Something Squirrelly this Way Comes

This is Tai Shan. He's the male baby Giant Panda at the DC Zoo and too cute for words!! Metal guards on the trees are to keep him from climbing too high & getting stuck.

He kept trying to go higher though. Determined to get past the metal barriers. When that failed, he moved over to the wooden fence between his mom's house (and his ) and his dad's house. He tumbled backward twice at his efforts to climb the fence. The crowd oohed and ahhed at him. It was cute.

And this is JT sitting on my dad's lap as we ride the metro. See how JT grab's the pole to hold on?
First time on the metro and he's already ready riding like an expert!

Way to go JT! I just knew you had some of me in you! Now, if we could just work through the screaming for mom, dad, grandma or grandpa when I hold you, we'll be good to go :)

Friday afternoon the coworkers and I are discussing random things, as per usual. Today's conversation covers the Olympic Bomber (in Atlanta), Unabomber and how, if you google your name and the word 'dies' or 'died' you'll supposedly find out how you'll die. One coworker (ruff) dies from an exploding wedding cake.

Then I get this phone call from a DC number. It's a guy from FedEx saying he has a package for me. I'm at a loss as I'm at work and, as far as I know, nobody knows my work address. Only a select few know my phone number at work.

"What?" I ask the guy.
"This is G, right?"
"Yeeeaaahhhhhh....."
"I just need to know your suite number so I can deliver your package."
"Suite number? I don't have one. I have a room number."
"Just need your suite number so my driver can deliver your package. You're at this street address?"
"Yeah but it's a secure building."
"We have a DOD badge, he can get by."
"Okay. I'm in room ###."
"What floor?"
"Second floor."
"Okay, he'll be right there."

I turn to my coworkers. "That's so weird. Guy from FedEx just said he has a package for me. He knew my name, the address and my number. What the hell? I haven't given this address to anyone."
"Open it Outside." Herbert said
"Let me know when you're opening it, I don't want to be here." Ruff said.
"What? That's bizarre. Did you order something?" Phish said.

Then my mind starts to ponder. I work for a federal agency (sorta) and my name could feasibly be tied to this organization and found on the internet. Is it some irate and/or disturbed person sending me their dead cat and some pesticide that they think killed it? The cat being sent for testing, etc. Please know this has Never happened but I'm a tad paranoid and have an active imagination. Not the best combo when it comes to worst case scenario thinking.

FedEx guy gets past all security measures and walks into the room. It's a big box (18" wide x 18" long X 12" deep) which incites Herbert & Ruff to say, "That's a big bomb, G. Better take it outside so the building doesn't disintegrate with you when it goes."

I sign and take the box, it's freakishly light which eases my mind of the dead cat scenario. At my desk, Herbert and Ruff go to the middle of the room (by the door, mind you) and Phish is off picking up our lunches (four of us had all ordered from the same place). Address label says Diana from some balloons company in Oklahoma. I think Who's Diana? Oklahoma? I don't know anyone in Oklahoma unless someone moved and didn't tell me which would be weird because if they didn't tell me, how do they know my address and phone number at a job I started less than a year ago???

I carefully open the box, fairly certain that it's balloons but still at a loss who they're from. It's a big Mylar balloon filled with helium that says Happy 30! and then eight smaller air filled balloons tied to a stick, a smaller helium balloon that says Happy Birthday also tied to the stick. Stick is being held by a cute little bear. Bear is also holding a bag of candy. No note telling me who they're from. I figure my folks because it's a cute arrangement. I figure if my brother sent me something it'd be a whole passel of black balloons saying Over the Hill or some such thing. Then I spy a little bottle with a piece of paper rolled up in it. I uncork and read the note. "I told you I'd get you back. T." Awwwwwww is my first reaction.

T, put on brother goggles and don't read the next bit :)

Coworkers are all like "Who is it from??"
"My brother. Isn't he a sweetie??" Which, I'm sure would make T's toes curl if he heard me say that. Then he'd use that as blackmail against me. He's squirrelly like that.

