Happy Holidays

Chris and I are leaving on Saturday to spend a few days with his family, so I wanted to take this opportunity to wish you all a happy holiday. Knowing my inability to write regularly on this blog anymore, it'll be awhile before I'm back and posting again, so I hope you'll bear with me. This has been a trying year, to say the least, and my stamina ain't what it should be. You'll forgive me if the blog isn't the first thing on my mind...

At any rate, I do want to wish you all a safe and happy holidays, and hope that 2008 rings in a good new year for you.

A presto!

Dreaming in Italian

They say that when it comes to learning a new language, you know you've achieved a certain level of fluency when you start dreaming in that language. For me, however, with the process of learning Italian, I don't think that's actually been true. After years of studying Italian, I've had a few dreams in which I'm speaking Italian (generally to native Italians), but my language abilities in my dreams are no better than my actual abilities in real life. In other words, my dreams are apparently confirming that I'm no more fluent than I think I am!

When I told Chris this, he said, "Well, are the people you're talking to talking back to you in fluent Italian? Because if they are, that's really your brain doing the talking." But what's funny is that the people I'm talking to aren't speaking fluent Italian. The conversations I have in Italian in my dreams are precisely the way my real-life Italian conversations sound - I'm able to converse pretty well, sometimes reaching for words or asking for words, and the people I'm talking to speak relatively slowly so that I understand them and they don't use complicated language or words I don't understand.

I had another one of these Italian dreams last night, and once again it confirmed that I'm not hiding any innate ability to speak Italian in my subconscious. My conscious mind is getting about as much Italian as my subconscious, so at least they're on the same level. Dreams are hard enough to interpret as it is - I'd have a real problem if I were speaking another language in them and wasn't able to translate.

Becoming Part of the Crackberry Nation

I did it this past week - I got myself a Blackberry. I was due for a contract renewal on my cell phone, and I'd been wanting to combine at least two of the electronic gadgets I carry around all the time - my phone and my calendar/address book. And after hearing about my options, the Blackberry made the most sense. The first few days with it were frustrating as hell, but once I figured out how to stop the things that were annoying it's been a piece of cake.

I remember hearing stories on the radio about people who were so attached to their "Crackberry" that their families had to do an intervention of sorts to get them to reconnect on a personal level with their own children. After less than a week with mine, I can see how that could happen. Not that I feel like I'm in danger of becoming one of those people, mind you, but if my job were in a a high-pressure field and my email account came through my phone I'd never leave work at work. Of course, one wonders if those people are the same ones who, before the Blackberry, stayed at work until the wee hours and still never saw their kids.

New toys are always fun when they're new. The phone I just upgraded from was a great little gadget when I first got it two years ago. We'll see how long it takes me to grow accustomed to the Blackberry.

Bad Blogger

I know, I know. It's been ages. And I'm only posting now because I know I "should," although I can't think of anything to say... Chris and I both were horribly sick with some kind of nasty flu right after Thanksgiving, and I've had a head cold just about since I recovered from that flu thing, so I've been going to bed early most nights and feeling icky. My company party was the first weekend in December, and I had a great time - even if I was still a little under the weather. It was great to see so many friends from last year's party, and meet so many new people as well. A few people are already planning the next "meetup" in San Francisco in late January, and I'm so tempted to go... If lack of money wasn't getting in my way I probably would. I'm slacking big-time on my holiday newsletter this year, and I'll be lucky if it gets out by early February at this rate. Maybe I'll call it my birthday letter...

Anyway, there's plenty going on, just nothing terribly interesting, as you can tell! I hope all's well with all of you, and that you've managed to stay healthy.

Pictures of Milan, part 2

I'm back from Milan, and I think I'm mostly over the jetlag. It was bad for a couple of days (after nearly 23 hours in transit on Sunday, which I don't wish on anyone), but I finally started sleeping until the alarm again. Just in time for a four-day weekend!

Anyway, I've got my pictures from the Milan trip up on Flickr, so you can hop on over there to take a peek at them. The ones highlighted here are just a sample, of course, but include two things which seemed very Milan to me - coffee and fashion. The lady in red is a model who was being photographed just outside the Duomo one day, so I figured I'd snap a few pictures as well. I loved that most of the Milanese didn't even seem to notice her. There are more photos of fashionable shoppers, as well as the beautiful cathedral and a few Italian cars, in my Milan Flickr set, so go check it out.

Chris and I really liked Milan, and now the task at hand is to cultivate the relationships we started with our networking meetings. Chris in particular was a busy networker, although I met a couple of expat bloggers as well. Overall, we're very pleased with how the trip went, though time will tell if it was truly "successful" or not.

For the next few days, however, we're all about the food! We get two Thanksgivings this year - one today and another on Saturday - so we're going to make the most of the weekend. I hope everyone is having a happy and safe Thanksgiving weekend!

Pictures of Milan

So far, Milan is great - we've got a couple more days, and Chris' meetings are done so we're going to see more of the city now. I did spend an hour yesterday walking around and taking photos on the roof of the Duomo, and there are some other pictures on Flickr now, too. I even caught a bit of a fashion photo shoot just off Duomo Square!

A Few Words About My Father

As you may remember, my dad was diagnosed with esophageal cancer last year. We all thought he'd successfully beaten it, until last month when the mass in his throat (which the doctors had previously thought was scar tissue from the radiation treatments) was biopsied and they found the cancer had returned. And this time, it's on the offensive. The doctors say the cancer has spread to his lungs, lymph nodes and bones, and they've said there's nothing they can do except palliative care.

I don't care who you are, or how comfortable you think you are with the concept of dying, this kind of news isn't going to be easy to take. My dad is dealing with it like a champ, having said that he rolled a Porsche in 1959 and "every day since then has been gravy." Yes, he's feeling some discomfort and sadness, and he's reacting heroically to the situation as far as I'm concerned. (And if you think I'm biased, or that I'm Daddy's Girl, you're right on both counts and I don't care.)

Dad had been neglecting his blog, but he's started it up again and is chronicling his journey. For me, it's incredibly helpful to stay updated this way because talking is difficult for him and the blog allows him to communicate with everyone without getting on the phone. Plus, he's able to say things that might be tough to say in person. Which means when I talk to him I already know all of what's going on and I don't have to ask a bunch of annoying questions. I can just tell him I love him and we can talk about whatever the hell we want to.

Go over and have a peek at my dad's blog - the first cancer-related post is here, and you can navigate through the archives (October and November 2007 are the cancer-related ones so far) under the "Archives" links on the right-hand column. And if you've got some spare kind thoughts floating around, send 'em his way. Being a staunch atheist, he's not so keen on people praying for him - so if that's the way you operate, just don't tell him that's what you're doing. :)

I've heard the debate so many times about, "Would you rather death be sudden, or would you rather know in advance when you were going to die?" And I've even engaged in the debate. But the truth, which hit me when I first heard about Dad's most recent diagnosis, is that it doesn't matter one iota which you'd prefer. Because you don't get a choice in the matter. You get handed what you get handed and you have to deal with it the best way you know how.

I may update y'all on Dad's situation now and again, but if you're interested in following what's going on with him I'd recommend that you check in with his blog.

When a Vacation Isn't Quite a Vacation

Chris leaves for Milan on Wednesday, and I'll follow on Saturday. Once I arrive, we'll have about a week in the city. We'll do some fun things, to be sure, but this isn't exactly your typical Italian vacation. Instead, Chris has informational/job interviews lined up and I'll be meeting some of the expat bloggers I've been reading for nearly a year now. The goal? To find a way to move to Italy.

We know it's not going to be easy, and we aren't expecting someone to offer Chris a job next week, but if he's able to make some good contacts and do some networking he'll be ready when the right job comes along. And that's exciting. And seriously terrifying.

Anyway, I'll be taking lots of pictures (as usual), and will post them on Flickr so y'all can see them. In the meantime, if anyone out there has a contact in Italy who might be interested in hiring a public relations professional, we'd love to hear about it.

Wish us luck, y'all.

What's a Soulterrain?

In the course of my research today, I'm reading about Hungary, and I'm still finding entertaining tidbits. For example, you know you're reading a computer-generated translation when you read something like this:

"This modern furnished, two-story terraced house has a beautiful, calm situation. Common, enclosed garden with UBS103. The landlord lives in the Souterrain."

Luckily, this description was followed by a note indicating that "this description was computer translated to English." Well, that's good, because I was beginning to wonder what on earth "Soulterrain" means in Hungarian. Sounds like a good band name, though, yes?

Poland, the Natural Choice

In doing research for something I'm writing for work, I found Poland's official tourism website, on which I found what appears to be their official tourism slogan:

Poland, the natural choice

Of course, all I can think of is that it sounds like a fiber supplement: "Visit Poland. It'll keep you regular."

