I had a milestone event in my life today. After dreaming about a nice little pint of Haagen Daz ice cream while in my New Testament class I stopped by the store on the way home and picked up a pint of cookie dough ice cream. Luckily when I came home my housemates were up so I plopped down on the couch and enjoyed my ice cream all the way to the bottom. Never done that before. So here's to the creators of Haagen Daz, bless you and keep making your delicious little wonders.
I have been thoroughly enjoying life. About four nights a week I come home smelling like a fondue pot; I have been exploring Seattle thanks to my grad school; I'm sleeping on a new bed; riding public transit; and walking Spike. Oh and I'm training for an olympic distance triathalon. Things are going well-you know how sometimes almost too well, like okay what is going to happen next?
In the meantime I'm living in the good times, finding myself laughing and smiling at the small things. Like today as I was watching buses go by I thought the flashing lights denoting the destination said, "Berry Farm." I thought, hmm, that is an interesting destination for downtown Seattle...I smiled from behind the glass at Starbuck's when I quickly realized that the bus was heading to the "Ferry Term." Perhaps I need my eyes checked. A trip to the berry farm would be quite pleasant though. I keep thinking of Snoopy and Jam thanks to the Berry Farm at the Mall of America. Minnesotans you know what I'm talking about.
And lastly, deriving from my brief yet detailed survey of downtown Seattle in the last week I have concluded that Starbuck's is indeed trying to takeover America. Watch OUt!
Thursday, May 10, 2007
Friday, May 04, 2007
a letter for me?
For those of you who happen to want to send me a letter (hint hint) Here is my new address!
3613 North Stevens Street
Tacoma, WA 98407
Remember postage goes up pretty soon
3613 North Stevens Street
Tacoma, WA 98407
Remember postage goes up pretty soon
Thursday, April 19, 2007
My Mom is so Cute
Kyle Really wanted to give my Mom a nice kiss for coming to the kennel to visit. She was a great sport about it!
Two Days
I arrived safely in Tacoma with a generous welcome from friends! As I drove away from Bend and the buttes, sage, and juniper I felt sad, but excited for my life back here. I will miss the good people I met, the amazing terrain, and my favorite coffee ship Bellatazza. Now I am back in lush Tacoma, which happens to be in beautiful bloom.
The last couple of days have been interesting to say the least. My friend Max and I went to unload my storage unit with his truck only to find I wouldn't have even needed an envelope to unload it. EVERYTHING had been stolen-clothes, shoes, books, outdoor gear, kitchen stuff, CD's, etc. I knew that was a possibility when the storage place called me and said my unit had been tampered with but wasn't really expecting it to be totally cleaned out. Fortunately they know who did it. When the officer arrived he allowed them to open the culprit's unit directly across from mine. Inside I found two of my bags with my name and address on the luggage tags. The theif also burglarized a few other units so the Lakewood police have a special operations detective on the case.
Although it makes unpacking easy, since all I have is what fits in my Honda Civic, I am bummed to lose sentimental pictures, letters, memories-and such. At the same time, as I was unpacking what fits in my Honda civic I was surprised at how much I actually fit in that car! Ultimately it is just "stuff" and most of it can be replaced. Luckily I have insurance. I highly reccomend getting renters insurance for all of you who rent! It is going to be my life saver. I am just relieved it is not one of my body parts, a friend or family member, or my dog! It's going to be a pain in the ass to do the paperwork, but that's all I can do. It is a very obvious reminder of the truth that material things can be gone in a moment and not to get too attached. Life is immensely bigger than stuff.
That happened my first day back.
When I woke up the next morning I found my new pet had puked, pied, and pooped all over the living room floor. Hello day number 2.
Today is day number three home and so far so good. I was a bit nervous to discover what else would come my way.
