Thank you, Vets!!!

A special thank you going out to all the Veterans who have kept this country free

and the best place on Earth to live!

My own personal Vet is driving me up a wall, but other than that, Veterans are the BEST!!!!

God Bless America and all who keep her safe!

Friday Walk

In the center are Mama and a slew o'duckies.  They're getting big, aren't they?

Our walk was pretty mild--we did 2.25 miles in 30 minutes but not much else to talk about.  It was a much more interesting day concerning driving, however.  I was very happy to park Bertie in the driveway and know he's not going anywhere else today.  CHP everywhere, idiots where CHP isn't, and everyone has a 'tude. 

I'm home and I'm not going out again.  Mayhap not until Tuesday morning....

Contra Loma--Great Googly Moogly

So Da Dog and I headed out to Contra Loma to start working the hills in preparation for the Great Tarantula Run of Ott Eleven.  We were jogging here....  Nice, eh?  :)

Then it started to get a bit more uphill in the climb so I took it down to a walk--a getting-it-done walk, but a walk nonetheless....

Looking back down at whence I came....

Oh thank the good Lord, this hill is almost done... 
(That's Elliott's tail end sticking up out of the grass--not some funky stump.)

Elliott came back to tell me I wasn't at the top yet...
Thought about letting him find his own way home....

Is this the top?  WELL?!?!

 GAH!!!!!!!!!!!  Oh sweet Lord, NO!!!!!

Actually, this is about where I turned to the right (see the trail marker in the middle just off center?) and started heading down.  Yaaaaaaaay.

I think if you look carefully Bertie is just left of center, waiting for us in the parking lot. 

But he's still a mile away....

We were jogging again as soon as we started heading back down--beautiful view, isn't it?

Bertie's closer!!!  It was a hairy jog down the hill as the ground has already done it's summer-time dry cracks so I was watching my feet instead of the scenery.  Thank goodness the rattlers were still asleep....

Elliott was a good boy and was usually only about fifty feet ahead of me.  He started going off trail as we were getting closer to the car--he was a thirsty boy and was hunting water.  We made it back to Bertie, chugged water, and then headed home. 

Wow.  I'm tore back.  Elliott is trying to recover and couldn't even make it to his futon--he had to flop on the new carpet.  I have chores to do but I'm still recovering,  myself.  Plus, I had to do my new hire paperwork for the University of Phoenix.  It's done and faxed in for review.  We're almost there, kids!!!!

Ick.  I need to shower....  }:)

A Day in the City

Michelle, Jeanette, and Traisa

Jeanette master-minded the whole party and here they are at Pier 39.  It was a lovely but windy day and we met up with another Michelle and Doug at Boudin's at Fisherman's Wharf for a glorious lunch and margarita.  Okay, I had the margarita while the others had wine or beer but Jeanette behaved with a virgin mojito....

We walked all OVER the city and finished at the Ferry Building that was converted into shops and we found the most drop-dead-fabulously-delicious Coconut Mousse Cake I have ever tasted.  I did share with everyone but it was hard....

And then we found the chocolate shop--Scharffen Berger.  Oh, for the love of all things skinny, that stuff is yummy....  I got a mini of lavendar/blueberry dark chocolate and a chocolate with lavendar and blueberry chapstick and a small bag of milk chocolate.  Wow.  Each little milk chocolate square is about 20 calories and it's wonderful enough you can just have one and savor it without adding a ton of calories to your list. 

Wow. 

There was also a stand selling meat-filled empanadas but, forutnately or unfortunately, I was stuffed from the cake and lunch so I didn't get one but next time I go in I'm all over it.  I want one of those bad boys!!!  :)

I had to leave the fun to get home and help with the boys so I headed to the Embarcadero BART station.  I overshot it by six blocks.....  Here is the first picture I took on the way back:

Beautiful afternoon in the city, wasn't it?

And here's another shot as I wandered back to BART:

Boy, I really wanted to stop in there and kick back with an iced coffee or something equally fabulous but Da Husband was waiting so off I trotted (gimped)....

All in all, it was a fabulous day of fun and friends and I thoroughly enjoyed my Mini Skyline Class of '86 Reunion and it was sure easy to sit and visit and chat with folks I hadn't seen in 25 years....

I'll add more pictures as soon as I get the rest of the pics downloaded.

Rewards for Running!

All right--how cute is that bottle and the CARD!!!  I am so used to putting the little diamond shape on TOP that I never even thought to put it under!  How cute is THAT!!!  :)

My BFF sent the bottle and hand made card to encourage me with my running.  Can you read what the bottle says?  "I run so I can eat Ice Cream"  PERFECT!!!!!  I can't wait to use it next week.  It came at a particularly appropriate time as I have just gotten back from getting my youngest Boy from school and jogged the 1.75 miles there to do so.  What a great reward!!!  Thanks, BFF!!!  (Think I'll Christen the bottle with a milkshake....)

