We drove up to Ross' mom's house on Christmas eve. Planned to leave the house by 2, and it was closer to 3 when we left. Then the traffic on 94 was hellish. For some reason everyone was driving out of town on Christmas eve! Imagine! However, we got there, helped Sara install her new blinds in the main room, and she cooked a delicious meal of tenderloin. Stayed the night and in the morning we took Toad and Clio out to the horse farm to go for a relatively short walk in the cold - it was 1 degree out. Warmed up a bit walking through the barn and saying hi to Hawk (Sara's horse) and then we said hi to the "babies" who were in the outdoor paddock. Toad actually touched noses with one of them! I think he wasn't as freaked by their smaller size.
Then to Ross' dad's house, where there were many people who all loved Toad. Susan's sisters and families were there, and Ross' two brothers. We sat down to brunch. Hung out, chatted. Opened presents. As the evening approached we packed up and drove back to the cities. I think Toad was very happy to be home; he sacked out on the couch for the rest of the evening.
Saturday, December 27, 2008
Well, I'm not on top of it
Not blogging every day, by god, but here I am making an effort.
Today was a day of wasting time and pooping around. I had a goal of dropping some books off at the library and hitting the REI clearance sale. Ross decided to come along as long as the trip would include coffee and a book store. The trip ended up including HOM furniture, IKEA, Borders, Southdale.... argh! Too many people! Too many shoppers!
We hit IKEA because we've had thoughts of upgrading to a queen size bed someday. Of course we walked out of there with several other items and not a queen size bed. Hit Southdale because Ross wanted to get Mille Bourne for Billy, and of course the game store didn't have it. So instead I bought a pair of jeans at the Gap. Ha ha.
The lesson is: buy everything online.
Today was a day of wasting time and pooping around. I had a goal of dropping some books off at the library and hitting the REI clearance sale. Ross decided to come along as long as the trip would include coffee and a book store. The trip ended up including HOM furniture, IKEA, Borders, Southdale.... argh! Too many people! Too many shoppers!
We hit IKEA because we've had thoughts of upgrading to a queen size bed someday. Of course we walked out of there with several other items and not a queen size bed. Hit Southdale because Ross wanted to get Mille Bourne for Billy, and of course the game store didn't have it. So instead I bought a pair of jeans at the Gap. Ha ha.
The lesson is: buy everything online.
Sunday, December 21, 2008
hangin' out, making beer
Wow. I look tired. Perhaps because I climbed for 3.5 hours, then walked the dog in the cold.
Ross, on the other hand, looks perky.
The beautiful stream of liquid malt extract flowing into our beer... not yet beer.
I get artsy with the malt extract. "Work with me! That's it!"
Cold snowy weekend, but we're tough. We're Minnesotan. We shovelled and trekked through the snow and didn't let it stop us. This morning I drove to the climbing gym and had a scary interlude in which people in front of me on the highway were spinning out and I honestly feared for a moment that I would hit the car in front of me. But that moment passed.
Now we make beer. I am weary and already tired of making beer, but you can't really stop once you've started. I can tell I will sleep well tonight.
Saturday, December 20, 2008
winter, and surviving it
It hasn't been too bad so far. I have shrugged off the cold. I have walked and even run through the snow. I faltered a bit after Thanksgiving, struggling to throw off a cold and rejoin the world of the running, but now I've run in 3 degree weather... I've run in snow. Today, in the midst of the biggest snowstorm of the season Ross and Toad and I went out for a walk on the golf course. The wind was biting as we walked into it, but once we turned around and walked back it hardly bothered us. Ross commented, "I feel warm now." I said, "Yeah, I'm fine." Once we got home we learned that it was only 6 degrees out.
Of course it's all easier in December. Ask me how I feel in February.
Of course it's all easier in December. Ask me how I feel in February.
Thursday, December 18, 2008
Rejoining the blogging world
Okay. Here I am, and it has been a long time away, but in my defense I just got busy with other social networking stuff... check out my stuff on flickr, goodreads, facebook... But it is true that those really are different animals from blogger and I do seriously intend to get back to blogging. And posting more pictures! Here's my vow - at least one picture per day between now and the first of the year (barring any days away from the house that prevent me from blogging).
To start out I'll post a few pics from last weekend's Sandstone Ice Fest, at which I was one of the instructors for the women's ice clinic.
The whole class; Amy and I are at the left in the back row.
Two climbers on the ice flow. It is basically dead vertical, if you can't tell.
Kiri belaying. Note my gloves - I finally indulged in some "lobster claw" gloves and I love them!
Kiri and Amy belaying.
Tuesday, September 30, 2008
I'm so behind...
Just haven't been blogging, recently! Ross has made his green Jaguar sedan into a genuine runnin' automobile! We're going to drive it down to Kansas in a week and a half. I am always in awe of his many many skills. What an accomplished dude.
Toad is a sweetie pie. Toadblerone. His newest name is "Bubbajum". Don't ask me why.
Shawn, Katie and I went to Taylors this past weekend and had a beautiful adventure; we rented a canoe and went downstream to the rarely-climbed cliffs at Franconia. Awesome to climb some unfamiliar rock, and we ran into four friends of Sue there which was an amazing coincidence since so few people climb there - and the group of us climbed on each other's ropes and chatted and had fun.
Two movies that everyone should see: "In Bruges" and "Hot Fuzz".
Toad is a sweetie pie. Toadblerone. His newest name is "Bubbajum". Don't ask me why.
Shawn, Katie and I went to Taylors this past weekend and had a beautiful adventure; we rented a canoe and went downstream to the rarely-climbed cliffs at Franconia. Awesome to climb some unfamiliar rock, and we ran into four friends of Sue there which was an amazing coincidence since so few people climb there - and the group of us climbed on each other's ropes and chatted and had fun.
Two movies that everyone should see: "In Bruges" and "Hot Fuzz".
Monday, September 08, 2008
Wasp sting adventure!
On Friday as usual I biked to work with Rick, my boss. Good day for biking, pleasantly cool weather. For lunch we walked to the nearby strip mall, had some soup, visited the excellent running store TC Running at which Rick bought his next pair of running shoes. Then back to work, walking around the small lake behind the strip mall. As we strode along I suddenly felt an intense pain in my wrist and immediately knew what it was - wasp sting! I yelled and flailed my arms, transferring the wasp to my neck, and from there it bounced into Rick's hair. Neither of us actually saw the wasp but I know a sting when I feel one, and boy did it hurt. I wasn't having any immediate intense reaction but I was concerned about the possibility, so he ran back to work to get my epi-pen, and I walked. We met up in the parking lot - I was still OK, but within the next twenty minutes I started to get hives on my opposite wrist and on my back so thus began the search for benadryl. I had some in my bag, but it had been expired for over a year. I called Park Nicollet and spoke to a nurse who told me to get some new benadryl and take 50 mg right away. Rick and I checked around at work; no benadryl in the medicine cabinet and no one had any. People came by offering me claritin, benadryl ointment, etc... all of which would have no effect on a systemic reaction. Finally Bridget offered to go get some. She came back with benadryl "allergy and cold", which loaded up the benadryl with aspirin and nasal decongestant. I took some anyway. The hives gradually faded.
By the time we left work the hives were gone but my wrist and hand had started swelling; there was a significant red lump covering the back of my hand. The bike ride home went smoothly, though. Once home Ross and I settled in for a quiet evening of pasta and a movie. "In Bruges" - if you haven't seen it, DO! But despite the benadryl my swelling increased - much of my forearm and hand. I ran over to Byerly's before bed to get some "real" benadryl, regretting the decision to not go to urgent care right after work. Got through the night, went to urgent care in the morning. They gave me Prednisolone (steroids) and the doctor said that in the future I should go ahead and use the epi-pen... I'm still not completely clear on whether the benadryl or the epi-pen is the first line of defense. I have the vague impression that the pen is for genuine breathing difficulty, which I never had.
So. A weekend of swollen, painful hand, drugs, tiredness. I really need to avoid wasps! But this one really came out of nowhere. And I've had remarkable luck avoiding them at the cliffs this year, even when climbing near them. They seem to be more irritable at this time of year.
By the time we left work the hives were gone but my wrist and hand had started swelling; there was a significant red lump covering the back of my hand. The bike ride home went smoothly, though. Once home Ross and I settled in for a quiet evening of pasta and a movie. "In Bruges" - if you haven't seen it, DO! But despite the benadryl my swelling increased - much of my forearm and hand. I ran over to Byerly's before bed to get some "real" benadryl, regretting the decision to not go to urgent care right after work. Got through the night, went to urgent care in the morning. They gave me Prednisolone (steroids) and the doctor said that in the future I should go ahead and use the epi-pen... I'm still not completely clear on whether the benadryl or the epi-pen is the first line of defense. I have the vague impression that the pen is for genuine breathing difficulty, which I never had.
So. A weekend of swollen, painful hand, drugs, tiredness. I really need to avoid wasps! But this one really came out of nowhere. And I've had remarkable luck avoiding them at the cliffs this year, even when climbing near them. They seem to be more irritable at this time of year.
Monday, September 01, 2008
Women climb Red Wing
Yesterday Katie and I met Sandy at Red Wing. I had met Sandy last fall at Taylors Falls; she and her climbing partner Eugene had come up from Chicago to experience the basalt wonder of Interstate Park. Shawn and I got to chatting with them and Sandy and I had exchanged email addresses. I had been in contact with her sporadically, but recently we had been trying to engineer a climbing rendezvous.
Katie and I got there first because Sandy got a bit lost on the way from her campsite near Cannon Falls. We warmed up on Cinq Jours D'Afille (5.7), and when Sandy found us we got on Micro Balls (5.9+). I had climbed it once or twice before, and remembered well the awkwardness of certain parts. I was gratified to see that Sandy found it awkward, too. It has all the downsides of a Red Wing climb (polished, slippery holds, dirty ledges, tiny polished footholds, lack of friction) with none of the upsides. From that we moved to Annadonia (5.11b). Thanks to climbing it with Shawn the weekend before I remembered the difficult sequence at the beginning. I had one hang before the top crux, and then moved through the powerful crimps to grab the chains in triumph. We each ended up climbing it twice, because I wanted to try the alternate, easier finish and Katie and Sandy both wanted to work through the bottom crux.
Then we moved down to No Whippin Boys (5.10), possibly my favorite climb at Red Wing, and I led it with one hang. Not bad, but I know I can do it clean. I just have fears about gear blowing out and it makes me timid. Katie and Sandy toproped it. Then Katie and I both toproped Prairie Fire (5.10c), which shares anchors with No Whippin Boys, and Sandy boldly decided to lead it with the first bolt pre-clipped. She had carefully watched our sequence through the crux. It is, incidentally, a pretty intense climb; getting to the first bolt requires the use of a very polished foothold, and the landing is not good if you blow the sequence. Getting from the first bolt to the second is perhaps the real crux of the route; the key for me is a tiny foot pebble that allows me to move off two bad crimps. That allows me to throw my left foot into the large dish and stand up to grab the next two crimps - bad, but not as bad. Those allow me to work my feet up to the crimps that my hands had been on. Damn good climb. After Sandy led it I decided I had to, also. So I did. Major happiness. Katie and I both climbed No Whippin Boys a second time. Love it.
By then we were all tired and it was after 5 p.m. We wandered down to the sunny side so we could point out climbs to Sandy. Found some guys who were finishing up on Foreign Affairs (5.10d), and they put our rope up on it. So we got one last climb to complete the exhaustion! Hard climb. I want to lead it someday. Not yet. And not when I'm already tired.
Katie and I got there first because Sandy got a bit lost on the way from her campsite near Cannon Falls. We warmed up on Cinq Jours D'Afille (5.7), and when Sandy found us we got on Micro Balls (5.9+). I had climbed it once or twice before, and remembered well the awkwardness of certain parts. I was gratified to see that Sandy found it awkward, too. It has all the downsides of a Red Wing climb (polished, slippery holds, dirty ledges, tiny polished footholds, lack of friction) with none of the upsides. From that we moved to Annadonia (5.11b). Thanks to climbing it with Shawn the weekend before I remembered the difficult sequence at the beginning. I had one hang before the top crux, and then moved through the powerful crimps to grab the chains in triumph. We each ended up climbing it twice, because I wanted to try the alternate, easier finish and Katie and Sandy both wanted to work through the bottom crux.