T, you can remove goggles now.

Then I remember how, last week, T was randomly trying to figure out where the new building is (company is moving to a new building in several months) and asked where my current building is, "to see how far apart they are". Then I recall how my mom was asking me what the name of my company is, not just the acronym but the actual name.

See, nearly two years ago on T's 30th birthday, his wife and I conspired to have balloons arrive at his place of work. The subsequent serenading of Happy birthday by coworkers was out of my control, although much appreciated :) T sent the balloons to my work so that I'd have to take them on the metro and then the bus. His plan was foiled though because my folks & nephew picked me up on Friday.

And yes, I did call him and explain the whole bomb/dead cat thoughts. Rather I called, left a message saying "got the balloons, give me a call when you're back in your office." He called me back later and I explained the thought processes the office helped incite. He laughed.

All I gotta say is . This had better be worth it people!

Some of yall are wondering why I didn't list Guitar Lessons from U2's The Edge as a gift option in the Priceless category. There are a few reasons...

1) I don't have my guitar yet (arriving tomorrow afternoon)
2) I can't even play a chord, why embarass myself in front of The Edge?

Even if those two reasons weren't an issue (and hopefully won't be in a few days/weeks time), there's still the main reason. If The Edge were to show up and offer to teach me guitar I'd faint dead away. In the process it's likely that the Universe will conspire to throw a table, chair, random sharp, pointy object in my path on which I'll hit my head. Thereby cracking it open, requiring a trip to the ER for stitches and possible CATScan to determine if I am concussed.

Despite the fact that I'd enjoy every minute of it (Hello!! It's The Edge!!), I fear it may be too traumatic for The Edge. I have no desire to scar the man for life. So there you have it. Happy now? ;)

For the random peeps who are going What the heck?? Priceless category?? see my previous entry. :)

Since I was accused *ahem T* of asking for an MP3 player for my birthday when I really wasn't, I decided to be obnoxious and compile a list. Sure some things might be a ..tad cheeky, but when you're being blatant you might as well list what you really want.

For your monetary convience, I've divided my gifts into a variety of categories based on price point. Also, most links are to Amazon.com mainly for picture and ISBN help. I've never actually bought anything from Amazon so I don't have any feelings about them, one way or another. Yall only have left, better get shopping!

Edgetastic!!! Priceless
Bearhug from U2's The Edge :)

Platinum $1,001 and up
Trip to Australia to see U2 perform (March 17, 18, 21, 24, 25, 28 &/or 31, 2006)
Trip to Ireland with surprise U2 concert (rumored to be this July)
Trip to Hawaii to see U2 (April 8, 2006)
Music Rising Guitar

Please note all trips must include airfare, accomodations, spending money, valid U2 concert ticket and be a minimum of five nights.

Gold $101-1000
MP3 Player
Santoku Knife (aka Japanese Chef's Knife)
30GB, 7,500 Song iPod in Black Please include car adapter and Complete U2 Boxed Set available from iTunes
U2 iPod
Any U2 Lithograph

Silver $51-100
U2 & I: The Photographs 1982-2004 by Anton Corbijn

Bronze $26-50
U2 Show by Diana Scrimgeour (Hardcover - Oct 14, 2004)
U2 by U2 by U2 and Neil McCormick (Hardcover - Sep 1, 2006) **That's right, it's not released yet. Keep this in mind for a Labor Day gift, Halloween, Half year Bbday, Christmas, etc. :)

Broke but Still Cool $5-25
Live at Red Rocks: Under a Blood Red Sky (1983) VHS
Bono: In Conversation with Michka Assayas by Michka Assayas
U2 - Best of 1990-2000 (2002) DVD
U2 - Popmart (1997) VHS
Gift Card (Barnes & Noble, Borders, Amazon, Bath & Body Works, etc)
Any U2 single

It's The Thought That Counts Under $5
Bootlegs of any U2 concert, any tour
Ecard
Snail mail card
Positive thoughts & vibes

Saturday night my friend D & I went to The Melting Pot to celebrate our birthdays. Her's is 15 days after mine and in college we'd always celebrate the weekend between our birthdays. This year she'll be in India so we moved up our celebration.

