A stranger who made my day...

I left work this morning at around 10am and headed off to run some errands for work. One of my stops was at the local bank to make a deposit. The bank has 3 drive through lanes...one that is right by the teller window, and two with the tube/suction things.
The first lane by the window had 1 car waiting...lane #2 had a car being helped...and I pulled into the third lane and waited behind a woman who was being helped. Just after I pulled up - a man in a truck pulled into lane #2, and just as the car in front of him pulled away - a young lady came running out with a sign that said "please use other lane". I assume they were having some issues with the tube/suction thing. The man looked a bit peeved, but backed up and pulled into line behind me.
We sat there, and we sat there....I farted around with the radio for a bit...and realized that we've all been sitting there for quite a few minutes, and nobody moved. Lane #1 still hadn't moved - and neither had ours...
Well right then, I noticed that the woman in front of me was talking very animatedly to the teller through the call box. I figured perhaps there was something wrong with her account or something...so I rolled down my window like a good nosy person. Only she wasn't talking about anything bank account related.
This woman had turned into chatty kathy and was talking about a baby shower that she'd gone to that weekend...she was giving the teller ALL the details about this baby shower....and I"m sitting behind this woman thinking "are you kidding me? does she not realize that she's got 2 people behind her?"
To my disbelief, the teller then asks if the pregnant woman knows what she's having...and more conversation ensues about the baby thing.
I VERY BADLY wanted to honk my horn - but I didn't have the gumption to do so - and instead I revved my engine really loud hoping she would take the hint...
The talking ensues - and hand gestures - and giggling - and exclaming...
Lane #1 hasn't moved either - so I assume that there is only one teller helping both lanes, and these two are so busy yapping it up that nobody is going anywhere...
I was starting to lose my wits...and the anxiety was building at the GALL of this woman...and I was JUST about to finally tap my horn a little...when I heard a car door slam.
I looked in my side mirror to see that the man behind me had gotten out of his truck. He strolled up to the woman in the car behind me....leaned over and pushed the call button on the call box...and said very loudly:

"Do you think the two of you could shut the f*%k up so the rest of us can get on with our day?"

and he turned and walked towards me back to his truck. I was cracking up and said "THANK YOU!" as he walked by.
The woman in the car in front of me looked absolutely HORRIFIED and hurriedly drove away.
I pulled up - and noticed that the woman who was at the teller's window was being reprimanded, and another woman stepped into her place to help myself and the people in lane #1.

I was so glad to see someone do what I've always wished I had the guts to do....that stranger-man totally and completely made my day. I'm still laughing!

Still on the road again...

So back to the topic of "Road Trips"...

Hubster and I feel like we really need to find somewhere to live that is outside of California. Some people might understand that, and some may think we're insane to be leaving friends and family for something completely different then what we're used to. But after MANY (and believe me, SOOOO MANY) discussions on the subject, we just really feel like moving out of the area, and the state...is the right decision for ourselves and our future family.
We've talked about many different areas, and of course we still have alot of options to talk about and explore - all for many different reasons. But for right now, based on location - weather - jobs - and landscape....we're leaning towards Southern Oregon.
We have a vacation coming up in October, and we're again - heading out on the road without any specific plans. Just us, a map, and the road ahead....up into Oregon territory to see how we feel about several different areas up there. We both try to think things through practically and responsibly, but in the end..most of the decisions we make, are based on our GUT FEELINGS about it.
You know how people say "when you KNOW...you KNOW"?
Well that's how we felt when we got married (and everyone thought we were INSANE)...both times we've been on the lookout for a new home to live in...any big purchases, such as cars, furniture, etc....anything that's kind of a big deal...in the end, our gut feelings always win out. And we both know that we have to be in AGREEMENT about those feelings, or it'll never work.

So anyway - we really have no plans about where specifically we're going...I mean, we know certain towns and places we want to go - but nothing is planned out as far as staying anywhere, or having a schedule for anything. We've talked about driving back down through parts of Idaho...we've also talked about driving up to Seattle. Who knows - we'll know when we know, right?

We're both really excited about it - and we've talked about renting a car for the drive, so that we don't put so many miles on our car, or have to worry about mechanical problems that WE have to fix....yada, yada, yada..

But then last night - plans changed.

Hubster called me yesterday and asked me to look up information on renting an RV. My heart kind of skipped a beat when he said that because I can't believe we didn't think of that before!
WE've always talked about wanting to buy an RV someday and just traveling all over the place....all over the US, Canada, Mexico...anywhere we can DRIVE.
So how great would it be to give it a shot for this upcoming trip? Especially when we have no idea where we're going or where we'll end up.

So I looked into it - and for about $700, not including gas (which will be outrageous, but would be ANYWAY) - we can rent an RV for the entire week. Not only will we not have to pay for hotels...or a rental car...but we'll also be able to buy food and prepare it ourselves, rather then having the expense of eating out for every meal. The RV has a shower, toilet, stovetop, fridge, freezer, and microwave...it'll be like camping - only not really camping.

This is so right up our alley - and we both keep thinking about our last Road Trip and how much fun we had.
This will be different because it could possibly involve our FUTURE - but at the same time, it's very exciting to think about and we're both very curious how we're going to feel about the areas we want to see. It could be a definate "hell no", it could also be a hesitant "maybe" - and it could also be a wide-eyed look at each other with a smile that says "this is it".

On to making more great memories...

On the road again...I just can't wait to get on the road again...

A couple of years ago, hubster and I took a "Road Trip" for one of our vacations. We had reservations for one night at a bed and breakfast up in Mendocino county, and the rest of our vacation was completely unplanned. Since we couldn't decide what we wanted to do - and didn't have the money to go anywhere fancy anyway...we decided to just get in the car and DRIVE. We wanted to go wherever our hearts desired...as long as we agreed anyway - which is never a sure thing.
So we took Hwy 1 all the way up to the bed and breakfast, and stopped along the coast wherever we wanted, even stopped at Fort Ross which was pretty cool...we saw so much of the coastline that we've never seen before, and it was beautiful and very relaxing and peaceful to not have the pressure of HAVING to be somewhere at a certain time.

That vacation was by far, the best one we've ever taken together. We thought for sure that being trapped in a car for that long together would take it's toll and we'd inevitably have arguements or bicker about stuff. But we didn't...we even got lost quite a few times...and managed to laugh it off and say "oh well!".

We traveled up the coast to Mendocino county, ...stayed at the bed and breakfast and enjoyed the peace and quiet of NO television, and ate some of the most fantastic food ever. The next morning, we both sat on the deck that overlooked the ocean and read the newspaper, and didn't say a word to each other for about 2 hours. It was such a relaxing time that we didn't feel the NEED to talk and keep constant chatter going.
We left there, and drove back down through the redwoods and all the tiny and quaint towns scattered about Northern California...over to Old Town Sacramento (commonly known as Old Sac, which sounds dirty and I always giggle when I hear people call it that). We drove through town, and discovered a RIVERBOAT hotel that was docked on the Sacramento River (which was pretty cool...but not as cool as I thought it would be). We dropped all our stuff off in our tiny little room, and then cruised all through town and found a basement music store that had all kinds of funky stuff in it...and walls and walls of records. And I mean VINYL records...
We scoured and hunted around for a long time in that store...and walked out with several Led Zeppelin albums, and a few others for only $50. We were holding well over $150 worth of vinyl in our hands, so we felt darn good about that...and we talk about going back to that store all the time. We then went wine tasting and did some more shopping, and spent the evening drinking champagne and looking out at the river and into the streets of Old Sac (hehe) and then headed down to enjoy another PERFECT meal at the Riverboat Restaurant.
The next morning, we woke up and said "so...where do you want to go today?" - and after hitting up the train museum in town...he headed back on the road and just DROVE, not knowing really where we were going...and decided to just keep on driving until we got to Reno. Neither one of us had ever been there, so we figured "why not?".
The drive up to Reno was SO BEAUTIFUL....and we even encountered snow going through the mountains. The scenery was so breathtaking and NEW to us that we just marveled at everything...and chatted and laughed the entire way.
Reno was actually quite disappointing - we found it to be dirty and old and just not what we expected...but we stayed at the Silver Legacy which is probably one of the nicest hotels in town. We gambled a bit and toured through several casino's. The next day we went to the automobile museum in town which was AMAZING. Hubster was enthralled with each and every vehicle, and insisted on taking pictures of everything possible.
We then left Reno and headed back through the mountains...and stopped at a "family fun center" where they did inner tube sledding. I was THRILLED, and had to talk hubster into going with me because he initially didn't want to do it...but we had SUCH A BLAST tubing in the snow. We're not small people, so we got some serious speed going down that hill, it was great.

