In early 2009, I went through and made almost ten years of posts friends-only. There was nothing wrong, I'd just begun seeing my Livejournal as a more personal journal for friends. I make a few public posts, but the vast majority are behind the friends-only filter. That means, if you want to read, you'll have to have an LJ account and comment here to be added to the list. Sorry for the inconvenience!
Where to find me:
My public blog: www.pluvio.us
My food/cooking blog: www.grassdirtcorn.com
I’m loving this story called Wikihistory, by Desmond Warzel. It’s a hilarious and clever tale, told entirely through posts on a forum called, “International Association of Time Travelers”.
It’s also short, so go enjoy it now!
originally at pluvio.us, comment here or there
My friend Sonja was recently driving down I90, stopped at a rest stop, and overheard a hilarious conversation, which she graciously allowed me to share:
Stopped at the rest area I overheard a conversation between a dad and
his 14ish old son. The son was whining that his dad didn’t let him
bring his computer and how he wouldn’t be able to play WoW and his
guild had a raid plan and how they really needed him to succeed. (In
a very whiny voice)The dad responded with “we’re going to introduce you to a whole new
world – the world of family. ”The kid comes back with , in a super whiny voice, “but everyone will
level up WITHOUT me. “
We got a great laugh out of that. I feel for the kid and the parents.
The kids that have it the best are the ones whose parents play too. Not because they get to play more, but because they aren’t hassled about when they do play, their playtime is supervised, they learn how to behave, and they see it modeled how you can play an MMORPG and still lead a normal life. With, you know, a world of family.
originally at pluvio.us, comment here or there
I know at least a dozen people who read this blog either here or at its mirror at Livejournal, who would probably LOVE to have this t-shirt. I have it, and it is indeed a great shirt.
A quick plug for Threadless: I’ve been buying their shirts for myself, friends, and family, for the last three or four years, and they are consistently high quality and wear very well. They also get a lot of positive attention, and it’s fun when you run into someone wearing a design you recognize and you ask them, “Threadless?”, and they say, “Yeah!”, and then you spend ten minutes verbally comparing your t-shirt collection. GOOD TIMES.
WARNING: Like tattoos (says the girl planning her left-arm sleeve right now)….once you have one Threadless tee, it’s hard not to keep buying them…..
originally at pluvio.us, comment here or there
Please go here:
http://www.livestrongaction.org/dedicati
…and read the page I made for my Grandpa, and then sign the World Cancer Declaration to pressure leaders to fight to do more to cure cancer. Over half a million people will die of cancer this year, and there still isn’t enough research. The Lance Armstrong Foundation supports funding for all cancers, not just one. Lance has been promised $30,000 for this effort by a donor if he can collect 30,000 signatures. Make yours one of them!
originally at pluvio.us, comment here or there
After an exceedingly productive day, Greg came down and told me, “Go rest for a little while.” Which of course means the first thing I think to do is sit down at my desk, with its mounds of paperwork and half-done projects. SUPER RESTFUL.
I started pawing through my Netflix account to see what we had coming, and I found out that you could get the original Beverly Hills 90210 on dvd. Not only that, you could WATCH IT INSTANTLY. Goodbye paperwork, hello nostalgia.
I didn’t even have to get through the opening credits to find myself entertained. While the theme song plays, we’re treated to scenes of students arriving at the school, complete with dozens of shots of BMWs (it’s like they’re trying to make a point), and of course, this example of cutting edge portable computing in 1990:
I’m pretty sure that laptop is BIGGER THAN ANY LAP. My Mom had a sewing machine that folded up into a case smaller than this. Greg’s first comment was, “I had one of those!”, but then he added that his was actually a lot bigger. “More suitcase-shaped.” Microsoft had given it to him as a work computer. In 1992.
What I especially love is that I took the screenshot with my new 3G iPhone, which I then instantly emailed to my Flickr account. My, how things have changed since 1990.
originally at pluvio.us, comment here or there
Greg found this t-shirt while surfing tonight. “I don’t really like the graphic, but the tagline is great,” he said.
