Where to begin

Well, as is typical after one my absences from the blog, I have many excuses, err reasons, swirling around my head. I won't bore you with most of them. The biggest one was that the day after we got home from Ventura, Brandon woke up with a cold, two days later, I did. Mine hung on and on and last Saturday was the first day in nearly two weeks my snot wasn't green. You're welcome.

Here's a link to our photos from our trip - click! Not all of our fun is represented because I didn't think to bring my camera the first night when we had dinner with Chris and Brad and saw their giant new house and I hadn't had a chance to download all my images when my purse (holding the camera) was stolen. Yay. Now that was fun. I highly don't recommend it. :)

I'll add more later! We're off to DHL back to the dealership the bank draft we used to buy our new Subaru Outback which we didn't properly endorse. Oops! Our big thanks go to Angie for not calling the police.

Happy Birthday Honey Haku!

It's my dad's birthday today. He celebrated by getting his teeth cleaned. Why not?

Sorry to have not posted in a while, I'll get to it soon, I promise. Blame it on my laziness, or perhaps the fact that I'm suffering from this.

Recap

So, as you know, things went as planned last Monday when I picked Brandon up at Camp Lejeune. He came home, saw the puppies, took a shower, had a beer, and then did this:
I woke him up a few hours later for dinner and to try to make sure he could sleep that night since he had to be back at Lejeune at EIGHT THE NEXT MORNING! Man. I wanted to drive him which meant getting up at 5:45 since Lejeune is more than an hour from home. Luckily, he felt comfortable driving himself the following day. :)

So, yes, he had to be there Tuesday and Wednesday at 8am. Thursday he thought he was supposed to be there at 10am, only to find out when the phone rang at 8:15 that it was, in fact, supposed to be 8am. Luckily a phone call got him complete for the day and he was free to go to Scrabble with me. Oh the ladies they were delighted when we walked in together. He got to meet Sue, Patti, Pat, Nora, Helen, Lou (not a lady), and the oh-so-delightful Terri. They loved having him there.

He was back to Lejeune Friday morning at 10am, then Saturday at 8am. That was to check out for a 96-hour leave which ended with a check back in at 6pm yesterday. If that doesn't sound right, it's not, it's not 96 hours any way. He was back there again today from 8am until after 2pm. All of this to say he hasn't exactly had a chance to relax and get back in the swing of things.

We are, however, leaving pre-dawn tomorrow for a week in Ventura and that will give us a nice chance to get back to normal. And eat delicious Mexican food. And eat delicious sushi. And see our delicious friends. All the things we can't do here. Yay!

Pictures!

Photo montage, anyone?

First beer

"Ahhhhhhh"

Well, the time has come for me to stop using half of the bed for piles of clothes because my husband will be home tomorrow! In anticipation, I have prepared in the following way. Behold the happy fridge.

If all goes as planned, I should be able to lay eyes on Brandon late morning. Pictures will be posted!

From my Valentine.

Flowers
Originally uploaded by Monkey loves Kitten.

Happy Valentine's Day!

Valentine's-Day-2006
Originally uploaded by Monkey loves Kitten.

I wish you all a happy Valentine's Day. I am saving my celebration for another week or so. ;)

Oh, the Memphis story!

I know I said I would do this a long time ago - sorry. I'll save the list of excuses for another time. Okay, so I went to Memphis to visit our friends, Vonnie and Wendy, and their two dogs, Jack and Georgia. Wendy recently bought her first house and Jack is a new member of the family I'd not yet met. I had my camera with me the whole time and yet, somehow, I managed to take no pictures of the house or the dogs. Hmmm. Okay then. I guess I'm going to have to start traveling with a shot-list.

