Bullet Points!

 Things I did for the first time this week:

• Travel to a work conference
• Sing karaoke (Love is a Battlefield, in case you were wondering)
• Almost faint during a Jazzercise class

Things I learned from these experiences (respectively):

• LOTS of things about:
• helping undocumented students attend college
• iPhone apps that can help me with my work travel
• ethical practices in higher education admissions
• awesome things happening at other colleges in the Northwest, and
• mummies
• Knowing the words and/or melody to a song are not prerequisites for singing it in front of 50 strangers.  Awesome dance moves, however, are crucial.  Check, check, and check.
• I am in terrible shape/have low blood pressure/have a subconscious aversion to "On the Floor" by JLo (which my conscious self enjoys quite a bit)/need to go to the doctor

Things I did this week, but not for the first time (along with an approximate number of times I have done each of these things before)

• Had dinner at Red Robin with my sister Lisa (10-20)
• Drove across the state of Washington, round trip (40-50)
• Stopped at three different gas stations in Ellensburg so as to acquire the perfect assortment of travel snacks (at least 5)
• Spent a meal surrounded by awesome niece and nephews (not enough)
• Spent a meal with my parents (way more frequently in the past 9 months than in the preceding 2 years!)
• Made s'mores in the drizzling rain (I grew up in the Northwest, so pretty much every time I have ever made s'mores)
• Pulled several totally disgusting items out of my dog's mouth (feels infinite)

In other news:

• I am really enjoying our new church here, and hoping to attend a membership class next month
• Travis and I can't quite agree on how much to feed our puppy, now that she is really not a puppy anymore and definitely not growing up anymore (though she will most certainly continue to grow out, according to Travis, if we keep feeding her at the current rate)
• I have had several realizations lately, one of which is that my mom was my age when my parents adopted my oldest brother.  He was 14.  They also had two toddlers.  
• Today at church a woman asked me where I got my hair, and I said "my mom."  She then instructed me to tell my mom "thank you," for giving me such lovely hair.  So this is me telling you "thank you," mom!
• My headaches have been very mild the last month (maybe 2 bad ones a week), so I am, once again, cautiously optimistic.  At the very least, I am grateful for the peace and rest these little headache reprieves provide.  I was planning on signing up for a workshop on living with chronic conditions this summer, but it's hard to know right now if I'll need it.  Here's hoping I won't!  
• That said, we all know that I tend to blog less when I am headaching more, and blog more when I am headaching less, so here's hoping for some consistency in the coming months! 

Accidental exhibitionists

Time for an embarrassing story!  We mostly love our rental house.  It is old-fashioned but updated in a very South-Hill (that's a nice area of Spokane that we don't live in) way.  It has a big back yard with its own Whomping Willow, a driveway that connects directly to the street and not the alley (very rare in our neighborhood) and space, space, and more space.  Enough space, actually, that Travis is setting up and trying out a little indoor golf area in the basement as I write.  We don't have a net, so it involves a blanket and weights and a little patch of fake grass.
The house also has quirks.  Quirks can be innocuous, like the sloped floor in the basement that means the furniture has to point one way and not the other, or the door that is sometimes stuck and sometimes too loose.  And the window in the shower.  The BIG window in the shower, on the side of the house facing the main street.  Luckily, it contains thickly frosted glass, and when we moved in we checked very carefully and made sure you couldn't see through it.
HOWEVER.
We only checked during the daytime.  Last night we were telling some friends about the window in the shower, and we simultaneously realized that we had never checked it when it was dark out.  Rookie mistake!  I take all my showers after 9 pm or before 6:30 am!  I have taken more than 50 showers in front of that window when it is dark out!  So last night we checked, and sure enough, it was very easy to see through the frosted glass.  I couldn't see Travis' facial features, but I could definitely see the color of his clothes.  I can only posit, based on this evidence, that it would be simple for a random passerby (or our across the street neighbors, whose living room window faces our bathroom window) to deduce that the person on the other side of that window was not wearing any clothes.  This would be really hilarious if it weren't horrifying.  I'm shocked that no one has called the police, or set up video cameras in the trees!
Travis is awesome, and jumped into action.  Now we have a beautiful and very opaque shade covering the window.  But is it opaque enough to rid us of our (possible) reputation as the neighborhood nudies?  Only time will tell.

