GO VOTE FOR SARAH Go to seesendshare.com, give the Monkey picture a vote of 5 "wow" and all the rest votes of 1 "yawn". Sarah's slipped into fourth!!
I've been such a slacker about finishing off the last of my X-38 work. Now I'm down to a crunch. Sigh.
I hope to have a nice quiet weekend for a rare change. Please let it be nice and quiet. Please! All I want to do is read. Cook myself a full meal instead of eating on the run. And lie in my hammock. And maybe mow the lawn.
So, I randomly heard from David Cohen, from high school, for the first time in something like 6 years. Whoa. So much to say and catch up on. This was the coolest thing he said though: Everybody wants to be a roving travel writer at one time or another. I meant to ask you about your job earlier. It sounds like the coolest gig on earth to me. Can't see how you could get bored with that.
Which is mostly true. Except for the weeks that you run 326,000 sims, and find that you made a mistake in the input deck and have to run them again. That sucks.
Puppy update: I think I found an owner for Thelma. It was uncanny. When the family came, they played with all the dogs, though they had kind of picked Thelma or Louise from the picture (both are white with black spots). Anyway, as the rest of the dogs went off to sleep, Thelma kept walking over, especially to their kids, tail wagging, putting her nose in their hands, etc. It was like the dog picked them. I hope they decide to take her!
We also de-wormed them last night, leading to rather gross results this morning.
Good morning. For those of you who complained about having nothing to read yesterday, I did two entries - they were just not on schedule (one was at 3 p.m., the other at 11 p.m.). So go. Click previous and catch up with my boring life.
To clarify the record from yesterday's late night homeowner rant, according to my mother, my father did edge the lawn. Children's memories are such hazy things, I guess.
I'm totally in love with my new sprinkler. Its like a tractor and it drives the sprinkler (and hose) all over the yard so I don't have to do anything, and everything gets watered.
Oh, and here are pictures of the pups (Thelma, Louise, Bonnie, Clyde, Huckleberry, Sirius Black, Fivel & Sayer)
So I had a letter from the Homeowners Association in my stack of bills. I was hoping it was the pool passes I've repeatedly requested (four separate times since March). Instead I get:
Dear Rebecca Cutri-Kohart,
Purchasing a home represented by a community association offers many advantages to a homeowner, but at the same time imposes some obligations. The obligations are not intended as an inconvenience or an invasion of your freedom, but rather as a means of maintaining harmony in your community.
Sometimes we find that the members of the South Shore Village Community Association, Inc. are unaware of recorded deed restrictions on their property. Deed restrictions exist to maximize the value and beauty of your neighborhood by improving the overall appearance of the community, thereby benefitting both you and your neighbors.
We routinely visit the property and look for items that may need attention. When we were in your section of the community, we noted the following:
Lawn Maintenance - Please edge lawn. Thank you.
Dude! I edge the lawn every two weeks (a stupid and pointless endevour if you ask me - I wasn't planning on doing it at all until one of the neighbors thrust his edger on me). This equates to alternating lawn mows! Now, I know some people (my next door neighbor included) don't even mow their lawn as often as I edge. Of course, they are probably getting letters too.
I have a nazi homeowners association. I feel like I should protest like the guy in Avondale, Georgia, who got angry at his association and painted his house green with purple polka dots. Ok, that would be over reacting. 'Nough said.
Almost won at volleyball last night. We're getting better. I think. Slowly. Then, of course, we regress and don't even break 10.
I've been in class all day ("The Dynamics of Daily Negotiation"). Its a little hokey, but I'm basically improving my skills at manipulating people. Rather than doing necessary work. Oh well. Deadlines-shmedlines.
I haven't given a puppy update in a while. They're all still cute. They're walking (and are now getting EVERYWHERE!). And they're all cuddly know and love to be held. They play and wrestle with each other.
