Making our way to Olinala was an adventure taking 2.5 - 3 hours. More mountains, up down, around. Our driver was careful to not have any head on collisions. Nice of him. Once here we easily found the Moon Travel book recommended Hotel Cindy. It is owned by an older man, Domingo. He and a bevy of young girls run the place. For some reason there have been lots of bug and critters in my life since we arrived here. I am hoping to leave them here when we leave in the morning. Last night we both wore ear plugs which protected our ears from earwigs and kept the noise level at a minimum especially at 5am this morning. Basically there were at least 3 earwigs on the bedside table last night. In the morning we came across a scorpion in our doorway. As soon as I opened the door and the light hit it, it went scurrying for the next doorway. Caroline got a quick photo though. Then, as we were descending the stairs, a giant grasshopper swooped just milimeters from my head. Later in the afternoon at lunch Caroline had to flick an earwig off my shoulder - that really freaked me out. Back in the room for a quick siesta, an earwig was having its way with my toothbrush. And finally (we can hope)in the tiny church yard I was buzzed by a giant bumble bee or something like it.
I don´t mind spiders, but these other things really bother me. I did find the scorpion fascinating. I have only ever seen a dead one and one in a cage at the Vivarium. I like to think of myself as pretty tough and not easily ruffled. I become a blathering idiot when it comes to these things.
Other than bugs and creepy crawlies, Olinala has been absolutely beautiful. The people here are incredibly friendly (including the missionary who tried to lure us into watching a movie about Jesus they were playing on the wall in the place next door to our hotel). The girls who run our hotel and make food are very sweet and have fun talking with us about random things like bugs. Everyone on the street has been very nice. We have both received lots of stares as if people have never seen two gringas in their town. It is probably true they have never seen a woman as tall as Caroline. Kids are particularly impressed by her and will stare as we walk by and then turn so they can keep watching! We have met lots of sweet dogs and even a few cats. Tonight we even found some pigs, burros, cows/bulls, and giant turkeys and chickens. Speaking of which, the animals here appear to be VERY well fed compared to other places in Mexico I have been. It makes me happy to see.
Finding food for Caroline has been an interesting task and somewhat humurous. We ask for a torta with queso Oaxaqueno (somewhat like mozzarella) and they go to the store, come back and tell us there is only Bimbo (bread in a bag) no rolls. We settle for tortillas. Then she shows us the cheese she has, something much different than the one we requested. But they try very hard. And in the end we ate like queens: handmade tortillas, refried beans, tomatoes, avocados, onion, and salty fresh cheese. That was after a giant plate of papaya, pineapple, and oranges with fresh honey. Wow. I believe it will be a bit easier to find fish and other edible items for Caroline in Acapulco.
The craft stores have been exactly what I expected. Beautiful works of art stacked up one on top of another. Francisco (Don Chilo)Coronel is definitely the most talented and his prices are reflective of the quality. He even had silver and gold leafed boxes, then painted with the traditional flowers which were gorgeous. There are a handful of shops around town. I think we hit all of them. I will take photos to post at some point. I got a decent variety of the available designs, but somewhat regret not sucking it up and spending the money on a silver or gold one from Don Chilo´s.
Tomorrow we are off to Acapulco. It is going to be a very long day, starting at about 6:15am, catching a combi (van) back to Chilapa and from there, getting back to Chilpancino and then Acapulco or possibly straight through from Chilapa to Acapulco depending on what is available and how uncomfortable it will be.
Mas tarde.
Mexican Sunset
Friday, October 31, 2008
Thursday, October 30, 2008
Travels to Chilapa
Caroline and I left on the plane at about midnight on Tuesday night. We arrived in Mexico City at 6am. Our flight to Acapulco wasn´t leaving until almost 10am so we had quite a bit of time to wander around and get some exercise.
I hear a horse walking down the street outside.
They actually have a Starbucks, Subway, MacDonalds, and Burger King in the airport domestic terminal. We splurged on $4 lattes. And slept, and ate a delicious torta (Mexican sandwich), and sat around people watching. We finally boarded the plane for Acapulco 4 hours later. It was an hour flight over beautiful mountains and past two snow capped volcanos. We arrived just as I was getting a little shut eye.
As soon as we touched down and the cabin door was open, you could instantly feel the hot muggy air. I couldn´t get my sweatshirt off soon enough.
A cab to the bus station was $25. When we arrived there, they told us the first bus for Chilpancingo (our first stop) was going to be at 1pm, in two hours. So, we hopped another taxi for $15 to the central bus station. Acapulco was teaming with activity and almost bumper to bumper traffic. Lining the beaches and the main streets are huge high rise hotels mixed in with smaller, ocean side restaurants and clubs. I was happy to be driving through and not stopping. I need to brace myself for that mess.
We arrived just in time for the 12:30pm bus to Chilpancingo with front row seats. Perfect for Caroline with her very long legs! The cuota - toll road - goes from Acapulco all the way to Mexico City actually. We were only going about an hour to Chilpancingo, however.
Chilpancingo is a fairly large city with a university and lots of businesses. It is also the capital of the state of Guerrero. We wanted to take a bus to Chilapa, a small town on the way to Olinala, but the next bus wasn´t leaving until 6pm. Obviously that was much too late. The bus station attendant directed us up the street to find a combi - a van - going to Chilapa. Sure enough, when we reached the aformentioned street, there were thousands of combis all going to various locations. We didn´t see any going to Chilapa. I was feeling very conspicuous with my long red hair, very tall friend, backpacks and rolly suitcases. There were men everywhere staring at us. I asked a couple of people about combis to Chilapa, but was unsuccessful. I am not sure if I didn´t understand, or was just getting too overwhelmed. It was loud, tons of cars, lots of people, men staring at us and I decided the best thing to do would be to find a taxi. So, we got one and he wanted $40! I talked another one down to $35. Actually that is a deal! It was about an hour and a half drive on a narrow winding road into and through the mountains.
The ride was gorgeous. The landscape is very green and lush. The terrain is mountainous, but not at a very high altitude. I think Chilapa is at about 4000 feet. When we arrived, the town was bustling, lots of activity particularly near the market on the main road into town. The hotel we had picked out was very easy to find, just off the main street and up a block or two.
The hotel room was very basic, but very clean. Two very hard double beds, an overhead light, a TV, and a shower in the bathroom. Hot water too. All for $25. That is $12.50 each! After getting settled in we headed out for some comida (food) and found a great restaurant a few blocks away, near the zocalo (town center). The restaurant was in a giant open building with brick walls, wooden beams and beautful wood and clay masks all over the walls. We both had cheese enchiladas served with cream and something like parmesan on top, black beans and salsa on the side with fresh tortillas. Excellent.
After a stroll around town, into the iglesia (church) and up the hill to see the vista, we were ready to chill in the zocalo. Everyone in the town comes out to sit in the square, eat popsicles of fresh fruit, sweet pancakes with fruit sauce, fresh potato chips, and corn on the cob with mayonaise and hot sauce. Caroline and I feasted on strawberry popsicles, mine chocolate covered, nut dipped.
On the way home we met two very cute, very attentive chiuauas. Their people, in one of the many shops were happy to share them with us. Such sweet boys! It really made me miss Ruby (and Charlie too)!
At 8:30pm we crawled into bed and fell asleep reading about our next adventure.
I hear a horse walking down the street outside.
They actually have a Starbucks, Subway, MacDonalds, and Burger King in the airport domestic terminal. We splurged on $4 lattes. And slept, and ate a delicious torta (Mexican sandwich), and sat around people watching. We finally boarded the plane for Acapulco 4 hours later. It was an hour flight over beautiful mountains and past two snow capped volcanos. We arrived just as I was getting a little shut eye.
As soon as we touched down and the cabin door was open, you could instantly feel the hot muggy air. I couldn´t get my sweatshirt off soon enough.
A cab to the bus station was $25. When we arrived there, they told us the first bus for Chilpancingo (our first stop) was going to be at 1pm, in two hours. So, we hopped another taxi for $15 to the central bus station. Acapulco was teaming with activity and almost bumper to bumper traffic. Lining the beaches and the main streets are huge high rise hotels mixed in with smaller, ocean side restaurants and clubs. I was happy to be driving through and not stopping. I need to brace myself for that mess.
We arrived just in time for the 12:30pm bus to Chilpancingo with front row seats. Perfect for Caroline with her very long legs! The cuota - toll road - goes from Acapulco all the way to Mexico City actually. We were only going about an hour to Chilpancingo, however.
Chilpancingo is a fairly large city with a university and lots of businesses. It is also the capital of the state of Guerrero. We wanted to take a bus to Chilapa, a small town on the way to Olinala, but the next bus wasn´t leaving until 6pm. Obviously that was much too late. The bus station attendant directed us up the street to find a combi - a van - going to Chilapa. Sure enough, when we reached the aformentioned street, there were thousands of combis all going to various locations. We didn´t see any going to Chilapa. I was feeling very conspicuous with my long red hair, very tall friend, backpacks and rolly suitcases. There were men everywhere staring at us. I asked a couple of people about combis to Chilapa, but was unsuccessful. I am not sure if I didn´t understand, or was just getting too overwhelmed. It was loud, tons of cars, lots of people, men staring at us and I decided the best thing to do would be to find a taxi. So, we got one and he wanted $40! I talked another one down to $35. Actually that is a deal! It was about an hour and a half drive on a narrow winding road into and through the mountains.
