tangents..

So for some reason, I got to thinking about volleyball on my drive home from Portland on Saturday...
Then I started thinking about that volleyball guy that looked like the Fisher guy...
Then I started thinking about how ugly the Fisher guy was...
But I could not for the life of me remember what his name was...
Was it Al? George? Bob? Mark? Gary? (no, Gary Fisher is the bike brand)...
I thought and thought and thought, but couldn't think of his name...all the way down from Portland... (Henry?)
Alas, the article in today's Fundfire solved that mystery...
Ken Fisher...

I am a Text Twist geek

I like Text Twist
I can play for hours on end

My high score is 100,000 something

confessions of a basketball addict...

I love the game, that's it. Simple as that. Although I've never played until high school, I immediately grew to love the game. Funny thing about it is that I am not the most coordinated person in the world, but I still like to play. It doesn't matter if my team won or lost, I still have a good time.

But it gets very frustrating at times because of my lack of experience on the floor. My fundamentals aren't strong so I am constantly fighting myself when the other team puts on pressure. But my love for the game keeps me playing and so I started managing my own rec team back in college so I can play more often.

Managing a team has its pros and cons. You make the administrative decisions, but at the same time, it can be frustrating to recruit players. For the most part, I have been lucky in that the players we've had have meshed well together, and we have consistently had a core group of players who attend every game. Some days are better than others though.

I am not even sure why I am rambling. I guess I just wished that it wouldn't be so stressful at times. I wished that I had more experience and could see the floor better. I wish that my fundamentals were better so I can run the floor and not freak out at signs of pressure. I wish that we don't have trouble finding new players. There are plenty of things I wish I were better at. I guess that's what they mean when they say "for the love of the game.."

--------
Postscript - After I wrote the first part of this entry, I thought about it some more... I came to the realization that I've lost sight of why I enjoy this game so much, of why I keep playing even though it can be so frustrating at times, why I still manage the team despite the stress that it can bring...it is all because I love playing this game. I've been so focused on winning and how to build a team that will win games, I forgot why everyone was here in the first place. I forgot that is why my teammates and I have come together - it is because we all love playing this game. That is how we all got here in the first place. It's not all about winning. It's about playing and enjoying this game. That's all.

John Mayer

this is really a post specifically for the person who introduced me to John Mayer...
I was at Starbucks last week getting my chai fix... and made an impulse purchase..."Continum".. yea, that's a good one... yea...

My crazy computer...

okay, maybe I shouldn't call it crazy because it might quit working on me again. But somehow, miraculously, my computer decided not to reject my reconnection efforts tonight. My computer ("Boo") is once again reading signals from the router and not puking up. Wow! I think it was June or July when my computer first went down. Now, it's almost November! So, let's hope this lasts, if you want me to post more often. Boo will hopefully be behaving better. Maybe my iPod will finally work too? That would be very exciting. Maybe all this came about tonight because I happened to be upstairs and noticed that I hadn't looked at a bunch of old boxes in a while. And guess what? I found my very first mp3 player from 6 or 7 years ago. It only holds like 128 megs of music, or about 12 songs, but hell.. it had traveled with me on many plane rides back then..it fit perfectly in my pocket, on the opposite side of my leatherman tool (which has been banned from carry-ons and pockets since 9/11), and it was just about enough music for a quick trip home from SF, to Mel's in Bako, or to Butthead's place, wherever it was at the time. I thought I had lost it someplace (like I thought I had lost my driving sunglasses this past week), but it must've been hiding to surprise me. Now, if only my car insurance company would get my deductible back from the jerk that hit my car, so I can pay off my credit card... that would be way cool...if that happens, that means, I can pay for the eye exam and contacts that I need, and the foot orthodics that will hopefully bring me less ankle pain...and if I find a post player for my basketball team...how about winning the lottery too? wow! what a concept!

I guess I'll be crossing my fingers all the way through Christmas!!!

A day in the life of...

The Hardwood Harridans

Eagle Cap Wilderness, OR

View from Glacier Lake Basin base camp

 

Baaaaa......

• Yes, my dad had described me to his co-workers as "The Pacifist" when he first found out I drew a tag for Big Horn Sheep earlier this year.
• Yes, I have never been hunting before until drawing this once-in-a-lifetime tag.
• Yes, I had no clue what I was up against when I decided I wanted to do this.

BUT, HELL YES, I WENT TO HELL AND CAME BACK WITH MY FIRST BIG GAME: ROCKY MOUNTAIN BIG HORN!!!

If you know me well, one of the things you know is that I am deathly afraid of heights. I mean, I will not go above the 4th rung on a step ladder, and gondola rides are not my idea of a fun time. But I enjoy hiking, so what is the big deal about running around the mountains looking for a sheep? I was so damned wrong...so damned wrong.

Day One began at 3am with us waking up and a short drive to Greg's place. Greg is D's cousin and an experience packer whose horses and mules will be taking our heavier equipment up to Glacier Lake Basin, where we will set up base camp. By 7:30am, we were at the E. Lostine Creek Trailhead beginning our 3,000+ feet ascent to Glacier Pass. If you have ever been to NE Oregon and hiked around the Eagle Cap Wilderness area, you know how beautiful that area is. Deep, aqua-colored alpine lakes dot a landscape of massive granite peaks and glaciers. Fast flowing creeks and crisp cold streams run along the bottoms of the deep ravines. Meadows go on forever. Not enough words can describe this area and my dinky camera fall far short of capturing its scenic beauty. I was speechless many times as each geographical feature came into view and my eyes feasted. It was simply a magical place. Eight hours, 10.5 miles, and some very steep switchbacks later, D and I were at Glacier Lake to meet up with the Shane, D's bro-in-law, who had already been up in the area for a week scouting for sheep. S had found a group of 8 animals in this basin and had been "babysitting" them a few days before another hunter (the only other one with a tag in this area, I might add) came and took one of the rams on opening day so the rest of the group had ran off and were nowhere in sight. S trekked over to the next basin that evening and returned with news that he had spotted a small group in the other basin. We decided then that we would head over the next morning at daylight and begin there.