I don't know how many of you are familiar with The Melting Pot - it's a fondue restaurant. Meaning everything (except salads & drinks) involve skewering things and dipping them into the pot in the middle of the table. First course is a cheese (I highly recommend the cheddar!!) with veggies and bread for dipping. Next course is a salad (their raspberry vinagrette dressing is scrumptious) followed by the meat course. You choose oil or broth (there are a variety to choose from) and pick your meat platter. When your server arrives (we renamed our's Sven) he gives careful instructions on never putting the raw meat on your plate and not to eat from the skewers themselves (they get mighty hot sitting in the hot broth). I'm sure some people would be put off by having a plate of raw meat plunked down on their table. I'm just glad the shrimp were on D's side and that she was kind of enough not to cook any until I was done. Not gonna chance any amount of shrimp juice on my food (allergies).

Meat course also comes with a variety of after cooking sauces. Green goddess, mild curry, teriyaki, bbq, gorgonzola pepper, etc. Also the dippers - veggies, bread, fruit - are endless (except for the meat).

The last and arguably best course is dessert - chocolate fondue. I prefer dark chocolate, D prefers white chocolate (white is way too sweet for me) so we compromise and go with milk chocolate. Personally, I wanted the flaming turtle again but she didn't (it's milk choc., carmel, nuts and a shot of rum that they set on fire at your table, flaming the alcohol out). We did jazz up the milk choc. by adding a shot of grand marnier (orange liquer). It was good :) I mean hey, warm chocolate with fruit, marshmallows, cheesecake, pound cake, brownies to dip in it. Hard to screw that up. Also switched out the strawberries for granny smith apples instead.

Funny thing about Sven, our waiter, we had him both times we've been to this location. D was under the impression that he might actually remember us, he was very polite and diplomatic about it. His name is actually Ben and when D told him that we had renamed him Sven (I have No idea why she told him this) he asked if it was in reference to the SNL character played by Mike Meyers. To which I said, only if that's not insulting to you. Which is when D clued in that he could, possibly, be offended by being renamed. Granted I am a tad sensitive to things like this. I'm sure he just thought we were crazy, which is fine. We gave him a great tip, so hopefully it helped smooth any feathers we may have ruffled. Especially since we were there til nearly 1 and were one of the last customers to leave.

Sunday was spent in shopping mall hell. I'm just not a mall person. We had wanted to go to Old Town Alexandria to loaf and shop but it was just too cold outside. We did up going down there for a late lunch. We spent the majority of Sunday at Tysons Corner & Tysons Galleria. I refuse to give link to these places as they caused me MUCH grief. First getting to, then parking, then the people. Maybe if I hadn't been driving, it wouldn't have been such a pain. I don't know. I just know that I have no need to ever go back to either mall.

So there you have it. The birthday extravaganza. Not so extravagant but mostly fun. Hope yall had a great weekend :)

I want an MP3 player. One of them handy dandy little gadgets that let you stockpile TONS of music that You actually love, not whatever the DJ's feel like playing. A handheld gadget with clever headphones that you can put in and block out all the creeps in the world. Be they at work, on the metro or on the bus. Also block out random cell conversations. I mean, really, I so don't need to know that you think there is "something" wrong with you but your Dr. can't find anything. And I really don't need to know your symptoms!!!!

I was coveting the U2 iPod for months but couldn't swing the $400 to get it. Okay, okay the iPod itself didn't cost $400 but if I was getting an iPod then I was by gum going to get the U2 Boxed set while I was at it! And now it's no longer for sale. So that dilemma is gone. I'm only slightly heartbroken about it.

Any ole MP3 player will do. I haven't researched them at all. I don't know the difference between an iPod and other MP3 players, or itunes and whatever other places there are to buy music from. I was under the impression that you could transfer your cds to your MP3 player. Not that I have any idea how to do this. But I have friends and family who do, so it's all good.

