The Roommate and The Dog

So, the whole roommate thing has been an interesting experience, to say the least. As you might recall in a previous posting, he moved in temporarily and then went and got a puppy.

Well, that didn’t go over very well and came damn close to breaking us up completely. He ended up moving out, which brought a whole new set of emotional problems with it (but that’s a whole other story that I don’t really want to get in to here).

Then, over the Christmas holiday, he and his kids moved into a third place for a week. Meanwhile, his stuff is still in both my place AND his other place – and he’s living out of a duffle bag at the third place.

Once his kids went back home he had intended to move back in to the second place, but the owner of the spare room he’s occupying needed some privacy for her and her boyfriend for a while - so he’s back at my place.

Is this confusing or what?

The long and the short of it is that I, once again, have a roommate and a dog temporarily living with me. And by the way, the dog’s new nick-name is The Poop Machine. I’ll leave that to your imagination, only saying that thankfully they’re moving out either tonight or tomorrow!

And of course, his closing date got pushed back yet again.

Body Piercing –vs- Tattoos

You know how everybody always says that once you get a tattoo, you’ll end up with more of them?

I’m not finding that to be true. I’m quite happy with just the one that I have, and feel no compulsion to get any more. About the only way I can see me getting another one is if I should happen to get bit by some exotic bug or reptile while on my Amazonian Adventure.

What I have discovered, however, is that I am feeling the need to get pierced again! Who knew that would be addictive? I’m thinking maybe a whole row of eyebrow piercings, sort of like a zipper along my brow? Each one could be a different color – rather like a rainbow!

Wouldn’t that be cool?

Chaz Limited

I dropped my car off at the shop this morning for an estimate on the work to be done. So far, I’m liking the place. Of course, I’ve only dealt with them for a total of maybe 10 minutes – we will see how well they do on the actual repair work.

Rob picked me up at the shop and gave me a ride to work. They would have done that for me, but I’d already arranged with him. Of course, this meant he had to get up on his day off – but he had things to do today anyway, so it worked out well enough.

The total cost of repairs is going to be about $750 = not nearly as bad as I expected, but a little bit worse than Rob thought it would be. It is completely covered by the insurance company, though, so that’s not my worry.

One of the guys here at the office gave me a ride back to the body shop so I could pick my car up. I also signed the paperwork authorizing them to order the parts and get thing rolling.

And I just got off the phone with Enterprise getting the rental car set up.

Let the Ordeal Commence

When I spoke to the insurance company yesterday to file a claim against the man who hit me, we discovered that he was not listed on the policy for that vehicle, so the insurance guy was not exactly sure how to proceed until he could get confirmation that everything was ok and the guy had not stolen that car!

I just got off the phone this morning with the insurance guy who called to let me know that he did get hold of the policy holder and that the guy did indeed have their permission to be driving the car, so the insurance will have no problems paying for the repairs to my vehicle.

What a relief!

They will also be paying for a rental car for me, through Enterprise. I’m to let the auto body shop know that I need one, and they will set it all up for me – and send the bill to the insurance company, to boot.

Now, here’s a funny for you: you’ll never guess what I got in the mail last night.

Two letters - one from a lawyer and the other from a physical therapist – both saying “I heard you were in an accident! Please feel free to use our services!”

Goodness… talk about “ambulance chasers!”

Team Members

I finally got the list of team members who will be joining me on my Earthwatch Expedition next month. I’m very excited…

It’s going to be a small group (my preferred) with just eight volunteers, including myself.

Four of them are from the US and four of them are from the UK.

Four of them are male, four of them are female.

Four of them are couples – or at least I assume they are married, since they list a male and a female with the same last names and the same addresses. I suppose they could be mother/son or father/daughter. We shall see…

One of them may actually be one of the guys I went to Mongolia with! Wouldn’t that be cool?

Expedition Update

OMG! I leave NEXT MONTH!!! I’m so excited…

I made up little packets of information for my Emergency Contact people so they would have all the information they might need in case they have to get hold of me somehow or (God forbid) have to claim my body and get it back stateside.

