Lazy snowy day

Today it snowed nearly all day. I slept and read a lot - though I should have been wrapping packages and cleaning. Ah well...

Here's another picture from yesterday's walk.

I rarely use black and white, but I thought it worked for this photo. The lake is frozen and the fisherman can no longer use the boat that used to be tied up on this dock. Instead, they go ice-fishing, either sitting out on the lake or in those little houses you can see in the distance. I don't quite get the attraction.

I'd rather sit on my nice comfy couch in my nice warm house, sip hot cocoa, and read a good book. I wish you all a warm, comfy, happy Christmas Eve.

Celebrate the light

Today is the winter solstice. In the Twin Cities, the sun officially rose at 7:48 am and set at 4:35 pm giving us only 8 hours and 47 minutes of daylight. I've recently met a family that holds a solstice party every year. It made me realize that this is a day I really should celebrate, for from now until June, we have a little more sunlight every day. I will be thankful for each additional minute.

Of course, today I did not get out in the sunlight very much. Well, there wasn't a lot anyway - it was cloudy most of the day. But I spent about 6 hours in malls, getting my shopping done. Yes, I put it off for a long time - I had only barely started before today. But still, I didn't really stress out about it. I just shopped methodically, and now I think it will be ok if I don't buy anything else. Though I still may...

When I did get home, I decided I should take the dog on a walk and get some pictures after the dusting of snow last night. Here's the best of the bunch:


This picture reminds me of how much fun the simplest things can be. I'm happy that I can run, that I have a great camera, that I live near the woods, that there is snow on the ground, that my family is safe and warm at home, and that I have a dog to show me how to live in the moment.

Tree's up!

Our Christmas tree is finally up! We usually do get it up closer to Thanksgiving, but this year my son has his own apartment and my daughter is at college. We didn't make a point of putting up the tree over Thanksgiving break, so we decided to wait until the daughter made it home. She got home tonight, so my son came over and we all decorated and ate Candy Cane Pie.

You know those trees you see in malls and magazines that have color themes and symmetry? Our tree will never, ever look like that. A lot of our ornaments are handmade - some made by us, some by friends and family, some purchased at crafts fairs. A lot of them are of animals. Some are just so darn cute. But few of them are alike. It's comfortable, homey, relaxed, even haphazard - a lot like my family. That's my kind of tree.

Recognizing Christianity and Islam

On one of the blogs I recently started reading, I noticed today's entry about H.R. 847 Recognizing the importance of Christmas and the Christian Faith. Naturally, as I read I was getting ready to rant away about separation of Church and State, that Christmas certainly needs no protection, that it is already a national holiday, for gosh sakes.

Then I got to the one little line about H.R. 635, recognizing Ramadan. Here is the text, from religioustolerance.org

"Recognizing the commencement of Ramadan, the Islamic holy month of fasting and spiritual renewal, and commending Muslims in the United States and throughout the world for their faith.

Whereas since the terrorist attacks on the United States on September 11, 2001, threats and incidents of violence have been directed at law-abiding, patriotic Americans of African, Arab, and South Asian descent, particularly members of the Islamic faith;

Whereas, on September 14, 2001, the House of Representatives passed a concurrent resolution condemning bigotry and violence against Arab-Americans, American Muslims, and Americans from South Asia in the wake of the terrorist attacks;

Whereas it is estimated that there are approximately 1,500,000,000 Muslims worldwide;

Whereas Ramadan is the holy month of fasting and spiritual renewal for Muslims worldwide, and is the 9th month of the Muslim calendar year; and

Whereas the observance of the Islamic holy month of Ramadan commences at dusk on September 13, 2007, and continues for one lunar month:

Now, therefore, be it Resolved, That--

(1) during this time of conflict, in order to demonstrate solidarity with and support for members of the community of Islam in the United States and throughout the world, the House of Representatives recognizes the Islamic faith as one of the great religions of the world; and

(2) in observance of and out of respect for the commencement of Ramadan, the Islamic holy month of fasting and spiritual renewal, the House of Representatives acknowledges the onset of Ramadan and expresses its deepest respect to Muslims in the United States and throughout the world on this significant occasion."

Now I'm a little conflicted. Again, separation of church and state! To me that means, no state actions for or against a specific religion - even something as benign as "recognizing" it. And yet, with all the negativity against Islam today, I like to see the government making such a gesture towards the Muslim community.

If I'm going to allow that H.R. 635 is not such a bad thing, then I don't see a consistency in completely condemning H.R. 847. So I think instead, we should all campaign for similar resolutions regarding Judaism, Buddhism, Hinduism, Taoism, Sikhism, Jainism, Shinto and the Church of the Flying Spaghetti Monster. And that list is by no means exhaustive, so recognizing all world religions will keep the House busy for a while... Oh wait - did we expect them to actually govern??

One other little quote regarding this issue: "Congress regularly passes resolutions commemorating holidays such as Christmas, Kwanzaa and Hanukkah. But the Oct. 2 vote marks the first time Congress has passed a resolution recognizing Ramadan, which ends Oct. 12 this year." (Pew Forum, quoted by religioustolerance.org) So maybe Congress has made more progress on my list than I thought. I'm still waiting for the resolution recognizing the Church of the Flying Spaghetti Monster.

Fortune cookie of the day:
The Tao that can be described is not the everlasting Tao.
(Well, I was on the subject of religion, and I found that one in my collection)

Random excitement

Last night when I came home from agility, there were two police cars with flashing lights on the main road by my house - one on the corner where I turn, and another further down. Soon there was a helicopter overhead, lighting up our yard with a spotlight. One of my co-workers has a daughter who works for the local police, so I told her about it today. She found out that a repo guy was trying to repo a car and the owner took off, almost dragging the repo guy with him. The cops were trying to find him - and finally did, at his house. Nice to have contacts who can tell you these things...

