08-31-09

OK, locals, where are we?!?

I was at work. When the budget and calorie watcher is away, Bruce will play. It’s a bit of a tradition to head to Fusion Bubble Tea to celebrate the first and last day of school. Today Jacob and Manna joined the Fischer outing.

Xander survived his first day of middle school… he likes his math teacher.

“You learn something every day if you pay attention.” ~Ray LeBlond

08-30-09

We ended our weekend away with worship in Hoquiam and a drive through our old haunts in Aberdeen.

We contrasted the effort Forks is making to generate tourism from their Twilight windfall to Aberdeen’s refusal to try to reinvent themselves in any way. Famous rock star Kurt Cobain was born and raised in Aberdeen, and it was only this year that they did something to honor him. Bruce was pushing for Aberdeen to embrace the founder of Nirvana when we lived there, so we took a detour to the banks of the muddy Wishkah to check it out. And we had to wait our turn to take this photo!

“I'm gonna be a superstar musician, kill myself and go out in a flame of glory, just like Jimi Hendrix” Kurt Cobain

08-29-09

Forks is officially all things Twilight. Besides the “official” sites, many businesses had signs “Bella shops here”, “Edward doesn’t sleep here”, and Twilight posters. I had no idea there was enough merchandise to support such a big souvenir shop.

Yes, it was cheesy. Little of it was accurate. But it was done with enthusiasm and captured our attention for about four hours. It was fun not being the only “Twi-tards”; everyone was running all over town with cameras out snapping photos. Here we are with Bella’s beater truck.

“What if I’m not the hero; what if I’m the bad guy?” - Edward

08-28-09

The “photo op” highlight of Friday was the Olympic Game Farm in Sequim. Bruce and I have gone a handful of times, but the kids didn’t remember it at all.

Anastasia had her camera and enjoyed taking photos (especially of the peafowl). Xander threw bread at the animals, but as much more comfortable with the bears, the only critters behind fences.

These small deer weren’t as aggressive as the larger animals, but there were a ton of them and they swamped the car at the first sign of bread hand-outs. We got slobber on our car, and one elk showed his displeasure at not getting bread by smacking the car antennae, but we had two safe and fun trips through the park.

“God loved the birds and invented trees. Man loved the birds and invented cages.” ~Jacques Deval

08-27-09

Tonight was 6th grade orientation at Monticello Middle School.

Xander got his schedule (even though he has had it on-line for a week), got to meet his teachers, buy his gym clothes, and put money on his lunch tab.

His line-up is:
Band
PE
Science
Reading
English
Math
Social Studies

He doesn’t have any teachers that Anastasia had last year. We walked his schedule, and it is brutal. I’m not sure his classes could be any farther apart; he is like a boomerang all morning. He’s got four minutes to hustle!

Big sister was trying to tell him when to make locker stops and what to carry where, but he’s not ready for that detailed advice quite yet. Come to think of it, probably never will be.

“Education is not preparation for life; education is life itself.” ~John Dewey

08-26-09

What’s up with me trying to cram too many things into my life, then getting pissed off at the world when I end the day feeling at the end of my rope?

I could go into more details, but it might get nasty. :)

This photo could be captioned ‘chasing serenity’, or ‘too busy to take a real blog photo’, or ‘haggard enough to click and drive’.

“The time to relax is when you don't have time for it.” ~Jim Goodwin

08-25-09

It isn’t every day you see a semi truck up in the air. Or is it?

I first saw this sight when I was traveling in the southern US for work. There the logs are much smaller, so most are delivered to customers in chip form. This is evidently the most efficient way to empty the wood chips from the container. It struck me as such an odd sight back then.

Now I see the trucks in the air almost every day as I enter and exit the parking lot at work. I still think it is cool, but the novelty has worn off.

“By working faithfully eight hours a day you may eventually get to be boss and work twelve hours a day.” ~Robert Frost

08-24-09

Today was a Monday that beat all Mondays.

I got to work early and got a lot done. Then at 8:30 progress came to a screeching halt. Evidently a fiber optic line was accidentally cut today, and that brought the Longview plant site to our knees.

First priority was getting payroll processed. We got a two-hour extension , but were still sweating bullets to make the new deadline.

In the meanwhile an announcement came over the loudspeaker for everyone not running critical applications to stop trying to work, to conserve what small connectivity we had to keep the mill operating. So it was mass exodus from my building; no sense staying.