First time donor

It's rare that I have philosophical discussions.  I don't like having them, because it's really hard work.  Plus, sometimes you make a blanket statement that comes back to bite you later.  Recently I broke the "ban" and Travis and I talked about something I was reading for class.  I felt like the author was saying that you should look at the results of a decision and decide whether it was a mistake.  This didn't feel quite right to me, because sometimes you make the best decision you possibly can at the time, and the outcome is still awful.  I wouldn't categorize that as a mistake, something you have to feel terrible about and regret.  I think you should be able to say "I did the best I could" and that's that.
However . . .
Yesterday I maybe proved myself wrong.  It may have been a mistake to give blood.  I felt great about it at the time, especially since I was checking something off my mental "things I've always wanted to try" list.  I felt healthy, weighed plenty, and recently tested negative for anemia.  I feel like someone who meets all of these qualifications and is not afraid of needles should give it a go.  So I did.  The experience was satisfying: doing good while sitting in a comfy chair, reading Time magazine!  (Did you know that Weight Watchers has changed their point system so that fruits and vegetables are free now, and that Hilary Clinton joked that she should have a jacket that says "Apology Tour," since all she's been able to do since the whole wikileaks fiasco is travel the world apologizing to foreign governments?  And that Glenn Beck says he is all for civility in public discourse?)  Afterward they gave me juice and a Little Debbie cupcake, and I got to sit and chat with a sweet little lady named Pat, whose job it was to make sure I drank my juice and ate my cupcake without passing out.  Then I walked across campus, feeling pretty good, did a little more work, and went home (Travis picked me up).  At home, I feel a little nauseated, so I sat down for an hour or so.  Then I got up to make dinner.  Then I laid down on the floor, which I realize in retrospect was sort of fainting, and when I couldn't get up I called Travis.  Well first I tried to get Sasquatch, who was licking my face, to go get Travis for me, but she seemed content right where she was.  If I'd been completely with it at the time, I would have made a hilarious "Help!  I've fallen and I can't get up!" joke.  Alas.  Finally Travis heard me and came, and there was more falling and fainting before I blacked out completely.  I woke up and Travis was touching my face.  He had moved me so I was laying on my side, and I vaguely recognized that someone on the phone was telling him to do this.  I also vaguely recognized that I was all the way across the house.  It seemed like only a few seconds had passed since Travis first came upstairs, but turns out there was time for him to go bring the car around and call the fire department.

• Upside: the people from the fire department were really nice.  From the floor, I could hear them telling Travis he was lucky I had an easy-to-remember birthday.  
• Downside: my blood pressure was lower than I thought it was possible for blood pressure to be.  Everyone made fun of me for trying to give blood.  

 Then we went to urgent care (I was luckily able to convince everyone that I did not need an expensive ambulance or hospital visit).

• Upside: The people at urgent care were also really nice!  From my wheelchair, I could hear them telling Travis I looked like a ghost.  They gave me a blanket when the IV fluid made me all cold.
• Downside: These people also made fun of me for trying to give blood.  

So, to recap: I gave blood, and met lots of nice people, but the general consensus by all these nice people (who were all medical experts, btw) was that it was a terrible mistake for me to give blood.  So, even though I was well-intentioned and well-informed and did the best I could at the time, maybe I was wrong to give blood.  I guess my first-time donor sticker will forever sit alone in the far corners of my purse, with no "second-time" donor sticker to keep it company.  Also, maybe I should have taken the other "first time donor" sticker, the one that also said "handle with care . . ."

Do not read this while eating.

Consider yourself warned: this story contains multiple references to things that, before I became a dog owner, would have made me throw up a little in my mouth.

Travis comes home today from a four-day trip to Montana.  I already wrote about what happened on days 1 and 2.  But Sasquatch likes to keep the surprises coming the whole time Travis is gone.

Yesterday was day 3.  Sasquatch pooped on the bed.  Luckily she pooped on the little protective blanket she is required to sleep on if she sleeps on the bed.  This is still problematic, though, because gross.  Also, how is it that I can sleep through that?  Did she try to wake me up to no avail?  I have often said that sleeping is my spiritual gift.  I'm mostly joking about it being my actual spiritual gift, but I'm absolutely positive that my ability to sleep anywhere and anytime, and to receive rest and peace in the process, was a very purposeful gift from a very compassionate God.  Every once and a while, however, my ability to sleep through things borders on ridiculous.  Freshman year of college my amazing roommate Chelsea was the medic in our dorm.  That meant that people came banging on our door at all hours of the night when they needed to be taken to urgent care.  One morning Chelsea was exhausted; she had been up all night at the hospital with a student who had apparently come into our dorm room after midnight, screaming because he had broken something (an arm?).  Chelsea has her own amazing gift.  She bolts right up whenever she hears the slightest sound.  I, on the other hand, had no idea any of it had happened.
And two nights ago, at some point while I was sleeping, Sasquatch pooped.  The upside was that it was pretty clear that 1)Sassy had in fact eaten all of those hairties, the extension cord, and the electrical plug, and 2)it had all passed through her system quite nicely.
Today was day 4.  I am trying to be a good dog-owner while Travis is gone, so I took Sasquatch on a walk.  We got all dressed (me in 37 layers, Sasquatch in her jaunty matching collar, harness, and leash), and headed out.  We paused in the yard briefly so that I could determine our route.  In the time it took for me to reason through the following:

• The usual zigzag through alleys, or something more adventurous?  (More adventurous) 
• Should we try crossing a main road? (No, definitely not.) 
• Okay, let's go South.  

