She's here!!

yes, the newest unit of my friend's family arrived at 4:28 am this morning - all 6 lbs. and 3 ounces of tender pink happiness. Doobie is a girl!! And her name is Penelope Jane! She is absolutely the cutest damn baby in the world. Mama and baby are still at the hospital, resting and I am stuck here at work, trying not to jump out of my seat and go hang out with all of them. I did stop by earlier and snapped some photos and hold the baby - since I am at work, I can't post the pics yet, but I promise I will tonight...

ahh..something about the newborn child of people you care about just makes the heart melt. isn't she cuuuuute?? she opened her eyes a bit, after i flashed her like paparazzi with my camera and scowled at me. she looks just like her parents, too. Mama is a hero! she handled it like a pro. Little Penny Jane is going to have a beautiful life. I can't wait to see how she grows up!

shitstorm #2

well, all i can say is at least this time there was no actual feces flooding the house. except this plumbing disaster is uniquely nasty. the drain from the kitchen sink was corroded away and instead of fixing it properly, the previous occupant and first person to experience this problem decided to just patch the hole with putty. the problem is, this isn't just a little drain under the sink, this is the main pipe from below the house that connects the kitchen sink to the sewer line. so, for the past several months, everything that we have put down our kitchen sink (including garbage disposal and dishwasher) has been sitting in a puddle rotting underneath the house. nice, eh? it's so disgusting under there, johnny had to "prepare" himself to go assess the situation. he came back and compared it to the movie, Amityville Horror. The corrosiveness of the waste actually dissolved foundation wall brick. i have a septic field under my kitchen and no septic tank.

so, here i am, at work listening to paul simon and trying not to care while johnny and my stepbrother are spooning each other on the kitchen floor fixing the disaster that is my kitchen.

oh yes, there are pictures. you don't wanna seem them, but i'm going to post them anyways - when i get home from work.

well, at least it explains this.

oh the joys of torture...

we like to play funny jokes on our dogs. I was watering the blackberry bushes and louie was just begging to play with the water hose...

spring at summitridge

here are some random images for you to enjoy. my pitiful persimmon tree with homemade crutch
my embarassing front porch, note the yellowyness of everything...
random corner of my kitchen. i am not a heavy drinker.
still-life study: my dining table, with flowers, a papya, two handmade bowls, and sketches for a yurt. oh, and doogie door in background.....
my failed attempt at making homemade paneer.
the view from my front porch. that's a shitload of pine.
i think i'll name it.....seymour...
compost pile and mini cold-frame
close-up of pretty hyacinths
pretty hyacinths - they look like grapes...yummmm

pictures, pictures, pictures. they say so much more than words...

boycott the beijing olympics

friday, as i was driving through the pouring rain to visit bibi at the vet hospital, i drove past a group of regular people and tibetan monks who were standing at the corner of the intersection holding flags and protesting. it's the first time i have ever seen tibetan monks in the US, much less monks protesting (peacefully, of course). I saw the face of one monk who was soaking wet and just standing there - and the brief glimpse i had of his face as i passed by was that of sorrow. it's easy for us comfortable americans to turn a blind eye to what's going on in the rest of the world as we go about our day to day business - but we have an opportunity to ACT on a worldwide issue. I have nothing against chinese people but i do have a problem with their government's actions. Well, I have a problem with many actions of my own but not quite in this degree. These people need our help, need to be heard. I don't think that China should have been granted the priveledge to host the olympics despite it's crimes against humanity and for that reason I boycott the olympics. What effect will this really have? Well, me by myself would be little to none. It's more of a personal sacrifice because I love watching the olympics. I was there in Seoul 1988 and i consider many of the athletes to be heroes. I think what needs to happen here is for people to be aware that there is a situation here. We have to hold our leaders accountable. The people have to demand justice and equality and peace. http://news.bbc.co.uk/1/hi/world/europe/7334545.stm

the real cloverfield

hahahahaha... yea i know i'm corny. this is a clover patch next to my carport. doesn't it look lush and pretty? actually today it was snowing pollen. it's a good thing i don't have allergies because i would have been dying today. i spent the whole day cleaning - inside and out. i rinsed off the windows, the back patio, the back porch and my car. there was so much pollen it was caked on everything like chalk dust. johnny patched the roof (i've been sleeping under a leaky roof) and replaced my brakes. I did a chunk of my taxes and (halleluah!!) cleaned up my office a bit.

now i can actually do stuff in my office besides check my email. look at how clear my desks are!! yes, i still have a ton of shit but it's neater. this weekend was good because we finally got to do things we've pushed back for too long.

bibi is doing well. she is very stubborn and prefers to follow you room to room than stay in any one place for long. we have to put her in the crate for that. but she's doing well.

bibi

bibi is home again - doing better. we got her a new crate and i took pictures of louie hogging it.

aaaawww... poor bunny. look at her speckled little butt. she is totally stoned in this picture, we ended up taking her back to the hospital the next morning. We just got her back today after work and so far so good.

a moment of silence, please...

for the late great Martin Luther King, Jr. Today is the anniversary of his assasination and the very unfortunate loss of a great person who gave some of the greatest speeches of all time. Have you heard a MLK Jr. speech? If not, I highly recommend it.

Here is his last speech - do you think he knew what was about to happen?

the good 'ol days

i thought i would post some pictures (yippee, photos!) of some models i built in school, just fyi. these are all 100% my design and fabrication. enjoy!

japanese "style" teahouse...







american dream house...



oatland island aquatic center...





mars labitat...







and here's a special treat for those of you who actually read this whole post... found on digg.com:

See more funny videos at CollegeHumor

bibi's under the knife again

today bibi is having the TTA surgery on her right hind leg. She tore her cruciatus ligament and is having it repaired with a wire cage. i am worried sick about her but i have confidence in this doctor, unlike EVIL BANFIELD who screwed up her other leg. Did i mention that i hate BANFIELD and that they are evil, lying, money stealing, pill pushing, creless and inconsiderate buttholes? yes, they are. stay the hell away from them. if you don't believe me, google for yourself. anyways, she will be in the hospital overnight and hopefully tomorrow we'll have her back. i feel so bad for her, and i hope she is OK and the surgery is a success. please god.

other than that stressing me out, i have been having a nice day dreaming about living on a farm commune. yea, i am all kinds of distracted today, needless to say i can't get anything done at work. i am a terrible employee. i can't help it though! this is bloody boring work.

**update 04/02**

Bibi is finished with her sugery and it was a success. She is fine, as far as I could tell, and staying at the hospital until today. Johnny went out and got her a prosh crate and crate pad that's all comfy soft. In fact, louie and syrus have been sleeping in the crate since we set it up last night. i'll post pics of it later...