42

Today is October 10, 2010. 10/10/10. In binary, that's 42, which just happens to be The Ultimate Answer to the Ultimate Question. Maybe I should do something meaningful today. Maybe. I probably wont.

more Kaua'i pictures

Brittany and I just flew back from Kaua'i yesterday. Boy are our arms tired. Here are some more of the pictures I took over there:

Here is a picture of dogs eating a chicken:

Brittany and I came across this scene while walking to dinner one night. At first, we thought the chicken was a coconut. We figured out what it really was after it moved. It wasn't completely dead. Just mostly dead. It was kind of gruesome. So I took a bunch of pictures.

Here are a couple new pictures of Brittany and Jack. Jack's growing fast!

You can see the vicious dogs in the background in the picture above.

photography

Now that I have a new camera, I'm getting back into photography. I used google maps a lot while on Kaua'i, and I kept getting distracted looking at people's photos on there. I signed up for Panoramio and started geotagging some of my photos. You can find them here.

craft beer!

Tacoma's Craft Beer Festival is this weekend! I'm really excited about it, even though I wont be able to go. I'll be at work the whole time. But, it's still cool that this event is taking place in Tacoma, right on the Foss.

This event is so important to me that I wrote and published an entire article all about it. Whew. That took a lot out of me.

I'm so lazy.

Read it here.

nature

We rented a really old tandem bicycle from the shop at the end of the street our condo's on. We followed the bike path to where it ends. Someone took this picture for us at Kealia beach. I forgot how painful bike seats can be. We had a really nice ride after we figured out how to balance on a tandem.

The hen in the foreground of this picture seemed especially protective of her chicks.

It's kind of hard to see what's going on in this shot, but one of her chicks was hiding between her legs.

This guy seemed to like me.

We found this parrot perched behind a coffee shop in Kiluea, near the farmers' market.

There are what look like pea pods growing beneath this flower.

aloha

Listen:
Brittany and I are in Kaua'i. I've been reading Breakfast of Champions to Brittany and Jack. I'm a little worried that he's going to become a huge racist. I'm not sure he's able to pick up on some of the subtler points yet. Maybe he can. He seems to be pretty smart for a fetus.

Anyway, it's been mostly sunny. This is the view from our deck at the Mokihana:

Here is a picture of what Brittany ate for dinner Wednesday night:

I ate the same thing. It was delicious. We bought organic salad greens with edible flowers and dill from the Kapa'a farmer's market, along with carrots, papaya, key limes, a lemon, a young coconut, a huge avocado and a Hawaiian hot pepper that made me cry just a little bit. After I ate it, I looked like this:

We've just been hanging out around Kapa'a since we arrived on the island the other night. We've done a lot of walking. Here's Brittany and Jack in front of some flowers by the Taco Bell drive-thru:

I've taken a lot of flower pictures around the Mokihana. Here's one:

The birds and the bees seem to like buzzing around the top of this very odd tree with branches covered in seed pods or clusters of berries that branch out from the top like antennae. It's right next to the door to our room.

We've seen 147 chickens since we got here. I'll photograph some of them tomorrow.

New Nikon

My new camera came in the mail today. I took some pictures today while trying to figure out how to use it. Here's one of Brittany and Jack!

I need to take more pictures of Brittany while she's pregnant. Jack will be here soon. Time is flying by.

Skinner stalked this guy for a while.

My raspberry plant has seen better days, but I found a couple berries this morning that looked almost ripe.

It's a boy!

Brittany just had her 20 week ultrasound this morning, and we found out she's carrying a happy, active fetus named Jack! More updates to come soon. I have to go to work now.

Farmers Market Week in Washington State

To recognize their growing importance to consumers, farmers and the economy, Gov. Chris Gregoire, the Washington State Department of Agriculture (WSDA) and the Washington State Farmers Market Association (WSFMA) are celebrating Farmers Market Week in Washington Aug. 1-7.

Check out my article on the subject here.