After that, we headed back down through Northern California's Gold Country. We found a hotel in Placerville, and the next day we actually went DOWN INTO an actual working Gold Mine. I think we were about 1400 yards down...it was a LONG way...I thought for sure I would feel claustrophobic down there, but I never did. I think I was so fascinated by the whole thing that I never thought about how closed in we were. The tour leader your typical stereotype of a miner. Long white beard, hard hat...suspenders...and short. Very nice man, and he knew his stuff!
Anyway - that afternoon we headed back to SF to stay with hubster's parents and we were both sad to have our trip end.
All the little stuff in between...getting lost...or finding an oddball place to stop and eat...laughing at something we saw, and just being so easy going about WHERE we went...was all so much fun. I know we both look back on that vacation with really fond memories. We saw alot of things that we'd never seen before, and went alot of places that we've never been before.
Part of me wishes that I could make a video of everything in my head from that vacation. I'm afraid that those memories will leave me someday...or afraid that I will forget how it FELT to be just the two of us laughing and smiling while driving on all those unknown roads...

More to come...

Being Domestic?

Most people who know me...and know me well...know that I'm not much for decorating. Things don't usually match, I don't usually have much on the walls of my house..and when people ask me what my "theme" is for certain rooms...I give them the "you're insane" look. Sometimes when people talk a certain decor or theme for a room - my eyes glaze over and a bit of drool comes out of my mouth.
I also can't stand the color Pink, and for the most part...flowers are just not my thing.
I know, I know...my mother must be so proud right?
Anyway - a couple weeks ago, we were at Amanda's house - and she had a new IKEA catalog sitting on the coffee table.
For the record...hubster + me + our checkbook + IKEA = TWO BROKE FOOLS WITH TOO MUCH FURNITURE and a bad case of the "I WANT'S"
So of course, the first thing we did was flip through the catalog and dissect every page. As always, we found all kinds of things we WANT...but don't NEED. And then....we found something we DID NEED! Okay, so we didn't NEED it - but we sort of did, in a roundabout way.
Anyone who decorates would say that we needed it alright?
Hubster found a duvet set...with matching curtains that he LOVED. He showed the page to me, and much to my own, and most certainly Amanda's shock...I loved them too.
They had flowers on them...
(so does this happen as we get older? Because I'm a bit frightened that my house will eventually be full of flowered things, and crocheted doily's)
I'm sure that wherever my mom was at the time...a little light shone down on her - with a tiny angel's chorus background singing "Hal-lelu-iah!"- because HER DAUGHTER liked something with FLOWERS on it. Not just any flowers mind you...little tiny blue and PINK FLOWERS.
I still can't believe it myself.
So, after spending all day Sunday with the family in the Bay Area. We were off for the long drive home. Which just HAPPENED to go right past the IKEA in Palo Alto. Yes, we caved...and we headed into the Sunday crowds of IKEA to find our precious bedspread.
We made our purchase - and after finding out that the dining table we wanted was out of stock (I TOLD you we'd be broke fools with too much furniture) we headed home.
The curtains at IKEA come really huge...ours were 118 inches long and each panel was 58 inches wide. They do that to accomodate any window size...and each curtain comes with fusing tape, so you can iron a hem.
Which is PERFECT for people like me who can't sew. And I mean, I really can't sew....
I once tried making a pair of pants in Jr. High and accidentally sewed the pockets onto the LEGS...and I don't mean just the legs...but the BOTTOM of the legs. I don't think I've seen my mom laugh that hard in YEARS...tears rolling down her face, the whole deal...and the entire time she was laughing I was trying to figure out how in the hell I had sewn the pockets down where my ankles should have been.
SO yeah, K DOESN'T SEW!
Anyway - I busted out my iron...and measured and cut...and hemmed...sort of....I even DOUBLE hemmed so the edges wouldn't be all raggedy.
And now...drum roll please....


















(I never realized how hard it is to take pictures of CURTAINS with sun shining through them - perhaps I'll give it another try at nighttime)

At any rate, Hubster and I have a bedroom with MATCHING curtains, and bedspread. We even have decorative pillows that match the bedspread. Pillows that are not for sleeping...but just to match the bedspread. Hubster is under strict orders that he is not to drool or get any hair gel remnants on our NEW PILLOWS.
I even took it one step further and used some of the extra material left over to make a coverlet of some sort for the cats. Basically since they sleep on our bed during the day...it's just an extra sheet of material over the bedspread - that I can easily throw in the wash when it gets too cat-hair laden....and yet, it MATCHES.
Oh my...does this mean I'm turning into one of those "domesticated types"?
Am I going to start wearing an apron and making casseroles? Will this cause me to...God Forbid...MAKE MY BED EVERY DAY??? Lord help me...

While I was taking pictures - Tweak was running around on the bed all bug-eyed...sort of like an Amish person who doesn't want their picture taken because it'll "steal their soul" or something...
so here is the obligatory, psycho-bug-eyed-hyperactive cat picture:

Notice the whipping action I captured with that tail...

Doesn't get much cuter...

Yesterday, I was sitting at my desk working, when I heard the stomp-stomp-stomp of little kid-feet coming up the stairs to my office.
I looked up and saw my neice Keeley's little shining face running towards me, all by herself. She had the biggest smile on her face and was holding something in her hand, high up in the air...so as not to smoosh it.
She gave me a nice big hug and said "Auntie, I have something for you!"
and she handed me this:

Then she said "Auntie! Look in the pocket!"

So I did...and I found these:

Then she said "Those are your tickets!!! For you and Uncle! Open it up and read what's inside!!!"

So I did...and this is what it said...

I looked down at the sweet, smiling face - and she said "Can you COME? CAN YOU?"

and I said "of COURSE!"

and then she said "We're so excited Auntie, Abby and I are going to school and we're going to make lots of friends, and learn so much stuff!"

and right after that, my heart was so full that it burst into a million peices...

*also, is my sister-in-law just about the most creative and crafty person EVER or what?

Goobers and Nerds

When I was about 6 or 7 years old, I remember my mom making my dad a homemade anniversary card. Actually, it was more like a POSTER, if you will. She had purchased different candies and made a poem for my dad out of the name of the candy. Of course it was extremely clever and creative, but at that age, all I could think about was EATING that candy. Heh...

