Some of that ache is easily tracked, as my glutes (let's use gym terms! Pecs! Quads! Glutes!) were very sore from the spinning class I took with Susan yesterday. I rolled out of bed and realized that lots of stairs would be a painful idea. I decided to make sure everything I needed was downstairs with me.

I was lucky enough to have absolutely nothing planned for the day, so I slugged out on the comfy chair and wrote a 13-page "summary" of a new scheduling plan that could be implemented in the design department. I know I'm not supposed to be doing any work on my days off, but I wasn't logged into the system at the time, and I knew I wanted to go into detail (I always want to go into detail), so I poked around with headcount numbers and available shifts, and wrote out explanations of every decision I've made with regards to scheduling. Dan probably won't implement it, but seeing as I don't have any vested interest in how things run in design anymore (I have to ask about an offer letter tomorrow from KM), I can just let it roll. He asked us to brainstorm, so that's what I did.

After that, I just surfed the web and drank lots of water, trying to feel better. Eventually, I got bored with myself and decided to run a couple of errands.

Today is Chris' birthday. He turns 39, which is somehow freaking him out more than the thought of turning 40. Since his family is so busy lately, they've decided not to have a dinner or anything for him, so I thought I'd drop by his shop and give him his presents (a gift certificate to Home Depot and The Spongebob Squarepants Movie).

While I was at it, I thought it might be nice to pick up a small cake and some Hoodsies (I don't know if these are a regional thing. Is Hood a New England/Boston company, or are Hoodsies everywhere? If you don't know, Hoodsies are small cardboard cups with chocolate and vanilla ice cream in them. I don't care for them, but Chris loves them, so I thought it would be a nice surprise) for him and the guys in the shop. I went to Shaw's, got the items, along with a few impulse buys (never shop while hungry), and drove to his shop.

While there, I took some pictures for his website, which I promised to have done by the end of next week. It's just that blank screen, sitting in front of me, that strikes my heart with terror. I know what I want to do with the layout now (it's simple but kind of cool), but once I get into it, I know I'm going to want to get it all done in one fell swoop. It's irrational, I know, but I like to have an ending-place for projects, and I have yet to find an easy ending place for a website in progress.

At any rate, I had the camera and my new tripod with me, and took some good shots of Chris' shop. After a nice visit, I packed up my gear and headed to the lake.

I spent about 45 minutes at the lake, playing with the camera and tripod. I haven't taken a whole lot of mid-day pictures, especially ones with the sun shining, so I tried that out for awhile. I went to the lake itself, and to the cemetery next to the old stone church and had a good time feeling like some sort of professional (or at least an amateur with a hobby...I guess by now it's become my hobby, hasn't it?), and would have stayed longer had it not been for the wind, which is ten times colder when it blows off of the lake.

When I was at the grocery store, I picked up some apples and a box of apple crisp mix. I've never made apple crisp before, but I really like it, and the directions didn't look too hard (mix packet, slice apples, pour mixture over apples, bake), so I went for it.

Being me, I had to damage myself while cooking. Somehow the vegetable peeler got away from me and took out a good chunk of my finger. It's funny how a paper cut can leave you reeling in pain, but if you cut a sizeable piece of flesh off, it doesn't really hurt at all.

Of course, there's no bandage created that fits comfortably over a tip-of-the-finger cut, so I wrapped it as best I could with some gauze and went back to being a domestic god. After about 10 minutes, the whole house smelled like apple crisp, which is one of the best smells ever. Beats the hell out of a scented candle.

While it was baking, I IMed Laurie to see how work was going, and she told me that she had slipped in the shower and damaged her knee. The bad knee. The knee she had surgery on last year. She says she's on the mend, but what a bummer. Luckily, she didn't fall far enough to hit her head on the corner of a table that's right next to the tub. She assured me that she would move that table as soon as possible.

While I was chatting online, Stephanie dropped by, and we had a chat. She's headed to Arizona to meet a friend, so we won't have her at work this weekend. It also means that I don't have to drive her home from work tonight, which makes me pretty happy. I like our talks in the car, but I'm still feeling a little bit stuffy and tired, so I'd rather have no obligation to go out in the cold at midnight.

