Sorry if it seemed like I was ignoring you for a while. Things have been really nuts lately. So much has been going on at home and I've been really distracted, and unfortunately you, blog, have had to sit by untouched, lonely. In case you're wondering what on earth could be so important to let you be so idle, let me fill you in ...
*chimey daydream musical interlude*
A few months ago, the hubby and his back had a big fallout, which left him hobbling to the doctor's office like an 80-year-old man. The doctor recommended drug therapy, and when that didn't work, physical therapy. The therapy was doing a lot of good for Dave, and the therapist said that she was really happy with Dave's progress, in fact, happy enough that Dave could resume normal activity. (In case it wasn't obvious, the hubby=Dave) That's when all hell broke loose.
You see, Dave was so excited about getting back to his normal routine that he did what he would have done any other week of any other month that he was perfectly healthy. He ran 16 miles (8 miles two days that week), went to a yoga class, a spin class and walked the dogs every day. On Friday, though, he suddenly became that 80-year-old man again, holding onto his back, wary of his next step lest there not be something with which he could hold on to for support. I feared the worst: we were back where we started just two months ago. If only...
We scheduled an appointment with a back specialist, but we wouldn't be able to see him for a week and a half because he was on vacation. Dave got the next best thing until help arrived: Vicodin.
Just last Tuesday Dave saw the back specialist and it was unnerving news: Dave has a weak low spine, probably caused by a fairly common genetic disorder. This, paired with weak spinal support muscles, has lead to an overall weakened lower spine and several inflamed or aggravated discs. Somewhere, somehow, Dave's leg started to feel numb and sometimes painful. The doctor thinks this is attributed to a pinched nerve near his hip somewhere.
We had an MRI on Thursday and my fingers are crossed that once we know more from the analysis on Tuesday that surgery will become a more distant option, but for now, it looks like Dave may have to have some type of back surgery in the near future. I'll keep you all updated, but please keep Dave in your thoughts. We'd both appreciate it.
Since Dave's laid up and can't lift more than 10 pounds, we've given up on the home improvement projects we had planned, like painting the bedroom, staining the deck and doing some serious landscaping. This sucks, but I'll tell you what, rooms can always be painted, yards can always be landscaped.
Hopefully though, none of these back problems will keep us from going on the camping trip we had planned since January. We're (hopefully) going to the Old Settler's Music Festival, which should be really great.
That seems like enough for now... When I know more, you will, too. I promise to not stay away so long again.
Love always and forever and ever,
Jo
Sunday, March 30, 2008
Thursday, March 20, 2008
But I wanted to be Stencil!!!
Totally wasn't expecting that... I figured I'd be something a bit more moody and nostalgic. I like her hair, though.
Wednesday, March 19, 2008
The economy is crashing! Run for your loans!
I'm sure the world has no doubt heard that America is now a nation of poor folk.
Okay, that's not necessarily accurate, but from what a lot of people are saying, you'd probably think that we're all going to end up running on the banks any day now. For folks who failed high school economics, let me explain:
Each nation's economy, by nature, is cyclical. Gains and losses in wealth cause greater changes on larger scales, meaning that as the working class increases their wealth or increases their education the working class will shrink, we will have fewer members of a labor force to produce domestic goods, our economy will shift to a more service oriented economy rather than a commodity or material economy, our imports will grow, exports will shrink and more people will seek assets, like homes.
Now, as more people seek homes, banks and lending institutions will find a way to make the greatest profit on this new trend, so they will offer financing to people that in the previous economic conditions would not have received a loan. To weight their risk in the equation, higher interest rates are charged on the amount of the loan. This is pretty standard practice. It gets tricky when banks get greedy. Because the economy just shifted over a period of years, banks look to the Fed as a kind of weathervane. As the Fed increases the rate at which it will lend money to banks, banks will then pass that cost on to those people who took on loans with Adjustable rates, or sub-prime loans that banks invented to maximize profits.
What happens, though, when the Fed increases the rate and the banks pass on that increase and the sub-prime borrowers can't pay? If there are too many sub-prime mortgages in the market, there is a crash. You see, banks want their cake, ice cream, and a decent offshore account in the Bahamas and they want to eat it, too. They don't make money off of a foreclosed home, so keeping these folks paying on their house is in their own best interest. But as mortgagors can't pay and banks can't pay on the investments they've received from central banks, well... you get into the recession we now have.
Incidentally, in order to minimize the impact of the recession, the Fed has decreased the rate at which it will lend money to banks by, in analytical terms, a whole fucking lot. Meaning that money is cheap right now. Meaning that the value of the dollar is lower. Meaning that traveling abroad and buying imports is ridiculously expensive. Meaning that the service economy we were building will have to transition into creating different kinds of domestic goods and services in order to manage the weakening value of the dollar.
It's just one big cycle.
But if you're in the market for a loan, for home improvement and refinancing, now is a good time to borrow because banks want to give you money to make money off of you in interest.
So, we're going to pay the banks to remodel our kitchen. I'm thinking bamboo cabinet veneers, marmoleum floors, recycled glass mosaic tile backsplash, corian countertop, farm sink and a new custom island.
Any suggestions?
Okay, that's not necessarily accurate, but from what a lot of people are saying, you'd probably think that we're all going to end up running on the banks any day now. For folks who failed high school economics, let me explain:
Each nation's economy, by nature, is cyclical. Gains and losses in wealth cause greater changes on larger scales, meaning that as the working class increases their wealth or increases their education the working class will shrink, we will have fewer members of a labor force to produce domestic goods, our economy will shift to a more service oriented economy rather than a commodity or material economy, our imports will grow, exports will shrink and more people will seek assets, like homes.
Now, as more people seek homes, banks and lending institutions will find a way to make the greatest profit on this new trend, so they will offer financing to people that in the previous economic conditions would not have received a loan. To weight their risk in the equation, higher interest rates are charged on the amount of the loan. This is pretty standard practice. It gets tricky when banks get greedy. Because the economy just shifted over a period of years, banks look to the Fed as a kind of weathervane. As the Fed increases the rate at which it will lend money to banks, banks will then pass that cost on to those people who took on loans with Adjustable rates, or sub-prime loans that banks invented to maximize profits.
What happens, though, when the Fed increases the rate and the banks pass on that increase and the sub-prime borrowers can't pay? If there are too many sub-prime mortgages in the market, there is a crash. You see, banks want their cake, ice cream, and a decent offshore account in the Bahamas and they want to eat it, too. They don't make money off of a foreclosed home, so keeping these folks paying on their house is in their own best interest. But as mortgagors can't pay and banks can't pay on the investments they've received from central banks, well... you get into the recession we now have.
Incidentally, in order to minimize the impact of the recession, the Fed has decreased the rate at which it will lend money to banks by, in analytical terms, a whole fucking lot. Meaning that money is cheap right now. Meaning that the value of the dollar is lower. Meaning that traveling abroad and buying imports is ridiculously expensive. Meaning that the service economy we were building will have to transition into creating different kinds of domestic goods and services in order to manage the weakening value of the dollar.
It's just one big cycle.
But if you're in the market for a loan, for home improvement and refinancing, now is a good time to borrow because banks want to give you money to make money off of you in interest.
So, we're going to pay the banks to remodel our kitchen. I'm thinking bamboo cabinet veneers, marmoleum floors, recycled glass mosaic tile backsplash, corian countertop, farm sink and a new custom island.
Any suggestions?
