Below are the 20 most recent journal entries recorded in Stacy's LiveJournal:

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Thursday, December 24th, 2009
2:51 pm	Tis the season To fail at buying people gifts! I am one of the easiest people to shop for... really! Moms and Dads are the hardest Also, I left it too late... but I've been too busy Thought about Audobon Society membership, but sisters shot it down. Landscaper vouchers... probably too expensive. Can Not Think. Bah! Happy XMess! Current Mood: frustrated (Comment on this)
Sunday, December 13th, 2009
4:09 pm	Bliss Saw depeche mode in concert in Glasgow at the SECC last night. Second gig on the Sounds of the Universe tour - after Munich in the summer, and here are some points. 1. Different sets. While I was sad not to hear 'Peace' again, and 'Come Back' is better in my opinion than 'Miles Away' I do like that they mixed it up a bit. I got to hear Martin sing 'Insight' - one of my favourite, if less known, DM songs. Also, they did 'World in My Eyes' - definite crowd favourite. 2. Man, I was close. I took the train over in the afternoon, wandered about a bit to get my bearings (I don't really know Glasgow much) and found the place where the afterparty was being held, got a ticket as well. Ended up getting to the SECC around 5:30? and stood in a queue to get into the standing area. Bemused by people running, and getting shouted at. I ended up about 4 people back from the front, and second away from the Catwalk Martin and Dave ended up occasionally walking down. Which was surreal. Obviously, I've seen tons of photos, interviews, videos of them, but to see them that close, singing... wow. 3. Yes, I am one of the devout. 4. I did not get crushed, in fact, the crowd hardly moved at all, just a slight crowding effect. I was, however, between a bunch of big guys in kilts and two hefty women. Skinny people don't fare well - or I just can't project that "I NEED MORE SPACE" vibe, until I started singing and dancing on my 6 inches of space. It was very warm. 5. I got some great photos. Check out my flickr page 6. Met up with Stephen and others for the afterparty, which seemed not too promising at first, but pushed through to the dance area and actually there was plenty of space. And people Dancing!! and singing. Depeche Mode fans are great, especially when we're all together and its all DM, all night. DJs played a bit more live than I'd like - but some good B-sides and a few remixes. Was very very loud, should have brought earplugs. Staggered out at 2:45 and Stephen drove, got home 4:30 to collapse in bed. 7. today has been a haze of eating and drinking (replenishing vital nutrients and fluids). Think I'm gonna put up my XMess tree and watch Labyrinth. Season's greetings!! Current Mood: sleepy (Comment on this)
Tuesday, December 1st, 2009
10:22 pm	running at night! So - I decided when I got back from my holiday in the states that I was gonna start running to and from work again, as I was now healed and healthy and all that. It's been going pretty good. A few times I took a ride home because of real bad rain or wind, or both. A few times I've felt a bit sore in a knee and walked in and back - kind of a rest day, I guess. The distance really isn't far, maybe 2 miles each way? I don't think I run particularly fast, either. My co-workers (at least one) thinks I'm "hard core" but that's not really the case. I am, however, pretty stubborn. The nice underarmor longsleeve shirt I bought is working pretty well, but I really need some new trousers! And something to actually be working towards. Not another marathon, but something. Maybe something ... different. I can tolerate a fair bit of punishment when I run, for example, tonight was mostly spent running into a headwind with cold rain and the occasional bit of sleet. But I am a bit concerned joining into an "adventure" race would just end with me getting pretty much trampled into the dust (or mud) But running at night along Braid Hills Road is nice! Last night the moon was really bright, and apart from occasional episodes of car-headlight-inducing blindness, it's not got any real problems. Current Mood: calm (Comment on this)
Monday, October 19th, 2009
7:23 pm	Here in my car... I feel safest of all. And I do, too. I hate flying. Darn that pesky ocean getting in my way! Anyways -- a few final upgrades have been made to my Chell costume. I still need to pack for my departure on Wednesday, and I have an allotment association AGM to go to tomorrow - where I will be signing up to be a new site rep. I'm looking forward to my holiday - one, for the time off work (although getting some good news on the grant front today cheered me a bit) and two, to hopefully see lots of friends and family. I'm really looking forward to helping my sister move house - I like to be helpful, and it makes me feel a bit more like I am still a not-totally-crap sister! Still don't have anything real definite planned, apart from an extended family get together dinner thing. Need to find something fun for halloween.! Current Mood: busy (2 Comments |Comment on this)
