oh, the time she is awastin' -- hmmm, is that the right phrase? something doesn't seem right, but then, what i mean is that time doesn't waste any time flying on by. My Younger Son is safely back at his place *teary sigh* and life is pretty much back to normal; normal being relative, of course.
i very much enjoyed all the time i had with MYS. we drove My Older Son's new car down to him (very strange run-in with police on the way), then came back and walked around fairhaven, looking at interesting things. of which there were several ...
MYS spent a couple of days up at the place and enjoyed his solo time in the middle of nature, including two hours worth of mowing the grass and an unknown amount of time chopping wood.
one of the best parts of his trip though was getting to listen to him strum his new banjo! i even was able to do a duet -- he'd play a tune while i stood behind him and reached around tapping rhythm on the outer edges of the round, parchment-looking piece with the pads of my fingers. it was very fun!!
and then there is the great news that MYS now has his master's degree of arts in science ... plasma astro physics to be specific. we can't quite figure out why the university chose to make it an arts degree rather than science, but hey. there are a lot of things about that school we can't figure out. such as why they retain poor instructors. but back to MYS -- CONGRATULATIONS!!!!! YOU are THE MAN!!!!!
and now, alone once more, we have just about finished the excellent bbc series of hercule poirot. i am so sad to see the end of it -- david suchet was entirely too excellent, mon ami, as was philip jackson (chief insp. japp), hugh fraser (capt. hastings), and pauline moran (miss lemon). i've never read any of the books, so i can't compare, but suchet is definitely uncomparable in the very best sense. just like MYS! 
the other day i heard about Al Gore's movie An Inconvenient Truth. has it been talked about for awhile? today i saw a preview -- http://www.ifilm.com/ifilmdetail/2718950 -- and i encourage you to check it out. it's full of information about global warming. someone (greedy republicans?) has tried to keep america from having to face facts and start reining in.i want to see this movie. i probably won't like everything it says. i probably will come away worried about my children's future. well ... the truth can be tough.
whew! husband's sis & husband stayed until friday, then headed toward their home. we had a good-bye lunch at YEA'S WOK in newcastle. this restaurant is THE ONLY chinese restaurant on the planet that is really good. i wish it were located in my town.at any rate, the visit with s&h was so fine! i wish they lived closer -- like in the same town -- so we could do things together more often. but, oh well. they want to be where it's hot and i want to be where it's not.after s&h left, husband and i did some shopping then met with My Younger Son and his travel pal (new york to seattle via chicago, ann arbor-to-pack-the-honda-and-move-all-of-e's-worldly-belongings, north dakota, and glacier in about a week). we had supper at YEA'S WOK, then enjoyed a leisurely conversation at starbucks before MYS came with us and we said good-bye to e before splitting up to head home. just as we got on the interstate, however, My Older Son called us and we all decided to get together before we left town. so MYS and MOS-and-wife got to see each other for the first time in awhile -- we had a nice but short discourse then hit the road (husband's back was giving him many pains). so, yeah -- whew! -- it was a long-but-full-of-variety day.so great to see family!!!
He was waiting between the houses, angry and tired of fighting with her about it. He was done with the bitch. She was just too unreasonable and it was too difficult trying to work things out with her. And there was always the chance she might talk to the police ... she’d said she wouldn’t, but there was always the chance.
He’d been waiting for her, even though a misty rain had been falling the last hour. He knew she’d be walking by here -- it was part of her damn therapy. “It helps me relax and get my thoughts straight,” she’d said. Ha! Get her thoughts straight. As if she’d know when they were straight without him to tell her about it. What was she doing, trying to think without him anyway.
It was almost dark when the sound of raindrops all around turned into the sound of shoes walking in raindrops down the block. He tensed, checking to see if anyone else was out, to see if she was alone. He let her walk past, then quietly stepped across the grass to come up behind her.
“Hello, Donna,” he said. “How are ya?”
“Chet,” she gasped, startled. “I didn’t hear you.”
