So I didn't pass my skating test - not that I thought I would, I just wanted the input from the judges. And it was very informative.
Also, what I worried about wasn't a big deal and what I've been working on 4EVAH still sucks. What can you do, right?
But I didn't go all "
yeep" which is a BIG DEAL for me. And nobody was watching!
Even when I did screw up, I got it back together and kept on without going "yeep" in the process. So I'm getting better control of my nerves. Now if I could only do that with my edges!
Part of it I think is just stamina - I've put on some weight since I bought the house (how, I don't really know since I'm always out digging in the yard) and that doesn't help. I just need to start getting some more exercise. For some reason, the weight has gone to my obliques which it NEVER did before. My ass - yes; but my obliques and belly - no way! I guess that's what age does for you (altho I know skaters in their 60's who have rockin' bods!) Oh, well.
Strange sorts of things have been happening lately - I think something very odd is going on in the universe. People have just been like walking up to me and pouring their guts out for some reason. It is very strange.
Let's face it, I'm not the most "comforting" person in the world to spill your guts to (altho I CAN and DO keep secrets - even the secrets people WANT me to tell) so this sort of mystifies me.
I mean, people I don't even really KNOW have just started, well, stopping me in the halls and on the street (literally) and just telling me personal things. Not that I find it odd that someone would talk to me but that people would want to talk SO MUCH to someone they just know in passing is what I find odd.
And even odder still is I don't find myself wanting to hurry them along or thinking of everything else I need to get done. I just get the strange feeling they need to talk and have someone listen to them. It has proven very interesting and informative to "shut up and listen".
I guess people are finding that talking to a live person in front of them is much more comforting than emailing, facebooking or texting someone. Everyone is in such a big hurry and addicted to cell phones - I don't get it. AT ALL. When I'm not by a phone then I'm GONE and I don't want to be bothered. I always know when anyone in the family wants to talk to me (don't need a phone for that) and everyone else can just leave a voice mail.
But I'm an old
troglodyte anway so what do you expect?
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The Rogue Goddess saw shadows dancing at 3:42 PM
So I have a skating test coming up and the club sends me the test schedule. I'm looking it over and I realize that there are only TWO other people in a very large (5+ hour) test session that are taking higher level tests than ME.
Fuck.
That means PEOPLE WILL BE WATCHING ME and oh, how I just HATE that! Now I get to agonize over it until the deed is done.
Hell's Bells and Cockel Shells!
Seriously - I hate to have people watch me at a test session or a competition. That's mostly why I don't compete (that and I just despise those stupid skimpy dresses you have to wear. At my age and weight, NO ONE should be subjected to seeing me in spandex!)
Now, practice is a totally different story. I'll just about try anything at practice because I don't really care. But competition or testing - ugh.
The funny thing is - I'm not afraid to be on stage or speak in front of a crowd or anything like that. But I'd rather touch a dead snake (DEAD ONE) than take a skating test. I don't know what it is. If I had just ONE other person out there to just skate around in a circle while I'm testing, I'd be just fine. It's like I need a distraction so I don't have to think about the judges. Very odd.
So now I get to work myself into a lather about it and I bring it on myself. Why do I test if it's so terrifying? Because I can and because I know it's something I need to learn to cope with if I am ever going to teach.
I thought I test at this session because this is the first chance I've had since the "new rules" went into effect two months ago and I want to see where I stand and also I just need to do it. Part of me (ok, MOST of me) doesn't really expect to pass and that's really ok. I'd just like to see the comments and see how far off the mark I am - what I need to work on. My coach thinks everything looks good but I know how nervous I get and how I will fall back on my bad habits.
The dogs are fine - both fat and happy. Lil' One Eye is just a great ball of belly and fuzz but he is just adorable with his little crooked face. The Bat doesn't have much of a winter coat going on so she likes to burrow under the blanket on the couch which I find amusing.
A strange thing happened to me last weekend. I had volunteered to be the Herald in training at an event. They needed a big mouth and Lord knows I do enough shouting at people at Pennsic so I figured WTF? As long as someone tells me what to yell and what other things need done.
I just figure I'll just do various announcements and the like. Not a big deal because I do it at Pennsic and when else can you shout at the top of your lungs and not have people tell you to "shut up!" or "keep it down!"?
