Lucy's First Snow Day

We've experienced our first snow storm of the season, and it's Lucy's first major snow storm (not counting the skiff we had a couple weeks ago). Since she has a flare for the dramatic, she was running laps this morning launching herself into somersaults in the snow. She soon discovered that eating snow was also fun, so we threw snowballs around the backyard and took some pictures, snowy face and all.

Lucy stalking a snowball

OBAMA-GLO

I was cautiously optimistic for an Obama victory, but silently and greedily hopeful for a mandate. We shed a few tears at the news as well as during various moments of Obama's speech. Whoever tried to persuade us that words don't matter has never studied history and its great orators. Now onto the greater challenge of taking words to action, but you've got to start somewhere.

Although Utah remains red, Salt Lake County moves further towards blue with a good county mayor and a county council with 5-4 dems to gop, and that should count for something for those of us who like living here and operate within a progressive and dynamic community.

Knitting

L & I have taken up knitting. We figure as long as we're watching baseball (please even it up Red Sox!) or cable TV for the political scene (which sometimes feels like watching a train wreck -- i.e. no matter how awful, you just can't look away), we may as well get something accomplished. Like beanie hats. Or scarves. Or. . . well, that's all we know how to do for the moment, but be sure to watch for the fingerless gloves and felted handbags.

We got started knitting because a friend and client of mine opened a knitting shop called Blazing Needles. If you have always thought (like I have) that knitting was for other people, Blazing Needles will definitely change your mind, even if you don't take up knitting. Visit them at 1365 South 1100 East, and definitely come by for Knit Night on Thursday evenings, usually complete with a bit of cheese and wine.

So far, I've learned that I am a "twisted" knitter and that you need a few accessories in order to really become a knitter, including several sizes of needles (who knew!?) and markers and patterns. Unless all you want to knit are hot pads I suppose.

McCain under siege!

The idea that Katie Couric is such a fastball interviewer is mostly laughable (and I actually do like Katie Couric--but not necessarily as a hard news anchor). Good thing Senator (Pouter) McCain straightened us out on that one (and Pat Bagley remains one of the most brilliant political cartoonist from our great state of Utah). Poor little Palin.

Stupid, careless people.

On Saturday, just as we were heading home from the market and other errands in SLC, we entered the freeway at 21st South and as suddenly as a ball flying at your head that you didn't know was being thrown at you, we saw a giant obstacle on I-15. As the cars in front of us parted--like Moses parting the Red Sea--I spotted it and yelled and L. responded as well as could be given the circumstances, which is to say that she didn't completely drive over the top of the whole thing which probably would have flipped the car and resulted in a total disaster BUT INSTEAD, L maneuvered quickly to only hit with the front left driver side bumper and we were lucky no one was behind us in the right hand lanes as she navigated to the right shoulder.

Except for some damage to the car (front bumper and ripped out tire well), we were all totally fine, including little Lucy who I was holding in my lap in the front seat.

Looking ahead to see who might be the culprit, we saw two 20-something clean cut guys walking back along the shoulder from their pick-up truck that held several other of the large obstacles (we later found out were enormous ottomans--and if I didn't hate oversized furniture before, I really do now). They nervously asked if we were ok and went back to talk to the Utah Highway Patrolman who was attempting to get the ottoman off the freeway to avoid further havoc for others. I was just so angry at their carelessness and seeming lack of understanding that what the did could have actually killed people, that I just glared back at them.

Stupidity is getting on a freeway and going (at least) 65 miles an hour with 6 enormous ottomans in a pick-up truck that are tied down with bungee cords, incurring a large fine with citation and having to pay for a rental car and body shop repair work, not to mention ruining everyone's Saturday afternoon.

Blogging Slackers & NYC trip

OK, so we've found ourselves way more busy than we intended for Summer 2008. It was, in fact, at the beginning of the summer supposed to be a relaxed-maybe-we'll-go-do- short-trips-to-the-Uintas- maybe-not kind of summer. We didn't anticipate a NYC trip (for L's work) or a California trip (for J's cousin's wedding) when we bought all our concert tickets, so the result has been a bit--for us anyway--like living like rock stars.

