The Girl Can't Help It

Sorry about the dearth of blogging entries lately. We are experiencing brain drain.

My coworkers are joining me in my story. After weeks and weeks of picking on me about being a fangirl, someone finally went to the site and read the blog. Now my work pals are characters in Dragon Lady: Josephine's Journal. It takes a few informal meetings, and lots of rewrites and that is using up my time and brains.

But the bottom line is: I am not a game geek. Or if I am, I am no worse than anyone around me. It is normal for geeks to gather at a night job. The advertising department is a draw for artists and comic collectors.

I am neither. Or rather, I wasn't, when I came to the paper. Now I do collect comics, but rather specialized ones. The Fables series and the League of Extraordinary Gentlemen (yes, one book was made into a movie starring Sean Connery), to name a couple.

As for Fables, you can learn about them here.

My childhood was rather bereft of such things, and I am making up for it now.

My story is fanfiction, that is to say, a it is based on some else's publication. In this case, a video game by SquareEnix.

A person who is willing to spend hundreds of hours playing (and toying with) a video game could eventually write her own version of some events, or even a spinoff. I would also point out that Arthur Conan Doyle’s Sherlock Holmes work spawned many imitators, some of which are quite good. Nicholas Meyer's Seven Percent Solution is one example.

I am enjoying myself immensely. Much of it seems to write itself, and the characters sometimes take off without me. Especially given the parameters supplied by my coworkers.

Once I get past the hump of these chapters, all set in the same fictional town of Nibelheim, then I will slacken the pace and return to blogging.

So go outside and enjoy the Springtime weather. Grab an umbrella, or put on a raincoat, if you are in the Northeast. You are not made of sugar, and you won't melt.

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Little Pond

Seen that before. Right?

Wrong. Snowdrops on the levee, March 24, 2007. I cropped Ellie's butt out of the shot. Same as last year. We visited the Chemung, same as last year.

But the feeling is new every year. The snowdrops look new, every year. Their delicate beauty is striking, each and every time.

Y sigh Y

I'm such a sucker for Spring.

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Little Pond

Noon: Reuben Wrap and Frosted Mug of Beer

Green napkin in my lap and Ellie at my feet. The Reuben wrap is unexpectedly a hit with her, and we are sharing it while I blog. St. Paddy's day special.

City is pretty, and I've been out three times in the Tracker. 4WD is a must on our side roads. Took the HuggaMutt to walk atop the levee. Nothing else is plowed down near the River. Poor little thing has to push the snow as she goes. Tires her out. Me, too, but it was good exercise. Husband RJ has already done the walks and is off to Southport to visit the inlaws.

We dropped the leash on the way back to the Tracker, so out again to retrieve it, stopping for beer at the convenience store. Finally, out to pick up the wrap. We are in for good.

Sorry, no photos. Whiteout conditions with drifting and blowing.

Happy St. Patrick's Day!

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Little Pond

Aha! Spring is springing...

Sorry, I didn't check to see the species. Except for Canis domesticus, scientific name HuggaMutt cuddlebum. No denying it now. Spring is in the air. The ice dams are breaking up, and the silly gulls ride them downriver, craning their necks to watch us as they pass.

Just what are these things? Size-wise, they are about six feet tall, and about the width of a garage. They are massive, to prevent them being swept away during the plain's frequent flooding. I'm guessing they are some sort of valve. By the way, the valve, or fireplug, or fire hydrant to the right is manufactured by Kennedy Valve, right here in Elmira, NY, USA. Actually McWane International. If you check the valves in your town, they might just say, Elmira, NY on them, too.

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Little Pond

Just about two weeks ago.

Ellie was playing on a hard crust of frozen snow. It was so deep that, when she got caught in a depression left by my footprints, she couldn't climb out. I wound up carrying her to a place where she didn't sink in. The stuff was frozen crust under a drifting powder cover. It was slow-going, and we were exhausted after our run.

Anybody got an ID on this thing?

I have no idea what plant this is. An interesting seed-bearing organ. Just love this sort of thing.

Another quiz: What's wrong with Ellie?

If you said, "Nothing," you are correct.

She's nakey! For the first time in months. It is now warm enough to run around in just a halter or collar.

We are both grateful.

No guarantees, though. This is March in Upstate New York.

Here's an interesting followup to my photos regarding the ice dam. Never mind my old photos, this is a video that really expands on the whole mess.

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Little Pond

Think Spring with Criminal Grace

Feels a tad early for this around here, but Five on Friday wants us to Think Spring:

1. We don't celebrate the arrival of Spring in Elmira. Just its very occurrence is a celebration in itself. And around here Spring is a very long, on again, off again, process.

