2013 is hours away....

As I sit here in the closing days of 2012, a fresh blanket of snow covers all the brown decay of fall.  This is my favorite time of year.  I love the silence of the woods as the flakes come down.  The snow muffles out the toxic sounds of modern world...the sound of 18 wheelers rolling down Route 28, the sound of neighbors running chainsaws, and other machinery in their yards.  It is quiet and peaceful.  The blanket of white covers up the piles of debris people seem to love to stack up in their yards around here.

The cold snowy weather gives me an excuse to sit by our fireplace and tuck into a book or work on my knitting.  I would love to finish up the nursery, but I have promised Jay that we will not go in there until he is done with the painting this week.  The mattress arrived yesterday and I am looking forward to putting the crib together.

But I really wish I felt up to going for a ride on my sled or taking out my snowshoes.  The pulled muscle in my back is minimally better.  Just when I think I have turned a corner, I move and it starts all over again.  The plan is to be back at work in the am and I have to say I am ready to be back in my routine of normalcy even with all that is going on.  More on that another time....

My how my outlook is a changing

Cannot remember if it was a cough or sneeze that triggered it, all I do know is that I have spent the last three days in 10 out 10 pain.  As we like to say at work 10 out of 10 pain is a trip to the hospital for amputation.  I do not think I have ever experienced pain like that before.  I have had my share of broken bones and I will gladly take a broken ankle over this intractable back pain any day.

You know the situation is bad when your husband and co workers have put on your shoes and socks.  Hell, I teach people how to do that after a broken hip or a stroke.  Now here I am the pathetic occupational therapist who needs the help.  No, I don't keep a sock aid and reacher at home, but I suppose I will have to from now on.  I think what was worst of all is the helpless looks I got from John as he did his best to keep me comfortable.  From making our bed into a place where I could try to get to sleep sitting up to sleeping on the small couch next to me after I decided the couch in the living room would be a better place to get some rest.  And then finally going upstairs with me at three am to sleep in our bed.  I did beg him to call for an ambulance, but he talked some sense into me that there would be very little the ER could do for me since I already had Flexerill and Vicodin on board.  You know when I broke my foot a few summers back never even took one dose of a narcotic and in the last few days I have sure made up for refusing that script.

I finally feel a bit better today.  The painful spasms are only occasional and I don't plan on taking any more drugs until bed time.  Baby Savage doesn't seem the least bit concerned that I have been miserable and he is as active as ever.  Guess he is biding his time until he makes his grand entrance into the world.  I am still hoping for a tax break, but would like my back a little more healed before he does.

Now I have not touched my knitting in a few days due the back issue, but will be digging out my basket in a few to get that bunny done!  Looking forward to a better few days ahead.  We still have lots to do before the baby is here.  And I cannot wait to see the nursery since the door has been shut and there is a keep out sign up!  And of course there is dinner at the Crystal Quail tomorrow night.  Good times...just please let my back not interfere!

Merry Christmas 2012

Merry Christmas all!  Figured I would send out my first blog post from my iPad on this Christmas morn.  Please take a moment to keep our fire, EMS, and police in your thoughts who are working on this holiday.  It was a tragic day yesterday as two firefighters were ambushed and murdered as they responded to the call of duty.  Routine calls do not exist for us anymore.  But then again, did they ever?  A look back in history will show us that there are always variables and unknowns when it comes to emergency scenes.

It is hard to believe that 2013 is almost upon us.  John and I have so much to be thankful for and to look forward in new year.  Most of all we cannot wait to meet Baby Savage in the next few weeks.

The more it snows tiddly pom...

For all of us December is a very busy month!  For me, it means added expenses and trying to find time to get it done.  On tap for me today is new tires, brakes, an oil change, alignment, inspection and later this week is registration.  Yay for a birthday in December!  I already got my new license in the mail back in early November.  I am so glad our state finally went to an online version so I didn't have to take a trek to the DMV.

It's felt like crunch time this whole fall for many different things.  I decided to work a little harder and get all of my EMT refresher stuff out of the way before the arrival of Baby Savage.  I ended up with a crazy amount of con ed hours and managed to get it all done in mid November.  Just have to take my state protocol test and that should be done.

The in laws are here this weekend to help John with his basement project.  Looks like a busy weekend of mud and tape for them!

And then of course we woke up to some gently falling snow this morning.  What could be better??  Sounds like the beginning of a perfect December!

It's never too late...

Life has caught up with me again and I realized I stopped posting what I am thankful for since November 11, 2012.  It's been a busy few weeks at Chez Savage and I will finally finish up since it's the last day of November.

12. Thankful for the warm little dog who stretches out between us in bed every night.
13. For my love of sticks and string...been hard at work on baby creations and last minute Christmas gifts.
14. For my co-workers (especially my work wife).
15. That my cat has finally come to see the light and actually pretends to like me most of the time.
16. For online shopping...it's been the best this year!
17. For a comfy bed and body pillows...don't ask me to stay anywhere else in the upcoming weeks cause there is no place like home!
18. For my friends who write blogs...I love reading them!
19. For the hand me downs...
20. For pedicures (can't even imagine trying to reach my toes).
21. My reliable vehicle (even though one tire has been losing air all week).
22. That my Christmas gifts actually made it to Sicily well before the holiday.
23. Good books
24. Good homemade food
25. Good friends
26. That each weekend the basement is closer to being done
27. For great craft ideas...will be getting my glue gun out later!
28. For all the places I have been lucky enough to visit.
29. The smells of each season we get to experience here in New Hampshire
30.  Lastly, I am thankful for a good health (even though I have sounded like crap for the last two weeks) and good pregnancy...things are about to change very drastically in our little world in the upcoming weeks.  I look forward to this exciting ride!

November 11, 2012

Today is Veteran's Day in the United States.  It is also known as Armistice Day, the day that hostilities ended during World War I and it is also General Patton's birthday.  In Great Britain they are celebrating Remembrance Day or Poppy Day.  This is the first Veteran's Day that there are no more veterans left from World War I.  I would like to take this opportunity to thank all those who have served and continue to serve this country to keep us safe and protected.  And I leave you with this....

In Flanders fields the poppies blow

      Between the crosses, row on row,

   That mark our place; and in the sky

   The larks, still bravely singing, fly

Scarce heard amid the guns below.

We are the Dead. Short days ago

We lived, felt dawn, saw sunset glow,

   Loved and were loved, and now we lie

         In Flanders fields.

Take up our quarrel with the foe:

To you from failing hands we throw

   The torch; be yours to hold it high.

   If ye break faith with us who die

We shall not sleep, though poppies grow

         In Flanders fields.

# 9 and no it's not Ted Williams!

Today I am thankful for our first snow a couple of days ago.  I love waking up to a blanket of white even if it didn't last very long.  It sure was pretty and I look forward to month of waking up to winter wonderland!  And I cannot wait to share it with Baby Savage.  John and I have such a love of winter and the many hobbies we partake of during that season.

