camp and other assorted summer-type things

I realize I haven't updated this piece of fine literature in quite awhile. So here goes:
Salmon Science Camp started this week - 10 6 to 8 year old kids (only 2 girls) and so far so good. The weather was mighty hot today, but we were able to stay inside a (very) air conditioned building for good chunks of time.
Went "rafting" on the Pilchuck River in Snohomish last weekend. Rafting implies rapids and action. I say "rafting" because, while we sat in an inflatable raft, much of the 6 hour trip was spent floating, paddling, repairing holes and tears in said rafts, "racing" toward the finish, and eating malt balls. (I will never live down giving Melinda 6 pounds of malt balls just because I found a 6 pound bag of them). I floated with my IslandWood friend Morgan, visiting from Brooklyn, but there were a total of 14 of us (in 7 rafts - on 7/7/07!).
Saw the John Butler Trio at the Moore Theatre a couple weeks ago. They were amazing! Very great performers and musicians.
Summer going well, but am a wuss about the heat. Can't wait for it to be in the 70's again!

What's Rilke doing on a food blog?

Words of the day -
Silent friend of many distances, feel how your breath is enlarging space. Among the rafters of dark belfries let yourself ring. What preys on you will

strengthen from such nourishment. Come and go with metamorphosis. What's your most painful experience? If what you drink's bitter, turn to wine.

In this huge night, become the magic at the crossways of your senses. Be what their strange encounter means.

And if the earthly forgets you, say to the quiet earth: I flow. Speak to the rushing water -- say: I am.

--R.M. Rilke

I'm a sucker for nature-touched poetry or quotes and this one is fantastic. (Makes me want to read Jonathan's copy of Rilke poetry). I found it by accident on a food blog while following a link about salmon and Anthony Bordain... it's amazing how little coincidences and digressions lead to fun and enlightening things.

Jam jam jam

I made jam today. For the first time ever. There's a lot of sugar in jam. More sugar than strawberries. hmmm.

Pro Bowler!!

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Originally uploaded by gaslantern

What better way to celebrate a birthday than with some bowling?

Monkey Cake!

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Originally uploaded by gaslantern

I just had a birthday!

And wowie, it was fun. Went bowling with my peeps, then back to our place for some random fun (does anyone else take turns reading childrens' books aloud?). I was honored by the presence of some very thoughtful, creative, amazing and wonderful friends and Mom - and two cakes!

I have to give thanks to Melinda for finding ever-more creative ways to not buy anything new. She surprised me with three (3!) bags of gifts: a coat she snagged from a friend at our garage sale last year (that she knew I wanted), my missing water bottle (OK, that's a little bit of cheating), a partially used set of nature cards (Goodwill?), newish (well, maybe entirely new) camping cookware she got for very cheap, AND a cow mug (Thanks so much) that included a gift card to Goodwill; the icing on the cake was a re-used birthday card, with the previous givers' names crossed out in a handmade envelope! I think part of the reason we've done so well with the Compacting is that it is so fun to see how we creative we can get.

Check out Andrew's photos of the momentous occasion.

My friends' adventure in Africa

Amazing. I just finished reading my friends' Kelli and Joe's blog account of their short-lived time with the Peace Corps in South Africa. I highly recommend reading some of it, even if you don't know them - it is fantastically written, has great pictures, and an incredible story (start reading mid-December, especially). Long story short: a mere few months into their 2 year tour with the PC, they got most of their stuff stolen, had to be helicoptered off a mountain and were forced to resign. I can't say enough how much I admire the dignity, optimism, and good faith that Joe and Kelli showed during their ordeal, and continue to show. Check it out: petrickafrica.blogspot.com.

