To end 2004 I give you a moment from one of my favorite movies:
Harry: My whole life I have never known what this song means.
Sally: I know exactly what you mean.
Harry: I mean, should old acquaintance be forgot. Does that mean we should forget old acquaintances, or does it mean if we do happen to forget them, we should remember them, which is not possible because we forgot them in the first place--
Sally: Maybe you're just supposed to remember you forgot them or something -- anyway, it's about old friends.
To old friends and new friends and everyone in between.
Happy New Year to Everyone!
(your regularly schedualed blogger should be back shortly.....thanks for having me!)
**The quote was from when Harry Met Sally, 1989, MGA/UA studios....none of that came from my head***
December 31, 2004
December 30, 2004
Needed: Some downtime
Does anyone else who has to work this week feel slightly gyped?
Show of hands.
Why does the world have to go on in the week between Christmas and New Years? Can't America use all those saved up siestas that it doesn't use every afternoon like other countries and just take the week off. Everything just stop. No work for anyone. Time to decompress from Christmas and all the family goings on, and a little time to just get a little excited about the change of the year. Time to actually enjoy the company of those who have come into town for the holidays. To enjoy the Christmas presents sitting in a box in the corner of the bedroom, still unpacked for lack of time.
Or perhaps it's just me.
Show of hands.
Why does the world have to go on in the week between Christmas and New Years? Can't America use all those saved up siestas that it doesn't use every afternoon like other countries and just take the week off. Everything just stop. No work for anyone. Time to decompress from Christmas and all the family goings on, and a little time to just get a little excited about the change of the year. Time to actually enjoy the company of those who have come into town for the holidays. To enjoy the Christmas presents sitting in a box in the corner of the bedroom, still unpacked for lack of time.
Or perhaps it's just me.
December 29, 2004
I want to lick myself
I just slathered on some of the Vanilla Bean Body Cream from B&BW that I got for Christmas and I smell like frosting. I normally don't like scented lotions and such, but this one is not offensive.
Mmmmmm...frosting.
No funny comments about sticking fingers in me, mmmkay?
Mmmmmm...frosting.
No funny comments about sticking fingers in me, mmmkay?
December 28, 2004
Never trust a skinny cook
I'm now going to share the brief version of the story of how I met the resplendent Casey.
Are you ready?
Many moons ago (4 years?) we were both posting on an iVillage message board called the "20-Something Hangout" There were some real characters on that board [cue Dwayne and his melonball] and some really, really cool chicas. After about a year or so of daily posting and getting to know one another, about 20 of us migrated over to our own little Yahoo! Group, so we could continue our own message board and not have to deal with a revolving door of new people or a bunch of trolls. That group is still going strong and we've become a pretty close group of friends.
3 years ago, we started to do a Secret Santa and this year my Santa was Casey! Lucky me! She sent me a really cool book of incredible holiday cake decorating ideas and promised that something else would be coming in the mail. It came while I was in Ohio, so I just opened it last night. Her brother-in-law made this wooden sign that was red (my favorite color) and said "Never Trust a Skinny Cook" on it. Heh. Absolutely perfect for me. I've already got a spot in the kitchen picked out for it.
Thanks, Casey.
Are you ready?
Many moons ago (4 years?) we were both posting on an iVillage message board called the "20-Something Hangout" There were some real characters on that board [cue Dwayne and his melonball] and some really, really cool chicas. After about a year or so of daily posting and getting to know one another, about 20 of us migrated over to our own little Yahoo! Group, so we could continue our own message board and not have to deal with a revolving door of new people or a bunch of trolls. That group is still going strong and we've become a pretty close group of friends.
3 years ago, we started to do a Secret Santa and this year my Santa was Casey! Lucky me! She sent me a really cool book of incredible holiday cake decorating ideas and promised that something else would be coming in the mail. It came while I was in Ohio, so I just opened it last night. Her brother-in-law made this wooden sign that was red (my favorite color) and said "Never Trust a Skinny Cook" on it. Heh. Absolutely perfect for me. I've already got a spot in the kitchen picked out for it.
Thanks, Casey.
December 27, 2004
Gift Giving
Have we all surfaced from the sea of turkey and wrapping paper?
No holiday casulties I hope.
Did you get everything you wanted? Yea me neither (but then the brand new 4-runner was reaching a little..heh). But then I don't have high expectations so whatever I get I am plesantly surprised by. Actually this was the first year that I actually had more gifts under the tree than anyone else in a long long time (yes I do count, and so do you, just admit it already). Hehe.
Usually my baby sister takes that title. But as my parents are footing the bill for her trip to the UK next summer.....I racked up this year. Yes.
I'm never really upset by not getting the most pressies. My parents tend to come through when I really need them during the year so at Christmas time I am happy to get whatever they feel like buying me. I think we've all turned the sock/underwear corner. You know...when you were a kid getting socks was lame....now it's a great gift ...cuz that means less of that necessity that you have to actually buy with your own hard earned money.
I love getting things that I can actually use.
I love giving presents that people can actually use.
But I have to wonder at some of my family members. The same family members that I have been related to for the last 25 years that I have been on this earth. Some of them know me better than others. But all of them have access to me. How hard is it to shoot me an email, call my phone (either one), or come by my house. Hell, if you can get a carrier pigion to me I'll respond to that too. All you have to do is ask and I will gladly give you a long list of very moderatly priced things that I can always use. Some of this don't actually cost anything, from several of my family members I would gladly take a promise of time spent together as a gift. If you don't want to ask me, my mother is always available also. And let me tell you, if there is another person on this earth (that I don't live with) who knows me, it is that woman.
So to the unspecified family member who got me the set of hot pink eye makeup with matching nail polishes, Thank you. I really do love the thought. I am completely baffeled that you saw hot pink and thought of me but you did. And, as they say, it is the thought that counts.
No holiday casulties I hope.
Did you get everything you wanted? Yea me neither (but then the brand new 4-runner was reaching a little..heh). But then I don't have high expectations so whatever I get I am plesantly surprised by. Actually this was the first year that I actually had more gifts under the tree than anyone else in a long long time (yes I do count, and so do you, just admit it already). Hehe.
Usually my baby sister takes that title. But as my parents are footing the bill for her trip to the UK next summer.....I racked up this year. Yes.
I'm never really upset by not getting the most pressies. My parents tend to come through when I really need them during the year so at Christmas time I am happy to get whatever they feel like buying me. I think we've all turned the sock/underwear corner. You know...when you were a kid getting socks was lame....now it's a great gift ...cuz that means less of that necessity that you have to actually buy with your own hard earned money.
I love getting things that I can actually use.
I love giving presents that people can actually use.
But I have to wonder at some of my family members. The same family members that I have been related to for the last 25 years that I have been on this earth. Some of them know me better than others. But all of them have access to me. How hard is it to shoot me an email, call my phone (either one), or come by my house. Hell, if you can get a carrier pigion to me I'll respond to that too. All you have to do is ask and I will gladly give you a long list of very moderatly priced things that I can always use. Some of this don't actually cost anything, from several of my family members I would gladly take a promise of time spent together as a gift. If you don't want to ask me, my mother is always available also. And let me tell you, if there is another person on this earth (that I don't live with) who knows me, it is that woman.
So to the unspecified family member who got me the set of hot pink eye makeup with matching nail polishes, Thank you. I really do love the thought. I am completely baffeled that you saw hot pink and thought of me but you did. And, as they say, it is the thought that counts.
December 26, 2004
Sheesh!
I haven't had internet access since I've been in Ohio (the horror!). I finally got rid of a bunch of viruses on my mom's computer and installed a firewall and some virus protection software, so I can at least get online for a few minutes. Sorry I've been neglecting my blogsitting duties, Casey. At least the plants aren't dead.
I've got a ton of running around to do yet today, so I probably won't be online again until I get back to NYC tomorrow night. I'll have some fun things chat about then. No really.
Hope everyone is having a good after-Christmas.
I've got a ton of running around to do yet today, so I probably won't be online again until I get back to NYC tomorrow night. I'll have some fun things chat about then. No really.
Hope everyone is having a good after-Christmas.
December 25, 2004
And to all a good night
Merry Christmas folks.
Hope you ate too much turkey, drank just enough wine, got caught under the mistletoe at least once, and spent the day in the company of those you love.
And if you didn't get everything you wanted, do not despair. The after Christmas sales start tomorrow.
Hope you ate too much turkey, drank just enough wine, got caught under the mistletoe at least once, and spent the day in the company of those you love.
And if you didn't get everything you wanted, do not despair. The after Christmas sales start tomorrow.
December 23, 2004
What is Going on Here?!?!
Heh. Kidding. I just thought I'd throw in a harsh comment as a title to see if I could get anyone to confess to any mischief. I have to say, I'm totally impressed by the number of comments Sherri and LaCasey are generating. You girls are rockin' da house!
Things are good on vacation so far. I think I have probably gained a few pounds already. I'm not eating well, but I am eating a lot.
Anyway, just a quick note to check in and wish everyone a happy Christmas Eve Eve!
Things are good on vacation so far. I think I have probably gained a few pounds already. I'm not eating well, but I am eating a lot.
Anyway, just a quick note to check in and wish everyone a happy Christmas Eve Eve!
December 22, 2004
Ok 2 days til Christmas....
and I have all my shopping done except for one person. And of course that one person happens to be my best friend T. Why have I not gone shopping for her yet you might ask? Good Question. Well you see I have done all my shopping online this year. Everything everyone else wanted was readily available by means of the internet. Everyone except T.
Because T asked for socks.
Now I have asked for things in Christmas' past and have been readily ignored and been given things I neither want nor need. So you see, I am a strong believer in getting someone whatever they ask for.
Have you ever g**gled for socks?
Not a pretty picture, I assure you.
Plus part of the wonderful thing about socks is how they feel. How can you possably buy someone socks without taking into account how those socks feel? So since feel-o-internet has not been invented yet, I have to go to a real store and actually find some socks.
Ugh.
And the next day I will have free is Christmas Eve. Shopping for socks. On Christmas Eve.
This could get messy.
Because T asked for socks.
Now I have asked for things in Christmas' past and have been readily ignored and been given things I neither want nor need. So you see, I am a strong believer in getting someone whatever they ask for.
Have you ever g**gled for socks?
Not a pretty picture, I assure you.
Plus part of the wonderful thing about socks is how they feel. How can you possably buy someone socks without taking into account how those socks feel? So since feel-o-internet has not been invented yet, I have to go to a real store and actually find some socks.
Ugh.
And the next day I will have free is Christmas Eve. Shopping for socks. On Christmas Eve.
This could get messy.
Bad Blogsitter
I have been a very bad blogsitter. Three whole days without posting. Good thing Sherri is here to take up the slack that my sorry butt has left in it's wake. Thanks hun.
No doubt Casey will give me a good talking to when she gets back and take away my keys.
But on to my excuses for being such a horrable blogsitter:
1) Family stuff that includes a very sad boyfriend...who needed taking care of.
2) Coming down with a major case of the crud...so that very sad boyfriend actually ended up taking care of me.
3) Major case of the crud resulting in visit to the Dr's office, lots of medication, and me being in a comatose state for the last 24 hours or so.
4) Even if I hadn't been in comatose state for the last day or so the amount of medication I was taking made me so loopy that any posts that might have been written would have made absolutly no sense what so ever.
So please forgive my slacking.....I will try to do better from here on out. Promise.
No doubt Casey will give me a good talking to when she gets back and take away my keys.
But on to my excuses for being such a horrable blogsitter:
1) Family stuff that includes a very sad boyfriend...who needed taking care of.
2) Coming down with a major case of the crud...so that very sad boyfriend actually ended up taking care of me.
3) Major case of the crud resulting in visit to the Dr's office, lots of medication, and me being in a comatose state for the last 24 hours or so.
4) Even if I hadn't been in comatose state for the last day or so the amount of medication I was taking made me so loopy that any posts that might have been written would have made absolutly no sense what so ever.
So please forgive my slacking.....I will try to do better from here on out. Promise.
December 21, 2004
Swans and Ugly Ducklings
Did anyone happen to catch the Swan pageant last night? I have to admit, I'm strangely obsessed with that show. Most of the time, the ladies end up looking like drag queens, and I can't help but wonder who the hell gussies them up for their "unveilings" -- Beetlejuice? But once in a blue moon, there will be one who is actually semi-attractive.
And she is the one who won the pageant last night.
I can't get over the veneers that Sherri, the dentist lady, puts on all of the women. They look hideous, never seem to fit the mouths they're put in and cause the ladies to lisp as if they're wearing retainers. Ick! And they're some unnatural, nuclear shade of white that probably glows in the dark and emits radiation.
Watching a show like that sure turns me off of plastic surgery of any kind. The women never really look "good" after their procedures, just slightly less bad.
Anyhow, I'm already anxiously awaiting the next season. It's like the ultimate train wreck/car crash that I just can't peel myself away from.
Anyone else?
And she is the one who won the pageant last night.
I can't get over the veneers that Sherri, the dentist lady, puts on all of the women. They look hideous, never seem to fit the mouths they're put in and cause the ladies to lisp as if they're wearing retainers. Ick! And they're some unnatural, nuclear shade of white that probably glows in the dark and emits radiation.
Watching a show like that sure turns me off of plastic surgery of any kind. The women never really look "good" after their procedures, just slightly less bad.
Anyhow, I'm already anxiously awaiting the next season. It's like the ultimate train wreck/car crash that I just can't peel myself away from.
Anyone else?
December 20, 2004
How cold is it where YOU are?
NYC saw its first little bit of snow last night, as well as its first hit of single digit temperatures. It finally feels like Christmas. We have a cloudless and sunny sky, which almost makes up for the bitter temperature. Almost.
What's the weather like in your neck of the woods? Are you parading around in fleece and mittens or shorts and sunglasses?
What's the weather like in your neck of the woods? Are you parading around in fleece and mittens or shorts and sunglasses?
December 18, 2004
Blogging on the weekend
So I'm here sitting at work. It's slow cuz everyone is out having Christmasy fun with family and friends. Everyone except me. But I'm not here to play the poor pitamus me game.
I get to go be Christmasy this evening.
A friend of mine is turning 30 in a few days so instead of having the usual Christmas/Birthday party his wife decided to throw him a back to the 80's party. All 80's all the time.
We even have to dress up in 80's clothes. Not the revampted ultra retro 80's stuff that is so chic right now. We are talking acid wash ripped jeans with high heels and socks. You know the really tacky stuff that was all the rage back in the day. Do I remeber any of this? Yea, that would be a no. I was wearing red cords and Strawberry Shortcake stuff back then. I think I was all of 10 when the 80's were ending. So what do I have to go by? I mean besides the endless hours of VH1's I love the 80's that have killed so many of my brain cells. Well all those awesome 80's teen movies that I adored through out the 90's of course.
I wanted to go with the grungy look of Lili Taylor In Say Anything (yes it was 89 but that's still the 80's darn it). Unfortunatly, the thrift store was not obliging and grungy, angsty, black jeans with black band shirt and ill fitting black balzer just wasn't going to happen. It was going to be such a neat outfit.
What did i choose instead?
I will be the mean preppy girl complete with pretty soft pink sweater wrapped around the shoulders, pleated khakis (pleats why oh why the pleats?), and a lavender belt.
I am so not good at this.
Who would you go as?
I get to go be Christmasy this evening.
A friend of mine is turning 30 in a few days so instead of having the usual Christmas/Birthday party his wife decided to throw him a back to the 80's party. All 80's all the time.
We even have to dress up in 80's clothes. Not the revampted ultra retro 80's stuff that is so chic right now. We are talking acid wash ripped jeans with high heels and socks. You know the really tacky stuff that was all the rage back in the day. Do I remeber any of this? Yea, that would be a no. I was wearing red cords and Strawberry Shortcake stuff back then. I think I was all of 10 when the 80's were ending. So what do I have to go by? I mean besides the endless hours of VH1's I love the 80's that have killed so many of my brain cells. Well all those awesome 80's teen movies that I adored through out the 90's of course.
I wanted to go with the grungy look of Lili Taylor In Say Anything (yes it was 89 but that's still the 80's darn it). Unfortunatly, the thrift store was not obliging and grungy, angsty, black jeans with black band shirt and ill fitting black balzer just wasn't going to happen. It was going to be such a neat outfit.
What did i choose instead?
I will be the mean preppy girl complete with pretty soft pink sweater wrapped around the shoulders, pleated khakis (pleats why oh why the pleats?), and a lavender belt.
I am so not good at this.
Who would you go as?
December 17, 2004
Blogsitter #2
Casey sure is brave, turning her blog over to the likes of me. I suppose LaCasey will help keep me in check though.
Just though I'd pop in and say hello. I'm waiting for the pizza guy to get here so I can chow down and watch Office Space and Shrek 2 tonight. Woo-hoo, what an exciting evening. I might try to finish up my holiday cards too, but I wouldn't want to go and over-extend myself or anything.
I hope Casey's having a great start to her trip, and I hope you guys like having me and LaCasey around for the next couple of weeks.
Is there a plant I'm supposed to be watering or a pet I'm supposed to be feeding around here?