We've been slowly revising the dining room (which is currently the puppy room) to suit the dogs. Putting down puppy pads, washing the towels daily (which I'm pretty sure Cari was already doing), giving Dixie a bath, and leaving the dining room windows open day and night (poor electric bill!) have definitely cleared out the smell that was starting to fill the house. Tonight we are relocating all the puppies to a plastic swimming pool (that can be hosed down!) and we're covering the floor in plastic painters tarp (that can be hosed down!) and then covering that in newspapers (that are super absorbant and can be thrown out when soiled). And everything will get even nicer after a visit from our favorite cleaning lady tomorrow. Anyway, by the time we get the room configuration all figured out, we'll have found homes for the whole herd of them. That's the way the cookie crumbles.
Tonight, sailing. Yeh! Water, boats, wind, waves, sunshine.
First things first. Go vote for Sarah. She's slipped to a solid third place. SO, you need to go rank the MONKEY a number 5 "wow" and all the other photos a 1 "yawn". Do it. Do it!. Use every e-mail address you can think of, tell your friends, etc. etc.
Life at the Cottage
I had a lovely vacation. The only negatives were the dreary weather and the fact that my dad has decided its ok to smoke in the cottage (yuk!).
It was strange being up there when it was too cold to swim. And rainy at that. The first night was the best part! When we drove in (at 2 a.m.) the stars were incredibly clear, even for the cottage which is known for its clear beautiful nights (I watched satellites, saw the milky way, etc. etc.).
But I tore my eyes from the sky to see FOUR BABY FOXES playing on our driveway. How cool is that? They were really curious, and my brother video taped them, and one walked up within 5 feet of us. It was awesome. We saw tons of wildlife, it must be because the lake isn't really busy right now, so there aren't people to scare them away (or hunt them). I saw several cool birds, an osprey nest, tons of deer. Plus two nights worth of baby foxes.
Otherwise, I went on walks, a couple of jogs down our peninsula (man, I HATE hills), read three books and several National Geographics, a couple of ATV rides, and just relaxed.
Top 100 High Schools
I picked up a Newsweek, and the cover story was "Top 100 Public High Schools." Atlantic High, my alma mater, was number 54! Go Atlantic! (Ok, its scummy, dirty, underfunded, etc., but it does manage to consume the whole month of May giving AP and IB exams - I took 12 my senior year and 4 my junior year). Sarah's High School came in even better at number 7. By the way they ranked, IB schools had a significant advantage, because each student takes a minimum of 6 exams (they ranked by the ratio of exams taken to the overall student body), whereas schools with just AP programs can have students that only take one or two exams. But still, its cool. If you're curious about your school, the list is here
Back to reality
I really didn't want to come back to work today. My feelings about work are like being on a roller coaster - sometimes I love it and I'm on a high. Other times I would rather be about anywhere else than here.
Go to www.seesendshare.com and vote for the picture of the MONKEY. Give the Monkey a score of 5 ("wow") and the other pictures scores of 1's ("yawn"). This is so Sarah can win a private jet ride with 5 friends to 5 destinations! She has a one-in-ten chance, and with you voting, well, she can't lose! Its one vote per email address, so vote with all your email addresses and talk everyone you know into voting.
(You're going to see this banner from now until the voting is over)
Ok. Onto other stuff
I love sailing. We lost pitifully last night, but actually won third place for the series (that's a set of races). So I won a North Sail duffle bag. I am excited about this (though everyone else seemed a little bored by them and have to many, but it was my First). I also talked a lot to the folks about a boat for Sarah and I to buy. They are going to help me track down the "perfect" one for us. I'm going to trust they know what they're doing more than I would!
I stayed out way to late last night, and still had to pack and stuff, so I stayed up late. And now I'm here ultra-early. I can't wait to leave for vacation.
Puppy Update: They all have names (still subject to change, but we're happy with them for the moment) now: Thelma & Louise (the two white ones with black spots); Bonnie & Clyde (the two brown ones with black noses); Fivel (the mouse-like one); Sirius Black (she's a black dog, so is Sirius); Huckleberry; Sawyer (who wines a Lot!);
Last night, we lost another 3 games of volleyball. We'll get 'em next week...
