You Know, That Guy

You know how when you're in an airport waiting to board your flight? And you scope out the other passengers? Sometimes you wonder what their story is. Sometimes you pick out who you'd like to sit next to. But more than likely, you're picking out who you don't want to sit next to. And when you see that person, your thought is, "I'd hate to be the poor bastard sitting next to that guy/gal." (Don't deny it, you know you do it.) Guess who the poor bastard was this time?

Me.

So, this guy. I saw him walk in. He looked like some young Seattleite. Not the hipster type, but the almost hipster. Sport coat, nice khaki pants, decent shoes, tight haircut, messenger bag, and to top it off, silver Dolce and Gabbana eyewear. He was the type of guy who could either be nifty and fun or a complete douche. This one? Douche.

He struck up random conversations with people who obviously wanted nothing to do with him. He couldn't sit still. He was behind me in the line to board. As I walked down the walkway, I heard "Fuck." followed by "Oh FUCK." It was That Guy lamenting the line to board. I find my seat and am about to throw my coat into the overhead and he said to guy in 19C, "Hey, bud, I'm 19B." Oh, joy. I was 19A. "Well, what are the chances," he said. Indeed, what are the chances?

He was traveling back to British Columbia (not Seattle) from Greenville, South Carolina. Going by his accent and US Passport, he was from South Carolina and not Canada. I'm also going to guess he had adult ADD, was just generally hyperactive, or completely lacked any and all social skills. Or all of the above.

He kept wanting to talk about what I was reading, (When You Are Engulfed in Flames by the always wonderful David Sedaris.) He thought the title and picture were "cool." It was obvious he didn't know who David Sedaris was. Strike one.

He exclaimed (not muttered or said under his breath or hissed) in a loud voice, "Oh, yeah!" at almost anything, from the airplane safety rules to the SkyMart magazine. He would carry on conversations with himself. While he ate his canned tuna he purchased on the plane (Really? Tuna? On an enclosed metal tube full of people? Seriously, Northwest Air, did you think this through?), he watched the show the guy in 19C was watching on his laptop. Not the sly out of the corner of his eye watching, but he watched it like he could hear it, like it was there for everyone to watch. Strikes two, three, four, and five.

Then he played 3D pinball on his own computer. He did more "Oh yeah!" and poked me in the side with his knobby skinny elbow. He invaded my space so much I smashed myself against the wall of the airplane for so long that my hand fell asleep. I was this close to asking him to kindly stop poking me with his goddamn elbow. But I was concerned about his mental stability. Strikes six through eight.

And then he checked his pulse several times, put his hand over his chest, and then his stomach. He bent forward like he might be ill. That's what you get for eating a can of $7 tuna that you purchased from a metal cart on an airplane, dumbass. Normally, I feel sorry for people not feeling well on a plane. It sucks. You're stuck, and most people who are sick are truly embarrassed. This guy? I had no sympathy. I just hoped if he did lose his canned tuna, he didn't hit me. And I hoped I would be able to control my evil laughter and/or smirk. (He never got sick.) Strike... oh hell, who cares.

Then he read his Maxim magazine and made more small talk with himself while looking at the pictures of "Hometown Hotties." This was after he spent 45 minutes manipulating a black-and-white image of two naked women. It's not like they were actual images, they were stylized silhouettes that focused on the positive and negative space. But in the hands of this fuck? Well, it was creepy. Plus Maxim? Super creepy.

Finally, finally, we landed. I got off the plane where I passed him asking the monitors, "S18*? What the fuck? Where is that? Shit." As I walked away around the corner towards the stairs, I could still hear him, asking like he expected the monitors to answer him.

The kicker? For the first time I bought into Northwest's scheme of paying more for premium seats. I decided I wanted a window seat so I could see Seattle at night (it was cool) and have a wall to lean against. So I paid extra to deal with Dipshit ramble on about whatever happened to enter his head.



*I have no clue what gate he was looking for.

Church

On Christmas Eve I go to Church with my brother and his family because my nephew sings in the choir. I don't like Church. I'm not a fan of organized religion--it make me really uncomfortable. Despite that, you know what I like about Church? People watching.

The crowd at Church on Christmas is so varied. There are the younger parishioners who wear casual clothes. Then there are those who wear their best to Church because they believe in owning both regular clothes and Church Clothes. You can see who the old guard is and who is there because it's Christmas.

The Christmas Eve service at my Brother's church revolves around the kids. There is a kids' choir. The kids are invited to gather around the priest and the sing Happy Birthday to Jesus. Yes, you read that correctly. They can also take a small a baby Jesus (like a Christmas ornament) with them and have the priest bless it. Two of my three nieces took baby Jesus to the priest. My nephew was in the choir. My third niece didn't take a baby Jesus--she took a toothbrush. My mom and I could barely control our laughter as my niece went running up front to have her toothbrush blessed...

Anyway, we were there to watch my nephew. And we did, but I think I spent more time watching the other kids. I find it so interesting too see that many kids in one spot. You can tell, even at the ages of nine or ten, what type of people they are. There were two girls at the end of the second row who kept making "Gawd" looks on their faces when something or someone was different. There was the mousy girl. There was the bouncy boy (that would be my nephew). And then there was the girl destined to be a theater geek. The future theater geeks are easy to pick out. They don't fit in for various reasons that usually revolve around clothing and the need to be the dramatic center of attention. The Theater Geek girl was wearing striped leggings and a shirt with a ruffle on the bottom and Crocs. Quite the outfit for Church. But more than that, when she sang, she sang like she was in a musical production. She made dramatic faces, she acted like she was playing the trumpet. If they'd let her go, she might have broken out into a full chorus line. I couldn't stop watching her the entire time, and by the end of Mass, I thought she was the coolest little girl up there because she was out to have fun, rules be damned.

Along those same lines, my other favorite thing was the shoes one of the alter boys was wearing:

Those were some slick gold sneakers.

So this is Christmas...

I flew out of SeaTac on a red-eye Tuesday morning. For those of you who hadn't heard, the Pacific Northwest got a hell of a lot of snow last week and both the SeaTac and Portland airports had some problems. SeaTac wasn't closed, but many flights were canceled. I came close to canceling my trip because I was worried I wouldn't be able to get out and Pantsman and his family were, for the most part, snowed in. So, if I got stuck and couldn't get a shuttle out of the SeaTac, I was stuck.

Several people on the shuttle were going down ten hours or more before their flights. They were concerned I-5 would close or that the airport would be a mess. Turns out, neither was the case.

I had been watching the chaotic views of the airport on the Seattle news and expected it to be a smaller version of the New Orleans Convention Center Post-Katrina. However, when I walked into the terminal about 10:00pm Monday night, it was almost empty. I mentioned this to the ticket agent and he told me I should've been there earlier in the day. Sounds like they were pretty much shut down in the morning and spent the afternoon getting caught up.

I like the red-eye. I am always exhausted when I get to wherever I am going, but I think it is a calmer time to fly. People are quiet, sleepy, and generally less argumentative. Even in the Minneapolis airport, things were quiet. Granted, it was 6am, but, still.... quiet.

