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!

Monday Madness

One more Easter photo. See those flowers? I practically risked my life rescuing them from a pile of debris hanging out over the creek. Okay, so maybe it really wasn't "practically". I leaned over, snagged them, and then retreated through the thorn bushes to safer ground. My sister was oh-so-thrilled when I handed them to her and promptly put them in water. Yes. They're fake. She was also thrilled with the insects that began pouring out of the petals as soon as the bouquet warmed to room temperature. Something tells me she tossed them out as soon as everyone left.
So, today's the last day of March. Weird. I cringe at what will go on tomorrow. If you couldn't guess, April Fool's is a pretty big deal around here - at least for the K's. The few years I've tried to pull off big capers, they've come back to bite me in the butt. For example: One year I'd planned to tell B I was pregnant. We were weeks away from heading to the appointment that would make such jokes null and void. Oh, and you guessed it. Two weeks later, to our complete surprise, the stick turned blue and my harmless suggestion turned into real life. I think you can understand why I'm cautious. Think I'll stick to the usual stuff.
K4 is home today and we'll be visiting the doctor as soon as I can make her an appointment. What started off looking like dry skin is now a nasty, itchy and painful rash. On her face. And it's now the size of a half-dollar. Since Friday, the thing has grown and worsened. I know what it's not because I've tried all possible home remedies for various things. Now we'll see what it is.
I think that's all for now. We're looking at a busy week. B's brother will be in for business and is staying with us, and the calendar is already full of various other activities - some fun, others just regular life. Oh and I should probably at least dust before our house guest arrives. Ya think?
Behave!

Dirty And Gross

Yep. You're seeing what you think you're seeing.

A pair of underwear we found in the woods. Full of mud. Or something. I think they used to be white. In all, they appeared in pretty good shape, so I definitely have to wonder all kinds of things. Why were they in the woods? Did my brother-in-law actually pick up something that really looked like that when they were taken off? Eww. Sorry. That was gross. As you can see, the dog is even offended. Or maybe not, since it doesn't look like she's paying any attention.

So, today's finally Friday. Thank goodness. We have a pretty full weekend, but that may change depending on sickness levels around here. So far there is one definitely under the weather and another that appears to be heading down the same slippery slope. I'm still knocking on wood since we never got the nasty flu everyone else had.

The short story I plotted out yesterday is bigger than short. I have more plot than I need for 15k words and there's no way to cut it down. I don't want to cut it down. I have all these ideas rolling around in my head for different scenes and a clear picture of the hero and heroine. So I think that'll be my next single title project, which excites me more than I can say, though I probably won't get to start it until the writing retreat in May. I have a whole list of stuff to take care of before opening the blank page to begin. I do have a different idea for the shortie, and plotting for that will commence shortly with some research before brainstorming.

Then, it's the daily activities of living - the usual Friday obligations.

And maybe a nap...

Behave!

Going Places

More cool pictures from the hike.
Since the water was still so high and we don't often travel this section of woods, we felt like we were in a new place. The high water had created an island where we found all kinds of interesting debris. One I'll show you tomorrow. I happen to think it's amusing. You'll have to decide for yourself.
On the writing front, I'm working on edits for my paranormal story and plotting out a shorter paranormal. I started with a blank notebook and plotting sheet, which was kind of daunting especially since I had absolutely no idea - not even a kernel of one. Now I've got three notebook pages, and a quickly filling up plotting sheet. I'm excited about it, though I'm not quite ready to begin the actual writing. I have to let the holes fill in while I continue editing Out of the Shadows. So, even though I still feel like someone stole my front bicycle tire, I'm moving on and working through it. That's the only thing that can be done.
Behave!

Riding The Bike

My brother-in-law testing out his new wheels during our hike through the woods on Sunday.

I told him the picture would be going up on the blog, which is why he's posing so pleasantly. I don't know. I'm not the one who has to live with him. Ha! I'm just kidding. The bike is a genuine Spiderman cartoon series one. I doubt you can see that. See the beard? He and K1 have a bet going about who can grow their beard longer. Neither are supposed to shave until this coming Christmas.Should be interesting.

But...seriously.

Sometimes I feel like that.

No. Not like a bearded man on a little, rusty bicycle in the middle of the woods.

