Orlando Conference!

Guess where we went this week?

(Ok, so yeah, this looks like Savannah, but it's not.)

It's ORLANDO!

We went down to Orlando on Monday through Wednesday, because I was scheduled to speak at a national conference there. See? Here's my little presentation thingie on their website:

http://www.aaohn.org/education/symposium-expo/Advance_Program/Tuesday.cfm

I did two presentations, one on Plain Language and one on Presentations (I call it my Presentation Presentation). They both went quite well. I had about 50-60 people in the Plain Language class and about 130 in the Presentation class. I had forgotten how much I enjoy speaking to groups like that. Anyway. Here's the only picture I got of the conference center:

It was BIG. The hotel was right next to it, but because my classes were on the opposite side of the conference center building (and I am not exaggerating at all - they were in the far corner!), it was about a half mile walk just to get to the right room. We got a lot of exercise, but not enough to compensate for the delicious food that we absolutely buried ourselves in. Yum. More on that later.

Here is a picture of the hotel, from the pool area:

The pool area was nice, and the hotel looked really pretty on the inside, but the rooms were just average. Nice, but not incredible. Also? Everything cost a ton of money - guess they expect people who stay there to be able to afford it. I dunno. It did have seriously snazzy furniture in the lobby though:

Love those chairs!

We went out the first night to an incredible Greek restaurant called Taverna Opa. I HIGHLY recommend this place if you're going to Orlando. The food was amazing - we had gyros with lamb and beef, and they tasted like the ones I had when I was actually in Greece. They also had baklava. YUM.

There was also a belly dancer. I tried to get her picture with Noel in the foreground, but the flash wasn't cooperating. See her in the background, with a sword on her head?

Here's a better picture of her:

One other fun thing was the floor decoration. :) We overheard the manager say that they weren't allowed to break plates on the floor like they're supposed to, so instead they would throw handfuls of napkins into the air and they settled on the floor (or your drink, or your head). Then people would get up and start dancing. Fun stuff!

I guess I should include a photo of myself. This is me cheesing it up in the hot tub. Good stuff!

Just call me Busty Sinclair.

One weird thing we saw in Orlando was a hands-on museum that was designed to look like it was picked up by a tornado and dropped intact but upside down into the city. How cool is this?

I loved that the palm trees by the building are still hanging there upside down. We didn't go in (they were having some fancy-schmancy conference cocktail party going on when we went by there). Anyway, it was certainly interesting!

So we got back Wednesday evening and I had to go to work on Thursday to the boringness of everyday life. We had a great time though - the weather was beautiful, the presentations went well, and much food was enjoyed by all!

The end.

A Story of Springtime!

Ah yes, chickadees. It's that time of year. Spring! When the weather turns nicer (except for the cold spell we've had for the last 2 days - freezing last night! Brrr!) and my general feeling is one of not wanting to be inside. I get antsy, ready to move, ready to go, wanting to not sit in an office and file papers. It's hard! I suffer miserably! I'm like a child who is impatiently waiting for summer break to arrive, fighting my urge to heed the siren call of verdant growth!

Everything is frolicking!

Bright green tree frogs are singing! Butterflies are fluttering their way from flower to flower! Ladybugs daintily flit from one leaf to another! It's lovely! It's magical! It's enchanting!

So I go outside! I want to be part of the effervescent life of spring! I run outside, ready to frolic as well as any fuzzy caterpillar! (Do caterpillars frolic?) I want to be one with nature! I want to breathe in the deep scented air of spring!

I throw open the door and leap into the great green yonder!

And immediately lose a pint of blood, because every mosquito and sand gnat within a 5 mile radius can smell me coming and hone in like bloodhounds (pardon the pun there).

Then in a flank attack, every particle of pollen that was released around the house mysteriously finds its way into my nasal passages, where it attacks my sinuses like so many fluffy golden viking berzerkers.

So I frolic my way back inside to the couch and Spike Channel's CSI marathon and my knitting bag.

Cue Benadryl.

The End.

It's raining, It's pouring, the old man is snoring!

See this?