I’m going to get all the medications I need tonight – both prescription drugs and over-the-counter ones. I don’t need a whole lot of things, but should have the basics at least: Band-Aids, anti-itch cream, pain killers and the like. If I don’t use them, I can always leave them there to stock the boat for future needs.

I’ll have to call the vet and leave my credit card number there in case my baby sitter needs to use it. Djuna should be okay while I’m gone, but just in case.

I’ll need to call the travel agent and confirm my flights. Hopefully nothing has changed too much. I did contact the hotel and verified that there will be somebody to pick me up in Iquitos when I get there. I also have a city tour arranged once I get checked in and stow my luggage away!

I think that about does it for preparations… now all I need to do is wait till time to go.

Fender Bender

Well, I was going to write up a nice long post all about my wreck, using witty phrasing and clever statements – but honestly, I simply got hit. There’s nothing amusing about it, and I’m just not up to pretending, I guess.

The long and the short of it is that as I was leaving the grocery store one evening, the truck behind me couldn’t stop soon enough and munched the bumper on the back right-hand corner of my car.

Thankfully that was the only damage. No bodily harm was caused to either driver, and no other car was involved. The guy who hit me was a decent human being, too – surprisingly enough. He owned up to the accident, stuck around with me till the police showed up, and gracefully accepted the ticket.

Of course, now I get to deal with the hassle of insurance, body shops, car rentals, and time off work. But I suppose it could have been so much worse.

I called his insurance company today and got the ball rolling on the claim. I’ll take it in to the body shop on Friday to get the appraisal done.

Anybody want to take bets on whether or not I’ll get this finished before my vacation?

60 Days and Counting!

Today marks the 60-day point on my countdown = just two months till I go to Peru for my Scientific Expedition.

Can you tell I’m excited?

My tasks for this month are as follows:

First – I have to gather all my gear together and make sure I have everything I need. I actually did that last night and am good to go. Surprisingly enough, it’s really not that much stuff. I will be taking a carry-on and a small day pack with me, and will actually have room left over. I figured that doing the carry-on thing instead of the luggage thing would be best. That way I don’t have to wait for my luggage, or worry about losing it or anything getting stolen out of it.

Second – I have to get all my prescriptions filled. I won’t have that much with me this time; just the anti-malaria pills and some anti-diarrhea pills incase I eat something that doesn’t agree with me. I’ll be taking care of that this weekend, I think.

Everything else is pretty much taken care of. February can’t get here soon enough...

An Eventful Night

It all started out with a very uneventful day, and I was feeling very “unloved” and needy so was looking forward to spending an evening with just him and a movie. I had even picked up two cinamon rolls from the Great Harvest Bread Company for our dessert.

He had other plans, apparently. He came in from spending the day with his buddy, hopped in the shower to clean off, and then left again.

Once again, it was just me. I had watched enough TV, had read two books, and the girls had actually been snuggled enough so they had taken themselves off to the electric blanket for the night. I took their advice and went to bed early myself.

Only to be awoken a couple hours later by my house alarm! Let me tell you, when that thing goes off, it really goes off. It sounds like a 747 landing right there in your living room.

I thought at first it was it was him, coming home finally, but it just kept on going. So I went to investigate, and found the front door wide open. I very quickly shut the door and turned off the alarm, then set about trying to figure out how the door got open.

No worries - there was no intruder.

What I think happened is the wind blew it open. That is rather disturbing on several levels. First: the wind was really blowing! We’ve been having some freaky weather lately, with gusts of over 118 recorded – and last night was right on par. Second: apparently the locks on my door don’t work. Not sure what to do with that little tidbit of information.

I finally got everything straightened away enough to notice that he was still not home. I shot off a quick text asking if he was alright, then went back to bed.

Only to be awoken again several hours later – this time by 4 guys out in the road in front of my house. They were yelling and carrying on loud enough to wake the dead. At first, I was frightened, and almost called the police. They sounded very angry and were yelling things like “I’ll kill you! I’ll kill you!” but then I realized they were just drunks. I even got to watch one of them run over to the neighbor’s house and pee all over their garage door.

Lucky me.

The funny thing about all this commotion is that Thing managed to sleep right thru it all. She was snoring, even.

401k Fund Eligibility

Yesterday marked my 6-month anniversary here at GDM Architects.

