Raincharm’s Weblog

Sunday was a relatively fun day, if you can ignore all of the coughing.
Carl had his team’s season opener.
He got to pitch.

He thought he was going to pitch the entire game when we arrived.
Then learned probably just 6 innings, and was then pulled after 5.
I think the manager was having trouble trying to figure out how to fit everyone in, except of course there were several that did play the entire game.

When Carl left the game, his team was ahead 10-2. When the game ended they were tied, 10-10. (Time limits – after 10 innings of play)

Not to say it was not a fun game, it really was.
Much better than last year’s start, and just overall fun.
Carl’s top play, in my estimation, was spearing a (s0ft) line drive, and then picking the runner off of second. The weather was cooperative, I got to walk a few miles before the game started, and the crowd was congenial.

After the game we came home, Carl changed, and we headed out to watch one of his former charges play soccer. Had the chance to catch up with the parents, and after the real game was over, Carl got to play with a few of the siblings and players hanging around.

He was a bit tired by the end of the day.

So was I, but I think we did a reasonable job of sleeping through the night.
(This is a cough related topic. Who is coughing. Who is waking up to cough. Who is waking up the adjacent sleeper by coughing. …)

Monday, Monday. Can’t trust that day.
Finally woke up about 6:45. Only a bit late, and proceeded to get dressed for work.

It wasn’t until a few hours after arriving that I glanced at my feet, and realized I had two different shoes on.

Not quite two left feet

I shared this with a workmate. It was her birthday, and I hadn’t anything to give, except a laugh. And so the story spread. I guess I am there for comic relief. As I was leaving at the end of the day, my boss said the first thing he was going to do in the morning was check my shoes. (I don’t think this qualifies as a foot fetish.)

I consider both of my parents to be linguists.
Dad was a foreign language teacher for many years (spanish).
Mom was a librarian, and an indexer, and who knows what else.

I also spent some time on the telephone with them this morning.
We all have our pet peeves when it comes to language, or more importantly, the misuses of language.

My pet peeve is “Realtor.” In my case it is not so much misuse of the word as mispronunciation. “ReLaTor.” The word is RealTor.” For gosh sakes, just look at the spelling. (I actually saw a business card with the word misspelled.)

One of my mother’s pet peeves is the lie/lay confusion. And of course I managed to get it wrong during our conversation. And I admit to being confused at times. Because the tenses (past in particular) come in to play, there is no clear “ONLY USE IS WHEN” criteria that I might be able to master. My ears betray me. But it is not only me. My poor mother had a yoga instructor that would misuse the word. How can you relax, when your ears are tensed up in defense.

My father shared that a well-known author he was reading was having problems with the use of spanish, er mexican, words in the book. (Well known to some. Elmore Leonard. I was not familiar, but as soon as I recounted the story, Carl perked up at the name he knew.) The book in question takes place on the tex-mex border I believe. Some spanish words in used the singular form were not correct. Example: Tamales = plural. Tamal = singular. Tamale = wrong.

I suggested my father should write to the author and offer to edit his books that used spanish. He laughed off my suggestion, but then recounted that when he took a post army service test to identify the type of work he should look for, the proctor told him he should go to the Denver Post and offer to be their editor. Apparently a natural talent.

Carl and I were exploring these topics as we wandered the neighborhood in search of toothpaste and a haircut. Three of our four parents had professions that involved language. (The fourth involved numbers.) Our kids both have an ability to string several words together in their own style. Carl has a quick way with words (in my estimation), and I am a mean red-penciler of technical works at work. [I can take it as well as I dish it out.]

In the end we decided that editors have a job to do. But in the end the editor could be viewed as just a professional complainer. With that, let us lay this matter to rest.

Over the last few days I have seen references to the “Costco Craze”.
I am not sure what it means. Costco appears to be a local Puget Sound thing. Their headquarters are now located in Issaquah, but I think it may have been in Kirkland for a while. (Kirkland brand name and all.)

And Carl went to Costco today.
Sunscreen, TP, peanuts, ….., and butternut squash ravioli.

Pretty good going down this evening.
Because there are only two of us, this pretty much makes the meal. (And dessert.)

Now to settle in to our plans for the evening.

