|
Post by nondescript spice on Nov 14, 2012 22:15:58 GMT -5
it's late and as far as i know i've done everything that has been required of me today. oh, wait! except that! i hope to have great lapses here, where i ignore this place for months at a time. otherwise, i will post random trivia that will push stuff out of your brain that you might have needed - the utter function of blogs everywhere. yesterday was the lighting of the fraser fir tree in my town. it is 78 feet high. once it was thought to be the tallest fraser fir in the WORLD, but then smoke signals and other means of communication became available and people who had nothing better to discuss than fir sizes realized we were wrong. it's still pretty tall, though, so shut up! every year at this time they elect someone new from the community to throw the switch and hopefully not ignite the tree into a ball of flames. it also lights up a 'merry christmas' sign on top of the mountain that helps box in the town. the high school choir sings a few christmas carols, some women dressed up as wenches (not the hot kind, sorry) give out free hot cider and hot chocolate and there are a few boring speeches made. very small town. here's a really bad picture of the tree i took with my phone from standing almost directly beneath it. that's right. i live for danger. here's another really bad pic taken with my phone of the 'merry christmas' sign on top of the mountain. you can see the porch of the house where they are set up to lead the carols and make their boring speeches. that was as close as i was willing to get to the high school choir. i dislike crowds. the new jail in the background makes for a nice, festive backdrop. and that's a shot of downtown i took as i was walking the few blocks back to my office after the tree lighting. it's a main street kinda thing, but they really go all out with the lights at the holidays. anyway, that's all i got.
|
|
|
Post by nondescript spice on Nov 18, 2012 0:16:53 GMT -5
see, now i am glad i started this p.o.s., because i have a place to post my boring pics of trees and leaves that i find so fascinating instead of the who are you? thread. ^that's doe river that runs along a state park that is about five minutes from my house. it has a decent walking trail through some woods down by the river (where matt folely lives in his van). really is a beautiful place, especially in the spring and fall. it gets a little buggy in the summer, but i think fall is my favorite time to walk there. it's a two mile trek, but not all of it is through the woods, unfortunately. ^i love how blue the water looks there. they carved another mini-trail through the thicker woods a couple of years ago. i saw the sign pointing for another trail, so i tried it one day. it was on a sunday afternoon, about half an hour until sundown. i started through it and the first thing i noticed was how instantly quiet everything got, which is weird since i was in the thicker part of the woods, where you would think it would be overrun with birds and bugs. but i couldn't hear the sounds of the other walkers on the old trail anymore - it was almost completely silent. i had to really keep an eye on the path because it was fraught with knobby tree roots poking up. that was when i noticed someone had recently carved frantic arrows in the soft dirt, pointing in the direction i was walking, along with the words, "HELP ME." well, okay. weird, but i didn't, like, freak out. it kind of looked like something i would do, to try and freak someone else out. but it was still just weird enough to creep me out as i kept on. then - i swear i don't know where this came from, but it sounded like it was directly behind my ear - a bird just SCREECHED in my ear. honest to god, it sounded like a bald freaking eagle had just landed on my shoulder. every hair on my body stood up. i hurried my pace, trying not to trip over the tree roots and saw more frantically drawn arrows carved on the dirt, along with the cryptic message "THIS WAY - HEL" - nice! then i reached a fork in the path. naturally, the one i went with led to a dead end. it was just a swampy area i could easily picture laura palmer in, wrapped in plastic. plus, it was getting dark. so i went the other way, whistling, acting like none of this was getting to me. more arrows. i tripped once and almost fell into a rotted tree stump. when the hell was i going to get through this?? i finally heard the blessed sounds of voices of the other walkers and literally stumbled out of the woodsy trail. why? because as a parting shot, i walked right into a spider web. i looked like i was doing these crazy kung-fu moves on nobody. i almost ran to my car after that, totally accepting the fact that i am a punk. the funny thing was, the whole walk probably didn't take more than ten minutes. i walked through it once more a few months later, just to prove i wasn't a total girl about it and got through it unscathed. i'm not really a nature kinda chick. after the first walk through, i talked to a friend who said, "what are you, 12?" i was like, "YOU WEREN'T THERE, MAN!"
|
|
|
Post by Wide_Awake_Nightmare on Nov 18, 2012 7:17:29 GMT -5
Your pictures arn't boring and your story is quite funny. I'm not sure where you live but it reminds me of here in the V.T./N.H. area. Good stuff.
|
|
|
Post by nondescript spice on Nov 18, 2012 12:24:52 GMT -5
thanks, WAN. it's east tennessee.
|
|
|
Post by afriendlychicken on Nov 18, 2012 17:09:58 GMT -5
I agree with WAN. I've been enjoying the trees and your humor. I don't think you realized this but you shared an image that's proves 100% that UFOs exist. Just look at that! You caught an entire hoard of 'em!! And they seem to be pointing the way to something. Maybe we should follow?
