Yo, Homies!

Dig this:   Dawn of Dawn's Bloggy Blog, posted this from one of her bloggy peeps.

Gizoogle.net.

Freakin' Hi. Lar. E. Os.

When you actually Google it, type in something, anything.  I tried National Park Service, my trusty employer. I got this:

U.S. Nationizzle Park Service - Experience Yo Crazy-Ass Tha Ghetto

www.nps.gov/ - Cached - Similar

Charged wit tha trust of preservin tha natural resourcez of America.



Way too funny!  Now before you show your kids, know that every other word is the f-bomb, and is f-bombing Hi. Lar. E. Ous. 

You can't really search stuff with it, cuz you know, iT's a PAroDy!  You'll just get the spinner-of-death, but give it a whirl anyway, biaches.  Or type in i-ranger.com. You'll see what I'm not writing here.  I drop the f-bomb all the f-bombing time, but I can only type it so many times.  What if my kids ever figure out how to read this?  I yell at them not to use the f-bomb, and DH hates it (such a frickin' prude), but I suppose they could figure it out sometime. DH will probably never figure it out....



So.

Type in Martha Stewart and get this:

Martha Stewart (MarthaStewart) on Twizzle

https://twizzle.com/MarthaStewart - Cached

23 Nov · Martha Stewart ‏@MarthaStewart. There is confusion bout Everydizzle Chicken. Y'all KNOW dat shit, muthafucka! It was started by mah crazy ass n' published by mah crazy ass just like martha stewart Living.



or Grand Old Party (GOP) and get:

Da American Spectator : Grand Oldskool Parties

spectator.org/archives/2012/11/28/grand-old-parties

13 hours ago ... Da Republicans n' Democratz retain they original gangsta character, mo' than a century n' a half afta they founding.



or Mitt Romney and get:

Shit fo' Clitt Romney

Deseret Shit

Clitt Romney, Obizzay To Hook up For Lunch At White Crib Huffington Post - 4 hours ago - 1290 related articles » WASHINGTON -- Prezzy Barack Obizzay will host his wild lil' former polistical rival Mitt Romney fo' a private lunch all up in tha White Crib Thursday, they ... Clitt Romney ta join Prezzy Obizzay fo' White Crib lunch on Thursday Boston.com - 9 hours ago Clitt Romney n' Barack Obizzay ta hook up fo' White Crib lunch Thursday Deseret Shit - 6 hours ago

Okay, okay, just one more for the holidays:

Elf on tha Shelf > Bout Our Asses > Da Tradition

www.elfontheshelf.com/BoutUs/TheTradition.aspx - Cached

Da Elf Tradition. I aint talkin' bout chicken n' gravy biatch yo. Have yo ass ever wondered how tha fuck Santa knows whoz ass is naughty n' whoz ass is nice, biatch? Da Elf on tha Shelf�: A Christmas Tradizzle is tha straight-up special ...



I really should go do something vaguely useful....... been playing here way toooo long, homies! 


Oh, wait, really.... just one more......Gizoogle your college, mofo! 


 

More November Nuttiness

It's the most wonderful time of the year!  Our November is as busy as predicted--but knowing that it will be like this makes it tolerable.  We've had a couple of monkey wrenches thrown our way, too, what a surprise.

Wrench #1 is that in order for the boys to get jobs thru VBR, we have to contract with yet another company who are the actual providers of humans who help out.  So last Tuesday, we "had" to attend an "open house" to meet with these providers.  The "counselor" from VBR said we "had to choose a provider before leaving."  Well, I don't think so, sister.  We did, but only because I'm too damn tired to fight the system any more.  And the system is screwed up, trust me.  So now that we've done all this crap with VBR, we do it all over again with "Capabilities."  My final criteria for picking a company?  They were the closest.  I don't know why VBR actually believed we could make informed decisions standing around in a HS gym after 1 minute discussions, but there it is.  Crap.  I don't know when "Cap" will call, but it will be yet another pain.