Vonnie told me they'd pick me up from the airport Friday night and we'd go right downtown for the surliest service in town courtesy of The Rendezvous. She said the place is famous for it. So, off to dinner we went. We parked in the garage across the alley from the restaurant, made our way down the stairs to the "groud level," and had dinner. We had chicken and slaw and beans and beer, all served to us by the nicest possible waiter. Made a total liar of Vonnie. (She hates that.) After dinner we walked Beale Street until the rain drove us back to the car and out to the suburbs. Saturday involved lounging, Starbucking, buying rocks for a house-warming gift (it's complicated), and a really good dinner out. Sunday we woke up to an active thunderstorm, which pretty much ruled out the options of going to the botanic garden or zoo. We lounged for a while until I convinced Vonnie we should go to Graceland. Wendy was up for up but Vonnie was so against it she'd denied even her own mother a couple months back. How did I finally sway her? Well, I did something I'm not really proud of - oh yes I am, kidding - I played the my-husband-is-at-the-war card. She caved. Thanks Brandon! We headed across town to Elvis Presley Boulevard, showed our AAA cards for our ten percent discount, got our headsets, and boarded the bus for the trek to the other side of the street where we began the tour. The rainy day kept the crowds at bay and only two other people started through at the same time as we. My headset had one ear out so I could hear the other tourists yell to each other, pointing things out. I looked at the staff, none of whom were chuckling. I imagined they go over that in orientation, "People will yell, it will be funny, do not laugh. They all do it." After Graceland we went for another fabulous dinner out then back to the 'burbs. As we drove around I couldn't help but notice the massive churches everywhere. They looked like office buildings or small colleges only differentiated by crosses. There were so many I'll bet the streets are deserted Sunday mornings. We were drinking coffee and reading the paper Sunday morning, so I can't be sure.

Well, that's what happened. Oh, my trip home was fun, many extra hours spent in Atlanta while a storm passed through. I panicked a little at the thought I might not get back to Raleigh in time for my planned Costco run. Thankfully I got back in time to make it not only to Costco, but also Whole Foods. It just felt so - reassuring.

Florida Prairie

Did you catch this weekend's Prairie Home Companion? It was recorded in Miami and Garrison set to butchering the Spanish language at every opportunity. Ay, cabron!

Hounds

Hounds, originally uploaded by Monkey loves Kitten.

Last Saturday my neighbor, Evelyn, and I headed out to the local junior college to help with a doggie adoption event. The event was held by the group who cared for Shane until we met her. The leader, Shari, teaches ceramics and some of my neighborhood ladies know her from that. Sadly the day wasn't very well organized, gladly three dogs found homes despite that. Evelyn only fell down twice and sustained no injuries, which was good. And only one of those times was she knocked down by a three-legged dog. (Second from left in the upper corner.) I fell in love with the blue heeler, he reminded me of Quentin. I also really liked Wheatie who I described to all as "Wheatie the Sweetie." She's the one on her back. She rolled over for everyone, just wanted a belly scratch.

The day also gave me the opportunity to finally fill out adoption papers and give the group some money. Shari misses Shane so much she kept "forgetting" to send me the necessary forms. So, six month hence, it's a done deal.

Only one incident scarred the day for me. The event was at a college on a Saturday. The college has Saturday classes so there were students about. I walked up to a volunteer with a dog talking to a student on his bike. The kid was asking her questions about the dog and I noticed she was responding to him in a very curt manner. I was going to add to the conversation as I got there but the student pedaled off. I looked at the volunteer and she had the most sour expression on her face as she rolled her eyes. I reacted by asking, "Why are you making that face?" She shrugged and looked away. Since she didn't respond, I don't know what her actual thoughts were, but I suspect her behavior was due to this kid being black. Living in the South I really expected to see a lot more of this, Confederate flags do fly, but this was about the most blatant I've seen so far.

Attitudes about race have been on my mind lately. With the celebration of Dr. King's birthday and the passing of Coretta, I think the least any of us can do is spend some time thinking about our own beliefs and how we came to hold them. Were we influenced by our parents? Friends? Media? If we're prone to speak about or make assumptions about groups based on their racial or religious background, what is the basis? Is any good served by this? And, if you feel that because someone looks like you, they share your opinions, like that volunteer did, please think twice. You could be talking to me, and believe me, you have no idea what I'm thinking. Okay, I'm probably thinking about ice cream, but you get the drift.

Oh, and adopt some puppies!

Puppyversary

Puppyversary, originally uploaded by Monkey loves Kitten.

Six months ago we headed out to see this dog we'd found on petfinder.com. She was described as a medium-sized cattle dog mix. We got to the place - the home of a couple plus 50 dogs - and were overwhelmed by the cacophony and disorder. There were dogs in the picture window, dogs all along the fence, dogs coming out of the windows. They brought this dirty, terrified girl out on a leash to meet us. She was what we'd consider large, and she was predominantly chow. She didn't know anything about this leash thing on her and she didn't seem interested in us at all. We thought we'd just go meet her and see what we thought. They thought that since we had expressed interest, we'd be taking her home that day for a trial run. The wife really loved this dog and didn't want to give her up but decided we were good people and reminded herself that they got into this in order to find homes for these dogs, not keep them all themselves. So, after talking for a while, Brandon coaxed this creature into the back seat and home we came.