Just though I'd pop in and say hello. I'm waiting for the pizza guy to get here so I can chow down and watch Office Space and Shrek 2 tonight. Woo-hoo, what an exciting evening. I might try to finish up my holiday cards too, but I wouldn't want to go and over-extend myself or anything.
I hope Casey's having a great start to her trip, and I hope you guys like having me and LaCasey around for the next couple of weeks.
Is there a plant I'm supposed to be watering or a pet I'm supposed to be feeding around here?
Blogsitting
Well, here I am.
Normally you can find me here. But Casey is such an awesome person that she is actually letting me and Sherri blog sit. How cool is that. I've never blog sat before. I mean I house sat a couple of times during college but that wasn't really hard plus you could eat anything in the fridge. And as any college (or ex-college) student knows free food is what life is all about (or free anything else for that matter....but I digress).
Unfortunately, no free food with this gig. However the digs are still pretty cool and I get to hang out with you guys until the new year.
I know that Casey has this cool habit of finding neato things on the web to talk about. I don't usually do that over at my place but I'll keep an eye out for that sorta thing for here.
And on that note I will take my leave for the day.
Please, if you have any suggestions for someone new to this whole blog sitting thing, leave me a comment and I will do my very best to give it a go. Unless of course that comment includes anything about nude pictures (of myself or anyone else) then I ....ummm I don't know what I'll do......but I'll definately tell Casey when she gets back and you will so be in trouble. Hehe.
Normally you can find me here. But Casey is such an awesome person that she is actually letting me and Sherri blog sit. How cool is that. I've never blog sat before. I mean I house sat a couple of times during college but that wasn't really hard plus you could eat anything in the fridge. And as any college (or ex-college) student knows free food is what life is all about (or free anything else for that matter....but I digress).
Unfortunately, no free food with this gig. However the digs are still pretty cool and I get to hang out with you guys until the new year.
I know that Casey has this cool habit of finding neato things on the web to talk about. I don't usually do that over at my place but I'll keep an eye out for that sorta thing for here.
And on that note I will take my leave for the day.
Please, if you have any suggestions for someone new to this whole blog sitting thing, leave me a comment and I will do my very best to give it a go. Unless of course that comment includes anything about nude pictures (of myself or anyone else) then I ....ummm I don't know what I'll do......but I'll definately tell Casey when she gets back and you will so be in trouble. Hehe.
December 16, 2004
Annnnnd...We're Off!
We're leaving in the morning on our long trip halfway across the country. My eldest brother, John, is graduating from college for the second time tomorrow, and we'll be attending the ceremony at Boise State University. We've got some errands and junk to run in the afternoon, and then will celebrate the holidays with my family at John's house that night.
We leave from Boise on Saturday morning and travel to eastern Idaho to visit my next-eldest brother, Jason. And then we head to Denver on Sunday to spend a day or two with Matt's sister, Michele. It's very nice to have relatives spaced out along the route. It cuts down on the amount of money we spend on hotel rooms.
Matt's family lives in the Milwaukee area, and I'm sure we'll spend lots of quality time visiting with his six brothers and sisters, most of whom (with the exception of the aforementioned sister) will be in the same area.
We're also planning a jaunt into Chicago to see some of the great museums and maybe a gallery or an aquarium. We'll be back after the first of the year, and hopefully life will return to what passes for normal around here.
I recently scraped together another several weeks of work, so I will not be stepping directly into unemployment upon our return home. This is good, because it means I can squander more money on vacation.
I'm happy that my site will be left in responsible and capable hands. Thanks to my guest bloggers. Everyone have a very happy Christmahanukwanzakah. I'll miss you all!
We leave from Boise on Saturday morning and travel to eastern Idaho to visit my next-eldest brother, Jason. And then we head to Denver on Sunday to spend a day or two with Matt's sister, Michele. It's very nice to have relatives spaced out along the route. It cuts down on the amount of money we spend on hotel rooms.
Matt's family lives in the Milwaukee area, and I'm sure we'll spend lots of quality time visiting with his six brothers and sisters, most of whom (with the exception of the aforementioned sister) will be in the same area.
We're also planning a jaunt into Chicago to see some of the great museums and maybe a gallery or an aquarium. We'll be back after the first of the year, and hopefully life will return to what passes for normal around here.
I recently scraped together another several weeks of work, so I will not be stepping directly into unemployment upon our return home. This is good, because it means I can squander more money on vacation.
I'm happy that my site will be left in responsible and capable hands. Thanks to my guest bloggers. Everyone have a very happy Christmahanukwanzakah. I'll miss you all!
December 15, 2004
Arrrrgh!!!!
I spent an hour last night and two hours tonight working on a job application. I finally finished up the self-evaluation criteria a few minutes ago. It's lengthy--there are all these different tasks that you rate your ability to perform in, then you prepare a narrative to support your own rating. I wound all that up and went to the online application website to submit my information.
Guess what?
The website said the vacancy announcement was closed by management sometime today. I can't figure out what the heck is going on. I contacted the supervisor of this position at about 2:00 today, and she didn't say anything about having a problem with the vacancy and not being able to fill it. I guess it's possible that there was a glitch on the application website. But seriously! I spent three hours out of my life working on this. Oh, and? Even if they reopen it tomorrow, that gives me tomorrow night to get all the information input to the site, since we're leaving on vacation Friday and I won't have reliable internet access until after the first of the year. Arrrrgh!!!
Guess what?
The website said the vacancy announcement was closed by management sometime today. I can't figure out what the heck is going on. I contacted the supervisor of this position at about 2:00 today, and she didn't say anything about having a problem with the vacancy and not being able to fill it. I guess it's possible that there was a glitch on the application website. But seriously! I spent three hours out of my life working on this. Oh, and? Even if they reopen it tomorrow, that gives me tomorrow night to get all the information input to the site, since we're leaving on vacation Friday and I won't have reliable internet access until after the first of the year. Arrrrgh!!!
Don't Throw it All Away!
Have you guys checked out Freecycle yet? It's a site similar to Craigslist, in that it is divided by communities and you can find some interesting stuff on it.
The premise is that there are people out there who would take some of the stuff that you might otherwise throw away. This saves space in the landfills, and if someone wants your stuff, they'll come get it and you don't have to waste your time on a boring trip to the dump. There's no charge, and people don't charge for their items. They just post a message about what they've got and whoever wants it posts a message saying they would like it.
The premise is that there are people out there who would take some of the stuff that you might otherwise throw away. This saves space in the landfills, and if someone wants your stuff, they'll come get it and you don't have to waste your time on a boring trip to the dump. There's no charge, and people don't charge for their items. They just post a message about what they've got and whoever wants it posts a message saying they would like it.
Random Act of Kindness
I had something kind of cute happen this afternoon. I went into the post office and recognized an older lady from town. I don't know her well, so I just made eye contact and gave her a smile.
She stopped in her tracks and said, "You look so cute. What a nice smile!"
I thought that was awfully sweet and it's given me a warm glow.
She stopped in her tracks and said, "You look so cute. What a nice smile!"
I thought that was awfully sweet and it's given me a warm glow.
December 14, 2004
Up, Down. Up, Down.
Today was kind of a roller coaster. I've been waiting to hear on a possible job in Boise. The intent was to sort of create this job with me in mind, and I'd be managing an area I used to work in years ago. I found out today that the funding fell through, and it looks like the job is a no-go.
Shortly afterward, I received a job announcement to do what I've always said I wanted to do when I grew up. (It has to do with public affairs and media work. And web design!) It sounds wonderful, plus it has some excellent promotion potential. I'm very excited about it and have started politicking aggressively for it.
I've been excited for the last week because my office holiday potluck was tonight. I should really know better than to get excited. But I can't really help it; I'm social, dammit! Sadly, quite a few of my co-workers are not. It was a pretty dead party.
Sigh... Oh, to answer Tami's question, things are going pretty slowly with the moving plans. I called our realtor yesterday and did the panicked home-seller thing for a while. "Should we drop the price?" (No.) "Can we advertise more?" (Not really.) "What about putting it on Craigslist? (What the heck is that?) She went on to say that this has been an extremely slow month for sales due to the holiday, and that things will pick up in January. Also, we should be tickled pink that we've had people come to look at it, despite the fact that no one has made us an offer on the place. So...I'll try to be patient. I'm not the kind of person who does well with waiting.
Shortly afterward, I received a job announcement to do what I've always said I wanted to do when I grew up. (It has to do with public affairs and media work. And web design!) It sounds wonderful, plus it has some excellent promotion potential. I'm very excited about it and have started politicking aggressively for it.
I've been excited for the last week because my office holiday potluck was tonight. I should really know better than to get excited. But I can't really help it; I'm social, dammit! Sadly, quite a few of my co-workers are not. It was a pretty dead party.
Sigh... Oh, to answer Tami's question, things are going pretty slowly with the moving plans. I called our realtor yesterday and did the panicked home-seller thing for a while. "Should we drop the price?" (No.) "Can we advertise more?" (Not really.) "What about putting it on Craigslist? (What the heck is that?) She went on to say that this has been an extremely slow month for sales due to the holiday, and that things will pick up in January. Also, we should be tickled pink that we've had people come to look at it, despite the fact that no one has made us an offer on the place. So...I'll try to be patient. I'm not the kind of person who does well with waiting.
Such Good News
I got some really great news today. I have a friend who lives several hours away from here and I don't see her very often. We met through work and bonded because we have some very similar infertility issues. She and her husband had decided to go through the process to adopt an infant.
They were chosen by a birth mother who delivered a baby boy in October. They took the baby home and had him for the weekend as their own. But the baby's father decided that he didn't want to give up his parental rights, and my friend had to give the baby back. She and her husband were utterly devastated. In fact, they went to counseling for a while to learn how to deal with the fact that they were parents so briefly.
They were chosen by yet another birth mother several weeks ago. The baby was delivered by c-section last week, they took her home, and the mother signed over parental rights today. The father is scheduled to do it tomorrow, but even if he stalls on it, his rights are very limited now that the mother has gone through the legal procedure. They don't think he'll back out anyway.
So, I'm happy to share a picture of Abby Olivia with you. I am just so happy for my friends!
Abby Olivia
They were chosen by a birth mother who delivered a baby boy in October. They took the baby home and had him for the weekend as their own. But the baby's father decided that he didn't want to give up his parental rights, and my friend had to give the baby back. She and her husband were utterly devastated. In fact, they went to counseling for a while to learn how to deal with the fact that they were parents so briefly.
They were chosen by yet another birth mother several weeks ago. The baby was delivered by c-section last week, they took her home, and the mother signed over parental rights today. The father is scheduled to do it tomorrow, but even if he stalls on it, his rights are very limited now that the mother has gone through the legal procedure. They don't think he'll back out anyway.
So, I'm happy to share a picture of Abby Olivia with you. I am just so happy for my friends!
Abby Olivia
December 13, 2004
Jerks!
I don't know if "Entertainment Books" are an Idaho thing or not, but I just got one last week. It's a book of coupons you can buy that gets you two-for-one dinners and lunches and places all over the area, and they're kind of fun.
So Matt had some errands to run up in McCall tonight and we decided to use one of the coupons at the McCall Brew Pub. We ordered some high dollar food, but figured, "Hey, it's two-for one!" Ha. Halfway through dinner I mentioned to our server that we had a coupon and he was like, "Ohhh, we don't honor those anymore." Me: "Huh?" Him: "We changed management and the new management won't honor the coupons. I'm sooooo sorry."
What makes it worse is that, not only was dinner expensive, but it was AWFUL! I had a seafood fetuccine entree with prawns, crab and salmon. You'd think it would be good, right? Wrong. It wasn't Send It Back to the Cook bad, but it was Jeez, I Wish We'd Gone for Chinese Instead bad.
Talk about adding insult to injury. Anyway, my retribution is getting to slag on them over the internet. And just for anyone doing a Google search for the place, it is now called the McCall Brewing Company, and their food is CRAP! And they're jerks!
So Matt had some errands to run up in McCall tonight and we decided to use one of the coupons at the McCall Brew Pub. We ordered some high dollar food, but figured, "Hey, it's two-for one!" Ha. Halfway through dinner I mentioned to our server that we had a coupon and he was like, "Ohhh, we don't honor those anymore." Me: "Huh?" Him: "We changed management and the new management won't honor the coupons. I'm sooooo sorry."
What makes it worse is that, not only was dinner expensive, but it was AWFUL! I had a seafood fetuccine entree with prawns, crab and salmon. You'd think it would be good, right? Wrong. It wasn't Send It Back to the Cook bad, but it was Jeez, I Wish We'd Gone for Chinese Instead bad.
Talk about adding insult to injury. Anyway, my retribution is getting to slag on them over the internet. And just for anyone doing a Google search for the place, it is now called the McCall Brewing Company, and their food is CRAP! And they're jerks!
Thoughts? Opinions?
Calif. Jury Urges Death Penalty for Scott Peterson
REDWOOD CITY, Calif. (Reuters) - A California jury on Monday recommended the death sentence for Scott Peterson for killing his wife and unborn son following a sensational trial that riveted much of the country.
The jury of six men and six women, who found Peterson guilty on Nov. 12, deliberated for about 12 hours before deciding that he should be executed for the murders of his 27-year-old wife, Laci, and unborn son, Conner.
I'm actually a little surprised. I wasn't sure a California jury would give him the death penalty. I mean, you can get the death penalty in Idaho for insulting someone's Confederate lineage (I keed, I keed), but isn't California supposed to be a hot-bed of flaming liberals who don't approve of the death penalty? I'm allowed to say that, speaking as a flaming liberal myself, you know.
Anyway, anyone have any thoughts about it all?
REDWOOD CITY, Calif. (Reuters) - A California jury on Monday recommended the death sentence for Scott Peterson for killing his wife and unborn son following a sensational trial that riveted much of the country.
The jury of six men and six women, who found Peterson guilty on Nov. 12, deliberated for about 12 hours before deciding that he should be executed for the murders of his 27-year-old wife, Laci, and unborn son, Conner.
I'm actually a little surprised. I wasn't sure a California jury would give him the death penalty. I mean, you can get the death penalty in Idaho for insulting someone's Confederate lineage (I keed, I keed), but isn't California supposed to be a hot-bed of flaming liberals who don't approve of the death penalty? I'm allowed to say that, speaking as a flaming liberal myself, you know.
Anyway, anyone have any thoughts about it all?
Major Score!
I've been a member of a certain message board for something like five years now. We're all women who were in our twenties (okay, there's a guy, but most of us don't care much for him) at the time, and we just kind of bonded. So we've been doing a Secret Santa exchange for a few years, and I just got my present today.
Now before you jump on me about not being able to wait, which is technically true but not the point, I should mention that the rules of our exchange say that you MUST open your presents upon delivery so that you can tell the rest of the board who your Santa was and what you got.
My friend Tea, who is from Keller, Texas, got me the coolest, nicest, most loveliest Calphalon 12-inch skillet.
I can not wait to go cook something at a high temperature. Thanks, Tea!
Now before you jump on me about not being able to wait, which is technically true but not the point, I should mention that the rules of our exchange say that you MUST open your presents upon delivery so that you can tell the rest of the board who your Santa was and what you got.
My friend Tea, who is from Keller, Texas, got me the coolest, nicest, most loveliest Calphalon 12-inch skillet.
I can not wait to go cook something at a high temperature. Thanks, Tea!
December 12, 2004
Comedy v. Tragedy
Have any of you guys seen Group Hug? It's a webpage where people can go to anonymously confess whatever is in their hearts. Some of it is very sad, and some people are just sick f*cks.
What would I confess? That I am so danged sick of waiting for the football game to get over with that I just started clicking the >>Next Blog button at the top of my page. And clicked. And clicked. God, it really is phenomenal how much rubbish is out there. I don't claim to be the most entertaining person in the world, but I seriously think there needs to be some sort of minimum age and IQ score for blogging.
What would I confess? That I am so danged sick of waiting for the football game to get over with that I just started clicking the >>Next Blog button at the top of my page. And clicked. And clicked. God, it really is phenomenal how much rubbish is out there. I don't claim to be the most entertaining person in the world, but I seriously think there needs to be some sort of minimum age and IQ score for blogging.
Russian History
I just finished reading, "The Kitchen Boy," by Robert Alexander. Kalisah recommended it on her site a while back, and I ordered it from Amazon.
What a touching book. If you remember your world history, Czar Nicholas II of Russia was assasinated in 1918, along with his wife, daughters and son. A brief mention of a kitchen servant that accompanied the Romanov family into exile is made in one of Empress Alexandra's diaries, and the author built a very convincing historical novel around that mention.
The book's website gives a great summary of the book. If you like historical fiction or if you enjoyed "The DaVinci Code", then you'd probably like this one as well.
What a touching book. If you remember your world history, Czar Nicholas II of Russia was assasinated in 1918, along with his wife, daughters and son. A brief mention of a kitchen servant that accompanied the Romanov family into exile is made in one of Empress Alexandra's diaries, and the author built a very convincing historical novel around that mention.
