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I think they should teach how to load a dishwasher in a fire academy. I can't believe how lazy/inept Firefighters are at loading dishes. they won't pull out the drawer so everything is tossed in the first 6" of the rack or in the first silverware slot. They put huge pots in that take up the entire rack. And face bowls and plates tightly towards the walls. Its so annoying!

Just one thing that makes working a little less pleasant every day.

Test

Blogging from my iPad. Big investment in effort to have a productive, profitable year on the sales road. Plus I'm tired of playing on the internet on my phone....

tips to cycle 100 miles

1. Eat alot.
2. Apply Butt Butter liberally. Before, during and after.
3. Ride two inches off of Charlie's back wheel for 99 miles.
4. Walk down people with carbon fiber bikes and Ironman tattoos- count them, pass and smile.
5. Stop at each rest stop- every 20 miles. Eat one of everything on table, two if its something you actually want to eat, like oatmeal creme cookies. (which I will never eat another one again)
6. Don't find out until mile 89 that you are actually riding 106 miles.
7. Constantly compare current ride to last month's nightmare 75 mile mountainous and mechanically cursed ride.
8. Have Charlie's cycle computer not work due to operator error. This means he can not constantly push the speed higher.
9. Eat some more, even though you don't like bananas or peanut butter.
10. Drink water. Do not drink only gatorade, unless you want the one hour drive home to include as many rest stops as the bike ride.
11. New high performance tires... $130
12. Slow down, look up and enjoy scenery occassionally.

I can say I did it, but really 100 is no more fun than any 50 miler. Plus today I am absolutely paying for an electrolyte imbalance.

Tour de Moore
6:12 ride time, 7 hours total, 106 miles. 17 mph average.

August

This is the first time that August has rolled around and I don't wish I was back on campus moving in with the rest of the students, or wearing sundresses, or going to rowing practice (ok, I sorta wish I was going to rowing practice) Usually I am quite depressed and regretful right about now.
But I am just so happy right now with my life and all that I have done lately. I love exactly where I am and don't want to be anywhere else. I have a perfect happy life, surreal actually.

sophie diss

i just got dissed by Sophie.
i put them outside tonight for about 4 hours while we went swimming. it was after dark when i got home. i expected barking and whining when i shut the car off, but all the barking came from my neighbors stupid dogs.
i went inside and the dogs were waiting patiently at the back door. no whining, jumping, scratching at the door. i opened it and they came in rather calmly. then, i went to the bathroom -a place the dogs know they have a captive audience. (aside: i will choose my next house by putting everybody and dog in the smallest room in the house and making sure we all fit. because that's where everyone ends up together)
but meanwhile charlie started playing with Sam. they were wrestling and playing and barking. sophie comes into the bathroom door looks at me, looks back towards the living room, looks at me and runs back to play. my totally velcro anxious dog may be normalizing.
also Lacey doesn't beg for human food while we eat anymore. good thing too, she must be at least 5-10 pounds over weight.

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Work is boring. Nothing to write home about, really. Frustrating of course, dealing with politics and personalities of so many different people and administration. But I've realized two things:
1- keep my mouth shut. no one gets anywhere around here by speaking up
2- this very well may be typical in any workplace

On the other hand we had a public education group show up today. We didnt know they were coming and they came right as I was making lunch and looking forward to my nap. But they were from a special needs group home and such joyful people. It can turn your day around when you hear (over and over again) "we are in chapel hill today, and we are having a great time." "my name is max and I am doing the best I can" Just simple, honest expressions.

The part time gig is going well, trying to squeeze hours in during the week. Which isn't much fun because there are a million things I'd rather be doing, but something has to fund those activities and firefighting doesn't pay worth a damn. Hopefully this week I will sell three thermal imager cameras, it leads to a big check. But the really big check for selling the ladder truck may never come, I think we priced it too high and the department can't afford it.

I'm pretty sure my house shakes when I have three dogs inside it. They are all doing very well, Sam burns his balls on the hot concrete but stupid dog keeps laying on it. Lacey is too freaking cute for me to do anything but spoil her. And Sophie seems like she has adjusted very well to my house. I often catch her wrestling with Sam in the living room. She slept out there by herself (As opposed to at the foot of my bed) without incident the other night. I even took her out on a bike ride, maybe 600 yards total. But it was something special just for her.

