Thought I'd babble some.

Honestly, I don't have anything exciting or particularly clever to say here. Things are taking off over on StitchWorks though. The sewing room is almost all together, which is exciting, and it's a wonderful space to have. The only real drawback is that it is in the hottest room in the house, and I keep the door closed so the cats won't get into everything. I don't like to be cold, but I also hate being hot. So, I might have to crack the window or take frequent breaks.

The cats are annoying me to no end. I think they problem is that they (but mostly Spike) don't like their new food. I foolishly started them on some rather expensive food, and I think I've just sent them down the entirely wrong path. At 5 months they are already picky eaters. Last week, to save 10 bucks, I bought the cheaper food. They will barely touch it. And they are following me around crying at me, and climbing me and being generally REALLY annoying. This morning, I heard Spike crunching, and I thought maybe he had given up. But no, he had not. As I got closer, I realized that the two little buggers have been picking the old food out and eating it, but leaving the other (I had mixed the two together thinking that might ease the transition. It has not). So, this evening I am off to the store to show the kittens who is boss. Which, apparently, is the two of them.

In one other bit of news, classes started this week, and I'm a bit intimidated, but mostly excited to be formally learning again. And I got 100% on my first quiz. Even if it is for a craptastically easy library use class.

So little to say, so much time

I don't have much post worthy information today, but wanted to at least keep up appearances. I'm afraid if I don't post here regularly, it will fade away. So, in the interest of blog preservation, I will say a few things.

Thanks to my generous and lovely sister, I will be taking a trip to Miami this spring. I'm really excited, even though I am constantly pushing the terror of airplanes out of my mind. It doesn't help that my mother says today "I'm so happy you two are going on a trip together. The only thing that bothers me is that you will both be on the same plane.... You know, in case it goes down." Uh, thanks mom.

The kittens are gnawing on things. Jack says, "Maybe they are teething." I don't know how this thought even occurs to him. But sure enough, we looked in their mouths, and big teeth are pushing through. Weird, but normal, I guess.

There's been much talk about sewing over on StitchWorks, so if you want to see what I've been wasting my time on, you might want to check there. Once the sewing room is ready to go, I plan on getting a lot done. And, maybe I and a friend, who shall remain nameless unless she chooses to show herself, will get a stock of stuff and start selling. Right?

Ok. That's enough crap.

Oh! I lost 1.5 lbs this week, supposedly. My scale, I'm not trusting entirely right now.

The Boob Tube.

I'm not sure if I mentioned it, but we got a new television. You can see the picture there on the left. It is a 42" Samsung 720p plasma tv. Whatever all that stuff means. I'm pretty sure that the 42 is how big it is, and that Samsung is the brand name, and as far as 720p and plasma, well, i think it has something to do with pixels and the picture, and how the picture is made or something. Also that it's shiny like a piece of glass whereas the LCD screens are not.


Jack spent 8 hours going from store to store to store trying to find the best product for the best deal. He found that this is near impossible. There's always something else, always something more, always something better. The problem is deciding where the cut off is. It helped that we were paying cash and we had a strict budget, but it only helped a tiny bit. I is an amazing television, with a fantastic picture, and is pretty big too. Movies through the PS3 are fantastic, while regular television looks pretty sucky on it. I guess I'm going to get lobbied soon to upgrade to HD. Though something of equal or greater value must go first.


I'm happy with it, I am. But to me, it's just a television when it comes down to it. It's great to watch movies on, for sure, and it helps to be able to have a bright enough picture to actually see what's happening on the screen (it's predecessor was fading). It's also nice to be able to hook the stereo up to it without much hassle.


I've heard rumors that these televisions lead to higher energy bills, which I assume is mostly due to higher rates of usage. I am happy to report, however, that even though this television takes the cake, it has not taken my husband. He can appreciate it, but he's not attached to it. This is very good news. And not just for the electric bill...

Lots going on, Nothing to say.

So, if you want to know about the bulk of my weekend, check out StitchWorks. Basically, it was a weekend spent doing things that weren't essential while I watched the rest of my house descend into chaos. I'll get to the cleaning eventually. I promise.

The only other tidbit is that Friday's dinner party turned out very well. My food was well-received, we had good conversation, and a lot of fun, I think. It felt very adult, but in a very fun and good way. The steamed/fried dumplings were a great hit, as were the sauces and the shrimp and noodle roll things. The stir fry was what it was, and certainly not the most exciting part of the meal, but everyone still took home leftovers. I'm feeling good. I'm looking forward to the next one, and planning for when my turn comes back around.

Plans, Plans, and More Plans.

So, over on StichWorks, I posted about giving up the guest room in favor of a sewing/craft room. A simple enough decision it was. But that has led to other ideas. A trickle down effect, or a snowball effect (which is probably more accurate). So let me tell you what I'm thinking.

First, the bed from the guest room is going to the basement. The Craft Room, as it will from here on out be called, is going to get a coat of Kilz and a coat of paint (hopefully this weekend). The dining room table that is in the basement will come upstairs, and either be put into the Craft Room or exchanged in the dining room. Various other bits and pieces from throughout the house will go into the craft room as they fit, make sense, etc., and after I've been working in it a while I will figure out what else I need.

