Stevens convicted

Just moved across the Anchorage Daily News alerts:
Jury finds Stevens guilty of lying about gifts

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A few trust issues?

"If I'm drowning in two feet of water, I don't know whether the rope that's thrown at me will be one that pulls me out or pulls me under."

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Back in track

Hallelujah! Two snows and several inches means they were able to roll the trails. It was ski swap at 10 a.m., errands all day and then five miles on my favorite loop. I can feel my stress levels diminishing already. No track yet, but it still felt great to be back in my ski boots, listening to the sound of my poles squeak in the snow. I even saw a fox on the back side of the hill. It peeked over its shoulder at me before bounding off into the bushes. A few strands of bushes and grass still poked through the snow, but it wasn't enough to cause any real problems. I don't seem to have lost any time over the summer. Mind you, I am slow as all get out anyway, but even without track, I was able to complete the loop in an hour. With track, I suspect it'll come down to 45-50 minutes.

Task one: Teach my walking buddy to ski. She has one rather bad experience with skiing. Still, she bought a passable set of skis at ski swap and is ready to give it a shot.

Task two: Teach the man to ski. He's much more fond of downhill, so this will be tame to him. There's also a distinct possibility that he already knows how to cross-country ski and is just screwing with me because apparently it is hilarious when I explain things to other people. Strike teaching. Maybe I'll steal his poles and shove him in a snowbank.

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Throwing the life ring

What do you do when someone you love is drowning in the life they have created for themselves? What do you do when you watch them, day in and day out, struggle and gasp, barely staying above the waterline and growing weaker by the second?

People make bad choices, I understand that. Many times, when we find ourselves drowning, it is because of those bad choices. I also understand the value of learning from those choices, of finding a way to solve your own problems. Still, it's hard to be the one on the shore, watching, when the solutions are so obvious, it's akin to wanting to shout, "Stand up, dammit! The water's only four feet deep."

At what point do you finally accept that the one you love simply will not put their feet down and wade out and haul them out of the water, despite the fact that they are so panicked that they might just try to drown you in the process? Walking away simply isn't an option, is it, if you truly love someone?

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Me-0, hose clamp-1

I think a little piece of me now lives in the basement next to the water pump. I mean that quite literally. I suspect a piece of what's left of my knuckle is now spending quality time with the hose clamp on the well hose. The damn water filter housing was being a bit more stubborn than usual, and I reefed on it a little harder than usual. 'Twas the perfect storm of force, resulting in me saying "fuck" a lot when I looked down and glimpsed the white of my knuckle bone. Enter teenage son, who helps me put the filter back together so that I can turn the water back on and stand sobbing hysterically over the bathroom sink, fighting nausea as I unsuccessfully try to sluice god-knows-what out of the ragged wound, all the while thinking, "This is utter bullshit. Why the hell wasn't Prince Charming down in the basement fixing the water? And where the hell is that guy anyway?"

Screw fairy tales. Screw hose clamps. Stupid stainless steel bastards. Long live narcotic painkillers.

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Matrimonial moments

Overheard: "F--K! I have a month until I get married. Do I have everything?"

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