Then we moved down to No Whippin Boys (5.10), possibly my favorite climb at Red Wing, and I led it with one hang. Not bad, but I know I can do it clean. I just have fears about gear blowing out and it makes me timid. Katie and Sandy toproped it. Then Katie and I both toproped Prairie Fire (5.10c), which shares anchors with No Whippin Boys, and Sandy boldly decided to lead it with the first bolt pre-clipped. She had carefully watched our sequence through the crux. It is, incidentally, a pretty intense climb; getting to the first bolt requires the use of a very polished foothold, and the landing is not good if you blow the sequence. Getting from the first bolt to the second is perhaps the real crux of the route; the key for me is a tiny foot pebble that allows me to move off two bad crimps. That allows me to throw my left foot into the large dish and stand up to grab the next two crimps - bad, but not as bad. Those allow me to work my feet up to the crimps that my hands had been on. Damn good climb. After Sandy led it I decided I had to, also. So I did. Major happiness. Katie and I both climbed No Whippin Boys a second time. Love it.
By then we were all tired and it was after 5 p.m. We wandered down to the sunny side so we could point out climbs to Sandy. Found some guys who were finishing up on Foreign Affairs (5.10d), and they put our rope up on it. So we got one last climb to complete the exhaustion! Hard climb. I want to lead it someday. Not yet. And not when I'm already tired.
Saturday, August 30, 2008
Last weekend - Red Wing with Shawn
First time climbing with Shawn in a while! And neither one of us had been to Red Wing for... probably a couple of months. It ended up being a great day. We started on Frequent Flatulence (5.10a) as a warm up. Shawn cruised it until the awkward mantle move, at which he actually took a big fall. I toproped it with ease. Then we did the always awkward Vertical Vice (5.8+) which I was gratified to see Shawn struggling with, and Call of the Mild (5.11a) which we both led with a fair amount of confidence. Then we did the 5.10 to the left of Vertical Vice... Pandemonium. Dirty route because it doesn't get climbed enough.
Then Shawn had an urge to get on Annadonia (5.11b), and I led it after he did and cranked through the very tough start! Definitely had an advantage with the preplaced quickdraws on the finish, though. And we finished off with Out of Control (5.11a). I kind of love the first half of this route, but it has it's awkward moments. I took an unexpected fall at the second bolt when my foot popped off, but totally clean fall.
Then Shawn had an urge to get on Annadonia (5.11b), and I led it after he did and cranked through the very tough start! Definitely had an advantage with the preplaced quickdraws on the finish, though. And we finished off with Out of Control (5.11a). I kind of love the first half of this route, but it has it's awkward moments. I took an unexpected fall at the second bolt when my foot popped off, but totally clean fall.
Saturday, August 23, 2008
Squee and me
I did not know what "squee" meant, or what it meant to "ship" someone, despite frequently running into those words in internet fandom. Oh, sure, I had a sense from context, but it was only when I stumbled across this article (http://firefox.org/news/articles/1275/1/Celebrating-Squee/Page1.html) on Firefox News that I finally found an official definition of the term.
"What is squee? If you're a fan and you’re reading this, you already know. It's that happy, warm, fluttery feeling you get in the pit of your stomach two minutes before a new episode of your show airs. It is defined by the sound that very likely escapes your mouth when your favorite couple (or threesome) is on-screen together, interacting, and omg, their hands are touching, that was definitely a touch, and did you see how they were looking at each other, they're so doing it, it's canon!"
I could really just post that entire article in here, it's so good, it gets it so right... I think it's fun to read, but then I AM a fan and I squee on a regular basis (albeit usually alone). So you who might be reading this, give it a try. Read about squee and then do it yourself. Ha ha.
And "ship" is apparently short for "worship" but has taken on additional overtones and nuances; it seems to me that fans don't ship merely a single character - they usually ship a pair of characters, and indeed the relationship between those two characters. So it's sorta like worshipping the relationship. In case it's not obvious, I ship the Doctor and Rose. And I'm certainly not alone in that.
Here is the best site to indulge my shipping.
http://www.loony-archivist.com/who/betterw2/index_s1.htm
"What is squee? If you're a fan and you’re reading this, you already know. It's that happy, warm, fluttery feeling you get in the pit of your stomach two minutes before a new episode of your show airs. It is defined by the sound that very likely escapes your mouth when your favorite couple (or threesome) is on-screen together, interacting, and omg, their hands are touching, that was definitely a touch, and did you see how they were looking at each other, they're so doing it, it's canon!"
I could really just post that entire article in here, it's so good, it gets it so right... I think it's fun to read, but then I AM a fan and I squee on a regular basis (albeit usually alone). So you who might be reading this, give it a try. Read about squee and then do it yourself. Ha ha.
And "ship" is apparently short for "worship" but has taken on additional overtones and nuances; it seems to me that fans don't ship merely a single character - they usually ship a pair of characters, and indeed the relationship between those two characters. So it's sorta like worshipping the relationship. In case it's not obvious, I ship the Doctor and Rose. And I'm certainly not alone in that.
Here is the best site to indulge my shipping.
http://www.loony-archivist.com/who/betterw2/index_s1.htm
fun with the internet
In the book "Quicksilver" it's often hard to know what stuff is based on reality and what is fictional. I was looking at the amazon.com reviews of the work, and this led me to the wikipedia article on the Baroque Cycle, which has an entire section listing the elements which are fictional. "Aha!" I thought to myself when I learned that Qwglhm is actually a fictional country. "Well of course it is!" you might think to yourself, but "Quicksilver" is so well-written and the fictional stuff is so thoroughly intertwined with the historical stuff that I did find myself wondering if Qwglhm was just some place I had never heard of before.
Another intertwining of fiction and history in the book: the origin of the word "cabal" - based on the first letters in the names of the five people who formed the first cabal. Although the five characters in the book are fictional, the word apparently does stem from the initials of five crucial individuals.
Anyway, at the bottom of the wikipedia article (http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Qwghlm) there was a link to a list of "Fictional European Countries" (http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Category:Fictional_European_countries).
God I love the internet!
Another intertwining of fiction and history in the book: the origin of the word "cabal" - based on the first letters in the names of the five people who formed the first cabal. Although the five characters in the book are fictional, the word apparently does stem from the initials of five crucial individuals.
Anyway, at the bottom of the wikipedia article (http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Qwghlm) there was a link to a list of "Fictional European Countries" (http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Category:Fictional_European_countries).
God I love the internet!
Who am I, really?
Ross and I watched "The diving bell and the butterfly" last night. It has been on my mental list for months, after my mom and Ross' stepmom both recommended it very highly. Finally it was time.
Wow. The images were so beautiful. The life, so unimaginable. The accomplishment.
I'm trying to remember where this particular quote came from... it might have been a movie or a tv show, or the olympics coverage. Someone was describing a guy and saying that he didn't really know what he wanted or how to get it, and Ross exclaimed, "But that's how we all feel!" There was more; it sounded more profound. Ha ha. It certainly describes me. And sometimes I realize that it's a universal state, more or less. That makes me feel more OK about it. I think it's good to feel... to accept oneself, more or less. I don't usually accept myself; I beat myself up a lot. But I think there are things I should change about myself. I feel like I've grown into a crabbiness (ha ha) that I'd like to shed. I'd like to rediscover a youthful playfulness. It would be easier to rediscover that if I won the lottery and didn't have to sit at a desk all day.
Oh, and now I'm whining!
I'd like to be better at staying in touch with my family.
Family, I'm sorry I haven't been good at that. It is not for lack of caring; it is due to the crabbiness that I need to shed.
Wow. The images were so beautiful. The life, so unimaginable. The accomplishment.
I'm trying to remember where this particular quote came from... it might have been a movie or a tv show, or the olympics coverage. Someone was describing a guy and saying that he didn't really know what he wanted or how to get it, and Ross exclaimed, "But that's how we all feel!" There was more; it sounded more profound. Ha ha. It certainly describes me. And sometimes I realize that it's a universal state, more or less. That makes me feel more OK about it. I think it's good to feel... to accept oneself, more or less. I don't usually accept myself; I beat myself up a lot. But I think there are things I should change about myself. I feel like I've grown into a crabbiness (ha ha) that I'd like to shed. I'd like to rediscover a youthful playfulness. It would be easier to rediscover that if I won the lottery and didn't have to sit at a desk all day.
Oh, and now I'm whining!
I'd like to be better at staying in touch with my family.
Family, I'm sorry I haven't been good at that. It is not for lack of caring; it is due to the crabbiness that I need to shed.
Devil's Lake
Went to Devil's Lake with Katie last weekend.
Saturday - left her house at 7:30 a.m. Climbing by 1 p.m. after driving there, missing a turn, reversing, finding the campground, setting up the tent, getting to the park, buying a sticker, etc. I led Push Me Pull Yu (5.6). Didn't have my lead head, made it harder than it should have been. Set up a toprope on Cheatah (5.10). Struggled with the bottom crux, glad I wasn't leading it. Then cruised the rest. Katie did great, too. Then I led Brinton's Crack (5.6) and Katie followed. Brinton's is superb. Then led Anemia (5.2) because I thought Katie should lead it and she didn't feel ready. And by then the sun was low in the sky and we decided it was time for showers and dinner. Shower facility near the parking lot is very convenient. Ate at the Barn Restaurant (not to be confused with the Farm Kitchen) which has a really great beer selection! We had beers from Furthermore Brewery of Black River Falls, WI. Highly recommended. I slept like a log.
Sunday - reasonably early start. We hiked along the railroad tracks to the Railroad Amphitheater. Very easy to find. I led Pine Tree Step-Across, 5.6, although I wimped out on the step-across move; on lead your last gear is below your feet and you have to do a step-out with hardly any hands... scary. Then we set up a toprope on Catenary Crack (5.9). This was definitely old-school Devil's Lake 5.9 - the hardest route of that grade that I've ever climbed. Really fun, but strenuous. Then I led Pine Tree Dihedral (5.5) which was fun. Then toproped Cop-Out (5.11) which was a majorly great climb. I'd love to get on it again. Then a final lead of The Pillar (5.6), with an awkward move into a chimney, and a finish on the top of Catenary Crack.
We called it a day and were back in the cities by 9 p.m.
Katie near the top of Pine Tree Step-Across - note the pine tree below her.
Kiri at top of Pine Tree routes.
Catenary Crack! follows the arcing, chalked-up crack. The Pillar is to the right. Cop-Out to the left.
Kiri on the starting hold of Catenary Crack.
Wednesday, August 13, 2008
Wow, summer
It passes. The evenings grow dark, sooner. When I walked Toad around the block after work tonight there were tiny baby toads all over the neighborhood; some combination of the rain, the season, the toads themselves... The annuals in the garden are blooming in the way that is hard to imagine at the beginning of summer. Prolific as all getout.
Katie and I climbed at Taylors Falls last weekend, and Katie did her first trad lead! I almost got stung by a wasp. We both got hissed at by a bat. I led Inside Corner (5.8) and felt really strong and in control. We both toproped Batman (5.10) and we both hung at the crux.
Ross has been making constant progress with the Jag sedan, but now he's thinking about other cars since he has probably sold his Miata to Randy. Toad needs a bath, badly. I have pre-ordered the 4th Season of Doctor Who (available November 18) and can hardly wait.
Not enjoying work; some days are better than others. Sometimes I think I should just be profoundly grateful that I have a wonderful, well-paying job. Other days it kills me a little.
Katie and I climbed at Taylors Falls last weekend, and Katie did her first trad lead! I almost got stung by a wasp. We both got hissed at by a bat. I led Inside Corner (5.8) and felt really strong and in control. We both toproped Batman (5.10) and we both hung at the crux.
Ross has been making constant progress with the Jag sedan, but now he's thinking about other cars since he has probably sold his Miata to Randy. Toad needs a bath, badly. I have pre-ordered the 4th Season of Doctor Who (available November 18) and can hardly wait.
Not enjoying work; some days are better than others. Sometimes I think I should just be profoundly grateful that I have a wonderful, well-paying job. Other days it kills me a little.
Friday, August 01, 2008
I'm behind on this...
But only by a week or so. Went to Taylor's Falls with Shawn and Sue last weekend. Sue is a very strong climber I haven't really climbed with before; she and Shawn are going to the Tetons... actually they're on their way there right now. They had an agenda last weekend - to get in some practice aid climbing.
Aid climbing is distinguished from free climbing by the fact that you hang on every piece of protection that you place; it is a technique for ascending rock faces so sheer that they cannot be free climbed. Shawn and Sue hope to do a route that includes one 25 foot section of aid climbing. The technique is relatively straightforward, but the sequence definitely benefits from practice.
Tom, a friend of Sue's, found us at the Airconditioned/Layback Crack area, so I ended up climbing with him while Sue and Shawn did their aiding. Tom is a slightly older guy, very experienced, very mild-mannered and pleasant with much tattoos on his arms and torso. He also rides motorcycles. It turns out that he and I both have a Ducati Monster 750. We climbed Layback (the old guidebook calls it 5.7 but Tom said he thought it was easily a 5.9), and then I climbed Mantrap (5.10). Tom tried but backed off because of knee pain. Mantrap is wicked! The bottom, at least for me, involves desperate slopey slippery laybacking, and then a funky traverse under a roof. I had tried the top section before but failed; this time I pulled through to the top.
