Khiori's Solitude
"Climb the mountains and get their good tidings; Nature's peace will flow into you as sunshine into flowers..."
~John Muir
If you are looking for the Canine Epilepsy page related to Khiori, please click here
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I wanted to share a couple links - both those that have inspired me and ones I find inspiring.
The first is for Dzrt Grls. They inspired me to begin a love affair with the desert. I could spend DAYS looking at their pictures and reading their trip reports. And months trying to decipher where some of the locations are. Anyway, linkage to the Girls site: Dzrt Grls
Next, to finish a thought from my last entry, silent films! TCM (on tv) plays silent films and that's the only channel I know to check. But! I found two web sites that show silent films! Or at least have them available for download. Since silent films are so old, the rights have mostly all passed to public use.
First and foremost would be Archive.org. TONS of silent films (and other public domain films, music, books, etc) are available. Silent Films search. Search for The General to get yourself addicted to silent films.
The second web site was UBUWEB. They have many films that aren't silent but they do have one that ranks rather high on the must see list. Backing way up in the story.... many years ago Sean and I were watching tv and it was one of those nights that "nothing is on". So we tuned in to PBS and saw a movie was about to start. It was in Spanish and neither of us know Spanish. We were going to turn it off but decided to give it a try. It had subtitles after all. It was called "The Avenging Angel". I wish that one was public domain! I would watch it again in a heart beat. Anyway, this movie stuck with us, it was so weird, all these years. Oftentimes we'll bring it up and end off the topic lamely, each of us lost in our own thoughts. Well, on UBUWEB they have a copy of this man's (Luis Brunuel) first film. It's called The Andalusian Dog. Or more properly "Un chien andalou" made in 1929. It was cowritten by Salvador Dali. WARNING WARNING WARNING WARNING!!! This film is NOT for the feint of heart!!! It is surreal and follows a dream like process - nightmares I would consider them. It starts with a horrifying image. It's a flow of consciousness type film. But it is immensely important in both silent film and film in general. That all being said, linkage to UBU's "Un chien andalou" and to UBUWEB
A last thought - one with no links. I have just about OD'd on Rudolf Valentino. I recorded a bunch of his films on the DVR and have been going through and watching them. I still have about four left, and no the ones I wanted to see! But that's good because I still have those to hunt down. Most notably "Blood and Sand", The Sheik, The Son of the Sheik. *ahem* But that's not what I meant to write about. What I *did* mean to write about were the women's shawls!! I recently watched "The Birth of a Nation" (oh my, what a movie that one was but I'll hold off commentary on this one for a bit) and along with all the others, I DROOL over the hand knit fine shawls the women wore! These articles of clothing are priceless now. And I soooo wish there were close up's of just those shawls so I could attempt to copy them. I was re-inspired last night to knit an heirloom shawl.
I am so close to being done with the Top 100 AFI Films list (and top comedies and top action films - I haven't discussed those yet) that I thought I would look for the top 100 silent films. My first brush with silent films was on Buster Keaton's 100th birthday. There was a tribute program on TV. Probably TCM. Then they showed a dozen or so of his films - including The General (which remains, by far, my most favorite silent film and possibly most favorite film at all)
Continue reading "Silent Films" »
I updated my 101 list and here is the new list for the top 100 movies:
1. The Birth of a Nation
2. A Streetcar Named Desire
3. Rebel Without a Cause
4. The Manchurian Candidate
5. City Lights
6. The Deer Hunter
7. The Wild Bunch
8. Giant
I am on the final 13 movies on the AFI best pic's list! I actually have two queued up to watch. I will likely watch one tonight. But in any case, here are the final 13:
1. The Graduate
2. Chinatown (queued)
3. Midnight Cowboy
4. The Birth of a Nation
5. A Streetcar Named Desire
6. A Clockwork Orange
7. Taxi Driver (queued)
8. Rebel Without a Cause
9. The Manchurian Candidate
10. City Lights
11. The Deer Hunter
12. The Wild Bunch
13. Giant
I am calling today "Soup Day". Two reasons. 1. It's windy and cold out. What happened to our warm days? Poo. 2. I made soups! Zero Point Soup and Red Lentil soup. I make ZPS often so no biggie there. But the Red Lentil soup is a new one. I got the recipe out of my Vegetarian Times Magazine. We'll see how it turns out. Smeeelllllllsssss delish though. *yummmmy*
Wow, I am almost done with the list. Only 15 more films left. These are going to have to be rented though, I'm sure. They aren't the kinds of films that will be broadcast over satellite. Here's the final 15.
