We’re going for three weeks to Scotland and England – my younger daughter is getting married in Scotland to a great British guy. We are going to visit relatives in Devon and do some biking.

egregious!

2 weeks from now,I’ll be on the beach, soaking in the sun in Myrtle SC. Anyone else going to be there?

Woops, and good morning,Egreg!! It’s 23 and very sunny here in Upstate New York. We had a couple of inches of slushy snow yesterday..looking forward to spring.

Make that ‘Myrtle Beach’.

Good morning pups! Any maple bars left?

Slush here, too, Toby. The branches of my white birch tree had bent from the weight of the snow. Drooped way down. Recovered nicely, though.

ask twolf1

Toby –

Best wishes for your daughter! Where is Scotland are they getting married?

1,796 DAYZ AND THE KILLIN’ GOEZ ON AND ON AND…

Citizen Hardin Smith:

Sharin’ exotic vacation ideas is great but how about a real vacation get together at FDL…maybe somethin like the Yearly Kos but at the sixth month opposite the Kos and maybe in Las Vegas since that’s about as accessable and central for workin’ FDLer-folks. How about it…have you and Jane and the Pachman given this idea any thought?

As for summer vacations in the North country here, my son and I take 7 days on the Lake of The Woods every June…we re-evaluate, reconsider, reconnect and recharge and eat Walleyed Pike until we start growin gills.

KEEP THE FAITH AND DON’T EVER FEEL GUILTY ABOUT HAVIN’ FUN!!

Piece of luck,that…whenever I drive down I81 in PA, I see the birches permanently bowed from that sort of thing.

Airth Castle Hotel, which is about half way between Edinburgh and Glasgow.

*buurp* no more maple bars but some bacon and waffles, egy! HIya

This is the end of our Spring Break. It was above 40 almost all week! Robins are back and the snow is almost gone! It was amazing taking the dogs out this morning and hearing birds singing…

Now, it’s time to figure out what I’m doing at work this week and start knocking on doors and all that other fun campaign stuff.

Sunny, cold & muddy here in WV this morning.
In the heat of August, I’ll spend 10 days at a biological station in Maine.

I’d sign on in a minute Norske – but to help everyone out, we’d need to find someplace that a) has good access on the flight end and b) is not too expensive(though perhaps if we got the right place, we could rent some dormitory spaces at a college? Would that work?). But I think it would be a great idea.

Good morning Egregious! Here in Maine we say, “2 months of summah 10 months of wintah“.

I would love to get away. Not sure where I’d go, though. Somewhere near a lake would be nice. The ocean is nice but I’ve never been a big fan of swimming in it, because there are things in there that can eat ya alive. LOL

Oooh that’s a gorgeous castle. Makes the upstate NY winters go by faster to dream of such a great event, yes?

Had 4 years in the finger lakes during college. It was chilly.

Here in Chicago we haven’t had a serious winter like we used to in years. Even this year we only had a handful of days where the temps went below zero…..but the snow on the other hand has been a royal pain in the a@#.
60″ reported overall this winter. Haven’t seen that much snow since maybe 79. Come on spring, I’ve had enough of the old man.

and I only got the shovel out once this year, not that I’m complaining.

i love the idea of dorm rooms – or even a hostel. yearlykos sounds like fun, but awful pricey. i’d like to be able to do something that was doable for the widest possible group of interested folks.

…. and to be fair to christy et al. they’re already doing a ton of work – maybe this is something we could think about taking on ourselves?

p.s. egr – great to see you on the front page again and great post. i’m going to try to go back to lurking for a bit in order to encourage new names to speak up.

Denise, what will you be monitoring or studying? Love Maine, it’s so beautiful in the summer.

1,795 DAYZ AND THE KILLIN’ GOEZ ON AND ON AND…

Citizen TobyWollin:

Now I ain’t a real fan of Las Vegas but in this economic climate Vegas is about the cheapest and most accessible venue especially as relates ta air travel connections and cost. The packages thru some a the larger casinos and the accommodations for groups like the FDL are really about as good as it gets. If we got a bank of rooms and meetin space from a Friday afternoon thru Sunday noon, we could do some serious damage and still get home in time ta make life miserable for folks at work on Monday mornin’…jest an idea that I think is worth explorin’. If we did it this July in Vegas a month before the convention in Devnver we might be able ta attract a couple progressive heavy hitters like Chris Dodd er Feingold ta address the group and maybe participate in panel discussions. Jest an idea anyways.

KEEP THE FAITH AND HOLD YER FIRE UNTIL YA SEE THE WHITES A MY EYES!!

Wouldn’t it be great if we could all take a vacation together? An Alaskan cruise maybe, or rent out a small island in Hawai’i for a week.

Two questions come to mind:

1) How big a boat does Ed*ard Teller have?
2) How big is CTuttle’s back yard?

where? Rochester? Ithaca? Syracuse?

It’s just as good of an idea as the last time you mentioned it…

I say we do it… …hell, even an “unsanctioned” event, if we got enough firepups to do it, could probably coerce our lovely hosts to stop by!

I love the seasons where I live, both of ‘em!

Warm rain, and Cold rain… …but tonight is has been snowin again!

WTF!!!

“Far above Cayuga’s waters…” [Ithaca]

“there’s an awful smell”

“Some say it’s Cayuga’s waters”

hehehe..and you found THAT chilly? Ithaca is the Riviera of the Finger Lakes in comparison to Rochester!!!! I’m in Binghamton, and we look rather enviously at ithaca’s climate and growing season.

Last summer we moved from CA to MO, and stopped at Rocky Mountain National Park for a day to break up the trip. After two hours in the park, our then-five year old wanted to just unload the moving van and move in right there with the elk and the beavers. The only way to get him back in the truck was to promise we’d come back this summer and spend a WHOLE WEEK there.

He’s looking forward to that, and so are his parents.

Future forest ranger, maybe.

“I say it’s Cornell”

we have a little cottage by the lake about an hour away, up in the gatineau hills. normally at this time of year we’ve been up at least once to check up on the place but not this year. there’s just too much snow, we can’t make it through.
i am planning on spending all my weekends up there as soon as the roads are passable.
i can’t wait for this snow to be gone.

Yes, it’s a beautiful place. I’ll never forget a show a peregrine falcon put on for us there. At one of the pullover sites going up the mountains, the falcon would pass slowly by, a few feet away from the audience at the overlook, and then dive down the mountain at high speed, following the terrain at only a foot or so above it. It did it about four times. That was the most beautifly flying I ever saw.

Luckily, our son and his family live in Eagle, Co., and we can visit and use as a base each summer.

One of several possibilities, to be sure. This is also the kid who loves his legos — around our house, this was “Dad, let’s build the International Space Station out of Legos” week.

“Curiosity” does not begin to describe him.

sounds like a candidate for Space Camp some day.

Check out Google today:

http://www.google.com/

Nice, huh? ;-)

Fungi, specifically the ones associated with wood decay/decomposition.

Hey mwah,

Sounds like the ideal retreat. Hope your snow melts pretty soon so you can get up there.

I lived in Wyoming for a year, and used to go to RMNP on my day off. During the winter, it was like I had the place almost to myself.

Incredible.

Our son really had to twist my arm hard to get us to go back there this summer. “No, don’t make me go back there again . . .” ;)

Oh, Elliott, I caught yer question on the last thread late…

My retirement plan is of the “drop dead mid-shift” variety, party was for a co-worker, but the food was just as good…

Fungi, and not slime molds? I love slime molds!