Good day, and good climbing and meeting new friendly people. Also met Jared, another friend of Sue's, and people with him. Climbing folks are usually really great people.
Aid climbing is distinguished from free climbing by the fact that you hang on every piece of protection that you place; it is a technique for ascending rock faces so sheer that they cannot be free climbed. Shawn and Sue hope to do a route that includes one 25 foot section of aid climbing. The technique is relatively straightforward, but the sequence definitely benefits from practice.
Tom, a friend of Sue's, found us at the Airconditioned/Layback Crack area, so I ended up climbing with him while Sue and Shawn did their aiding. Tom is a slightly older guy, very experienced, very mild-mannered and pleasant with much tattoos on his arms and torso. He also rides motorcycles. It turns out that he and I both have a Ducati Monster 750. We climbed Layback (the old guidebook calls it 5.7 but Tom said he thought it was easily a 5.9), and then I climbed Mantrap (5.10). Tom tried but backed off because of knee pain. Mantrap is wicked! The bottom, at least for me, involves desperate slopey slippery laybacking, and then a funky traverse under a roof. I had tried the top section before but failed; this time I pulled through to the top.
Good day, and good climbing and meeting new friendly people. Also met Jared, another friend of Sue's, and people with him. Climbing folks are usually really great people.
Thursday, July 24, 2008
Vintage Races at Elkhart Lake
Once again it is that time, time for the Brian Redman Challenge, the vintage auto races at Road America, Elkhart Lake, WI. Ross and I left the cities very early Friday morning, dropping Toad off at Luka's house. Our goal was to get to Madison by 11:30ish in order to have lunch with Moria and Edward. We actually stayed on schedule and made great time. We walked to a Turkish restaurant just down the street from their house (ah, Monroe Street, ah, Madison!) and had a wonderful meal with wonderful conversation. Nice to see them both looking well.
Then it was a very easy drive from Madison to Elkhart Lake, so easy that we decided to go that way in the future. Got to the track in time to set up our tent, get informed about Scott's secret plan to propose to Jen, and drive into Elkhart Lake with Clancy. Friday evening is the race car concours, when selected race cars drive from the track into town and get admired and judged. Scott's plan was to stop at this specific corner, jump out and propose to Jen (who would be riding with him in the Sprite). Photos of this event are on my flickr page.
The concours was great. Saturday was great; the usual combination of racing, relaxing, walking around a lot, putting earplugs in and out of ears, looking at stuff for sale, etc. Scott had some good qualifying sessions - he and Clancy run their Austin Healey Sprite race car. The street car concours on Saturday night was nice, too.
Saturday night we got rained on from about 1 a.m. until about 6 a.m., but my tent kept us dry. The rest of the day was just right; Scott's race was at 9:30? and went beautifully until an incident with an early-braking Austin healey 3000 put Scott in the difficult position of deciding between hitting the Healey or going off into the gravel. So he spent half of the race in the gravel... frankly, the better choice. The Can-Am race was exciting, with the L&M Lola in second place and never quite able to fight for first.
Then Ross and I got packed up, said our goodbyes and hit the road, heading north through Green Bay, then Wausau, on our way to St. Germain where Ross' mom's side of the family was having a week at a cabin. There we joined Ross' mom Sara, her sisters Abby and Sue, Sue's husband Fred, Abby's daughter Melynn, her husband Jeff and their daughter Lexi. Nice quiet cabin on Found Lake. Fun time spotting eagles, frogs, turtles, loons. Played Wii games - fun.
And despite all the relaxing we had over the course of the five days, we came home exhausted and in need of sleeping in!
Then it was a very easy drive from Madison to Elkhart Lake, so easy that we decided to go that way in the future. Got to the track in time to set up our tent, get informed about Scott's secret plan to propose to Jen, and drive into Elkhart Lake with Clancy. Friday evening is the race car concours, when selected race cars drive from the track into town and get admired and judged. Scott's plan was to stop at this specific corner, jump out and propose to Jen (who would be riding with him in the Sprite). Photos of this event are on my flickr page.
The concours was great. Saturday was great; the usual combination of racing, relaxing, walking around a lot, putting earplugs in and out of ears, looking at stuff for sale, etc. Scott had some good qualifying sessions - he and Clancy run their Austin Healey Sprite race car. The street car concours on Saturday night was nice, too.
Saturday night we got rained on from about 1 a.m. until about 6 a.m., but my tent kept us dry. The rest of the day was just right; Scott's race was at 9:30? and went beautifully until an incident with an early-braking Austin healey 3000 put Scott in the difficult position of deciding between hitting the Healey or going off into the gravel. So he spent half of the race in the gravel... frankly, the better choice. The Can-Am race was exciting, with the L&M Lola in second place and never quite able to fight for first.
Then Ross and I got packed up, said our goodbyes and hit the road, heading north through Green Bay, then Wausau, on our way to St. Germain where Ross' mom's side of the family was having a week at a cabin. There we joined Ross' mom Sara, her sisters Abby and Sue, Sue's husband Fred, Abby's daughter Melynn, her husband Jeff and their daughter Lexi. Nice quiet cabin on Found Lake. Fun time spotting eagles, frogs, turtles, loons. Played Wii games - fun.
And despite all the relaxing we had over the course of the five days, we came home exhausted and in need of sleeping in!
Monday, July 14, 2008
Weekend - summer goes too fast
Katie and I went to Taylor's Falls on Saturday, and a nicer day there couldn't have been. Skies were clear, temps were balmy, winds were refreshing. No wasps or mosquitos. We had the Keyhole area to ourselves (except for a couple of hikers peering over the top).
We rappelled, then pulled the rope and I led The Keyhole (5.6). I belayed Katie to the top. We rappelled and climbed Keyhole Direct (5.9). Fun. I led the route to the right of the Keyhole, which I've led before and is actually quite good despite ending in a bush. I scrambled to the top of Double Cracks (5.9+) and set up a toprope. We each climbed it about three times. I thought about leading it, but didn't. Led it once before, with a hang. Then Katie did a practice lead of the Keyhole (on toprope, but placing gear and clipping the second rope to the gear). She exclaimed that it was a lot harder.
Great day.
On Sunday Ross made the Jag sedan run(!) and I started sanding a batch of kitchen cabinet doors, moved some raspberry plants, washed clothes, did some minor house cleaning. That's what summer days are all about... staying cool and getting things done.
We rappelled, then pulled the rope and I led The Keyhole (5.6). I belayed Katie to the top. We rappelled and climbed Keyhole Direct (5.9). Fun. I led the route to the right of the Keyhole, which I've led before and is actually quite good despite ending in a bush. I scrambled to the top of Double Cracks (5.9+) and set up a toprope. We each climbed it about three times. I thought about leading it, but didn't. Led it once before, with a hang. Then Katie did a practice lead of the Keyhole (on toprope, but placing gear and clipping the second rope to the gear). She exclaimed that it was a lot harder.
Great day.
On Sunday Ross made the Jag sedan run(!) and I started sanding a batch of kitchen cabinet doors, moved some raspberry plants, washed clothes, did some minor house cleaning. That's what summer days are all about... staying cool and getting things done.
Doctor Who - the emotional arcs
Note: photos are from time-and-space.co.uk, and from the gallery at chaotic-creative.comThe third season is the one I want to focus on, as it is so fresh in my mind and it really has the most compelling arc, the most immediate and raw. The loss of Rose at the end of the second season is the kickoff point, and of course the moment that he never really gets over. Throughout the third season we see his emotional pain made real and physical; certainly there is nothing to compare to it in the first and second seasons. He gets kicked around in this season.
His emotional state is very raw; even once past the barely suppressed pain of "The Runaway Bride" he struggles between a reluctance to open himself up again to such pain and the desperate need to not lose a companion again. This is beautifully illustrated by this moment from "Gridlock" when Martha is abducted. He has this desperate intensity when an acquaintance is in danger, taken away from him - even in "Daleks in Manhattan" when the acquaintance is a very casual one. The loss is too real, too great for him.
In "42", an episode I found uniquely compelling, not only are the Doctor and Martha on a spaceship 42 minutes away from crashing into a sun, but in short order they are blocked from the TARDIS and then from each other. As Martha tumbles toward the sun's surface in an escape pod the Doctor becomes possessed by the sun-entity.
It's an abrupt turnaround for their relationship; as he struggles to fight the unknown entity he's helpless and dependent on her to do what she can to save him. The moment in which he confesses, "I'm scared, Martha, I'm so scared," is a pivotal one. The Doctor is often scared but rarely so honest about it.
In "Human Nature" and "The Family of Blood" he is walloped both physically and emotionally; firstly by the action of the Chameleon Arch as it rewrites his DNA - he admits casually that it is incredibly painful, a fact that doesn't seem to give him pause. We, the audience, and Martha, our surrogate, are left to cringe in horror.
The emotional wallop comes later for him, when his assumed personality fights for selfhood, cries out at the thought of losing the woman he loves, the life he might have had.
OK, this pic is more for squee than anything else, but it is a moment that kicks off the climactic sequence of the last two episodes; the Master, regenerated, haring away in the TARDIS as the Doctor uses his ever-useful sonic screwdriver to lock the TARDIS guidance system.
And the scene that wraps up the emotional arc of the third season: the Master dies in the Doctor's arms, refusing to regenerate. The Doctor cries as if he's losing his second self. I've heard some speculation that they could be brothers? In some ways this wraps up the arc of the first season as well - the angst of the Doctor who believed even then that he was the last of the time lords.
But there is an afterword; it still remains for both Jack and Martha to say their goodbyes. At an earlier time both of them would have jumped at the chance to keep travelling with him, but they've grown... they've become more honest with themselves, and both of them realize that they want things they won't get in the TARDIS - human things.
Thursday, July 10, 2008
CONvergence!
This past weekend was CONvergence, which is currently the largest science fiction convention in the state. In addition it was the 10th CONvergence, so they pulled out all the stops and invited every guest of honor from the past, as well as some new ones. There were probably 20 of them. I got to meet Peter Mayhew (who played Chewbacca in the Star Wars movies). Odd fellow. I didn't talk long because I was actually in line to get an autograph from Mercedes Lackey, who has been my guilty pleasure for almost 20 years now. She writes fantasy novels. I'm finding it difficult to describe them... on a superficial level they are set in a world where psychic white horses with blue eyes bond with their riders for life. Anyway. I also went to a talk by David Weber, the premier name in military science fiction, and he was charming and very talkative and obviously well-read and insatiably curious about the world. I also went to a reading by Broad Universe, an organization dedicated to supporting female writers of SF&F.
The beauty of going to this convention after being away from the convention world for ten years was that I ran into several people who I haven't seen for that span of time. It was also fun, yes fun, to be so utterly immersed in the geek world. It's a mutating, shifting world, and I'm not entirely sure how much I want to be in it, but I love that it exists. It all takes time and I'm just more aware that I can't do everything at once, or else I didn't have as many things to do back in the days... Still. To walk down the halls of the Sheraton, past several Klingons, the guys from Ghost Busters, multiple pirates and maybe a couple of ninjas. Captain Kirk passes in the opposite direction, followed by a lady with a dragon tail sticking out from under her dress. This is the world of the geek. Escapist? Maybe. But we all live inside our heads on some level. We all need more than what we get from the input; we need to make things, to create, to express.
I remember the first time I went to Minicon; two days of convention activity, and I went home with a dejected air and the thought that I would have to wait a WHOLE YEAR for the next Minicon. It seemed unbearable. This time I thought about the whole thing more; the world was smaller. The Romulan ale sucked. I watched this world I had been away from and felt that, yes, I could go back again. But I could wait a year. Or two.
The beauty of going to this convention after being away from the convention world for ten years was that I ran into several people who I haven't seen for that span of time. It was also fun, yes fun, to be so utterly immersed in the geek world. It's a mutating, shifting world, and I'm not entirely sure how much I want to be in it, but I love that it exists. It all takes time and I'm just more aware that I can't do everything at once, or else I didn't have as many things to do back in the days... Still. To walk down the halls of the Sheraton, past several Klingons, the guys from Ghost Busters, multiple pirates and maybe a couple of ninjas. Captain Kirk passes in the opposite direction, followed by a lady with a dragon tail sticking out from under her dress. This is the world of the geek. Escapist? Maybe. But we all live inside our heads on some level. We all need more than what we get from the input; we need to make things, to create, to express.
I remember the first time I went to Minicon; two days of convention activity, and I went home with a dejected air and the thought that I would have to wait a WHOLE YEAR for the next Minicon. It seemed unbearable. This time I thought about the whole thing more; the world was smaller. The Romulan ale sucked. I watched this world I had been away from and felt that, yes, I could go back again. But I could wait a year. Or two.
