Two Minutes In The Box

Ketchup

2011-06-22T11:52:00.001-06:00

Not much new on the wedding front, although we decided that instead of trying to plan for the celebration this year, we'd wait until next summer and get married here, in beautiful Colorado. I think most people expect us to do a destination wedding, which is tempting but I think the beach weddings are overdone and besides, we'd still have to throw a big party when we got back because most of our friends wouldn't be able to go. SV has been in Boulder since the 80's so it makes sense to stay here. We have a gorgeous backdrop and great summertime weather. What more do you need?

As for my recovery, I have made my return to the ice playing in my lunch time league again. Although my leg isn't 100%, skating is good for it and the non-super-competitiveness of the lunch time league is a good way to ease back into playing hockey and building up my confidence again. I do have a greater respect for the NHLers that I watch coming back from injury. I used to wonder why they were playing if they couldn't play at 100% and their skills not up to their own par. Now I get it. It's mostly a mind game of having the confidence to return and be what you once were, especially when you still feel a weakness in your body. Mine is compounded by the fact I had two in a row, but I'll get there. I have missed it, but you all know that.

Summer is starting off with an appetizing bang. Even though we've been talking about getting a little charcoal grill for the deck (another option besides gas-grilling), I took the hint when SV came home with the biggreenegg brochures one week before his birthday that the measly Weber wasn't going to cut it. It was a big gouge in the check book but he is thrilled. Between his mad pork-pulling skills and my continuing culinary expansion, our dinner guests seem to be walking away very fat and happy.

Good thing I can burn off these calories now that there are two cooks in the house.

Worth the Wait

2011-02-23T17:17:00.000-07:00

I mean the ring, not this post. My apologies for not posting this sooner but most of you saw the ring on Facebook, but here's the story to go along with it:

I started searching for jewelry designers in Boulder because I knew I was going to want something different than a white diamond for a ring, as my last post indicates. I thought I was going to want an opal because it's my birthstone, but I quickly found out that they are not recommended for every day wear because they are so fragile. They chip easily and with my lifestyle, I knew I'd be heart broken if my ring bit the dust the first time I was in a scuffle along the hockey boards, so I started searching for something else. I thought, why not the opposite of white and get black?

But black diamonds are tough to find in anything of decent size because most people use them as accents in a piece, not as the star of the show. I walked into a number of jewelers and they didn't have anything at all I liked in the way of stones. I drove to one place and took one glance at all the diamond-adorned fetishes and heart-shaped diamonds in the front window and turned right back around. Why is it so hard to find something more arty and unique? Then my hair dresser told me about Todd Reed.

I walked in and instantly knew it was for me. He specializes in using raw diamonds, which are just as beautiful as the polished. Once I saw the black diamonds, I didn't like them, because they were opaque and looked kind of plastic-y. But I did like the smokey gray and brown ones so I picked a chocolate-colored, pear-shaped diamond that is vintage. The designer says they can tell by the way the diamond is cut that it's from the 1600's - back before they knew how to cut them for optimum brilliance, they cut them for optimum diamond weight instead. Who knew all this about diamonds?

So in the end, I did get a diamond but a very cool one. It's set in palladium and outlined with small white diamonds so that it does look more like an engagement ring than just a cool ring. The band has 1/2 raw diamonds on it and 1/2 of a "autumn mix" the designer calls it with yellow, brown and orange diamonds, with a couple of white ones thrown in to accent the big mama.

They said it would take 6-8 weeks to make but SV surprised me by getting them to make it in 3 weeks so I had it went I went out to see my sister for her birthday bash. Here it is, although the picture doesn't do it justice.

You'll just have to see it in person one of these days.

They Say the Way to a Man's Heart...

2011-01-06T13:22:00.000-07:00

Post Ring Shopping Conversation at Ted's Montana Grill:

SV: I'm going to order the Bison strip steak. Mmmmm... sounds good, doesn't it?
GKL: I don't think I've ever had bison other than a burger.
SV: Here, read about it on the menu! It says it's leaner and slightly sweeter..
GKL: Oh, okay, I'll get the fillet. How about those rings?! I mean, they are so unique. Do you like them?
SV: Yeah.
GKL: I mean, they are so pretty... (looking at brochures) how about this one we saw?
SV: Uh-huh.

(after food delivered)

SV: Wow, this bison tastes good, doesn't it?!
GKL: Uh-huh. So do you like the raw diamonds around the side, or polished?
SV: You should get what you want. Do you want to try my steak? It's reeeeeally goood. Mmmmm.
GKL: No thanks, hon. So don't you like that palladium metal? It's cool, don't you think?
SV: Yes, it is. I would seriously come here again for the bison. It is sweeter, can't you taste it?
GKL: Oh yes, you're right. So you just want a simple band in that?
SV: Wow, this is really good...
GKL: Do you want the rest of mine? I'm full.
SV: Okay! Sounds good, pass it over!
GKL: So just a simple band then?
SV: What? Oh, yeah.
GKL: So you like what we looked at for me? It's gorgeous, isn't it?! Is it in our budget?
SV: Wow, mmmm.... this is really good. I think the fillet is even better! Uh, what? Yes, you should get what you want.
GKL: Okay, yay!

Happy Thanksgiving, Merry Christmas, Happy New Year, and More

2011-01-03T19:44:00.000-07:00

The title of my last saved post draft was, Happy Thanksgiving, so I guess I'm a little behind. I was going to drone on in that post about how weird it was to go "home" to Indiana for Turkey day. SV's family is from Lexington but his sister and her husband moved to Indianapolis and they invited us, so that's how I ended up in Hoosierland again. His parents drove in from Kentucky. It was much more relaxing and drama-free to spend the holiday with SV's family than several I remember from my past. I like his family a lot, and that's important in my book if we're going to see a lot of each other over the years. I didn't realize it at the time how that would come to fruition.

Christmas came, a quiet one at home, just the two of us. When all the presents were unwrapped, there was still one more in store for me.

SV got down on one knee and proposed.

Sure, he needed a little bug in his ear and some major hints dropped in his direction, but the point is that he likes to make me happy because I'm a bit spoiled... What? You have been reading my blog for quite some time now, right? Anyway, he spoils me. It works for us.

And for those that are detailed-oriented, he bought me a diamond nose stud a couple of months ago because I once told him it's the only diamond that I need. I didn't know at the time if that meant we were engaged or not but there was no official proposal... hence the coaxing. When the official moment came, he used a ring that I already had. It's an opal ring that was my great Grandmother's engagement ring and that's what I'm wearing, for now.

I hate to stereotype, but I think he could really care less about all the hub-bub and the ear-piercing girlie shrieks when I tell my friends that we are betrothed. I think he's on the "I'll just show up" plan, but I didn't wait all these years to keep it on the down-low. I thought at first that I might, to fit his low-key mood, but fuck that. I'm a gonna tell the world and I'm going to enjoy every minute, every step in this process.

So Happy New Year y'all and thanks for sticking with it even if I'm a bit behind. Now off to design some rings for us!

WTF

2010-11-19T15:16:00.002-07:00

I'm channeling Kirby for this one, plus I stole her graphic.

We have somewhat of a cold feud going on with our crazy neighbor lady. It stems back years ago between her and SV, before I entered the picture. Basically, she lets her rat dog run all over our yard and while she is good about cleaning up the caca, the dog now thinks of our yard as his. The result is that the little rat dog comes up and barks at us in our own yard and has even nipped a couple folks, one of them being a friend of ours' five year old daughter. Not big enough bites to need stitches but that's beyond the point. So SV asked her to stop throwing the ball into our yard and she promised that she wouldn't anymore and swore to him that she had stopped when he questioned her months later since the dog still seemed possessive of our territory. That's when I entered the picture. I work from home. I could plainly see every day that she had NOT stopped throwing the ball into our yard so I snitched on her and SV had to have another talk with her.

That's how it started really, and I call it a cold feud because we try to remain as pleasant as possible to each other because it's clear neither one of us are moving any time soon, but I can tell by her "don't deliver packages to 3620" sign on her door that she clearly doesn't want to deal with us anymore than we want to deal with her.

Why then, does she copy us on everything? That's the WTF part. First, she snuck into our house while we were remodeling and weren't living there - the contractors caught her - and she explained that she was looking for us (yeah, right) and wanted to know the name of the contractor who redid our stairs. Then lo and behold, a few months later, she has the same guys at her house making a similar modern cable-system railing and stairway. Then we notice she installed the very same new door with side panels that we picked out, but with a different accent design. From what I can see through the windows (no, I don't go snooping into her house) she has also painted her kitchen and living room similar colors, minus the accent wall. If that's not enough, then my maids tell me one day upon having to reschedule due to a vacation that they will be at the neighbor's house soon and could clean then. I asked them if crazy neighbor lady was a new client, and they told me no, that one day recently while leaving my house, she ran out of her house and flagged them down.

What's next? A patio like us?!

They say that imitation is the highest form of flattery. I just say, Dude, WTF?!

Halloween Cruise

2010-11-14T14:15:00.000-07:00

The results are in: A good time was had by all.

There are three types of Cruisers as I see it. The first type is probably what everyone who reads this blog imagines - the Great White American Tourist (GWAT) that forgets to put enough sun-screen on the first day and walks around with pink skin showing from underneath their ill-fitting Hawaiian shirt and from beneath their sandal straps. Why do they always forget to put sunscreen on their feet? The GWAT hardly steps outside their comfort zone and either stays within the fake, commercialized town set up at the port of call drinking sugared-up spirits in over-sized drinking vessels at Senor Frogs, or they just simply stay on board to reap all the benefits of that all-inclusive food and prefers the smell of chlorine over the surf. Most of the big groups on board fit into this category too. On our cruise, there was a huge Singles group that all wore necklaces with their names on them. Ick. Avoid this type of Cruiser at all costs.

The second type of Cruiser are the people who are drug along on the cruise for whatever reason - maybe it's a birthday celebration or family function, but it wasn't their first choice to go on a cruise. They want to explore outside the fake town, but don't really know what to sign up for, or how to get around and see the port city, but they give it their best shot. Help this Cruiser like we did when you meet them to become non assimilated.

The third type of Cruiser is us, the adventurer. Our group members are all SCUBA divers and have been to these ports before, or know enough how to get around and see the real city. We mostly high-tailed it to a dive operator, or had a dive boat pick us up to go off to explore the real attraction of the Carribbean - the underwater. When not diving, we took taxis into the real town to find tacos de pescado for a few pesos and some fine tequila tasting.

But to tell you the truth, if it weren't for the diving, I don't know if I'd ever cruise again. It's a great way to see many countries and dive the waters in as many days. But I didn't like it when we found a place that we liked and wished we could have hung out for a few days and couldn't, like the little private island of Belize we were on, or the little town of Roatan, Honduras as seen here. This was the dock out to the dive boat.

As for Halloween on a boat. That part was a blast. Especially when we were at sea all day, so what else is there to do? You may have remembered when I said I like Burton's Alice in Wonderland movie and that I'd probably do the Depp Mad Hatter. Well, not only that, but I enlisted all the Colorado cruisers to help me out.

We got second place in the contest on the boat, losing to a "Titanic Couple". Their outfits were pretty good, I wish I would have gotten a picture of them, but we were better I think.

Can you believe the boat we had in Belize was called, Captain Ho-Ho?! Of course you do.

Talk Nautical To Me

2010-10-29T13:10:00.001-06:00

So when my buddy from Arizona called me after her Halloween cruise last year and exclaimed that she had so much fun, she signed up for the next two years in a row, my responses was, "Really?..." Since then she has been trying to talk me into going with her this year. I just kept saying things like, "Yeah, we are not cruise people... thanks though."

I mean, a ship full of crowded, sun-burned, asshole tourists? "What could be worse?", I thought.

But the thought of being able to SCUBA dive in four different areas, hell four different countries even, in four days (well, Mexico twice: Cozumel, Belize City, Roatan, Costa Maya) peeked my interest. That with the idea of being in Mexico on Day of the Dead, tequila tasting, shopping for silver jewelry and dressing up for Halloween every single day of the week made me change my mind, and I enlisted six other friends to join us. Plus, it was a birthday gift from my sweet boyfriend. Bonus.

So if you're wondering why I didn't do a birthday post, this is why. I'm celebrating on the boat people, and celebrating Halloween and Day of the Dead all week long. Ariba!

Permission to come aboard Captain?!

I hope it doesn't suck.

Project Patio: Fini!

2010-10-13T17:31:00.000-06:00

Well, let's skip the intermediate steps and go right for the finished product... ta-da! The before shots are not that far down this blog. If you missed them, just scroll down.

What an improvement, right? Plus, it's bigger. I can't wait to make an outdoor living space complete with couches and a fire pit, but it'll have to wait until the snow thaws come Spring. We are in a rush to try and lay dirt and sod now around the patio before that first blizzard hits. The sod people seem to think any laid sod will survive the winter, so we're going for it.

Facebook Will Get Ya

2010-10-05T10:00:00.003-06:00

That's what they say at least. I just didn't know how it would happen, and then it did.

If you've been single all your life like I have, the reality is, all my past lovers outnumber the number of friends I have on Facebook. It was only a matter of time before the "Friends of Friends" Gotcha would get me, and a picture of a certain old boyfriend would appear in one of those little boxes off to the side for a friend recommendation. Actually, it wasn't even his profile. He would never be on Facebook... it's his wife's profile, who predictably and proudly displays their picture. His expression is complaisant, as if to say, "I had no idea when I took this picture of all the people that my wife would subject to seeing it."

Is it just me, or has the internet gotten totally out of hand? One minute, I'm writing about some boring network topic for work and the next minute, I'm staring at a photo of the first guy who broke my heart. He's pictured with his wife whom I've never met, but know all too well. But you see, I knew that was going to happen. I was somewhat prepared for this type of thing when I joined Facebook. No, that is not how it got me. The thing is, I couldn't resist searching for the next thing in line. Maybe I shouldn't have, but I knew it'd be so easy. So five seconds later, I pulled up the profile picture of their daughter. That's when it happened.

I sat at my desk staring at this picture of a beautiful... let's see... she was born in 1986, my Sophomore year in college, so a beautiful 24-year-old woman. The first thought: Damn, I'm getting old. Then I thought about the time when I held this young lady as a baby. I held her right after she was born, because you see, her father was my boyfriend at the time.

It was a long distance relationship as I left Indiana to go off to college at Penn State, and he stayed in town to work. I was pretty love-sick while we were apart. My grades and attitude suffered, my long distance bill was horrendous, and I even thought about dropping out entirely. During semester break my sophomore year, I was so happy when I arrived home. I stared out the window for a much anticipated reunion with my boyfriend, but I noticed as he walked up the sidewalk that something wasn't quite right. That's the day he told me that he got another girl pregnant and that the baby had already arrived. It was like a heart-shredding machine gun that kept firing... I cheated on you... she got pregnant... the baby's here... her name is...