Tuesday, March 18, 2008
Lofty goals
Ah, resolve ... Once my only conception of "resolve" was running up and down the household cleaner aisle of HEB looking for something to fix the coffee stain I'd put on the upholstery of my mother's car after borrowing it for a week while in college. It was my savior in a bright read spray bottle.
Early this year I resolved to do a lot of things. I resolved to get better at my inversions. I resolved to lose some of the baggage on my body and keep it off. I resolved to improve my endurance and run a 5k in November. I resolved to dedicate more time to my hobbies (knitting). I also resolved to try to be more balanced.
Do you see a common theme here? Anyone that practices yoga knows that I'm just shooting to live a more yogic life, one that is active and peacefull, one that is more flexible and constant and one that brings wholeness inside and out.
I guess in all of my stressing I'm ignoring the journey; I'm focusing on what I need to be instead of what I need to do. That all has to stop. I've noticed I've been focusing a lot on the negative aspects of who I am, hiding behind self-deprecating humor and general misanthropy. Nothing gets accomplished that way.
So, I know I'll probably never get to nirvana in this life, but here's hoping I can focus on the good parts enough to be at least a little more whole, a little more accepting and a little more at peace. Maybe a little more resolute ...
Early this year I resolved to do a lot of things. I resolved to get better at my inversions. I resolved to lose some of the baggage on my body and keep it off. I resolved to improve my endurance and run a 5k in November. I resolved to dedicate more time to my hobbies (knitting). I also resolved to try to be more balanced.
Do you see a common theme here? Anyone that practices yoga knows that I'm just shooting to live a more yogic life, one that is active and peacefull, one that is more flexible and constant and one that brings wholeness inside and out.
I guess in all of my stressing I'm ignoring the journey; I'm focusing on what I need to be instead of what I need to do. That all has to stop. I've noticed I've been focusing a lot on the negative aspects of who I am, hiding behind self-deprecating humor and general misanthropy. Nothing gets accomplished that way.
So, I know I'll probably never get to nirvana in this life, but here's hoping I can focus on the good parts enough to be at least a little more whole, a little more accepting and a little more at peace. Maybe a little more resolute ...
Wednesday, March 12, 2008
Thou shalt not be a fat ass
I was really amused that the Vatican announced a few new sins to watch out for. Catholics should shun the following actions: genetic modification, carrying out experiments on humans, polluting the environment, causing social injustice, causing poverty, becoming obscenely wealthy and taking drugs.
To me it sounds like a day in American culture. I mean, aren't Americans known for Franken foods, chemtrails, our record for environmental moral insolvency, segregation and institutional racism, welfare and ghetto government through patronage, more billionaires per square mile than anywhere on earth and a burgeoning drug culture borne of prohibition?
This is a great development, I think, but my real hope is that these new sins will bump a few other ones off of the previous short-list, one-way-ticket-to-hell sins, namely gluttony and avarice, or coveting. I like to eat a lot and watch Food Network and HGTV, which means I was going to hell anyway, right?
To me it sounds like a day in American culture. I mean, aren't Americans known for Franken foods, chemtrails, our record for environmental moral insolvency, segregation and institutional racism, welfare and ghetto government through patronage, more billionaires per square mile than anywhere on earth and a burgeoning drug culture borne of prohibition?
This is a great development, I think, but my real hope is that these new sins will bump a few other ones off of the previous short-list, one-way-ticket-to-hell sins, namely gluttony and avarice, or coveting. I like to eat a lot and watch Food Network and HGTV, which means I was going to hell anyway, right?
Wednesday, March 05, 2008
Prediction follow-up: Bass Ackwards in Texas
I was shocked watching the election returns last night. I took a nice long shower after taking a run with Dave and Hornsby to get me away from my compulsive poll-watching. As I refreshed my local news page once we returned from our outing, I gasped after I saw that Hillary was ahead by two percentage points in Texas after just being declared winner in Ohio. Earlier in the evening, MSNBC had called Vermont for Obama, which doesn't surprise me because Vermont is the literal left wing of America. But the last thing I expected was Hillary to pull off a miracle in Texas.
I knew that Obama would take Dallas County. He had way too much momentum here for Hillary to come out on top. Besides that, compared to Austin, San Antonio and Houston, Dallas' Hispanic population is proportionately smaller, and Latinos had been favoring Hillary's rhetoric. But I was surprised that Obama took Houston, Austin and Dallas, and rural Texas and San Antonio were outright wins for Hillary. To see a cool map of the county-by-county wins, click here. Here are the final numbers:
Democrats
Hillary Clinton: 51%
Barack Obama: 47%
John Edwards: 1%
Republicans
John McCain: 51%
Mike Huckabee: 38%
Ron Paul: 5%
Mitt Romney: 2%
Uncommitted (whoever the hell that is!): 1%
Fred "The Corpse" Thompson: 1%
Alan Keyes: 1%
Duncan Hunter: 1%
Rudy Giuliani: 0% (This is the candidate our good ol' Gov. Rick Perry endorsed!)
After last night McCain has clinched the Republican nomination. Yay. I'm not a big fan of McCain, mostly for his ultra-hawkish war rhetoric. I don't think America's really all that good with this military-industrial complex stuff, especially since year after year it make us look more and more like Rome: self-indulgent and imperial, worldly yet clueless.
But Clinton and Obama will fight 'til the end, very likely right up to the National Democratic Convention, which is a shame, really. Both candidates are working hard to unify the party, and I think that the best thing to do is for them to share the Democratic ticket with Hillary at top. In fact, Madame Clinton is already hinting at this possibility. According to the AP:
Asked on CBS's "The Early Show" whether she and Obama should be on the same ticket, Clinton said:
"That may be where this is headed, but of course we have to decide who is on the top of ticket. I think the people of Ohio very clearly said that it should be me."
Well, I think you could say now, Hillary, that Texas has said it quite clearly, too. I think it would be a strategic victory for Hillary to name Obama her running mate. Think of it: Hillary wins this presidency, and probably the next, and then Obama, well seasoned from two terms as VP runs for the presidency and wins, bringing us into our golden age.
Gets me excited just thinking about it.
I knew that Obama would take Dallas County. He had way too much momentum here for Hillary to come out on top. Besides that, compared to Austin, San Antonio and Houston, Dallas' Hispanic population is proportionately smaller, and Latinos had been favoring Hillary's rhetoric. But I was surprised that Obama took Houston, Austin and Dallas, and rural Texas and San Antonio were outright wins for Hillary. To see a cool map of the county-by-county wins, click here. Here are the final numbers:
Democrats
Hillary Clinton: 51%
Barack Obama: 47%
John Edwards: 1%
Republicans
John McCain: 51%
Mike Huckabee: 38%
Ron Paul: 5%
Mitt Romney: 2%
Uncommitted (whoever the hell that is!): 1%
Fred "The Corpse" Thompson: 1%
Alan Keyes: 1%
Duncan Hunter: 1%
Rudy Giuliani: 0% (This is the candidate our good ol' Gov. Rick Perry endorsed!)
After last night McCain has clinched the Republican nomination. Yay. I'm not a big fan of McCain, mostly for his ultra-hawkish war rhetoric. I don't think America's really all that good with this military-industrial complex stuff, especially since year after year it make us look more and more like Rome: self-indulgent and imperial, worldly yet clueless.
But Clinton and Obama will fight 'til the end, very likely right up to the National Democratic Convention, which is a shame, really. Both candidates are working hard to unify the party, and I think that the best thing to do is for them to share the Democratic ticket with Hillary at top. In fact, Madame Clinton is already hinting at this possibility. According to the AP:
Asked on CBS's "The Early Show" whether she and Obama should be on the same ticket, Clinton said:
"That may be where this is headed, but of course we have to decide who is on the top of ticket. I think the people of Ohio very clearly said that it should be me."
