Quotes

So, I was reading 1 boring old man (as I do and so should you) and he posted something that Firedoglake posted (which you should also read). It was totally worth reposting. And then reposting. So, I'm doing just that. Enjoy.

Richards: “A woman voting for John McCain would be like a chicken voting for Colonel Sanders.”By: Blue Texan Wednesday August 27, 2008 9:50 am

You probably didn't see it, but that line was delivered by Cecile Richards, president of Planned Parenthood and the daughter of former governor Ann Richards.
Not to state the obvious, but the cable news networks suck. I did my best to flip around during the speeches, and at one point, David Gregory and some other air talking head were babbling about the Democrats not attacking -- while on PBS (and right behind them), Kathleen Sebelius was attacking McSame. Unreal.
Here's a few of the best moments that the corporate media didn't bother to cover.
Napolitano:
There’s a pattern here. Barry Goldwater ran for president and he lost. Mo Udall ran for president. He lost. Bruce Babbitt ran for president. And he lost. Speaking for myself, and for at least this coming election, this is one Arizona tradition I’d like to see continue!
Sebelius:
I'm sure you remember a girl from Kansas who said there's no place like home. Well, in John McCain's version, there's no place like home. And a home. And home. And home.
Pena:
For eight years now, President Bush and Dick Cheney have rubber- stamped an energy policy written by big oil companies and their lobbyists in Washington. And what does John McCain want to do now? The same old things that keep on failing: more of the same tax breaks for big oil companies making record profits. More of the same roadblocks in front of fuel-efficient vehicles. More of the same refusal to support advanced, renewable energy. Americans who had to pay $4 dollars a gallon for gas this summer know we can’t afford more of the same.
Patrick:
The same folks who say they believe in small government and fiscal restraint are responsible for the biggest expansion in the size of government and the size of the federal deficit in American history. The same folks, with John McCain leading the charge, who say they support seniors, want to privatize Social Security and put corporate pension funds up for grabs. The same folks who call themselves “compassionate conservatives” are the folks who abandoned all those people not only after Katrina, but before that storm. The American people have had enough.
Rendell:
It’s clear: the only thing green in John McCain’s energy plan is the billions of dollars he’s promising in tax cuts for oil companies. And the only thing he’ll recycle is the same failed Bush approach to energy policy. We can’t afford more of the same.


By the way, did you notice my cool new schwag to the side? Yeah! I'm for Obama! Vote for him.

Updates:

Job- going amazingly well. I still really love it, but at times it's a bit overwhelming. I really could work 40 hours a week and still be busy. I'm hopeful that when I'm ready to go back full time there will be a full time opportunity for me.

Kids- how in the world do I have kids in 5th and 7th grade? And how in the world did I get so lucky to have such amazing kids? Well, it's just luck. That's all.

Dan- he's fantastic. He's been riding his bike a lot and being just his normal awesome self. We pushed our fence back so we can have our wedding reception at home and now he's itching to finish the brick paver patio extension. It will be nice, but oh...ANOTHER project. *sigh*

The wedding- plans are being made. I ordered my dress. A destination wedding still sounds divine, but it's not going to happen...so yeah, I'll just have to dream.

Skate Tour

We are headed out on skate tour for a couple days. Photos to follow.

helicopters

Living about 3 miles (as the crow flies) from where the Democratic National Convention had proved to be an interesting event. We've had helicopters flying through our neighborhood for the last month. At first it was training exercises. Men sitting in the helicopter doorways holding what appeared to be weapons as the choppers went slow and low. Low enough to count the legs and feet and guns. It has progressed into them buzzing through more quickly.

It all makes me wonder what we are in for. Hopefully not much more than the inconvenience of me not being able to ride my bike to work. I guess we'll see.

That brings up another challenge that I'm facing right now. School starts in 10 days and I don't have it figured out about how I'm going to ride my bike in at least 2 days if not 3. It's not just a matter of saving gas, although it does, but rather it's an easy way for me to get some good exercise in a fairly quick and easy way. I know I won't be riding when it gets cold, but I need to figure out how to ride until then. The other thing about riding my bike is it makes my day go better. I'm always in a better mood from the ride to or from than when I drive. I ride along the Cherry Creek path and often get to see some really cool birds, interesting people, and just sort of get into a zone.

