Day 151 - Urban Safari

Today we kind of wandered around and took pictures. Or at least we all wandered around as I took pictures. Some are things I have been wanting to photograph while others are just great opportunities.


LOVE the graffiti on this building


This was on a building I was photographing. Liked the corner brickwork on this building.


This old building siting on a rail line is now a bunch of lofts.


Yes, I am bike-curious.


And I do believe that evil Smurfs are poo fingers.


We have no idea what this is, but you can see how large it is when you compare it to the building next to it.  Gotta love industrial areas.






This tire swing is in the middle of a neighborhood on an old lot where some apartments were torn down. This is one set of stairs that goes to a now empty lot - similar to the lot the above picture was taken.


Portland has a zoning rule that says if a house is torn down, that two must be built in its place. Whoever had this log built two hobbit like cottages in its place - in the middle of a trendy neighborhood. They also used a lot of recycled goods. Indigo called this neighborhood the colorful neighborhood.


Same neighborhood was where we spotted this garden dragon. The teeth are old Bud Light cans.


And this is what the weather was like most of the weekend. It was supposed to be a dry weekend, but as Dave - the weather guy on our local station said - they messed up the forecast today.  Yes, yes the did.  All of you with warm weather, would you send some our way? We could all use some dry warm weather.  Please?

In Flanders Fields

 Flanders fields the poppies blow
Between the crosses, row on row,
   That mark our place; and in the sky
The larks, still bravely singing, fly
   Scarce heard amid the guns below.

   We are the Dead. Short days ago
We lived, felt dawn, saw sunset glow,
   Loved, and were loved, and now we lie
         In Flanders fields.

   Take up our quarrel with the foe:
To you from failing hands we throw
   The torch; be yours to hold it high.
If ye break faith with us who die
   We shall not sleep, though poppies grow
         In Flanders fields.

~Lieutenant Colonel John McCrae

This is the poem read at each and every Memorial Day ceremony in my small town growing up. Each Memorial Day, we would walk in the rain for the parade - me in my girl scout uniform, my dad in his military uniform - to the cemetery where they had raised all of the flags. The flags were all flags from veterans who died and whose families donated the flags on condition they would be raised each Memorial Day and Veteran's Day. My grandpa's flag was raised my senior year of high school after my grandpa died.  He served in the Pacific during WWII and in Korea.  After the honoring of the veterans who died that prior year and their flags were raised, this poem would be read, followed by a 21-gun salute - usually howitzers - and then the playing of Taps.  There is nothing as somber as standing there, the smoke from the howitzers drifting through the cemetery, as the American flags of veterans who passed waved.

Memorial Day was always a very important day in our family. A day where we honored those who died in military service. With a dad who served in the military for 21 years and a grandpa who served, it was always an important day to honor those who did not make it home.

So today, like I will, I ask you remember those who served - those who didn't make it home.  Regardless of your feelings of war, these men and women went to war when their country told them to go. You hate war? Go talk to the politicians. Honor the soldiers who did what their country asked them to do. Honor their sacrifice.

And while you are at it, say a little prayer to your deity of choice or into the universe, that those who are currently serving in Iraq and Afghanistan make it home safe and sound.

Day 150 - Images from The Hood

This is the doorway to the no-longer-operating Interstate Firehouse Cultural Center. It held shows - art and theater - and is just a neat old firehouse that sits right next to a gorgeous park. Why is it now "no longer operational"? From what I've heard, the director of the place drove it financially into the ground via her "training" classes. One such class was held on a 5 day cruise in the Caribbean, if memory serves. The cost was six figures easily. She did this in like 6-9 months, if I recall.  


This is the new cob-mud structure they are building next to the charter school. The place is being built by families of the school under the guidance of The Mud Girls Collective. It's pretty amazing to see what they are building into the walls.


Like gnomes.


And several faces. The eyes are going to be either open holes or glass bottles. There is also a bench that looks like a lion. It's pretty cool.

Day 149 - BIRDS!

We have had several hummingbirds visiting us lately. One came to visit and I was able to grab my camera with the right lens on it to capture these shots. I love the way his wings look.














