fluid in her ear, they are hoping it will be clear by then. our doc hasn't really told us what is going on. luckily we are smart enough to figure it out from our little chat with the audiologist. so, no news until after the 2nd test which is on april 16.

this weekend we are welcoming the kontny's for a few days of fun. i'm sure there will plenty of photos and stories to share after their visit. i'm a little nervous to see what rubis and alice get up to. i will be sure to have my camera poised at all times.

hope everyone has a nice weekend. happy friday!!!

p.s. go and vote for my photo in jpg magazine, i submitted it for publication, they get bazillions of submissions, so votes won't hurt. (click on the 'vote now' under the photo in the left sidebar)

Running for Ana

2009-03-17T12:12:00.002-05:00

i have been too lazy about posting lately. but today, finally i have decided i need to get this post out. people i talk to often already know i have been training since january for an 8k cancer run. I have been a little vague with the details because i know i would be doing a post.

anyway, i'm not writing this to say that i am doing some great thing, it's just 5 miles. but, for me that is a significant commitment because a) i hate running and b)free time is at a premium these days. but, i heard about this story and i felt like i wanted to commit to something in honour of ana. she goes to our church and L and i have watched ana grow up. now at age 3 she is faced with a battle most adults will never have to experience.

so, i have chosen to run the 31st annual fool's five road race in lewiston, mn. it's a grass roots benefit where ALL the donations go to local facilities for cancer research. that being said, it's not a fancy website where i can ask you to 'click here' to donate. so, if you'd like to contribute it will have to be old school via a check in the mail. or email me if you'd like to contribute and i will cover you until cash can be exchanged at a later date (the race is coming up soon). i have also enlisted the support of my little sister the seasoned runner to drag me along the course if need be!!

i've included a photo of ana and a copy of her story from her caringbridge website. sor far she is doing ok, her tumor has decreased in size, but her blood counts continue to fall as chemo ravishes her little body. anyway, if you have an extra dollar or two, toss them my way and also offer up a little prayer for ana to beat this disease...that won't cost you anything.

Our family lives in Rochester, Minnesota. Kevin works at the Mayo Clinic as a nurse anesthetist and Heather is a stay-at-home mommy, occasionally using her skills as an occupational therapist as time allows. We have two beautiful daughters. Ana was born in 2005 and Elsa was born in 2007.

Ana started having early morning vomiting just after her 3rd birthday in July 2008. It gradually became more frequent, and we pursued treatment with the pediatric gastrointestinal specialists at Mayo, thinking that she had reflux or some type of food allergy.

October 17, 2008, they discovered a tumor in Ana's brainstem. It is in a very delicate place, making it inoperable. The tumor had an unusual out-pouching which allowed a pediatric surgeon to be able to obtain a biopsy. Ana underwent a left suboccipital crainectomy and a port-a-cath placement on October 24, 2008. The biopsy revealed that Ana has a grade 1 pilocytic astrocytoma. We have been incredibly blessed to have access to top-notch medical care, and we are working with a hope-filled oncologist who is pushing for a cure for Ana’s cancer.

Ana started chemotherapy infusions October 29, 2008, and will continue to have them weekly until December 2009 at the very earliest. She is receiving two drugs, vincristine and carboplatin. We will do MRI's every 3 months to reassess the treatment plan.

fifteen month check-up

2009-03-12T08:55:00.003-05:00

ruby had her check-up yesterday. it was such a nice change to have her in to the office without a fever or tears. she just hung out eating her grapes and flirting with all the nurses and her doctor. she wasn't bothered by anything (except her two immunizations). even then she got to have her nuk and it wasn't even bedtime or naptime. so she stopped crying almost immediately.

her height, weight, head circumference all seem on track. she is staying very consistent. she has gained back the weight she lost while she was sick last time too. so that is good.

one worry is that her speech development doesn't seem to be where it should be. her doctor seems to think a huge part of that is due to the ear infections. she took a look and could still see fluid behind the troubled ear. so, we are now scheduled for a hearing test and will go from there. she'll probably need tubes. so, of course i am worried about it. trying not to get too worked up. we'll see how it all goes.