When I was a kid in the 50’s I had an uncle who lived in Myrtle Beach. We stayed with them for two weeks every August. The next door neighbors owned a garage and raced stock cars on the then dirt track at Darlington. Their name was Petty. MB was a sleepy little beach town, had a mini-carnival (complete with a full-sized ferris wheel) downtown, one theatre, etc. I loved the place. My uncle owned a laundramat just down the street from the Piggly Wiggley. I used to get to keep whatever change I found cleaning out the lint traps each evening. I learned to body surf in MB. I’d report to school in September tanned to the nines. My grandparents moved there in the 60’s and my parents in the late 70’s. My brother and his family settled there. My dad died suddenly there in 1980. All this moving to MB was a homecoming of sorts. My family settled in South Carolina in the early 1750’s from France. My grandfather joined the Bonus Marchers in Washington DC during the Depression and stayed. I was the first of my family born outside of SC in 200 years. Myrtle Beach had one of the finest beaches in the world. Couldn’t keep me out of the Atlantic. Mickey Spillane, the creator of Mike Hammer, had a home in Murrell’s Inlet. We used to go bowling with them. Have a great time, Solai. I always did.

this was “Dad, let’s build the International Space Station out of Legos” week.

Full size?

Oh,
I’m glad you had fun and ate well
and I hope you retire at a hundred and two.

I always thought Binghamtom was in the South! That’s what they told me up in Syracuse…

It IS – the “Southern Tier” ;)

Amazing! I have worked with myxomycetes (slime molds) for 18 years. There is a class on slime molds at the Humboldt Field Research Institutethis summer

I think that if we want to do something, we first “talk” to Jane, Christy et al and get the blessing. Then we need to decide venue – Las Vegas sounds great (I’d offer Binghamton, but it’s one of those ‘can’t get they-ah from he-ah” places, flight-wise) – and find out who can do the best for us and WHEN and then get the word out. My two cents.

He wishes.

Earlier in the week, we caught part of a Discovery channel show about the Voyager spacecraft missions. He then wanted to build not just the little Voyager craft, but the launch vehicle that took it into space. With a little help from Dad, we built it. (He built Voyager, and I built the launch rocket.) Then he called for mom, and when she came to his room, he made it launch, then dropped off the rockets, opened up the main stage, and out came his “Voyager”, and he took it on a trip around the house.

Thanks!

That gives me PLENTY of time to annoy lots of people on the inter-tubes!

I love Myrtle Beach. It’s where my husband and I hope to retire to. It’s probably never going to happen (waaay too tied to family and friends) but the beach is so beautiful and we just love waking up to that beautiful sunrise on the ocean.

Eg on the FRONT page! Whoot Whoot!

This summer Littleprop and I will be moving to a new house, so our “vacation adventure” will involve paint rollers and shopping for curtains and such. I love decorating and am addicted to “how to” programming and think of myself as handy with a tool box, so I ma very psyched about it.

Littleprop drastically changes her decorating plans for her new room, oh, about every 3rd or 4th day. Fortunately, this means the plan to paint it black and light with a blacklight, has fallen by the wayside. Thank doG.

When I was a kid, my 6 siblings and I went to The Enchanted Forest every year without fail. The place is corny as hell, but now my kids go every year and the place is MAGIC as far as they are concerned.

Heck, they even got some good “grown-up” rides since I was a kid!

Come to think of it, if the weather ever improves, it is about time to plan a trip!

By the way, you should click on that Google link. In fact, maybe we should try to help spread the word.

Google is trying to publicize an effort to raise awareness about energy consumption and what we can do to conserve. They are asking people to turn off all their lights for on hour, form 8-9PM in their local time zones.

If the towns would only turn off hte streetlights too, we could all see the stars…..

My mayor lives not to far from me, maybe I should wolk ove rot his hose and ask him?

Going to spend many a week at our cabin on Lake Michigan. It’s 60 years old, has an oil stove, and you can’t go there in the winter, but May through October is a wonderful time to look at the big lake.

If we go to the top of the dune we can almost see Wisconsin.

Loosehead – I’m in the middle of a major re-do on my house also, which means that I have a huge pile of fabric on one side and a growing pile of curtains on the other.;)

There’s a place up near Lake Placid in NYS called the North Pole. It even has it’s own post office so you can get letters from Santa with a real honst to gosh North Pole post p=mark on ‘em.

When Litleprop was small, her father an I used to go to lake Placid every year for a rugby tournatment run by the Mountaineers RFC–best damn tournament on the continent IMHO. Anyway after dragging her from pitch to pitch in the blazing sun for several days, we would reward her with a trip to the North Pole. She’d go on the rides, see Santa, feed the reindeer and gorge on gingerbread and candy canes–in August.

Canada…. It is only a short (8 hour) drive to PEI a wonderful, peaceful, inexpensive, CLEAN part of the world. We love going to Canada, Montreal, Victoria, Nova Scotia, wherever. Definitely a place we are looking at to retire primarily because of the healthcare situation and also it is not America.

I know what you mean. My dining room table is currently buried under my sewing machine and a pile of fabric

Didn’t I read somewhere that if everyone turned everything off at 8 and turned back on at 9 that it would cause problems? A surge or something.

Placid every year for a rugby tournatment run by the Mountaineers RFC–best damn tournament on the continent IMHO.

Jeeze I knew that props were a little off center but the tournament is in Saranac Lake. Damn good tournament played in it for years and refereed for many more years. I’ll bet I caught you off side more than once!!!!

I don’t know. If you go to google they have a link to information about it.

Best two weeks my family ever spent was on Cape Breton Island. I’m not a beach person, so I went to a fiddle workshop while they played with the whales and went hiking. Great stuff. We can’t wait to go back up there.

Didn’t I read somewhere that if everyone turned everything off at 8 and turned back on at 9 that it would cause problems? A surge or something.

It is OK the surge only shows it is working

It’s 32 and sunny here on Boston’s North Shore. Wondering when Christy lived in Boston and where.

Vacation plans? We’re musicians, so we work every weekend. But we’ve set aside a week in July to go to the music camp that Leahy holds each summer in Ontario. Many of you probably know of them, fine purveyors of Celtic and Nova Scotia music that they are.

Sydney goes dark for Earth Hour

You reffed the CanAm? So did ex-Mr.Prop.

We must know each other from the friday night ref’s party. Are you from Met Union?

I’m not a beach person, so I went to a fiddle workshop while they played with the whales and went hiking. Great stuff.

Used to go the Philly folk fest years ago (before they changed locations) and went to many a fiddle workshop. I wish I could remember all of it!!!

Hadn’t heard of that music camp before. Sounds great!

Vacations? How about the people who live from paycheck to paycheck? Or those facing foreclosure and living in the street?

We are facing difficult economic times and chatting about vacations is in very poor taste in my opinion.

We have work to do and people are dying every day in Iraq and 10s of thousands have come home and face a life in bed under full time care.

bad topic in these times.

Played in Boston. Have played with both Pilgrims and Mystics as well as Boston in the tournament. I have been told that I also played in “senior” games but I have no recollection of that.

I know it’s in Saranac But we always stayed at the Mirror Lake Inn and Littleprop thinks of it as a trip to Lake Placid. We used to go twice a year, in summer for the CanAm and in winter to ski.

The only part she really cared about was the swimming pool because it had a neat (fake) waterfall.

Egregious!!

Well, it is Saturday near Beantown with a crisp yet sunny day facing us all here.

Just got back from a long weekend in Montreal — Why did the family Imm chase the Winter? Dunno, but it was great city which I will happily revisit between May and September. I recommend the Insectarium for all the parents with kids who like crawlie things. They had a great scale which measured one in “ants.” I learned that I need to drop about 500,000 antys to be at prime fightin’ weight.