These are our two new chicks. They hung out in the front yard with us most of the day as did the other two. They are funny little birds.  The one in the back is quite the forager. She keeps escaping already to dig through parts of the yard for bugs and such. They enjoyed themselves as did the girls who drew pictures of them as Star Wars characters complete with tasers and gun battles. Yes, the front of our house is quite entertaining right now with these pictures in chalk.

But more entertaining was the girls whose job was to drag and pile the fallen limbs from my pruning this morning to the driveway. They made a nest, then hid in it until Garbanzo got home. It was pretty funny. 

Saturday Ramblings

I don't have a complete thought in my head today, so you're getting my ramblings.
I know ..... you are asking, "and that's different from which day?"

We get our new bed frame today. We got a cheap one when we upgraded our bed to a California king. And it broke. I seem to be the common denominator in terms of the parties responsible. We knew we would need to upgrade it as it was only supposed to be a short-term solution - but I helped accelerate it. Because of the size, I had to order a new one.  Because it is made upon order versus an off-the-shelf bed frame, it took three week to get.  I hope it is worth the wait. I guess before they arrive, we should hide the restraints and toys. Granted, it would be humorous not to do it.

Twice this week I received an out of the blue text from someone.

And each time it happens, I smile.  It's always a nice surprise. 

And with one of them, I couldn't help but have this thought pass through my mind.

What can I say? There are certain people I'm close with that I don't get to see as often as I would like.  But it is, sadly, what it is.

The chickens seem to be getting things worked out.

If food was not involved, I suspect things would be better. But things are not bad. Last night, they put themselves into the coop without our intervention.  That's a big step as we have been having to toss the littler ones in the coop after we fish them out of the trees.  I'm just glad there is progress. Now we have to convince the girls to stay out of the scuffles.

Oh, and those new chickens.....they have adopted me. I go into the chicken pen, and they rush to me letting me pet them. Of course this amuses Garbanzo given the fact I tried to resist getting more.

I have been feeling pretty shitty this week. Run down, sick stomach, body aches - no fun. Each time I start to get better - it turns around. In talking to some people I work with, they all seem to be fighting something like this. I finally sent people around me a pretty direct message in suggesting maybe people with symptoms of illness should stay the fuck home. I'm sorry, but this isn't fun. And to find out people around me have been coming to work with the same sickness is just stupid. If I have learned one thing about this company, it is that they do not understand this concept. One person who is high up in the organization made a comment that her doctor was about ready to have words with HR. He has never seen so much illness circulate one place before and was starting to wonder if he should call the CDC. It is odd.

But on the upside, I only work two days next week. I already have a play date planned for one of the days I have off next week.  My text to him: "I want to play when we don't have to worry about bruises after wards." His response: "Damn! So do I!" I suspect our play date will be a fun one next week (not to imply it never is).

Oh, and I'm also very happy for Garbanzo too. SG's wife is starting to have free time again. She has felt pretty bad that she hasn't had time to play (and thankful that I have because I don't get the impression that SG is getting much of her time too).

I have started using Chrome on the Mac lately. I realized how much I missed using it as I used to use it on my work PC at my old company (when I had admin access on my PC at work). There are some plug-ins and such that I missed.  The only thing I'm missing in Chrome? ScribeFire which is the editor I use to write my blog posts. They have something similar, but not the same. Oh well. I'll live.

This weekend, we are taking it easy. Garbanzo is hoping to take his VW bus for a drive around the block. His tires need to get replaces - in a big way - so we can't take it far until that happens. Plus, he doesn't want to take it far until he's sure the engine is put back together and running well. We currently have a carburetor on our porch, so that would be step one.

Apparently, the rain is supposed to stop this weekend - for the weekend. I've got my fingers crossed that it does. We need to dry out. And I'd like to go out and take some pictures.

Keep your fingers crossed for us. We have been setting new records lately. Not for rain or high temperatures but record low high temperatures. Yeah, we could use some good weather. 

e[lust] #14

photo courtesy of Lila

Welcome to e[lust] - Your source for sexual intelligence and inspirations of lust from the smartest & sexiest bloggers! Whether you’re looking for hot steamy smut, thought-provoking opinions or expert information, you’re going to find it here. Want to be included in e[lust] #14? Start with the rules, check out the schedule in the site’s sidebar and subscribe to the RSS feed for updates!

