Well, that sucks!

Pioneer Square in Seattle is a mixed bag. On the one hand, you have scores of galleries, specialty stores, cafes, bookstores, and places to eat amidst buildings that date back to when this city was founded. On the other hand, Pioneer Square has become a haven for a segment of the populace that is less-than-desirable. One case in point: I was walking into the garage in which I've parked several times as of late before in the past when I noticed two individuals sneaking into a stairway to (supposedly) take drugs.

I mention all this only because our car got broken into last night.

Nothing was taken; I had been playing my iPod in the stereo, and must have left the jack out for all (well, anyone who would be wont to go looking into car windows, in any case) to see; fortunately, Mrs. Burrell didn't raise any fools (just one heathen, but that's a different thing altogether), and I had taken my little iPod nano with me to work. There was absolutely nothing of value in the car itself to be taken.

Still, having my car broken into did feel invasive to me, and on the short (although, not - thankfully - cold) drive home, I did oscillate between fear, anger and helplessness, but thankfully, I was able to regroup rather quickly. I made an appointment with Safelite Auto Glass, and a repairman was able to come out today and replace the broken window.

Tangentially...

I had wanted to re-run one of my past courses this morning using my nifty new Nike+ attachment for my iPod (more on this later), but the dang thing was out of juice, so I had to run the course sans music. Thing is, doing so this morning took me back to a time when I had first started running while in the Navy when it was just me, the open air, the drawing of my breath, and the beating of my heart. There was a sort of almost idyllic purity to just one man and his running in the cold winter morning air.

Still - I do like to have my music with me, if for no other reason than to time myself and keep me honest. And sane.

She's back!!!

Carrie is back home, safe and sound. We're hoping that she'll be back here for the duration, but we also know - both from the past experiences of ourselves and other couples that we know who have had had twins - that there is a distinct she might have to endure yet another hospital stay. However, for at least this week, she's here with me, where she belongs :)

Twas the days before...

I decided to take Wednesday off as a "Charlie - only" sanity day. I figure that I'll be plenty busy during the holidays and the next few pre- and post-baby months, so I should take the opportunity to get these days in while I still can. I visited Carrie briefly in the hospital, then went downtown to see "Avatar", which was a pretty amazing movie, not just because of the 3D or special effects, but also because the acting was (mostly) believable, and the storyline was pretty decent, if not a little hammy and predictable at times.

I had another visit with Carrie after the movie, and our good friend Refugio came in for an hour or so, during which time we exchanged gifts. After I left the hospital and came home, I followed a good movie,"Avatar", with a truly bad one, "GI Joe: The Rise of Cobra". Ughh!

After an early morning visit to the hospital, I made the rounds doing some last-minute shopping:

• Cafe Verite / Cupcake Royale in Madrona
• Trader Joes in Madison Valley / Capitol Hill
• Whole Foods in Cascade / Downtown
• Bob's Meat Locker in Columbia City

At Bob's, I had to wait for about 45 minutes before the butcher took my order because of the long line. A couple of times, people attempted to jump the queue, and let me tell you, hell hath no fury like Christmas shoppers who have been waiting in line when others attempt to get in front of them.

So...

I went home, and started making our Christmas dinner - Beef Bourgninon with Collard Greens, with an appetizer of cheese curds and olives, and fig and eggnog cupcakes for desert (no, I didn't make these...). I was able to get quite a few things done while waiting for the beef dish to cook. I then took the dishes to Carrie in the hospital, where we sat, ate, talked, and just had a generally good time.

I know the hospital might not have been the best place to spend Christmas - but we did have a very special day, since we were together and eagerly awaiting the arrival of the next two members of our family.

Hopefully, Carrie will be home on Monday. She'll still be on bedrest, but at least she'll be here with me, and not at Swedish. I'd like that very much!

Babies sweetly singing wordless lullabies

While Carrie was on bedrest at home recently, Axia had taken to laying on my wife's lap with her ears pressed against Carrie's babyfull belly. I suddenly received a vision of the two kids, in the womb, singing sweet wordless lullabies to the dog and to each other.

33

33 is the title of the very first episode of the re-imagined Battlestar Galactica series. It deals with the civilian fleet, who is fleeing from the carnage wrecked upon their (now) nearly extinct human civilization by the biomechanical Cylons, having to deal with continual attacks by said Cylons that occur every 33 minutes.

33 is also how long it took me to run 5 kilometers this morning in the 25th annual Jingle Bell Run. :)

The run was exausting, but very much worth it. Right towards the very end, we had to climb two blocks up a very steep hill prior to coasting downwards to the finish line. Not so immediately afterwords, I journeyed to see Carrie, who snapped these pics of me in all my glory:

 

This is my very first organized 5k run. For me, it's the culmination of events that had started 15 years ago. When I was in the Navy, I was an avid runner (more so than I am currently), and I was training for a 5k across the Golden Gate bridge. I suffered my very first attack of MS, however, and that pretty much kept me from doing any serious physical activity for a number of months as I had to learn how to walk and use my temporarily paralyzed left side anew. So, for me, this run represents something of both a victory and a commitment - a victory over the ailments of my past, and a commitment to my future physical health.