Last night was also the series ending of Buffy The Vampire Slayer. Ok, I have to admit to being an addict of this show. Despite years of me having flying club the same night and time (my VCR was set on permanent record for it), then Technique staff meetings, and now volleyball, I've kept up with it. I was very satisfied with the ending. It cracked me up when Angel came back and got all jealous of Buffy having an affair with Spike (both Angel & Spike are vampires with souls.. you'd have to be there). Anyway, Buffy said to Angel "You waltz back into town and go all Dawson on me!" That cracked me up. And then they turned every girl with the potential to be a slayer into a slayer. That was cool too. Ok, sorry, I know you're all rolling your eyes 'cause I was completely addicted to a silly teen drama thing.
Tonight is sailing night.
Tomorrow afternoon, I head up to the cottage. I'm really looking forward to it - 60-something temperature, clear skies, and hopefully no black flies (keeping my figures crossed).
Puppy Status: We did some dining room rearranging, bought a 4'x8' piece of plywood and now Dixie has a right and proper home (i.e. we don't have to crate her in with her puppies all day, which is like Mommy-nightmare - stuck in a box with 8 crazy nursing kids!). The Kohart family is also realizing that when I go up to the cottage for July 4, it will be the perfect time to separate puppies from their mother, and they will still be small enough to carry on the plane -- so, its possible that one of them might find a new home with a member of my family
I've had a really depressing morning. The NTSB sent me a bunch of accident reports because I needed to pull some ballistic information from them. Anyway, I became engrossed reading them. In some ways what the NTSB does is really cool, in others, I wonder how they do their job without being overwhelmed with tragedy.
The puppies eyes are all open. Some of them are starting to try to walk. They push themselves up, take a couple of steps, and then collapse in exhaustion. Its very funny. They are much more squirmy now too.
More eyes are open. I think about 12 of 16. Still not all of them. I've given the pups an unofficial birthday of May 10. They are so cute.
I've decided I am going to buy myself a pair of diamond earings, very small, in platinum settings. Why, you ask. Well, because I can, and I can afford it. I have pretty much no really nice casual jewelry (and have never been given any as a gift by a member of the opposite sex). Diamond studs would actually be really useful to have as a simple pair to wear with whatever. And I've decided it will be empowering to buy them for myself.
I did pretty much nothing all weekend. I talked on the phone (hopefully 10-10-987 works or I'm going to have a HUGE phone bill). I read two books (well, I re-read one book that has a new sequal out that I want to buy and read another one). I watched all the shows I taped last week (West Wing, E.R., etc.). I made an unsuccessful attempt to go on a bike ride with Sarah (she got a flat). I spent a lot of time with the pups. I bought an mp3 player. I slept (or napped on the hamock) at least 50% of the daylight hours.
The puppies are starting to open their eyes! So adorable. Otherwise, they eat their own body weight in milk. And they sleep a lot. I am also learning bizarre and disgusting things about how momma dogs keep their babies clean.
Last night I totally pigged out on Tex-Mex. I am *still* not hungry.
Today I might go on a bike ride with Sarah to decide if I am willing to tackle the triathalon (I'm not worried about the run or the swim portion of it... but the bike ride...)
Playing hooky
I know, you were all concerned about Sarah and my whereabouts yesterday. Well, we were playing golf in the LSO golf tournament. Boy did we suck. Our group had two foursomes this year, and pretty much just about as much fun as last year. The other foursome even got lucky with handicapping and won the highest net. We came in dead last. But it was fun, and that's all that matters. I lost 9 balls, and, 6 of my drives were used (it was a scramble). This year, I really vow to go to the driving range at least a little more often. And then, maybe next year, we'll have an all women's foursome, with Jen as our ringer, and really take advantage of the ladies tee!
See here for some pictures from the event.
Afterwards we went to see Matrix. It started out kind of slow, but it still rocked. I find it hard to imagine how they spent $60 million on the car chase scene. You know, the reason I like Matrix is that its really pure sci-fi. There are a lot of popular, big budget films that have sci-fi settings, but isn't anything like reading a good science fiction book or comic. Whereas the Matrix has all the big budget master effects and cast and everything, but it still maintains a real science fiction script. I loved that. I think I may actually have to watch it again to understand everything that was going on!
My House Is a Zoo
Its official.
I'll tell you a little story about some foundlings and my bizarre breeding experiments.
(Warning, only load these web pages if you have a fast internet connection).
