Spring in Reno

Apocalyptic windstorms and



snow on the tulips.  Welcome to Spring in Reno.

Bonus this morning: a little earthquake

Calamitous Camping

I was going to head to Portland for my birthday this weekend even taking Sunday off. It was to be a little escape for Momma for less than 49 hours. Plans fell through. I decided that I wanted to so something, as I did not want us to be sitting here on Saturday or Sunday wondering what we should do after the day has already passed.

I decided since the weather was nice, we should go camping. Good weather, break in the Eurovan, and we could take Cina.  Marc grabbed a California Camping book from the library ( I won't even link to it so as to not waste your time.)  And he chose a camp site fairly close near Colfax.  It was rated as one of the writer's favorites.

We packed up.  Sleeping bags, cooking necessities, food, diapers, chairs, and more all filled the van. It was a beautiful day.  Sid got a nap the whole way there and Lola was beyond excited for camping.  Even Cina was delighted as she gazed out the window of the van.

It only took us about an hour and a half to get there.  After a very narrow, winding road we were in a canyon next to the North Fork of the American River.  It was very beautiful.  We pulled in.  Finally, after some confusion, found our site.  The first problem was that our table and fire pit were on one side of the road and van parked on the other.  This would be fine, except we were sleeping in our van and all traffic (mainly a lot of foot traffic) went right through our camp.  I don't think this site would be appropriate for even for tent sleepers as there was no good place for a tent.  We had a toilet pit close that was infested with bugs until the maintenance crew came by and sprayed it out.  But Lola refused to use it, even after clean up.  She had to go a number of times and took it upon herself to just start peeing near the big rocks at our site.

We set up, ate, and then decided to take a hike down to the river. Off we went down a dirt path and then right into rugged, rocky terrain.  Huge rocks to try and maneuver over with dog, toddler and baby on my back. Not fun and we couldn't get very far.  So we headed to the other side of the campsite. This is where there were kayakers and rafters getting in and out of the water on a very small beach type area. We headed over a bridge and it ended into the road we had come in on. We couldn't hike in the other directions as we were were in a very deep canyon with very steep sides. So we headed back into camp.

I asked Marc what time it was thinking somewhere around 3pm.  Nope. 1:30.  We had been there only a little over an hour and had seen all we could really see.  Ugh.  Two young kids - one that needed another nap shortly and the other who took to greeting everyone that trekked by.  It was......well, boring.  It would have been great to have been able to go further on a walk or hike or at least an area where you could get near the water.  Nope.  Nothing.  Marc and I chatted about the idea of leaving, but we had put some time into getting ready.  Did we really want to pack it all up and head home?  We thought we could stick it out.

I got Sid to sleep and put him in the camper across the road. Lola and I headed down to try and find some better vantage points to get to the water. It was still very rocky and I wouldn't even let her hand go for a second fearing she would fall in. As we walked back to camp, some Indian type drumming started from the other end of camp.  Loud drumming and chanting.  We got back just in time to see Sid being extracted from the van after a very short 15 minute nap. Then I asked what time it was....again.

I love life. I like free time. I do not like the idea of wasting time or wishing it by. It really had come to a point of waiting to make dinner, start a fire and go to bed which were all hours away.

It was time to go home. I was ready.  I felt defeated.  Weird banging, boredom and aggravation of nowhere to go.

We were home by 6pm. it was still fun, just not a good place to take the kiddies. We were tired. We cooked our intended camping dinner on the electric stove and the grill. Even cooked our intended breakfast on the very same stove!

I am in no way giving up on camping. I am looking forward to doing a lot of it this summer. It just will require a bit more investigation.

Downs and ups

Wanted to post this yesterday when, it seemed, the world was so full of bad things I felt compelled to document it.  Things aren't as bad right now ~ I'm on the back deck with a cold hefeweizen, thinking about what I need to do for a brief camping outing this weekend.  Since we're working folks, and need to be back on Monday, a quick jaunt over the hill to a campground near Auburn should whet our appetite for outdoor life for the season.

