So, these two characters figured prominently in my Thanksgiving day celebrations. It is late and there is a lot to say so I will be brief.

I slept in really late and zombied around the kitchen struggling to be coherent, let alone communicable. I had some peanut butter on bread and finally made some tea and slowly, oh so slowly, came to life. With two adorable little girls wanting to play with me it was a struggle to tell them “No” while I became functional. But after an hour or so I was semi-human again and it was time to play.

Lots of good stuff happened. We played airplane and built a fort—and then I read them some books in the fort—and sat in the recliner and watched some Disney cartoons and the highlight of the day, for me anyway, was introducing my nieces to the Couch Monster. He lurks in every couch and with all the talk today about food he decided to come out and “eat two little girls with a side of mashed potatoes”. And really, when all it takes to make a Couch Monster is to put two girls on the couch, cover them with pillows and cushions, and then smoosh them around under the pillows while making loud chewing sounds, how can you not make a Couch Monster? Oh yeah, and the wagon rides around the neighborhood, that was lots of fun. I got the wagon going “super-duper fast” on the sidewalks and convinced the girls that they were going so fast they were passing me. (When all I was doing was slowing my pace so as to let the wagon be a little forward of me.)

We paused for the Thanksgiving gorging meal and then I loaded the dishwasher and went for a walk. My regular route is 2.5 miles and I was fighting both my enemies above on the walk. (I felt like I was fighting gravity as well but if I didn’t go for a walk I would have been in sorry shape.) After my walk there was a nice snooze on the couch—I have vague memories of another Disney cartoon playing on the television—then it was bath-time for the girls and movie time for the adults. Tonight it was Star Trek-First Contact, my favorite movie from the Star Trek: The Next Generation series. I think I got some secret nerd props from my brother-in-law when I casually mentioned that this was the movie where Zephraim Cochran invents the warp drive. Good Times!

Then it was time for another 2.5 mile walk, to have a pipe or three and to further facilitate the post-gorging digestion process. I have absolutely NO control when it comes to the Thanksgiving meal. It is my favorite holiday meal. And if you think I am kidding I will just say that as dinner was finished and we paused before dessert, my niece Lilly looks over at me and say, “Why is Uncle Dennis eating all the food?” HA! But come on, there was just a little bit of mashed potatoes left, and one spoonful of stuffing, and just barely enough gravy to cover it all; Why bother putting it away in the fridge when it could go in my belly? : -)

Tomorrow will be leftovers, lots more playing with the girls, and maybe a trip to the park. We will NOT be shopping under any circumstances, though. No one here is crazy enough or demented enough to want to go to the stores to do holiday shopping; It’s not worth it.

As for the two characters in my post title, I think of them as a gastronomic duo fighting alertness and coherency wherever they go. Tryptophan is the suave, smooth member of the duo who sidles up to you and makes you sleepy before you know it. Whereas Glucose is the rougher one who sorta just sneaks up to you and hits you over the head with sleepy-time. Glucose is a little rough and tumble companion to Tryptophan’s subtle ways. But they make an invincible team on Thanksgiving.

I’ve been looking for a stool or small chair to keep in the kitchen so I can sit down when I put on my shoes.* I was thinking I would need my buddy Eric to find something for me as he is the king of discount/bargain shopping. Alas, I was at a church-run thrift store yesterday in search of a floor lamp and came across this awesome little chair from an old elementary school right by the cash register just inside the entrance to the establishment. In the store I sat down on it and felt quite comfortable, surprised at the amount of leg room it gave me. I put it back and wandered around the store looking for a floor lamp. I found an awesome floor lamp—It will get its own blog post soon—and meandered throughout the store checking out the variety of items they had.
(For all my searching—I have been to numerous second-hand/thrift stores in the Madison area—I have not been able to find any used Pyrex pie pans. I want the older plain-rimmed kind that are 8″ – 8.5″ in diameter instead of the newer, fluted pie pans that are 9.5″ in diameter.)

I picked up an old Kenny Rogers LP as a Christmas present for my buddy Eric and a small crocheted snowflake doily for Harriet to go along with her birthday chocolates. As I was approaching the checkout there was a small line so I stopped to look at this chair again. I took it down and set it on the floor and sat in it again, imagining myself taking off my shoes. I found it to be quite comfortable and sturdy. (Is there anything sturdier than an old school chair made of wood and steel? I doubt it. Those things were designed to take abuse and last a lifetime.) Not seeing a price tag I decided to take a chance that it would not be expensive.

