In more ways than one.
The crud is slowly going away. I felt like crap this morning, so I slept until noon. Which meant I didn't get to the dump. And I really didn't feel like running. Or biking. Or doing much of anything else.
Went to Wal Mart with Lisa to get some clothes for her, and barely did that. Hard to figure out why that place suddenly sets my teeth on edge.
John wanted to do more algebra this afternoon. Who am I to complain? He's finished the first of six parts of his Algebra I class. Considering it's supposed to be done in eight weeks -- and no fewer -- he's doing pretty well, I'd say. We may have inadvertently hit upon something that'll help him out in school.
I've passed the crud baton to Will and feel badly about it. Almost as badly as he does, I suspect.
Did a little bit of puttering this afternoon. Cleaned about half of John's room before he announced he wanted to go to bed (around 8 pm). He's been getting to sleep early and waking up at some horrible hour lately. Again, I probably shouldn't complain.
The peeps are getting downright snotty. They're taking over the bathroom. I put down some cardboard in a couple of strategic spots, but I'm going to have to figure out something to do here quickly. I may need to step it up on the coop annex construction.
Watched an hour or so of television while folding laundry. Caught the last 30 minutes or so of United 93. Maybe it wouldn't have been such a jarring experience if I hadn't been in New York on Sept. 11, but I don't think so. Talk about draining.
Hopefully, not more of the same tomorrow. This not training business is starting to get on my very last nerve.
Sunday, April 29, 2007
Saturday, April 28, 2007
A Light at the End of the Congestion ... Or Something
Actually beginning (slowly and grudgingly) to feel human again.
Got up fairly early for a Saturday. Ran down to the post office and picked up John's algebra correspondence course, then scooted to the bank, hardware store and office supply store in town. Needed to deposit money in the bank, get some bird suet and wood screws from the hardware store, and a binder for John's course from the office supply place.
I was pretty surprised I wasn't totally wasted by the activity when I got back, so I went outside and put together six more frames for the chicken coop. Each frame is six feet by six feet, and there'll be a six-foot cross-brace within each frame for support. Bad news is that I need a bit more wood for frames, and some 2x4s for the coop floor. I also need to take some old bricks and plant them underneath the coop so rodents can't get to the peeps from underneath.
Speaking of the peeps.
They are getting to be bold little critters, I'll give them that much. I went into the bathroom this morning, and there were eight (!) perched above the brooder. Another three were having a small chicken conversation in back of the brooder. I sneezed, and everyone ran to the back of the brooder faster than teens at a busted keg party.
John was bopping around all day. He went for three walks and claimed to still be bored. So I gave him algebra, and he finished half of the first module. There are six modules in the entire course, so I'm stoked. We talked a little bit about the idea of doing his tough classes (math, science) at home via correspondence course and taking his fun classes (English, history) at school. He seems open to trying it. I'll hope his school counselors are equally open-minded.
It always works. I started baking bread and ziti in hopes of drawing Will out of his room at some point. Sure enough, he just popped his head out long enough to have a discussion over the possibility of his taking a computer programming correspondence course. He took one in the Large Metro Area That We Fled Screaming From, but he didn't learn much, since the teacher was forever drafting him as her assistant.
The bread turned out pretty good. I used plain white flour with about two cups of seven-grain, so it's a bit on the crunchy side. And I feel like a bit of a slacker for not grinding spelt, but, eh. I've still got a bit of a sore throat. So cut me a break.
All in all, can't complain too much. I'll haul trash to the transfer station tomorrow morning, go for a short run (I hope), and Lisa and I will head into Keene. She needs some clothes, and I need some more chicken coop wood.
If I get really ambitious, I might ride my bike to my run.
Got up fairly early for a Saturday. Ran down to the post office and picked up John's algebra correspondence course, then scooted to the bank, hardware store and office supply store in town. Needed to deposit money in the bank, get some bird suet and wood screws from the hardware store, and a binder for John's course from the office supply place.
I was pretty surprised I wasn't totally wasted by the activity when I got back, so I went outside and put together six more frames for the chicken coop. Each frame is six feet by six feet, and there'll be a six-foot cross-brace within each frame for support. Bad news is that I need a bit more wood for frames, and some 2x4s for the coop floor. I also need to take some old bricks and plant them underneath the coop so rodents can't get to the peeps from underneath.
Speaking of the peeps.
They are getting to be bold little critters, I'll give them that much. I went into the bathroom this morning, and there were eight (!) perched above the brooder. Another three were having a small chicken conversation in back of the brooder. I sneezed, and everyone ran to the back of the brooder faster than teens at a busted keg party.
John was bopping around all day. He went for three walks and claimed to still be bored. So I gave him algebra, and he finished half of the first module. There are six modules in the entire course, so I'm stoked. We talked a little bit about the idea of doing his tough classes (math, science) at home via correspondence course and taking his fun classes (English, history) at school. He seems open to trying it. I'll hope his school counselors are equally open-minded.
It always works. I started baking bread and ziti in hopes of drawing Will out of his room at some point. Sure enough, he just popped his head out long enough to have a discussion over the possibility of his taking a computer programming correspondence course. He took one in the Large Metro Area That We Fled Screaming From, but he didn't learn much, since the teacher was forever drafting him as her assistant.
The bread turned out pretty good. I used plain white flour with about two cups of seven-grain, so it's a bit on the crunchy side. And I feel like a bit of a slacker for not grinding spelt, but, eh. I've still got a bit of a sore throat. So cut me a break.
All in all, can't complain too much. I'll haul trash to the transfer station tomorrow morning, go for a short run (I hope), and Lisa and I will head into Keene. She needs some clothes, and I need some more chicken coop wood.
If I get really ambitious, I might ride my bike to my run.
Friday, April 27, 2007
I've Been Better
Slept until noon today. The Tylenol PM decongestant just kicks my butt. I wake up, and the room is spinning. Not much chance of a run, although I've still got hopes for Sunday.
Did a little bit of light work this afternoon, but not enough. It would've been a good day to just sit outside and vegetate, but it wasn't a good day to sit outside and vegetate. It's been about 45, drizzling and foggy all day long.
If you haven't tried it: Netvibes just kicks butt. Your entire Internet, on one page. I'm not kidding.
Talked to my brother and father this evening. Brother's been worried about dad. Called dad to see how he was doing, and he didn't sound that bad. Worries me that part of this might just be, oh, a tiny bit of denial on my part. Anyway, he had his dog with him and was at our ranch this weekend. Sounded fine. I called brother back, who's deeply suspicious. And probably deeply right.
Forecast is more of the same tomorrow -- head congestion in the morning, followed by rain and drizzle throughout the day. Ugh. Maybe I'll get some chicken coop construction done, or some long-deferred breadmaking, or some even longer-deferred cleaning.
Did a little bit of light work this afternoon, but not enough. It would've been a good day to just sit outside and vegetate, but it wasn't a good day to sit outside and vegetate. It's been about 45, drizzling and foggy all day long.
If you haven't tried it: Netvibes just kicks butt. Your entire Internet, on one page. I'm not kidding.
Talked to my brother and father this evening. Brother's been worried about dad. Called dad to see how he was doing, and he didn't sound that bad. Worries me that part of this might just be, oh, a tiny bit of denial on my part. Anyway, he had his dog with him and was at our ranch this weekend. Sounded fine. I called brother back, who's deeply suspicious. And probably deeply right.
Forecast is more of the same tomorrow -- head congestion in the morning, followed by rain and drizzle throughout the day. Ugh. Maybe I'll get some chicken coop construction done, or some long-deferred breadmaking, or some even longer-deferred cleaning.
Thursday, April 26, 2007
Upper Respiratory
It's a nice name for a ski run, but sucks as a diagnosis. Broke down today and went to the doctor's office. Turns out I've got the crud that's going around, and probably won't be over it completely until next week.
Crap.
I slept all day yesterday. Today, not so much, but I'm still pretty dead. I'm hoping to be running again by Sunday.
On the bright side, the gym is closed for another week.
Crap.
I slept all day yesterday. Today, not so much, but I'm still pretty dead. I'm hoping to be running again by Sunday.
On the bright side, the gym is closed for another week.
Tuesday, April 24, 2007
Frustration
I hate being sick. I've been sick too long now. I'm going to wake up tomorrow morning and not be sick. So there.