Tuesday, July 08, 2008
The end of the third season of Doctor Who
Watched the last episode, "The Last of the Timelords" on Sunday night. It was large in scope, although emotionally more distant than the finales from the first and second season. In my opinion. By having the Doctor appear as a 900-year-old gnome they really missed out on the huge opportunity to get maximum use out of the Master/Doctor relationship. The final confrontation and death(?) of the Master was everything I could have hoped for. Really the culmination of the emotional beating that the Doctor has taken throughout this season; his tears and entreaties were heartrending.
And from the Television Without Pity season three recap by the amazing Jacob, here is a statement about what "Doctor Who" means to its fans and why it matters:
"One thing I think it is not, though, is the Companion setup. I don't like to think that the show, this weird phenomenon that's twice as old as yours truly, comes down to escapism, to the romance of neglecting and avoiding and running away from life. I mean, I realize that it's more than that -- I can't seem to shut the hell up about all the other things it is -- but the thing about stories, like dreams, is that they're all you. In Jungian terms, the Companion is the Ego and the Doctor is the Self and the TARDIS is the Ego-Self Axis, and if you ask me why, as an atheist, I'm so obsessed with writing and reading about religion, that's the pat answer that I won't give you, because it's too small. It's a collection of trees that can't actually express the forest. But I think in human development there's something that leads us on, some gift of the world, that gives us guidance toward becoming whole. I think there's something, a Doctor, that wants us to look in those dark corners and tease the mysteries out and become strong enough to see things the way they are, without all the magic and hope and fear and ugliness that we project on them, because when we do that, we're abusing ourselves, because the world inside our head is where we actually live, and the best we can hope for is to work until it matches the world outside our heads as closely as possible. So I've never found it weird or particularly interesting to cast Doctor Who as either a meditative experience of the divine or as a description of individuation, the process of growing up. Those are all just a bunch of words for fairy tales, which are all just versions of the Quest, and the Quest never ends. You shouldn't go around kicking trees when you're in the middle of the forest, because if you miss the forest, you're screwed, because it's a...really awesome forest."
And from the Television Without Pity season three recap by the amazing Jacob, here is a statement about what "Doctor Who" means to its fans and why it matters:
"One thing I think it is not, though, is the Companion setup. I don't like to think that the show, this weird phenomenon that's twice as old as yours truly, comes down to escapism, to the romance of neglecting and avoiding and running away from life. I mean, I realize that it's more than that -- I can't seem to shut the hell up about all the other things it is -- but the thing about stories, like dreams, is that they're all you. In Jungian terms, the Companion is the Ego and the Doctor is the Self and the TARDIS is the Ego-Self Axis, and if you ask me why, as an atheist, I'm so obsessed with writing and reading about religion, that's the pat answer that I won't give you, because it's too small. It's a collection of trees that can't actually express the forest. But I think in human development there's something that leads us on, some gift of the world, that gives us guidance toward becoming whole. I think there's something, a Doctor, that wants us to look in those dark corners and tease the mysteries out and become strong enough to see things the way they are, without all the magic and hope and fear and ugliness that we project on them, because when we do that, we're abusing ourselves, because the world inside our head is where we actually live, and the best we can hope for is to work until it matches the world outside our heads as closely as possible. So I've never found it weird or particularly interesting to cast Doctor Who as either a meditative experience of the divine or as a description of individuation, the process of growing up. Those are all just a bunch of words for fairy tales, which are all just versions of the Quest, and the Quest never ends. You shouldn't go around kicking trees when you're in the middle of the forest, because if you miss the forest, you're screwed, because it's a...really awesome forest."
Monday, June 30, 2008
Monday afternoon
2:05 p.m.
Rufus Wainwright gives me chills. "I don't know what it is" from Want One. This is not my favorite Rufus album, but... his voice is an instrument. This album has a high degree of chill-making moments.
"Give me heaven or hell, Calais or Dover..."
Rufus Wainwright gives me chills. "I don't know what it is" from Want One. This is not my favorite Rufus album, but... his voice is an instrument. This album has a high degree of chill-making moments.
"Give me heaven or hell, Calais or Dover..."
Weekend
On Saturday Ross and I did useful things. Bought plumbing material (copper is very expensive). Ran three miles. Had a delicious martini and went to see "Wall-E". Brilliant movie. Pixar, I worship at your feet. This movie choked me up, not only because of the wonderful and often poignant storyline, but also in a meta- way because the WHOLE thing is so amazingly good, every single aspect of it so superb that I cry at the idea of so many talented people coming together and creating something of such beauty.
Sunday. Leisurely morning of blueberry pancakes and bacon, and then I went climbing at Taylors Falls with Shawn while Ross stayed home and did plumbing. In a quest to meet up with Alicia and others Shawn and I parked on the MN side, walked to the strip, walked across the bridge to WI, walked past the WI strip and downriver eventually ending up at the Sentinel Area. Shawn led Lost Ego (5.8) and I followed. Then he led Sentinel Crack (5.10) and I followed. It felt really good, in control. Then I set up a toprope on Stay Hungry (5.10b) while Shawn talked to this old guy, Steve. Shawn climbed Stay Hungry and placed gear; I belayed and chatted with Steve. Steve climbed his Sentinel variation (with easier finish), and then I climbed it. Alicia and crew showed up. Shawn led (!) Stay Hungry with pre-placed gear.
Alicia and at least one of the guys she was with were talking about leading Sentinel Crack, but they were all occupied so then I geared up and led it! This was one of my goals for the summer (see earlier post), and I climbed it with authority and grace. The first section is more awkward than hard - just a matter of placing gear where necessary and continuing to move up. Then there's a huge rest ledge before the top section - double overhanging cracks. The left crack starts wide, fist jam size, and narrows to hand jam and then fingers. The right crack is good for finger-locks and laybacking. Gets harder and harder until it gets easier. I placed four cams, last one at the crux off a bomber hand jam. Then just pulled through. I felt like a stud.
Sunday. Leisurely morning of blueberry pancakes and bacon, and then I went climbing at Taylors Falls with Shawn while Ross stayed home and did plumbing. In a quest to meet up with Alicia and others Shawn and I parked on the MN side, walked to the strip, walked across the bridge to WI, walked past the WI strip and downriver eventually ending up at the Sentinel Area. Shawn led Lost Ego (5.8) and I followed. Then he led Sentinel Crack (5.10) and I followed. It felt really good, in control. Then I set up a toprope on Stay Hungry (5.10b) while Shawn talked to this old guy, Steve. Shawn climbed Stay Hungry and placed gear; I belayed and chatted with Steve. Steve climbed his Sentinel variation (with easier finish), and then I climbed it. Alicia and crew showed up. Shawn led (!) Stay Hungry with pre-placed gear.
Alicia and at least one of the guys she was with were talking about leading Sentinel Crack, but they were all occupied so then I geared up and led it! This was one of my goals for the summer (see earlier post), and I climbed it with authority and grace. The first section is more awkward than hard - just a matter of placing gear where necessary and continuing to move up. Then there's a huge rest ledge before the top section - double overhanging cracks. The left crack starts wide, fist jam size, and narrows to hand jam and then fingers. The right crack is good for finger-locks and laybacking. Gets harder and harder until it gets easier. I placed four cams, last one at the crux off a bomber hand jam. Then just pulled through. I felt like a stud.
Monday morning
Adrian Belew, "Inner Revolution".
Why I love Adrian: he's so relentlessly optimistic, and there's something refreshingly simple and almost naive about his lyrics, yet it's so delicious that someone (he) is willing to state these elemental truths.
"There's something wrong in your life, you gotta fix it"
"Hold tight to your faith, don't let no one give you hell. Your life is sacred - live it right, live it your way. This is what I believe in."
And I like his guitar sound. It is so his.
Why I love Adrian: he's so relentlessly optimistic, and there's something refreshingly simple and almost naive about his lyrics, yet it's so delicious that someone (he) is willing to state these elemental truths.
"There's something wrong in your life, you gotta fix it"
"Hold tight to your faith, don't let no one give you hell. Your life is sacred - live it right, live it your way. This is what I believe in."
And I like his guitar sound. It is so his.
Thursday, June 26, 2008
One more Doctor Who thing...
I nicked this from the TWOP forums, because it's so insightful and an example of how much people THINK about the Doctor.
"I posted this way back when on one of the Ten threads, after I watched "The Girl in the Fireplace" while listening to Steve Moffat's commentary. (Highly recommended, by the way.) Nobody picked up on it, so I'm repeating some of it here now that I've got an excuse.
"I posted this way back when on one of the Ten threads, after I watched "The Girl in the Fireplace" while listening to Steve Moffat's commentary. (Highly recommended, by the way.) Nobody picked up on it, so I'm repeating some of it here now that I've got an excuse.
- He said one of the tricky things about writing the Doctor is that he never expresses what he's feeling. He obviously has an inner life, but you have to reflect that in the lines of other people.
- He talked about the old idea that the Doctor is asexual. He said that's not the case--that the Doctor picks up on sexual tension and sexual situations and appreciates erotic beauty. But, despite "obviously being in love and fancying" Rose, he's made a very definite--and for some reason, easy--decision that he's not going anywhere near that with ANYbody right now. He (Moffat) sounded like he's not sure why, and that that's one of the intriguing things about the character.
- Finally, Moffat said there's an interesting contradiction in the way writers treat the Doctor and sex. He referred back to "The Doctor Dances," and said both he and other writers have written the Doctor as kind of shy and self-conscious and bumbling in sexual moments. On the other hand, RTD makes him an outrageous flirt, "possibly because RTD himself is such an outrageous flirt!" He said he hasn't figured out how, but it somehow works to have both versions show up in the same season."
Photos from New York
In the subway - look at my frickin' grey hair! Should I color it? Get it cut? What? Love it?
Our feet in the subway. I stuck mine out just to get in the photo.
Looking south as the rain comes our way. Walking east to a restaurant.
Noah and Holly at the Gunks.
Ah, the beautiful beautiful Gunks.I've started to load the photos into flickr - click on my link to get to my flickr page - but I haven't done all of 'em yet because there are so many and I was having technical difficulties. I'd like to upload smaller files (they're quite big thanks to my 7.1 mp camera) so I think I'm going to create a photoshop script to save 'em as smaller files... It all takes time. Anyway, there are some up and I'll post a few here too.
A few more thoughts on Doctor Who
What makes the show for me is the emotional subtext. It's the adult bits in this very G-rated show that really trip my trigger - and clearly these are the bits that get to loads of other people, judging by the significant mature audience, the intelligent discussions on TWOP and the sophisticated fiction online.
People seem to label Nine as a depressive potential suicide because of his deep issues with the Time War, the death of his people and destruction of his planet, the genocide of the Daleks, etc. but to do so you have to ignore his very Doctorish zest for life. He has that immediate engagement with people; he's fascinated with people of all sorts. He has a childlike sense of wonder, the ability to continue to be surprised and pleased and amazed by the universe, even after 900 years of travelling through it. Certainly there is something new in him that we didn't see in previous Doctors; he NEEDS Rose. After she agrees to travel with him he goes to some lengths, really any length, to please her because he is kinda desperate for that kind of companionship - some new eyes to see the universe through.
People seem to label Nine as a depressive potential suicide because of his deep issues with the Time War, the death of his people and destruction of his planet, the genocide of the Daleks, etc. but to do so you have to ignore his very Doctorish zest for life. He has that immediate engagement with people; he's fascinated with people of all sorts. He has a childlike sense of wonder, the ability to continue to be surprised and pleased and amazed by the universe, even after 900 years of travelling through it. Certainly there is something new in him that we didn't see in previous Doctors; he NEEDS Rose. After she agrees to travel with him he goes to some lengths, really any length, to please her because he is kinda desperate for that kind of companionship - some new eyes to see the universe through.
Internet Loveliness
The sequence: went to Barnes and Noble at lunch, browsed the science fiction section. Was electrified by the discovery that "Player of Games" by Iain Banks has been reissued. Also he has a new novel, "Matter." Realized that there are quite a few books by him that I haven't read.
Iain Banks is a brilliant Scottish author, a SF novelist who has twisted the genre to suit his unique sensibilities. Also has a bunch of non-SF novels, only one of which I've read - "Complicity", which is a noir thriller sort of work. Very dark. Very tight writing.
When I got back to work I looked him up on wikipedia and discovered that his friends call him Banksie, he used to own quite a stablefull of performance automobilies but has sold them all and now owns a hybrid, and that he has written a nonfiction book called "Raw Spirit" about touring Scotland in search of the finest whiskeys.
My kinda man.
Now I really must buy "Raw Spirit".
Iain Banks is a brilliant Scottish author, a SF novelist who has twisted the genre to suit his unique sensibilities. Also has a bunch of non-SF novels, only one of which I've read - "Complicity", which is a noir thriller sort of work. Very dark. Very tight writing.