Tuesday, October 13th, 2009
5:31 pm	hell, I thought this would be the EASY bit. So, I've applied to join the bone marrow donation register. Filled out the very long application form, sent it back, they sent me a blood sampling kit so I can get my initial tissue type. It specifies very clearly..."Do not attempt to take your own blood" I guess because working stiffs like me got a bit annoyed with the crap-ness of our local GP's and took matters into our own hands. Its hard as hell to try and get an appointment, and APPARENTLY they have nothing outside the 9-5 working day (say, like, 8:30). I decided to go for a 12:10 appointment and get it done during lunch, but due to a meeting running long I ended up getting there at 12:19. 9 minutes late and they were snippy as hell in telling me I'd lost my appointment. So now I have to apply for flexi time off next Tuesday and try again. This is all to do something to help other people! And it'd take, what, like 5 minutes to draw the blood? Why the hell is that so damn hard to squeeze into a day? This is supposed to be helping me get over my misanthropy, not CONTRIBUTE to it... Current Mood: annoyed (2 Comments |Comment on this)
Friday, October 9th, 2009
4:51 pm	now you see it... My toe is mostly feeling better - so I am mostly feeling better! I still need to stay a bit slower than normal, as it gets pretty sore after any amount of walking in my hiking boots (and its likely that tomorrow's Ascension will involve me in pretty casual clothes and street shoes, not dancing...much.) Things have gotten pretty chilly outside, but the woods at Craigmillar are lovely with all the birch and oak leaves. I've been accepted onto the Bone Marrow Donation register, I have to give my initial blood donation for the matching service next week tuesday during my lunch break. Its entirely possible I'll never be a match for anyone, and in a way, that's the easy part. But I keep thinking that if I ever was found to be a match - I'd have such motivation to help that person, that I could cope with either of the ways they extract bone marrow now. In other, Cat News, ... Servo and Arya had a check-up and I commented that I am finding it hard to 'brush' their teeth (and I really don't want to eventually have them sedated so they can be cleaned - or possibly have a tooth removed). The vet recommended this specialist (=expensive) dental cat food, but said it could be fed as treats rather than replace normal food. She said if they didn't like it I could return it for money back. Ha, fat chance! I swear it is the Crack of the Feline world. They'll try to take my hand off for some of that stuff! And I thought they were crazy for the Catnip... (Comment on this)
Thursday, September 17th, 2009
5:52 pm	's been a long time since I rapped at ya! So, the past few weeks have seen me... 1. Continue with the Therapet volunteering, every other Saturday for an hour (which is all I can ask of Servo). I'm glad that I'm getting over my unease around elderly people including those with dementia, and I'm happy to share one of the friendliest cats in the world with people that can't have pets of their own anymore. 2. Did the allotment show. Didn't get as many 1sts and 2nds this year, there was a lot more competition, but its good to see more people involved. And a first for my french beans was a surprise. 3. Been playing lots of music, lots of the time, to prepare for the Gaita concert at the end of September (see gaita.co.uk for info) 4. Broke my toe. Which sucks. I am not good at slowing down, but this is forcing me to hobble places and sit down more. Which means I gotta stop eating so many Salt and Cracked Black Pepper Kettle Chips until I can run again. 5. Been playing Batman: Arkham Asylum. I wouldn't have given it a chance, but then noticed it has the voices of Kevin Conroy and Mark Hamill as Batman and Joker, same as the Animated Series, which kicked ass! It's an adventure game, but a fun one, and keeps me from desperately looking for hints of Episode 3. that's all for now, kids. Current Mood: sleepy (Comment on this)
Thursday, August 27th, 2009
4:54 pm	Here in my camper-van, I feel... um... hmm... Well, I just returned from a 'road trip' with Jack in his mum's camper-van. Its a converted people carrier, so is pretty easy to drive, and comfortable enough for being - a camper van. But I really wasn't that into the trip... I dunno, maybe it was the locations... we went to Lindisfarne, which I wasn't impressed with the LAST time I went and certainly didn't have my opinion improved upon. (waiting 50 minutes for a ham sandwich in a pub was not a good way to start) We went down the Northumberland coast to Craster, and had a decent walk, then a good fish dinner, the campsite was nice. The next day drove back up to Bamburgh castle, then to Alnwick to go to a depressingly not that impressive "One of Britain's largest Book Stores" == Barter Books. Seriously, I have seen so much better... Then the Alnwick Garden (way overpriced for what they've got, obviously