Tempis Fugit

We've barely hit the halfway point for October and already November is half-gone. And this year has been so topsy turvy that while I'm not sad to see it drawing to a close, I'm kind of annoyed at it for giving me such stress. So far, I'm not a huge fan of 2007 - and it doesn't have much time left to make me a convert, either.

Bub's doing well with his chemo appointments still, which is excellent, although he's looking a tad mangy in places because of the fur he's lost. But he's happy and energetic, and his weight is stable, so we're thankful for that. He's on an every-other-week schedule right now, and after a few more weeks will be on an every-third-week schedule. If all goes well, that'll last through March or so next year and then he'll be done with chemo. We'll probably keep taking him in for monthly vet visits to make sure the cancer isn't coming back, but I'm hoping that break from chemo will give him a chance to put more weight on and regrow some of his fur. He's turned into quite a little beggar now, too, in that he gets people food so much he thinks he can just grab for it right off our plates now. That's mostly funny when it's just us, but when we have guests we have to keep a closer eye on him.

My annual year-end meeting is coming up at work, so I've got a few days of all-day meetings scheduled in the next couple of weeks. Last year's was exhausting and energizing, so I'm expecting more of the same this year. It's great to be able to sit down with colleagues who I don't chat with often and socialize as well as brainstorm with them. I work with a great group of people, even if all we do is hunker down over our computers all day and not say more than five words to each other... In our "off" hours, we're very talkative, really. (Well, at least I am.)

Chris and I will be taking a quick trip to Milan next month, although it's decidedly not a vacation. He'll be in meeting after meeting (some set up through the employment agency he's working with, others he's setting up on his own via networking avenues) and I'll be hunkered down with whatever free WiFi I can find to get some work done. We will make time to see some of the sights, of course, but this is mainly a trip devoted to figuring out whether Milan is a place we could see ourselves living in. It's exciting to have this trip in the works, especially when we didn't think we'd be going overseas this year at all, although it's probably not the most financially prudent thing we've ever done! We're hoping it'll pay off in the networking department, and that it'll be a good learning process for us both.

Anyway, there's just a lot going on right now - some of it good, some of it bad - and I'm having trouble keeping up.

Leaving on a jet plane...

No, not me. Unfortunately. My mother and youngest brother just got on a plane this morning headed for China. By the end of their travel day, which will actually be something like four days, they'll be in Nepal. They'll be in Nepal, Tibet and China for the next month or so. I can't wait to hear all about it when they get back!

I think I need another tattoo.

I'll admit that part of my "need" has to do with having watched a couple of different tattoo programs on TV. Every time I see "Miami Ink" or "LA Ink" I decide that I must add to my tattoo collection, but usually I don't think any more about it than that. Today, however, I've just spent the last half-hour checking out the online portfolios of some of the artists working in Portland. We'll see how long it takes me to take the next step.

I have a couple different designs in mind - one to continue from the tattoo I currently have, and another on the opposite arm. My only tattoo so far, a bright sun-face on my right shoulder, needs company, I think. And I kind of see an earth and moon there, too, going further down my arm toward my elbow. Of course, then my left arm will feel terribly left out, so I've got to do something over there, too. And for some reason I've been drawn to these kind of organic plant shapes lately - the kind that are in the corners of the website for Sundance's The Green show - but I'm not sure how that'd translate onto a tattoo. At any rate, I've just come to the conclusion that my arms are too bare, and I need some more color. It's fun to finally be doing more than just saying I want more tattoos, especially since the one I have is more than 10 years old now! Yes, it's time.

If anyone has an artist recommendation here in Portland, I'm all ears.

Wow, two weeks just flies by around here...

I can't believe it's been two weeks since my last entry; I won't bore you with the details, let's just say this year continues to be less than stellar for me and my family. Plus, I've just been busy, too - not much of an excuse, I realize, but it's all I've got. You have my humblest apologies.

This past weekend we had a visit from my aunt and uncle from Zurich, which was fun. The last few years we've missed them when they've come through town, as we've been in Europe when they've been here. So it was nice to actually cross paths on the same continent for the first time in years. In other news, it's starting to feel like autumn around here, with the nights and mornings being awfully chilly and the days being either beautifully sunny or drizzly. I love this time of year, though, so I'm not complaining.

I hope all's well where you are, and I also hope to resume a slower pace here soon so that I can get back to semi-regular postings.

Recent Outings

Chris and I have made a few local-ish trips lately, and the photos are kind of piling up. I've got pictures from our trip to Maryhill, Washington (including the ever-so-fab Stonehenge up there) and to Mt. Angel Abbey in Oregon, as well as a few from the vintage car race here in Portland and our few days at my mom's house. Eventually I plan to post the highlights here, but with time being the way it is lately (who in the hell gave September permission to come along this early?!?!?), there's just no telling when I'll get around to it.

Going to See Barack

At dinner last night with some friends, we found out that Barack Obama is going to be here in Portland on September 7th. So, like the Barack groupies we're becoming, we bought tickets to see him first thing this morning. I'm not planning to scream or cry like he's a member of the Beatles, or anything, but I really like this guy - and it's exciting to be able to see him speak. I've not seen very many politicians in personal appearances in the past, although I did see Al Gore on his presidential campaign - and he was fantastic. I don't know what to expect from Barack, but if he's even half as charismatic in person as he is on TV, it's going to be a pretty cool event.

I need a vacation to recover from my vacation.

After spending a few days at my mom's house in the mountains, I'm exhausted. Partly it's because I didn't sleep very well down there, but I don't know what explains the rest of it. All I know is that after a whole day back at work yesterday I was completely knackered and had a pounding headache. Is a few days away from staring at a computer screen really all it takes for my eyes to not be used to that anymore? I slept like a rock last night, and am feeling much better today, but am still expecting to take it easy this weekend and get really caught up.

Have you seen my fish?

If you haven't seen the cute fish animation I added on the right hand column of the blog, scroll down a bit and you'll find them. They'll follow your cursor around if you hold it over the white box (their "tank," I imagine), and if you click in that box you can deliver "food" to them which they will then eat. Is it silly? Of course. But it provided me with a few minutes of fun one day, so I figured it could possibly do the same for someone else as well. It's kind of meditative...

Coming Home to Freshly Baked Fig Newtons

Well, perhaps not the kind of figgy cookies you might be familiar with, but still - they were the homemade version. When I walked in the door, the house smelled like baking. That's always a good sign in my world. Turns out Chris had located some fresh and beautiful Adriatic figs at a nearby market and had made some cookies with them. Thankfully, he saved a few for eating. They're decadent. Cutting into the bright green flesh, you're rewarded with a glistening ruby center that's gooey and just waiting to be eaten. I've missed those figs ever since we had them for breakfast every morning in Croatia last year - so it was a real treat to find them in my kitchen when I got home from work today.

Sad Laptop Becomes Happy Laptop

Sad Laptop
Inserito originariamente da andiamotutti

Remember back when I wasn't sure my laptop was going to live? Well, when it was disassembled* I snapped a few pictures for posterity. I figured if it came back to life I'd post it here on the blog, and if it didn't, well, I'd probably delete the pictures...

Anyway, this picture shows the laptop air-drying on the dining room table, with as many pieces as I could remove from it lying on the newspaper around it. For another angle, see this photo.

And to celebrate the rebirth of my dear, sweet laptop companion, I finally got around to ordering the laptop skin that Chris had promised to get me for my birthday (yes, the one I had back in February). It looks so very, very cool, I just want to go somewhere and use my laptop so people can see it.

* Am I the only one who thinks of the movie "Short Circuit" every time I hear the word "disassemble"?

How does one go about downloading Italian songs when one doesn't live in Italy?

So, I've run into a bit of a brick wall with my friends (okay, they're not really my friends) at iTunes, so I'm hoping that one of you tech-savvy people out there can help me figure out a way around this.

See, I've been listening to Radio Italia online for some time now, and recently have heard several songs that I'd like to download. When I went to iTunes and looked for them, I wasn't surprised when they weren't in the catalog. I was able to find them, however, if I switched to the iTunes Italia store. Everything I wanted was there - it was like Christmas and my birthday all rolled into one, and I was feeling quite giddy and pleased with myself. Until, that is, I tried to actually purchase the first song. As soon as I put in my password I was redirected back to the good ole iTunes USA store, where (as mentioned) nothing I wanted could be found.

