Hi ho, MMMLogerinos!

The son of Mmmmmmmmm phoned at 5:00 a.m. requesting information so that we may enjoy a tour of the DMZ when we travel to Korea next month. Who'dathunk that we'd spend some time at the DMZ? And for God's sake, why? It's all due to concactenation--the linking together in a series or chain--of events or decisions that have led to the current situation.

I've been working on a nonfic handbook and website for women of a certain age/experience, researching and interviewing women of said experience from all walks of life. The son of Mmmmmmmm had regaled me with tales of women in Korea who are called ojima (my phonetic spelling) or middle aged women. When I asked what age would that be, he said any female over 27. I think he meant it as a joke, but maybe not. In any case, according to him these women are "scary" in that they are bold, pushy and rude. They'll barrel into a subway car and throw their purses at an empty seat to hold it if they have to muscle through the crowd to get to it. Sounds pretty inventive to me. The handbook and spinoff articles are expanding in all directions and include international Boomer women, too, because I believe all women can teach and encourage each other through this in between time in our lives. Sounds like the older Korean women might just have a coping skill or two that could be useful, or at least fun, for Boomer girls. I'll use translator services when I do the interviewing in Seoul and share some here on MMMLog before publication.

This was a trip that was off again, on again for several months. Then events and decisions linked perfectly yesterday and the trip came together. Now I have to rework our schedules to accommodate the current concactentation. Yeeeehaaaa!

Mmmmmmmmmmmmelinda

Hi ho, MMMLogerinos!

We bought our huge 27 inch TV at The Bon in 1994. The son of MMMMMm used it in the dorm, it sat in storage for a couple of years and moved with us many, many times. Yesterday we replaced it--well, moved it up to the bedroom--and leapt into the acronym world of HDTV LCD flat screen TV, as big as would fit into the media niche in the family room, which means about 42 inches. Of course, since we went with a screen that we could actually see from the far end of the family room, we determined that we were only half way there in a home theater experience. So we bought a theater sound/DVD system. The boxes were huge but we got them in the trusty Gold Victory and home we went.

As you can imagine our fun was just beginning. We had this gaping hole to put the screen into, but there were miles of wires, ya know, that had to be hooked to many things. I noted that the DH was kind of busying himself with a bag of chips while I read the quick installation instructions. Yeah, I'm old school on the read the documentation first before tearing into whatever. Unlike the son of Mmmmmm who screams through plugging and playing, only to curse colorfully when it doesn't work quite right or at all out of the gate. I read. I work through the steps. Then I curse colorfully when the damned thing won't light off despite how many times I press the Input button. Problem is I've read right over a key step, which I can only explain as a result of my having taught speed reading for many years.

Back to the DH . . . when questioned he revealed that he was waiting for me to wire the puppy up because I'm the techy half of this couple. Hooooohaaaa. This from a flight engineer/aircraft mechanic. Of course, avionics (electronics) aren't his favorite thing, but give the man a big sucky jet engine and watch out for the paroxysm of glee! Also I must say that in the past I've assembled the computers, programmed TV,DVD and VCR, wired up the stereo and that sort of thing. So this was the sole reason the DH gave for considering me the techy of the fam. Sheeesh.

The quick installation took us only about five hours until we dragged ourselves off to bed. The thing works. We get surround sound and a great, big picture, too. Wheeee. But there are still wires everywhere. And that's driving me nuts. We've got to go to the cable store for the HDTV box and install that before we can slid everything into place and hide the wires.

We are expecting guests from Montana and eight for dinner on Thursday and I'm freaking in this mess. They may all struggle around boxes and wires to get their turkey, but we'll by God have the game on a biiiiggggg screen HDTV with surround sound. Now, that's something to be thankful for!

Mmmmmmmmmmmmelinda

Hi ho, MMMLogerinos!

We're owned by Airedales, the kings of terriers. Our current Airedale, Emma, is a rescue dale who came to us when we lost our beloved Airedale Haynes' Glenne Glee after fifteen years. Emma's been running the joint for three years now and has just about got us trained. That black and tan fuzz ball on the sofa in the picture is Emma. It's funny how people fall in love with a dog breed and, for them, there's no dog smarter, cuter, funnier or better looking than that breed. For us and a large number of others across the world, it's generally terriers and specifically Airedales.

The following is a post from Jann Rogers of Northwest Airedale Terrier Rescue with a link to the mentioned national newsletter full of stories that will make you smile as well as cry for what some of these dear rescue dales have suffered in their early lives.

Every year, one of our national volunteers publishes our Rescue Airedale 911
newsletter. The newsletter has Airedale rescue stories that have been
submitted from rescue volunteers all across the country along with important
notes on training and healthcare for Airedales. This is the first year that
our rescue newsletter can be viewed online and in color! I have attached
the link for your viewing enjoyment.

This is a good time to, also, say hello if we haven't communicated in a
while and for me to request all rescue homes and volunteers to email me with
any changes in your contact information and any updates on your rescue
Airedale for my files.

