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Post by Phalon on Mar 15, 2006 22:26:37 GMT -6
I went roller-skiing this morning; it was a beautiful day for it. Cold, but sunny; the trail soft but not mushy. I would have preferred it frozen stiff, but ya can't have everything.
Had the CD Marysgurl made for my drive, and that is best for an all out haul-@ss ski. So I did. Tired of babying things; tired of the throbbing tricep and forearm; sick of numb fingers. To hell with the whole thing; I am tired of not doing the things I enjoy.
Know what? Damn, it feels good. HA!
And it's supposed to snow tomorrow. Yay!
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Post by Gabbin on Mar 18, 2006 23:20:04 GMT -6
MG has an amazing music collection really.
I went skiing today with my newest ski pal, and her Jack Russell-which loves me. I know just how to massage the dog till his eyes roll back in ectasy-he always tracks me down when he needs some TLC.
It was beautiful out there all snowing and quiet. Her doggie with his wee little fleece jacket on was really cute.
Tommorrow; more skiing in the forecast. Yeah!
I took a pic of it and wonder how to post it here. MM, do you use Irfanview for pics?
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Post by Phalon on Mar 18, 2006 23:47:50 GMT -6
Oh...the waning days of winter. I went roller skiing yesterday in an inbetween season type weather - bright and sunny; almost warm, but with a dusting of snow on the ground.
Held off today though; it stiffened up on me sometime during the night, and I thought I'd better pamper it a bit. The arm. I'm talking about my arm...or not.
Wore my sweater with the seasonal motif today - dark blue with embroidered snowflakes around the neckline. Not really snowflakes, kind of a celtic design actually, but they remind me of snowflakes, and like white can't be worn after Labor Day, snowflakes can not be worn after the last day of winter.
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Post by LMV's Old Account on Mar 19, 2006 1:28:36 GMT -6
argh i swear to god australia doesnt know what season it is one day im sneezing coz i got a cold the next coz i got hayfever wat the F*CK? argh hmmmmmm *thinks about kim during her current tantrum*
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Post by fallenangel on Mar 19, 2006 19:08:22 GMT -6
Rain,rain and you guessed it more rain.
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Post by Mini Mia on Mar 19, 2006 22:51:59 GMT -6
Nopers Gabbin, I don't use IrfanView... Is the image already on your computer? If so, create a photobucket.com account and upload it there.
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Post by Phalon on Mar 19, 2006 23:18:12 GMT -6
Ah...the last day of winter. Sorry to see it go; I love winter. Not much snow this year here, and I've missed that.
Hhmmm....what did I do today that was wintery? I went skiing - though on wheels instead of snow. I wore mittens. I wore two pairs of socks. Yelled outside to my kids to zip up their coats and get hats on because they'd catch pneumonia if they didn't, (yeah, I know. But it's the Mom thing to say). Had hot, hot soup for dinner.
That's about it. Seeing signs of spring popping up everywhere, and now that it's here, we'll probably get that snow I've been missing.
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Post by Scrappy Amazon on Apr 7, 2006 18:54:57 GMT -6
Just gotta say one last time.....what is it with you people hogging winter..next year you have to share.
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Post by Phalon on Dec 2, 2006 12:31:01 GMT -6
Don't care if it's not officially here yet; it's winter in my book.
Same as one of my last winter's posts on this page - it was in-between weather today: not enough snow for the sticks, but too much for the wheels.
Instead I walked downtown to the bakery for doughnuts this morning, (something is not quite right there - walk for exercise for gooey fat and cholesterol laden doughnuts. Mmmmm). All the store-fronts are decorated for Christmas, and people milling up and down the sidewalks windowshopping before the stores opened.
I walked home by way of the beach. The sandy was crunchy - frozen still from the icy-storm we had Thrusday night. Sunny, but dang cold down there.
Snow in the extended forecast for as far out as the Weather Channel shows it. Hopefully, they'll be right.