Well, I think you could say now, Hillary, that Texas has said it quite clearly, too. I think it would be a strategic victory for Hillary to name Obama her running mate. Think of it: Hillary wins this presidency, and probably the next, and then Obama, well seasoned from two terms as VP runs for the presidency and wins, bringing us into our golden age.
Gets me excited just thinking about it.
Tuesday, March 04, 2008
It's go time? How about "Go to sleep time"?
Long hours at work have my body clock all screwed up. You see, for journalists in Dallas, today is like a fucking religious holiday. Everyone shows up for work dressed like slobs, anticipating a marathon blogging and poll watching session that lasts from as early as you can get your ass up to as late as you can stand to watch the precincts report. I usually cop out around 5:30 or so because I'm not that dedicated. I'm perfectly OK watching the returns from home.
________________________________________
Lots of folks are giving their Texas primary predictions. Here are mine, with Ohio predictions thrown in there for good measure:
In Texas Obama will win, albeit narrowly, with 52 percent against Hillary's 48. Hillary carries the more liberal, heavily Latino cities of San Antonio and Austin, as well as several rural spots. The glut of the delegates are in Dallas and Houston, and Obama walks away with them.
Huckabee makes a strong showing with 35 to 37 percent of Republican turnout, while McCain wins Texas outright. Lots of crossover voting (Tried and true Rs voting D) puts Huckabee in a better-than-expected position, though he bows out after conceding Texas and becomes first in line for VP spot.
In Ohio, Hillary wins with a decent lead over Obama, mostly due to the large proportion of Yellow-dog Democrats that trust Hillary's battle-tested persona. Hillary will take 54 percent of Ohio's vote to Obama's 46.
Huckabee is a non starter in the Ohio race. McCain's the only real choice for Republicans in Ohio.
Finis!
There you have it, folks. Go ahead and place your bets because the Election Day Oracle has spoken.
_________________________________________
There's a lot of energy bubbling around the office, lots of eager faces waiting for the returns to post (in 6 hours, mind you). It's go time for everyone else, but I'd much rather be back in my bed, rolling over wistfully and reveling in the slightly sweet smell of my feather pillow as it cradles my head, lulling me back to sleep until my alarm gets too annoying or it gets too late to call my first meal breakfast; whichever happens first.
________________________________________
Lots of folks are giving their Texas primary predictions. Here are mine, with Ohio predictions thrown in there for good measure:
In Texas Obama will win, albeit narrowly, with 52 percent against Hillary's 48. Hillary carries the more liberal, heavily Latino cities of San Antonio and Austin, as well as several rural spots. The glut of the delegates are in Dallas and Houston, and Obama walks away with them.
Huckabee makes a strong showing with 35 to 37 percent of Republican turnout, while McCain wins Texas outright. Lots of crossover voting (Tried and true Rs voting D) puts Huckabee in a better-than-expected position, though he bows out after conceding Texas and becomes first in line for VP spot.
In Ohio, Hillary wins with a decent lead over Obama, mostly due to the large proportion of Yellow-dog Democrats that trust Hillary's battle-tested persona. Hillary will take 54 percent of Ohio's vote to Obama's 46.
Huckabee is a non starter in the Ohio race. McCain's the only real choice for Republicans in Ohio.
Finis!
There you have it, folks. Go ahead and place your bets because the Election Day Oracle has spoken.
_________________________________________
There's a lot of energy bubbling around the office, lots of eager faces waiting for the returns to post (in 6 hours, mind you). It's go time for everyone else, but I'd much rather be back in my bed, rolling over wistfully and reveling in the slightly sweet smell of my feather pillow as it cradles my head, lulling me back to sleep until my alarm gets too annoying or it gets too late to call my first meal breakfast; whichever happens first.
Monday, February 25, 2008
To-do lists have me in deep doo-doo
So, my sister is pregnant (yay!). This means that my life will be a mad dash of knitting and sewing until my niece/nephew arrives. This also means that my normal sewing/button-replacing/hemming pile will be pushed to the side in favor of knitting baby caps and booties and making a baby sling and blanket for my niece/nephew.
This is all very exciting, and I have so many ideas on what I want to make for my sister so that she will be so very prepared (and stylish!) when the baby arrives. I'm not the only one scheming though. My sister's mother-in-law is a big knitter, too, and has a head start on me. She's made several baby sweaters already and I'm sure is planning on out-doing me every step of the way. She is at a disadvantage, though. She's in Scotland, and I'm only 3.5 hours away from my sister, who is working on buying a house in Houston.
I do plan on being the coolest frackin' aunt in the world, though. I haven't been around babies too much, that is, besides all of Dave's friends who are in various stages of parenthood. Some have as many as 3 kids, and many are in elementary school already. Crazy.
Anyway, it will be nice to have the opportunity to get used to being around babies since I have 3 sisters and a brother, though it looks like only one is dead-set on breeding.
This is all very exciting, and I have so many ideas on what I want to make for my sister so that she will be so very prepared (and stylish!) when the baby arrives. I'm not the only one scheming though. My sister's mother-in-law is a big knitter, too, and has a head start on me. She's made several baby sweaters already and I'm sure is planning on out-doing me every step of the way. She is at a disadvantage, though. She's in Scotland, and I'm only 3.5 hours away from my sister, who is working on buying a house in Houston.
I do plan on being the coolest frackin' aunt in the world, though. I haven't been around babies too much, that is, besides all of Dave's friends who are in various stages of parenthood. Some have as many as 3 kids, and many are in elementary school already. Crazy.
Anyway, it will be nice to have the opportunity to get used to being around babies since I have 3 sisters and a brother, though it looks like only one is dead-set on breeding.
Thursday, February 21, 2008
The myth of the cat lady
It's been two evenings in a row that I've had to rush to after-work writing functions. Yesterday I spoke at two community college classes and today I helped organize a small writers workshop. Needless to say, after having to get excited enough to get other people excited TWO EVENINGS IN A ROW, I do not plan on being pleasant or excited tomorrow.
But the upshot is that this evening, since Dave is off work tomorrow for some vague reason I can't exactly remember, he went to a show with a couple of friends tonight, meaning that the house was splendidly silent when I got home. I unloaded my car and took the dogs out to take a crap in a neighbor's yard, and then came inside to settle in for the night in my nice, quiet house, with the TV turned off.
So, naturally, I wanted to relax, or do whatever the fuck I wanted, because hey, I'm all like McCauley Culkin, I'm home alone. Or at least that's what I thought. No sireee, the cats were screaming like their fat asses were going to die from starvation at. any. moment. I cracked open a few cans of animal slurry (Purina calls it dog/cat food) and fed everybody. I thought my duties as the dutiful pet owner were done.
I was wrong.
After I sat my fat ass on the couch and pulled up my laptop and Diet Coke (with Splenda, mind you) and got serious about catching up on tonight's Democratic debate in Austin, Hornsby started nudging and licking my pants leg. Apparently dogs need affection, too. I got a little annoyed, and I told him to go lay down. He did, but then Fitzgerald climbs his cute little butt up into my face and starts licking me. God. I couldn't resist the cuteness. So, Hornsby comes back over and starts harassing me again, and all the sudden I'm flanked by both dogs, nuzzling me on the couch.
But the animals weren't done yet.
