Hide and Seek

I've been hiding recently, which would explain why it's been over two weeks since I last posted anything. Don't feel bad, I've posted to Facebook with about as much regularity and haven't read a blog in weeks. I guess I've taken an internet sabbatical, although it's not been quite as productive as a true sabbatical.

Thank you for continuing to seek me while I've been hiding. I'm still amazed that people read this blog and I appreciate your willingness to stop by and stare at the same image for a couple of days in a row. You are all wonderful, far better than I deserve. And I'm ready to post. I'm out of hiding and things are starting to look up.

First and foremost I'm starting to slow down on my reading. Since I last posted here I've read eight books. I finished two in the last three days. I'm finally reaching a point where I'm ready to come back online.

Secondly I've been going through a bit of an antisocial period. Am I the only one who has these? I go through periods where I don't really want to talk or email. I retreat into my own head for a while and do nothing more social than go to work and occasionally talk to Jeff. This has been one of the more intense antisocial periods I've had. I've had emails piling up, friends I should call, Facebook statuses to update, and all I've been doing is sitting on the couch eating chocolate and reading. Not the most productive period of time.

And lastly, although I've missed writing the blog, I've been writing other things. I'm back to writing stories which make me incredibly happy. Nothing I can talk about yet but I'll keep you posted. So with all that said, I'm back. And feeling a bit refreshed.

Mid Week Image

I'm still working on what to call my Wednesday habit of posting just a picture. So far you guys have mostly let me get away with it. I have almost no time on Wednesday but I figure I've been so irregular about posting that I'll post whenever I think about it. The title Mid Week Image works, at least this week.

This is Karl Lagerfeld's living room. For those of you who don't know, Lagerfeld was the head of the Chanel house of fashion until he started his own design firm. And in my opinion he has exquisite taste in decorating. Those are all books and magazines. That is exactly the kind of wall I want to have in my house. Gorgeous.

Guess What I'm Reading

I've been on a bit of a reading jag lately. I spent most of Sunday and Monday on the couch reading book after book. I finished three books this weekend. But it was my reading on Monday that left the best impression. It was a chance to escape the dreary winter and find myself in aristocratic England. You see, I'm reading Wodehouse.

I've been reading Jeeves stories for the last couple of years but yesterday was the first time I spent my whole day immersed in the world of gentlemen's gentlemen, where the biggest struggle is about which socks to wear and who is in love with who. For those of you who haven't been introduced to Jeeves, the ultimate valet, it's good to have a bit of background. The stories (and there are many) focus on Bertram Wooster, Bertie to his friends. Wooster is a gentleman which means that he lives on a stipend and spends most of his days in exclusive clubs and attending fancy dinners. He's also a bit of an idiot. He and his friends are constantly getting into problems. And Jeeves is constantly getting them out. He's brilliant, witty, and always one step ahead. He's also reserved, tactful, and a snappy dresser.

P.G. Wodehouse's writing is filled with politeness, humor, and plenty of twists and turns. The writing itself is genteel, particularly where Jeeves comes in. The British humor takes a bit to get used to but the stories are hilarious. There is some great banter between Wooster and Jeeves. They play well together. For those who are interested in a bit more silly humor, you only need to wait for Wooster to do something stupid. It won't take long. This weekend I read Stiff Upper Lip, Jeeves; Carry On Jeeves, and The Inimitable Jeeves. I laughed, I was surprised, and I couldn't set the book down.

For those of you with a less literary bent, you can watch the Jeeves and Wooster TV episodes that the BBC did. In the series, Jeeves is played beautifully by Stephen Fry and Wooster is done by Hugh Laurie. The two together are priceless. I would recommend reading the stories first and then watching the episodes. Both will leave you in stitches.

HeroRats

I love to read stories about animals, particularly happy stories about animals. So when I found a story about the HeroRat program on Amusing Planet, I knew I had to write about it. HeroRats is a program started by an organization named APOPO in Sub-Sahara Africa. The organization was looking to find a way to deal with the huge numbers of unexploded landmines that harmed hundreds of innocent citizens every year. A standard program of sweeping with mine sweepers was too slow and dangerous. So the group came up with a novel solution.

What they suggested was using rats to find landmines. Rats have an amazing sense of smell and are light enough not to trip a landmine. The rats were sent into the fields to cover it inch by inch. When the smelled a landmine they would sit up, and receive a food reward. The mine clearers would then enter the field and deactivate the mine. I wonder how many mines they have found over the years but I can imagine that there have been hundreds of lives saved. Over the last couple of years, the rats role has changed to include illness detection. They can sniff out TB faster than any doctor can.

The rats are trained using positive reinforcement for three months and then sent out to serve. The company has found that African Giant Poached Rats work well. They live for a long time and learn quickly. They are also incredibly cute. They are used mostly in Tanzania and Mozambique which had a huge number of mines. You can check out the profiles of these unusual animal heroes at their website. You can also sponsor a rat if you would like. I'm in awe of this program. The rats are treated well and save lives on a daily basis. Both the rats and trainers are heroes in my book.

What Fools These Mortals Be

We're dealing with a blizzard. It's been snowing off and on since yesterday morning and it's escalated into a full blizzard. Many of the interstates and highways in the state are closed. The rest are Travel not Advised. I'm a home listening to the wind howl. I'm also contemplating my upcoming car repairs. The Corolla decided that today would be a great day to die. It's not been a good day. I could use some cheering up. Thank goodness this weekend was so much fun. The memories help.

Jeff and I headed out of town this past weekend to visit friends in Minneapolis. Two of our friends were performing in a version of Midsummer Night's Dream and we decided last minute to go up to see the show. Jeff dropped me off and picked me up from work on Friday and we headed out right at 5. The roads were good and we made fantastic time. We got there early enough to spend some time playing video games with our friend Jon until we were all too tired to keep our eyes open.


The next day we met the same friend for some breakfast at our favorite little diner in Uptown and then went shopping. We ended up in my new Mecca, a fantasy game store called The Source. As we were heading in I turned to Jeff and said, "You're probably going to want me to hand over my wallet." I could have spent most of my life savings in that store. I left with just a book and a business card. I'll be back.


After some shopping we met our friends Lon and Lisa for a quick but wonderful dinner. Then left just in time to meet more friends at the theater. I had been warned that the show was a bit of a different version of the Bard's tale. I didn't realize how different. I wish we had brought our camera. This was a show to remember.


Our friend Megan played Hermia, a lead role, and was just incredible. She sang, she wept, she got kissed. And she was fantastic. It was incredible to watch her up there. Our friend Josh played Snout, the Tinker. He got a ton of laughs and played the role with a constant smirk. It was a great role for him. The show was unconventional to the extreme. Helena was played by a drag queen. The faeries were goth dancers. And the ending is a surprise that even I wouldn't give away. Needless to say, this version wasn't exactly what Shakespeare had written. The performance was pitch perfect. I laughed so hard my face hurt by the end. Everyone played their roles well. I only wish I had gotten some pictures.


After the show we headed out for a drink or two with Jon and our friend Dan. It was nice to just get a chance to sit and relax. We told stories and talked until about 11 and then Jeff and I headed back to the hotel. The next morning (after being rudely awakened by a drunken wedding party that decided that hotel halls are for yelling) we headed home along the back roads. It was a great weekend, filled with friends. I loved the show and loved the chance to hang out. I sometimes wish we lived up North. Sometimes. Not today though. I'm not looking forward to all that snow tomorrow. Brrr.


PS. If you live up in the Twin Cities area, they will be performing Midsummers again this coming weekend. It is well worth the $5 admission.