Tacoma Free Day - February 20th

Visitors who live within Tacoma city limits will be admitted free on Wednesday, Feb. 20. Please bring proof of residency (current driver's license or utility bill).

Posted by: Ensie at 08:25 AM | No Comments | Add Comment
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The other day I wrote about a neighbor climbing the fence into our backyard without an invite, which could have turned very ugly had the wrong dog been unleashed. But it isn't the first time a gentleman caller has decided to enter my backyard unannounced.

After living in Tacoma a few months, Bob's Hogs and Weiner Pigs offered me a Pilot Position that included working from home. This was perfect for me, as I was tired of working in a store and ready to take on some new responsibilities. I happily packed up my digs and moved all my stuff into the home office, effectively rendering it useless to Frinklin and requiring him to purchase a laptop (but that's another story).

My office has a large window that looks out to the side of our house. I haven't bothered to put up any blinds or curtains up in this window as it's largely blocked by a huge butterfly bush. The butterfly bush allows enough sun to filter in to keep me warm in the winter, and shades the same hot sun in the summer. Since the bush keeps its leaves year-round, it provides a lot of privacy as well. Which is how I got to observe something completely unexpected one afternoon.

Sitting at my desk working diligently away on a price quote for a customer, I noticed movement outside the window from the corner of my eye. Looking up, I found myself a few feet away from a strange man who was slipping onto my property, working his way behind my house. Thinking he had seen me and would stop any moment, my heart began pounding, but the butterfly bush had kept me completely hidden, working like a one-way-mirror, although it appeared we were eye to eye.

As he passed out of sight behind the house, I leaped into action, calling The Jeffrey and running toward the back door. As I passed the hallway to the master bedroom with it's window facing the rear of the house I saw the man passing by and my heart sped even faster. With The Jeffrey's collar firmly in my grasp I unlocked the back door and stepped onto the rear deck, confident that the tall back fence would keep the intruder out. As an arm crept over the top of the barrier and began feeling around for the latch I spoke.

"What the HELL do you think you're DOING?!" I yelled, hoping I sounded much more authoritarian than I felt, and praying he didn't have a firearm of some sort. The arm whipped back over the fence. Footsteps began retreating. I slammed the back door and ran to the front where I threw open that door, still holding The Jeffrey's collar, him standing beside me, barking like mad. Two men stood in the alley beside my house, one brandishing a large 2x4, both looking pissed off. A glance to my left revealed the now-terrified-would-be prowler.

"Dude," I said to the man, "I don't know what you're thinking, "But I gotta whole lotta German Shepherd Pit Bull just waiting to eat your ass you if you got over that fence, so you're fucking lucky you DIDN'T get in MY BACKYARD!"

"That guy tried to get into my backyard too!" Yelled the man with the 2x4.

At this point, the prowler had turned quite pale and was just wanting to get the hell out of dodge. He had clearly underestimated the power of the Tacoma North Slope Historic District Neighborhood Watch Program. He chose the best course of action available to him when a woman with a raging 75 lb. dog and an angry man with a 2x4 are yelling at you - run like crazy. He took off down the alley with the 2x4 man hot on his heels screaming, "You think it's OK to walk into people's backyards? Huh? I'll show you!" The other neighbor began picking up rocks from the alley and throwing them at the prowler as he ran.

At this point I realized I had my phone in my hand. I must have picked it up automatically. I called 911 to report that a man was in danger of being beaten to death by two others with rocks and a board. I also mentioned the potential break-in. The operator informed me that an officer would come by my house to speak with me. I waited outside for a half hour, but no one came by. I also waited for the men to come back, but they never returned. Eventually a police car drove by, didn't stop, and turned the opposite way that they men had gone. Well done, Tacoma Police, well done.

I felt rattled by the experience for a couple of weeks. But we put locks on the gates to the backyard and make sure we keep the doors locked. And we still have the man-eating dog. And although I've never met those particular neighbors again, I assume they're still out there, keeping our North End backyards safe.

Posted by: Ensie at 12:26 PM | No Comments | Add Comment
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Did I ever write about the guy who tried to break into our backyard? I was reminded of it today when we let two (thank God it was only two - the friendly two!) of our dogs out in our fenced backyard before leaving for lunch. Surprisingly there was a man standing in one corner who, when Perdita appropriately barked and growled at the stranger on her lawn, swung his long-handled tree trimmer things (apprently they are called "loppers") at her. Thankfully, Frinklin called Perdi off before she was hurt and yelled at the guy to calm down. The guy began scaling the fence and said he was from next door and was preparing to cut back the tree in his backyard that hung over our fence.

"Next time, knock on my Goddamn door and let me know!" was Frinklin's reply, but the guy wasn't paying attention and was slipping over the fence even as I was walking out the door after hearing Frinklin shout.

"What's going on?" I asked as I saw a leg diassapear over the fence.

"Stupid guy in our backyard trimming his tree."

"Oh my God! What if we had let The Jeffrey out?" I stared at Justin. "You're lucky dude! I yelled, "If we had let our other dog out he would have ripped your legs off!"

"I've always been lucky!" came a voice back.

Dumbass.

I'll write about the backyard break-in story tomorrow.

It's been a long time since I've hated on some neighbors. Feels good. Feels real good.

Posted by: Ensie at 05:42 PM | Comments (3) | Add Comment
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Sometimes right in the middle of living your life, the road will shift and you find yourself falling. It happens to everyone. Often more than once. It happened to me in college. I can remember the exact moment I stepped off the path -whoosh!- to graduation and a degree and instead ended up at a series of junior colleges and never quite found my way back again. My feet are once again on solid ground, but it took a long time to get there. It wasn't necessarily a bad thing, although I do wonder how my life might have turned out differently sometimes, but I don't regret the decisions I've made and the life I have now.