Then, Mr. Orange makes his way over to the couch and I'll be damned if he didn't decide that my keyboard was the perfect spot for his fuzzy bum. I almost relegated my evening to herding the animals, and then I thought, "There is no way that the whole spinster-and-45-cats myth is true. I can't even manage one evening alone with two dogs and two cats."
Seriously, these guys may be cute, but they are needy little buggers.
(Couldn't help but take advantage of the opportunity to showcase the lovely furs of the House of England)
But the upshot is that this evening, since Dave is off work tomorrow for some vague reason I can't exactly remember, he went to a show with a couple of friends tonight, meaning that the house was splendidly silent when I got home. I unloaded my car and took the dogs out to take a crap in a neighbor's yard, and then came inside to settle in for the night in my nice, quiet house, with the TV turned off.
So, naturally, I wanted to relax, or do whatever the fuck I wanted, because hey, I'm all like McCauley Culkin, I'm home alone. Or at least that's what I thought. No sireee, the cats were screaming like their fat asses were going to die from starvation at. any. moment. I cracked open a few cans of animal slurry (Purina calls it dog/cat food) and fed everybody. I thought my duties as the dutiful pet owner were done.
I was wrong.
After I sat my fat ass on the couch and pulled up my laptop and Diet Coke (with Splenda, mind you) and got serious about catching up on tonight's Democratic debate in Austin, Hornsby started nudging and licking my pants leg. Apparently dogs need affection, too. I got a little annoyed, and I told him to go lay down. He did, but then Fitzgerald climbs his cute little butt up into my face and starts licking me. God. I couldn't resist the cuteness. So, Hornsby comes back over and starts harassing me again, and all the sudden I'm flanked by both dogs, nuzzling me on the couch.
But the animals weren't done yet.
Then, Mr. Orange makes his way over to the couch and I'll be damned if he didn't decide that my keyboard was the perfect spot for his fuzzy bum. I almost relegated my evening to herding the animals, and then I thought, "There is no way that the whole spinster-and-45-cats myth is true. I can't even manage one evening alone with two dogs and two cats."
Seriously, these guys may be cute, but they are needy little buggers.
(Couldn't help but take advantage of the opportunity to showcase the lovely furs of the House of England)
Tuesday, February 19, 2008
Will someone go camping with me? PLEASE?
So, for the past 5 or 6 days I've been looking through REI and several other camping/backpacking gear sites for camping equipment. Just the stuff I'd need to survive in the back country for a weekend. I've been obsessing about camping. A lot. I've been consumed in envy over my sister's backpacking trip she took last year with my brother and sister-in-law.
I really want to go camping if you couldn't already tell, so when Dave said there would be a music festival we should go to where there would be camping(!!!) I immdediately started scheming over what kind of tent we should get, and should I go ahead and get a backpack, and whether or not I should get a cool little gas stove, too, because we need coffee in the morning, and what about a new sleeping bag?
Well, since this function isn't until April, I guess I have a lot more obsessing ahead of me. Between now and then though, could someone please take this poor, deprived, ex-Girl Scout camping? Please?
I really want to go camping if you couldn't already tell, so when Dave said there would be a music festival we should go to where there would be camping(!!!) I immdediately started scheming over what kind of tent we should get, and should I go ahead and get a backpack, and whether or not I should get a cool little gas stove, too, because we need coffee in the morning, and what about a new sleeping bag?
Well, since this function isn't until April, I guess I have a lot more obsessing ahead of me. Between now and then though, could someone please take this poor, deprived, ex-Girl Scout camping? Please?
Torrents of the Man Flu
Since last Wednesday I've been afflicted by the changing tides of illness, one so debilitating it can only be described as Matt's last spurious case of Man Flu. I know I'm not a man, but after reading the Wikipedia article on Man Flu (I shit you not) I now know that Man Flu may at times afflict the unsuspecting woman.
So, being the conscientious gal that I am, I didn't want to infect my coworkers with this virus if it happened to be the Full-out Flu and not its more tempestuous cousin, Man Flu. I scheduled an appointment with a doctor for 3 p.m. the next day for a Flu test.
Now, doctors' offices have waiting rooms. Big ones and small ones. They are self explanatory, yet that does not assuage the agony of waiting to find out which dastardly strain of flu might have infected your once able body. Instead you lay in a heap of anxiety and wait. The doctor arrived and jabbed my brain through my nostril with an 8-inch swab, and then I waited. And waited. And waited.
Test came back negative, so it's not Killer Flu, nor Full-out Flu. Though the doctor mistakenly marked my chart with "Viral illness" when I'm sure she meant "Man Flu."
So anyway. I've been coming to work just trying to manage the Man Flu symptoms: sore throat, full sinuses, throbbing head, achy back. No fever though. I'm totally exhausted and my limbs feel 40 lbs. heavier, which is like the death knell for a fat girl. I already feel heavy every day.
Everyone seems to be getting either the Man Flu or the Oh-My-God-I'm-Dying-of-Ebola Flu. Neither are swell. But I'm lucky to have the manageable one I suppose.
Y'all be careful out there.
So, being the conscientious gal that I am, I didn't want to infect my coworkers with this virus if it happened to be the Full-out Flu and not its more tempestuous cousin, Man Flu. I scheduled an appointment with a doctor for 3 p.m. the next day for a Flu test.
Now, doctors' offices have waiting rooms. Big ones and small ones. They are self explanatory, yet that does not assuage the agony of waiting to find out which dastardly strain of flu might have infected your once able body. Instead you lay in a heap of anxiety and wait. The doctor arrived and jabbed my brain through my nostril with an 8-inch swab, and then I waited. And waited. And waited.
Test came back negative, so it's not Killer Flu, nor Full-out Flu. Though the doctor mistakenly marked my chart with "Viral illness" when I'm sure she meant "Man Flu."
So anyway. I've been coming to work just trying to manage the Man Flu symptoms: sore throat, full sinuses, throbbing head, achy back. No fever though. I'm totally exhausted and my limbs feel 40 lbs. heavier, which is like the death knell for a fat girl. I already feel heavy every day.
Everyone seems to be getting either the Man Flu or the Oh-My-God-I'm-Dying-of-Ebola Flu. Neither are swell. But I'm lucky to have the manageable one I suppose.
Y'all be careful out there.
Saturday, February 09, 2008
Man and Wife in hot water
People say that things like infidelity, intimacy and leaving the toilet seat up will test a marriage. They’re full of it. Nothing tests a marriage like a leaky water heater. Early Saturday morning, Dave woke me with one sentence: “I think the water heater is busted.” In just seconds I was wide awake and mopping up our kitchen with the towels we got from our wedding registry. If anyone knows me, and knows me somewhat well, they know what I’m like dealing with a crisis in the middle of the night. I’m a God-awful bitch. A hopeless nag. I’m serving up guilt with a side of “I told you so.”
Now, our water heater is a sensitive subject. When we bought the house in which we live now, our Realtor, our seller’s Realtor and our home inspector all told us that we should replace the water heater before we have an emergency plumbing call in our future. I thought, “Hey, these guys know what they’re talking about. We should replace this thing before we have to get up in the middle of the night to mop up our kitchen.” Dave, however, did not share my incredible foresight. Dave is a flashy exterior kind of guy. I’m a brick-and-mortar person. When it comes to home improvements I’m more keen on taking care of the stuff that needs to be taken care of for the life of the home. Dave likes to make things look pretty. I don't have anything against pretty things, but I like those pretty things to actually make a sound structure, one that won't randomly gush water from weird places, look good.