So hubster and I are heading to San Francisco this weekend for his neices birthday, and since we missed spending Father's day with his dad, we decided that we'd just bring up a gift this weekend. After deciding that we wanted to do something homemade and "from the heart", I mentioned my mom's poster. Hubster LOVED the idea, and so last night we ransacked the candly aisle at two different stores....went home and moved the coffee table...and spent the next hour brainstorming and laying out the card...
This is what we came up with: (translation is below)

Considering it's so hard to read...this is what it says (candy names will be in parenthesis)

(LOOK!) It's an (M-AZING) Father's Day Card! You may think we're (GOOBERS) or even (NERDS), but (U-NO) this will make you (SNICKER). Dad, you are a (LIFESAVER) through all the (ROCKY ROAD)'s and there's (NUTTER BUTTER) than you. We always have a (WHOPPER) of a good time, because our (POP ROCKS)! We want you to (TAKE 5), do (ZERO) around the house, eat a (WHATCHAMACALLIT), and know that we love you (NOW & LATER). Mom says you are a (BIG HUNK) and a (HOT TAMALE), but we know you're a (SUGAR DADDY). With love from your (AIRHEADS), (SPECIAL K) and (M & M)

hubsters initials are M and M, so we thought that worked out well...hee!

We used double stick tape to stick all the candy down, and it's worked REALLY well. We're so excited to give this to him - and we had SUCH A BLAST making it and coming up with ideas. You should have seen us hauling through that candy aisle...we got to laughing because we figured if anyone was watching us, they probably would have thought we were from a really isolated foreign country...

"Look hun! POP ROCKS!"

"Oh my gosh, WE LOVE YOU NOW & LATER!"

"how about THERE'S NUTTER BUTTER THAN YOU?"

Trying to figure it all out in the store...pointing and laughing at all the different names.

We found one called "Krabbie Patties" - but couldn't figure out how to work that into what is supposed to be a NICE card. I also saw a box of "Nips" and said "well, we're not going to go THERE"

Hubster's dad will be on a year long sugar high after this...

Hi, and welcome to moviefone...

Hubster always likes to answer the phone differently. Sometimes he'll answer with fake chinese talk...and people will hang up thinking they've got the wrong number, while he just cackles and puts the phone down.
Or sometimes he'll answer as a local restaurant - or pizza place. Or sometimes he'll just answer in a different voice...mainly just to mess with whoever is calling. The telemarketers mainly...hehe
Sometimes he'll say "Hi, and welcome to Moviefone...if you know the name of the movie you would like to see - please press 1"
(remember Kramer?? "why don't you just TELL me the name of the movie you'd like to see!")
and then sometimes people will press a button, and he'll laugh and say "I need a better system!"

One day, he called my brother AJ's cell phone and left a message that said "Hi, this is Dave Masterson from the local police department. We show that your vehicle was involved in a hit and run, and we need you to call our office immediately - thank you"
We laughed because we figured AJ would see the number we called from, know it was us, and just call to give us a hard time.
Now, the one thing that must be said about my brother is that he is always trying to call me at work and pull a prank on me that he's a customer. He's NEVER ONCE fooled me, and I always know it's him...so hubby and I felt that it was time for some payback.

The next morning, I got to work and received a phone call from AJ. We chatted for a bit, and then I mentioned hubster's phone call from the night before...AJ goes "wait...that was HIM?? Are you SERIOUS??? I was totally FREAKED OUT the entire night! I got up early and called the police department!"
I thought he was pulling my leg, but it turns out that he really did freak out and call them....

hold on one second..

BWAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAA!!!!

He said that he called and asked for a Dave Masterson - and they said they didn't have a Dave Masterson, but they DID have a Dave...HEE!
So AJ talked to him and gave him all his information (thinking that perhaps someone stole his truck and went joyriding or something). Policeman Dave checked his record and said it was clean, and he didn't show anything about a hit and run.
Poor AJ didn't know what to think, but he was stressing about it...
and for some reason, didn't even THINK to check his phone to see what number the call was made from.

AJ sounded kind of ticked off at first...but I was busting a gut halfway through his story....I was laughing so hard, there was NO WAY he could have not laughed. He finally laughed right along with me...and shouted to some guys behind him..."Dude, it was my A**hole brother-in-law!"

I would think about that throughout the rest of the day, and get the giggles every time...I can't believe he got AJ so good...

and you know, AJ has yet to try and prank me even ONCE since then...

A birthday story..

So last night, hubster was watching Deadwood in the living room, and I was watching Kill Reality in the office...and I decided to go through some of our paperwork and throw away and shred some things. I came across a HUGE box of cards that I'd saved for whatever reason. Cards from family, cards from each other, letters from friends, things like that.
I came across an American Greetings birthday card that I remember purchasing, not FOR anyone - but because it was by far the strangest and quirkiest birthday card I've ever read. I've decided to post it here for your reading pleasure.

The front of the card says:

Celebrating a birthday

can be a blast if you use a little

imagination and keep an open mind.

Picture this:

Prior to picking you up for an

evening out, I stop at the store.

There I purchase a bag of jelly beans,

a roll of Necco wafers, a bunch of

medium-sized inflated rubber balls,

some pantyhose, a purple magic marker,

a gun, an etch-a-sketch, a four-pack

of toilet paper and some hollow point

bullets. (by the way, the gun was applied

for five days earlier, as requiered by law,

and the toilet paper is for my place...

I seem to go through the stuff like

water...but none of this is germane

to our story.)

I pull up to your place in my car,

(which I've painted to resemble the duke

boys' general lee) thrust my hand into

the bag of jelly beans on the front seat,

grab a half-dozen or so, step out onto

the street and start whippin' 'em at

your windows. I go and get some more

out of the car and begin wingin' jelly

beans across the street, onto the roof of

your neighbors place. They roll down into

the gutter, making an awful racket.

and now the fun begins....

and then you open the card and it says:

Have a seat....you'll enjoy this.

By this time, you're at the front door, screamin' something about what the hell am I doing? and am I crazy? and I yell, "yeah!...crazy like a beaver, I am!!" Before long we're in the car heading across town, laughing like a couple of Ed McMahons,on our way to get our hair done. (I offered. My treat.You said, "why the hell not, it's my birthday!") the only drawback is the long drive, and you don't hesitate to complain about it. This is when I reach for the Etch-A-Sketch."Here!.. went to Niagara Falls with one of these babies when I was a kid...they're better than drugs!" Forty-five minutes later we come to a stop on an overpass spanning the interstate. I pull over on the shoulder and ask you to get out of the car. I start to get out myself, when you ask me to look at your drawing of Oprah and I say "Looks more like JFK..." and you say "that's because of the equator." and I pause, because I don't know what the hell that means. I pop open the trunk, and as you stroll around back, you remark about all the rubber balls. I grab a ball, take the purple magic marker from my pocket, and write, "I see you when you're sleeping, and I know when you're awake" on the ball, then toss it into the onrushing traffic below the bridge. Handing the marker to you, with a "It's your turn" look on my face, you swipe the pen, scoop up a ball, and scribble "property of Enola Gay" on it before launching the sphere into the path of oncoming automobiles. Now...you wanna talk about fun? We fall to our knees with laughter, watching the antics of these desperate drivers and their pie-eyed passengers as they jerk their cars back and forth trying to avoid those bouncing beauties. Some time passes as the ensuing messages on the balls become more and more elaborate, before being set free over the highway. This is when the cops show up. It's a high-speed chase with roadblocks and choppers, taking hours...nevertheless, we lose 'em, and end up in the basement of an old church. You know the one. This is where I tell you to take the pantyhose off of your head. (You'd put it on to mask your identity when the camera crew flew up alongside of us in the helicopter during our getaway.) Anyways...A priest walks in on us as we're collecting our thoughts and says, "What're you two doin' here?"...Have I seen you before?" I nudge you, and hand you a white Necco wafer, and you understand my plan immediately. Slipping the candy onto my tongue,

and here is an arrow pointing to the back of the card (of course the entire inside of the card was filled with wording from the story) and says:

I answer him. "Yeth, Padre, you know uth...

we got communion from you." and he sees

the white disc and says, softly "oh...I see..."

and he turns to leave us, but suddenly

whirls around, brandishing a shotgun.