But here's my real concern.  FTD is content to stay at home, in his room with his computer and video games.  He doesn't want lots of stuff.  In fact, he really doesn't want anything or want for anything.  So why oh why are we forcing him to get a crappy job he doesn't want to earn money he doesn't need or want? A job where he will likely be treated like the Village Idiot at that?  Why do we go thru the hoops and hassles?  The job he's going to get will suck up a job that someone else might actually want and/or need.  Why spend the extra tax dollars so he can go be miserable? So why do I bang my head in the wall to force him to work?  Why am I trying to force my Protestant work ethic down his throat, only to have him barf it back up?  He's content here.  He's found his bliss.  How many of the rest of us can say that?  Maybe he'll outgrow this phase and develop some wants. He'll never be able to support himself, and again, I thank you all for paying your taxes to help him out, so why are we doing this now?

Monkey Wrench #2.  Then let's throw this into the family mix.

BIL and 4/5s of his offspring.

My Sis's hubby is very, very ill.  Not terminally, but this isn't something from which he'll recover, but he will hopefully be able to manage.  His kids are worried about both him and my Sis, but they don't know what to do or even to say.  There's no book of instructions that comes with your parents.  We've been thru this with our own parents, so fortunately we sorta have a handle on it.  My sis and bro and I certainly had no 'expereince' when our folks passed.  I hope we can help the kids get thru this, and hope we have a longer rather than a shorter time.  I do know that we got thru it with the excellent help of Hospice of NW Ohio.  To this day, I still can say that Hospice saved my Mother's life.  True dat.

Well, how's that for downers?



Now for some uppers.
 
First, DD's train club exhibit at the Toledo Zoo is up and running.  I'll do a whole post on that later.

Next, BadAmy participated in Toledo's {first} Indie-Mart yesterday.  (It's a craft show, but for the hipsters in town.)  She sold a lotta yarn, but not all of it, so start checking her Etsy shop for updates.  Our little Village of Whitehouse also had an Artist's Show and Sale yesterday.  Two of my favorite potters-who-are-not-my-daughter were there, along with several other "traditional" artists. And a certain young man put in his annual appearance as Santa.  It was a wonderfully warm, Indian summer day, so very few people were up for Santa, cute as he may be.

Santa lost 40 pounds since last Christmas!  Good for him!

And for one more upper, today is my birthday.  I finally convinced my DH that I really and truly don't like surprises.  I only buy stuff I really, really like.  Since we don't have kids who will want this stuff when I kick the bucket, I'm trying not to accumulate stuff I don't love/actually need.  Well, okay, I've got way too many Christmas decorations... but I like to play with my toys.  (And everyone knows fabric doesn't count. I also have a rag quilt done for a Christmas present, just need to start snipping the hems. More on that later.)  But anywho, we got a new faucet for the kitchen sink. After 18 years here in the 'new' house, stuff is starting to break. And tomorrow the tile guy will be here to start working on the tub surround for the whirlpool tub.  That small, little bathroom will end up being the most expensive place in the house.  And I usually don't let anyone in there. (BadAmy and I refer to it as the Girls' Bathroom, aka, the not skanky-used-by-boys one.)  Okay, this hasn't been my best move, but I'm going with the 'resale value' thing, not the 'greedy, materialistic, I coulda spent my money better' thing.  That's my story and I'm sticking to it.

Not quite this one, but close. And soooooo close to finally being done.  After 18 years, we'll finally be able to use the whirlpool tub!

If it's done by Thanksgiving, maybe I'll let the family take whirlpools. . . but only if they agree to use the same water!!!  Ha!  Toss in a little chlorine and it's like the hot tub at the motel. . . . .

I hope Thanksgiving Day finds you with loved ones, in a warm and cozy place, with wonderful food and fellowship.  We'll be eating at 5, and I'll set a place for you.  Peace and blessings to you and yours!

Who is Ranger Anna?

Okay, I'll play.

I've been reading a couple-a blogs where the blogger lets the bloggees know a little bit more about herself.  And since I've got no original or even vaguely interesting thoughts or projects right now, here goes.

Sitting on a dock in the bay..... okay, it was really a boat in a fjord.  I have a ski-slope for a chin.  

1. I'm a mid-western girl thru and thru. Actually, I'm really a Great Lakes girl.  I totally wrap myself in the sturdy mid-western values (think Prairie Home Companion here), and I need my Big Water Fix on a regular basis.  If you haven't stood on the shores of a Great Lake, you haven't been in touch with the 75 percent of you that is water.

Did you know that the Mighty Maumee River is the largest watershed of any of the Great Lakes?  Now ya do.