In Minneapolis there was this young couple talking to another girl. I gathered that the two girls grew up together. One was living in Seattle and the other in Southern California (or "So Cal" as they said), where she worked in "The Industry." They talked about how passe it was to see famous people and then listed all of the famous people they had seen. She was pretty much any average early-twenties girl. Him? Dear god. He was wearing artfully torn jeans, a studded belt, had almost-too-long hair covered by a farmer's hat cocked to the side. She mentioned that he was "from the farm," but I don't know about that. I have my doubt that he has ever been near a farm. I saw them later at our destination airport trying to find his luggage. Her dad had that look of, "Why did my Daughter marry this pansy-ass loser" on his face while they were waiting.

So far, the trip has been good. It was bone-chillingly cold the first few days I was here but it has warmed up enough that I could go outside without a coat (I mean like 50-degrees warm). I went to Church. Yes, you read that correctly. I went to Church and was not struck by lightening. I went to Church because my nephew was singing. I have other stories from Church, but they will have to wait, because there are pictures involved, and I am too lazy to go find my camera.

Today was the annual trip to the Family Museum where I am worn out by the kids and eventually seek refuge at the coffee shop in the public library. I normally don't mention that I am a librarian, but today I did, and no one seemed too impressed. Pshaw... Public librarians.

A couple more days and I head back west. It's been a good and absolutely necessary break. But I don't know that I am ready to go back to work, though. I could use another week or so off....

Happy Holidays, Y'all

The Snow?

IS NEVER GOING TO STOP.

Dear Winter,

The snow was fun; I enjoyed it. The cold wasn't even that bad. It was all invigorating, nifty, and fun to play in. I got to make snow angels and be reminded of what was fun about winter: snow days, watching it snow, the calm and quiet after it snows.

But, Winter? I'm good now, thanks. I don't want any more. And worse? I don't appreciate your uncertainty. Will we get four inches or 12 inches? Will we have 30 MPH winds or 90? What about ice? Do you want to really mix it up and toss in some freezing rain?

Or are you yanking everyone's chain just to get a good laugh? Because you really messed with a lot of heads around here. Snow that stays on the ground for more than two days? Why do we need a snowplow? Snow melts, we don't need to do anything with it. That was enough, but then to send more snow on top of the snow people were expecting to melt? Hilarious!

So, thank you for stopping by. I enjoyed our visit, but really, it's time for you to leave. I miss Rain. It's been a while since he came to visit. And while you're at it, on you way out the door, can you remind Mr. Mountain that I'm not a fan of his winds?

Thanks,
Yankee Librarian

Snow Day!

It wasn't a total snow day since they just sent us home early, but still. It was a partial snow day.

The snow started sometime early morning. There was a dusting when I woke up. I didn't think we were going to get all that much because it was pretty light and sporadic this morning, but it picked up in the early afternoon.

My view while drinking my coffee this morning

I'm not sure how much we got, but I would say about five inches or so. I think it is supposed to continue off and on until tomorrow. It was light, fluffy snow which is unusual here. Because it's so damp and usually doesn't get super cold, the snow is more like that stuff we used to get in April--wet, heavy, and sloppy. Not today. Today was light and fluffy.

After taking a snow day nap, a friend (from New England) and I decided to go for a walk. We just wandered down the street and took pictures before it got too dark.

View up the hill.

Grainy shot of the trees and pink sky


Grainy shot of the trees and pink sky, part two

Whenever it snows I have to fight the urge to make snow angels. I love making snow angels, and this was perfect snow angel snow (but not perfect snowball snow). Just before we went back inside, L and I decided to give in to our snow angel urge. It was awesome and very cold. I think my ass froze. My camera battery was going dead so I just took one shot of my snow angel, It's far from good, but it is photographic proof.

Snow Angel!

YakTrax!

It was cold yesterday. When I got ready to leave for work, I dug out my thinsulate scarf and hat and wished I still had my thinsulate gloves. I also made the mistake of not wearing my boots to work. I don't know what the hell I was thinking. I strapped my non-YakTrax doohickeys to my shoes and climbed up the hill to campus and cursed the fact that I 1) had to walk into the wind, 2) didn't think to bring a case for my glasses since they were fogged up most of the time, 3) was reminded how much I hate wearing a scarf wrapped around my face because I hate that gross condensation you get from breathing into fabric wrapped around your head when it's only 15 degrees out with a windchill at about zero. And just like every winter I experienced in Iowa and Wisconsin, I'd go outside and think, "This isn't so bad," and then turn the corner of the building that was blocking the wind and get hit straight in the face with an arctic blast.

The only thing that made me feel better was that I wasn't in Iowa where the temps were in the single digits (and windchills well below zero). I was also happy that the snot did not freeze in my nose and that my eyelashes didn't freeze together--both things that happened often when I was growing up. So, basically, I kept telling myself that it could easily be worse.

Today wasn't as bad. It was a little warmer (20s) and no wind. And sunny. Running errands in the morning I threw my coat in the trunk of my car because I didn't really need it. I was running errands to get ready for my trip next week, to buy the things I will need later this week since we're forcasted to get 3-7 inches of snow tomorrow, and if three inches slowed things to a crawl for two days, more than that will shut the place down. Then I went to REI to buy YakTrax. I think I bought the last three pair (for me and others) of YakTrax in the city.

What are YakTrax? The thing that keeps me on my feet:

YakTrax

The bane of my existence in the snow and ice and why I need YakTrax:

The small part of the hill I have to get to the top of to get to work. This was shot three days after we had three inches of snow.

Like I said, this is just a small part of the hill and the only part I have to climb. It doesn't look big, but it is really damn steep. Just walking up it when it's dry you have to lean forward, and walking down means leaning backwards.

When you walk on ice and packed down snow, the key to remember is balance. If your weight gets thrown off, you will be on your ass in less than a second. I've been walking in the grass--even with the YakTrax. Walking down I've been using the grass and walking sideways because its gives me a little more control.

So, I walk up this hill and take a left and walk down this sidewalk:

This sidewalk was almost clear when I walked home tonight. It was almost all ice yesterday.

Two and a half blocks down this street is where I find the union. And what's in the union? An elevator. I take that six floors up and, vwala, I am at the top of the damn hill. There are stairs, and I do take them sometimes, but I won't take them in weather like this.

It wasn't as bad walking today. I was off in the morning to go to the dentist (I have a new crown!), and some of it had melted. Plus, the wind wasn't blowing down from Canada.

Walking in a Winter Wonderland

It was supposed to snow last night, but it didn't. It snowed in the Canadian and US Cascades, but not at sea level. I was really disappointed.

Snow on the Canadian Cascades.

I love walking in the snow. I like standing in the snow. I like watching it snow. One of the my favorite things to see is snow in the light under a street lamp.

Everything is so peaceful and quiet when it first starts to snow. Snow is quiet. It is quiet when it comes down, it muffles other sounds. It sparkles.