On another note, wedding planning is going. I'm not enjoying it. I am excited about my dress, but other than that...yeah...destination wedding is looking better and better although it's still not likely since we have to "have a party". blah...who needs a party when you can have a BEACH!?

The helicopters are back over head.

It's amazing how quickly life can sweep you up and whisk you off onto things that you feel you have to do and not allow you time for the things that you mean to do. I always mean to come onto my blog and write about the things that are going on. And then someone spills the milk. Or the cat throws up all over something. Or friends invite us over. So, yeah, it's not all bad stuff that just comes up, but stuff comes up indeed. Especially when the kids come back. I'm just saying.

I've been really trying hard to get more exercise in. Riding my bike, doing yoga, walking, skateboarding, etc. I have even been trying to keep my calories down. So, do you think I can fit into my shorts? Yeah, not so much. WTF? I think it's the loratadine my allergist put me on. I need to stop taking it and just go w/ the flonase, because seriously! Five pounds in 2 months...no good. No good at all. At least the flonase is working and I can breathe and man- my legs muscles are like ROCKS!

By the way, Mr. E brought a live little bird into the house today. That was fun. I took it back outside, but I'm not sure it's going to make it. He's such a mean little cat.

Day 4- Mesa Verde

When you look at dioramas and photos of the Native Americans that inhabited Mesa Verde invariably they are scantily clad. When you think of the American SouthWest in June you think of hot, dry weather. Neither of which would be accurate representations of our trip to Mesa Verde.

We awoke on the 4th day of our trip to a fine rain. So much for one last hike at Arches. By the time we got there it was actually pouring down. We were in the desert where it was pouring down cold rain on our vacation in June. Alas, we decided that rather than prolong the road trip we'd just hit the road and hope it cleared up by the time we got down to Mesa Verde.

It was actually a quick drive. Not more than two hours from Moab to Cortez. We didn't lose the rain. We had booked reservations at the lodge that is actually on the park site rather than staying in town and driving up the next morning. We paid our park entrance fee and headed up, and up, and up. Little by little, unbeknownst, to us we lost cell service. Fortunately, the misty rain stopped. Upon our arrival at the lodge we checked in and went right to our room.

The room. There is so much to say about this neverbeenremodelledcoldassfuckingdump of a room that I probably summed it up just then. It was frightening. The one good thing about the room was...hmmm... No TV, no cell service, no internet, and NO HEAT!!! WTF? We paid $130 to not have heat on probably one of the coldest JUNE days in recent record. Equally as bad it was Deana's birthday and we couldn't call her since we didn't have a calling card and NO CELL SERVICE.

Undeterred by the less than stellar conditions we went off to see some of the dwellings. We just wanted to peek over the railing at them because we would be going on a tour the next day. We hiked a little and took some photos and then visited the museum. Yes, they DID have several dioramas with the Native Americans scantily clad. Trust me, in reality they were wearing a lot more than a loincloth because it was COLD!

O.K. so the best part of the Mesa Verde lodgings was the dinner we had. The restaurant is actually pretty good for the captive audience that they have. It was pricey, but really delicious. Especially the black bean hummus "pizza". Yummy! After dinner we got to see some deer up pretty close. Then we went back to our freezer room. We did call the maintenance guy, but he didn't fix the heater. We spent a cold, cold night snuggled together. At least there was that.

DO NOT STAY AT THE FAR VIEW LODGE ON MESA VERDE!! You have been warned.

Day 3- vacation

I think Moab is most known for it's mountain bike trails and specifically Slickrock. Being a novice rider I knew that I wasn't going on Slickrock, but Dan hadn't ridden it in a few year so wanted to go. So, after breakfast on the 3rd day we headed over with the promise that after that we could go on a trail that I could ride. I played around riding the entry part and just past this big effing hill that takes you to the practice loop while Dan did the practice loop. I was getting pretty good at riding on the rock and going up not super steep stuff. It was really fun. Dan came back and he watched me do stuff that a 3 year old could probably do and then we left.