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Post by xenavirgin on Dec 2, 2006 15:08:53 GMT -6
Ah winter, I suppose it's here in the UK, but who can really tell?
Actually the leaves are just starting to fall in earnest here and with the rain, the worst hazard is slipping on the sodden masses of leaves that are everywhere. I went A** over t**s yesterday when my walking stick skidded on the only leaf on the sidewalk to be seen for several metres, trust me.
But, I know I'm gonna get some winter this year, because my Lady Wife and I will be visiting Utah in January. We're going to visit her brother who works in Salt Lake City (He lives in San Juan Capistrano, go figure).
Jane intends to get in some skiing, but what with me having one bad knee, one worse and a hinky ankle, I will be lazing in the hotel reading. All except for the day I intend to be making a nice big snowman. weeheee.
Can't wait.
XV
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Post by Phalon on Dec 2, 2006 16:03:51 GMT -6
I'm supposed to be working on something, but had to take a little break just to pop in, and leave something for X-Virgin. Salt Lake City - and you're just going to laze around, except for the day you're going to make a snowman?! No, no, no - do you know what awaits you in Salt Lake City?! Not just one - but ten...count them...ten 7-11s!!!!! Here's a map of them all for your convienence. local.yahoo.com/results?fr=dd-local-more&stx=7+11&csz=Salt+Lake+City%2C+UTPrint it; memorize it; learn it like the back of your hand. I expect a full Slurpee report upon your return. Don't let me down.
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Post by battleon on Dec 9, 2006 10:20:10 GMT -6
Yay for me!!!! I don't have winter where i live and i don't miss it either...Y'all can have it and the discomfort and the inconvienience that is winter..I sometimes say i wish the seasons would change when it gets to be too hot down here but ,all i have to do is watch tv and see an see an hear rhe weather reports abou t all the winter storms and then i know i'm crazy for wanting the seasons to change..
Sunshine for me 24/7 365 a year..
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Post by Phalon on Dec 12, 2006 0:07:52 GMT -6
Sunshine 24/7? Wow, Battleon. You wear your sunglasses at night.
Still haven't done much Christmas shopping. I went right after Thanksgiving, thought I got a jumpstart on it, and put a dent in the list, but haven't been out since. I need to get going - looked at the calendar the other day and damn, wasn't it just Thanksgiving last weekend, and Halloween the day before that?
Another year the Christmas cards aren't going to make it to the mailbox. Last year at least I got them out, and set them on the table where they sat for the duration of the holiday season without getting written. This year I'm not even going to pretend.
We got all the Christmas cds out this past weekend; I love Christmas music, and decorated the tree while we listened. BP is so funny - so excited. So fascinated. She's moved every ornament she can reach at least five times; putting this one next to that one, moving her favorites to the front; getting them all just right. She's my "attack every holiday with extreme gusto" girl. It doesn't matter the holiday: Ground Hog's Day deserves as much zeal as Christmas, (she told me today Ground Hog's Day was one of her top three favorite holidays. Huh?) She's wrapped gobs of her toys - she likes to wrap, I may have to put her to work - to give her classmates. (No Dear, you can not wrap that; it's your sister's. And no, you can not give away your sister either).
Her sister: We went to her concert the other night - the sixth grade orchestra Christmas concert. It was nice; funny how a bunch of screeching dying cat noises together don't sound as horrid as one alone. Something must be said about moving in herds. Fun while listening, watching the herd of orchestra students' bows moving together in unsynchronized unison.
Weird weather. I went cross-country skiing early last week; it was the first time I've been out this season. Not really enough snow to get in a perfect glide, but good enough to at least get in a glide. I was looking forward to the winter storm we were supposed to get; snow measured in feet not inches.
Pfft. The storm came. Feet of snow, (or at least a foot and then some), was dropped. But not here. We got wind, and lots of it. It blew the snow inland, and they got to enjoy(?) it. The temperature warmed, and the little snow we had melted this weekend.