The book's website gives a great summary of the book. If you like historical fiction or if you enjoyed "The DaVinci Code", then you'd probably like this one as well.
Kinda Crabby
This is one of those days where I really wish we were living in Boise. (No bites on the house, by the way.) Matt left for work at about 6:00 this morning. There are cougar hunting seasons going on right now, and those guys like to get an early start.
Anyway, I've been sitting here in my bathrobe, checking blogs and reading e-mail. It dawned on me that I'm trying to be social. I'm trying to interact with people.
I'm just wishing I had a girlfriend nearby that would call and say, "Hey, come over and eat doughnuts with me." And I'd say, "Okay, but I'm driving over in my bathrobe."
That's the kind of thing I'd have done back in the day when I was living down there. But I was single then, so I'd have had to do my hair and makeup, and put on the sexy bathrobe just in case I got pulled over by a cute cop on my way to my girlfriend's house.
Anyway, I've been sitting here in my bathrobe, checking blogs and reading e-mail. It dawned on me that I'm trying to be social. I'm trying to interact with people.
I'm just wishing I had a girlfriend nearby that would call and say, "Hey, come over and eat doughnuts with me." And I'd say, "Okay, but I'm driving over in my bathrobe."
That's the kind of thing I'd have done back in the day when I was living down there. But I was single then, so I'd have had to do my hair and makeup, and put on the sexy bathrobe just in case I got pulled over by a cute cop on my way to my girlfriend's house.
December 11, 2004
Holy Cats!
Cat's Headstone was a £200,000 Piece of Saxon History
A 1,000-year-old stone carving marking a cat's grave sold yesterday for more than £200,000.
Ruth Beeston had no idea of the value of the statue, a memorial to her cat, Winkle, in her garden in Somerset. Her husband, Johnny, who died last year, found the slab in a quarry years ago, and thought it would make a nice headstone.
But, at Sotheby's in London yesterday, a private collector paid a total of £201,600 for the limestone carving of St Peter.
The piece dates from the early 10th century and was spotted by a local potter and amateur historian, Chris Brewchorne.
Alexander Cader of Sotheby's said of Mrs Beeston: "It was like winning the lottery for her. She is going to be thrilled and I think she is planning a trip to Kenya. It is going to have a real impact on her."
Why does this story remind me of Stephen King's "Pet Semetary"?
A 1,000-year-old stone carving marking a cat's grave sold yesterday for more than £200,000.
Ruth Beeston had no idea of the value of the statue, a memorial to her cat, Winkle, in her garden in Somerset. Her husband, Johnny, who died last year, found the slab in a quarry years ago, and thought it would make a nice headstone.
But, at Sotheby's in London yesterday, a private collector paid a total of £201,600 for the limestone carving of St Peter.
The piece dates from the early 10th century and was spotted by a local potter and amateur historian, Chris Brewchorne.
Alexander Cader of Sotheby's said of Mrs Beeston: "It was like winning the lottery for her. She is going to be thrilled and I think she is planning a trip to Kenya. It is going to have a real impact on her."
Why does this story remind me of Stephen King's "Pet Semetary"?
December 10, 2004
I Am Not Making This Up
My latest issue of Budget Living magazine had what I consider to be a friggin' amazing thing in it:
Higher-end cosmetics companies are settling a class action lawsuit and will likely be giving away free make-up and skin care products. I'm just going to quote right from the Budget Living article.
"We're guessing you bought at least one cosmetic product at a department store between May 29, 1994 and July 16, 2003. If so, you may be eligible for $18 to $25 worth of wares...The complaint involves price-fixing (ever notice how department-store makeup never goes on sale?), and after much legal wrangling, the final decision is set to come down on January 11, 2005. If the judge gives the go-ahead, the gratis goods will be available shortly thereafter... Register by logging on to CosmeticsSettlement.com or by calling 877-604-5776. You'll be notified of when and where to collect your share of the swag."
I just went to the website and read the details of the agreement. It's pretty straightforward. Listed brands run from Chanel to Estee' Lauder to MAC to Clarins to Origins, and quite a number of retailers are involved.
Check it out! I command thee! Also, take a look at some of the subscription details on the magazine website. I really enjoy this one--thanks to my friend Tea for getting me a gift subscription a couple of years ago.
Higher-end cosmetics companies are settling a class action lawsuit and will likely be giving away free make-up and skin care products. I'm just going to quote right from the Budget Living article.
"We're guessing you bought at least one cosmetic product at a department store between May 29, 1994 and July 16, 2003. If so, you may be eligible for $18 to $25 worth of wares...The complaint involves price-fixing (ever notice how department-store makeup never goes on sale?), and after much legal wrangling, the final decision is set to come down on January 11, 2005. If the judge gives the go-ahead, the gratis goods will be available shortly thereafter... Register by logging on to CosmeticsSettlement.com or by calling 877-604-5776. You'll be notified of when and where to collect your share of the swag."
I just went to the website and read the details of the agreement. It's pretty straightforward. Listed brands run from Chanel to Estee' Lauder to MAC to Clarins to Origins, and quite a number of retailers are involved.
Check it out! I command thee! Also, take a look at some of the subscription details on the magazine website. I really enjoy this one--thanks to my friend Tea for getting me a gift subscription a couple of years ago.
December 09, 2004
Rambling
I've made a new addition to the list of things I must buy as soon as physically possible: Mighty Leaf Tea. Jessica recommended it on her site, and the Orange Dulce flavor sounds so delicious. I can't recall if I've mentioned my tea fixation here on the blog yet, but I do have something of a habit. It started when I decided to cut down on the amount of coffee I was drinking. Now I have one cuppa joe to get me going in the morning, then I switch to tea once I get to work. I also have a cup at home in the evenings. I love me some tea...
I found a really fun blog called Badger Meets World as I was stalking, I mean, checking my StatCounter account. Yes, I check my stats on a near-daily basis. But this isn't about me, it's about the Badger. The writer has a great, enjoyable attitude and writing style, plus great taste in their Blogroll. Heh.
Erica over at Swirlspice has found love (or something like it). I'm thrilled. I've known Erica from the long-ago when she was *this tall*. Okay, it's been a few years and I couldn't honestly comment on her growth or lack thereof. But it's about time she found herself a nice girl and settled down. And that FlyGirl better look out: if she hurts my girl, I'm gonna whup her ass. (I'm sure that won't be necessary.)
I have been LOVING Snarkywood lately. I stumbled across it through Chris' site, and I can't get enough. It's three very talented bloggers (one of whom hates that word) who basically tear into current pop culture "icons" like Oprah tears into a bag of Fritos. Considering it's Thursday night, check out their most recent post, a searing snark on the men of The Apprentice. (And godammit, I can't tell if that pinged correctly or not--my trackback doesn't seem to be working very well.
Well, I 'spose I've gone on enough for one night. For any of you lurkers out there who check in and never comment, I SEE YOU!!! Seriously, throw me some love and post a comment now and then. I'm glad to have you coming around.
I found a really fun blog called Badger Meets World as I was stalking, I mean, checking my StatCounter account. Yes, I check my stats on a near-daily basis. But this isn't about me, it's about the Badger. The writer has a great, enjoyable attitude and writing style, plus great taste in their Blogroll. Heh.
Erica over at Swirlspice has found love (or something like it). I'm thrilled. I've known Erica from the long-ago when she was *this tall*. Okay, it's been a few years and I couldn't honestly comment on her growth or lack thereof. But it's about time she found herself a nice girl and settled down. And that FlyGirl better look out: if she hurts my girl, I'm gonna whup her ass. (I'm sure that won't be necessary.)
I have been LOVING Snarkywood lately. I stumbled across it through Chris' site, and I can't get enough. It's three very talented bloggers (one of whom hates that word) who basically tear into current pop culture "icons" like Oprah tears into a bag of Fritos. Considering it's Thursday night, check out their most recent post, a searing snark on the men of The Apprentice. (And godammit, I can't tell if that pinged correctly or not--my trackback doesn't seem to be working very well.
Well, I 'spose I've gone on enough for one night. For any of you lurkers out there who check in and never comment, I SEE YOU!!! Seriously, throw me some love and post a comment now and then. I'm glad to have you coming around.
December 08, 2004
Winter Freakin' Wonderland
I've mentioned the recent snow storm, yes? Well, we got an additional 12 inches today. That has us up to about 26 inches since Monday. Monday, people. The County actually quit plowing all east-to-west (and west-to-east by default) streets today. The wind was out of the south, and they flat out couldn't keep the roads open. I told Matt that I can't remember seeing it snow this hard in all my 30 years of being an Idaho resident. If you took the phrase, "Like a cow pissing on a flat rock" as applies to rain and then froze it, you'd have our weather pattern.
I'm proud to announce that I'm pretty much all done with the Christmas presents and cards. I've grown a very "fuck it" attitude about my Christmas card list in the last year or so. If I have sent people a card for more than one year without any reciprocation, they're off the list. No card!
I'm more than a little worried about the crap weather affecting the sale of our house. We don't exactly have the easiest driveway for winter access. It's long and steep. And in a week where we've had two feet of snow...well, it's not so good. However, I don't think many people are out travelling at the moment, so I guess even if we had the greatest driveway in the world, no one is out looking at real estate. If you guys could start sending some sell my house good luck vibes, I'd really appreciate it.
I'm proud to announce that I'm pretty much all done with the Christmas presents and cards. I've grown a very "fuck it" attitude about my Christmas card list in the last year or so. If I have sent people a card for more than one year without any reciprocation, they're off the list. No card!
I'm more than a little worried about the crap weather affecting the sale of our house. We don't exactly have the easiest driveway for winter access. It's long and steep. And in a week where we've had two feet of snow...well, it's not so good. However, I don't think many people are out travelling at the moment, so I guess even if we had the greatest driveway in the world, no one is out looking at real estate. If you guys could start sending some sell my house good luck vibes, I'd really appreciate it.
December 07, 2004
Grumpy Old Man
Here's a sample of the conversation I had with my dad tonight.
Dad: Got much snow?
Me: Yeah, over a foot.
Dad: It was really nice here in Boise today.
Me: Yeah, I know. We were down there for doctors' appointments and it was a big improvement on Cascade.
Dad (long pause): You know how I can tell you hate me?
Me: Huh?
Dad: Do you know how I can tell you hate me?
Me: I do?
Dad: Because you come down here and you don't stop and see me.
Me: We don't always have time to come and see you.
Dad: Because you hate me.
He's turning into his own mother. My grandmother died when I was 13, and I can remember very clearly in the years leading up to her death that my father hated going to see her because she was the Absolute All-Time Mistress of the Guilt Trip. All us kids got to see how well that worked on him, and he's passed his own reaction to that along to us. Aren't genetics and behavioral conditioning wonderful things?
Dad: Got much snow?
Me: Yeah, over a foot.
Dad: It was really nice here in Boise today.
Me: Yeah, I know. We were down there for doctors' appointments and it was a big improvement on Cascade.
Dad (long pause): You know how I can tell you hate me?
Me: Huh?
Dad: Do you know how I can tell you hate me?
Me: I do?
Dad: Because you come down here and you don't stop and see me.
Me: We don't always have time to come and see you.
Dad: Because you hate me.
He's turning into his own mother. My grandmother died when I was 13, and I can remember very clearly in the years leading up to her death that my father hated going to see her because she was the Absolute All-Time Mistress of the Guilt Trip. All us kids got to see how well that worked on him, and he's passed his own reaction to that along to us. Aren't genetics and behavioral conditioning wonderful things?
Doctor, Doctor
It was a day full of doctor visits for Matt and I. After battling through a friggin' blizzard to get to Boise (12 inches of snow overnight), we took Matt back to the Sinus Center. I'm so glad he goes there, rather than seeing one of the general practitioners up here. The folks at the Sinus Center seem to listen and take his symptoms seriously, rather than just doing an internal eye-roll when he says how miserable the sinus infections make him.
After a very disappointing lunch at a place that had been raved over by many (Aubergine, for those in the Boise area), we made a couple of brief stops. Matt is a "bread head," so I took him to the Great Harvest Bread Company so that he could stock up. Then we headed down to The Record Exchange, my favorite music store.
Finally, it was off to see my OB/GYN. I have to go in for a monthly check-up while I'm on Clomid. He checks me out during the first few days of my cycle to make sure my ovaries aren't becoming cystic, which is evidently one of the potential side effects of taking this particular fertility drug. Once again, all was well with my bidness, so I'll be starting round three of the pills in a day or two.
What a whirlwind day.
After a very disappointing lunch at a place that had been raved over by many (Aubergine, for those in the Boise area), we made a couple of brief stops. Matt is a "bread head," so I took him to the Great Harvest Bread Company so that he could stock up. Then we headed down to The Record Exchange, my favorite music store.
Finally, it was off to see my OB/GYN. I have to go in for a monthly check-up while I'm on Clomid. He checks me out during the first few days of my cycle to make sure my ovaries aren't becoming cystic, which is evidently one of the potential side effects of taking this particular fertility drug. Once again, all was well with my bidness, so I'll be starting round three of the pills in a day or two.
What a whirlwind day.
December 06, 2004
Antiques Roadshow
(Totally an aside here, but I just heard a snowmobile driving down the road. We got something like 6 inches of snow in the last 24 hours and winter seems to be settling in.)
Matt was out in the living room watching Antiques Roadshow on Idaho Public Television. I don't know if any of you all tune in to that or not, but the basic premise is that people in large-ish towns come to these big appraisal fairs that the show hosts. They can be in Denver one episode, Savannah the next, and Boston in a third. Antiques experts at the shows check out what you brought in from your attic and tell you what it's worth.
I particularly enjoy the segments where some smug, pampered house-wife shows up with a "priceless silver tea service," that her mother-in-law left her, and she's told it's a fake and utter rubbish. But I'm mean that way.
So tonight's episode was a recap of some of the stuff that was appraised at out of this world values. There were original oil paintings, some by Hudson River School masters, the obligatory silver tea service, two Tiffany lamps, etc. But the final item was a Navajo blanket woven for a chief of the Ute tribe. Kit Carson ended up giving it to a man whose great-great-great grandson (or something like that) brought it in to the show. It was worth a half a million dollars. And if he'd been able to come up with proof of its provenance (the story of Carson gave it to the other guy), then it would be worth something like $700,000. Can you imagine?
Matt was out in the living room watching Antiques Roadshow on Idaho Public Television. I don't know if any of you all tune in to that or not, but the basic premise is that people in large-ish towns come to these big appraisal fairs that the show hosts. They can be in Denver one episode, Savannah the next, and Boston in a third. Antiques experts at the shows check out what you brought in from your attic and tell you what it's worth.
I particularly enjoy the segments where some smug, pampered house-wife shows up with a "priceless silver tea service," that her mother-in-law left her, and she's told it's a fake and utter rubbish. But I'm mean that way.
So tonight's episode was a recap of some of the stuff that was appraised at out of this world values. There were original oil paintings, some by Hudson River School masters, the obligatory silver tea service, two Tiffany lamps, etc. But the final item was a Navajo blanket woven for a chief of the Ute tribe. Kit Carson ended up giving it to a man whose great-great-great grandson (or something like that) brought it in to the show. It was worth a half a million dollars. And if he'd been able to come up with proof of its provenance (the story of Carson gave it to the other guy), then it would be worth something like $700,000. Can you imagine?
Thanks!
I owe big thanks to Sherri and Louisiana Casey, who have agreed to guest blog for me while I'm visiting scenic Wisconsin over the holidays.
I'm hoping to check in and post a time or two while I'm gone, but because I know everyone loves a fresh page, I owe a debt to these guys for taking over for me. Thanks!!!
And you all will just have to visit their respective pages before I leave so that you can get a sneak peek of the fun ahead.
I'm hoping to check in and post a time or two while I'm gone, but because I know everyone loves a fresh page, I owe a debt to these guys for taking over for me. Thanks!!!
And you all will just have to visit their respective pages before I leave so that you can get a sneak peek of the fun ahead.
December 05, 2004
Oh, Joy...
I've been sitting at the computer trying to get my whole basal temperature chart straightened out. It's harder than hell to keep track of all that when you're house-sitting. I tried to keep it all written down in my day planner, but I sort of got lazy taking the temperature after I ovulated (after all, what difference does it make?).
So I finally got that figured out, and I started counting out what the month ahead should hold. If things remain the same as they were last month, I'll start ovulating the day before we leave for Wisconsin. Okay, that's not so bad. But then Aunt Flo should join me on vacation about three days before I get home. Say it with me, ladies...groan!!! I HATE having the Big P while I'm on the road.
I shouldn't complain. I know this. Several months ago, I wasn't even having periods, and I sure as hell wasn't ovulating. Someone smack me for being an ingrate. Thanks.
Oh, while I'm at it, is anyone interested in guest blogging for a couple of weeks while I am gone? I'll be eternally grateful, plus I'll make a donation to the charity of your choice. Seriously. E-mail me if you want to help out.
So I finally got that figured out, and I started counting out what the month ahead should hold. If things remain the same as they were last month, I'll start ovulating the day before we leave for Wisconsin. Okay, that's not so bad. But then Aunt Flo should join me on vacation about three days before I get home. Say it with me, ladies...groan!!! I HATE having the Big P while I'm on the road.
