xolo xmas

rain, wind, emergency eye surgery assisting, "sleeping in" until after 8am... some of the many joys of today. not that it was bad. not that i didn't enjoy my shopping bag "stocking" or cauliflower casserole. and having neil around for a sleepover was fun. and i got lots of stuff packed/shifted around. the spare room is mostly cleared out - just gotta take care of the futon. and clean the carpet. and touch up the paint where shadow stretched out his claw muscles...
and for some reason i'm listening to love the way you lie repeatedly.
on the theater end of things: there is much debate regarding our next performance. as in, what play is it going to be. "nana's naughty knickers" was submitted and very nearly approved (i.e. everyone except the artistic director loves the idea). so now we have to come up with something else by about next week so we can start rehearsing.
what a weird christmas.

so many things

the plays were awesome. great cast, great audiences, awful review (someone didn't like the actual scripts, and decided that meant the entire review had to be negative), and while we were striking the set i struck my face. with a hammer. i caught most of the blood on myself (hands, clothes, etc.). thank goodness our president had an awesome first aid kit. yeah, it was awesome.
for some reason, i also had really misbehaved dogs during the weekend. destroyed items include food and laundry. also, teddy pooped on the floor. hobbes behaved well. i am confused.

wig problem - solved.

did i mention that on saturday my wig fell askew part-way through rehearsal? my co-actors just about died laughing, and i'll admit i lost a few chuckles myself. costume malfunction, but hey, there have been worse. so i went out and bought a giant squeeze bottle of mega gel and made a do-rag out of a knee-high stocking. ta-da! i now have post-play crusty head, but the wigs stayed put. of course, i got to rehearsal all dressed for the magi play, and we were practicing the hillbilly play first, but dad-gummit if i didn't just play a hillbilly in my fancy 'do - because there is no way i was going to try to recreate the madness in between plays. for the real performances i'll do the wigs play first. now i just have to figure out how to de-gunk and make some braids in the 5 minutes between plays. oog.
on a side note, the dollar store frozen pretzels i've been snacking on are mighty good.

sleeping

the intention was to go to work after rehearsal today. the reality was that i went home and went back to sleep. for nearly 4 hours. woke up to a hobbes face about two inches away from mine. there are worse ways to wake up. teddy and connie both got up on the bed for some snuggling, and teddy laid on top of hobbes and made him squeal. the joys of critters.
speaking of joys and critters: i started all the cats on a diet - as part of purina's project pet slim down because twilight was a tad on the portly side. okay, i admit it, she was fat. when she was lying on the floor she became a circle with legs and a face. very fat cat. so anyway, the cats all eat out of the same dish, so everyone had to go out on a diet. my estimation on her weight loss over the last 3 months is about 2 pounds (that's like 30 human pounds). she's leaner, faster, and obviously more comfortable moving around. she's jumping more and getting into things, and this morning she actually played and wrestled with shadow for several minutes. she hasn't done that in years, and i didn't realize it was connected to a lack of comfort with moving around in her royal fatness. don't get me wrong - she's still a tubby little thing. but oh, it's nice to see her happier. so i recommend purina OM to anyone with a portly pet.
and on that note... i'll go feed the critters.

holidays alone

welcome to my first holiday season without relatives. i basically went straight from my family to shaggy's, with a quick christmas in new york in between. i've never not had a tree or stockings. i've played santa ever since i was twelve. and now the dillema of (and i know this grammar is terrible, but...) now who do i play santa for? i already bought myself some fancy chapstick, but do i really make a stocking for myself? and a tree? if i was already moved in to my new house, no question, i would get a tree. but i'm still camping and living out of boxes at this apartment. yesterday i made my annual chocolatey meringue stars - usually the first on my holiday baking list. so now do i keep baking? i'd have to unpack a bunch of baking supplies to do that. worth doing? maybe.
or should i just sleep through the whole season?

things i'm thankful for today:

my critters! hobbes' mischevous sense of humor, snotty cold early morning kisses, and heart of gold. balloon's clingy-velcroness and sweet biscuit making. twilight's gritty meow and new found love of play (thanks to purina OM and project pet slim-down!). shadow's, well... shadow's relative lack of fear lately - he's taken to hissing at the dogs as he walks by them, instead of hissing while he flees from them. theodore. so many things about my teddy boy. his sweet face and gentle nature. the fact that he tries so hard to be a good boy. his patience, his "inside voice", and his happy smile. such a good dog. and of course, the foster connie. she really needs a home of her own, but i'm thankful i can provide her a place for now.
speaking of place. i know i complain about my leaky roof, but i am so thankful to have this apartment right now. it was perfect for this time of change - being this close to work this cheaply was incredible. i got lots of amusing stories and lots of "this is how to fix problem x" experience. now i can take care of just about any problem i might run into as a homeowner (or at least i know who to call if i can't), and i got to practice painting on somewhere they'll probably repaint as soon as i move out anyway...
my car. holy smokes am i thankful for my free car. the engine is just about the only thing that works on it, but that's all i need. heaters, pshaw. speedometer, pshaw. door locks, trunk seal, gas cap that opens properly, pshaw. i love having a car i can put bumper stickers on. i love having a car that's mine. i love the freedom of being able to just go in to town on a whim, or purchase more stuff than i can fit on my bicycle.
my bicycle. holy smokes am i thankful for my bicycle! it's a purple electra with all the fixin's and i just love it to bits. my last couple of bicycles (which were also purple, but much cheaper and less awesome) got retired by being tossed in the dumpster at whichever apartment complex in san diego i was moving out of at the time. yeah, not too fancy or anything. this smooth ride... ahhhhhhh.
speaking of smooth, i am thankful for my dutch cocoa. it's dark and smoky and practically sinful. mmmm.
i'm thankful for food. for yummy food, cheap food, yummy and cheap food (macaroni and cheese, among other things). the flavors, the textures, from cocoa krispies to a garlic-buttered artichoke. can we say i love my food?
i'm thankful for the fun places i can buy food. trader joes is incredible, though a little far away. clauson's liquidation! wow! i got a 5lb bag of raw sugar there for 5 bucks yesterday. they've had truffle oil, gluten free bread mixes, chestnuts, cases of gatorade, veggies galore, and all kinds of fun candy stuff, all at ridiculously low prices. grocery outlet. again YUM and very cheap.
i'm thankful for my paychecks. they're not a ton, but they are sufficient and i'm grateful to have them. i'm thankful for a boss who appreciates the work i do and doesn't mind me putting in a bit of ot to get a project done. i'm thankful that i get to be silly at work.
speaking of work: can anyone imagine a better job for me than the one i have? not by much! i get to work directly with animals, i get to help awesome people and hold stupid people accountable. i get to organize things and track statistics and be all anal about that. i get to bring my dogs to work with me. i get to talk about things like animal behaviors and new medical breakthroughs and go to trainings that build me up personally as well as professionally. i get to do all that stuff and i get paid for the privilege. not a bad deal at all!
i am thankful for my coworkers! i work with some amazing people, and it is amazing to me to be able to interact with them on the level that i do. there is no petty sniping. we don't wear our poopy potty pants to work, and we don't have to deal with any of the normal girl-type snitty stuff. instead we build each other up and help each other learn and share the workload like no place i've ever been. what an incredible team!
i am thankful for my freedom. from government oppression. from societal and economic oppression (maybe living in the middle of nowhere has something to do with that). from any kind of oppression. what an amazing country i live in, where a bunch of idiots in washington (d.c. of course) pretend they run the show, but in real life we all go on living our daily lives as we choose to do. my travels this year have really reminded me how amazing it really is to be an american citizen and i'm proud of that, regardless of how silly we can be.
which leads me to being thankful for our soldiers. our troops. our marines, airmen, seamen, whatever you want to call them. the people who wear a uniform to ensure our safety and security. my hat is off to them and their families.
i'm thankful for my personal freedom of choice. i'm thankful that this year, i was able to really get to know myself, and realize that i really am kind of cool. i kind of always thought i had some good stuff to offer, and now i know it. yay for realization! what an amazing feeling - i like myself. i like who i am and what i do, and i am proud of the choices i make. i don't care if i don't have a huge impact on the world, but i can make a small impact on lots of lives, and i choose to do that. i've learned that it's more important to be happy than to be "right", and i am so glad i can choose to be wrong sometimes. because i am happy.
i'm thankful for words, written, spoken, non-verbally expressed. i love communicating, and seeing how different kinds of communications work. i like to see how people interact with people, critters with critters, critters with people.
*i'm thankful for melanie and eric who just brought neil by to say hi and happy thanksgiving! i do love that dog, and i'm sooooo glad that he is happy with them!*
i'm thankful for the good deeds i'm able to do. once in a psychology class we held a debate as to whether any action could be truly altruistic. i argued no. good deeds are rewarded, and i think people have an innate sense of that. i got to foster poki the broken-legged weiner dog last winter. i didn't get any money or fame from that, but it felt so good to see her with her new family.
i am thankful for the internet and my telephone that keep me connected with the outside world. it is amazing that i can be back in contact with people i knew years ago in other countries.
that said, i love living where i do. my favorite stores are far away, but that makes it even more special when i get to go there. most people i know are in other states, so it's that much cooler when i get to see them. i am thankful that where i live helps me appreciate what i have.
i am thankful that i've been approved to purchase my cabin. i'm finally going to be legit and own a house. i'm really going to live here, not just rent or squat. i'll really belong somewhere. wow. that's a load off my shoulders. i am so excited to be a real grownup and pay a mortgage. i am thankful for government programs that make it possible for someone without a big down payment to be able to buy a home. i am thankful for my realtor and loan officer who are making this happen. and i'm thankful that the builders made such a cool little cute cabin for me to buy.
i'm thankful for my laptop. it was an amazing gift, given at a very opportune time. i'm thankful that it was missed when the majority of my other electronics were stolen.
i'm thankful for my layers and layers of clothes, including my frontline fuzzy jacket and my ridiculous hat that are keeping me warm(ish) right now. i'm thankful that my boss told me to take home an additional heater from work, so that i was warm enough last night to really sleep. i'm thankful that i was able to sleep in today. really sleep in. the poor critters didn't get breakfast until about 10:30. then i went back to bed. i'm thankful for a paid holiday! i'm thankful that i'm getting a chance to rest and let my body admit that i'm sick, so i can start to get better. stupid head cold... i'm thankful for ricola and halls lozenges, for theraflu and the dutch theraflu-ish stuff i got there, for hot cider and lemonade and herbal tea. i'm thankful for vitamins and excedrin and tissues (especially the ones with lotion in them...).
i'm thankful that i have enough money in my bank account that i don't have to freak out about black friday or camp in front of anywhere to get something cheaper. i can get what i need, when i need it, and if something is expensive, i can budget and save for it. i am thankful that i have the security and stability to be able to do that. i am thankful for my absence of debt (until i get the mortgage).
finally, i am thankful that i know there are other things i didn't list, but that i'm going back to bed again, so they can stay in my subconscious for now.

