Ash the Mighty

RIP Sirius Rhodes

About three quarters of the way through my freshman year, I decided that I did not like the University of Redlands enough that I would be returning the next year. As such, I applied for (and got accepted very late to) the University of Arizona. The late nature of said acceptance meant that I would have to find accomodations with friends from high school rather than in the dorms. This was a good thing, because I was then able to do something I had always wanted: get a dog. That summer, nine years ago now pretty much to the day, I went to the local pound a picked up a pound puppy. I named him Sirius which meant “Companion” and was the name of Orion’s dog in Greek Myth.

The people at the pound and the vet that I took him to later all said that Sirius would not get too large. They were all wrong. He grew up to be roughly the size of a small horse. And ironically enough it was because of the mistreatment of Sirius by my roommates that lead me to leave that first house in Tucson and get my own apartment. Later, when I moved to Scotland, I was forced to leave him behind and so he went to live with my parents and his soon-to-be best friend/worst enemy Tahoe Rhodes. By the time I got back, Sirius had melded with that part of the family and I couldn’t bring myself to part him from them and so he and I never lived together properly again.

Two days ago my Mom called me to tell me that he had been diagnosed by the vets with cancerous pollups on many of his internal organs (spleen, liver, and bladder). One or two of these could be handled with surgery, but the bladder pretty much cinched it. Today my Mom, Dad, and I all went together to the vet and stayed with him as he was sent on his Final Journey. He was almost exactly 9 years old.

I know that to many this is a ridiculously long post about a canine that may technically not have even been mine and which many of you may not have know I even had any more. Those people have not raised a dog since puppyhood.

I am completely and utterly heartbroken.

And no small amount drunk. Seemed the right thing to do. Just saying.

~A.

“Wanted”: An Observation in Three Parts.

First, and most obvious (both to me and the advertisers of the film who definitely cashed in on this fact), Angelina Jolie continues to be easily the most beautiful woman in the entire span of human existence. Those who disagree with me are simply wrong and forfeit their right to life.

Second, while it’s a shame when comic book movies fail utterly to follow the actual plot of the comics on which they are based, the results can be really quite fun.

Third, I’m quitting my cubicle-esque job tomorrow and am going to start killing people for a living. Just, kind of a bit of a heads up.

~Ash.

A fair warning:

Stalker-like behaviour from anyone will be rewarded with little-to-no hesitation with one or more of the following:

1) Calling of cops.

2) Running away.

3) Screaming like a girl.

4) Killing you.

Really REALLY not kidding.

You’ve been warned.

~Ash.

I can’t catch a break.

I made it home OK from CO, but as was noted on my most recent post I managed to get myself pretty badly burned right before coming home. In addition to that lovely physical ailment, I’ve also found myself suffering from migraines with distressing frequency recently. A few months ago Doc Grainger put me on a wonderous drug called Topamax, which is great for reducing the frequency and intensity of migraines but is pretty awful with the side effects (which are legion and can be upsetting including tingling/numbing in extremities, a predilection for making snap decisions, and a tendency for most people to suffer from short and long term memory . . . reshuffling. Not quite loss, but it takes a LONG time to remember stuff).

So this morning I woke up to go to work with a pretty bad one but I thought I would be able to get through it. I then sat up and almost vomited. Literally. I went to get up to go to the bathroom and I think I might have lost conciousness. I was awake and then next thing I knew it was almost an hour later and I was kinda half on/half off my bed (and my side was cramped). Needless to say I called in sick despite having NO sick time available whatsoever. Sometimes is just doesn’t matter! Losing an hour of time has got to be one of the more distressing things to have happen, period. And this is coming from someone who has had a whole HOST of distressing things happen in the last few months!

Happily I’ve got an appointment with ol’ Doc Grainger already scheduled for this Friday (the dude is HARD to get in to see if you’ve not already scheduled an appointment), and I managed to last through the day mostly with the use of a dark room and a cool wash cloth on my forehead (sadly the leftover perk didn’t help at all. Stupid stubborn bitch of a migraine). The sad bit is I REALLY would like to get my butt into work. No one ever looks forward to going back to work after a nice vacation, but I really would like to get back to earning that bonus! Maybe I can convince the Doc that I need something stronger (preferably something that doesn’t make me quit my job this time, however . . .)

