Gifts that make us squeal…

What does it say about me that the last gift that made me squeal is a tongs for lifting jars out of a water bath?

… as in a canning implement.

I’m not sure I’m ready to hear the answer to that question.

S.

Jack Sprat…

I’m sure that many of you have heard the following…

Jack Sprat could eat no fat.

His wife could eat no lean.

And so between them both, you see,

They licked the platter clean!

We have two dogs that are under our responsibility.  Old geriatric dog of mine and dad’s little middle aged new favorite daughter.  Mine is battling the war with old age and Brixi is making her prognosis of dead with cancer by December 2008 look like a joke.

I’ve been excited lately as Baxter is months since his last episode of explosive poohs and has actually been putting on a few pounds since he’s keeping his food inside of him a little bit better.  (Not great, he still leaves pooh in inappropriate places if you’re not paying attention, but at least they’re not splatter paint-like in effect.)  He was so bony for a while there it was like looking at skeleton dog, so I’m glad to see less of his ribs and more of his butt.

Brixi on the other hand is growing with leaps and bounds… around her middle.  She is a rolly polly jolly old gal and we’ve taken to calling her Fatty Patty.

I can’t help laugh at our odd couple.  Both on special diets.  One has his movement a bit restricted for the benefit of his hips and the other is now on an exercise regimen with the hopes she’ll trim down enough to fit in the RV for dad’s trip to Alaska in a few months.

He’s decided that as is she would be like having an extra person in the vehicle and that is just TOO many.

I’m too fat to ride a mule in the Grand Canyon and Brixi is too fat to ride in the RV.  We’ll both be amping up our workouts this spring.

It’s a good thing this is all funny or it would all be sad.

Says me.

The moments in between…

I’ve been able to travel more than usual in recent months.  This past year has had me on a plane enough to use and earn a round trip with frequent flier miles in addition to trips up north to Lutsen to ski.

I’m a VERY fortunate individual when it comes to getting around.

I think there are a lot of people in the world that work really hard and get to live in the spaces in between.  For me, it often seems that I’m living all the time and just working in the spaces in between.  Whether or not that is the best answer remains to be seen, but I’ll take it and appreciate it.

At the beginning of the month our family had the chance to hike into the Grand Canyon via the Kiabab trail, spend the night at the Phantom Ranch and then to hike back out again on the Bright Angel trail.  I had never been there before and always had it on my list of things to see, so I went.  I cannot believe how little you hear about the Grand Canyon.

When we arrived at the rim the day prior to our hike I was struck silent by the view.  It is really hard to keep perspective of how large it really is.  From the south to north rim where we were standing spanned over 9 miles across.   That distance makes a helicopter in the middle of it look like a dragon fly.

Trying to put my head around the fact that I was going to walk to the bottom and then back out again just left me feeling slow and overwhelmed.  I found myself standing at the edge just trying to imagine how far down it goes…

You have NO idea how far down it goes.   Hell, I was standing there and I had NO idea how far down it went.

While trying to cheerlead myself into a good head space about the hike ahead of me I heard the most amazing thing…  laughter…. like bells on a breeze.  It brought a HUGE smile to my face so I had to turn around to see where it was coming from and ended up meeting the eye of a woman with bright eyes and a huge grin.

While still laughing she said to me, “Isn’t it just the most amazing thing?”

Yup… it is.  Anything that can shut me up and bring a grown woman to spontaneously laugh like that must be pretty stinking amazing…

and it was.

It was amazing to see the different levels in the rock and dirt, it was amazing to see the trail maintenance teams that walk 2 hours to get to work, often up hill, it was amazing to see the vistas, to see how extensive the trails are, to watch the mules so patiently look at each others butts for hours on end, to realize that the base of the canyon is lush and growing, how much the Colorado river looks like hot chocolate…

it’s amazing how after more than 15 miles of hiking and avoiding mule poop, it all the sudden is the only way to keep your traction on the ice at the top of the Bright Angel trail.

More amazing is the thought of ever putting on those shoes again.  Whew!  My feet looked like hamburger after I was done hiking.

I should have done some more research about what we were going to actually be doing before I went; however, I’m guessing that I might not have gone then, and would have missed how amazing it was.  I have a few little blips about the hiking we did that might give you an idea…

The way down we did the South Kaibab Trail:

Brief Description:	A ridge-following trail that offers spectacular views while decending. Best for decending due to no water along the trail.
Length (approx):	5.62 miles
Starting Elevation:	7188.00 feet
Ending Elevation:	2694.00 feet
Elevation Change:	4494 feet
Average Grade:	21.00%
Trail Head Location:	Yaqui Point
Trail End:	At the River Trail

Then you still have to hike to where you’re going to stay, either the campground or the Ranch… tak on another few miles…

It was gorgeous down there.  We really took our time heading down and spent about 7 or 8 hours on the trail.  We kept stopping to just look at the view, chat with a few people, ponder what the heck we were doing.

The Grand Canyon really jars your perception of where you fit in the grand scheme of things.  It’s a reality check no matter who you are.

To get back out we hiked a couple of miles to the Bright Angel trail head and here’s some info about our ascent.

Brief Description:	This drainage following trail persues an ancient Havasupi Indian route. Camping (permit required), water, and shade at Indian Gardens, 4.5 miles below the rim.
Length (approx):	9.70 miles
Starting Elevation:	6782.00 feet
Ending Elevation:	2519.00 feet
Elevation Change:	4263 feet
Average Grade:	14.00%
Trail Head Location:	North of the Kaibab Lodge and West of the Bright Angel Lodge. Look for stone the burro corral.
Trail End:	Bright Angel Campground

So, how much is 4494 feet of elevation?  Well, a mile is 5280 feet.   We left at about 7am that morning and I made it out in just over 9 hours.  I hiked for 9 hours people.  That still baffles me.