... because i can't resist

jibjab christmas

more pirated romania photos

a mix of photos from dan and laura's cameras...
the night of the blind people party, there was a dance at the hotel restaurant. i do not know this dude's name, but he danced with several of us.
and as we were waiting around outside the clinic, i got this itch inside my nose...

apparently it was a really, really bad itch:

while at the mud volcanoes, i had fun leaping from peak to peak. then i got a tad cocky. surprised i didn't fall down at this point:

and a random stone lion "got" me at castle pelles. yes, i am a ham, but i didn't mean it like that!

still catching up

so i got as far as the spay/neuter clinic. we started early (i got there about 5:30) and people started showing up with their pets a little before 6am. at a little after 6:30 i started calling the people whose pets weren't there yet. we got most of 'em to show up. then surgery started at about 7. as per normal, the food brought in by volunteers was awesome, and boy, did we earn it! i think the clinics are getting more and more popular - we had so many volunteers this time that i stationed one person with the boss' and my dogs in the office to pet and love on and keep 'em happy. it was great to get all these incredible people together and introduce them to other people who love animals. and we did good deeds at the same time! double win!
so then i finally got to relax a little bit on sunday, after helping work with an agressive puppy. then monday was a real monday, and tuesday went really smoothly until the end of the day when i got to start driving. see, i got to go to an inventory/osha training on wednesday and thursday up in everett. yeah, long drive (also that's where the ex lives now. awkward!). so i drove up on tuesday, got there about 9:30, and checked in to my motel 6. sort of eeew, but i had a freebie coupon, and we know i can't pass up a freebie. first the heater wouldn't get warm, then it got too warm, but altogether not too terrible. the training was awesome. webster veterinary supply has a webster university program, and this was the first time i'd gone to any of their classes. there were only about 15 of us, with a great instructor, and i think we all learned a lot. plus, all the other people there were veterinary office managers, so we got to talk shop and help troubleshoot each others' issues and whatnot. got some really good advice and met some great people. they fed us too, which is always a plus in my book. hot breakfast and lunch at the courseroom, and then they took us all out to dinner on wednesday to an italian bistro. yum! can we say tirami-awesome-su?
finished up with osha stuff on thursday at about 1. just in time to go to the irs office to get copies of tax returns for my loan officer, and then hit trader joes and big lots before the first time homebuyers class i had to take to get a deal on my down payment. since they don't offer those classes out here, i scheduled it for thursday evening while i was in civilization. great class, and i learned a lot, but i didn't start the drive back until almost 10.
so then there was a little bit of sleep before i got up to take my car in to the shop. i swung by the new house on the way there. it seems the cabinet guy had a family emergency, so it's still almost done... at least everybody's ok and it should be ready by closing (maybe dec. 15th?). i took the dogs along for the ride, so that we could all walk back from the mechanic. i think they had fun, at least on the walk back, since teddy's not a huge fan of riding in the car. then i left 'em at home because the rain was picking up, and i went to work. once i'd caught up on most of my piles of stuff, i realized that it wasn't just a scratchy throat that had been bothering me - it was full-blown achy/fevery/swollen neck glands and grossness throat. so i got kicked out of the office a couple of minutes early. like that did much good because i had to drive in to town again anyway. at least i got some sleep after i got home.
so on saturday i felt a little better (yay) and (gulp) went and watched harry potter. i know, i know. i haven't wasted theater time on any of 'em so far, but hey, i'd already gone bowling and scoped out the volunteer recognition thingy at the convention center... it was definitely a harry potter movie. partly weird, partly obvious (does anyone else think malfoy is going to pull a darth vader and turn good in the next movie? guess i could read the book and find out...) and harry's just a little full of himself again. so it's not okay to steal necklaces unless harry does it, in which case whoever tries to stop him is a bad guy? animal farm much? just a tad frustrating that this series was a whole huge thing and that masses of children have idolized these books and now have been "taught" (or at least had it reinforced) that it's okay to feel entitled and that people should just help them in their quests, regardless of whether or not they agree, and that fighting is an acceptable solution as compared with rational discussion, etc. etc. not a huge fan of the potter kid, i know. and that was my tangent for the day.
finally almost caught up to today, in which the snow fell, blew around, stuck, melted, stuck some more, and turned the world all magical for a few minutes. then i got really cold, hence my 3 layers of socks. hot cocoa time!

since the trip...

i got back on saturday the 6th. we flew in at about 2 in the afternoon, got back to the car, drove home (with a couple of stops along the way for food (to eat then) and food (from a produce place to take home). got home about 6 to find a crock pot of veggie soup (my pet sitter RULES!). i tried to stay awake until normal bedtime. by normal bedtime, i was no longer tired. so i stayed up for most of the night. i think i napped some in later morning. then i went in to civilization for a while, and on the way home i got pulled over a block from my house. seems i'd started speeding just then, after being soooo careful the whole way... and i'd forgotten to put the new insurance card in the car. the officer told me to drive home safely and pay better attention to how fast i was driving. sir, yes, sir, i guess.
and then i stayed up all night again, just in time to go back to work on monday. there wasn't as much stuff piled up for me to deal with as i expected. nice surprise, but then there was plenty to do getting ready for the spay/neuter clinic for the 13th. i tried out the new italian restaurant in town after work. very yummy, but kind of pricey. probably worth it for a special occasion or something. and since i'm on the food topic... darn blue opened up a can of worms by bringing bagels to work and restarting my bagel kick. way to go keeping the fransz baking company in business this week. also, i didn't start sleeping well until about wednesday night.
the clinic on saturday went well - 32 critters "fixed".
and i'm losing battery, so i gotta go.

