No Time

I haven't had much time to post lately because I've been so busy actually doing things, rather than just writing about things!  I guess that's good, but I am one to appreciate a bit more down time than the average individual.  Work, the new puppy and travel have been filling my schedule and in addition to that I've been going to Meeting as frequently as possible and Women's Group plus Kirby's games.  I don't fit it all into every week, but I try and do as much as I can without getting completely burned out.  It has been good for me to be out and about, rather than plastered to the couch, TV and computer.  but I sure do miss my couch!

This weekend is Kirby's birthday and we are going to the Music City Brewer's Festival.  Last year was my first year and I did not have an accurate idea of just how drunk you get in that four hour window of time.  Since this year falls on Kirby's birthday proper we got a room downtown so neither of us has to worry about driving home.  We are also staying down there Friday night, as well, since he works the festival and has to be there at 11:00, and I'm attending both sessions this year, too.  We'll go to dinner tomorrow night, somewhere with lots of manly meat that isn't boiled.  I made reservations at The Palm.  He hasn't ever been and I haven't been for about nine or ten years.  I remember it being good, but not as good as the prices warrant, but then again I just get chicken, so I'm usually not all that impressed with "steakhouses" anyway.  I'm sure he'll like it.

A friend's wife works for a hotel chain and got us an awesome deal on a suite, so that will be really nice.  It will also be really nice to retreat to air conditioning during the two hour break between the festival sessions and possibly shower.  It is supposed to hover around that 100 degree mark all day, so the first session should me mildly unpleasant.  I can't promise I won't retreat back to the hotel early and maybe get in the pool for a bit!

Next weekend we've rented a pontoon boat at Tim's Ford Lake for our anniversary.  Its kind of fun having his birthday and our anniversary one week apart because I always plan something fun for his birthday and our anniversary so we get too cool weekends in a row every year. 

Pics and deets to come.

Adrian: Week Two

Well, it has officiall been two and a half weeks since we brought Adrian home and what a whirlwind it has been!  She still isn't fully housebroken, but is getting better--for the most part!  We will be away this weekend for Kirby's birthday so I'm hoping a few days at Grandma's house will do the trick!  She's an ace at housebreaking dogs.

Adrian is coming out of her shell and acting more like a normal puppy now, even though she's still really skittish at times.  She's warming up to people better and had a good weekend this past weekend in Milan.  She did well with all the other people and dogs and got a good play session in with her dog-cousin Hank.  They are closer in size so she reeally tore it up with him.  Her meeting with Big dan went better than expected, but he did get a few swipes in on her.  She gave him his space after that. 

She and Rocky are bonding more, or rather she's bonding more with Rocky.  She loves laying next to him at the shop or the house when there isn't a person to sit with.  Also, she's getting much more comfortable with Kirby and even migrates over to his side of the bed at night sometimes, so I'm going to have to work extra hard to keep her as "my dog!"  I sort of expected that eventually, but not this soon.  She's still a mama's baby most of the time, though. 

Got her toe nails clipped for the first time and did great, but bath time isn't so fun.  I have to wash her in the sink she's so small and her favorite game is to try and jump out of the sink.  Not cool. 

All in all its been a good experience still so far.  The housebreaking can be frustrating at times but I'm remaining patient.  Kirby, not so much!  Haven't really worked on many more commands, but she is getting the hang of "stay" and "wait" just through the normal course of things.  "No" is starting to sink in, too.  I got the Tornado and Brick out on a whim the other night and she aced those with flying colors on the 3rd try for both, which was amazing since she doesn't seem to be as food driven as Rocky. 

More next week!

Epic Cousin Weekend

I am the oldest first cousin in our family by five years.  Even though when he was born I said if he was a boy I wouldn't like him, Zach and I have always been close being the closest in age.  And since I didn't have any siblings he has been more like a little brother to me than a cousin.  We used to play outside at Nan's for hours and share a special bond created when you have to have mud sprayed out of your butt crack with the garden hose because you played in a freshly plowed field after it rained.

