Somehow I saw this coming...

Which Princess Bride Character are You?
this quiz was made by mysti

Courtesy of Aynde...

Also from Virus Head

Your Greek Goddess Soulmate (With Pictures) Girls Only
Goddess Athena You are most like Athena. She was the divine sponsor of warriors and heroes, she introduced several of the arts and crafts necessary for civilization, and she represented wisdom. Obviously, the goddess played a prominent role in Greek mythology. The poet Hesiod states that Athena emerged from the head of Zeus; indeed, she sprang out fully grown and armed for battle. The idea that she was born from a male underscores her relationship with men, both divine and human. In the human realm, Athena consistently becomes a protector of heroes; while in the divine she completely avoids sexual liaisons with gods.
Take The Quiz Now!	Quizzes by myYearbook.com

What is your TRUE name?
Dagda The Irish-Celtic god of the earth and treaties, and ruler over life and death. Dagda, or The Dagda, (''the good god'') is one of the most prominent gods and the leader of the Tuatha D Danann. He is a master of magic, a fearsome warrior and a skilled artisan. Dagda is a son of the goddess Danu, and father of the goddess Brigid and the god Aengus mac Oc. The Morrigan is his wife, with whom he mates on New Years Day The Dagda is portrayed as possessing both super- human strength and appetite.
Take The Quiz Now!	Quizzes by myYearbook.com

What Mythical Creature Best Suites Your Personality?
Unicorn You are sweet and forgiving. People love you, there is no doubt about that. Keep it up and you will become Miss. Populartiy!!! You arn't timid and you let people know that in a nice way. Congratulations!!!
Take The Quiz Now!	Quizzes by myYearbook.com

What is your Spiritual gift?
Meduim You have a very special gift. You are a Meduim .....AMeduim is some one who can talk with spirit and bring peace to those who have lost loved ones and the loved ones they lost. This is a gift that you must use wisely and not take for granted.
Take The Quiz Now!	Quizzes by myYearbook.com

A GOOD RELIGION QUIZ
Hindu You are a Hindu. Beleiving in many different Gods, and reincarnation. If you are American and got this one, don't be scared. Look into it
Take The Quiz Now!	Quizzes by myYearbook.com

Which Tarot Arcana are You? (women)
World Completion, reward, assured success. Triumph in all undertakings. Arrival at the state of cosmic consciousness. Can mean also movement in one's affairs or travel.
Take The Quiz Now!	Quizzes by myYearbook.com

MMm... loving the last one. The very first reading I ever did (and come to think of it, the latest too) turned up this card in the Final Outcome position.

Speaking of, I had a Tarot reading done at the Ren Faire this weekend. It was the first time I let someone read for me. She spent an hour with me, working and talking. It was fascinating.

There was lots I have seen before in my own readings but also I learned a lot that I might not otherwise have seen with out help from an outside observer. By that, I mean that some cards I see all the time for myself turned up in familiar positions. However, there were some present in very (uncomfortably) accurate positions which I never have. Also, some recurring themes; a card that we get almost every time we read for MadManda came up in portion the reading concerning her specifically. COOOOOOL!

Best of all, she offered to send me some materials she used to use to teach _ for free_ and even sent me home with a book on Palmistry. It felt very much like a case of being led to someone who might help guide me in the next step on the journey. Wonder where I'm going next!

My Celebrity Lookalikes.

Eric, does this mean you're going to start referring to me as Condi?

R.I.P. Crisis-A-Minute Christy

A not-so secret nickname my parents gave me growing up. Didn't matter how big or small the issue was, for me, it was all about the drama. ALL about the drama. Every little setback was a major catastrophe, every minor obstacle an urgent crisis.

Ask my parents, or just check their phone records for calls at ungodly hours; the trend continued into adulthood. Ask my bosses, my husband, my ex-boyfriends and friends. It was a bad idea to put me in charge of the team Christmas decoration contest, much less expect me to do something like I did Tuesday. Three years ago, I'd have collapsed completely.

5:30AM Tuesday: I'm driving through rain, headed in to cover the Traffic desk for D, who is sick. It's my day off but with the Mandatory OT, I was scheduled to be at work anyway. It's too early to be going anywhere without coffee and I left the house without it.

5:45AM: Properly prepared with Starbucks, I get to the third floor. I start the process of logging into 3 computers, multiple data bases, programs and trackers, and setting up 4 monitors with multiple views of the same thing: who is doing what, where and how fast.