Sasquatch found a piece of another dog's poo buried in the snow in our front yard.  And ate it.  Well she was mostly just holding it in her mouth, so I told her very sternly to "drop it."  I used the voice that carries all of the weight of my dog-watching mantra (I am stern.  I am tough.  My middle name is discipline, and dogs do not act out when they are left alone with me).  She did not drop it.  I tried shaking her head, but she held on tight.  So I did what you would do (so no judging).  I pulled it out of her mouth.  Then I realized that my beautiful little mitten was covered in poo, and had an internal moment pretty similar to the one I had upon waking up the day before.  My mittens are currently in the washer on the "hand-washables- intermittent agitation" setting, and if they are ruined I blame YOU, puppy.  Luckily I was given warm winter gloves by my boss only yesterday, so we set off again after a very stern talking to (from me) and a very apologetic leg cuddle (from Sassers).

All in all, it was a good walk.  And the positive consequence of Travis' time away is that I always end up a little tougher, a little more ready for whatever life has to throw at me, and a little more thankful for the gift of sleep.

sixth sense

Let's just be clear: Sasquatch knows when Travis is gone.   I mean that he can be gone for 2 hours at Starbucks, and she is a perfect angel while he's away.  But 2 hours into Travis being gone for a week and she eats an electrical outlet, or vomits all over the floor, or shreds a towel.  She knows.
Travis left yesterday morning for a friend's wedding in Montana.  We set up a large pen (tested the previous day), and when I checked on Sasquatch at noon she was fine and dandy.  Five hours later, I came home to find:

• dog greeting me at front door
• pen cast aside
• green Sharpie on the floor, chewed up
• extension cord that led to lamp and heater unplugged, chewed into two pieces

Today, the pen was smaller.  Reinforced.  Ready.  She escaped, unplugged the heater, and ate the plug. Only the little metal piece were left.  The house is cold.  She destroyed the heater.  

Now we are in the basement by the wall heater, and beside me on the couch is a large pile of socks, baseball caps, ski goggles, etc. that I have pried out from between Sassy's teeth in the last hour.

I am stern.  I am tough.  My middle name is discipline, and dogs do not act out when they are left alone with me. (Repeat 2x)

Numbers

Sasquatch weighs 66 pounds today. 
I have given out almost 800 business cards since August.
Travis and I will celebrate 2 years of marraige on Tuesday. 
I get to spend the next 10 months at home with my family.
The same airline lost my bag 3 times this travel season.
Forecasted temperature this Monday: Low 10, High 23. 
And time continues to march on!

UPDATE: Tuesday's forecast is Low 5, High 19.  We Huskissons don't stand a chance!

Post-travel expectations

Home at last. This week has been all about laundry, catching up in the office, and getting into a routine again with Travis and Sasquatch.  Oh, and the FIRST SNOW.  I am excited about snow like Travis was excited about the Rangers going to the World Series.  Our first snow did not last, but unlike Austin, Spokane will inevitably have snow that sticks, and lots of it.  I love when the world is all covered with white, clean and beautiful.  We're currently in that brief time of year when the ground is covered with pine needles, the trees are bare, and Spokane really needs the snow to look clean and beautiful.  So, snow, if you're listening, come again soon, and come to stay! 
We are also eagerly awaiting another arrival this week: my dear friend Chelsea and her husband David are expecting a baby on Thanksgiving!  I'm not sure why, but I got into the habit of praying for Chelsea and baby Jack-Jack during take-offs and landings this travel season, and now that I'm home that habit has just stuck.  Chelsea and David are going to be amazing parents; come meet them soon Baby Jackson!
Other things eagerly awaited:

• Thanksgiving with our Indianola family next week.
• An awesome job for my awesome husband
• The last Harry Potter movie.  I know, I know, but part 1 ended RIGHT IN THE MIDDLE of the book.  Try as they might, The Deathly Hallows Part 1 does not work on as a stand-alone.  I am ready to see the second half!

Did I mention I'm not great at patience?
Speaking of two of those three things: mom and dad, is my copy of Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows at your house?

