Natural Disaster, Schmatural Disaster. I Have Grammar Questions!

Do y'all remember me talking about the major landslide here that blocked our access to Yosemite?

(Click picture if you crave more info. Photo by Ed Harp of the USGS.)

Well for the most part the damage has been dealt with, through creative use of temporary bridges over the river, and a beefing up of the (previously dirt) road on the other side.

(Again, click picture for info site...Photo by Caltrans)

So what happens now is; one drives up to a timed stoplight, waits for a bit and then makes a sharp 90 degree turn onto a narrow temporary bridge, crosses, makes another 90 degree turn, drives past the landslide on the opposite side of the river, does two more 90 degree turns over another temporary bridge, and then one is on one's way! Now all this is a marvel of modern civil engineering, by which I am duly impressed. However there is one thing with which I am at least perplexed, if not completely unimpressed. The signage.

First of all, about 15 miles before you even get to the landslide there is one of those big portable light up signs that flash changing messages. This one is programmed to say "Hwy 140 Open" and then "28 Feet Vehicle Length Limit." Now am I crazy, or would it be more grammatically correct to say "foot"? It sure sounds awkward to me.

Then the second bit of questionable syntax is encountered right at the metered stoplight. Here there is a sign that declares "Expect 15 Minutes Wait." Again, am I completely nuts, or wouldn't it be more correct to just say "minute", as in "Expect a 15 minute wait" but dropping the "a" for simplicity? If it remains plural, wouldn't it have to be possessive also?

I dunno. I am sure I am no grammar whiz. In fact, there are probably multiple linguistic errors right in this here blog entry. So what do you think, oh internets? Is it me, or is the Caltrans sign person smokin' too much weed?

Hire Me As Your Marketing Director!

We got a set of this glass tupperwarey type stuff...
And I just can't resist calling it glupperware.

Was It Cool In The Eighties?

Recently I've gotten to do a teeny bit of knitting due to the fact that The Bub is napping more regularly. Unfortunately I seem to be unable to recapture the success I had as a rank beginner. On first glance The New Hat is great, fuzzy, nubbly, and subtly stripey...

Until you see it next to a real hat, that fits a real head...

Now, I am a big fan of the whole "low rise" phenomenon. My trousers have been dangling from my hips since some time in the ancient past of my high school years. But I'm doubting my luck sparking a new fashion trend for the winter, The Low Rise Hat. It sexy, its new! Show off those alluring ears, you scamp!

Or I guess I could try and find someone who needs a not-so-subdued yarmulke... Yeah, or I could just unknit the last 14 rows and make a real hat that someone could actually wear. Hopefully I can get around to that before winter is totally over...

It Looks Like Meat Is NOT Back On The Menu, Boys!

At least not in the form of Trader Joe's beef tamales. I certainly enjoyed these tender, lightly spicy, little beef bundles yesterday for lunch, but my tot spent the entire night waking up and farting at least once an hour all night last night like some sort of sophomoric scatological alarm clock, which is really less funny than it sounds. Really.

Some Snappies...

From the Big Trip Back East...


Create Your Own!

Grumpy McCrankleBags

Oh, hey! There you are! I bet you've been on the edge of your seats waiting to hear if our luggage made it home okay. And unfortunately I have to say that the answer is no. The courier arrived at our door late Wednesday afternoon with my bags. As I picked them up to tote them in the door I remarked to myself that they were ungodly heavy. Thinking it was just me being feak and weeble I stuck them in a corner until the Bub's nap time. Two hours later I get around to opening the bags. I pull out the first onsie and oddly enough it is wet. Hmmm, maybe it was from a diaper blowout that I had rinsed out and forgot about. But wait, this is wet too, and this as well. And my digital camera, it's wet too! WTF?!

I open the huge roller suitcase (all 44 lbs of it) and it is wet-top to bottom and front to back. This is not okay. The baby's sheepskin, soaked. My leather skirt, soaked and starting to mold! My wool scarves, my dry clean only skirt, my leather boots. Everything. Evidently our plane wasn't the only thing sitting on the tarmac during the thunderstorm. So my luggage got soaked sometime Monday afternoon and stayed that way until Wednesday evening. Fabulous.

I call United Airlines. I get the phone run around for an hour and a half. Evidently I have two totally unacceptable options. The first is to pack everything back in the suitcase and take it back to the airport, I live 3 hours from the airport. I have a three month old baby. I asked if they'd reimburse me for gas. Negative. The second option is to send the dry cleaning bill to United Airlines (dry clean my digi?!). There is no dry cleaners within 45 minutes of my house. (I kid you not!) I did make it over to lovely downtown Oakhurst in the next week, but alas, they don't clean leather.

During the entire phone debacle, I just really wanted someone to say "Your kidding! Your luggage is really soaked? We are so sorry. How can we make this right." Yeah, you can say I'm a dreamer. So I eventually got someone to cave and promise to send me $50 in travel vouchers. Not that I'll ever fly United again. But they are transferrable, so let me know if YOU want 'em! Now I know I should write a letter to customer service, but I can't get past "you suck and I hate you." So maybe I need a little distance.

Like Gilgamesh...

We are finally home from the East Coast Extravaganza, but unfortunately our luggage is not. We had a bit of an epic battle to get back to California due to some rainsleethaillightningstorm in Chicago. The two quick flights were supposed to take 6 hours, but unfortunately they turned into 14 and a half hours of aural torture for me and 247 of my closest soon-to-be-enemies. The tough thing about both flights is that we were already on the plane when we got delayed... like sardines... marinating in that really stinky oil. Jackson... not happy. Me... breastsore and weary, driven to tears twice. Julie... the random passenger who so kindly volunteered to hold my overtired, squalling son while I washed my face and took a few deep breaths... a saint! But we made it home safe and sound and only a tiny bit worse for the wear!

Hopefully the luggage will arrive today so that I can post a picture or two from the ECE. In the mean time check out Uncle Robbie in all his piratical glory...