The last couple of days have been interesting to say the least. My friend Max and I went to unload my storage unit with his truck only to find I wouldn't have even needed an envelope to unload it. EVERYTHING had been stolen-clothes, shoes, books, outdoor gear, kitchen stuff, CD's, etc. I knew that was a possibility when the storage place called me and said my unit had been tampered with but wasn't really expecting it to be totally cleaned out. Fortunately they know who did it. When the officer arrived he allowed them to open the culprit's unit directly across from mine. Inside I found two of my bags with my name and address on the luggage tags. The theif also burglarized a few other units so the Lakewood police have a special operations detective on the case.
Although it makes unpacking easy, since all I have is what fits in my Honda Civic, I am bummed to lose sentimental pictures, letters, memories-and such. At the same time, as I was unpacking what fits in my Honda civic I was surprised at how much I actually fit in that car! Ultimately it is just "stuff" and most of it can be replaced. Luckily I have insurance. I highly reccomend getting renters insurance for all of you who rent! It is going to be my life saver. I am just relieved it is not one of my body parts, a friend or family member, or my dog! It's going to be a pain in the ass to do the paperwork, but that's all I can do. It is a very obvious reminder of the truth that material things can be gone in a moment and not to get too attached. Life is immensely bigger than stuff.
That happened my first day back.
When I woke up the next morning I found my new pet had puked, pied, and pooped all over the living room floor. Hello day number 2.
Today is day number three home and so far so good. I was a bit nervous to discover what else would come my way.
Spike Comes Home
Rachel and I gave Mr. Spike a nice bath. He wasn't so sure about the endeavor!
alt=""id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5055194401334478082" />
The arm rest also makes a great head rest.
alt=""id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5055194414219379986" />
Ahh, the joy of pet ownership...
alt=""id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5055194401334478082" />The arm rest also makes a great head rest.
alt=""id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5055194414219379986" />Ahh, the joy of pet ownership...
Friday, March 23, 2007
Spike and I
Spike and I finished one obedience class and are working on walking on a leash and the essential "sit." So far so good.
Monday, March 19, 2007
I'm Melting
It has been ridiculously hot here lately, at least for me and definitely for the dogs. The snow is melting and driving the sled is like running on snowcones. Eighty degrees is way to warm for me. I thought I could move back to central Oregon, but then I forgot about the summer. I'll be here for less than a month and the time is going by fast! See you all soon.
Saturday, March 10, 2007
Me, Sexy? Setting the Record Straight...
Everytime I show my blog to someone they often look at the picture of me on my profile and either scoff, wink and say with an inuendo Hmm, or ask why I don't put a different picture there. I put it up there because, well I like it. Perhaps it is a bit more risk-ay than what people generally think of me. But I don't really give a damn. Just to set the record straight I purposely used that picture. Sure I haven't dated a lot of people, But I can be a bit more of a muse than you think. And I can be sexy. Go ahead and put that on record.
April 15th Not Just Taxes
It also happens to be my last official day in Bend. My last official day as a dog musher.
A Tacoma Visit
I made a very quick trip up to Tacoma this past week. I loaded my car with a bunch of stuff I had big plans of using over the 7 months of being in Bend. I was going to do an extravagant amount of reading, an equally extravagant amount of playing my instruments, a bit less writing of letters, and of course exploring central oregon. My intentions were much bigger than my reality. So in order to make room for a new member of my family, Spike, to accomodate the large dufus, I hauled a load of stuff up to my house. More importantly, I spent time with stellar people. A few stellar people I didn't get to see, but you can't do everything in a 36 hour trip. I am so incredibly blessed by all these people in my life. You each bring me life in a different way. You challenge my thoughts and actions. You help me know what it means to be loved and to love. Thank You. I deeply appreciate your hugs, smiles, laughs, and honesty. I am glad that you understand my all around craziness infused with a bit of seriousness and perhaps at times topped with some wisdom. I'm like a good martini. And I bet I leave you feeling a little loopy if you have too much of me. Haha.