MP3 Me Addendum
It has come to my attention that people see this entry as a not so subtle plea for an MP3 player for my birthday. Let me point out a couple of things. 1) Had this, in fact been a request, I'd have mentioned that my birthday is March 1. That there are less than 2 shopping weeks left to buy me said MP3 player. I might even have put a countdown clock, , in the post. Or a Link to an MP3 player. But did I do that in the entry?? Nooooooo!

Last night I saw Girlyman perform. It's my second time seeing them. Thankfully I still think they're amazing. The fact that I was in the minority and by myself, notwithstanding. By minority I mean, not gay. Girlyman has quite the lesbian following.

Actually, it's not surprising that I enjoyed myself immensely. The first time I saw them (in mid Nov. when they opened for Dar Williams) I bought both their albums. So I knew what to expect. Despite all three of them having a cold and the first couple of songs being shakey - harmony and sound volume wise - it was a great show. Good audience.

I've mainly only listened to their newer album, Little Star. Last night has inspired me to listen to their first album, Remember Who I Am some more. They did mostly songs from Little Star, interspersed with older songs and some new ones. I adore the song St. Peter's Bones which they performed back in Nov. and I wished then, as I do now, that it was on one of their albums. Hopefully they'll be able to get in a studio to record a new album soon!

Highlight for me was when they were being silly and joking around with us. That's what I love about folk groups, they interact much more with their audiences (U2 is the exception to this, not the rule when it comes to rock bands). Maybe it's because their audiences are smaller (maybe a couple hundred vs. several thousand). Whatever the reason, I like it. Keep it up folk groups!!

Girlyman was touring in Vermont last year and saw a sign for Moose crossing. Ty, the driver (at that time), said she'd like to see a moose but not in the road. Which inspired a song about a moose. It was highly entertaining and doubtful to ever make it to a record. One of those random songs that people make up about random things all the time. Only, in their case, they added music and sang in key. Good Times.

Then there was their song in tribute to the Holland Tunnel. Although it can be sung in tribute to any road with writing on the ground. Stay In Lane.. but you read it Lane In Stay because the words aren't spaced out far enough apart. Their tribute:

Thing wild
Sing heart my make you
Groovy everything make you
Thing wild

You love I think I, thing wild
Sure for wanna know I but
Tight me hold, on come
You love I

Thing wild
Sing heart my make you
Groovy everything make you
Thing wild

Forgot to mention that Micah Dalton opened for Girlyman. He's got a good voice and his music (accousitic guitar) was great. Tho he tried too hard to impress us. Lots of extra virbrato and random squinty eyed, big cheesy smiling grimaces going on. I found if I didn't look directly at him while he performed, I liked it a lot better. As it was, I was rather antsy for him to end so that Girlyman could begin. His website is pretty nifty tho (click on his name above) but have your volume down or your headset on as music starts once you click into the site. Hmm maybe it's just for broadband/high speed...

There's a 'new' search engine out there that lets you generate funds for your charity. It's called GoodSearch and is powered by yahoo. While I'm anti-yahoo email and typically prefer google, I do believe I'll use Good search. This way I can donate to SeaWeb, admittedly it's pennies at a time but that's more than if I had used google.

Here's my Valentine. I'm sure yall were probably expecting a picture of Edge or Tyler or maybe even Michael but no. I went with my heart and chose JT. Poor guy is sick though, so no partying for him today. Ever since he started day care, he's been getting sick. Too bad the upsides are so positive.

For those interested, he had just turned One before this picture. Currently he's 15 months, weighs about 26.5 pounds and is just over 32 inches tall. Such a big guy! And Smart too!



Get well soon, Sweetheart!