Last week the ground swelled and bucked and tossed Frinklin into limbo. The company formally known as The Corporate Behemoth now known as Those Fuckwads Aetna fired Frinklin without warning. Without any warning at all and definitely without a severance package. Official reason, "failure to improve performance statistics." Unofficial reason, "It's just not working out." After three fucking years of stellar performance reviews and busting his ass. My suspicion is that they are getting rid of him because they announced that they will be outsourcing his position within the next year. They offered to have he and other people in his position train folks in the Philippines just a couple of months ago.

On the one hand this isn't the worst news. When my husband came downstairs to tell me I looked him square in the eye and said, "Thank God you never need to go to that crap job again," and gave him a huge hug. Frinklin's been half-heartedly looking for another job for a while. He hated being tied to his desk (granted, at home) in an hourly position, listening to people scream at him for problems that weren't his fault. It left him grouchy at the end of the day and dreading the work week. And they never gave bonuses, but a steady supply of branded alarm clocks, laminated certificates, and once a crappy canvas folding chair that one of our cats peed on. Thanks asshats!

The bad part is the money end of things. It's not good when one half of the household income disappears. There is, thankfully, unemployment which will bring in a portion of what's been lost. And I started making calls to see what we could do. That did not go well.

Our mortgage company always gives you a happy little message that if you anticipate having trouble paying your mortgage you should contact them. I let them know that I don't think we'll have trouble, but wanted to know what their potential solutions would be. Their "solution" is to make a double mortgage payment now, allowing us to skip a payment in the future.

"See how that helps?" the representative chirped to me.

"Not exactly." When I explained that I don't have the funds to make a double payment now, allowing us to skip a payment in the future she told me that she couldn't really help me further. That our payments would need to be made on time as usual, or if made late that our credit would be affected. How exactly is this helpful? I'm not sure. She couldn't tell me either.

My next call was to the folks that manage my 401K. I have a significant amount in my 401K as I've been paying into it for 8 years. I did take out a loan about 3 years ago that I've been paying back steadily. The 401K folks did tell me that I can take out a "Hardship Withdrawal." Fantastic! Send me the forms! The forms arrived and I found that I don't qualify for a Hardship Withdrawal as there are only four reasons one may make said withdrawal:

1. Payment of tuition for post secondary education for me, spouse, dependents.
2. Payment of unreimbursed medical expenses for me, spouse, dependents.
3. Payment to prevent loss of primary residence through eviction or foreclosure.
4. Purchase of primary residence, excluding mortgage payments.

So you see, I must stop making payments immediately on our mortgage, allow our credit to fall to shit, and hope that the bank begins foreclosure proceedings on our home post-haste in order to withdraw the money. It's a perfect plan! What about those of us that want to make our payments on time and keep our credit scores good?! The logic of this whole thing escapes me. Plus it's my Goddamn money!

We do have credit cards that we can live off of. It's just that we already have credit card payments and I don't want to be a slave to debt for the next 20 years. I don't want to have to go to the Bank of Parents to solve this (they have money, but not tons of it to give me).

To top it all off, Frinklin's last paycheck wasn't direct deposited as usual, the Fuckwads are mailing it to us to arrive who-knows-when. They haven't officially reported Frinklin as terminated, so his 401K can't release any funds to him. And his ex-boss won't call him back about anything (four messages and counting).

We're holding their fucking computer hostage until I get some answers.

Posted by: Ensie at 05:15 PM | Comments (6) | Add Comment
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1 Sucktastic totally sums it up! I don't know if we're much more on top of it, just more on top of finding out how screwed we are. He was in Provider Relations, handing calls and assisting doctors' offices with claims. He knows the insurance and provider side of claims as having experience in training. Here's hoping my job is secure!

Posted by: ensie at February 12, 2008 05:55 PM (yNgp+)

2 oh, man that bites; I know that situation, and I know that feeling and it's just.... Ew. Bad. Here's big virtual hugs your way, since I can't think of any merry platitude to make things right. (((((((ensie)))))))

Posted by: jcbetty at February 12, 2008 07:04 PM (lvOTL)

3 Just wow. Maybe when they notice their computer is missing, they'll straighten up. Maybe he could go into the medical side of stuff? Here's hoping he can find something good soon.

Posted by: Eden at February 12, 2008 07:47 PM (BDCWt)

4 Maybe you should hire this guy to send Aetna a message. Love you both -- let us know how we can help.

Posted by: K to the F at February 12, 2008 09:13 PM (ROdeo)

5 God that sucks...I'm so sorry.

Posted by: erin at February 13, 2008 05:30 AM (+Ng2w)

6 Oh my gawd - that totally and completely blows. But like you say, the upside is buh-bye crapass job. Sending good job-finding vibes your way! I bet hubby'll find something fantastic and then he can send a big old finger to those asscats!

Posted by: Heather at February 13, 2008 07:43 AM (Zx158)

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I know I'm late to the caucus blogging party, but I was definitely there on Saturday with what appeared to be my entire neighborhood. I was glad to see them, although things were a little chaotic, Frinklin and myself eventually found our precinct (The Mighty 314!) and were ushered into a separate area of Jason Lee Middle Schoool as we were a good 250 strong, one of the two or three largest precincts in attendence.

After some continued confusion as to who exactly we were (313? 312?) we waited around for our Precinct Captain to show while the Caucus Chair asked us to talk amongs ourselves. No one was entierly clear on how exactly things would go down, considering the number of people present, and the folks running things all seemed to be relatively young first-timers. A festive mood continued to reign as an hour passed and Frinklin and I chatted with an undecided neighbor about why we were for Obama. She remained undecided as we broke into our respective groups a short time later.