When I was a kid, I remember going for walks during snowstorms. I would put on my boots, heavy coat, scarf, and hat and just walk. Sometimes it was just around the block, sometimes it was longer. I was usually the only one out, there were no other footprints in the snow, and the snow was sparkly white. And it was absolutely silent.

Well, it's snowing. I think we are supposed to get a couple of inches. Not normally a big deal, but it is really hilly here and the city sold all their snow plows a few years ago because they never get snow--or so the city claimed. I have some errands to run tomorrow and I am thinking I should've done them today. A couple inches of snow isn't a big deal. But people freak out over snow (I live next to the mountains, but people still freak out about snow), the town doesn't have snow equipment, and we're getting some strong winds from Canada--that may be a bad mix. We'll see.

Anyway, I walked outside tonight to watch the snow. And you know what? I felt myself smiling. And then getting happy. I mean like little-kid happy. I was almost bouncing up and down I was so excited. The manager of my buidling was in the parking lot. She saw me and yelled up, "Isn't this great?!" And I yelled back, "Oh my god, I missed snow!"

I wan't dressed for a walk in the snow. I was wearing jeans, clogs, a tshirt, and a zipped-up hooded sweatshirt. I pulled the hood tight on my head and trudged up the hill. I found myself slipping back into old ways. I did the midwest shuffle: flat-footed walk where you either swing your arms at your side, or, if you were like me, swung your shoulders because your hands were in your pockets (I forgot gloves). The shuffling and arm/shoulder swinging is what helps keep you balanced.

There was very little snow on the ground but temps have been in the 20s, so it was cold enough to stick. Even with a very light covering of snow, I could feel it and hear it crunch under my feet as I walked. I walked a couple of blocks up one way, doubled back and walked a few blocks past my building--all in all, about a twenty minute walk. Y'all, I couldn't stop smiling, I was so happy. It has started coming down harder now that I am home, but I can't stop glancing out the window every few minutes to watch the snow in the streetlamps below my window.

Snow!

Snowy street lamp

Holiday lights I saw while walking

Snowy parking lot

This is the view towards the Bay. I didn't walk down there because there wasn't as much snow on the driveway--and it is a very steep driveway. Less snow means less traction.

In the two hours since the light snow started, it has turned into SNOW. Big, fluffy snowflakes that are horizontal and it is awesome in so many ways. I just went back out to the walkway/balconies and it was starting to get slick.

After two hours there was about an inch on the ground.

More snow in the parking lot.

This is a shot of the driveway between the buildings. I live about a quarter of the way up a big hill, so it's either down hill to the street in front of my building or uphill to the street behind it (and uphill to campus). I've been old when it snows our parking lot turns into an ice rink since no one around here has salt, sand, or a plow.

It's Official, I'm Jinxed

So, a couple of months ago I bought a Tauscher jersey. And today I read that he was injured in the game against the Texans and there is some question about whether it would be a career-ender with Green Bay.

Tauscher's a Wisconsin boy, I said. He played for UW. He'll never play anywhere but Green Bay. He'll retire a Packer, I insisted. Bah.

I should never be allowed to buy a Packer jersey ever again. Unless they are retired.

Just Wait Five Minutes

The phrase "if you don't like the weather, wait five minutes," has been said by at least one person every place I have lived. It seemed pretty fitting in the midwest. One afternoon I sat on Dad's front porch and watched the temperature drop from 80-something to 40-something. It was said a few times in Mississippi, but unless they mean changing from fucking hot to hot, I never thought it fit.

But you know what? Up here in the Pacifical Northwest? I have never seen the weather change so many times in a few hours. This morning it went from cloudy to sunny to hailing to raining to foggy and then back to sunny again.

Of course, with weather changes like that, I get to see things like this:


And this:

I fought the Insurance Company...

And I won. I got the letter today that said my trip to the ER was medically necessary and would be covered. Woo! Makes me want to send the review guy a thank you card. So, my bill will go from almost $3000 to a few hundred. That is a lot easier to handle.

But let me tell you, the people who answer phones at my insurance company? I swear they hire idiots just so you won't call back. There were a couple of people who were very helpful and if they didn't know what the answer was, they would ask. But the others? To use a bad cliche, they didn't know their ass from a hole in the ground.

I Miss the Sun

I thought that today when I looked outside around 3:00 and saw it was already getting dark after it had been foggy and dreary for the last two days. Half an hour later the sky cleared and there was some lightness in the sky. Unfortunately, it didn't last long.

When I told a colleague this, she said, "Just wait until February."

Great.

So Very Awesome...

Over at Pop Goes the Library, they posted the idea of having a Dr. Horrible Sing-Along for adults or teens to counterbalance the High School Musical Sing-Alongs. How awesome would this be to do in an academic library?

So Very Awesome.

And Thanksgiving...

Was kind of "eh." Kevin invited me to Seattle for the day and night. Even though I thought I might regret it later, I decided not to go. I'd just had dental work, my mouth was throbbing, I was exhausted, and I'd been having a crappy week. I knew I would have a hard time being "on" while being around a bunch of people. So, I declined the invite. I do kind of regret it, but I know I wouldn't've been in a good mood.

I made the Tofurkey and it was kind of "bleh." It all tasted very onioney to me. It may have been the gravy, it may have been the fact that everything I ate tasted crappy due to my recent dental work. I tried it again the next day and it wasn't as bleh. But I don't think I will get one again.

Some friends and I watched Hairspray (the original) that night. I don't think they enjoy John Waters' campiness as much as I do. But we drank wine and coffee and ate tomato-soup cake (a WWII recipe when there was lack of milk and eggs). It sounded disgusting, but it was really very good. And the vegan pumpkin pie was pretty good.

The rest of the break was spent trying to stay dry since it rained for several days--yesterday it was actual rain and not mist. And it was amazingly foggy. There is a Horizon Lines ship docked in the bay--it's pretty close to my apartment. At times the fog was so thick that I couldn't even see the ship.

Today is lovely and the sun is out. I had planned on taking a nice long walk if the sun was out since I know sunny days will soon be few and far between. But I woke up this morning with a head full of snot and I felt like someone beat me up while I was sleeping. And once again, everything tastes gross, except this time it's from snot and not dental work.

Great.

Vegan Thanksgiving

What does a vegan eat for Thanksgiving? Tofurkey!

I've been wary of the Tofurkey, but I had a friend in Madison who obsessed with it. After trying the Tofurkey Smoked Deli Slices, and they were great. So, I am giving it a try.

In addition to the Tofurkey, I have red potatoes, butternut squash, sweet potatoes, carrots and onions. The red potatoes, onion, and carrots will go in the oven with the Torfurkey. The rest will be cooked and probably smashed. Yes, lots of smashed starchy foods, but that is what Thanksgiving is for. And my jaw still hurts, so smashed starchy food sounds good. I also have some Purple Peruvian Potatoes. (I may save half of the butternut squash and roast it later this week, but then again, I may not.)

