http://www.taffystay.com ramblings from seattle's rainier beach neighborhood Wed, 28 Jul 2010 05:45:29 +0000 http://backend.userland.com/rss092 en I've been wondering how to describe Harry Potter Land (aka Wizarding World of Harry Potter), but I discovered that my fellow Harry Pothead has already written up something for her own blog. Join me in welcoming my very first guest blogger, Melanie, and her summary of our adventure at Harry ... http://www.taffystay.com/archives/1380 I'm kind of at this point where I feel like there's too much to blog about, so I don't feel like blogging about anything. I also feel like I want to hide out for a few weeks and not do anything. I feel like there are a lot of people ... http://www.taffystay.com/archives/1378 Vacation posts are always challenging. How do I sum up an amazing week? Do people really want a play-by-play of everything we did? I'm still coming down off of the high of all the Harry Potter craziness from the last two days (not to mention several days of fun and ... http://www.taffystay.com/archives/1369 It's weird to be flying thousands of feet over the ground, but still be connected to people. Alaska Air's in-flight wi-fi is free this month, so I'm taking full advantage of it. I even Skyped with some friends and gave them a glimpse of the view outside my window. My ... http://www.taffystay.com/archives/1366 Because I'm sure you are all dying to know how I did in the half-marathon on Saturday, I didn't want to leave you in suspense anymore. I came in 2:22 - only two minutes past my goal. Despite a slower-than-expected pace, I did not expect to get that close to ... http://www.taffystay.com/archives/1317 For the past few years, we've had occasional moles intruding on our property. They burrow through the ground, leaving tunnels pushed up all around the yard. To see if moles are still hanging around, you're supposed to step on the tunnels, which fills them back up with dirt. If the ... http://www.taffystay.com/archives/1358 Three months ago, I posted this picture showing newborn coriopsis as a sign of spring. The rocks that are partially shown are a little bigger than my shoe, and the stems of coriopsis are just a couple of inches high. Now check out the coriopsis today: Pretty soon, the clumps will be ... http://www.taffystay.com/archives/1352 Today was one of my last long runs before the half-marathon in two weeks. I've been losing steam, and it's been harder and harder for me to be consistent with training. I haven't looked forward to running the long runs alone. "This American Life" surely deserves a monetary donation because ... http://www.taffystay.com/archives/1349 Caring for a garden can be time-consuming and challenging. But when it gives you gifts like these, it's all worth it... http://www.taffystay.com/archives/1341 Sometimes you have to toot your own horn, especially if you really think you deserve it. And, in this situation, I think I deserve it. This past Tuesday, I gave my 20th manual speech in Toastmasters. (When I say "manual," I mean out of the manuals that each member works ... http://www.taffystay.com/archives/1331