The caucus site ran out of sign in sheets and requested that people sign in on the back of sheets if they hadn't already. People who hadn't signed in their choice had their names read aloud and were asked to declare, "Obama!" " Clinton" or "Undecided". The Precinct Captain was the first name read alound and tried to get away with being undecided, but after sheepishly blushing gave it up for Obama. People proudly yelled out their choices and were cheered - undecideds were given just as much applause as those who had a candidate determined.

At that point, the room was divided into our three groups, Clinton on one side, Obama on the other with the Undecideds in the middle. Each group was invited to have a representative speak, which we did. At that point, the Undecideds had questions that they wanted answered. The Caucus Chair asked us to quiet down, but after a couple of hours of being told to keep quiet and chat together, we were ready to make our voices heard and debate. Several of us (myself included) stood up and yelled loudly, stating that we would like the opportunity to debate and sway the Undecideds. The Undecideds shouted that they would like the opportunity to ask questions and make up their minds. The Caucus Chair started to get nervous that he might have a bunch of pissed off Democrats completely rebelling and the debate was on!

While many people spoke from their hearts and didn't always weigh in on specific policy and topics, everyone was passionate about their decisions. We also heard from a number Undecideds who gave varied reasons as to why they hadn't made up their minds; one man couldn't see enough difference between the two (he eventually went with Obama), another woman though Obama supporters were just attracted to the Cult of Personality (although she later also swayed to Obama too), and one woman said she was terrified that Americans are stupid and prejudiced and wouldn't vote for an African-American man (Frinklin stood up and told her, "If YOU are afraid to vote for him, stand with us and show others that people WILL vote for him!).

The final count was 189 for Obama (16 delegates), 58 for Clinton (5 delegates), 16 Undecided (1 delegate). Frinklin is a delegate and I am an alternate for Obama. I find it funny that it appearsthat a bunch of people we know are delegates or alternates (Jen, Kevin, Cassie, Mark -- did I leave anyone out?).

This was my first time caucusing, being from California. I have to say it was confusing and messy and long, and I absolutely loved it. I can see why it's not for everyone, and if I had kids or needed to be somewhere that day why I would hate it. But it was really fun from my perspective this year and I wouldn't mind doing it again at all.

Posted by: Ensie at 06:31 PM | No Comments | Add Comment
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I waited in one of the enormous lines to get into Key Arena today. Frinklin and I got there about 10:40 and the line was growing in leaps and bounds (we were standing under the Space Needle). After 11 we were practically running as we moved forward to get inside - but there were two lines and we missed getting in by just a couple of hundred people. It was about 11:15 when we were turned away. We were told they had 14,000 people in the stands and another 5,000 on the floor. We booked it out of there (yay for valet parking at the Needle!) and arrived home just in time to see the speech live on Northwest Cable News.

When we left there were hordes of people behind us in line as well as tons of people still arriving by the thousands. We let as many people as we could know that Key Arena was full, but most continued on to see if they could still get in. Most said they would be caucusing for Obama tomorrow and when it continued to be announced that the event was full people's attitude was, "That sucks that we didn't get in, but that's fantastic!"

There's been some discussion as to weather Obama has outdrawn Hillary at their Seattle events. Even with their respective venue choices, I'd say that Obama could have easily had another 7 - 10 thousand people should he have chosen a larger venue. I don't think that Hillary could have drawn that kind of numbers.

In other news - Frinklin met Janet Huckabee at the Starbucks headquarters this morning. But I'll let him tell that story later on his own blog. He's busy at opening night for his new show (How the Other Half Loves - tickets available now!) right now. It's a funny show he tells me. I'll be there a week from Saturday.

If you're a Democrat and you need information on the how to and where to caucus for (Obama) your (Obama) chosen (Obama) candidate (Obama) in Tacoma (did I mention that Obama rocks?) check out http://wa-democrats.org/. Everything goes down tomorrow at 1 PM. Be there or be square.

Also - (FINALLY!) our long backordered Obama yard sign and rally sign arrived. They went up in our yard and window to tell the world that we're in the cool crowd. Hopefully the yard sign won't blow away!

Posted by: Ensie at 06:34 PM | Comments (1) | Add Comment
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I know! I know!

You're like - JESUS! Two blog posts in two days!? What have we done to deserve this?

But I had to write about the fabulous experience that my toes had last night at SAVI Day Spa.

Cassioposa and I have been on a quest to find a descent manicure shop in Tacoma for some time. We figured we would visit a number of ghetto places around town, eventually stumbling upon someplace unknown yet amazing. You know - the dream that all girls dream - an inexpensive nail shop with a miracle worker inside that can magically transform your shredded nails into strong, healthy, gorgeous nails overnight. All for under $20 a visit.

And we tried. We really did. We hit up several shops. Old ones, new ones. Until a few weeks ago we tried someplace really new and it was as though the place terrified our nails into not growing at all. Both of us have been suffering from short, peeling, split nails ever since. Plus we were seated far away from each other so we had to shout our conversation and then we were up-sold the entire time on eyebrow waxes and massages. Um, no. It was terrible. So we took a break.

And then I decided yesterday that my toes just couldn't take it anymore (email to Cassie, "Toes are claws! Need pedi!") and I needed and pedicure. But not at some ghetto place. I was determined to find something great, and in Tacoma. But try Googling "Tacoma Best Pedicure" online and you'll get a ton of results for Seattle. It's rather depressing. I soldiered on and eventually landed on the SAVI Day Spa at the Hotel Murano downtown. After a quick phone call to make sure they had room for two in the evening, our appointment was booked for 6:30.