Agility was great. Bravo was clearly glad to be back after a month off. And he was really good. Frankly, he was pretty much the best of all the dogs. And we were the only team who tried the off-side weaves from the very first. See, the dog always has to enter the weave poles with the first pole on their left. This seems to be easier for most handler-dog combos if the handler has the dog on the left. If the handler has the weave poles and dog on the right at entry, it's off-side. The handler has to decide which side to use based on the best path to the other obstacles. In the course last night, choosing off-side weaves gave the handler the shortest distance to travel. Which is best for us since Bravo is so fast - gives me a little more time. Bravo did miss the entry slightly - he kept making his first entry at the second pole instead of the first - but still better than many of the others who made the "easier" on-side approach. All in all, I was quite proud. And really happy to be out for something other than work. Glad to be feeling mostly better!

Fortune cookie of the day:
Calamity is the touchstone of a brave mind.

Of books

I am currently reading two books - unusual for me, especially since they are both non-fiction.

The first is Born on a Blue Day by Daniel Tammet. It is a memoir of an autistic savant - a very interesting view into an alternative way of seeing the world. He says he sees numbers as shapes, colors and textures, and explains how this helps him with things such as remembering what cards have been played. It's so unusual for an autistic person to be able to explain how they are so different - it's fascinating.

The second is Fair Game, Valerie Plame's memoir of life in the CIA and betrayal by the White House. Even though large sections of the book have been blacked out (the CIA had to approve publication, and made numerous redactions), there is enough to make interesting reading. And there is a postscript written by someone else that puts together the story based on published materials and independent research. I've taken to reading the relevant section of the postscript first, and then going on to read the main memoir. It makes the story easier to understand.

I'm still recovering from a bad cold, and since it is frigid outside, I've been staying home where it is warm and doing a lot of reading. And watching HGTV.

Fortune cookie of the day:
The best way to destroy your enemy is to make him your friend.

What's up, Minnesota?

When I first moved here, I was shocked at how well Minnesota handled snowfalls. Our cul-de=sac was always plowed within just a few hours of the snow's end, and they even plow the sidewalks! But that has been gradually changing, and yesterday's snowfall was a shock in the other direction.

Yes, it snowed all day, but not hard - we got less than 5 inches. And according to the news, rush hour started at 2 because people wanted to get home before everyone else. So why was it still impossible to get on the highway near my office 3 hours later? The road in front of my office was totally clogged because cars weren't moving on the highway, and the on-ramps were clogged. So when the lights changed, people making left turns would block all of the lanes, and even those of us going straight couldn't move. Total gridlock.

Apparently the streets downtown were just as bad as the highways. The paper said it took one driver an hour to go six blocks. And 20-minute commutes were taking 2 hours. I was lucky - my 5-minute commute only took 30 minutes. Actually, it went very well once I got past the highway.

Have we gotten soft after a few years without much snow? We should be able to handle 5 inches much better than this.

Snow stopped by bedtime last night. This morning, the sidewalk along 86th Street is plowed, but the streets in my little neighborhood are not. I think that's ironic.

Fortune cookie of the day:
Memories make what we are. Dreams make what we'll be.

Wicked good

I've been in Chicago the last couple of days - dropped Karis off at Beloit on Sunday and drove on to join Russ at his conference - just flew back this afternoon. I found out I have not recuperated as much as I thought - or else the cold I seem to be getting is the problem - I tired really easily. However, I did do a small amount of shopping and went to the observation deck of the Hancock building. 94 stories up, and a wonderful view of the lakefront on a beautiful sunny day. I also went along with Russ to a couple of his receptions on Monday night.

Last night, Russ had a reception at one hotel and then a fancy dress dinner and dance at a different hotel - for which he wears a tux. I went to the first reception (and saw an old friend from Colorado, which made me very happy). But I'm not much for formal wear, makeup, skirts, heels or dinners with a lot of people I don't know. So I skipped that one and went to see Wicked. It's been a while since I saw a play, and I've never gone to one by myself. As I mentioned, I'm not big on formal clothes, so I am aware this is a little ironic - I was shocked at how many people wore jeans. I suppose that's silly...

The musical was SO good - I'm really glad I went. I didn't know the story before-hand, so that was a nice surprise. I thought it was great to get the "other side of the story." The acting was marvelous, sets and costumes were beautiful, and the inside of the theatre was just amazing.


On a totally different topic, though still involving broomsticks, witches and wizards, there was an article in yesterday's USA Today about Quidditch at American colleges. So Karis, there's a sport you can start at Beloit. Apparently there are only 7 colleges where it is currently played. (One of them is Oberlin - coincidentally, that is the college in Ohio that I was trying to remember when we talked the other day. Snagglepuss.)



In lieu of the Fortune cookie of the day, my favorite quote from Wicked (though of course Elphaba was being ironic, and I am not):
There's no place like home.

Snowfall

So you would think that those of us who make our homes in the frozen north would be good drivers in the snow. Maybe that is true. However, it always seems there is an adjustment period. Some of us forget such basics as "bridges freeze before road surfaces." And that it is most treacherous when the temperatures are right around freezing. The first snowfall of the season brings just as many traffic accidents here as anywhere.

Witness tonight. It wasn't a heavy snowfall, but it started about 5 pm. Luckily, traffic was lighter than usual due to the holiday.

Happy Thanksgiving to all!

Fortune cookie of the day:
You will find good luck in the near future.