Yeah, we're right in the middle of that. Helloooooooo flash flooding! Also possible tornado problems tonight. Hurrah!

Also, please see the following link:

http://www.wtoc.com/global/story.asp?s=10119103

That's where I was today - shaking hands and explaining to children at a local middle school how important water is. And getting my picture taken by the media. 2 news stations were there, so I expect to be on the tv news tonight too. Looking slightly pudgy. Sigh. I must lay off the doritos. Sersely. One of my coworkers told me that tv cameras make you look 25% bigger than you actually are. Which makes me wonder how much (or little) do those teensy little women on the weather channel weigh? Because...wow. Eat a burger. Take mine. No really.

What else is happening here other than doritos and rain? Hmm...knitting. I've been knitting a lot lately which is nice. :) Surprises! So I can't elaborate. But I will be taking pictures.

Also yesterday was a big family holiday for us: April Fool's Day. My sister came up with a fun idea - get everyone (everyone!) to tell my mom Happy Birthday, despite the fact that her birthday is actually in May. hee hee. I sent an ecard from the kittens, and one of Rachel's friends made her a little cake and brought her a balloon. hee hee. Fun stuff.

Of course, Noel got me good by pretending his arm was broken at work, and I went running for my car keys before he started laughing. And then I kicked him soundly in the rear end. Because yes, he got me good! Not many people can - I'm usually pretty cynical. However, I am apparently also gullible when not properly caffeinated.

On a totally different note a blog I've been enjoying lately is http://www.cakewrecks.blogspot.com/. Hee hee. You should check it out if you have time.

Also, a great knitting blog is http://www.brooklyntweed.blogspot.com/ - this guy is a phenomenal knitwear designer. Gorgeous stuff - I love me some aran cables and this guy has serious talent. Too bad we're about 3 weeks away from sweltering down here!

A Tale of Two Kitties

Happy Monday. I think. Mondays are usually a bit fuzzy for me. Anyway.

This is picture heavy, so be patient! (Unless you don't like seeing adorable photos of two irresistably cute kitties, in which case don't be patient and go to http://www.msnbc.com/ or something else responsible and rather dull).



Kitties!



The kitties have been growing like crazy. Today was the day that they got their new collar tags, and they're now wearing their collars (very unhappily, I might add). The collars have little bells on them and the boys aren't used to wearing anything around their necks (or on any other part of their bodies!) so the collars are definitely throwing them for a loop.



However. They need to wear collars. It's not safe for them if they get out of the house, because they could get lost. Now their tags have their name, phone numbers, and the number for the animal hospital where they go (and an identification number). Just in case.



Also, it's helpful because the kitties are so big! They're hard to tell apart unless you're looking them right in the face! So without any further ado, here they are:

Can you tell who is who in that picture? That's Poe on the left and Loki on the right.

Poe (above) enjoys lounging on the sofa and clawing whatever piece of fabric he can drag around. Poe also has a penchant for stealing things when you're not looking. So far he's taken(allegedly - he's hard to pin down):

- 8 pens

- 5 chapsticks

- 1 pair of glasses (quickly re-confiscated & locked in drawer)

- 1 tomato-shaped pin cushion (panic set in when I looked up and saw it missing!)

- 1 Bettie Page refrigerator magnet

- 1 pair of earrings attached to the card from when they were purchased

- 1 To-Do list left carelessly on the living room ottoman

Moral of the story is, you really have to watch General Poereguard. He'll take anything.

Loki, on the other hand, is playful but generally will go with the flow, and is also the household bon vivant. Totally mellow and a complete love sponge, this one:

He loves napping in the sun. He loves napping anywhere. (That toy beside him is one that I crocheted for them - they love it!)

The little bald spot on his front leg is from the bloodwork they did for his little boy surgery. It's growing back fine, just looks a little weird on such a dark kitten!

So here are the boys modeling their new collars. Poe in the blue (because Edgar Allen Poe was nothing if not a little blue sometimes) and Loki in the red (because he's a little fireball!)

Poe is our household supermodel.

But can you argue with this type of charisma?

