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runswithscissors


Saturday, August 28, 2004

During this last week, a wave of spectacular, bliss-inducing summer weather has settled in around these parts, leaving my little bod mighty happy. Despite that, a few nights of cold temperatures last weekend and the slow gathering of autumn color make it hard to forget that a colder season looms. Which has me starting to take on tasks that can't be put off any longer.

After five years of a kind of punishment most non-lawn-care-company mowers rarely see -- near-daily use between April and October, plowing through 2+ acres of lawn -- the wheel/handle brackets on my power push mower began shearing in half. This machine has taken the load made for a much heavier unit and plugged faithfully away -- the engine continues gamely on, but the body is slowly giving up. Earlier in the summer, the handle tore apart and had to be replaced. This week I ordered new handle brackets and did the replacement work, essentially disassembling the rear of the chassis then fitting it back together. (It's amazing how lawn sludge has found its way into every cranny and seam beneath that chassis.)

Today's project: pulling out the stovepipes and chimney insert for the coal stove, giving them their annual cleaning. A task I generally put off as long as possible, and for good reason: on the fun scale, it's right up there with circumcision. At least if one has to do it solo, usually the case here. 90 minutes of sheer, screaming pleasure, followed by a long shower, scrubbing blackened arms, torso and hair clean of coal dust.

I've also, between bouts of making manual-labor whoopee, been trawling for someone to housesit here during the winter/spring, while I'm in Madrid. A process that got a bit wackier than I'd anticipated, in part because of the way numerous individuals expressed interest then disappeared, never to be heard from again. Finally, yesterday, a nice woman came to take a gander at the place. As I showed her around, we discovered she'd misunderstood the length of the housesit and will be moving out west in March. Two months, more or less, before my return to the States. Oops.

So. One candidate down. Another shows up tomorrow, on the way back from a wedding in Maine. With a car full of females.

Bet that'll beat the hell out of snorting coal soot.


Madrid, te echo de menos.

rws 6:22 PM [+]

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BLATHERINGS

August 2001
September 2001
October 2001
November 2001
December 2001
January 2002
February 2002
March 2002
April 2002
May 2002
June 2002
July 2002
August 2002
September 2002
October 2002
November 2002
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September 2008
October 2008
November 2008
December 2008
January 2009
February 2009
March 2009
April 2009
June 2009
July 2009

.  .  .  .  .  .  .  .


MORE FOCUSED BLATHERINGS


Travels:
London '01
Pamplona
Italy '03
U.K. '03
Sevilla
Casablanca
Stoke-on-Trent
Barcelona
Québec/Ottawa
Boston/Lisbon/Madrid
Italy '04
Montréal
La Sierra

Events:
Madrid -- arrival
9/11
Emergency Room I
Holidays 2001
Holidays 2002
Holidays 2003
Holidays 2004
Holidays 2005
A neighbor's passing
Madrid -- March 11 bombings
  and aftermath
Emergency Room II
Israeli friend/Madrid Marathon
Madrid -- Royal Wedding
The DELE exam

GONE, a novel:
Chapter 1
Chapter 2
Chapter 3
Chapter 4
Chapter 5
Chapter 6
Chapter 7
Chapter 8
Chapter 9
Chapter 10

THE BASTARD CHILDREN OF
JOE ROCCO, a novella:
-- Part 1
-- Part 2
-- Part 3

BURBANK SHRUGGED,
a screenplay:
-- Part 1
-- Part 2
-- Part 3
-- Part 4

Short stories:
Murphy's Wife
Another Autumn
La Queja de Una
  Hermanastra Muy Conocida

Autobiography
-- Personal History
-- Hormones On Parade
-- Accidents, Random Mishaps,
    Personal Problems

.  .  .  .  .  .  .  .


OTHER SOURCES OF WHOLESOME ENTERTAINMENT

People/Weblogs:
dooce
foxvox
fudge it
fear not
rebekka
bookslut
802online
idle words
madhaiku
wockerjabby
grow-a-brain
rebel market
letting me be
out and about
kung fu grippe
fanatical apathy
baghdad burning
wfuv's music blog
kexp's music blog
mimi smartypants
between the miles
just a hippie gypsy
the impossible cool
tomato can brushes
vermont homestead
sugar mountain farm

Good Clean Fun:
gizmodo
futurismic
postsecret
dave barry
human clock
mcsweeney's
spaceweather
book-a-minute
internet archive
self-portrait day
my cat hates you
out of context quotes
surrealist compliment
  generator
strindberg and helium

Makin' Musical Whoopee:
last fm
stereo8
pandora
soma fm

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ABOUT RWS/CONTACT





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