The next one born was Logan, and being eight years younger than I, we never really played together that much.  He is Zach's brother and so he tagged along quite a bit, but I didn't really feel like I "knew" him so much.  Then came Andi, eleven years after me.  She was the other only child and the other girl and I always liked her even though we didn't see each other much because they live in Texas.  But when you are 21 you don't have much interest in spending time with a 10 year old, and all of our interactions were family events like funerals, weddings and the assorted holiday. 

When I was 15, and again when I was 17, Mom sent me down to Texas to stay for a week with Becky, her sister/my aunt/Andi's mom.  Andi would have been 4 and 6 those years and mostly stayed home while Becky took me shopping and to Ranger's baseball games.  I had been on Becky's case about sending Andi up here for a week the past couple years because to me that was only fair.  Plus, I wanted an opportunity to get to know her better and for her to get to know the other cousins better.

Finally, this past week Becky flew her to Nashville.  I'd like to think it had something to do with her feeling I was finally "mature enough" to watch her kid without breaking her, but in reality I know it was because she and her husband were both going out of town and didn't want to leave an almost 17-year old home alone for a week.  Regardless of why, we had her here.  She stayed with Mom some, but most of the week she stayed with Kirby and I.  We spent the afternoons shopping, eating and just hanging around.  She went to yoga with me Thursday night.  I worried that conversation might be a little strained or that Andi might get bored, but we ended up having a blast.  Eleven years isn't that big of an age difference once you get older. 

Another factor that made it so much fun is that despite our being raised hundreds of miles away and barely being exposed to one another, you might think we were sisters if you saw us together.  She's almost a carbon copy of me when I was her age, we look alike, and share a sense of humor and mannerisms.  That probably has to do with the fact that, even though neither one would want to admit it, Mom and Becky are alot alike.  Plus, I seem to take a little more after Becky than Mom in some personality traits and looks.  We all have the same smart mouth and wicked sense of humor, though.

Friday night we drove over to Milan, and went to Zach and Logan's house for Logan's birthday party.  We got in late and the party was winding down, but after everyone left, the four of us (plus Kirby) sat outside and talked for almost three hours until 4:00am.  I didn't realize it until she told me, but that was the first time Andi had had any conversation of substance with the two of them.  The next night we all went to the dirt track races in Atwood, and Zach brought his "new" girlfriend Erica along.  Due to my protective nature of Zach he had hesitated to introduce me to her for a while, but I'm not sure why.  She's a trip and we hit it off right away.  Afterward we went to one of their friend's house and hung out until 4:00am again!  

We all had such a good time and it was so cool to be able to hang out like that.  Nan was glad to have us all there, including Kirby who she adores, even though she wasn't keen on us staying out so late or having us help her out as much as we wanted to.  She's still adjusting to not being able to do as much for herself as before, as are we.  It hit me like a ton of bricks Saturday when I was grocery shopping for Sunday dinner.  Nan's kitchen is kind of sacred ground in our kitchen, and even though Mom and others have helped her with big holiday dinners I've never seen anyone else get in there and make a whole meal before, besides Nan.  Not to mention it was for the entire Sunday dinner crew, including both my uncles, my aunt, the cousins, one girlfriend, and Elbert across the street.  the food passed inspection, but more importantly I officially passed from child to adult in the family.  I had a wonderful weekend "playing" with my cousins, in the environment we used to play in all the time (just different activities), but the weight and responsibility of being the oldest finally set in.

After a week of little sleep, and a weekend of virtually no sleep, I was totally beat today.  but I was able to stay alert (for the most part) and get through my day bolstered by the fun and family bonding that had taken place.  Its worth losing a little sleep for once in a lifetime opportunities.  I've always worried about our family, mainly the first cousins, staying in touch and close, after Nan's no longer with us.  She's the nucleus of the family--her kitchen the epicenter--and without that bringing us all together I often felt we would all drift away, doing our own "grown up" things and never really see each other.  This weekend, I think, proved otherwise.

