Tales of a vagrant ant

that’s basically how i’ve been lately…
i haven’t really been hanging out with people much, except for my sister, and Katie… Part of it is career-induced, i think, or the lack thereof.
Being in the lucky position of being able to live at home and save money, i’ve been able to try and get a job that’s a bit more desirable than not. But I haven’t gotten anything yet, and beyond starting to get a bit stir-crazy, i’ve been almost… embarassed that i haven’t gotten anything yet, to the point where I’d almost just avoid social situations where I have to explain yet again that yes, i’m still fuckin unemployed… So it’s not that I’ve forgotten about other people… but feeling like I need to have something to show to everyone else… :S
I’ve been making progress though…. making more contacts in the right places, and getting the low-down on certain jobs and learning of opportunities I might not’ve otherwise. Met some dude on the quickshuttle down to seattle that told me about jobs at the airport, and people I know are just sending me jobs as well.
So I feel like things are just looking up in that regard…
But speaking of Seattle, I went down last weekend, for my anniversary with Katie… Half a decade… ridiculous, I say! On Friday the 13th, no less. Despite a few setbacks, like a flat tire right before I left, necessitating the use of the bus, and the lackage of space to bring down presents, it was still a fantastic weekend! We went camping in Olympic National Park in Washington, and it was a really good time. Took the ferry across to Bainbridge Island, and arrived at our campsite in darkness. Then we cooked dinner, the kind that is romantic in the cook-and-eat-in-blackness-that-is-the-forest-in-our-fleece way. That salmon fillet was perfect though. Cooked to perfection (even if it took two trys), and served with salad.
There was something so primal, in how the only worries were to set up shelter, and to cook and eat our meal. Nothing else, except not getting eaten by wild animals, and the blackness of night.
The next day, we explored the park, going through 3 distinct ecosystems within the span of a few hour’s drive. Subalpine meadows at Hurricane Ridge, down to windswept trees & sea stacks at Ruby Beach, to moss-covered bohemoths of trees in Hoh rainforest.
And even if it poured rain the 2nd night, it was enough to know that she was with me, in my arms. The forest had their branches over us, sheltering us from the brunt of the downpour.
I wish I had uploaded some pictures, but I haven’t had the time yet… That place was just amazing.
This past weekend, Katie came up to visit, and we made some acorn squash, baked, and stuffed with pears and nuts, with some shake ‘n bake chicken. A bubblebath, and then some battlestar galactica before we went to bed. We also finally got the chance to give some presents. A slow cooker for her, and a comic , plus the first season of Animaniacs for me! yippee!!
Went to Lighthouse Park on sunday, and we went tidepooling, and just admired the massive trees, and the scent of fall in the forest.
So it’s a bit of a mixed bag… but I have the feeling that things are only going to get better!

First day of the youth part of the food security conference just concluded… I’ve been generously sponsored to attend by BLAST (building local agricultural systems today), and I’m slightly blown away, and intimidated at the same time… So many people have done so much in their lives, to create food security within their communities… this one group from the Hopi in arizona…. they were building irrigation… a 1/2 mile long(!!!) trench was dug, 3 feet deep to put piping in!! i was pickaxing an afternoon, and my ass was kicked from that… And this 14 yr old girl who went to attend a UN conference as a delegate?! i’m trying to remember what i was doing at their age… certainly not going to UN conferences…. geez louise! But there are also people who are older than me, and can serve as someone to learn from, so it’s good to have this spectrum… Lots of thoughts, and I haven’t had time to digest all the information properly yet.

lots of really cool people there… it’s funny, because there’s a few from wisconsin, and one actually from right around blue earth, minnesota, and some from the mississippi… so it was cool actually knowing where these kids were coming from, because of my road trip, and all the places I drove past during that time.
I’ve been finding that being surrounded by such positive energy regarding the “food movement” is really inspiring, and really makes me see how something along these lines could provide some sort of livelihood, which is really cool!

Tommorow, all the youth delegates are going to Strathcona Community Garden, and EYA’s gonna put them to work.. haha. naw, we’re just going to let them know what the garden is all about, and share a little bit of my past 6 months with them… but i think i hear rain outside… ahhhh… well, i’ll keep my fingers crossed!!

As Slacktivist says it so well:
“Sometimes, though, I read something interesting, bookmark the site, and then never get around to writing about it. Weeks and months pass by and the bookmarks folder gets filled to overflowing… Now there’s months of stuff stuffed in there and it’s about time to concede, once again, that I’ll never get around to writing anything of significant length or insight about all of this. But it’d be a shame to waste all those lovely bookmarks (even though, reading some of these now, I don’t even remember why I bookmarked them in the first place) so here are just a few:

The result of combining Yuletide cheer, and the undead - the picture is pricess!

The folly of trekkie marriages - klingon law

Why you should go to farmer’s markets - Just a few of the reasons why I do love farmer market’s so…

live in harmony with the ways of the farm, and join the organic rebellion! - with names like cuke skywalker, TofuD2, and chewbrocolli, how can you resist?

New airline rules telling us what we can bring on a plane - Not just a ban on snakes, you say?

Beard Envy? Never! - okay, maybe just a little bit!

No words can describe this except simply… Amazing! - At the same time, what would inspire someone to do so?

and lastly, something awesome from my trip to Alaska… Whales! Also I love how excited everyone is nearer to the end of this clip.