Tuesday, September 25, 2007

Three "Top 10" Lists (in no particular order)

Modern Conveniences I Wouldn't Want to Live without:

1. laptop computer
2. coffee maker
3. microwave
4. blender
5. car
6. air conditioning
7. telephone (but not my cell phone)
8. DVD player
9. caller ID
10. email


What I'm NOT Crazy About:

1. rudeness
2. green beans
3. bad grammar & spelling
4. my cell phone
5. politics
6. loneliness
7. uncertainty
8. summer in general
9. telemarketers
10. rap "music"


Things I'd Splurge On IF Money Were No Object:

1. top-of-the-line computer
2. Nikon D200
3. shoes, shoes, shoes
4. baby grand piano
5. 1977 Bandit Trans Am
6. scrapbook supplies
7. state-of-the-art kitchen
8. 11x17 scanner
9. 12x12 printer
10. my own personal fountain machine

Monday, September 17, 2007

Tales of My Exciting Life

I feel that I should post something, because I haven't been as prolific as I'd like. The problem is that I have nothing witty, profound, interesting, or even dull and bland to write.

It's just a day. As usual, I had little sleep. As usual, the dog is barking outside. As usual, work is quiet. As usual, Bebo is on "da mountain " with Peepop.

I think I am just going to be thankful for the peace and quiet.

Friday, September 14, 2007

Fall

Is it really already halfway through September? Seems like I've spent the last several weeks in a fog. Days pass without my knowledge.


Hmm... that means I really need to start thinking about Christmas presents. And budgeting to get Jeff back into school. And buying Braeden winter clothes.


--->slight rant<---


I hate shopping for Bebo in the winter! The child is so insanely skinny that finding pants to fit him is nearly impossible. This is complicated by the fact that he's only four, but the height of a six-year-old. If the pants are long enough, they are so big in the waist they just fall to his scrawny little ankles. It's been this way from the very beginning. Poor little guy never had one ounce of baby fat. Summer is no problem; in fact, he often wears shorts sizes 2 years behind what you would expect.

I usually buy up clothes for next year when they go on sale at the end of the season. When I pulled out the stuff intended for this summer, it was all waaaay too small, so I didn't stock up this year. He's got no jeans or dress pants for winter at all, and maybe 2-3 pair of sweatpants. We're a little better on shirts, but not by much. I'd better get going - cool weather can't be too far away now.

--->end rant<---

I do so love this time of year. When the air cools down and dries out it just makes me happy. Last night brought a soft rain that's continued falling through the moment. It will make for a wonderful afternoon nap, not to mention moistening down the dust that has plagued us for weeks.

I live right on my town's main road, and I love listening to the sound of tires driving through the rain. It's so soothing.... so calming.... so relaxing....

Oh, dear - I need earplugs or something, because I'm going to fall asleep before work is over!

Thursday, September 13, 2007

Monday, September 10, 2007

Resolutions Update

One of my resolutions was to read more this year, which I have done. Here's what I've dug into so far:

Fiction:

A Wrinkle in Time by Madeleine L'Engle
All 7 of the Harry Potter books (twice each)
White Chocolate Moments by Lori Wick
The Lost Daughters of China by Karin Evans
The Kindness of Strangers by Katrina Kittle
The Great Divorce by C. S. Lewis
Wizard's First Rule by Terry Goodkind

Religious Nonfiction:

God as He Longs for You to See Him by Chip Ingram
For Women Only by Shaunti Feldhahn

I have an entire blog dedicated to weight loss, so that should give you a good enough picture how I am (or am not) doing there.

As for the photography, I have run more than 5000 pictures through my camera since I bought it early this spring. I'm amazed everyday at how much better I've gotten, and wonder how I could have debated the film vs. digital issue for so long. If you're in doubt, and can afford it - go with digital. The simple ability to learn immediately from your pictures is worth the extra cost. I've paid for the camera several times over in the cost of film & developing that I've saved.

I haven't quite scrapped 2 layouts a week - it goes in spurts. Before CKU, I'd started my "me" album, and I created another one that's more journaling-based at CKU. I have done several layouts, though. My scanner crashed so I haven't been able to upload all of them to 2peas, but hopefully I'll be getting a new one soon and can catch up.

No go on the autobiography yet - but I'm blogging rather consistently, and I enjoy it. I don't do it on every post, but some are more focused on the writing style than others. Keeps me in practice, ya know?

Spiritually I'm not doing as well as I'd hoped - but I suppose I never will. I'm trying, though. It's a rather personal thing.

Overall, I am pleased. For once I made reasonable resolutions, and have done a decent job of keeping to most of them.

Tuesday, September 4, 2007

I Hate Bugs

In case you didn't hear me the first time, let me repeat myself so there can be no doubt:


I hate bugs.


I learned about the whole Circle-of-Life thing in science class years ago, but I still hate bugs. They are not natural. I can tolerate ants and flies, and that's about it. Anything with more than four legs just gives me the willies. I can't even bear to squash them - the crunch sends shivers up to my hair. I swear I can feel it for days. Ew. My typical Death to Buggy method is spray them with bug spray - or, if I'm out, to suffocate them in AquaNet.