I shouldn't complain. I know this. Several months ago, I wasn't even having periods, and I sure as hell wasn't ovulating. Someone smack me for being an ingrate. Thanks.
Oh, while I'm at it, is anyone interested in guest blogging for a couple of weeks while I am gone? I'll be eternally grateful, plus I'll make a donation to the charity of your choice. Seriously. E-mail me if you want to help out.
Tonight's Menu
Since Matt is battling the sinus infection, I decided to cook a meal tonight that will give him an immunity boost and heat up his sinuses to encourage good drainage. (And if that doesn't make you hungry, I don't know what will.)
Grilled Pork and Pepper Skewers
From, "Eating for Life," by Better Homes & Gardens
12 oz. boneless pork top loin roast
2 medium red sweet peppers, cut into 1-inch squares
1 medium red onion, cut into 1-inch pieces
1 8 oz. (1 cup) carton plain, low-fat yogurt
3 green onions, thinly sliced
2 chipotle peppers in adobo sauce, finely chopped (if you can't find those, use fresh jalapenos)
1 tb. grated fresh ginger
2 cloves minced garlic
1 tsp. sugar
1 tsp. ground coriander
1/2 tsp. salt
1/8 tsp. black pepper
1. Trim fat from meat. Cut meat into 1-inch pieces. Place meat, sweet peppers and red onion in a medium bowl.
2. For marinade, in a small bowl stir together yogurt, green onions, chipotle peppers, ginger, garlic, sugar, coriander, salt & black pepper. Pour over meat mixture, stirring to coat. Cover and marinate in the refrigerator for 4 to 6 hours.
3. When assembling the kabobs, wear plastic or rubber gloves to protect your hands from the oils in the hot peppers. (Or wash your hands immediately afterwards.) On eight 6- to 8-inch metal skewers, alternately thread meat, sweet peppers and onion, leaving 1/4 inch between pieces.
4. Grill kabobs on the rack of an uncovered grill directly over medium coals for 12 to 14 minutes, turning once halfway through grilling. If desired, serve with brown rice. Makes 4 servings.
Cheese Straws
From the latest Penzey's Spices catalog
1 cup grated cheddar cheese
1 cup all purpose flour
1 tb. butter
1/2 to 1 tsp. crushed red pepper flakes
1/4-1/3 cup milk
2 tsp. kosher salt
Preheat oven to 375. In a large bowl, combine cheese, flour and butter which has been cut into small chunks. Rub together with your fingers until crumbly. Add the red pepper (use the smaller amount for starters--you can always make the next batch hotter if desired). Using a wooden spoon, mix in as much milk as needed to get the dough to stick together. Lighly flour a table or cutting board and roll the dough out as you would for cookies--between 1/8 and 1/4 inch thick. Slice into pretzel rod shapes, about 1/4 inch wide and 4 to 6 inches long and carefully place on cookie sheets coated with vegetable oil spray. Sprinkle with salt. Bake for 10-14 minutes, until golden brown. (Mine took longer, but I may have a weird oven.) Remove from pans right away. Serve warm or at room temperature.
Grilled Pork and Pepper Skewers
From, "Eating for Life," by Better Homes & Gardens
12 oz. boneless pork top loin roast
2 medium red sweet peppers, cut into 1-inch squares
1 medium red onion, cut into 1-inch pieces
1 8 oz. (1 cup) carton plain, low-fat yogurt
3 green onions, thinly sliced
2 chipotle peppers in adobo sauce, finely chopped (if you can't find those, use fresh jalapenos)
1 tb. grated fresh ginger
2 cloves minced garlic
1 tsp. sugar
1 tsp. ground coriander
1/2 tsp. salt
1/8 tsp. black pepper
1. Trim fat from meat. Cut meat into 1-inch pieces. Place meat, sweet peppers and red onion in a medium bowl.
2. For marinade, in a small bowl stir together yogurt, green onions, chipotle peppers, ginger, garlic, sugar, coriander, salt & black pepper. Pour over meat mixture, stirring to coat. Cover and marinate in the refrigerator for 4 to 6 hours.
3. When assembling the kabobs, wear plastic or rubber gloves to protect your hands from the oils in the hot peppers. (Or wash your hands immediately afterwards.) On eight 6- to 8-inch metal skewers, alternately thread meat, sweet peppers and onion, leaving 1/4 inch between pieces.
4. Grill kabobs on the rack of an uncovered grill directly over medium coals for 12 to 14 minutes, turning once halfway through grilling. If desired, serve with brown rice. Makes 4 servings.
Cheese Straws
From the latest Penzey's Spices catalog
1 cup grated cheddar cheese
1 cup all purpose flour
1 tb. butter
1/2 to 1 tsp. crushed red pepper flakes
1/4-1/3 cup milk
2 tsp. kosher salt
Preheat oven to 375. In a large bowl, combine cheese, flour and butter which has been cut into small chunks. Rub together with your fingers until crumbly. Add the red pepper (use the smaller amount for starters--you can always make the next batch hotter if desired). Using a wooden spoon, mix in as much milk as needed to get the dough to stick together. Lighly flour a table or cutting board and roll the dough out as you would for cookies--between 1/8 and 1/4 inch thick. Slice into pretzel rod shapes, about 1/4 inch wide and 4 to 6 inches long and carefully place on cookie sheets coated with vegetable oil spray. Sprinkle with salt. Bake for 10-14 minutes, until golden brown. (Mine took longer, but I may have a weird oven.) Remove from pans right away. Serve warm or at room temperature.
Can I Have Moratorium on Football?
My beloved, my darling, my angel, my spouse is sitting on the couch watching NFL pre-game stuff. It's 9:05 a.m. I've been up for about a half-hour. He's been up a little longer than that. And he's very sick.
Matt gets chronic sinus infections. In fact, we took him to the Sinus Center in Boise a couple of years ago and he got a CAT scan to see exactly what the bone structure in his sinuses was like. It appears to be highly-sought-after habitat to the sort of bacteria that causes month-long infections. (Of course, now that I have a blog I think back and wonder why I didn't ask for one of the pictures on a disk so I could have shared the inside of my husband's head with you all.)
So he's in the middle of a particularly bad bout. I am wishing I could feel more sympathetic, but it's hard when he turns on football. I hate being subjected to hours and hours of pre-game, game and then post-game.
I think it all boils down to the fact that he was supposed to go to work today and I was going to watch several hours of Buffy Season Five, which has been sitting on my DVR for weeks now.
It's probably good I never entered the medical profession, huh? Speaking of which, is anybody watching "House, M.D." on Fox Monday nights? I. Love. It.
Matt gets chronic sinus infections. In fact, we took him to the Sinus Center in Boise a couple of years ago and he got a CAT scan to see exactly what the bone structure in his sinuses was like. It appears to be highly-sought-after habitat to the sort of bacteria that causes month-long infections. (Of course, now that I have a blog I think back and wonder why I didn't ask for one of the pictures on a disk so I could have shared the inside of my husband's head with you all.)
So he's in the middle of a particularly bad bout. I am wishing I could feel more sympathetic, but it's hard when he turns on football. I hate being subjected to hours and hours of pre-game, game and then post-game.
I think it all boils down to the fact that he was supposed to go to work today and I was going to watch several hours of Buffy Season Five, which has been sitting on my DVR for weeks now.
It's probably good I never entered the medical profession, huh? Speaking of which, is anybody watching "House, M.D." on Fox Monday nights? I. Love. It.
December 04, 2004
(Insert Howard Dean-Style Animal Scream Here)
I GOT TICKETS TO STING!!!! YEAH, BABY!!!!
Is it sick and obsessed that my hands were quivering the tiniest bit with the surges of adrenaline that were coursing through my body? I was thinking desperately to myself, "What if I can't get online? What if my damn dial-up disconnects? What if a meteorite hits the house and crushes me dead before I can get tickets?"
Okay, time to be calm. Deep breathing. Innnnn. Ouuuut. Innnn. Ouuut.
Is it sick and obsessed that my hands were quivering the tiniest bit with the surges of adrenaline that were coursing through my body? I was thinking desperately to myself, "What if I can't get online? What if my damn dial-up disconnects? What if a meteorite hits the house and crushes me dead before I can get tickets?"
Okay, time to be calm. Deep breathing. Innnnn. Ouuuut. Innnn. Ouuut.
December 02, 2004
Chris is a Winnah!
It’s time to announce the truth behind yesterday’s quiz. Chris guessed the right answer. I’d say it was because he knows me so well, but his comments lead me to believe that it was his fiercely competitive spirit and an accurate guess, rather than our close bond. So here’s the history behind your three choices:
1. True. Yep, I really did have a boyfriend leave me and start seeing his first cousin. My then-boyfriend Ron had a younger sister who got married one fine summer day. Lots of his kinfolk (and I use the redneck terminology on purpose) showed up for the ceremony. Due to the fact that most of the family was of the Mormon persuasion there was no alcohol at the reception, a fact that grieved many of us greatly. We all decided to go and party at a bar in Emmett, and two of Ron’s cousins (a boy and a girl) came along with us. On the ride there, Ron’s sister-in-law, who was a major instigator from way back, whispered to me that Ron and his cousin had always been sort of sweet on each other and I should watch my back.
We got to the bar and started enjoying ourselves. Ron was being really chummy with this girl, but I was trying to be blithe about all of it, so I wandered off and drank a beer or two with some logger friends of mine who were in the bar. I came back a while later and Ron and the cousins had tequila shots in front of them. He asked if I wanted to do a shot, and I said, “I don’t know, I’ve never done one before.” The girl cousin smirked and said, “I bet she won’t do one.” Well, that was all it took. Bitch had thrown down the gauntlet, right? Four tequila shots later (on top of four beers), and I was pretty much on the floor.
I ended up sitting on the sidewalk outside the bar with my head in my hands. I was feeling pretty bad. That’s about the time one of my logger buddies (and I should mention that they were all married and we were just friends) came out to check on me and said, “By the way, your boyfriend just drove off and left you. He had that girl with him.” I was 40 miles away from my own vehicle at that time. This friend of mine ended up driving me back to Boise that night, which is where I was living at the time. I later found out that Ron and the cousin had indeed hooked up, and wound up dating for a while.
I’m still hoping that karma catches up to that S.O.B.
2. False. I wasn’t even allowed to attend my Homecoming dance, on account of that crazy religion. I will preen just a skosh and say that I was nominated, but I had to turn the nomination down, also on account of that crazy religion.
3. True. On account of that crazy religion, I was an extremely clean-cut kid. I didn’t drink until I was about 20, and I just never thought cigarettes were all that interesting. I don’t like the smell, and I just never lit up.
And there you have it: the truth, the whole truth, and nothing but the truth.
1. True. Yep, I really did have a boyfriend leave me and start seeing his first cousin. My then-boyfriend Ron had a younger sister who got married one fine summer day. Lots of his kinfolk (and I use the redneck terminology on purpose) showed up for the ceremony. Due to the fact that most of the family was of the Mormon persuasion there was no alcohol at the reception, a fact that grieved many of us greatly. We all decided to go and party at a bar in Emmett, and two of Ron’s cousins (a boy and a girl) came along with us. On the ride there, Ron’s sister-in-law, who was a major instigator from way back, whispered to me that Ron and his cousin had always been sort of sweet on each other and I should watch my back.
We got to the bar and started enjoying ourselves. Ron was being really chummy with this girl, but I was trying to be blithe about all of it, so I wandered off and drank a beer or two with some logger friends of mine who were in the bar. I came back a while later and Ron and the cousins had tequila shots in front of them. He asked if I wanted to do a shot, and I said, “I don’t know, I’ve never done one before.” The girl cousin smirked and said, “I bet she won’t do one.” Well, that was all it took. Bitch had thrown down the gauntlet, right? Four tequila shots later (on top of four beers), and I was pretty much on the floor.
I ended up sitting on the sidewalk outside the bar with my head in my hands. I was feeling pretty bad. That’s about the time one of my logger buddies (and I should mention that they were all married and we were just friends) came out to check on me and said, “By the way, your boyfriend just drove off and left you. He had that girl with him.” I was 40 miles away from my own vehicle at that time. This friend of mine ended up driving me back to Boise that night, which is where I was living at the time. I later found out that Ron and the cousin had indeed hooked up, and wound up dating for a while.
I’m still hoping that karma catches up to that S.O.B.
2. False. I wasn’t even allowed to attend my Homecoming dance, on account of that crazy religion. I will preen just a skosh and say that I was nominated, but I had to turn the nomination down, also on account of that crazy religion.
3. True. On account of that crazy religion, I was an extremely clean-cut kid. I didn’t drink until I was about 20, and I just never thought cigarettes were all that interesting. I don’t like the smell, and I just never lit up.
And there you have it: the truth, the whole truth, and nothing but the truth.
December 01, 2004
Squeeeeeal!!!
My life will soon be truly fulfilled: Sting is coming to the Boise area. I. Could. Die.
You will recall that he is on The List, yes? As in, the list of celebraties who, if it is ever offered, I am allowed to sleep with and incur no repurcussions on my marriage. Yeah, like that's going to happen. But, still!
I need to start a countdown until April 9 or something...
You will recall that he is on The List, yes? As in, the list of celebraties who, if it is ever offered, I am allowed to sleep with and incur no repurcussions on my marriage. Yeah, like that's going to happen. But, still!
I need to start a countdown until April 9 or something...
You Think You Know Me?
Here's a little something I shamelessly pilfered from Chris. I'm going to give you three "facts" about me. Two of them are true, one of them is not. Guess which one is not true and post your answer in the comments.
1. I had a boyfriend dump me so that he could date his first cousin.
2. I was the Homecoming Queen my senior year of high school.
3. I have never smoked a cigarette.
You think you know me? Then what's your answer?
1. I had a boyfriend dump me so that he could date his first cousin.
2. I was the Homecoming Queen my senior year of high school.
3. I have never smoked a cigarette.
You think you know me? Then what's your answer?
God Bless Nancy Zerg
That annoying twit who kept winning on Jeopardy!, Ken Jennings, has finally been defeated. Thank God, because I was getting really sick of that guy. Like Kalisah, I used to enjoy watching the show, (excepting Trebek's ridiculous attempts to accent any foreign words), but Jennings ruined it for me.
November 30, 2004
Tuesday Miscellany
I was checking my stats earlier, and found a few noteworthy searches that brought people to my page. I have linked to my archive pages for these searches, but even I can't figure out why I ended up being a search result for them.
1. Dingo Boy
2. Good manners (Why me? I'm so not a paragon of virtue.)
3. Disgusting infections (Again, why me? What did I have?)
4. Scott Wolfe/Kelly Limp wedding pictures (You people need lives. I get at least five search hits a week based on a brief reference to their wedding.)
If any of you bloggy types out there are looking for a really good, free, invisible hit counter, I really do recommend Stat Counter. I like not having a visible counter cluttering up my pretty page design.
In other news, it appears I've grown a full bra size. Can't tell you how happy I am about that. Hooray for hormone supplements! Thank God I didn't get a mustache.
Finally, a co-worker was telling me about this really good shower cleaner she has. We were bemoaning what drudgery cleaning the shower stalls in our homes can be, and she recommended products from Don Aslett, particularly the kitchen floor cleaner and the shower stuff. I'm thinking I may have to try them...
1. Dingo Boy
2. Good manners (Why me? I'm so not a paragon of virtue.)
3. Disgusting infections (Again, why me? What did I have?)
4. Scott Wolfe/Kelly Limp wedding pictures (You people need lives. I get at least five search hits a week based on a brief reference to their wedding.)
If any of you bloggy types out there are looking for a really good, free, invisible hit counter, I really do recommend Stat Counter. I like not having a visible counter cluttering up my pretty page design.
In other news, it appears I've grown a full bra size. Can't tell you how happy I am about that. Hooray for hormone supplements! Thank God I didn't get a mustache.
Finally, a co-worker was telling me about this really good shower cleaner she has. We were bemoaning what drudgery cleaning the shower stalls in our homes can be, and she recommended products from Don Aslett, particularly the kitchen floor cleaner and the shower stuff. I'm thinking I may have to try them...
November 29, 2004
I Can't Believe They Let These People Drive
We were in Boise yesterday and I stopped at CostCo for gas. While waiting in line for the pumps, I looked over and saw a pickup with a vanity license plate that said, "CUNHVN." Exqueeze me, but isn't that for God to decide? How vain can you get? Mid-scowl, I also noticed that the plate was bracketed by W04 and Bush/Cheney bumper stickers. I'm sure he thinks Jesus is happy that his side won the election.
And if that wasn't bad enough??? The truck drove off and was replaced with a Lexus whose plate said, "RUSHLVR."
Ass hats...
And if that wasn't bad enough??? The truck drove off and was replaced with a Lexus whose plate said, "RUSHLVR."
Ass hats...
November 27, 2004
Selling Myself
I find myself needing to write a resume'. I haven't written one since shortly after high school, when I applied to (and got) a job as a secretary with an insulation company. My current employer, who I have been with for about eleven years now, has always had us fill out an application form. I was pretty good at those. However, I'm kind of lost on this resume' thing.