I'm Heinz 57 American.   My Dad was born and raised in Toledo, and his Mom was from West-by-God.  His Dad's roots remain a mystery, despite my Sis and BIL working their fingers to the bone trying to find something about the guy. Zip. Zilch. Nada.  And since he worked for the B&O Railroad, there should be records, but there ain't.  Hmmmmm...... WITSEC?

My Mom was born and raised on an island in the Tampa Bay.  Did you hear my use my Florida accent when I said that?  She was a very head-strong and determined young lady, which explains a lot about me.  Did I ever write about my 'rents WWII work?  Remind me to do that next week, if I didn't already write about it.  Anywho, I spent my first and only vacations as kid on the beach at Indian Rocks, Fla.  So I have a hefty amount of salt-water in my veins, too.  Oh, wait a minute..... Well, you get my drift.

Terra Ciea use-ta be a real island.  Not no more.

2.  I'm a mom.  Dang that's hard work.  I have the world's greatest step-daughter.  A mere technicality in my opinion, since she lived with her Dad and then her Dad and me for the majority of her growing up years.  I think of her as my daughter. We had rocky times (due to the insanity of her birth mother), but now we be bffs.  Yea.  See side bar for cutest pic evah of her and my darling SIL.

I have two sons.  Both adopted.  Both have autism.  I write about them a lot.  Things are very, very rocky with one of them right now, which has me plunged back into that perpetual state of grief where parents of kids with special needs always live.  I've said before that it never goes away, cuz it don't. See sidebar for pics of Thing One and Thing Two.

3.  I'm a wife.  Hardest job ever.  Sharing your life with someone opens you up for all sorts of stuff--the good, the bad, and the ugly.  My DH is 14 years older than me.  I fell in love with the big jerk before I figured this out, and by then it was too late.   But who can resist a guy in uniform?  It was dang near love at first phone call.  See side bar for DH doing his thang.  He's silly.  A 72 year old fart, masquerading as a 12 year old.  Oh, and he's lost 40 lbs since that pic was taken.  I'm so proud of him!  Sadly, I found most of that poundage.  Damn this middle-aged business!!

3.  I have two useless Master's Degrees.  I earned them in 2 years.  Yep, over-achiever all the way.  See note about my Mom.  I went to a small, Presbyterian liberal arts college called Alma College.  I may be unemployed, but I can take on any topic at a cocktail party.  I loved Alma.  Still do.  If anything horrid were to happen to my DH, I'd move back to AC in a heart beat.

My B.A. is Environmental Education~~Majors in Nat. Sci (a group major so I had to take 2 more classes than a plain 'ol major) and El. Ed, and minors in Sociology and 2ndary Ed..  See note about my Mom.

4.  I love to organize stuff.  Big events.  The bigger the better.  Just do what I tell you to do, and it will work out fine is my organizing philosophy.  Committees usually suck (which is blasphemous for a Presbyterian to say, we invented the evil things.  Sort of a self-abuse thing we do),  so I try to avoid them at all costs.  By the by, my next really Big Event is Whitehouse Winterfest in Feb.. Oh, yeah, you'll be hearing a lot about that.

5.  Crap.  Can't think of anything else.  Oh, yeah, there is that ranger business, but I'm not s'posed to write about that.  Hells bells.

I'm so freakin' iconographic.

Well, there you have it.  And last but not least, I'm the World's Laziest Birder.

You're it.

Thankfully November

I love November.  I love it so much I was born in November.  Good planning on my part, eh?  Then my first niece was due on my birthday, but decided to have her own, so her big day is 10 days after mine.

Sally Seam Rip-her with her Pi clock.  Yep, a math geek. And she looks more like me than her Mom, my Sister.

 Then I fell in love with a guy whose birthday is in November.

DH with our grand-nephew who isn't crying.  DH usually puts most babies into screaming fits. This was a first.

 One of my grand nieces, Miss D, was born on my birthday.  Took her a while to grasp the part about we "share" a birthday.

Miss D is pretty much camera shy.  This is one of the few pics I have of her.  She's in the red, on the receiving end of a hug.

Yep, I love November.

Not November, but Oct. 31, 2011.  The only Trick-or-treaters we've ever had.  Sally and her sister Shay, with their kids.  Sally is holding Shay's older son, Lil'Ripper is in the middle, and Shay has her younger giraffe, er son.

