In need of advice

I'm planning on buying a treadmill in the near future (probably on Sunday), so I'm wondering if any of you out there have some advice, recommendations, or horror stories you would like to share. Those of you who own treadmills, what kind do you have? How is it holding up?

The first cucumber

It's probably a good thing I have summer school, as there will be a glut of cucumbers ripening in the next few weeks and I will need people to give them good homes.

Back to school

If it wasn't for his heavy-set frame, I would swear that my classroom technology class was being taught by French Stewart (by French Stewart imitating a professor, anyway, or possibly a professor doing a French Stewart imitation). Squinty, spastic, disorganized, over-the-top - the guy really is too much to be real.

How to blend in at Walmart

Wear your exercise clothes. The guy behind me in the returns line complemented my 10 year old T-shirt.

Also, one of the ladies at the return counter? Named Billie Jo. This is San Diego, people! That sort of thing shouldn't happen.

Even more things to do in Seattle

- Visit the Fremont Troll.

- Go to Bite of Seattle. I've never actually been to a food festival before.

- Watch a roller derby bout (Seattle is the proud home of the Rat City Rollergirls). I went to see one of these while I was visiting relatives in Tucson and it was awesome. Very exciting and involving.

Home again, home again, jiggity jig

I'm back! Actually, we got home last night a little before 11 pm, after having driven for over 16 hours. R is a hard-core driver (plus we really wanted to just get home), so we drove straight back from Montana in one day. I'll share more about the trip once I've recovered, but needless to say it was wonderful and R's nephew is the cutest and most friendly baby I've ever met.

Look at what was waiting for me at home:



Tomatoes and cucumbers! I could also see the very beginnings of a couple of watermelons. They're not ready to eat yet, but the plants were only just beginning to flower when I left.

Also waiting for me to return was a phone call from a high school looking to interview me for an intern position! Unfortunately, the Principal's cell phone number got cut off by my answering machine, so I have to wait until Monday to call back. I have been looking at the school website to soothe my curiosity until then, and the place looks amazing. The school has a rich culture and history, wins lots of academic and athletics awards, and even has a pool. I'm thrilled at my luck and also terrified that I won't do well enough. In any case, I imagine I will be able to learn a lot from the teachers there. Now if only it wasn't quite so far from my house and didn't start so early (7 am!). Then I would really be in paradise.

I apologize for all the exclamation points, but these are just exciting times.

Select moments from the drive to Montana

We pack up the car in the wee hours of the morning. I begin to sing Christmas carols, something which always happens in the summer.

R gets to be the knight in shining armor for a girl stuck on the side of an on ramp near Las Vegas. Apparently she had been there for a couple of hours. Several other people were there trying to help, but R was the only one with jumper cables.

Car accident. Car, jackknifed semi, ambulance with the back ripped open. Traffic in the opposite lane is at a dead stop. For the next several miles I feel bad for the people passing by, as they have no idea what fate has in store for them.

I show my true colors and describe the landscape we're passing in terms of areas from World of Warcraft. All the burnt trees did look like the Charred Vale, though.

Butte. It's still funny.

A quick final word

On the way back from mountain biking today, I saw a brawl in the median. One guy was bleeding and waving around a tire iron at another guy, plus there was a lady shouting and calling someone on her cell phone in a threatening manner. It was madness.

With that, I'm off to Missoula for vacation (and to see R's wee nephew for the first time). Can you believe the 15 goes all the way from San Diego to Montana? Notice how I called it "the 15" in total SoCal fashion (instead of just "15," as we referred to freeways up in NorCal)? I've gone native.

A world without the old

I was reading this article, which mentions how Jackson, the only son of Fussy, has just lost his last grandparent, and it dawned on me that a lot of kids are growing up grandparent-less. People may be living longer, but so many are having kids so much later in life that the kids never really get to know their grandparents. It really makes me sad. Even though they can be odd, you gain so much from grandparents. Respect, gratitude, diplomacy... B has even learned how to stand up and argue for her beliefs, as she and my mom's dad have clashed over interracial relationships repeatedly. Nothing like standing up to a loud old guy to make you firm in defending your opinions.

I suppose my grandparent experiences have been different from the average, skewing my perspective. Growing up, I had two pairs of grandparents and a pair of great-grandparents. Now, I've got three grandmothers and two grandfathers, and my great-grandma only died a couple of years ago. My dad's parents even followed us down to San Diego. I can hardly imagine an existence without grandparents. Just thinking of it scares me.

A birthday gift for Lara

The lovely Lara has requested gifts for her birthday. Not gifts for herself, mind you, but gifts of the virtual sort for other people.

This gift is for my mom, though I'm not going to tell her about it. I don't talk about my mom much here, but we don't really have the greatest relationship. My parents' divorce created rifts and issues that will probably never be fixed, and I find it hard to spend time with her for any period longer than 24 hours (and only then with an activity). We probably get along best on the phone, but we still rub each other the wrong way whenever we talk about anything important.