I was in shock. I didn't move for hours, I think. I tried to side with him and his story about how she had lured him once at a party while drinking, and how she trapped him, and then never told him about the child until she was born. It was so small-town cliché, it killed me. But still, I tried. A couple days later at my boyfriend's parent's house, I held his baby and thought about how he and I could still make it work, despite his mother telling me I needed to vacate the relationship so that her son could do the right thing and marry the baby's father. That's how in love I was.

In the end, I decided that it was way too much for me to handle and I cut him loose. He ended up having another child with the same woman and then finally decided to marry her a couple years later. Jesus. I'm so happy that I stayed in college and went along the path that I did. Not happy, ecstatic!

I stared at the photo of their daughter and it made me realize just how lucky I am to have escaped the small town stigma that could have been me. Thank you Facebook.

Good Things Come in Fours

2010-09-26T10:46:00.000-06:00

It's been four years already? That's some freaky ass shit. The only other thing I've kept around for four years are some of my favorite pairs of shoes.

Happy Anniversary SV, me loves you honey!

Project Patio: Between some rocks and a hard place

2010-09-25T11:14:00.002-06:00

The workers poured the concrete this past Tuesday and it's been curing all week. It's squared off at the far end because of the posts from the deck, but I thought a nice rounded corner would be cool here on the other end. We had the concrete poured to make sure we wouldn't have so much rock movement over the years, which is what happened to the original pavers. I'm thinking smooooove, baby.

Yesterday, our guys stopped by and brought by the New Mexico Buff sandstone that we picked out for the main patio rock. Everyone around here has the Colorado Red sandstone and of course, I want to be different. It's more expensive, but I figure it's going to be a lot less hot on the feetsies in the summer and it will provide more contrast for the border rock I picked out, which is really, really, really cool. At least I think so. Want to see it?

Ta-da! It's called Pennsylvania Blue.

It will go with the house, yes?

Project Patio

2010-09-20T18:41:00.001-06:00

As you can see, our poor pavered patio was in desperate need of some attention. The space was barely usable. The stones were so uneven that it felt like you were sitting on a Titanic deck chair when seated, so out they came. Bye-bye pavers!

I've been waiting three years for this project, but it took a while to stop hemorrhaging cash from that last huge project but now we are finally underway. Another feature that I wasn't sad to see go away are the railroad ties next to the house that housed a mudpit that was popular with the neighborhood cats as a toilet. Bye-bye railroad ties!

We are also expanding the patio to be the full length of the house as you can see from this pic. I'm planning on having an outdoor room underneath the deck with couches and a fire pit, and then patio furniture in the open area. They are laying concrete tomorrow and then we have a mason that's going to tile the area in New Mexico Buff Sandstone with a Pennslyvania Blue rock border.

More to come!

And Then He Jumped

2010-09-09T14:18:00.000-06:00

I wonder if he thought about the impact he'd have on the poor conductor's life, who forced himself into early retirement after the traumatic event. I'm sure he thought about his family he was leaving behind, his close friends, and his two ex-wives, but probably not about the conductor. Or who knows what he thought about as he downed a six pack of brew and smoked some cigarettes there on the overpass. He certainly didn't think about me, as we haven't spoken in a long time. It was seven years ago actually the last time we spoke which was ironically, at a funeral.

I had just moved to Phoenix in 1986 and met a fellow artist at work that became my best friend over the years. She discovered I was a volleyball player and invited me out to her husband's company volleyball league at Cactus Park. Being new in town, it was just the social link I needed to meet other volleyballers and Johnny B. was one of them. We bonded instantly, both being Hoosiers out there in the middle of the desert. We were the only ones still wearing striped tube socks for heaven's sake.*

I quickly discovered that Johnny B. had a fierce competitive streak in him, which I loved. He often chose me to be on his team. Over the many seasons we played together, we often sat in the park after it was dark and Johnny B. made up games on the spur of the moment for the group to play. He loved games of all kinds. He started inviting me to his house for game night and we'd play games like charades and euchre** all night long. Even back then, I sensed he was a paradox in that he loved to socialize and be around people, to play sports and games, and yet he was a very private person about his life.

The question is Why?, which no one can answer right now. The only clue being that we know he got back some medical tests the day before, which must have been devastating. Still, a person like myself finds it hard to comprehend my Hoosier friend Johnny B. not putting up a competitive fight against whatever it was. Many of his closer friends feel the same way and had the same reaction upon reading the news in the paper. This has got to be a game... some kind of elaborate game and we're all being punked. But it was just wishful thinking as now there's no denying the police-investigated reports and the conductor's eye-witnessed account. This troubled and deeply private person must have thought through it all before deciding. I trust that he spun the aftermath in his head and weighed his choices more than once.

And then he jumped, after setting aside his wallet and phone, into the path of the oncoming train below.

* He is pictured on the right in his tube socks. I'm crouching on the right and you either can't see mine because I used to scrunch them down, or it was after I rapidly learned they were too hot to wear in AZ.
* A mid-western card game involving trump.

Surgery Update

2010-09-07T17:08:00.000-06:00

When I went into the doctor's office ten days after my surgery, I was surprised at this x-ray. No, I was not surprised by the the length of the metal rod, nor the multiple screws that now inhabit my body*, but at how broken my tibia looks. The doc told me he was going to re-break it so that he could twist the bone into proper alignment, but it looks more broken than the first x-ray right after I did it. Three months of healing for nothing... it pisses me off!

I'm also surprised at how much more stable I feel, no doubt due to the hardware holding my leg together, which is another reason I wish I would have had surgery from the start. But I promised not to dwell on that poor decision any longer. Only at this point in the game, I'm getting really, really, really good at it.

There is one iota of a silver lining in all of this, if you can even call it that - I did get one piece of hardware removed that went in a year ago to hold the new ACL in place on my knee. Well, at least there's that.

I'm now at three weeks post surgery and I've got a long way to go before I can feel the ice again. The doc said most people take a full year to recover from this, but he said to me, "For you, six months. You're tough." He might have said that just to keep my spirits up, but I think I can do it just on sheer determination to keep my sanity in tact. Some days, I feel like I'm just holding on by a thread and other days, I feel like I'm doing a decent job at remaining positive. Try to catch me on a good day, will you?

* I'm so sick of this, that I don't even have the inkling to lead you down the path of rod and screw innuendos. I'm so over it people.

Little Girls and Horses

2010-08-25T15:06:00.001-06:00

I don't know what it is, why so many little girls love horses, but I used to be one of them. I drew horses all the time, and dreamt of having my own, and had a horse collection, which I still have to this day, including the one in my left hand in this photo.*

I told my dad once about how much I dreamed of owning and riding my own horse and he, in his dream-analyzing a la Sigmund Freud period told me that my dreams represented sexual intercourse. I was about nine or ten and didn't know what that term meant, but I knew enough to say, "Ew, gross."

*I'm the one in the middle with my cousin on the left and my sister on the right.

Consider This The Before Shot

2010-08-09T17:24:00.000-06:00

My leg didn't heal correctly - this photo is taken in a mirror so the crooked leg is on the left and is actually my left leg. The doctor says I can live with this slight rotation, but it will never correct itself on its own, or I can have surgery where they will re-break the bone and set it with a rod and pins. It didn't seem like much of a choice for an athlete.

I'll be joining the How Many Jokes Can We Make? party next Tuesday.

The most frustrating thing is not having this done from the start because I'd be back to playing hockey by now. My knee doc was on vacation when it happened and the other doc I got didn't even mention surgery until my medically-inclined boyfriend asked him about it. He urged not to have surgery unless needed and since the bones were in alignment, there was no reason to think I'd end up crooked. But after my doc got back in town, I started seeing him and we followed the now determined path of the first doc and not until after three months go by does he mention that he would have pushed me towards surgery right out of the gate. But no use crying over cracked ice.

And if you're sick of hearing about my leg, trust me, I'm sick of hearing about my leg too. I've been injured most of the past year. When will this ever end?

Chaos Coming from Order

2010-07-26T23:23:00.000-06:00

First, I wanted to say thanks to Some Guy for the trip down Blogroll Lane. He got me thinking. I guess I haven't posted much latlely because I am vehemently trying NOT to sound like a broken record. The truth is, I feel like a twin sister to the last time I injured myself, oh so not long ago.I was just getting my stride back on the ice, on the court, and in life, only to have my legs taken out from beneath me again, literally. It has been a challenge, more mentally than physically this time, to hang in there and not be a negative ball of goo. But I've started to take my first steps again without crutches, and it's like Spring is here again. I hope my sass is on the next train and then your favorite Hockey Ho will be back in action.

I used my laid-up time to scan in a bunch of old negatives and also to do a few logos for friends which I really enjoy and makes me feel less guilty about that art degree I have collecting dust on the shelf. I was watching that Work of Art, The Next Great Artist show the other night (another side effect to being laid up is watching too much TV) where the challenge was to create a piece of work using only grade school media like tempera paint and pipe cleaners and use your first art memory as an inspiration. Most people created crap but I thought it was a cool challenge.

I remember my first attraction to art was not the act of creating art at all, but all the cool packaging and order in something like a box of crayons, a pack of colored pencils, or paint palette. I remember not wanting to even take a crayon out of the box because it would ruin it. I think I spent more time organizing and re-ordering the colors the way I thought they should go than I spent creating art. To think that something so messy could come out of a nice, neat package of ordered colors was fascinating to me. I would inevitably make a drawing or painting, and then be bothered by the fact that my package was tainted, and yearn for a brand new one again.

I think there's enough neuroticism there that I would have kicked ass on that challenge.

Treme

2010-07-06T14:06:00.001-06:00

Here's another great show I've been watching while on cast-duty. This was recommended to me by my cousin who lived in New Orleans for many years. Named after a historic neighborhood, season one of Treme* takes place three months after Hurricane Katrina hit. The local musicians, chefs, Mardi Gras Indians (pictured), and regular New Orleanians all try to put their life back in order, each facing their own hardship. The common thread of these characters as their paths slightly cross from time to time, is the music itself. It's the music that allows the characters to heal, cry, earn money, wallow, and pass along traditions. Plus, I'd watch anything with John Goodman in it and he, and all the other actors, do not disappoint in this series.

Having never been to New Orleans myself (I know, shocking!), it took me a few episodes to get it - to understand the way of life there. New Orleans without its music is like a human without air. Thanks to this series, I get it now, and visiting this city just got moved up towards the top of my "to do" list.

Thanks cuz.

*It's on HBO only but it will be on Netflix soon.

I'll give you my hockey stick when you pry it from my cold, dead hands.

2010-07-02T12:28:00.000-06:00

Hobbling into my pedicure place the other day on crutches drew some unusual glances from those cute Vietnamese ladies I told you about. I might go as far as to say that they were looks of disappointment, almost as if to say, "No wonder you are not married and having babies, look what you've done to yourself!" I've never seen such a look of incomprehension as to when I told them I broke my leg playing hockey.

It got me thinking about my two injuries. When people saw me on crutches the first time and asked what happened, I explained that I blew out my knee playing volleyball. There were mostly looks and comments of empathy and understanding. Surprisingly, many more people that I knew about have also blown their ACL doing similar activities like skiing or playing soccer. Each one told me their own knee story, and then reassured me that I'd be back playing volleyball in no time.

This time, when I tell people that I broke my leg playing hockey, the reaction is very different. I'm not sure if it's because of my gender, my age, or the sport itself, but let's just say the looks and comments from my non-hockey playing friends are not so encouraging. I even heard, "So are you going to quit now?"

Excuse me, but when did breaking my leg because a big girl fell into me while playing a physical sport constitute that I'm at the "fall and break your hip" age? So I need to sit down now, do I? Is that how you see it? I need to subscribe to Quilters Monthly, is that it?*

Well, let me assure all of you out there that I am not hanging up my skates just yet. Screw that. Shit happens. Bones break. Bones heal. I'll be back, and the doc says bones heal stronger than before. I've got one more week in this cast and then I'll be ready for my tenth hockey season this fall.

*No offense to quilters.

GKL's Rehab Show

2010-05-26T18:38:00.002-06:00

What a time to break my leg... no Project Runway, no Dexter, no Weeds, no ANTM, no Californication, and now no DWTS.

High time (pun intended... always) to get myself addicted to a new show. Breaking Bad was recommended to me by dealer, Netflix and I think I saw a couple blogger blurbs from my homies that I trust (you know who you are), so I went with it, and am super stoked that I did, man.

Bryan Cranston,.. wow. No wonder he won the Emmy the first year out of the gate. He is so believable in his role and, as SV puts it, has the look of abject horror down to a T.

It's a little story about a middle-income, middle-aged, middle-humored high school chemistry teacher who finds out he has stage three lung cancer even though he is a non-smoker. His realization that he only has a few months to live and will leave his handicapped son and pregnant wife penniless is motivation enough for him to start cooking up some killer, pure-as-it-gets meth and makes big bucks even though his brother-in-law is a DEA agent hot on his trail. You can imagine the rest of the trouble he finds as Albequerque's newest drug lord.

The two-hour pilot show is by far, the most exciting, funny-yet-dramatic TV show that I've seen in a long time. Watch that and you'll know if you're hooked or not and if so... see your local dealer.

Oops, I Did It Again

2010-05-14T14:29:00.001-06:00

It was the championship game in the Women's Front Range Face Off this past weekend. My Ice Monkey team didn't win much this past winter season, so this tournament was a chance to shake off our losing record and have a go at winning something. The previous weekend, we lost the championship game in a different tournament, landing us in second place. So this time, Monkeys wanted to prevail. We really, really, really wanted to win the championship, or at least I did.

There was a play at the net, with a shot from my teammate and a rebound spurted out. I crashed the net to try and bang it home, when the puck popped out again, this time on the opposite side. I was thinking "dive for it" as I twisted in the opposite direction and stretched out my stick to hopefully tap in the puck through the small opening, where the goalie didn't have her pad, but that didn't happen. Instead, I heard bones breaking and had the horrific realization that they were my own. I'm not sure if it was because my skate was caught up on something or someone because there was a lot of pushing and shoving going on, but it didn't matter. It was over in an instant and I knew I was done. I knew it was broken. My teammates helped me off the ice and my coach helped me get out of my gear in the locker room and SV came and got me and took me to the E.R.

I broke both the tibia and fibula, with the tib being a lot worse - it's a spiral fracture you can see close to the ankle in the x-ray, and then the fib fracture is up higher, below the knee. This is the same leg as my knee injury and you can see the pin from that surgery. I was wearing my knee brace per the doctor's orders and the knee held up, so that's the good news. With my foot strapped in so tight in my skate, and the brace on my knee, the only giving point for the torque action was exactly where it broke.

