AHHH Vacation!

Oh, to be independently wealthy and on permanent vacation... I would probably do what I've done the past few weeks but just more of. I took a long weekend and flew to Seattle for a fabulous time with my kids. This time I stayed with Brandon and Alix and although I arrived in the dark, I could tell I was entering a sanctuary. Pretend you're going down the steps through the tunnel of bushes and trees

and it just keeps getting better. Through the house (which is really cute) and out to the deck and this is what you see looking north

Looking south, here's Alix and her buddy J.L. Seagull which she isn't feeding. Really. Well, just one round cracker that went down his throat and looked like he'd swallowed a frisbee. And maybe just one more because the first one kinda got stuck...

Then there's Andy, Brandon and I after a hard evening of fishing right below the deck

I really could get used to this lifestyle! Thanks, kids, for a great time!

Less than a week later, I was off for Montana. My first stop was at Greek Creek Campground on the Gallatin River. This was a trip down the memory river as my family used to camp here when I was a kid. I just sat by the river and drank in the clear, pine crisp air. It feels good to be home.

I got to spend time with good friends and get some much needed (for both body and soul) hiking. First on the Boulder,

And then to Lost Lake south of Red Lodge.

Funny how these three places feel more like home than the house in Billings that I've had for 18 years or the house in Mtn Home that I currently live in.

Vacation was way too short and then it was back to ID. I thought I'd get in one more hike after I got home before going back to work so I drove to a reservoir north of Mtn Home where the map showed a trail. Well, apparently it's all private land and has been so since the '50s. Let's not rush things here--I guess 4o years isn't enough time to update a map. So, after hiking to a pretty alpine lake in Montana,

I end my vacation at a lake where people drive down to the shore and bait fish.

And what's wrong with this picture??

Isn't a forest supposed to have ... well... trees?? Welcome to southern Idaho.

End of Summer--Bummer!

Well, I may not post often, but at least I'm once-a-month consistent. School started this week which, even after all these years of being an empty nester, still signifies the end of summer. I try not to dwell on all the things I didn't do this summer but it's hard when there is very little that I did do. I haven't gone hiking, fishing, or golfing. I did finally make it to the mountains but not for hiking. McCall, about 2 hours north east of Boise, is a small resort town on a lake. I went with two of my coworkers (one of them insanely conservative--my tongue is still raw from biting back words!), the other definitely not a hiker, more of a sitter. Still, it was nice to smell pine trees and be by water.





But, jeez, do I ever miss Red Lodge and the Boulder!






On the somewhat creative side, I finally finished a baby present for my nephew's new baby, Xavier. He was born end of May--I was beginning to think that if I didn't finish it soon, I'd be sending it for his graduation! Of course the hard part is finding a box and card and actually putting it in the mail. Soon very, very soon.


It's a stuffed dog that turns into a blanket. I think he turned out pretty good. I hope Baby Xavier likes him.







Things to look forward to:

I'm so excited--I get to fly to Seattle for the weekend to visit the kids! It's a quick trip--Thursday nite to Sunday afternoon--but I'll take any time with them that I can get.

Then the next weekend, Labor Day weekend, I'm driving to Billings under the guise of taking care of the house, but really to visit friends and hopefully get in some much needed hiking. It seems hard to believe that it's been almost a year since I left there. Funny how time flies while it's sitting still.

Time's a Flyin

Another month bites the dust. And a busy month it's been. I just got back from the Air Force/Navy Librarians conference in Chicago. It was a good experience, although a bit overwhelming. I stayed in a 5 star hotel (a first for me). The downside was that I had a roommate. The upside was that it was an amazing room. The bathroom was as big as one of my bedrooms and, get this, had a tv at the foot of the tub.


Unfortunately, the tub was so big I couldn't lay down in it without slipping under.

We were on the 17th floor so had a pretty good view.I got out an about every day. Here I am with "the Bean." Not sure that's what it's called but that's what it looks like.

I also took an architectural cruise on the Chicago River. This is one of the views.

Note to the Librarians out there who haven't gone to ALA yet: plan three times as much time to get around as you think you might need. I had one day to do the exhibits and well, yes, I did get a bit of a late start--you know me--but then it took me an hour and a half to go 5 miles. shoulda just walked it... And then, halfway there I realized I forgot my exhibit pass. So, needless to say, I didn't get to see the exhibits. But I did get a taste of the craziness that is ALA. Look out D.C.--I'll be ready next year!

So, just to catch up on previous happenings, I found a labyrinth to walk in Boise. It was a nice solstice kind of thing to do.

I also went on an herb/nature walk with some folks.

Micaela (in green) is an herbalist; her husband Davis (on the uphill side) is my handyman and their daughter Johanna (number 8), along with some others.

We snacked on some wild currents and plan to return when the wild plums are ripe.

That's about it for life in Mountain Home.

Remodeling Continues...

It's time for a remodeling update. The kitchen is totally complete.

This includes the completed backsplash. It didn't turn out quite as good as I had hoped, but it's good enough. I keep telling myself that anything I do to this place is better than what it was. Plus, I feel like it is practice for my "dream house."

The next project that is in progress is the master bath. This will be the final major project (besides the family room, garage and yard...). I forgot to take a "before" picture so this is a "during" one. The tile in the tub enclosure is already in.

