I should have worn heels -- life at 5'3"

I had a big “Here’s Your Sign” moment this morning as I was plugging the parking meter.  We have the fancy electronic parking meters here in Portland that take plastic and coin, but not bills. (Not sure why paper money is discriminated against.) I usually use my card, because I rarely carry change, the change I do carry I usually save for my afternoon M&Ms.  But either the meter or the bank is really slow, because it often takes a minute or two to get authorization.  Meanwhile, I stand there in the rain and let my mind wander.

This particular morning, I notice that there was no Braille on the meter.  Well, that seems discriminating, too! I mean, how is a blind person supposed to know how much he or she is being charged? Or how much time to purchase? Or even what the hours of operation are?  It wasn’t until the bank authorized my parking purchase a millennium later that it dawned on me… if blind people are parking, we have bigger problems than parking meter discrimination.

Here’s my sign. *facepalm*

How does one keep themselves awake on the drive into work after not enough sleep the night before?  This time, I can't blame the twins for my lack of sleep.  I went out for babyfree fun with friends last night... yes, on a school night. I'm paying the price for it now, but had I to do it over again - I would.  So as the lanes blurred together in the pre-dawn darkness, my mind wandered to topics that would stimulate my brain.

Now, anyone who knows me knows that I have a bit of a potty mouth.  I'm pretty good about censoring myself in situations where swearing is frowned upon - workplace, in front of other people's kids, etc.  But it creates a build up of curse words that then need to be exorcised from my being.  With this in mind, I reflected back to my favorite comedian George Carlin's Seven Dirty Words.  And with the help of kenscholes, whom I had called to talk me into town, I began the litany in my head of the Seven Dirty Words You Can't Say on TV. 

Historically, George Carlin and my driving have been a dangerous combination.  (He almost killed Ken and I on our honeymoon when we had one of his CDs playing in the car as I drove the winding cliff roads through the redwood forest.) But in this case, he kept my brain awake enough to arrive at work (and an endless supply of coffee) safely.  Thanks, George.  Miss you.

www.youtube.com/watch

kenscholes just introduced me to the 1980's Buck Rogers in the 25th Century.  I find that I really like it...which is rare that I actually like one of Ken's nostalgic TV choices.  (Other nostalic TV fails: UFO, Land of the Lost to name a couple.  Sorry, just not a part of my generation.)  I find that Buck Rogers though has a timeless story that captured me right away.  And I really like that the colonel is a woman.  In the pilot episode, she's a tough broad all business with her hair pulled back and taking no guff from the 1980s era Buck Rogers.  She kind of reminds me of Capt. Janeway. 

But then in the next episode, suddenly Colonel Wilma Deering goes all Farrah Fawcett with big hair, shiny lip gloss (okay, there was lip gloss in the pilot episode too) and non-stop googly eyes at Buck Rogers.  She very obviously has fallen for the "barbarian" even in the pilot episode.  *eyeroll* Still, she's a strong female character, so I guess I can forgive the softening, even if I really prefer the hard as nails attitude. 

But here is my question that hopefully my friends who have experienced a broader range of TV themes over the the decades (my nice way of saying old friends)  :) can answer.  The love interest between the male and female stars of shows is a time honored plot device.  But in the 90s and new millenium, the trend seems to be that these characters play hard to get to the point of even denied any attraction whatsoever for their co-stars,  I'm thinking of Scully & Moulder, Lois & Clark, Bones & Booth, Castle & Det. Beckett - the list goes on.  And one of the common threads with these reluctant couples is that the suspense of whether or not they will get together kept the fans watching, but as soon as they did (or do) get together, we invariably lose interest,
 
Now in Buck Rogers, the main characters make clear from the start their attraction for each other.  I don't know yet when they actually get together, as I've only watched two episodes.  But I'm wondering if in prior decades there was less playing hard to get (or oblivious to attraction) between the characters.  And if so, does that reflect the culture of the time?  Were TV watchers' expectations just different? Am I completely off base?

What do you think?

Okay, Republicans, now that you've had your ego stroked in a lot of states last night, maybe you can stop being all butt-hurt about the 2008 election. We have to work together if we are going to accomplish anything.  We can’t be at loggerheads. The issue I want you to consider before you pull closed the purse strings is how are we going to still pay for needed social programs, teachers, police, fire fighters, infrastructure, aid to veterans, aid to the impoverished, etc without taxes to draw from?  The state budgets are already skeletal. If we don't pay taxes, governments won't be able employ public workers. That won't help unemployment either. You say we can't afford to end the Bush tax cuts.  I say we can't afford not to.

The Wildwood Trail is fairly easy to follow, though there were a few times I had to ask other hikers if I was on the right path.  So many other trails crisscross this loop, it would be easy to find yourself wandering off in the wrong direction.  After a few miles, I saw the first glimpses of Pittock Mansion above me at the top of the hill.  ( Collapse )

All in all, a fabulous hike.

I'm not someone who craves solitude.  Quite the opposite in fact.  (This is probably a good thing since I don't know many moms who even have the option of solitude.) I'm not really sure why I avoid being alone with myself, especially when most of the time, I'm pleasantly surprised by the experience.  On Sunday, I had planned to do a 7-mile hike with a new hiking friend.  Alas, she fell ill the night before our hike and had to cancel.  And since it's not an easy feat to get a hiker for that length of hike at 9:00 in the morning on a Sunday with only a few hour's notice, I decided I would suck it up and do the hike by myself. 

This decision was not made without some trepidation.  After all, a lone, female hiker on isolated trails in the woods sounds like the setting for a cheesy horror flick.  Then again, the Wildwood Trail from Washington Park to Pittock Mansion is well traveled by other hikers and joggers.  Plus, I would have cell signal the entire trip.  All in all, I figured it was pretty safe.

I parked my car by the World Forestry Center and started my hike at the Vietnam Memorial. ( Collapse )

In the next chapter: Pittock Mansion, the Oregon Regency Society and animal hijinx...

Testing to see if my LJ will cross-post now.

Testing to see if my LJ will still cross-post to FB.  Fingers crossed.

J.A. Pitts, aka John Pitts, aka bravado111 , will be appearing at Powell's Cedar Hills Crossing in Beaverton, OR this Thursday, May 6th at 7:00 p.m. If you are going to be in the Portland area on Thursday, you should come by and hear him read from Black Blade Blues. A bunch of us are getting together for dinner beforehand at the McMenamins near Powells. If you're interested in joining us for dinner, drop me an email or FB message or text so I can let the folks at McMenamins know how many people to prepare for. Hope to see you there!

A shout out to my friend John Pitts, a.k.a. J.A. Pitts, a.k.a. Bravado111. His first novel, Black Blade Blues, released from Tor yesterday. My interview with him just posted to Tor.com. This is my first interview for Tor.com - hopefully the first of many. Go check it out!