Louisiana has looked to claymation character Mr. Bill to help drum up its citizen’s awareness of coastal erosion. This is a serious problem, and it is hoped that Mr. Bill will help bring a familiar face to the cause. A wetlands consultant says of Mr. Bill and his new Estuary bound friends:“These are fun characters, and I think kids will be able to relate to them..”
Its certainly true that a mixed environment of fresh and saltwater was instrumental in my development.
Scott and I braved the rain for a day at Mt. Hood Meadows. Well, it didn’t rain the whole time, but with the way the snow instantly melted when landing on your goggles or coat, it may as well have been rain. Oddly though, I didn’t might the moisture because it was a great day of skiing despite the odd weather. We mostly skied the “backside” because it was better snow and much less crowded. Heather Canyon was open, and the snow was great. It was my first time on the slopes this year and my thighs started to cramp around 2 pm, but I put up with them for another hour. We were both dead tired by the time we got back, but today I’m quite lame with soreness.
After 3 weeks of vacation, I suppose I’m ready to go back to work. I’ll be sad when the snow melts because it means muddy footprints and rain. I quite liked the whole winter storm thing. All in total, got an extra 5.5 days of vacation, 5 hours without power, 15 cars helped out of the snow, and brewed 2 beers. Below are some pictures I took from my phone when Michelle and I weathered the power outage curled up on the couch with the 2 animals reading Order of the Phoenix.
What’s one more day off? Not bad. I had to drive Michelle to work this morning, which was interesting. It was sunny briefly, and I managed to get a bit done around the house. And I got some brewing ingredients, helped 4 cars that were stuck, and picked up Michelle from work. Then we shopped for some work clothes and had dinner at the Rogue Public House. The beer was amazing.
However, after 4 and a half days off, the weekend doesn’t seem all that exciting.
Yep, still at home. Some are getting cabin fever, so we tried, and ventured yonder to Tigard Cinema. Scott and I caught an early showing of Lord of the Rings. It was good, but I’m still annoyed by the crappy commercials, crappy previews, and crappy drivers in the parking lots.
On the way back, I helped a fellow in his Cadillac who obviously shouldn’t have been out driving. He was stuck trying to get up a road that even someone with chains would avoid. I pushed him back on to a major street so he could decide to try again. I’m not sure what he did though because I got in my van and drove off. I’m afraid he probably tried again to drive up the snowy street.
Barley looks quite morose; he’s been trapped inside because of the danger he’s in on the 1/2″ of ice over everything. When I let him out to poo this morning, he fell from the top step of the deck, down 3 steps into the post at the bottom of the stairs. His hip collided with the post and he stayed on the snow for a second before scrapping to get back up. My heart quit beating while he laid there, afraid he’d broken his hip. I put my shoes on and tried to punch enough holes in the ice for him to walk, but they simply caused more problems. It made the surface less predictable. He managed to relieve himself, and we went back inside. So he spent the rest of the day talking through the window at people on the street.
I thought I told you to Stay Home!
Yesterday was a lot of fun, but we were thwarted from seeing Lord of the Rings because of a natural gas leak in the projection room at the theater. Oh, and there wasn’t any heating… details.
Now if only that jerk would stop parking in front of my mailbox the postman would deliver my mail.
Message from work: “Stay home.”
Ok.
Message comes over the library intercom: “Go Home.”
It’s cold, but there still isn’t any reason not to be there.
When we arrived back in Portland on Tuesday, there were 2-3″ of snow on the ground. This morning we awoke to an accumulated 6″ on the ground with another 3″ expected to fall. The same storm is hitting most of the Northwest. Portland is grinding to a halt, as I imagine are most other cities. With any luck, I won’t have to go to work tomorrow. It should be noted however, there is no reason to believe the snowfall is the result of terrorism.
Happy New Year to all, and may it find you buried to your waste in naturally-occurring snow.
P.S. – If anyone needs a ride, I know a wicked mini-van for the job.
We’ve just returned from visiting my parents at Holden Village. The commuity, the mountains, and the people are wonderful. Even knowing about the community didn’t prepare me for how welcoming and wonderful the place would be.
Other than typical Holden activities, I did get in some great turns on new boots and we all went on a 4 mile snow shoe. The mine tailings are lovely when covered with 5 feet of snow. I’ve taken a number of pictures, and they’ll be available soon.