Spitting out the candy, I whip out my handgun.

The Priest stares, aghast, at the wafer on

the ground. "You, my friend, are going to

wish you hadn't done that," he sneers.

Then I grin back, "You feelin' tough enough

to go toe-to-toe with Mr. Hollow Point?"

and you yell "Hey! This ain't right! I ain't even

been sung to yet!" Bewildered, the priest

looks at me, and I explain that it's your birthday.

He pulls a pitch pipe from his vestments,

blows a high "C", and arm-in-arm, we launch

into a rollicking version of the birthday song,

Leaving you weeping with joy.

Now, is that not the oddest birthday card ever??

No room to write anything...just one big, weird story...LOVE.IT.

Tiny weirdo..

I snapped this picture of Tiny. Of course he totally looks like he was licking some unmentionables, but he really didn't. He just SAT there like this for a good while. It must have been comfortable to him, but doesn't it look strange?

Good weekend..

This weekend was nice. On Friday night, we ended up at my parents house so I could help them hook up their new computer...and halleluiah they are FINALLY ONLINE. We hung out with them for a while, had some good food - and headed home. Saturday, I slept in until around 10am...caught up on some taped tv shows and proceeded to do as little as possible until mark came home. We headed to AJ and CC's to hang out with them and the kids and to eat dinner. It was really great to have some playtime with the kids and some quality time with my brother and CC. We then went home and watched a couple episodes of The Sopranos, since we love that show and we're trying to get ourselves caught up. We went to bed really late and woke up late the next morning. Lounged around the house reading and being generally lazy, and then headed to SLO to meet up with my parents for the movie Cinderella Man...which was FANTASTIC.
After that, we hit up Applebee's for some appetizers and dessert (half off appetizers during happy hour! wooo!) and then home.
All in all, a great weekend since we got to catch up with family that we hadn't seen in a while (even though we all live in the same town) and also very relaxing and nice. Of course we didn't get a darn thing done around the house, but sometimes it's nice to just be lazy together :)
If there's one thing we're good at, it's lounging and lazying. We might as well enjoy it while we don't have kids eh?

As Promised...

Pictures of the Hornet's Home! Luckily, they weren't hanging around, so I was able to get in close and take some good pictures:





Isn't it cool lookin? Like a chinese lantern!

My hubby the Metro...

Soooo yesterday evening...Doug and I took a little trip to my local hairdresser. She has her very own salon with nobody else there, so it's very personal and you don't have to be embarrassed if...say...you're a guy....and you want to...oh, I don't know...get your EYEBROWS WAXED.

Now, I have to say...we didn't want to completely shape and sculpt them...we just wanted to clean them up a little. It was far too big of a job for my little tweezers, and usually at about 10 hairs in, he screams and says "no more! no more!" - so waxing it is...

Hubster before:


Hubster during:

And Hubster AFTER! (like I said, just shaped up a little...so as not to look like a drag queen):

Wooohooo!

He did SO well, and did not even make a PEEP during the entire procedure. My hairdresser even complimented him on being such a good customer. But when we got into the car, he goes "you know, I was once hit by a 450 pound Samoan guy....and that didn't hurt NEARLY as much as this whole waxing thing - it took EVERYTHING I HAD to not scream like a little girl"

HAHAHA - now that's funny right there, I don't care who you are.

After his suffering, we went to a local restaurant and ate fish tacos - where I also met a sexy pirate:

He told me I could take a peek, so I did...

We also met a one-legged bird during our meal...

We kept feeding him oyster crackers because we felt sorry for him - but we learned later, that he hangs out there all the time, and most likely gets fed all the time

It was so nice out last night that we decided to take a walk on the pier and we met yet, ANOTHER bird. I said "strike a pose" and he turned his head to his GOOD side...like this:

It was a nice end to an interesting evening....

Movie Mishap...

Okay, so despite the fact that we didn't care for the movie...
I thought I'd share some funny things that happened:

First of all, we were in line getting popcorn and a soda and noticed that they have COMBOS now - we chose the one that was 1 large popcorn and two medium drinks. Except that we realized it was $14.95...and so we decided to share one medium popcorn and one medium drink instead. So the pimply kid behind the counter says "you can upgrade to a large on both items for 50 cents"
and we said "great!"
We got the register and said "we got an upgraded #2!"
$10.95 - a GIGANTIC tub of popcorn - and a 2 foot tall cherry coke later, we were on our way into the theater...
We sat down and I put the soda in the cup holder...and started laughing because I swear the thing was so big, it practically blocked my view of the movie screen. I was terrified that I would knock it over...it was so tall that you couldn't take it out of the cupholder and drink it - you had to leave it in the cupholder and just lean over and sip out of the straw. We actually had to RAISE our head to get the straw in our mouth...it was that tall.
So anyway - we were waiting for the movie to start, and munching on popcorn and sipping on soda and hubster started laughing and said "dang, this popcorn is SALTY...I'm gonna be so bloated by the time I get out of here"
and I said "no kidding, I'm gonna go into diabetic shock from all this coke"
and he goes "yeah, so we'll both be found right here bloated and comatose after the movie - and when we wake up and people ask us what happened, we'll cry "WE UPGRADED!"
we crack ourselves up...
So then, a couple of teenage lovebirds squished in and sat right next to me and started yakking it up and giggling and nuzzling each other throughout the previews...the movie began and they still wouldn't shut up - so I got up and moved the other side of hubster which was right on the aisle.
I had smuggled some fundip candy into the theatre. You know, the kind that comes with two candy sticks and 3 flavors of sugar (think pixy stick substance) to dip into?
So I broke off one stick and handed it to hubster, and I took the other one and held the sugar packets in my hand, so that we could share.
In the meantime, another teenage kid comes and sits by himself at the seat right in front of me.
I was dipping the candy stick into the sugar and a piece of the stick broke off and flew out of my hand...it hit the seat in front of hubster...ricocheted off the seat and hit the kid in front of me square in the temple!
I swear, I watched in slow motion as the peice of candy bounced off his head and came to rest on a stair in the aisle.
He obviously thought it came from someone to the side and started looking around and shaking his head to make sure nothing was stuck in his hair...meanwhile, I was laughing SO hard and trying not to make ANY noise whatsoever, which is nearly impossible when you're laughing that hard. Hubster notices me laughing and goes "what happened to your stick?" which only makes me laugh harder....
I'm sure I looked as if I was having a seizure or something - and hubster had no idea what was going on - he was holding onto the giant soda and looking at me with bug eyes. I tried to whisper in his ear what had happened - but I gave up when he kept saying "what? what happened to your stick?"
which only made me laugh harder...

I eventually got ahold of myself and was able to watch the movie without any more mishaps. But when I was finally able to explain to hubster what had happened, he just looked at me and goes "I can't take you anywhere, can I?"

Sigh...

Charlie spoilers...

So, yesterday...hubster and I went to the movies to see Charlie and the Chocolate Factory. We walked out of there wishing we had our 2 hours and our 12 bucks back. Seriously, it was THAT bad. It totally ticks me off how much they messed up the remake. I know it's supposed to be more like the book - but the movie was some good stuff and they totally blew it.
First of all, Depp was downright creepy. Now, I'm sure he was supposed to play it a certain way...and he DID do a good job, acting-wise. But the person who decided that he should play it that way was off his rocker. He was like Michael Jackson creepy...with the wierd voice and the wierd face...and the RUBBER GLOVES. EW
Secondly, the oompa-loompas. WHAT THE HECK WERE THEY ALL ABOUT? They were even creepier than Wonka...and the music sucked donkeys.
They left a TON of things out...like slugworth, hello? wasn't he like a major part of the movie, and especially the end? and what about the burping scene with charlie and grandpa joe?
They also switched people around, and changed the story line of the previous movie so much that it really irritated me....

the first Willy Wonka was a feel-good movie...

but the remake was depressing and wierd and a waste of my money.