This is Dixie. Dixie was abandonned. Then Dixie had 12 puppies and was found a day after. 4 of the puppies died from exposure.
Now, Dixie, and her 8 PUPPIES live in my dining room.
I don't know if we're half crazy to volunteer to do this. Cari and I (and theoretically Kennda) will be puppy raising for at least the next month. The puppies are under 10 days old (we know this because their eyes aren't even open yet.) But they can't stay in the shelter (they euthenize puppies that haven't been weaned yet because they can't take care of them). And, so, our house it is.
So, if you're in the market for a puppy, PLEASE, let me know.
Total animal count in my house: 2 adolescent dogs (Benett and Apache), 1 cat (Tang), a mommy dog (Dixie) and her 8 puppies + Cari + Kennda + Becca = 15 mammals.
Good thing I didn't break down and get the cockatiels I wanted...
My house is not going to blow up
Apparently I did actually have a gas leak in the pipe behind my stove. The guy from the gas company actually remembered me complaining about a gas smell from my stove when I moved in, and he felt really bad that he didn't find it before. Anyway, they patched it up, no charge. What a nice service that the gas company does, keeping my house from blowing up and all.
My house is going to blow up.
Ah. The joys of being a homeowner. Or at least being a home-caretaker, as the bank owns most of the home :).
This morning, we all woke up to an ambient gas smell. Now, when I moved in and the gas company came to turn on the gas, I told the gas guy I smelled gas in the kitchen. He said it was probably collecting at the top of my skylight where there was little circulation and not to worry about it (he did, however, check the lines just to be sure). Since then, the kitchen has always had kind of an ambient gas smell, which I blame on the gas stove, which has a distinct gas smell. Now, I've never had a gas stove before in my life, but people keep assuring me that gas stove do in fact smell a little like gas. Makes sense.
Though, now when when I put it in the context of my whole house smelling like gas, they say "Your stove shouldn't smell like gas!"
Anyway, I call the gas company and tell them the house smells. The web page says if your house smells like gas you should leave immediately. You know, one spark and all... Somehow, this message is not clear to the customer service rep, who told me someone would be to the house by 1 p.m. (6 hours after I placed the call!) and I should stay home to let him in. Yeh right.
So, I left the door unlocked and went to work. I get the feeling he is going to tell me my stove is the source of all the ills. Which is ok, cause I have a home warranty (though it does have a $250 deductible) that theoretically should cover a replacement.
The funniest part of this story is that Kennda didn't want to risk poor Tang (the cat) and so she took Tang to work. Giggle. A cat at work. Meowing loudly. I'm sure her officemates will love that.
This morning, Cari comes in shame-faced and says, "So, I backed into your car..." There's a pause, and then she says, "I guess everyone's going to read about this in your diary today." Apparently, I leave my poor roommates in constant fear that they are going to read about their exploits in my journal.
Of course, as she says this my jaw is dropped, and I'm like "My poor car, I just got the bumper reattached". But Cari quickly finishes the thought with "Don't worry, the only thing that broke was the little propeller on my trailer hitch, your car is fine." Luckily, bumpers are there for a reason.
I like having roommates. It gives me someone to harrass about decisions to purchase witch shoes (Cari) and the desire to keep things in "original packaging" (Kennda) and thinking of ways that unborn future children will "disrespect" books. And, of course, its nice when you get a call as your about to leave for work, with someone asking "what do you want for dinner", and actually having food waiting for you when you get home.
My weekend succeeded as planned. I slept in both days. I mowed my lawn right after I woke up on Saturday, so I didn't have to think about it for the rest of the weekend. I went to the driving range and reinforced two ideas: golfing is NOT like riding a bike, and you can't just pick it up again; I suck at golf. I went to a party for the Sightings Team I had been on. I saw Bend it Like Beckham, which rocked (I am totally in love with Coach Joe, with his cool Irish accent and his piercing eyes...played by Jonathan Rys Meyers). I slept in, way in, on Sunday. Then I went shopping, where I did a much needed refreshment of my wardrobe by spending way too much money at the mall. Then I took a bath, read a book, and went to sleep.
