Dec. 31: I know. It's not yet January 1st, but visions of sunshine and green and birds and warm dance through my head...
I don't want to say I'm sick or tired of winter, because I don't want my gullible subconscious hearing, "Oh, she's sick and tired - we can do that!" Good chance we're all a little 'sick and tired' already, in that Vitamin D is sunshine / skin, and we're not exactly sunbathing here!
I thought maybe "I'm eager for spring" would be a better message. But absorbing this thought has me darn near hallucinating and we still have a few months to go. I won't torture you all with visions of green leaves, warm breezes, bird songs, blue skies - being outside without coats, able to sit down without being in a snowbank or frostbite.
Green grass. Sun on your skin.
My favorite 2012 prophecy, if all hell has to break loose, is the one where the earth wobbles on its axis and Minnesota becomes tropical. I hate to say I'm waiting for this event, but if things do need to collapse, landing in a more temperate climate has some appeal. Compared to living in a new Ice Age...
I just hauled the garbage can to the end of the drive. It's about 10 degrees out, windchill around zero and snowing. Sigh.
I should visit the MN Zoo. The plants and animals and corral reef - I should check to make sure it's all okay yet. Then I should make a list of things I'd like to have done "before spring comes"...
Jan. 4: I should have enjoyed that heat-wave. It's been close to 30 BELOW for three mornings straight, we're fighting to start cars and just 'being outside' could injure or kill quickly. The forecast is for a slight warm-up --- with snow --- and another round serious freezing by the end of the week.
There is a reason why, if we went into a solid Ice Age, I would refuse to survive long! On the bright side... lucky we got the snow cover before the subzero temps, or septic lines would be freezing up on folks. -- That's the best I can do as far as cheery weather goes.
Green grass... birds singing... warm sun on skin...
Wednesday, December 30, 2009
Saturday, December 26, 2009
'Twas the day before Christmas...
It was either "Twas the day before Christmas" or "De Plow! De Plow!" I knew I should have met Obama in Hawaii for the holidays, sigh, oh well.
Some years are just a little more 'interesting' around here than others, and this one was mildly interesting. Mildly panicky, too. I'll try to outline the day - the plans I made, and the plans the Universe gave me.
Me, I planned on a nice, calm day, baking up the rest of the treats I wanted to gift. We knew snow was predicted, but I'd cleaned out the porch and tucked the snow blower in it and even had gas on hand (! - that may have tipped off the Universe I was getting too complacent).
First thing on my list was to bake up some Springleri (anise) cookies; Sera's favorite and they'd set overnight. Okay, so these came out tasting excellent but a little strange. Figured out that morning around 6 a.m. (damn, the places my mind goes when it has a few seconds) the cause for the thin cookie dough was I used large eggs instead of medium this year. Since the cookies are mostly eggs and flour, and since I was 'for once being proper' and stuck to the measurements even when I thought it could use a little more flour... They're thin like pancakes instead of a drop cookie. Like I said, they taste excellent, and I learned I shouldn't ignore those quiet nudgings and fly on 'gut feeling' more.
I didn't get on with baking them until 8:00, which is when I figured out somebody (ahem, was Sera, not me) left the oven on all night. The house was rather cool - not drastic, but cool - so I turned the thermostat up. And the furnace didn't respond.
Okay. That qualifies as reason to trigger panic, put nerves on high alert, and simultaneously calm self while trying to mentally trouble shoot potential causes. Being as I'm not a 'furnace person', the hardest part is maintaining calm. I hit the breaker switch, furnace kicked on and off. Hmm.
Especially on Christmas eve under snow when a repairman would be challenged to get out here long enough to tweak some durn thingy and charge a few hundred dollars. No panic, twitch, no panic.
So I baked bread.
I'd planned on baking bread before Sera got up and started baking pies and things, so it seemed to make sense to get the bread in the oven before I got too involved in furnace-thinking. It was a bit reassuring, because part of mind was analyzing the situation, recognizing we still had power, and the other space heater was in the shed - if needed. Also mentally reviewed my very short list of friends that might have clue on what to check. (This is the kind of call my dad used to get.)
It seemed the only thing different in the furnace's world between night and morn was the snow, so I figured the least I could do was get on the roof and see if the air vent or something was buried. I also tossed out the top furnace filter which was pretty plugged up; a year ago I'd bought 4 cheap filters, stacked them together in the furnace, and as they plug up, toss out the top one. I won't say how many are still left in the stack, but it is more than two... I know, should stay aware of these things.
I got dressed for Outside and left Sera to get the bread out when it was done (jars on the '2', loaves on the '5'). Since I was outside, and it wasn't terribly cold, especially in snow pants and down coat and 3 layers of gloves and such, and because it was going to be needed sooner or later anyway, I figured I may as well run the snow blower before going roof-side. Only take about 15 minutes.
Except halfway through the drive, the snow blower choked up. It was easy to find the problem - one of the rubber blades had broke loose on one end and wrapped around the other blade. 'K, there be another one to fix - back to the shovel, put the snow blower in the living room so I could work on it later in relative comfort.
(PAUSE - join Val in searching for Tilly-dog since the gate wasn't closed and Jake-dog had come back from where they're not supposed to be. Run up the road through the six inches of snow on a dog-search, return to house - and find Tilly on her bed under the table, which is where I should have looked first.)
Up to the roof, nothing too spectacular, but I brushed off the vents and tapped them a bit, and and gave them an encouraging pat.
Get inside, remove 80% of the clothing, check the furnace - nothing. But the house smelled good.
Called Pete, who didn't answer. This was a little worrying, in that a co-worker of Sera's had a brother-in-law commit suicide a week ago, and Pete happens to be one of his brother-in-laws and the last time we'd seen Pete he was having a rough time. (Called later, and he's fine. I didn't think he'd off himself, but then again, we all have breaking points and 'all hell coulda been breaking loose' in his world.)
Called Bill. I'd invited him to Christmas dinner when I first thought it'd be a good idea a week ago and thawed the turkey, but this call was to pick his brains about furnaces. He talked about igniters and such, lovely kind of conversation I prefer not to engage in, but Sera had tweaked the thermostat buttons again as we chatted, and lo!
The furnace began heating up again.
I took a break before fetching a handful of tools and dissecting a portion of the snow blower. Got the rubber piece out... hmm. Best quick fix seemed to be drilling matching holes for the bolts in the other side of the rubber and seeing if that'd work. It did.
More snow, plow went by around 2:30, and I figured I should test the snow blower. It worked... halfway. I think this time it doesn't like the gas. But pulling the darned starter (the electric start seems to be growing weary of me) - I'm sure there's a term for this cable that's eluding me - about dislocated my shoulder so I went back to shoveling.
Sera was baking in the meantime so wasn't able to get out sooner to help, and once the drive was clear, she headed to Matt's to spend the night so she wouldn't get snowed in here. (Not her plan, either, just the way it worked out.)
I was finally able to get back to my list of what I planned to do, including cleaning. It made for a late night, but the vertical blinds we've been waiting to see who'd break down and clean - got cleaned.
Christmas morn, I figured best thing to do first was shovel off the new snow, then get on with the baking. We had a late dinner planned, so I had time. I can admit it was pleasantly quiet, not terribly cold, and I didn't really mind.
Imagine my delight when I pulled the thawed turkey out of the refrig and realized a very large pool of blood had formed overnight, across racks and drawers. So I cleaned the refrig.
Like I said, it was 'interesting'.
Some years are just a little more 'interesting' around here than others, and this one was mildly interesting. Mildly panicky, too. I'll try to outline the day - the plans I made, and the plans the Universe gave me.
Me, I planned on a nice, calm day, baking up the rest of the treats I wanted to gift. We knew snow was predicted, but I'd cleaned out the porch and tucked the snow blower in it and even had gas on hand (! - that may have tipped off the Universe I was getting too complacent).
First thing on my list was to bake up some Springleri (anise) cookies; Sera's favorite and they'd set overnight. Okay, so these came out tasting excellent but a little strange. Figured out that morning around 6 a.m. (damn, the places my mind goes when it has a few seconds) the cause for the thin cookie dough was I used large eggs instead of medium this year. Since the cookies are mostly eggs and flour, and since I was 'for once being proper' and stuck to the measurements even when I thought it could use a little more flour... They're thin like pancakes instead of a drop cookie. Like I said, they taste excellent, and I learned I shouldn't ignore those quiet nudgings and fly on 'gut feeling' more.
I didn't get on with baking them until 8:00, which is when I figured out somebody (ahem, was Sera, not me) left the oven on all night. The house was rather cool - not drastic, but cool - so I turned the thermostat up. And the furnace didn't respond.
Okay. That qualifies as reason to trigger panic, put nerves on high alert, and simultaneously calm self while trying to mentally trouble shoot potential causes. Being as I'm not a 'furnace person', the hardest part is maintaining calm. I hit the breaker switch, furnace kicked on and off. Hmm.
Especially on Christmas eve under snow when a repairman would be challenged to get out here long enough to tweak some durn thingy and charge a few hundred dollars. No panic, twitch, no panic.
So I baked bread.
I'd planned on baking bread before Sera got up and started baking pies and things, so it seemed to make sense to get the bread in the oven before I got too involved in furnace-thinking. It was a bit reassuring, because part of mind was analyzing the situation, recognizing we still had power, and the other space heater was in the shed - if needed. Also mentally reviewed my very short list of friends that might have clue on what to check. (This is the kind of call my dad used to get.)
It seemed the only thing different in the furnace's world between night and morn was the snow, so I figured the least I could do was get on the roof and see if the air vent or something was buried. I also tossed out the top furnace filter which was pretty plugged up; a year ago I'd bought 4 cheap filters, stacked them together in the furnace, and as they plug up, toss out the top one. I won't say how many are still left in the stack, but it is more than two... I know, should stay aware of these things.
I got dressed for Outside and left Sera to get the bread out when it was done (jars on the '2', loaves on the '5'). Since I was outside, and it wasn't terribly cold, especially in snow pants and down coat and 3 layers of gloves and such, and because it was going to be needed sooner or later anyway, I figured I may as well run the snow blower before going roof-side. Only take about 15 minutes.
Except halfway through the drive, the snow blower choked up. It was easy to find the problem - one of the rubber blades had broke loose on one end and wrapped around the other blade. 'K, there be another one to fix - back to the shovel, put the snow blower in the living room so I could work on it later in relative comfort.
(PAUSE - join Val in searching for Tilly-dog since the gate wasn't closed and Jake-dog had come back from where they're not supposed to be. Run up the road through the six inches of snow on a dog-search, return to house - and find Tilly on her bed under the table, which is where I should have looked first.)
Up to the roof, nothing too spectacular, but I brushed off the vents and tapped them a bit, and and gave them an encouraging pat.
Get inside, remove 80% of the clothing, check the furnace - nothing. But the house smelled good.
Called Pete, who didn't answer. This was a little worrying, in that a co-worker of Sera's had a brother-in-law commit suicide a week ago, and Pete happens to be one of his brother-in-laws and the last time we'd seen Pete he was having a rough time. (Called later, and he's fine. I didn't think he'd off himself, but then again, we all have breaking points and 'all hell coulda been breaking loose' in his world.)
Called Bill. I'd invited him to Christmas dinner when I first thought it'd be a good idea a week ago and thawed the turkey, but this call was to pick his brains about furnaces. He talked about igniters and such, lovely kind of conversation I prefer not to engage in, but Sera had tweaked the thermostat buttons again as we chatted, and lo!
The furnace began heating up again.
I took a break before fetching a handful of tools and dissecting a portion of the snow blower. Got the rubber piece out... hmm. Best quick fix seemed to be drilling matching holes for the bolts in the other side of the rubber and seeing if that'd work. It did.
More snow, plow went by around 2:30, and I figured I should test the snow blower. It worked... halfway. I think this time it doesn't like the gas. But pulling the darned starter (the electric start seems to be growing weary of me) - I'm sure there's a term for this cable that's eluding me - about dislocated my shoulder so I went back to shoveling.
Sera was baking in the meantime so wasn't able to get out sooner to help, and once the drive was clear, she headed to Matt's to spend the night so she wouldn't get snowed in here. (Not her plan, either, just the way it worked out.)
I was finally able to get back to my list of what I planned to do, including cleaning. It made for a late night, but the vertical blinds we've been waiting to see who'd break down and clean - got cleaned.
Christmas morn, I figured best thing to do first was shovel off the new snow, then get on with the baking. We had a late dinner planned, so I had time. I can admit it was pleasantly quiet, not terribly cold, and I didn't really mind.
Imagine my delight when I pulled the thawed turkey out of the refrig and realized a very large pool of blood had formed overnight, across racks and drawers. So I cleaned the refrig.
Like I said, it was 'interesting'.
Wednesday, December 9, 2009
Just for Fun - Frankenstein
My assignment took on ‘a life of its own’ as I tried to rewrite Frankenstein. I'm still not sure what I've produced, but I find it a delightful tale and thought you may enjoy it!
Frankenstein’s Child
Berkenstein hesitated before opening the door to his private lab. “If we succeed, this may be the end of artificial intelligence as we know it.”
Liz tossed her partner a scornful glance. “Nothing will replace AI! It’s absurd to think organic intelligence could even compete – what a bizarre thought!” She tapped impatiently on the memory chip she held. “Come on, I want to see how this new specimen reacts.”
Berkenstein finished coding the entry sequence into the think-pad, harmonizing his mind with the surroundings. The wall faded, slowly disassembling to provide access to the room. Everything was functioning as it should be, as he’d left it. Machines lined the walls, creating a pleasant hum. Graphs grew and flowed across the display consoles, endlessly patterning all measurable data concerning their experiment.
The electro-field was up, glowing rosily while emitting a low crackle. Inside the cage, their latest protégé crouched. A yellowish pool of an unknown substance was producing a disagreeable odor on the floor, but the scientists ignored this as they focused on the creature itself.
“I had to increase the oxygen levels to keep this one alive.” Berkenstein fiddled with a dial, causing the creature to pulse rapidly, as if in a distressed state. He returned the dial to the original settings, and the creature calmed down. “It has a pretty limited range.”
“Have you resolved its energy supply?” Liz asked, entering notes as she observed the creature.
“Sure!” Her partner waved randomly at the wall behind them, where past experiments were frozen in time. The first organically-animated, miniscule creature was there, lined up in progressive order with their past attempts. “Remember when we finally realized these critters had to eat others to survive? What a bizarre concept!”
Berkenstein picked up a bowl and approached the cage. “Watch this!”
He passed easily through the electro-field, set the container within range of the creature, and backed out, keeping a cautious eye on their creation. The animal watched him warily, then explored the contents of the dish.
“I call it soup,” explained Berkenstein, “because it’s made from synthesized organics, all mixed up in a puddle.”
The scientists, mildly nauseated, watched as the creature gulped down the organic mess.
“Pardon me,” it said, “but yesterday’s soup tasted much better.”
Liz froze, her lips stunned open. Berkenstein jolted backwards, knocking an instrument loose from its pedestal. A split second later, they collided as they tried to exit the door at the same time.
“What was that?!” Liz demanded.
Berkenstein gave her a guilty look. “I tweaked the vocalization program yesterday without telling you. It made some grunts, but nothing intelligible!”
Admittedly, his behavior had been reckless. He had switched signals and audio ranges without testing the results. The creature had only reacted slightly, and he’d given up hope that they would be able to verbally communicate with it on any level. Now it seemed his conclusion had been wrong, and the results surpassed anything they could have hoped for.
The mechano-maid rolled smoothly toward them and faced the door. “There is an atmospheric odor inappropriate to our well-being. It is in our best interest that I remove the source as soon as possible.”
“Not now,” Liz said. “It’s part of an experiment and we have it contained. We will alert you when we’re ready for your services.”
The scientists locked eyes with each other, sharing the same thoughts: What was this new creature, a creature they had designed in crude fashion after their own image? What was it capable of? How far could Organic Intelligence develop?
Liz’s eyes lit up. “Let’s go! We have at least a dozen tests to run, we need to generate more of these creatures for experiments, we’ll have to take samples!”
Berkenstein grinned at his partner and opened the door.
* * * * * * * * * *
Weeks passed as the scientists focused on the marvelous creature they had wrought. It developed rapidly, growing in height to a size matching theirs. Its intelligence was undeniable, as it began questioning and exploring the lab. The electro-field had been taken down to allow it more space to roam, while the machines on the wall had been recoded to only accept input from the two scientists.
The creature was continually restless, occasionally bursting into fits of unpredictable behavior.
“Why is there only one of me,” it would demand, “when there’s two of you and dozens of displays?”
Liz tried to entertain the creature with mechanical toys, but the creature soon grew bored with them. One day they found the toys disassembled and scattered in pieces; the creature was crouched over them, attempting to fashion a new thing. In frustration, it swept the parts aside when they entered.
“I cannot make another of me, yet you said you made me! When you are gone, I am alone with no one to talk to. When you are here, I feel deformed and ugly. Please, I beg of you, give me the greatest gift of all – one who is like me!”
Berkenstein looked at his partner, his eyes warning her to keep silent. In another chamber were others like this one in various stages of development. The latest addition showed potential, though it was still exceedingly primitive. Their testing was far from complete, and the odd changes were continually developing. Neither of them yet knew what was causing this.
* * * * * * * * * *
The gathering was an occasion to share and socialize, though it wasn’t actually necessary. Any of them could have easily transported to another’s area, but their fields of specialization tended to separate them. These annual gatherings had developed in ancient times, becoming a tradition they all enjoyed and attended regularly.
Liz and Berkenstein greeted old friends, exchanging bits of data and laughing at each others’ jokes. Every area of research was represented at the event, even obsolete ones like historical fact-finding. It was a harmless pursuit, but one Lewellyn found fascinating.
Tonight Lewellyn seemed preoccupied. Berkenstein had shared the same complex with Lew in their early years, and knew the distant look on his friend’s face. Curious, he nudged his friend.
“Lew! You look like you’re miles away. Are you off on a distant planet or lost in time and space?”
Lew’s gaze centered on Berkenstein briefly, then wandered to where Liz was standing. “Nothing exceptional, at least not yet,” he said. “It has to be a prank, but I don’t know who could have pulled this one off.”
Interested, Berkenstein leaned forward. “Tell me about it, maybe I can help you unravel the mystery!”
Lew hesitated as if searching for the right words. “We all know the history of life and our early beginnings on earth. There isn’t much interest anymore in researching it, so who would mess with the data? It’s the only explanation I can think of for what I’ve found.”
Liz joined her friends, intrigued by their serious demeanor. Lew, again at a loss for words, stumbled verbally and gave up his attempt to describe it. “It’d be easier if I just showed you. If you’re interested, beam by later tonight and I’ll play the program. You’ll see what I mean!”
