tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-48324776166521669662024-03-12T21:37:14.633-04:00kentucky in maineUnknownnoreply@blogger.comBlogger106125tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4832477616652166966.post-63121457617627103342009-11-14T10:33:00.005-05:002009-11-14T12:09:23.114-05:00Don't You Want My TeethSalt-encrusted skin, tangled hair, sore legs, soaked clothes, broken necklace: a great dance night. Shawn Saindon plays a great mix of 80's and modern stuff (from the Human League to M.I.A.) <br /><br />Maybe the world didn't need a close-up of this guy's teeth. Great song, though. <br />http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=uPudE8nDog0<br /><br /><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="http://www.destroyrockandroll.com/wp-content/uploads/2009/07/Human_League_Group_Photo.jpg"><img style="display:block; margin:0px auto 10px; text-align:center;cursor:pointer; cursor:hand;width: 560px; height: 497px;" src="http://www.destroyrockandroll.com/wp-content/uploads/2009/07/Human_League_Group_Photo.jpg" border="0" alt="" /></a><a href="http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=uPudE8nDog0"></a>Unknownnoreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4832477616652166966.post-42585655422126889462009-08-14T18:19:00.000-04:002009-08-14T18:21:13.050-04:00and then i remembered i wasn't in PortlandI saw what I thought was the most hilarious bumper sticker in Bath the other day: "Thank you, George Bush, for protecting our country."<br /><br />Oh.Unknownnoreply@blogger.com2tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4832477616652166966.post-47899963333482632072009-08-14T17:02:00.009-04:002009-08-21T11:13:56.985-04:00Vacation plans fo Vacationland<a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="http://2.bp.blogspot.com/_PyUAj8Q4jhM/SoXVv0GjVdI/AAAAAAAAAGo/fIcrBoT9Y_0/s1600-h/cover.jpg"><img style="display:block; margin:0px auto 10px; text-align:center;cursor:pointer; cursor:hand;width: 320px; height: 202px;" src="http://2.bp.blogspot.com/_PyUAj8Q4jhM/SoXVv0GjVdI/AAAAAAAAAGo/fIcrBoT9Y_0/s320/cover.jpg" border="0" alt=""id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5369933148125877714" /></a><br /><br /><br />Things I plan to do next week:<br />-be a beach bum <span style="font-style:italic;">DONE</span><br />-buy some pretty lingerie <span style="font-style:italic;">DONE</span><br />-go to Old Orchard beach or Canobie Lake and ride the rides <span style="font-style:italic;">SCHEDULED</span><br />-get a new cowgirl hat<br />-go camping<br />-swim in a lake or river <span style="font-style:italic;">DONE</span><br />-loiter at Arabica and the Hilltop<br />-ride my bike all over the place <span style="font-style:italic;">ON-GOING</span><br />-play some guitar<br />-<a href="http://www.flickr.com/photos/photos-by-jondonnell/2927047948/in/set-72157600276709677/">work in my garden</a> <span style="font-style:italic;"> DONE</span><br />-throw a baseball<br />-play lawn games<br />-hike a mountain <span style="font-style:italic;">DONE</span><br />-look for gems<br />-get a fabulous haircut from Kate at Head Games<br />-<a href="http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=v1SW-pl2gYs&feature=related">watch barnacles eat</a><br />-search for starfish<br />-nap in a meadow<br />-<a href="http://books.google.com/books?id=Woywyw8LlcgC&dq=the+botany+of+desire&printsec=frontcover&source=bn&hl=en&ei=0sqGSq6CONeJtge9itjnDA&sa=X&oi=book_result&ct=result&resnum=4#v=onepage&q=&f=false">finish my book</a><br />-eat pancakes <span style="font-style:italic;">DONE</span><br />-have a campfire and s'mores<br />-make a ridiculously amazing meal <span style="font-style:italic;">DONE</span><br />-start a new craft project<br />-bake a pie <span style="font-style:italic;"> PLANNED</span><br />-drink lots of beer and vacationy-drinks, too <span style="font-style:italic;">ON-GOING</span><br /><br />Who's in?Unknownnoreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4832477616652166966.post-53334789483297462172009-05-07T20:55:00.002-04:002009-05-07T20:58:02.616-04:00Portland, how I love youTwo best things I've seen lately:<br /><br />1. Tin foil guy in a suit, sans tin foil, looking for the speed-dating at the Empire. <br />2. Pigeon