I'm Fined

I made it back from my trip ok I got home on Sunday at about 1130pm. Monday I woke to find that I brought something back with me. I have a cold. A nasty nonthinking nose running cold. So Right now I am fined and when I am all better and fine. I will put up some pics from the trip. I am going back to bed and watch very bad movies.

Vacation

I have started a vacation this week and will not be able to post until I get back home. I hope to have some pictures to show everyone. Next Saturday Honey and I are going to see Chihuly at the de Young in San Francisco. So have a good week.

The Bobbles, the Pool Shark and the 12th Man

The Bobble heads

I was in the car stopped at a light when I looked into my rear view mirror. There in the car behind me were four people all listening to music. I don't know what they were listening to but they were all bobbing their heads in time to the beat. They looked like a group of bobble head dolls.

The Pool Shark

Do not listen to Honey if she replies on here. We have been playing online pool for the past few days and the only time I win is if she sinks the cue ball when she tops the eight ball in. I don't feel that is winning as I have only sunk 2 balls myself. I have even tried blowing in her ear but I guess that just does not work on the phone.

So I decided that we should play another online game. Chess, we guess what she beat me at that AND checkers. So last night we played dominoes and I won. WOOOHOOO me! I know that will only be until she figures out all the rules and nuances of the game. So if you happen to meet Honey online and she wants to play pool know this she will kick your butt. She is only slightly competitive, but she knows that turns me on.

The 12Th Man

Sunday I went to my first ever NFL game. The hawks were playing some team I don't remember who. It was so much fun. I screamed until I was horse and when I talked I sounded like a cartoon character. I ate garlic fries, had 2 bottles of $3.50 water (beer was $7.00). Got some great shots of the stadium and Seattle. The best part of it was I was for once a real 12Th Man.

For those of you who don't know what a 12Th Man is they are the loudest fans in football. In fact several other football teams have accused the Seahawks of miking the crowd because they cannot hear the plays that are called. That is just not true here is more from the fans, and just one more. How the team uses that is amazing.

View of the City from Qwest Field
View of the City from Qwest Field

The Sound with a ferry before the game

The Blue Thunder Drum Line

Filling up

Raising the 12th Man flag

Blitz the Mascot

Blue Thunder

Go Seahawks

Sea Gals

Full Stadum

Hard-ly Working

I have less than a 7 days to get ready for a trip. I have to pack, clean the car, clean the house, and yes still go to work. So with all of that on my plate why am I sitting here reading, listening to and writing blog stuff?

I have started coming home and napping in the afternoons. I do not want to make this a habit, so I am waiting until I am getting to the point of being sleepy then I am going to get up and work on the car. The car was not going to be my first job as I know myself and will have to clean it out again before I go. The car is first on the list with a good scrubbing, on the way to work before I left my driveway I spilled my coffee. This would not normally be bad at this time of year but the temp reached 90+ in the car. My coffee had milk in it. So this is not going to be just a pick up the trash that might be in there, and take it to be vacuumed. NO now I have to vacuum and then bring it home and scrub the carpeting. eeeeeeewwwwwwww..

Oh and why is vacuum spelled that way? Why not spell it an easier way?

Late on posting

I meant to get this up on Friday or even Thursday night but have been to tired, cranky, hormonal. Thursday was my second book club meeting and we reviewed Out Stealing Horses. For me it was a book that I would have read only if I were incredibly bored, that includes cleaning the bathroom. It was well written however it left many questions unanswered for me. What happened to Thrond's father? Why a suit, why not something more useful? It is not one that I will read over again.

For this month we have decided to read Wizard of Earthsea. We were to have read one called Infidel but have pushed that book back to next month. What has brought about this change is that the library here is having what they are calling Timberland Reads Together. In this the local booksellers agree to sell the book at a discount and anyone in the library system can read the book them meet for a mass discussion.

Timberland library covers 5 counties, not just one or a few city's. This is a huge library system and I love it. I should tell them that. Back on topic, this is the fourth such read that the libraries have worked out. At the end of each read the author if still living is invited to read, answer questions about the book and also sign them. So it looks like this will be an interesting one.