My over zealousness to win might have been my downfall, or maybe I need to drink more milk, but at least I'm not out for months like my knee. The doc thinks that my bones will heal fine in about 6-8 weeks, so after what I went through with my knee, that seems like child's play. I expect not to wallow near as bad as the first time. Readers, hold me to it.

As for the game, it went into overtime after I left the ice and unfortunately, the Monkeys lost. Damn-it.

More on Kaua'i

2010-05-07T14:11:00.004-06:00

The first thing one notices about this rather small island in Hawaii shortly after touching down is that there are these damn roosters, chickens, and chicks running all over the place. This made for endless status update jokes on FaceBook, thanks to my 12-year-old humor, but we read in one of our guidebooks that there's actually a reason why the cocks run amok on Kaua'i. It was hurricane Iniki in '92, that took out a lot of chicken coops and the fowl ran for cover inland. The surviving birds then turned wild and they've been breeding that way ever since. And when I say they are all over the place, I mean it. They hang out in front of your local neighborhood Starbucks, on the beach in the sand, and of course, they lurk in the bushes next to your dinner table.

I guess people get used to it, but our first night there was spent fairly restless, not just from the four hour time difference, but because the rooster calls were non stop. We thereby donned our first hotel in Liheu near the airport "Roosterville" and opted out of it on the way back. I wonder who eventually is allowed to catch and cook these birds? I suppose there are some local laws that handle the situation but I kept forgetting to ask.

Driving up to the north shore of Hanalei, where we spent a week, was as mesmerizing in beauty as I pictured. There were a lot of remote beaches that escaped the tourist scene if you looked, but the windward side is plagued with a lot of strong currents, so you had to be careful if you went in the water. It's a surfer's, wind-surfer's and paraglider's haven so we spent some time relaxing on the beach watching those activities, and also did some body board surfing ourselves.

After a week on the north shore, we said goodbye to SV's parents and enjoyed another three days on our own. We drove south down to Poipu on the leeward end to escape some of the wind and rainy weather. The seas were much calmer there, but not calm exactly. We wanted to go SCUBA diving a couple days but it was pretty rough, so we just went once. But we enjoyed two nice dives through lava tubes and turtle-cleaning stations.

Up on the boat, after the first dive, I was pretty sea sick. I was just about ready to puke when Kaua'i reminded me that I was still in Paradise. I looked behind the boat to see a double rainbow and a pod of dolphins following us to a cove where the opening scenes of Fantasy Island were shot. It was good enough distraction that I ended up not hurling during my surface interval.

Ah... then there were peaceful sunsets with soft ocean breezes and Mai Tais to top off the day. I might get addicted to these kind of vacations instead of freezing my ass off on some mountainside. But I don't think I'm done with that yet, so I made sure I enjoyed my warm, sunny beach vacation to its fullest.

Why Are These People Smirking?

2010-05-05T10:12:00.000-06:00

I think they know something we don't.

These people have been married for 50 years. Yes. Married... to each other for fifty years. This is almost incomprehensible to me. I've never known a couple personally that has been together that long. So I was really curious about this fact when SV and I helped his parents celebrate their 50th Wedding Anniversary in Kauai last month. I waited until towards the end of the week, one night at dinner, after some wine was flowing, and then I asked:

"So... 50 years... How did you make it this far, if you don't mind me asking?"

It was SV's mom that answered, motioning towards her husband. "Well, he is never bored."

Interesting answer. Can the secret to a long, happy marriage be summed up in so few words? And does it mean that if he is content, then so is she? I didn't really want to press it further and risk spoiling the mood by going onto the possible topic of not-so-great times together because every couple has them. Instead, we all raised our glasses and toasted to something that is truly rare these days and for that, I admire them.

Happy Anniversary you crazy kids and by the way, thanks for the house in Hawaii.

A Most Awesome Placeholder

2010-03-26T20:48:00.002-06:00

I don't know who this woman is but I heart her.
I'm off to Hawaii for a couple of weeks so take care you little bloggers.

Hockey Season Recap

2010-03-21T20:14:00.004-06:00

It seems like it's over before it even got started, but my season didn't start until almost half way through because of my injury. I would gripe about that fact but I'm thrilled that I got to play at least a half a season. I look forward to next season when I won't have to wear my knee brace, it's kind of cumbersome, but again, I'm not going to complain.

Making the season seem even shorter is the fact that the Monkeys elected not to play in the end of season tournament. We've been having trouble getting more than ten skaters to a game for various reasons including our player that is still recovering from brain surgery.

Three years ago, my team went undefeated, except for the final championship game. Two years ago, the league moved us up a division and we didn't win a single game in the new division. Last year, we were able to eek out a couple wins, and this year we broke almost even. So we are definitely still growing and improving as a team, and that's the exciting part. In fact, we ended this season playing an out-of-division game with a team that's leading the division above us, and we won 3-1. We thought we were going to get beat pretty bad but we were able to get 15 skaters on the bench knowing that it was the last game of the season, and we skated our best. We did a lot of things that Coach Lance has been trying to get into our thick skulls over the years and things really started to click.

Too bad the season is over, but let the spring tournament season begin. Goodbye Monkeys, bring on da Hos.

Go Ask Alice

2010-03-10T10:19:00.002-07:00

I'm always hesitant to go see a movie where I already know the plot, more or less, but that didn't keep me away from seeing the latest Burton film since I've been a fan of his since Scissorhands. I need not mention my affinity towards Johnny Depp either.

Burton's take on this film is intriguing, and instead of redoing what's already been done, Burton picks up on his story after the sequel, Through The Looking Glass. It turns out, Alice's first romp through Underland at age six was not a dream at all, and she returns at age 19, during the day of her surprise engagement party by following the waist-coated rabbit once again. This allows for the gloomy foreshadowing and dark humor that is so prominent in any Burton film. My favorite part being, the remnants of the last tea party 13 years prior, where the Mad Hatter is even madder and even the Rabbit and Door Mouse have lost their senses a bit. The teacups are all broken, shattered and thrown at each other as they await a challenger to take down the big-headed Red Queen, which is brilliantly portrayed by Helena Bonham Carter. Anne Hathaway's performance of the White Queen made me laugh and wince at the same time. I'm not sure if that's good, but at least it's different, and I didn't mind being pushed into an unknown direction. The effects were the expected high quality, adding to the entertainment value. Speaking of which, I also like that certain elements of the original story were kept like the changing scale of Alice herself. It's all good, clean fun. A movie you can take the kids to, but enjoy yourself.

Mad Hatter for Halloween? Probably.

Coach Lance's Innuendo of the Week

2010-03-05T10:58:00.002-07:00

Coach Lance (at the Colorado Pond Hockey Tournament sponsored by PBR): There's no goalie, so it's all about protecting your hole.

Us (Pabst Smears): Tee Hee

A Woman's Right To Cigars and Beer

2010-03-02T12:25:00.009-07:00

It's astounding I say. In this great country of ours (and theirs up north there), in this day and age, WHY are we still struggling with a different set of rules between men and women athletes?

Today, when you google "women's olympic hockey beer," there are a thousand stories about the Canadian women's hockey team who transported their gold medal victory celebration from the locker room to the ice, after the rink was supposedly closed to the public. Thanks to all the media attention from some lingering photographers who took photos of the beer and cigar-adorned skaters, the International Olympic Committee now has their panties in a bunch, feeling pressure to issue a statement that the IOC will look into the matter, thus casting a shadow upon a glorious occasion for the female team members, who would otherwise be standing in the sunshine with their male counterparts.

But don't close that google window yet. Now omit the "wo" and submit "men's olympic hockey beer" and you will see the top story is about our own President Obama, who sent a case of Molson beer to the Prime Minister of Canada, following through on their bet over the men's Olympic gold medal match in which the Canadian men's hockey team prevailed. I don't have to explain the irony.*

And don't tell me that the reason for all the hubbub is because the Canuck women had an underage (by one month) drinker on the ice because those pictures would have still surfaced if Poulin was of the legal drinking age in Canada, and it would have still been called to the IOC's attention. Poulin is just a scapegoat for the real issue of what is troublesome to all the old fashioned, small-minded critics out there. They think it's bad enough that women are finally allowed to play hockey in the Olympics, and that the sport has elevated to a higher level and some of the women could even give the men a run for their money, but now... the women can smoke and drink like men too?!

So tell me why, in the land where hockey was born and raised, where beer and hockey go together like Canadian and bacon, why can men smoke and drink after winning a gold medal and they are cheered by their highest head of government, but when women smoke and drink after winning a gold medal, they are dubbed as "not classy."

It ain't right, I'm telling you.

* Thanks Devilham

Shoe Peat

2010-02-16T21:17:00.003-07:00

Remember two years ago? Well, I did it again. Luck was by my side this past weekend in Vegas! Luck by my side being SV and his sweet Valentine craps roll which I bet on heavily. I started with $300 and was down at least half of that, and then walked away with $1780 afterward. SV also won a few hundred. I was the next shooter, but didn't want to chance losing any of my winnings so we colored up and walked away. My destination? Well, first we had to go to the bar and get a cocktail to calm down. We were on quite an adrenaline rush and couldn't believe what just happened. But after the drink, we went to the Manolo Blahnik store at the Wynn where we were staying and I bought my first pair of Manolo's. It's hard to tell in this picture, but they are a pretty shade of gunmetal satin. I wore them out that night to our Valentine's Dinner at SW Steakhouse.

What a weekend, thank you Valentine.

Your VD Rental Is Here

2010-02-11T14:51:00.005-07:00

Need a rental for Valentine's Night? Well, there's nothing like watching a guy have a relationship with a blow-up doll... wait, not that kind of relationship. Ryan Gosling plays a guy who suffers from traumatic delusions in Lars and the Real Girl and the whole town supports him in his time of need until he can get past his past. Brilliant screenplay and a very convincing job by Gosling. Don't miss this little gem.

Just In Time For Valentine's Day

2010-02-10T15:22:00.005-07:00

Puttin' the Ho back into the Ho.
Check out their website.

The One Whre I Try To Make Sense Of It All

2010-02-08T20:12:00.004-07:00

First of all, thanks to all my blog friends (in addition to my hockey hos) that have been following along with my FB updates about my critically ill teammate, and extending your support. Courtney, aka Coxie (on the left) is not out of the woods yet according to the docs, but she has made an astounding recovery so far.

To catch up the rest of you, when our teammate didn't show up for our game a week ago last Saturday because she wasn't feeling well, we didn't think twice about it. But a startling text on Sunday morning to our team Captain changed all that. We found out later she was experiencing really bad headaches that night and luckily, her next door neighbor and friend is also a nurse and told her she should go into the ER and get it checked out. The initial cat-scan was alarming, showing four aneurysms, needing immediate surgery. Complicating matters was the fact that her husband was out of town on a guys trip (payback for our girls trip to Missoula to play in that tournament), but luckily again, her neighbor took care of Coxie's two little girls until her hubby could get home and family reinforcements came.

Coxie underwent a nine hour surgery that Monday and the surgeons were able to clip all the aneurysms including a troublesome one, which proved to be bleeding for quite some time. This is an unbelievable scary thing to be walking around with, yet she was. BTW, these were not caused by hockey or any other activity or injury. They don't really know what caused them. But to skip all the middle part, she is doing really, really well right now. She starting speaking less than 24 hours after her surgery and there are no signs of any neurological damage, and every day she continues to improve in the ICU. She is amazing, and strong like ox.

Truth is, I expected this much from her. I suppose there's a defense inside everyone that pushes away any bad thoughts about a loved one but if you knew this woman, your expectations would selfishly, be high too. I can't compute any other outcome because I've never known a more loving and caring person. In fact, SHE called ME (and others) from her drugged-up hospital bed mere hours before surgery to let me know that she loves me... just in case.

I thought I was brave. Nope. Bravery, thy name is Coxie.

Everybody Was Kung Fu Fighting... Except This Guy

2010-01-26T14:32:00.003-07:00

A few movies I've seen lately:

Kung Fu Hustle - Okay, this one is down right silly, but it made me laugh. Stephen Chow from The Green Hornet fame attempts to be a 1940s gangster on the streets of Hong Kong in this flic, but he's far from a martial arts expert, so he fakes it instead. Think of Jackie Chan, only with no real fighting skills, amongst the Crazy 88 gang from Kill Bill. If that's your cup of tea, then you'll like it.

The Fall doesn't have any big-name Hollywood actors, but that is just fine with me because the two leads in this movie are excellent. Lee Pace plays an injured stuntman who meets up with an imaginative five-year-old girl in the hospital back when movies were just starting out. It's an interesting story of what they want from each other, and what they eventually get. The special effects of story-telling versus real life is done very uniquely and creatively.

Switching from no big-names to lots of them, my sister recommended that I watch Angels in America mini-series and I finally got around to it. The dialogue in this series is unbelievable. It's the kind of script that makes me pause and think about almost every sentence that is spoken. Meryl Streep, Emma Thompson, Mary Louise-Parker, Justin Kirk and Al Pacino, among others. It's a must see, but be aware - it comes on two 3-hour long disks and I found it too hard to watch more than an hour at a time and fully absorb it.

Bread and Tulips is just one of those sweet little foreign movies that you can watch when you want something dangerously close to a romantic comedy but, not. It's about a woman's chosen independence after her bus tour leaves her at a gift shop stop and I won't tell you any more than that, other than it takes a few twists and turns along the way.

4th Year Blogiversary

2010-01-24T15:57:00.004-07:00

Four years already?!

Oh yes, now I remember... it was when the 2006 winter Olympics were just about ready to get underway and I was pissed that the USA Hockey coach didn't appoint Cammi Granato to the Olympic Team.

Let's see what I can get pissed about this year... stay tuned for more snarky Olympic coverage.

Denver BroncHos

2010-01-23T11:11:00.004-07:00

My first trip to Big Sky country! My HoGear team played in the Flying Mules Hockey tournament in Missoula, Montana as the Denver BroncHos. One of the original Hos (pictured front left) moved there about five years ago and we kept threatening her that we'd come for a visit. Easy Like Sunday Morning Ho (EZ Ho, for short) finally got her wish as we invaded her town last weekend, and she was a humorous and gracious host.

I must say that I didn't know what to prepare for at all. EZ Ho told us not to expect too much out of the surroundings, knowing what we are used to - rinks with two or three sheets of indoor ice with warm, cozy locker rooms. Even the indoor rink in Missoula wasn't heated and the locker rooms were just places where we sat, shivering on a bench with four plywood walls built around, trying to muster up the courage to strip down to put on our gear. Then there is the outdoor rink where they play, we heard rumors, even if it's ten below zero. We feared the outdoor rink like we fear breast cancer. Our whole strategy was based on how not to end up playing outside in the finals.