1. Lawrence Of Arabia (Ok, I actually have this one DVR'd but it's four hours long! I'll get to it)
2. The Graduate
3. Chinatown
4. Midnight Cowboy
5. The Birth of a Nation (silent)
6. A Streetcar Named Desire
7. A Clockwork Orange
8. Taxi Driver
9. Rebel without a Cause
10. The Manchurian Candidate
11. City Lights (silent)
12. The Deer Hunter
13. The Wild Bunch
14. Giant
15. Goodfellas (I can borrow this one from my dad)
Oh wait, no, it's not! It's only February. But it's so WARM and I want to plant things. And make a compost pile.... and grow my garden. Never mind the foot of snow on the ground. Besides that will melt right off any day now. Oh well. Here's a picture of Ferny last snow.
So I've bit the bullet and decided I AM going to learn to make bras and underwear before the end of the year. Look at the calendar. *blink* I guess I need to get a move on! So, I ordered the patterns and started in on them. Unbelievably, the underwear were not only easy, they FIT. *shock* On to the next project. Bras.
I need more material. Ok, order some, wait wait wait. They arrive. I duplicate the pattern and try to make a bra. Don't fit! WHY?! D'oh. I realize I made the wrong size. Recut the pattern. Recut the fabric. Going along great. Now why don't this second cup fit?? What's wrong?? It's a two piece cup. I did it upside down. Oops. Seam ripper is suddenly my best friend. Resew. It STILL doesn't work. *WHINE* WHY NOT?? Inside out. *sigh*. So this is where I am. I have it repinned and will go sew it up again. Wish me luck. This is getting frustrating and I don't want to give up!
I'm ordering one of these today :D
*edit I don't know why but the image and the link didn't seem to work. So check out the side bar under "Currently Buying" for a link to the machine. I'm fairly excited *glee*
Looks like the Luna Moth Shawl's colors ran after all. It's a good thing I decided to be super careful and lay down plastic sheeting under the blocking towels. In any case, I soaked it 20 minutes in warm water and then carefully pinned it to size. I think it could have gone larger. In fact, I know it could have. But I just blocked it to the size recommended (75x46) I can't wait to see how it turns out dry :bounce: I'll take a picture once it's dried.
*edited to add - Now I'm beginning to wonder how long it is going to take for this to dry. Any ideas? Anyone? Anyone? Beuller?
It's kind of funny how certain personality types have a tendency to compartmentalize parts of their lives. It goes back into a tendency to mircomanage either parts or all of one's life. I'm no exception! That being said.... I'm nearly done with my 101 things to do in 1001 days. I will post it up once I'm finished and get a countdown clock going. I might even write a bit about why I chose the items on the list. I might even post about the completion of items. We shall see.... 1001 days is a long time.
*edited to add. Holy cow. I just calculated the end date. I thought I would start it on this Saturday. Bit of silliness I suppose but 07/07/07 sounded like a neat place to start. Here's the calculation:
From date: Saturday, July 7, 2007
Added 1001 days
Resulting date: Saturday, April 3, 2010
On another note - I just saw Ferny through my un-glasseded eyes chewing on something. I freaked cause it looked like one of my rubber slippers. (It wasn't) They are in very good condition still yet. I bought them on my last trip to Hawaii... in Feb of 1987! They are just over 20 years old!!
Oh my. I can't believe it is July already. The year is half gone. Some how that both surprises me and depresses me. The days and weeks just melt into one another and before you know it months have passed. Ugh.
In other news, Sean went wheeling this weekend with his Explorer friends. They all had a lot of fun and no one crashed up their vehicle. I'm glad he was able to go and enjoy himself. A pic, if you will....
I wonder if that will work... It's part of the "upload" feature of Movable Type....
Wow. I just heard that Boston's lead singer, Brad Delp, passed away today. I'm crushed. I've never been a fan girl of any particular band... but as close as I get - I get to this band. I loved Boston. When I was a teen their music was a big part of my life. I loved the haunting sounds. It almost hurt to listen to, it was that beautiful to me. And as an adult, I never lost my love for Boston. I would hear it on the radio. Or on the mp3 player... and always, I would pause to listen.
Good Bye, Brad. Your voice carried me many a mile and many a heart ache. It won't be the same without you.
*and you, feeling the way I do, I don't want wait whole life through. To say. I'm in love with you."
*sniff*!!!!
Well, it's been quite a while since I updated this blog. And even moreso that I've REGULARLY updated it. I hope to change that.
I guess today I will mention Fern :) A new puppy! She's really cute, isn't she? She's 3/4 Newf and 1/4 Pyr. I'm really looking forward to her coming home. It will be another month yet.
I've got more but this will do for now.
Love his stuff. He's also got a MySpace account which includes lots of videos. Very interesting to watch!!
Kaku MySpace
:) Gotta love it!
Technorati Profile
Wheee! More fun online!!
This is just as strange as it can get. I got an email yesterday from Classmates.com about a reunion that's being planned. It's from my graduating class from JUNIOR HIGH SCHOOL! Yikes!! We were ...what... all of 14 years old when we left?
But thinking back on it - I had a lot of friends in jr. high school. Many more than high school. Of course, there were some very turbulent years in there. And lots of things I would just rather not revisit or remember. Ugh.
