Some Good Exercise

Last night DS, K and I hit the climbing gym in style. Well, by that I mean we went.

Since I'm not quite so into climbing as DS, I knew there was no way I would want to do the trade off thing. (That's where you can set climbs in the gym in return for free visits.) I have better things to do than set routes. I guess K does too. So, we dropped some mad cash and bought our memberships like normal people.

Okay, maybe normal people don't climb at least once a week, but you know what I mean.

I originally got into climbing because of DS. Initially, I refused. I'm somewhat afraid of heights, and his calloused hands did not look promising. So instead, my first few trips to Devil's Lake were for hiking, something I got into in undergrad.

At some point, my curiosity overcame my uneasiness. I decided I'd at least try. It's not a cardio sport, which is a big plus with my asthma. I liked climbing the jungle gym as a kid, and grew up being the smallest cheerleader, which almost inevitably meant I spent a large portion of my cheering career up in the air. It had also been since cheerleading that I had done any real regular exercising. So.. I thought, "what the hell?", and decided to go with my, "I'll try just about anything once" policy.

End result, I like it. I enjoy thinking out the moves. I enjoy the challenge of the leveled rating system. I enjoy the feeling of accomplishment when I conquer said challenge. Do I want to climb as much as DS? No way. I think he's crazy. Once a week is plenty for me. But it's an enjoyable once a week indeed.

Yum!

I will go ahead and proclaim that I make the best cookies ever. Last night, despite a very large glass of red wine working its effects on me, and made a huge batch of chocolate chip. After taking his first bite of one of my still oven warm cookies, DS could only say, "Damn." Here, look for yourself.You want one don't you? Well, if you know where to find me, I might just give you a couple.

News: Wayna, you'll be glad to note that last night I was treated to a home-cooked meal of sherry-mushroom chicken. Yes, you heard right. DS did what even you would call "real cooking."

Good Neighbor Festival 2005

I love small town festivals. Back home, in the little town of Georgetown, Kentucky, we celebrated the Horse Festival. It usually ended up being the same weekend as my birthday. It's fun to have a festival on your birthday.

Middleton has the Good Neighbor Festival. DS, Silverback, and I decided to check it out this afternoon. It was everyone's first time, though the boys seemed kinda new to the whole "small town festival" thing in general. We happened to get there just as the big parade was starting. There are a few things I feel must be in every parade:

Either a marching band, or bag pipers. Preferably the bag pipers, of which this parade had two.

Handmade floats from groups like the 4-H or the Girl Scouts.

And of course, horses.

I'm happy to say this parade fulfilled all of the necessary requirements. It was noticeably lacking in the horse area though, with the one pictured above being the only one I saw. To make up for it, every kid organization within a 40 mile radius was there, float or no float. Generally, is was no float. Which is really too bad. I loved making floats when I was a wee little Girl Scout.

On the up side, I saw some things I've never seen in a parade before, including bicycle vendors, lions on mopeds, and none other than Bucky the Badger. I adore Bucky! Thus, this parade was given an A!

Baseball is always a good way to spend an evening.

DS and I had been planning to see the Braves in Milwaukee for quite some time. In fact, I think it's been almost two months. I wasn't even living here yet. So, yesterday, we piled in the car and drove out early, because we like to watch batting practice and things like that.

It's a good thing we did leave early, because a wreck on I-94 held us up for a while. The Brewers don't usually huge crowds though, so we figured we were still fine, despite the delay. We also caught word of a rumor that they were giving away nesting dolls of the radio announcer to everyone that day. "The radio announcer? That's weird.."

Boy were we wrong. We arrived at Miller Park nearly an hour early, and still were shown to the very last parking lot. The place was packed. We were shocked. Was it really the nesting dolls that drew this crowd?

Answer: Quite possibly. Turns out, the radio announcer is Bob Uecker. Don't recognize that name? He started out playing for the Milwaukee Braves in 1956. Later, he played for the St. Louis Cardinals and the Phillies. He went on to play on Mr. Belvadere* on TV, and was an announcer in that grand movie, Major League. And now? He's home, calling the games for the Brewers for over 25 years. It's why he's in the Baseball Hall of Fame.