guy, looking as if he's experiencing the rapture as about 6 pigeons land on him while biking on Congress.Unknownnoreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4832477616652166966.post-70792649974769001002009-03-04T08:03:00.000-05:002009-03-04T08:09:25.824-05:00Sullen childThis is a repeat from my FB status that's absolutely worth repeating:<br />Saw this note taped to a first grader's shirt today:<br /><br />Don tok<br />tome<br />rit nao.Unknownnoreply@blogger.com3tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4832477616652166966.post-34249807656594146032009-02-03T10:24:00.001-05:002009-02-03T10:25:31.930-05:00It's not scientifically proven, butwomen with glasses have a definite disadvantage when it comes to shaving legs.Unknownnoreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4832477616652166966.post-18468353177713697552009-01-06T12:57:00.004-05:002009-01-06T13:15:44.404-05:00Walk Along Casco Bay, Jan.Bay: Pantone PMS 300<br />Staghorn sumac berries against the water: Pantone PMS 186<br /><br />Rugged, determined stubs of apple tree twigs make me think of penguins huddled together in winter, or the lone horse standing still in a bleak field peering out only through eyelashes of tight-pressed lids: "I will get through this."<br /><br />Bright sun.<br /><br />A cloud of government-check-cigarette smoke from the chain smoker in the wheelchair at the edge of the beach. Baked beans. Diesel fuel, plowing the last edges of the trail. A bufflehead dips into the blue paint.Unknownnoreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4832477616652166966.post-1112252455347969812009-01-06T09:54:00.003-05:002009-01-06T10:06:05.569-05:00resolutions1. To play more games. People keep snickering when I say this. Games bring joy into my life, why should I not want to play more? Cribbage, backgammon, euchre, Shanghai rummy--all good times. Played scrabble on Jan. 3. Need some stiff competition, if anyone wants to lend themselves.<br /><br />2. To learn to bake homemade bread very well. I got a good start on Jan. 2 making homemade sunflower bagels. They were very good, chewy on the inside, crunchy outside, if a bit on the thin side. Oh, and dropping them in the oven onto the hot coils kinda blew. <br /><br />3. To get new baking pans that I don't drop.<br /><br />4. To organize my craft area and use up most of the old stuff.<br /><br />5. To overcome my songwriting block. The first step is recording what I've already written!Unknownnoreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4832477616652166966.post-50997007360123494482008-12-01T08:27:00.004-05:002008-12-01T14:19:06.230-05:00Southerners vs. Yanks, cont'dThings I will never understand about northerners:<br /><br />8. Restaurant service. I will not go on a rant here, but maybe, once, you should go out to eat in the south and you will weep to return to a restaurant in Yankee world. <br /><br />9. They don't realize that putting spaghetti noodles in chili is perfectly normal.<br /><br />Things I love about them:<br /><br />5. There's a certain independence or DIY-ness here. It's quite charming and very useful. I am not sure that I have ever met a Mainer, for example, whose parents don't "put up" food for the winter in loads of canning jars.<br />6. I like about Maine that the world does not stop in the event of a snowstorm. In Louisville, they predict a few inches, and the Kroger's is literally cleaned out of milk, meat, and bread (apparently the essentials.) The city shuts down. In Maine, you get a foot, most people still have to go to work. Oh, well that part sucks, but the rest I like.Unknownnoreply@blogger.com4tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4832477616652166966.post-325050385152024832008-11-30T22:54:00.002-05:002008-11-30T23:01:48.589-05:00A thrill of hopeI have been practicing singing and playing "Oh Holy Night" for Christmas carols. Jon remarked that he preferred the less religious carols. While I do not consider myself a religious person, I do love the beautiful songs and do not want to shy away from them because they are religious. After all, I am a bluegrass musician, we like the old-timey gospel stuff.<br /><br />Then I listened to the words:<br /><br />"A thrill of hope, the weary world rejoices-for yonder breaks a new and glorious morn!"