When I got back to work I looked him up on wikipedia and discovered that his friends call him Banksie, he used to own quite a stablefull of performance automobilies but has sold them all and now owns a hybrid, and that he has written a nonfiction book called "Raw Spirit" about touring Scotland in search of the finest whiskeys.
My kinda man.
Now I really must buy "Raw Spirit".
Doctor Who update
We have started the third season. The second season had its ups and downs. There are many opinions about David Tennant vs. Christopher Eccleston - certainly one can find people at every point on the spectrum between the two of them. In general David seems to be considered more of a cutie - younger, sexier, more accessible. He was actually a fan of the series as a child, and as a registered fanboy he is undeniably enthusiastic about the role. It seemed like Chris, in interviews, was very careful to say the right thing... however he was not in love with the role like David is.
There's David - he's pretty cute. As the Doctor they've given him this great, kinda punk hairstyle.
To my eye the relationship between the Tenth Doctor and Rose felt forced in the earlier and even midseason episodes. It felt like they were working too hard at the gaiety, although the fact that David and Billie seemed to become great pals in real life probably helped; by the later episodes their closeness felt so true and their devotion to each other unquestionable.
Honestly, I think a big part of the success of the third season is the emotional subtext - the fact that the Doctor is in a lot of pain and doing his best to hide it.
From Television Without Pity recaps:
"Season 1 of Doctor Who is the Hero's Quest -- a retelling of that human tendency to reach for experience of the divine, and the human tendency to reach it. Season 2 of Doctor Who is the same story told fourteen ways: the human tendency to fuck it up and forget what we're here for, and the human requirement to fall away from God and enter the real world again. And Season 3 of Doctor Who is a lot of things, but what makes it stand apart is the lack of Rose, and its resistance to substituting Martha for her. Season 1 was Rose's story; Season 2 was the story of all Companions, which is to say all people who have seen or wished for miracles, which is to say, all people. But Season 3 is a story about Doctor himself, and that is I think key to the season as a whole: just because the Companion was designed to be our entry point doesn't mean the Whoniverse is restricted to that lens."
One of the threads that I've noticed in this season is the Doctor's very tangible pain every time he might lose someone - companion or acquaintance. Even though he can't fully commit to Martha he is desperate not to lose her.
Also watching the first season of Torchwood, or "the sturdy Welsh girl show" as Ross would say. Torchwood is a Doctor Who spinoff set in Cardiff - very X-Files-ish. So far I haven't been blown away by the plotting, but the characters are all intriguing and I want to keep watching them develop.
There's David - he's pretty cute. As the Doctor they've given him this great, kinda punk hairstyle.To my eye the relationship between the Tenth Doctor and Rose felt forced in the earlier and even midseason episodes. It felt like they were working too hard at the gaiety, although the fact that David and Billie seemed to become great pals in real life probably helped; by the later episodes their closeness felt so true and their devotion to each other unquestionable.
Honestly, I think a big part of the success of the third season is the emotional subtext - the fact that the Doctor is in a lot of pain and doing his best to hide it.
From Television Without Pity recaps:
"Season 1 of Doctor Who is the Hero's Quest -- a retelling of that human tendency to reach for experience of the divine, and the human tendency to reach it. Season 2 of Doctor Who is the same story told fourteen ways: the human tendency to fuck it up and forget what we're here for, and the human requirement to fall away from God and enter the real world again. And Season 3 of Doctor Who is a lot of things, but what makes it stand apart is the lack of Rose, and its resistance to substituting Martha for her. Season 1 was Rose's story; Season 2 was the story of all Companions, which is to say all people who have seen or wished for miracles, which is to say, all people. But Season 3 is a story about Doctor himself, and that is I think key to the season as a whole: just because the Companion was designed to be our entry point doesn't mean the Whoniverse is restricted to that lens."
One of the threads that I've noticed in this season is the Doctor's very tangible pain every time he might lose someone - companion or acquaintance. Even though he can't fully commit to Martha he is desperate not to lose her.
Also watching the first season of Torchwood, or "the sturdy Welsh girl show" as Ross would say. Torchwood is a Doctor Who spinoff set in Cardiff - very X-Files-ish. So far I haven't been blown away by the plotting, but the characters are all intriguing and I want to keep watching them develop.
The final day in New York - a belated post
On our last day we got a late start, but took the subway to Central Park and walked across to the Guggenheim. It is undergoing restoration so all exhibits were down, but we stepped inside long enough to experience the ambiance.
Then we walked one block north to the Cooper Hewitt Museum. NICE building. I'm not up on my period architecture, but the interiors of this place are amazing. Probably as amazing as the art. They had a Rococo exhibit going on, which I found surprisingly enjoyable given that I am not a huge fan of the style. The best part was the sense of Rococo through history, including a room of modern-day items with Rococo elements. Unlike every other museum this one did not allow photography, so I can't wow you with the cool stuff.
Then we walked back across Central Park, hopped a train back to Noah and Holly's place, got our luggage and got back on the train for the interminable ride to JFK. Goodbye New York, hello air travel. And three hours later, hello Twin Cities, you beautiful sprawling metropolis, and hello gigantic Bouvier of destiny. Hello home, hello my very own bed.
Then we walked one block north to the Cooper Hewitt Museum. NICE building. I'm not up on my period architecture, but the interiors of this place are amazing. Probably as amazing as the art. They had a Rococo exhibit going on, which I found surprisingly enjoyable given that I am not a huge fan of the style. The best part was the sense of Rococo through history, including a room of modern-day items with Rococo elements. Unlike every other museum this one did not allow photography, so I can't wow you with the cool stuff.
Then we walked back across Central Park, hopped a train back to Noah and Holly's place, got our luggage and got back on the train for the interminable ride to JFK. Goodbye New York, hello air travel. And three hours later, hello Twin Cities, you beautiful sprawling metropolis, and hello gigantic Bouvier of destiny. Hello home, hello my very own bed.
Tuesday, June 17, 2008
Monday - Brooklyn Bridge and more
After another of our delightful slow mornings we took the A train to Brooklyn and walked back across the Brooklyn Bridge. It was superb. An experience definitely heightened by the documentary on the building of the bridge that we had seen on PBS a while ago. From the bridge we walked to Pier 17 for some sightseeing at some tall ships (the last steel-hulled working sailing ship, the only iron-hulled schooner left in America, etc), and then walked south along the point of Manhattan to the Staten Island Ferry.
The ferry was another excellent experience; good views of the Statue of Liberty, and we got to hang out with some blonde Swedish women. After taking the return trip we walked again - north toward the World Trade Center site. Can't really see much there - just cranes and construction. After this we had some of the best walking of the trip - we walked north along West Broadway, passing through Tribeca and Soho. Wow. Amazing buildings, the details, the architecture. The hip restaurants and bars. The fashion statements. Should have taken more pictures, but didn't want to be overly touristy.
We made our way to the Temple Bar, recommended by the Rough Guide to New York for its serious martinis. What an atmosphere in the place - dark, dark wood and dramatic lighting. Some woman waved vigorously at us as we entered, and then said to the bartender, "I just waved at some total strangers."
Ross said, "It's OK, we're from the Midwest, we wave at everybody."
The bartender said, "We're from New York, we shoot at everybody."
But he made us some excellent martinis. I had a vesper (ala James Bond in Casino Royale) and it was delicious. Noah and Holly joined us here and when we finished our drinks we tried to go to one of Mario Batali's restaurants. It was insanely packed and it started raining, so we went to an unpretentious little Mexican place and devoured some tacos and such.
Noah had said that the Temple Bar reminded him of this place he had gone to once, and in the interests of having a unique New York experience we went to this place - The Pegu Club. If possible, it was even more striking than the Temple. Dark, perhaps even darker, with a supremely polite and courteous staff. We were seated at a table lit only by the light of two small candles, and huddled over the drink menus which we were just able to read. The Pegu Club is modelled after a West Indies bar that Hemingway used to frequent, and the drinks were sophisticated and complex.
I had an Earl Grey martini - Earl Grey infused vodka, lime, and a raw egg white. It was marvelous.
We left and made our way to the train, with stops for ice cream and gelato, and the rain held off. Another delightful day in the big apple.
The ferry was another excellent experience; good views of the Statue of Liberty, and we got to hang out with some blonde Swedish women. After taking the return trip we walked again - north toward the World Trade Center site. Can't really see much there - just cranes and construction. After this we had some of the best walking of the trip - we walked north along West Broadway, passing through Tribeca and Soho. Wow. Amazing buildings, the details, the architecture. The hip restaurants and bars. The fashion statements. Should have taken more pictures, but didn't want to be overly touristy.
We made our way to the Temple Bar, recommended by the Rough Guide to New York for its serious martinis. What an atmosphere in the place - dark, dark wood and dramatic lighting. Some woman waved vigorously at us as we entered, and then said to the bartender, "I just waved at some total strangers."
Ross said, "It's OK, we're from the Midwest, we wave at everybody."
The bartender said, "We're from New York, we shoot at everybody."
But he made us some excellent martinis. I had a vesper (ala James Bond in Casino Royale) and it was delicious. Noah and Holly joined us here and when we finished our drinks we tried to go to one of Mario Batali's restaurants. It was insanely packed and it started raining, so we went to an unpretentious little Mexican place and devoured some tacos and such.
Noah had said that the Temple Bar reminded him of this place he had gone to once, and in the interests of having a unique New York experience we went to this place - The Pegu Club. If possible, it was even more striking than the Temple. Dark, perhaps even darker, with a supremely polite and courteous staff. We were seated at a table lit only by the light of two small candles, and huddled over the drink menus which we were just able to read. The Pegu Club is modelled after a West Indies bar that Hemingway used to frequent, and the drinks were sophisticated and complex.
I had an Earl Grey martini - Earl Grey infused vodka, lime, and a raw egg white. It was marvelous.
We left and made our way to the train, with stops for ice cream and gelato, and the rain held off. Another delightful day in the big apple.
Sunday is Gunks day
This was the day of the trip out of town, the trip that I both yearned for and was stressed out about... and there was plenty to be stressed out about. We decided to rent a car, which meant arranging for one, paying for it, picking it up. We had to get there on time. We had to find our way to the George Washington Bridge. We had to navigate through New Jersey without a decent map.
But the time came at which we were cruising along smoothly through green and lambent hills, and all was well. We stopped for coffee and water, and someone had a litter of puppies in a portable kennel for us to admire. Then on we drove to New Paltz. Charming town. Wish I could go to college there. Stopped at the climbing store in town, bought some webbing. Then on to the cliffs!
I led a very easy route (Dirty Chimney, 5.0) and set up a toprope on that and on Laurel (5.7). Ross, Holly and Noah all had a fun and challenging time climbing the chimney, and I had a blast on Laurel. Then we took the gear back to the car and went for a couple of delightful hikes - one along the top of the Near Trapps, following rock ridges and fields of wild blueberries, the other hike through the lower forests trending down toward a creek and then back up to the parking lot. It was a day with a great dose of nature in it.
But the time came at which we were cruising along smoothly through green and lambent hills, and all was well. We stopped for coffee and water, and someone had a litter of puppies in a portable kennel for us to admire. Then on we drove to New Paltz. Charming town. Wish I could go to college there. Stopped at the climbing store in town, bought some webbing. Then on to the cliffs!
I led a very easy route (Dirty Chimney, 5.0) and set up a toprope on that and on Laurel (5.7). Ross, Holly and Noah all had a fun and challenging time climbing the chimney, and I had a blast on Laurel. Then we took the gear back to the car and went for a couple of delightful hikes - one along the top of the Near Trapps, following rock ridges and fields of wild blueberries, the other hike through the lower forests trending down toward a creek and then back up to the parking lot. It was a day with a great dose of nature in it.
Sunday, June 15, 2008
The Met
On Friday we decided to go to the Metropolitan Museum of Art. Ross had declared that he could spend an entire day there, but we had another leisurely morning and decided to make a stop on the way at the Cathedral Church of St. John the Divine - the largest gothic cathedral in the WORLD. Yes, the entire world.
Pictures to follow. I have seen other amazing cathedrals, but this is something else. The size is so jaw-dropping. The columns soar to such a height. The space is really so vast that words fail me. The description in the Rough Guide to New York says that Notre Dame and Chartres would both fit inside this cathedral.
So then we hopped the train down to Central Park and had a lovely walk across to the Met. Then hours of gaping at astounding art. Feet got tired. Brain got overwhelmed. Camera got a workout.
Then an expedition to get to our dinner place - a very nice organic healthy restaurant where we enjoyed good food with vegetables, and lovely martinis. Then some evening walking in the rain in order to get back to the subway.
