Raleigh-dog

Yesterday was the day I designated for Raleigh's birthday (although in reality I suspect he may be an October baby, like me -- give or take a month). To celebrate I played frisbee with him when I got home (he loves the beat up Donkey disc I stole -- sorry, boys -- at Layout) and then Elise and I biked over to Petco. I got him a new tag (he managed to lose his off his collar when I was out of town?) as well as:

• A rubber squeaky lizard with a tongue that pokes out when you squeeze it.
• A stuffingless plush squirrel. So yes, there will be bitz of fuzzy squirrel skin all over within 15 minutes of when I give it to him, but there won't be huge clumps of fluffy squirrel innards that he could choke on and that drift about as I try to clean them up.
• I also got him a toy that will last longer than 30 minutes -- a rubber tennis ball that squishes when he chomps on it but will, I think, hold up better than an actual tennis ball.
• Oh yeah, and an assortment of treats from their bulk treat section.

I came home and fed him treat after treat (I planned ahead and only gave him half dinner) and then I gave him the lizard and he was immediately THE HAPPIEST DOG ALIVE. Then he chewed a hole in its belly so that it no longer squeaks and he went down to only being one of the top 10 happiest dogs alive. All in all, I would say, a success. Pictures of Raleigh and his new best friend forthcoming some time after I move. That's a story for another day, I'll just say that I feel alternately totally panicked about packing up all my belongings TONIGHT, and really excited about having gin & tonic dance parties in the living room with my soon-to-be housemates (if you have no idea what I'm talking about, ask Ariella or Ella about the wild and crazy Saturday nights we used to have).

the perfect, clever, punny headline for this post

Consider this my "Extra! Extra!" of the past couple of weeks. To, um, all my loyal readers.

News item: Got a facebook message from a woman who has done with with the Comadres. We learned that Alicia and Patricia were both maybe terminally ill. A little unclear.

News item: Will my baby nephew ever come?

News item: Hey so you know how you struggled seflessly for the human rights of your people for over 2 decades in some of the worst conditions imaginable including periods of captura and all the bells and whistles electricity water wood hoods powder metal cells horror that go with the captura of a "subversive"? You know how maybe you thought that the physical invasion of your body would be over with the Acuerdos de Paz and the years that followed and the election of a member of the FMLN party to national office? Hey, guess what? 18 years after the war officially ends, those years are going to catch up with you in the form of a disease that calls for treatments that can aptly be compared to torture. Thanks for all your work!

News item: Actually it turns out the cruel treatments may be doing what they're supposed to, although they will continue for several months and the future remains unclear. An emergency trip to El Salvador is not in the works at the moment.

News item: I'm an auntie!

News item: Oh hey there, PMS. Here to make sure I feel like I'm on an emotional roller coaster right now? Awesome. Glad you've got my back.

[/bitchandmoan]

Upcoming news: Wildwood 2010 - more beach-related Ultimate and debauchery than you can shake a stick at, coming up in 5 days!


Upcoming news: 2 1/2 weeks in the mountains with my immediate family. Will it be idyllic bliss? Will it be a camp horror? I suspect some of both... but mostly I'm rooting for this.

orange, periwinkle, and FUCHSIA

This whole garden thing started when I ordered a set of "easter bulbs" for super cheap. It said you could plant them up through May, which is around when I finally stopped fighting with the ivy taking over the yard enought o be able to plant them, and though they were kind of shriveled and TINY I planted them in the ground. Well, and then I got a packet of wildflower seeds and one of cosmos, and now I have a small jungle in my yard.

See those little dots of fuchsia in there? Those are the only ones from the bulb mix that did well (possibly because the cosmos devoured all the sunlight) and they're just today starting to bloom!

Aren't they just the sweetest?

Eartha Kitt

I've had this song stuck in my head for the past couple of days... finally remembered enough of the lyrics to find it. Thank goodness!

My pretty pretty Motobecane

I got a new (to me) bike to replace my Schwinn (affectionately named Schwinn "The Tank" McSchwinnster). I need something I can weigh down and haul groceries, you know? And also ride to lobby visits in a skirt and look classy. This bike is pretty classy. (Yes, photos will be forthcoming -- she looks like this but blue.)

So anyway I rode this bicicleta to work today so that I can fix it up after work using tools that are not mine. I don't have tools. I have a stupid adjustable wrench and all I want is a set of flat wrenches... So mom, Christmas? Christmas is so far away.