There is nothing like staying at home for real comfort.

I stayed at home all last week, and it was indeed a real comfort. I've slept a lot, watched a lot of movies and TV, and most of all, read a lot.

Karis and I went to see The Jane Austen Book Club when she was last home. It inspired me to purchase the book, which I had read a few years ago. So since I had all this free time, I decided to re-read it. But this time, I read the appropriate Austen novel before reading its chapter in Fowler's book. Well, I didn't re-read Pride & Prejudice or Persuasion - I have read those so many times that it really wasn't necessary. But I probably hadn't read Northanger Abbey more than once, hadn't read Mansfield Park much either, and it has been years since I read Emma or Sense & Sensibility.

Whenever I try to write about books or movies and explain why I like them, I wonder that I ever made it as an English major. Everything I try to say sounds trite and silly. I guess I've just lost the ability to think and write critically about them, and it makes me rather sad.

So I'll just say that like so many others, I like Pride & Prejudice best. Then Persuasion, Sense & Sensibility, Emma, Northanger Abbey, and lastly Mansfield Park. (It was interesting to read in the notes to The Jane Austen Book Club that most of Austen's family preferred Mansfield Park. I suppose because more than any of the others, this one is about morality - her father was a clergyman, after all.)

As for The Jane Austen Book Club, I love the structure of the book, the idea, the characters, the way you find Austen quotes in the stories about the modern characters... I want to join their club. After all, "In three or four years, it would be time to read Austen again."

P.S. Yes, the title of this post is an Austen quote. It's from Emma.

Instead of a Fortune Cookie today, another Austen quote (one of my favorites.)
One cannot be always laughing at a man without now and then stumbling on something witty.

Twin riddle

Heard this on the radio when I woke up this morning.

Peter and Allison are twins. Peter was born first, but Allison is the older of the two. How is that possible?

Because Peter was born at 1:32 am on Sunday, November 4th. His sister Allison was born thirty-four minutes later. BUT Daylight Savings time ended in between, so Allison's official time of birth is 1:06 am.

I looked it up on the web, and through Fark.com, found the original article here.

Have a great day, everyone!

Fortune cookie of the day:
Be positive in words, act and feeling.

Fortune cookie

I'm starting out with the Fortune Cookie of the Day today.


You will be happiest if you please yourself first.


I think anyone who knows me will know that I do not agree with this sentiment. This is too close to Ayn Rand's philosophy, which I so disliked when I read Atlas Shrugged in college - that the pursuit of one's own happiness and self-interest is one's "highest moral purpose." Well, she grew up in Russia in a middle-class family during the Bolshevik revolution, and I grew up in America in a liberal family during the hippie era. We're not likely to agree on much.

So I am going to try to keep in mind a small goal - to make someone happy. Not necessarily in a big way. Getting someone to smile, or giving someone a compliment - just small things. But at least one someone, every day. Personally, I think if I can do that, I'll be happy.

Have a great day!

Keeping track of books

I've been trying out both Goodreads and LibraryThing over the past month or so - trying to decide which I like better. GoodReads seems to have more reviews, while LibraryThing is more elegant. So basically, I'm using both (for now). My LibraryThing has books I actually own, while GoodReads has books I borrow from the library. I know, it's kind of weird to use both. Another instance where I can't make a decision, I guess :-) But isn't the random selection of covers (on the left) beautiful?

Fortune cookie of the day:
They will be grateful that you called


(That is not a hint. Really. It was just the fortune I pulled out of the box. Honest.)

1956

I stole another great idea from Red Shoe Ramblings - thanks, Deb! The idea is to do a Google image search with your birth year and choose pictures that represent what life was like at that time. I have to admit I cheated a bit because I couldn't find any interesting movies in the image search, nor could I find an image of one event I wanted to include. Anyway, here it is. You can click to see it larger.


Fortune cookie of the day:
Forbidden fruit creates many jams.

Hunter's Moon

Last night the full moon rose before sunset, and it was still fairly high when I walked before sunrise this morning. The photo is actually from August - it wasn't light enough this morning until the end of my walk.

I really dread the next 3 months when I have to walk in the dark on at least one of my walks - either before work or after. And for a while, probably both. By the time we go off daylight savings next weekend, it will be getting dark on my drive home. Right now I really dislike living so far north. Today our sunrise is at 7:43 and sunset at 6:11. In Washington, DC, sunrise is at 7:29 and sunset at 6:15. In Miami, it's 7:26 and 6:44. So DC has about 18 minutes more sunlight, and Miami has about 50. Even the 18 is enough to be noticeable. And it's not even solstice yet. Guess I'd never make it in the arctic, huh? We do have a little advantage in the summer, when it stays light noticeably later.

Have a great weekend, and enjoy what light you have!

Fortune cookie of the day:
Don't let the past and useless details choke your existence.

Book meme

I've never done a meme before, but DebR inspired me. Although I have to say a lot of my answers are pretty much echoes of hers....

1. Hardcover or paperback, and why?

I usually choose paperback since it is the only way I can afford the massive number of books I buy. It also makes it easier to store them, since I rarely get rid of any, and carry them in my purse for those few minutes when I can steal reading time. But I really prefer hardcover - the feel, the paper, and definitely the larger print - though I still need to wear my glasses to read them. And I loathe the invention of the trade paperback...

2. If I were to own a book shop I would call it...

I'd come up with a corny name like Magic Carpet Books. Then I'd ask my husband to think of one and he'd come up with pun-ny names like In a Bind. Eventually he'd probably find one I liked and I'd use that. Unless Tattered Cover wants to give me a Minneapolis franchise, and then I'd just use their name. I REALLY miss Tattered Cover.