5:55AM: The business analysts just to the right of me are having trouble logging in to their phones. I can't log into the desk phone or my own extension. A quick check, nobody on the floor can log in to their phones.

5:57AM: The main Traffic desk downstairs confirms the phone servers for the entire building are out. May be related to the lightning strike that took out a tree near us the night before. I have three minutes before my people need to be on the phones or retail will grind to a halt and my company will begin losing thousands of dollars an hour.

Maybe during Cowboy's extended and repeated hospitalizations, I learned to deal.

I start making alternate plans. Mandatory OT means our two alternate sites may have people in their seats early. It'll be less than half our staff but something is better than nothing. I find out how to get our people credit for being here on time and get the word out through our leads. I send the hardest email of my career, to the sups, my managers and even the director, that our main site is down and we have no ETA on repair.

6:00AM: Sites T and V have people logged in! Not very many, but there aren't very many calls at six either and Tuesday is our slowest day of the week.

If sites V and T can receive calls, will they be our calls or the default? Two fast phone calls and I have my answer: the calls are (because my allocation did work) are for Credit issues. We're in business.

6:05AM: I have thirty agents here and nothing for them to do. Next plan: I have the leads get most people started on a web based training we all have to complete in the next two weeks. The rest I get into off-queue order processing.

6:30AM: Sup M arrives and joins the conference call I attended earlier. Our problem is minor compared to what all of the Collections groups are groing through. Back at the Ranch: The floor is quiet, everyone has something to do.

6:45AM: Have everybody log out, they're going to reboot the servers.

6:46AM: We select a few people to log in again. Log out. Log in. Log out. Log in. Scattered reports that they're getting Credit calls. Then Collections, Care.. Retention. Log out again. Log in... wait... success!

6:50 AM: We have the whole center log in, I set tentatively reset the allocation to give us the majority and pray. Agents sitting around the Traffic desk give me the thumbs up: it's Credit calls they're getting. Even better, we're operating at normal capacity within ten minutes.

A few minutes later, my screens go live and my magic call tracking eyes are back too. I send out a follow up to my earlier note: the issue is fixed, we're live and kicking; what's more, the issue cost us very little out of our SLA. Throughout the morning people stop by to thank me and I wonder what I did that was extraordinary.

It's not until I am driving home that I realize what I did: I handled a crisis. I stuck my finger in the damn and got everybody filling sandbags until the Army Corps of Engineers could arrive.

I guess she's gone. Rest in Peace, Crisis-A-Minute Christy.

The ABC's of Me

From Aynde:
A - Attached or single? Attached for (knock wood) life to my Cowboy.
B - Best friend? Cowboy, Aynde and Cara.
C - Cake or pie? Cake! Anything Oooey Gooey and Fudgey!
D - Drink of choice? 32 oz of ice cold water with 1 tblspn of apple juice mixed in.
E - Essential item? Treo755p
F - Favorite color? Deep rich red
G - Gummi bears or worms? Bears but too many make me yak.
H - Hometown? Laramie, Wy.
I - Indulgence? Miso Soup, Sashimi and Tempura Nuri (that's calamari or SQUID if you REALLY want to know)
J – Jail? Er... technically, I have been arrested twice. For my dogs(long story both times). I have never been actually put in a cell, just processed and then released when I paid the over due fine.
K - Kids? 5! MadManda. SuperShel, WondrousWill, PrecociousPat and CommandanteCheryl
L - Life is incomplete without? Projecting positive energy and learning everything you can.
M - Marriage date? June 4th, 1994
N - Number of siblings? 1: Alex.
O - Oranges or apples? Apples. Granny Smith
P - Phobia/fears? Water. Deep, dark water.
Q - Favorite quote? All it takes is faith and trust. And a little bit of Pixie Dust.
R - Reasons to smile? Everything!
S - Season? In Texas? Fall in the Rockies.
T - Tag three. Cara, Virushead, MadManda
U - Unknown fact about me? I am allergic to pineapple.
V - Vegetarian or oppressor of animals? If They didn't want us to eat meat, They should not have made animals out of Meat.
W - Worst habit? Worrying about things I cannot control
X - X-rays or ultrasounds?? Mostly ultrasounds. Five babies. Lots of Jelly on the belly, see your baby on the telly!
Y – Can you Yo-Yo? No, yo?
Z - Zodiac? Pisces and BOY, am I!

Eric At Random: It's Meez!!

Thanks Eric, for the link: Eric At Random: It's Meez!!