Yay for employment!!!

I am now eligible for the company’s 401k plan, so have been filling out paperwork this morning. It’s not the best plan I’ve ever participated in, but it’s so much better than nothing.

I have elected to divert 3% of my paycheck into the fund at this time. It’s not much – just around $50 a paycheck – but again, it’s better than nothing. When (or if) I get a raise, I can up that accordingly.

One thing that’s very odd about this plan is that there is no computer access to the account – it’s all done via the phones. Surely they have a website I can log onto, somewhere. I just need to track that down. I am not a phone person.

Write for Rights

Each year, Amnesty International hosts a Global Write-a-thon to fight Human Rights Abuse all over the world. They provide you with everything you need: information on the cases highlighted that year, addresses to send them to, and sample letters to follow in case you get writers block.

Since I am such a letter-writer, I have always tried to join in. This week I will be busy writing for the following:

AZERBAIJAN - Youth activist detained after using Facebook
     Hours after posting a Facebook message calling for protests against the government, Jabbar Savalan told his family that he was being followed. The next evening, police brought him to a police station, where they "discovered" marijuana in his outer coat pocket. Questioning him without a lawyer for two days, police reportedly hit and intimidated him to make him sign a confession. Jabbar Savalan maintained that he does not use drugs and that the marijuana was planted on him. Authorities in Azerbaijan have a history of using trumped-up drug charges to jail those seen as critical of the government. Amnesty International believes the charges against Jabbar were fabricated, and considers him a prisoner of conscience.

IRAN - Youth leaders imprisoned for speaking out
     Behareh Hedayat and Majid Tavakkoli are serving long prison sentences for seeking greater freedom in Iran. Majid was arrested and reportedly beaten by authorities in December 2009, after addressing a university rally in Tehran. Behareh was arrested later that month and charged with several offenses, including "insulting the leader" and "insulting the president." The two student leaders last year issued a joint statement from prison, encouraging others to continue to push for change in Iran. In response, authorities extended each of their prison sentences by another six months.

CHINA - Nobel Peace Prize laureate imprisoned
     Liu Xiaobo, recipient of the 2010 Nobel Peace Prize, remains imprisoned for seeking for political and legal reforms in China. Charged with "inciting subversion of state power," the prominent scholar and human rights defender was sentenced in December 2009 based on articles he'd written that criticized corruption, censorship and one-party rule. In the articles, he advocated developing a democratic multi-party political system. The court considered this to be "rumor mongering, slander and smear" that exceeded the limits of freedom of expression. The court also cited Charter 08, a proposal Liu co-founded that called for protection of universal human rights and democratic reform in China, as "slanderous" and an attempt to incite the subversion of the current regime. While in prison, Liu Xiaobo was awarded the 2010 Nobel Peace Prize for his tireless, non-violent struggle for human rights in China. Amnesty International considers Liu Xiaobo to be a prisoner of conscience.

BAHRAIN - Teachers detained for supporting pro-reform efforts
     Jalila al-Salman and Mahdi ‘Issa Mahdi Abu Dheeb, former vice-president and president of the Bahrain Teachers' Association, were detained in March after their association reportedly supported a teachers' strike amid widescale pro-reform protests in Bahrain. Jalila (photo left) was reportedly held in solitary confinement and subjected to beatings for several days. She was released on bail in August, but Mahdi Abu Dheeb remains detained. Jalila al-Salman and Mahdi Abu Dheeb were sentenced by a military court in September 2011 to prison terms of 3 years and 10 years, respectively. They had been charged with a variety of offenses, including "inciting hatred towards the regime," "calling to overthrow and change the regime by force," "calling on parents not to send their children to school," and "calling on teachers to stop working and participate in strikes and demonstrations." Amnesty International believes they may have been arrested solely for exercising their right to freedom of expression and association.

INDONESIA - Jailed for raising a flag
     Filep Karma is serving 15 years in prison for raising a flag. A prominent advocate for the rights of Indonesia's Papuan population, Filep Karma was arrested for taking part in a peaceful ceremony that included the raising of the Morning Star flag, a symbol of Papuan independence. Filep Karma has experienced serious health problems in prison and has been beaten by guards. Amnesty International considers him a prisoner of conscience and calls on the Indonesian government to free Filep Karma and all other prisoners of conscience.

