October 29, 2007
~ this isn't what I meant it to be ~
About a week ago, I decided to knit every member of Josh's immediate family a scarf for the holidays...all 12 of them. As I delved into what I thought was a reasonable task, it became obvious that I am needing a better understanding of reality. Clearly, if this is what I wanted to do, I should have started my holiday knitting MONTHS ago. Anyway, everyone always says that it's the thought that counts...so to all of Josh's relatives who read my blog (and apparently there are some), "Happy Holidays! I wish that I would have had time to knit ya'll a scarf!"
I don't think I've yet announced it to the entire world yet that I am going to be spending eight days over Christmas and New Years with Josh's family in Arkansas. From what I gather, the middle of winter isn't the prime time of year to be touring northern Arkansas, but I'm planning on getting a lot of BANG out of my vacation anyhow. I've got plans to rent a car for the duration of my trip and hope to travel around, as I have never been anywhere near to that part of the country. One tool in helping me get excited, is the tourist website www.arkansas.com which has a lot of information including a nifty blog and an exciting header photo of some mountain bikers, which I presume are adventuring in the Ozarks. According to the website:
Arkansas annually attracts visitors from across the nation and abroad. Many are drawn to its abundant opportunities for outdoor adventures and to its natural beauty, as seen in the state's waterfalls, tour caverns and wild caving experiences, forested mountain trails and scenic drives. Some come to dig for keeper diamonds and quartz crystals.
But there are numerous attractions that make The Natural State a must see vacation destination.
Amenities such as art galleries, live theater, professional sporting events, irresistible restaurants, microbreweries and a variety of lodging options can be found in the larger Arkansas cities. Meanwhile, Arkansas boasts charming small towns that lure travelers seeking a restful reprieve from the hurried pace of modern life.
Live entertainment can be found at numerous music festivals and in clubs, bistros and performance theaters. Arkansas spas include the thermal waters of Hot Springs National Park. Across the state, delightful boutiques, specialty shops, antique stores and quilt shops in the following, making "quilt shops offer opportunities for finding one-of-a-kind souvenirs and treasures.
For those interested in a round of golf, the Natural State's offerings include world-class, scenic courses. And, in Arkansas, "an afternoon at the track" can have any of several meanings: thoroughbred horse racing, greyhound dog racing, or dirt track and drag racing.
Arkansas's varied geography and its location in the U.S. heartland have contributed to make the state's history an intriguing slice of America's story. Arkansas history museums, Civil War battlefields, National Park Service sites and special exhibits across the state relate the history of Arkansas's diverse cultures and history.
In eastern Arkansas, the Mississippi River shaped a land where Delta blues music thrived. Traditional Ozark Mountain folk music, dance and crafts are kept alive in north central Arkansas.
The state's wine country serves its best in the Arkansas River Valley, which is also home to Fort Smith, the “Wild West” town that bordered the Indian Territory until 1907. An oil boom that began in 1921 brought wealth and wild times to towns like El Dorado in southern Arkansas. The Clinton Presidential Library honors the legacy of state native Bill Clinton, who served as U.S. President from 1993-2001. Clinton's boyhood home is open for tours in his birthplace town of Hope.
Also, wow, I found a lot of humor in this article. Quote from William Shatner: "I can't believe it, I'm not in the movie at all. Leonard, God bless his heart, is in, but not me,"... "I thought, 'what a decision to make', since it obviously is a decision not to make use of the popularity I have to ensure the movie has good box office. It didn't seem to be a wise business decision." HAHAHAHA!!! Indeed, the producers of the latest Star Trek movie have made a conscious decision to not make use of Shatner's popularity, clearly an unwise business decision...unless, of course, you think Shatner's a turd.
In other news, I had a wonderful weekend...mostly. Maybe I'll write about it later. Hopefully tomorrow.