Then on Saturday...I am thankful that I live in a wonderful small town.  We have been here almost 6 years and have met great people and neighbors.  I love that one of my co-workers thinks that I have become a townie.  It is so much like the town I grew up in without the rich snotty factor.  It's nice to go into the little stores around here and see at least one person I know each time.

Onto November 7th and 8th

Yay the election is over and with it go all the nasty political ads and rhetoric.  Voting day went off without a hitch here and the press is already discussing who will run in the midterm elections.  Seriously can't we have a month or two off???  Now onto my thankful stuff....

7.  I am thankful for my two jobs and that I enjoy going to work at each of them.  I work with wonderful people at both of them and I am happy to be a part of each work family.  I have been in my current skilled nursing facility for the last 6 1/2 years.  It's the longest I have ever worked at one place.  Guess that says something, either that or I am too lazy to get my resume updated!  Just kidding, I really do like going to work every day.   My other job at the fire department is an outlet for the other job.  It is so different and unpredictable from what I do during my "day" job.  I love my fire family and even though we can be as dysfunctional as a real family, I mean who else wholeheartedly has your back in dangerous situations and then slams you the second you get back to the station??  Just like real family!

8.  Feeling very crafty these days, I am thankful for my love of sticks and string.  I love creating wearable art.  And I know John loves my craft because he wears his socks almost every day during colder weather.  Gives me a reason to keep on knitting when I see his little toes being warmed by my creations.  I love sitting down for a few hours each evening to knit away while I watch TV.  And I love when a project finally comes together after months of working on it.  Lately I have taken to small projects that only require a few days to finish them.  I have a sweater on some needles, but can't even remember where I left off so I will probably frog it and start over again after the baby gets here.  Can't wear it now anyways since it's a wrap sweater.  But it could look nice next spring!

Still feeling thankful (5 and 6)

Tuesday is here and I am ready to post again...I know twice in one week...seriously I haven't had a lot of down time in my life as of late.  Last week we felt the outer bands of Hurricane Sandy on Monday and even though John was out of town...I was crazy busy and I will be this week as well.  I am trying to tie up loose ends before Baby Savage gets here.  At the top of my list, I need to get my EMT refresher put to bed.  Once those hours are in, I can worry about the rest of it after he arrives, but at least my recert will be complete.

5.  I am very thankful that our family and friends in NY and NJ all came out relatively unscathed from the storm last week.  Our plan is to head down there in two weeks to Asbury Park as we do each year for the annual holiday soiree at the store.  For me this year means sitting around knitting and not supplying free labor.  My cankles really aren't up to hours standing around decorating Christmas trees.  But it is always a great time and a great way to ease into the upcoming holiday season.

6.  I am thankful that the election is finally here and I can finally stop listening to all the negativity put forth by those running for public office.  There needs to be some serious reform when it comes to political ads and I personally think they should only be able to talk about themselves and their platform instead of bashing who they are running against.  And I even got a snazzy parking cone out of the deal...one more thing I probably won't live down for a few years!

I am thankful for....(the first four days)

There are quite a few people I know who are taking time each day to list the things that they are thankful for during this month of November.  I plan on doing mine in chunks because lately I am a spaceshot and I would forget to do this each day.

1.  I am thankful for my husband who has been spending each weekend getting our little home ready for Baby Savage.  Each Sunday when he could be off hiking, he and my father tackle another step in finishing our basement.  We are up to the electrical work so it's coming along.  And I can tell you exactly where the bathrooms are located at each home improvement store in our area!

2.  I am definitely thankful for my parents.  Dad has been here every weekend since his retirement helping the basement along and Mom has made sure I have warm outer clothes to wear as I keep getting bigger and bigger.  I am going to be looking like the red version of the Michelin man in my "new" winter coat.  Now I won't freeze on our way into the hockey games in the upcoming months.  I did look longingly at my pretty red peacoat, but there is no way I am squeezing into that anytime soon.

3.  I am very thankful that I have had an uneventful and uncomplicated pregnancy so far.  Baby Savage is doing somersaults as I write this.  He is growing fast and my glucose test was negative.  Guess that means I don't have give up my nightly dose of ice cream.  I did have my first braxton hicks contractions the other night on our way home from the car accident in Pittsfield.  He either liked riding in the ambulance or that was just a little more excitement than he is used to.

4.  I am thankful for my snug little home as the temperatures start their downward trek.  Glad for our new construction and super efficient home.  Even though we haven't turned on the heat yet, we have been running our gas fireplace from time to time to keep the chill out.

Well that takes care of the first four days of the month...

A weekend away

John and I ventured up to Bartlett this weekend for the North County EMS Conference.  I figured it was a good chance to get some CEUs and actually get away for a weekend.  I know, who does that?  We haven't for a very long time.  It was a nice break from the constant construction in the basement and getting the house ready for Baby Savage.  Well it was nice until we got check into the hotel.

We walk into our room and there is no bed...what no bed???  There is a couch, a loveseat, a small kitchenette, but no bed.  Oh wait, it's a Murphy bed...pulls down out of the wall.  Well that would've been fine if I wasn't almost 7 months pregnant and needing all the extra support I can get.  I have to apologize to my husband for my whining, but that was not what I signed up for.  I quickly went through my emails that the hotel had sent us when they changed our reservation from the Attitash Village to the Grand Summit Hotel.  In very small letters is a disclaimer stating that some of the rooms only have Murphy beds.  So when they sent me an email stating we had been upgraded and when really what was the upgrade??

So we spent a miserable Friday night of me tossing and turning because I could not find a comfortable position.  Saturday morning dawned and we were off to pick up our registration packets.  Well come to find out we weren't registered...the person who was supposed to send in our stuff, never did.  Awesome, excellent!  Fortunately they let us register that morning and we even got the classes we had wanted to attend.       Still not impressed that we were never informed that our registrations weren't going to be sent in and in the future I will handle my own registration thank you very much.

I also went to the front desk and practically begged to be switched rooms.  There was no way I could handle a second night on that awful bed.  The nice lady at the front desk took pity on me when I played the pregnancy card and we were quickly moved into a room with two queen beds.  An upgrade indeed!

We did make a trip for old time's sake to Berlin for Riverfire.  I am quite impressed with how the city has started to rebound itself after the early 2000s when the mills had shut down and people left the city in droves.  The new federal prison had it's ribbon cutting on Friday and it was nice to see the community out for it's fall festival on Saturday night.  Even the mills are back up and running.  The downtown area looks like businesses are returning and the area has come back to life.

As nice as it was to get away, it's always so nice to be back in our little home.

I grow people, what's your superpower??

Ok I have to admit I have been slacking at writing big time.  I read a friend's blog daily and I am so impressed by how she keeps up with it.  What's my excuse?  Honestly I do not have a good one.  I haven't been running.....oh I am a huge slacker in this department.  But my body no longer feels like it belongs to me, my balance just plain sucks, and I am usually wicked tired by the time I get home from work.  I know, I know, excuses!  I do manage to get a walk in several days a week now that the weather has cooled off.  It really was a hot, humid, miserable summer.