The dog we met that day and the dog she's become couldn't be more different. The easiest change is she's clean and shiny and her nails are clipped and her pads are smooth. She's not scared of the leash. And she is exceptionally interested in me. (And will be in her papa as soon as he gets home to give her the chance.) And the best part of all, she and her big brother get along like gangbusters - a sea change from her first week in his house.

Happy Puppy-six-month-a-versary, Shane, we're glad you're here.

Not the Memphis post

At Scrabble on Thursday I once again won the $3 high word score payout. This time with "chaos" which netted 45 points. It was played across a triple-word square and the "s" made plural a previously played word. I came in third (of eight) overall. Of course Sue took first prize and Terri second. Damn that Terri.

The niece is getting bigger and cuter!

She's an eyebrow raiser, must be the MacClelland.

Pride

Now this makes me proud of my fellow statesmen.

"Last May, a US man found a severed finger in a tub of ice cream, then refused to give it back to an injured employee so it could be reattached. Instead Clarence Stowers, of North Carolina, took it home and put it in his freezer as evidence in legal action against the store. A week later he offered to return it, too late for surgeons to be able to act."

Beale St.

Beale St., originally uploaded by Monkey loves Kitten.

Click on this picture to see all my Memphis trip photos. I'll write more later, late for Scrabble!

Now here's a fundraiser I can get my lips on

Firestone Winery in Santa Ynez, CA, has created Jarhead Red. It's a blend of Cabernet and Merlot grapes that Adam Firestone, a former Marine Captain and brother of Bachelor Andrew, thinks befits leathernecks. Even better, net profits on each $12.99 bottle go to the Marine Corps Scholarship Foundation which benefits children of injured or killed Marines. Sadly, I cannot order any to be shipped to North Carolina (didn't that law get rescinded?), but if you're in CA, CO, ID, IL, IA, MN, MO, NV, NM, ND, OH, OR, TX, WA, WV, WI or WY, you can. So, if you're in the market for a nicely priced red for yourself or a gift, or you'd like to make a donation and get something a little tastier than address labels, or you just like the label, consider choosing Jarhead. I'm glad I picked mine. ;)

Art imitates life, or something like that

This is today's Ballard Street.

















This is what Shane did. It's titled "One Hour" since that's all the time it took.

"Blinds prevent sun damage and neighbor shock"

-sign I saw yesterday

Scrabbled Thursdays

Each Thursday a group gathers at the club house for two games of Scrabble. Usually we have two boards set up with three or four players at each. After the first game we eat lunch, then onto game two. The highest scores from the first round play against each other for the second round, lowest with lowest. Oh, and there's money involved. Everyone ponies up two bucks and three prizes are awarded. Highest combined score, second highest combined score, and highest play score. Today I had highest play score with 33 points. This got me a $3 prize. I got $3 last week, too, but I didn't have the highest play score, and I don't know what earned me that. I didn't complain, it paid for my unsweet tea. If you haven't been to the South, you may not be familiar with unsweet tea. It's what you have to say when you order iced tea if you don't want sweet tea. And if you're used to plain iced tea, you probably don't want sweet tea. It is not the same thing as iced tea with sugar added. It's almost syrupy and quite a shock when you're not expecting it. I made that mistake one time, and I doubt I'll forget and do it again. My jaw spasms at the thought.

I am going to visit another southern town next weekend - Memphis. Our friends Vonnie and Wendy live there along with Quentin's girlfriend, Georgia, and her new brother, Jack. We've not seen them since their move a year ago. We'll be doing touristy stuff and taking lots of pictures and generally causing trouble. Stay tuned for a report. I'm flying there out of Raleigh, which is a couple of hours from here. I leave mid-afternoon so I can check the pups into detention and drive up without having to get up early - a big selling point for me. I also get back mid-afternoon which nicely facilitates a trip to Costco in Durham. I am excited about this to an embarrassing degree. Really, I'm telling everyone. It's just sad.