Day Two began at 5am. After a warm oatmeal breakfast to fend off the morning chill, we were on our way by 6:30am with our bigger packs. I was having some trouble managing my rifle, pack, and trekking poles, all at once, so S volunteered to help me carry my rifle until we had spotted the animals. As S put it, I am the one with the tag. If I was too tired to get to the sheep, it didn't make any sense for anyone else to be there. (S had a good point there.) To get to Prospect Lake basin, we had to trek around to the other side of Glacier Lake and make the ascent over the steep pass. After checking out the surrounding peaks with the binoculars and spotting some sheep in the rocks above some icefields, it was decided that we would attempt to creep up on the sheep from above and behind. It would give me a better angle at the shot and hopefully not spook the sheep. What we didn't know then was that this decision would mean an arduous trek that nearly sent me over the edge of a cliff, literally!!! As we made our way over to other side of the basin, we realized that the animals were farther away than it seemed at first. To get to the ridge where the sheep were hanging out at, we had to cross several icefields and around some boulder debris fields. Then a steep ascent up a slippery scree slope should get us to an advantageous position. Little did I know, that was the easiest part of the day. After getting up on said ridge, the sheep were still farther away than we had originally thought, not to mention that the backside of this lovely ridge we were on had a steep ravine on the other side - a long ways down if we ever lost our footing. The three of us slowly made our way back and forth along the ravine, stopping at each rock outcropping to check our position. Althought we knew were were getting closer, we still could not see the sheep. There was not really a trail on the ravine side either, so we had to pick our way across rock and tree hazards. At around 12:30pm, S came back from scouting ahead with some bad news. The only way to get to the sheep was A) take a long detour down and around the ravine side to get around a cliff hazard, or B) go the shorter route down the even steeper cliff face side, which has a large icefield to cross and take our chances there. Mind you, we didn't have crampons with us. By this time, we were all pretty tired and I was ready to call it a day. So I must have been delirious because I chose option B. As we began our descent down the much steeper cliff side, I realized how slippery the slope was and a wrong step could easily send me over the edge. Less than 5 minutes later, I slipped and landed in a precarious position facing the cliff edge. One of my trekking poles had also slipped and I was barely hanging on the side of this cliff. Not only was I in an awkward position, not being able to get up without fear of falling to my death, I didn't know how D or S was going to get me out of this mess, if that was even possible! As the 3 of us were trying to figure out how to get out of this jam, 2 of the sought after big horns appears on the rocks above, a mere 25 yards away. Go figure! Given the awkward position that I was in, I could see them by tilting my head back and looking up to see them upside-down, but there was no way that I could pick up my rifle, much less take a shot without falling off the cliff. Damn those sheep! By the time S & D finally got me to a safe spot on the slope, the sheep had started headed further along the ridge. As I leaned one shoulder against a large boulder to steady myself, S held out one of his trekking poles to steady the barrel of my rifle. I saw one of the big horns through the crosshairs of my scope, about 65 yards away, and pulled the trigger. At first, I thought I had missed because it looked like the ram took off running down the backside of the ridge we were on. Upon further investigation, I didn't miss at all. In fact, the round had got him through the gut, and he was down less than 8 feet from where I had saw him stood less than 5 minutes before. I didn't realize how big this ram was until I got up close to it to examine him. He must have weighed between 300-350 lbs. Even though he wasn't the oldest or had the largest horns, this ram was almost perfectly symmetrical. It was a beauty, mate (as the crocodile hunter would have said)!

The photo session took nearly 45 minutes before D & S began gutting the ram. It was after 6pm by the time we were repacked with the ram head/cape and meat and headed back to camp. Mind you, the sun sets around 7pm and it is dark around 8pm or so. Then we realized that neither D nor I had our headlamps with us so we will have to share S's headlamp all the way back to camp. It probably wouldn't have been so insane if S & D's packs didn't weigh 85 lbs each, and the terrain hadn't been so rough and steep, and if we all had headlamps. By the time the darkness set in, we were less than half way back to camp. Although there was a full moon the night before, it was nowhere to be found that night. Trekking down steep, slippery embankments in the dark with super heavy packs definitely was not what we had in mind when the day began. At certain steep spots, we'd slip and fall and had to pick ourselves back up. The trek back to camp became long and arduous, but gave me a new appreciation for S & D. It was pure will power that kept them going because everything else was going against them. I've never been around people who demonstrated this any better than these two guys I was with that night. Our hike back to camp ended at 11:15pm that night, which made it a nearly 18hr hunting day - much longer than what we had anticipated. To our surprise, Greg and the mules were still at camp. As it turns out, Greg and the pack were at the top of the pass when they heard my rifle shot and decided to turn back in case we scored a ram that day. We were so exhausted and dehydrated from that day's events, we all plopped down on the ground as soon as we reached camp. Too tired to even eat dinner, we had a few brews to celebrate and then hit the hay shortly thereafter since we had to hike out the very next morning.

To make a long story short, we packed up camp and got back on the trail by 8:15am, with our heavy backpacks since the mules packed the meat and head/cape on their backs. Uphill climbs were almost as exhausting as downhills because our legs were simply worn out from the day before. We stopped for rest breaks every so often and finally made it back to the trailhead 8 hrs later. I almost cried when I saw our truck parked at the trailhead. A happy cry though from simple exhaustion, but also one of great satisfaction from what I had accomplished over the last 72 hours. It was amazing!!!

Veni, Vidi, Vici

6.5 miles

3,500 vertical feet

6 hours, 3 minutes

Huron Peak

14,003'

August 25, 2006

Leper's Top 10 List

top 10 reasons why vacations are cool:

10) Scenery is majestic at 6,000+ feet above sea level.. the peaks all around are 12,000 feet and above...and they all are distinctive..
9) Weather is awesome, in the mid-80's, sunny and blue blue blue blue sky..
8) I can watching Harry Potter on the big outdoor screen at the bottom of the ski run in Aspen, spread out on a sleeping bag and fleece blanket.. and a red bull & vodka in hand..
7) can have plenty of booze with dinner and not have to worry about the consequences for the having to go to work the next day
6) bike paths are smooth and runs on forever for miles and miles and miles...
5) no alarm clocks required - you just wake up, whenever it may be..
4) you can splurge on a $9 chef salad and a $3 diet coke before boarding the plane...
3) there's plenty of moonshine on the camping trip
2) dirty clothes can be re-worn and nobody notices...

and the number 1 reason why vacations are cool...
DAMN!, it feels good to be lounging around while everyone else is working!!!

My favorite joke of all-time...

There once was a little frog who wanted to take out a home improvement loan to fix up his pad. His name is Kermit Jagger.

He hopped over to his local bank, went up to the teller and said, "Hi, I'd like to take out a loan to fix up my pad."
The teller replied, "You need to see our loan officer. Her name is "Patricia Black."