Ya know... sometimes these things don't get the fact that people come in different shapes. I'd rather be thinner, yeah, but this isn't a body type I'd ever choose for myself, not to mention that I'm not ashamed of how I am shaped right this second.

Also, it's more... er... Charmed than Bippity Boppity Boo and that's so not what I was going for and my kitchen has never EVER been this clean. That's what makes it a fantasy, I guess!

Meme-o-rama-apalooza-ganza

*note the sarcasm in the title? I thought you might*

I pulled a few different Memes from The Daily Meme and tried each on recommendation of VirusHead.

From Tina's Tuesday:

• Have you ever been on a diet? If so, when? Dozens! Starting from the time I was about eighteen, I believe.
• What was the most pounds you have ever lost? Seventy-some. Fen-Phen. I gained back more than I lost. A lot more.
• Are you currently on one now? If so, mention your stats (start, lbs lost, etc). I am not on a diet as there is no end to this journey. I'm changing my relationship with food and losing weight along the way. So far, I have lost 30 lbs since July, 2006 with help from WeightWatchers and Our Lady of Weight loss.

From That's My Answer

Can you name three albums you owned when you were younger than you’re embarrassed about now, but secretly enjoy?

• 1. "Annie." I brought it to music class 'show and play' every Friday of 4th grade when the cool girls brought in the soundtrack to Grease. All the way through H.S. the same girls never let me forget it. I still hate Grease.
• 2. A 45 of Madonna's "Material Girl". I didn't have the special adapter to play 45s on my record player so I had to weight the disc with pennies placed just right.
• 3. Every album Poison put out, on tape.

From Ten on Tuesday : Time to Brag: 10 Awesome Things About You

1. I'm a fabulous cook.
2. I'm stand-up comedy funny
3. I am the hottest (steadily slimming down) fat chick I know.
4. I have a natural, disgustingly sunny disposition.
5. (With apologies to YaNo..)I am a great hugger and collector of great hugs.
6. I have beautiful eyes.
7. I have sexy lips.
8. I give good phone.
9. I am naturally empathic.
10. I value diversity by nature, not popular trend.

By far the hardest one to do was the last.

We're taught from infant hood to wait for recognition from others; to avoid mentioning what we like about ourselves. It's rude, it's arrogant, boasting, we're told. Later, we're criticized for seeking the approval of others and not being content within ourselves.

Pretty hard to live up to, isn't it? People who love us and want the best for us unwittingly send us mixed signals.

There's a place in this world for healthy self esteem (key word: healthy) and step one is remembering to say nice stuff about yourself to yourself.

I'm taking a page from Jack Handy : I'm good enough. I'm smart enough and dog-gone it, people like me!

Must Be Our Lucky Day

Yesterday was our 13th wedding anniversary. Cowboy and I celebrated w/ dinner at the Melting Pot. It's the third or fourth time we've gone to this particular locale; the restaurant was undergoing renovations on our previous visits but they were complete this time. The result was wonderful; the alcoved booths of the lower floors with have been duplicated throughout, creating an intimate and romantic atmosphere throughout. Soft lights, brick walls and velvet curtains wrap the diner in luxury and quiet. In addition, hand cast (therefore heatproof) tops adorn many of the tables; ours was glazed absolutely beautifully.

They changed the menu slightly; there's a new salad, also a new themed event, 'Fung Shui Fondue,' which has differing tiers going up with the quality of wine served. All this was sadly lost on the Cowboy and I as neither of us would know a good bottle of wine from Thunderbird, frankly. We enjoyed our Fondue Fusion cooked in the Coq au Vin without knowing what we were missing. We speared, dipped and flirted our way all the way through the chocolate-peanut butter dessert course, remembering along the way why it is that we work so well together, after all our ups and downs.

I feel bad that I forgot to wish Chris and Prudence a happy anniversary also, as Chris thoughtfully remembered Cowboy and me. Belated congratulations, you two!