But yesterday, it seemed the future was pretty dark.  Just enough thoughts coming in that made me really pessimistic about our future as a species.  Consider:

• The Tibet/China situation


• Plastic water bottles - Take your pick, filling up landfills or poisoning you, and that's besides the oil consumption to make them.


• The economy - and by extension, gas prices, beer prices, unemployment, etc.


• Energy drinks - Had a drug/alcohol awareness class.  Absurd amount of caffeine, and kids drink 'em like soda.  I hope by the time Lola and Sid get to that age, they'll be off the market.


• The end of the Internet

So, that's all.  Almost time for dinner and I've still got to dig out camping gear in the garage.  If you haven't seen it yet, check out my letter to the editor.

Updates and such

I'm posting this pre-upgrade to the Wordpress software that runs this site, just in case I break everything horribly. If you can read this tomorrow, I've probably been successful. That, or I ran out of time.

Mostly just decided that it's been a shamefully long time since I added any photos, so we now have Easter photos, a few photos from Utopias night, a new Sid video on his page, a new Lola video on her page, and new photos in Sid and Lola's albums, respectively. Whew. Lots of uploading today.

It's been sick time around here lately, first Lola's cold, then Morgan's cold and stomach issues, now Sid's cold and my stomach issues. Nobody bad enough for professional care, just enough to feel crummy. Still, it's getting easier to feel better as the weather gradually turns more spring-like. Another sign of spring: the nest out on our back deck that has been here since we moved in has been re-habitated, they're adding on with more detritus, and looks like we might have eggs and baby birds before long.

Aside from that, I just have a few random tidbits to scatter to you, o faithful readers.....

• New brewery coming to town. Excellent. In other beer news, still expensive.


• Latest online game obsession pairs well with my sweepstakes obsession. Register for the sweepstakes, then Clear the Skies. Also found this fun little game today, perfect for me. I hate overly complicated games that take forever to finish. In case it's not clear, you have to burn the rope.


• And lastly, I've been thinking about emergency preparation lately, partially due to hearing a speaker from the County department that plans for such things, partially due to recent earthquakes and murmurs over the possible impending big one. So one of my goals for the future is being ready for disaster.

That's all for now. Upgrade time. Fingers crossing....NOW.

Preschool update

Everything went great. I was told that Lola did great and then got the rest of my information directly from Lola. Here is what I gathered:

• She played outside - TWICE!


• She played in the tubes outside.


• They read a story about butterflies and a fence.


• They sang songs - including Twinkle.


• A boy told her not to touch his toaster.


• She had chips and cheese for snack and pizza for lunch. She sat with Noah and he is cute.


• She was a little sad because she wanted me (mom) to come there.


• They did not make the caterpillars as she was told when she got there. She also did not cut nor staple.


• She played with a boat-moving thing.


• Some girls tried to pick her up in the bathroom. And a girl put her finger through a stall door - not sure about this.

Anyway, it sounded like all went well. I will update you all after Thursday.

First Day

Lola headed off to her first day of preschool this morning. She was a brave, excited little girl. I cried when I got home. Like Marc commented, soon Sid will be off to college.



And Sid playing:

Radar report

Seems like more and more posts around here are just dumping of "what's on my mind" lately. Here's another one. Just too much bobbing around in my head not to post some stuff, but too crazybusy to wax poetic about anything much.

• Heard a blurb on NPR this morning following the recent Starbucks annual shareholders' meeting. Not particularly interested in the business/finance angles, but for coffee buffs like me, sounds like some interesting things ahead. This press release gives a pretty good rundown, but I'm particularly interested in the Clover brewing system. The quote from the CEO on the radio was along the lines of "I was in this (non Starbucks) coffee shop and they're serving coffee for $7 a cup. And there's a line. I'm not happy." So he bought them out.
  


• In the finance department, we just wrapped up our refinance of the house. Bottom line: by my estimates, we'll save $150,000 by refinancing to a 20-year 4.75% loan. And it'll only cost us $9 more each month. I'm also going to open a 529 account for each of the kids, and Lola signed up for preschool today, so come FY2008-2009, I'll have them start taking out some pre-tax dollars from my paycheck for that. Savings all around!