I contacted iTunes to ask why I couldn't download something from the Italia store. It makes no sense to me why this should be an issue - I'm willing to pay for the songs (more, in fact, than the US rate, as the prices there are in Euros), and it seems iTunes has them in some online catalog somewhere. Why should it matter where I live? Oh, but it does, the iTunes person tells me. He doesn't say why, only that I can't do what I want to do and I should request that what I want to download be added to the US store. Yeah, I'm not sure they'd work too quickly on my "everything in the iTunes Italia store" request, do you?

I asked my local Italian community for help, and got pointed to this site - again, looks promising, no? I found many (not all) of the songs I wanted to download, but in order to register I need to live in Italy. Or at least know more about the post codes which are associated with certain towns and regions than I currently do in order to fill out the registration form. I sent them an email a couple weeks ago - in Italian - asking how I might register because I really want to send them money and buy songs from their website, but I haven't heard bupkis from them.

So, I turn now to you. Anyone have any brilliant ideas for me? I'm thinking I'd like to avoid P2P systems, as I don't particularly relish the idea of the RIAA knocking down my door and swiping my laptop (or any nasty bugs which might come from the P2P stuff), and am perfectly willing (happy, in fact!) to pay for the songs. I await your brilliant suggestions, and thank you in advance.

Willamette River Cruise

Blues Festival
Inserito originariamente da andiamotutti

Way back at the beginning of July, Chris' friend Ken invited a small group of people out on his boat on a beautifully sunny Saturday. Naturally, I took my camera along and I snapped pictures during the entire trip. Unfortunately, the wind and water combined meant that most of the pictures ended up with some kind of droplets of something-or-other on the lens, but theoretically if I had the patience (and time!) I could Photoshop all that out. And the pictures are fun anyway. The one to the right is of the Blues Festival, and you can see the rest of them here.

The End of July

Chris' last day at work is tomorrow. He's looking forward to taking the month of August "off" to decompress, but he doesn't sit still well. He'll be pottering around the house checking things off his to-do list all month, I'm sure, in between long bike rides. He deserves to take a little time and relax, so I hope he gets to do that. And then, well, we'll see what happens next.

This has been such a year of transition and turmoil for us, I think we're both exhausted but at the same time not taken by surprise anymore. I think we've learned to take each new roadblock or speedbump in stride, which, even though it's been tiring and annoying at times, is a good thing to be able to do.

At any rate... A couple updates on other things:

• My dad went home from the hospital quickly, because the doctors think the hole in his esophagus will heal itself. He'll go back in this week for another check up so they can see what's going on in there, and then hopefully they'll have some solutions for him. He's in good spirits, but it's a frustrating situation.
  
• We met with Bub's oncology vet today, and she's very optimistic that he's doing really well. His loss of appetite after his last chemo was explained, too, because she'd increased his chemo dose last time. So, that was good to hear - it wasn't an anomaly, it was reasonable. And I'll continue to obsess over how much he eats, so hopefully the weight he lost last week will be back by his next appointment. He begins going in every other week now, so he should be able to recoup better.

Which photos should I submit to a photo contest? Help me decide!

0911 Breakfast in Piazza Maggiore
Inserito originariamente da andiamotutti

I'm contemplating submitting a few photographs to the National Geographic Traveler annual photo contest, and aside from this photo (which I love) I'm not sure what else I should send in - if anything. I've chosen a few that I think are good pictures, but I'm not sure if they're really worthy. So I'm asking for your input.

What do you think? Let me know which (if any) of these pictures you think I should submit. Many thanks in advance!

Later edit: I should have also mentioned that the incredibly talented photographers out there who I know occasionally read this blog ought to think about entering the contest, too. Will? Alessandro? Are you listening??

Timely Teabag Tag

From my morning cup of tea:

Politics is the art of preventing people from taking part in affairs which properly concern them. - Paul Valery

This is suspicious...

Every time Chris leaves for a business trip of more than a day, I get sick. I swear this is true, and he agrees. He thinks it's a spooky coincidence, I think it's some kind of conspiracy. Whatever it is, it's downright annoying. I mean, I wouldn't be feeling any better if he were here - I'd still have the most congested nose I have ever had, bar none - but at least I'd have someone to fetch me things... Which is, of course, why I'm sure he's very glad he's away on business.

Does humidity cause head colds?

I'm sure it doesn't, but man - after several days of extremely high humidity levels around here (something we're just not accustomed to in these parts), I came down with a head cold yesterday. It's just annoying right now - keeping me from sleeping, making me sneeze incessantly, causing my nose to run ad infinitum - but I'm OD'ing on vitamin C and Zicam in an effort to keep it from getting any worse.

In other news:

• My dad was in the hospital again over the weekend, although my understanding is that he'll be coming home today. His esophagus had been growing scar tissue ever since they got rid of the cancer that had been there, and the scar tissue was closing up his throat so he couldn't swallow. The doctors were scraping away the scar tissue and ended up poking a hole in his esophagus (they apparently warned him that was a possibility). He'll go back in a week to see if the hole is healing itself, and in the meantime he can't swallow anything - including water. He's had a feeding tube back in for a few weeks now, it'd gotten so bad. I kind of wish they'd just go in and remove the offending piece of the esophagus so he can get back to a somewhat normal life - although the recovery time from that kind of surgery is weeks, it still seems like it'd be better in the long run. But I'm not the one who'd have to be in the hospital.
  
• Bub's appetite isn't back after his last chemo appointment (last Weds.), and he's due for his next round this Thursday. I'm not comfortable taking him in right now, since I don't feel like he's rebounded from the last one. I left a message for the doctor today, so we'll see what she says. The last time he went in for this same drug, they sent him home because they said his bloodwork showed he wasn't up for it. I'm wondering if it's the same situation this time. He's shedding like crazy, so the chemo is affecting his fur - it's not falling out in big clumps, but it's definitely falling out. The saddest part is he's losing his whiskers - he's only got two on the right side of his face, I noticed yesterday.

CatCam

My cats don't wear collars (two of them won't even tolerate the things), and they don't go outside except to wander on the balcony, so this project wouldn't be interesting at all in my house. It is pretty funny, however, in the original house: It's Mr. Lee's CatCam.

Seems a German guy was curious about where his cat went during a day, so he affixed a modified keychain digital camera to his cat's collar with a timer set to take a photo every few minutes. I've been very curious about some of my cats' antics, but I think I'd be more inclined to set up a CCTV-type camera before I'd go to this length. But hey, if I had the technical know-how, who knows? I just might have three cats running around with cameras on their necks.

(Thanks to Alessandro for that link!)

It Lives!

I'm happy (no, ecstatic is probably the more accurate term) to report that I'm typing this entry on my trusty old laptop. Yes, the very same one that got doused with liquid just the other day. After spending about 36 hours in pieces air-drying on my dining room table, it was put back together (by yours truly, who now knows how to remove a keyboard from a laptop - knowledge I hope to never again need to use on my own equipment) on Saturday morning and presto, it started up just fine.

Happy me.

And if you need pointers on how to disassemble your own laptop, lemme know. I'm full of wisdom now.

Computers Don't Like Green Tea

So, the day before Friday the 13th I had some nasty bad luck - I accidentally (because, really, who would do this on purpose?) spilled some green tea onto my laptop while I was at work. The monitor immediately began flickering. The computer guru at my office sits right next to me, thank goodness, and he switched the laptop off and began taking it apart. We dried everything we could see but the monitor was still barely visible to completely black when we tried starting it again. My stomach was, by that point, home to an awful sick feeling...

I've got an archaic spare machine now which I'm borrowing from work, and my laptop is in several pieces on my dining room table airing out. Chris is pretty confident that once it's dry it'll start up again just fine, but of course I'm worried. The good news is that the daily backup I do means that there's essentially nothing that will be lost data-wise, it's just an annoyance if I have to send the machine to Texas to have Dell fix it, or an expense if I have to buy a new one. I'm not looking forward to either of those possibilities, so I'm hoping Chris' optimism is well-founded.

I learn quickly, generally speaking. After I nearly lost my entire senior thesis in college because I hadn't hit the "save" button in hours, I got into the habit of hitting the "save" button every 30 seconds or so. In the future, you probably won't find open containers anywhere near my computer.

Another Stop at the Chinese Garden

Lotus Flower
Originally uploaded by andiamotutti

We went to the Chinese Garden again recently - I think it was about a half-hour before closing, so we didn't stay long, but it was nice to wander (as it always is). The last time we were there, the lotus flowers were basically done for the year - we saw one still in bloom. This time, most of them were still blooming, and several were still only buds. They're just stunning...

We also renewed our membership to the garden, and learned that they've opened it up on Wednesday evenings for members only - I'm not sure it'd be good for photographs at night (no tripods allowed), but it'd sure be pretty to just wander through and grab a snack at the tea house. I'd like to do that one Wednesday this summer, before the thought gets away from us entirely.