Do any of you have advice on how to write a really good one? How about websites that you recommend for resume' building? Also, if you want to take a look at mine and give it a critique, I'd be happy to e-mail it to you. Gracias! (No, I don't really speak a second language, unless ordering food and swearing count. Better leave that off the document, eh?)
Do any of you have advice on how to write a really good one? How about websites that you recommend for resume' building? Also, if you want to take a look at mine and give it a critique, I'd be happy to e-mail it to you. Gracias! (No, I don't really speak a second language, unless ordering food and swearing count. Better leave that off the document, eh?)
Take That!
Dispute Over Turkey Blamed for Stabbings
WORCESTER, Mass. - A man with a history of mental illness charged with stabbing two relatives after they criticized his table manners during Thanksgiving dinner was ordered by a judge Friday to undergo a psychiatric evaluation.
The fight broke out when Gonzalo Ocasio Jr., 18, and his father, Gonzalo Ocasio, 49, reprimanded Frank Palacios for picking at the turkey with his fingers, instead of slicing off pieces with a knife, police told The Telegram & Gazette of Worcester.
It's a darn good thing just thinking about it can't get you arrested...
WORCESTER, Mass. - A man with a history of mental illness charged with stabbing two relatives after they criticized his table manners during Thanksgiving dinner was ordered by a judge Friday to undergo a psychiatric evaluation.
The fight broke out when Gonzalo Ocasio Jr., 18, and his father, Gonzalo Ocasio, 49, reprimanded Frank Palacios for picking at the turkey with his fingers, instead of slicing off pieces with a knife, police told The Telegram & Gazette of Worcester.
It's a darn good thing just thinking about it can't get you arrested...
November 26, 2004
My First Real Kiss, and the Subsequent Trauma
This kind of came up over at Casey's page. I asked her to post about who gave her her first real kiss, and what she knows about him now. I referenced my own experience, and she wanted to hear the story. So here goes.
Let's first keep in mind that I was a Jehovah's Witness until I forced them to kick me out at the age of 21. Because of that, I grew up under a blanket of innocence. I couldn't go to school dances, I couldn't play sports, and I sure as hell couldn't get involved with someone of the opposite sex, particularly if they weren't a JW.
With that all in mind, it was a miracle of sorts that my mother allowed me to ride the team bus up to the state basketball tournaments, with my friends (the cheerleaders). On the way back down, there was a boy sitting beside me. We were friendly and all, but I was snug in my sixteen year-old innocence blanket and never really thought about him from a lustful standpoint. Next thing I know, he's holding my hand there in the dark. Well, this was probably the pivotal point in my whole life. Religiously speaking, it was all downhill from there. Why? Because it felt pretty good. I liked sitting there, holding this guy's hand. Then he reached over, turned my chin toward him, and he kissed me. That still rates as a pretty darn good kiss. The second one was even better.
After that bus ride, I wigged out from religious guilt. I can't actually remember if I confessed my sin or not, but I had to give this boy the whole spiel of, "I can't date you because I'm a Jehovah's Witness and we're not allowed to date until we're ready to get married." (I sort of wish I had pictures of the weird looks I got from boys/men up until I quit saying that and switched over to, "Take me, big fella.")
Where is he now? Well, Matt came home from work one day and jokingly said, "I ran into an ex-boyfriend of yours today." I said, "Oh?" He said yes, and named this boy. I laughed and explained that this guy was the one who gave me my first kiss. The look Matt gave me was very similar to the one I mentioned above. I said, "What?" Matt told me that this guy weighs about a buck twenty-five now, has a long, greasy pony-tail, scabs on his face, and appears to be badly hooked on methamphetimine. Sad, huh? Ah, those innocent days of long ago...
Let's first keep in mind that I was a Jehovah's Witness until I forced them to kick me out at the age of 21. Because of that, I grew up under a blanket of innocence. I couldn't go to school dances, I couldn't play sports, and I sure as hell couldn't get involved with someone of the opposite sex, particularly if they weren't a JW.
With that all in mind, it was a miracle of sorts that my mother allowed me to ride the team bus up to the state basketball tournaments, with my friends (the cheerleaders). On the way back down, there was a boy sitting beside me. We were friendly and all, but I was snug in my sixteen year-old innocence blanket and never really thought about him from a lustful standpoint. Next thing I know, he's holding my hand there in the dark. Well, this was probably the pivotal point in my whole life. Religiously speaking, it was all downhill from there. Why? Because it felt pretty good. I liked sitting there, holding this guy's hand. Then he reached over, turned my chin toward him, and he kissed me. That still rates as a pretty darn good kiss. The second one was even better.
After that bus ride, I wigged out from religious guilt. I can't actually remember if I confessed my sin or not, but I had to give this boy the whole spiel of, "I can't date you because I'm a Jehovah's Witness and we're not allowed to date until we're ready to get married." (I sort of wish I had pictures of the weird looks I got from boys/men up until I quit saying that and switched over to, "Take me, big fella.")
Where is he now? Well, Matt came home from work one day and jokingly said, "I ran into an ex-boyfriend of yours today." I said, "Oh?" He said yes, and named this boy. I laughed and explained that this guy was the one who gave me my first kiss. The look Matt gave me was very similar to the one I mentioned above. I said, "What?" Matt told me that this guy weighs about a buck twenty-five now, has a long, greasy pony-tail, scabs on his face, and appears to be badly hooked on methamphetimine. Sad, huh? Ah, those innocent days of long ago...
Stuffed
Well, I hope you all survived Thanksgiving and all the family stuff that can ensue during such celebrations. As you can clearly see by reading this post, I survived as well. I'm amazed I don't have the hangover from hell, actually. Maybe it just hasn't caught up with me yet.
We hung out at my eldest brother's house for a while yesterday so that we could actually enjoy one another's company before we went to the House of Angst for the family gathering, wherein my father and eldest brother could shoot daggers of hate at each other. (Actually, my brother wouldn't do that, but my father would. More on that in a minute.) That part was nice. My sister-in-law and I started hitting the wine bottle at that point. We referred to it, not as wine, but as anesthesia.
Off we went to the wicked future step-sister's (henceforth known as WFSS) house. Upon arrival, WFSS's four year old and two year old clambered all over my two cute nephews and dragged them upstairs for toy-filled party time. Let me point out that these two kids of hers...oy, they're some ugly kids. I swear to God, the youngest looks exactly like the spawn of Mr. Potato Head and a human woman. How that kid got such a doughy, blocky head, I'll never know. He was born with this giant blood blister on the side of his neck...but I digress.
I mentioned earlier that the WFSS had recently found Jesus after years of being a lunatic, drunken slut. She's passing that on to her kids, because the four year-old kept running into the living room or dining room and yelling, "Raise your hands if you love Jesus!" I think she was concerned that 75% of the people in the room weren't raising their hands.
Thank goodness the food was edible, and I have no lingering after-effects. It usually only takes 4 to 6 hours for food poisoning to set in, right?
I referred a moment ago to conflict between my dad and my brother. My dad has a tendency to neglect his own family in favor of his fiancee's family. I think it's a codependency thing--the more needy they are, the more he needs to be their knight in shining armor. Which usually occurs at the expense of my brother's kids and the plans they had with my dad, and has led to some words being exchanged between dad and brother in the last few weeks. When we rode over there with my brother and his family, we extended our, "We really should be back on the highway home by 4:00," excuse to them. On purpose. I was talking to my dad out in the front yard, when he mentioned that he knew that was why they had come with us. I said, "Of course it is. None of us want to be here." (I have Ernesto and Julio Gallo to thank for that remark.) He got all puffed up with righteous anger and said, "Then why did you even come?" I got right back up his nose and said, "Because we wanted to make you happy, okay?" He backed down after that and was actually much improved in his attitude.
Anyway, that's part of the saga of our Thanksgiving. I hope to post a picture of my two year-old nephew, Spenser, in all his pirate regalia. He's going through a bit of a phase right now.
We hung out at my eldest brother's house for a while yesterday so that we could actually enjoy one another's company before we went to the House of Angst for the family gathering, wherein my father and eldest brother could shoot daggers of hate at each other. (Actually, my brother wouldn't do that, but my father would. More on that in a minute.) That part was nice. My sister-in-law and I started hitting the wine bottle at that point. We referred to it, not as wine, but as anesthesia.
Off we went to the wicked future step-sister's (henceforth known as WFSS) house. Upon arrival, WFSS's four year old and two year old clambered all over my two cute nephews and dragged them upstairs for toy-filled party time. Let me point out that these two kids of hers...oy, they're some ugly kids. I swear to God, the youngest looks exactly like the spawn of Mr. Potato Head and a human woman. How that kid got such a doughy, blocky head, I'll never know. He was born with this giant blood blister on the side of his neck...but I digress.
I mentioned earlier that the WFSS had recently found Jesus after years of being a lunatic, drunken slut. She's passing that on to her kids, because the four year-old kept running into the living room or dining room and yelling, "Raise your hands if you love Jesus!" I think she was concerned that 75% of the people in the room weren't raising their hands.
Thank goodness the food was edible, and I have no lingering after-effects. It usually only takes 4 to 6 hours for food poisoning to set in, right?
I referred a moment ago to conflict between my dad and my brother. My dad has a tendency to neglect his own family in favor of his fiancee's family. I think it's a codependency thing--the more needy they are, the more he needs to be their knight in shining armor. Which usually occurs at the expense of my brother's kids and the plans they had with my dad, and has led to some words being exchanged between dad and brother in the last few weeks. When we rode over there with my brother and his family, we extended our, "We really should be back on the highway home by 4:00," excuse to them. On purpose. I was talking to my dad out in the front yard, when he mentioned that he knew that was why they had come with us. I said, "Of course it is. None of us want to be here." (I have Ernesto and Julio Gallo to thank for that remark.) He got all puffed up with righteous anger and said, "Then why did you even come?" I got right back up his nose and said, "Because we wanted to make you happy, okay?" He backed down after that and was actually much improved in his attitude.
Anyway, that's part of the saga of our Thanksgiving. I hope to post a picture of my two year-old nephew, Spenser, in all his pirate regalia. He's going through a bit of a phase right now.
November 24, 2004
Buy This House!
Our house is listed on the internet now. It's the fifth one down from the top, starting out, "This wonderful..."
I love how real estate people spin things. It really tickled me to click the link to see the view, which is basically of the county shop and a bunch of dump trucks. Yeah, the mountains are in the back ground and those are nice, but the county yard does not call to mind Shangri La. I think a couple of different people have looked at the place this week. Hopefully, things will pick up after Thanksgiving.
Speaking of which, we're gearing up to head to the "family" celebration tomorrow. To recap, my brothers and I, plus our respective families, got roped into going to my dad's fiancee's daughter's house. And I hate her guts. She's a total slut, but now she's evidently been born again. I want to say to her, "So you gave yourself to Jesus and now he never calls, huh?" I'm not planning on it being a good day. And I have to feel a little sorry for her. Not a one of us kids can stand her, but we're going to appease my father. It will be kind of like a harbor seal inviting a pack of orcas over for a fish feed. I'm sure it will make for some good stories--I promise to post on Friday.
You guys all have a great Thanksgiving!
I love how real estate people spin things. It really tickled me to click the link to see the view, which is basically of the county shop and a bunch of dump trucks. Yeah, the mountains are in the back ground and those are nice, but the county yard does not call to mind Shangri La. I think a couple of different people have looked at the place this week. Hopefully, things will pick up after Thanksgiving.
Speaking of which, we're gearing up to head to the "family" celebration tomorrow. To recap, my brothers and I, plus our respective families, got roped into going to my dad's fiancee's daughter's house. And I hate her guts. She's a total slut, but now she's evidently been born again. I want to say to her, "So you gave yourself to Jesus and now he never calls, huh?" I'm not planning on it being a good day. And I have to feel a little sorry for her. Not a one of us kids can stand her, but we're going to appease my father. It will be kind of like a harbor seal inviting a pack of orcas over for a fish feed. I'm sure it will make for some good stories--I promise to post on Friday.
You guys all have a great Thanksgiving!
November 23, 2004
Are You Trying to Make this Easier?
I have a friend here in town who I also happen to work with. We're pretty tight, particularly because we can relate to a lot of the day-to-day stuff that happens around our office.
Ever since I told this friend that we were moving, he's been a real bear. He's crabby every day, and actually confessed last week that he was grumpy because he didn't want us to leave town. (This guy is 50 years old and a local from waaay back.) And I really am flattered by that. But the thing is, this week he'll barely even speak to me. If I say something to him, he'll reply. But I don't get anything at all voluntarily.
I kind of think he's trying to distance himself in advance, so that he doesn't feel so bad when we actually do leave town. But the thing is, he's making me awfully mad at him. I understand what he's doing and why, but I don't think it's particularly fair. Any ideas as to what I can do?
Ever since I told this friend that we were moving, he's been a real bear. He's crabby every day, and actually confessed last week that he was grumpy because he didn't want us to leave town. (This guy is 50 years old and a local from waaay back.) And I really am flattered by that. But the thing is, this week he'll barely even speak to me. If I say something to him, he'll reply. But I don't get anything at all voluntarily.
I kind of think he's trying to distance himself in advance, so that he doesn't feel so bad when we actually do leave town. But the thing is, he's making me awfully mad at him. I understand what he's doing and why, but I don't think it's particularly fair. Any ideas as to what I can do?
November 21, 2004
I've Got Nothing Today
Guys, I've got very little to talk about today. I patrolled my usual sources for content to steal, and I came up with nothing. I couldn't find any interesting quiz results to post. I'm out of recipes for the moment. Blah...
I finally got the house cleaned. Is there anything worse than scrubbing the linoleum? Not in my world. But there I was, on hands & knees, scrubbing away at the kitchen floor. I swabbed down the shower doors (disgusting). Matt cleaned up the yard and has been monitoring the still-smoldering burn pile. By the way--that's what we do with our lawn junk in rural Idaho. Got lots of branches, leaves, wood panelling from your dining room? Set it in the backyard and light that mother on fire. I think we're ready for the realtors to start showing the house. Come on, money-grubbing investors! Bring your filthy lucre to Cascade and invest in my future!
We're heading off to house-sit for two weeks, so I know our place will stay clean. We really do hate house-sitting, but we somehow manage to get roped into it every time. It's a nice house, but there's just something about not being in your own home that makes things uncomfortable. Plus, we'll be taking care of two more dogs, Sam & Max. Sam is an unbelievably needy golden retriever, and Max is a belligerent, bullying yellow lab who can bay like the Hound of the Baskervilles, particularly at 2:30 in the morning.
On the good side of the column, we'll be paid handsomely for burning these folks' natural gas heat instead of our own firewood, drinking their wine, eating their beef, and soaking in the hot tub. That will come in handy for our upcoming holiday junket to see Matt's family in Wisconsin. We're driving. Can you think of anything more fun to do over the holidays? I mean, who wouldn't want to drive halfway across the country in the worst possible weather to hang out with your in-laws for two weeks.
Sigh...sorry. Don't mean to be such a wet blanket, but I think I'm dealing with some, "Ohmygod, I really hope this house sells PRONTO," stress. Blah. Blahblahblah. Okay, have a great week, guys. I may not get to update every day, since we don't have internet access at the other house. But I'll be checking in. Promise!
I finally got the house cleaned. Is there anything worse than scrubbing the linoleum? Not in my world. But there I was, on hands & knees, scrubbing away at the kitchen floor. I swabbed down the shower doors (disgusting). Matt cleaned up the yard and has been monitoring the still-smoldering burn pile. By the way--that's what we do with our lawn junk in rural Idaho. Got lots of branches, leaves, wood panelling from your dining room? Set it in the backyard and light that mother on fire. I think we're ready for the realtors to start showing the house. Come on, money-grubbing investors! Bring your filthy lucre to Cascade and invest in my future!
We're heading off to house-sit for two weeks, so I know our place will stay clean. We really do hate house-sitting, but we somehow manage to get roped into it every time. It's a nice house, but there's just something about not being in your own home that makes things uncomfortable. Plus, we'll be taking care of two more dogs, Sam & Max. Sam is an unbelievably needy golden retriever, and Max is a belligerent, bullying yellow lab who can bay like the Hound of the Baskervilles, particularly at 2:30 in the morning.
On the good side of the column, we'll be paid handsomely for burning these folks' natural gas heat instead of our own firewood, drinking their wine, eating their beef, and soaking in the hot tub. That will come in handy for our upcoming holiday junket to see Matt's family in Wisconsin. We're driving. Can you think of anything more fun to do over the holidays? I mean, who wouldn't want to drive halfway across the country in the worst possible weather to hang out with your in-laws for two weeks.
Sigh...sorry. Don't mean to be such a wet blanket, but I think I'm dealing with some, "Ohmygod, I really hope this house sells PRONTO," stress. Blah. Blahblahblah. Okay, have a great week, guys. I may not get to update every day, since we don't have internet access at the other house. But I'll be checking in. Promise!