Me? I am itching like crazy. My head, hands and feet are driving me up a wall. I coat with benadryl when it gets bad. I think its an adverse reaction to a prescription so I've been trying to flush it with lots of water. Other than that, I too am just trying to do the best I can. Set myself up for success down the road, no big screw ups, maintain balance, ease the anxiety, and run more.

I need a break

I must need a vacation. I can't think of any other reason why I'm losing it so easily this week, or why I feel so discombobulated.

I lost a $20 bill at breakfast. I went to Virlie's to get breakfast, coffee and use the internet. I must have been there nearly three hours working on a sales presentation. When I went to pay with the only cash I had it wasnt there. I looked for it, no luck. This may have been the worst part of my day, just the little thing to set me off.

Also, they've decided the new community college and library needs a traffic circle- outside my driveway! Good for real estate investment perhaps- especially since it will bring the downtown atmosphere westward to my house- but 120 days of detour. There is no traffic from my street south. So I can't go into downtown, can't run my usual three mile route, can't go directly to the dog sitters. And there's construction noise, which is a trade off for the usual tractor trailer logging truck noise.

I've got two fire trucks on the table. I can't tell you how much I need to sell these. I have the perfect opportunity to do so: E-One has given plenty of concession to make the price as low as possible on an aerial truck, and the other one could be an exact replica of one that is being delivered to the shop this week. Seeing is believing and being able to show a department the exact truck they want is the best sales tool. But as I learned with my no-deal $800k contract: it doesn't really matter, they will buy whatever they want and it probably won't be mine.

CHFD is really messing with me these days. I'm pretty upset about it now that I've thought abot the entire scope of it. Lately I've done everything and more to be a good driver/operator (classes, practice in the evenings, pushing myself to learn more than average, asking questions to everyone, dissecting trucks...) I had promised Vence I'd put my nose to the grindstone and be the next driver on his shift. I pushed myself because I didn't want to be complacent as a lever puller, I actually wanted to excel at driving and pumping. When I was ready and put on my big girl panties and quit being scared of the test, I told him I was ready to take it.
What do I get back?
"Ok you can drive to EMS calls"'
THIS IS LIKE STEP TWO OF DRIVING. I WANTED TO FINISH THE PROCESS!
Because at this point its my pride. I would be the only female driving. I would be a master firefighter and get a raise. I would prove that I am one of the better relief drivers on the road. Now they've set me back at the beginning because the "training chief" has picked up driver training and created a new "system" (Btw, he has also already dropped it -leaving me where I am now)

What else?
The iPhone is broken. No, People, its not because I can't take care of anything. Its because I live a life well lived.
The house smells terrible. I have to get a new carpet.
My herbs are growing. Believe it or not.
Thank God I'm getting my hair done (at Leon's beauty school) on Friday. I need a boost.
Loved meeing Cooper and seeing all my nephews.

Conclusions....
I don't think its just a coincidence that these terrible moments come after days of separation from my dogs. And, at least I don't put my mother in the ground tomorrow all by myself at 23, like Eleni.

She burned down. My guess is the walls would fall if the scafolding wasn't there. The clock tower fell about 1:30 am that night of the fire. I think they are trying to save it since it was built in 1881.
Wish I had been there. I was at CHFD.


-- Post From My iPhone

Spring

When I left for work yesterday these trees were not like this. Time to mow and plant (no flowers, just a window box of herbs)