We hiked  over 19 miles in 2 days into a hole nearly a mile deep and back out again.  We are NUTS!

Dad says that we now having ‘bragging rights’ and that about sums it up for me.  I know what I’m capable of.  I can hike… a really long way… at steep grades.  I was not the fast one out there… or even in the middle of the pack… but I did it and that is enough.

I’m not sure if what changed for me in there could be considered scarring or just growth, but either way the Grand Canyon is really something you should try to see if you get the chance.

I’d like to start taking vacations with my family that are NOT based on a dare.  I know it was a whopper when dad called me last week and while giggling asked me, “Hey… do you remember when we went to the Grand Canyon?”…. “Doesn’t that seem like ages ago?”

Um…

No, dad… it doesn’t.  I still have bug bite marks all over my legs and my blisters are still crazy gaping holes in my feet… but I’m glad we had fun.

Says me.

Rain boots.

I have a pair of blue plaid rain boots.   I’m fond of them even though they make my feet sweat more than usual.  I like them for things such as spring poo pick up and anything involving mud as they spray off with a hose and are ready for the next adventure.

I was REALLY excited to find them on sale at a discount store one day. $10 for cute rainboots?  SOLD!

Bargain boots for dirty jobs!  Did I mention they are plaid?

So this year the snow melts, the yard needs de-mining and I went out to get the job done… but alas, my boots were in the city, not at dad’s where I needed them.  I went with the gortex instead.

I was in the city yesterday.  I had my hands on my functional rain boots and I thought, “do I really want to lug these back and forth this week?” and I left them in the box.  (Rubber rain boots are kind of heavy.)

Guess where it’s raining today.

Yeah.  Where the rainboots are not.

Can you guess what that means?

Yup.  Now I for sure need to go to Alaska this summer, as that is where rain boots are made for and I really want to get my money’s worth of usage out of them.

Venison sticks… circa 2005…

The other day I saw some venison sticks in the freezer wrapped up in butcher paper and thought to myself…

“Oooh!  Now there’s a treat!”

Today I went to pull a few out since Fred was having a bloody mary and there is nothing like having a full meal in your cocktail.  Pickle, olives, meat stick, the works.

I re-read the stamped on description to confirm, yes, they were tasty venison sticks and then the horror… a second stamp saying November, 2005.

But they are tasty venison sticks!!

We ate them anyway, so if later either of us collapse to the floor, start vomiting uncontrollably or make a mad dash for the bathroom; that is why…

venison sticks circa 2005.

Way back when…

I was having a reminisce today about St. Patrick’s days in my past.  Being a girl who liked to party, any excuse was a good one for me and the green kissing day seemed as good as an excuse as any.

I remember one year wearing a green sweater, a blue tiara and green boots and taking the twin cities on by storm.  We started the day in St. Paul for the parade there, and then worked our way back to Kieran’s Irish Pub in Minneapolis to do some more celebrating.

At some point during the evening a guy bought me a shot and after I put it down the hatch he tried to pull it back out with his tongue…. and I hit him.

Apparently I’m adverse to going with the flow, even when having a good time.

The bar tender laughed so hard at the whole situation that he bought me another shot of Jameson and off I went to find my friends.

As I sit here now, nearly a decade later, half working and half writing this post, I have to laugh and wonder who the heck that girl was.  She might have been a blast to run around with.

Do you think she would be bummed at seeing me still in lounge pants with no thoughts of heading out after the work is done?  Or do you think she’d just make me put on some real pants and go?

If she shows up I’m going to show her the door.    Dad has cable and I know how to use it.  Recliner, HERE I COME!!!

At risk of this being my ‘bitching post’…

I have a huge project all over my plate right now for work.

Xcel Energy has a huge hole dug all over my neighborhood.

I have no power.

It’s amazing how Xcel Energy can effectively shut my business down in a blink of an eye, without notice, without warning, without apology.  It is one of the many pitfalls of working at home; included with the likes of dogs being sick, dogs needing out, laundry piling up, resisting the urge to bake and the call of the 30 other things that one could be doing other than work at any given moment.  (Like posting to one’s blog, for example.)

I’m now working at Dunn Bros., where they made the coffee for me, are refilling my cup, and the heat is still powered up.  There are no dogs here to demand anything and the amount of distractions (beyond people watching) are limited.

Interesting turn of events.

Says me.

Some days can be hard.

I feel like I’m running in a hamster wheel lately.

Blessed that my life is rich and full, cursed that I feel like I have to jog to keep up.

Going on vacations, trying to make ends meet, working, dealing with the burps and hiccups that occur.  I’m wondering how to keep it up.

I’ll tell you my answer for today….

I did a bunch of work this morning…

Then I did a bunch of number crunching to cover my bank account for a few more weeks…

Then I played with dogs, ate some oatmeal, did some strength training and picked up some of my mess…

and now I’m going to go sit in the tub.

I didn’t manage to make it out skiing like I wanted, but somehow I think that’s alright for today.

Tomorrow I get to try again.

Says me.

I’m in Arizona.

Again.

It’s warm with gorgeous blue skies.

I’m with my family.

I’m going to see stuff I’ve never seen when we go to the Grand Canyon in 8 hours.

All in all, I’d say things are really good for me.

This pretending I’m retired mentality RULES!

S.

Way to be kicked while down…

Thursday I get offered some overnight shifts and I think to myself, I could use some cash, I’ll take some work.

“I can miss some skiing, the snow has not been that great.”

Friday night we start to get some real snow and decent weather and there I was working overnight, which means that first tracks on fresh snow is not possible for me.

Insult?  Why yes.  Yes it is.

I’m still so glad the snow is here though.  We really needed it…. although most of the people that have to drive in it tonight will disagree.

S.