Darice's Photoblog

SNOLYMPIA 2012

Darice — Wed, 25 Jan 2012 03:38:11 +0000

The photos document my experience with the worst winter storm to hit Olympia in a LONG time. The snow came on Jan 15, the ice came a couple days later. My power went out on the morning of the 19th and was out until the late evening of the 23rd. Talk about long, cold, boring nights, but I survived!! I hope you enjoy the slideshow–I strongly encourage you to view it full screen.

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What would I tell myself 10 years ago?

Darice — Mon, 14 Feb 2011 03:58:09 +0000

Ten years ago, I was 35 and had been married roughly 3.5 years. Today, I would tell the 35 year-old me to get healthy. This seems to be a constant struggle for me for some unknown reason. OK, I KNOW the reason–I let work and school get in the way and take priority. I’d start by telling the 35 y.o. me to get healthy and stay heatlhy. I’d also tell myself to quit being so critical. I’ve developed a wider perspective. I’d tell the 35 y.o. me to be kinder, especially to my ex-husband. I’d also tell myself to save money. Cliche, I know, but so, so true. Finally, I would tell the 35 y.o. me that people won’t judge me as much as I did when I was going through my divorce. I sometimes wish I let myself believe that sooner than I did. I don’t regret getting married, and I don’t regret getting divorced. I just wish that my marriage would have improved and we could have had a family–that’s something I actually regret. I know that there’s a reason for everything. I feel fortunate to have grown into the independent 45 y.o. that I am today.

Wow, am I a clutz or what?!?

Darice — Mon, 31 Jan 2011 04:53:48 +0000

Well, it’s been a while since I’ve had one of my “clutz” moments. I guess I was just due for it to happen today. Still, nothing beats the time that I stepped into the shower and slipped, landed on my rear with my back across the edge of my shower, bounced up, and landed on my stomach, leaving a hideous bruise on the inside of my upper arm. You know, the “turkey wing” section. I laughed so hard that I cried, and I seriously couldn’t stop laughing for 15 mins. OK, so today’s moment wasn’t as funny. I was getting ready to feed the cats and was opening the can of cat food. Two of the cats were in the room with me and two were in the hall. The door to the hall was open, which meant the door would be on my right side as I was facing the doorway. This is important to the visualization of this episode. I heard the front door open and was worried that my sister was going to let my big dog in. The cats must have sensed it, too, because just as I was leaping to shut the door to the catroom, the cats bolted. I think I hit the door frame (it wouldn’t have been possible to hit the door, but I somehow think I did just that). Anyway, I SLAMMED into the door frame (or door) with my left arm. You know how this happens–you hit so hard that you have to take a step backward before you move forward. Anyway, I hit it so hard that I fully expect to have a bruise down the outside of my arm tomorrow. Within an hour, a knot formed on the exterior of my forearm. I went on with my day–using the computer, doing laundry. While I was putting dishes away, I tried to lift some dishes with my left hand. That’s when I knew that I must have REALLY hit the door, because I could hardly lift the dishes. I tried to straighten my arm and felt a sharp pang of pain in my forearm. I looked and saw that just below the inside crease of my elbow was a swollen mound, on the upper part of my inner forearm. Great. I have a knot on the outside and a lump on the inside. And all I know is that it hurts like hell. Seriously–does this stuff happen to anyone but me? Luckily I am able to laugh about it, because it’s just too funny not to laugh at. Too bad I didn’t get it on video–I’d be famous by now.

My dream jobs…..

Darice — Mon, 24 Jan 2011 03:36:05 +0000

For the most part, I enjoy my job. I am passionate about it and have not been able to picture myself in any other career. When I was younger, I wanted to be a teacher or a stewardess. Well, the stewardess option is out for a whole lot of reasons. But I resisted the field of teaching for a number of years, in spite of what people told me. When I was in high school, I taught 1st and 2nd grade Sunday School and LOVED it. People told me I should be a teacher. When I was a foreign exchange student the summer before my senior year of high school, I decided that I wanted a career in international relations. I started taking classes in the area and looked at the program at the Univ of WA. I volunteered for the agency I went with. As I talked to more and more people, they implied that I wouldn’t have much of a famiily life if I chose to stay in this field. I was still under the false impression that I’d get married and have kids before I was 30, so I went back to my stand-by career of teaching. I truly loved it, even though it was tiring. I’m out of the classroom now and working on a PhD in Psychology, but I continue to fantasize about jobs I’d like to have if I could afford it.

My dream job is to own and run an animal sanctuary. My passion for animals runs deep, and I am constantly shocked by the cruelty people subject on animals. Part of this dream job includes lobbying for stronger animal cruelty laws and penalties, rescuing animals in need, and actually arresting or serving warrants / subpeonas to people who have demonstrated a cruetly to animals. I would also love to work in an animal sanctuary in Africa, studying and protecting wildlife there that are threatened by poachers and military.

My second dream job is to create and sell mixed media projects. Deep inside me is a creative soul, one that would flourish if I had time to nurture it. I enjoy photography, but I love love love mixed media. Collages on canvas, unique creations out of cigar boxes or paper excite me. I have all the supplies to do this now, but working on my PhD, my job, and my animals take up my free time.

My third dream job is to help others in impoverished areas. I am drawn for some unknown reason to the Appalachian areas and to Africa. I would love to be able to work with impoverished children–to let them know they are loved, that they are special, and that they can do something with their lives. Too often, these children are overlooked and given up on. I am compelled to find a way to do something about this. Who knows-maybe I will open my own school in one of these areas!!