MEXICO - Indigenous women raped by soldiers
     For more than nine years, two women in Mexico have taken on military and government authorities to demand justice after they were raped by soldiers in 2002. Inés Fernández and Valentina Rosendo are Indigenous Me'phaa (Tlapaneca) women. Indigenous women in Mexico who are raped rarely file a complaint due to cultural, economic and social barriers. Inés Fernández and Valentina Rosendo have shown courage in reporting their ordeals and have followed up their cases in national and international courts. The women and their families have faced threats as their battle for justice continues.

CAMEROON - Imprisoned on charges of "homosexuality"
     Jean-Claude Roger Mbede is serving three years in prison on charges of "homosexuality," which is a criminal offense in the central African nation of Cameroon. Arrested in March 2011, Jean-Claude Roger Mbede is currently serving his sentence at Kondengui central prison in Yaoundé, the capital of Cameroon, where he is at risk of physical attack and other forms of cruel, inhuman or degrading treatment. Amnesty International considers Jean-Claude Roger Mbede to be a prisoner of conscience, imprisoned solely because of his perceived sexual orientation. Discrimination against lesbian, gay, bisexual and transgender (LGBT) people is endemic in Cameroon. Arrests, prosecutions and trials of LGBT people, or those perceived as such, occur on a regular basis.

ZIMBABWE - Human rights activists at risk
     The activists of the human rights organization Women of Zimbabwe Arise (WOZA) know the price of freedom. For organizing peaceful demonstrations to protest the worsening social, economic and political situation in Zimbabwe, WOZA members have been repeatedly harassed, intimidated, beaten and jailed by authorities. For years, government officials have misused the law to arbitrarily arrest and detain human rights activists and perceived critics of the President's political party. WOZA activists have been arrested multiple times, forced into Zimbabwe's notoriously filthy, over-crowded, and disease-ridden jails. Yet, they remain undaunted in their pursuit of dignity and justice.

NORTH KOREA - Families imprisoned for life
     Shin Sook-ja and her daughters are among the estimated 50,000 men, women and children currently held in Yodok political prison camp. Yodok is one of six known camps in North Korea in which some 200,000 political prisoners and their families are imprisoned. Inmates, including children, are tortured and forced to work in dangerous conditions. Many prisoners either die in detention or shortly after being released. Authorities sent Shin Sook-ja and her daughters to Yodok in 1987 after her husband requested political asylum in Denmark. It has been over 20 years since the husband received any information about his imprisoned family.

USA (Guantánamo) - Indefinite detention
     Shaker Aamer has been held without charge by US authorities for more than 8 years. A former UK resident, he was originally detained in Afghanistan in 2001, then transferred in 2002 to the detention facility at Guantánamo Bay, where he remains. At Guantánamo he has protested against conditions at the camp, including by participating in hunger strikes. He has spent much of his time there in solitary confinement. Shaker Aamer has alleged that he was tortured in detention in Afghanistan and at Guantánamo. He has never been charged, tried or convicted of any criminal offense by US authorities. His wife and children live in South London, and the British government has asked for Shaker Aamer's return from Guantánamo.

USA - Facing execution in Missouri
     No physical evidence, alleged police coercion, prosecutorial misconduct, a ‘stacked’ jury. Reggie Clemons was sentenced to death in St. Louis as an accomplice in the 1991 murder of two young white women. Clemons has consistently maintained his innocence. His case illustrates many of the flaws in the U.S. death penalty system.

SRI LANKA - Student killed by security forces
     Ragihar Manoharan was one of five Tamil students killed by security forces in January 2006 in the city of Trincomalee. Authorities have failed to prosecute anyone for their murder. His case is emblematic of the thousands of people subjected to human rights violations and war crimes in Sri Lanka by government forces or their paramilitary agents. Ragihar's father, Dr. Manoharan, has campaigned for justice for his son, accompanying Amnesty International in pressing the United Nations to establish an international war crimes investigation in Sri Lanka.