So the frog hops over to the loan officer's desk and sits down. When Patricia arrives she ask, "What can I do for you?"

The frog says, "I'd like to take out a loan to fix up my pad."

Patricia asked, "What do you have for collateral?"

After thinking for a couple of moments about what he could offer, the frog reaches into his little froggy pocket and pulls out a small white elephant.

"This is a very unusual form of collateral." said Patricia. "I'll have to check with our bank president to see if it's ok."

Patricia goes to the president and says, "There's a frog named Kermit Jagger out there who want's a home loan and this white elephant is all he is offering for collateral. What should I do?"

The bank president takes the small white elephant and after carefully examining it hands it back to Patricia and says, "Why, it's a nick-knack Patty Black give the frog a loan. His old man's a Rolling Stone."

the latest scoop...

My computer at home has been down for the last several weeks, thus, no blogging as of late. Work has been terribly busy so my lunch times are spent relaxing and trying to get away from it all.

Since I last blogged, I found out that I will be having surgery on my gimpy ankle to remove the bone spur at the end of my tibia. After seeing an ankle specialist for a second opinion, who also happens to be the surgeon, it was determined that my ankle needed to heal up more before he wants to cut up my ankle. In the mean time, I needed to continue my ankle strengthing exercises to rehab the sub-talus joint that I have injured so many times, including this latest episode this year. I will also need to get custom orthodics made so that my flat feet will be less prone to sprains. Long story short, it was both good news and bad news. Good news being that I don't have to worry about coming up with funds for a surgery as soon as I had thought, and that I can continue playing sports (the doctor said so :-) ). Bad news being that I will have to have surgery in the near future, but on the flip side, it will prevent any chronic ankle problems as the birthdays keep coming.

Since I last blogged, I also had my 29th birthday. It is really not any different than any other birthday. I spent my birthday hiking the Trail of Ten Falls at Silver Falls State Park just east of Salem, Oregon. Although the weather had been in the 90s-100s that week, the hike was pretty comfortable, since the trail led in/out of a small canyon. I hiked the entire trail in about 3.25 hours and saw 9 of the 10 waterfalls along the way. I was feeling pretty good about the hike since the ranger said the hike would take about 4 hours, and I had my gimpy ankle to work with. Not too bad in an afternoon's work.

Since I last blogged, I went through a small hitting slump in my softball games where I was hitting and getting on base, but with singles and doubles. I came out of the slump this week with an in-the-park 4-bagger and another triple this week. It felt a little better after those. At the same time, I wished that I gotten to play in some tournaments this year, but just wasn't happening with the injury. Had hoped to play in the Play 4 the Cure tourney again this year, but no luck there either. D and I are going up to La Grande to play in the Moonlight tourney next weekend though. They use the larger .47 core balls for both the men and the women, so that should be a nice challenge.

That is all for now.

life's curveballs...

Just when I thought life threw me a nasty curveball, I hit the damn thing out of the park. No, really... this is week 11 of my ankle injury and though I am still trying to rehab it back to normal, I have had the good fortune of other fun opportunities coming my way. See, about a month ago, I was still mired in the ugliness of ankle rehab reality, progress having stalled and my summer felt like it was going down the tubes. Here I am, 5 weeks later, planning for a couple of big trips at the end of this glorious summer, while still nursing my injury.

So two things. First, I have a week-long vacation planned with my two best friends in August. We'll be rafting, hiking, listening to chill music, and whatever else somewhere near Aspen, CO. It will be a rocking good time to get away from work for a week, out of Eugene, OR, and just be silly and stupid for a few days with people who really "get" me.

Secondly, although I have never been one to win anything major, or even a generous lottery prize, I managed to draw a hunting tag for Big Horn Sheep this year. Those of you who know me well know that I am not exactly the hunter/camouflage type and I've never really handled a firearm before, much less know how to use one. The only reason why I put in for hunting tags at all was so that D could accrue preference points and maybe a little bit hoping for the off chance that I will actually get to tag along on a hunting trip someday for the hike. Long story short, I drew one of the most coveted hunting tags in the state of Oregon. It is a once in a lifetime opportunity that I must take advantage of, and therefore have begun preparations for the September trip. It sounds crazy, especially since my dad describes me to his friends as "the pacifist", but it is not an experience that I am gonna miss out on if I can help it.

To begin with, I secured my first rifle this weekend - a Weatherby 708mm Remington. It is small enough for little ole weakling me to handle, yet (supposedly) powerfuly enough to down a 250 lb animal from 100 yards. It is also versatile enough that I can use it for deer, elk, antelope, or other single-toed ungulates roaming the state of Oregon. It is really exciting to finally be able to participate on these week-long exursions that I have heard so much about the last few years. Not so much for the trophy part, but for the sheer experience of hiking in the wilderness, miles and miles from the nearest road, trekking across ridges and canyons, and enjoying the wild scenery that are likely to disappear long before my lifetime ends. I actually see myself shooting more pictures than actually shooting an animal. In any case, it will be a wild time that I am really looking forward to.

Until then, there is the second half of the softball season that still awaits, of which both my co-ed and women's teams are undeafeated in league, seeking for more bragging rights. As soon as that seaon is complete, it is the beginning of a new chapter in my life's experiences.....

On a side note, while in the process of acquiring my new "gat", I had my first experience with "gat envy".. there was another female there purchasing a rifle with her male friend... granted that she was a few inches taller than I was, I did take notice that her rifle was bigger and longer than mine....

Thought of the Day...

Government's view of the economy could be summed up in a few short phrases:

If it moves, tax it.
If it keeps moving, regulate it.
And if it stops moving, subsidize it.

Ronald Reagan (1986)

Episode III: Return of Hop-Along

Well, let's just say that the ankle injury hasn't stopped my enthusiasm for playing sports. I managed to wait 4 weeks before trying to play sports again. Despite the doctor's orders (well, he said I could try if I was feeling better, but just take it easy), alas, I couldn't hold back any longer and exploded onto the summer softball scene with a stand-up triple in my 1st game back in action last week with my women's team, followed by another stand-up triple in my 1st at bat yesterday with my Eugene co-ed team. Yes, it felt damn good to LAUNCH the ball over the outfielder's head. And yes, I must admit, it is THAT MUCH MORE SATISFYING when it's over a male fielder ;-) Don' be disrespectin', boo! (hahaahahaha---that movie is stuck in my head - can you name it?)