I think we have averaged at least 3 concerts a week since July. In August alone, we've seen Keb Mo, Ruthie Foster, and others up at the Snowbird Rock n Blues festival along with Wilco, KT Tunstall, and Broken Social Scene. We still have Bonnie Raitt and Neko Case left to go, not to mention Al Green, John Hiatt, and Joan Osborne in September. It has been a blast! But I think I'm looking forward to winter hibernation, or at least fall turtlenecks, more than I normally would.

Anyway, although we do have a fantastic California trip to blog about, I'll wait on that to review just briefly the NYC trip, during which I played and L worked. I spent a couple of nice unseasonably pleasant afternoons with old friends and wandered around a bit walking across the Brooklyn Bridge and to the Met. Fortunately, meals are mostly together and we like to find a gem now and then, so thanks for my cousin Andy who used to live in Brooklyn, our gem this time around was a place called Supper in the East Village. Although I know it might sound silly with all the choices there are in NYC, we actually went to this place twice, almost solely for the freshest mozarella we have ever eaten--a burrata mozarella imported twice weekly from Italy that practically fell apart on the plate but perfectly complemented all of the usual caprese salad ingredients--tomatoes, basil, olive oil, balsamic. In fact, this little appetizer actually cost more than either of our entrees, but it was completely worth it. Aside from the tasty food, the place had a great vibe and we definitely felt we were nearly living like locals eating there.

Summer Concert Junkies

We are self-admitted concert summer concert addicts. This year--thanks to Red Butte's condensed July-August schedule because of their venue construction--is really challenging our marathon-type conditioning for the summer concert schedule we are keeping. By the time we hit next Tuesday, we will have attended concerts 8 out of 11 days (and we could possibly go 9 for 11 if we choose to visit that wretched USANA where the Police and Elvis Costello are playing). The great part is that we do manage to have a hefty concert schedule without going there where it's way too far west, drinks and food are overpriced to say the least, and it just seems like a good venue gone bad.

The diversity is always interesting as well--one night we're at the Roots and the Knux with an insane crowd and lots of pot smoke; the next we are among the upper crust (or crusty?) at Wynton Marsalis (who is a living legend--even if you're not a huge Jazz fan because it truly is the American musical art). We've heard bluegrass, american roots, folk, rock, blues rock, jazz, and hip-hop within the last 7 days!

Anyway, the bands coming out to check out include:
Josh Ritter
Andrew Bird
Grace Potter & the Nocturnals
Emmylou Harris
Susan Tedeschi (with Derek Trucks)
(And those are just the next 5 days' worth of music in SLC.)

Unfortunately, you have already missed other great ones including those featured at the Utah Arts Festival, but you can try to make up for it by hitting the Rock n Blues Festival in August featuring Keb Mo, Bettye Lavette, the Iguanas, and Ruthie Foster.

An American past time.. a good burger.

Some random rambling about food...One of the truly great American dishes is a hot juicy burger. When J was in DC a month or so ago she told me about this great burger place that her sister took her too. It is the In and Out of the East but 10 times better. Much to my surprise when I went to pick her up at the airport there was a huge billboard announcing a location in Utah coming soon!!!!

Well last week on the way back from Red Butte we passed the new location and there was a huge "Now Open" sign so J did a massive U-turn in the crazy Fort Union area and we headed back for a cheese burger with the works sans mustard for me. We met the one of the co-owners who was mortified when our burger was loaded with mustard... so two burgers for the price of one. Without the mustard it was a great burger and the real fresh cut potato fries were pretty damn good too.

Little Lulu

We have chosen this little cute thing to be our next best friend.

Giving back...

As a native Utahan I have enjoyed the beautiful back country of this great state, so after all that the hiking trails, rivers, campsites, canyons have given to me it was time to give back. J and I volunteered for a "working" vacation this last weekend. This was a joint project with several groups to rehabilitate and protect one of the great canyons in Cache Valley.

http://www.sltrib.com/News/ci_9451625

We hiked into the work site with our 40 lb packs. It felt like hiking at a 90 degree angle (I know that is impossible unless you are on a ladder) but it was over 2000 feet in elevation in 4 miles. A very interesting group. We had the 19 year old that wouldn't stop talking about Yellowstone, the Ohio transplant that loves the outdoors, the consultant who has been everywhere and done everything, the intern, the forest ranger, our fearless conservationist leader and the amazing 80 year old married couple. Who also packed their packs up 2000 ft. I hope I am still on these type of adventures when I am 80. We camped at about 7500 ft. great elevation for temperatures when you are working hard but it is a little cold at night.