Movie Marathon Weekend

Like usual I had big plans for my weekend.  And like usual, I didn't really accomplish any of my plans.  I did get the house clean and the laundry done (which is no small task when its mine!), but also watched a crapton of movies, too.

Law Abiding Citizen (2009)
Watched this one Friday night.  Kirby had been watching the middle of it last week and what I saw seemed good, even though when it was on PPV I passed multiple times because the info description wasn't very good-or anything like the actual plot.  This movie was really good, for what it was.  It kinda sucked that the dad was some kind of weapons expert quasi-spy, though, but I guess that's the only way to make the story believable, even though it isn't believable.  I would have liked it better if he were just a regular dude who got really pissed off.  But, oh well.  It was still entertaining, had some really funny parts (mostly thanks to Jamie Foxx) and was equally good for guys as girls. 

Serendipity (2001)
This was a "too lazy to change the channel" pick.  I was half asleep for the first thirty minutes or so but heard enough to know what was going on.  Typical romantic comedy, although it did have some truly funny parts (mostly thanks to Jeremy Piven).  It was better than I expected even though the ending was predictable and boring.  Bonus points for having John Corbett in it.

Invention of Lying (2009)
I love Rocky Gervais.  This movie was better than expected, but I also liked "Ghost Town," so maybe my opinion isn't reliable.  they kind of beat the premise into the ground, but there were some hilarious exchanges, like with the cop, with Brad and his assistant when he was fired, when he was telling everyone what happens after death (specifically in regards to the free ice cream), and when Brad was ordering dinner.  Beyond that it was a really "cute" movie, but I did like the points they were making even if it felt pained at times when they were making them.

Sunshine Cleaning (2008)
We caught part of this last weekend, I think, for just a minute and both wanted to watch it start to finish.  It was on this morning so I watched it.  It did have some funny parts, which is what caught our attention, but the majority of the movie kind of droned on and was rather dull.  Overused plot put to an interesting story.  It really fizzled out at the end and just drifted into the ending.  I know that is the filmmaker's style but I was disappointed overall with how it wrapped up.

2012 (2009)
This move truly sucked.  Badly.  The special effects were awesome and I liked watching all that stuff go down, but the little family story that drove it was stupid and sappy.  The overall plot was just the backdrop for the special effects.  In my opinion, it would have made a better movie from the perspective of the world leaders involved in the I did laugh out loud at the old Russian guy saying, "We're taking the Bentley."  That was the only time I was entertained.  None of the actors seemed well-suited to the roles they were in.  Particularly the guy who was the whatever who ended up being "President" after the POTUS and VP died and they couldn't reach the Speaker of the House. 

The Ugly Truth (2009)
Reviews I read made this sound like the worst romantic comedy of all time.  It wasn't.  And for having Katherin Heigl in it it wasn't even close.  I do not like her, she's painful to watch act and her characters are always annoying is hell.  Plus it is always the same character.  I'm not a huge Gerad Butler fan, either.  Don't get what the fuss is all about.  But this movie was surprisingly "cute," and had some laugh-out-loud parts in it.  For a Heigl rom-com its tolerable.

I also watched "Extract" again, which is definitely funny and worth a watch if you liked "Office Space."  Same creator, same vein.  I watched "Marley and Me" for the 400th or so time, as well.  Always a goodie.  Caught "A Knight's Take" this morning, and I can't turn that one down when its on.  Major hotties in the form of Heath Ledger and Paul Bettany plus fun music and a teeny-bopper plot line and you have me hooked.  I've liked that one since it came out nine years ago and its still one of my good old stand-by favs.   

Helping The Little Ones

We are getting ready to foster a dog for the first time.  I'm a little nervous--okay, very nervous--but I'm ready.  As part of my journey to become a more balanced person and a happier person I've made a decision to contribute to charity.  I'm not the kind of person to serve soup at the homeless shelter or teach inner city kids how to read.  I'm just not that into people.  It isn't that I don't care about those causes or think they are important, but helping in that way is not within me.