But what I found out about Missoula folk is that they are just as cold as the next person, but they kindly and quickly adapt. Case in point, who wants to drink beer on tap when you're standing around, freezing at an ice rink? The Missoulans don't think twice about it and simply bring an extra-thick glove for their beer-drinking hand, and a very warm hat. Mingling through the crowd after the games was like mingling through a bunch of Ralphie's younger brothers but everyone seemed happy and content. The men and women playing in the tournament weren't sure what to make out of the Hos, wearing our pink jerseys and bras on the outside. They pronounced the name "Ez Ho" instead of "E-Z Ho" at first, but it didn't take them long before they were cheering for Back Ho, DynaHo, and our newly anointed High Ho (for obvious reasons). They were coming up with Ho phrases left and right and anxious to tell us when we got off the ice.

They got it.

Even when our strategy failed and we found ourselves at the dreaded outdoor rink on Sunday morning at 8am, hungover from the previous night's player's party and dragging ass, it wasn't that bad. We looked around to see that a few people of Missoula had turned out to cheer on their team and we even picked up a fan or two. In Denver, NOBODY and I mean NOBODY would be there to cheer on anyone at 8am on Sunday on an outdoor rink.

I was the first Ho to get a penalty in that outdoor game and was shocked when I opened the door to the penalty box to realize that I was in the parking lot. I didn't notice the close proximity because the glass was all iced up, much like your windshield on those icy mornings. When I yelled back to my bench that I was, in essence, sitting in the parking lot, I was offered a beer by no less than three people that were at their cars, one can assume, getting an early morning start on the tailgating.

That's when I finally got it.

Missoula has all the quaintness and friendliness of a small town and hockey is not only an athletic activity, it's a big social activity. It's a reason to get together and cook chili in the parking lot and tap a keg. It's like our fall football game season, only much colder. In short, the Hos fell in love with Missoula and although we placed at the bottom this time, we will return next year to get on top.

Oh and as it turns out, two minutes in the box is REALLY not long enough... to drink a beer, unless you're from Missoula.

It's Back: Coach Lance's Innuendo of the Week

2010-01-11T17:02:00.004-07:00

I know you've all been missing these installments. My return to the ice also means a lot of juicy lines from Coach.

Coach Lance: When you go down, stay down... until the end.

Me: Tee Hee

Monkey Game Recap
After our last game, which was my first game back, Coach Lance had to have one of those "heart-to-hearts" with us all in the locker room afterward. We lost horribly, and we were probably jacking around too much because it was right before holiday break. We all are pretty good friends and we were in a chatty mood, and not focused on the task at hand. I was in a different ozone entirely because I was just so happy to be playing hockey that I didn't notice that we were a big bag of suck until it was too late. The bad part is that we beat that team easily before and then we didn't even show up to play that game.

So we, mostly out of respect for our coach, tightened things up a bit this past weekend. We practiced hard and then went after it, right from the first moment the puck dropped, and it paid off. We won 5-3 and their goalie made some pretty good plays or it would have been more like 7-3. I didn't have any accidental head locks this game and even scored two goals, thanks to some great assists. In true 'Ho in Hockey' form, I scored the first time on my knees. I didn't even see it go in, but I felt it.

I Know What You're Thinking

2010-01-08T11:08:00.004-07:00

As much as I love Halloween and have been known, even recently as such, to paint my face blue and don a blue leotard so I can portray yet another bad ass woman movie character, you are pretty convinced that I will be Neytiri for Halloween this year, aren't you? Well, I'm touched if you sat in that movie theater having paid $11 for admission to Avatar and lord knows how much for popcorn, and thought of me.

She is blue, and she does kick ass, doesn't she?

Unfortunately, watching the new Uhura as a twelve-foot-tall, blue Na'vi taming a Toruk and the sheer beauty and special effects of this movie were the only thing that kicked ass. Oh, I was entertained visually for the entire time so it wasn't a total loss, but even a five-year-old can figure out the plot after a mere ten minutes. Let's see... boy meets girl, boy falls in love with girl, girl wants boy to become part of her world, the world that you know is in impending doom. Let's see, didn't James Cameron run this plot before... something about a boat that hits an iceberg?

I don't understand that man, Cameron. He had the strong female acting talent of Sigourney Weaver, CCH Pounder (barely used), and whatshername, Uhura and this is what he came up with? Weaver on The Daily Show told Jon Stewart that Cameron's been dreaming of this movie since he was 13. That's evidently when he came up with the plot for this movie as well. Avatar took three years to make - understandably so with all those great, fantasy-like scenes, but you would think Cameron could hire some cerebral script writers in that amount of time. C'mon, throw the bored-with-mainstream-movie-goers in the crowd a bone, would ya? Look, if The Matrix with it's ground-breaking camera effects can also challenge you to think about things a little, than so could have Avatar. I sat in the theater dreading the impending war which I knew was going to take place, even looking at my watch wondering just how much time we were going to have to sit through the asshole guys with the big guns saying, "git 'r done." Ugh. What a disappointment. All that potential was right in Cameron's grasp and you didn't even know the boat was going to sink this time. He could have done anything, took us anywhere, something new, something exciting, told a story we haven't heard before. But, nope. It's a different world, same story.

I know what you're thinking... (again) and you're right. Cameron will probably be up on stage again, this time putting the end of his braid into a newly-gained Academy Award, and raking in even more bucks than he is already and that's his justification. Well, only if you're into that whole fame and fortune thing.

As for my Halloween costume, it will remain the only thing in this post that you can't predict.

The Weighting Game

2010-01-05T10:41:00.005-07:00

I don't know why it is. Every new year, there are scads of newcomers in the gym. I'm not sure if these folks are actually New Year resolutioners, or if the first week of January is simply the first chance they get to work off some of the pounds they've gained by eating too much Who hash and Christmas cookies. But if tradition holds, these neophytes will be there only for a few weeks hogging up the machines and clanging down the weights. Then by the Sweetest Day of the year, they will all be gone again, on their ten month hiatus. These folks always intrigue me. They go after their exercise routine with such vigor and intensity, it's like they are punishing themselves. What happens to them the rest of the year?

This year, I will blend in with the old newbies. My plight is similar to theirs in that five months of watching hockey instead of playing it has turned my mid section gooey, and it's time to get back in shape. As you know from my insurance company rant, I had to wait for a new year to continue my formal physical therapy. I've been trying to do my homework regularly, but it's hard for me. I am well-trained athletically (and only athletically I might add) to respond to someone telling me what to do. I've had coaches all my life and the more they yell, the harder I work. It's engraved deep down somewhere in my sports core. Anyway, I just hope I didn't fall too far behind being left to rehab on my own, and I hope it doesn't take too long to get my muscle tone and cardio endurance back.

The subject of weight is obviously one to be wary about. It's like religion and politics - unless speaking to a very close friend, I don't broach the subject unless it's already been broached, and even then, I'm very careful. I wish it weren't such a touchy subject, but I can see why it is. I admit that it's more the female gender that you have to tip toe around. It's not like you can say, "What, you're not pregnant? Oh, well you look like you are. That's why I said, 'congratulations!'"

As for me, I could have used a little honesty before now. The scale hasn't shown that I gained more than a couple pounds, but I can tell by the way my clothes fit that the weight is now distributed in other, less desirable places. What I mean by wishing the topic of weight (especially with women) wasn't so frail is because I really wanted to know if I looked any different... aside from my left leg muscles being these foreign-looking, tiny, wet noodles. Each time I asked about my appearance, urging that I could take the truth, SV met the question with that blank stare as if to say, "I'm not falling for it. Not ever," and then he responded with something nice.

There's no way I was going to fret about having such a sweet boyfriend, but I took the word of my skinny jeans over his all the same.

Now, just because I can't get this song out of my head:

A Must For You Shat Fans

2010-01-04T20:33:00.004-07:00

My sister got me the updated version of this book for my birthday. I read it cover to cover, which isn't easy to do unless you're a die-hard Shatner fan, considering it's in encyclopedia format. There's entries under everything from T.J. Hooker to Denny Crane. From Lucy in the Sky With Diamonds to Has Been, and yes folks, there's even the low-down on Shatner's divorces, girdle, and his toupee. As Shatner said, it's "full of information about me that I can't imagine people find interesting."

Christmas... Not As Good As Halloween But Almost

2009-12-24T16:45:00.003-07:00

Well, at least this Christmas rates up there. Yeah, yeah, deck the halls and all that but really, in my self-centered world, the best present of all is my return to the ice.

After five and a half months of being injured, I finally played in a game last Saturday!

I felt out of sync, out of shape, and out of step but I didn't care. It felt great. It felt weird. It felt like the mother ship calling me home. My thoughts raced on every shift:

"Wow, this feels weird, playing full speed again. Wait, face the play... what are you doing? Don't turn your back to the puck! Have you forgotten everything Coach Lance has taught you?! Hey look, I'm skating okay, well sort of. Oops, that move wasn't so slick. Maybe I shouldn't have gotten my skates sharpened my first game back. But my knee feels okay. Wait, don't think about your knee. Just don't think about it - go for the puck, there it is. Bend your knees. Stay low. Your team is losing, do something!"

In the end, we lost 0-3 and the team didn't play so well. Needless to say, I wished for a different outcome. I wanted to be a hero - score a couple of goals and assists, block a couple of shots and maybe achieve world peace while I was at it, but I only managed to put up one good shot and that missed wide. I also got mad at a girl that boarded me so I wrapped her in a momentary head lock.

Ahh, hockey... how I've missed you so.

Merry Christmas!

Cave Diving

2009-12-17T14:54:00.007-07:00

I'm often reminded when I visit other countries that it doesn't take a lot of electronic gizmos to be happy, or to get your groove on. The local people in the Dominican Republic love to dance and sing and they don't even need a fancy boombox like in that last video I posted. People down there were constantly breaking out into song without even being attached to an iPod. The hotel lobby had nightly hootenannys that appeared to be impromptu ensembles of those with musical talent who played and sang into the wee hours of the morning. Aside from my occasional Facebook update via my iPhone, it was good to get away from everything with an on/off switch myself, at least for a little while.

While my sister and her boyfriend were vacationing on Catalina Island out there in California, we had the other Catalina Island in the DR covered. It's just a short boat ride away from Punta Cana, which was an hour bus ride from Boca Chica, where we were staying.

Also near Boca Chica, are some fresh water caves that we dove - a first for me. There wasn't much sea life to look at other than some tiny crustaceans, but there were beautiful, cathedral-like stalactites and stalagmites, some cool fossils of shells and snakes, and a dreamy, surreal effect when the fresh water mixed with sea water in one section. Between being in a cave, the darkness, and not being able to see two feet in front of my face when it became murky, I'd say this experience was a pretty high butt-pucker factor. But the stained-glass effect of looking up at the cave entrance as we ascended out of the wet darkness was well worth it.

I tried to capture that very thing on this video but of course, it doesn't do it justice. It's a bit dark until the end but stay with it to see the grand ascent.

Is It a Party Boat, Or a Dive Boat?

2009-12-08T22:44:00.002-07:00

All's I know is that those Dominicans are damn happy, and know how to shake it.

This Might Hurt a Little

2009-12-07T19:21:00.004-07:00

Like many of you, health care has been on my mind lately. Mostly because these past four months since my knee surgery has been the first period when I've needed my health care insurance for something other than a routine checkup. After the surgeon grafted a new ACL from my own hamstring and sewed me back up, I was given crutches, a brace, an ice compressing machine, and passive motion machine to use. I was worried about the hospital bill and all the other add-ups. I had no idea if I would be able to pay the bill and didn't know what was covered and what wasn't. Not for the lack of trying to find out beforehand, mind you. The doc had warned me about my provider, United, as being known not to cover all the hardware if I had the surgery done in a much more economical surgery center versus a hospital. United only covers two pins used to hold the ligament in place and my doc used three, but only if the procedure is done in a surgery center instead of a hospital. Huh? I tried to call up and confirm some of these things with my insurer prior to the surgery so I could make a decision where to have my operation, but after being put on hold for numerous hours, not getting straight answers, and getting different answers from different people, well, I'm sure you know the rest. It seems like everyone has a similar experience.

That's the problem. Everyone has a story to tell about their insurance, or lack thereof. It's never simple. Don't get me wrong, it's first and foremost, absolutely horrible that we as a country don't provide free health insurance to the folks that need it and can't afford it. But it's just as incomprehensible that I have paid for insurance all my life and rarely need it, and then when I do, to not be fully covered. It's "we cover this but not that" or "that's a pre-existing condition" or "that's not proven to help given a 100 year study on wounded butterflies" or some bullshit.

For me, I rolled the dice and told my doc I wanted to have my surgery done in the hospital because then my hardware would be covered. I wasn't sure about the deductible. The agents on the phone told me I would have to pay 10% of the bill no matter where I had it done. What's 10% of the pricey hospital bill versus 10% of the surgery center plus the cost of the pins? Why was I put in such a position to try and figure out what game to play with my insurance company in the first place? It's crazy, I tell you.

In the end, I got a bill for $82.42 because I'd already reached my max out of pocket for the year, or at least that's what I think. I'm very fortunate. I paid that bill, like the day after I got it, for fear that it is a mistake and someone will discover it and send me another.

However... now my PT office has told me that United is refusing to pay for any more physical therapy appointments. Evidently, 20 PT visits is all you need to recover from having your hamstring hacked off and placed in your knee. But that's per calendar year, so if I can just put my recovery on hold for three weeks, then I can continue PT in 2010. People, keep this in mind - if you're going to injure yourself, do it towards the end of the year. That makes total sense, doesn't it?

How in the world did health care get so screwed up in this country in the first place?

While on vacation last week in the Domincan Republic, SV and I were riding in a van to dive site with a German guy who works for Procter & Gamble and spoke very good English. So I asked him what it's like to have universal health care. He had nothing but good things to say about it other than the "old way" of thinking in Germany is still present in that they charge a married man based on his income, not a married woman, no matter who makes more money. I asked him if he thought Obama was a socialist for trying to invoke such a plan and he laughed. He asked me why so many Americans were so against it and I apologized for not having a good answer. He asked me to confirm, "You have free school systems, right?"

Right, I said. Point taken.

Give Me Turkez Now

2009-11-26T09:56:00.005-07:00

...or else I start lickin plates.

Dear Santa, I Want Ballz For Christmas

2009-11-20T15:25:00.004-07:00

It's true. There's been a lack of blogging around the block lately. While some of you out there have proposed it's shiny, shiny Facebook that has taken over (even though FB is for hacks), others have admitted to being lazy, uninspired, unemployed, or hurt by blog confessions. Whatever the reasons, I confess it's been sad for me too.

So what's my excuse?

