Raincharm’s Weblog

Thank God it was Friday!
Not really. I often feel like it needs to be Wednesday when it is Friday, because I still have at least two days of work to finish.

Friday was going along reasonably well.
It started on a bus. I usually have two carpoolers to arrange things with, or a car of my own to drive. However, I had one on vacation, one dropping his wife on the way (and I was not on the most efficient route for that), and the car was in the shop – just a regular 5000 mile change.

I do not mind the bus, and I know the route to work. And it was not raining.
I had just finished a book (A Prayer for Owen Meany by John Irving), and needed one for the ride. I knew Ashlan had brought back several books from UBC and had not taken many to NYC, so I went to her box. I chose Never Let Me Go by Kazuo Ishiguro. Once at the bus stop I opened to the first  page, and immediately knew I had seen this movie just a few weeks prior. I was not sure this was the tone book I wanted to go through. … Oh well.

Working towards a goal, learning a few things along the way, and even sharing teaching along the way. And then the day was speeding toward a close. A time sensitive close – since a bus was involved in an area where buses run – just not that frequently.

In the last hour of work, on a Friday afternoon, things started accelerating.

• Co-worker asks if I have the items I told him the day prior we needed to review. The reason he was actually at work today. OK …. managed to slip my mind, so I retrieved my questions and spent 30 minutes going over my questions ….
• Call from a County person willing to work with me on an issue I had been calling 3 different people at the County over the past two weeks. He was not one that I had called, but maybe he is the person I needed to speak with after all. He wants me to e-mail him information that I have so he can look at it “tomorrow,” as in Saturday. I am assuming this is not a regular work day for him, but I did not press. I understand that many government workers do put in extra time – many times because staff and budgets have been cut, and it is the only way to keep your head above the piles of work demanded of workers – supported by taxes being cut ……. So I ran around getting the information off, and hit the SEND button.
• Closed my computer down, and then realized I had never checked the bus time. Noted time at 4:38.
• At a co-workers computer trying to check bus schedules, as she is trying to get details on how to call the Alarm Company if she sets off the alarm when leaving that evening. The schedule appears with a bus arrival time of 4:44. I told her I did not have time to find the phone number for her, and left. (There were still others that could provide her with the information in the building.)
• Out the door, through the parking lot, to the walk light – which takes forever to appear after pushing the button. Cross the street, cross the cross street (did not wait for the signal), to the bus stop. Turn, look – and get on the bus.
• Think back that I was glad I did not try to help with the Alarm number, or use the bathroom before leaving.
• Open up a different book I borrowed from a co-worker. Simple murder mystery type of book, Promise Me by Harlan Coben, but more in keeping with my mood at the moment.

Traffic was awful. Glad I was not driving. I was reading and realized we had essentially stopped in the carpool lanes, and were not even on to Mercer Island yet. No problem here, relax and read.

Eventually arrived downtown and walked to Safeco Field for the Mariners vs Phillies game.
Unlike several games this fall spring almost summer, it was crowded. We did not have our regular seats, but were relatively close. A great game – and the Mariners won. Major League debut of Dustin Ackley – at second base, and he started out with a hit. Just an energetic crowd, playing against the team leading the Majors. And, a no-hitter through 5 innings (not that I was really in sync with that point, until it was almost over).

Following the game we hung around the stadium for a bit. There were so many of Carl’s friends around, and they were just chatting. (Men chat more than women in my experience.) We finally left and it was an interesting walk to the car. The slightly later leaving crowd appears to be more buzzed than those that jump out of their seats and exit. And traffic was a zoo, until we were able to get on a major thoroughfare and head north.

Our day was not done yet – we stopped at Dick’s for burgers (no dinner yet), dropped a friend at home, and then headed to pick up a car that had been biding its time at the shop – waiting for retrieval. Home after 11 PM, just a bit tired.

Remember the reason for this blog was to keep the kids informed of life on the home front.

We went to the Mariner’s game last night.
Fun – AND WE WON – and the temperature was more reasonable, and it didn’t rain – at all. (Although we did have to watch the Canuck’s score get worse and worse)

And this morning it is sunny.
Caught the eagle on a light post over the freeway instead of the sculpture.
It was actually hard to see him/her because of the sun shining in from behind.

I kind of just want to be out taking a walk.
I could get past this if the weekend were predicted to be sunny too, but this seems to be a 1 to 1-1/2 day spell. And we are still 2 days away from the weekend.
There is a small part of my brain that says, “Take the day off, and work a weekend day.” I could probably swing this, but one of the cross Lake Washington bridges is going to be closed the entire weekend, so another part of my brain says, “Stay in Seattle. Don’t travel – even much in Seattle.”

The ripple effect of taking a major corridor out of service can be mind boggling. I think that being the DOT scheduler for these major closures must be really interesting. You have to consider what you need to get done, whether it is better to close and go for broke, or try to work around traffic, evening only, full day, full weekend, and what else is going on around that you will completely impact.