anyway, we managed to get a photo with ruby and her doctor. she is the first person to examine her when she was 2 days old and she has been our pediatrician ever since then. unfortunately for us and fortunately for her, she has a job lined up out in billings, MT where she is from and her family lives. so, we will be getting a new doc. it was a little sad to say good-bye yesterday. although, we'll probably see her a few more times for this ear bizzo.

typical cold snap

2009-03-11T08:30:00.003-05:00

hope this oatmeal warms you up on this nasty, windy, wintery day. aren't we supposed to be smelling poop as the ground unfreezes by now? i'm not happy about the winter this year, it has been all bite and no bark!!! oh well. yay for oatmeal and raspberries to start the day.

i didn't take even one photo

2009-03-10T12:18:00.003-05:00

i'm not sure what is wrong with me. i didn't take a single photograph over the weekend. we went out and we had mom and dad here. sheesh. dumb. oh well.

in lieu of weekend photos, i guess i am fond of lists lately. so here are a few items to note:
1. i am currently having a love affair with the parmesan goldfish.
2. it was mom's bday yesterday and i didn't even post. happy bday a day late, ma!
3. grapes just aren't that good this time of year.
4. when the weather is poopy, you should just stay an extra night instead of spending 7 hours on the road! (stubborn parents).
5. this restaurant was both enjoyable and delicious.
6. my appetite is out of control today.
7. ruby loves her grandpa more than her mommies.
8. it's only 30 days till the girls visit.
9. i am not looking forward to cleaning up the poop soup in the backyard.
10. ruby (and L and i) have been healthy for 2 weeks. KNOCK ON WOOD!!!!

hope everyone is having a nice tuesday.

spend it

2009-03-05T07:06:00.002-06:00

sometimes i think it would be fun to consider what crazy things i would spend money on if i won the powerball. i mean, really crazy things, like if i had money coming out my ears.

here is a list of 10
1. a vintage skee ball game
2. a fully functional dark room
3. a vintage, fully restored VW orange bus (combi-van for you aussies and europeans).
4. a roof garden
5. a personal chef
6. first class tickets to australia or maybe a private jet?
7. a house in queenstown, NZ
8. a condo on the beach somewhere, stradford island, australia maybe?
9. a lot of camera gear
10. an off-grid luxery home

no daycare = day off

2009-03-03T16:17:00.000-06:00

Tracy was closed today and we couldn't figure out a better option, so i took the day off. It was my turn anyway.

We went in to visit mommy at work and have spent the rest of our day reading books, dancing and chasing around the house. I am so thankful ruby has been feeling healthy because she is so much fun.

Looking forward to grandma and grandpa visiting this weekend. Fingers crossed the weather holds out.

Ok, i am being gibbered at, gotta go read another book.

PS i took a new self-portrait for my eharmony account, what do you think?

mother? positive person? student? porn star?

2009-03-01T14:07:00.003-06:00

thanks again to the fellas over at foundmagazine. i could not pass up this little gem. i read it and immediately formed a polaroid snap of the person who wrote this, their gender, style, extra make-up, etc. what a great little list! thought you might enjoy it to start off your monday. i hope the author was able to check everything off in one day!

new little snow lover (sort of)

2009-02-27T09:29:00.004-06:00

i have been waiting and waiting all winter for a 'nice snowfall'. one where the weather isn't too awfully cold, but there is enough snow to take ruby out. the crazy freak storm sweeping the midwest was just the ticket. luckily we live in a strange 'bowl' a bit like a valley but there are no deciding features like bluffs to call it a valley. anyway, we often get missed by really big weather or it's milder here in town. so yesterday we got a nice layer of thick pack-y snow. it was Leeser's turn with the snowblower and luckily it worked.

while she was laboring away. i dressed up ruby and brought her out for her first ride in an awesome sled that was gifted to us by tammy, mike and alli (thanks guys!!). she seemed to have an ok time riding up and down the driveway and along the sidewalks. we only kept her out for 30 min or so. it was probably more fun for us to get her out and look forward to when she is big enough to stay warm and we can actually go snowshoeing.

hope everyone has a nice weekend. we have haircuts scheduled, but someone who was away on business got food poisoning and is still having water poos. hopefully she is ok tomorrow to go down to winona. we shall see. luckily, ruby seems to be back to her old self. we are keeping fingers crossed that we will have a few weeks of a healthy baby for a change.

a great big smile for the day

2009-02-24T14:47:00.002-06:00

file under: "kids write the darndest poetry."
Originally uploaded by tlong.