3. My favorite quote from a book (mention the title) is...

"Favorite" is tough for me, since I know that after I post this I will be kicking myself for forgetting that quote - oh and that one! I should have said that one! I actually keep a list of quotes I like, but I keep forgetting to add to it. And most of the quotes there are from movies. Besides, it doesn't include the great Shakespeare quotes -- but most of those I can remember right now are depressing. So I'll use this one because at least it makes me laugh...

"Most psychiatrists don't like to work with teenagers because it's often too difficult to distinguish between normal adolescence and pathological illness." Debra Borden, Lucky Me

4. The author (alive or deceased) I would love to have lunch with would be ...

Living: J.K. Rowling. I would love to discuss all of the Harry Potter books, but most of all I'd love to find out what other ideas she has.
Deceased: I probably would have said Jane Austen, but since I don't want this post to be a repeat of Deb's.... I think I'll pick Dorothy Sayers. I think she must have had a very interesting mind.

5. If I was going to a deserted island and could only bring one book, except from the SAS survival guide, it would be...

Like Deb, I would take the Complete Novels of Jane Austen. Unless I could find the Complete Harry Potter (more pages to read, if nothing else). But the print would have to be so small on that one that I wouldn't be able to read it, even WITH my glasses.

Come to think of it, I do own a one-volume set of Shakespeare's works. Maybe I should choose that for the sheer variety from comedy to tragedy. And it includes some plays I have never read since I expect them to be boring. And his poems as well.

Yes, I have trouble picking just one. That is so typical of me (sorry Karis...).

6. I would love someone to invent a bookish gadget that...

Allows you to access and read any book, any time, anywhere, and is no bigger than a paperback book.

7. The smell of an old book reminds me of...

Curling up in a window seat so I can enjoy both the book and the view (and also perhaps some privacy). Ok, so I never actually did that. In fact I've never had a window seat. But I imagine if I had, that is what the smell would remind me of.

8. If I could be the lead character in a book (mention the title), it would be...

Hermione Granger in the Harry Potter series. She's terrifically smart, brave, has way more energy than I've ever had, AND SHE CAN DO MAGIC. Ok, she's not technically the lead character, but it's better to be the sidekick than the one on whom all the malevolence is focused.

9. The most overestimated book of all time is...

I hate to say anything is the most of all time. Let's just say the book that comes to mind is The Sound and The Fury by William Faulkner. My husband loves Faulkner and got me to read this when we were dating. I thought it sounded interesting because of the Shakespeare-quote connection (I was pretty obsessed with Shakespeare at the time). I don't remember much about it, but I remember I hated it. And I think I may have tried another Faulkner novel before I gave up on him. Which made me a little sad as he is one of "the great Southern authors" and once taught at my alma mater.

By the way, to go off topic a bit - you may have heard of the 1001 Books You Must Read Before You Die. I found this website where you can download a spreadsheet, indicate which ones you have read, and even calculate how many of them you need to read each year in order to complete the list, based on your age and average life expectancy. I don't agree with all of the picks, of course, and do not intend to read them all -- but it is still very interesting. So far I have read only 110 - a terrible record for a former English major!

10. I hate it when a book...

Leaves me hanging without a definite resolution. If I really like the characters, I want to KNOW what happened to them, invite them over again sometime, meet their friends and kids...


Here's another photo from my Lake Harriet walk. (You can click to see it larger.)

Fortune cookie of the day:
You are about to receive a big compliment.

Sail away to fairyland

I saw this car parked near the Lake Harriet bandshell and just had to take a photo. The writing on the front says "You sail away to fairyland along this track of light." Through the windshield you can just make out the ubiquitous "Bug" flowers and also the tiny little fairies spread out on the dashboard.


Fortune cookie of the day:
Do it because you love it

Come sit with me

More from Centennial Lakes. We hoped for a while that our office would move to a building here - right behind this chair, I think. so that is my seat waiting for me. Unfortunately, it will be a long wait. The bosses wouldn't pony up the higher rent, so we are stuck in the same old office for another 2 years. Ah well, I can still visit my seat.

I actually tried to post this a couple of days ago, but Blogger's photo upload wasn't working. Since I took this picture it has been raining pretty much every day, nearly all day long. Tomorrow is supposed to be nicer - I'm really looking forward to seeing the sun.

Had a great dinner last night with the whole family plus significant others. Russ made veggie lasagna and garlic bread, I made chocolate sauce. Good food and conversation.

Fortune cookie of the day:
Take calculated risks. That is quite different from being rash.

Self-Portrait with Dog

Yesterday Bravo and I went to Centennial Lakes Park. It's small, but quite a nice park for such an urban setting - nestled amid office buildings, shops and condos. I may do a whole week of Park pictures...

I understand that mazes like this one are the new thing - very meditative and new age. I may have to come back and walk this one sometime - without the dog. Somehow I don't think he would get the whole meditation thing.


Fortune cookie of the day:
You will soon have your moment of glory.

Random thoughts on recent events

I haven't posted much for a while, so here are just some random thoughts I had on recent local news events. The first couple are depressing, but then there are some lighter, more personal notes at the end.

1. I told people a couple of weeks ago about the news article on a cross that had been burned into the lawn at the house of a black man in the northern suburbs. Yes, into, not on - rather than a wooden cross planted on the lawn and set on fire, this was the shape of a cross burned into the grass. Ok, I thought that was a little odd at the time, but I hadn't kept up on cross-burning techniques - maybe this was the new way? A couple days later, the article in the paper said the man was now accused of doing it himself. Allegedly, he told some inmate friends of his that he planned on doing something like that to gain sympathy and maybe money. And one of them ratted him out. If you can't trust your prison friends, who can you trust?