As I drove onto 705 and looked at the city it was a bittersweet homecoming. I felt sad to know that my time in Oregon is coming to an end. It surprised me because I thought I would feel "happy." Generally a place to me has been about people. But after living in Alfafa it has also become about the space. I'll miss the space down here-and everything that is in the space. Last year I thought I would end up in Tacoma for a long time. Now, honestly, as people move away and I myself change, I am more eager to finish school and perhaps leave the "City of Destiny" for awhile. Who knows though? Until then, I will savor the last month and a half I have here and try to prepare myself for this little call I have to be a counselor. Soon my early-to-bed and early-to-rise days will be few and far between, my eyes will be a bit more red from reading, and the strain in my wrists will most likely return from typing and serving people pots of cheese...But perhaps not.
Most of all, thank you to all the wonderful people in my life. I love you!
Peace.
As I drove onto 705 and looked at the city it was a bittersweet homecoming. I felt sad to know that my time in Oregon is coming to an end. It surprised me because I thought I would feel "happy." Generally a place to me has been about people. But after living in Alfafa it has also become about the space. I'll miss the space down here-and everything that is in the space. Last year I thought I would end up in Tacoma for a long time. Now, honestly, as people move away and I myself change, I am more eager to finish school and perhaps leave the "City of Destiny" for awhile. Who knows though? Until then, I will savor the last month and a half I have here and try to prepare myself for this little call I have to be a counselor. Soon my early-to-bed and early-to-rise days will be few and far between, my eyes will be a bit more red from reading, and the strain in my wrists will most likely return from typing and serving people pots of cheese...But perhaps not.
Most of all, thank you to all the wonderful people in my life. I love you!
Peace.
Tuesday, February 27, 2007
A Sad, Snowy Morning
I haven’t ever had to put a dog down before. All dogs are unique and Hank stood out in the kennel because of his shy nature, brillant golden eyes, and sudden decision to dart out of his house for attention. When I first met him he stayed in his house the entire time I was in the yard. The first time I fed him he cautiously came out of his house for enough time to grab his dish with his teeth and quickly return to the refuge of his spool. This went on for a week or so and at times I would glance over his way and find him tentatively watching me feed and water the other dogs. As soon as I came near, though, he retreated inside. After two weeks of such behavior and other moves of bravery like coming out to sniff my hand for a moment, or laying outside while I was on the other side of the kennel he decided that I was O.K. The next time I came over to feed him he darted out and danced around me like he had never even been shy. From that day forward Hank and I were buds. I had proved myself trustworthy. Hank was always shy at the mountain and for some reason clients gravitate toward our shy dogs- who really want nothing to do with them. When a pesky client would not leave him alone I could walk over and Hank would come bounding up for a hug, relieved to have someone familiar around. I did not think I would become as attached as I did to any of these dogs. When we had to put him down I cried a lot. I expected to experience the death of a dog at some point while working with a hundred or so, but you never are prepared. The loss made me sad. It is obvious, but I haven’t felt such a genuine sadness like that in a while. It seems like any loss moves me into a place where I can connect with other losses I’ve experienced in my life. That night after he died the dogs howled as usual. But I knew as I lay in my bed that there was one less dog out there participating in the nightly ritual. I teared up at the thought and continued to cry as I fell asleep. I felt heavy the next day and so did the others. The event weighed on us and the work on the mountain seemed tedious and slow. We all walked noticeably slower and spoke with more reserve. We intentionally brought up Hank’s brothers, Mickey and Willie. They bear a striking resemblance to Hank and looking at them brought us some sort of peace. The day after he died we awoke to a snow covered desert. Snow is magical and the covering brought us a smile and sense of peace concerning the events of the night before. It has been a few days now and we are not as sad, but Hank's house is still empty. It will be for awhile. In time another dog will move in, but probably not until after I leave. To Hank...
Sunday, February 18, 2007
A God Walking Business
I was writing an email to my friend and telling her about my brillant job idea for this spring, a god walking business. I had to laugh as I typed the mistake, what kind of freudian slip was that? Do I think I can walk God, or actually the Gods, as "god walking" implies more than one god? No, no I don't. But my fingers moved faster than my brain and what I actually meant was to type DOG walking business. I thought it was pretty funny.
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