Thanksgiving

This blog is basically off the air for now, but below are some pictures from an unusually snowy Semiahmoo over Thanksgiving. All of these pictures were taken from my bedroom windows. I'll be posting family pics to Photobucket sometime in the next few weeks.

It's a Bird, It's a Plane...

There are few things in life better than dogs in Halloween costumes. Brooklyn (Superdog) and Sierra (Guinevere) belong to my nephew and his wife.

Sweden

On October 13th of last year I left for Sweden. With the nine hour time difference, I arrived in Copenhagen on October 14th; then Peter and I crossed over the Baltic Sea on "The Link". It definetly feels like a year has passed. That part doesn't seem surreal. What seems surreal to me is that I spent 10 weeks in a place I thought I could only dream about. Although I'd been to Europe five times previously, EnglandFranceSpainItaly just seemed like your standard American abroad fare, almost Disneyland-ish. Wonderful and enriching to visit those countries, yes, but somehow not exotic.

Scandinavia always seemed like an entirely separate entity to me, as though further north implied being further along to some kind of promised land (my inner compass has always gravitated north rather than south). One of my icebreaker questions when I hosted Dinner with Friends events was "If you could travel anywhere, where would you go?" I remember the first time I put the answer on my own name tag, I had chosen Australia. I remember writing that in with a bit of a shrug like, yeah, sure, I'd like to go there. The next time I used that icebreaker / name tag question I thought about it more carefully and put 'Scandinavia'. It's funny what I pictured when I wrote that. I saw cottages on snowy hillsides and northern lights and tall, beautiful blonde men. I think I pictured Norway first, then Sweden.

Once again Scandinavia seems out of reach. Although I'm thrilled to have seen Sweden and have spent a few hours in Denmark, I never made it to Norway even though it was only a five hour drive away (I remember Peter's friend Kirsten offering to let me drive her car. Always a nervous person I stammered "Oh, thanks, but I've never driven in a foreign country." She shrugged and said "Green you go. Red you stop."

I have no idea when or if I will go back to Sweden. I miss the North Sea and the autumn leaves and the windmills. And of course I miss Peter. We have moments when we talk on the phone or online and seem to remember how strong a connection we have. But there are other times when we don't have any contact at all for up to three weeks at a time. And I never hear the words "Jag alskar dig". Not nearly as pretty as the French "Je t'aime", but hey, I'd love to hear them anyway. I don't know why the Swedes even have such a phrase in their language. Maybe they say it to their children.

If it doesn't work out with Peter, maybe I can meet a Norweigan man online...
I know, I'm crazy.

Bad Hair Day

Portal

Chakra Red

The Farm

Blair and I went to lunch the other day at a place called 'The Farm'. It was suprisingly bucolic for metro Phoenix. Amazingly, it was possible to sit outside and enjoy it (copious over-sized standing umbrellas helped).
We both had sandwiches that featured what the menu should have described as "our homemade razor-crust bread". Crusty was not the word for this baguette.It would have been better suited to species with fangs. It was the kind of bread so heavy and dense you could break a window with it. Other than that the food was great and it was a nice escape from our rather homely and insane work environment.

Said homely and insane working environment features myriad distractions, the two most pervasive being giggle woman : "A-hee-hee-hee a-hee-hee-hee" all day every day. Hyena in a cubicle. Horrible. And then there's basketball boy, 23 going on 9 who dribbles a miniature and surprisingly loud basketball down the aisle before dunking it in the little hoop mounted on his desk. Precious.

So, do I hate my work environment? Surprisingly no. I'd rather have chaos, ridiculous amounts of work and too much noise than a deathly quiet and boring work place. But yes, I could definetly live without giggle woman and basketball boy...

Afternoon Road Trip

My environment for the past seven months has consisted of a cubicle in a big, noisy, open room with windows only in the far distance, and (due to general discomfort with my roommate) being relegated to my small bedroom where the only window faces a wall.
After Dave and I went out to lunch today he asked me what I wanted to do. I thought about it for a minute and said "I think I really need to go out for a drive." Sweet guy that he is, he readily agreed.

He asked where I wanted to go. Unsure, I suggested somewhere with cactus. He pointed at one in the front yard of the house we were passing. I conceded that he had a good point. I'm already surrounded by cacti. So I left it up to him.

We drove west, into downtown Glendale.

Then further west until we were heading out of the suburbs. Dave said he had a destination in mind. Since he had first mentioned driving out to an air force base, I wasn't particularly excited to know what the destination was. All I knew was it felt great to be out of the city.