I have a bunch of work to get done this week. But, I don't really feel motivated to start any of it. I was like that last week too. Hopefully, once I build up some momentum, the motivation will come with it.
Thank goodness its Friday. With my fighting off illness, its been a really long week. Last night, I boobed around and watched t.v. all night, and that was good.
Plans for this weekend: maybe, finally see X-Men 2; at least one trip to the driving range; a party for the Sightings Team; maybe going shoe shopping; read at least one book; mow the lawn; get a tan.
Yesterday, I was really disturbed because my weather pixie donned a swimsuit, instead of wearing normal clothes. I don't know why I'm disturbed, it is 90+ degrees out. And its only going to get hotter. And its all hazy because the Mexican farmers are clearing their fields by setting them on fire, and the haze comes all the way up here.
Feminist Rant
Well, its seems that Jen's entry yesterday caused lots of discussion. Today, Karen writes:
I just wanted to tell Jen that I also empathize in often feeling like an imposter. And the further I go the worse it gets. The only good news is that it is almost exclusively an internal feeling. Very few people have ever said anything like that to me. I just keep hoping that maybe one day it will subside. Hey Becca has anyone ever done a survey of successful women to find out if they all feel like this?
Actually, I don't know of a particular study on this subject, but if one of my more knowledgable relatives could let me know, I'd love to hear of it (I had expected to find something from the American Assoc. of University Women, but I didn't).
Anyway, this spawned a discussion between Sarah and I about feminism. I really need to avoid conversations like this, because, in most cases, I enjoy arguing, have fun with it, and don't usually take it personally. However, when it comes to a discussion with another professional, intelligent, and successful woman who says that she does not consider herself a feminist nor believe in feminism, it gets really personal for me. And that's not a good way to have a conversation.
I guess, its hard for me to imagine how someone who has managed to reep a great deal of the benefits of the modern feminist movement believes that she would be equally successful without it.
And I don't understand how someone can think to themselves "Well, things are getting better for women, and they'll continue to get better because that's what everyone wants and we don't need any sort of political support or feminists cause they just shove it down people's throats and make them want it less." Personally, I think that as many gains as women have made over the years, I think without feminism, they are likely to come to a complete standstill or go back all-together.
First of all, I can't believe how anyone would be against a movement that's only definition is "Political, economic and social equality for women." Not considering yourself a feminist would mean you are against those things.
So, it led me to think about all the reasons we need feminism:
- Title IX. Its constantly under threat. Without it college women would lose 50,000 participation opportunities and $122 million dollars in athletic scholarships. High School girls would lose 305,000 participation opportunities.
- Judicial Appointments. A lot of key women's reproductive rights legislation hangs on in the courts by a very narrow margin (along with other civil rights issues). A few retirements, and the appointment of a few ultra-conservative judges, and 20 years of freedoms gained could just as easily be revoked.
- Education. This is always the argument that always fries me. Some successful women I know say "well, there are opportunities to go into whatever field you want -- if I beat the odds and became and engineer, etc. any girl can, the schools aren't that biased". First of all, I don't think girls should have to "beat the odds" to succeed. I think girls are still forced to back-off in an environment that favors typically male traits, especially during the middle school years. There's no other way to explain why up until middle school, even today, girls succeed at math and science in equal or greater rates then the boys, and then suddenly all drop out of them when they hit middle school.
- Global Feminism. Women in many other countries are facing basic human rights violations. The U.S. has an enormous amount of resources that can be used to help improve the status of women worldwide, and I think has the moral obligation to do it.
-Health. I know a good number of medical studies are done on men, or many more men than women, and then the results are applied to women. Not only doesn't this make sense from a scientific perspective, it could have profound consequences on my health and the health of people I care about.
I'm feeling a little better today. Well, at least, back at work. I was so restless at home yesterday, I really felt like I was forcing myself to stay home sick. I'm not really ultra-sick, its more like that feeling of fighting something off. I still kind of feel that way today. I figure if I was well enough to go sailing last night, I'm well enough to come to work today.
(Speaking of which, we got third place last night. There was also a little girl and her father sailing in the class, and the little girl was awesome, not because she sailed, but because she told me about her favorite Greek myths, word for word from my favorite book of myths, and then she pointed out an oleander plant and said "that's an oleander, they're poison.")
