Where are the Bellhops?

Trying Out Posterous

2010-07-29T23:05:00.000-07:00

I'm giving Posterous a try for blogging. For now, go to

http://bellhops.posterous.com/

to see new posts. If I end up digging it, I'll migrate my postings from here.

Excessive Fluffy Cuteness

2010-07-13T18:47:00.000-07:00

Sophie's Babtism

2010-06-19T14:39:00.001-07:00

We went to Sophie's baptism today. It was a nicely done baptismal service (not that I'm an expert or anything). Needless to say she was very much doted upon. She was dressed in a super fluffy dress and sleep through much of the hubbub.

-- Posted via the SnarfffPad

Busy Busy

2010-06-09T22:31:00.000-07:00

I've been busy as a bee, lately. Between learning new work stuff, including taking an Intro to SQL class, and doing much socializing, I have barely had time to myself. Even been making it to quite a few movies, including "Prince of Persia" (meh) and "Iron Man 2" (fun). And lots of reading! I finished the last two Stieg Larrson books, "The Girl Who Played with Fire" and "The Girl Who Kicked the Hornet's Nest", "The Guernsey Literary & Potatoe Peel Society", and the latest from Elizabeth George, "This Body of Death". All of them were good reads. I'm now reading my friend, Deb's, most recent romance novel, "Tempting a Proper Lady" (sheesh, it's making me blush!) and after that I plan to give "The Passage", by Justin Cronin, a shot. Add to that a bunch of comics I've downloaded via ComiXology on to my lovely iPad, and, well, yes, lots of reading material.

Oh, and I purchased a beautiful work of art while visiting some artists as part of Open Studios in the Santa Rosa area this past weekend! I'm so excited. I'll post a picture once I have it -- have to go back up to pick it up. The artist is Rik Olson. Got something for my slacker bro, too.

Bunch of Random Catch-up Pics

2010-05-31T22:37:00.001-07:00

Just a bunch of pictures to share...

Some pictures from a recent visit to the Peace Garden in Santa Rosa while my Uncle Jim was in town...

Lucy, Uncle Jim and Tamara

Random pics of the park

A bookmark we came across when we stopped at the Sebastopol Farmer's Market

Pictures from along Sweetwater Springs Road in Sonoma County

And love...

Thuy and Sophie gazing into each others eyes... *sigh*

And friends...

A jet-lagged German, soon after telling everyone at the BBQ that he won't pass out like he did at the poker game the night before...

Bill sharing his love at the BBQ

Eee chomping down on the last of my Contessa ganache cupcakes

And finally...

Because, well, just because kittens rule...

The Daily Kitten

2010-05-19T19:58:00.000-07:00

Heya!

Tasty!

2010-05-15T18:16:00.000-07:00

Do you hear any snoring?

2010-05-15T18:15:00.000-07:00

I didn't put her there!

2010-05-15T18:13:00.000-07:00

Strrrreeeeeetttttttttccccccccchhhhhhhhhh.........

2010-05-15T18:11:00.000-07:00

Ack!

2010-05-10T11:14:00.001-07:00

Um, I am at a loss for words...

Want One!

2010-05-10T11:00:00.000-07:00

My newest niece, Sophie!

OMG

2010-05-01T01:08:00.001-07:00

This Just In!

2010-04-30T21:39:00.001-07:00

Oh my goodness!!!!!!!!!!!!!

Welcome, Sophie!

2010-04-27T13:41:00.000-07:00

One of my oldest and best friends and his wife celebrate the birth of their first child today: Sophie. 6 lbs, 12 ozs. Yay! I'm an auntie again!!! Wish I had a pic to share, but I know she is just beautiful!

The Goats are Back!

2010-04-26T22:46:00.000-07:00

We had a nice Earth Day event on campus last Thursday. While all the folks at their tables promoting sustainability, recycling, power saving, etc. was cool, it was the baby goats that made it all worth while.

Zipper unable to Zip-Up

2010-04-20T12:30:00.000-07:00

Zipper was disappointed Monday evening when she attempted to stow away in John's carry-on bag. Not happy to be parted from John for any length of time, Zipper decided she would hide in his bag, revealing herself once he arrived on the east coast. Sadly, when she tried to zip up the bag she realized her efforts were being foiled due to the lack of opposing thumbs. She's hoping John won't notice when he shoves the rest of his stuff in the bag.

Oh, Come On!

2010-04-18T17:07:00.001-07:00

This much cuteness should be illegal!

Comcast Addressing Mental Health Issue

2010-04-18T10:44:00.001-07:00

Just an update to my faithful readers who are waiting with baited breath on an update to my recent Comcast excitement.

First, let me just note that since Wednesday, my connection has dropped more each day with such consistency that I all I can say is I'm actually glad I blogged about the issue and Comcast responded so quickly. I say this because after Wednesday night, if I had been left to calling on my own, I know my angst would have been at a high level. Which just goes to show, you should NOT wait until a problem is so bad that you are so completely frustrated you just want to take the perceived source of the problem -- in this case my moden -- and throw it out the window, before you call for help, regardless of the vendor. And let's just also note how many times I've said that to my own customers when I was managing the Help Desk and how even now, when I hear someone at work complaining about a tech problem that's frustrating them I ask, "Have you reported this to the Help Desk?" and they say, "Uh, no." So here I am, typical human, failing to practice what I preach. Of course, this doesn't help much if the vendor is totally lame and has a history of giving you the run around (which I will confess has NOT been my general experience with Comcast, even if they are an evil corporate giant, which I just so happen to own shares in, but only by accident).

But I digress, so back to the story...

As I noted in an short update to my original posting, Comcast, via Sandy from their Executive Customer Service Center (or something like that), made arrangements for a technician to come out and check my network (or, as CO likes to say, my intrawebs). My time slot was for today, between 9:00 and 11:00. The technician, a very nice young woman (I love that, girl tech power!) showed up sometime around 10:00, temporarily saving me from my compulsive zombie killing on the SnarfffPad (I had planned to play some WoW but shock, my connection had dropped!). I left her to her own devices, keeping out of the way in the kitchen and being productive in going through the gynormous pile of mail I had been accumulating.

She goes about her technical machinations and soon tells me that it looks like the problem is outside (whew, I was really dreading the "well, I can't find anything wrong with the line so it must be your ----." (where ---- is my modem, or my router, or just me in general). She then goes outside and does some more technical stuff and comes back to let me know she's got it working for now but that she's going to have some other tech come out to check the line out on the street. This might cause an interruption, but once that's resolved I should see no more dropped connections. Then, just in case there are issues, she provides me with her supervisor's contact information should the problem start to manifest itself again.

We shall see what happens over the next few weeks.

As to Comcast's blog-stalking behavior, it is paying off so far. The original comment to the post, from Mark, was very nice, even if he did miss my not-so-subtle reference to the problem with my phone number not being associated with my account. He and another colleague responded to my e-mail very quickly. Sandy from the Executive Customer Service whatever office was very polite and friendly and responsive (I expect she will be checking in with me on Monday). The tech today was more of the same. So, for my own personal experience, at this point I'm content, with no immediate plans to move to DSL -- unless my network goes down again :-) And you know if that happens, you'll be reading about it!

Until next time, Comcast...

And just speaking of zombies...

Wha'?

2010-04-17T00:42:00.000-07:00

I'll never understand cats and their crazy box obsession.

Comcast Causes Mental Health Issues

2010-04-14T22:47:00.001-07:00

Okay, so maybe it was my fault that I decided to use the Comcast online help instead of calling. But I figured, how hard will be it be to get my Comcast uername so I can log into my freaking account to see if there is any freaking way to update my new cable modem MAC address online through, oh shock me silly, their customer account interface? I swear, I really should have kept the transcript of the discussion with the person who was helping me. First, they need to lose some of those lame auto answers. Ugh. Add to my angst that none of my recent phone numbers seem to be on Comcast's record of me. Finally, after much back and forth and delays and my revealing my under-things -- ok, I really just mean my cable modem's MAC address -- she finally reset my password and revealed my top secret username. Great. So then I think, well, I've got the person right here, let me ask her how I can register my new modem's MAC. She tells me -- which I confirm a second time, as I find it hard to believe -- that I have to go down to the Comcast office in person. I also need to return my existing modem (which I own) so I don't continue to be charged for using their modem (which I am not charged for). I said thank you and disconnected.

I then did what I should have done in the first place. I called them, navigated through the annoying phone tree to tech support, and got a VERY NICE GUY on the other end who hooked me up in just a few short minutes. Yes, lesson has been learned.

Now the only outstanding issue is whether this new cable modem -- a Linksys CM100 -- will provide me with a more stable and reliable connection then my old modem (a surfsomething motorola, which has been loyal until the past x-months or so). I would like to point out that as I was doing my taxes via TurboTax (yes, I waited until the last minute, shut-up) my connection dropped 3 -- count it, 1-2-3 freaking times! Ya'll know how cranky I can get. Well, imagine me cranky and then magnify that by a factor of 20 and you might have a sense of how irritating my night has been. I take full responsibility for my crankiness.

But the VERY NICE GUY who hooked me up made it all better. In fact, I will go to bed imagining him whispering sweet techno-nothings in my ear. I anticipate sweet dreams tonight.