We have relatives living in Saranac Lake so stayed free and partied all bloody night. Great tournament. I have to mention that I was there for the first one… how about you?

egregious!!!

hello from Hong Kong…it’s almost 10 PM Saturday night here in Hong Kong, and my friend and I are about to head out to dinner…am heading back to the US next Wednesday…

This summer, we’ll be hanging out in Montana, Missoula, MT to be specific, for two months (July and August) going on long mountain hikes, camping in th mountains, drinking fine red wine and eating great dinners with friends (a few of whom teach at the U of MT, and another few who are published novelist (Missoula is quite known as a writers habitat)…

Immanentize!!

So good to see you here :)

MSNBC is talking about Walmart suing the brain-damaged woman for $470,000. Isn’t everyone missing the point? Yes, this shows Walmart to be inhumane, but the bigger point is that this should be illegal. This is something that Congress should adress. I don’t want to rely on the humanity of my insurance company. I want this practice to be banned.

Good morning Egregious. Nice to see you here on this cold saturday morning.

Epic winter in Montréal. Record snowfall, and the weather has remained cold, there’s still three feet of snow in my backyard.

No plans yet for this summer, might drive to the north shore, maybe visit Manic 5 and Sept-Iles to eat snow crab.

one thing i’m planning to do, is to get back on my road and pedal a smile into my face. I was on my bike, summer of 02, when a raging driver decided I was going to pay for all the cyclists who are on HIS road. Doctors told me walking, cycling, running were pretty much over. With the nerve damage, pain was pretty much going to be a constant companion. Well, they were wrong, I walked and walked through the pain and, lo and behold, the pain is receding as the years go by. Still have some emotional issues about getting back on my bike, I’ll work through that, and build myself a butt of steel.

Weighing things in “ants” — I prefer the scales that are in British stones. Such a lovely low number.

Good Morning Egregious and Firedogs -

wildflowers and spring birds are peeking out here in Central Tex – headed out to the Hill Country for a little of both in a week :D

Hey immanenitize !!! good to see you

The voting in Zimbabwe sounds just like voting over here. !

Yes, but dropping a few pounds sounds safer than dropping a stone or two.

Well I try not to stand under falling rocks, if that’s what you mean.

cbl, looseheadprop, egregious. Hmmm, nice to see such a pleasant sitting room filled with fine old friends. (By the way, what’s with the “2″ cbl?)

Wow…you’ve got real determination. We’re rooting for you!

(((Quebecois)))

But it is Saturday morning!

You certainly are not wrong, but the chaos and ugliness in the world is even more reason to disconnect, get away, and re-charge.

Even if not with a real vacation, it is good for the soul to imagine…

I prefer scones myself, but that tends to defeat the purpose of the scale.

*sigh*

damn

you go!

Good Morning,
You should maybe think of taking your little explorer to the Mall of America Lego Land. What a place for the little PUPS. My Grandson really liked it when he visited me when I lived in the Twin Cities.

Before leaving CA, we went to LegoLand outside San Diego. Amazing. The things you can do with little blocks of plastic . . .

imm – the ‘2′ is due to regist reqmts – no likey

Fine, but why not leave that to other sites and keep this one on point?

I don’t think we can’t all benefit from R&R and recharging our batts. I’ve had a sailboat which I lived and and still do as much as possible in the summer and will die on it I suppose.

Right now vacations are not something I feel the need for. I take “vacations” by listening to opera or attending a performance when I can afford it.

I live smaller now than I did in the past and I prefer it.

Wal-Mart doesn’t care. Their entire health insurance plan is a scam. I would suggest that if one read the entire policy they would find that Wal-Mart is going to make money every time the employee (other than management, that is) uses his/her insurance policy. Wal-Mart counts on the fact that few people ever read their policy so they can put whatever they like into it. Did this unfortunate woman’s family know that Wal-Mart would come after them? Probably not. The lawsuit was probably the first time they knew of the provision.

For SanderO: even those of us who live paycheck to paycheck, and I’m one of them, have dreams. Maybe in the grand scheme of things I don’t have a pot to piss in but I have dreams. Dreams and education – two things no one can ever take away.

haha. I will always think of you without the 2.

Good mornin’ from the tall timber! Thanks for the post topic, Egr! Vacations are wonderful to talk about. Just thinking of some of the great ones we’ve taken is a way of renewing the well now that disability limits our family travel.

Like the childhood fishing trip with family on Lake of the Woods…Norske my face is turning a lovely chartreuse again just remembering what a stormy seasick ride that was. Better to remember the fun times.

And Sander, sorry, can’t agree. If I don’t give myself breathing space and renewal from time to time, I can’t keep on keeping on. Too beautiful a morning to be crabby…. give it a try.

I have nothing against dreams or goals. That seems to be the main motivator, doesn’t it?

I suppose when you’ve had vacations they become less important, or when you are working so hard the need for them becomes paramount.

I am not working very much and I have done lots of vacations. Life is different now. I don’t have the dream motivation as must as the justice for all one.

Fine, but why not leave that to other sites and keep this one on point?

Funny, I though “the point” of the site is set by Christy and Jane — and egregious is filling in for Christy’s usual “sit back, pull up a chair, pour yourself a cup of coffee, and relax for a bit” Saturday morning post.

If that bothers you so much, you don’t have to comment or read it. You could even get your own blog.

Thanks Egregious.

It’s not determination, though. It’s more a quest for pleasure. Either you’re in your basement in pain, or you go out to Oka Park and walk in the woods for the pleasure of being in nature…

did these yesterday, the market gives me immense pleasure:

http://picasaweb.google.com/pi…..o46f6plGYQ

bom dia, pups

well mr wobbs and I live part time in Brasil, so that is where we will be come summer. He is originally from England but gravitates to any beach area so the plan is to spend some time up in Fortaleza and beaches in the state of Alagoas.

Hey Prairie!

Yeah the idea of a day of rest is pretty ancient.

For those arguing that we can never rest, what if that leads to burnout? I’ll be a lot more productive in the world if I can step back, reflect, and re-create periodically. Whatever I’m doing next, be it in politics here or international medical programs, it will be better if I’m well rested.

Even race car drivers have to stop for refueling sometimes.

I wasn’t aware there was one in CA. It’s just great. I wish we would have had something like that when my boys were growing up. Let them all stay at the store instead of under my feet LOL. I still have some here at my house for my Grandkids. My Grandson, is like your boy, he loves making things with them and has stuff all over his room. Mom goes GRHHHH. LOL

I remember carrides everywhere as a kid to see family when i was little.Chicago, Florida and Minnesota and all the places in between. Yes i’ve got a BIG widespread family. I swear that’s what kindled my wanderlust as an adult.

Now i head to Chicago every may for Anime Central, a huge japanese cultured convention for geeks everywhere. 14,000 geeks that invade the Hyatt O’Hare for a weekend. It makes my entire paid vacation worth it. I see old friends, make some new ones and generally have a great time. Share new shows among the group that meets annually there. Iowa, Minnesota and of course my own Michigan. *grin* It’s the highlight of my year. Sunshine, good friends and a big city to play in when we aren’t geeking out inside.

But now that this clause has been exposed, why is no one speaking up to say that this should not be legal? I don’t mind a bit that Walmart is being trashed but I’d be happier to know that Congress is addressing this issue. This is the first case (that I’m aware of) but now it will be S.O.P for all insurance companies. Screw the people, enhance the corps.

The CA LegoLand isn’t a store — it’s a huge outdoor theme park with enormous and elaborate lego constructions. Yes, they also sell legos there, but this is more of a Disneyland, Six Flags, Worlds of Fun kind of place.

On resting and taking breaks and vacations:. from wiki:

The Sabbath (or Sabbat) is a weekly day of rest and/or worship that is observed in the Judeo-Christian faiths. The term derives from the Hebrew shabbat (שבת), “(to) cease”. The term was first used in the biblical account of the last day of creation. It was repeated, as a commandment, as the fourth of the Ten Commandments (according to the Jewish, Anglican, Reformed, other Christian and Orthodox traditions, while it is the third commandment as enumerated in Roman Catholic and Lutheran traditions). A number of other religions have a similar practice, and the term has also been imported into secular usage.

