hmmm...

Today is another one of those days that I seem to have zip to say.
(Yes. I know you're remembering the last time I said that and how the post took up a lot of room. This time is different.)
No. I have nothing to rant about. Nothing funny to relay. No deep thoughts or complicated spiels.
Just. Nothing.
Mid-week slump, perhaps.
(I am writing though - maybe all my conversationally interesting (ha ha) things to say are occupied with my book. Yeah. That's it.)
Behave.

Tuesday. Already?

Yesterday I was whining to a fellow writer about the scant amount of pages I was churning out. Granted, I wasn't feeling so hot - not quite the germ-fest K3 had, but not feeling myself at all. I'd propped myself up on the couch, with my laptop and the remote and no matter what I tried, I couldn't get into the story. When I talked to her, I had a mere 7 pages written.
Part of the problem is my current story. I'm not a huge plotter, but I usually know a little of what's going to happen. This one is blindsiding me at every turn. Half the time I'm ready to toss it in the fire. The thing is I like this book. I like the characters, the twists and the growing relationship between the sisters and their men. This one is a challenge on a lot of different levels - I have three very distinct point of views for three very distinct personalities. One sister swears like a sailor - one is proper and polite. One rides a Harley - one drives a Jaguar. Once I get into their heads, I'm fine, but sometimes getting there is a struggle. Copious notes and the fact that even though each are different, they're still fun to write is probably the only thing that saves me from going insane.
Something clicked then, the pages came easier, the story clearer. And at the end of the day, I ended up with 31 pages. My goal was 30 - until I realized one more would put me at the half-way point.
And I can't get the progress meter to work, but if I could, it would be dead-on 50%. I still feel like I'm being slow, but at least I am moving forward.

Snowy Sunday

It's snowing here.
Or it was. Doesn't appear to be doing much of anything out there right now and I'm not sure of the forecast at this point. All our evening activities were canceled before the first flake even fell, so we're hanging out at home - taking naps (me), watching NASCAR (B)and working in the room.
Progress is being made, but it's not fast enough for me. I'm ready to paint. B has some problem with that since he's not done patching holes and making dust. Go figure. I've been kicked off the hole patching job. Yes. Even the little ones. I obviously suck at it. I just want to paint. That's all I care about right now. Yesterday while he cut drywall and made dust, I wrote. And I'll be going back to new pages as soon as I'm done catching up with the 'net.
Hope you're enjoying your weekend!

50 Things...

Borrowed this from Misty...
(I don't think there are 50 things here, but whatever) :)
1. Height?
5′2″
2. Have you ever smoked heroin?
Nope.
3. Do you own a gun?
Nope
5. Do you get nervous before doctor appointments?
Not usually
6. What do you think of hot dogs?
Bleech!
7. What’s your favorite Christmas song?
White Christmas
8. What do you prefer to drink in the morning?
Coffee
9. Can you do push ups?
Maybe one. Maybe.
10. Is your bathroom clean?
Are you kidding me? It was. (see post on germs)
11. What’s your favorite piece of jewelry?
Wedding rings.
12. Do you like painkillers?
Nope
13. What is your secret weapon to lure in the opposite sex?
ha ha ha
14. Do you have A.D.D.?
Who me? Did you see that? Wait. I have to do this first. Did you answer the question? What's that?
15. What’s your name?
The High Mistress of Laundry
16. Middle Name?
I'd tell you, but then you'd know
17. Name 3 thoughts at this exact moment?
I'm cold. Is it really going to ice again like they say? How are we going to get a dryer down the stairs?
18. Name the last 3 things you bought:
HA! Only 3? I just went and did a major grocery shopping.
19. Name 3 drinks you regularly drink:
Diet soda, coffee, diet soda
22. Current worry?
that we'll never finish the bedroom and I'll never have a working dryer
23. Current hate?
people who park in my cleared out spot
24. Favorite place to be?
the beach
25. How did you bring in the New year?
hanging out with obnoxious friends and family
26. Where would you like to go?
The beach
27. Do you own slippers?
yes and I have them on
28. What shirt are you wearing?
gray hooded sweatshirt with dancing monkeys on the front
29. Do you burn or tan?
mostly burn
30. Favorite color(s)?
red, black, pink
31. Would you be a pirate?
Avast. If ye be knowin' me you be already knowin' the answer.
32. Are you gay?
nope
33. What songs do you sing in the shower?
I don't sing in the shower. That would be scary.
34. What did you fear was going to get you at night as a child?
Things under the bed or in the closet.
35. What’s in your pockets right now?
nothing
36. Where are you?
At my desk
37. Best bed sheets as a child?
I can't remember. Why can't I remember?
38. Worst injury you’ve ever had?
broken arm, twice. Lots of stitches.
40. How many TVs do you have in your house?
five
41. Who is your loudest friend?
Misty
42. Who is your quietest friend?
Beth
43. Does someone have a crush on you?
Yeah, right!
44. Do u wish on shooting stars?
Yes
45. What is your favorite book?
Lots – Too many.
46. What is your favorite candy?
Snickers
47. What song do/did you want played at your wedding?
The Chicken Dance
48. What song do you want played at your funeral?
The Hokey Pokey
49. What were you doing at 12AM last night?
I can't tell you that.
50. What was the first thing you thought of when you woke up?
Why is B making so much noise?