Rundown of the Last Week

Quick update, since it's been awhile...

• Our weekend was exceptionally busy - too busy, frankly - but one highlight was a potluck we went to yesterday at the home of some friends who live outside St. Helens (about an hour from Portland). She's a professional chef in Portland, so the guest list was almost entirely made up of other professional chefs. I tell you, that's the way to do a potluck, people. I was clever enough to fast before the party, only having a light breakfast and no lunch, so I actually went in for 3rds and possibly a small helping of 4ths before calling it quits. It was amazing stuff.


• Bub's appetite still isn't great after his last chemo (2 weeks ago) and he goes back for the next round tomorrow. He seems fine, however, which is good - happy and energetic. I take that as a good sign. I just hope he's gained a little weight the past 2 weeks, or at least maintained.


• Abby, his sister, was at the vet's today getting her teeth cleaned. It's an all-day event, so I just got her home about an hour ago. She didn't have any extractions like her poor sister Jasmine, so she's just a little disoriented now. But she's happy to be home, and I'm glad for that.


• We've got no plans for the 4th this year, mainly because neither of us is feeling particularly social or energetic lately. It's partly cat-related stress and partly job-related stress, we figure, but we're just pretty content to be at home by ourselves these days (this past busy weekend not withstanding). I've always wanted to test the theory of whether we could actually see the Lake Oswego fireworks from our window, so we might get a chance to do that this year.

Even My Cats are Bad Jews

I like to joke that I'm a bad Jew - it's a good joke if you know me and my family, but it sounds weird out of context. Here on the blog, it's kind of out of context. But if I say this, it might help... What made me think of it is this:

I'm such a bad Jew, even my cats eat ham.

All three of the cats seem to really like sliced ham, the lunch meat stuff, although in varying degrees. Bub's last chemo appointment was a doozy, so his appetite still isn't what it was before he went in last week, but he'll still eat a few bites of ham (but only if I hand feed him - I have no idea why). Jasmine adores the ham, so I just cut it up into tiny pieces so she doesn't have to worry about chewing it too much. And Abby, Bub's sister, eats whatever ham is left on the plate when Bub's done. She's very polite about it, it's cute - she'll let him eat what he's going to eat without bothering him, and then after he's gone she'll move in and clean up. It's pretty funny.

The Year of the Cat

I don't care what year it actually is on the Chinese calendar, this is the Year of the Cat for us.

Here's the good news - Jasmine is doing much better. She had a rough night that first night back, but she's mostly back to her old self again now, thank goodness. And I think our experience dealing with Bub's recovery each week after chemo has been helpful in dealing with Jasmine. Instead of assuming she was going downhill and never coming back uphill, I just assumed that she'd be getting better gradually and we just needed to find the things she'd eat no matter what. I browsed the cat food aisle at the grocery store the other day, and then made my way to the baby food aisle. I'd heard that the turkey baby food was a hit with most cats, but Bub hadn't shown interest. I bought some to try with Jasmine, and also got some chicken sticks (like the ambiguously-named meat sticks shown in the picture) to try as well. I think they're repulsive, but I'm not the one who has to eat them, right?

(As an aside, every time I open a jar of cat food, I recoil from the smell and think, "Good god, we feed this to human children?!?" It smells so vile...)

At any rate, thankfully Jasmine seems to enjoy the chicken sticks - I chop them up really small so she doesn't have to chew them - and she even likes the turkey baby food occasionally. She's always been the pickiest eater, and that trend has (unfortunately) continued, but we'll just keep trying new and different foods. It's just a matter of trial and error, I've learned, and not worrying about "wasting" food if I open a can of something she doesn't end up liking. It's just about figuring out the new pattern for her eating schedule that's going to work for both her and us.

In other news, my dear boy Bub is at his chemo appointment now - I'm awaiting a call from the vet that I can go pick him up. It's the 3rd drug in the cycle, and one he hasn't had as yet, so I'm curious to see how he'll react to it. They give the animals a week off after receiving this particular drug, which also takes several hours to administer, so I'm guessing it'll take him awhile longer to bounce back than normal. But I'm ready - I've got a roast chicken from the grocery store in the fridge, and it's all his. Not all at once, mind you, but I'm calling it cat food - it's not for human consumption. I've got a big plate of cut up chicken pieces ready and waiting for him for when I bring him home today, too, poor guy.

So, yes - the Year of the Cat it is.

The Unhappiest Cat in the World, Part II

You may recall the original post about the unhappiest cat in the world - well, here's the rest of the story, at least through today.

Poor dear Jasmine got wrapped in a towel this morning so we could stuff her into a carrying case, and then Chris dropped her off at the vet. We knew they'd be sedating her, because there's no other way to do the necessary check-up stuff on that feisty creature, and they were also going to be cleaning her teeth. Or so we thought. Chris got home a few minutes after me, Jasmine in tow, and announced that she'd had to have six teeth pulled. Not only that, the vet says she's under weight - probably because eating dry food has been painful for some time now. So, how much do you think we feel like the worst cat parents ever?

The poor thing is still disoriented (she got home a few hours ago) from the drugs she's on, which include morphine right now, and she keeps licking at the stitches in her mouth. She's on a strictly wet food diet now for the rest of her life, and luckily we had a can of food which is actually meant for cats on cancer treatment (but Bub doesn't like it, of course) - it's really tasty (to cats, I guess) and super soft, so she's eating that right now. It's also full of calories, which she really needs.

In case you're feeling too badly for her, know this - she'll get her revenge on us twice a day for the next week. We have to give her pain medication at night and antibiotics in the morning. They're both in liquid form, so we've got to grab her and get the little plunger-full of medicine into her mouth without letting her shred us to bits. That would be a challenge under normal circumstances - this is the cat that doesn't even like to be held - but right now she won't let us come near her. Well, that's not exactly true - she'll let herself be petted, but if you try to do anything more than lightly stroke her back she hisses. She's pissed off, and with good reason, and I'm seriously dreading having to give her any kind of medicine whatsoever - especially tonight.

Chris & I know this will pass, and she'll be fine (especially once the drugs wear off and she's not so disoriented anymore), but we both feel awful right now.

And a quick note - I realize this has kind of turned into the all cats all the time blog, which I hadn't planned... It's just that, for obvious reasons, this is the big news that's going on for us right now, so that's what's on my mind.

Oh, and if you've got any suggestions about soft foods that would be treats and that cats would like, by all means - let me know.

How a Family Reclaimed the Deck

Bub
Originally uploaded by andiamotutti

Now that the weather's (mostly) good around here and our deck is finally done, we've gotten the deck furniture back out again and we're spending more time out there - it's been great. We had forgotten how much we enjoy sitting outside in nice weather, grilling dinner and eating outside. The cats are loving it, too - I planted three big pots (low ones so they can reach them) of catnip, which all of them have been enjoying. They alternately eat the leaves off and rub their faces in the branches - it's very cute to watch. And then, when they're fully drugged out, they doze in the sun. That's when I take pictures of them.

The charming guy at the right is my dear boy, Bub, from before his lymphoma diagnosis and his frequent trips to the vet. He still loathes those trips, but he also still loves us afterwards, which is one of the wonderful things about him. I particularly love how regal he looks in this picture, because usually he's just a goofball.

A Few Notes

First of all, I heard that my friend Michelle is already at home, she's recovering from her brain surgery so well. She's damned amazing, that's all I can say. As I told her, "Cancer clearly doesn't know who it's fucking with here."

Second, my dear boy Bub was scheduled to get his 4th dose of chemo today, but the vet called Chris to come pick him up after just his preliminary exam - apparently his white blood cell count was lower than they'd like, so they sent him home with a week's worth of an antibiotic and we'll try again for the chemo next week. He's only put on a tiny bit of weight, which is disappointing (although any progress is a good thing) because it seemed to us like he'd gained quite a bit. I guess optimism doesn't make the best scale.

Finally, I used to do these more often - when I drank more tea - so when I brewed myself a cup of tea today, I thought I'd save the quote on the tag to post here for y'all:

"He who has begun has half done. Dare to be wise; begin!" - Horace (65-8 BC)

Girls Weekend in Lincoln City

ride 'em, cowgirl
Originally uploaded by andiamotutti

A few weeks ago, I got together with a few of my college girlfriends for a weekend at the beach. It went too quickly, as weekends with friends often do, and we had a great time. If you're so inclined, you can see the best of the photos from that weekend over here. There are some in there of driftwood that I really like, but that one of Steph to the right is probably my favorite of the bunch. It may not mean as much to you, but it just gives me the grins.

Yeehaw, baby.