Even though I've considered this for a long time, many years, as has Kirby, I'm still just a ball of nerves.  If I get this nervous about fostering a dog I'm not sure I'm ready to bring a baby into our family!  Geez!  Will Rocky like her?  Will they get along?  Will it hurt his feelings?  Will I love another dog as much as I love Rocky?  You see, Rocky and I bonded from the first time we met and even after just a weekend at home I kind of felt like he was my dog.  I didn't think twice when I offered to take him when my parents were going to give him up, and I insisted I was ready to take care of him when they didn't believe I could.  I was, and seven years later he's still one of the best things that ever happened to me.  I am just afraid that his feelings will be hurt, which I know from watching Cesar Milan, is stupid, but I can't help but be apprehensive given my own feelings as an only child.

*****

Sunday came, and after our discussion Saturday night, I couldn't bring myself to foster.  Even though other people wanted this particular puppy I found Saturday, which would have given us the opportunity to foster another dog, I still felt like this was the dog meant for us.  I went Sunday to officially adopt our new puppy-baby, which we named Adrian.  She is a chihuahua-corgi mix, and is so very tiny.  I also didn't really want a puppy, but again, I just felt like I was called to adopt this particular dog, so I did.

Sunday was a busy day, introducing her to Kirby first then bringing her home to meet Rocky.  She did really well, and Rocky did surprisingly well too.  He didn't even get the least bit aggressive and took to her right away.  She was a bit more wary.  A little shy and skittish, she takes a while to warm up to people and other dogs.

This week has been very interesting.  I've never housebroken a puppy before and we seemed to have good luck at first only to have her completely revert to not going outside and always going inside.  We've made more progress now that we are at the end of the week, but we still have a way to go with that.  I managed to teach her the "sit" command, and we are working on "wait."  I plan to work with her quite a bit this weekend on a few other commands.  She has learned from watching Rocky on how to behave while we are eating.  She is so small we will have to be careful with how much she eats, but I haven't been able to resist letting her try different things for the first time like bacon, pizza and steak.  Having been born and raised in a shelter so far I know that she hasn't had much exposure to good food!

She's taken well to her new items, including her new bed at the shop.  She does seem genuinely happy to have things and a family.  Sunday night she made herself right at home in the bed and insisted on sleeping right next to me, curled up in my chest, and that hasn't changed.  She's attached to me like glue but is getting braver at the shop and at the house and will explore a little more before running back to me.  At first I couldn't get her more than two feet from me.  She's also warmed up to Kirby, which took the better part of the week but I'm glad they are finally bonding.  Kirby seemed a bit indecisive about her until she was paying more attention to him on her own.

Its been a long road with Rocky, and we've had ups and downs.  He's been a challenge, but he's helped me grow as a person and he's been there for me when I didn't have anyone else.  There's never been a day when I've regretted having him.  The way he loves Kirby, and Kirby loves him back, is so sweet and endearing it makes me tear up to think about it.  Even though I joke about him being more Kirby's dog now he's still my one and only and first puppy, and I would physically harm someone if they tried to hurt him or take him away.  And I'm not joking.  I'm not sure that I will ever love another dog as much, or the same, as I do Rocky and that is fine.  Rocky can't be the only "baby" we ever have, though, and I wanted him to have a "sister" before he got much older.  Though the majority of my time and attention has been paid to Adrian this week out of necessity, he is still my first and most important baby.

After one week with the new little one things are going better.  She's getting the hang of going outside, and of our routine around here, if she's not getting the hang of sleeping until we are ready to get up.  That's what crates are for!  We've been watching Sony this week, as well, and she's warming up to the other dogs and even starting to play with them a little.  Yesterday I had a migraine and both Rocky and Adrian layed with me on the couch while I rested and recovered.  That was the best medicine and gift I could have asked for.  It is also giving us an excellent sneak peek at what having a baby might be like in our hectic lives, and the division of labor isn't shaking out the way I'd prefer, but getting the dog was 98% my choice, whereas having a baby would be a joint decision.  Watching "Bethenny Getting Married?" last night her husband Jason said, "I want to change the first diaper."  That was the most romantic thing I've ever heard a man say...something that maybe, one day, I'll be lucky enough to hear myself!  :)

Seven Year Itch

I'm not "outdoorsy."  We all know that.  Some if it is by choice...I don't appreciate being sweaty, sticky and stinky.  I'm afraid of pretty much anything with wings including bugs, birds and bats.  (And planes, but that's another subject entirely!)  I like to shower at least daily in a clean, private bathroom.  I don't like it when I break a nail.

