Raincharm’s Weblog

Yesterday was not quite Snowmagedon, but it was snow events with slippery streets focused on the commute hours. During our Board meeting, starting at 4, the snow started coming down in inches per hour fashion. The City of Sammamish sent out messages that the roads were a mess, multiple accidents and to stay off. But we want to go home. 

I think our meeting took long enough that things had actually improved a bit by the time we left. 

And then there was the overturned propane tanker on I5 that closed the entire freeway right at the I90 area. It was closed 8 hours, long enough to limit our choices for heading back to Seattle. 

Work on the other hand went relatively smoothly. I am hoping to follow-up on my big project today and head for a March launch. (Which means my life will not be my own in 2017. )

And with all this talk about work, I spent the evening arranging logistics for a vacation. 

I worked this weekend. 

Saturday morning I was filling in my time sheet for Friday. I couldn’t figure out why it was only showing 51 hours  (I expected 80), and then I realized it was only for 1 week. But I persevered and got a few things done. All I need to do now is figure out how to squeeze about 3 weeks out of nothing so I can get my big project done on time. 

As for spring, I was watching the flowers poke up from the ground yesterday. Not so much this morning. 

We did go out last night. Dinner was good but not at either of the restaurants we were considering in the morning. The rain was hard enough to dissuade us from walking to the more distant venue. (February’s rain totals are past 7 inches) turns out the restaurant across the street closed after New Years eve. So we opted for a British themed pub just one block away. I am sure we would go back. 

The play was also quite enjoyable. Aside from one momentary stage problem with moving sets the production was very well done. The singing was really good. Based on movies and plays we have seen recently it seems there was a lot of hanky-panky going on in offices in the 50s. 

When we arrived home the movie Lust For Life starring Kirk Douglas and Anthony Quinn was just starting. We had recently seen a documentary on Van Gogh’s ear, and that piqued my interest further. The movie was worth watching, but I went to couch and only made it just past the ear scene. 

On to work and a hope for no mud slides. 

It seemed that yesterday was sweets day. At least at my office. 

Carl and I are calling today Sweetie Day. We had a play scheduled for a while and decided to pair it with dinner out. The remaining decision is where to eat. There is a restaurant directly across the street from the theater, but we are considering a different eatery that is a 10 minute stroll away. The distance is not an issue, nor is the fairly significant elevation difference.  It may come down to the strength of the precipitation falling when we arrive. 

Looking a bit bushy. 

We finally got out for a walk today, and it only rained on us for a few minutes.  The walk was really a wander with a sprinkling of errands. 

After the last errand we were close to lower woodland and Carl suggested we head to the zoo. Initially we were just going to pass through, but we ended up seeing many of the denizens. In a semi-natural habitat. 

Roaring at the tiger 

On the walk home we wandered onto a new  (for us) staircase. When walking in Seattle, dead end streets are frequently an invitation to explore. 

We are now relaxing at home watching It’s a Hard Days Night. For those that saw this new in the theater, that was more than 50 years ago. 

Continuing on yesterday’s stories, the big project is at least moving to the next step. I won’t know until the end of the month if it has legs. In the meantime I am going to set my work schedule as though it is a sure thing. 

As for the weather, yesterday it poured, complete with thunder and lightning, and rainbows that I could not see, but they had to be. And then the wind started. We lost power briefly at work, I think due to a tree falling on power lines in the neighborhood. This also snarled traffic due to blocked roads and non-functioning traffic signals. Kudos to all of the power workers that have been on the job 24-7 the entire week. 

Reclining dude is still gracing the front yard, barely. 

The bat garden is looking rather worse for wear, but the next crop is poking up.

Woo hoo. I got my first raise in 6 years or so. I really have not done anything different, but they reviewed ranges and paired me with the engineering manager. I am appreciative, but feel I  should be more excited. 

On the other hand a large project I am trying to get out of the starting blocks is in danger of stalling. I only slept about 3 hours Tuesday night, largely because I was fretting. But in true basic optimist fashion I spent yesterday trying to pull together information that could support  (or not) continuing forward at my pace for presentation at a meeting this afternoon. There is a regulatory deadline involved, but we only got one response to our request for consultants. So the question is whether they are the correct company. 

Enough about work. 

About the only snow left on our block is the reclining snowman. Temperatures are in the 40s and it is pouring.  Hard rain. 

Next natural phenomenon for the region should be flooding.  Melting snow and now an inch or two of rain. 

But as I sit in the car while my carpooler gets coffee I am reminded how much I like the sound of rain on the roof. 

Nude reclining on the lawn 

But on my way to work. 

Payroll and a few meetings. I could VPN for payroll, but the meetings would be more difficult. One is a Board meeting with an interesting hydrogeologic topic. 

And the more mundane work product as well. 

We had some company last night. A friend from Eugene OR drove up for a meeting with REI. Kind of ironic that REI called him to cancel this morning due to the snow. (Most schools are closed so it could be a child care thing.) He didn’t hit Seattle until about 6:30 last night. We had taped the Super Bowl to watch after he arrived, and another friend came over after he got off work. A small gathering with the game in the background. [I would have preferred Atlanta  to win, but the momentum shift was impressive. ]

Time for baseball and other distractions.