This year, I may do something I've never done before. I may actually vote in the republican primary in Texas. You see, Texas is different than other states - you can easily switch parties back and forth every 2 years. (mostly because they send you a new voter registration card which has political affiliation blank). Since I am a firm believer in "one shall not complain when one did not participate", I have decided that I can only complain about those up for election if I at least made a decision on who should be there.
As Obama will be running for re-election, and there really isn't any choice that can be made for third parties (no primary elections); ipso facto, the republican primary is the only point where 'decision' comes in prior to the big November election.
As I usually don't keep track of who wants to run while they're all switching around all the time - "is he running, is he not" type stuff, I have decided that I should research each of the (still running) candidates and create a comparison. I'll try to do 1 a week...which should keep me busy until primary day...which I think is in March.
Thursday, December 29, 2011
Wednesday, December 21, 2011
2011: Meme version
1. What did you do in 2011 that you had never done before?
I participated in an organized biking event (the Austin Livestrong Challenge). We rode 65 miles through the rolling hill country of Texas.
2. Do you keep New Year's resolutions and will you make more for next year?
I stopped making New Year's resolutions because you have to want to change, you can't just say "ah it's a new year, I need to change". well, I mean I guess you could, but it just seems odd. As Yoda said, "Do or do not, there is no try."
3. Did anyone close to you give birth?
Yes - my sister-in-law had her third child in late October. Shawn's cousin, Heather, gave birth to her first kid around the same time. AND Shawn's other cousin, Val, gave birth to her second kid in June, I think... Also, my friend's wife had a baby at the end of May.
4. Did anyone close to you die?
Thankfully, no
5. What countries did you visit?
None. We be boring.
6. What would you like to have in 2012 that you didn't get in 2011?
a calm year, cat-wise. So perhaps no trips to the e-vet?
7. What dates from 2011 will be etched in your memory and why?
May 29, June 13 and December 15 - Mah boobs. The 29th being when I found the lump, the 13th being when I got the biopsy proving that it was benign, and the 15th because it was my 6-month follow-up (in which the lump has doubled in size, thus meaning I get to have surgery in early 2012. yay).
8. What is your biggest achievement of the year?
Not being bitten by a rattlesnake while in Washington State.
9. What was your biggest failure?
Not realizing I was walking over a rattlesnake while in Washington.
10. Did you suffer illness or injury?
Yes - I'm going to consider the lump as an illness.
11. What was the best thing you bought?
My cat's life...well, both of them, really...
12. Whose behavior merited recognition?
My bosses, my husband.
13. Whose behavior made you appalled and depressed?
Those involved with the Penn State Scandal.
14. Where did most of your money go?
The money that I actually spent? It was spent on the cats. sigh...
15. What did you get really excited about?
Going to an Indian wedding in Washington.
16. What song will always remind you of 2011?
I don't know...Phoenix's Listomania?
17. Compared to this time last year, are you a) happier or sadder, b) thinner or fatter, c) richer or poorer?
Same, fatter by 2 pounds, and probably richer.
18. What do you wish you'd done more of?
vacations, and exercising.
19. What do you wish you'd done less of?
it's probably tied between less internet surfing and less watching TV.
20. How will you spend Christmas?
Christmas Eve will be with my family (they're currently on their way here - Yay!!), and Christmas day will be with Shawn's family. Boxing Day will be with Shawn's extended family.
21. Did you fall in love in 2011?
I've been in love for a while now, so other than falling in love with TV shows, no.
22. What was your favorite TV program?
I do like Once Upon a Time, But Misfits will probably the one I remember as being in 2011.
23. What was the best book you read?
Altar of Eden by James Rollins, probably... Especially since I re-read a bunch of my other books.
24. What was your greatest musical discovery?
"Where soul meets body" by Death Cab for Cutie. Even though, of course, that song came out in 2005...
25. What did you want and get?
To travel to a new state (Washington)
26. What did you want and not get?
To go to Olympic National Park. Also, to go to Vancouver with the husband for his conference (which was over our anniversary), but alas, I was at my own conference in Maryland. That's right, we spent our anniversary in different countries and couldn't even call each other.
27. What was your favorite film of 2011?
Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows part 2 I would surmise...we don't get out much...
28. What did you do on your birthday and how old were you?
I had a party for the first time in many, many years. I turned 30.
29. What one thing would have made your year immensely more satisfying?
Not having a lump...
30. How would you describe your personal fashion concept of 2011?
plain tee shirts and jeans.
31. What kept you sane?
my family and my friends.
32. What political issues stirred you the most?
Bachmann just scares the shit out of me...
33. Who did you miss?
my family and friends who don't live close by.