-- Post From My iPhone

Day Two

So far, so good.
I got out on the bike for the first ride of the season, rode like a champ too. I thought the first ride out was going to be very hard and so I planned to make it short and easy.I picked a familiar route. I kept an eye on my watch on the way out and always doubled the time so I knew when I would get back to the car. At fifteen minutes I felt like I was moving along just fine, at twenty same thing, at twenty five and thirty too- although at thirty I turned around because I ran out of road. Charlie came with me, over the winter he got a bike off of craigslist, bought shoes and shorts, a helmet -the whole nine yards- spent a good deal of money and time all so he could support me and spend time doing something I like. He did well too, I never thought he'd make it. I'll test him with some hills after a few more rides. 17.4 miles 62 minutes Farrington Road
This morning I stopped in at the local crossfit gym, which is right in the center of town. I only finally decided to go in after sitting at breakfast next to the owner/trainer. This scruffy, unassuming man comes in and orders a breakfast burrito loaded with cheese and sausage (I'm thinking "what a heartattack" compared to my spinach/tomato omelet), turns out he is the crossfit trainer. Talked to him about injuries, intensity, balance...all sorts of fun things. Charlie had never heard of it and now is really interested. It was fun, I think I'll try it after a couple of months more on my own.
Did some running in the rain tonight down the American Tobacco Trail. Took the dogs out with us and did 48 minutes and 4 miles, they were annoying as heck. I wish they would run better then I would run with them all the time, but Lacey pulls until she is choking and Sam swerves back and forth in front of me.

Stats
5.5 pounds down
21.5 to go....damn
More energy and enthusiasm for the day but exhausted at night.

Day One

How many times do I have to get back up on this horse?

This week I've been in the gym on cardio machines, laps in the pool, running the hill outside the station, lifting some weights, I've got spinach and egg whites, chicken and broccoli, and I got all my "pre" numbers documented. But it sure is frustrating to find myself here at the beginning of every Spring. It was/is a long, cold, wet winter- the kind that made me wear nothing but sweats and hide inside eatting comfort foods. Not to mention convenience played a huge factor since I was home so little to cook and workout. So I found myself with two choices: never wash and dry my jeans again or lose weight....The good news is that I am starting earlier than I usually do.

The triathlons and races I am anticipating:

Tarheel Ten Miler -April 11

Southern Village Sprint Tri- July 25

Lake Lure Sprint Tri- August 28

Pinehurst Olympic Tri- October

I forgot how much I enjoy a good sweat, I definitely really enjoyed my first swim too. It feels good to be back at it, and I'm really looking forward to doing well in the races.

I am also remotivated at work since I moved stations. I'm at four now, and even though they don't run any calls its just a much better atmosphere out there. Back with Lt Boone he lets me do what I want to and need to do. I should be getting checked off to drive, lord I hope this happens soon. Its been a pain in my ass since everyone wanted to talk about it more than actually have me train to do it, therein lies my problem.

Furniture

I bought new bedroom furniture today. Finally! I feel like a grown up with grown up furniture and a real honest-to-goodness headboard. Its pretty big for a little room, but its a nice dark finish with an oversized mirror and lots of useful storage. I have my clothes off the floor and took the chair out of the room so there is no longer a landing zone for "wear it again, its not totally dirty" clothes. The furniture is Universal, a discontinued line though. I bit the bullet and bought some quality stuff hopefully to last a long time. I love it.
Still need a sofa, almost got one today too, but that store wouldn't bargain with me on the price. After sitting on some faux leather, I know I want real leather. Fabrics are not an option in this house, even if I never let the dogs put a paw on it it will get dirty- especially the edges where they would walk past and rub.
I put my nightstands on craigslist and got some cash for them, perhaps should have put a higher price on them, but the lady was super nice and appreciative. (Funny thing, I delivered them and found it interesting there was a BMW, Jaguar, and Audi in the driveway, everyone likes a bargain in a recession)

Other than that I tried to spend the day deep cleaning: did multiple loads of laundry, swept, vacuumed, mopped, toilet scrubbed, took trash out, dusted and polished all the furniture. Still didn't even get to picking up poop, washing bird crap off my porch, or to the gym.

Also, found my new favorite breakfast spot. Virlies right downtown serves a really good breakfast, I had a pancake and eggs and sweet tea today, I read the paper and said hi to my old boss and the firemen. If anyone comes to visit be sure we go to breakfast there. Then probably the Goat place in Fearrington. Yum!

bad day

I cried my first big bad cry after a call last night.