The ride was gorgeous. The landscape is very green and lush. The terrain is mountainous, but not at a very high altitude. I think Chilapa is at about 4000 feet. When we arrived, the town was bustling, lots of activity particularly near the market on the main road into town. The hotel we had picked out was very easy to find, just off the main street and up a block or two.
The hotel room was very basic, but very clean. Two very hard double beds, an overhead light, a TV, and a shower in the bathroom. Hot water too. All for $25. That is $12.50 each! After getting settled in we headed out for some comida (food) and found a great restaurant a few blocks away, near the zocalo (town center). The restaurant was in a giant open building with brick walls, wooden beams and beautful wood and clay masks all over the walls. We both had cheese enchiladas served with cream and something like parmesan on top, black beans and salsa on the side with fresh tortillas. Excellent.
After a stroll around town, into the iglesia (church) and up the hill to see the vista, we were ready to chill in the zocalo. Everyone in the town comes out to sit in the square, eat popsicles of fresh fruit, sweet pancakes with fruit sauce, fresh potato chips, and corn on the cob with mayonaise and hot sauce. Caroline and I feasted on strawberry popsicles, mine chocolate covered, nut dipped.
On the way home we met two very cute, very attentive chiuauas. Their people, in one of the many shops were happy to share them with us. Such sweet boys! It really made me miss Ruby (and Charlie too)!
At 8:30pm we crawled into bed and fell asleep reading about our next adventure.
Monday, October 27, 2008
Mexico!
I leave for Mexico with my friend Caroline tomorrow night! I am super excited to show her my favorite place in the world. She has never been there, but has a true traveler's spirit. I think she will love it! Stay tuned!
Tuesday, September 09, 2008
Pacific Northwest Tour
I am planning to post a bit about my trip up north. I had a fabulous time. It was awesome to see some great friends and meet some new ones too. Ruby and I recovered and enjoyed a week at home chillin'. Back to work now... my first day in my new position went really well. And, I am looking forward to my second day.
Wednesday, August 13, 2008
I am leaving my unit...
Yesterday my unit and I went to lunch at the Dead Fish in Crockett. It was a goodbye lunch because I am moving to supervise a new unit. I have been in the unit almost 8 years! 4 as a Child Welfare Worker and 3.5 as a supervisor. It is time for a change, but it isn't easy to leave. For the first time since I have been supervising the unit, I feel like we are really bonded and cohesive. We also have the best assistant/clerk in the entire agency!
Anyway, it was a bittersweet celebration. We had wonderful seafood (I had a delicious crab louis and fried calamari for appetizer) and carrot cake for dessert. The Dead Fish is in a beautiful location right next to the Carquinas Bridge and with a 180 degree vista of the water. It was really warm on the patio outside, but it was worth the view. They gave me a lovely card and a couple of very appropriate gift certificates. One for my favorite Ethiopian restaurant and the other for a pedicure. They are the sweetest and I will really miss them all.
Happily, I know they will be in good hands when I am gone. We finally found out who is going to take over the K230 Unit.
When I return from vacation on 9/8/08, I will be reporting to what I lovingly refer to as "the haunted building." St. Joseph's Hospital is located on 26th and International Blvd. in Oakland. It is really close to the Fruitvale neighborhood and therefore LOTS of Mexican food! In a month or so we will be moving into Eastmont Mall. How fun! I actually don't think it will be bad and it makes a lot of sense for our clients.
Oh, yes, our clients... I will be supervising the Independent Living Skills Unit. Mostly what this means is that I will have a lot more interaction with the clients who are all teenagers. 15.5 - 19 and then the emancipated kids up to 25. I will also be intimately involved in developing different programs for our teens, as well as various programs that have already been developed, such as the various independent living classes, youth adult partnerships, contracts with outside agencies that serve the youth both before and after emancipation, and a growing movement toward finding permanent connections for the kids/adults who are emancipating into the big wide world. It is a very exciting move for me at a pivotal point in the history of the Agency and ILSP. There are many inspired changes afoot in the program that I will be a part of.
Furthermore, I am totally thrilled that my former first supervisor when I arrived at the Agency, then co-worker, will once again be my supervisor! Sonya was promoted to Program Manager over the ILSP and Group Homes Section. I am really really excited to get started!!
Until then,,,
Anyway, it was a bittersweet celebration. We had wonderful seafood (I had a delicious crab louis and fried calamari for appetizer) and carrot cake for dessert. The Dead Fish is in a beautiful location right next to the Carquinas Bridge and with a 180 degree vista of the water. It was really warm on the patio outside, but it was worth the view. They gave me a lovely card and a couple of very appropriate gift certificates. One for my favorite Ethiopian restaurant and the other for a pedicure. They are the sweetest and I will really miss them all.
Happily, I know they will be in good hands when I am gone. We finally found out who is going to take over the K230 Unit.
When I return from vacation on 9/8/08, I will be reporting to what I lovingly refer to as "the haunted building." St. Joseph's Hospital is located on 26th and International Blvd. in Oakland. It is really close to the Fruitvale neighborhood and therefore LOTS of Mexican food! In a month or so we will be moving into Eastmont Mall. How fun! I actually don't think it will be bad and it makes a lot of sense for our clients.
Oh, yes, our clients... I will be supervising the Independent Living Skills Unit. Mostly what this means is that I will have a lot more interaction with the clients who are all teenagers. 15.5 - 19 and then the emancipated kids up to 25. I will also be intimately involved in developing different programs for our teens, as well as various programs that have already been developed, such as the various independent living classes, youth adult partnerships, contracts with outside agencies that serve the youth both before and after emancipation, and a growing movement toward finding permanent connections for the kids/adults who are emancipating into the big wide world. It is a very exciting move for me at a pivotal point in the history of the Agency and ILSP. There are many inspired changes afoot in the program that I will be a part of.
Furthermore, I am totally thrilled that my former first supervisor when I arrived at the Agency, then co-worker, will once again be my supervisor! Sonya was promoted to Program Manager over the ILSP and Group Homes Section. I am really really excited to get started!!
Until then,,,
Saturday, August 02, 2008
Training
I have started training again. I have a triathlon Sunday September 28 - The Mermaid in Santa Cruz, and the Nike Women's 1/2 Marathon in October. I started a training group which has been pretty successful. I can usually find at least one person to train with most days which truly keeps me motivated. First of all, I am accountable to more than just myself and second, I am more likely to get out there when I have someone else to go with. We have been all over too, which is nice. I go to Danville on Sunday mornings at 8m generally. Then on Wednesdays we have been to Inspiration Point/Nimitz Trail, Lake Merritt, Lake Chabot, San Ramon, and today I was at Cesar Chavez. My running has improved significantly. I am actually looking forward to it some of the time. This is a huge improvement. I am going to start putting in the biking and swimming next week. And I really need to make my runs a bit longer as well. September will be here before I know it.
Angel's Camp Triathlon was killer and really kicked my ass. I almost passed out on the run. I was completely dehydrated due to the heat and obviously not having enough water. It was quite an ego crusher, because I have usually done pretty well. It was also much longer than most of the sprints I have done, so I expected it to take lots less time than it actually did. I want to be in better condition for the next one!
Angel's Camp Triathlon was killer and really kicked my ass. I almost passed out on the run. I was completely dehydrated due to the heat and obviously not having enough water. It was quite an ego crusher, because I have usually done pretty well. It was also much longer than most of the sprints I have done, so I expected it to take lots less time than it actually did. I want to be in better condition for the next one!
Monday, June 09, 2008
East Coast Visit
I have been back from the East Coast for over a week now. It was a fabulous vacation! Rest and relaxation were the name of the game. Success! Thanks to the Yellow VW Bug (Sunflower Power) I was able to see lots of friends and some of my family. I visited with my Auntie Louise who is my last surviving great aunt. She is the sister of my father's mother and she was my father's God Mother. They came from a family of 13 kids (3 of whom died in childhood) and now she is the last one. I can only imagine how lonely that would feel. She has a great sense of humor and a positive outlook on her life. Last November, just before Thanksgiving she passed out and fell, breaking her shoulder. She was found by my cousin Lauren who was over to take her to dinner. Thank goodness they had dinner plans, or who knows how long she would have been trapped in her house. As it was, the fire department had to break in to get to her. She immediately went to the hospital and had surgery to fix the shoulder. Apparently she almost didn't make it through the anesthesia. But she was strong and came through. For many months she was living in a rehabilitation center, but eventually she was able to move into basic assisted living, where she lives now. It is a relatively nice place and just a block from her house. Auntie seems to be doing relatively well. She walks around with a walker, is able to get out and go places with some assistance, and has a bright spirit. She has a birthday on 6/20 and will be 82 years old! She told me that she doesn't mind telling people how old she is now. It is more a badge of honor than something to be embarrassed about!
Susan, Adam, Lily, Zoe, Fabian and his clan, Saul, Carolyn, and Maya with one on the way, Josh and Jane, James and Lucy, and Barbara. I missed Ben and wish that I had seen him too.
Showed Tricia and Roger around Boston a little. Took the T to the North End, ate pizza at Regina's and cannoli at Modern Bakery.
Susan, Adam, Lily, Zoe, Fabian and his clan, Saul, Carolyn, and Maya with one on the way, Josh and Jane, James and Lucy, and Barbara. I missed Ben and wish that I had seen him too.
