painting dreams

This weekend I get to paint.

Again.

Dad has a new house that needs painting and since I'm the resident painter, I get the job. So this weekend I get to drive up to WY to paint all weekend. So much for enjoying my hour that we get back this weekend.

It also means that I get to drive to WY in the middle of the night with Vicky. Joy of all joys.

Painting is not my idea of a way to spend a weekend, but if it gets dad moved into his house, then I'm up for it.

So, who wants to feed my cat this weekend??

hugs around the world

As mentioned in my last post, last week we had about 400 international staff in the Springs for our Global Conference. Every time I am fortunate enough to have cross-cultural experiences with our staff I am reminded that humanity is the same all over the globe. Just some of it is better than the rest.

Take hugging. Hugging is one of those things that you either love or hate. Some cultures are more prone to it than others. American's tend to fall in the middle. We hug but it's not our strongest interpersonal skill.

I've been told I'm a good hugger. Not one that hangs limp arms around your shoulders. I'm a strong hugger that isn't afraid to squeeze, especially if you are a great friend, if you (or I) look like you need a hug and if you ask for one. I thought I knew how to hug well. Then I meet George.

George is from Kenya but currently working in Burkina Faso. He is about my height, maybe an inch or two taller (I'm 5 foot 4 inches for the uninformed), and not skinny but not massive either. He doesn't appear to be of great strength. He sat with me at dinner on Thursday and we chatted. After dinner, as we were all preparing to leave, he went to give me a hug.

He about squeezed all the air out of me, not to mention he somehow lifted me off my feet.

That was a hug!

I saw him again Friday afternoon and wanted to wish him a good trip home. Again, he gave me a hug. I think I know now what it would be to be picked up and hugged by a gorilla. They aren't tall but they are strong, even if they appear gentle and unassuming.

If I forget every other hug I've ever received, I think I'll remember this one. It was amazing, warm, strong, and everything a hug should be.

If you ever need a hug, let me know. I'm taking lessons from George!

international shopping brooha

They say you haven't shopped until you do so in a country not your own.

Well, I say you haven't shopped until you have escorted someone from another country through your familiar shopping grounds.

This last week I had the chance to take my four Peruvian friends shopping here in the Springs. What a blast! I have a new appreciation on how we act in their markets and shops after watching my friends in our stores.

First, they wanted to go to a thrift store, so we headed to GoodWill. They ran like children into the store, anxious to see what treasures awaited. They sorted through children's clothing to take home, stuffed animals, books and kicknacks (but they did not buy knicknacks).

Then we went to the mall where the first big challenge was explaining salad dressing to my friend Jose. Our visiting staff know English but some things are easier to explain and grasp than others. After dinner, we started in search of a toy store or doll shop. Along the way, I kept losing one or more of my party into various shops. I was a nervous wreck. While I know our malls are very safe (especially the one we were at) and that there were no crowds, I didn't want to lose one of my friends or having something happen to them.

Finally, we went through Borders (large bookstore for the uninformed). It was the release day for Wess Stafford's book (he Compassion's president) and we thought we would see if they had it. So my four Peruvian friends walk in and accost the staff with "We want Too Small to Ignore by Wess."

Not, by Wess Stafford.

Not, by Dr. Wesley K. Stafford.

Not by Dr. Wesley K. Stafford and Dean Merrill.

Just by Wess.

I was laughing so hard it took a few moments before I could help finish the author's name for the very confused staff.

Sadly, they didn't have it yet. But we made a big enough stink that they hopefully have it out now. I'll be going back in a day or so to check.

After that I took them back to the hotel to catch some z's before the next day's meetings and events. I think they enjoyed their shopping trip. I'm glad I was able to help them like they have helped me when I've visited their country.

And next time you see a shopper that seems a bit confused and has an accent, be kind to them, they may be shopping in a country other than their own. We look pretty silly to them when we go visiting and shopping in their homelands as well!

herding cats

No, this has nothing to do with my previous post (but I still miss 007, and his brother really misses him which is hard to watch). Rather, it has to do with the month of November and National Novel Writing Month.