Living in Potter-land

On Thursday night we went to my seventh midnight Harry Potter premiere.  At this point, going at midnight was more about maintaining the streak than anything else since 1) my schedule has changed since college, and it no longer feels natural or fun to stay up until 3:30 am, and 2) I have gained just enough patience in the last few years to wait 18 more hours to see a movie after work the next day.  And let's add to the list of reasons why the midnight showing was probably not necessary both 3) Travis really wasn't stoked about staying up for it and 4) the theater was bound (and proved) to be full of high-schoolers and people dressed as house-elves.  Actually the house-elf costumes were pretty clever, but you get my drift.  With all these reasons against the plan, it was sheer stubbornness that made it happen, (and the fact that Travis found out two of our friends were going as well; Travis loves any time spent with friends).
Turns out it was really fun (for me at least- have I mentioned Travis hasn't read the book?), and it proved to be much easier than I anticipated to get up at 6:30 the next morning for work.  It helps that my job isn't really tiring, I guess, at least it isn't tiring when I'm not traveling.  On a related note, did you know it was possible to have a job that wasn't exhausting?  I certainly didn't.  Every job I've had up until this point required much more standing and running around than it did sitting in front of a computer, and the examples I've had from my parents have only served to reinforce the idea that work is hard.  Work is work, and you come home tired.  But now I know that there are millions of people who sit all day.  These are the people, I imagine, who have the energy to go out late at night on a Thursday dressed up as a Slytherin, or on a Friday to go clubbing.  (I don't think there's a proper way to convey the way clubbing sounds in my mental voice.  Give a nice big pause before it, then a shudder, and I think you'll have an approximate).
Back to topic.  The reason I was thinking about Harry Potter this afternoon is because Sasquatch and I were spending some time out in our yard, and I realized that we have a little (and by little I mean big) reminder of the Harry Potter in our back yard.  Travis and I have our own Whomping Willow.

First off, let it be said that our tree is not a willow, and it does not (that I'm aware of) come to life and club people into running for the hills.  But there is potential there.  Were there to be a magical enchantment on this tree, I think it would perform admirably well at scaring away the neighbors and any rogue flying cars.  It has knots, gnarled branches, and even a few hundred inch-long thorns. 
When Travis and I first moved in, we tried to convince ourselves that the tree was mostly not on our property.  It wasn't that we thought about it; it was just instinct to try and shirk the monstrosity off on the neighbors.  There is a sweet little swing hanging from one side, but it's like a wolf that, instead of taking the time to put on sheep's clothing, just put on the sheep's sock and called it good.
See for yourself, in these really dark and terrible iPhone photos:

Whomping Willow!

Knots and gnarls

Branches covered in thorns!

So there you have it, magic in our backyard!  Or you could see it as just a really ugly tree, but I'm a glass-so-full-it's-brimming-over type optimist.

Blessing . . . in DISGUISE!

First thing's first: I hope you read "In disguise!" in your best internal melodrama voice.
Second: here's a story.
Two weeks ago I flew home to Spokane from Portland on a certain airline (name withheld to protect its identity).  It was a direct flight.  I had checked two bags: a work bag, and a bag with all my clothes from the last week.  When I arrived in Spokane, my work bag had arrived, but not my clothes.  I was stressed and nervous, since it was Friday night and I was leaving on Sunday for another trip, and didn't know if I would have time to do my laundry before I had to leave again.  My bag was delivered by 10am the next morning, I had plenty of time to do laundry and re-pack, and all my worry was for naught.
One week later (this past Sunday), I was headed to Portland on another direct flight, once again on same unnamed airline.  Again, I checked two bags, and again a bag was lost, but this time it was my work bag. I was glad to have my clothes, being that I was in Portland for the week and didn't have anything else to scrounge up, and that I had high schools to visit starting at 8:00 the next morning.  I was stressed, though, to be missing my work bag, which included the materials I had intended to give the school counselors, my computer, and the binder with driving directions for the next week as well as the itinerary I had spent so much time typing up.  After an hour or so on my aunt and uncle's computer (at which point my aunt informed me that my travel schedule could be found easily by typing my name into google- helpful to me and scary to her), I had a make-shift itinerary, as well as directions, and lo and behold, my bag arrived in the morning before I had even left for my first visit!
So tonight, when the same unnamed airline lost my bag for the third time in two weeks, I was resolved not to be stressed.  The attendant at the lost baggage counter remembered me with a sympathetic smile (I am lucky to have thanked him in person last week after my bag was found the first time, for I made myself a useful friend before I knew I would be needing his help again so soon!), and guess what, ya'll?  This is the blessing part of the story.  When certain unnamed airline loses a bag, they give you a voucher for some miles.  A few days ago I was looking at my mileage statement and lamenting that it would take at least another travel season before I had earned anything worth using toward a flight to Texas, and Travis and I have been recently disappointed that we couldn't afford to go on our own.  One lost bag worth of miles wouldn't have really made a dent in the trip.  Two wouldn't have done it either.  But three lost bags?  I don't think you can have three lost bags in two weeks without some sort of divine intervention, and three lost bags, along with the miles I've earned, is a big step toward a ticket to Texas. 
In conclusion, tonight has a been a good night.  I am home with my little family (for just over 24 hours), I have realized that some mountains really are molehills, and I have been given a miraculous and entirely unexpected way to help my little family visit our bigger family in Texas.
Also, if you are a representative from unnamed airline, I am happy for you to lose my bag again.  It's time to work toward Travis' ticket!