So, we're up in a flash with mounds of damp towels trying to soak up the mess that has spilled forth from our water heater. I'm grumbling profanity and Dave is really trying quite hard to make the most of the situation. He's poking fun and making jokes and doing all that crap while I'm soaking my pajamas and socks, wading around our kitchen, trying to mop up all this friggin' water with my nice bath towels. Did I mention I was trying to mop up water with my nice bath towels? Yeah. The ones I registered for. For our wedding. Yeah, those.
So, we get things dry enough in the kitchen that Dave says to let well enough alone and go back to bed. So much for Saturday morning yoga. I didn't roll back out from under our exquisite down comforter until well after 9 a.m. and I got up then only because Dave said we had even more water on our kitchen floor than before. That's after we hooked up a garden hose, turned off the filler valve and closed off the gas. Since there was more water, we needed more towels. It was a repeat of our 3 a.m. de-messifying.
We were in quite figurative hot water. Our water heater was on its last legs. Those legs were beginning to crumple and disintigrate. We didn't know what to do. Next logical step: Call your father-in-law and bleat like a panicked goat.
Bobby, in all his cool-as-a-cucumber-ness, came to our rescue. He phoned his moonlighting plumber friend and we were set to get a new, incredibly better water heater at a fraction of the price most people pay to have one installed. I was friggin' thrilled, especially after Dave's 3 a.m. "Let's wait it out through Monday" suggestion. I'm sorry, but I'm a female with good hygeine (the opposite of Dave) and I can't wait for two days to shower. Period.
Moonlighting Plumber Guy was a real treat though. He had trouble finding the house, but when he arrived I was almost giddy. He was the definition of macho wrapped in a stereotypical asshole packaged and tied with a length of mullet-tastic-ness. Seriously, the guy had the balls for a mullet, and his truck had a set of plastic testicles hanging from the back. I don't think it gets much better than that. He did do a great job, though. He took only about 5 hours to get the water heater, fit the pipes, fit the vent and somehow fit the water heater in our incredibly small closet. Kudos, Mr. Mullet-Plumber.
Though today's grand event was supposed to be the installation of our wireless internet. It's coolness is compounded by the fact that I can now work from home on days I feel shitty. Awesome. Not only that though, but the cable guy was so sweet. THis was his first time to install a new cable connection all by his lonesome. And when everything worked properly we high-fived. There was a moment, I'm not going to deny it, when I had the Jerry Maguire You-complete-me look in his eyes. In a flash it was gone, but our insanely fast wireless internet remains. Everyone, rejoice.
So, I'll bid you folks adieu. I'm going to take a nice, hot, shower and mull over how many thousands of ways today could have gone so much worse. But it didn't.
Now, our water heater is a sensitive subject. When we bought the house in which we live now, our Realtor, our seller’s Realtor and our home inspector all told us that we should replace the water heater before we have an emergency plumbing call in our future. I thought, “Hey, these guys know what they’re talking about. We should replace this thing before we have to get up in the middle of the night to mop up our kitchen.” Dave, however, did not share my incredible foresight. Dave is a flashy exterior kind of guy. I’m a brick-and-mortar person. When it comes to home improvements I’m more keen on taking care of the stuff that needs to be taken care of for the life of the home. Dave likes to make things look pretty. I don't have anything against pretty things, but I like those pretty things to actually make a sound structure, one that won't randomly gush water from weird places, look good.
So, we're up in a flash with mounds of damp towels trying to soak up the mess that has spilled forth from our water heater. I'm grumbling profanity and Dave is really trying quite hard to make the most of the situation. He's poking fun and making jokes and doing all that crap while I'm soaking my pajamas and socks, wading around our kitchen, trying to mop up all this friggin' water with my nice bath towels. Did I mention I was trying to mop up water with my nice bath towels? Yeah. The ones I registered for. For our wedding. Yeah, those.
So, we get things dry enough in the kitchen that Dave says to let well enough alone and go back to bed. So much for Saturday morning yoga. I didn't roll back out from under our exquisite down comforter until well after 9 a.m. and I got up then only because Dave said we had even more water on our kitchen floor than before. That's after we hooked up a garden hose, turned off the filler valve and closed off the gas. Since there was more water, we needed more towels. It was a repeat of our 3 a.m. de-messifying.
We were in quite figurative hot water. Our water heater was on its last legs. Those legs were beginning to crumple and disintigrate. We didn't know what to do. Next logical step: Call your father-in-law and bleat like a panicked goat.
Bobby, in all his cool-as-a-cucumber-ness, came to our rescue. He phoned his moonlighting plumber friend and we were set to get a new, incredibly better water heater at a fraction of the price most people pay to have one installed. I was friggin' thrilled, especially after Dave's 3 a.m. "Let's wait it out through Monday" suggestion. I'm sorry, but I'm a female with good hygeine (the opposite of Dave) and I can't wait for two days to shower. Period.
Moonlighting Plumber Guy was a real treat though. He had trouble finding the house, but when he arrived I was almost giddy. He was the definition of macho wrapped in a stereotypical asshole packaged and tied with a length of mullet-tastic-ness. Seriously, the guy had the balls for a mullet, and his truck had a set of plastic testicles hanging from the back. I don't think it gets much better than that. He did do a great job, though. He took only about 5 hours to get the water heater, fit the pipes, fit the vent and somehow fit the water heater in our incredibly small closet. Kudos, Mr. Mullet-Plumber.
Though today's grand event was supposed to be the installation of our wireless internet. It's coolness is compounded by the fact that I can now work from home on days I feel shitty. Awesome. Not only that though, but the cable guy was so sweet. THis was his first time to install a new cable connection all by his lonesome. And when everything worked properly we high-fived. There was a moment, I'm not going to deny it, when I had the Jerry Maguire You-complete-me look in his eyes. In a flash it was gone, but our insanely fast wireless internet remains. Everyone, rejoice.
So, I'll bid you folks adieu. I'm going to take a nice, hot, shower and mull over how many thousands of ways today could have gone so much worse. But it didn't.
Friday, February 08, 2008
Making it count
I've talked about my fat-ass problem before. I'm a fat-ass. It's genetic. I come from a long line of habitual overeaters and underexercisers. But, I'm trying to fight genetics and sometimes I feel like its a losing battle.
Despite the fact that I have huge hips (if someone says "child-bearing" I sweartoGod...) and very short legs and arms, which make me constantly look fat, I have the goal of pulling my ass up by its bootstraps and flattening out my tummy. This may or may not result in a more svelte, healthy body, but hey, it's a goal, right?
In order to accoomplish that goal I've started keeping track of what I eat via a food diary. This, my friends, sucks. I did it before when I first started trying to lose weight before our Key West trip. It really does work. But counting calories is a frackin' pain in the ass! You can't eat anything without nutritional information! Many of my favorite recipes don't have nutritional information. ARGH!!!
So, I can't eat a lot of stuff that isn't either prepackaged or predictable. My diet lately has consisted of raw fruit, yogurt, granola bars, cereal, canned soup and pre packaged popcorn or cookies in individual servings. DOUBLE ARGH!!!
If we go out to restaurants I check out the nutritionals on the website and don't order any tea or appetizers. That means no chips and salsa at Tex Mex restaurants, which is sucky!
But, I have found that I'm not the only one who is nursing a slim-fast and bitching. In fact, there are huge communities of people that read Hungry Girl just like me, tons of people that get excited over spray salad dressing that tastes more like the real thing. People that go through the trouble of typing in their recipies into Calorie King to log their food journals.