Sabbath is also the etymon of the Sabbatical that tenured academics take–about ayear or so–to regroup and do research and write books…whatever…

Good mawnin, all.

I’ve got a camping trip planned for July, just about thirty miles away from here. I’m combining the trip with a weekend get together with a group I hang out with.

That’s all I can afford this year. But, I already live in beautiful mountain country (north CA), so I don’t feel a great need to travel or vacation away from here.

Y’all can come visit me sometime, though, if you want. I’ll find you a place to stay, but it’ll probably be on the cheap. Lots of nice bed-n-brefasses around here too, if you’ve got the coin.

Ah, coffee’s ready. See ya!

Solai – putting “humanity” and “insurance companies” in the same sentence is sort of like kosher bacon.

HI, I figured that just used the wrong phrase. The site at Mall of America is in doors (winter you know) and it takes up one end of the entrance into the Mall where they have rides and such. It’s an indoor amusement park. Quite fun for the cold winter days in Minnesota and what to do with kids to keep them entertained when they get restless during the iwnter months. They have huge Lego displays that go up three stories. Quite impressive.

Are you going to attend the Hong Kong Sevens tournament while you are there. I think the finals are on Sunday (your time)

True.

I am guilty of assuming the political agenda of this blog.

Sorry

but SanderO, not everyone is in the same place as you are right now. dreaming of being at rest with nature or immersing ourselves in a different culture or just seeing some of the world are ways to remind ourselves of the wonder of it all… none of that precludes fighting for justice, and indeed is a fountain of motivation for many people. i beg you, do not condemn what is only different.

The fun bit of my may trip is that i go by train to Chicago every year. I really don’t like long distance driving, personally. So i get to enjoy a 4 hour or so train ride from Grand Rapids,MI to Chicago, IL. It makes me dream of a day when we’ve got country wide light rail. It’s going to take some time for it to happen, but it’s going. More and more people are doing what i do for that distance instead of driving.

I don’t follow a religion so I don’t subscribe to biblical or other religious tracts.

Egreg – I can’t stay in a rage 24/7; I might give up. yes, there are a lot of horrific things happening in the world, but I need some energy and hope that something that I will do will actually change something for somebody.

I don’t condemn people for desiring respite and learning about and immersing themselves in different cultural experiences or “vacations”. This is a real need for many people and not so for others, whose life IS a vacation… one long continuous vacation from the reality that others deal with day to day.

You know who. hahahaha

Yes — need to stay in touch with what is good and beautiful and true, to remember why we work so hard.

I am guilty of assuming the political agenda of this blog.

imho, you are only mistaken that building community has nothing to do with doing politics. at least that’s the way i think about it. the personal is political. and the political is personal.

Snow In Seattle! My sister who is much more “weather sensitive” than me because she is a gardener, says it “does not feel like a spring snow.” I am wondering if we are beginning the long long winter of an Ice Age here, but who the hell am I, a city dweller who does not have a clue except what Al Gore hints at when global warming burns off?

I am a low income Auntie raising my 2 year old grand niece, and vacation for me has always meant what I call “Fuzzy Slipper Days” where you do not even have to get dressed, you have nowhere to go, the tea pot is full of warm Good Earth tea and you have a pan of cinnamon rolls about ready to come out of the oven.

When I worked all the McJobs I worked for over 35 years while raising my family, getting up at 4 AM and running for the bus in order to get clocked in by 7 AM, a Fuzzy Slipper Day was an all-out luxury. I went once for over 20 years without any such thing as a vacation. If I did not work, I did not get paid and so I went during rain, snow, sleet, or horrible flu. To even consider staying home while my head was throbbing after walking the floor with a colicky baby all night was just plain out of the question most of the time. But, on the rare occasion I somehow got a day off, a Fuzzy Slipper Day was heaven.

Now, after battling the Powers That Be I am allowed to stay home with the light of my life my little grand-niece. Oh yes, she keeps me running but I get to be more domestic and do for her what I could never give to my other children. So let me tell you, vacation to me is a Fuzzy Slipper Day and I can never let a day go by when I do not deeply appreciate them. Who needs to go to the tropical isles of Hawai’i when you have your own vacation every day, rain or shine, sleet or heat with a cuddly (and sometimes not-so-cuddly) 2 year old who likes nothing better than to snuggle under a blankie and hear a story, or eat one of the cookies you just baked, or run like the wind in an empty park where she does not even have to wait a turn for the swing?

AHHHHHHHHHHHHH!

Cat In Seattle

Taking a motorcycle trip with my son and grandson starting in Chicago on the Lincoln Highway (US30)west to Oregon where we would catch Highway 101 and travel down the coast to LA where we would catch Route 66, or at least as much of the old road as is left back to Chicago. Of course this is a fantasy trip :o)

mark
carlisle iowa
proudtobeaburdenonsociety

quebecois at 81, you and looseheadprop have that in common, only she wasn’t on a bike.

i’ve come a long road back, too. it can be done.

and thanks for the building description the other day, i really liked that building. truly eclectic. and you captured it at the perfect time of day. the colors reflected in the left corner windows were really cool. a fine photo.
===============
and egr–i was reading your blog around last christmas, we were in the same city at the same time. that starts with an ’m’…….my parents are involved in stuff there, that trip, we were up there a lot……. bet we passed on the street…..i’m from sw of there, starts with an ’h’……..been wanting to tell you that.

‘morning, eg! ah! vacation? this summer I’m heading back to the Eastern Sierra Nevada… John Muir, Range of Light… beautiful, beautiful, beautiful!

hope all is well with you and yours!

yep—my friends are real fans…they never miss it…

do you live in Minneapolis? I do…in the Warehouse District…

Didn’t you have this discussion a few weeks ago? What Saturday hasn’t there been a “Pull up a Chair” topic?

forgot to add-

ecahnomics is having a pups get together i think june 22 at her home in new paltz.

the same time i’m supposed to be at a wedding in houston. going with my best friend, will be fun. her daughter is there, too, and other friends.

Oooh Fuzzy Slipper Day, what a great concept!

So glad you are finding joy in being with your grand-niece. Sounds like a lot of love all around.

Egregious and everyone,

We have snow this morning in beautiful Duvall, WA as well. I don’t remember snow this late. Ever.

My husband won a trip to Maui yesterday afternoon. We’re still in shock, but we’ll be visiting the beach sometime in the next year. We haven’t taken a vacation in awhile, so to say that we’re excited is an understatement.

It’ll be a nice break from everyone and everything…
-S

Of course this is a fantasy trip :o)

So far…What about reframing this as, you haven’t done it *yet*

and favorite vacations?

anything involving nature and water. playing in the water, of course. don’t want to just look at it.

best vacation?

cape cod. brewster. summers during teen years growing up.

water everywhere-house was on a ’lake’ pond, another lake that had white sand and clear water right down the road, ocean-bay on one side, wilder ocean on the other. wonderful fresh food. it’s all there take your pick.

yep, cape cod.

tired of snow ?

can’t currently afford your dream destination ?

webcams pups !

requires some effort to google around – some are great on some days, static on others, but when ya find a goody – s’worth it

there’s a bazillion – on land, under water

africams – resort in S Africa – kewl at night, great sounds

Paris

Bora Bora

Talk about your small world. I went over there a lot with my dad to help him look up legal records, starting at age 5. Not sure how much help I was in the beginning, but ya gotta start somewhere.

Well, if you want to merge vacation time with politics then let’s talk about how the economy is changing vacation plans. We’re sharing a condo with another family so that we can still vacation and not ‘break the bank’. I’m not complaining. We did it last year too as it makes sense financially.
That’s this year. Hopefully, next year won’t be any worse or we’ll be cramming 8 people into a pup tent.

