Curling so much, I don't have time to sit in my new furniture.

We lost our last two games of the bonspiel this past weekend. Game two, was impressive, due to the fact we played against Brady Clark's team - a team with several national titles and bronze medals in the US Olympic Trials. My goal in that game, was to score one point. Not only did we score a point in the second end, but we stole four points in the third end, and had the lead for a nanosecond, before we got blown away. We lost our third game to Tammy Lehto's team. Not a terrible loss either, seeing how they won the C bracket.

Due to our partying past one am on Saturday night, we didn't wake up until noon on Sunday. Just enough time for a shower, and a run to Red Mill for a hamburger before our novice league. One of our team members was in Mexico for vacation, and another dropped out due to lack of time.

I was planning on enjoying a Monday evening to myself, as Jeremy has agreed to sub both early and late draws. I got a phone call less than half an hour before Jer was leaving asking me to sub for the early draw on Melissa's team. I agreed. I could have said no, and probably should have said no. We're leaving in two weeks for the Royal City Bonspiel in Canada, and I want whatever practice I can get, curling with Melissa.

With two novices, we managed to pull off an unexpected win. She had a brand new curler, with 5 or less times out, and a curler who had curled for 3 years, but was used to curling lead. We were behind by 4 points the first two ends. We had expected a blowout, and were pleased by the turn on events.

Before I had helped finish cleaning the ice, I got invited by John to sub for his late night draw. Since I was going to be there til Jeremy finished curling, I went and subbed with John's team. Turns out, we were playing against the team Jer was subbing on. It was a close game, we were tied going into the 8th end. My team pulled a win by two points. The house ended up being very crowded, and it was unclear who the winner would be. I looked up during the last 4 rocks, and it seemed as if everyone on the second floor had crowded the windows, to see who would win. Unnerving. Thankfully, I threw lead, and didn't have to deal with it.

A good night.

My first bonspiel!!

My first game of my first bonspiel is completed! Our team, comprised of Jeff Wick (10 years experience), and three novices, myself, Jeremy, and MJ (Jeff's fiancee). We beat team Passo, and there's good news, good news, and a teensy bit of bad news.

Good news: we won. We might have won by more than a couple of points, but we stacked our brooms, and went to drink at the end of 4 ends, we were ahead 7 to 3. After 30 minutes of drinking, a double Balevenie neat for me on an empty stomach, and a pitcher of beer for the rest, our lead shrunk.

Good news : Jeff hit a the last double of the first end draws in our 5th end, and we won a free pitcher of beer. The decision was to draw to the button, but Jeremy came to remind us of our chance for the free pitcher of beer. When it doubt, go back to the basics.

Bad news : we won, play in the A bracket tomorrow against Brady Clark's team.

Chocolate for Choice

This evening, I went to our girls night out, planned by our friend Lisa.

Maya and I carpooled from the Eastside, stopped off at King's BBQ for some BBQ boxes to go, and then browsed the bookstore at Kinokuiya. We then headed off to meet Jonna and Lisa to share a pint of stout which was on Nitro.

We then headed to support Naral's Chocolate for Choice. It was amazing. There was tons of chocolate. I'm really glad that we got there early, so we could scope out all the different chocolates before the crowds got there. I had thought I was greedy, starting out with 5 pieces on a plate, but the lady that sat down next to me had TWO full plates, with more than one layer of chocolate covering the plate.

I have to admit, by the 10th piece of chocolate, I was starting to feel a little sick. Most of the chocolate was very rich, and my Chinese heritage started to emerge. I like little bit of sweet, but not the super rich stuff. Several glasses of 1% milk helped wash everything down. A lady was about serving vegetables, and I snagged a piece of cauliflower. Lisa made fun of the fact that I was eating a vegetable among all the chocolate.

I mingled, took some photos with my iPhone. I met Patrick Hogan, special assistant to Jay Inslee, member of Congress, 1st District, Washington. I also got a chance to see what Dr. Pepper Schwarz looked like. I saw her stand up, and she's pretty short. I made an odd comment "Why are they all short?" - referring to having met Dr. Ruth when I was in college, another sex-pert/relationship expert that was vertically challenged. I asked a few questions of the people that worked at Theo Chocolates - their lavendar/jalapeno/hawaiian rock salt caramel was tasty, and also talked to a couple of people from La Spiga. Here's a shout out to the la Spiga guy that said he likes to check out blogs!!!

We attempted to bid for the Salty-Sweet Cake, but it went over our $100 pooled price, and garnered $120 or so. Hurrah for Naral. All in all, we had a grand time. Next year, we'll be smarter. One of us will get a $70 take home box, to share later on.

Low key weekend...

Its nice to have a low key weekend, after having been so busy.

We went to the Apple store yesterday, and Jeremy bought me Guitar Hero III!! Yeah! We've been having some good fun playing the game.