In other news, some guy (pictured left) went to the hospital thinking he'd been shot in the head, but really, he'd only been hit by a bottle of water.

According to a criminal complaint:

Police were called Thursday night after the man went to Aurora Sheboygan Memorial Medical Center with what he said was a gunshot wound to the head. He told police his sister or her friend shot him with a small gun.

He was incorrect.

Here's the whole story.

The end of history

Brewer's description:

The impact of The End of History is a perfect conceptual marriage between art, taxidermy and craft brewing. The bottles are at once beautiful and disturbing – they disrupt conventions and break taboos, just like the beer they hold within them.

Baby tigers

We went to Point Defiance yesterday. Someone was nice enough to offer to take a picture of us (all three of us) in front of some of the bamboo Brittany planted in the Asian exhibit the summer after she graduated from high school.

We went to see the zoo's new tiger cubs, and their mother, Jaya. I wrote an article all about it.

Antique

Brittany and I picked up an antique high chair the other day at Broadway's Best Antiques on Antiques Row. It's from the twenties or thirties, and it's in almost perfect condition. Assistant Director Skinner seems to like it.

It was very cleverly designed and hand-made in America. There's a crank that you turn to convert it from rocking chair to high chair. It's crazy to think that the baby this chair was originally built for is a very, very old person today if he or she is alive at all.

Here you go, Mary.

It's been a while since I've posted pictures of pregnant Brittany. She's in her 16th week now. We took these last night.

Ethnic Fest 2010

Tacoma's annual Ethnic Fest will be held this weekend at Wright Park. And it should be more than just an experiment in racial profiling...

It had been about a month since I'd last written and published an article, but earlier this afternoon I managed to complete one. Guess what it's about...

Brittany and I went to Ethnic Fest last year, and it was a lot of fun. She bought shoes, and I ate a lot of food. Speaking of Brittany, she is now in her 16th week of pregnancy and showing even more. I'll post some pictures soon.

This week, baby's facial muscles are supposed to develop enough to make it possible for him or her to squint, frown or try other facial expressions.

Census

This morning I had what was probably my last Census meeting. I think my work as an enumerator is over. I'll find out for sure later this week. It's been an interesting job. But I don't think I'll miss it too much.


Census Visits Providing Shut-Ins Once-A-Decade Chance For Human Interaction

Party at the library

There's a party at the library tomorrow. Sort of.

The kick-off event for Tacoma's summer reading program is happening tomorrow in the parking lot of the main library downtown.

There will be a fire truck. And a bouncy house. And face painting. And some guy named Gary who blows bubbles.

Week 9

Starting to show a little bit!

Jazz and Blues

By the way, Tacoma's seventh annual Jazz and Blues Festival is taking place tomorrow downtown.

7 weeks

We took the first photos of Brittany's pregnancy a couple nights ago, the last night of week seven. She's now in her eighth week. It's gone by fast so far.

It all still seems pretty unreal. Maybe it will be easier for me to fully comprehend Brittany's pregnancy when she starts really showing. Maybe not. People keep telling me I wont really be able to understand all this until after the fact, after the baby is born. I'm really excited, but I can't completely wrap my mind around what's going on inside my wife right now. I don't think there's any way to really anticipate the changes that are going to take place in our lives over the coming months.

Broadway Farmers Market

The Broadway Farmers Market opened this morning. I took a break from my Census duties, and Brittany and I walked over and ate some corn on the cob in the rain. It was good.

I wrote an article all about it.

Happy Mother's Day...

Brittany is pregnant! We found out late Thursday night after Brittany got home from work and had a feeling she was. We ran out and bought a couple home tests and, sure enough, she was right. I bought her a card and a Stargazer lily for her as a surprise Mother's Day gift. Little did we know, a much bigger surprise was coming.