REDUCE, REUSE, REANIMATE
I’ve been reading the first few Anita Blake novels lately, and this cracked me up. Anita definitely needs this shirt.
originally at pluvio.us, comment here or there
While Greg and I were driving to an errand this morning, he tells me he hasn’t had any breakfast.
“You should know,” I point out, “that obesity rates are 76% higher among people who don’t eat a good breakfast.”
“Did you know that 84% of statistics are made up entirely on the spot?”
“Did you know that 43% of people who know that joke are really tired of hearing it?”
“Only 43%?”
“Yeah, but they’re REALLY tired of it.”
originally at pluvio.us, comment here or there
LEVEL 80 BABY! | Nevei on Cenarius
I finally hit level 80 tonight, significant because I’ve been playing World of Warcraft for over four years (since the game started), but I’ve been soooo slow leveling up my druid (having two kids will do that).
The joke has been on me twice over – when I finally hit level 60, within a month the cap was changed to 70 with the new Outlands expansion. When I finally hit 70, within a week the cap was changed to 80 with Lich King. *headdesk*
Greg, Jason, Liz, and some very helpful and other wonderful guild members helped me get here, and HERE I AM! I also managed to get my first title, Flame Warden (and a pet Spirit of Summer!), so it’s just doubly triply freaky awesome cool!
I really never thought I’d ever be a gaming geek, especially an MMORPG. When Greg used to play Doom, just watching his screen made me seasick. But I have him to thank for this; THANKS BABE! I had so much fun today! And now I’m finally one of the big kids!
Now to get me geared up for raids…..WOO HOO! Except now I’m going to bed.
originally at pluvio.us, comment here or there
…..a word which a lot of people use when they’re going to talk about something that might bring up traumatic memories for someone else. I was thinking about how some topics are “triggering” for me, but not in the sense that I have to turn away or can’t read. Rather, that I have to not comment, or at least think really hard before I do, because my feelings are so volatile that I’m liable to turn shrill and offend someone I care about.
Driving home today, I was idly making a mental list of these topics:
Homebirth. Specifically, the idea that hospitals are bad and homebirths are by default “natural” and “good”. I believed this at one point, and obviously, my son almost paid for my beliefs with his life. I don’t mind women giving birth at home, but I’d rather not talk about it; don’t ask me to comment on their choice, unless you actually want to see foam come out of my mouth. I admit, it’s a neat trick.
That women who bottle-feed are poisoning their babies. If you think that way, I’d advise you not to sit near me at a party and open your mouth. You’ll find yourself walking away without your teeth.
Guns. Ohhhhh, don’t get me started. For every story about a guy who killed a burglar (well thank God the stereo is still here!) I can find a dozen about a kid who took his parents’ gun and shot a hole through the wall, or his sister, or himself; or the hunters who shoot and kill hikers every year. I keep waiting for a convincing pro-gun argument, and I’ve yet to get one.
Historically thin women who worry incessantly about getting fat (not an occasional worry, but an obsessive terror of TEH FAT). The elephant in the room (so to speak) always feels like: what must you think of me? I’m about 30-40 pounds over my “ideal” weight. Do I disgust you?
Motorcycles. OOOOHHHHHHHHHH. Yeah. No. Just no. I took an EMT class, and the instructor was a 30-year veteran paramedic for the city of Seattle. His descriptions of motorcycle accidents were enough to turn me off pasta and marinara for life. He brazenly looked out at our classroom full of 19-year-old guys and said that if any of them rode a motorcycle, they were stupid, and that was all there was to it. Do you know what a human brain looks like, spread like a slick grey stripe down I90? He does. That brain belonged to someone, someone who probably had a family, had a job, people who loved and depended on them. I had to stop reading Livejournal for a few weeks, when someone I didn’t know (but who was dearly beloved by many of my friends) died after a motorcycle accident, and within that same week, another friend got into a motorcycle accident and actually broke his partner’s arm. It was one of those things where I had to just get up, put the laptop down, and go scream futilely into a pillow, because it is just not my place to tell anybody what to do, but watching them do it was literally making me pop an antacid every time I sat down to read. I wish I could just not hear about people I care about on their motorcycles – I wish there was a filter where I could tune it out. I worry about them too much.