• Carl is listening to some baseball game on the radio. (Not the Mariners. They beat Detroit earlier today. And yesterday. And the day before that.)
• I am, well, blogging.
• Later I intend to add some numbers in the checkbook. (whoopee)
  Then add some other numbers into our expense listing.
• Then, (drumroll please), I am going to FILE!

OK – now I doubt that many out there can match that level of excitement!

It’s OK. I am just trying to calm myself down from a stirring day at work.
I went in because I had a meeting. But then the meeting was cancelled.
But I did manage to provide a solution for an agitated customer, that worked for us, and solved his most immediate problem. In truth though, I did dodge calling another mad-at-the-world customer.  

I am only a so-so patient.
So it was just as well I spent the day pretty much by myself.
Carl was around, and then gone, and then around, and then …

I worked from home today, and by being silent could keep the coughing minimized.

What I don’t understand is why I can sort of manage the coughing during the day, but the minute I put my head on the pillow, there is no way to stop.

I am hoping for quick z’s tonight. I really should show up at the office tomorrow, or I will have to cancel a few meetings.

The cold that was stalking me through the warm weekend has settled in.
And worse yet, I think I gave it to Carl.

I did manage to get through a public hearing last night with just some coughing (into my shoulder). Now the kleenex boxes are going to be my companion.

On the other hand. It is only a cold. An annoyance.
I may get sent home from work today (policy to not be at work when you are sick).
That would be just fine with me. (I am going in because my car is there. Oh, and we might need to debrief from the meeting last night.) If I come home, I should be able to get some work done … without exposing everybody else.

Hopefully it will not hit Carl hard.
This will be one of the few times the colds have gone from me to him. Usually it is the other way around. Or most of the time, he gets a cold, and I don’t. 

OK – I guess I know what is on my mind this morning.
If I had blogged last night you would have heard the post meeting mortem.

Today started the third nice weekend in Seattle in a row.
That should have given us an inkling that the day would be different.

And I am trying to stop a cold from taking hold.
I don’t get sick, so it was the second sign.

Took Carl to his baseball practice, went to work for the 2 hours he would be involved, finished the three small tasks I had assigned to myself, and left work at the appointed time to fetch Carl. The third sign. (I am not always prompt for picking him up.)

So off to the Mariner game. There was also a moto-cross in the adjacent stadium, so parking was at a premium. And yet, we found a free place. The fourth sign.

Once inside we found a seat at the bullpen in the sun. Carl got four White Sox pitchers to sign a baseball for him. One was Juan Nieves. He threw a no-hitter on April 15, 1987. Nice guy. Chatted up a young kid getting an autograph who did not even know who he was. The fifth sign.

The sun was inching toward our seats, so I took a scorecard and pencil (and two compost bins) and headed to right field. Carl eventually showed up and hung out a few rows back, chatting with friends.

So here is the set-up. A nice weekend, sun to heal a sickness brought on by too many cold nights out in a row, on time, parking found, good people, and the  perfect temperature.

THE GAME.
The Mariners lost to the White Sox 4-0. The game went relatively quickly, 2-1/2 hours. A good part of this was due to White Sox pitcher Philip Humber, throwing a no-hitter. My first in-person no-hitter.

Chicago

Chicago Batting (and scoring) 4 Runs

Seattle

4/21/2012 - 27 Mariners up, 27 Mariners down.

Did you notice it was a PERFECT GAME?
All those zeros, and steps in the scorecard. Three up, three down, x 9.

It is a rarity. 21 perfect games in the modern era. The 21st on the 21st.

Perfect.

Not much to talk about today.

In a word – WORK.

I don’t even remember everything I did, because very little of it was what I planned to do.

The last bit of work that I did was to attend a Public Hearing on a vision for the redevelopment of a nearby city center. I did not provide comment, and actually worked on reviewing some other information as I listened to others talk. (I had provided my comments in writing – very bland.)

And then I glanced under the chair in front of me.
I could not figure out what type of adornment was on the shoe/boot of the person in the row in front of me. A circle of sorts. Finally I discerned that what I was seeing were the holes in their socks, with their heels lifted just out of their shoes.

Well, I found it mildly amusing.

The weekend was glorious, and because the Mariner season started on Friday, it really felt like a 3-day weekend. I made it to two of the three games. My ticket for Sunday was destined for a friend, who then had to work. But by then I was happy at home, wasting the day away. Carl went for both of us.