I had to go to campus to do more dicking around with the insurance company. Afterwords I swung by one of the other libraries to see a friend. Somehow, the subject of Purple Peruvian Potatoes came up. I told her how Frenchie wanted me to use purple potatoes to make mashed garlic potatoes. A couple of years ago she planned to host Thanksgiving at her new house and her mom would be there. If she made purple potatoes her mom would criticize her. But if I made them? Well, what do I know? I'm that Yankee Vegetarian. I'm weird by definition. In the end, Frenchie left town for the holiday and it never happened. But what did I see when I went to the Co-op this afternoon? Peruvian Purple Potatoes. I had to buy them.

I went there looking for vegan dessert, specifically vegan pumpkin pie. We don't have a vegan bakery in town, but the Co-op has vegan desserts. I looked all over, up and down, and was getting really frustrated because I couldn't find vegan pumpkin pie. And then I noticed right in front of me was a sign for vegan pumpkin pies. And they were almost gone. Who knew? Well, I should have since this is one big hippie town.

I also have wine. I don't know what kind it is. Something white, something citrusy, something dry. One guy asked me if I knew how their wines are organized. Uh... wines are organized outside of red and white? Yes, by location. I almost bought a bottle of something from California because it was a smaller bottle and not too expensive, but then I slipped into undergraduate-student-mode and realized I could get a bigger bottle for the same price. More volume equals more alcohol for the same amount of money.

The second guy who asked me if I needed help said things like, "Well, [insert wine types/names here] refer to the different types of grapes. But I'm sure you know that already." (Uh, no.) I picked up something and asked him what it was like. It was local, it was cheap, and it had a nifty label. He said it was a good basic wine, a good starter wine. Good wine, expensive wine is lost on me because it all tastes the same. So... I went with the good basic wine. The wine dude said I could take that and then decide what I liked and go from there.

Sure.

How much you want to bet that in a year I will get all snobby about what kind of wine I drink?

I offered to cook food for friends, but we all decided wine, dessert, and stupid movies would be better.

I Love My Dead Gay Son

If anyone ever wondered what to get me for Christmas (other than the Freaks and Geeks complete season or Square Pegs--The Complete Series), it's this:

The Heather Box Set: Combo-lock Locker, yearbook, Big Fun tshirt, textbook, and the movie.

Mothertrucker

Muck me in the ratt hole
Sucker
Mucker
Mothertruker
piehole
*bleep*




What it is like watching The 40 Year Old Virgin on regular cable.

My Dentist, My Therapist

I went to the dentist today to start the beginning of the crown for the tooth with the root canal. I had some other questions about teeth that are already slated for work or have been giving me problems. When she told me I might need yet another crown, I almost burst into tears. She numbed me up and asked me what was wrong--I seemed "off." I am in insurance hell right now. As I mentined earlier, my insurance company is refusing to pay for the trip to the ER because the diagnosis was dental, and they don't cover dental. I have the right to appeal. To make the whole situation worse, while I was talking to the hospital to get the paperwork lined up for the appeal, the hospital people noticed something was off. After some investigation, it turns out I owe even more than I originally thought. I am taking tomorrow off, and I will spend most of the day rounding up paperwork from two different places that show I had no clue the reason my face swelled up was dental. And I didn't. One person at the insurance company told me none of this matters--the only thing that matters is that final diagnosis and that was dental. They will not cover anything that begins with a tooth, therefore I am SOL. (Honestly, this was the short version.)

Anyway, I spilled all of this to my dentist without crying. While I was getting all numb, she talked to their insurance person. Obviously, they can't file anything (although my dentist began to wonder if there was something she could do or write that would help, but she didn't think so), but they all had suggestions. Basically, they said, insurance companies want you to give up and that is what they count on. So, according to my dentist, the key is to never give up. The HR guy where I work told me to talk to the highest level person possible. If one person doesn't seem to know what they are talking about, ask for their manager and then their manager, etc. Of course, when I called the insurance company today and asked for the manager I found out the nastiest person I had talked towas the manager. I stood my ground, refused to talk to her again and asked for her manager. The next step may be the state insurance commissioner. Again, short version.

I did the crown without Nitrous. And a cavity. I needed a filling in the tooth next to it so they went ahead and did it too since I was there. And unlike the endodontist who did the root canal they told me if I wanted Nitrous, I could have it, nooooo problem. I was proud of myself for not using it, but I think I was tense ans shaking the whole three hours. (Yes, three goddamn hours.) And it was uncomfortable. And I needed extra Novocaine. And you know what I was thinking the entire time? The new season of The Real Housewives of Orange County starts on tonight. Hey, if that is what gets me through someone drilling my tooth to a nub only to build the damn thing back up, I make no apologies. Next crown? Nitrous.

I had other questions about other teeth. I had some serious concerns, but after more checking and poking and biting down on things, everything looks like it was when I was there last month (one more crown and one more filling).

I can't tell you how happy I am to have a five day weekend. I need it.

You're Hardcore

Tooth Update (because I know all four of you who read this blog want to know).
I am still in limbo with the root canal. "In limbo" in that I am going in for the temporary crown in a little over a week. I'm not convinced the infection is all gone. I've been keeping an eye on it and will call the dentist if I need to. But I've been having sinus issues the last couple of days and it makes me second guess myself--is it my teeth or is in sinuses. I thought I knew the difference but now I don't know. But right now, due to my general stuffiness and sniffling I am going with sinuses.

Friday I found out my insurance won't pay for my trip to the ER. They say that the diagnosis was tooth related which they don't cover. I told them I went to the ER because I didn't think it was my teeth and because another doctor told me to go to the ER if it got worse. I wanted to know why they were asking me to self-diagnose. The woman on the phone said they weren't. I say they are. I can challenge it, and I will. But it's just damn annoying. And expensive.

Other Stuff
I worked my first Saturday yesterday. I felt like I couldn't answer half the questions I was asked. I find our catalog and web site confusing and not very useful. And then a student fell on the steps and hit her head and had a seizure. We don't know what came first--the seizure or the fall. Thing is, I missed it. I heard the thud (which we think was her dropping books she was holding), but I was helping someone and didn't notice. I didn't notice the campus police coming in (I figured out something had happened when I heard his police radio in the stairwell). Luckily, our student workers and the circ deks were on top of it all. EMT's came and took care of her. And then I missed them taking her out on the gurney. I don't know how or why I ended up being so unobservant. Our student worker said I was helping people when most of it was going down. I must've really been into whatever I was doing.

I'm ready for Thanksgiving. I'm only working two days next week and am looking forward to a five-day weekend. I was thinking about going somewhere, but since there is a good chance I will have to pay the full price of my trip to the ER, I hesitate to spend money I don't need to spend. But, I'm ready for the holidays. I am already looking forward to the trip to Iowa for Christmas. I usually see my family once a year and this is it. It'll be good to hang out with them.

I called by brother to get the rundown on Christmas presents for the kids. I've been asking him for weeks, and he has been ignoring me. My sister-in-law gave me a general overview, but when she tells me to buy American Girl clothes ... well, there are a lot of American Girl clothes. Which dolls do they have? What clothes do they have? What are other people getting them? It's all so much pressure. So, I not only got the info I needed, I got catalog numbers.