Chris, as a kind of answer to your wedding post, a few tidbits about ours:

• We were married by my Uncle, a judge in Fairplay, Colorado. At the start of the ceremony he told the assembled that the occasion actually marked two firsts for him. It was time a member of his family attended a marriage he performed as well as being the first (and only) time he presided over the marriage of a family member.
• Our cake was baked in Laramie at Home Bakery, one of the oldest locally owned and operated businesses in town. I worked there around the same time I met Cowboy, when it was owned by a friend of the family. I only had the money for one layer, which I arranged for my parents to pick up and bring to Fairplay for the ceremony. They surprised me by purchasing a top layer for Cowboy and I to save for our first anniversary.
• I wore a gorgeous peach maternity dress because I was pregnant with Will. Shelley-Sue (nine months)had a bottle just before and therefore slept through the ceremony. MadManda(who was 2 and a half) was supposed to be our flower girl but came down with a bad case of the bashfuls and opted to be held by Grandma Raspberry during proceedings instead. In this way, though, all three of our oldest children were present for the event.
• I smiled (and cried) through the whole ceremony, while Cowboy frowned the whole time. I was worried that he was angry, but he later explained that he was just serious, because he felt that strongly about his vows. Oh and that he thought I looked like an angel when I walked out to meet him under the Aspen.
• Both my mother and Cowboy's helped me get dressed and my mother in law lent me her wedding ring to wear as my something borrowed.
• My aunt made us a lovely wedding picnic and my cousins Janet and Donna served as our wittnesses.
• The pictures taken of Cowboy's grandma are the last ones of her attending a family gathering before her Alzheimer's Syndrome became too great for her to socialize.
• My mother in law put together the flowers, which were breathtaking. Her only downfall is a slight tendency towards big arrangements. My bouquet could have served as a centerpeice in the dining room at Hearst Castle. But it was beautiful!
• Cowboy's parents took the girls and my parents paid for our dinner at the Chart House but our honeymoon was delayed a bit. Cowboy's parents later sent us for a weekend at a bed and breakfast in Aspen.
• We went to see a movie before picking up the girls the next day. I can't remember what movie but I clearly remember crying during the preview for Lion King. I'm such a sap!

Last year, my mother in law presented us with a wedding album she put together for us. Somehow, we never got around to it; our lives have been pretty hectic up to now. We look so YOUNG (and my hair is so BIG!), but so happy and so right. It's nice to know we still are.

*snick* THE FIZZ *ahhh*

WHW made me think of it with this post about the Pop Aisle: in-search-ofsoda.

Faygo. One the tastes of summer from my childhood.

We drove to Michigan nearly every summer. Bucka (that's Grandma to you nonfamily members) always had a dozen bottles chilling in the garage fridge when we got there. We invariably restocked at least twice during the visit and even brought a case or two home to Wyoming with us after. Faygo isn't available in Wyoming.

Sweet sticky strawberry fizz; no one can be depressed while holding an ice cold bottle of Redpop. There are lots of other flavors but it's the one I remember, the one I could still taste if I thought about it hard enough. It'd be polite to say that the best thing about Michigan was my grandmother, and she was a great part, true. It's also true that my relationship with her was always rocky at best. The two best parts were (in the mind of and in order of importance to an eight year old): the rope swing hung from the very tippy top of the rafters and Faygo.

Several years ago Alex and a friend were back in Michigan. They were helping my parents clear up Bucka's estate and made a trip to a grocery store. "All of the sudden," Says Aaron, "Alex yells 'FAYGO! It's FAYGO!' I thought he'd lost his mind." Crazy yes, but my brother kept his wits about him long enough to bring a case back home with him.

Bucka is gone, her house sold. The old barn with the fabulous rope swing belongs to someone else. I relegated Faygo to the past along with all these and many other things; one of many sweet memories locked away in a part of me that no longer exists.

The buzz about The Fizz started with my kids. There's a new juice joint in this town, owned and operated by the parents of their classmates. Several weeks they started asking if they could stop by after school. The first visit produced rave reviews. We drove by a couple times and finally stopped by my first weekend off.

I came in for root beer. I'm something of a connoisseur and the place happens to feature a few dozen (yes, that's right dozen) varieties. The space was formerly a convenience store and the new owners have made good use of the glass refrigerator cases. Row upon row of good old fashioned glass bottles offer instant refreshment and a delicious predicament to a first time visitor. I thought I'd never be able to make a choice in the face of such excess. There really was no choice at all.

Amongst a collection just as impressive as the kids promised, a shimmer of bright summer red. It couldn't be the same stuff, could it? Probably just that sad imitation, Strawberry Crush or an off brand masquerading. A closer look and confirmation: the real, honest to goodness Faygo Redpop. There really was no choice at all.

Cowboy obstinately refused to let me buy a six pack. It is as good as I remember. I savored every sip and fought off greedy and curious kiddoes. You can't go home (or to Bucka's Michigan) again, but sometimes a tiny bit of the past comes to you instead.

