oh, the places we can go

Tonight, we had an awesome dinner with friends (thanks Ms J and Mr M!). The meal was very picture-worthy, but I didn't have my camera with me so I don't have a picture (although Ms J did offer to break out her camera, take a picture and send it to me). We had lamb, couscous, vegetables, pita bread with hummus and strawberries. The couscous was conveniently sitting near me on the table, so I just kept eating it.

Along with dinner, we got ideas for places to go in the coming months and I'm very excited and already day-dreaming. There's a music festival that apparently resembles something like Burning Man sans the drug culture that comes with that and the Exploratorium. I'm pretty sure that Poke has told me about this place before (because Poke and Mr Poke go to the most fun places). I'm looking forward to checking these places out. We already have meek little summer plans, but believe you me, anything should be better than last summer.

This summer, we're hoping to got to Apple Hill for all kinds of good summer fruits. Before or after that, we're not sure yet which, we're hoping to make a real quick stop in San Francisco to buy children's book in Italian at Cavalli Italian Book Store. Then, if Nana V has recovered enough from surgery, we're hoping to set up camp in Lake Isabella. It's been two years since our first (and last) family camping trip and we're anxious to get back.

I needed all of these good things to fantasize about because I've been a bit floudering lately. As the semester closes, I've been feeling that nothing semester-wise is as good as it should be. And, today, I was reminded just how sucky my academic writing is (I wasn't reminded in a bad way -- 'sucky' is totally my word -- and my writing really, really does need some major work). It's sometimes just hard to understand how I've gotten this far and still writing the way I do.

Okay, so, let's kill the sour note. We have tiramisu left over from last night and I think I'm going to go talk Cardo into sharing it with me right now.

Oh, and how could I forget, I also have Seattle to look forward to. Friends and I will be presenting papers at RSA, and Ms A and I are determined to see a bit of the sights.

updated wish list

So, I did one wish list on my Other blog and I have since bought both the Mimi the Sardine lunchbags and the Chico Bags. I haven't yet bought a house. :( I can't remember what else was on that list. Here're the top five things for now.


















































NO MORE EARTHQUAKES

And, oh yeah, world peace. (Or some of the rosemary, garlic flatbread from Silver Peak.)

P.S. I get a $.03 refund if I bring reusable bags to Safeway (sometimes) and a $.06 refund if I use them at Winco.
P.P.S. I'm off to do Pilates on the living room floor while listening to Josh Groban croon inside and the wind torment the crap out of my house outside.

...and more

Two more earthquakes in the last hour, around 3.somethings (low 3's). About 310 in the last three days. If the semester weren't still in, we'd be out of town by now because I am on the verge of all-out panic. (Like I might have mentioned a time or two, earthquakes make me irrational.)

Here's the newest e-mail we were sent (yes, I'm sharing it...please don't take back my TAship, and, no, I don't know what is up with all of the weird Ss. I've included the whole e-mail, even the disclaimer at the bottom).

-------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

The Reno area has experienced a noticeable increase in seismic activity since late February 2008. While the possibility of an earthquake of major significance is unlikely, the following important information is for you to review and share with others:

–ššššššššš A Town Hall meeting to discuss the recent seismic activity will take place on Tuesday, April 29, 2008 at 5:00 P.M. at the Jot Travis Student Union in the new “Lake” classroom. Presenters will include John Anderson, Director of the Nevada Seismological Laboratory, Jon Price, State Geologist and Director of the Nevada Bureau of Mines and Geology, Craig DePolo, Nevada Bureau of Mines and Geology, Ed Atwell, Emergency Management Coordinator for the University of Nevada, Reno.



–ššššššššš Students, faculty and staff are encouraged to remove heavy objects from walls and file cabinets. This includes televisions, large pictures, mirrors, etc. You are also encouraged to strap down computer monitors, books shelves and other large objects. Voluntary safety audits will take place in dorms and other buildings on campus to advise students and staff on the appropriateness of items which may hurt you if not removed.



–ššššššššš If an earthquakes strikes, DROP, COVER, AND HOLD ON! Take cover under a piece of furniture or against an inside wall. Stay indoors until the shaking stops and you're sure it's safe to exit. Stay away from windows. In a high-rise building, expect the fire alarms and sprinklers to go off during a quake.

–ššš ššššš If you are in bed, hold on and stay there, protecting your head with a pillow.

–šš šššššš If you are outdoors, find a clear spot away from buildings, trees, and power lines. Drop to the ground.

–ššššššššš If you are in a car, slow down and drive to a clear place (as described above). Stay in the car until the shaking stops. Other recommendations which are contrary to the DROP, COVER and HOLD ON ššššare not recommended. Research has shown that most injuries in U.S. earthquakes occur when people inside buildings attempt to move to a different location inside the building or try to leave. Quickly seeking a place of safety, such as under a sturdy table or desk, and moving as short a distance as possible to that place of safety, is recommended based on research.

