Buddy Playing Fetch

We're at the dog park in this video. As you can tell, Buddy loves the soccer ball.

Today's To Do's

I'm sore before I even start. Why does my list have to be so freaking physical? Woe is I!

0. Do Pilates (3 minutes version) 55 lbs of exuberant dog sure makes that harder
1. Sand the wall
2. Put on another coat of skim
2.5 Fill hummingbird feeder
3. Go to Ace for primer
4. Put up the window trim
5. Sand the wall (again)
6. Touch up wall ? (maybe it won't need it) It needed it
7. Paint the wall with primer
8.
Well I almost did it all. I got distracted and did some laundry, went to the dog park, played with the ferrets. I call it a good day.

Double Edged Ambition

Procrastinating on a task that you hate by working on another task that you hate is an effective way of getting things done. However, when it is overused, it can have the unfortunate side effect of making you miserable.
Unfortunately for me, I have an obsessive one-track tenancies that become exaggerated when I feel out of sorts. If you knew me during certain years of college you may remember when all I talked about was the martial arts. I am that way. I think a lot of people are. It mostly serves me well. Sometimes it doesn't.
There are two big obstacles in my life that are bothering me right now. One: the unfinished state of the house. Two: my lack of money-making employment.
In both cases there are actions I can take to clamber over the aforementioned obstacles. In both cases it's challenging and frustrating.

One
I don't feel like I have an natural aptitude for construction/home renovation work. Maybe nobody does. I can learn it and I am. I guess that's all there is to it. Unfortunately, I can't help comparing myself to Andrew, who, whether due to natural talent or merely years of experience, is exceptionally competent. I can't say I really expect myself to ever quite keep up with him in this area, but I strive to come close. In my own opinion, I am not learning fast enough.
I have a healthy dose competitiveness infused deeply into my nature. It drives me. I struggle to outdo myself; I struggle to outdo others. Healthy? Maybe not since it has me feeling bad about myself.   Drive and ambition  are mostly a good things, every attribute has it dark side.

Two
The job thing is a "soul crush." I'm not along. So many people my age have felt this or are feeling it. We work hard. We struggle through school. We apply to the jobs. We get rejected over and over and over. Sometimes we get rejected before we even start the application. "Ah, an entry level job in my field...oh, they want ten years of experience." It's rough, but here are some words that I find darkly comforting. I read them on the blog of an acquaintance. She was about my age meaning 30ish with some serious relationships and life experience under her belt. She said that the soul crushing pain of the fruitless job search was the worst she had ever been through. She said no boy trouble came close.

I remember reading that with mixed pity and revulsion. Those are the words of a person who has never truly been in love. She'd had the chance, too.
"no boy trouble came close." I think of those words now, and I think to myself, "well, at least I'm not like that!"
If those are the words of a strong or empowered human being then count me out. I don't want to be that kind of strong, and I'm sorry if I ever tried. "Boy trouble," at its worst, is the experience of losing someone that you love deeply. That should hurt. It should hurt like hell.
No matter how hard the job search gets or how many times my applications get rejected, the heartbreak of losing somebody I love will always trump the dull discouragement of another rejected cover letter.
I have lost people that I loved, to death and to the necessary parting of ways that follows the bitter end of a relationship. Job related rejections may hurt my pride but they won't break my heart. I love my people far, far more than I love my employment status.
So there they are, my words of dark and petty comfort; "At least I'm not like that."

Buddy Love

Bean Bag Chair!

Buddy And Me In My New Beanbag Chair

If you look closely at this picture, you might be able to tell that I have joint compound in my hair from patching the ceiling. Do you see that cup? That is coffee. Coffee, Beanbag and Budinator, who wouldn't be grinning?

I wrote a new post about Michelle's visit, but it's backdated to Nov. 21 which is when she was actually visiting. So scroll back to Nov 21 if you want to read it.