Germs!

Germs.

They're in my house and I'm fearful.

K3 spent most of last night...umm...let's just say he's not feeling well, at all, and leave it at that. Let's just say my bathroom is sparkly clean now and leave it at that. Let's just say that if I don't get a working dryer soon something bad is going to happen and leave it at that. Let's just say that I'll spend most of my day cleaning his bedroom and leave it at that.

Alrighty then.

I'm pretty sure that's all I have to say about anything today.

Wednesday...or is it Tuesday?

I find myself without much to say today.
Go figure.
It's incredibly warm here today - like go outside without your jacket warm. Weird, when there's still so much snow on the ground! But the stuff is melting nicely.
Vicky B's book, Akashan'te, comes out tomorrow!
Check it out. You won't be sorry.
Lot's of hootin' and hollerin' for that one! We've critiqued together for quite a while, so her becoming published is almost as good as it happening to me!
(I did say almost!)
I also realize I haven't posted an update on the bedroom rearranging for a while.
K2's room is done and she's moved in. Not happy that K4 moved with her for now - even if the whole deal is very temporary.
Now we begin on the master bedroom - which really isn't a master bedroom since there's no bathroom attached. (dang it!)
The ceiling has some issues, but B has a plan for that. We pulled up the carpet, but left it in until the painting is complete. The floor underneath is very nice - stained around the edges, but the center part has never been touched by paint, stain or spillage (thank goodness for good carpet padding). A little sanding and some polyurethane and we're in good shape there. B also found a dead space above the closet and has a plan for that too. The room is a mess of insulation, plaster and old wallpaper, but I have high hopes it'll shape up quickly.
So we are getting there.
Oh, and remember how I said K1 swore he saw a mouse?
Apparently, he really did.
We heard this weird noise last night - kind of like K4 crying, but not really - when we investigated, there was Kramer with a cute little mouse hanging out of his mouth. I'm shocked. I really believed the cat was afraid of his own shadow. Apparently not. He got treats and praise and is still strutting around here like the king of the hill.
That's all I have for now!

Today Should Be Monday...

This picture pretty much describes my day so far! (Just imagine stepping in dog diarrhea first thing...)

Anyway. The Outhouse.

Yeah. We had to use that all weekend.

I don't care how prepared you think you are, one touch of your bare tushies to that frozen white ring and you say, "Holy cow", "Ahh", or whatever you say when you're totally surprised. I kid you not - every. single. time. We spent a long time discussing a portable toilet seat that wouldn't cool down on your trip to the potty house. And my sisters dog had to go with you every time you went and stand outside the door like a sentry.

But, you know what?

I lived.

And I'd still go to the cabin in the dead of winter again.