I had to wrap my cousin Beth's birthday present, and the wrapping paper is in Mom's bureau, so I went into her room to pick that up.

While I was there, I remembered that Dad had a small case for cufflinks, rings, and other pieces of jewelry in the top drawer. I hoped to find something of his that I could wear (I've been thinking of him on and off lately, which is strange, seeing as he died 18 years ago). I came across this:

I don't know what it is. It's gold (imprinted on the inside), so it's not a piece of junk entirely. I don't know what the center stone is (it's carved into some sort of black stone, or maybe molded into resin? I don't know), or what it represents, but I liked it and asked Mom if I could keep it. She said yes, and it's on my finger as I type this.

It could be a Spartan, since the high school he taught at's mascot was the Spartan. If so, I don't quite know why he had a ring, since that's more for a student than a teacher. Mom suggested he might have taken the ring from some bully, which makes me smile. Some bully's ring on my finger is sort of ironic, considering how much stuff bullies took from me throughout high school.

Anyway, it fits nicely on the other hand than the claddagh I got rid of a couple of months ago. It's yellow gold, which Diego said "doesn't suit me," which makes me kind of happy, as well.

Maybe I'm wearing it for all the wrong reasons. It's still a piece of Dad's history that I can wear, so it can't be all bad.

As has become the case lately, I'm going to end with some pictures. I had to take some photos of Chris' workshop for the website today (and to drop off his birthday presents), so I brought my new tripod with me, and then headed down to the lake to get some shots around noon.

I'm still getting used to what settings to use during different times of day, and how to frame things, but every time I go picture-hunting, I end up with a few shots I really like. This is something I could never do with a film camera (developing is just too expensive).

Anyway, on to the pictures!

This is one of the projects Chris had me photograph. It looks silly, but is totally cool, once you realize that it's a hockey bench made entirely out of old hockey sticks! The toughest part for the guys in the shop was to find so many used hockey sticks (they didn't want to do it with new ones). There will be a center armrest going on soon, and then it'll be done. I believe Chris is going to donate it to the place where he plays hockey.

All photos (except the first) were taken between Church and Common Streets. I don't know why that tickled my fancy so much, but it did. It would only be funnier to me if the intersection was between Church and State. (Yes, I am lame. I know this.)

This is what my town uses as its icon on everything. It's a little gazebo in the middle of the common. There's enough room on it to have a band play, but not much else. I've wanted to direct a production of Much Ado About Nothing using the gazebo as a backdrop for years now. I don't know what it would involve, permit-wise. Maybe I'll check into that sometime before the summer hits.

These are my footprints in the snow leading to the gazebo. I should have worn heavier shoes.

Here's a shot of the lake through the gazebo. I left in the ironwork and the columns because I think they frame the shot nicely. It's so barren there during the winter; you'd never know how lush it looks during the summertime.

Another shot taken from the gazebo. This is a farily old church in the town. I was going to take down the dates of construction, fire, and reconstruction but I forgot. Let's just call it "old" and leave it at that.

I think I like this shot the best out of today's pictures. It's just a chain and its shadow, but it takes on an abstract quality for me.

This is the cemetery beside the old church. I once did a Historical Archaeology project here, counting the number of letters on each headstone and determining who got the most verbiage per stone. (Women who were mothers got the most. Bachelor sons got the least.)

"Here lies y Body of Mrs Sarah Smith wife of Deacon Francis Smith who departed this life June 14th 1784 in y 64th Year of Her Age" is the inscription on this headstone. The "y"s have e's over the top of them, and I don't know the character code (if there is one) for it, so I just typed in "y" instead.

Beside the cemetery is what is called "the Floral Way" in our town. It looks pretty desolate in the winter. I'm going to try and remember to take pictures of it in the spring, when all the trees along the path have flowers blooming on them. It's pretty spectacular. I like running by the Floral Way because it has a dozen scents that drift by as I go past.

Finally, a picture of me! Well, a picture of me taking a picture of me, which could only happen in a reflective surface or in shadow. Here's my shadow, which doesn't need a good side, unlike the rest of me.