The cashier said she would charge me $3.99 for it as that is how they priced all their other chairs. I got a good deal on the chair and a complete steal on the floor lamp. I wanted to offer to pay more for the floor lamp but there were people in line behind me and I felt awkward. But, seeing how this store is a fundraiser for charities, it didn’t seem right to buy a brass floor lamp for $7.99 when I could have easily paid $12 – $15 for it and still had a bargain. Anyway, below are a couple pics of my new shoe-putting-on-chair for the kitchen. (And yes, I know it is not a stool but that word rhymed perfectly with the rest of my post and I like alliteration more than I like precise use of nominal descriptors.)

*Why are my shoes in the kitchen, you ask? Because I am trying to keep my apartment shoe-free so I keep them in the kitchen which has a linoleum floor. Thus, any mud/dirt/debris I track in will be easier to clean up and not get tracked through the apartment.

Have A Seat

My Footwear Throne

Earlier today I went to the Wisconsin DMV office on Madison’s east side. I had a little trouble finding it at first but when I got there I was bemused by the size of the facility. It is not much bigger than a modern, suburban tract-home, maybe in the 4000 square foot range. I parked and went inside.

What an awesome experience I had. From the time I went to the information counter to get my little paper slip until the time I had my picture taken took only 15 MINUTES. That’s right, 15 minutes from start to finish. I got in line, was assigned a form to fill out, filled out it and got back in line, and then received my number. Within about two seconds of receiving my number it was announced over the in-house PA system. No joke! (In New York City I would have spent an half-hour in line just to get my little paper slip, before waiting to get called. Whereas in DC . . . well forget about DMV in DC. To get a driver’s license in DC took a whole day.)

With my little paper slip in hand, I went over to the counter and worked with a somewhat dour individual that seemed completely uninterested in small talk apart from commenting that I was from “the great state of New York” and inquiring as to why my passport had no stamps in it. (I explained it was a renewal and that I hadn’t traveled overseas since I received it. He sounded surprised when I mentioned having traveled over much of Western Europe.) I gave him my filled-out form, old license, two pre-printed utility bills, and passport and he got to work on getting me entered into their system. (Even though the Wisconsin DMV website said I needed to provide my Social Security card as well he never asked for it.)

After a few minutes I was handed a sheet of paper with my temporary driver’s license info and was told my actual license would arrive in 5-10 days. Then it was off to the photo station. My longest wait of the day occurred there where I had to sit and wait just about three minutes to get my picture taken. After signing the driver’s license signature-entry pad (and making a quick check in the mirror) my pic was snapped and I was on my way out the door at 12:21 PM.

So, I am now officially a citizen of “the great state of Wisconsin” and the DMV facilities in Wisconsin—or at least at this one particular location in Madison—are fast, efficient and rather serviceable. On Wisconsin!

Wisconsin State Song
On, Wisconsin! On, Wisconsin!
Grand old Badger State!
We, your loyal sons and daughters,
Hail thee, good and great.
On, Wisconsin! On, Wisconsin!
Champion of the right,
“Forward”, our motto,
God will give thee might!

I did some laundry yesterday and it was on the rinse cycle when I left to meet up with a friend for dinner*. When I returned home my laundry was sitting in my basket on the floor. Apparently, someone else in my building needed to do laundry during dinner hours on a Saturday night. Odd, right!? My laundry was done but I was too lazy/tired to take it to the laundromat to put it in the dryer. (My landlord provides a washing machine but no dryer.) So this morning I see my laundry sitting there and I see the sun shining and figure, why not put it out on the clothes-line.

Right now, I’ve got my pajamas, a fleece hat, and a short-sleeve shirt hanging on the line and my boxers draped around the edge of my laundry basket sitting off to the side of my back steps. (I need to buy some of my own clothes-pins to be able to hang up more than a few items using the old rusty clothes-pins always on the line.) So we’ll see what happens with air-dried underwear. Like other stuff I air dry they will be stiff. But I hope they can be soft as well. Who knows, though. I generally use a fabric softener sheet in the dryer as opposed to liquid fabric softener in the washing machine. I’ve got a loaf of heavier stuff to wash now (wool socks, heavy shirts). I am sure I can get the shirts up on the clothes-line but I don’t know about the socks. They might need some heat drying to get them fully dry and to keep from getting mildewy. Nothing is worse than the smell of damp wool socks. Except for maybe the smell of a damp sheep. : -)

*We went to The Old Fashioned in downtown Madison on Capital Square. There was a long wait but we got a free beer and I had an awesome burger with smoked bacon and Wisconsin cheddar cheese.

blankets, people. Blankets! (Ha. Ha. Ha. Get your minds out of the gutter.)