I’m not a lawyer but I think the problem would be in tort law. If two parties agree to a contract it is assumed that both parties are familiar with its contents. While it shows Wal-Mart to be the greedy entity we know it is I don’t think Congress can legislate against greed. We can hope that Wal-Mart will be shamed enough to return this woman’s money but I’m not gonna hold my breath. There is nothing more sacred to the Walton family than the dollar almighty. Sam Walton wanted a store every two miles, or something like that. Even burning every one of them down would only pay them trainloads of money and, to play SanderO for a sec, would cost a lot of people their low wage jobs. That said, I’d still stand by and cheer if one, or more, in my area burned to the ground. They’ve put so many small businesses out of business that there are things that can only be found at Wal-Mart. If I can’t find something I want/need in any other store in town I go online. If I can’t find it there I do without. I refuse to walk through the door at Wal-Mart.

In the 1970’s? No, I’m sorry to say. I started going inthe late 80’s and contiued through the 90’s. We haven’t gone the last few years. Mr Prop and I were working on our slow motion divorce and didn’t really feel like vacationing together and Littleprop got to be too old to be bribed with trips to the North Pole.

Thanks dmac, did not know LHP was a recovering lifer too.

Thanks for the praise on that building pic. It was a situation shot to me, nothing special, the sun was setting in a different direction. The concert was so good, still resonnates with me.

Imm!

Where ya been? Haven’t seen you for a long long while

I am anative Minnesotan. Born in Duluth, I am now in Texas. What a difference. I will be coming up to MN this summer, if gas prices start to stablize. I am retired now and on limited income. But I do miss Minnesota. A whole differenct culteure u there. Into all natural healing, kind of hard to find down here. But like the warmer climate. Not a pretty witner in MN this year. Enjoy your comments on this blog. stay in touch

Really? Not too far..only a couple of hours for me…

During the summer, PEI is packed with tourists, you need to plan well ahead to get accommodations. The beaches are lovely. During the winter PEI is not a tourist destination, not much happening, likely snowbound.

for me that’s Tipperary

Hey OldCoastie! Things for this new caligirl are mostly ok, most of the time. I guess that qualifies as success. People here have been kind and friendly especially when I am open about my situation. So my biggest fear, which was loneliness and isolation, hasn’t happened. The kids all came out for Easter which was great. We declared this home-west and I let them sprawl out all over the place. I’m still picking up strands of Easter basket grass off the rug.

So, you think that legislation outlawing this practice is impossible? Couldn’t Congress write a law forbidding insurance companies from suing to recover what they pay out in medical bills?

A long way, huh?

lol!
yes :)

It’s a long way…

But you can get there some day, right?

THAT is my dream vacation. I have always wanted to go to the HK 7’s

Hands coke to Quebecois

egregious-”Talk about your small world. I went over there a lot with my dad to help him look up legal records, starting at age 5. Not sure how much help I was in the beginning, but ya gotta start somewhere.”

yeah, shoulda seen my face when i saw that on your blog!

we just missed meeting each other! i was up there in ’m’ every few days for two weeks.

i always assumed you were from the ’c’ city…….so didn’t bring it up with you. i spent many years there, too, but my family is from ’h’……and ’f’…….

many ties and memories of your city.

my first housemate was from there. she went to the catholic high school. we lived in ’c’……

cool beans.

hope you are all settled in.

We try to go either late (oct) or early (next month). Very few tourists and the prices are a lot lower. Damn that place is beautiful though!

Wish I wasn’t so late to the thread, but EG, I’ve been wanting to ask, didn’t you used to call someone here your cousin? Wasn’t that OK Kiddo? I’m just kinda trying to check my memory and get my associations straight.

Also been meaning to ask you how things are now that you’ve had some chance to settle in? Liking CA, are you? Are you close to the ocean?

Oh, how I’ve been waiting for someone from Washington state. Got this in the internets yesterday:

God was missing for six days. Eventually, Michael, the archangel, found him resting on the seventh day. He inquired of God “Where have you been?”
God sighed a deep sigh of satisfaction, and proudly pointed downwards through the clouds, “Look, Michael. Look what I’ve made.” Archangel Michael looked puzzled, and said, “What is it?” It’s a planet,” replied God, “and I’ve put Life on it. I’m going to call it Earth and it’s going to be a great place of balance.” “Balance?” inquired Michael, “I’m still confused.”
God explained, pointing to different parts of earth. “For example, northern Europe will be a place of great opportunity and wealth, while southern Europe is going to be poor. Over there I’ve placed a continent of white people, and over there is a continent of black people. Balance in all things,” God continued pointing to different countries. “This one will be
extremely hot, while this one will be very cold and covered in ice.” The Archangel, impressed by God’s work, then pointed to a land area and said, “What’s that one?” “Ah,” said God, “That’s Washington State, the most glorious place on earth. There are beautiful mountains, rivers and streams, lakes, forests, hills and plains The people from Washington State are going
to be handsome, modest, intelligent, and humorous, and they are going to be found traveling the world. They will be extremely sociable, hardworking, high achieving, and they will be known throughout the world as diplomats, and carriers of peace. Michael gasped in wonder and admiration, but then asked, “But what about balance, God? You said there would be balance.”
God smiled, “There is another Washington. – Wait till you see the
idiots I put there.”

I think I should shuddup on saturday AMs.

strategerie at 130-”My husband won a trip to Maui yesterday afternoon. We’re still in shock, ”

how cool is that!!!!!!!!????!!!!!!!!!

wow, wonderful!

now that made my day.

Unfortunately it’s called co-ordination of benefits. If her health insurance company paid all of her medical bills and she settled with the auto insurance company, then they made a mistake in not reqiring reimbursement of medical expenses. It sucks but that pretty much is how it works. I worked for an insurance (auto) for 10 years and we routinely paid the health insurance company for their out of pocket expenses. I think this lady was not served well by her attorneys. It’s a sad case. Olberman is going to keep talking about it as the worst person and Anderson Cooper on 360 had a segment on it also last nite. Maybe they can get some of Walton’s foundations to cough up the money they are taking away.

THAT is my dream vacation. I have always wanted to go to the HK 7’s

Yeah me too. I must say playing rugby for 40 some years has given me the opportunity to travel to great places. My wife and I were stranded (thanks TWA) in london once and as it was at the end of our holiday we were brokish but a quick call to a friend playing for London Irish and we were feted to a great dinner a warm bed for two nights and a rugby match to boot. The world of rugby is a great “no questions asked” community wherever you are.

Yesterday where I live in NC, it was sunny and 80 degrees. Today it is rainy and a cold 38 degrees. That’s NC weather for you. If you’re bored with the weather, just wait a few days and it will change.

In 3 weeks, our family will spend a week together at the outter banks. We want this time together before my son who is in the National Guard, is deployed to Iraq. Its the first time his unit, a construction unit, has been called so we feel fortunate.

That things are heating up over there needless to say, fills me with apprehension. Somehow we will, as a family, get through this.

Vote Democratic! I want our participation in this dreadful war/occupation to end. Its our best chance to the alternative of a hundred years of war.

LOL

Kiddo is a very distant cousin, I’m a tiny part Cherokee. One of my actual cousins is a commenter here sometimes [waving hi].

The Bay area is pretty cool, and I am happy to be near the other ocean. But the sun sets in the wrong direction. Other than that things are great.

I don’t believe in burning anything down. I believe in reforming and paradigm shift and certainly justice and direct action is the way to go, but that doesn’t mean destruction.

It’s like the phrase “destruction of Israel” . To me this means getting rid of its racists and apartied policies. In fact I’m for destruction of the America we have today. I want regime change.