You see, each region has an appointed leader, the Municipal Liaison. And this year, they opened it up for each region to have two. Guess who was asked to be the second leader... me.

There is a forum just for ML's and it's tag lines says that leading writers is like herding cats. I would say it's more like teaching preschool. For some unknown reason, trouble started cropping up just when I get ML standing. Someone doesn't like the language someone else is using, why do we have to have the kids in our group (NaNo is open to 13 and up and CS has several high schoolers signed up) and so on.

I met with our head ML yesterday to plan our kick-off party and she was shocked and relieved when I said I was fine in laying down some ground rules for our write in meetings. She hasn't felt like she could put her foot down before (she's one of those really nice people who cares a lot). Thankfully she has me this year, the mean, don't care, do what's right and don't feel bad about it person.

So if you don't see much of me for the next month and a half, don't panic. I'm just writing my novel, putting temperamental writers into their corners and getting everyone to play nice.

And thanks to Tara and Emily for commenting on the last post, it meant a lot to me.

007

Because I'm crying too much to say anything else...

Putting Down the Cat

by Billy Collins


The assistant holds her on the table,
the fur hanging limp from her tiny skeleton,
and the veterinarian raises the needle of fluid
which will put the line through her ninth life.

"Painless," he reassures me, "like counting
backwards from a hundred," but I want to tell him
that our poor cat cannot count at all,
much less to a hundred, much less backwards.


Goodbye to our old friend. I miss you already.

did you miss me

I've been "out" for a few days. Life has just got a bit busy, work crazy and I've been tired. Sorry if I wasn't here to provide you with fresh with on a regular basis.

As I mentioned in my last post, it's that time of year again when I write a novel. I can't wait. This year I'm a co-ML (Municipal Liaison) which means I have to be very adult and responsible and go to all the activities.

Last night, Miss Pottenger and Dara and I went to see Serenity. It was great, funny and well worth the Friday night ticket price.

Today I've made a half-hearted attempt at cleaning. With dad moving (he bought the house yesterday) I need to clean up just a bit. So when the movers come in they are frightened and we have a place to store the stuff that is being left behind.

I'm planning on going to my first hockey game in November as well. For his birthday I gave Jake (my eight year old, sports fanatic friend) a promise to go to a hockey game. So now he asks me about it every weekend. Cute kid.

Okay, that's my update. Maybe I'll have a wonderful encounter this afternoon that will be worthy of writing about. How's that for leaving you in anticipation?

in the lovely month of

Yes, it's almost time again.

November is almost here. And that means total insanity as I write at least 50,000 on a new novel starting on Nov. 1 and finishing on Nov. 30.

And I am so excited because I have the best idea now for this year's novel.

I'll tell you more about it when I have time (or maybe not, I don't want to kill my creative jucies by saying too much just yet). But I am looking forward to another year of NaNoWriMo (that is National Novel Writing Month for those who are unaware).

And if you want to join, you should give it a try. Visit their site here. You can't sign up for another day or so due to technical troubles, but soon!!!

near death day

I thought I was joking when I told my supervisor that I would call in dead on Friday.

Then some crazy person tried to run me over this morning. Not once, but twice. The same guy. The first time, he tries to plow into my side coming into my lane. I was at least even with him and he should have seen me, but he didn't. I'm next to the median on my left so I have no place to go. I slam on my horn and when he finally sees me, he just keeps coming. He gives me this look that says "what's your problem?". My problem, sir, is that I'm driving in this lane that you are trying to enter. I'm here first, you are not. You didn't bother to check, you are now less than five inches away from my vehicle and you are about to crash into me.