Seriously, this sucks, but I've got to make it count this time. Hopefully I'll make it last, too. At least that's what my fat ass hopes, right, chubby?
Despite the fact that I have huge hips (if someone says "child-bearing" I sweartoGod...) and very short legs and arms, which make me constantly look fat, I have the goal of pulling my ass up by its bootstraps and flattening out my tummy. This may or may not result in a more svelte, healthy body, but hey, it's a goal, right?
In order to accoomplish that goal I've started keeping track of what I eat via a food diary. This, my friends, sucks. I did it before when I first started trying to lose weight before our Key West trip. It really does work. But counting calories is a frackin' pain in the ass! You can't eat anything without nutritional information! Many of my favorite recipes don't have nutritional information. ARGH!!!
So, I can't eat a lot of stuff that isn't either prepackaged or predictable. My diet lately has consisted of raw fruit, yogurt, granola bars, cereal, canned soup and pre packaged popcorn or cookies in individual servings. DOUBLE ARGH!!!
If we go out to restaurants I check out the nutritionals on the website and don't order any tea or appetizers. That means no chips and salsa at Tex Mex restaurants, which is sucky!
But, I have found that I'm not the only one who is nursing a slim-fast and bitching. In fact, there are huge communities of people that read Hungry Girl just like me, tons of people that get excited over spray salad dressing that tastes more like the real thing. People that go through the trouble of typing in their recipies into Calorie King to log their food journals.
Seriously, this sucks, but I've got to make it count this time. Hopefully I'll make it last, too. At least that's what my fat ass hopes, right, chubby?
Thursday, February 07, 2008
Hey dere bebedawl!
So, Dave usually calls me around lunch time, either before or after, to just chat a bit and talk about how our days are going, plans for this evening, etc. I've been on the phone today with lots of people, several have been calling back intermittently. So, it's about 10 after 1 p.m. and I'm expecting Dave to call any minute now. Any minute. And my phone rings at my desk. I don't even check the number.
"Hey dere bebedawl!"
"Uh... is Joanna England?"
"Ummm... yes?"
"This is Soandso from What'shisname's office. I'm calling about scheduling your appointment."
So embarassing!
"Hey dere bebedawl!"
"Uh... is Joanna England?"
"Ummm... yes?"
"This is Soandso from What'shisname's office. I'm calling about scheduling your appointment."
So embarassing!
A moving memory
We've been talking -- actually, I've been talking, Dave's been listening -- about putting in a picture rail to hang our art in our dining area. I love hanging art, but I hate putting holes in my walls, especially walls that were ridiculously hard to paint!
Anyway, I'll probably be ordering those picture rails, soon, and some hooks. But, once I started checking out the hooks and the finishes available, I also started looking at the other hardware they sold. Such ornate door latches and hinges. Beautiful lock-sets, mail slots, knobs and trim. Even hand-antiqued vent grates! Most of these touches would look awesome on a Victorian or Craftsman-type home. I started thinking about how much I missed our old neighborhood. Yes, we were renting a 1905 Craftsman, but if I could've afforded it, I would have bought that house and renovated it. I would have poured my soul into that house. Alas, it wasn't meant to be.
I do think it's something that Dave and I would enjoy doing, but we've barely lived in this house, which is only 50 years old. I really want to make our house feel like it did when it was a home to its first family. I want to refinish the crank-case windows and repaint the outside to restore it's character. But just for a while, it's nice to imagine putting your sweat and love into a gorgeous Victorian, and it loving you right back.
Anyway, I'll probably be ordering those picture rails, soon, and some hooks. But, once I started checking out the hooks and the finishes available, I also started looking at the other hardware they sold. Such ornate door latches and hinges. Beautiful lock-sets, mail slots, knobs and trim. Even hand-antiqued vent grates! Most of these touches would look awesome on a Victorian or Craftsman-type home. I started thinking about how much I missed our old neighborhood. Yes, we were renting a 1905 Craftsman, but if I could've afforded it, I would have bought that house and renovated it. I would have poured my soul into that house. Alas, it wasn't meant to be.
I do think it's something that Dave and I would enjoy doing, but we've barely lived in this house, which is only 50 years old. I really want to make our house feel like it did when it was a home to its first family. I want to refinish the crank-case windows and repaint the outside to restore it's character. But just for a while, it's nice to imagine putting your sweat and love into a gorgeous Victorian, and it loving you right back.
Thursday, January 31, 2008
I've had my buns in the kitchen
I know I haven't blogged much this month. My excuse is that we're working on getting the internet back up at the house and work has been ridiculous/crazy busy, so I haven't had time to snatch a few moments from The Man to blog. Lots has happened though, so I'll break it down for you:
* I was in the grocery store one Saturday (like most Saturdays, unfortunately) with Dave (again, unfortunately) when he ran up to me from spending what seemed like eternity in the chip department. "Guess what I found?!" he asked breathlessly. I was rather impatient and huffed, "WHAT?!" He slowly presented the most beautiful item I could ever imagine: Curry flavored low-fat potato crisps! (It's OK to be envious, Matt. It's the same store that has carrot cake cookies.)
* Dave found out about a job opening in Seattle earlier this month. We had talked about possibly living in the Pacific Northwest sometime in the future. So when Dave heard about this job opening within his company he emailed me like he thought the world would end: "THERE'S A JOB IN SEATTLE!!!!! THESE NEVER COME OPEN!!!!!"
We seriously discussed the move (I've learned to take all of Dave's whims seriously because to him, they aren't whims). I cruised Craigslist for job openings with non-profits and media (of which there are few). I did find a couple I wouldn't mind applying for. Then we found out that if we were to move to Seattle and live as close to downtown as we do now to Dallas we would be looking at paying more than $1,500 a month for a two-bedroom. Nu-uh.
We re-evaluated it. I mean, we just bought a frickin' house for crissakes! We haven't lived there for a year yet! There's no way we'd be able to sell in that amount of time and make a decent profit. And we have four animals, which are all very particular about moving. And we'd have to sell one of our cars, much of our furniture and about half of Dave's clothes. It just wasn't going to happen.
If we were still renting, I might have gone for it. I mean, it's Seattle, which is at least 20 times better than Dallas, and you're so close to Canada, and the ocean, and legitimate culture. I could go on about how much better Seattle is than Dallas, but you get the point.
We've also talked about moving to St. Louis, but that's like trading in a 1987 Cadillac for a 2002 Buick: it's better, but not by enough to make me really excited about it.
Anyway, if a position opens up in Seattle (or St. Louis) maybe 4 or 5 years from now, we'll probably take it a lot more seriously.
* I finished the fingerless mittens I was going on and on about. They are awesome! I love the pattern: Fetching, by Cheryl Niamath in the Summer 2006 issue of Knitty. The pattern calls for Debbie Bliss Cashmerino aran, but the fine ladies at The Shabby Sheep said that Berroco Pure Merino aran would substitute just fine. And boy did it! I'll be making a second pair for my sister Kara, also in the Ensign Blue colorway:
* Fitzgerald has been quite neurotic lately. He used to love car rides, but now when Dave brings the dogs when he picks me up from the station some nights, Fitzy freaks out. He's so nervous that he pants like crazy and shakes all the way home. Poor little baby!
* We had Ikea madness earlier this month. We bought two wall-mounted Billy book cases; the medium brown one for the bedroom and the black/brown one for the living room. They each have two glass doors and blend perfectly with the existing furniture. We also bought a laundry organization system.
