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Grimm subtleties

Kudos to the writers of the NBC television show Grimm! The sub-plots in this series get better and better, and sometimes they are so subtle that if you blink you miss something. For instance, did you notice how “Sgt. Wu” said he was hungry and then popped a paper clip into his mouth? For Grimm novices, this probably has something to do with “Sgt. Wu” eating a chocolate chip cookie baked with a magic spell that was not meant for him. And what about “Juliette’s” almost perfect target shooting, supposedly her first experience with a gun? I just know she isn’t as innocent as she appears. Maybe she’s one of the few creatures that “Nick” cannot see? And I bet she’s been feeding him some of those cookies baked with a magic spell, too!

Then there are those beaver people, flaunting their Oregon State University clothing and pennants. The mascot for OSU is the beaver. Maybe I noticed that because I’m more of a University of Oregon Duck fan. Hmmm, I bet the duck people will be UO fans.

Click here to read more of my Grimm musings.

The Easter Bunny of Allen County

Wait, wait. If I didn’t know better. Could it be? Look closer. It is! It’s The Duck of Allen County in an Easter bunny costume! Wife of Baby-Baby Brother sent me this photo Easter greeting and I just had to share. Click here to meet or get re-acquainted with The Duck of Allen County.

And on a more serious note for those celebrating today: a very blessed and joyous Easter!

Numbers, more numbers, and no numbers

Last week I had a four-day work week, taking Friday off to take care of some appointments. I had a Zipcar to make getting to those appointments a little bit easier. And, after a wild weather week of cold, rain, snow, and slush, the weather goddess blessed me with a dry, sunny day.

I started the morning driving out to Beaverton, Ore., to meet with a financial advisor. This was probably the third time since 1996 that I have had a reason to visit Beaverton. Thank goodness for on-line maps! I found the location okay, but had a little trouble finding my way out – the street signs pointing the way back to Portland were a little small and I was always in the wrong lane when the signs came up.

 Once I found my way out of the labyrinth that is Beaverton, I headed back home to southeast Portland for my next appointment: getting my taxes done. It’s a good thing I left plenty of time to get there. But I made it there on schedule and in about an hour my fantastic tax preparer had finished the taxes for another year. Then it was on to my final appointment of the day in which numbers were not involved: a deep tissue massage.

 The massage in Gresham was the perfect end to a day of numbers bombarding my brain. I highly recommend a massage if one becomes overloaded with numbers or driving around Beaverton trying to find the way back home.

Releasing my native Hoosier

Heeding some friends’ advice to get out more I went to the NCAA basketball tournament on Saturday in Portland, Ore. The match up? The Hoosiers of Indiana University vs. the Rams of Virgina Commonwealth University. IU had played on Thursday night and I told myself that if they won on Thursday I would consider going to the game on Saturday. Well, IU won on Thursday and I was able to buy a fairly decent ticket to Saturday’s game. Totally by chance my seat was in the IU cheering section, and I represented my Indiana family – devoted IU fans – well, if I do say so myself!

I don’t go to many events at Portland’s Rose Garden, but am sure glad I went to this one. What a game! Despite some odd calls by the referees, IU turning the ball over way too many times, and VCU making three-point shots all through the game, VCU couldn’t score a three-pointer when they needed it most, and the Hoosiers won 63-61! IU advanced to the Sweet 16, and they play Kentucky on Friday, March 23, in Atlanta, Ga. What makes Friday’s game interesting? IU beat Kentucky during regular season play.

March Madness. Got to love it!

He who shall not be named

Virtually every woman I know has at least one. An ex husband, boyfriend, lover, boss, business partner whose actions, or inactions, have negatively impacted her physically, emotionally, or financially. If you are an exception to my observation, consider yourself fortunate. Very fortunate.

How we deal with exs is interesting. Some never call an ex by his name, hence the “he who shall not be named.” Others try to avoid him, a technique not always possible if living in a small town. Others move to a different city and may not return, even for a visit, until reading of said ex’s demise in the obituaries. Some people may describe such tactics as juvenile. I disagree. I call it surviving.