<br /><br />What a gorgeous thought. A friend remarked that it reminded her of Obama. Listening to only those words--not the rest about the Saviour, etc--there is a nice bit of truth to that. <br /><br /><br />We certainly live in a weary world. How beautiful the idea that for this weary world, there might possibly be a thrill of hope. Whatever that hope is, it is lovely.Unknownnoreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4832477616652166966.post-86749499435422770702008-11-26T17:52:00.003-05:002008-11-30T18:14:27.808-05:00Southerners vs. Yanks...part one of many, I am sure.<br /><br />There are several things I will never understand about Mainahs:<br /><br />1. Why they insist on complaining about the weather unless it is 76 degrees. Otherwise, it's either too cold, too hot, too cold in the shade, too hot in the sun, etc. Um, you live in MAINE.<br /><br />2. Why they insist on eating fruit that is not remotely close to being ripe, and then they insist that it's really good. Peaches, nectarines, and pears should absolutely never crunch. And no, they are not good that way.<br /><br />3. Why they insist on eating huge holiday dinners at 2 PM. Why not at a regular meal time, so your body is actually hungry when you eat? And so you don't get a weird hunger pang at 9 PM?<br /><br />4. Why they really don't say much ever. Believe it or not, in the south, we actually do care how the people in the coffee shop line are doing. We actually do call lots of people, "Honey," and we actually bond over things like the grocery store being out of pecans.<br /><br />5. Why they say they don't like grits. Most of the time, they have never had grits. (Once they try some cheese grits with garlic, like any smart person, they realize their folly.)<br /><br />6. Why they don't pay attention to basketball. I understand that they don't have great college teams to rally around like we do in Louisville (go Cards!), but UMass is good, and being from Boston has not stopped the Red Sox from being the object of many a Mainer's affection. I ask this in true astonishment: how can anyone watch the thrilling action on the NCAA courts and not get totally wrapped up in March Madness?<br /><br />7. Allen's Coffee Brandy.<br /><br />8. Why they don't see the importance of serving bread warm as opposed to at room temperature.<br /><br /><br />OK, on the flip side, here are some things I love about Mainahs:<br /><br />1. They tend, and I do say tend (ahem), to mind their own business when it comes to whom you worship, to whom you are attracted, and the color of your skin. At least they tend more than the south. <br /><br />2. They know how to make some good chowder.<br /><br />3. They like their beer strong and flavorful. Mmmmmmmmmm Geary's. Southerners are pretty darn attached to their cans of Bud Light.<br /><br />4. They are not afraid to eat their own lobster.Unknownnoreply@blogger.com4tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4832477616652166966.post-55273269038514576172008-11-25T10:23:00.003-05:002008-11-25T10:50:54.250-05:00A wish list.....that has nothing to do with gifts, and yet is still completely self-centered.<br /><br />1. I wish that predictive text weren't so prudish as to not have in its dictionary words like, "pissed" and "damnit."<br /><br />2. I wish that Veggie Sausage weren't so expensive.<br /><br />3. I wish that there were a faucet in my apt. that would pour bourbon.<br /><br />4. I wish that I had planted butternut squash and a few more beets this summer.<br /><br />5. I wish that people from my past did not think it is OK to scan pictures of me from age 15 and post them to facebook.<br /><br />6. I wish that we could claim Thanksgiving as a "friend" holiday without insulting our families. <br /><br />7. I wish that one could choose a few default dreams to re-dream at night upon demand, especially when one is dreaming about fending off child murderers.<br /><br />8. I wish that Mabel were not a <a href="http://www.kokosgoldfish.com/Swim%20Bladder%20Disorder.html">"sinker"</a>.<br /><br />9. I wish that I had a job whose contribution to society were greater than the ability to make a good latte.