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December 31, 2005
Feeling MUCH Better
Partly, I'm sure, due to the hard working feline nursing staff here.
Now you see why I got better so quickly. Lots of love. And also why I don't sleep all that well with this help. I am rendered immobile.
Some notable things about the above photo:
1) Dave took it. My legs are an important part of the picture.
2) I actually had four cats. Katala was asleep next to my head.
3) Polyphemos was only able to snuggle up with Imogen because she was asleep. When she woke up, she kicked him off the bed.
4) That gorgeous blue fleece that adds to my snugglability? Dave made it. It has polka-dots on the other side. Really wild polka-dots.
Wow. I'm actually feeling hungry. Think I'll try eating toast.
Posted by sally at 11:10 AM
December 30, 2005
Unexpected Souvenir
I seem to have brought more than I bargained for back from Denver. I now have the bug that the kids had when I got there and one brother-in-law was coming down with. His wife also has it now. Nothing like vomiting to bring a family closer together, I always say.
(Dave just suggested that I should have taken a picture of the most recent eruption to upload here, but that's just disgusting.)
I have two main worries: 1) dehydration, since nothing seems to get past my stomach and 2) the news that one of the brothers-in-law who had this thing before I got there had it for eight days. I do not have eight days to be a puke-face. I have two more and then I have to go back to work and to the dentist (for a checkup and cleaning, nothing more) and to the start of rehearsals for Sight Unseen.
This is, by the way, the second time I have gone to Denver for a Christmas function and come back with something nasty. It's sad, because my in-laws are all so kind to me while I'm there. Clearly they are plotting nastiness for me when my back is turned. If this happens again, I refuse to visit them any more.
Posted by sally at 07:56 PM
December 29, 2005
We're Ho-Ho-Home
It was a great trip. The weather was fantastic, it was lovely to see the family again. (Pick a family, any family, mine, Dave's, they were almost all there.) And for once, our hotel stay was great too. If you ever need a hotel in Denver, I highly recommend the DTC Hyatt. They were fabulous.
All in all, it was a great trip.
Except for the wreck part.
And the part where I broke a crown.
Now we're home and unpacked and settling back in. Aside from the fact that there is no snow whatsoever in our yard, things haven't changed at all here.
Bewitness this.
This was the scene in our bedroom the night before we left:
This was the scene in our bedroom last night after we got home:
Everyone is happy we're back and still behaving in healthy cat ways. Though our return overstimulated Polyphemos a bit after 5 1/2 days of next to no activity in the house. That and a box full of pictures with cool packing paper put him in rare form.
This is a beautiful example of how stripes on fur make cats invisible.
It's good to be home. We've got guests coming tomorrow who I'm glad to see. I'm very happy to be back with the cats. I had some ideas yesterday about syllabi for basic acting classes that I hope to someday use. And I can actually get out to my yard to get some work done today, providing I can find the time.
On the other hand, I visit the dentist at noon...
Posted by sally at 09:34 AM
December 23, 2005
First Let Me Say That We Are Fine
After that, I can say, unequivocally, that the truck, it is not.
(If you look closely, you will see that it is now a Nissan ITAN. )
Here's a close-up of the main damage:
And what a story we have to tell.
5:20-ish am. We were on our way to Spokane to catch a plane. (It left 45 minutes ago. We are obviously not on it.) We hit some black ice coming around a curve and though Dave strove valiantly, we ended up in a 5' ditch. As in five feet deep. And we hit the side of that ditch with a bang!
I don't remember much about parts between the starting to skid and the stopping. I remember whirling around like on a carnival ride. I remember the impact. Afterwards, I had to think for a minute about whether I was upside down. Partly because my arms were over my head. And see, this is the thing. I have no idea why I was holding my arms up in the air or how they got there. I wasn't upside down, but now I understand how people caught in avalanches get confused.
We scrambled out through the passenger door (the truck was at about 35 degrees with the driver-side door resting against the hill) and Dave was on the phone with AAA about a tow when another car came around that same corner, hit the ice and rolled into the same ditch about 50 feet away from us where it landed upside down. Two people scrambled out and then began calling names. There were two others in the car who weren't answering. They were fine, though. As they were getting out of the car, I called 911.
And while I was on the phone with 911, another car came around that curve, skidded and barely held it together. They were fine. They were able to drive away after making sure we were all okay (astonishingly, we all were, Dave and me and the four people from the rollover).
Less than 10 minutes after the third car, a semi came around the corner. We watched the second trailer start to go. We watched the driver fighting to maintain control. We sprinted up a serious hill (on the other side of the 5' ditch) to get out of the way. And we watched a wreck not happen. That's probably the wildest part of the whole story. How that driver managed to control his truck I don't know, but he did. And thank God, because that wreck would have been nasty.
