Just got home from the cabin! It was such a wonderful, relaxing time. :) Didn't quite manage a reading record - finished 26, read part of a 27th - but if was pretty close.
Shall be catching up for a while, but I'll be typing up a books post, and probably pulling together some of the photos I took, soon.
Shall be catching up for a while, but I'll be typing up a books post, and probably pulling together some of the photos I took, soon.
Getting ready to head out to the cabin for The Reading Vacation tomorrow night... Books are packed! (I'm not actually bringing them in plastic bags. I just needed those to get home from the library.) I think my suitcase is about half books, in addition to the backpack I filled with books... Good thing I don't need too much in the way of clothes for this trip. XD
I'll still be around tomorrow, but otherwise - I'll see you all when I get back on the 23rd!
Got the chance to sit down and talk with the karate school's owner a few days ago about the fact that I'm not going to be continuing training, at least in the near future (not unexpected at this point, given my accumulation of injuries and the need to deal with that before pushing myself more).
The fact that I won't be continuing to teach for the time being was not expected for them, but the conversation went a lot better than I thought it would. She told me they were really happy with the work I've been doing and actually offered to sit down and see what they can offer me if I want to make it more of a full-time career, now or later on down the line. Which... I was not expecting out of that conversation. I'm too tired and in need of a break from some of the disorganization and craziness going on right now to consider it at this point, but I left the future possibility open. For now, I'm continuing my current teaching until they switch over to the summer schedule at the end of May so they've got time to figure out staffing, and we'll see where I'm at once fall comes around again.
Anyhow. Good to have that settled with a lot less drama than I was expecting.
On another front, anyone want to see some zoo pics?
( Zoo pics!Collapse )
The fact that I won't be continuing to teach for the time being was not expected for them, but the conversation went a lot better than I thought it would. She told me they were really happy with the work I've been doing and actually offered to sit down and see what they can offer me if I want to make it more of a full-time career, now or later on down the line. Which... I was not expecting out of that conversation. I'm too tired and in need of a break from some of the disorganization and craziness going on right now to consider it at this point, but I left the future possibility open. For now, I'm continuing my current teaching until they switch over to the summer schedule at the end of May so they've got time to figure out staffing, and we'll see where I'm at once fall comes around again.
Anyhow. Good to have that settled with a lot less drama than I was expecting.
On another front, anyone want to see some zoo pics?
( Zoo pics!Collapse )
Finished my black belt screening, and I didn't actually collapse. Was pretty sure I was going to for a while there, but I didn't. XD I won't know what the verdict is until... Saturday, probably. But right now I'm feeling pretty good about how I did, all things considered, so I'm hopeful. If I passed, that'll be four of the seven down, three to go. (The next two being the hardest, but heh, let's not think about that now. ) And it is such an incredible relief to have it done.
In somewhat less happy news, I managed to do... something to my hip in the process of doing the tornado kick portion of the test. It felt like it might be really bad, especially when I could barely raise my knee this morning. Didn't seem like any pulled or strained muscle I've had before, more like something was wrong with the joint itself. But then in the process of stretching and testing my range of motion today I apparently managed to pop whatever-it-was back into place. At any rate, I felt something click in my hip and now I seem to have pretty much normal range of motion back with just general achy soreness instead of sharp, Something Is Wrong pain, so... Not sure exactly what happened, but crisis seems to be averted in that regard. Pretty sure it's gonna be okay with a couple days of taking it easy.
So. Nothing definite, but I'm no longer in I May Die mode for the time being. ^^
In somewhat less happy news, I managed to do... something to my hip in the process of doing the tornado kick portion of the test. It felt like it might be really bad, especially when I could barely raise my knee this morning. Didn't seem like any pulled or strained muscle I've had before, more like something was wrong with the joint itself. But then in the process of stretching and testing my range of motion today I apparently managed to pop whatever-it-was back into place. At any rate, I felt something click in my hip and now I seem to have pretty much normal range of motion back with just general achy soreness instead of sharp, Something Is Wrong pain, so... Not sure exactly what happened, but crisis seems to be averted in that regard. Pretty sure it's gonna be okay with a couple days of taking it easy.
So. Nothing definite, but I'm no longer in I May Die mode for the time being. ^^
Well, I've officially got whatever nasty cold Nef's been down with this week. Going to sparring anyway today was maybe not the smartest decision I've ever made, but since I knew it'd be a couple weeks until I could get to it again...
On the one hand, I did better than I expected. On the other, now I can't be sure if I'm sore and headachy because I'm sick or because I got repeatedly punched in the head and knocked down by a guy twice my size. (Still won the fight, though. And the instructor said I was turning into a superstar on them. So there's that. ^^)
As a more interesting diversion from being sick, though - a flying squirrel has moved into our attached garage/the walls of our house. I knew we had some living nearby, but we don't see much of them because they're usually really shy, besides being nocturnal.