the trip: amsterdam

pretty much as soon as we got to amsterdam, i realized i had picked up "the creeping crud" that poor dr. steele had been fighting for days. congestion, wooziness, sore throat, the whole bit. despite that, we resolved to have fun anyway, and off we went. we spent our first afternoon on a city tour. the buildings are mostly tall, narrow, and so old that "paul revere weren't born yet when that was built". most of downtown was built up in the 16 and 1700s. i can barely comprehend that people still live and work and go about their daily lives amid that kind of history. there are canals every which way and boats and houseboats that remind me of trailers at a trailer park. and there are bicycles everywhere. i thought i saw a lot in japan, but those were nothing compared to this! the bicycles rival cars for numbers on the streets, and people use them as a regular, daily means of transportation. they ride 'em in their work clothes, and with their kids. people talk on their phones and text on their bikes. they attach little trailers to haul stuff in. we even saw a multi-level bicycle parking garage at the train station. i'd have to say that the immense weight of history and the bicycles were the biggest culture shocks.
the tour included a stop at a diamond factory. grrrrr. don't get me started on the whole blood diamond thing. i have not, nor will i ever voluntarily wear one of those rocks. still, now i've seen how they cut and polish the things.
then we got back on the bus. each passenger was given a little headset, which we plugged in to the side of the bus, and then selected our language of choice. the tour was set up via gps, so the descriptions supposedly matched what we were seeing. some of the time, it did.
after the tour, we got all set up in our hotel room and then went out to find food. we found a mcdonalds, some italian places, and about five different falafel houses. so i ate falafel. then we called it a day.
day two started with breakfast at the hotel (they gave us non name-brand nutella!! among other things). then, after a quick stop at a pharmacy for some creeping crud killer, we set out to explore the city on foot. we went through several markets and shops and were horrified at the prices of things. we perused the flower market and walked up to a giant windmill - one of the few working windmills left in the area. we decided that since food was so expensive, we'd just get bread and vegetables at a market and make sandwiches. and then we found avocadoes. really cheap, good avocadoes. and some rich, nutty bread. so that was dinner for a few nights. om nom nom. the next day, we set out for the anne frank house first thing. it was depressing and inspiring at the same time. i'd read the book, and even been anne in a play, but it was very sobering to stand in her room and look at the movie star photos and news clippings she'd hung on the walls and written about.
and then, to counteract the melancholy, we met a young american guy who was passing out flyers for a comedy show that evening, not far from our hotel. interested? yes i was. the club (and the group) are called boom chicago, and they were quite good. most of the show was improv, with just a few pre-rehearsed bits or clips. i enjoyed myself and some nummy hot cocoa.
day three we visited rembrandt's house (that was foreclosed on, and has been restored to the level of fancy he thought he could afford). it was ornate, and fascinating. some historians had assembled a collection of natural artifacts that resemble rembrandt's collection he used for artistic inspiration. he had some really weird stuff, like lizards and dried armadillos. after rembrandt's house, we went to the historical museum and learned about amsterdam. there was a fashion exhibit at the museum, so we saw lots of clothes in addition to bits of amsterdam history. towards the end of the museum, there were a series of scenes/stories depicting the lives of children through different times and socio-economic classes of the city. it turns out that amsterdam has always been very progressive in caring for the poor and needy. they had a huge old-folks home downtown, and fed homeless people and orphans. there were work programs for poor people there a couple of hundred years ago, where instead of being just given money, people were given jobs building infrastructure and such. so the new deal turns out to have not been such a novel idea after all. i guess you learn something new every day.
after the museum, we took a canal boat tour in the dark. so we got to ride around the canals for about an hour and see what amsterdam looks like all lit up for the evening.
then on our last day we visited the van loon museum - a ridiculously expensive canal house that has been restored to what it looked like a few hundred years ago. the van loon family still owns the house, and they let people come in and wander around (for a fee, of course) to see what it looked like back in the day. and what it looked like was very nice.
after that it was off to the famous sara's pancake house for some ravioli.... heehee no. apple pancakes and boy was it yum! pricey though, like everything else. so then we went down to the market by the hotel to spend the last of our euros. and then colleen showed us a confectionery so i wished i had a few more euros left. then when we were packing up our stuff at the hotel, my wish was granted because i did have a few more euros in my bag. so then i ran back down to the confectionery. i told the lady behind the counter that i wanted to spend the last of my euros there, and she helped me pick out some awesome sweets. then she winked and stuffed a few extras in the bag. nice! we had a chocolate party back up at the hotel room. after the avocado sandwiches and some of the most amazing garlic olives i have ever experienced.
then i drugged myself up with dutch creeping crud remedy and went to bed.
the flight back home was awful - ten hours of congested misery. then the three hour drive from the airport was a lot less miserable. then i got home to find out that my pet sitter (who is freaking amazing) had already walked my dogs and left me a crock pot of veggie soup. ahhhhhhhh. and a day off on sunday before the drama began again.

the trip: more stuff

in addition to our arrival and our clinics, we did some other cool stuff in romania as well. a few people in our group were invited to be on romanian tv, and on the last surgery day, i got to play hookey for a while and be on buzau city's morning show. they asked me what i liked about romania, and i responded that the food was pretty good. they asked me what i had eaten. i said "i don't know, but it's good!" i think that made 'em happy. then andrea told them that in the us, dogs live inside the house, and hers sleep in the bed with her. and that if it gets too crowded, that her husband moves to the couch. they didn't really know whether to laugh at that or be disgusted: dogs being in the house is not something that happens over there. the day we were on the show was also "turkish" day, so there were belly dancers performing and lounging around the stage before and after our interviews. i'm not sure if it was supposed to be a serious, or if it's their version of the daily show...
we visited some mud volcanoes in buzau county and were pleasantly surprised at the lack of restraint offered to mud volcano tourists. i would have expected at least a bunch of "don't touch the mud" type signs, but no - a guy at the gate took our money and waved us on in to acres of mud/stone stuff. basically, there are some hot springs underground that combine with silt, which all bubbles up in a gooey mess and runs down the sides of the hills made by former mud. then it all solidifies and over about a billion years, i'm sure it will turn into sandstone. in the meantime, it made a whole bunch of awesome mountain/crevasse-y formations that reminded me a little bit of sand dunes at death valley. no hamburger-butt from these though - i was careful not to slide down any. we had some fun running around and climbing through the little mud valleys and making crude jokes (c'mon, they were "blup-blupping" like a bean fart in a bathtub).
our driver told us that there was a monastary on the way back to the hotel, and asked us if we would like to go see it. sure we would! then we learned that "on the way" doesn't mean the same thing in romania that it does here. so after we went over/around a mountain or so and around a bunch of curves (still at a ridiculous pace and again with the accordian music) we arrived at a monastary just in time for it to be too dark to see anything. after our driver asked around, he found a monk who was willing to let us in to see thier chapel and talk to us about it. turns out this particular monk used to work at the casino on a carnival cruise ship before he became a professional basketball player, but then he realized that something was missing from his life and he became a romanian orthodox monk. he explained that this was the newer chapel (only about 180 years old) because the 600 year old chapel had gotten too small for all the people who worshipped in it. the paintings and sculptures and stained glass were impressive. as we were leaving, he gave us all bracelets that had been blessed with holy water (except our driver, who had one already). then we made friends with a pack of local dogs in the parking lot before we drove back to our hotel.
that night, there was a banquet of sorts for blind people in our hotel. each blind person had an escort, and they started partying just after we got in. there was traditional romanian music and dancing, and we were invited to join in. several of our group did, and we had fun. after some liquid encouragement, more of our group joined in. eventually we all trickled away to get some rest before our trip to transylvania the next day, but the party went on long after most of us "crazy americans" had gone to bed. towards the end of the party, someone noticed a water leak, and several of the upstairs showers had to be turned off before it could be fixed. thank goodness our group had people on both sides of the hallway, and that we were willing to share. so in the morning we all got our showers in and packed our bags and got back on the bus. the drive took a couple of hours. there were some gorgeous hills in full autumn colors to watch along the way. sinaia is a tourist hotspot in transylvania with little coffeeshops and pubs and restaurants and whatnot, as well as street vendors and little souvenier shacks all over. we drove through the main area of town to get to our hotel, which was basically a 3-d ikea catalog. very nice stuff. we got all checked in and then started exploring the town. there ws a nice central park with random statues and benches and walkways around a fountain. downtown had food (cheesy noodles for me) and some guys playing ecuadorian music on a street corner - pan pipes and all. i got some wiener coffe in the grocery store (couldn't resist) and was really, really excited to find both kinder chocolate and jaffa cakes there! the jaffa cakes are already all gone, by the way.
that night, we intended to go out for dinner as a group, but the first place we tried turned us away because we didn't have a reservation. so we went somewhere else and were ushered in, given drinks, fed, and well taken care of. there was music and dancing, and fancy napkins and whatnot. it was only after we'd been served our meals that we realized we had crashed a wedding. whoops! then the musicians took a break, and all the dancers went back to their tables to light up. did i mention that romanians don't have a problem with smoking indoors? this wedding was one of heavy smokers, and the restaurant was not well ventilated. we ate, paid, and left coughing. there was an "after party" planned, but it fizzled into watching the second charlie's angels movie on cable. yay.
that was saturday. sunday was halloween. halloween was castle day! we started with castle pelles, a fairly modern castle, which was walking distance from the hotel. vendors upon vendors plied their wares while we trekked up the hill to the castle. and it was pretty impressive! the exterior is in good repair, and really looks like a castle. there are statues and towers and all kinds of fun stuff. then we went inside. the opulence was ridiculous. fancy carved stuff plated with gold decorated with crystal, piled on more fancy carved stuff. i couldn't even imaging living in a place that ornementated. i'd be afraid to break the whole thing. it was fascinating to see how much decadence can be crammed into each room. for example, the theater room, in addition to having carved cushioned chairs and velvet curtains on the ornate stage, also had murals painted on the ceiling. and fancy carpet.
the grounds were lovely. woods and hills and a stream beside the cobbled road... as we walked back down from the castle, i purchased a woolen poncho from one of the vendors. it was all fringey and awesome, and i (as usual) was cold. i got some candy from another vendor (again, big surprise, right?). after pelles, we went out for lunch (at the irish pub, where i ate spaghetti and listened to the ecuadorian guys' music) before getting on the bus for bran castle. dun dunnn dunnnnnnn! dracula's fortress, here we come! along the way, we saw the gypsy village where part of borat was filmed. exciting stuff...
so we got to castle bran and i should have expected it to be crowded, but this! i've been spoiled by living in the middle of nowhere these last couple of years. there were masses of people milling around, tourists, vendors, locals, and dogs in between begging for food. we waited in line to pay for the castle. then we walked up the hill in a herd. then we waited in line at the heavy door (with a gargoyle doorknob - pretty awesome). then the crowd moved into the castle. yes, it was a castle. yes, it was pretty cool, but the best part by far was when cristina put fake blood on her face and fake fangs in her mouth and whirled around growling and hissing at the hordes of children following behind us. their screaming and fleeing was a delight to witness. then we had a little more space for the rest of the castle. whereas pelles gave us a guided tour (probably to make sure we didn't touch anything) bran let people pretty much just wander around and explore. i found several windows that weren't sealed shut, and let a little fresh air into some of the rooms. i found the wooden swivel shutter thing that made room for archers to aim at enemies. that wasn't sealed shut either. then i found a door that was locked, and it was annoying. oh well. if one locked door and screaming hordes of children are the worst that happens, i guess that's not too bad. probably the most disturbing thing i saw at the castle was the epoxy-encased vampire bats for sale in the gift shop. i was appalled and i was fascinated. i very nearly purchased one, they were so gruesome. (shudder).
after we'd all had our fill of crowded castle, we went back to the bus and learned about "satisfaction bread". the bread dough is wound around a wooden dowel, doused in some sweet syrupy stuff, and then roasted over live coals. the finished "loaf" is shaped like a big toilet paper roll, but oh, the goodness! three loaves lasted about four minutes, and that was just because the passing them around took time. and, thanks to the guys on our trip and its unique shape, the bread was named for its potential uses "when you're lonely, and you need a snack". yes, they meant it that way.
following that, dinner was at the steakhouse (where we said goodbye to new jersey, who had an early flight in the morning), followed by an after party at the irish pub, followed by a bunch of shivering people chattering our teeth back up to the hotel, where a few of us warmed up in the lobby and said goodbye to aurash, since he would be leaving early in the morning.
speaking of morning, that's when some of us went up to the cable car/gondola place to see if we could get a signtseeing ride. we couldn't because they were closed, but it was still a nice walk. then there was another walk to the train station to buy our tickets for that afternoon's train ride. then there was some shopping and another irish pub and some satisfaction bread before we collected the luggage and went back down to the station. the train was delayed a few minutes, so we got to watch some construction guys jauntily build while balancing on girders way up high... and we got to feed some stray dogs wandering around on the tracks. eventually our train showed up and we piled on and piled in and off we went. it took a couple of hours to get to bucharest, where we checked in to another hotel, and then walked down the block for dinner. we went to a romanian restaurant, where we were served traditional romanian specialties, and boy did the vegetarians luck out! we got bean paste and eggplant paste and some sort of ratatouille, and roasted peppers. om nom nom... the poor meat eaters got pork rind and chunks of pork fat and fish paste and yeah. heehee. there were local musicians at the restaurant and lonnie proposed to the violinist on the spot after he serenaded her. so that was dinner, and then we went on back to the hotel and set up our wake-up calls since we all had to leave pretty early. except taryn. she stayed a few extra days in bucharest and brought marius (the dog) and bobbi/el presidente back stateside on the airplane with her. the rest of us met up with cristina in the morning. she had gone back to buzau during the night to pick up mika the puppy and bring her out to us so that she could fly on the plane with jennifer to san jose. we made it to the airport, but it took a long time to finalize the puppy's paperwork. long enough for her to throw up in her carrier anyway. lucky me got to hold her while other people cleaned it up (as soon as we got through security). then it was goodbyes all around, as lonnie went home to va, the california folks all flew through paris, and us amsterdam-bound folks headed on out that way.