That gays and lesbians shouldn’t be allowed to marry. I think they should. I think it’s ridiculous they can’t, and I’m almost ashamed to be married when my loved ones can’t in the same way. You want to know the funny part? The best conversation I ever had about this was with my Mom, a conservative person, whose religious beliefs shape her views on this. She and I don’t see precisely eye to eye on this, but we’re able to talk about it incredibly respectfully, and we’re both interested in the other person’s opinion. I find with people I don’t know, like those people at rallies holding up signs about “Family Values”, that I’m much less tolerant, which is a fault of my own character that I’m not proud of. It’s not like I’m going to stand there holding up a sign on the other side of the line that reads, “Oh yeah? Well my family values you not being a jerk, BUT TOO BAD FOR US,” but as I drive by….I’m probably fantasizing about it.
This was the list I came up with in the few minutes home from the store. I’m sure there are other things. I know we all have topics like this, things we try to talk reasonably about but that in our heart of hearts we just wish we could change, sweepingly, across the board, with our magic wands: I wish all hospitals could treat birth like a natural event and not like an illness so that women could birth in an emotionally supportive environment that was also safe, rather than feel like they had to leave safety behind completely; I wish women would get over the effing boob issue already and stop beating on mothers who for whatever reason, choose to use an alternative; I wish nobody felt like they needed to own a gun, let alone felt like everyone should own one; I wish thin women would just be grateful for what they have; I wish that everyone wanting a motorcycle had to talk to a paramedic and were required to provide both an up to date will and a positive organ donation status before they were licensed; and I wish that people would just stay the hell out of other people’s business, and recognize that love and commitment doesn’t require a penis and a vagina.
There isn’t a magic wand though, is there? There’s just all of us, all of us imperfect and occasionally angry people who have to all live in the world together. I think it’s useful to take a look at what triggers us, because it means we’re less likely to get taken by surprise, we’re less likely to stick our foot in our mouths around someone whose opinion we may not share but whose character and worth as a person we think very highly of. It’s important to include that part when talking about subjects close to the heart with people we care about. As precious as your feelings are to you, they’re just that precious to someone else. We hold tight to different sides of the same issues. We should acknowledge our strong feelings, but still try to loosen their grip once in awhile.
originally at pluvio.us, comment here or there
After lunch today, the guys got on their laptops to catch up on some World of Warcraft, but the kids needed cuddles. Miles sat with Daddy, and fell asleep (later he switched to this hilarious position):
While Beth found Jason and demanded to sit in his lap, quickly crashing herself:
SO. CUTE. I love lazy weekends, especially when they result in adorable napping moments like this.
I tried to upload a short movie of Beth snoring, but Flickr wouldn’t accept the upload from my iPhone. I guess it’s time for some technical support.
originally at pluvio.us, comment here or there
Classified under “best memories ever” in my future scrapbook:
Beth and I were playing Princess today. We got dressed up in fancy clothes (she picked mine out), and then we twirled around the house on dancing feet, pointing our toes like ballerinas, and calling each other “Milady”, and “My sweetness”. She told me a story about how a witch turned her prince into an evil King. I told her a story about how a wizard turned my prince into Sir Oliver Reginald Kirkpatrick (our dog). She looked at him with surprise, her big eyes getting bigger.
We’d put two pillows on the floor, our “royal cushions for our tushions”, and I started to get so sleepy I told Beth I was going to take a royal nap, and shut my eyes for a minute. She said a Princess needed a blanket, and covered me in my turtle quilt. Then she grabbed another quilt for herself, and laid down next to me.
The next thing I knew, I was waking up, a little confused. Had I just fallen asleep? I guess I really was tired.
I suddenly realized I had something in my hand. Beth’s fist was curled into my outstretched palm. I had a flashback to her babyhood, when she loved holding hands, loved rolling her fingers into a fist and pressing her whole little hand into one of our hands, and us wrapping it up. I looked up, and she was completely asleep. Had she grabbed my hand before she drifted off? Or while she was sleeping?