|
|
|
Post by Wide_Awake_Nightmare on Nov 18, 2012 21:42:09 GMT -5
thanks, WAN. it's east tennessee. Oh, never been there. If it's anything like here it's terrible but it's home so it's ok.
|
|
|
Post by nondescript spice on Nov 19, 2012 20:55:43 GMT -5
AFC - don't rat me out to our alien overlords!! yeesh! WANG wan - yeah, i've lived in east tenn all my life. kinda bored with it, but it is beautiful here. now a confession: I'M 80 YEARS OLD! yep...i'm a knitter. don't ever call me a knit-wit and we'll be cool. i never assumed i'd want to learn how to knit, but my mom taught my sister, who showed me a couple of summers ago. i figured i'd try it, suck at it and throw it in the closet with relief. but to my surprise, i really got into it. that is my first blanket i knitted. if i had gotten any closer, you would be able to see how it looked like it was riddled with bullet holes. considering who received that blanket, i am now glad of it. that's my second one. there's a story behind it as well, but i'm not going to tell it. i managed to finish it with only one hole. so shut up. that was my first hole-free blanket. i made it for a friend of mine for her birthday. this one went to my sister and her husband in georgia for christmas last year. i didn't have time to put any fringe on the ends of it; it was a rush job. this one went to another good friend of mine - she actually used to be a member here, in case anyone remembers gypsygurl. i gave it to her for her birthday last september. this one went to my parents for their 25th wedding anniversary. they received it in june, just when you want a suffocatingly hot blanket the most. this is the last blanket i've knitted this year. it's going to my brother and his wife in florida for this christmas. you know, because it's so darn cold in the keys. three people i know had babies this year, so i'm working on my last baby blanket. this went to a co-worker and his wife, for their new baby - the baby she had without realizing she was pregnant. you read right. i'll never use that kind of yarn again - it was extremely soft and fuzzy and really hard to work with. plus, i'm still finding little fuzzies all over the place. i'm finishing another one just like ^that one for the two other babies. i think the main reason i love knitting so much is it really seems to appeal to the OCD in me. something about the repetitiveness of it. i used to work a lot of nights, so when i was done going through everyone else's desks i would work on the blankets. i have only made scarves and blankets. only rectangles and squares. i have no clue how to make sweaters, socks, hats, etc., and have no desire to learn. i haven't kept any of them for myself. i have learned once you give a person a hand-knitted blanket or scarf, they are your bitch for life.
|
|
|
Post by nondescript spice on Nov 21, 2012 17:50:33 GMT -5
despite what i said up there ^^, i must learn how to make one of these. i'll make them adult size and sell them here for $50.00 each. better get yer orders in now.
|
|
|
Post by nondescript spice on Nov 21, 2012 17:54:22 GMT -5
as of 5pm today, e.s.t. - my vacation has officially arrived. i'm off until december 3rd. i have been waiting for this day since my last vacation, which was last christmas, which i don't really consider a vacation because it is such a stressful time for me. i wait for thanksgiving because i can sneak a couple of extra days in. so instead of seven days, i get eleven. and i am soooo gonna par-TAY. actually, i have no real plans. none i'm going to tell you nerds about, anyway. i just want to chill the eff out for eleven days - NO ALARM CLOCKS. i cannot stand being scared to death awake every morning. it can't be good for you. no makeup. 24/7 jammies. suck it, corporate america!! i have no thanksgiving plans, i'd rather die than go out in that black friday madness, so other than stopping by the coffee shop or the wine store, i'm going to live the life of a cat - sleep when i want, eat when i'm hungry and drape myself all over the furniture. i'm not going to apologize for all the extra time i spend here, either. BAM.
|
|
|
Post by Wide_Awake_Nightmare on Nov 21, 2012 18:25:19 GMT -5
She has talent!!! No fair! Ban her!!! Gald you get some time off but don't murder anyone as it may ruin everything.
|
|
|
Post by CBG on Nov 21, 2012 23:15:22 GMT -5
Oh, g'head...murder. I WANT A SCARF AND A YODA HAT!!
|
|
|
Post by nondescript spice on Nov 22, 2012 18:01:01 GMT -5
cbg: if you want a hat, i'll need your head size. in the meantime, how about a pair of jazzy knitted shorts? fancy. they'd go great together. hope everyone has a good thanksgiving. that is a wooden turkey my dad made when he was a lad. my grandmother always put it on her table thanksgiving day, up until she was too sick to have the dinners at her house. i got it and even though i rarely do a thanksgiving dinner, it always sits on my table every november. it's been a great t'day so far. i slept late and lounged around. it's warm here today, in the high 60's, so i went outside and walked almost four miles to stretch my legs and move about for a bit. i always like looking at that distant hill, which i see on my walking route in my neighborhood. i'm sure it doesn't look like much, but it's really pretty when the sun hits it just right, or when it snows. i like to picture myself at the top of it, so far removed away from everything - just utter, blessed silence. just a shot of a distant mountain - a part of the others that surrounds the small town i live in. i love the mountains, always have. i lived in maryland for several years and never could get used to how flat it was there. even when it's dreary and rainy here (my favorite weather), it's still beautiful. up in the maryland/delaware area in the rain, it just looked so bleak. but sometimes those surrounding mountains do make me feel a little claustrophobic. like there's no escape. still! pretty, though. one time a few years back i wrote a poem about a sock that was on the sidewalk i walked over every day. it was there for months. today i noticed another one just like it on the sidewalk. how do these socks get there? how does that happen? especially a dress sock. i don't know why that matters, but it somehow does. anyway, i took a picture of it - could my t'giving get any more thrilling?? - and found the poem i wrote. my ode to a sock i see every day during my walk
During my mid morning walk I did come across a lone sock crumpled and dirty on yon sidewalk how I wished to me it could talk!