“You’re getting wet walking home like this; let me give you a ride. The car is just down the block.” He reached out to take her arm.
She took a step sideways and said, “N-no, thanks, I like walking home. It helps me relax.”
“Sure, but you’re getting wet. Why don’t you just get in and I’ll drop you off.” He moved in closer to her as she continued stepping to the side.
“No. Really, I like to walk.” She started walking again and picked up her pace.
“Donna, I insist,” he said forcefully, moving in, claiming her arm, shoving it under his, and bustling her off across the grass toward the car. He covered her hand with his, taking hold of several fingers. “Don’t yell. You know what I can do if you yell. Don’t make me hurt you.”
She was terrified and angry at the same time. She’d told herself she wasn’t going to get in this kind of fix again. He just kept angling them toward the car. She couldn’t get in the car, she just couldn’t. If she did, she knew she might never see her way out again.Then, before she could think of anything to do, he was opening the driver’s door and pushing her inside. She clumbsily crawled over to the passenger side, wondering if she could get out her door before he caught her, but he must have read her mind. “Don’t try anything stupid,” he said as he started the car and pulled into the street.
the husband's sister and her husband arrived yesterday, late afternoon. we had stew for supper, then talked the evening away with a nightcap of hercule poirot.today we headed north to vancouver and spent the day absorbing the sun and seeing beautiful views -- water to the west, and mountains to the north and east. what more is there? we stopped and looked around granville island (artist colony both working and retail) where we had a really excellent lunch at the railroad avenue cafe, i believe it was called.then we headed up to have a look-see at stanley park, then headed farther up to horseshoe bay which is a really really pretty piece of real estate northwest of vancouver. there are soothing views in every direction and we took a couple of pictures. when i have the time i'll try to put them on flickr.we headed back home right around rush hour and the delay at the border was fine until a dark-haired b1tch with a snotty-looking boyfriend came rushing up in her big black truck and tried to push into the line ahead of us. said she meant to go to the duty-free shop, haha -- didn't want to have to wait like the rest of us peons. if i'd had a gun i would have shot out her tires -- i am simply fed up with people getting away with stuff when the rest of us have to follow the rules. and she was from the states so that sent a typical ugly-americans message. we finally got through the gate and before we left we mentioned the gal (who was right behind us) -- the guard just kind of laughed it off, but the least he could have done was to have her truck searched and cost her some time.when we got back we had spaghetti then watched Mrs. Henderson Presents with judi dench and bob hoskins. a very very nice day all around!
“But Sammy, how can we escape if we don’t know where we’re going?” Trixie stumbled over her long gown and nearly knocked Sammy into the river.
“Dammit! That’s the third time you’ve tripped and nearly wiped me out Doll-face,” hissed Sammy exasperatedly. “Hold up that skirt and walk like a normal person so we can actually get where we’re going.”
Trixie grabbed both sides of her dress bringing the hem up to mid-calf as she continued walking rapidly down the dark pathway. “Okay. It’s taken care of. Now, how are we going to get out of this m---”
Sammy had stuck out his arm and Trixie ran right into it, unintentionally getting the wind knocked out of her, which stopped her from talking as well as walking. “Shhh,” he whispered, “I think someone’s on the river.” They both pressed back into the stygian shadows, listening intently for signs of pursuit. After a few minutes, Sammy relaxed. “Let’s get going,” he muttered. “We ought to find a boat right around here.”
“A boat?” squeaked Trixie looking down at her high heels and elegant gown. “If I’d known we were going to have to get in a boat, I’d have worn different shoes,” she lamented. “What good does it do me to get dressed up if I'm going to get messed up?”
“I’ll make it up to you, just keep your voice down.” Sammy stopped again, then as the moon played hide-and-seek with some wispy clouds he bent down and searched through the bushes. “Here it is. Come on, get in carefully and go sit on the other end.”
Trixie stepped closer as she said, “I can’t see a thing when the moon disappears. How do you know anything’s there?”
