Wreslting Baby

Last picture from Memorial Day. This is my niece's design. At first, I barely paid any attention to how funny it was because I was busily trying to get stuff together for the picnic. Then my brother saw it and laughed so hard I had to take a second look. There used to be a cartoon on with little wrestling dudes - I can't remember the name because it wasn't watched much here. Then, the odd masked wrestling movie that I've tried really hard to erase from my memory. It's funnier in person because you can't see all the designs on the mask in the picture.

I told you in runs in the family.

So, today is Friday. Thank goodness. It's also the last Friday of the school year. This time next week my crew will be home and will probably already be saying they're bored. Ha! Most of me is glad the routine is changing and homework will be a thing of the past for a few weeks, that and the bedtime/wake up hassle we sometimes deal with. The other part of me is in a panic because I have no idea how time went this fast. Didn't we just start this school year?

And next year, I'll have three in three different schools. K3 is heading to middle school. Holy crud. How did that happen? Tonight is the 5th grade graduation & family picnic. The last one of these we went to is not a happy memory thanks to some really mean girls and the way they treated my daughter. And the way their parents let them treat my daughter - public humiliation - in front of the entire 5th grade and their families. It wasn't pretty. At all. It was so bad, the school principal called me first thing Monday morning to apologize for what happened and I had other parents calling to tell me how appalled they were. Not that I think anything similar will happen tonight because it won't. It's just that memory, you know? But it'll be fun, if not nostalgic because yet another of my babies has finished elementary school.

Have a fantastic weekend!

Behave!

More Little House & Stuff

I told you it was a cute little house.
There are a few more pictures from Memorial Day to post. I won't overload you with all the different angles K2 took of this little house.
Random stuff...
In my bathroom:
A water gun, a doll head, 3 tiny and 1 big tube of toothpaste. I have no idea where the little ones came from - it's like spontaneous recreation or something. They weren't there when I went to bed last night.
Science Fair:
I went up to the school to check it out today. K3 made 3 more loaves of bread so he would have samples. They were pretty much gone by the time I got there. All of the kids did an excellent job. It was impressive to see their ideas and displays. I'm glad I'm not the judge. I can't imagine choosing a winner. Then, he made me bring all his stuff home when it was over - big display board, and other various things - and I'd walked up to school.
Other Random:
I have 2 bicycles in my living room right now. I'm not sure why. One is K3's brand new one. Oh, I didn't tell you this story? K1 borrowed K3's bike and totally wrecked it. Completely wrecked. He bought K3 a new one, and it's been coming inside every evening to keep it out of the rain and away from possible theft. I guess since K3's bike was allowed in, K4 decided hers needed in as well. I really hate the way the tires on K3's bike smell. It's icky.
Waking up to the sound of a dog vomiting is most unpleasant. Twice.
Cleaning up dog vomit is even more unpleasant.
Laundry should be able to do itself.
I'm having a discombobulated day. As if that wasn't obvious.
Behave!

The Little House

How's that for talent?

My daughter's friend made this while we were up at the meadow on Sunday. It's a cute little stick house, complete with a falling down barn. I think K2 had a hand in the barn. See the pathway, and the fence? I have a few more pictures of the little house, so hopefully you'll get a good idea of how cool it was.

Today I got to hang out with some friends who always make me feel good despite myself. And I'm not talking pat-on-the-back-it'll-all-be-better-in-the-morning feeling good. It's more of a listen to you swear and complain, swear with you, give you a hug, and then kick you in your butt to keep you moving in the right direction and not let you give up on yourself kind of thing. An honest interaction. A very good thing. It was what I needed, and I'm grateful for them (even for the one who skipped out on us to go chaperon her kid.) These are the friends who would never bail me out of jail if I had the need because they'd be in the cell beside me laughing about how the whole thing went down. Friends like that are hard to come by. And I definitely know how lucky I am because not only do I have the greatest friends, I also have the greatest family - who, in most cases, fall into the 'sitting beside me in the cell' category.

It's icky when I'm mushy, isn't it?

Behave!

A Boy and His Turtle

I mentioned turtles yesterday.

The little snapper was found by K1's friend, Brian. (Click the link to go to his myspace page. He's an awesomely talented musician.) He carried it around all day, even feeding it some hot dog and making a little habitat for it. (oh and he's not really a boy, but the post title looked cooler that way.) Then, the kids found this box turtle, so we had to take a picture of them together. I'm not sure if the little snapper had a name or not. He probably did and I just don't know it.

It took everything he had to let the little guy go, but he did. And he was sad.

We have another birthday coming up. K1 will be 19 on Saturday. Weird. Very weird. I'm still not digging these kids getting so old, because what's that mean for me?

Nothing else. Today was pretty crappy as far as days go. I'm glad it's almost over. And I'm looking forward to hanging out with some friends tomorrow.

Behave!

There Again

At the creek...
Looks much different than the last pictures I posted. (I am too lazy to find and link to them.)
Every holiday weekend, there's a potluck picnic here. Everyone brings a covered dish, their own tableware, and drinks, and we eat. Now, until we started coming here, my experience with potluck's meant ten crock pots of baked beans and maybe some chicken. I think because they've been doing it for so long, people tend to stretch their culinary imaginations a little. Yes, sometimes we have six different chicken dishes and not a lot of sides, but usually there's such a variety you just can't stop eating. K3 and one of the relatives always in attendance have started a dessert challenge. She makes the most fantastic cakes, and he's bound and determined to make his look just as awesome as hers does. One year he made a swimming pool cake. I wish I had a picture of that to show you because it was very cool. This year, his plans fell through and he and my niece ended up making finger Jello, which also didn't turn out right due to lack of time. He's already planning for the fourth of July. I'll definitely have a picture to show of that. It's a little difficult because we're usually camping on this weekend, but with enough planning that can be overcome.
Anyway. Yesterday was a really good day - with fun family, old friends that haven't been there in far too long, newer friends who we can't imagine life without, turtles, fish, and lots of mud. (which is why we couldn't camp)
Enjoy the holiday!
Behave!!

Very Quick

After much holiday hanging out, (and not camping) staying up too late, and carrying on so much I am now losing my voice, I am back among the land of my own Internet access and at the place of my lovely bed. I have many, many fine and interesting pictures to share with you. I'm not quite sure where to begin, but we'll start tomorrow when I am more rested.
Forgive me this small rant, but let me just put this out there real quick...
To the driver behind us on our way home: When you're behind a vehicle that seems to be struggling to maintain speed and possibly hitting the brakes more often than you do because the road is hilly and winds much and doesn't seem to be quite as wide as other roads, take a minute to wonder if you could possibly be behind a new driver. Don't ride the bumper ahead, flash the lights, and make sporadic movements in an attempt to freak out the other driver. You are not helping, except to make the teen driver nervous and cry, and nearly giving the adult teacher a coronary. Oh, and also don't forget the road you're both traveling on is notorious for deer springing out. If one had bounded out in front of us, we would all very definitely be dead. My daughter, my son, my dog, and me. All because she wasn't driving fast enough for you? For shame. Seriously. Think about. Do you really want something like that on your head for the rest of your life?
I didn't think so.
Next time, back off and be nice! All I can say is, I was ready to say some things to you that I had to warn my young son not to listen to. You turned, which was for the best. The kid got her confidence back and learned something from your terrible behavior - how not to behave. Ever.
More tomorrow.
Behave!