But like someone stole my front tire. I pedal and pedal and never seem to get anywhere. I know I'm not alone in this. A lot of my writing friends are suffering from the same feelings. We talk about it and that helps and we keep plugging along while doing our best to pretend the tire, and the obligatory card clothes pinned to the spokes, are still there. It's something you just have to deal with, and work through.

The ceremony for K3 becoming a boy scout was really cool. They did a Chinese new year theme, complete with chinese food, decorations, chop sticks, and chinese finger toys. Yeah. The only thing about those fingers is that we were nearly late for school this morning because K3 and K4 were goofing around and got stuck while I was waiting for them to get into the car.

That's all.

Behave!

Bridges

We think there was a bridge here at one time. Through the water (when it's low) there's evidence - some heavy timbers in a diagonal line to the other side. There's an old tree on the other side, and that's where we think the bridge exited. Though we're not sure of any of it.

Tonight we cross a different kind of bridge. K3 crosses from cub scouts to boy scouts. It's a huge deal, with a cool ceremony that actually includes a bridge to symbolize going from cub scouts to boy scouts. B and I have to cross with him, to show our support for his future endeavors, plus there's an additional ceremony where he gives me a pin. We'll have dinner served by the boy scouts, and listen to a few speeches before the ceremonies begin. Now I've been through this before with K1, but I'm not stupid enough to believe I won't get all teary-eyed at this new step my youngest son is taking. Plus, he's not such a little guy anymore. Heck, it won't be long until he's begging me to let him drive places like his sister.

Time marches on. I guess. Bridges are crossed and new paths are chosen.

Man. I'm a sap.

Behave!

Shopping?

We definitely need one of these where we camp. Just not this one. These were taken in an area with a lot of flood damage - debris galore. And, lucky you, I've got several more shots of odd debris to show you.

I'm not exactly sure what that other thing is. Some kind of concrete mixer maybe. Don't know for sure. To the left is a pile of glass bottles someone collected. It was nice to hike yesterday since the underbrush isn't grown up yet. Besides a few thorn bushes, you could easily navigate through what is otherwise a very densely treed area. Further down the path we found evidence of how high the flood water was. Standing about ten feet from the creek bank, the water would have been at least seven foot deep. That amazes me. On a regular summer day, you can wade through pretty much any area of the creek. There are a few carp holes, where the water is over your head and the hugest (amazingly huge) fish live, but there aren't many areas like that in the stretch of the creek we haunt.

There's your Monday oddness.

Behave!

It Begins Again...

Back from the busy weekend of fairy birthday parties, family stuff, and general running around.

And check that out! I have new pictures. We were at my sister's house, which is near those infamous cabin photos I wouldn't stop showing you. After eating way too much, I decided to join the guys down at our camping spot. It was do that, or go into a food coma.

Stupidly, I wore my good shoes, and good coat, but that didn't stop me from trekking through the woods. Of course, I can't call either item "good" anymore - not after getting my long black leather jacket tangled in some thorny bushes and wrecking my heels (yes, I had heels on) in the mud. We hiked way down the trail beside the creek and found lots of cool and interesting stuff you'll be witnessing over the next few days. Good stuff, too. Ha!

So, first you get this little boat. K2 found it and put it on this rail for the drain in the actual camping area. When I drove down I saw it and knew I had to take a picture of it for the blog. It does get better...or maybe that's weirder. (honestly, you should be used to that by now) No item jumped out at us for the group odd picture taking, so there was none of that this time. But, it was good to hang out with everyone even if we all wanted to die because of all the food we ate.

Hope your weekend was a good one!

Behave!

What Day Is It?

As you maybe can tell by the lateness of this post, it's been one of those days around here.
Not terrible, just busy with much to do and not enough hours.
The dog is sick. She's puking and having other digestive issues. Luckily (knock on wood) she's made it outside each time, but eww. I'm not sure what caused this, though she does have a pretty sensitive stomach so it could be anything she scarfed off the floor or maybe she stuck her gigantor head into the lidded trash can. She doesn't do that often, and we're pretty good about changing the bag especially if there's something she might find delectable in there. But, she's also a little bit sneaky, so she could have dumpster dove while we weren't looking. Or she ate something totally gross outside. I don't even want to think about that.
Anyway.
I realized yesterday was the first day of spring. Bring it on. The weather here is decidedly not spring-like, which is irritating to say the least. The only thing spring-like is the mud outside, which looks amazing on my freshly washed pooch. How'd we get back on the subject of my dog?
We'll be out and about this weekend, so don't know if I'll have a chance to get on here much. Tomorrow is birthday parties, and a possible much needed and anticipated date night with my hubby. Sunday is holiday stuff, so that'll be the day with the family. Next week is looking kind of grim with tons going on and not much down time. We'll see how that goes.
Enjoy the weekend and the holiday!
Behave!