D had emailed me earlier asking me what magazine I had wanted (Vogue Knitting), he emailed me to ask for the title again. See, my brother can't remember anything. Once he figured out my sister-in-law would keep track of everything and tell him when he needed to be somewhere or do something (his Palm does the same thing for his work life), he stopped paying attention to any detail he didn't think was worthwhile--which means everything but the kids, beer, his grill, and maybe work. I told him I would give him the name of the magazine I wanted if he told me what to buy the kids.

His response: "Wow, keeping your own Christmas present hostage. You're hardcore."

Sweet Potato and Peanut African Stew

I have made this recipe for several times. It's addicting. It works well for lunches as it seems to get better overnight. I just made this a few weeks ago for lunch and already I've made it again--it's that good.

I have used both sweet potatoes and yams. Both worked. I also used two cups veggie stock, red pepper instead of green, and I add a carrot.






Thanks, Meg.

Shopping and Porn

I saw Zach and Miri Make a Porno last night. I liked it. But if you don't like Kevin Smith or are offended by raunchy language and humor, stupidity, full-frontal nudity, and other unmentionables, you won't like it. You will see some of the Kevin Smith regulars, like Jay and Randall from Clerks. But there is also Darrel from Office Space and Seth Rogen.

And then I went shopping today. I needed new jeans. I can still wear my jeans--with a belt. Without a belt I can pull them off without unbuttoning them. I ended up buying more than jeans, of course. At Target I found a new trenchcoat. I don't know what it is about trenchcoats from Target, but for whatever reason, the only place I can seem to find coats I really like is Target.

Anyway, I had been wanting a new trenchcoat or raincoat for some time. This coat doesn't have a hood, and I had given in to the reality that I needed a coat with a hood. See, it rains a lot. But the rain here is mostly mist and an umbrella isn't all that useful in the mist. Plus, as many people have told me, only tourists carry umbrellas. Well, you know what, I know have an awesome little trenchcoat from Target that doesn't have a hood. I am going with style over those shapeless, ugly REI-inspired raincoats people around here wear.

I also bought a cute sweater. I mention it because it is argyle. And you know what I saw at Macy's? Calvin Klein jeans and argyle vests. Y'all, it's like eighth grade all over again. Except this time I know better than to wear a pink argyle vest with pink pinstripe pants. Hopefully. I tried on the Calvins, and they fit okay, but I am in between sizes. And the "short" ones are too long. And they are expensive. But I have decided that when I hit the weight I want to be, I am buying a pair of Calvins and having them tailored. It's like making up for junior high when I wanted Calvins so badly but they only made them for skinny tall people.

The other thing: I have officially gone down a size. I tried on a corduroy blazer in what has been my size for years--and I was swimming in it. The next size down was a bit snug, but I bought it anyway. And the jeans I bought were a size smaller. I was reminded of being in Tupelo with Sweet Pickles several years ago. I tried on a white blouse and when I realized it was a size smaller than what I normally wear, I actually squealed in the middle of the store. I wanted to squeal this afternoon, but I knew people would think I was crazy.

So, after three hours in the mall, a trip to Trader Joe's and the Co-op, laundry, and cooking, I am done for the day.

Back to Mindless Shit...

Top Chef is back! Top Chef is back!

I have been getting so bored with the regular reality show crap. After a dull season of Project Runway and snooze-rific cycle for America's Next Top Model, that I thought maybe I had gotten a life. But no... Top Chef is back and based on the first show, this season will make up for all the other mundane shit Bravo has been putting out lately.

Like most reality shows, there are too many people for me to get all horned up about one person nonetheless remember any names. But I have to say I liked the Giant Gay Guy with all the Queens at home who would want to know what Padma was wearing. And I'd like the Indian girl to go far just because she looks so nervous I wanted to give her a hug. But based on what we've seen I don't see it happening. And the caterer who buys food based on her spirit guides? M'kay...

Once they weed out the weak it will be easier to pick favorites.

'Nuff Said

Root Canals Suck

Yes, they do.

Up until today I'd had two root canals; now I've had three. I don't remember much about the first two. The only thing I remember from the first one is that my dentist (who was pretty cute) had hairy ears. The second one I could feel. Not just discomfort, but there was a bit of pain. I didn't like it, but again, I don't remember much other than my dentist and the assistant talking about the local university's women's softball team.

Today was root canal number three. My first two root canals were a fog because I had nitrous. Hell, for a long time I needed nitrous just to get my butt in a dentist's chair. But a root canal? I know I can't get through a root canal without something to keep me calm. So imagine my shock and surprise when I got to the root canal place and was told they didn't do nitrous.

Now, I know some people don't like nitrous because it makes them sick. But when I found that out they rarely gave nitrous because "most people" don't need it, I got very quite and still. I'm not "most people" when it comes to the dentist. The dentist and his assistant kept telling me to take deep breaths to calm down. Listen, people, this is a fear. An honest to god, real fear. I was clenching the arms rests on the chair so hard I thought I was going to pull them off. And I realized I was shaking. The irrational part of my brain wanted to get up out of the chair and leave because like hell I was going through that without drugs. But the rational part of my brain knew this had to be done and while I could probably get through it without drugs, I didn't want to. My old dentist would give patients Valium to calm them down before giving them something else to calm them down... but I was in the land of the Stepford Wife, so Valium was probably in the water. Anyway, after being on the verge of tears, they pulled out the nitrous.

I was still tense, and I'm surprised that I don't have permanent bruises from where I dug my nails into my palms. I had my headphones on, but I could still hear the dentist and assistant talking about the police (maybe in Vegas?) and the making of some documentary. They seemed to be more interested in their own conversation than about me trying to wiggle my way off the chair. I know it was a routine root canal (or so he said), but I would have appreciated a little more chairside manner.

Speaking of my old dentist--much of this hell was caused by a filling that was too close to the nerve (which explains a lot of things). For some reason I don't remember, this caused an irritation that eventually lead to the inflammation that made my face puff up like a balloon.

So, now, the Novocain has worn off and I'm in pain. It isn't as bad as it was right after I got home, but it is a dull ache. The dentist didn't want me to take the vicodin (I haven't been taking it lately), but considering how much this hurts, I may not listen to him.

One more thing, at least until January 20...

A set of photos posted over at Ezra Klein's blog that illustrates, again, what was so inspiring about the Obama campaign, the rallies, and damn close to everything.




Thanks, Marvin.

Obama Grabs Headlines

See full image here.

How He Did It

This is an excellent series of articles from Newsweek depicting the election from he primaries to election night. Fascinating.

I read chapters one through six today after I came home from work (more on that later). I'm waiting for chapter seven.

So... I went to work today--the first day this week. I made it a half day. My tooth hurt, I was exhausted, and I realized I was not up to a full day, yet. And then I came close to falling asleep in a staff meeting. I think more of it had to do with the fact that I haven't eaten much all week. Having no appetite will do that to you. So, I came home, ate more soup, took a handful of medication and zoned out on the sofa.