Mom, I'm giving you the gift of my sense of humor. For some reason I take everything you say seriously, so when you say things that could be snippy but could also be a joke, I tend to take them in a negative fashion. I don't know if you're joking, but I'm going to try and believe you are. I know you're a nice person, deep down, so I'm going to try and give you the benefit of the doubt.

More things to do in Seattle

- Go to farmers' markets. They even have an online directory. Aren't they helpful?

- Garden with native plants. Yeah, I'm a dork, but I'll be the dork with the pretty and low-maintenance yard.

In the nick of time

Yesterday I joined the Camelbak club. All the guys had them, and I was starting to run out of water with only my water bottle, so it was high time I got one. While I was shopping I also picked up a small first aid kit to keep in my pack. We hadn't needed so far, but it's good to be prepared, and since R had all the bike repair equipment it was my task to have the people repair equipment. I got to break out the kit almost immediately, as today we ran across a couple of jumps that someone had constructed on a flat part of the trail. We decided to try them out and one of our party wound up falling dramatically and taking a good sized chunk out of his shin! I have to say, though, that the medical kit seemed a bit skimpy. I'm really going to have to pimp that baby out. Multiple rolls of tape, more packets of antibiotic ointment, syringe for snake venom extraction... You know, the works.

Family tradition

I'm a pack rat, from a family of pack rats. Even though I'm better than most of my family, due to annual moves for the past 7 years (really helps pare down the extraneous materials), I've still got the tendency to save things. Now that I've recovered my music, I've been going though it and getting rid of all those free songs I downloaded but don't actually like. I kept thinking, "oh, maybe I'll want it later," but I'm really not going to want the large quantities of rap that have made their way onto my computer (well, except for this hilarious song by some little white British rapper girl. It's so funny!). It's been hard, but I've actually been deleting songs (over 100 so far). It's a good thing, though, as all the cruddy music has also been making the good stuff harder to find. I'm finding music I didn't even know I owned!

I'm brilliant

When I upgraded my computer I managed to delete all my iTunes downloads, which I only just realized today (how long ago was it? Oh, that's right. 2.5 weeks). The good news: I have a backup. The bad news: It is from January 31. Now I've got to go pester Apple to give me my songs again. I can see them on my download history, taunting me. Give them back!

Finally!

So, having publicly vented my frustrations, I finally found a site that fits all the criteria, namely:

- Nice looking. I find the standard hotel conference room to be lacking in windows and far too ugly for my taste. I'm trying not to have to decorate over the ugliness, so I'd like the location to have it's own charm (this also cuts down on decorations, which I'm not overly fond of).

- Allows liquor on the premises. Unfortunately, this has nixed a few otherwise nice places from the list, but there is a strong whiskey drinking lobby within the group (i.e. R) that won't be denied. Besides, a wedding just wouldn't be a wedding without ridiculous mixed drinks (or is that a tropical vacation I'm thinking about?).

- Easily available information regarding the site. I'm fine with doing lots of research, but I don't want to get out of my chair to do it E-mailing people is even more effort than I'm willing to put forth in most cases. If the price isn't listed, I'll probably be moving on.

- Enough space for 80-100 people, plus dance floor. Nothing says wedding like watching your relatives dance awkwardly.

- Doesn't blow the budget. I've been given a reasonable amount, but can't go crazy unless I feel like spending my own money (which I would rather save up for, say, a down payment on a house).

Luckily, we seem to have finally found a place! I still have to go visit and give it a good once-over, but I've been there before so I know it's nice. Plus, look at how many windows the place has! I'm so happy.


Images stolen from here.

Googled!

People looking for someone else:

alynda embarrassing - Well, you're bound to encounter a blond moment or two if you scroll down Alyndabear's blog. I, of course, never do anything embarrassing.

blogspot lara teacher san diego - Lara is up at Stanford, you silly person. Look, Lara, I spelled your name correctly!

sean mullins sean mullins - By writing his name twice are you hoping to get even more Sean Mullins in your search results? New Super Sean Mullins, with 2x the Mullins-ness!

Questions I can't answer:

how to walk with mermaid dress - No idea on this one, which is why I won't be getting one. Styles that restrict mobility are stupid.

why is he so weird - OCD in my mom's boyfriend's case, but your mileage may vary.

seafood after surgery c section - I should hope you could eat seafood. The baby is out then, right?

smoke detector 4 chirps - I'm guessing it will chirp a 5th time, then a 6th time, then a 7th time, etc., until you put in new batteries.

The saddest searches ever:

ex died - Yeah, my sister's did, too.

my father passed away last saturday.until now, i have still remember many things and - I guess the thought was too painful to finish. [hugs]

Just venting a little

Argh! Why are weddings so freaking expensive! Finding a place that isn't ugly or out of the budget is impossible! The open bar that I must have really isn't helping things. Nor is living in San Diego, since everyone and their mother wants to get married here. This is all so stupid!

Thank you. I feel better.