Where I've been...sort of

So, I've been informed by Kara that I've been fairly slack in the blogging department. She's right, of course. And Harold commented on my lack of updates, too, which gets me thinking it's time to get busy and get blogging.

I could blame work, or my inherent laziness, or the fact that if I can't think of a totally awesome topic to blog about then I don't feel like blogging, but those are all excuses. I just haven't been feeling it, you dig?

My latest excuse is the newest addition to my family...this guy.



This is Aki (or 秋, if you want to get technical), and he joined the family on November 6th.

Here's a little backstory on this guy. He is five months old, and has been running wild pretty much that whole time. The other puppies in his litter found new homes almost right away, and Harold tried to convince me when he took Aki's sister that I really needed a dog. To which I replied, "No way, I am not cut out for dog ownership."*

Aki would wander over to the town office and sit on the porch, looking in the doors and windows with a sad face. Eventually, one of his neighbours started putting food out for him, because he was losing all his puppy fat and it was starting to get cold. As the temperature dropped, my tiny shrivelled heart shrivelled up even more. "He's just a puppy!" my heart would shriek. "He needs to be looked after!"

Eventually, I couldn't stand it anymore. Michel had offered me a doghouse. Heather had offered me dishes and toys and anything I needed. Kara offered me dire warnings about how I really didn't want a dog, did I really want to be going for walks at -40, what was I going to do with him when I had to go to town? Thanks, Kara ^_^

At any rate, Aki came home with me a week ago, and we've been motoring along fairly well. I'm definitely not energetic enough for a 5-month old puppy, but I'm doing my best. We walk three or four times a day, he stays outside while I'm at work, and the cats are teaching him who's the boss around the house.**

I'm trying to teach him to be a good canine citizen. Poop is scooped. Jumping up is discouraged. Dog friends are being made (every time we walk by Copper's house, Aki pulls on the leash because he wants to go play). I'm trying to forget that I've been afraid of dogs ever since a friend's Boston Terrier bit me back in high school. And I'm dreaming of the day when I'll have the energy to take Aki to the park and actually play with him, instead of passing out at the end of the day.

It's coming, right?



* Famous last words.
** Rodney is the boss. If the dog sasses me, the dog gets a smack from Rodney.

Jam Woes...and some Deep Thinking

I made two batches of jam over the past two days, and neither of them turned out quite the way I wanted. I overcooked one, and wound up with three jars of rock-solid blackberry sludge, and I miscalculated the sugar and undercooked the second, leaving me with seven jars of what will be the most delicious pancake/french toast/sundae sauce. The blackberry sludge appears to be salvageable, with time and patience, and I've already consumed 1/4 of a jar of strawberry sauce.*

As I said to H, I just hate not being instantly good at something. She pointed out that not being instantly good at canning was inherently different from not being instantly good at sky-diving, we all had a good laugh, and then I went back to what I do best - lazing around the house, not putting clean laundry away, and being the indentured servant of the fuzzy mens.

I've been thinking a lot about journeys lately. There's a part of me that wants to take off for a while - head out on the road and see what happens. (That is the part of me that doesn't remember that we just drove to Whitehorse and back on Friday/Saturday and that our legs are still cramping.) I'm afraid if I don't listen to that part of me now, though, that it's going to manifest itself much more loudly in a few months, and I'll do something without planning to do it.***

Anyway, to get back to the original point, I still have a few batches of jam I intend to try - I will keep you updated. Once my fingers have stopped feeling scorched.****


*Seriously, I may be going into a sugar coma. If I'm not at work tomorrow, please send help - preferably in the form of those two guys from Haven**
**Seriously, how have I missed out on that show? It's like my perfect blend of procedural cop show, paranormal show, and Maine (the creepiest of all states).
***See: How I moved to Japan, and also: How I moved to the Yukon.
****Unrelated to anything - some times, the cats will look at me without blinking, with these strange looks on their cat-faces, and I fear that they are plotting the best way to kill and eat me. Just FYI, in case anything happens.

HEART ATTACK (not really)

So, I woke up this morning, rolled out of bed around 7:30, and walked into the living room...where I found the back door open and the skinny cat nowhere to be seen.

If you heard a thud around that time, that would have been my heart dropping out of my chest onto the floor.

I called out a few times, and then I got his food dish and rattled it. Within moments, he came running inside. I snatched him up and held him against my chest. He was cold - God only knows how long he was outside.

Even as I was thanking the stars that he hadn't wandered off too far or been eaten by a fox, I was cursing him. He never used to be so bold. Getting into the space between the walls, wandering outside...the one time he got stuck on the porch in Japan, he stayed right by the door and cried to come in. Moving to the Yukon has been bad for him.

I don't know what happened last night - I guess that, when I took my laundry in, I didn't push the door all the way shut. The lock was locked, but it wouldn't have made a different since it never latched.

Either that, or someone broke into my house - but the computer and DVD player are still here, so the chances of that are slim.

I'm so wound up, I haven't been able to make breakfast...and I had a good one planned, too.

Better today...but the day's still young

After the Council meeting last night, I went home and crawled into bed. I was in bed by 10:30, and I was tired. I didn't anticipate that I would have any trouble falling asleep. I recited Desiderata a few times (I pretty much have the whole thing memorized, go me!), curled up with the cats behind my knees, and waited.

And waited.

The clock was ticking so loudly that it felt like it was ticking in my chest, like every tick of the second hand shook the bed with its force. I couldn't drown it out. By the time midnight rolled around, my cats had gotten energetic (and hungry, again) and were bouncing around and yowling. The clock was still ticking. I was nearly in tears.

Out of the bedroom went the cats! Into my ears went some foam earplugs! Desiderata recited twice more! Look out, Morpheus, I'm on my way!

I don't know what time I actually got to sleep, but it wasn't early enough. I woke this morning with bags under my eyes that were the size of cat-carriers. I cried because I had to get up and take a shower. I am so totally not a morning person.

So early!

So, I dragged my behind out of a nice, plush, cozy, warm bed and made my way down to the office an hour earlier than usual on this chilly Friday morning (and no, I don't know the actual temperature, I haven't invested in a thermometer yet, but I can tell it's chillier than usual because the parts of my jacket near my face froze from breath-condensation)...because I scheduled a phone date with my parents this morning.

See, I haven't yet arranged for phone and internet in my new house...mostly because I am suffering a slight $$ shortage until next Wednesday. That money, too, will slip through my fingers like water...heating oil is not cheap.

At any rate, it was lovely to talk to my parentals - they are scheduling a trip up here in June (and bringing my fuzzy mens to me, oh frabjous day!) and wanted to confirm that I could take some time off, and that we could tour around. I am excited for my parents and my cats to come, and now have to think about what kind of things I can do with them. It also means I need to get cracking on getting a vehicle.

Now I am left with half an hour before work actually begins - I'm all alone in the office, and could sing or dance, or do any number of things. I'll probably do some work, though ^_^