While the thought of being injured and having more time to blog was a nice one, the truth is that not playing hockey or volleyball has given me limited reasons to vent, have cathartic revelations, or otherwise babble on with y'all. Don't worry, the Doc (no, not that one) said today that my knee is "perfect" in its state of recovery and on the four month surgery mark (Dec 3rd), I'll be able to return to playing hockey if I personally feel like I'm ready. My doc believes in letting me make the final decision. Sure, I'd like to say, "Hell yeah, I can play tomorrow!" and just do it, but I can tell I'm not quite there yet. I do think I'll be ready in early December, which will make me so unbelievably happy that I'll just have to post about it.

Just to be sure that the reason I haven't posted much is the real reason, as told by EG over at his place, I googled it. I took his advice and typed in the image search, "why can't I write about anything but hockey and sexual innuendos" and this image is what came up. So just to cover all my bases, I'm going to continue rehabbing my knee AND ask Santa for Ballz for Christmas. I think then I will have all the fully-functioning equipment I need to return to regular blogdom.

Thriller

2009-10-31T16:51:00.003-06:00

Well, somebody had to do it.

What Will It Be This Year?

2009-10-29T12:01:00.001-06:00

You're absolutely dying to know, aren't you?

Too Much Time On My Hands

2009-10-25T11:57:00.001-06:00

See what an injury has done to me - I've turned into a competition reality show couch-aholic.

America's Next Top Model
I really want Nicole to win because she's from Louisville, Colorado which is basically Boulder and she's sooooo "Boulder". I love the way she talks, all hippy-dippy monotone but of course the panel criticizes her for that. They'd rather have a fierce diva model or a perky one, so she'll probably get sent home if she fails to smize just even once.

But really, who can resist the poor, innocent, southern girl from Kentucky- Laura? She's remarkable. If Nicole gets sent home, she's my second pick. Or better yet, I hope they are the final two.

Dancing With The Stars
First of all, the show should be called, Dancing With The People You Don't Know Are Stars Until They Are On The Show. Mya who? Aaron who? Joanna who? Yeah, yeah, Mya is a great dancer. She's elegant and technically sound but she's so good, she's boring. I'm rooting for a dark horse... no, not Donny Osmond but I do like the fact that he's 1. a Star and 2. doing so well even though he's over 50. It's a little unfair since he's been dancing his whole life... if you can call what he did as a kid dancing.

Mark Dacascos from Iron Chef America is my pick. He's got potential, he's improving every week, and that's what the show is all about. I also like the edginess of his professional dance partner, Lacy Schwimmer. She's a rebel, and who doesn't like rooting for a bare-footed rebel?

The Next Iron Chef
This one is harder to pick a favorite because all the chefs have a lot of talent, just different styles. I think Iron Chef could use another woman like Chef Freitag or Crenn, but I do like Chef Mehta and the eastern flavors he brings to the table. I saw him compete against Iron Chef Morimoto in Battle Coconut and he has amazing creative talent. Plus, he just seems like a really nice guy.

Project Runway
Ah, my favorite! Which designer do we bash first? Of course everyone hates Irina because she's such a bitch, but she has turned out some of the most amazing things I've seen walk down the project runway. She has won three or four challenges but I think she could have easily won more if they didn't try to spread the wealth around so much. Personality-wise, I like Carol Hannah and Althea much better and they have a lot of talent too, so I'm rooting for an all-ladies Bryant Park.

None of the men impressed me all that much, plus most of them like Nicolas, Johnny and Mitchell were all so damned annoying that I was thrilled to see them go. I did like Jepperson, but he's been auf'd.

Top Chef
True, the much talked about Vottaggio brothers are very talented and the competition between them makes for good TV, but I've liked Kevin from the start. He always does something way out there on the creativity scale for his Quick Fire challenges and since no one has invented Wonkavision yet, we have to trust what the judges say as far as flavors go, and they seem to like what he does. Thee phrase "mad skills" comes to mind when I think of Kevin.

I think Jennifer is also very talented, she tends to keep it simpler, which we know Colicchio likes. I'm pulling for her too.

Guess Who's Birthday it is?!

2009-10-20T00:01:00.001-06:00

If you guessed me, you're only half right.
Happy Birthday to the Monkey Mucker himself, Dr. Monkey!

People I Shouldn't Be Attracted To, But I Am

2009-10-11T22:26:00.004-06:00

William Shatner, Michael Chiklis, Patrick Stewart, Bill Kurtis, Tom Green, Emmitt Smith, Edward James Olmos, My Hockey Coach, and Tom Colicchio.

Hubba, Hubba. I'm not sure if it's his bald head, or what. But this top chef can sharpen his knives in my kitchen anytime.

I promise to keep it simple.

I Should Have Named Her: Don't Bite

2009-09-30T09:36:00.003-06:00

Teaching Tobiko not to use her claws was easy. Teaching a feral cat not to bite... well, that's been a bit more challenging. She's trying really hard though!

Progress

2009-09-28T12:42:00.003-06:00

It's been eight weeks since my knee was knifed, and although this process is taking much longer than I'd like, I am making progress. I'm walking almost normal now and have taken the stationary bike out of first gear. My handout from the doctor says at 6-12 weeks, the goals are to improve my quad/hamstring strength, achieve full range of motion, and have tolerance for close chain activities. Those things are all on track, and I've returned to the pilates gym. At 12-20 weeks, the handout also says I can "return to sport" but that's unless your sport is hockey... Hopefully, I'll be able to skate by then, and at least I'll be able to swim, run, and road bike and that will keep me from going insane.

The handout doesn't say at what point I can wear high heels again, but I risked it this past weekend anyway. Do you think I was going to let those new Christian LaCroix boots I got in L.A. just sit in my closet? Especially since it was our THREE YEAR anniversary dinner.

Speaking of SV, thank you baby for three fabulous years, and for taking care of the gimp. I don't know what I would have done without you.

My Knocker, The Forest, and Gomez By Hand

2009-09-17T16:39:00.010-06:00

I can't believe it's been two years since we remodeled our house already! You may remember that we had some exceptional paint and plaster finishes done in our house by a talented painter, so I haven't been in a real hurry to find art for our walls since the walls are so beautiful by themselves. But patiently, I've been receiving, collecting, commissioning, framing, reframing, and even making things to hang on our walls. Remember when my sister got me this signed Nimoy photograph of my cousin that I had framed, then I bugged Evil Genius to let me buy this painting and hung it on my wall, and then I bought this original from another Denver artist friend of mine named Bruce White.

Now there's a few new things.

My father brought me back a bronzed dragon door knocker from China for Christmas a couple of years ago. I love it, it's really heavy. But it didn't jive with our now modern house and doors to use as an actual knocker, so I decided to hire the same artist that did our walls (DynaHo's brother, Gary Gomez) to build a custom piece for my office since it has an Asian theme. After some sexual innuendos about my knocker, Gary researched the significance of the dragon, came up with a design, and built it from scratch.

Isn't it awesome? Gary decided that the knocker had to go in the center because it represents the perfect balance between growth (phoenix in lower left) and extinction (fire-breathing dragon upper right). It's kind of like a yin-yang thing going on. He custom made the frame too, and signed it with his name in Chinese characters as the red dynasty stamp. It's perfect for my office.

SV and I actually made this headboard focal piece together and we are almost complete on the project. We call it, The Forest. I had the design and idea, SV built it to my specs, and we painted it together.

I'm not sure how crazy SV is about it, but he tends to trust me when it comes to the aesthetics around here so hopefully, I haven't gone down the wrong fork in the road, er, forest.

It looks somewhat boring during the day, but we are in process of adding these puck lights to it, which create forest-y shadows on the ceiling. Unfortunately, you can't see the effect in this picture.

This is in the guest bedroom, and the guests have all liked it so far... but they are usually intoxicated, hence the crashing in the spare bedroom, so maybe I should ask a sober person what they think.

The best is when blogger Kirby tipped her hat to her artist friend Pat Gomez (what can I say, I like artists named Gomez) over at Gomez By Hand. I'm digging the abstract art lately so I love the things that she does. I bought these three pieces and had them all framed together. The one on the left kind of looks like and reminds me of my old dog, so I call this: Zuma Staring at the Trees.

It's my new house favorite... Tobiko's too.

GKL's Rehab Movie Reviews

2009-09-14T13:27:00.007-06:00

I love movies that are not comedies that make me laugh. That's how I'll describe Everything Is Illuminated, starring Elijah Wood as a quirky, young Jewish man who embarks on a journey to the Ukraine to find a woman who saved his grandfather from the Nazis. One can't mutter the word Nazi without noting that there are very serious parts to this movie too. The former hobbit is perfectly cast in this role as a collector of sorts, but his Michael-Jackson-loving, Ukrainian translator played by Eugene Hutz somehow steals the show. It's unique, charming, and very sad all at the same time.

If you liked The Full Monty, chances are you'll also enjoy Robert Carlyle in Marilyn Hotchkiss Ballroom Dancing and Charm School. By the way, that title rocks, but you'll have to see the movie to know why. It's about a baker (Carlyle) who's very withdrawn after the loss of his wife and happens upon a car accident, and is first on the scene. I don't watch a lot of movies that have many well-known actors in them, but this one has a few including one of my favorite character actors - John Goodman as the accident victim. Marisa Tomei is, well, meh, but Mary Steenburgen's performance as the dance instructor who's hanging onto the memory of her mother who founded the ballroom dancing and charm school is captivating. Who doesn't love a movie with Mary Steenburgen in it?! Also, Donnie Wahlberg hits the nail on the head with his rendition of the guy in the dance class who wears polyester pants with his shirt unbuttoned down to his navel... you know that guy. There's a cameo by Danny DeVito too.

Last on the list of today's movie reviews is an oldie, but a goodie. Being There starring Peter Sellers has surprisingly aged rather well. I enjoyed it much more this time around than when I first saw it back in '79 or 80. I think I was too young to appreciate the wit of the dialogue and the brilliant performance by Sellers. But this time, neither escaped me. You probably have already seen it so there is no need to describe the plot, but if you haven't seen it in a long time (or maybe not at all?), then it's time to rent it again.

The Expectant Email

2009-09-12T13:35:00.006-06:00

Dear GKL,

We've noticed that your shoe buying activity has gone down.... way down. Instead of the average six pairs of shoes a week purchases, your account shows 0 pairs of shoes bought in the past two months... zero.

This recent account inactivity is of great concern to our company. As you know in this economy, times are tight. If you don't start buying shoes again, we may have to close our doors. Forever! We mean you no pressure, or guilt, or anything, but there are millions of shoe-needing women out there, not to mention our company employees who are counting on you to reactivate your account or they will be out of a job soon.

Sincerely,
DSW Shoe Warehouse

P.S. If you've had a recent injury or something, that's no excuse. Please don't be selfish and think only of yourself in these desperate times.

I'm Walking Here!

2009-09-11T00:02:00.005-06:00

Oh, I'm walking alright. With a big, huge brace on my knee most of the time and my gait is not very stable, but at least I'm walking. Now the real pain begins.

It goes by the name, Physical Therapy.

That's okay though. It's my kind of pain. When the therapist gets out her range of motion scale and presses down on my knee to make it go straight, I hold the grimace as best I can. It's the same when I try to bend my knee as far as possible - it's agonizing, but I don't complain. This pain is dependable, predictable, and ironically comforting to me. I can see its reward. Every day, I get more motion and my strength back. I'll take this pain any day. Please, just don't put me back on that bed with nothing to do and no where to go except to that dark place that I never want to see again. That pain is unpredictable, unrelenting, unbearable.

I kissed its fat ass goodbye.

To celebrate my new found mobility, I went to cheer on my hockey team at the rink this past weekend. I even sat on the bench during the championship game as my Hos won 1st place in the Coors Cup tournament. I smelled the sweaty gear, felt the chill of the ice, and heard the sound of the puck crashing into the boards. To say I miss it is an under statement, but it felt so much better to be there than laid-up.

I've come to accept that I will be living vicariously for a while, so please carry on with your canoe trips, your daily push-ups, and your bike rides. I am watching and waiting my turn.

29 Minutes, and Counting

2009-09-03T23:31:00.002-06:00

I'm staying up until midnight tonight.

Why?

Because the doc said I can ditch the crutches starting on Friday.

I'm going to start walking again in 29 minutes!

GKL's Rehab Movie Reviews

2009-08-31T15:24:00.005-06:00

This little Sundance comedy, King of California was surprisingly better than I thought it was going to be. I'm not a big Michael Douglas fan, although I did run into him at a bar in Aspen once, literally. I was making my way to the bathroom in the crowded bar and I was behind him and tried to squeeze by to his left just as he turned that direction. We made eye contact... well, we would have if he wasn't so short.

Anywho, he plays a delusional old guy in this flic and he did it rather well. I enjoyed Evan Rachel Wood's performance as his daughter too, albeit the plot is a bit predictable and a little far-fetched. It was still worth watching, and you will find yourself looking oddly around the next time you go to Costco.

I know, you must think that I live under a rock because I'm just now getting around to seeing this Capote movie. I go see Star Trek and Sex in the City on opening night and then wait to see something this brilliant, like a year later. I don't know why. It's something about knowing when a movie is probably as good as everyone says it is, and so I wait to see it until after all the huzzah has died down.

Well, if you just crawled out from under a rock too, make sure you see this movie. It has inspired me to read In Cold Blood, and Phillip Seymour Hoffman deserves every ounce of that gold statue.

And this one, two words: Alan Rickman. He could sit on a sidewalk and act like a turd, and I would clap at his performance. He had me at Sense & Sensibility, not to mention Galaxy Quest, (and let's just pretend those Harry Potter movies don't exist). Snow Cake is a charming tale about an autistic adult woman (Sigourney Weaver) and how, due to a tragedy, Alan Rickman comes into her life. Sigourney hits the mark on a challenging performance, but it would probably fall flat if it weren't for Rickman's British uncomfortableness. It's nice to see Carrie-Ann Moss as the love interest, in something other than full leathers too.

Ways That People Are Nice to The Gimp: Trash Day

2009-08-27T15:10:00.003-06:00

My eyelids darted open at the sound of the garbage truck coming down the street. Usually, I just go right back to sleep, but it dawned on me that the trash was not sitting neatly out at the curb like usual because SV was out of town. Oh well, we'll just skip this week I thought to myself and rolled over to return to slumber.

But a vision came to me. The vision of the single-stream recyclables overflowing in the garbage can in the garage. It's the recyclables that get picked up so early in the morning. The regular trash collection isn't until later in the day. In Boulder, the city alternates between picking up the single-stream and the compost materials weekly, so I knew it would be TWO more weeks before the single-streams would be emptied. If there's one trash container in our household that is full all the time, it's the one that collects beer, wine and tequila bottles.