As much of a pain in the ass as this injury has been, it has been a real test for me as a person. I have never been a person to cry easily nor one who gives up easily. There were definitely a few moments when I felt so frustrated and defeated I wanted to hit things and vent. Yes, defeated. That was how I felt at times - defeated... The simplest little things that I had taken for granted most of my life was a challenge. Even simple things like walking were difficult. I was used to being the first one down the basketball court cherry picking for a layup, or easily throwing people out at first base from third. It was weird to go through the different stages of rehabilitation and realizing that I am much more careful with how I manage my body. No more sliding feet first for a while. I have to thinking about it before I kick things. Or, negotiating little slopes on a hike can be tricky. Very weird, very not used to it.

In all things considered, I better understand other people too. For example, at my weekly yoga class, I used to pity the people who couldn't do certain beginner poses because I thought that should be easily done by an average person. No I see deeper and more detailed. Instead, things like "oh, he/she can't move that way... he/she probably has a back problem" run through my head instead.

So like all other experiences, this is another one of life's lessons. Until next time, this is Hop-Along, signing off....

ageriuomupay epieooupalee isouucak!!!

ageriuomupay epieooupalee isouucak!!!
ageeit oluaaied ioorusaoemieotuhaienig!!!

thunderstorm warning...

I guess my last wish may come true... it was nice most most of the weekend, with an occasional light sprinkle here and there. Then just as I got home earlier this evening, the sky opened up and a deluge of wind gusts, hail, and huge ass raindrops flooded the streets. Funny, I recall making a comment to Derek how omnious the sky looked as I was getting out of my car in the driveway earlier.

Within a matter of minutes after walking into the house, the wind was howling at the same time the hail came down and the street instantly had an inch of standing water. Then the National Weather Service severe storm warning came on while we were watching TV.

I wonder what the fields look like?

I am hoping for rain.... next week...

so that my softball games would get rained out, and I have an extra week to get my ankle healed up....Will I have bad kharma forever because I wished for something like this?

rain IS in the forecast....

Mother Goose

As of late, I've been doing a little here and a little there. Nothing too strenuos, but gradually trying to work my way from back the ankle boo-boo. Today marked its 3 week anniversary. Scary thing is that I still cannot run yet without limping. I can scurry a little, but I'll bet that I look funny doing it. Good thing is that I found out last week I can still ride my bike, so I went for a nice & easy ride earlier this evening.

I didn't really plan on going in any direction, but thought that it would be nice to ride along the river on such a warm sunny day. After taking a few detours to explore streets I hadn't been on before, I started heading toward the north bank bike path that runs along the Willamette River. As I rode along, I notice an unusual park sign in an area that I didn't think would have a park. My curiosity got the best of me, so I rode toward this sign, which was kind of tucked away between the end of a quiet neighborhood and the very edge of a commercial zone, both of which backed onto the local expressway.

I rode closer and it looked kind of woodsy, with a small path leading away from either side of the sign. I thought to myself "why didn't I know about this place before?" I figured, what the hey, and started riding down one of the paths. Who knows, it may be a back way to the bike path somewhere. As I rode a few more feet, the small woody area started to clear, and I noticed that this "park" was actually a "bog", yeah, like a mosquito pond.. there were also signs that there may have been transients camped out here. Nonetheless, my Lewis & Clark mindset was urging me to keep going.

I noticed that a little ways down the path, there was a big white goose, and a couple of Canadian geese hanging around the edge of this "pond". I thought to myself, "I wonder if they will freak out if I ride closer.. will they give chase, or will they fly away?" They sure weren't very far from the little dirt path and I had to ride pretty close if I wanted to get by...Oh look, the big white goose is going to fly away...uh, nope.. he/she is coming this way... oh wait..I'm getting closer.. she's getting closer, .... I then realized that this bird may not be really happy and my right foot is awfully close to her... this big honking bird started to charge towards me, big orange bill and all wide open, wings flapping... not a happy one...just as I rode past, I realized that oh.. there were two grey goslings that I hadn't noticed before....ahh.. no wonder she was pissed at me..I was encroaching on her territory and her babies. Doh! So while a close call, it was just mother nature at work once again. I managed to make my way out of the "boggy park" and rode away unscathed. whew!

Although it was after 7pm, the air was still warm and light was still abundant, so I continued riding. I made my way down to the river and began heading east down the bike path. All the energy I hadn't used over the past few weeks fueled my charge down the bike path. I kept on passing people along the way, bikers and runners alike. I felt so free!!! One of the neatest things about this bike path is that there are wide open grassy areas as well as narrow curvy paths in woody areas. A few bumps and here from the tree roots dot the asphalt, but a very smooth and easy ride overall. The bike paths run for miles east and west, but with the limited sunlight hours, I decided to start heading back to the house. Rather than retracing the way I came, I decided to explore a different part of the street bike path system that I have seen many times, but have not yet rode. By the time I arrived back at home, it was an hour later and the daylight was fading quickly. I figured that I had rode about 12 miles altogether. It felt great to hear the wind whizzing by my ears and my heart racing a bit. Life is good!

the verdict

Let me start by stating that I am drinking my first Red Bull in 2.5 weeks. Let me continue by saying that I haven't had any Red Bull recently because I have been sitting on my butt for the last 2.5 weeks because of my ankle injury. Nonetheless, the purpose of my discussion today is the verdict - from my doctor, that is. So here I go...

Saw my doctor yesterday for my ankle check-up. I have never been so anxious or impatient about going to see the doctor before. It seemed like the days just dragged on forever before I left work and headed to the doc's office. Mind you, the traffic jam en route didn't help the cause. Hey, at least they didn't make me waste away in the waiting room for an hour before seeing me - like my last visit. (aside: I should note here that my dentist is awesome. I have never had to wait past my appointment time during any of my visits. Thus, he's been my dentist for over 10 years - even when I lived in SF, I'd schedule my cleanings around trips home to Oregon).

After checking for strength and flexibility by tapping and pressing his finger in different spots on my ankle, my doc told me he was surprised at how fast I had progressed since I first saw him two weeks ago. (woohoo!) Apparently, he hadn't intended on having me start on some of the more advanced ankle rehab exercises until after this check-up. I had been doing them for about 1.5 weeks cuz I thought I was supposed to. I was able to do all except for 2 of them at this point. My doc explained that some of the pain that I still have is probably a bone bruise (talus bone probably collided with the end of my tibia). Of course, then the tightness in my foot arch and heel is a result of muscles and ligaments trying to compensate for the bruise.