If you're one of my fb peeps, you know that every day in November, I (along with lots of other folks) post at least one thing a day for which we are thankful.  Despite all the pains in the buns that come from having kids with special needs, we still have much to be thankful for.  And I count you among them. 

In other news, DD's class was here yesterday and had a nice time.  His trains were a big hit, as usual.  And our Girl's night was loverly, too.  I wish I had a Friday night that we could get together, but that won't happen for a while, because it's time for. . . .

Swanton Area Railroad and Model Club, six track O gauge layout.

Toledo Zoo~~Natural History Museum, turned train station.

DD 3 or 4 years ago.  My little guy.

. . . trains.  Lots and lots of model trains.  This group has been one of DD's fav's and I'd go almost so far as to say, a savior for him.  They accept him as their own.  We all need a group like that.

Anywho, this year the Club will be doing multiple layouts again.  We'll do O-gauge at the Zoo, beginning next Sunday when we haul the modules in, then spend the next 4 days putting up the houses and stuff, and the annual painting of the fence. This display stays up for 8 weeks, and we run trains every night from 4 to 9 or 4 to 10.  Our family covers Tuesdays.

While this is going on, we set up the the Homesprung Holidays at Wildwood Preserve.  That runs for 10 days, from 10 until 8 or 9.

But wait!  There's more!  The HO division (smaller trains = Half O gauge, get it, HO) will set up their stuff for two separate one-day shows in Swanton, and then at the Children's Wonderland in Sylvania, Ohio.  This is the first time to run there.  It's open from around 11 to 8 or something and runs for a couple of weeks, so DD and I will take 2 afternoon shifts.  I already let this teacher know that he'll be 'working' for at least 4 days in the next two months.  One of the other club members will sign his work-study papers, so he won't be counted as absent, we hope.  (It's not like we care about that, though.)

I've been going thru my toys to see what I'll use for my modules this year.  Probably pretty much the same as the past two years, I think.  We'll see.

So to make a short story long, November is a fun month for us.  Yep, the weather usually sucks, like today when it's cold, nasty, and dreary and the days are the shortest, but for us, it's our uber-busy, holiday month.  In December we sit back and enjoy the views, old movies, and family and friends. And resting is what January is for.   Oh.  And of course starting two new quilting block-of-the-month clubs! 

Party Time

I've been home for 3 weeks and have managed to get 99.9% of the summer crap stashed away.  I won't let myself do any of the fun stuff, like sew, hike for no reason, play with trains, or throw a cocktail party for the girls until the junk is under control.  So now it is, so this Thursday will be Cocktails with the Girls night.  Since most of my friends are either still working and/or caring for the 'rents and/or grandkids, and/or they have real lives, it'll just be a few of us, and I hope you're one of the girls!  Sorry fellas, but next time it'll be for boys and girls.

The real reason I'm having some friends over is because I have to clean the house anyways... DD's class is coming over on Saturday for an outing.  All of the kids in his class have special needs, and few of them have any clue how to behave in social situations.  As parents, we tend not to take our kids to parties because some fracas involving our kids always breaks out.  Subsequently, they often lack anything approaching 'guest' skills.  So we throw a monthly event to try to teach them some, but most importantly, we do it so they can act goofy and nobody cares.  Being stared at in public because your kids are nutty is a pain in the ass.  So we don't go out much.


Anywho, I turned to my dear friend Martha S. for some party ideas. For the kids. . .

Shrunked Apple Heads in cider for the kids.  Easy to make: peel, core, and halve the apples.  Carve faces. Bake at 250 for 90 minutes. Cloves for eyeballs.

 For the girls on Thurs, we'll have this:

Ingredients

• Fine black sanding sugar
• 1 lady apple, chopped
• 1/2 lime, cut into wedges
• 1 ounce maple syrup
• 1 ounce apple cider
• 2 ounces vodka
• Ice
• Club soda
• 1 thin crosswise slice lady apple, for garnish

Directions

1. Moisten the rim of a martini glass with water. Place sanding sugar in a saucer and dip rim of glass in sanding sugar to coat; set aside.
   
2. In a cocktail shaker, muddle together apple cubes and lime wedges. Add syrup, cider, and vodka; fill with ice. Cover and shake until well combined. Strain into prepared martini glass; top with club soda. Garnish with apple slice and serve.
   

 and this:

Nearly any drink, just add ice cubes made with black food coloring....... gunna have to hit the gourmet kitchen shop today, too bad for me.....