We got up from dinner to "assist EMS at birthing center". I thought that place just did la maz, maybe some fertility dances, but apparently they deliver there. And, assisting EMS usually entails lifting some fat ass off the ground. Not this time. We pull up and see the back doors of the ambulance open with one medic, one EMT, and one provisional EMT. But you can't see the patient. She was tiny, a just born little girl getting two-finger compressions onto her tiny chest with a teeny tube down her throat laying on a big yellow stretcher.
Bill told Mel and I to go do our thing, he got in the driver seat of the ambulance and we hauled ass to the ER. Mel was awesome, for still being relatively new she really holds her shit together, she got right in there to do compressions while I sat at the foot of the stretcher getting out supplies. The medic radioed into the ER, didn't even wait for a response: "coming in hot, with neo-natal code, any one who copies standby..." Together we put a tiny pulse oximeter wrapped around her foot to measure oxygen in her blood stream, the medic put a tiny tube down her throat to suction merconium out of her lungs, and the EMT drilled a tiny drill into her shin marrow to deliver meds. We pulled into the ER, that trip was the fastest and longest 3 minutes of my life. I felt like I couldn't do enough, it wasn't my job true, but I just hated not being able to help more. Every once in a while I would hear something, I suppose it was the suction pulling crude from her lungs, but I would get my hopes that she was just going to cough and start crying right there in the ambulance. She never did. At the ER there must have been twenty people-doctors, nurses, neo-natal team, volunteers, UNC air care- waiting for us. They wanted information on the baby, we didn't have any. Its not like we were going to stop and ask mom what they decided to name her. Mom and Dad were still back at the birthing center, crying about their new baby getting whisked off by the ambulance.
My crew was mad about the call, I just couldn't be though. They were mad at the birthing center; saying they should have their licenses revoked and why are parents so stupid to deliver there. This isn't this crew's first trip there. Apparently Mel has seen two or three like this. She cried in the truck on the way back to the station, Bill and Jim were quiet until they were mad, I cried downstairs before going back up to dinner. Charlie was coming by for a plate and he let me bury my head on his shoulder-he has seen it all too many times himself. Boone called after a while to make sure we were ok, that man has a heart as big as, well, him.
The doctors and nurses did their thing, the baby is alive in the NICU this morning. No telling how much damage was done but pray she will be healthy.

I've been really lucky when it comes to this stuff, I think that someone is protecting me from seeing and dealing with more than I can handle. But this was my first call that got to me, the one where I had to shake my head in the middle of it and tell myself to stay calm: it wasn't Wiley, or Archer, or Cash, or Bobby or Cooper.

I know money doesn't buy happiness, but not overdrafting your bank account every two weeks sure does.
Now that my part time job is picking up and checks are coming in, my finances are getting straight and it feels wonderful. I have paid off four credit card bills in their entirety in the past two weeks. I don't spend money any more either. I still like my fancy jeans and although I could use a new pair right now, I don't go shopping or spend money just because I have nothing else to do. (Not to mention: tiny house doesn't have room for any more stuff in it) I have responsibilities: a mortgage, putting food in the dogs' mouths, a decent credit score etc. And there are things I want that are more important: a new sofa, fencing or a bathroom remodel for example. Dad asked how I could afford to send the dogs to a petsitter while I am at work, that answer was quite easy. I don't have cable, I figure thats about $70 a month I save. I use someone's wireless internet connection and I am sure it is annoying to them but they really should have it protected. Also, without tv and cable I do more work.
So it feels really good to be financially on track. Its a different way to do it, sure, paying off bills with huge checks; but once I get debt-free it will be woooonderful.

And by the way, I found out a little something I had been wondering about: Sam's "cost". He is around a $6,000 dog, with offers up to $20,000 for him.

Oddities of selling fire trucks

This isn't normal. You just don't park fire trucks in your own driveway.


-- Post From My iPhone

Afternoon

Kennel time: 12-4:00 While I'm off in Chapel Hill for lunch and whatnot. Sam in his kennel and Lacey wherever she pleases. I can't figure out where she spends most of her time. Couch? Bed? Dogbed? Window sill? Recliner? I'll put the webcam on her one day. Should have done that today since she ate a bag of Halls cough drops. Cherry flavored. Shows no adverse effects tonight, but my throat sure does.