While we were at her first doctor's appointment, Skinner decided to eat the pollen out of the lilies. It didn't agree with him, to say the least. We came home to a mess on our bedroom floor, and a sad kitty. But he seemed happy and playful later in the day, so we thought nothing of it. For a while. Not until later that evening when Brittany's parents stopped by for a visit, and they told us lilies were poisonous to cats and humans. Skinner seemed perfectly fine at that point, so we still didn't think too much of it. I just moved the flowers to a place where the cat couldn't reach them.

The next morning I was feeling nervous about the situation, and I started looking up information about lily poisoning in cats. What I found sounded pretty dire. Skinner's symptoms were exactly as I read online. I called the vet, in a panic, and was told to bring him in right away. So, long story short, my first Mother's Day gift to my wife nearly killed our cat.

But, don't worry too much. Skinner should be fine. He spent three days in the hospital hooked up to an IV to flush the toxins out of his system. Cat's systems don't have the proper enzyme to metabolize the toxins of lilies, and that leads to renal failure, which leads to kidney failure, which leads to dead kitties. But, thankfully, the poisons were flushed from Skinner's system in time to save him, and now he's back at home with us.

We picked him up from the vet earlier this afternoon. He's almost back to normal. He wont stop licking the two shaved patches on his legs were the IV was connected, and where his blood was drawn. But I'm sure he's happy to to be able to, now that the cone of shame has been removed from around his neck.

Brittany is early in her sixth week of pregnancy, and she's doing great. We are both very, very excited. Her first doctor's appointment went really well. She has decided to have her pre- and post-natal care done through the Pearl Place Women's Center in Tacoma, which means that she will be able to deliver our baby at the Birthing Inn. Just visiting the Birthing Inn last Monday was a very emotional experience for both of us. We are very optimistic!

Bike to work

I just wrote an article about bike to work week, which is all next week in Pierce County. There are also a couple bike maintenance classes this week, two of which are free. I'd ride my bike to work if it hadn't been stolen earlier this year...

Zzzzzzz...

I have finally gotten around to writing another article since starting the Census job last week. The Proctor District is hosting an event to benefit breast cancer this Thursday, which I just realized is today. Here's the article. Now I'm going to bed.

The beach at Gaza city

Click the pic. The article is pretty interesting.

Federal agent

It's warm enough outside right now for me to comfortably sit at a table at my apartment building's patio without having to wear a parka or winter hat, or anything at all made of wool. It's getting dark enough that I am beginning to be able to see the words that I'm typing on my laptop.

I've been outside for the past couple hours because inside, the whole building smells like sulfur. I'm not sure what went on earlier today on the Tacoma tide flats, but whatever took place stunk up all of downtown; it's very unfortunate that the wind has been blowing northeast all afternoon. Now the stink is stuck inside.

I am now officially a federal employee. I'll get a badge soon, or at least an official ID, probably on a lanyard. Now I can scream, “federal agent,” when I knock on people's doors, just like Mulder and Scully. Maybe not; I'm not entirely sure what this census work entails. I've only had one day of training. I guess I will find out the details next week as I will be training every day, Monday through Friday.

I'm still working at the New Frontier. I'm going to try to juggle both jobs. I may even write an article or two, if inspiration strikes. Or if I think of an easy article idea. I wrote this article yesterday. And, surprise, it is actually relevant to people who live outside of Tacoma.

Tomorrow I work at the New Frontier. It will be the first of at least ten straight work days. Sigh.

Impending success?

The last three Examiner.com articles I have written have all made it to number 1 most popular on the Tacoma section, if only for brief moments, including this one.

Artwalk and wine tasting

Tomorrow will be the third Thursday of April. That happened fast, right?. In any case, that means it's Artwalk, which means I probably wrote an article about it. Here's the link. The Dock Street Sandwich company will host a wine tasting during it, which I would attend if I were not already planning on going to Jake's-they have 17 IPAs on tap right now. I'm going to try them all. Maybe.