USA - Juvenile life imprisonment without parole
     At age 16, Christi Cheramie was sentenced to life in prison without the possibility of parole. She has now spent more than half of her life in a Louisiana prison. It is a violation of international law to sentence anyone to life in prison without parole who was under the age of 18 at the time of the crime. Sentenced on charges of second-degree murder, Cheramie has been described by a prison warden as "a model inmate... worthy of a second chance in society." The US is the only country apart from Somalia to not ratify the UN Convention on the Rights of the Child, which prohibits the sentencing of juvenile offenders to life imprisonment without the possibility of release.

YEMEN - Death penalty following an unfair trial
     Fatima Hussein Badi is facing execution following an unfair trial. Fatima and her brother Abdullah were arrested in July 2000 for the murder of Fatima's husband. Police reportedly questioned Fatima for more than five hours without a lawyer present. When she refused to confess, Abdullah was brought to her with his face covered in blood. She was allegedly threatened with rape in the presence of Abdullah, who apparently confessed to the murder in order to save her from being raped. Fatima and Abdullah had no legal representation in trial hearings and were prevented from speaking in court. Abdullah was executed in 2005. Fatima remains at imminent risk of execution.

NIGERIA - Forced evictions of communities
     More than 200,000 people are at risk of forced eviction in Port Harcourt if Nigeria's authorities proceed with planned demolitions of all waterfront settlements without first implementing human rights safeguards. On 28 August 2009, the demolition of Njemanze informal waterfront settlement in Port Harcourt left thousands of men, women and children homeless. No prior, genuine consultation was carried out with residents. They received no adequate notice, compensation, alternative accommodation or legal remedies, although these are required by international human rights standards. Njemanze is one of more than 40 waterfront settlements in Port Harcourt slated for demolition, which state authorities claim is necessary for urban renewal. Residents of the affected communities were not consulted on the plans for redevelopment.

Temporary Insanity

I know, I know. I swore I would never have another roommate, ever again!

So what do I do? I agree to let him crash on my couch for a few weeks while he closes on his house.

The problem is “a few weeks” has somehow managed to turn in to “a couple of months” because of course closing on a house never goes as smoothly as one hopes.

It’s actually not too bad. He’s set up in the library on my futon, and has all his stuff packed into half of the garage.

But still… it’s somebody living in my house with me.

And then he goes and makes it that much worse. You’ll never in a million years guess what he did.

He got a dog.

He knew I didn’t want dogs in my house. We had talked about it earlier, and he agreed he should wait till he was into his own place.

That lasted barely a week.

She is a puppy, actually. A 9-week old silver Labrador named Daisy. She’s not potty trained or leash trained. She cries a lot and even howls when left alone. And she chews on everything.

Actually, it’s not all bad. She is adorable, and he keeps her in her kennel most of the time. He’s working on potty training her, and we’re both working on teacher her what she can chew on and what she can’t.

Update on Djuna

My little June Bug had a vet’s appointment Saturday. Since it is quite chilly outside, I fixed up her travel carrier with a hot water bottle that has a sheepskin cover on it. She loved that: it’s nice and warm AND fuzzy all at the same time. Almost makes up for having to go to the vet.

Almost.

She is such a good little girl and has everybody over at The Pet Stop completely wrapped around her little fingers. They all love her, and keep commenting on how tiny she is. They can’t believe she’s not only all grown up (as in not a kitten) but is actually a grandmother!

The exam went well enough, with both good news and bad news as a result of it all.

The bad news:
     Her kidneys are not getting any better.

The good news:
     She’s not getting any worse, either.

The bad news:
     She has another infection. They had to keep her all day in order to get a urine sample, but I’m glad they did. I had no idea she was not feeling well again (and boy do I feel guilty about that) but now she’s back on antibiotics to fight it so all will be well again.

The good news:
     She’s gained weight! When she first came to live with me she weighed 5lbs 4oz. Now, almost 2.5 years later, she weighs 6lbs 3oz. That’s really good, and the vet was very happy about it.

So I guess our plan of attack is to continue with the weekly IV treatments, keep her eating wet foods and drinking as much water as possible, and take her in every 4 months to check her blood levels and urine.