They didn't even play the oompa-loompa SONG...

Jumpy

Last night, it was about 11:30pm and hubster and I were in bed talking when we heard two loud gunshots. We both stopped mid-sentence and looked at each other because I swear they sounded like they came from our backyard. Hubster turned the light off and we both stood on the bed and looked out the windows of our bedroom into our neighbor's yard. We couldn't see anything, so we laid back down and listened to see if we could hear sirens or a car leaving in a hurry or anything of that nature.
I was so on edge that every noise those cats made, I felt like crawling out of my skin and hiding under the bed.
Hubster and I got up and checked both doors and all the windows. It really freaked us out - mainly because it was so CLOSE.
I got up this morning and immediately drove around the neighborhood looking for yellow tape on someone's house...and yet, everything looked normal. I also checked the news and the paper this morning and couldn't find a darn thing. Must have been someone just messing around - but DARN if it didn't scare the crap out of me. We live in a really small town and a very quiet neighborhood. It's not normal to hear gunshots like that, especially gunshots that sound like they're coming from our own backyard.
I slept like CRAP - tossed and turned all night and swore that I kept hearing noises...
paranoid much?

Experimenting...

I've been messing with this site a bit, trying to figure out how it all works...and I have yet to post any pictures...so here goes...

This is our oldest cat Tweak:
He was kinda pissed when I took this picture because I interrupted his 13th nap of the day. He's the Patriarch of all 3 cats and the one who's been with me for the last 6 years - BEFORE hubster. Very calm and protective and PATIENT. If he's hungry, he will just sit by his food bowl until one of us happens to walk by and notice him. He's great with kids, and he has his moments where he turns back into a kitten with his playful side. He doesn't like people who are scared of him (he's HUGE) and like to antagonize our friends and family with his staring intimidation tactics. He's my buddy and will always cuddle with me as long as hubster and the other cats are nowhere to be found.

And this our middle cat Jackson:

He's kind of the red-headed stepchild of the bunch. He originally belonged to our neighbor, but decided he liked us better...and before we knew it he was sleeping in our bed and standing on our chest at 4:30am whining for some kitty lovin. He has since turned into a total daddy's boy and whines and cries and paces on the bed whenever hubster is getting ready to leave for work. He also sits in the window waiting for him to come home, and I always know when hubster is home because I'll hear the loud Jackson whine. I swear he's saying "Daddy! My DADDY! oh boy, oh boy my daddy's home!". He is a big cuddler and his favorite thing to do is take a nap with hubster during the daytime.


And finally, we have TINY:
He has mastered the art of being "The Baby" of the family and is spoiled beyond belief. He is a major mama's boy, and will whine and cry until I pick him up and put him on my shoulder, where he'll immediately start purring. I swear, sometimes it's like having a baby who doesn't want to be put down. He's very curious and HATES when doors are closed anywhere in the house. He also loves furry mice and for some reason likes to drown them in the water bowl. I'm telling you, every day we find a different furry mouse in either the food bowl or the water bowl. He is very playful, and yet a very good cuddler (only with mama) and both hubster and I think that no matter how old he gets, he's always be The Baby.

So there you have it - introduction to our 3 "kids"...hope this whole picture posting thing works the way I want it to :)

Follow up on June Entry...

I found out that the nest at my parents is not a yellow jacket nest...it's a hornets nest. And pretty much the only way to get rid of it is to spray insecticide directly into the opening and hope that you either kill them all, or that you're a fast runner.
OR - you can just wait until wintertime when they desert the nest...sounds like they'll probably just wait.
My mom is avoiding that side of the house like the plague, and they've shut gates and stuff so my neices can't get back there. I can just see one of my neices throwing rocks at that thing...HEE! They call it "the Bee's House"
Next time I'm up there, I'm taking a picture - I swear!

Quirks of a hubster

Hubster has one DISTINCT quirk at bedtime.
He cannot and will not sleep if the blankets are not perfectly laid across the bed. No wrinkling, or tangled blankets allowed.
Now...I am a mover and a shaker when I'm sleeping. I'm constantly tossing and turning and putting my feet in and out of the blankets...sometimes one entire leg will be out and slung over hubster...I move constantly...and the blankets have a tendency to get a bit...well...messed up...twisted...in completed disarray - however you want to call it.
So, last night, I was already in bed and hubster crawled in next to me. The blankets were okay, but they weren't perfect...and he was tossing and turning behind me...and I started giggling. He goes "what?"
and I kept on giggling...right about the time that he started kicking his legs wildly trying to smooth the blankets without having to get out of bed.
Again he grunts "WHAT?"
and I said "in about 2.7 seconds your going to be out of bed and redoing the blankets on this bed"
and he goes "no, no...I got it"
and again starts kicking his legs wildly trying to fix the blankets...

About 1.5 seconds later he is up and out of bed and taking all the blankets off and putting them all back nice and smooth.

I just laid there laughing at him...

and yet, he got into bed and fell fast asleep once the blankets were fixed...he even started snoring in the middle of us talking...
I swear, smooth blankets are like valium to him - I've never met anyone who can fall asleep so fast.

That is, as long as the blankets aren't messed up.

No Stinging Please!

Yesterday I stopped in at my parents house to drop off a tape of "Into the West" that I had taped for my dad.
I was sitting on the couch chatting with my mom, when my dad came into the living room and motioned for me to follow him.
"You've got to see this" he said
I got up and followed him down the hall, through their bedroom and out the sliding glass door to the backside of the house. He pointed up towards the roof. I looked up and saw a HUGE yellowjacket nest.
I said "WHOA! COOL!" and dad says "ummm, I wouldn't move too quickly if I were you"

It was the neatest thing - they had made it out of PAPER. Dad said he'd been watching them for the last couple of months, and they would fly over to the fence or the woodpile and eat the wood and mix it with their saliva and plaster it onto the nest. It looked like a big paper maiche (or however the fuck you spell that) ball. But it's really pretty, kind of gray colored with swirls of white and actually looks like a chinese lantern.

So I said "Dad, you've just left that thing here for 2 months? Isn't that dangerous?"

and he said "well yes, but I don't know how to get rid of it..."

and I started laughing because I was picturing that guy on the commercial who was trying to knock down the bee's nest with his buddy holding the trash can open...and then he falls off his ladder and all hell breaks loose?

Mom walked out then and was watching it with us. She said "your father wants to get rid of the yellowjackets but save the nest, I can't figure out why"...

Dad and I looked at each other and said in unison "because it's COOL!"

He elbowed me and we laughed together as we watched mom shake her head and say "you two are asking for trouble"

I'm gonna have to do some research on how to get rid of that thing and if possible not ruin the nest.

I'll try to get up there with my camera next time so that I can post a picture of it.

All about the hair...

I'm just gonna say it...

Hubster has a bald spot.

Many people in our families feel the need to point this out to him, but he's in complete denial and so we just don't talk about it.

About a week ago, hubster informed me that he was going to grow his hair out. I just snorted at him and said "shyeah right, that'll be the day" - mainly because he very often tells me things like this and rarely if ever, actually follows through. He once said he was going to grow his goatee for a whole year, just to see how long it would get...

He last about a month (which to be honest, was longer than I thought he would last).

The thing about hubster is that he's positively ANAL about his hair. He gets it cut every two weeks or so and never goes anywhere without his precious bottle of LA LOOKS (can you say 80's???) styling gel. He even carries one in his car...yes, yes he does.

