The Legend of Zelda

Here she is! She's playful. She waddles when she walks. She has a cute little growl. Her master dotes on her.

Five Weeks and Counting

Erkie sent a photo of the pup to my cell phone. Since then I've been showing it to everyone. She's so cute!

Not Much of A Storm

Despite what you might have read, it wasn't much of a storm. Yeah, we got snow--about a foot maybe. But no huge accumulations.

It was (and still is) pretty. Like this photo I took at 9 p.m. Friday while walking Kharma.

But best of all, I have an extra half day of vacation! Why? Because the highly paid wusses concerned managers of our school district have called a two-hour delayed start for tomorrow. Since the morning class only lasts for two and a half hours on a regular day, there is no point in anyone (including ME) going in for thirty minutes. So I get to accomplish just a little bit more--hmmm, now what can I do with an extra four hours...

(Just kidding school-district decision makers--I think you totally have the safety of our children at heart--good call on that delayed start. And yes, I am just aching to get back and see our adorable kidlets.)

I Woke Up in Portland

Rain. Lots of it.

Apparently there is a storm after all, with enough power to make it over the Crest and bring us rain here in the Rainshadow. It's been noisily raining since 5 a.m. and since the ground is frozen, the runoff is beginning to be exciting. Storm drains here and there are getting a little clogged and allowing large puddles to extend onto the roadway. It's cool to drive by and watch the dedicated maintenance men hermetically sealed into their storm gear trying to use their shovels to coax the runoff into the drains. The Truckee is commencing to roar. The Ditch is already half full just from local rain. It had better stop raining and start snowing or I have the feeling that another flood might be on the horizon. We just don't do rain well here.

There's no need for the intermittent setting on the windshield wipers. Just turn them on "fast" and drive. We have the choice of driving the safe yet scenic route in the left lane which avoids the little mini-lakes or using the right lane and spraying glorious rooster tails of water sideways. The wind is blowing so hard that sometimes the splash ends up right on your windshield and you feel like you're driving (or should that be piloting?) a submarine. It's less fun on the freeway because hydroplaning just sort of sneaks up on you even when everyone is driving about 15 mph slower than usual. Just think how much fun we'll have when the temps drop, our wet roads become solid ice and we have one big skating rink in town.

I've discovered that the Forester rear hatch makes a great roof when loading and unloading groceries. Well thought out, Suburu designers. (We now pause while I stop and think about how much I lovelovelove my little red Forester.)

I totally believe in Global Warming. It basically does not rain here. Well, maybe a welcome thundershower in August, but winter rain...no. It snows. That's why I love it here. Snow is beautiful and dry and makes you want to go outside and play. Those were the good old days BGW. Rain is wet and messy and makes mud and makes me want to stay inside and eat fattening foods. If there is any holiday weight gain, I am blaming it ALL on the rain.


p.s. Kharma doesn't like the rain either.

Storm Skeptic

Hunker down and get ready for the biggest storm in five years. That's what they are telling us.
(Long Pause)

I don't want to rain (or snow) on their parade. We'd be thrilled with a good storm--heaven knows we could use the water. I'm just a little skeptical. Weathermen like weather. It's been my experience that they get excited and hopeful about storms, kinda like kids about the cool stuff Santa may bring them.

Judging by the winds that have been blasting around since noon, something might be in the works for the near future. We're hoping the back fence, that is scheduled for replacement this Spring, rides it out and withstands the gusts that are currently making it ripple like a flag in a breeze. But the biggest storm in five years? Please.

They are predicting up to twelve inches of snow down on the valley floor. It was 54 degrees today so it's gonna hafta drop precipitiously (no pun intended) to come close to that.

In our book, a big storm is defined by a minimum of two feet of snow in a 24 hour period. A big storm requires us to shovel the driveway continuously just to keep up with the accumulation. When we get to the bottom of the drive, it's time to start over at the top. This photo shows what happened the last time we had a big storm way back in 2004. That sleek looking mound is, in fact, a car. I didn't see my morning kindergartners for three weeks due to snow days. At the time, I thought the school district was being wimpy about the whole thing since we've driven our kids to school over worse roads. It was kinda nice getting up late and having an extended vacation. Making up the snow days in June when I was dying for school to end was less fun.