Evidentally, 7.5 miles is my limit

I wasn't intending on doing Bloomsday, but was suckered into it by a very enthusiastic Forstie family. I was generously lent (too-small) walking shoes and other clothes; I started out in the walking shoes, but switched over to my new Crocs (yah, yah, "what about 'the compact'? you say) at about mile 3 (see me in mile 7's photo). Boy, I'm sold on those suckers - saved my feet, they did. But I am a bit sore in the hip flexor area ... we'll see what happens tomorrow, especially after sitting in a car for 4 hours for the drive back to Seattle.

Sidenote: In "researching" links for to attach to this blog about Crocs, I discovered an "I hate Crocs" blog. Do people really have nothing better to do than blog (and create t-shirts for sale... oh wait... could it be that they're making money?) about a shoe fad? yikes.

Ok, maybe I should see someone about this problem

See, I think I'm a book-aholic. I can't keep from buying used books. Especially kids' and nature books. Jonathan and I and a few other folks went to the annual Seattle Library Book Sale today. If you've never been, it's held in an old hangar (picture VERY large open building) at Magnuson Park and it's crammed full of tables of books. And people. (oh the people... it's downright dangerous in there). I've been every year for the past 3 or 4, and I think this is the easiest I've gotten off - I only spent about 8 bucks! (It was half price day). And I got 11 books!

So I got this brilliant idea to catalog all my books. I'm using Google Spreadsheets (YAY Google!!!!!!) and it's fantastic - it's the ultimate compulsive organizer outlet. I do love lists. So far, I've only done the children's, nature, science, and curriculum books in the apartment (no fiction yet). I might even post the link on my blog. Because I can.

Caught my favorite "I know the guitarist/singer" band at Easy Street Records for their CD release party on Friday. Go True Bugs and Curtains for You! I'm gonna be able to say "I knew Mike" back in the day....

Business cards and offices and assistants, OH MY!

These things are now a part of my life! One large part of me is so excited to have such items of professional maturity - I've never had them all to myself before - but another is worried I'll lose touch with "on the ground" EE as I get more office-y. But for now, I'm syked. I just picked up my business cards today - 100% post-consumer recycled paper, of course - and am breathlessly awaiting giving them away to everyone. "My" office, which I share with "my" assistant, an AmeriCorps volunteer (who is awesome!) is not quite "mine" yet, but I can't wait to organize and put up my own stuff! Those environmental posters I've been hanging onto for five years? They're goin' up!!

So, my first week (training) has gone well, and I now look forward to going to work. I've met volunteers and the board (so far, so good) and been on a tour of the hatchery (lots of stuff to know). The people I'll be working with seem pretty good, and I can't wait to actually get started.

I have one more day of soul-sucking work at the school-who-must-not-be-named. I was supposed to come in next week, but CANNOT! They'll do just fine without me. (@$%&*). I'll be so glad when I'm done with that place.

In other news: Jonathan and I just passed our 5 years together mark! It's been awesome. Also, we're going to visit our good friends Schimmy and Schimmy + pups + new house and forest soon. YAY! And, we had fantastic time hanging out with former IslandWood folks and playing knee coup at the Sculpture Garden (Park, whatever). Good times.

This picture has nothing to do with anything aforementioned. I just like it. Took it at the Volunteer Park Conservatory, one of my favorite places in Seattle.

People are funny!

Especially when they are in high school.

I had the unique and high honor of accompanying seven of the high school interns that I mentor to an environmental science competition called the Envirothon a couple weeks ago. What a sight we must have been - a bunch of Asian-American kids (OK, they had a token white girl) and their white women mentors, battling it out against 14 other teams of... dare I say... hicks (which I mean in the nicest possible way). Us: (sub)urban, AP-exam taking, raucous kids. Them: Carhart-wearing, FFA-attending, rural white kids from other counties. Not that we kicked butt - we did OK, with one of our 2 teams placing 3rd overall. One reason for our poor showing in general may have been this statement during the oral presentation: "It takes 300 acres of solar panels to power one." The judge asks, "One what?" The intern's reply - in all seriousness, "One lightbulb." Good lord. Oh, the laughter. And possibly the funniest part is that when we got their scores back the other day, THAT team did way better than most other teams on the oral presentation. We suspect some end-of-day slackness in the scoring.

