Life keeps moving, thanks all.
So life keeps going, right? Here's an update on my last couple of weeks, the concert, kittens, your support, love, well, a lot!!!
most recent first, why not. Yesterday I faceplanted on the asphalt. Ow. Rather I suppose I didn't. My face didn't hit, I tried to superman when my legs got stuck in my bike going down on oil/rain slick streetcar tracks. The result was a rent in my brand new bike jacket, rent in one of my favorite white mexican tops, and quite the abrasion/goose egg on my left forearm closest to the elbow. Today I'm dicovering that I did miss my elbow by just enough that most of the damage was soft tissue which heals faster! :-) Yay!!! I also have a stiff neck, bruised right knee (the other piece that hit pavement), and of course, bruised pride. :-) That last not too bad. It means I get to take today and this weekend to rest and heal, see a couple of concerts, just chill mostly. Oh and soak here in a few minutes in epsom salts! Yay. When I went down I thought
Mom and I have been talking off and on for last few weeks. She tries to put a good face on, and I think she's getting used to having one eye for vision. I'm still rather mixed up over my mom. I won't really know how this all goes til July when I get to see her and see for myself how she's coping with the world day to day. She can drive again, since the vision in her other eye went back to normal, which is good both for her mobility and self-esteem! I'm really glad she's had gardens to work in as have I!!
Dan and Terra and I decided to end our relationship. Really it is entirely possible we should have finished that conversation 3+ weeks ago rather than going with the 3 week furlough. The long and short of it is that everyones' needs weren't being met to the extent they should have been, and I want to keep them both as friends, darn it!! That conversation happened last weekend, and I'm glad we're on the same page. It makes life that much more possible as functional!!
Bear is doing well. 9 months ago, possibly even 6, he was still mostly immoble on the back end. Now you can hardly tell. He's doign sit-pretties again for treats, learning how to crawl to strengthen his abs, and just being a goof!!!
Oregon Country Fair I'm going to let go of for another year. I know y'all with be there to welcome me home when I do arrive. :-) There's just too much else with Chicago and well, all the things right here!! :-)
Aurora Chorus is going to Chicago the first week of July. I've been working so hard for this. Donating mushrooms for scholarship money, getting a scholarship myself to attend without which this wouldn't be possible, saving every scrap of money I'd gotten for Christmas and my Birthday. I almost can't believe it! I have my registration and flight paid, booked, etc. The money for paying bills that week is stashed, as is the fun money for the week in Chicago. My ducks are in a row, and after planning this so long, it is an amazing thing to see!
Kittens are happy, healthy, and in their new home. :-) Also, huge? Well, I think they're huge, but that's just based on their previous tininess!!! Rebecca Pepper, S2 in Aurora and her family took them in. Their names are now Teddy (cream) and Cleo (grey). :-) I was so thrilled to get to play with them the other day. Sam posted the pictures and videos I took on her camera to her flickr account if you'd like to take a look. It is such a relief to have them cared for and not have to think about it now. It just fits!
I had to let go of attending Open Source Bridge this week for a few reasons. The first was money. I needed to be able to volunteer to attend, which takes time, but I didn't have quite enough time to do it all this week. Add to that the above injury, well, see y'all next year? :-( Ah well. Hopefully this just keeps getting better and better! I may also be letting go of the idea of hanging out during OSCON as well. We shall see. I've attended in previous years, but this year it may be too much!!! There's a lot of rides coming up demanding my full attention.
Thank you all for your support of me singing in Aurora this term. I had a freak out right before concert that noone was coming, and someone you really surprised me with love and hugs, and understanding. I felt rather like a child throwing a tantrum, which may have been accurate. It is just an odd feeling, feeling like there is a commitment made, and then feeling like those commitments are slipping out of your grasp and dissolving. It did turn out that folks I hadn't even guessed did come. I also got to introduce three people who already knew each other, ha! :-) It was, as I expected, the most amazing performance Aurora has ever given, bar none. WE weren't phased by much, and even the one major hiccup we handled with grace. Pretty incredible stuff.
Rendezvous is another summer trip, last weekend of June. I'll be living with Diane's extended family in eastern washington on their land. It is entirely possible I'll be organizing the archery event again this year!!! :-) Not entirely sure about that piece yet given all the rest I'm doing, but we'll see. I'm definitely attending at the least. Dressing up in civil war period clothing, shooting black powder rifles and my bow, possibly purchasing a tomahawk and knife this year for the hawk and knife throwing competitions, and hoping to work on my bale-bucking for the fry-pan toss. How far do you think you could throw a cast-iron skillet in the heat of summer? :-)
I'm still training for both the STP mid July and the Rabrai end of July. Ye gods, that will be a lot of biking. I've gotten behind on training, but the amazing this is I think I'm in good shape for the ragbrai. Its just the STP I'm worried about, being able to keep that pace for both days to 200 miles. :-) I am amazed right now, training going faster and faster up hills - up the easier inclines that I used to notice I can now still be going 11mph at the top. How I have no idea. Its like I have built the muscles even more than they were in the first place, but you can't tell to look!! Biking all over Portland at this point doesn't really phase me, and if I need to get someplace in a hurry, I find I can sprint 5-10 miles with full panniers and it works great. How weird is that!? Traffic often doesn't need to pass me anymore, even on the flat!