34. Tell us a valuable life lesson you learned in 2011?
Feel your ta-tas.
35. Quote a song lyric that sums up your year.
Not really a song, but I love the HEB commercial where the little kids are all dressed for the thanksgiving pageant and there's a line in there about the cousin's bringing the tamales, "a delicioso treat" as the third tamale kid trips and takes a header into the stage. It's awesome.
I participated in an organized biking event (the Austin Livestrong Challenge). We rode 65 miles through the rolling hill country of Texas.
2. Do you keep New Year's resolutions and will you make more for next year?
I stopped making New Year's resolutions because you have to want to change, you can't just say "ah it's a new year, I need to change". well, I mean I guess you could, but it just seems odd. As Yoda said, "Do or do not, there is no try."
3. Did anyone close to you give birth?
Yes - my sister-in-law had her third child in late October. Shawn's cousin, Heather, gave birth to her first kid around the same time. AND Shawn's other cousin, Val, gave birth to her second kid in June, I think... Also, my friend's wife had a baby at the end of May.
4. Did anyone close to you die?
Thankfully, no
5. What countries did you visit?
None. We be boring.
6. What would you like to have in 2012 that you didn't get in 2011?
a calm year, cat-wise. So perhaps no trips to the e-vet?
7. What dates from 2011 will be etched in your memory and why?
May 29, June 13 and December 15 - Mah boobs. The 29th being when I found the lump, the 13th being when I got the biopsy proving that it was benign, and the 15th because it was my 6-month follow-up (in which the lump has doubled in size, thus meaning I get to have surgery in early 2012. yay).
8. What is your biggest achievement of the year?
Not being bitten by a rattlesnake while in Washington State.
9. What was your biggest failure?
Not realizing I was walking over a rattlesnake while in Washington.
10. Did you suffer illness or injury?
Yes - I'm going to consider the lump as an illness.
11. What was the best thing you bought?
My cat's life...well, both of them, really...
12. Whose behavior merited recognition?
My bosses, my husband.
13. Whose behavior made you appalled and depressed?
Those involved with the Penn State Scandal.
14. Where did most of your money go?
The money that I actually spent? It was spent on the cats. sigh...
15. What did you get really excited about?
Going to an Indian wedding in Washington.
16. What song will always remind you of 2011?
I don't know...Phoenix's Listomania?
17. Compared to this time last year, are you a) happier or sadder, b) thinner or fatter, c) richer or poorer?
Same, fatter by 2 pounds, and probably richer.
18. What do you wish you'd done more of?
vacations, and exercising.
19. What do you wish you'd done less of?
it's probably tied between less internet surfing and less watching TV.
20. How will you spend Christmas?
Christmas Eve will be with my family (they're currently on their way here - Yay!!), and Christmas day will be with Shawn's family. Boxing Day will be with Shawn's extended family.
21. Did you fall in love in 2011?
I've been in love for a while now, so other than falling in love with TV shows, no.
22. What was your favorite TV program?
I do like Once Upon a Time, But Misfits will probably the one I remember as being in 2011.
23. What was the best book you read?
Altar of Eden by James Rollins, probably... Especially since I re-read a bunch of my other books.
24. What was your greatest musical discovery?
"Where soul meets body" by Death Cab for Cutie. Even though, of course, that song came out in 2005...
25. What did you want and get?
To travel to a new state (Washington)
26. What did you want and not get?
To go to Olympic National Park. Also, to go to Vancouver with the husband for his conference (which was over our anniversary), but alas, I was at my own conference in Maryland. That's right, we spent our anniversary in different countries and couldn't even call each other.
27. What was your favorite film of 2011?
Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows part 2 I would surmise...we don't get out much...
28. What did you do on your birthday and how old were you?
I had a party for the first time in many, many years. I turned 30.
29. What one thing would have made your year immensely more satisfying?
Not having a lump...
30. How would you describe your personal fashion concept of 2011?
plain tee shirts and jeans.
31. What kept you sane?
my family and my friends.
32. What political issues stirred you the most?
Bachmann just scares the shit out of me...
33. Who did you miss?
my family and friends who don't live close by.
34. Tell us a valuable life lesson you learned in 2011?
Feel your ta-tas.
35. Quote a song lyric that sums up your year.
Not really a song, but I love the HEB commercial where the little kids are all dressed for the thanksgiving pageant and there's a line in there about the cousin's bringing the tamales, "a delicioso treat" as the third tamale kid trips and takes a header into the stage. It's awesome.
Saturday, December 10, 2011
CATZ!
