Thanksgiving weekend and a general update
Nov. 30th, 2009 03:12 pm![[personal profile]](https://www.dreamwidth.org/img/silk/identity/user.png){kind=small}
callistotoniThanksgiving: I got a late start, Brandee got a turnout*, and then I had a lovely dinner and evening at Marguerite's with The Usual South Bay Suspects. Missed J/S terribly. :-( Part of me wants to host Thanksgiving next year as a way to give the finger to the cosmos for keeping J/S and I apart for the first 2 Thanksgivings that have happened since we've gotten together. But we've had Christmas' and B-day's together, so that's something. And many thanks to Brian and Gillian for cooking a yummy Thanksgiving dinner. :-)
*Sigh. I get more exercise than Brandee when I turn her out in the outdoor arena because she'll only move when I chase her with the whip. Best I got was 2 bucks and a QH-tubo-butt run 3/4 diagonally accross the arena, then she stopped. I sat in the arena with her for a while just so she could absorb some vitamin D, until she walked over to the gate and turned and looked at me. Clearly it was time for The Staff to take her back and feed her. At least she didn't lie down and go to sleep this time.
Friday I worked. Had a reasonably productive day. I'm busy at work from now until the end of the year (have to write one final report, at least).
Saturday I tacked on the rabbit fur tippits (aka the Tippits of Fail -- see previous post) onto my black wool over-cotehardie. Lost track of the time so had to call Marguerite to have her take care of the Paint Princess. Time was critical because I got picked up in the afternoon by![[livejournal.com profile]](https://www.dreamwidth.org/img/external/lj-userinfo.gif)
misagillian so we could start our Drive Extravaganza: Head to Vallejo to pick up Mists gear, then up to Sacremento for the Golden Rivers banquet. Very pleasant event. I haven't been a lady in waiting for a long time, but I think I'm getting my LiW groove back. ;-) Got back to Livermore and in bed by 2 AM.
Sunday it was Brandee Time, followed by an afternoon/evening with Owen's mom, who is 90 years old as of today. Owen told me she was asking about me, so going up there seemed the right thing to do. I have to say, she's doing really well all considered: still living in her own home, still walking (although with a walker), and only has professional elder care workers com in 4 days a week, and then only for a few hours. After seeing J/S' mom, Owen's mom is a real inspiration -- may we all so as well as her.
On the Brandee Front, she finally got clipped. I couldn't get off work, so many thanks to Marguerite for taking her new baby out to the barn and washing and drying Brandee Wednesday so that Brandee could get clipped by a nice woman at our barn. No, I'm not interested in doing my own clipping. I've tried it and I suck at it (kinda like how I suck at driving a stick-shift -- just not worth it to me.) Brandee really was fuzzy; her hair was 2 inches long! Leohtulf got the hair, and is dividing it up to some of his folks that asked for it.
I can tell Brandee feels better without the heavy coat. My last 2 rides she's had more energy (no, really, she can be quite forward when ridden correctly! Calm does not necessarily mean dead, although she will be lazy if you let her.)
I'm at a clumsy stage in my riding. I had a breakthrough regarding my arm position, and I finally have the muscles to keep a good position while posting. So I'm in the 'breaking bad habits but still not solid in the new improved position' stage in my riding right now. I can get Brandee going really well and round, but it takes me at least 30 min to get her and me together. Per my trainer, I'm not cantering unless things are going perfectly at the trot. So much trotting practice these days. I'm happy to say that Brandee's got a foamy mouth when I dismount these days -- yay!
On the J/S front, it looks like he'll be moving down here sometime in the end of January/February time frame. His brother is in a position to come live in their mom's house and get it ready to rent, so J/S is going to let him. This time frame bodes ill for going to Estrella, I'm afraid. But Yay for finally being able to live together! Oh, and if anyone out there has some employment ideas for J/S we'd love to hear them. He's next coming to visit on Dec. 17th, and will be here through Dec. 27th. I'm planning on working with him on some sort of generic skill set list and resume during that time.
The other big task is to get the house ready for him to move in. The garage is currently being used as a storage area, and that has to all be cleared out so that J/S can move his shop in. There's a lot of house prep that I need to do between now and when J/S moves, I have to say. Yup, the next few months are going to be crazy-busy. :-0 But, still, Squee!!!
*Sigh. I get more exercise than Brandee when I turn her out in the outdoor arena because she'll only move when I chase her with the whip. Best I got was 2 bucks and a QH-tubo-butt run 3/4 diagonally accross the arena, then she stopped. I sat in the arena with her for a while just so she could absorb some vitamin D, until she walked over to the gate and turned and looked at me. Clearly it was time for The Staff to take her back and feed her. At least she didn't lie down and go to sleep this time.
Friday I worked. Had a reasonably productive day. I'm busy at work from now until the end of the year (have to write one final report, at least).