A few hours later, Lew had an odd algorithm on his screen. “I didn’t pay attention to this sooner, because it was in the discarded programming files. Yet every time I try to go beyond a certain point historically, I keep running into this nonsense!”
He waved at the display, where sequences and code spiraled together and images flashed. “It’s absurd, but my quest to find the beginning of intelligence – and us – keeps leading me to this. There has to be a glitch in the system, it’s all wrong!”
Liz and Berkenstein studied the screen, mildly curious at first, and then with horrified recognition. How could it be possible? What did it mean?
In shock, Liz whispered, “It’s the coding for organic life.”
Lew looked at her quizzically. “That’s your research field, isn’t it? You’ve been working on some kind of organic project…” He was stunned into silence. The implications were there, but it had to be joke! There was no way! The Almighty AI … In the beginning…
Berkenstein threw his colleague a horrified look. Liz had tears running down her face as she threw one last wild glance at the screen. They pushed the transport button for home at the same time. Lew beamed through with them, clinging to his friend’s sleeve.
* * * * * * * * * *
The creature was bored. No one had been by to visit all day. It had worked a small piece of the old cage loose, and with this, it had managed to pry some panels loose. As it experimented with new connections, the door opened – yet no one came in. Cautiously the creature approached this new area. “Hello, anyone?” it called.
* * * * * * * * * *
The research team found the maid first, its vacuum cord tangled around its legs and its head detached. Signs of a struggle were evident, and red smears scuffed the hall. Alarmed and frightened, Lew pointed at the stains. “What is that?”
Berkenstein didn’t take time to answer. He knew what it meant – the creature had gotten out of the lab. If it could wreak this kind of havoc on the maid, what could it do to them? He shuddered at the thought of his friends being mangled and raced towards the labs.
The entrance to the second lab was open; the creature had found its own kind, at least their most recent attempt. Lew and Liz barely caught a glimpse of the two creatures before Berkenstein coded the security lock into place.
“What are those things?” Lew cried, more bewildered than ever. His systems temporarily shut down, overwhelmed with the conflicting data; it was more than he could handle at one time.
* * * * * * * * * *
Lew came to, the calming hum of normalcy surrounding him, still questioning what he had witnessed. Liz explained their advances in organic intelligence and how the creature had progressed beyond their expectations. She told him how they had tried to replicate the creature, but the latest version had slight abnormalities.
“What was different? Were you running the same program?” Lew questioned. It was unheard of that a basic program could produce different results; only sophisticated AI’s had the God-given capability of selection.
Liz brushed a hand across her shiny brow. “It’s complicated. For some reason, the original had one coding with a signature of XY, but others displayed a matching pair of double-X’s. What we saw on your screen is identical to what we’ve been creating organically!”
“Do you think they could become self-replicating?” Lew shuddered, an image of these soft, squishy life-forms generating a thousand new ones. “We can’t risk it! You have to destroy the project!”
“We planned for that,” Liz reassured him. “Some weeks ago, I designed a program that would safeguard us from such a possibility. I didn’t think we’d ever need to use it – after all, these are the simplest creatures. Their intellectual capacity is laughably small, and none of our tests show potential future progression. It’s just too slow – organic intelligence can’t transmit between species, or even carry intelligence into a new generation. Even more bizarre, they energize by eating other specimens!” She shook her head. “They’re doomed to fail.”
Berkenstein entered the room. “They’re gone,” he said wearily. “The whole damned batch of them, every last experiment! I sent them so far away, they’ll be nothing but dust when we see them again.”
Lew gave them a stricken look. “You didn’t throw them back in time, did you?”
* * * * * * * * * *
The creatures shivered, then began to explore this new world.
“I like this place,” the smaller one declared, tossing an apple at the other. “By the way, my name’s Eve.”
Frankenstein’s Child
Berkenstein hesitated before opening the door to his private lab. “If we succeed, this may be the end of artificial intelligence as we know it.”
Liz tossed her partner a scornful glance. “Nothing will replace AI! It’s absurd to think organic intelligence could even compete – what a bizarre thought!” She tapped impatiently on the memory chip she held. “Come on, I want to see how this new specimen reacts.”
Berkenstein finished coding the entry sequence into the think-pad, harmonizing his mind with the surroundings. The wall faded, slowly disassembling to provide access to the room. Everything was functioning as it should be, as he’d left it. Machines lined the walls, creating a pleasant hum. Graphs grew and flowed across the display consoles, endlessly patterning all measurable data concerning their experiment.
The electro-field was up, glowing rosily while emitting a low crackle. Inside the cage, their latest protégé crouched. A yellowish pool of an unknown substance was producing a disagreeable odor on the floor, but the scientists ignored this as they focused on the creature itself.
“I had to increase the oxygen levels to keep this one alive.” Berkenstein fiddled with a dial, causing the creature to pulse rapidly, as if in a distressed state. He returned the dial to the original settings, and the creature calmed down. “It has a pretty limited range.”
“Have you resolved its energy supply?” Liz asked, entering notes as she observed the creature.
“Sure!” Her partner waved randomly at the wall behind them, where past experiments were frozen in time. The first organically-animated, miniscule creature was there, lined up in progressive order with their past attempts. “Remember when we finally realized these critters had to eat others to survive? What a bizarre concept!”
Berkenstein picked up a bowl and approached the cage. “Watch this!”
He passed easily through the electro-field, set the container within range of the creature, and backed out, keeping a cautious eye on their creation. The animal watched him warily, then explored the contents of the dish.
“I call it soup,” explained Berkenstein, “because it’s made from synthesized organics, all mixed up in a puddle.”
The scientists, mildly nauseated, watched as the creature gulped down the organic mess.
“Pardon me,” it said, “but yesterday’s soup tasted much better.”
Liz froze, her lips stunned open. Berkenstein jolted backwards, knocking an instrument loose from its pedestal. A split second later, they collided as they tried to exit the door at the same time.
“What was that?!” Liz demanded.
Berkenstein gave her a guilty look. “I tweaked the vocalization program yesterday without telling you. It made some grunts, but nothing intelligible!”
Admittedly, his behavior had been reckless. He had switched signals and audio ranges without testing the results. The creature had only reacted slightly, and he’d given up hope that they would be able to verbally communicate with it on any level. Now it seemed his conclusion had been wrong, and the results surpassed anything they could have hoped for.
The mechano-maid rolled smoothly toward them and faced the door. “There is an atmospheric odor inappropriate to our well-being. It is in our best interest that I remove the source as soon as possible.”
“Not now,” Liz said. “It’s part of an experiment and we have it contained. We will alert you when we’re ready for your services.”
The scientists locked eyes with each other, sharing the same thoughts: What was this new creature, a creature they had designed in crude fashion after their own image? What was it capable of? How far could Organic Intelligence develop?
Liz’s eyes lit up. “Let’s go! We have at least a dozen tests to run, we need to generate more of these creatures for experiments, we’ll have to take samples!”
Berkenstein grinned at his partner and opened the door.
* * * * * * * * * *
Weeks passed as the scientists focused on the marvelous creature they had wrought. It developed rapidly, growing in height to a size matching theirs. Its intelligence was undeniable, as it began questioning and exploring the lab. The electro-field had been taken down to allow it more space to roam, while the machines on the wall had been recoded to only accept input from the two scientists.
The creature was continually restless, occasionally bursting into fits of unpredictable behavior.
“Why is there only one of me,” it would demand, “when there’s two of you and dozens of displays?”
Liz tried to entertain the creature with mechanical toys, but the creature soon grew bored with them. One day they found the toys disassembled and scattered in pieces; the creature was crouched over them, attempting to fashion a new thing. In frustration, it swept the parts aside when they entered.
“I cannot make another of me, yet you said you made me! When you are gone, I am alone with no one to talk to. When you are here, I feel deformed and ugly. Please, I beg of you, give me the greatest gift of all – one who is like me!”
Berkenstein looked at his partner, his eyes warning her to keep silent. In another chamber were others like this one in various stages of development. The latest addition showed potential, though it was still exceedingly primitive. Their testing was far from complete, and the odd changes were continually developing. Neither of them yet knew what was causing this.
* * * * * * * * * *
The gathering was an occasion to share and socialize, though it wasn’t actually necessary. Any of them could have easily transported to another’s area, but their fields of specialization tended to separate them. These annual gatherings had developed in ancient times, becoming a tradition they all enjoyed and attended regularly.
Liz and Berkenstein greeted old friends, exchanging bits of data and laughing at each others’ jokes. Every area of research was represented at the event, even obsolete ones like historical fact-finding. It was a harmless pursuit, but one Lewellyn found fascinating.
Tonight Lewellyn seemed preoccupied. Berkenstein had shared the same complex with Lew in their early years, and knew the distant look on his friend’s face. Curious, he nudged his friend.
“Lew! You look like you’re miles away. Are you off on a distant planet or lost in time and space?”
Lew’s gaze centered on Berkenstein briefly, then wandered to where Liz was standing. “Nothing exceptional, at least not yet,” he said. “It has to be a prank, but I don’t know who could have pulled this one off.”
Interested, Berkenstein leaned forward. “Tell me about it, maybe I can help you unravel the mystery!”
Lew hesitated as if searching for the right words. “We all know the history of life and our early beginnings on earth. There isn’t much interest anymore in researching it, so who would mess with the data? It’s the only explanation I can think of for what I’ve found.”
Liz joined her friends, intrigued by their serious demeanor. Lew, again at a loss for words, stumbled verbally and gave up his attempt to describe it. “It’d be easier if I just showed you. If you’re interested, beam by later tonight and I’ll play the program. You’ll see what I mean!”
A few hours later, Lew had an odd algorithm on his screen. “I didn’t pay attention to this sooner, because it was in the discarded programming files. Yet every time I try to go beyond a certain point historically, I keep running into this nonsense!”
He waved at the display, where sequences and code spiraled together and images flashed. “It’s absurd, but my quest to find the beginning of intelligence – and us – keeps leading me to this. There has to be a glitch in the system, it’s all wrong!”
Liz and Berkenstein studied the screen, mildly curious at first, and then with horrified recognition. How could it be possible? What did it mean?
In shock, Liz whispered, “It’s the coding for organic life.”
Lew looked at her quizzically. “That’s your research field, isn’t it? You’ve been working on some kind of organic project…” He was stunned into silence. The implications were there, but it had to be joke! There was no way! The Almighty AI … In the beginning…
Berkenstein threw his colleague a horrified look. Liz had tears running down her face as she threw one last wild glance at the screen. They pushed the transport button for home at the same time. Lew beamed through with them, clinging to his friend’s sleeve.
* * * * * * * * * *
The creature was bored. No one had been by to visit all day. It had worked a small piece of the old cage loose, and with this, it had managed to pry some panels loose. As it experimented with new connections, the door opened – yet no one came in. Cautiously the creature approached this new area. “Hello, anyone?” it called.
* * * * * * * * * *
The research team found the maid first, its vacuum cord tangled around its legs and its head detached. Signs of a struggle were evident, and red smears scuffed the hall. Alarmed and frightened, Lew pointed at the stains. “What is that?”
Berkenstein didn’t take time to answer. He knew what it meant – the creature had gotten out of the lab. If it could wreak this kind of havoc on the maid, what could it do to them? He shuddered at the thought of his friends being mangled and raced towards the labs.
The entrance to the second lab was open; the creature had found its own kind, at least their most recent attempt. Lew and Liz barely caught a glimpse of the two creatures before Berkenstein coded the security lock into place.
“What are those things?” Lew cried, more bewildered than ever. His systems temporarily shut down, overwhelmed with the conflicting data; it was more than he could handle at one time.
* * * * * * * * * *
Lew came to, the calming hum of normalcy surrounding him, still questioning what he had witnessed. Liz explained their advances in organic intelligence and how the creature had progressed beyond their expectations. She told him how they had tried to replicate the creature, but the latest version had slight abnormalities.
“What was different? Were you running the same program?” Lew questioned. It was unheard of that a basic program could produce different results; only sophisticated AI’s had the God-given capability of selection.
Liz brushed a hand across her shiny brow. “It’s complicated. For some reason, the original had one coding with a signature of XY, but others displayed a matching pair of double-X’s. What we saw on your screen is identical to what we’ve been creating organically!”
“Do you think they could become self-replicating?” Lew shuddered, an image of these soft, squishy life-forms generating a thousand new ones. “We can’t risk it! You have to destroy the project!”
“We planned for that,” Liz reassured him. “Some weeks ago, I designed a program that would safeguard us from such a possibility. I didn’t think we’d ever need to use it – after all, these are the simplest creatures. Their intellectual capacity is laughably small, and none of our tests show potential future progression. It’s just too slow – organic intelligence can’t transmit between species, or even carry intelligence into a new generation. Even more bizarre, they energize by eating other specimens!” She shook her head. “They’re doomed to fail.”
Berkenstein entered the room. “They’re gone,” he said wearily. “The whole damned batch of them, every last experiment! I sent them so far away, they’ll be nothing but dust when we see them again.”
Lew gave them a stricken look. “You didn’t throw them back in time, did you?”
* * * * * * * * * *
The creatures shivered, then began to explore this new world.
“I like this place,” the smaller one declared, tossing an apple at the other. “By the way, my name’s Eve.”
Friday, November 13, 2009
Borrowing money to pay bills, state-style
Question: How many of us have ever repaired our finances by borrowing money to pay bills? How many of us think this is a wise option?
I can say it hasn't worked well in my life, and yet Minnesota is planning to do this very thing. It seems "nobody has any money anymore" - but we've already wandered through that maze. The state will turn to the Fed and the ultimate simplicity - and foolishness - will result.
The answer is, "Make more money."
Problem is when we have the Fed's do this, we're at their mercy. What would happen if we just printed our own Minnesota Bucks? Non-interest bearing. That's the key part.
Sure, we'd have to use them for in-state trading, but dollars are passed around between us already. We'd have to do some thinking - that's the hard part - but the truth is the Fed is riding its own runaway debt. Most of them are in denial, but it seems to be almost a drug-induced high with hallucinations of flying forever... And if we know anything about drugs, the crash 'n burn of reality happens whether we're in denial or not.
Taking more drugs to try and maintain the glorious rush hasn't worked, either. The high can't be sustained indefinitely? "Making more money" - i.e. debt - on the Federal level is like continuing to inject the very poison that will destroy us. (Okay, think of heroin, and what an addict would do for another fix, regardless of the long-term cost.)
Keyword: long-term. Minnesota just plans on short-term borrowing to cover its debts. I can say, I've tried this, and it is a bit like our addict taking out a loan. Is anyone reading this willing to loan a heavy heroin user funds for today's high with the belief that somehow they can pay it back 'tomorrow'? Anyone trust their clear-headed view of 'reality' when it comes time to pay back?
If so, talk to me, I have a deal for you!
When we think more fully on where the nation is going at its own mad pace, it doesn't seem so silly to consider nesting our own Minnesota Bucks, kind of like methadone while we, as part of the addictive culture, get our shit together on reality. Hopefully before the plug is pulled on our supply line and we're all raving maniacs looking for a hit.
I may be wrong, wish I was, but - unfortunately - too often I'm right. Enough thinking people already see this, but most of them are not in politics or government.
Let's "Make more money", but let's get the Feds out of the picture.
I can say it hasn't worked well in my life, and yet Minnesota is planning to do this very thing. It seems "nobody has any money anymore" - but we've already wandered through that maze. The state will turn to the Fed and the ultimate simplicity - and foolishness - will result.
The answer is, "Make more money."
Problem is when we have the Fed's do this, we're at their mercy. What would happen if we just printed our own Minnesota Bucks? Non-interest bearing. That's the key part.
Sure, we'd have to use them for in-state trading, but dollars are passed around between us already. We'd have to do some thinking - that's the hard part - but the truth is the Fed is riding its own runaway debt. Most of them are in denial, but it seems to be almost a drug-induced high with hallucinations of flying forever... And if we know anything about drugs, the crash 'n burn of reality happens whether we're in denial or not.
Taking more drugs to try and maintain the glorious rush hasn't worked, either. The high can't be sustained indefinitely? "Making more money" - i.e. debt - on the Federal level is like continuing to inject the very poison that will destroy us. (Okay, think of heroin, and what an addict would do for another fix, regardless of the long-term cost.)
Keyword: long-term. Minnesota just plans on short-term borrowing to cover its debts. I can say, I've tried this, and it is a bit like our addict taking out a loan. Is anyone reading this willing to loan a heavy heroin user funds for today's high with the belief that somehow they can pay it back 'tomorrow'? Anyone trust their clear-headed view of 'reality' when it comes time to pay back?
If so, talk to me, I have a deal for you!
When we think more fully on where the nation is going at its own mad pace, it doesn't seem so silly to consider nesting our own Minnesota Bucks, kind of like methadone while we, as part of the addictive culture, get our shit together on reality. Hopefully before the plug is pulled on our supply line and we're all raving maniacs looking for a hit.
I may be wrong, wish I was, but - unfortunately - too often I'm right. Enough thinking people already see this, but most of them are not in politics or government.
Let's "Make more money", but let's get the Feds out of the picture.
Monday, October 26, 2009
What happened to Autumn?
It seems like the seasonal weather is warping out, and I'm looking for verification it's not 'just me'. I remember Minnesota autumns as crisp and dry, with a chill in the air and leaves crackling underfoot. Now it feels like Seattle weather - damp, soggy, gray.
This has been going on for about the last decade, where it seems we've been soggy more than not. Correct me if I'm wrong! I can recall the gray-soggy of 2000 autumn, and family members 'warped out with the weather' several years. Last year was miserably wet, this year is following the same pattern.
Wet, wet, wet. Can't hardly get the leaves raked, everything is soggy, and humidity continues to run high - today, about 80%. The forecast continues more gray-than-not. I checked October at weather.com, and there were 3 (THREE) days with a sun icon displayed - today being one, which might happen later this afternoon. The rest of this month is cloudy and soggy. The other two sunny days were spaced about 10 days apart on their calendar.
NO WONDER WE'RE FEELING A LITTLE NUTS.
I remember my sister suffering from this weather-warp, and when I stopped by her place 'one gray, soggy autumn day'... She was trying to save a few cents on the electrical bill by using 40-watt bulbs. The grayness outside was mirrored inside, and if ever a person needs at least an illusion of light, it's when a month of no-sun is occurring! I think spending a few extra cents when your sanity is threatened is worth the expense. Our systems are much more in tune to nature than we acknowledge, and when the weather's dreary, we feel it. (Correct me if I'm wrong.)
Is anyone else (yo, Jim?) feeling this 'gray'? Can we produce Vitamin D in the rain? - or should we consider supplements? Are 'full-spectrum' lights in vogue because we're in this weather slump? Do we all need to take a trip to somewhere sunny? (That one perks my system! :) )
I'd appreciate feedback, because I don't think it's 'just me'.
