Posing

So I made my debut as a butt model today. Our features department is doing a piece about inexpensive dating. For a photo illustration, they wanted me and a co-worker to hold hands, while they took pictures from the back, with a few dollar bills sticking out of his back pocket.

I felt like I was the subject of some strange experiment, as I stood there holding hands facing a white wall, while a group watched us from behind. They stacked reams of copy paper underneath where I was standing because, guess what, he is much taller than me.

This better not be my 15 minutes of fame.

Lessons learned: I'm not sure I have a future in butt modeling.

Basking

The weather has been absolutely amazing the past couple days. I've been eating lunch outside, basking in the sun. It's made me really crave summer, but I have a feeling we have a few months to go.

In the meantime, it's always nice to rub it in a bit that I live in paradise for those of you stuck in the snow up north. Sorry.

Lessons learned: I'm not really sorry.

Snow therapy

We have had a series of storms here, followed by two days of sunny bliss in the powder. My friend, Genevieve, who used to work with me here before moving to Santa Cruz, came to visit. We went snowboarding Saturday. The storms had cleared up a couple days before, so I figured the powder would be soft and all tracked up. But it stayed cold, making for some nice floaty turns in the trees. It was a beautiful day, which I needed after a long week. It was great to catch up with Gen, who I haven't seen in about two years.

Then a couple co-workers and I went snowshoeing today. We got a late start, so it was less than truly ambitious, but it was great to get into the woods, again on a really nice day.

Lessons learned: Snow makes great therapy.

Laying low

I am just finishing a four-day weekend courtesy of the bad economy. Our company, like many others, is doing forced unpaid days off. I sort of took this weekend easy for once. I may have set a new record for the number of movies I've watched in a weekend. I also got caught up on a lot of chores that I've fallen behind on. It was nice to relax, though I was a little sad that I never made it snowboarding. Not that I really can afford it right now anyway. I did make it for a run and went bowling, both of which counteracted my laziness a bit. And I made some really fantastic chicken and potato soup in my crock pot.

Lesson learned: This weekend wasn't a total loss.

Rider Tunes

One of my good friends from college, Jesse, recently launched a project called

Rider Tunes

It complements another Web site he constructed called

Ski Movie Music

Basically, it is a conglomeration of music from various ski and snowboard videos, with links to iTunes so that you can download the mixes and start riding like a pro. I've found some good hip hop groups this way. And if music makes me feel like a pro when I'm snowboarding, it cancels out any face plants. Check it out.

Superbowl Sunday

I've never been one to yell at the TV during a football game. In fact, I've never been one to watch football on TV at all.

I do make exception to the latter one day of year. That was, of course, today: Superbowl Sunday.

Usually I pay more attention to the commercials. But today, the game was riveting. It had all the drama of a play ground brawl coupled with the emotional roller coaster ride of a made for TV movie.

I was rooting for the Cardinals. I actually got nervous. I yelled when Larry Fitzgerald made his last touchdown. And I almost cried when the Steelers stole the game in the last 38 seconds. Then we made popcorn, watched The Office and I moved on.

Lesson learned: I can finally see how guys get into this.

Trecking

A friend of mine took a leap of faith and invited me to go snowshoeing/snowboarding with him and the guys Saturday. He had never seen me snowboard, so for all he knew, I might only be able to leaf and would try to make him carry my pack. Luckily for them, I can carry my own pack, and I'd like to think I'm a level above leafing.

We hiked out on a ridge line that extends from a local ski resort. It was three miles to our destination: an open cliff that has amazing panoramic views of mountain peaks, meadows and valleys. We made it at the break neck speed of 1 mph. It was a haul, but it was fun to catch glimpses of the scenery between the trees and felt good to be outside.

We spent awhile relaxing at the edge of the cliff and watching the jet streams trace lines up above us in a sky with no clouds.

On the way back, we alternated between snowshoeing the flats and snowboarding any downhill. We made it out in time to swing through some powder on a closed off run.

Lesson learned: I've got some tricks for switching out my snowboard for snowshoes for next time.

Not overdoing it for a change

I had my forced unpaid day off today. I keep saying I should use a day off to just relax, but I always end up planning some big event. This time, the big event that I tried to plan fell through. So I slept in till 10, did some reading and went for a long bike ride.

It's been unseasonably warm lately. I actually wore shorts and a t-shirt on my ride. I took a loop that runs through some ranching land nearby our town. The hills have turned green, which they do for about three weeks every winter, and the cows were out sunbathing. It was really nice to get out and clear my head.

Lesson learned: A real day off is nice.

Hockey from the stands

The newspaper crew, plus a few extras, went on a field trip to the Valley for a hockey game on Saturday night. I may not be a huge fan of watching sports on TV, but I love going to games like this. Maybe its because I'm competitive, and the rivalry is catching. Hockey, especially, is high drama. The bigger the fights the better. I spent the game yelling at the home team and jumping up and down when they scored.