some photos

so the local spay/neuter clinic (and remnants of romanian flu) distracted me from finishing my story. dan took lots of photos, and i've pirated some of his here.
we visited some mud volcanoes, and they just matched my outfit:
for some reason, when we threw up signs, i was a vulcan...

i made a random glass/ashtray tower at a romanian wedding we crashed.

and the notorious leopard pants:

oh yeah, we saw some castles too. this one is the most impressive - castle pelles:

the trip: the clinics

the original plan for our trip was to set up shop in the city of buzau, where there is a dog shelter of sorts, and the romanian army brings in up to 30 dogs daily that they've dart-gunned down on the streets, in addition to individual citizens bringing in their own pets for surgery. the last trip was insanely swamped, and we had a team of surgeons ready to rock-n-roll. well, yeah. those darn best laid plans again...
we set up shop in our little village (in some empty rooms at the mineral springs spa). we taped garbage bags to some desk-table thingies and used concrete blocks to raise them up for use as surgery tables. we spread out foam padding and set up a space heater in our recovery room. we got out all of our drugs and gloves and sutures and whatever all else, gave ourselves a pep-talk, and the army brought us a total of 4 dogs. several people brought us their own pets, and our amazing new friends duena and marius caught lots of street dogs for us, but there was barely any time that all four surgeons were operating at the same time for more than a few minutes of overlap. dr. colleen spent a good hour luring one semi-feral dog with snacks so that we could spay her. dr. lonnie did some great kitty snuggling in recovery. dr. andrea went on romanian tv three times, and dr. steele, well, she pretty much got in on all the surgeries she could, and worked with dr. dan (a romanian vet who joined us at the last minute). dr. dan had never spayed a cat before, but now he's awesome at it!
i was one of the people who went out an wrangled street dogs (and in one very exciting instance, a feral cat) leash in one pocket, muzzle in the other. we'd lure the dogs with snacks, lasso them, tackle 'em and slap on a muzzle so i could carry them back. not that they were super bad, but they were all terrified of walking on a leash, and i'm not gonna have a dog i don't know that near my face without a muzzle on. so we got a good dozen or so dogs that way, in addition to the friendly street dogs (el presidente/bobby the beagle, beetlejuice/marius the shepherd mix, and a few others) who followed us right to the clinic, and then hung out there for days after their surgeries. they loooooved the attention. and yes, some of the team fell in love with them. dandrea adopted marius, danielle has bobby, and jackie, bless her, is adopting palinka (a pup whose mom we spayed the first day) that means i'll get to keep tabs on her, since jackie's already a client at my office. woohoo! (side note: "palinka" is a homemade pear brandy, sort of like extra-strong tsuica. bobby is named bobby because one of the guys down at the cafe where he regularly begged called him that. marius is marius because "the real marius" is just an all-around amazing guy, in addition to being an incredible dog catcher and handler. also, it's a romanian name. and dandrea is like bennifer or brangelina. you know.)
back to surgeries. most of our patients were dog spays. most of them were not puppies. several of the dogs had some sort of blood clotting problem (local disease?) and oozed significantly during surgery. poor doggies. we had a couple of scary surgeries, but no fatalities (a great record when anesthetizing and operating on all ages of non-preexamined random dogs). on day one, we did 30 surgeries. when i wasn't out rounding up patients, i worked in surgery, monitoring patients and giving additional anesthetic drugs when needed. not being the hugest fan of blood and guts, i was glad to move to recovery on day two, when we again did 30 surgeries. strangely enough, day two was mostly cats. yeah, and i have cat allergies. and recovery was a small room with all the cats who needed handling/medicating/cleaning up/monitoring while they woke up. so i got pretty congested and sneezy. on day 3, i got to sneak into pre-op for a minute to help wrestle some terrified feral puppies out of a crate for anesthesia. yeah. so the one with explosive diarrhea also had the screaming-flailies and thrashed and squealed and sprayed filthy stinky poo all over me. yay. thank goodness i had pajama pants on under my scrub pants, as i was able to peel 'em off before the poo soaked through. oh... of all the days to wear the fuzzy leopard print pajama pants. photos were taken, laughs made, and then we got on with the work, fuzzy leopard pants and all. one of our "clients" on days two, three, and four was a lady we nicknamed "babushka". at first she came in pulling a wagon full of bundles. it took a while for us to figure out it was really a wagon full of cats! it turns out that, in romania, burlap shopping bags double as cat carriers. she had at least 8 or 9 cats all piled on the wagon. we "fixed" them all, then loaded 'em back up in their bags, helped her pile them on the wagon, and sent them on their way. she came back later with more cats, and then again with some religious pamphlets. we tried to explain to her that, since we don't read romanian, we couldn't read them anyway, but she insisted, so now i have a romanian religious pamphlet. by day two, people started bringing us goodies to thank us for helping out. we got still-warm homemade bread, some amazing eggplant/pepper stuff in a jar to slather on the bread, fresh pastries, cookies, fruit, and bottles of homemade tsuica, palinka, and red wine. this all in addition to the lunches that our hotel made and had sent down to us. lunches were a variety of soupy/stewey things, with mushrooms or cabbages or whatever. they always sent us two pots - one with meat and one without. how awesome is that!
by day 3, the americans in town were too big of a deal for people to miss out on - we had some looky-loos scope us out, and some of them picked on babushka for a while. they didn't seem to understand why we weren't impressed with their mocking of her. stupid guys.
and i know i left out a lot of stuff, but it's really morning now, so i'm gonna go start my day and get back to documenting the trip a little later.