But oh I have been knitting.  Baby hats, baby booties, baby sleep sacks, and baby blankets have taken over my knitting bags.  I have managed a pair of socks thrown in there as well.  Knitting and reading have taken over my world.

Had a great MD appointment today and baby Savage continues to grow.  I am measuring at 25 1/2 weeks and only gained 5.5 lbs this month.  I have been really watching what I eat and have upped the fruit/veggie intake.

So life is good and I'll try to write more in the upcoming weeks as his arrival gets closer!  But with so much to do there are no guarantees!

I'm back....

Well summer is winding down here in the Lakes Region.  It's been crazy busy and I have seriously neglected my blog.  And as John says..."you have so many things to write about, what's going on?"  So I will start with my road race.  It was a huge success for my first time and I cannot wait to do it all over again next year with a goal of having at least 70 more runners for a grand total of 200.  That would be fantastic for us.  We had some excellent sponsors who showed us support and a great t-shirt designer over at Tracings Graphics in Alton.  The weather was perfect with overcast skies to begin the morning and it slowly cleared during the race.  I have to thank my wonderful volunteers both from the fire department and from the town.  They made sure everything went smoothly for our runners.  So all in all it was a great day and I have heard a ton of compliments for our run and only a few suggestions for next year.

Let's see, the little dog had a minor surgical procedure to cut an infected sebaceous cyst and I must say she was a champ throughout and never even went near the staples she had in her back for over two weeks.  The vet was able to local and it was done in less than ten minutes.  She's all mended up and has permission to get in some last swims before summer is gone from us.  Supposed to be a beautiful warm weekend here so she may get her opportunity.

Next up, we are starting to gear up for the biggest change to our life as we welcome our little boy in January.  We have started to get the basement ready so we can turn our second bedroom into a nursery.  The sooner we get the basement done, the sooner we can do the changeover.  Our plan is to lighten up three of the walls with a light orange and keep one wall a dark color.  We are going for a nature theme instead of the obvious fire truck theme.  Gotta break him in slowly!

I also started my first baby project.  I am using up a huge pile of scrap yarn to make his first blanket.  The goal is to have it done in the next week so I can move onto hats, booties, and mittens.  Ahh the joy of having a winter baby.  I can't wait to make his first hat which he will wear home from the hospital.  It's a snowman hat complete with "coal" eye and a "carrot" nose.


As far as running goes, well that is one the back burner for now.  I do plan on running a half next May, just gotta make that happen in the spirng!

This was meant to be a Monday Musings, but I just didn't have the time...

I finished the Capital Area Race Series on Saturday morning.  Saturday dawned warm and steamy up here in the Lakes Region and I wasn't really feeling it from the starting gun on.  I just don't do humidity and with the extra poundage I have packed on, it just doesn't make for a fun morning, but it's a pretty race along back country roads.  I mean we're talking a field of sheep (including one mean looking ram) and no fence to hold them in.  Thankfully they were not surprised or threatened by the two hundred plus runners streaming by.

This weekend also marked the start of the Olympic games.  That means plenty of couch time to get some serious knitting done in the next two weeks.  I finished a pair of socks and got started on some Christmas presents.  I am not going to start on baby stuff until we decide whether we find out what we are having or not.  We have 24 days to decide...

The Barnstead Firefighters Association 5k is also coming together.  I would strongly recommend that you register for this fast paced out and back route!  Do it soon, you definitely don't want to miss out on the awesome t shirt we have put together.  And I have to say the pancakes after the race will be well worth the wait.

WIP Wednesday

My WIP Wednesday is not of the fiber kind.  I have been experimenting this summer with the herbs I grow around our yard.  I am a lover of tea and herbal tea so last Christmas John bought me a tea brewer that looks similar to a French press.  Over the winter, I would brew loose teas in the evening to sit by the fire with.  I longed for the warm summer days when my herbs would bloom in my little garden.  

lemon balm/mint tisane

Last October we visited one of our favorite restaurants on the Eastern Seaboard.  Primo is located in Rockland Maine and offers a unique locally sourced menu.  After dinner, I like to order tea to go with my dessert and our waitress offered tisane instead.  Tisane is simply a herb brewed concoction that is done in a French press.  She topped it off with a warm jar of Maine honey.  I was hooked and could not wait until this summer to try my own hand at this.

I started with a plain lemon balm tisane and tonight I have moved to a lemon balm/mint tisane.  I will add a teaspoon of local honey and then sip away while working on my knitting.  I now look forward to my cooler summer evenings and my cuppa homebrewed yumminess.  

Sunday Thoughts

I ended my running drought yesterday and participated in a 5 mile road race up in Concord.  It was a perfect day here in Central New Hampshire, but the only drawback was there were absolutely NO bathrooms at the start or the finish.  So I had to run all five miles on a very full bladder that had something the size of a lemon pressing against it.  Every time I thought I had found a good place to jump off the road and pop a squat...there would be piles of poison ivy that I would have to wade through.  So I kept going. I am not going to lie, my pace was very slow at 11:55 and I had to walk the giantly long hill up Clinton Street at the beginning.  But the bigger thing was I was out there doing it!  I feel pretty good today despite the sore back and sore knees.  I have one race left in the Capital Area Race Series and that will finish up next weekend in Canterbury.  At least I know what to expect with the Canterbury Woodchuck 5k....hills, lots of hills!

The race was a beautiful course in parts of Concord most people do not see on a regular basis.  I mean we were so close to downtown, but we were running through corn fields and the campus of St. Paul's School which seemed very far removed from the Capital building.

It's been very nice the last few days to leave the windows open and allow the breeze to flow through the house after almost a week of hot and humid weather.  I guess it's going to start to creep back in for the early part of next week.  Ahh the joys of summer in New England.  The weather definitely has it's ups and downs this time of year.  Tuesday we had a nasty storm roll through town and our backyard still has branches littered all over it.  For a few hours it seemed every fire department (ours included) in the Lakes Region was out with wires and trees down.  We were just lucky we didn't lose any large trees that could've damaged the house, shed or our cars.  But that nasty storm knocked out the high temps and the oppressive humidity.

All aboard!

So I have been relatively quiet the last two months and if you follow Facebook you now know why.  I have had so much going on with my body over the last 14 weeks that I was afraid of giving it away before we were ready to tell people.  We wanted to make sure things were "cooking" all right and we wanted to make sure our family knew.  John and I are beyond excited to add to our little home.  In fact we are getting ready to make major changes at the house prior to the arrival of our little one.  We are in the process of finishing the basement so we can make a new family room/guest room.  We have been getting estimates over the last week and let's just say...holy crap!!  Our first quote was over $35,000.00.  Now those of you who have been to our house you all know it's not big.  Nope not at all.  So spending over $10,000.00/100 square feet seems a bit steep to me. Ok more than just a bit!

That being said, I have also done very little running.  My boobs just were not about it and then there was the nausea.  It was pretty persistent those first few weeks and thanks to Zofran for making that period a little more tolerable.  But I have managed several days a week on the exercise bike because it's just been too hot to do it outside.  And the pond has been a lifesaver for those after work swims with the little dog.