<br /><br />10. I wish that there were a radio station that played music that might challenge the masses.Unknownnoreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4832477616652166966.post-29446915023935141562008-11-21T22:26:00.003-05:002008-11-30T18:18:04.198-05:00my xmas list1. Still looking for that air-brushed t-shirt that says "Tooken" on it. <br />2. A second earring to match the one I lost, made by the very talented local artist <a href="http://www.aliciaallenjewelry.etsy.com/">Alicia Allen</a><br />3. A jar of Smith's Family Farm yogurt.<br /><br />Considering no one we know has any money right now, I guess that'll just about do it. Although there are plenty of free things I would love for Xmas:<br />-rock and roll band of my very own<br />-a question<br />-a gift card for a one on one day with some very busy friends<br />-jobs for the several people I know who really need them<br />-Upping the amount of funny stories, smiling eyes, occasional southern accents, and bone-crushing hugs that help me get through my days.Unknownnoreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4832477616652166966.post-47394259256752414442008-11-10T11:01:00.003-05:002008-11-10T11:33:56.522-05:00Cheap LivingHey, anyone hear about the times lately? They're tight. Jon and I are on a semi-spending freeze. Which means that we are not spending money outside of necessities (a loose word in our book.) <br /><br />When I was a student I learned some ways one can conserve money while still consuming lots of the all-important carbs. While I do not advocate dumpster diving (gross), with a little of the Artful Dodger in you, you can eat quite a few meals for free. <br /><br />Openings: art openings, grand opening celebrations, book signings, ribbon cuttings, any kind of community celebration. There is always free food at these and often free wine. First Friday art walk is a good choice for even supplementing the carbs with some protein-rich cheese. But you have to get there early. Just think, you could eat for free and culture yourself at the same time.<br /><br />Jobs: There are two kinds of jobs in which free food is available. The first is, obviously, a food service job. (I highly recommend working for a local company vs a chain restaurant for many reasons, not the least being that large corporations often do not include free meals in their benefits.) The second is a job at a place that hosts a lot of events, meetings, workshops, etc. I worked at a National Park for a year and ate so many free bagels, muffins, and scones, and an occasional score of a veggie wrap left behind that I gained several pounds.<br /><br />Church: Almost always, where one finds God, there is also coffee and donuts.* (The exception being Catholics--they're pretty hit and miss on the donuts.) Many churches give out free food as well. The pastor at the church across the street once said to me, "Excuse me, are you homeless? Cause this is for the needy!" My response (in my head, as I was too shocked and embarrassed to speak) was two-fold: "Uh, lady, this is a residential neighborhood. And, yes, I am needy, I am unemployed and have a $40,000 student loan and my rent is through the roof. It's Portland. Heard this story before?" <br /><br />*The problem with this is that they do it after church so you have to praise the Lord to get the donuts! If you're stooping this low, you might as well wander your way into weddings and funerals too! I can assure that my family is so large no one would ever notice that there was an unfamiliar face.<br /><br />Greedrinks: Could it be any better? The second Tuesday of every month, Greendrinks rocks again with free beer and free food and a lovely crowd of eco-conscious folks! Tomorrow it's at the Maine Rock Gym. Happy hour time.<br /><br />More cheap living skills soon to come.Unknownnoreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4832477616652166966.post-62243440856842643732008-10-06T12:25:00.004-04:002008-10-06T13:21:13.605-04:00pro-lifeI recently received an email from someone I know. It was a thinly-veiled pro-life video encouraging me to "vote my conscience". Great, thanks, I will!