1) When your previously heretofore cat with the feeding tube decides to hork up said feeding tube and chew off the end of it, try not to freak out. This is more stressful to the human than the cat. But when that cat opts to re-swallow the still attached feeding tube only to somehow sneeze it into her nasal passages thus causing her to breathe funny (i.e. horribly and stutteringly), it probably really is as stressful to the cat as it is to the humans who have been awake for approximately 3.2 seconds.
2) When you finally make the call that you will take the possibly not breathing and gasping for air cat to the emergency vet, be prepared to wait for a while because the cat will act normal and breathe normally as soon as you get to the vet. You will then question if you just happened to dream it all up.
3) The emergency vet will recommend taking some x-rays to check on the tube placement. These x-rays will indicate that the tube is behind the soft palette instead of in the esophagus as expected. The vet will try to get the tube in the correct orientation. You are welcome to wait in the front lobby watching reruns of Victoria Stilwell's "It's me or the dog" while talking to the receptionist with whom you are on a first name basis because your cat used to be at the e-vet all the time 2 months ago.
4) After the surgery, the cat in question will sneeze upon waking up, thus causing the tube to go into her nasal passages again.
5) The vet will just take the damn tube out.
6) Now you can go home and pray that your cat will eat and drink enough to not need any more feed tube nonsense.
7) Be relieved that the cat does indeed eat and drink.
8) A few days later, take the other cat to the vet because he's got the runs (to make sure it's not worms or other nasties).
9) Try not to be surprised when the vet calls later to state that they think the cat may have a touch of the diabetes (This is much more tolerable if you can pretend that the pronunciation is 'die-uh-bet-us' instead of 'die-us-beet-ees').
10) Do not get worried when the vet also says they will be sending blood to the lab to test for both the diabetes and FELV. Especially since you have been vaccinating your cat against said FELV disease since before birth. It does not help that the tech tells you that the FELV vaccine is not 100% and that her cat, in fact, did get FELV despite being fully vaccinated. Try not to freak out too much when you realize that your possibly FELV+ cat donated blood to your kidney problems cat a month ago.
11) Talk to the vet post blood results to find out that, indeed, your cat has the diabetes. It is expected that you will have to give said cat insulin shots. Do not be alarmed that the insulin recommended for cats costs $100 for a 100-unit vial.
12) Go to the vet to go over how to give your cat the insulin. Try to come up with a way to feed your kidney-issues cat a high carb, low protein diet throughout the day while giving your diabetes cat a high protein, low carb diet with only 2 feedings per day. Keep in mind that never the twain shall meet (i.e. they must eat their own food. bad things happen when they eat the other food).
13) Pay $50 for a bag of low-carb dry food (jeebus christ, cat!) Also, the food has quite a bit of "by-product". Not even the cheap cat food at the pet store has this much by-product in the first 5 ingredients.
14) Read online that you really can feed cats high-protein wet food on a non-prescription diet that is damn close to the prescription diet, and a mite-bit cheaper.
15) Go to PetSmart and spend the better part of an hour in the wet cat food isle reading ingredient lists trying to figure out which ones are low-carb and which ones are not (hint: generally the 'gravy' varieties are higher carb). Seriously think about finding out if you can cook meals for cheaper.
16) Go get a blood glucose meter to track your diabetes cat.
17) Go buy a second blood glucose meter and strips because you didn't realize that glucose meters don't come with test strips and it will take a week for the test strips to come in from Amazon. NOTE: The reason you will buy a secondary glucose meter and test strips is because it will be $40 cheaper than buying just the strips for your first meter.
18) Go home and spend an hour or so trying to get a drop of blood from your cat. Do not get frustrated that every time you manage to get a drop of blood on his ear, he will shake his head thus leaving you to start from square one.
19) Eventually give up on finding out his 'pre' blood sugar. Feed him some food and give him his insulin shot (which he doesn't even realize you're doing. JUST GET THE HELL AWAY FROM MY EARS, EVIL WOMAN!
20) Wait almost 2 hours and finally get a good blood drop and test.
2) When you finally make the call that you will take the possibly not breathing and gasping for air cat to the emergency vet, be prepared to wait for a while because the cat will act normal and breathe normally as soon as you get to the vet. You will then question if you just happened to dream it all up.
3) The emergency vet will recommend taking some x-rays to check on the tube placement. These x-rays will indicate that the tube is behind the soft palette instead of in the esophagus as expected. The vet will try to get the tube in the correct orientation. You are welcome to wait in the front lobby watching reruns of Victoria Stilwell's "It's me or the dog" while talking to the receptionist with whom you are on a first name basis because your cat used to be at the e-vet all the time 2 months ago.
4) After the surgery, the cat in question will sneeze upon waking up, thus causing the tube to go into her nasal passages again.
5) The vet will just take the damn tube out.