So I went roller skiing instead this morning. Down the hill, over the river, and through the woo..... Damn, damn, damn. Didn't make it through the woods. Got up to the edge of it, and realized the sun doesn't shine 24/7 in the woods - if rarely at all. The higher temperatures melted it...but turned it to ice instead of making it disappear. Whimper. I had to turn around, the wheels unable to roll on ice. I tried.
Tomorrow: Taking It To The Streets; Adventures in Urban Skiing.
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Post by Phalon on Dec 12, 2006 22:40:01 GMT -6
Curses! Foiled again. There was no Urban Skiing Adventure today; it rained on my parade.
So I went shopping downtown. It rained on me there too.
And this evening, I figured I'd finally break down and go to Walmart to get the finish up the girls' lists. When it rains, it pours. It poured.
Tonight, drip, drip, drip coming from the bathroom. Is it supposed to rain from the ceiling?
Grrrrrr.
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Post by Siren on Dec 15, 2006 10:32:07 GMT -6
And I believe I remember your Hubs' last attempt at plumbing. Are you going for Round 2? Good luck! Nice and mild here today, but more wintry weather on the way. We were in central Texas for a couple of days this week. Didn't feel like Christmas at all: too warm. I was glad to get back home, and get to feeling Christmassy again. In the home stretch on Christmas shopping. Only a few more left on the list.
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Post by fallenangel on Dec 15, 2006 13:41:04 GMT -6
I think Im done Christmas shopping. The weather here has not been winter like. 70s in December ... I know the weather though and when you least expect it..
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Post by Phalon on Dec 15, 2006 17:41:33 GMT -6
I can't say we're not winter-like, but it's definitely warmer than a December here usually is - in the forties, and rain instead of snow. I'd rather the snow.
I went skiing this morning - on the wheels, of course. First time out there in nearly a couple of weeks, and damn, it felt good.
And then - baking. Yep, you read right. I baked my behind off - and not from warming it near the oven. My Marathong friend came over Wednesday evening for pizza and the Second Annual Try To Teach Phalon How To Bake Cookies Fiasco.
She'd called me the night before to give me the list of ingredients which I diligently wrote down on a piece of paper which I left on the kitchen counter the next morning as I headed out the door for supplies. Dang, I love the grocery store this time of year with all those festive foods displayed throughout: all kinds international looking foods with exotic sounding names. Brown sugar, flour, vanilla, butter - these were the things I tried to stay focused on as I gazed longingly at the wines and cheeses. Oooo, and all the holiday blends of coffees!!!
Even without the list, I did well, and got everything we needed. Marathong friend came armed with cookbook, mixer, (I don't own one), and cookie sheets, (I only have two that I'd dare actually bake something on - the others have taken twenty years of bubbled-over casseroles, which in my kitchen is the only use a cookie sheet ever gets: something to set a casserole dish on in the oven in case of near explosion. Because god knows, can't have casserole bubbling onto the oven - then I might actually have to clean it. Let the baking commence. I measured ingredients, served pizza, ate, and generally tried to look like I knew where things were in my own kitchen, while she and BP mixed. Amazingly, Marathong thought this was fun. We baked four dozen, and she left me with enough dough to make twelve dozen more.
Of which I got four dozen baked today. She tells me the dough freezes well; I'm hoping she's correct. Listened to Christmas music, baked, talked on the phone, and wrapped gifts at the same time. My kitchen looked like a scene right out of Martha Stewart's....Hell.
Just the beginning; much left to do. But my shopping is almost done; I've only got a few more things to get. Tomorrow is the girls' turn though. Early shopping downtown - Shop in Your Pajamas Day, and graze on breakfast pastries and slurp coffee while your neighbors and the general town's folk population see what you look like when you first roll out of bed. A very scary morning in my hometown tomorrow. I hope the G-string Lawn Mower Man around the corner sleeps in baggy flannels. <shudder>
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Post by Phalon on Dec 17, 2006 14:19:02 GMT -6
Whew! Taking a bit of a break from the Last Weekend I Have Before Everything Has To Be Done Holiday Madness.