the trip: the post: the arrival

holy guacamole - day one started at oh-dark-thirty in the morning with a drive to sea-tac. we got a late start due to teddy's refusing to poop and some forgotten boots. so we didn't get to stop for breakfast as planned. mcdonalds had to suffice, and i have never been less impressed with a mickey d's than the one in tacoma. blech service, blech for messing up orders and blech for lack of cleanliness or organization... overall not such a nice time. also, my beverage came sans sugar, which i did not realize until we had driven away. so i got to the airport only vaguely gruntled. then we met up with jackie and began the epic journey - nine hours to amsterdam, getting jackie to her plane, then meeting up with colleen, then getting to our plane and meeting the "rest" of the gang (dan/andrea/jen/randy) from san jose. then the 3 and some change hour plane ride to bucharest. i made barf bag puppets, but the small child sitting next to me was not at all entertained. oh well. i was pleasantly surprised at the caliber (and quantity) of food klm provided us along the way. during the layover in amsterdam, i met a guy named ronald (you may have heard of him - he represents a very large worldwide fast food chain). there were several representations of ron around the airport, and we met several times, most of them amicably. at one point ron got a bit fresh and i had to have a serious talk with him afterwards (photos to follow).
so, we made it to bucharest and met back up with jackie, who had connected with cristina, lonnie, taryn, and new jersey (maria, danielle, and laura). we passed around a bunch of beleagured hellos and pleasdameetchas - i didn't know this yet, but that whole group was comprised of awesome people! team romania, take one: lights, camera, action!
we got local funds from atms (currency in romania is composed of lei and bani, and yes, there were all kinds of fun references made throughout the trip regarding how many lei people had gotten from whom in romania.) then we met our driver, aurash, and clambered onto the bus. then we discovered that aurash likes techno music. loud techno music. very loud, nonstop, swerving madly about on romanian highways at night techno music. eventually we made it to our hotel, the casa cu tei, where we checked in, plopped our bags down in our rooms, and meandered downstairs for dinner. that part perked people up a bit. cristina, our romanian liason, had arranged with hotel staff for the booze to flow freely, including tsuica - basically romanian moonshine, sweetened with honey and flavored with walnuts. in addition to large quantities of alcohol, we were plied with large quantities of meat, potatoes, rice, potatoes, mushrooms, cabbage, probably some more potatoes... once the staff became aware that there were four vegetarians in our group, they added cheeses and more mushrooms. everything was wonderfully warm and filling and rich and om nom nom nom. i pretty much ate myself to sleep.
the next morning started early (hooray for time differences!). mine at about 3:30. colleen was already up watching movies, and we found some apples and cookies to munch on. at about 4:30 randy joined the party too. after a couple of movies and some channel surfing, we all went and got ready for our day. after a filling eggs/cheese/meats if you want 'em and toast with homemade jams breakfast, most of the group went on a walk or two during the morning - exploring the general vicinity of our hotel. we stayed in a small resort village whose claim to fame was a mineral spring and some roman ruins. so we tried the mineral water (ick!). and looked at the ruin. and then looked at an orthodox ministerial school (absolutely gorgeous grounds, with stone carvings and fall leaves...). then i was documented trying to break into what turned out to be a mausoleum (hey, i don't read romanian). thank goodness the door was locked. the grounds, again, were just gorgeous. also, there were cows on the side of the road, and several stray dogs including a one-eyed beagle and a polydactyl shepherd mix who begged for food, then begged for petting, then followed us along the road. the beagle followed some of the team all the way back to the hotel. enter filip, the resident st. bernard who basically owns the hotel and sleeps on the lobby couch. turns out he's not a fan of one-eyed beagles in his territory, especially when they try to defend random black-and-white dogs he tries to attack first. yeah, that little beagle stood up to the bernard, and even started their brief skirmish. thank goodness there were several practiced animal handlers and vets around. they got filip away and treated "el presidente"s bite wound, then sent him on his way. mid-day was spent with our "dear leader" and the mayor trying to decide where to hold our actual clinics, as the previously planned location had fallen through at the last minute.
after all that was settled, aurash took us into the city of buzau for some exploration/shopping. we got some postcards and i got my first taste of cappy juice (cappy became a recurring theme during my visit - super yummy juice in a variety of flavors...). we noted that the majority of shopping in buzau concerned boots and jeans, although there was also a street vendor selling chainsaws. that was pretty awesome. (side note: it was generally agreed that over the course of the trip, we devalued the word "awesome" to the point that someone saying "that's awesome" became the equivalent of saying "oh" or "huh".)
on the bus ride back from buzau, aurash treated us to traditional romanian accordian-style music, instead of techno. we were grateful, for about eighteen seconds. the ride home lasted much longer than that, and as we bounced around crazily, someone commented that, had we been shown fast-forwarded, or had we all been cartoon villains bouncing along, the music would have been appropriate. after we got back to the hotel, we were supplied with much more awesome food in the hotel restaurant.
the hotel's main floor consisted of a restaurant with country-style decor. the upper floors (with wooden, adventurously-placed stairs) were bedrooms. the rooms were well-heated, but since we couldn't figure out how to change that, most people slept with our windows open. the hotel itself was obviously old, with creaking wooden floors, quirky nooks, and the varying-sized stairs. it was pretty darn clean and well-kept for all of that, and the staff were very accomodating - even letting us use their computer to check emails once in a while!
and that, ladies'n'gents, brings me to the first morning of surgeries, which i'll attempt later.

kittens in the house!

i'd forgotten how one tiny kitten can centralize the entire energy and focus of a household onto its kitten antics. and two kittens? if i didn't lock 'em up every so often neither i nor the dogs would do anything but follow them around. neil is ridiculously conscientious of monitoring both kittens any time they are out of their kitten pen. he puts on his worried face and follows them around, making sure they are okay after exploring, swatting him in the face, stealing his food, or "treeing" hobbes on the counter. it's an incredible change to see in neil - now that he has a real job to do, he is so much more confident in his good-dogness. i've never seen him like this before. he is so much more secure and comfortable. makes me wonder if tank at paws (who reminds me so much of the neily boy) needs some kittens of his own to follow around. i let the kittens run amuck for about an hour, and now they and the dogs are sprawled out all over the place, exhausted. it's hard work laughing that much, after all.
hobbes despises the kittens. especially after they treed him. he has abandoned me for the day, and i expect something along the lines of floor poop later. balloon became insecure and started crying as soon as he realized the kittens were here. he's been clingy and whiney... shadow is hiding, and twilight took the opportunity to monopolize my bed for her own uses.
on a more teddy-ish note: i finally made the last payment for teddy's leg surgeries. i set it up to auto pay yesterday. within probable minutes of the electronic transfer, i noticed that teddy is holding his head sideways and flattening out one ear. he cried when i touched it. on closer inspection, i found out that he has an ear hematoma (blood pocket from some busted veins, often caused by excessive scratching, which teddy does due to allergies, despite twice daily medication). the ear, of course, requires a surgical procedure to repair. i love teddy, but sometimes... oh it's a good thing he's cute!

in case anyone was wondering...

no, i did not swing by the liquidation store and get veggies after that last post.
i'm still fighting connie pee and now i'm sitting neil (the big deal) who used to be my dog, and his two kittens. all at my house. six cats, three dogs, and one frazzled hillbilly/crazy cat lady. for the weekend. by monday i expect to be calm, composed, and ready to face my last workweek before romania. since i still haven't moved yet, i get to unpack some boxes so i can pack a duffel bag for the trip. speaking of not moving... now the bank is still willing to finance me personally, just not the property i want. meaning i need to either find a new broker or pick a different house. and since i already put down earnest money on this one... i get to redo a bunch of loan paperwork on monday. whoopee. ish.
balloon despises the kittens. connie is fascinated by them. neil is intrigued by connie and repeatedly tries to flirt with her. teddy is just puttering around all darn excited to have more friends here. hobbes is furious at the disruption of his dignified pooping on my floor.
although i have let the dishes pile up alarmingly (again), i managed to make room in the kitchen to throw together some cinnamon bread, which is sweetening up my evening quite nicely. speaking of nice evenings, i've spent the last couple of nights rehearsing. and we are still without a "jim" character for my gift of the magi play. it's going well other than that. i've got some stunning wigs... and the hillbilly play is a blast! we're tossing in a bunch of slapstick and gags. the audience will be rolling. can't wait to do that one!
as of last week, it seems like summer finally found its way here. we had some beautiful sunshine and it even got warm enough to go without a jacket in the middle of the afternoon...
so i'm spending the evening with the blog, a queen cd, and a medley of critters. joy and tiredness, i'm going to bed.

shoulder to the grindstone

yesterday was beyond a typical monday. in addition to the normal my-pet-started-having-the-runs-this-weekend calls, we had three emergencies - two hit by cars, and one poor li'l guy got kicked by a deer. all three survived, but boy, did we dole out the pain meds! we had to refer a couple of 'em out to other places with more hi-tech equipment, but word is they're doing okay so far. we also had a new employee start work. so we did paperwork, gave her the tour, got her started on reading manuals... fun stuff. and i got to coordinate our film shoot. yeah, we're making a commercial, and the film crew is coming out tomorrow. we had to line up some of our favorite clients (with well-behaved pets) to come and help us out. those were fun phone calls to make! the clients are all pretty excited about it. and my team members are all trying to decide which scrubs to wear... i figure that since the shoot is after work, we'll probably be all grubbied up by then anyway, so it won't matter much which scrubs.
so today i finalized all that and got the final lists of pets signed up for the spay/neuter clinic on saturday. besides filming tomorrow, i have to try to get the paperwork all set up for that. oh, and i'm now in charge of last minute additions because the normal sign-up person is going out of town. and i found out today that two of our hardcore volunteers can't be there. bummer! we've got plenty of substitutes and fresh meat (heehee) for me to boss around, but still... so there is some cleaning out of kennels and putting together of assignments i gotta do to get ready for that. i keep looking at the calendar wondering just where i'm gonna squeeze it all in.
the new employee is doing great so far. and connie had a great time out in the yard with the other dogs this afternoon. it was the first time i let her out of the kennel off-leash since she got spayed. she rolled around in the grass and chased other dogs and just generally had an awesome time. and then we had an emergency right at the end of the day. sick cat. he's probably gonna pull through, but what a way to end the day.
and then i went to learn the ropes of my pet sit for the week - three cats and two big dogs, one of whom needs meds twice a day. thank goodness she's good about pills. they live just around the corner from my new place, which would be really convenient if i had been able to move last weekend... (no, i'm not bitter).
did i mention that hobbes pooped on the floor? he was upset about something and took it out on me that way. poor connie noticed, and i could just about hear her response: "hey, i didn't know we were allowed to poop on the floor here! that's awesome!" so she pooped on the floor too. and peed for good measure. and was very careful to pee in the same spot this morning. i think she thinks that the whole world outside plus that one corner of carpet is fair game. that's not counting the dribbles she leaves pretty much all over the place - can't blame her for what she can't control, but holy moly, did the breaker-inners really have to steal my carpet steamer?
thank goodness for a generous donation of large towels that were intended for the clinic, but are currently spread out all over my floor (i'll get 'em there before saturday, really). yay for not discovering urine puddles by stepping in them!
so this evening i finally cracked and opened the chocolate orange that i gave myself last christmas... not bad. i probably deserve it.
tomorrow: work, film shoot, another pet-sit prep visit, paws shift, rehearsal, and if i'm lucky, swing by the liquidation store and grab some veggies. if i'm lucky.