Since Blogger is freaking out right now, I'll just get to the point instead of ramble. Basically, I've been cleared to start doing more active activities, like running. It will probably be another week before I can resume my more intense sports (i.e., basketball & soccer), but softball and volleyball should be okay once I can jog or run without limping. Of course, the lateral movements are going to be the next thing before I can actually sprint, but still, woo-hoo! I'm on the road to recovery!

sigh...

Nope, not there yet. I keep hoping, but nope, not yet. I was hoping to be up and back to the old routine within 2 weeks, but no such luck. I guess my doc was serious when he told me that they put David Robinson on the 14-day DL when he had a similar ankle injury. Derek keeps telling me I need to be "realistic" about when I go back to the old routine again. But having said that, this is the worst injury I have ever had, so how can I be realistic when I have nothing else to compare it to?

I did finally manage to drag myself into the gym today. I suppose I was probably a bit depressed because I sure have been moody lately and all I wanted to do was sit infront of the TV and eat. Not that I could have done much else, but I was sure feeling quite down about my ankle. The whole time I was at the gym, I felt like I was walking around in slow motion. I biked for about 20 minutes, lifted weights, then swam a few laps. Mind you that I am not a good swimmer, so it was challenging enough as it was. On top of that, I don't have goggles, so I took my contacts out before hand. Talk about blind leading the blind! I was a bit tenative at first because I was afraid that the water would put too much pressure on my ankle when I was kicking. Once I figured out that it didn't hurt, I got going for a few laps.

It felt good to sweat and breathe hard again. I just hope that this doesn't end up being a golf-only summer...

I have a dream...

uh, actually.. I had a dream the night before last.. that I was on a 4x100 relay team running the anchor leg... yea.. must be the sprained ankle doing its thing to my subconscious...

By the way, the doc said, nothing broken and no tears. Just gotta watch the little bone spur in my ankle and see how it reacts to this most recent sprain. Yes, it was that obvious from the x-rays that I have sprained this ankle many times before. It was funny how he also said that he knows my personality type - that I need to let my ankle heal before I get back into the swing of things again. It was like he could read my mind and knew what I was thinking.

Most of the swelling has gone away. I started my rehab exercises today with the thera-band. It feels good and seems to have helped relieve the swelling - probably popped a blood clot somewhere because my foot wasn't as puffy as it was this morning when I woke up. I can put a little more weight on it, although the assisted calf raises are a bit rough on my ankle, but I definitely have improved my ankle range of motion since earlier in the week. Still gimping around a bit, but it's getting there....

gimps central.. or just me???

So after I posted that entry about the sports injuries, it was only fate that I would eventually do something really damaging to myself... At least I waited until the entire weekend was over and I had enjoyed all the different activites and the sunshine including a slight sunburn)...

Even though I won't know for sure how much damage had actually occured until I see a doctor (hopefully tomorrow), I am currently on crutches and incurring some major calluses in my armpits! I managed to sprain my ankle pretty badly this weekend at my basketball game. Both the inside and outside of my right ankle are black and blue. I don't think that I broke anything, but the ligaments (already pretty loose, I would imagine, from all the prior sprains) are even looser now, I would guess. (ok, I really wanted to say "postulate" instead of "guess" for some reason, but that just sounded weird)... I was going up for a jumper in the lane as the defense collapsed around me. When I landed, my ankle simply gave out. The funny thing was, even though I was in a lot of pain, and dripping sweat (it was the middle of the 4th quarter), I was more embarassed about being the center of attention. It seemed like forever before the pain subsided enough that I could relax a bit and stop clawing the other players who had offered me their hand to grip. When I finally was able to sit up, my teammated grabbed my arms and legs and had to carry me off the court.

Although I did manage to go to work this morning, after a while, the ankle started throbbing because all the blood had flooded to my ankle - which it is what it should do if my immune system is functioning properly. I ended up going home early and stopped by the drugstore to rent myself some crutches, hopefully, I won't have to use them for more than a few days. Then I spent the remainder of the afternoon on my living room couch, leg elevated, ice bag over my ankle, and nothing to do except for watching on TV or reading the stuff I had brought home from work. Mind you that my internet connection wasn't working correctly, so I couldn't even fry my brain with some surfing.

I finally ended up calling Comcast Tech Support a little while ago. See, my place is on two levels. The host computer that is hardwired to the cable modem and router is on the second floor. My computer, is on the first floor. I managed to get Comcast on my cell phone, then hobble around with my crutches to the stairs (which isn't exactly a gradual climb), hung on to the cell phone with my teeth without disconnecting the guy, and hopped up the stairs one at a time. Then once I got upstairs, I hopped around on my good ankle to disconnect the power on the router and modem, while trying to evade the mishmash of wires and cables behind the desk. Once that was taken care of, I hobbled back down the stairs, still with the cell phone in my teeth (and drool all over fabric phone-holder-thingamajig), and to my computer. Did I mention that I had an ice bag taped to my bad ankle the entire time?

So, now, it is around 7:45pm. I am at home, thinking about all the activites that I will miss this week: yoga class, softball practice, volleyball game, soccer game, basketball, etc etc... Hopefully it will be well enough by Sunday so I could at least get off my ass and go outside for a while, even if it is just watching from the sidelines... maybe my body is telling me something, eh?

I am not an avid reader, but....

am I part of GenMe?

read it and tell me what you think...

cherz's doodlin' wall

endless hours of mind-numbing entertainment.. just remember to clear your cache to see your doodles at work!!!

http://www.cherz.com/doodlin/

we must be running out of news

We must be running out of new things to talk about if stuff like this makes the national news...

Oh yeah, that and all the crap about Barry Bonds too. Nobody would care if he weren't chasing the home run record.

Get a life!

an epiphany

I play

• volleyball = jammed fingers & floor burns on elbows and knees...
• volleyball & basketball = jammed fingers, floor burns on elbows and knees, ankle sprains, and bruises all over...
• volleyball, basketball & softball = jammed fingers, floor burns on elbows and knees, ankle sprains, bruises all over, and raspberries from sliding...
• volleyball, basketball, softball, & soccer = ???? hmm.. could be dangerous...
• tackle football, anyone???
  

wide world of sports

Sports are really awesome, especially team sports. It brings so many people together from different backgrounds. I have met so many wonderful people from playing different sports. When you get a bunch of personalities that just gel well, it makes participation even more enjoyable.

