It’s officially summer in my book!  Last night went to the Joss Stone concert at Red Butte Gardens above Salt Lake City.  Great music, drinks, company.  I love the concerts at Red Butte, all sorts of people pour in from all over the valley and it’s chill and fun.  If you haven’t gone to one, I suggest you make some time this summer.  Even if it’s for an artist you are not familiar with.

Really, I could say I was playing with fire for this picture.  A gigantic fiery ball of fusion which sits at the center of this star system.  I took this just a couple days ago.  The sunset was casting very warm light throughout the house and things were almost sepia.  I whipped out the tripod near the end.  This shot is an 8 second exposure.

Seconds after taking this picture, the very young manager of Pier 1 came over to see what I was so amused with. He smiled wanly, obviously assessing damage, wondering how long it had been there, and debating whether it should be fixed immediately or if it could wait. Five seconds later he was calling associates over and tring to fix the new decorative labels before going to get a wet cloth to finish the job.

My Caesar salad at lunch. Even now, the Ides of March do not bode well for him.

A delightful restaurant in downtown Salt Lake City. Mister Frisky approved!

I’ve been sick for the last week and have been forced to take time off combat a sinus infection and to recuperate.  The final (?) chapter of The Hulett Plumbing Disaster will be coming this week along with a new seasonal series this which I’m retardedly excited about.  That is, of course, if I am able to get my house cleaned up and get some studying done for a work related project.  When these posts do hit though, both will contain some twists, turns and surprises which I hope you will find as interesting and exciting as I have.

P.S.  Am I the only one who’s home seems to fall completely to pieces and become an epic disaster when sick?  Hopefully I’m not alone here, otherwise I may have to figure out how to capture and market this amazing talent I have.  It looks like a bomb went off and I don’t even know where to start.

The only time it’s quiet enough to think is late at night. The only problem is that it is late at night, which proves to be problematic in the morning.

I’ve always been a night person, staying up late in the still quiet since as long as I can remember. I always figured it was exclusively the product of OCD or ADD or some other alphabet soup sort of thing. But tonight I’m left wondering if it is just because the still and quiet makes it easier to breathe, to think uninterrupted, to just be.

The silence is one of my favorite aspects of winter which will soon be here in the valley. After a heavy snowfall, the muffled, enveloping silence deepens to a point where at night it is almost tangible. It holds a sense of warmth and comfort in stark contrast to the frigid conditions just outside.

I love the silence at night. It’s funny how the absence of something, in this case sound and vibration, can be so very fulfilling.

I got in touch with my pioneer heritage last night, braving the bitter cold and standing for hours outdoors last night. I was 30 minutes early but was still too late to listen to her speak. On top of that, two of my oxen were bitten by rattlesnakes and my wagon sank when I tried to ford a river, but I finally reached my destination along with the indomitable Ali. You can see it in this photo, the warm and bright inner sanctum at King’s English bookshop in Salt Lake City. I got to meet The Pioneer Woman aka Ree Drummond and get a signed copy of her amazing new cook book. (I also got to meet her sister-in-law Missy who is a total doll.) The P-dub was so chirpy and bright, even after signing books for five hours I was totally in awe. I felt super special after meeting her, she called me “sweetie” which made it all worth while.

The first official baked goods project. A birthday cake for a friend. It was a little slap-dash, but it was yummy and it totally counts!

After years of having lovable, high maintenance, “mature” cars, I have treated myself to something very special indeed. I have a beautiful new car. Prior to now, the idea of having a brand new car was practically appalling what with depreciation and all of that. Before last Monday I thought it would be at least another four to six months before I would consider buying a new car. It’s amazing how concepts change when things are on sale!

On Monday, 12 October 2009, I was doing laundry and noticed I was running low on detergent and was reminded I had been out of fabric softener for about two months. I got ready and put together a small shopping list and was setting out to go to Costco to pick up a few sundries when something unexpected happened. After a weekend of not driving my old car, I had a small moment of anxiety over whether it would start. And what if that squeak I heard the other day means the axle will fall off and what would happen then I would be stuck on the freeway or even worse I-could-get-hit-by-A-SEMI-TRUCK-THEWORLDCOULDENDOMG!

So on my way to Costco I stop at the Kia dealership to test drive the new Kia Forte. It’s a beautiful car and if I had been blessed with a small stroke or a sugardaddy at that moment, I would have purchased one. Instead of having a stroke deprive me of my good sense or a handsome rich man buy me a new toy, I was treated to the rather aggravating and disrespectful behavior of the salesman on that lot. He was rather scumtastic and after some very “special” accounting methods which I think my mortgage company should be made aware of. That way I could buy my home while only magically paying them half of what traditional accounting methods would indicate.

(Don’t take this as a reflection against Kia at all, however. I loved my Kia and am generally completely in love with Kia and their parent company Hyundai. They both manufacture amazing vehicles which are grossly under-appreciated and undervalued. As we all know, some car salesmen are just scabs.)

In a fit of pique (and while coming down off of the crack which is driving a new car) I drove directly to the Hyundai dealership to see what they had to offer. I test drove a couple cars and after seeing the price tag on the 2009 Accent and how fun it is to drive, I promptly spent the next hour brutalizing over the bo dy color and trim I wanted. The price was unbeatable, the car a joy to drive, the dealership I worked with were amazing. I had been giving this whole idea a great amount of thought and so I went ahead and dove in. I justified it with the understanding that cold weather is upon us here in Utah and I want something reliable I can count on to get me to work. I felt that was a pretty foolproof justification at the time. Now I justify it with the sheer amount of happiness it brings me.

I had set out to buy laundry detergent and fabric softener and just a few hours later I ended up driving home with a new car instead.