Kingfisher Cove

Idiots Need To Beware of Boat Racers

We've all been there, right?  You're on a two-lane freeway and you notice this sign.  And so you move into the left lane, because after all, you can read.  And that left lane rapidly jugs up to a crawl. You notice with growing irritation that a number of cars are still flying past in that right lane, that lane about to close.  They are literally whizzing past.  While you sit and crawl, sit and crawl.  And the reason why you sit and crawl is because all these cars whizzing past you on the right have to get over eventually, and they are the cause of the left-lane bottleneck.  In effect, they are taking cuts!  At the front of the line!

So anyway, we experienced this scenario just south of Bellingham on I-5, not long after we crossed the border back into the U.S.  Norton and his son were in their rig a couple of vehicles behind us.  Crystal and Darren were ahead of us.  We were all sitting and crawling.

Now, keep in mind that JDub is a former boat racer, and the main strategy of boat racing is to secure a lane and to keep that lane. 

We could see the cones beginning to block the right lane, so the greedy gusses were at the end of their line, and this particular car decided to take cuts in front of JDub.  Uh uh.  Think again.  JDub eases up to the vehicle in front of us, about, oh, a half inch away, and maintains that half inch as we continue to crawl forward.  The car next to us is bound and determined.  I'm watching him from the passenger seat and I'm pretty sure my mouth was hanging open at his audacity. He was turning into us. With nowhere at all to go but into us.  He was so close to us that I could see his bristly nose hairs.  And then he totally lost it and started gesturing and screaming through his window (I could hear him just fine -- he even called me a bitch and I wasn't even driving).  He screamed, "You bitch!  You f*#$%ing ran into my car!"  Uhm, hello?  And then JDub motioned for him to pull over, then he pulled through the cones onto to the shoulder!  This is where things got a little funny (in hindsight) because what I thought was happening was that JDub and this guy were going to have fisty cuffs. Which is so not JDub, and I hollered, "What do you think you're doing?  He's bigger and meaner than you are!  And, you're sick!" 

Well, what had happened (and I hadn't realized it) was that Mr. Dumbshit, upon closing in on our Durango so tightly, was bumped in his rear bumper by the edge of our snowmobile trailer which sticks out wider than our Durango, while we crawled forward.  (Going maybe 2 mph).  So JDub was doing the right thing, responding to a "collision".  The asshole immediately called the State Patrol.  Norton saw the whole thing and pulled onto the shoulder and hung out with us while we waited for the State Patrol to show up, which he did relatively swiftly (considering the traffic mess).  (I swear, cops and staters are babies anymore!  The two different cops who gave me speeding tickets last year didn't look much older than Nate!)  So, JDub filled out a form indicating his version of what had happened (as did the asshole, who was behind the snowmobile trailer so we didn't have to contend with him, although his wife came and took some photos of the snowmobile trailer, which we thought was pretty funny).  The asshole was still vehemently claiming that we pulled into the right lane into him!  Norton filled out a witness statement.  I could have, too, but it probably wouldn't have been considered valid since I was the wife -- although I had the best view because it all happened right before my eyes.  The Stater had more paperwork to deal with and probably consultation with his computer, so this part all took a long time.  It was interesting watching the traffic go by -- the left lane sitting and crawling and peering at us with gaping curiosity.  Every single one of them.  Looky-loos.  People are so weird.  And THEN, right there in front of the Stater were a number of jerks just like the one we were contending with, zipping up to the front of the line and aggressively cutting over into the left lane.  More fender-benders just waiting to happen.

Norton was watching the Stater chatting with Mr. Dipshit, giving JDub and I the play-by-play (because we didn't want to appear like gawkers or anything).  "Ooooh, Mr. Asshat is waving his arms and jumping up and down.  He's pissed!  Oh, and the Stater is making sharp hand gestures.  I'll bet he's been cited."  And that's exactly what happened:  He was cited for "Unsafe Lane Change".  We learned that he was also driving a rental car, and that he was from Pennsylvania.  Heh heh, welcome to Washington where aggressive drivers sometimes get their just desserts.

