PS Hates Squirrels...

And I've decided to become one...ish.

I'm home sick from work today.  Poor PS didn't get her walk.  Last night I had a sore throat. This morning I had a raging head cold. Because my mom isn't here to do it for me, I went to the store and got some supplies.  Cold meds, tissues (both plain and lotion), cough drops, and the crucial Sprite-like beverage.  I chose an organic look-alike but it is serving its purpose quite well.  For those of you who don't know, Sprite is the sick drink.  I can only drink it when I am sick.  I will pause to blame my Mom for this (always blame the mother).  She only gave us Sprite when we were sick and now if I try to drink it when I am well, it makes me feel sick.  

Whenever I stay home, I get these little glimpses into PS's life alone in the apartment.  Mostly I picture her sleeping and occasionally getting up to inspect the recycle bin or destuff a toy.  Today, I see that there is a battle going on.  I have determined that my upstairs neighbor feeds the squirrels who have nests in the trees across from my porch.  One day I saw one with a cookie in its mouth.  Now you all know that I love animals.  I always have and now I don't even eat them or anything that they produced, so this may seem strange.  I think wild animals should not be fed, especially things like cookies.  They need to feed themselves.  The person living above me may not be there next year and now the squirrels are conditioned to gobble cookies from her balcony.  Another problem, is that they squirrels are constantly on her balcony and my porch.  This is a problem because they torment my favorite doggie, PS.  She was inconsolable when they were running around above her head, those pesky squirrels!  I brought her in from the porch because I thought she might rip down the chicken wire, which is the only thing that is stopping her from running out into the trees.  As I sit here typing this, she is just sitting, behind the window glass, willing the squirrels to drop dead.  

I'm babbling on about illness and The Great Squirrel War of 2013 because I'm a little nervous to tell you the real news.  Here goes.  I am going to thru hike the Arizona Trail.  I'm putting it out there in the hopes that someone will actually hold me to it.  I feel confident in my determination, but also scared that I will chicken out and be called flaky.  I'm thinking the earliest I would do it is spring of 2015, but most likely it will be sometime in 2016.  I fully intend to guilt all my AZ friends into supporting my effort with resupply and hiking company on some passages. :)  I'm not above begging.  I feel like my greatest difficulty in just getting started will be my total dependence on PS.  Leaving her for any amount of time is stressful for me, but I have time to figure that out.  In the meantime, I am going to detail a fitness schedule and clean up my eating.  I need to drop some serious lbs for the health of my knees and, well, just health in general before I can take on such challenge.  

So, here's to squirrels and long trails.

Bonus: PS yawns

Road trips are boring for pups.

New Traditions

So, it is not even Thanksgiving yet, but y'all know that I LOVE Christmas.  It is never too early.  There are only a few years in my adult life that I have been able to resist setting up my Christmas tree before Thanksgiving.  Honestly, I would prefer to have it up at Halloween.

This year my Christmas obsession is being fed by The Pintester.  I am participating in the latest installment of The Pintester Movement.

CHRISTMAS ORNAMENTS! I LIKE YELLING!!

Here's the deal.  Find an ornament on Pinterest.  Make it. Blog about it.  Follow the instructions here. Done.

Now for my ornament(s).  Back in the summer my friend told me the very exciting news that she is pregnant. I am so thrilled!  I am borderline obsessed.  I almost immediately started looking for craft ideas.  Lots of onsies, blankets, and booties.  I also ran across this:

I bought a pack of four frosted ornaments and some paint pens and shamelessly copied this pic.  The Pinterest Pin didn't link to anything but a google image (super annoying btw).  My friend isn't really a dress wearing kinda gal so I modified the design a bit.  I think it worked.

Here is my finished product:

I'm at the airport right now, on my way to the baby shower so I hope she likes it.

Now, because I was then stuck with 3 other plain frosted ornaments and a challenge from The Pintester, I returned to Pinterest to get some new inspiration (and to use the expensive paint pens I invested in).  I found several pins for inspiration.  There are some really cute ones on frosting & glitter. Now I didn't buy the cute pastel colors, nor did I buy a very big variety of colors.  Paint pens are really expensive.  I'm going to be using paint pens on everything from now on.  I may carry one in my pocket so i can graffiti, 'cause dang.

I gave cute a try:

Frosty doesn't have a nose.  I didn't have an orange paint pen :(  ...Or, now that I am looking at it, a mouth.  Crap.

I guess the blue heart needed to take a pee.

Then funny:

I didn't plan out the words very well.  "Snow" is a little wonky.

The snow flakes are ok though.

And then it hit me. A new tradition was born.  My family is kinda funny.  I will be making "This Barlow Life" ornaments for my fabulous Christmas tree for as many years as the fam will provide material.  I have quite a backlog, so I ain't runnin' out of ideas any time soon.  

First installment: This is a family joke which has endured for decades.