I nabbed this from a friend on flickr. she has a son named henry. through the miracles of modern digital photography and the phenomenon of photo-sharing websites, we've watched him grow up.

i don't even know these people. but i like to call them friends and if i was ever in san franciso, i might look them up and meet them face-to-face. but, for now i am happy to get a look-in at their lives through photos and captions.

this might be one of my new favorite poems. after a really long day of meetings and a stress headache that is making me acutely aware of every vein and artery in my brain, i really appreciated this humour.

thanks, henry!!

coffee, sunshine, peace and quiet

2009-02-22T11:42:00.001-06:00

Ruby is napping, leeser is showering and i am relaxing in the sun with an espresso. Sometimes just a little tiny bit of quiet time is so healing. Not discounting the fact that the new mexican roast espresso beans i got are also delicious.

We have had a rough few weeks with illness again. This most recent cycle has been particularly hard on ruby. We've had a struggle this time with her antibiotics leading to dehydration and vomitting. Seems that her little tummy ends up irritated over a 10 day course.

Hopefully we have finally found one that seems to be agreeing with her. Thanks to a visit to the saturday urgent car clinic (thanks also to a very nice Dr with very cute hair).

Anyway, she seems to be on the mend. All fingers and toes crossed as Lisa is off to boston tomorrow until thursday. It would be great to have a nice quiet week, ruby and i.

I just wanted to write this mostly to remind myself that we really are blessed. Although work has been getting me really down, i am still happy to have a job. Also, battling viruses, ear infections, flu, we are so happy to be able to afford and have access to great medical care.

So, here's to the hope and possibilities a new week brings us.

sidebar from yesterday

2009-02-20T10:23:00.002-06:00

courtesy of my always loving, never salt-rubbing-in-wounds, wouldn't-dare-point-out-mistakes or draw-attention-to-short-comings sister:

thanks, marty.

happy friday.

a survey, a fun post

2009-02-19T10:00:00.007-06:00

this is a survey about my wifey (and me).
1. What are your middle names?
me: Marie and her: Jane. i always like to comment most girls born in 1976 are named amy or sarah and they have the middle name lynn or marie. check it out some time, it's true.

2. How long have you been together?
this is our seventh year. (i feel a seven year itch coming on. j/k)

3. How long did you know each other before you started dating?
i don't know, a year or two. we never really 'met' as she was living in australia.

4. Who asked whom out?
we didn't date, we lived together. and still do.

5. How old are each of you?
me: 32 and her: almost 40 (35).

6. Whose siblings do you see the most?
Mine because hers live in australia.

7. Which situation is the hardest on you as a couple?
apparently any time that we are having a baby. luckily, that has just been once.

8. Did you go to the same school?
nope. i went to winona state university. she went to university of queensland pharmacy school

9. Are you from the same home town?
nope. i was born in racine, wi. she was born in a dirt hut in place where no one wears shoes and they speak pig latin or something.

10. Who is smarter?
she is definitely smarter. she is always, always right (just ask her). i think i am a tiny bit more logistically reasonable. but together we have very logical-problem solving brains. we were also both blessed with great helpings of common sense.

11. Who is the most sensitive?
i'm not sure. if no one is preganant, probably me.

12. Where do you eat out most as a couple?
we don't eat out much with a little one. but if we do, our first choice is the sushi place in town: sushi itto. they serve great westernized sushi.

13. Where is the furthest you two have traveled together as a couple?
new zealand or australia, i'm not sure which one is technically farther.

14. Who has the craziest exes?
definitely me. but i'm not sure that's a fair question as her pool is significantly smaller.

15. Who has the worst temper?
i'm sure she would love the cite the time i picked up the lawnmower and threw it across the lawn. i guess it would be me. but someone pointed out once that i really only ever get angry with inanimate objects.

