Monday, June 23, 2014
Pool volleyball season has started. I made a cornmeal-berry cake from Martha Stewart's magazine.
The guys.
Everyone brought along a lot of balls.
Cake.
After I baked it the dough rose up and covered most of the berries. It did not look anything like the picture in the magazine.
There were nine of us playing volleyball.
Everyone brought along a lot of balls.
Big balls.
It is good exercise jumping around in the pool.
Moi.
Nice to hang out with Richard and Roger.
Roger.
Richard and Patrick.
Wish some of you could come play.
Sunday, June 15, 2014
I went off to the Sweetwater Wetlands. At 1:00 PM and a 100 degrees, no one else was there. The first thing I saw were little fishes in the man-made stream. They probably ride into the wetlands as eggs on the feet of waterbirds.
Nice way to spend an hour.
Click on the picture to see larger version, you can see the fishes.
A lot of the water was covered with bright green stuff. There were not many ducks.
Delicious.
I sat down among the cattails.
Moi.
The most interesting birds were four cormorants.
Neotropic cormorants.
Black-necked stilt.
Juvenile cormorant.
Nice way to spend an hour.
Friday, June 13, 2014
2,227 miles. From 91,207 to 93,434.
I drove they trusty gray-green Ford Focus westward to Palm Springs on Thursday.
Afterward, we went downtown to Fremont and wandered amid the tourists.
Matt loved the sustainable concept house and gardens. I admired the interactive history exhibits.
James and Matt take a trip to the past.
Afterward, we went downtown and visited various casinos and saw some very sedate architecture and boring decorations.
This is rather bland, don't you think?
There is a giant Ferris wheel but it is way expensive. Plus I hate heights.
It is huge. And we were outside and it was way hot.
We had lunch at a nice restaurant but for some reason I don't remember what I ate [pizza and salad!]. We saw the water show at the Bellagio, which was well done. As we were walking back to the car, Mark texted us an invite to come play in the pool. Of course we said yes.
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On Tuesday morning while Matt breakfasted with an old friend, George and James made me a delicious breakfast. Then Matt and I headed west to California. But first we drove through west-central Nevada and saw several brothels on the way, out in the middle of nowhere. Who goes there?
A road trip is a good way to get to know someone. Matt and I shared stories and laughs. We agreed that we travel well together.
Matt.
I am happy.
Matt was creative with supper- crackers and spray cheese and fruit.
Dinner Adventure.
He played guitar as the sunset.
I awoke with a terrible stomach ache. I have been having digestive problems. The first bout started on Friday and concluded on Saturday. On Tuesday we had lunch at a historic hotel in a town whose name I forgot (grilled cheese and french fries) [Mizpah Hotel in Tonopah] or perhaps the crackers and cheese, caused the second bout of problems for the trip.
We drove through Yosemite and I tried to admire the views. Finally I asked Matt to pull over and proceeded to stumble over to the largest tree I have ever seen and promptly barfed behind it. The rest of the drive was alright, but let's just say I was glad there were plenty of rest stops available.
We arrived in Richmond and went to Matt's friend Steven's beautiful house, full of Buddhist, Native American, and African art. I promptly lay down and slept for two hours, completely out of it.
I drove they trusty gray-green Ford Focus westward to Palm Springs on Thursday.
Driving.
I arrived at Legrand's house and spent the afternoon hanging out with him in his beautiful pool. Unfortunately, the pictures I took of that afternoon did not turn out well (my camera is getting old).
The next morning was spent reading and being lazy until it was time to pick up Matt at the airport. We got home and climbed in the pool.
Homer and Matt.
When Legrand got home, he joined us.
With Legrand.
Miss LeiLei was very excited to have company. She really liked Matt.
LeiLei.
Legrand took us on a ride to see a place out in the desert.
LeiLei liked the ride.
On Sunday morning, after Legrand and Matt attended church, Matt and I drove to Las Vegas to stay with George and James. We went to a Mexican restaurant and had margaritas. Ted and Mark joined us, and it was so nice to meet them.
Yummmm.
Homer, George, and James.
The next morning, James served us Cocoa Puffs. I was excited because George fixed my phone, which had stopped working.
Coocoo for Cocoa Puffs.
I demanded we go to the Springs Preserve- a science, gardening, and history center.
I think this is Arizona Ash.
Matt loved the sustainable concept house and gardens. I admired the interactive history exhibits.
James and Matt take a trip to the past.
Afterward, we went downtown and visited various casinos and saw some very sedate architecture and boring decorations.
This is rather bland, don't you think?
There is a giant Ferris wheel but it is way expensive. Plus I hate heights.