So yesterday I made chocolate crepes with a raspberry sauce. My first attempt at crepe making. I think I did pretty well. Sure there were a few misshapen ones (okay more than half) but nary a one hit the floor or the microwave (directly above stovetop) whilst I was flipping them. I consider that a success! And yeah okay so you can flip them with a spatula but where's the fun in that? Half the fun of making pancakes is flipping them through the air! And, I am happy to report, the same is true with crepes :)

Last evening I made spaghetti sauce. It's been ages since I made my own marinara. For whatever reason, I decided to follow - loosely - a recipe. However, I was a tad perplexed as to why the recipe called for five tablespoons (5 Tbsp) of butter. Have you ever heard of putting butter in your red sauce??? Well, I wasn't sure I'd like it and I didn't want to waste my tomatoes and meat, so I only added 1.5 Tbsps of butter. I didn't notice a difference in taste. So... again, I query, why add butter??

Why 1.5 Tbsps you ask? You think it seems like an odd amount. Easy. That was the amount remaining from my open stick of butter. :)

Also, I have realized that I have mastered one skill in the kitchen. I am the queen of this. Few in the world dare rival my expertise in this culinary area. Watch out Tyler Florence! Rachel Ray! Alton Brown! You are reading the blog of the Masterful Kitchen Mess Maker!! That's right! Bow down when you pay homage to moi!

Oh, I stopped and got a raspberry latte this morning. Mmmmm. Raspberrylicious!

Finally have some snow here in the Greater DC Metropolis! For awhile there last night I had lost hope. By midnight there was just a dusting and the previous forecasts indicated that we should've had several inches by that time. I got up this morning (just after 7:00) and ws pleasantly surprised. There's about five inches on my frontsteps. Okay there used to be about five inches. The maintenance guys just came around and cleared it all off.

Although, supposedly, there's ten to twelve inches of snow here. Maybe out in more open areas there's that much snow. Where I was snapping pictures is fairly sheltered. Nearly three sides are blocked so any wind blowing around is deflected.

I tried to get some pictures of the squirrels playing. I know some of them were foraging for nuts under the snow but I swear some of them were just frolicking about in typical squirrel fashion. I have pictures on my two non-digital cameras. Maybe some squirrels came through. I had one or two on my digital but you couldn't see the squirrels clearly. Just a darker spot where their backs were as their heads were below the snow line. I think they were digging for food, if the puffs of snow flying around them were any indication. Officially, we're pretty much done with the snow, at most we'll get another inch of accumulation.

Apparently there are several thousand people without power. I don't know why. It wasn't an ice storm. However, there was a problem on one of the Green metro line this morning. A de-icing train hit a tree that was on the tracks (tree was 25 inches in diameter). So perhaps more trees fell in the area? My guess would be that some idiot was driving too fast, lost control and hit a power pole. Or maybe the idiot(s) hit a tree and the tree felled the power lines.

Anyway, I think it's time to go frolick some outside. Or maybe drink a nice steamy cup of coffee and watch the squirrels frolick outside. Hmmmm..... sounds like a plan.

So it's finally feeling like winter here in the Greater DC Metropolis. In fact they're calling for snow flurries tonight and a possible three to seven inches of snow tomorrow. Yall know what that means, right? A mad dash to the grocery stores for french toast fixins - Milk, eggs and bread. Not that most people make french toast but most are in a frenzy to get the ingredients. No idea why those are considered a staple for snow storms or hurricanes or any "extreme" weather event.

Personally, I think it'd be better to stock up on hot chocolate, milk and pasta. Warm, yummy ingredients that keep you feeling cozy and full.

Or, perhaps, Whiskey, Bailey's Irish Cream and Rum. Those will Definitely keep you feeling warm and mellow should you happen to be snowed in for awhile. ;)

For those of you in the dark and out of the loop, the 48th Annual Grammy Awards were last night. U2 were nominated in five categories and they Won. All. Five.!!!!!