Well, apparently there are some "things" going on behind the scenes - a bunch of political nonsense - that has been fermenting for a while. I have tried and managed to remain blissfully ignorant to most of it but to say I'm not aware of something going on would be a lie.
Mostly I don't WANT to see it in my barony so I try to ignore it and remain fat, drunk and stupid and try not to offend anyone. I really hate to see it and IMO I wish people would just stop and enjoy their hobby.
Anyway - Our Baron/ess requested that I herald court that evening. Like, huh? Me?
I have NEVER, EVER done such a thing before (not even pretend) and I am quite intimidated by all of the protocol, pronunciation of names and that sort of thing so I didn't want to do it but I agreed to it. (Now I'm sure some people were upset with me and I just hate that my ignorance caused someone grief so I tried to apologize for it.)
When the time came, I was very nervous - it wasn't a large or hostile crowd but it was scary anyway (because I knew I didn't know what the hell I was doing). And then, it didn't seem so bad. At all.
Not like TESTING or COMPETING.
Some people fear public speaking more than death. Me? I fear skating in front of judges.
It's funny how you keep learning things about yourself no matter how old you get.
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The Rogue Goddess saw shadows dancing at 2:35 PM
I hope everyone lit their pumpkins and had the bonfire last night! You've got to keep those hobgobs at bay!
The Creatures are fine. The Batface seems to be as unhappy about the colder weather as I am. She has been curling up in a Batball next to me every chance she gets. I keep trying to get her to lay on One Eye but he gets too hot and waddles off. So the Bat and I are left to keep each other warm. She seems to like it as warm as I do which can be good this winter. Little One Eye will just have to suck it up and let us snuggle with his furry butt! If he weren't so good and warm, we wouldn't curl up next to him!
I really dread winter. Actually - I dread the cold. Oh, it sucks something awful. I've been trying to put in some insulation in my attic and insulate the pipes (they had NO insulation on them AT ALL - neither did the hot water heater) and it has been quite the chore.
But it might be working. At least, I think it is. It can't hurt, that's for sure! The house is old and the current insulation is about 2" thick in the attic and looks like it's from the late 50's. No kidding.
So I climb up there and there is NOTHING on the outside wall of the kitchen. I mean not one spec of anything - tyvex, tin foil, newspapers, NOTHING. No wonder that kitchen was so infernally cold last winter.
I insulated the wall then started on the roof - Good Lord, is that a job! My arms are so sore from laying on my back with my arms over my head - I don't know how Michaelangelo managed to paint the Sistine Chapel like that! And he was older than I am!
My body is just sore as hell and I have my skating class tonight. Ugh. I don't know how I'm going to make it since I'm so freaking stiff and beat up.
Then I got into the "crawl" spaces. More like "the worm" spaces because there was no way even *I* could "crawl" into these places. I wouldn't even go into the one - nope. Time to knock out the closet wall and insulate it from there. It looks like I may have to do that on the other side of the attic as well - but it's the closet and there is plenty of extra-dry wall in the garage so I'll just insulate then re-drywall it.
It's slowly coming along. Over half of the attic over the kitchen is done and about one wall over the bedrooms is totally done. It just takes soooooo long because you have to suit up, tape yourself in and I have to contain my hair (which is another chore) before you even get started.
I've already laid about 6 rolls of R-30 insulation plus the insulation for the pipes and I still have a ways to go yet. As long as I can keep the chill off, we'll be good.
My bedroom was actually warm last night - usually it freezes as soon as August is over but last night it was warm eventho it frosted. So the insulation might be helping!
Horrible is out of the office this week on vacation!!!! Wooooo! It's so nice not having her hysterical ass around to deal with. So nice and quiet and we can actually get stuff done without listening to her pissing and moaning.
Like a vacation for ME!
Before practice, I need to run to the auto store and pick up some more stuff for the car the bro needs. And maybe stop and get more insulation. I sure hope I can take this off of my taxes! I'm about keeping this place in business! Or at least reduce my heating bills (which would be very nice!)
What's on the Reading List:
Guardians of Ga'hoole - so it's a kids book! I love owls!
