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Ford. Not.
. . . I was not at all happy to meet this out walking with hellhounds today. Hellhounds–especially Chaos, who does not like getting his slender delicate little feet wet–were not happy either. Okay, none of us drowned.* I should be ashamed to keep complaining** after Maren posted yesterday that Gustav dumped ten inches of rain on them in–northwestern Louisiana, I think?–but let me just say in passing that we’re supposed to be getting the remains of Hanna over here ourselves. Not. Looking. Forward.
* * *
* But you remember my saying something yesterday about the Aga rail draped in wet All Stars? Listen, I’ve spent more money on Proper Hiking Boots than I want to remember. Now I wear All Stars. And squish a lot.
** My Scientific Rain Measuring Device is over three inches
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Oh dear… That’s a lot of brown water. :S
Was Hanna that big? We got some of her leftovers yesterday. (And it was really gorgeous today. :P)
I’m completely confused by all the wet storms around. That’s kind of what I thought, but apparently the UK meteorologists are being very threatening about it.
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Yes, we in Nova Scotia just had Hanna today, and she was more “mew” than “roar”. I don’t know how she would possibly maintain enough bluster to cross the North Atlantic. Maybe if she drags herself over to the highway (e.g. the Gulf Stream) she’ll pick up again a bit, but (and I’m no meteorologist, just obsessed with the Enviro. Canada weather site) I still think Hanna will be defunct long before she reaches your shores. Now, if her dying gasp were to blow some wet your way, maybe I shouldn’t be surprised, but you live in ENGLAND, what sort of weather patterns don’t bring you rain, eventually? :P
Yes well we’d like LESS rain. Blow it a little farther–Susan in Athens would like some.
I’m completely confused by all the wet storms around. That’s kind of what I thought, but apparently the UK meteorologists are being very threatening about it.
How odd. Well, raincoats and rubber boots to you. And really fast-drying towels.
“Yes well we’d like LESS rain. Blow it a little farther–Susan in Athens would like some.”
Yes please, pretty please. It was 36 today and is going to be the same tomorrow. I want to stop watering my plants every second day do-or-die.
Looks like you need a Water Spaniel. Or a Newfoundland.
Belle would play in it for you.
Gumboots would be appropriate for wading… but not for walking.
YES. People do walk in gumboots but I’m jiggered if I know how. I’d have blisters by the end of the first mile AND you can’t sprint properly.
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People do walk in gumboots but I’m jiggered if I know how.
Yeah. I can walk in them just going around but I find my back doesn’t like them overly much. But to actually *go for a walk*… no. Run/jog? ::shudders::
I don’t usually get the blister problem, I get the socks-pulled-down problem, which feels almost as gross as wearing socks to bed or putting socks on that are not shrunk from the wash (IMO).
I will add to this, however, by pointing out that rubber boots made specifically for sailing are WONDERFUL. So snug and they mold to your foot and support your arches and they aren’t like sticking your foot in a wooden clog with a rubber collar cemented to it (because they need to be able to grip slippery decks) and I just love’em! The only issue being, they cost 3x what ordinary boots cost and might therefore make you reticent to slosh through muddy fields with them.
Well, they may mould to YOUR foot. I’ve always felt that way about All Stars but there are lots of people who can’t wear All Stars because they don’t fit. I like lace-ups because they STAY WHERE YOU PUT THEM. :)
True – I loved my All Stars but I always had to shell out at least $20 for a good insert b/c they gave me no arch support – but sailing rubber boots are narrow, and I have serious, serious girl-hobbit feet, and if they stretch to fit me without pain, they must work quite well for the human-footed among us, right?
And an added note – I checked my CP Style guide (I was a journalism student in another life) and noticed that I neglected the “u” in “mould”! I’m a terrible Canadian. *sigh*
I think North Americans are allowed to eschew the ‘u’. :) So I get to be right/wrong whatever I do.
Parts of Birmingham were impassable by car, 4WD and bus yesterday lunchtime – and it just kept on pouring out of the sky. Sigh. At least two of my dogs are very unhappy with me for not stopping this lunacy – and I’m not even a hellgoddess ;p
You’re a Midlands Goddess. That’s just as scary. :)
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Thank you :) My dogs tend to agree, if no one else lol.
**You’re a Midlands Goddess
***Thank you :) My dogs tend to agree, if no one else lol.
No, no, I’ll second Robin’s vote. Anybody with that many animals and a young daughter who maintains equanimity and humour, is a goddess in my book!
**You’re a Midlands Goddess
After todays weather, I’m becoming more of a Marsh Goddess!
Sigh. Yes. Hellmarshgoddess, that’s me.
Sending you magic converses which repel all water and mud! I could do mini ones for Chaos teeny paws too?
Oooh! Yes PLEASE!!!