We also had dinner at our friends Jonna and Eric's. An excellent dinner, surrounded by friends, and the chance to play Rock Band.

All in all, a nice relaxing weekend.

Couches...

Here is an image of the small couch that is going away.

Owl Post

Here are a couple of ideas I am working on for Artfest 2008 trades.

Tired and frustrated.

I'm pretty tired and sore. Yes, sore again from this weekend.

Friday night, we drew random names, and played with people we do not normally curl with. I played with Jake V, Matt T, and Denise K. We squeaked by with a win by like a point.

Saturday, my hubby was supposed to go and watch the Seahawks game in Bellingham with his cousins. He came down with a cold, and stayed at home, while I continued with my scheduled art making date.

Maya worked on her charms for her Valentine's charm swap, and I worked on my stuffed animals for my Artfest 2008 trades. I got 9 owls cut out, and 2 of them filled with stuffing, but I did not finish the 2 until this evening. Part of my frustration stems from my iPhone not taking photos again.

Sunday was fun, frustrating, and exhausting. Jeremy skipped for our novice league, and we won 10 - 3. Actually it was probably more like 12 - 3, but there were some close points that I didn't bother to count as vice skip. I heard one of the members of the other team mutter after the first end "We're going to get slaughtered."

During my hour break, and a handful of chips, I was invited by David (who handles most of the rentals), to play on the late draw for the mixed league. Linda twisted her ankle sometime earlier, and his other sub had not called him back. I agreed to play, knowing that I would be tired at the end of the day. Crazy gung ho me.

I played lead for the early draw for the mixed league. I was too nervous, and blew almost all of my shots. It didn't help that the game was also played on sheet 5. I was hoping not to be too much of an embarrassment, and I'm pretty sure I was. So much for all the extra practice I've been going to. I wish I had time to hang out with them after the game, but immediately after we finished, I had to go to sheet 4 for my last game. We didn't lose too badly - only by one point, and I guess when you're playing Team Knieval, that's not a bad loss.

I played lead for David's team as well. Apparently by that time I was too tired to be stressed out. I was on broom (target) for almost all of my shots. My weight was a little off, but all in all, I was happy with most of my shots for that game. I now know what it feels like to play three games in one day.

I am fairly sore right now. I fervently hope I won't hurt more tomorrow, but that is how it generally goes for me when I overdue it. I accepted an email invitation to play in the late draw on the Kozai team Wednesday night. I find it amusing. I am subbing for Erica. The team will be Betty, Cindy, Cindy, and Cyndy. I couldn't pass up that opportunity.

I will probably not go to Tuesday league for once. My whole body groans at the thought of trying to kneel down in the hack to deliver a rock right now.

Arrgh, busy weekends ahead.

Incredibly tired today. I did not sleep very well last night, waking up about 4 times, and staying awake for about a half an hour to an hour each time. I left work after a little over 3 hours, came home and took a nice long nap with Gravity, my beagle.

Before our nap, my little hunting dog went outside to chase a squirrel, and almost caught it!! I saw her make a beeline towards the squirrel, saw the squirrel leap up the corner area of the fence, to fall back down. It looked like Gravity managed to knock him down somehow. There was some quick zig zagging around, and then up and over the fence he went.

I was mildly productive after my nap. Took care of two loads of laundry, and put some crafts magazines up for sale on Craigslist. Also put my library books together, and books and magazines that I'll take to a second hand bookstore. Checked Ebay, and saw that 2 or my 3 posted items have bids on them.

On the agenda for tonight, is curling. We are taking a break from our normal Friday night team, and we will be pulling names out of a hat, and playing with other people. It should be fun. I just hope that both Jeremy and I end up with the early draw!

Tomorrow, I will be hanging out with my friend Maya, in hopes of getting some trades ready for Artfest 2008. I have put a baggie of fabric to make a couple of stuffed animals, and maybe a pendant or three. I have a couple of ideas, but the end product has to be not too time consuming to make, as I intend to make at least 50 of them. Last year, I made 50 monster stuffed animals, and they disappeared super quick!!!

As for the upcoming weekends, they are all full. Most of them filled with curling, or the occasional outing for a friend. I don't see a true break until after curling season is gone.

I've included a fun photo I found of a painted wall in Portland that I took back in October. I'd like to take up my toy photography again, and see what I can do with mixed media projects.

A weekend of curling...

We had a super busy weekend of curling that Jer and I just finished.

Friday night, we squeaked by with a tie, playing against Jake's team.

Saturday, Jeremy and I volunteered to help at a curling rental. That was from 2 to 6 pm. It was cold, but fun. I am a little sad we missed out on watching the Seahawks-Redskins game. But we did have some tasty indian food afterwards.