<br /><br />In the video, there is a picture of-you guessed it-a fetus, with the words, "Some issues are more important." <br /><br />I do not ask this question as an attack, but because I seriously want to know: Why is an unborn baby more important than a living child? Because, if I voted for McCain and Palin, the policies they promote will hurt living children. For example, McCain promises a $5000 tax rebate for every family so they can buy insurance. The average premium for a family, <a href="http://www.kff.org/newsroom/ehbs092408.cfm">according to this website</a> is over $12,000. That's not doing much for families who make too much to qualify for state funded health care, but who cannot afford insurance (and who can at that cost?) and don't get it at work.<br /><br />Other Republican policies leave children behind. Let's take a look at No Child Left Behind. A great idea, but the federal government has failed to fund this, leaving states to fund it themselves (they have to!) and therefore cutting costs in other ways (<a href="http://minnesota.publicradio.org/display/web/2008/05/13/maccray/">like shortening the week to four days!!!!</a>) that drastically affect the education system in our country. Better educating kids can help them to climb out of poverty, but that takes funding, and right now Republican policy is more concerned with funding "rebuilding" in Iraq, a country that has a very large surplus, according to Barack Obama and <a href="http://www.msnbc.msn.com/id/23578542/">this article.</a><br /><br />So, when I think about voting my conscience, I know I want to cast a vote that will help our country now, and for the future. I strongly believe that the future of our country lies in providing an opportunity for our youth to be well-educated and healthy. And that is why my conscience tells me to vote for Obama/Biden.Unknownnoreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4832477616652166966.post-19387883219573720122008-10-04T15:33:00.001-04:002008-10-04T15:39:28.357-04:00short listthing i like:<br />squashing fallen cherries while walking home on Vesper St.<br /><br />thing I dislike:<br />foam soapUnknownnoreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4832477616652166966.post-59245999889234438522008-09-20T13:49:00.002-04:002008-09-20T15:27:12.724-04:00Maine, the way life is.I have succumbed to the Maine way of life, and become a patcher. Meaning: I have a myriad of jobs that I patch together. And they are all very unique and interesting. Over the course of a month, I will have been paid to be:<br />1. Assistant Manager of the Portland Observatory<br />2. A Barista<br />3. An afterschool teacher <br />4. A pie-maker<br />5. A model<br />6. An elected official<br />7. A field hockey coach<br />8. A musician<br /><br />While the lifestyle can be a little harrowing, it is always full of surprises, many of them pleasant. Take modeling, for example. Craigslist gigs is a great place to find very short-term work, usually involving getting paid very well to pass out promotional shwag or talk very enthusiastically in a focus group about breakfast cereals or such. Recently there was a post for a size 14 model. I looked at the listing, as I sometimes wear a size 14. It was a yarn company in Portland, and I wrote them to say that while I was not a model, I was a knitter, and I would be happy to be their size 14. Well, to make a long story a little shorter, after sending them some completely unprofessional pictures taken by Jon at Kettle Cove, my mom at the Aquarium, Mandy at my Derby party, and Darcy for my campaign, they hired me!<br /><br />I was to be picked up, along with the size 18 model, and driven to New Harbor for the photo shoot for <a href="http://www.classiceliteyarns.com/home.php">Classic Elite Yarn's Curvy Knits</a> pattern catalog. I got in the car and <a href="http://www.classiceliteyarns.com/pattern_detail.php?patternID=63#">a gorgeous woman with an equally gorgeous name, Ondine</a>, introduces herself to me. When I ask her what she does for a living and she responds with something like, "Fashion designer and model," I begin to think that this adventure might involve a little more than some little yarn company taking my picture.