Assaulted

Assaulted, this past week I have been audio assaulted more times than I can count. It started Monday. After I went to the library to work on my laptop and spend some down time I wanted a nice quiet lunch. So I went to a fish place and when I walked in the restaurant was quiet, however before they served me my meal someone had turned on the radio. Not to something quiet and relaxing so that there was a soothing low toned music in the background. No, this was a non-local country station. So not only did I have to listen to music that I am not fond of I had to listen to the static that occupied an out of town station.

There were several times that I was in my car and I could hear others stereos over mine. I will admit that I do not have the best car stereo in the world (I have one working speaker). I do however do not want to hear what others are listening to when I am trying to hear something else.

But the worst was today. I got home, and had gotten off the phone with Honey when the neighbores started up with their music. Don't get me wrong listen to your tunes. I just don't think I should be able to understand what they are listening to when I am in my bedroom and that is not the shared wall.

I like music, I like all different kinds as Honey can tell you. I like that other like music, I just don't want to hear it.

Sand in the City

This weekend was Sand in the City. It is a benefit for the Children's Museum, every year they have a theme, and this year it was movies. When I went there yesterday it was between down pours so I am sure that on Saturday the sand sculptures were a bit more defined. It was still incredible to walk thought and see what each person or team had come up with. I love the look on the dogs face that is getting the shot.

Sir Hissss from Robin Hood

King Kong, Evolution in Engineering

Not sure but I think it is Cats and Dogs

Verne from Over the Hedge

Hammy from Over the Hedge

R.J. from Over the Hedge

Amethyst Initiative

I have been reading and hearing a lot on the news about the Amethyst Initiative. One side will talk about hoping to stop binge drinking and therefor the problems that binge drinking causes. The other side says that lowering the drinking age would cause more fatal car accidents. Who is right?

I don't know. What I do know that at the age of 18 my son will have the right to vote, have to register for the draft, can join the military, and if found guilty of a crime be charged as an adult. However, he as an adult who can go to war and be killed for serving the country, sacrificing his life if he so chooses. He at this age can do all of that is not allowed by the same government who he might choose to serve, cannot at the end of a long hard day have a beer. Or at the celebration of achieving something is not allowed to have a celebratory glass of wine.

Am I the only one who this does not make sense to?

Aug 20th 2007

I know it is odd to have a post dated for a year past, however this is the date that I sent Honey an email that changed everything and for the better I might add. Today is one year in our more than friends relationship, in this year we have covered much ground. We have gone from friends to lovers to being engaged. Happy Anniversary my love.

More flowers for you

This morning

I woke up this morning at 330 it was a noise that woke me and I thought that it was my new upstairs neighbors doing who knows what. Not really caring what they were doing, I just knew that my last half hour of sleep was interrupted. Just as I dozed off the sound came again low and far away rumbling in the sky. Thunder. I stayed in bed and listened to it until I was almost going to be late for work.

It was not the sharp cracking thunder this was the low reverberating echoing rolling thunder. The kind that starts out soft and low, then gradually intensifies in sound, and then slowly fades away. I did not see any lightening just heard the thunder. What a wonderful way to wake up. Much better then who know what the neighbors are doing now.

Heat

It is almost midnight here and it is to hot to sleep, to hot to eat. I would love to be able to climb in the freezer and cool off. Tomorrow it is to be about 105, we don't have air conditioning it is not often that we get heat like this. I should be in bed, I have to get up in less then 4 hours for work but everything is sticky. It is as if the lakes were about to boil, the rivers are still cool, but the beaches are full. I live in a small city, I would hate to live in Portland or Seattle right now, the heat rising from the black top would only make it worse.

I am so looking forward to the fall when the rains come again. I do miss the rain, the cool breezes, football season. It is even to hot to blog. So I will leave a pic of what it feels like outside right now.

What a week

I have changed my work schedule from having the weekends off to taking Sundays and Mondays off this month. So on Tuesday my alarm goes off at 4am and then the phone rings, the hospital does not need me. Great nap time, every 10 minuets until 7am the bloody phone rang with calls from work. So I finally get a little more sleep get up at 10 and at 1445 I get a call they need me to come in and work of the evening. Great but evening shift starts at 1400 and at that time of day it takes me an hour to get to the hospital. They are OK with that. SO I work until 2245 head home get to bed at about midnight. The alarm goes off at 4am Wednesday.

For what happened on Wednesday see above.