16. Who does the cooking?
no one, we have a toddler. we cook her food and eat whatever we can find. back in the day she cooked.

17. Who is the neat-freak?
neat-freak? can we pay one to move in? neither of us and that's the problem. when things get all piled up and there is a mess, i tend to get annoyed and freak out about it faster than she does.

18. Who is more stubborn?
i wouldn't call either of us stubborn. but if i had to chose one of us, it would probably be me.

19. Who hogs the bed?
her, her, her. especially if there is a baby in her belly. by 6 months or so, i was sleeping next to the queen-sized bed in a single bed. i liked to call it my dorm bed and kicked her out at curfew.

20. Who wakes up earlier?
she does if it's spontaneous, like on a weekend. i have to get up earlier for work.

21. Where was your first date?
i have absolutely no idea. i'm sure we ate somewhere. i think we went to see a dumb movie, maybe four feathers or something?

22. Who is more jealous?
i guess me, until we got married, then it all melted away. (plus see #14)

23. How long did it take to get serious?
not long, a few months??

24. Who eats more?
i am just not a big eater. i think everyone eats more than me, including my 14 month old daughter.

25. Who does the laundry?
her because i don't fold 'right'.

26. Who's better with the computer?
she is because i get too impatient when something effs up. (see #15)

27. Who drives when you are together?
not me. i hate driving. if i never had to drive ever again, i would be fine with that. someday i hope to live in a town where cars aren't necessary and we will just keep one to visit our families in other states or towns. and maybe for getting heavy stuff home from the store.

I lost my job yesterday

2009-02-18T16:53:00.000-06:00

I haven't had much to say lately. Mostly because i have been running around at work like crazy. A grey cloud had settled firmly over my head as rumblings about reorganization and restructuring floated around.

Finally i had a mysterious meeting scheduled between just me and my supervisor with no further information. I called to ask her what the meeting was regarding and she said, oh don't worry about it, some decisions have been made...just enjoy your weekend.

Needless to say that left me with a serious panic that my position was actually being cut and i would be ushered straight out on my back-side. Not a nice feeling.

Anyway it turns out there IS a big restructure that is rolling out. The biggest change is that my position has been swallowed up by the department. There is no more development for the donor center. Now i will be a part of the QA team. So, although i'm pleased i havent been let go, a QA position is not what i applied for or accepted.

I guess for now i am just rolling with it. We'll see how it all goes. Not a nice feeling at all.

I thank george W directly. But like i mentioned, i am still getting a paycheck.

time is so short

2009-02-17T06:05:00.000-06:00

Good morning. I am sitting in the shuttle lot waiting for the bus. Seems like the only time i have to write a note anymore.

Work is so busy, i don't have any time to send any personal emails. I guess being so busy makes the day go faster. I have to admit though, i don't really enjoy bringing work home at night or going in on the weekends. I am thankful to have a job anyway.

This past weekend we took a jaunt over to eau claire to see laura and josh for the afternoon. Ruby was a good little traveler and it was quite entertaining watching her and lucy interacting. Lucy is laura's new little jack russel puppy. Just ruby's size. I posted a few cute photos on flickr. (I also updated recent ruby).

Took another trip in to the doctor last night as ruby had a bad night's sleep and seemed to take a turn for the worst again in healing from her cold. We are starting to get pretty good at reading her subtle signs about how she is feeling. Sure enough she has her third ear infection. Luckily we caught the low-grade fever early. So, hopefully she won't be in too much pain the next few days and will be better before we know it. We were thinking maybe the infection from last month was never really 100% resolved. We shall see.

So, that's my big news. Seems like we should be preparing for a little more snow after enjoying a few weeks of some nice weather.