• I need to start brewing more. It's a hobby I have a passion for, I can save money by brewing my own beer, and, well, it's good beer. But dang, hops are getting expensive. Tina and Bart's baby shower is this weekend, and I'll be serving a homebrewed pale ale.


• March madness is here, so that, of course, means the annual library pool is on. Wish me luck!

Well, I guess that actually wasn't much to say. Just felt like I had a lot on my mind. Happy birthday Pop!

P.S. This is funny.

Just a quickie

• Sid is starting to crawl. Mostly in reverse, but he is on his way. Other new moves are clapping and shaking his head from side to side - as in "no, no."


• Just received a new bag from www.trixerdesigns.com. Fun bags. They are made well and look great! Thsnks, Chrisite! (and Maggie, for being related to Christie!)


• I love the weather. It was great to see it get in the high 60's. If we get a vote, I'd like to avoid any further snow.


• Looking forward to a trip to Michigan in May.


• Garage sale season has officially started for me. Lola, Deej and I went last weekend. They are few and far between, but they are there!


• I love Sam Adam's Cherry Wheat. It makes me want to drink too much beer. Good thing it is a bit pricier than Marc wants to spend.


• I'm ready for an addition to the family. I mean a dog!! Are you kidding? Lola and Sid are going to be the only offspring from Marc and I. We love them, they are perfect, and they are just enough. The only addition should be a dog. Cina's lonely.

Linkdump mostly

I've been meaning to post here but lack of anything particularly interesting or time to post has hindered me. So without further delay, I present today's Marc mind- and link-dump, gathered from my usual ponderings and roamings about the web:

• Morgan splurged and bought me this shirt. Love it.


• Probably due in part to my new subscription to Kiplinger's Personal Finance, I'm looking into 529 plans for both Lola and Sid.


• The site is unresponsive at the moment, but I thought this recent post from Cory Farley especially good. Episodes like this continue to make me embarrassed to be an American.


• Having significantly upgraded our coffee with the burr grinder and french press, now this item has me pondering whether or not to take the next step....


• It's looking like a good time to be a barfly in downtown Reno. As I told Rayna, I like the *idea* of a nice selection of drinking establishments more than I actually patronize them.


• How awesome would this be for Burning Man?


• Maggie sent this. Can't decide how funny I think it is.

Well, I think that's all I've got on my mind for now. Time to shave my head, wait for Morgan and Lola to come home from yard sales (it must be spring), and get pumped up for sushi lunch.

blah, blah, blah

Sometimes I feel that I just go on and on about mindless crap that no one cares about. Then again, I think that I avoid blogging about stuff that is great because I don't have enough to say. Anywho, here are some random thoughts that I have had lately:

- We went and saw Hair last Friday. It is being put on by TMCC theater group. It was FABULOUS!!! I love a great musical. Still waiting to see my favorite: West Side Story. Even better would be if I could sing and audition. I wonder if one voice lesson would help? My mom used to cover my mouth in church.

-Just watched La Vie en Rose. Great movie. Love Edith Piaf. Saw her grave at Pere-Lachaise in 2002. I checked out some footage of Edith Piaf on You Tube. Marion Cotillard did an excellent job! She portrayed her so wonderfully!

-Found another Cooks Illustrated cookbook at work (to buy)! I love these cookbooks. They simplify and get the perfect recipe!

-Spring is coming. Yea! Nicer weather and longer days. Don't forget to set your clocks on Sunday.

- Christian won Project Runway!! If I could only sew! I can already hear my name being said by Tim Gunn and Michael Kors. Fabulous reality TV. I also watch The Biggest Loser. So great to see people take control of their lives. I am not a big Brittany fan since Bernie had to go home this week.

-Hilary? Does she have a chance? Big win in Texas. I am still in favor of Obama.

-Kelly Ricciardi cut Lola's hair. Lola got her first "official" hair cut.







-Sid is getting so big!



and he is starting to sleep through the night:)

-and Lola.....



-and both of them.......