I would ask where was its mate? Was he expecting her, was she late? Was he lost, empty and a-frayed? On some foot was he wishing he stayed?
It was a man’s dress sock, thin and brown now lost and sad on the west side of town of your own socks you must know where they are put so they will never long to cover some guy’s naked foot. off to watch teenage crimewave now. so suck it, nerds.
|
|
|
Post by afriendlychicken on Nov 22, 2012 18:47:32 GMT -5
That was the most beautiful poem I've ever read. I love it's flow and accuracy. Now you should put it to song. Rain, hills and trees. Are you sure you don't live down the street from me?
|
|
|
Post by nondescript spice on Nov 22, 2012 22:13:17 GMT -5
i can hear the sock song being sung at nursing homes across the country! maybe we are neighbors, chicken. that would explain the volcanoes. talked to my dad earlier and he and my mom didn't have a traditional thanksgiving, either. they just moved to florida and had the turkey dinner with my stepbrother and his wife last week. so today my parents decided to drive around and find a restaurant, but everything was closed in the small town they found themselves in. so they went to a biker bar called the ragged ass saloon. you read right. my 70+ year old parents had thanksgiving dinner with a bunch of bikers at the ragged ass saloon. he said it was a pretty sweet gig - people had brought food in and you just paid a donation at the door. so he and my mom got a couple of plates and ate at the bar after getting a pitcher of beer. it really sucks when your parents are cooler than you. turkey ROCK!
|
|
|
Post by nondescript spice on Nov 25, 2012 2:02:39 GMT -5
day four of my vacation: so far it has been everything i could have hoped for. i have accomplished nothing. speaking of accomplishing nothing, i went out yesterday during the whole black friday hoo-ha. i NEVER normally do this. i loathe shopping, and after you've worked in retail as i did years ago, it leaves its mark on you that you never feel more acutely than at the holiday shopping season. but i need a camera. i'm going to florida next month to see the folks for christmas and i want a better camera than what is on my phone. and i saw one that was pretty cheap in the kmart ad. above the camera and other crap for sale, it screamed ELEVEN A.M.!! i thought - that's not too bad. the store is in the next town over - about a 15 minute drive from where i live, without factoring in the black friday chaos. so i drag myself out of bed earlier than i wanted. i rolled around on the floor and whatever stuck to me, i wore. made it there just shy of ELEVEN A.M.!! and found the cameras were sold out. i asked the kid working there and he said he'd sold the last one an hour ago. wtf?? i told him the ad said the sale didn't start until ELEVEN A.M.!! but he looked vague and said no, they went on sale at 6 a.m.. well, bag that. there's no way i'd ever go to a store that early. i asked if more would be put out. nope. rain check? they don't do that anymore. FINE! no wonder they're practically out of business. stopped by my favorite used book/cd store for a particular book (ken follett - man, i can't get enough of that guy's writing right now) and wanted to replace a gorillaz cd i'd lost. i don't know why. it was a whim. don't you judge me. but they didn't have either one in their enormous store. strike two. i stopped by the salvation army because i cleaned out my closet and dresser drawers the other day and wanted to drop them off while i was in town. they were closed. not just for the holiday - they packed up and left. sonofabitch! so before i go to my coffee shop, i decide to hit up the library for a new book (yes, i go to the library - suck it kindle) and THEY were closed as well. i was shocked the coffee shop was open and actually had my favorite latte in stock. that whole enterprise was a huge waste of time. but since i'm on vacation, it didn't bother me as much. i'll get my revenge i'll get over it. when i got home i went for a walk. i really dig this tree. this is about a half a block from my house. i know the guy who lives there, so i don't think he minded that i was taking pictures of his property. i've gotten some funny looks from those i don't know. this is going to sound horrible, but i really don't mean anything by it - but when the people at this house put this stone jesus out in their yard, i swear i thought it was jim morrison at first. just a first glance kind of thing - the lizard king....?? it's a blurry pic, sorry, but we should all know what the J man looks like, and even though i figured jesus wouldn't mind, i wasn't sure if the owners would be cool with me creeping around their yard.
|
|