A Dog's Day

More specifically, my dog.
She had an appointment with the groomer that just happened to be in the middle of the day. I had to take what I could get since I've been trying to get her in since November and every time we had an appointment, it snowed. The groomer had us on the cancellation list, and this was the first day and time that even halfway suited. So we braved the high, cold winds and went.
I went out to the truck to write while the dog got her beauty treatment. I actually managed to get quite a bit done and time went really fast. I went back in shortly before I figured she'd be done since the groomer has her appointment down to a science now. And then it happened...
The dog had diarrhea all over the grooming bench. Talk about gross.
I helped clean up, took her out, then the groomer resumed drying her. She was working on the final trim when the dog started dry heaving. We unhooked her from the stand and shooed her out the door, not expecting her to make it to the grass.
Turns out, she snowed us.
Instead of heading over to heave, she hustled off the porch, then kind of sashayed to the truck and sat by the back door. I called her to come back, and she just glared at me. At that point, we figured she was done and I came home with my still slightly wet pooch who now has a brand new trick to get out of being groomed.
Great.
I might be scared over the next few days. Enjoy the holiday!
And...
Behave!

Wet & Whiney Wednesday

*It's raining and my truck has a leak.

*The dog smells really bad. (until tomorrow when she goes to the groomer)

*This week is taking too long.

*I'm tired.

*Other various and random complaints that I won't bore you with.

The only positive is the link of wet hunks a friend sent to me. I haven't had much time to peruse the lengthy list, but I did check out Jared Padalecki (Sam) and Viggo. It's probably a good thing I had lots to do today. Otherwise, I would have been checking out the scenery. Oh stop. It's research for heroes.

That is all.

Behave!

My Little Leprechaun

Yes. That's what I live with.

Isn't he talented?

I am so proud.

There's no embarrassment here.

He could care less that there's now a goofy picture of him on my blog.

Then again, if you could see some of the pictures that were taken Saturday night, this would look normal. I can't show you them, because I don't have them. But think Hannah Montana wig and grown men. It was hysterical. Who knows, I might managed to get my hands on them. So that's all I'm saying for now.

Goofy pictures are a theme in our family. Usually when we're together we find something ridiculous or strange and we each pose with it - a blonde, curly wig, a cardboard "stupid" sign, my brother in laws brand new guitar, one of those composting toilets, the outhouse at the creek, strange hats...the list goes on and on. Which means I might gain some new blog fodder over Easter when the family's all together. It's one of those things we haven't done in a while, so it's probably time again. Better check my camera batteries.

We're due to try the whole roller skating thing tonight. Wonder how that will go? This week is a busy one. We're even going to try our skills at snow tubing. I'll probably be in traction by the weekend.

Behave!

Pre-Saint Patty's Day Fun

It's quite obvious the cat didn't believe wearing the little green hat was fun despite our hysterical laughter. It took less than 3 seconds for the picture to be taken, but he got that pissed off look on his face as soon as he saw the little green hat. Do you think he knew we planned to humiliate him, and then publish his humiliation on the web?

In all honesty, the hat was the straw the broke the camel's back for him. K1's girlfriend was here with one of her dogs. Kramer was not happy about the visitor, even though he's much bigger. So he was already sullen and crabby before the hat appeared.

We don't do much St. Patty's Day celebrating around here. The kids love dressing in green - which is probably more to avoid getting pinched than because they believe we're Irish or something. We're not. At all.

But, in honor of the day, I have one more little green hat picture. See the bearded face holding the cat? K1. Yep. And tomorrow I'll put his picture on here because he's over 18 and looks just so darned cool with the hat on. I have one of B wearing it too, but he's totally adverse to having his picture up on here. Well, mostly. When I told him I was going to post his little green hat picture, he gave me a dirty look, which probably means you won't ever get to see it. Maybe.