Some of it, on the other hand, is completely beyond my control--the result of losing at the genetic lottery, I guess.  I'm allergic to just about everything there is outside, including being deathly allergic to grass.  Year-round you will find something to trigger my allergies.  I'm also extremely allergic to mosquitoes, which I knew from an early age, but it has just gotten worse with time, instead of better which is the norm.  Welts the size of half dollars that itch so badly, and so painfully, I've been known to take a lit cigarette and burn them because that hurt less and made the itching stop. 

The sun is another thing that my body doesn't particularly like.  Besides reacting badly in general by burning easily and often, even with sunscreen, my skin also likes to mutate into little balls of evil cells that eventually turn into cancer.  If I'd have known this as a child, I might have been more careful in the sun, but it seemed early on I had my Mom's ability to tan, but that was just a trick like my blonde hair was, too.

There are times when I crave outdoor activities, wanting to be like the "normal kids," and just go outside to play!  Then there are times like today, when a brief stint outdoors made me so physically ill that all I can do is sleep for days at a time, in an antihistamine-induced coma until the discomfort subsides.  So, next time someone says that aren't outdoorsy don't make fun of them or tease them right away.  They may have legitimate concerns, just thinking about the issues that will arise from just a few minutes in the sun.

In the Land of Lewis and Clark

As somewhat of a literalist, I have a hard time celebrating the Fourth of July as "America's Birthday."  Independence Day, sure.  Day of national and historical significance, sure.  But we did not become a nation the day we declared our independence from the British Empire, we had to fight a war to make it legitimate and true.  We didn't even have the government we (somewhat) know today until 1787, and that is what I tend to focus on.

*****

A confluence of unfortunate events put me in North Dakota the past few days, and while I have been fortunate enough to make a couple trips to South Dakota over the last three years I have not yet had the opportunity to go to North Dakota, and I was excited.  Just being there, close to one of the most important sites to my favorite historical tale was cool enough.  Friday night I was alone at the hotel in Bismarck, which is not the most happening place in the U.S.  It was too late to buy any more beer, I had finished all that I did have, so I sat up surfing the web.  Mostly I looked at Facebook, caught up on hockey trade news since the free agency deadline was Thursday, and enjoyed the very cool and breezy weather alone--I had been in a whirlwind of plane and car travel, and meeting tons of in-laws that I had never met before and my social gas was all empty.  I had picked up a brochure in the hotel lobby about the North Dakota Historical Society Museum, located in Bismarck, and I decided to see if they might have any Lewis and Clark exhibits.  From their scant website it didn't look as if they did.  I began looking at the trail to see if there might be any locations of significance between Bismarck and Rapid City--the route we'd be driving the next day.  There weren't.


Discouraged and thinking ahead to the next time I'd be out in the area I noticed a town called Washburn, ND.  I clicked on the dot on the map to see what Lewis and Clark event happened there.  It was 30 miles north of Bismarck, but 30 miles there is not like 30 miles here, or just about anywhere else.  Roads with no traffic and high speed limits means you can travel 30 miles in about 20 minutes.  When the link opened it was like opening the best Christmas present in the world!  FORT MANDAN!  I was sitting a mere 30 miles from one of the most significant locations on the entire Corps of Discovery route!  The only one more exciting and enticing would be the location from which they first spotted the Pacific Ocean and camped over the winter of 1805-1806.