By the way, going up that hill, I went straight into Tiger. (Some of you may get that reference) You put me in the cold and the mud and the dark and have my life be potentially at risk, and that instinct kicks in. It's probably why I was able to be so calm with the 911 dispatcher.
After sitting in the ambulance (I'm fine; it was cold out and they wanted to take my blood pressure),waiting in the dark for the police officer and the various towtrucks, Dave started taking pictures with his camera phone. Which is when I realized, DUH, I have my camera in the truck.
See? Dave's okay. He's talking to his insurance agent. (This, by the way, is the only picture I took. All the rest are by Dave.) The ditch to his left? That's the 5' ditch. You can see where the truck was pulled out of it. The hill on the other side of the ditch? That's the hill we all sprinted up to avoid the semi wreck that didn't happen.
And see? I'm okay too.
(Over my left shoulder, you can see the bitch curve.)
Two Thumbs Up! Not Going on That Ride Again!
Lovely, lovely Danger Rankin and her David took our early morning call and drove all the way to Colfax to get us. (For those of you who know the area, we were about 500 yards from the llama farm.) The first thing she did was hug me. I am so blessed to have such generous people in my life. And also to be okay and to have a husband who is also okay (except for his left elbow which he smacked pretty hard).
I also feel extremely fortunate in being able to help someone else. Those four kids, all under 20, in the car that rolled over, had no cell phone, and the girl was pregnant. Their car was barely visible from the road. Who knows what would have happened to them if we hadn't already been there. I think that's why we were there, by the way. To help them out of a really tight spot.
Merry Christmas to all who celebrate that holiday and Love, Life, Peace and Happiness to all.
Posted by sally at 09:10 AM
December 15, 2005
Oh Yes
Wow! Two entries in one day!!! I'm making up for weeks of little updating. Possibly because I have very little to write about.
However, this entry is to report that I have recently rediscovered a favorite composer.
Who is not, despite the name, a minimalist or electronic music relative of Dieter from Sprockets. (I have linked to wikipedia's entry above because I now have it on good authority that they are not only free, but accurate.)
I am listening to his Sonata #2 in G minor 2 right now.
Love, love, loooooooove the baroque composers. (Also the minimalists, oddly enough.)
Posted by sally at 04:13 PM
Nothing Much to Report
There's still snow on the ground.
It's still cold.
I'm still working mornings.
(That's actually a good thing, as I'm enjoying my job and am looking forward to the paychecks.
Also, I don't mind the cold or the snow. I like having clearly defined seasons.)
I still live in Moscow. (sigh)
Yep. That's about it.
Oh yeah. I started a dwarf tomato in my kitchen last week. (And the company is local!!!) Should have actual fresh, organic tomatoes by late February. Four of the five seeds have germinated, which means I have to get rid of three.
That's my least favorite part of seed starting, killing off the deserving. I hate putting hopeful little sprouts to death. It just breaks my heart, they're so full of life and energy and possibility. I usually try to transplant them and find them good homes. (Don't, by the way, assume you can determine anything about my politics from the above admission.)
Oh yes, Dave finished his semester. And wants to go back for more, given a break. Good for him (it certainly has been so far).
Posted by sally at 03:52 PM | Comments (1)
December 06, 2005
Ooooofffffff...
I am taking the night off. I am so tired with all the running around getting used to and doing my new job and fitting it into my schedule and traveling all over southern and eastern Idaho that I need some down time.
Despite the exhaustion and the bags under my eyes, I had a lovely trip.
The competition I judged was lots of fun. The kids were great. I saw some fantastic work in both tech and performance, which gives me hope for the future. And I met some cool people and ran into not one, but two people from my past that were in completely unexpected places. 1) A former student of mine (from here) who, though he is supposed to be living in Cincinnati, called my name on a street corner in Boise on Thursday night. 2) My 8th and 9th grade science teacher who is now an assistant high school principal. He was at the competition I judged. I must admit I was not expecting to see a jr. high science teacher at a high school drama event.
And it was great to see my friends Karma and Cindy. We had some marvelous conversations, both in pairs and in an outrageous trio that was a wonderful complement to the best fried chicken I have ever eaten. And the bread pudding? Yum. If you happen to find yourself in Dietrich, Idaho, eat at the Eagle's Nest. I insist. You won't be sorry.
Also, there's a new Indian restaurant in Boise that I highly recommend. I think it's called the Bombay Grill. Whatever the name, it's on the first floor of the Idanha and the food ROCKS. I haven't had Indian in years, and this is great stuff. Sooooooooooo good.
How nice to have great girl talk and phenomenal food. I must return to both places and soon.
Posted by sally at 04:43 PM
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