Monday meltdown

I've already gone out to dry off the satellite dish this morning. It's raining. That means erratic Internet service no matter how much the folks who sell you the satellite variety tell you that weather doesn't affect it. I think they get paid to keep their mouths shut.

I'm used to it, though, after nearly eight months of noticing that every time my Internet didn't work, moisture was dripping from the sky.

So, I keep a mop next to the sliding glass door for those trips outside to where I keep a ladder next to the side of the house so that I can climb up and dab off the dish, hoping for it to stay dry enough for me to finish whatever I'm doing during that session on the Internet.

I might be climbing up there again before this blog entry gets posted.

I'm happy to see the rain. That means it's warm enough not to be snow and that by the end of the day, we may see a lot less snow. I'll take the rain, if that's the case.

This is one of those weeks of finishing some projects and beginning some anew. I'm going to be working for the Idaho Forest Products Commission, writing profiles about people who work in the forest industry. This should be a fun project, especially since my husband works in the industry and he may just know some of the folks on my list.

I'm also planning to spend as much time as possible working out a plan for a memoir-writing seminar in Coeur d'Alene April 11. A nice lady and a wonderful writer/historian named Jenny asked me if I'd be interested a couple of months ago. Since then, I've asked my friend and former student Erica to join me at the seminar.

Between the two of us, we've probably written about a thousand stories, so maybe we'll come up with something helpful for all who want to write memoirs. I can never stress enough the importance of writing about one's life experiences. Personal memoirs often provide some of the richest history we can find, and if the story is not ever told, it often becomes lost forever.

This week is also the week before the big TAX MEETING with Bev, our accountant, so I've got some final details to get in order before we head down there, hand over the pile and then pray for the next several weeks as she figures out the good or bad news. There is something to be said about spending a lot of money and not making as much money----at tax time, that is.

On another note, another interminable Academy Awards program has hit the history books. I can't say that I saw it all because, of course, I was on the couch and dozed off through several segments. It lasted long enough for several naps, but I did agree with a headline this morning that suggested that the show had several weird moments.

Some things did seem weird, but what seemed most weird to me were the former BEST ACTRESSES and ACTORS looking into the eyes of their respective nominee, speaking "from the heart," then suddenly going blank and awkwardly pointing their faces toward the teleprompter to save them---thus making the recipient of their "from the heart" words look a bit awkward as they stared back.

Seems like if these people spend their careers memorizing lines, they could handle a few sentences of sincerity without the teleprompters at their own awards night.

But that's just an observation.

I also could not find any humor whatsoever in Ben Stiller's performance as a presenter. Maybe it was an inside joke, but as far as I could see, it was dumb, then it got dumber. Maybe someone could enlighten me.

It's over, and I'm anxious to see Slumdog Millionaire. I have yet to read a bad review of the movie, and some of those have even come from regular folks, so it probably deserves all the accolades it received last night.

At the risk of sounding dumb or dumber, I guess that's enough for today. We'll see if that satellite dish holds off the moisture long enough for me to get this posted.

Happy Monday. If you're in snow country, hope you're enjoying a meltdown too.