We had a rather busy weekend.

On Wednesday, Kris's sister, Tiffany, called to tell us she plans to move from Palm Springs to Portland. Soon. On Friday and Saturday, we helped her find an apartment. Says Tiff:

I know a few of you have heard about this, but since last week, I have had a major change in my plans.  I am no longer moving to Maryland.  I realized that I do not want to be that far from family.  But still needing a change in my life, I am moving to Oregon to be near my sister, Kris. I just got back from a whirlwind weekend, flying north, finding an apartment (not easy with four cats!), getting approved, and all while Kris had no shower because of bathroom remodeling.

It's true: we still have no shower. We're closer, though. Both the plumbing and electrical work have passed preliminary inspections, and the drywall should go up this week. Kris has high hopes that she'll be able to paint the bathroom walls by the weekend.

Since we've had our electrician here, I decided to spend the extra money to have Nic wire the library (the red room) for a ceiling fixture and a corresponding wall switch. I can't afford to actually purchase the fixture for some time, but I know which one I want:

Kris and Nic tell me it's frou-frou. Maybe it is. I don't care. I like it. A lot. It's big-time Art Deco, and it's mine come mid-October.

We met Jenn and the kids for a Friday afternoon showing of Charlie and the Chocolate Factory. It's the third time I've seen it. I still love it. (This was Kris's second time, and she liked it better than the first.)

After the movie, we ventured to the Gingerich homestead for a dinner in their new backyard paradise. Harrison and Emma displayed an admirable affinity for the vegetable garden. Harrison showed me how to pick basil and parsley for the Italian salsa. Later, he and Scout helped me dig carrots:

On Saturday, we took time to attend my nephew's third birthday party. Noah's a bright and happy kid, popular among older children. Here he and Courtney are watching a pair of clowns perform tricks.

(I can't mention tricks now without thinking of the Arrested Development scene in which G.O.B. gets angry with his brother in front of a group of children: "Illusion, Michael. A trick is something a whore does for money. [Realizes the kids are watching.] Or candy!" It busts me up even to type that. More — much more — on Arrested Development soon.)

After we dropped Tiffany at the airport Sunday morning, we drove to south Salem to help Mac and Pam work on their new house. The Gingeriches came down after church. Jenn painted the game room. The kids helped us strip wallpaper in the family room.

  

Jeremy and Mac pulled seventies veneer wallboard from two rooms. As they removed the heating vents in one room, they found a surprise:

Some sort of mouse armageddon had occurred. Eight of the beasts lay dead at the bottom of the vent. Jeremy backed away. "I can do snakes. I can do spiders. I can do almost anything," he said. "I can't do mice."

After a hard afternoon of work, Harrison relaxed upstairs with a Vanilla Cream (the name of which he read all by himself).

Kris and I drove home, belting out duets of Fiona Apple, Tori Amos, Sinead O'Connor, Sarah McLachlan, and Indigo Girls. We should sign a recording contract and make some extra money!

I've mentioned in the past that we ought to call our home Spiderhaven instead of Rosings Park. We have more spiders than roses. They're everywhere. Lately, I've begun to spy the little critters in the house. This past week, two of them have begun living — and spinning webs — in my car. I'm not sure there are a lot of food sources for them in my car.

Other recent events of note include the arrival of my C-PAP machine (verdict after four days: I feel a strange combination of rested and exhausted, but my need for naps during the day may be waning) and a several-day failure in my diet plan. I was meeting most of my nutrition goals for July and then I got back from hiking. I need to redouble my efforts.

I have a busy week ahead, both at work and at home. My top priority is to find some photos to submit for the Clackamas County Fair photo exhibit. I have two of my five photos selected, but I'm hard-pressed to find three more worthy of competition. (Maybe one of my spider photos?)

On this day at foldedspace.org

2003 — How Not to Watch a Movie   In which Joel and Dave and I get to see an advanced screening for the upcoming Russell Crowe film, Master and Commander: The Far Side of the Tehater. In which I get us kicked out of the movie theater.

2002 — The End?   It dawned on me today: the computer has a power switch.