New

As mentioned previously, I'm now in a new office at work. Now that I've had two weeks in the new space, there are some real positives, some things that will take some getting used to, and some things that will probably always bug me.

Like already:

• The view. I'm on the third floor, with a nice big window looking west toward the mountains. The late afternoon sun can be a bit strong right now, but I know I'll appreciate the light when winter gets here.
• The building is beautiful. There are terrazzo tiles and natural stone finishes; the carpet is chocolate brown with a subtle pattern, and my office is painted a peaceful sage green. The furniture is in a variety of fabrics that go together but don't all look identical. It's a wonderful change from cinderblock walls, stained ceilings, foggy windows, and mismatched 60's-vintage furniture.
• The building houses classrooms, labs, and faculty offices for several programs as well as several administrative departments. It's nice to be in a mixed-use building and see people in the hallways that used to be all the way across campus.
• I really have been pretty good about taking the stairs instead of the elevator, and the extra exercise is a good thing.

Adjustments in progress:

• For the past 8 years or so, my desk has been about a 30-second walk from where I park my car. Now it's about a 4-minute walk, including three flights of stairs. I keep forgetting to factor in the additional travel time when I'm coming or going, and I've been late to several things already.
• The new office has modern, built-in furniture that is attached to the walls, so there's no possibility of rearranging. The configuration is completely different from my old office, so I have to rethink where I put everything. So far I seem to need to open at least three drawers to find what I'm after. Or I try to open them, only to find that they're locked and I need to get a key first--nothing in my old office had locks. Not to mention the four boxes of files still to be unpacked and sorted, and the six boxes of books and binders still in my old office because half the shelving in my new office is not installed yet.
• The workroom that has the sink, refrigerator, etc. has two different entrances. Somehow, no matter which one I'm heading for, I go too far down the hall and have to backtrack. I usually have a much better sense of direction.

Not sure I'll ever get used to:

• The temperature. Logically, I know that it is far less expensive and more energy-efficient for a new building to have windows that don't open and computer-controlled thermostats. The temperature range indoors is set at 70-74 degrees. Outside it has been 85-98 degrees. So far I have worn a sweater every day, wrapped my polarfleece blanket around my legs, and had to sit on my hands to warm up my fingers when they got too cold to type.
• The main stairway. It's very pretty, but it's open and airy enough that it triggers my reaction to heights. The railings are aircraft cable, and the risers are perforated metal, and being able to see things move below me and beside me literally can make me lose my balance going up. I've been using the back stairwell, which opens very close to my office, but I probably can't avoid the main stairs forever. At least I'm fine walking down, since the treads are solid tiles.
• The restroom is gorgeous, especially in comparison to others on campus. The floor tiles look like colored slate, everything works (no toilets that flush endlessly or faucets that only put out a trickle)--but there are NO toilet paper holders. I don't know whether those didn't get ordered, or the contractor isn't responsible for installing them, or what the reason is, but each stall only has a couple of rolls stacked on the floor. Ick.

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Adrift

Over the weekend we attended a potluck gathering at the vacation home of some friends. They have a small place on the hillside above the lake (bigger than a trailer, but small for a mobile home) but the main attraction of this particular location for them is the dock and the waterside amenities, because they own a sailboat. After the meal was over, our host offered a sail to whoever was interested. The kids and I said yes, as did another couple, so there were six of us altogether.

Right from the start things didn't exactly go well. As we were maneuvering out of the slip, a big gust of wind pushed us back, and our hostess had to dash from one side to the other to push the boat away and keep it from crashing into the dock. We got ourselves turned the right way and headed out to open water. As soon as the sails were up, we got another gust of wind and the boat heeled way over. Now, this type of boat is built for TransPac racing and we were in absolutely no danger of capsizing, but since this was the kids' first experience under sail, they were more than a little unnerved. The winds were very erratic; there would be a big gust and then they would suddenly die down or change direction. We sailed down the lake for a mile or so and then tacked and ran downwind which was a little smoother.

We decided it was time to head in, and sailed back down toward the entrance to the dock. Once we were parallel we took down the sails and our host started up the little outboard motor. It purred along just fine, but we didn't go anywhere. He tinkered, and started it again, with the same result. Evidently a log that we had brushed against early on had hit the propeller harder than we realized and he diagnosed a broken shear pin.

By this time the wind had shifted again and was coming down the hill and across the lake pretty strongly. The lake is only about a mile wide in this area. So there we sat, adrift, while our host rigged up a block and tackle, detached the motor and hauled it into the cockpit (with assistance from one of the other adults), took off the propeller, replaced the shear pin, put everything back into place, and hauled the motor back into position and re-mounted it. This process took 30 minutes or so, and all the while we were being pushed toward the opposite shore. If we had really been too close, he could have stopped the whole process and put the sails up again, but he managed to get the motor going when we were within about 100 yards of land. We motored in to the dock and met the rest of the group, who were very curious about just why we had been sitting in the middle of the lake for so long, but didn't have binoculars to see exactly what we were doing. After we docked, our host admitted that he had never had that happen before, and had never even attempted that particular repair, but he was so self-possessed we had no idea. We discovered that the bottle of wine we brought for the potluck hadn't been opened, so we left it with him with thanks for a problem well solved and our wishes for a speedy recovery from the unexpected adventure. [And I had the camera with me, but the &#(*@!! batteries were dead again, so no pictures. I've bought a new set of batteries, but that doesn't seem to be solving the problem of the camera dying unexpectedly, so maybe it's time for a new camera.]