6) Now you can go home and pray that your cat will eat and drink enough to not need any more feed tube nonsense.
7) Be relieved that the cat does indeed eat and drink.
8) A few days later, take the other cat to the vet because he's got the runs (to make sure it's not worms or other nasties).
9) Try not to be surprised when the vet calls later to state that they think the cat may have a touch of the diabetes (This is much more tolerable if you can pretend that the pronunciation is 'die-uh-bet-us' instead of 'die-us-beet-ees').
10) Do not get worried when the vet also says they will be sending blood to the lab to test for both the diabetes and FELV. Especially since you have been vaccinating your cat against said FELV disease since before birth. It does not help that the tech tells you that the FELV vaccine is not 100% and that her cat, in fact, did get FELV despite being fully vaccinated. Try not to freak out too much when you realize that your possibly FELV+ cat donated blood to your kidney problems cat a month ago.
11) Talk to the vet post blood results to find out that, indeed, your cat has the diabetes. It is expected that you will have to give said cat insulin shots. Do not be alarmed that the insulin recommended for cats costs $100 for a 100-unit vial.
12) Go to the vet to go over how to give your cat the insulin. Try to come up with a way to feed your kidney-issues cat a high carb, low protein diet throughout the day while giving your diabetes cat a high protein, low carb diet with only 2 feedings per day. Keep in mind that never the twain shall meet (i.e. they must eat their own food. bad things happen when they eat the other food).
13) Pay $50 for a bag of low-carb dry food (jeebus christ, cat!) Also, the food has quite a bit of "by-product". Not even the cheap cat food at the pet store has this much by-product in the first 5 ingredients.
14) Read online that you really can feed cats high-protein wet food on a non-prescription diet that is damn close to the prescription diet, and a mite-bit cheaper.
15) Go to PetSmart and spend the better part of an hour in the wet cat food isle reading ingredient lists trying to figure out which ones are low-carb and which ones are not (hint: generally the 'gravy' varieties are higher carb). Seriously think about finding out if you can cook meals for cheaper.
16) Go get a blood glucose meter to track your diabetes cat.
17) Go buy a second blood glucose meter and strips because you didn't realize that glucose meters don't come with test strips and it will take a week for the test strips to come in from Amazon. NOTE: The reason you will buy a secondary glucose meter and test strips is because it will be $40 cheaper than buying just the strips for your first meter.
18) Go home and spend an hour or so trying to get a drop of blood from your cat. Do not get frustrated that every time you manage to get a drop of blood on his ear, he will shake his head thus leaving you to start from square one.
19) Eventually give up on finding out his 'pre' blood sugar. Feed him some food and give him his insulin shot (which he doesn't even realize you're doing. JUST GET THE HELL AWAY FROM MY EARS, EVIL WOMAN!
20) Wait almost 2 hours and finally get a good blood drop and test.
Friday, December 02, 2011
Pickles
"Yeah, I guess I'll take a few mason jars. I can make my own pickles...I love pickled foods."
"well, be careful. Back in the early days they figure people died from stomach cancer way more than other cancers because pickling was the most common form of food preservation. Just so you know."
"No offense, Katina, but if I die from stomach cancer, I think that will come as a surprise to just about everyone."
"well, be careful. Back in the early days they figure people died from stomach cancer way more than other cancers because pickling was the most common form of food preservation. Just so you know."
"No offense, Katina, but if I die from stomach cancer, I think that will come as a surprise to just about everyone."
Saturday, November 26, 2011
Black Friday
So I'm not one to usually go shopping on Black Friday. I hate crowds, and I hate driving around a bunch of psycho drivers who are all trying to get the best parking spot available. Furthermore, I hate getting up at 3 in the morning to go stand in lines for a product that I may or may not be able to get, plus standing in an equally long line in order to get out.
Shawn, on the other hand, has no problems with any of the Black Friday craziness.
Thus we found ourselves leaving the house at 1030 on Thanksgiving to go stand in lines at two different stores. Both of which opened at midnight. Only one of which I expected to have a line (Best Buy). I figured for sure that Old Navy wouldn't have anyone standing at the door. I was wrong. By the time I showed up (at like 1040), there were already 35 people in line. (compared to the Best Buy line which had to be at a couple hundred, though...)
And that's about when the crazy started. There were some kids in line (and I say kids because they were in high school) at the front and they were really there to hold spots for about 10 of their friends. Which is no different than the girls right in front of me who took turns holding each others' spot in line because they were all dumb and wore shorts and t-shirts so they were switching of running to the car to get warm. But I digress. The point was that most people in the line felt that holding spots for people who had heretofore never shown up counted as "cutting in line." After copious amounts of yelling and two of the girls in front of me going and threatening bodily harm, the group of boys got out of line and instead stood across the cross walk.