I have also not started baby knitting.  I want to wait until we decide whether we are going to find out if it's a boy or a girl.  But I have downloaded a ton of quick patterns for hats, booties, blankets, and mittens for my cold weather baby.  Because we have hockey games to hit!

I have to thank my close pals and running buddies for keeping my pregnancy a secret from the rest of the world.  And to my fire family...for constantly giving me crap about "light duty."  The next few months are going to be an interesting ride and I hope you will join me for it!

A good book and a chair in the shade...

I have been reading up a storm the last month or so.  I enjoy sitting out in my yard in a chair with my feet up, a cold drink at my side, and good book in my lap.  I am so thankful for my kindle and it's easy operation.  I have already read a dozen or so books since the beginning of June.  I have been using New Hampshire Downloadable Books for the past six months or so.  Way cheaper than buying everything off of Amazon.  And the way I plow through books this definitely saves the wallet.  So easy to use, you just log into your library with your library card number plus a unique prefix and away you go.  You can search for books that are currently available or find ones that may have a waiting list.  The problem with the waiting list is that I have sometimes waited for months for a book.

So far my top picks for summer are:
Up: A mother and daughter's peakbagging adventure by Patricia Ellis Herr.  It was a quick read about a mom who takes her 5 year old up all the 4000 footers in New Hampshire.  Having done quite a few 4000 footers, I can't imagine doing it as a little kid.

The Fifty Shades Triology by E.L James is also another not to miss read.  Would make a great poolside or beach read!  I think I read all three over the course of a week.

Chasing Fire by Nora Roberts was the first fire book I had read in a long time.  Wonderful book about the Missoula smoke jumpers with a mystery thrown in.  Made me want to pack my bags and head out west for fire season.

Last on my list is Nightwoods by Charles Frazier.  The author of Cold Mountain is back with a murder mystery/love story set deep in Appalachia during the late 50s or early 60s.

Those are it for now, but given that I am finishing a book every three to four days there will be an update or two later this summer.

Busy...

I have been rather quiet as of late.  Only have done one 5k in the last month and having been working my way through a pair of socks for my OT student.  It's been rather busy and chaotic in our lives as well.  We had an impromptu trip to CT to say farewell to John's grandmother and we got to see a lot of family for too short of a time.  I have been hard at work on my 5k that is starting to come together as our sponsors have started to send us check.  We've been busy lavishing attention on our little dog in the form of almost daily swims.  We started softball with the same team we played with last season.  A lot of new faces, but also really great to have the old ones too.

The Fourth of July has come and gone.  I enjoyed a night out with the BFR crew at the fireworks.  John traded in his car for a new one.  Oh the joys of lots of miles traveling between home and work.  John went for a long walk in the woods and I snuck down to Portsmouth to see Jen and Josh.   We have had some wonderful evenings at home by our campfire enjoying our backyard in those rare moments of downtime.

I always feel busier in the summer with the longer hours of daylight that keep me from wanting to stay home and hibernate.  And in the weeks to come, the days will get shorter and then we will be back to the bright colors of fall.  But in the meantime it's time to go to softball and enjoy a beautiful evening out in the lakes region.

Monday Musings

Monday morning always seems to come so early.  John's alarm goes off at 530am (he's adjusted his schedule to take a class on Wednesdays) and well I have been listening to the birds since the wee hours of daylight.  I almost look forward to the hot days of July when my air conditioner can drown out those "fowl" critters!  I haven't exactly been waking up on the right side of the bed as of late and this morning was no exception.

I stumbled downstairs to let Scout outside and make my lunch.  I popped a bagel in the toaster as I got my fruit and yogurt out of the fridge.  I managed to catch a few minutes of the local news while scarfing my breakfast.  Then I trudge back upstairs to get washed up and dressed.  I didn't turn the lights on in the closet while I pulled out my scrubs and my underwear.  I know where everything is kept and don't need the aid of a light to help me pick out my clothes.

Well on any other day that would've been fine.  It was about 10am this morning that I strolled off to the bathroom at work.  Much to my chagrin, I was wearing crotchless panties courtesy of the small dog.  Awesome, excellent I thought as I examined the gaping hole in my underwear.  So moral of the story, take the extra second to turn the light on and inspect your clothes before you put them on.

How do you spell perfect?

It's the end of a beautiful weekend here in the Lakes Region.  I got to spend a lot of time sitting out in my yard enjoying the wonderful weather.  After a round of rain and thunderstorms that last all of last week, Saturday dawned bright and blue.  I took in Market Square Day with Megan and Max as we cheered on Karen during her first 10k.  I am just thankful I didn't sign up to run as well.  Saturday afternoon had me taking in another wonderful New England tradition of a good old fashioned pig roast.  It was tasty to say the least!

I managed to drag myself out of my peaceful reverie on Sunday morning to take Scout on a four mile run.  It was only one of two runs I got in last week due to weather and a very busy week at work.  Scout enjoyed getting out with me, but halfway through the run I wish we had gotten up just a big earlier.  The sun is quite warm this time of year and it heats the earth up pretty fast.

Our afternoon was spent out in our yard reading our books in our lawn chairs.  We had to keep moving our chairs to keep out of the sun's rays.  No sunburn for us thank you very much.  We still haven't put our air conditioners in the windows, but me thinks that day is coming soon as the weather starts to get warmer.  After all the summer solstice is only a few days away.  I also did a bit of wading in the pond and the water is just about warm enough to swim in.  The dog has managed two swims already this week.  She sure does love the water.

It's also bike week here in New Hampshire.  So be careful out on the roads this week!

Over the river and through the flooded plains

like a drowned rat

Saturday morning was a gray, cold, and rainy one here in New Hampshire.  As I padded through the bay of the fire station towards my muffin I scowled at the wet parking lot.  We had another road race in a few hours and the weather was not going to be in our favor.  Actually it was in my favor because it sure beats 85 and humid.  We did this race with Megan and Phoebe.  I have to thank Karen for her picture taking skills while holding an umbrella!  It was a surprisingly refreshing course that took as the name of the race stated over the river and through the woods.  I got to see a neat little part of Concord that I never knew was there.  One part of the course made me stop just to take in the sight of the lush green carpet and the tall pines looming overhead as far as the eye could see.  It was breathtaking.

Meg, me, and John trying to stay dry

I have seem to have lost my mojo for most things this past week as I have been plowing through the 50 Shades of Grey trilogy.  I have maybe knit three rows on my sweater and forget running.  I did manage one day on the treadmill this week.  I definitely wasn't feeling the best this morning after a shortened night at the fire station.  The cops had us out at 1am putting out an illegal campfire.  I did my race pacing Megan and even got her a PR.    It felt good to be out there with her.  We talked the whole time and I am not normally someone who likes to run and talk.  Guess that means we should hang out together more often.

apres race

Woke up on Sunday to another cloudy gray day.  After John got home from the station we headed up to Franklin to have breakfast at Ralph and Jo's Cafe.  Excellent place run by Rebecca and Brandy Underwood.  We'll be back for lunch!  We did our grocery shopping on the way home and then it became the lazy Sunday on the couch day.  Perfect weather for finishing my book and then enjoying a nap.  I did manage to get the top of my sweater completed as well.  All in all, despite the rain, it was the perfect weekend surrounded by good friends and great books.