I think that one of the best examples is my basketball team. I am amazed at the cohesiveness of this team. I don't think that I've ever been around a group of people who have so much fun together being silly. We range from age 25 to 41, tall, short, quick, strong, etc. Our backgrounds are all different, only that we all managed to end up together at this point in time.

Over the weekend, the team went out (on a non-game night) bowling and had a blast! It was also refreshing to be around each other in our everyday clothes and not be covered in sweat! We were all strangers not that long ago. Now, it doesn't even faze us to yell out "Are you wearing underwear?" to each other in the middle of a game.

I know that people come and go, but I hope that this one sticks around for a long time :-)

It's official...

I'm addicted to this game.

Damn you, Cuz!

Level 25 qqk747

145

Today is a good day. Stepped on the scale this morning and was surprised to see 145 on the reading pane. I fluctuate anywhere between 3-5 pounds in any given week. It has been a few months since I got down to this size. guess it helps when I don't work a second job anymore and have time for exercise!!!

ROCK ON!

rants and raves

I am ranting. I am raving. I am ranting and raving.

Usually, I am a pretty level-headed person. I am a little spazzy sometimes, but usually, I can keep my cool, even at the more irritating things. Well, not today. So I am going to rant and rave.

How did this all come about? To make a long story short, today was the day I was supposed to notify everyone at work about the upcoming "social" event to be held next week. You ask, "but I thought you were a (insert occupation here),".. yes, I am that too, but for this go around, I am also in charge of the latest social event at work - courtesy of my "voluntary membership" on the social committee at work.

Anyhoo, so we are putting on a spaghetti luncheon/fundraiser and need to tell everyone about it so they can come and eat donated food and socialize for a few minutes during lunch. Since we have a work policy to not "spam" everyone in the building (there are other groups besides us), we have take care to use the correct listserv address. So yes, I search my Outlook address book for the correct listserv address, check spelling, grammar, dates/times, etc.. and hit SEND. Oops, I forgot the attachment... that listserv email can't accept attachments anyway...oh, well, no biggie if people get a duplicate copy...

So I copy/paste the info into a new email, check formatting, etc...when one by one, that little new mail notification pop-up box shows up in the right-lower corner of my screen...we have Win 2003 so I can see the 1st line: "Laura, there is no attachment.." yes, yes, I know, I know.. I grumbled to myself. So I open up the email, start typing a reply to this person...new mail notification pops up again...ugh...(who is it now?).. "attachment?"...ugh.. yes, I KNOW.... ugh...grumble grumble...So now that I have three different emails open, the Outlook main screen, and the Adobe Acrobat screen that I was working on, and the copy of email from my sent mail box, .... new email notification....Message from Laura Chen re: Spaghetti Luncheon....YES, i KNOW! i SENT THAT EMAIL! ugh! I KNOW that I'm on that list.. grr!!! Damn-it! I just hit the sent button.. without the attachment.. but, hey! to the correct Outlook Group so they can actually see the attachment... if I had attached it, that is...

Okay..calm down.. your officemate already thinks you're a bit loony for talking to yourself...but dude, people C-H-I-L-L! C-H-I-L-L! ... new email notification... Message from Laura Chen re: Spaghetti Luncheon...... YES YES YES... GRRRR... (what is it with *#$&!@!!) ... new email notification... Message from so-and-so re: Spaghetti Luncheon..."What attachment?"....(ARG!) ....NEW EMAIL NOTIFICATION....MESSAGE FROM some-other-so-and-so RE: SPAGHETTI LUNCHEON............

(insert expletive here(insert expletive here)(insert expletive here)(insert expletive here)(insert expletive here)!!! (insert expletive here)(insert expletive here)!!!

copy/paste/spell check/check email address/check attachment/ SEND

ahhhh......(*sigh of relief*)........

corporate accounts payables, this is Nina speaking.... Ju-st a mo-ment..

So it seems that my work phone number is one digit off from some research institute. See, every once in a while, I would receive a phone call asking for someone that didn't work there. While that's nothing unusual, the ones where they start leaving incredibly detailed descriptions of their menopausal symptoms are...

The first phone call came about 3 or 4 months ago. Some lady had left a message on my voice mail inquiring about participating in a study on menopause. It wouldn't be such a big deal if she hadn't started to leave complete descriptions of the symptoms she had experienced - you know, "dryness", and I'll just stop at that one to save you from the graphic details. Unfortunately, she must have been calling on her cell phone, because all the crackling muffled out the contact phone number she had left. Thus, I had no way of reaching her to tell her she had the wrong number.

A couple of weeks later, the same lady calls back. This time, I was at my desk and answered the phone. Literally, the first words out of her mouth after I had said "Hello, this is Laura" were "Yes, I am calling about the menopause study..." Lucky for me, I was able to interject before she began another lengthy description of her symptoms. I felt kind of bad because she was obviously embarassed, even over the phone, but hey, I figured that she would at least know why she hadn't gotten a call back and I wouldn't get anymore strange calls.

Go figure, earlier this week, I answered my work phone as usual "Good morning, this is Laura." First words out from the caller were "Yes, I am calling about the sexual dysfunction study..."

Grease Monkey

So a few weeks ago, I discovered a leak in the trunk of my car. I wasn't quite sure where it was coming from and had to do some testing to figure it out. After tearing apart the back of my car several times (to coincide with rain showers and then only weekends where I wasn't out of town or wanted to be lazy), I finally found the source of the leak two weekends ago.

Basically, the rear lights sit over part of the bumper where there is a matchbox sized hole on both sides. I don't know why this is, but it appears to have been purposely made that way. Anyway, the interior neoprene stuff (not the exterior rubber weatherstriping) that is supposed to seal the hole between the plastic light cover and the interior of the car had partially torn away from where it was supposed to be. Thus, instead of creating a waterproof seal, dirt and muck from the puddles that I like to drive over were getting stuck in the gap, and water was seeping through into the trunk.

With a little help of the sales guy at Knecht's, I bought some neoprene weatherstripping stuff and a couple of bolts (to replace one that I had broke and one that I lost somewhere underneath the metal car body and cannot reach) and again dismantled the back end of my car on Sunday. Once again, I removed all the plastic paneling and put all the little screws and bolt and caps in a ziploc bag and fuddled around with the weatherstripping until I was happy with the fit. I even found use for the plastic model glue (that had been sitting in my desk for how ever many years since I last put a plastic model together) for some added bonding to the plastic parts. I replaced everything in its place, including the back seats that I've had to take apart, screwed and bolted the parts back together and my car almost looked normal again.