November 20, 2004
As Promised, Finally
Here is the recipe for Drunken Chicken (or Shrimp, whatever). I will freely admit it is kind of a pain in the ass to make, but it is so worth it. My suggestion is that you get all your ingredients together beforehand and have them close by as you're cooking. Pre-measure the chicken broth and Hoisin sauce, and have all your veggies and seasonings chopped up. Serve this over rice or soba noodles. You can pick soba noodles up in the refrigerated section of CostCo--two bags for $4.99 or something.
Drunken Stir Fry Chicken
1-2 lbs. boneless, skinless chicken breast, cut into large bite-size pieces
(Or you can do a pound or two of shrimp, instead. Or a combination!)
2 tbs. soy sauce
2 whole eggs, beaten
1/2 c. corn starch
Salt & pepper to taste
Combine soy sauce, eggs, corn starch & salt and pepper in a medium bowl and whisk until smooth. Add chicken and stir until well-coated. Refrigerate the mixture for a half-hour to marinade.
3 tbs. peanut oil
1 tbs. sesame oil
1 tbs. fresh chopped ginger (buy it in a jar at the grocery store)
1 bunch fresh diced scallions/green onions
1 tsp. red pepper flakes (more if you like it spicy)
1/2 tbs. dried lemongrass
Juice of 2 limes (about 1/4 cup if you buy the stuff in the plastic lime)
2 tbs. brown sugar
2 tbs. rice vinegar
2 cups chicken broth
3 tbs. fish sauce
1/2 cup Hoisin sauce
1/2 cup sliced fresh mint leaves (optional)
1. Heat the peanut and sesame oil over medium-high heat. Brown the marinated chicken/shrimp in the hot oil and remove. Set aside on paper towels to drain.
2. Add another 2 tbs. oil (mix of sesame & peanut is good) and heat. Add the garlic, ginger, scallions and red pepper flakes. Stir and brown lightly.
3. Add remaining ingredients and bring to simmer. If a thicker sauce is desired, mix 1 tb. corn starch in 2 tb. water and add to the sauce. Simmer until thickened, add chicken/shrimp & heat.
4. Serve over rice or noodles, garnish with fresh mint.
Drunken Stir Fry Chicken
1-2 lbs. boneless, skinless chicken breast, cut into large bite-size pieces
(Or you can do a pound or two of shrimp, instead. Or a combination!)
2 tbs. soy sauce
2 whole eggs, beaten
1/2 c. corn starch
Salt & pepper to taste
Combine soy sauce, eggs, corn starch & salt and pepper in a medium bowl and whisk until smooth. Add chicken and stir until well-coated. Refrigerate the mixture for a half-hour to marinade.
3 tbs. peanut oil
1 tbs. sesame oil
1 tbs. fresh chopped ginger (buy it in a jar at the grocery store)
1 bunch fresh diced scallions/green onions
1 tsp. red pepper flakes (more if you like it spicy)
1/2 tbs. dried lemongrass
Juice of 2 limes (about 1/4 cup if you buy the stuff in the plastic lime)
2 tbs. brown sugar
2 tbs. rice vinegar
2 cups chicken broth
3 tbs. fish sauce
1/2 cup Hoisin sauce
1/2 cup sliced fresh mint leaves (optional)
1. Heat the peanut and sesame oil over medium-high heat. Brown the marinated chicken/shrimp in the hot oil and remove. Set aside on paper towels to drain.
2. Add another 2 tbs. oil (mix of sesame & peanut is good) and heat. Add the garlic, ginger, scallions and red pepper flakes. Stir and brown lightly.
3. Add remaining ingredients and bring to simmer. If a thicker sauce is desired, mix 1 tb. corn starch in 2 tb. water and add to the sauce. Simmer until thickened, add chicken/shrimp & heat.
4. Serve over rice or noodles, garnish with fresh mint.
What I Should Be Doing
I really ought to be cleaning up around the house right now. We've got it listed, and there's even a sign in the front yard. We didn't get that far last time.
I got up late this morning (as usual), and I basically got a slow start. Most of the house is mostly clean. Mostly. The outside of the place, though? shudder
I've never liked doing the outside work. I don't have the patience for gardening. Mowing the lawn gives me allergy problems. Snow blowing--fuggedabowdit. And yet, today we need to finish raking up the leaves in the yard and add them to the burn pile. (Oo, a conflagration!) We need to pick up all the bark left behind after splitting our winter's wood and add that to the burn pile as well. A dog-doo patrol is probably in order.
Matt is at work until 3:30 today, and I think I may boycott anything more until he gets here. I believe in equal opportunities for men and women, don't you?
I got up late this morning (as usual), and I basically got a slow start. Most of the house is mostly clean. Mostly. The outside of the place, though? shudder
I've never liked doing the outside work. I don't have the patience for gardening. Mowing the lawn gives me allergy problems. Snow blowing--fuggedabowdit. And yet, today we need to finish raking up the leaves in the yard and add them to the burn pile. (Oo, a conflagration!) We need to pick up all the bark left behind after splitting our winter's wood and add that to the burn pile as well. A dog-doo patrol is probably in order.
Matt is at work until 3:30 today, and I think I may boycott anything more until he gets here. I believe in equal opportunities for men and women, don't you?
November 18, 2004
See, Honor, Remember
Fallujah in Pictures is a site that has culled media and personal photos from the ongoing battle in Iraq.
The site isn't exactly work-safe, from the standpoint that it is pretty graphic and potentially upsetting. Additionally, it's nothing you'd likely want kids to see.
That said, I felt like it was important to share the link. As the site says, "look at the pictures and make up your own mind. if our cause is just then we should not fear witnessing its cost." Regardless of how you feel about the American presence in Iraq, it's important to look at the faces of those lost (on both sides of the conflict) and realize that they were very real people with real lives outside of the conflict. People loved them. They loved in return. Show them honor by acknowledging both their lives and their deaths.
Via Dee.
The site isn't exactly work-safe, from the standpoint that it is pretty graphic and potentially upsetting. Additionally, it's nothing you'd likely want kids to see.
That said, I felt like it was important to share the link. As the site says, "look at the pictures and make up your own mind. if our cause is just then we should not fear witnessing its cost." Regardless of how you feel about the American presence in Iraq, it's important to look at the faces of those lost (on both sides of the conflict) and realize that they were very real people with real lives outside of the conflict. People loved them. They loved in return. Show them honor by acknowledging both their lives and their deaths.
Via Dee.
Move This
We got the unofficial word today--we're moving to Boise! Thanks to everyone reading who provided support and advice.
Matt's future supervisor called and confirmed that he was the only one who applied and that he was definitely wanted for the job. All that remains is for the Director's office to approve the paperwork, which should be done in the next few days.
Now the work begins: our house is already listed, we just have to tell the realtors to start marketing it aggressively. We hope we'll do well. Our town is booming and we own 1.6 acres of commercial/residential zoned property on Main Street with the 3 bedroom, 2 bathroom house. It's a great investment opportunity for someone.
My employer is actually trying to sort out a transfer for me, possibly to a very similar job with the same pay, which would be great. My dad is already driving me nuts about the move and he's only known for about 6 hours. He doesn't believe you've got a good real estate agent unless they're very cut-throat, which isn't Matt's and my style. And I have to be honest: Dad is a chauvenist who thinks that any woman still in posession of regular hormonal cycles is likely incompetent. He'd never say that to me, but it's so patently obvious sometimes. Therefore, he's pushing strongly for us to hire a particular agent and it's really obnoxious. So, I guess I should be careful what I wish for (e.g., I wish I lived closer to my family). It will all balance out eventually, I suppose.
Matt's future supervisor called and confirmed that he was the only one who applied and that he was definitely wanted for the job. All that remains is for the Director's office to approve the paperwork, which should be done in the next few days.
Now the work begins: our house is already listed, we just have to tell the realtors to start marketing it aggressively. We hope we'll do well. Our town is booming and we own 1.6 acres of commercial/residential zoned property on Main Street with the 3 bedroom, 2 bathroom house. It's a great investment opportunity for someone.
My employer is actually trying to sort out a transfer for me, possibly to a very similar job with the same pay, which would be great. My dad is already driving me nuts about the move and he's only known for about 6 hours. He doesn't believe you've got a good real estate agent unless they're very cut-throat, which isn't Matt's and my style. And I have to be honest: Dad is a chauvenist who thinks that any woman still in posession of regular hormonal cycles is likely incompetent. He'd never say that to me, but it's so patently obvious sometimes. Therefore, he's pushing strongly for us to hire a particular agent and it's really obnoxious. So, I guess I should be careful what I wish for (e.g., I wish I lived closer to my family). It will all balance out eventually, I suppose.
November 17, 2004
Well, Bully for Me!
|
You Are From the Sun |
 Of all your friends, you're the shining star. You're dramatic - loving attention and the spotlight. You're a totally entertainer and the life of the party. Watch out! The Sun can be stubborn, demanding, and flirty. Overall, you're a great leader and great friend. The very best! |
Via Sherri.
In Limbo
We didn't hear anything about the transfer today. We thought we might, since Matt's department is often very quick to fill positions. But...nada. We're trying to be patient.
In the meantime, we toured some Boise real estate today. Question for the Boise folks: do you know anyone who bought a Corey Barton Home? We looked at one of his developments today and were quite pleasantly surprised by the house you got for the price. However, I have to wonder if it's too good to be true. The guy has been in business for 10 years (according to the sales flyer) and has built over 4,000 homes so far. That's a lot. So does anyone have any feedback?
In the meantime, we toured some Boise real estate today. Question for the Boise folks: do you know anyone who bought a Corey Barton Home? We looked at one of his developments today and were quite pleasantly surprised by the house you got for the price. However, I have to wonder if it's too good to be true. The guy has been in business for 10 years (according to the sales flyer) and has built over 4,000 homes so far. That's a lot. So does anyone have any feedback?
Bad Blogger!
Sorry I've been kind of bad about updating lately. I find it's kind of hard to do with company in the house. I don't really advertise to anyone in the family that I blog, since they often provide me with such good information that I can turn around and share with you all. We're taking Matt's brother to the airport this morning, and life will return to whatever semblance of normal we've come to expect.
The pee stick was positive again last night and still no temperature spike. Thanks to those who provided advice in yesterday's comments--I really appreciate it.
Last but not least, we should hear today sometime if Matt got the job in Boise. Keep your fingers crossed for us! Kevin, we kind of ruled out Kuna because of the commute. I decided that if I was going to live in the city, I might as well live smack-damn in the middle so that I don't have to drive very far to stuff. But thanks for the recommendation!
The pee stick was positive again last night and still no temperature spike. Thanks to those who provided advice in yesterday's comments--I really appreciate it.
Last but not least, we should hear today sometime if Matt got the job in Boise. Keep your fingers crossed for us! Kevin, we kind of ruled out Kuna because of the commute. I decided that if I was going to live in the city, I might as well live smack-damn in the middle so that I don't have to drive very far to stuff. But thanks for the recommendation!
November 16, 2004
In the Meantime...
Casey, I haven't had time to type out the Drunken Shrimp recipe. In the meantime, how about a really good chicken dish?
Tequila Lime Chicken
Yield: 8
Ingredients:
3 limes, juice
1 lime, zest
3 oz. tequila
2 tb. sugar
2 tb. fresh chopped cilantro
Salt & pepper, to taste
8 pieces chicken breast, boneless, skinless
½ c. flour
1/3 c. vegetable oil
2 c. sliced mushrooms
½ onion, diced
2 c. salsa verde
1 c. heavy cream
1. Tenderize chicken between 2 slices of plastic wrap.
2. Marinate chicken in lime, tequila, sugar, cilantro mixture for 1-2 hours. Reserve marinade.
3. Coat chicken in flour.
4. Heat oil and brown chicken on both sides, set aside.
5. Saute mushrooms until brown. Add onion and sauté until brown.
6. Add the reserved marinade to the pan and reduce.
7. Add salsa and heavy cream and reduce to desired thickness.
8. Add chicken back to sauce and simmer for 3 minutes.
Serve with sauce and garnish with fresh chopped cilantro and lime wedges.
Tequila Lime Chicken
Yield: 8
Ingredients:
3 limes, juice
1 lime, zest
3 oz. tequila
2 tb. sugar
2 tb. fresh chopped cilantro
Salt & pepper, to taste
8 pieces chicken breast, boneless, skinless
½ c. flour
1/3 c. vegetable oil
2 c. sliced mushrooms
½ onion, diced
2 c. salsa verde
1 c. heavy cream
1. Tenderize chicken between 2 slices of plastic wrap.
2. Marinate chicken in lime, tequila, sugar, cilantro mixture for 1-2 hours. Reserve marinade.
3. Coat chicken in flour.
4. Heat oil and brown chicken on both sides, set aside.
5. Saute mushrooms until brown. Add onion and sauté until brown.
6. Add the reserved marinade to the pan and reduce.
7. Add salsa and heavy cream and reduce to desired thickness.
8. Add chicken back to sauce and simmer for 3 minutes.
Serve with sauce and garnish with fresh chopped cilantro and lime wedges.
Am I? Aren't I?
This fertility business is weird. Last night's pee stick indicates that I'll be ovulating within the next 24-48 hours (woo hoo!). However, this morning's basal temperature test is still in the very low, cool temperature range. It's supposed to spike when I'm ovulating. I'm assuming that means the pee stick says it's about to happen, and the temperature says it just hasn't happened yet.
Anyone have any ideas?
Anyone have any ideas?
November 14, 2004
The Lord's Day
Sigh...Sunday evening comes too soon, doesn't it? We've had a fairly busy weekend, since Matt's eldest brother is here visiting from New Jersey and we've wanted to show him all the fun we could pack in to his trip.
Yesterday, I cooked my infamous drunken chicken recipe, except I used shrimp this time. Mmm! After dinner, we headed up to Gold Fork Hot Springs. Saturday night is not a good time to go. We thought it would be fairly quiet--we didn't think for a minute that we'd have the place to ourselves, but we found ourselves in the middle of a huge group of people who didn't exactly show up to relax. One extended family was playing football in the larger pool, which was fine except that they were bouncing all over the place and running into people. The grandparents were both drinking beer and getting noisy in the hottest pool, and then Grandma lit up her Marlboro and chased us out of there. Classy...
Today we went down to Boise. We wanted to show Kevin the World Center for Birds of Prey, which really is a "must see" place for visitors to Boise. They breed California condors on site, which is so cool to check out. It's a great interpretive center, and while there, I got to thinking, "Hey, I've got plenty of visitor center experience..." so I hit them up for a job. They're not hiring at the moment, but I did get a volunteer application so that I could possibly get my foot in the door.
Afterwards, we headed to Columbia Village to check out houses. It's a subdivision in southeast Boise, which is a pretty good area to live in from a commute standpoint. The place appears to cost a little more than we wanted to spend, but we did pick up some good area information. At this point, we're about 95% sure that Matt will be putting in for the transfer down to Boise. His agency told him that they'd likely be able to give him a couple of months before he needed to be down there full-time, and that would give us enough time to sell our house and buy a new place. I'm hoping for a transfer of sorts from my current employer, but I think we'll be okay even if I do take a big pay cut.
Exciting stuff! And for you Boise area readers, let me know if you've got any information on real estate or agents that you'd recommend.
Yesterday, I cooked my infamous drunken chicken recipe, except I used shrimp this time. Mmm! After dinner, we headed up to Gold Fork Hot Springs. Saturday night is not a good time to go. We thought it would be fairly quiet--we didn't think for a minute that we'd have the place to ourselves, but we found ourselves in the middle of a huge group of people who didn't exactly show up to relax. One extended family was playing football in the larger pool, which was fine except that they were bouncing all over the place and running into people. The grandparents were both drinking beer and getting noisy in the hottest pool, and then Grandma lit up her Marlboro and chased us out of there. Classy...
Today we went down to Boise. We wanted to show Kevin the World Center for Birds of Prey, which really is a "must see" place for visitors to Boise. They breed California condors on site, which is so cool to check out. It's a great interpretive center, and while there, I got to thinking, "Hey, I've got plenty of visitor center experience..." so I hit them up for a job. They're not hiring at the moment, but I did get a volunteer application so that I could possibly get my foot in the door.
Afterwards, we headed to Columbia Village to check out houses. It's a subdivision in southeast Boise, which is a pretty good area to live in from a commute standpoint. The place appears to cost a little more than we wanted to spend, but we did pick up some good area information. At this point, we're about 95% sure that Matt will be putting in for the transfer down to Boise. His agency told him that they'd likely be able to give him a couple of months before he needed to be down there full-time, and that would give us enough time to sell our house and buy a new place. I'm hoping for a transfer of sorts from my current employer, but I think we'll be okay even if I do take a big pay cut.
Exciting stuff! And for you Boise area readers, let me know if you've got any information on real estate or agents that you'd recommend.
November 12, 2004
Blogging it Forward
I've seen this before, mainly on Erica's blog. Since she just gave me mad props (yo), I think it's now my turn to pick someone off my blogroll and tell you why they are there and what makes them readable.