Hope everyone is doing well.

burning

2009-02-10T08:27:00.002-06:00

lots of people have asked about lisa's family in lieu of the recent bushfires ravaging victoria. luckily, her family is north of there, mostly in queensland which is a safe distance away from all the fires. michael and the kids are much farther north and preparing for the seasonal floods. the closest friends we have living down in victoria are about 20 miles away from the flames. we are a little bit worried, but they didn't seem to be. just thought i'd give an update. thanks for all the concern.

here is a great pictorial of the damage. it's definitely a national disaster over there. we are so thankful our loved ones are safe.

this is the kind of support i get

2009-02-06T08:03:00.003-06:00

my loving sister sent along her training schedule. so, i thought it only fair to share that with the readers as well. (in case you didn't like my plan). here you go:

happy friday.

ruby visits the lab

2009-02-05T08:01:00.003-06:00

i had to work all day on sunday. so, in the middle of work the door opened and a little person shuffled in. it was a nice surprise. we posed for some silly photos with the blood collection machines i work on. ha ha.

FINALLY

2009-02-03T10:30:00.003-06:00

i found an 8k training plan that is going to work with my schedule and my life. i don't have time or the desire to train every day. so i found one that eliminates all the cross training on off days, etc. eventually i'll see about fitting all of that in, but for my first run, i don't plan on breaking any records, i just want to finish. here it is in case anyone else has been searching for a plan if you have a life and want to run.

this will put me right on target for the run too. everyone better earmark a little donation for me. this run benefits cancer research here at mayo and locally. i will do another post with more information as it gets closer.

that explains it

2009-02-03T07:07:00.003-06:00

well, it seems that some of ruby's cranky mood and odd-ish behavior over the last week or two may be explained. lisa discovered 3 molars that seem to have popped through all at once yesterday. silly little bubba, she hasn't really grown any teeth one at a time, always in clusters. so, i guess that would make anyone cranky.

two things, one ironic, one practical

2009-01-29T14:37:00.002-06:00

i suppose i should be updating everyone on how single parenthood is going. instead i just want to share two things.

1. i had left-over chinese for lunch today. there was a fortune cookie left too, so i brought that along. with much hope and anticipation of promises of good things i cracked it and found this: you shouldn't overspend at the moment. frugality is important. wa-waaaaa.

2. i have been wearing scrubs to work for a year or something like that. every day i struggle with keeping them up. i just don't have the hips or bum. anyway, today i thought, 'i'm gonna double tie these and see what happens'. and you know what? it worked. i haven't had any trouble all day and only noticed when i went to the loo for the first time at 1:20pm. sweet.

i'm a single parent this week, don't expect much!

2009-01-26T09:32:00.002-06:00

so, leeser has left rochester. i believe this very moment, she is in the air en route to chicago. then off to boston. she has training this week for her new job. i had to admit, given our recent track record with illness in the house i am pretty worried about how this week will go.

keeping my fingers crossed that ruby is finally over her virus turned ear infection turned flu. i would be even more happy if i was over the flu and sinus infection that has been lingering since early january.

anyway, i'll try to do a post or two to update on the silly things i've done or how we are getting on. i'm hoping to have a very boring week. boring is good now that i'm a parent, i've found.

keep your fingers crossed we have nice weather (i.e. sidewalks that don't need snowblowing) and a healthy baby and mama for the week. poor leeser was off today with a sore throat. maybe some different air will be good for her.

happy monday.

things to come?

2009-01-19T14:19:00.001-06:00

the most tolerant dog ever
Originally uploaded by painty.

i haven't done any proper blogging lately, but wanted to share this photo. ruby was sitting with tully looking so cute. one minute she was just petting her and sitting quietly chatting and singing. by the time i got the camera she still had this angelic look on her face while she grabbed a pinch of skin and fur. poor tully, ever the martyr. i didn't even notice ruby pulling fur until i reviewed the photos on the computer. ha ha ha.

hope everyone is having a nice monday.

oh the irony

2009-01-14T08:10:00.002-06:00

someone was home from work yesteday, sick. sore throat, headcold, the same lovely gift we all have from ruby. anyway, she went outside to finish up the snowblowing. i did a run last night and snow continued to fall so it needed to be done again. all of a sudden someone was taking photos of her. it was someone from the local newspaper. we reckon this would have been published, but Leeser chickened out because she was on a sick day and dressed like an eskimo. how funny would that be though? an aussie out snowblowing in minnesota on the front page of the paper. ha ha ha. i still haven't stopped laughing. they sent a copy of the photo in hopes she would relent and let them publish, but she didn't.