“Step forward and lift your leg so you can g---” Sammy felt Trixie’s heel innocently stomp his big toe and bit back a yell. She teetered off-balance, frantically trying to stay upright.
“Sammy, Sammy,” she exclaimed softly, just as she felt his hands reach out and steady her. “I’m not sure this is going to work. I can’t see a blamed thing!”
“It’ll work,” he sighed. “It has to work. Just get in and sit down right away. We’ve got to get out of here.”
Trixie stumbled forward then sank onto the seat, feeling something knock against her leg. She reached down and picked up a thick stick as Sammy was getting in. “Here,” she said, “You might need this.”
She held the stick up toward Sammy, accidentally hitting him between the legs whereupon he collapsed with a groan, the action gently plunging him backwards off the boat. He ended up in the fetal position half-in and half-out of the water as the boat absent-mindedly moved away from the shore and into the steady downstream movement of the water.
“Sammy? What happened! Where are you?!” Trixie gasped. Then she simultaneously realized the boat was moving, and that she was alone. “Uh, oh,” she said in a very small voice.
even though it's a gorgeous, special day, i must tell you about a most gruesome disease i read about last night. it's called Morgellons and you can read the astounding details here -- http://www.schmoo.co.uk/morgellons.htm .this disease is being ignored by most doctors as well as the cdc, and patients are left feeling embarrassed, humiliated, and suicidal. a brief recap of symptoms: itchy skin (like bugs are crawling around underneath the skin), little blue fibers, black specks, and white threads coming out of lesions in the skin, hair loss, lymphedema, and extreme fatigue.most doctors think the patients are delusional since no infectious agent is readily apparent, and the disdain from the medical community has patients looking for answers on their own. one patient told his doctor he had a gun in his glove compartment and the next doctor who told him it was all in his head, he was going to shoot the doctor. another patient, a teenager, killed himself. desperate people do desperate things.so far, most of the patients are located in texas, florida, and california. one texas doctor has been looking into the problem and thinks there may be a connection with lyme disease. the oklahoma state department of health is seriously studying the disease and other groups have contacted this department to share their own findings.the whole thing sounds like an alien horror flick, but it is definitely real. as Mark Twain said, "Truth is stranger than fiction, but it is because Fiction is obliged to stick to possibilities; Truth isn't."
happy mother's day to me, happy mother's day to-- oh! hello there! yes it's mother's day once again and it's a beautiful day here with lots of sunshine and blue skies and i opened a most lovely card from My Older Son which has tender sentiments that any mother would be deeply touched to receive and My Younger Son is hitting the road in new york and should be arriving here for a long-awaited visit in five days and the husband is happy and healthy and all is right in my world!i am sooooooooooooo blessed!
May 8: Officers stopped a car in the 1600 block of Hughes Avenue after learning the registered owner's privilege to drive was suspended, and found that the registered owner's brother was driving. Unfortunately, his license was also suspended and so he was arrested.
May 8: Officers responded to a report of two juveniles throwing something off the overpass on H Street. An officer contacted the offending youths, ages eight and nine. They admitted to throwing berries over the railing. The youngsters were sent home and their parent was notified of the berry berry bad incident.
May 7: A complaint was received concerning the theft of service after a landlord in the 700 block of F street discovered trash in the apartment trash bins that was not associated with any of the tenants in the building. Papers inside the trash bags indicated all the trash had come from one address. Officers returned the trash to that address along with a warning letter.
May 4: A concerned neighbor reported that unknown people in a small white pickup entered a vacant house in the 900 block of Cedar Street by using a key. It was determined the people were moving in.
well, this is totally cool -- stackable cars! go to http://cities.media.mit.edu/ and then click on Concept Car Project, then on City Car concept. the image that comes up is intriguing and i'd love to have one of those! (the wheels can go 'round 360*!)the cars are meant to be like the carts you use at the airports -- you pay for them, use them to drive to a drop-off place near your location, and then leave the car stacked into whatever others are there. neat concept -- would love to see it happen sooner rather than later.p.s. there's another car (Concept Car Project, Transology) that appears to be set up to be hung like a hanger. hmmm.....