2. A very sad incident occurred across the border in Wisconsin last weekend. A 20-year-old sheriff's deputy shot several people to death, apparently when he went to a party looking for his ex-girlfriend and she was no longer interested in him. The youngest victim was 14, most were 18-20. There were articles about how 20 is too young to be in law enforcement. While I do agree that seems a little young, I think the bigger problem, which didn't seem to get quite as much press, was the fact that he had not been required to undergo a psychological evaluation before hiring. Yeah, why check on the mental stability of a person who is going to carry a gun and be a figure of authority? Isn't it a waste of time and money? (Minnesota does require a psychological evaluation, though.)

3. The headline a few days ago said that Minnesota had turned down Federal money earmarked for bridge repair. Oh my god! A state whose bridges are in such sad shape that THEY FALL DOWN did not accept free money to repair them??? Well, not exactly. If you actually read the article, it sounds like there were a couple of mutually exclusive pots of money that the state could have accepted. Instead of the bridge repair funds (which had restrictions such as they couldn't be used to replace a bridge, only repair it), the state accepted other money that did not have such restrictions. They may not have made the wisest use of the money they did accept, but I still think the headline was irresponsible.

4. On a lighter note, my co-worker and her husband were on Fox news the other night. They had the local gas company come to winterize their furnace, and the news asked if they could tape it for a spot on preparing for winter. The funny thing was, while the repairman was filmed working on their furnace, he talked about the odd things he had pulled out of furnaces - pounds of walnuts, chipmunks, easter eggs. But the way they cut it, sounded like he was getting all this from my co-worker's furnace!

5. Agility was great this week! There was a very complicated course, and I was sure it would be hard to keep Bravo on the right path as he had to change directions quickly, ignoring obstacles right in front of him to go for the ones I asked him to take. But he did really well, seldom taking the wrong path. I was so proud!!!

6. It is still dark when I walk in the morning, though I have moved back the time so it does get light before I'm done. This morning as I passed the end of Bush Lake Beach, I heard a sound like a wave breaking. When I looked around, I realized we had flushed a flock of geese (or maybe ducks - it was too dark to tell) and they had all slipped into the water at the same time. A little further on, I heard another flock landing on the water with a similar wave-like sound. And then a flock of ducks (it was lighter this time) that had more of the many-wings-flapping sound. I don't know, it just caught my attention and I liked hearing it.

Have a great weekend!

Fortune cookie of the day:
Your problems just become your stepping stone. Catch the moment.

Of Cat and Dog

This morning as I was walking Bravo before sunrise, he suddenly veered away into the middle of the road to avoid something ahead of him. I peered into the dark and eventually realized that there was a cat standing in the gutter, back arched in warning. Yes, my 70-lb dog was afraid of a cat. Once he had made a wide circle around this scary critter, Bravo turned back to check, and she appeared to be following us. So he would run ahead, then turn again and kind of growl at her (but it was really more like his little talking noise than a fierce growl). This went on for a distance of 3 or 4 houses. Eventually we got far enough ahead, or she lost interest in scaring the big dog, or something, and we continued our walk.

So Bravo is afraid of cats, but he loves college students. We went to Beloit last weekend, and I think he believed that all the petting he got from the Beloit students was worth the 6 hours in the crate to get there. We had so many students come up to us, ask to pet him, and talk about how they missed their dogs. At least one girl said we made her day. Karis and I took him on a couple of long walks, he got to visit the farmers' market, and even snuck into her dorm room once. He thought the hotel room was a little strange, but all in all he did quite well with new experiences.

The weather was beautiful, and I very much enjoyed visiting Beloit and meeting some of Karis' friends there. But most of all, it was great to see my daughter again. I'm really glad she gets a fall break, and will be home in about 10 days.

We did have a strange incident where we couldn't call each others' cell phones, and so couldn't find each other for about an hour. That happened again on Tuesday when I went to pick up someone at work from the airport - she finally had to use a pay phone to reach me. I'm not sure what was going on...

Fortune cookie of the day:
Take some time and really listen to your own inner wisdom.

Hidden treasure

On Friday I went to get my hair cut at Carly's new salon. I turned down the next street past the salon, and noticed that the parking lot was reserved for "MAHA residents". And so was the next one. So I found a place to park on the street. As I walked back up to the salon, I noticed that on the next street over, there were some interesting houses that all looked very similar. So after my haircut, instead of going straight back to the car, I turned the other way and found myself on a pedestrian street lined with small but beautiful houses, mostly brick, decorated with gingerbread. I was in the Milwaukee Avenue Historic Area, and a sign said there was a home tour on Sunday.
So today Russ and I rode the light rail to Franklin Avenue and then walked over to Milwaukee Avenue. We discovered that this area had been slated for "urban renewal" in the late 60's. The houses were built in the 1880's mainly for low-skilled immigrants. By 1970, most were dilapidated and plans called for them to be razed, but a group of activists managed to save the street. The houses that were structurally sound were jacked up so that basements with all new mechanicals could be constructed, they were gutted and rehabilitated. They also chose to make the narrow street a pedestrian walkway. Most of the seven houses open for the tour are similar on the outside, but each is unique and interesting in its own way. Some have extremely steep stairs with shallow risers and detailed woodwork, one has 4 different levels and no interior doors, one has a back staircase that can be lifted up to make room for a dinner table underneath, and one has had no major restoration at all. Most do not have garages, thus the parking lots I noticed on Friday. The tour has a blog with pictures of each house and comments by the owners.