So it's probably going on 3-4 weeks since he last had a hair cut. He had taken a shower right after he got home, so his hair had no product in it for most of last night. I was laying in bed reading and he was in the bathroom brushing his teeth, and apparantly he decided to brush his hair as well. I heard him laughing and I looked up and he turned to me and goes "I'm not growing my hair out, I'm growing a FRO!"
and yes, he certainly is growing a FRO...for some reason, his hair is growing out really thick and puffy...except for you know, that spot in the back... so it's actually like of like a fro-mullet.

So I giggled at him and I said "well HELLO Mr. KOT-TER!"

He yelled "Shut up!" and proceeded to grab another mirror so he could see the back and the sides...

I was watching him as he was turning his head this way and that...and he stopped and looked at me and said "why are you staring at my fro?"

and I raised my hand and shouted "ooouuu-oooouuuu Mr. Kotter!"

He then frowned at me and slammed the bathroom door...while I collapsed on the bed with laughter.

He eventually came out and said that he just can't do it - he has to get a haircut...he's not into the FRO-MULLET that he's growing...

Excuse me a second...

HAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHA - I should have taken a picture, so I could share the hilarity of hubster's hair without the gel and in FRO-mode.

My friend Murphy

Sometimes I have days where I feel like a walking catastrophe.

I seem to have issues at a local supermarket. It's kind of a smallish store, but very close to where I live and a convenient place to go, even if they don't always have the best prices. A couple of weeks ago, I knew some friends of mine were here from out of town - and she and her husband wanted to get together with my family and a couple other friends. I planned a get-together at a local park, so that everyone's kids could run around on the playground and we could eat and catch up.
I called this local grocery store a couple of days before the picnic and ordered a tray of sandwiches. I figured it would be much easier to just buy some chips and drinks and everyone could build their own sandwich. I was on the phone with the girl for quite a while as I decided on meats and cheeses and condiments. She assured me that everything would be ready by 5pm on the day of my picnic. I doublechecked the date and time with her and hung up.
On the day of the picnic, we'd decided to meet at around 5:30 which I figured would give me just enough time to get off work, pick up the sandwiches, and head to the park.
I got off a bit early and headed to the store, filled my cart with drinks and paper plates and chips and headed over to the deli section to get my sandwich tray.
I gave my name to the girl, and by the deer-in-headlights look that she gave me, I knew something was wrong. She went back to check and came out with bad news written all over her face. There was no sandwich tray. I told her who I'd spoken to, and she checked with the other deli workers...nobody had seen a sandwich tray get made and it was nowhere to be found.
The manager then came over to see what the problem was....
ahem, anyway....
He looked concerned and asked what time my party was....I told him that I had about 20 minutes to figure out how to feed 10 people and 4 kids. They were all running around trying to call the girl I'd given the order to and trying to figure out what to do. I finally just said "hey, is that fried chicken in there? Got enough to feed 10 people?"
and I walked out with 4 bags full of fried chicken, 2 big buckets of macaroni salad and pesto pasta salad, all for about $15. Sweeeeeeeeeeeet - they all felt so bad and were really nice about it. I'm supposed to get a free tray of sandwiches as well...very cool.

So the next day, I went to the same store to get some groceries for home. I ended up getting lots of BIG stuff...bottles of water, 12 packs of soda, boxes of cat litter...etc, etc.
I was walking towards the car and I saw this creepy guy feeling up some lingerie that was on a sale rack outside of a local adult oriented store....
I guess I was so distracted by the weirdo that I didn't notice I had pushed my cart off the sidewalk...and my entire cart tilted sideways spilling out all my groceries into the (Empty, THANK GAWD) parking space. I made a couple of foolish looking attempts to set the cart upright - but DAMN are those things heavy! The creepy guy came running over and helped me take all my heavy stuff out of the cart and then eventually we got it back upright...I thanked him, and he nodded at me without saying a word, and went right back to the rack and held up a pair of panties. Yeah, it was weirding me out...so I hurriedly starting putting my groceries back into my cart.
In the meantime, some jerk decides that he HAS TO PARK in the exact space that my groceries are strewn all over and actually had the audacity to honk at me...I waved him away and yelled to park somewhere else. When I turned back around and who was standing there smiling? The MANAGER guy from the day before...
He started helping me pick up my groceries and chuckled and said "hmmm, having some problems here I see? Is our store cursed for you or something? At least I can see that you came back after the fiasco from yesterday...but now your groceries are scattered all over the parking lot"
My face was flaming red and I just laughed and said "well, you can't say I'm not LOYAL!" hehe
We filled my cart back up and he wished me a good day...I saw him turn around and notice the creepy guy who was STILL feeling up the skimpy outfits and he kinda did a double-take and then glanced back at me and shrugged...

About a week later, I was back at the store...and I was walking down an aisle. There were two young boys in the aisle roughhousing and shoving each other....I was about to go around them when I noticed Mr. Manager come around the corner. At that exact moment, one of the kids knocked a huge jar of applesauce off the shelf and it cracked and splattered all over the floor and my cart and ME...
The kids took off running and the manager guy just held up his hands and said "SHEESH! I swear, Murphy must follow you into this store or something"
He proceeded to get a towel for me to wipe the applesauce off my shoes and he said that next time he saw me in the store, he would be ready for something odd to happen.

So TODAY, I had to run to the store real quick on my lunch hour. I'm wearing a long purple skirt, with a lavender peasant top. When I was standing in line, the manager guy saw me and nodded in recognition, and then went to help a customer.
I get up to the register and I'm writing out my check...
I hear the bagger girl say "wow, I LOVE your skirt...and the shirt is so great! Where did you get that outfit?"
and I told her that I found it at the strawberry festival...
and she goes "oh, well did you get a business card? I'd LOVE to buy a skirt like that"
and I said "uh, well no..it was a little chinese couple selling them...but I couldn't tell you the name of the business"
and she proceeded to ask me how much it was, and if I knew of any other festivals in the area...
and after I said "I'm sorry, I have no idea", she said
"well, can I see the tag? Maybe they have a website or something"
I was kinda wierded out that she didn't say "hey, cool skirt" and leave it at that...

She started to walk around behind me and I said "well, oooookay" and I scrunched down so she could see the tag....and while she's reading it - I look up and see the cute manager guy walking by shaking his head and he goes "see? what did I tell you? ODD!!!!"

and walked away...

Sometimes Life can be so weird...

Monday blah's

I'm trying to learn how to personalize this blog more...the whole "learning HTML process" seems very long and tedious, but at least I added a notify list to the bottom of the page - that way if there actually is anyone out there reading this thing, y'all can sign up and you'll get an email whenever I finally get off my lazy kick and post something.

Hubby and I stayed up late on Saturday and we both drank so much caffeine that we couldn't sleep, so at about 1:30am, we both took a muscle relaxer. His back was hurting, and I had cramps - so we figured "Why not?"
Holy moly, those things are strong! Hubster slept until 1pm (which he NEVER DOES) and I slept until almost 3pm (which I could probably always do, but I'll force myself to get up at around 10 or so). Dang, talk about sleeping the day away. We slept right through hubsters company picnic...and we were both worthless and fuzzy headed the rest of the day. Oddly enough we had no problems falling asleep last night.

I got up late and had to do a 15 minute search and rescue on my set of keys because I couldn't find them ANYWHERE - except that they were sitting on the kitchen counter and because I'm a big dork, I looked everywhere BUT there. Poor hubster was dragged out of bed and looking under the couch cushions and under beds in his underwear because I was frantic and already late for work.

I need to have those things surgically attached to myself because I lose them ALL THE TIME.

We watched a movie last night called "In Good Company" - it was EH...not what I expected...didn't end the way I'd hoped...but we watched the whole thing, so it couldn't have been that bad.