~~~Hey, I'm blogging from my laptop!  On the wireless connection!  Woohoo!  I *heart* my laptop!  JDub, still feeling like crap and who stayed home today, has been trying to fix our home networking setup that ended up totally hosed after hooking up the wireless router.  He's been tinkering with it for hours, and the research he's done online indicates that We. Are. Not. Alone.

That's More Like It!

What a difference a decent night's sleep makes, especially in my own bed!  I really missed all that spaciousness.  I wonder if Canadian Queens are smaller than our standard Queens?  I'm thinking this was more like a double-size.  At any rate, JDub didn't cough throughout the night early morning hours like I thought he would.  I believe his affliction is moving up from his chest into his head.  The nose is now a faucet.  Poor guy.  He played really hard all week long.  Five straight days of snowmobiling in very challenging and technical terrain.  This picture is at dinner the first night in the lodge where our friends stayed.  Crystal and Darren are in the back across from each other, then Norton and his 12-year-old son, N, and JDub.  (Good meal, but very expensive.  The lodge was pretty much a money grabber everywhere you turned, although they did like their rooms a lot).  We ate the rest of our dinners in town, mostly in this extremely country-western motif restaurant with a menu that had just about everything you could think of -- at much more reasonable prices.

I think everyone had mixed feelings about the sledding itself, based on individual points of view.  The weekend before we arrived, there had been some huge snowmobiling shindig up there, including a poker run and various competitions, and it was apparent that LOTS of people partook.  For the incredible vastness of the area, you couldn't look anywhere and not see sled tracks, so the snow was pretty beaten down.  Plus, it never snowed while we were there (bright, sunny days throughout) so there wasn't any fresh powder.  Crystal, Darren, Norton, and JDub are all very skilled sledders, and I'm not.  They are pretty much go-anywhere, do-anything snowmobilers, and for me the terrain was very intimidating.  Extremely steep slopes that especially going down made my insides want to explode out of every orifice in fear.  Maneuvering through narrow and rough non-trails, and did I mention the hills?  Everywhere?  Really steep ones?  I kind of like going up them because my sled has the power to do so without a problem, but going down them I feel totally out of control.  I spent much of my time sledding feeling afraid and inadequate.  I think the others sort of thrive on the thrill, but I don't like being scared.  It's not fun for me.  Not that it was all bad, by any means.  I was dumbstruck by the scenery.  Every hill we climbed (that I'd dread coming back down later), brought stunning panoramic views of amazing peaks and wilderness that seemed to never end.   

So, because it was my vacation, too -- I took Thursday and Friday off and hung out with weenie dogs.  Crystal and Darren also took Thursday off (Crystal had taken a bad spill the day before and was feeling pretty sore), and the three of us went into town and did some shopping and ate lunch and had a very good time.  It really was nice to walk all around the quaint mountain town and visit some shops (bought myself a great fleece sweatshirt, and Nate a rather naughty T-shirt).  But I also stayed back on Friday and enjoyed some alone-time, reading my book, cuddling with the weenie dogs, watching Dr. Phil and Oprah.  With all the stress of the last couple of months at work, I needed to not be so stressed on my vacation!

I guess I need to think about what I'm willing to do about snowmobiling.  I'm not a naturally athletic person, nor am I very competitive -- I don't feel the need to prove anything to anybody in the area of physical prowess, mostly because I've never had much physical prowess.  I don't want to drag others down below their capabilities, but I'm not so sure I'm willing to experience the fear and dread over and over again of what it would take to raise the notch on my own ability.  It also takes a good degree of upper-body strength to manhandle those sleds, and I don't have it.  And four months of Curves workouts didn't change that fact, either.

Well, we figured out how to do the restore from my external hard drive to my laptop, and all seemed to be going well.  Then the moment of truth:  restarting the computer and seeing how it worked.  And guess what?  Can't even get Windows up.

JEEZE.

We're Baaaaaack!

I'm back and I'm PISSSSSSSSSED.  I just completed a lengthy overview of our vacation and guess what?  I hit a wrong key.  And my entire post was toast.  I can't believe how calm and serene I'm sounding as I'm writing this.  You would not believe the hissy fit I just pitched.  Here it is 1:15 a.m. and I was ready to head to bed because I'd finished my post! Typepad absolutely MUST DO SOMETHING ABOUT THIS.  This is just totally unacceptable.  I am so goddamned mad! 