We headed straight for the "Monitor & Merrimac" trail. It was one of the "relationship proof" rides the girl at the bike shop had mentioned. It was pretty easy to find. We parked and started down yet another gravel road. Fortunately this one was short and not up a long, gradual hill. Well, the gravel road wasn't up a long hill. Then we got on the trail and started the real climb. It's about 7.5 miles round trip. What the lady didn't say is that it's uphill one way and then a really fun ride back down. We did the uphill and then we took it as a loop and on the way back we ran into...SAND!!! EVIL SAND!! Initially it didn't seem that bad until I fell. Yeeaahhh...that sort of sucked, but whatever. I just got some bruises, a scraped knee and covered in sand. There was just enough rock to skin my knee. Damn sand. We slogged through it and made it back the car. In retrospect I think we somehow missed our turn and ended up on the wrong trail. Next time (yeah, there will soooo be a next time) I'm doing this one as an out and back and not as a loop.

We got back to the b&b and got cleaned up and then just chilled with a couple beers in the lovely garden. We snuggled up on the hammock and watched birds and chatted about who knows what. It really was relaxing and lovely.

For dinner we ended up at Pasta Jay's. There is one in Boulder, too. It was alright. Dan saw some lady get her toes broken when her S.O. pulled his chair up and landed right on her. We took a pretty good walk around town that night just because. It was warm and nice. I love that kind of weather.

Oh yeah! This was the day that I bought the new Weezer CD, which I highly recommend getting.

Day 2- vaca

Before I start with Day 2 I just want to say that I think Sen. Kucinich rocks the poo for introducing the articles of impeachment against Dumbfuck Bush. I'm ashamed at our "free speech" media for not picking up the story, but whatever. It happened and it's important. Read about it in detail here or a summary here.

Day two- We woke up early, as we did most days of the vacation. I am not sure why we woke so early, but I think it was about 6 when we woke and then about 6:30 when we got up and moving. Breakfast was part of our stay at Cali Cochitta so we went over to the outside garden table at 8:00. There were a few folks already eating and chatting. The food all of the days we were there was phenomenal. I love good food and this was the tops.

After breakfast we headed out for our first mountain bike adventure. Dan had chatted with a local when picking up a patch kit and got a few recommendations. I guess the conversation went something like this.

Dan- "So, what are some good novice trails?"

Local bike shop lady- "You here with your girlfriend, huh?"

Dan- "Yeah."

LBSL- "Do you want to keep her?"

haha!! So after finding out the trails that wouldn't create a rift in our relationship we decided to take the Bar M Loop. The first part was my hell. Why? Because it was a slow long climb up a lame gravel road. I hate that. So, freaking hard and boring! Give me something fun! Finally when we got to the top we got to see some great views and it was a bit more up and down and technical. We could look over the valley and see Arches Nat'l Park. After a good bit of fun terrain we headed down only to have to get back on the stupid gravel road and climb back up. I want it to all be down! Or at least short, steep ascents. None of that slow, long bullshit.

After our morning bike ride we got cleaned up and had a fairly forgetable lunch. Then we headed to Arches National Park. I don't think I've ever been there. When I was a child my grandparents took me on a lot of trips, but this isn't one I recall. We could see a lot of the rock formations that we saw from a distance earlier in the day.

We got out at Park Avenue, but decided to forgo that hike. Then we drove down to the Windows Arches. We hiked around to the Arch that's just south of the window and then headed to the South Arch. When we got there I sat down on a rock and asked Dan to take my photo. He sat down on a lower rock and obliged my request. Then as he was getting up he acted like his back was hurt. I asked if he was alright and about then he went to one knee and said, "Will you spend the rest of your life with me?" As he said that he held out my ring! Then he said, "Will you marry me?" I was grinning like a moron, and said, "Yes!!" We decided to continue on our hike after some hugging and kissing. I nearly tripped a few times because I was looking at my ring instead of on the path.