<br /><br />We pull into a driveway of a rented farmhouse on a hill overlooking <a href="http://www.newt.com/wohler/events/us-2002/maine/new-harbor/harbor-big.jpg">New Harbor</a>, about as picturesque as it gets. I meet the make-up artist and the stylists and am asked to try on several knitted garments with a mess of clothes with tags still on (all "borrowed" from some big stores.) Then the stick thin models walk in wrapped in blankets, shivering from their "spring" photo shoot down on the water. They quickly get naked, change outfits, the make-up artist gets very concerned about their wind-blown hair, and off they go for another shoot. I read for about 30 minutes (I was told to bring a good book), and then it's time for my face to become a canvas.<br /><br />The make-up artist plucks, shapes, trims, gels, and pencils my brows. Then she puts layers and layers of make-up on my face, curls my hair, and uses about a half a bottle of hairspray for my half-updo. I put on the salmon colored knit tunic (NOT at all my favorite color, but it was matched with accessories that I chose!) and I am instructed to walk and skip in a swingy way through a field while the photographer's assistant walks beside me with a screen filling in shadows and the photographer shoots picture after picture after picture. <br /><br />I remove the tunic, leggings (which fit perfectly and I got to keep!), and boots, and change into a loose cotton dress and a silky periwinkle cardigan (again, so not my color). We went to set up the shoot while Ondine was putting on a beautiful green lacy cardigan for her next shoot. Apparently the photographer was so happy with the look of our practice shoot that she decided to shoot it for real, in between the make-up artist running in and spraying my hair again and again. I had to hold some flowers, flirt with the assistant, play with my hair... <br /><br />It was all so surreal. I was a model! For realz! Apparently I did so well the photographer had no idea it was my "first" time (I say that in parentheses because--as if I am going to become a model!) And I got paid good money for it! Of course, I will post some photos when I get them.<br /><br />Heh. Maine.Unknownnoreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4832477616652166966.post-14541713927252677492008-08-21T12:39:00.003-04:002008-08-21T12:49:22.949-04:00seasons and change and me feeling blue about itCan it really be? The chill in the air...hot in the sun, cold in the shade...is summer really coming to an end? Did we even have a summer? <br /><br />I love fall. But this year, I am not ready for it. Not yet, and I will go down fighting. On top of the usual Maine winter, we had a pretty crappy spring. Then, after a glorious start to summer's immortal days of sun and breeziness and wildflowers and limey drinks, it started to rain. For, um, a month or so? Many of us die hard ocean dippers even became wussified. <br /><br />And I start to ask myself: why in the world do I live here? Where it's cold 8 months out of the year and summer, if you're lucky, lasts maybe 2. Where you even have to wait till May for daffodils and then it all goes so fast.<br /><br />When I go home for the all-too-rare visit to the hot hot south, it seems as if I've waited my whole lifetime for one bite of that juicy,ripe peach; for that one encompassing whiff of sweet magnolia breeze.Unknownnoreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4832477616652166966.post-89756444116767748982008-08-11T22:26:00.003-04:002008-08-11T22:28:05.546-04:00O.M.G.The fabulous blog <a href="http://thingsyoungerthanmccain.com/">thingsyoungerthanmccain.com</a> has a video on which McCain refers to "Vladimir Putin, president of Germany."<br /><br /><br />OH MY GOD!!!!<br /><br />How...oh, forget it, I've said it before.Unknownnoreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4832477616652166966.post-77335781256574233862008-07-28T20:21:00.002-04:002008-07-28T20:35:04.582-04:00I love Maine foodSigh...For years I have wanted to rid my life of plastic. Cloth bags are easy. Many foods are not. Try finding yogurt and cottage cheese in glass! Well, after years of longing, I finally found local yogurt in glass jars! Smith Family Farm, on Mount Desert Island, makes the most delicious organic yogurt. If you're used to the over-sugared (or aspartamed) glorified candy that most grocery-store yogurt is (27 grams of sugar in yogurt!) it will taste different: it is not pasteurized and has not traveled to New Jersey and back. But once you get used to that tangy taste (which is amazing mixed with a bit of Jon's parents homemade rhubarb jam!), you will not want to eat that store stuff again.