Next year will be my 20th High School Reunion. I think I would like to go. Just to see how folks changed since the last reunion 10 years ago. But even then I only knew one person. And she wasn't a person who was nice to me in high school. In fact, direct opposite. I never could figure out why.
The students I WAS friends with - oh my. Who knows where they ended up. I don't think more than three of us actually graduated. Which is a shame now that I look back. They were truely my friends. I miss them. Let's see... maybe one day they will search their name online and find my blog. I'll list them :)
Well, first. ME! (cause like, yeah - this blog IS all about 'me' afterall ;) ) Rachel Bekgaard. Not that anyone would be looking for me. Usually we all look for ourselves. Unless we are specificially looking for someone else. Ahem. But I digress. Where was I? I guess I'd better go hunt down my high school year book...
*rattles off*
*sounds of doors opening and closing*
*books falling*
*mutters*
*an AHA then Nope That's Not It*
*feet pounding on staircase...*
Ok. Here we are....
Wow. Shawn Smith. Not in my class but two years older. He was really nice to me. I was such an awkward kid. He never made me feel silly or insignificant. Thank you Shawn Smith! I've never forgotten that!
Anne Hamachi. LOL! What a hoot she was. :)
Kim Kalune. I just missed seeing you during college years.
Have to mention Mark Cutsinger. First met him in elementary school and we ended up going to the same jr. high, high school and college together. But for whatever reason really didn't socialize much - although I always considered him a friend.
Giovanni Delarosa. Wow. He did the best drawings. I still have all the drawings he gave me.
Shana Evers. I remember walking home with her and Anne often.
Teresa Hawkins. Such a bright girl! Where are you??!!
Dewayne Konold. Dude?! What happened with you? Where are you today?
Ok. Enough with the nostalgia. I have to get to work in the here and now *sigh*
*edited to add - I probably should mention this. We all went to Narbonne High School, Harbor City California in 1985-1987 ish. We also all had Mr. Lehn's english class - I think. . . *tries to think*
Ack. I feel really bad that I haven't been updating in so long. And I have been doing so much in the meantime! So lots and lots and lots of things to talk about, once I get around to putting all my thoughts and pictures together.
Let's see.... there was my birthday at Disneyland
then a trip to Huntington Library and Gardens...
And just recently we went on a camping trip to the Mojave Preserve...
So as you can see, I've got a lot of stuff to get going. Oh yeah, and I've updated all the pages with some new stuff. AND I have all kinds of new ideas for the site. I just need to get going on them!!! *runs in circles and falls down*
Isn't this pretty? I would think it'd be great fun to have a garden like this. At least the squirrels wouldn't eat it all up. Or would they?? The brats!
There are so many toys online I can't hardly stand it! I'm looking into integrating Flick'r. Plus There are other free portal/blogging programs out there. One I'd like to look into would be SMF. Or Drupal. Or or or or or.
And yeah. I know. I haven't been making many entries here. Lots of things have been going on too. Like going to Huntington Library and Botanical Gardens. Then my birthday trip to Disneyland (YAY!!). Then Independance Day - which sadly I was sick all day - but got to play Thief II Fan Missions most of the time (Woot!) Trip to the big city (Los Angeles) to pick up one of our servers.... Lots of stuff - just haven't been getting them put into writing form. ah where does the time go....?
Ok, some of my linkages:
Flickr
Yahoo 360
More later I'm sure!!
Ya know - when you make a request and only one person out of .... oh say, 30? responds with an "Ok" and the rest pretty well say "screw you" ... what's the point in sticking around?
But I digress. I'm wondering how this feature of "schedule" will work. . . .
_time passes_
Ok, I see now. It just sits in a queue until I make it "publish". bah. Boring.
Ahhhh..... I love the internet. This is what I just did - and have been doing for a littel while now. I find a subject that I am interested in. In this case, Sewing. So I go over to Amazon and check out their books and reviews. I find a book that appeals the most to me. In this case, The Complete Book of Sewing by DK Publishing.
After having picked a book, I go to my online library resource. Go to your library to find if they are online, and if so, where. I plug in the name of the book, search the system to see if they have it. They do! So I secure a hold on it and ask for it to be sent to my local library branch. In the meantime, they show other related books - so I grab one of those too! (It was about sergers).
Now tell me. Is that cool or what??
Past couple days I've been playing with some slide rules. One belongs to my dad (Hi Dad!) and the other belonged to my father in law. That one came with an instruction booklet and exercises.
Having had a chance to play with these hands on it just makes me shudder to think we sent men to the moon with these things. :eek: It does take a bit of experience though to get it to become an elegant tool.
Why isn't anyone talking about this?? This is just blowing me away.
1+1=2 Right?