First, I'd like to recommend Cupie Spew. Cupe has been on my reading list for quite a while now. I enjoy her page because she's ever so liberal and loves to get snarky about it, and because she's a fellow book lover who comes up with some good recommendations sometimes. She almost always gets me thinking, and manages to make me laugh at the same time.
Additionally, I'd like to give a shout to my pal and name-sharer, Casey, over at Just North of Nowhere. I think we have more than just names in common--heck, we even caught cold at the same time! Casey has an upbeat, take life as it comes to you attitude that I find really appealing. Plus, she's from Lousiana (Baton Rouge via New Orleans via Baton Rouge), and I love to hear about a place so different from my own home.
Anyway, check the sites out. I think you'll enjoy them. And remember to Blog it Forward!
First, I'd like to recommend Cupie Spew. Cupe has been on my reading list for quite a while now. I enjoy her page because she's ever so liberal and loves to get snarky about it, and because she's a fellow book lover who comes up with some good recommendations sometimes. She almost always gets me thinking, and manages to make me laugh at the same time.
Additionally, I'd like to give a shout to my pal and name-sharer, Casey, over at Just North of Nowhere. I think we have more than just names in common--heck, we even caught cold at the same time! Casey has an upbeat, take life as it comes to you attitude that I find really appealing. Plus, she's from Lousiana (Baton Rouge via New Orleans via Baton Rouge), and I love to hear about a place so different from my own home.
Anyway, check the sites out. I think you'll enjoy them. And remember to Blog it Forward!
Friday
Good morning, all! It's a foggy Friday morning here in Cascade. I might as well say it's a foggy winter/spring, considering the fog rarely lifts between November and April. Days that you can actually see the sky here in town are rare. No wonder Seasonal Affective Disorder runs rampant throughout the community.
Things are quiet on the home-front, though Matt's older brother is here visiting us from New Joisey. We're hoping to show him some of the sights, including Hell's Canyon, over the weekend.
Still making up our minds on the Boise transfer opportunity, though it looks more and more every day like we're going to go ahead and take it. Exciting to think about!
Things are quiet on the home-front, though Matt's older brother is here visiting us from New Joisey. We're hoping to show him some of the sights, including Hell's Canyon, over the weekend.
Still making up our minds on the Boise transfer opportunity, though it looks more and more every day like we're going to go ahead and take it. Exciting to think about!
November 10, 2004
One-Eyed Monster Talk
When I say "one-eyed monster," I just want to make clear that I'm talking about the television set, mm-kay?
We've caught a couple of interesting shows the last couple of nights. I'm sort of embarassed to admit they were both on Fox, which obviously makes them reality TV. I'm not sure Fox has anything else.
Anyhoo, last night we were very caught up in The Rebel Billionaire, which is sort of like Fear Factor, The Apprentice and Survivor all rolled into one. The premise is that Sir Richard Branson, rich guy and daring adventurer extraordinaire, is going to give the presidency of his company to the winner of the show. In the meantime, the contestants are subject to ridiculously frightening physical challenges, including walking a 4-inch wide beam between two hot air balloons, which are, oh...TEN THOUSAND FEET ABOVE THE GROUND. But good news! Each contestant gets to wear a bicycling helmet. For safety, you know. Yeah, there were safety straps and such, but I really think the helmet was the best touch.
Tonight, we were engrossed with Nanny 911, a show which makes me even more sure that certain people have no business being parents. The kids on the show were absolutely satanic, and the parents had entirely given up on discipline. I was aghast. I don't know how many episodes of this I will actually be able to watch; these kids were that revolting.
So, all is saved. We now have TV programs that we'll be watching on Monday & Tuesday nights. That fills in the early week gap we had before Lost and Survivor on Wednesday and Thursday nights.
Maybe I should go outside. I've heard it's nice...
We've caught a couple of interesting shows the last couple of nights. I'm sort of embarassed to admit they were both on Fox, which obviously makes them reality TV. I'm not sure Fox has anything else.
Anyhoo, last night we were very caught up in The Rebel Billionaire, which is sort of like Fear Factor, The Apprentice and Survivor all rolled into one. The premise is that Sir Richard Branson, rich guy and daring adventurer extraordinaire, is going to give the presidency of his company to the winner of the show. In the meantime, the contestants are subject to ridiculously frightening physical challenges, including walking a 4-inch wide beam between two hot air balloons, which are, oh...TEN THOUSAND FEET ABOVE THE GROUND. But good news! Each contestant gets to wear a bicycling helmet. For safety, you know. Yeah, there were safety straps and such, but I really think the helmet was the best touch.
Tonight, we were engrossed with Nanny 911, a show which makes me even more sure that certain people have no business being parents. The kids on the show were absolutely satanic, and the parents had entirely given up on discipline. I was aghast. I don't know how many episodes of this I will actually be able to watch; these kids were that revolting.
So, all is saved. We now have TV programs that we'll be watching on Monday & Tuesday nights. That fills in the early week gap we had before Lost and Survivor on Wednesday and Thursday nights.
Maybe I should go outside. I've heard it's nice...
Food for Thought
I thought this was a really good piece of writing. Thanks to my friend Allison for sharing it!
As Election Demonstrated, the Time has Come for the Christian Left
By LEONARD PITTS JR.
KNIGHT RIDDER NEWSPAPERS
I have to thank Jimmy Carter for saving my sanity.
Granted, his was not a presidency one looks back on with fondness. Gas-station lines stretched forever, Iran took our people hostage, and there was disco, besides.
But Carter's ex-presidency has been exemplary. He has built homes for the poor, mediated wars, helped feed the hungry, fought disease. In so doing, Carter has obeyed a directive Jesus issued to one of his disciples.
Do you love me? He asked Simon Peter.
Peter said yes.
Feed my sheep, said Jesus.
Remembering Carter's example, his very public embrace of that command, is what has gotten me through the last week without a facial tic. Or, to put it another way: If one more person tells me "morality" guided his or her decision to vote for George W. Bush, my head's going to pop like a balloon.
Beg pardon, but one is hard-pressed to find much evidence of morality in Bush's ineptly prosecuted war, his erosion of civil rights and the loss of international credibility his policies have caused. Unless, of course, one has been quaking in one's boots at the prospect of same-sex couples making a commitment straight couples have avoided like SARS. In that case the vote probably reflects one's morality just fine.
No political tactician am I, but I think Democrats made a fundamental mistake when the Christian right rose as a political force: They watched it happen, ceded God to the GOP without resistance, without so much as a beg your pardon. Democrats, fearful of unsettling the secular West and Northeast, only shrugged as the Almighty was packed up and shipped South, where he is to this day routinely trotted out to
endorse would-be governors, senators and school board members.
Small wonder faith has come to seem inextricable from voting the straight Republican ticket.
And if you are, as I am, a Christian who remembers what Jesus told Simon Peter, it is galling to see him reduced to a GOP shill, wrapped in a flag and used as a prop to advance a conservative agenda. Which, by the way, stands the Bible on its head.
After all, the book says Jesus consorted with lepers and prostitutes. It says he talked with women - which was beneath a man of his time and place - and washed the feet of his followers.
And it tells us he said things that seemed to make no logical sense.
If someone takes your shirt, let him have your cloak as well.
If someone hits you on the right cheek, offer him the left.
Love your enemies.
This was crazy talk. There was nothing conservative about this man.
So I look at the success conservatives on the so-called Christian right have had in claiming him as their exclusive property, and I wonder, where in the heck is the Christian left? Where are the people who preach - and live - the biblical values of inclusion, service, humility, sacrifice, and why haven't they coalesced into an
alternative political force?
Instead of a movement like that, we have an old peanut farmer building houses.
You wish there were more. You wish there were Christian people shouting from the rooftops that these other people, with their small minds and niggardly spirits, do not represent all of us. And that the faith exemplified by the politics of exclusion is not the faith the rest of us celebrate, not the faith that lifts us and settles us and makes us whole.
But nobody's shouting these things. It occurs to me that maybe they're all too busy building houses for poor people. And that maybe I should be as well.
God bless you, Jimmy Carter, wherever you are.
As Election Demonstrated, the Time has Come for the Christian Left
By LEONARD PITTS JR.
KNIGHT RIDDER NEWSPAPERS
I have to thank Jimmy Carter for saving my sanity.
Granted, his was not a presidency one looks back on with fondness. Gas-station lines stretched forever, Iran took our people hostage, and there was disco, besides.
But Carter's ex-presidency has been exemplary. He has built homes for the poor, mediated wars, helped feed the hungry, fought disease. In so doing, Carter has obeyed a directive Jesus issued to one of his disciples.
Do you love me? He asked Simon Peter.
Peter said yes.
Feed my sheep, said Jesus.
Remembering Carter's example, his very public embrace of that command, is what has gotten me through the last week without a facial tic. Or, to put it another way: If one more person tells me "morality" guided his or her decision to vote for George W. Bush, my head's going to pop like a balloon.
Beg pardon, but one is hard-pressed to find much evidence of morality in Bush's ineptly prosecuted war, his erosion of civil rights and the loss of international credibility his policies have caused. Unless, of course, one has been quaking in one's boots at the prospect of same-sex couples making a commitment straight couples have avoided like SARS. In that case the vote probably reflects one's morality just fine.
No political tactician am I, but I think Democrats made a fundamental mistake when the Christian right rose as a political force: They watched it happen, ceded God to the GOP without resistance, without so much as a beg your pardon. Democrats, fearful of unsettling the secular West and Northeast, only shrugged as the Almighty was packed up and shipped South, where he is to this day routinely trotted out to
endorse would-be governors, senators and school board members.
Small wonder faith has come to seem inextricable from voting the straight Republican ticket.
And if you are, as I am, a Christian who remembers what Jesus told Simon Peter, it is galling to see him reduced to a GOP shill, wrapped in a flag and used as a prop to advance a conservative agenda. Which, by the way, stands the Bible on its head.
After all, the book says Jesus consorted with lepers and prostitutes. It says he talked with women - which was beneath a man of his time and place - and washed the feet of his followers.
And it tells us he said things that seemed to make no logical sense.
If someone takes your shirt, let him have your cloak as well.
If someone hits you on the right cheek, offer him the left.
Love your enemies.
This was crazy talk. There was nothing conservative about this man.
So I look at the success conservatives on the so-called Christian right have had in claiming him as their exclusive property, and I wonder, where in the heck is the Christian left? Where are the people who preach - and live - the biblical values of inclusion, service, humility, sacrifice, and why haven't they coalesced into an
alternative political force?
Instead of a movement like that, we have an old peanut farmer building houses.
You wish there were more. You wish there were Christian people shouting from the rooftops that these other people, with their small minds and niggardly spirits, do not represent all of us. And that the faith exemplified by the politics of exclusion is not the faith the rest of us celebrate, not the faith that lifts us and settles us and makes us whole.
But nobody's shouting these things. It occurs to me that maybe they're all too busy building houses for poor people. And that maybe I should be as well.
God bless you, Jimmy Carter, wherever you are.
November 09, 2004
I'm All About Sharing
I thought I'd relay a conversation I had at lunch today with two male co-workers, who are also close, personal friends of mine (described below as #1 and #2). Trust me, we talk like this all the time.
Me: Oh look, we all have Yoplait yogurt in our lunches today!
#1: Yeah, I don't know if I feel like eating mine or not.
Me: You totally should. Yogurt has live acidophilus cultures that aid your digestive tract.
#2: You need to quit going to the doctor so much.
Me: Plus, it's really good for maintaining the right bacterial balance of your vagina.
#2 (falsetto): Well then, I'll eat two!
Me: Oh look, we all have Yoplait yogurt in our lunches today!
#1: Yeah, I don't know if I feel like eating mine or not.
Me: You totally should. Yogurt has live acidophilus cultures that aid your digestive tract.
#2: You need to quit going to the doctor so much.
Me: Plus, it's really good for maintaining the right bacterial balance of your vagina.
#2 (falsetto): Well then, I'll eat two!
Decisions, Decisions
We're having a really hard time deciding what to do about the possible move to Boise.
We sat down tonight and made a list of all the reasons to stay here, and all the reasons to move to the city. On the list of negatives about Boise: it is a city. There are about 1500 people in the town I currently live in. I know quite a few of them (and that's got it's upsides and downsides). I was born in a small town, and I can breathe in a small town. Heh. Sorry 'bout that.
On the list of negatives of staying here: I'd still be at my current job, and I really don't know that I want to be there the rest of my career (or even the next five years, or even the next five months). The big ski resort that's being built north of here is going to have a huge impact on the way this town develops, and I don't think it's going to be for the better.
Anyway, making the list didn't help make up our minds. As Matt said, neither decision is going to end up being 100% right or 100% wrong.
Any suggestions as to how else to decide something like this? Coin toss?
We sat down tonight and made a list of all the reasons to stay here, and all the reasons to move to the city. On the list of negatives about Boise: it is a city. There are about 1500 people in the town I currently live in. I know quite a few of them (and that's got it's upsides and downsides). I was born in a small town, and I can breathe in a small town. Heh. Sorry 'bout that.
On the list of negatives of staying here: I'd still be at my current job, and I really don't know that I want to be there the rest of my career (or even the next five years, or even the next five months). The big ski resort that's being built north of here is going to have a huge impact on the way this town develops, and I don't think it's going to be for the better.
Anyway, making the list didn't help make up our minds. As Matt said, neither decision is going to end up being 100% right or 100% wrong.
Any suggestions as to how else to decide something like this? Coin toss?
November 08, 2004
All Up in Mah Bidness
I had another doctor's appointment today. It's looking like I'll be having at least two per month until this pregnancy thing catches on. For those of you who are closely following the saga (fertility buffs that you are), neither the doctor nor I can tell if I ovulated or not. Two of the positive signs are there, but the pee tests were negative. Looks like my body is doing just fine with the Clomid and there are no signs that my ovaries are turning cystic, at least not at this point. So he upped my dose and seems fairly confident that I'll ovulate for sure this time around. Yay!
Now to get all up in someone else's bidness: have you checked out FUH2.com? It's a site where lots of folks are weighing in with their opinions on Hummers (the vehicle, pervo) and H2's. I think I need the t-shirt. The site reminds me of something Kevin did a while back--posted his own salute to the HumVee.
Now to get all up in someone else's bidness: have you checked out FUH2.com? It's a site where lots of folks are weighing in with their opinions on Hummers (the vehicle, pervo) and H2's. I think I need the t-shirt. The site reminds me of something Kevin did a while back--posted his own salute to the HumVee.
November 07, 2004
Run, Forrest, Run!
Sherri is a goddess. Not only did she finish the New York City Marathon, but she finished the last 22 miles limping! She said she was trucking right along when suddenly, her calf muscle blew out after 4.5 miles. A medic suggested she quit, but that's not her way. Our plucky heroine finished in 7 hours, 34 minutes.
I can't do anything but sleep for that long, though I did watch four hours of Buffy today. What??? I was an energy donor for her today and couldn't get off the couch... Yeah, that's it.
Congratulations, Sherri! Can't wait to read about it when you blog the experience!
I can't do anything but sleep for that long, though I did watch four hours of Buffy today. What??? I was an energy donor for her today and couldn't get off the couch... Yeah, that's it.
Congratulations, Sherri! Can't wait to read about it when you blog the experience!
Yawn...
Sunday morning. A very quiet Sunday morning. Matt is out elk hunting on the second-to-last day of his elk season. It would be super swell if he gets something. Several hundred pounds of meat in the freezer would be terrific. If not, well, we've still got last year's deer. I don't really mind game meat one way or the other, but I can't say I love it. Still, it's nice to not have to go buy a bunch of meat.
It's foggy and rainy outside, and my motivation reflects the weather. It's days like this when I really wish I still lived in Boise. There were always girlfriends to connect with, and if you felt like being alone and still doing something, you could always hit Barnes & Noble for the afternoon or treat yourself to the dollar theatre. The lack of girlfriends has been Cascade's biggest shortcoming. There's really no one to call and say, "You wanna come over and watch Buffy and make brownies?" (And that sounds so good right now.)
Matt and I have actually been considering moving back. There's a job opening down there that we're 99% sure he'd get--it's just a lateral transfer, but one of those things that would be good for his career in the long run. I don't know for sure what I would do. There's a possibility that my current employer would give me a transfer, though I almost certainly wouldn't be doing the same thing. I'd probably be a desk jockey of some sort, which doesn't sound all that bad at this point. Alternatively, I'm thinking of taking a sabbatical and finding something else to do for a while. Working at Barnes & Noble actually sounds really good. The money is crap, but I think we'd do well enough in the real estate transaction that our mortgage would lower and I wouldn't have to make a lot. I'm also thinking it might be fun to go to beauty school. Yeah, me. I'm debating getting into massage or possibly becoming an aesthetician and giving facials and stuff. It sounds interesting and I could be my own boss.
I don't know. Matt's opportunity doesn't close for another week or so, and we've got to talk about it some more. I can't really see a downside, other than the fact that it would be a lot of change. But I can deal with change. It's stagnancy that bugs me.