When Kirby got back to the room I could hardly wait to tell him what I'd found!  I waited up until 4:00 am for him to get in from visiting with his cousins just to share the news and see if it would be a possibility to go Saturday before trekking back to Rapid.  Did he think his Mom and Jim would want to go?  Would it be a big deal?  It really wasn't that far, and we were already all the way out in North Dakota and to be 30 miles from Fort Mandan!!!  He got a big kick out of my excitement over something seemingly not cool, important or entertaining.  He was tickled and annoyed both, I think, at being married to one of the only 20-somethings in the entire country, or world, who would be so positively giddy about Fort Mandan.  I could hardly go to sleep I was so excited, and talked to him about all of the awesomeness that is Lewis and Clark until he was asleep and I was talking to myself!


So, the next afternoon, after another lunch at Taco John's, we headed north on Highway 83 to Washburn.  The short 20 minute drive felt like a long time, I was so excited to get there.  While I can't say that the site does the events that took place there any justice, it was a nice "interpretive center" and a very nice replica fort.  I'm saddened that none of the original artifacts remain and that looking at replicas doesn't really do it for me. 

Still, I was in awe of the fact that this area is where Lewis, Clark and the entire Corps of Discovery including Seaman, spent a long, hard winter.  The most difficult part of their passage complete, the men built a tiny fort and hunkered down in one of the most inhospitable places possible for a winter "camping adventure."  The entirety of the expedition amazes me to no end, and how I came about knowing so much about the journey was mere happenstance.  When I think of America, the American Spirit, and all that we are today no one embodies that more to me, personally, than the men of the Corps of Discovery.

I was super excited that Fort Mandan is the location of the Seaman statue, erected just a few years ago, to honor the Newfoundland belonging to Meriweather Lewis who accompanied the men on the entirety of their journey.  Seaman cost Lewis the equivalent of $300 in today's money, and given the multitude of things he did on the trip, I'd say he was worth every penny.  Just as York, due to being a slave, wasn't noted for his contribution to the Corps, Seaman has been long overlooked for his contributions simply because he is a dog.  He has gained more and more recognition as time has passed, now being the main character in several children's books on the subject matter, but the story of Seaman is just as remarkable as any other Corps member.  Always the loyal companion, it is believed that Seaman was at Lewis' side in Tennessee when he passed away and never left the area until his own death.

I even managed to get Kirby somewhat excited about Lewis and Clark, probably because you can't be around me in that situation and not "catch" some of my enthusiasm.  But I think after seeing some of the things and getting a better first hand look at what these guys did he realized they were pretty cool after all.  They were, by any accounts, some of history's manliest men!

*****

What does it all have to do with the Fourth of July, you might be asking, since that is where this post began.  America declared, then won through battle, independence from the British Empire.  A failed experiment of government often overlooked ensued in the immediate post-Revolution years.  Finally, as the 1700's drew to a close the Founders perfected the Republic that we now call the United States of America.  Our 3rd President, himself one of the original founders and the author of the Declaration of Independence was the first person to purchase an empire.  Buying the Louisiana Territory from the French was unheard of--an act of strategic diplomacy aimed at preventing another war with the British, and the Spanish.  It gave birth to the notion of Manifest Destiny, and brought America from the Atlantic to the Pacific Ocean.  It continued to nurture the "Frontier Spirit" made famous in Frederick Jackson Turner's Frontier Thesis in the late 1800's.  It made possible all that America is today, creating a reason for a transcontinental railroad, and an engine for economic development. 

I am not one to overlook the importance of our Founders, the year 1776 and all that happened then, and since.  However, if one group of men embodied all that America means and blazed a path for every American since, it was the Corps of Discovery.  Their travels, battles, insights and hard work really comes to life when you can stand by their camp site, overlooking the Missouri River which they forded stream, barely covering ten miles a day in literally uncharted territory.  To have felt what they did the first day of their journey.  To have understood the confusion and fear the first time they encountered a Grizzly bear.  To have camped in the open wilderness with your dog by your side.  To nearly starve to death for lack of food at times.  To have seen the Pacific over the ridge for the first time.  To spend months hunkered down in a tiny fort, in sub-zero temperatures across the river from the largest city in North America at the time (albeit a Native American city). They drew the first map of America, literally and figuratively. 

"Ocian in view! O! The Joy!"