Week Thirty-Three: A Better State

Damn. Damn. Theme? Central thought? Forgot my notebook again, and as such have forgotten all the neat thoughts I wanted to get down in this thing this week. I think the indulgences of being on leave for a second week are the only unifying details. Be it indulging in more food, more channel surfing, more dowhatibloodywant-ing, or more equine time, all was truly marvellous. Does much for improving one's state of mind.

Day 1 (225): 21st of July
Nothing can bring me closer. Nothing can bring me near. Where is the road I travelled, to lead me here? Oh, wait. Nevermind. Found it. Sing at someone else, R.E.M. (though I do love that song). One thing on that road is my silly filing cabinet system of memories. Some have been damaged by fire and other natural disasters, and others eaten by Brain Mice. Those that remain are in decent condition, and cause the occasional fit of nostalgia. Can't be helped. Lookie what I found in the Ancestral Home. Still works (and yes there is still a small collection of tapes to play in it). And the time is not flashing 12:00, but rather is just flashing the : part. 

This guy is there, too. We call him Old Bill. He was a gift to my Dear Father for his time as a Cav Officer in the US Army. He was also tragically dropped many years ago and painstakingly glued back together (most of his scars are in the lower boot region). Tough old guy. 

Day 2 (226): 22nd of July
Oh I wake in the morning and I step outside, and I take a deep breath and I get real high (not like that), and I scream from the top of my lungs, "what's going on?!" Then it turns out nothing really much is going on and I'm just a nutter shouting at the world (which we all know doesn't make it better). Does make one feel better, though. Like looking at a chicken.

I AM A CHICKEN! SEE? LOOK AT ME!! HEAR ME! Got any watermelon?

Allow me to introduce you to Blindy Tim (nee Tiny Tim, nee Nameless Bunny #12). He is a couple months old, is blind in both eyes (see the cataract?), and has a gammie left hopping leg (Ma probably stepped on him as a wee kit). Notice the tongue - even adorable bunnies get awarded the awkward candid shot. Timmy here is the softest, chillest, coolest little dude who almost died twice as a tiny thing, but just wants to live so much we have to oblige. And when I say soft, I mean that there was a serious possibility that I'd pet his coat straight off him. 

Day 3 (227): 23rd of July
Oh there is a... deeper river... flowing through the... Treasure Valley. It doth call me, to come and float it. For heat is all. For heat is all. What was that? Blame the Boise River. Like some form of Martian water monster, it got in my brain today. Such a delightful way to spend an afternoon. Lolling about in a tube with one's arse dangling in the cold river as the current takes one along is a special experience. It is also one I've not had in many moons. The River Gods giveth and taketh away, however.  My friend lost her rainbow wayfarers and I lost an earring. A small price to pay for happiness, no? Look at this flipping sky. This is what it normally looks like (i.e. sans yucky smoky ash face). 

If ye've not noticed, I'm inclined to take photos of my favourite animals being less than picturesque. Mid-yawn is a great time for a kodak moment. 

Or perhaps I shall take the shot whilst this other poor fellow is mid-roll.

Day 4 (228): 24th of July
Everybody wants to rule the world. Well, perhaps not everybody. I'm perfectly happy doing my thing. Today was originally scheduled to take place in the great city of San Diego. Due to unanticipated circumstances, however, it has been moved to the Treasure Valley. Specifically the northwest-ish part of Boise where it turns into Eagle. High on a hill, there are some ponies. And a great view (still not smoky!!) of the lovely valley. So nice. 

I take many pictures of ponies. I know this comes as a total shock. Sometimes they come out pretty passable (pony go sideways...). Dear Reader, this is Legolas.

Other times adorable (happy boys grooming each other - it had to be monochrome). 

Sometimes a sweet face emerges. (This is Electrum. He says hello.)

And sometimes the motion is just right. 

And finally, there are the times I cannot help myself. I'm such a child. 