Well, 11-2=9
36- (3+6) = 27 which is divisible by 9
42 - (4+2) = 36 which is divisble by 9
365 - (3+6+5) = 351 is divisible by 9
56+34=90 ; 5634 - 90 = 5544 / 616 = 9
82+170=252 ; 82170 - 252 = 81918 / 9102 = 9
And if you go further, everything is divisble by 3! so 3 is the answer to *everything*!
This is just blowing me away. I really hope someone else here appreciates what this means.
Btw, I got this from the "human calculator", Scott Flansburg
This really goes deep into understanding a bit of how the mind can intuitively know when something "feels right" or wrong. This also explains a bit to me about, well, me.
I gotta let this gel some more. Wow.
5+5=10 but 55-10=45, 4+5=9 ACK!
Today I had every intention of writing about a hike or some such exploration. I sure have enough things to talk about! I thought about the time we went hiking and I wanted to rediscover my barefooted Hawaiian roots - and almost walked on a rattlesnake. Or the time we took our friends up to Mill Peak in winter - and ended up trudging through two feet of snow, returning with soaked boots. Although that taught me to carry plastic grocery bags on all hikes. I mean, who would have guessed they make great moisture barriers.
Instead, I am going to write about today's adventure.
It's been about a year since I've driven. Strange, I know. Silly technicality with Social Security and subsequent loss of license with DMV. But I digress. I did eventually get my license back. It just took a while.
I thought I had better get some driving in after all this time and figured going off road would be just as good practice as anything. We loaded up the dogs, packed a picnic lunch and hit the road. 3N34, here we come!
It's unbelievable the weather we are having this year. Dry and warm. Lots of folks enjoying the nice weather. We found Off Highway Vehicle volunteers doing trail maintenance - fence repairs in particular as we passed them.
There were a few others taking advantage of the nice day. Some driving motorcycles, some on ATV's and a few others in 4 wheel vehicles like ourselves. We got to see a lady riding her horse with her two dogs in tow. (How cool is that!) One person was Geocaching. Another had gone out to collect firewood. All of us out there, enjoying the forest in his or her own way.
We explored the forest from the road. Drove 3N34 from the Pinnacles Staging Area toward Hook Creek. Left the forest road via Torrey (Pines?) Road. We reentered the forest from the vicinty of Yosemite area. Our dogs had a nice ride. The newfy just loves to ride. The collie would prefer to herd quail. Or lizards. He doesn't care which. He got to do neither. All in all - just being out and about in the forest is a blessing.
Maybe next week we'll actually hike.
Wow! What a wild month January turned out to be! Let's see...
Went camping in the Ord Mountains. I just love it there. And the dogs get a real kick out of being in the middle of nowhere full of rabbits and birds. Ok. Bird Dog Leo loves it. Solo just wants to make sure we all stay together and no one gets toooo far from the rest of the "pack" on the walks.
Later in the month : Motherboard and RAM fried. Hee hee. When I say "I don't know how to do this, maybe *you* should" well... listen. :D So yeah. My fault. But it didn't happen without a warning cry of "HOW DO I DO THIS??!!" eheheh.
Turned off Satellite TV again. This time it's not as painful ha. How come I have so much time to do things in the evenings now? Same number of hours. But more is getting done. hmmm....
Speaking of more time: I've been asked to write articles for our local magazine! I'm THRILLED!! So I have to get myself in gear. I'll be writing up stories on our local hikes. It should be a lot of fun. With this and the Forest Service Photography volunteer work - well. Someday I might "know" our forest. In the meantime, we're still poking and learning and discovering TONS of new things.
I think that brings me up to date. The last thing I need to mention: TOTE BAGS! Yes, they are finally here! I've been sewing away like a little magic Brownie in the sewing loft and getting some things done. Now they are ready for viewing. I'm so proud of them. My good friend, Coral (of Newfstitch.com) does the embroidery shown on the bags. She also has her own line of Newfoundland dog paraphanelia. Did I spell that right? Oh well, you get the idea. Just go look at her site. Got a drooler? She's got the bib for you!
For my work: I'll have another entry up in just a few minutes.... *zoom*
Gah. Those who listen to Coast to Coast AM know who Art Bell is. And if you know Art Bell, you know his wife, Ramona. I found out yesterday evening she passed away. I'm so sad and stunned.
More from Whitley Striber's site
*I've been looking on all my old back ups for images I saved from Art Bell's site and can't find them. I had some nice pictures of Ramona I was going to post. If I find them, I'll put them up.
Yesterday we had a pretty good storm move in and we lost power from 11:20am until about 9:30pm. This morning it is beautiful and I thought of this picture.
The picture is actually of the moonrise/sunrise on December 29th 2005 in the Ord Mountains where we camped. Beautiful isn't it?
D'oh. You can't see the moon. Well, it's right in the center. Looks like a white spot ha ha.
Taken from elsewhere on the internet:
In Flanders the poppies blow
Between the crosses row on row,
That mark our place, and in the sky,
The Larks, still bravely singing, fly
Scarce hear amid the guns below.