Pictures to follow. I have seen other amazing cathedrals, but this is something else. The size is so jaw-dropping. The columns soar to such a height. The space is really so vast that words fail me. The description in the Rough Guide to New York says that Notre Dame and Chartres would both fit inside this cathedral.
So then we hopped the train down to Central Park and had a lovely walk across to the Met. Then hours of gaping at astounding art. Feet got tired. Brain got overwhelmed. Camera got a workout.
Then an expedition to get to our dinner place - a very nice organic healthy restaurant where we enjoyed good food with vegetables, and lovely martinis. Then some evening walking in the rain in order to get back to the subway.
Saturday, June 14, 2008
Friday in New York
Ross, Holly and I rode the train north toward the Cloisters, stopping along the way at a Dominican bakery for egg sandwiches, pastries, and hot, milky coffee. We wandered up and down wooded hills before finally coming up to the Cloisters. Pictures to be posted later - this was wonderful.
Hours later we found the train again and parted ways; Ross and I rode the train downtown to the Empire State Building and stood in at least seven different lines on the way to the top. So much of the original building is covered up with cheap facades! Just to efficiently shuttle tourists through. But still, kick-ass. Pictures to follow.
Then a celebratory beer, and a walk to the MoMA, which is free on Fridays between 4 and 8 p.m. It was very busy, but very amazing. Pictures later! How things have changed at museums - they all let you take pictures, but no flash, and no video. But people are using flash and video anyway. Ah well. Marvelous show of design - incredible display of chairs and objects. Light installations. Photography show is amazing. Also lots of modern art that makes me snort with disgust and think, "Why am I not doing that? Cause I could do way better!"
Holly and Noah joined us and we all went to an Italian place for dinner. By the time we got back to their apartment we were nearly ready for sleep - but first, sweet-potato pies and mango ice cream!
Hours later we found the train again and parted ways; Ross and I rode the train downtown to the Empire State Building and stood in at least seven different lines on the way to the top. So much of the original building is covered up with cheap facades! Just to efficiently shuttle tourists through. But still, kick-ass. Pictures to follow.
Then a celebratory beer, and a walk to the MoMA, which is free on Fridays between 4 and 8 p.m. It was very busy, but very amazing. Pictures later! How things have changed at museums - they all let you take pictures, but no flash, and no video. But people are using flash and video anyway. Ah well. Marvelous show of design - incredible display of chairs and objects. Light installations. Photography show is amazing. Also lots of modern art that makes me snort with disgust and think, "Why am I not doing that? Cause I could do way better!"
Holly and Noah joined us and we all went to an Italian place for dinner. By the time we got back to their apartment we were nearly ready for sleep - but first, sweet-potato pies and mango ice cream!
Thursday, June 12, 2008
time passes... and suddenly we're in new york
Two weekends ago I climbed at Taylors with Shawn. We bouldered and climbed two 5.10s that we had never climbed before... amazing after all these years of climbing at this place! Then I was very sore. Then a week passed and I got a nasty cold that started in my chest. Then another half a week passed and now.... now...
We sit in Noah and Holly's apartment in Harlem. It's dark out, and warm. Cold gin in a glass, and pleasant talk... Chinese food on the way. Tomorrow, lots of museums. i might have forgotten to bring my camera cord, so no posting of pictures until after our return home. Toad is at Luka's house - sleepover. He was so excited, but nervous because he knew something was up.
More later.
We sit in Noah and Holly's apartment in Harlem. It's dark out, and warm. Cold gin in a glass, and pleasant talk... Chinese food on the way. Tomorrow, lots of museums. i might have forgotten to bring my camera cord, so no posting of pictures until after our return home. Toad is at Luka's house - sleepover. He was so excited, but nervous because he knew something was up.
More later.
Thursday, June 05, 2008
Dimensions of Obsession
I think I need a livejournal account.
Don't get me wrong, I like blogger. I think it has a lovely interface and I will keep my blogs here, but I've gradually become aware of how incredibly active the SF/F fan community is on livejournal. Also a lot of authors I like have livejournal blogs. And there are loads, literally loads, of Doctor Who communities.
On itunes I discovered the world of Doctor Who podcasts. My favorite thus far is Doctor Who:podshock. Each "episode" is over an hour of loving Doctor Who commentary and discussion by three fellows (two Americans and a Brit) sometimes with additional guest commentary. Lots of episode analysis, character discussion, etc. Good stuff.
Don't get me wrong, I like blogger. I think it has a lovely interface and I will keep my blogs here, but I've gradually become aware of how incredibly active the SF/F fan community is on livejournal. Also a lot of authors I like have livejournal blogs. And there are loads, literally loads, of Doctor Who communities.
On itunes I discovered the world of Doctor Who podcasts. My favorite thus far is Doctor Who:podshock. Each "episode" is over an hour of loving Doctor Who commentary and discussion by three fellows (two Americans and a Brit) sometimes with additional guest commentary. Lots of episode analysis, character discussion, etc. Good stuff.
Thursday, May 29, 2008
Parents visit
They were here for a week, and it was a calm week with plenty of activity. They left for two days to visit Donnis and Frances, then were gone some more for my mom's 50th college reunion at St. Olaf.
We had some good family activities (bowling, grilling out) and some new culinary experiences (eating at Sauced, making grilled scallops). A fine time!
We had some good family activities (bowling, grilling out) and some new culinary experiences (eating at Sauced, making grilled scallops). A fine time!
Last Wednesday - climbing at Red Wing
Took a day off to get in some much needed climbing. Hadn't climbed for over 2 weeks!
We got to the cliff and started pulling out gear and discovered that neither of us had brought quickdraws! Fortunately there was a young guy bouldering nearby who loaned us some. We warmed up on a generic 5.9, then to the Cyclops area. Shawn led Urban Chunks (5.11a). I then led it clean - and it felt easy.
Then Shawn got on Cyclops. He made the 3rd clip clean, although he commented that it was a little greasy. Then had a mighty struggle to get to the 4th clip. The crux is just at/past the 3rd clip. Then Calvin, the boulderer, gave it a go. He actually popped off while going for the 3rd clip, and DID NOT hit the ground - a good discovery. I opted for a top rope ascent. I had to re-figure out the crux, but now feel that I could possibly lead it.
Then Shawn led Work Ethic, with one fall? I tried for a lead ascent, but didn't feel up to the bottom crux. However I led everything past the 2nd clip. This 5.12a route will fall to me this year!
The Calvin got on The Start of Something Good at Shawn's urging. I got a photo of him at the crux - I'll post it later. He did the moves, and found the route to be quite strenuous.
We got to the cliff and started pulling out gear and discovered that neither of us had brought quickdraws! Fortunately there was a young guy bouldering nearby who loaned us some. We warmed up on a generic 5.9, then to the Cyclops area. Shawn led Urban Chunks (5.11a). I then led it clean - and it felt easy.
Then Shawn got on Cyclops. He made the 3rd clip clean, although he commented that it was a little greasy. Then had a mighty struggle to get to the 4th clip. The crux is just at/past the 3rd clip. Then Calvin, the boulderer, gave it a go. He actually popped off while going for the 3rd clip, and DID NOT hit the ground - a good discovery. I opted for a top rope ascent. I had to re-figure out the crux, but now feel that I could possibly lead it.
Then Shawn led Work Ethic, with one fall? I tried for a lead ascent, but didn't feel up to the bottom crux. However I led everything past the 2nd clip. This 5.12a route will fall to me this year!
The Calvin got on The Start of Something Good at Shawn's urging. I got a photo of him at the crux - I'll post it later. He did the moves, and found the route to be quite strenuous.
Monday, May 19, 2008
Ah, the obsession continues
Watched the 3rd episode of the 2nd season of Doctor Who. David Tennant has officially grown on me. Like fungus. Can't get him off. Nice mix of emotion and SF magic in this episode. While it doesn't go to great lengths to explain the science, it doesn't seem utterly laughable. And after all, when does Doctor Who go to any lengths to explain the science?
Favorite Scene: Rose and Mickey are tied down, about to be used for parts. The Doctor arrives to save the day, apparently drunk off his arse wearing sunglasses with his tie around his head.
The Doctor: "Have you met the French? My... GOD, do they know how to party."
Rose: "Look what the cat dragged in. It's the Oncoming Storm."
Nice reference to his tragic/romantic/heroic role as the nemesis of the entire Dalek race. I don't remember this in the old Who, but it is noted in the wikipedia article on the Doctor.
"To his greatest enemies, the Daleks, the Doctor is known as the Ka Faraq Gatri, the "Bringer of Darkness", "Destroyer of Worlds" or "The Oncoming Storm". This is first mentioned in the novelisation of Remembrance of the Daleks by Ben Aaronovitch and subsequently taken up in the spin-off media, particularly the Virgin New Adventures books and the Doctor Who Magazine comic strip. In "The Parting of the Ways", the Doctor claims that the Daleks call him "The Oncoming Storm" — this name is used by the Draconians (whose word for it is "Karshtakavaar") to refer to the Doctor in the Virgin New Adventures novel Love and War by Paul Cornell."
Update: we've watched another six episodes! Some major character development, a weak episode, a couple of really far-out space adventures, and last night we watched "Love and Monsters", which I'd have to say was a beautiful little piece of storytelling. Oh so nice, despite the absence of the Doctor and Rose for much of the show. David Tennant has made the character his own and I like his mercurial personality, his angry face, his volubility.
Favorite Scene: Rose and Mickey are tied down, about to be used for parts. The Doctor arrives to save the day, apparently drunk off his arse wearing sunglasses with his tie around his head.
The Doctor: "Have you met the French? My... GOD, do they know how to party."
Rose: "Look what the cat dragged in. It's the Oncoming Storm."
Nice reference to his tragic/romantic/heroic role as the nemesis of the entire Dalek race. I don't remember this in the old Who, but it is noted in the wikipedia article on the Doctor.
"To his greatest enemies, the Daleks, the Doctor is known as the Ka Faraq Gatri, the "Bringer of Darkness", "Destroyer of Worlds" or "The Oncoming Storm". This is first mentioned in the novelisation of Remembrance of the Daleks by Ben Aaronovitch and subsequently taken up in the spin-off media, particularly the Virgin New Adventures books and the Doctor Who Magazine comic strip. In "The Parting of the Ways", the Doctor claims that the Daleks call him "The Oncoming Storm" — this name is used by the Draconians (whose word for it is "Karshtakavaar") to refer to the Doctor in the Virgin New Adventures novel Love and War by Paul Cornell."
Update: we've watched another six episodes! Some major character development, a weak episode, a couple of really far-out space adventures, and last night we watched "Love and Monsters", which I'd have to say was a beautiful little piece of storytelling. Oh so nice, despite the absence of the Doctor and Rose for much of the show. David Tennant has made the character his own and I like his mercurial personality, his angry face, his volubility.
Climbing goals 2008
Leads I will do at Taylor's Falls
Fallen Knight
The Bulge - no hangs
Sentinel Crack - no hangs
Skin of Rod's Teeth? Hangs OK on this one!
Leads I will do at Red Wing
Cyclops
Annadonia
Advanced Birding
Things I want to climb someday
Devil's Tower -
McCarthy North Face
El Matador
Hollywood and Vine
Red Rocks -
Epinephrine
Dream of Wild Turkeys
Prince of Darkness
Crimson Chrysalis
These are all reasonable goals, certainly within the scope of believability for me to climb them.
Fallen Knight
The Bulge - no hangs
Sentinel Crack - no hangs
Skin of Rod's Teeth? Hangs OK on this one!
Leads I will do at Red Wing
Cyclops
Annadonia
Advanced Birding
Things I want to climb someday
Devil's Tower -
McCarthy North Face
El Matador
Hollywood and Vine
Red Rocks -
Epinephrine
Dream of Wild Turkeys
Prince of Darkness
Crimson Chrysalis
These are all reasonable goals, certainly within the scope of believability for me to climb them.
Thursday, May 15, 2008
What happened on my run today
Post work Toad and I set off for a 3 mile run. Ross declined because of his nasty cold. As is often the case, Toad pooped within the first block. When this happens I bag the poop and place it on the outer part of the sidewalk, next to a tree or at the edge of a driveway, for pick-up on my return. I never leave it unbagged on someone's yard. As per usual I picked up the poop from some guy's yard and placed it at the outer edge of the sidewalk. Then Toad and I continued - down Brookside, across the creek, to the corner of 44th street, and along 44th Street for about a block.
At this point I heard a voice over my shoulder; "Hey, you forgot something." I turned to see a guy on a bicycle, just as he tossed something at me. It hit the ground at my feet - the bag of Toad's poop.
Instantly I yelled at his retreating form (he biked past me and up the street), "I was going to pick it up on my way back!" He looked back, shaking his head. My disbelief blossomed into outrage. I screamed after him, "I WAS GOING TO PICK IT UP! I DO IT ALL THE TIME!"