trying to recoup their losses), then a desperate drive through the national park to Kielder Forest, and after getting turned away (or more appropriately, ignored) at two campsites, finally found one at the north end of Kielder Water with spaces (and bogs, and midges, but it wasn't too bad). BAM! I thought, fair enough, now we're where I want to be, in a woods where I can do my forest walks and mushroom foraging. Except the next day was POURING rain. non-stop, and I finally said stuff this, and left. Went north, found a few chantrelles, and slept in my own warm bed with cats! Went out on a day-trip foraging today and found a bunch of not quite high table boletes. I can't seem to get any luck finding hedgehog fungi... frustrating. Now, to clean and cook. Current Mood: busy (Comment on this)
Monday, August 17th, 2009
9:08 pm	buyers remorse! Ugh. I always feel a bit ill after buying a ticket back to the US. Not because I don't want to go back and visit, but spending that kinda money in one fell swoop, to go back home for a visit and some kind of attempted recon on the environmental job fields, makes me worry a bit. Is it a good flight, price, time, carrier....etc. etc. etc. Still, its through London, not Amsterdam, which is a plus. And I'll be back for Halloween, which could be a lot of fun... Listening to the depeche mode b-sides off sounds of the universe, while real enjoyable and somewhat uplifting, did just make me want to splash out another £50 on the box set of 'Sounds of the Universe' I need to get me some more gigs.... Current Mood: restless (Comment on this)
Monday, August 10th, 2009
6:17 pm	music!! (Oh, and I'm finally all over with the flu - take it from me kids, it was not fun!) So after a pretty quiet summer - things have kicked off on the medieval music front. I had 2 gigs last week, and have another one each of the next two sundays. So that's 4 gigs in August in total. Not bad. It'll pay for my ticket back to Wisconsin for my autumn visit. We're also thinking of doing a Cantiga concert sometime in late September. And we're kinda booked to do the Scottish History concert at the end of November. That's a lot of practice... and a lot of playing... But things have been pretty good lately, so I'm optimistic. Does mean I've not been doing much on the computer though -- thinking about registering for a Digital Audio Skills evening class... but not sure about the time... hmmm.... Current Mood: contemplative (Comment on this)
Friday, July 31st, 2009
3:55 pm	wait. what? I am a very bad sick person. I mean. I don't really cope well with illness. To quote David Lo Pan - "this really pisses me off to no end!" I complain a lot when ill. But that's only because TIME itself SLOWS down to ANNOY me EVEN more. When will the crummy-ness stop!? This fever sucks. You have no idea how many typos I've made and deleted to get this rambling shambles of an entry. And I really should stop listening to the soundtrack to the various half-life games. I kinda think of the little H1N1 viruses like tiny little headcrabs, wreaking havoc on my respiratory and circulatory systems. They're out to get me!! Where's my boom-stick? # Dominant species on the planet my ass! god damn single-celled organisms... What the hell did we ever do to them? eep. Current Mood: feverish (1 Comment |Comment on this)
Wednesday, July 29th, 2009
3:05 pm	"Where's my cure!?" I have the flu. pity me and make me many many cups of hot beverages. typing is difficult when you have a fever, the keys get all sticky. KHAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAN!!! Current Mood: sick (6 Comments |Comment on this)
Monday, July 20th, 2009
2:31 pm	Ratified. Well, I suppose a post about this Rat Race thing I did is in order, then. Saturday we met up and registered just after 10am, I think the whole thing was smaller than two years ago - perhaps due to moneygeddon? Our 'Goody bag' consisted of a bunch of promotional leaflets, a chocolate recovery milkshake and a 'buff' - which is a strange sort of headband-balaclava-wristband transforming piece of cloth. Preparations for the evening included a large amount of caffiene, lunch at the City Cafe, and finally - receiving and marking out our map of edinburgh, which you receive with a number of geographical locations - but you aren't told until the race begins how many points each location is worth. All that running to and from work seems to have paid off - although I'm not really a fast runner, I think of myself as a "Grim Creeper" which means I set my stubborn self a pace and stick to it! The route took us along the canal, where I did a bit of kayak-ball (had to use a paddle to dribble a ball towards a net, then made the shot with my hands and went to the next net) this was wet, and way overcrowded, and basically chaos in canal-water. But it scored us 30 points, so that was all good. Quite a few of the other points were on the south side, and just locations to find (some in the Hermitage!) but other activities included drinking a pint (Don accomplished most of this) dunking for apples, and