UPDATE: Thursday a.m. - woke up to, surprise, a dropped connection. Had to do the usual unplug, wait 60-seconds, replug. Maybe I should start considering moving to DSL.

UPDATE: Thursday p.m. - as you'll note from the comments below, Comcast has discovered my humble little blog. I guess my blog title gave them some pause for concern. They are being very helpful so far and have scheduled a tech visit to see if they can get to the root of my intermittent dropped connections. I will, of course, update Bellhops with the breaking story of their efforts. And for those of you who may be thinking my blog title overly dramatic, it wasn't when I wrote it! As if filing your taxes at the last minute isn't stressful enough.

And a shout out to E for hitting the 6-month mark - if you don't know what I mean I won't be telling ya so don't ask. Here he is back in the day (2006).

Not Really an Early Adopter

2010-04-11T20:37:00.000-07:00

As I've been getting a lot of slack for getting an iPad right after its release and how I'm such an early adopter of technology I'd like to clarify a few things...

My 1st iPod: gift from my Slacker Bro
My Wii: gift from my Slacker Bro
My 1st iPhone: gift from my Slacker Bro (and the lovely SP)
My DVD player: gift from my Slacker Bro
My Roku box: gift from my Slacker Bro
My flat screen TV: hand-me-down purchase from my Slacker Bro
My Kindle: gift from my Slacker Bro

Are you sensing a pattern here? While I enjoy embracing new technology and do get pleasure from the occasional tech toy, the real tech geek, the real early adopter, is my Slacker Bro. I'm just super lucky he loves me enough to hook me up with all this techno goodness. Oh, and though I may have broken down and gotten an iPad just 2 days after it's release, I don't see it as some revolutionary device, but rather an extension of an already proven user interface made popular with the iPhone and iPod Touch...

As to other news, the keynote speaker at SunGard Summit 2010 was Chris Gardner, the man behind The Pursuit of Happyness. He was a great speaker; engaging, motivating, inspiring. I'm really glad I had the opportunity to hear him present.

And just because...

-- Posted via the SnarfffPad

Friday Night: Me & the SnarfffPad

2010-04-09T22:12:00.000-07:00

So, here it is, Friday night and I'm chilling out at home watching a Clint Eastwood flick and catching up on some blog postings via my new RSS Reader (FeeddlerRSS) that I just downloaded from the App Store. Well, downloaded about 2 hours ago and now that I'm all caught up with my feeds, capping it off with a little of the CO.

I would have preferred being at Taraval Osaku-Ya with MamaJ snarffing some salmon rolls and guzzling some chilled sake, but a late afternoon migraine interfered with those plans. The SnarfffPad has been comforting me.

As have the kittens in all their cuddly goodness. Speaking of kittens, it seems Katja is happy to use the new giant scratching post as a lounging so ace, but not for actual scratching. So typical.

SunGard Summit starts this weekend so I shall be spending several days immersing myself in workflow sessions in the hope of learning something useful. I actually enjoy Summit. My creative work juices always get flowing. If only we had the time, money and resources to implement all the things we'd like to!

Continuing my assessment of the BlogPress app I'm using... Auto save isn't impressing me. I accidentally tapped on the post listing on the left of the screen and not only was I not prompted to save before leaving my draft but the draft didn't save automatically - at least not recently. My post was already four paragraphs and only the first one had been saved, and that not even the complete paragraph. Haven't figured out how to ad a link without hard coding the html and I'm still cleaning the post up in the actual Blogger interface after I post via BlogPress. Not ideal, but using the app is still better then trying to do it all in the Blogger web interface.

-- Posted via the SnarfffPad

1300 Deliciousnesses

2010-04-07T21:36:00.001-07:00

Went to 1300 Fillmore (not an iPad friendly website) for drinks after work with my friend and co-worker tonight. Yum. Wine, hush puppies, duck rillette, friend chicken... Sigh.

And I think I made an iPad convert. She's not a tech person and ended up being very impressed with the simplicity of the interface. She's a good candidate for this device because she travels a lot and is looking for a light, easy tool she can use on the road.

And a pic for your viewing pleasure... A pup on the lookout. Lucy and I came across this cutie when we stopped in Occidental for brunch one weekend.

-- Posted via the SnarfffPad
(cleaned up post posting)

Look How Pretty!

2010-04-07T13:22:00.001-07:00

Okay, I'm trying out BlogPress in the full on create and post via BlogPress mode. I did notice last a night that I couldn't quite figure out how to edit a post after I posted it so I ended up going back into the Blogger web interface to do that. But the key thing right now are pictures...

Oh, look, it's my pretty little iPad at work. Please disregard my messy desk.

Oh, look, it's a jay-walking mountain goat!

Oh my goodness, kitty paws! Shocking!

Update: So, there are some spacing issues I can't seem to resolve in BlogPress. I'll either have to live with them or edit some other way. Also, when I look at the HTML it isn't as clean as I would like, but I suppose these are small prices to pay. Clearly pictures loaded fine. Even typing on the idPad keyboard wasn't too terrible, though of course it cannot compare to the standard keyboards. I'll continue to make use if BlogPress and see how it goes as I user if more.

My iPad Cans and Cannots

2010-04-06T20:37:00.001-07:00

So, now that I've been using the iPad for all of, oh, one day, below are some of my observations. To naysayers and Apple-haters, I say, get over yourselves. Buying a new gadget comes down to like, need and want... If the iPad doesn't float your boat, doesn't meet your need, or you don't want it, well, don't get one -- hello! Sheesh!

Cans:

Watch movies, both those I have stored locally or streaming through Netflix. Quality is great (as long as the video itself is good) and streaming is fine as long as the connection is a good one. I actually watch movies on my iPhone and iPod quite a bit, so this is really nice for me - no need to hold the thing right up to my face. I know I'll be happy when I'm on that 11 hour flight to Holland in the fall.
Update my blog, with a little workaround (see below for more on this). I can't promise I'll blog MORE because I have the iPad, or that my blogs will be more interesting.
Read all my Kindle books, mostly (see below for more).
Play kick-ass high def Plants vs Zombies and Scrabble.
The usual calendar and email stuff - the interfaces of both are really visually appealing and functional on the iPad.
Web browsing: way way way better on the iPad then on the iPhone -- bigger and faster and generally cooler, mostly (see below).
Type: I've seen a lot of critiques about the digital keyboard, but it's really just fine for what it is. I'm a touch typist -- I can type over 100 words a minute -- but I never expected that sort of capability on the iPad. If I want to write a novel, I'll do it on my computer (I sure as heck wouldn't buy an iPad so I could write a novel on it -- hello, function!).

Cannots (either I really can't do it or I just haven't figured it out yet):

Upload pictures for my blog via the Blogger/Picasso web interfaces -- I have to use a workaround of emailing the pic to my blogger account, then copying the url from the automatically created blog and then deleting the automatically created blog and going to the blog I'm actually writing and pasting the link there. An annoying work around, but tolerable for now as I'm hoping I'll either find a solution or, if not, Google will provide one. Basically, if I'm in my blogging edit window and I click on the button to insert an image the button used to navigate to the image is not usable. I could still update the blog the same way I did on my iPhone, which is just doing it through email, but I like being able to preview and do other things that are easy to do in the blogging web interface. Or I could use a 3rd party app like BlogPress.
Read my Kindle books outside in the sunlight. I knew this wold be the case -- afterall, it's the case with my iPhone and with my MacBook Air. But still... maybe I can try some sort of protective cover to help minimize the glare? We'll see. For now, the Kindle stays.
Okay, I know Apple is thumbs down on the whole Flash deal, but still, it's so widely utilized on the web not being able to use it when surfing on the iPad is a bit annoying. Perhaps this will be the push web developers need to establish alternatives.

Still to explore:

Hmmm, how will I do my off-line travel journaling? Not using the built in notepad - that app still irritates me. I'll have to look around for options.
GoogleDocs? Still not sure of the solutions for creating and editing Google documents since I've read that you can't create GoogleDocs via the web interface. I've heard of some Memeo app to view them off-line, but I'm more interested in creating and editing them online and off. A good app would be a GoogleDocs app that lets you create and edit on your iPad and synch to your GoogleDocs account when ready. While I don't plan to write a novel on my iPad, I do like to journal, especially when I'm traveling, which points me back to the first bullet in this section.

Confessions:

Yeah, okay, the fingerprints looks way worse on my iPad then on my iPhone. Guess I'll just have to carry a little iPad cloth in my purse.
Not sure if and when I'll buy a book through Apple's bookstore. I'd just as soon as keep using the Kindle app or my actual Kindle device. The exception might be books that have maps. I love stories that use maps and frankly the Kindle versions of these have crappy suck-ass maps that you can barely read (example, George R. R. Martin's series "A Song of Ice and Fire" - awesome maps, completely unreadable on my Kindle device or via the Kindle app on my Mac). If the iPad/Apple versions of these books have good maps, that could be a motivator for me.

Worth the ridiculous dollars? The Snarffable Jury is still out.