Landscaping has been good for both my sanity and my continued existence. At a few hours a week it is still scraping, but better scraping than not! I've been doing a fair number of barters, which work out well for a number of reasons. I get fed, they get work done, and life is pretty good. Admittedly they don't get a ton of work done, but that seems to be okay.
My own garden has been getting neglected. I need help. Like really. I'd love company any time y'all want to come over, just let me know ahead of time so I can be home! The strawberries I purchased over a month ago are still only 1/2 planted, and the compost which has been in the driveway for way longer than that (2 months?) is still there. Sam and I would indeed like the driveway back!! Anyone want to come over for a compost moving party after my arm heals up, so sometime in the next 2-3 weeks? :-) Then the strawberries and tomatoes would be in the ground and get a heck of a lot bigger!
Possibly the best for last: I have someone unexpected and new in my life. I just started seeing Betsy this week. I wasn't really looking for this, it just sort of happened. I don't think she really was either. She and I sing together in Aurora. Last term we were voiced right on the edges of our respective sections, putting us right next to each other for concert. It was awesome getting to know her over those weeks of sitting across the aisle, and to get to support each other through that concert last term. This term it was harder since the chorus was rearranged to have our two sections on opposite sides of the room. I knew I didn't have the space in my brain to work on a shiny new friendship and maintain my current relationships, and watch Narnia fade. So I didn't. I let that relationship fade to a glimmer until, I don't know, something inside me woke up and said no. This relationship was important to me, why was I ignoring it completely? So I didn't. I started in the Jazz ensemble, and made a point of pinging for tea when there was a chance to do so. bit by bit, day by day, I rebuilt it, and now, most unexpectedly, I have love in my life. Who knew, right? I was working so hard to get to this level of understanding previously that I forgot it could be easier.
I am glad to have had such long weeks, but you know, I am also a little glad my body healing gives me this moment to write it all down and share it with you. Thank you all for your parts in my life.
most recent first, why not. Yesterday I faceplanted on the asphalt. Ow. Rather I suppose I didn't. My face didn't hit, I tried to superman when my legs got stuck in my bike going down on oil/rain slick streetcar tracks. The result was a rent in my brand new bike jacket, rent in one of my favorite white mexican tops, and quite the abrasion/goose egg on my left forearm closest to the elbow. Today I'm dicovering that I did miss my elbow by just enough that most of the damage was soft tissue which heals faster! :-) Yay!!! I also have a stiff neck, bruised right knee (the other piece that hit pavement), and of course, bruised pride. :-) That last not too bad. It means I get to take today and this weekend to rest and heal, see a couple of concerts, just chill mostly. Oh and soak here in a few minutes in epsom salts! Yay. When I went down I thought
Mom and I have been talking off and on for last few weeks. She tries to put a good face on, and I think she's getting used to having one eye for vision. I'm still rather mixed up over my mom. I won't really know how this all goes til July when I get to see her and see for myself how she's coping with the world day to day. She can drive again, since the vision in her other eye went back to normal, which is good both for her mobility and self-esteem! I'm really glad she's had gardens to work in as have I!!
Dan and Terra and I decided to end our relationship. Really it is entirely possible we should have finished that conversation 3+ weeks ago rather than going with the 3 week furlough. The long and short of it is that everyones' needs weren't being met to the extent they should have been, and I want to keep them both as friends, darn it!! That conversation happened last weekend, and I'm glad we're on the same page. It makes life that much more possible as functional!!
Bear is doing well. 9 months ago, possibly even 6, he was still mostly immoble on the back end. Now you can hardly tell. He's doign sit-pretties again for treats, learning how to crawl to strengthen his abs, and just being a goof!!!
Oregon Country Fair I'm going to let go of for another year. I know y'all with be there to welcome me home when I do arrive. :-) There's just too much else with Chicago and well, all the things right here!! :-)
Aurora Chorus is going to Chicago the first week of July. I've been working so hard for this. Donating mushrooms for scholarship money, getting a scholarship myself to attend without which this wouldn't be possible, saving every scrap of money I'd gotten for Christmas and my Birthday. I almost can't believe it! I have my registration and flight paid, booked, etc. The money for paying bills that week is stashed, as is the fun money for the week in Chicago. My ducks are in a row, and after planning this so long, it is an amazing thing to see!