Thursday the alarm goes off at 4am. I think what idiot turned that thing on and went back to sleep. I sleep alone I am the idiot. 5am I wake up in a panic, call the hospital and guess what they need me for the day shift. That starts at 6am, I can get there in time IF I leave in 15 minutes. No breakfast, no COFFEE, no lunch, but I made it. Worked until 1430 drove past my house for an appointment at 1600 got there early so I got out of there early. Went home and zoned out until 1800. Talked to Honey on the phone, made a mad dash to get ready for the book club.

Book club this was my first meeting and I am the youngest one there. The average age of them seems to be about 65. Me I am not even 40 yet. The book club was some of what I expected some not of what I thought it would be like. We had read Little Heathens this month. Next months is Out Stealing Horses.

Friday I worked a day shift, tried to do laundry I have to go to a laundry mat. My bank was having a "little glitch" with the computer and so as I had used all my quarters to wash I had 5 loads of wet laundry to deal with. Hours later they got the "little glitch" fixed. I did not have to wait that long to get the laundry dry I got to borrow some quarters from my brother.

Then yesterday I worked a day shift. Ran some errands and fixed dinner. Talked to Honey and Passed out cold until about 830 this morning. That has been my week.

A side note I talk to Honey every night even when I work a double. On the goals my car goes in Monday for an alignment. That means I have a day at home where I can clean the apartment. Woohoo

The list, L K, and Berrys again

I am not a list person nor am I an A type person. In fact on the alphabet scale of person types I am more of an L or a K type personality. What I did was I actually made a list of things that I want to one day blog about. That is where the list comes in at, I wrote it up at work when my patient was sleeping. It was so warm and quiet in there I needed something to do to keep me awake. So I have this list one and a half pages long, why am I not blogging about anything on that list? I wrote it down so I would not have to remember it, good plan. The list is in the car.

L or K type to get the list I would have to go into my bedroom find the keys, put on some type of footwear, walk out to the car, unlock the door, find the notebook, lock the car, walk back to the apartment, take off footwear, walk to the computer, decide what topic that I want to post about, and then type it up. That sounds to much like work to me.

Oh this week I froze a flat of blueberries and I talked to my supplier, they are going to get in boysenberry's. Last year none not one boysen, this year I am going to get me some.

Directional Devices

They are everywhere. In the cell phone, the handheld gaming systems but more importantly in cars. What are they? Talking GPS systems.

The ones that you program in your home address then the address of the grocery store that is three miles away, and that you go to every Friday for their deal on chocolate cookies. The idea on how they work is great, listen to the voice and never get lost. The voice is a polite computer safe voice. One that is not grating on the ears, one that is attention getting, one that is commanding.

Program in the directions and hear (depending on the system) "turn left on Main st. in half a mile turn right on 12Th Ave. in one mile turn left on Elm st. in point 5 miles you have reached your destination." Great. I don't want one in my car.

Give me a realistic one. Program in the home address the destination address and this is what come out of the speaker. " What the, you want me to tell you how to get some place 3 miles from here. Jeez, what happened to you? Do you need me to tell you how to put your pants on. OK turn left on Main st. No, left your other left. Turn right on 12Th ave not that street that is 10Th. Crap now I have to reprogram new directions."

If the companies that made the directional devices built one like that I would buy it just to have it annoy people.

Goals
exercise did the ball and some stretching
only have 5 more cookbooks to go thought

Goals to meet
alignment, bill

Today I went for a walk to the lake. There are two places that are public access. The park where I went and the boat launch. The park is not a fancy one by any means. There are a few picnic tables, a paved path, and a few clearings. The rest of it is trees. Most of the people who use this park go there to let their dogs swim or for some solitude. I went there to read and to take a few pictures. I did get another idea for a goal when I was there. I want to go to every city, state, county, and national park with Honey and make out.

I know there are thousands of parks and it could take forever. I'm up for that.

GOALS MEET. .
Exercise, 150 reps on the ball and walked to the park. One half my cookbooks are gone through I am so far keeping 6 that I know of.

GOALS
Exercise
TWO WEEKS pay off bill, alignment on car.
LONG TERM make out with Honey at every park

No Work

Working as an agency nurse means that while I have the good times I also have the bad. The good times include higher pay, benefits, and the biggest choosing my own schedule. I do not have to ask for time off, for vacations, for family events, and I can choose where I want to work. If one place is full of politics, and backstabbing I don't have to put up with it.