Some say that “success is the best revenge.” I prefer Dr. Maya Angelou’s wisdom: “Surviving is important. Thriving is elegant.” Here’s to elegance!

PS: I am certain that many men have had at least one “she who shall not be named” in their lives. I’m curious how guys handle these situations. Anyone? Anyone?

Have a super day!

I recently learned from sources on the ground that Indianapolis, Ind., at least for the week, has adopted this phrase. Indianapolis is hosting the Super Bowl this year, and the powers that be apparently want visitors to the city to experience the Super Bowl in every day interactions. I, admittedly, upon learning that Indianapolis nabbed a Super Bowl, wondered how did that happen? Sure, the city has hosted the Indy 500 and the Indiana State Fair for years, but a Super Bowl? I guess it is still hard for me to think of Indianapolis as all grown up with its own professional football team.

As some readers may know, the Baltimore Colts crept out-of-town in 1984 to relocate to Indianapolis. Just think of the sparks that might have ignited if the new Baltimore team, the Ravens, were playing in the stadium where the Indianapolis Colts now play? Now that would have been interesting!

Grimming it

On paper the NBC television series, Grimm, just doesn’t work. A combination detective/thriller show based on the fairy tales of the Brothers Grimm? But toss in some creative writing, talented cast, and loveable characters, and it clicks. Plus it’s filmed on location in Portland, Ore., my current home town. I admit that last fact may slightly influence my favorable response to the show, but the northwest scenery – rainy, sunny, great architectural and outdoor details – definitely adds to the show’s appeal. In addition, the show brings jobs and revenue to the state. It is show business. Check your local listings for when the show airs in your area. For me, it’s on NBC on Friday night at 9:00 p.m. (PST). If you have a cable service that allows you to see previously aired shows of Grimm, do it. View them. Especially the first couple of episodes. I missed them when originally aired so was a little lost trying to place characters and plot. Without giving too much away, I’ll just say that the Brothers Grimm were the ones able to see their fairy tale visions. You’ll have to watch Grimm to figure out the rest!  Grimm on!

Could blame the cat

Yesterday I got home from work a little early so decided to finish an article to submit to a newspaper in my original home town of Fort Wayne, Ind. I had a pretty good draft of about 530 words, but wanted to edit it down closer to 500 words. The revisions had been swirling around in my head on the bus so the edits were relatively quick. Per my usual practice not to completely delete a draft, I saved the polished piece with a similar, but different, file name. It looked great – double-space, Times New Roman, 12 point, word count stated, and a brief writer bio – and read smoother.

So there I am semi-reclining in bed with laptop propped on stomach, putting the finishing touches on a submission e-mail and getting ready to attach the article and a current picture. Enter Christopher Robeson, the three-leg wonder cat. To him, getting home early means more quality time with his human, even if it means crawling over human and resting on human’s laptop. Usually I welcome The Christopher, but I really wanted to send this piece out so I pushed him aside, quickly attached a couple of files to the e-mail, hit the “send” button, and began apologizing to The Christopher for lifting him off the laptop.

Then it hit me: I had sent the draft article, not the edited version. So I sent a “REVISED” submission to the newspaper, including an apology for any confusion. I can only imagine what the newspaper is thinking – what kind of sloppy writer is this? Needless to say, I expect a rejection.

Lesson learned: always, always, always check the attachments before sending your writing to an editor or publisher. And accept responsibility for your mistakes. This blunder was all me, not the cat.

Baby, it’s cold outside!

But no snow yet here in Portland, Ore., and, thankfully, no ice either. A perfect day to read, compute, do laundry, and maybe even — gasp — cook! Even the cat is looking at me strange because he knows I’m not much of a cook. Cooking is kind of like cleaning: when the moment hits roll with it! Everyone stay warm out there. And if it’s snowing or icing where you are please be careful.