When I was a child, my parents, two older sisters, and I were camping in the mountains of New Mexico. My oldest sister was a teenager and not thrilled by hanging with her parents and two little sisters.  One night, we were all getting settled in our sleeping bags and she announced, "I'm going outside to read."  Dad replied, "If you see a bear, run the other way."  And then he commenced laughing at his own joke.  He laughed so hard , I thought he was going to die. She did NOT think it was that funny and the rest of us were laughing at Dad as he giggled and wheezed. You had to be there. :)

I hope my sister isn't insulted by my lack of artistic ability.  It isn't a very good likeness. 

OMG a bear with no mouth or nose!

Bonus:  Sleeping PS

Extra Bonus: Traveling PS

To Poo or Not To Poo

I gave up Shampoo!

I've been meaning to write this post for a while, but I really wanted to get a little more experience under my belt before I did.  A few people have asked me about this and here is my answer to all of those questions.

First of all, I need to confess something.  Long before I went No Poo, I was only washing my hair once or twice a week.  Yes, there were times that things got pretty (or not) oily and gross, but I was in a bit of a depression and I just didn't care.

Anyway, I decided to give up shampoo ages before I actually did it.  I bought a brand new bottle of shampoo and I said, "this is the last one."  I promised that I wouldn't buy another bottle of shampoo after that.  It took foreeeeever to finish that one bottle due to the once a week washing thing I was already doing. I actually still have a little of that bottle left, but I jumped into No Poo anyway.

I used the instructions found here to get started with the No Poo Method.  She gives great detail and answers tons of questions about No Poo.

The transition period for me was virtually non-existent.  I didn't experience overly oily hair...I had already gone through that due to the infrequent washing in the preceding months.  The only negative experience I had was a little dry scalp on the first day after using baking soda to clean my roots.  My scalp was itchy and flaky but only for one day.  After that, smooth sailing!

I have mainly used the method of mixing a little baking soda with water in a squirt bottle.  I have only once used the paste method.  (Before you ask, all of this is described in detail in the link above, no I will not repeat it here.)  I used the paste because I noticed that my hair was feeling a little greasy, even after using the baking soda/water solution.  The paste cleared it right up, so I will probably use the solution regularly and the paste for when I need that extra cleansing.

The apple cider vinegar as conditioner is good too.  It won't give you that slippery feeling of commercial conditioners, but it definitely works.  The smell goes away when your hair dries, so don't worry about smelling of vinegar all day.  On a related note, coffee grounds will work as conditioner too, but it can be a pain to get the grounds out of your hair.

Now for the question of hair falling out.  Honestly, there isn't anything about putting baking soda and vinegar on your hair that would make more hair fall out than normal.  We lose tons of hair every day.  It doesn't necessarily mean that baldness is nigh.  I lose a huge amount of hair!  I mean it.  Tons!  Every time I take a shower I could clog up the drain.  Now, that is a normal thing for me.  It is amplified by not washing my hair everyday.  I also keep my hair pulled up most of the time.  That means all that hair that is continuously falling out is stuck in my ponytail and can't fall out throughout the day.  So, have I noticed a difference?  Yes.  Do I think it is a problem? No.  If you brush your hair more often than me, you won't notice as much of a difference.  If you rinse your hair in the shower between washings more often than me, you won't notice as much of a difference.

I am loving this.  It is cheap.  It is responsible stewardship of our planet.  We really need to consider the consequences of what we put in and on our bodies, as well as what we put into our water system.

Go forth and be free of nasty chemicals!

Bonus: PS sleeping in the car.  She was tired and had to share the backseat with another doggie.  There were limited headrest choices.  :)

Grateful for Kindness

This should have been a post about my third annual hike into (and out of) the Grand Canyon.  I'm sure everyone knows why that didn't happen this year, but in case you live under a rock or in a commune, I'll sum up.  Throughout human history there has been a thing called power.  Everyone wants it.  Some people have a little power and some have a lot.  Those who have a lot of power, want to keep it.  Those with a little want more.  There is another concept that needs to enter the stage here.  Acceptable loss.  Everyone seeking power or trying to hang on to it has their own level of acceptable loss.  It just so happens that in our current political climate, all sides have defined their level of acceptable loss exactly the same.  800,000 people instantly out of work, countless children left un-cared for while their parents go to work in low paying jobs, elderly people without meals and a kind word from another person, hard earned dollars spent on dream trips to national parks, and the stock market plunging due to unnecessary threats to the value of US currency.  (Please don't start fuming about the things I left off this list.  No doubt we could go on and on, but you get the picture.)  There doesn't seem to be a limit save wholescale murder of WWII vets.  Because of this, I will not vote for any incumbent candidates in the foreseeable future, and, really, I am considering a personal, lifetime moratorium on voting for them.  That may be the only thing I can do for my country.  There are no term limits for our Congress unless we impose them through our right to vote.