We had lunch at a nice restaurant but for some reason I don't remember what I ate [pizza and salad!]. We saw the water show at the Bellagio, which was well done. As we were walking back to the car, Mark texted us an invite to come play in the pool. Of course we said yes.
Mark and Homer.
Warning, many pool photos ensue:
Matt and George.
Matt and Kylie.
Little wet dog whose name I forgot.
Homer and James.
George, Mark, James, Ted, and Matt. I told them something naughty to make them laugh.
NUDE GIRLS!
This trip was Matt's first experience with deserts. I think he was fascinated by it and by the human use of water in this environment. Lots of waste going on.
This area looked lush.
Laugh!
Matt hasn't been camping since he was a teenager. He was slightly apprehensive about camping out in the middle of nowhere, and my pointing out various places that were campable (basically, drive down a dirt road and pull over) made him even more nervous. Luckily, we found a nice spot in a campground in the Inyo National Forest, a few miles outside of Yosemite National Park.
Homer.
Matt was very excited to see snow. His snowball did not hit me.
Snow.
The water was icy cold, I saw a seagull grab a fish out of the water. The gurgling of water and the trees and it was just so pretty.
Matt was creative with supper- crackers and spray cheese and fruit.
He played guitar as the sunset.
Night arrives.
We climbed inside the tent. I need another sleeping pad. The thick blanket on the ground was not thick enough, I did not get much sleep. We watched Blue Jasmine in the tent, who knew you could watch a movie while camping?
Camera is malfunctioning.
This is what I look like when I am sick.
Yosemite. I will have to go back again and see what I missed.
The view out the living room window.
We took Rumi dog to the park to chase balls and I got to see the ocean close up, the first time since 2009.
Matt and Steven.
Steven made a beautiful supper for Matt and I and his roommate Kendon, and Matt did a good job helping out. I slept soundly that night, despite the continued digestive problems.
On Thursday morning we were up early, had a berry smoothie and a piece of toast, and then drove to the airport where I wished Matt goodbye. I drove back to San Francisco and visited with Jeff for a while, it was nice to catch up and see a long-time friend, before driving back to Palm Springs (10 hours!). I slept like a log and woke finally feeling normal again.
Palm Springs windmills.
5.5 hours to get back to Tucson, mostly at 80 miles per hour. It is 110 here and my house is hellishly hot. We put the window-mounted AC unit in and the cats are sitting in front of it. My adventure is done, and I miss Matt and Legrand and George and Jim and Ted and Mark and Steven and Jeff, but who knows, I'm sure I will be seeing them again sooner rather than later.
Sunday, June 01, 2014
The doctor told me to lose 20 pounds. Last Wednesday I helped Noah, who was in town, do some moving and we went to Eegees and I had a veggie grinder. The next day I started getting a stomach ache in the afternoon and on Friday it got worse and worse. I came home from work and went right to bed.
Leg cramps too. I weighed myself, 219 pounds. And at 3:30 AM everything started leaving my body. Oh.my.golly. In 24 hours I was going every 10 to 15 minutes. Threw up three times, twice out my nose it was so violent. So thirsty, but everything I drank just ran directly through.
This morning, at 8:30, I was down to 207 pounds. Who knew you could lose so much weight, so fast?
Joshua recommended getting some pedialyte and so at 5:00 AM I was driving around until I finally found a Walgreens that was open and bought two liters. The cashier was super bored and wanted to chat. I was afraid I was going to make a mess right there. At least that stuff seems to be working, I am no longer completely dehydrated.
Hopefully everything will be back to normal tomorrow.
Leg cramps too. I weighed myself, 219 pounds. And at 3:30 AM everything started leaving my body. Oh.my.golly. In 24 hours I was going every 10 to 15 minutes. Threw up three times, twice out my nose it was so violent. So thirsty, but everything I drank just ran directly through.
This morning, at 8:30, I was down to 207 pounds. Who knew you could lose so much weight, so fast?
Joshua recommended getting some pedialyte and so at 5:00 AM I was driving around until I finally found a Walgreens that was open and bought two liters. The cashier was super bored and wanted to chat. I was afraid I was going to make a mess right there. At least that stuff seems to be working, I am no longer completely dehydrated.
Hopefully everything will be back to normal tomorrow.
Tuesday, May 27, 2014
I'm still around. What have I been up to?
- discovered I have very high cholesterol. Have been put on a low carbohydrate, low fat diet. I am hungry all the time.
- went to three pool parties over the Memorial Day weekend. They were alright, saw some people I knew.