All of a sudden we came upon fields of tulips in every color of the rainbow (ok, maybe not blue). We were going 60 mph, so what I got when I tried to capture them was this:

Ok, I really like this picture. Those of you with a strongly-expressed 'S' (Sensing) in your Myers Briggs makeup may see only a white blur. But as a laughably strongly-expressed 'N' (Intuitive)it speaks to me of dreams and memories and the motion that accompanies the whirlwind of the pre-conscious mind. Maybe I need to rephrase that, but in any event look to the left and right of the white blur and you will see the color of the flowers.

I was happy to see what our destination was when we reached it...

But Blogspot is not letting me add any more photos to this post, so I will have to create a separate entry.

Afternoon Road Trip Part 2

So here's what our destination turned out to be:

This is not the Phoenix zoo. This is a private one, with white tigers, white alligators and uh, animals with colors. Only one problem: When we got there at 4:00 pm the gate was closed.

To see what we didn't see, go to www.wildlifeworld.com
No worries, it was great just to get out and see the stark beauty of the area.

Still Life with Lemons

I walked into the backyard this morning. I don't go out there that often, except to practice my new favorite hobby which is talking on the phone while sitting on the edge of the pool with my feet in the water. It's the perfect way to cool off without messing up your hair. Or having to get any exercise. Anyway, I walked out there this morning and saw that it had rained lemons. I kid you not, the epitome of lemonyness is a lemon that has fallen slightly green from the tree then ripened in the hot Arizona sun. Slicing one open is to be infused with happiness. If I had to use an amorphous term to describe the scent I'd choose 'optimism'.

Tidbits

Yes, I had a great time in Las Vegas and yes it did breathe new life into me. I don't know what it says about me, but Las Vegas is one of my favorite spots on earth. I always seem to end up with men whose idea of a great vacation is some crappy remote place out in the country. While I definetly need and love a nature fix now and then, given a choice between a cabin in the woods and a room overlooking the Bellagio fountains...well, it's no secret which I'd choose.

Peter and I were talking on Messenger about a work-related boating trip he'd taken recently. He said he "cought ten makrill". Now I'm an admitted spelling and grammar hag, but for some reason Peter's little ESL-isms always strike me as adorable. He once asked me if he was using the correct spelling for "coffy". I told him no, but asked him to keep spelling it that way. He has.

What's happening with me and Peter? (and no, it's not 'Peter and I' dammit)
Let's just say time will tell.

I am applying for a job transfer to Seattle. Between seeing Seattle friends in Las Vegas and talking to some others on the phone recently, I realize I really want to be back 'home'. I also want to live closer to my parents.

There are a few people I will miss here (three guesses who I will NOT miss? Key word: Chili. Nickname...well, you either know who it is at this point or you don't) Anyway, I will miss my best friend at work, Blair. It is a friendship I never would have foreseen. She is literally half my age, but we are both Jewish, dog lovers, and avid readers and for whatever reason (she's mature for her age, I'm immature for mine and we meet half way?) we are just really compatible. I will miss a few of my other coworkers as well. And yes Dave, I will miss you.

I am hoping to see a little more of the southwest before I go. I might go with a coworker to Mexico. I've never been there and I figure it warrants a day trip.

I was going to post a notice that I'm not going to be keeping up the blog for a while. However I think I will keep posting at least erratically for a while. Hopefully once I'm in a better place and better frame of mind I'll start posting on a regular basis again.

It could happen in the Swedish countryside...

Peter may come in for Thanksgiving. If he doesn't it's because his passive-aggressive ex, Elisabeth, has created a new scheme to make the divorce proceedings even more complicated. As Peter was telling me about it, I muttered "I wish she would get run over by a truck" (I don't really wish this, I just wish she would stop making things so difficult). Peter didn't hear what I said and asked me to repeat it. Stammering a bit I said "Um, I wish Elisabeth would...get her head bitten off by a moose."

Actually I do kind of like the thought of that. And from the way Peter laughed I think he was momentarily amused by it too.

This blog entry has no title

Why have I not been blogging much lately? Because I try to keep this blog lighthearted. Because I endeavor to share with you only the Gee!-rated activities in my life, not the dank underworld of my conscious mind. Because I think "Wendy's Adventures in Phoenix" is a better blog title than "Wendy's Pitifully Futile Quest for Happiness".

I think it's entirely possible that I have a reverse form of Seasonal Affective Disorder. I think too much sun makes me depessed. Or maybe it's that I now realize I will never see Peter again. This is kind of absolutely and completely excruciating because for once I really let my guard down and loved deeply and look where it got me. I know if this were an unusual story the entire country music industry would not exist, but I don't take comfort in this (neither in country music- which by the way is the actual name of a student at the university where I work- or the fact that others have had similar experiences).