Packaged up the cookies, (except for the two dozen I burnt), and sent the girls out delivering the plates to unsuspecting neighbors....those with bad eyesight, and dulled taste-buds.
Wrapped a few more gifts, got a few cards - those I said I wasn't going to send this year - addressed and stamped.
I took the girls to do their shopping yesterday, and closed my eyes while the sales clerk rang up their purchases so I wouldn't see what they bought for me - with my money.
We then went to the maritime museum; the boat shed was decorated; they had wreath making for the kids, story-telling, and Christmas cookies, (ugh! no more Christmas cookies!).
The story told was one I thought cool, and a true one: The Christmas Ship. In the 1800's, a ship loaded with Christmas trees headed from Michigan's Upper Peninsula to Chicago. It was a trip that was made every year; the captain became known as "Captain Santa". The trees were sold for a dollar, but the captain always gave one - no charge - to families to could not afford to purchase a tree. The ship's arrival was anticipated each year, and the docks lined with people welcoming it it in, looking for the tell-tale Christmas tree tied to the ship's tallest mast.
Each time he left home for the trip, his wife would ask the same question, "When will you be home?" Each year he answered the same, "I'll be home when my work is finished".
One year, the gales of November came early on Lake Michigan, and the Christmas ship encountered forty foot waves, ice, and snow squalls. Too far away to turn back, the captain decided to push on to Chicago. The then equivalent of the Coast Guard was sent out to guide the ship in, and it was spotted right before a white out came. When the view cleared, the Christmas Ship had disappeared.
Two weeks later, a bottle containing the Captain's last log entry was found floating in the icy waters. "We're going down. Goodbye...."
In 1971, scuba diving expedition looking for another sunken trip, found the Christmas Ship, that tell-tale Christmas tree tied to the mast preserved in the frigid water.
But the last trip Captain Santa made, wasn't the last for the Christmas Ship. Though his work was finished that day, his wife took up the task the following years, continuing to deliver Christmas trees from the UP to Chicago, just as her husband did, for the next twenty years.
Our tall ship in the harbour has a Christmas tree tied to the tallest mast. I cried. I'm a sap.
I won a Christmas tree. We already have one. Hubs stuck it in a cinder-block in the front yard, (our tree-stand already in use), and we strung it with lights.
He went to do his shopping today. LMAO. He asked what I wanted and to write a list. My list said "Something girly. Surprize me; I wear jeans and t-shirts nine months out of the year at work, and when I'm off in winter is when I pull out my femininity, (yes, it's there somewhere). I sent him to my favorite shop, and told him either of the proprietors will know what I like and help him. Off he went. He returned a half hour later saying he didn't get anything - neither of the women were there; only the holiday help working this Sunday. "Smell my wrist", he says. "Mmmm". "Now the other." "I like that one better." Back out the door he went.
Perfume? Beats the year he got me a Buttonneer, (that button-attaching machine).
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Post by Siren on Dec 17, 2006 18:27:55 GMT -6
What a festive place your place is, Gams! Hurray for you for keeping Christmas well.
I like that Christmas ship story. Very romantic and sad and noble, just the way I like them.
Snaps to Hubs for not waiting till Christmas Eve to shop. My dad does his under the wire every year.
For my family, the holidays must include basketball. We attended the OU/Northern Colorado game today - more or less a scrimmage for the ridiculously undermatched Sooners. At the OU/Ohio St. game Wednesday, Christmas stockings will be distributed, emblazoned with the OU logo, of course. Last year, they gave out Santa hats, similarly emblazoned, right before the holiday. BTW, OU/Ohio State will be on tv if you're interested. ESPN2, I believe. Should be a good one - the Sooners' first real test this season. I'm a bit nervous. We've had a very easy schedule up till now. I hope the team's ready.