Still, I don't think they're too thrilled about the collars yet. I asked Loki to work the camera, and this is the face he gave to me:

SO CUTE I COULD EAT HIM. But not happy about the collar. Alas, they will have to suffer until they adjust. That's just all there is to it. Sorry boys!

By the way, some of you may have remembered my crappy rugby tournament photos. Yes, I bought a new camera - a GE A735 7.0 megapixel digital. The important thing to know is that it's red and very cute. :) It seems to take great pictures so far! Also, it doesn't seem to eat batteries like candy! Which is good. I'm liking it so far, and will keep on taking stupid photos to give you guys some modicum of entertainment. You're welcome. :)

Rugby Redux

So it's Thursday after St. Patrick's Day. This weekend is always a hectic time around here. We avoided as much of the crowds as possible, but did make it out to the rugby tournament. Fun for all sizes!

I took some photos for you. It was a gorgeous and sunny day (I even managed to get a little bit of a sunburn!). Noel really enjoyed learning about rugby and enjoying the sunshine and violence. Heh. He couldn't believe (1) how brutal it is, and (2) that I used to play it.

There was a lot of scrumming going on:

And men in kilts (how fun!). Let me apologize now for the crappy quality of some of these photos. For some reason my camera decided to bleach out every one of the pictures I took that day, but then any other pictures I took later were too dark. (There may be a new camera in the future, says Madame Xentoria).

Anyway, kilts! Fun stuff!

There were about 60 teams at this year's tournament (a bit smaller than past years, but with the economy and so on, blah blah talky no money blah blah).

One team that caught our attention was this team. (Prepare yourself for un-PC-ness, and I'm not kidding). I tried to get a good picture of their jerseys but again the camera bleached all the color out. These pics I doctored up bigtime with Picasa so they'd not look like we were in the middle of a nuclear holocaust.

Anyway. Back to it. The back of their jerseys looked like this:

A big caution sign that said "Caution: Slow Children At Play." Nice.

The front of the jerseys looked like this:

Why yes, you're right. It's a short bus.

Ladies and gents, I present to you a rugby team who called themselves...

The Retards.

Now before anyone sends me hate mail for putting this up, let me add that I found out later that Retards stands for something, but honestly I don't remember what now. Sorry. Anyway, I couldn't help but think it was a little funny, and they had a lot of people come out to watch their games. Rugby is nothing if it's not PC.

Also? These were some big boys.

This photo just makes me feel plumb svelte, I tell ya. I might put it on the fridge everyday to remind myself to eat more girl scout cookies.

Tomorrow is the first day of spring. Happy spring! Enjoy the pollen! I don't know where you guys live, but we've got a fine layer of yellow/green on everything. It's not an easy time of year for the allergy-ridden, particularly since it hasn't rained much at all and so the pollen is free to assault you with its itchiness.

Kittens Ok!

First off, let me happily report that the kittens are fine and playing joyfully and seem totally unphased that they're missing 2 little body parts each. They also ate like horses, despite the vet's comment that they might not feel like eating. Yeah right. She obviously hasn't seen these guys in action.

Loki has some gum swelling, which is odd, and had worms again (Aren't you thrilled to hear this? And shouldn't I have warned you because you might be eating? Sorry). Anyway, they're taking care of that, but it may explain his weight. He actually weighed a half pound LESS than he did about a month ago. So I'm giving him some new kitty treats that are supposed to help his teeth and gums to be healthy, and hopefully he'll get all healed up. Not that you could tell anything was wrong with him, the way he attacked his toys as soon as he got home.

I crocheted them another little yarn ball with a bell in it, and I tell you: it took about 20 minutes to make (at most) and they loved it. It's easy for them to pick up with their claws and throw, and then they can chase it like the jungle jaguars that they are, stalking an innocent springbok or other assorted 4-legged deer-like mammal. Grr!!! They're tough! Until it's naptime, then they want to be petted. :)

So! For all of you crocheters/cat owners/bored people, here is my basic recipe for a toy ball:

What you need:
- Regular old acrylic yarn (worsted weight - like Red Heart)
- Size G crochet hook
- polyfill stuffing
- jingle bell (1/2 inch size is good)
- scissors
- yarn needle

Chain 2.