So, my guess is that it was a combination of Mr. Uecker celebrating 50 years in baseball that night, which meant we were graced with the presence of the Commissioner of Baseball, the Braves being there, since they use to call Milwaukee home, and a much better season than the Brewers have had in a while.

Even though we were there an hour early, we could only get standing room only. Which still cost us $15! However, it was totally worth it. We lucked out that we chose last night to watch baseball. Plus, we each got these awesome nesting dolls to remember the night by. I'll be sending one of them to my wonderful grandparents back home in Kentucky, who got me hooked on baseball as a small child.
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*Duh. A typo caused some misleading information, which was pointed out by tRJ. Thanks!

Wednesday was Crazy-go-Nuts!*

DS encouraged me to stop applying to jobs online, and to just bike around and see what was close. So yesterday, I did. I spend three hours biking around Middleton. I detoured at the library to get a library card, and I stopped by the Middleton Historical Society Museum, only to find that it's only open for three hours on Tuesdays and Saturdays. Crap!

I applied at several stores, and took home applications from several others. I stopped by Greenway Station last, which is right down the street from where I live. This is also where the dreaded Michael's store is, where I will no longer shop for reasons I'm not ready to talk about...

One of the last stores on my list was Kirkland's, a home decor store. I walked in and cheerfully asked if they were still taking applications. They seemed happy that I asked, and quickly gave me one. They also seemed to want me to fill it out there, so I did. (A lot of the time, I got the impression that places didn't want me filling it out there; thus, I have a bag full of unused applications if anyone wants one.) The manager seemed a little overeager to get it back from me, popping up to see if I were done yet.

When I had finished, without even looking at it, she asked if I had time for an interview. Of course I did! We go to the back, and I'm asked the usual questions. I was getting a pretty good vibe from the manager and assistant manager. They seemed like pretty cool people. So, when asked why they should hire me, I had no choice. I had to tell them the truth.

"Because I'm awesome."

And you know what? It worked. They hired me on the spot. That's right!

Needless to say, DS and I went out to celebrate last night. We went to this wonderful little spot downtown called Hubbard Avenue Diner, which is "famouse for pie." I haven't had their pie yet, so I wouldn't know. I do know, however, that their "3 giant scoop sundaes" are really more like 5 giant scoops. And they're delicious.

Then DS surprised me, or tried anyway, with a new video game as a reward for going out an getting my job. Unfortunately, The Sims 2: Nightlife doesn't come out until Sept. 14th, or so we've heard. I guess someone can give me a late birthday present... or a gift card to someplace that sells it! Instead, he got me the Harvest Moon game I wanted. Woo-HOO!!

All in all, it was a great day. I love Madison/Middleton!
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* For more information about Crazy-go-nuts, please click here.

The Saga of the Runaway Clay, Part 2

It was some time before the young lady could admit to Moral Clay that the adoptees that had been intrusted to her care were now wandering Gods knows where. She was ashamed and frightened. Was she truly an unfit parent? Would she ever be trusted with little pieces of clay again??

One very hot day, when the young lady and the maker of Moral Clay came face to face while moving heavy furniture, the truth came out.

"My Clay ran away..."

She told her story. Rather than chastise the young lady, the maker of Moral Clay simply said in her calm way, "That's okay. We'll get you some new ones."

Time passed slowly. The young lady worried and worried. It's hard for a new parent to suddenly have no one to care for.

Meanwhile, the young lady created a piece of clay of her own. Nothing much, but the maker of Moral Clay promised to have it baked and sent back. She is so kind.

So it happened that, along with the piece of clay the young lady created, three new Moral Clay figures were delivered to her. They came with a note:

Young Lady,

Here's to replace that first set of pencil toppers who ran off. Jerks!

Maker of Moral Clay

These new adoptees were indeed more docile than her previous ones. They even enjoyed looking on as the young lady crafted her quills. She knew that great adventures were in store... The kind that didn't involve runaway clay.

The Saga of the Runaway Clay, Part 1

Once upon a time there lived a cow, a bee, and a penguin. They belonged to the Moral Clay family, and had recently been adopted by a young lady in Kentucky. Thus, this story begins in the rolling hills of the Bluegrass Region, home of thoroughbred horses, rock fences, and lots of other farmy/picturesque things.