Creepy!

Isn't that scary?

And creepy!

This Pileated Woodpecker lives near my sister's house. And wasn't she so nice to send me his picture?

Look how big he is! *shudder, shudder*

I mean, seriously, he's creepy!

I do not like him. I don't know why. Though I am fascinated by him, kind of like watching a train wreck or passing an accident on the highway. You just can't help but look.

Like I said before, it's not his size because I love Eagles, Hawks, ect. There's just something about this type of woodpecker...

Have an enjoyable holiday weekend!

Behave!!

10 Things...

10 Things that are driving me nuts right now.
In no particular order...
1. The noise water bottles make when someone squeezes them. Okay, so that drives me crazy all the time.
2. My current phone service. Do you think the messages could go in the voice mail box when they come in? Do I have to wait 2 days?
3. Wearing shoes. Come on people, it's almost June.
4. Being cold. I'm sitting here with a blanket wrapped around me, two shirts on, sweatpants and socks. Again, it's almost June.
5. Rain. It's already ruined our weekend plans. No camping for us. It keeps messing up K1's work schedule. The sun is peeking out now, but that's all we get anymore - brief glances and zero warmth.
6. Having to divide into teams just to get to important events that are all scheduled on the same night.
7. The way my computer chair squeaks.
8. The cat continually unmaking our bed after I've made it. He's cold. I get that, but seriously, he messes up the covers like a person.
9. Car repair bills.
10. The time change of my mail delivery. Come on, I depend on the mail being delivered at a certain time. Now I have to wait four more hours for it to hit the box. And no, I'm not in love with getting bills.
11. No new Supernatural for weeks.
Okay - so it's 11. I'm an overachiever today. Ha!
Obviously, I'm a little ranty. Think I'll go take a nap before I turn my characters into total jerks based on my mood.
Behave!

Bad Influence Beth - Part Two

Remember my friend Beth?

The one always getting me into situations?

She's going through a bunch of medical testing, including having an EEG (to check her brain) and a heart monitor - which is the thing hanging around her neck. One of the things I love about her is her sense of humor. While discussion the EEG I mentioned how she should wear a foil helmet to keep the doctors from finding out about her alien mothership. Yesterday, we were emailing about it and I reminded her about the foil helmet, telling her she needed antennas on it to make sure it was transmitted to the mothership that her brain was under siege.

Then she sent me this picture.

When I asked if I could post it here, she said fine, but to make sure to mention the mothership, and that the thing hanging around her neck is for detecting aliens at night.

I had also mentioned wearing a foil bra, but even if she had sent me a picture of that, I probably wouldn't share it.

That's all.

Behave!

Of Graveyards and Camping

More cemetery.
I really wish we could have gone back. My camera batteries were nearly dead at this point. I know it's unusual to think old graveyards are cool, but pretty much all of us at the retreat went over at least once. One woman's camera continually failed as she tried to take a picture of one of the headstones. I had camera problems there, too. With the way my camera often malfunctions, I didn't think anything of it. Now I wish I would have paid attention. Probably coincidence.
It's raining here. Again. Which has ended our last hope of getting to camp this weekend. As of last night, we still had a little hope that our meadow would dry out enough for us to go. There's no chance now. With the massive amounts of rain we've had lately, the area is a swamp. We'll still have the picnic on Sunday, and luckily, Sunday is forecast to be sunny and warm. Hopefully this isn't going to be another one of those years when it comes to camping.
School is out in about 10 days. That came up fast. The calendar's in fair shape right now, but we haven't made too many plans yet. I'm still not ready to think about summer, maybe because I'm freezing. I really don't see how we could be this close to summer when I totally missed spring. Did we have one?
Behave!

Backtracking...

I think I mentioned getting to watch Supernatural on Friday.
Megan arrived with not only the finale taped, but she brought a whole set up of television and vcr so we could watch. Twice.
The episode was fantastic, if not very sad.
What I liked the most:
1. Sam and Dean singing. We squealed like a bunch of little girls when Dean belted out "Wanted", then Sam joined him and we squealed some more.
2. The look on Dean's face as Sam continued to sing and the reality of his situation crashed around him.
3. The little girl. Man. She was creepy. White demon eyes are far scarier than black ones. Plus, the way she switched from evil to sweet.
4. Bobby telling Dean family doesn't end with blood, and then telling them they better not stop to pee every ten minutes.
5. Sam's desperation to do whatever he could to save his brother and Dean's determination that they were going to break the cycle of self-sacrifice.
6. Sam telling Dean he should have been jamming "Eye of the Tiger".
7. Holy water in the sprinkler system.
8. The way Sam blocked Lilith's attempt to kill him, and how scared she was of him after he did.
9. How Dean could see the demons inside people.
10. Dean knocking out the dad and throwing him over his shoulder.
11. A car-sized bush with side mirrors in the middle of nowhere.
What made me sad:
1. Of course, Dean on meat hooks and the way he called for Sam to help him.
2. Ruby dying. I might think her character's a bit overacted, or over the top, or something, but I liked her and Bella in the show. Now they're both gone.
3. The grandfather dying and the way the parents hung him out to dry. I understand they were scared, but it was still sad.
4. The way it ended. Now we have to wait weeks while poor Dean hangs on meat hooks in hell. I don't think I can stand it.
Another thing I couldn't help but think about was how terrible the future is going to be for the mother who begged Sam to kill her little girl because of the demon inside of her. The demon put them through hell while looking like their child. How do you go back to life as usual when on the inside you have to be wondering if each tantrum, each angry word is the past coming back to haunt you? What will she see now when she looks at her child?
Anyway. That really had nothing to do with the show.
Obviously, this was one of my favorite episodes. There was so much good stuff about it. Like I said, the waiting will be brutal. I'm already dying and it's only been days. One of the best parts about it was getting to watch it with friends who are as much in love with the show as I am.
That's all.
Behave!

The Party's Over

And now I'm home.

This picture (Misty and me) was this morning at breakfast. I had all my stuff loaded and was just waiting to eat breakfast, finish off my retreat chair duties, and say good-bye. Last night we laughed so much - even more after I put up my post. Then I got back to work and hit my 25k word goal. Yay.

Couldn't sleep. Especially when my cell phone rang at 2:30 am. Twice. The first time I hit ignore because I didn't recognize the number, and of course I answered the second time. The person on the other end said "uh oh" and hung up. But I guess it really didn't matter, because like I said, I couldn't sleep anyway.

Now we're back to real life.

Had lunch with some of the fam for my mom's birthday. (Happy Birthday, Mom!!) Which was fun. K3 came home from scout camp, and now we're involved in the usual Sunday running.

That's all for now. I have more pictures from the retreat I'll post throughout the week.

Behave!