Make 6 single crochets (sc) in the 1st chain stitch. This will turn it into a circle. Take a piece of scrap yarn to mark the beginning of the round (put the piece of scrap yarn right next to your last stitch and crochet over it when you start the next round. Then you can just pull it out and place it at the beginning of the next round).

First round: *2 sc in each stitch* repeat til the end of the round- 12 stitches

Second round: *2 sc in next stitch, 1 sc in next stitch* repeat til the end of the round - 18 stitches

Third round: *2 sc in next stitch, 1 sc in next 2 stitches* repeat til end of round - 24 stitches

Rounds 4-8: *1 sc in each stitch* repeat til end of round - 24 stitches (this is the part that starts to make your little circle into a cup shape)

Round 9: *dec next 2 stitches to 1 stitch, 1 sc in next 2 stitches* repeat til end of round - 18 stitches

At this point, you can start stuffing the filling into your ball. I like to wrap some of the filling around the bell and stuff it in, so that the bell is pretty much in the middle of the ball.

Round 10: *dc next 2 stitches into 1 stitch, 1 sc in next stitch* repeat til end of round - 12 stitches

Round 11: *dc next 2 stitches into 1 stitch* repeat til end of round - 6 stitches

Stuff any more filling you want into the ball to make it round and fairly full.

Cut working yarn about 5 inches away from your last stitch and thread it into your yarn needle. Stitch the needle through each of the remaining 6 stitches in order, and pull tight. This will tighten up the hole in the top. Tie a little knot and weave the end into the middle of the ball. Trim ends.

Throw at kitten and watch the fun!

So! I expect to see photos of the beautiful kitty play balls that you create! :)

It's another lovely day here again. Although the bugs are BAD. But it's a bit cooler, and the rain is supposed to arrive tomorrow. Just in time for the weekend! Hurrah!

Truck repair and so on.

Good morning everyone. Sorry I haven't posted in a week! Wow. Time is flying by lately.


First off, let me say that the weather here has been gorgeous. Today it's supposed to get up to 84. It's sunny and bright out, and yes I'm stuck inside. But. At least I have a window. I can enjoy it from afar!


This weekend is the start of the St. Patrick's Day festivities here in the SAV. As per usual, I will be fastidiously avoiding downtown like the plague. It can be a mob scene down there, with too many drunk people weaving around and trying to give away their $1 beads to equally drunk exhibitionists. So! Yeah. Not going to that. Been there before, was designated driver. Boy is that fun, being DD in a crowd of 100,000 really drunk people. Don't bother to sign me up for that one again this year, thanks.


However! We will be attending the rugby tournament again this year, at least for a while. Noel wants to see what all the fuss is about (and probably to imagine little ole me being a rugby bruiser back in the day before my spine and knees told me NO! Bad Kelli!). Apparently this year there will be 2 teams of Irish prison guards flying in to play. HA! That should be fun! hee hee. I love me some rugby. It's such a gentle sport, a delicate ballet of strategy and grace. See?

HA! Just kidding.

Sersely though, the rugby tournament will be the only festivities I plan on attending. St. Patrick's Day is just getting out of hand here, and Noel said blithely the other day that he thinks it's only a matter of time before someone gets shot downtown during all the partying. I fear he's right. But. I might have some corned beef or a reuben or something, in honor of the Irish.

On a side note, I think I may have brought this up previously, but I have a dear friend who doesn't celebrate St. Patrick's Day at all, because it represents the stamping out of traditional pagan religion in Ireland and the dominance of the Catholic church. What's to celebrate? Good point. (I still might have a reuben though. Nothing personal).

On to other things now! Now some of you may know of (some of) my childhood career aspirations:

1. Long-haul truck driver with a pink truck and a kitten (I still think this would be fun)
2. Ballerina
3. Skating waitress
4. Sex symbol (at age 8. CREEPY)
5. Shoe salesperson (except the whole touching other people's feet thing dissuaded me of this)
6. Mechanic


Well, this past weekend I FINALLY got my first chance at #6. Noel wanted to do some work on his truck and offered to teach me some stuff about mechanic-ing. Cool! I jumped in and we replaced the shocks and the head valve gaskets (I think that's what they're called - obviously I didn't quite absorb EVERYTHING). Anyway. I helped! And we have photographic evidence!