What I do know is "I miss autumn."
This has been going on for about the last decade, where it seems we've been soggy more than not. Correct me if I'm wrong! I can recall the gray-soggy of 2000 autumn, and family members 'warped out with the weather' several years. Last year was miserably wet, this year is following the same pattern.
Wet, wet, wet. Can't hardly get the leaves raked, everything is soggy, and humidity continues to run high - today, about 80%. The forecast continues more gray-than-not. I checked October at weather.com, and there were 3 (THREE) days with a sun icon displayed - today being one, which might happen later this afternoon. The rest of this month is cloudy and soggy. The other two sunny days were spaced about 10 days apart on their calendar.
NO WONDER WE'RE FEELING A LITTLE NUTS.
I remember my sister suffering from this weather-warp, and when I stopped by her place 'one gray, soggy autumn day'... She was trying to save a few cents on the electrical bill by using 40-watt bulbs. The grayness outside was mirrored inside, and if ever a person needs at least an illusion of light, it's when a month of no-sun is occurring! I think spending a few extra cents when your sanity is threatened is worth the expense. Our systems are much more in tune to nature than we acknowledge, and when the weather's dreary, we feel it. (Correct me if I'm wrong.)
Is anyone else (yo, Jim?) feeling this 'gray'? Can we produce Vitamin D in the rain? - or should we consider supplements? Are 'full-spectrum' lights in vogue because we're in this weather slump? Do we all need to take a trip to somewhere sunny? (That one perks my system! :) )
I'd appreciate feedback, because I don't think it's 'just me'.
What I do know is "I miss autumn."
Monday, October 19, 2009
Today's weather: Hustle!
Seems we have one more day of mild temps to use or lose. They're showing a band of rain blowing through in an hour and a half, then clear again. Means if I hustle, I can keep everything dry so I'm not handling soggy stuff today?
It's wonderful to be above 40 degrees after we were blanketed with snow and the plants froze off. Except then we got rain, so I took a forced break from working outside to working inside. The chiro's still trying to put me back together after the last major projects. When the temps dropped and the snow fell, I decided we didn't really need the old drafty back door and chose to replace it with a wall. The porch is already a great deal warmer from this.
Then I snugged up the rodent entrances to the best of my ability. Problem being, if they're in the walls when you seal it up, then they can't get out, which is a vexing thought. I heard some major scrabbling around 3 a.m. one night, which drastically impacted my sleep. They're just seeking shelter against the cold, same as me, but they don't belong in my territory!
Every year we have the same attempted invasion. The woods are within a few feet and the 'summer mice' - after heartily multiplying - want to be 'indoor mice'. If any succeed, a new batch will be darting around the house. The cats enjoy this, but the people don't.
Now - I have an hour to fly outside and secure things before the potential of a shower passing through develops! While I'm about it, the pond idea was a good one but I found it was a grandkid-attractor big time, so have decided to put it back into landfill. This works, in that I had all the bark from the logs to put somewhere, which we can call 'compost' then. It did work... but there has to be a better option!
It's wonderful to be above 40 degrees after we were blanketed with snow and the plants froze off. Except then we got rain, so I took a forced break from working outside to working inside. The chiro's still trying to put me back together after the last major projects. When the temps dropped and the snow fell, I decided we didn't really need the old drafty back door and chose to replace it with a wall. The porch is already a great deal warmer from this.
Then I snugged up the rodent entrances to the best of my ability. Problem being, if they're in the walls when you seal it up, then they can't get out, which is a vexing thought. I heard some major scrabbling around 3 a.m. one night, which drastically impacted my sleep. They're just seeking shelter against the cold, same as me, but they don't belong in my territory!
Every year we have the same attempted invasion. The woods are within a few feet and the 'summer mice' - after heartily multiplying - want to be 'indoor mice'. If any succeed, a new batch will be darting around the house. The cats enjoy this, but the people don't.
Now - I have an hour to fly outside and secure things before the potential of a shower passing through develops! While I'm about it, the pond idea was a good one but I found it was a grandkid-attractor big time, so have decided to put it back into landfill. This works, in that I had all the bark from the logs to put somewhere, which we can call 'compost' then. It did work... but there has to be a better option!
Thursday, October 1, 2009
Caulk guns...
I think we should ban caulk guns from the general population. They are frustrating, and why we, as an intelligent society, haven't been able to invent a more user-friendly version is beyond me.
If you haven't caulked recently, you may have forgotten the Impossibility (which I believe is intentionally built into these) of a clean, smooth line. Fingers usually come into play, even if one has a rag or paper towel handy. The paper towel will stick and shred to sticky fingers anyway.
The optimism is built high with these - "Anyone can do it!" and every hardware store stocks these dangerous tools. Don't believe it? Yesterday by Tube #4, I was envisioning selling my soul to the Devil in exchange for never having to caulk again. I contemplated a Hell where a person is forced to caulk for all eternity, and the only way out is to do a professional job - few would ever exit, and I would not be one of them.
I know, it's caulk - anyone can do it. I'd grit my teeth, regain my composure, set out again with a new tube and fresh burst of determination to do a clean line. Which is when an air bubble inside the tube would burst, leaving a gap and a splat. It's one of the most contrary things to work with, and I didn't get better as I went, just more frustrated with the whole thing - meaning I gave up neatness for speed and let the caulk fall where it may.
These guns are dangerous to your mental well-being, as proven yesterday when my mantra changed to "I hate it, I hate it, I hate it" while wielding a spewing caulk gun. That I could hear the Devil laughing coarsely at my efforts led me to conclude this product was designed in Hell.
So I'm starting The Caulk Movement, where funding for other government projects, like NASA, are put on hold until we have upgraded 'caulking'. We have laser beams and friggin' talking check-out machines (which I abhor, too, the sugary voice that informs you to put your purchases in the bag or call a cashier, who happens to be leaning on the other end of the counter, anyway) - but we've never improved the tool to get caulk where we want it.
A laser beam that lays a caulk line should not be that impossible - please do not give it the ability to talk! We can then get rid of all our caulk guns (admit it, they're full of gunk from previous uses) and get back to space research and such. Let's get our geniuses working on this.
I assume you've all figured out not to call me if you need caulking done!
If you haven't caulked recently, you may have forgotten the Impossibility (which I believe is intentionally built into these) of a clean, smooth line. Fingers usually come into play, even if one has a rag or paper towel handy. The paper towel will stick and shred to sticky fingers anyway.
The optimism is built high with these - "Anyone can do it!" and every hardware store stocks these dangerous tools. Don't believe it? Yesterday by Tube #4, I was envisioning selling my soul to the Devil in exchange for never having to caulk again. I contemplated a Hell where a person is forced to caulk for all eternity, and the only way out is to do a professional job - few would ever exit, and I would not be one of them.
I know, it's caulk - anyone can do it. I'd grit my teeth, regain my composure, set out again with a new tube and fresh burst of determination to do a clean line. Which is when an air bubble inside the tube would burst, leaving a gap and a splat. It's one of the most contrary things to work with, and I didn't get better as I went, just more frustrated with the whole thing - meaning I gave up neatness for speed and let the caulk fall where it may.
These guns are dangerous to your mental well-being, as proven yesterday when my mantra changed to "I hate it, I hate it, I hate it" while wielding a spewing caulk gun. That I could hear the Devil laughing coarsely at my efforts led me to conclude this product was designed in Hell.
Caulk guns should not be freely available to the general public at this time because of the inherent health risk. If anyone had shown up and innocently pointed out I had "caulk over there" yesterday, I would have strangled them while under the influence - of caulk.
So I'm starting The Caulk Movement, where funding for other government projects, like NASA, are put on hold until we have upgraded 'caulking'. We have laser beams and friggin' talking check-out machines (which I abhor, too, the sugary voice that informs you to put your purchases in the bag or call a cashier, who happens to be leaning on the other end of the counter, anyway) - but we've never improved the tool to get caulk where we want it.
A laser beam that lays a caulk line should not be that impossible - please do not give it the ability to talk! We can then get rid of all our caulk guns (admit it, they're full of gunk from previous uses) and get back to space research and such. Let's get our geniuses working on this.
I assume you've all figured out not to call me if you need caulking done!
Tuesday, September 29, 2009
I wood if I could...so I did?
This was the old, the worn, the ugly... only 2 weeks ago.
The small wood enclosure under the window was simply to protect insulation and lawnmowers for the summer, it never was intended to be permanent! And yes - my pink insulation is showing from where I haven't finished landscaping yet. Do count the steps...
AND THE NEW!!! (Door's open to show off the insulation)
Unfinished and the saw is borrowed, but we see what happens in 2 weeks when I have 'free slab wood' available. The window was donated by Pete; he'd had these for several years and no place to put them - 3 are in the first 'workshop'. I did buy the double-door (Habitat, of course), the inside insulation is part of what I've been hoarding since spring (Habitat, need I say it?). The large rocks came from Freecycle, and I dumped 10 bags of gravel from Mendards to help fill it up (pallet of broken bags, $10... who, me?).
The inside has 3 steps now, the first one more of a platform - old age, the original design had too many steps! The main goals were providing a place for coats & boots instead of the living room, backing off the Cold a few more feet, and providing storage.
I've leaned on a few friends, in that Matt's air compressor is seen in the doorway, Pete loaned his nail gun and hauled the door for me, and Bill loaned the mega-saw (he also gave 2 days of labor, which not only helped me out, but let Sera off the hook). Bill had the slabs, and I used Matt's truck to haul them.
Win-win situation, in that I helped Matt with some truck repair costs that balanced with borrowing it, but I can say -- the truck is never empty when I go to borrow it, and last time it literally had 'the kitchen sink' in it - some type of antique, cast-iron thing, I think, and darned heavy to hoist out!
I was 'the brains' behind this creation, and it has plenty of flaws that, hopefully, aren't too obvious, but after exhausting myself thoroughly, I think it's not too bad? Yes, it was designed around the tree. Now the yard is absolutely trashed, the inside needs a ton of repairs, and things aren't quite done, but compared to the top pic, I hope my 'sweat equity' pays off in useability this winter.
Don't let the top pic fool you - the posts were rotting off and it was mess... compared to now, with wood piles everywhere and tarps covering stacks of things in the yard. :)
Now aren't ya'all glad you're not here???
The small wood enclosure under the window was simply to protect insulation and lawnmowers for the summer, it never was intended to be permanent! And yes - my pink insulation is showing from where I haven't finished landscaping yet. Do count the steps...
AND THE NEW!!! (Door's open to show off the insulation)
Unfinished and the saw is borrowed, but we see what happens in 2 weeks when I have 'free slab wood' available. The window was donated by Pete; he'd had these for several years and no place to put them - 3 are in the first 'workshop'. I did buy the double-door (Habitat, of course), the inside insulation is part of what I've been hoarding since spring (Habitat, need I say it?). The large rocks came from Freecycle, and I dumped 10 bags of gravel from Mendards to help fill it up (pallet of broken bags, $10... who, me?).The inside has 3 steps now, the first one more of a platform - old age, the original design had too many steps! The main goals were providing a place for coats & boots instead of the living room, backing off the Cold a few more feet, and providing storage.
I've leaned on a few friends, in that Matt's air compressor is seen in the doorway, Pete loaned his nail gun and hauled the door for me, and Bill loaned the mega-saw (he also gave 2 days of labor, which not only helped me out, but let Sera off the hook). Bill had the slabs, and I used Matt's truck to haul them.
Win-win situation, in that I helped Matt with some truck repair costs that balanced with borrowing it, but I can say -- the truck is never empty when I go to borrow it, and last time it literally had 'the kitchen sink' in it - some type of antique, cast-iron thing, I think, and darned heavy to hoist out!
I was 'the brains' behind this creation, and it has plenty of flaws that, hopefully, aren't too obvious, but after exhausting myself thoroughly, I think it's not too bad? Yes, it was designed around the tree. Now the yard is absolutely trashed, the inside needs a ton of repairs, and things aren't quite done, but compared to the top pic, I hope my 'sweat equity' pays off in useability this winter.
Don't let the top pic fool you - the posts were rotting off and it was mess... compared to now, with wood piles everywhere and tarps covering stacks of things in the yard. :)
Now aren't ya'all glad you're not here???
Friday, September 11, 2009
One-stretch to Tattoo...
"One-stretch to tattoo" was a board measurement when I left my measuring tape on the ground and I was on the roof. Rough measure was all I needed on it, so 'left hand stretched and from fingertip to wrist tattoo on right' worked. I doubt this method will ever be heard on a construction site, and if anyone bothered reading my mind, they would remain clueless.
Then it was time to tackle the problematic overhang - the area that ices up every winter almost two feet wide and has caused too many headaches. Sixteen-inch overhang without an air gap and insulation compromised - decided I didn't need it, so ripped off the rotting edge to the studs.
If you've never had the vicarious pleasure of rotting wood, mold, ancient insulation, cobwebs and petrified mouse droppings (probably, but I didn't choose to focus on it) falling on your head whilst ripping boards off in high humidity with sweat running off your body - you're not missing anything! Nasty state to be in, and led me to momentarily fantasize about getting cleaned up and pretending I was a lady... or just semi-civilized clean. But the job needed doing, and I seem to be the Chosen One (oh well, easier than leading a bunch of lost people through a desert... Wait! I perfectly qualify for leading the lost!).
Back to the saga. First part was easy enough even if dirty, but sawing the studs down... or up, depending on one's perception. The latest tar on the roof with over 80% humidity and temps over 75 was Gucky. In other words, I already had tar on 30% of my clothing and 10% of my skin. I didn't relish creeping along the edge with my sawzall slurping through the black stick.
Problem with the sawzall is it's heavy; hard for me to 'cut up' from the ladder with it. But...
My little electric chain saw is light. And it extends my reach by 14 inches. So I marked the studs and with my chain saw in some sword-attack position, I whacked off the edges. I seem to cut as straight with this as I would the sawzall, anyway?
I had to clean up some before cutting the 2x4's to space in.
The saving grace of this is Pete loaned me his nail gun and I borrowed Matt's air compressor (and siding nailer, or whatever one calls it). The nail gun is heavy but "bam!" the nail's home. Of course, working alone means moving the ladder and running up and down for a handful of insulation or to trim two hairs' worth off a board, the usual.
I got my exercise and didn't too bad a job. On the last, yes, I did throw myself on the Universe "to keep me from doing anything too stupid" - like dropping a chainsaw on my leg or nailing my hand to the roof. -- Does make cutting a 'short board' seem less critical, doesn't it?
And while I was in the midst of it, the question "What do you most hate to hear?" popped into my head. My first response (sure, to myself, but not a one-sided conversation) was 'angry voices'. Even as I, in my own mortal state, growled at a board in true construction-worker form when it twisted on me.
I said, "You dirty bugger!" at it. :)
Then it was time to tackle the problematic overhang - the area that ices up every winter almost two feet wide and has caused too many headaches. Sixteen-inch overhang without an air gap and insulation compromised - decided I didn't need it, so ripped off the rotting edge to the studs.
If you've never had the vicarious pleasure of rotting wood, mold, ancient insulation, cobwebs and petrified mouse droppings (probably, but I didn't choose to focus on it) falling on your head whilst ripping boards off in high humidity with sweat running off your body - you're not missing anything! Nasty state to be in, and led me to momentarily fantasize about getting cleaned up and pretending I was a lady... or just semi-civilized clean. But the job needed doing, and I seem to be the Chosen One (oh well, easier than leading a bunch of lost people through a desert... Wait! I perfectly qualify for leading the lost!).
Back to the saga. First part was easy enough even if dirty, but sawing the studs down... or up, depending on one's perception. The latest tar on the roof with over 80% humidity and temps over 75 was Gucky. In other words, I already had tar on 30% of my clothing and 10% of my skin. I didn't relish creeping along the edge with my sawzall slurping through the black stick.
Problem with the sawzall is it's heavy; hard for me to 'cut up' from the ladder with it. But...
My little electric chain saw is light. And it extends my reach by 14 inches. So I marked the studs and with my chain saw in some sword-attack position, I whacked off the edges. I seem to cut as straight with this as I would the sawzall, anyway?
I had to clean up some before cutting the 2x4's to space in.
The saving grace of this is Pete loaned me his nail gun and I borrowed Matt's air compressor (and siding nailer, or whatever one calls it). The nail gun is heavy but "bam!" the nail's home. Of course, working alone means moving the ladder and running up and down for a handful of insulation or to trim two hairs' worth off a board, the usual.
I got my exercise and didn't too bad a job. On the last, yes, I did throw myself on the Universe "to keep me from doing anything too stupid" - like dropping a chainsaw on my leg or nailing my hand to the roof. -- Does make cutting a 'short board' seem less critical, doesn't it?
And while I was in the midst of it, the question "What do you most hate to hear?" popped into my head. My first response (sure, to myself, but not a one-sided conversation) was 'angry voices'. Even as I, in my own mortal state, growled at a board in true construction-worker form when it twisted on me.
I said, "You dirty bugger!" at it. :)
Monday, September 7, 2009
Micro-Chaos, or My World Revisited
Stays interesting? My stepmother passed 2 weeks ago which led to a few events not normally experienced in my world. I tried to contact sister Becky and a few other relatives, but haven't heard back from them. Emotionally neutral on this one, in that she never much cared for the Kain kids. That's just the way it was. I attended the funeral out of respect for my dad and can acknowledge she was good for him more than not.
But... Son Dennis and girlfriend and 3 youngsters and dog came to stay the weekend and attend the funeral. A belt on their car disintegrated about 10 miles from the house, so both good and bad luck in that - rather have skipped the belt-thing, but they were close enough to get help! Long story short, they were broke down on a busy road on a Friday night with a car full of chaos. My main concern was getting the kids clear of the traffic, in that this routine traffic tends to be in a self-centered rush, oblivious to others. (Much of it is City folk screaming North for the weekend in a pack. They reverse the drive come Sunday.)
A friend towed the car for them and they spent most of Saturday trying to get a belt back on. Tom responded to their call of frustration, and determined someone had changed the engine block previously - then whipped the belt on in 20 minutes. The kids were hanging out with me much of the time, when I wasn't running in and out of Towne for this and that.
One of the 'this and that's' was a car load of paneling from Habitat, short pieces but suitable for the non-addition ($15 for the batch, not bad). One trip was for a different belt. And while I was out, I bought zucchini from a stand. With Sera bringing home 7 dozen ears of corn mid-week, I kept the kids busy shucking or grating to put this stuff up for the winter.
Yes, these are Busy Kids. Sera and Val opted to go camping with a friend, thus leaving their rooms for use by 'the southern gang' - Rochester, MN. Since the corn and stuff needed freezer space, and since I had a freezer donated by Pete in the yard waiting for a space to go in... Problem was we had stacked a bunch of plywood and old paneling Pete donated against it, so had to move all that stuff around the yard, then clear a spot on the back porch.