I sat up, and she moved, and her hand went away. But I was still smiling. I grabbed my iPhone off the end table, and took this photo so I could remember what she looked like when I opened my eyes.
originally at pluvio.us, comment here or there
I haven’t written about it on this particular blog as yet, but for the last seven or so years, I’ve dealt on and off with a severe anxiety disorder. Specifically three different disorders, all rolled into one person: Generalized Anxiety Disorder, Panic Disorder, and Agoraphobia. I like to call it my cocktail of crazy. Or my own personal can of mixed nuts.
While I’m sure at some point I’ll get into writing about meds and treatments and all the other fun that goes along with this condition, for the moment I’m going to use this space to highlight my current tinkering project with my brain chemistry: I’ve decided to try an elimination diet. I’m going to cut out dairy, sugar, wheat, soy, caffeine, and chocolate for a period of time as yet to be determined (at least a month, possibly two). Then I’ll add things back one one at a time, to see if it makes a significant impact on my mental and physical health.
The important thing to know, here, is that I’m a sugar addict. And I’ve just gone 13 hours and 22 minutes without any sugar at all. Eating sugar to me is like breathing, and right now I feel like someone just threw me out an airlock into space. Except not as gross. But just as grouchy.
If you feel like following along, you can read my daily updates on my food blog. Otherwise, be aware that my posts here may be a bit….uh…..well….SUGAR FREE for awhile. In perhaps every sense of the phrase.
originally at pluvio.us, comment here or there
Greg is reading a book on his Kindle (my Dad’s Day gift to him), and eating a pecan cinnamon roll. The kids are at Sunday School with my parents (who kept them all night, so we could sleep in).
A quiet house, a quiet man, a quiet pastry. Happy Father’s Day, babe!
originally at pluvio.us, comment here or there
One of the bloggers I read went to a quilt show and posted this amazing photo that she took:
As the title says, it’s called “Screecher”, by quilter/fabric genius Grace Errea. I could stare at it for HOURS and not get bored. Which I guess makes me a quilt geek, or an art geek, or some kind of geek, I mean HOW DO YOU EVEN DO SOMETHING LIKE THIS, I can’t even think how you’d begin……sorry, I’d keep talking but my jaw is still on the floor…….
originally at pluvio.us, comment here or there
We went to the Farmer’s Market today, bringing Oliver along in an effort to get him better socialized. We thought he’d be encountering the usual mix of humans, children, strollers, food smells, and the occasional other dog. Instead, by virtue our failure to look at a calendar, he was greeted with Dachshunds on Parade, a yearly event in Ellensburg where everyone in town who owns a dachshund (I’m guessing this is at least 72% of residents, based on very informal data collection), comes downtown and shows off their wiener.
Oliver, in true Ollie/Corgi fashion, was FREAKING OUT. He pulled so hard on his leash I thought his head was going to pop off. I had my treat bag and clicker at the ready, and I’d stop every so often and ask him to sit, then give him one of the delicious salmon treats that Jason brought for him (he spoils the dog worse than Greg and I do). This helped him calm down a little bit, but it was still way too much stimulation.
We picked up our eggs from Tritons Farm, and then walked down to the pet store, where we picked up a nice purple harness to replace his collar for walks like this one. He didn’t like getting it on, but once it was fitted, he visibly relaxed.
On the way home, in the car, I realized too late that it would have been a perfect opportunity to test the new iPhone’s video capabilities, but hey, what can you do? Park and go back in, hauling your two kids and your hyperventilating corgi with you? No way, dude. I just took a quick movie in the car, and then uploaded it to Flickr in seconds. Wow. Technology is grand. Now if only I knew what the heck the point of the word game was that Miles was trying to get Beth to play…..
originally at pluvio.us, comment here or there
My beautiful wonderful mom, on the phone, Greg coming to where I’m still laying there under the covers, and and putting the phone in my hand, me pressing the phone to my ear, and her voice telling me, “The test came back negative. They still don’t know what it is, why the veins are bigger, but it’s not congestive heart failure. It’s definitely not congestive heart failure.”
And a part of me will be soaring today!
Thank you for all the prayers, and well wishes, and hope!
originally at pluvio.us, comment here or there
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