Afraid to fly

I've been seeing Rod Brown, my old hang gliding instructor everywhere. Well, I haven't actually seen him anywhere, but I keep thinking I see him - especially while I'm at work. He's even found his way into my dreams; I've had a lot of odd dreams about hang gliding lately, and about odd people I met throughout my training. I did meet a lot of very strange characters along the way. Who would have thought, right?

Yesterday Brittany and I drove down to Portland to visit her Great Aunt Allison. We had a great time and ate a lot of really delicious food at a restaurant called Veritable Quandary, which is probably the best restaurant name I've ever heard of, and at one point in our conversation, she mentioned the fact that current research indicates that people don't fully develop the capacity to understand the consequences of their actions until around age 24. Interesting, right? Maybe that has something to do with why I suddenly became terrified of the sport. I think I have some unresolved feelings, though.

I've been looking through old hang gliding pictures lately, and I've though a lot about how I used to take a lot more risks. And I'm not just talking about hang gliding specifically, I mean in life in general. I feel ready to try something new; I'm getting bored.

Paid sick days for all?

In Tacoma, 41,000 workers – 41% – have no paid sick leave. According to recent national statistics, 78% of restaurant workers, 55% of retail workers and even 29% in health care don’t have sick leave. The Coalition for a Healthy Tacoma is trying to help Tacoma become the fourth city in the nation to implement a paid sick day law. I just published an article all about it.

Google broadband

Google recently announced the company is getting ready to build and test a new high-speed broadband network. Interestingly, the company is allowing people to nominate their hometowns to be a part of the test. Pretty cool, right? I just wrote an article about the city of Tacoma's involvement. I embedded a video and everything.

There's a wine tasting tomorrow evening at the Dock Street Sandwich Company. I went to a tasting there a couple months ago, and it was actually a lot of fun. The food was really good, as were the wines, although the pours were not very generous. But it did only cost five bucks. Still...

Happy St. Patrick's Day

I just published an article about what's going on in Tacoma this St. Patrick's Day. Hopefully someone will read it.

Lured into the web

Early one morning in Bellingham about three years ago, I was standing on the sidewalk outside the Horseshoe Cafe when a black SUV pulled up to the curb. I had no idea at the time, but I had just witnessed The Black Widow. The Western Front recently posted an article about her. Or him, I suppose.

My encounter with the The Black Widow was pretty inspiring, I have to admit. Inspiring enough so for me to incorporate the event as a detail in the short story, The Empire of the Owl, which has received mediocre reviews on Trigger Street.

No one worry, though. I was not lured into the web. I did watch a crazy man get into her car, though. But I think that was for some sort of business transaction that did not involve penises.

New exhibit to open at the Traver Gallery Saturday

The colorful, expressive works of Mary Josephson will soon be on display at the Traver Gallery. I really like going to the Traver Gallery; I do so at least once a month or so. It's right down the hill from me, just on the other side of the Chihuly Glass Bridge. I never stay for too long, but it's nice to just walk around there and stare at things. There's so much art there in the Vetri side of the building that I would buy if I had any money. Anyway, I just wrote an article for examiner.com about the new gallery. Take a look.

Trivia night

It looks like Rebel Mondays aren't going to happen at the New Frontier anymore. Instead, O'Malley's will host Rebel Monday's with Jason Diamond from now on. I'm not entirely sure how this all happened, but I'm betting O'Malley's offered more money, which is unfortunate for me since the only reason I started working Monday's at the New Frontier was because Reggae Night brought in customers.

We'll have to figure out something else to do Monday nights at the New Frontier now. Maybe a live reggae band? Maybe a trivia night?

It's trivia night tonight at a couple different places downtown. Three places if you count the Engine House on 6th Avenue. The Harmon and Doyle's both have pub quizzes this evening. Here is an article I wrote about Wednesday night trivia in downtown Tacoma.

Cowboys and Indians

Brittany and I now live right next to the Cow Boy Club. It used to be the Fight Club.

It's right next door to the Tahoma Indian Center. Is conflict inevitable? My guess is yes.