To Be, or Knot to Be...

Yesterday, Chris asked me if he could claim some of my time after he got back home from teaching guitar. When I asked why, he said he wanted to spend some time going through the knots that a sailor needs to be able to tie. So, I said, "why knot?" (bwahahaha!).

I did pretty well, if I do say so myself. Here are four of the knots I learned to tie:

Clove Hitch

Figure 8 Knot

Bowline

Square Knot

I'd like to point out that Chris did knot help me with the above knots. Those are all pictures of knots I tied myself. It's knot something I ever would have thought to spend an evening doing, but, I did certainly enjoy learning a few new things. Plus, if I'm going to be a helpful sailor (and knot one who just sits there doing nothing), then I need to be able to do some things without help!

Once I had reached my limit on time spent tying knots, I grabbed my camera and started playing with it. So, while I took pictures of Coltrane:

The poor bun's eye is still all goopy and drippy. I've been giving him antibiotics twice a day, but it still doesn't seem to be getting better. Frowny face.

Chris spent time trying to teach himself how to tie a Monkey's Fist:

Try knot to be jealous of our knot-tying skills, mmmmmmk?

Maiden Voyage (Fo' Rizzle!)

Who's crazy enough to go sailing the day after a hurricane? These kids, that's who!

Annabel Lee, meet I-Van the Terrible (That's Chris's van's name)

The boat from the car.

Got the mast up!

And then the boom.

Then the sails (yes, this is a lot of work)

And we're off!

It was quite windy at first... at one point, one side of the boat was IN the water from us leaning so far over. I may have panicked a bit...

Main sail



Sailors



We found this new cheap light beer: Port Republic. Its motto is "Sail Close to the Wind."

A small island we anchored behind.



Chris's rudder assembly worked great!



Yaaar!



Captain

Everything worked great- Pretty awesome. Hopefully we'll get to go on a day that isn't quite as windy, so I feel comfortable enough to take the tiller and learn a little. For now, I've got the jib (the baby sail in front of the mast) down.

How were your hurricane weekends?

Day 9 of Living Alone

Chris came back last night a little after midnight (he cut his vacation a little short because of Irene... he didn't want to be driving down 95 or out on Lon Gisland when she came through). So, yesterday was my last day alone! I went to work, had a good day there, then went to the grocery store to pick up some last minute hurricane supplies. People were going a bit nuts. I just got water, ice (in case the power goes out for more than a couple hours; we don't want to throw away any food), and batteries. Then, I got some Thai food, came home, ate dinner, chased the bunny around trying to get him to take his medicine (broke into a sweat doing that), watched Ally McBeal for a bit, then read my book for a while. I was very happy when Chris walked in the door.

It's certainly different living alone than having your roommate be gone for a while. When I lived in my own apartment, I still had Chris in and out on, well, most days. With him far away, it was just me in this big (well, not that big) house. When I lived alone, the apartment was the perfect size for Coltrane and I. Being alone in this house is much different. Anyways, I enjoyed my alone time immensely, but, I'm very happy to have my man back in one piece.

Today, Chris and I moved the boat into the backyard, moved our cars away from the very precarious trees in the front yard, and, to quote the news, "hunkered down." I kicked his ass at Rummy, we watched a movie, and now Chris is making quesadillas for us. I could get used to his hurricane thing, I think.

I hope everyone is safe and enjoying themselves!

Day 8 of Living Alone

Felt another aftershock last night at some point. It woke me up! This whole earthquake thing is pretty crazy. Throw in that crazy bitch Irene, and we got ourselves quite a weekend coming up.

- Got up, wrangled the bunny into his carrier. Drove the poor, little guy to the vet to have his eye checked out (AGAIN!). It's been weeks, and his eye is still dripping goop and tears. The vet flushed his tear duct (again) and took a culture from his eye (which is now on its way to a lab somewhere). I have now spent a grand total of $450 on my bunny's eye. Sweet.

- Got a latte, went to work, picked up the bun on lunch and dropped him off at home.

- Had a headache of an afternoon. Sometimes the grease biz is too much for me!