happy monday...my monday

2009-01-13T12:16:00.003-06:00

well, i missed work yesterday. shorty was still feeling sickly. leeser stayed home with her on friday, so it was my turn monday. i am nursing this cold too, so i didn't mind staying home. although, i didn't get much rest. a bunch of snow dumped on us, so had to snowblow too. sheesh, if only i could enjoy this snow instead of just moving it off the driveway. oh well.

one success of the weekend was that a batch of apple pie vodka was cooked up. i found a recipe on the world wide web (with no help from relatives or readers or relative readers). it turned out delicious. i haven't decided if i need to add more alcohol or not. it was tested by our pal, david too. i gave him a bottle for his kind efforts clearing the driveway and sidewalks while we were away over christmas.

not much else going on. i am eating australian licorice like it's going out of style today and i can't wait to go home. oh, and unfortunately we didn't win the $120million jackpot on saturday. dammit.

happy friday

2009-01-09T13:46:00.003-06:00

i watched this video on another blog. so, thanks jake for the entertainment. i know that the funny video i blogged not long ago wasn't very funny (apparently). i enjoyed it though. and this is my blog. so, i feel at liberty to post another video which i also find funny. i hope you do too. also, if you have some spare time, look up jake's blog over here. it speaks for itself.

Happy Friday.

An introduction to Faceball from Face Ball on Vimeo.

if you must, then choose ROO!

2009-01-06T09:11:00.003-06:00

this one is for my wifey and the other aussie readers. i'm not saying we should find ways to foster this world's heavy reliance on meat-eating, but any push to get away from beef is a great idea in my book.

i remember how while shopping in Oz we could walk over to the meat counter and pick up a pound of kangaroo in the same way you would grab ground pork or chuck here in the states. it seemed so odd. anyway, it turns out that roos emit negligible amounts of methane into the atmosphere. here's a great diagram (click to enlarge). if you are interested, the whole article is excellent and can be found right here.

this week

2009-01-05T07:51:00.002-06:00

i have a lot to accomplish this week. don't we all have a lot to accomplish every week? i submit we do. however, above and beyond all of the important tasks, i am giving myself one special project this week. that project is to seek out, secure, implement and test a recipe for apple pie vodka.

my brother-in-law brought a bottle along in the limo for josh and laura's wedding. i remember now how i was happy to fill my champagne glass with the apple pie vodka rather than the champagne. it also seems like it would be a great winter treat.

so, dear readers if you have a recipe you are particularly fond of, send it on over. perhaps i will be doing some 'baking' this weekend.

here's a start

2009-01-02T08:29:00.001-06:00

nothing here but some good clean fun to start out 2009. enjoy!

p.s. thanks huber brothers, this made me smile.

rez-uh-LOO-shuhn time

2008-12-31T09:30:00.005-06:00

so, it's that time of the year again. i have been hinting at a big resolution for this year. this has been a big year, big changes. i think that warrants a big idea.

so i have two formal resolutions. of course i'll try to eat better and get healthier, all that. i think we try for that every year. but those resolutions have lost their bite as i have a someone poor result each year. so here are the new ones for 2009:

1. play hacky sack (footbag to the rest of the world) more often. i used to play a bit in college and it was always fun. i would stand in the hallway of the dorm and kick around to give myself a break from studying. i used to carry a hacky sack in my backpack all the time. i have no idea why i got away from this habit. so, we'll see what i can do to rouse my pals and people around me to play. maybe ruby can learn as soon as she gets better balance!!

