5 p.m. and there's still light...

Last week sometime I was getting ready to leave work when I noticed the sun was still out - at nearly 5 p.m. It was - well - stunning. The last time I had seen the sun set, it was setting around 3:50 p.m. and was very dark by 5 p.m. The truth of the matter is the sun has been setting later and later but the sun sets have been masked in clouds and we haven't been privy to the progression.

It's been a very sunny two weeks. It reminds you that you love living in Seattle. Truly.

Smokin'

This weekend was the exposition bout between the Rat City Roller Girls and the Rose City Rollers (Portland). It was the first "bout"(click here) for all of my pals who made the teams last November and a "rematch" from last year. It was absolutely thrilling to be down in Portland and be a part of this experience with them. Glitter Chicken, Lara and I drove down together Saturday morning after a delicious good-luck breakfast at the Blue Star. It was the second sunny weekend in a row. We arrived at a very fun and funky Jupiter Hotel where the gals were checking in, gathering before their bout, etc. We had lunch (food is obviously important) before they got ready. I drove Moe YaDown, Maude Elletee and Dee Troit to the Expo Center and grabbed a car full of "derby widows" to window shop and kill a few hours before the event.

Derby is a drug and there were about 3,000 people addicted to it on Saturday night, including myself, Weedy, Kelly, John, Jenn, and many other people who sat along the edge to be spectators and #1 fans for many of the gals out there. It was exciting to see our friends out there - playing so well - having come so far even in just two months of practice. The pride on all of our faces was only out matched by the cheer of our voices.

The after party following the bout was another great gathering of gals not only those who played in the bout but other from supporting leagues such as the Jet City (my league), Oly Rollers, Dock Yard Derby Dames... they came from Canada and California. There were $2 PBRs and a stripper on the second floor (that's Portland for you) as well as a DJ, lives bands and enough cigarette smoke to make you remember, all crammed into a bar appropriately called the Outlaws.

Isn't life just so damn much fun sometimes?

*photos posted on this page are by Jules Doyle

Hmmmm......

Blue Monday...

Yesterday was unofficially "Blue Monday" which is the gloomiest day of the year. Last year it was something like January 11th. It is determined based on the fact that the holidays are over, the first credit card bills have started to roll in and there is little to look forward for a substancial period of time.

It was a pretty crappy Monday with the sun not creeping up enough to give us any hope that it's anything beyond 3:30 p.m. all day. I was tired from a very fun filled weekend with a friend. But if yesterday was the worst day of the year then this is going to be a great year!

* I got to see baby Lucia and hang out with her - who doesn't love new babies!

* A dear friend of mine got her greencard!

* I got to hang out with one of my childhood pals all weekend.

* I got a call from one of my best pals in Cleveland with a promise of a follow-up call (I was hanging out with baby.)

* Even my work meeting went extremely well.

Welcome 2007! This is going to be a great year!

JOY!

I joined a new roller derby league and was placed on my team last night.

Pgymy had her baby this morning - little Lucia.

I received the most thoughtful framed photograph from one of my dear friends.

There was great joy around every corner.

Derby Prom, Opening Bouts and many, many little snow people - everywhere

This year's RCRG Derby Prom was held on a boat with a "Love Boat" theme - which of course meant that I got to make a very fun costume for such an occasion. (I took one of my many bridesmaids dresses and converted it into a very cute nautical themed 'prom dress'.) Awards were given out to the best player of last year's season, refs were recognized and coaches too followed by much dancing until wee hours in the morning. The battle I was having with a cold all week came to an end as I realized I was going to lose that battle and might as well while having fun.

Though what an awful cold it has been - keeping me in bed most of the morning and taking naps each afternoon in my only long weekend until May (no more holidays.) However, I did make it out Sunday evening to see the Dockyard Derby Dames Exposition bout on Sunday. DYDD were the first group I skated with until I realized driving 60 miles each way for practice was taking the fun out of "extracurricular activities". They had a great turn out and combined their teams to just have two teams "bouting"; one being "good" and the other one being "evil". Evil won, of course and it was great to see the gals again and see just how much they've improved.

The neighborhood was littered with little snow people everywhere. They showed up in flowerbeds, on sidewalks, a 6' one was in the park next to a very tiny one by the post box, snow people everywhere! I'm not sure how many inches it snowed over night for when I went to bed it was pitch dark - when I woke up at 5 a.m. there was an orange glow across the city. We did end up having work today but I called in sick as I could barely talk (yet alone swallow) and thought it best to sleep all day - again - with a break for an afternoon walk to visit all the snow people.

Snowy Day, #10 bus

I woke up at 6:15 am and called in to work to see how we were to fair on the icy roads. Some offices were delayed but not mine. I stayed awake, finishing the details on my derby dress before getting ready for work. I actually had to scrape ice off the windows and let the car warm up - it felt like winter!

The roads were nearly vacant as they were the week between Christman and New Year. The community college's classes were cancel for the day. Driving up Pine Ave (while chatting on the phone with my friend about her new baby and the bad weather in Seattle), the #10 bus pulled from it's the bus stop and even with chains on its back wheels, started to slide down the hill - sideways. I dropped my phone in the driver's seat (I know when I need both hands thankyouverymuch) and following the trucks lead in front of me, hopped onto the sidewalk with my car - zoom - zoom - before getting around the bus, which I am sure the driver was thinking it was going to be a very long day.