Monday Musings...damn people from away

We got to sit out back and enjoy our first campfire of the season last night.  It sounded like summer with children screaming, dogs barking (not mine at the moment), and boats roaring around the pond.  And then the sun went down...bring on the fireworks.  Really??  Must you come up to your summer home and make noise ALL night.  Do you even realize that some of us live and work here year round?  That some of us do not get the luxury of a three day weekend and we must be up early for our jobs.  Nope apparently not.  I think next winter I need to find out where you live and take up camp next to your home and light off fireworks all night just to get even.  And really the only nights of the week we have noise around here are the weekends when all the people from away come up here to get "away" from it all.  Maybe you need to try to remember that for those of us that live here all the time, we also like to get away from the noise you insist upon making.  That's why we chose to live here because of the quiet.  At least Monday through Thursday is peaceful and quite enjoyable.

our pond on a quieter weekend last summer

So now we are back to Monday when the fools from away have gone back to their lives and the neighborhood can go on in relative quiet.  Unfortunately it's only a four day work week for them so they will be back in a few short days.  Oh how I dread the summer months here.  The grocery store is filled with rude pushy people who look at us locals with disdain as they go by with their carts filled with beer and ice.  It makes going to the store a real treat.  And I know tourism is great for the local economy, but one should really take a crash course in acting like a decent person before crossing the border.

Guess I am being a wee bit crabby for this Monday, but if I had gotten my 8 hours undisturbed I would be a happier camper this afternoon.  Now off to grumble some more....

A day off?? What's that?

I am taking a well deserved day off while John and his hiking buddy (the small dog) are off early again.  He is working his way through the Belknaps this weekend, but I just needed a day of doing not too much.  That and the amount of ticks he pulled off the two of them left me not wanting to go play in the woods.  I have a bike ride planned and hopefully I will make it more than 5 miles before I feel the need to turn around and head home.

Had a great day of golf yesterday.  It was a bit too hot for my liking and 18 holes seemed to take forever in the 90 degree heat.  We are back to normal seasonal temps today and I wish all the runners taking part in Boston's Run to Remember a great race.  Our next race is on June 2 up in Concord and I will be running with Megan and John.  That is one is part of the Capital Area Race series.  Then I believe we may have two weeks off until the Bow Lake 5k.  I really wanted to do the 15k, but we have beach cleanup early that morning and thought better of the extra miles.

my golf team

Colleen and I have one week until we make the decision to do our sprint tri.  I definitely think it is doable at this point.  I just haven't been in the water yet this year.  The pond may still be a little cold for that.  But I did dig out my bathing suit this morning and I just need to get the nerve up to hit the water.


The bike ride turned out beautifully this morning.  There was a nice chill in the air and I did 14 miles around Barnstead before returning home.  My next plan is to go sit outside and enjoy this wonderful weather because from what I hear it's all over after today!  I am okay with a lousy holiday forecast since I will be stuck at work for the day.  So enjoy!

FO Friday

Yay!  The week is finally over.  I managed a half day, but will have to go in over the weekend to do an eval.  Any excuse to get out early on a Friday is good with me.  We managed a quick dump run and now won't have to do that over the weekend.  Bonnie and I are "playing" golf in the morning while John and Scout head out on another hike.  Really with the weather forecast for the upper 80s, I am glad to be hitting the links instead.  If only I had known that today was going to be so lousy I would've waited until this afternoon to roast the chicken I did last night.  I think a sweatshirt may be in order before I head off to Explorers down at the station.

I finished John's sweater earlier in the week and I believe I have convinced John that he should sew the buttons on it for himself.  I have begun construction of a green wrap sweater.  I had so much knitting mojo over the last few months that I think I need a bit of a recovery period.  I can knit about two rows before I feel the need to get up and move onto something else....oh look a chicken!

Also need to give a shout out to my Explorers tonight for a wonderful job with training.  It was a warm and humid night and you guys rocked with SCBA training.  And tomorrow night I will participate in a little tower training.  We will be painting the flagpole.  I got roped into training like this...Deputy Chief to Mandy "Hey you want to do some tower training tomorrow evening around 5pm?"  I say, "Sure I would love that."  Then he says "We have to paint the flagpole."  And that's how it went down.  So if you are out and about in Barnstead tomorrow evening, you can find dinner and a show at Station 2.  Ok just make sure you bring enough dinner for me too!  And pie, I would love some pie!

Will I cross the finish line this evening?

It's been a few weeks and before that it was a few weeks and I have to say I am sad that I have been out of my Tuesday evening routine.  So tonight I will take my sticks and string and head to Knit Night down in Epsom.  I miss being surrounded by women of all ages as we create with our hands.  The gentle click of metals needles as they slide past each other or the muttered curse of a dropped stitch.  Okay, really that's just me!  But thankfully there is someone there who can solve life's little knitting problems.

I plan on finishing the cuff of John's sweater and weaving in the ends once I have cast off the final stitch.  It feels like a week ago that I started on it, but in reality it's been almost two months in the making.  Then I will be onto my next project for myself...another cute sweater for me to wear this winter.  I do have plans for a summer sweater and one would think this would be the perfect time to start it since it's short sleeve and will be made from linen, but I just don't have the hankering to start that one.  I want the pretty green Merino yarn, not the conch colored linen.

And just maybe I will have a picture of the finished sweater for FO Friday.  That means I am going to have to sew on buttons and we all know how I feel about that.  Not my favorite thing to do.  Or I could just hand them to John and have him do his own....let's see how that one goes.

Monday Musings

our room with a view

I am exhausted!  Plain and simple, the weekend wore me out.  Busy week ahead with something going on just about every night this week and will wind down on Saturday with a benefit golf tournament.  Yup, I will be sharing clubs with Bonnie and we are going to rock it!

So I figured I would add more pictures from our weekend voyage.  We did have a good time even though I may pay for it during the next few days as my one million black fly bites start to heal.  I am that person who gets a bug bite and the swelling/itch lasts for almost two weeks.  It's wonderful having such a good immune system response!  But I did take the dog out this afternoon when I got home from work and I think it may be safe to that our black fly season is over.  Careful...I don't want to say that too loud because they might come back.

Mt. Washington

Scout seems to have recovered from the hike and even played a rousing game of whiffle ball with me when I first got home.  At least the sun was still shining then!  Now the clouds have taken over and it looks like more rain will be upon us.  Yet the outlook for the end of the week and the holiday weekend looks like great weather.  I am just hoping to get a couple of runs in during the chaos that is this week.  We have yet another 5k next Saturday on June 2.  My friend Megan will be joining us for that grand time.

We got out of our sleeping bags and someone decided she wanted to go back to bed!

Then it will be onto training for a sprint tri with Colleen during the first week of July.  Hopefully the pond water will warm up with the nicer weather that we have been having.  It's a small pond and it tends to warm up pretty fast, but I would love to get some serious swimming.  Got the bike already and I just need to force myself out onto that too.  But I am going to take the next two days to let my sore body re-charge.