Farmer's Market = Donuts = Happy Me

asparagus
Originally uploaded by andiamotutti

The Lake Oswego Farmer's Market started up a few weeks ago, giving my Saturdays a bright start again. Freshly-made donuts never taste so good as they do after you've gone without them for months. And, of course, it's always great to see market friends again - like the donut-making family and the folks at the Baird stand who, at this time of year, have the best asparagus in town. So far, the weather's been great for the market, so the crowds have been great, too. It's nice to see. I'm going to bring my camera to the market more this year than I did last year; I'll be putting the best of them in the photo album here.

If you've got a farmer's market anywhere near you, do yourself a favor and go. Every week. You'll be glad you did.

The Unhappiest Cat in the World

The title of this post doesn't even refer to my dear boy, Bub, who is undergoing chemo treatments for lymphoma. No, that title refers to our eldest, Jasmine, who had a vet appointment today.

See, when Bub started his treatments, I thought it was a good time to get the other two cats in to the vet for checkups - partly because they hadn't been in for years, and partly because with his suppressed immune system it made sense to try to limit any potential for the other cats to give him something. So Jasmine's appointment was set for this afternoon, and Chris had to come home from work to take her. See, I can't handle her when she's pissy. When it's just Chris and I around, Jasmine is a complete love-muffin, or really frisky and playful. She's not really friendly with other people, but that's okay. What we discovered this afternoon, however, is that when you're trying to shove her into a cat carrier, things get ugly.

She escaped from our first attempt to stuff her into the carrier, and when Chris next captured her she put up a huge fuss; she probably would have clawed him to bits in an attempt to get away had he not held her at arm's length. He finally managed to get her in by scruffing her, but the poor thing looked absolutely terrified and traumatized by the whole ordeal - and that was just getting her into the carrier, she hadn't even gotten to the vet yet to get her shots!

When they returned, I learned that the vet hadn't even been able to do anything - when Chris tried to get Jasmine out of the carrier, she went after him (claws and teeth and hissing), so the vet tried to look at her teeth while she was hissing (clever!) but they made another appointment in a week and a half or so when they'll sedate her and do what they need to do. What I don't know is how in the hell we're ever going to catch her and get her into a carrier again. I'm honestly thinking a home vet visit might be the best option...

Now, I'm at my desk at home and Jasmine is wandering around my feet as if nothing happened. Wait, now she's crawling into my lap. Wow. Must be nice to forget traumas so quickly.

Kicking Cancer's Ass

So, a quick update on my friend Michelle - the positive thoughts worked. She got through the brain surgery yesterday with flying colors. She was even talking not long after coming out of the haze. We joked that not even brain surgery can shut this girl up. She'll be in the ICU for a few days, then in another part of the hospital for a few days (maybe a week, I can't remember) and then will go to her folks' house so they can look after her. Then at some point she begins a 9-10 day regime of radiation, which isn't going to be fun. And then, I guess, we'll see.

And my dear cat Bub had his 3rd chemo appointment today, and when I got home from work this afternoon I fed him his newest favoritest treat - lunch meat. He just gobbles the stuff up. I also cooked some hamburger for him, which he likes, but not as much as he likes the lunch meat. He's gotten both turkey and ham and seems to like both equally well. The other day I made cold cut sandwiches for Chris and I, and he hovered around us (meowing loudly) as we ate. He even tried to swipe my sandwich. We've created a monster, and we couldn't be happier.

If you can spare some positive thoughts...

...my friend Michelle is, at this moment, undergoing brain surgery to remove a tumor on her brain stem. It's her third bout with cancer. She's 42. I'll be thinking about her all day today, sending positive energy to the hospital in Chico, and hoping for the best. Brain surgery isn't easy, and this one is a risky proposition - but the alternative isn't acceptable to Michelle. She's one tough cookie. Cancer clearly has no idea who it's dealing with.

How to Travel the World (and Improve It) for Free

BootsnAll is working with a fellow called Tim Ferriss, who recently wrote a book called "The 4-Hour Workweek", to award one lucky person the chance to travel the world for free while also improving the planet.

How would you use 36 extra hours per week?

If you can answer that question in 350 words or less, you could win a roundtrip anywhere in the world, private consultation with me to plan it all, and $1,000 for the cause of your choice.

My goals with this are 1) to get people to take action towards their dreams, and 2) to help people to develop a global consciousness and feel the rewards of contribution.

The deadline for entering this contest is June 15th, so act fast. You'll find the rules at the bottom of this post.

This Cat is a Fighter

Bub is a fighter, all right, and I mean that in a couple of senses. First, the good news and then the funny news.

The good news is that at his second chemo appointment on Wednesday, the vet apparently couldn't even feel the tumor anymore. Now, they didn't do an ultrasound, so it's probably still there a bit, but the fact that it has shrunk enough that she can't feel it after only one treatment a week ago is really exciting to us. And after the initial first couple of days post-chemo last week, Bub was nearly back to his old self, playing and eating almost like normal. We're quite pleased with that, our little guy fighting off cancer so well.

The funny news is that he's also becoming more and more of a fighter when it comes to taking his daily pill. He's on steroids just for the first month of treatment (we've got three weeks to go), and it's a decreasing amount each week. Last week it was twice-daily pillings, and after that it's only once a day - but that doesn't keep him from fighting harder and harder each time. He's never been good about taking a pill, but it now takes both Chris and I to do it and it still takes two or three tries. He's crafty about it, too - he'll chew on the lump of food (pill hidden inside) until he finds the pill and then he'll push the pill out the side of his mouth, cleaned completely of cat food. Yeesh. So far, he still loves us anyway.

After his second chemo appointment this week, he doesn't seem as logey or sleepy as he did last week but his appetite was basically non-existent yesterday (the day after chemo); I'm not panicking like I did last week, as I'm confident that he'll be eating again soon (hopefully today), but I'd love to find something he really liked - something he couldn't even refuse in his post-chemo days - that I could feed him each day-after. I haven't found it yet, but I'll keep trying. I swear, if I find that he likes liver pate, I'll feed it to him once a week...

BootsnAll is Hiring

I'm going to take a break from cat-related posts here to tell you about a job opening where I work at the BootsnAll Travel Network. Here's how the position is described:

Are you a web monkey that has talents that are way under utilized? Are you looking to work at a small company where you can see your efforts get implemented on a daily basis and hear positive feedback from customers almost instantaneously? Can you dream in PHP, communicate concisely and effectively and dream up the next web based travel app that travelers go crazy for?

I don't even understand half of that, so clearly this isn't the job for me... But if it made sense to you and you're curious about it, you can read more about the job, which is currently being called a Project Manager, here - and feel free to pass this along to anyone you know who might be interested.

"Wacked Out Nip Nuts"

So, the latest thing is that Chris has decided catnip is like medical marijuana. He got a little container of "the good stuff" and has been sprinkling it on the floor for the cats to eat and roll around in. The hope is that it might help stimulate Bub's appetite (or at least make him happy!), but of course all the cats are benefiting. Chris has taken to calling them all "Wacked Out Nip Nuts" when they're rolling around on that one spot on the floor, day after day. It's pretty amusing.

Bub's eating more, too, which makes me happy - in addition to his twice-daily feedings of wet food he's been eating more and more of the regular dry food that's always out, which is great. And he's even gone back to his old habit of "hunting" his sister down and tackling her. So he's obviously feeling much better. He still isn't crazy about the whole pilling process, but Chris had gotten very good at it so it's far less time that they both have to deal with it.

A Little Progress is a Good Thing

First of all, thanks to everyone who sent me nice notes and sent positive thoughts my little guy's way - it worked.

Bub ate a little tuna fish last night - maybe a tablespoon at the most, but it's more than he'd eaten in the 24 hours before that so I just about did a jig. He's also acting more and more like himself again, which is really nice to see. I talked with the vet assistant today and she gave me some more ideas of different foods to try (including chicken or turkey baby food!), so we'll see what interests him. She also said that his body would begin to deal better with the chemo after probably the 2nd round (which is next Wednesday) or maybe the 3rd, so that his recovery time would be quicker after each round after that. I'm hoping she's right.

Honestly, the biggest thing for me was that I had no idea what was coming next - I knew he felt bad, and I knew he wasn't eating, but I had no idea how long it would last or when (if) he would feel better and start eating again. Now that I've seen him bounce back a little bit, I'm much more encouraged. And that's a good thing, too.

If Knowing is Half the Battle, What's the Other Half?