He finally backs away but then pulls in right behind me (because of course the driver behind me was just as frightened and pulled back as far as he or she could). But we are driving on a new stretch of road (Powers) and it's pretty foggy out. I know a stoplight is coming up but can't see it in the fog, so I start to slow down a bit. Sure enough, when the light pops into view it is red. I come to a nice, peaceful stop. But the guy who already tried to ram me off the road is once again not paying attention. He came within inches of slamming into my rear.

But that's not all.

He gave me ANOTHER look!

Sir, I'm stopped because the light is red. I'm following the law.

At that point I prayed that God would teach him a lesson and please not to involve me and my car in said lesson.

All that plus the bizarre slow traffic flow meant that my leaving five minutes early didn't make a lick of difference. I flew into our parking lot and ran to my desk. But it's moving day for the majority of our department, so there are boxes and people standing around everywhere.

One of my nice co-workers (ie, one I like), says "you've got three minutes" as I rush to my desk and start kicking boxes. I replied with "but my computer takes five minutes to boot up". I made it just barely.

Is there anyway I can arrange a hospital stay for tomorrow? I could use the rest and protection from the crazy people.

golden

Yesterday I went to the hills and I found gold. It's an amazing year to see the aspens.
So while the rest of the town is home watching football, I'll be out appreciating nature.




Just in case you can't get here to see them yourself, here's a sampling. If you are truly homesick and want more, let me know. I took a bunch!

candy store

Miss Pottenger recently provided us with eye candy.

Now it's my turn.

Meet Richard Hammond.

He's lovely, he's British and he has great taste in cars.

I know this because I watch him on the show Top Gear on Discovery Channel.

He reminds me a bit of Hugh Jackman and for some reason, the spiky hair doesn't bother me.

Go ahead, drool a bit.

slacking

Tonight, I'm being a slacker.

I should have worked until 7, gone to the Y and then come home to a healthy dinner.

I did none of that.

Instead, I left work at 5:30, came straight home and ate cheese dip and chips for dinner.

Yes, the life of a slacker.

If I can muster up the energy, I'll go work on my book. My dear friend from Peru, Soledad, just sent me some great feedback. Great feedback helps revive my interest in my work. And we have another two hour meeting in a few weeks (at work) so I should be able to polish up the novel and put a good ending on it.

Remind me in a week or two to talk about my feelings on the current trend in literature and endings of books. It's a frightening thing.

Okay, I'm going back to slacking. Feet up, cup of tea, I'm set.

not enough

Put a hold on the sympathy cards. I'm not dying.

Apparently, they didn't get enough cells to test so I have to go back to the drs and go through that horrid appointment again.

All I can say is I am SO not paying another office visit fee for this!

And yes, someday, I'll write a story about it.

blindsided

I know, two posts in one day.

It doesn't happen often, and it's only happening because there is something on my mind and there is no other way to get it out.

You see, a week and a half ago I went to the drs for my annual exam. The one I hate but must endure because otherwise, they don't give me my pills. And since my pills make me a much for balanced person (and take away the horrible pain), I go.

The drill is always the same. They take their sample, send it away, and in a week or so you get a card in the mail if the results are normal.

Otherwise, you get a phone call.

So Nathan tells me tonight, after I get home from church, that my drs office called and I need to call them back.

And my mind takes off.

Of course, it's too late to call them tonight, so I have at least twelve hours or so to panic, think of worst case scenarios, write my will and so on.

The worst thing is, half of me is totally calm. Part of me is sure that they simply lost the sample, they erased their address database and can't send me the results, etc.

But the other half, the creative, imaginative, insane half is already halfway to Rome with ideas and doomsday proclamations.

I'm sure it's nothing. Even if it is, I'm sure it's something that can be handled. I just need to get this out so my mind will let it go and I can get some sleep tonight.

So, bye bye to the bad thoughts, so long to the worst case scenarios, adios to panic.

Let's hope it works.

just plain icky

I had some wonderful plans to post this weekend, including putting up photos of my room (now painted, but needing a bit of cleaning before photos can be taken). But all those plans fell to the wayside because I got hit with a Mack truck.