<br /><br />The best part about this is that my friend ordered it from the buying club for me and so it was only $3 a quart--about the same as what I used to buy in the store.<br /><br /><br />Yay for local foods. Yay for Maine for supporting this kind of stuff. We are so lucky to have lots of glass-jar milk around (I love you Smiling Hill Farm!) Yay for glass jars that can be returned and used again!Unknownnoreply@blogger.com2tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4832477616652166966.post-47999174934804055842008-07-26T08:42:00.001-04:002008-07-26T15:54:24.198-04:00hahaha<a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="http://bp2.blogger.com/_wGr8njEWjtI/SEFy6AAr20I/AAAAAAAAAD8/vYQCpV1cTcU/s400/bride+cake.jpg"><img style="display:block; margin:0px auto 10px; text-align:center;cursor:pointer; cursor:hand;width: 320px;" src="http://bp2.blogger.com/_wGr8njEWjtI/SEFy6AAr20I/AAAAAAAAAD8/vYQCpV1cTcU/s400/bride+cake.jpg" border="0" alt="" /></a><br /><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="http://bp0.blogger.com/_wGr8njEWjtI/SDM5uDHrKkI/AAAAAAAAACc/I01QJw2k6yI/s400/ugly+"><img style="display:block; margin:0px auto 10px; text-align:center;cursor:pointer; cursor:hand;width: 320px;" src="http://bp0.blogger.com/_wGr8njEWjtI/SDM5uDHrKkI/AAAAAAAAACc/I01QJw2k6yI/s400/ugly+" border="0" alt="" /></a><br /><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="http://bp1.blogger.com/_wGr8njEWjtI/SDirlAAr2tI/AAAAAAAAADE/Z0QafZuMO6o/s400/scary+baby+bum.jpg"><img style="display:block; margin:0px auto 10px; text-align:center;cursor:pointer; cursor:hand;width: 320px;" src="http://bp1.blogger.com/_wGr8njEWjtI/SDirlAAr2tI/AAAAAAAAADE/Z0QafZuMO6o/s400/scary+baby+bum.jpg" border="0" alt="" /></a><br /><br />Go to <a href="http://cakewrecks.blogspot.com/">Cake Wrecks</a> for a good laugh.Unknownnoreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4832477616652166966.post-4138824761279721652008-07-22T20:08:00.004-04:002008-07-22T20:24:45.956-04:00GET A BIKE!Carpooled to work today. Biked home.<br /><br />-Saved 1/2 gallon of gas on round trip commute: $2.05 saved<br />-Calories burned: 426.<br />-Time spent biking: 40 minutes. In a car, it takes 20 minutes to get there, so I spent a net time of 20 minutes. Time usually spent going to gym to burn 426 calories (including transit): 1.5 hours.<br /><br />So, I saved money, time, and auto emissions today. By the way, biking to work wakes you up more than coffee.<br /><br /><br />GET A BIKE!Unknownnoreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4832477616652166966.post-59040544515231880342008-07-22T20:01:00.004-04:002008-07-22T20:07:33.507-04:00Would someone give McCain a map?John McCain claims to be the candidate with foreign affairs experience. But, he needs a lesson in geography! In one video posted to <a href="http://www.thingsyoungerthanmccain.com/">thingsyoungerthanmccain.com</a>, he mentions the "Iraq-Pakistan border!" In another he refers to, in present tense, Czechoslovakia!<br /><br />Now, if I go to an doctor who claims to have experience in eyes (i.e., an eye doctor), I would certainly want him to know where my iris is.<br /><br />Just a thought. <br /><br /><br />Oh, by the way, don't vote for this guy.Unknownnoreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4832477616652166966.post-69311932620234033202008-07-21T22:39:00.006-04:002008-07-21T23:10:36.874-04:00Farm CampThis summer I am working at Farm Camp. Here are some highlights and things I have learned:<br /><br />-Pigs are extremely loud and will risk shock by electric fence just to get some new scenery. I recently re-read Animal Farm and the pigs now disturb me. However, they are just as afraid of large bugs as people are.<br /><br />-Chickens are disgusting. But their eggs are so tasty they are worth it.