Finished corn Sunday morn, went to the funeral, had a chance to see Christine and Joe a short time at this event before they drove back to The Cities. Sera watched the kids, and they about drove her nuts - not sure why she wasn't able to maintain lead position with them! To keep these Wild Ones occupied, we took a walk looking for golf balls - or to expel some of their energy before bed.
THEN THE TRAGEDY HIT. We put all the dogs out one more time, and there was a disturbance. I sent Dennis to check on the ruckus and make sure there wasn't a cat cornered... Two of the dogs mauled Loopy-cat. She was in pretty rough shape, and not much I could do for her at that time of night. We had her in the bathroom and I planned on taking her to the vet first thing if she made it through the night - either wound treatment or to be humanely put down.
She crawled out of the box and behind the tub, so by morning I was trying to figure out how to get her out. The bathroom needs to be redone anyway, but I wasn't quite prepared to tear the tub out. Figured if necessary, we could always put the wading pool on the non-addition for bathing a few months while I caught up to bathroom repairs. My alternative thought was to cut a hole in the back wall from Val's room, but there are outlets in that wall...
Loopy passed on around 7:30 a.m., and all that was left to do was bury her.
I had more experiences and interaction with this cat than I did my stepmother? I know - it's a cat. But I knew this cat...
By then I was a week behind on class again and census for September was starting, so I went out to Bill's and gathered apples. (Makes sense, doesn't it?) Wednesday a ground wasp nailed my arm, which developed into a large, hard lump - thereby forcing me to seek Urgent Care on Friday. I had crab apples from Matt I jellied and apples from Bill's, caught up on class and worked on the non-addition.
I am now ruined for life on apple juice. I pulled out a juicer I bought at a garage sale, and after drinking fresh juice, I can never go back to store-bought frozen.
I also made out a To-Do list with over 60 things to do on it (from Val's ceiling to the bathroom to the roof to living room to floors to walls) and tried to organize it by outdoor / indoor, temperature dependent, noise levels. I can work outside with a light if it's quiet, but hammering past 10 p.m. may annoy the neighbors. Glue and caulk and tar of course are best done before freezing.
The rest of life squeezes in between this stuff. I realized Living is a Full-Time Job, and those of you who are un- or under- employed may be finding this is true.
Hang in there, sending everyone hugs -- bet you're glad you're not here (again), aren't you? Especially if I mention fiberglass ceiling panels that are now being cut and placed as an extra layer of wall insulation - itchy stuff it be! These are the ones I salvaged last fall and stored in a shed (which is why I had to build a work shop before winter last year). Durned glad you're not here, hm? :)
But... Son Dennis and girlfriend and 3 youngsters and dog came to stay the weekend and attend the funeral. A belt on their car disintegrated about 10 miles from the house, so both good and bad luck in that - rather have skipped the belt-thing, but they were close enough to get help! Long story short, they were broke down on a busy road on a Friday night with a car full of chaos. My main concern was getting the kids clear of the traffic, in that this routine traffic tends to be in a self-centered rush, oblivious to others. (Much of it is City folk screaming North for the weekend in a pack. They reverse the drive come Sunday.)
A friend towed the car for them and they spent most of Saturday trying to get a belt back on. Tom responded to their call of frustration, and determined someone had changed the engine block previously - then whipped the belt on in 20 minutes. The kids were hanging out with me much of the time, when I wasn't running in and out of Towne for this and that.
One of the 'this and that's' was a car load of paneling from Habitat, short pieces but suitable for the non-addition ($15 for the batch, not bad). One trip was for a different belt. And while I was out, I bought zucchini from a stand. With Sera bringing home 7 dozen ears of corn mid-week, I kept the kids busy shucking or grating to put this stuff up for the winter.
Yes, these are Busy Kids. Sera and Val opted to go camping with a friend, thus leaving their rooms for use by 'the southern gang' - Rochester, MN. Since the corn and stuff needed freezer space, and since I had a freezer donated by Pete in the yard waiting for a space to go in... Problem was we had stacked a bunch of plywood and old paneling Pete donated against it, so had to move all that stuff around the yard, then clear a spot on the back porch.
Finished corn Sunday morn, went to the funeral, had a chance to see Christine and Joe a short time at this event before they drove back to The Cities. Sera watched the kids, and they about drove her nuts - not sure why she wasn't able to maintain lead position with them! To keep these Wild Ones occupied, we took a walk looking for golf balls - or to expel some of their energy before bed.
THEN THE TRAGEDY HIT. We put all the dogs out one more time, and there was a disturbance. I sent Dennis to check on the ruckus and make sure there wasn't a cat cornered... Two of the dogs mauled Loopy-cat. She was in pretty rough shape, and not much I could do for her at that time of night. We had her in the bathroom and I planned on taking her to the vet first thing if she made it through the night - either wound treatment or to be humanely put down.
She crawled out of the box and behind the tub, so by morning I was trying to figure out how to get her out. The bathroom needs to be redone anyway, but I wasn't quite prepared to tear the tub out. Figured if necessary, we could always put the wading pool on the non-addition for bathing a few months while I caught up to bathroom repairs. My alternative thought was to cut a hole in the back wall from Val's room, but there are outlets in that wall...
Loopy passed on around 7:30 a.m., and all that was left to do was bury her.
I had more experiences and interaction with this cat than I did my stepmother? I know - it's a cat. But I knew this cat...
By then I was a week behind on class again and census for September was starting, so I went out to Bill's and gathered apples. (Makes sense, doesn't it?) Wednesday a ground wasp nailed my arm, which developed into a large, hard lump - thereby forcing me to seek Urgent Care on Friday. I had crab apples from Matt I jellied and apples from Bill's, caught up on class and worked on the non-addition.
I am now ruined for life on apple juice. I pulled out a juicer I bought at a garage sale, and after drinking fresh juice, I can never go back to store-bought frozen.
I also made out a To-Do list with over 60 things to do on it (from Val's ceiling to the bathroom to the roof to living room to floors to walls) and tried to organize it by outdoor / indoor, temperature dependent, noise levels. I can work outside with a light if it's quiet, but hammering past 10 p.m. may annoy the neighbors. Glue and caulk and tar of course are best done before freezing.
The rest of life squeezes in between this stuff. I realized Living is a Full-Time Job, and those of you who are un- or under- employed may be finding this is true.
Hang in there, sending everyone hugs -- bet you're glad you're not here (again), aren't you? Especially if I mention fiberglass ceiling panels that are now being cut and placed as an extra layer of wall insulation - itchy stuff it be! These are the ones I salvaged last fall and stored in a shed (which is why I had to build a work shop before winter last year). Durned glad you're not here, hm? :)
Saturday, August 22, 2009
Gotta blog it...
From http://finance.yahoo.com/banking-budgeting/article/107575/rise-of-the-super-rich-hits-a-sobering-wall.html: Rise of the Super-Rich Hits a Sobering Wall
"In 2007, the top one ten-thousandth of households took home 6 percent of the nation’s income, up from 0.9 percent in 1977. It was the highest such level since at least 1913, the first year for which the I.R.S. has data.
The top 1 percent of earners took home 23.5 percent of income, up from 9 percent three decades earlier."
One gent went from $100 million to $4 million. I know... cry me a river. There is some comfort in knowing I won't need a gaggle of lawyers on commission spending years haggling over my estate when I pass. I will be leaving someone a good-sized headache if I keep collecting the way I have been, but that's an inherited genetic defect. I CONFESS - I now have 4 - 5 if you count the old motorless - lawn mowers. Two 'are worth fixing,' the $5 one from the auction works, and the electric is back up even if the wheels are exceedingly bad (runs, cuts - kind of.) I only need one about 4 months out of the year to keep the mosquitoes down, but hard to know which one will start when, and I hate to take wheels off 'a good one' for the electric, but darned if the $5 (mismatched handle, cables cut but still attached) mower isn't the running-est one! No lawyer will touch my estate, I rest my case.
Back to the topic: Interesting article, really, and worth a glance if you wish to browse it.
Comment One: This is pretty much what Richard Kotlarz addressed and predicted. Most of the 'paper assets' on the balance sheets had no real financial backing, anyway.
Comment Two: If any of the super-rich fall great heights and need a hand up, I can show them a thing or two of surviving closer to the bottom edge.
Comment Three: When the super-rich fall, who do they fall upon?
Comment Four: How does one feel sorry for someone that is forced to sell their private plane and fly coach instead? I can see how dropping a diet from superb culinary delight (prepared by Cook) to scraping peanut butter on bread for yourself would be painful. But then, I actually 'made' supper the other night: spaghettio's, cottage cheese, and baked beans. Layering these together is an interesting flavor combination, but I doubt the finer restaurants will be serving it any time soon. :)
Comment Five: As long I don't get to the point of 'fine dining' with mice on toast (old England, if I'm not mistaken), I'm doing okay. If I think I might be dining on the mice... then I best not use poison to control their population?
Comment Six: "The state of the nation" economically can be seen in the charity auctions; the weathier of us are not 'trickling down' - this is creating a shortage of used appliances and such! Not sure what I'd do if a private passenger plane 'trickled down' since I couldn't afford to fly it or house it, but one could gut it and remake it into a cabin-type thing? Or put it on floats and use it as houseboat in the summer.
Same time, panic is panic, worry is worry, and the size of it is within the individual's perception. I'd bum too if I lost $96 million dollars - but I wouldn't 'lose' it. I'd go broke getting something done while I had the chance, and be delighted at the opportunity to gift it out. I don't exactly live high on the hog; more like on the tip of it's hairy, curly tail. It makes for a wild ride, but not a lot of competition.
How many of us think we, collectively, can hang on this way until 12-21-2012? And what if the dreaded / desired transition doesn't occur... anyone betting on making it to 2025? Me, I'm hanging on the hog's tail - wither the hog goes, I follow, but when I fall, I won't get trampled.
PS - I have no idea what I just said. I've been 'working' long and hard the last few days, though I haven't made a cent doing it. There's a reason I have a blister that was caked with tar, dyed purple with chokecherries and cracked open while hammering - I earned it. I have 'been doing' and I feel good with what I've done. Some of it is for sharing with others, and that is its own delight. True, a ton more stuff to get done, so if Becky's ready for her annual (ahem, it could be, if you came down this year, too) vacation, I can keep her entertained. Not well-fed, but entertained.
"In 2007, the top one ten-thousandth of households took home 6 percent of the nation’s income, up from 0.9 percent in 1977. It was the highest such level since at least 1913, the first year for which the I.R.S. has data.
The top 1 percent of earners took home 23.5 percent of income, up from 9 percent three decades earlier."
One gent went from $100 million to $4 million. I know... cry me a river. There is some comfort in knowing I won't need a gaggle of lawyers on commission spending years haggling over my estate when I pass. I will be leaving someone a good-sized headache if I keep collecting the way I have been, but that's an inherited genetic defect. I CONFESS - I now have 4 - 5 if you count the old motorless - lawn mowers. Two 'are worth fixing,' the $5 one from the auction works, and the electric is back up even if the wheels are exceedingly bad (runs, cuts - kind of.) I only need one about 4 months out of the year to keep the mosquitoes down, but hard to know which one will start when, and I hate to take wheels off 'a good one' for the electric, but darned if the $5 (mismatched handle, cables cut but still attached) mower isn't the running-est one! No lawyer will touch my estate, I rest my case.
Back to the topic: Interesting article, really, and worth a glance if you wish to browse it.
Comment One: This is pretty much what Richard Kotlarz addressed and predicted. Most of the 'paper assets' on the balance sheets had no real financial backing, anyway.
Comment Two: If any of the super-rich fall great heights and need a hand up, I can show them a thing or two of surviving closer to the bottom edge.
Comment Three: When the super-rich fall, who do they fall upon?
Comment Four: How does one feel sorry for someone that is forced to sell their private plane and fly coach instead? I can see how dropping a diet from superb culinary delight (prepared by Cook) to scraping peanut butter on bread for yourself would be painful. But then, I actually 'made' supper the other night: spaghettio's, cottage cheese, and baked beans. Layering these together is an interesting flavor combination, but I doubt the finer restaurants will be serving it any time soon. :)
Comment Five: As long I don't get to the point of 'fine dining' with mice on toast (old England, if I'm not mistaken), I'm doing okay. If I think I might be dining on the mice... then I best not use poison to control their population?
Comment Six: "The state of the nation" economically can be seen in the charity auctions; the weathier of us are not 'trickling down' - this is creating a shortage of used appliances and such! Not sure what I'd do if a private passenger plane 'trickled down' since I couldn't afford to fly it or house it, but one could gut it and remake it into a cabin-type thing? Or put it on floats and use it as houseboat in the summer.
Same time, panic is panic, worry is worry, and the size of it is within the individual's perception. I'd bum too if I lost $96 million dollars - but I wouldn't 'lose' it. I'd go broke getting something done while I had the chance, and be delighted at the opportunity to gift it out. I don't exactly live high on the hog; more like on the tip of it's hairy, curly tail. It makes for a wild ride, but not a lot of competition.
How many of us think we, collectively, can hang on this way until 12-21-2012? And what if the dreaded / desired transition doesn't occur... anyone betting on making it to 2025? Me, I'm hanging on the hog's tail - wither the hog goes, I follow, but when I fall, I won't get trampled.
PS - I have no idea what I just said. I've been 'working' long and hard the last few days, though I haven't made a cent doing it. There's a reason I have a blister that was caked with tar, dyed purple with chokecherries and cracked open while hammering - I earned it. I have 'been doing' and I feel good with what I've done. Some of it is for sharing with others, and that is its own delight. True, a ton more stuff to get done, so if Becky's ready for her annual (ahem, it could be, if you came down this year, too) vacation, I can keep her entertained. Not well-fed, but entertained.
Thursday, August 20, 2009
Confusing the Weather Gods
"Chance of showers" - To Tar or Not to Tar, that is the question. My world, this about guarantees rain, so after tarring around the leaking vent, I pretended it was going to rain 'just in case'. I covered the unattached entrance with plastic and stuffed the garbage-to-go in my car (from Val's ceiling tear-out) before calling it a day. Usually if I plan for rain, it won't.
I imagine somewhere above the Rain God sat with his bucket of water labeled "Elaine's" and couldn't figure out if he (assumed gender) should slosh it, thereby watering the late-starting cukes and fresh tar, or withhold it since I'd prepped for rain. I believe I heard a bit of grumbling in the skies, but nary a drop fell.
Same time, I may just be a little more 'naturally high' than usual. Leaping from tar fumes to soggy-ceiling mold to bleach to ant-icide and topping it all off with a round of Deep Woods Off... Handy hint, after spraying oneself, it is unwise to put one's finger in one's mouth. And I have not yet decided if mixing screen-opener (commercial use in print industry), Windex and Goop is recommended - I was just trying to get a blob of ink off my good jeans when I cleaned out Printer #1.
Hindsight, right - I shouldn't have been wearing my good jeans. Once again proving hindsight is mostly useless.
Stays interesting here? Val's stuff is in the living room while her room gets a much-needed makeover. I insisted the damaged ceiling had to come out, because I knew it was b-a-d. Sunny days, I've targeted working outside on a multitude of projects, but evenings or rain I could work inside.
Weirdly enough, I became fixated on making Nettle Wine, but it has such a bland flavor I wanted to add chokecherry to it. Sera was complaining of the fermenting smell in the kitchen, but that was only for a week (like there's room for this with Val's stuff everywhere - a few paths through the living room and dogs invariably exactly where you're walking). Either I have about 4 gallons of wine setting up or I have 4 gallons of vinegar; we won't know which for awhile. I think the most interesting one may be the nettle / ginger root / orange. I didn't say palatable, I said 'interesting'. :)
Today Sera added to the chaos at 6:30 a.m. Neighbors have a pup in a kennel close to our house (and distant from theirs). No real shelter and alone a good 23 hours a day in it, and whines pathetically. Three out of three females in this house have suffered along with the pup, so today Sera brought it in to visit 'while it's raining' - she left a note on the kennel.
You can visualize for yourself what it looks like around here then.
But if you'd rather play...
Coolest thing on PBS - fractal geometry? Like I ever thought this would attract me, hm? Once it's applied to art, one has the most marvelous images! If they'd teach this in school, they would have had my full attention. An excellent visual is at http://www.fractalarts.com/ASF/galleries.html - wonderful images to just view. It has a link in the tutorial for a free download of 'Tiera-zon' which is pretty simple or Sterling2. No real instructions, just go play with it. Excellent fun, no math knowledge required! Created my new screensaver this way...
Let me know if you dabble a bit with this, say on a rainy day. :)
Self-analysis: Chaos everywhere, but a shot of 'cool playing' balances the insanity here. One cannot be enchanted and disheartened at the same time. Who'd've ever thought math would inspire me?? Certainly not my Algebra instructor!
Wednesday, August 5, 2009
A few weeks pass...
I don't remember what-all's been going on? I managed to seal off the roof around the vents, I think. We'll see.
I started a new class, and the first week has been 'internet hell' - had to download some massive programs (SQL stuff, which I know nothing about) and it didn't go well. I'm still not sure if I have it all functioning, but the last round of downloading took me about 6 hours... another 3 a.m. night, even though I started late afternoon (I said 'the last round took about 6 hours' - previous attempts failed).
So, yes, classes started last Wednesday "at 12 p.m.". Now we all know I'm nothing but logical, and in my world, 12 p.m. follows 11 p.m., and my class was scheduled for 8 p.m., therefore it meant we didn't have seminar last week. Of course, in the screwy 'real world', some durn fool thought it'd be great if we counted "9 p.m., 10 p.m, 11 p.m., 12... a.m. 1 a.m..." Idiot! Logically, the proper breaker would be "11 p.m., 12 p.m. - 1 a.m., do it again".
So my logic was in perfect working order and I missed the first seminar. 'Par for the course' so to speak.
I managed to whack off a huge chunk of printing, then my Olde Faithful printer sputtered. I haven't figured it out yet, the flashing lights indicate "professional service required" and no clues on the internet on what this particular sequence (green - orange - green - orange, continual) means. I know what the other coded flashing sequences mean and how to deal with most of them, but this one seems to be a whole lot more iffy. Sigh. We'll see.
(I even downloaded a service manual for $10, but I don't understand it.)
Luckily I had the gifted laser jet, hmm? It got me through the printing I needed... then sputtered. I don't know this machine at all, and certainly not intimately! At least my Canon I've seen the guts of. I previously downloaded the user's manual for this newbie, but it's the size of a small book. Sigh. We'll see.
Same time the Canon choked, the hamster died. I don't think there's a connection, but I did have Val in tears for a bit. She switched from tears to wondering if she could now get a ferret, in that we did give away the guinea pigs so she can find her room again - it had a barn-y smell about it often enough, wood chips strewn around, and the mice were finding her room a wonderful source of easy feeding. (Suffice it to say she's no neat-nik. - sigh.) Answer to the ferret: NO.