We arrived right on time and valet parked (any service over 30 minutes gets free valet parking), admiring the new lobby decor. SAVI is in the corner of the building and we found our way quite easily there. Once in, Kelly welcomed us by name, given some paperwork to fill out for potential future visits, and offered drinks and appetizers. Since we had just come from The Melting Pot's happy hour we declined, sadly. But a glass of wine with your pedicure sounds just about perfect, don't you think?

At that point we each removed our shoes and ascended to the pedicure thrones. I can't imagine being more comfortable as Shelly and M (I'm so sorry I forgot your name!) worked on our feet. It was like heaven! We laughed and talked while our feet were pampered and rubbed, scrubbed and polished. There were no lulls in the conversation as we chatted with each other as well as Shelly and M.

Part way through our pedicure Co-Owner Sharon joined us to start our manicures. She provided us with some excellent advice as to why our nails might be spitting and chipping so badly since the last manicure (formaldehyde in the nail polish?). When she finished working on my nails they looked nothing like the sad things attached to my fingers I had brought in with me. Thanks Sharon!

They nearly had to shove us out the door when we were finished, we had such a lovely time at SAVI. I would have happily stayed forever.

We went with the lowest priced option for mani/pedi. The pedicure was $45 and the manicure was $30. Plus a big tip for the excellent overall experience. Definitely worth it. There are a number of other options that I'm sure I'll be checking out in the near future.

Posted by: Ensie at 11:52 AM | Comments (2) | Add Comment
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Hello!

Hi there!

Did you miss me?

I'm sorry I've been MIA for the last couple of weeks. But, I've been busy, you see. There's been work, of course, which has been really picking up. And my house got a mini-makeover. And I got a mini-makeover.

I wish I could show you the before and after pictures of all this. But I can't, because I didn't take any before pictures. Because I suck at the whole "makeover" thing. Sorry about that. Suffice to say, it wasn't pretty. However, I DO have AFTER pictures of the gloriousness that is now.

New bookshelves in the dining room:

New Bedding:

Detail:

New Curtains:

Before the mini-makeover, there was a broke-down old shelf with far less space in the dining room that had unfortunately absorbed some of Sadie's pee (we've come to an agreement with Sadie at this time that seems to work for both of us and is saving our furniture). Out with the stanky shelf, in with the new! White, basic curtain panels in the bedroom were replaced with the ones (thanks Ikea!) which have leaves that match our wall colors as well as the new duvet cover.

And then there is my own makeover. Jenyum at Tacomamama was kind enough to notify me of a 50% off haircuts event that Embellish was having a little over a week ago. I'd been chatting with various people about Embellish and "meaning to call them" for about six months now, so I finally wo-manned up and made the appointment for a little over a week ago. It had been over two years before any sort of hair professional had touched my head.

This launched the crazy "hairstyle search of 2008" campaign. I immediately bought every hair magazine on the racks and began frantically looking for some haircut that would look good on my head. I knew I wanted something longer than my shoulders, but not much longer, as my hair dreadlocks itself as the day goes on. It should be able to be worn in curls or straight, and look good with my squarish/roundish face. Commence panic.

Pretty quickly I settled on what I thought was a good look - Kerri Russell has gorgeous brown hair. She also has very curly hair that looks great when straightened. I could rock this 'do, I thought:

And now, I am.

Thanks to Albon at Embellish for spending FIVE HOURS over two days on my hair to make it look gorgeous like Ms. Russell's. I can't recommend him enough. He was a lot of fun to have work on my hair and did a great job.

And I feel fabulous with my new hair. I've got an actual hair STYLE instead of a big mess on top of my head. It's inspired me to wear lipstick for the first time in forever. Who knows where this could lead?

Posted by: Ensie at 11:04 AM | Comments (2) | Add Comment
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Last night's "Girl's Night In" expanded from two to four with the addition of jcbetty from Girlfriend in Tacoma and Jen from Tacomama to watch Project Runway at my place. Also added was a large bottle of wine courtesy of Jen and several different munchies. Cassioposa even brought her delicious home made caramels!

We had a great time, talking blogs and Tacoma, somehow meandering to stories of mooning people (you can see the natural progression there, right?). After listening to some hilarious parenting stories I've decided to delay having children for several more years. I like to sleep.

Thanks for coming over guys! I'll see you next week - same time, same place!

Want to join us? Send me an email at ensie1@gmail.com

Posted by: Ensie at 11:57 AM | Comments (7) | Add Comment
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1 I hope I didn't talk too too much! It was a lot of fun. Next week, smaller bottle of wine

Posted by: Jen at January 03, 2008 12:14 PM (LMqvC)

2 You all are way too nice about the quality of my caramels. But I'm glad I could contribute and I LOVED the discussion, show commentary and parenting stories, as well as the cheap wine. Looking forward to the next one!

Posted by: Cassioposa at January 03, 2008 12:44 PM (/fI+2)

3 Jen-- I thought I I beat you on the "talk too much" front --but looks like we succeeded in shrinking at least one pair of ovaries (for the time being.) Mmmmmm......caramel.... *drools* see y'all next week-- if the man doesn't get too snarky with me!!

Posted by: Jcbetty at January 03, 2008 01:37 PM (lvOTL)

4 I know, and we didn't even make it to the labor and delivery stories! (jk I really will spare you guys)

Posted by: Jen at January 03, 2008 02:39 PM (LMqvC)

5 I have my own fantastic delivery story that I hardly ever get to tell! I got to be in the delivery room during the graphic delivery of my ex-girlfriend's child. It was fantastic. I can share with the best of them!

