Author: Allegra

Born when atmospheric carbon was 316 PPM. Settled on MST country since 1997. Parent, grandparent.

Blah

Everybody I know is either sick, sickening with something, or just plain sickening.  And I don’t feel so well myself.

Got hold of Peggy last night and she’s in for the Hilario Duran trio.  w00t.  Also I’m feeding her and Tom on Friday the 13th.  Scary stuff.

I think I need to clean the barbecue/Stanley Cup

It was rather flame-y yesterday.

Right now, I have two things to look forward to; Dandy Warhols at the Vogue (yes yes yes please and thank you Doug!) and Hilario Duran and Roberto the amazing bassist less than a week after that.   (Yes Please and thank you Katie K!).

I have now gone to bed early 3 days running and I have either kicked the cold that is trying to land on me, I’m fighting off the brain deadening effects of the pollen count, or I’ve got sleeping sickness.

I watched the last game of the Stanley Cup last night.  My interest in hockey is lightly sketched at best, but I have to say that the Pittsburgh team skated as if they, one and all, had pianos tied to their butts, whereas Detroit looked like Mercury had kissed every one of them.  Jeff and I both screamed simultaneously with that last Pittsburgh shot on goal as the clock dived for zero – it came SO CLOSE to going in that we just shook our heads at the replay.  It was a good game, and sportsmanlike.  I found the commentary next to useless.

My evil plans for world domination continue

I have now passed S1 of Deadwood along to Fanboy Joe; Patricia is working her way through S2.  Bwa ha ha.

It was amazing to watch the last shuttle launch in Hi-Def.

Barbecued chicken, salad, garlic bread and pickled beets for dins last night.  Tonight steak and taters, because I feel like it.  The weather has been quite wet, but I’m happy about that as I have not had to water my transplants.  All of the seedlings Richter’s sent me survived except for one gai lan.  Nautilus3 warned me I’d need to feed the strawberries so soon I will be getting plant food.

The Luddite’s garden is an amazing collection of homemade bean poles, enormous raspberry plants, clematis, chives, strawberries in containers, and overgrown flowerbeds full of California poppies and other things I can’t recognize.  He recently evicted a skunk from under the porch.  He lined broken mirrors that he found in alleyways along one side of the back vegetable bed to increase the amount of light; the effect is hard to describe but I think it’s really cool, and it does work to increase the light rather dramatically.

The homemade bean poles.  OMG.  He deliberately pruned a pear tree to make straight branches and then cut them all down last weekend to make THE most SKOOKUM bean poles you ever saw in your life.  They are bean poles for the ages.

The garden at this house is pretty nice for a rental.  There are a lot of pretty flowering shrubs, and I love the ivy on the front porch, it’s one of the things that sold this apartment to me.

Good Atheist, Bad Atheist is finally done.

I’m reading it to myself to get the cadences right, and stitching in a few last minute word changes. Thanks to my friends and family for the encouraging words.

Finally got hold of the Luddite – I’m off to his place for dinner and (likely) another interesting evening of Youtube videos, great music and amusing conversation.

I’m taking Monday off. As Dr. Filk once remarked, “I’m far too well to come to work today”

Walk at SFU

ScaryClown, who is an extremely cultured individual while being one of the rudest and most emotionally malformed individuals I’ve ever met, is a good person to walk in the woods with.  The walks in the woods close to work which we take at lunch are an endless education, as he (and Patricia to an extent) points out plants and critters.  The wiggly things in the pond earlier in the week turned out to be young salamanders – a. gracile as a best guess (thanks Patricia).  We risked soakers and falling ass deep into murky water to have a look at them.  Photos weren’t possible as the reflections were too much, according to Robof9.  The four of us were shouting and pointing like we are all much younger – and the youngest among is is 37, for cry eye.  Okay, I miscall it… all of us but Robof9, who is a very dignified individual, when he isn’t making dreadful puns.

Jeff and I just mopped up waffles and bacon and are getting going on the day.

As soon as the homily’s done and delivered, I’ll be back with more…..

Domestic tranquillity update

I phoned Jeff last night after going a little wacky at the mall (total haul $100, shoes and tights) and said, “Don’t feel like cooking.  How do you feel about the Keg?” which plan met with enthusiastic endorsement.  Out of respect for mOm’s diet I’m going to skip the usual trough report.

My plants arrived!  Gai Lan, peppermint and Thai Basil.  I’ll be repotting them this weekend. I just gave them a little water.

I have a mild two inch scratch from Eddie, having helped clip his back nails.  No other injuries were reported.

There are at least fifteen blossoms on the strawberry plants out front.  I must go water them.

I send good thoughts to: mOm, Granny, Tammy, Katie daughter, Kopper, LTGW for the unwitting suggestion which finally broke the dam on the homily, the Luddite, Jeff and kitties of course (although one side growl for the unbelievable amount of hall-running they did last night), Tom and Peggy (get over here for dinner!), Glenn and Maggie (ditto!), Tom U. (ditto!), Mike, Heather, Jarmo and the gang that’s going to Indiana Jones tonight, Patricia, Tom McM, Carolyn Porco, everybody at JPL, all Dunnett fans, and all filkers everywhere.

Oh, I ordered a Zoom H2.  I couldn’t help myself; after almost a year of drooling on Lady Miss B’s H2 I gave in to the dark side and ordered it.

I have cancelled my planned trip to Denvention – I’m going to be needing every penny for France.

I am thinking of a certain pregnant woman, and confecting an especially airy and happy nest of thoughts for her.

A particularly happy and grateful shout out to Jeff, who has shouldered my tech support issues with the understated competence of a true professional.

Oh, and a big hug to the HR department at work.  I approached them and said, calmly, “I want to kill a co-worker.”

Response:  “Really?  Have some chocolate and tell me about it.”

End result:  15 minutes later, I’m back at my desk, snickering, and feeling much better.

Oh.  Nobody in my department – somebody else.  The folks in my department entirely rock, I love them.