Even with being sick, I got a bit done today. I woke up early, about 545a, and took the boys to school. Will took off for his field trip to New York. Pretty exciting stuff for a bunch of country kids.
"You know the difference between New York City and here, right?" I asked him in the car.
"It's harder being gangsta here," John said.
(Correct answer: Someone might give a rat's ass if you've got a problem here. But I had to give Big Brother points for creativity.)
Meant to do some work when I got home, but I was feeling so crappy that I just had to go lie down, and we all know what that means. I woke up around 1115a and had to scramble to get back to school to pick up John for his eye doctor's appointment.
Got his eyes checked. He wants contact lenses, but had real problems getting them into his eyes. We'll try again in a couple of weeks; I think he just needs the practice. Anyway, we had a good ride back home. Stopped and got Kentucky Fried Chicken, mostly so we could take photos of the boxes next to the peeps.
"You're a good dad," he said.
Made my day. Even better than a good run.
Even with being sick, I got a bit done today. I woke up early, about 545a, and took the boys to school. Will took off for his field trip to New York. Pretty exciting stuff for a bunch of country kids.
"You know the difference between New York City and here, right?" I asked him in the car.
"It's harder being gangsta here," John said.
(Correct answer: Someone might give a rat's ass if you've got a problem here. But I had to give Big Brother points for creativity.)
Meant to do some work when I got home, but I was feeling so crappy that I just had to go lie down, and we all know what that means. I woke up around 1115a and had to scramble to get back to school to pick up John for his eye doctor's appointment.
Got his eyes checked. He wants contact lenses, but had real problems getting them into his eyes. We'll try again in a couple of weeks; I think he just needs the practice. Anyway, we had a good ride back home. Stopped and got Kentucky Fried Chicken, mostly so we could take photos of the boxes next to the peeps.
"You're a good dad," he said.
Made my day. Even better than a good run.
Monday, April 23, 2007
A Horrible Loss
David Halberstam
1934-2007
1934-2007
What a terrible, terrible shame. We're getting over losing more than 30 kids in southern Virginia. Nine US soldiers died in Iraq today. But this is the one that hurts.
For people who really value good reporters, this is -- and I hate to keep using the word -- a horrible loss. But he was just a reporter's reporter, down to barely being on speaking terms with his New York-based bosses.
A lot of people will look at "The Best and the Brightest" as his best work, but I'd argue that the book was not too far from a recapitulation of his best reporting on Vietnam, and his best book (possibly the best piece of business journalism in the last half-century) was "The Reckoning."
He'll be missed.
For people who really value good reporters, this is -- and I hate to keep using the word -- a horrible loss. But he was just a reporter's reporter, down to barely being on speaking terms with his New York-based bosses.
A lot of people will look at "The Best and the Brightest" as his best work, but I'd argue that the book was not too far from a recapitulation of his best reporting on Vietnam, and his best book (possibly the best piece of business journalism in the last half-century) was "The Reckoning."
He'll be missed.
A Little Better, A Lot Worse
I've been more or less flat on my ass the last few days. Some kind of strep crud. Can't really speak, ears are stopped up, head is full of something bad, etc.
Needless to say, I haven't run/swam/biked since Friday.
I guess I could. I'm sure there are some pretty hard-core folks out there whose mantra is all about playing with pain. But as I once said to a high school football coach: "I'll play with pain. I just don't think it's smart to play with injury."
Don't think he got the distinction. A rare moment when subtlety escaped a high school football coach, I'm guessing.
The peeps are doing OK. One of the Reds escaped from the brooder last night and peeped really loudly until I went down and put it back. And I did get out this weekend and pick up lumber and chicken wire for the outdoor coop.
It is gorgeous outside these days. Really annoys me about being sick. Frogs are chirping away (or whatever they do) in the pond. I saw a couple of deer going bouncing across a pasture -- a big, mile-wide pasture -- yesterday. Heard an owl last night. Perfect running weather. Perfect small chicken weather. Perfect weather, period.
Of course, it's supposed to snow later this week. Figures.
Boys have a busy week. Will's going to New York on a field trip for two days. He knows the city, so it ought to be fun for him. Anyway, I'm keeping my fingers crossed. John has an eye doctor's appointment, and one of his correspondence courses ought to be showing up in our mail any day now. He also told me he wants us to do some hiking and rock-climbing together this summer. I'm flattered.
Still trying to deal with things financial this week. It's a disaster, and that's not helping the relationship. I may have to pick up a second, part-time job. Sigh.
Needless to say, I haven't run/swam/biked since Friday.
I guess I could. I'm sure there are some pretty hard-core folks out there whose mantra is all about playing with pain. But as I once said to a high school football coach: "I'll play with pain. I just don't think it's smart to play with injury."
Don't think he got the distinction. A rare moment when subtlety escaped a high school football coach, I'm guessing.
The peeps are doing OK. One of the Reds escaped from the brooder last night and peeped really loudly until I went down and put it back. And I did get out this weekend and pick up lumber and chicken wire for the outdoor coop.
It is gorgeous outside these days. Really annoys me about being sick. Frogs are chirping away (or whatever they do) in the pond. I saw a couple of deer going bouncing across a pasture -- a big, mile-wide pasture -- yesterday. Heard an owl last night. Perfect running weather. Perfect small chicken weather. Perfect weather, period.
Of course, it's supposed to snow later this week. Figures.
Boys have a busy week. Will's going to New York on a field trip for two days. He knows the city, so it ought to be fun for him. Anyway, I'm keeping my fingers crossed. John has an eye doctor's appointment, and one of his correspondence courses ought to be showing up in our mail any day now. He also told me he wants us to do some hiking and rock-climbing together this summer. I'm flattered.
Still trying to deal with things financial this week. It's a disaster, and that's not helping the relationship. I may have to pick up a second, part-time job. Sigh.
Friday, April 20, 2007
The First REAL Day of Spring
So I was in a pretty foul mood this morning over dad's health, training-related arguments from last night, and a hangover that had my head feeling like the NBA playoffs had started in my cranium.
The morning didn't get much better. Turns out the Company had told me it was putting $300/month into a pre-tax health care flexible spending account (basically, you spend it, you get it back). Turns out it wasn't quite so. And there's now about four months' worth of my money bouncing around in the ether somewhere, and no chance in hell of getting it back anytime soon.
Dad isn't doing so well. His primary physician is worried about Alzheimer's now. No formal diagnosis, but it's not good. Can't be. So about the best news of the day was that our cousin Elaine is going down to spend the weekend and check on him, make sure he's taking better care of himself. God only knows what we'll do if things don't improve.
With all the crap going on this morning, I didn't make it to the gym today. Which is kind of bad news, since the gym closes for two weeks for repairs and renovations after tomorrow. But I couldn't find my keys and needed Diet Coke, so I jumped on the mountain bike and rode five miles into town to pick some up.
OK, I'll be the first to admit: There's a difference between exercise bicycle hills and mountain bicycle hills. Since I live near the bottom of a hill, the first couple of hills were just brutal. Ouch. I walked periodically just to keep my quadriceps from running away. Going down wasn't exactly a picnic, either. I'd be humming along downhill and look at the Garmin, which would announce some reading along the lines of, oh, Mach 2.4. I could imagine the 'splat' if a tire blew.
Anyway, I made it into town without major injury -- just my pride, thank you -- checked my email at the internet cafe, grabbed my copy of the New Yorker (cartoon at the top) and SI from the post office, and ate a hamburger and fries at the local diner.
Yes, I ate a hamburger. With fries. And I'm not sorry.
Went by the general store, strapped two 12-packs of Diet Coke to the rack. Huffed and puffed up the long hills on the way back to the house. Got to the top of the last (and steepest) hill and saw blue sky. Long valleys. And at least three states. Smelled deep, rich fir. Felt the sun on my face. And for a few minutes, I just felt really, really good.
Thursday, April 19, 2007
Wednesday, April 18, 2007
A Nice Afternoon Run
I really needed it. For the hell of it, I ran around a lake near our town. The hills are awful, like thousand-foot elevation changes in less than a mile, but the views are pretty good, and it's very, very quiet. Here's the lake in the summer:
Anyway, I ran -- pathetically slow, but I ran. And it was a nice run. It was quiet, foggy at higher elevation, but not too bad. Seemed kind of deserted all around, which was what I needed. I live in a town with 750 people, most of whom live more than a mile apart, and I feel crowded. I didn't feel crowded today.
