Missing In Action

Ever since I returned from San Diego I have been running non-stop. And by running I wish I meant going for a nice long run. Which actually I hate. But at least that has an ending. Which for me is when my knees hurt and I am winded. About one block. As much as I hate that I would like that compared to the kind of running I've been doing. Running from one thing to another like a chicken with its head cut off. Getting the house ready to lease has been a huge undertaking. I have had the help of really wonderful friends. I don't need to use those descriptors. You all know that a friend that not only offers, but actually shows up to help you move is something incredible. Even with that wonderful help it has been a huge undertaking. I am out of the house now but my things are not. I will go there every evening after work until I am done. Down to going through bathroom doors and dealing with all the odds and ends that couldn't be boxed up or given away. Mostly cleaning stuff and lotions, shampoos, all that kind of stuff. I will probably end up tossing a lot. That's hard to do.

At work I have so much in front of me to get organized and handed off. But instead of being able to focus on that unexpected things come up. Like projects that were finished and buttoned up. Jobs where work was done three years ago. Very frustrating. I have told several clients of my plans. That was hard. Most were not happy. Well, happy for me, but worried about their projects. I have good folks to leave them with but they aren't sure. And frankly, I'm not real organized so leaving things to my co-workers is hard since the files are not organized and a lot of the history is in this head of mine. Not good.

In the midst of these things I have had some really wonderful experiences. I was treated to an incredibly delicious belated birthday dinner at La Medusa, our favorite Sicilian Restaurant in Columbia City. The neighborhood is delightful and the food out of this world. We went on Wednesday which is local market day and the menu is inspired by what is available. We were treated to a zucchini grill dish, handmade pasta with fresh peas and handmade cheese, and a chocolate cherry bread pudding. mmmmmmmmmm We were seated at a window table and got to watch the comings and goings outside. Special entertainment was a tailless raccoon in the tree outside the window. He was just above the folks walking by and was trying to get down and move to the adjacent tree. But there was too much activity so he had to keep retreating. He especially focused in on the passing dogs. Finally, towards the end of dinner he made it down and dashed to the next tree. The whole restaurant clapped!

The other great event was the Seattle Brain Cancer Walk. I was part of Team Deb. The event raised over $400,000 for brain cancer research. There were I think about 2,500 participants. It was a very moving event and I was honored to be a participant. Plus I got to partake in a delicious picnic at Deb's house after the walk. Good food, great people, tasty wine. It was really hard to leave and get back to the house for packing. But I had two willing helpers waiting to assist and that is even harder to pass up.

My break is over. I must get back to wrapping up work and then back to the house. I'll catch up again when I can.

Cheers.

-J