Growing Duckies and Summer Time Blues

There they are!  Mama and her babies--they're getting so big!

I finally figured out how to send a bigger pic to my computer from my cell so now you know I wasn't making up duckie stories....   :)

Elliott had a good walk--we walked 1.5 and jogged one but at the end his girlfriends, Nutmeg and Pepsi, joined him for a swim in the creek.  Naturally it didn't dawn on me to take a pic of the fun until I was home....  I hadn't had any coffee yet--give me a break. 

Now it's off to see if I can get today's chores finished so I can be all proud of myself for getting my chores done and have time to kick back before Da Boys get home.  Ya know, speaking of Da Boys, the end of the school year has always been a challenge for teachers, students, and parents alike.  Everyone has short-timer's attitude, parents are a little freaked at wondering how to maintain while the darlings are home ALL DAY LONG, and the weather usually adds it's little contribution of wild and wooly weather thus keeping everyone on their toes. 

We have basically two weeks of school left.  The spring has been unusually cold and rainy and windy.  The kids are just about bouncing off the walls and the parents I've talked with are one step from the asylum.  The teachers are shaking their heads wondering where the good students have gone and when the miserable little maniacs were snuck in....  I'm hoping we can all make it to the 2nd of June even though that means there's a lot more home time for the darlings to fight, wreak havoc, and generally cause mayhem wherever they go.  

I'm counting on a lot of outside play time with friends and hopefully our annual trip home will be scheduled soon so they can look forward to that and Da Folks can help me maintain sanity through the summer months but until then it's a day-to-day battle.  If I make it through the next two weeks without developing a drinking habit then it will be a victory....  }:) 

And now back to our regularly scheduled feature....

It was a dark and dreary morning.....

Well, it was but it wasn't bad.  Temp was still around 50' and it only rained on me for about half a mile during my 2 3/4 mile jog!!!!!  That's right!  I jogged 2 3/4 miles straight--only had to stop once to clean up after Da Dog.  It was wonderful and I did it in under 40 minutes and that included walking about half a mile (little over a quarter at beginning, less than at the end).  (and if the people in my house don't stop eating while using my computer I'm going to have to get Medieval on their buckets--fingers are sticking to the keys....)

Anyway--my apologies for missing the past two weeks--it's been CRAzy busy, just like everyone else, right?  First Da Folks were here and then, as I may have mentioned, I had Faculty Certification at the University of Phoenix that I was finishing up.  HOLY CATS was THAT crazy!  One of my classmates called it the Groundhog Day's of Interviewing....  But, it's done and my HR paperwork is turned in so hopefully I'll be getting my class assignment soon and I'll be teaching very soon.  WOOP WOOP!!!!  Gotta tell ya, I've never been through such an extreme interview that lasted from the end of February to mid-May--and that doesn't include the class I'll be teaching soon--THAT is the final gauge and if I do well THEN I'll be offered a position.  ACK!  :)

OH!  And let's not forget the whole renewing my Idaho teaching credential party that has to be done by September 1st.  Nothing like waiting, eh?  :)  And apparently I have to take a literacy test to re-new the Special Education portion of my credential.  Good times! Can hardly wait!  }:)

And with that, I'm already behind the 8-ball this week after losing Monday to coffee and helping first day registration for ECRG's swim classes and yesterday was lost to a migraine and new tires and an oil change.  This morning, though, I'm (literally) off and running--the kitchen and dishes are clean, the last load of laundry is in the dryer, and I have five chores to do and then I'm back on track.  Woop woop!

And with that, on with the show......

Splendid Morning for a walk, I mean, RUN!

Here they are!!!!  One mama and her duckies!!  If you click  on the picture (I just found this out yesterday) you can see it bigger and with more detail!  She was swimming with another mama but that shoot (below) didn't turn out as well as they were further away.  ***I just found out that if you click on the picture then enlarge your screen (I changed mine from 100% to 200%) you can really see them!!

And, I'm proud to report, this was the SECOND day that I RAN 2.25 miles!!!!  I'm very proud--furthest I've run EVer....  EVER!!!!

All right.  Now I have to go study for class Friday night and clean and such.  First I think I better call for some oxygen.....  Or a margarita....

Definitely a margarita....

Can you see both mamas and their gross of duckies? There must be two dozen between the two mamas!

Walking Da Dogs

Left -- Klaus, center -- Elliott, right -- Miss Margaret May Poopsalot

It was a beautiful evening--nice and mild with enough of a breeze.  All three dogs thought they'd hit the jackpot as we don't normally walk in the evening.  No turtles were sighted but we did see one mama duck with six duckies and one mama with TWELVE duckies....  DANG. 

Unfortunately it's Da Folks' last night to visit but we've had a whirlwind of a time and I think we had fun--will have to look back at the pictures to know for sure....  Too tired right now to know for sure.