My Second Cup of Tea

I received my second shipment from the Tea of the Month Club last night:
     4oz of Ceylon Balangoda Tea FP

The description on the package reads:
     The Balangoda estate is in one of the more beautiful corners of the planet. It is situated in the low-grown Ruhunu district and shares geography with the breathtaking Yala National Park. The park is comprised of wild brush, ocean beaches, jungles, rocky terrain, and numerous lakes and rivers. Because of the wide variety terrain, the park is home to animal life of all description, from leopards to Asian elephants, wild boar, crocodiles, painted storks, and of course the Sri Lanka Junglefowl. Although the Ruhunu district is perhaps better known for its parkland than tea acreage, the region produces some fabulous teas every bit as colorful and full of life as its wild inhabitants!
     This bold Ceylon Balangoda FP (Flowery Pekoe) Tea offers strength without bitterness, and a fine rich flavor. Strong enough for breakfast and takes milk and sugar well. Also a fine afternoon tea served plain. Use one teaspoon per cup and steep about 3 minutes in freshly boiled water.

I of course brewed myself a cup as soon as I got in the house and was very pleased with it. My niece came over to visit so I made her a cup, too. 

So far I’m thinking my little indulgence here is a wonderful thing!

Numbers and Patterns

If you’re even half as fascinated with numbers and patterns as I am, I’m sure you noticed the passing of this momentous date: 11-11-11

But did you notice this one? 11-02-2011
Or how about this one? 11-22-11

Yes, November has truly been an interesting month…

My Craft Room Just Keeps Getting Better!

Have you tried out that new Groupon thing? Each day they send out an email highlighting that day’s special deal: anything from 75% off dinner at the Taproot to a two-for-one deal on carpet cleaning for your home. You can really get some good deals and not only are they easy to purchase, they’re even easier to use.

A while ago they had one for 50% off a Wall Mural from LTL Prints. I’m assuming that LTL stands for “Larger than Life” because their smallest mural was 4’ long by 9” wide. The photos to choose from were anything from cityscapes (New York, London, Paris, even Anchorage) to Landscapes (beach scenes, desert scenes, jungle scenes, tundra scenes) to just about anything you could think of.

Since I have been looking for something to decorate the wall in my Craft Room anyway, I went ahead and got one. It took a while to choose the perfect scene, but I finally did. I ended up with a picture of Denali and the surrounding area – and it looks just PERFECT up there on my wall!

A big thanks to Lorna and Rob for helping me install it. Even though it was easy enough, it was still a 5-foot long by 18-inches wide photo that required numerous attempts at getting it level.

Then, not two days later, Rob put together the last two cubbies to complete the storage line-up under the window! I now have 12 of them, each one a different arrangement of drawers, shelves, or slots. I must say, it looks so good now.

As an added bonus, I now have so much room to store supplies I just might have to go shopping for more!

One Really Pissed Off Clown

It’s hard to believe that my niece is 23 years old. Of course, I still think of her as a little girl – but that’s what Aunties are for.

I remember one time I went out to Palmer. I was with my sister-by-choice, Lisa, and we were on our way up to the Matanuska River to do a float trip (quasi white water rafting). We stopped off at Noel’s house to visit and found little Katy, age 6, all dressed up in a clown outfit, of all things.

Talk about cute! Her mother had made the costume for her, all billowing legs & arms with bright colors and big buttons. She looked absolutely adorable, and was really enjoying being the center of attention.

Soon enough Lisa and I had to be off to start our adventure on time, so climbed back in to the truck and headed off down the road.

Apparently, Katy did not want us to leave just yet. In fact, she was downright MAD at us. She ran out to the front yard and started screaming bloody murder, jumping up and down and throwing her arms all over the place.

It was honestly the funniest thing I’d ever seen – and yet, at the same time, it was extremely disturbing.

There she was, on the side of the road where EVERYBODY in Palmer could see her – dressed up in a clown outfit – throwing one of her best-ever biggest temper tantrums.

Oh how I wish I’d had a video camera!

Expedition Update

First: I now have confirmation that my insurance will be reimbursing me at 100% for my inoculations. This is really good news as they are quite expensive and the doctor’s office required payment up-front. I’ll need to find out whom to expect a refund from: will it come from the doctor’s office or from my insurance? Not that it matters, really. It’s all money in the bank! But, I should like to know who to expect it from.

