Dogs and Cats
First, the dogs. The Iditarod was a tough race this year, with howling winds and deep snow and sub-zero temperatures. Lance Mackey won for the third year in a row, but had to work hard to earn it. The top 20 racers were all within a few hours of each other for more than half the race. Lance didn't make his get-away until he was already about 700 miles into the 1,150-mile race.
As usual, my Dad and I paid the usual $33.50 on Iditarod.com to get the extra videos and GPS tracker stuff. (Totally worth it.) We called each other every day to talk strategy and weather... and day dream about a faraway place.
Meanwhile, the cats are getting bigger and louder. Misty enjoys getting stuck in trees and Mae is still amazed that there is a tail attached to her butt. They eat like pigs, they poop a lot, and they scratch at our bedroom door before the sun comes up. ("Wake up! Play with us!")
Several of the neighbor cats have come over to introduce themselves to the girls. The girls fluff up their tails and pretend to be scared, but I think they like the attention. Especially from BIG kitties. I don't know what it it about our neighborhood, but ALL the cats are at least the size of raccoons. Misty and Mae better eat up if they are going to fit in around here.
In other news, Jen and I bottled our wedding wine and are plugging away at the rest of the details for the wedding. Still up in the air: where to go for a honeymoon?
Ike -- who likes Norwegian techno, especially Royksopp
Spring sniffles
Spring confuses me. Today it has: snowed, cleared up to sunshine and blue skies, hailed, then back to sun, and now it's just grey. And since the sun has been coming out a bit lately, some of the pollens are starting to come out.... but it's still cold, so it's not bad. Basically, I have the sniffles. My nose alternates from plugged to running to stuffed, all before lunch.
But enough about me. Let's talk shoes. I want these ones --> La Sportiva Crosslite .
In other news, I still have a job. Despite all the bad news you hear about newspapers, The Bellingham Business Journal is still doing well enough to pay the staff (which was never very much to begin with). The local daily paper, though, just laid off 10 people, trimmed the paper size and is in the process of selling
the building. This is the third round of staff cuts in less than a year. While it's not much of a paper anymore, I would still hate to see it go.
My favorite race started today: THE IDITAROD! I splurged this year and paid $35 to get the Insider videos and GPS tracker stuff online. This means I will be compulsively checking racer stats and weather reports during work. Don't tell my boss. (Like she would care: she checks her Facebook page at work every morning and every afternoon. I think this is cool.)
Ike -- who has a dying house plant
Linkage
A lot has happened since the last time I updated the links over there on the right side of the blog. Let's see.... Alan got back from Australia.....Keith left for Korea....... and now my sister Candace is in Russia. Oh, and Will has completely given up on his blog.
So! Check out the newest links and don't forget to support your local advertisers.
Ike — who is reading about faraway places like Newfoundland and Nepal
Kittens
Jen and I have kittens. We picked up two grey kittens from the local shelter yesterday and now they're running around the house exploring and begging for attention. And scratching me.
One has a fairly solid colored coat — her name is Misty. The other has grey stripes — her name is Mae. So together they amazing beach volleyball powers. Since they are sisters, they seem to have alternating ornery hours. Mae will be a terror for about 30 minutes and then tag out. Misty will then start digging in my house plants.
But I know their weakness: The laser pointer.
In other news, wedding planning is in full swing. We talked to Mark Malijan, our photographer and a friend of mine from the college newspaper. Check out his work: www.markmalijanphotography.com
Jen is busy dress shopping today. I'm looking at caterers and working on the "save the date" cards. I have a feeling six months will go by quickly.
Ike — who wants a new record player
A box
It's snowing in Bellingham. Has been for about a week. AWESOME.
This means that I get to drive around in the snow, something I am good at and enjoy doing. And of course, this means that the mountains are getting a lot of snow...meaning I need to visit them and plunder the powder. However, I can't fit that many skis/boards in my car along with passengers, thus limiting the fun.
So I bought a box to go on top of my car. It looks cool. I like it.
In other news, Jen and I have settled into our house. We have a Christmas tree, which is neatly decorate with ornaments that our friends brought us. There's presents under the tree, waiting for us to deliver them. We have a comfy leather couch that has bounced around Jen's family until it landed with us. I have a wardrobe, the manliest form of clothing container ever. And our yard is covered in a foot of snow.
I am happy.
Ike — who will have more news to report in January.