The kids both tend to follow the comings and goings, winning and losing of the Ms. Ashlan probably more than Rey, just due to time. But I may be dissing Rey with that statement, so I will let it ride.

Anyway, there was an e-mail sort-of from Ashlan, tagging Carl in a Facebook post. With the attached statement, “Hi Dad“.

I guess I would have been surprised too. (You have to click the link to understand)

What was funnier was that on the way to the game on Friday, a workmate asked me what Carl was doing to get on the TV for opening day. I replied that Carl didn’t do things to get on TV, he just seemed to end up on TV more than the average fan. And then this. What can I say, he seems to be a camera magnet. And I can vouch that he does not go looking for cameras.

Well, maybe the Ichiro’s Bleacheros was looking, or expecting, a bit of attention. But not normally.

And today it was back to work, in the rain. But I am not complaining, because we had the weekend. In fact, the radio DJs were discussing whether Seattlites, who were sooo happy over the weekend, were in fact happier than San Diegans who have sun all the time  – and take it for granted. [I could have called in and told them that in Boulder (300 sunny days a year) we used to call it, “Another boring beautiful Boulder day. Except I was driving.]

Ice Cream Soup is a well-worn kids book living in our house.
It is a Learn to Read book, with lots of repeated words, and a story that might be interesting to kids. It follows the adventures of two siblings as they go out on an errand to buy ice cream, but get sidetracked on their way home stopping at several local stops. When they finally return home, the ice cream has turned to soup.

Carl & I spent a day out on the town yesterday.
It was a gorgeous day! Probably made it into the 60s, and the sun was in evidence from dawn until dusk. We even used sun screen.

So, here is our ice cream soup like story for the day:

• We started our walk about 9:45, heading in a generally south direction.
• First we went to the University Bridge. (You do have to choose a bridge in Seattle if you are crossing from North Seattle to downtown.)
• Then we discovered a new 190 step staircase (for us)  to Capital Hill.
• Then we went to the Starbucks. (It is Seattle after all. This one was on Broadway at the north end. Restroom Code 154.)
• Then we went to Chase Bank. (Carl chatted amiably with the teller about our plans for the day, and the teller’s plans for after work.)
• Then we went to Dicks.
• Next was a stop at Panera’s for a loaf of bread for later. (Asiago cheese focaccia)
• Then we stopped at the Jimi Hendrix statue.
• Then we wound through the many hospitals of First Hill (aka Pill Hill).
• Then we lost all of the elevation that we had gained descending Yesler.
• And we arrived at the first major destination – Qwest Century Link Field for the Sounder’s game. SOUNDERS WIN 1-0 over Colorado Rapids.
• Waited through the post-game rituals, and got to see Zach Scott, the scorer of the Sounder Goal, up close taking his kids onto the field for a few kicks.
• Next it was a hotdog (actually 2 for $5 – one for each), and out into the changing crowds. The change was from Sounder Green to Mariner Blue.
  Cross the street to the gates of Safeco Field.
• Hang out with the other fanatics for about 15 minutes waiting for the gates to open.
• Then we hang out with a few pitchers warming up. Luetge and Ramirez in this version.
• Leave to hang out at “our seats” for batting practice. Basically bask in the sun with a glove for protection if a ball should happen to find our seats. (Actually almost got a bounce up, but didn’t shift enough to the right. OK – Carl snagged it in the next row back.)
• Head to our seats for the day in the Center Field Bleachers, having sold our seats to a friend.
• We spent several innings with added entertainment from a group next to us. At least a few had apparently spent the pre-game warm-up with alcoholic beverages. One reported that another of their party had been taken away by the Police because she was too drunk to fend for herself. The group as a whole lasted until about the 7th inning.
• BUT – the strangest coincidence – probably the soberest of the group, sitting directly next to us, was none other than the teller from the Capital Hill Chase earlier in the day!
• End the game back near our seats, so we could snag a ride home from our usual seatmates.
• MARINERS WIN 4-0 over the Oakland As.
• Returned home about 12 hours after having left. Sun baked, twice winners, and having discovered a bit more of Seattle in the process.

  No ice cream melted, and there was nobody waiting at home for us to share our story with. So here it is – in pictures (at least a few pictures).

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Today is shaping up as another nice day, but I have to do at least a few things indoors. Carl? He is out playing with his playmates, and then heading to the game.