Okay, so I didn't really get hit with a truck, but I sure felt like I did. A weird, 24-hour sinus bug hit me sometime while I was sitting in church Saturday evening. By the time I got home, it was all I could do to keep upright. I lost my voice by 9 pm. Woke up every hour, on the hour (I'm weird that way, my internal clock is obnoxious) trying to empty my head and stomach of all the ickyness. Sunday was spent sleeping and watching Stargate since I couldn't do much else.

Amazing, I woke up today with a clear head and the only lingering effect is being tired and having a sore throat. And I'm really thirsty.

So, the photos will have to wait, as will any witty essays on the state of the world. I'm just going to spend the rest of the day (after I get home from work) recovering from my weekend.

nowhere to hide

After years of cold dinners, rude awakenings on weekend mornings and people that didn't understand the word "NO", we finally put an end to telemarketers. I was so very happy when I added my name to the Colorado Do Not Call list, even more elated when a national list went into effect.

Finally we had quiet evenings and the phone didn't rule our days.

Then the spam started in earnest. Emails for everything that we never knew we needed.

Talk of a do not spam list make my head swim with glee.

I was starting to think we have put a stop to rude interruptions from total strangers.

Then I read the comment on my last post (which has been removed) that was left with no name and an ad for a home loan.

I thought maybe it was a fluke, until I saw a similar comment on Miss Pottenger's blog.

Now, I don't mind anyone reading my blog, and you all know that I love comments, but I am not interested in using my blog as free advertising space for those who refuse to leave their names (or for that matter, for anyone who just thinks free ad space is there for the taking.

So the offending comment has been removed. Whoever left it is welcome to visit here, read, and leave valid comments. But know that this is my space and if any product championing is going to take place it will be done by me.

I need my hiding space from the evil world of marketing, and this is it. Let's not lose this precious place.

Now, go leave some legitimate comments about what you dislike about telemarketers, spammers and other rude and invasive marketing personnel?

the density of

I didn't mean to leave you all hanging like that. The busy weekend got the better of me and I didn't come to post. Sorry.

And a special sorry to Emily for any nasty smells she had to endure on my behalf :)

And on to today's post.

I'm shocked (though you would think I would be used to it by now) by how dense some people can be. And I have just the example to share.

Just now I was in the kitchen, fixing my Easy Mac for lunch. A co-worker that I know, made a comment about my lunch and I responded. No harm there.

But a second co-worker, one neither of us is acquainted with, piped in a comment about Easy Mac. Again, no harm done.

First co-worker leaves and second co-workers launches into a long comment about her daughter's friend in college. I'm trying to listen but I'm not really interested because, as I said, I don't know this person, nor her daughter nor her daughter's friend.

A third co-worker comes in, one I do know and one I have a question for. Since the second woman has now stopped talking, and she is not between me and the third person, I say hello and prepare to ask him a question.

I don't get more than hello out before second co-worker starts talking again. Third co-worker exits without me getting to ask him the question and this woman is still talking. I had tried to avoid her, not respond to her and even engage in another conversation in an attempt to let her know that I wasn't interested, but she didn't get the drift. She just wasn't getting that a) I didn't care and b) that I didn't care.

Honestly, I wish being honest didn't get me in so much trouble. If I could get away with it, I would have smiled, said good-by and walked away from this person. But that gets me in trouble so I didn't. But I'll be sure to avoid this person in the hall, the bathroom and the kitchen from here on out. Yes, this means I need to hide under my desk from now till all eternity, but if I can escape such people it may just be worth it.

quick

I am so hungry, please, please send food quickly.

I'm not so picky, not when I'm growing faint and the world is becoming a distant memory.

Anybody?

Cookies, milk, popcorn, a grilled-cheese sandwich.

Anything for this poor, hungry girl??

what i did on my summer vacation

(This post is a bit long but I hope you enjoy it)

Clarksfork Camping Chronicles

The chronicles of the Doyle family camping trip on the Clarksfork river, near Cody Wyoming.

