The Maine Event, Pt I

Though I've been blogging about my recent trip in fits and starts, there's so much I haven't shown here. I finally flipped through the hundreds of photos I took in Maine, and cut the number I wanted to post down ... to 75. So let's call this part one, shall we? Enough is as good as a feast. I'll try to continue this tomorrow (I've learned not to promise, but I'll try).

In roughly chronological order ... away we go!

On the road.

I really want to see the layout inside this house. So unusual from the outside!

An actual working harbor.

What are these?

Ahh.

Just lovely.

Ever seen a bike tour before it starts?

I thought this was two boats, at first, but it's one with two sails.

Pucker up!

We named this enormous billboard Captain George. This is the ground's-eye view.

In the window of an antique store (unfortunately closed at the time): knitting needles!

We were sunset hunting, and there it was, reflected.

The view from the top of the mountain at Acadia was amazing.

There was cloud cover over the water, and it caught on the little islands in the most interesting way.

These people had the right idea about how to enjoy the view in comfort.

Jordan Pond

More clouds coming in.

Not your typical beach day.

And a few things I got while I was there.

This was actually quite good.

A small balsam pillow. Pretty and smells divine!

The back looks like a sky full of clouds.

The way they say Bar Harbor. And for a six dollar t-shirt, it's really nice!

I also bought this great knitting bag at the farmer's market. So well made, and I love the fabric. One pocket on the outside:

And more pockets inside (soda can for scale).

Plus, when I first picked up a different bag and was talking to the woman about using it for knitting projects, she promptly steered me to this one, which has a magnetic snap instead of a zipper, so the yarn won't catch. She's not a knitter herself, but she knows one who advised her. Nice!

Saturday: The Week's Randomosity

I find it pretty amusing that for the second time in my blogging life, someone who knows me very well called to see if I was okay because I hadn't blogged. Yup, just busy! (And crazy, but you knew that. Thanks for the well-wishes and head-pats from Wednesday night's post, by the way.)

Thursday night I was out with a few people from work, seeing The Help. An 8 o'clock movie on a work night? Yoicks! Late to bed, very tired Friday, didn't post Friday night.

This morning I did something I dislike doing, and set my alarm on a weekend. Things to do! Took the car in for an oil change and pre-trip check-up, some errands, a few groceries. Home and trying to get a few things done around here (it is a pit) before going to a friend's for a group dinner.

Meanwhile, here are a few pictures from the week.

One day this week, I wore sedate business-casual clothes, but had these peeking out from under the gray cords. No one commented, but I liked knowing they were there.


I saw this on a car. Do you suppose it's meant to be a tribute? I find it a little ... creepy.


Pretty flowers.


The sock, before I started working on it while waiting for the car. Moving right along.



Have you seen the commercials for a new ice cream product called Magnum? I cut out a coupon, and the store had them on sale, so I tried them today for cheap.


Oooh, good. Wow. Dangerously good.

I was on the computer earlier and heard loud purring. From her, in her happy place:


She didn't really have enough room for comfort, but she made it work.


She really is beautiful. The prickles don't show.


Did you notice that himself had a bump in his fur?


Someone was washing him against the grain. Don't you hate it when that happens?

Soliciting Pats on the Head

Part of me hesitates to complain (MORE) about work, because, well, who wants to hear it, or maybe people will want to solve the problem and might give advice that hurts my feelings* (because I am a delicate flower). Plus it is super-hard to express how I am feeling so that I get my point across clearly. Particularly when I sometimes lose sight of the point myself in all the wah.

*For instance, I am well aware that many, many people in the world have much, much bigger problems than I do. Being reminded that my burden is smaller than many does not, surprisingly, make me feel any better. A forced sense of perspective does not shame me into real happiness.

I had to laugh a little reading Amalah today and seeing myself in the mirror:

I kind of get bugged by "fixers." You know the type. You tell them your problems and they immediately pepper you with helpful, practical suggestions, and you're like: Wait. Did I make it sound like I was done wallowing? Because I'm pretty sure I'm not done wallowing. So could you please dial it back to sympathetic head pats and save your to-do list of Actionable Items To Better My Own Situation for later?

Emphasis is mine because Amen. I love it when people actually solve my problems, but that's easier done with small, concrete problems than with big, messy, emotional ones.

There was also this from Miss Conduct, in her chat today. The question was:

I’m dealing with the terminal illness of a family member. I find myself annoyed at casual friends who constantly ask for an updated; yet even MORE annoyed by close friends who say / do nothing. Your best advice for the right way to handle?

Miss Conduct's answer was, as so often, simple but wise:

Decide what kind of support you want and ask for it. ("I just hate to be asked. If there is news I'll tell you" or "I really need you to buy me something chocolate and listen to me whine for 20 minutes.") You're being unfair to your friends by expecting them to guess your needs.