Which brings us to second. I *think* we will use part of the back room in the basement for a guest area. With the table out, and the shelves rearranged (and perhaps hidden), it won't be a bad area. BUT, it will need paint. White over the wood paneling I think. Is it even worth it though? I was really into this idea about 7 minutes ago, but as I write it and think about it, it seems like a waste of time, and again, space. That didn't take long to fade out, did it? Ha. But still, for now we will put the bed down there, just in case. Never know when you'll need it I guess.

So, this weekend I'll need to enlist Jack's help for the removal of the bed at least. And I also want to get a piece of crap dresser out of the office. That's not too much to ask. Ha.

How Long?

My question is this: When on hold to make an appointment at a doctor's office, how long should I wait?

I need to make this appointment. I have put it off because I'm lazy and I'm forgetful, and I generally hate calling places. I have been on hold for 15 minutes so far. My instinct says that I've been forgotten. Are they really that busy? I don't have questions (well, I have one), I just want to make a straightforward appointment. The problem is that I'm always wondering if they'll come back on the line in a few seconds. Just a few more seconds...just a few more...just a few...just a...just...

Anyway. I've decided to hang up and try again later.

Spike: Avid TV Watcher

For viewing pleasure:  Spike watch various shows.  These shots are not staged.  He really plops himself in front of the tv and watches intently for minutes on end.  He tastes are diverse as you will see.

Hockey Commentary

Dazed and Confused

Home Improvement

Animal Planet

More Animal Planet

Today is an ordinary day, I think. I will tell you several miscellaneous facts that you probably won't care about. If you want something maybe a little more interesting, check out StitchWorks.

I'm wearing a sweater today that my wonderful sister bought me. I'm not sure how I feel about it, but I'm leaning toward annoyed with a hint of discomfort. There's something funny about the cut, and it clings to me in a way I would prefer it didn't. It is also rapidly losing it's shape, which might not be a bad thing.

The enchiladas last night turned out ok, although I let them hang out in the oven too long while Jack cleaned soda from the inside of his car, so the cheese got a little more cooked that I would like, and how is that for a run on sentence?

I did not snack last night. I sewed instead. You can check out the aforementioned link to see what I was working on.

Tonight for dinner we are having buffalo chicken wings and ore ida zestie fries. According to SparkPeople that, with my lunch, is only 500 some odd calories for the day. I find it hard to believe that one chicken wing only has 43 calories though. I'm going to do a little more research into that before I think I have a bunch of extra calories to munch on.

Also, I am sorta bummed that our snow/sleet/wintery mix forecast has turned to mostly rain, although it's still going to be in the low to mid 30s today and tomorrow. A snow day would have been nice. Ha. Then maybe I could actually get something done at the house that I neglected for the 12 or so days (in a row) that I had off.

Daily Grind

Just popping in quickly for a brief hello and blahblahblah. First day back to work. It was hard waking up this morning, especially realizing how UNproductive I really was over break. And now that it is all over, I'm getting ideas, wanting to make plans, rearrange my house and stuff. We'll see if I can drive Jack crazy over that tonight! Ha.

Also, I'm having a good first day of discipline. FDD for short. I've eaten what I planned to eat, I'm not feeling overly hungry and I'm psyching myself up for making dinner tonight. Also, the plan is 20 minutes of pilates when I get home, and a walk after dinner. Maybe Jack will go with me. He says he wants to.

I kinda wish cats were walkable. And that if they WERE walkable, and liked to walk on a leash, that people wouldn't think I was looney. Because if I saw some woman walking down the street with a cat at the end of a leash, I would think she was off her rocker. Oh well. I don't want to be the crazy cat lady. I'll just find some headphones and my ipod and take a few turns around the neighborhood.

I'm feeling really good people. All the craziness of the last few months feels like it's behind me. The holidays are over, and I can get back to a routine for real.

Good times.

The real reason I haven't been blogging over break.

So, I would like to pretend that I've just been so busy this last week and a half, organizing my house, going out with friends, travelling the world.  I would like to tell you those are the reasons I've not been blogging often.  

You can see though, that the real reason I've been mostly absent from here is that the cats protest every time I attempt to use the computer.  Spike climbs all over the keyboard and acts like I'm an idiot for tapping away on this machine while staring at a glowing screen.  Shelby climbs into my lap, underneath the computer and claws and bites my legs.  

So, now you know the truth.  I'm being held hostage by kittens.  Once I am away from them for a bit each day (now that work is starting again) I might be able to get a few meaningful words in before they find out.

Congratulations!

I found out last night that two very good friends are engaged to be married.  There is something so wonderful and hopeful about hearing this news on the dawning of a new year.  I wish them all the love and happiness that the world has to offer, and look forward to being a part of it as the years go by.  I don't presume to offer unsolicited advice, and besides, I don't think they need it.  Just remember to love openly and without reservation.  Remember that the other's best interests are also your own.  

I want desperately to call them up and harass them with questions of details.  "When's the wedding?"  "Where are you having it?" "What colors are you having?" and all of those other sorts of things, but I know how annoying it was to always be asked questions you just didin't have the answers to yet.  So, for now, I will leave them be!  There is plenty of time yet, and let's let them bask in the glow of this happy time for a while.

Congratulations y'all!  You are wonderful and perfect and I wish you both the best!  How exciting!   

Oh, and if you need dozens of red tea light holders let me know.