A Little Peace

This is where I went this weekend.

To a little cabin in the woods with B, my sister and brother-in-law. Just the grownups. The kiddos stayed home with Grandma and we just...relaxed.

The cabin was beautiful - rustic, but not too primitive - if you don't count the part about there being no indoor plumbing. (We'll talk about that later). No electricity either, but propane lights made you forget that (until it was time to make coffee).

Unlike here, the snow up there didn't have ice mixed in. Which was important because the guys had to shovel the vehicle out Saturday morning. We made it down this lane, but there was no way we were coming back up, even in 4-wheel drive.

Now I'm catching up with everything at home, dealing with a kid that came down with a nasty cold while we were gone and tons of laundry. They're back at school tomorrow - after being off for 6 days due to school breaks and weather.

I'll post more pics tomorrow...

Friday

Wow! It's Friday!
I can't believe I missed a day blogging since I've been stuck at home all week!
We're digging out. I love the snow, but what mother nature dumped on us was more ice. Hacking through that to get the cars out was not a fun time. And I'm still a little sore from breaking up what looked like four inches of ice.
Since the word meter is apparently down, I can't post my progress, so I'll do that when it comes back up.
So, last night's Supernatural...Awesome. Hysterical. I wish I had TiVo. But now a month until another new episode! Ack!
K3 has pink eye. K4 is kind of looking like the next in line for it. Always something, huh?
Enjoy the weekend!

Happy Valentine's Day

Eh...
Whatever. We're not big into Valentine's Day around here. Pretty funny coming from a romance writer, huh? But...as B puts it, "I don't need a special day to show you how much you mean to me." And he doesn't. He's a very romantic, very thoughtful guy. Sweet.

The weather went from snow to ice. I think we have more ice than we did snow. It's been sleeting for over 12 hours now. School is canceled. A lot of businesses are closed. We're set here, except for the occasional arguments over what's being watched on TV. There's 10 years between K1 and K4 - you can imagine the differences in what they want to watch.

Soon, it'll be time to think about shoveling.
I'll try to post of picture of that.
Should be fun.

Snow!

It's snowing here!

No. Really. A lot of snow. And it's supposed to turn to ice at some point. (Thank you, Mother Nature)

That's my puppy. She was only out about 5 minutes to get that covered and I had a hard time convincing her she needed to come back inside. She constantly wants out and is giving me pathetic looks because I don't want to deal with the ick she brings back in with her.

Now I'm waiting to hear if school will let out early. I did the crazy snow shopping last night (after a trip to the post office -creepy at ten o'clock p.m.) - when the store was pretty much out of bread, eggs, milk and toilet paper. Which totally cracks me up. Yeah, I like to be kind of stocked up for a storm, but my stocking up includes mostly junk food. In fact, milk was the only one of those items I bought last night, but we were completely out. That always happens though - I need to do my regular grocery shopping when they're calling for a winter storm. Then everyone looks at me like I'm the crazy one for having such a huge cart.

But, I digress.

Apparently a lot because I can't remember what this post was supposed to be about besides the snow. Since I started this, I've been on the phone nearly nonstop and have checked the closings probably way more frequently than I need to. But, I did just find out they're getting out 2 hours early.

Which means I need to stop gazing out the window and get to work!

The Reason...

Or at least part of it...

Yes, this was drawn on my son's wall.

Yes, it was probably a bad idea to allow the designs and Sharpie marker-ing. But to us, it really wasn't that big of a deal. We'd planned to rip the walls down (horsehair plaster), insulate better and replace with dry wall.

So what started with him jotting down a phone number beside his bed turned into an art's fest. Every visitor he brought home added their comments or artistic skill to the previously light gray walls (which is how the eye got there). He was very proud of his walls. And there was anything you can imagine written and drawn there - song lyrics, lots of phone numbers, quotes from movies, poems and kind of a dairy of sorts. K2 jotted down about helping him clean his room after he was certain he'd seen a mouse. (No one else saw it and we've found absolutely no evidence, so who knows. Maybe it was a ploy to convince her to help him clean.)