Saturday, August 13

I get up early to have time to go to the bank. I’m back home by 10 but we don’t actually leave until closer to noon. I ended up sleeping from the south of Denver until Cheyenne. After a quick meal (and the discovery that my dad as well as my brother has a fear of drive-thru’s) I took over driving. Of course, this is when the rain started. I drove to Sweetwater Station (mostly just a rest stop and a little station of some sort). By now, the rain had stopped. I always end up driving in rain in Wyoming. Dad took over driving and we pulled into Riverton around 7 pm. Carin, who was driving out from California, didn’t arrive until midnight. She was held up in CA by a burning bus that closed the road. Only in California.

Sunday, August 14

I was awoken from slumber by two small voices saying “what are those bumps down there”. I assumed in my early morning grogginess they were referring to Carin and I. We had slept on the living room floor. The voices belonged to the grandchildren of my dad’s best friend, Emmett and Ella. Sometime after this, once we were all up, dressed, and fed, we took off for the long drive to camp. From Riverton to Cody then up the Chief Joseph Highway. We had to stop at Walmart and buy fishing licenses.

We get to camp around 5 or so and set everything up. By everything I mean three tents, three cots (Nathan sleeps on the ground, the rest of us use cots, smart people we are), four sleeping pads and bags, potty shelter, assorted tables, hooks for lanterns and fishing poles. Anxious to get fishing, Nathan, dad and I grab poles and go out to the river.

The fish were biting and I caught about four (but could only keep one, the others were too big and had to go back). Nathan and I had some fish with dinner. Because we fished so long we ended up cooking fish and chili (not together) in the dark.

Monday, August 15

The night was cold and I woke up several times in the dark wondering why my nose hurt so much (it was pretty frozen). I made it through the night only by placing a Hot Hands warmer over my nose. Once the sun was up, I woke up to ground squirrels playing outside my tent. After breakfast, I’m out on the river fishing. The water was clearer than I ever remember it being before and the fishing is great. More bits, more catches, but most of the fish are too big to keep (anything over 8 inches goes back). By the time I come back to camp, everyone else is up and ready to hit the river. I duck back into my tent and go back to sleep around noon. I sleep for three hours, when everyone else comes back. We whip up dinner of sausage and potatoes and enjoy the wonderful weather.

Tuesday, August 16

Not so cold overnight so I sleep well. We all begin to stir around 9 in the morning (except Carin, who I think got up at 5 every day, I don’t know what’s wrong with that child). I catch one keeper and clean it (Nathan insisted I learn how to clean my own fish). After an hour or so of fishing, I’m ready for my hammock. I lounge, reading a book, for a few hours then head to my tent for another nap. I love naps. When the others return in the afternoon, Dad and Nathan had lots of fish for dinner and Carin whipped out the PBJ (she won’t eat fish, I’m sure she’s from Mars or something). We cooked fish over the fire and had a great meal. S’mores for dessert finished the day. We make plans to hike to the canyon tomorrow.

Wednesday, August 17

We all get up around 9 (except Carin, but we’ve already talked about her) and eat. We drive down to the start of the canyon. Hiking in requires you to shimmy across rock ledges that drop off straight into the river. There are several places that I announce to the rest of my family “You have GOT to be kidding me, I don’t want to die.” But I make it. We spend several hours in the canyon fishing and hanging out. When it’s time to go back, Nathan goes first and decided to push a large rock (you know, the size of a small child) into the river BEFORE the rest of us cross the tightest point. Again, I express my opinion about not wanting to die and how can I cross on wet rocks that slide down into the river. Nathan, always the helpful one, stands there and laughs at me. It takes a while but I finally slink through the tight spot and scamper up the hill to safety. Dad decided to fish the river back to camp and the rest of us drive. We have strict instructions to pull out steaks for dinner and get a good fire going. Carin and I do this.

Then we wait.

And wait.

And wonder where our father has gone.

