Heeelllp meeeee.......

Hi there. I am swimming around - drowning, more like - in a sea of data. Three years worth of soil sampling analyses in the undertaking. My boss decided yesterday that he wants a whole bunch of data to be recalculated in a way different from the way I've been doing it for THREE YEARS. Argh, to say the least. On top of having to recalculate approximately forty bajillion numbers, I also have to jimmy around with a bunch of other equations. In my world, jimmying around with equations is a form of torture. Extreme torture. I'm feeling the need to run away from here, far far away. Alas, no can do. Moving on. I'm in a slightly better mood today. I grudgingly went out in the canoe last night with M. I was grudging because I really just wanted to collapse on the bed with a book. Also, M. and I have been a little (ok, a lot ) distant lately - in part because I'm at the end of my rope with regard to his need to dictate my life, in part because he is struggling quite a bit with his own issues - so I didn't really want to go out in a boat with him for a few hours. As usually happens when I spend time outside, though, it was a good thing. We saw several Baltimore orioles (gorgeous!), a few blue herons, carp, small and large-mouth bass, sunfish (difficult to say what species - we got to see a bunch of their nests, which is always cool - they look like this: http://fishsvr.com/images/pics/nests2_091706.JPG), belted kingfishers, a beaver (who slapped his or her tail on the water soundly), a muskrat, a crayfish, a gigantic snapping turtle, a green frog (Rana clamitans), and the usual suspects - mockingbirds, robins, wood thrushes (heard, not seen), grackles, loads and loads of tree swallows, and lots of water bugs. It was very nice to get out there. I just wish things were better between me and M. Well, I don't have much to say, and I'm kind of under the gun at the moment with regard to this data. Boring entry, I know. I'm too tired and too busy to give you anything more than a list of species! On that note - get outside whenever you have a spare moment. It's wonderful out there. Until later, ta.