And so, you're getting the abbreviated version.  I'm just beat and I can't go into the detail I did earlier, so that'll have to come later.  The more I continue here, the angrier I feel!  PLUS, I'm frustrated because I came home to my BRAND NEW LAPTOP and I can't restore my programs and stuff from my external hard drive.  THEN, my desktop computer is wacko in other ways and I just tried to text-message my son (What the hell did you do to my computer while we were gone???) and the CELL PHONE went wacko!  In the midst of a text message, it locked up!  It's never done that before. I can't get it to work at all!

I want to go back to Revelstoke, BC.  I had been looking forward to coming home (especially on Saturday, knowing I'd have a full day before having to head back to the quagmire of work).  I was also really looking forward to my King size bed, after a week in a sucky Queen size.  Eeeww.  But I wanna go back!  I'm not ready for vacation to be over!  Especially coming home to THIS crap! 

God, I don't want to repeat everything I've already typed!  And it was so much!

Ok.  Well.  I have to say, I was excited to get home to my new laptop.  It's gorgeous!  And it has all kinds of fun bells and whistles.  A couple of disappointments (with the restore issue, and I'm also not able to download my pictures like I thought I would be able to.  It doesn't accept the little flash card my digital camera uses, so we're going to have to get some kind of an adapter).  But ultimately, it's a grand machine.  I'm not able to do much on it yet because we don't have the wireless set up.  But, in time.  Woohoo!

I'm posting a few pictures here (that I'd posted before losing everything....) that were taken with the digital camera.  We were too nervous to take that camera with us while we were snowmobling -- didn't want to crash and burn and therefore crush the expensive camera -- so we brought along a couple of disposable cameras that we'll need to have developed (soon!)  Hopefully they'll be decent enough quality where you can get a sense of the incredible mind-boggling environment we were in.  To be so high up, and have panoramic mountain peaks at eye-level in every direction you looked.  So incredible.  (And so beautiful).  What a stunning place.  Mmm.

I always crash and burn at one time or another on these snowmobiling trips, and this one was no exception.  Wasn't serious, though -- just took a corner on a downward trail too fast and braked too hard and the sled threw me.  I must've hit the handle bar or something because I have a very colorful bruise on my right thigh.  Smacked my head on the [hard] trail, and was once again grateful for helmets.  JDub also crashed and burned, and his injuries weren't serious either (nasty shin scrapes and bruises).  But his little escapade was a lot more dramatic than mine was.  That'll have to come later.  (It's now approaching 2:00 a.m.).

And on that note, I really must head to bed.  With my sick husband.  He came down with The Nasty last night, and it's got him good.  Poor guy.  I had Nate help me haul in all the stuff from the Durango and insisted that JDub NOT.  He has a fever and a hellacious cough.  (I must say, he is a baby when he's sick.  I think it's a man-thing).  So yes, I'm coveting the idea of our King size bed but with a sicky, coughy husband.  Hmm.

Here is why we like to take the weenie dogs with us on these trips.  This is after a hard day of snowmobiling.

More to come. 

BUH-BYE!!

See you all on the 27th!

Jump For Joy!

I am officially on vacation!!  Let's hear a resounding hooray!  Oh. My. God. Do. I. Need. One. 

Remember back in January (the entire friggin' month) when I was a total basket case over that GIGANTIC, HUMONGOUS, HORRIFIC proposal I was working on FROM HELL?  Oooooh the ugly taste that monster left in my mouth (and I don't necessarily mean the proposal itself, although it truly was a monster, but the micrmngr boss madam making my life miserable majorly sticks like spiked rusty barbed wire with poisoned tips in my craw).  And before that proposal was even out the door,  I had another proposal due at the same time that wasn't nearly as involved, but micrmngr boss madam made it a miserable undertaking as well.  If you were to believe her point of view, you would think I was a total incompetent Neanderthal with a box of rocks for brains.