It was better than the rest of my day. I was up fighting until 3 am over training time and other issues, which didn't make me a happy camper when I finally got up today. I'm still pissed, and I think I'll be pissed for quite some time about the lack of support on the home front. It's not just the exercise -- I really need the time alone right now with dad, with work, with everything. And I'm told I can't have it. Which just pisses me off.
Lost four chicks overnight. It's just too hot in the bathroom. I need to cool them off a bit.
Got a few things done on the work front that might pay off, but I didn't work nearly enough.
Dad's just not doing well. I feel like I should go down there, but I'm not sure he wants me down there when he's not doing well. And I understand that. It's a parent thing. In 2001, I got very, very sick on the day before Christmas. Fever was up around 106.5, blood pressure was down to 75/30, I was having seizures, etc. Turned out to be a bad infection that had gone septic. At some point on Christmas morning, the doctors came in and said it looked pretty bad, and I might want to say goodbye to my kids.
Hell, no. There was just no way in hell they were going to see their dad hooked up to a half-dozen IVs and looking like hammered crap on Christmas. The docs kind of shrugged, said something about it being my funeral, and left muttering at the idiot in the ICU.
Anyway, I lived. I guess if I'd died, I'd have been really embarrassed and feeling stupid. But not wanting your kids to see you sick is a parenting thing. I just hope he's OK.
I did a little better on the diet today. Thought about signing up for the April 2008 Phoenix Ironman, but I'm not there yet. And to be honest, I may never be there. But when I do get there, I want to be ready. I mean, really ready.
And finally, one of life's little annoyances: It's horrible that some asshole shot up a school and killed more than 30 people. It's horrible, and the fact that the asshole killed himself makes it a better planet today. But too many people think it's their fucking life-altering tragedy. It's not. It's a fucking life-altering tragedy for the people whose children got killed.
End of rant. I'll run/bike/swim it off tomorrow.
Anyway, I ran -- pathetically slow, but I ran. And it was a nice run. It was quiet, foggy at higher elevation, but not too bad. Seemed kind of deserted all around, which was what I needed. I live in a town with 750 people, most of whom live more than a mile apart, and I feel crowded. I didn't feel crowded today.
It was better than the rest of my day. I was up fighting until 3 am over training time and other issues, which didn't make me a happy camper when I finally got up today. I'm still pissed, and I think I'll be pissed for quite some time about the lack of support on the home front. It's not just the exercise -- I really need the time alone right now with dad, with work, with everything. And I'm told I can't have it. Which just pisses me off.
Lost four chicks overnight. It's just too hot in the bathroom. I need to cool them off a bit.
Got a few things done on the work front that might pay off, but I didn't work nearly enough.
Dad's just not doing well. I feel like I should go down there, but I'm not sure he wants me down there when he's not doing well. And I understand that. It's a parent thing. In 2001, I got very, very sick on the day before Christmas. Fever was up around 106.5, blood pressure was down to 75/30, I was having seizures, etc. Turned out to be a bad infection that had gone septic. At some point on Christmas morning, the doctors came in and said it looked pretty bad, and I might want to say goodbye to my kids.
Hell, no. There was just no way in hell they were going to see their dad hooked up to a half-dozen IVs and looking like hammered crap on Christmas. The docs kind of shrugged, said something about it being my funeral, and left muttering at the idiot in the ICU.
Anyway, I lived. I guess if I'd died, I'd have been really embarrassed and feeling stupid. But not wanting your kids to see you sick is a parenting thing. I just hope he's OK.
I did a little better on the diet today. Thought about signing up for the April 2008 Phoenix Ironman, but I'm not there yet. And to be honest, I may never be there. But when I do get there, I want to be ready. I mean, really ready.
And finally, one of life's little annoyances: It's horrible that some asshole shot up a school and killed more than 30 people. It's horrible, and the fact that the asshole killed himself makes it a better planet today. But too many people think it's their fucking life-altering tragedy. It's not. It's a fucking life-altering tragedy for the people whose children got killed.
End of rant. I'll run/bike/swim it off tomorrow.
Tuesday, April 17, 2007
Guess Who's Coming For Breakfast? Maybe Lunch and Dinner, Too.
The phone usually doesn't ring at 6:30 am with good news. And since I'd taken not one but two Vicodin overnight and had a pretty disturbing talk with my older brother about our dad's health, I wasn't overly eager to grab it. Turned out it was the post office, though. They had something in a box for me, and wanted me to come get it, as soon as possible.
When a postal worker starts talking to you, and his voice is maybe just a tiny bit edgy, and it's very early in the morning, I think you need to listen. I crunched through the snow and ice and picked up my package:
Fifty, count 'em, 50 live Arucanas and New Hampshire Reds. OK, one of the Reds was dead on arrival, but they'd thrown in an extra peep, so it's an even 50. I put them in the brooder and introduced them one by one to their water and food. After about an hour, I had what amounts to the Grand Central Terminal for chickens:
It's all pretty amazing. One day old, and they're already going to town over who gets dinner first.
The dogs were pretty happy, particularly Stink, who redefines the phrase "egg-sucking dog." We had chickens a few years ago, and he became rather skilled at finding stray eggs.
The cat, not so happy. She'll want to wait until they're old enough to be sport before she kills them.
But I digress. After getting the peeps arranged in the downstairs bathroom -- small enough to heat well, a little out-of-the-way, and a built-in ventilation fan -- I did a bunch of work for the day job.
Should've done more, but I was still pretty zonked from the previous night's Vicodin. Took a break around 2:30 pm to go by the post office (my usual post office; the one that didn't have my chickens) and went by the gym.
Ran into Our Friend Jimmy there. Jimmy's your typical Long Island Irish guy, except he's now a househusband who spends most of his free time working out at the gym. Jimmy's a big guy. We had him and his wife Patti over for brunch a few months back, and I was deeply concerned because we only had two pounds of sausage and 18 eggs. I might mention that Jimmy used to be a pro body builder and looks better at 51 than I've ever looked in my entire life. Anyway, I pedaled away on the bike while we chatted. He was just down around the Gulf Coast with his church, helping rebuild.
"I'm not an educated guy," Jimmy said.
This generally is Long Island Irish for: "Someone's ass is gonna get kicked."
"But we're building cottages. Cottages."
"Like, um, cottages in the Hamptons?"
"We send $12 billion on pallets to Iraq. We lose it, right?"
I wouldn't say we lost it, exactly ... I think it just wasn't spent in accordance with Generally Accepted Accounting Procedures. But given that Jimmy's about six inches taller, 50 pounds heavier and has about, oh, 15 percent less body fat, I listen. And it's a pretty entertaining conversational thread. Cottages? Iraq?
"Could we have fucked things up any less in either country if we'd just given that money to people after Katrina?"
A good point, even if Jimmy were six inches shorter, 50 pounds lighter and had 15 percent more body fat. But since he's not, I think we need to turn him loose in Washington. Only problem is Jimmy's a really nice guy, so there probably wouldn't be much (or enough) in the way of mayhem.
I finished 25 miles on the bike, then went to swim. I got about a quarter-mile done before some 7-year-old's birthday party commenced, so I abandoned the pool a bit early today. Went home and checked my peeps. Opened the door and had my little moment:
"All hail J! All hail J!"
The peeps are doing pretty well. I think I'm going to lose one more, but that's still not too bad. And they sound busy as all hell. Haven't seen a lot of pecking and poor behavior just yet.
Lot more work to do in the morning. Hoping the peeps don't run into any overnight issues.
When a postal worker starts talking to you, and his voice is maybe just a tiny bit edgy, and it's very early in the morning, I think you need to listen. I crunched through the snow and ice and picked up my package:
Fifty, count 'em, 50 live Arucanas and New Hampshire Reds. OK, one of the Reds was dead on arrival, but they'd thrown in an extra peep, so it's an even 50. I put them in the brooder and introduced them one by one to their water and food. After about an hour, I had what amounts to the Grand Central Terminal for chickens:
It's all pretty amazing. One day old, and they're already going to town over who gets dinner first.