Now that I've poo-poohed the whole forecast, I think I'll go out and wash my car and have my sweetie clean the windows. If THAT doesn't bring on a major storm, nothing will.

Alpenglow Farewell to 2007

What a nice way to end a year--a carefree trip to celebrate a birthday and visit farflung family!

We met the very charming Boston Boyfriend (hi, Chris, sorry but not looking at the camera will not prevent you from appearing in the picture), laughed with Atlantic Ariel about her crustacean-collecting forays, viewed the latest decorating masterpiece masterminded by ToolMan who has learned the subtle art of manipulating his clients and ate yet another delicious dinner hostessed by the Cruise Queen.

The birthday girl received roses--gorgeous, fragrant, subtly-blushing pink and altogether beautiful just--like the honoree.

We caught someone raiding the freshly baked bread when he thought we weren't looking. Hey, Grand Dude, good thing there was plenty for everybody else or there could have been trouble!

There was way too much picture taking for some. That's what happens when Cobalt Girl gets an exciting new digital camera of her own. And Kayak Man stops talking canines long enough to get grab his camera too. Good thing we are a camera-crazed family (unless the paparazzi are begging you for just one more shot). How else can we remember these treasured family get-togethers that come way too seldom?

The mountain roads, thankfully, cooperated with snow- and storm-free driving. We even witnessed a gorgeous Sierra sunset touched by alpenglow as we raced down Donner Pass on our way home. Thanks, family, it was a wonderful way to close out the year. Fair skies and smooth sailing to all as we welcome 2008!

Nosed Out

Where did her dark nose go? It was black as a puppy. Even a year ago, it was still dark. Heck, it was dark this summer. Suddenly, she's almost a two-year-old and her Yellow Lab heritage is beginning to show up. Kharma has a pink nose.

(Don't you just love Hissy Cat? She came in Kharma's Christmas stocking.)

'Tis the Season

There were gatherings at Christmas Eve. Grammy's tree was beautifully decorated with old Shiny Brite ornaments. The lasagna my sweetie made was wonderful along with Grammy's new pie crust (courtesy of Martha Stewart) filled with yummy Golden Delicious apples left over from Clayton Girl's orchard this fall. Yeah, there were a few presents too. All thoughtfully chosen and gratefully received. And new ornaments: hard to choose between the parakeet ornaments that match Grammy's two birdbrains and the bell-ringing elf that Tigger made! Then we reluctantly went out into the cold and drove home to prepare for the Big Day.

Christmas day arrived leisurely. First order of business was to give Kharma a much-needed bath. She looks so much cuter fluffy and golden and clean! Then Erkie and Grammy arrived to open presents from our stash and see what things Santa left in stockings. We proceeded to put plane #1 on the roof, watch plane #2 flat spin onto the asphalt and die, and completed the hat trick with #3 making an apparently perfect landing only to discover that the wing looked fine but was actually broken in half. It only cost Santa a couple of bucks (greenbacks, not caribou) and we laughed ourselves silly over the toys.

Santa left Kharma plenty of toys, which she opened gently. She was racing around like a two-year-old on a sugar high with all the excitement. Only two of her toys currently are whole, no stuffing protruding or ears chewed off or holes in the squeakers.

Dinner was delicious. Stay tuned...Christmas part deux, tomorrow.

Christmas Challenge

Okay, family! I know you all have beloved ornaments on your trees and special collections of snowmen/Santas/nativities/angels/houses on display.

You went to all that trouble to put them up...Wouldn't you like to share them? Take a photo, or two, or three and email them to me and I'll publish them for you. Feel free to spin a yarn about your treasures too. If you have a blog post about them, send a link.

It'll be like a large family visit together.

At the very least, we want a photo of your Christmas day gathering.

The ball's in your court. Charge up those batteries and get those digital cameras working. No pressure...we'll post the photos as we get them, when we get them (please notice that WE haven't posted any yet either).

Stay tuned and a come back often for our Family House Tour!

Autobots

I hate to do it, but I think I might incorporate a word verification to eliminate the annoying robot that leaves "comments" on my blog. Comments which are not comments. Comments that are just links to business opportunities--think bloggy telemarketers.

And Blogger, in their infinite wisdom, changed comments so that a profile shows up instead of a link to their blog. Bless their geeky little hearts.

