yet another sunrise

Comic updated

LOTR updated




Hey cool, theonering.net mentioned my LOTR site. I had wondered where all the new postings were coming from... :-)



"You get to see an experienced writer respond to the book for the first time, and then there's the responses to her from other people. It's great to see a skeptic getting gradually drawn in to the story."



No way, I refuse to be drawn in! Never!!!

(Well, maybe just a little.)


Geez, more people to lynch me if I end up not liking the rest of the trilogy. =:-O


Spent most of yesterday hiking. This time we took loaded packs (more training for our backpacking trip in August!). Jeff took a full-size trip backpack; I took a regular daypack. I plan to gradually increase my pack size and weight over the next few months.


We went out to Rainbow Lake again and set up a tent for afternoon napping as well as cooking gear and supplies for dinner. The bugs were pretty bad in the woods, especially the blackflies. I dislike blackflies more than mosquitoes mainly because they tend to swarm, you can't hear them coming, and their bites hurt. They are also very good at finding openings in your clothing and getting under your hair. And if they're really hungry, they tend to ignore insect repellent.


We decided to have dinner back at the cottage instead of at the campsite, but took a nap first. On the way back, I wore my bug shirt. Looks pretty bizarre (see below picture), but works like a charm. The see-through mesh allows air to pass through, and is ultra-light. I'm bringing this on our backpacking trip, just in case. I got enormous satisfaction as mosquitoes and blackflies hurled themselves at my face, only to be foiled by my bug shirt.









Cloudy and cool today...Jeff and I have agreed to have a "laze about the cottage" day. My proposed itinerary for today (in no particular order):


- Read LOTR.

- Nap.

- Do more experimentation with outback oven, maybe do chocolate brownies.

- Nap.

- Practise guitar/songwriting.

- Nap.

- Work on comic.

- Nap.

- Play around with Flash some more.

- Have a sauna.

- Nap.

- Do some e-mailing, other online stuff.

- Nap.

etc.


Hmmm...looks like my Action Task List is a bit heavy on the napping. It might be more time-efficient to lump all the mini-naps into one Daily Objective of a mega-nap this afternoon. But will this leave time for making chocolate brownies? Perhaps Jeff and I should do a F2F ("Face To Face Meeting"...thanks for this term, Helen!) to facilitate implementation of more proactive goal-setting priorities.


I was highly amused by the results of yesterday's Blatherings poll. Of the 19 people that have responded so far, 16 had something in their fridge that was past its prime. Bob Esty added the following anecdote:



"True story. A friend of mine got a roast goose for a holiday, forgot about it, put it in an unused refrigerator, and then left it unplugged. For six months. They finally moved the refrigerator outside, pulled out the hinges on the fridge, and ran!....:-("

From Seanan:



"Several years ago, when we lived in The Unholy Slum of Eternal Darkness (i.e., the Village Green Apartments), we had a housewarming party. At some point during the housewarming party, a two-thirds full gallon container of orange juice got shoved behind the curtain in the upstairs study, so that it (the orange juice) was completely out of sight, yet subjected to full sunlight at the same time. We found it about six months later. The seal had been secure, so it wasn't moldy...just fermented. The juice had seperated into sedamentary layers, and it smelled like someone had been making screwdrivers. Had we possessed any common sense, we would have thrown it out. Instead, we moved it out of the sunlight, into a cool, dry place, and kept it for about another eight months. At the end of this time, it was a thin, clear orange liquid; it smelled strongly of alcohol; and it tested in the DVC chem lab as being approximately twenty-seven proof. Then we moved, and Alex made me leave it behind as a 'gift' for the new tenants of our apartment. Here endith the lesson."

From Paul:



"This is just too good an opportunity to put in a favorite old quote from George Carlin: 'Leftovers are great, because you get to feel good about yourself _twice_! You put it into the fridge, and you feel good, because you're _saving_ food. Then, six months later, you throw it away, and you feel good, because you're _saving_ your _life_!' :{)}"

Today's Blatherpics:


- Yet another sunrise.


- Me in my bug shirt. The face panel is folded up (Jeff said it made me look like Mickey Mouse and insisted on taking this picture to prove it), but can be pulled down for Full Upper Torso Protection. :-)




Today's Poll:

If you were offered a million dollars to go for six months without bathing, would you accept?

the art of sitting quietly

LOTR updated

Sent in my article yesterday, woohoo! Just waiting to see if my editor's happy with it...if she is, then it means my sabbatical can truly begin (no work commitments in the near future). Many thanks to Amanda Snyder, by the way, for getting my book on the "Staff Recommended" list in her store! :-)


The hummingbirds are out, so I mixed together some sugar-water for the feeder. Spent about half an hour watching them, gradually edging closer. I was wearing a red lumberjack shirt, and the occasional hummingbird would check me out, buzzing around my head like a giant bumblebee, hovering and doing fly-bys. Hummingbirds are bizarre, fascinating little creatures. Their wings are a blur, flapping at about 50 times a second. They have to feed every 10 minutes or so (hey, even I'm not that bad). Pretty vicious, too...extremely territorial, dive-bombing and jabbing their long bills at each other.