The dogs were pretty happy, particularly Stink, who redefines the phrase "egg-sucking dog." We had chickens a few years ago, and he became rather skilled at finding stray eggs.
The cat, not so happy. She'll want to wait until they're old enough to be sport before she kills them.
But I digress. After getting the peeps arranged in the downstairs bathroom -- small enough to heat well, a little out-of-the-way, and a built-in ventilation fan -- I did a bunch of work for the day job.
Should've done more, but I was still pretty zonked from the previous night's Vicodin. Took a break around 2:30 pm to go by the post office (my usual post office; the one that didn't have my chickens) and went by the gym.
Ran into Our Friend Jimmy there. Jimmy's your typical Long Island Irish guy, except he's now a househusband who spends most of his free time working out at the gym. Jimmy's a big guy. We had him and his wife Patti over for brunch a few months back, and I was deeply concerned because we only had two pounds of sausage and 18 eggs. I might mention that Jimmy used to be a pro body builder and looks better at 51 than I've ever looked in my entire life. Anyway, I pedaled away on the bike while we chatted. He was just down around the Gulf Coast with his church, helping rebuild.
"I'm not an educated guy," Jimmy said.
This generally is Long Island Irish for: "Someone's ass is gonna get kicked."
"But we're building cottages. Cottages."
"Like, um, cottages in the Hamptons?"
"We send $12 billion on pallets to Iraq. We lose it, right?"
I wouldn't say we lost it, exactly ... I think it just wasn't spent in accordance with Generally Accepted Accounting Procedures. But given that Jimmy's about six inches taller, 50 pounds heavier and has about, oh, 15 percent less body fat, I listen. And it's a pretty entertaining conversational thread. Cottages? Iraq?
"Could we have fucked things up any less in either country if we'd just given that money to people after Katrina?"
A good point, even if Jimmy were six inches shorter, 50 pounds lighter and had 15 percent more body fat. But since he's not, I think we need to turn him loose in Washington. Only problem is Jimmy's a really nice guy, so there probably wouldn't be much (or enough) in the way of mayhem.
I finished 25 miles on the bike, then went to swim. I got about a quarter-mile done before some 7-year-old's birthday party commenced, so I abandoned the pool a bit early today. Went home and checked my peeps. Opened the door and had my little moment:
"All hail J! All hail J!"
The peeps are doing pretty well. I think I'm going to lose one more, but that's still not too bad. And they sound busy as all hell. Haven't seen a lot of pecking and poor behavior just yet.
Lot more work to do in the morning. Hoping the peeps don't run into any overnight issues.
Monday, April 16, 2007
Wet
So ... a decent Friday off, although Friday night turned into a fiasco. A decent Saturday off, although Saturday night wasn't much better. The day started out OK on Sunday -- ran 10.25 miles in a nor'easter, as pretty a run as I've had in a long time, but when I came back to check on things at the house before heading back to the gym, Lisa and I got into it over how much time I'm spending working out, and the entire weekend pretty much went to hell from there.
Here's a picture from the second floor:
My shoulder got very wet running in the snow and locked up on me -- rotator cuff issue -- and I didn't go to the gym Sunday, so I had to tough it out with ice packs. Didn't help, really.
Woke up late Monday (kids have spring break, and the shoulder didn't help), and the snow had turned to rain. Roads are washing out all over the place, power is flickering on and off, and the shoulder still hurts like merry hell. On the bright side, at least I'm not going to school at Virginia Tech, where more than 30 kids got killed today. Jeez.
Here's a picture from the second floor:
My shoulder got very wet running in the snow and locked up on me -- rotator cuff issue -- and I didn't go to the gym Sunday, so I had to tough it out with ice packs. Didn't help, really.
Woke up late Monday (kids have spring break, and the shoulder didn't help), and the snow had turned to rain. Roads are washing out all over the place, power is flickering on and off, and the shoulder still hurts like merry hell. On the bright side, at least I'm not going to school at Virginia Tech, where more than 30 kids got killed today. Jeez.
I'm not a huge fan, but I did like Friedman's Sunday article:
Catching up on Doonesbury:
Wound up doing a little bit on Monday at the gym -- a one-mile swim (very painfully and very slowly) and a 13.2-mile bike ride. Diet kinda went to hell. I'll make it up this week. Or, the way my diet generally goes, this month.
Friday, April 13, 2007
A Day Off
So I'm not sure if this was a good thing or not, but I took today off. I've done four workouts each this week (swimming, running and biking), and don't want to overdo. I'll take tomorrow off, too, before hitting the road again Sunday with a 10-miler and swimming.
Of course, that's assuming I can get out of the house. We're supposed to get blasted with a nor'easter -- think a hurricane, with snow -- on Sunday, 10 to 30 inches in the mountains. So the running outside might not happen. And now I'm thinking I probably won't get on an actual bike until May.
Overslept again (damn!) and had to put the car into major four-wheel to get out of the drive. Took the boys to school and stopped off at the grocery for some one-pot pasta ingredients. After a brief domestic disturbance, I worked pretty hard at the day job today and may well have even gotten a few things accomplished. Talked with dad on the phone. He's getting excited about little brother's graduation from university (should be the same day as the stepdaughter's graduation from basic training). Anyway, he was heading down to the ranch, where he'll see lots of these:
I really miss our ranch. Dad and Mom built a beautiful house down there, about two hours south of San Antonio. This time of year, the bluebonnets and Indian paintbrushes go wild. There are a couple of nice ponds for fishing, and of course, pastures. Here's a shot that I use for a computer desktop:
Dad's fond of calling around January or so to let me know that it's exactly 100 degrees warmer where he is. Of course, I can call him in July and let him know that it's exactly 100 degrees cooler where I am. Still, it's a gorgeous place.
And while I'm doing images, here's the latest Doonesbury:
I'm still a little freaked about taking two days off. I know it shouldn't hurt, and might even help. But it still seems ... just ... weird.
I'm going to do crunches tomorrow. Swear. And put together the chicken brooder before the chicks get here. And get some chick food. And think more about the garden layout. And clean John's room. And bake bread.
Yeesh. No rest for the wicked.
Of course, that's assuming I can get out of the house. We're supposed to get blasted with a nor'easter -- think a hurricane, with snow -- on Sunday, 10 to 30 inches in the mountains. So the running outside might not happen. And now I'm thinking I probably won't get on an actual bike until May.
Overslept again (damn!) and had to put the car into major four-wheel to get out of the drive. Took the boys to school and stopped off at the grocery for some one-pot pasta ingredients. After a brief domestic disturbance, I worked pretty hard at the day job today and may well have even gotten a few things accomplished. Talked with dad on the phone. He's getting excited about little brother's graduation from university (should be the same day as the stepdaughter's graduation from basic training). Anyway, he was heading down to the ranch, where he'll see lots of these:
I really miss our ranch. Dad and Mom built a beautiful house down there, about two hours south of San Antonio. This time of year, the bluebonnets and Indian paintbrushes go wild. There are a couple of nice ponds for fishing, and of course, pastures. Here's a shot that I use for a computer desktop:
Dad's fond of calling around January or so to let me know that it's exactly 100 degrees warmer where he is. Of course, I can call him in July and let him know that it's exactly 100 degrees cooler where I am. Still, it's a gorgeous place.
And while I'm doing images, here's the latest Doonesbury:
I'm still a little freaked about taking two days off. I know it shouldn't hurt, and might even help. But it still seems ... just ... weird.
I'm going to do crunches tomorrow. Swear. And put together the chicken brooder before the chicks get here. And get some chick food. And think more about the garden layout. And clean John's room. And bake bread.
Yeesh. No rest for the wicked.
Thursday, April 12, 2007
Snow in the Spruces Redux
Caramba! About 10 inches, all told. We've had snow late in the year, but I don't remember (since I've been here, anyway) having such a steady stream of the white stuff during April. This is generally high mud season, and we might get one more snow in May or June.
I figured this morning it would be better to run in snow than sleet and/or rain, so I got going right away. I did 9.2 miles. A little slippery, and there was about an inch of snow on the brim of my hat after the run, but all things considered, I was happy to make it. Saw a raft of turkeys that came out of the woods to gobble and scold me for the snow.