Now then, at this point, we (the lady behind me and I) figured out that the reason for all the crazy was that Old Navy was giving away a Kodak Easyshare Sport camera to the first 40 customers who purchased $40 worth of clothing. It was also at this point that the lady and I were lamenting that we didn't want to be involved in any Black Friday stampede craziness, we just wanted some $15 jeans. I told her that the deals were valid online as well; but you would have to pay shipping and tax (though shipping was free at $50). So she left while I continued to wait (it wasn't like if I left I'd be able to go home anyway because I was still waiting for Shawn).
At 1145, the manager on duty came out and started handing out the wristbands signifying that you were one of the first 40. Imagine my surprise when I was actually customer 39 and got a wrist band. And shortly after that point, the group of kids at the front realized that they were going to have to purchase $40 worth of clothing to even get the camera and they decided it wasn't worth it so they gave their wrist bands to the people behind me.
It was about this time that Shawn joined me as he had found out that the item he wanted at Best Buy was already sold out (as Best Buy also hands out vouchers for their high ticket items). And so we commenced with our plan of 'get in, get out.' With the added benefit of "get a free camera! Yay!"
Now to do shot comparisons between my existing point and shoot and the new one.
Shawn, on the other hand, has no problems with any of the Black Friday craziness.
Thus we found ourselves leaving the house at 1030 on Thanksgiving to go stand in lines at two different stores. Both of which opened at midnight. Only one of which I expected to have a line (Best Buy). I figured for sure that Old Navy wouldn't have anyone standing at the door. I was wrong. By the time I showed up (at like 1040), there were already 35 people in line. (compared to the Best Buy line which had to be at a couple hundred, though...)
And that's about when the crazy started. There were some kids in line (and I say kids because they were in high school) at the front and they were really there to hold spots for about 10 of their friends. Which is no different than the girls right in front of me who took turns holding each others' spot in line because they were all dumb and wore shorts and t-shirts so they were switching of running to the car to get warm. But I digress. The point was that most people in the line felt that holding spots for people who had heretofore never shown up counted as "cutting in line." After copious amounts of yelling and two of the girls in front of me going and threatening bodily harm, the group of boys got out of line and instead stood across the cross walk.
Now then, at this point, we (the lady behind me and I) figured out that the reason for all the crazy was that Old Navy was giving away a Kodak Easyshare Sport camera to the first 40 customers who purchased $40 worth of clothing. It was also at this point that the lady and I were lamenting that we didn't want to be involved in any Black Friday stampede craziness, we just wanted some $15 jeans. I told her that the deals were valid online as well; but you would have to pay shipping and tax (though shipping was free at $50). So she left while I continued to wait (it wasn't like if I left I'd be able to go home anyway because I was still waiting for Shawn).
At 1145, the manager on duty came out and started handing out the wristbands signifying that you were one of the first 40. Imagine my surprise when I was actually customer 39 and got a wrist band. And shortly after that point, the group of kids at the front realized that they were going to have to purchase $40 worth of clothing to even get the camera and they decided it wasn't worth it so they gave their wrist bands to the people behind me.
It was about this time that Shawn joined me as he had found out that the item he wanted at Best Buy was already sold out (as Best Buy also hands out vouchers for their high ticket items). And so we commenced with our plan of 'get in, get out.' With the added benefit of "get a free camera! Yay!"
Now to do shot comparisons between my existing point and shoot and the new one.
Thursday, November 24, 2011
Breaky
Down here in Texas, there are a bunch of people who have sports decals on their cars, usually these decals include their child's name and, based on the decal, you can figure out which sport and which school they're at. I've blogged about this before.
A while ago, Shawn saw one that had the cat's name under the little cat stick figure. The cat's name: Burger Foot. (thank god I know what my next cat's name is going to be, though Shawn has asked what happens when Actual Burger Foot meets New Burger Foot. I said he was right, maybe we need to name our cat Taco Paw.)
On Wednesday, driving to work, I pulled up behind a car that had a karate decal with Breaky^2 underneath it.
Shawn calmly asked if I thought there were any other sports that their son, Breaky Squared, partook in.
I could not stop laughing.
A while ago, Shawn saw one that had the cat's name under the little cat stick figure. The cat's name: Burger Foot. (thank god I know what my next cat's name is going to be, though Shawn has asked what happens when Actual Burger Foot meets New Burger Foot. I said he was right, maybe we need to name our cat Taco Paw.)
On Wednesday, driving to work, I pulled up behind a car that had a karate decal with Breaky^2 underneath it.
Shawn calmly asked if I thought there were any other sports that their son, Breaky Squared, partook in.