Anyway. The weekend was a blast. Lots of laughing, good food, more laughing, and some excellent music. And I'm so tired now.

Behave!!

More Customer Service Headaches

I'm not even going to go into it, except to say I've been on the phone for way too long trying to clear up this debacle. I'm still not satisfied, and I'm wondering if I ever will be.
What the heck happened to good customer service?
Granted, everyone I spoke to today was pleasant, and apologetic. But, quite frankly, apologizing for charging me for something when I was told it would be different doesn't help. I know customer service is a thankless job, and it's not exactly the easiest job. I appreciate that. A lot. Which is why I'm always pleasant until I'm given a reason not to be, and after that, I'm still polite though there might be an edge to that politeness.
Anyway.
I'm brushing that off in preparation for what's shaping up to be a fun, but busy, weekend.
Maybe I'll even have some new pictures come Monday. I know for sure I'll be tired.
That's all for now.
Behave!

Bad Customer Service and Stress

Yeah. It's been one those days around here.
Good on the whole, but with a few annoyances thrown in to frustrate me.
Like, for example, I got the bill for my brand spanking new phone/Internet/cable service with additional charges that aren't supposed to be on there. My plan was for free certain promotional additions for a year. When I called, certain there'd been some kind of mistake, I was told I'd misunderstood the offer. Yeah. Not. After explaining myself further, I was then told the customer service rep who sold me the plan misunderstood the offer. This is, of course, after I'd been kept on hold for over ten minutes and not just on regular hold, on the one that reverts back to the person you're talking to if you make a noise or talk to someone else in the room. That made it pretty much impossible to say the bad words springing to my lips as I fumed over the way she treated me. Anyway. To make a long and boring story short, my last question was if I was under some contract with them that would prevent me from switching service. When she said no, I hung up.
Then.
Then I called my previous company to start the process of switching back. The first person I talked to, though pleasant, couldn't help me. I was transferred to another pleasant person. Then their system hitched requiring a reboot and I was told I'd be called back within ten minutes. Um...yeah...that was five hours ago, and still nothing. So...I'm not sure where this leaves me. Except I know for sure I'm not staying with my current company. So far, the whole experience has been a nightmare. The cable doesn't work right, the Internet is slow, and the installation process, though easy, was incomplete and then even more difficult thanks to even ruder customer service reps.
Then we had open house at the younger K's school. Which was really fine. It was fun to watch their faces as they showed me around in their element. In all my years of going to these (and it's been a lot) I don't ever remember there being so many people there. That wasn't too bad. Until we went to the book fair end of the school. The crowd was so insane it was nearly impossible to even move, let alone take the time to actually look at anything. We spend more time waiting to check out than we did choosing books. And no, I'm not really complaining about it, except that it stressed me (and the K's) out.
And there you have it. An actual rant from me. What do you know?
Behave!

Unpractical Practical Jokes

Or...Enough Already!!
There's been a rash of practical jokes around here lately.
Like when someone stuffed a tennis ball in B's work boot. The dog dragged his boot away and chewed on it, because after all, the ball belongs to her. Last week, K2's cell phone went missing. No one has admitted to that one yet. Probably because they fear her reaction. She was not a happy camper.
Missing items, booby traps, you name it - all of it's been going on around here.
This morning, I was the unfortunate victim. I had a busy day planned. Lots of running around, which included stair climbing and walking. And wouldn't you know...one of my sneakers went missing.
I searched everywhere. Everywhere - including the freezer, the cabinets, the back porch, the garbage can - everywhere. Finally, very ticked off, I pulled out my boots. Now, I love my boots, but they aren't exactly good to me when I'm on my feet all day. Today proved no different. I'm aching.
So, I call home when I was on my way back.
And K1 was appalled that I hadn't found it before I left this morning! Ha! Why on earth would I look on the coat rack, under a rarely worn coat, for a sneaker?
You can bet I will now.
That is all.
Behave!

Time?