The elevation increase in the hike made me jettison any extra weight, including the box wine. I didn't know we were going to have horsemen to haul up the fencing wire, spikes, hammers, and a little water for us, when they arrived the first afternoon the whole group asked them if they could bring us some red wine the next day when they came to pick up the equipment.

The main objective was to build fences and natural barriers to stop off-roaders from venturing in to unauthorized areas and damaging the habitat and building water bars and check dams to help prevent and repair erosion. Some of the most physical work that I have ever done, but well worth it.

At the end of the day the there was supposed to be a big "group hug" dinner with all the diverse, but we didn't have the energy to hike to two miles down for the dutch oven grub. The horsemen came to pick up the tools "sans" wine, no dinner and no wine. We made the best of it, an Asian fusion mixed soup/stew. Great chat around the fire and off to bed under the stars. We realized the importance of our work at 2 am when a group of drunk ATV riders roared up the trail and by our camp, as we hiked out the next morning we saw meadows that they had torn up and the garbage that they left all over the canyon. Hopefully, the work that we did will keep some of that damage from happening in the future.

Ode to Pugsley

The snow has melted and so I am now back to blogging. There isn't a great reason other than being lazy or busy that we haven't blogged but that have been a few unfortunate events have impacted us lately, like having pneumonia for 4 weeks.. But this blog is not about that.. it is dedicated to a great little man "dog" that we truly miss. We lost our little male Boston terrier right after Easter. We came home from Easter dinner with family and he had a little seizure, or so we thought, I stayed home from work watched him for one day and then it was off to the vet. The vet heard something in is heart and thought he might have a leaky valve but he would be just fine and we could take him home after a few tests....They called a couple of hours later to let us know he was ready to pick up, but before J could pick him up they called back to sadly inform me that he had passed. Some of the hardest news I had to hear in a work setting. I tried to call J to catch her before she got there. She came and got me instead and we went to the vet's. We have the best vet in the world. So concerned they gave us tissue as soon as we walked in, tried to cheer us up, but we were and are heartbroken. He was fine one minute and the next was gone, an apparent massive heart attack. We had great support through it.. Jen came over that night with flowers and sat with me so I wouldn't be alone while J went to a meeting. I took a day off work and busied myself with projects around the house...

Some might say he was just a dog, but he had been in my live for 11 years. It was driving to get Pugsley as a puppy that I almost died of laughter when I heard KG sing the wrong words to the soundtrack of "Grease" .... Grease is the word it's the word that you heard it has food it has meat in it".... I laughed so hard I cried. I guess to an islander that is what grease is about food and meat.. :).. We missed the exit in the canyon because we were laughing so hard.

He was the little dog that we pretended to give to a niece that was heartbroken that she couldn't have a dog of her own. We even took her to get pictures taken with him.

He was J's first real pet. She was raised with fish and lizards (things that could be flushed if necessary).. She was a little hesitant about dogs at first, but he became her little man too.. She would give him baths, go for walks and ofcourse tolerated the stinking gas from time to time.

He was a sweet little man, he will be truely missed, especially Maggie(our female three legged Boston) his playmate and friend. She is now struggling, she seems lost and so sad. He can never be replaced but I think for her and for us we are going to have to look for a puppy sooner than later. I really thought she would snap out of it but she misses having a friend.

So there you have it... We are back in the blog 'o' sphere..

Snow Day!!!

I know we are awful posters. We are trying to revamp the blog and be better about sharing the things that are going on. Now that we live up on the "semi" bench we get a lot of snow. Hence the necessary purchase of a small snow blower. However, because it is small, the intensity of the last few storms have forceds us to brave the elements to clear the snow more than one time during the storm. A few pics to share our winter wonderland. A drift by our driveway. I am truly standing it in. We had 18 to 20 inches all over our yard.