Monthly Archives: October 2008

This week..

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Last week, I decided I finally needed a way to make coffee (and tea), so I shopped Amazon and bought an electric tea kettle and a french press.   :)

My boyfriend was nice enough to finish setting up my domain for me tonight.   I may be moving my blog in the near future, when we have time to get it sorted (it IS moving week, after all… office moving… not house moving.. and I’ll be working some long hours, supposedly).    Anyone who’s been around me for awhile will be used to my blog address changing.    :)    Now that I have my own domain, you should be able to at least readily find me.

My job for office moving week is helping to pack up computers at the current facility and unpack them when they arrive at the new facility.    The new facility is ULTRA nice.. it will make all the other non-profits jealous, I think.  :)    My cubicle is the best.. it’s on the aisle and has a glass wall facing the help desk.   The surface areas and cabinets are all new-looking and I have a paper sorting thing on my wall.   :)

I can’t wait.  Three more days of working in the leaky building 1/2 hour from where I live to working in the nice building a few minutes from where I live.   No more interstate driving.   :)

Ian’s Dog

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This has become “Ian’s Dog”.   Why?   Because she is getting ornery in her old(er) age.

This morning, I let the dogs outside on their leads.   Miss Ginger requires a run at least once a day, but since we just got a newsletter saying “keeping your dogs on a lead is required”, I thought I would.

She was having none of this.  She wouldn’t pee.   I told her, “Alright then.   Let’s go inside.”   She stood there,  defiant, really, and stared at me.

“Let’s go”, I instructed, as I gently tugged on her lead.   She pulled back.   “Oh really,” I said.

Understanding that she probably DID need to go to the bathroom, I took her for a walk around the backyard, hitting all the areas where she loves to pee or poop.

Nothing.

“Let’s go, then.”   She followed me this time.   I made the mistake of letting her off the lead just outside the door. Can you say, “Goodbye Ginger!”?   I thought you could.

She took off running, hundreds of yards away.     A few minutes later, she came charging back, like a mad hatter, and ran inside the house.

This was all after I lost my balance in the yard and fell down in the mud.

You can laugh now.  :)

Later, I talked to Ian on Skype.    “I have a bone to pick with you…   Your dog is being unruly.  Yes, it IS your dog. ”   lol    :)

Family Time is Nice

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Some of the most memorable moments involved visiting Ian’s family.   I’d heard so many good things about Ian‘s family already, that meeting them was like meeting people I already knew. 

They were all lovely.

One afternoon, we spent awhile with Ian’s sister and nephew and the infamous Bouncer, their boxer, whom I thought seriously about stuffing in my bag.   We admired the garden, the paintings on the wall done by his mother and talked about what we’d been doing since I’d arrived and jetlag and round-a-bouts.

I felt really at home and happy.

Btw, evidently, Fletch knows some sort of Crocodile Dundee move with dogs which calmed Bouncer down, after which he sat down at his feet.

Another afternoon, we visited Ian’s mom and step-dad.  We went through family photos and we talked about various news-worthy items and had tea.  I admired more art on the wall and the beautiful woodwork throughout the house.

Ian’s mum and I talked about making Ian’s tea (when I thought I’d messed it up, she said, “Tell him we both did it”.)   :D    We talked about what would keep Ian and I on the phone for 5 hours at a time, which we have done.   And we talked about their trip to Florida ages ago.

I was touched that Ian’s mum sat right beside me and narrated all the family photos.

Ian’s step-dad is actually Polish.   Actually *from* Poland, not a derivative of some distant relative from Poland.   He’s a master builder and I saw some of his work in photographs, as well as around their house.

When we left, his mum and step-dad gave me a hug and kissed me on the cheek.

It was really nice.   :)

Next trip, I hope to meet Ian’s dad and maybe some others…  :)

Good News!

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Ian is coming to America … just in time for Christmas!   I’m excited to have him here, in the place that I’ve been telling him about for so long.     We’re busily plotting our Christmas dinner and where he wants to go and things we want to see.  

This will be the first time TLK has met Ian, and I know they’ll interact famously.    

And I’m sure the dogs will not be willing to let him out the door.  I can see us coming home, and they’re jumping on him instead of me.  hehe     :)

The Narrowboat Tour

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I am fascinated by canal boats, and Ian had the brilliant idea to go to the canal boat museum.

We walked through the museum itself (fascinating.. you must go, if you can), then walked down the canal, where a man and his wife were about to turn their canal boat around in the canal.

It was fun to see them maneuver their boat in the canal.  Afterwards, they headed through a long tunnel (about 1.5 miles, if I remember correctly, and I may not).

Walking along the footpath, we found blackberries (yum) and talked about poisonous berries vs. the berries you can make wine out of (don’t confuse the two).    

It was SO much fun!    

I think that one day, I fancy a vacation involving a canal boat, a handsome British poet and TLK.