Drain Face

I like the way this style of bathtub drain looks like a face

I like household objects that look like faces, electrical sockets for example. According to some sources wall sockets that look like faces are actually upside down. That's funny, I always think the other way is upside down. Andrew and I intentionally installed our kitchen outlet "upside down" because we think it looks right way up that way and it's nice having it look like a face.

I was telling Andrew that I like the bathtub drain because it looks like face. He said he likes it too, but that it looks like a little pervert with a long nose.

"Why do you think it's a pervert?"

"It's watching you take a bath."

He has a point, but I think it looks peaceful rather than sneaky. I don't think the drain cares much about me one way of the other. I think it's a warm water spirit enjoying the bath and dreaming about steam. That's what I think.

The Drain Face

The Impossible Achieved

I finally discovered a task that I find odious enough that I will apply to jobs as a means of procrastinating. I thought it was impossible, but it's not. That task is skim coating. It's dusty. It's strenuous. It's slow, and the process is not very satisfying. The end result is worth it, but oh how I dislike the journey. I realized how much when I found myself applying to a job to put off going back to it.

By the way, I am writing this blog entry from inside a cardboard box. Buddy has grown too big to sleep in the bed with us. He's only 55lbs, but is a bed hog. I haven't been sleeping well. He has a dog bed but it gets cold at night.
A few days ago a package arrived from my Amazon wishlist, Bean Bag Chairs! The shipping boxes are just the right size for Buddy's dog bed. Buddy's not so sure about the whole idea. At first he refused to go in the box. Once I was in the box he walked in a laid down. It is nice and warm in here and Buddy's dog bed is pretty comfy. Who knows maybe Buddy will just keep sleeping in the bed, and I will end up sleeping in the box.

The Bean Bag Boxes Waiting On The Front Porch

The Budinator At The DP

Buddy wants to go to the Dog Park. He knows;Cuteness will get you everywhere.

We call it the DP when we don't want him to get all excited.

Oh how he loves the Dog Park!

What Joy!

"Will you throw that ball again?"

The Budinator is getting tired...

...but he loves his friends

Otaku Died Yesterday

This Picture was taken a few hours before Otaku died. (Bear is the dark one above. Otaku is in the middle on his back. Pip is lower left.)

When I went into the office to check on Otaku yesterday evening, he was stretched out of his back, asleep. Pip and Bear were both curled around him almost protectively. It was very sweet.
I wondered if Otaku was just asleep or if he had died. I called Andrew to see Pip and Bear before I woke them up. Andrew could tell just by looking at him; Otaku was dead. His body was cold and stiff. Pip and Bear were trying to keep him warm, but his body was cold, all but one little spot where they had managed to keep it warm. Our old friend had slipped away in his sleep. Andrew wrapped Otaku in a little towel  and laid him in a shoe box. Then he added a soft peace of the fleecy blanket material that Otaku always loved to chew along with a sponge and a washcloth (Otaku loved to steel sponges and wash clothes chew them. We used to find stashes of them.). I stood by blubbering, all tears and snot. Andrew buried the box in the back yard next to the snow ball bush.

Death

Our old fat ferret is dying. Otaku is eight or nine years old. For a ferret that's like being over a hundred. He's had cancer for a while and he's been sleeping more and more, but he's been happy and willing to make trouble especially when he has a had a bath. He was up and about yesterday and scrambling around the office doing ferret things. Today when I picked him up to cuddle him, all his feet were cold and he would hardly wake up even for a bath. We had to hold is head up for him to keep it out of the water for most of the bath, and he didn't get riled up to dry off. If he makes it though night we're going to take him to the vet tomorrow for a peaceful goodbye. He's had a very good life, but I'm not going to lie I'm still crying.

Goodbye to Toothless

A couple of weeks ago Andrew got in a car accident. All stories match and both insurance companies agree, it was the other guy's fault.