Somehow I thought that knowing what it was would make it all better, or at least give me something to hold onto, but since we got the lymphoma diagnosis for Bub on Tuesday I've been a wreck. We ended up being at the vet for hours on Tuesday - they had to squeeze him in at the clinic next door to get another ultrasound and get a sample of the tumor so they'd know what to do to treat it, which was good to do, it just meant the poor guy was cooped up in his little carrier for hours in a waiting room occasionally full of barking dogs. He was terrified, and I wasn't much better off.

We made it through all that, although I was absolutely shattered by the end of Tuesday - I cried on and off all day long, almost as much out of frustration and the inability to make Bub understand what was going on than anything else. I've always had a harder time dealing with animals suffering that people suffering, just because you can't explain anything to them - they're just scared, or hurting, or whatever, and you can't tell them things are going to be okay. It really sucks.

At any rate, the diagnosis of lymphoma is what I expected it to be, and now the little guy is on chemo. He got his first IV injection at the vet's office on Tuesday, and he could be on chemo for up to a year. We'll know more after four weeks of weekly chemo appointments whether he's responding to the treatment, and then we'll know better what to do next. For this first month he's also on a cat version of the steroid Prednisone, which is supposed to help suppress his immune system (since lymphoma is a cancer of the immune system). I thought my big, easygoing boy would be easy to pill, but he's anything but. If he's as much of a fighter against the cancer as he is against the pills, the cancer doesn't stand a chance.

We got a pill in him on Tuesday night and then couldn't do it Wednesday morning. Chris found Pill Pockets online and found a store nearby that sold them, so he got some and went home at lunch to feed Bub his pill disguised as a kitty treat. He actually gulped it right down, so we were optimistic. He took his pill (encased in its treat) again last night, but this morning didn't want anything to do with it. Worse, he didn't really eat anything last night and wouldn't touch his food this morning or any of the various treats he usually loves. I'm the first to admit that I'm panicked about that - he's already so thin, he can't afford to lose any more weight. And yet it makes sense that the chemo would make him feel cruddy and like he doesn't feel like eating. He still seems hydrated, so that's good, and the vet assistant said the steroids should help him regain his appetite - so I'm going to hope he'll eat something tonight.

I'm still ready to cry at the drop of a hat. I feel so badly that he feels badly. Before he was diagnosed, but already clearly suffering from some of the effects of the cancer, he was "fine" - he was his usual active and playful self, happy as a clam. Now he's logey and has no appetite, and I can't help but think that if his four-week checkup doesn't show that he's responding well to the treatment that we've done a horrible thing to him. I don't want to think that way, but I almost can't help it. I know I'm being paranoid, I know I'm being overprotective, I know I'm worrying too much - and I don't know what else to do. The thing that's doing me in right now is the same hyper-sensitivity that caught the weight loss in the first place. It's the only way I know how to be. I want to force him to eat, but clearly can't do that. And yet every time he walks away from food I get more and more stressed and worried and anxious.

The vet says she's not worried that he didn't eat this morning, and that I'm supposed to call her back tomorrow if he's still not eating. Chris took Bub to our local vet this morning to get a demonstration in pilling, so he got his Prednisone today and Chris now knows how to get it in him reliably whether he'll eat that Pill Pocket thing or not. So at least there's that. And yet all I feel is a pit in my stomach about my poor sweet boy who now, as a result of us trying to fix him, feels like crap and has no idea why. I really hate this.

A Bald Belly

So, Bub (that's the cat) went in for his ultrasound today, and he's got a big shaved belly to show for it. The mass they'd felt in his lower abdomen is roughly 7cm, but it's a singular tumor - there's nothing else anywhere they could see. The doctors say that's a very good sign. And now our cat has an appointment with an oncologist on Tuesday morning. A kitty oncologist - who knew? I mean, I knew they must exist, I'd just never thought about it before. At any rate, I get to meet one next week.

In the meantime, Bub's going to be in hog (cat?) heaven here as he's going to get lots more canned food than he's ever gotten before. We need to make sure he doesn't keep losing weight, so every time he turns around there's going to be more canned food available to him. His sister is going to turn into a small elephant, of course, as we can't feed one without feeding at least a little to the other, but, as the vet said, "She can go on a diet later if she needs to."

We've been told that chemo for cats is very different from chemo for humans, in several ways - most notably cats do not lose their fur or feel like shit while they're on it. It can also be given orally, in the form of a flavored liquid, depending on how responsive the tumor is. We'll know more after he sees the oncologist next week.

Bub continues to seem fine, except for the weight loss, so ultimately remains confused as to why we keep shoving him in that awful carrying case and taking him to the doctor...

Hey, that growth isn't supposed to be there...

I got back about an hour ago from taking one of the cats to the vet. I thought he'd been losing weight, but couldn't be sure, and figured they'd be able to tell me if I was imagining things. We haven't been taking any of the cats to the vet regularly (I honestly can't remember the last time any of them went in for anything, including vaccines) because they're all indoors-only and, well, they hate it. But this warranted action, so off we went. He yowled at me the entire drive, which was thankfully only about 7 minutes.

The good news? The vet assistants think he's perfect. He's adorable and a sweetheart and he behaved well, even when they had to get a blood sample.

The bad news? He's got some kind of growth that, as the vet put it, "isn't supposed to be there" around his intestines. She said lymphoma isn't uncommon in cats his age (almost 10), and that it can be treated pretty easily, depending on what it is. They're going to call me tomorrow with the results of the bloodwork and then we'll have to schedule an ultrasound so they can get a better look at it, and they'll probably go ahead and get a sample of it at that point, too.

I'm trying to be optimistic about it - after all, we don't really know what it is yet, or what the treatments are for whatever mysterious thing it might be - but of course it's not what I wanted to hear. I wanted to hear "hyperthyroid" or "abscessed tooth" or something, not "lymphoma." So I'm a little scared, and had a good cry when I got him out of his dreaded cat carrier and he immediately starting rolling around and wanting his belly rubbed. What a guy - I can drag him off to the vet where they poke and prod at him, and he still loves me.

So, any positive thoughts you could muster for my little guy would be much appreciated.

The End of an Era

I knew it had to happen sometime, but it's still a bummer. I think I've got a whopping two new episodes of Gilmore Girls left (one which is recorded but I haven't watched yet, and one more coming up) before the show is over for good. I'm sad, because I really do adore the show and the characters, but I'm not sure what else they could really do with them in the next year... So much happened this season, it'd be a helluva thing to try to "top." And really, I don't exactly need to have more television programs to watch - I'll just miss the Girls, that's all.

There's a nice interview with Lauren Graham here. I'm not sure I'd compare here to Katharine Hepburn myself, but I do think she's highly underrated. I'd love to see her get more leading roles - she really does deserve them.

Nothing New to Post... So Why Am I Posting?

I really don't have anything new to report here, so it strikes me that I shouldn't be writing anything at all... Except I just wanted to reassure you all that I'm not dead and that I haven't forgotten about you. Really. It's just that this is the busiest quarter for us at BootsnAll, so I'm working in a semi-frenzied state during the week and trying to catch up on all the non-work-related parts of my life (laundry, grocery shopping, talking to my husband) on the weekends. This means I don't have time for many things of the non-essential variety, like posting on this blog. Sorry. I'm alive and well, just busy and exhausted.

Hope all's well with all of you, though.

It's Good to Have Neighbors

We have had here, in the past, two neighbors with diabetes (one moved last year), both of whom became well-known to the local paramedics over the years when they needed help. It's been awhile since I remember seeing the paramedics on our street, so when one of my neighbors called yesterday to ask if her husband's car (he's the diabetic) was still in the driveway, I knew pretty quickly that something was wrong. He was supposed to have picked her up at work 15 minutes before, and he's never late. When I confirmed that yes, his car was in the driveway, Chris and I ran over to see if he was okay.

We found him slumped over the wheel of the car, car door still open. He was breathing, but not responsive, and we called 911. They arrived quickly and they already knew him by name. They got him to come around and they didn't even need to take him to the hospital, which was great; and his wife arrived just after the paramedics left. It was a little freaky, but it turned out well - and I'm glad Chris was there, too. Our neighbor's wife was so calm throughout the whole thing - I'm sure she's dealt with this before, but still. She didn't panic (or at least didn't sound panicked), even when she was en route, courtesy of a coworker, and stuck in traffic.

So now all is well again in our little corner of the world, and I'm everso glad Chris and I were home to help out. It's nice to have a space that's all your own, to be sure, but it's times like that when I remember how nice it is to have neighbors who look out for one another.

When Baking is a Tourist Attraction

St. Honore
Originally uploaded by andiamotutti.