2. No other holiday says Spring as much as Easter. Even when it snows during the Mass. Just think of all the wasted "Easter" dresses that never get worn!

3. While I wouldn't call it interesting, Spring means cleaning the house, putting up the proper wreaths and decorations, and beginning to stow the winter coats.

4. There is a certain green, chartreuse maybe, that I see in the tender shoots and the earliest leafing of the trees. Since I think of summer being dark green and gold, that bright, yellowish green would be spring, at least here in the Northeast.

5. Can't wait to open the windows again. Our porch is getting a good cleaning and the awnings will be repaired. This year, MammaDog and PoppaDog will move a little closer, into a place of their very own. We'll let them set the pace and be the center of attention this year.

(BTW, those are snowdrops from last year, right around the same time. Don't expect any this year, but hope Springs eternal in the human breast.)

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Little Pond

Cranky Chemung Winter Blues

This picture was posted with a caption indicating that it was too dangerous to cross the river on foot. Well now it is just too dangerous to live near the river at all. Take a huge pile of these little babies and stuff them nice and tight together and you have an ice dam. Right where we don't need one, and big enough to flood nearby homes.

Just a little upriver from the site of this photo is a huge ice dam threatening the Town of Elmira. Where the levees inconveniently come to an end. Money ran out, and so did the Army Corps of Engineers project.

Let's hope the predicted cold snap eases the situation. That, combined with careful management of water releases up at the Hammond Tioga Dam, may prevent a disaster. But the Town and the County are scrambling to prepare for possible disaster.

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Little Pond

Expanding Little Pond

Got an email from our local historic district. I got really excited this week:

If you visited Walk Elmira Downtown, you can scroll down the Historic District' site and take note of one of the photos: the Community Bookstore is a frequently-visited corner of Little Pond. They never had a website before. I hope the owner gets around to posting photos of the regulars, including the pets.

Around the middle of the District's site is Barb's Soups On. While I haven't blogged it before, it is relevant because the VeggiGirl works there. If you ever get the chance, the roll-ups are heavenly. Never had a bad one there, and not just because my youngest often makes them.

Good job on the site, Sam!

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Little Pond

Grand Finale BHM

Been watching the local paper for some good Black History Month stuff. Terribly disappointed. The best was a great full page quiz, but it turned out to be from an advertiser. Not available to link.

Today looked promising. A wonderful link to Info Please.

Until I scanned the entire site and never found my personal hero and saint at all.

No matter. Let's go to the common blogger's OED.

Ah, yes. Wikipedia's got the goods.

And if you type John W. Jones, Elmira, New York into Google, you get a whole day's tribute to him.

Happy Black History Month.

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Little Pond

Update to Mid-Winter Troubles

Last night the only difference from Friday was umbrellas. The random dripping has been staunched, but the tarps, garbage bags, and buckets remain in place.

As does the scratchy throat and skin that only arises at the workplace.

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Little Pond

Midwinter Troubles

Legend in Our Own Time? Or future recipient of a Darwin Award?

Actually, by definition we wouldn't qualify. Neither of us could reproduce, anyway. Both for the same reason. That's right, we were "fixed" ages ago.

Okay, so that's stretching it a bit. We were not in any real danger, except possibly from severe scolding and ragging. But Ellie and I got ready to walk along the Chemung River this morning.

Ready to go Riverdogging in February

No, we didn't wear the MuttLuks.

She hate, hate, hates them!

But we did go to the Grove Street Fishing Access this morning. Just as soon as I crested the levee, I knew we were going to experience some difficulties.

Here are the first signs of trouble ahead. Yep, that's ice.

We still had a lovely walk. No sense losing the solitude. No one was around the entire time. Good reason: the entire area is inaccessible because of the ice.

It was beyoootiful. Crunchy crust of snow made it hard for me to walk, but Ellie scooted easily over the stuff.

The Water Board plowed the road to the strange rock-and-chicken-wire structures on Foster Island. I walked the road and let her tire herself on the snow cover.

Then we walked the levee back to the Tracker. And found the ice was spinning our tires. We threw it into Four Wheel High and did some strategic tracking and back tracking. It took a good deal of time and a lot of whining from Ellie. (Cursing from me...) After about six or seven trips up the levee, we were able to crest and head home.

She's napping now, with her head on the windowsill.

This is all just extra. I'm really blogging my work experiences from last night. Keep scrolling down. And welcome to winter in Elmira, New York.

Of Course I'm Going to Blog This.

The Elmira Star Gazette is a card-carrying member of the Flat Root Society. Every year we get to guess where the ceiling will leak next. We should run a gambling pool on the next one.

Right smack in our department this year. The highlights included buckets strewn across the floor and desktops to catch the drips, and plastic garbage bags and dirty tarps to cover our workstations.