So yes, my vacation took a left turn due to the government shut down.  A yearly dose of Grand Canyon has probably been the only thing keeping me off of mood altering drugs, but onward, right:  We hauled our butts to the Superstition Mountains and did an overnight in Haunted Canyon.  It was fun, but in all honesty, a poor substitute for the majesty of one of the natural wonders of the world.  The next two nights were spent at Dead Horse Ranch State Park in Cottonwood, AZ.  Just PS and I, enjoying a rest surrounded by Mountains, watching the stars and the lights of Jerome, AZ on the mountainside.  Spending time there makes me realize just how much I miss the desert.  That smell of ozone before it heats up.  Someday I will be back there for good.

That time also made me appreciate kindness.  I say that because there was a power hungry madman in the campsite near me.  I did not hear a civil word pass from this man to his wife or two kids.  It was an almost endless stream of profanity and verbal abuse the likes of which I have never seen.  I heard barely a peep out of those children and yet they seemed to be saying and doing everything wrong.  The wife was giving it right back to him occasionally, but for the most part tried to keep the peace and reason with him.

I am including this actual conversation for illustrative purposes.  Turn back now if you are offended by profanity.

"I NEED FUCKING HELP!"
"What do you need us to do?"
"TAKE ALL THIS SHIT OUT OF THE TRUCK!"
"...WHAT ARE YOU DOING?!"
"Taking the shit out of the truck!  You said you needed HELP!"
"DON'T PUT THAT SHIT THERE!"
"Where do you want it?"
"NOT THERE!!  ANYWHERE!"  (I'm not making this up.)
"I CAN'T GET ANY REAL FUCKING HELP!"

He actually said, "We'll just nigger rig it," at least 3 times.

I think this man does more to hurt humanity than any of the things we bicker over and vote on.

Some people exclaim the downfall of America and ask how we got to this point.  We got here because of unkindness.  Not pre-marital sex, not alcohol, not homosexuality, not abortion, not electing a Democrat/Republican President, not skipping church on Wednesdays, or not being religious in the least.

Unkindness.

 Because when Jesus said, "As I have loved you, so you must love one another," we chose unkindness instead.  When the Buddha said, "Radiate boundless love towards the entire world - above, below, and across - unhindered, without ill will, without enmity," we chose unkindness.  When the Prophet Muhammad said, "You will not enter paradise until you have faith, and you will not complete your faith until you love one another," we chose unkindness.

I Fall

I went hiking last Sunday to Blue Lake, which is spectacular btw.  It is about 10 miles round trip.  This is the longest hike I have done in a while and it was raining most of the time. I got some pretty pics of wildflowers and tested some of my newly acquired plant knowledge.

This little pretty is poisonous.

Monk's Hood

And then the ever lovely state flower of CO.

Columbine

I made it to the lake completely drenched and cold.  

I tend to get a little clumsy on the tail end of a hike and on this particular hike I was talking to a lady.  We were just chatting up a storm.  I turned my head to say something to her and a tree root jumped up, grabbed my foot and slammed me down on my knees.  It was a vicious tree root, full of anger.  There is bruising. I will recover but not without a little whining.  ;)

Get out there and get some bruises, y'all!

My first foraged food!

I'm starting out small.  The lowly dandelion.  I plucked the flowers off the dandelions in my very own backyard.  Very soon I intend to learn how to make my own roasted dandelion root tea, as I am spending a fortune at WF buying it.  Its my favorite drink right now.  

Here are the little darlings, taking a dip in a water and vinegar solution to get them nice and clean.  My parents get all bent out of shape if I don't wash my produce, so...Look Mom and Dad!  I washed them.

 

I cleaned them up, removing the little bits of stem that were hanging on.

Then I just whipped up a simple batter of cornmeal, nutritional yeast, vegan coconut creamer (shut up, its what I had laying around), and spices.  I used pepper, smoked paprika, a little salt and a splash of agave syrup.  

FRYING!!!

And this is what I got.

They taste pretty much like what you put on them, so no IN UR FACE I'M A FLOWER taste.  They met the discerning approval of the roomie and myself.  Crunchy outside, soft center.  Yum.  I will definitely do this again.  I am thinking that I might try baking them though.  The house if full of smoke :/

Water 4 Kids International

Whadup, peeps?

PS has been so frustrated with me today.  We have not gone for our daily walk because it has been snowing...hard...all day.  We have somewhere in the 7-10 inches of snow range right now and it ain't lettin' up.  Heavy, spring snow.  The kind that breaks your back when you try to shovel a path to your car.  Not that I drove anywhere.  I don't do that.  So, because I wouldn't be able to see out of my snow speckled glasses and she would probably pull my off my feet, we didn't go walking today.  

To make up for the disappointment, I am making plans for other walks and possibly runs in the future.  First up:

Loveland Walk 4 Water.

The walk will be raising money to provide clean water to Soni Lakwari, Uganda.

Want to help?  Go here.

Want to Walk?  Go here.