I made the Cider Cocktail last night for practice. My oh my oh my.... I loves my sweet drinks and this one is now my fav.......It's so sweet that I could get seriously tanked on this one.... at least I don't have to drive home on Thursday, which is yet another reason to be the hostess....



Other news is that I'm hoping all of you East Coasters are safe and sound, and high and dry.  My Mom grew up on an island in Tampa Bay, and loved when the 'canes rolled in because everyone gathered at the fruit packing warehouse to ride out the storms.  She recalled these times as big parties.  I'm wondering how my Grandpa felt the year a storm completely soaked the island (Terra Ceia) in salt water and ruined his farm.  They had to move to the mainland after that one.

We'll just get strong winds here in Ohio... so far (Monday morning) we're just at sustained 15 mph winds, which is not at all unusual.  We'll run over to the the Lake Erie shore either this afternoon or tomorrow morning to see the waves crash in.  Lake Erie is so shallow that when the wind blows, especially from east to the west, it pushes all the water up.  Fun to watch! And safe, too.

FTD on the Lake Erie Shore on a nice quiet spring day.  He loves to be by himself.  This is one of the few times that he's content.

Again, thanks for wasting your valuable time reading along with me.  I've been catching up on your blogs now that I have time, and have missed your virtual company.  Nice to be back together.

On a More Serious Note

Well, here it is.  I was told this summer to be careful of what I say on FB and in my blog.  I pulled all the posts related to my work life, all the while assuming I had some Constitutional rights regarding what I write about.  I've read them over and have put them back up, with the exception of the ones I called my Seasonal Survival Guide. (Interesting that those generated lots and lots of comments and interest......)

Anywho, last summer (2011) I read lots of books by and for birders.  Sort of a theme for the summer.

This summer, I read a dozen or so Ranger memoires.  There are lots of rangers who are recently retired who have taken pen to paper.  Apparently, you can publish a book about rangering with no problems, but blogging about rangering is worrisome.  Go figure.

Here's one I missed.  Gunna have to try to find a copy.

The Classic.

So again, if you didn't read the small and snarkey fine print over on the right side of the blog, here 'tis again.  Nothing you read here is the work of anyone but myself.  All opinions expressed are mine and mine alone.  Not my employer's.  Not my family's.  Not nobody but little ol' me.

Ridiculous Post

Here's some pics for a fellow and also errant blogger--such as myself.  He blogs at Birds From Behind since he has such a marvelous collection of bird butz pics, or as we in the biz call it, the tourist end of the critters.

On our way back from YNP this fall, we got to see a couple of huge creatures and just to keep Dave happy, we got some good butz pics.  Enjoy......?

World's Biggest Sandhill Crane, North Dakota!

World's Biggest Sandhill Crane Butt.

Watch where you step.....

World's Biggest Turkey, Minnesota

Watch where you stand.....

Not the World's Biggest Babe the Big Blue Ox, but a darn big butt anyway! Bemidji, MN.

She's Back . . .

I'm back home in Ohio, and will hopefully have time to write again.  Mostly I'll enjoy reading about your adventures.  And I've got to figure out if I need my laptop for this or if I can do it somewhat painlessly from my new toy--an IPad.  Let's stay in touch.

Rangering and Sewing . . .

. . . two of my favorite things.

On the rangering front, things are going really well.  Our new staffers are really getting the hang of things, their programs are working well, and all is good.  (Kinda scary, that....!)  My CSI:Madison program is going to be a winner.  I enjoy getting the kids' butts out of the seats, too.  We "explore" the building and try to figure out why it's there, why it looks the way it does, and why they should care.  Here's one of the clues:

On the sewing front, we took my machine up to the repair shop in Bozeman.  DD was ready for a trip to the Big City, so we went with some friends up to stock up enjoy a little down time.

New neighbors at the apartment.

 

So back to sewing, I was working on my BOMs from Craftsy and half of a rubber washer dropped out of the area where the needle piston is located.  Crap.  Hence the trip to BZ.  They called and said it's fixed and I got the lube, oil, filter job on it, too.  I'm hoping to send DD to BZ on the West Yell Foundation Bus to pick it up next week.  This will be interesting.

One of my new blocks, un-squared up, finished before the machine began losing parts.