My friend T bought a podometer the other day, and after dropping it into the toilet at work (ahem, T!) she bought another one. That thing is pretty darn cool, so I think I'm going to get one. It's a good way to judge how much exercise I'm getting. They say you should walk 10,000 steps a day to get a sufficient amount of exercise. Heck, I'm probably at about 100 steps a day...so I need to get off my duff.

I still suck...

and I'm still here. Sometimes it's wierd because I'll THINK about blogging and then I'll get sucked into whatever I'm doing here at work and I'll forget all about it. I like to write and I feel better when I can clear all the crap out of my head, so I'm not sure what the problem is with the absent posts and all...

Okay, so we went on vacation which was fun, of course it's always fun to be away from work and the daily chores at home. We went to Venice Beach first...Doug didn't like it so much, but I love it down there. It's a FREAKshow, and I just love the freaks. Doug goes into what I call "city mode" in places like that - he makes sure I'm close to him at all times, and he's constantly looking around keeping his eye on things. I also call it "paranoid mode" but that has a tendency to produce a lecture on the evils of big crowds and all the hypothetical things that can go wrong. BAH
I was flitting around looking at all the hippie clothes and smelling incence and checking out the head shops and tattoo parlors...tra, la, la - completely oblivious to any possible danger. Doug does enough worrying for both of us.
The next day, we headed down to Anaheim to go to Disneyland. It was a Monday, and we probably would have had better luck on a Wednesday or something, but it was fun anyway, we missed a few rides...but we stayed until the park closed and then headed back to the hotel and ordered room service - aaaaaaah rooom service....is that the best or what??

The next day we drove back to downtown LA to hit the art museums with my aunt and uncle. I completely got us lost and we ended up in a very questionable place called Echo Park...we totally could have scored some drugs there. HEH
I told Doug that there is no way we would ever make it on the Amazing Race because I am so directionally challenged - and he is so anal about doing all the driving. The only time he lets me drive is when he wants to sleep...the hypocrite.
We finally found the place, and honestly, I learned more about art in 3 hours with my aunt and uncle, then I ever did in ANY of the art classes I took in school. They ROCK when it comes to that kind of stuff...my uncle was an art professor, so he knows his stuff - as well as my aunt who is just naturally very knowledgable...and they have a cool appreciation for all the modern stuff, and can explain things to me so I understand it instead of looking at some trash sculpture and thinking "shoot, I could clean out one of our closets and make that SAME peice - where's MY million dollars"

We stayed with them for a couple of days, and after that, we went to Palm Springs where it was hotter than HELL itself. 113 degrees? Yeah, that's too hot.
I ended up getting a cold because of all the air conditioning...but we did get some good R and R - and Doug got to go to an old WWII airplane museum...very cool.

Let's see - back home on Sunday, and back to work on Monday (for me anyway, hubby had monday off - lucky!)

and I thought I was doing so well...

Until I took a month off from writing - over a month actually...I'm not quite sure why I've let it lapse for so long, but perhaps that's why my head is all jumbled.

So much going on...I think I just got sidetracked and busy with work - and since our computer at home is acting up, I just haven't been posting like I used too. I'm gonna work on that.

We've moved - and I've pretty much taken the last couple of weekends OFF. You know how when you move, you get all psycho and want to start decorating and unpacking and you spend every spare minute getting "settled" - yeah, I STARTED out that way...but I've completely and utterly taken the last couple of weekends off. I'm talking NO laundry, NO cleaning, NO organizing -the most I've done is prepare a few meals and done some dishes...and that's all she wrote. I am a complete lazy butt...and I'm ready to get back on the wagon.

I have to admit, it really did feel good to sit on my butt and watch so much TV and read and not do anything though...hee!

SO, a few weeks ago - I was stuck at home for a couple of days with some sort of stomach virus thing. I went back to work - but still didn't feel like myself - and my digestion still wasn't up to par...I basically had what my grandpa always referred to as "the squitters".
AHEM...

So, after a couple more weeks of that and not feeling any relief and being SO BLOATED every time I ate anything, so that I was only wearing elastic pants because nothing else fit me...I finally went to the doctor. She thinks I'm lactose intolerant...
SO I've been ordered for 2 weeks to stay off the lactose and see if I feel better - and I DO!
I was honestly hoping that I wouldn't...because that would mean that cheese is my enemy - and I LOVE CHEESE...but of course, it seems that lactose is probably causing the bloating among other things.

On the plus side, hopefully I'll lose some weight!

Also, our new little neice is going to be born tomorrow morning - woooooooo!
I have to be at A and C's house at 5AM (DEAR GAWD) so I can be on kidwatch...and bring them to the hospital to meet their new baby sister...
We're all very excited to meet her and see who she looks like. This is it for them - she's getting her tubes tied.

Of course with all the baby talk about here - Doug and I have been talking more and more - and I think we've decided that sometime NEXT summer (2006) will be a good time to go off the pill and let things happen in their own way...
at least this is what has been decided SO FAR - you never know about us. We really want to get a good chunk of money in savings so we won't feel completely financially strapped...with less income...we'll need a buffer zone.

Let's see - what else is going on...
OH! Doug and I are going on vacation in a few weeks - nothing big, we couldn't afford our DC trip like we wanted...so we're heading down to Venice Beach and Universal Studios and the art museums at LA county - we're gonna stay with my aunt and uncle for a couple of days and then head over to Palm Springs to relax by the pool for a couple of days as well. We're both really looking forward to it - we need a break! We will miss our kitties though :)

There is other stuff going on, but I'll have to write it out later - must get back to work...

I shoulda been...

A boxer...
I'm fascinated by the sport...I love watching it - and I'd LOVE to get into a ring someday. (oh, just put me in there with Jonathan from Amazing Race 6...I'd be FIRED UP to box smarmy face - and anyone from the sweet 16 show...and maybe a few of those laguna beach girls too....hmmmm, I'm gonna have to make a list)
Hubster and I watched the Contender last night and I think it's my new favorite show. I was SOOOO rooting for Gomez, the underdog to win last night - and he did! The other guy Peter was a good fighter - a power hitter...but they sure played up the whole "I'm doing this for my daughter" thing. I was getting a bit sick of it to be honest. In my opinion, his daughter was WAY too young to be watching her father get beaten silly in the first place. It almost seemed like we the audience were supposed to root for him because of the whole family aspect.
I'm glad Gomez won - he proved he's got some SERIOUS cojones just by choosing to fight the undefeated Peter.
I'm already hoping to see the pretty boy (hubster and I call him Love Boat because of that silly outfit he was wearing on the first day) go up against Ishe. And I hope Ishe smacks the crap out of him...HEH - is that wrong? Ishe is a pompous guy, but something about Love Boat just rubs me the wrong way - and what was up with him forgetting the lock combination? ya dork...he didn't have to carry any logs his ONLY JOB was to run up the hill and get the numbers for the lock from the signs on the side of the road...hello?
yeah, he's gonna piss alot of people off.
I can't believe I just went on and on about this show - yup, I'd say it's my favorite....big adrenaline rush. Doug better watch out because I just might bust out some boxing gloves one of these days! hehehe

The Bamboo Stool Incident...

I have been reminded by a friend of mine, that I never did explain the "bamboo stool incident" that I mentioned in the toilet prank entry...

heh, okay - that just makes me laugh every time I think about it..