Andrew and I were in Salem because I had an interview and Andrew went with me to be moral support.  While I was in the interview Andrew went to a T-mobile store. He was on his way back when he got in the accident. He was driving past a shopping center in a 35mph zone with two lanes each way. Andrew was in the middle lane.The SUV next to him turned right into the shopping center ,and a mini van took the opportunity to turn left out of the shopping center. The mini van driver should have made sure there wasn't a car in that blind spot behind the SUV, but it really was exceptionally bad timing. The mini van couldn't see Andrew because of the SUV and Andrew couldn't see the mini van. For Andrew, the end result was that a mini van appeared magically on the road from nowhere about ten feet in front him. 

Andrew has incredible reflexes. It serves him well. There was no one in the oncoming lane, and he had the presence of mind to swerve into it while breaking (instead of merely locking up the breaks like I probably would have done.) As a result Andrew and Toothless (Toothless was a 2002 Ford Taurus) didn't T-bone the mini van. Instead, the nose of the mini van hit Toothless in the passenger side headlight and slid down the side of the car denting everything in its path. 

Thanks to Andrew's quick thinking, the people involved were not severely damaged.  Andrew is seeing a chiropractor for his neck and had to miss a day of work, but it could have been much worse. I imagine the mini van driver is in similar shape. The cars are another matter. 

The body damage was too much for Toothless. The Insurance company counted the car a Total Loss and we should be getting some money next week that will be enough to buy something comparable. Poor Toothless. He died heroically. He will likely be reborn as something with a salvage title or maybe he will donate his organs and become part of many cars. Maybe he will be reborn as dishwasher. 

I'm hoping we can claim compensation for the missed day of work and maybe some of the time spent recovering from a neck injury that would have been spent having fun or working on the house. That would be nice. By the way, did you know that it's actually a good thing to brace yourself for impact when you're in a car accident? So says the chiropractor that Andrew saw. Evidently the idea that it's better to be relaxed on impact is a misconception. Being braced protects your joints. Who knew? Not me. 

The FE

Practice Problems With My Favorite Pen

Did I mention that I've been studying for the Fundamentals of Engineering exam (FE)? The FE is a certification exam. If you pass it, you can be registered as an Engineer In Training, an Engineering Intern or Intern Engineer. It all means the same thing, but different states use different titles to keep it interesting.
I guess some people find the term Engineer in Training to be confusing because it sounds like the Engineer is not yet an Engineer. Personally I think engineer in training sounds like a training bra... Anyway an EIT/EI/IE is an engineer, just not a certified Professional Engineer (PE). You have to work as an engineer for several years and take yet another exam to become a PE. A PE is the person who signs off on/ takes responsibility for the quality of work on a project. So if the bridge falls down... the PE is the  one responsible. I'm not likely to be designing any bridges as I'm in environmental engineering not civil, but you get the idea.

Passing the FE is a step along the road to becoming a PE. It's a six hour exam with a 25 minute break in the middle. There are a limited selection of calculators that you are allowed to use. You can bring in cough drops, but they must be unwrapped prior to entering the testing room. You may not bring in scratch paper or a pen. The staff at the testing center give you a grease pencil and a reusable pad of laminated paper stuff with which to do all your scribbling. I took it on Friday Nov. 20th.

My Study Buddy

I got my results yesterday; I passed!  What joy! No more studying for that! Now I can apply to all the jobs that want an EIT/EI/IE whatever they want to call it.

Michelle's Visit

Michelle came to visit us at our house in Newberg. Due to her miscommunication between Andrew and me about timing, her visit lined up with the week before I took the FE. So, I was stressed out for most of it. Michelle made things way easier for me by having Buddy sleep with her a couple nights so that he wouldn't wake me up.

Michelle Looking Cool In Goodwill

Me, Looking Frazzled In Goodwill

Michelle and I did some paintings.