I think I may've found a boat to buy. Stay tuned.
As Sarah pointed out, some of our work has appeared on the Accident Investigation Boardwebsite. I worked on slides 10, 20, and 21 and was involved in the decisions that went into making slide 14 & 15. Go me!
This was funny: Bush cites "Last Starfighter" as reason for entering politics.
And I love when Jen goes on her feminist kicks in her journal. She commented on how she tends to walk in and count the number of women in her class. Its funny, I never realized this before she mentioned it, but I do the same thing -- its practically an subconscious reaction (so I didn't even notice I was doing it until just now when Jen mentioned it). But this part from Jen's entry was particularly interesting:
In 'Schoolgirls' by Peggy Orenstein, she talks of fears she had in writing her senior thesis, convinced that people would find her out to be a fraud and not the smart person she was thought to be. The passage continues as follows:
'Back then, I went to my adviser and told her of the fears that were choking me.
"You feel like an imposter?" she asked. "Don't worry about it. All smart women feel that way."'
And, here are pictures of my new little half-sister Demetra Jeanette:
With Dad:
With my half-brother Rob (don't comment on the two books you see in the background "Boy or Girl?" or "What to Expect when you're expecting", and the literacy level of the person those books would've been of most interest to):
With my cousin Catie:
I decided to make an attempt to fight off whatever was making me feel slightly ill yesterday and more than slightly ill this morning. So, I called in sick.
Its funny, I always have to force myself not to go to work when I'm feeling sick - especially when I feel functional. On the other hand, I have no problem playing hooky to catch the premier of a movie or go on vacation. It feels like such a wasted day. Actually, I am currently restraining myself from taking advantage of being home all day by be productive. My mind races to all the productive things I could do like cleaning, going to the post office or bank, etc. Instead I am trying to relax and be a vegetable, which isn't usually a problem for me to do when I'm feeling well, but somehow makes me restless when I'm sick.
Last night I went to the driving range. Golf is a frustrating game. Enough said.
I'm watching the CAIB hearing. One of the slides I made is being presented, and another few that I contributed to. It always feels good when your work is being used.
I'm not feeling very well today. I am looking forward to going home and doing nothing.
Camping was excellent. We went to Hill Country. And there were hills (imagine that). We hiked (a lot) and just enjoyed the scenery. Even the weather actually cooperated and the potentially scorching heat never arrived, and instead, we were treated to temperate, breezy weather. It was a nice break.
I slept REALLY well last night. Though, I had a horribly weird dream that finally woke me up this morning (about an hour after I normally wake up for work...). Basically, it involved me being somehow involved in something that the mafia didn't like. And so my "gang" had a gun battle with the mafia. Actually, multiple battles. I was always watching for the next battle to erupt, wherever I was (which included dad's shop, a mall in Atlanta, and my high school - never mind that would've involved thousands of miles of traveling). And, well, that's about it. It was actually very gruesome now that I think about it, but it was more like t.v. movie gruesome, than what it would've been like in reality.
My oleander rants on Friday elicited a number of comments. Some of my favorites:
Matt: As a joke, I often say I want an oleander pizza.
Katie: ...back in the 1800's woman were known for killing their husbands by making them oleander tea. Back then, I guess it was hard to trace the poison in the body, so the women wouldn't get in trouble. We also went on a "Ghost Tour" of Myrtles Plantation and learned that a slave on that plantation had killed the mother and children of the plantation by making one of the children a birthday cake with oleander juice in it. Anyway, I thought it was funny that you also just learned about the "hazards" of oleander! So, don't bake with it, okay? (It only slightly worries me that a newlywed has already learned a traceless way to kill her husband).
So, yesterday I complained about all my weird aches and pains from sailing. It was weird, 'cause sailing isn't THAT strenuous of an activity. So I am slowly discovering they aren't muscle aches, but bruises. I'm practically black and blue all over. My knee, my legs, my rear, my feet, my arms....
I'm leaving for a camping trip near Austin in Hill Country this weekend. Yes, Texas has hills. Hopefully it won't be TOO hot.