Day 5 (229): 25th of July

Take my breath away (on that highway to the danger zone). Turns out there are still people in the world who have not seen TOP GUN. I have sorted one of them. All after the great Madhuban Feast of 2014. There may have been food left on the buffet table after we were finished, but it was not for our lack of trying. Nothing quite compares to wandering thrift stores with a food fetus that feels like twins. And this is coming from the girl who has single-handedly eaten whole sheet cakes, multiples of cheesecakes in a row, and multiples of large pizzas in a row. By now you can see I have a thing about buffets / AYCE / people daring or offering money in exchange for eating insane amounts of things. But on the way home from PT (which was no picnic with said fetus still cooking) I saw these wild sunflowers and leapt into the ditch (in my truck - I'm not a complete idiot) to take their photo.

Aren't they just rather jolly flowers? 

Day 6 (230): 26th of July
Dance your cares away. Worries for another day. Let the Music play. Down in Idaho. One thing for which I find myself longing more and more is the ability to properly dance again. It's so hard to hear the music and not get down with my bad self. The boogie wants out and it does not take kindly to excuses about how it hurts and oh not now thanks. As am again not at SDCC (quit whinging, Rodeo) the father and I went to the Basque Festival (for St. Ignacio). Amazingly enough, I didn't see a single person I knew.

There we enjoyed the beer and music and dancing and people watching and watching a mad man with a grand pan make piles of paella. As there is no scale, I'll tell you the pan is about four feet across.

A wander showed me how much this little town (only 205, 000 or so) has transmogrified in the past few years. For a good portion of my teen years (maybe all of them) there was a great gaping pit in the middle of Downtown - the result of failed development project after failed development project. Now stands in the Hole the tallest building in Boise. Seems a bit much for little old Boise.

Not far off from there is the plaza that featured in many an evening, afternoon, and really any other time of day when I was younger. A great bistro used to be here (now it's a seafood place), we built christmas trees for charity here, and there is a concert place / hockey arena / arena football field here as well. The fountain also has long been entertaining Boiseans of all ages on hot summer days and nights. 

Day 7 (231): 27th of July
Only the lonely (dum dum dum dumby doo wah) know the way I feel tonight (ooh yay yay yay yeah). Why is that in particular the song that popped in my head? It has no relevance to the matter at hand. Which is what, you ask? Well, the matter is just that. Confused? So am I. Let's move on, shall we? Lovely morning for my last full day in the Home Place. Poor Stu Bean has no idea I'll be abandoning him on the morrow.

Nor do these two trees (though I imagine they will be rather less traumatised, being trees and all). Why the odd border? Who knows.

Ooh look! Leaves on another tree! With drops of water from the sprinkler! Wow!

Have I mentioned my dreams have soundtracks?

Week Twenty-Two: Come, Josephine

This week was generally all good things. Across the spectrum. Aced a test, got some sun, had fun. Took photos of static display airplanes every day, except when I did not. One day there were flying trucks. Really. Check them out.

Day 1 (148): 5th of May
Both Cinco De Mayo and Revenge of the Fifth. I realise now that I failed to say anything about yesterday being Star Wars Day. Really the fault of that rubbish travel bother yesterday. Ah well. Hardly diminishes my level of nerd. I had forgotten the vagaries of VaBeach weather, but the past few days and the expectations for the rest of the week are a stark reminder. Spring in this area can be dreary and rainy and gloomy one day, then hot and humid the next. Despite the less than gorgeous day, went out to snap some photos outside, and decided the result needed some oldification to compensate for the poor light conditions (and because it is an older plane).

In case you are curious about the way a traveling naval officer lives, here's the startlingly comfy bed. Not necessarily the standard, as some quarters seem to want to mimic ship life...

Day 2 (149): 6th of May
Had our test this morning, and despite the two point five hour time limit, I finished in about forty. And that included a few minutes to make sure it was mostly legible. Thankfully my quickness meant that we had time to go get v sophisticated brunch by sampling the phenomenon of the Waffle Taco. Judge away, but it was really not terrible. Asked for bacon and got sausage, but was still not terrible. Also they made us wait so long they threw in an extra hash brown and some cinna-thingies. Perhaps should feel bad, but when in Rome...(or America...)