Michelle's Painting

My Painting

Michelle and Andrew made end-grain cutting boards. I was off studying so I only participated through these pictures that Andrew took and by occasionally admiring their progress.

Michelle Using The Table Saw

Michelle Sanding A Cutting Board

Finishing The Cutting Boards With Mineral Oil And Bee's Wax

The Cutting Boards Wrapped Up To Fly Back To California

Buddy Is Sad That Michelle Went Home

First World Dog Problems

Andrew has been putting treats in the bathtub to make Buddy get over his fear of baths. Buddy refuses to climb in the tub and get the treat. Instead, he stands there and whines until, half an hour later, Andrew gets fed up and dumps the unwilling Buddy into the empty tub. Buddy happily eats the treat licks up the little bit of water that lingers near the drain (drain water always tastes better)  and hops out.

"Oh the pain!"

"Whine, whine, whine..."

A Couple More Paintings

Here a couple more paintings I did.

A Happy Crow (I still have to sign this one and do the edges)

A Fall Night

Buddy

"Buddy NO! No humping." I find myself yelling that in my deepest andmost authoritative voice with a completely straight face. It tends to make people laugh. I guess that one of the things you only hear at the dog park.

Buddy Tired Out From The Dog Park

Another Painting Date With Mom And Dad

My Latest Painting

I had another lovely painting date with Mom and Dad on Saturday. Here's what I made. 

Alex And Pip

This video was taken about a year and a half ago. I meant to share it with you then, but I'm sharing it now.

The Value of Competent Allies

When Andrew got his job with Lam Research in Tualatin, we immediately started searching craigslist for a suitable house to rent. Andrew and I have dreamed about buying a house for a long time, but we didn't have the savings for a down payment. As you may know renting a house in the Portland area is extremely expensive. We started combing through apartment listings, also expensive. Not only that but they all had a two pet limit. The thought of giving up the ferrets made me sick to my stomach. In addition Andrew and I had been dreaming of getting a dog through the whole process of job applications and temporary post-college jobs. When one of us landed that grown up permanent job, we were getting a dog that was our deal. With the limitations of being renters, our dog dream faded once more toward the distant horizon. Every once in a while life sends you a fabuluous streak of luck. Here's how it went for us:


1. I stumbled across an ad among the craigslist rental postings. The ad was for a mortgage company, it went something like "can't afford a down payment? We can help. There are programs that you're probably eligible for."
I was suspicious. Things that sound that good tend to be scams, but I decided to find out. It was legitimate. We lucked out, Robert and his team at Summit are some of the most competent professionals in the business.

2. Robert was an advocate for our best interest. Mortgage brokers get paid a percent; we were on a budget. It was far from a juicy sale, but Robert was always willing to take time to answer my questions and explain all the details of the program to which we were applying. He also recommended that we avoid shopping at the top of our budget.

3. We didn't have real estate agent in mind so Robert recommended Patti Freites.

Because of our budget, it didn't take us long to go see all the our options. We found the house we wanted on the first day and made an offer. The house was foreclosed. Banks are notoriously hard to work with. They made a counter offer that wouldn't work for us (or anyone probably). The counter offer was really very close to our original offer, we offered them 1% earnest money (the industry standard) they countered with 3%. We couldn't afford 3%, but even if we could Andrew and I wouldn't have been comfortable with it. In case you're not familiar, earnest money is money that the buyer puts down to seal the offer. If the sale goes through, earnest money becomes part of it. If the sale goes sideways, there are a lot of places where the buyer can get it back, but there is a possibility that the buyer might not. Why was the bank insisting on 3% when the standard is 1%?

The conversation went back and forth, but the bank (the seller) stubbornly clung to the 3%. Another potential buyer came into the picture and everyone put forward their best offer. The bank chose us, but they still instisted on 3%. Patti was furious on our behalf. She ranted to Robert, and Robert wrote a letter. Robert's writing reminds me of Auntie. If you know me well, you know that I can give no higher compliment. The letter was beautifully professional, clear, well reasoned and polite. It said you are being ridiculous and unprofessional, without being the least bit confrontational. It explained the way the system works (something a bank really should have known), and why 3% earnest money was unnecessary and unreasonable and why certain levels of detail about our financial information were the mortgage companies' concern not the seller's.