Nathan goes to find him and by the time they get back, it’s 7:30 or so. Dark clouds are rolling in and we are losing our light.

By the time the steaks are ready we have erected a lean-to with a tarp to shield us from the rain. We eat in the darkness, huddling under the tarp, trying to warm up and dry out. The steaks were wonderful, despite the deteriorating weather.

Thursday, August 18

After a rainy night we wake up to more rain, a muddy river and dark clouds all around. We breakfast under the tarp and discuss options. Fishing is out, as fish cannot see the lures through the mud, but Nathan wants to try. Dad sends Carin and I up the hill to see what we can see. We see dark clouds surrounding the entire basin. Upon returning to camp we decide to pack up a day early and head back to Riverton with a stop in Thermopolis to sit in the hot springs. Nathan is disappointed but he didn’t catch any fish so he decided, wisely, to go with us. We pack up camp, drive out, stop in Cody to buy a bathing suit for me, then drive down to Thermop. Carin, dad and I hang out in the pools for about an hour while Nathan wanders around the state park. After the pool kicks us out at closing time, we drive back to Riverton.

Friday, August 19

We sleep in. This time there are no small children to wake us up and we all got beds of sorts. All the tents are set up in the yard to dry out (since it is a beautiful day in Riverton). I go shopping with Esther (wife of dad’s best friend) because Carin and Nathan went to town without me. I find some beautiful bowls, Christmas cards and candle holders all on clearance. We stop at Dairy Queen to get ice cream and they actually have ice cream (last time we tried this two years ago they were out of ice cream, bizarre but true).

Saturday, August 20

We say goodbye to the lovely state of Wyoming and drive home. As the peak comes into view we notice that it has snowed in our absence. I go to church in a tank top and freeze (because I didn’t have time to change, had to go straight there).
And that concludes our camping adventures. I still haven’t seen a bear (despite reports that the grizzlies in Yellowstone are all over the place) but I did catch a lot of great fish. I got some rest but apparently not enough (I’m already tired again!). And I think we all had a great time. Can’t wait for the next trip.

cause and effect

Goodness, I've been a slacker. Sorry about that. It's been a busy week.

The good news is that as of today, our test team at work is official. Praise God. It was a long time coming and we were pretty sure it wasn't going to be approved, but it was.

I've been working on a fun write up about the camping experience, but it's not ready yet. Look for it in a week or so.

In lieu of that, here is my more recent pondering.

As you all are probably aware (even my international readers), gas prices in the USA continue to take flight in the upward direction. While our prices are not yet as extreme as most of the rest of the civilized world, it's a pretty hard hit to many of us here at home. The drastic increase is impacting some more than others, specifically those who make piddly a non-profit jobs. So here are a few ways the price of gas is impacting me personally.

* there are no more out of town excursions, meaning I don't get to drive to Woodland Park just for the heck of it, no fun zoo trips to Denver and no driving to see out of town relatives.

* running out for lunch is no longer an option, I have to bring lunch daily or buy here in the cafe. Sadly, this is also impacted by our new policy about no forgiveness for missing a minute of work time, but the gas prices have completely shut down lunch time sanity breaks.

* serious cutback in "going out" or just running to Walmart to get an item or two. All trips out must be done in conjunction with others (so I'm not running one place tonight and another tomorrow) and some things are just not bought because it's too far out of the way to get it.

* no more late night taco bell runs. It's not worth it even to get a Mt. Dew Blast.

* a serious cutback in the fun times, like going to the movies or shopping trips for books and such. it costs too much to get to the store and then actually buy something.

Thankfully, there is no drama going on right now, so trips to church are down, and most places I shop are between work and home, so I can stop on the way home in the evenings. And I have a HUGE movie collection, so even if I can't go out, I always have something to watch.

So tell me, what impact is the rising cost of gas having in your life?

back in business

I'm back. I'll post something soon, when I have a minute or two.

Dara and I went to see Red Eye tonight. Very good flick.

Hope you had a good week last week.

Bye now.