I could not stop laughing.
Sunday, November 20, 2011
Sadness on the state of the world
1. The whole Penn State thing. So disappointing. So sad.
2. The fact that protests in foreign countries are democratic but protests in the US are terrorism
3. British gangs are grooming girls for the sex trade. And these aren't disadvantaged kids - these are the kids that have involved parents and are at good schools and don't do drugs.
4. Congress will be voting soon on whether to censor the internet in the US. The bill, as written, has the possibility of actually causing the internet to not exist.
5. The Republican Debates. And because of these debates, I will likely be doing something I never thought I'd do - vote in a republican primary. Because I feel I should probably at least vote on which whackadoo will be running in the presidential election.
6. All the Monsanto genetically modified foods. And it's one thing if they actually were doing it for the whole "help the starving kids in Africa" thing...but they're not. They're doing it to make money. (posted because earlier this year Obama allowed Monsanto to start producing and selling their Genetically Modified Alfalfa. This essentially guarantees that at some point in the future you will no longer be able to purchase, with 100% certainty, milk or meat that is organic.)
2. The fact that protests in foreign countries are democratic but protests in the US are terrorism
3. British gangs are grooming girls for the sex trade. And these aren't disadvantaged kids - these are the kids that have involved parents and are at good schools and don't do drugs.
4. Congress will be voting soon on whether to censor the internet in the US. The bill, as written, has the possibility of actually causing the internet to not exist.
5. The Republican Debates. And because of these debates, I will likely be doing something I never thought I'd do - vote in a republican primary. Because I feel I should probably at least vote on which whackadoo will be running in the presidential election.
6. All the Monsanto genetically modified foods. And it's one thing if they actually were doing it for the whole "help the starving kids in Africa" thing...but they're not. They're doing it to make money. (posted because earlier this year Obama allowed Monsanto to start producing and selling their Genetically Modified Alfalfa. This essentially guarantees that at some point in the future you will no longer be able to purchase, with 100% certainty, milk or meat that is organic.)
Monday, November 14, 2011
On having kids
The other day Shawn and I were having another one of "why we won't have kids" conversations when Shawn stated the following:
"I have worked very hard to make sure that you don't get pregnant."
Yes. That's right. Apparently me going to the doctor every year to get my pill script refilled (which, by the way, is the only form of birth control we use) voluntarily and without prompting from him PLUS remembering to take said pill every night (again, without prompting - or hell, him even noticing) can be directly and irrevocably attributed to him.
Well, you know what they say - behind every woman's success is a man looking to take credit. Wait, they don't say that? hunh. Coulda fooled me.
"I have worked very hard to make sure that you don't get pregnant."
Yes. That's right. Apparently me going to the doctor every year to get my pill script refilled (which, by the way, is the only form of birth control we use) voluntarily and without prompting from him PLUS remembering to take said pill every night (again, without prompting - or hell, him even noticing) can be directly and irrevocably attributed to him.
Well, you know what they say - behind every woman's success is a man looking to take credit. Wait, they don't say that? hunh. Coulda fooled me.
Friday, November 11, 2011
Saturday, November 05, 2011
Friday, October 28, 2011
Sunday, October 16, 2011
65
So we didn't do the 90. We did the 65 instead. We rode up to the check point like right at 11, so our options were 1) skip the rest stop and do the 90 or 2) take the rest stop and do the 65. We opted for the latter. Besides, at 30 miles we were already feeling like 90 would be very tough to do.
I did meet a lady (though we never exchanged names, so perhaps it's not even 'meeting') who has become my hero - she was doing the 65 mile ride one legged - mostly because she only had one leg. BUT there was a huge hill that we had to go up - 1) she passed us, 2) we have gears on the tandem that people don't have on road bikes (we've got a super granny gear like mountain bikes whereas with road bikes you actually have to have some leg muscle) and 3) she Only. Has. One. Leg.
Would I do it again - most likely. Would I try to do 90 next time - probably. Would we end up doing 65 instead - likely (especially if we ride the tandem again - which, by the way, Shawn said was much more fun than riding his Formula 1 in the MS 150).
Quite honestly the ride was quite moving - I mean it was 7 am, it was cold and almost everyone was wearing these tags that said "In Honor Of" for people they knew who were currently battling cancer/currently in remission or "In Memory Of" for those that lost the battle with cancer. There were many, MANY people who had multiple names or multiple tags. I mean really - 2300 people got up at 6 in the morning on a Sunday (and there were plenty of people who traveled from out of state or out of the country) to go ride a bike to fight cancer.