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Vacation the second

Bay at low tide

Our second vacation of the summer was through the generosity of my parents. They, along with several other couples they've know for half a century, were all gathering near the coast to attend a 50th wedding anniversary celebration of another couple. My mom found two side-by-side vacation rentals, right on the bay nearby, and since there was an extra bedroom we got to come along.


Evening fire

It was so nice to be by the water: to watch the tide come in and go out, to walk the rocky shore, to scan the water for diving seabirds or a visiting sea lion, to breathe the moist salt air instead of the dry furnace that home in August feels like. The kids had a great time fishing; all they caught were what is locally know as "bullheads" (we're still struggling to identify the true species; our first guess was wrong) but they learned to cast and were content to spend hours at the water's edge. This was especially nice for me as our unit came equipped with satellite TV and I had really been hoping for a respite from the Disney Channel; for the most part, fishing was sufficiently interesting to compete. We barbecued, roasted marshmallows, had some great meals in nearby towns, and explored parks, beaches, and the local hands-on marine science center.


Sandy toes

Son and Daughter rediscovered playing in the sand, skipping stones over the water, and hunting for baby crabs (it was surprising how many different types there were). I got time to visit with my parents' friends, especially the one couple who were "auntie" and "uncle" to me growing up and who gave me a home base during my long-distance dissertation process. I came home feeling like I had really had a break.


Sunset


Great Blue Heron

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Random rants

• Since July 6th I have been away as many days as I have been at home. That in itself isn't a problem, but it's atypical and I am way behind at home. There are so many things that need to be done and the start of school is right around the corner.



• We knew the front lawn got a little overgrown while we were gone, but we were only away a week and didn't think it was worth asking someone to mow. However, we didn't expect to find a rudely worded official letter from our city government in the mail when we got home, informing us that "it has come to the attention of this office that there may be several violations of the city's housing code taking place" on our property. "A site visit showed trees and shrubs growing over the sidewalk" and further noted that this is in "direct violation of several articles of the city's housing and zoning code, ordinace XXXX (nuisance)." Yes, we do have a small tree that was damaged in January's windstorm that is leaning and adults need to duck to get under the branches if they are walking on the inner half of the sidewalk. But this "site visit" is suspicious because there are no other trees or shrubs in the yard except well away from the street. Of course this letter arrived late Friday afternoon and Spouse has been stewing about it all weekend. We'll have to call on Monday to find out what's up. I'm curious whether our neighbors got similar letters, since they have trees and shrubs that clearly encroach onto the sidewalk. The whole tone of the letter was just obnoxious - it made it sound like our yard was full of abandoned cars and was a hazard to the health and safety of others. After all, the head city administrator seems to think it's safe enough for her child to spend the night here (he's a buddy of Son's) -- but I won't mention that since I really hate it when people in this town use who they know to intimidate others. I might, however, suggest to her that they find a less offensive way to let people know there might be a problem. Sheesh.



• My office at work is moving into a new building. This has been planned and scheduled in great detail and a moving date of August 16/17 was published in early June. I opted to save the packing up until after I returned on vacation on 8/13 so I wouldn't be continually having to dig files out of boxes. So I was surprised and annoyed to learn on 8/6, in the midst of a vacation on the other side of the state, that the move was rescheduled for 8/9. My assistant valiantly packed up my office, but half the shelving in my new office is not yet installed, so I won't have places to put everything. And I have to go out of town again - I got signed up for a conference I didn't know about on Wed and Thurs this week. So who knows when I will get unpacked.



• My physical blog posts are waaaaay behind my mental ones - I've composed a bunch of them in my head that have yet to see the screen. I can't blog from work; there are strict policies banning personal use of computers, the Internet, etc. and I already bend the rules checking email or listening to online radio. It's hard to find time at home, especially since I've been gone so much. And when I do get online, I have a hard time getting Blogger to cooperate. I will preview a post and it looks fine, but then something very different shows up when I publish it. I should spend more time learning about the helpful tips and tricks that I'm sure are available, but when?
  

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Vacation the first

As mentioned in the HP post, we took a family vacation in July. We've been returning to this spot for almost 7 years, ever since we had a family reunion there for my dad's 80th birthday. It's only about an hour from our house, far enough to feel like we've gotten away, yet without a big hassle for packing, traveling, etc. As much as I like being there, it still feels a bit off to me. I never imagined myself as the type that would vacation regularly in a condo at a resort.

My childhood was full of family camping trips. It was very rare that we stayed in a motel (and then it was likely to be Motel 6, and only because we were trying to make time on a long drive). The four of us slept in a tent, cooked on a Coleman stove, roasted marshmallows over an open fire, washed hands and faces in cold water from a pump, and had a fabulous time. We explored the redwoods, Yosemite, the Pinnacles, beaches, the mountains of Idaho, the Olympic Peninsula - so many places up and down the west coast. The only thing I remember NOT liking about the whole experience was having to eat canned green beans, which tasted awful compared to the fresh and frozen vegies I was used to.

So I'm not really sure how I became the kind of adult that owns a timeshare vacation condo. I can give you an explanation that sounds logical, but it still rings a little false to me. I freely admit it's much easier to prepare meals in a fully equipped kitchen, and that my body complains at the idea of sleeping on the ground. But the only time I truly feel like I'm away is when I'm down at the lake, close enough to hear the water lapping against the shore. Then I can block out the mini golf course, and the concession stand, and create a sense of seclusion - at least until the next jet ski roars by.

The highlight of this summer's trip for me was teaching Son how to paddle a kayak. Not only did he get the hang of it, he had fun - and wasn't asking to rent a jet ski. There may be hope yet.

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