In the interest of getting out of the house and exploring Portland more, I convinced Matt to go exploring with me on the second Saturday of each month. Summer got in the way, but we’re doing what we can. This weekend we went to see the recently renovated water reservoir that serves our area. It’s part of Washington Park which includes the arboretum, the zoo, the Japanese garden and other lovely spaces.
We wandered around some while we were there.
This weekend is both the six year anniversary of my best friend’s death and the 19th anniversary of my mom’s.
I’m not the same person I was before either of those things happened, but I think I need to figure out how to resolve some things in myself about these losses. I’m still a bit stuck.
Watched: The Whisper Man ๐ฟ
I probably wouldn’t have picked this on my own, but it was highly recommended by a friend. Tense, but really good.
The doctor is concerned I’m not getting enough sleep. “What wakes you up at night?”, she asked.
Last night I woke up to the cat removing its left paw from one side of my face before placing its right paw on the other side of my face. Then the other night I woke up to the sound of my own voice speaking in German. (I’m curious what the rest of that dream was about, but who knows?!)
I’m not convinced this is a medical problem. Maybe it’s causing a medical problem?
It seems that the way I want to use this site doesn’t translate well to posting from my phone. That combined with my attempts to avoid a computer outside of work doesn’t align with my interest is posting here more often. I’m making my own problems, it seems.
Watched: The Marvelous Mrs. Maisel Season 5 ๐ฟ This show is excellent. I didn’t enjoy the last season as much as the rest, however it’s still solid. Seeing so many of the Gilmore Girls actors working together was really fun too.
Watched: Terminator 2: Judgment Day ๐ฟ
This was showing at the local theater today for the 35th anniversary. I still remember being so freaked out by the special effects in the original showing. We opted to sit in the DBox seats today for the first time. I suspect there’s some movie where that adds to the experience, but it seemed like more of a distraction than anything.
Watched: Spider-Man: Brand New Day ๐ฟ
We went to see this yesterday morning. Great movie.
It was a good day. Delicious food, stitchy time with friends, phone calls from both kids, kind wishes from several remote friends and a lovely evening with my sweet husband. A nice way to celebrate my birthday.
I prefer the waterfront location of Oregon Health and Science University. This is a different view of Portland than I usually see.
(The mammogram was definitely less pleasant than the view.)
Heading home today. It would be fun to stay long enough to see the new place get arranged, but I guess that’s not to be. It’s been nice (well, and exhausting) being here with Val and her family though.
I’ll miss my snuggle buddy/late night TV watching friend.
Sheesh, moving is hard. We’re so close to having everything out of my sister’s house. The painters showed up to start prepping the house and kindly offered to help carry stuff out for us. I might have been willing to offer inappropriate sexual favors to avoid having to carry another 30 or so heavy boxes down the stairs today so I was grateful they offered first.
My sister is the most organized person I know. She’s the most organized person most people know. The number of times someone has said it’s too bad they can’t be like or marry someone like Val is not small. No one has ever said this about me. When we pulled a dresser away from the wall, I realized I was surprised to see dust on the baseboard in Val’s house.
With how quickly they found a new place after unexpectedly deciding to move, there just wasn’t time to prepare. Helping my incredibly organized sister move when she hasn’t had time to pack is interesting. She uses containers to organize things. Containers in containers often. Her house is always clean and welcoming. Are containers the secret I’ve been missing all my life? Ha!
Anyhow, I’m tired and grateful to be here.
It was another long day of moving, but the end is in sight. This new home is going to be lovely once they get themselves settled.
If I ever move again, I might just start by hiring one of those people to stand at the nearest corner with a big “Closing sale! Everything must go!” sign. That might just be my aching feet talking though.
This is how we’re all feeling and the day isn’t over yet.
The movers are here to help with all the bulky/heavy things. Having furniture at the new house will make moving the remaining stuff a lot easier. We’re all tired and sore which makes moving anything difficult.
I’m down in Santa Clara for a week helping my sister and her family move. Being a helper allows one to see all the emotions involved in the process, not just the work. It’s a lot no matter how you look at it.
I got to see LCD Soundsystem last night with Matt and Sam. It was a great concert and the weather was excellent. The smoke cleared out just in time.
I let my prescription run out so I’ve been miserable all day, but seeing this at the local bakery after getting my refill makes everything brighter.
Watched: Gifted ๐ฟ
I enjoyed this. The cast is excellent.
The neighbor texted this evening to ask if I had the ability to drill a hole in a 2x4. “Yes.” Two hours later I got another text asking if I could drill a 1.5" hole in a 2x4. “Probably. What are we making?” My doorbell immediately rang.
I made a wicket tonight, modified to work on the street, I guess. I was kind of glad our previous cricket series ended before my front window got damaged.
Wish me luck.
Seeing The Odyssey in 70 mm is well worth it.
I have been a mother for exactly half of my life as of today.
As you’d expect, this is easily the most impactful event shaping who I am and how I perceive the world. I am so grateful that I get to watch my children continue growing as lovely, considerate, amazing humans alongside the lovely, considerate, amazing human that made me a mother to begin with.
For the past two years, I’ve been coordinating the core tool classes at the local woodworking guild. In that time, we’ve certified somewhere close to 650 people to use our shop.
Depending on a lot of factors, we’ve found that some of those students really aren’t ready to use the core tools independently after the class. While there’s a lot that goes into that, I think the core issue is whether they have the confidence to come back to the shop SOON after completing the class so they can solidify what they’ve learned with a real project.
I have been working on a proposal to add a third session to the class where we give each student plans and wood for a simple project that they will then complete essentially independently in our shop. As much as possible, I want that third session to resemble one of our open sessions where members use our shop to work on projects of their own except with the benefit of knowing that everyone in the shop understands you’re at the beginning of your guild membership and is there for support.
I definitely did not expect it to take nearly a year to get alignment from all the necessary parties and work out all the details, but we’re finally trying this starting in August. We’re treating the first couple months as an experiment; we know we’ll learn a lot as we adjust to this new schedule.
Today, some of the instructors and regular class assistants got together to assemble the first batch of project kits. The number of times someone said, “This is really happening!” was pretty funny. I definitely said it myself more than once.
I took some photos to mark the occasion. (Some of the simple projects students will be making included.)
Watched: The Newsroom ๐ฟ
We watched this series again recently, it’s just so good. Turns out people behaving with integrity is quite compelling.