Last weekend was UW graduation. Since the bridge in question dumps directly onto the UW graduation site, I think last weekend would have been nixed. This weekend there is the Solstice Parade and Fremont Fair, and probably several other “neighborhood” events, and the Mariners, and ….. It’s a big city, there is always something.

And – Happy Anniversary to Mom and Dad, and 2 days late to Mom & Dad-in-law. You all set a high standard for us to follow.

24 hours ago I was probably sitting at the computer – checking e-mail.
Kind of like right now.

But, the hours preceding the computer time were really different.

Yesterday I got to go to not one, but two Board meetings.
The first sent staff into silent tizzies, ranting quietly on the sidelines.
I was thinking I was the only one being driven crazy, when another co-worker leaned over and whispered, “I am going to run screaming from this room!”
In the second meeting I was pilloried by a property owner who was not happy with some information I had provided him about sewer. Of course, the meeting was all about water, and the other 40+ people did not get drawn in.

Tonight, a few degrees colder (50’s I am thinking), but I got to experience them while sitting outside at a Mariner’s game. A couple of friends/acquaintances of Carl, along with 15,000 to 20,000 others. Mariner’s lost to the Angels, but still – it was nice to be out with other like-minded individuals, letting the days efforts wash away. [Not quite literally, it rained before – and after the game, but not during.]

It’s raining, again.

But there is still beauty.
On the way in to work, the eagle was not posted on the sculpture next to the bridge. And I don’t recall seeing them in that location in the rain previously.

And then came the bird, flying just above the bridge deck, about 20 feet north of the bridge itself. Level, powerful, beautiful.

A good start to a work week.

We had a rather normal weekend.

Work. Carl Baseball. Sounder Soccer.
Sleep.
Carl Baseball. Jay Soccer.

It was a nice weather weekend.
Not too hot. Not too cold.
And not raining.

And now it is time to sleep again.

We have had two full days now of empty nest.
Nothing has changed.

That’s not really true.
What hasn’t changed is where all of our house’s debris is located.
Except a small, but heavy, amount that should be winging its way toward the east coast.

Back here at the ranch, life has continued – work, work, work, and a little play.
If the WORK part will slow just a bit, maybe there will be progress toward at least organizing the debris around the house. As always it is probably easier to start with a room, but I feel the need to start in the lower reaches of the basement – where the, “most likely to be discarded,” debris lives.

If the temperature would rise above the 60’s I might be more tempted to spend time in the cool depths. July 5th (Seattle’s traditional summer start) is still a bit in the future, so I will have to use willpower to get me downstairs.

Oh – Ashlan, we still need to measure the basement. Weekend home to help?

Oh the places you’ll go
Dr. Suess

She was ready. Freaked, but ready.

The Gathering of Ones Things

Packed before 11 PM the night before.
Up at 6:30 AM
Off to the airport by 8 AM, with only a few tears all around.

We only had to remove a few things from the bags to meet the 50 lbs each limit.

Packed for adventure

And then she was gone from sight.

Each person approaches lives changes in their own way.
Ashlan tends to have an idea, arrange it so it can happen, and then take the leap.
I know I took off when I was her age, but I think I was not so brave.

I just finished the last post and realized my focus on getting one kid out of town had led me to forget the other child. And it’s his BIRTHDAY!

My the years are flying by. Since I am at work – we will limit this to a picture from last summer. HAPPY BIRTHDAY REY

Rey + Jane - beachbound

Well a mild sort of wild.

One full of activities that leave you falling asleep rather easily afterward.
It really seemed like a wild week overall.

Travel, party, wonderful weather, sports, …… packing.

All true, except perhaps the packing part.

I will admit that the packing part has been delayed by all of the other activities that inserted themselves into our weekend. Saturday we were party central. Sunday was sports central. Carl had a baseball game, we all had the Mariners game (Ms won), and then Ashlan and I had a soccer game.

Then it was home for some food, visit with Rey (skype) and a bit of TV via dvd.
(I am not sure I can say that Ashlan fully participated in the last bit … although she was in the room.)

There has been packing, and unpacking, but today the packing must be completed.

That’s right! Tomorrow is moving day – at least for the little one.
So the last week and a half is culminating tomorrow morning (for us) and tomorrow evening (for her).

Perhaps tomorrow evening should be viewed less as an ending, and more as a beginning.

It was an absolutely gorgeous day.
Started cool, but warmed up quickly. My first day in shorts this year.

And we had a party.
That was after the yard work, Mariners game, shopping trips (2) and general cleaning.

The party was for Ashlan’s graduation and going away.
A smattering of neighbors, friends, and co-workers.
Folks that have seen her grow up.

We had some pictures around, and diplomas and mortar boards from both Kindergarten and UBC.

Smackeral type food plus tater-tots. An amazing amount of food was eaten, and yet we still have a full refrigerator.

A champagne toast (sparkling cider for the little kids) during which I teared up, and when everyone was taking a drink Jet (5-years old) announced, “Naked Butts!”

Most has been cleaned up, although dishes still remain.
That is for tomorrow – which is supposed to be gorgeous again!

Sorry there are no pictures – it just didn’t happen.