Live From The Retreat - Day Three

More graveyard pictures. See that little shiny spot? Looks like an orb, but I highly doubt it. We won't go into my opinions on orbs again, but it's pretty cool to consider the possibilities. So far, every time we've planned to head back over to the grave yard, it's rained. Like now.

Tonight is the last night of the retreat. We all had a blast, especially during our game where much laughter (and Elvis Martineo) ensued. (No, I'm not explaining the above) I've been told I'm in charge of next year's retreat as well, which is exciting and makes me feel good (only I didn't plan this year alone!).

Every year I say it, and every year I mean it. This year was the best retreat ever. No, we didn't have any good news to celebrate last night, but we went out anyway and laughed our way through more food we absolutely didn't need. Today we've busted our funny bones laughing and gotten tons of work done. Raffle tickets were flying. I've met my initial goal of 20k words and am now pushing to 25k. Already this has been my best production retreat yet. The story's flowing nicely and I'm having a lot of fun with writing alternate reality.

Tomorrow morning I head home to meet up with the fam (who I don't think miss me at all) and see K2's play (where she has the lead role). Then it's off to celebrate my mom's birthday. Then, perhaps, I'll collapse and face the coming week with a new set of eyes. (look at me being all reflective and stuff...)

Behave!!

Live From The Retreat - Day Two

Ghost hunting at the retreat.

I trapped Misty, Natalie, and Marie in the graveyard. Okay, so they weren't really trapped, but I ran through and shut the gate on them, then made them pose for this picture. We were walking around in this cemetery shortly after dark - obviously a little too early for ghost hunting - we were tired. But James Potter is buried there (James Potter as in Harry's dad). It's a neat old place and I'm sure if it ever stops raining, we'll take another walk over. I do have more pictures from last night though.

We're having a blast and getting lots of work done. Like I said, it's raining and has been since around midnight. I never realized it, even though my window's open and I was up on and off all night. We had a wonderful breakfast and everyone scattered to their rooms, or other various places to do their thing. We're still waiting for two people - one should be arriving any minute (hopefully with last night's Supernatural in hand) and the other won't be here until dinnertime. Tonight we're continuing the tradition we started last year by going out for celebratory drinks - let's just hope one of us gets news worth celebrating today. Several of us are waiting patiently to hear back on things we have out. Last year, Natalie got her agent on Retreat Friday.

But until then, I'm cranking out the pages. I have a good run on my goal already.

Behave!

Live From The Retreat - Day One

See those beaming faces?

That's because we're at the retreat!! Actually they were watching something hysterical when I ran in and snapped their picture, but the total glee level is the same. I'm right across the hall and sound carries very well here.

This is a beautiful thing. I have my own room, with my own bathroom. And wireless Internet, which is awesome, but I'm being very good about staying off line. Dinner is in a half an hour, and all we have to do is show up, eat, and clear our dishes. No cooking, no cleaning, no laundry, no carpooling activities. It's amazing.

I could not sleep last night, so I've been up since about 4:45 am. Got here around 9am, unloaded, greeted the arrivals, then we all went to lunch at a chinese restaurant not far from here. (me saying not far is totally subjective - there is nothing out here in the middle of the boonies) Came back and got to work. I have a bunch of pages so far and expect many more by the time I call it a night. My word count's a little lower right now since I have to make sure everyone gets their room keys, and I did take a brief nap (see the 4:45 am waking time). But I'm ready to rock and roll again.

And I'm here for two more full days! It's a beautiful thing!

The only downer is that tonight is the season finale of Supernatural and there is not a single TV on the premises. Megan isn't coming until tomorrow though, and she's going to try to tape it for us so we can all watch tomorrow night. I'm keeping my fingers crossed that she has luck with that.

That's all for now!

Behave!

Tagged...Again...Six Things

Megan tagged me.

The rules:
a. Link to the person who tagged you.b. Post the rules on your blog.c. Write six random things about yourself.d. Tag six random people at the end of your post by linking to their blogs.e. Let each person know they have been tagged by leaving a comment at their blog.f. Let your tagger know when your entry is up.

And away we go...
1. Stealing Megan and Natalie's number one (cause I can)...Unlike them, I have broken bones. (stop it. I don't know why you're not surprised.) I broke the growth plate in my left arm when I was nine. Okay. I didn't break it, some kid knocked me off the jungle gym. A few years later, I broke both bones in my forearm (of the same arm) while speed roller skating. That full (up to my shoulder) cast came in handy for defending my little sisters against the neighborhood bully.

2. I am a huge list maker. Especially before big events and when life gets really busy. I don't believe it's organization though. It's sanity and direction for me. Plus I get a huge thrill when I cross stuff off.

3. In another life, I wanted to be a stunt man, or I guess that's stunt woman. Stunt person? I even started checking out what I had to do to become one, but then I switched lives and let it go. Probably for the best...I might be dead by now.

4. I have a secret love of Western Romances. Guess it's not such a secret anymore, huh? I don't know that I could ever write one, but I love reading about cowboys. Cowboys = Yummy.

5. I watch NASCAR. (stop hating on me!) Yes, it's a bunch of testosterone ridden guys driving fast in a circle. And yes, I usually end up falling asleep during the race, but I'm totally intrigued by the inner workings of the racing community. I'm not as well-versed as my nieces (hiya C!), or B, but I know who the drivers are and I do have a few favorites. I'd really love to see a woman tear through NASCAR and knocks those boys on their butts. And yeah, I'd really love to drive a race car. (see #3)

6. B and I have been together since I was 15 years old. We were best friends for ages. In fact, I didn't think he was ever going to get the hint that I was interested in him as more than a friend. I will never forget the first time he kissed me, and a lot of other firsts that you don't need to know about. Ha! And honestly, I wouldn't change a minute of it. We've had a hell of a ride so far and it just keeps getting better.

There you have it...Six things you probably don't even care about!
I'll tag...huh...everyone I know has already been tagged...so how about...no one!
This time tomorrow I'll be on my way to the retreat. Yay! I am so excited I can hardly stand myself. As long as my wireless connection works there, I'll post updates and pictures. If it doesn't...well, we're all out of luck then.
Behave!

So...What Did You Do...

With your stimulus payment?

Here's what I did with mine.

Ha. Just kidding.

B thought this would be an amusing photo. The boxes are empty...the bottle in my arm is not. No. I'm not sharing.

K1 is working on cleaning up his room so he and B went on a box run. When they got back they were giggling and made me pose. (btw, that's supposed to be the "got a little captian in you" pose) You can see how thrilled I am.

The science project is done. We spent all evening gluing information and pictures to a project board. It looks pretty darned good. This morning, my to do list had 62 items on it. (and no, I don't write 'brush teeth' & 'comb hair') The items were all legitimate things that needed done - like banking, shopping, and appointments. I'm now down to 28, most of which will be done tomorrow as it pertains to the retreat. I should probably get my laundry done as well. And pack. Oh. Wait. They're both on my list. :)

That's all...

Behave!