Showed Tricia and Roger around Boston a little. Took the T to the North End, ate pizza at Regina's and cannoli at Modern Bakery.
Friday, May 09, 2008
Angels Camp Triathlon!! It's here!
Tomorrow is my triathlon at Angels Camp. I am getting really excited.
Wish me luck!
Wish me luck!
Sunday, April 27, 2008
Zachary
This is the story of Zachary. He found me, as most cats do, in Seattle in October of 1992. Scott and I had just moved into an apartment on Pine, a really busy street, near downtown. We didn't have our phone hooked up to the door yet and we were having a friend over for dinner. I went down to the lobby to wait for our friend to arrive. While I was waiting, a man came to the door with a beautiful, fluffy gray cat with clear, wise, green eyes.
He told me he had found the cat outside wandering around, trying to get out of the rain. I said the cat might be my neighbors' cat and took him into my arms. He was very sweet and very happy to be in my arms. He had no tags and no collar.
I took the cat to the neighbors' house and they laughed. Their girl kitty looked nothing like the gray kitty I was holding. I immediately took him home and told Scott we might have a new kitty joining us. We made a poster and plastered the neighborhood with them. We never received one call. He adopted us easily. We were good suckers for it.
My kitty Jazmine was still in California when we found Zachary. When she arrived in Seattle she was NOT happy to meet Zachary. She was really angry about the whole thing. Eventually she got used to him and even grew to love him fairly quickly.
Zachary was a one man show. He loved feather toys and anything he could wrestle to the ground and kill. He could jump two to three feet in the air. We both played with him for hours at a time. While we were living in the apartment on Pine Street, we lived on the top floor of a converted warehouse. It was pretty fancy and the top units each had an outdoor patio big enough for a chair or two and some plants. All of them were connected, with low barriers. Zachary taught Jazmine to go from patio to patio. I believe he even made a habit of visiting people in their apartments. Not much changed over the years!
We did some kitty research and found a photo of a Norwegian Forrest Cat. It was an exact replica of Zachary. Norwegian Forrest Cats are known for their love of people, being really smart, needing companionship and playmates, having large paws and continuing to grow up to 4 years old. That was Zachary, although I don't think he ever got over 15lbs. (I have a friend with a 30lb Maine Coon cat! Prince Willie)
Scott and I moved to a duplex in the Fremont District of Seattle after living in Seattle for a little under a year. Zachary loved our new digs. He was allowed to be outside for the first time since his escape (or his exile?) from his first family. There is nothing he loved more than to roam the neighborhood. He made friends everywhere he went. There were a number of occasions that he would wander off and stay away for two or three days. I would always find him walking down the street as if he was just on his way home.
When Scott and I broke up, I got custody of Jazmine and Zachary. There was no question in my mind about who should have custody of Zachary, but apparently, Scott loved him as much as I did and seemed to be really sad about having to leave him with me. It was this way in which Zachary really made an impression on people.
About a year or so later Zachary became an only child. Jazmine was hit by a car during the day when I was at work. It was one of the most painful things I have ever experienced. Her spine had been broken and she was paralyzed from her shoulders down. The only thing I could do was have her put out of her misery. God that was awful. She was my own very first kitty. It seemed that Zach missed her, but how can you really tell?
I eventually had a roommate. May had a 19 year old cat, Prince. He and Zachary got along great. I always hoped Zachary would live that long or longer.
There were only two cats Zachary was ever afraid of. One was "Gimpy" aka Bazil. He lived with the girl next door. He had a bad front paw (and he was mean) so we called him Gimpy. Apparently the trauma to his paw really affected his personality. There are very few cats I would call "mean" but he was definitely one of them. He would pace back and forth outside my place, looking in the windows to catch a glimpse of Zachary. If any windows were open Gimpy would happily come in and chase Zachary around our house! It got ugly a few times. I am sure they both lost fur and skin more than once. Gimpy's mom tried to keep him in as much as possible, but sometimes wasn't successful.
Zachary and I left Seattle for Berkeley in 1997. We moved in with my parents and their cats, Trouble and Pandora. He took to Trouble fairly easily. Pandora didn't really have anything to do with him. She is another story altogether.
After about a year and a half Zachary and I moved out of the parents' house and into an apartment in Oakland with my cousin Dylan.
Shortly after, Dylan picked out a kitty for himself at the SPCA in San Francisco.
This was only one of the many kittens Zachary had to accept into his life. He did it with absolute grace. He got along very well with other cats most of the time.
He continued to run away occasionally. He made friends everywhere he went. And he loved a party. Most cats will run and hide when there are lots of people around. Zachary, however, was quite the party animal. He would spend time mingling and sitting on laps whenever there was one to sit on.
Zachary enjoyed all the finer things in life, many of them things I enjoy myself... he was a man after my own heart. He liked to sleep in till all hours of the day, he regularly ate tortilla chips, bread, and he LOVED butter, preferably right off the stick in the dish on the counter.
It was during this time that we had to start shaving him. While in Seattle I had him groomed once at the vet. I think they gave him some drugs to accomplish it. When we were at my parents' house I took him to a groomer who said they could groom any cat. They were confident it wouldn't be a problem. When we picked him up he was mostly shaved, but not completely and the women said they would never have him back because he was so vicious. He really hated being shaved.
At our apartment on Benvenue my mom, Dylan and I all got together to shave him. We were using a people shaver and it wasn't working very well at all. All of his fur was getting caught in it and clogging it up. At that point my mom grabs her bag and pulls out a pair of MONSTER clippers! These things were seriously on steroids. About two or three times the size of normal clippers. They certainly did the job. Very quickly too. After clipping him we called him the "Lamb Lion."
The second really mean kitty Zachary encountered showed up when Dylan, Dawn, Wendell and I lived in the big house on Benvenue. The cat was another white cat. He would come into the house in the middle of the night and terrorized Zachary and Tom. Neither Zach nor Tom were easily intimidated, but there is something about being woken up in your own house by some terrorizing freak of a cat. I think we called him "Paycho kitty." When we went to tell it's owner she couldn't believe that her sweet, loving cat was literally going after our cats. I think she finally put him on some prozac and she kept him in the house at night. he stopped coming around.
Zachary and I moved back in with my parents at the end of 2001. We were back home. Although I bought a house in Oakland and moved out of my parents house in July 2002, Zachary stayed with his grandparents. My house was in a pretty bad neighborhood. My mom wasn't happy about me moving there, I guess she felt she had to draw the line with her grandkitty. She was worried he might get eaten by a pit bull or something.
During his years with my parents, Zachary was very well taken care of. He had the run of the house and kept all the other animals (Pandora, Trouble, Pancake, Inky, and Finnegan) in line and where he wanted them. For example, Inky was not allowed on the bed with Zachary until recently.
When he was out in the neighborhood he also reined supreme. My step-dad, Mark received a telephone call and the person asked if he belonged to Zachary. Once ownership had been established the guy said that Zachary was sitting on the dining room table as if he owned the place. Mark said, "Yep, that's Zachary. Can I come get him?" And the neighbor said it was fine and he actually liked Zach and he could stay as long as he wanted.
Zach also taunted the neighbor's dog by sitting up on the fence just out of reach of the dog, until the dog was frothing at the mouth. That particular dog almost got Zach in the front yard when he was off guard.
At one point a year or so ago, Zachary was staying out all night. Unlike my cats, Zachary had to be home for dinner and in for the rest of the night. But he had found a home down the street where the owner was feeding feral cats. Zach, being opportunistic would wait around for the food and scarf it down. There was no reason for him to come home!
One day Zach was outside with Mark. Zachary had recently been shaved and looked like his little lamblion self. Someone walked by and asked if he was some special breed.
In the last year, Zachary had been getting really skinny. Last May he had a tumor on his back left leg. The tumor had not metastasized, but his leg needed to be amputated. He became a tri-pod kitty and actually adjusted to having only 3 legs rather quickly. What he didn't get used to was being home-bound. Due to his compromised ability to run, he was no longer allowed to leave the house. He did get away a few times, and was thrilled to run around the neighborhood while my Mom was in a complete panic.
The last days of Zachary's life he spent curled up in a ball under various tables and in a box of bedding in the basement. He didn't eat much and when he did he wasn't able to keep it down. An ultrasound showed a cancerous tumor in his intestine. There was no way to remove it and it was only a matter of time before it would kill him. Rather than waiting for certain death, my Mom, Mark and I decided to have him put to sleep in the most humane way we could. We were able to locate a vet who does house calls only for euthanasia of animals.
I arrived at my parents before the vet came to the house so I would have some time to spend with Zachary. I retrieved him from his bed in the basement. I decided I would take him outside to enjoy some fresh air since it had been more than a year since he was allowed to go outside. We sat on the back deck taking in the sun and breeze. At first he tried to get away from me, but eventually was convinced I wasn't going to let him go. After about 5 minutes, I went to the front yard and sat on the stoop of my parents' house. He got calm more quickly this time, settling in to being held and petted. Zachary had big, soft paws. I stroked them and thought about having one on a key chain like we used to have lucky rabbit's feet. Remember those? Zachary would have left a beautiful lucky cat foot!
The euthanasia process was relatively quick and mostly painless. My Mom, Mark and I all sat on the love seat in the living room. Zachary was on my Mom's lap; Mark and I on either side. Zachary was looking at me to the last minute. His eyes ever green, clear, all seeing, seemingly all knowing. Just like they were when he found me.