oh, this is fun -- i just took a geography quiz on msnbc -- http://www.msnbc.msn.com/id/12594142/ -- here are the questions:1. what state east of the mississippi river has the greatest amount of land: pennsylvania, georgia, florida, massachusetts.2. in which continent is angola located: asia, antarctica, europe, africa.3. what is the state capital of kentucky: louisville, frankfort, lexington, richmond.4. in which continent is the world's highest mountain located: asia, antarctica, africa, europe.5. what is the world's largest river by volume: amazon, nile, mississippi, danube.6. the deadly dec. 26, 2004 tsunami that killed more than 180,000 people originated in what body of water: atlantic ocean, pacific ocean, indian ocean, red sea.7. in which ocean are the solomon islands located: indian, arctic, south pacific, south atlantic.8. where does the mississippi river begin: mississippi, minnesota, colorado, wisconsin.9. java, a term used for 'coffee', is also an island in which of the following: indonesia, indiana, seattle, madagascar.10. the gold rush that began in 1848 occurred in what state: colorado, alaska, california, washington.go ahead and try it! i missed two -- 1 and 3 -- the answers are in the comments.
my fitnet guy mentioned that adelle davis put out an awful lot of erroneous information, which led to at least one child's death.her books Let's Have Healthy Children and Let's Eat Right To Keep Fit were both filled with incorrect information. certainly, i think it's important for people to try to eat healthily, but the assertions of an off-the-shelf book need to be backed up from other sources.there are numerous web sites which detail the damage caused by her books, but one of the best is Quackwatch -- http://www.quackwatch.org/04ConsumerEducation/davis.html . the following illustrates some of the damage she caused:In 1971, a 4-year-old victim of Davis's advice was hospitalized at the University of California Medical Center in San Francisco. The child appeared pale and chronically ill. She was having diarrhea, vomiting, fever, and loss of hair. Her liver and spleen were enlarged, and other signs suggested she had a brain tumor. Her mother, "a food faddist who read Adelle Davis religiously," had been giving her large doses of vitamins A and D plus calcium lactate.Little Eliza Young was not so fortunate. During her first year of life she was given "generous amounts" of vitamin A as recommended in Let's Have Healthy Children. As a result, according to the suit filed in 1971 against Davis and her publisher, Eliza's growth was permanently stunted. Two-month-old Ryan Pitzer was even less fortunate. According to the suit filed by his parents, Ryan was killed in 1978 by the administration of potassium chloride for colic as suggested in the same book. In 1982, pediatricians at the University of California School of Medicine in Los Angeles reported a case of near-fatal overdose in a 3-week-old boy who had been given potassium for colic. In this case, the potassium was contained in a salt-substitute added to an acidophilus solution as recommended in another paragraph of the colic discussion. After four days, the infant became lethargic and irritable and had an episode of gagging after which he became limp and stopped breathing. The parents began mouth-to-mouth resuscitation and immediately took him to an emergency room, where he was able to breath spontaneously. His potassium levels were extremely high but responded promptly to treatment.In 2005, an 11-month-old boy who was raised on barley water and goats milk as recommended in Let's Have Healthy Children wound up with severe anemia due to vitamin deficiency. The treating physicians said he was lucky to escape brain damage.when it comes to your children's health, check and double-check your information.
i get such a kick out of Tim Lane's monday-through-friday physical fitness postings. the first comments below are essay answers by students, and the second are classic songs from "The Hospital Hit Parade!" he also says, "Winter wheat is planted in the fall, a ten-gallon hat hold much less, Greenland isn't, and you are supposed to slow down in speed zones! Yes, things are not always what they are cracked up to be."> Her date was pleasant enough, but she knew that if her life was a movie this guy would be buried in the credits as something like "Second Tall Man."
> The red brick wall was the color of a brick-red Crayola crayon.
> The politician was gone but unnoticed, like the period after the Dr. on a Dr Pepper can.