Are you asking yourself, "Hey, Snarfffable, did you write this freakin' monograph on your iPad?" Um, no, not this time... but only cause I was in front of my computer when I decided to start jotting down ideas on what to write. But, I did edit it on my iPad and post it via the iPad with the app my Slacker Bro found for me called BlogPress.

iPad: I'm Not Proud

2010-04-05T21:31:00.000-07:00

Ok, it's true I told myself I would wait until the summer before I would consider getting an iPad. And yes, it's true that I now have one and it's only day 3 since the iPad dropped. And yes, it's true that I'm not proud. But I am pretty darn giggly as I sit here blogging about my new freaking iPad - from my iPad! I'll have to wait a bit before I can provide any real feedback on the little thing, but so far I'm digging it. Got a bunch of pics loaded, movies, updated apps, email and calendars set up.

Here's my home view with a background from my London trip photo collection:

The iPad may not be the be-all-end-all, but I think it has a lot of potential and I'm looking forward to new apps designed specifically for the device. More later!

ZOMBIES!!!!!

2010-03-26T20:10:00.001-07:00

I'm on a bit of a blogging kick right now. Not sure why, but enjoy it while it lasts.

A few months ago my Slacker Bro hooked me up with a new game for my iPhone. He wanted me to have it so much that he sent me an iTunes gift certificate for the very purpose of me getting this app. By now I suppose you must have guessed that the game somehow involves zombies. Clever you are! The game is called Plants vs Zombies and I have MASTERED IT! When the zombie revolution comes, I'll be ready with my seed pods! Just hang with me and you'll be good!

Just some pics to wet your zombie-killing appetite...

The brightly colored initial load page. From the moment I saw this page, I knew this game would suck me in deep. The bucolic plants, the dastardly zombies! Something must be done!

Zombie-killing plants in action. Notice the nice zombie head -- it is vital that the zombie head be separated from the body to ensure full destruction of said zombie.

My happy victory over a horrible mechanical zombie-construct intended to place all manner of zombies on my rooftop with the intention of eating my BRAIN! But my cleverly planted foliage have once again protected me and my beautiful brain.

A Rare Commercial Gem

2010-03-26T20:02:00.000-07:00

It's rare I see a commercial that not only makes me laugh but also makes perfect sense. In this Snicker's commercial I see myself and many of my friends (you know who you are) who don't handle hunger well. Enjoy!

Don't View at Work!

2010-03-25T14:51:00.001-07:00

Shocking belleh-exposure by the ever adorable Khoma. Per The Slacker,
Khoma was, like, "This is how I posed for the PlayGirl magazine shot.
In the buff and altogetha."

Friends and Puppehs!

2010-03-25T13:49:00.000-07:00

What is it with my friends and their darn adorable puppehs?

I actually got to see Cooper today. A very well behaved pup, indeed.

Sasha's Missing Picture

2010-03-19T19:00:00.000-07:00

Ooops, I forgot to upload this vital picture!

Puppy Love

2010-03-17T14:52:00.001-07:00

This is Sasha. She is a sweet pup who loves using her soft little puppy tongue on any bit of your face she can reach. Much to my amazement Sasha and the felines managed to tolerate each other.

Update: Ooops, forgot to include her pic -- but it's there now (http://bellhops.blogspot.com/2010/03/sashas-missing-picture.html)

Toes a la Edwin

2010-02-25T20:48:00.001-08:00

Oh la la!!!

Keiko!

2010-02-23T21:41:00.000-08:00

Fluffy Purrfection!!!!

More Truckee Pictures...

2010-02-14T14:02:00.000-08:00

More picture taking today...

(The boys walking ahead along a path at Donner Park.)

(Two lovelies at Donner Park.)

(Pine close-up.)

(Some heavy machinery we came across along our drive. The picture is a bit more saturated then I want it to be, but I like it overexposed. Maybe I'll play with it in Photoshop later.)

The next three pictures are all of Russell Valley, which is just a short drive from where we were staying in Tahoe-Donner.

(E down by a creek taking pictures.)

Pictures with E

2010-02-13T16:03:00.000-08:00

Here are some pictures E and I took today on my Panasonic DMC-ZS3. Love the quality of pics this digital point-and-shoot generates.

(E at Starbucks checking out kitty pics on my iPhone. He isn't as cranky as he looks.)

(E took this picture for me while I was parked on the side of 89 in a "No Parking Anytime" area near the entrance to some park land. The bridge crosses the Truckee River. E got a bunch of pics here.)

(E on the shore of Lake Tahoe in Tahoe City taking pictures of the lake.)

(While E took shots from the shoreline, I walked out on this dock and got this shot.)

Snow!

2010-02-13T09:58:00.000-08:00

Hanging out with the 'E' up in Truckee/Tahoe area today while all the others take to their snowboards and skis. I've apologized to 'E' in advance in case I'm cranky because I barely slept last night. It felt like it was 85 degree up in our room. He says "not to worry" about the crankiness. I'm going to be driving around with 'E' looking for places for him to take pictures for a project he's working on. I'm having feelings of nostalgia as I'm reminded of the days when I used to go all over the place with my dad while he took train pictures. I did a lot of waiting for dad -- first I'd wait while he found the right spot for the picture. Then I'd wait while he got the picture set up. Then I'd wait for the damn train to show up. Then we'd rush off to the next spot and do the same thing all over again.

I expect this won't be any different. After all, 'E's' got to get the right shots. But, I'm sure I'll enjoy hanging out with him -- as I did with my dad -- as long as I have a lot of caffeine to get me through the day.

Here's a shot he took of our yard here in Truckee. I dig the footsteps.

Tonight I hope I'll be able to sleep… figured out how to open the window in our room and this time I'll make sure the door is shut. If I don't get some shut eye tonight, I'll head home early. Because you know how cranky I get if I don't get my sleep!

R.I.P. Nuku Nuku

2010-02-09T22:35:00.000-08:00

D: February 9, 2010

Nuku Nuku, the All Purpose Cultural Cat, of serious black and white fluffiness. He will be missed, especially by the Slacker.

(Nuku, in his full fluffy glory, flanked by the black shadow cat, Khouma.)

Update: Twitter post from @davslack

I'm Still a Total Geek.

2010-01-19T20:34:00.000-08:00

Got my new fancy, super smart pen in the mail today -- a LiveScribe Pulse Pen. It's a pretty neat little thing. Of course, I was totally excited when I saw my work colleague show me his, but when I was telling the Slacker and others, they were all, like, "oh, yeah, I've heard about those" or "oh, yeah, my boss has one" or "oh, yeah, those are pretty neat." Once again, though a total geek, I was completely out of the loop.

But I don't care. I still get excited by new-to-me technology! So there! And my enthusiasm convinced my boss, so we both have one now! We'll see how it works out. I'm not in as many meetings as I used to be (oh, if only I'd had one of these when I was Project Director or implementing Banner). But workflow, business analysis, etc. can still benefit.

On a separate note, AMERICAN IDOL is BACK! This week, Chicago auditions. I'm finding they aren't as painful to watch as in previous seasons -- okay, maybe the are (as I listen to someone singing Tiny Tim as his audition). I'm not a big fan of the auditions, so I look forward to when the real competition begins.

Bring it, Simon!

Keiko & WoW

2010-01-10T15:24:00.000-08:00

Keiko makes her debut in WoW after the recent release of the new Calico vanity pet.

Here we have Keiko and Pirjo taking a moment for a nice holiday photo-shoot in Dalaran during the Winter's Veil celebration.

Pirjo has nearly 70 pets to care for now! Sometimes she just doesn't know what to do with them all!

Happy New Year! Redux?

2010-01-06T21:44:00.000-08:00

Okay, I'm a few days late posting Happy New Years greetings, but as the saying goes, better late then never. So to all my faithful readers (you know who you are, all 3 of you!), HAPPY NEW YEARS! I hope for us all a wonderful year full of many blessings that we both give and receive.

I spent New Years Eve quietly. I joined Andrew and some friends out at the beach for sunset, champagne and fire. Even though it was too cloudy to see the sun actually set, we felt it in spirit.

Here are some of the group chatting around the bonfire as we wait for the sun to make it's farewell to 2009.

Here are some of the guys -- aren't they totally cute? -- making their way down to the shoreline.

Here are all of us, sans Andrew, by the fire. I know the picture is dark, but heck, it was dark and who wants to deal with a flash when you've got a roaring fire? Just imagine a group of happy people, slightly flushed from champagne, and you'll have us just right! If I get the time, I'll try to mess around with the pic in photoshop or something...

And more cute boys.

And while we were not able to watch the sun actually set, we did watch the Blue Moon rise, at least during the few moments when it peaked at us between those pesky clouds.

After the bonfire a few folks joined me back at my place for some more champagne and some foodie things. We watched the cut-over to 2010 in NYC along with Kathy and Anderson. The rest of the night was just me and the kitties curled up on the couch watching, of all things to watch on New Years Eve, The Thin Blue Line. Sometimes I wonder about myself.

All in all, it was a chill way to move from 2009 to 2010.

Incidentally, I still have left over champagne chilling in my fridge... it really mustn't be wasted.

Penguins Like to Party, too!

2009-12-31T14:58:00.000-08:00

Another holiday fun time at the Walrus Arms! Per usual, much champagne was consumed to the enjoyment of all! I learned, too, that penguins are very fond of champagne. I might even go so far as to say too fond...

