meirwen_1988

Someday I will write about these last few days. About cars and pooling. About hemorrhages of cash. About sounds and grindings when LEAVING the place of repair. About Peter and Paul and the robbing and paying thereof.

About Dan and Wendy.

About my 40 year old office mate (active, father of 3, all under 13) who one week ago today had a heart attack, and 6 days ago had quintuple by-pass surgery.

But let it suffice that when Duchezz came home today she said "Hello Adventure Woman. Do I want to know how you bleached your red Forester into a white and grey Outback?" And that tomorrow, in theory, will see "The Return of the Forester."

Most of all, let it suffice that because it is Brighid, I made mac and cheese from scratch, using all the fat and cheddar cheesy goodness. And that tomorrow, because it is Candlemas, I will light a new candle.

This week has been a strange one. There has been vehicle drama (sing with me now "Dead car in the middle of the road/Dead car in the middle of the road..."), followed by less than successful rescue/salvage attempts, mechanic magic, and the final pronouncement "it could die on you in two days or go five years...it's a crapshoot." Then there was the nice collection man at the door today for one of the household bills NOT my responsibility (I do food, oil, car insurance on all three vehicles, cell phones, and the satellite TV). Since I like to bathe, and electricity is necessary to run the pump...

And then there's the packing for the yearly exercise in living in misery in order to "have fun," using some definition of "fun." There is one thing I really like to do there, now that watching the battles and tournaments is basically an exercise in enduring insult in order to experience misery, with very brief moments of actually seeing fighting. What I really enjoy is singing in the Pennsic Choir. But I haven't been able to do that lately because I haven't been able to be there for the concert dates, let alone rehearse enough. Classes can be fun, but lately the heat and humidity have really wiped me out to the point that the last thing I want to do is be trapped in a hot, humid tent, whose walls have clearly been mildewed (hello asthma!), with 20-40 other hot, sweaty people, at least half of whom seem to spend their time trying to one-up the instructor. Look, I'm the first to admit that sometimes the teacher doesn't really know what he or she is talking about. In that case, be polite, ask questions, and don't be a smart ass. And, frankly, if the "one-uppers" would shut up long enough, they'd find that most of the teachers, even if they get some things wrong, really have things of value to share. But, no, there's this real tendency for some people to use the classes as a way to try to prove that they should have more letters after their names than they do, and this is their venue to prove it. Look--we all know that the average IQ in the SCA is way above "norm" (someone even did the research). But it is also true that the social IQ quotient is probably below. One of our claims to fame is that we can "socialize" people so that they are no longer shunned as rude and boorish. Please, stop proving both stereotypes.

So tomorrow I leave for Pennsic. Gear is packed, food prepped (oops--need to make my lunch for the 8 hours on the road). Time to go to bed.

All of which is my long way of saying I'll be gone for a bit. I'm taking an Elizabeth Chadwick novel with me (though I may cheat and continue reading A Dance With Dragons on my iPhone). I'll be back with tales of handfastings, and 50th birthday parties, and well-deserved peerages, and probably a bit too much alcohol, and the inevitable fat-laden food.

As Garrison Keeler would say, "Be well, do good work, and keep in touch."

FWIW, I hate XPlay in its current incarnation. But I guess I'm not the primary target audience.

So...( Cut for those who aren't into melancholy at the moment )

...for them to fix my car. New transmission cable. Supposed to take an hour/hour and a half. And, well, brakes.
"But we turned the rotors and put on new pads before you got it."
"Well, good. But it sounds worse now than when I test drove it."
"Really? You said a clunking sound?"
"Uh huh."

Supposed to take an hour and a half. I dropped it off at 8 AM. It's not done yet. Supposed to call at 3:30. Hmmmm. Did someone say "brakes"?

Had to cancel rehearsal with pianist. Not happy.
Do not have car. Not happy.
Am not going to Concordia Saturday. Not happy.

On the other hand, these are all every day not happies. The minor annoyances of everyday life. In the grand scheme of things, being not happy about these things is...diverting.

And, as a little ray of sunshine, the Babylon 5 Quote Store opens Friday (Cafe Press). The Joe Store is closed (so my "Faith Manages" cup is now a collector's item I guess), but the new stuff is pretty fine. So many quotes, so little time. I mean, really, I hardly wear the shirts I already own (stop smirking); how can I justify buying more?

Must. Rationalize. Must. Rationalize.

Work phoo
Car phoo
Boy birthday postponed due to Masonic phoo (but he did get a card, dammit!)
That is all.

--I don't remember meeting her. My first memory of her is in our house, going to the porch with my husband for a long talk.

Now, on holidays, secular and sacred, when she is not there I feel her absence.

Happy birthday, dear one. See you in 10 days.

--Well, looks like the socks are for me. The Sensational Socks book requires more math than I like, but seems to work. Yay!

--Ping is doing his summer hair loss, which is a bit...disturbing. Semi-naked pug! (Feels just a little creepy to pick him up since the hair loss is mostly lower half. Weird.)

--Am going to try to talk the fighters into going to Pax without me. I love the event, but every little penny counts right now. A bit over a grand on the Neon last month, and now the Century has to go in (inspection, tires, oil change, strange rattle...). And then there's the dentist, the taxes....

--It was a blessing to go to the calling hours and have the family so...Welsh. I felt right at home. The Browns are more woven into the fabric of our histories than we sometimes realize, but seeing Mark, Debbie, and Arwen brought it all home. However, where the hell does Marcello get off looking so young???!!!!!