> Her eyes were like two brown circles with big black dots in the center."Old Man's Liver."
"I've Grown Accustomed to Her Brace"
"I'll be Sewing You (In All the Old Familiar Places)"
"Red Cells in the Sunset"
"It's Spleen a Long, Long Time"
"It Had to Be Flu"
"Gonna Take a Sentimental Gurney"
"The Girl From Emphysema"
"The Staphs and Streps Forever"
"MRI Blue?"
"My Melancolicky Baby"
"From Here to Maternity." (I don't know how this movie got in, maybe it had a sound track.)have a great day!!!
people sometimes get a skewed sense of themselves. take the following quote about allen iverson (the 76er point guard):"...A jury will sort out the facts. In the meantime, Iverson was asked to come to D.C. to give a deposition to the plaintiff’s lawyers.Washington and Philadelphia are just a couple of hours apart. You can get there by air shuttle, by train or by car. But Iverson asked the judge to allow him to give the deposition in Philadelphia because, he argued, if he has to go to Washington – his hometown and one that he visits frequently – he’d have to get up early in the morning and pay a limo for the trip.
He couldn’t take a train, because people would recognize him, his lawyers said, and if that happened, then his crew might have to beat somebody up for the crime of saying hello. So he has to drive, and, given that he’s such an important person, he apparently can’t possibly drive himself.The judge, U.S. Magistrate Deborah A. Robinson, read the request, rejected it, and told him to get his all-important and spoiled butt down to Washington and give the deposition.It renewed our hope that perhaps there is justice in this world after all." (from http://www.msnbc.msn.com/id/3298669/ )
I was in a meadow. There were flowers all around and lots of colors and the sun was shining and there were pine trees and mountains in the background. It was beautiful and I was so happy.
“Wake up, wake up! Soesin, wake up!” I opened my eyes and woke up to a nightmare.
“Leave me alone and let me go back to sleep!” I mumbled. I hurt pretty much everywhere and was sure I was going to throw up.
“Soesin, wake up and listen to me,” said the insistent voice. “We have to get out of here as soon as you can walk. They bombed the camp about 10 minutes ago, so they’ll be here any second.”
“I can’t. I hurt. Go away.” It would have been better to go back to the meadow, but I didn’t think I was going to be allowed to do that.
“Here. Drink this if you can,” a male voice said gently to me. “We’ve got to get her out of here before they close the tunnel,” he said to someone else.
“We may have to carry her,” said Insistent Voice. “She’s awful close to dying.”
“Yeees...Dying is gooood...Let me lay here...and diiiiee,” I moaned. “Go away...and I can go baaack...to the meadoooow.”
“What in heaven’s name is she saying,” said Male Voice. “Tie-goot...go hay...ba...med-ho. Christ! Now she’s delirious! We’re out of time. I’ll take her and unless you can get my gear, all the pass-codes and food locations will be left behind.” He picked me up but the pain made me pass out.
When I came to, I was sure that Insistent Voice and Male Voice were playing volleyball with my body as they hurriedly cut through the debris, across a couple of trees, and around a mound of bodies. But I contributed to the Cause by keeping my moans low -- I don’t think it helped much though since we stopped eventually and Male Voice said, “Shit! Look at that! The bombs destroyed the tunnel and I heard them landing a few blocks back. We’re on our own.”
“My meadow,” I groaned. “Put me in my meadow.”
“Right! That’s it,” said Male Voice. “We’ll put her on the sleep pad and we’ll float down the river. They’ll never see us in this weather, and if we can get out before we hit the rapids, we’ll be close to another tunnel and we can get out that way.”
“Another tunnel?” said Insistent Voice sounding like Scaredy Cat. “I’ve never heard of another tunnel. What tunnel? Why do you think there’s another tunnel down there?”