- Went to the grocery store. Got some supplies for when Irene comes.

- Did about half of a workout (I felt like my hamstrings were on the verge of cramping or pulling, so I stopped. Seemed like my body was trying to tell me something).

- So, to compensate for missing half of a workout, I cleaned. I cleaned the bunny's pen, I cleaned the kitchen, I cleaned our shower, and I did laundry.

- I then cooked dinner: Chicken breast and a giant salad of mixed greens, tomatoes, avocado, and goat cheese. And a beer. Yum.

- Talked to Chris on the phone. He may be coming home a day early because of Irene. Come on, Irene!

- Currently: chillaxin' because I feel like I deserve it.

Goodnight everyone! Have a wonderful Friday!

Day 7 of Living Alone

Ok, so this is a day late ( so shoot me!).

- Got up, showered, fed the bunny, went to work. You know, all my morning stuff that I cram into about half of the time that it should take to do all those things.

- Work. Not too much to report except that things were busy.

- Took my car to get it inspected. I was excited when I got to the auto place because there were so few cars there. But, it still took and hour-and-a-half. Good thing I brought my book, although, the TV in the waiting room was SO EFFIN' LOUD that I could barely hear myself think. And there was only one other person in there, but he was watching. So, I suffered silently. The guy came in to tell me that my car had passed just fine (it better have- it's only two years old!). He then told me that I should think about getting my alignment looked at sometime in the near future (he said my tires were just starting to wear unevenly). And I was like, "ok thanks, but not today" (aka, "You're full of shit."). I then started to follow him out of the room and he was like, "oh, I'm not ready for you yet, I have to go put everything together." And I'm sitting there thinking (well, trying to over the VERY LOUD SOUND OF NEWS ANCHORS BEING VERY IMPORTANT PEOPLE) that he better have meant the paperwork and not my car. And then I started to have this sneaking suspicion that the guy messed with my alignment so that I'd HAVE to take my car in sometime soon and pay them many dollars to adjust it. Oy.

- Ate half of an energy bar on my way home, then worked out, showered, and made dinner. When I say "made," I mean scrambled some eggs, grabbed an apple, and toasted a piece of bread on which I put hummus and turkey.

- Plopped down on the couch to read through Lesson 3 of my Project Management Fundamentals online course.

- Talked to Chris (ok, I'm to the point where I'm fully admitting that I miss him) on the phone, watched a little Ally McBeal, and then went to bed and passed out.

- Woke up to an aftershock from the earthquake at some point in the night.

Day 6 of Living Alone

- Slept for as long as humanly possible (hit snooze like 5 times this morning) before getting up. Got dressed (in the light again!), fed the bunny, grabbed a Nanner (that's a banana), hit the road for work.

- Heard the Adele song "Someone Like You" on the radio and burst into tears because I miss Chris so much. I talked to him for awhile yesterday (our anniversary) and had gone through old pictures of us (see Day 5), and was feeling like, well, that I missed him!

- Got to work. Chris had written me a romantic email, which started my day off wonderfully. Then, I busted my ass all morning. I got to go to lunch with some work people, which was great.

- Then, a f***ing Earthquake rocked the East Coast; the epicenter was not an hour from where I live. The whole building started shaking (at first, the rumbling made me think something in the HVAC system was failing or that a train was passing nearby or something), but then it got stronger and my computer monitor started doing a bobble-head type thing. I just sort of sat there, and saw that co-workers were sprinting for the stairs. I was sort of frozen at first, but then I got up and followed them down to the sidewalk. And then it was over.

- Worked hard some more.

- I was going to go get my car inspected, but I was so worried about my little bunny Coltrane at home (alone during the earthquake) that I decided to go home instead. I found my little bun safe, not squished by a falling picture frame like I had worried about. Whew!

- I worked out, showered, and ate dinner (scrambled eggs, and apple, and hummus with pita chips).

- I was supposed to go to girls' night, but no one but me could go. So, I stayed home and watched Ally McBeal (yes, new obsession) and hung out with Coltrane.

- Wrote a little bit.

Goodnight!