He looks are happy here, ready to let the good times roll, ready to bring on more bottles of the bubbly...

But then, after a few, suddenly he's all in your face and, like, "back up, bi-atch, that there is my champagne! Do you get it? Do you see me here? I'm talking to you!"

But fear not, faithful readers, I let him know exactly what I thought about him getting up in my face like that!

And while the quality of this pic may not be the best, the smiles on the faces of these lovely friends of mine are just perfect!

Happy New Year's Everyone! Bring on 2010!!!! I'm ready for a new decade of joy and happiness and I mean to have it!

Sometimes there are no words...

2009-12-30T11:17:00.000-08:00

Trying Out the New Digital Camera

2009-12-24T21:46:00.000-08:00

Just got my new digital camera today -- days early as it wasn't due to arrive until 12/28. There's lot to learn about this thing. It's a Panasonic ZS3. So far I'm liking it. Overall it's easy to get started with and I'm just playing around with some settings. Here are my first favorite feline pics using the pet setting.

Katja up close and personal.

Katja doing some serious cuddledowning.

Oh, 'da Keiko!

Keiko keeping it real.

Keiko gazing off into space.

Oh, O'Doul's!

2009-12-22T20:19:00.000-08:00

No names to protect the guilty.

Beware the Evil that is Cthulhu!

2009-12-19T13:29:00.000-08:00

I recently acquired an icon of the evil god, Cthulhu.

Already the apartment is filled with the aura of his horrible beauty.

But some dreaded work is about... I received a second icon of him this afternoon. Could it be the story of old is coming true, that "They had come from the stars, and had brought Their images with Them"? Could it be that this second idol is just a warning of what is still to come?

If so, I say, come! Come Cthulhu, come! Cthulhu fhtagn, Cthulhu fhtagn!

Happy Thanksgiving!

2009-11-26T09:58:00.000-08:00

It is possible that Thanksgiving is my favorite holiday of the year. Though it is a quintessential USA holiday, it should be a universal one -- a day when we can sit back and give thanks for all that is good in our lives and the world. It is easy to spend most of the time thinking on all the bad things that are going on, but it is important not to forget the good things, especially in a world where so many go without.

So I'm going to take a moment and acknowledge those good things and say some thanks: for being employed and having a roof over my head, for having a loving family, for being blessed with so many wonderful and truly exceptional friends, for being healthy, and for being loved. I know I am blessed.

My apartment is full of the smell of Thanksgiving. The turkey is in the oven cooking away. This year I'm making a cider glazed turkey that was brined overnight in a cider/water/salt/allspice bath. The skin is already browned and now I'm just going back in every so often to reglaze the flesh now cozily protected under foil. I expected the bird to take a good 5+ hours to roast as it's an 18-pounder, but the breast temp is already 155 degrees and it has only been roasting for a little over 2 hours. I expect this is because of the brining - I did read that a brined turkey will cook faster. But still. I've lowered the oven to 325, to slow things down a bit.

The stuffing is a fairly traditional sausage, apple and raison one using fresh sourdough bread. And though I was only planning on bringing the bird and the stuffing, I realized I couldn't have a Thanksgiving dinner without some sweet potatoes, so I also prepped a sweet potatoe dish with brown sugar, pecans and cinnamon. It may not be sweet potatoe pie, but I expect President Obama would enjoy it just fine where he joining us for dinner. Oh, yum, I can't wait to get to MH/EI's place so we can start the eating!

It will be a good group of us for dinner -- 8 total. Then the missing usuals will show up for dessert. It promises to be a fun afternoon and evening and I am especially thankful that this year it is at someone else's house. :-)

Happy Thanksgiving!

DimpleWalrus Shout Out!

2009-11-20T21:55:00.000-08:00

I'm lucky to be surrounded by friends who are interesting, creative, fun and, yes, crazy. So while it's not that surprising when I get to do a shout out to one of them, it sure is special.

In the recent edition of 7X7: Insider's Guide to the Best of San Francisco, I guess it's the November/December printed edition, DimpleWalrus's 300 word love letter entry for her neighborhood, Hayes Valley, won the love letter of the month and was published. You can see the web version of the article here: http://www.7x7.com/content/e/hood-month-hayes-valley. But it would be better if you picked up a copy of the magazine - it just looks cooler to see the short and sweet essay in print, on glossy paper, surrounded by some nice neighborhood pics.

I sure am proud of that lady. Makes Bellhops all squishy and happy and cool and stuff.

Obsessive Activity Circle

2009-10-07T21:29:00.000-07:00

Reading obsessively --> knitting obsessively --> WoWing obsessively --> repeat. I'm now in the WoWing part of the circle. My elbow hurts, but I'm having fun. :-)

I start my new job Monday. Already have projects on my list, plus the task of having to transition my replacement.

And please do check out KP's blog: http://saywhatkp.blogspot.com/. She's doing it for her class, so show her some support by reading and, if you are so moved, please post a comment, too! I know she'd appreciate any comments.

A Day Without Cats PROTEST

2009-09-09T08:49:00.000-07:00

Go ahead, call me a crazy cat lady. Sticks and stones may break my bones but names will never hurt me! Besides, I revel in being called a crazy cat lady! I take pride in it! Granted, I only have 2 fluffy felines, but I consider all the beautiful fluffitudes living with friends and family as part of my own feline federation!

So, to you people over at Urlesque, and to you shamefully supporting cute lovers at Cute Overload, I PROTEST this Day Without Cats. You guise it in the form of giving cats a break, as if somehow cats need your help from shameful catsploitation. Cats don't want a break. They aren't being exploited. They believe, perhaps rightfully so, that they are the center of the universe and should always be in the forefront of everything. No, you insult them with this day, trying to hide them, pushing them into the closet, locking them in the laundry room! Shame, shame, shame.

Nuku supports this protest and happily presents his exceptionally fluffy tail and bloomers!

Agh, Knitting Frenzy!

2009-09-04T15:18:00.000-07:00

Warning: This is a ridiculously long blog entry. I take no prisoners!

Since Saturday, I have twice been admonished for failing to update my blog. In an effort to redeem myself, I shall therefore blog. First to clarify: my failure to blog is not because I have been playing WoW obsessively. In fact, you may doubt me when I say this, but I have not actually played WoW in many weeks. The reality is I needed a WoW break -- and frankly I had to catch up on my movie watching.

I had a burst of Roku/Netflix watching madness where I watched all available seasons of the BBC series, The Chef, many many movies -- some of which were simply a poor use of my time, random episodes of 30 Rock, South Park, and Couplings, and, well, other stuff too.

Then I decided to catch up on my Tivo list -- which was mainly episodes of this season's The Closer. Okay, kick ass. The Closer still retains status as one of the best shows currently on television. (Speaking of which, who the heck did I loan my Season 1 DVD collection to?) And I caught up on Top Chef (only 3 episodes so far).

Once I was back on the television side of things, one thing led to another, and I started watching some On Demand stuff. Like S2 of True Blood. I'll confess without shame to have watched all episodes twice, now. Snarfffable Survey says: 50-50 on the rating meter. There are essentially two story lines, one involving vampires and the other not. Having a preference to vampires, I prefer that story line. The other story line is just a bit over the top even for me and my fondness for supernatural curiosities. Despite that, I think I might say that S2TB is better then the first.

Lest you think I've done nothing but work on turning my brain into mush, I have also been reading a lot. On my Kindle, of course. I read all the books in the Sookie Stackhouse series (of which True Blood was based on). They were okay. The first few were very entertaining, but as the series progressed I found the author spent far too much time trying to explain pervious storylines (in case a new reader started later in the series). This was very distracting. Also, I think the author lost some of her interest and enthusiasm because at seemed at times like she was trying to fill up the pages with anything, rather than something really good. Nonetheless, I don't regret the time spent. The vampire love scenes were just perfect. Who needs women's erotica when you can just pick up one of these books and thumb to a love scene with Sookie and her vamp of the week?

I read some other stuff, too. I started re-reading the Song of Ice and Fire series by George R. R. Martin in the hopes that the last book will come out soon -- or in prep for the HBO production. Well, there are other books I could list, but suffice to say the Kindle makes it very convenient for me to read all sorts of random stuff.

So, that's a lot of TV/Movie watching and book reading. But that is not all. I have also been knitting like a fiend. I knitted a little cozy for my MacBook Air because I couldn't find a cover I liked. That then inspired me to knit a cozy for my Kindle. Of course I then had to make cozy's for the Slacker, so know he has his own set. I'm also knitting a scarf for PacoTacoMike to keep him warm out there in the windy madness of Chicago. I'm using Misty Alpaca Chunky and let me tell you, such softness! I found the very manly pattern on a knitting blog for a yarn shop out in Philly -- can't link to it yet cause I don't want PTM to see the scarf pattern before he gets his -- but that blog led me to several other patterns I am also working on -- some new scarves with lovely silk and beaded yarn and a lap blanket for the Slacker (in dark colors, of course). The yarn for the blanket is organic cotton, perfect for the Bay Area. I liked the Misty Alpaca so much that I got some for myself and am knitting another scarf for myself. When I'll ever have cause to wear such a warm scarf, I have no idea.