<br /><br />-I gave a five year old boy a time out. He got upset and started looking around the forest floor to find something to poison me with. Originally he wanted to poison me for 3 years but upon second thought he settled for 3 days. I really wanted him to find a mushroom to see how he might trick me into eating it. <br /><br />-extra cool things found in the pond: <br />salamander larva<br /><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="http://bp1.blogger.com/_PyUAj8Q4jhM/SIVOOlP8zlI/AAAAAAAAAEQ/A_T8QqT7wpk/s1600-h/salamander_larva.jpg"><img style="display:block; margin:0px auto 10px; text-align:center;cursor:pointer; cursor:hand;" src="http://bp1.blogger.com/_PyUAj8Q4jhM/SIVOOlP8zlI/AAAAAAAAAEQ/A_T8QqT7wpk/s320/salamander_larva.jpg" border="0" alt=""id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5225668955057475154" /></a><br /> black-crowned night herons<br /><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="http://bp2.blogger.com/_PyUAj8Q4jhM/SIVMYXrqKxI/AAAAAAAAAEI/re_je9hyXAg/s1600-h/A56+Black-crowned+Night+Heron+Small.JPG"><img style="display:block; margin:0px auto 10px; text-align:center;cursor:pointer; cursor:hand;" src="http://bp2.blogger.com/_PyUAj8Q4jhM/SIVMYXrqKxI/AAAAAAAAAEI/re_je9hyXAg/s320/A56+Black-crowned+Night+Heron+Small.JPG" border="0" alt=""id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5225666924191034130" /></a> and hog dragonfly nymphs that eat everything in sight. I could spend the whole day watching the violence! Today two dragonfly nymphs were fighting over the same prey and one tried to eat a frog!<br /><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="http://bp0.blogger.com/_PyUAj8Q4jhM/SIVOOwW60zI/AAAAAAAAAEY/gEy3-pwlvQ4/s1600-h/nymph.jpg"><img style="display:block; margin:0px auto 10px; text-align:center;cursor:pointer; cursor:hand;" src="http://bp0.blogger.com/_PyUAj8Q4jhM/SIVOOwW60zI/AAAAAAAAAEY/gEy3-pwlvQ4/s320/nymph.jpg" border="0" alt=""id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5225668958039495474" /></a><br />(Dragonfly nymphs are a young stage in metamorphosis that live in water. They can extend their lower jaw about a third the length of their body and can eat things bigger than themselves!)<br /><br />-Lambs are amazing. They instinctively know that if they say "Baaa" when we leave them it makes the kids very happy. One kid told me he spoke sheep, so he translated for me. Apparently when we leave the lambs and they say Baaa they are actually saying "Bye." In Sheep.<br /><br />-And lambs' lips tickle your hand when they eat grain out of it. <br /><br />-If you give a little girl a big flower her face will light up and make you feel like a million bucks. All for one flower.<br /><br />-Some kids just seem to know when you are about to lose your mind. Then they run up to you, throw their arms around you and kiss you and say, "I yuv you!" Yay.Unknownnoreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4832477616652166966.post-41713143565293303272008-07-21T22:26:00.002-04:002008-07-21T22:39:02.802-04:00bikes bikes bikes<a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="http://bp1.blogger.com/_PyUAj8Q4jhM/SIVIOp2wvmI/AAAAAAAAAD4/Z_lbH-KJY6M/s1600-h/kids+on+bike.jpg"><img style="display:block; margin:0px auto 10px; text-align:center;cursor:pointer; cursor:hand;" src="http://bp1.blogger.com/_PyUAj8Q4jhM/SIVIOp2wvmI/AAAAAAAAAD4/Z_lbH-KJY6M/s320/kids+on+bike.jpg" border="0" alt=""id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5225662359224237666" /></a><br />I think people should ride bikes way more often. Let's put the environmental, economic, and health benefits aside, and talk about fun. Riding a bike makes you feel like a kid again. Seriously! Try it! and then try with no hands! Ride to somewhere fun like the beach or the movies or the sprinkler park or the bar. To maximize kid-feeling-ness, wear flip-flops or cowboy boots and even a skirt. (I vouch that it is entirely possible to ride across town comfortably in cowboy boots.) Also, riding with lots of friends in a bike gang is pretty rad and you feel like you should be in an after-school special where you make fun of some kid, calling him "King of the Flots" until you learn that he's pretty cool after all.<br /><br />I'll tell you what makes me feel damn cute: when I ride my bike to my garden, fill my bike basket with beets and collards and sunflowers and daisies, and then ride home with the basket overflowing. I would post a picture but I have not figured out how to safely take a picture of myself whilst riding a bike. Someone should take a picture, though: Munjoy Hill--are you listening??Unknownnoreply@blogger.com1