On the home front, DH should be heading this way in about 12 days.... FTD begins his job on Monday, his caregiver Natasha begins on Tuesday.  DH says she seems competent and FTD seemed to like her.  God, this is weird.......

What a good looking bunch, Draven, K8, Lil' Ripper, Shannie, and Corbin, last Halloween.

Niece Shannie will be here with her two young 'uns for a month and will stay at our house.  That will be fun for all of them.  Nephew Rydie, her big bro, will be hanging at the house, too.  And niece K8 and her son, the Lil' Ripper, have also said they want to hang out there part of the time, too.  So hopefully between Natasha and the family, FTD will have folks around him often enough to keep him healthy and happy.  Cross your fingers for us.

 This week's summer plan is that DH will drive out here by himself (unless someone wants to come with and then fly home), then in mid-August, FTD and my Sis will fly out together, then she'll fly home.  FTD will use ranger K's trailer while he's here, then shortly after that, DH and DD will drive back to Ohio so DD can begin year 6 of high school.  He's very excited to begin there, so I hope he has a better experience than FTD.  Actually, since HS, all of his school experiences have been better.  Odd how the kid will lower academic skills does better in school.....  And then in late September, nearly when I'm finished here, DD and DH will fly back out and the 4 of us will go on our Grand Southwest Adventure 2012.  When DH gets here, we'll get out the ol' maps and make some plans.  So much to see and only a month to see it all.

Another thought on rangering.... this summer I'm reading ranger memoires.  Most of them are from LE's so far, and after this batch o' books, I'll start working on the interps' stories.  Did I ever mention that Rangers are the most likely federal law enforcement officers to be killed or seriously injured on the job?  Scary that.  I'm glad DH got through all 30 of his years safely.

Hope your summer has started off wonderfully!

Settled in..... Mostly.

DD and I are pretty well settled in.  There are still a few things I can't locate, and the Hubby has mailed package #1 of Things I Forgot and Don't Want to Purchase New, so that will be nice.

Programs are coming along well.  I purchased a metal briefcase on Ebay for my CSI: Madison program... it will be the hook.  My opening line will be something like, "This brief case was sitting next to the building when we arrived this morning.... what do you think is in it?"  After I work out the bugs, I'll let you know how the kids respond to it.  I'm hoping we can make cultural history more fun and interesting.

I was able to finally get some sewing in today.  I was happily working along on the BOM from Craftsy, watching Downton Abbey on iTunes, when half of a rubber washer dropped out of my machine.  This can't be good.  I'll be heading to Bozeman next week to drop it off at the repair shop.  And the repair guy gets there every other week, so I'll be back then, too.  Drat.

DH might maybe be here by then, too. FTD begins work on June 11, but I haven't heard if his caregiver is lined up yet.  And one of my nieces and her babies will be back in Ohio about that time so she might want to shack up at our house for the duration.  I really need to call the nephew, too, to be sure he's moving in for sure.  Busy busy..... thank goodness for long-distance phones.

It's my lieu day, and I'm back in the office to try to pick up the new schedule.  It wouldn't work on our emails, so I'm hoping I can track down a copy here.  And while I'm doing that, it's time to see if June's BOM is ready yet!

Sorry about the lack of pics, so here's a couple of our neighborhood:

Memorial Day Weekend.... a snowy YNP tradition.

Last summer's neighbor and DD.

More of the locals.

Back in Madison Junction!

DD and I arrived safely and just when we thought we would.  We only had one itty, bitty bit of travel trouble and that was when we drove over the Bozeman Pass.  On a couple of the curves, we came around and the sun was smack dab in our faces~~totally blinding.  Other than those 5 or 10 seconds, everything was a breeze.

The apartment seems empty this year, without DH and FTD.  Sigh.  We're plenty busy, though so it seems okay.  Cooking will be interesting, since DD is really picky.  Hmmm....  getting nutritious food into him will be a challenge, as usual.

Spring, 2010.  This year, no snow in the front, and not much in the back of the apartment, either.

DD and I were up before the crack of dawn this morning, and couldn't get back to sleep so we headed into town.  We've had our breakfast at the Running Bear Pancake House, picked up a few little things we've forgotten, and stocked up the adult beverage cupboard.  We're good to go!

As I've said before, blogging time on my part is infrequent, but I can still see what you all are up to!

Busiest Weekend of the Year.....

. . .  and I'm messing around with the computer.....