Lots O' Stuff

The retreat is coming up fast.
This time tomorrow night I can turn my attention on packing and crossing the rest of the stuff off my 'to do' list. I'll tell you, that list is my lifeline right now with everything else going on around here. But, I lived through today (so far), and like I said, have to get to this time tomorrow before I can take a breath.
A challenge has just been raised to write 20k words at the retreat. That's 80 pages with the way I format. I think I can do that. I wrote a little over that last year, and now that I have my new story mostly plotted out, I'm raring to go on it. My goal for the month is to write a 100 pages. I was going to raise the challenger another 5k words, but I'd like to come back from the retreat with a few brain cells left. Although, now that I think about it, I didn't get to the retreat until Friday last year. This year, I'm going on Thursday, so I'll have an additional 24 hours. Hmm...maybe I can get that extra 5k after all.
That's all for now.
Behave!

Tragedy

Remember Sam - or Samwise - our rescued baby bunny?
I told you something always happens to nearly every animal we rescue. Sam was thriving. Friday night we discussed his release, planning it for Saturday. B went outside early Saturday morning and found a crime scene. The cage was on its side, the plants on the back porch turned over, and the bunny was gone. Except for one bloody, nearly skinned foot. We have no idea what was intelligent enough to get it out of the cage and only leave a small smattering of fur and blood behind. The blood trailed extended down the patio before disappearing. The cage wasn't bent or broken. There is a way to open the cage from the side, but it would have required weight and dexterity to achieve bunny freedom. Weird. B wants to bait a humane trap to see what we get. I don't know. Who knows what we'll catch? And then we have to release it?
Obviously, I made it through the week. Barely. It was definitely one of those weeks where every time I thought things would get easier, they didn't. There's a lot of detail you won't care about - stuff that would only make you shake your head and think I'm either lying or exaggerating. Doesn't matter now anyway - I'm relaxing while the fam waits on me hand and foot. In a little while I'm going to do some plotting in preparation for the writing retreat in just 3 days!!! I can't wait!!
Don't forget your mom today! And if you're a mom...Happy Mother's Day!!
Behave!

Day 5 - Almost There

Things I will not be doing today:
(I stole this idea from Megan)
1. Eating slugs.
2. Burying baby bunnies (he's still hanging in there - thriving actually)
3. Relaxing
4. Getting a tattoo
5. Catching up with myself
6. Cooking dinner
7. Poking my eyes out with sharp objects
8. Breaking bones (at least I hope not)
9. Playing in the snow (but I am cold)
10. Driving to Vermont
Eh. What can I say. It's Friday and I'm less than twenty-four hours away from ending this insane week.
Enjoy the weekend. I plan to.
Behave!

Day 4 - Short and Sweet

Or something...
Long day as evidenced by the time of this post.
The bunny is still alive and has been named "Sam" because we don't know if it's a boy or girl. The kids also moved it to a bigger holding pen and fed it a lot more carrots. We'll see...
The bread report is not done, but it's not due until Monday so we're good.
Almost done with the week. Thank goodness.
Behave!

Day 3 - Bread and Bunnies

Yes. It's still the longest week ever, but we're getting close to the end now. I keep saying tomorrow will be calmer, then I'm wrong, so I'm not going to be saying that anymore. Just so you know.

First, we'll talk about the bread. This is a small portion of what I did tonight. Which is pretty funny considering how long it takes to make 3 loaves of bread. Anyway. The one closest to you is the more yeast one. It looks and tastes awful. Chewy bread is never a good idea. The middle on is the less yeast - slightly better on both, but neither are as good as the far loaf. That one is our control loaf - made the right way. It's pretty and tastes good, too. Apparently, we got the kneading thing right this time. We started the process far later than we intended, which means after two rises of an hour each, the baking process didn't finish until after K3's bedtime. Then we had to taste, compare, discuss...Tomorrow night he has to write a report. After that, no more bread making unless I chose to do so.

Okay, now we'll talk about the bunnies.

B and some of the K's were out in the backyard when a crow dropped something as it flew overhead. A baby bunny. It squealed something fierce apparently. (I didn't hear it as I was doing household administration stuff) The poor thing has claw marks and some blood on its fur, but perked up after a few minutes. But it's so stinking cute. Now it's on my back porch in a box loaded with straw, grass, carrots, and who knows what else. I highly doubt our guest will live until morning, but the K's have hope. This is a typical event around here - the finding and attempting to care for injured and baby things. So far, our attempts have not ended with the desired outcome, but we keep trying.

Tomorrow is Thursday, which is one step closer to Friday.

Behave!

Day 2 - The Longest Week Ever

And today was, hopefully, the longest day of this week. I'm expecting it to get better from here on out. I could be totally wrong about that though. And I probably am.
I won't bore you with the petty details, except that it was far longer and far trickier than I'd planned on. And planning the day was tough enough without all the last minute stuff that got thrown at me first thing this morning. I thought I had everything worked out days ago, only to have it all blow up in my face. Add that to two relatively sleepless nights and I'm about done. Whatever. The day is over now. I survived so far - though I don't think my stress level has been this high for a while.
9 more days until I'll be at the retreat. 8 more until I'm packed and ready to go. I can't wait. You should see my dining room. As retreat chair, I have all the supplies, prizes, gifts and other random doodads. I have a lot of stuff to haul out there and I love it.
That's all...
Behave!

10 Things...

That are crappy about today...
1. My kid is sick. Had to pick him up from school. Running a fever.
2. Same kid can't go back to school until 24 hours after his fever breaks. I have an appointment I can't miss tomorrow morning.
3. I have a killer headache pain medicine won't touch.
4. The amount of laundry waiting to be done.
5. K2 has a late afternoon appointment tomorrow which requires much juggling of schedules. I thought I had it worked out until #1 & #2 happened.
6. K1 was goofing around with an energy drink (one of those ones that are super carbonated) and opened it by my head, covering me with icky-smelling stickiness.
7. The promised stimulus payment has not yet entered my realm of use.
8. It's warmer outside than it is in my house.
9. The stack of papers waiting for my attention is growing ever higher as the kids unload their backpacks.
10. I'm really tired. Really tired.
That is all.
Behave!

Weekend Wonderings...

I wonder where the sun is?
And why my children are acting like they've had 50-gallon drums of sugar for lunch. It's like Wrestle Mania here. K2 is wrestling the dog. The boys are doing their best to break the couch by wrestling. K4 isn't really wrestling with people, but she's yelling at the computer because it won't accept her password for the game she wants to play - so same noise level - same difference.
I also why those same children love those survival shows. You know which ones I mean. I think there's two right now and they watch both every chance they get. I guess, at least, they'll know how to survive if they ever get stranded in the Arctic, in a desert, or on a tropical island. That can't be a bad thing.
Anyway.
Today was my chapter meeting for my writer's group. After all the work I put in making sure I met my goal this month, I ended up winning the goals prize drawing. So that was pretty cool. The only thing about that is, I ran the goals program this time since our usual Goals Wrangler couldn't make it and the chapter president was taking care of business with our treasurer. No. I didn't rig it. I had nothing to do with the winning name being drawn. It was just dumb luck. And I set my goal really high for next month since I'll soon have three solid days of writing time. I can't wait. We a good meeting even though our numbers were very low this month, but the energy was high.
Now it's time for me to get to work and write my synopsis.
Behave!