It's foggy and rainy outside, and my motivation reflects the weather. It's days like this when I really wish I still lived in Boise. There were always girlfriends to connect with, and if you felt like being alone and still doing something, you could always hit Barnes & Noble for the afternoon or treat yourself to the dollar theatre. The lack of girlfriends has been Cascade's biggest shortcoming. There's really no one to call and say, "You wanna come over and watch Buffy and make brownies?" (And that sounds so good right now.)
Matt and I have actually been considering moving back. There's a job opening down there that we're 99% sure he'd get--it's just a lateral transfer, but one of those things that would be good for his career in the long run. I don't know for sure what I would do. There's a possibility that my current employer would give me a transfer, though I almost certainly wouldn't be doing the same thing. I'd probably be a desk jockey of some sort, which doesn't sound all that bad at this point. Alternatively, I'm thinking of taking a sabbatical and finding something else to do for a while. Working at Barnes & Noble actually sounds really good. The money is crap, but I think we'd do well enough in the real estate transaction that our mortgage would lower and I wouldn't have to make a lot. I'm also thinking it might be fun to go to beauty school. Yeah, me. I'm debating getting into massage or possibly becoming an aesthetician and giving facials and stuff. It sounds interesting and I could be my own boss.
I don't know. Matt's opportunity doesn't close for another week or so, and we've got to talk about it some more. I can't really see a downside, other than the fact that it would be a lot of change. But I can deal with change. It's stagnancy that bugs me.
November 06, 2004
Chariots of Fire
Sherri is running in the New York City Marathon tomorrow. Can you friggin' believe that? I mean, I can believe it of her, but as for myself, I cannot even fathom the physical motivation you have to posses to do something like that. I've run a mile a couple of times and hated every step: I can't imagine running 26.2 miles. I'm so proud of her.
I had a room-mate once who was very into physical fitness. In fact, she's currently an assistant physical fitness instructor at the Idaho Peace Officer's Standards and Training Center, aka, the police academy. Anyway, she talked me into running in the Race for the Cure one year. It was a 5k, which is three point something miles. It was awful. There I was, running about as fast as paint dries, when I hear this, "Thud, clank. Thud, clank. Thud, clank." It was behind me and getting closer, but I didn't want to lose my aerodynamic streamlining by turning my head parallel to my body. (Ha.) Soon, the sound was right next to me. I looked out of the corner of my eye, and there was a one-legged woman on crutches. And she passed me.
I'm not kidding you--that woman was fit. But still...that was when I decided to hang up my running shoes. Getting passed by an amputee is a good sign that you're not cut out for the sport.
I had a room-mate once who was very into physical fitness. In fact, she's currently an assistant physical fitness instructor at the Idaho Peace Officer's Standards and Training Center, aka, the police academy. Anyway, she talked me into running in the Race for the Cure one year. It was a 5k, which is three point something miles. It was awful. There I was, running about as fast as paint dries, when I hear this, "Thud, clank. Thud, clank. Thud, clank." It was behind me and getting closer, but I didn't want to lose my aerodynamic streamlining by turning my head parallel to my body. (Ha.) Soon, the sound was right next to me. I looked out of the corner of my eye, and there was a one-legged woman on crutches. And she passed me.
I'm not kidding you--that woman was fit. But still...that was when I decided to hang up my running shoes. Getting passed by an amputee is a good sign that you're not cut out for the sport.
November 04, 2004
((((BLOATING))))
I went to the doctor's office yesterday for my sinus infection. They weighed me. I weigh more than I have ever weighed before. It's weird, because I had been feeling like things were firming up--my belly doesn't seem as full of jelly, and none of my clothes are fitting oddly around the thighs and whatnot.
But the scales don't lie and I wasn't wearing my "heavy shoes." I'm feeling pretty grotesque in general tonight. I ate two huge pieces of pepperoni and extra cheese pizza for dinner, with leftover birthday cheesecake for dessert.
If the general malaise and the weight worries weren't clues enough for you, I should confirm that I am surfing the crimson tide right now. That's actually good news: the doctor told me that if my monthly curse showed up, that would mean the Clomid worked. As I mentioned earlier, the pee tests and the basal temperature tests indicate that I didn't ovulate, but hell, I didn't go to medical school. What do I know? It's always possible that I peed on the stick wrong. I'm heading back to the doc's office Monday for further clarification, and likely my second Clomid prescription.
In the meantime, I could really go for a chocolate shake and fries. Why are you looking at me like that?!?! I'm just going to go have a good cry. Does this blog make me look fat?
But the scales don't lie and I wasn't wearing my "heavy shoes." I'm feeling pretty grotesque in general tonight. I ate two huge pieces of pepperoni and extra cheese pizza for dinner, with leftover birthday cheesecake for dessert.
If the general malaise and the weight worries weren't clues enough for you, I should confirm that I am surfing the crimson tide right now. That's actually good news: the doctor told me that if my monthly curse showed up, that would mean the Clomid worked. As I mentioned earlier, the pee tests and the basal temperature tests indicate that I didn't ovulate, but hell, I didn't go to medical school. What do I know? It's always possible that I peed on the stick wrong. I'm heading back to the doc's office Monday for further clarification, and likely my second Clomid prescription.
In the meantime, I could really go for a chocolate shake and fries. Why are you looking at me like that?!?! I'm just going to go have a good cry. Does this blog make me look fat?
November 03, 2004
Picture Perfect
My employer doesn't want me talking about where I work or what I do, but I'm sure it is okay for me to say that because I've been wearing a hardhat during work lately, my hair is more or less a disaster.
My typical look each day involves two pigtails at the nape of my neck with a bandana tied kerchief-style over the top. Then I can put the hardhat on and take it off without getting any hair in my eyes. Additionally, it is so not worth wearing any make-up while I'm working. I get dirty, I look like crap, nobody cares.
That said, I was coming in from work yesterday afternoon when I realized that, because it was my birthday, my driver's license was expiring. That day. A quick glance in the rear-view confirmed that not only did I look way too disgusting to have an official photo taken, but the sheriff's department probably didn't want me looking like a gang-banger with my bandana on.
The driver's license department closes at 4:00 and I blazed through the door at 3:35. One good thing about a small town is that you know everyone. Sandy, the lady working at the counter said, "Hey, happy birthday. What in the world are you wearing?" I pointed and said, "Yeah, birthday. I can't take my driver's license photo looking like this." She glanced at the clock and said, "You've got just enough time to go home and do something with it. By the way, you kind of stink." On my way out the door, I said, "Trust me, no one can tell I stink based on a driver's license picture!"
So. I made it home, put my hair in a barrette, quickly applied a coat of mascara, and made it back in time. I still look like a convict in the photo. Sigh...
My typical look each day involves two pigtails at the nape of my neck with a bandana tied kerchief-style over the top. Then I can put the hardhat on and take it off without getting any hair in my eyes. Additionally, it is so not worth wearing any make-up while I'm working. I get dirty, I look like crap, nobody cares.
That said, I was coming in from work yesterday afternoon when I realized that, because it was my birthday, my driver's license was expiring. That day. A quick glance in the rear-view confirmed that not only did I look way too disgusting to have an official photo taken, but the sheriff's department probably didn't want me looking like a gang-banger with my bandana on.
The driver's license department closes at 4:00 and I blazed through the door at 3:35. One good thing about a small town is that you know everyone. Sandy, the lady working at the counter said, "Hey, happy birthday. What in the world are you wearing?" I pointed and said, "Yeah, birthday. I can't take my driver's license photo looking like this." She glanced at the clock and said, "You've got just enough time to go home and do something with it. By the way, you kind of stink." On my way out the door, I said, "Trust me, no one can tell I stink based on a driver's license picture!"
So. I made it home, put my hair in a barrette, quickly applied a coat of mascara, and made it back in time. I still look like a convict in the photo. Sigh...
Happy Give a Young Person a Super-Atomic Wedgie Day!
Dissapointed in how the presidential election results seem to be turning out? Well, blame the youth of America. Young voters preferred Kerry, but voter turnout wasn't high.
This fall, polls from the Harvard Institute of Politics, the Pew Research Center and MTV all predicted that that this would be the year that the long- ballyhooed youth vote would finally make a difference in the presidential race. The youth voter pool is immense -- 40.6 million Americans are between 18 and 29, comprising 1 in 5 eligible voters -- but it has rarely been a factor in the 32 years since 18-year-olds have been eligible to vote. Four years ago, just 37 percent of 18-24-year-olds voted.
But despite all the efforts, an Associated Press exit poll survey found that fewer than 1 in 10 voters Tuesday were 18 to 24, about the same proportion of the electorate as in 2000.
I can't judge the youth of the nation solely based on my experiences with my little brother, and having been a narcissistic youth once myself, I admit I can comprehend the apathy. But jeez! What happened to these kids? (Now that I'm thirty, I can call them kids.) Was P. Diddy's crowd all hat and no cattle?
This fall, polls from the Harvard Institute of Politics, the Pew Research Center and MTV all predicted that that this would be the year that the long- ballyhooed youth vote would finally make a difference in the presidential race. The youth voter pool is immense -- 40.6 million Americans are between 18 and 29, comprising 1 in 5 eligible voters -- but it has rarely been a factor in the 32 years since 18-year-olds have been eligible to vote. Four years ago, just 37 percent of 18-24-year-olds voted.
But despite all the efforts, an Associated Press exit poll survey found that fewer than 1 in 10 voters Tuesday were 18 to 24, about the same proportion of the electorate as in 2000.
I can't judge the youth of the nation solely based on my experiences with my little brother, and having been a narcissistic youth once myself, I admit I can comprehend the apathy. But jeez! What happened to these kids? (Now that I'm thirty, I can call them kids.) Was P. Diddy's crowd all hat and no cattle?
November 02, 2004
I Neeb do Blow by Dose
God, I feel like ass on a cracker tonight. I seriously think I feel at least as bad tonight as I did last week, when whatever kind of head-cold shit this is first got ahold of me. I'm taking zinc. I'm drinking tea. Heck, I'm even using saline nasal spray, which is supposed to be the ultimate preventative against sinus infections. And yet...I think that may be what I have. *cry* I could barely taste my birthday dinner: bacon-wrapped shrimp, French fries and raspberry cheesecake.
How are you all doing with the election stuff? Matt just hollered in that Kerry is doing well in Iowa, which makes me feel slightly better. Still, my optimism is looking a mite tarnished. He's not ahead by quite the margin that I was hoping for.
We'll see. We'll see...
How are you all doing with the election stuff? Matt just hollered in that Kerry is doing well in Iowa, which makes me feel slightly better. Still, my optimism is looking a mite tarnished. He's not ahead by quite the margin that I was hoping for.
We'll see. We'll see...
Vote!
I know every other blog on the planet (at least in the USA) has already told you, but I'm going to tell you again: GO VOTE!
Thanks, and have a really good day.
Thanks, and have a really good day.
November 01, 2004
I'm Not Alone!
I heard back from several friends today about the election stress issues they've been having.
One friend has been doing some heavy volunteer polling work, and it sounds like she keeps right on polling, even after she falls asleep. Makes for a restless night.
Another friend said she dreamt that she dropped her absentee ballot in the mailbox and the mailbox grew teeth and ate it.
I had to do a little checking. One newspaper labels it, "Pre-Election Anxiety Disorder." You could abbreviate it as PEAD. As in, "I'm PEAD off right now!" The article describes it thusly:
Americans are in the grip of a monster case of Pre-Election Anxiety Disorder. No one is talking about voter apathy anymore, because the opposite is more likely the case. People care too much. They're losing sleep. They're having bad dreams about unfavorable tracking polls.
PEAD worsens as Election Day approaches and it's a 50-50 country and there's a war going on and people are dying and the talking heads are howling and the polls come firing at your head like fastballs. It's too close to call, too close, too close, we know the whole thing could pivot with the slightest breeze, that nothing is too trivial now, that even the slightest verbal gaffe by a candidate or his wife or one of the daughters could have a butterfly effect on world history.
Yeah, sounds about right.
One friend has been doing some heavy volunteer polling work, and it sounds like she keeps right on polling, even after she falls asleep. Makes for a restless night.
Another friend said she dreamt that she dropped her absentee ballot in the mailbox and the mailbox grew teeth and ate it.
I had to do a little checking. One newspaper labels it, "Pre-Election Anxiety Disorder." You could abbreviate it as PEAD. As in, "I'm PEAD off right now!" The article describes it thusly:
Americans are in the grip of a monster case of Pre-Election Anxiety Disorder. No one is talking about voter apathy anymore, because the opposite is more likely the case. People care too much. They're losing sleep. They're having bad dreams about unfavorable tracking polls.
PEAD worsens as Election Day approaches and it's a 50-50 country and there's a war going on and people are dying and the talking heads are howling and the polls come firing at your head like fastballs. It's too close to call, too close, too close, we know the whole thing could pivot with the slightest breeze, that nothing is too trivial now, that even the slightest verbal gaffe by a candidate or his wife or one of the daughters could have a butterfly effect on world history.
Yeah, sounds about right.
I'm Pooped!
For good or for bad, Wednesday will come as something of a relief. I can't believe how stressed I'm getting about the election. I think I got something like 3 hours of sleep last night.
Every time I'd doze off, I'd start dreaming of voting, watching the results getting tallied on the news, and I think Bush showed up at my polling place.
*YAWN* I'm going to need a vacation from all this.
Every time I'd doze off, I'd start dreaming of voting, watching the results getting tallied on the news, and I think Bush showed up at my polling place.
*YAWN* I'm going to need a vacation from all this.
October 31, 2004
Not Satisfied With the One You've Got?
Clinic Gets Approval to do Face Transplant
CLEVELAND, OHIO - A clinic in Ohio says it is about to start screening patients for what could be the world's first face transplant.
The clinic's director of plastic surgery, Dr. Maria Siemionow, says they got permission Oct. 15 after 10 months of discussing the issue.
Siemionow says it could take two years to find an appropriate patient, likely one who has been badly disfigured by disease or burns.
But she says finding an appropriate cadaver could prove more difficult. Families of potential donors could be reluctant to allow the donation because faces are so much a part of who people are.
She added that the outcome of the procedure is anything but certain. She says prospective patients will be warned that the chance of failure because of rejection or other complications could be as high as 50 per cent.
The procedure raises a number of ethical issues. The operation carries big risks, yet it is for purely cosmetic reasons, not to correct a life-threatening condition.
I swear to God, it feels like News of the Weird around here lately...
CLEVELAND, OHIO - A clinic in Ohio says it is about to start screening patients for what could be the world's first face transplant.
The clinic's director of plastic surgery, Dr. Maria Siemionow, says they got permission Oct. 15 after 10 months of discussing the issue.
Siemionow says it could take two years to find an appropriate patient, likely one who has been badly disfigured by disease or burns.
But she says finding an appropriate cadaver could prove more difficult. Families of potential donors could be reluctant to allow the donation because faces are so much a part of who people are.
She added that the outcome of the procedure is anything but certain. She says prospective patients will be warned that the chance of failure because of rejection or other complications could be as high as 50 per cent.
The procedure raises a number of ethical issues. The operation carries big risks, yet it is for purely cosmetic reasons, not to correct a life-threatening condition.
I swear to God, it feels like News of the Weird around here lately...
October 30, 2004
Call Me Skeptical...
'Hobbit' Skeleton Could Rewrite Prehistory
The discovery of a skeleton of a woman barely one meter tall who hunted pygmy elephants and giant rats 18,000 years ago could rewrite the origins of humanity, scientists in Australia said Thursday.
The perfectly preserved skeleton, about as big as a modern 3-year-old and with a grapefruit-sized skull, was found in a cave on the Indonesian island of Flores, about 600 kilometers east of Bali.
The female, nicknamed the Flores Hobbit, has been identified as a completely new member of the human race in the latest edition of the journal Nature.
Evolution ran a different course on Flores. Besides the tiny people, elephants the size of ponies and rats as big as dogs roamed the island and were probably hunted by Homo floresiensis.
The primitive humans may themselves have been hunted by giant lizards -- even bigger versions of the huge Komodo dragons that still roam the island and which have been known to eat humans.
I got the article from Google News and there were several other publications running the story. It sounds like a lot of people really believe this, but I'm thinking it could totally be a hoax. It's just too "Gulliver's Travels" for me.
The discovery of a skeleton of a woman barely one meter tall who hunted pygmy elephants and giant rats 18,000 years ago could rewrite the origins of humanity, scientists in Australia said Thursday.
The perfectly preserved skeleton, about as big as a modern 3-year-old and with a grapefruit-sized skull, was found in a cave on the Indonesian island of Flores, about 600 kilometers east of Bali.
The female, nicknamed the Flores Hobbit, has been identified as a completely new member of the human race in the latest edition of the journal Nature.
Evolution ran a different course on Flores. Besides the tiny people, elephants the size of ponies and rats as big as dogs roamed the island and were probably hunted by Homo floresiensis.
The primitive humans may themselves have been hunted by giant lizards -- even bigger versions of the huge Komodo dragons that still roam the island and which have been known to eat humans.
I got the article from Google News and there were several other publications running the story. It sounds like a lot of people really believe this, but I'm thinking it could totally be a hoax. It's just too "Gulliver's Travels" for me.
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