He was loved by all who met him. The king of cats. He will live on in our hearts.
He told me he had found the cat outside wandering around, trying to get out of the rain. I said the cat might be my neighbors' cat and took him into my arms. He was very sweet and very happy to be in my arms. He had no tags and no collar.
I took the cat to the neighbors' house and they laughed. Their girl kitty looked nothing like the gray kitty I was holding. I immediately took him home and told Scott we might have a new kitty joining us. We made a poster and plastered the neighborhood with them. We never received one call. He adopted us easily. We were good suckers for it.
My kitty Jazmine was still in California when we found Zachary. When she arrived in Seattle she was NOT happy to meet Zachary. She was really angry about the whole thing. Eventually she got used to him and even grew to love him fairly quickly.
Zachary was a one man show. He loved feather toys and anything he could wrestle to the ground and kill. He could jump two to three feet in the air. We both played with him for hours at a time. While we were living in the apartment on Pine Street, we lived on the top floor of a converted warehouse. It was pretty fancy and the top units each had an outdoor patio big enough for a chair or two and some plants. All of them were connected, with low barriers. Zachary taught Jazmine to go from patio to patio. I believe he even made a habit of visiting people in their apartments. Not much changed over the years!
We did some kitty research and found a photo of a Norwegian Forrest Cat. It was an exact replica of Zachary. Norwegian Forrest Cats are known for their love of people, being really smart, needing companionship and playmates, having large paws and continuing to grow up to 4 years old. That was Zachary, although I don't think he ever got over 15lbs. (I have a friend with a 30lb Maine Coon cat! Prince Willie)
Scott and I moved to a duplex in the Fremont District of Seattle after living in Seattle for a little under a year. Zachary loved our new digs. He was allowed to be outside for the first time since his escape (or his exile?) from his first family. There is nothing he loved more than to roam the neighborhood. He made friends everywhere he went. There were a number of occasions that he would wander off and stay away for two or three days. I would always find him walking down the street as if he was just on his way home.
When Scott and I broke up, I got custody of Jazmine and Zachary. There was no question in my mind about who should have custody of Zachary, but apparently, Scott loved him as much as I did and seemed to be really sad about having to leave him with me. It was this way in which Zachary really made an impression on people.
About a year or so later Zachary became an only child. Jazmine was hit by a car during the day when I was at work. It was one of the most painful things I have ever experienced. Her spine had been broken and she was paralyzed from her shoulders down. The only thing I could do was have her put out of her misery. God that was awful. She was my own very first kitty. It seemed that Zach missed her, but how can you really tell?
I eventually had a roommate. May had a 19 year old cat, Prince. He and Zachary got along great. I always hoped Zachary would live that long or longer.
There were only two cats Zachary was ever afraid of. One was "Gimpy" aka Bazil. He lived with the girl next door. He had a bad front paw (and he was mean) so we called him Gimpy. Apparently the trauma to his paw really affected his personality. There are very few cats I would call "mean" but he was definitely one of them. He would pace back and forth outside my place, looking in the windows to catch a glimpse of Zachary. If any windows were open Gimpy would happily come in and chase Zachary around our house! It got ugly a few times. I am sure they both lost fur and skin more than once. Gimpy's mom tried to keep him in as much as possible, but sometimes wasn't successful.
Zachary and I left Seattle for Berkeley in 1997. We moved in with my parents and their cats, Trouble and Pandora. He took to Trouble fairly easily. Pandora didn't really have anything to do with him. She is another story altogether.
After about a year and a half Zachary and I moved out of the parents' house and into an apartment in Oakland with my cousin Dylan.
Shortly after, Dylan picked out a kitty for himself at the SPCA in San Francisco.
This was only one of the many kittens Zachary had to accept into his life. He did it with absolute grace. He got along very well with other cats most of the time.
He continued to run away occasionally. He made friends everywhere he went. And he loved a party. Most cats will run and hide when there are lots of people around. Zachary, however, was quite the party animal. He would spend time mingling and sitting on laps whenever there was one to sit on.
Zachary enjoyed all the finer things in life, many of them things I enjoy myself... he was a man after my own heart. He liked to sleep in till all hours of the day, he regularly ate tortilla chips, bread, and he LOVED butter, preferably right off the stick in the dish on the counter.
It was during this time that we had to start shaving him. While in Seattle I had him groomed once at the vet. I think they gave him some drugs to accomplish it. When we were at my parents' house I took him to a groomer who said they could groom any cat. They were confident it wouldn't be a problem. When we picked him up he was mostly shaved, but not completely and the women said they would never have him back because he was so vicious. He really hated being shaved.
At our apartment on Benvenue my mom, Dylan and I all got together to shave him. We were using a people shaver and it wasn't working very well at all. All of his fur was getting caught in it and clogging it up. At that point my mom grabs her bag and pulls out a pair of MONSTER clippers! These things were seriously on steroids. About two or three times the size of normal clippers. They certainly did the job. Very quickly too. After clipping him we called him the "Lamb Lion."
The second really mean kitty Zachary encountered showed up when Dylan, Dawn, Wendell and I lived in the big house on Benvenue. The cat was another white cat. He would come into the house in the middle of the night and terrorized Zachary and Tom. Neither Zach nor Tom were easily intimidated, but there is something about being woken up in your own house by some terrorizing freak of a cat. I think we called him "Paycho kitty." When we went to tell it's owner she couldn't believe that her sweet, loving cat was literally going after our cats. I think she finally put him on some prozac and she kept him in the house at night. he stopped coming around.
Zachary and I moved back in with my parents at the end of 2001. We were back home. Although I bought a house in Oakland and moved out of my parents house in July 2002, Zachary stayed with his grandparents. My house was in a pretty bad neighborhood. My mom wasn't happy about me moving there, I guess she felt she had to draw the line with her grandkitty. She was worried he might get eaten by a pit bull or something.
During his years with my parents, Zachary was very well taken care of. He had the run of the house and kept all the other animals (Pandora, Trouble, Pancake, Inky, and Finnegan) in line and where he wanted them. For example, Inky was not allowed on the bed with Zachary until recently.
When he was out in the neighborhood he also reined supreme. My step-dad, Mark received a telephone call and the person asked if he belonged to Zachary. Once ownership had been established the guy said that Zachary was sitting on the dining room table as if he owned the place. Mark said, "Yep, that's Zachary. Can I come get him?" And the neighbor said it was fine and he actually liked Zach and he could stay as long as he wanted.
Zach also taunted the neighbor's dog by sitting up on the fence just out of reach of the dog, until the dog was frothing at the mouth. That particular dog almost got Zach in the front yard when he was off guard.
At one point a year or so ago, Zachary was staying out all night. Unlike my cats, Zachary had to be home for dinner and in for the rest of the night. But he had found a home down the street where the owner was feeding feral cats. Zach, being opportunistic would wait around for the food and scarf it down. There was no reason for him to come home!
One day Zach was outside with Mark. Zachary had recently been shaved and looked like his little lamblion self. Someone walked by and asked if he was some special breed.
In the last year, Zachary had been getting really skinny. Last May he had a tumor on his back left leg. The tumor had not metastasized, but his leg needed to be amputated. He became a tri-pod kitty and actually adjusted to having only 3 legs rather quickly. What he didn't get used to was being home-bound. Due to his compromised ability to run, he was no longer allowed to leave the house. He did get away a few times, and was thrilled to run around the neighborhood while my Mom was in a complete panic.
The last days of Zachary's life he spent curled up in a ball under various tables and in a box of bedding in the basement. He didn't eat much and when he did he wasn't able to keep it down. An ultrasound showed a cancerous tumor in his intestine. There was no way to remove it and it was only a matter of time before it would kill him. Rather than waiting for certain death, my Mom, Mark and I decided to have him put to sleep in the most humane way we could. We were able to locate a vet who does house calls only for euthanasia of animals.
I arrived at my parents before the vet came to the house so I would have some time to spend with Zachary. I retrieved him from his bed in the basement. I decided I would take him outside to enjoy some fresh air since it had been more than a year since he was allowed to go outside. We sat on the back deck taking in the sun and breeze. At first he tried to get away from me, but eventually was convinced I wasn't going to let him go. After about 5 minutes, I went to the front yard and sat on the stoop of my parents' house. He got calm more quickly this time, settling in to being held and petted. Zachary had big, soft paws. I stroked them and thought about having one on a key chain like we used to have lucky rabbit's feet. Remember those? Zachary would have left a beautiful lucky cat foot!
The euthanasia process was relatively quick and mostly painless. My Mom, Mark and I all sat on the love seat in the living room. Zachary was on my Mom's lap; Mark and I on either side. Zachary was looking at me to the last minute. His eyes ever green, clear, all seeing, seemingly all knowing. Just like they were when he found me.
He was loved by all who met him. The king of cats. He will live on in our hearts.
Tuesday, April 15, 2008
Glory Hole Camping / Angels Camp Tri Preview
Camping at Glory Hole was awesome! I was able to preview the Angels Camp Triathlon and go camping for the first time in eons at the same time.