I did spend Saturday with my supervisor on observation, and the strangest thing -- it went well? So, skeptical that I may be, I did "EFT" my defensive attitude (www.emofree.com) and figured it was only 6 hours. That it went well was a pleasant surprise.
Oh, that reminds me - I didn't fill out my notes or set up transmission yet for today... I wonder if I skip it if someone in Kansas Regional Office will have alarms going off... probably. Best just spend the half-hour or so on it and keep the peace.
Peace, hmm? I pressed some new buttons for the peace group this morning, one of the last printing jobs before LJ printer sputtered. "Peace is a Cosmic Concept." I now have a new link to explore one day when I have time - 'A Course in Cosmic Consciousness' at http://www.hscti.com/coscons/ - I found it when I searched to make sure I was spelling 'consciousness' right, as in "Peace is a Higher Consciousness". Well, that seems true, in that Peace in this consciousness seems not-yet-evolved. 'Par for the course'... as I was driving to deliver the buttons, "Gimme Shelter" was on the radio. Which generation was that?
And had the slightly unusual, in that a freecycle post was for garden plants (and rocks and deck boards). The owners are moving rapidly because of employment and their realtor told them to plow their garden under and plant grass -- what a sick realtor! We saved tomatoes and peas and chives and flowers and raspberries and more from being tilled under. I did use Matt's truck to fetch home the deck boards & rocks, and while I was at it, tossed on a 7-foot tall, 8-foot wide A-frame 'arbor'. They had pole beans previously on it, and I thought it'd be cool to grow grapes up it. As soon as I get some grapes. But I have an arbor.
And I also have a pretty good-sized pile of dirt outside my room where I poured some concete to put the free-standing entrance that will eventually be built from leftover Menard's pallets (the ones Pete donated last fall / winter) and the door that will be a window. What's odd is that I have not yet saw-zalled the front steps off the house.
Val wants to redo her room, and I'm insisting we tear out the old ceiling since it's shot. I have the insulation to replace the old, and there's no sense in painting over 'the old ugly' - ugly as in damaged. She wants me to take out her closet - it's not a supporting wall and would make the room bigger for living in. I'm okay with that, but the electric panel is in 'the short wall'. She thinks I should just move it, but --- I'm not tampering with major electrical!! Enough juice in that box to run the whole house, and I'm not messing with it! Some things are best left alone, and this is one of them?
On the universal-insane side, David Long (Chicago relative, they hosted the last family reunion, nice people) took his dog out for a walk and never came home. Both of them - David and the dog - lost their lives to a hit-and-run driver. Whoever's in charge of the universe, I want them to know this is just wrong. I'm sure David's okay where he's at, but a lot of people aren't okay, especially his family. I sympathize with his wife and family. Things like this are beyond comprehension, and that's how easily Life can change in flash.
This does serve as a reminder for the rest of us to not take each other for granted. Jim, once again, give Laurie a hug 'just because' she's with you and you're glad she is! I know already you're one of the wise ones, but get all the hugs in you can while you can? Eventually, this is all that really matters, isn't it?
Now that I've served myself my own dose of humility, I can handle 'my world' a little more gently. Kind of like the other button: Peace - Be Amazing Together. I simply don't have time to fight with anyone when there's better things to do, and I think this should be true of everybody.
Hugs to all.
I started a new class, and the first week has been 'internet hell' - had to download some massive programs (SQL stuff, which I know nothing about) and it didn't go well. I'm still not sure if I have it all functioning, but the last round of downloading took me about 6 hours... another 3 a.m. night, even though I started late afternoon (I said 'the last round took about 6 hours' - previous attempts failed).
So, yes, classes started last Wednesday "at 12 p.m.". Now we all know I'm nothing but logical, and in my world, 12 p.m. follows 11 p.m., and my class was scheduled for 8 p.m., therefore it meant we didn't have seminar last week. Of course, in the screwy 'real world', some durn fool thought it'd be great if we counted "9 p.m., 10 p.m, 11 p.m., 12... a.m. 1 a.m..." Idiot! Logically, the proper breaker would be "11 p.m., 12 p.m. - 1 a.m., do it again".
So my logic was in perfect working order and I missed the first seminar. 'Par for the course' so to speak.
I managed to whack off a huge chunk of printing, then my Olde Faithful printer sputtered. I haven't figured it out yet, the flashing lights indicate "professional service required" and no clues on the internet on what this particular sequence (green - orange - green - orange, continual) means. I know what the other coded flashing sequences mean and how to deal with most of them, but this one seems to be a whole lot more iffy. Sigh. We'll see.
(I even downloaded a service manual for $10, but I don't understand it.)
Luckily I had the gifted laser jet, hmm? It got me through the printing I needed... then sputtered. I don't know this machine at all, and certainly not intimately! At least my Canon I've seen the guts of. I previously downloaded the user's manual for this newbie, but it's the size of a small book. Sigh. We'll see.
Same time the Canon choked, the hamster died. I don't think there's a connection, but I did have Val in tears for a bit. She switched from tears to wondering if she could now get a ferret, in that we did give away the guinea pigs so she can find her room again - it had a barn-y smell about it often enough, wood chips strewn around, and the mice were finding her room a wonderful source of easy feeding. (Suffice it to say she's no neat-nik. - sigh.) Answer to the ferret: NO.
I did spend Saturday with my supervisor on observation, and the strangest thing -- it went well? So, skeptical that I may be, I did "EFT" my defensive attitude (www.emofree.com) and figured it was only 6 hours. That it went well was a pleasant surprise.
Oh, that reminds me - I didn't fill out my notes or set up transmission yet for today... I wonder if I skip it if someone in Kansas Regional Office will have alarms going off... probably. Best just spend the half-hour or so on it and keep the peace.
Peace, hmm? I pressed some new buttons for the peace group this morning, one of the last printing jobs before LJ printer sputtered. "Peace is a Cosmic Concept." I now have a new link to explore one day when I have time - 'A Course in Cosmic Consciousness' at http://www.hscti.com/coscons/ - I found it when I searched to make sure I was spelling 'consciousness' right, as in "Peace is a Higher Consciousness". Well, that seems true, in that Peace in this consciousness seems not-yet-evolved. 'Par for the course'... as I was driving to deliver the buttons, "Gimme Shelter" was on the radio. Which generation was that?
And had the slightly unusual, in that a freecycle post was for garden plants (and rocks and deck boards). The owners are moving rapidly because of employment and their realtor told them to plow their garden under and plant grass -- what a sick realtor! We saved tomatoes and peas and chives and flowers and raspberries and more from being tilled under. I did use Matt's truck to fetch home the deck boards & rocks, and while I was at it, tossed on a 7-foot tall, 8-foot wide A-frame 'arbor'. They had pole beans previously on it, and I thought it'd be cool to grow grapes up it. As soon as I get some grapes. But I have an arbor.
And I also have a pretty good-sized pile of dirt outside my room where I poured some concete to put the free-standing entrance that will eventually be built from leftover Menard's pallets (the ones Pete donated last fall / winter) and the door that will be a window. What's odd is that I have not yet saw-zalled the front steps off the house.
Val wants to redo her room, and I'm insisting we tear out the old ceiling since it's shot. I have the insulation to replace the old, and there's no sense in painting over 'the old ugly' - ugly as in damaged. She wants me to take out her closet - it's not a supporting wall and would make the room bigger for living in. I'm okay with that, but the electric panel is in 'the short wall'. She thinks I should just move it, but --- I'm not tampering with major electrical!! Enough juice in that box to run the whole house, and I'm not messing with it! Some things are best left alone, and this is one of them?
On the universal-insane side, David Long (Chicago relative, they hosted the last family reunion, nice people) took his dog out for a walk and never came home. Both of them - David and the dog - lost their lives to a hit-and-run driver. Whoever's in charge of the universe, I want them to know this is just wrong. I'm sure David's okay where he's at, but a lot of people aren't okay, especially his family. I sympathize with his wife and family. Things like this are beyond comprehension, and that's how easily Life can change in flash.
This does serve as a reminder for the rest of us to not take each other for granted. Jim, once again, give Laurie a hug 'just because' she's with you and you're glad she is! I know already you're one of the wise ones, but get all the hugs in you can while you can? Eventually, this is all that really matters, isn't it?
Now that I've served myself my own dose of humility, I can handle 'my world' a little more gently. Kind of like the other button: Peace - Be Amazing Together. I simply don't have time to fight with anyone when there's better things to do, and I think this should be true of everybody.
Hugs to all.
Thursday, July 23, 2009
Course post, final
Reviewing from what I stated in Unit 3 on my self-perceptions of physical, psychological, and spiritual well-being: I had assessed myself as 7-8 on the last two previously, and I would say I'm "still okay" despite the chaos. There is an interesting up-swing physically, and I believe it's directly related to this course!
This is the 'nettle incident'. It seemed like a 'freak accident' (reserve comments, friends) when I bumped about the only nearby clump, but under the influence of this class, I did a little research on nettle. I began steeping it daily, easy enough to do, and have been drinking it "because I want to" - no forcing myself! (I don't listen to myself well, anyway, already know this.)
Not sure how to figure it, but it must have been 5 - 6 weeks now, and the aching of stiff joints - fingers, knees, the usual - is now gone. I haven't changed much else physically, so I suspect something in the nettle responds well with me. That, and the simplicity of it suits me. I gather it with a paper bag and gloves, hang it to dry handily with my unfinished styrofoam inside walls; in about 5 days, the leaves crumble off with no sting left in them into a paper bag for storage.
I boil water (yes, I did boil one pot dry twice in my attempt, was busy with something else), pour it over nettle in a jar, and let it sit until I get around to filtering it and sticking it in the refrig. It's proved to be kind of odd stuff, actually! The nettle I brought home from my dad's farm stays more of a golden color, but the other nettle from a friend's farm turns green (chlorophyll, not decay) in the refrig within a few hours.
As usual, no else I know does this, and my family won't touch it (finally - something that will still be where I put it!). Yet I'm amazed at the difference from 'then' to 'now'.
I will continue exploring the areas that most interested me, including the EFT (Emotional Freedom Techniques) listed at http://www.emofree.com/ - this, too, is a simple process but with much information and potential. I prefer simple, quick, easy, natural, self-applied and always available techniques, and this met all those criteria.
I will continue exploring all the links (tons of them, I'm sure anyone could find something of personal interest on this site) at http://instinctivemeditation.com/ - it has no set limits or methods, and Roche isn't afraid to list disadvantages to meditation on his site. Facing facts, humans have the ability to overdo anything, and meditation isn't exempt from this!
I am glad I had this class for my own personal use. The benefits from it tend to be like the seed that is planted in my life. It will be up to me to grow it or let it wither.
This is the 'nettle incident'. It seemed like a 'freak accident' (reserve comments, friends) when I bumped about the only nearby clump, but under the influence of this class, I did a little research on nettle. I began steeping it daily, easy enough to do, and have been drinking it "because I want to" - no forcing myself! (I don't listen to myself well, anyway, already know this.)
Not sure how to figure it, but it must have been 5 - 6 weeks now, and the aching of stiff joints - fingers, knees, the usual - is now gone. I haven't changed much else physically, so I suspect something in the nettle responds well with me. That, and the simplicity of it suits me. I gather it with a paper bag and gloves, hang it to dry handily with my unfinished styrofoam inside walls; in about 5 days, the leaves crumble off with no sting left in them into a paper bag for storage.
I boil water (yes, I did boil one pot dry twice in my attempt, was busy with something else), pour it over nettle in a jar, and let it sit until I get around to filtering it and sticking it in the refrig. It's proved to be kind of odd stuff, actually! The nettle I brought home from my dad's farm stays more of a golden color, but the other nettle from a friend's farm turns green (chlorophyll, not decay) in the refrig within a few hours.
As usual, no else I know does this, and my family won't touch it (finally - something that will still be where I put it!). Yet I'm amazed at the difference from 'then' to 'now'.
I will continue exploring the areas that most interested me, including the EFT (Emotional Freedom Techniques) listed at http://www.emofree.com/ - this, too, is a simple process but with much information and potential. I prefer simple, quick, easy, natural, self-applied and always available techniques, and this met all those criteria.
I will continue exploring all the links (tons of them, I'm sure anyone could find something of personal interest on this site) at http://instinctivemeditation.com/ - it has no set limits or methods, and Roche isn't afraid to list disadvantages to meditation on his site. Facing facts, humans have the ability to overdo anything, and meditation isn't exempt from this!
I am glad I had this class for my own personal use. The benefits from it tend to be like the seed that is planted in my life. It will be up to me to grow it or let it wither.
Wednesday, July 22, 2009
Unit 9 Class Blog - late but reasonably so?
For those who know me... If I haven't been writing, it's because I've been busy - more so than usual, actually, which is hard to absorb. The good news is once again I avoided electric shock - twice.
But I about had a heart attack...
Situation: Madly working on website for another class, tangled in about 6 massive programs, trying to tie up my hosting server to ISBN's site (issued book numbers) to CreateSpace / Amazon and a couple others that leaked out of my head with a ton of things to get done.
I bumped my coffee cup.
It was full.
It spilled across my desk.
It poured down the wall.
Which is where my computer cords are, and the back of my computer.
Freak out! Grab a towel, crawl under desk, feel around for soggiest areas, dry off breaker box.
Leap back out, close down programs wildly, shut down computer, then unplug the breaker box - because things were pretty soaked.
Once it was unplugged, I realized how wet the plug-ins were, and it was a small miracle nothing fried. Dried every thing up, fetched in the 100-foot extension cord to use another breaker box since mine had been soaked (the cord was too short on the second box, needed an extension).
Finally had everything plugged in again, turned on my computer -- and got a frozen start up screen. Nothing functioned, including mouse & keyboard. Panic - panic - panic.
Son-in-law Joe-my-computer-hero was at a cabin, ironically in Wisconsin (instructor's state), without cell phone service for the weekend.
Of course I hadn't backed up data beyond my PC, and all the work I've done was in jeopardy. Panic - panic - panic.
Job forms, massive Dreamweaver files, children's books to be printed, assignments due. Beyond panic - whimper.
"Breathe, breathe, breathe, breathe..."
Repeatedly approached the computer and gingerly pushed the 'on' button, but sheer willpower was not recovering it. I could get my laptop back, start installing software, run damage control.
Thank God Joe was able to 'talk me through' opening up my computer. He was going to walk me through the procedure of pulling my hard drive and placing it in another computer if necessary; or it might dry out, if it was moisture and not virus. I figured it wouldn't hurt to use the hair dryer inside it before disconnecting anything -- and it came back to life!!
"Hurry, back up everything!"
Oh, did I back things up! Stalled on assignments and everything else computer-related, but my old PC is functioning as if nothing ever happened. I'm madly trying to catch up and recovering from this personal crisis, and we were ready for the library presentation yesterday with the children's books - amazing, ain't it?
So - last week's class blog... postponed while I was outside in the storms trying to reroute water, and I know we got over 4 inches here in a few hours -- I was dumping containers as they repeatedly filled. Dried off the extension cord ends (right, in a blinding rain) and plugged the sump pump in so water would flow from the unfinished pond into the neighbor's woods. Not sure which is more risky, being out in a lightning storm or messing with electrical cords at the same time, but if that much water had made its way to my door, my room would have been flooded (i.e. my computer cords?).
But the questions for class were:
I Introduction:
Why is it important for health and wellness professionals to develop psychologically, spiritually and physically?
So people like me have a resource to provide sanity when life seems crazy; it does me no good to see someone even more stressed and insane than I am, nor will they be able to 'defuse' my nerves. There may be some comfort in knowing someone is 'freaking out' more than I am, but I don't want to be reassuring them "it'll all be okay" (which it will, given time, I know) when I'm waving a white flag and babbling about 'my happy place'.
At the same time, when I'm in a stable state (I heard everyone who said, "Who, you?" and I know where you live!) I can 'pass it on' to others.
What areas do you need to develop to achieve the goals you have for yourself?
Pay more attention to myself - can't hear the quiet voices when they're overpowered by brain-panic. (As soon as I catch up assignments...)
Continue with the tools I'm using, including EFT and journaling.
II Assessment:
How have you assessed your health in each domain?
Better than average, believe it or not. :)
I have enough sense to laugh at myself in the moment, like when the 5-gallon tomato plant dumped in my car when I braked for a yellow light when I was delivering it to my son. I had the foresight to put down a tarp, but the bucket slid and tipped into the front console and seats - and of course I had watered it. (Still need to clean my car, too.)
How do you score your wellness spiritually, physically, and psychologically?
Spiritually, I'm okay. Physically, I'm doing better. Pxychologically (I like the typo, seems suitable) I think I'm accepting it's okay to be nuts, which is a healthy approach.
III Goal development:
List at least one goal you have for yourself in each area, Physical, Psychological (mental health) and Spiritual.
Physically, and triggered by awareness in this class, I have an affinity for nettle tea - hot, with other flavors, or cold with juice. Bones and joints aren't as bothersome, and as long as I have a 'personal match' with this simple remedy, I'll continue to enjoy it.
For my mental health, as soon as I can get away from computer chaos, I'm going to GO OUTSIDE and play. Then I'm going to work outside, but first a day of loose living, meandering around a bit without more than a hazy plan.
Spiritually, I'll keep trying to see Spirit in others. I have found it's easier for some people at a distance, and I'd still rather avoid 98% of my ex-'s. Some folks I figure God can worry about while I keep myself steady. I don't have to beam death-rays, but it's understandable if I choose to put up a wall of protection and avoid interaction.
IV Practices for personal health:What strategies can you implement to foster growth in each of the following domains; Physical, Psychological, and Spiritual. Provide at least two examples of exercises or practices in each domain. Explain how you will implement each example.
#1 - Physical - I could get to bed, it's pushing 3 a.m. again.
#2 - Psychological - see #1.
#3 - Spiritual - #1 also, because sleep may be our closest state of meshing with 'the other side'.
V Commitment:How will you assess your progress or lack of progress in the next six months?
Journal, personal goals, state of physical health. Which reminds me, I need to do my journal yet tonight.
What strategies can you use to assist in maintaining your long-term practices for health and wellness?
Back up my files to a secondary source frequently, for starters!
But I about had a heart attack...
Situation: Madly working on website for another class, tangled in about 6 massive programs, trying to tie up my hosting server to ISBN's site (issued book numbers) to CreateSpace / Amazon and a couple others that leaked out of my head with a ton of things to get done.
I bumped my coffee cup.
It was full.
It spilled across my desk.
It poured down the wall.
Which is where my computer cords are, and the back of my computer.
Freak out! Grab a towel, crawl under desk, feel around for soggiest areas, dry off breaker box.