Business (cards)

There are some great things about having business cards.  They help people see that my name is not, in fact, "Teeny."  (You have no idea . . .)  They make me feel grown-up and professional.  It is fun to hand things out.  Business cards allow people to feel like they can ask me questions later, and don't have to figure out all their questions right away.
However, there is a big drawback to business cards.  People have my email address.  They use it.  I am drowning in email, and not the spam kind you can immediately delete.  Every day, I receive heaps of emails that need to be responded to thoughtfully, and often require fact-checking, database-checking, checking with our all-knowing front-desk manager, etc.  Responding to these emails is enjoyable, and I learn a lot from all those various kinds of checking.  But there are just not enough hours in the day.
I do love my job, though.  I was thinking today about my favorite part, and I think it's actually the high school visits, as long as they have an acceptable number of students.  Zero students is a little sad.  54 students who have just been handed their yearbook hall-of-fame ballot and are filling it out while I talk is scary, not to mention bad for my self-esteem.  In-between seems to be good, and I especially love talking to a student one-on-one.    
Okay, back to the emails.  Chances are, if you're reading this, I miss you!

Compare and Contrast, part 2

Things Sasquatch and I have in common:

• Ginger hair
• Greenish eyes
• Reckless enthusiasm (stoked about everything)
• Love for Travis
• Love of the outdoors
• Enjoy snuggling/physical contact
• Emit large amounts of body heat
• Don't like to be alone
• Love naps
• Very flexible (physically)
• Very stubborn
• Love food
• No personal space boundaries
• Small enough Travis can pick us up/big enough that it's awkward

Ways in which I am not like my dog:

• Different species
• Sasquatch likes to lick things
• I have a job
•  And . . . that's about it

Infestation!

Well, the word infestation might be hyperbole.  Infestation is when there are literally hundreds of crickets in your store, and you spend weeks taking them off the clothes and floor (and dodging when they fall from the ceiling) and throwing them outside.  True Capezio story. 
This is nothing like that.
However, we do have a problem.  There are yellow jackets in our house.  How many have we found?  At least a dozen, probably closer to twenty.  Four at once in the corner window.  And today, the first sting.  Through my clothes, in the kitchen.  Maybe he didn't want pasta for dinner? 
Yellow jackets are scary, because 1)their stings are super painful (even three hours later!), 2)they do not die when they sting, and 3) they like to crawl around on the floor, where unsuspecting puppies might lick them up.  Travis has been using yellow-jacket spray, and on Tuesday the management company is sending someone out to do a treatment on our house.  In the mean time, I am treading with caution.  Do you think yellow jackets prefer chicken for dinner?

Unitasker and multitasker, sitting in a tree

I have been on the road for 4 weeks now (with at least one day home each weekend- I'm not that hard core).  I have been reduced to bullet points:

• I love when technology is unintentionally sarcastic: "You beat your high score by a whopping one point!"
• This has been a week of revelations for me.  I realized something about Travis on Monday: he is a uni-tasker!  That's the opposite of a multi-tasker, and a term introduced to me by the author of My Life as an Experiment (I did not read this book, but merely flipped through it in the airport bookstore.  College taught me to glean a lot from skimming).  This explains a thousand things about my marriage all at once.  I could fill an entire blog (not an entry- a blog) with things Travis' uni-tasking explains.  It is strange that this wouldn't be obvious, but Travis' brain is wired in a different way than mine.  He is wired to be extremely hard-working and focused, and is incapable of giving up an unfinished task and turning to another without great distress.  This is why Travis is a better driver than me, more observant, and quicker at getting things done.  It is also the reason why he doesn't love it when I talk during movies, try to discuss our marriage while he's fixing things, or suggest that he take a nap and come back to a project later.  I am the source of so much stress!  And this is just the tip of the iceberg that is "the ways I unintentionally stress out my long-suffering husband."
• You may have noticed that the Rangers won their first post-season series.  Ever.  This is an occasion for great joy in our home.  Travis has all sorts of traditions about watching the games, most of which have to do with wearing Rangers clothes.  The rules seem a little amorphous, but the gist is:
• Travis must wear a Rangers shirt, preferably a fresh clean one (I suppose this second part has more to do with hygiene than superstition, which makes me really glad I married Travis and not one of those "superstition over hygiene" guys).
• It is very very bad luck for me to take the Rangers hat off Travis's head during the game and put it on my head.  (See bullet point above about ways I stress out Travis.)
• It is, however, fine for Sasquatch to wear the hat . . .
• . . . but only if Travis is the one that puts it on her head.
• Lots of restaurants have delicious take-out, but some can make you feel sick the next day.  I've had good luck with Mongolian BBQ's taste-wise, but not stomach-wise.  Regular BBQ is usually fine on the stomach, but much more unpredictable in taste.  I have the second best BBQ of my life at Baldy's BBQ in Bend, OR last week (the best is Salt Lick BBQ, or Travis' brisket slow-cooked with Salt Lick sauce).  Tonight I had good-but-not-life-changing BBQ from Best Little Roadhouse in Salem, OR.  But it might have been better if they'd had pork ribs.  I always try baby-back ribs thinking I love them (years of Chili's commercial indoctrination is hard for my subconscious to ignore), but turns out I don't.  What I love are pork ribs.  Pork ribs in Salt Lick BBQ sauce . . . 
• I always stay up too late if I start blogging!  It's not as if you can afford to come into work groggy when the first thing you do is talk to a group of high schoolers at 8 am.  On Tuesday I was tired and drove past the high school in the fog, and was late!  Time to go to sleep.

Findings

Oh my.  Did you know you can look and see what people searched for when they first found your blog?  I didn't, but now I do.  Here are the results:

six flags

men's dance belt

nabisco crackers

donny sibbett indianola

huskissons.blogspot.com

wheat thins box

funny happy birthday coworker

guadalupe peak trip report

jeannie huskisson austin dance

lord of the rings wiki Wow.  One of those made me cry, and several made me laugh.  And men's dance belts?!  It's pretty disturbing to me that someone could be searching for dance belts and find my blog.  Maybe I need to remove that post.

Displaced

Sassy and I have discovered a new element in our relationship: competition.  We have great love and respect for one another, but lately I've noticed that we clash on one major issue: we both think we are Travis' main girl.  We both have every right to feel this way.  I am married to Travis, so obviously I would feel entitled.  And Sasquatch puts in the hours.  Four to six days a week, Sassy is the one sleeping curled up next to Travis on the bed, the one perched next to him on the couch while he watches the Rangers game, and the one he pours his heart out to in his daily tear-filled emotional outburst (that was a joke for people who know Travis).  But seriously, for all she does while I am gone, Sasquatch deserves a medal.  And instead, she gets displaced.  One to three times a week, I come home and take her spot on the bed, and on the couch, and I can just see the bewilderment on her open little face.  "What did I do?  Where do I sit?" her expressive eyebrows say.  So we try to fit her, but then I get bumped off the bed, the couch.  

Last night I was complaining about it, and Travis said "A dog is man's best friend." 

"I thought I was your best friend!" I protested.

"That's the saying," Travis replied.  "It doesn't say woman is man's best friend.  It says dog is man's best friend."

So there you go: I think we have our victor.  And for some reason, it only makes me smile.

Yes, I watch the Rangers games.

Travis with his main girl

Things to avoid in the future

A list:
1) Highway 242 through the Willamette National Forest and Mackenzie Pass.  1.5 hours of nausea and stress, with some beautiful moments but mostly roads so windy I couldn't look anywhere else.
2) Booking high school visits at 8 am.  High schoolers don't seem to enjoy being at school at this hour, and they sure don't want to schlep it over to the library and talk about 4 more years of school.
3) Booking high school visits at 2 pm.  See above.
4) Trying to get gas in Eugene, OR in a time crunch.  Make that anywhere in Oregon.  It is infuriating to me to not be able to pump my own gas, which I am capable of doing very quickly, and without waiting for the attendant to come outside/finish up with 4 other cars first.  I know I am a total insensitive jerk for saying this, and it offends my leftist politics, but sometimes catching a flight home feels more important than job creation.
5) Rushing through airport security before checking to see if there is food on the other side (vending machines do not count, since it is a huge hassle to purchase anything with cash/without a receipt when traveling on business), when you haven't eaten a meal since 6:30 am and your next stop is at 8 pm.

At least I like learning.