The cow, bee, and penquin had always dreamed of living life wildly and free. Being tied down to the tops of pencils was not their idea of a good time. No, they wanted more. They wanted long nights of staring at the moon. They wanted to travel, and see things. Cow, for one, had always wanted to try out the hobo life and follow where the train tracks may lead him.

This didn't seem like it would be a likely path for their lives to take, as they were safely atop the young lady's desk. Unless, of course, she was showing them to relatives in excitement. However, as fate would have it, the creator of Moral Clay had an idea. "Wouldn't it be great to have pictures of the family in their new habitats?" The young lady, unable to speak the language of clay, agreed. Little did she know of the inherent danger in what she was about to do...

The young lady decided to snap her new adoptees posing in front of typical Kentucky scenes. She went on a quest, along the back roads of the county, to find the best places for picture taking. Such a quest could not last long, due to the abundance of horse farms in the area.

The cow, bee, and penguin had a wonderful outing. They saw horses grazing in the fields. They held long conversations atop rock fences on philosophy and cosmology. The young lady had no idea the dreams of escape that were floating through the minds of the little clay figures.

As evening came, and quiet fell over the rural landscape, the young lady began to think about heading home. She had some trouble rounding up her crew though. The cow was especially stubborn. She started to think it a little odd how wistfully cow seemed to be staring after real cows in the field.

The thought didn't stick though, and soon the young lady had all three back in the car to head home. They were driving along, jamming to some Tori Amos, when the young lady was suddenly struck by the magnificence of the moon. Wasting no time, she pulled over and prepared her camera. No more than a minute could have passed until she was in the car again. But that minute, that lonely minute, was more than enough. The cow, bee, and penguin, seeing their small window of opportunity, decided to jump out of the car. By the time the young lady realized they were gone, it was too late.

No one really knows where the clay decided to go. They never bothered to call, or send a postcard. For all we know, they could be in China, or Australia. We do know one thing though. A tourist, after picking up their pictures from a recent vacation to a Train Museum, found this:

Monkey taught me this

TELL ME ABOUT YOURSELF - The Survey
Name:	Sleep Goblin
Birthday:	September 12
Birthplace:	Louisville, Kentucky
Current Location:	Wisconsin
Eye Color:	Hazel
Hair Color:	Brown
Height:	5'2"
Right Handed or Left Handed:	Left, most of the time
Your Heritage:	I think Irish and Swiss, but who knows?
The Shoes You Wore Today:	None!
Your Weakness:	Things that smell good, like paper.
Your Fears:	Spiders!
Your Perfect Pizza:	Cheese
Goal You Would Like To Achieve This Year:	Starting my art business successfully
Your Most Overused Phrase On an instant messenger:	I never overuse anything!
Thoughts First Waking Up:	That was yet another weird dream
Your Best Physical Feature:	Eyes
Your Bedtime:	11:30-ish
Your Most Missed Memory:	Can you remember a memory that's missed?
Pepsi or Coke:	Coke, by all means coke
MacDonalds or Burger King:	Arby's
Single or Group Dates:	Single
Lipton Ice Tea or Nestea:	Luzianne
Chocolate or Vanilla:	Depends
Cappuccino or Coffee:	Cappuccino
Do you Smoke:	Nope
Do you Swear:	Sometimes
Do you Sing:	Totally
Do you Shower Daily:	.... no
Have you Been in Love:	Yes
Do you want to go to College:	Too late
Do you want to get Married:	Yes
Do you belive in yourself:	?
Do you get Motion Sickness:	Nope
Do you think you are Attractive:	Well, I'm not too ugly...
Are you a Health Freak:	Depends on the day
Do you get along with your Parents:	Usually
Do you like Thunderstorms:	Love them
Do you play an Instrument:	Lots!
In the past month have you Drank Alcohol:	Yes
In the past month have you Smoked:	No
In the past month have you been on Drugs:	No
In the past month have you gone on a Date:	Yup!
In the past month have you gone to a Mall:	Unfortunately
In the past month have you eaten a box of Oreos:	Totally
In the past month have you eaten Sushi:	You bet!
In the past month have you been on Stage:	If you count the one I carry with me
In the past month have you been Dumped:	No
In the past month have you gone Skinny Dipping:	No
In the past month have you Stolen Anything:	Not on purpose
Ever been Drunk:	Sure
Ever been called a Tease:	Yup
Ever been Beaten up:	Nearly. Unless you count my brother.. then definitely
Ever Shoplifted:	No
How do you want to Die:	Old
What do you want to be when you Grow Up:	I think technically I am grown up.
What country would you most like to Visit:	Currently, France with DS
In a Boy/Girl..
Favourite Eye Color:	Green
Favourite Hair Color:	Reddish brown
Short or Long Hair:	short
Height:	eh, i don't mind so much
Weight:	something fitting
Best Clothing Style:	the kind that covers you?
Number of Drugs I have taken:	prescription or otherwise?
Number of CDs I own:	250
Number of Piercings:	double in ears
Number of Tattoos:	0
Number of things in my Past I Regret:	I try not to regret
CREATE YOUR OWN! - or - GET PAID TO TAKE SURVEYS!

