In memoriam and a visitor

By this time four years ago, I had just gotten the news of my father's sudden passing. I'll never forget staring westward at the full moon from the second floor of my house that night, knowing that life would never be the same again. That event was the first in a series of many that would follow, one of the most difficult periods of my life to date. My dad knew how to do just about everything, and there was little that he wouldn't try if it would help someone. He got along with everyone, and he was full of kindness and patience. I'm proud that he was my dad, and I'll never forget him or all that he did for me when I was growing up.

Are you the lady from Texas?
A few weeks ago I was washing a bunch of cilantro to feed to my house rabbits. When I plunged the herb underwater to wash it, a tiny red bauble popped to the surface. A lady bug! And all the way from Texas, according to the twistie-tied label I had removed. I fished her out. She had already traveled a long way and lived in my fridge for several days before turning up in the water, so I wondered how she'd fare (a lady bug I found under similar circumstances last August didn't survive the night). She was crawling vigorously around my kitchen table, and when I didn't find her the next day, I hoped it was because she had flown off in search of a safe and cozy resting place.

I didn't think much more about it until last week when she turned up in my bathroom, sitting motionless on the edge of the tub. I was up there for a shower, so I figured I'd check on her after I finished. Well, I didn't see her, and I feared I had knocked down the drain. If only I had moved her! I felt really sad about that since she had already survived so long. But what could I do at that point? She was nowhere to be found. Then, a few days ago, she turned up again--incredible! I was showering, and suddenly there she was crawling down the edge of this little window in my shower (yeah, I have a window in my shower).

She's been there every day since, coming out during my shower for a drink. I don't remember when I found her, so I've lost track of how long she's been there. But I started worrying about what she was eating. I know that lady bugs move inside houses and "hibernate" during the winter, but she had come from Texas, so this cold weather had to be a shock, and who knew when she'd had her last succulent aphid. So not knowing what else to do right then, I put out a little dollop of wet bread. And she ate it! That was yesterday.

The weather has turned quite cold again--highs in the 20s, lows in the single digits. When I checked on her this morning before work, she was out in the open, and so still! I was worried that perhaps I had given her the lady bug equivalent of antifreeze. But she was alive and peppy during my shower again tonight, and she seemed to like that there was more wet bread. But I knew I had to find out what she should really be eating. A quick Google search later, I have my answer.

So tomorrow that little lady bug will dine in splendid fashion on a moistened organic raisin. And maybe I'll put her in a little terrarium, because although the humidity in the shower is what she needs, it's gotta be drafty up there at night. Here's hoping I'll be able to find her tomorrow so I can get her set up. Hmm. She could be a boy. Either way, I've also learned that she's Harmonia axyridis, a.k.a. multicolored Asian lady beetle.

Now I'm even more anxious for spring so I can send her on her way. Lady beetles can live up to 3 years under the right conditions! Despite the cold weather, I bet she's glad to be out of Texas...

Collections of stuff

So when I decided to take a new job in mid-December, I built in a nice two-week respite for myself. I really needed time after the holiday to come back, tear down the home office, and reorganize. I went through so much stuff. And I'm still going through it. With the closing date for our house likely to be set any day now, I need to start thinking about packing for the move. For a while, I was moving every year: 2005 was the first year since 2002 that I hadn't moved at least to a new local apartment. I anticipate this move being my last for a very long time if things go according to plan.

Cleaning out old papers and things is a bizarre experience, sort of like looking at old snapshots of yourself as a baby. The only difference is that you recognize everything when you're cleaning-- as in why the %&*# have I been keeping this for all these years?! Packing this time will basically be round 2 of the cleanout I did between jobs, which was pretty significant in my opinion: lots of recycling, lots of Freecycling, and lots of sentimentality tossed in the trash. Simply put, I had become a pack rat. And I still can't root out the sentimentality completely. Some stuff I just can't part with, even though it has no value and is essentially just something I'll keep carting around in a box until I'm finally able to say goodbye. And that day may never come.

Conversely, the owner's manual to that toaster oven that died more than five years ago is definitely history, as are informational sheets from Verizon for a phone number that was assigned to me but was never hooked up (three moves ago!!). Why do I keep this stuff? I've discovered that I no longer want to live this way. From now on, everything that comes through the door will be looked at with a discriminating eye. If it looks useful enough to save, then I'll save it if I have a place for it. Otherwise, it goes to Freecycle, the recycling bin, or the trash, in that order. Some poor person will have to clear all of this stuff out someday, and I'd prefer not to have them standing there marveling over the uselessness of my personal effects. What will they say about that bizarre group of half a dozen boxes from the last move whose tape has remained intact and undisturbed for nearly two years? The same thing I'm saying now: Why did she keep moving with this stuff that she never used?

Running
It's been almost a year since my accident on the ice last February. I'm running about 3.5 miles on the treadmill every other day, and things seem pretty much okay. My knee definitely feels different, but I'm hopeful that these (and more) easy miles are building up rather than tearing down. I can't emphasize enough now good it feels to be running any mileage at all. When something important is restored to your life, you really get to appreciate it all over again. And boy, am I ever.

Something new

So I'm starting a blog. No idea how I'll keep up with this and my paper journal as well. Changes are that I won't, but I'm going to try. My paper journal is languishing. I've been swamped with freelance editing, and there's no end in sight, leaving little time for my creative endeavors and the other stuff I want to do. But there's the closing on the house coming up, and I really need to scrape together my share for that, and I'm really excited about it, so I don' t mind putting things on hold just a little while longer. I've been contemplating what, if anything, to do with my paper journal. Maybe read the old ones and throw them out? Something to decide later, I guess.

February in the Finger Lakes
The weather has not been bad at all this winter, er, so far this winter. It's far from over, but January was so mild, I had the beginnings of a burning spring fever. Some nice snow blew in to cool that fire, though, and now we're back to the usual cold and daily flurries. Just enough to remind you that winter is never a kind season in upstate New York, at least not for the sun lovers like me. Give me temps in the eighties for weeks on end, and I'll feel like a million bucks. There's beautiful things here, though, and the politics are to my liking, so I see no reason to go elsewhere. Oh yeah, and my job's here, and I just bought a house. :-P More on that soon when I know when the closing will take place.

I have to say: this is kind of fun! So long for now.