When we got back to the B&B we decided to do this hokey riverboat cruise thing. Obviously, it's not billed as being hokey, but it most obviously is. It's called "Canyonlands by Night." You have a Dutch Oven dinner. Having a 12 year old in the house makes anything called 'Dutch Oven' a lot funnier than if you think about the food made in a Dutch Oven. Anyway, it was basically pot roast with various side dishes. It was tasty, but I'm sure not low fat. Then after the dinner you get on this flat bottom boat with 40 or so other people and go up the Colorado River. Our guide told us about the geology of the rocks and pointed out some fun features in the rock. He gave us some interesting trivia about the area, etc. That part was pretty enjoyable. Then we got to a spot in the river just as night fell and he stopped talking. The "real" show began, or should I say that's when we entered "Hokeville, USA". Honestly, this was a program out of the 70's. It began, "In the beginning God created the earth and sky." or something ridiculous. The description of how heroic and brave the white men were as they settled the area, and of how cruel the Native Indians were to settlers made me about want to jump off the boat and swim ashore. I tried to tune out the "formal program" and focus on how pretty the stars and just floating back down the river was. At one point they said something about God and Dan started whispering loudly, "GOD IS GREAT!! GO GOD!! WOOHOO!!" in my ear. He's a kook. I was sorry the whole program wasn't the old guy telling us stories about the area. He was much more engaging than the other.

It was 10:30 by the time we got off the boat, so we went back to our room and crashed. It was a long, but fun day.

Vacation- Day 1

Our first day of actual vacation was spend, for the most part, driving. After sending the kids off on their annual journey to Loganville, GA we hit the road. We headed west on I-70 and saw a lot of beautiful mountain scenery. It wasn't anything new, but it's still beautiful.

Our plan was to stop at Edwards and ride at their skatepark. We did so, since it was the plan, after all. They have an amazing skatepark. It's unfortunate that it's probably covered in snow a lot of the year. We are definitely going to have to get the kids up to ride it. I know G will love it.

After stopping there we decided to venture on to Glenwood Springs to grab a bite to eat. I'm glad we did. We stopped at "Charcoal Burger" and oh man! It was so yummy. It's just a small mom and pop that looks like it's been their forever. The food was excellent though. The weather was holding out for our journey so we sat outside and enjoyed the sun.

Venturing on we kept heading west. Dan forgot the directions but swore that he remembered where we turned onto this little tiny road in Utah that would save us an hour. We turned on UT-6. It was this itty bitty sort of paved road that really was not meant for anything but local traffic. I kept waiting for that guy from "No Country For Old Men" to try and pull us over with his cow killer thingy. Well, we lived to make it to Hwy 128 which is this really beautiful (and still a little scary) road that winds along the Colorado river. I say scary because the riverbank is starting to eat away at not just the shoulder, but the highway itself. Dan has a love for riding the shoulder, which I very kindly and emphatically told him to avoid practicing.

We headed straight for our B&B upon getting into town. We stayed at this place called the "Cali Cochitta Bed and Breakfast". It was really a treat and I do highly recommend anyone heading to Moab that isn't camping staying there. I'll say more about how great it was later. After getting settled in we walked to Eddie McStiffs and had some dinner. That was about it for our first vacation day. The trip only took us about 6 hours including the stops for skateboarding and eating.

It's Official!

Dan proposed, and I said, "Yes!" This isn't the best photo of my hand ever, but it was taken right after at the South Window at Arches Nat'l Park. I almost fell a couple of times because I was looking at all the sparkly and not where I was walking. haha!

No date yet. We have plenty of time to figure out the when and where.

I'll post more info about our vacation over the next few days, but this seemed the most significant occassion.

Sick dog and then some

I came home to a poop covered dog yesterday. The poor thing had diarrhea and it got all over her, her crate and the general vicinity. Ain't dog ownership great?! After I got the mess, the dog and myself cleaned up I called the vet and she's going in later today. We need to get this straightened up before we leave on our vacation and our housesitter has to deal with it. That would just be cruel and probably end up without a housesitter.
Anyway, I'm home today with her since I didn't want a repeat of yesterday's mess. I've been using the time to clean the house, do laundry, pack the kids up for their big GA trip, garden and yes- even check my work e-mail. Oh yeah, I'm loading up Bronte's ipod with some new tunes so she can listen on the plane. She wanted Lupe Fiasco and the newest Feist on there.
On a more political note I've been reading about the whole Scott Mcclellan book situation. While I'm glad he's coming out with some new details on the inside of the White House and all their dirty dealings I wish he would have done something about it way back when it was happening. I hope that he doesn't hide when the Senate asks him the details.

today

Today I cleaned house (moving furniture, cleaning out cabinets kind of cleaning), finished putting mulch throughout our garden, went shopping for summer clothes for the kids, went for an 8 mile bike ride (and did not get tired from it, thank you very much), and went for a walk. So, yeah, it was a busy day, but a good one. After all the work Dan and I headed to the Irish Rover (fav. local pub) for a couple beers (Smithwick's for me, of course). Their Hurling team was celebrating so it was quite packed, but fine. Then we came home and shot the 3-man winger we got Dan for Christmas. Fun times.