Well.  Guess what?  (heh heh)  Both projects were shortlisted, which means that the clients have chosen us within the top 3-5 submitted projects, and now it's up to the Head Honcho to interview/present to a selection committee to win the projects. There are many many reasons why projects are either shortlisted or not -- politics often come into play, or the desire of the client to "spread the work around" and not necessarily select the same company every time work comes up, in addition to truly being very qualified for the proposed project.  But, to shortlist on these projects means that I've definitely done my job RIGHT.  I could have also done my job right if we had not shortlisted, but THIS is truly validation.  So get this:  In neither case did I receive a thanks, good job, well-done, or rah-rah from micrmngr boss madam.  (And the HUMONGOUS proposal from HELL is for a $10 million project). In fact, I heard the news through a secondary email just before 5:00 today. 

I am gloating, though.  The interviews for these projects are March 1st and March 2nd, and it's an amazingly HUGE undertaking to prepare for these interviews -- and Head Honcho has to present for both of them.  And guess what?  I'm on vacation all next week!  So I can't assist in the interview process!  And so guess who has to?  Yup, micrmngr boss madam, since the workload is so skyrocketing.  (I gather she is royally pissed off at me for taking vacation, and I'll probably hear about it at my performance evaluation -- but I'm sure I won't hear a word about the fact that my projects made it to shortlist).

Alrighty then!  I'm done with that subject!   And I'm on VACATION!!  (I'm listening for those resounding hoorays....)

I could almost feel frantic about the fact that I won't have my laptop or any other means to BLOG while we're gone.  I guess I'll just have to take my writing tablet and handwrite blog entries, and then type them when we get back.  I've done that before during camping trips to H*ars*tine Island, but we're only talking a 3-day weekend or so.  This will be for a full week!  However will I manage? 

Please don't forget about me.

We are leaving at the butt-crack of dawn on Sunday, so I'll still be around tomorrow -- although I'll be busy.  Lots to do to get ready.  So, I'm not outa here quite yet. 

Blah Day.

Just one of those days when there isn't much to bitch write about.  I'm definitely in "Vacation Mode", at least mentally.  I have a fair amount of physical tasks to take care of before we leave, but I just don't have any energy on weeknights to handle stuff like laundry, or other chores to check off my To Do List.  Which means I'll be running around like a wild thing on Saturday.  That's OK.  I'll be up for it.

Normally I'd be feeling guilty that the workload in our department is skyrocketing.  Madam Micrmngr is full-on stressed out about it.  Other than the fact that I really do feel for my co-workers, I can't help but snicker a bit.  And feel relieved that I won't have to contend with it all, at least next week.  I'm sure I'll pay the price when I return.  (But I'm not going to think about that!!)

So far so good with our new external hard drives.  JDub and I each have an 80 gig, Iomega "Hi-Speed USB 2.0".  It's cool because there is plenty of room to do a true backup, and then I'm also using mine to store photos, and also as a scratch disk for Photoshop.  I'm hoping I'll be able to "restore" to my laptop (whenever the hell it arrives), so I'll have access to all my programs and stuff.  If that doesn't work, which it might not, I'll probably have to get Norton Ghost and transfer everything over that way. [I added all this here because I've had some folks ask about it].

Sure glad the weenie dogs are still loving me after all I put them through yesterday.  They were actually really good, considering I had my hands full dealing with the both of them.  They'd huddle together on the stainless steel exam table with their butts pressed into me.  Neither of them growled at the vet, and neither of them yelped when they got their shots.  They weren't crazy about having their ears messed with, though.

This puppy is ready for bed!

ARF!

OK.  So.  $243 poorer I am after taking the weenies in for SHOTS.  But of course, it can't just be for SHOTS, it has to also involve a CHECKUP, and of course they have to find something that requires MEDICATION.  Times two.

I'm beginning to wonder if veterinarians now belong to the same ethical clan as insurance companies and the pharmaceutical industry.