I'll mention right now that people up here are pretty darn tolerant. I run down a dirt road, and between a roaring stream and my iPod, usually don't hear cars coming from behind. It was slippery and kind of mushy, so I was running more or less down the middle of it this morning. I was listening to a long-ish song, and when it stopped, I could hear crunching behind me. So I jumped to the left-hand side of the road, and a car that had probably been following me for a good five minutes puttered past me. The driver waved; it wasn't the hand gesture I would've expected. That's all I'm saying.
Doonesbury is slowing down a bit:
After the run (a 9:22/mile pace, ugh), I stopped by the house to see what we needed in the way of storm supplies, pick up my gym bag and change my tops -- my sleeveless, turtleneck and hoodie were soaking wet. Had to put the car into four-wheel to get in and out of the driveway, and had a few bad moments going down the Hill Road, but made it to the gym unscathed. Biked 14 miles and sat in the hot tub for about 10 minutes since my quads were really aching. Then went to the general store for miscallaneous food and the hardware store for new oil lamp wicks. I'll need them when the power goes out, which could be any moment.
How bad was it today? Put it this way: They let the boys out of school after lunch. Hardly ever happens. The schools here decide if it's going to be a snow day or not based on whether or not the school buses can make it (safely) up the hills.
Worked like a Banshee -- is that a capital noun? -- most of the afternoon and into the evening. Glad to get all my workouts done for the week. I'll do an hour of crunches in the morning tomorrow, and pretend it'll be OK for me to make the following, courtesy of today's NY Times:
Recipe: Supernatural Brownies
Adapted from “Chocolate: From Simple Cookies to Extravagant Showstoppers,” by Nick Malgieri (Morrow Cookbooks, 1998)
Time: About 1 hour
2 sticks (16 tablespoons) butter, more for pan and parchment paper
8 ounces bittersweet chocolate
4 eggs
1/2 teaspoon salt
1 cup dark brown sugar, such as muscovado
1 cup granulated sugar
2 teaspoons vanilla extract
1 cup flour
1/2 cup chopped walnuts or 3/4 cup whole walnuts, optional.
1. Butter a 13-by-9-inch baking pan and line with buttered parchment paper. Preheat oven to 350 degrees. In top of a double boiler set over barely simmering water, or on low power in a microwave, melt butter and chocolate together. Cool slightly. In a large bowl or mixer, whisk eggs. Whisk in salt, sugars and vanilla.
2. Whisk in chocolate mixture. Fold in flour just until combined. If using chopped walnuts, stir them in. Pour batter into prepared pan. If using whole walnuts, arrange on top of batter. Bake for 35 to 40 minutes or until shiny and beginning to crack on top. Cool in pan on rack.
Yield: 15 large or 24 small brownies.
Note: For best flavor, bake 1 day before serving, let cool and store, tightly wrapped.
Which at this rate, will probably be around September.
Wednesday, April 11, 2007
Bonk
I didn't get nearly enough sleep last night, so I was a bit startled when I checked my running time this morning. I did 3.2 miles in a little more than 27 minutes, or an average of 8:32/mile. Which, for most of the world, is slightly faster than a trot, but for me, was blazing.
Got to the gym and read the New Yorker on the bicycle. Very good article on commuting in America. During my last tour in A Loathsome East Coast City, I generally drove about four miles to a train station. Because of traffic, the drive took me -- on a good day -- 20 minutes. Then I took a train to a subway stop. The train took about an hour and five minutes. Then I took the subway stop about three or four stops down, to a stop about three blocks from work. That took 10 minutes on a good day. Finally, I walked the three blocks (stopping at Starbucks for coffee and scone).
General commuting time? One hour, 45 minutes. One way.
After I swam a half-mile, I was changing in the locker room and got into a conversation with one of the local retirees. Turned out we'd both lived in Another Loathsome East Coast City. Agreed the commute is not something to be missed.
And it is indeed a good thing that I didn't have to commute today. After getting back from the gym, I figured I'd start working early and maybe finish early. Quite the concept? The "starting early" part of the plan went well. Around noon, I wandered downstairs and sat on the bed to take my shoes off.
Bad move.
The next thing I remember is waking up around 1:30 pm and saying oh, shit!
I'm guessing I'm not getting off 30 minutes early today. But working out of the house is strange like that. I'll work -- solidly -- 10 hours today and feel guilty about the hour and a half nap, even though an awful lot of folks would look at an hour and a half and think ... lunch.
I know. Rationalize, much?
The Doonesbury saga continues. There's a word for this person: Tourist.
I meant to post this yesterday:
'Two to three months," the doctor said, almost reluctantly, when I finally posed the question. That's eight to twelve weeks. Sixty to 90 days. Or 2,160 hours, if you want to get right down to it.
I don't know what possessed me to ask the oncologist how long I have left. In the nearly three years I've been battling this disease, I've never asked for my prognosis. I hate that word. But my body has betrayed me lately, more than usual. I've had a rough couple of weeks, with news of my cancer spreading, new blood clots, and fluid buildup in my abdomen, which has made it difficult to breathe.
Whether the oncologist is right, no one knows. These white-coated mortals do their best and make their best guesses based on data and statistics and other cases. But death, like life, is not a precise science. Only fate knows. What I know for certain is that I am 39. I have seen people like my grandfather live simple but happy long lives. He died when he was 93. On the opposite end, in my job as a reporter, I have seen 3-year-olds die at the hands of abusive parents. Nothing really makes sense when it comes to death.
Still, I was hoping you wouldn't notice the recent absence of my column; I was wrong. Apparently there are more readers out there than my parents and my husband. I didn't want to tackle this subject in this space. I had more cerebral, complicated topics in mind. Like the most recent controversial study surrounding the benefits of early CT scan screening for lung cancer, or the recent, sickening push by one tobacco company to market its traditionally male-oriented brand of cigarette to young women. I hope to eventually get to those topics.
Eventually - what a luxurious word. For some reason, talking about my latest news seems so self-pitying and morose. But I've been pretty honest about the disease from the beginning, and it seemed dishonest not to write about this very real aspect of life. This life with cancer.
So if you are told you have two to three months, what do you do with your time?
There are avenues I've left unexplored, things that have gone unsaid to certain people that I will always regret. There's a hut in the Florida Keys or the South Pacific that my husband and I will probably never see. A trip to Italy with friends before my 40th birthday to re-create, at least a little bit, my junior year abroad.
No, I am not headed to Italy, and I am unsure of where to go from here. The key, I guess, to living at this moment, is just to keep things as normal as possible, for as long as possible. This means getting up in the morning, going for a walk, trying to work and trying to write.
If things end, and there is a heaven, I will have a drink with JFK Jr. and thwack him on the head for flying that night in the fog, the night his plane crashed.
If there is a hell and I happen to end up there, I hope to meet the man who invented the tape that keeps your IV in place. I will proceed to wrap him in it, like a mummy, and then peel it off. Slowly. I hope he is very hairy.
But that doesn't matter right now. What matters is the present moment. Not two to three months. Or two to three years. Or two to three hours. Just now.
Email: lauren.terrazzano@newsday.com
Anything I'd have to say after that would seem pretty trite.
Got to the gym and read the New Yorker on the bicycle. Very good article on commuting in America. During my last tour in A Loathsome East Coast City, I generally drove about four miles to a train station. Because of traffic, the drive took me -- on a good day -- 20 minutes. Then I took a train to a subway stop. The train took about an hour and five minutes. Then I took the subway stop about three or four stops down, to a stop about three blocks from work. That took 10 minutes on a good day. Finally, I walked the three blocks (stopping at Starbucks for coffee and scone).
General commuting time? One hour, 45 minutes. One way.
After I swam a half-mile, I was changing in the locker room and got into a conversation with one of the local retirees. Turned out we'd both lived in Another Loathsome East Coast City. Agreed the commute is not something to be missed.
And it is indeed a good thing that I didn't have to commute today. After getting back from the gym, I figured I'd start working early and maybe finish early. Quite the concept? The "starting early" part of the plan went well. Around noon, I wandered downstairs and sat on the bed to take my shoes off.
Bad move.
The next thing I remember is waking up around 1:30 pm and saying oh, shit!