I bent to pick up the poop, suddenly shaking with anger - and tears. The old guy tending his lawn nearby asked if I was OK; I said yes, but shook my head, fighting back tears.
It's not that this was so horrible and evil. It's just that it seems like such a ineffective and childish way for him to deal with his issues. I ALWAYS pick up Toad's poop, so he can't have been mad about me leaving bags behind. And he didn't try communicating with me. He threw poop at me! What an asshole! It's just such an absolute lack of respect. I respect the owners of the lawns - I bag the poop, I don't leave it.
So. That's all.
At this point I heard a voice over my shoulder; "Hey, you forgot something." I turned to see a guy on a bicycle, just as he tossed something at me. It hit the ground at my feet - the bag of Toad's poop.
Instantly I yelled at his retreating form (he biked past me and up the street), "I was going to pick it up on my way back!" He looked back, shaking his head. My disbelief blossomed into outrage. I screamed after him, "I WAS GOING TO PICK IT UP! I DO IT ALL THE TIME!"
I bent to pick up the poop, suddenly shaking with anger - and tears. The old guy tending his lawn nearby asked if I was OK; I said yes, but shook my head, fighting back tears.
It's not that this was so horrible and evil. It's just that it seems like such a ineffective and childish way for him to deal with his issues. I ALWAYS pick up Toad's poop, so he can't have been mad about me leaving bags behind. And he didn't try communicating with me. He threw poop at me! What an asshole! It's just such an absolute lack of respect. I respect the owners of the lawns - I bag the poop, I don't leave it.
So. That's all.
Tuesday, May 13, 2008
Doctor Who fanfic
The internet is a lovely, lovely thing. The extent of Doctor Who resources (or, in fact, "anything" resources) on the web just blows me away. Repeatedly. I have found not only massive pages of Doctor Who research, timelines, factoids, etc, but gigantic collections of fanfic - short stories and even long stories by the legions of devoted and talented fans. In truth, one can find fanfic for probably every science fiction fandom. Certainly there's lots of Star Trek fanfic. I actually once found a page of West Wing fanfic.
One of my happy finds recently is the "Mauve and Dangerous" awards from 2005; the Doctor Who community on livejournal apparently put this together after the first season of the new Doctor Who. I haven't read them all, but every one I have read has been superb. Thoughtful, literary, beautiful.
http://www.loony-archivist.com/mad/winners.htm
Here's a couple of paragraphs that I thought did such a nice job of describing personalities and cameraderie between Rose and the Doctor. I ought to credit it; here's the source:
http://ljconstantine.com/fanfic/ivory.htm
One of my happy finds recently is the "Mauve and Dangerous" awards from 2005; the Doctor Who community on livejournal apparently put this together after the first season of the new Doctor Who. I haven't read them all, but every one I have read has been superb. Thoughtful, literary, beautiful.
http://www.loony-archivist.com/mad/winners.htm
Here's a couple of paragraphs that I thought did such a nice job of describing personalities and cameraderie between Rose and the Doctor. I ought to credit it; here's the source:
http://ljconstantine.com/fanfic/ivory.htm
"From the start, she treated the Doctor just as she would have Mickey or one of her mates, and he had responded in kind. She would give his shoulder a solid whack when he was mouthing off, playing the arrogant know-it-all. He would poke her in the side with a stiff finger when he wanted her undivided attention, or grab her elbow to steer her in whatever direction he was headed. She would deliberately crowd him, and he would playfully push her aside with his hip or shoulder, pretending annoyance, but always grinning—within, if not without. She couldn't begin to count how many times, once the console had stopped oscillating, the Doctor had swept her up and spun her around in sheer joy at anticipation of the next death-defying scrape he was about to get them into.
Like Mickey, the Doctor acted like a big kid. Rose found it equal parts endearing and exasperating. 900 going on 5, she would always tease him. Then again, playing grown-up at the tender age of 19 to an overgrown adolescent was hardly uncharted territory. Her mum was always kitted out in some outfit better suited to a girl half her age, and making passes at Rose's boyfriends whenever she brought them home.
In contrast to her mother fiercely clinging to her long-forgot youth, the Doctor's youthful exuberance was natural, genuine. It sprang from a child-like sense of wonder, rather than a childish denial of age. It softened his features, which could—and Rose had seen this far more times than she'd ever expected—go stony cold in an instant, fierce and calm and deadly serious. Then she could believe he was hundreds of years old and the last of a nearly immortal race with mastery over space and time.
But when he was grinning over some mad plan, or a rare flower blooming on a desolate world, or because some seven-armed, three-headed alien had just offered him 20 of his/her/its newly-hatched offspring as concubines, then it was easy for her to forget. Easy to pretend he was 40 going on 5, and she was 19 going on 40, and they could meet up halfway on the sliding scale of maturity."
These writers out there! They take what we're given in the TV show and ponder it, consider the ramifications, elaborate, imagine, make it more than it was.Saturday, May 10, 2008
People I wish would email me out of the blue
Laura Carlson. So far in my past, yet she was my life.
Ed McGuire. Weird, wacky, wonderful Ed. Dear friend.
Elizabeth Powell. Lost touch again, and it hurts. Wish I could have been a better friend when you needed me to be.
James Abbott. Dude, you taught me to play Bridge. That means so much to me.
Maia Ledoux. No pressure, but I miss you. And I'm not trying to say that it's your job to keep in touch with me or anything like that... I just love you and wish I could visit more often.
Well, I don't want to cheapen this list by adding too many names. There are certainly other people I'd love to hear from, but this is the special list.
Ed McGuire. Weird, wacky, wonderful Ed. Dear friend.
Elizabeth Powell. Lost touch again, and it hurts. Wish I could have been a better friend when you needed me to be.
James Abbott. Dude, you taught me to play Bridge. That means so much to me.
Maia Ledoux. No pressure, but I miss you. And I'm not trying to say that it's your job to keep in touch with me or anything like that... I just love you and wish I could visit more often.
Well, I don't want to cheapen this list by adding too many names. There are certainly other people I'd love to hear from, but this is the special list.
Things I forgot to mention
Again; how could I forget Daniel Craig as James Bond in my list of obsessions? Hoo boy.
In another lifetime I hope I am a linguist. My fascination with Bond led to my first encounter with the notion of "received pronunciation", and my recent infatuation with Doctor Who and the "northern" Doctor led to an interesting foray into the wikipedia articles on English, the features of various English dialects and so on. The 10th Doctor, David Tennant, is Scottish but is described variously as speaking London English, or Estuary English. In the way of things internet this led me to a diversion into American vs. British English, and the vagaries of American regional dialects.
I WANT to go to England. I want to visit Scotland. I want to be surrounded by Scottish accents, and to drink Scotch whiskey all night long. I want to visit the home of the Bronte sisters. I want to climb in the peak district. I want to do all these things with Ross. I want to go to the Tate Modern.
In another lifetime I hope I am a linguist. My fascination with Bond led to my first encounter with the notion of "received pronunciation", and my recent infatuation with Doctor Who and the "northern" Doctor led to an interesting foray into the wikipedia articles on English, the features of various English dialects and so on. The 10th Doctor, David Tennant, is Scottish but is described variously as speaking London English, or Estuary English. In the way of things internet this led me to a diversion into American vs. British English, and the vagaries of American regional dialects.
I WANT to go to England. I want to visit Scotland. I want to be surrounded by Scottish accents, and to drink Scotch whiskey all night long. I want to visit the home of the Bronte sisters. I want to climb in the peak district. I want to do all these things with Ross. I want to go to the Tate Modern.
This morning
This morning I told Toad to "get thee to a nunnery."
Ross said it should be, "get thee to a bunnery."
I love tulips. I love this time of year. Every plant explodes from the ground, all that pent up energy. All that energy sucked from the sun and transformed. Ah the greenery. I've never considered myself a birder - in fact, I've considered birders to be a unique and slightly pitiable sort of geek... rather judgemental, considering what sort of unique and slightly pitiable sort of geek I am myself. But my environment has given me a greater appreciation for birds. So much birdlife in the marsh. In the spring I've learned to identify birdcalls. The woodpeckers have a distinctive "chirrup chirrrup". I've seen at least three kinds. This morning it was a smallish woodpecker with bright red head. Loads of cardinals, then red wing blackbirds, then robins. I swear I saw some orioles last week.
I am so torn by the desire to "get medieval" on the lawn's ass, and the desire to be environmentally sensitive. I want to blast the creeping charlie. I want to prevent the crabgrass. I don't want to put chemicals in the groundwater.
Ross said it should be, "get thee to a bunnery."
I love tulips. I love this time of year. Every plant explodes from the ground, all that pent up energy. All that energy sucked from the sun and transformed. Ah the greenery. I've never considered myself a birder - in fact, I've considered birders to be a unique and slightly pitiable sort of geek... rather judgemental, considering what sort of unique and slightly pitiable sort of geek I am myself. But my environment has given me a greater appreciation for birds. So much birdlife in the marsh. In the spring I've learned to identify birdcalls. The woodpeckers have a distinctive "chirrup chirrrup". I've seen at least three kinds. This morning it was a smallish woodpecker with bright red head. Loads of cardinals, then red wing blackbirds, then robins. I swear I saw some orioles last week.
I am so torn by the desire to "get medieval" on the lawn's ass, and the desire to be environmentally sensitive. I want to blast the creeping charlie. I want to prevent the crabgrass. I don't want to put chemicals in the groundwater.
Tuesday, May 06, 2008
A Doctor Who writing from my college years...
Brief intro - this scenario features Tom Baker as the Doctor, and me and MT as his companions. MT was my cousin Sara's infatuation at the time.
The Doctor - All right, Kiri, open the doors and we’ll take a look outside.
Kiri - Doors opened… aigh!!
MT - It looks like… a… giant barbecue!!
Doctor - But what are they barbecuing? Perhaps we should go out for a closer look.
Kiri - I don’t know about that, Doctor.
(cut to a view out of the Tardis doors – a valley lies below, at the bottom of which several tall beings are gathered around several large barbecues. Over the distant mountains, the sun is setting.)
Doctor – off we go, then. (They trudge out, Kiri and MT exchanging reluctant glances. They descend toward the barbecues, the succulent smell of roasting meat wafting up to them from time to time.)
MT – My stomach is growling.
Kiri – I wonder if they’d like guests for dinner?
Doctor – I hope not literally.
(A sudden roaring noise comes from behind them. They whirl around to face a huge form lumbering out of the trees.)
Doctor – Hello! Might we join your barbecue?
Being – What food do you eat?
Kiri – Moon Frog.
Being – MOON FROG???!!!!!
Doctor – Yes, Moon Frog. (To Kiri) What the hell is moon frog?
Kiri – It’s kinda like chicken.
Being – There are legends among my people of the strangers who will come to us, professing to eat the great Moon Frog… You are gods!
The Doctor - All right, Kiri, open the doors and we’ll take a look outside.
Kiri - Doors opened… aigh!!
MT - It looks like… a… giant barbecue!!
Doctor - But what are they barbecuing? Perhaps we should go out for a closer look.
Kiri - I don’t know about that, Doctor.
(cut to a view out of the Tardis doors – a valley lies below, at the bottom of which several tall beings are gathered around several large barbecues. Over the distant mountains, the sun is setting.)
Doctor – off we go, then. (They trudge out, Kiri and MT exchanging reluctant glances. They descend toward the barbecues, the succulent smell of roasting meat wafting up to them from time to time.)
MT – My stomach is growling.
Kiri – I wonder if they’d like guests for dinner?
Doctor – I hope not literally.
(A sudden roaring noise comes from behind them. They whirl around to face a huge form lumbering out of the trees.)
Doctor – Hello! Might we join your barbecue?
Being – What food do you eat?
Kiri – Moon Frog.
Being – MOON FROG???!!!!!
Doctor – Yes, Moon Frog. (To Kiri) What the hell is moon frog?
Kiri – It’s kinda like chicken.
Being – There are legends among my people of the strangers who will come to us, professing to eat the great Moon Frog… You are gods!
Weekend of good things
On Saturday I raked some garden beds. Ross decided to finally tackle a job that he had been dreading - the adjustment of valves on his VFR. He said he was kind of afraid of it, but decided it was time. When he loosened the bolts that hold the cam cover the valve spring pushed the cam up and cocked the cover, jamming it on the bolt studs. He pondered the problem and decided to tap the cam cover in order to push it down and try to wiggle it off.
One tap; the cover flew off into the air, the cam itself lept out of the bike and flew across it, smashing the glass of beer that sat on the floor. You never know what's going to happen.
So we both got useful things done on Saturday; I did some other stuff, washed some clothes, etc. Tracked dirt into the house and didn't clean it up. Went to Shawn and Nancy's for dinner, hung out. Their daughter, Maya, is such a kid.