The lesson I learned from this visit to Portland's St. Honore bakery is that any time I've got my camera out it's an opportunity to take pictures. I don't have to be at a lovely garden (though I had been at a lovely garden mere minutes before sitting down for lunch) or on holiday, I just have to have the camera on my person and not give a whit about what people think. (It's the last part that's the tricky bit.) The good news for this excursion was that we found seats at the bar right in front of St. Honore's fabulous oven, so I just set the camera on the counter next to my plate and left it on, snapping pictures in between bites.

It just makes me wonder how many wonderful photographic opportunities I'm missing when I don't have my camera with me.

The Oregon Sun

I'm sitting here in my home office, furiously scribbling away about destinations all over the world, and yet I couldn't be happier to be where I am right now. After several days of rainy and rather gloomy (albeit typical Springtime) weather, the sun is streaming gloriously through my office window, I've got windows open all over the house and can hear the chatter of my gardening neighbors, and I've even kicked off my slippers and cast aside my cozy sweatshirt. It's not even May and I'm walking around my house barefoot and without long sleeves on, people! That's cause for celebration!

I hope it's lovely where you are.

Four Years

Happy Fourth Anniversary, Chris.

A Visit to Portland's Japanese Garden

Portland Japanese Garden
Originally uploaded by andiamotutti.

After saying I wanted to visit the Portland Classical Chinese Garden soon, we ended up making our way elsewhere over the weekend instead. During a lovely window of nice weather on Saturday we climbed up to the Portland Japanese Garden and spent just under an hour wandering around. I, of course, had my camera in tow - which was nice, as I haven't really had a chance to get it out and just play for awhile. As you'll see from the best shots I got that day, I have an odd fondness for those wee pagodas covered in moss. It would be nice to go back later in the year when more things are in bloom. The last time we visited that garden was probably easily seven or eight years ago, so it'd be nice to make a repeat trip without so much time in between.

BootsnAll Treasure Hunt

Let me say at the outset that if you're me or part of my immediate family, you're not eligible to play, so stop reading now lest you be disappointed.

Okay, now that they're all gone, check this out:

Every week for the month of May registered Hunters will have the opportunity to win awesome travel prizes, like hostel booking vouchers and travel books. The grand prizes, though, are what have got us all excited. We're giving away US$2000 towards a round-the-world ticket, an adventure trip in Turkey, Eurail passes and a whole lot more.

Sound good? It is good. Here's where to register.

And go ahead and spread the word - tell your friends about the BootsnAll Treasure Hunt - just make sure they're not related to me, that's all.

Portland's Horse Project

Horse Project
Originally uploaded by andiamotutti.

Well, this is a little blast from the past for me. Last year, when I was still reading blogs that didn't have anything to do with work, one of the blogs I read was called Ride My Handlebars. It was a delightful blog (I'm sure it still is) - and the thing I remember most about it was a whole series of entries about The Horse Project.

If you're familiar with Portland, you've seen those little metal rings on some sidewalks and you've wondered, what on earth are those for? The answer is simple - it's to tie up your car so it doesn't get away. (Kidding.) Honestly, it's quite possible those rings were put on the earth for the exact purpose for which they're currently being used. See, there are these wonderful people who go around and attach toy plastic horses to these metal rings all over town. I'd seen pictures of them on Ride My Handlebars, but had never seen one with my own eyes - until last week.

One of my coworkers stood at the front door of the house which is our office and said, "Did you see the horse tied up outside?" Now, this house is on a busy street, so I thought he was sounding a wee bit crazy - until I stepped to the window and saw it across the street. I think I squealed. It happened to be that brilliantly sunny day we had recently, so I ran outside with my camera to get a few shots of it. I'm pleased to report that when I was last in the office two days ago, it was still there. It was lying in the gutter covered with leaves, so I picked it up and put it back upright on the curb, but it was still there.

Anyway, if you want to learn a little more about the fantastic people who are injecting Portland with a little whimsy, go to The Horse Project part of their website.

A (Late) Easter Bunny Funny

This was introduced to us at a dinner party over the weekend, and though Easter has now come and gone for the year, I can't resist posting it here. If I wait until next year, I'll forget, and it's too amusing to rely on my stupid memory...


Thanks to Lynn for sharing.

Mocking "My Humps"

I'm not a Will Farrell fan, but the scene in the preview for his new ice skating movie where he's on a treadmill singing Fergie's "My Humps" makes me giggle. Alanis Morissette, however, has upped the ante significantly with her rendition of the song.



You go, girl. Thanks to William Bragg for the pointer.

(Oh, and you may have noticed some changes to the look of things around here; I just finally got around to upgrading the template with the new Blogger. Even though I don't totally love it, I'm probably too lazy to mess with it too much again.)

The Two-Minute Haggadah

Last night Chris & I went to the pre-Passover Seder celebration of a friend, which she called "Passover Lite." Even though we didn't read from this fabulous Two-Minute Haggadah, I wanted to share it with all y'all - especially the gentiles among you - as it's not only a speedy way to understand the whole Passover thing, it's also freaking hysterical. Here's just an excerpt:

Four questions:
1. What's up with the matzoh?
2. What's the deal with horseradish?
3. What's with the dipping of the herbs?
4. What's this whole slouching at the table business?

Answers:
1. When we left Egypt, we were in a hurry. There was no time for making decent bread.
2. Life was bitter, like horseradish.
3. It's called symbolism.
4. Free people get to slouch.

But really, you should read the whole thing. I mean, it'll take you all of two minutes (barring several minutes set aside for convulsive laughter, that is), so surely you can spare the time.

Happy Pesach to all, and to all a Good Night.

The Final Countdown

It's very strange to be contemplating not going into my old job anymore, even once a week. I'm not complaining, mind you - I've been wanting this change for awhile now, and I'm glad I won't be pulled in as many directions anymore. It's just, well, strange. I've known Sam since 1995, and have been working for him now (the second time) since 2002. I've never been good with change, even when it was a change I wanted, and this is no exception.

So, tomorrow I'll go over and help train my replacement on a few things she doesn't already know how to do, and I'll expect phone calls now and again when there's something they can't find. But for the most part, this is the part where I move on. I have my concerns about my replacement's ability to do the job the way I know Sam wants it done, and I even half-thought I should go in there once a month or something, on weekends, just to check on things... But that's more a symptom of my inability to let go than anything else. And while the new gal won't do things exactly the way I did them, she'll do fine. She'll learn, and she'll do fine.

At any rate, this is just another chapter in my life ending and another beginning, though without clear definitions between them. This could take some getting used to.

(And anyone who immediately started humming that Europe song from 1980-something when they read the title of this post, like I did when I wrote it, gets huge bonus points from this hair-band aficionado.)

Waiting for Sun

Water Lilies
Originally uploaded by andiamotutti.

Chris and I have a membership to the Portland Classical Chinese Garden, but it's been too long since we visited. Browsing through my Flickr photos of the garden reminded me of that. Every time you go, the garden is a little different - so it pays to go often (something we're very bad at doing). The last time we went, the light was so gorgeous - just looking at the pictures makes today's gloomy weather a little less so.

Fewer Jobs, More Working Hours

I'm happy to report that as of April I'll be increasing my hours at BootsnAll. Happy me! It means lots more writing, which is great - it's not anything glamorous, just copy writing stuff for various parts of the website, but still. I feel like I finally have a job where I get to utilize my affection for writing and where it's actually recognized as being worth utilizing. Not bad.

For awhile, it'll mean more hours at the office, which means fewer hours working from home in my sweats and slippers. It's funny, when I first started working at home last fall I wasn't sure I'd end up liking it - and now I don't want to leave! I do enjoy my co-workers' company, though, so it'll be nice to see more of them. Those boys need a girl around every so often to remind them to behave, after all...

Being full time at BootsnAll also means I'll no longer be working for the mediator/attorney friend who I've known for nearly 12 years now. I'm sure I'll be "on call" with him for awhile, though, which is fine because he lives close by. All in all, I'm glad to be down to just one day-job (plus the teaching). It's been a long time coming, and I've been looking forward to this for awhile. It feels like such a relief.

Words of Wisdom

I opened up a candy wrapper this afternoon to reveal a little "fortune" on the inside. It said:

If they can do it, you know you can, too.

I don't even know how I want to apply that to my life right now - I don't know what that "it" is at the moment - but I like the idea.

The Sunbather

sunbather
Originally uploaded by andiamotutti.

Usually Jasmine is elusive during the workday when I'm in the home office - she'll come and go, visiting for a bit (maybe even hanging out in my lap) and then taking off again. When it's sunny outside, however, that's another story.

It might be cold in reality, but the sun comes streaming through the window of my office all afternoon, casting lovely sunbeams behind my desk. Jasmine routinely takes advantage of them, curling up and falling asleep on the floor behind me. This photo is from a couple weeks ago, but she's actually curled up behind me right now, as I write this.