days off

my boss went to a vma meeting thing. all the relief vets were booked up already. so we had to practically close the office. minimal staff (2 people) worked each day, answering phones and working on projects (i have never seen the floors look so nice!). and i took 2 days off. those days were supposed to coincide with my move. should have seen that one coming.
on the first day off i "slept in" until about 8am, then got involved with productive activities (cleaining, packing, painting, etc.). i started laundering all the blankies that kitties sleep on, so that i can pack them and move them sans cat hair. as though this is important. as though they won't become almost immediately saturated with hair from all the same cats once they're unpacked. i also played in my kitchen. packed some jars and all the fridge magnets. caught up on dishes (i can't wait to use the dishwasher at my new place!!). took down all the window blinds and piled them up to spray off in the shower. then i heard that cadillac jacks was closing and i'd better get on down there. so the blinds are still sitting in a pile, and i'm being careful what i wear in front of my windows.
on my way to jacks, the hillbilly play director pulled over and said he'd see me at rehearsal. i'm pleased to report that he still doesn't know i'd completely forgotten about it until then, as i played it off as that i just had to run an errand and i'd be right there. said errand involving going down to the bar to wish them the best. made a new friend(ish) who started trying to introduce me to people i already know. that was unique. when i hillbilly'd it up, someone tried to hook me up with a guy named bobby, since they said he's a billy too. i told 'em that if he really was a billy, i'd best not even try, as i was sure things wouldn't work out, what with me not being his sister and all.
then i went to rehearsal. cora belle had fun. and that was about it for day off number one.
number two was pathetic by comparison. got lots of quality facebook surveys done. got lots of chapters read. got lots of macaroni eaten. and went to iga to redbox a movie. yeah. good times.
so today is day three. had rehearsal as della in the morning. i still don't have a "husband jim" cast, so the assistant director read in. i need to get lots of props for the part, and a couple of wigs. what fun! after rehearsal, i went to iga, the thrift store, paws, the iga again, and probably somewhere else - oh, the gas station. it was a gorgeous day, and i feel like more things should have happened in it. guess i shouldn't complain.
one more day of trying to be useful-ish tomorrow. i think i'll be ready to go back across the street on monday.

the bank said yes

but the new place isn't done being built yet. so i'm renting for another month. i pointed out that i wouldn't have to pay rent if i could move in to the cabin, so i might get some more money knocked off the purchase price. that would be nice.
today is thursday and i'm not working. not working?!? yep. i've got a four-day weekend. the plan was for this time off to coincide with my move... yeah right. so now i'm thinking i'll move out of a really, really clean apartment. i've already packed a bunch and taken some stuff to the thrift store today. next project - clean out the windowsills in the front room and scrub off the mildew. yes. it grows in through the window edges.
and that is gross enough that i'm putting it off by dinking around online.

since monday:

got a gorgeous bouquet from old dog haven. which they got from beach bouquets - they do a nice job. also got a new old sheltie from old dog haven. well, from the shelter in olympia via odh. she's a beautiful little girl, except for what looks like stick-in teeth from a halloween shop. they are nasty, filthy, stinky, dark, and sticking in multiple directions with gaps in between. eeeeeew. since she's a dainty, petite little dewdrop, but her "overbite is an understatement" her new name is connie conundrum. i'll probably drop the conundrum part after her teeth get fixed. which might be tuesday. (please please please).
cracked and bought water and more laundry detergent. got a drink and did laundry.
packed enough stuff that i had to open two boxes today to get out stuff i needed...
finished painting the ceiling (finally!!!)
spent lots of quality kitty time. found lots of little owies - hobbes and balloon don't just wrestle i guess. they've been doing some nipping and slapping. so i trimmed some toenails and gave them a talking to. not that it'll work, what with them being cats and all, but hey.
worked and worked - i've kept my desk majoritarily (hee hee - new jumbleword!) cleaned off the last couple of weeks. it's been easier than i thought it would, and very, very nice. i can actually find stuff and get things done in a timely manner... who'da thunk?
went to the zoo yesterday! we were invited to tour their animal hospital, and (of course) said yes in an excited manner. we crammed the boss' car with staff and set off pretty early in the morning. sang a bit and laughed a lot in the car on the way up (someone has a droid phone with multiple fart functions - how could we not laugh until we nearly peed our pants?). toured the hospital and saw how they do things. then got into the zoo for free. even got to leave the car in the employee lot. yay - no parking fee! had a nice long day in the sun, with some shade and drinking fountains and handfulls of wild huckleberries. saw some awesome critters - the african wild dogs were out and about, and the great apes were very accomodating, making faces and kids and all that. we saw komodo dragons and a king cobra, and about a bajillion brazillian cockroaches (say that ten times fast - i dare ya!). all in all a very fun excursion.
then went to elmer's for lunch/dinner. YUM!!! try grilled swiss cheese, tomato, grilled walla wallas and avocado sandwich! and nearly five beverage refills. i guess that day in the sun made me thirsty...
after the fabulous meal, we went on to summit referral and emergency medical center to see their hospital. amazing! the doctor on shift was able to give us a tour. she's showing off thier ultrasound equipment and our staff got all excited about the over-the-door shoe holder they use to organize endotracheal tubes. ("wow!" "hey guys, check this out" "this is so awesome - we need to get one of these!"). it was nice to see the place and meet the people we've heard such awesome stuff about. i'm pretty sure that, based on the experience, we'll keep sending our specialist referrals their way.
also this week - getting excited for romania - now less than four weeks away. how am i ever going to get everything done in time? i'm supposed to move! if the bank comes through for me and/or if i can get alternate financing. and if they finish building! the place isn't done yet! and i was supposed to close on thursday. but now, well, kind of in a bind what with already having given the bank that owns this place a notice of my intent to vacate... what does one do? i think i'll call the bank, but i'd rather do it after i hear back from my bank about if/when i can expect to really move, pending that construction gets done. i think they're still just putting in cabinets and hardware... so pending, pending, pending, and then maybe pending that i'll get some relief.
just in time to finish packing, move, unpack, and leave the country. for two weeks. to somewhere i don't even know any of the language (in nicaragua at least i knew "hola", "bueno", and "habla poqiutito espanol"). and then stop in amsterdam for some fun on the way back.
and then get to know the new dog all over again - if i still have her by then. if she's as healthy as i think she is, she ought to get adopted out quick!

goals for the end of the year:
be moved in, unpacked, sorted out, decorated, and no longer ridiculously behind on laundry. this may necessitate getting rid of some clothes, as i generally store large quantities in the hamper.
replace the digital camera.
make huckleberry cookies at least once before they're all gone.
build a fire pit. use it.
chop down scrub and dig out a garden. mulch said garden with poo from the stables.
get the cattery built.
learn the lines to and not mess up too badly on either play.
get signed up for dog training certification.
save a couple hundred bucks.
finally get the car's brakes worked on.
maybe even the speedometer fixed.
decorate for christmas? recognize at least the existence of a holiday?
and whatever other billion random things come my way.

bring it on, world! i got my cocoa today, and i am soooooo ready to mix it up (multiple meanings there)!

lest i forget...

the 8 days of jj:
day one: met in a parking lot. collected his stuff. posed for some adorable pictures. went to a park, walked through the woods, and onto a pebble beach. took it very slow on the walk back. jj had a blast - smiling and smiling... seemed like a happy little guy. he slept (and farted) the whole ride home. when we got to the house, he walked on in and puttered around like he already lived here. he briefly said hi to hobbes, and ignored the other kitties. didn't eat much. i chalked it up to an exciting day and new surroundings. slept like a log.
day two: fought over taking pills at breakfast. barely ate, except for some turkey dogs. went to work to meet "the pack". offended poor betty (the boss dog) by pointedly ignoring her when she tried to intimidate him. puttered around the yard and staked out his spot by the back door. ate even less. had some icky poo. fought over taking pills again with dinner.
day three: jj showed his little attitude with morning pills. after i had the pill in his mouth, and was holding it closed so he would swallow, he started coughing. so i had to let go, and he spit out the pill. the look he gave me! it said, "ha ha" plain as anything. then, after he finished coughing and i was about ready to start fighting again, he ate up the pill from off the floor. again, "ha ha".
days four, and five: went to work. slept, played, came inside when it rained, puttered around the yard some more. on day four jj learned how to fetch, and actually ran a few times.
day six: saturday. napped most of the day. went for a couple of short walks in the rain. threw up friday's lunch and everything he'd eaten since then. took more naps.
day seven: napped most of the day. threw up everything. wagged his tail when we went out for walks. had "empty ketchup bottle" diarrhea. started shaking in his sleep about 8:30 at night. kept shaking even after i woke him up. went to the hospital. got x-rays. got fluids. got anti-nausea meds. left the poor dude in a kennel overnight so he wouldn't have access to food or water - so he wouldn't throw up.
day eight: drank a little bit. went outside. puttered around. didn't play, but watched the other dogs running around like idiots. got more fluids and a blood panel. went for a car ride to buy chicken for trying to get him to eat. he wasn't interested in the chicken. started breathing strangely about 9:30pm - rapid and shallow. gave me the "help me" eyes and leaned in for lovings. he hadn't done that before. i tried to calm him down, distract him with a walk. he liked the walk, but his breathing didn't get any better. i called emergency, brought him in, told him he was a good boy. we x-rayed again. diagnosis: system failure. so we let him go.