I'm guessing I'm not getting off 30 minutes early today. But working out of the house is strange like that. I'll work -- solidly -- 10 hours today and feel guilty about the hour and a half nap, even though an awful lot of folks would look at an hour and a half and think ... lunch.
I know. Rationalize, much?
The Doonesbury saga continues. There's a word for this person: Tourist.
I meant to post this yesterday:
Columnists
 | Lauren Terrazzano Life, With Cancer |
Focusing on present matters the most
April 10, 2007 'Two to three months," the doctor said, almost reluctantly, when I finally posed the question. That's eight to twelve weeks. Sixty to 90 days. Or 2,160 hours, if you want to get right down to it.I don't know what possessed me to ask the oncologist how long I have left. In the nearly three years I've been battling this disease, I've never asked for my prognosis. I hate that word. But my body has betrayed me lately, more than usual. I've had a rough couple of weeks, with news of my cancer spreading, new blood clots, and fluid buildup in my abdomen, which has made it difficult to breathe.
Whether the oncologist is right, no one knows. These white-coated mortals do their best and make their best guesses based on data and statistics and other cases. But death, like life, is not a precise science. Only fate knows. What I know for certain is that I am 39. I have seen people like my grandfather live simple but happy long lives. He died when he was 93. On the opposite end, in my job as a reporter, I have seen 3-year-olds die at the hands of abusive parents. Nothing really makes sense when it comes to death.
Still, I was hoping you wouldn't notice the recent absence of my column; I was wrong. Apparently there are more readers out there than my parents and my husband. I didn't want to tackle this subject in this space. I had more cerebral, complicated topics in mind. Like the most recent controversial study surrounding the benefits of early CT scan screening for lung cancer, or the recent, sickening push by one tobacco company to market its traditionally male-oriented brand of cigarette to young women. I hope to eventually get to those topics.
Eventually - what a luxurious word. For some reason, talking about my latest news seems so self-pitying and morose. But I've been pretty honest about the disease from the beginning, and it seemed dishonest not to write about this very real aspect of life. This life with cancer.
So if you are told you have two to three months, what do you do with your time?
There are avenues I've left unexplored, things that have gone unsaid to certain people that I will always regret. There's a hut in the Florida Keys or the South Pacific that my husband and I will probably never see. A trip to Italy with friends before my 40th birthday to re-create, at least a little bit, my junior year abroad.
No, I am not headed to Italy, and I am unsure of where to go from here. The key, I guess, to living at this moment, is just to keep things as normal as possible, for as long as possible. This means getting up in the morning, going for a walk, trying to work and trying to write.
If things end, and there is a heaven, I will have a drink with JFK Jr. and thwack him on the head for flying that night in the fog, the night his plane crashed.
If there is a hell and I happen to end up there, I hope to meet the man who invented the tape that keeps your IV in place. I will proceed to wrap him in it, like a mummy, and then peel it off. Slowly. I hope he is very hairy.
But that doesn't matter right now. What matters is the present moment. Not two to three months. Or two to three years. Or two to three hours. Just now.
Email: lauren.terrazzano@newsday.com Anything I'd have to say after that would seem pretty trite.
Tuesday, April 10, 2007
A Productive Day
So John was up early this morning. So was Will. Even the hot water heater cooperated, so we made the bus. Ran 4.2 miles, went to the gym.
You know the drill: Biked 13.2 miles and swam a half mile. Had a banana and yogurt for breakfast, chased with a handful of peanuts.
Our local mountain has closed, so the gym is pretty empty for now. That's the good news. Bad news is, the gym is going to be closed from April 22 to May 6 for some renovations. Piling on, the internet cafe in our town now has cut back on its hours for spring and is likely to close for good in late April when Celeste, the owner, joins her boyfriend in Vail. Sigh.
Got in the car and headed across the state border to the nearest Starbucks/Panera complex for the free wifi, since I had some heavy-duty downloading to do and didn't want to get another nasty fair-access violation notice from the ISP. Ran around doing some errands first -- a book on biking state back roads from Border's (my bad -- I should hate them more and shop at an independent), a bike lock and swimsuit (the old swimsuit is tarting to chafe), and a cheap-o Timex at Target (on sale for $13, probably because the temperature sensor would rather read partial body temp than the air temp).
Can I rationalize, or what?
Anyway, worked in The Big City in The Other State most of the afternoon. Had a salmon salad and apple at the Panera. I'm hardly ever this good (less than 400 calories!) when I eat out. Headed back around 5p. Made twice-baked stuffed salmon potatoes for dinner and made myself crazier than usual with attempted hard drive repair.
Saw a couple of deer on the way home. They're getting bold; they know it should be time for gardens to start. It'll have to wait another few weeks, though. Big snow reputedly coming in Thursday night.
Here's Trudeau humor for the day:
You know the drill: Biked 13.2 miles and swam a half mile. Had a banana and yogurt for breakfast, chased with a handful of peanuts.
Our local mountain has closed, so the gym is pretty empty for now. That's the good news. Bad news is, the gym is going to be closed from April 22 to May 6 for some renovations. Piling on, the internet cafe in our town now has cut back on its hours for spring and is likely to close for good in late April when Celeste, the owner, joins her boyfriend in Vail. Sigh.
Got in the car and headed across the state border to the nearest Starbucks/Panera complex for the free wifi, since I had some heavy-duty downloading to do and didn't want to get another nasty fair-access violation notice from the ISP. Ran around doing some errands first -- a book on biking state back roads from Border's (my bad -- I should hate them more and shop at an independent), a bike lock and swimsuit (the old swimsuit is tarting to chafe), and a cheap-o Timex at Target (on sale for $13, probably because the temperature sensor would rather read partial body temp than the air temp).
Can I rationalize, or what?
Anyway, worked in The Big City in The Other State most of the afternoon. Had a salmon salad and apple at the Panera. I'm hardly ever this good (less than 400 calories!) when I eat out. Headed back around 5p. Made twice-baked stuffed salmon potatoes for dinner and made myself crazier than usual with attempted hard drive repair.
Saw a couple of deer on the way home. They're getting bold; they know it should be time for gardens to start. It'll have to wait another few weeks, though. Big snow reputedly coming in Thursday night.
Here's Trudeau humor for the day:
On a less trivial note.
I'm having one hell of a dilemma here. My oldest son just isn't doing well in school. He qualifies for a little extra help, but he's such an organizational mess that there's only so much to be done.
Without going into details, this is not his fault. He was born like this, and there's not much changing him. We've tried a one-on-one aide, we've tried resource room, we've tried withholding privileges, threatening to withhold privileges, bribery, etc.
He's very candid about his shortcomings. Once upon a time, he told me that sometimes his brain wanders off and he forgets where he put it. Earlier this week, he asked me if there was a cure for stuttering. I told him I thought it could be managed, and he wanted to know more about it, because his brain sometimes stutters.
Anyway, I'm thinking about modified home school, where he can take the classes that give him the most trouble -- algebra and science -- at home via correspondence course, and take his fun stuff (and still get to socialize) at school.
He loves learning. He gave me chapter and verse on different ways to abuse drugs last night. But he's failing health, because he either can't concentrate and/or can't find his homework and/or just forgets to turn it in.
No, thank you, drugs will not help.
Anyway, I'm going to have to spend a few days on this one. It's a big commitment if I do it, but I think it's worth trying. And I get the sense he might actually enjoy it. I just worry I might not be up to the job of educating him properly.
Monday, April 9, 2007
Makin' Little Rocks Outta Big Rocks ...
That's what we used to call it in Texas, anyway. Getting a day's worth of work done in the wage slave world was "makin' little rocks outta big rocks." Which beat the hell out of a jobs program put forth by one former gubernatorial candidate, who promised to introduce more folks to "the joys of bustin' rocks."
Speaking of rocks. Or things that rock:
OK, I'm easily amused today. Perhaps a little too easily:
It would appear that a lot of Iraqis would like U.S. troops to leave their country. I have the most remarkable coincidence to report: It would appear that a lot of Americans would like U.S. troops to leave Iraq, as well. Although we're a lot more polite about it and hardly ever burn anyone else's flag, much less wish anything beyond a mild case of gastrointestinal upset upon an entire nation of people whom we've never met.