And fun to watch. :-)









I'm re-learning the art of sitting quietly. Sounds easy, but it's difficult for someone who is used to multitasking heavily, always having something on the go, wanting to be productive every single moment of the day.


This morning, I spent over an hour watching the sun rise. I tend to wake up at 5 a.m. these days, no matter what time I get to bed the night before. The first couple days, I headed right into the boathouse to start a fire and have some tea. Now I find myself drawn down to sit on the dock and watch morning happen. Good way to start the day.









I've been doing some experimenting with camp cooking, in preparation for our hiking trip with Alison and Jeff later this year. We'll be hiking 10 days, and therefore want to pack as little as possible. Food is an important component in trip enjoyment for me (I know you all find that a surprise), so I've started experimenting. Bought an Outback Oven (tm) at Mountain Co-op along with some dehydrated food (powdered eggs, powdered shortening, etc.).


Some of my experiments have worked, some haven't. I keep detailed notes. My breakfast mix has worked pretty well: quick oatmeal flakes, dry milk, brown sugar, banana chips, wheat germ, chopped dehyrated apple. Add hot water, stir for about a minute, and YUM.


My first baking attempt in the oven yesterday was a miserable failure. I was trying to make bread rolls, but they ended up being inedible. :-( The problem was caused by the powdered shortening I used instead of using regular cooking oil. The result was a non-Newtonian liquid (collodial suspension...I talked about this in my April 30 Blathering). Cool to poke at, not cool for baking. But I haven't given up! I'm going to give bread rolls another go later this week.


And HEY, my suet is still up on the tree despite Jeff's earlier predictions of doom. He's now saying that it will take the animals a few days to figure out how to get it down, that they're probably plotting about it even now. HA. We'll see about that...


Today's Blatherpics:


- 5:25 a.m. this morning. That's the sun peeking through the mist.


- Hummingbird at feeder.


- Our "Outback Oven" (tm). A shielded "pot parka" goes over top to help heat circulate evenly around the cooking food.


Today's Poll:

At this moment, do you have anything in your fridge that you know is past its prime? (i.e. squishy cucumbers? doubtful cheese? a jar of some mystery substance way in the back that you'll end up throwing out?)

fleece and hammocks

LOTR update




Graeme Hammon was kind enough to give me permission to reprint the article about my LOTR project, for those interested. Thanks again to Julie Clark for sending me the text!


Back at the cottage. -1 degree Celsius according to the thermometer this morning. :-) The temperature difference between here and the city is amazing; I was in shorts and a t-shirt yesterday. Now I'm in fleece pants, a t-shirt, sweatshirt, sweater, and fleece vest.


Really nice sunrise this morning. I sat outside with a steaming mug of banana hot chocolate (an office-warming gift from my sister when we opened up the Inkspot office on Mowat...does THAT ever seem like a long time ago!) and watched the rising sun gradually burn the mist off the lake as a single loon drifted slowly past, eyeing me curiously.









Doing the final proofreading of my article today and sending it off to Writer's Digest. Each day, I get more of a hankering to get back to my own creative writing.


Yesterday morning, I decided to surprise Ruth on Mother's Day with a visit. 'Twas an impulse decision; Jeff was still sleeping and I figured I could get back before he woke up (I was right). Picked up a bouquet of flowers along the way.


Annie and Sara were still in their pajamas when I arrived. Delighted, they jumped on me and both snuggled in my lap (this is a rare thing for Sara these days...she must have been -really- glad to see me :)). Both were immensely disappointed when I had to leave after about 20 minutes; Sara wanted me to help her plant her garden. Giggling, they both wrapped themselves around my legs as I tried to get to the front hall to put on my shoes. Ruth finally had to use her "serious" voice to ask them to let me go.









Last time, I had brought a suet cake for the birds, tied to a tree with a mesh bag. By the next morning, some animal had torn it down, leaving only a fragment of mesh behind.


This time, I brought a steel frame to hold the suet, and used three nails to secure it to the tree (see picture below). Jeff says the animals are going to take it down anyway, so I've taken this project on as a challenge. Let them try now! I will report on my progress in upcoming Blatherings.


I brought up our 4-track recorder so I could try out the two part harmonies in my new Harry Potter song and see if they work. I hate how my voice sounds (especially since I have to sing out of my range when working on Jodi's part), so I always tell Allison and Jodi to destroy my scratch tapes after they've gotten what they need from them.


Unfortunately the 4-track seems to be going a bit flakey...not surprising since Jeff's had it for quite a few years. Sometimes it will record, sometimes it won't. Jeff and I are starting to research simple home recording equipment and software (Jeff's starting to play guitar again...yay!). Does anyone have any advice about hardware and/or software? Software must be Mac-compatible. I was thinking of Cubase, but am open to other suggestions.