I woke up this morning around 7:40AM to sun pouring into my apartment. This is the second of three days of unusually warm, and unusually gorgeous, weather in Madison. So, with a clothes drying line less than 10 feet from my back door I took the two wool blankets off my cot and hung them up outside in the sun to air out. It’s pretty windy today so I am letting them stay out there a while. I don’t have an official/authentic fabric beater like you would find in an 18th- or 19th-century home but the side of my broom seems to work just fine. I might just leave the blankets outside all day. They are made of thick, tightly woven wool so the chance to air out them is nice to have before they go back on the cot for the rest of the Fall/Winter season.

Below are some pics in case you don’t believe me.

View From My Back Door

Blowing in the Wind

Blankets Getting Mooned

Man do I feel better today. When I got home yesterday after my drive back from Syracuse I felt like crap. I was super-cranky at the kitty—She would not stop mewling—ornery about having to un-load my car, and sore from sitting down for so long. (Even with stopping every 3-4 hours my hips just ached by the time I got home. I plan to go for a short run today to loosen up myself and then go for a long run tomorrow.)

I had some family and friends try to chat with me online and I finally had to log off just so I could finish checking e-mail and then take a nap. A four-hour nap helped but I still had to un-load my car. The kitty continued to meow at me every 2-3 minutes and followed me out to the car and back in again every time I brought in another load of stuff. (I know she has abandonment issues and is very insecure about my absence but you would think after having slept with me during my nap she would feel better.)

I got most of the back seat cleared out but have the rear storage area chock full o’ stuff. One thing I did last night was bring in and assemble the pieces of my shoe rack. I could finally get all my shoes up off the kitchen floor and do a decent job of sweeping. I’ve been trying to keep my apartment shoe-free—and for the most part have succeeded—but now I plan to make it official: When you come in my place, shoes come off. It’s a home not an office and as such you should walk around in socks. (Having a shoe-free apartment should also help keep things cleaner. But as I have wood floors I don’t have to worry as much about tracking dirt in the house as I would if I had carpeting.)

Finally, around 11:00PM the kitty would not stop meowing at me and, after shooing her off the table for the millionth time, I grabbed her, tossed her on the floor (with some force I am sad to say) and she left me alone. I felt terrible almost immediately and went to check on her. She was hiding among my belongings in the bedroom. When she saw me she hopped up on my cot and started meowing again. This time I decided to lay down with her in hopes it would stop the mewling. It did and I fell asleep.

I woke up in the night once, to pee and put an extra blanket on the cot, and kitty was right there with me still. As she never sleeps with me all night I guess she is still feeling tramautised about the move and my absence this past weekend. I woke up this morning to bright sunshine forcing its way through the seams of my closed blinds. I got a good 9 hours of sleep and woke up dreaming about the TV show Lost. This is strange because a) I don’t have a TV b) I have seen parts of Lost episodes only 2 or 3 times and c) I can’t remember doing or talking about anything related to the Lost series.

Whatever it was, I woke up feeling refreshed, rested, and with a much-less-meowy kitty. I had breakfast, looked at the headlines, checked out Facebook, and am looking forward to un-loading the rest of my car. There is nothing like a good night’s sleep to do wonders for you.

PS: Khrystin’s color guard performance in the state championships was really good. However, they came in 3rd place (out of six teams) in their school class. This year’s squad is young, with mostly freshmen and sophomores so they don’t have quite the skill of last year’s squad which actually came in first place (and that was comprised of almost all seniors).

Was out for my walk and saw this beautiful Weimaraner out for a run with her parent. This is the second time I have seen this dog while out on a walk. Pretty is probably too conservative a description, though. This dog was striking looking with erect head, solid, muscular body, and the most beautiful silver/gray coat. She just strode along-side her parent with grace and ceaseless effort. The woman was running with the dog or else I would have stopped and talked to her just to pet her dog. (Can you tell I want a dog?)

The funny thing is if this woman had stopped to talk to me she would have thought I was interested in her—She is very attractive—but right now I would rather have a new dog in my life than a new girlfriend. Maybe when my business becomes successful I’ll try to find me a girlfriend, maybe one with a dog. But for the time being, I’d rather have just a dog.*

The thing is when I was checking out my apartment my landlord said I could have one cat (i.e.: no dog) with the emphasis on just one cat. As it turns out, the couple who had the apartment before me had three cats and two of my neighbors in my building have a dog. Maybe after I have been here a few months I will ask my landlord about getting a dog. It would have to be something small—I have a one-bedroom apartment—and older but I am sure I could find something at the pound. We’ll see.