2. this is the big one. i have decided to not make any purchases of any items that i already own for the entire year of 2009. this one is going to be really tough. i think it comes from a good place and it will be a great exercise in creativity and self-control. i think i will save a lot of $$ as i basically have everything i need to survive. unless something breaks, i am set to go.

i have developed a few guidelines as well. they are as follows:
a) toiletries, medications, work clothes are exempt.
b) presents are also exempt.
c) if i can find something used or barter/trade for it, that is also acceptable.
d) if i find something i feel very strongly about, i reserve the right to purchase that item for myself and donate the equivalent dollar value to a charity of my choice. all purchases must come from my very tiny allowance. (i might give myself a number of times i can do this; perhaps 5 times for the year??)

so, there you have it, dear readers. send me your resolutions, i'll get a list together for tomorrow. have a safe and happy new year. please don't drive after enjoying any adult beverages.

here's to a bright, shiney 2009!!!

back from crimbo

2008-12-29T10:36:00.002-06:00

we had a dicey trip down to racine on christmas eve. the weather didn't cooperate all that well, but i guess it could have been worse. poor ruby wasn't happy in the car seat for the last part of the trip. but, we made it. the trip back was much smoother.

in between it was great to catch up with family and friends for the holiday. ruby is warming up to my family and other people so much more. she is still definately grandpa's little girl.

i ate lots of great food and had tons of candy and cookies. mom also sent us home with a load of holiday sweets. i'll have to hurry and eat them before i start getting healthy in the new year. (will that actually happen?)

i hope everyone is working on their new year's resolution(s). I have a big one for this year. i will post it in all it's detailed glory on wednesday. shoot that means, i better work out my contract with myself before then too.

ok, here's the most exciting news that came from the holiday. no, it isn't that i got to go snowshoeing for 8 hours on a trail that was perfectly fluffy and quiet...no, that didn't happen because it was 52 degrees in racine. sorry, i don't mean to be bitter, but we had the built in babysitters there. ok, ok here it is:

Happy 3rd Birthday to Alexandria Ruth

2008-12-23T09:32:00.007-06:00

Happy 3rd Birthday, Ali!

Ok, so I was going to try to write a funny post for Ali's birthday, but I found myself getting a little weepy, so I'm just going to let the pictures speak for themselves. Enjoy a photo retrospective of Ali...my, how we've grown!! Happy Birthday to my sweet, funny, amazing and challenging toddler. Every minute with you is a treasure.

xoox
Mom

good thing

2008-12-19T07:18:00.007-06:00

we got the snowblower back all fixed yesterday. i will be lucky enough to test it this afternoon. it seems like prime snowshoeing weather with a nice base of fluffy snow. unfortunately, i don't think ruby is ready for the weather just yet. we'll have to see how it all goes.

plans to see the afternoon show of australia just may be foiled by the snowfall. we'll see. our babysitter lives about 10 miles outside of town so we'll see if she feels like venturing in. if not, we'll have a quiet afternoon at home.

also, i think this might be one of the funniest blogs i have ever seen in my life. i think there are some photos of me from the 80s my sister might like to send in. (marty, if you do, i will never ever forgive you).

happy friday.

thursday already?

2008-12-18T13:08:00.004-06:00

seems like the week has escaped me again. so much to do and not enough time to get it done. i'm sure no one else ever ever feels like that....especially this time of year.

ruby had her 1 year check-up yesterday. everything is good. 4 shots though. i'm hoping she isn't feeling too cranky today. here is another passport photo. we had to get one notarized by our doc for her australian citizenship paperwork.

compare it to this one. strikingly similar, no? he he he. oh shorty, so cute.

bring on the brew

2008-12-15T12:32:00.004-06:00

so, we moved into the new office. it is comfy in here. i have a very nice buttercup yellow wall to look at. in a medical institution, you would be surprised how far a warm color goes.

anyway, after a lot of debating, hemming and hawing (i wonder where that phrase came from and if i spelled it right....maybe some reader who has more time could check it out and do a guest blog??) i decided to bring in my 4-cup mr. coffee drip pot. i smuggled it in this morning and have since made two half pots, i guess that makes one full pot. it's really nice, perhaps it might encourage my habit a bit.

also, something actually worked out at work today. the coordination of a big project came together even better than i had originally anticipated. it involved a few screw-ups that amounted to an even better plan. so, that was nice for once.

anyway, in the middle of testing thermometers and i need to hustle up because i've got a dentist appointment today. just preventative cleaning, fingers crossed i don't have 100 cavities. i am so tired of the dentist. after that we have ruby's 1 year appointment. more shots, i suppose. boo. after that a new dog-sitter is coming to visit.

hope everyone has a good evening. happy hump day.