This one, though, is the most brazen, attitude-filled little thing I've ever seen. Doesn't seem to much care who knows he's around. And Ella, our mighty, fierce huntress cat who will take down anything that moves, including rabbits nearly as big as she is, seems to have just shrugged and decided this is okay. Last night I went to give her dinner and he was right there and just... didn't leave. Scooted over a bit, and then just sat there a couple feet away. She just looked at him, then looked at me like, "Yeah, so? He's my roommate now. You gonna give me dinner, or what?"
He stayed there while I went to get her dinner and came back, like he was waiting to see if he'd get dinner too. Didn't head off to the other side of the garage until Ella practically stepped on him. She acted like he was invisible.
????
I mean, he's adorable. And I don't actually want him to get killed, because I love flying squirrels. But having one living in our house is probably not a good thing? Even if he hasn't done any noticeable harm yet. And. Uh. This cat is apparently going to be no help at all in figuring out what to do about it. (She killed a mouse last night and left it by the door, just to prove that she hasn't actually forgotten how to do her job.)
So... for now, we've got a kind-of-pet flying squirrel? And yet one more illustration of why our friends call us the home for confused animals.
I think I'll call him Sam.
On the one hand, I did better than I expected. On the other, now I can't be sure if I'm sore and headachy because I'm sick or because I got repeatedly punched in the head and knocked down by a guy twice my size. (Still won the fight, though. And the instructor said I was turning into a superstar on them. So there's that. ^^)
As a more interesting diversion from being sick, though - a flying squirrel has moved into our attached garage/the walls of our house. I knew we had some living nearby, but we don't see much of them because they're usually really shy, besides being nocturnal.
This one, though, is the most brazen, attitude-filled little thing I've ever seen. Doesn't seem to much care who knows he's around. And Ella, our mighty, fierce huntress cat who will take down anything that moves, including rabbits nearly as big as she is, seems to have just shrugged and decided this is okay. Last night I went to give her dinner and he was right there and just... didn't leave. Scooted over a bit, and then just sat there a couple feet away. She just looked at him, then looked at me like, "Yeah, so? He's my roommate now. You gonna give me dinner, or what?"
He stayed there while I went to get her dinner and came back, like he was waiting to see if he'd get dinner too. Didn't head off to the other side of the garage until Ella practically stepped on him. She acted like he was invisible.
????
I mean, he's adorable. And I don't actually want him to get killed, because I love flying squirrels. But having one living in our house is probably not a good thing? Even if he hasn't done any noticeable harm yet. And. Uh. This cat is apparently going to be no help at all in figuring out what to do about it. (She killed a mouse last night and left it by the door, just to prove that she hasn't actually forgotten how to do her job.)
So... for now, we've got a kind-of-pet flying squirrel? And yet one more illustration of why our friends call us the home for confused animals.
I think I'll call him Sam.
So, Nef's been a bit anxious about scheduling and everything she needs to get to today. As we walked the dog this morning, she was telling me about the dreams she had last night.
Nef: Yeah, we were just running around like crazy, trying to get everyone where they needed to be, and I had to drive the guys somewhere, but I never had the van when I needed it... It was so stressful. It was basically real life.
Me: Huh. I, uh, dreamed about Bucky trying to escape from Hydra, racing around in a building hiding in different rooms, trying to find a way out without getting caught.
Nef: ... Well. Apparently one of us is worried about something.
Nef: Yeah, we were just running around like crazy, trying to get everyone where they needed to be, and I had to drive the guys somewhere, but I never had the van when I needed it... It was so stressful. It was basically real life.
Me: Huh. I, uh, dreamed about Bucky trying to escape from Hydra, racing around in a building hiding in different rooms, trying to find a way out without getting caught.
Nef: ... Well. Apparently one of us is worried about something.
Spent the better part of the last week on a writing retreat, and holy cow I was SO PRODUCTIVE. It was such a relief, because this summer was just awful for getting any writing done, and there were a couple parts of the book in particular that I just Could. Not. get past. Skipping those pivotal scenes wasn't workable for making any meaningful progress, because I needed the character development in them to get my head around where they'd be at in relating to each other, and I was starting to get that sinking "I am never going to write anything useful again" feeling. :P
But yes. I got a ton written, sorted out some really key stuff, and I am feeling so much better about where this book is headed. So happy about it right now.
And of course, when we were shopping for snacks for the week, Nef and I decided to get some gummie fruit snacks. Because we are adults and can do that instead of just vaguely pretending we don't envy kids who're eating them. And of course, because I am a very serious adult, I told her that if we were going to get them, it had to be these ones.
I mean, since I've been describing the book I'm working on as "Jurassic Park with Faeries," it's actually like... serious inspiration food, right? And it clearly worked. Plus, the tiny gummy raptors are adorable. So yeah.