(And if I quote that, I suppose it's only fair to tell you, beloved reader, what I want here. I kind of feel like with this situation right now, survival is my goal, with the hope of future improvement. So, if you feel like commenting along the encouraging lines of 'yes, it will get better!' with the occasional 'poor baby,' jump right in. Not really looking for even the most well-meaning and likely quite right advice on how to feel better about the situation. Misery loves sympathy. Thanks ever so.)

I will just say that it is perhaps a good thing that I didn't know, three months ago, how I would feel about this job three months later. Sweet, innocent little me with my new-job jitters! Little did I know.

I'm not giving up on it, not yet. I'll give it through the end of the year to get better. But oh, how I hate saying that, having to decide that. How I hate the way I feel about this job right now. The people are nice, most of most days things are fine, but just about every day there's something that makes me miserable.

Also, this is the sixth new job I have started since I moved back to Massachusetts in January 2003. Layoffs didn't help, but that's just way too many first days.

To end on a less depressed note, here are a few random pictures.

My favorite picture-on-the-wall where we stayed in Maine.

Who could stay sad looking at this?

Amusing Placeholder

I'll try to post some Maine photos later, but in case I don't get to it, here's something that made me laugh. Are you a Doctor Who fan? Check out the Tardis corset this woman is wearing! Mere words cannot describe it, other than: Awesome.

Head and Weather Woes

When I woke at 4 this morning, my head was a bit worse (though still not defcon one or anything) and my stomach was upset. I got up for alka-seltzer and went back to bed. By 6, my stomach was better but head was worse (noticeable in how the back of my neck hurt down to my shoulder blades). Pills and back to bed for an hour resulted in improvement, but not complete healing.

If you, too, are superstitious, let me tell you that I blame myself, as the thought crossed my mind Sunday morning that I hadn't had a bad headache in a few weeks, oh joy! Whoops. (Not that this has been a terrible headache, but it's more than I can ignore.)

So today, I wore the invisible Yoke of Headache. Ow. Making it to work was the main accomplishment, really--and in the rain, yet! Or perhaps staying at work all day, being available if needed, was bigger.

One problem was about how I handled between-project time. Normally when there's time between this and that, I find things to do, training-related reading and so on. Even during busy times, these lulls happen: Friday night, I was at work until almost 7, but that wasn't all working, part of it was waiting for the last project to come back to me.

With a headache, it's harder for me to find filler, to concentrate on it. And since we have to fill out time sheets assigning our days into projects and categories, well, it's a challenge.

Plus, it rained and poured all day, and according to the car it was 69 on the way to work and 65 coming home. Right now I only have one window open, and I'm cold. So of course that's a great consolation for not feeling well*. I just put on a hat! A hat! Because I am cold! It's August! I should be barefoot! It should be too warm for wool socks and my soft pants!

*sarcasm alert

Humph and humph. That's what I say.

Any humphs that you'd like to add?

Sunday Night Needs Cheering

Oh, hi! Is it really Sunday night again so soon?

Friday night I was wiped out. I watched some TV (TCM showed me Midnight, with Claudette Colbert, which was great fun; I love the old comedies), and then I went to bed.

Yesterday was funny in that I inadvertently got some exercise. I did some used-bookstore shopping, and in order to look at the lower shelves, I was doing a lot of squats; then I came home and did 8 loads of laundry, which means 24 flights of stairs, half of them carrying laundry. Am I feeling my legs today! Whew.

The book-looking was fun, though, even at the price. It's a small chain of used bookstores, and I like the "vintage" section the best. (If you're local and feel the same, don't bother with the Saugus location, it hasn't any: very disappointing!) I've found fun things for myself and for oddball gifts for others, as well as the fun titles I don't buy (and in some cases am afraid even to open).




Yes, this is my idea of a good time: to peruse the old books and come home with a century-old novel (or two) that makes peaceful reading.

Fortunately for my legs, my plans today were not strenuous. Mainly, I was at a friend's party this afternoon, which the weather dampened but did not spoil. The rain's starting up again for real now, and it's supposed to rain again tomorrow. We had a lot of rain early last week before things got sunny, but apparently we're not done. August's weather is not living up to its reputation this year: not hot enough, and too wet. It saddens me to see the days growing shorter, and I need summer weather to compensate. Heavy rain and 71 degrees (tomorrow's forecast) is insufficient to my needs.

You can tell I have a slight headache, can't you?

Let's do a funny-shirts-on-vacation review, shall we, and lighten the mood?

Well, mostly shirts. There's a sign, too.


I have two different Bruins Cup shirts from this year already ... but I like this one, too!








We had ice cream more than once, but didn't get to this one. Next time!
Well, I'm smiling now! Hope you are, too.