Here's my front garden a couple of days ago. I need new photos because the mulch is complete now.

Herb garden w/ ice plant in the foreground.

The view from my porch.

And one of my beautiful pink roses w/ some snapdragons in the background. Really, I'm loving my garden this year.

Stuff 'n Things

I keep telling myself that I'm going to blog more. And then I don't. I think I spend a good deal of my blog energy on a private forum that I belong to with a number of my other friends who live far away. It's not the time really, but more that once I've said stuff there or commented there I just don't come over to my blog and post. I want to, but I don't. Sort of like moving the TV on a weekly basis and sweeping back there. I want to, but I don't so it ends up being a monthly thing rather than a weekly thing.
So, what's new?
Well, it's nearly summer. The garden is coming along quite nicely. We are at the point of putting down mulch to help retain moisture and retard the weeds. I need to find something that's o.k. to put in my herb garden (and in the basil plot) because somehow putting red hardwood mulch doesn't seem like it would be a good idea. I think most of the seeds I put in have popped up and are growing quite nicely. Our clematis that performed so poorly (first year it sleeps, second it creeps, third it leaps) is leaping, but it's only the second year sooooo... Anyway, I promise to post photos soon.
We've been skateboarding as much as possible. I got new trucks for Mother's Day and they are so freaking smooth. I'm actually getting pretty high up in the bowls now and carrying my speed a lot better. I still love the way skateboarding feels. Why didn't I start earlier?
New sport- mountain biking. No, not just riding on a gravel path, but really doing some fun single track stuff. Right now my biggest hurdle is figuring out my clipin thingies. I got the new pedals and the cleats installed last night and I practice a little getting in and out stopped and while going. Yeah...about that... So, I had just started actually trying while riding and a car came up on our street so I sort of moved over. I wasn't panicked, but I couldn't get my cleat undone. So, I fell over...in front of the car! Fortunately they were barely going and I got my foot off just as i was going down. My knee got a little skinned, but I lived and I got better as the evening progressed. I have a few days before I actually need to be good at it. I do have to take my bike back in after just getting it back. I'm so pissed. The bike shop dorks changed out my rims (factory warranty covered, thank ra) but then they didn't bother to tighten up my back brake when they were done so it's really loose. Dan picked up my bike so didn't check it out until he got home and then I was like..uh, this shouldn't hit my handlebar! grrr... bike fixer dorks do your job!
The kids are out of school next week. Geoffrey is moving on to 7th grade and Bronte into 5th. It's hard to believe my babies have grown up so quickly, but I guess that they do that. They both have busy summers ahead. um...well, they will once I start planning our activities. I have time, right?
Lastly, I think once the kids are back from Georgia I'm going to start looking for another little boy boxer. I miss having a boy who likes hugs around. Lily isn't nearly so snuggly as Max ever was so I have to be sure to get one that likes them. Besides, she loves Dan WAY more than she loves me. I need some puppy love! haha!

O.K. How was that for a post? Not to bad for being away for so long.

100 years in Iraq...

If the idea of voting for McCain has even crossed your mind, read this:

"Maybe 100. We’ve been in South Korea, we’ve been in Japan for 60 years. We’ve been in South Korea for 50 years or so. That’d be fine with me as long as Americans are not being injured or harmed or wounded or killed. Then it’s fine with me. I would hope it would be fine with you if we maintain a presence in a very volatile part of the world where Al Qaeda is training, recruiting, equipping, and motivating people every single day."- Senator John McCain

If you want proof that this is the NeoConservative agenda and that he goes a long with it read THIS.

Whatever you do, just THINK ABOUT IT!

Full Steam Ahead

You know, I haven't really been focusing on politics much this primary season. I have listened some and followed some, but not really decided who I really would like better as a candidate. That is until this morning when I was reading 1BoringOldMan and read what Barack Obama had to say about "ticky-tack". Here is what he said:

"If you watched the last few weeks of campaign, you'd think all politics is about is negative ads and bickering and arguing and gaffes and sideline issues," he said at a town hall meeting in this struggling manufacturing town. "There's no serious discussion about how we're actually going to bring jobs back to Anderson, that's not what's being debated. That's the politics we've gotten used to over the last 20 years, and I'm tired of that politics because it doesn't solve problems. One of the things we've got to do is bring this country together and stop being distracted by back and forth ticky-tack. I've resisted that in this campaign and I will continue to resist it when I'm president of the United States of America."