None of this seems really remarkable until I tell you that Dave put all of this together almost completely by himself. That's right. The completely un-handy Dave we all know and love. And yes, they work and have not fallen apart (yet). These caused him a lot of stress, and I'm really proud of the work he did. Now, I bet you're wondering how I got him to assemble all this stuff, and I'll tell you, it was easy. I was cooking. Dave doesn't interrupt my time in the kitchen because he loves to eat. So if something needs to get done while I'm cooking, he does it himself, though he does come through the galley to ask questions like, "Where's this confounded piece?!" and "What the hell kind of screws do you use to make this stick to the wall?" God love him!
* We hung out with a couple of our friends last Friday evening. They are really cool people, but they are going through a really complicated time in their marriage. They have two excellent kids, both of which I'd be ridiculously proud to have squeezed from between my legs. But, as much as I really love their parents, it's almost unbearably awkward to be around the two of them. It's just a really tense dynamic and it's like, there are two sides, and you don't want to take one, but it's like they both want to make sure that you're on their side. Ugh. I know this sounds like a common problem, but I've never been through it. I just hope all turns out well for them, because, like I said, I love them both and I don't like to see things so complicated.
* Last Sunday I nearly baked myself to death. I had been looking forward to getting some sewing done last week but it got pushed aside in favor of relaxation (!), cleaning (!) and cooking. I was going to originally bake one chocolate angel food cake, two different kinds of muffins and bread. I started to make the angel food cake, knowing that I only had enough sugar and eggs for one, but I was reading the wrong recipe and I started making plain angel food cake!!! So I had a choice to make: peel my jammies off and put on a bra to go fetch eggs and sugar, or just live with plain ol' angle food cake. I ran to the store, of course. Here are the products of my labors:
The chocolate one is almost gone now. We are still plugging away at the plain one. It's a tough task to dispose of cake, but I measure we're up to the challenge.
No mixes here! Lovely little lemon poppyseed muffins from scratch! I'm thinking about buying one of those muffin pans that makes them shaped like muffin tops! Perfect!
I know what you're thinking: "How can I get excited about stinking bran muffins?" Well, they are really quite good, expecially since they've got a little orange zest in them and some finely chopped walnuts! Very rich and tasty with big ol' mushroom tops!
And a beautiful little plain loaf of bread. I kneaded this by hand, which I swear to never do again. Next time I'm going to make it whole wheat. Awesome.
Hope you enjoyed this insanely long post. I promise to blog more often to spare you guys!
* I was in the grocery store one Saturday (like most Saturdays, unfortunately) with Dave (again, unfortunately) when he ran up to me from spending what seemed like eternity in the chip department. "Guess what I found?!" he asked breathlessly. I was rather impatient and huffed, "WHAT?!" He slowly presented the most beautiful item I could ever imagine: Curry flavored low-fat potato crisps! (It's OK to be envious, Matt. It's the same store that has carrot cake cookies.)
* Dave found out about a job opening in Seattle earlier this month. We had talked about possibly living in the Pacific Northwest sometime in the future. So when Dave heard about this job opening within his company he emailed me like he thought the world would end: "THERE'S A JOB IN SEATTLE!!!!! THESE NEVER COME OPEN!!!!!"
We seriously discussed the move (I've learned to take all of Dave's whims seriously because to him, they aren't whims). I cruised Craigslist for job openings with non-profits and media (of which there are few). I did find a couple I wouldn't mind applying for. Then we found out that if we were to move to Seattle and live as close to downtown as we do now to Dallas we would be looking at paying more than $1,500 a month for a two-bedroom. Nu-uh.
We re-evaluated it. I mean, we just bought a frickin' house for crissakes! We haven't lived there for a year yet! There's no way we'd be able to sell in that amount of time and make a decent profit. And we have four animals, which are all very particular about moving. And we'd have to sell one of our cars, much of our furniture and about half of Dave's clothes. It just wasn't going to happen.
If we were still renting, I might have gone for it. I mean, it's Seattle, which is at least 20 times better than Dallas, and you're so close to Canada, and the ocean, and legitimate culture. I could go on about how much better Seattle is than Dallas, but you get the point.
We've also talked about moving to St. Louis, but that's like trading in a 1987 Cadillac for a 2002 Buick: it's better, but not by enough to make me really excited about it.
Anyway, if a position opens up in Seattle (or St. Louis) maybe 4 or 5 years from now, we'll probably take it a lot more seriously.
* I finished the fingerless mittens I was going on and on about. They are awesome! I love the pattern: Fetching, by Cheryl Niamath in the Summer 2006 issue of Knitty. The pattern calls for Debbie Bliss Cashmerino aran, but the fine ladies at The Shabby Sheep said that Berroco Pure Merino aran would substitute just fine. And boy did it! I'll be making a second pair for my sister Kara, also in the Ensign Blue colorway:
* Fitzgerald has been quite neurotic lately. He used to love car rides, but now when Dave brings the dogs when he picks me up from the station some nights, Fitzy freaks out. He's so nervous that he pants like crazy and shakes all the way home. Poor little baby!
* We had Ikea madness earlier this month. We bought two wall-mounted Billy book cases; the medium brown one for the bedroom and the black/brown one for the living room. They each have two glass doors and blend perfectly with the existing furniture. We also bought a laundry organization system.
None of this seems really remarkable until I tell you that Dave put all of this together almost completely by himself. That's right. The completely un-handy Dave we all know and love. And yes, they work and have not fallen apart (yet). These caused him a lot of stress, and I'm really proud of the work he did. Now, I bet you're wondering how I got him to assemble all this stuff, and I'll tell you, it was easy. I was cooking. Dave doesn't interrupt my time in the kitchen because he loves to eat. So if something needs to get done while I'm cooking, he does it himself, though he does come through the galley to ask questions like, "Where's this confounded piece?!" and "What the hell kind of screws do you use to make this stick to the wall?" God love him!
* We hung out with a couple of our friends last Friday evening. They are really cool people, but they are going through a really complicated time in their marriage. They have two excellent kids, both of which I'd be ridiculously proud to have squeezed from between my legs. But, as much as I really love their parents, it's almost unbearably awkward to be around the two of them. It's just a really tense dynamic and it's like, there are two sides, and you don't want to take one, but it's like they both want to make sure that you're on their side. Ugh. I know this sounds like a common problem, but I've never been through it. I just hope all turns out well for them, because, like I said, I love them both and I don't like to see things so complicated.
* Last Sunday I nearly baked myself to death. I had been looking forward to getting some sewing done last week but it got pushed aside in favor of relaxation (!), cleaning (!) and cooking. I was going to originally bake one chocolate angel food cake, two different kinds of muffins and bread. I started to make the angel food cake, knowing that I only had enough sugar and eggs for one, but I was reading the wrong recipe and I started making plain angel food cake!!! So I had a choice to make: peel my jammies off and put on a bra to go fetch eggs and sugar, or just live with plain ol' angle food cake. I ran to the store, of course. Here are the products of my labors:
The chocolate one is almost gone now. We are still plugging away at the plain one. It's a tough task to dispose of cake, but I measure we're up to the challenge.
No mixes here! Lovely little lemon poppyseed muffins from scratch! I'm thinking about buying one of those muffin pans that makes them shaped like muffin tops! Perfect!
I know what you're thinking: "How can I get excited about stinking bran muffins?" Well, they are really quite good, expecially since they've got a little orange zest in them and some finely chopped walnuts! Very rich and tasty with big ol' mushroom tops!
