So, I don't really have a topic so I thought "what if I found some random picture on the web and that could be my inspiration?" So I typed the word random into the Google box and this is the first thing I got:

This is a graph of successive powers of 3/2 in base 6. The leading digits in the fractional parts of these numbers form a sequence that seems random. The process of multiplication by 3/2 in base 6 corresponds to a k=6, r=1, cellular automaton rule.

This is from an article written by Stephen Wolfram, who own the company that produces Mathematica, among other things. They are based in my town. Isn't it funny that I try to get a picture "at random" and I end up within a few miles of my house? Like when Dorothy goes looking for her heart's desire and ends up finding it in her own backing yard.

Now the update - nothing much going in. Sandbox has the flu, the DH is recovering slowly but surely, I am swamped at work, the girls are doing the drama thing, the snow melts then more falls from the sky. I've read some good books lately. And I bought a pretty pink stapler.

Snow Day

Things I did today:
~ slept in (sort of) since I was up throughout the night with crisis calls
~ shoveled the porch and sidewalk
~ went to the DMV to renew license plate sticker and get the DH's handicapped parking placard
~ went to the Social Security office so Rake could get a copy of her SS card
~ went to the pharmacy to get more pain pills for the DH, bought birthday cards and a Sudoku book for him too since it's his birthday today (lame presents I know)
~ bought him a chicken strip basket from DQ (also lame)
~ fielded work calls
~ edited a paper
~ checked the net to see if Goo is blogging from her igloo (nope)
~ watched a bit of Project Runway
~ went out to rent a game but they didn't have what Sandbox wanted
~ this

Now it's time to shovel the sidewalk again and check the weather to see if tomorrow's a snow day too.

(my comments from the last post got too long so I pasted it here)
Yeah, yeah, I know. I just need to whine a bit myself.

There's a woman at church who fell a couple of weeks ago and broke her ankle. She did it on campus, not in her front yard. And she lives alone - no kids or partner that I know of. So that's got to be a big drag.

We called the patient advisory nurse last night because the pain was so bad and the wrappings felt too tight. She told us to unwrap and even cut the cotton if necessary. He felt so much relief (relatively speaking that is) after we loosened the wrappings that we didn't cut the other stuff. I'm glad too because I did not want to see what was under there. He also upped one of the meds to help knock him out. To hell with blurred vision! Let him sleep!

Thanks for the good wishes/prayers. Oh yeah, I didn't pay much attention to the weather on Tuesday. I got up at 4:30 to take Rake to the polling place since she was working as an election judge (even though she couldn't vote yet). Then I was up and down all day, so I fell asleep a couple of times in my chair. I think it was grey and overcast.

home again, home again

ain't nobody doing a jig.

The DH is home and feeling the pain. Now that the nerve block has worn off, he is miserable. He is having some vision problems - one of the meds lists this as a common symptom, and one lists it as "rare but serious" and suggests you call your doctor right away. So, we have a call in to the doc.

I'm going to take him on a crutch-walk around the house to help ward off blood clots. That will not be fun. Somehow, he is crankier with me than the hospital staff. Go figure.

Ah well, it's good to have him home. I'm grateful for your positive energy. And, thanks for nothing Punxatawney Phil.

Did you hear the one about the guy who slipped on the ice?

Well. My family seems to be blogging again and, since I posted comments on almost every one, I feel like I've done my duty. But wait -I haven't posted on shovel and plug yet, or posted about my holidays. So here goes...

First, I didn't take any pictures over the Christmas break. I do a lot of things, documenting my life through photos is not one of them. That is not my gift. I might say (or more often think) "Oh I wish I had a camera, that would make a great picture!" But that's a lie. Because even if I had a camera, I wouldn't remember to get it out, have the patience to wait for it to power up, probably wouldn't have a decent battery in it, and any end product would never look like the photo I had envisioned.

Second, I still have a couple of gifts that I haven't mailed out yet. Prompt mailing is also not one of my gifts. I ordered Goo's back in early November feeling pret-ty proud of myself for being on top of things. But it is still in my office waiting to be mailed. I also have Christmas cards from last year (2008!) all signed and addressed, sitting around somewhere next to my bed.

Third, although several humorous events took place over the holidays, I just can't seem to conjure up much in the way of funny or touching stories today. So here's a brief list of anecdotes I COULD have blogged about. Use your imagination. If you have to know, then leave me a comment or ask one of my family members - they were there. I was never alone.)

Heading: Amtrak heading south

Entries: Bop-It!; vomit girl; the cranky conductor; "Marshall, Texas"; Kimmie, the girl who won't sit down; rummy

Heading: Texas, 1st leg

Entries: the in-laws; rental cars; assisted living; memories (or lack thereof); Polio's tattoo; Over the Rainbow; putt-putt golf; work drama back home; the weather! the food! the thrift stores!

Heading: Louisiana

Entries: allergies; the photos; the gifts; the uncomfortable bed (see LIT's blog); casinos are not for me; science museum; the plumbing (see LIT's blog)

Heading: Texas, 2nd leg

Entries: the weather; the Dagromms; this is why you're fat; not enough time;

good eats

Heading: Amtrak heading north

Entries: yay - electrical outlets!; forgot the food; The Office; the same cranky conductor

Heading: Home

Entries: the weather; shopping; at least we cleaned up; the cat's neurotic again; Christmas morning on New Year's Day (subtitle: waiting for Polio); the gifts; back to work; I hate unpacking; I joined a book club

There you have it - I think you can visualize the trip. Not enough time at certain stops but overall the vacation seemed rather too long. Not sure how that works, not enough time to think about it.

Work is extemely busy as we figure out how to stay in business when the state won't pay its bills. Life is surprisingly good there however. I'm not gonna elaborate in the blogs - I gave out this address years ago and I don't know who still reads it. It's easier to endure the financial and administrative stress when you like the people you work with.

Ok, I'm back in the game!

Old Flame

I recently got back in touch with an old flame. I had looked for him off & on over the last few years. Unless you're searching for someone with a name like Engelbert Humperdink, it can be very difficult to locate someone with whom you've lost touch. Since I would never date someone named Engelbert (much less Humperdink), I had some trouble. Also, I didn't know if he had moved away from the area in which we grew up, but that's where I concentrated my search.

Each time I renewed my search, I found several people with the same name. That's not really a help. But this time, I found a link to Facebook and voila! That was better, because then I could verify (through Facebook photo) that I had the right guy.

Now, I'm not on "the Facebook" as I like to call it when I'm feeling like a fogey. In general, I like to keep my web-print small and light. And I didn't join the Facebook just to contact Old Flame either. But, I was led to Linked In and I did join it; it appears to be a more business networking site. (I haven't included much in my profile however. I guess I'm not sure the phrenology community is into this kind of thing.) Whatever - it got me an email address so I took the plunge. I wrote to O.F. and got a lovely reply very quickly. He sent me a picture of himself + sibs + wife which was cool. Also, Rake asked me if this is the one she told me looked like a hillbilly. (It's not.) I told her no, this is the preppy one, though I'm not sure preppy has the same meaning as it did in the 80's. (OK, I don't think they even say "preppy" anymore.)

Now the anxiety of reciprocating . . .

I'd like to send a shot of the kids (they're usually photogenic) with me hiding in the background. So, I'm off to look in the files I can access to see if I can find some decent pics.

Whadda you think? Have you reconnected with someone via the interweb?