I must get it to the curb, and quick!

So I hobbled out of bed, threw on my terry-cloth robe, grabbed my crutches and hurried towards the door. The stairs were scary because I didn't have my balance yet, let alone a one-legged balance. But I got to the landing okay, hit the garage door opener and went out the front door in a huff. When I got to the garage, I just stared at the container. It was very full and heavy. The trash truck was next door now. Just how bad do I want these bottles gone, I questioned, and then decided to make a go of it with just seconds left.

I threw one crutch to the ground and it made quite a noise hitting the cemented garage floor. I yanked at the trash can with my now free hand towards myself, and towards the curb behind me. Then I took two hops away from the container using the other crutch. I did this yank-hop-hop a couple of times and was able to get the can pretty close to the curb by the time the truck arrived. I looked up at the garbage man and then realized that I hadn't gotten the wheels facing the right direction. I tried to spin it quickly around.

That's okay, I got it, he said.

Oh, thank you so much, I said feeling really relieved. I retreated towards the garage, exhausted.

The garbage man looked a little embarrassed and then I realized that in my desperate motions to take out the trash, my robe had fallen open a little. I imagined what I must have looked like being so gimpy and frantically pulling at the heavy can. I wanted to crawl back inside the house so I grabbed my other crutch and retied my robe. I didn't care what else happened with the empty can or trash. But as I turned to go, I heard him call to me.

Maam?! I'm just going to set this (now empty) can in the garage for you. I'll put the other one out for collection, okay?

And he did. I was so thankful that he had taken time to get out of his truck and help me out. I thanked him two or three more times and tried to smile as best I could for still feeling rather humiliated.

I hope the same guy comes again in two weeks because I'm going to leave him some nice, cold, full beer bottles to go along with those empties.

Ways That People Are Nice to The Gimp: Costco Salad

2009-08-25T17:43:00.003-06:00

Last week, I desperately needed to pick up some pictures for a photo project I was doing and SV was out of town. The thought of braving Costco on crutches was comforted by only one thought.

At least I have a handicap parking pass.

So I went. It's kind of a hassle putting on the big brace, getting out the door, stashing the crutches in the back seat, shutting the door, hopping up to the front seat, moving the seat all the way back so I can get in, shutting the other door, moving the seat back up to reach the pedals... and then reversing this process when I get to the destination. It's enough to turn anyone into an on-line, delivered to your door shopper.

As I approached the guy at the doors to Costco, I remembered. Oh damn, he's going to want to see my membership card, which is stashed away in my wallet, in my purse, that's over my shoulder. It could be a three minute process to stop and get that out. I went for the eye-contact avoidance strategy instead. It worked. I got my photos and was headed out the door when my tummy rumbled. It was a reminder that I hadn't eaten all day. Not wanting another item from my freezer or boxed mac & cheese, I decided to get a chicken caesar salad while I was there.

I was happy at my brilliance. To get an errand done and get myself fed all within an hour's time would be a post-op record. After paying for my salad, I asked the cashier for a bag so I could carry my salad out the door.

Oh there's no bags here at Costco, he said. We are bag-free.

Uh.. what? Not a bag... anywhere? I asked, looking around behind the counter myself for something, anything that would work.

I can get you a box if you want, he muttered, not really wanting to.

I did the double blink at him and waited for the realization of his stupidity to sink in. It didn't. That's when it happened. The lady behind me offered to walk my salad out to the car for me. Now I know it doesn't sound like much and I'm sure back in the day, it would even be expected., but in today's world, I was taken aback by the generosity of this kind stranger. Luckily, I was able to stuff the salad in my purse because it had a cover on it and it was almost the same shape as my purse. So I thanked the woman two or three times, glared at the kid behind the counter one more time, and left.

I am encouraged that kindness still exists out there, and I carry a back-pack purse with lots of room now.

The Old Elephant in the Room

2009-08-24T16:44:00.000-06:00

That big, old grey bastard is just standing there, swaying from side to side, in his nasty elephant way. Oh, he's staring me down alright but I have to ignore him, or else he wouldn't be in the room, now would he?

. . . . .

It seems my whole life I've been belly-up to the craps table, playing the odds. I was one of those little girls in Pre-Title IX days that wasn't allowed to play some sports because they were only for boys. And when I was finally allowed to play, I felt I had to work twice as hard to prove that girls everywhere should be allowed to play these "boy sports."

Now, there's a new challenge rearing it's silver-haired head, and it's taken me a long time to get here, so tread gently, readers. Let's see... how does one gracefully come out of the denial stage anyway? Well, there's this race see... and it's not a foot race. Oh, if only it were that simple. It's more like a race against time as my body starts to show the wear and tear of forty years of hard-core playing. In other words, I'm ol... I'm getting ol... I'm, you know, have more age now.

Once again, I find myself playing the odds. To be ironic about it - I have to prove to all these young women who got to play sports like hockey from an early age, a luxury that I never had, that I deserve to be on the ice with them. Put these two things together and I'm an old lady playing a young man's sport. It's a bitch of a mental game.

Maybe it's my injury that's getting me down, or maybe it's because I have more time to think, but I don't like the thought of being put out to pasture any time soon. In other words, resort to playing golf. After all, I have the best inspiration around.

. . . . .

C'mon you wrinkly old mammoth, I think I still got game. Just wait until I rehab this knee, you'll see. Now get the hell out of my room.

Who's Hangin' with Josiah Now?

2009-08-17T13:34:00.002-06:00

Sorry the focus is going in and out on this video, but it's too cute not to post. Tobiko is rarely seen sharing her rabbit with anyone, but only Josiah realizes that the rabbit belongs in the mouth.

GKL's Rehab Movie Reviews

2009-08-16T14:43:00.008-06:00

Thanks to Some Guy for this recommendation. I enjoyed this Abel Raises Cain documentary a lot, and don't have too much to add beyond how Chris described it, so just read his description.

Though I will say if Abel were still alive, I would have put money down on a bet that he started the whole "death panels" scare in the Health Care reform act. That's the type of antics he'd pull, although it would be made-up, not real.

Next up, thanks to Kirby* for recommending this new favorite of mine. It's one thing to be watching a documentary on a place that has intrigued me for a while (Antartica), and it's another thing altogether to be watching a movie and seeing a former friend and co-worker of mine appear. I used to work with Bill Jirsa (the linguist in the green house), who got laid off from my company in one of the very first rounds several years ago. Once at a party at his house, he was telling me about his plans to go to McMurdo (which was a little disappointing because I had a huge crush on the guy), and I haven't seen him since. Evidently, I wasn't very good at keeping up with his blog, or I would have known all about it.

I'm not sure how Air Guitar Nation got into my queue, but I'm glad it did. At first, it was like watching Trekkies in that it's hard to believe that these people who compete in Air Guitar contests are so serious about something so... dumb. I thought about turning it off several times, but couldn't because the more I watched and got involved, the more I was entertained. Much like watching a lady defend being able to wear her red-shirt uniform to work every day because she's "a Starfleet officer," these "musicians" talk about technique, creativity, and stage presence while on a quest to be the first to represent the United States in the World Air Guitar competition in Finland. It's hard to believe the U.S. didn't invent this international competition, but we didn't. We didn't even come close, and up until a couple years ago, we didn't even have representation. I won't tell you what happens when the U.S. finally makes it to the world-wide Air Guitar championships, you just have to rent it.

Lastly, here's a serious drama that I thought was brilliant. Inspired by my recent trip to Poland and Auschwitz, I wanted to see this movie about what happened to the Polish troops out in the woods at Katyn in 1940. Plus the movie follows the wives of some of the officers who live in Kraków with scenes from the city. It's hard to watch at times, but very well done with stellar performances by Andrzej Chyra and Maja Ostaszewska. It's very worthy of it's Oscar nomination.

* Kirby I can't link directly to your old posts for some reason. Do you have that feature turned off?!

Just What the Doctor Ordered

2009-08-11T00:28:00.005-06:00

I was in my normal pose in front of the TV this past Friday night, meaning my leg was wrapped in the electric ice sleeve and was also propped up in the passive motion machine. That's a contraption used for rehabbing my knee. It's named passive because it moves my knee instead of the other way around. It's too soon for me to use a active motion machine like a stationary bike, which I hope to be on just as soon as I can.

Anyway, I thought I was settling in for the night with SV to watch a movie or something when he all of a sudden, popped up and announced he was going to head off to this party we were invited to. You would think this kind of thing would piss me off seeings how I'm pretty much a prisoner of the first floor, the land without stairs, but I wasn't annoyed in the slightest. I wanted him to go out and enjoy himself. I don't even want to be with me right now, why expect him to be? I actually feel better when he is out bike riding or something. I figure at least one of us should be enjoying ourselves and besides, he promised a present upon his return. I was hoping it would not be some more bar food or desserts that he's been bringing home in attempts to cheer me up because I feel flabtastic enough without exercise.

SV returned quicker than I thought - I hadn't even gotten through all my taped DIY network shows. I could tell by the sound of footsteps that his surprise was a who, not a what. I turned around and heard a woman say, "Shots, bitches!" Now this is one of my lines so it did not instantly occur to me who it was and in my defense, it was pretty dark in the room, save for the glow of the TV. I didn't recognize her at first in her shorter hair, but then I realized SV brought me home my sister.

They tell me my expression went from horror and confusion to actual jaw-dropping surprise, and I believe them. The only thing my face didn't reveal was relief. Utter relief. There is exactly only one person in this world that I would want there unannounced and that would be her.

Suddenly, all the pieces fit together - just little hints that I would have picked up on if I wasn't so deep in wallow, and percocets. He wouldn't go to that party without me, on a Friday night, no way!

I must say, it's the first time in a long time that my sister and I were together and WE DIDN'T GO SHOPPING, but we did the second best thing - sit around, watch Sex & The City, read trashy magazines, and sip on micheladas (thanks, Kirby!). My sister also cooked and cleaned, giving SV a much-needed break. Having her there with my boyfriend to take care of me felt like the minute you are covered in a warm, fleecy blanket when you are shivering. It is the single most thoughtful thing any two people have ever done for me.

Thank-you again, love you guys.

Post-Op Post

2009-08-04T18:34:00.001-06:00

That empath is never around when I need her.

Pre-Op Opts

2009-08-02T19:19:00.004-06:00

Here are the top ten optimisms about being injured, not being able to play sports, and having knee surgery tomorrow:

10. For the first time in a long time, I don't have any hockey-related bruises on my body, and the skin rash caused by sweaty hockey gear has completely gone away.

9. The expense in staying outfitted in the latest trends in high-heeled shoes has gone down... way down.

8. I have more time to read your witty blogs. No pressure.

7. I watch all those television shows and movies that you all blog about. I now understand total boredom.

6. I finally get Grant Miller's jokes about Rachel Ray.

5. The fear of gaining 50 lbs. while not being able to exercise is replaced by the aspiration of becoming an alcoholic.

4. I have time to write that book on The Permanent Ohno I've been meaning to write.

3. My dermatologist is happy.

2. I no longer care what gas prices are.

And the number one optimism about being injured, not being able to play sports, and having knee surgery tomorrow:

1. Prescription drugs.

GKL's Wordle

2009-07-23T16:30:00.003-06:00

Thanks to Tamma13 for teaching me about wordles, a website that makes word clouds of your website or text.

This just about covers my current mood, don't you think?

Wallow Much?

2009-07-16T17:50:00.002-06:00

My thoughts are gathering, processing, and I find it hard to spit something out that isn't a contradictory in terms. After some good old fashioned wallowing and self-pity about my injury, I end up with the comforting thought that my life is so good that this is the worse thing that can happen. That's not bad, not bad at all. Yet, in my world, it's devastating at the same time.

There I was, hitting the shit out of the volleyball in the greenest version of Steamboat that I've ever seen, and I see it ever year on the second weekend in July at this annual tournament. All of the recent rainstorms have blessed Colorado with lush surroundings, and I visually took note of it. I was also enjoying playing doubles with my best friend Jennifer who I don't get to see much since she got married, moved south of Denver, and adopted a kid. Plus.... man, can that girl set. I had forgotten how nice it is to hit her sets. We even beat a couple of young Amazonian-tall women in matching outfits - not bad for a duo who's combined age is 87.

A couple of matches later, I went up for a hit and... there was no contact at the net, or slippery grass, or uneven ground... I just landed all wrong. Startled by the pain, I yelped and instinctively grabbed my leg, which was in two different alignments momentarily as the knee dislocated and then came back. Crumbling to the ground, my hockey season immediately fired through the synapse in one of those slo-mo movie moments. I instantly knew it was bad. I said, "I'm done." aloud to the players that rushed towards me.

Jenn, bless her safety rat heart, made a mad dash to the cooler and returned with a bag of ice in mere seconds. This is the girl I trusted my life with on Denali. This is who I spent 23 days tied to a rope with, who I trusted with my life and weathered two storms in a place where things could have gone very bad, and didn't. Irony was seeping out my pores as now she took care of me in a harmless park not far from home. Even in the moment of ligament-tearing pain, I knew somewhere deep down I was lucky. My boyfriend was also there and rushed over. What better timing can you ask for?

Don't think that I'm without bad attitude though, as I mentioned. I have had regular, self-centered fits all week long, especially now with the MRI results. I really did a number on my knee, tearing all three L's (ACL, LCL, MCL) and considerable other damage that's not even known for sure until I get knifed. Oh, I wallow alright. Because Sports is so much more than a hobby. It's my social life, my fitness program, my stress relief, my mental workout, my everything. Now, I won't be able to play hockey, climb mountains, or play volleyball for what, 5-6 months if I'm lucky?

Today, after clearing my calendar of everything I won't be able to do physically, I sat staring at all the new blank little squares and started to cry - I know it's not the end of the world. It's just the end of my world, for a while.

Samiko

2009-07-06T11:53:00.007-06:00

I'm pet sitting for a neighbor's boy cat named Samurai. I figure since he's got a Japanese name too, Tobiko will greet him with open paws... she's got a different idea:

Ha, I stared-ed him down. He go bye-bye now.

He cannot reached me. He iz clumzy.

He alwayz bother me so I gain ground.

No! He founded my toyz. Them are mine!

Wait, when did diz happen?!

Loch Ness Monster Debunked

2009-06-30T15:03:00.003-06:00

Ponts de Lyon

2009-06-11T11:19:00.011-06:00

I've only been two places in France - Paris, and now Lyon. While being very different cities in many aspects, the thing they have in common is that a river runs through them. Paris of course has the Seine and Lyon has Le Rhône. This means there are a lot of bridges (ponts) around and this is a thing to consider when navigating the city. I suppose it's like living in Brooklyn when you know what time of day to avoid the traffic on a certain bridge.