Day 5 of Living Alone

Today is not only Day 5 of Living Alone, it is also mine and Chris's 6-Year Anniversary. It is six years since we started dating today. Six years ago, Chris asked me to be his girlfriend on a park bench in Colonial Williamsburg (awwwwwww...). We were teenagers when we started dating! So, I'm a little sad today since Chris is off having fun in Lon Gisland (although, he sent me a present that arrived today, so that helped).

And, without further ado, I'd like to use the rest of this post to celebrate six years with my man:





















Here's to 7!

Day 4 of Living Alone

Oh, Sunday. How I love to be lazy on Sundays.

- Got up at noon o'clock.

- Ate a banana.

- Went to the coffee shop, drank a big ole latte from a big, round cup. Completed Lesson 2 from my online class, and did some stuff for work.

- Came home, hung out with the bunny.

- Watched The King's Speech. What a great movie! I highly recommend it.

- Ate some dinner.

- Read Caribbean.

- Watched TV.

I've talked to Chris on the phone a few times, and it sounds like he's having a good time in Lon Gisland. I wish I was there too!

Day 3 of Living Alone

- Got up at 10:30 (slept for TEN un-interrupted hours last night!). Cleaned the very-messy kitchen, made myself a tomato, goat-cheese, and spinach omelet. Which I ate with a side of strawberries.

-Went out for a latte. Read my book for awhile while I drank my coffee. Currently reading: Caribbean by James Michener.

- Went to Old Navy, bought some jeans and a couple shirts. Went to the mall.

- This is of note:  I went to Victoria's Secret. Inspired by Heather Armstrong's recent post about getting a bra fitting at dooce.com, I got one done. The woman measured my bust in the middle of the store (a bit awkward), and after I informed her of my size, she corrected me. I was compeltely skeptical until I tried on a few bras in the size the sales associate told me I was. Annnnnnd, it's a miralce. I can't believe a bra can fit so well. Seriously. Every woman (and maybe some men) should get measured. Sooooo, I spent like $80 on bras after that, mainly because I've never been so comfortable with a bra on in my life. Good marketing on their part, I guess.

-Met my sister and her boyfriend for a beer. I ordered a Bud Light and was mericfully made fun of. T'was lovely.

- Went to the grocery store. Got supplies for girls' night (spaghetti sauce stuff, noodles, dark chocolate).

- Ate pasta, garlic bread, salad, drank cranberry wine, and watched Sex and the City. Then Pirate Radio (LOVE this movie).

- Something I realized today: I am between demographics. Today in the mall, I didn't feel like I could shop in any of the stores. I'm between the young, hip stores and the old lady stores. I can't shop in the Juniors section or the Misses section. None of it really appeals to me. Where's my in-between, mid-twenties, young-working-adult store? Also, my friend and I realized we're torn between finding young men and older men attractive (Pirate Radio features very attractive young men and older men). What's wrong with me? Being twenty-five sucks.

-Now, I'm watching re-runs of Ally McBeal and trying not to fall asleep. And, holy hell, it's late. Goodnight!

Day 2 of Living Alone

Day 2:

-Had all the covers on my side when I woke up. Got to turn the light on in the bedroom to get dressed (usually, Chris is still asleep when I get up so I get dressed in the dark. I have worn two different colored socks to work on more than one occasion as a result).

-Had a very busy day at work. Got soaked in the rain when I went to get lunch, so I spent the rest of the day freezing in the offie in my hoodie with the hood over my head. Talked to Chris on the phone around lunchtime. The afternoon flew because there was so much to get done, and I got out of the office a little late.

-Got off work, drove to get sushi. Salmon rolls= The Best Thing EVER.

-Ate sushi, strawberries, and fudgesicle(s) for dinner.

-Completed Lesson 1 for an online class that I just signed up for. It's called Project Management Fundamentals.

-Now: Watching Sex and the City and trying not to fall asleep before 10 PM (Oy, I'm tired).

Annnnnnnnd, though I am enjoying my time alone, I also really miss Chris. Why can't I have both at the same time?

