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Math Assistant.

Originally uploaded by macwarriorny.

Today is catchup day. The washer is spinning wildly, the dryer is turning at a slower pace and I’m doing my assignments for school. Earl and I are going to Albany this weekend for some bear fun and I’d like to have my homework under control so I don’t feel overwhelmed when we get back on Sunday.

Of course Mr. Curiosity had to sit on my lap and lend his opinion to multiplying and dividing equations with fractions in them.

Tonight I’m picking up Earl at the airport after his week away on business. We’re then joining my sister for supper. She’s heading back to Moscow on Sunday. I sometimes wonder if we’d enjoy visiting Moscow while they’re out there. I’m sure that would be an interesting experience.

Welcome to Central New York.

Originally uploaded by macwarriorny.

Earl and I decided to go for a drive today, despite all the snow advisories that were in place. You can’t let Mother Nature slow you down two days in a row.

Last night we were suppose to drive to Syracuse and join my sister for dinner, but it took almost and hour to get as far as the Thruway (about 20 miles) so we jumped on the Thruway in the other direction and doubled back home. There were times that it was snowing so hard we could barely see a foot in front of the Jeep.

The Thruway Authority does an incredible job with snow removal, but there’s one problem with taking to the Thruway during a snow storm: out of state drivers. When you’re on the local roads during a snow storm you see your fair share of bad drivers. When you’re on the Thruway, you see things that you wouldn’t believe. For some reason, a lot of folks in New Jersey think that they have to wear sunglasses in a whiteout, even if it’s midnight. Somehow, somewhere, they were taught that wearing sunglasses in the middle of a blizzard makes it easier to see, despite the time of day.

It doesn’t.

You know what actually makes it easier to drive in a blizzard? Turn off your headlights. Even if it’s the dead of night. Usually there will be enough light around you that you’ll be able to see the tracks in the road that you should be following and you won’t have the glare from the snow obscuring your view. Make sure you leave your parking lights on though, so others can see you.

And don’t turn on your damn flashers because that makes others think you’re broken down or an emergency vehicle, causing unnecessary responses that could create accidents.

Now that I’m off my snowbox, Earl and I went for a drive, went to the mall, picked up a classic joystick for the Xbox 360 and went grocery shopping. Not a walk through Thrillsville, but enjoyable nonetheless.

We’re kicking back for the rest of the weekend.

Canceled.

Originally uploaded by macwarriorny.

I said yesterday that we were going to do this and tonight we made it official.

“American Idol” is no longer on our TiVo. It has become entirely too mean spirited. We will no longer waste brain cells, electrons, bits or bytes on this program.

Buh-bye.

Under Construction.

Originally uploaded by macwarriorny.

This picture is of our local Price Chopper grocery store. They are rebuilding it from top to bottom and keeping it open at the same time. It makes for quite an adventure for a number of reasons, including the fact that nothing is in the same place two days in a row, the checkout lanes are scattered all over the place, some of the aisles are half a cart-width wide and most importantly, there’s a lot of prime beefcake in the way of construction men to be found in just about every nook and cranny. In fact, I tried to sneak a picture of the guy sticking his head out of ventilator shaft, but then I found myself almost being run over by a fork-truck, so I decided not to risk the venture.

When all is said and done, our Price Chopper will be as close to a Wegmans as the area will allow. This being our closest grocery store, it’s still almost eight miles from the house. I really wish that we had a store closer to us and I have begged Wegmans to build in our area on several occasions, but they’re not coming this far east. I’d even be happy with a Wal*Mart Neighborhood Market.

There Be Walls.

Originally uploaded by macwarriorny.

When I got home from class today I noticed that our contractor had put the sheetrock up in two of the four rooms we’re having built in our basement. It’s very exciting to see this sort of progress. I’ve been pulling wire through the studs for the past couple of nights, when all is said and done each room with have three-line phone jacks, internet/network access and a clock from my school clock collection properly flush mounted against the wall. Even the storeroom.

Earl has big plans for the workout room, including a set of lockers he has leftover from work to store our stuff in. It’s great to see the project coming together. We’re really happy with the work.

I can’t wait to move our offices, the music studio and everything downstairs.

Ice Ice Baby.

Originally uploaded by macwarriorny.

The trees in our backyard are starting to show some pretty good ice buildup from the storm blowing through here. We are suppose to get more freezing rain and sleet through the night, when it then is projected to turn to snow.

At least it’s finally starting to be a little like winter around here!

Dinner Date.

Originally uploaded by macwarriorny.