Our hotel overlooked the river and was situated close to the main town center and "old town" as the Lyons call it. Even their "new" town is of course, a lot older than anything we got going on here in the U.S.

This is one of those places that you constantly walk backwards with camera in hand to try to get all the spectacular architecture in the shot before you hit a building behind you. It's not often possible.

Just when you think you can look up and see some empty sky, there is another structure to defy that logic. But at least you always know what time it is.

There's always plenty of marvelous fountains around, in case you want your picture taken with some bad ass French dude who has a lot of horsepower.

Of course the English have no respect for French fountain art.

In old town, there's even less space to shoot a photo.

Just to prove I was there and didn't grab these images from the internet, here is SV and I dining in old town at, you know, that place on the corner of the cobblestone street.

On Kraków - Trip Report in Photos

2009-06-08T16:28:00.014-06:00

And now back to our regularly scheduled program.

If you haven't ever been to Poland, you simply must go. Take it from me - Warsaw has got nothing on the second most popular city in the country - Kraków. If you want a city that's smokin', Kraków is the place to be. If you do get there, you must take the tour that I did. First of all, sign up here with these guys. They go see dead people:

For the trip, it's best to first take in some local flavors. You can usually find them in a place like this little hole in the wall:

If you're not sure what type of beer to order in Poland; a pilsner, stout, or wheat beer... may I suggest the third item down - it's pronounced strong beer in English:

Then you can feel like this guy:

Don't forget you need some good ol' polish sausage and fried cabbage to go with your beers. If you are lucky like me, the football game will be on TV so no one will notice you're a tourist taking pictures with your food.

Then once you got a full belly, you can go check out a castle like the Warwick one - it survived the Nazi's destruction and burning unlike Warsaw, so that's cool:

Stop and feed the pigeons on the way:

You might as well stop and get hitched or something while you're there because let's face it, there's no bad back drop for your photos:

Last, but not least, don't forget to take in some art while you're there, because the city is kind of known for it. Here's one by some guy that's making movies now about some Code with an Angel or Demon, or something:

All and all, it was a pretty amazing trip and I have to thank the Southern Poles for inspiring my next entertaining theme - a Pierogi Party!

Auschwitz Concentration Camp - Poland

2009-06-05T05:08:00.013-06:00

I suppose I should write some kind of warning about the nature of this post because most my followers that click here probably expect to see more cat pictures, or the latest "Ho in Hockey" adventures, or what Coach Lance has said this time. The warning should be like the one at the short movie displayed at the entrance into Auschwitz - the largest Nazi Death Camp in Poland. The warning states no one under the age of 14 should be allowed to view the movie, and you might want to consider that because I posted a few pictures from that very place.

I confess that I didn't even watch the movie. Visiting this horrible place was enough emotional turmoil for me, and I won't do it again.

In life, I choose to focus on the positives, even when it is hard to find. That is why I'm the least politico in my family. When Bush won the last election, I shamefully just sort of tuned out, and tuned back in when I heard Obama's speeches about Change. I've never seen realistic war movies like Platoon or Saving Private Ryan, even though I know they are fictional. I prefer movies like Kill Bill, where the violence is so absurd, there's no way it can be real. As much as I try to avoid it, I do know it's important to know what horrors are going on in the world so that I can feel damn lucky about my own life and stand up for what I believe in.

I guess that is why I found myself alone, on a two-hour bus ride from Krakow to the town of Oświęcim, dreading the actual arrival to my destination. Proud of my decision not to join a huge tour bus that gives each attendee a little lunch bag on their way to a spot where over one million Jews and Poles were murdered, I rode the local bus in silence. At each stop, I intently searched the faces of the locals returning home from a hard day's work. I wanted to see if the elderly had a brow-line wrinkle which embedded the town's horrible history in its fold. I wanted to tell them all that I was sorry for their loss. But I stared out the window and prepared myself instead.

I knew I would be moved emotionally at this place, but I didn't think I'd cry, even though I heard it happens often. Afterall, the horror took place over 60 years ago and I don't know anyone personally who was killed. I thought crying is for the people who lost someone - maybe a grandmother, or a distant cousin. I was wrong.

I also didn't join a tour group at the museum but chose to wonder around on my own, reading the signs, and taking pictures. I avoided the large groups and entered the buildings on exhibition only when they were not crowded. I didn't speak to anyone. The gruesome details unfolded, just like the movies we've all seen, and worse. At times, it was hard to believe that it happened - that humans can be that cruel to their own race - like flying a huge jet into a building full of people, on purpose. But it happened.

I was feeling very sick to my stomach, but didn't cry when I stared at the millions of empty Zyklon B gas cans.

Or visited one of the crematoriums.

I didn't cry when I saw the ton of hair removed from the female victims that the Nazis were selling to the textile businesses.

Or the gallows in the courtyard (recreated) that is the site of the biggest public execution when 12 people were hanged.

I didn't cry looking at the torture room, the standing cells, or the room where the victims undressed before they were put to death, which is making me sick again as I write.

But while walking down a long hallway in one of the cell blocks, with victims' photographs plastered on the wall from end to end, I paused at this one, and that's when I lost it. Who was she? What would she have become? Who put this flower there? Did they know her? Do they miss her? I am sure she was loved.

People are capable of doing horrible things to each other, it's important to remember, even though I'd prefer to forget.

U R Leavin Me, I Nozit

2009-05-30T11:17:00.001-06:00

Not happy boutzit.

Towanda!

2009-05-29T11:01:00.002-06:00

Here's my first attempt at fried green tomatoes. I was going to call up my sister and ask her how she makes them, or search the blogs of those good cooks like Megan and Dr. Monkey. But in the end, I was in the kitchen hungry and just decided to wing it. Besides, you can't go wrong with panko, in my opinion. I used some really fresh green tomatoes from the farmer's market, dipped them in peppered flour, egg wash, and the panko bread crumbs, and they turned out great. They were firm, yet melted in your mouth.

In case you're wondering, I served them with my home-made saag, and some marinated shrimp escabeche à la Flay. So that's what you call some southern, Indian, French goodness.

The Wiz Makes Me Want to Pee or Something

2009-05-27T22:30:00.008-06:00

The Red Wings won, the Nuggets lost, and believe it or not, I watched The Wiz for the first time ever. Talk about a bad night of TV... I'm sure I would have liked that movie at least a little bit way back when, but now it's seems too redundant that Diana Ross is delusional and Michael Jackson has no brains.

But on the bright side, here's something that has aged well.

Happy Birthday SV. You are damn fine.

Just How Much Fun Can a Ho Have at a Firemen's Charity Hockey Tournament

2009-05-21T17:19:00.006-06:00

Just ask Coach Lance, aka HoHoHo (because of his beard). Yes, the guy with accidental innuendos seemed to be in heaven this past weekend, especially at the party in the parking lot afterwards, as seen here holding his booby ball and sporting a lavender boa. Since it's a men's tournament, he was our token man ho on our FireHos team, and we got to play with him. Hee.

There is a great recap of our fun posted by my teammate, tamma13, especially about our game versus the Littleton Fire Department. The tourney organizer emails me every year to make sure the Hos are available to play because he says they wouldn't make any money if it weren't for us and our type of "entertainment."

The best part is that the LFD all know how to play along, as displayed this year by them all wearing special uniforms. Before the drop of the puck, they all stripped down to "wife-beaters" sporting Ho names and numbers (like we have on our jerseys). Here is me and LatinHo after the game, who pretended to need a translator and spoke in broken Spanish. Little did he know, I am Queen of speaking in broken Spanish involving liquor and food. We got along just fine.

Then there was a dunk tank, which I dubbed the "drunk tank" by the time I was convinced to go in there. The Firemen, with their ever-plotting ways to make money saw dollar signs at the idea of "Dunk-a-Ho." First in, was Coach Lance. He made a bunch of money - but that was just from all of us, especially me, who couldn't hit the broad sign of a barn after a few cocktails. Then people stepped up to the plate to dunk Heidi Ho, EnFuegHo, B Da Ho, and even CuervHo.

And here's living proof that Coach Lance is a man Ho, and yes ladies, he does go down.

New Star Trek Movie: Get Out of My Chair

2009-05-08T09:40:00.009-06:00

If you're looking for the short answer, or don't want any giveaways, skip to the bottom.

I always think about whether I'd be into science-fiction or not, if I hadn't grown up in a Sci-Fi House, as I call it. My older brother and sister were aptly glued to the television set Saturday mornings watching Star Trek ever since I can remember. Other Sci-Fi shows and movies were a big hit at our house too, as were books. I read books by Isaac Asimov that my brother left laying around the house way before I read anything by Shakespeare. I guess you could say Sci-Fi rubbed off on me, and still does.

I blame this Youngest-Kid-in-a-Sci-Fi-House anomaly as to why I don't look like your average Trekkie, like this guy at the movie premiere last night. I've always walked that fine line of having an actual life outside of Star Trek, and being a true Trekkie like this guy. Working at a male-dominated computer company, it's probably no surprise what having a cardboard cut-out of Captain Jean Luc Picard in your cubicle can do for your career. It's one thing I miss and don't miss about working from home; all the pony-tailed, Mountain-Dew drinking, Sci-Fi geeks that stopped by my cube to find out who is this somewhat normal looking person that obviously likes Star Trek. I built up quite a rapport with the geeks of my company, and you wonder how I've avoided so many layoffs?!

So that's why my perspective on the new Star Trek Movie may be a little different. I am tied to these true Trekkies, I get them. I know what they want in a movie. But remember, I also grew up in a Theater house (my entire family has acted in civic shows) so I know what makes a good movie too; a brilliant plot, characters, acting, cinematography, etc. - elements that have alluded all the previous Trek movies. When I heard J.J. Abrams was doing this one and we Trekkies would be taken back in time to when Kirk and Spock met, I was intrigued.

As with Star Wars, I think it's hard to go back to earlier times in character studies when your audience already know how the character has evolved in the future. It's a tough, little acting square to fit into. That being said, I think the new movie does a pretty good job with that, fitting in almost every nuance about every character in a modern, usually comedic, way. McCoy says he's "a doctor, not a ___", Scotty rants about his engines, Spock points out the illogical, Sulu has a sword, Chekov can't pronounce his V's, Uhuru's skirt is still very short, Kirk is the ultimate rebel, and the red shirts are still very much afraid.

It's all there for the true Trekkies. It's like little juicy bursts of corniness wrapped up into an otherwise big-budgeted, blowing up things, action-packed, kind of movie about, get this - revenge and saving the Earth. Really?! It's obvious that the latter is aimed to please the new age of movie-goers. The ones too young to really know what being a Trekkie is all about. If I follow the movie-makers' thinking, the other crowd just wants to see scene after scene of ships getting shot up in space, and especially, they must want to see the bad guy getting blown to bits in spectacular fashion.

For me, it was like two movies going on at the same time, trying to please both crowds. The former Star Trek history was adhered to, but not always, not when in the minds of the movie-makers, it might make a better plot line. I'd be okay with that if it did make a better movie, but did it?

I really enjoyed the acting and interaction between Kirk/Pine and Spock/Quinto. It was well worth the price of admission, as is all the scenes with Nimoy in them. But come on, we all know that Spock is tormented between his human and vulcan sides. It's the essence of his personality. His mother encouraged his human half through most of his younger life, so changing history there by having her and all of Vulcan go down in a black hole before his five year mission days - I don't get it.

And in what kind of Star Trek world does Spock get the babe, and not Kirk?

Maybe that's my true Trekkie side speaking, or maybe Star Trek movies are just supposed to suck. Maybe the movie is cursed because they didn't give Shatner a part. I was especially upset that the voice over at the end ("Space... the final frontier...) was not Shatner's voice but Nimoy. They could have thrown Shatner that little bone and it would have pleased an entire fan base.

So, if you like Sci-Fi movies or things blowing up in space, you might like this movie. And if you're a Star Trek fan at all, you can't miss this movie. You just can't, and I know you won't. As my boyfriend said, "It put a smile on my face." That, is definitely true.

Guess Who Is Two?!

2009-05-04T13:27:00.001-06:00

Itz me Tobiko. Now I can haz cake, dangnabit!

My Old Haunts

2009-04-30T23:16:00.010-06:00

I've been watching Ghost Hunters lately, because my sister recommends it. It's an interesting show, if you like mixing science in with your belief system, no matter what you believe in the way of paranormal activities. BTW, is it my imagination or are Jason Hawes and Tom Collicchio Siamese Twins separated at birth?

Anyway, as I watched the show, I thought back to a ghost story of my own. When I went back to Indiana for my 20th High School Reunion in the summer of 2001, I had my aunt drive me to the house I grew up in out in the country. I couldn't remember how to get there on my own, having moved into the city when I was eight years old. She had no problems finding my old house out in Indian Village - it was still painted white with black shutters, but it looked so much smaller to me, and the trees had grown so much.

As an added bonus, my aunt also remembered how to get to the nearby Miami Indian Cemetery - the largest Indian cemetery in Indiana that is also very close to the Battle of Mississinewa site. There was a lot of death and violence in the area back in 1812, although it was hard to imagine then, because it is such a peaceful place. When we were little, my sister and I, along with our neighborhood girlfriends used to walk by the cemetery on the way to the river. My brother was notorious for hiding somewhere in the woods behind the grave stones and jumping out at us, sending a bunch of high-pitched screaming young girls down the road to the river that much quicker. Even when my brother wasn't there, the place still gave me the creeps and I always ran by it as quick as I could.

Now, standing in this place as an adult some 33 years later, I thought I would finally see how ridiculous I was to have been so scared of this place and was looking forward to getting a good laugh about it. But that's not what happened. I know this sounds oh-so-typical, but all of a sudden, I had the strangest feeling come over me. I felt I was not alone. It wasn't scary, but just sort of odd. I looked down and realized I had a camera in my hand so I snapped a few shots. Then, feeling like I was disturbing something, or someone, I vacated quickly and returned to the car with my aunt. I didn't relay my feelings to her at the time, because I thought I was just reliving my childhood in some dark, deep way.

But then. I got my photographs developed and I could not believe my eyes. There are strange white orbs all around the cemetery on my photos (I shot in black and white film for nostalgia purposes). I shot up a whole roll of my old house and other places before and after the visit to the cemetery, and the cemetery shots were the only ones with these strange white orbs, and yes, they are on the negatives too. That's kind of strange, I thought.

Maybe it's not enough to send the TAPS team out there but I think I will still run by the place quickly, if I should ever happen upon it again.

BTW, this is your friendly GKL reminder that Halloween is only 6 months away!