Better in BW??? Better yet in the belly.

And to continue the theme of planes... One of my better reflected self portraits.

Day 3 (150): 7th of May
Well, because no one in the class failed (and I got a perfect score...humble brag? Naw, just brag), we had a get together at one of my old stomping grounds last night. Was quite a fun time, and this time there were no rescue ops for guys too drunk to walk and generally no youthful shenanigans. Though Keagan's is an Irish pub, so shenanigans would not be the strangest thing. Although I only had a minor amount of alcohol, I did eat the dickins out of some fish n' chips and a foodgasm called fried cookie dough (with ice cream). Still get a shiver remembering it.... but here is another oldified plane.

And a nice little birdie.

And I may not know the muffin man, but I know where he works - the NAS Oceana Commissary. He makes magical pistachio muffins... I just had to share. Not the muffin, mind you. Just the fact of its existence.

Day 4 (151): 8th of May
This morning was startlingly (though no surprisingly) hot and humid. But the first thing I saw outside was the tree below. Really drives home the difference in schedule, since as mentioned I leave for work in Italy before the sun comes up. Here, it is well into the sky before we head out.

On a walkabout in the lovely afternoon / evening. Love the light this time of day.

This poor fellow has been in a state of being disassembled for a few days. Johnny Five would not be amused.

Pretty tree with pretty sun. Hardly touched this one...

Day 5 (152): 9th of May
Another early release day and another lovely (if hot and humid) day. Almost forgot to get my piccies, but as we were leaving base to go eat AYCE sushi (mmmmmmmm), I pulled over quick and snapped this gazebo / smoke shack. Realise that I got too quick and didn't center the thing...

Have always enjoyed poking fun at the F-14 Tomcat (especially around those who used to fly it). Thus the photo of one's backside, but the focus of the photo is on the little picnic table...

Day 6 (153): 10th of May
Last w/end was so busy, this one will be decidedly lower stress. Early morning visit to the gym, out to the beach to check out the lovely day and the Monster Trucks, evening out with an old friend. What's not to like? And I met this charming fellow outside the gym.

I love Monster Truck / Drag Race people. So v America.

Same thing but from the front.

Day 7 (154): 11th of May
Happy Mother's Day!!! I've got the best one, so just be aware of that fact. You may think yours is better, but studies have shown mine is the tops. No car today, but that did not stop the fun. Took a Canadian classmate to the Monsters on the Beach, because why not? Who doesn't love Monster trucks? They are great for building international partnerships. The brilliant automotive carnage was followed by beer and hot wings, to really solidify the American Experience. Took about two million photos, so choosing the below was v hard. Still a lot more than usual, but I narrowed it down to a handful. First to set the scene.

And another. Classic SEALs... Checking out the Monster Trucks from the air.

There were ATV races as well.

All the flying machines (different from the others pictured above) were incredible.

Though sometimes it ended badly. A Delorean this is not...

Mostly it was just brilliant. I wanted a shot of the massive dirt being kicked up by trucks doing donuts, but had to draw the line somewhere.

And there was a tank that turned into a dinosaur that ate a car and shot fire from its gob.

Yes, do come, Josephine. This is the best flying machine.

A bit cheeky this week. Really don't know where it came from. I've certainly never been cheeky before. I'm usually such a pragmatic and rational gal...

Week One: iRodeo

Firstly, so far, so good on actually taking at least one photo a day for the first week. So I suppose that means only 51 more of these. Right. Not a problem. I can do this. Perfectly simple.

Secondly, the going in game plan is to at least attempt to lump each week into a theme or category. Cannot promise that will last or always work. Am who I am and sometimes my natural state of being perfectly random will manifest. That said, here's to a game plan.