I did meet a lady (though we never exchanged names, so perhaps it's not even 'meeting') who has become my hero - she was doing the 65 mile ride one legged - mostly because she only had one leg. BUT there was a huge hill that we had to go up - 1) she passed us, 2) we have gears on the tandem that people don't have on road bikes (we've got a super granny gear like mountain bikes whereas with road bikes you actually have to have some leg muscle) and 3) she Only. Has. One. Leg.
Would I do it again - most likely. Would I try to do 90 next time - probably. Would we end up doing 65 instead - likely (especially if we ride the tandem again - which, by the way, Shawn said was much more fun than riding his Formula 1 in the MS 150).
Quite honestly the ride was quite moving - I mean it was 7 am, it was cold and almost everyone was wearing these tags that said "In Honor Of" for people they knew who were currently battling cancer/currently in remission or "In Memory Of" for those that lost the battle with cancer. There were many, MANY people who had multiple names or multiple tags. I mean really - 2300 people got up at 6 in the morning on a Sunday (and there were plenty of people who traveled from out of state or out of the country) to go ride a bike to fight cancer.
Saturday, October 15, 2011
Bi-sickle! Bi-sickle!
Tonight, we have a wedding (for Shawn's boss).
Tomorrow we have the Livestrong Bike Challenge. 90 miles of riding fun! The most we've ever done has been 45 I think...but we never take enough food and so we energetically crash somewhere around mile 35 and never really recover. That shouldn't be the case on the actual ride since they have rest stops every 10 miles or so. But just to be safe, we can choose to do the 65 mile ride after we get started if we want.
PLUS! Matt and Ross will be coming over to the house in order to take care of Ivy-cat. Who, at this point, has suffered an acute kidney attack (kidney stone), liver failure (from not eating enough and going into starvation mode), and now, anemia (because the kidneys tell the bone marrow when to make red blood cells, and since they've been pulling blood with some frequency, it makes for a cat with a low red blood cell count). So yay...
Tomorrow we have the Livestrong Bike Challenge. 90 miles of riding fun! The most we've ever done has been 45 I think...but we never take enough food and so we energetically crash somewhere around mile 35 and never really recover. That shouldn't be the case on the actual ride since they have rest stops every 10 miles or so. But just to be safe, we can choose to do the 65 mile ride after we get started if we want.
PLUS! Matt and Ross will be coming over to the house in order to take care of Ivy-cat. Who, at this point, has suffered an acute kidney attack (kidney stone), liver failure (from not eating enough and going into starvation mode), and now, anemia (because the kidneys tell the bone marrow when to make red blood cells, and since they've been pulling blood with some frequency, it makes for a cat with a low red blood cell count). So yay...
Sunday, October 09, 2011
Groupon
As with most people, I have participated in the Groupon craze. The problem with this, as one of my coworkers has also found out, is that we tend to wait until the last possible second to use our groupons. And I only buy groupons which I figure we'd be prone to trying on our own anyhow (so for food instead of services).
Examples:
-I bought one to Russel's Bistro. We used it on the last day available. The place was packed because of it.
-I bought one to Hyde Park Bar and Grille. We used it the last week possible.
-I bought one to Trattoria Lisina (one of our favorite restaurants) to use on our Anniversary. But since we were both out of town on our anniversary, we never used it. Until the last day possible. And even then, Shawn had to change the reservation last minute because Ivy was at the vet and it was taking forever to get out of the office.
So it should come as no surprise that I am currently feverishly working on photos so I can use the Inkubook groupon I purchased. I figured it would be no big deal to use it because I could work a little every weekend to get a photobook that I would use the groupon for. Needless to say, this didn't happen. But not because I didn't try. The problem, you see, is that Inkubook uses Silverlight. Silverlight is a Microsoft product, so it doesn't work on Linux. But not to fear; the Linux programmer types have created Moonlight (which makes it so Silverlight works on Linux). But the problem is that since the Silverlight programming is still changing, the Linux programmers have decided to stop working on Moonlight until Silverlight is somewhat finalized. This means, of course, that I can't work on the photobooks on the laptop. So instead I must start my desktop in Windows. Which wouldn't be a problem if I could access my photos from my Linux partition while in Windows. But this was not the case until yesterday. So, once again, I'm waiting until the last possible minute (the groupon expires on the 9th) to use a groupon.
Examples:
-I bought one to Russel's Bistro. We used it on the last day available. The place was packed because of it.
-I bought one to Hyde Park Bar and Grille. We used it the last week possible.
-I bought one to Trattoria Lisina (one of our favorite restaurants) to use on our Anniversary. But since we were both out of town on our anniversary, we never used it. Until the last day possible. And even then, Shawn had to change the reservation last minute because Ivy was at the vet and it was taking forever to get out of the office.