I'm hoping my trip to Las Vegas next weekend breathes some new life into me. Las Vegas has three things that I love (four if you include roller coasters): Distractions, convenience, and flow. What I call distractions other may call diversions, but the word distractions suits my purposes right now. I love Vegas' sensory overload, the riot of color, the crowds, the noise. I also love that no matter what you need- whether it is a giant once-a-year-at-most Krispy Kreme chocolate glazed donut at 4 pm or an escape from the 4 am insomnia that ordinarily leaves you feeling like a zombie in a wretched dead underworld- it's available in Las Vegas. I think having a myriad of such conveniences is the ultimate luxury.
As mentioned, I also love the amount of flow in Las Vegas- ongoing movement and life force. Flowing fountains. Chi. Ahh....can't live without it (wait, I'm in Arizona. I am living without it). I love how everything moves in Las Vegas. I despise stillness. I've heard people talk about how the Gulf of Mexico is its most beautiful when it is as "still as glass". That would piss me off. Grrrr! I want pounding waves and crashing surf. I want a big fat reminder that I am alive. Hopefully I'll get it next weekend. It will be great to see my Seattle friends too.

My next blog entry is going to be pictures of some of the soap I've made. In other words, a return to our regularly scheduled programming. Thank you for bearing with me.

Monday Morning Dread

When I was in training for my job, back in March, a group of fellow trainees and I were having lunch when I brought up the concept of Monday morning dread. If you like your job, I explained, Monday morning dread is mild and doesn't occur until about 9 pm Sunday evening. However, if you're like I was the year I taught 5th grade, Monday morning dread occurs around 6 pm Friday evening. Everyone at my table liked the idea of Monday morning dread as a measurement gauge for job satisfaction.

In recent weeks my MMD has started Sunday morning on average. I push it aside the best I can. I spent this morning and part of the afternoon making earrings- really nice ones. The joy of the design process and the at-times maddening process of making tiny perfect loops to finish each one off definetly takes my mind off the mundane.

In other news....there isn't much other news. I'm going to Las Vegas in a few weeks and am excited about that. I've started walking again in the evenings once it's cooled down to about 95. For some reason there's always a breeze "A breeze!" you say "that's nice!" No, it's not. It's like someone is walking backward in front of you holding a blow dryer in your face.

Er...hopefully I'll have a more upbeat blog entry later this week.

M B Outta here

What's a nice creative, imaginative, non-competitive, and empathic person like me doing in an MBA program like this? Leaving it, that's what. While my journey into the linear territory of corporate machinations has been interesting, it's not where I live so I'm out of here. In the ten months I wast.., I mean spent, a new Masters in Education has been added. The program I'm switching to has an emphasis in adult education and distance learning, which is right up my alley. I'm genuinely excited about school now (instead of resigned).

I started the MBA program because I wanted to be practical. Practical isn't always practical.

Rorschach Test

Dust Devil

Dave and I were out for a drive yesterday when I saw something that looked like smoke from a controlled fire. As we got closer to it I saw that there was nothing burning. Instead there was what appeared to be a diminutive earth-toned tornado, just spinning around, doing its thing. Right as Dave was explaining to me that it was a dust devil, it turned a lighter color, lifted higher in the sky and then -poof-disappeared.

The N Word

The 'N' word is numbers. My eyes glaze over when I look at them.

I'm actually finding the basic accounting principles in MBA/503 to be interesting. I've gotten great grades so far on the accounting papers I've written (and for anyone who is interested in such things, my cumulative GPA is 3.8). However, tonight I am faced with ratios and ...more ratios. I couldn't tell you how many problems I have to solve, because I find an excuse to get up and do something else everytime my retinas are within five feet of said set of problems.

In my years of soul searching for my ideal career, I once asked a friend what he thought would be the profession that would least suit me . Without a moment's hesitation he said "Motorcycle stunt driver".

I think he was wrong. I am wholly unsuited to accounting.

Vroom, vroom....

How Cool is This?

I went to a party Saturday night where there was a movie screen set up by the pool. A swim-in movie. Why aren't these happening in every warm-weather city in the country? Dark Side of the Moon made it's second appearence back into my life this week (as the soundtrack to the Wizard of Oz). I got to revisit a side of myself I've been away from for too long.

Evening Walk

Dave

Let's just categorize Dave as a special friend...

He's a wonderful guy (despite having not one but two Bush/Cheney bumper stickers on his car).

This picture of us was taken in February, when I'd flown into Phoenix for my UOP interview. We were downtown by Cooper's Town, Alice Cooper's restaurant. Dave has lost about 20 pounds since this picture was taken. I, on the other hand, now that I'm a headset-tethered, pretzel-chomping cubicle dweller am doing my best to just maintain.

