Red-Handed Jill

QA'ing software (I wear many hats.)

You'll have to join us at Ojai one of these years, then. Happy early birthday Iron Bess! May all your enemies stay at swords length and all friends near enough for a hug. (I'll give you your present at Ojai.)

Fat Weasel Pale Ale.

Lady B - it's been my experience that romance tends to happen when you're not looking for it and don't expect it. My best advice to you is to enjoy your online dalliance and work at making your life situation better. I've found that when I'm happy with myself and my life, the men start coming out of the woodwork.

Here's to following winds, lots of BOOMS and black powder smoke!

That's what is so fun about it - pure fantasy that allows you to step outside of yourself. Enjoy this interlude, Lady B. When I was younger, I had a few on-line flirtations with various gents and I'm sure a lot of folks here could say the same. A couple of them expanded to outside that realm and that was fun too. Just enjoy what is happening and try not to have expectations past it. Could be it leads to something could be not, but in the meantime, you're having fun, right?

^ I could use more willpower. < Well... I must admit to taking advantage of other's lack of willpower at times. V Pass the question

Lady Seahawke - It's a long-standing tradition to use family connection as a tool to use someone. You didn't choose your family; as an adult, you really have no obligations towards them whatsoever. However, I've observed that when it comes to family, one tends to slide into familiar roles. I'm guessing that you were always the responsible one that everyone else counted on, the giver of the family. So that's what they expect from you and assume that they can continue to take and take and take. This is a perfect opportunity to draw a line in the sand and say NO FURTHER. Revise your role in your family and make a conscious decision to no longer dance to their tunes. If any of them importune you again, simply say, "From here on, I will no longer allow you to do _____________ to me. So just stop. Right. Now." Lady B - why do you feel a fool for being smitten? It's an honest emotion and a gift. It's not as though you can order your heart. Rejoice that in the middle of all this chaos that is going on in your life that you can feel such a thing.

One tankard: A pitcher of water: Freshly-baked bread with honey: Some pomegranates: And a nice comfortable chair to sit in (by a window): Or, if you would prefer, a hammock:

^ Blackbeard's Wake - it's one of our semi-annual get-togethers. This year, it's going to be a barbecue on the shores of a lagoon. We're bringing boats and having a mini battle! < Have been embroidering like mad for the sketchbook project. V Pass the question.

^ My mother calls me "Perle Mesta Junior"... < Having spasms on the right side of my back. GRRRRR! V Best party EVER (doesn't have to be yours)?

We get flooding in towns around here all the time but never any publicity. Not too long ago, the downtown area of St. Helena was completely under water (and I mean COMPLETELY.) But other than local coverage, that was it. And other towns here experience the same thing, but unless you're local, you don't hear about it - just expected, I guess. So you're not alone in lack of publicity and assistance.

If I hadn't found a sketchbook with a red cover, mine was going to have a bloody red hand on it (would have had to find the blood somewhere...)

I feel like such a slacker - my book has but ordinary paper...

I'm flabbergasted! And actually, the ex co-worker of mine who was a world-class origami artist is a big guy, with big hands. You'd think that would be problematic, but it wasn't.

Wow - that's outside your front door? I'd never want to leave - no wonder the deer are making themselves so comfortable!

Ah - good suggestion, Patt. My book is not made of heavier art paper. For the artwork I've been doing on it - some of which involves working with watercolours - I put a sheet of wax paper under the sheet I worked on until it dried. On another project I did the work on heavier paper and glued it in.

Heh - too right. I'm a semi-novice origami practitioner - couldn't begin to do anything like that kracken. But I think I've got parts of it figured out, though.

There's a fair amount of "wet folding" - you don't want to attempt that unless you're REALLY good. (I used to work with a guy who was a world-class origami artist. He used to make some amazing stuff for us.)

Jack and I were talking about how we performed the "Mariner's Revenge" song (originally by the Decemberists.) We've been trying to work out the percussion, but after seeing a few videos of their performances, Jack decided to surprise me with one of these: New toy!

Here's a picture of Aldebaran on an SF Bay sail, washing the scuppers: Yes, it did have that aspect quite a bit on our trip down the coast. Made it pretty exciting when we had to move around the foredeck or even brace ourselves on the lazarette. Ransom - if you ever find your way down here again, I'll arrange sail time for you at least on our boat. Get's pretty exciting out on the bay, I'll tell ya. Ask anyone who has sailed in many places - if you can sail there, you can sail pretty much anywhere.

I'll check, but I think when the boat was that heeled over Fern was holding on for dear life and wouldn't have been taking photos. But Captain Hayden does like to sail Aldebaran on her ear so the scuppers do get washed quite often. I'm surprised Fern was able to take those pictures. She took a number of them of Jack and Mike out on the bowsprit (which was sometimes under water, dunking the guys almost to the waist) and me securing lines and dumping sails, getting soaked by waves coming over the sides. At one point, we almost got spun around in the water - and Aldebaran weighs something like forty tons. Really makes you appreciate the power in nature.

Here's a few pics - just to show I wasn't kidding about the exciting part: Me dumping the jib (I'm in the front in black and the boat is heeled over a lot more than it shows in this picture.) Captain Hayden is minding the sheet, which I had to secure afterwards. Then it got REALLY exciting and Jack, Mike and I had to crawl forward to dump the other sails. Yes, we were completely soaked by this point. When we made it to Santa Cruz, it got warm and sunny. I've since gotten to change my clothes and am wearing foulies - just in time for it to be too warm to wear 'em. But I had stuff to do - in this picture, I'm tying on the fenders.

Lady Seahawke - is it possible that this could be menopause-related? Before I started using progesterone cream I had a hell of a time with heart palpitations. At one point I had an episode that lasted a couple of hours and I used to have them every night for 20-30 minutes when I was trying to go to sleep.