So it should come as no surprise that I am currently feverishly working on photos so I can use the Inkubook groupon I purchased. I figured it would be no big deal to use it because I could work a little every weekend to get a photobook that I would use the groupon for. Needless to say, this didn't happen. But not because I didn't try. The problem, you see, is that Inkubook uses Silverlight. Silverlight is a Microsoft product, so it doesn't work on Linux. But not to fear; the Linux programmer types have created Moonlight (which makes it so Silverlight works on Linux). But the problem is that since the Silverlight programming is still changing, the Linux programmers have decided to stop working on Moonlight until Silverlight is somewhat finalized. This means, of course, that I can't work on the photobooks on the laptop. So instead I must start my desktop in Windows. Which wouldn't be a problem if I could access my photos from my Linux partition while in Windows. But this was not the case until yesterday. So, once again, I'm waiting until the last possible minute (the groupon expires on the 9th) to use a groupon.
Saturday, October 01, 2011
Work
Things I have heard in the office within the last week:
"The table of despair"
"In the Cavern [one of our conference rooms] of sadness"
"The elevators of hell"
"The building of misery"
Yep, end of the fiscal year is always fun.
"The table of despair"
"In the Cavern [one of our conference rooms] of sadness"
"The elevators of hell"
"The building of misery"
Yep, end of the fiscal year is always fun.
Tuesday, September 20, 2011
Sunday, September 18, 2011
Association of Caffeinated Wheelmen: Training
Yesterday, Shawn I did 40.5 miles in just shy of 3 hours. That means we did about 14mph.
So, that was good.
What's not good, is the fact that we'll be riding over twice that amount in the actual ride.
The other fun part is that we could conceivably ride to my in laws' house. I want to do it just to see the look on their faces when we show up on the bike.
So, that was good.
What's not good, is the fact that we'll be riding over twice that amount in the actual ride.
The other fun part is that we could conceivably ride to my in laws' house. I want to do it just to see the look on their faces when we show up on the bike.
Thursday, September 15, 2011
Monday, September 05, 2011
Association of Caffeinated Wheelmen. Take 2.
For those of you I don't talk to all the time, you'll be surprised/gladdened/appalled that Shawn and I are doing the Livestrong Bike Challenge on October 16. Shawn's work has a sponsoring deal worked out so we don't have to do fundraising, we just have to show up and ride.
Ride 90 miles.
At one time.
Through the hilliest part of the state.
And Shawn has decided that we will do this on his parents' tandem.
Last weekend we did an almost-18-mile out and back. Today we did a 25-mile out and back.
At this rate, I'll be able to do 67 miles on the day of the ride.
Better up the ante.
Ride 90 miles.
At one time.
Through the hilliest part of the state.
And Shawn has decided that we will do this on his parents' tandem.
Last weekend we did an almost-18-mile out and back. Today we did a 25-mile out and back.
At this rate, I'll be able to do 67 miles on the day of the ride.
Better up the ante.
Saturday, September 03, 2011
Small World
It's a small world.
While I was off taking pictures in Emmitsburg, Maryland, Shawn was off doing Linux nerd stuff in Vancouver, Canada. He was out there with the person whom I consider his 'best friend at work', Robert. While they were out there, the discussion of where they grew up came about. Robert said, "oh a small town called Parker in Colorado." Shawn said, "me too!" (as there was only one high school in town until 1997, they also went to the same school) Shawn said something about how he was in the marching band and Robert stated, "me too!" But, alas, Robert had graduated a year or two before Shawn was in high school so there was never any overlap.
After they came back state-side, Shawn remembered that his sister graduated a year or two before he went to high school. And that's when it dawned on him. He knew Robert. Or at least, knew OF Robert.
You see, Robert was the only boy in the clarinet section when his sister was in marching band. And Shawn only remembered this because of the fact that his sister also played clarinet.
So, there you go, small world.
While I was off taking pictures in Emmitsburg, Maryland, Shawn was off doing Linux nerd stuff in Vancouver, Canada. He was out there with the person whom I consider his 'best friend at work', Robert. While they were out there, the discussion of where they grew up came about. Robert said, "oh a small town called Parker in Colorado." Shawn said, "me too!" (as there was only one high school in town until 1997, they also went to the same school) Shawn said something about how he was in the marching band and Robert stated, "me too!" But, alas, Robert had graduated a year or two before Shawn was in high school so there was never any overlap.
After they came back state-side, Shawn remembered that his sister graduated a year or two before he went to high school. And that's when it dawned on him. He knew Robert. Or at least, knew OF Robert.
You see, Robert was the only boy in the clarinet section when his sister was in marching band. And Shawn only remembered this because of the fact that his sister also played clarinet.
So, there you go, small world.
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