This here is my MacBook Air Cozy. One thing I do have to say about this was my seaming at the bottom kicked ass. I'd say very nearly perfect. I also really dig the pico edge I did after the couple of inches of seed stitch. Gives it a nice finish.

This one is the Kindle Cozy I made the Slacker. I was trying for a much different pattern, but I didn't plan out well, and this is what I ended up with. I'm not really happy with it, but the Slacker likes it, so I guess it will do for now. When I find another yarn I like I'll knit him a new one. I made myself one in this same yarn, but it's a straight stockinette stitch with just a little change towards the top edge where I did a couple of rows of seed stitch before going back to stockinette for the final inch before bind-off.

Here's Slacker's MacBook Air Cozy. The yarn I used was a much lighter weight -- really a sock yarn -- so the stitches are much finer. I really loved the variegated blue yarn and it worked up beautifully.

Here's some pics of works-in-progress...

This one is a scarf I'm making with the scrumptious beaded silk yarn noted above (I purchased several colors so I could make one for a few of the girls). Below that is a pick of the 3 other yarn colors.

This one is another scarf in the same pattern as the above but using the Misty Alpaca Chunky.

And this one is Slacker's blanket in progress. I'm using just four colors and I'm planning on 3 repeats of those colors (though the size is off from the pattern, which will require me buying 4 more skeins of yarn). I'm thinking the middle repeat will have more rows of the pattern, maybe 8 or 10 depending on how much yarn I have.

My hands have not been idle.

Amidst all the above, I've done a little bit of socializing and relaxing, but nothing exceptional.

Oh, I am changing jobs, too. I asked to transition from my position as the Director of the Project Management Office to a newly created position of Sr. Systems Analyst. I decided I didn't want to keep doing the project management stuff. I'm hoping the new position will give me a chance to get back to doing some more technical things. We'll see how that pans our over time. I'll be in the programming/dba group and my main focus is to be the go-between between our functional users and our technical team.

So, there's my update. I can only hope this will satisfy my impatient readers.

Ciao!

Kittehs! The Horror!

2009-06-30T16:50:00.000-07:00

What better way to start my vacation then with a post about KITTEHS!!!!

Really, one can only tolerate so much cuteness in one day. Despite the dastardly heat this past Saturday (88 degrees at 10:00 am up to 104.5 degrees at 5:00 pm in Sonoma) I found myself completely in thrall of these lovelies. But really, can anyone blame me? I mean, for pity's sake, their cuteness is quite demonic and therefore absolutely irresistible.

First, the duet: Samantha (the calico) and Tiburon (the tabby). Both girls, about 2 months old, rescued from the animal shelter in Petaluma.

Then some Samantha details:

Clearly she is thinking, "Yes, human, come closer so I can practice my claw-sharpening skills on your soft, fleshy, furless face. Yes, closer... closer..." (Notice the serious whiskerage.)

Samantha, being exhausted from her various skill improvements, decided she'd relax with my Kindle. She was certain that Pride and Prejudice and Zombies would be to her liking. She ended up dozing off instead, the poor tired little sweetling. (Notice shaved little belleh!)

Then there is Tiburon (aka the blood thirsty shark). This is what happens to kittehs after they've been scratched behind their ears for just a little bit. Total collapse. She stayed like this for a LONG time. In fact, I was unable to depart because of it. How could I possibly move? I might have disturbed her!

Okay, look, if you're going to get sick from the overwhelming cuteness, please take it elsewhere... (Notice the multi-colored schnozzle.)

And finally, a must have for all you Rorschach fans. What do you see there? No, please, keep it to yourself... really...

Picture Catch-Up

2009-06-19T20:51:00.000-07:00

It's been a while since I posted pictures, so here are some catch-up pictures. Hope you enjoy!

A picture of Joe with the lovely, fog-shrouded Golden Gate in the background. This was taken on the J&B day we had on his last visit to SF.

Joe and I drove down below the bridge, on the north east side. While walking out on the dock there was a big ole' seagull chilling out. I took a nice pic of the big guy just sitting there. As I went to snap another pic, he just took flight... I love this shot... look at his cute little web feet...

Some fungi I came across while talking a walk through Muir Woods with Michael and Edwin. Tasty.

A lovely yellow flower -- if you know what kind a flower it is, let me know -- seen on the same Muir Woods walk.

And saving the best for last, my folks! This is from their March trip. We went to the Japanese Tea Garden.

I Have Kindled my Reading Fire

2009-06-08T16:53:00.000-07:00

Test drive of my bro's Kindle was a success. So, he got me one as a VERY early xmas/bd present -- yes, I'm painfully spoiled.

I've already downloaded a bunch of books:
The Strain, by Chuck Hogan and Guillermo Del Toro
World War Z, by Max Brooks
Pride and Prejudice and Zombies, by Jane Austen and Seth Grahame-Smith (yes, the four Bennet sisters are quite adept at decapitating zombies -- as if there was any doubt)
The Little Stranger, by Sarah Waters
Fool Moon (Dresden Files, book 2), by Jim Butcher

I'm contemplating We Can Have Peace in the Holy Land, by Jimmy Carter, but the sample only goes up to part of the introduction, so I don't get a real sense of Carter's writing, so I'll have to wait to check out the book in the store so I can read the first few pages of the first chapter.

I also downloaded a free book Amazon was providing, Serial, by Jack Killborn and Blake Crouch. We'll see how that goes.

Oh, and an issue of the Narrative writing journal. Just to check it out.

Anyway, I'm digging it. Is it possible I'm reading faster with this device? I find that hard to believe, but who knows.

To Kindle or Not to Kindle..

2009-06-03T11:44:00.000-07:00

My friend, Walker, recently passed a Kindle commentary by Pierre Tristam along to me as I had told her I was taking my brother's Kindle for a test drive.

I loved the article and, in essence, agreed with him... the Kindle is a good supplement, but it won't replace my desire to have the physical book. I was talking to another friend about it last night and he, being somewhat of a purest and a skeptic, was opposed in principle to the Kindle. But, as I explained, I read so many books that I don't keep or, frankly, don't want to keep, why shouldn't the Kindle be a good solution? If I come across a book on the Kindle that speaks to me like any number of other books have in the past, I'll have no problem buying a hard copy and adding it to my collection. But for all those murder mysteries, spy novels, the occasional guilty pleasure of a romance novel, the random funny books I find and the multitude of fantasy novels the Kindle may prove very worthwhile.

Tristam write, "Most of all, books' physical existence reassures me." He's right. There is something about seeing those books on the shelf, knowing I can pull one down, feel it's weight in my hands, finger through the pages looking for a particular passage or quote, that somehow ensures me that all is okay with the world, even in times that often seem dire.

But boy, finding a book I'm interested in and being able to download it in seconds and be reading it in minutes... well, that's something, too!

Laziness is a Virtue

2009-05-24T22:14:00.001-07:00

It is my humble (perhaps not so) opinion that being lazy is, in fact, a virtue. Why is it that people think we should always be productive? Always doing something. Accomplishing something. Achieving something. Blah. I say, be lazy. Lounge. Recline. Nap in the middle of the day if you like.

Of course, it doesn't hurt that I'm on a little vacation. It is easy to be lazy when you have rented a little cottage amid tall redwoods. A place where you can stumble out of bed at your leisure and immediately curl up on the couch with a book until you feel productive enough to get breakfast together -- at, oh, around about 11 a.m.

Pan to just around one o'clock when you decide it might be worthwhile to take a drive somewhere, like out to Occidental to peruse the little shops. Then another leisurely drive out to the ocean via Coleman Valley road. Maybe a stop in Bodega to check out the historical location of the school house from The Birds. Then maybe a late (4:00) lunch at a tasty, tho' decidedly over-priced, restaurant on Tomales Bay. Ah, fresh oysters. Wine. Fresh cut french fries. Grilled sardines. Yum.

Pan back to the cottage for another evening of doing absolutely nothing -- not even games. Just sitting on the porch or couch reading, occasionally chatting, but mainly just being quiet. The only real noises the crackling of the fire, the occasional snorts of the pug or the periodic Michael-chuckle.

I say, laziness is a good thing and done far to infrequently. Revel in it when the opportunity arises!

Fire Fire Burning Bright

2009-05-22T21:29:00.001-07:00

Ah, the joy of a smoldering fire. Here we are up in the Russian River area in our little weekend cottage getaway. Michael shows off his fire-making prowess as we settle down for the evening.

We had a really nice drive up to Healdsburg where we walked around the square a little and then had dinner outdoors (restaurant patio). Weather is warm, tho' the night is cool enough for the fire. There were many children playing on the grass next to our table. It made Edwin and I cranky. Kids, who needs 'em!

The cottage, built in 1938, is terrible cute and quaint. Perfect for the 3 of us and The Gobi.

Tomorrow perhaps some wine tasting and a drive across the valley and the hills to Calistoga.

Birdie

2009-05-15T22:29:00.001-07:00

Oooohhhhh Lobster

2009-05-15T22:27:00.000-07:00

Yum

I'm Not Admitting Anything...