reasons to celebrate

went by the new house. it's not complete yet (still). it smells new and clean and exciting. it feels raw and unused. i can't wait to fill it up with hope and dreams and events and memories. also critters. scoping out where to put the cattery. picturing the huckleberry cookies i'll have to bake almost right away, since the huckles in the yard are ripening fast. breathing the ocean breeze and loving it.
tried out for the community theatre group's set of christmas plays. was cast in two. i get to play hillbilly cora belle, whose maw is set on marryin' up with a mean ole polecat. then i get to be della, newlywed new yorker who sells her hair to get her dear jim a watch chain for christmas. the part of jim is still open. first read-through is on wednesday night.
i embarrassed myself in front of the entire invited community at the annual cardboard boat race today. my team definitely had our boat done the quickest. we had a plan and we executed it well. our design was based off the southern illinois university's physics program's best boat. hence we thought it would float well. "they" gave us paddles, but my paddle was too long, so i started using my hands. then the boat shipped water and i tipped out. i tried to swim and drag the thing, but it turned into soggy dead weight really fast. so that didn't happen. the water was not as cold as i expected. and i was able to tell the emcee that i was thinking of him when i put on the burro hat... good times.
i have critters. i have more than i probably should, and i barely have the time they need, especially with the new sick old guy. but they are so incredible. they greet me. they hang out with me. they wash themselves and i get lost in the zen of it all. then they balance it out by vomitting on the floor and such. so i have to laugh, clean it up, and move on. critters...
the sky is amazing today. it's every color sky can be: golden, blue, silvery white, and misty grey. the wind is fresh, the air is almost tangy. i love living near the ocean!
the breaker-inners did not take my music. i have cds and a cd player and i can hear/sing all i want. i can hum, dance, and chicken head right along to whatever i want.
i have a car! and a bicycle! means to escape when i need to. means to feel free and capable. means to do things for myself and others.
i have the ability to make choices. i decide what to do and when to do it. i make plans and keep 'em or break 'em as i see fit. the power of choice is amazing and i know so many people take it for granted. i love being able to say yes, no, probably, or probably not. and which one i say is up to me.
massage. 'nuff said.
food! the amazing variety of it. the different types, styles, tastes, textures, combinations... yesterday went from bagels with leftover gravy to strawberry chocolate tea (yes, chocolate tea, and it was incredible!). i have so much, and so many ways to use it. and sometimes out here, there is wild food, sitting around outside, for free. also, lately, several people have loaded me up with a variety of foodstuffs and enabled me to not shop, for which i am very grateful.
the outdoors and exercise. i don't mean lifting weights in a gym. i mean going out and doing something, moving, feeling, using the body to get something done. it feels good. more, it feels great.
humans! my greatest frustration. also a reason to go out and be me - so i can be around them. because, being a social animal, i want to hang out with 'em. and sometimes it's worthwhile.
sleep. wonderful, refreshing, good-for-me. ahhhhhhhh.
telephones and internet - means of communication with the outside world. yay, technology!
and that's the list right now.

today, today. started with a cancelled surgery - cancelled about an hour after the patient was supposed to have been dropped off, but hey. so there was a gap in the morning schedule. then there was an emergency cancerous bleeder right after lunch and that turned into emergency surgery that took up most of the afternoon, and even after all that the poor guy didn't make it. just in case anyone else's pet suddenly collapses from a cancer-thing. no, you did not do anything wrong. no, you couldn't have known. there was no way anyone could have known without taking x-rays, and why would you do that if he's acting normal? no, you are not to blame. please, grieve for his loss, yes, but don't take it out on yourself.
and then the day was over. and i brought the dogs home and walked over to pick up a bicycle and a mystery gift - which turned out to be large pieces of carpet. which i can use to put on shelves that i plan to bracket to the walls of my new place for cat fun. joy!
then there came the issue of getting the carpet home. enter ingenuity and bungee cords! the carpet (rolled up) fit pretty well crosswise over the baskets behind the bike seat, and voila! so i pedaled home oh-so-carefully, and finally relaxed when i made it home with nary a spill. i hid the carpet in the car so the cats don't tear it up just yet. and the purple bicycle (with handlebar streamers!) is sitting in my house taunting me about my current lack of camera.

"nothing much" happened today

by nothing much i mean that early this morning my bank called because the stupid resort at mt. hood went ahead and put a "hold" on my entire bank account when i gave them my card at check in (the room was supposedly prepaid, and they said they just needed the info in case i watched pay-per-view or something). so i got to sort that out.
i also introduced jj to the dog pack at work. things went well. he and the little corgi mix have a thing for each other. so that's really cute.
then someone asked me to run a key down to the car detailing shop during my lunch break. so i walked around town. it was nice to get out. because i still had to clean off my desk when i got back to work.
we got to hospitalize a dog who got heat exhaustion from playing too hard at the beach, which meant the vet assistants were busy with her, so i got to play assistant and check in some patients. got bit by a 16 year old cat with probable kidney failure. that was all kinds of fun. and we had oreo cake because it's this intern's last day here. so that meant tricia brought in some kittens for the intern to take home with her (the left behind kitten and a foster brother).
the oreo cake was yum.
both teddy and jj made friends with a neighbor kid on the way home, and then i ate masses of french fries.
and that's pretty much the "uneventful" day i had (so far).

missing update

so a couple posts ago i mentioned the free concert. well, i went on down to the casino, and there wasn't any parking. i've been getting spoiled by small town life long enough that i hadn't even considered the possibility of that being a problem. after driving around the parking lot for a while, it became clear that nothing was going to open up until after the concert. fine. it was out on the beach anyway, and the beach is considered state highway, so i just had to get out on the nearest beach access and drive on up, right? which is all well and good until one gets stuck in the sand. got out just fine, but by that point i figured the concert was just not meant to be and i went home. some concert-goers stopped by afterwards and said it was pretty good and then we stayed up late playing mad-libs. love that game!
that was last weekend, but since i didn't update about it then, i went ahead and snuck it in today.

golly he's cute!

sooooo many things i forgot to mention

like flirting outrageously with drunken old dudes at the golf course. and the fact that my undies weren't just scattered, they were apparently used in an impure manner. and the carpet steamer is gone. but they left all the cds. and i went through my stuff and discovered that my best weapon is a claw hammer, so i slept with that and the phone, just in case.
also, i got up early and drove to lacey to get my new dog today. jj is an older sheltie (estimates range from 8-13 years) with pending kidney and liver failure and a newly diagnosed heart condition, besides the multiple fatty tumors, horrible teeth, formerly broken and improperly healed front leg, and having been shut up as a puppy mill gigolo for the last however many years. also, he has scars all over his face and there's a piece of his tongue missing. and he farts like it's going out of style. i learned this on the car ride home. and even with all that baggage, he turns out to be a model citizen. likes everyone, potties appropriately (so far), has not bothered any kitties (balloon is sleeping on the floor not far away from him right now).
and, as if enough weird stuff didn't happen to me:
when i got to the casino in lacey where i was to meet jj's foster mom, someone i know from out here was waiting there with a dog that's being given to a rescue group up north, and they'd arranged the same exchange point. maybe we should've carpooled...

goodness gracious me

as if i didn't have enough going on anyway! so i went to a resort at mt. hood for a few days for a work conference. the resort is usually awesome (been there before) but of course, since the boss wasn't there with her magic credit card, the rooms for which we had prepaid (and yes, i did double check) were not prepaid after all, and they somehow erased her credit card information in between the time they verified that they had it and the time the rooms needed to be paid for. so that was a big mess. add to it that the booking was messed up and someone had to sleep on a couch, and that the rooms didn't have microwaves (we'd been told they would and packed food accordingly). and then when we showed up for the first morning of workshops, the front desk staff pointed us (and anyone else who asked where our group's breakfast was) to their main dining room for breakfast, instead of the free breakfast upstairs in the conference room. so we had a loooooooot of not-so-happy campers about all that. the conference itself was pretty good, learned a lot of stuff, and all that, except that on morning 2 i got to be involved in several phone calls regarding that my house had been broken into while i was gone. literally. the door was kicked in. my kitty-sitter and the boss got someone to fix the door so they could at least lock it until i got home. great. so then i'm sitting through 2 more days of conference wondering what to expect when i get back. at least i knew the cats were ok. they told me to call the cops when i get home and give 'em some more details.
so i got home a little after 9:30 (a nice drive, if a bit too long), called the police, and had a couple of officers drop by to help me sort it out. they tried to get some fingerprints, but that was a no-go. they checked next door (my first suspicion) and found some maybe helpful info. maybe. i'm supposed to call 911 if i hear anything over there.
whoever it was that broke in took the ps2, rock band (gasp!), my digital camera, video camera, and book of dvds. also, for some reason, they took the carpet steamer. but not my laptop. super weird. also, quite disgustingly i think, my underwear drawer was pretty much emptied and is currently spread all over the floor. i think i feel like buying all new underwear. iggghhh.
and to think i was hoping for a nice early night and some decent rest before i have to head out again tomorrow morning.
tonight's good news is that it's teddy's last night as an only dog, and tomorrow we get to go meet jj in olympia to bring him home. such as it is.
after i go buy more water and kitty litter. after i sleep.