Replacing the shocks on the front of the truck:






One must remember eye safety. And also safety glasses help with the whole Bono look:





(Also please note that the above photograph was a retake after the first photo showed a severe case of what I affectionately call Mechanic's Butt. It's like plumbers butt, but involves slightly more motor oil in a desperate attempt at keeping one's waistband pulled up with very dirty hands. Aren't you glad I shared that?)


Next up, replacing the gasket thingies (industry term). They're made of cork and form a seal around the heads (ahem, pretend I know what I'm talking about here). Anyway, the cork was old. This truck is old. 1971. So! Old cork. It had fused onto the metal on the head valve thing. So my job was to sit in the engine and take a scraper and get up the old cork so the new cork could be put on.





It was at this point that Noel commented that it's a good thing I'm small and agile, because most people couldn't work in this position. Or if they could they wouldn't be able to extract themselves out of the truck afterwards.


My hands got very dirty! I still have some residual grease stains on my cuticles, but I feel it makes me look utilitarian and tough and somehow sorta Mad Max. I like it. It was really fun working on the truck. I enjoyed the hands-on of it all, and the truck is running better and smoother now, which is very satisfying. This weekend we may be replacing the spark plugs or some wires or something. I dunno. But it'll also be fun!


I might not wear that shirt again for a while though. I never realized how bad my hair and that shirt clash. It's like Pretty in Pink. But not pretty. More like Colorblind Fashion No-No. But who cares. I was a mechanic for the day!


Also, (yet another) side note: Noel realized after we finished all this work that I hadn't taken a picture of him doing anything. He did. He really did work, I swear. He isn't forcing me into indentured mechanicship! :) Next time I'll try to get a pic of him in action.


In other (kitten-related) news, the boys are not having a good day today. Today is the day that they get their little special surgery that turns them from little boy kittens into....little kittens. If you catch my drift. They were NOT happy about seeing the crate this morning, and Poe decided to make like lightning and sprint every time I got near him. I cornered him under a chair and he hissed at me! ME! The one who gives him yummy tuna snacks and brushes his fur and scoops his box! And he didn't even know what was coming yet. It took me a solid 20 minutes to catch him. Meanwhile poor Loki was already in the crate and mewing pitifully because he was alone. Poor little guys.


Anyway, I dropped them off at the vet's this morning and will pick them up this afternoon. Loki weighed in at 3.9 lbs, which seems small to me considering he weighed about that last time we took him in. Poe, on the other hand, is HUGE. He was 6.9 lbs, and he's only about 8 months old. He's going to be a big kitty. I think they both will, but maybe Loki hasn't hit a big growing streak in a while yet. Poe just feels solid now, a clawing hissing little pile of muscle. Loki is still a love sponge and loves to sit on me and purrs so loud I have to turn up the tv. So cute.

In my attempts at making up to them for their imminent de-boying, I crocheted them a kitty bed out of my birthday yarn. Here's Loki posing for the camera (sorry it's so dark!):

I made it in a vaguely triangular shape, then knit the sides high. They were so floppy I went with Plan B, which was to make them even higher, fold them over, make a tube, and stuff it with some pillow fill. It makes a nice squishy pillow edge to the thing. I haven't actually seen them in it since this photo was taken, but I take comfort in the fact that they understand the hours of work that went into it and appreciate more than they can ever express to me. I am perhaps living in a state of denial.

I also knit them a kitten toy, but forgot to take a picture of it. Whoops! Maybe later. They seem to enjoy that thing a lot. It's a cute little bouncy toy ball on a spiral that hangs from a doorknob. Big hit. Might have to make a few more of those.

In honor of their impending surgery, I wrote a haiku:

Kittens getting snipped
What was there will now be gone -
licking not as fun.

I am, perhaps, not quite right.