~ This Week’s Top Three Posts ~

Answers with an Agenda 1- Fisting - Once you’ve gotten started using two fingers for a bit, then it is time to build until four fingers are sliding in and out of the person, and you are on your way.

Gagged - I think it’s got to be a combination… fingers sliding into your cunt, a merciless tease of your clit, and yes, it’s going to have to be, lining my cock up with your ass.

Mine - I feel you stir beneath me as I create a rhythm, your breathing changing growing more shallow as you slip from sleep into arousal. My eyes lift to yours as you smile and try to move your arms and then freeze.

~ e[lust] Editress ~

Puppet Master - When I was right next to them and they still did not notice, I put my lips to his ear (loud music, you know) and whispered “Touch her boobs, I bet she’d like that” and I backed up a foot.

~ Featured Post (Lilly’s Pick) ~

Shaping Some Limits - “If you ever did that to me, I promise you would never see me again”.Those words were spoken to me this past weekend by my pet during one of our overnight dates. The subject was face slapping.

See also: Pleasurists #77 for all your sex toy review needs.


All blogs that have a submission in this edition must re-post this digest from tip-to-toe on their blogs within 7 days. Re-posting the photo is optional and the use of the “read more…” tag is allowable after this point. Thank you, and enjoy!

Kink & Fetish

12 Licks of the Tawse
A Canvas for Pain
Best Friends
Fetish: What's Yours?
Needles and Cock Choking
One Couple's Journey into Kink, part 2
Pieces of Skin and Bone
Please hurt me unbearably, you fucking fucker!
Ssssh…
The Taskmaster's Whip

Thoughts & Advice on Sex & Relationships

A (Short) Ode to Uncut Cocks
Compersive Vanillas?
How Fear can Lead to Understanding and Trust
I am not a rapist...
Mother's Day Gift
On threesomes
On Friendship
Playing Nice On The Swingset
Tyler and Holly Give Swing Clubs Another Chance
The Virgin in the Family/Do Not Enter
third person
Whacking For America

Erotic Writing

26 minutes
A Request For Help
Are you willing, Are You?
A Squirting Experience
All Dressed Up - The Party ....part 2
Beginning
Book Orgasm
Dhanurasana
Flesh for Fantasy
Filled
Getting Lost in the Forest
Guest Post: Truck
Go Habs Go Domme Style
hotel window
How Do I Find You Sexy?
I'll Be Waiting
Jim and Lisa
Keeping It In The Family
Mind the Gap
My Sluttiest Moment
My First Blowjob
Me, Myself & My Clit
Not Tonight Dear, I've Got A Headache (Part 2)
Pure, Unadulterated Desire
Predatory
rhythm
Something Different
slumber interruptis
therapy session #1
Wanton Wednesday- Fuck-toy
Wednesday Night Blues

Sex News, Interviews, Politics & Humor

A Wolf in Sheep's Clothing
Eden Fantasys Newbie Help Guide
What the fuck, EdenFantasys?
Workshops and More at the ALCC

Day 148 - An App for That

Sadie mentioned on Thursday a new app she was playing around with on her iPhone. The app is called Hipstamatic - an app the imitates old film style camera circa 1970 or so. I like how some of the pics turn out. This is one of my test shots.

Glee as a Teachable Moment

"What does 'fag' mean and why is he saying it like that?"
~DJ midway through the latest Glee episode.
A question I figured she would ask.

For those of you who have not watched Glee, let me summarize. It's about a group of students which includes a couple jocks, couple cheerleaders, a gay teen, a disabled teen, and a variety of misfits who all happen to be part of Glee club at their high school. They are led by Mr Schuster who is a passionate teacher, passionate singer, and who realizes that this group is as much about these kids discovering who they are and accepting who they are as it is the singing.  The story lines are about these kids and their teacher. About their struggles with self, struggles within the school, and struggles against the competition. All of this is done with music and humor that provides a nice balance to what can be some pretty deep topics.