Time keeps getting away from me.
Don't ask me why, or how...
Oh, I know. Let's blame the time change. It's certainly upset the balance in my house - okay, not with everyone, but a few of us aren't adjusting well to losing an hour of sleep. Some of those few are cranky, whiny, and argumentative - but I'm not pointing fingers or naming names.
The muddy season has started. After all that rain we had last week, and milder temps, my backyard looks like a big, mud-colored sponge. And it tracks into the house on paws and sneakers. But I'm glad to see spring, even though I still could do with one huge, enormous, accumulating snow that shuts everything down. The gnomes are begging for a reconditioning and upgrading of their home. We've decided to plant some veges and herbs this year, though we haven't quite figured out where we're doing that since we planted grass in our garden spot. Between the dog and flying basketballs, I'm not sure where they'd be safe from breakage and steppage. But we did already start some pepper seeds in the house, so we'll see what happens.
Okay - that's all my stressed and tired brain has for you at this moment.
Behave!

Whoops!

Don't ask me what happened to the past two days!
I'm not really sure - time just got away from me.
I have some pictures I want to post, but as of right now my scanner isn't cooperating. I'll give you a hint though. They fall into "Things to do with the camera on the table at wedding receptions" category. Ha!
Anyway.
Nothing's happening at the moment besides the usual insanity. Our schedules almost on the light side for the weekend. I hate to even say that because usually all heck breaks loose when I dare to make such a statement. That's not to say there's not a bunch of stuff that needs done since it's the stuff that stays on hold when we are running around like crazy people. So, it'll still be busy around here.
And I find that's really all I have to say at the moment. Sorry it's not all that interesting...
Behave!!

Snow What?

Yeah, I know it's already 53* outside and we're all looking forward to spring, but I came across this picture again and thought I should post it just because. K2 and her cousins made these New Year's Eve.

I happen to think they're scary. Especially the big one with the straight line mouth. The little one is kind of cute, but those big sticks kind of freak me out. Ha! We laughed when we saw them. They'd placed them in such a way that when you left my sister's driveway, they kind of snuck up on you and took you by surprise.

Then...they were hacked to death by someone with an even bigger stick. Very sad.

Like I said before, I could deal with some big snow around here. It has to be big, and then spring. If it's not going to snow again, it should be spring. Period. Yeah. I know I say that every year. But as of my count, you've only heard it one winter-into-spring before, so I'm entitled to be repetitive. Ha!

Obviously there's not much going on this week.

Behave!

I Know You Know

What this is.

When I said I didn't have any pictures of manure from our trip to the farm, I remembered this owl stuff. Not quite poop, but really, isn't it close enough? B found this when they hiked up the big hill. Apparently, there was a lot more, but since this particular pile was perched so nicely on a rock, he decided to bring it back to show those of us who didn't go.

The kids wanted to pick through it to see exactly what critter the owl had for dinner. Yes. I have strange children, but I love their curiosity. It didn't stay in the house for long, though I'm pretty sure my sister's dog ate it sometime after B put the rock outside.

Hey, what do you expect from a rainy Tuesday?

That's all I have!

Behave!

Unstable?

There you go.

Puts a whole new spin on the quaint little cabin in the woods, doesn't it? Now you can definitely see why it's too dangerous to go inside. I want to though. B might not be happy that he's in the picture, though to the right you'll see my brother as well. But since B's the one who insisted I put this picture up, that's just how it is.

That's all I have for Monday!

Behave!!

Booksigning Photo!

Just got this from my mom.

This is from the book signing at One Good Woman! See that...I'm actually signing a book and there's someone standing there waiting for it! Very cool. Beside me, though you can't see her, is Vicky Burkholder. Misty Simon and Alayne Adams are at the other table. We had a blast, and as you can see the store has a lot of very cool things. We're supposed to be back in October. I'll post the details when they become available.

I have another picture of the cabin to post. B thinks I should show you just how unstable the building is, and there's one that shows just that. Then, there's a few more before my photo library well runs dry. But don't worry, I'm sure I'll find more weird stuff to take pictures of before too long.

And holy cow, it's March. I know I said that when February started, but seriously, time is flying by. March, which means spring is just around the corner. I can't wait. Look for a revamping of the gnome garden, and hopefully the addition of a few more of the little guys. I've got plans people.

In the meantime, stay warm, and...

Behave!!