Whoa, it's high up here...

Today, I went with the BMR to climb at Necedah. Rob wanted me to get on Air, which is only a 5.6, but it's really long. He gets some amusement out of sending my parents pictures and having them threaten to kill him...

Anyway, this one was really high, and once I got up there, it was pretty scary. Plus, I repelled for the first time [well, the second time that day, but still] ever to get down. Not too shabby.

Aqua Teen, I love you

You will see that I've added a new doodad to my sidebar. While I couldn't care less what the terror alert happens to be, the idea that it's brought to me by the characters of Aqua Teen Hunger Force make it at least a little funnier. I mean, Ignignokt at level green, while Meatwad hangs out at level red? Hilarious.

3 weeks and 3 days

I just realized that my birthday is coming. I think I'm going to start list of things I want for my birthday, so everyone can start buying me stuff. (Though I give MT permission to make me stuff, because she's cool.)

So, here goes...

The Sims 2: Nightlife
Harvest Moon: Another Wonderful Life (for Gamecube)
Knife of Dreams, by Robert Jordan (publishes Oct 11)
A Treasure's Trove, by Michael Stadther
The new bootleg series by Tori Amos

Okay, that's it for now. I'm sure I'll add more later!

More from KZ

When DS saw this camel, he actually said, "Oh look! Camels! That's cool, I've never seen those before." Now, granted, this kind of camel is a little furrier than the one's we normally see, but just two weeks ago, we saw not one, but two camels. When I pointed this out, he simply said, "shut up."

A new life goal

When DS and I visited the Henry Vilas Zoo last winter (which happens to be a great time to go to the zoo!), we stumbled upon a map of the US. On this map were red dots, representing the accredited zoos in the nation, surrounded by patches from several of these zoos.

Well, it just so happens that I like to collect patches from zoos. And right then and there, we decided that we would visit every zoo in America. So what could we do but stop at the Knoxville Zoo on our way home from Asheville, NC last weekend?

While this was by far the most expensive zoo I've ever set foot in, it was also one of the best. I suppose that $13 per person is doing some good. Though I must say, it was really hard to pay that after going to the St. Louis and Madison zoos for free.

The best exhibit, by far, was for the black bears. I've had a fascination with them ever since I went hiking through the Great Smokey Mountains a few years ago. Bears are so cool.



DS and I could have spent hours looking at those guys. They seemed very happy.

There were other memorable animals running around. My favorite had to have been the meerkats, though the others are worth showing too. So check back tomorrow for those.

so true...

One of the things I like to do everyday is read webcomics. (Perhaps this information will give you a glimpse of the "who's the biggest geek" contest that brought me and DS together.) Today, I read this.

Peejee: Cab, do you ever wonder why, sometimes, friends just vanish the way they do?

Cab: It's a lot like nature. You only have as many animals as the ecosystem can support and you only have as many friends as you can tolerate the bitching of.

Thank you somethingpositive.net! I'm pretty sure my limit is 2.

Advice, or the lack thereof

Recently, as in the last time she posted, MT commented on Hotmail's tips for bringing laughs to a date. I, too, like to read those little pieces of wisdom that Hotmail delivers free of charge. It's almost like Cosmo. Okay, not really.

