Storage Costs

My possessions lived in Unit A13 at Liberty Storage next to Liberty State Park for two years.

I spent about $4,000 on storage during that time, as rates started at about $150 a month and went up to $175 over the two years.

Once I worked out what I'd spent, I went and bought a garage instead. At least--in theory--I'll get back what I've spent when I sell the garage. Plus, I might end up living in it soon. Which brings to mind certain horrifiying questions. Yikes.

Trademarks are Pesky Things

This blog post about the Uganda 7-11 made me laugh. It reminded me of the Kampala "IKEA," which, of course, is not an IKEA at all.

Speaking of Uganda, tomorrow is the one year anniversary of when my life there unexpectedly took a turn for the worse and then proceeded to deteriorate for the next week and a half to unspeakable depths, the details too unmentionable for innocent, fun-loving dik-diks. Ain't love grand?

Killed by a Coconut

In 2000, I was in a taxi in Ho Chi Minh City. The driver's radio was playing a Shel Silverstein song about people doing all kinds of daring things, having all kinds of plans, then being randomly killed in bizarre accidents in which coconuts fell on their heads.

Yeah, he was... killed by a coconut (and you could be)
Killed by a coconut (that's why you never should be)
Sittin' underneath a coconut tree
When the coconut come down.

The Crocodile Hunter had a coconut moment yesterday, and I am sad for Mrs. Crocodile Hunter and their kids. It seems so bizarre and random--stingrays generally hurt a lot when they sting, but don't usually kill people. It was just a chance thing of the barb hitting in a certain way at a certain spot, and seems so weird given that Steve Irwin was usually face-to-face with truly dangerous animals like saltwater crocs and poisonous snakes.

Writer Peter Moore's father is the plumber at the Australia Zoo on the Sunshine Coast. He had to go into a croc pit once to fix a leaky tap while Irwin distracted the crocs. When I lived in Oz, Turbo and I went to the Australia Zoo once, though I didn't meet Peter's dad (nor did he get us in free). We also visited the Big Pineapple on the same day, and our car windshield cracked, though not as a result of any pineapple or coconut interaction.

I Sense a Trend

Uh-oh... my mother is on an old-photo kick. I dread the day she digs out the... oh, never mind.

Not Enough Opera, Man

Premium seats sold out for the first night of the Too Much Coffee Man opera in Portland, Oregon. That's great news--maybe creator Shannon Wheeler's kids can eat more than mac & cheese next month.*

Selling out premium seats is big news, but the opera is such a novel idea that I bet all four performances sell out. I reckon the kiddies will have orange juice and broccoli too.

*Permission acquired from creator to make joke about Wheeler's kids eating habits, which probably do NOT involve orange artificial food products.

Spare the Rod and Spoil the Pie

This beaver is giving Chip and Dale their punishment for having swiped a doodleberry pie. Shame on Chip and Dale!

Some Things Are Hereditary

All right, Mom is just getting silly now.

Before and After

The wind is blowing like crazy today. It's a pity; I wanted to go ride my bike in the park. There's going to be a lot of disappointed people at the beach this holiday weekend.

I was hoping for a sunny day for another reason. One person who viewed my condo yesterday is coming back today, and bringing her father. The condo is much nicer bathed in sunlight, and it's bound to be gray and unpleasant if they view it in the middle of a storm.

Before, I was agonizing over having to sell my nice condo. But I've made my peace with it. I looked at the Before photos and compared them to After. The condo was not so nice Before. I can do it again, with another condo. I'm on my own this time; no Unstoppable Turbo. But it will all work out. Or maybe I'll just stay in Africa next time.

  

Other Before and After photos are here.

Dik-Dik Postcard Delay

Urgh... I must apologize. There has been a delay in the production of the Stalking the Wild Dik-Dik postcard. Namely, my artist , Jessica Wolk-Stanley, fled to Greece. But she'll be back as soon as she dodges the law, and then these tools of dik-dik propaganda will find their way to your mailboxes.

If you didn't sign up before, I'm offering to send anyone who wants one a Stalking the Wild Dik-Dik postcard, complete with DC Comics postage stamp. If you would like one, please e-mail me your address with the subject line "Postcard" and your name/address in the body of the e-mail. My email address is mjavins(at-symbol)yahoo(dot-com).

My First Book Interview

TheSpiritedWoman.com kindly interviewed me about my book. I'm now a proud adventuress. There's an excerpt here. Go and have a look!