Thirdly, and more important than the above disclaimers, below is the product of the first seven days. As I've never been any good at mobile photos, I thought that would be an interesting way to begin. It admittedly also gave me an excuse to start simply, generally photographing things in my house.

Day 1: 9th of December (aka my birthday)
Almost failed right out the gate here, as I'd not taken a single photo until I was in bed, ready to sleep. What is a girl to do, but find something within arm's reach. First I tried a shot of two of my bed companions posed to look arty, but it just looked silly. Partly because a floppy rabbit in a calico dress looks odd next to a blue penguin wearing a santa hat.
Plan B was no surprise to anyone who knows me. I saw that it was after 2300 by checking the time on my TARDIS alarm clock. Thus was born this photo:

It then became this after a bit of post-production:

Day 2: 10th of December
Doing a bit of (much needed) tidying up, I went to toss my leather jacket on the back of the sofa, ostensibly to be put in the coat cupboard later. As I was in motion at the time, I completely missed the sofa, and it landed in a heap on the floor. The obvious next step was to stop tidying and find my neat hat, set it artistically on aforementioned heap of jacket and snap snap snap.

And again with the post. Sepia is fun:

Day 3: 11th of December
How to explain this without sounding absurd. Nope. Forget it. by the end of this year, I'll sound more than absurd on more than one occasion, so may as well just go. Was having tea and biscuits for supper (yes, supper) and decided it might look neat to pile up a bunch of biscuits next to some candles I keep on the kitchen table. The biscuits were very textury and oaty and nobbly and fruity, and the candles are, well, not. Hmmm. Maybe fruity, but not in the same way.

And, sorry, gratuitous editing:

Day 4: 12th of December
Had been held hostage at work by leadership that didn't want to give feedback on a task, and allowing me to close it out and be rid of it. Finally gave up when I hit the beenatworkelevenhours mark, and left in order to go home and change for a much-needed "girls night." The girls night turned out to be a long-planned surprise party which was so flattering and amazing and I didn't behave properly at it and was v bad at socialising with guests, but I spent most of the night gobsmacked that it was happening. One day I'll be better at handling that sort of thing. Maybe. Ah yes, to the photo. I've not been a real "take piccies of everything I eat" person, but this was too good not to shoot. Mouth starts watering again just looking at it and remembering...

Day 5: 13th of December (Friday the 13th...)
Stand by for nerdyness. In another fit of realising I'd almost gone off without taking a picture, I again grabbed things close at hand (downstairs this time). Thus another TARDIS. This time a USB port thingy. And Yoda. And a pineapple-shaped cookie jar (no cookies inside). So yes - I mashup-ed Star Wars, Doctor Who, and Psych. Judge away. Things're liable to get weirder before they get normaler.

Oh, yeah. Then I did this. With a mini TARDIS and a backdrop of Yoda's house. Sorry.

Day 6: 14th of December
I like Minis. Not the new ones, mind you, as they've gone all Large. I miss driving one. Mine was so nice. And Mini. I also like old photos of places. So it makes sense to put my little toy Mini in front of a photo of Old London. Juxtaposing things is fun. So is the word Juxtapose.

And a non-blurry one.

Day 7: 15th of December (Huzzah! A whole week!)
I'm a dog person. Just to put that out there. Really though, I'm an animal person, and don't do well with no four-leggedy beasties with whom I can chat and cuddle and generally co-exist. Cannot have a dog out here in Italy, as my schedule makes it not fair to the dog. Thus when I moved in last year and was met by tiny new kittens and their mum, all shivering noisily outside my door, I caved in short order. They are still strays, and live outside, but I feed and cuddle and such. They're still v much cats, though, so I'm not fooled into thinking they actually care about me, but I can pretend with the best of them. It's a use-use relationship, really. Here's one.

And the other.

A Closing Remark: Still struggling with iPhone pics. But maybe getting better-ish (?). These 365 Projects are supposed to be revealing as well as exercise-y, and I forsee this being more or less in that realm. Here's to Getting Better-ish. Here's also to Being Thirty.