So anyway, hubster and I have one of those papasan chairs. It's one of those big-bamboo-satellite-dish-with-a-cushion-in-it type of chairs. I've ALWAYS wanted one of those chairs - but my ex never wanted me to have one. ( I know! how could I let someone have so much control over me? UGH - makes me sick to think about)
So anyway, the VERY FIRST thing I purchased after we broke up was a big ass Papasan chair...I used to call it my "independence chair" - but now we just call it "THE BOWL". It's fantastic when you're watching someone's baby and you need to put he/she down for a second and don't want to have to worry about them rolling off of anything...the BOWL is a good babysitter :)
So the bowl, it comes with a little stool for your feet. It's just a small round bamboo stool with a little round cushion on it. It's quite common for one of us to use it as a seat, if we have people over and have run out of seating....
Except that one time, I sat on it and it went CRUNCH! and I fell over.
I sat up and looked at my demolished little stool...of course I was completely embarrassed in front of my friends because my fat butt had BROKEN A BAMBOO STOOL (bamboo is supposed be really tough isn't it?? well it doesn't compete with MY ASS)
A couple of days later, hubster and I went to the store and bought another stool - and that was that...or so I thought...
About a week after that, I was in the kitchen cooking a healthy meal and telling hubster that I really needed to get onto a healthy eating plan because I had gained WAY too much "married weight" and I still couldn't believe that I had broken that stool in front of everyone.
Hubster looked at me very sheepishly and said "umm, well...you didn't exactly break the stool"
"what?" said I...
"umm, well...I sort of broke it...first"
-----and this is where I started screeching and running my words together saying "youmeanyouputthatstoolbackafteryoubrokeitKNOWINGitwasbrokenandyouletme
sitonitandembarrassthehellouttamyself...Ican'tbelieveyouwoulddothattomeyou
SUCKandyouknowpaybackisabeyotchandohIWILLgetyouback!

of course he apologized and apologized...but STILL! I was set-up! and cursing my own butt all that time, when it wasn't even MY butt that broke the darn thing...

So, when he thought he'd broken the toilet seat and yet didn't say anything - and waited for ME to discover it....I was definately reminded of the bamboo stool incident

and also reminded that I haven't necessarily gotten him back for that yet...

*insert evil laugh here..

Cleaning Spree...

Yesterday, the hubster and I went to our new house ( I say new, as in NEW-TO-US..it's actually quite old...wood floors and all...very 1940's) and cleaned like MAD. I swept and mopped all the floors, and vacuumed all the bedrooms...that was quite a job. Doug was in charge of the bathrooms - he scrubbed the heck outta the tubs and let them soak in bleach...he also cleaned all the surfaces in the kitchen and did a darn good job. I'm very impressed with his cleaning skills when he really puts his mind to it.
The hall bathroom had those non-slip stickers in the bottom of it...and whoever put them on did a real half-ass job because most of them were clustered down by the drain. They were fish and bubbles....ummmm, yeah, those had to go. Hubster sprayed some Goof Off on them and scraped them off with a spatula....they came right off, but there is still an imprint of glue remaining. Anyone have any ideas how to get it off? We tried bleach and comet and tilex and the glue remover stuff...and after both of us becoming quite HIGH and silly from the fumes, we decided to leave it.

So far, mom...T...and CC and the girls have come to see it - they all loved the open floor plan and said we got a good deal, which makes me feel better because I still have moments of second guessing ourselves when it comes to paying that much rent. I guess I just have a hard time letting go of money in big chunks like that...although, who doesn't? heh

I went through our bookshelves over the weekend and I discovered the following:

I found 32 books that I'm going to put in our garage sale...I say 32 now, but by the time I really have to sell them, I may have re-evaluated how I feel about those books, and it might just be down to 2 books to sell...heh

I found well over a hundred books that I have read, but that I just. can't. get. rid. of. - okay, I shouldn't say can't...I'm gonna say WON'T...because most of them are hardback books that I paid good money for, and that I could possibly read again because they were good enough to keep...I'm so much like my mother, I just have a hard time getting rid of stuff.

I found 65 - let me repeat...65 - books that I HAVE NOT READ YET.
I'm so disappointed in myself that all those books were lurking in my shelves and I kept buying MORE books thinking that I was almost out of things to read! I can't believe it...
I'll be setting up our bookshelves in the new place with one big section for my "have not read" books...heh

Also, I have alot of boxes with CRAP in them...honestly, just little piddly things that I don't know what to do with - or that got thrown into that box when company was coming at the last minute. I must have come across 3 or 4 decorative boxes full of miscellaneous STUFF. It'll be nice to use this next few weeks to go through that stuff and either get rid of it, or find it a home where it belongs instead of being thrown into a box.

I will inevitably look at things and go "oh, I can't get rid of that...I NEED that"

It frightens me that I've become such a packrat. Just. Like. My. Mother

soooo MIA

I can't believe it's been almost a month since I posted here. So much has happened, so much going on - WHEW!

I'm just gonna recap on some things that have happened:

~My hair is orange...my mom put highlights in for me, but I think I left them in too long because I came out looking like Debra Harry with the badly bleached hair. I then got some dye to try to go back to my normal color...only it came out looking safety cone orange (because the dye I picked had a reddish tone to it) in the bleached places...and a pinkish color throughout the rest of my head. I called T and she came over to help me with my hair fiasco. We bought some color corrector and another box of regular blonde dye with NO red...mixed the two together and again applied it all to my hair. As we were watching American Idol, I could feel my scalp burning and T told me to pull on my hair to make sure it was still attached to my scalp...!!!! Thankfully it was, and I vowed that no matter how it turned out, I would leave it to avoid becoming bald.
It came out kind of reddish/orangesh - but not all bright and coppery like before. It looks like a really, really strawberry blonde. It's fading, but not soon enough for me - I should have just left it alone.

~ Wednesday the 16th was just an all around BAD day...work sucked - many things went wrong....someone at Doug's work backed into his car and crunched the front bumper and part of the fender (that was actually a blessing in disguise because we'll get some CASH for that..and probably won't even bother to fix the car). That same day we got a phone call from our current landlords that they have decided to put the house that we LIVE IN...and have only LIVED IN FOR 10 MONTHS....up for sale.
Which means, YAY! We get to move...again...lovely

~ I was pacing the floors of our house and making our cats nervous while trying not to cry...Doug decided to go get a paper even though it was around 8pm. We started circling places to look at and eventually just got our butts into the car and WENT.

~ For the next couple of days we pretty much did nothing BUT look for a place to live when we got from work. It was a very disheartening experience because we knew we were going to have to pay more rent then we wanted to - and all the places that were decently priced were absolutely GHETTO looking ...

~ Through a real estate agent friend of ours, we found out about some affordable housing homes that are being built in our area. They are 3 bedroom, 2 bath's selling for $315k - which is UNHEARD of in this town. We set up an appt. to go look at them, figuring that we might be able to swing that much - and found out that we actually qualified with the city for the affordable housing program. The house was LOVELY, but after crunching numbers and figuring in property tax and homeowners association fees...we realized that our mortage would be around $2500 a month...which is impossible for us.

~ We both agree that it's kind of a big thump on the head to realize that we couldn't even afford a $315k house. CONDO'S even sell for more than that in this area...so we thought it was a good deal! Turns out, it's not really... especially after we found out the CATCH (city gets 90% of the equity earned on the house if it's sold within 30 YEARS - ummm yeah, bite me city people)

~ We've talked ALOT about having to move out of this area...we both know it's pretty much inevitable at this point. IT makes me sad to think about it. We decided we'd better keep looking for rentals...we are both really exhausted of the whole "house buying" and mortgage topics anyway.

~Saturday evening we found THE place. Sunday we paid partial deposit so the owners would take the ad out of the paper...and tomorrow we're paying the rest of the deposit and getting the keys. IT's a 3 bedroom, 2 bath with a FIREPLACE (doug's dream) for $1200..which is kind of "yikes", but we really like the place...so we think it's worth it.

Whew - it's been a whirlwind week for us...so much going on...so much wheeling and dealing with the landlords...so much worry about money, and cats, and packing, and work.

I've been taking a yoga class that has seemed to help me stay calm...but I feel very tense lately - I always do when stuff like this goes on in my life....

Onward to bigger and better, right???