Dragons with roses rampant for you, and little mercurys with winged heels for Chaos :)
Okay, Darkness needs some too. :)
Does he want little “signature” fangs and black capes signifying hellhound status?
Sorry, what are we talking about here??? Sounds good . . . :)
****** (Me) – Sending you magic converses which repel all water and mud! I could do mini ones for Chaos teeny paws too?
****** (RMcK) – Okay, Darkness needs some too. :)
****** (Me) – Does he want little “signature” fangs and black capes signifying hellhound status?
‘Cause I’ve got them ready in his paw-size :)
Northeast Louisiana. :P And I’d noticed that Hanna was heading your way–have fun with that. I feel kind of bad to be hoping that Ike goes for Texas or something instead of us, but there ya go. Hurricane season doesn’t end until November, and many people in the southern part of the state are still without power. I’m thinking: They do this every couple of years? It’s exhausting just worrying about it, and I’m not a worrier generally.
I agree. From three and a half or 4000 miles away *I’m* exhausted worrying, although granted I’m kind of a heavy worrier. I’m also very . . . not house proud but house *addicted*. Destroying my house would go a long way to destroying me. I barely knew New Orleans and what Katrina did still makes me feel sick and off balance and The World Is All Wrong.
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I’m sorry its so damp!!! It does get to you after a while. When it gets damp and dreary here (Louisiana) I usually try to role with it. I try to find the silliest gothic thriller and bodice rippers I can at the library, make Welsh Rarebit and drink lots of tea. Gustav didn’t dump too much rain on us in Baton Rouge, but about half the oaks were ripped up and plunked down any old where. Mostly on electric lines. We were fortunate, all in all. Thank you for your kind thoughts and lit candles!! I’ll light one or twelve in the hopes of sunshine for you!!!
Thank you!
I usually try to role with it.
********* I realise this is a typo, but it’s a lovely typo in context! :)
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Given the description that follows the *I try to role with it* it seemed a clever, straightforward description to me. (Yes I do have an oddball sense of humor.)
Sorry about those typos. I’m quite stuffed up due to plaster dust and the associated worries that go along with your house being drenched in plaster dust. But it worked, so no worries.
I haven’t seen rain since… Well, since last weekend, but BEFORE that I hadn’t seen it since about April or May…
Re Finale: for me the hardest part of the learning curve was remembering to tell it EVERYTHING about a note — length, dots, sharps, flats etc. — before trying to place it on the staff. Easy if you’re doing a series of quarter notes, but syncopated rhythms can get a bit tiresome. Also, where you put it on the horizontal axis matters, since that controls the timing. I.E. a note on the third beat of a 4/4 measure has to go exactly half way between the two ends of the measure. That said, the learning curve is frustrating and my husband is still battling it.
As for wellies: in my youth as trench-wench on archaeological sites in Scotland we did a lot of walking in them. I found that I was comfortable if I wore two pairs of socks. The inner pair were normal schoolgirl type knee sock, if I remember correctly, nothing heavy or athletic. The outer ones were larger, loosely knitted boot socks that folded over the tops of the boots and kept the upper edges from ripping shreds out of your calves through our jeans and foul weather gear. We walked all day on our days off, sqelching up all sorts of hills. However, I will admit that I don’t think I ever sprinted in them. And the only foul weather gear that worked in the Orkneys was the stuff made by Helly Hansen for North Sea oil rig workers. It had welded seams and stated that it remained plyable in freezing weather. Totally useless when I came back to the States, because the condensation inside the stuff was even wetter than the rain on the outside.
I should tell you that I enjoy both your books and your blog…which is directly responsible for Sunshine and Dragonhaven sitting on my shelf. And the rosebush under my kitchen window is ALL YOUR FAULT!
THANK YOU VERY MUCH. :) (Say hi to the rose bush for me. :))
I ONCE had a pair of wellies that with two layers of socks as you say, I could walk in. But they wore out . . .a nd I’ve never found another.
I used to wear lobsterman’s gear in Maine. I’m afraid I can’t bring myself to wear neon yellow slickers over here. Craven coward that I am.
THANK YOU for moral support in saying Finale is difficult. The business with the notes that you mention is I think what is making me crazy at the moment. If you want to try and CHANGE something it goes mental. WHY does it do things that are CLEARLY IMPOSSIBLE in writing music?
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I found this video. It’s a time lapse video of a greyhound’s perfect day:
http://flickr.com/photos/drpenfield/2704545796/in/pool-750028@N22
LOL! I hope one of those moments she disappears she’s let out for a PEE. :)
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I’m thinking she, the greyhound, actually went for a pee one of the times she disappeared because you can see her licking herself ‘down there’ afterwards. My dog always gives herself a good cleaning after a bathroom break. That’s a beautiful video, very funny, completely reminds me of my dog. Thank you for posting that Heather.