Day 1 of Living Alone

Now, I lived alone for awhile before Chris and I moved into The Palace, and I actually enjoyed it a lot. I think people learn a lot about themselves when they live on their own. Like exactly how many bags of groceries you can hold while still managing to get your key into the door, or how long you can really go without taking a shower.

So, Chris left today staright from work, so I had to say goodbye to him this morning. My alone time began this evening.

Day 1 of Ryan the Girl's Time Alone in the House (Post Work):
-Went into Urban Outfitters to browse for a minute after work. I never do this, even though I pass it every single day. T'was nice. Did not buy anything.

- Stopped at Whole Foods to get salad-making supplies. I had leftover chicken in the fridge that needed eating (but Chris actually ate it), so I stopped to get greens, an avocado, a tomato, etc so that I could have a wonderful dinner. Then, I stopped and got some mozarella.Yum.

- Went to the pet store. Got hay. Yay.

- Went home, fed the bun.

- Went to Target and got the only season of Sex and the City I didn't have. Wahoo!

- Came home, made my salad, and ate the hell out of it (along with some pita chips and garlic hummus). Drank some red wine as well.

Dinner... mmmm, yummy.

- Played with Coltrane.

- Watched Sex and City.

- Drank more wine.

- RELAXED A LITTLE

- Went to bed.

Goodnight!

No Boys Allowed

 Whelp, this weekend was full of laziness. We got the sailboat all ready to go and drove an hour and a half to try to finally conduct our maiden voyage, however, when we got to our destination, it started storming violently. 20-ft Mast + Lightning = Fried RyanandChris. So, we turned around and went home. And that was all the work I did for the whole weekend (though it was hard work; we pumped up the trailer's tires by hand, secured the boat to the trailer, oh, and pushed the damn thing up the hill in our yard and over the curb and into the street). Chris and I watched a lot of Mythbusters, made yummy pasta, read our Michener books (ain't we cute?), and went on a beer-tasting expedition.

Late this week, Chris is leaving town to go to Long Island for over a week. Which leaves me in an empty house (except for the bun!). I am going to miss Chris a lot, but, there's also part of me that is excited to have a little time in the house alone. That would be the girly part of me. I believe I posted before about Secret Single Behavior, but what I'm really looking forward to is getting to do whatever I want whenever I want. Sometimes I think men do this regardless of whether or not they live with someone else, but I certainly do not. 

With Chris gone, I can go shopping and take as long as I damn well please to browse, even if I'm not even planning on buying anything. And I can do this and not even feel a little bit guilty. I can eat sushi and drink red wine and watch a movie where things don't blow up and there's a happy ending. And NOT EVEN FEEL GUILTY. I can eat dinner early if I feel like it. Or I can eat dinner at 10:00 PM. AND. NOT. EVEN. FEEL. GUILTY. I can eat three popsicles in a row and no one will ever know, so I WON'T FEEL GUILTY. I can have girlfriends over for the eveing and take over the entire house and not feel guilty about having to kick Chris out (No Boys Allowed! Kind of like the Get Rid of Slimy GirlS club in Calvin and Hobbes (G.R.O.S.S.)).



http://brainism.blogspot.com/



Well, I'm sure that's how I'll feel for a day or two. But after that, I know I'll feel lonely...

http://www.gocomics.com/calvinandhobbes

I Was Hoping to Call This Post "Vertigone"

But... not so much. I'm still getting vertigo, mainly when I'm in the heat.

I went to the doctor this past Saturday and she took one look down my ear canal and told me I'm completely blocked up, most likely from post-nasal drip (mmmm, post-nasal drip). She thinks I've probably had an allergy or allergies my whole life and not known it. I'm taking allergy meds, Mucinex, using a Neti Pot, an allergy nose spray, and gargling salt water to try to flush out my entire ear/nose/throat system. I don't think my system has cleared out all the gunk in my ears yet though, because I'm still getting dizzy.

I think part of it is that I traveled to South Carolina and back for business recently and I've had trouble keeping a regular schedule when taking meds, etc. But, I definitely noticed that my ears wouldn't pop on the plane, no matter how much I tried.