Case in point:  My prescription for Wellbutrin is 450 mg which is not uncommon.  They only make them available in 300 mg or 150 mg.  So, I have TWO prescriptions, one for 300 and one for 150.  And my insurance thinks that I shouldn't take Wellbutrin and should take something else instead (Wellbutrin is not on their "preferred medication list").  And so I'm charged a penalty for not being on their "preferred medication list" and I'm also charged a very hefty co-payment separately for EACH prescription of the 300 and 150 mg.  You've heard of going postal?  How about going "medical insurance"?  Or, going "drug company"?   Not quite as easy to say, but it sure makes more sense these days than going "postal" (especially since we do all our bill paying and stuff online).  And now it's "going veterinarian".  JESUS. H. CHRIST.

Well, the weenies have ear infections.  Some kind of yeast type thing.  So, we have the utter enjoyment (NOT) of dropping medication (made out of melted gold and ground-up diamonds) into each of their ears twice a day, for 10 days.  And feeling the effects of them shaking said medicine all over our persons immediately afterward.

I SOOOOOOO need a vacation.  (Have you noticed how much gasoline has gone up?  And it increases in increments of 10 cents a gallon!  Whenever it comes down, we're lucky if it decreases in increments of a penny.  Can you say, "Going Gas Station"?)

Bloodshot Eyes For Sure

Ever taken a Microsoft Access class?  And then come home full of excitement and desire to create a database of your CD collection?  And then can't remember a single damned thing you were taught? 

Ever taken an Access class when you couldn't see the instructor's screen without your glasses, but couldn't see your own screen with them?  (Probably the reverse is more common with us aging Baby Boomers, but I see relatively OK up close without correction but can't see diddly in the distance).  My glasses were a'bouncin' all day long, and I even perched them on the far tip of my nose at certain points and found myself lifting my head, lowering my head, placing the glasses on top of my head, you can pretty much name that tune and dance to it. Yes, I have bifocals, but they aren't worth SHIT.  (As you can see.  And I can't).

The result?  Well, see above.  (Which I can just fine, but not across the street).

Actually, it was awfully nice to be OUT of the office for a day, and to have breaks and a fun lunch and to learn something new (sorta).  I do feel that it was a beneficial class and it could be put to good use, but I also feel that the "good use" needs to happen really soon before it all goes away.  I should also take the next intermediate class as well.  Access is not for sissies -- it's quite complex and involved, and today we just touched upon the basics.  At least I have a book from the class with a lot of good information to refer back to.  I was glad that I wasn't the person (we actually had 2) who just "couldn't get it" and kept "asking a ton of questions".  And I mean about the simple things like "X-ing out of a view".  It amazes me how many people really don't know Windows.  OK, I feel sort of snobby bringing that up.

Guess what I get to do in about a half hour?  (Yeah, like you could guess!)  Since JDub is at his Dale Carnegie class, and my son is at work, I get to -- all by myself -- take two weenie dogs -- at the same time -- to the vet for their booster shots.  Yes, I have leashes, but I anticipate lots of tangling.  And a fair amount of difficulty.  But we need to have the shots and documentation for crossing the border into Canada -- don't want to risk NOT having it.  (Last time wasn't an issue even though we were prepared, but it may have been before 9/11.  Who knows, we could be carrying germ-warfare within our weenie dogs).  I know, it's mostly about rabies.  And I couldn't get an appointment at any other time.  Life is so inconvenient for working people.  Too bad I won't also be able to snap some pictures of this event, which could possibly be quite humorous, but not FOR ME.

A Remedy?

This is how I now see my blog on my monitor, with the banner all scrunched over to the left.  If I made it any larger, I'm sure it would runneth over the edges on any 800x600 monitors (which is the vast majority, I believe, and was what the banner was built to).  I have my resolution set high so that my fonts aren't as big as buildings and so the text is as crisp as can be.  Does anybody out there know how I could at least center my banner so it doesn't look so wacko?  I guess I could put in a question to Typepad, but thought I'd check out there first.  (By the way, I like their new log-in page.  And it's centered!)

I am currently backing up my entire hard drive.  Kind of dumb, I suppose -- I should have just waited until I went to bed and let 'er have at it, but I did kind of want to keep my eye on it for a bit since this is the first time.  It's making everything run v-e-r-y  s-l-o-w.  I'd done a virus and spyware scan beforehand and everything came up clean, so at least I'm not backing up bugs (that I know of).  It doesn't look like I'll be getting my laptop before we leave on vacation and I'm so bummed!  I really wanted to take it with me.  Rats!