And a beautiful little plain loaf of bread. I kneaded this by hand, which I swear to never do again. Next time I'm going to make it whole wheat. Awesome.
Hope you enjoyed this insanely long post. I promise to blog more often to spare you guys!
Thursday, January 10, 2008
Revelry unraveled
Dave and I usually don't go to wild and crazy parties. In fact, we never go to wild and crazy anything because most of our friends have kids, many of which are still in that weird, parasitic stage where they have to take them everywhere with them. So, on NYE we hung out with Dave and Christine at their nearby home, thus cutting the distance we would have to transverse in a less than optimal state (a few blocks, not driving thankyouverymuch). It was a good time, as is any party with gratuitous karaoke and lotsa booze.
We brought some crusty Italian bread, some good cheese and some prosciutto with us, and of course, a bottle of Asti. Christine is an amazing cook, and there were lots of great munchies, like fondue, stuffed mushrooms, stuffed endives, and other stuff containing beef that looked tasty but is off limits for me and my husband.
So, in between glasses of wine and champagne we chatted, sang, rang in the new year and generally got boozed up crazy-like.
If you couldn't already tell, I look like either a fish or a moron in all of the pictures we took that night. I have a tendency to do that when inebriated. Though, the best picture is child exploitation at its finest:
Cute baby holding a package of ... cock soup.
Happy New Year!
We brought some crusty Italian bread, some good cheese and some prosciutto with us, and of course, a bottle of Asti. Christine is an amazing cook, and there were lots of great munchies, like fondue, stuffed mushrooms, stuffed endives, and other stuff containing beef that looked tasty but is off limits for me and my husband.
So, in between glasses of wine and champagne we chatted, sang, rang in the new year and generally got boozed up crazy-like.
If you couldn't already tell, I look like either a fish or a moron in all of the pictures we took that night. I have a tendency to do that when inebriated. Though, the best picture is child exploitation at its finest:
Cute baby holding a package of ... cock soup.
Happy New Year!
Tuesday, January 08, 2008
Lowe's: Our home away from home
If I haven't been knitting or yoga-ing or cooking lately, I've been working on the house. We've had a rash of home improvements lately, including new blinds:
Our bamboo shades in our three bedroom windows,
Top-down, bottom-up linen shades in the yoga room
and top-down, bottom-up linen shades for the living room.
We've also put in new lights:
New track lighting (awesome!) in the dining room,
new fixture for the baseball room,
fabulous new lights for the yoga room
and a new pot rack/island fixture for the kitchen. (The fixture is awesome, but now it's too dark in the kitchen at night. We're going to have to find a solution for this, fast.)
Also notable: I finished my first fingerless mitten (Fetching by Cheryl Niamath in Pure Merino by Berroco in the Ensign Blue colorway) and I've started on the second! I'm making two pairs; one for me and one for my awesome sister Kara.
I know I haven't blogged about my New Year's Eve escapades, but, yanno, it's TK.
Our bamboo shades in our three bedroom windows,
Top-down, bottom-up linen shades in the yoga room
and top-down, bottom-up linen shades for the living room.
We've also put in new lights:
New track lighting (awesome!) in the dining room,
new fixture for the baseball room,
fabulous new lights for the yoga room
and a new pot rack/island fixture for the kitchen. (The fixture is awesome, but now it's too dark in the kitchen at night. We're going to have to find a solution for this, fast.)
Also notable: I finished my first fingerless mitten (Fetching by Cheryl Niamath in Pure Merino by Berroco in the Ensign Blue colorway) and I've started on the second! I'm making two pairs; one for me and one for my awesome sister Kara.
I know I haven't blogged about my New Year's Eve escapades, but, yanno, it's TK.
Wednesday, January 02, 2008
Let's review...
Last year I was busy catching up while the kitties were busy breaking in their condo. Too bad I didn't record my resolutions.
In 2007 I was to:
1) Get into bikini shape before my Key West vacation. (check!)
2) Work on inversions, especially scorpion pose. (check!)
3) Run the 5k Turkey Trot on Thanksgiving. (miss!)
Two out of three ain't bad.
This year I'll:
1) Stay in bikini shape and make more trips to the beach this summer to motivate me.
2) Take my inversions off of the wall. (eek!)
3) Run the 5k Turkey Trot on Thanksgiving.
4) Keep up with my knitting.
5) Make a genuine effort to simplify and organize.
***************************************************
Christmas with the family was pretty freakin' awesome! Check out everyone in their cool hats!
(note: the hat on the left was just finished before it was handed over to the rightful owner!)
Hope y'all had a great Christmas and a fabulous New Year's Eve! We'll talk party later!
In 2007 I was to:
1) Get into bikini shape before my Key West vacation. (check!)
2) Work on inversions, especially scorpion pose. (check!)
3) Run the 5k Turkey Trot on Thanksgiving. (miss!)
Two out of three ain't bad.
This year I'll:
1) Stay in bikini shape and make more trips to the beach this summer to motivate me.
2) Take my inversions off of the wall. (eek!)
3) Run the 5k Turkey Trot on Thanksgiving.
4) Keep up with my knitting.
5) Make a genuine effort to simplify and organize.
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Christmas with the family was pretty freakin' awesome! Check out everyone in their cool hats!
(note: the hat on the left was just finished before it was handed over to the rightful owner!)
Hope y'all had a great Christmas and a fabulous New Year's Eve! We'll talk party later!
Friday, December 21, 2007
Subtle changes in temperature
I am loving this weather. It's brisk in the morning and warms to a pleasant coolness in the afternoon to then drop to snuggle-under-the-down temperatures at night. This weather is perfect for brewing a pot of black currant tea, lounging with the TV in the background and knitting up a storm. Dave and I had a nice little pre-Christmas exchange before our dinner of asparagus ravioli and rye crisps with lox and dill. This is what I got:
Le Creuset 4.5 quart covered casserole and piccolo teapot in red! YAY!!!!
I also decided that wrapping all of those hats was easy enough to do again, so I unwrapped almost all of them to take photos (not Dave's, b/c I know I'll see it on him)
This is for Vicki. It's a rolled brim cap made of novelty rainbow boucle. Never again will I use this yarn! What a pain!
This is the cap I'm going to attach a note with and then take the recipient yarn shopping. I just can't bring myself to like this hat. Poo.
This hat is super soft and knit in a double eyelet rib. I think it's cute and I really hope my sister likes it.
Finally finished the blue hat, so I can tick it off my list. Problem is, the recipient has a larger sized head, so I hope this ribbing will stretch enough to fit him. *fingerscrossed*
I started the decreasing rounds of my mom's cable hat and I'm going to start/finish my brother-in-law's hat today and tomorrow. Wish me luck!
Le Creuset 4.5 quart covered casserole and piccolo teapot in red! YAY!!!!
I also decided that wrapping all of those hats was easy enough to do again, so I unwrapped almost all of them to take photos (not Dave's, b/c I know I'll see it on him)
This is for Vicki. It's a rolled brim cap made of novelty rainbow boucle. Never again will I use this yarn! What a pain!
This is the cap I'm going to attach a note with and then take the recipient yarn shopping. I just can't bring myself to like this hat. Poo.
This hat is super soft and knit in a double eyelet rib. I think it's cute and I really hope my sister likes it.
Finally finished the blue hat, so I can tick it off my list. Problem is, the recipient has a larger sized head, so I hope this ribbing will stretch enough to fit him. *fingerscrossed*
I started the decreasing rounds of my mom's cable hat and I'm going to start/finish my brother-in-law's hat today and tomorrow. Wish me luck!
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