Summary of My Week, so far

Monday
Go to Walk-in Clinic to find out why my face was swollen. Spend a crap load of money on super-expensive antibiotics the Quack at the Walk-in Clinic prescribed. Sleep. Call Dr. Quack to ask what to do since my face had gotten bigger. He suggested going to ER if it got worse. I decided to sleep on it thanks to the vicodin he also prescribed.

Tuesday
Get more and more frustrated because my face seems to be getting worse. Call back to Walk-in Clinic. Dr. Quack isn't there but I could come back out, wait for another 60 minutes to have some other doctor give me a different prescription. Decide to go to ER.

Be thankful that most of Washington state votes by mail and that I sent my vote in a couple of weeks ago.

Go to ER. Talk to doctor. Tell him what I think it wrong: sinuses, not tooth. He thinks it is a tooth. I hope it isn't. Have dye shot into me and a CAT Scan so they can figure out why my face kept getting bigger and bigger. The verdict: A damn tooth. Doctor calls dentist to tell them I need to see them ASAP. Doctor tells me he knows it wasn't what I wanted to hear, but at least I know. And that it's better than having to have them cut my face open. Ok... Silver lining.

Come home, take more vicodin, eat soup, take more antibiotics. Watch election returns. Call Mom to ask her if the infection in my mouth could somehow work its way to my brain in the middle of the night and kill me. She said no. While talking to her, MSNBC calls the election for Obama. I tear up. And then I break down into big, sobbing tears.

Wednesday
Woke up feeling like it was a new beginning. Try to wrap my brain around what happened and what it means to this country to elect this man at this time. Lie in bed listening to Morning Edition on NPR talk about the celebrations that spontaneously erupted after Obama won the presidency.

Go to dentist. Get another prescription. Have part of the infection my mouth drained. Make appointment for a root canal and crown. Come home happy to know why I was sick. Begin to think it doesn't hurt that much anymore... until the Novocain begins to wear off and I realize that, yes, it does still hurt.

Continue to be so very proud of what we did yesterday.

Yes We Can

I will remember this night for the rest of my life. Yes, we can. And we did.

Sick, Again

I'm home sick, again. I'll probably be home tomorrow, too.

I have some sort of infection. I'm going with sinus related since the left side of my face is swollen to at least twice its normal size and my sinuses hurt, as do my ears and throat. I don't know that the doctor at the Walk-in Clinic agreed with my self-diagnosis, though. At first he thought it was teeth but since I was just at the dentist on Thursday for a cleaning, he didn't think that was it. He also wondered if it was an infection in the tissue of my face, but he didn't feel anything that indicated that was the problem. So... I look life half a chimpmunk, and I'm in pain.

Speaking of pain, I went to Walgreen's to get my prescriptions filled. I'm taking antibiotics and vicodin. Go drugs! While I was wandering Walgreen's I was able to hear the pushy Asian pharmacist. I wouldn't say she yelled, but she was very forceful and direct. She was having an animated discussion with this older gentleman when I got there. He thought his insurance could cover more or he was told i would cover more than it did ... either way, you get the idea. I could hear her saying things like, "No, you are no listening to me. They lied to you. I am telling you the truth." Followed by, "No, you are not listening to me. I've told you this five times..." Finally they came to an agreement and she said, "Eight hundred dollar! I just saved you $800. You should take me to lunch."

So, for the next couple of days I will be sleeping, holding a heating pad to me face and sleeping. I'm wondering is the vicodin will make the election returns that much more interesting.

Another Indication I am Old

Someone left a brand new Magic Bullet mixer on the free table in the laundry room. I snatched that thing up in about thirty seconds. And I got really excited about it.

Bill the Editor

I have to stop saying this is the best Daily Show ever, but the show from last night is damn close. Why? The portrayal of John McCain and Larry King's as Statler & Waldorf, the two old men from the Muppets. Oh, and the product placement in the Obama Infomercial.

And don't forget the recaps from the last week.



Seriously, if this country elects John McCain, we really are a bunch of idiots.

Vegan is as Vegan Does

Today is the last day of World Go Vegan Days. This last week has convinced me that this is something I could do and something I will do.

Someone asked me how it has been. I told her it has been incredibly easy yet incredibly difficult. It was easy to make the shift at home and not nearly has difficult to make the shift when eating out. The biggest issue was the convenience foods. Example: I had to be on campus earlier than normal on Wednesday. My initial thought was, "No big deal, if I'm running behind I will just get a muffin." No vegan muffins on campus... So there is more planning involved, but even after a week I have found that getting easier or less obvious.

So, this is the deal... I need to lose weight, and I have been. I've lost 21 pounds. My short-term goal was to lose 20 by the end of October, my long-term goal is to lose 50. I would like to lose ten more by the end of the year. Most of the weight loss has been due to changing my diet. But I want to keep it off and we all know that can be difficult.

For a long time I didn't considered being a vegetarian a big part of who I was. It was what I ate--not a lifestyle. Last Christmas I was talking to my sister-in-law about vitamins, etc. She and my brother take fish oil to help with joints, etc. She suggested I do it, but I pointed out that I was a vegetarian. She understood that, but to her, this was different. Thing is, I found myself getting almost defensive. Defensive in that kept saying again and again, "But, I'm a vegetarian, I can't do that." Well, I could, honestly, but I wasn't willing to break that promise that I had made to myself. Being a vegetarian meant too much to me. The more I thought about it, the more I realized it had become a lifestyle.

So, now I live in a hippie-dippy area of the country, and I have been thinking more and more about my place in this world, my responsibility to the environment, etc. And I realized that being a vegetarian wasn't cutting it. I didn't know if I could take that final step. On top of that, I want to eat better. I want to lose weight and find a way to keep it off. Then today someone offered me some amazingly awesome brownies. I wanted to eat them so badly, but I didn't. I couldn't. I couldn't because, like the fish oil, taking them would mean breaking a promise to myself. I realized it was easier not eat food that is bad for me if I am doing it for something I believed in.

So, I've made the decision. I'm going vegan. I still have food at home that is not vegan. Once this week is over I will eat it, but once it is gone, it's gone. I am going to not buy leather, but I will continue to use the leather items I already own (this is huge for me since I am a complete shoe whore). My goal is to have transitioned into a vegan diet by the end of the year. Being vegan is a process and it evolves, so what I will and won't eat (as far as preservatives, etc.) will probably change over time, but that's life in general, isn't it?

A friend asked me why I decided to do this and I said, "Because it feels like the right thing to do." And it does. And I'm happy with it.

Obama...

This is an amazing set of photographs of Obama, dating from his Illinois senate campaign to the presidential campaign. (Thanks, Marvin.) This view of him, the view of the people attending his rallies, and the access the photographer, Callie Shell, had to him is amazing and intimate. Looking at these photos reminds me of why I admire Barack Obama as much as I do.

I have a lot of thoughts relating to the campaign bouncing through my head. I am still cautiously optimistic, but I am not taking anything for granted. Despite that, I am not only excited about the prospect of a Democrat taking back the White House, but I am ecstatic about this particular Democrat. I have admired Obama since his DNC speech in 2004, and I truly believe that his 2004 speech will go down as one of the watershed moments in US politics.