Kittens are happy, healthy, and in their new home. :-) Also, huge? Well, I think they're huge, but that's just based on their previous tininess!!! Rebecca Pepper, S2 in Aurora and her family took them in. Their names are now Teddy (cream) and Cleo (grey). :-) I was so thrilled to get to play with them the other day. Sam posted the pictures and videos I took on her camera to her flickr account if you'd like to take a look. It is such a relief to have them cared for and not have to think about it now. It just fits!
I had to let go of attending Open Source Bridge this week for a few reasons. The first was money. I needed to be able to volunteer to attend, which takes time, but I didn't have quite enough time to do it all this week. Add to that the above injury, well, see y'all next year? :-( Ah well. Hopefully this just keeps getting better and better! I may also be letting go of the idea of hanging out during OSCON as well. We shall see. I've attended in previous years, but this year it may be too much!!! There's a lot of rides coming up demanding my full attention.
Thank you all for your support of me singing in Aurora this term. I had a freak out right before concert that noone was coming, and someone you really surprised me with love and hugs, and understanding. I felt rather like a child throwing a tantrum, which may have been accurate. It is just an odd feeling, feeling like there is a commitment made, and then feeling like those commitments are slipping out of your grasp and dissolving. It did turn out that folks I hadn't even guessed did come. I also got to introduce three people who already knew each other, ha! :-) It was, as I expected, the most amazing performance Aurora has ever given, bar none. WE weren't phased by much, and even the one major hiccup we handled with grace. Pretty incredible stuff.
Rendezvous is another summer trip, last weekend of June. I'll be living with Diane's extended family in eastern washington on their land. It is entirely possible I'll be organizing the archery event again this year!!! :-) Not entirely sure about that piece yet given all the rest I'm doing, but we'll see. I'm definitely attending at the least. Dressing up in civil war period clothing, shooting black powder rifles and my bow, possibly purchasing a tomahawk and knife this year for the hawk and knife throwing competitions, and hoping to work on my bale-bucking for the fry-pan toss. How far do you think you could throw a cast-iron skillet in the heat of summer? :-)
I'm still training for both the STP mid July and the Rabrai end of July. Ye gods, that will be a lot of biking. I've gotten behind on training, but the amazing this is I think I'm in good shape for the ragbrai. Its just the STP I'm worried about, being able to keep that pace for both days to 200 miles. :-) I am amazed right now, training going faster and faster up hills - up the easier inclines that I used to notice I can now still be going 11mph at the top. How I have no idea. Its like I have built the muscles even more than they were in the first place, but you can't tell to look!! Biking all over Portland at this point doesn't really phase me, and if I need to get someplace in a hurry, I find I can sprint 5-10 miles with full panniers and it works great. How weird is that!? Traffic often doesn't need to pass me anymore, even on the flat!
Landscaping has been good for both my sanity and my continued existence. At a few hours a week it is still scraping, but better scraping than not! I've been doing a fair number of barters, which work out well for a number of reasons. I get fed, they get work done, and life is pretty good. Admittedly they don't get a ton of work done, but that seems to be okay.
My own garden has been getting neglected. I need help. Like really. I'd love company any time y'all want to come over, just let me know ahead of time so I can be home! The strawberries I purchased over a month ago are still only 1/2 planted, and the compost which has been in the driveway for way longer than that (2 months?) is still there. Sam and I would indeed like the driveway back!! Anyone want to come over for a compost moving party after my arm heals up, so sometime in the next 2-3 weeks? :-) Then the strawberries and tomatoes would be in the ground and get a heck of a lot bigger!
Possibly the best for last: I have someone unexpected and new in my life. I just started seeing Betsy this week. I wasn't really looking for this, it just sort of happened. I don't think she really was either. She and I sing together in Aurora. Last term we were voiced right on the edges of our respective sections, putting us right next to each other for concert. It was awesome getting to know her over those weeks of sitting across the aisle, and to get to support each other through that concert last term. This term it was harder since the chorus was rearranged to have our two sections on opposite sides of the room. I knew I didn't have the space in my brain to work on a shiny new friendship and maintain my current relationships, and watch Narnia fade. So I didn't. I let that relationship fade to a glimmer until, I don't know, something inside me woke up and said no. This relationship was important to me, why was I ignoring it completely? So I didn't. I started in the Jazz ensemble, and made a point of pinging for tea when there was a chance to do so. bit by bit, day by day, I rebuilt it, and now, most unexpectedly, I have love in my life. Who knew, right? I was working so hard to get to this level of understanding previously that I forgot it could be easier.
I am glad to have had such long weeks, but you know, I am also a little glad my body healing gives me this moment to write it all down and share it with you. Thank you all for your parts in my life.