Posted by: ensie at January 03, 2008 07:16 PM (6We+3)

6 Yea, I've heard that one ensie and it ain't pretty.

Posted by: KevinFreitas at January 03, 2008 08:40 PM (ROdeo)

7 You've heard the edited version.

Posted by: ensie at January 04, 2008 09:51 AM (6We+3)

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Last Saturday was an adventurous day for us, to say the least. Not only did I have to make one trip to the emergency vet, I almost had to make two!

The day started off relatively relaxing, with both Frinklin and I sleeping in. He was planning to do some Christmas shopping and I was getting ready to attack the massive piles of laundry that were taking over our bedroom. We were watching the dogs play with a new toy in the living room when things got a little heated between The Jeffrey and Perdita. Suddenly, Perdy decided the new toy was hers and hers alone and grabbed The Jeffrey's head in her jaws!

Normally little tiffs between dogs are no big deal. They happen from time to time and you assess the damage and move on. However, Perdy happened to catch The Jeffrey's eyelid on her canine tooth from the inside and we couldn't separate them easily. The stupid dogs wouldn't hold still long enough for us to grab them, so I was practically sitting on Perdita when they magically came apart. Somehow, The Jeffrey only had a small puncture wound in the bottom part of his eyelid - no major damage. Whew! Escape Emergency Vet visit!

I should have never said those words aloud.

Not an hour later I hear one of the cats errupt in a loud scream, which is not unusual, considering the difficulty Sadie has had fitting into our family of kitties as of late. My usual course of action is to scoop Sadie up and soothe her, as she usually dissolves into a puddle of purrs and cuddles within seconds.

This time she growled and hissed at me, and when I ran my hand down her tail my fingers came away wet with blood. I discovered a large chunk missing from her tail and when she squirmed away from me red droplets followed her. On closer examination, I found a V-shaped slice in her tail, obviously requiring stitches.

"Now I'm off to the emergency vet!" I called to Frinklin, who was prepping for his foray into the wilds of the mall.

"What now?" He yelled in reply.

"Cat damage!" I exclaimed as I packaged up Sadie into her cat carrier and bundled her out to the car where she pitifully cried the entire drive to the Animal Emergency Clinic. It must not have hurt too badly though, because she was all charm and love when the vet on call examined her once we arrived. Her paperwork states, "Purr to loud to read pulse."

The vet initially recommended $700 in surgery for her tail to keep the blood flow active (don't want to kill off the end of her tail!). But because Sadie is so sweet, we opted for sedation and local in the tail while the stitches were put in (only $275!), which seems to have worked just fine. Everyone at the Emergency Vet's office fell in love with her. I told them that they could keep her, but so far no takers.

Upon her return home she appeared to have a giant dread lock attached to her ass:

Sadie remedied this quickly by ripping the vet wrap off almost immediately and rendering herself even funnier looking:

Our own awesome vet checked Sadie out on Monday and declared her to be healing. Her stitches come out in another week or so. As great as the emergency clinic was, I have no desire to go there again soon.

Posted by: Ensie at 12:14 PM | Comments (2) | Add Comment
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I really thought this was an urban myth. But this morning I awoke to a Tacoma Fire truck parked outside my front window with ladder extending to rescue a wayward neighborhood kitty named Max that had managed to get himself stuck on a slippery roof yesterday.

Saving Max, originally uploaded by ensie1.

Posted by: Ensie at 10:31 AM | Comments (2) | Add Comment
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I really wanted to call this post "Fucking Sidewalk Replacement". And then in my head I was all, "but what if that's what goes up at Feed Tacoma and people are all offended and shit?" And then I remembered that I made a promise to myself that even though my Mom reads this blog from time to time (hi Mom!), that I wouldn't censor myself for anyone. That this is my own space to write whatever the hell I want...but then again...Feed Tacoma isn't my own space. Conundrum! Especially after all the publicity from yesterday.

I'll have to talk to Kevin about that. What's Feed Tacoma's official policy on swearing like a sailor?

Anyway...

This is my sidewalk:

I know it's my sidewalk, not only because it's directly in front of my house, but because I just paid the city of Tacoma over $1000 to replace it. They sent me a letter telling me that I had to replace it, because of the terrible condition of my unholy sidewalk:

(Click to read)

Am I the only one missing the terrible condition of my sidewalk? Especially, say, in the front six squares in the picture? Are there some booby traps or sidewalk demons I'm missing? No wayward tree roots have made their way skyward, and all of the cement is pretty much in one piece. I've read the description of "dangerous" sidewalks in Tacoma and I don't think mine falls into that category, but whatever.

So for the sake of peace, I've given in and paid for the stupid sidewalk replacement. Am I the only one pissed off by the fact that the original assessment of the sidewalk was done the year prior to my owning the house but I'm still paying for it? And why is the city forcing me to have ugly-ass sidewalks instead of keeping some semblance of historical accuracy since I live in the North Slope Historic District and I want to keep my neighborhood the way it is?

See my old-timey stamp?

See the hideous, glowing, ghost-like, new cement?

Am I the only one who thinks this patchwork of new and old cement will look like crap on a cracker? Get ready to welcome this look all over neighborhoods near you!

Posted by: Ensie at 04:43 PM | Comments (5) | Add Comment
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1 Well, amusingly enough though the title didn't have swearing most of your first paragraph showed up on feed>>tacoma as well

Posted by: izenmania at November 30, 2007 05:03 PM (/fI+2)

2 Oh well. I tried. Can't win them all.

Posted by: ensie at November 30, 2007 05:08 PM (6We+3)

3 On a more thought-out note... right now I'd just settle for sidewalks being open. what with Prium developments on all sides, 505 Broadway and whatever is going in across the street from there, construction has taken over 6th and 7th, forcing me to criss cross (or just walk in the middle of the road, which is more my style anyway). There are certainly sidewalks out there that could use replacing. Those with protruding panels encouraging the tripping of unobservant pedestrians and such. But yours looks to have been one of the nice ones. I don't know. As a non-property-owner I can't really say how I'd feel about it.