2009-04-22T21:40:00.000-07:00

... http://www.associatedcontent.com/article/833751/how_i_overcame_world_of_warcraft_addiction.html?cat=19

Do Re Mi Joymaker

2009-04-17T22:32:00.000-07:00

It's been a while since I wrote anything, so how appropriate to come back with a great item to share. Many of you may already have seen this video on You Tube, but I first came across it in an email from my Dutch Uncle and had at least one other friend ask me if I had seen it (thanks, Walker), which lead me back to Uncle Jim's email.

I can't explain why I react as I do when watching this. All I can say is it fills me with a weird and profound kind of joy and hope. I cry each time I watch it, which makes no sense. In a way, it reminds me of a quote from Goethe's The Sorrows of Young Werther, where he writes,

"Sometimes it takes hold of me--not fear, not desire, but an inner unfathomable turmoil that threatens to break the confines of my breast and choke me." (*)

Though for Werther this quote describes a darker feeling of turmoil, watching this little production makes me think of the turmoil not as something sad, but as the joy I'm suddenly filled with and as it breaks free of my breast, the choking is me trying to get my breath back after being overwhelmed with the pure joy of seeing all these people dancing to Do Re Mi. I suppose that is the beauty of art that it can suddenly inspire in you such a depth of feeling.

I hope you all get as much pleasure from watching this as I did, and continue to do.

(*) From the Signet Classic translation by Catherine Hutter, 1962, p107.

One More Reason for WoW...

2009-03-23T20:56:00.000-07:00

For some of you it is hard to understand why I enjoy playing WoW. But it isn't always just about running around killing things. Blizzard did a beautiful job with the graphics for this game. Sometimes I'll just be wandering around on a quest and I'll come across something just lovely and have to take a moment to appreciate the moment. So it was tonight, as I was trying to find my way back to an Alliance base in Azshara, where I could catch a gryphon to Tanaris. A lovely waterfall in the distance. So, I wandered up the rocks a bit for a better view and then sat down to just enjoy the falling water. I could very nearly hear the roar in the distance and I imagined how lovely it would be if I could be in that place, smelling the fresh air, feeling the cool breeze through my hair. Don't get me wrong, this doesn't replace the real thing. But in a world where we work more then we play, even a moment of peace found in an online game environment can be worth a lot.

Granted, if I was on a PC I probably would have had better graphics, but I'm happy to have my gynormous iMac.

On a separate note, today was the 2nd Annual Business & Finance / ITS Chili Cook-Off. I spent Sunday preparing my chili with as much love and experimentation as possible and ended up with what I thought was a particularly excellent batch of turkey chili. I ended up getting 3rd place again this year (2 green ladles now). A fun and tasty time was had by all and I look forward to next year's event. Here's Mr. B helping get the chili samples out -- once again patiently working with a bunch of perfectionist women.

Also today, a visit to the physical therapist. We had a two week hiatus while she was out of town, so I was a bit apprehensive about going to see her, feeling like I had slacked off a bit. But things weren't too bad. While it seems like a didn't improve much, she noted that she wasn't having to work that hard to stretch it out. She thinks we may be able to move soon to just twice a month. Tomorrow I have a check in with the orthopedic surgeon. I'm sure that will go well.

Avoid Migraine Medicine Late in the Day

2009-03-18T21:22:00.000-07:00

Okay, note to self: do not take migraine meds (in this case the basic over-the-counter Excedrin for Migraines) late in the day. My migraine is gone, but the 65mgs of caffeine -- which doesn't seem like much to me -- has me totally wired. For the past three and a half hours I have been tackling a whole host of work related tasks. I started out just planning to do some quick project updates, but then I kept going, and going, and going, like the proverbial Energizer Bunny. I have, however, been extremely productive. But I might have also added a bunch of tasks to my Toodledo list. I will not look at it any more tonight and tackle it tomorrow instead.

I've got American Idol playing in the background, while I wait with baited breath to see who will get booted. I am surprised to say that the first two folks Ryan pulled out as in the bottom three where not from my list of poor performers. It is very stressful. LOL.

My elbow continues to improve slowly. I have a two-week hiatus between PT appointments while my physical therapist is out of town. I've been off-and-on with my stretching, but I am trying to remember to stretch the arm as much as I can during the day. I hope when I see her on Monday that there will be some improvement despite my minor slacking.

Hoping to see Watchmen this weekend. Will post a review if I do.

Update: oops, just realized I took two of those Excedrins, so that's 130mgs of caffeine! According to a Yahoo Answers! response, that's more than the caffeine in two cans of Mountain Dew and just a little less then that in two cans of Jolt! Eeek and Eee Gads! I swear I'm blinking only four times a minute right now! LOL. Please let my new SleepStream iPhone app work tonight!

The Latest Victim

2009-03-10T21:29:00.000-07:00

Katja and her deadly fangs have struck again. This time, my poor Dad. Apparently Katja did not appreciate the ruckus we were making. First, she attempted to attack me. I soothed her and she seemed to have settled and we lowered our voices. But then, while she was walking along the couch's armrest, Dad did the typical and seemingly pleasurable act of petting her when, yes, out came her fangs. Normally this would be a minor nip, but the heart meds Dad is on thin his blood, plus I think his skin has thinned with age. My poor, wounded father. Luckily the house was full of medical supplied and all was taken care of with no shedding of tears, or fur for that matter.

While I blame the noise volume on Katja's nipping tendencies, I suppose I should consider the possibility that she has grown to like human flesh and that, in reality, no one is safe.

Yum

2009-03-08T23:43:00.001-07:00

Oh, the yumminess of it all!

Wine, wine and some more wine

2009-03-08T15:29:00.000-07:00

The weekend away at Russian River for Barrel Tasting weekend was lovely. We rented a place on the river from Russian River Vacation Homes called River Dream. On the whole, the place was really nice. It is much more spacious than it appears in the pictures. Kitchen was nice, deck was nice, having a gas fire made things easy. But... ah, with a rental house there is always a but... the beds were very soft. I think they were using the memory foam type mattresses, but if they were they weren't the good ones (not like SP's). Of the 3 beds, two lodgers complained. Also, the site says wifi, but we almost never had a usable signal. The biggest complaint, though, is that the site says the place sleeps 8, if you use the pull-out couch off the living room. But the couch was unusable. AS ended up sleeping on the couch without it being pulled out (it was a love seat size) and MM slept on the wicker couch in the living room. They had a tough time of it, poor things. Other than that, the place was nice and we all enjoyed the weekend there. I would consider renting the place again, but not for more then would sleep in the three bedroom and without any expectation of wifi.

Saturday was our day of tasting. I purchased gobs of wine... we hit quite a few vineyards, starting further north than we usually do: Korbel (where we picked up our tickets), Dutcher Crossing, David Coffaro, Mazzoco and Quivira. I bought several bottles at Dutcher Crossing, one at David Coffaro (I would have bought futures there, but you had to buy by the case and it was just too much), and a ton of stuff at Mazzoco (per usual). I ended up joining their club because I wanted to buy some of their Maple Reserve, but only club members could buy it, so there you go. The plus was I got to taste to reserve wines they weren't actually pouring that day, one of which goes for about $125/bottle. It was a very nice, smooth Zin, though MM turned his nose up at it. By the time we got to Quivira, I could no longer taste anything and just hung out outside with EI. In total, I think I came home with 10 bottles. Not too bad. I look forward to drinking each and every bottle I purchased. :-)

We had two nice dinners together, too. Friday night AS and I prepared dinner (simple pasta and sausages). Saturday night, MM's friend R, who had joined us for the day, cooked up some extremely tasty Chicken Karange (sp?) with rice and broccoli, finishing it off with her insanely delicious rum cake. Yum. Word. Of course, no weekend would be complete without beef, and despite all the food a big bit of tri-tip ended up on the grill and served up with breakfast this morning.

Overall, it was a very good weekend, what with it being my first trip since the fall and my first time really drinking again. I truly was missing wine.

Now I must prep for a week with the folks. Dad and Adele arrive Tuesday.

Gobalicious

2009-03-06T22:55:00.000-08:00

The Gobe snoozing will we are rambunctious. Half the group heading
into Guernville for drinks.

RR Settling

2009-03-06T18:03:00.000-08:00

Fire going. Chilling. Soon to open the first bottle of wine.

U2's New Album: No Line on the Horizon

2009-03-05T22:26:00.001-08:00

Just want to say... it kicks ASS!

Mmmmm, Fresh Brains

2009-03-05T18:10:00.000-08:00

This is Sarah's brain. Really.

New Toesies!

2009-03-01T22:24:00.000-08:00

Red like your blood. Tasty.

Cook with YOUR Heart!

2009-02-28T14:09:00.000-08:00

I was very disappointed with the outcome of Top Chef this week. First of all, the arrogance of Stefan and Hosea thinking that they only competition they had was each other -- regardless of Carla's later poor decisions -- was stomach churning. Guys get over yourselves. All you proved is what we all already know -- you have to have faith and confidence in yourself.

This is where Carla lost it. Here we have a gifted and talented woman chef who doesn't want to ruin someone in the process of achieving victory. A woman who cooks lovely and, from her progress in the show, yummy food. Who's confidence in herself progressed from the beginning all the way until the very last episode. Her she loses it and takes advice from her sous chef -- a previous LOSER -- on what to cook. Carla, honey, cook your OWN food your OWN way with your OWN heart!