October 24, 2007
~ woops ~
Something strange happened last night. I had gone to bed. Placed my cellphone, as I always do, plugged in, on this table sort of furniture item I have next to my bed. And had drifted off to sleep. I actually remember the final toss (and turn), which positioned me facing not only North but also the direction of my cellphone. Several hours later, I awoke. On many occasions when I wake up in the middle of the night, I find myself all twisted into a rather odd formation. In this instance, my appendages were bent up and in rather awkward positions. I took the opportunity to straighten out one of my arms, and in doing so, realized that I was sleeping on something that felt strangely like a cellphone. As I moved my person in order to remove the cellphone from underneath my torso, I was vaguely aware that I was pressing on some of the buttons. When I pulled it out, the screen was alit and I squinted my eyes, held the cellphone close to my face, and read the words "Calling Emergency Response..." I depressed the hangup button numerous times until the message went away and had about 20 seconds to contemplate what had just occurred when my phone rang. When the female police officer on the other line informed me that I had just dialed 911 and wanted to know if there was an emergency, my skills in verbal communication failed me. I don't think that I've mentioned yet that it was 3 o'clock in the a.m. and I was a bit out of it. In the least eloquent way possible, I articulated that there was no emergency and that I was sorry for accidentally dialing 911at 3:00 a.m. When I got off the phone, I checked my dialed calls list, and right at the top was the 911 version for cellphones, 112. It seemed like such a crazy thing to happen at the time. What weirds me out the most is that I've no idea how my cellphone made its way to beneath my person when it was well beyond arm's reach on my nightstand dealie.
In other news, on a number of occasions, I have been accused of telling really long and pointless stories. I know, I know, I too, am shocked by those allegations. Nevertheless, in order to conform to the censorship and requirements about being boring around me, I have made a small effort to tell stories that, if they are not at all relevant, are at least somewhat entertaining, and will omit some of the details. Thus, instead of telling someone an entire three volume epic tale of buying a corn muffin at the coffee shop, I limit myself to one or two volumes, but I haven't mastered the brevity of the novella just yet. ANYWAY, so I am wondering if perhaps no concerned citizen has ever requested slightly shortened, more relevant, or more interesting stories from my professor who leads my unmanageable class. Good lord, we are regularly there after 9:00 in the p.m. because she gets so involved with telling us hundreds of really long, boring, and utterly pointless stories. And I like her a lot as a person, she's just infuriating as a professor. You know, 'cause I work all day and then have to spend the evening in her class, and by 9:00 I REALLY want to go home and relax. And it's fine if she wants to tell us SOME stories, but the sheer quantity of really long stories is ridiculous. What is more, in analyzing the situation in depth, I've come to the conclusion that she does not even realize that she's telling us so many stories that are boring and not relevant. For example, last night, she used the phrase, "Let me just tell one quick story..." before telling us numerous stories that seriously occupied an hour and a half of the class. It was funny...at 7:30, everyone had finished their presentations to the class, and I was looking at the clock, anticipating that we might actually get out of class a few minutes early, thinking it would be impossible for her to spend the next hour and a half telling us these stories that had no point. But sure enough, at 9:05 she decided to wrap it up. And she's had a fascinating career and life, that she tells us every single dingle wingle detail about, but I simply don't feel that she's enriching my educational experience with all of these stories. And I plan on writing such on the class evaluation, because someone ought to direct her attention to this.
October 18, 2007
~ mini pumpkins ~
Day Four in my new job/new office. All is going well. I am quite enjoying my new space...my office is well laid out in order to facilitate my being able to focus and feel content while working. At the same time, I am missing my friendly coworkers. Most of the people who work in my suite are out travelling a lot of the time, so I find that I am all alone, or almost all alone frequently. When they are here, one of the quirky office rituals that I have not yet fully integrated into is their obsession with playing the Jumble game in the newspaper over lunch. Additionally, because of my aloneness, the bathroom situation is not bothering me as much. I am also trucking away learning InDesign. I've got this ginormous project of laying out a several hundred page manual, and while I'm very excited about the project, I'm a bit anxious about reconciling my learning curve and the project timeline. I'm also thinking about cutting down school to just one class next semester, which means that it'll take that much longer to graduate, but I haven't been very excited about my lack of spare time. I am also VERY unenthusiastic about the change in weather. I loathe the cold...why can it not be summer all of the time?
These days, I find that I am a very bad friend and a very bad family member. I wish that sleep was not necessary for my functioning, because I continually think about how much betterly I could manage my life if I could just cut out sleep. Unfortunately, with the change in weather and the additional stress, I find that my desire for sleep has increased. When I think about my very long to do list, which includes visiting with my family and making time for friends, along with writing a bazillion papers and reading a million books and articles, I kind of just want to cuddle up in my bed with my soft blankets and comfy pillows and sleep it all away.