Complimentary bottled water provided

I've finished two weeks in Montana, and am half-way through my first week in Oregon.  So far Oregon is proving far more eventful!  Travel stories:

• Today a high school senior bowed to me.  It was a serious bow, too.  Awesome, but also super awkward, because I had no idea what to do back!  I kind of tilted my head.
• At Monday's fair in Roseburg I was interviewed by one of the news shows in Eugene.  I stayed in Medford that night, so I have no idea if it even aired.  Then today, I was taped talking to a student by a local Medford station!  The other reps were teasing me about all the air time.  I think it's because my table is always on the very edge of the room (it's usually alphabetical), and so there aren't too many people around and you can get the whole fair in the background.
• There is bottled water at every fair.  Often they come up and put more on your table when you're too busy talking to a student to protest.  I brought home 8 empty water bottles to recycle from 4 days in Montana.  My car is full of them now, but I'm flying home so I hope my next hotel recycles!  
• Best conversation with a student so far: 

            Sophomore boy (surrounded by friends): Where is Whitworth?

Me: It’s in Spokane, Washington.  Have you heard of it?
SB: No.
Me: Well it’s the second largest city in Washington.  (points it out on the map)

SB: What’s the largest?

Me: Seattle

SB (Getting quicker now): What’s the third largest?

Me: Tacoma

SB (really fast): Fouth?

Me (super flustered): Um, Bellevue?*

SB (almost yelling now): Quick!  What’s your favorite movie?!

Me: Wayne’s World.

SB and all of his friends, with blank stares on their faces: What’s Wayne’s World?

 After which I felt really old, and told them I was disappointed, and they should watch it.  *Turns out   it's Vancouver, which you probably would have known, but I am terrible at geography.

• Had a fender bender yesterday.  Very frustrating, but the police were helpful and understanding, and both cars were fine.  I called Travis first because it's just instinct for me to call Travis right away, but he reminded me that I need to tell my work, not him!  
• I am getting used to staying in a different hotel every night of the week.  Strange.  Also strange is that Travis and I are getting into a routine of only seeing each other on the weekends.  He admitted last night that it will be weird to have me home all the time again.  It's true, actually; I've never really lived in our new home with Travis, so I'm sure it will be different for him to have me there, carving out space and making messes and interfering with his established patterns.  
• Biggest lifesaver on the road: books on CD.  I drove 1300 miles my first week in Montana, 900 my second, and I'm getting up there this week already.  But I've never once felt drowsy or spacey, because the books always keep me awake and focused.  But they're not loud enough to be distracting.  So far I've "read" a modern romantic comedy (skipped the inappropriate parts; I am every bit as embarrassed hearing about people's fictional intimate moments as I would be spying on someone's real ones), a very long work of historical fiction about the royal family in 15th century England, and am working on a Michael Crichton thriller.  Next is another historical fiction, this one about the formation of the modern Middle East in the 1920s-40s.  (Skipped the rest of the thriller and moved on to this. It's terrific!  Has made me laugh out loud and cry already, plus the main character has a sweet and loving dog.)  Sometimes I get so hooked that I want to keep listening when I get to my hotel, but I've made a rule that I can only listen on the road.  That way I actually look forward to the drives.
• Biggest headache on the road: non-smoking rooms that smell like smoke.  I've never thought of myself as allergic to cigarette smoke, but aside from the moderate annoyance of smelling gross all the time, some of these rooms are giving me bad headaches.  One was so bad that I thought I had a full-on migraine, but then I went for a walk and within 15 minutes in the fresh air my head was fine.  I am getting savvy about requesting rooms far away from the smoking rooms, and about looking for hotels that are 100% non-smoking.  Next year that's going to be a major factor in booking my hotels.  Also, how do you get the smell of stale smoke out of your favorite pillow?!
• I've seen some really beautiful places.  I pulled over at a park in Montana one day and put my feet in Flathead Lake.  I've driven through many mountain ranges and alongside rivers.  I haven't taken nearly enough pictures.  I'll admit that I'm less-inclined to stop and be touristy than I would be if I were with family or friends.  
• I still, after 2.5 weeks of travel, haven't braved eating in a sit-down restaurant alone.  Most sit-downs do take-out, though you can tell that they sometimes resent it (maybe because of the lost tips?).  So lots of take-out, and lots of putting together meals at the grocery store.  I'm super tired of continental breakfasts and complimentary college fair food (read: bagels, muffins, cookies), and getting a little tired of the kind of food you can easily carry out (Chinese, pizza).  It may be that I get desperate soon, suck up my pride, and eat by myself at an actual table.  I did this once in Italy because my confident European professor told us she did it all the time, and that it was a liberating experience that every young woman should enjoy from time to time.  About 30 minutes into my meal (I was only doing the eat alone thing half-way, because I was reading a book), my professor showed up at the same restaurant!  She came over and said hi, then told me that she was going to go sit by herself so as not to rob me of the experience.  The Italians just looked sorry for me, though I did enjoy reading and eating at the same time, as I often do.  The only book I have with me right now, though, is called Heal Your Headache, and talks all about the myriad foods I shouldn't be eating, many of which would, I'm sure, show up in just about any dish I could order at a restaurant.  Not sure how to proceed . . . 