Leap back out, close down programs wildly, shut down computer, then unplug the breaker box - because things were pretty soaked.
Once it was unplugged, I realized how wet the plug-ins were, and it was a small miracle nothing fried. Dried every thing up, fetched in the 100-foot extension cord to use another breaker box since mine had been soaked (the cord was too short on the second box, needed an extension).
Finally had everything plugged in again, turned on my computer -- and got a frozen start up screen. Nothing functioned, including mouse & keyboard. Panic - panic - panic.
Son-in-law Joe-my-computer-hero was at a cabin, ironically in Wisconsin (instructor's state), without cell phone service for the weekend.
Of course I hadn't backed up data beyond my PC, and all the work I've done was in jeopardy. Panic - panic - panic.
Job forms, massive Dreamweaver files, children's books to be printed, assignments due. Beyond panic - whimper.
"Breathe, breathe, breathe, breathe..."
Repeatedly approached the computer and gingerly pushed the 'on' button, but sheer willpower was not recovering it. I could get my laptop back, start installing software, run damage control.
Thank God Joe was able to 'talk me through' opening up my computer. He was going to walk me through the procedure of pulling my hard drive and placing it in another computer if necessary; or it might dry out, if it was moisture and not virus. I figured it wouldn't hurt to use the hair dryer inside it before disconnecting anything -- and it came back to life!!
"Hurry, back up everything!"
Oh, did I back things up! Stalled on assignments and everything else computer-related, but my old PC is functioning as if nothing ever happened. I'm madly trying to catch up and recovering from this personal crisis, and we were ready for the library presentation yesterday with the children's books - amazing, ain't it?
So - last week's class blog... postponed while I was outside in the storms trying to reroute water, and I know we got over 4 inches here in a few hours -- I was dumping containers as they repeatedly filled. Dried off the extension cord ends (right, in a blinding rain) and plugged the sump pump in so water would flow from the unfinished pond into the neighbor's woods. Not sure which is more risky, being out in a lightning storm or messing with electrical cords at the same time, but if that much water had made its way to my door, my room would have been flooded (i.e. my computer cords?).
But the questions for class were:
I Introduction:
Why is it important for health and wellness professionals to develop psychologically, spiritually and physically?
So people like me have a resource to provide sanity when life seems crazy; it does me no good to see someone even more stressed and insane than I am, nor will they be able to 'defuse' my nerves. There may be some comfort in knowing someone is 'freaking out' more than I am, but I don't want to be reassuring them "it'll all be okay" (which it will, given time, I know) when I'm waving a white flag and babbling about 'my happy place'.
At the same time, when I'm in a stable state (I heard everyone who said, "Who, you?" and I know where you live!) I can 'pass it on' to others.
What areas do you need to develop to achieve the goals you have for yourself?
Pay more attention to myself - can't hear the quiet voices when they're overpowered by brain-panic. (As soon as I catch up assignments...)
Continue with the tools I'm using, including EFT and journaling.
II Assessment:
How have you assessed your health in each domain?
Better than average, believe it or not. :)
I have enough sense to laugh at myself in the moment, like when the 5-gallon tomato plant dumped in my car when I braked for a yellow light when I was delivering it to my son. I had the foresight to put down a tarp, but the bucket slid and tipped into the front console and seats - and of course I had watered it. (Still need to clean my car, too.)
How do you score your wellness spiritually, physically, and psychologically?
Spiritually, I'm okay. Physically, I'm doing better. Pxychologically (I like the typo, seems suitable) I think I'm accepting it's okay to be nuts, which is a healthy approach.
III Goal development:
List at least one goal you have for yourself in each area, Physical, Psychological (mental health) and Spiritual.
Physically, and triggered by awareness in this class, I have an affinity for nettle tea - hot, with other flavors, or cold with juice. Bones and joints aren't as bothersome, and as long as I have a 'personal match' with this simple remedy, I'll continue to enjoy it.
For my mental health, as soon as I can get away from computer chaos, I'm going to GO OUTSIDE and play. Then I'm going to work outside, but first a day of loose living, meandering around a bit without more than a hazy plan.
Spiritually, I'll keep trying to see Spirit in others. I have found it's easier for some people at a distance, and I'd still rather avoid 98% of my ex-'s. Some folks I figure God can worry about while I keep myself steady. I don't have to beam death-rays, but it's understandable if I choose to put up a wall of protection and avoid interaction.
IV Practices for personal health:What strategies can you implement to foster growth in each of the following domains; Physical, Psychological, and Spiritual. Provide at least two examples of exercises or practices in each domain. Explain how you will implement each example.
#1 - Physical - I could get to bed, it's pushing 3 a.m. again.
#2 - Psychological - see #1.
#3 - Spiritual - #1 also, because sleep may be our closest state of meshing with 'the other side'.
V Commitment:How will you assess your progress or lack of progress in the next six months?
Journal, personal goals, state of physical health. Which reminds me, I need to do my journal yet tonight.
What strategies can you use to assist in maintaining your long-term practices for health and wellness?
Back up my files to a secondary source frequently, for starters!
Sunday, July 12, 2009
Of Supervisors and the Universe
Before I share my day of census driving with my supervisor, I want to share yesterday's horoscope. For one, I find it hard to believe anyone actually talks or thinks this way, yet quite possibly it describes my days better than I can? Just for enjoyment, from Beliefnet.com and do make note of the last 7 words:
The fishy Pisces Moon has us swimming in two directions today, revealing the opposite forces in our lives. Mars enters dualistic Gemini, offering us an escape from the eternal dance between the crosscurrents of rational logic and irrational feelings. This quantum leap is driven by a magical biquintile from the Sun to the spiritual Jupiter-Chiron-Neptune superconjunction. Luckily a solid Mercury-Saturn sextile adds a measure of common sense to the mix.
That has to be inspired! Now I'm trying to figure out if I used common sense yesterday, but since I appeased the Case-Count Minor Gods (also known as Regional Office) and cracked out a few assignments, I think I did okay. One thing about employers - if you overachieve too often, they'll expect it as a norm; then when you have a 'regular week' they'll be upset at your low performance. If you keep expectations reasonable, you can avoid this self-created trap.
Strange how that works, but it seem if you have a day of excessive bloomin' energy you're better off siphoning it into something for yourself than using it in your employment and raising your boss's expectations for the next day. Been there, our shift threw extra trucks - unloading at Wal-mart some years ago - while short of help, wore ourselves out in the effort; next day Super said, "We did it once, we can do it again!" - Sure, the crew was the one throwing freight, not her, and we were all still recovering from extra demands of the previous night.
To add irony to insult, I later found out that supervisors who could get the work done with fewer than recommended employees - i.e. run short crews routinely - received a bonus. Guess who had to pick up the extra work when the shift was 2-3 people short? Now guess who didn't receive a bonus... I know, the American Way. I could have worked up to supervisor, gotten off the physical end of the work, and reaped the bonus benefits of running short crews - just demanding more sweat from another to enrich myself seems wrong. We did get cheap plastic pins "We're #1!" in recognition, yee-ha! I was so grateful... :)
And now we all want to know how my day with my census supervisor went, don't we? I'd worked late in the night - 2 a.m. - on an assignment the night before, so I was in a slightly fogged state when I met up with her. The first thing we did was move her vehicle to a parking lot that wouldn't care if it was parked there all day, and then I drove us into the back roads 40 miles away. I was thinking kind thoughts the whole time, though she is more representative of the above-described supervisors and I am, as always, lovable old me - if slightly sleep-deprived foggy.
Among other things, we talked about my aging car and how well it was running. The first stop was 'next to nowhere' - I shut off the car and went to the door, but no one was home. Turned the key to drive on and had nothing. Repeatedly. We got out and twisted cables, my supervisor took off a shoe to bang on them (couldn't find a rock in the drive, oddly enough), but the car wasn't having any of it. Rather embarrassing, to be broke down in a stranger's yard with no one home with my supervisor, but wha'cha gonna do? Sure, I could have tried applying Reiki to the engine, but why make my supervisor believe I'm totally nuts?
We managed to push my little car out to the road - I was steering with the door open and my supervisor was pushing in front (Jim, I know this is something you'd have liked to see!) and the driveway was a good 20 yards to the road. I do have triple-A for such situations, and she had a cell phone, so I called for assistance. General thought was, even if they jumped the battery, if the alternator was malfunctioning, we could be stranded again along our route -- too much for me, being stranded with my supervisor once was more than enough!
About an hour later the truck arrived; flatbed, hooked up my car and towed it on board. We got to ride back to town in the tow truck, and this gent too was 'country' - my supervisor helped him figure out how to use his cell phone to call his boss and report our situation. I mentioned we were kind of back-roads...
Once we were closer to town, my supervisor jumped out - joyfully, I think - to catch a ride with her brother-in-law to her vehicle, and the truck dropped my car (and me) off at my house. The rest of the Day of Sharing was cancelled. I think the Universe knew I needed a nap, so my car took one for me - even as I thought 'fuzzy pink positives' at my supervisor.
Sure, put the charger on the battery and the car started right up. I decided the battery might be the culprit, in that I haven't replaced it since I've owned the car - about 4 years. Also, the battery light wasn't lit as if it were decharging. The next day I bought one at NAPA and had them install it for me.
If this had occurred 'one start' sooner, we'd have been in town and she would have used her car to drive us around these roads; I wouldn't have gotten my nap to make up for lost sleep. I didn't have the cases mapped out well and had planned on doing this as we went; I knew one case was even further 'backwoods' than the one we stalled out. Much of this area doesn't receive cell phone signals, so we could have shared a nice hike back to civilization. (Never mind I've seen bears and a few wolves - I could outrun her if I had to.)
So - I got lucky. We'll try again next month. As it was, my 'shoe glue' failed as we were pushing the car, but my supervisor didn't notice one heel was flapping along with a stalled car. It would have been totally 'backwoods' if I'd pulled out my emergency duct tape and fixed it on the spot, but I avoided further embarrassment during this incident.
Truthfully, I think the Universe gave me what I needed.
The fishy Pisces Moon has us swimming in two directions today, revealing the opposite forces in our lives. Mars enters dualistic Gemini, offering us an escape from the eternal dance between the crosscurrents of rational logic and irrational feelings. This quantum leap is driven by a magical biquintile from the Sun to the spiritual Jupiter-Chiron-Neptune superconjunction. Luckily a solid Mercury-Saturn sextile adds a measure of common sense to the mix.
That has to be inspired! Now I'm trying to figure out if I used common sense yesterday, but since I appeased the Case-Count Minor Gods (also known as Regional Office) and cracked out a few assignments, I think I did okay. One thing about employers - if you overachieve too often, they'll expect it as a norm; then when you have a 'regular week' they'll be upset at your low performance. If you keep expectations reasonable, you can avoid this self-created trap.
Strange how that works, but it seem if you have a day of excessive bloomin' energy you're better off siphoning it into something for yourself than using it in your employment and raising your boss's expectations for the next day. Been there, our shift threw extra trucks - unloading at Wal-mart some years ago - while short of help, wore ourselves out in the effort; next day Super said, "We did it once, we can do it again!" - Sure, the crew was the one throwing freight, not her, and we were all still recovering from extra demands of the previous night.
To add irony to insult, I later found out that supervisors who could get the work done with fewer than recommended employees - i.e. run short crews routinely - received a bonus. Guess who had to pick up the extra work when the shift was 2-3 people short? Now guess who didn't receive a bonus... I know, the American Way. I could have worked up to supervisor, gotten off the physical end of the work, and reaped the bonus benefits of running short crews - just demanding more sweat from another to enrich myself seems wrong. We did get cheap plastic pins "We're #1!" in recognition, yee-ha! I was so grateful... :)
And now we all want to know how my day with my census supervisor went, don't we? I'd worked late in the night - 2 a.m. - on an assignment the night before, so I was in a slightly fogged state when I met up with her. The first thing we did was move her vehicle to a parking lot that wouldn't care if it was parked there all day, and then I drove us into the back roads 40 miles away. I was thinking kind thoughts the whole time, though she is more representative of the above-described supervisors and I am, as always, lovable old me - if slightly sleep-deprived foggy.
Among other things, we talked about my aging car and how well it was running. The first stop was 'next to nowhere' - I shut off the car and went to the door, but no one was home. Turned the key to drive on and had nothing. Repeatedly. We got out and twisted cables, my supervisor took off a shoe to bang on them (couldn't find a rock in the drive, oddly enough), but the car wasn't having any of it. Rather embarrassing, to be broke down in a stranger's yard with no one home with my supervisor, but wha'cha gonna do? Sure, I could have tried applying Reiki to the engine, but why make my supervisor believe I'm totally nuts?
We managed to push my little car out to the road - I was steering with the door open and my supervisor was pushing in front (Jim, I know this is something you'd have liked to see!) and the driveway was a good 20 yards to the road. I do have triple-A for such situations, and she had a cell phone, so I called for assistance. General thought was, even if they jumped the battery, if the alternator was malfunctioning, we could be stranded again along our route -- too much for me, being stranded with my supervisor once was more than enough!
About an hour later the truck arrived; flatbed, hooked up my car and towed it on board. We got to ride back to town in the tow truck, and this gent too was 'country' - my supervisor helped him figure out how to use his cell phone to call his boss and report our situation. I mentioned we were kind of back-roads...
Once we were closer to town, my supervisor jumped out - joyfully, I think - to catch a ride with her brother-in-law to her vehicle, and the truck dropped my car (and me) off at my house. The rest of the Day of Sharing was cancelled. I think the Universe knew I needed a nap, so my car took one for me - even as I thought 'fuzzy pink positives' at my supervisor.
Sure, put the charger on the battery and the car started right up. I decided the battery might be the culprit, in that I haven't replaced it since I've owned the car - about 4 years. Also, the battery light wasn't lit as if it were decharging. The next day I bought one at NAPA and had them install it for me.
If this had occurred 'one start' sooner, we'd have been in town and she would have used her car to drive us around these roads; I wouldn't have gotten my nap to make up for lost sleep. I didn't have the cases mapped out well and had planned on doing this as we went; I knew one case was even further 'backwoods' than the one we stalled out. Much of this area doesn't receive cell phone signals, so we could have shared a nice hike back to civilization. (Never mind I've seen bears and a few wolves - I could outrun her if I had to.)
So - I got lucky. We'll try again next month. As it was, my 'shoe glue' failed as we were pushing the car, but my supervisor didn't notice one heel was flapping along with a stalled car. It would have been totally 'backwoods' if I'd pulled out my emergency duct tape and fixed it on the spot, but I avoided further embarrassment during this incident.
Truthfully, I think the Universe gave me what I needed.
Monday, July 6, 2009
blog!!! (with apologies to my instructor)
I'm a bit late on responding to the blog assignment from a week or so ago... but I assume my instructor will view this with compassion and understanding. (I know, I can hear the rest of my family and friends saying, "blatant kiss-up!" - but then a few of them have spent time in "Elaine's World" and are still trying to forget it. :) )
For example, sister Becky had a few days we could spend together one-on-one last fall; it'd been years and a few family crashes since the last time we'd had this. Wonderful visit, talked ourselves out and didn't sit still too much. She thought she'd try 'lounging' at my house, but while I had a pair of extra hands here, I thought it'd be a quick-n-easy (always a set-up in 'my world') project to unroll the leftover chain link fencing I had here and nail it to a few trees, thus fencing in the front yard so the dogs could 'come lounge with us'. Rather-warm (i.e. dripping sweat) day and had to drag the fencing through the brush, but with a couple of hammers, scrap nails and innovative methods, we managed to get it up before she had to leave that day. She even bought a loungin' chair so she had a pleasant seat for breaks.
So - back to the blog and class. My impressions of the last meditation series... (unit 7?) I enjoyed it, but I don't think 'enjoy' is the right word. The 'mental break' from daily activity is astoundingly refreshing in my world, even though I tend to 'zone' with some ease. If I can get through the mental chaos of things like late assignments, survey work, how to zen a roof, fetching wood home, vehicle repairs, sick grandkid, things I want to do / have to do and potential body aches -- I zone like a zombie? I know I'm highly suggestible already. Just the sound of steady fan or pattering rain 'huuuuuuuuuuuum's' through my brain, and visuals like gentle waves on a lake or branchy shadows on a side-road drive can dope me out - I constantly have to 'snap my attention back' if I'm driving and watch for these influences when the timing is wrong. 'Enjoy' seems like the wrong description then for the awareness and insights combined with relaxation in my world -- in my own way, I'm saying it was positive and a tool I'll continue to use.
And now for all the things you're all curious about... :)
Some durn fool (yes, me) submitted a 20-page assignment when 3-4 pages were required; the topic obviously absorbed me? It also absorbed my time! Highly interesting stuff, though, and I'm sure my instructor would agree.
While I was jamming on that, I managed to get my brake shoes and blower fan replaced and son Matt's truck fixed (set-up, I need to borrow it to haul home the wood for the addition-that's-not-an-addition (legalities, I hear in MN you can build a double garage, slap a fish house license on it and argue an honest case... you should see some of our 'fish houses'). I'm delighted to report I received a graphics design / print job for labels for a new business (Miracle of Joy - her name is Joy, and how sweet is that to design?) and... the new printer handled this beautifully. I'm still on a learning curve on using it, non-tech that I be.
I took a break over the 4th and joined the local peace coalition in the parade; Sunday I was not-working so wore my good tenners and jeans into the yard - another mistake in my world. Sera mowed so I meandered over to my shovel and the area I need dug down to pour cement to build "an entrance-that-isn't-an-entrance" by the door to my room. Clay is like rock to dig when it's dry, but if you add water, it's like soup. Rocky soup in this area, in that two years ago we put down river rock to help with the drainage. Due to a serious blow to my head in my youth (I assume this) I wanted to 'reclaim the rocks' from the clay soup. Best way I could figure to this since raking was tough and a bad option was... washing the clay off. I wanted the clay to build up a side by the pond that was low, so I 'captured' it in the wheel barrow and tipped the water off as I strained the rocks out.
I am not sure why I want these rocks or where they'll go, but there's about a truckload of these strategically placed that I can find a new purpose for. "Muddy good day." Except then I needed to wash my jeans and shoes. And washing my shoes peeled both heels loose, and this is one of my most comfortable pairs. So I glued them with glue-all and stuck them under the legs of a chair with it propped against the wall to weight them down overnight. Except I put them on today and found the glue hadn't dried, so one sole was flappity-flapping and they both were squishing glue. So I put them back under the chair... and put on my 'grubby tenners' which I should have done yesterday. (Hindsight is perfect, and generally useless in the face of unyielding optimism.)