October 16, 2007
~ the hollowness of the doors ~
I admit it... the restroom situation at my new office makes me uncomfortable. It, the restroom, is located in the middle of the suite, and because of the thinness of the walls, the hollowness of the doors, and the acoustics of the suite, it is possible to discern EVERYTHING that takes place in the restroom. Which makes me feel a little uncomfortable. Early this morning, I completed a thorough exploration of the first and the second floor, which yielded no restroom alternatives. Later today, I will wander the third floor which may afford a more acceptable restroom opportunity. Although, I have heard odd things about the third floor. In particular, some people have claimed that occasionally there are nude senior citizens on the third floor, and that, too, makes me a bit uncomfortable.
In other news, this weekend it was GLORIOUS. On Saturday, Josh and I were determined to squeeze in a mountain bike ride between the time that he got off work and our scheduled dinner/movie date with Elizabeth and Edvin. Initially, we were going to do some version of Hulls, but the thick cloud of gnats made cycling nearly impossible. All was well on the beginning of the trail, but as we got deeper into the mini-canyon, the gnats formed a thick wall, and riding through the wall brought numerous gnats into our eyes, our noses, our mouths, and all throughout our clothing items. To be honest, I have never experienced such a thing before. So, we turned around and decided to ride Shane's instead.
We made good time up to the top of the trail, at which time the sun began to set. I was a bit nervous about riding in the dark - - an activity which Josh does with some regularity, but which makes me feel a bit nervous. My first night ride! And it was awesome. Once the sun began to set, it got dark fast. But there was enough light pollution from Boise that I was able to discern the direction of the trail, albeit not the features of the terrain. It helped that I've ridden this trail so many times that I have it virtually memorized, but I was keeping my body relaxed on the bike in case I hit an unanticipated bump or rock. Ultimately, I think that I may have been riding faster than normal, what with being unable to see the terrain, I just let the bike go and I put my trust in my skills and the wheels. It was loads of fun.
Then on Sunday, Josh and I went out to the Owyhees and rode some of the area across from Barking Spider. Please see the above photos. The ride was great fun, and would have been even greater fun if the trails had been a bit more hardpacked. From the second and third photos above, it is evident that the trails were highly sandy (Josh even fell off his bike because of the sand!). We ended up hiking our bikes for a substantial amount of time and distance...through valleys, up and over mountains...I was getting a bit cranky about all of the sandiness. But when it was fun, it was a blast! I rode down some things that would have usually make me rather afraid, but I've got a new-found confidence and lack of fear with my new bicycle. It's so great, no longer being afraid.
October 13, 2007
~ no time ~
I spent a bit too much time just now uploading a mass quantity of photographs onto my flickr account. Most are from Sara's quasi Surprise Party, and some are some random photos of cycling adventures. enjoy.
This week was my last week before I transition to my new job. On Wednesday, my coworkers threw a delightful potluck for me, which was fun, and afterwards presented me with a poster of Star Trek: the Next Generation, which generated a number of laughs. Interestingly, my other supervisor, with whom I have spent a good number of hours alone on long road trips, is apparently a big Trekkie and totally in love with Jean-Luc Picard. It was pretty funny...I was wandering throughout the office showing everyone my Star Trek poster, and my supervisor came over and said, "Jennifer, you mean we've spent all of this time talking for hours and hours together, and we never talked about Star Trek!?!" In my humble opinion, all of my coworkers went a bit overboard with saying goodbye to me and giving me hugs. I was trying to explain that it's not really goodbye, as my new office is right across the street and I will be over where they are on a fairly regular basis. But, whatever.
Then, at some point, I went across the street to see the layout of my new office, and one of the guys over there intercepted me with a quiz on my knowledge of Robbin Williams. That was rather amusing. My new office is okay, it doesn't have the wonderful fifth floor view of downtown of my old space, it doesn't even have a window, but it's decently big with loads of cubbords. It does have terrible lighting, however, so this weekend I'm going to get a couple lamps along with some snazzy decorative office organizer dealies. I'm also pretty excited because I was approved to get an upgrade to my computer so that I can work in InDesign - - it's been a big experience in persuasive argumentation to convince the higher-ups that Word is not a satisfactory program to work in.