I'm a fairly pessimistic and cynical person. Yet I do have hope and I do believe Obama can make a real difference in Washington. It's not youthful naivete--I'm well past that part in my life. I honestly, truly, in my gut believe Obama will make a difference. I believe he can change things.

I met a couple of hardcore Palin supporters the other day. We got into a "discussion" about the campaign where I got to hear all about how Obama lets babies die and other various bullshit that is out there. I got really angry, but what upset me the most was how one person was trying to downplay my belief in Obama as being stupid. I don't know if the stupid part was actually believing in any politician or believing in this particular politician. Honestly, I felt myself getting demoralized because I began to wonder if they were right, if having this much faith in one leader is wrong. Or dangerous. Or is believing in a leader the piece that has been missing from US politics for all these years?

I read a story on CNN the other day about an African-American man, a Republican, who voted for Obama. Not because he was black, but because, as Martin Luther King Jr. said, you don't judge a man by the color of his skin, you judge him by his character. I read that and I got teary-eyed. How long has it been since this country was able to vote for someone based on their character?

So, as this long, drawn out election cycle comes to an end, I am, as I said, cautiously optimistic. I want the Democrats to take back Washington. It's time. I want a person with strong character in the office--and if Obama is elected, we will. And then there is the part of me that looks the events of the last two years, and that part of me cannot believe that there is a very good chance this country will elect a black president. That is something I never thought I would see, ever. Sometimes I am in awe of what might happen on November 4. I think about it, and I am proud, seriously proud to be an American. And it's been a long time since I have been able to say that.

It's Official: I have Completely Lost It

I bought Halloween costumes for the cats. I bought them more to torture them and laugh at them than to actually dress them up.

I went to Target today with a friend. While we were both buying kitty litter we stumbled on the pet costumes. I decided the entertainment I would get from annoying my pets would be worth the money I would spend on these stupid things. And it was. Completely. We laughed so hard when I put them on Sasha and Alexsi. So hard we both snorted.

Sahsa looks like a Sausage. It's a small dog shirt. I thought it would fit; it didn't. If it had fit better I would left him in it--he really didn't seem to mind.



"I am totally going to pee on your bed while you are gone."



Alexsi. He's too fat for the tshirt. Eventually, he rolled around on the ground until he got it off his head.

Lute

I grew up in Iowa. Growing up in Iowa meant one thing, you were either an Iowa Hawkeyes fan or an Iowa State Cyclones fan. We were Hawkeye fans. Until my brother went to Iowa State. And my stepbrother became an Iowa State cheerleader. Well, I should say everyone but me was an Iowa State fan.

I'm not a hardcore Hawkeyes fan. I sometimes follow scores. During various college sports playoffs I will cheer for them. But growing up? Hawkeyes all the way.

The Hawks had an amazing basketball team in the '80s, coached by Lute Olsen, who next to Hayden Fry may be one of the more revered sports figures in the state. In seventh grade social science class, when asked to name the biggest news story of the year, the vote was unanimous, the departure of Lute Olsen. He left Iowa City for Arizona. I also remember the first time Lute came back to Iowa City to play the Hawkeyes. It was so quiet in Carver Hawkeye that you really could have heard a pin drop. People were not happy.

Lute was successful in Arizona, and Iowa went on to have many other good basketball coaches, like Dr. Tom Davis. Despite that, Lute Olsen will always be the first person I think of when it comes to Iowa basketball.

What's my point? Lute retired today. After a successful career at two different school, he's done. Good luck, Lute. College basketball will miss you.

I Voted

In Washington you an vote by mail. It's handy, but I kind of miss going to my local polling place, standing in line, pulling the lever/pushing the button, and feeling that pride in voting. Plus, you don't get an "I voted" sticker.

But here's my question: if I already voted, does that mean there is some magical filter I can turn on to filter all the campaign bullshit? Because I'm tired of it.

Food and Knitting

So, more on the vegan front. I had lunch with a vegan today. I was going to attempt to purchase a vegan lunch in the union (which is possible), but I had neither the patience nor the energy to figure it all out. So I got a hummus and veggie wrap--which in itself is another long story I won't bore you with.

But, I tried soy yogurt, and it was fine. Not slimy or weird. But perfectly fine. I learned about vegan bread. And pasta. And a little bit about various preservatives. And this and that. About eating out as a vegan. About eating with friends and family who aren't vegetarian or vegan. And I wondered if I could be vegan except for cheese curds when I am in Wisconsin. And then I went off on how I bought cheese curds at the local farmer's market and when I asked the lady if they were squeaky (aka, fresh) she said they were cold so they wouldn't squeak. For those of you who don't know, fresh cheese curds squeak regardless of temperature. Once you have to rely on temperature to ensure squeakiness you have passed the point of freshness. As I said all this, the Library Vegan (LV, for short) told me that she had heard the same thing, almost word for word from another friend of hers--also from Wisconsin. We are a strange strange people, let me tell you.

Along the same Wisconsin line, I asked if Boca Brats were vegan (because the Quorn meatless products aren't and I recently decided they are beyond awesome). No, they have dairy in them. My gut reaction was, "That may be a deal breaker. I'm totally serious." LV tells me the Tofurky ones are good, but I haven't tried them yet.

I am going to start with cutting out the obvious egg and dairy products. I'm setting a goal of the end of the year. And then I am going to look at the preservatives and whatnot. For now, I am focusing on diet and not lifestyle, but I have a feeling the lifestyle may follow.

I'm feeling good about this. Excited, even. I look forward to eating better and to feeling better. I've lost weight (I am half a pound from twenty pounds), and I hope to lose thirty more.

As for knitting. I finished baby blanket number two. Number three is waiting in the wings, I'm going to start it after the holidays. I am working on something else, but I can't go into details because I am making one for me and one for a Christmas present. Then I need to finish that other damn sock.

But then I found a pattern for this:


This is the April 2007 Pattern Contest Winner over at Jimmy Beats Wool. It's a pattern from Valerie Wallis called Presto Chango, and I am completely in love with it. I want to make it right now. (Oh, as for veganism and wool, I decided I was going to keep using wool. There are other fibers, like bamboo, that are awesome. But for now, I'll stick with wool.)

World Go Vegan Day

I've been playing with going vegan. And by "going vegan" I mean a vegan diet, not lifestyle. The lifestyle may follow, but not yet. I still say "toying" because I am not sure I want to commit to it. But, next week is Word Go Vegan week, and I'm going to give it a shot. I'm leaning towards the vegan diet for several reasons: health, sustainability, etc. I eased into being a vegetarian, so I figure I will see how it goes.

I used to think that I didn't eat much dairy--at least not recently. I don't eat nearly as much cheese as I used to and the only time I use milk is on my cereal. But I eat a lot of yogurt. It's a breakfast staple for me. I know there is soy yogurt, but....