Now for the bad times. If the patient load drops I am one of the first cancelled. Sometimes that means that I don't get the hours in a week to pay for gas. This week so far I have managed to get in 16 hours. I still have Saturday and that is usually when more support staff is needed. So I am hoping to pick up a shift tomorrow but as of now the only place that they need me is a place that I won't go.

The place that needs me is for a night shift tonight and even thought they are offering double time I won't set foot in the place. It is dangerous, I refuse to go there and face the possibility of loosing my license. The last time I went there I was the only one to show up for an evening shift that started at 1400 or 2pm. Day shift took off before they could be stopped, so it was me and one other person from days for 70+ patients. The rest of the shift staggered in when they decided to after a football game. There was to my knowledge there was not any form of punishment to the staff.

Goals meet
Clean Car
Ball exercises 150 total reps. 50 crunches 50 back crunches 50 push ups

On going goals
This weekend: Go Through my cookbooks and thin them out
Daily: Exercise
Next two weeks: Pay off a bill, have alignment done.

Accountability

I have been thinking about some things and one thing that I do is I set goals that I do not meet. I know that is something that a lot of people do. Others are so good that they do not have that problem.

I know I do I can procrastinate with the best of them. Trust me it is not that hard. Then there is a mad scramble to get things done that are needed or wanted done at the last minute. So I have decided that I am going to set goals and post them at the end of the blog so that I can keep track of what I have and have not accomplished. I will have short term and long term goals on here.

So to start...
Short term CLEAN OUT CAR..
Daily goal GET UP AND USE THE EXERCISE BALL before work
Two week goal GET A BILL PAID OFF AND FRONT END ALIGNMENT

Well, I can say that I missed my daily goal today, but I still have a chance at a clean car.

Hands

I asked Honey if I could post a picture of her and this is the one I chose. I just love her hands. I love how delicate they are and how I can trace each bone.

She has some scars on the backs from a job that she did and then some from her cats. They add something to her, some form of character, something that I cannot name. I love to run my fingers over them it is as if they were there just for me. I know that most people will not see them. They are just like her hands fine and delicate. I know thought not to let that fool me she has got a strength in her hands and fingers that I wish I had.

I am always touching her hands in some way. Holding them, running my finger over the backs of them. She posed for this picture for me, then I used Picasa2 to add the color change and the tinting. I just wish that I had asked her to put her ring back on. Oh well, next time.

Berrys

Saturday I went out to the local berry farm and got a flat each of black and raspberrys. Now I know for all of us who grew up on the small wild hard to find blackberrys that the ones that are farm grown are not the same. The taste is a whole diffrent experance. Wild blackberrys are so yummmmmmmmmmmy. Oh, maybe next Saturday I should go into town and have breakfast at the Blue Moon they have wild blackberry jam. That alone is worth it.

What I did with all the berrys was freeze them. They joined a flat of strawberrys that I did a few weeks ago. Next weekend is blue and marionberrys. They to will get frozen. I use them all of them for cobblers, smoothies, muffins, and pancakes(well just the blueberrys for that one). But still, they are so good so tasty. I don't know about boysenberrys I have not seen them in a while. I don't know if people are not growing them or if there is an other problem with the crop. Weather, and pollination can drasticly have an effect on the berry season.

There are two posts tonight I wanted one but I could not get Honeys hand picture in this post. I guess the program I was using has a "thing" about that.

I hate coming up with titles

Sometimes what I want to post and what I actually do post is not the same. Last night I had a great idea for a post and this morning it was gone. All of it each idea each thought. It was gone. My mind was a blank. Even now I feel like I am posting drivel.

I think that I have to much on my mind. My Honey and I have been talking about wedding plans. She told me that she never even as a kid thought about getting married that all of this is new to her. So every once in a while I will email or text her a question about a wedding that sets her off on thinking about something that she never would have.

A simple one word text is all that it takes. Music? Photographer? Food? Then she tells me that she has never thought about those things. We have looked at websites for rings, hotels, and places to get married at.

I am open for ideas and thought on a wedding. I know that we can do anything we want we don't have to have a traditional wedding. We can have a hand fasting outside nakked in the rain if that is what we choose.

Any ideas, any thoughts.