And today I decided to celebrate all that productivity with an impulse buy. This:
Best double-sided cutting board ever. And, I mean, cooking is a serious, adult thing, right? So it was a totally practical and grownup thing to do.
Yep. I am adulting so hard over here.
But yes. I got a ton written, sorted out some really key stuff, and I am feeling so much better about where this book is headed. So happy about it right now.
And of course, when we were shopping for snacks for the week, Nef and I decided to get some gummie fruit snacks. Because we are adults and can do that instead of just vaguely pretending we don't envy kids who're eating them. And of course, because I am a very serious adult, I told her that if we were going to get them, it had to be these ones.
I mean, since I've been describing the book I'm working on as "Jurassic Park with Faeries," it's actually like... serious inspiration food, right? And it clearly worked. Plus, the tiny gummy raptors are adorable. So yeah.
And today I decided to celebrate all that productivity with an impulse buy. This:
Best double-sided cutting board ever. And, I mean, cooking is a serious, adult thing, right? So it was a totally practical and grownup thing to do.
Yep. I am adulting so hard over here.
Okay, so yesterday 
cairistiona7 was nice enough to give me some tips on photo editing and point me toward pixlr.com, so I've been playing around to see what I can do with a few more of my photos from the zoo trip last week.
( Cut for pics!Collapse )
Also - happy Independence Day to all my American friends!
And happy birthday to Steve Rogers! \o/
cairistiona7 was nice enough to give me some tips on photo editing and point me toward pixlr.com, so I've been playing around to see what I can do with a few more of my photos from the zoo trip last week. ( Cut for pics!Collapse )
Also - happy Independence Day to all my American friends!
And happy birthday to Steve Rogers! \o/
Had some fun stuff happening this week! Among other things, just finished up my first month as a full karate instructor (i.e. no longer assistant-instructor-in-training). I think it's going well - I've had some good feedback, at any rate!
The big event this week, though, was the trip Nef and I took in to the Cities to spend a couple days at the zoo. Officially, this was because our zoo membership was expiring and we wanted to get some more photos before it did (me for art/anatomy reference, her for graphic design), and they also had a new exhibit for the summer with anamatronic dinosaurs. Unofficially... we really wanted a getaway with just the two of us, and it was a good excuse.
It was an awesome trip, too! Couldn't have asked for nicer weather, the dinosaur exibit was very fun, and we ended up going to the bird show twice because it was so good. We basically hardly sat down for two days straight, and I don't even know how many miles we ended up walking - so pretty wiped out by the time we got home, but happy.
Nef got some really beautiful photos. I don't have a whole lot to share on that front, because though I took a fair amount I am a terrible photographer and was only using my phone, so I got quite a few that're useful for my reference purposes but not much that's particularly interesting or artistic in its own right. :P I think I'm getting a little better hang of photography generaly, though, so I've resolved to actually bring a proper camera that I know how to use next time.
I do have a few fun photos, though!
( Cut for pics!Collapse )
The big event this week, though, was the trip Nef and I took in to the Cities to spend a couple days at the zoo. Officially, this was because our zoo membership was expiring and we wanted to get some more photos before it did (me for art/anatomy reference, her for graphic design), and they also had a new exhibit for the summer with anamatronic dinosaurs. Unofficially... we really wanted a getaway with just the two of us, and it was a good excuse.
It was an awesome trip, too! Couldn't have asked for nicer weather, the dinosaur exibit was very fun, and we ended up going to the bird show twice because it was so good. We basically hardly sat down for two days straight, and I don't even know how many miles we ended up walking - so pretty wiped out by the time we got home, but happy.
Nef got some really beautiful photos. I don't have a whole lot to share on that front, because though I took a fair amount I am a terrible photographer and was only using my phone, so I got quite a few that're useful for my reference purposes but not much that's particularly interesting or artistic in its own right. :P I think I'm getting a little better hang of photography generaly, though, so I've resolved to actually bring a proper camera that I know how to use next time.
I do have a few fun photos, though!
( Cut for pics!Collapse )
Finished getting together my traditional list of books read on the trip and review-ish thoughts on them!
So without further ado, here are the books! My feelings on them this year were a bit more of a mixed bag than has been the case in recent years, I think, but there were plenty that I really loved.
( Cut for many wordsCollapse )
Total pages read on the trip: Approximately 5880. (Some estimation necessary, based on other version lengths, to account for the fact that the library only had the large print version of one, which obviously has... a lot more pages. XD)
So yeah. Not a record-breaking trip, but definitely a good one.
So without further ado, here are the books! My feelings on them this year were a bit more of a mixed bag than has been the case in recent years, I think, but there were plenty that I really loved.
( Cut for many wordsCollapse )
Total pages read on the trip: Approximately 5880. (Some estimation necessary, based on other version lengths, to account for the fact that the library only had the large print version of one, which obviously has... a lot more pages. XD)
So yeah. Not a record-breaking trip, but definitely a good one.
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