Another relatively crappy day at work, but I won't bore you with details.  I'm sure weary of it all.  Tomorrow I'll have a bit of a reprieve because I'm spending the entire day at an Access class away from the office.

Back to how my blog appears on my monitor.  Since it's been sort of bugging me, I've been doing a little "experimenting" with changing the look of it.  I haven't really come up with anything yet that jazzes me, plus it's probably not wise to build it based on this high resolution, but I may eventually tweak the colors a little.   Maybe. 

I haven't actually been watching the Westminster dog show, but I've been keeping track of it on the internet.  There are some sorry-looking, butt-ugly dogs out there, you know that?  At the risk of offending poodle-lovers, they're the worst!  It's those idiotic pom-pom frou-frou haircuts that get me.  Eeeww.  I saw a picture of a couple of dachshunds, which is a breed that I don't believe has ever won anything. (In fact, the "best of show" was the first hound dog that has won in 22 years). These dachshunds were standard size, and I could tell (beyond their adorableness) that they were in great shape -- nice and lean and sleek with excellent lines.  I'm realizing that our weenies need some exercise.  Might need to strap them to a doggy treadmill. 

Happy Valentine's Day!

Hope you've all had a good one.  I remember my single days (after-divorce) when Valentine's Day irritated me.  I even had this way cool holographic devil pin that flashed:  LOVE IS HELL.  I feel a bit differently about it these days, though.  And JDub is quite the Valentine's Day sweetie.  Besides my way cool monitor, I also received a BEAUTIFUL potted orchid to add to my garden window collection.  Orchids *heart* my garden window, I suppose because they don't get direct sun, plus my water faucet is right there and handy so I don't forget to water them. 

Me?  I'm not so good about Valentine's gifts for him.  First of all, it's really not much about gifts for guys, unless they're into the traditional stuff like a bottle of cologne or heart boxers, which JDub isn't.  And as far as "big items", he pretty much buys himself whatever the hell he wants.  Plus, he's picky.  So, other than a nice card (which really was a nice card), he got "Wireless Home Networking for Dummies" and $20 worth of lottery tickets which (of course) ended up being duds.  Man, wouldn't I have been the hero if he'd ended up being a lottery winner!  Huh.  As if.

I also got my kid a nice card with some candy and $10 worth of lottery tickets (more duds).  I don't think he was all that excited about the candy since his face has been breaking out lately.  (Old habits die hard.  He'd be just tickled with the candy when he was younger).  I suggested he share it with his buddies.  (Plus, there's really no evidence that candy causes breakouts -- it's all hormonal anyway).

The rest of the day was just a typical Monday.  I'm starting to think VACATION, since we leave this coming Sunday.  It will actually be nice to have Saturday to do some last minute preparation, such as laundry, which I didn't get to this weekend.  I had my nails done on my way home, and while I was sitting there with my hands in the black-light dryer thingy, I got to thinking:  This is the longest and most boring 5 minutes ever.  You can't read a magazine because your hands are otherwise occupied, and I know every single square inch of the salon walls, and there are dead bug carcasses in the window sill that have been there since 5-minute dryings last summer.  It gets kind of exciting when a car pulls up and the people go into the pizza place next door.  I can stare and make up stories about their sorry lives.  Those 5 minutes just drag!  And when the light goes off and the dryer beeps, I pop out of there like a whirlwind, can't WAIT to get out of there, see ya buh-bye.  And of course, the nails aren't entirely dry and so I inevitably bung up at least one of them getting into my car.

So JDub returned the external hard drive to Fry's without too much of an issue (it seems like it's always somewhat of an unpleasant ordeal to return something), and he bought two smaller ones for each of us.  He's trying his out first, and he's currently backing up and everything seems to be going well so far.  Once we've determined that his worked right, we'll hook up mine.  Except the problem is that I still have problems, and backing it up will mean I'm backing up the problems.  Ya know?  Sigh.

This small image of the orchid here, you should click on and see it bigger.  It's awesome.  Better get to bed because I overslept this morning and I certainly don't want to do that two days in a row!