I believe that it’s important to get dressed up and go out on a date with the one you love. Once in a while Earl and I will take the extra step to look nice and go out to dine. You can always tell the difference from those that go out to dine and those that go out to eat, the ones that are eating are licking the salad dressing off their elbows, while the ones that are dining are leaned back in a casual pose with a glass of red wine in their hand.

Earl and I like to do this from time to time. Tonight we went to a local Italian steakhouse. I don’t know what makes it Italian unless it’s because the cows chew garlic instead of regular cud. Whatever the reason, the meal was delicious, the conversation was insightful and I fell in love with Earl all over again, even after all these years.

I’ve met people that say they don’t need love, they don’t need anyone as a permanent fixture in their life, they’re quite content to live alone. While this may be the case for their short term, I don’t believe that we as people are meant to live life all by ourselves. As a bonafide, certified loner, I can certainly attest that there are times that one needs to be by themselves and to do their own thing, but the idea of not having someone in my life to call “sweetheart” is nothing short of terrifying. I thank the Universe every day for my fortune in love. I hope that each of us gets to find their fortune as well. Beauty queens want world peace, I want everyone to fall in love.

Winter Driving in Wyoming County.

Originally uploaded by macwarriorny.

Today I embraced my loner side and went for a long drive through the Empire State, taking notes for my road geek site along the way. I enjoyed all aspects of the ride very much, but after being married for a decade, it’s just not the same when Earl is not along with me, even if he’s just snoring in the passenger seat. I missed his presence.

I’ve been told that I find the mundane fascinating and I suppose this is no exception, but I really like rural Wyoming County west of the Finger Lakes. I’m guessing it’s named Wyoming County because it’s flat and primarily farmland and it looks a little bit like the state of Wyoming. While the area didn’t have nearly the amount of snow common for this time of year, it did give me my first nibble of winter driving of the season. It was a pleasant experience, though I now miss Wyoming.

When all was said and done, I passed through 15 counties in twelve hours. I made the obligatory stops at Tom Wahl’s for lunch and Tim Horton’s for a snack. Oh, speaking of food, if you’re ever in Rochester, be sure to stop at The Highland Park Diner. It’s a great experience for all.

Global Warming Picnic.

Originally uploaded by DJSuperCub.

Picture It. January 6, 2007. Upstate New York, an area of the country known for it’s record snowfall year after year. By all rights, we should be up to our butt cheeks in snow at this very moment. Ski resorts should be thriving. Children should be sliding down hills that are just buried in the white stuff.

Today it was 65 degrees.

To celebrate this odd weather, Earl and I went on a picnic. We usually reserve the first picnic of the year for our Easter celebration, but since it was so unusually warm, we decided to pack a cooler and go for a ride. A really long ride that clocked in at just over 12 hours.

Our first stop was for lunch. We parked at a picnic area along historic US 20, just east of the little village of Cherry Valley. The weather was unbelievably warm but unfortunately it started raining, so we had our picnic in the Jeep. We called it our “Shhh! It Isn’t Really Global Warming Picnic.”

From there we headed southeast and ended up in the Hudson Valley. I showed Earl the village of Saugerties and the little luncheonette counter I had discoverd on one of my road geek rides. We had a quick bite to eat (two lunches on Saturday=extra time at the gym on Sunday) and then headed further south until we got to Interstate 84 south of Poughkeepsie, where we turned west and eventually started heading back home. We walked a mall and had supper at a Red Robin. I also picked up a recipe book from Barnes and Noble to add to my growing collection of ways to be a better cook.

So now it’s just after midnight and we’re back home. It’s still in the mid 50s. What a beautiful spring day. Right at the beginning of January.

Still Smiling.

Originally uploaded by DJSuperCub.

I just took a peek at my college web site and found that I did better on my retake of the placement exam than I did the first time around. That’s a good thing. The one small problem is that I didn’t grab the brass ring I was hoping to. I was closer to the minimum score, but not close enough.

So now I’m enrolled in the “Math for Dummies” course. It’s half a semester long and starts in two weeks. As for the class I had wanted to take, it looks like algebra and I will be dancing through the summer together.

That’s o.k., it’ll all work out in the end, I’m sure of it. In all honesty I think I feel better about this approach because I’ll have a complete refresher of what I was trying to cram for the placement test. It should be a relatively easy good grade.

So I’ll just keep smiling through the day and through this gorgeous spring weather. Tomorrow it may get over 60! I’m hoping Earl wants to go for a ride tomorrow, because that’s what we’re doing.