Meme from Aynde who got it from Libby

Meme-O-Rama

I bet it's been a year since I did one of these. The sheer length of this one should catch me up!


1. The phone rings; whom do you want it to be? My dad, calling just to talk.

2. When shopping at the grocery store, do you return your cart? If there's a cart corrall or if I didn't have to park in BFE. No cart corrall + parked in the next state: nope, sorry.

3. If you had to kiss the last person you kissed, would you? Over and over. She giggled when I kissed her tummy.

4. Do you take compliments well? I think so.

5. Do you play Sudoku? Online and handheld. I can't play on paper.

6. If abandoned alone in the wilderness, would you survive? I'd like to think so but I'm guessing I'd end up as bear food.

7. Do you like nipple rings? Uhhh.... I'm past the age when that would be a good idea. On a man? sometimes.

8. Did you ever go to camp as a kid? Yep. Fifth and 6th grade, plus Band Camp in HS. Also, my dad did a lot of work at UW Science Camp catering events, so I hung out there a lot as a kid.

9. If a sexy person were pursuing you, but you knew he/she were married what would you do? Gently but firmly say no. There is far too high a cost to such things for everyone involved.

10. Could you date someone with different religious beliefs than you? Cowboy finds it distressing when I date other men.

11. Do you like to pursue or be pursued? Both in equal portions.

12. Use three words to describe yourself at the moment: Engaged. Multitasking. Content.

13. Do any songs make you cry? This is an inherited trait. I got it from my mother. Beautiful music makes me cry. Happy music, sad music, whatever.

14. Are you continuing your education? Until I stop living.

15. Do you know how to shoot a gun? Country girl, of course! I'm a good shot too.

16. If your house were on fire, what would be the first thing you grabbed? Kids. Hubby's faster than I am anyway.

17. Who was the last person you shared a bed with? Cheryl and MadManda.

18. Whom do you text the most? MadManda

19. Favorite children’s books? Where the Wild Things Are. If I Ran The Circus.

20. What color are your eyes? Greenish-blue today.

21. How tall are you? 5'3"

22. If you could do it over again, start from scratch, would you? Not if I had to give up one person I have loved.

23. Any secret admirers? If I knew about them, they wouldn't be secret, now would they? Of course I do!

24. Have you ever taken pictures in a photo booth? No. I should try that someday.

25. Where is the farthest place you have traveled? In real life? Oahu. In meditation? The stars!

26. Do you like mustard? Dijon and honey-dijon. Yellow and Spice = Ew.

27. Do you prefer to sleep or eat? Eat. No question.

28. Do you look like your mom or dad? I am a Wolf in everything but my eyes. I look like my dad, my aunt Susie and my greatgrandmother Miriam. Except the eyes.

29. How long does it take you in the shower? Seven to ten minutes.

30. Can you do splits? Ever since I was very young.

31. What movies do you want to see right now? Shrek the III, the BBC version of Hamlet I have coming from Netflix. Too many to mention this summer.

32. What did you do for New Year’s Eve? Got to bed by 10 so I could get that 2.5x OT pay the next day.

33. Was your mom a cheerleader? She'd be insulted by the very suggestion.

34. Whats the last letter of your middle name? E

35. How many hours of sleep do you get a night? Six or seven.

36. Do you like Care Bears? Nope. Too sweet and from me, that's saying something.

37. What do you buy at the movies? Bucket O'Popcorn and Bucket O'Pop to share w/ Cowboy.

38. Do you know how to play poker? Several different kinds but I am a horrible liar and should never try to bluff.

39. Do you wear your seatbelt? Not as often as I should.

40. What do you wear to sleep? My pretty lavender satin nighty

41. Anything big ever happen in your town? Town or Hometown? My town was the site of one of the country's worst school shootings. As for Laramie: ever heard of Matthew Shepard? We're not all gay bashing hicks, contrary to media coverage.

42. Is your hair straight or curly? Wavey

43. Is your tongue pierced? ouch. No.

44. Do you like liver and onions? Confession: never had them. Bigger confession: probably won't try them.

45. Have you ever been in love? Many times.

46. Do you like funny or serious people better? Funny.

47. Ever been to L.A.? I think Anaheim may be the closest I've been.

48. Do you steal or pay for your music downloads? I SHARE, thank you. But no, actually I buy nearly everything I have.

49. Do you hate chocolate? What kind of a dumb question is this? Obviously trying to fill up space. Pshaw! (I LOVE chocolate)

50. What do you and your parents fight about the most? Whether or not I am a screw up, whether or not I think that they think that I think I'm a screw up.