This week's episode was about being theatricals as a form of self expression. The quarterback of the football team (Finn) who is a member of Glee has recently found himself rooming with the gay teen (Kurt) after their single parents fell in love and decided to live together. This really brings to a head some struggles that Finn has had with Kurt. Kurt has a crush on Finn, and Finn doesn't know how to deal with it. Being they are in small town Ohio, his info about gay people is stereotypical and skewed. Thus bringing out a homophobic side I don't think Finn even realized he had.  When his fellow football players start making comments that Kurt is rubbing off on him, Finn starts walking the edge. Toss in Kurt's embracing of the theatrical by dressing in his Lady GaGa outfit which creates even more drama for both of them. In the end after Kurt tries to make their shared space into a Moroccan paradise, Finn flips out at Kurt and refers to his room as "faggy".

Bad timing for Finn too as Kurt's dad walks into the room, hears faggy, and sees red.  The lecture that ensures is brilliant and dead-on. And in the end, he says he cannot have that negativity around his son, so Finn cannot live with them. He knows it might cost him his relationship with Finn's mom, but he doesn't care. He has to protect his son from that small thinking.

The word "fag" during this scene is tossed around quite a bit, so it was not surprising that DJ asked. It's what she does, and having never heard the word, she was naturally curious to understand.  So we discussed it.  During the scene, Kurt's dad asks if Finn calls the girl with Down's Syndrome a retard too - so we used it as an example of people using words to degrade or hurt others. Indigo asked a few questions too. Then we watched it again (thank you Tivo).  DJ's follow-up response was "Kurt's got a a good dad."  Yes, he does.

I have to commend Garbanzo for how he broke it down for the girls. He has a lot of practice because over the past 11 years of teaching, so he has had to get good at this one. He doesn't allow words to be used to demean others. Fag is one as is calling people and things "gay".  I don't think I have heard any of his current middle school students use the word "gay" either the way I've heard their peers. But then again, Garbanzo nipped it in the butt with some of them five years ago the first time he had them as 10 year olds. Call something "gay" in his classroom, and you will hear him say in return "it better mean it's making you feel joy and happiness because that is the ONLY acceptable use of that word in that classroom.  Care to rephrase?" 

We have a lot of people we consider members of our family - our adopted extended family who are gay. In our picture of our wedding party, you can literally go gay-straight-gay-straight across the picture. And the church did not burst into flames either. Using the word gay as a negative or fag or any other derogatory statement does not fly around us at all. People we are close to have grown up getting that tossed in their face as though it is a bad thing. We will not listen as people do it to anyone but especially those we care about.  As we explained to the girls how people like Derek who they still consider their brother or their "Uncle" in Seattle or their "Auntie" who watches them occasionally or the woman the girls loved who remodeled our kitchen all had to deal with these words being tossed at them, they were shocked. They couldn't believe people would say things so mean. As Indigo said, "who cares if they like boys or girls - who cares?"  

It was quite the "teachable moment".  And knowing them both, they will stand up to their friends about it. Indigo will argue with them to the death. And DJ will make them feel like an idiot about it.  I love those kids for that reason.

In the end, Finn realizes the error in his way. He realizes he should have handled the situation different. He tries to apologize to Kurt directly, but Kurt isn't hearing it. So when Kurt is going to be beat up by the football goons, Finn steps in and stops it. It does help that he's dressed up in his Lady GaGa wear - something he made to show he truly supports Kurt.

And that he is learning that he doesn't have to understand to do the right thing.

Day 147 - The Package

Dana mentioned I might have a package today. From her blogiversary drawing.

I'll be honest. I was not worried about it. I mean, Dana has been through a lot over the past year. Her priorities were where they should have been.

It was definitely worth the wait. I mean, anyone who knows me knows how much I appreciate a good pun. I will definitely be wearing this shirt with pride. And I love the mints too. And the gum...I love gum.  I will admit that I have tried the bacon mints. It was a dare....one that has left a bad taste in my mouth. I will have fun luring people into trying those.