This morning, DH and I joined 3 other members of DD's train club to set up our O scale stuff for National Train Day in Toledo, which is tomorrow.  The Heritage Train is here and DD is miserable because we won't take him to see it tonight.  One of the reasons for that is that there's a Train Club business meeting tonight.  Should be pretty short, I hope.

So tomorrow, we get down to the Toledo Terminal Train Station bright and early.  It's a really cool art deco station, by the way.

{{Insert pics here.... oh, Blogspot is having a little hissy and won't load pic for me.....}}

BadAmy and L were married here, and it was a fantastic location for that!

Then DH and DD will stay at the station, and I'll head over to the world class Toledo Museum of Art for the dedication of the Ohio Historical marker, commemorating the 100th anniversary of Girl Scouting.  There will be blah blah blah speeches, a couple of troops will sing songs, then we'll 're-enact' a photo that was taken of Scouts on the Museum steps.  Cool.  I'm pretty sure I'm going to wear my badge sash.....

Then we troop inside and spend the night in the museum!!!  The last I heard there were 1500 girls and several hundred adults signed up, including yours truly.  This is quite literally a once in a lifetime opportunity.  I'm pretty sure we don't get to sleep in the Cloister or with the mummies....

After staying up most of the night, and sleeping on the floor--something I never do any more--I'll come home and pack the trailer.  Oh, and I'll have to put away the train stuff we got out for the display downtown, too.  We've told friends to come over Sunday after 4 for a BYOEverything cookout.

I will hopefully sleep like a log Sunday night, get up Monday morning and send my youngest child off to his last day at the Anthony Wayne High School, go to the ankle doc's at lunch time, pick up said child at school, come home, put suitcase and backpack in the car, and will maybe be able to sleep.....

Tuesday, I put my middle child on the bus at 6:35 a.m.,  and leave sometime after that with youngest for a 4 month sojourn to the west and work.

So I'm sitting around blogging and playing online Scrabble. 

The thing that takes a back seat in the summer is blogging.  I'll be reading yours as often as I can get to a computer, and maybe even once in a while I'll drop you a line.  I'll still be on FB, usually every day, and of course there's the old fashioned method of communication:

Ranger Anna
5 Madison Ranger Station
Yellowstone National Park,  WY  82190

It's been a wonderful ride with you all so far.  Thanks for coming along.

What a Good Dad

National Train Day will be celebrated in Toledo on Saturday, May 5th.  DD lives for this day, the highlight of traindom for him.  Two years ago, he hopped the Amtrak train that visited while they switched the engines to pull out for the evening.  Nothing like have a hobo for a son.

Lately, he's been glued to several train-cams around the country.  One of them is in Chesterton, Indiana and on the line that runs through Swanton, the town just north of us. Both the Capitol Limited and the Lake Shore Limited use this track.

One night during his spring break, he comes barreling into our room around 8 p.m. yelling that the "Bloody Nose" just went through Chesterton!  What the..... ?    

For Amtrak's 40th Anniversary, they re-released several "heritage locomotives," including the Phase I engine, aka the Bloody Nose, due to the red paint on the front of the engine.  Some folks loved the paint job, some hated it, but they all called it the same thing. 

That's the Bloody Nose, on the left, then 4 more heritage units, and the current Amtrak locomotive. Scary that I know this.

Back to our story.  If an Amtrak train goes through Chesterton around 8 p.m. it can only mean it's east bound, and headed to Swanton and Toledo.  DH and I glanced at each other, and we knew there was a trip out to see trains in our future.  Luckily for me, the Good Dad was willing to get out and take DD all the way to the Toledo Union Terminal to see it.

It arrived in Toledo about 20 minutes late, or around 11:30 p.m., but DD was elated.  He snapped a few pictures, yakked with some riders, and came home a very, very happy young man.

If we could all be so easily entertained and amazed.

2 Degrees of Junior Rangerness

Last week, I went with the Green Hats to do some work with a Junior troop in one of my old stomping grounds, Oregon, Ohio.  We lived there from halfway through kindergarten to the end of third grade.  Great teachers, great friends at Clay Elementary School.  It's also where I began my Scout career, 50 years ago, in second grade.

One of the Scouts' last names was familiar to me, because the family (still) owns a fantastic farm stand.  When we were kids, our bus went past the farm every day, and we bought most of our summer produce there.  The farmer's wife was also a teacher at my school.