What I got out of this is that he believes we as Americans are all smart enough to know that the problems are and he's tired of bickering about that. He's got solutions and wants us all to move forward on those solutions. I like that. Don't bring me the problem, bring me the solution. So, full steam ahead, Mr. Obama. You've got my support.

Spring Fever

For many people the need to be outside this time of year is intense. Spring fever kicks in and we all feel a little more distracted while inside on a nice, warm spring day. For me, it's not the being inside that is hard, but the not being able to really do anything in my yard that does it. I sit on my front bench and stare at the dirt that is just begging for seeds and young little plants to be popped in the ground. But it's not time! No, it's not time yet here in Colorado because it could still snow! We have a couple more weeks and then I can beautify this dirt canvas I call a garden. It's driving me CRAZY!!! See, that's what spring fever does. It makes you crazy.

So, in my craziness I'll sit and have a beer and make plans for all the plants that I'll buy and where they will go. And it better not even freakin' snow and kill the stuff that is coming up from last year!

In Our Hearts

We had to say goodbye to a member of our family tonight. Our sweet boxer, Max. He was an amazing and loving boy. He will always be loved and in our hearts.

Vote G.I. Joe

"Hillary is a woman. I'm a woman. I'm going to vote for her."
"Obama is good looking. I will vote for him."
"Obama is black. I'm black. I'll vote for him."

If this is your logic in picking a candidate then I have a recommendation. Vote for G.I. Joe. He's a good solid American with a military background who looks amazing in photos. That's all you need to know. If you aren't going to THINK about what the candidates abilities are, listen to what they say, and use your cognitive skills to assess whether they would make a good President then just vote for a plastic action figure. After all, that's exactly what got us in the bind we are in now.

"Dull Women Have Immaculate Houses"

I was talking to my friend AbbyLadyBug today about the wonder of people who have clean houses. We are perplexed by the phenomenon of people who's houses look like showrooms all of the time. How do they do it? I'm not saying that I don't clean my house. I do. A lot. Between laundry, picking up, doing dishes, etc. it easily is an hour a day and then on the weekends it's even more. So, why is my house always messy?! I know it's possible for people with kids to have neat and tidy houses, but how? HOW? My only answer is that they don't have anything else in their lives but cleaning. That IS their hobby, their pastime, their exercise, their entertainment. It's the only conclusion I can come to. Honestly, I love having a clean house, but having it clean 100% of the time is not worth the sacrifices I'd have to make elsewhere. You will never hear me say, "Sorry, I can't go skateboarding today because I need to mop my floors."

Mama said there'd be days like this...

When I got into work I had an e-mail waiting for me that began "Oh My God!" Following the internal link I discovered that somehow we had received 33 new resumes over night for a position we've been trying to fill for what seems like an eternity. We are into second interviews, but quite frankly haven't found "The One." I headed over to the resumes and the first one I read had this in their signature line:

"There is no compromise or negotiation when it comes to who will run your life. Either you take charge and live a productive life of your choosing or you allow yourself to be ruled by circumstances. But there will inevitably be setbacks. In the old West, a cowboy expression went: "there never was a horse that couldn't be rode, and there never was a rider that couldn't be throwed." Like everyone else, you will have days when everything goes right and you are on top of the world. Relish those days enjoy them, and remember them. Recall the euphoria that accompanied them when you need an extra measure of positive thinking to get back in the saddle after you've experienced an embarrassing and painful fall. ~Napoleon Hill"

Maybe I should have taken it for a a sign and taken stock of all the awesomeness in my life. It's a pretty good list to be honest and I don't really take the good for granted. However, you just never know when you are going to need to recall the good to help you overcome the bad. Today is one of those days. It's not the big stuff that does it, but the minutia that adds up. So, rather than eating my lunch that someone stole from the fridge I am here, eating a banana that I fortunately didn't eat yesterday, looking at the beautiful smiles of my children.

Now, what's next?