I worked from my Blackberry and worked on my boxes project. Last week a moving van came and delivered 60 old records boxes from our sold Seaside facility for me to sort through against updated records retention policy. Don’t need a computer for that!
What a day!

“Monday is an awful way to spend 1/7th of your life.” - Unknown

08-23-09

It’s difficult to get photos when you don’t do anything all day.

Today was a much welcomed slug day. Church, a trip to Target, hanging out at home, then the three hour King Kong movie with a DQ treat.

“Weekends are a bit like rainbows; they look good from a distance but disappear when you get up close to them.” ~John Shirley

08-22-09

My Saturday started and ended with the garden.

This morning after my morning routine, I headed out to the back yard to pull up my pathetic beets, all my carrots, and a big patty pan squash. The beets were so small that I threw them away (I had bigger ones earlier in the season with more direct sun), and laughed at the farmers market when they were selling the small ones.

During the day we went on a hike (at Gnat Creek, that place needs a PR director to come up with a more inviting name!), stopped at a fruit stand for more Yakima fruit, and I worked on weekend chores.

At dusk I went back out to the garden and worked on controling the weeds and trying to figure out why my cantaloupe aren’t thriving. Then I came in to enjoy an orange cappuccino and FarmTown happenings.

“The best place to seek God is in a garden. You can dig for him there.” ~George Bernard Shaw

08-21-09

Just us girls tonight. Xander is spending the night with Jacob and Bruce is not spending money at poker.

We had ‘operation clean out the freezer’ for dinner, got our favorite drinks for dessert, and watched my latest Netflix pick- 17 Again. We both enjoyed it, and love the reinforced message that sex before marriage can extinguish plans and dreams.

Happy Friday!

“Fiction reveals truths that reality obscures.” ~Jessamyn West

08-20-09

Tonight was the last concert at the lake for this summer. This year more than most I am wanting to hold on to summer, I’m not sure why. There are less distractions in the wintertime.

Our Connections group seems to have dwindled down to three families; the Fischers, Stewarts, and Smiths. Oh well, at least we find each other highly entertaining.

Look closely for a green shoulder, Xander is behind Bruce and I, hiding his ice cream purchase from the younger kids.

“Rest is not idleness, and to lie sometimes on the grass on a summer day listening to the murmur of water, or watching the clouds float across the sky, is hardly a waste of time.” ~John Lubbock

08-19-09

Conversation during last budget review:
Michele: “What did you buy at Secret Garden?”
Bruce: “Dunno.” [Logs on to the credit card detail] “It’s in Cathlamet.”
Michele: “Oh, right, that was me. That should be classified as Household/Decorations.”

Remember how I said that I don’t window shop? Well, a friend and I were exploring downtown Cathlamet (the entire block!) and found a really fun floral and decorating store. And we both ended up buying stems of these naturalistic flowers.

Look closely, the flowers and the cattails are made out of loofah sponges!

“God loved the flowers and invented soil. Man loved the flowers and invented vases.” ~Jacques Deval

08-18-09

To lose weight, one must ingest fewer calories or move more. Or do both, which is my current plan of attack for the “last 10 pounds” I keep losing over and over and over again.

Part of exercise is the time invested, and part is the intensity exerted. Again, I am working on improving both. 20 minutes each morning on the treadmill is a habit now (unless I have to get to work early, like today), but I’ve started adding inclines to sweat sooner and more profusely.

And I’m still trying to add another 40 minutes of movement to my evenings. It’s been hit and miss (especially since chopping all of these fresh fruits and veggies I now eat takes a ton of time too!), but I’m trying. Tonight I did a workout on wii Active, then hit the treadmill.

“A man's health can be judged by which he takes two at a time - pills or stairs.” ~Joan Welsh

08-17-09

Tonight we headed down to Portland right after work for back to school clothes shopping. Anastasia had a coupon at Justice that was expiring, but ended up not buying a single thing there!

I was surprised that Old Navy turned out to be our best stop. Xander found a bunch at Hollister (he loves how soft their clothes are, silly boy) and Anastasia found the last of what she needed at Kohl’s, but both spent a good sum at Old Navy. Can’t beat $10 and $19 jeans!

We’re trying to keep the shopping to a minimum; it feels like both kids are about to grow again! The kids have graduated from index cards with their shopping list drawn on them to an envelope of cash with a suggested shopping list.