Just a short (or 15 miles) walk in the woods

We took our little dog, Scout and went on my first overnight hike.  John had it all planned out that we were going to be doing Mt. Isolation up in Pinkham Notch.  Saturday dawned a picture perfect day in New Hampshire.  The sky was clear blue and the temps were in the low 80s.  I could have stood to have the temps a bit lower at our start time and the haze of black flies nearly drove me over the edge.  But we had bought an all natural bug repellent a few weeks ago at Clark's Grain Store.  This stuff was magic and it's called White Mountain Bug Repellent.  It specifically targets black flies and as all of us who live in New Hampshire can attest that these little flies are horrible in May.

me and the Presidential in the background

I won't deny that the first part of hike was grueling.  I was taking breaks every 20 to 30 steps and drained almost all of my water before we got to camp.  Our remote camp site was nestled into the side of a hill and you could hear the water rushing below.  The first stop after dropping our packs was the river and that cold icy water was just solution.  Scout did some serious swimming which was followed by a lot of shivering.  I got my feet in, but like the Atlantic this time of year,  it was brutal.

We had an early dinner of Santa Fe chicken in a bag.  Then it was lights out for Mandy.  I spent at least 10 hours in my sleeping bag last night and was quite sad that John was reading a book by his Android, but I had left my Kindle behind at home.   And that hillside campsite, well I kept sliding off of my sleeping pad and down the hill during the night.  But I had the little dog to keep me warm and she spent the entire night in my sleeping bag at the foot of it.

Sunday was a spectacular day.  We got an early start out of our camp after a breakfast of oatmeal and tea.  I finally located the toothpaste I couldn't find in the dark and was able to brush my teeth.  Talk about heaven!  The bugs were not as bad early today and we made really good time without the extra weight from our packs.  Scout made multiple river crossings and kept ahead of us about 30 feet at all times.  I swear she covers each mountain at least twice as she crosses back and forth along the trail.

From the summit of Mt. Isolation which was 3.5 miles from where we spent the night, we had clear views of Mt. Washington and the Presidential Range.  The old rock pile is so nice to see without it being surrounded by clouds.  No snow remains at the summit which must be some sort of record for this time of year.

Made it off the mountain by 230pm this afternoon and we were back home by 415pm.  Now if only I could have a weekend from my weekend!

And it's only Thursday.

Got back to the old running grind yesterday.  The IT bands still hurt, but had to keep running due the voracious mosquitoes that chased us home.  The humid weather felt more like July or August and I can say that I am definitely not used to running in warmer weather.  I didn't think we were going to get a run in because we were under a severe storm watch and as I was tying up my shoes I swore I heard thunder.

The storms did hold off until around 9pm last night.  We got to watch a vivid light show as the storms rolled in.  It's one of the times that I can I say I enjoying living on top of a hill.  We sat out on our porch until the rain started and then we made a quick retreat back into the house.  The first storm passed quickly without a lot of close lightning.  The second storm hit around 11pm and that rocked the house a few times.

This morning dawned with cool, clear blue sky.  Even the birds sounded happier than they did the past few mornings.  Mr. Cardinal started serenading us before 5am.  I know because I looked over at the clock.  Fortunately I had the day off and if we don't find another OT soon who knows when I will have my next day off.  Got John's sweater almost done and finished another book this afternoon.  Even managed to put away my new stash of yarn and mow the lawn.

Very thankful for the change of weather...now hopefully it will hold out in the mountains this weekend as I take in my first overnight hike.  From what I gather I could be in for a long day on Sunday!

Monday Musing...the curse of the bad running pics is no more!

I felt quite back to normal the day after my half with only a minor ache coming from my back.  The husband and I headed off early on Sunday morning to the NH Sheep and Wool Festival.  I know you can barely contain your envy, but I got some great sock yarn and we sat in on a working dog demo (my dog needs more chores).  Great morning with pretty new yarn to add to my stash upstairs.

The afternoon was spent building two new plant beds out by the shed.  We planted 6 strawberry plants, some rosemary, and some other type of perennial in those beds.  Then I added five more strawberry plants to pots and also planted a well established container tomato plant.  John got the backyard spread with loam and did some grass seeding.  That was our day of rest and relaxation in a nutshell.   And then we had a lovely dinner with Mom for Mother's Day.  Of course, we had to eat at our new table.  We would've eaten on the deck had the black flies not been so ravenous.

Our three day stretch of nice weather is over and it's back to the standard issue Monday gloom.  I am just about ready to run again, but I need to let my new chafed areas heal up before I do.  Today's shout out has to go to my dear friend, Josh Gibney, who actually took some decent running pics of me.  Ok so I was goofing off, but what else is new?!  They were great race day photos and that just doesn't happen for me.  And this shot was taken just before mile 12.  I was looking and feeling pretty good.  So I guess with this pic, there goes the curse of bad running photos.  I don't look like I am in pain or tired.  I did almost fall right after he took the picture because my legs were saying enough, but I managed to hobble on and finish the rest of the race.

2012 Big Lake Half Marathon

heading for the end!

What a beautiful day to run!  The weather started off seasonably chilling with temps in the upper 30s and it was a crystal clear day.  I'd say it was nearing 70 at the end of the race with a breeze rolling off of the lake.  As I drove off the hill that we live on, I was enveloped in fog and then just like that drove out of it as I headed past the four lakes on the way to Alton.  It was bright blue sky without a cloud to be seen.  I did eat my fair share of black flies and one almost choked me as it went down the wrong pipe.  The only downside to the half today was that I got very cold around mile 7 and the goosebumps stayed with me until the end.  I didn't feel off except that I was cold.  It took a hot shower, some food, caffeine, and a nap to get me back to feeling normal. I am sure the two Advil didn't hurt either.

Steve-O and I at the finish

I managed to avoid all the orange cones (for those who know my history with cones, this is a BIG deal) that were all over Alton as I went to park my truck and narrowly avoided rear ending an SUV at the Alton Circle first thing this morning.  The driver was pulling a scene right out of National Lampoon's European Vacation..."Hey kids, look there's Big Ben!"  Then she suddenly stopped mid circle to try to let traffic onto the circle from Rt 11 not realizing she had the right of way.  Thankfully I was awake enough to hit the brakes and my horn.

EndorFun puts on a great race at the Big Lake and if anyone wants a fun, well-organized race then give this one a try.  The proceeds of this race benefit the New Hampshire Make a Wish Foundation.  The aid stations are well done and the post race food is great.  Mmmm Jordan's ice cream!

I'd like to thank my fans (Megan, Karen, Max, and Andrik) for their support, tissues, and pictures!  I also have to thank Pat O'Brien at Alton Fire for tissues early this morning before I ran past Megan.  Damn allergies kept me coughing and sputtering most of the day!  And of course, a big shout out to Steve-O who ran with me today and then scampered up Mt. Major after.  I managed to finish in 2:22 by my Garmin.  That's only four minutes off of 2011 and given the warm temps, I think it was a darn good effort!