Now, it's off to take a much-deserved hot shower, take a much-deserved load off my feet, and grab a quick bite to eat before heading back to Swedish this evening.

Boujey

I think that we’re going “boujey”.

Don’t misunderstand me. I think that the two of us – separately and as  a couple – have always had those tendencies.  We both favor Whole Foods, have more than a passing familiarity with the French Language, watch “Masterpiece Contemporary”, have plenty of foreign films in our Netflix queue, are very particular about our coffee, and could very well be outright foodies if it weren’t for the fact that neither one of us are quite that snobby.
 

See? Boujey.
 

I bring this up because when the prospect of Carrie going on bedrest transitioned from a mere possibility to an emerging reality, we decided that it would behoove us to hire a housekeeper to come to our place and give it a deep cleaning.  Now, lest you think that we’ve fully gone over to the darkside (or, as it’s known in local parlance, the East Side), we’ve not gone out and solicited a single individual and put this poor soul on call 24/7 – instead, we contacted a locally owned, environmentally company called Seattle Natural  Cleaning, and we’re having them come out every other week to clean our house.
 

Okay, not totally boujey, but close enough to make me realize that, while we don’t make enough to totally be catered to as often as we’d like (or need), we still do well enough to entertain certain possibilities that are beyond the scope of many. Insert twinges of Middle-Class Liberal guilt here.
 

In other asides, QFC sucks. For me, the selections are limited, the organization haphazard, and the stores crowded and unfriendly. There are three notable exceptions – the QFC in lower Queen Anne, and the two on Broadway. These stores are large, spacious, well-lit and somewhat pleasant places to shop. Then again, of all the QFC’s in the Puget Sound area, I imagine these three (along with the one in University Villiage) are probably the ones that are most frequented by boujey individuals. Like us.
 

Sigh.

Update 8 December 2009

Long story short: Carrie is back in the hospital.

After spending three days here on the home-version of bedrest, we went in for an ultrasound this morning in the hopes that, at the very least, nothing had changed, or (even better), her cervix length had increased. Sadly, what was revealed to us instead is that the cervix length had shortened to below what the doctors consider to be the acceptable minimum length. She was admitted into the hospital almost immediately, and, judging from the language that the healthcare professionals are using, she'll be at Swedish for the duration, most likely until she hits the 35 week mark.

The good news is that the kids are okay; the bad news is that she won't be here with me.

Why don't I just come out and say it?

Some of you may be wondering why I choose to post the latest news regarding the pregnancy and kids on my blog than posting it straight to Facebook (if you are being directed to here from there) or email (likewise). The answer is simple, but it may be a little off-putting to people.

In my life, I've gotten to know - with varying degrees of familiarity and intimacy - lots of discrete individuals. Many - even within my family - are just acquaintances, some are genuine friends. I (understandably, in my mind at least) prefer to share the deeper details of my life with the latter. Believe it or not, I really don't want just anyone to know that much about the comings and goings of my own life.

Yet, in setting the bar above which friends leap and below which acquaintances slide easily, I do realize that it's not only my own estimation of the intrinsic value of my relationship to another that counts - it's the happy intersection between that and the estimation of the reverse as held by the other that determines the whole.  In more germane terms - I can put the details about my life out there - but how willing are people to actively seek them out, given an easy trail to follow?

Hence - my blogging about the pregnancy, and other issues.  I'm more than willing to let others know what is going on, and invite them continually into my circle of friends. Whether or not they take a step forward on their own, and follow the links (or, even better, elect to either subscribe to or follow this blog) is another matter entirely.

Ahora descienden de mi caja de jabón de.

Update 4 December 2009

I'm still waiting for word of when Carrie will be discharged from the hospital. She's tested positive for Gestational Diabetes, which means (at the very least) she'll need to monitor her glucose levels and watch what she eats. Additionally, she has to take medications which will work to slow or prevent her contractions, which she was having a problem with a couple of days ago. She'll be on bedrest for the foreseeable future. All that aside, she's doing well otherwise, and the kids are doing fine.

A quick update...

On Monday, Carrie was admitted into the hospital due to shortening of her cervix. She's been on bedrest ever since, and today, she's undergoing tests to determine if she has gestational diabetes and is taking medications to prevent the onset of contractions, which she started having in earnest this morning.  I miss here being here at the house with me dearly, but I'm happy that she's at least in a place where she can be monitored so that if anything goes wrong she'll be able to get help quickly.