We are the dead. Short days ago
We lived, felt dawn, saw sunset glow,
Loved and were loved, and now we lie
In Flanders fields.
Take up the quarrel with the foe;
To you from failing hands we throw
The torch; be yours to hold it high.
If ye break faith with us who die
We shall not sleep, though poppies grow
In flanders' fields.
One of the most asked questions is: why poppies? The answer is simple: poppies only flower in rooted up soil. Their seeds can lie on the ground for years and years, and only when someone roots up the ground, they will sprout. There was enough rooted up soil on the battlefield of the Western Front; in fact the whole front consisted of churned up soil. So in May 1915, when McCrae wrote his poem, around him poppies blossomed like no one had ever seen before.
Poppies are the perfect symbol for Remberance Day, which as always November 11. From time immorial they have been regarded traditionally as flowers of slumber and forgetfulness, but now they have become a national emblem of Remberance.
Many thousands of years ago the ancient Greeks forged a legend regarding poppies and sleep. In this legend they likened the heads of dying warriors to the drooping poppies of the field. They even made crowns of poppies to be placed on the heads of those who had died - a symbol of perfect sleep.
However, it was the publication of these three simple verses which have been called "the greatest poem of Britain occasioned by the First World War" which firmly established the poppy as the international flower of respect and pride to be worn each year on Armistice Day.
The poem was called "In Flanders Fields" and was written by a doctor who was also a soldier and poet. He witnessed much of the trench warfare of the time and wrote his immortal poem on a page torn from a dispatch book which lay near him.
DR John McCrae was born of Scottish parents who emigrated to Canada . . . . His medical career was interrupted when he enlisted as a doctor with the Canadian troops so that by September 1914 he had been posted to France to care for wounded soldiers.
After writing his poem, he sent his verses to "Punch" magazine were they appeared on December 8th 1915. However, the poem was not to remain unknown for long as it was recognised it was born in the heat of the battle and that it had an enduring quality.
DR John McCrae was not to see the end of the War. He was wounded in May 1918 becoming a patient in his own hospital near the French coast where, suffering from pneumonia, he died three days later.
(Article courtesy of "Wavelength" July 2001)
I've started my wintering. Hee hee. That means, lining up all my projects to work on during the dark and stormy days ahead. I'm learning knitting, tating and sewing this winter. When at the grocery I asked for paper bags instead of plastic. I said "I need paper for making patterns". They looked at me like o_O lol
This one is a wall hanging quilt I am working on. I need to attach backing and batting then I can quilt the top. After that, bind the edges and I'm done. Pretty huh? It's very "autumnal".
What does that mean?? I guess the easiest way of saying "Ollie ollie oxen free" is to really say "Come out, come out, whereever you are!!" But where did Ollie and oxen come from? Well, someone today said "Ollie Ollie, outs in free" which made NO sense . . . until I looked closer. And thanks to the internet, now I know what "Ollie Ollie, Oxen Free" really is supposed to say.
During those summer nights of playing hide and seek there was always a "safe!" place. Usually a tree. Everyone hides while someone counts to 100 or whatever. We had no patience - we counted to 10. Then when someone was tagged or we all had lost interest/given up on the game we called out "Ollie Ollie Oxen free!!" What it *really* is supposed to be is "All the, all the - outs in free!"
Well. You learn something new everyday.
Happy Birthday Mom! Did you get to go to King's Hawaiian Bakery for dinner? Did you get a DREAM CAKE??? Oh drool. Now I want one too ha ha. :)
Ok, I went to Learn Pidgin and I'm laughing my head off ha ha ha
Going back to my other entry - I was going to back up and recount some things that have been going on and get some photos up. So that will be on schedule for this week and next. There's so much to talk about, and things just keep happening. So, short entries with long extended entries for a while. I'll make another entry on the Pinnacles hike we took last month. Then mention a bit more when we returned this month.
I do want to return to Splinter's Cabin and see what ended up growing all over the place. We saw the buds but not the flowers. Although I think we might be too late in the season.
Yeah, I know. I haven't been updating lately. And it's not for a lack for things to talk about, that's for sure! Just haven't been motivated to put all the things together for presentations.
Lessee . . . We've hiked to the peak of the Pinnacles, went to an open house at the Ranger Station, went to San Jacinto and got BUGGED OUT, we hiked to a hidden sequoia grove (well, not really hidden), attended a friend's daughter's graduation party and walked Heap's Peak Arboretum. That's just for June. *thud*
And last night I had a dream .....