Posted by: izenmania at November 30, 2007 05:14 PM (/fI+2)

4 It's really good to get the perspective of someone who does a lot of walking around Tacoma like you do, izenmania. That sucks that so many of your routes are closed due to constructions. I know there is so much going on around Wright Park at the moment it's a bitch to drive around there, I can imagine it's twice as bad to walk. In taking the dogs for walks around our neighborhood there are definitely sidewalks that need replacing. I've fallen down over several. However, I just can't believe that my particular sidewalk is one of them with it's 99% flat surface and 1 or 2 small cracks (vs. massive eruptions of tree roots and feeling like you're climbing a small Everest in some areas). Nor do I believe that laying down bright white unmatched concrete is the best option for a neighborhood that prides itself on being a historic landmark.

Posted by: ensie at November 30, 2007 09:11 PM (6We+3)

5 The "conundrum" caused me to laugh aloud. I have censored myself on occasion as well for very similar reasons. That sidewalk does indeed resemble a crap cracker.

Posted by: sparkrobot at November 30, 2007 09:20 PM (lsev4)

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Today's South Sound Technology Conference at the UW Tacoma was a blast. I had the chance to see a number of local bloggers speak, some of whom I am very familiar with, others I have never heard of before.

While I enjoyed listening to all the speakers and panelists, highlights for me included:

The "How Blogging Has Transformed the News" panel, featuring David Zeeck, Executive Editor of the Tacoma News Tribune, who was fascinating to listen to. He was a HUGE proponent of sharing resources and ideas, which was really great to hear, considering the arguments that have come up in the past between bloggers and "official" news sources.

The ParentBlogger panel which featured Elle of Life of Elle (among other awesome parent bloggers), who I met later on. How did I never know about this blog before? Definitely taking a permanent place on the blogroll.

Justin Carder on the "Civic Blogging: Public Discourse and Participation Through Blogs" Panel, who is working to create neighborhood blogs through his myzip.net network. His Capital Hill Blog reminds me a lot of Feed Tacoma in that it's a place for people in a neighborhood to come together and become a neighborhood.

Several other bloggers and tech folks were present, including Derek of Exit 133, Kevin of kevinfreitas.net and feedtacoma.com, and Andrew Fry (who did a great job being "policeman").

Posted by: Ensie at 05:20 PM | Comments (3) | Add Comment
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A dog can never really be separated from its forever person. Neither time nor space can ever come between them. So when the dog comes to the end of its earthly life, and must go on ahead without its person beside them, the guardian angel becomes a loving bridge that connects the two friends for as long as the person remains on earth.

--Excerpted from For Every Dog An Angel by Christine Davis

Thank you to Dr. Warren and the staff of Metropolitan Veterinary Hospital for making Pharaoh's last hour one of peace and love. And to the awesome folks at Mud Bay and Lucky Dog for the treats and hugs on his "farewell tour".

Posted by: Ensie at 11:44 AM | Comments (1) | Add Comment
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After much consideration, Frinklin and I have decided to find a new home for Sadie. This is doubly painful as it comes at the same time as we are dealing with Pharaoh's impending death, but it has become very clear to us over the last couple of weeks that Sadie is not fitting into our family the way we had hoped she would.

Initially, we assumed the Princess of Thumbs would eventually give way to the rule King Percy. He's a relatively benevolent King , allowing things to play out daily without interfering most of the time. However, this defiant female usurper who refused to bow to his kitty will definitely rankled him and he set out to break her. While initially these started out as long, annoying games of "I'm not touching you..." they progressed rapidly to something far more annoying and eventually dangerous.

We've been listening to cat fights that have been growing in intensity and frequency over the last few weeks. They've been upsetting the other cats, the dogs, and Frinklin and myself. They can and do erupt at any time - when I'm on the phone with clients, when we have friends over, or in the middle of the night. Nothing like waking up to wailing, shrieking, spitting cats in the middle of the bed at 3 AM!

The cat fights have also manifested in Sadie not being able to move comfortably around the house, causing her to start urinating in odd places like: the floor, the countertop, and the top of the kitchen cabinets. Yes - the top of the kitchen cabinets! Fortunately I own an arsenal of cleaning supplies and have scrubbed down and sterilized everything in my house regularly. Once the cat fights diminish, I believe the litter box issues will disappear.

The Humane Society does not accept cats with litter box issues, which is the category she falls into. So I'm looking for a new home for Sadie on my own. I truly feel that Sadie just needs the right home, not to be put to sleep. She needs a place where she feels secure and safe, and isn't chased away from the litter box(es). I think a home where she is an only cat would be wonderful. Dogs are not a problem. Cat-safe dogs are fine for her. I think she would be just fine with kids that wouldn't be too rough with her. She loves to sit in laps and be cuddled for hours while she purrs.

If you or anyone you know are interested in Sadie, would you please e-mail me at ensie1@gmail.com

Posted by: Ensie at 04:24 PM | Comments (4) | Add Comment
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This is totally something I can get behind!

Instead of Buy Nothing Day, which I think is kind of silly (isn't it better to avoid the shops you want to protest all year?), use this day to focus on local shops who need the income just as much as the chain stores.

Posted by: Ensie at 10:09 AM | Comments (6) | Add Comment
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1 That's funny, I was working on a buy local day entry while you were posting this. I think we'll see a bunch today around Feedtacoma.