FO -Friday (Finished object = race day fun)

So here we are, it's Friday May 11 and I am getting ready to go pick up my number and shirt for the Big Lake Half.  The weather looks like it will be a tad on the warm side during the latter part of the run after a chilly start.  My poor chafed back is just about healed and am still not sure what to do about it on race day.  It's going to open right back up for sure, but hopefully I can lube up good in the AM and it will be kept at bay.  I have my "Steve-O Warning" shirt on to welcome him to our home for our pre-race festivities.  It's my favorite with the hare laying on the ground full of smoking holes and the tortoise has a giant missile launcher strapped to his back as he passes by.  Take heed my friend!  And I will see you at the finish line!

There's no 'R' in Thursday

I was sitting here this evening trying to come up with a topic for my blog post.  It's been a busy week, but nothing we have done has been all that exciting...unless you count the con ed on dealing with difficult patients (hello, after years of working in geriatrics I could have taught the class myself) or the first DHART landing I've been to.  Yup, just another day.  So John suggested I do something in honor of Mom for Mother's Day.  He said I should go with a favorite memory.  Well that left me giggling and with an evil look on my face.  I remembered the time when the state fire marshal had paid a visit to my grandfather's (Mup) house on Lafayette Road.   The previous night there had been a suspicious fire that destroyed a vacant barn across the street from their house.  The fire marshal was acting on a tip that had come from their neighbor who had heard yelling and loud noises from behind his house earlier that morning.  Mup just chuckled...

Mom had dragged me out bed that morning after my dad's pager had gone off for a reported structure fire across the street from my grandparent's home.  From our driveway a mile away you could see the familiar orange glow in the sky.  That old barn was rocking!   I don't think I have seen her as fired up (pardon the pun) as she was that morning.  I will spare her the most of the embarrassing details because there weren't a lot of rational thoughts going through her head.  She was acting purely on adrenaline.  She blew past a state trooper who was blocking off Route 1 screaming over her shoulder as she ran past  "I have to get the GAHDEN hose, the house is on FIRE!"   She yelled to me that I had to get inside and get my grandfather as she ran down the driveway to the back of the house repeatedly screaming "I have to get the GAHDEN hose!"  I met my grandfather at the side door of his house and he followed me back to where we could hear my mother yelling.  With wild eyes, she whipped around to him and started yelling again.  "I have to get the GAHDEN hose, the house is on FIRE!  I have to get the GAHDEN hose!"  She cranked the water on and proceeded to lift the hose off of the hose reel and in doing so tore the hose reel and the vinyl siding off the house.  I was blown away!  Two hundred feet of standard garden hose full of water is heavy and she is not a big woman!

She can be intense, but it's also a good thing she has a great sense of humor because for years after I would run into my grandparent's house yelling..."I have to get the GAHDEN hose!" much to the delight of my grandfather and her chagrin.

Racing through the week

Had my second race meeting tonight and we are well on our way to putting on a great 5k on August 25th.  I will be getting the sponsor letters out later this week and we are working on getting race posted on Cool Running.  This is my favorite website to check out potential races and register.  If I can't register online then chances are I won't run the race.  In all the years I have been running I have only done three races that I hadn't registered for online.  That being said, I want to make our 5k super simple to register and be a part of.

Due to my race meeting, I was not able to get to knit night this evening.  Unfortunately I have too many distractions at home so I can never get in two hours of uninterrupted time with my sticks and string.  Tonight it was stopping to check out Ravelry and then to work on my blog instead of knitting.  My right wrist has been a little sore from the crazy hours I spent on Sunday resting my legs and doing some serious work on my current project.  I have one sleeve almost completed and only one to go.  I already have my next two projects lined up and am waiting patiently for Knitpicks order to arrive.  I will be putting together short sleeved Henley for myself and then a wrap cardigan to wear this fall.  Finally sweaters that I can customize to my short stature.  

Well I guess it's back to the knitting grind cause my bed will be calling my name before long.  Hopefully the low battery light on the Kindle will stay off until just before it's time for lights out.  And the countdown is on for the Big Lake.  Looking forward to my post races dinner that I made a special request for with Mandy and Hunter. So excited for the savory crepes!

Monday Musings

I do a lot in my every day life to express my creative side.  The obvious being is my knitting, but I have also developed a love of baking.  Thank goodness for the internet because thousands of recipes and ideas are right at my fingertips.  I recently came upon the Brown Eyed Baker when I was looking for new and interesting recipes.  I will definitely be venturing back there when I need some inspiration for future creations.  For cinco de mayo I made the margarita cupcakes.  These adult only tasty looking little treats were  something I could handle and I was not to be disappointed.  For a less mature audience the tequila can be left out of the frosting and you could skip brushing the warm cupcakes with tequila.  Seriously it's only two tablespoons used in the frosting for all 12.  But I can proudly say I finished off a bottle while putting these together.  Thanks to a few friends who have a serious love for margaritas I had two additional bottles waiting in the wings.  However, John doctored them a little and added a rim of salt like you would to a margarita glass...next time we will skip the salt and use sugar instead.

My favorite kitchen appliance is my Kitchen Aid mixer.  This is hands down the best kitchen gift I have ever received.  The only other appliance that gets more use is my food processor.  Now that I have had my mixer for a few years I want some of the attachments like the pasta maker.  The whisk and the dough hook came with it and those are great additions.  But who wouldn't want the taste of homemade pastas?!  Ahh the night before the Big Lake would really become an event!

Got up and early on my Sunday morning thanks to my pager activating as John's alarm clock started to ring.  He was heading with his little dog to do the Hancocks and I was going to sleep in just a bit.  Then the pager went off a second time and I was up for good.  It was a beautiful morning along the Suncook River with the fog hanging down in the valley and the sky a mix of high clouds and blue sky.  Finally a return to nicer weather even if it is only for a few days.  Overall it was a wonderful morning to get in my last long run.  I took a very scenic route that had nice views of the Belknaps and then I followed a small river through the woods on my way back home.

Another Saturday...another race (think there is a theme to our weekends)

love my new table!

Welcome to another weekend at chez Savage.  We started off on Friday evening with a wonderful first dinner at our brand new table.  We had homemade carbonara with fresh Italian bread served with Sicilian olive oil and balsamic vinegar.  Got the grocery shopping out of the way on Friday afternoon and this allows us to spend more time doing the things we want to do over the weekend.  Saturday morning was another gray overcast start to the day.  Seems to be the theme of the last week around these parts.  We got an early start out the door as we met up with Megan and Karen to run the Peeper 5k down in Barrington.  Another PR this am for me as I came in under 29 minutes at around 28:35 or so.  It was a nice out and back through a quiet neighborhood and even the black flies seemed to be enjoying the quiet morning as they pretty much left us alone as we ran along.

The ladies pre-race

I am finally feeling better after being sick and dealing with the heavy pollen load the past two weeks.  My ear infection cleared up without the use of antibiotics.  But the heavy doses of antihistamines and Sudafed have left me in a haze and it takes me until mid morning before the haze lifts.  Now if the clouds would just lift and bring some sunshine back to the Lakes region that would make for a very happy Mandy.