- have been working on my coroner's inquest book. Have decided I'll have to do two or three volumes, there are so many cases.
- going on a road trip to California next week. Looking forward to seeing LeGrand, Matt, James, and George.
- and busy finishing reports at work. What will I be doing next?
- discovered I have very high cholesterol. Have been put on a low carbohydrate, low fat diet. I am hungry all the time.
- went to three pool parties over the Memorial Day weekend. They were alright, saw some people I knew.
- have been working on my coroner's inquest book. Have decided I'll have to do two or three volumes, there are so many cases.
- going on a road trip to California next week. Looking forward to seeing LeGrand, Matt, James, and George.
- and busy finishing reports at work. What will I be doing next?
Wednesday, May 14, 2014
Ten years ago same sex marriage was legalized in Massachusetts. My friends Mark and Jim were the first gay couple I knew who were married. I remember just being surprised. When you grow up and lived through a time when gay people had no civil rights, could be fired from their jobs, arrested for having sex- it just seemed remarkable that my friends could get married.
In the years since, more and more states have legalized same sex marriage. As of this week, 12 federal courts in a row have ruled that the bans on same sex marriage are unconstitutional.
On Monday, my friends Erik and Robert were married in Arkansas. I am so happy for them. As of toward, 39 percent of American citizens live in states where same sex marriage is legal.
And every once in a while I visit the National Organization for Marriage's blog or their Facebook page. You would never know about all of the recent victories. The group lives in an alternate reality where when two Republican lawmakers in Indiana lose in a primary, that NOM is winning. This particular graphic is amazing.
In the years since, more and more states have legalized same sex marriage. As of this week, 12 federal courts in a row have ruled that the bans on same sex marriage are unconstitutional.
On Monday, my friends Erik and Robert were married in Arkansas. I am so happy for them. As of toward, 39 percent of American citizens live in states where same sex marriage is legal.
And every once in a while I visit the National Organization for Marriage's blog or their Facebook page. You would never know about all of the recent victories. The group lives in an alternate reality where when two Republican lawmakers in Indiana lose in a primary, that NOM is winning. This particular graphic is amazing.
Courtesy, National Organization for Marriage.
I suspect that Arizona will be one of the last to legalize, most likely when the Supreme Court gets around to ruling on the issue. Now I just need to find someone to marry.
Saturday, May 10, 2014
He is such a lovable dog. Likes his tummy rubs. Wants to lick my face.
Wish he wasn't so crazy about the cats. They can never be in the same place. But I've gotten good about that, and the cats don't sit at the window screaming at him like they used to.
Sunday, May 04, 2014
On Monday I went to the Trampled by Turtles concert at the Rialto. The opening band Spirit Family Reunion was great. TBT was awesome. Wish I could play banjo like Dave, the very handsome banjo player.
Trampled by Turtles.
The next day I had a sore throat, which I thought was concert-related. Caramia called me to go over to the fort, where a circular pit was found during final grading. It turned out to be an outhouse pit from the fort period (1873-1891) and contained a small, but interesting set of artifacts. We sampled a nearby trench that contained artifacts from about the same period.
On Wednesday my throat got increasingly sore. I left work early, feeling guilty. I spent most of Thursday and Friday in bed. Interesting to watch the symptoms developed, strengthen, fade away. I thought maybe on Saturday I would be back to normal, but spent most of the day with a fever, ranging from 98.1 to 99.5 degrees.
The only thing productive I have done is to get the ellyptical machine from Sears and with Doug's help, put it together. It is waiting for me to get better before I get on it and get rid of 20 pounds. Doug asked me if it was going to become another thing for me to hang clothes on. I said no.
Hopefully I will soon be able to fit into my cute shirts again.
Being sick and unable to concentrate on normal things means I end up thinking about other things. I discovered something I didn't want to know. I am trying to be mature but at the same time I can't help wondering how stupid I have been.
Trampled by Turtles.
The next day I had a sore throat, which I thought was concert-related. Caramia called me to go over to the fort, where a circular pit was found during final grading. It turned out to be an outhouse pit from the fort period (1873-1891) and contained a small, but interesting set of artifacts. We sampled a nearby trench that contained artifacts from about the same period.
Outhouse pit and starting on the trench.
The only thing productive I have done is to get the ellyptical machine from Sears and with Doug's help, put it together. It is waiting for me to get better before I get on it and get rid of 20 pounds. Doug asked me if it was going to become another thing for me to hang clothes on. I said no.
Being sick and unable to concentrate on normal things means I end up thinking about other things. I discovered something I didn't want to know. I am trying to be mature but at the same time I can't help wondering how stupid I have been.