catching a guy in a rat costume! I was pretty exhausted at the end of the 2.5 hours of running (Don calculated we ran between 10-12 miles). And then the heavens opened! Curse you, rain gods! I could hardly bring myself to eat anything when I got home, but finally managed some blueberries and the last of my American Macaroni-and-cheese. Sunday was full-on. From 9 - 5 we cycled, jogged, kayaked, abseiled, threw-Don-into-the-Sea, balanced a beer keg, and I got pushed in a shopping trolley, and did a minute of sit-ups. Most of it was cycling around Edinburgh, from Arthurs Seat to the coast, back to Princes Street, then the Gyle and to Napier. I felt strangely bouncy about the whole thing, perhaps due to my Swiss Army chocolate rations (with Caffiene from guarana), despite the rain showers and HILLS. I have had enough of hills! All in all, it was an exhausting but pretty fun event. I'm still a bit stiff, and have gotten some pretty big bruises (at one point I fell against then off the wall I was climbing) I'm hoping the professional photographers got some good shots of our team, because we kept forgetting about the camera, so photos will be a while yet! And the whole thing made a sprint triathalon sound like a walk in the park!! Current Mood: calm (2 Comments |Comment on this)
Sunday, June 28th, 2009
1:52 pm	Film! Due to the crap-tastic weather of this weekend, I've not gone to the allotment. I did, however, pick a small bucket of strawberries and redcurrents from the plants in my home garden. They are washed and frozen and waiting for their fellows to join them in enough quantity that I can make some more kick-ass award-winning jam. I have, therefore, been watching a few films. Saw Love and Honour, the third of the Yoji Yamada samurai films (in addition to Twilight Samurai and the Hidden Blade) it was very good - though I think I still like Hidden Blade the most. Then last night - was going to go to the cinema to see Terminator Salvation, but it was sold out!! What>!? Its been out a month and that showing was sold out!? Fury! Instead, I ended up renting "The Big Sleep" (1940's version with Bogie - aw yeah!) and "My Name is Bruce" with, of course, Bruce Campbell. Both were very enjoyable - It was interesting to see Bogart play another hard bitten PI but not Sam Spade, and he makes Marlowe different enough to be great! Ending was a bit confusing... had to think a bit to get it all to work out. My name is bruce was also very good (if pretty disgusting in places ;) to Greig and also Carol, both of you should see it if you haven't already!! I'm now deliberating whether to try and see Terminator today... but don't know if I can be bothered... hmm.. Crummy weekend of blah-ness. Current Mood: blah (3 Comments |Comment on this)
Monday, June 22nd, 2009
5:25 pm	Not a nice subject, you are warned I think I should try to get myself onto a wildlife first aid course. Because in my job, I run across more injured animals and birds and occasionally reptiles than an ordinary person. And when I say first aid course, I mostly mean that I need to learn how to quickly and humanely kill something that is going to die in a couple of hours anyways. Because I just can not do it. I think about it, I've had snakes with broken back, pigeons with holes in their sides, rabbits blind with myxomotosis... and each time, I know the animal will die, probably slowly and painfully, but I chicken out like the big wuss that I am, and can't do anything but find them a quiet place to do said dying. Maybe if I knew... as in, I've been trained and I'm confident I could do it right the first time without crapping everything up and making the poor animal hurt more... and that's probably the first thing they train you in in wildlife first aid. It'd be the first thing I'd want to know, anyways. ugh. not really a pleasant thought, but this time of summer isn't really good for young rabbits. I'll leave it at that. Probably lots of well-fed foxes and buzzards, though. Current Mood: drained (Comment on this)
Wednesday, June 17th, 2009
7:33 pm	Woot So the holiday in Germany was pretty cool! I enjoyed Munich. It would be more of a place I'd like to live compared to somewhere like Rome, which I love, and will visit again and again, but wouldn't want to live there. Lots of space in Munich, and I really like how so many people cycle everywhere (easier in a city where there are wide flat streets, bike lanes and then pavements... and no real hills!) We went to Garmisch-Partenkirchen for a day - but didn't end up doing the original plan of coming down Zugspitze due to train works, and our own lack of remembering the cheap Bayern ticket didn't start till 9am! oops. Still had a good walk, saw tons of butterflies and had some serious meadow envy. Never mind the lack of refreshments (the touted alpine rest stops were all closed or too exclusive!) Munich itself has lots of Parks and Gardens, some real good restaurants (but wisconsin venison bratwurst is still better!) and lots of baroque palacy stuff. I admire baroque palacy stuff for an hour or two, and then suffer sensory overload. Regensburg was different, and nice - more medieval. And then there was the Depeche Mode concert, which could take a whole other post, but I'm gonna show restraint and just say, oh yeah, it was so awesome. Great seats, great weather, good warm-up act, and the dm show itself was amazing! I'm so glad Dave Gahan had a relatively minor illness and has recovered so well - they sounded amazing and the crowd was great. I'm putting some photos on my flickr page, which you can see here Current Mood: calm (2 Comments |Comment on this)