It reminded me of when I played myself in college. I was the only girl on an all-boys team. That meant that my hockey jersey went down to my knees, and I got to throw elbows without consequence. It was great. I was never that good, but I could skate.

I'd like to imagine myself down there on the ice with the semi-pro guys, but I think I would get slaughtered.

Lesson learned: Pistachios are the best hockey game snack.

Dusting off my keyboard

I sang and played keyboard at open mic night Thursday. It was a big step for me, considering I usually keep my music to myself.

Much like my cooking experience (see previous post), it wasn't a disaster. I'm not sure I was fantastic either. Still, I made it through without any catastrophes and learned a few things. I'd like to try it again, hopefully with a little less of the nervousness I had this time.

My friends came out to support me, which was sweet. They helped provide distraction in the time I had to wait before I went up to play.

Lessons learned: Mic position is key.

Cooking up a storm, literally

Tonight I made curried wild Alaskan Pollock with apples and a side of jeweled rice. That is an awful lot of words, especially compared to my normal specialty dishes, a.k.a. "spaghetti" and "quesadillas." This dish had fancy stuff in it like cilantro and cranberries. I also made pudding with homemade whipped cream, blueberries and bananas for dessert.

I can't say that the main dish was spectacular. But it wasn't bad either. I have had disasters in the kitchen, and this one doesn't count. Plus, I have a theory that any main dish with apples in it is automatically gourmet.

One thing I need to get a handle on if I really am going to start cooking is the mess I make when I do it. My kitchen is out of control. I used 36 spoons, dumped cut up cilantro on the floor and filled my sink to the brim with dishes.

Luckily, I have left overs, so tomorrow night I won't have to cook.

Lessons learned: I think I'm starting to like onions. Weird.

LIke a child

I feel like I reverted back to being a kid again last weekend.

On Saturday, my friends Walt, Vanessa, Sean and I went sledding, using the tubes we had taken down the river last summer. (Turns out, they weren't such a bad investment).

Then I went to my friend Megan's house, since her parents are out of town. We had girls sleepover, complete with wine, dinner, games, girl talk, but sorry boys, no pillow fights. (Technically, I am not allowed to call it that, since it sounds so pre-pubescent, but I am a big fan of calling things like they are).

Sunday after church, I had hot chocolate and took a nap.

Lesson learned: I miss childhood.

Snow hiking

Last weekend a group of co-workers and I ventured out to play in the snow, via snowshoes. We started out on a groomed path, but got antsy and branched off onto the hillsides. I'm not sure I could have asked for a more pristine setting, with ridge after ridge in untouched powder — that is until we came and moshed all over it.

I spent a lot of the time bragging about my new MSR Ascent snowshoes, made specifically for women. They weigh only three pounds and have a bar you can bend up during climbing to prop your heal up. My mom got them for me for Christmas. (See the phone, where I am demonstrating their capabilities, while doing a bit of ninja apparently).

As if to prove my point about how great they are, James promptly jumped off a small cliff and broke his snowshoes clean in half. Meanwhile, Walt carried his cup of coffee the entire time.


It turns out you can half slide, half sled downhill, despite the claws on your feet. We spent a lot of time doing that, which meant a steep climb on the way back out. No matter. I had these great snowshoes that I can use to walk up the sides of walls. I think Mount Everest is my next attempt.


Lesson learned: My snowshoes rock.

Re-resolving

So, first blog of 2009, and in true cliche fashion, I thought I'd start the year out with my resolutions.

First, I thought I would look at back on last year's and see how I did. (That's the both the advantage and disadvantage of a blog. There is a record of everything.)

1. Play piano more. Hmm. I might have played the piano more than the year before, when I didn't play it at all, but I'm not sure I really did much, particularly lately. I did have a three-month spree when I wrote a bunch of songs, so maybe I get half points on this one.
2. Learn to cook a few more dishes. I may have actually gone backwards on this one. The height of my culinary prowess was opening cans of Campbell's soup. I think I ate more soup this year than an entire hockey team in Alaska. I did go through a phase where I made instant pudding, box corn muffins and baked pre-made cookie dough...Does that count?
3. Keep better track of my spending. Well, to be honest, I looked, and if I failed at any of these the most, it was this one. I had no friggin' clue, till yesterday, and it is a bit ridiculous how much I spent on eating out and my stupid hair. Seriously. It's out of control. What was I thinking. We're in a ressession.
4. Take my Christmas tree down before the end of January this year. I actually can't remember, but I think I may have made this one. Wow. That's a real victory.
5. Buy a new plant and keep it growing. Not even close. I didn't even buy one, much less keep it growing. I did plant flowers again this year though. They are dead, and still sitting on my balcony. It looks like something out of the Adam's family, especially compared to the greenhouse next store.

Given how well I did last year, I was tempted to make resolutions such as, "put gas in my car the next time it is empty" and "do something occasionally." The problem is, I'm too much of an overachiever, so I'll keep shooting for the stars and landing in my parking lot.