Getting There

And ahead of schedule, too!
Ended up getting my wip zipped off through cyberspace this morning. Whoot. Which means I've taken care of the second major goal I wanted to have accomplished before the retreat and I met my monthly goal for my writing chapter as well. All that's left is the synopsis and fixing the mistakes my critique wonders find. Took care of the critique I owed and a bunch of other stuff, too. I'm taking tomorrow off. The day is busy though, so it's not like I'll be doing nothing. I'm meeting with some friends, then we have a school function, and another commitment after that. It's a good thing I finished because even if I hadn't there's pretty much no way I could get any writing done tomorrow.
Anyway.
Supernatural was awesomely twisty with Sam and Dean in suits, icky guys named Stu, and a really freaky bad guy. And next week looks super creepy. I can't wait.
And completely off the topic - not that I really had one to begin with.
When someone asks you to smell something, especially if they say "eww, smell this", do you do it? I know my first instinct is to start for the sniff, but usually I realized what a huge mistake I'm about to make. Not always, mind you. Do I have a point to this question? Nah. I just heard something on tv that made me think about it. Do you remember me telling you yesterday how I think I wrecked my brain? What did you expect?
That's all for now.
Behave!

Wrecked

My brain that is.
I have had a fabulous writing day. And, as usual, my house shows it. Ha! I finished the edits and am now on my final pass. I couldn't be more excited. Hopefully by this time tomorrow it'll be in the hands of my fabulous critique partners. My eyes are whacked out, and I'm functioning on a partial brain as evidenced by me nearly blowing myself up earlier when I lit the grill. I wasn't paying attention and waited to long to light the flame, earning me the loss of all the hair on my hand, a burnt thumb, and a fireball that went up my sleeve. I was then trying to hack frozen hamburgers apart with one of the sharpest knives in my kitchen. Not smart. Especially today. But I lived and without permanent injury, so that's always a good day.
Once I get this manuscript out the door I have a critique to do for a friend who's been patiently waiting for me to catch up with myself. Then I have to write my synopsis. If you know any writers, including me, you'll know what a chore that is. I mostly don't mind and am usually able to come up with something coherent to relay my story, but sometimes writing one is like an axe in the middle of my head. And I never know how it's going to be so I always look upon the task with a little dread.
Next week is going to be a killer. I can't even describe what's on my calendar. You wouldn't believe me anyway. Every day and almost every evening is booked. I'm not looking forward to it except to get it over with and get to Friday.
I told you my brain was wrecked. Why did you expect to get anything but more rambling from me?
Behave!

What I Need...

I think I already posted this picture. Too bad if I did.

This beach is what I need. Not any other beach, only this one in North Carolina. It's been way too long since we've been and who knows how much longer it'll be until we get to go again. I miss it. My husband and children miss it.

Having the trip planned is what gets us all through the drudgery of daily life. It's what makes the difference in so many things because no matter what happens we know the journey is in the near future.

With no proposed journey, there is no joy.

And that sucks.

Okay, so that's a little grim. Hey, what the heck - it matches the weather outside. (What happened to the warm temperatures?) Anyway. This beach is what I need and that's all there is to it. I also need my annual writer's retreat. Luckily that's in a little over 2 weeks. I can't wait. All the "stuff" is prepared for the attendees and I only have a few minor items to take care of before I get there. I mean minor as in retreat chairperson duties. Everything else is insane, though I'm making good progress on my edits. Over halfway now, but I'll have to do one more pass to make sure the layers all came together the right way. I still think I can finish and ship it out for critique before Friday. I can't wait.

Update on the bug show - B happens to think the show is great. I think he's crazy. Why on earth would you want to watch that right before bed? Especially when they're killing bedbugs? Go figure.

Behave!

Too Tired

What a long day.
I should be in bed, but since I'm waiting for K2 to get out of the shower I'm stuck for a few minutes. So...lucky you, you're getting my fatigue ramblings. K3 had his last elementary band/chorus performance tonight. It's hard to believe he'll be in middle school next year. They did a really good job, but it made for an exceptionally long Monday.
Okay. I just have to say this...
The family was watching Dirty Jobs before they dispersed to bed, leaving the tv on. I love Dirty Jobs. The show that came on after...omg...why on earth do I want to watch people inspect homes infested with roaches and rats? Especially at ten o'clock at night! Yes, I could change the channel. Except the remote is on the other side of the room and the next time I get up it's to go to bed. I'm not sure I'm getting the point of watching roaches scurry around and wondering why a homeowner wouldn't smell a dead rat under their claw-foot bathtub. Maybe it's me. I don't know.
Anyway.
Hey, don't be perturbed at me. I told you what you were getting into in the first paragraph. Oh, and an update on the rat homeowner? The rat died in her 'guest house'. Well, no wonder she didn't smell it. And now they're talking about bed bugs. Great.
Maybe I'll do better tomorrow.
We'll see...
Behave!

The Great Bread Experiment

K3 has to do a science project this year.
His project consists of baking bread with different amounts of yeast - more, less, and a control loaf with the right amount. We started last week using the bread machine and a box of mix and just switched out the yeast to put in the different amount. His teacher wanted him to make 3 loaves at once to eliminate some of the variables with the bread machine.
The thing you have to know is besides using the bread machine, I've never made a loaf of homemade bread in my life. My mom used to make bread when I was a kid, so it's not like I've never had any exposure to it, or like I have a hate about making my own bread. I've just never done it before.
Today I got a crash course.
After careful recipe research, the easiest one we could find was one that made two loaves. We cut it in half, measured our ingredients, kneaded, allowed to rise, kneaded again, then baked. I'd show you the end result, but once again, the camera batteries are dead. But let's just say we'll have to do the experiment again, so I'll take pictures next time.
Something went wrong.
The less yeast loaf is the only one that turned out halfway decent. It's much heavier than the control loaf, but it's prettier. The more yeast loaf is just plain weird tasting and didn't rise as much as we thought it would. Our control loaf has an odd texture. It's lighter, but still heavier than it should be. I don't know what we did exactly, but I do have a few ideas. Not enough kneading, our water wasn't hot enough, and not enough salt.
I guess it wasn't bad for a first attempt at bread making, but it stinks for the wasted ingredients, the wasted time, the lump now expanding in my stomach, and the mess in my kitchen.
Oh well. It's all in the name of science. I guess.
That's all.
Behave.

Saturday Update

No tornadoes happened Thursday, but Friday wasn't exactly a spectacular day. Guess my good luck/bad luck tides are shifting a little. Great. Something new to get used to.
Supernatural was fantastic Thursday night. Next week looks even more awesome. I'm not going to go into it, because unless your a fan my thoughts won't mean anything to you.
Anyway.
I'm buried under edits right now and trying to balance the weekend stuff with what I need to do. So far so good though I haven't even opened my document yet. But I'm nearly there. I have to do as much as possible today since tomorrow will be a total bust. K3 has to make bread for a school science project. I've never made bread without a bread machine before, so this should be interesting.
There's your update.
Exciting as usual. Ha!
Behave!