By the way, the salon is nice. Not as funky as either of the other locations, and nowhere near as much space as the last one. But as Carly said, it is much cleaner.

Fortune cookie of the day:
Do not let what you cannot do interfere with what you can do.

Rain, rain, go away

So they were supposed to put in the glass block windows today to solve our problem of water coming in through the window wells. But it rained. All day. So they couldn't do the work AND we got water in the basement. I was watching for it, though, and vacuumed it up with the wet/dry vac as it came in. By the time Russ came home, it had stopped. I'm hoping the rain is pretty much over for the night.

And when the rain let up a little earlier in the evening, I went out to walk Bravo. THAT is when they chose to call to re-schedule the windows. And of course, no one answered the number they left on the machine, because it was after office hours. Not the best evening I've had in a while.

Ducks and geese better scurry

We were taking a tour of the lake in the Hendees' boat on Saturday. There were many many ducks and geese on the lake and the shore, and most of them took off when we went by. It's a nice little lake. Convoluted shoreline, spring-fed, no wake, and when we were there, the water was very clear.

Before we went out on the boat, Russ cast a fishing line off the pier. One cast, one fish! There were no barbs on the hook, and the fish went right back into the lake.

After the boat ride, we had home-made BLTs for lunch. They were SO good. I may have to learn to make them at home. Later in the afternoon, we went by an elk and buffalo ranch, and I got some great pictures. Then we wandered the shops in Princeton and had dinner in Wautoma.
We got back to the cabin just in time for sunset. That's the bench at the end of their dock. After I took the picture, we went back out on the boat and had some wine while the sun went down. I wished I had the camera to capture the moon in the water, and when it was full dark, the stars out there were magnificent.

Sunday morning we spent some time talking politics before we left for home. It was a great weekend.

More photos here.

Fortune cookie of the day:
A small act of charity will go a long way.

Of this and that

I was at the library tonight and just started thinking about having recently read a discussion of whether listening to an audio book counted as reading the book. In my opinion - absolutely. Yes, you can say that many people who listen to books don't really hear all of it as they are distracted by other things. However, the same is true of many people who read by looking at the pages - there are people out there who skim. (I know - it's heresy!) There are people who are more aural than visual, and a good narrator can really make a book come alive. I've "read" several books by listening to them, and I usually feel I got at least as much from them as if I had been turning pages. And if the audio book is narrated by Simon Prebble, I got more. I absolutely love his voice. I like the Bill Bryson audio books, too, because he reads them himself - I think they are funnier in the audio version. I admit I sometimes realize I have drifted off to other thoughts. But the biggest problem I have with audio books (especially CDs) is how to put in the bookmark.

On the way back from the library, I stopped at a light behind one other car. When the light changed, the other driver got started so slowly that the light turned red before I made it all the way across the 4 lane highway. Did I mention it was only ONE other car? And they never did go as fast as the speed limit. Which was 35 mph. Now you are probably asking yourself why I am mentioning such a mundane occurrence. Solely because the car .... was a CORVETTE! I had to ask myself if the driver really deserved such a car.

Fortune cookie of the day:
You will inherit a large sum of money.

Maybe I can use it to buy that Corvette....

Another sunset

I went to the barn tonight. Lark made me walk far, far out into the pasture to get him. He didn't try to avoid me though. I gave him a peppermint, hoping he will remember that he gets treats when I go to get him.

I lunged him in the arena for about 20 minutes. He was pretty good. Karis called while I was in the arena with him, so I held the phone to his ear and let her talk to him. He cocked his ear and listened.

So a short visit, but still a visit. On the way home, the sunset was beautiful.

Fortune cookie of the day:
The future belongs to those who believe in the beauty of their dreams.

On Golden Pond

On Friday, Russ and I were walking down to Bush Lake when we saw the golden light through the trees from the sunset over the pond. So today I went back and tried to capture it. I liked a lot of the photos, but this one really popped out at me. This is the pond where we used to play ball with Beta in the winter, when it was frozen over.



Fortune cookie of the day: You will live a long time, long enough to open many, many fortune cookies.

Recommendations

Today I have two recommendations - a book and a movie.

The book is Blame It On Paris, by Laura Florand. It's the story of an American in Paris, who is not enjoying the city and looking forward to moving on until she meets a cute French waiter. My favorite parts of the book are the culture clashes. It is wonderful to see them from both sides - the beginning and end are in France, but in the middle, the French come to America. I greatly enjoyed this book, and I look forward to the next one.

Laura has a wonderful blog. However be warned - if you are a chocolate lover living in the U.S., many of the posts will make you weep with frustration and plot to spend all your savings on a trip to visit chocolatiers in France until your money runs out. She very cruelly posts lots of pictures and descriptions of chocolate and ice cream that are not available on this side of the pond. And other food as well, but that doesn't affect me since I'm not a foodie. Just a chocoholic.

My other recommendation: Russ and I went to see Stardust last night. It is a terrific fantasy movie based on a Neil Gaiman book. Great people in it - Michelle Pfeiffer is a witch, Claire Danes is a star come down to earth, Peter O'Toole and Rupert Everett are a king and a prince respectively, and the most amazing is Robert de Niro as a sky pirate. So for those of you who have seen the movie AND read the book, tell me - how does the movie compare to the book?

Footnote: I must be in a French phase, because I moved on from Blame It On Paris to Hotel Riviera, by Elizabeth Adler.

Fortune cookie of the day:
Good news will be received in a letter

Back in the saddle again

Tonight I rode Lark. Such a simple declarative sentence. And yet for me, at least, there has never been anything simple about riding Lark. (Actually, come to think of it, that is probably true for most of the people who have ridden him.) It's been about a year and a half since I rode at all, and then the horse was my sweet, steady Athena. I figure it's probably 5 years since I was last on Lark.