Otherwise I'd be pleased to visit a certain commenter on his site and leave a few meadow muffins strewn about for him to enjoy.

We'll see how long my patience lasts.

Clean

No ironing pile! No scrap fabric pile! No old photos pile! No pattern pile!

When enough projects get completed, the cleanup can begin. Too bad there isn't a before photo to go with this after shot of one of our guest beds. (You didn't really want to see the mess, trust me.) Honesty compels me to add that we also have a clutter-free coffee table, dining table and kitchen table.

I'm not ready for sainthood yet though. There is still a "Christmas" room with plenty of presents waiting to be wrapped and/or boxed as well as a few crafts that are close to completion.

I'm sure it was just a total and complete coincidence that my sweetie arrived back home today from his week living in nice clean hotel rooms! Yeah, right.

Counter Raider

Apparently food left on the kitchen counter is no longer safe, sacred or dedicated to humans. Either that, or apples have begun to mysterious float to the floor by themselves.

Clutter

I always make a huge mess when I'm being the most productive. Reorganize a closet? Prepare to watch me devote two entire rooms to piles and boxes. Get ready for Christmas? Haul in storage tubs from three different locations and live with piles of Christmas decorations downstairs for a week before you can see the floor. Finish Christmas craft projects? Uh-oh. Home Organizer Alert: Every single surface in our home has clutter on it.

I've been ignoring it (selective vision) up to now because I've been getting so much done. It's reached that point that even Shrek would get a little uneasy around this much stuff. I've no idea how my long-suffering and very organized sweetie has survived this long without complaint.

But the fact that he just left on a conveniently-timed business trip is somewhat suspicious.

Buddies

Kharma loves going to the pasture even more when Cody is there. Having a fresh snowfall to romp in just makes it that much better.

That's Cody in front with the K-Dog staying just enough behind to keep the game going. Cody loves snow as much as Kharma. It energized him so much that he initiated the game of chase this time.

Empty Spools

I can't tell you exactly what I've been doing just in case you are someone on the receiving end of my projects. (If you are an adult who has previously received one of my Christmas efforts and not living in my house, Do. Not Worry. I'm not mailing anything handmade your way--you're safe.)

I can tell you that I'm on my second really big spool of thread. Well, technically I'm on it, but only for about another 15 inches and then it too will be toast. I can't count how many times I've rethreaded the bobbin. The sewing machine rebelled after the first ten items or so and insisted on a complete re-oiling. I think it's close to needing another lube job soon.

Yeah, I'm involved in a really marathon sewing event. I no sooner finish one mystery item than I think of someone else who might enjoy one or I find another fabric "theme". I can't count how many times I've been to my local fabric stores, but I know I'm contributing mightily to the local economy.

I've fallen in love with one fabric. I didn't realize how great it looked until I started using it. So I went back for more and used it all up. Then I decided I wanted some just for me (yeah, we're keeping two of the mysterious Christmas items, so how bad could they be? All right, already. I can hear all you past recipients groaning all the way up here. You are not getting one. Even if you beg). Three trips for one fabric. Three trips to the fabric store that is not close. I'm not going to calculate how much per yard this sale fabric works out to when the cost of gas is factored in.

And it's a project that uses up stashed fabric. That's a good thing, a very good thing. I've learned that it IS possible to have too much fabric. You may disagree, but my craft closet is much happier in its new slimmer condition.

I love straight sewing for a change. And French seams are my new best friend. I think I like them even better than serging. They have style and that certain je ne sais quoi. (Don't you love it when you get to sling a little French around?)

One thing leads to another, I've found. This mystery item has meant searching through boxes of fabrics here at home, which means I've also run across previously started projects. And I have energy and enthusiasm and hands and fingers that work. So postponed projects are being finished right and left.

There's a downside of course. One is that the adrenaline rush I get when I'm accomplishing something isn't very conducive to sleep. Another is that there are piles of fabric covering both guest beds, the ironing board hasn't been down for two weeks and it's hard to find a nook clean enough in which to wrap presents. The last is that I not only am involved in the sewing marathon and finishing old projects, but I keep starting new Christmas craft patterns.

The madness continues. Where will it all end? No one knows. It's fun while it lasts though!