In other news, I've been having considerable time management issues. This past week, I had to go on a number of really long road trips, which has been a big barrier for me in being able to accomplish non-work things. Last night, we were coming home from a big meeting in McCall and got stuck in a LONG line of traffice from an incredibly grueseome traffic accident. We had to wait in the rain while the life flight helicopter came in, and I think hunting season must have just started because we were surrounded by all of these huge trucks carrying dead animals, and the whole process seemed to take forever. When the road opened and we were able to continue on, I was quite disturbed as we drove by the scene of the accident. Traffic accidents really worry me.
October 8, 2007
~ harmonica ~
This past weekend began with a super-fun BBQ at Josh's place to say farewell to a friend who is about to move to Boston. I had put together a "fare-thee-well" PowerPoint presentation and borrowed a projector, with the intent to embarass Sara by making her the center of attention. Interestingly, instead of being all HUMBLE and GRACIOUS about having about 100 photos of her projected onto the wall in an automatically repeating slideshow format in the middle of her quasi-surprise party, Sara seemed mesmerized by her own self. In fact, everyone seemed to be. In addition to the Sara PowerPoint Presentation, I put together a Sara Trivia Game (with the help of Amy and Alisha) which everyone appeared to have loads of fun playing.
I've spent a bit of time attempting to download the entire PowerPoint Presentation, but apparently a 27,000KB sized file is too large. Bummer. For your viewing entertainment, here's the facepage: Sara PowerPoint Facepage. There were about 95 other flattering photos of Sara displayed at the party, most of which may be found in various locations on the internet. In order to post the trivia game, unfortunately, I had to remove all of my zany comedy-gold photos, boo!, but here is the Official Sara Trivia Game. The formatting on this version isn't so awesome, but you get the general idea. (HINT: click on the HOME buttons to return to the main Jeopardy screen).
Now, I ask you...Have I been the organizer of a few too many Board meetings and formal presentations that I've lost my sense of fun when it comes to a party involving my friends and alcohol and food when I opt to spice up a party through the use of PowerPoint Presentations? I am either super duper awesome or I kinda need to get a life.
The rest of my weekend was utter crap. I awoke Saturday morning to find that I had some kind of a stomach virus. I spent the entire glorious day writhing in bed until about 3:00 in the afternoon, at which point I was able to consume my very first calorie of the day. I don't mean to state the obvious here, but having horrid diarrhea and nausea is not my idea of a good time. What is more, I plummetted into a bit of a depression because I had all kinds of fun things that I had planned to do on that day, and I highly value my weekends. To reinforce my depression over the wasted day of Saturday was the fact that I had to spend the glorious day of Sunday driving almost 300 miles to attend a boring meeting for my job. So all in all, it was a lame weekend.
And here I am, NOW, Monday noonhour, and my workday is about half over! The weather appears to be cooperating today, and I have gotten myself quite excited about being able to go on a bike ride after work. I've also made the executive decision to skip both of my classes this week. Because I need to have some fun. One of my classes is simply ridiculous in terms of the workload and I've been abnormally stressed for some time. Since I am a medical professional, I have diagnosed myself as recently beginning to experience migranes, which is the only explaination for the blue spots in my vision, the numbness on one side of my face, and the ringing in my ears. I will confer with one of my medical professional colleagues if my symptoms persist, but I have a feeling that stress has been a major influence. Belch.
October 1, 2007
~ merry making ~
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On Saturday, Elizabeth and I went on a big wonderful hike in the Owyhees in the Wilson Creek area. I was particularly proud of myself that I was able to successfully navigate us to the trailhead without too many wrong turns. About three weekends ago, Josh and I engaged in a big mountain bike adventure in the Owyhees, which included a bit of riding the Wilson Creek area. Due to the rugged and unorganized features of the trail that we rode, we assumed that we had failed to locate the actual Wilson Creek trail. As such, prior to embarking this weekend to the area, Josh recommended that I take Elizabeth to this other trailhead, which we were certain would be the real Wilson Creek trail. It was not. Elizabeth and I spent a few minutes hiking on some singletrack until it branched into an ATV road which ultimately took us to the main road in a very roundabout way. I tried to explain that this is all a part of the Owyhee experience...uncharted and unmarked, with different makeshift trails and ATV roads intersecting everywhere, and the constant probability of getting lost. During this part of the hike, we encounterd some horse riders who directed us to the "real" Wilson Creek trail, which was the trail that Josh and I had ridden bikes on. Apparently, it forms a great big loop. Elizabeth and I navigated ourselves to that proper trail and had this glorious hike through some amazing Owyhee scenery, which you may view in the photos above. During the hike, we saw a big lizzard and had a number of really gross and fascinating conversations about what she's been learning in her anatomy classes.