Today, we curled with in our novice league, and managed to mix up the positions a bit. Jeremy skipped, I played second, and Eric, our normal skip, played lead. Our normal second, Molly, had gotten stuck in some traffic.

We had a spectacular game, and won 12 to 1. I had a pretty good game. I made most of my shots, and felt good coming out of the hack.

After our game, I was lingering downstairs, talking to Erica, one of the girls from the team we played against. Sally C came into the club, and asked me to sub for her next Sunday in the mixed league. I will be playing with Claire, Ian, and Derek. I'm super excited, but very nervous, due to their skill level. They are all super nice people, I just don't want to let them down.

Tired, sore, and severely out of shape.

I subbed for the women's league last night. Dani called me at work, to let me know that the opposing team needed a substitute.

About a half an hour before I left, I got a phone call from Betty Kozai. She requested a sub for the late draw, which after checking in with the hubby, I agreed to.

At 6:30, I played with the Richards/Frohe. Each one of those ladies has a national title under her belt. I felt a little awestruck, as well as concerned what kind of game I would produce as a first year.

As it was, the ice had not been pebbled, and rocks that I normally would have hogged, went through the house. We still beat April's team by several points, and the game was called before the 6th end. I did get a few tips, the most important one, was a reminder. To keep my throwing arm straight.

At the 8:30 draw, Betty's team had a second substitute, Beth. We started out behind, but came up with 4 points to take the lead in the 5th end. We continued to play well, and won that game too! The ice was pebbled by one of the guys, and back to the consistency I was familiar with. Most of my shots in this game were consistent.

Jer and I received an email from Melissa, inviting us to play in the mixed spiel up in Westminster BC in February. I am very excited to play in that tournament. Must continue to practice!!!

And now for something completely different...

Gravity with Jessie's treat ball.

Happy New Years!

Just got back from a New Year's party at Mark and Lisa's.

We got a chance to see Tim and Maya, Amy and Andrew, Jonna and Eric, and Anna and John. There were also a few other people that we weren't previously familiar with.

Apparently, Mark and Lisa got Guitar Hero III for their holiday gifts, so I got a chance to rock out. I was unable to get past the bonus song in the easy level, but I think I made a decent attempt, with the highest finish being 81% of the song.

There was all sorts of food. Various cheeses, guacamole, black bean quesadillas, pineapple salsa, hummus, an Alton Brown onion dip, satsumas and cookies. There was Georgetown's Porter on Nitro.

A good time was had by all. Happy 2008!

Busy holiday week...

Its been a very busy holiday week. I worked a whole day and a half.

Thursday evening, we had a scotch party. Bob T and Chris O showed up from the curling club. Our friends Mark and Lisa also attended. Tom J from across the street stopped by for a wee dram. Sadly, Scott M was unable to make it, having managed to acquire pink eye in both of his eyes. There was much scotch imbibed, and a few games of dominoes.

Friday, I watched over my cousin Austin. We started off with Breakfast at Mae's. Unfortunately, the food just isn't as good as it used to be. We then headed over to the Woodland Park Zoo, where we froze our behinds off. Austin opted to wear my spare fleece jacket, and played Ichabod Crane. He had me zip the jacket over his head, and had me guide him around the zoo. We stopped by monkey island, saw gorillas, giraffes, penguins, zebras, and elephants.

After the zoo, we went to a comic book store, Half Price Books, and then to downtown Seattle to play at Gameworks. After a couple of hours playing video games, I got him a belated holiday gift. Dragonballz 3 for his new Wii. He patiently allowed me to stop by the curling club, to watch the juniors play a few ends. Jeremy was there with Mark, and they were enticed to play a couple of games of foosball.

Saturday was spent viewing pieces at Ethan Allen.

Sunday was a continuation of watching the juniors curl. The team our Friday night skip was on won. It was a close game.

Tonight, we head out to Mark and Lisa's for a informal New year's Eve party.

Red Elvises and Ride the S.L.U.T

Yesterday was a busy day. I was tasked by my husband to acquire Ride the S.L.U.T shirt for a holiday gift.

My friend Jason accompanied me through the first half of the days activities. A trip to the coffee store selling them, to find out that they had already sold out, but would have more the next day at 10 am. We also stopped by the Schmancy store, a store of homemade plush toys and other various odd items, located next to the Moore Theatre. It is a store I had been meaning to visit since August. Definitely a neat store. Gives me food for thought on what I can make on the sewing machine.

A trip to Kent to go to Jason's tea store was next. I picked up a gift there as well. The owner was a nice Chinese woman, that spoke Mandarin and English. It was an interesting experience. A wood table designed for tea sampling, with several levels, so that when you poured the leftover tea in it, it cascades to the bottom, where there was a drain. We sampled the High Mountain green tea, and another sweeter tea. I also sampled some relaxing evening teas, in which she had me guess what was in them. These were too Americanized for me, with orange peel, cloves, rosemary, and cinnamon.