Sunday I went to Taylor's Falls with Katie and Shawn. The big "goal" for the day was to let Katie take the first preparatory steps toward trad lead climbing. Shawn teaches and lectures for his job, so it comes naturally to him. He talked a lot; I suggested that a logical sequence would be for me to lead and her to follow, cleaning the gear, then for her to pretend to lead on toprope, then possibly for her to lead with preplaced gear, and finally for her to actually lead and place all gear herself. As it turned out, we got through the first two steps. I lead Blue Moon, a climb I have led about a billion times. It is blissfully easy, although there is a brief, awkward crux under a large overhang. When the time came for Katie to practice placing gear she did a great job. Shawn, meanwhile, was climbing with Alicia who had driven down from Duluth to join us. I had never met her before; she went to school in England and did a lot of climbing on gritstone over there, but was recovering from a pretty bad foot ligament injury. She and Shawn climbed some easy routes.
After Katie and I had both climbed Blue Moon twice it felt like time for something new... time for me to face my "nemesis". I racked up for the Bulge. The Bulge is rated 5.10a. Well within my ability. I've actually led it before, but not cleanly. Maybe even more than once? In any case, I REALLY want to lead it clean this year. My physical ability is not matched by my mental confidence. I whipped through the opening moves, placed two ball nuts before the first crux. If this had gone faster I would have been in great shape, but I felt the need to shake out a bit. Then pulled into the crux and gasped, "I can't do it!" Shawn, Katie and Alicia all yelled, "Yes you can! Go for it!" and I did, slamming my foot into the good spot and standing up. I had made it, but had to stay calm while fumbling for the large cam for my next piece of pro. Got it in and chilled out. Got a nut in above the large cam slot, then stood and got a nut in the next good crack above. This was going well, except that the second crux of the route was above me, and my arms were on fire. I shook out desperately, started to move into the next sequence, and then sighed, "No, I don't have it," and slumped onto the rope.
Encouragement from Katie and Shawn drifted up to me; I let my burning forearms hang, and studied the next moves. I KNEW them; the step up, very positive right hand, left into a sidepull, left foot up and lever to a standing position, stretch tall and grab the point of rock... the scariest thing about that sequence was going to be not the moves but the time spent getting in some pro after making the moves. So then I did it; matched hands on the point, tried for a large nut in the slot just by my hands. First nut didn't fit, second seemed almost too big. I doubted it, but clipped a quickdraw and the rope anyway. Psychological protection. One more step up and I could reach the lovely parallel-sided crack just above the handhold. Perfect, so perfect for a cam. I slammed one in. The top of the route is such a relief; the angle eases, the weight comes off your arms. Cracks abound.
I did my usual crap job of positioning my top anchor; a solid anchor, but I ended up stepping back over the edge to belay, leaning over the void with my PAS (Personal Anchor System) clipped to my strong point. Katie followed with some hanging to remove the gear.
Then we did some half-assed bouldering and ended up in the Slicksides area where some other people we knew were climbing. Got on both Slicksides and Schlocksides, twice. I discovered the sequence that will work for me on Schlock. Words for the day: intrepid, and profane.
Then went home in a pleasant aura of physical exhaustion. Ross and Pat were working on the CRX, so I walked the dog, still in the pleasant aura, and made a new friend in the neighborhood who happens to be a rabid science fiction fan.
And finally, Ross and I went to see the Iron Man movie, which absolutely rocks. I'd say more, but you have to see it yourself. It is a fine, fine movie, and walks the fine, fine line between gritty realism and comic book escapism with admirable verve.
One tap; the cover flew off into the air, the cam itself lept out of the bike and flew across it, smashing the glass of beer that sat on the floor. You never know what's going to happen.
So we both got useful things done on Saturday; I did some other stuff, washed some clothes, etc. Tracked dirt into the house and didn't clean it up. Went to Shawn and Nancy's for dinner, hung out. Their daughter, Maya, is such a kid.
Sunday I went to Taylor's Falls with Katie and Shawn. The big "goal" for the day was to let Katie take the first preparatory steps toward trad lead climbing. Shawn teaches and lectures for his job, so it comes naturally to him. He talked a lot; I suggested that a logical sequence would be for me to lead and her to follow, cleaning the gear, then for her to pretend to lead on toprope, then possibly for her to lead with preplaced gear, and finally for her to actually lead and place all gear herself. As it turned out, we got through the first two steps. I lead Blue Moon, a climb I have led about a billion times. It is blissfully easy, although there is a brief, awkward crux under a large overhang. When the time came for Katie to practice placing gear she did a great job. Shawn, meanwhile, was climbing with Alicia who had driven down from Duluth to join us. I had never met her before; she went to school in England and did a lot of climbing on gritstone over there, but was recovering from a pretty bad foot ligament injury. She and Shawn climbed some easy routes.
After Katie and I had both climbed Blue Moon twice it felt like time for something new... time for me to face my "nemesis". I racked up for the Bulge. The Bulge is rated 5.10a. Well within my ability. I've actually led it before, but not cleanly. Maybe even more than once? In any case, I REALLY want to lead it clean this year. My physical ability is not matched by my mental confidence. I whipped through the opening moves, placed two ball nuts before the first crux. If this had gone faster I would have been in great shape, but I felt the need to shake out a bit. Then pulled into the crux and gasped, "I can't do it!" Shawn, Katie and Alicia all yelled, "Yes you can! Go for it!" and I did, slamming my foot into the good spot and standing up. I had made it, but had to stay calm while fumbling for the large cam for my next piece of pro. Got it in and chilled out. Got a nut in above the large cam slot, then stood and got a nut in the next good crack above. This was going well, except that the second crux of the route was above me, and my arms were on fire. I shook out desperately, started to move into the next sequence, and then sighed, "No, I don't have it," and slumped onto the rope.
Encouragement from Katie and Shawn drifted up to me; I let my burning forearms hang, and studied the next moves. I KNEW them; the step up, very positive right hand, left into a sidepull, left foot up and lever to a standing position, stretch tall and grab the point of rock... the scariest thing about that sequence was going to be not the moves but the time spent getting in some pro after making the moves. So then I did it; matched hands on the point, tried for a large nut in the slot just by my hands. First nut didn't fit, second seemed almost too big. I doubted it, but clipped a quickdraw and the rope anyway. Psychological protection. One more step up and I could reach the lovely parallel-sided crack just above the handhold. Perfect, so perfect for a cam. I slammed one in. The top of the route is such a relief; the angle eases, the weight comes off your arms. Cracks abound.
I did my usual crap job of positioning my top anchor; a solid anchor, but I ended up stepping back over the edge to belay, leaning over the void with my PAS (Personal Anchor System) clipped to my strong point. Katie followed with some hanging to remove the gear.
Then we did some half-assed bouldering and ended up in the Slicksides area where some other people we knew were climbing. Got on both Slicksides and Schlocksides, twice. I discovered the sequence that will work for me on Schlock. Words for the day: intrepid, and profane.
Then went home in a pleasant aura of physical exhaustion. Ross and Pat were working on the CRX, so I walked the dog, still in the pleasant aura, and made a new friend in the neighborhood who happens to be a rabid science fiction fan.
And finally, Ross and I went to see the Iron Man movie, which absolutely rocks. I'd say more, but you have to see it yourself. It is a fine, fine movie, and walks the fine, fine line between gritty realism and comic book escapism with admirable verve.
An addition
I TOTALLY forgot... in my recitation of obsessions: Hamlet. How could I forget? How I loved the Prince of Denmark! His attire! His depression! His flashes of merriment, that were wont to set the table on a roar! Because of course Mel Gibson's Hamlet movie was what inspired my retelling of Hamlet - in space.
Ross and I have now watched two episodes of the second season of Doctor Who, with David Tennant now in the title role. I will quote a comment I read online - I think I can love David Tennant in the role, but it won't be the same. Who fans online are fond of saying that your first Doctor is YOUR Doctor... of course in my case that would be Peter Davidson, but he was very quickly supplanted in my feelings by Tom Baker, and that was all so very long ago that now Christopher Eccleston really feels like my first Doctor anyway.
So. David Tennant. There's loads more manic disposition, but he talks too much. Chris spoke words with a glance. David babbles. There's no brooding menace. Although as I ponder those two Tennant episodes, I find myself picking out sweet moments... nice bits among the action and the insanity and the alien invasions, that really tell a lot about the characters and the shifting relationships and the tremendous difficulty of us earthlings in getting used to the idea of a body-changing 900 year old alien. The way in which his attitude toward Mickey and Jackie has changed. Although I wish there had been lots more, the ways in which Rose grieves for the old Doctor AND accepts the new. The fact that, despite his manic disposition, the Doctor shows a ruthless and daring side. A man of action. In the second episode (New Earth), the intensity of his concern for Rose. The fact that he appears to accept her odd behavior, but then demands to know what the hospital staff have done to her. The sequence of his behavior here seems appropriately alien.
Just to show that I often think of things other than Doctor Who... heard a talk by Donna Brazil on the upcoming election, and she nearly spoke my mind. I felt a great affection for her no-nonsense demeanor and her message. "Let's get past the negativity." She stated her willingness to fight hard for either Hillary or Barack, to go to "all 50 states" for either one. I appreciate that stand. So tired of the infighting. The blatantly partisan position of Rolling Stone (the magazine) has got me wanting to cancel my subscription. Well, that and the fact that I leaf through it once and am done with it...
I got acupunctured last Tuesday, and it was good.
I've been going to this woman for over ten years now. Needless to say, I am a fan of acupuncture. I usually see her once or twice a year for a "tune-up". Her name is Diana and she exudes a calm that I will call zenlike. She has always seemed so profoundly grounded to me, with a gentle humor that manifests itself in a quirk of her mouth.
The needles don't hurt. The experience is so restful, like floating. She leaves me for a while - half an hour? and I drift. Then she comes back and I roll over and she sticks needles along my spine. I always leave with a gentle high; like a new ability to look at the world around me and take pleasure in the smallest things. The color of the sky. Air movement. Getting into a sunwarmed car. Sometimes I feel like I have a relapse, the day after. As if the muscles that finally relaxed have clenched themselves to protect me. Last week was not like that; I feel like I regained a level of happiness.
Ross and I have now watched two episodes of the second season of Doctor Who, with David Tennant now in the title role. I will quote a comment I read online - I think I can love David Tennant in the role, but it won't be the same. Who fans online are fond of saying that your first Doctor is YOUR Doctor... of course in my case that would be Peter Davidson, but he was very quickly supplanted in my feelings by Tom Baker, and that was all so very long ago that now Christopher Eccleston really feels like my first Doctor anyway.
So. David Tennant. There's loads more manic disposition, but he talks too much. Chris spoke words with a glance. David babbles. There's no brooding menace. Although as I ponder those two Tennant episodes, I find myself picking out sweet moments... nice bits among the action and the insanity and the alien invasions, that really tell a lot about the characters and the shifting relationships and the tremendous difficulty of us earthlings in getting used to the idea of a body-changing 900 year old alien. The way in which his attitude toward Mickey and Jackie has changed. Although I wish there had been lots more, the ways in which Rose grieves for the old Doctor AND accepts the new. The fact that, despite his manic disposition, the Doctor shows a ruthless and daring side. A man of action. In the second episode (New Earth), the intensity of his concern for Rose. The fact that he appears to accept her odd behavior, but then demands to know what the hospital staff have done to her. The sequence of his behavior here seems appropriately alien.
Just to show that I often think of things other than Doctor Who... heard a talk by Donna Brazil on the upcoming election, and she nearly spoke my mind. I felt a great affection for her no-nonsense demeanor and her message. "Let's get past the negativity." She stated her willingness to fight hard for either Hillary or Barack, to go to "all 50 states" for either one. I appreciate that stand. So tired of the infighting. The blatantly partisan position of Rolling Stone (the magazine) has got me wanting to cancel my subscription. Well, that and the fact that I leaf through it once and am done with it...
I got acupunctured last Tuesday, and it was good.
I've been going to this woman for over ten years now. Needless to say, I am a fan of acupuncture. I usually see her once or twice a year for a "tune-up". Her name is Diana and she exudes a calm that I will call zenlike. She has always seemed so profoundly grounded to me, with a gentle humor that manifests itself in a quirk of her mouth.
The needles don't hurt. The experience is so restful, like floating. She leaves me for a while - half an hour? and I drift. Then she comes back and I roll over and she sticks needles along my spine. I always leave with a gentle high; like a new ability to look at the world around me and take pleasure in the smallest things. The color of the sky. Air movement. Getting into a sunwarmed car. Sometimes I feel like I have a relapse, the day after. As if the muscles that finally relaxed have clenched themselves to protect me. Last week was not like that; I feel like I regained a level of happiness.
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