Thanks, Dana, it was a wonderful surprise! :)

HNT - Bridge

Good sex is like a good bridge. If you don't have a good partner, you'd better have a good hand.
~Mae West

See who else is playing this week by visiting Os.
Or see OHNT for those playing anonymously.

Day 146 - Lettuce

Despite the rain and little sun, the lettuce has been going nuts. Tonight we harvested the first of it.  It was great. Now hopefully we'll get some sun. I have some veggies that needs some serious sun to help them. But it's nice knowing that some things are growing.

A Different Approach?

I totally feel like doing this in our house at times as there are times where I seem to be the only one who knows how to work the fucking dishwasher.  Or know when the trash needs to be taken out. Or when the laundry pile of dirty clothes should actually get washed - and that sometimes, more than one load is required to make that pile of laundry disappear. 

When I showed this image to Garbanzo saying this is the way I feel, his response:

"Cool! You're going to dress up in a Wonder Woman costume like I always wanted!!!"

Yes, the point was missed.

Maybe if I used the Wonder Woman costume incentive, things would change .....hmmmm....

.....And yes TL, if he does get me into one, you'll see pictures! Damn geeks in my life! :)

Day 145 - Addict

We couldn't find it on Netflix, but my husband found a great deal on the first two seasons. Guess what came in the mail today? Guess what I'm sure we will be watching over the three-day weekend - especially if it is raining? Yep.

Pecking Order

Watching the chickens re-establish the pecking order makes me think about how it occurs in life - outside of the animal kingdom too.

The strive for dominance over people - establishing who is really in charge - seems to be this constant dance that goes on each time a new person is added to the mix.  Whether it be a new person on a work team or even a new friend in an existing circle of friends, the reestablishment of the pecking order always seems necessary.

The squabbling, the shows of dominance (both public and private), and the viewing of "who wins" are all part of the process. Toss in the fun of ego, and you have a great old time.

And in each round, like with the chickens, people emerge in ways that may have positive or negative surprises.  Using our chickens as an example, the one the always appears dominate has been showing us that she is not the aggressive one. She may be the more assertive in certain situations, but she is playing peacemaker between the other full grown hen and the pullets.  She is physically asserting herself between them at times - keeping the pullets safe and the other from causing too much trouble.  In fact, watching them in the coop last night, we saw them line up in what I will assume is the pecking order to come.

I find sometimes in life that the most reasonable people can be the most aggressively unreasonable at times. Whether it be stress or some other trigger that forces this switch, it's moot.  It's almost always surprising - and not necessarily in a good way.

I learned long ago during this pecking order process to recognize it for what it is and pick battles carefully. I never assume what I have seen from the person or persons will be what I see during this process.  In fact, I assume I am going to see something new. And most of the time, I see something that is clearly a weakness.

One guy who worked for me used to run his peers down to me in an attempt to get the more desired work.  And he would imply it to them publicly as a way of trying to assert dominance over them. Instead of getting more desired work, he got a corrective action plan as he was not as great as he thought he was.

One woman would keep info to herself - critical information - then bitch that no one knew as much as she did. Another power play to be head chicken. She usually complained she didn't get new stuff. Hard to get new stuff when you hold onto to the hold.

Another guy would give everyone the third degree when you had to ask him to reset something on the server. He was the only one in the group with access, so he would make you pay. This lasted until we all took advantage of his open access on the server and created our own admin account.  But until then, we were definitely below him.

What this process always forces me to wonder is why do we - as thinking humans - revert back to this primal animal behavior? Why do we need a pecking order? In certain situations, the order is already decided like in a work situation where you have people in charge - people in certain roles, etc. But still the dance occurs. You end up with - what I liked to refer to in past jobs - people walking around peeing on areas marking them as their own territory like dogs.  Why do we need to be above other people? Is being above them a security thing - that there will get more attention from others or have more say over others? Is it to compensate for an insecurity?  Is it to hope that there will be a casualty and that casualty will be the person they feel most threatened by?

Like chickens, I guess, we just have to sit back and watch what happens while interfering only when absolutely necessary to avoid casualties. Funny how you don't need chickens to observe this phenomenon - just need them to point it out to you.