But I suppose I should be relieved it was Hosea who won and not Stefan. Stefan's disrespectful brand of arrogance brings out the worst in me.

But now we have American Idol, so my reality show compulsion has a new line of focus. I do have to say that some of the 36 have been sounding pretty darn bad. I feel for them and the stress. But I had to cringe at a few of the performances. I do look forward to getting the final 12 decided.

Until next time!

Elbow Update

2009-02-22T12:48:00.000-08:00

Just wanted to give an update on the elbow. Despite the ibroprofen setback, I'm still improving. Yesterday, for the first time, I was able to bend my arm back enough to touch my thumb to my shoulder! Last time I had seen my surgeon I told him in no uncertain terms that I was determined to do that, and I know can! I look forward to the time when I can do it without having my left arm help me on the way!

Straightening the elbow is better, too. At PT last week we got it within 5 and 10 degrees of being straight! Woo Hoo!

Pronation and supination is still tough, but we make progress. Both get pretty far now. I think at one point we got supination to 75 degrees!

So, progress continues!

A Plague on My Right Side

2009-02-19T20:47:00.001-08:00

If my stomach were located on the right side of my body, then I would know for certain that there is a hex on my right side. Newest right side injury... mushed toe while stumbling into the bathroom yesterday afternoon. Luckily it looks worse then it feels.

Speaking of my tummy, my diet is exciting these days: oatmeal, bananas, apple juice, oatmeal, bread, oatmeal, white meat poultry, oh, and more oatmeal. Yum.

To Hell, To Hell

2009-02-17T16:16:00.000-08:00

Is there no justice in my world? Just when I get off the pain meds - no vicodin since Saturday - I get hit with a return of the acid reflux, thanks to the awesome ibroprofen I've been taking for my arm. Two nights of misery and sleeplessness. I just want to be normal again. Sigh. Whimper. Whine. Complain. I have until March 6 to recuperate from this, cause that is barrel tasting weekend and I will NOT be prevented from tasting!

On a pleasant note... kitties in a basket!!!!

WoW Valentine's Celebrations

2009-02-14T00:45:00.000-08:00

My new Blood Elf Warlock, Sorean, has been grinding away at the Valentine's Day activities. Today she acquired several achievements, including completing the special quest chain which led her into the dangerous foothills above Hillsbrad. Luckily she has many lives because otherwise, well, it wouldn't have been pretty. Instead, she ended up just lovely in her new sexy blue party dress. She also has one in black because you never know where your sweet green Orc might be taking you.

While you may not be able to see it in this pic, she's also sporting some pink polish on her toes!

What's a Girl to do?

2009-02-13T14:29:00.001-08:00

A girl cannot be held responsible when in a shop surrounded by cuteness and lovliness...

On my way home from work this afternoon I stopped over at Q for some mac and cheese and tots for take-out. While waiting for the food to be prepared I went across the street to a visit to Park Life. These are the items I just felt I couldn't do without...

Chicken tape dispenser... I mean, how could I not get that for my desk?
Wood stapler... a girl's got to think about the environment sometime.
Earrings... perhaps far too extravagant, but hand tooled, all gold, so, that's okay, right?
Tokidoki cuteness... no justification is necessary.
And an egg... but not just any egg... I won't provide any more details because this is actually a gift for Walker... of course, now as soon as she reads this she's going to be, like, why did Snarfff get me an egg... muwhahahaha, my evil plan is working!

And just in case that Tokidoki cuteness needs a closer look... meow, pfftttt!

All Gone

2009-02-12T20:42:00.001-08:00

No more sushi here...

In the Snarfffable T.V. News...

2009-02-11T23:00:00.000-08:00

Every once in a while a t.v. commercial comes along that just makes me giggle, say to friends, "hey, did you catch that commercial for...", and has me hitting the back button when skipping through a Tivo recording. It has been quite a while since I've seen such a commercial, but it's here. It seems that this particular one first aired during the Superbowl... I must have been chatting with the girls when it aired cause I'm sure I would have remembered it...

"Mmmm, mushy mush..." Where's my melon baller? Go Hulu.

On another t.v. related note, I'm in reality t.v. overload. A.I. has been going along just dandy. Today they selected the 36 contestants who will start the public voting part of the competition. I think it's a good group of interesting and talented performers. We've got the crazy ones (split personalities, drama queens) and the heart wrenchers, the ones you love to hate and the ones you just love cause they are just so freakin' cute... I'm so ready to vote! But why is it that the one truly irritating and annoying one comes from SF? Well, she may be a weirdo, but she does have a great voice, so I say, bring it Tatianna!

Then there's Top Chef. Down to the final 4 tonight and I'm happy to say my favs made it... Karla, the lovely, long, lean Southern lady who reminds me of an graceful crane and who makes beautiful and simple food and Stefan, who I don't really like cause he's just an arrogant ass, but whose food looks very good, very tasty and creative and I wouldn't mind chowin' down on some of those little bites. Meh to the other two. They don't impress me much. But during the show Fabio did totally make me laugh when, after messing up his finger and being asked if he wants to go to the hospital says, "Hospital? I'll chop it off and sear it on the flat top so it doesn't bleed any more and tomorrow I'll deal with nine fingers." No wimpiness there... but I will say with complete certainty that if he was racing through the kitchen, slipped and dislocated his elbow he wouldn't be saying the same thing... :-)

The End of another Weekend

2009-02-08T18:37:00.000-08:00

Well, here it is, Sunday evening already. Why is it weekends always go by so quickly? Is it because we are so happy that we are blissfully unaware of the time passing by, unlike while at work where we just can't wait to get out and watch the clock far too closely? Regardless, it's back to work tomorrow and the hopes for a quick passing.

The weekend was nice. Drove down to SJ to visit the bro and got to see SP and the Gabeish, too. Helped out the economy by doing some shopping at Fry's, though I was a bit irked tonight when I opened up my new DVD of The Pelican Brief only to discover it was damaged. Instead, I'm watching Raider's of the Lost Ark.

Today I crawled out of bed late for my brunch date with Walker... thankfully she is patient with me :-) We went to Paul K, which I have written about before, if you recall. Overall I was very pleased with our food. I had brioche french toast with blueberry butter and maple syrup. YUM! Walker had poached eggs with smoked sturgeon (they were out of lox), served over a biscuit and then topped with hollandaise sauce. Another tasty dish, though the sauce was a tiny bit too lemony. Consistency was nice, however, and the swapping of the english muffin with the biscuit was a nice touch. We shared some maple bacon -- well, what can I say about bacon? YUM! We also shared a trio of sorbet -- blackberry, white peach and raspberry, I think. All tasty. And of course we enjoyed a lively chat and each other's company. We then took a little walk, stopped at the local bookshop where I picked up Shalimar the Clown, by Salman Rushdie (haven't read him before so we shall see) and ended up back to her place to watch A Secret Life of Bees, which I liked a lot, though it did make me cry.

This brings me to a quick update to my blog structure... I have never successfully kept my lists for currently reading, recently read, recently watched updated, so I decided to take them out and have added one list for "worth reading/watching." I'll only put things worth mentioning there.

Hope all of you are doing well!

Khoma-licious

2009-02-07T13:46:00.000-08:00

Khoma reallocating Slacker's shoulder for his own feline purpose.

Drinks Out

2009-02-06T17:21:00.000-08:00

Went out after work for drinks with some work colleagues. Location: Poleng Lounge. I ordered a Hylantree, some froofie cocktail concoction with the following ingredients: muddled lime, nigori sake, elder- flower liquor, and a kiss of apple. A kiss of apple? The bartender was pretty cute, so I guess that's okay. Only downfall to the drink -- it was garnished with a cucumber. Who garnishes a fruity drink with cucumber? I could have done without the cuc -- and I love cucs -- but come on...

Michael and Bill

Friday Acheivement

2009-02-06T12:01:00.001-08:00

Woo Hoo!!! I tied my shoes all by myself today! Now if only I could collect change without dropping it all! But still... to be able to tie my shoes, well, that's just great progress.

Missing Plate Setting?

2009-02-01T18:34:00.000-08:00

Monster is certain Suie forgot to set a place for him...

There are no words...

2009-02-01T18:02:00.001-08:00

Foot Massage

2009-02-01T18:00:00.000-08:00

Monster gives Niyazi a foot massage.

Mmmm, Pretty & Tasty

2009-01-31T20:14:00.001-08:00

Yum chocolate from fancy chocolatier, Christopher Elbow. The plain looking one was Bourbon and something... the one with the decoration was called "Persian" and had some nice spices in with the chocolate. I can still taste that one on my tongue. I'm saving the bar of dark chocolate with almonds for a desperate moment. :-)

Who U Calling a Bee-Atch?

2009-01-31T20:09:00.001-08:00

Katja could care less! But come on, how could such cute softness be anything but?

Helpful Keiko

2009-01-31T20:08:00.001-08:00

Keiko helping out while I do my PT.