“I bet deep down you still wish your mom would take you clothes shopping every August for the new school year.” Bridget Willard

08-16-09

We had some mishaps today (smashed GPS touch screen, overheated car), but overall it was a great day.

We spent almost 6 hours in Clatskanie at a barn bash. A couple from church opens up their acreage for potluck, wading in the creek, games, and square dance lessons. Their property is wonderful.

The last time this even was held, we were brand new to the church and that is where we met some of our friends. This year we knew a lot more people and had a blast hanging out with friends and taking in the various activities. I had promised Bruce I would try square dancing, even though I was freaked out about switching partners, and it was actually a LOT of fun!

“We're fools whether we dance or not, so we might as well dance.” ~Japanese Proverb

08-15-09

Thirteen plus hours away from home sweet home today.

Two family events took us north. Fischers hosted a garden BBQ, and Grama Bunnie turned 81.
We came home toting peaches and nectarines from Yakima, strawberry plants to transplant, a partially watched King Kong movie, an article about old time Seattle and a miscellaneous bag of “stuff”, more photos on the memory card (this one is me with my sister Shanna and the birthday girl), and our lovely children and all their paraphernalia.

"You don't choose your family. They are God's gift to you, as you are to them." ~Desmond Tutu

08-14-09

My workday ended today at 2pm in Vancouver. Bruce met me there and we headed to Portland for an extended date night.

First we hit Ugly Mug Coffeehouse. I requested that we get coffee in a real cup, but in an ugly mug was an adventure… Then we headed to Lake Oswego for an art walk. We had the brochure with locations, photos, and descriptions on the iTouch. It was a perfect way to walk around the neighborhood.

This cage of glass "marbles" was one of my favorites, as was the bountiful flower garden behind it. After criss-crossing several blocks, we stopped at Chevy’s for dinner. Dessert was at a fancy establishment with expensive, decadent, truly amazing cakes and tortes, and another shot at coffee in a real cup.

We topped off the evening with Theater Sports improv at a theater bar in Pearl district. And I’m ready to fall into bed!

“Whoever designed the streets in Portland must have been drunk!” - Bruce

08/13/09

Thursdays are connected to Fridays, and that makes me smile.

We had a great band at the lake tonight, and the crowd was a bit thin due to the weather. None of our Connections group made it.

The group introduced themselves as being from Detroit, and I thought that odd, but they later admitted they were really from Scappoose. They called kids up to do the YMCA hand motions, found a cowbell player from the audience, and had good songs and voices.

We got sprinkled on, but it’s all good.

“Happiness is the soundtrack of my life.” ~Grey Livingston

08-12-09

OK, locals, any guess as to where I am?

Two of my favorite things are views of still waters and views of cows, and tonight I got my fill of both.

Bruce and I visited old neighbors and co-worker/exercise partner. They retired and built a gorgeous house.

“Boredom is the feeling that everything is a waste of time; serenity, that nothing is.” - Thomas S. Szasz

08-11-09

I’m not very good at window shopping.

Tonight we made a quick trip to Blockbuster; Bruce rented Knowing, not remembering that we saw it in the theater and that it stinks. So we got I Love You, Man instead, and it also stinks. But I digress.

I wanted to pop into Bed Bath and Beyond to look at their towels and start comparison shopping. New towels are in the budget for August because our current ones are bleached out. I just wanted to look around! Right.

Like our new towels?

“I went window shopping today! I bought four windows.” Tommy Cooper

08-10-09

“This is actually a fun family outing.” – Anastasia

“I sure hope you picked more than you ate!” – Bruce

“I don’t remember blackberries being this pokey!” – Michele

“There are really big ones over by the car. I can’t stop eating them!” – Xander

It’s been ages since I’ve been blackberry picking, but that was our outing this evening. I love that sickly sweet smell of ripe berries.

When we summered with G&G, they had blackberries nearby, and Grama would make cobbler if we would pick them.

Blackberries for snack time, blackberries in fruit salad for breakfast, and blackberries in the freezer for the dead of winter. Bliss.

“Blackberries are my favorite. Favorite berry, that is. Are they a fruit?” - Xander, our clueless wonder

08-09-09

I enjoy being out in the garden.
I like puttering in my scrapbook room.
I don’t mind exercising.
But I really, really like to curl up with a book and read.

This weekend I have carved out more than normal reading time, and it feels luxurious.