Pink Floyd and Valium

Highlight of my week: Getting off work three hours early to have a root canal. My coworkers envied me. Given the week we've all had, the majority of them would have chosen a root canal as a more pleasant way to spend an afternoon.

The endodonist's office didn't have nitrous. Darn...love the stuff. The last root canal I had was under nitrous and it was as relaxing as a day at the beach. I made it through this one with the help of 10 mg of Valium and Dark Side of the Moon on my personal CD player.

Cucumber-Melon Dolphins

Ok, I have another new hobby: Soap Making. No, not mixing it up with lye in a big cauldron like Granny on The Beverly Hillbillies- just melting glycerin soap in the microwave then pouring it into molds. It's kind of like making Jello (Jello is a highly undervalued art medium, in my opinion, with its jewel-like colors).

Anyway, after pouring the soap into the molds, I add color and essential oils. So far I've made lavender colored and scented seashells, green eucalyptus stars, blue cucumber-melon dolphins, and yellow lemongrass flowers.

Next step is to start adding stuff in the middle- like little cutouts from other colored soaps, etc. New Age-y chick that I am, I thought it might be cool to add crystals, rose quartz or amethyst.

I'd say I'm on the verge of ending up with ridiculous amounts of soap (Possibly making you the lucky recipient of gold peach-scented angels or turquoise freesia hearts) but I'm starting a new MBA class on Tuesday.

Accounting....wheee...

Maybe I'll be able to use it when I'm running my soap empire.

Could I possibly be more boring?

Hopefully I'll have some new blog entries by midweek.

View from a very tall ladder

WA Visit (A cactus- free blog entry!)

Ahhhh....waterrrrrr....
I spent Saturday in downtown Seattle with my friend Dee. We had lunch at the Nordstrom's Cafe, then went down to the waterfront. I fell in love with Seattle all over again.

Why aren't there more pink bridges?



Mom and Brandy

Blech!

At about 5:45 this evening, while I was still at work, I looked out the window and saw the sky had turned a brown-ish white. A minute later the lights flickered on and off and the air conditioning died (whee- just what you want to have happen in Phoenix). One of my coworkers turned to me and said "You live in Ahwatukee, right? That's where the heart of the dust storm is right now."

Choices, choices....stay in an airless building or walk the ten minutes to my car and drive home in flying dirt. I chose the latter and walked outside into dust so thick it was like smoke. I'd love to be a drama queen and tell you barn-sized tumbleweeds bounced off my windshield, but the truth of the matter is I made it home without incident.

What am I , a Whopper?

When I walked outside after work today the heat was so intense it felt like I was being flame broiled.

Do NOT tell me "But it's a dry heat..."

Ferrets in the Mist

I went to the home of one of my coworkers today (Jacque,the one who sits next to me). She taught me how to make beaded jewelery. I made a gorgeous necklace- not bad for a first time effort if I may say so myself. Jacque has four cats and two ferrets. All of said critters are very sweet. I was surprised by what nice pets the ferrets were. I always thought they were weird rodent-like creatures with scratchy coats. These guys were silky and loved being held. They were also very inquisitive. Here they are trying to get into the fruit I brought, inside the brown bag.


Now that the daytime high is over 100 degrees every day (average is about 103) many stores in Phoenix have these wonderful misters. In the seconds in which one enters or exits the store they are treated to a brisk, refreshing microclimate of...85 degrees or so.

They walk...but do they talk?

I know my overactive imagination can be absurd, silly, and at times even childish, but is this or is this not an eight foot tall cactus woman walking down the street?

Assorted Groovy Foliage

Better than Fluorescent Lighting...

I like looking at the sky on my breaks from work. I've heard such a practice called "Cloud Therapy" (which would be a good name for a New Age band or their CD). When I look at the Phoenix sky it's usually just a vast expanse of blue with a mocking sun saying "Yeah, you wanted sunshine?? Whudda ya think of me now?? But I like the way the sky looked on this day.

Wherever I go, there I am (with my straw hat)

Yep, More Cacti

Puppy

My parents have very graciously been taking care of my beautiful Brandy Joy since I've been in Phoenix (as they did when I was in Sweden). I'm not sure when she will come out here. I've spent hours worrying about how she will adapt to Phoenix: "What if it's too hot for her?" "What is she gets stung by a scorpion while I'm at work?" "What if she's afraid of the nextdoor neighbor's dog?" "What if she tries to wee on a cactus?" I miss her beyond belief. I'm going back to Seattle for a visit soon and can't wait to see her.

Updated Sweden Blog

No, I haven't been back, but Peter sent me a great picture:

www.wendyinsweden.blogspot.com

I love this color