It’s words. Don’t put meaning into my mouth.

I am so grateful to the people of the lake! The ups & downs since my nominee suspended his run have hit me pretty hard.

Jane and Christy have sensibly, thankfully, kept me on track;

Keep my eyes on the prize! Take back our government. .
24/7, day by day, I value the support and information ready at hand at the lake to fight apathy and return our government to one of “We The People”.
Thanks to you
all for the helpful news contributions which I use almost daily in our progress to Take Back America.

Damn this fucking war

That is fabulous. How wonderful! Enjoy.

There’s a fiddle camp just prior to the Celtic Colours International Festival. Probably too close to the elections for most firepups to consider, mid October. But Cape Breton is world famous for the autumn colours at this time of year, especially around the Cabot Trail. Some of the performers from the 2007 festival, Karan Casey, the Chieftans, Dougie MacLean. Local talent included Mary Jane Lamond, J.P. Cormier, Scott MacMillan, Brenda Stubbert.

No, not impossible. I would imagine legislation in the manner you speak of would be possible. I can only imagine how Wal-Mart would challenge such legislation in the courts, however. I haven’t studied the case but did Wal-Mart itself sue or was it their insurance carrier? Is the carrier owned by Wal-Mart? If that’s the case Congress may well be able to stop this practice.

toby at 141–yeah, she’s in savannah right now, without internet, but when she gets back, ask her.

she’s been posting her email for people to inquire if they are interested, but i don’t feel right posting it.

she sent the following on sunday, march 23rd, so she probably posted it that previous week, google and maybe you can find the right thread, or wait till she gets back, it’s a while till june, plenty of time to get with her about it.

=================
This is the first of two emails,* which will confirm the date and give some transportation information. The second one, in the next week or two, will contain information on local sites of interest, lodging, etc.
 
Time: 2:00pm
Date: June 22, 2008

Thye are probagly self insured.

Hey Sixty Something, keep us posted about your son going to Iraq. We’ll be thinking about you.

August of 2006 I got hit by a car while taking a power walk. They originally told me I would use a wheelchair and walker for the reest of my life.

Thousands of hours of physical therapy later and I am back to power walking 5 days a week followed by an hour of weight training. This morning I took a Pilates class at 7 and got my first shot at lap swimming (that did NOT go well at all, which was very confusin gofr a former Lifeguard and surfer) and this afternoon Littleprop is going to come with me as I take my first crack at riding a regular bike.

I’ve been doing a stationary bike since I started PT, but I have balance issues from the brain damage,so riding a bike on the road will be an adventure.

Deciding not to let injury take away forever the things you loved to do is the happiest thing you can do for yourself. This winter my ortho said I could try X-country skiing to see if I was strong enough yet for it.

I used to take it for granted that I could do a 5-6 hour days on the trails. I did maybe, tops 5 miles over tha course of the day in very short streches with lots of hot chocolate in between. Everytime I was able to get the rythm sinced, I cried b/c I was so freakin happy.

I enjoy so many things that I used to take for granted. So, I’m ridiculously happy most of the time these days. I hope it will be the same for you Q.

Though I understand the fear of getting back on the road. I still jump when I hear a car come up unexpectedly behind me.

good to hear its getting easier… you are in an excellent position geographically to take a little trip through Yosemite, Lake Tahoe and down towards Mammoth Lakes… if you like the mountains!

;-)

Hands coke to Quebecois

Please, dear, I’ve stopped doing blow 25 years ago…;-)

sander0 at 165—

no it wasn’t MEEEEEEE!!!!!

strategerie’s husband won it!!!!

but i get a thrill when good things come, even when it isn’t me.

except when ’other people’ have sailboats at their disposal anytime they want.

then, not so much. * G *

ha

I love the mountains, seeing them all around is one of the coolest things about living here. Maybe it’s the Scottish ancestry, I just feel safer having mountains within sight.

Scott Mcmillan taught the guitar class at the camp I went to – he was amazing. I took classes from Brenda Stubbert, Buddy Mcmaster and a young guy from PEI whose name escapes me(but not the sight of him with spiked hair and huge numbers of earrings in his ears!). Great fun and people from all over the place.

I wasn’t advocating burning anything down, for cryin’ out loud. I was making an argument that even if something like that happened Wal-Mart stood to gain from it. Sheesh.

But do you like it? Is it starting to feel like home? Do you have any people there? Friends or family? New or old? I liked you comment about the sun setting in the wrong direction. That must be confusing. Reminds me of a time we went for a day in Chicago, and were on our way home. I asked my husband (at that time) who was driving if he was sure we were going in the right direction. He inquired, yeah, why? I said that if we were going in the right direction, why is the lake on the wrong side of the road? We turned around before we got to Wisconsin (we were supposed to be headed to IN).

I know this is going to sound super crazy, but you might want to consider taking ballroom dancing lessons. I had a severe back injury and could not feel one of my legs or my foot – I sprained my ankle three times in one month because I had no feel for where my foot was or anything. Ballroom dancing helped tremendously because a) someone was giving me support and b) I had to learn where all the parts of my foot were at any given time so that I would be stepping forward or backward properly.

I always liked the hosting in the home team’s home tradition that seems to have gone by the wayside now.

My first exposure came in HS. My HS ad a team and we had a team visit from No.Ireland and the rugby coach put out a call to all the parents in the Touchdown club (parent of football palyers and cheerleaders had their own booster club) since most of the rugby team overlapped the football team.

Our family wound up hosting 4 players, I went to my first ever game to watch them play at the NYAC feild on Travers Island. And my folks let my sisters and I throw a party while the team was in NY. We also took our 4 for day of sightseeing.

I was hooked from then on.

Richard Wood?

“sun setting on the wrong side”… grew up on the west coast but spent my Coast Guard years on the east coast…I’ve always had an excellent sense of direction. I noticed that the ocean was always on the “wrong side” while driving – really spun my compass for a few years… but I did adjust (still more easily oriented when its on the “correct side” though).

I said that if we were going in the right direction, why is the lake on the wrong side of the road?

707!

Have a daughter and several old friends here. It’s weird living in an apartment after so long in a house, but I like the place and am fixing it up. It does feel like home, even tho it’s only been 2 months. It was a rough decision but am glad I chose to come here.

You were saying that I advocate such things. Did I misread? No biggie.

LHP, my utmost veneration goes to you. I understand what fighting through the pain is.

got my first shot at lap swimming (that did NOT go well at all, which was very confusin gofr a former Lifeguard and surfer)

We have mucho in common, was a diver, swimmer and lifeguard too. Swimming has helped a lot in my recovery.

I used to take it for granted that I could do a 5-6 hour days on the trails. I did maybe, tops 5 miles over tha course of the day in very short streches with lots of hot chocolate in between. Everytime I was able to get the rythm sinced, I cried b/c I was so freakin happy.

Can i ever relate, walk for an hour, nap for three, that was my second year, and third year after the agression.

I enjoy so many things that I used to take for granted. So, I’m ridiculously happy most of the time these days. I hope it will be the same for you Q.

It already is, same wavelenght.

Though I understand the fear of getting back on the road. I still jump when I hear a car come up unexpectedly behind me.