The Spring rains should help give the seal a good test. Hopefully, it won't leak anymore and I would feel a good sense of accomplishment that I fixed it all by myself. The only thing left to do is de-rust my car jack and replace it in the trunk. With a little luck, I can then tackle the fuse panel (needs a new cover) next, maybe the interior handle for popping the hood, or even the front bumper.... we'll see...

I wanted to be a PE teacher when I grow up.

Yes, that was what I wanted to be whenever someone asked me that question. At the time, I didn't know it, but I probably knew myself better back then than I do now - the PE part anyway was true. The teacher part, maybe not so much.. Well, maybe..

See, for the better part of my childhood, I didn't know sports existed, except maybe for the running track in elementary school until 3rd grade. Until I was about 10 years old, I had never so much as had a ball, raquet, or any other sport equipment of any kind. That was the year that I moved to the US. That was the year I learned about kickball, tetherball, four squares, dodge ball, and pilo polo (kind of like field hockey, but with nerf sticks and balls on blacktop). From there, I watched football and baseball on TV for the first time when I was 11, saw classmates playing basketball and handball in the school yard when I was 12, and heard about other girls playing in softball leagues and boys in pop warner football.

I wanted to try all of those things - they all sounded like so much fun! I would ask if I could play softball, or basketball, or football, anything.. anything. But it was "un-girl like" for me to participate in sports - I remember mom saying. Don't get me wrong, I love my mom - the difference between my mom and I is that we grew up in very different households and different times. It wasn't kosher for girls to play sports where she grew up.

Anyhoo, so back to why I got started thinking about this. Before my volleyball game last night, there was a girl about 10 yrs old hanging around the court waiting for her mom to finish playing. I had my vball with me and was shooting baskets with it. The girl looked kind of bored, so I invited her to shoot around with me. I helped her adjust her shooting form and encouraged her to try different things, like using her legs when she shoots. It was just a different experience for me. I've never really had an opportunity to do that before, other than with my sister when she was younger. On occasion, people would ask me if I ever coach basketball. I always thought they were crazy because I am of the opinion that coaches were athletes who started playing the sport when they were in kindergarten, and then at least consistently at the varsiy high school level and maybe some college - as opposed to me, who hardly played varsity as a high school senior and then only city leagues afterwards. I don't even consider myself as good, just average, you know?

But anyway, with all the thoughts that had been running through my mind lately about a career pursuit/change/whatever you want to call it, or at least how undecided I've been about it, something in my subconscience must have woken up and reminded me that I wanted to be a PE teacher at one point. And yes, I thought about going into sports therapy as far as my junior year in high school, but then found out that I had to take anatomy and dissect cadavers. The idea of cutting into dead people didn't sit well with me, so I had stopped thinking about it.

Maybe I ought to think about it...

distance makes the heart grow fonder...

Every once in a great while, I catch an old friend of mine online. We've known each other since high school and have managed to keep in touch throughout the years even if we do not live in the same area anymore. As we've both grown older, we have become very different in some ways. Nonetheless, whenever we have the opportunity to chat, it always surprises me that it feels like we could tell each other anything no matter what. It is REALLY COOL.

It is also kind of weird because the last time we spent time together in-person was 4 or 5 years ago. And I don't even really remember what we did. I think we went out for dinner, or something. We probably just caught each other up on what's been happening in our lives and chatted up a storm.

Sometimes I miss my friend. There were some tough times that this person has helped me through and was there for me when I could not confide to anyone else. Perhaps that is why I feel so comfortable talking my friend, even though I couldn't tell you what kind of foods my friend likes, or even what my friend's favorite color is, or what kind of car this person drives now.

I am glad that I met this person. I am glad that this person is still in my life. I am glad I have this friend.

know thyself...

So I went to open gym at a local middle school the other night. My sister had told me about it. A nearby church sponsors the freebie time and anyone could go play, regardless of affiliation. Iniitally, my sis and I were going to go together, but she became ill. I went anyway since I am always up for basketball, regardless of how horrible I may be.

Those of you who know me well, you know that I am agnostic. My immediate family are regular church goers. And by regular, I mean, at least weekly. They all say grace at dinner time and go to Bible study, etc. So yes, they are believers.. and I am not.

Anyway, one of first things that the group did was stand in a circle and prayed. Out of respect, I bowed my head and was silent for the duration. And then we played ball for the rest of the evening.

So, a few days later, I was talking to my sis and mentioned that I did not expect the prayer part, that it was kind of weird for me. She asked me why, and I didn't have a good answer for her. So I have been thinking about it and I think I've figured it out. Yes, it seems kind of weird that I didn't put the two together, but sometimes that's how my mind works, or not work, depending on how you look at it.

My answer is: I felt uncomfortable in that situation because I felt like I was going against my own beliefs. Out of respect for others (because everyone is entitled to their own opinions and beliefs about things), I will usually bow my head and be silent during those situations. But yes, it really makes me uncomfortable. And yes, it is because I don't believe in the same things, and I am compromising my own beliefs.. I think that is why I don't like situations like that. So there it is, I said it.

I wanna go back............

It was worth getting up at the crack of dawn to be there at 7am..

Great Scots! (*wink*wink*)

Even the incoming storm did not deter us from trekking that day..

where were you?

I was watching a documentary about the 1980 Mt. St. Helens eruption on Discovery Channel earlier. It got me thinking about the major news and world events that has happened during my lifetime. Frankly, I don't remember the eruption at all. It probably didn't help my memory because I had lived on the other side of the world at the time and was would only turn 3 yrs old later that year. Although, since many of the people I know now had grown up in the Northwest, they all seem to remember exactly where he/she was and what he/she was doing at the time.

So it got me thinking about the major events in world history that had occured so far during my lifetime. I think I will make a list of the "I do remembers" and the "I don't remembers" and add on if I remember more.