We arrived on Friday afternoon. Set up our camp site. It is amazing how much crap 4 women can bring to live outdoors for two days! We had both a station wagon and a full size car FULL. We each had our own tent, two dogs, bags and bags of food (we ate really well), three coolers filled with drinks and more food, and all of my tri gear of course. Friday night we fixed tilapia, asparagus, potatoes, corn on the cob, and a spinach salad. Everything was gourmet; cooked on the grill. And we topped it off with a couple of roasted marshmallows. Yummy. The other girls did a bit of drinking, but I held off knowing I would need my strength and no raging hangovers for the next day's exercise. I had seen the hill I was going to need to tackle the next day and didn't want to be dehydrated.
Ruby, my dog, really didn't like being in the dark out in the open. She spent most of the afternoon and evening in the tent. She knew where her home was as soon as she saw the Mexican blanket.
When I crawled into my tent, I had a really hard time getting comfortable. I got next to no sleep. I had to turn over every hour or so to relieve my hip from becoming one with the earth. It is amazing how little the Thermarest does. You still really feel like you are sleeping on the ground. Ruby needed to move about every half hour and wanted to sleep inside the sleeping bag with me, making it impossible for me to easily roll over or move my legs. It is no problem having her sleep with me at home in my queen bed, but in a small mummy bag, it is incredibly awkward. Of course I had to pee at 3:30am, as did Ruby. Then she disappeared. She decided it was a good time to get a little bite to eat! I was somehow reminded of my friends with babies. And to top it off, my friend across the camp site snored the entire night. My earplugs didn't work at all.
I was relieved when the sun came up and I had an excuse to get up and start my day. I treated myself to a lovely cup of coffee. I thought I wanted a nap before going to check out the site of the tri and starting my brick workout. As it turned out coffee and some French toast breakfast was perfect.
It was about 10:30am and getting really HOT.
We all drove over to the boat launch, where the tri will begin (off Angels Creek Road), with all my gear in tow. The boat launch looks like it's a mile long, down down down. And it is concrete corduroy, not so great for the feet. I walked down and threw on my wetsuit... more like squeezed my sweaty self into it. Take note: it is harder to get a wetsuit on when you are wet in any way. And I forgot my conditioner to help be more slippery. After what felt like a workout in and of itself, I was zipped up and ready to go.
The lake up close looks nothing like what you see in a satellite photo. It was difficult to discern where I was supposed to swim based on what Mark had told me two days before. I figured I would swim for 20 minutes or so and call it a swim. There were lots of boats coming in and out which was quite nerve-racking. I hope that on the day of the race there won't be many boaters early in the morning when we are doing our swim. Apparently, however, they don't close the boat ramp or the road at all during the race.
The swim felt good. The water was cool but not like Aquatic Park! It was warm compared to swimming in SF. Once I finished, I got out, climbed up the boat ramp and jumped on my bike.
For those of you who may go out there and check it out before the event, you will get out of the water, run up the LONG ass boat ramp, hop on your bike and ride out Angel Creek Road to the right. When you get to Glory Hole Road you will take a right turn and take that road all the way to the other boat launch. There you will turn around and go back, passing Angels Creek Road, and heading up the hill (this is the most difficult part of the ride) to Highway 49. Just before the highway, you will turn around and ride down and back to the boat launch. It is about a 15 mile ride.
Once you return from the ride and are ready for the run, you will be running up a good hill for the first 100 yards or so. before the top of the hill is a little trail heading out to the left. Take that "turn." From that point on the run is a single track trail, which circles a small peninsula. It is beautiful, especially with all of the wild flowers! I believe there is another fork about a mile in, again stay to the left. When you are almost finished with the loop, there is yet another fork in the trail. Here is where things can get a little tricky. This time you will go right. Just when you think the run is almost over, because you come out of the woods and can see the parking lot, you actually have to turn to the left again and go around another loop, coming back to the most recent fork where you took a right. You are essentially doing a figure 8. This will make much more sense when you see it for yourself.
Check yourself for ticks after your run. Ruby got a tick out there. Yuck! And stay away from the poison oak too! It is growing all over the place. Although the trail is very well kept up, there is some poison oak growing into the trail. Last but certainly not least, there are holes and roots riddling the trail. You will need to watch the ground some when you are running so as not to trip and fall on your face.
That is pretty much it in a nutshell.
I think it is going to be a challenging, but very fun event. If you have been training with See Jane Tri, you are going to be more than ready to tackle this and just DO the damn thing!
We arrived on Friday afternoon. Set up our camp site. It is amazing how much crap 4 women can bring to live outdoors for two days! We had both a station wagon and a full size car FULL. We each had our own tent, two dogs, bags and bags of food (we ate really well), three coolers filled with drinks and more food, and all of my tri gear of course. Friday night we fixed tilapia, asparagus, potatoes, corn on the cob, and a spinach salad. Everything was gourmet; cooked on the grill. And we topped it off with a couple of roasted marshmallows. Yummy. The other girls did a bit of drinking, but I held off knowing I would need my strength and no raging hangovers for the next day's exercise. I had seen the hill I was going to need to tackle the next day and didn't want to be dehydrated.
Ruby, my dog, really didn't like being in the dark out in the open. She spent most of the afternoon and evening in the tent. She knew where her home was as soon as she saw the Mexican blanket.
When I crawled into my tent, I had a really hard time getting comfortable. I got next to no sleep. I had to turn over every hour or so to relieve my hip from becoming one with the earth. It is amazing how little the Thermarest does. You still really feel like you are sleeping on the ground. Ruby needed to move about every half hour and wanted to sleep inside the sleeping bag with me, making it impossible for me to easily roll over or move my legs. It is no problem having her sleep with me at home in my queen bed, but in a small mummy bag, it is incredibly awkward. Of course I had to pee at 3:30am, as did Ruby. Then she disappeared. She decided it was a good time to get a little bite to eat! I was somehow reminded of my friends with babies. And to top it off, my friend across the camp site snored the entire night. My earplugs didn't work at all.
I was relieved when the sun came up and I had an excuse to get up and start my day. I treated myself to a lovely cup of coffee. I thought I wanted a nap before going to check out the site of the tri and starting my brick workout. As it turned out coffee and some French toast breakfast was perfect.
It was about 10:30am and getting really HOT.
We all drove over to the boat launch, where the tri will begin (off Angels Creek Road), with all my gear in tow. The boat launch looks like it's a mile long, down down down. And it is concrete corduroy, not so great for the feet. I walked down and threw on my wetsuit... more like squeezed my sweaty self into it. Take note: it is harder to get a wetsuit on when you are wet in any way. And I forgot my conditioner to help be more slippery. After what felt like a workout in and of itself, I was zipped up and ready to go.
The lake up close looks nothing like what you see in a satellite photo. It was difficult to discern where I was supposed to swim based on what Mark had told me two days before. I figured I would swim for 20 minutes or so and call it a swim. There were lots of boats coming in and out which was quite nerve-racking. I hope that on the day of the race there won't be many boaters early in the morning when we are doing our swim. Apparently, however, they don't close the boat ramp or the road at all during the race.
The swim felt good. The water was cool but not like Aquatic Park! It was warm compared to swimming in SF. Once I finished, I got out, climbed up the boat ramp and jumped on my bike.
For those of you who may go out there and check it out before the event, you will get out of the water, run up the LONG ass boat ramp, hop on your bike and ride out Angel Creek Road to the right. When you get to Glory Hole Road you will take a right turn and take that road all the way to the other boat launch. There you will turn around and go back, passing Angels Creek Road, and heading up the hill (this is the most difficult part of the ride) to Highway 49. Just before the highway, you will turn around and ride down and back to the boat launch. It is about a 15 mile ride.
Once you return from the ride and are ready for the run, you will be running up a good hill for the first 100 yards or so. before the top of the hill is a little trail heading out to the left. Take that "turn." From that point on the run is a single track trail, which circles a small peninsula. It is beautiful, especially with all of the wild flowers! I believe there is another fork about a mile in, again stay to the left. When you are almost finished with the loop, there is yet another fork in the trail. Here is where things can get a little tricky. This time you will go right. Just when you think the run is almost over, because you come out of the woods and can see the parking lot, you actually have to turn to the left again and go around another loop, coming back to the most recent fork where you took a right. You are essentially doing a figure 8. This will make much more sense when you see it for yourself.
Check yourself for ticks after your run. Ruby got a tick out there. Yuck! And stay away from the poison oak too! It is growing all over the place. Although the trail is very well kept up, there is some poison oak growing into the trail. Last but certainly not least, there are holes and roots riddling the trail. You will need to watch the ground some when you are running so as not to trip and fall on your face.
That is pretty much it in a nutshell.
I think it is going to be a challenging, but very fun event. If you have been training with See Jane Tri, you are going to be more than ready to tackle this and just DO the damn thing!
Monday, April 07, 2008
Monday
Feeling better already. And it's only Monday.
On Friday I am going camping! Caroline, Suzanne and I are going up to Angels Camp, Glory Hole camp site. I am going to try out the course. I was hoping to get some other Janes to go with me, but it looks like I may be on my own. We will see I guess.
Anyway, I am getting really excited. I think Ruby is going to have a terrific time. I haven't been camping since the time I went to Lake Chabot with Kathleen, Mike, Paul, etc. It was fun. I really enjoy being out there. So, it should be a fun time. Hopefully I will get a good preview of the course from one of the guys up there. I have to call and check in with Mark because I never heard back from him.
Tomorrow I have a training with Bob Lewis. One of the gurus of permanency.
Apparently he has the exact opposite view of permanency than Darla Henry. It will be interesting to see what he has to say.