*I went on a date last Sunday and might have a follow-up date with the same woman. So, I feel I should reveal that here to indicate I have not completely sworn off interest in women in favor of a dog.

I’m not talking about dating. (It’s been so long since I was actively dating I can’t remember what that kind of rejection feels like.) No, I’m talking about rejection in the job market. Today, I called the local upscale grocery store where I had submitted an application last week and was told the usual spiel “Reviewing applications; Will call when there is an opening and if you fit our needs”. Blah, blah-blah, blah . . . blah-blah-blah.
I mean, my resume doesn’t scream manual labor but I’ve got a strong back and a good work ethic. Besides, if anyone knows anything about the computer support field, they would know you spend most of your time picking up and moving around computers and printers. Granted computers, and especially monitors, have gotten lighter over the years—I can remember back in the day when a high-end 24″ graphics CRT monitor would require two people to lift and move it—but laser printers and networkable fax machines are still heavy. I’ve got the strength and stamina to do manual labor (and the willingness). All I need is someone to offer me a job. Sigh!

I have to check again but I think I am up to 80 83 applications submitted so far this year (actually since mid December 2008 when I finished my masters thesis). Once I get my internet access squared away (tomorrow, I hope) I will have an easier time of searching online for jobs.

I have been in contact with a reference through a friend-of-a-friend situation about doing IT work in the education field but I am awaiting a callback from this woman. I am not looking to her for a job but rather to gain some insight on how best to enter the educational IT support field here in Madison.

I am at the laundromat now—Someone in this strip mall has an open WiFi network—but I will be going to the library this afternoon to a) get legitimate internet access and b) do some searching through the library’s employment-finding materials. (The latter might require a trip to the central library downtown.)

I think the only thing in my favor right now is the fact that the holiday season is approaching and there will be some—not a lot, but some—extra hiring during this time. If I am lucky, I should be able to put together several part-time positions during the holidays to get at least some money coming in. We’ll see how that goes.

As a follow-up to my post about getting around Madison by bicycle and on foot, I thought I should provide a brief overview of the city of Madison.

The city of Madison is divided into about 70 neighborhoods spread across seven regions. The regions are based around the Wisconsin sate capitol building in the center of the Downtown region which is dominated by cultural, governmental, and commercial entities. The other regions are listed below with their defining features.

Downtown: Seat of government for the state of Wisconsin, county of Dane, and city of Madison. Lots of cultural offerings in this area combined with the main commercial corridor for students, namely the State street pedestrian mall.

Near East: placeholder text.

Far East: Suburb-like residential area with some dodgy neighborhoods but mostly nicer, upscale neighborhoods. Home to the Olbrich Botanical Gardens.

Near West: Suburb-like residential area with some dodgy neighborhoods but mostly middle-class neighborhoods with a few upscale neighborhoods near the Arboretum and around the western edge of the university. Home to most of the University of Wisconsin-Madison campus, the UW-M Arboretum, several big golf courses, and several big cemeteries.

Far West: placeholder text.

South: placeholder text.

North: I know nothing about this area.

To find out everything you could possibly want to know about Madison from a geographic-based, socio-political perspective, check out the Madison Neighborhood Indicators Project here. For reference purposes I live in the Nakoma planning district but the Summit Woods neighborhood association.

To be continued.

So far I have not had too much difficulty getting around Madison.

When I had visited previously I stayed at the hostel downtown and explored a lot of the city on foot, particularly the Downtown and Near East regions of Madison. I had spent a little time in the Far East and Near West parts of the city as well but only enough time to get a sense of what were the major roads.

To my surprise, that knowledge of just the few major roads in the Near West section of the city proved quite useful in finding my way around. I live in the south-central part of the Near West region or southwest of the state capitol building downtown. I am on the main north-south road (Midvale Blvd.) through this part of the city and close to a main secondary route to downtown (the Nakoma Rd. / Monroe Rd. corridor).

Of course, all of this road info would be important if I was driving everywhere, but I am not. I am walking or biking everywhere. The Southwest Bike Trail passes my place less than one-quarter mile away. On it, I have a direct, car-free route to downtown and a connecting bike path—again, care free—that takes me across the Downtown region to the Near East and Far East regions of the city.

To be continued.