~A.

Colorado

Well, I’ve been here for the better part of a week at this point and it’s been pretty all around awesome. The trip up was no picnic, and that little reoccurring nightmare, that I’ll get in a car accident and die by swerving to avoid hitting something somewhere in New Mexico all during the age of 28 . . . yeah, don’t have to fear it quite as much. I (obviously) didn’t die from it and it wasn’t in New Mexico (instead it was a few miles outside of Holbrook, AZ), but I had to swerve to avoid hitting a HUGE elk standing in the middle of the road and ended up doing at least a 360 on the side of/onto the middle of the freeway. Had the road been anymore crowded I would have been totally fucked.

BUT I survived! Since then I’ve more or less split my time between the Springs seeing a very pregnant Meggan (who just discovered she is having a boy and is due in mid-October), and Denver doing jack crap. Watching TV mostly. I just don’t know as many people up here as I used to so it’s kinda tough to reconnect! That said, last night Kristan and I got together and between the two of us managed to polish off the greater part of a bottle of Grey Goose and reminisce about old times. I kept finding myself almost telling Kristan stories, actually. Then I’d realize “Oh wait, she was there.”

It was amusing.

You may notice that it’s currently about 4:30am. I am up and blogging at this point because today I went to the Colorado Renaissance Festival. Seeing as I was out there with a bunch of other people who were in civvies, I chose to wear the same. The only thing is that they went home after about 2.5 hours whereas I stayed out the entire, very hot, very sunny, day. If I were in my costume this would have just been uncomfortable as it would have required a LOT of water, but I would have had a hat, long sleeves, and tights to save me from the sun’s rays. Instead I was in short sleeves, shorts, and no hat. In short, I’m a toasty mo-fo. It’s making sleeping . . . difficult.

But I’m gonna go give it a try . . . again. I’ve got the sneaking suspicion that this blog isn’t terribly coherent so it’s probably best to stop talking.

~Ash.

P.S. Oh, and as an added bonus, I forgot my inhaler and so the classic CO Ren Faire of “everything is uphill in both directions” added to the dust and the elevation has resulted in me coughing again. A lot. I REALLY don’t need to miss more work because of these stupid lungs!!

Days . . .

40 more until I am winging my way with my family to Hawai’i. I’ve not been since I was about 4 years old. I don’t remember much except that I had the chicken pox while I was there. True story.

14 more until I’ll be winging my way BACK from CO. Not something I look forward to. Have I mentioned that I don’t much like flying? Like at all? Over a million moving or electric parts in an airplane. My toaster doesn’t make toast correctly on a regular basis. Why do I trust a plane again?

12 more until I dress up myself up as some sort of anachronistic peacock of a fop and along with Michael Turney unleash Archibald Bigglesworth, Duke of Paddington (“Archie”) and his cousin Reggie on the Colorado Renaissance Festival. They have NO idea what they’re in for.

7 more until I see my one of my oldest and closest friends. I’ve not seen Meggan since January and in the interim she went and got herself pregnant. I’ve always wondered what she would really be like in this state, and now I get to find out! During this time I might also get to see my other friend Kristan who, rumour has it, might be Stateside right now. Holy crap, it’s an orgy of reacquaintance!

6 more until I face one of my biggest fears. I’ve had reoccurring nightmares involving driving through the New Mexican desert and getting in a fatal car accident since I was about 15. In those dreams I’ve ALWAYS been 28. For the first time since turning 28, I’ll be driving through New Mexico. This is also the first time I’ve admitted this at all publicly. But hey, one has to face one’s fears . . . and if you’re not up front about it, what’s the point?

And finally, 5 more until my 10 year high school reunion! I’ll be attending with an old (and yes, male) friend of mine as a date. Since I was on the swim team and in drama, there was a stubborn rumour all through my very Mormon high school career that I was gay. Well, why not give them a bit of a shock now. Samme went to Mountain View but was a year behind. He always hung out with us though and is a dear friend so why not bring him? We’re also going with my cousin and his wife. We might even get a limo so we can all get nice and sloshed!

And that’s about me. Just thought I’d give a few things that I’m looking forward to in the coming weeks! Everyone wish me luck . . .

~Ash.