College Daze

2009-04-23T12:48:00.005-06:00

You know, lots of people told me as I was preparing to go to college that my college days (or early 20's) will be the best days of my life and to cherish them. Looking back at that wisdom nugget I was given, I really have to argue that point. Because:

THEN: I had unreliable cars and was stranded a couple of times with no money or means to fix them. Being a young female, alone on the side of the road, or at a truck stop until I could get a hold of my father's credit card number was not an experience I highly recommend. However, it was no problem getting truckers to stop and pick me up.
NOW: I have reliable cars, credit cars, and a cell phone to call for help without ever leaving my vehicle.

THEN: I didn't like beer, especially keg beer and had to acquire a taste for it. I played quarters with Jack Daniels one night instead, which also happened to be my 21st birthday. There was no one sensible around to tell me how bad of an idea that was. All the guys at the party thought it was a GREAT idea. It didn't occur to me why until the next morning.
NOW: I like beer just fine now and have expanded my taste buds to include fine wine, tequila, vodka, and sake. Plus, I wake up with the same guy every day, with my integrity in tact, and he doesn't hesitate to tell me when I have bad ideas.

THEN: I ate the cheapest stuff out of a box; ramen noodles, fake potatoes, instant rice and frozen cheese pizza. There are even times when I went without food altogether, choosing to spend money on partying instead.
NOW: I am never without yummy, fresh food and I have lots of parties. I own my own food processor and stand mixer to make things like mashed potatoes or pizza from scratch, albeit it's only cost me a few pounds.

THEN: I had big hair, acid wash jeans, and no fashion sense. I had 20 pairs of athletic shoes and absolutely, no heels.
NOW: I have much better fashion sense these days and over 100 pairs of shoes, most of which have heels.

THEN: I stayed up all night doing homework and assignments, and put a huge amount of pressure on myself to get good grades so that I could get a good job after college and have a rewarding career as a Graphic Artist.
NOW: I laugh at the idea of a career, having sold out to the corporate world that provides a good paycheck. I stay up all night playing hockey and drinking with the Hos, dreaming about my next vacation.

Sure, okay, it's hard to beat that I was younger, cuter, and skinnier back then. But still, I'm fine right here where I'm at.

Ask me again in twenty years.

Coach Lance's Innuendo of the Week

2009-04-21T17:03:00.005-06:00

The end of season Monkey party was at our house this year. It was the Saturday before Easter, so Coach Lance dressed up as the Easter Bunny and hid Easter eggs in the yard. Each egg contained a special innuendo to the finder. But before all that... when I was helping him in the spare bedroom get into the costume I made for him:

Coach Lance: Can I have a little white tail?

Me: Tee Hee

Haz U Missed Me?!

2009-04-16T08:53:00.003-06:00

I wuz here da whole times.

I gots to go sharpin my claws now cuz da sister is coming here.

Go Do That VooDoo That You Do So Well

2009-03-31T14:07:00.002-06:00

Your votes got Bub's daughter Nora into third place, y'all. Now we need you to do it again. This time, you'll have to put in a valid email address - so it will take you ten seconds instead of five - but the important thing is to VOTE.

It's On DVD Now

2009-03-28T14:02:00.003-06:00

Remember when I recommended this movie? Well, it's on Netflix now, so add it to your queue. I know it looks like just another mountain climbing documentary involving blind people, but you may be pleasantly surprised that the people learning life lessons are the teachers, not the students. Oh, and of course, there's good scenery of the Himalaya, if you like that sort of eye candy.

Also, I recently watched and enjoyed these two per Some Guy's recommendation: Man on Wire and Young at Heart.

It's Not Too Late

2009-03-28T12:09:00.002-06:00

To Vote for Nora - Bub's talented offspring in the Fangoria Spooksmodel contest.
It just takes a second to scroll down and VOTE, so do it now!

I love to go golfing!

2009-03-25T11:02:00.004-06:00

That's what I used to say when I was a kid, after my dad e took me golfing for the first time. Mind you, that I never swung a golf club when I went golfing with my dad, but that didn't really matter.

It was the 70's and dad wore plaid pants and white loafers, and he changed into his cleated golf shoes in the Shady Hills Country Club parking lot. I was excited to go golfing, because it was an all-new experience for me. I wasn't quite sure how much fun chasing around a little white ball was actually going to be, but I knew I was going to get to ride in a "rolley-polley" as me and my sister used to call the golf carts, and I was hoping, at age seven, to get my first driving lesson.

We walked to the clubhouse and the man in the barn door gave us rolley polley #22, I raced over to it and then watched my dad put his clubs on the back. I'm sure I bugged my father to drive it right away, but I'd have to wait until we were on the back nine, out of sight before I'd get my opportunity. There, sitting on my dad's lap while he pushed the pedals, I was able to steer towards his little white ball sitting on the fairway. I remember that gleeful feeling - I was driving!

Sometimes, Dad would hit two balls if his first shot was real bad. He'd play the second one, and then go retrieve his mulligan. This would involve driving the rolley polley close to the ball and scooping it up while the cart was in motion. After seeing this new golfing technique, I had to have a piece of that action too. So on Dad's next mulligan, I begged him to let me scoop up the ball as he drove by. I was in his lap again and he held me tight as I scooped up the ball. It was a blast - I never knew golfing was so much fun!

Going golfing was nothing like watching golf on TV. We three kids dreaded watching golf on TV with Dad, becuase it was so boring. We knew it was boring too, because Dad would fall always fall asleep watching it every Saturday. That was back in the days before there were remote controls and the channel changer made a loud click. That noise would always awake our sleeping father, who would make us change the channel back, insisting that he was still watching golf (or football).

But golfing in real life, I realize now, was different, and I hadn't even gotten to the best part yet - the 19th Hole! For any non-golfers out there, the 19th Hole is a common name for the restaurant and bar back at the clubhouse, just beyond the last eighteenth hole. I had my very first Shirley Temple there. I also had my very first BLT sandwhich, and it was the first time I shot pool with my dad. The realization sunk in... I mean, come on, how great was this golfing gig? It dawned on me right then and there as I was eating, drinking, and shooting pool with Dad why Mom was always so upset when he went golfing for hours. I quickly deduced that the 19th Hole and the beers that dad drank was not to be the focus of conversation when we returned home. Instead, I told mom exactly how I felt:

"I love to go golfing!"

LOL Tobiko

2009-03-16T17:30:00.000-06:00

Ecuadorian Travels: The Best Part

2009-03-14T13:02:00.009-06:00

The best part of our trip was when we mountain-biked from town to town and took in the many sights, smells, and sounds of the countryside.

The Ecuadorian people farm every square inch of the hillside, no matter how steep, and all by back-breaking hard work.

It reminds me of simpler times, when a truck breaking down on the road becomes a village event...

...and entertainment for the little ones.

Everywhere we went, children yelled, "Hola!" sometimes appearing from the bushes below us or on the hillsides above us.

They don't have much, but they always seemed to have everything they need.

The volcano Quilotoa became extinct after its last eruption and created the sunken glacier lake. We hiked down into the amazing crater for a closer view.

We finished our three-day hike/bike adventure in a town called Sigchos.

Adios Amiga!

Ecuadorian Travels: Lights Out

2009-03-11T14:39:00.004-06:00

A week ago, I awoke in the middle of the night with a classic, 3rd-world-country dash to the bathroom. It came on fast and furious as I felt perfectly fine when I went to bed that night. I sat on the porcelain pot in the dark, thankful for being so close to a clean bathroom and yet tried to figure out if I was going to throw up at the same time, and more importantly, how? I squelched the feeling to puke so that I could finish and stand up. I was about to wash my hands when an "uh-oh" went through my head and I reached for the door knob instead...

"Are you okay? You fell!" Dynaho came to my rescue.

Coming to, I thought she had asked me if I fell so I said, "No." At that same moment, I found myself on the floor of the bathroom. The cold tile felt good on my flushed face. I realized there might be some truth in what Dynaho had said.

"Oh. I guess that was me." I confessed.

Dynaho helped me to my bed and got out my emergency cipro which I took immediately. The sad thing is that I missed a day of sightseeing in the countryside for fear of being too far from my new found white-enameled friend, but luckily, it only took me about a day and a half to be back to normal, thanks to cipro and other bacteria-killing agents.

I was back in prime vacation-form in no time.

I can't believe I got sick. I guess I can't brag anymore about my methodology and how well it works for me. I knew I was pressing my luck with how many times I've been to Mexico, Africa, and South America, escaping The Revenge every time. But on the bright side, I have a story to tell that I'm almost certain Chris will like and I didn't hit my head on the fall.

Again, For Bubs

2009-03-10T14:30:00.003-06:00

The clowns are now following me whenever I travel south. These are posing as trash cans in the town of Salcedo, Eucado - a town known for it's helado, or ice cream.

Ecuadorian Travels: Free Shock Treatment

2009-03-09T11:56:00.008-06:00

It was a short and steep jaunt from the parking lot up to the base camp of Cotopaxi, Ecuador's second highest mountain. We gained 700 feet in about 35 minutes, arriving at 15,749' - my friend Dynaho's personal altitude record. This trip, the objective was not to climb to the top of this volcano, but mountain bike down it from the parking lot. However, I wanted to hike up to the Jose Ribas Refujio hut to check it out for next time, when I return to climb it.

The clouds were socked in and there was no clear view of the mountain, which is typical for volcanoes that create their own weather. After a look around at the facilities (very nice by most mountain standards, complete with flush toilets), we headed back down the trail to start on our biking adventure. It was snowing as we left the hut and I heard some rumblings off in the distance that sounded more like thunder than an avalanche, I remember thinking.

About half way down the trail, seemingly out of nowhere, a large clap of thunder with the unmistaken flash of lightning struck close by. Our driver, who spoke very good English, turned to me and said his head hurt and he heard buzzing from his hair which probably would have been standing on end if not for his baseball hat. I felt it too, only in my toes. They were crumpled up like a severe case of arthritis with piercing pain in the joints. I realized whatever splash electricity hit Lincoln in the head must have exited through my feet as I was following close behind him. Dynaho was further back and felt nothing.

Lincoln was trying to elaborate on his experience, searching for the English words, but I interrupted him, pointing down the mountain and said, "We need to just get down... like now, and not be on the highest thing around." But after walking ten more paces, the pain was not subsiding, so I crouched down low and got on all fours, hoping to rid myself of the unwanted charge. It worked. Somehow, it exited my body and the pain was gone. Lincoln followed my lead and got down on the ground and then felt better too. Then the three of us scurried the rest of the way down to the jeep and sat inside.

"I've been here 70 times and have never had anything like that happen!" Lincoln exclaimed. He was pretty amped up and uncomfortably excited about the whole thing. I had a very similar thing happen while hiking the ridge line in between the Maroon Bells outside of Aspen, so I had already processed the range of emotions. I laughed on the outside, but knew the situation could have been very serious on the inside. I also kicked myself a little for not heeding the sounds of thunder as I would have at home in Colorado. It was such a short way down, and it was snowing, not raining like a thunderstorm, so I chose to ignore the warnings. That type of ignorance is usually a factor when bad things happens on mountains.

I'm an idiot, I thought, dangers always exist on the mountain, even when I'm not there to climb the thing.

While sitting in the jeep, we were getting pelted as the snow had turned to rainfall, and there were still rumblings. Lincoln asked, "So, do you guys want to ride now?" I'm not sure Lincoln got it, although he'd be safe in the jeep, so what did he care? Dynaho and I laughed and explained that we weren't going to press our luck. We had him drive us down much further, out of the storm, and biked from there. The road wasn't as steep, but it was plenty of adventure for one day.

Hosea won Top Chef

2009-02-26T05:44:00.005-07:00

I can't believe he won, but I'm so happy he beat that prick Stefan, and Carla just plain folded... like her soufllé. No wonder he was all smiles that night.

GKL Has Left the Country

2009-02-24T20:25:00.001-07:00

Three words:

Hiking

Biking

Ecuador

I'll be back in a couple weeks, yo.

Mardi Gras Confessions

2009-02-24T00:01:00.001-07:00

Here they are, in no particular order:

I celebrate Mardi Gras just for a reason to drink.

I don't know why they call today Fat Tuesday other than I imagine it has to do with eating a lot of food.

I don't know the difference between cayenne pepper and red pepper because recipes call for either.

You know when people type teh instead of the - well I know it's done on purpose and that it's a joke, but I don't know when it started, or how, or why.

I didn't know Black Knight is a Batman movie until I watched it last week.

I don't care for jambalaya so much but gumbo eats right along.

I didn't know Jerry Lewis is still alive until last night when I saw some Oscar recaps.

I look good in purple, gold and green... even better with a mask on.

Inspired by Kittens

2009-02-21T14:30:00.001-07:00

For the two of you that haven't seen this yet.

Not To Be a Horse's Ass

2009-02-13T12:35:00.005-07:00

But didn't I tell you about a year ago how hideous this thing is?!

The god-awful blue mustang at DIA is getting National coverage, and not in a good way.

Then there's Rachel Hultin chomping at the bit to remove the ugliness from its present location. Check out her facebook page and the Heinous Blue Mustang Haiku Challenge.

Oh man, I gotta work on one.

Sweets for the Sweet

2009-02-12T22:30:00.007-07:00

Top Ten Ideas on What to Get GKL for Valentine's Day:

10. Reverse Skirt Hoo Covers - to keep the sand out when I play volleyball.

9. Skates that will make me faster than everyone else.

8. Fighting Lessons - from someone that knows steel blades intimately.

7. Tequlia Machine Gun - to go with the shot gun I got for Christmas.

6. Blow Monkey - everyone needs a monkey that blows.

5. A star date with Captain Kirk, the Imposter.

4. A castle for Tobiko - not this one, but this one.

3. My own sushi chef and endless supply of raw fishies.

2. These shoes...

1. ...or any of these shoes.

Women's League Confidential

2009-02-11T13:50:00.003-07:00

Face to face, out in the heat... er, ice

About thirty seconds after waking up on the morning of game day, after the thought of playing hockey later has run through my slowly-firing-up synapses, there is an anxious feeling that comes over me. I know that in about twelve hours, I will be crouched down, face to face with my opponent on the red dot, staring at the ref's hand waiting for the puck to drop while a trickle of sweat finds its way down my back. Anxiousness turns to excitement. I think about the little sweat droplet often throughout the day, wishing the hours to pass more rapidly.

I sometimes feel ashamed of this, I must confess. To think that here I am, a 46-year-old woman and it's still the cream of the fight that gets my goat.

The thought that I should have something more meaningful in my life to be the reservoir for more worthwhile passions within haunts me. Maybe having a husband and kids, fighting for good causes, or saving lives would make me a better person but I'd still be the same person. That same person who cross-checked a girl in front of the net during our last game because we were getting beat. That is my definition of fun.

Is that so wrong?

Ice Castles, Part II

2009-02-09T17:06:00.003-07:00

This big, burly guy on my men's team has purple, glittery skate guards.

That is so awesome.