Thanks for sharing, we have a lot in common. Kudos to you, you get what life is about.

oh, eg? on Yosemite – been going there since I was a baby – seems like it was a family trip every summer (Dad was a photographer). For the college geology class, I did my term paper on Yosemite. Good stuff for a science geek like me… and the place still fascinates me…

if you haven’t been, go… sit in on all the ranger shows – good fun!

looseheadprop, i said that to quebecois cuz you had already shared it with us. wanted him to know, too.

thanks for sharing again.

i’m proud of you, for what you have done, and what you continue to do. i know how hard it is.

i’ve had many surgeries, and a whoppin’ case of fibromyalgia among other things that make it difficult to exercise. my body does not cooperate many days. i don’t let that part keep me from doing things that make me happy and the things that will help my body heal.

life is good.

stay in touch

I will..I promised Jane…everything’s cool for now…I’ll take a break from front-posting for a while…at least until the Dem nomination is settled…there are restrictions on FDL front-pagers (reasonable ones) that I don’t agree with, so…but after the Dem nomination is settled, we’ll revisit everything, Jane and I…

Right now I need to focus on my new responsibilities at BBC News World Service. I renewed my contract when I was in London on March 3 (I took the train up from Paris)…and on the two book contracts that I have–have to produce the first book by December 2008…

Peace…

Thanks. I have feeling, but not balance for some reason. It’s bc I landed on my head. Mega concussion. I have many of the same brain injury issues that soldiers who got hurt from IEDs have.

I only recently mastered walking down the stairs without having to hold onto the railing for dear life.

Now I can carry the laundry down to the launderyroom all by myself, just like a big girl.

So, for the first time in my life, I get a smile from housework.

loosehead and quebecois–

i was a swimmer and diver, too.

weird.

LHP your recovery is inspirational. Good example for everyone and especially little prop.

Being in one of the states hardest hit by unemployment (NAFTA, anyone?),part time job—no vacation plans. Haven’t had one in 6 years.

So, I gain my perspective and refresh myself by taking walks through a wonderful park located 30 miles away. Don’t get to do it too often, but it’s a thrill when I do.

Thanks for the photo, egregarious…I sooo miss the beach, and this takes me back.

Weekend book salon with Biodun!

-G

Our family wound up hosting 4 players, I went to my first ever game to watch them play at the NYAC feild on Travers Island.

I have played at Randalls Island many a time (the coldest bloody place in the entire world).

if you’re going to eCAHN’s country place at New Paltz in June, I’ll be there as well…will be driving up from Woodstock, NY–with my friend Sarah..eCAHN has said we can bring friends…and lotsa wine, which is cool…looking forward to it–talk about breaks and vacation time…

Have younoticed how many people who come to this site are folks who have the kind of strength to look outside themselves depite their ow adversities?

I think that’ a big part of what makes this place so special. Just think about Jane heading to Libby trial only a couple weeks after cancer surgery. Think about her emailing the posters from her Treo which she smuggled into the recovery room!

So many people who are invovled in this site have had really tragic health and other misfortunes hit them out of the blue, yet instead of whining about it, get off their asses and try to save the world. Or at least the Constitution.

I really like it here

Hope you get to see the beach one of these days.

Yeah walking thru a park is one of the ways that I keep my equilibrium. Something calming about the combination of gentle movement and all that green [favorite color].

My team’s home pitch was on Randall’s. Were you in the Met Union?

“…to play SanderO for a sec, would cost a lot of people their low wage jobs.”

This is the part I put in pertaining to your concern for the masses in a post about vacations. While the “…cost a lot of people…” part is certainly true, “…to play SanderO…” was in jest, a slight dig. Not all conversations have to be about our current state of affairs. A little frivolity is always welcome. Sorry if I offended.

hehe…Hi there:

you in NH?

Oh, yes..that is who it was. He was a total hoot.

So many people who are invovled in this site have had really tragic health and other misfortunes hit them out of the blue, yet instead of whining about it, get off their asses and try to save the world.

Hey, that’s what DFH’s do…:-)

Off for a walk, and taking pics, I’ll post them here when I come back. Therapy…

Love it! I am sending this to my sister. She will die laughing.

Cat In Seattle

June 22 at New Paltz with eCAHN and a few cool FDLers…(including me…*G*)

(Those FDLers interested in going can email me privately–click on my name…for full info…)

No New England for me (Boston RFC) though I must admit that I loved going to NYC to play. The hosting was without peer! In Boston the bars close at 1AM so it was a bit of a shock to find that in NYC they stayed open all night… the first time I found that out I was pacing myself for a 1 AM shut down. By 4AM I was toast but played nonetheless. Thank goodness I had two wonderful props to hold me up.

Yes, the green is sooo soothing, eh?

This particular park has a winding streams throughout it and a few hills that…how to describe…there’s a spiritual aspect.

A resident red-tailed hawk usually makes its presence known when I am walking through.

My spirit is renewed.

(I just wish others also felt this way, and showed respect by not throwing their junk on the ground or in the stream.)

Jeez, hold on a minute! I don’t want to be the cause of something like that.

I got an all expenses paid to Thailand back in 1973 wasn’t quite number one on my hit parade, you understand. But I did get to see some really interesting things. :o)

mark
carlisle iowa
proudtobeaburdenonsociety

biodun at 195–yeah, i’m not sure yet, supposed to be going to a wedding in houston with best friend, but not finalized yet.

i love new paltz, so, would be fun to see it again, and the pups.

Well, I just read your #144 and you’ve always seemed very outgoing. You’ll make a lot of new friends in no time, and you can still keep in touch with the old ones. Thank goodness Al Gore created the internet, huh? So important to keep your balance when your going through the kind of changes you’ve faced within the last year.

I came home from work one day in 1999 to find all my husband’s belongings gone. To tell you the truth, I was more relieved than anything. The emotional part of a marriage dying had been a prolonged procedure over at least the prior two years, but we had a total of nine pets, including four horses, three dogs and two cats. He left the two lame horses in the back pasture, and took one of the dogs (that I wasn’t happy with anyway, so I didn’t mind that he took that dog). He left no note or any indication of where he was going, so he left me with six pets and a house I could not afford, nor could I care for it by myself, and I couldn’t sell it either without his signature. In other words, the man was a total coward.

I now blame the fact that neither one of us had the guts to use the “d” word. We should have faced the fact that the marriage was over long before I let this happen to myself. One of the only reasons I didn’t leave him earlier was that I felt he could not keep his horses or live his chosen lifestyle without my income. Sometimes you just have to say, it’s not just selfishness to face up to facts; and it’s not just selflessness not to face up to facts. It’s a long hard road, it’s doable.

A late good morn to you, Egregious, and all you pups.

Late to bed, late to rise, when we feel like it here. Retirement, despite its aches & pains, has some lovely perks.

I still just love getting right out there into the mud. er ahem, well-prepped garden soil, and planting. Nothing can compete with those fresh-from-the-garden goodies. I’ve already got onion sets ready to pop in the ground, and the snow’s not yet gone here.

Hey LHP at #55, heh heh! I remember that glorious stage when our own teens decided on the black room, yadda yadda. We never argued about it, but the potential “problem” was handled neatly by mom simply getting strangely lazy and distracted for a year or so till the kid decided he didn’t want black after all. It worked, that time. Suggest u try…

We’re into prep here for moving out of the one & only house we ever owned, so the days are spent recycling, finding good homes for all the useful stuff we won’t need in our [much smaller] new digs, and painting all the walls that realtor’s-special kinda off-white blah-hue that’ll get the house sold in spite of the wicked housing-market situation.

Frankly, I think the beautiful, bird-filled woods and peaceful setting will sell it better than any color paint in the world.

The giving part is the best. Great fun to see our old “how-to” books and still-useful stuff of all sorts facing a new life being enjoyed by other families. From the garden tiller for another gardening-nut right down to the box of perfectly fine but slightly used crayons going to a whole new batch of kids.

P E A C E

LHP
Saturday from HK7s

USA led the team to a 38 – 17 victory.Tapie

lhp at 196-

yep, it’s called people of

depth.

experience

compassion

resourcefulness

that comes from overcoming and dealing with adversity.

it’s just something you do ’in order to make a more perfect union’ and life.

lhp, q, cat, etc, all you guys are making me cry.

thanks, eg.

