Seriously, he's 35 today. Do you have any idea how old 35 is? I know, RIGHT? It's hard to even get there with your mind.

It's okay, I'll give you a minute.

This is what he looked like when I met him:



This is what he looked like ten minutes ago:



As you can see, he's gotten, well, CUTER, which I didn't think was possible, but there we go. He's changed a lot since he was 20 years old. He used to be shy, he used to let me do all the talking, which I know is a complete shock because if anyone is the anti-social quiet butterfly, it's totally me, right? Last night when my Dad and bonusMom were visiting, Mary leaned forward and whispered to me, "He used to be so quiet! He used to be so shy!", and now here is, all 35 years old, standing in the kitchen being a total smart ass. And it doesn't stop in the kitchen, oh no.

Everyone loves him, and there's a reason for that. He's wonderful, and he only gets better with age. And I am totally keeping him, just like that song by the Dixie Chicks that makes me think of him every time I hear it. Because I'm still so, so, so in love with my Boonie. And I'm so grateful he's here, and that I've gotten to see him get THIS OLD. I mean, really, it's been QUITE A JOURNEY, watching him grow to this RIPE OLD AGE.

Yeah, he's reeeeaaaaally gonna get me next year.

HAPPY BIRTHDAY SWEETIE!
You make my heart go pitter-pat.
Even with the cane!

If there are one or more people on your friends list who make your world a better place just because they exist, and who you would not have met (in real life or not) without the Internet, then post this same sentence in your journal.

I came home today, with my visiting Dad and bonusMom, and found a baby praying mantis sitting on my porch, looking at the front door as if curious why no one was letting him in. I LOVE praying mantises, I haven't seen one since I went to Burning Man eight years ago and a mantis got stuck on the truck bringing supplies out. I named it Bruce, and tried valiantly to keep it alive. It died a couple days later from the heat. The playa is doom for delicate things, people included.

I went to Fred's tonight and got this huge plastic tank-thing, with a ventilated lid, and I've filled it with rocks and sticks and some grass, and tomorrow we'll get some grubs, and I put him/her/it over on my plant stand where it seems quite contented. I named it Esterhazy. My Dad, getting out of the van, said, "It's like you haven't changed at all."

He held out the tank in front of him to take a look.

"I'm still 12, Dad, you should know this," I said.

He didn't look at all disappointed.

p.s. That icon is me, at age 9 or so, aboard my Grandpa's boat. Jason said, when he saw this picture, "You look just the same," and the more I look at it, the more I think he's right. Esterhazy is glad he didn't meet me then, I was still capturing things in barely-washed pickle jars with lids that I'd gouged holes in the top of.

I'd seen one of the Simon's Cat videos, but there are more !

Simon;s Cat on YouTube

This may be old news to everyone else, but Google have a feature on their maps page that allows you to see a street-level view in selected cities. I've just been fruitlessly trying to see the house I used to live in in Brookline (I think it must have been repainted or remodels, as nothing looks quite right). Fascinating idea!

So, I'm curious. For those of you who live, or have lived, in the UK having come from the US (or in the US having come from the UK), what surprised you most? By which I mean not so much economic things or climate things, but what did you believe/expect/look forward to about the place you were going that turned out to be completely wrong? I'm thinking first of all of disappointments (shattered dreams? ;-) but also of unexpected pleasant surprises.

I know, I know, in [X] they don't have [Y foodstuff] and the cost of living is [better/worse] and it always [rains/is sunny], which is just awful. But on a somewhat deeper or more abstract level, what was really different that you didn't expect?

(crossposted to some communities)

"I can't hear berry well."

"Oh really?"

"Yeah."

"Something wrong with your ears?"

"Yeah. They're dying."

"They're dying?"

"Yeah."

"Oh, so you need some hearing aids?" (like her brother)

"Yeah. I need hearing aids. I need Princess hearing aids."

Just attended the first meeting for the 2008 Oregon Zoo bond measure. I'm encouraging everyone in the Metro area to support the measure, and donate if you can. It's part of an effort to turn the Oregon Zoo into the greenest zoo in North America. It's pricey ($125 million) but the money goes for major renovations and expansions of substandard elephant and polar bear exhibits, replacement of the antiquated veterinary hospital, and a massive investment in water and sewage systems that will save almost 12 million gallons of water per year and dramatically reduce waste.

The campaign is rolling out right now. At this point, they're passing out Our Zoo Needs You bumper stickers as a teaser (there's no number assigned to the measure yet), and hoping to eventually arrange things so people who google that phrase will go to the campaign website.

I missed the beginning of the 25K run because I slept right through my watch alarm. Luckily, I knew the route, so I ran about a half mile to join the group at their 1.75 mile mark. Did pretty well, although the last couple miles were about 10% running and 90% walking. I did have a bit of a Superman moment when I raced a freight train to the crossing and got there just in time to beat the arm coming down. Yes, it was a very slow-moving train, but the important thing here is that I outran it.

When I reached the staging area at Conway I doubled back so I could run (or, at this point, mostly walk) the full 25K course. After that I went to Saturday Market and pigged out, on the rationale that I needed a protein fix. "Protein fix" is a great excuse to eat a bacon cheeseburger. I don't really have any excuse for the cinnamon roll, though.

Thing is, I'm feeling pretty good. I went back to my office to crash for a bit, and found I didn't need much of a nap. My speed is never gonna be anything to write about (outrunning creeping freight trains notwithstanding), but I think my endurance and recovery are getting better.