Unfortunately, my house is old and drafty, so at any given time I have a veritable menagerie of bugs to keep me company. The bathroom and kitchen seem to be the congregating points for the critters that take up residence here. No amount of bug spray, ant traps, or insect bombs eradicates the problem. I'm still not used to it.

So. . . this morning I decided to shower before work. Normally I shower at night or on my first break (one of the many advantages of working at home), because most days I am not coherent enough to tell the difference between the razor and the shampoo at the ungodly hour of 6 o'clock in the morning.

I stumble from the bed, miraculously missing spinal injury on the train Braeden left in the hall, and blunder my way into the bathroom. As usual, I toss my towel over the shower curtain - and then I see it, brazenly lounging in the bottom of the tub.

A meatbug.

Of course that's not the technical name. Years ago we had an infestation of these ultra-fat crickets. Think Danny DeVito with six scrawny legs. My sister and I christened them meatbugs, and that's what I've called them ever since.

Now I know that this insect is not going to harm me. But I have to get it out of the tub before I can shower, and this poses a problem. Crickets jump, you see, and if that thing lands on me, you'll be reading my obituary in the paper - death by cardiac arrest. It's getting late, and I know I'd better hurry if I'm going to start work on time. I look around for something to zap the bug. (Hubby had the AquaNet squirrelled away somewhere, and it takes too long, anyway.) I decide to grab a hand towel and try to trap the bug underneath it. Maybe I can wad it up in the towel and safely deposit the whole thing on the front step without having to feel it squirming through the terrycloth.

But the cricket is faster than my aim. I throw the towel down, and it jumps out of the way. Thank God it stayed in the tub! After a few minutes of this game, I realize it's time for Plan B. It's in the shower already, so maybe I can convince it to take a leisurely swim down the drain.

Turns out this is one seriously stubborn cricket. I can see the darn thing straining against the flow of water, hanging on for dear life. So I turn on the shower head and aim it right at him. He reaches for the shampoo and belts out "Singing in the Rain."

Okay. . . so it wants to play dirty. By now, the hand towel is soaked, and I have a moment of brilliance. Physics says the wet towel will be faster and more effective than the dry one, so I should be able to bury my little contender in a sea of wet purple. Praying that my aim will be slightly more accuracte, I lob the towel into the tub as hard as I can.

Bingo! The meatbug is trapped!

But what to do with the towel? I'm not about to wring out the water with the cricket wadded inside and risk the crunch of exoskeleton. So I head to the bedroom in search of a container for the wet towel and drowning cricket. Finally I yank the garbage bag out of my wastebasket, carefully wad the cricket up in the towel, and deposit it in the trash. Then I place the whole thing outside the bathroom door. Don't want to risk another invasion while I'm nekkid in the shower.

By this time, I have exactly two minutes and thirty-four seconds to clean up. So much for waking up easy.

I still haven't moved the trash can, though I did inspect it for signs of cricket later. Apparently it made a valiant attempt to escape, but I guess a leg got snagged in the towel. It lay where it fell, having died an honorable death.

Next time I'm waking Jeff. He can squish the bug.

Monday, September 3, 2007

Sleepin' In!

Jeff worked at a party at the restaurant last night, and Bebo went up "da mountain" with Grannie & Peepop. This left me at home, relishing the quiet and doing nothing that could possibly be construed as useful. I probably gave up around 2:30 this morning and went to bed.

Then I slept until I wanted to wake up! (Which was exactly 11:17 am.) Oh, bliss! Oh, delight! No four-year-old wanting apple juice, no alarm reminding me to get ready to work, no nothing. Just sleep & laziness.

Tee-hee! For a minute there, I felt like I was in college again!

Saturday, September 1, 2007

Brain Cells

I'm afraid this post will sound narcissistic - but I certainly don't mean for it to come across that way. Here's the deal: I think my brain cells are beginning to atrophy. As dorky as it sounds, I really want to learn something. I need a challenge.

I'm reasonably intelligent (here's the narcissistic part). Though never formally measured, my IQ usually ranges from 130-140 in informal testing. I did well in school, and I have a pretty darn good memory (except when it comes to birthdays). But it's been eight years since I was in school, and I miss it! I find myself browsing bookstores for the classics and working logic and sudoku puzzles, but it just isn't quite what I'm looking for.

I need calculus or something like that. Perhaps that's why nursing school is so appealing right now - the prospect of digging into complicated biology and memorizing drug dosage calculations and creating care plans is intriguing.

Unfortunately, I can't go to school right now. I've got to get Jeff through first, which leaves me wondering how to proceed. Wish I had that Brain Age game - but I don't have the console. I'm bored, and I need something intellectual to do.

Yeah, I know I am weird. Nerdy. Dorky. Whatever. I could easily be one of those "professional students," given unlimited time and resources.

Bye now. I'm off to search for more puzzles.