HOLY COW!!!! Just had a Monster Earthquake!!! BBL
I'm going to a quilting lecture this Saturday. I'm really exciting about seeing what others have done. I've never done anything like this so it will really be different. I've gotten a few friends to come along too. Maybe we'll all end up quilting together lol
On my current quilt, Grandmother's Flower Garden, I'm still stitching away. I think it will take me ten years to finish this thing HA. What was I thinking...??? Oh yeah... "Hey! This looks neat!" :\
Remind me to finish this one before starting the Hawaiian Quilt I want to do LOL
I was reading something about "time". More specifically, what your time is worth. It asked if your time was worth $50 an hour? $100 an hour? Maybe $5000? The more I thought about it, the more I realized, MY time is priceless. What if it's at the end of my life? Would I give $50 for an hour? $100? Maybe $5000 for an extra hour?
Now taking that same hour today - how many hours do I waste? Watching movies? Day dreaming? Whining?? Do those hours bring pleasure to me or anyone else? Now's the time to make the most of my hours. . .
I found this picture and I thought it was a lovely image for Mother's Day. So Happy Mother's Day!
Is is shorts and t-shirt weather yet??? I have worn shorts twice now and both times we ended up with hail and cold and rain the next day. I wore shorts on Wednesday lol.
I can't wait. Hurry hurry hurry hurry hurry hurry....
Happy Cinco de mayo everyone!
I forgot to make an entry yesterday. And today I am headed out for birthday hiking. I'll be taking lots of pictures so I can post those later.
We're going to see the natural hotsprings called Deep Creek. It's a 2 1/2 mile hike along the Bradford Ridge Path (we did part of this earlier in the month). The hotsprings are natural although maintained by volunteers. We're really hoping we get there and it will be void of other people. It's clothing optional :blush: (We'll be going with the clothing ON option!! ha ha)
I finished the top this weekend. I did a lot of other things too - But I think I will wait to write about them until later. Let's just say I was really busy sewing/crocheting this weekend!
Ugh, I've thrown my back out. It's been bothering me all week. Because of that and all the lousy weather, we haven't done anything outside. Good thing I've got more than enough things to do inside. Namely, finish quilts! I'll be working on this one this weekend.
More rejection letters. Ha. I think when all is done, I will paste them on a wall as a covering. Then throw darts at them. *sigh*
I've added my reading list to the side bar. There are links to purchase the books through Amazon.com. And yes, that those are affiliation type links.
As I start new books, I will add them to the list. As I finish books, I will remove them to a new page.
:\ One of our fish died. We only got him last month. And today - he died. *sigh*
Yesterday was the anniversary of Khiori's death.
Happy Birthday, Candace! Uncle Sean and I hope you have a great birthday with....
Something neat to do :)
Dollz
And your cake and card!
 
Happy Birthday, Adri! I hope you have a great birthday. And for you have some
Pizza!!
And a piece of cake!
And a card to someone who always makes an impression ;)
Pita Pizza Recipe:
2 pitas (I use whole wheat kind)
2 small tomatoes, sliced thin
1/4 tsp salt
2 garlic cloves, chopped fine
2 tsp olive oil
2 TBS fresh chopped basil or 1 and 1/2 TBS dried basil
1/3 c grated mozarella cheese
Take the tomatoes and salt and mix gently in a bowl. Add the garlic, olive oil and basil. Let sit for about 5 min. Meanwhile, preheat oven to 400. Spray a little Pam on a cookie sheet. Put the two pitas on the sheet. Divide the tomato stuff in two, place on each of the pitas. Cook in oven for 8 min or until the tomatoes begin to soften. Put the mozarella on the pitas and cook for another 3 min or until the cheese is melted. Cut each with pizza cutter into four piece. Enjoy with a friend!!
Well, I've been sick. Before that, I threw my lower back and hips out. But I wanted to put this up because a few friends have been asking about it. This is the letter I got from the library. It says "However, I regret to inform you that another candidate was selected." Ah well. Try try again.
By special request :)
Breakfast Casserole
1/2 bag 32oz Frozen Potatoes OBrien
1/2 lb fried, cut bacon or ham
1/2 c diced onions
1/2 of a green onion, diced
1/2 lb diced cheddar cheese
6 eggs
1/2 c milk
1/2 tsp dry mustard
salt and pepper to taste
Layer first 5 ingredients in 5 qt crockpot. Mix the egg, milk, dry mustard, salt and pepper. Pour over top of layered crockpot. Top with a bit more cheese. Spray Pam or similiar around the edges of the crockpot so it doesn't bake on. Cook in crockpot at low for 10 to 12 hours.
You can leave off the dry mustard if you like.
Enjoy! Feeds 1/2 an army ;)
This one's for my neices. Adri, Candace - have Grandma help you with this one:
With your left foot, draw a circle in the air like how the clock turns.
With your left hand, draw a "6" in the air.
Which way does your foot go when you draw the 6 with your hand?
:)
I lost my favorite blue berry muffin recipe. But then I remembered I posted it online. Here it is again :)
Blueberry Muffins
2 1/2 c all-purpose flour
1 c sugar
1 c buttermilk (or milk minus 1 T, plus 1 T vinegar)
1/4 pound butter (I used 1/2 c)
2 1/2 tsp baking powder
1/4 tsp salt
2 eggs, beaten
1 1/2 c fresh or frozen blueberries, rinsed and drained.