Procrastination is not my friend.

Darice — Wed, 19 Jan 2011 02:46:41 +0000

I’m seriously lacking some motivation right now. Sigh. I’m so far behind on my chapter 1 draft for my dissertation that I’m angry at myself! I can find a million other things to do–play computer games, watch TV, shop online, read magazines, and read novels. I really need to get my butt in gear and just get it over with! The problem is that I am supposed to write a broad overview of what I THINK is going to happen in the rest of my dissertation. Really??? I’m not even sure that I’ve got all my plans in place!! I already know I will need to tweak my study, and I know I have tons more research to do for Ch 2 (Lit Review). So WHY do I have to start with the end in mind??? I put together a brief proposal, which was thankfully accepted, but now I’m just drowning in frustration. I know, I know. I just need to get over it. I’ve come too far to let this slow me down. It will be a great accomplishment when it’s all over. Sure, those are nice things to say to me right now, but they don’t make writing Ch 1 any easier. SIGH. I need to come to terms with the fact that procrastination is NOT my friend. I need to exile procrastination and move forward before I end up in bed with procrastination.

How can people be so heartless?

Darice — Mon, 10 Jan 2011 03:33:38 +0000

A couple of weeks before Christmas, some heartless person dropped off six or seven kittens in a field with an abandoned house and barn. The kittens are probably a couple months old, but still young. The land is owned by the government–it’s the same land that the elk take refuge on in the winters. Still, leaving kittens in the wild when they are clearly house kittens is just cruel. We knew they weren’t feral when they came when we called them, and let us pick them up. Two jumped into my sister’s car!! They really wanted to be rescued, and since I was recovering from recent foot surgery, I was unable to help. SO, we did what several other people in the area did–we brought food by for them. I’m thankful that there are some compassionate people in my area, who care about the well-being of animals. But I am SO ANGRY at the person / people who dropped off these cute kittens!! Yesterday, two grey kittens came out when I took them food. Today, a black cat was upstairs in the window of the abandoned house, but came down when my sister left food on the porch. Only one of the grey kittens came to see us today. I am so saddened by the thought that the kittens may have been killed by coyotes or raccoons. It’s so sad. There was no reason to leave them there!! One of my neighbors thinks the rest are living in the abandoned barn, which is further back on the property, but I just don’t know. I wish I could do something about people who abandon animals. If you don’t want an animal, take it to a shelter!! I am just trusting that karma will come back and bite whoever left the helplesss kittens.

Three places I’d like to visit before I die….

Darice — Sun, 02 Jan 2011 03:30:59 +0000

There are a number of places that I’d like to visit before I die, but there are a few that seem to stand out more to me than others. I’ve been fortunate enough to have visited most of the States, Mexico, Canada, and Sweden. And although I don’t personally remember it, I was born in Scotland.

I hope I am able to travel to Africa one day–this has been a dream of mine for a long time. What I’d REALLY like to do is take a volunteer vacation there and volunteer in an orphanage or hospital. My heart breaks for the thousands of children who are orphaned through war and HIV. I can’t imagine what life is like for them. I could even see myself teaching in a school there some day. I’d also like to go on a safari and take wonderful photos of animals in the wild. It would be fun to volunteer in an animal rescue center there–there are several as poachers continue to kill exotic animals to trade / sell. It’s a shame that such beautiful creatures are viewed as currency to some people.

I would absolutely LOVE to take a cruise to Alaska one day. There is a cruise line out of Seattle that is smaller, more intimate, and more casual than the larger commercial cruise lines. Becuase their ships are smaller, they are able to take their ships further inland than the large vessels. To be able to photograph natural beauty would be an adventure, not only to photograph glaciers and such, but also to photograph wildlife.

Continuing on with the natural wonder / wildlife theme, the final place I dream of visiting is Antarctica. I’m not sure if I could actually handle the frigid temperatures, but what an awesome experience it would be to see the wildlife and natural beauty firsthand.

The recurring theme in these three places is my love of natural beauty and wildlife. Perhaps this is because it feels that these blessings are slowly being taken away from us. Perhaps it is because modernism hasn’t yet impacted them. Or, more than likely, I have a simple appreciation for the beauty in our natural world, and of the majestic and powerful animals that inhabit it.

I’ll be posting weekly in 2011!

Darice — Fri, 31 Dec 2010 23:38:07 +0000

I’ve decided I want to blog more. Rather than just thinking about doing it, I’m starting right now. I will be posting on this blog once a week for all of 2011.

I know it won’t be easy, but it might be fun, inspiring, awesome and wonderful. Therefore I’m promising to make use of The DailyPost, and the community of other bloggers with similiar goals, to help me along the way, including asking for help when I need it and encouraging others when I can.

If you already read my blog, I hope you’ll encourage me with comments and likes, and good will along the way.

Signed,

Darice

October 17, 2010

Darice — Mon, 18 Oct 2010 00:32:51 +0000

I was able to take a break from studying to spend time with my great niece, Jordin. It was a beautiful day and we were able to get outside. It’s hard to believe she is only 2 years old. She’s amazingly talkative. When we got in the car, she asked, “Where am I going?” This Christmas will be so much fun with her!!

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Fun times with Jordin
Darice — Sun, 12 Sep 2010 22:21:09 +0000










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