Second: I just made my final payment towards the expedition this morning. The Expedition Fund I set up was a huge success (thank you to all who donated) and helped defray almost half the cost. The rest of it came from my savings account which unfortunately has left me quite drained of emergency funds. But it’s totally worth it!

My next milestone will be at 60 days prior to leaving, which comes up in about a month. At that time, I will review all my gear to make sure I have everything I need and figure out how to pack it all. I will also get the prescription medication needed for the trip: the malaria pills, some antibiotics (in case I get a terrible case of traveler’s diarrhea) and some Xanex (to help me relax in the airplane).

Now that they have final payment from everybody planning to go on the expedition, I expect I’ll be getting a list of all my fellow volunteers soon. I can’t wait to see whose going! Typically I send a brief introductory email, just to say hello. Sometimes, I even get responses back.

Who Doesn't Love Bugs?

Once again I find myself reading such a good book that just I have to tell everybody, in hopes that at least one of you out there will be "infected" by my enthusiasm enough to actually read it too.

This one is called Insectopedia by Hugh Raffles.

“As inventive and wide ranging and full of astonishing surprises as the vast insect world itself. Raffles takes us on a delirious journey” –the New York Times.

Here’s a quote:

They estimated that at any given time on any given day throughout the year, the air column rising from 50 to 14,000 feet above one square mile of Louisiana countryside contained an average of 25 million insects and perhaps as many as 36 million.

They found ladybugs at 6,000 feet during the daytime, striped cucumber beetles at 3,000 feet during the night. They collected three scorpion flies at 5,000 feet, thirty-one fruit flies between 200 and 3,000 feet, a fungus gnat at 7,000 and another at 10,000. They caught wingless worker ants as high as 4,000 feet and sixteen species of parasitic ichneumon wasps at altitudes up to 5,000 feet.

At 15,000 feet, “probably the highest elevation at which any specimen has ever been taken above the surface of the earth,” they trapped a ballooning spider, a feat that reminded Glick of spiders thought to have circumnavigated the globe on the trade winds and let him to write that “the young of most spiders are more or less addicted to this mode of transportation.” an image of excited little animals packing their luggage that opened a small rupture in the consensus around the passivity of all this airborne movement and let to Glick’s subsequent observation that ballooning spiders not only climb up to an exposed dist (a twig or a flower, for instance), stand on tiptoe, raise their abdomen, test the atmosphere, throw out silk filaments, and launch themselves into the blue, all free legs spread-eagled, but that they also use their bodies and their silk to control their descent and the location of their landing.

Thirty-six million little animals flying unseen above one square mile of countryside? The heavens opened. The air column was “a vault of insect-laden air” from which fell “a continuous rain.”

First Snowfall of the Season

Well, the first at my house at least – it has apparently been on the ground elsewhere for a while now. I got almost two whole inches in my yard, with more coming down as we speak.

As always, the first snowfall of the season makes for some exciting driving out on the roads! People tend to forget how to handle icy roads after the summer months; I can’t find anything in the papers about it this morning, but I’m sure the local police had a busy day yesterday. Just standing out on my driveway and watching the cars attempt to drive by I saw pretty much every other car slide out of control at one point or another.

Wouldn’t you know it; I had not switched my tires over yet. I ended up dropping my car off at the garage at 11:00 on my way to lunch, figuring I could just hang out till it was done and head on back home. Unfortunately every other person in the city had that same idea, so the wait-time was over 5 hours! It had to be done, though, so I called my niece to see if she could come pick me up (YAY for Katy being back home now!) after I ate. She said she could.

As it turned out, Rob ended up being the one to pick me up (I didn’t want to interrupt Katy’s study group) on his way to dropping off a load of stuff to store in my garage. He is moving in to his new home soon, but needs a place in the interim for all his gear and whatnot. In fact, he needs a place for himself too, so will be crashing on my futon in the library. But that’s a whole other story…

While he was at my house, I grabbed the snow shovel and attacked the driveway thinking he would insist on taking over, but it was actually my neighbor’s kid who ended up taking over. He was very excited about the snow – and not just because he loves to go sledding: he was getting a real kick over watching all the cars spin out of control!