The business trip I went on was cool, but I had to get up at 5 AM on Tuesday morning to catch a flight out of our local airport (have I mentioned how I hate to fly? I get sick and nervous... dramaine= my savior)... and the day ended up being very long. I was so tired, in fact, that, when I was showering before dinner, I grabbed the hotel-provided mini-toiletries and accidentally took the body lotion into the shower instead of the shampoo, and, of course, proceeded to dump lotion on my head. Go me.

Anyways, I'm back after an encouraging work trip (and I may start traveling a little more for my job in the near future), I survived two flights on teeny tiny propeller planes, and I've now been to another state (I've driven through SC but never actually stopped there).

Now if I can only clear out my ears.

Me and The Annabel Lee

So, I realized that I never told you all that we named our sailboat "Annabel Lee." It was between that and "Anne Bonny" at the end there. Chris and I skirted the issue for weeks (but it turned out that we both sort of wanted that name all along). I got a text from Chris at work the other day that simply said "Annabel Lee." and I simply texted him back "Agreed." And that was that. So, Annabel Lee is the only other female Chris is allowed to handle (I've decided that the Xbox is a male anyways... ), and I'm sure she'll get lots of attention, especially on weekends...

Chris has been working on getting the rudder assembly put together (the boat came with everything but the rudder assembly b/c someone stole it off the back of the boat when the previous owners had it), and it's finally finished. Chris was ingenious getting and making all the parts we needed (b/c no one sells 1982 Sunbird rudder assemblies). He made a part we needed out of wood and then took it to a metal working shop and had them machine the part out of steel, he made the tiller himself, and, he got all the hardware at Lowe's. Pretty awesome. See below for pictures:

The rudder plate Chris had made

The finished rudder assembly!

Now, we will finally get to take 'er out on the open seas a week from Sunday (and by "the open seas," I mean a big lake). I still haven't gotten Chris the captain's hat I've been threatening to buy (which he says he will refuse to wear), but I may get myself this:

http://www.cafepress.com/

Or this:

http://www.cafepress.com/

Because I have to make up for my lack of sailing skills with humor. I think Chris would look great in a captain's hat... but apparently it's not "cool" or something. Pssssht, whatever. And I'm wondering if I should buy boat shoes. Why? Because that's what you're supposed to wear on sailboats; apparently they are comfortable and don't leave scuff marks. Although, our sailboat is pretty much one big scuff mark, so, yeah, it's probably not worth the expense.

I will keep you all updated on the ongoing process of me learning to sail. Chris has sections of his Annapolis Book of Seamanship picked out for me to read (Baha, "seamanship" is a funny word...). Sorry, there I go again with the humor to compensate for my lack of knowledge and skill. Anyways, he also made a tiny "sailboat" out of wood to show me what the sail does when the boat turns against the wind and with the wind.

Chris showing me the ropes

The fan is the wind source

But, I figure to begin with, I might as well try to look good while on the boat, because that's the contribution I can make right now. Oh, and I can pack a damn good lunch! What do sailing-types eat, I wonder?

In other news, I still have vertigo (which was especially bad at my band's gig last night for some reason), which makes me feel like I'm on a boat. I wonder if I was on a boat it would feel like I was on land...

Beach Pictures

Update: I still have Vertigo. For the past five days, it has felt like my entire life has been uprooted and moved onto a cruise ship. One that's cruising across the North Atlantic. Except there's no Ledo Deck and no little drinks with umbrellas.

Anyways, I have a Dr's appointment Saturday morning, so hopefully it will be something that is easily treated. Of course, if you google "vertigo," the results are almost all related to brain tumors. Sweet.

So, anyways, as promised, here are the pictures I took while on my vacation. Sigh. Vacation.

Currituck Lighthouse

Someone else's family photo

The long, narrow walkway that started the Vertigo issue

Very tall grassy-type plants

My dragon fly friend

Pretty

The lighthouse, from the sound

Canadian Geese

The Captain reads the sign

Pretty again!

Ridiculous squinty picture of me

Blade

My monarch friend

Support your local hookers

Signs, signs, everywhere are signs

Sunset through a foggy lens