Way to go boys!!!! One of the highlights for me was before the show started. Bono said that U2 was just a folk band. No wonder I love them so much! :)

U2 have a total of 22 Grammy Awards. Eight of them for their album How To Dismantle An Atomic Bomb. They won three Grammy's last year for Vertigo - which was the only song eligible for the awards in 2005. The album was released too late to be considered. Which, I think, is for the best. People have had time to realize how truly brilliant it is. The five awards they won last night:

Album of the Year
How to Dismantle an Atomic Bomb

Song of the Year
Sometimes You Can't Make It On Your Own

Best rock performance by a duo or group with vocal
Sometimes You Can't Make it on Your Own

Best rock song
City of Blinding Lights

Best rock album
How to Dismantle an Atomic Bomb

Grammy's previously won:

1. Album Of The Year 1987 - 30th Annual GRAMMY Awards - The Joshua Tree
2. Performance By A Duo Or Group With Vocal 1987 - 30th Annual GRAMMY Awards - The Joshua Tree
3. Best Rock Performance By A Duo Or Group With Vocal 1988 - 31st Annual GRAMMY Awards - Desire
4. Best Performance Music Video 1988 - 31st Annual GRAMMY Awards - Where The Streets Have No Name
5. Best Rock Performance By A Duo Or Group With Vocal 1992 - 35th Annual GRAMMY Awards - Achtung Baby
6. Best Alternative Music Album 1993 - 36th Annual GRAMMY Awards - Zooropa
7. Video, Long Form 1994 - 37th Annual GRAMMY Awards Zoo TV - Live From Sidney
8. Record Of The Year 2000 - 43rd Annual GRAMMY Awards - Beautiful Day
9. Song Of The Year 2000 - 43rd Annual GRAMMY Awards - Beautiful Day
10. Best Rock Performance By A Duo Or Group With Vocal 2000 - 43rd Annual GRAMMY Awards - Beautiful Day
11. Record Of The Year 2001 - 44th Annual GRAMMY Awards - Walk On
12. Best Pop Performance By A Duo Or Group With Vocal 2001 - 44th Annual GRAMMY Awards - Stuck In A Moment You Can't Get Out Of
13. Best Rock Performance By A Duo Or Group With Vocal 2001 - 44th Annual GRAMMY Awards - Elevation
14. Best Rock Album 2001 - 44th Annual GRAMMY Awards - All That You Can't Leave Behind
15. Best Rock Performance By A Duo Or Group With Vocal 2004 - 47th Annual GRAMMY Awards - Vertigo
16. Best Short Form Music Video 2004 - 47th Annual GRAMMY Awards – Vertigo
17. Best Rock Song 2004 – 47th Annual GRAMMY Awards - Vertigo
18. Album Of The Year 2005 - 48th Annual GRAMMY Awards - How To Dismantle An Atomic Bomb
19. Song Of The Year 2005 – 48th Annual GRAMMY Awards - Sometimes You Can’t Make It On Your Own
20. Best Rock Performance By A Duo Or Group With Vocal 2005 – 48th Annual GRAMMY Awards - Sometimes You Can’t Make It On Your Own
21. Best Rock Song 2005 – 48th Annual GRAMMY Awards - City of Blinding Lights
22. Best Rock Album 2005 – 48th Annual GRAMMY Awards - How To Dismantle An Atomic Bomb

Here's some new instructions for cooking an egg. I haven't tried it so I can't vouch for the technique. However, if any of yall give it a go, let me know how it turns out! :)

OSLO, Norway (Reuters) -- Scientists say they have found a 'Lost World' in an Indonesian mountain jungle, home to dozens of exotic new species of birds, butterflies, frogs and plants.

Live Green, Go Yellow is a new website by GM Motors advocating the use of E85 fuel. That is, 85% ethanol and 15% petroleum. If you go to the LGGY web page, an informational video talks about using renewable resources to make ethanol. It's pretty cool. The fact that you can get a free t-shrit by going to the Get Stuff link, is incidental.

From the Clean Air Choice web site. "A bushel of field corn will yield 1.6 lbs of corn oil, 10.9 lbs of high protein feed (distillers dried grains or DDG), 2.6 lbs of corn meal and 31.5 lbs of starch-which can be converted to beverages, sweeteners or 2.7 gallons of fuel ethanol."