Andrew and I had learned that the bank had turned down nine other offers on the house. The house had been listed for almost a year, and during that time, its asking price had been reduced several times.  Some of the previous offers were probably higher than ours. We weren't extremely hopeful. The seller seamed stuck on requiring 3% earnest money no matter what, but after getting Roberts letter, the seller accepted our offer with the standard 1% earnest money.

It's been almost five months now since the house closed. We're all moved in and we have been remodeling all summer. We love our neighborhood. We love Newberg. There is no way we would have got this place without Robert and Patti. I cannot recommend these two enough. Because of them we live in this lovely little town close to Andrew's work and yes we finally have our dog.

Here's the link to Robert's webpage
http://go-summit.com/staff/robert-williams/

Ember Approves

"I Love You."

Buddy And Andrew At The Dog Park

Happy Dog

Oddly enough, the bathroom is the first room that we finished renovating.

Acrylic And Canvas

My First Painting Done In Acrylic

In August, at cannon beach, Andrew, Mom, Ruth and I spent part of an afternoon painting in water colors. It was really fun. I wish that I had taken pictures. Along the way, I discovered that I can paint pretty decently. So, I decided to do a few things on canvas. Mom and Dad and I have spent several lovely afternoons and evening painting companionably. The painting of the trees isn't quite finished in this photo. I've added a few touches since, nothing terribly drastic. The painting is based off of a photograph that Dad took when he was pretty near the age I am now. The photo is hanging in the guest bedroom at Mom and Dad's. 

This little bird came from a Nature Conservancy calendar. I think he's a Piping Plover in New Jersey. If I remember the caption right.

A Wonderful  Crow By Mom

Adorable Mushrooms by Dad

Our House In Newberg

Here is a tour of our house on the day in early June that it became ours.

A Year In Summary

It's not quite a year since I've written in my blog, but it's close. It's been an eventful 10 months. I hope to tell you about the in more detail, but here it is in summary.

1. In February 2015, Andrew started a permanent job with Lam Research, a company located in Tualatin, OR. It's a huge leap forward for him, career wise. He has broken the experience catch-22 that so many of us slam into when we graduate. If you're not sure what I'm talking about, it goes like this: The entry level jobs require experience; It's impossible to get that experience without getting a job. I'm so proud of Andrew. 

2. Andrew's increase in income put us in a place to become home owners instead of renting. We moved in with my parents and started the process known as buying a house. I became queen of paperwork.

3. I decided to retile the entryway to my parents house as a Mother's Day gift. Removal of the til revealed a rotten wall and shoddy construction. Andrew and I replaced the living room front wall. It's sturdy safe and rot free though not yet drywalled or insulated. 

4. Just after Mother's Day our house in Newberg closed, and we moved in.

5.We began remodeling our house. (Still in progress.)

6. Melanie Moser, one of my very best friends, got married and I was a bridesmaid. 

7. In July 2015, we got a puppy. His name is Buddy. 

8. I decided that I don't want to have children. A puppy is enough to make me crazy. Fortunately Andrew is okay with that (both the crazy and the lack of kids.) 

9. At the end of July, Andrew mangled his finger with the router. Router injuries often result in amputation. It's a tool that's meant to remove a lot of material. Andrew got lucky, really lucky. He still has his finger and it almost looks normal again. 

10. I still volunteer with the USGS. I've put in over 300 hours in the last 12 months.

11. I am still looking for a job although I'll admit could have submitted more applications than I did. 

12. I am 4/5 of the way through writing my book. I have promised myself that I will finish it by the time I turn 30. That happens this April.