This is a family trait. Sister Becky (totally not in the Catholic sense, sibling!) called Saturday; she's spent her time off work working on her house. She flew out to another base camp today at 4 a.m . - Alaska, only way to reach camp is by plane. She complained about the ungodly hour of flight departure, but I comforted her with the practicality of this: if they do ditch the plane in the ocean, there's plenty of daylight left for the search crews to find them. She's basically worked through her break from work. Our best plan is to meet away from either of our home-units so we can visit and relax properly; I thought this would be somewhere in Canada as a half-way point, but being from Alaska, 'half-way' is Hawaii in her world.
Today... I got out a late assignment that I'd worked on until 2 a.m., caught up other assignments, printed and cut labels - got them mailed, met up with friend Bill-who-has-the-wood-I-can-have, had a weed-whip dropped off by friend Pete for me to borrow (forgot to mention mine quit yesterday half-way through the brush; despite taking it apart into little pieces, I couldn't get it to work - and I chopped up the extension cord thinking that pulled wires were the culprit - rather time-consuming, hot-wiring the wires, running up to plug it into the wall outlet, carefully testing it, unplugging the wall outlet, repeat -- about 20 times as I took out more and more screws. I did find 'a Tesla coil' inside it, and first time I've taken one of these apart. Now I need to patch the cord back together?)
Bill scoped out my slightly-warped plans for the roof - i.e. a deck-that's-not-a-deck - and began to see the logic of my thinking. There is a touch of genius in it, but one does have to search for it? Friend Dan from the gas station called to say he had some reusable wood if I wanted it, and Matt said I could borrow his truck tomorrow night to pursue these endeavors.
Val went shopping at Menard's to get a laundry hamper for her room, and came out with a dog collar, two dog toys and a pop -- the laundry hamper failed to materialize. I swear it's genetic! Bill passed over a microwave to be donated on freecycle or to Habit for Humanity and a used computer is waiting in my car to be unloaded tomorrow into Val's room.
Oh. And I did a completely new first! I registered a business name with the state that lapsed two years ago (Picklehead Press Publications); it needed to be printed in a local paper 'of my county' - my county being Cass and the closest 'legal' newspaper a half-hour away from the direction I travel in. But... I picked up a free fax machine last week (under Val's influence) and managed to send my first fax ever by myself - and from home! (I feel so mature!)
While I'm pursuing this, I bit the bullet and purchased ISBN's for 10 children's books to offer through Amazon. They do print-on-demand, and having my own numbers means my company (Picklehead PP) is listed as publisher and I can take the ISBN's anywhere. If I let them supply these for me, they'd own the numbers and the #'s would be locked into Amazon.
While I'm mentioning that, I can toss in another 'minor miracle'. I 'should have' had these numbers ordered a few weeks ago, because it takes about 15 business days to receive them. (Pricing, only one source for these: 1 ISBN for $125 or 10 for $275.) I waffled on dropping this sum of cash, but decided to pursue it... However, in the few weeks there was a price change, and it now cost $325! And express shipping cost another $50 - sigh. And I wanted these by July 20, since we have the library presentation on that date - sigh. The 'minor miracle' is that this price change was reflected in their system - the numbers are now sent online instantly after payment!
Whoa! I have the numbers already, and with my tight schedule, a wonderful 'delay' of waffling / procrastinating turned up roses. :)
My world... it's a wild world? If I find the time to absorb it, I have a book on building an electro-magnetic generator. I am sadly lacking in the techno-electric information field, but one never knows what one can do until one tries. I think this project will have to wait until later in the season, same as doing my own car body repairs.
There is a reason my sister hesitates to visit me soon, but -- Becky, if you're reading this and finding yourself a bit bored, I can send you the book on generators as a download and you can brush up on this fascinating field. That Tesla was able to build a 'sound-vibration machine' that could topple buildings and bridges... History channel, one of his early experiments started the whole building shaking like an earthquake, panicking people and cops rushing in -- the switch stuck and he was trying to cut if off? (I can learn a lot from Tesla!)
After all this, the blurb today on earthworms growing up to 22 feeeeet long is kind of minor (South America, I think?). My mind will never forget this useless bit of knowledge, because I can't wrap my brain around the image of this. It's like such a totally foreign concept, part of me is repulsed, which seems unfair to the worm. Trying to see things from the worm's point of view doesn't help me at all, either. I just don't know how to react to such a thing, whereas aliens or angels I can handle.
Kid-related happenings: Val sprayed her room for ants last night, thus proving she is not old enough to do this herself. She about fumigated it, so to save the caged rodents / pets, Sera put the fan in her doorway... blowing into the house - go figure. One might think putting it in the window and 'blowing out' might have been a better people-option. I doubt the ants were affected.
Today this child was spotted on the roof, strangely drying chocolate stars her mother had purchased yesterday with a kitchen towel (I didn't ask). Tonight I heard the logic of this: she had them by the pond (thank God filled with clean water yesterday, muddied today by said child) and Jake-dog knocked them in, so she rinsed them off and was drying them. I'm rather glad I let Bill eat the stray that she left behind.
Now I'm going to go back to reading "Transformation" by Whitely Strieber. It's pretty interesting, and not quite as mind-boggling for me as 22-foot worms. For the fishing folks out there, it's a brain-breaker on what you could possibly be baiting this one for; maybe in a really big fish's world, this would be like spaghetti? I don't want to meet those fish, either. (My strangest evolutionary "what if" morphing - if sharks had grown legs and hunted like wolves, it'd be a really nasty roving pack.)
I'll stick to aliens! And if your mind isn't a little boggled by this blog, then I suspect your prescription is too strong... Blessings, all!
For example, sister Becky had a few days we could spend together one-on-one last fall; it'd been years and a few family crashes since the last time we'd had this. Wonderful visit, talked ourselves out and didn't sit still too much. She thought she'd try 'lounging' at my house, but while I had a pair of extra hands here, I thought it'd be a quick-n-easy (always a set-up in 'my world') project to unroll the leftover chain link fencing I had here and nail it to a few trees, thus fencing in the front yard so the dogs could 'come lounge with us'. Rather-warm (i.e. dripping sweat) day and had to drag the fencing through the brush, but with a couple of hammers, scrap nails and innovative methods, we managed to get it up before she had to leave that day. She even bought a loungin' chair so she had a pleasant seat for breaks.
So - back to the blog and class. My impressions of the last meditation series... (unit 7?) I enjoyed it, but I don't think 'enjoy' is the right word. The 'mental break' from daily activity is astoundingly refreshing in my world, even though I tend to 'zone' with some ease. If I can get through the mental chaos of things like late assignments, survey work, how to zen a roof, fetching wood home, vehicle repairs, sick grandkid, things I want to do / have to do and potential body aches -- I zone like a zombie? I know I'm highly suggestible already. Just the sound of steady fan or pattering rain 'huuuuuuuuuuuum's' through my brain, and visuals like gentle waves on a lake or branchy shadows on a side-road drive can dope me out - I constantly have to 'snap my attention back' if I'm driving and watch for these influences when the timing is wrong. 'Enjoy' seems like the wrong description then for the awareness and insights combined with relaxation in my world -- in my own way, I'm saying it was positive and a tool I'll continue to use.
And now for all the things you're all curious about... :)
Some durn fool (yes, me) submitted a 20-page assignment when 3-4 pages were required; the topic obviously absorbed me? It also absorbed my time! Highly interesting stuff, though, and I'm sure my instructor would agree.
While I was jamming on that, I managed to get my brake shoes and blower fan replaced and son Matt's truck fixed (set-up, I need to borrow it to haul home the wood for the addition-that's-not-an-addition (legalities, I hear in MN you can build a double garage, slap a fish house license on it and argue an honest case... you should see some of our 'fish houses'). I'm delighted to report I received a graphics design / print job for labels for a new business (Miracle of Joy - her name is Joy, and how sweet is that to design?) and... the new printer handled this beautifully. I'm still on a learning curve on using it, non-tech that I be.
I took a break over the 4th and joined the local peace coalition in the parade; Sunday I was not-working so wore my good tenners and jeans into the yard - another mistake in my world. Sera mowed so I meandered over to my shovel and the area I need dug down to pour cement to build "an entrance-that-isn't-an-entrance" by the door to my room. Clay is like rock to dig when it's dry, but if you add water, it's like soup. Rocky soup in this area, in that two years ago we put down river rock to help with the drainage. Due to a serious blow to my head in my youth (I assume this) I wanted to 'reclaim the rocks' from the clay soup. Best way I could figure to this since raking was tough and a bad option was... washing the clay off. I wanted the clay to build up a side by the pond that was low, so I 'captured' it in the wheel barrow and tipped the water off as I strained the rocks out.
I am not sure why I want these rocks or where they'll go, but there's about a truckload of these strategically placed that I can find a new purpose for. "Muddy good day." Except then I needed to wash my jeans and shoes. And washing my shoes peeled both heels loose, and this is one of my most comfortable pairs. So I glued them with glue-all and stuck them under the legs of a chair with it propped against the wall to weight them down overnight. Except I put them on today and found the glue hadn't dried, so one sole was flappity-flapping and they both were squishing glue. So I put them back under the chair... and put on my 'grubby tenners' which I should have done yesterday. (Hindsight is perfect, and generally useless in the face of unyielding optimism.)
This is a family trait. Sister Becky (totally not in the Catholic sense, sibling!) called Saturday; she's spent her time off work working on her house. She flew out to another base camp today at 4 a.m . - Alaska, only way to reach camp is by plane. She complained about the ungodly hour of flight departure, but I comforted her with the practicality of this: if they do ditch the plane in the ocean, there's plenty of daylight left for the search crews to find them. She's basically worked through her break from work. Our best plan is to meet away from either of our home-units so we can visit and relax properly; I thought this would be somewhere in Canada as a half-way point, but being from Alaska, 'half-way' is Hawaii in her world.
Today... I got out a late assignment that I'd worked on until 2 a.m., caught up other assignments, printed and cut labels - got them mailed, met up with friend Bill-who-has-the-wood-I-can-have, had a weed-whip dropped off by friend Pete for me to borrow (forgot to mention mine quit yesterday half-way through the brush; despite taking it apart into little pieces, I couldn't get it to work - and I chopped up the extension cord thinking that pulled wires were the culprit - rather time-consuming, hot-wiring the wires, running up to plug it into the wall outlet, carefully testing it, unplugging the wall outlet, repeat -- about 20 times as I took out more and more screws. I did find 'a Tesla coil' inside it, and first time I've taken one of these apart. Now I need to patch the cord back together?)
Bill scoped out my slightly-warped plans for the roof - i.e. a deck-that's-not-a-deck - and began to see the logic of my thinking. There is a touch of genius in it, but one does have to search for it? Friend Dan from the gas station called to say he had some reusable wood if I wanted it, and Matt said I could borrow his truck tomorrow night to pursue these endeavors.
Val went shopping at Menard's to get a laundry hamper for her room, and came out with a dog collar, two dog toys and a pop -- the laundry hamper failed to materialize. I swear it's genetic! Bill passed over a microwave to be donated on freecycle or to Habit for Humanity and a used computer is waiting in my car to be unloaded tomorrow into Val's room.
Oh. And I did a completely new first! I registered a business name with the state that lapsed two years ago (Picklehead Press Publications); it needed to be printed in a local paper 'of my county' - my county being Cass and the closest 'legal' newspaper a half-hour away from the direction I travel in. But... I picked up a free fax machine last week (under Val's influence) and managed to send my first fax ever by myself - and from home! (I feel so mature!)
While I'm pursuing this, I bit the bullet and purchased ISBN's for 10 children's books to offer through Amazon. They do print-on-demand, and having my own numbers means my company (Picklehead PP) is listed as publisher and I can take the ISBN's anywhere. If I let them supply these for me, they'd own the numbers and the #'s would be locked into Amazon.
While I'm mentioning that, I can toss in another 'minor miracle'. I 'should have' had these numbers ordered a few weeks ago, because it takes about 15 business days to receive them. (Pricing, only one source for these: 1 ISBN for $125 or 10 for $275.) I waffled on dropping this sum of cash, but decided to pursue it... However, in the few weeks there was a price change, and it now cost $325! And express shipping cost another $50 - sigh. And I wanted these by July 20, since we have the library presentation on that date - sigh. The 'minor miracle' is that this price change was reflected in their system - the numbers are now sent online instantly after payment!
Whoa! I have the numbers already, and with my tight schedule, a wonderful 'delay' of waffling / procrastinating turned up roses. :)
My world... it's a wild world? If I find the time to absorb it, I have a book on building an electro-magnetic generator. I am sadly lacking in the techno-electric information field, but one never knows what one can do until one tries. I think this project will have to wait until later in the season, same as doing my own car body repairs.
There is a reason my sister hesitates to visit me soon, but -- Becky, if you're reading this and finding yourself a bit bored, I can send you the book on generators as a download and you can brush up on this fascinating field. That Tesla was able to build a 'sound-vibration machine' that could topple buildings and bridges... History channel, one of his early experiments started the whole building shaking like an earthquake, panicking people and cops rushing in -- the switch stuck and he was trying to cut if off? (I can learn a lot from Tesla!)
After all this, the blurb today on earthworms growing up to 22 feeeeet long is kind of minor (South America, I think?). My mind will never forget this useless bit of knowledge, because I can't wrap my brain around the image of this. It's like such a totally foreign concept, part of me is repulsed, which seems unfair to the worm. Trying to see things from the worm's point of view doesn't help me at all, either. I just don't know how to react to such a thing, whereas aliens or angels I can handle.
Kid-related happenings: Val sprayed her room for ants last night, thus proving she is not old enough to do this herself. She about fumigated it, so to save the caged rodents / pets, Sera put the fan in her doorway... blowing into the house - go figure. One might think putting it in the window and 'blowing out' might have been a better people-option. I doubt the ants were affected.
Today this child was spotted on the roof, strangely drying chocolate stars her mother had purchased yesterday with a kitchen towel (I didn't ask). Tonight I heard the logic of this: she had them by the pond (thank God filled with clean water yesterday, muddied today by said child) and Jake-dog knocked them in, so she rinsed them off and was drying them. I'm rather glad I let Bill eat the stray that she left behind.
Now I'm going to go back to reading "Transformation" by Whitely Strieber. It's pretty interesting, and not quite as mind-boggling for me as 22-foot worms. For the fishing folks out there, it's a brain-breaker on what you could possibly be baiting this one for; maybe in a really big fish's world, this would be like spaghetti? I don't want to meet those fish, either. (My strangest evolutionary "what if" morphing - if sharks had grown legs and hunted like wolves, it'd be a really nasty roving pack.)
I'll stick to aliens! And if your mind isn't a little boggled by this blog, then I suspect your prescription is too strong... Blessings, all!
Monday, June 29, 2009
Dear God, Help me unscramble my brains...
Problem is, my Priority List has too much on it and Christmas is only six months away. The holiday doesn't bother me, except it happens "In Winter". Thus the Priority-Pressure is on.
Top priority is... finishing the roofs. I'm still finding my own way of addressing these. I can get some excellent wood from a friend, but need a truck; I can borrow my son's truck, but it needs repairs; I talked to my mechanic on fixing it with a trade, but he hasn't gotten back to me. I'm trying to create a quadruple-play win situation for all of us - Bill with the wood, my son, my mechanic, and myself.
It'd probably be easier to just load my little car a dozen times and red-flag boards sticking out ten feet? I suppose I could tie them on the roof, too, but getting into the woods would be challenging. Oh. What I need is a hayrack and a tractor!
Minor priority, and I'm working on myself to see it as pleasant interlude (has the same attraction as a physical exam, if you know what I mean)... my lovely supervisor needs to spend six hours riding with me on cases in July. I KNOW. Think positive... It only happens once a year? Just I will have to clean my car up and the brake shoes are starting to rub. I think she looks forward to this as much as I do, since my car isn't known for comfort for larger people getting in and out. Folks with SUV's tend to think it's a bit cramped, the blower fan isn't fixed yet, and on a hot day in traffic... it gets warm. That's why I plan my driving for mornings and evenings according to the weather, but we have both have to tolerate the situation for one day.
This is the lady who told me "they owned me" for two weeks a month over the phone in a sour mood which set my hackles on edge. Some things I don't tolerate well, and that was one of them. I fought too hard for my own independence to allow this asinine remark or humbly accept it, nor am I paid enough to make it worth biting my tongue. I told her if I wanted to take shit off anybody, I'd still be married and she back-pedaled pretty fast.
Anyone else thinks they own me, meet me after dark in the park and I'll bring my handgun... I know, that's so un-Dalai Lama like! At the same time, it recognizes my own hard-fought courage to stand up to situations that wanted to overpower me into submission (good luck with that, hm?).
Other things are far more interesting here. I did put a tarp in the pond-hole to see if it worked for water runoff, which it did. Just filled with sand and about a thousand drowned worms. It didn't help that Granddaughter was attracted to it, running the hose to form rivers and such. I need to figure this one out yet, and something like a drain pipe (plumbing) with holes and landscaping cloth may resolve it. I thought about topping it off with wood, thus making my life easier, since my main purpose of it was water containment. Kind of like the old well covers, and possibly in the dark it wouldn't be prone to growing slime -- or maybe it would.
I have a sheet of glass from my son in my car, purpose as yet undecided. One corner was broken so it needs to be cut (Ace Hardware). I want to get that done before I take it out. I think I have a use for it that showed up this weekend...
Found a desk for a dollar at a nearby sale; thought Val might want it since she's been yammering on such. She wants the one in her mom's room, her mom's computer is traveling to the living room, the 'new' desk had a cupboard for my monitor to reduce the insanity-inducing hum, so - my desk goes to the living room with Sera's computer, Val gets Sera's desk, and the 'new' desk came into my room. For a dollar, it's not in perfect shape but it's sturdy. If I have the glass cut to top it off, I could lay pictures under it and create something personal?
One of these days I'm going to cut the front steps off and build an entrance room to the house. This will involve some shoveling and creative construction, but it's space sorely needed and would be a boon in winter. Not today, though.
I'm head-scratching on building an entry to the door off my room; back up the cold and 'like a 3-season' mini-area. All's I can say is, "Winter's Coming." Why the construction industry hasn't designed large-scale tinker-toy products beats me! Free-standing walls that bolt together in a variety of patterns and sizes would be useful.
I was on a learning curve with the new printer, and I think it's going to become one of my favorite mechanical friends. A lady asked me to design and print labels right after it came into my life, and I'm ready to mail them to her today. (Yay, me!)
I printed a download book on building an electro-magnetic generator, and I do wish I had courses in this kind of stuff. It doesn't have to run years and years in an off-grid situation, but if it provided minimum back-up in a power outage, it'd be well worth my time and investment. I know, there's gas generators out there for a couple hundred dollars, but one needs to consider the realities of life -.
