Life drones on . . .

I've not written lately, because there's just not a lot to write about. We're busy, don't get me wrong. But who wants to read about my daily expeditions into long-packed boxes, possession culling, and closet organization?

We continue to get rain close to daily, so we still don't have the chicken coop finished. It has to be finished by August 25, because I start grad school then and I can't have chickens unattended in the house for three days a week! We currently have the ten big babies in the double kennel we used to use for Copen, and the Phoenix babies in the three-bin brooder. The Phoenix babies are so called, because they're named after members of Harry Potter's Order of the Phoenix/Dumbledore's Army.

Anyway, having the big birds in a cage-type house rather than an enclosed brooder changes things a lot. Chickens are dirty! I have layers of dust in the dining room like you wouldn't believe and the downy feathers get everywhere! I vacuum twice a day and it's no where near enough. At least the shavings aren't everywhere. Steve put wood along the cage perimeter, so when the babies do their scratching and kicking, the shavings stay in the cage . . . for the most part.

Onslo is quickly becoming the cock on the walk. He'll break up tussles between the girls, but is quite quick to assert his authority over the others. He's got a warning cluck now, but he hasn't yet tried to crow. I crow at him, hoping it will spur him on, but he's not been inspired just yet. He'll be seven weeks old Monday, so I imagine it won't be long at all before he makes his voice heard.

I used my pasta machine for the first time earlier this week. I made fresh whole-wheat spaghetti. It turned out quite well, much to my surprise. I wish I had an automatic machine, so I could make tube pastas. But my hand-crank Atlas is versatile enough for my newbie pasta skills. We're talking about giving ravioli a go this weekend. Steve bought me some semolina flour from the organic store (the only place that carries it), so I want to give it a try.

Steve's weight loss plateaued for a bit, but he's now starting to lose again. We had to buy him some new clothes last weekend. He's down to a size 32 trouser now and medium shirts. To think when he started he was getting ready to move up to a 46 trouser and his shirts were XXL.

I register for classes on Monday. That will be exciting. That will make grad school seem real, I think. Then in a month, I actually start school. I'm looking forward to it, but at the same time, I'm feeling a bit stressed, because I know I won't have time for much else and I have so many unfinished projects here at the house.

That's about it for the time being. Like I said, we're busy, but we're not exactly doing anything exciting.

The Running Man

Steve participated in his first race on July 4th, the Celebration 5K. Nearly 1100 runners (1078 to be exact) arrived bright and early for the race. A couple of our friends joined us there. Steve did very well. He finished 251st overall, and finished 29th out of the 63 men in his age group. He beat his personal best, averaging just under 8 minutes a mile. His final official time: 24 minutes, 45 seconds. Impressive. Especially when you consider Steve's been running for just two months.

Here are some photos from the day:

Steve's all rested and refreshed as we arrive. Don't let the calm exterior fool you. He was a live wire all morning.

You can't really run without something to keep the sweat out of your eyes and some good uptempo running music. Here's Steve kitted out in his do-rag and headphones. He couldn't find his ear buds.

Your runners for today's event: Steve, Melanie, and Melanie's devilish husband.

The chaos right after the starting cannon. It took several seconds for the swarm of runners to actually pass the starting line.

And they're off! I used an arrow to help you spot Steve. Photo by Randy Lefko.

A few paces further into the race. The arrows point out your runners. Photo by Randy Lefko.

Photo again by Randy Lefko.

Melanie urged Steve to finish strong, so he sprinted to the finish line. Here he's fixing to pass one of the many kids running the race. Photo by Randy.

He's almost to the finish line now. What an expression! I thought running was supposed to be fun?! You can see Melanie and her hubby in the background (he finished first and went back to cheer Mel on). At least she seems to be smiling. Yet another photo by Randy.

Steve crossed the finish line and checks his time on his meter. The display time is longer than his official time, because it began when the start cannon fired, but it took over 15 seconds before Steve actually reached the starting line. He wore a chip on his shoe which activated when he crossed the start and finish lines and that gave him his official 24:45.

Vistakon runs! Steve and Melanie both work at Vistakon, as does Justin, who works in R&D. Justin finished third - nine minutes ahead of Steve. That guy can run!