Grateful For

blue skies and autumn winds
sons and girlfriends
wet-nosed doggy greetings
surgeons and fingers that work
medical insurance
a good night's sleep
family, near and far
enough food on our plate
farmers
apple pie
yams
fine china
dishwashers
icy ponds
warm jackets and one-size-fits-all stretch gloves
neighbors
sleeping in
loyalty
laughter
smiles
glasses half full
frisbees
hugs
memories

Autumn

I'm not ready for Christmas carols just yet. I'm still enjoying the crunch of leaves and a little Jack Frost every morning. December will come soon enough and our stack of holiday CDs will be playing nonstop. Our home will be taken over by the red-and-green, Santa, snowmen, angels and reindeer overload that I adore.

But for now, the homey hues that remind us of those yummy foods simmering on the stove and fogging up the kitchen window are such a delight after the blatant, showy colors of summer. The heater is on, the down comforter is handy, soup is a mainstay, it's dark at 5:15. Autumn grants us time to slow down and ponder our lives.

The Christmas rush can wait. Anything that's on sale will still be on sale when I'm ready to buy it.

The stitches from surgery number two come out tomorrow (all three of them). CTS has made me slow down and enforced patience which, to my surprise, isn't all that awful. I'm hoping to retain some of the lessons I've learned. Autumn is a wonderful time of year if you slow down to enjoy it and CTS has slowed me down big time over the last five months. Life went on without my to-do list. My self-enforced no-whining zone has brought me new appreciation of my blessings.

My gratitude list is filled with simple everyday joys--and right now, enough sleep at night that I actually dream is at the top.

Our red carpet

Fall can bring such surprising gifts. Like the walk to our door. Very bee-a-you-tee-full!

In the gratitude column, add a surgeon with a light touch. Hand number two throbs a bit, but already feels better than it did pre-surgery this a.m. I can hardly wait tll the stitches are out. It will be like having a real life again. It was a long five months of carpal tunnel and I'm glad to be emerging from the dark.

Off to recouperate and count my blessings.

Old Dog, New Trick

I was bitten by the Scrapbooking Bug a few years ago. I now have

• a decent hoard of cardstock in my favorite colors,
• a membership at my local scrapbooking store where they know my name,
• lots of friends who share my passion for preserving memories before they fade from our brain cells,
• a subscribtion to Memory Makers magazine,
• and a pile of vacation photos taken with future scrapbooking in mind.
  

My current obsession is all the fault of the magazine. For the past year, they have featured more and more articles on digital scrapbooking or, basically, using your computer to do all the work. I never really understood anything about the process, but Saturday was "Digital Scrapbooking Day" (yeah, who knew?) and the magazine featured a free download of some digitial scrapbooking materials. I know enough not to turn my nose up at anything that is truly free, so I downloaded and then realized I had no idea what to do next.

I'm nothing if not resourceful. I googled "how to digital scrapbook" and discovered a wonderful site (www.shabbyprincess.com) with another free download(!) and an even more fabulous tutorial which even I could follow.

Here is the result. Yeah, right now it's just a bunch of pixels floating in cyberspace rather than an honest-to-goodness page that I can put in my scrapbook. I still have to figure out how to manipulate text and rotate elements and about a million other fancy things before I'll be happy enough to have my effort printed. But still, this isn't a bad result for only my second try at this new skill.

And I just realized that using the computer for storage space instead of having my scrapping materials occupy half my desk is pretty cool too! My better half would approve!

The Sinister Side of Life

I still have no date set for surgery on my left hand. I've been unable to get the nurse to call me back and I've been waiting for two weeks now.

The good news is that it is Conference Week with minimum days, so my hand is not getting overworked which usually causes plenty of pain and sleepless nights. I've found that a hotpack each night really relaxes my leftie and so I've gotten some decent sleep recently. My right hand continues to improve and get stronger, although it still has a ways to go. I'm still not able to snap my fingers or open jars, but I can button nicely.

The bad news is that Conference Week will end. And my sweetie needs to take another field trip and can't book it until I have a surgery date. And that the first surgery was scheduled three weeks out...I have no idea if I can survive for another three weeks. The thought that it could be more than three weeks is pretty scary at this point.

I've decided that I can no longer be a patient patient...so I am pulling strings (since I have connections). Keep your fingers crossed for me!