The walls have been textured and painted, a 100% improvement over the sand that was there before. Yep, you heard me--sand. It made great pumice--just rub your heels on the wall and it was like getting a pedicure (not that I tried it--euwww!).

Stay tuned for updates...

A Lotta Catchin' Up to Do

I've decided that blogging is a lot like exercise. It is so easy to get out of the habit!

It's been a bit busy at both work and home. But the best part has been family and friends. I was fortunate to spend a few days around Mother's Day in Seattle with the kids. I can't remember when I've enjoyed a vacation more. It was a perfect blend of relaxation, exercise, excellent food and drink, and, best of all, time with Andy, Brandon, and Alex. I came back feeling "full" (no I don't mean eating-wise altho I did feel I should be visiting Betty and Jenny to dry out and diet!) It was more a feeling of fulfilled, contented, delighted.

The weather was mostly beautiful,

The market was great as always,
The flower displays were gorgeous,And the flowers around the city were amazing (this picture does not do them justice!).We had fabulous food and good times:
A fun show at the Triple Door-The Righteous Mothers- what a hoot!
A wonderful salmon dinner for Mother's Day prepared by the Roos brothers!
And a thoroughly enjoyable dinner at the Needle.

On our way to the airport, Andy and I capped off my visit with a stop at a great chocolate shop and a walk on a labyrinth.
What a way to end such a delightful visit!

And then...

The following weekend, my great friends MaryLou, Shirley, and Jan came all the way to Mtn Home to visit. They got in on Friday night and left Monday morning. The visit was short but we packed a lot in! The farmers market and flea market in "downtown" Mountain Home was, well, it's hard to describe. But it was certainly much more fun with this crew than by myself! We also went to a wine tasting at Carmelo winery not far from here. Sunday was spent in Boise walking along the river and dinner on a patio overlooking the river.

I did take pictures but none of them turned out very good. In each picture, at least one person was in a less than flattering pose. So, in the interest of staying in good graces with my friends, I'm not posting any pictures. (but I've got some great blackmail material!)

Although the fact that summer is stretching out in front of me without friends or family to enjoy it with, I'm focusing on the good times I've had with family and friends this month. And thank heavens for telephones and internet--I'd go stark raving mad otherwise!

San Antonio

My last night in San Antonio after almost two weeks of AF librarian training. Two very long weeks. There were 12 of us from all over the world. Two were from bases in Turkey, one from Italy, and the rest state-side. This is where we went for training.

It wasn't all work and no play, however. We drove into the hill country where we were supposed to see fields and fields of wild flowers. No wild flowers, but we found a wild seed farm and a Japanese peace garden. It was really cold that day and wasn't quite what I was in the mood for, but the pictures turned out pretty good.
















The next day some of us went to downtown San Antonio and took in the River Walk. We took one of the guided river taxis and then just strolled around. It was a beautiful sunny day and quite pleasant.

We spent our final evening at the Cheesecake Factory, talking about how we're all ready to return home and get back to normal eating patterns! Yikes--I feel like I've gained 10 pounds!

Catch 22

I love working for the government! It offers an unending source of amusement (laughing my head off in slit-your-wrists frustration). Last week I was told I had $29,000 to spend--$14,000 of it on technology/furniture upgrades and $15,000 on books/resources. That's the good news. The bad news is that I had 10 days (8 business days even though the accounting office doesn't work on the weekends) to spend it or lose it. Shouldn't be too hard, right? Right...

Add to the "do" list the fact that I was trying to complete 6 months worth of training in less than 1 month before I go to San Antonio next week. I also lost a whole day trying to renew my base access privledges. I got those renewed the day they expired. Unfortunately, this time the access didn't include computer access. Which meant that I could get to my job location, but I couldn't really do my job. Add another day lost trying to renew computer access privledges. (And, no, I didn't wait til the last minute to do these necessary tasks. I started a month ago, but unfortunately, no one seemed to know just how I was supposed to accomplish the task.)

OK--the $15,000 for books and resources has to be spent in $3,000 chunks--$3,000 in Amazon, $3,000 in Barnes and Noble, $3,000 in Bound to Stay Bound, etc. Fortunately, I have some staff members who have been awesome, putting in long hours helping me spend money.

OK. So I have $14,000 to spend on upgrades. Shouldn't be a problem. More than half the money was going to buy switches and connectors. Oh, wait. Anything over $3,000 has to go on a Form 9, with three price quotes. Oh, and they have to be from government approved vendors. Oh, and if it's computers it has to go through the computer guy. Oh, but he's leaving today at 1:30p (aka 1330).

OK, here's a another good one. Other technology requests have to go through Com (which I assume is Communications or Computers or Commies or something). And, oh yeah, they have up to 30 days to approve your request. Hmmm... I have 10 days to buy this stuff or lose the money.

What's really funny is that this is pretty much the norm. I can't get approval for anything until I have the money to buy it. Once I have the money, I have typically a week to ten days to buy. Approval takes up to 30 days. I'm not sure how I'll ever get those connectors and switches.

Now I understand "Catch 22" (book by Joseph Heller). I always thought it was a spoof on the military. Now I know it was dead serious.

April Fools?? The joke is that this isn't a joke! But Happy April Fools Day anyway!