I'm also working on a new Technonerdboy-type of song (face it...the old one is pretty outdated now :)) and a song collaboration with Andrea (hey Andrea, I'm experimenting with an alternate tuning!).









Today's Blatherpics:


- Sunrise this morning.


- With Sara and Annie yesterday morning, when I gave Ruth a surprise Mother's Day visit. Jeff was still asleep by the time I got back to the apartment. :-)


- Jeff, only minutes after arriving at the cottage.


- My suet set-up.


Today's Poll:

Are both your parents still living?

culture shock

LOTR updated

It's bit fun but a bit of a culture shock, coming back to Toronto for two days. On Thursday morning, I was watching the sunrise over a mirror-smooth lake. Only hours later, we were fighting our way through a tangle of downtown Toronto traffic amidst honking cars and dodging cyclists.


Had sushi with Bryan, Reid, Ian, Frank, and Jeff last night at Fune, then went to see "The Mummy Returns" at the Paramount. Warned by several friends, I went in with pretty low expectations so wasn't disappointed. :-)









Hey, check out my sister's new picture book above and below! It's the first book she's written AND illustrated, and it looks great. It should be on the bookshelves any day now.









This afternoon we had brunch at Milestones with David Barker, Luisa, Reid and family, then saw "A Knight's Tale" at the Paramount. I went in (like for The Mummy sequel) with fairly low expectations because of the bad/tacky trailer but found myself enjoying the movie more than I expected (and definitely more than The Mummy Returns). Had fun doing cartoon wars with Ronnie and Michael at Milestones.


Went to Chapters afterward and bought The Golden Compass (I borrowed it the first time I read it, and want my own copy) by Philip Pullman, The Bad Beginning by Lemony Snicket, Flash 4 Bible by Robert Reinhardt and Jon Warren Lentz (IDG Books), and some magazines to take to the cottage: Home Recording, Outside, and Acoustic Guitar. Yes, I know I have LOTR reading to do, but I like having other reading material as well. :-) I had a tough time getting through the "Council of Elrond" chapter...reminds me a lot of the Prologue in some ways. David and Jeff are LOTR fans, however, so gave me a pep talk to get me through this bit. Reid tried to convince me to give up. :-)


Looking forward to going back to the cottage tomorrow!









Today's Blatherpics:


- Having "cartoon wars" with Ronnie and Michael.



- Ruth's new picture board book, "Pants Off First", published by Fitzhenry & Whiteside.


- Inside spread of "Pants Off First".


- Our friend Frank.


Today's Poll:

If you found a spider inside your house, would you kill it? (as opposed to putting it outside, or having someone else kill it)

surprise toronto visit

So Jeff and I drove down to Toronto yesterday. I couldn't Blather about our visit because I didn't want my dad-in-law finding out. The reason for our brief Toronto visit in the middle of our cottage stay: my dad-in-law, John Ridpath, gave his very last lecture at York University this morning (he's retiring after a 34-year teaching career at York), and the family wanted to surprise him by attending the class. Case and Debbie drove in from Windsor, Ginny & Larkin & Rick came in from Orangeville, Karen and Lindsay drove in from Toronto. Jeff actually called his Dad last night from our apartment, pretending we were still at the cottage, to wish him luck on his last lecture...I insisted on leaving the room; I was worried that I'd say or do something that would give things away (like playing my harp, which JBR knows is NOT at the cottage :-)).


We arrived about 15 minutes before JBR's economics class began...and got some curious looks from other students (one year old Garrison looked a bit young for this course, I guess). I drew a "CONGRATULATIONS ON A GREAT CAREER" across the front blackboard and also a quick sketch of my dad-in-law. When I finished the sketch, the whole class applauded. :-)


A few minutes later, JBR entered the classroom (through the doorway at the top of the stairs in the picture below):









He didn't notice us right away. He handed out some papers to students as he came down the stairs, walked right past us up to the front of the room, gave a doubletake when he saw my drawing on the blackboard (he said later he recognized my drawing style right away, but it took his brain a few confused seconds to integrate the info). Then he turned and saw us in the front two rows and did another doubletake. As the realization sunk in, he got all choked up, and his students clapped as Olivia and Brittany ran up to the front (totally unprompted) and gave his knees a big hug.


It was a special moment, and well worth the drive from up north. :-) :-)


Congratulations, JBR!







Today's Blatherpics:


- My dad-in-law, giving his very last York University lecture at 9:30 a.m. this morning.



- Waiting to surprise my dad-in-law. From left to right, from the back row: cousin Karen, Jeff, me, first row: my sis-in-law Debbie, Jeff's brother Case holding Garrison, Rick holding Olivia (Olivia is Debbie's and Case's daughter), Jeff's sister Larkin holding Brittany, and mom-in-law Ginny.


- Standing ovation at the end of the class.


Poll:

Do you still have dreams about school?