51. Are you a gullible person? I am trusting but not gullible.

52. If you could have any job, what would it be? Fairy Godmother.

53. Are you easy to get along with? Nope. High Maintainence but I give as good as I get.

54. What is your favorite time of day? Early morning or late at night when I have the house to myself.

55. Are you a generally happy person? I refuse to be unhappy for long. I will find a reason to be happy even if I have to work at it.

*pant pant*

Incidentally, I pressed the wrong key and had to do this twice. I STILL have an hour to go before I get to go home.<

Further Evidence of My Decline

Last year I wrote about becoming one of 'those people' (meaning a Coloradoan, mostly). If you're just joining me, or if you're forgotten, a link: Mourning for my Wyomingiteness

It hasn't gotten any better. I really am one of those people now, with some glimmers of the redneck I was underneath it all.

I am a gadget-a-holic, as evidenced by recent acquisitions:
- A new laptop and extra memory for said laptop

- A Sprint wireless internet card w/ USB adapater

- A Motorola Q

And finally, deciding that the Q was only a neo-gadget, it's been handed down to MadManda (who conveniently destroyed her Blue Katana by starting a water fight w/ Cowboy while carrying it in her pocket)
- A Treo755p in Burgundy

This is, of course, in addition to my 'old' phone, the i870 by Nextel


Happy (thought slightly guilty) sigh...

Where has the redneck gone, you say? She's still here, under all the sophistimicated database maintaining/report creating glamour. I have proof, though I'll spare you any pictures you might find disturbing.

The elk were moving from the lower meadows up into the high country last weekend. A dangerous trip at any other time, it was particular rough during the first weekend of the summer. More than one elk vs man accident claimed the life of one of these great animals last weekend. My brother in law, as a Colorado State Patrolman, was required to work every day of the holiday weekend and happened to be present at one of these incidents.

While it is sad to see anything die after being hit by a car; a practical, unabashed-though-slightly-citified redneck might inquire: what happens to the carcass? Nearly 200lbs of meat shouldn't go to needless waste! Usually, some helpful (hungry) passing motorist volunteers to take care of that problem. Cowboy and I have actually waited several years for the opportunity to get in on the action.

Now, you sophisticated city folk may be sitting at your computers with horrified looks on your faces at the very thought. Consider this: what could be more earth-friendly, practical and efficient than to make use of what would otherwise go into some landfill to rot? I think my native American brethren would approve: if the animal is going to die either way, better that it's death serve a purpose. Filling my freezer and feeding seven hungry souls seems a noble purpose indeed.

As a kid growing up in Wyoming, I helped my parents raise many different kinds of animals for food. It might seem heartless to those who have always procured their dinner from neat packages in grocery stores but there is a feeling of accomplishment when you have worked for months to raise and care for what you're eating.

Hunting for game is an accomplishment in itself. In my part of the world, we still remember that hunting is honorable work when the animal is used properly: as food, not just a prize. Man has removed nearly all the animals that preyed upon these great beasts. Without hunting by man, the species would overpopulate and become subject to starvation and disease. It's not the same, of course, in this case but in the great scheme of things, making use of the animal still serves a purpose.

It's also not as simple a thing as you might imagine; there's quite a bit of very dirty, nasty, smelly, dirty work involved in the process, not to mention some quick thinking and phone calls to local game-processing butcher shops. Just getting a carcass this size off the ground and into a vehicle is a procedure in itself.

We got a call from D Saturday evening: if you want one, we've got one, but you need to come now.

Unfortunately for us, we didn't move quickly enough. As mentioned before, a passing motorist volunteered and a Trooper who didn't know we were on our way allowed them to take the elk. No hard feelings; we were really playing the part of scavengers in this scenario and the first rule of scavenging is 'first is first.'

Most days I feel completely urban, from the top of my sophiscatedly cut, colored and high-lighted hair to the tips of my professionally pedicured toes. I think it's a testament to how deeply my country-girl goes that in one quick minute I transformed into something else: a woman prepared to have a dead elk on a tarp in the back of her Suburban but later, a woman with a couple hundred pounds of low-fat, range-fed meat in her freezer.

That someone else claimed the right is disappointing, but not terribly so. After all, I can still visit my local butcher or grocery store for a fine cut of beef instead. On one point, though, I did find myself sighing wistfully. With the loss of the opportunity also went another possibility: months worth of 'roadkill for dinner' jokes!