Then I will go swimming. I am looking forward to getting back to it. An entire week with no exercise begins to work on my mood. And not in a positive way. It really is amazing how evident it is to me when I am not working out how negative I can get.
And when I am, I feel even keeled, happy, content.
I will be feeling better and better as the week goes on because I will be getting more and more exercise... swimming, running, and more running. Then more swimming and a bike ride and a run. Hopefully the weather will hold.
On Friday I am going camping! Caroline, Suzanne and I are going up to Angels Camp, Glory Hole camp site. I am going to try out the course. I was hoping to get some other Janes to go with me, but it looks like I may be on my own. We will see I guess.
Anyway, I am getting really excited. I think Ruby is going to have a terrific time. I haven't been camping since the time I went to Lake Chabot with Kathleen, Mike, Paul, etc. It was fun. I really enjoy being out there. So, it should be a fun time. Hopefully I will get a good preview of the course from one of the guys up there. I have to call and check in with Mark because I never heard back from him.
Tomorrow I have a training with Bob Lewis. One of the gurus of permanency.
Apparently he has the exact opposite view of permanency than Darla Henry. It will be interesting to see what he has to say.
Then I will go swimming. I am looking forward to getting back to it. An entire week with no exercise begins to work on my mood. And not in a positive way. It really is amazing how evident it is to me when I am not working out how negative I can get.
And when I am, I feel even keeled, happy, content.
I will be feeling better and better as the week goes on because I will be getting more and more exercise... swimming, running, and more running. Then more swimming and a bike ride and a run. Hopefully the weather will hold.
Sunday, April 06, 2008
Slump
Well, it has been one of those weeks. I am happy to be starting a new week with the possibility of feeling a bit better. Not exactly sure what was going on with me besides my period which is plenty I guess. Monday was okay. Tuesday I missed swimming because I didn't want to be away from Ruby all day and then all night. So, I just coached, but didn't swim and figured I would swim on Wednesday. But then I donated blood on Wednesday and that kicked my ass. I was really woozy afterward and there was no swimming in my future. On Thursday I wasn't feeling much better so I didn't go to the track after sitting on my ass all day in a training (to be a supervisor). On Friday I went again to the training. Sat all day on my ass and went out to a really nice dinner with my friend Suzanne. I went to bed at 10pm and slept 12 hours. In the morning I was supposed to go to Shadow Cliffs to mentor at the mock tri. At 6am when I woke up I had a sore throat and a raging headache. When I woke up again at 11am, the headache had gone from bad to worse. Blinding, debilitating. I was sick to my stomach and really couldn't do anything. Last night I forced myself to stay up and deal with my back room which literally looked like a bomb had gone off in it. I managed to get everything filed, checkbooks balanced, bills paid (including property taxes and fed taxes), and documentation for a new mortgage gathered. Whew. Thank God that is done. Today I slept late, watched a movie and then went over to Marianne & Jerry's to say "Aloha" to Shred and Joanie. It was a very sweet gathering. I love being over there. Ruby had a good time too. And although it was a little hard saying goodbye to Shred, I think I will see him again in Hawaii. I would love to go visit. So, I have his phone number and will make some plans. He is really an inspiration. He has stage 4 cancer, but looks great and is full of life.
I am feeling better today, but drank a little too much this afternoon. Also, yesterday I realized I hadn't taken my meds for a few days. That couldn't be helping my mood. Funny how that works.
I am making a commitment to myself to get a good 4 or 5 workouts in this coming week. And I am getting ready to go to Angels Camp next weekend to try out the course. Hopefully there will be someone available to show us around. Hopefully there will be some others from Team SJT to join us, but if not, I will be happy getting out there myself as well.
I am feeling better today, but drank a little too much this afternoon. Also, yesterday I realized I hadn't taken my meds for a few days. That couldn't be helping my mood. Funny how that works.
I am making a commitment to myself to get a good 4 or 5 workouts in this coming week. And I am getting ready to go to Angels Camp next weekend to try out the course. Hopefully there will be someone available to show us around. Hopefully there will be some others from Team SJT to join us, but if not, I will be happy getting out there myself as well.
Monday, March 24, 2008
Busy Life
Well, it has been quite some time since my last blog entry. I have started training again for another triathlon. It is on May 10 in Angels Camp, CA. I am getting really excited which keeps me doing some of the more difficult workouts. Last Saturday I swam at Aquatic Park in SF Bay and then ran 2 miles. My legs were trashed after that. So, what did I do but hike 5 miles (down to and then back out of Lake Chabot). It was beautiful. Ruby my little Chug, loved it...ran circles around us.
I am also getting excited about another trip back east to see family and friends in May and then another trip to Mexico in October/November. I feel so alive when I travel.
Now it's time for zzzz. I keep sleeping through my alarm (mala chica!)..
I am also getting excited about another trip back east to see family and friends in May and then another trip to Mexico in October/November. I feel so alive when I travel.
Now it's time for zzzz. I keep sleeping through my alarm (mala chica!)..
Tuesday, January 22, 2008
December in New Orleans
Did I mention I was in New Orleans for a conference in December? No, I guess I didn't. It was fabulous. I would love to go back sometime and spend a little longer, seeing more of the real New Orleans, and volunteering to assist building or whatever needs to be done. The interesting thing is that the downtown area and the French Quarter were mostly spared from any devastation because the levies in that area held. If you went to New Orleans and only visited downtown and the French Quarter, you would never know anything had happened. You might think that the tourist business was failing though.
Before I left I looked at the weather report. Even though it showed warm weather, I somehow didn't believe it. I thought it was going to be a little chilly. WRONG. It was steaming hot there. I actually had to go shopping for flip-flops and a couple of short sleeved shirts. I brought sweaters, boots, and all long pants...no shorts, skirts, sandals, etc.
The food in New Orleans is out of control. There were great restaurants everywhere. I think K-Paul's was my favorite fancy place. They served a giant basket of different types of bread, including cheese & chive scones, molasses muffins, and regular dinner rolls. For dinner we shared a Cesar salad and both had blackened red fish with mashed potatoes and broccoli or something like that. There was no way to finish it all.
And Acme Oyster was my favorite down-home place. The oysters were awesome both on the half shell and baked: fresh, flavorful, juicy. And very reasonably priced. The evening we went Acme (we also went for lunch one day) we had a great time sitting at the bar, chatting with the oyster shuckers and the other patrons.
We frequented Cafe Du Monde, for beignets and cafe au laits, both in the afternoons and evenings after dinner. Their beignets are like pillows of fried dough (think chewy doughnut) covered in a mound of powdered sugar. And their coffee is smooth with a hint of chicory.
One night we took a mule drawn carriage ride around the French Quarter with a guy who could have been a history teacher, he knew so much about the area. It was fascinating. I highly recommend taking a tour if you ever get down to New Orleans. Their history is thick with scandal and intrigue. Nothing dull about it, especially given a good story teller.
Ruby Loves Apollo
Well, I guess it's been more than a month since my last post. I was busy getting used to having a dog. She is really amazing. We are still working on potty training. She has done rather well recently. Although she still seems a bit unclear on the concept of going to the door to be let out when she needs to go. However, when she was left in my Uncle David's kitchen for a few hours while I was at a seminar and he was out, she used the pad I set out for her. This was a major breakthrough.
So, I came down to Ventura to visit my Uncle David, his girlfriend Cindy and their posse of dogs: Diggie the old man, Trevor the mellow one (but don't fuck with his food), and Apollo Cindy's 65lb baby Golden. And Anisa also visited one night. She is a 100 lb Ridgeback. When we first arrived Ruby was skeptical of the boys, especially Apollo because he was so big and aggressive. By the second day, however, she had no issues and had a great time playing with him. He was able to play really well with her, just rough enough not to hurt her. On Monday morning when we got up (Ruby and I) she ran around the house looking for Apollo. He had been taken to the vet really early to be fixed. She seemed very sad. Now we are having to keep them apart, because Apollo really wants to play, but he is not allowed due to his fresh sutures.
In any case, I got some great photos of them playing.
Today it is raining in Ventura. I don't think I have ever been here in the rain. I am happy I decided to stay another day, because I don't really feel like driving in the rain. Hopefully it will be dry, for at least part of my trip, tomorrow.
Sunday, December 02, 2007
Thoughts on Mexico
I can't believe I have already been home almost a month! I think I ended my posts about Mexico before I even left there because I didn't have computer access during my last 4 days there. But the last part of the trip was really exciting! Doug, Brianne, and I went to Cuernavaca together and then made a pilgrimage down to a little town, Chilapa, for their weekly Sunday market. It was somewhat grueling, but I think definitely worth it! It was a long drive from SMA to Cuernavaca, made even longer by our detours through Toluca. Toluca is a large city southwest of Mexico City. Although it has big easy roads, getting around is nearly impossible if you don't know your way. We missed our turn and got really turned around. We eventually turned off onto small roads and after a dead-end dirt road, and hours of driving, we found our way to the main highway. It was beautiful country. Some of it was in the Sierra Madre, some in the dusty farm lands of central Mexico. All of it was interesting, slightly stressful (navigating with a pitiful map) and beautiful.
We drove into Cuernavaca before dark which was the most important factor. It was fun staying outside of downtown because I was able to see parts of the city I had never seen before. After we settled in, we got in a taxi headed for el centro. It was hopping! There was all kinds of different dances going on. We saw break dancers, Aztec dancers and drummers, and even traditional salsa being danced by elderly couples. Then we went to the church, but there was a wedding in progress so we couldn't really go in and check it out. After walking around a little, we went to eat at La India Bonita the first night. It wasn't great. The best part of it was the dance show after dinner. It was incredibly warm there compared to SMA, although it did get a little chilly after the sun went down.