In other news, obviously my family is suffering because they haven't had a graduation party in two whole years (oh, the pain, the suffering). So, they are all off to my Aunt Ellie's "graduation" at University of Florida. Not everyone can brag about having an aunt who is getting a *second* honorary doctorate. I think she should share the love with me - I could use a doctorate!
Ms. Eleanor Smeal, President of the Feminist Majority Foundation is being recognized for her tireless and effective leadership in the contemporary women's movement. For more than 30 years, Ms. Smeal has been on the frontlines fighting for women's equality, playing a pivotal role in efforts to design and pass legislation that would grant women equal rights in employment and income, education, political participation and representation, and reproduction. Ms. Smeal has served three terms as President of the National Organization for Women during which some of the most significant advances in women's legal status were achieved. In the mid-1990s Ms. Smeal launched an international campaign to promote humanitarian treatment and women's rights in Afghanistan, long before the events of September 11, 2001 brought these issues to broad public awareness.
1:32 p.m.
So, the guy in my division I mentioned before who stopped me in the hall to thank me for mowing my lawn and totally freaked me out, heard, by word of mouth, that he freaked me out. So, anyway, he apologized today, which is funny, because I wasn't offended. It was just weird that people at work knew whether or not I had mowed my lawn!
Anyway, in the ensuing conversation, I mentioned the stupid bushes I have (the one that earned the sign "please trim me" cause it was growing over the sidewalk). These bushes are meant to be round and bushy (with only one planted at a time). Instead someone planted a row of four of them in an attempt to turn them into a hedge.
Apparently its called "olenader" (Jen identified it for me). This is also the bush, that, while I was trimming it, I got warned by another neighbor that it was poisonous. WELL. I was just informed that it has a really really really strong root system, which is known for growing under sidewalks and destroying sidewalks. Conveniently, this bush has been planted on the outside of my fence RIGHT next to, not only the sidewalk, but the paved area for the communal mailbox.
Great. I read on the olender society website that olender's make a good Gift. The word "Gift" is German for Poison. How appropriate.
In case you didn't follow all that, here's the scorecard: I have a monster bush that grows like crazy, covers the sidewalk, makes my neighbors leave me notes, and IS POISON! and is likely to destroy the sidewalk, costing me even more money.
All for freakin' pretty white flowers. I am so getting those bushes removed.
I've probably now offended the gods of ancient Greece. I just read that the Greeks used to plant holy forests of olenders. Figures.
The cat came back the very next day...
I am going to string Tang up and let him hang. Tang is Kennda's cat. Kennda is out of town. When Kennda leaves, Tang gets annoying. Very annoying. Extremely annoying. There are cabinets under the built-in bookshelves that line the wall by my bedroom, and starting at 2 a.m., Tang began the process of opening and closing them, repeatedly. When he wasn't doing this he was sticking his little paw under my bedroom door and shaking the door. And meowing. Meowing louder than Apache can bark. I was really tempted to go get a hammer and hit his little paw next time he did that. That would teach him. I finally threw him in Kennda's bedroom and closed the door. The problem with this, I learned this morning, is that he does the same thing in Kennda's room, which is close enough to Cari's that it wakes her up. (Which, Cari tells me, happens nearly every night even when Kennda is in town... we're going to have to come up with a solution for that). All this literally went on until we woke up this morning. We can't win.
To top that off, as I was trying to catch a few last minutes of sleep, Cari had let Bennet outside, and Bennet popped up onto my window sill and started peering in at me. This would normally be endearingly cute. But, it freaked Apache out, and she kept whining until I would let her out and play.
I can usually sleep through just about anything. That gives you the extent of the noise.
Tonight, we are putting Tang in his crate and putting the crate in the study. If we can still hear the meowing, he's going in the garage. End of story.
Come sail away with me
Sailing rocked. There was lots of wind. It actually took work to keep the boat upright. There are weird parts of my body that ache (I think because the hiking straps were too short for my short little legs and, you know, I haven't been sailing in 6 months). We won second place! Actually we deserved third, because the race committee missed one of the boat's finishes (which is really weird, they're usually pretty good). But it feels good to win something...