Anyway, I was riding the bike to work and I kept thinking of the Motobecane as "she." I've never felt that way with my Raleigh. Never had a desire to name it, never personified it in my head. Then I started waxing poetic while biking past the patch of prairie on the Metro Branch Trail as I considered my two bikes. See here's the thing: the Raleigh is a machine. It's light and responsive and when I ride it, it's really mostly about me. My Motobecane, she is a blues singer. She's all soul. When I ride her (yeah, getting a little dirty...), it's all about her. I bow down to you, you beautiful French coquette. Keep doing like you do.

FIFA Copa Mundial!

I know I'm not the only one going soccer (scuze me, football) nuts right now... Like today: I'm sorry, ref, WHAT? You're gonna go and take away our goal -- not just any goal, but a winning goal -- because that Slovenian dude fell over? Yeah, he fell. Why'd he fall? It might have had something to do with him forcibly holding Bradley back, as Bradley struggled to get at the ball. Yeah, it might have been that.

Photo courtesy of NYTimes

This is Team USA being all, "WTF?" and the ref is like, "No comment." 

Look! I can garden!

My first flowers are blooming! I've got this beautiful cosmos and a little pink something or other so far.

In other news, Raleigh and I do this a lot. No explanation is really needed:

Hahahahahahaaa

This happened today:

Me to Alex:
In case you were wondering what you were out and about doing last night while you slept, you were showing up in my dream. Yep. I had a dream that you and your parents were flying to Fiji for dinner (!). I stopped by your house as you were getting ready to go and then it turns out that someone had used one of those credit card swipey things to steal  your credit card info and had spent like $8000 and you were like, "Yeah, I think they took my info from outside the house." And I was like "Those things have that kind of range?!!" Then you thought about inviting me to Fiji but you had to go take care of the credit card thing and then my computer got a Fijian virus and I had to use a cardboard box instead and it meant I couldn't get in touch with you to find out if you had decided to invite me to Fiji because you had changed all your contact info and I couldn't look up your facebook account ON A CARDBOARD BOX. They're too slow. Oh yeah, and it turns out you had changed your phone number to 202-509-TIGER (yeah, like that's exactly how it showed up in my cell phone). And then I was like, "Hold on, who is this guy who flies to Fiji for dinner and changes his phone number to 509-TIGER?? This is not the Alex I thought I knew!" Then I got food poisoning.

All in all, what the fuck.

Alex to me:
hahahaha that is one of the funniest dreams I've ever heard. a cardboard box. ahhhhhhhhhhh

you know that now you need to call that number back, right?

Me to Alex:
yeah, i'm going to call and it's going to go like this

TIGER: Hello?
ME: Hi. I'm calling because your phone number showed up in my dream last night. Is your name maybe Alex?
TIGER: Ummmm....... what the fuck?
ME: Look, I don't know. Maybe we're fated to meet. Like you're my Wesley Snipes or something. I hate you, but I have to marry you anyway. I don't know.
TIGER: [click.]

i [heart] farmer's market

Observe:

Special on bread - 2 loaves of country white for $3. Niiiiiice. Also, produce:

Wait, wait, wait. We need a close up on those sugar snaps.

Unnnnnh. Sugar snap peas. I can die happy.

Oh yeah, and that asparagus was so fresh and tender that even Colin (who doesn't like asparagus) liked it. Also thanks to Baby Kap and Mama Kap (yeah, I just called you Baby Kap. Deal with it) for bringing [cue celestial music] roasted asparagus into my life. A little olive oil, a little salt, and then stick it on a pan in a toaster oven at 425F for 11 minutes. 11 minutes is perfect. 9 is DEFINITELY not enough minutes. 12 and they might be kind of limp. So trust me, 11 minutes.

Pilgrimage

Yes, I went to Ithaca. Ithaca and Costa Rica, my childhood homes, are like my (nonreligious) Mecca. Without a once yearly pilgrimage to one or the other, I feel like my life is missing something.

Putting my feet in a creek, for example. I met up with Sue and Abreham and Adamu at the Wildflower Preserve, where I hadn't been back in 12 years. 

Abreham hunted for crayfish with his bare hands (brave!).

And it turns out that Adamu is quite the swimmer! That boy just loves the water!

Seriously, I don't think I can express how happy it made me to go hang out in creeks. Monday (the day we left) was the only day I didn't put my feet (or my whole body...) in a creek. I was really happy to have rented a car so that I was able to take my pup with me, and let him play in creeks too. He loved it! (Surprise, surprise.)

Oh yeah, and Elise graduated (with honors!) from Cornell. You know, no big deal.

Look at that: a real live college graduate/adult. Damn, girl. Good for you.

Fin.