Last year we had a heavy snow and a snow blower (first!). But we didn't have the foresight to get the gas can filled. So we had to shovel the car out to get to the station to get the gas to run the snow blower to clear the drive. Filling gas cans is one of my less-favorite chores, and the current mower is an old electric (I figure if the power's out, I won't be worrying about mowing anyway).
I've been thinking about adding a small wood burner too, in that Heat is sometimes a critical thing. I think this should be considered before I finish the roof and the porch revamping. What I do know is the gas furnace has an electric start, and if we were buried in the snow with a houseful of critters... the thought of holing up in my ten-foot workshop still haunts me?
As we can see, my brains tend to be full of stuff. I also need to print about 50 children's books for a library event July 20 - Sera's going to lead another activity there (!). We were invited back for this one, pretty awesome! ... Same time, I should get the website for a class up and functioning concerning this series.
I think I like pouring concrete. It's kind of brainless once you figure out where you're going to put it. :)
Top priority is... finishing the roofs. I'm still finding my own way of addressing these. I can get some excellent wood from a friend, but need a truck; I can borrow my son's truck, but it needs repairs; I talked to my mechanic on fixing it with a trade, but he hasn't gotten back to me. I'm trying to create a quadruple-play win situation for all of us - Bill with the wood, my son, my mechanic, and myself.
It'd probably be easier to just load my little car a dozen times and red-flag boards sticking out ten feet? I suppose I could tie them on the roof, too, but getting into the woods would be challenging. Oh. What I need is a hayrack and a tractor!
Minor priority, and I'm working on myself to see it as pleasant interlude (has the same attraction as a physical exam, if you know what I mean)... my lovely supervisor needs to spend six hours riding with me on cases in July. I KNOW. Think positive... It only happens once a year? Just I will have to clean my car up and the brake shoes are starting to rub. I think she looks forward to this as much as I do, since my car isn't known for comfort for larger people getting in and out. Folks with SUV's tend to think it's a bit cramped, the blower fan isn't fixed yet, and on a hot day in traffic... it gets warm. That's why I plan my driving for mornings and evenings according to the weather, but we have both have to tolerate the situation for one day.
This is the lady who told me "they owned me" for two weeks a month over the phone in a sour mood which set my hackles on edge. Some things I don't tolerate well, and that was one of them. I fought too hard for my own independence to allow this asinine remark or humbly accept it, nor am I paid enough to make it worth biting my tongue. I told her if I wanted to take shit off anybody, I'd still be married and she back-pedaled pretty fast.
Anyone else thinks they own me, meet me after dark in the park and I'll bring my handgun... I know, that's so un-Dalai Lama like! At the same time, it recognizes my own hard-fought courage to stand up to situations that wanted to overpower me into submission (good luck with that, hm?).
Other things are far more interesting here. I did put a tarp in the pond-hole to see if it worked for water runoff, which it did. Just filled with sand and about a thousand drowned worms. It didn't help that Granddaughter was attracted to it, running the hose to form rivers and such. I need to figure this one out yet, and something like a drain pipe (plumbing) with holes and landscaping cloth may resolve it. I thought about topping it off with wood, thus making my life easier, since my main purpose of it was water containment. Kind of like the old well covers, and possibly in the dark it wouldn't be prone to growing slime -- or maybe it would.
I have a sheet of glass from my son in my car, purpose as yet undecided. One corner was broken so it needs to be cut (Ace Hardware). I want to get that done before I take it out. I think I have a use for it that showed up this weekend...
Found a desk for a dollar at a nearby sale; thought Val might want it since she's been yammering on such. She wants the one in her mom's room, her mom's computer is traveling to the living room, the 'new' desk had a cupboard for my monitor to reduce the insanity-inducing hum, so - my desk goes to the living room with Sera's computer, Val gets Sera's desk, and the 'new' desk came into my room. For a dollar, it's not in perfect shape but it's sturdy. If I have the glass cut to top it off, I could lay pictures under it and create something personal?
One of these days I'm going to cut the front steps off and build an entrance room to the house. This will involve some shoveling and creative construction, but it's space sorely needed and would be a boon in winter. Not today, though.
I'm head-scratching on building an entry to the door off my room; back up the cold and 'like a 3-season' mini-area. All's I can say is, "Winter's Coming." Why the construction industry hasn't designed large-scale tinker-toy products beats me! Free-standing walls that bolt together in a variety of patterns and sizes would be useful.
I was on a learning curve with the new printer, and I think it's going to become one of my favorite mechanical friends. A lady asked me to design and print labels right after it came into my life, and I'm ready to mail them to her today. (Yay, me!)
I printed a download book on building an electro-magnetic generator, and I do wish I had courses in this kind of stuff. It doesn't have to run years and years in an off-grid situation, but if it provided minimum back-up in a power outage, it'd be well worth my time and investment. I know, there's gas generators out there for a couple hundred dollars, but one needs to consider the realities of life -.
Last year we had a heavy snow and a snow blower (first!). But we didn't have the foresight to get the gas can filled. So we had to shovel the car out to get to the station to get the gas to run the snow blower to clear the drive. Filling gas cans is one of my less-favorite chores, and the current mower is an old electric (I figure if the power's out, I won't be worrying about mowing anyway).
I've been thinking about adding a small wood burner too, in that Heat is sometimes a critical thing. I think this should be considered before I finish the roof and the porch revamping. What I do know is the gas furnace has an electric start, and if we were buried in the snow with a houseful of critters... the thought of holing up in my ten-foot workshop still haunts me?
As we can see, my brains tend to be full of stuff. I also need to print about 50 children's books for a library event July 20 - Sera's going to lead another activity there (!). We were invited back for this one, pretty awesome! ... Same time, I should get the website for a class up and functioning concerning this series.
I think I like pouring concrete. It's kind of brainless once you figure out where you're going to put it. :)
Monday, June 22, 2009
-20 to hot & humid, bugs (viral)
(Monday)
So if the temp pushes towards 90 and the humidity is too... recalling -20 kind of helps, but not much? I got 'caught in the heat' more than I wished today, considering I was wearing black jeans in a black car and the blower fan is currently in-need-of-repair (i.e. not working). I can look on the bright side, because a previous black car in hot summer had an overheating radiator that forced me to run the heater on high when I drove until I could get it replaced - mobile sauna, basically.
Yet today's trip synchronized in unexpected ways. I drove out in the area by the farm I grew up on to check on a deep freezer that was offered, but it was too big for my car and getting quite aged. I meandered a little bit, and happened to be driving by the end of the farm driveway as a car was preparing to turn in. We talked through the open window, and I told the lady my dad used to own the farm. She asked if I lived nearby, and when I said I'd been looking a freezer, she said...
They had several from an auction and wanted to clear some out, if I'd like one for free. Aside from a small freezer that fit easily in my hatchback, we visited on the farm! I shared a few stories of the buildings, things my dad had done, where the black-raspberry patch used to be (now grown in weeds, previous owner didn't take care of it). They purchased it last fall and this is their first summer, so she was glad of the information.
Okay, so I also gathered some more stinging nettle since it was near the barn and I had my gloves with, and her son gave me some extra rhubarb and her name is Sarah (my daughter is Sera). It's the first time I've been on the farm since 1998 and it was a totally awesome 'chance meeting', but I didn't stay long -.
On a more worrisome note, Val's been sick with a fever for two days; moderate headache and achy. This afternoon her fever was pushing towards 104, she was trying to get under quilts despite the heat and chills set in; I was told to cool her off in the tub (poor kid, it was 'lightly warm') to get her fever down. Tylenol took her fever down to around 100, but at bedtime her foot was twitching like a muscle spasm. This relaxed out, but it'd happened in previous night too. Sigh.
Call me a Nervous Nellie, but our local Public Health Nurse was busy when I tried to call (easy way to check for 'what's local') and the clinic triage nurse was also 'on hold'. My daughter called for Urgent Care appointment, and - they had absolutely no appointments available. Despite my reluctance to recommend ER, when Val's temp spiked again by 10 p.m., she was back under several blankets shaking and after her foot / ankle spasmed again for several minutes... I did recommend she go in.
Without typical signs of strep or other causes it seemed unusual enough for concern. Stiff neck, headache, some chest pressure, no gut disturbance - I just don't know what this adds up to and chose to err on the side of caution. Hopefully it's just a passing bug, but when this kid's 'too sick to complain' - she's sick. I 'net searched with her symptoms to see if there was a match within the state since mosquitoes and ticks are thick along with swine flu. I can usually get a handle on this, but sometimes it's beyond my experience.
(That was Monday evening. Granddaughter & daughter came home around 1 a.m. with a potential diagnosis of Lyme's - our area is known for it. No rash or other typical indication.)
Today I've been watching The Kid after a quick run in to fetch her prescription home, and took her to Dr. Hand (chiropractor) in case of pinched nerve / foot connection. She's still knocked out by whatever it is and hasn't moved much today. Heat and humidity are high, but storms passed north of us - I watched them go by; my son in southern Minnesota called while tornado sirens were sounding there. I managed to minimize the Grande Disaster growing in the kitchen after yesterday and if things get a little more normal around here I won't mind!
Yes, my assignments will be late, despite starting them this weekend. I didn't get back on them in the chaos and lost time and sleep while baking myself silly in a hot car - mentally drained, but recuperating as much as Val is. Truth of it, we're in better shape than much of the world, and for that - I can be grateful. All I need now is my mind back.
So if the temp pushes towards 90 and the humidity is too... recalling -20 kind of helps, but not much? I got 'caught in the heat' more than I wished today, considering I was wearing black jeans in a black car and the blower fan is currently in-need-of-repair (i.e. not working). I can look on the bright side, because a previous black car in hot summer had an overheating radiator that forced me to run the heater on high when I drove until I could get it replaced - mobile sauna, basically.
Yet today's trip synchronized in unexpected ways. I drove out in the area by the farm I grew up on to check on a deep freezer that was offered, but it was too big for my car and getting quite aged. I meandered a little bit, and happened to be driving by the end of the farm driveway as a car was preparing to turn in. We talked through the open window, and I told the lady my dad used to own the farm. She asked if I lived nearby, and when I said I'd been looking a freezer, she said...
They had several from an auction and wanted to clear some out, if I'd like one for free. Aside from a small freezer that fit easily in my hatchback, we visited on the farm! I shared a few stories of the buildings, things my dad had done, where the black-raspberry patch used to be (now grown in weeds, previous owner didn't take care of it). They purchased it last fall and this is their first summer, so she was glad of the information.
Okay, so I also gathered some more stinging nettle since it was near the barn and I had my gloves with, and her son gave me some extra rhubarb and her name is Sarah (my daughter is Sera). It's the first time I've been on the farm since 1998 and it was a totally awesome 'chance meeting', but I didn't stay long -.
On a more worrisome note, Val's been sick with a fever for two days; moderate headache and achy. This afternoon her fever was pushing towards 104, she was trying to get under quilts despite the heat and chills set in; I was told to cool her off in the tub (poor kid, it was 'lightly warm') to get her fever down. Tylenol took her fever down to around 100, but at bedtime her foot was twitching like a muscle spasm. This relaxed out, but it'd happened in previous night too. Sigh.
Call me a Nervous Nellie, but our local Public Health Nurse was busy when I tried to call (easy way to check for 'what's local') and the clinic triage nurse was also 'on hold'. My daughter called for Urgent Care appointment, and - they had absolutely no appointments available. Despite my reluctance to recommend ER, when Val's temp spiked again by 10 p.m., she was back under several blankets shaking and after her foot / ankle spasmed again for several minutes... I did recommend she go in.
Without typical signs of strep or other causes it seemed unusual enough for concern. Stiff neck, headache, some chest pressure, no gut disturbance - I just don't know what this adds up to and chose to err on the side of caution. Hopefully it's just a passing bug, but when this kid's 'too sick to complain' - she's sick. I 'net searched with her symptoms to see if there was a match within the state since mosquitoes and ticks are thick along with swine flu. I can usually get a handle on this, but sometimes it's beyond my experience.
(That was Monday evening. Granddaughter & daughter came home around 1 a.m. with a potential diagnosis of Lyme's - our area is known for it. No rash or other typical indication.)
Today I've been watching The Kid after a quick run in to fetch her prescription home, and took her to Dr. Hand (chiropractor) in case of pinched nerve / foot connection. She's still knocked out by whatever it is and hasn't moved much today. Heat and humidity are high, but storms passed north of us - I watched them go by; my son in southern Minnesota called while tornado sirens were sounding there. I managed to minimize the Grande Disaster growing in the kitchen after yesterday and if things get a little more normal around here I won't mind!
Yes, my assignments will be late, despite starting them this weekend. I didn't get back on them in the chaos and lost time and sleep while baking myself silly in a hot car - mentally drained, but recuperating as much as Val is. Truth of it, we're in better shape than much of the world, and for that - I can be grateful. All I need now is my mind back.
Tuesday, June 16, 2009
Subtle Mind Meditation (class) and a Little Life... :)
Subtle Mind meditation: focusing on breathing and letting go of thought, about 20 minutes.
The practices in this meditation are common to many teachings, especially those of eastern cultures. Bringing your awareness back to your breathing helps the mind allow random thoughts to wander through without hanging on to them. Breathing is to be done in a normal, relaxed manner instead of a controlled, forced pattern frequently advised.
I agree this can be beneficial, but this will depend on the person and the moment. If there's much physical or mental discomfort occurring, trying to force yourself through the practice is nearly impossible. Attempting to do so then will create a sense of failure and self-judgment, which undermines the goal of the meditation. Allowing yourself to experience the meditation within your own comfort levels while persisting in the practice will generate better results - I think. This may be ten minutes or simply recognizing your mental turmoil, but this itself is worthy progress.
Part of the goal of this exercise is for the awareness of breath to calm and slow the mind as the two become balanced. I'd recommend people that are new to this to personalize it to their needs and not allow any sense of failure as they work with it. Also, I've found my focus on breathing is most relaxing if I extend it through my whole body - head to toe, like a balloon filling. This seems to help relax all muscles for me.
_______________
And the rest of life in my world...
"Sera, can I deprive Valleri of her senses?" - This question tended to cause a bit of a disturbance, but I was exploring the Ganzfeld experiment of sensory deprivation and needed some test subjects. I figured a kid that isn't yet locked into preconceived notions would be a good volunteer, and if necessary it wouldn't cost much to bribe her.
She's not unwilling, but her mother is a twitchy-type (hard to believe this if you know her mother, hm?). Sera instantly recalled an episode of "Paranormal" where the investigator used a similar device to better tune in to the negative energies haunting a young girl; this led her to empathatically declare she'd never risk 'opening her mind in case Evil was lurking!'
I'm not sure why she thinks a pack of spiritual nasties are waiting to leap on her, but it may have something to do with her frequent reading of Stephen King and related authors. She drives through a fog growing nervous as she recalls a story by that name; I drive through a heavy fog hoping to come out in the Emerald City. You see the difference in our thinking.
I haven't Ganzfeld-ed enough to have an opinion yet, and any interested readers can google "Ganzfeld" for more information - also DIY (do it yourself) Ganzfeld will return homemade methods. Anyone with experience on this, please share?
__________________
On the home front, the pond-to-capture-runoff-from-the-driveway is working fine. Just it filled completely and ran over the other side anyway. I found a used sump-pump last summer, and it was the first opportunity to test its practicality. I dropped it in the pond, carefully plugged in the connections after drying the rain off them, and wow! Within a few minutes the level was drastically reduced, thus allowing the pond to refill again.
I will need to figure out filters, in that we continually get wash-out coming from the neighbor's; a lot of sand being carried down with the rain. I could get creative with a half-buried drain line covered with landscape cloth or something? "Water in, sand out."
At least I'm not 'on call' to monitor a puddle forming outside my bedroom door or trying to shovel the water away; if anything, I can simply plug in the pump and take the pond down a few inches. And if we lose power, I'll send Val out with a bucket to bail. :)
While it rains, I'll work on assignments.
The practices in this meditation are common to many teachings, especially those of eastern cultures. Bringing your awareness back to your breathing helps the mind allow random thoughts to wander through without hanging on to them. Breathing is to be done in a normal, relaxed manner instead of a controlled, forced pattern frequently advised.
I agree this can be beneficial, but this will depend on the person and the moment. If there's much physical or mental discomfort occurring, trying to force yourself through the practice is nearly impossible. Attempting to do so then will create a sense of failure and self-judgment, which undermines the goal of the meditation. Allowing yourself to experience the meditation within your own comfort levels while persisting in the practice will generate better results - I think. This may be ten minutes or simply recognizing your mental turmoil, but this itself is worthy progress.
Part of the goal of this exercise is for the awareness of breath to calm and slow the mind as the two become balanced. I'd recommend people that are new to this to personalize it to their needs and not allow any sense of failure as they work with it. Also, I've found my focus on breathing is most relaxing if I extend it through my whole body - head to toe, like a balloon filling. This seems to help relax all muscles for me.
_______________
And the rest of life in my world...
"Sera, can I deprive Valleri of her senses?" - This question tended to cause a bit of a disturbance, but I was exploring the Ganzfeld experiment of sensory deprivation and needed some test subjects. I figured a kid that isn't yet locked into preconceived notions would be a good volunteer, and if necessary it wouldn't cost much to bribe her.
She's not unwilling, but her mother is a twitchy-type (hard to believe this if you know her mother, hm?). Sera instantly recalled an episode of "Paranormal" where the investigator used a similar device to better tune in to the negative energies haunting a young girl; this led her to empathatically declare she'd never risk 'opening her mind in case Evil was lurking!'
I'm not sure why she thinks a pack of spiritual nasties are waiting to leap on her, but it may have something to do with her frequent reading of Stephen King and related authors. She drives through a fog growing nervous as she recalls a story by that name; I drive through a heavy fog hoping to come out in the Emerald City. You see the difference in our thinking.
I haven't Ganzfeld-ed enough to have an opinion yet, and any interested readers can google "Ganzfeld" for more information - also DIY (do it yourself) Ganzfeld will return homemade methods. Anyone with experience on this, please share?
__________________
On the home front, the pond-to-capture-runoff-from-the-driveway is working fine. Just it filled completely and ran over the other side anyway. I found a used sump-pump last summer, and it was the first opportunity to test its practicality. I dropped it in the pond, carefully plugged in the connections after drying the rain off them, and wow! Within a few minutes the level was drastically reduced, thus allowing the pond to refill again.
I will need to figure out filters, in that we continually get wash-out coming from the neighbor's; a lot of sand being carried down with the rain. I could get creative with a half-buried drain line covered with landscape cloth or something? "Water in, sand out."
At least I'm not 'on call' to monitor a puddle forming outside my bedroom door or trying to shovel the water away; if anything, I can simply plug in the pump and take the pond down a few inches. And if we lose power, I'll send Val out with a bucket to bail. :)
While it rains, I'll work on assignments.
Subscribe to:
Posts (Atom)