He was still out in the pasture when we got there (Rae and I - and we met Crystal there). He was actually the closest horse in his pasture, and he stayed where he was calmly grazing as I walked up to him, looking up occasionally when I whistled or called his name. He walked to the barn like a gentleman, only once attempting to nibble more grass on the way.

In the arena, he wasn't terribly good at standing still while I mounted, and even worse while I tried to get my right foot in the stirrup - somehow that is always difficult for me. I know that part was my fault, as I could not seem to keep my leg off him while hunting for the stirrup. He set off at a very fast walk and seemed to be wondering who in the world was on his back. We walked in circles for quite a while before I asked him to trot. Then we didn't trot very long at all, because he was at his bounciest. We walked a lot, and trotted a little, and did some circles to try to get him to bend more. (I figured circling in the middle of the ring would be ok at this point in his career - but I'll try not to do it too much.) I figure we were probably out there about half an hour. And three or four times, I got him to set his head and do a nice sitting trot - for about 5 seconds at a time. Once or twice I must have inadvertently cued the canter, but each time he took a couple of very nice slow canter steps and then settled back to the walk or trot.

All in all, I thought it went very well. I wasn't even really nervous. I was wary of the times when we passed the open door, but though he looked that way, he did not really move to leave the arena. So I was pleased. And oh yes- it's his birthday today! Happy birthday Lark! I took him an apple to celebrate.

So today, instead of a fortune cookie, I offer the slogan from the t-shirt I bought to give myself courage after the accident:
I do not intend to tiptoe through life only to arrive safely at death.

A good day, forsooth

Russ and I went to RenFest yesterday. It was a beautiful sunny day, if a little hot. Jason seemed to be having a great time, of course. We watched a little of the Dew Drop Jugglers when we first got there, and then went back later in the afternoon to catch the full show. They are quite good this year. They seem to be making full use of the new juggler.

We left the first show to get to Vilification Tennis early. I'm not sure it is possible to get there early enough to get a seat in the shade, though. I annoyed Russ by wanting to leave the seat we did get because I couldn't hear very well (we were behind the judge). I love the concept, but I'd think it was funnier if there were fewer sexual jokes. But then, I suppose, that's Vil Tennis. I did think Pander was very good. I also think it's funny that they have trading cards this year.

When we went to see the second Dew Drop Jugglers show, we found that the schedule had been changed, and they were having King Henry's birthday. I thought the queen was so cute when she was kicking her feet in time to the music. I'm impressed that all of these people in their heavy costumes can look so happy when they have to be dying of heat.

Several of the kids' friends were there, and I also saw Jenny Miller, who had a great costume. I have fun just looking at all the people who come, and the costumes they wear. I'm a little envious of the self-confidence some of them must have, and their ability to ignore the heat. I always have to dress in short sleeves and shorts just to get through a few hours there.

I had to go see the sheep-herding show - it's always one of my favorites. I just love to watch border collies work. After that, we'd had enough. We went home and I pretty much crashed for the rest of the day. There are lots more pictures, though.

Fortune cookie of the day:
You have a chance to help someone out right now in a big way.

Daily Photo Theme

Yesterday was the monthly Theme Day at City Daily Photo, and the theme was Street Lamps and Street Signs. I couldn't resist posting this in honor of theme day. My caption for this photo is The Journey that is Life - yes, Karis, I know you think that is depressing.

I follow quite a few of the City Daily Photo websites. To name just a few: France-Arradon, La Antigua Guatemala, Hong Kong, London, Sydney, Seattle, Monte Carlo, and Minneapolis. I really enjoy the vision of the photographers from all over the world.

By the way, you should read this post about upcoming events in Sydney as they relate to our dear leader. Also note the comments.

I've forgotten my daily fortune cookie lately. Yes, these are all real fortunes I or a member of my family received.
Fortune Cookie of the Day:
Take that first step today.

Just sittin' and thinkin'

I don't know what it is with me and porches. I've only once lived in a house with a porch - back on JPA in Charlottesville, for about 2 years. And I don't recall that we sat on it much. I certainly don't spend much time sitting outside now, either on our front stoop or our back deck. People who do have porches don't seem to use them that much - at least, I rarely see anyone sitting on one. Yet somehow, I feel that a house ought to have a porch. This evening, we went for a walk on the east side of Lark Harriet, and I looked for all the houses with porches. As my children will attest, it's usually my first comment about a house - "nice house, but it needs a porch", or "oh, I love that house with the porch".

This is one I pass almost every day when I walk Bravo. It is everything a porch should be, down to perfect use of color. Every time I see it, I want to go plop down on those gorgeous red cushions with a book and a glass of iced tea. The only thing I think I might add is a swing.

Today we worked a little on the basement - neatening the TV room and clearing out the hall. Then we will tackle the "computer room" in preparation for the workers who are coming in a couple of weeks. They are going to put in glass block windows and new window wells, and we hope that will solve the problem of water in the basement. But in the process, there will be lots of dust.

I watched Kinky Boots on DVD tonight. It's a fun little movie about a man who inherits a shoe factory in financial difficulties and finds a new niche market - boots for drag queens. Chiwetel Ejiofor plays Lola, who designs the boots. My favorite scene is between the little old lady who runs the rooming house in a small conservative town in England and Lola, who is staying there:
- Can I just ask, are you a man?
- I am, love, yes.
- Ah, that's fine. Just so's I know how to leave the toilet seat. I'll get some biscuits.