Sift ingredients together in a large bowl. Make a well, add buttermilk, eggs and butter which has been melted and browned slightly. Mix well. Fold in blueberries. Fill well-greased muffin tins half full and bake at 400 F for 20 minutes. Serve warm. Yields about 18 muffins.
I finally have another interview!! This time with the local library. So wish me luck! Going to be there Friday January the 28th at 10am *happy dance*
When I was young - and I'm not even sure how young I was... maybe 7? 6? I learned a song in school. It was called The Song of Happiness sung in a native tongue. I don't even know what language it was. And it was a never ending song. A song I could sing over and over until I was done. Even now, I *still* sing this song! Here it is:
Hi yo hi yo ip si ni yah,
Hi yo hi yo ip si ni yah,
Hi yo hi yo ip si ni yah,
Hi yo hi yo ip si ni yah,
Ip si ni yah!
I'm not sure if this is "personal" or "local mountains" related. But it *is* an observation of mine. And I am a bit saddened over it.
It seems like people have become so bitter and angry lately. I'm quite saddened by it. I love these mountains and communities. That being said, it feels like as soon as you get one bitter minded person in the mix, the whole place goes to hell in complaining and whining.
I am finding that I am happier putting these discussions out of my line of sight. At least for while. Maybe it's just cabin fever on their part? Maybe people really are mean spirited. Who's to say? I just know I don't want to become like that. I tend to mimic what's around me, so leaving 'pity parties' are my best path.
It's so sad though. People come here because of the way it is. Then the first thing they want to do is change it. And bitch about what they already knew. YES. IT SNOWS HERE. And all the rest. Bah. I'm getting bitter. I'm going for a walk.
I'm working hard on a project so haven't been able to think of anything to write for today. I will probably be doing the same tomorrow. But I'll write at least to say Merry Christmas :) Ta for now!
I didn't get the job at the University. Ah well. It was nice they sent a letter. :)
One cool thing about buying clothes this time of year - SALES! I bought two pair of jeans for 20 $. They were 40% off what I thought was a decent price to start with. Go me!
Rather than bemoan the fact I was late YET AGAIN, here's a real nice online Advent Calendar. Enjoy!
Leslie Harpold Presents
Or you can explore her past year's calendars:
advent calendar 2003
advent calendar 2002
advent calendar 2001
And a Christmas Cake, just for fun:
Going to take a few days off from this until I'm back on balance.
I'm filling out job applications today. Say a prayer. I really really need to find work ASAP.
I found a letter that my grandmother started to her Aunt Alice. It was so touching I thought I would share it here. I guess the love of dogs runs in my family :)
"Aug 24, 1974
Dearest Aunt Alice,
Well. So you had to get sick. Do you think that is very nice? That is one way to get some rest, but none of us care for it that way.
All kidding aside I hope your [sic] feeling better by now and that you are home.
How is your dog? Mine is the queen of the roost. I sometimes think I love her too much. But she is a lot of company and like people each dog has its own personalities & cute little habits. Even if they are ugly - to his owner they are cute. And most important they love us no matter what we look like and they are a companion and someone to talk to and fuss at.
I was talking to Henry (Billy's adopt. father) a couple weeks ago. And he told me he has one old retired bitch & a male dog in the house with him.
Each one sleeps on the bed with him. One on each side of him. They hear a noise & both will jump off the bed & investigate. You know how Boston terriers never get along together. They are always scrapping & fighting. Then they'll jump back on the bed get there [sic] side of the bed mixed up & get into a fight on the bed until they get on each side of Henry.
Henry told me he doesn't know what he'd do without his dogs. They are his life. And he enjoys all the work he has to do for them. I guess he has about 12 or 15 of them. Most of them are bitches too old too [sic] breed. But he hasn't the heart to part with them or put them too [sic] sleep. So he keeps feeding them. He can [tell] you the faults & all the cute little things of each dog. So I guess Henry is nuttier than I about dogs. It is all his fault that he made me love animals. Just listening to him talk about dogs can teach you to love them & respect them. Any dog. Well enough about dogs."
She continued the letter about the dust storms in Phoenix, hanging clothes, and the summer rain storms.
Grandma died of lymphoma in 1984 Jan. Grandma Henry committed suicide in 1994 or so. He died not long after his last dog died. He had prostate cancer.
Blaaaahhhh. It's been cold and raining all day. It's a grey and cold day out there.
*peers outside*
I feel 10 years old and full of stir crazy energy. It feels frustrating. And it makes me want to cry.
*sigh
Where's the sun?