Later, I met Marisa, her brother Joe, and her friend Gretchen, to see the Red Elvises at the Tractor. What an incredible show. They were incredibly high energy, and it was just as much fun as I expected. There were a couple of oddities. The male to female ratio was much more skewed that I expected, and there was an overabundance of really tall people. With a black and tan and a shot of Jager to fortify me, I danced my short legs off.

The highlight of the evening was grabbing the attention of the balaika player, Oleg during the break. He walked past us, and I said Zdrasvitya! He came back to say hello. I got a chance why there weren't more of the albums in Russian. I got a hug. Marisa joked about never washing the shirt I was wearing again.

Two minutes later, I was hitting my forehead with the palm of my hand. Idiot!! Marisa and Gretchen were looking at me like I was crazy. I have a degree in Russian Language and Literature, and I only said hello in Russian. I could have been at least mildly impressive, by saying that I love the Red Elvises in Russian. I had my chance and blew it. Doh! Needless to say, Marisa and Gretchen were amused.

Photobooth photos

Here we go, photos of me and my haircut. One taken comic book style. Me in my angry rock out pose.

Heading out for a night of Mediterannean food, belly dancing (not by me), and some curling before the holiday break.

Bad haircut.

Monday I went to end up with a haircut. Its short, ugly, and does all sorts of funky things when I sleep on it. Just in time for the holidays. *sigh*

My friend Jason stopped by work yesterday, with holiday gifts for me. Yay! Tasty chocolates and knitted hand warmers. His knitting has really improved dramatically over the last few years. Impressive!

Jeremy and I went curling last night. Not enough people showed up, so Jeremy and I played against Terry and Brian in a mock mixed doubles game. It was horrible, and I just couldn't make my shots. I thought too much about my delivery and was all over the place. Phooey.

Working on my delivery.

1. Hips back (don't move the head)
2. Pull the rock back
3. Pull slider foot back
4. Rock forward
5. Slider foot forward.

We lost our game today in the novice league. Drank our beer, had some snacks. There was quite a bit of practice ice. So, while Jeremy was drinking beer, and chatting with Wayne, I went downstairs to sheet 3 to ask if I could practice with Derek and Steve.

Derek broke the delivery into 5 steps for me. I think it helped quite a bit. I also need to remember to keep my arm straight. Not pull the rock back, or push it forward.

Putting captions to yesterday's photos, while Gravity snuggles with me, and I watch The Bourne Ultimatum with Jeremy.

Bellingham

I'm at Jeremy's cousin's house in Bellingham. Brian and Jeremy are out getting food. I'm here with Gravity our beagle. She got a chance to meet Jessie, Brian and Heather's puppy a little while ago. Jessie is on her way to the vet, due to a bladder infection.


Gravity is whining like crazy. She does not care for the fact that there are gates up, when there's a whole house to sniff and check out. I think she also doesn't like the fact that she can't see outside, like at home. Make sure theres no squirrels invading her space.

Jeremy and I had the late draw, at the curling club last night. We only played 6 ends, as we were winning 12 to 2, against Team Smith. I'm pleased with my consistency. No hogged rocks. Only one through the house in the 4th end.

We didn't get to sleep until after 2 am, because we stayed late, learning to play dominoes. 42 is an interesting game. Looking forward to more practice.

Just like shooting wamp rats.

I was a substitute curler for the Tuesday curling league yesterday. I played on Mel and Joe's team We skunked the other team (which my hubby happened to be on).

I was pretty happy, because most of my shots went where I wanted them to be. Much, much better than the game from the Tuesday before. In that game, my shots were all heavy (went way past where they should have gone).

There's a guy at the curling club, who has this awesome custom sweatshirt his wife had designed for him. I want something cool like that too. I have an idea, but my drawing skills are less than ideal. I don't have any friends that are graphic designers to help me out with it. I've searched around on http://www.cafepress.com, but I don't like the designs enough.

I wish I had more hours in the day. I would like more sleep. I'd like time to work on my arts & crafts. I need to get started on my trades for Artfest 2008.

Work is still frustrating, due to a personality conflict. Even though I've been told to be patient, I'm not sure I can wait much longer. Kind of at the end of my rope.

Practicing my delivery.

I've had the Balance Plus 200 shoes for about 3 weeks now. I've gone out in them almost 10 times. Working hard on my balance. I forgot to ask for a thinner slider. I went from a step on slider to the shoes that had a really thick slider (the thicker the slider, the faster you are!).

Its been frustrating, but I'm trying to get to the curling club as much as I can to practice. In Sundays Novice League, I got distracted, forgot to step out with my right foot (the non slider foot) and cracked my head against the ice. Dum dum head.

Here's a video of me with my balance all over the place.