Posted by: Jen at November 23, 2007 10:35 AM (LMqvC)

2 I hope so.

Posted by: ensie at November 23, 2007 11:16 AM (6We+3)

3 One of the best Tacomics of all time.

Posted by: Erik B. at November 25, 2007 01:06 AM (QOBbx)

4 Love the pic!!

Posted by: Sharoni at November 25, 2007 11:18 AM (BqcQE)

5 Buy local day is a much better idea than not buying and thing at all. It'd prove a point to the larger corporations and help out smaller local businesses that really need your help.

Posted by: The Beagle at November 25, 2007 12:57 PM (TlAxk)

6 Same difference. Cool. MB2-632 Take it for granted. You should appreciate the fact that you have parents who love you. Don't take it for granted. 640-863 Don't be so stubborn. jn0-303 What's the big deal! 70-448 You'll die a horrible death. 000-206 I can't believe it.

Posted by: Pass4sure engine at February 02, 2009 07:38 AM (P7E/+)

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Yesterday I took Pharaoh, my elderly great dane mix, to the vet. He came home with me, but there's only a limited number of hours left.

It's been a long time coming. This trip. It was a consultation on his worsening condition. Since we brought him home he's had terrible back and hip problems, so bad initially that he slept outside for the first week. Stairs have always been his nemesis, and lately they've been more and more of a problem.

He's an incredibly proud dog, and hanging around anywhere near his hind end while he negotiates any obstacle is a good way to end up with puncture wound. His body language is clear, "DO NOT ATTEMPT TO HELP. I CAN DO THIS MYSELF." Touch him, and a roar of anger will emit from within and he will go down, all forward progress stopped while he flails to reach you like an alligator in a mud pit. Charming, no?

Pharaoh wasn't meant to be here this long. We adopted him to have a home while he lived out his remaining weeks or months. Instead he lasted a year and a half.

He started following me around after a few days, insisting that his broken, clunky body get up and down to be in the same room with me, even if I was just changing the laundry around. He loves to plunk his head down in my lap, expecting his entire head to be roughly scratched and rubbed for a good 10 minutes before he will finally relax in his own bed. He's slept beside me since he could make it inside the house.

But he's started snarling and snapping at the other dogs and cats, inciting fights with The Jeffrey and ending up the loser in a number of battles. He's refusing to eat more and more often, and he can't seem to remember when he's in or outside before letting loose his bladder anymore.

During the car ride to the vet yesterday he couldn't get all the way onto the car seat to see out the window - possibly his favorite thing ever. He had to ride on the floor.

So this weekend Frinklin and I will have a Pharaoh Day with car rides and walks and dog park. He's on super-duper pain killers to keep his body up to the tasks his mind will enjoy.

Next week he will be put to sleep and his ashes spread over the Tacoma Narrows.

As I write this he is curled up beside me as best a great dane with back problems can curl. I am already missing him.

Posted by: Ensie at 01:12 PM | Comments (9) | Add Comment
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1 When I first read this, I couldn't respond. Largely because I had too many tears I was trying to fight back. Having had the honor of meeting Pharaoh, I know he's an admirable dog. Lots of pride, but still a total sweetheart. I will definitely miss him. I think your Pharaoh Day is such a sweet, wonderful idea. I'm so glad Pharaoh has been able to spend is latter days in your household. You and Frinklin are the best pet parents ever.

Posted by: Cassioposa at November 21, 2007 02:12 PM (/fI+2)

2 Love you guys and Pharaoh too. He's been such a sweetie when we've come over and definitely a dog even I could love. He has great parents and I'm sure is very grateful.

Posted by: KevinFreitas at November 21, 2007 02:16 PM (/fI+2)

3 I am so sorry. I hope he has lots of nice walks this weekend. You are very special people to have met him where he is at all this time.

Posted by: Jen at November 21, 2007 02:19 PM (LMqvC)

4 I am so so sorry. I know what it's like to have to make this kind of decision and, even when for the best, it is never easy. As fellow pet lovers we thank you for taking Pharaoh in, keeping him, caring for him and loving him so well he lived well beyond his expected time. I hope you all have a wonderful weekend together and please let us know if we can do anything. Angela & Steve

Posted by: Angela at November 21, 2007 02:20 PM (N/glr)

5 Sad to hear Pets are family and it's never easy

Posted by: Michael at November 21, 2007 02:34 PM (/fI+2)

6 Thanks everyone. In between bouts of crying I've been doing OK. Pharaoh has been getting lots of extra walks out of Frinklin and enjoying treats of hot dogs. I really appreciate your support.

Posted by: ensie at November 21, 2007 08:17 PM (6We+3)

7 All condolences. What a wonderful year and a half you've given him

Posted by: Eden at November 21, 2007 08:34 PM (BDCWt)

8 I came across your blog while looking around on Blog Explosion. As a dog lover myself (We have 6 of 'em lol) I've been through similar situations as this and your story brought tears to my eyes and an urge to just hug you .. despite you being a complete stranger. My thoughts are with you .. and thank you for sharing your story. I know too well how painful this is. "Dolphin"

Posted by: Dolphin at November 24, 2007 04:47 AM (M5GX9)

9 Pervert! Let's get out of here. There are so many perverts here. He's the same as always. 310-065 How should I say this? Pick on someone your own size. 640-460 That's the way it is. e20-001 I don't know what you're thinking. 310-202 I had no idea. 642-973 See you later.

Posted by: Pass4sure engine at February 02, 2009 07:37 AM (P7E/+)

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I was really excited to be checking out Crown Bar which recently opened on 6th Avenue. Owned and operated by the same team that handles my favorite Tacoma restaurant, Primo Grill, there was no way this could be a bad experience, right?