Here are this year's:

1. Work on my book, which has had six pages for six months.
2. Buy the equipment to record some songs ... and record some songs.
3. Clear out my apartment of all the junk I've accumulated. Really, what do I need a broken printer, 20 empty CD cases and a 2008 Grey's Anatomy calender for?
4. Lose the weight I gained in Berlin, even though everyone is very nice and says they don't notice. I do.
5. Read more.
6. Spend less. Really.

So there ya go. I'll keep you posted on how well it goes this time.

Lessons learned: Resolutions are easier written than done.

Step dancing

My gym rotates athletic classes each month. One month it will be BOSU. Then kick boxing. Then Pilate's.

My favorite is the step dance class that a woman named Amy teaches, and December was its month. I like it for three reasons: 1. It is never the same. 2. She kicks our butts. 3. It is sort of like dancing.

Sort of. Actually, it's really more like jumping up and down while spastically waving your arms around. That happens to be really good exercise.

I was thinking about it the other day in class, as we all did the "V-step" and "grapevine" and "over the top!": I would never want anyone besides the 21 women doing this crazy stuff along with me to see me doing it. (Yes, women, because, while it is open to men, a man wouldn't be caught dead doing this unless he had no idea what he was getting into. There have been a few to accidentally wander in. It only happens once.) In our class, the higher you kick your leg off to the side while on top of this narrow bench and the more you wave your arms in different directions while doing it, the better.

It is really fun.

Amy starts out with basic parts and puts them together until you end up doing a "routine." I put that in quotes, because it reminds me more of what my sister and I did as children when we had had too much sugar.

And yet, I'm sad it's over.

Lessons learned: Maybe we still need to jump around and flail our arms as adults too.

The illusive $2.34 modern novelty

It seems like such a small thing, but I think washing lettuce is sort of annoying. Either you end up with watered down dressing or you dry it with a paper towel, which doesn't seem healthy to me. The solution is really simple. There are these magic little devices called salad spinners that do all the work.

They are actually really cheap.

I have put a salad spinner on my Christmas and Birthday lists for the past couple of years, to no avail. It was never anything so important for me to make the trip to buy myself. And those times I was at the store already, it was never so pressing that I remembered to get one.

Until last week. I finally found one. It was a whole $2.34. Proud of myself for remembering, put it in my cart with a bunch of other stuff like toothpaste and contact solution and chocolate covered cherries for my dad (it's one of those things we get him every Christmas).

It wasn't until a couple days ago I realized that I must have left the salad spinner at the checkstand. It is no where to be found. And I am back to waving my lettuce around after washing it like a bird in a puddle.

Lessons learned: Maybe I'm not meant to own a salad spinner.

Merry Christmas

Christmas came really fast this year. For the first time since I've lived in California, I stayed home. My mom came down to visit, and we hung out and did normal Christmas stuff. It was the close of a string of work pot lucks and Christmas parties that have been fun but make me want to never see fudge and chocolates again.

I was rooting for a white Christmas, which I partially got. It snowed in the high country at least, and poured in town so hard I was envisioning people boating down our main street as I woke up on Christmas morning. Mom gave me a new pair of snowshoes, which I am itching to go try out.

It was perfect weather for rum and egg nog.

Lessons learned: I'm ready for a salad and a gym session.

Quick trip

The danger of instant messenger is that you can make impulsive agreements without really thinking them through. But that can also be the beauty of it.

I was online when I saw one of best friends from high school, Anna, was there as well from her home in Portland. I had a three day weekend coming up, and so did she. By the end of the conversation, I was looking up plane tickets.

So I flew up to Portland a couple of days later, just in time for a snow storm to roll in and blanket the city in a sheet of ice. That didn't stop us. Actually it egged us on. We visited outdoor markets, ate like we were starving, tasted local beers, went snowshoeing and browsed through book stores.



As usual Anna and I picked up right where we left off. I also got a chance to meet her fiance, who is all the right combination of good traits she deserves. I wish we could have weekends like that more often. If nothing else, it's a good chance to brush up our old inside jokes.

Lesson learned: I am missing my bathtub picture of RC, Kort, Anna and I following one of the cake fights we had during Anna's birthday parties in high school.

Groggy

It's been awhile, my friends. I'm not even sure what happened to December. I feel like I slept through it, and I'm just waking up a little groggy. I barely remembered my password to log into Blogger.

I won't lie, it's been a hard month and I haven't felt like writing. But it's almost over, and the New Year is coming, so I will have a chance to make new resolutions and devise new plans. I'm hoping 2009 will be a healthier, more-financially stable, less dramatic year for me than 2008, but we will see. One can wish. And pray.


Lessons learned: There is a threshold at which defeat stops being artistically inspiring.

New couch

There is sour cream and cranberry juice in my fridge with expiration dates before Halloween in my fridge.

There are two laundry baskets full of clean clothes on my floor.

There is sheet music all over my piano.

But I just want to lay on my new couch and watch Scrubs reruns.

Lessons learned: I need to get off this couch before a monster grows out of my fridge and eats me.