“Well, whether a tunnel’s there or not, we don’t have any choice,” said Male Voice as he inflated the sleep pad. “Besides, my granny told me about that tunnel and she said no one else knew about it.”“Your granny?!” said Suddenly Incredulous Voice. “Your granny’s nuts! Everybody knows your granny’s nuts! Oh god, this isn’t going to work. I knew this wasn’t going to work.”
okay -- i've got the last of the arizona pictures up on flickr. some of them are 'stitched together' although i've labeled them as 'panned' for some reason. at any rate -- have a look see ...
topics that caught my attention this am:1. a university of virginia hospital begins implanting micro-chips in the navels of newborn humans this month,2. a 4-year old boy from india runs 40 miles and loves doing it,3. a woman who is said to be 128 years old lives in el salvador,4. 63 year old woman from england is 7 months pregnant,5. post office wants increase in stamp prices,6. 40-year old mexican man weighs 1200 pounds in spite of normal cholesterol and blood sugar levels,7. britney spears is getting divorced.one of the items was from 1999 (the rest from today) and one of the items is false. can you guess which?
Hey Baby. Can I have your phone number? I seem to have lost mine. Aw, just kiddin' Baby. Seriously, is your Dad a mechanic? 'cause you got all the right parts. No, seriously, seriously. I may not be Fred Flintstone, but I bet I can make your Bed Rock! (tail chompage)
http://cuteoverload.com just cracks me up! 
flickr drives me crazy -- you tell them how you want your pictures arranged and they may end up that way and they may not.i uploaded some of the pictures from jerome and will try to get the ones from sedona up tomorrow. if you click on the main page -- http://www.flickr.com/photos/kphiker/ -- you will see the jerome pictures out-of-order. but if you go over to the left side and click on the jerome/sedona set, the page that comes up shows them in the correct order.more later. hopefully.
It is day two of my journey. Yesterday I stopped in the 1200s. Since I can only move back in time, not forward or to a different location, the surrounding area is extremely similar to what I said good-bye to yesterday morning. There are shallow, rolling hills, fewer trees, but quite a bit more grass, bushes, and colorful weeds. I haven’t spotted any people, but I saw a coyote, a number of birds, and some rabbits earlier today. I have no intention of removing myself from this protected vehicle, which works out well since I am able to see, hear, and smell the surrounding area from inside. I look forward to the sunset.
It is day four of my journey. I stopped today in 210 A.D. There is a large stream nearby, but all of the vegetation has been destroyed by fire. It must have been quite a storm. There has been no recovery yet, no animals or birds. It is not a pleasant sight.
It is day six of my journey and today I am in about 1127 B.C. There is quite a forest all around me and I can see a group of what must be people on the top of a small hill. They appear to be resting and socializing, but there are no huts or living units that I can see.
It is day eight of this journey. The recall mechanism will click into place tomorrow and it will take me just about five minutes to arrive at the facility. I will have quite a bit to share, much more than this skeletal diary would suggest. Today finds me in about 1945 B.C. This is grassland once again, with several streams running through the area, along with numerous animals, birds, and people. The people appear to be coming and going from an opening in a hill, however from this distance I cannot tell if the hill is man-made or if the place underground was excavated. Fascinating.
It is day ten of my journey. For some reason, the recall mechanism did not perform as anticipated and I have yet to return to my time. As I am sure they are working on solving the problem, I am continuing with my research. It appears to be about 3385 B.C. and the area is overrun with large animals. In the last hour, I have seen six wolves, seven cougars, four grizzly bears, and numerous vultures, eagles, and ravens. This area seems much more savage than previously observed, and I am glad for my vehicle’s protection. No sign of people, and no wonder.It is day twenty-five of my journey. This will be my last entry as I simply don’t care to record anymore. Apparently they are not able to bring me home. I am unable to keep the vehicle from progressing back in time and do not wish to continue this way. When I conclude this entry, I will attempt to break the seal and emerge from the vehicle. I estimate it be to around 14,300 B.C. There are many more hills than in my day, although only a few trees, with a number of streams in sight as well as bushes and grasses. There appears to be a cliff of some sort off in the distance, but I see nothing that indicates people might be about. I cannot imagine how this is going to turn out, but wish me luck. --Theodore Summerstone