Oops!  Time to go to the next high school visit, then drive the 4 hours to Bend!  Chances are, if you're reading this, I miss you!

music video extravaganza

WARNING: This post is going to contain lots of links to YouTube music videos.  In other words, my dad is going to love it.
When it comes to music videos, OK Go can do no wrong.  Fun.  Choreography.  High concept.  High concept, fun choreography!  This is what I'm all about, people.  I wish you could see my "little girls with push brooms as tired, bluesy workers" dance.  I wish I could see it too, actually, since I taught it in Texas and then moved to Washington two days later.
Ok, it's go time (see what I did there?!):

• I smiled and laughed straight through this one tonight (and missed Sasquatch like crazy)

They are (almost) all rescue dogs, which makes it even more awesome!
And now a few favorites from the past.  I had hoped to embed these, but embedding has been disabled on most of them, so I am linking instead.  But if you have some extra time and want to be massively entertained, you should click at least one link.  I recommend the second one, if you have to choose.

• The video that started it all, "A Million Ways"
• My second favorite (to the puppies, seen above) also has embedding disabled.  But it features treadmills!  I wish I came up with this.  Every choreographer wishes they did.  Or at least I imagine they do.
• They actually made two videos for the next song, "This Too Shall Pass," but I prefer the Rube Goldberg version to the marching band version (which is still pretty great, and you actually can embed, so here goes)

Also, I'm in Montana.  I have had a great week, but I can't wait to go home and see my little family tomorrow!  Maybe Travis and I will get Sasquatch to do some tricks while we play hipster music in the background.

Rescues

Waking up pain free (or nearly pain free) after a really terrible migraine is one of my favorite feelings in the whole world.  Excuse me if I'm being simple and talking about things I don't really understand, but to me it is like being released from prison.  I always know the pain will be over eventually, but never when, and it can start to feel like forever.  I had maybe the worst migraine of my life a month ago, and was in awe of the sheer length of it.  How was it that I was able to be in so much pain for so long without passing out like people do in movies?  Every minute I thought "this is the worst it can possibly get," and then it of course did get worse, and this lasted for hours (7, maybe).  Finally I found myself waking up, which meant that I had fallen asleep.  Falling asleep is always the goal with a really bad migraine.  I have never just gradually lifted out of a migraine without falling asleep.  But falling asleep doesn't always mean it's gone. 
It's usually a pretty big improvement, though, and last month I woke up feeling like I could fly.  I was so grateful I cried, and laughed, and whispered "thank you" out loud a dozen times in the dark.  The thing about this whole falling-asleep recovery method is that it commands thankfulness.  I know I'm being rescued, because the cure happens while I'm unconscious.  And it happens that way every single time.  This morning I woke up from a bad migraine (but soooo different from last month's big bad), and I imagined that, while I slept, I had been carried (in a white dress, nonetheless; I can't help if my post-pain musings are cheesy) into freedom.  I felt so happy I could dance around the room, and that was saying a lot since Travis' terrible alarm had woken me up after only 4 hours of sleep. 
I know that God does not cause my migraines.  There are a lot of things about the nature of God I may not understand, but I have a pretty good idea about how he rolls when it comes to people in pain.  I also know that it is in my character to feel impatient about things, but God has used all these rescues to make me into a person who is just really grateful.  It's hard not to be grateful when you get rescued all the time. 

p.s. Sasquatch is grateful, too, for her huge birthday treat. She has been working on that thing all night, and of course has no interest in her breakfast now. Happy birthday Sasquatch!  

The move

Bullet points!

• Tomorrow we move into our very own rental house.  I really hope it's as great as I remembered, especially since Travis hasn't seen the inside.  Ever.  I am very used to trusting him to make big decisions for us, but I am scared of being the one that makes the big decisions without him.  If he dislikes it, we're stuck there for a year.  I am 92% sure, however, that it will still be great when we get there.  
• Moving into our ow house means we will move out of Katie and Phil's.  I can't even express how grateful we are for their generosity in hosting us this past month (actually more like 6 weeks for me), and how much fun we've had!  There is a lot to be said for having someone to share the cooking and dish duties with, not to mention built-in friends.  Sasquatch has become very attached.  Good thing we're only moving down the street!
• My dad is coming (and bringing our niece Angelina!) to help us move.  He is also bringing one of his beautiful picnic tables.  I am stoked!  We have never had a place for a picnic table before, or a yard, or a fireplace.  
• I hope the previous owners leave their firewood for us . . .
• Also need a lawn mower.
• Being a grown-up is a lot of work!