Now I'm Frightened...

Why?
Well, because so far today has been pretty darned cool.
It's absolutely gorgeous out!
I'm moving faster on my edits than I expected, which is so awesome I can't describe - except the big work starts soon (like in a few hours) and that's sure to be a pain in my butt.
Today was retreat shopping day. Cool all by itself, but it started off on a sad note when one of the posse couldn't make it. We trudged on though and ended up finished with the whole she-bang - shopping, organizing, decorating, and stuffing the welcome bags. Love those clearance racks! I planned a super secret surprise for this year and I'm so totally thrilled with how it turned out I can't even tell you! And we had an awesome lunch at a 50's style place. Now I have piles of stuff in my dining room just waiting until the retreat. Three weeks...it seems like such a long time.
And new Supernatural tonight! What a fantastic topper to the day!
Okay, so back to why I'm frightened...
I usually don't get a day that's all totally awesome. Most of the time something hugely terrible happens, or a bunch of little terrible stuff. So I'm kind of looking over my shoulder for the tornado to descend on me.
Let's hope this once it doesn't. But I'm not holding my breath.
Behave!

Whine & Beans

Why beans?
Because that's what I ate for lunch - warmed up baked beans with spicy mushrooms. Yum. And the whine?
Well, because there's jackhammering in my neighborhood. I'm cold. My bathroom looks like a laundry bomb went off and I have no idea why. (Okay, so I do, but I just cleaned it yesterday.) The cat keeps trying to get outside and eat plants so he can come back in and barf all over the place and the dog is whining for no reason.
I need a nap.
Behave!

Blog Fodder

Pretty much everything I take pictures of is potential blog fodder. Take this scene for example. I didn't take the picture, especially since you can see my arms. It just goes to prove others have my photographic tendencies. Yes, it's sad. I know.
Anyway.
This was taken when B's brother was here and his whole family came over for the evening. There are several things I'd like to point out. First, the game. Apples to Apples is a blast and I highly recommend it. We laughed so hard, and we do each time we play. It's best in a medium-sized group. Second, if you look near the card rack you'll see a white napkin with a curved-looking item on top. That's my nephew's retainer. Ick. Third, is the table itself. We inherited the table from B's mom. It used to be a dark brown - almost black. We spent an entire week sanding and staining, expecting it to come out a honey-colored oak with burgundy trim. By the time it dried, we were a little dismayed because the colors didn't match. Now they do. The thing is, the wood is so soft (even with multiple coats of polyurethane). If you press down too hard while writing, you'll leave a message behind. There are a lot of messages. Some nights after dinner we'll stay at the table and try to decipher the remnants of school work, notes, and whatever else was written. It's a pretty cool thing.
Yeah. I know it's a random bunch of nonsense. Again, you should be used to that by now.
Oh, and the reason I didn't put the dead bird picture up is because I don't have the file on the laptop. Maybe later.
That is all.
Behave!

Mostly Nonsense

No picture today. Some kind of internal error with the upload, so I guess you won't get the see a dead bird after all. Not that you really want to see a dead bird. Why do I have a picture of one? Well, because it was a little woodpecker and he was a beautiful bird, even in death. Honestly, I'm not a fan of woodpeckers. I don't mind the little ones, but those big ones? Ew! They creep me out in a way I can't explain and it's not because they're big. I don't have the same feelings for hawks, eagles, or other large birds. Just those woodpeckers. I'm sure there's a reason.
K3 is under the weather today. Poor kid. He's such a trooper though. Despite how he felt, he was ready to go to school and even said he wanted to keep moving in the hopes the nausea would pass. It didn't. Hopefully this isn't something that will move through the ranks. I thought we were done with illnesses. Ugh.
In other news, New Supernatural this week! I'm so excited. The boys have been seriously missed. But you knew that already.
The short story is finished, (it actually has been since last week) and my other edits are coming along nicely. I finally figured out what was bothering me about the story, so I'll probably have to do several more passes to make sure I get everything layered in the right way. I'm working on it. Right now it's a slow go since I'm cutting one of the plot points I feel I overuse. And I have to do some research for the brainstorm, but I still hope to meet my goal of finishing before the next meeting of my chapter. Then, it'll be time for the retreat and new writing.
Better get to it!
Behave!

Bad Influence Beth

I have this friend. See her leaning up against the Warning sign? And see that smile? She's always getting me into situations. Take yesterday for example...We ended up cleaning up the streets in the city for Habitat for Humanity. It was a long morning - and I had to get up at an unreasonable hour for a weekend. Then she made me pick up trash, rake, and carry garbage bags for hours. I have blisters.
I'm only joking. Beth is a wonderful person and I'm blessed to know her. We all signed up to do this community service project together. I'd be lying if I said it wasn't hard work. I'm aching a little bit today. I'd also be lying if I said I wasn't amazed by some of the stuff we saw yesterday. K4 was in charge of the camera, so there's a lot of pictures of glass, bones, signs, and people who would prefer their photograph not be posted here. I've only found a few I can put up. I'll expand on the experience as I post the photos, but let me just say Habitat for Humanity is a wonderful organization. I have no doubts we'll work with them again in the future.
Oh, and after four hours of walking, bending, raking, ect. ect.? We came home and did yard work. No nap. No rest time other than a quick lunch. I'm surprised I'm alive today.
Behave!

Oops. Missed A Day.

I didn't have anything interesting to say anyway.
Same old stuff around here.
But it's Friday. Whoot!
Less than a week until new Supernatural. I'm so excited.
K2 is now employed. She goes for orientation this afternoon. Hopefully she'll get her schedule and then begin the transport to and fro.
The weekend will be pretty busy - at least tomorrow. Okay, and Sunday, too. I'm hoping to continue on the edits, especially now that I've figured out what was driving me nuts. Excited about that and ready to go.
Well, I'm off for a belated birthday lunch!
Behave!

Rambles

How many different ways can I warn you my post is mostly nonsense? I guess we'll find out, huh?
The sun is out here and temps are supposed to increase through the rest of the week. Very nice. Hopefully that means I'm done shivering until winter.
So, the fabulous Megan is at the Romantic Times convention this week. Yes. I'm jealous, but one day I'll get there. Anyway. Last night she text messaged me to say our Squishy is there. Did I ever explain the squishy? I don't think so. If you looked at the pics you noticed he's very muscular, and you'd expect those muscles to be unyielding and hard. Yet, his hug was not painful, it was...squishy and nice. (I guess I can't really explain it - just shake your head as usual.) I can't wait to hear the details of her adventure.
I just updated our calendar and to my horror, so far we have 3 weddings to attend toward the end of summer. And it's not horror in the sense of... holy crap, what the hell are you people doing getting married...It's horror that I have absolutely nothing to wear, nothing that fits, and refuse to purchase new clothing when I can't stand looking at my butt in the mirror. Now I'm on a mission - not just me - my sister and I (and B - though he can drop weight with the snap of his fingers) are on the mission together. The plan is that we both slough off a bunch of pounds and go dress and shoe shopping together so we can swap since she has several weddings to attend as well. One of our events will be very formal - probably black tie - which presents a whole 'nother bunch o' stress as I'm not sure I know how to behave in that type of setting (or exactly what that means I'm supposed to wear), but it's also a wedding I wouldn't miss for the world so I guess I'll do the best I can and hope I use the right fork. Another wedding is an out of town event, which is exciting since B and I will actually be alone for the weekend. The wedding in the middle is close friends and will be an absolute blast. Now if I can only forget about the chocolate ice cream in the freezer...
Back to work for me. Since I did the calendar I realized just how fast time is moving and how little I have to do what I want to do.
Behave!