The next day we took a trip down to Chilapa. It was a 6-8 hour drive round trip. It was too much for one day really, but we had a pretty good time. And we found the little boxes we were looking for. The town is basically a long dusty strip of road in a valley. We went up and down narrow windy roads to get there. What looks like a blip on a map, was actually much longer because of the driving conditions.
Originally, we were going to drive to Olinala where the boxes we were looking for are actually made. They are made of wood from trees that grow there. Well, that idea was quickly dashed when we realized how much longer it would be. We would never get there and back before dark.
When we arrived we were all extremely hungry. We stopped at a place I spotted. They had pork and pork. It was cooked in a tasty sauce. I was a little worried, but ate it because I was so famished. While we were there we asked the girls working there about our lacquer boxes. One of the girls said, "Oh, boxes like this?" and pulled one out of her backpack. She offered her sister to show us the location of the table in the market. I was pretty sure their would be someone selling them at the market, since it is the closest market to the tiny town in the mountains. Sure enough.
They had hundreds of boxes all lacquered and hand painted with either flowers or whimsical little creatures. Brianne grabbed mostly floral boxes. All very beautiful. She was a quick little shopper! I got mostly animal boxes. The couple, Antonio Cortes Calzada and Rafaela Castillo Rendon, from whom we bought the boxes and gourds are from Olinala originally, but now live and work in Chilapa. They were incredibly nice. They invited us to come see their home and where they work. They also offered to contact family members in Olinala to show us around. Unfortunately we were not able to take advantage of their generosity due to the time constraints, but NEXT TIME!!!
That was pretty much all the shopping we had time for. Brianne stopped and got a mask and a bunch of straw/cornhusk flowers. They were obviously getting ready for Christmas (which is a HUGE holiday in Mexico) because they had loads of green and red decorations made of straw, including wreaths, flowers, and garlands.
After shopping for about an hour, we hopped back in the car and drove all the way back to Cuernavaca. It was fine until we got into Cuernavaca after dark. It was difficult driving, we were all really tired, and on edge.
Somehow we made it back to La Casa de Malinche in one piece. For dinner we caught a cab down to La Gringa Tacos. They were some of the best tacos I have ever had! We had al pastor which is marinated grilled pork (see photo) with a sliver of pineapple on top of each taco along with cilantro and onion. It was so damn good. And dinner for 3 was $15 or less. That was one of the most memorable dinners of my time in Mexico.
The next day we slept in. And then toured around town. Unfortunately, in Cuernavaca as all over Mexico, museums are all closed. So, we didn't have much exciting to do and I was really bummed because I really wanted to show Doug and Brianne all of my favorite museums, of which there are many. The Robert Brady Museum, one of the most memorable of all. He was aa American guy who lived in Mexico most of the year and also happened to be independently wealthy. He traveled all over the world collecting folk art and his "house" is chock full of folk art. Most of the rooms are available for viewing. It is located in a building that was at one time a convent. It also has beautiful gardens. I hope they go back when the museums are open!
Doug suggested that we go to Las Mananitas (on him) and have lunch. It was quite a treat and very generous of him to offer. It was first class all the way... including the prices. But, everything was really amazing, including the service. My only complaint was that drinks weren't refilled for free which seems really ridiculous. But it really was a great dining experience. I ordered the Mexican plate with a quesadilla with huitlacoche (corn fungus), a chile relleno with white sauce, and chicken enchiladas one with salsa roja and one with salsa verde. All of it was served with guacamole and rice and beans. I had to take leftovers home, which I ate for breakfast the next morning.
We drove into Cuernavaca before dark which was the most important factor. It was fun staying outside of downtown because I was able to see parts of the city I had never seen before. After we settled in, we got in a taxi headed for el centro. It was hopping! There was all kinds of different dances going on. We saw break dancers, Aztec dancers and drummers, and even traditional salsa being danced by elderly couples. Then we went to the church, but there was a wedding in progress so we couldn't really go in and check it out. After walking around a little, we went to eat at La India Bonita the first night. It wasn't great. The best part of it was the dance show after dinner. It was incredibly warm there compared to SMA, although it did get a little chilly after the sun went down.
The next day we took a trip down to Chilapa. It was a 6-8 hour drive round trip. It was too much for one day really, but we had a pretty good time. And we found the little boxes we were looking for. The town is basically a long dusty strip of road in a valley. We went up and down narrow windy roads to get there. What looks like a blip on a map, was actually much longer because of the driving conditions.
Originally, we were going to drive to Olinala where the boxes we were looking for are actually made. They are made of wood from trees that grow there. Well, that idea was quickly dashed when we realized how much longer it would be. We would never get there and back before dark.
When we arrived we were all extremely hungry. We stopped at a place I spotted. They had pork and pork. It was cooked in a tasty sauce. I was a little worried, but ate it because I was so famished. While we were there we asked the girls working there about our lacquer boxes. One of the girls said, "Oh, boxes like this?" and pulled one out of her backpack. She offered her sister to show us the location of the table in the market. I was pretty sure their would be someone selling them at the market, since it is the closest market to the tiny town in the mountains. Sure enough.
They had hundreds of boxes all lacquered and hand painted with either flowers or whimsical little creatures. Brianne grabbed mostly floral boxes. All very beautiful. She was a quick little shopper! I got mostly animal boxes. The couple, Antonio Cortes Calzada and Rafaela Castillo Rendon, from whom we bought the boxes and gourds are from Olinala originally, but now live and work in Chilapa. They were incredibly nice. They invited us to come see their home and where they work. They also offered to contact family members in Olinala to show us around. Unfortunately we were not able to take advantage of their generosity due to the time constraints, but NEXT TIME!!!
That was pretty much all the shopping we had time for. Brianne stopped and got a mask and a bunch of straw/cornhusk flowers. They were obviously getting ready for Christmas (which is a HUGE holiday in Mexico) because they had loads of green and red decorations made of straw, including wreaths, flowers, and garlands.
After shopping for about an hour, we hopped back in the car and drove all the way back to Cuernavaca. It was fine until we got into Cuernavaca after dark. It was difficult driving, we were all really tired, and on edge.
Somehow we made it back to La Casa de Malinche in one piece. For dinner we caught a cab down to La Gringa Tacos. They were some of the best tacos I have ever had! We had al pastor which is marinated grilled pork (see photo) with a sliver of pineapple on top of each taco along with cilantro and onion. It was so damn good. And dinner for 3 was $15 or less. That was one of the most memorable dinners of my time in Mexico.
The next day we slept in. And then toured around town. Unfortunately, in Cuernavaca as all over Mexico, museums are all closed. So, we didn't have much exciting to do and I was really bummed because I really wanted to show Doug and Brianne all of my favorite museums, of which there are many. The Robert Brady Museum, one of the most memorable of all. He was aa American guy who lived in Mexico most of the year and also happened to be independently wealthy. He traveled all over the world collecting folk art and his "house" is chock full of folk art. Most of the rooms are available for viewing. It is located in a building that was at one time a convent. It also has beautiful gardens. I hope they go back when the museums are open!
Doug suggested that we go to Las Mananitas (on him) and have lunch. It was quite a treat and very generous of him to offer. It was first class all the way... including the prices. But, everything was really amazing, including the service. My only complaint was that drinks weren't refilled for free which seems really ridiculous. But it really was a great dining experience. I ordered the Mexican plate with a quesadilla with huitlacoche (corn fungus), a chile relleno with white sauce, and chicken enchiladas one with salsa roja and one with salsa verde. All of it was served with guacamole and rice and beans. I had to take leftovers home, which I ate for breakfast the next morning.
New Family Member!
Meet Ruby Rose! She is my new puppy. She is a Chihuahua Pug, about 9 months old. I met her on Wednesday and picked her up on Saturday morning. She is really cute (as you can see). She also has serious anxiety when I leave the room. Tomorrow when I go to work things are going to be very interesting. On a good note, she did very well in her crate last night. Although, she did wake me up at 6:30am. When I took her out she didn't want to go potty at all. No pee, no poop. I crawled back in bed, but realized that it was a lost cause and that I most likely wouldn't be getting any more sleep. It will be good because I won't have any problems getting up in the morning.
She is quite the couch potato. She would happily spend most of the day on the couch under a blanket. Her favorite one right now it the Mexican striped blanket.
Yesterday I brought her home to introduce her to the rest of her family. The cats are doing much better than I expected. It helps that Ruby almost couldn't care less about Rascal and Pearl. They are certainly more interested in her than she is in them. Rascal seems to be very curious and will get pretty close to check her out. He even chased her lead which I left attached. Pearl was much more upset, which I knew would be the case. She isn't hissing at her at this point, which is progress. Pearl even jumped on the couch when Ruby was safely asleep and sniffed her out. I think it is only a matter of time before they are all cuddling together. Especially Ruby and Pearl. It goes to follow since they both have the same favorite pastime: sleeping.
So far Ruby has met Paul, her grandparents Julie and Mark, and Rita. She ignored my parents' cats completely. She is very social with people. She seems to love kids because whenever she sees a small person she stops to check them out. The thing she hates most is when I leave her alone. Like when I go in the other room to brush my teeth or take a shower (oh, that's right, that's why I haven't taken a shower yet). She comes up to the doggy gate between the living room and the bedrooms and cries like a baby. It is really rather pathetic.