Be sure your Airedale is microchipped and do use my contact information as
backup to yours. Be sure to cut back and/or eliminate most vaccinations
based on the wealth of information now available to dog owners and their
vets. Also, do take advantage of the "support groups" for Airedales that
are available through email lists (links on our national and regional
websites).

We continue to have a constant stream of Airedales come to us for rehoming
here in the Pacific Northwest. Sadly, the holidays are one of our busiest
times. If you would like to offer any assistance (foster, transportation,
grooming, homechecks), please let me know.

Thank you for continuing to be ambassadors for Airedale rescue and letting
good prospective Airedale homes know about our efforts in this region.

Click on AIREDALE 911 to go directly to the newsletter

You can click directly on this link on our national website at
www.airedalerescue.net

Jann Rogers
Northwest Airedale Terrier Rescue
www.airedaleterriers.org

Hi ho, MMMLogerinos!

Followers of astrology are very aware of the problems with something called Mercury Retrograde. It's considered the planet of communications, electronics, travel and other stuff. When Mercury stops its forward movement in the heavens, the details or physics of which I don't get at all, and begins to move backward, then its influence or energy is withdrawn. And everything goes to crap. Astrologers like Susan Miller warn people, whether they believe in astrology or not, to back up computers, double check travel arrangements and not make big money decisions during a retrograde. That is because something will be hidden or not disclosed about the product or deal and it may come back to bite you later.

The DH and I have been fence sitters on this retrograde thing. We've seen other people's computers, electronics and travel go to hell while ours goes smoothly. However, this retrograde, which began on October 28 and lasts until November 17, has been a ding dang doozie on all quarters. Might make a believer out of us yet.

While I was in Kingman, two computers and a printer at my brother's house threw craps. The family was in an uproar. My sister-in-law stuck with it, though, and chased down the problems on both machines. Buying a new printer was the answer to the throwaway cheapy just out of warranty. My cell phone wouldn't work most of the time, but I managed, just, though my flights were on the whole bearable.

When I got home everything was alright until I walked in the door. The TV remote got dicey, letting us know it's soon to be a goner. The DVD player tray won't stay open and chews your fingers as you try to grab the disk out. Then the DH powered up his eMachine and it quit. I called the computer guy who came out on Wednesday morning. He discovered the RAM had been blown out, probably by a surge during the bad weather we've been having here in Seattle. He replaced the RAM and the machine came up pretty as you please. He recommended that we replace our old cheap powerstrip/surge protectors as they wear out in about a year. We've had ours forever. Dashed out to Costco and got two home theatre/computer media center surge protectors at $40 each that were kinda spendy compared with our $5 oldies.

While Ben from Soho Computers was here he installed a Seagate external hard drive and networked it between our two computers. Now we're all set with hard core back up. Last night the DH went in to play Pirates on his machine. It began to power then quit, never to even click or light off again. Ben came back out today and replaced the newly dead power supply.
We'll be shopping for a new game machine for the DH in any case. We sure as heck won't buy it until the retrograde is over--just to be safe. Not that we believe in that sort of thing . . .

Mmmmmmmmmmmmelinda

Hi ho, MMMLogerinos!

On one of the writers' lists I belong to, someone asked about what a writer has to know about their story people before writing the story . . .

This writer starts with the main characters' names. I have to know their names and what they mean as that allows me to sort of tap into to their psyche (type) and what could drive them, make them do what they do. I could say this is part of my pre-writing rev-up as once I have their names, I get excited and get right into the story as I can see and hear them at that point. I have a stretchy idea of what kind of story I'm going to write, the fiction elements of story action or plot, the setting and what kinds or types of characters I'd like to work with in the story. For me, plotting isn't detailed, set in stone and telling the story so fully that I lose interest and don't want to write it. I want my story's plot to be elastic enough to accommodate the characters' development. I like challenging the characters in a "spandex" plot or story action environment that brings out the worst and best in them so that characters can reveal some real surprises by the end. That's the fun bit.

Mmmmmmmmmmmelinda

Hi ho, MMMLogerinos!

I'm back from the Rucker Hangar Party and Fly-In in northwestern Arizona. In the right photo above, I'm flying the right seat in the brother of Mmmmm's twin Aero Commander.

We about to depart Kingman, Arizona, overfly Canyon West at the southern end of the Grand Canyon to his vacation home in the red rock country of Hurricane, Utah near the gateway to Zion National Park, as the left photo shows. Beautiful flight and fabulous country. The DH and I would love to have a house there, or we can use the brother of MMmmm's home, he says. Yippy!

Came home to Seattle and a deluge of biblical proportions. Good thing we're on high ground and not near any rivers--they're all flooding. I'd like to say I'd forgotten all the dark and gray in the PacNW, but I haven't. My annual trip to the sunny desert does help to keep my outlook sunny, but yikes, this is one dreary place during the fall/winter.

Ah well, I've got pages to get on my new series and deadlines looming. That'll keep my mind off the weather. Next MMMLog I'll add more pictures and travelogue to share the sun.

MMMMMmmmmmmelinda