I pick up dog poop, poopsicles are the best they come easy and don't smell. I notice poop under the deck, perfect poop spot, how did I not think of it. Its private between the house and the woodpile, protected from the elements, and the dirt is gritty like kitty litter. Its also all of 4 feet high, great I have to get in there and pick up poop while hunched over. I swear I pick up 5 pounds every two days. I buy good quality food but it seems to produce a lot of waste.

In the yard we play, they tug of war which is the slowest game they play but I imagine it may be one of the more tiring since its constant muscle contraction pulling against each other. Its also so baffling to me why she plays so well with Sam. At the dog park whenever she plays with another dog its not so nice, I mean it is, but it isn't. She barks and nips at dogs she plays with, but not in a way that makes me think she actually wants to hurt another dog. Its more of her being a total bitch. She wants to be chased but doesn't want to be caught. With Sam there is no grumbling, no barking, no snipping. After a few minutes of that we come in and they have to go back to the kennel/couch, I'm off to Costco.

7:00 Late dinner. Meals are usually between 7-8am and 5-6pm. They remind me too, like clockwork. Tonight they eat late, I don't feel bad, they're dogs, they'll live if chow time is late.
It's getting late now, they are settling down. There is a fire burning, I drag Lacey's bed in front of it, she sits and she stares at the flames like she doesn't trust it. Meanwhile Sam crawls onto my lap, thus ending all productive blogging tonight.

Day in the life...

Pick up from Dean the Marine's 8:40, I'm a little late, like an hour. Dean never seems to mind the haphazardness of my schedule. I gave away the old stove to my captain today so I came to the house first. Which lead me into some blitz cleaning afterwards. Its always easier to clean the house if the dog's aren't right behind me leaving more trails of muddy paw prints on the carpet, noses on the windows, or hair on the sofa.

Outside to run off some energy, they have to check out all 2500 square feet of the backyard, I guess they think something could have gotten in while they are gone. I make breakfast and eat, they come back in. I spend the next 20 minutes wondering if they've eaten. I forgot to ask if they were fed yet. From their pacing around the food bowl area I suspect not. Or perhaps they're just wondering where the bowls got to and if they have food in them in the undisclosed locale. I pull the prepared bowls out of the pantry: about 2 and 1/4 cups for Sam and 1 and a 1/4 for Lacey. A little less than usual for him and a little more for her. I am trying to tone Sam up and since Lacey is playing more and eatting less human scraps she gets more.

Then they are back outside, and they sit. and they sit. and they sit. This is why. There are 18 of them out there now, its usually between 5 and 20. I am wondering if the ghetto house behind me throws out scraps, that or a dead body. But they drive Lacey crazy, I guess she doesn't realize how big and nasty this type of bird is.

Sam just stares at the house. Waiting for me to come out and play, or let him in so he can unmake the bed I just made. Note to self: break said habit. I go out and play with them a few times a day, but seriously, its not even 20 degrees right now which makes it hard to step out the door. But once I get those crazy kids playing and spinning, fetching, chasing, and wrastlin' I don't even notice the cold. Its one of my happiest moments in a day to just "play" with my dogs. And I wonder how the neighbors next door and behind me can have dogs and not play with them, not let them inside all day, and leave them outside in the cold all night- hoooowling.

I was going to write about Sam keeping me up every two hours last night, in addition to the usual howling and barking from the neighbor dogs, because he was trying to hack up stuffing from the "stuffingless" piggy that lost her head yesterday.
Buttttt, hard to tell you how much I love my doggies right now after reading the blog alluded to by Carolyn in her post. I just wanna squeeze everyone of my nephews into big loving hugs...
Stuffing vomit just seems insignificant.

We visit the same families on Christmas as we do on Thanksgiving for two reasons: one, they can't cook or two, they can't deal.
We go to houses that burn turkeys and roasts or to our friend in apartment L8 who likes to take entire bottles of lithium or whatever but doesn't like to be sick from it.

Hope everyone had a good Christmas. I guess I did.


-- Post From My iPhone