Love the "get to know you" emails!

Since I'm very bad at filling those emails out, I thought I'd blog one! Aren't you thrilled?
Here goes-

Two Names You Go By:

1. Miss Tiger (thanks a lot Arbor School kindergarteners.)
2. Salal

Two Things You Are Wearing Right Now:
1. orange shirt silk-screened by Kelli
2. ratty slippers

Two Things You Would Want (or have) in a Relationship:
1. laughing
2. kindness

Two of Your Favorite Things to do:
1. walk around in the woods
2. eat

Two Things You Want Very Badly At The Moment
1. to stop stressing out
2. a new hub cap (the darn thing just couldn't hold on any longer)

Two things you did last night:
1. make and eat yummy stir fry dinner with Melinda and Michael
2. sleep

Two things you ate today:
1. blueberry pancakes, bacon and eggs and coffee at the Lockspot (OK that's 4 things)
2. sesame rice cakes

Two people you Last Talked To:
1. boyfriend
2. produce seller lady at The Fruit Stand

Two Things You're doing tomorrow:
1. prepping for a lesson on rainforests
2. lazing about

Two longest car rides:
1. Pennsylvania to Washington via National Parks and other points of interest
2. and back

Your two favorite beverages
1. coffee!!!!!!!!
2. beer

So, there you go. Who picks these topics, anyways?

I got...

rhythm!
I got music...
I got A NEW JOB!!!
and really, who could ask for anything more?

Finally, I've landed the (almost) full time gig I've been trying for for the past few years. Wasn't aiming for this job specifically, but A job that didn't end in the winter, or pay peanuts, or give me random hours here and there. So now I have one! It is for Friends of Issaquah Salmon Hatchery, as the Education Coordinator. I get to do many of the things I know how to do (teach, create curriculum) and some things I don't know how to do (deal with entrenched volunteers, be in charge of the schedule of programs). Let the learning curve begin!

So, to those of you who gasp at the notion of me - an idealistic environmental educator - (or anyone) going to work at a hatchery, I say, if this is me "selling out", I could do a whole lot worse. Just thought I'd get that out there.

By the way, thanks for everyone's support these last years and months and weeks!

And this week...

What a crazy week it's been.
On Tuesday I saw a documentary with Melinda called "Right to Risk" about some folks with physical disabilities going on a many-day rafting trip down the Colorado. It was a great movie and I highly recommend it - very inspiring and beautiful scenery! One of the biggest messages, as one of the rafters put it, is that anyone can become disabled at any time, so efforts toward making sure everyone has equal access and opportunity is making an investment in your own future!
The next day, I got a call from Miko asking if Jonathan and I wanted to go with her and her boyfriend to see This American Life's live show! Would we?? Uh, make that an emphatic YES! That Ira Glass.... And soon he'll be on TV!
And after each event, Jonathan and I went out for food/drinks with friends - way more than we're used to on a school night! This weekend's been good for catching up on sleep and lazing about.

I thought this might be a good writing exercise

Good evening! Here it goes: I'm jumping on the wagon of the Blog. Imagine! Just a few short years ago, I (and most people I know) had never even heard of a blog! And now it's in the dictionary. It's enough to make a person feel old. Still no iPod for me, but I do have a palm pilot! I'm goin' tech.

So now, a short briefing for those who've forgotten or didn't know:
I have four jobs. All EE (success?), and all at least 20 miles away from where I live in Ballard. I have many issues with my chosen profession (more on that later, I'm sure), and the one that nears the top of the list at this point is the commuting.
I've recently joined Melinda in a no-new-buying "compact" (that's what others are calling it - see links) from January to June... and hopefully beyond. What this means is that we don't buy anything new (except food and health/safety stuff). But Goodwill is fair game! Our small attempt at further lessing our impact on earth.