So, It's Been a While...

So, it has, indeed, been a while since last I posted an entry on this blog.  The reasons for this are simple - work and family obligations coupled with trying to complete an archaeological research project outside of work have kept me very, very busy.  And after a while, I didn't feel like posting routine posts that simply said that I would be getting back to writing soon when, as it turned out, I have not been able to.

That being said, I do enjoy writing this blog, and there are several topics that I'd like to cover, so I do intend to continuing writing...it just may be a while before I am able to get back to doing it on a regular basis.

In the meantime, I will mention that it looks like the PI on the research project with which I have been involved is getting ready to publish our results, so I will likely have another publication under my belt, soon.  I'll post here when that happens.

I would, in the meantime, like to point all y'all towards the CRM archaeology podcast Random Acts of Science.  Serr Head, of Archy Fantasies, is a panelist on the most recent episode, so it ought to be worth a listen.

Although we make up the vast majority of archaeologist, CRM archaeology is not well-represented in the media, so I support any effort to further our cause.

Revenge of HAZWOPER!

These last couple of months have not been kind to my ability to write on this blog.  I have had a series of involving projects at work, I have had to help Kaylia with various medical issues, baby prep is keeping us occupied at home, and I have been sent out of town somewhat frequently. 

So, as much as I like writing this blog, it's been relatively low on the priority list.  Which is unfortunate, as I do really enjoy writing for it.

Anyway, with any luck I will be back on track with writing at some point before the end of the year.

For now, though, I am spending the day at work doing a HAZWOPER refresher course.  HAZWOPER, for those new or who don't remember earlier posts, is the Hazardous Waste Operations and Emergency Response certification.  As we frequently end up having to dig through old industrial waste and monitor construction and remediation work in places with industrial waste, it's not uncommon for archaeologists to be HAZWOPER certified.  I did the full 40-hour course last year (two of my more popular posts describe it and the various imbeciles also taking the class, and they can be found here and here).

Thankfully, the refresher course is only 8 hours, and I can do it on-line (though this is only recommended every other year, as it is a good idea to be in the classroom regularly as well).  This means that I don't have to deal with the twits I dealt with last time: the prison preacher, the pretty-boy oil field worker, the comic-book-guy-like fellow who wanted me to hire him as an "archaeologist's assistant, etc.  On the downside, I don't get any more amusing stories about those twits. 

I am a bit torn on these courses.  On the one hand, I am happy to be able to do them, and they do add to my employability and my skill base, which is quite good in my opinion.  On the other hand, it means that I am one of the few people around these parts likely to be sent off to deal with hazardous waste, and even with the training and safe work practices, this does put me at a slightly elevated risk for problems.  Still, with a kid on the way and a desire to continue advancing career-wise, I suppose that doing this sort of thing is a net good.

Anyway, I hope that my readers are having more relaxing summers.

Long Night

Normally I post something on Monday mornings, typically it is written the night before or over the weekend.  However, this weekend was spent dealing with family functions, and then Kaylia and I spent the entirety of last night in the emergency room (everyone's fine, but she was showing symptoms that have a 50% chance of being no big deal, and a 50% chance of being a serious condition - turns out that, luckily, the "no big deal" side won out and all is well - oh, and Kaiser Permanente's personnel really impressed me last night, I can't speak for anywhere else, but their Fresno Emergency room staff were good people).

So, no new post today, and likely not until Wednesday.  Sorry about that.

Can't Write, Busy

So, as noted in Friday's entry, I'm pretty damn busy this week - I have a field project that I am leading, Kaylia and I have alot of pregnancy-related doctors appointments and business to take care of, and tonight I will be speaking at the monthly meeting of the Fresno County Archaeological Society.  In addition, I have been handed a box of bones to identify for a friend of mine who is doing research on sites in the San Joaquin Valley, and I am looking at a few possible topics to try to write up a short paper for journal publication.

So, my updates may be a bit sporadic this week and next.  I will try to keep stuff coming a couple of times each week, but I don't know if that's going to happen.  Still, I have abunch of stuff that I want to write about, so hopefully I'll be producing something enjoyable to read for all y'all soon.

If you are masochistic enough to want to hear me shoot my mouth off, you can find me in this interview.  And if you're in Fresno, come by the archaeological society's meeting at Fresno State this evening.

Field Work, Yet Again

So, I have not been particularly good about writing this week primarily because I have been in the field. This time I'm out doing a block survey in Madera County, a half hour drive from my home, which is nice, as I get to be at home at night.

I am going to try to do some writing this weekend, and schedule them to post over the next week, but I don't know if that is going to be in the cards.

Movin'

So, we have closed down my office. As noted previously, I still have a job and will be working from home when I am not in the field. However, today I pack up my computer for set-up back home. Tomorrow night, I fly down to southern California for a project.

Anyway, the point is that I'm all-over the place, and I have no idea what my posting schedule will be like. However, I hope to get back to a 3-times a week update schedule soon.

The Movin' Blues

So, I was in the field for most of the last two weeks, and I will be back in the field starting tomorrow. I have also moved in the few days that I have been home. I will not be able to write regularly until I return from the field, probably at least a week from now, possibly two weeks. In the meantime, I hope to get out a few posts that I have half-written already, but we will see.

For today, here's some more photos I have taken in the area in which I live. These are from a park called Natural Bridges. I hope that you enjoy them:

Gasping for Air

Sorry for the lack of posts to those two or three of you who read the blog. I have been slammed for the last week with actual paid work, with trying to finish two papers for publication, and with trying to fulfill my obligations to friends and family.

Also, there's the matter of the ancient curse.

See, I was working in San Benito County earlier this year, and while I was working, I made fun of Kuksu, a Native Californian culture hero. Apparently, Kuksu didn't take kindly to this, and decided to place a curse on me. So, getting slammed with work, booking a hotel room in a nightclub, having my primary client lose 40 IQ points and become a blithering idiot, getting bit by a weird-ass flying insect that turned my arm into a water balloon, all of the chocolate in my neighborhood turning into carob - all part of the curse.

On top of that, my front teeth have begun to grow, and I now look like a WWII-era propoganda poster, except I'm blonde and tall. Okay, I look like a weird conglomeration of two different WWII-era propoganda posters. And my teeth continue to grow, soon I'll have to eat my soup through a straw.

And starting next week, I'll be off camping in the forest for two weeks. I know you LOVE camping and wish you had my job. The problem is that I don't like camping, and wouldn't be if the client had bothered to consider that they would have workers needing the dormitory facilities.

Yep, curse.

So, hopefully, before my teeth get any longer and my speech impediment gets any worse (you have no idea how much amusement I am providing to coworkers), I'll be rid of this curse, and will write more. But until then, my updates will continue to be sporadic.