Sunday, May 31st, 2009
10:39 am	courage! So I think I've pretty much mastered my fear of blood donation. The last time I did it, I managed to get everything set up the way I like, and apart from a bit of leg-shaking before the needle went in, I had a decent level of relaxation. I even managed to chat to the guy next to me, which involved looking over my arm (everything's pretty well taped up and hidden.) I really like donating actually. I'm a fit, healthy, donation capable person and I do believe that everyone should do what they can in life to help others. (might be a good point to mention to those that can't donate due to lifestyle restrictions, I agree that they are pretty stupid, and personally, I think everyone should be tested for pathogens before they start donating, not just those of certain lifestyles) Also, strangely, I seem to have a much easier time relaxing for about a week after... maybe there's something to this whole sanguinous personality thing... or I just usually run about with an excess of humours.. or whatever. This has made me think I should really get myself onto the bone marrow donation register. To get registered is easy - just a small sample of blood. Its only if they think you're a match that the process gets more intense, more tests of blood, and finally the actual procedure. There are two options, one being the older one where they stick a needle into your hip and the other where you get about 4 injections of stuff to make your body produce extra cells which they take out of your blood. Not sure which one I'd rather, but its all kinda moot anyways... I could end up never being a match. But I'd need to be prepared to go through with it. I think I could, I mean, blood donation is just a general thing, but if someone's actual life was dependent getting the bone marrow.. I think I'd force myself through any qualms. So, that's something I'm gonna do. Current Mood: calm (Comment on this)
Wednesday, May 27th, 2009
5:49 pm	busy busy Yes! finally the judging for this year's green flag award is DONE and I can go to sleep without dreading what tomorrow might bring me! The park MOSTLY looked good, I think, at least, hopefully good enough. There were a couple burnt trees, and still quite a bit of dog poo, and the scruffy edges of some of the paths were commented upon. But nothing too horrible. Anyways - I've got Friday off so I'm going to the allotment. Traquair last weekend went pretty well. The weather was crummy on Sat and glorious on Sunday, as usual. I sold all three of my willow bird feeders, but none of my willow baskets... hmmm... there was another lady selling baskets, so I think I see my niche. Music again tonight - tho I kinda wish I was just relaxing with some Fallout 3. Now the only real thing to look towards is Depeche mode in Munich! Woo! Roll on June 13th!! Current Mood: tired (2 Comments |Comment on this)
Thursday, May 14th, 2009
5:03 pm	NOOOOO!!!! First off - my thanks to everyone that commented in the last post - It helps to know I'm not alone in my opinion, and that I'm not really being rude (or if I am, its not a problem :) Mostly today, I am full of dismay. I'm always on my back foot at work. The park generally looks good, but I'm pretty physically and mentally exhausted, and I really need my holiday. I have worked late every single day, and sometimes I just freeze because there's so much to do I don't know what to do, then I just pick something and kick myself later. But I'm really dismayed at the news that Dave Gahan has been hospitalised!! They've flown him back to the States for treatment. I hope he gets better, and not only because I have been looking forward to this concert so much - having not seen them on the Playing the Angel tour... But because he is such a brilliant talented singer, my favourite band, and generally in interviews seems such a *nice* guy... :( I hope its nothing serious. I hope this weekend is good. Current Mood: drained (Comment on this)
Sunday, May 10th, 2009
5:47 pm	Tweet Well, I guess I am in fact able to go out on a saturday, do some dancing and socialising (albeit leaving the club at 2am), and then manage to get up in time to catch a ride to Jedburgh for a training course in bird survey techniques and identification, manage to identify most birds by song alone, learn the few I can't, and discuss what methods I should use to record with the hardcore bird guys without falling over and passing out. That's good to know. Current Mood: sleepy (Comment on this)