Whew. Enough with the rant. The hot water took its own sweet damn time to warm up this morning, so I wound up having to take the kids to school again, despite having woken up around 5:45 am. I ran 3.2 iPod-less miles on the way back at a leisurely rate, then went to the gym and swam a 1/2-mile at a leisurely rate.
Came home for some minor domestic disturbance and managed to wind up working hard most of the day. Threw together some bread (mostly white flour, but mixed a little hand-ground wheat, seven-grain and wheat germ flour into the mix) this afternoon.
Still adjusting to new contacts. The extended wear ones hurt like hell. The softer ones, not so much. Still, it's aggravating. I need to bite the bullet and get a new pair of glasses, but I'm probably third in line. Only so much money goes into the FSA every month. Sigh.
Still have quite a bit of rocks to bust.
Speaking of rocks. Or things that rock:
OK, I'm easily amused today. Perhaps a little too easily:
Car crashes coop, kills 20 chickens and roosters
SEABROOK, N.H. --Almost two dozen roosters and chickens were killed Easter Sunday when a car crashed their coop.
Police say a Newburyport, Mass., man was drunk when he drove his car over two medians, went airborne and flew 60 feet into a Seabrook barn and coop. Twenty birds were killed in the crash.
David Rice, 53, was charged with aggravated drunk driving and reckless conduct. His car careened off an off-ramp at a high speed, police said.
He was arrested, treated for minor injuries and is scheduled to appear in court on June 15. 
I'm thinking the above falls under the heading of "a slow news day." And you'd think there'd be more. This little disagreement in the Middle East, for example. From the NY Times, which should have a separate section on some days labelled "Life Does Not Make Much Sense."
It would appear that a lot of Iraqis would like U.S. troops to leave their country. I have the most remarkable coincidence to report: It would appear that a lot of Americans would like U.S. troops to leave Iraq, as well. Although we're a lot more polite about it and hardly ever burn anyone else's flag, much less wish anything beyond a mild case of gastrointestinal upset upon an entire nation of people whom we've never met.
Whew. Enough with the rant. The hot water took its own sweet damn time to warm up this morning, so I wound up having to take the kids to school again, despite having woken up around 5:45 am. I ran 3.2 iPod-less miles on the way back at a leisurely rate, then went to the gym and swam a 1/2-mile at a leisurely rate.
Came home for some minor domestic disturbance and managed to wind up working hard most of the day. Threw together some bread (mostly white flour, but mixed a little hand-ground wheat, seven-grain and wheat germ flour into the mix) this afternoon.
Still adjusting to new contacts. The extended wear ones hurt like hell. The softer ones, not so much. Still, it's aggravating. I need to bite the bullet and get a new pair of glasses, but I'm probably third in line. Only so much money goes into the FSA every month. Sigh.
Still have quite a bit of rocks to bust.
Sunday, April 8, 2007
A White Easter
Not too much done this weekend -- slept late, didn't do much. Finally got off my ass late Sunday afternoon and went to the gym. Biked 20 miles, swam a mile. Didn't run at all this weekend because (a) it was snowing like a banshee and (b) my iPod is on the fritz. Arrgh.
Strange weather. Can't remember an Easter snow before. It's usually stopped snowing by now (unless it's going to snow again in May). We're maybe due for a big snow later in the week, too. There's not much accumulating, but it does come down. Felt like I was in a snow globe this afternoon while swimming.
It was an improvement over the morning, though. The power went out around 5 am. I've got UPS (uninterruptible power supply) boxes set up to two computers. When the power goes off, they start to beep. So I was woken up by the beeping and went upstairs to turn off the UPC and promptly stepped in dog crap. Had to wipe my feet off before going back downstairs to turn off the other one.
On the bright side, it's hard for the day to get worse after that. And I'm sure there was an Easter metaphor in there somewhere, but I'm just too dense to figure it out.
Gotta work my butt off tomorrow. Lot of stuff to do, little time to do it.
Strange weather. Can't remember an Easter snow before. It's usually stopped snowing by now (unless it's going to snow again in May). We're maybe due for a big snow later in the week, too. There's not much accumulating, but it does come down. Felt like I was in a snow globe this afternoon while swimming.
It was an improvement over the morning, though. The power went out around 5 am. I've got UPS (uninterruptible power supply) boxes set up to two computers. When the power goes off, they start to beep. So I was woken up by the beeping and went upstairs to turn off the UPC and promptly stepped in dog crap. Had to wipe my feet off before going back downstairs to turn off the other one.
On the bright side, it's hard for the day to get worse after that. And I'm sure there was an Easter metaphor in there somewhere, but I'm just too dense to figure it out.
Gotta work my butt off tomorrow. Lot of stuff to do, little time to do it.
Friday, April 6, 2007
Wah. Poor Me.
A short blog. I'm tired and feel like I've got ground glass in my eyes, the result of just one day too much with a pair of extended wear contacts. Wah. Poor me.
I've just got to start getting to bed earlier. Didn't get to sleep until a little after 11 pm, so I didn't wake up until 620 am. Took the boys to school, then went for a quick-ish 4.25-mile run. Drove to the gym, did a quick-ish 20-mile bike ride. Finally jumped in the pool and did a not-so-quick-ish 1/2-mile swim. Showered, ran a couple of errands, went home and worked.
Now, if I can just do this without feeling tired for the rest of the day ...
Gotta stop whining and start moving again.
I've just got to start getting to bed earlier. Didn't get to sleep until a little after 11 pm, so I didn't wake up until 620 am. Took the boys to school, then went for a quick-ish 4.25-mile run. Drove to the gym, did a quick-ish 20-mile bike ride. Finally jumped in the pool and did a not-so-quick-ish 1/2-mile swim. Showered, ran a couple of errands, went home and worked.
Now, if I can just do this without feeling tired for the rest of the day ...
Gotta stop whining and start moving again.
Thursday, April 5, 2007
Parent of the Year Material
After sliding all over hell and back yesterday while trying to drive, I figured a snow day was a drop shot. So when I woke up this morning and saw this scene out my office window:
I figured, um, yeah, snow day.
Figured wrong. The attendance office called around 1 pm, wanting to know why the boys weren't in school. Best reason I could come up with was that the plow guy hadn't arrived yet to clear a path out (which he hadn't. Not that it would have made any difference.
D'oh.
Made a bit of progress on the day job front today. Did a very good job of minding the diet -- granola with skim, strawberries and banana for breakfast, salmon and eggs for lunch, salad and homemade cracked-wheat bread for dinner. The bread came out pretty well, considering I left the ground flour in the fridge for a couple of days before getting off my butt and dealing with it.
Made it to the gym a little late, but still swam a mile and ran 3.1 on the treadmill and elliptical. The pool had four or five kids running wild, but their dad was at least trying to control them somewhat. I figured it's just training for open-water swimming.
Got a call late from my older brother. Our dad's not doing too well. He's had a rough 15 years or so. Mom died of leukemia in 1991. Got remarried in 2001, didn't work out so well. I spent most of last fall in Texas with him while he was going through medical hell (two kinds of cancers, a heart attack, a few major surgeries and some chronic issues that decided to announce themselves at age 74). So I'm worried as hell. Had a long talk with Dad tonight, and felt a little better. But I guess that's what dads are on the planet to do.
I'll have to remember that.
I figured, um, yeah, snow day.
Figured wrong. The attendance office called around 1 pm, wanting to know why the boys weren't in school. Best reason I could come up with was that the plow guy hadn't arrived yet to clear a path out (which he hadn't. Not that it would have made any difference.
D'oh.
Made a bit of progress on the day job front today. Did a very good job of minding the diet -- granola with skim, strawberries and banana for breakfast, salmon and eggs for lunch, salad and homemade cracked-wheat bread for dinner. The bread came out pretty well, considering I left the ground flour in the fridge for a couple of days before getting off my butt and dealing with it.
Made it to the gym a little late, but still swam a mile and ran 3.1 on the treadmill and elliptical. The pool had four or five kids running wild, but their dad was at least trying to control them somewhat. I figured it's just training for open-water swimming.
Got a call late from my older brother. Our dad's not doing too well. He's had a rough 15 years or so. Mom died of leukemia in 1991. Got remarried in 2001, didn't work out so well. I spent most of last fall in Texas with him while he was going through medical hell (two kinds of cancers, a heart attack, a few major surgeries and some chronic issues that decided to announce themselves at age 74). So I'm worried as hell. Had a long talk with Dad tonight, and felt a little better. But I guess that's what dads are on the planet to do.