The parking lot at work was nearly empty so I called the "bad weather" line again, and sure enough the message was still the same. I had to call another colleague to come let me in because there was no one at the front desk - it was a slow morning as people trickled in from various parts of the city - some coming in hours late and some not making it at all.

My friend found a snowman on her neighbor's window sill. A colleague found her favorite tree covered in snow.

I love the snow.

Glitter Chickens, Snow and Fez

Glitter Chicken called me tonight while I was hemming a dress for the derby prom (yes, there is such a thing) to talk about the snow. "I had to call another Midwestern. . . did you see the snow!? Don't you just love it? It's it funny how when there are like 4 flakes in the sky they'll call off work or an activity? 'Oh, it's too dangerous out there. You better stay home.' I love it. I love how they value personal safety. I love just four flakes of snow."

It's true, there is a great deal of anxiety around snow and I've mentioned it in previous posts but I appreciated her perspective about safety because it would be like Florida having snow plows - you just don't need them often enough to invest in the infrastructure. But I had to chime in, "But Glitter Chicken, I heard on the radio the other day that they were going to keep all of the plows off the highways because they didn't want to jeopardize their drivers. I mean isn't that what a huge truck, filled with sand and salt is about - driving in the snow?" She laughed and we agreed to meet for breakfast if I didn't have to go to work.

So Fez and I have been watching the snowfall. It's that beautiful color outside - I call it "city orange" when the snow bounces up the orange of the street lights. It's not dark and dreary like it usually is. Fez sits on the ledge in the bedroom window and his head bobs up and down as the snow falls. He's very cute. He use to watch the snow in Cleveland - there was a heck of a lot more there.

*picture of my friend Glitter Chicken.

Bits of misery, West Seattle, and Slop. . .

The ONLY thing that was miserable about this weekend was the freezing cold rain that came pouring down in sheets on Friday night (oh, and Saturday night too). I tried to do some grocery shopping after work and was amply discouraged from such endeavors. Instead I curled up on the couch at a friends house and watched the movie Hero, which I thought I had seen and fantastically, I had not.

Saturday morning found me, Weedy and John in West Seattle at my friend Heidi's coffee shop Bird on a Wire. This coffee shop is unlike most other's in Seattle and that's saying a lot since I've been to dozens. Everyone that comes in to say Hi! - chats with Heidi, the baristas or each other - it's honestly being in her living room. She thinks it's both fun and funny and could easily base a sitcom on it (which I completely agree.) The energy is positive. The coffee is great and it's honestly just a hell of a fun place to be. Love it. We then went over to Clementines, a new shoe shop on California, where my very good artsy pal, Kelly, now works. She makes you feel so good about buying $100 shoes or socks or the other accessories in this very cute boutique. This is starting to become a common occurrence - not buying $100 shoes - but running over to West Seattle to visit Heidi and Kelly and have a taste of Bird on a Wire.

In the evening, when the freezing cold rain had returned, I found myself at Pygmy's house. We had planned to grab a bite to eat and then a film as she's expecting to have her baby any day and we wanted to get some of the many great recent movies in. John had some friends over and they were watching the Seattle Seahawks vs. Dallas Cowboys game. Pyg and I sat around and watched it for a bit and decided it was too late to grab dinner so we ate with the guys. The next thing you know, we had missed all of our 7:45 movie options and resigned ourselves to finishing the game. The 4th quarter elicited screaming and utter disbelieve as the game was winding down - if it had been pool, we would have called it "Slop" - instead I got a call from a friend in Cleveland who left a message saying, "Um, Michelle, I'm at a bar in Parma watching the Seahawks game... and I don't know if it means anything to you, but what the hell is going on out there?"

Slop.

An incredible story

Discussions of resolutions, loosing weight, and other beginning-of-New-Year chatter surrounded me as I ate my tasty rabbit food (salad) out at lunch today. One of my colleagues made fun of my love for grapefruits. (I must have said I love them 33 times. "They're like pink teardrops sewed together. They're delicious. I would eat 33 of them if it wouldn't give me a stomachache. I love grapefruit and they're 2 for $1 - woot!) After this banter ended, one of my friends leaned over and said "I got a call from Mark Foley today." I put my fork down. "Mark Foley?" (wracking brain) "Scandal? Colorado?" No, Florida. Oh right! The Representative, young aides, gotcha. You got a call from Mark Foley? Huh?

"I sent him a letter. I told him that he did a lot of great things in his tenure and not that was he did was forgivable but that he would get thru this and move on and not to let this ruin his life." I was flabbergasted. I mean who writes letters to people who fall from grace in such horrible ways. "So he called me and thanked me for his letter and that it has really helped him during such a dark time." My friend went on to tell me other things Mark explained about what he was doing now, his thoughts for the future, etc., in his 30 minute phone conversation. Those few of us eating lunch together were all flabbergasted. And not because Mark Foley called him (though that was pretty incredible) but that our friend and colleague had this incredible compassion for someone who had been so publicly disgraced.

It made me think of a millions letters (ok, maybe only 20) that I had meant to write to people thanking them for their work (Sandra Day O'Connor), for their courage, compassion or even to express compassion for their fall in the public eye (Pres. Clinton). They were all letters worth writing. And they still are.