A Lovely Day Out

2009-01-31T18:31:00.000-08:00

I had a lovely afternoon out today. Originally the plan was to take in a movie with Kathleen but I just couldn't get into the grove of any of the movies listed. I thought, briefly, of just staying home and chilling on the couch, but I really wanted to see Kathleen, and that was definitely the right path to take. First, it was a lovely day in the city; a perfect temperature and clear blue skies. I picked K up and we took the car to be washed -- boy did my little Honda need a wash: I confess, I hadn't had it washed since my trip to Montana in September! Then we decided to go have lunch. I wasn't sure where to go, but I drove down towards Hayes Valley and, much to my amazement, found a parking spot totally by chance. I figured that was kismet. We walked along Hayes and went into the shops. Lots of lovely things but nothing really worth the money. I called Walker and we met up at Absinthe for mid-afternoon lunch. It was my first time there and it was just dandy. I had a great ham and cheese sandwich and for dessert, yum, chocolate pot de créme. Take me to paradise!

Oh, and gosh yes, I did do a bit of shopping while in those shops. Purchases: a cute little top for the little Gina-girl, a bright grass green umbrella just in time for rain later this week, a tote bag at 70% off from my favorite travel shop, Flight 001, oh, and some gourmet chocolates.

I'm home now and ready for a quiet evening. I played WoW for the first time in ages last night, so I may give it a go again tonight. Playing did make me pretty stiff, so if I play again I have to make sure to stretch my arm a few times.

Tomorrow it's off to the Humphries' household for the Super Bowl. It will be the usual crowd and I am looking forward to it. While I know nothing about football, nor do I care much for it, I'm going to root for the Steelers. They've got a tough sounding name.

Slowly but surely

2009-01-30T21:49:00.001-08:00

I'll write more later this weekend but thought I'd throw this pic up that I just took while doing my nightly PT. No 90 degrees but it ain't shabby. At therapy we managed to get supination to 65 degrees! Still having quite a bit of pain but the meds keep it at bay.

Later: working hard on my PT, but frustrated because my wrist still hurts and is now starting to impede my supination progress. I'll discuss it with Dr. J when I see him Monday morning at the god awful hour of 8:30. Of course they schedule a follow up at 8:30 a.m. when I'm unconscious and unable to protest! I have no idea how I'll manage to get up. I can barely drag myself out of bed by 9:30 these days. Even when I go to bed early I can't seem to get up. Very frustrating, but I keep trying... have to get ready to go back to work full-time!

Company is always appreciated

2009-01-25T11:55:00.001-08:00

Katja keeps me company - and warm, too - while I do my time in the rack.

Note Keiko' Experssion

2009-01-24T15:36:00.001-08:00

... Complete lack of response to my exclamations of "Disobedience!".
She', like, "What?"

Master of Torture

2009-01-24T12:57:00.000-08:00

I have come to the realization that orthopedic surgeons would make perfect Masters of Torture. Just think about it. They know all the bones of the body and how they relate to muscles, tendons and nerves. They have no problem messing around with the bones. They do it all the time, just usually when the patient is under anesthesia. Sure, I know that our new most awesome of presidents is, thankfully, working to close Guantanamo (and hopefully make more aggressive moves against the institutionalized use of torture expanded under W.), but just in case, we should keep these orthopedic surgeons in mind.

But perhaps I'm being a bit harsh. After all, when Dr. J tortured me yesterday I was soundly asleep and blissfully unaware of the pain he was inflicting upon my poor elbow. If I had been awake I am certain my screams would have been heard all the way to New Jersey and poor Dr. J would have been covered in bruises inflicted by my good arm and probably my flailing legs as well. When I woke up in the recovery unit (I was only under for about 30 minutes) my arm was a flaming mass of pain. One look at the nurse and he knew! He asks, "scale of 1 to 10?" No hesitation on my part, "7." I had to keep it in perspective with the actual dislocation which will forever be my measure for "10." It took several doses of morphine and some sort of anti-inflammatory before the pain was tolerable. I am currently having no hesitation in taking 2 vicodins (prescription says take 1 to 2 as needed for pain). Even now, the day after, my arm still hurts a lot. It sort of feels like someone grabbed me and flung me around while holding a vise-like grip on my wrist. Add to that my overwhelming anxiety about going back to the hospital and under anesthesia again, well, yesterday just was not one of my better days.

All was not in vain, however. This morning I went to do a "gentle" rendition of my physical therapy exercises (per my therapist's recommendation) and there was noticeable improvement in flexation (straightening of the arm) and supination (turning the wrist outward so palm faces up). I can definitely straighten my arm more then I could yesterday. And supination... well, for those of you who have seen how much I was able to turn my wrist outwards will be happy to see the improvement. For those who haven't, before and after pics...

Before... on my own power, approximately that much...

Now, on my own power, this much... and I can do more in the rack device I'm using to improve supination. In fact, I was able to move the rack thing's dial out another notch.

I wonder where all that broken up scar tissue goes. Does it float around in my arm like a whole lot of flotsam and jetsam or does it just sort of disappear slowly? Hmm, there could be some sort of parallel to life in that statement...

So, I suppose I should be glad I listened to Dr. J. I know the pain will fade and if I keep up the PT work the benefits should speak for themselves...

Oh, and did I mention how much my freakin arm hurts? LOL.

OMG WTF JHM

2009-01-20T22:21:00.001-08:00

Oh my gods what the fudge Jason has Michael!!!!

Yum Kale Soup

2009-01-19T19:29:00.000-08:00

Managed 45 minutes on the rack today for the first time. Might have over done as the arm has been unusually achy today.

The day started out lazy as I went to bed late and therefor slept late. But I had to get to PT today so I showered, tortured myself, putzed around on the Mac (messed a bit with Facebook) and then headed to the PT appt. I managed 10 degrees supination today finally, which is a big deal. Hopefully it won't take as long to get to 15 as it did to get to 10.

I then took a good walk over to the Walrus Arms for dinner. Cheryl made her lovely and tasty Kale soup (pictured below) and we will, shortly, have fruity turnovers for dessert.

One more day before my return to work. I do feel a bit anxious about going back, even though I am sure I'll be fine.

Update:
Walrus Arms Review
Quality of Service: 4 stars
Quality of Food: 4 stars
Quality of Liquor: unable to assess, will require future visit

Torture Hat Complete

2009-01-18T13:22:00.000-08:00

Finished my therapy hat last night. When I started the hat I could only manage a few stitches at a time, but it improved over time. By the time I finished I could manage knitting for maybe 5 minutes at a time. Next attempt will be socks.

The hat design itself started out as a simple seed stitch pattern but it looked a bit boring so I added a ridge just by doing a few rows of purl and then moved into a straight stockinette. I knitted an inch or so around before starting to reduce. When I finally got to the end I wasn't sure how to finish it off and ended up doing several inches of I-cord and then ending it off with a little leaf made with simple increases and decreases. I figure if it doesn't look good on a head it will make a nice tea cosy.

Ouch!

2009-01-15T13:03:00.000-08:00

My arm in the supination device.

Blogger Slackness

2009-01-15T12:00:00.001-08:00

It's been a while since I blogged so I will try to update a bunch of things today.

Sunday I had a house full of afternoon guests. My slacker bro came up to hang with me and then SP, Gabish and Joe came up as well. We chilled out, ate a lot of Chinese food, and then everyone went home :-) Expect me... I was already home, duh!

Monday, Joe (who was visiting from Texas), called me, as agreed, at 10:00 a.m. to plan some time sight seeing before he had to fly home the next day. SP had been sick with some awful virus so Joe ended up spending most of his vacation (plus the extra week) taking care of her. Much to my surprise, not only did he call me at 10:00, but he was already outside the apt! Talk about ready for the day. Being that I had, uh, just woken up when he called, I wasn't quite ready yet. But Joe's a patient guy. He came in, had some tea with me, and we chatted while I did my morning PT exercises. Then off we went for a drive around the city. We stopped at the Palace of Fine Arts first. It's undergoing a lot of construction, so we couldn't walk all the way around the pond, but that is a worthy sacrifice since the place was in dire need of repairs! We then drove down the crookedest street (Lombard) and went up to Coit Tower, drove through North Beach, along the Embarcadero and then over and around the city via 280 to Glen Park and up to Twin Peaks. It was a beautiful day, so the views every where were awesome. Then we had cheesesteaks for lunch and Joe took me to PT. All in all, a good day, though too short... I hope he'll have more time to do some serious sight seeing when he is back next time!

Tuesday Mr. Perry came up and we had lunch and got mani and pedis (it was Mr. Perry's first such indulgence and he seemed to enjoy it much) and then I got some sock yarn at Alteier. Yes, I'm going to give socks a try after I finish this little hat I'm working on. I found an online sock tutorial I'm going to give a try.

Wednesday I was a slug until 5:00 when Major's called and asked if I wanted to go to Stonestown with him. He had Abs with him so the three of us had a nice evening together. It was good to get dressed and out of the house! I don't like being a slug for so long. When I got home I then went next door to Amy's and we watched the second night of American Idol. Fun!

Today I had PT and my appointment with the chic from the Dynasplint company for my fitting. The supination device is quite the contraption. Let's hope it helps!

Now I'm just home chilling. Apartment is nice and clean thanks to Monica's bi-weekly visit this morning -- nothing like walking into a clean smelling and looking apartment.