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Post by Phalon on Dec 17, 2006 22:36:34 GMT -6
Hurray for me for keeping Christmas...well, for keeping it anyway. A bit strange at time, but it works.
And good luck to your Sooner Ladies, Siren. I'll see if I can catch some of the game on television; I'm not sure, (gasp), if we get ESPN2.
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Post by Siren on Dec 18, 2006 23:35:06 GMT -6
Thanks, Gams. Keep your skis crossed for 'em!
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Post by Phalon on Dec 19, 2006 0:06:28 GMT -6
BOLL Siren. I'd end up flat on my face if I crossed my skis. Fingers though, I can cross those with minimal injury and will certainly do so!
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Post by mabd on Dec 19, 2006 1:55:37 GMT -6
Gatorgellan, your story about the UP Christmas tree was beautifully told and, oh, so bittersweet. This one is a flat out tearjerker: www.geocities.com/cyber_explorer99/capotechristmas.htmlI always cry over it. It is so sparsely written that it just seems reach into places within myself I don't often visit. It is written with a gentle rawness -- one I find which makes me different every time I read it. FIP, passing the kleenex
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Post by Siren on Dec 19, 2006 23:03:07 GMT -6
Ah, Maeve...thank you for reminding me of that story, surely one of the most beautiful things I've ever read. And if you think it's great on paper, try reading it aloud to yourself. I did, between sobs. What a gift writing like that is.
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Post by Phalon on Dec 20, 2006 23:09:11 GMT -6
Thanks for posting the link, Maeve. I read it in pieces yesterday; just a bit here between errands, and a little there while I had a few minutes. The last thing I did before going to bed last night was read the end. Short, and even though reading it broken up like I did, my eyes stung when I finished. Taking you up on the kleenex offer, and saving it for later when I read the entire story all the way through in one sitting.
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Post by Phalon on Dec 20, 2006 23:15:52 GMT -6
Oh, and Siren...don't keep me waiting and my fingers crossed forever - how'd the Sooners fare? Busy tonight; we did not even have the television on, and I completely forgot to check the game.
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Post by Phalon on Dec 21, 2006 12:55:08 GMT -6
I am almost done - as done as I'm gonna get anyway. One more quick stop, one fruit tray to make, (pfft, like what five year old is going to eat fruit at a Christmas party when there's cookies, cupcakes and all other sugar-inducing high things available. I shoulda volunteered napkins), one kindergarten class party to attend, and then hopefully Hubs will be home from work, and we're over the river and through the woods, to Grandmother's house we go for just a few days.
Hope everyone here has a safe, and very Merry Christmas!
Later Sweet Taters!
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Post by Siren on Dec 21, 2006 23:35:47 GMT -6
Maeve, my eyes were literally swollen the day after reading "A Christmas Memory". But it was worth it. Thank you, thank you!
Gams, thanks for taking time from your holiday whirl to ask about my Sooner gals. They lost by 7 to a very, very good Ohio State team. Couldn't overcome nerves and careless play in the first half. O-State was just more ready for the big game than OU was. I think our schedule of weak opponents came back to haunt us. But this loss comes at a good time. My gals were a little too cocky, I think. This oughta wake them up.
Happy holidays, Gams. Safe travel to you and all my whooshamigos.
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Post by Phalon on Dec 25, 2006 10:48:22 GMT -6
A real quick stop in here - a break in the festivities; the neighbor girls just brought their new toys over to add to my girls' new toys for a new toy play-a-ton extravaganza - to wish everyone a very Merry Christmas.
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Post by Mini Mia on Dec 25, 2006 23:44:23 GMT -6
[glow=purple,2,300] Merry Christmas Everyone!!!
[/glow]
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