Wrong.

Since it was a Friday night (November 2nd), I assumed it would be difficult to get a table, however, at 7:30 during the Dia Day Los Muertos procession down 6th Ave. myself and Cassioposa walked right in and were seated. There were a couple other free tables, but the small bar was full. We ordered a couple of beers; mine a European Apple beer was fantastic, but at $8.50 a bottle I wasn't going to drink more than one.

When we were joined by a third, we ordered up the bratwurst, grilled bread, and curry ketchup appetizer. The grilled bread was delicious, the curry ketchup sweet and a little bit spicy, and the bratwurst was average. There was an agreement at our table that an appetizer of the grilled bread alone would be a great addition to the menu, as we all loved it, and could have taken or left the bratwurst.

When it came to ordering dinner, I chose the much-talked-about Jerry Stokes berry's buttermilk fried chicken, butter braised local greens and substituted the garlic mashed potatoes with the goat cheese olive campfire potatoes. Cassie had the Cougar gold mac and cheese.

Disappointment reigned over dinner. My fried chicken arrived hot from the fryer, but was bland and tasteless. It seemed as through there were no spices in the mix at all. On the contrary, Cassie sampled her mac and cheese, finding surprising peppercorns as she swallowed her few bites. My "greens" were a soggy, greasy mess of chard that was almost inedible.

I did enjoy the potatoes that were yummily mixed with goat cheese and green olives. They made up the majority of my dinner, as I hardly any of the chicken or chard.

The topper was a cocktail for Cassie that tasted like Windex mixed with rubbing alcohol. It claimed to be some sort of martini, but after we all sampled the blue concoction, it was proclaimed to be the worst drink ever mixed. The nearly full glass was left on the table with the majority of our dinners.

After tip our bill was over $100 and I felt ripped off. For "street food" this is enormously expensive. We had two beers, one cocktail, one appetizer, and two meals.

All but one table was empty when we left at 9:30PM. A bad sign.

I really, really wanted wanted to like Crown Bar. But the concept and the execution don't seem to mesh very well. And...well, are you a bar or a restaurant? If you're a bar serving street food, should your bill be a hundred bucks after eating there? And if you're a restaurant, can you get the rowdy people at the bar to stop screaming and yelling, and to quit leaning over my table and listening to my conversations? It's highly distracting and annoying. I'm also not thrilled with the decor (seriously - the silver fireplace rock? It's hideous), but I see what you're going for.

The food is the biggest issue though - if the food is good I'll sit through bad drinks, high prices, weird decor, and drunk guys leaning over my plate. Unfortunately, it's not.

Posted by: Ensie at 02:48 PM | Comments (2) | Add Comment
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Today I was browsing the internets as usual and came across Dooce and her most recent entry about how Apartment Therapy wanted pictures of her workspace. Of course she submitted tasteful and artful pictures of various items arranged on desks and walls. All her shit is artsy and cool.

I wonder if this is how her workspace is every day, or if it gets cluttered and piled up, the way my desk is? It's so the opposite of artsy and cool. If Apartment Therapy ever wants my desk shots, here's what they'd get:

It's crucially important that my cell phone be comfortable.

That green thing is The Jeffrey's Dogzilla Halloween costume.

Looking at these pictures makes me see it through new eyes. Yikes!

OK - so this is pretty messy. But technically it's in piles. Piles of incoming, outgoing, and, uh, important stuff. VERY IMPORTANT STUFF. So don't touch it.

This cracks me up every time I look at it.

Is it wrong that there are more comics than work related items on here?

God it's good I don't meet clients at my office.

Books, books everywhere! Those shoes are also very important for work.

Posted by: Ensie at 02:47 PM | Comments (6) | Add Comment
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1 Is that a Keith Knight strip on your board? I *heart* him.

Posted by: Erin at November 01, 2007 03:23 PM (nLYxS)

2 Yes it is. I have two pieces of his art up, in fact. I met him at the Seattle Emerald Con a couple of years ago. His stuff is fantastic!

Posted by: ensie at November 01, 2007 04:06 PM (6We+3)

3 I'd just like everyone to know that this is completely her doing. This room was fairly well organized before it became her office!

Posted by: frinklin at November 02, 2007 04:59 PM (6We+3)

4 I'm just glad it's not just me...

Posted by: LD at November 04, 2007 12:47 PM (BsXSX)

5 As I may see – only your cell phone is comfortable there

Posted by: Frank at November 09, 2007 07:23 PM (p0O2M)

6 He rubs me the wrong way. You really did it this time. Watch me. 70-647 Don't try to pull one over me. 000-207 In vain. I did it all in vain. xk0-002 That's not the point. NS0-501 This is destiny. TK0-201 That's an exaggeration.

Posted by: Pass4sure engine at February 02, 2009 07:22 AM (P7E/+)

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I never know how many trick-or-treaters we'll get at our house. Logic says we should get a lot given our North Slope Historic District location and relatively high concentration of children in the neighborhood. Tonight's weather report is dry, something I haven't seen since moving here in 2005. This is my first rain-free Halloween. However, it's 7:15 and we've had exactly two groups of kids totalling six trick-or-treaters since I flipped on the porch light on just after six.

What a bummer. And we have so much candy. I'm literally giving it away by the handfulls. Way to miss out Tacoma kids.

I've been entertaining myself by dressing up the dogs instead.

Devil Dog Matches:

Lobster Dog Pharaoh:

Pharaoh, pouting like a little girl. He hates it when we put any sort of "clothing" on him and his reaction is to run and hide. Sorry bud. It was totally worth it for the pig tails.

God I need a hobby.

Posted by: Ensie at 06:22 PM | Comments (6) | Add Comment
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