Continuing on with their trend for full-proof plans for getting it on... I present to you their "10 things every single girl must own."

1."A fabulous photo of yourself." Yeah, okay, this is alright. But just to keep it on your fridge in the hopes that guys will check it out when they come over? I don't know... sounds pretty pathetic to me.

2. "A pretty pair of heels." Eh. Just because I have them doesn't mean I wear them.

3. "An Eminem cd." This I have major problems with. They advise that girls buy this cd, not to listen to it mind you, but to give guys the impression that we're "open minded." But we're not! We're faking it! At some point, when this fling turns into a relationship and he realizes that you never listen to this cd, but in fact hate it, how do you explain that you put it there just to trick him into finding you interesting?

6. "Bathroom reading." First of all, I'd rather you not take a dump in my house if I hardly know you. Secondly, why is it suddenly taboo to keep a bunch of Sports Illustrated if you don't keep up with sports? I mean, we're supposed to keep around cd's of musicians we happen to think suck.. what's the difference?

8. "Earplugs." Riiiight. Because this happens to me sooo often.

10. "A condom." While this is probably a good idea, you should also think twice about sleeping with people you hardly know that also refuse to provide condoms themselves. Seems pretty risky to me.

Okay, so maybe I'm not single. But surely I'm not the only one who thinks the author of this piece is either scarily desperate, or a floozy.

Ew.

Yesterday, I had the very opposite of privelage of being inside two of the nastiest apartments in Madison. Now, I'll go out on a limb here and say that the nastiness wasn't the fault of my friends. Though I'm making an assumption that may very well be wrong.

This much I know. If DS's new apartment, aka, where I live, ever looks anything like his old apartment, I'll kill him. Or move out and leave him with the mess. Cause that's just gross. How did you even live like that?? *shudders* I hope I never go back in there again for as long as I live.

MT, tell your roommate she's lucky to just have your mess and not the messes we've seen.

Finding my residency

Well, I got a bank account today. A statement that is "at least 30 days old" was one of the options for proving I live here. Though I don't know why. I get bank statements still from my old bank in Kentucky, and do I live there? NO! What is it with this state and it's closed doors? Open up Wisconsin, and let me in!

No wise cracks about why they don't let me in.... ya savages.

Everyone, please encourage DS to get us some good tv channels. I've had about all I can take of two gospel channels, and PBS. Not that I don't like PBS, but I need something else to watch too. Plus, it's fuzzy. I want my MTV!

On the plus side, I've gotten MT addicted to pogo. Ha! Sucker. Now I have someone to play Canasta with whenever I want. er. Actually, I'm not sure she knows how to play Canasta. MT, can you play Canasta?

crap.

Looking for a Jobby Job

I have an interview today. I was going to get my driver's license, but someone, I won't say who DS!, put all the utilities in their name. Now I have no proof that I'm a resident. So lame.

At any rate, maybe I'll at least have a job this afternoon.

Manners

I just noticed that sign in the goat picture. Zoom in on it.. it's so true.

Here come the lions!

DS and I went to the Henry Vilas Zoo today, where we finally got to see the five baby lions that were to young for public viewing when we went last winter. They were very rambunctious. I thought this would be the highlight of the trip. To my surprise, I was taken in by a cow and some goats. Probably because I could pet them, and feed them. First I found the cow, who must have liked the taste of my hand, because it kept licking me. Cow tongue is seriously gross. I've washed my hands twice, and they still smell funny. The cow itself was very soft though. Then we found the goats, who were funny, and greedy. Look how they fight over the food! Though, considering how many people were there feeding them, I don't know how they were hungry.

I'm back!

Here I am!!! I can tell some of you really missed me. Sorry for the delay.

Update: I am moved into my new apartment in Middleton, which is basically Madison. I got cable internet today, which was a godsend, because I've been bored out of my mind. I've spent the past few days getting lost around the Beltline. It's very disconcerting to not know your way home. I finished Harry Potter, and I must say I was shocked! Thank you to everyone who refrained from ruining the ending while I slowly made my way through it. I know how hard it was for you.

And now, I present this picture for MT, who was once very concerned over the marketing skills of a certain coffee company.