It took me awhile to come around to eating yogurt. I didn't like the texture. I started with Yoplait's custard style yogurt. It didn't wiggle, and it wasn't slimy. Then I was able to move on to more traditional yogurt. But even now, I can't eat yogurt with chunks of stuff in it. I used to, but something happened several years ago. I don't know what, but all of a sudden I decided it was gross.

And then in an effort to eat more organic, etc., I tried hippie yogurt. I don't remember what it was, but I do know it was "Australian-style." It was gross. Texture, taste? Yuck. So, soy yogurt... I fear it will be just as gross.

Anyone have any suggestions about non-dairy yogurt?

Emergency!

Having grown up in the midwest, knowing what to do during thunderstorms, tornadoes and the like is pretty much second nature. Meaning I tend to ignore them. Don't get me wrong, I don't like severe storms nor do I like tornadoes. And even more than that, I hate traveling in them. I've driven through some doozy storms before and was with my mom when we drove under a wall cloud (freaky and unsettling).

When you work in public service you have to know what to do when there is a weather emergency of some sort. When I was in library school the fire alarms went off in the library where I worked. Let me tell you, getting college kids to move during a fire alarm is next to impossible. I came close to yelling at one student to get their ass up off the chair and get the hell out right now. I didn't, but I did my best to imitate my mom's best Mom Voice.

At Ye Olde University we had a couple of tornado warnings where we had to round students up and move them to a different part of the library. At times I felt like a flight attendant--using my arms to direct students while saying, "Everyone move to the back of the building." I do have to say, though, my supervisor had the best line when trying to get students to move: "If you die I'm not picking up your body. Move."

The point to all this? Today I got the emergency procedures for the New University. There are lots of the same things I've seen on others--fire, accident, suspicious mail, etc. Two of them threw me for a second: earthquake and tsunami. I know I live in an earthquake zone and everyone pretends that they are no big deal. No big deal? People, the earth below you moves. It moves. That's scary. Tsunami? Even a bit freakier especially since I live right next to the water. (Although people tell me due to the various islands between us and the ocean, the tsunami threat is fairly low.) But the one that really made me stop?

Volcano.

During a volcano I should avoid flying debris, hot gases, and lava. How do you avoid ash? Stay indoors. Wear goggles. If you have to drive, drive no more than 35 MPH and be prepared to change oil and the various filters every 500-1000 miles in light dust (50-100 in a heavy dust). And, of course, protect dust-sensitive electronics.

Y'all, I live near an active volcano. People tell me it hasn't done anything in lord knows how long and that projections show that if it blows, it will blow away from town. But still....

What's even weirder? When it comes to emergencies, people around here completely lose their shit when there is lightning. Yet they are non-chelant about a damn volcano.

Happy Obama-ween

Yes We Carve.



Thanks, Marvin.

Whirlwind

I took a long weekend to spend some time with LJ, explore the area, visit Seattle, and see the Packers play. We had a good time. I found out that my little bitty place doesn't feel overly small when there are two people in it. I guess my sofa is comfortable to sleep on (or so LJ reported). And sometimes Amtrak doesn't run.

We left for Seattle Saturday morning. We were supposed to go by train. It's the Cascade line--it runs from Vancouver to Portland, Oregon and runs right along the coast. I was pretty excited about it. And then Amtrak called and said the train was broken, so they were shipping us by bus. Bus. BUS. Ugh. But, we got to Seattle earlier than we would have by train, so that was cool.

While waiting for our hotel room, we played tourist. See, when I went to Seattle for ALA Midwinter, I wanted to go to the Space Needle. But Mr. Pants (aka, Kevin) told me that is what tourists did. Uh.... I'm a tourist. So, we took the monorail to the Space Needle. And you know what? There were Packer fans everywhere--all decked out in their green and gold. And when I say everywhere, I mean EVERYwhere.

So, I'm kind of scared of heights. But I still go to the top of tall things as a way to confront my fear. So to the top of the Needle I went. And it was cool.

Space Needle

Downtown Seattle


Mount Baker or Rainer.... I think Baker


Olympic Range

We hit Pike Place Market. Last time I was there it was Saturday morning and very little was open. PantsMan and I had the whole place to ourselves. Not this time. The place was packed from one end to the other.

We ate Greek food. I bought apples. We walked until we were tired... and then we wandered back to the hotel where we pretty much crashed. We eventually had dinner at the Union Square Grill. Very good and yummy.

We had a great view of the city


Seattle at Night

The next day was the Packers game. We put on our jerseys (me, Tauscher, LJ, Driver) and headed out to Qwest Field. We saw lots of Packer fans along the way, we were booed by some Seahawks fans. We wandered Qwest Field a bit and then climbed to the nosebleed section of the upper tier to find our seats. Y'all, I felt like I was sitting on the second to top rung of a ladder. When more people filled the seats, it was better. But when the seats were empty I felt like I was almost vertical.

Warmups

I wasn't sure what it would be like to be part of the opposing side at another game. It wasn't bad. For the most part, the Seahawks fans were cool (unlike Vikings fans). Then there was the fact that there were a crapload of Packers fans there. I mean a crapload. There was a large contingent several sections down from us.

Packers Fans

There were a couple assholes. There were some funny guys--like the guy behind us who would yell "Go Punter Guy" when the Seahawks would punt--usually followed by "You suck Punter Guy."

Players, standing around the field


Actual movement

We sat next to some nice people from Alaska. They were there to watch the game and hang out. The people in front of us stood up for the first quarter of the game. There was some dude wearing his PJs and a stained Packers tshirt who was almost too drunk to function. He mistakenly ended up in our section twice. Each time everyone in our little area were impressed he was able to get back down the stairs without falling.

The game was decent. Both teams were equally mediocre the first half. it was tied 10-10 going into the half. The second half was all Packers. The Seahawks got one touchdown in the fourth quarter. Other than that, all Packers. Two touchdowns and a field goal later, the game was over. After one touchdown I yelled "Brett who?"

First mass exodus after Packers intercepted a Seahawks pass

Empty seats

What I found most interesting was how many Seahawks fans left before the second half. And how many more streamed out of the field when the Packers intercepted a Seahawks pass. By the fourth quarter there were more Packers fan left than Seahawks fans--and we started the Go Pack Go chant and were only mildly booed. And when we left? Groups of Packers fans (drinking, of course) were excited--excited that the Bears had lost to Atlanta. Too bad the Vikings won.

Fru-fru drink at Wild Ginger

By the time we made t back up hill to our hotel room, we were both wiped out. We wandered out for some food at Wild Ginger and called it a night. I was tired and sore.

The next day I had plans to shop and all this stuff, but ended up meeting Mr. Pants for lunch and then parked myself at a coffee shop and read. I was done walking. I can't remember the last time my feet hurt so bad.

I was able to take Amtrak home. On the trip back I got to hear an aging hippie/snowboarder/surfer/professional glass blower give advice to an aspiring hippie/snowboarder/surfer. It was pretty entertaining, really.

So, what did I learn this weekend? I really like Seattle. I mean, I knew that before I moved here, but, seriously. I like Seattle. A whole lot.