I'll have to remember that.
Wednesday, April 4, 2007
Blech.
Slept late. Took John and Will to school, then ran. Slowly. Went to gym, biked and swam. Slowly. Showered, ran home, then headed to town before the big storm hit. Of course, it's all relative. A month ago, this would've been just another eight- to 16-inch snow. But since it's April, it's snow mixed with sleet, freezing rain and rain.
Blech.
Picked up the bike, computer supplies, contact lenses, crap for Robin's ferret, groceries and a grow light for the seed starter. Barely made it home since the Tracker has no snow tires, but made it just in time for the Great Pyr to nearly kill Robin's nearly blind German shepherd that she's left with us (along with the ferret and a mutt of dubious origin). Poor shepherd had one fang sticking out sideways by the time Cleo was done with her.
Blech.
Remembered I'd promised Will that I'd move John's computer into his room (balancing the scales somewhat, Robin left her desktop computer behind for John to use). Went to town on Will's room. It was about a four-hour job for the floor cleaning and general maintenance.
A decent dinner. A little bit of work done. Forecast calls for another 10 inches of snow tonight, followed by a 40 percent chance of snow for the next week.
Blech.
Blech.
Picked up the bike, computer supplies, contact lenses, crap for Robin's ferret, groceries and a grow light for the seed starter. Barely made it home since the Tracker has no snow tires, but made it just in time for the Great Pyr to nearly kill Robin's nearly blind German shepherd that she's left with us (along with the ferret and a mutt of dubious origin). Poor shepherd had one fang sticking out sideways by the time Cleo was done with her.
Blech.
Remembered I'd promised Will that I'd move John's computer into his room (balancing the scales somewhat, Robin left her desktop computer behind for John to use). Went to town on Will's room. It was about a four-hour job for the floor cleaning and general maintenance.
A decent dinner. A little bit of work done. Forecast calls for another 10 inches of snow tonight, followed by a 40 percent chance of snow for the next week.
Blech.
Tuesday, April 3, 2007
A Really Good Photo
This is one of my favorite photos, taken for the day job by a really talented Maine photographer. I'm posting it so I can use it as my profile picture (too lazy to create a new blog or work around the raw HTML code).
It's the white pine, which is the state tree of Maine. Actually, this is what's left of a white pine, after acid rain hits it. The photo was taken in Acadia National Park, which is still one of the most beautiful places on the East Coast.
An Unscheduled Rest
I didn't mean to blow off working today -- far from it. I didn't even think about it until about 3:30a, when I was trying very hard not to heave my dinner.
Ah, well. Teach me to do a better job of staying on a healthy diet.
Woke up again around 615a and still felt like hell, so I slept late. Did a day job assignment about an hour down the road that was somewhat entertaining, stopped by Home Depot for more garden supplies and the grocery store en route home.
Feeling better. Tomorrow will be busy, and the weather is supposed to get really crappy. Again.
Ah, well. Teach me to do a better job of staying on a healthy diet.
Woke up again around 615a and still felt like hell, so I slept late. Did a day job assignment about an hour down the road that was somewhat entertaining, stopped by Home Depot for more garden supplies and the grocery store en route home.
Feeling better. Tomorrow will be busy, and the weather is supposed to get really crappy. Again.
Monday, April 2, 2007
Mist
A long, strange day.
I was exhausted when I woke up. It's a Monday, and I usually don't run on Mondays, but had almost talked myself into it last night. Anyway, glad I didn't. Took the boys to the bus, did a couple of hours of work. Lisa took Robin to her recruiter's office. From there, she caught a bus to the Military Entrance Processing Station, and will be en route to San Antonio tomorrow morning to begin basic training.
Yikes.
Beat my head against a day job wall for a couple of hours, making not a lot of progress, ate too much out of frustration. Couldn't even make whole wheat with my freshly ground wheat (no molasses). Ack.
The weather here is, to put it mildly, crappy. Internet connection was down most of the day because of the fog and mist, which should change to icy rain tomorrow night, followed by snow for the rest of the week.
I punted around 5 pm and headed to the gym. Did a 13.2-mile bike ride and 0.5 mile swim. Eh. Should've done more, but people were started to wander into the pool, and I had to go to the market to get molasses before it closed.
Was still feeling vaguely grumpy and resentful when I walked out of the market with my molasses. Stopped for a minute and figured out the only sound I could hear was birds fussing. It made me feel better for a minute. Then a tourist in an SUV drove past, splashing mud and spewing fumes. Pissed me off all over again.
I'll have a better day tomorrow.
I was exhausted when I woke up. It's a Monday, and I usually don't run on Mondays, but had almost talked myself into it last night. Anyway, glad I didn't. Took the boys to the bus, did a couple of hours of work. Lisa took Robin to her recruiter's office. From there, she caught a bus to the Military Entrance Processing Station, and will be en route to San Antonio tomorrow morning to begin basic training.
Yikes.
Beat my head against a day job wall for a couple of hours, making not a lot of progress, ate too much out of frustration. Couldn't even make whole wheat with my freshly ground wheat (no molasses). Ack.
The weather here is, to put it mildly, crappy. Internet connection was down most of the day because of the fog and mist, which should change to icy rain tomorrow night, followed by snow for the rest of the week.
I punted around 5 pm and headed to the gym. Did a 13.2-mile bike ride and 0.5 mile swim. Eh. Should've done more, but people were started to wander into the pool, and I had to go to the market to get molasses before it closed.
Was still feeling vaguely grumpy and resentful when I walked out of the market with my molasses. Stopped for a minute and figured out the only sound I could hear was birds fussing. It made me feel better for a minute. Then a tourist in an SUV drove past, splashing mud and spewing fumes. Pissed me off all over again.
I'll have a better day tomorrow.
Sunday, April 1, 2007
Not Enough Hours
Certainly not if I sleep late again.
Busy weekend. Took Saturday off to make a Whole Foods/Trader Joe's/EMS/Barnes & Noble run and didn't get back until pretty late. Did a little bit of cleaning, watched a little television, read a little.
Slept late again on Sunday. Got up, ran seven miles. Came home and ground about a dozen cups of wheat berries for whole wheat flour, but didn't have enough time to bake. Sigh. Still, a pretty decent upper-body workout. Went out for a quick bike ride at the gym. Grabbed pizzas for the kids, Chinese for the girls and shrimp kung pao for myself.
Sounds like a truly boring weekend. But I saw a few things that made it worthwhile:
*** First robins of spring
*** More Canadian geese in the fields
*** Snow melting faster than it's gathering
I don't know why I feel like this -- never really had bad cabin fever before. But I'm just counting the minutes until I can get out in shorts and run. Until I can get on a bicycle outside, instead of a gym machine. Until I can hike anywhere, work in the garden and collect chicken eggs.
I keep telling myself that it's important to enjoy winter. Who knows if it's ever going to be as good as it was the last year? But I'm still looking forward to this spring.
I'll go for a morning run, bake my bread and get a lot of work done tomorrow.
Busy weekend. Took Saturday off to make a Whole Foods/Trader Joe's/EMS/Barnes & Noble run and didn't get back until pretty late. Did a little bit of cleaning, watched a little television, read a little.
Slept late again on Sunday. Got up, ran seven miles. Came home and ground about a dozen cups of wheat berries for whole wheat flour, but didn't have enough time to bake. Sigh. Still, a pretty decent upper-body workout. Went out for a quick bike ride at the gym. Grabbed pizzas for the kids, Chinese for the girls and shrimp kung pao for myself.
Sounds like a truly boring weekend. But I saw a few things that made it worthwhile:
*** First robins of spring
*** More Canadian geese in the fields
*** Snow melting faster than it's gathering
I don't know why I feel like this -- never really had bad cabin fever before. But I'm just counting the minutes until I can get out in shorts and run. Until I can get on a bicycle outside, instead of a gym machine. Until I can hike anywhere, work in the garden and collect chicken eggs.
I keep telling myself that it's important to enjoy winter. Who knows if it's ever going to be as good as it was the last year? But I'm still looking forward to this spring.
I'll go for a morning run, bake my bread and get a lot of work done tomorrow.
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