IntrinsicTina

This weekend marked the 12th anniversary of my marriage to my husband, Rod. Actually, our anniversary date coincided with Earth Day. I'd love to tell you that we spent the day cleaning penguins or stoically and stubbornly not using fossil fuels around the home taking up the push-mower or the humble rake but that would be a lie. We started our day seated in our Subaru trekking northward participating in the annual migration of tourists to visit the tulip fields of Mt. Vernon. We love a road trip that culminates into varied photo opportunities. Vast expanses of blooming flowers on a promised sunny day guaranteed success in that regard and it did not disappoint. Additionally we got to indulge in our passion in sampling the local cuisine as well as mingle with the locals. Our first stop was at Bill's Diner in the heart of Mt. Vernon proper, across the street from the courthouse. Normally this historic establishment caters to the business crowd Monday through Friday from 7 am t

Thankfully, one pastime that I haven't had to relinquish since the onset of my occupational disease is reading.  Having to put the kibosh on former activities such as working for a living, knitting, cooking (unable to safely control a knife), and many household chores, including yard work (BTW, I love yard work especially mowing and mulching), I am ever so grateful that I can still (with enough pillows to provide support) hold a book and read it. While I also will download audiobooks from the library onto my iPod and listen to those while I manage other chores, I am resistant to iPads, Kindles, and the like. Heck, I have a computer I can either listen to or read eBooks on.  But nothing quite measures up to the look and the feel of a real, live "low-tech" book.  Hardback or paperback usually make no never mind to me.  I just the love the physical reality of a book in my hands. The most recent series of books I read are actually aimed at the teenager and young adult cro

March brought serious surprises to my life. Although I haven't mentioned it, I've been struggling with an increasing disability.  Since late last year, I've been plagued with an unstable spinal condition. What started off as a troublesome pain in my neck (October/November) has deteriorated into diminishing control over the fingers in my right hand (January) and arm (February).  This condition left me without any other option but to file a claim with our state's department of Labor and Industries. (March).  The tenacity of this condition coupled with the state's lethargy to diagnose and treat my condition, spurred my employer into cutting me loose (April). Unfortunately, because of this relentless deterioration, I've had to give up many of my preferred activities and pastimes: personal computing (blogging, social networking, learning new programs). Digital photography (capturing, uploading, captioning, classifying, and printing), knitting and crocheting, pleasu