Seaman Road, Oregon Ohio

I was talking with the child's dad, and mentioned all these things.  Earlier the Scout had told me that she had been to Yellowstone.  As we were talking with Dad, I asked her what she remembered and she said that since they were there last June she could remember a lot!  "Last June?" says I, "did you come to the Junior Ranger Station at Madison?"  The dad said that they had.  She said she earned her Junior Ranger patch, and I asked if she remembered the ranger who signed the paper for her.

"Hmmm,"  says she.  "I don't remember for sure, but I've got my paper right here in my school bag."

It wasn't one of the Mad Crew who signed it, but I was completely blown away by the fact that she loved her patch and paper enough to lug it with her for months.  Wow.

We couldn't really make out the ranger's handwriting, and I know I'm totally guilty of hen-scratching my name.  But seeing how this young lady cherished her stuff, I'm going to make a better effort at legibility.  We all should.

Wildlife Olympics at the Junior Ranger Station.

We clearly connected with this wonderful child.  Let's really connect and write stuff they can read!

Seasonal Survival, #5, Keeping Your Sanity

Seasonal Survival Guide

©

or How to Live and Eat and Other Mundane Stuff.

Chapter 5.


How do you stay normal/ and or sane in the pressure cooker?  Some folks never figure it out, but those of us that do~~well, we just do.  And trust me, it is a pressure cooker. See, I already wrote about that here.

Lots of us read, and we try to read stuff that isn't completely work related.  There are definitely times when you have to get your head out of your park.  That's the same for any job, any where.

Reading Nevada Barr is like taking a murderous vacation in someone else's park.
 Busman's holiday and all that.

Those of us without the normal life conventions, like TV, radio, and internet access watch a lotta Netflix, or in my case, iTunes TV and movies.  I also carry a pretty huge stack of movies on dvd (yeah, old school) that I occasionally watch.  Mostly I loan them out.  I know, I'm swell.  Now that we've got satellite TV, we try to invite the others over for a dose of the real world every now and then.  The real world actually means we watch the Daily Show. (Jon Daily for President!)

There are the weekly poker games, always a hit.

There are campfires, of the backyard variety (in addition to your evening campfire program).

There are parties:  Halloween, Thanksgiving,

Ranger Dr. D.  We only invited him to Turkey Day, 2010 because he's a retired surgeon.
We figured he could be trusted to carve the bird.
We were more or less correct.

The Mad Crew and Friends, Thanksgiving Dinner, 2011. I already showed ya these.

 Christmas, Talk Like a Pirate Day, parades,

Me and the Divine Ranger Miss M.,  West Yellowstone 4th of July Parade, 2010.  We had a really fun and cool float planned but found out that we couldn't use the company trailer.  Maybe we'll find a flatbed thing this year.
I wanna do the Ranger Pic-a-nic-a Basket Drill Team.

you name it, someone has thought up a reason to have a party.

Which brings us to liquor.

Two bottles of wine being held ransom by hard liquor.  Tough bunch, that.

For some folks, there's lots and lots of it, alcohol that is, to the point where they are falling-down-drunk off duty.  Which makes them, um, not-so-productive to complete-jerks on duty.  Not a good place to be.  Evah.  This seems to be a bigger problem with concessions employees (usually college age kids, who many years ago were referred to as the savages), but it can be a problem for those of us who are alleged professionals.  This, by the by, is one of the reasons grown up adults can pick up seasonal gigs--we're often past this stage in life.  Supervisors appreciate having staff members who show up for work on time and sober.  Just sayin', kids.

We try to amuse ourselves in lots of ways.  Bike riding, hiking, birding, all seem to be part and parcel for most of us, since we often come hard wired for these activities. We are often forced to do these type of menial tasks at work, too.  Sucks being us, don't it?

And in my case, we also have to leave the park every few weeks for grocery runs, too.  That puts us in locations where there are things like fast food and stoplights.  Then we can't wait to get back to the park.  Back home.

Staying sane is tough some days.  For the newbies, the first week or two at a new site will put them into a tail spin.  They will absolutely work 60 hour weeks for a while.  But then, one day it happens.  They get their groove on, and it's clear sailing until fall.  Oh, wait.... that's when many of the younger rangers have to worry about where they'll go after ...  ...  ...  one of these days I'll dive into The Off Season Seasonal and how to survive that.  Maybe.