Saturday I tacked on the rabbit fur tippits (aka the Tippits of Fail -- see previous post) onto my black wool over-cotehardie. Lost track of the time so had to call Marguerite to have her take care of the Paint Princess. Time was critical because I got picked up in the afternoon by
misagillian so we could start our Drive Extravaganza: Head to Vallejo to pick up Mists gear, then up to Sacremento for the Golden Rivers banquet. Very pleasant event. I haven't been a lady in waiting for a long time, but I think I'm getting my LiW groove back. ;-) Got back to Livermore and in bed by 2 AM.Sunday it was Brandee Time, followed by an afternoon/evening with Owen's mom, who is 90 years old as of today. Owen told me she was asking about me, so going up there seemed the right thing to do. I have to say, she's doing really well all considered: still living in her own home, still walking (although with a walker), and only has professional elder care workers com in 4 days a week, and then only for a few hours. After seeing J/S' mom, Owen's mom is a real inspiration -- may we all so as well as her.
On the Brandee Front, she finally got clipped. I couldn't get off work, so many thanks to Marguerite for taking her new baby out to the barn and washing and drying Brandee Wednesday so that Brandee could get clipped by a nice woman at our barn. No, I'm not interested in doing my own clipping. I've tried it and I suck at it (kinda like how I suck at driving a stick-shift -- just not worth it to me.) Brandee really was fuzzy; her hair was 2 inches long! Leohtulf got the hair, and is dividing it up to some of his folks that asked for it.
I can tell Brandee feels better without the heavy coat. My last 2 rides she's had more energy (no, really, she can be quite forward when ridden correctly! Calm does not necessarily mean dead, although she will be lazy if you let her.)
I'm at a clumsy stage in my riding. I had a breakthrough regarding my arm position, and I finally have the muscles to keep a good position while posting. So I'm in the 'breaking bad habits but still not solid in the new improved position' stage in my riding right now. I can get Brandee going really well and round, but it takes me at least 30 min to get her and me together. Per my trainer, I'm not cantering unless things are going perfectly at the trot. So much trotting practice these days. I'm happy to say that Brandee's got a foamy mouth when I dismount these days -- yay!
On the J/S front, it looks like he'll be moving down here sometime in the end of January/February time frame. His brother is in a position to come live in their mom's house and get it ready to rent, so J/S is going to let him. This time frame bodes ill for going to Estrella, I'm afraid. But Yay for finally being able to live together! Oh, and if anyone out there has some employment ideas for J/S we'd love to hear them. He's next coming to visit on Dec. 17th, and will be here through Dec. 27th. I'm planning on working with him on some sort of generic skill set list and resume during that time.
The other big task is to get the house ready for him to move in. The garage is currently being used as a storage area, and that has to all be cleared out so that J/S can move his shop in. There's a lot of house prep that I need to do between now and when J/S moves, I have to say. Yup, the next few months are going to be crazy-busy. :-0 But, still, Squee!!!
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no subject
Date: 2009-11-30 11:21 pm (UTC)Congrats on the good sort of crazy busy.
no subject
Date: 2009-11-30 11:27 pm (UTC)no subject
Date: 2009-11-30 11:45 pm (UTC)He had a business making armor. Currently he's working at Rejuvination Hardware in their "fiddly bits" metal shop (i.e. not production, but in the stuff that needs more custom attention.) Unfortunately, because his metal and woodworking has been self-taught he doesn't have the certifications that some jobs/unions require.
He can write and was accepted and participated in a fiction writing workshop.
He's had jobs managing retail stores (one was a woodworkers store, and he's an experianced woodworker as well as a metalworker.)
I think he can write well (non-fiction), and I think he's really good at process design and set up. I also think that he'd do best in some situation that let him have, if not control, than at least some say in a process.
He also knows alot about Craftsman-style houses, but I don't think he could make a living being a restoration consultant.
So, yeah, finding a job that fits his skill set is going to be an exercise in out-of-the-box thinking.
no subject
Date: 2009-12-01 12:13 am (UTC)Even if they don't have something, I bet that they have contacts in the woodworking community.
no subject
Date: 2009-12-01 12:27 am (UTC)no subject
Date: 2009-12-01 01:35 am (UTC)Bigger yay that you and J/S will not have to be apart any more! I'm very happy for you, and I'm looking forward to picking his brain about metalwork. I want to introduce him to Sam / Maelgwyn and get some metal stuff happening.
Please tell him I'm getting good mileage from his joke at Investiture about not making his coronet so big that he would be mistaken for a Baron. Lol!
no subject
Date: 2009-12-01 02:21 am (UTC)no subject
Date: 2009-12-01 06:11 am (UTC)no subject
Date: 2009-12-01 06:35 pm (UTC)no subject
Date: 2009-12-01 07:01 am (UTC)I'm quite sad that we're losing him.