–ššššššššš In research facilities, ensure that chemicals are properly secured, and after an event, caution is advised when opening hazardous materials storage cabinets and upright refrigerators and freezers since internal containers may have been knocked over or may fall out upon opening of the container door. Please assess your laboratory and office space for items that may be prone to tipping or falling during an earthquake. Hazardous chemicals should be stored in cabinets according to hazard class so that incompatible chemicals are not in close proximity, and secondary containment is recommended. Flammable liquids are of special concern since a release can easily result in fire, especially when these chemicals are stored near heat and spark sources. All compressed gas cylinders should be secured to prevent tipping since a sudden release of internal pressure can cause serious injury and facility damage, and the release of toxic and flammable gases present obvious additional concerns. Please contact Ben Owens (327-5196) or Mike Kivistik (784-4981) with the EH&S Department if you have questions or need assistance. The EH&S 24-hour emergency number is 327-5040.

–ššššššššš Information on counseling for students is available at http://www.unr.edu/stsv/cs/

–šššš Detailed information on home and office earthquake planning and preparedness, elimination of hazards, and other information is available at http://www.redcross.org/services/disaster/0,1082,0_583_,00.html

–ššššššššš Additional information specific to Nevada earthquake preparedness, survival and recovery can be obtained from the handbook “Living With Earthquakes in Nevada” available at http://www.seismo.unr.edu/ep/nvguide/nvguide.pdf

Please contact me or UNR Emergency Management Coordinator Ed Atwell at (775) 682-7247 if you have any questions.


Adam Garcia

Director

University of Nevada

Police Services



PUBLIC SERVICE IS A TRUST GIVEN IN FAITH AND ACCEPTED IN HONOR



The material in this e-mail is intended only for the use of the individual to whom it is addressed and may contain information that is confidential, privileged, and exempt from disclosure under applicable law. If you are not the intended recipient, be advised that the unauthorized use, disclosure,duplication, distribution, or the taking of any action in reliance on this information is strictly prohibited. If you have received this e-mail in error, please notify the sender by return email and then delete it immediately from your system. Please note that neither the University of Nevada, Reno Police Services nor the sender accepts any responsibility for viruses and it is your responsibility to scan attachments

...and more

I don't really want to write about it, but here's the link to a story about what's been going on here seismologically (I might have made that word up). It hasn't been fun. I might be making middle-of-the-night phone calls again tonight.

i don't drink so it must be an earthquake

Is it okay that I'm thinking of getting Pic up and inviting her to a slumber party under the dining room table?

As I've mentioned elsewhere, I am not a rational woman when it comes to earthquakes. Earlier this afternoon, during the second bigger earthquake (I know, I know, people in Japan and California and Alaska and Mexico and EVERYWHERE else are laughing at me because I'm using "big" to describe what we've been experiencing here), I grabbed Pic and pulled her under the dining room table with me. She started crying, not because of the earthquake, but because she didn't want to sit under the table, she wanted to watch the previously-mentioned My Little Ponies.

I'm predicting a long night of no sleep here because, really, earthquakes freak me out and my first instinct is to stand where I am and cry (thanks a whole freakin' ton, instincts). And, I have to stand in the middle of the living room, alone, crying my wonderfully irrational tears because Pic is sleeping amazingly soundly in her room (I just checked) and Cardo is sleeping soundly on the couch. In fact, my dearly beloved doesn't even feel these earthquakes. Earlier today, he came in from working on his car in the garage and told me, "I could see everything shaking, but I didn't feel anything." And, Pic was convinced earlier that Papi was outside doing something (what?) to make the house shake. So, I'm really just freaked out here on my own, thank you ever so much.

Oh, and the informative e-mail sent out through my school didn't do much to allay my panicking. (I would share said e-mail, especially considering it says that the information given is important for me to share, but this same e-mail is concluded with a warning that I may not copy any part of the e-mail or my fingers will be cut off (okay, so not really, but it does say that I can't copy the e-mail, because the campus police can't seem to make up their minds).) Let's just say, I'm having premonitions of dragging Pic under her tiny table in her bedroom, me screaming, "DROP! COVER! HOLD ON!"

the many woes

Today, Pic was watching a My Little Ponies movie (total karmic payback, I know) when I told Cardo that we needed to go to Costco and see if they had any discs so we could save our pictures on them (because we have a digital camera and the stereotypical hundreds of pictures that we might never again look at and I hate slogging through five hundred and thirty-two pictures trying to find the one I'm looking for). Pic's whole self, that was just miliseconds before wholly enrapt in My Little Ponies, perked up. "I want to go to Costco!" I'm not sure why it's so alluring, but at least she was agreeable about the trip she'd have to take whether she wanted to or not (I just don't know that Snuggles and Lucky are up to the task of pouring her juice and watercoloring with her).

About two minutes into the drive, Cardo says, "I hope this is enough gas to get us to Costco." I looked at the meter and he had about an ounce of gas left in the car. About two minutes after he said this, the warning light came on. We had to stop at a Shell station and put one gallon of gas in the car to tide us over until we got to Costco. When we arrived, every line for a pump at the Costco gas station had at least four cars in it. We were all waiting to pay almost four dollars a gallon. And I thought of high school when gas was $.97 a gallon. Yes, that decimal point is in the right place. Sure, this price didn't last long, but gas was at least two dollars a gallon cheaper. And I thought of conversations, several years ago, about the rising prices of gas and reassurances that, "At least we're not paying four dollars a gallon like some countries' citizens." Really, America, that is not the kind of competition we need to live up to.

resolutions

Learn this dance.



Notes to self:

visit LA's Marriott
buy suit
buy tap shoes
learn to fly