Ruby does like to go for walks and trots along, usually in front of me. At times she will slow down and things can get interesting because she is so small. I am afraid I am going to step on her!
Today I took Ruby with me to get my nails done. She sat on my lap contentedly the entire time. The sound of the water pouring into the foot soaker freaked her out at first, but she got used to it quickly. This afternoon we are going for a walk around the lake with my friend K.S. I may end up walking her some of the way, but usually she is happy walking.
I am learning about house training her, including potty training. Ick. This morning at around 7am she started circling the living room. I almost didn't catch her in time. One little drop of fairly dry poop came out and I grabbed her and took her outside. At the grass she didn't want to go in to potty. I stayed out there until she decided she was ready. I was relieved because I didn't want to get back upstairs and have a repeat performance.
There is a thing about the stairs. She is okay on the first flight, but the second flight, she completely freezes. This is both coming and going, up and down. It is something we will have to work on with treats. So far I am trying to not be too hard core, but also not too accommodating. I think there are bets about how long it will take me to let her sleep in bed with me. I did very well last night. And I feel strongly that Pearl should have some time to have me to herself. This is a difficult adjustment for her too.
Sunday, November 18, 2007
Home Sweet Home
I arrived home on Tuesday evening. I can't believe I have almost been home a whole week! It has really flown by. And in a few days we will be celebrating Thanksgiving! Jeeze. Well, I have much more to say, but for now it is good to be home. Tomorrow I start work again, after a month off. I am happy I have a three day week and then some time off again. It is good to get back into things slowly. My house is mostly back in order. It was a disaster because after my birthday party I pretty much just threw things in the back room in a pile. This week I have been cleaning up and putting things away and doing piles of laundry. Fun. I also went out and bought a few things to make some fun Thank You cards. That will be my project next week.
Mexico was amazing as usual. I am already planning my next expedition down there!
More thoughts on Mexico and traveling to come...
And photos... Finally!
Mexico was amazing as usual. I am already planning my next expedition down there!
More thoughts on Mexico and traveling to come...
And photos... Finally!
Saturday, November 10, 2007
Adentures in Mexico
The computer is extremely slow this morning. Very frustrating, so this will be short.
I woke up this morning with a big swollen eye. I figure I was bit by a spider or mosquito in the night. It was almost completely shut. Glad I am not going to school today.
Doug, Brianne and I are going on a trip to Cuernavaca and to a couple of small villages south of there. I am really exciteded to be going with them as they are great company and will appreciate the adventure of it. The one of the villages has a market on Sundays and the other is known for painted laquer boxes. I think I may have written about it earlier.
I need to get the map and stuff which may take some time given the speed of the computer today. Adios para ahora.
I woke up this morning with a big swollen eye. I figure I was bit by a spider or mosquito in the night. It was almost completely shut. Glad I am not going to school today.
Doug, Brianne and I are going on a trip to Cuernavaca and to a couple of small villages south of there. I am really exciteded to be going with them as they are great company and will appreciate the adventure of it. The one of the villages has a market on Sundays and the other is known for painted laquer boxes. I think I may have written about it earlier.
I need to get the map and stuff which may take some time given the speed of the computer today. Adios para ahora.
Friday, November 09, 2007
Mi Ultimo Dia en San Miguel de Allende
So, it's my last evening here in SMA. Time, as usual, has flown by. I feel like I just arrived! After school today I went to a knitting (crocheting, and quilting too) group with Brianne and finished the sweater I started in June. It's a good thing, because it is actually really cold here, especially in the evenings and in the morning. When the sun comes out, all is grand. In any case, the knitting group is a group of women who live in SMA, including one woman from Mexico City. I even got to practice my Spanish a little. It was good to meet some people who live here. I think they are all really interesting and have great stories to tell. When I come back, I will definitely be in touch. I guess I feel at home with other "artists."
This morning was interesting. I woke up at 5am, before the sun rose, to the sound of really bad singing through a mega-phone, with acapella accompaniment. They were singing about Santa Maria Ava... at least that is what I remember from the fog of my brain at dark o'clock. I tried really hard to ignore it, but wasn't successful. Although I have earplugs with me, I find it hard to fall asleep with them because I can hear my heart beating in my ears. So, I didn't have them in. Not that it would have mattered! Eventually I fell back to sleep. Then at 7:30 or so, I am wakened again by a big marching band coming down the street. I threw on a sweatshirt and ran outside to check out the action. It was a much smaller group than I expected. And I didn't take any photos because I have seen that the people from more rural areas ("campesinos") really do not like having their photos taken. Although it was a small group, there were even some dancers.
Yesterday, after a trip to the inaugural opening of the department store "Liverpool" there was a group of campesinos marching down the street in the afternoon at around 3pm. It is amazing to me the contrast between the have and have-nots here. Liverpool was a glittery place like Macy's with REALLY expensive clothes, shoes, makeup, and everything else you can think of. There were mostly rich Mexicans shopping, although we didn't see many purchases happening. On the other hand, the other typical life lived in Mexico is that of the people who are extremely poor. They work hard. They live out in the ranches and rural areas seemingly in the middle of nowhere. (You will often be in a bus that will stop to let someone off in the middle of the highway, maybe at a crossroads, or maybe not. They will disappear into the shrubs.) And they are very very religious. According to my Spanish teacher, there are pilgrimages all throughout the year such as the ones I have seen (or heard). The one I am really bummed that I missed was the caballeros marching through town on their horses. I had heard about it, and seen some of them on the way back to the house from Liverpool. But, they marched through while I was on my way home and I missed them! I really would have loved to see them. I heard there were at least 500 of them. They make a pilgrimage to be blessed (maybe here at the Parroquia, the big church in town - there are numerous churches of course) and then go on to the next blessing. I will have to do more research on the event.
I have met so many amazing people down here. I am really sad to leave.
I would highly recommend the Academia where I took my Spanish classes, and my teachers Aida (group) and Ezequiel (private) in particular! I really got to know Ezequiel pretty well, because a lot of what we did was converse. He has a lot in common with me in how we look at the world and also what kinds of things he has done for a living. Before teaching, he worked at CASA which is an agency for battered women and he did groups with people regarding various gender issues. I gather he did other things more administrative as well. Now, in addition to teaching he works with a non profit agency that gives loans to people (mostly in the campos/rural areas) so they are able to start little businesses. I believe he helps them with all of the processes involved with starting a small business. And he is a great teacher too!
Well, for now, that's it. My hands and wrists are getting sore.
Hasta mas tarde. Besos.
This morning was interesting. I woke up at 5am, before the sun rose, to the sound of really bad singing through a mega-phone, with acapella accompaniment. They were singing about Santa Maria Ava... at least that is what I remember from the fog of my brain at dark o'clock. I tried really hard to ignore it, but wasn't successful. Although I have earplugs with me, I find it hard to fall asleep with them because I can hear my heart beating in my ears. So, I didn't have them in. Not that it would have mattered! Eventually I fell back to sleep. Then at 7:30 or so, I am wakened again by a big marching band coming down the street. I threw on a sweatshirt and ran outside to check out the action. It was a much smaller group than I expected. And I didn't take any photos because I have seen that the people from more rural areas ("campesinos") really do not like having their photos taken. Although it was a small group, there were even some dancers.
Yesterday, after a trip to the inaugural opening of the department store "Liverpool" there was a group of campesinos marching down the street in the afternoon at around 3pm. It is amazing to me the contrast between the have and have-nots here. Liverpool was a glittery place like Macy's with REALLY expensive clothes, shoes, makeup, and everything else you can think of. There were mostly rich Mexicans shopping, although we didn't see many purchases happening. On the other hand, the other typical life lived in Mexico is that of the people who are extremely poor. They work hard. They live out in the ranches and rural areas seemingly in the middle of nowhere. (You will often be in a bus that will stop to let someone off in the middle of the highway, maybe at a crossroads, or maybe not. They will disappear into the shrubs.) And they are very very religious. According to my Spanish teacher, there are pilgrimages all throughout the year such as the ones I have seen (or heard). The one I am really bummed that I missed was the caballeros marching through town on their horses. I had heard about it, and seen some of them on the way back to the house from Liverpool. But, they marched through while I was on my way home and I missed them! I really would have loved to see them. I heard there were at least 500 of them. They make a pilgrimage to be blessed (maybe here at the Parroquia, the big church in town - there are numerous churches of course) and then go on to the next blessing. I will have to do more research on the event.
I have met so many amazing people down here. I am really sad to leave.
I would highly recommend the Academia where I took my Spanish classes, and my teachers Aida (group) and Ezequiel (private) in particular! I really got to know Ezequiel pretty well, because a lot of what we did was converse. He has a lot in common with me in how we look at the world and also what kinds of things he has done for a living. Before teaching, he worked at CASA which is an agency for battered women and he did groups with people regarding various gender issues. I gather he did other things more administrative as well. Now, in addition to teaching he works with a non profit agency that gives loans to people (mostly in the campos/rural areas) so they are able to start little businesses. I believe he helps them with all of the processes involved with starting a small business. And he is a great teacher too!
Well, for now, that's it. My hands and wrists are getting sore.
Hasta mas tarde. Besos.
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