Anyway, since this project started earlier than expected, ripping the walls down isn't going to happen - obviously. So we took photographic evidence of each wall and are covering the legacy with primer. Except the red of that eye just won't be obliterated. And the actual color painting hasn't started yet. The hole repair is taking a little longer than expected.

*I've got two home today with fevers. K3 has the stomach bug and K4 is on the fringe.

We Have a Winner...

Pinewood Derby results.

K3 came in 1st in his den and 3rd overall. His car is the one on the left - with the Lego's. The blue represents water and the Lego creation on top is a submarine. He was so cute. And we are so proud. He told us before the race that he was planning on winning.

Audition:

K2 had her theater school audition yesterday. She had a blast and has a really good feeling about it. Getting there was interesting - we drove around trying to find a place to park for almost a half an hour and ended up in a parking garage.

Now picture me ducking as I drive under the concrete supports. I hate parking garages in my Suburban. I have very little clearance and the ducking helps. (stop laughing - I can't help it.)

The Rearrange:

Holes are patched. Painting will commence this afternoon. 1 room almost done, 2 to go. Tomorrow I'll post a picture that should explain why it's taken so long to get to the painting portion of this project. Just think teenage boy with a sharpie marker.

Obviously, I lived through the day without having a clone. I even wrote new pages last night.

Hope you're having a fabulous weekend!

The Weekend

Is here!
Yay!
Except...I don't know why I'm so excited.
Our Saturday is so insane I was checking around for a cloning machine to borrow.
It'll be great, just busy.

I'm ready to start new writing! Yay! Hopefully that word meter will start moving again.

And my dryer died - probably from nearly 24 hours of constant use and it still doesn't look like I've made progress. B thinks he can fix it. Keep your fingers crossed.

Might be Monday until I post again!
Enjoy!

Supernatural

You'll remember I said I don't watch much television.
But there is one show that I will not miss. I even own the entire season 1 on DVD. I make everyone in my house be quiet and I've started to guard the remote control so no one even thinks about changing the channel, even during a commercial.
Yes, it's Supernatural and I'm with these friends in my total adoration of the characters, actors, plot, writing - yeah, everything about it.
If you've never watched it and can handle spooky, scary, occasionally bloody, but always good and fine to look at, then I highly suggest you give it a look-see. You won't be sorry.
Just when I think the show couldn't possibly get any better, it does. I'd still watch regardless, but that's not the point. Last night's episode was awesome. That's not to say it wasn't without faults, (why weren't they wearing the anti-possession charms since they were little?) but any fault is easily overlooked because the characterization in these shows is so fantastic.
I could go on and on.
Especially since I got the chance to watch last night's episode again today and yeah, bad Sam is very, very good.
And so is worried Dean trying to save bad Sam.
Next Thursday can't come soon enough!

Birthday Shoutout

Happy Birthday to my baby sister & bestest friend!!
We often get mistaken for twins and always definitely recognized as sisters (and there's seven years between us). The same can be said when our middle sister is with us. But the similarities between A and I are more defined. Often someone will come up to me and think I'm her and vice versa. We also have the same voice. Even our mother and husbands can't always tell us apart on the phone. I'll call into her work and the receptionist gets totally freaked out - especially if she's new. What makes this worse is that we're so close we often finish each others sentences and can tell a story collectively without tripping over each other. It's totally cool and often sends the recipient of our tale over the edge in confusion and bewilderment.
A is also one of my biggest cheerleaders when it comes to writing. If I complain about not having time, she'll tell me to get off the phone and get my butt in the chair. She reads for me, defends me and helps support me when rejections come my way. I can call her to brainstorm or get her reaction to an off the wall idea...i.e. How freaked out would you be if you found a decapitated dead bird in your deli sandwich after you took a bite? (note to self: warn her next time) (How many times do I have to say I'm sorry?)
So, thank you for being there for me. May you be blessed today and every day.
Happy Birthday!

Why You Should Never...

Say you're cold in my house.