I am an American Girl

I read today that there is a new American Girl doll. Her name is Julie and she is 9 years old in 1974 (so just barely older than I was). Ok, so there aren't a lot of other similarities - she lives in San Francisco, her parents are divorced, and she's into sports (apparently she tries to get on the boys basketball team due to Title IX. And she's blond. But still... I know, I'm such a kid - but I might have to read the books.

I wasn't feeling well this morning, so I called in sick. I spent the morning watching (and napping through small sections of) the second DVD of Pride and Prejudice (Colin Firth version, of course). I felt better late in the afternoon, so I picked up the debris in the yard from the branches we had stacked there for over 2 weeks - the city finally got to our neighborhood to pick up the branches yesterday.

After that, I decided to go visit Lark. The drive took me less than 40 minutes. No one was around. Most of the mares were in, but all the geldings were out. Which was good, since I wanted to see how Lark was doing in the pasture. He was being his typical nerd self, just grazing by himself out in the pasture while the more aggressive horses came up towards the gate to see who would come in first. He likes to stay out of that stuff. Once the other horses figured out I wasn't there to bring them in, they went out for grass, too - so Lark went farther out (he's the one on the right, of course). But the pinto horse in the photo followed him, and then some of the others came over and hung out nearby. You can see the progression in my other pictures. So generally, I think he is doing fine. He's not in the same pasture as MC and Winston, though. I think he's out with Tuffy. I decided not to disturb the horses by going into the pasture, but I left an apple in a bag on his stall door.

Full Moon

It's dark when I wake up at 6 am these days. It makes me miss the summer a bit, but then I get mornings like this one. As I started out on my walk with Bravo, I saw the huge moon over the house across the street, so I went back in for my camera. I should have just taken that picture since it was just a bit darker then and thus the moon was more spectacular, but I still think the beach pics would have been better. This is only one of those I took at the beach - I may post more later. Technically, yesterday was the full moon, but it certainly was glorious to see this morning.

I didn't make it out to the barn tonight. I'd forgotten we had a visitor at work from our Chicago office, so Ejie and I took her to the MOA. We shopped at Nordstrom Rack and a little at DSW (didn't recognize any of the workers, though, Karis). Then she treated us to dinner at Johnny Rockets. I couldn't resist a chocolate malt.

I saw an article in the Washington Post online today about parents and their first-year college students called Orientation 101 for Parents and Freshmen: Letting Go. Here is just a bit of the article:

School officials are no longer surprised by parents who try to register their children for classes, argue about a grade or look up a future roommate on Facebook and demand a switch.

"I've heard four or five times this summer: 'I'm not a helicopter parent!' " said Tiffany Sanchez, director of new student programs at American University. She laughed. "Sure you're not."
....

At the admissions office at Hopkins, it's not unusual for parents to tell staff members, "We are taking the SAT next week," or "We are here for our 3 p.m. interview."

"It's the era of we," Conley said.

I know I was a lot more involved in Karis' college hunt, choice, and orientation than my parents were in mine. As I recall it, I sifted through all the college information on my own, and chose 3 schools to which I applied. My mom (or both parents? I no longer remember) took me to look at Duke, then quietly campaigned for me to go there instead of UVA. It was not a successful campaign as I disliked Duke on sight. On move-in day at UVA, it took about 15 minutes to unload the car, and then they were gone.

As the article points out, colleges have more activities for parents these days. But frankly, I think I've done pretty well. Of course, if I'm comparing myself to the parents described in the article, it's easy to look good. But really, I've tried to back off. I haven't been totally successful, but I've tried.

Jump, Bravo, Jump

Tonight was another agility weaves class. I was really impressed at Bravo's progress. He was able to enter the weaves correctly on his own, much of the time, and I was able to get farther away from the poles than I would have thought possible. Oh, he still missed some poles, but all in all, better than I expected. However, you can't do weaves for an hour. It's too boring for both the dog and the handler. Even waiting for turns and mixing in some of the other equipment, we were pretty much done after 30 minutes.

So then we started working on jumps. Bravo doesn't have a problem jumping, he just doesn't really care if he knocks down the pole. I've actually never taught him to jump correctly - just pointed him at the jump and asked him to go over it. So we learned some techniques for making him a better jumper. Basically, he needs to round his back more - just as a horse does when going over a jump. He tends to jump flat, which makes it much more likely he'll hit the pole. What we learned to do is just make him jump back and forth, with treats every time, so he really loves it. Anything for food. And the best thing about is that the dog gets tired out while I mostly stand in one place.

So now in addition to making weave poles, I need a jump. My obedience ones won't work, because the crosspieces attach by velcro, and the jump only goes one way. If you hit the bar going the wrong way, the whole jump falls over. I'll have to figure out if I can make the jump, or if I need to buy them.

Lark's new home

Lark moved to his new home today. We went out a little early to clip the horses and empty the tack lockers. When Ruth got there with her slant-load trailer, we tried to load Lark first. We should have remembered - not the best idea. After a couple of tries, Rae went to get MC. He went in just fine, and then Lark had no problems getting in. I guess he was worried that he was leaving his friends. Diana went in Rae's trailer.

Lark's new stall is across the aisle from his old buddy Winston. It's nice and big, and right by the door to the pasture. And he doesn't have to wear his halter all the time! Yea! I think he will be very happy. There is a little window - see below. I think it is really access for feeding, and won't be open the rest of the time, but at least I got a picture of him looking out.

The pastures all have grass and electric fences, so Lark will have no excuse to rub out his mane anymore.

The tack room is nice and big - also dry and heated. I think any tack we want to leave there will be safe. It's kept locked, with the key in a combination safe on the wall by the door.

A really nice place!