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In other news, on Friday, I spontaneously acquired a new mountain bike. To make a long and involved story "short," Josh was looking at this Stumpjumper hardtail last Thursday and felt that it would be a better bike for me than the HiFi that I've been riding. He had developed a theory that the HiFi was too much bike for me and that I should ride a bike that centered my weight lower to the ground to increase stability. What is more, this Stumpjumper has v-brakes and not disc brakes, which was particularly exciting for me. So, it was absolutely random that he called me on Thursday and planted the seed of this new bike in my head. I let the seed take root over night as I pondered and researched it. Initially, I wasn't enthusiastic about the idea, but on Friday, I took my lunch break and went to the bike shop to see this new bicycle and it became an agonizing decision for me. I was not at all concerned about the money, as the only reason that I work is so that I can afford those things that make up a lifestyle that brings me joy and happiness, however I was concerned about the prospect of buying yet another bike that wouldn't be perfect for me. There is an agonzing uncertainty when it comes to trying to find the right bike. And bikes aren't the sort of thing that one can purchase, ride around for a bit, decide it's not the right bike, and return for a different bike.
On Friday, as I was test-riding the Stumpjumper, it was apparent that I would not be afraid of the bike. I have written extensively about my strong disc brakes that lack proper modulation and how I exist in a constant state of fear with regards to these brakes. And this fear has been justified and reinforced by the simple and plain fact that I have crashed a number of times on this bike as a direct result of these brakes and the fear that they have caused. I understand the concept that one must have correct form and skill with regards to using one's mountain bike, but at the same time, I feel that the mountain bike should be a user-friendly tool to enable me to have fun on the trail rather than being an obstacle to overcome. And so, I decided to get the Stumpjumper. Even though it is a "downgrade" in terms of going from full suspension back to a hardtail, I decided to sacrifice cushy suspension in favor of not being afraid.
The pro-con list that developed during this decision-making process was rather extensive and complex. In the end, the decision became easy when I imagined riding my favorite trails and no longer being afraid. And I am confident that I made the right decision in getting the Stumpjumper. On Sunday, I had the opportunity to take her out on a ride. Josh and I did some old favorites, Sidewinder and Shane's Loop. The first point to make is that I haven't had so much fun on a mountain bike ride for months and months as I did on this ride. The difference was palpable. I also haven't ridden as fast, both uphill and downhill, for months. I felt so comfortable and relaxed on the bike, what with the sheer lack of fear, and I cannot begin to articulate how CONFIDENT I felt! For the first time in what seems like a LONG time, I felt in control. The ride on the downhill felt tight, controlled, smooth, seamless, nimble, stable, and incredible. I was able to let go of the brakes and just fly down the trail, knowing that I could slam on the brakes at any given moment if necessary. Whereas on the HiFi, I always made a concerted effort to keep my speed at a controlled pace because I was concerned that if I had to brake suddenly that I would fly over the handlebars. And this, I feel, is the primary advantage of weak v-brakes...being able to let loose yet still be in control. What is more, a primary difficulty that I had with the HiFi and downhill form was the concept of putting weight onto the front wheel. As I was afraid of flying over the handlebars, you know, because I flew over the handlebars and crashed several times, I would try to keep my weight as far off of the front wheel as I could. Proper downhill form requires weight on the front wheel to ensure stability and traction, which can feel very counter-intuitive if one is afraid of flying over the front of the bike. On the Stumpjumper, my lack of fear of crashing over the handlebars allowed me to comfortably put weight onto the front wheel during my downhill, which increased my feeling of stability and control. All in all, the experience was amazing and to further my feeling that this was the right decision is the generocity and understanding of the bike shop bosses who let me basically walk away with the new Stumpjumper in a quasi exchange for the HiFi.