The I don't Remembers:

• Mt. St. Helens eruption - May 18, 1980 ( I just watched the documentary, so the date is in my head)
  
• Challenger explosion - January 28, 1986 (had to look this date up - later that same year, I would have moved to the US and turned 9 yrs old)

The I do Remembers:

• Fall of the Berlin Wall (I had this piece of concrete encased in a plastic polymer for a long time. Don't know where I got it, but my recollection is that it supposedly was a piece of the Berlin Wall)
• L.A. Riots/Rodney King (my sister reminded me of this one. It was listed in the yearbook my sophomore year in high school)
• Gulf War (I was in my typing class in junior high when they made the announcement over the intercom that President Bush had made the decision to invade Bagdad at 1pm that day. Oh yea, and I always seem to remember the cartoon I saw of Saddam watching CNN and the camera showed a missile coming down at him, live. Remember the green flashing lights and the talk about patriot missiles?)
• Waco, Texas (David Koresh and the smoke coming plumes from their cult compound)
• 9/11 (My roommate knocked on my door asking me to go watch the TV broadcast. It was showing the jumbo jets plummeting into the World Trade Center. It looked so unreal, like a movie. I did end up going into work that day, but was told to go home)
• Oakland hills firestorm (I lived across the Bay. You could see the black smoke in the sky. Years later, while living in Oregon, I would hear a story from one of my friends who had lived through it. )
• Thurston High School shooting - May 1998 (Vase majority of the population would remember Columbine. I don't remember Columbine, but I do remember the Thurston shootings. I was a junior at the University of Oregon. Heard what had happened and I drove down to the school after a few days. Flowers and notes adorned the school's fence. It made me sad.)
• Tianemen Square, China (saw the student protestor run over by a military tank on TV.)
• Invasion of Panama (I only kind of remember this. Something about Noriega being a bad guy.)
• SF Earthquake - October 17, 1989 (game 4 of the World Series at Candlestick Park. Pieces of the ballpark fell on people. I was living in Sacramento at the time, but wrote something in school about it)
• Princess Diana's passing - August 1997 (Jen & I were on a roadtrip back from somewhere. We were staying in a motel room. She was sleeping and I was watching TV broadcast of the funeral.)

Ok, enough for now..

my family...

Mt. Pisgah @ Sunset

this picture was taken last December.. but I just like it!

2 degrees farhenheit

So said the ski bus guy. It was the warmest spot on the mountain that day - between Mt. Bachelor, Hoodoo, and Willamette Pass. We were headed for the warmest of the three. Bachelor was at 2 below and Hoodoo at 1 below. Maybe it's a good thing that I hadn't waxed my snowboard since my last ride.

I am not an early morning person, most of the time. But if it involves some sort of fun activity, like hiking on a sunny day, playing in an all day softball tournament, or, in this case, snowboarding, I don't have too much trouble getting my lazy self out of bed.

The hour-long ride seemed short since I didn't have to do the driving. Not much snow on the road side until about 15 minutes from the Pass. Even then, there were signs that ice had taken over the mountain, so catching an edge and falling could be quite painful. I wished that I had brought my sunglasses though as the bright sun was beaming through the bus windows and striking my eyes at odd angles. So much for catching some zzz's en route.

Stepping off the bus was like walking into a one of those giant freezers. A slight wind was blowing around what little snow had fallen that morning. Albeit, no fear - once I get going, some of the layers that I've got on are coming off anyway.

I managed to convince Cody to head for Duck Soup instead of the bunny hill to get started. The lift ride up the slope only reminded me of how awesome the outdoors can be, even in 1 degree weather. Although slightly obscured by the lift, the view of Diamond Peak and the surrounding area was magnificent! The sky was that bright blue, with a few clouds passing by here and there, and white glistening now all around. I wished that I had brought my camera. Man, it's gonna be a great boarding day!

It took a few moments for us to get going as Cody has only been boarding one other time. Man, if I was not impressed with his ability to keep plugging away at it despite all the tumbles and falls he kept on taking trying to balance himself. He even managed to accidentally tumble into a side-to-side 360! My stumbling highlights came a few short moments later, when I caught an edge while turning, went airborne, and landed about 6 feet from where I had started. From Cody's recap, it looked like I was skydiving sideways, with my feet in the air and face plant in the snow. We now call it a "downward facing dog - snowboarding style". Aside from one other tumble onto my noggin (trying to avoid an indecisive skiier), the rest of my runs were smooth and comfortable. I felt like I was gliding across the snow - a sharp contrast from my Silver Star trip a couple of weekends ago. I was even passing other boarders and skiiers with ease!

In all, it was a great day to be boarding. Even the butterscotch flavored hot chocolate drinks at the lodge weren't so bad!

Silverstar, BC

Well, why not.. while I'm at it, even though it's 1:24 am and I should actually be in bed... Here are a couple of my favorite pictures from my recent trip to Silver Star ski resort in British Columbia.


No, it was not lightning that struck me in the head. My mom and I took a backcountry snowshoeing tour @ sunset and we were wearing headlamps :-)

My very unsporty mom even managed to have a very good time skidding down some steep slopes on her backside!!!


I really like this picture of the resort at sunset. Sometimes, you just get lucky with the camera. This actually took place after we went to a "wine tasting" that turned out to be a "gathering" at town hall for the resort to sell you their products. My cuz Scott and uncle Mike got more foam than beer. Both the white and red wines tasted about the same...

Falling is possible...

So Derek and I went X-country skiing on Saturday. It was my first attempt at a new snow sport since trying snowshoeing last year. Simple enough, it would seem. And for the most part it was. There was the occasional flailing of the arms and stabbing the snow in trying to keep my balance and the exhilaration of skiing down a gentle slope at a good speed and being able to stop at the bottom. Of course, being me.. Laura the Leper.. falling was only inevitable... It came somewhere between "hey, I think I've got this down" and "... uh.. maybe not...". Luckily, unlike my snowboarding excursions, there was none of the thunderous crashes that leave me lying motionless for several seconds as my mind slowly absorbs the shock of falling and crashing. I fell, only once (I think) when my skis caught an edge (or each other). I have to admit, it was helluva easier to get up than on downhill skis. My triceps got an awesome workout and my quads are slightly sore today, but it was a great time.

The skiing aside, weather was beautiful.. which the pictures here show. Aside from the occasional snomobiling "gangs" that passed us by, all was quiet around us most of the time. A serene scene it was as we skiied to the family hideaway by the lake. We dug out the plywood board that covered the entrance to the cabin, a trickle jiggle here and there before the door was unlocked and we stopped in for lunch. Mom and dad had put in new carpet inthe cabin the summer before. I have to admit, I like it much better than the orange shag carpet that was there previously. It looked like they had begun putting up boards to cover up the sheetrock too. A work-in-progress, as always, but I love its "rustic" feel and how isolated I feel whenever I am up there. I snapped some pictures by the lake before we headed back down the road again.