Taxes, Anniversaries, and Freezing

It's tax day. Hopefully you got yours done on time.
Ours have been finished for months now. We even paid what we owed state and local months ago, though usually I wait to do that until the very last minute. I know a few people still hustling to get the forms completed and while I don't envy them, I do wish them luck.
Today is also my parent's 47th anniversary. (No, it wasn't tax day when they got married). I emailed this morning, but I've yet to get a chance to actually call them. So, Happy Anniversary to them.
Oh, the freezing. I'm cold. Temps are pretty low here right now, but that's supposed to change toward the end of the week. I can only hope. I'm tired of shivering.
Today's been busy from the second I opened my eyes. We're in a momentary lull for a few more minutes, then there'll be several hours of nonstop running - parent/teacher conferences, errands, and K2 has a job interview. She's excited and I have to remind myself that she is actually old enough to have a job. I don't know why I do that. She'll mention some place is hiring and I always give her a blank look and tell her she'll have to apply when she turns 16. And she's been 16 for almost 6 months now. I don't know what's wrong with me.
That's all I have for now.
Behave!

Sunday Solace

Well, it's been a pretty decent weekend around here.
Most of my chicks are back in the nest after having fantastic times at their various destinations. Friday evening B and I ruined our brains by watching a movie we shouldn't have. And we watched it to the end even though we both hated it. It was like a train wreck or something - so bad we couldn't tear our eyes away. And stupid? Oh my goodness. Let's just say that was nearly 2 hours of my life I'll never get back and leave it at that. Nope. Not going to tell you what it was. I would hate for you to miss the experience. Ha! We also had a nasty round of thunderstorms Friday evening, and, of course, K3 was tenting it with the boy scouts. He said it was pretty bad, but still had a blast. Saturday morning we woke to abundant green and a beautiful day, which was awesome. We took K4 to the movies to see "Horton Hears a Who". She loved it. Then, B cooked dinner and we had a fabulous time just hanging out around the house, doing a little yard work and enjoying the beautiful day. K4 was about tired of everyone being gone by Saturday evening. While she enjoyed her only child status and having our undivided attention, she missed her siblings a whole lot. She was thrilled when they started rolling back home today.
My short is now in the hands of my awesome critique partners. While I wait for their comments, I'll be heading back to editing my full length manuscript in the hopes of then burdening them with that very soon. Which means I've finished one of my major goals for the month.
That's all.
Hope your weekend was smashing!
Behave!!

Still Giddy...

And why not?
It's Friday. I got to watch Sam and Dean last night, while hooked up to the Internet in my room. (I don't think the coolness of that is ever goind to wear off) The weather is beautiful even though it's raining now. The smell of rain makes me happy, especially after the warm day. I'm still thrilled about finishing my short - even more so now that I'm at the hard copy edit stage already. I hadn't planned to be. I was going to let it rest today, but decided not to and started the first computer edits. Then I kicked myself for not starting earlier when I was 12 pages from the end and had to pick the K's up from school. Even after all the running I had to do this afternoon (and it was a lot - but I'll get to that in a minute) I managed to finish and print the pages. (Which was a debacle because some word update failed and I had to try four times before I could even get my document loaded) Once I'm done here, I'll take pencil in hand and start marking up my pretty pages. And yes, I use a mechanical pencil instead of a red pen or any other color pen. I like the pencil best.
Okay. Moving on.
Three of the four K's are away this weekend. We had tons of last minute packing and running around to do after they got home. Then rushed around like fools to get people to their destinations on time, but had a nice (not fast food) dinner with the younger two K's during the lull. And a trip for ice cream once the last one was delivered. Sweet. Now K4 is in for a little spoiling this weekend, which should be fun.
That's all...
Behave!

I Have This Cat...

Yeah. That one.

See how possessive he looks in regards to my laptop?

Every single time I'm sitting with the laptop on my lap, he's there. Every. Time. It's like he has laptop sense or something. Currently, he's pressed up against me so tight his tail is in my face and his body is stretching the power cord. Either he believes my computer is his, or he hates when I'm on it. I can't decide which.

Right before I took this picture his paw was resting on the computer. Of course, he moved just as the picture was taken, but you can see a fraction of what I'm dealing with. He rests on my wrists when I'm trying to type, or just gets on top of me so I can't even see the screen. It's maddening and adorable at the same time.

And speaking of adorable...I'm watching Supernatural (it's a rerun - but still super sweet), while hooked up to the Internet in my room. Which is more than adorable. It's so totally awesome I'm giddy. And speaking of giddy...I finished my short story today. Still needs edits, but it's complete. Whoot!

And tomorrow is Friday!

Behave!

Bits and Stuff

Tale #4 is up. Finally. Go read Misty's version of Squishy hugs. Obviously she's been procrastinating about blogging.
I do have a picture of my cat trying to take over my computer to show you, but unfortunately my camera batteries died so you'll have to wait.
There's a new episode of Ghosthunter's tonight. I won't be missing it. You shouldn't either. Then, tomorrow night we at least get a rerun of Supernatural. 3 more weeks until new stuff. I can't wait. But, I'm glad to get the rerun. It's better than nothing. I just found out that Jensen Ackles (a.k.a Dean Winchester) recorded "Crazy Love" with Jason Manns. If you go over to the myspace (mine), I have it as my new profile song. From there, you should go check out Jason Manns. He's a very talented musician and I dig his music.
The theme music for my short has been mostly Three Days Grace and Skillet, but then I heard Crazy Love and the softer side of my hero opened up for me. Which is good because otherwise he was a hardass, wisecracking, tough guy with not many human qualities, which is a laugh since he's an immortal. I don't expect you to understand how that works for me. Just nod your head and smile like you usually do when I say something off the wall. Seriously. I'm used to it. And you should be used to it as well.
Behave!

Bare Chests & Bow Ties

I'm way in the back - behind Nat.

Let's just say this picture doesn't really do the guys justice. Pretty much all of them look goofy. Of course, it was a long night and it's not like they weren't working their tushies off.

We're still waiting for tale #4.

Short and sweet today.

Behave!