“It’s one of the greatest data-dissemination devises ever conceived, capable of transmitting content in a variety of formats. If handled correctly, it can safely store data for centuries. It has a highly intuitive user interface and nobody has ever complained about its slow boot up time.” - Bryon Corliss, about books compared to the Kindle

08-08-09

I spent from 1pm to 10pm at Relay for Life today, plus a bit of time in the morning before it officially started. It was a great mix of family time, alone time, quiet time, and entertainment time.

This was the first year we saw the Mr. Relay contest (where guys dress up as girls to earn extra money for cancer) start to finish; it was pretty hilarious.

This was the 25 anniversary of the Cowlitz county Relay. It also happens to be about 25 years since my dad died of cancer. Our Weyerhaeuser team raised $13,000 for the cause this year!

“Relay For Life is a celebration as well as a unique, challenging and fun way to raise money for the American Cancer Society and to raise cancer awareness in the community.” Paula Fambrough

08-07-09

We have a big popcorn machine at work. Friday is popcorn day.

I don’t eat the popcorn, but I like the popcorn. It adds a festive mood to Fridays. It brings in visitors. And it raises money for the American Cancer Society – all proceeds over the operating cost go into our Relay for Life fund.

Tonight the kids got popcorn for snack time. Happy Friday!

“Popcorn is the sentimental good-time Charlie of American foods.” Patricia Linden

08-06-09

Today brought:
- Announced reductions in pension and medical benefits at work. Could have been a lot worse.
- Facebook friend request from Ray, a junior high boyfriend. Blast from the past!
- Freezing our butts off at the lake concert. What a difference a week makes!
- Us another day closer to another weekend!

This photo was at the lake. The whole family wondered when mom would let them go home. Anastasia listened to her ipod instead of 60’s Folk, go figure.

“I need neither future nor past, but to learn to take today not too fast.” ~Jeb Dickerson

08-05-09

Here’s yesterdays garden from the other side of the fence.

We took a neighborhood walk, then I went out to weed. It was such a pleasant evening and the weeds were coming up so easily that I stayed outside longer than I intended.

Gotta love the slower pace of summer! Now it’s time to drive the kids to their 9pm outdoor viewing of Bedtime Stories with youth group.

“There shall be eternal summer in the grateful heart.” ~Celia Thaxter

08-04-09

How does your garden grow?

Mine grows all in a crowded row.

This is the first year I decided to see if anything would grow in our back alley, and if the produce would get stolen. A challenge is that I planted the seeds and starts before the ground was really cleared, so when stuff popped up I didn’t know if it was weed or friend.

It a motley mess, but things seem to be thriving. Marigolds, cherry tomatoes, and lack-eyed susans are in bloom. Cantaloupe, tomatoes, and peppers are growing rapidly.

“Never be afraid to try something new. Remember, amateurs built the ark. Professionals built the Titanic.” - Unknown

08-03-09

Another Monday. Hard to believe that there are only 52 in a year, seems like they come around with greater frequency.

Anyhow, I’ve been wanting to photograph our neighbors tin man for several months. This house is a wonder, with plenty of clutter. I like the tin man; there are a few of them in the neighborhood.

Normally the owners are hanging around the porch, but tonight I was able to take a shot. We were past the house when it registered that they were gone, so we retraced our steps.

Mondays are brighter when surrounded by things that make you smile.

08-02-09

This is where I might want to live.

Bruce and I resumed our neighborhood walks tonight; I am resolving to get the grid marked off by the end of the month. We meandered through the Old West side tonight. We found the house that we almost bought and continued to discuss camp week.

This house caught my fancy. I love the warm color and the simplicity of the façade. I’d change the lime green door though.

I love to walk by houses and wonder what they look like inside.

“The universe is merely a fleeting idea in God's mind - a pretty uncomfortable thought, particularly if you've just made a down payment on a house.” ~Woody Allen

08-01-09

We have a clock that has a different bird call every hour.

When 8 o’clock sounds, Xander looks like he’s been shot from a cannon and heads for the kitchen.

Because he can’t have evening snack before 8pm.

Today was a quiet “relax and regroup” day, so this evening I made a mess in the kitchen. I mixed up some veggie salads - Asian-style bean sprout slaw and Sweet and Tangy Melon Slaw, neither of which my family will like but I keep trying. And Xander and I made a few batches of cookies to bring to church coffee hour.

Here he is, at snack time, comparing the cherry and lemon cookies.