I wasn’t offended at all. I just miss humor or snark at times. I have a tough skin. After all it’s just words here and we are all after a better world. No prob mon.

If you were in Boston, you probably had the pleasure of many opportunites to watch the AMAZING ladies of the Beantown RFC play. They have always dazzled me. Such a deep bench.

If you were in Boston, you probably had the pleasure of many opportunites to watch the AMAZING ladies of the Beantown RFC play. They have always dazzled me. Such a deep bench.

Many many times. I have refd their games over the years and have helped train them in the finer arts of hooking (without getting caught for foot up or any other nefarious “inside” stuff. I have always enjoyed and supported women’s rugby. The Boston Women are, of course, the best!!!!!!

sander0 says to southern dragon at 215–”I just miss humor or snark at times. ” –

funny, i knew that! * G *

i snarked you at my 174 but made sure to add a big grin, so you would know it was a ’funny’.

kinda. (smirk)

Well, you and I are rarities. Not that many fowards end up as refs. It’s usually those speedy backs with the clean shirts like EW. Or even more rare, guys like Morrision who only reffed and never played.

Did you go to the ref’s clinic at MIT? It would have been in thelate 8o’s or very early 90’s.

Ian Nixon was still USArFU president. I was the only woman ref there, so you would know if we’ve met

SORRY, I’M TOO BUSY WORKING TO RELAX – THIS IS NOT THE TIME!

Did you forget the ‘other’ candidate in the race??

AS MUCH AS I LOVE FDL, and appreciate all the e-mails about McCain I’m incredibly disappointed at your silence when it comes to Obama.

You neither attempt to see to his fair treatment nor do you jump on any technical injustices present in his campaign. Or you just didn’t notice such injustices – which in my opinion would be a worse admission.
If you endorse Hillary -POST IT, so can I find better use of my time than waste it here.

My issue and protest now, is to push a petition and any necessary and further action to Congress to have Brian Lamb removed from C-span’s control. I believe his actions have in the past and still today represent illegal tamperings with our elections ‘under the guise of ‘public service’, which my dollars pay for. He’s especially and deliberately vicious in Presidential campaign years: bringing on Michelle Malkin on a Lamb hosted Washington Journal episode -on Memorial Day -to discuss her new book bashing the Left for hating the troops.

He pushes repeated coverage of all things Right wing to the exclusion of most events from the Left. Last election he couldn’t air the Swift Boaters and the Michelle Malkin’s enough.

And now? Where most of Obama’s events used to be aired at 3:00am, and were rarely even put on the schedule -which are notoriously inaccurate anyway – none of Obama’s recent three major speeches- other than on Wright, nor other recent events, nor the Casey endorsement, and any of the events on his bus trip through Penn. – not one f**king event has been aired on any of C-spans channels.
Lamb has now blocked him out completely.

Clinton and McCain event are aired daily and frequently repeated throughout the day and they are. McCain ,Clinton, Gingrich, Rove, Tony Perkins, and every other politician with a comment on the election has been aired repeatedly -but not one word from Obama talking about anything other than race has been seen on C-span these last few weeks -the most critical time for the candidates of the entire election season.

If your Hillary or McCain wins fairly -so be it. But when my Left wing friends are following the Right into the gutter and do so knowing this will permanently destroy the Democrats ever having real control over Congress again -as they most surely are – all because it gives them their trophy ear – those are not MY kind of people and certainly not Democrats I will ever support again.

Because in their efforts to win at all costs, they’ve become losers.

Off to save the world. Actually, going to do a partial water change in my aquarium at work. The saving the world part comes later today. I could be selfish and sit at home and read with a lap lump but then I’d miss pissing off the warmongers yelling, “Get a job!” I call ‘em Road Scholars (as opposed to Rhodes Scholars). Morons. Almost 6 years with a sign. Speaking of dreams, what’ll I do when the war’s over?

Or even more rare, guys like Morrision who only reffed and never played.

I have known him for bloody ever and frankly I though he was/is the best damn ref around. Ian… blast from the past and yes I will bet that we have crossed paths. You are in NYC? I have to come that way one weekend soon (month or two) with wonderful wife so that we can get more tea from Chinatown. We must have a libation.

I lived in the MIT “rugby house” in Lexington for years in the late 60s and was involved with the FAC. Jeeze I am going to have to get a pint!!!

Actually, going to do a partial water change in my aquarium at work.

We have to buy bottled water as our tap water kills our fish!

What little rugby theory I know I learned from Morrision, from jack clark–his “juicebal” speech at the San Fran National refs clinic finally got me to really understand the advantage rule, and from Chuck Danigian from Old Blue (he was batshit crazy,picked fightes witheverybody, but he really THOUGHT about the game)

Iremeber leaving a family vacation in Cape Cod to drive to a clinic in (Adams”) western Mass, where Geaorge Hook taught this great module about the history of the game. I never knew that basketball was originally an indoor conditioning drill for rugby players during the winter. Hook was like a walking encyclopedia of sports.

If you use K-Quel or something similar you should be able to use tap water. Our water here kills tropical fish in just under 9 minutes. One of my friends bought a betta and used tap water and was horrified to see her new fish die while she was admiring him. She didn’t know that the water has to be de-chlorinated just for starters. With all the other chemicals they’ve added to our potable water I don’t do anything with it except wash dishes, clothes, and myself. I keep pre-treated gallon jugs to add and change water. It takes a little more effort but they’re living, breathing things that I’ve taken responsibility for. It’s nice to sit and just watch them. A gorgeous blue betta and a variety of tetras in a 10 gallon tank. Not like the 100 gallon I used to have.

Ours is 35 gal. We keep 10 gals of bottled water on hand and replenish/replace when needed. Once we stopped using tap water we have been able to enjoy being mesmerized for hours on end. Powder blue Ghourami, angel fish and a slew of tetras of various shades and sizes. Throughly enjoyable.

Hmmmm. you probably remember Brian Swords then. He, all 6′7 used to play the penny whistle (quite well I may say). He was a great student of the game.

Jeeze I though basketball was just a way to work up enough sweat to qualify for a pint!

edit:

…I used to have. (sigh).

Hey Adie,

Nice to see you this morning! Hope you’re doing well.

greetings everyone,

i’m new here, but thought i’d add my 2¢. i’ve been enjoying trader joe’s kauai peaberry coffee recently (it’s fantastic, btw), and it just reaffirms my desire to visit the island. i’d even learn to love the frequent showers just for the lush greenery, tropical breezes, and blue ocean all around. ah, someday…

Welcome to the lake, burntbeans!

Hope to hear from you often. Got an extra cup of that kauai peaberry to share?

where’s the petition? i’ll sign! last night it seemed every time i scanned through to check out c-span, they were airing forums from the american enterprise institute, including karl rove and some iraqi-emigree-ahmad-chalabi-clone talking about how wonderful george bush is and how he’s saved iraq, blah, blah, lies…

i’m pouring you a steaming cup right now; it’s berry-licious!

would love to be in the bay area to enjoy it while strolling through golden gate park…

I thought I was the only one that noticed that. Did you watch the interview with Phil Donahue about the documentary he fianced. Was Brian Lamb uncomfortable about some the scenes. I have a handicap son and am well aware of what that family is going through. But I wished there was something that could be done also. The only thing I can think of to keep emailing them with your complaints.

but, but, but, we are a joyous bunch! :-))

Brian Swords? Wow there’s a name I haven’t heard in a long time. Yeah, I remember him

I only lasted six months in MA until the snows drove me out…

This summer we’re vacationing in Tahoe at my wife’s family reunion. It’s an interesting bunch — a historian, a medical researcher, a street artist, an independent (starving) film actor. The chats around the campfire should be interesting.

Anyone been to Tahoe? Anything we shouldn’t miss?