Carbonara-recipe upon request!

Got one week until the Big Lake so my final long run will be early tomorrow morning.  I'd love to get 10 miles in first thing.  Then I can enjoy a few short trots during the week.  Steve-O will be arriving Friday afternoon for our traditional pasta dinner and pre-race fun.  Now I just need to decide what I am going to wear!  I swear the Big Lake starts earlier each year and hopefully we will have decent weather.  Please no rain!

Springtime

My Smokey Bear tulips

So spring decided to be sprung here in Barnstead.  I left for my conference and most of my daffs weren't even open. The little tulips to the left were only purchased because of their name.  Yup, the fire service even invades my gardens!   I came home to my tulips up and my lilies well on their way.  My lilies are all transplants from the lovely Carol Troy and from Malcolm.  Carol dropped hers off in some fly by night operation only to have to come back when she thought she lost her pager in the piles of dirt she left in my yard.  The trees have really started to leaf out and we even saw flowers on our wild blueberry bushes tonight.  I have been wondering what happened to my really big red tulips whose heads were laying on the lawn next to the stems, but I think a small little white dog and the husband had something to do with that.  There has been a lot of whiffle ball being played at my house.  It's our version of "Calvin Ball" and Scout happens to be our catcher and outfielder all at the same time.  She seems to enjoy her multiple roles.

Got in another run this evening.  That's two days in a row and felt much better tonight than yesterday.  Also got our new table and four of our chairs.  Still waiting on the sideboard and the farmer's bench.  In the whole time that we have been married we have been using a table from my dear friend Mindy.  I can remember sitting at this table in late high school and early college in her parents' kitchen when they still lived in Hampton.  Some great times have been had at this table.  I do most of my blogging and craft work on it as well.  One year someone decided he should be a mummy for Halloween and managed to cover the surface in spray adhesive.  That took some serious scrubbing to get it off.  It's really well built and I am a little sad to see it go, but we need to expand our seating.  Bring on the dinner parties at chez Savage!

Guess I'll be off to get some knitting in.  Still working on the bottom ribbing for the Henley sweater.  Really 2.5 inches seems like something I could get through in a night if life didn't keep getting in the way.  I'd really like to get it done in the next week so I can start my next project.  Cause honestly once the weather warms up this girl really doesn't want to be sitting under a pile of wool!

Occupations...

I've been at the American Occupational Therapy Association (AOTA) annual conference the past few days.  It was an amazing experience and I was surrounded by hundreds of people who all share the same visions and passions for our field.  As practioners we make it our goal to help people live their fullest lives every day.  I like to think I practice what I preach.  I have many occupations that I engage every day...wife, knitter, reader, runner, firefighter, supreme ruler of the roost etc.  I could go on and on.  Think about what you do that defines who you are.  These occupations can be further broken down in the the components of each activity.  If I really sat down and thought about it I could break it down to which muscles I use for each occupation and what parts of the brain run them.  Yup that is what my degree is folks.  In my field of geriatrics we break the down the every day skills and re-teach our clients how to engage in them despite age or disability.

The conference gave me a renewed sense of self and re-energized what I bring to work each day.  Sometimes we start to feel stagnant by our situations because of all the baggage our lives carry.  To often I feel like we are just trying to make our numbers for Medicare and we lose sight of the purpose we went to school for this to begin with.  I decided when I got back to work I would put more thought into my treatment selections and really try to engage my patients in occupations every day.

I also came home excited to resume my occupations that I had put off for the week.  My knitting was calling to me across the many miles and this was the first trip I had taken in a long time that didn't include a sticks and string.  I had done so much in the weeks leading up to the conference that my wrists were begging for a short break.  I only took my Kindle with me and I was very thankful I had that because I did manage to read two books while I waited in airports.  A nasty cold and an ear infection also sidelined me from the running for a week.  I did eek out a 3 mile run/walk today in the cold and rain.  I can't run too hard or I just end up in a coughing fit on the side of the road.  Not very attractive either!

Tonight I head back to knit night and have my project bagged up and ready to go.  It's been almost a month since I have been and I realized how much I miss my ladies I knit with.  And yes I am wearing a recent project.  My much loved short sleeve cardigan.  It just came out too pretty not to wear it as often as I can!

Monday Musings...seriously?? you do that??

I awoke suddenly to the sounds of sirens.  That brilliant wail piercing through the chilled night air.  It sounded like it was right outside my window.  Momentarily I was miffed...how come the pager hadn't gone off?  Why was I not on that truck?  Who didn't invite me to come out and play? Then I remembered.  I was far from home, staying in downtown Indianapolis for a conference.  I wasn't home and those sounds didn't belong to my department.

But that didn't matter, those sirens do something to me.  I was instantly on high alert.  I could feel my adrenal glands instinctively reacting to the high pitched welps.  It's the old fight or flight response that is hardwired into us from an earlier time when there was danger everywhere.  Do I stay and fight or it is time to hit the dusty trail?  My senses become heightened and even though it was 3am I was wide awake and ready to go.  The same thing happens at home when the pager goes off during the night.  We go from being in deep deep sleep to awake, very awake.  There is a surge in blood pressure, body temperature, and heart rate.  Respiration elevates as we start to go through a quick mental checklist.

I remember the night of my first fire.  It was a warm July night at about 0230 when the pager sprang to life.  There were a string of multiple tones indicating that something serious was going on.  Each tone is a different department getting activated.  Firefighters just like me being awoken all simultaneously for the same job.  We were headed mutual aid to Pittsfield for a single family unoccupied structure fire.  From the end of Rt 126 as we turned left onto Rt 28 the orange glow hung low in the night sky.  This was no false alarm.  I was in the middle seat in the back of the engine and I was fumbling the straps to my airpack, making sure I had a flashlight and a radio.  Note to self...next time grab the radio and flashlight before cinching up the straps the SCBA.  I was thanking myself at that moment because I had taken the extra 10 seconds to put my contacts in.

When we pulled up on scene the house was fully involved.  Our assignment was to attempt a stop before the fire destroyed the garage.  Getting down onto our knees, we quickly donned our face masks, tightened our helmets and put our SCBA regulators into place.  We advanced our hoseline into the door and I think we made it about 20 feet into the breezeway connecting the house to the garage.  The flames were lapping furiously across the ceiling above us and the heat was hot, but not unbearable because of our protective clothing.  We were here to dance with the devil and send him packing.  This was everything I had spent the last months in Firefighter 1 getting trained to do.  And everything worked like clockwork.  We made the stop and saved the garage.  As I sat in rehab later that morning the past two hours were surreal.  Had I just done that?  This had to be a dream, but it wasn't and I had done exactly as I had been trained to.  And I wanted more.  Little did I know that the next month was going to be a wild and crazy ride and would serve as the beginning of my fire service career.  Days later I would be at my second fire and weeks after I would be in the first truck on scene of the aftermath of an EF-2 tornado that directly hit our town.