Yes. That's me somewhere under that pile.

Two blankets. Two pairs of jeans (on top of the two blankets). Two coats. A bathroom rug. Four pillows. A stocking cap. And the army hat.

And all I said was that I couldn't get warm.

Thanks to the older K's, I could barely breath.

Still Cold...

That's all I'm going to say about the weather. Except...Brrrrrr!

The television remote:
B has this irritating habit of changing the channel when a commercial comes on. This. Drives. Me. Nuts. I don't care that there's a commercial on. I'm okay with that. I'd rather stay on that channel and wait for the show to come back. (This coming from someone who watches very, very little TV) And I just noticed K2 does it too. What is up with that?

Laundry:
Oh. My. Goodness. The bedroom rearrange has brought it all out. Despite the fact that I've ran both machines nonstop since I got home today, the pile is still knee deep. And the washer doesn't want to spin right the first time.

The Rearranging:
The past two nights have been so busy, we've done nothing. Except take the enormous pile of trash to the curb for pick up. But, even though I'm not sleeping well (can't get comfy), I am very excited about picking out paint and painting. (I love to paint). K2 doesn't know what color she wants. Neither do I. I definitely want something "different" and so far, every color I suggest makes B roll his eyes.

I'm not talking shocking pink or fire engine red or anything that would make your retinas bleed. Just something...different. We'll see...I have very powerful ways of persuasion. (Not that - get your mind out of the gutter!)

Nevermind What I Said...

About it being cold outside!
This morning, the windchill was -1*!
Even now, it's a raging 15*, but the wind is making it feel like 0*! So, last week, when I thought it was cold...well, that's seeming like a tropical heatwave to me now. And it's a lot colder in other areas not too far away from here.
What the heck is up with that?
I hate it! I don't know if I've ever mentioned this before, but we live in an old, old house. It's impossible to get warm in here. Impossible. Several schools had a delay this morning because of the cold - not ours, but I wished for it. There's advisories and all that nonsense. And wouldn't you know, neither of the younger K's could find their gloves this morning. Probably because of the chaos that is the house right now.
The moving project is going. We're at the fix walls and paint portion. B is promising this will be done by the end of the month.
All I can say is, for his sake, my sanity and the reclamation of sleep, he better be right.

What A Mess!

Saturday I had my writer's group meeting. (Always a wonderful time) I knew my family was going to be working on cleaning bedrooms while I was gone - K1 is getting a waterbed from a friend of ours and his room needed cleaned. K2 is taking his old bed, and her room needed clean. Sounds like a pain, but kind of normal, right?
Not. I came home only to find everyone had decided to switch bedrooms. K2 is at an age where sharing with her little sister is no longer working out. We've talked about this move for months, but I wasn't quite ready for it. Now I have no choice. I am feeling good about it, just a little overwhelmed. And a lot exhausted.
After two straight days of moving stuff, cleaning and lugging furniture, I am bruised, bloody and no longer have a decent fingernail. We have holes to patch, painting to do and carpet to remove before the switch over is complete.
Change is good, right?
Right?

A New Way to Cook Chicken...

So, yesterday I made hot wings for dinner.
I grabbed two kitchen towels to pat the wings dry before I started the hot coating process. When I was done I threw the towels into the washing machine. Before bed, I went down to take the laundry out. As I opened the dryer door, something fell to the ground. I just looked at it, confused and yes, a little scared (those of you that know my cat story will understand). K1 was with me and he didn't want me to touch it. But I did.
Yeah, you guessed it.
I washed and dried a chicken wing.
It was, I assume, cooked, but not pretty. There was fuzz stuck all over it and the color wasn't pleasant. I took it upstairs to show B (who was in the shower) and he was not impressed.

Today is the first of February. Already.
And one of those days for me. My clumsy side definitely showed up. Let's just say if you wanted something broken, covered in coffee or done wrong, then today, I'm your gal. Probably another example of life trying to kick my butt as it's been working so hard to do, but the snow in the forecast makes me not care. Much.