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The Rogue Goddess saw shadows dancing at 3:11 PM
It was great!
I took The Beast out this weekend to mow the grass/mulch leaves. Most of the maple trees have lost their leaves so I figured it would be a good time to just mow them over. I refuse to rake the lawn - I will rake out the flower beds a bit and then mow up the leaves but it's pointless to rake leaves. They just blow right back into the yard anyway.
So I mow them down where they stand!
Since I still don't have a chute for the mower, crap just spews out as I run it down. Man - I ran over EVERYTHING - walnuts, leaves, acorns, grass, branches, hickory nuts, snakes - it got in my "path of destruction" and it got MOWED. Crap went flying EVERYWHERE. I had on my safety goggles (I'm destructive, not stupid) and spared no leaf!
Of course, when I got finished, I had leaves where no leaf should ever be - from head to toe I was covered in dirt, leaves, grass clippings, bits of wood - oh, it was a delightful MESS. But now the yard looks all nice! HA! I laugh at your leaf blowers!
It's so delightful to just kick The Beast into high gear and mow right over those leaves and watch them fly out all over! The neighbors heard my maniacial laughter, I'm sure.
After I was done wreaking havoc on the yard, I went inside to watch some
Vincent Price movies.
He is one of my favorites. And the movies are really good - they actually have PLOTS and not just a bunch of stupid gore.
Of course, some of the clothes are horrifying (remember, this is the 60's and 70's) but it's entertaining.
This is the best time of year to watch the old horror movies - Boris Karloff, Vincent Price, Peter Lorre, Peter Cushing, Bela Lugosi, Lon Cheney - the "greats" of horror.
If you haven't seen any of The Masters in action, you really should. Lon Cheney Jr is suprisingly handsome and Karloff is oddly sympathetic at the same time as frightening in
Frankenstein.
I've also heard that this
newly released collection is to die for!
You could show an 8-hour a day marathon for a week and still not have seen them all. So go enjoy an oldie but a goodie today!
Speaking of oldies - my brother and I finally found my parents a car. Or we found a car to drive them around in. It's a big old Buick. The bro is doing the work and I am being the go-fer. So at least that is no longer hanging over my head and I can get home from work at a decent hour.
Of course the dogs like going out on the weekends driving around - they get a slim jim when we go for rides in the car. Did I mention they are spoiled? Well, for the record, they are.
And some MORON baked a whole batch of cupcakes over the weekend. How I'm supposed to share that house with 2 dozen cupcakes is beyond me. One of us won't make it until Halloween.
It's a good thing my MIF class has started up again. Tonight is the first class of the new session.
I think I'm going to test next month. I might as well - to see where I'm at with the new changes. All that can happen is I have to retest but at least I'll know where I stand.
The new record for consecutive loops is 6 now. Yay! I'm finally starting to comprehend the whole "push INTO the ice" concept. It's really amazing what "figures" can teach you. Before I was using simply muscle to jump and now with muscle AND technique - it's amazing.
I was trying to do just a single Salchow that turned into a near double from NO EFFORT of my own. It was just using the edge in the correct manner that sent me hurling thru space.
Now I'm on a mission to really dig into those edges. I've never liked edge jumps because I never understood them. Toe jumps I love. Just stick it in and lean back (heh, heh!) Easy to grasp (altho the "lean back" part is really kinda scary at first).
Also the whole notion of "torque" when you rotate has finally sunk in (after how long?) I was so excited I sort of over did it and pulled a muscle in my back. But that's ok. Now we know.
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The Rogue Goddess saw shadows dancing at 3:01 PM
Toby - the Fearsome Sea Dog in his costume. It was so appropriate.
He is so cute with his little crooked face and one eye. He's a little monster for peeing in my kitchen.
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The Rogue Goddess saw shadows dancing at 10:41 AM
The Princess Bat in her Elizabethan ruff and little crown.
She is spoiled and needy and talks to herself quite a bit if I don't pay enough attention to her.
You can see her "owning hands" in this shot.
I love her little kissy-face and kiss her on her flat face a lot. Especially when she puts the owning hands on me and makes me rub her bat belly.
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The Rogue Goddess saw shadows dancing at 10:36 AM