gearing up for the weekend

i added meatless meatballs to my mac'n'stuff today. excellent choice, if i do say so myself! seriously dosed hobbes with hairball remedy, and he's not puked yet today (knock on wood). speaking of wood - i need to get rid of one tall (cheap) bookshelf. and some plastic drawers. and some books. i'm thinking the paws garage sale...
and i got the email back (finally!!) that li'l jj is all set to join my pack this weekend. now i'm waiting for a phone call from the person who's driving him out here so we can coordinate all that. and word on the street is that i'd better go to the free christian kane beach concert tomorrow because, hey, it's free! and it's on the beach! and it's tomorrow! and what else am i doing? besides getting set up for a new dog and going to town and going to paws and giving a dog shots and sorting and packing and having a sleepover party with a friend and her two teenage neices...
boy, i hope the concert is fun!

sold the guitar!

yay! one item down, a bunch to go. i conserved funds by eating in today (leftover twice baked yum). then i went and visited the place one more time to confirm that yes, i do want to live in a beach cabin. then i stopped by the realty office with a check. i confirmed that i will indeed be given a cattery...ok, ok, a dog run for use at the new place. then i helped rescue a large, wet, stinky dog that was wandering around in "traffic" (three cars present). dropped him off at the city shelter. then i went to paws. there's a new dog there, and she's pregnant. they're talking about letting her have the puppies because "puppies are easy to adopt out". not sure how comfortable i am with that. nice dog though.
and teddy smells like urine again, despite having been given a bath on sunday.
starting to compile a list of things i'll need to get/purchase for the new place:
curtains
shelves/chunks of carpeting for making cat perches
machete
a few throw rugs
wooden things for shadow to scratch in lieu of door frames
a mop
bricks/rocks/etc. for building a firepit and reinforcing the bottom of the cattery
a shovel
(eventually) a storage shed
and i'm posting the list because if it's not online, doubtless i'll forget where i left it.
silly me.

announcing the help linda move shopping event!

so i'm realizing that i've got to scrape together lots of money really fast, and i'm realizing that i'm gonna have to pare down significantly in order to fit all my stuff in a beach cabin, and i'm realizing that maybe these two chores don't have to be mutually exclusive...
so, verlee gets dibs on the carpet steamer, but if that falls through, here's what i've got:

bissel carpet steamer - $100
ibanez bass guitar (black) with amp/cords/book - $200
stand up punching bag (water-fill base) - $150
minimally used singer sewing machine, thread, extra needles, etc. - $100
assorted fabrics/craft items - $20
assorted nerf dart guns/extra darts - $30
jvc digital mini camcorder w/battery/case/cords, etc. - $100

and that's all i can think of right now. let me know if anyone's interested.
and if anyone has any side work that needs doing over the next few weekends, i'm up for some manual labor in exchange for a few bucks.

remember to drink water!

woke up early today. this is happening with greater and greater frequency, and i'm getting more done around the house. so today became pick on teddy day. we trimmed toenails and foot fur and bum fur and took a bath (tried out a new shampoo)... poor dude was not happy at all. he's a good sport though. and i went for a nice long walk, past a condo i was considering that has just sold (it looked too apartment-y inside anyway). so then there was napping, a trip to give insulin, and a watching of son in law. and that's pretty much the day. besides the fact that i didn't drink enough. so the head is complaining. some blog post, huh?

i left out sooooo many things

so last week i also went to a writers' workshop (fourth friday of every month, 6:30pm, at the library). we critiqued a very inventive children's story, an intro chapter to a nonfictional murder drama, and a selection of pieces from what might eventually become my book on small town life. i didn't get much critique besides that the title didn't work.
i also pow-wowed with the person who is going to be neil's new mom. he went out for a visit the week before, and it went well. i gave her some tips and dental treats. also some of the zucchini baked ziti (i said i made a lot of it!). sounds like they'll be a great home for him - out in the middle of nowhere, a dad to walk him to the beach and in the woods and all that. plus, it means he'll be local and i can see him sometimes when there aren't children around...
and, kind of weird to post in the same post as what is happening to my former dog, but i got an email back from old dog haven, and all signs point to my getting my second sheltie any day now! teddy will be sooooo excited to have a brother.
and further speaking of critter stuff, yesterday balloon didn't want his hairball goo, so he dodged and squirmed, so in addition to getting some in his mouth, he also got it all over his fur (face head, neck, shoulders). and he couldn't reach all of those spots easily to clean them off. enter teddy, who looooves the hairball goo. who hadn't, up to that point, "kissed" any of the kitties. i held balloon still and called teddy over. teddy sniffed, balloon stiffened up, and then balloon got a bath. after a minute, he relaxed a little bit - maybe he figured out what was going on. either way, he's not sticky anymore and teddy got a treat.
i went to paws today to help out with the cat adoption day - two of tricia's fosters went together to a new home - with a local family! and chester isn't a kitty, but he had people interested in him anyway, so they filled out an application. and i ate several cookies and visited with several kitties and a bunny named snickers. and i got a new entry for the calendar contest. and i discovered that i want some autumn crocus flowers at my new house. shoot, i want lots of things, but first i gotta get a house.
...i fell almost in love with a house. almost. it's tiny. it's brand new. it's got tons of windows and a deck most of the way around and a space for a firepit in the back, and a decent sized lot with huckleberry bushes and garden space, and no carpets at all and real tile in the bathroom. but it is tiny. as in, if i count the loft that isn't done being added in yet, the place will be 6-700 square feet. like i said: tiny. but very, very nice. so i have to think about it. quality over quantity, y'know? plus, i've been promised a dog run and given a doggie door (just today) which i could utilize as an outdoor cattery (and a place to put litter boxes!!). so i have to think. lack of space vs. a brand new house...

a whole week!

eeek! how do i fit a whole week into one post?!?
last weekend i "relaxed" hardcore. after spending the morning cleaning my house, i spent hours in the kitchen making masses of zucchini baked ziti and then went out to a movie on saturday, then stargazed on my roof (there were some meteors). slept in on sunday, and was late to church. was made even later by giving someone a ride home, but hey, i'm sure doing a good deed outweighs attending services in the long run. so then i went to part of church. and then i took a nap when i got home. and then i went for a walk on the beach. and then i watched a movie at home on the dog bed, which i've now put up on the futon, which makes the mattress not nearly as easy to feel bars through. so then i really didn't sleep well and went to work tired as anything on monday. urg. and then the bank called during my lunch break to let me know i have up to $100k to spend on a house. yay! i just need to come up with $3000 more than i had on monday. urg. so i shall be eating ramen and drinking water for the next couple of months while that adds up. in the meantime, i gave my realtor a list of gotta haves, a list of really wanna haves, and a list of would be nices, and he's already nixed one house due to excessive mold. no mold was on the gotta haves, since i can't breathe if there's mold in the house. yeah, i'm into breathing. it happens. so now we're down to three houses for me to check out this weekend. anyway, so that was tuesday. so wednesday was short and sweet. we had a vendor rep from purina come out and tell us about their new thing: project pet slim down. i've probably already made mention of the fact that twilight is a very fat kitty... so now she's on the program. all the boys love her new diet food. she's less enthusiastic about it, but hey, maybe that's how she'll lose some weight. so she's on the OM diet for 90 days and i'm supposed to make sure i use the laser pointer every day to get her some exercise. also, the food is practically free, which doesn't hurt in the trying to save a down payment arena. so after the free pizza lunch and meeting, i lugged home a giant bag of cat food and headed out to aberdeen before trucking back to paws and getting filthied up by the dogs there. elbe, tank, and chester all played and ran and wrestled together, while jake (the big goofball) had to play by himself in the gravel pen because recent surgeries aren't allowed to play in the mud. also, he and elbe continue to try to kill each other. silliness! chester is incredible - he used to live quietly in an apartment with a single lady who took him on daily walks and trained him to behave in the house. he loves so much to run and play chase with the other dogs, and he's so fast and agile - i am amazed that he was able to do so well in an apartment as an only dog, considering he's only about 10 months old. that pup needs a family with kids and at least one other dog!
so speaking of one other dog... teddy had so much fun when april was at our house being babysat, that i commented to a few people how much he would love to have another dog around, but that i shouldn't due to lack of funding. enter my boss' friend allison, who sent my boss an urgent plea from old dog haven a few months ago that resulted in my boss' adoption of betty...
so that same friend called my boss with the request that, if she knows anyone who likes shelties, there is one who needs a "final refuge" (basically hospice home) and the group is willing to pay for his medical expenses. he just needs a place to be and a human/dog/other critter family to love him. bingo! so my boss "casually" mentions little j.j. to me, and wonders if i'm interested. "casually". within an hour they had my completed final refuge home application and an email practically begging them to let me take the li'l guy. and then i waited. because someone had a couple of days off. so friday was pretty much a limbo day - i'm waiting to go look at houses, waiting for my bank account to get bigger, waiting to hear back from old dog haven, oh, and two different families asked me to help give insulin shots to their diabetic pets while they're on vacation. so this morning i went over to shonda's house to scope it out, and i get to start going over there twice a day on sunday to pick on her (poor li'l pooch). and then in the beginning of october i'll get to pick on two kitty siblings who both get insulin. that'll be fun...
so i got back from shonda's house, intending to take a shower and get ready for the cat adoption day at paws, where i'm expecting to promote the pet photo calendar contest. but there was an email! from old dog haven! and they'd love to talk to me more, and probably hook me up with a j.j.! so then i got all excited and wanted to tell the world, but i couldn't exactly skip the whole week of what i've been up to, so here you go.
now i'm gonna get ready for paws.