Some more links for more information on E85. Please click and read.

E85 Fuel
Ethanol.org
U.S. DOE E85 Info

There are some blogs out there which talk about alternative fuel. The main one that pops up is rather schizophrenic in its approach. It says it's pro-alternative fuel, yet every entry I've read is decidedly con. They seem to be more interested in bashing attempts to become less oil dependent, than in offering ideas to achieve this goal. I guess I shouldn't judge, I do my darndest to add the word squirrelly, or some derivative thereof, to every entry of My blog. I'm sure there are tons of folks out there who think I'm as unbalanced as I think the above mentioned bloggers are. :)

Big thanks to Toph, for giving me the heads up about the Live Green, Go Yellow link.

So today is a compressed day for yours truly. The reward for working 9 hour days. So what have I done so far? Well, I got up at 7 (*laughs at Rachel's gasp of horror*), did some dishes, vacuumed, gathered clothes up to do some laundry and watched parts of Piglet's Big Movie. Super productive, eh?

A friend of mine was possibly coming over today, hence my bout of cleaning this AM. Currently I'm waiting for Tyler's Radio Show to start. Action packed day, I know. I bet yall are envious ;)

No clue if this is a 'real' photo or not.
It could well be doctored, but I think it's groovy anyway.

Enjoy! :)

This season belongs to Brigid, the Celtic goddess who in later times became revered as a Christian saint. Originally, her festival on February 1 was known as Imbolc or Oimelc, two names which refer to the lactation of the ewes, the flow of milk that heralds the return of the life-giving forces of spring. Later, the Catholic Church replaced this festival with Candlemas Day on February 2, which is dedicated to the Virgin Mary and features candlelight processions. The powerful figure of Brigid the Light-Bringer overlights both pagan and Christian celebrations.

The above snippet I copied from Celtic Spirit's web page. It was written in 1999 by Mara Freeman. For more information on Imbolc and Candlemas, please visit the Imbolc section on the Celtic Spirit site.

I was going to give yall a link to the Punxsutawney Phil web page but it is BEYOND lame and stupid, so I refuse. Google it if you must, just don't bother with the FAQ page. However, the Groundhog page of the North of Boston Library Exchange (NOBLE) is not bad. Not bad at all. A fairly accurate history of how the holiday came to be.

Yesterday afternoon the coworkers and myself were permitted to eyeball the new cube arrangement. See our building is moving to a new facility in late spring/early summer. Technically the building itself isn't moving, just the staff, papers, files, supplies, etc. Some other agency(ies) are the lucky souls to occupy this dusty, dingy building. I swear I've had more colds in the last seven months than I have in the last three years, but I digress (Shocking!).

So I went down to eyeball the new cube. Figured it couldn't get much worse, privacy wise, than what I already have. And I was right! The cubes have 3.5 walls! We'll be surrounded by industrial beige, fabric-y walls that are 5.5 feet tall. There are two "windows" in the cubes too, opposite from each other. It's rather bizarre and you can't particularly see through them but they're windows nonetheless. Excuse, I mean vision panels.

The cubes themselves are easily twice the size of what I use now. Has at least three times the amount of storage and the desk is twice as big. I have no idea what I'll do with all that space. Biggest issue is that 99% of it is beige. With only a few silver (metal) accents. I'll have to bring in a Bunch of color photos to cover up the Sea of Beige.

Coworkers and I were brainstorming about all the space. One guy said there's plenty of room to stretch out on the desk (or under it) in a sleeping bag and nap. So that's a handy idea to keep in mind. However, I believe the number one idea to best utilize the space, is to bring in our own mini fridges. Granted we'd have to hide the vodka from any prying eyes, but at least our food won't freeze because some idiot keeps messing with the temperature control.

**Italicized words are how things are desribed in regards to the new place. It's not a building but a facility and doors do not have windows, they have vision panels. It's rather entertaining to read any info about the new facility and makes me wonder if the author was paid by the word. Or perhaps they were instructed to Regal it up some?