I guess Monday's are good for the weekend trip reports lol. We went geocaching locally on Saturday and Sunday. We only found two on Saturday. One was back near Willow Creek Falls. Just along the trail there 3W12. We walked a good 3/5 mile before getting close to the cache. Then just a bit off the path to find the actual box. Just above us there was a road with people walking with their dog. Made me go "hmmmm" :\ thinking there was probably a much easier way to get there.
We walked past a nice big patch of wild roses covered in rose hips.
We next drove around the lake and stopped at the hospital for a cache that's hidden in the parking lot. It was a quick in-and-out cache. There's lots of activity going on behind the hospital. Now with the rains the dust has settled. I'm sure that's a big relief to the hospital. Come to think of it, I applied for several jobs there and never heard back from them :mad:
Sunday, we had plans to meet friends at Lake Arrowhead for breakfast at Belgium Waffle Works. I don't know why we all keep going there lol. The wait is super long, we all have waffles but I think we're not that crazy over waffles. But it's a nice place to eat. Maybe next time we will go back to Crestline Top Town to Loose Caboose :)
Anyway, I digress. We had breakfast and finally said our good byes at noon. They are planning on moving sometime in the future - even though we don't get together often, Sean and I will really miss them :(
So we hit the trail for some geocaching. I had no idea how many we would hit because it's so easy to hit snags. And sure enough, we hit one right off. First cache was a multi cache. So go find clue and alter the final coordinates to find the actual cache. Problem was we made the adjustment on the last coordinates and went hunting. Nothing.
Put last coordinates back to default and changed the first ones. Nothing. Finally made changes to both and found the cache. That took a good hour and a half and probably 2 1/2 miles of tromping through mud and forest. Dropped off a travel bug.
There was another cache nearby. "Only" a third mile. Insert that very aggravating "rolleyes" smilie here. :| Another hour later and 1 1/2 mile tromp through mud and forest and we finally found the cache. TNLNSL. Off we went.
There was another cache close by off to our north west so we drove over there. 2N75 I believe was the trail. Anyway, it was a quick one. In and ... not quite out. I noticed a cache nearby again. "Only" 1/3 mile away. The GPS was pointing us to a trail clear as day. So we took it. The last tenth of a mile is always the worst. It was straight up a ravine through - you guessed, mud and forest. We read the directions and decided to approach from another direction. One that was to take us within 300 ft from car to cache.
It was an awesome view up there. If it had been clearer we could have seen forever. Anyway, once there, again it was a quick find.
We were going to try for one last cache. One that I have been attempting since we started caching. You park at the Pinnacles Staging area and hike shortly to the cache. Problem is that the road leading to the cache is closed due to fire danger. You can hike in, but you can't drive it. According to the GPS from the road it is 3/4 mile to the cache. That doesn't take into account all the winding the road does. We got over there with the intention of hiking in but there were three cars parked there (since the day before). We figured they are hunting and didn't want to disturb anything going on. So we skipped it yet again for another day.
And lovely for me - woke up with a cold. It feels like one that comes on quickly and leaves just as easily.
It's raining. A LOT. It's been raining since Sunday and I believe the area has gotten about 12" since it started. Yikes. And not even El Nino this year.
The whole forest is dripping and soggy. The birds are out singing now - even though we're socked in with fog. Most of the roads have some kind of damage or closure right now. And it's still raining!
Here's my Halloween decoration. Seems like something near tragic happens to me/my family around this time of year. Let's go low profile. There's my pumpkin (look left - on main page)
Ok - I'm NOT going to turn this into a political blogger but I just can't let this one slip by without comment.
What is up with John Edwards and such an amazing promise??
Blantantly stolen from Drudgereport.com:
"Edwards Stem Cell Vision: 'We will stop juvenile diabetes, Parkinson's, Alzheimer's and other debilitating diseases... When John Kerry is president, people like Christopher Reeve are going get up out of that wheelchair and walk again.' Edwards made the unprecedented campaign promises during 30-minute speech at Newton High School gym in Newton, Iowa... "
Wow. So much has gone on the past week and a half. I'm not sure where to start. Perhaps at the beginning...
The last day of my entry I had expectations of a new job. Well. I had a call to go in for an interview on the following Tuesday. I had the interview - it went well. They checked out my references and ran a security check. Got hired and two days later I had to quit. It was too much. Blah. My joints hurt so bad I couldn't sleep at night. There were other (numerous) factors but bottomline was - I just physically could not do the job.
Next few days I'll add more. Specifically about Joshua Tree National Park and Anza-Borrego. Oh and getting stuck in sand. :|
Windy!!! It's getting windy but warming up again. The Santa Ana's are here!!! Don't get blown away!!! (all the !!!'s because it's windy ;) )
Got to help put the fence up at Mill Peak and meet lots of nice people. Then went over to the geocaching potluck - got to meet more nice people and had a lot of fun. :) Was a long, busy day but well worth it.
Tomorrow is a big day for me. An interview *gasp*
Another web site concerning the Mountain Communities of the San Bernardino mountains. Thank you for visiting :o)
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