Whoops, I forgot my own anniversary...

I'm sure you've noticed I haven't been posting much over here lately (though I'm trying to be a little better about it now!) - I've been busy writing in seven gajillion other places for work, so I tend to forget about Andiamo (bad me). I'm so distracted, it turns out, that I forgot my own blog's anniversary!

It's been two years (and a few days) now since I started this blog. Two years. I can't believe it. So many things have happened since I started writing, it'll be interesting to see what my life is like in another two years. Anyway happy anniversary to Andiamo, and to my faithful readers. I know all three of you personally, I think.

I get a summer break, too!

I've just heard from my "boss" at the community college where I teach, and I'll be getting a summer break of my very own. First she was asking if I could teach on Mondays (which I don't like to do), and then I asked whether it would be better to just take the summer off - she said that would make sense, because her enrollment hasn't been so good lately, anyway. And I'm completely relieved. It feels like I've been on a treadmill with the teaching since I started last winter, and even though I love it, it's been hard to give myself a break when I needed it. So, this summer break will be just what I need.

Here's hoping that by the time summer actually does roll around that Chris and I have some inkling of where we'll be living by the end of the year... In which case perhaps we can take off for a little break of our own. Either way, I feel like I'll be able to exhale a bit this summer, which will be nice. Yippee!

Causing a Cat Riot

I swear, officer, I was just making lunch.

I was leaving work today when I smelled something yummy. Someone was making tuna sandwiches, which I haven't had in forever, so I decided I had to make some for myself when I got home. I'd barely punctured the top of the tunafish can with the can opener when I heard a familiar noise behind me. When I turned around, Jasmine (the eldest feline in the house) was already circling my legs, tail in the air and meowing at me. This is, I'll remind you, after barely putting a hole in the top of the can. What kind of superpower sniffers do cats have, for pete's sake?

Anyway, she was doing her happy tunafish dance all over the kitchen (which includes, I might add, banging her head into the cupboards in ecstasy - I'm not kidding) waiting for me to dole out some tuna juice while I finished making the tuna salad. Then she pranced upstairs after me and slurped happily after I poured 1/3 of the juice onto her saucer. The other 2/3 went with me into the guestroom for the other two cats, who were waiting very impatiently at the door when I opened it.

Seriously, how can the cat smell the tuna when I've barely made a hole in the lid of the can? And how can the other two cats smell it almost immediately from all the way upstairs behind a closed door? I would envy their amazing sense of smell, but if I had the same thing I'd have to put up with the bad smells, too, and that's no fun.

(I should point out, for those of you who stumble upon this entry and think we're abusing animals by keeping them locked in the guestroom, that Jasmine and "the twins" don't get along, so we keep them separated at all times. Everyone gets equal time hanging out with us, and everyone's got cushy living quarters, so no one's unhappy. Just wanted to make that clear.)

Getting Up to Date, Musically Speaking

Those who know me know that music is pretty important in my life. Why, then, I've lived with a car that only had a radio and a broken cassette player for something like two years is beyond me. I finally upgraded yesterday, however, to a CD player that even has place for me to plug in my MP3 player. It's a brave new world out there.

Now all I have to do is learn how to select music on the player and drive at the same time. Look out.

George Carlin on Religion

A friend passed this along to me, and, being the heathen I am, I found it pretty amusing. It's definitely not safe for work, and it is rather long (10+ minutes). The first couple minutes alone are pretty good, so if that's all you've got time for, you won't be wasting your time.

At any rate, I give you George Carlin on religion.

Three Square at Saint Cupcake

Chris and I eat pretty well... Usually. We definitely like to indulge, though, and we both have a serious weakness for sugar. We'll take any excuse, therefore, for a stop at Saint Cupcake, and this past Saturday offered an excuse we couldn't pass up.

Saturday, you see, was a Day of Many Gatherings. In the afternoon we drove south to see my brother's new house - his first - and help him celebrate both his post-apartment days and his birthday with most of the rest of my family. (The other brother was absent, attending some silly car race in Las Vegas.) Our contribution to the potluck feast? A 24-count box of dots (those are the mini-sized cakes), which I planted candles in and made my brother blow out. A good time was had by all.

On Saturday evening we went for dinner at a friend's house to sample four different ways of eating the elk he'd shot on his property in SE Washington. We had elk sausage as an appetizer, two side dishes containing more elk sausage, and elk steak. It was all divine. And for dessert? A 12-count box of dots. No candles this time.

I think my favorite part about Saint Cupcake is that they manage to reduce grown-ups to children just by putting cake batter into a tiny paper container and covering it with heaps of icing. The mini-sized dots we brought to the gatherings we attended on Saturday were fun for everyone, ranging in age from eight to 71. Any dessert that can erase any sense of age completely is alright by me.

But I can hear you asking... "You said something about 'three square' in the title, though, and you've only mentioned two meals here." Yes, well, while we're not necessarily proud of this, we don't do it often enough to be all that ashamed of it either. You see, when we picked up all the goodies on Saturday morning, neither of us had had breakfast yet. So we each happily ate a regular-sized cupcake for breakfast. We each had our favorites, too - coconut cream for Chris, red velvet for me. Yum.

(As an aside, it wasn't until I went and fetched the website for Saint Cupcake to link to it here that I realized they've opened a second location! Must go visit...)

Suppli al Telefono

Suppli al Telefono
Originally uploaded by andiamotutti.

Eating Suppli al Telefono
Originally uploaded by andiamotutti.

I've been reading a bunch of blogs lately by expats living in Italy. One of them featured a recipe recently for Suppli al Telefono - they're rice balls (the rice is mixed with tomato sauce) with a bit of mozzarella at the center which are breaded and deep-fried. Chris made them recently after I forwarded the recipe to him, and they're dee-lish.

The photographic evidence of them is to the right, along with the reason they're called "al Telefono" - if you bite into the center of the Suppli and they've been cooked just right, the mozzarella will form a cord from the Suppli to your mouth like a telephone cord. Clever, eh?

Buying Singles

There used to be a time when I'd buy a single song at the record store (back when record stores still sold records), and now with the advent of iTunes I'm back in the habit of doing that again. It no longer involves leaving my house, of course, but the act of buying a single song is fun, and I'm glad to be back in the habit again.

I don't do it often - perhaps one a month on average - and usually it comes in waves. Since I'm getting worse and worse about posting anything on this blog, I thought I'd share some of the singles I've purchased recently:

• Silversun Pickups "Lazy Eye"
• Muse "Starlight"
• Zero 7 "In the Waiting Line"
• The Balls "Ladylike"
• Justin Timberlake "What Goes Around Comes Around"
• Shiny Toy Guns "Le Disko"

I've got a running list of songs I've heard that I like and want to download, and when I get in the mood I just start clicking. In addition to those moods, I also am a habitual downloader of the free single of the week, which has resulted in some new favorite songs. Two that come to mind are "Wound Up" by Office and "New Shoes" by Paolo Nutini. Usually these single downloads don't result in me purchasing an entire CD, but sometimes they do. Either way, it's a fun way to expand my music collection and know that I'm getting exactly what I want.

(Oh, and don't say anything about that Justin Timberlake song, either. I've since heard most of the whole album, and it's a damned fine one. I'm the last person who would ordinarily be willing to admit liking Timberlake, but the CD is great. No snickering allowed until you've heard it yourself. So there.)

Nixon in China

Whenever I started at any new school, one of the orientation checklist items was a tour of the library. Every time, the method the librarians would use to make sure everyone knew how to use the microfilm/microfiche was to find the front page of a newspaper from the day we were born. In my case, it wouldn't have mattered what newspaper I'd chosen, it was always the same thing: "Nixon in China." There have been stories this week about that historic trip to China, because it happened 35 years ago. It's been a reminder to me that I'm also coming up on a milestone birthday.

I love my birthday. I love being the center of attention (those who know me shouldn't be surprised), and I don't have any hangups about getting older. While still in high school I remember finding a couple of gray hairs, which I loved. I forgot about them when I dyed my hair black, so they disappeared. Nowadays, when my hairdresser finds a gray hair on my head, she'll stop mid-sentence, pull a tiny pair of scissors from her tray and snip it off at the root, whispering, "I'll just get rid of that for you..." The whispering reminds me of people who used to whisper the word "cancer" years ago.

Much of the hair on my head is now (and has been for quite awhile) artificially colored, so I'm sure I'll continue to have a majority of non-gray hair for a long time - and yet there's a part of me that is looking forward to the time when I've got a full head of long white-gray hair. When I put my hair up this morning, three days from my 35th birthday, I found three grays and just smiled. At some point, my hairdresser's clipping efforts are going to be futile.