Monday Stuff

The illness train has decided to make a temporary layover at our home. We're 3 for 6 at the moment, which is the biggest sickness level we've had here in recent months. The train could definitely pull out anytime now. Thank you.
I miss Supernatural!
We still almost 3 weeks to wait for a new episode. I'm dying. Sure, I can watch seasons 1 and 2 on dvd, but it's not the same as new SamandDean. I don't often get the opportunity to put the dvd's in and just watch - not like Thursday nights when my family knows to not try to talk to me, make noise, or attempt to "just see what else is on". !!Don't touch it!! Yeah, maybe I'm a bit of a freak about it, but honestly there's a lot of inspiration for me there - besides hotness and sexyashell tattoos. I won't go into it anymore, because unless you're a fan it's hard to explain.
Short story progress is being made. I'm really enjoying writing this, though there's not as much blood as I originally thought there'd be. We're still early in the story, so that might change. So far we've got a creepy death, a missing demon, and a whole lot of awareness between the hero and heroine. And a brother! A brother who hopefully will have his own story.
Our annual writing retreat is coming up fast. I have a lot to clear out before then, and a lot to do as well since I'm the retreat chairperson this year. I plan to start a new story at the retreat, but I have two major projects to check off before then. The nice thing is the story's already mostly plotted and once I get through these loose ends I'll be able to set my brain to work on it while doing my retreat chair duties. I hope.
That's all...
Behave!

More Pants and Random Crap

Nat's got her post up here. The fourth tale isn't up yet, but we're expecting it soon. I did get my copy of the group picture. I have to scan it before I can post it and I'm not really sure that's an option. The scanner didn't cooperate last time I attempted it, so we'll see. The pictures I tried to post today weren't even working right. Maybe it's just me. Probably.
Yesterday was the monthly chapter meeting of my writer's group. Always a blast. We went to our usual place to harass our usual waiter, which is also always fun. And sad at the same time since he's leaving and probably won't be back.
Oh, and thanks to my excellent brother-in-law my house is now wireless and I'm once again able to get on the Internet on my laptop - supposedly even from upstairs. I'm dying to try that out, but haven't had time as of yet. And he's taken care of most of the problems on my desktop, making the Internet much faster and a much more pleasant experience. Gotta love it. And I do. Immensely. We've been having a blast hanging out. Last night B's family gathered here for chili verde, game playing, and birthday frivolity for B's sister and her milestone birthday. I'm not exactly sure what today will hold besides our usual Sunday obligations.
My short story is going well. I had to begin again when I realized I was over 1/3 of the way through and the hero and heroine hadn't even met yet, which is so not good in a short story. I don't lament the already written and now discarded pages because thanks to that I have a really good handle on the story. I'm not nearly as far as I previously was, but I'm hoping to remedy that today. And I still don't have a title, but I'm working on it.
So, there's your Sunday update.
Behave!

Brotherhood of the Tearaway Pants - Part 3

So...these friends and I went to see the Chippendale's last night for Megan's birthday. Okay, so the link is to this guy with his arms around me - because he was my favorite. Superman. Yes. Dirty cowboy. Yes. We had a blast, but that's not to say the entire experience was stellar.

Megan's fantastic sister got us free passes. It was the first time I've ever been on any kind of "list", plus I got carded - twice, which for obvious reasons doesn't happen so much anymore. But can I just say...PANTS OFF!!

What happened to the tearaway pants?

There are none. There's only torn off shirts that are then thrown into the audience to be snapped up by over stimulated women.

Anyway.

We get there and are immediately crammed in a small waiting space with about a hundred other women. Finally they open the doors, where we proceeded to wait for almost 2 full freaking hours (with who knows how many hundreds of women) before they actually started the show. Why? Heck if I know, but here's what I think...alcoholic beverage consumption and money making. (This comes from a non-alcoholic consuming observer) The guys had stuff to sell - t-shirts, dvd's and raffle tickets. (Ladies, mmmkay) Okay. So the show finally starts and of course, everywhere I try to stand there's an Amazon woman in front of me and I can't see. Scratch that. It wouldn't have mattered where I stood. It was impossible to see because the stage was too low. Apparently there was some floor dancing being done, but none of us could see what was going on.

The dancing was good. The "tributes" and the singing not so much. They also did this "hot seat" thing where you could pay to go on stand and get your own private dance. Which was fine - except they probably spent nearly half the show collecting money from intoxicated women. The guys were cute - some more than others. (Ahem. Picture.) Two of them didn't really dance at all, but seemed to be in charge of stage preparation and picking up the clothing the others took off. The show ended way later than we figured it would. Then you could pay to get your picture taken with all of them (thank you, Nat) - which we did (I don't have my copy yet) and after that, the guys were available to sign stuff. It was late by then, (which is why I look like total crap in the above picture) but we hung around like troopers. Misty and Nat got their tattoo's signed. Megan and I got our asses grabbed during a picture with another one of the guys - okay. wait. Megan got hers poked and I just got groped a little in a non-threatening way.

I have more pictures - which you'll have to wait for. After we left, and could hear again, we stood in the parking lot being drizzled upon by mother nature and talked. I can't say the experience is one I'd ever want to repeat, but it was a lot of fun.

Behave!

*Sniffle*

I have been gifted with B's cold. Lucky, lucky me. And of course, this comes on when I don't have the time to be sick, and when I have a whole bunch of fun stuff going on, and a whole bunch of writing to do. Though I can't say I know anyone who really has the time, or enjoys, being sick. Still, it's my cold and my blog and I'll whine if I want to.
Tomorrow I'm meeting with friends for a much-needed gathering. The frivolity will then move to the evening, where more fun grown up type stuff is planned. B's brother, B, is coming in tomorrow too, and the weekend will be full of family gatherings and the like. Actually, the next two weekends since he just emailed us and said his trip was extended. It's a business trip for him - he'll be traveling pretty much everyday and coming here to crash on our couch. Before you feel sorry for him, his four children are relatively close in age to ours, so he's used to this type of chaos. Plus, he's an easy house guest (and he loves to cook) so I'm not all that concerned or stressed about the visit. Except I am trying to make my house look at least halfway decent for his arrival and the cold is seriously messing with my mojo.
I need chicken soup.
And the tissues I forgot to buy at the grocery store.
On of these days I'm actually going to have an in depth post of insightful thoughts and information. Seriously.
Behave!

Tuesday Tidbits

Just a random bunch of nothing. I don't think I've really done one of these posts in a while.
*The doc is unsure of what exactly K4's rash is. We're treating it as one thing though the scrapings she took didn't point to that and hoping for the best. There is a slight improvement in size today, but not in redness so I kept her home.
*The weather is really weird. It was damp and rainy yesterday. Now it's dismal looking outside, but nearly 60* with a pretty strong breeze going.
*I have a headache.
*I didn't sleep well, probably thanks to garlic stuffed olives eaten way too close to bedtime. I don't recall any particular odd dreams, but I was awake a lot and very restless.
*We finally found the dog brushes that were hidden by the dog. She is unhappy. She both loves and hates to be brushed out. We've placed the brush out of her reach in the hopes she doesn't attempt to hide it again.
*Oh and it's April 1st. April Fools Day. I had totally forgotten until B called me to tell me about the radio joke he fell for. I'm going to have to pay close attention today. I know things will be attempted.
*And, Geeze! It's April already. Yeah. I said it when it was March, but holy crap time is moving fast this year. I'm not sure I like it!
That is all.
Behave!