ARACHNID PARK
I can't even begin to explain the extent of the skin-crawlingness that I have been experiencing since last night.
As I've already told you, my sister and I have been getting ready to have a yard sale at my mother's old house. Part of the process has been to gather the things that my mom left in the house when she moved, price them, and gather it all together. There were a lot of clothes and chotchkies, mainly, and we've had to go through them all. The first day that Angie had gone over there to get started gathering things, she told me that she was changing clothes in my old bedroom when she picked up a t-shirt that had been in a storage box and a huge brown recluse spider ran out from under it. She said the back of it was as big as a grape! She was understandably freaked out about that, so much so that my mom had to kill it for her. Since then she's been much more careful. Of course, Tuesday night we found another really big brown recluse in a vase in the kitchen (the first one I'd ever seen in person) and that one had been giving me nightmares since I went back home that night! I don't like spiders at all, but I am more freaked out about brown recluses than most other breeds because they are not only seriously venomous, unlike most spiders they are also territorial, and they will come after you. If I had known what we would come across last night, I might have set the house on fire and just called it even. :{
Before I went over there, I stopped at Wal-Mart and bought some gloves and a can of Raid, just in case. We had started hanging up and pricing the clothes in the master bedroom last night, so we had things scattered hither and yon while we went through them. Most of the things were pulled out of the closet, so we weren't worried about them. While I was busy with mom's clothes, Angie picked up a jacket that had belonged to my mom's husband, Grant, and I heard her say "OH!" and the jacket dropped to the floor. She said "A big one of those frickers!" and she ran to get the Raid. I had been sitting on the floor, so of course, I jumped up and ran to the other side of the room! When she came back, she went over to the jacket and couldn't find the thing! We gently picked up one of the sleeves, and I kid you not, a spider the size of a half dollar skittered under a fold. At this point I was about to jump on her back and demand she carry me out of the house, but she reached over and flipped the jacket over again - and a nest of baby brown recluse spiders were crawling all over the coat!!!!! She sprayed the nest, the babies and finally sprayed the momma spider, but those hastareds are resilient! At least we slowed it down enough for me to gather what cajones I could muster and stomp the jacket. My skin tried to crawl off of my bones and run to the car, but I held on to it! I ran to get the gloves and made Angie put on a pair, too, and she ended up having to throw a whole pile of clothes completely away because of the nest in that jacket. If that wasn't enough, within two minutes of that, I reached over and picked up a bathrobe that had been sitting on the floor next to me, and ANOTHER one fell out of it! Angie did her Crocodile Hunter bit on it with the Raid, and we managed to finish cleaning out the room, but not without being seriously careful. I felt like a CSI agent looking for clues. We threw away anything that even looked like a spider was on it.
As we took the things out of the master bedroom and into the living room, Angie noticed another one that looked dead, curled up underneath a window. She didn't want to take any chances, so she sprayed it as well, and it came after her. I heard her screaming from the other side of the house! She did managed to kill it, though, and we decided then and there that we would bug bomb the place within and inch of it's life that night. We didn't see anymore for the rest of the night, but the whole rest of the time I was there, I kept imagining the baby ones crawling up my legs. *shudder* I still feel them.
I honestly believe we nipped a full blown infestation in the bud by killing the nest, but I have no idea how so many of them could have gotten into the house! My mom has always been a supreme housekeeper, so I know that there were no spiders there when she lived there, and they only moved out in May! It's like they were waiting on her to leave or something! Urg. Anyways, before we left last night, we set off a bug bomb and hopefully we have successfully neutralized the enemy invaders. Now Steve, of course, is completely wigging. He is honestly arachnophobic, and the main reason I set the bomb off was because I knew he wouldn't come to the house and help us if he thought that there was even a chance one of them could get on him. I'm not even making fun when I say that, he's not being a girl about spiders, he literally goes into vapor lock around them. Any other bug is no big deal, but spiders he can not handle. I think the only way I convinced him to come with me and help out was to tell him that the house is mostly empty rooms now, and he bug bomb combined with no hiding spots for the spiders, means little chance that one will come at him unawares. Of course, now he's probably afraid one will come flying out of a closet and attach itself to him Alien-Facehugger-Style, but I seriously doubt that's how even the worst spiders behave. *gulp* Right?
Wednesday, July 22, 2009
I know that over the past year or so, my life hasn't been all white bread and hummus. However, it is still possible for me to say that at least I'm in the half of my sister's family that is LEAST likely to end up on Jerry Springer.
Oy, I wish I could tell you the story I heard from her last night, but it isn't my place to tell personal stories about people I don't really know. All I can say, is that the whole time she was telling me about it, I kept hearing "JERRY! JERRY! JERRY!" in my head.
I spent the evening with Angie last night because we are trying to get ready for a garage sale. My mom's new house isn't as large as the old one, so she needs to get rid of a lot of stuff that she didn't have room to take, and Angie and I are adding in a few things we need to get rid of as well. I'm kind of surprised at the kind of really nice stuff that mom wants to sell, but she simply doesn't want it anymore. Some if it are things I made her when I was little, so that's kind of hurtful, but honestly, she can't keep everything and I understand. We had to clean out some old glassware and dishes from a cabinet, and Angie picked up a vase that had an enormous Brown Recluse in it. I almost wet myself, because I've never seen one of those in real life. That sucker was mean, too! I still have the heebs from that. She killed it, because I was too busy running across the room to do anyone any good. :P There is so much stuff! I had no idea that mom had so many things that she didn't use. I am taking a few things home with me, but the rest is going up for sale, and what doesn't sell will be taken to Goodwill or otherwise donated.
On a related note, I'm going to be getting my mom's console piano. My sister has always wanted that piano because she was the only one who stuck with lessons long enough to really play it, but her husband doesn't want it in their house. I still don't understand why he doesn't want it, but it is coming home with me. We have a place for it in the living room, so that's good. I feel kind of bad, though, because I fussed with Steve about getting rid of the old piano we used to have when we first got married until he finally did it and now I'm bringing another one in. I promise I'm not normally that irrational. I honestly never thought I'd have the option of having that piano. It's really nice and Steve is glad to keep it, I think. I just look at it this way, I'm keeping it for her until my brother-in-law changes his mind. Certainly he can't keep it from her forever.
Anyways, if you are in Athens on August 1st, come and buy our stuff! :)
Oy, I wish I could tell you the story I heard from her last night, but it isn't my place to tell personal stories about people I don't really know. All I can say, is that the whole time she was telling me about it, I kept hearing "JERRY! JERRY! JERRY!" in my head.
I spent the evening with Angie last night because we are trying to get ready for a garage sale. My mom's new house isn't as large as the old one, so she needs to get rid of a lot of stuff that she didn't have room to take, and Angie and I are adding in a few things we need to get rid of as well. I'm kind of surprised at the kind of really nice stuff that mom wants to sell, but she simply doesn't want it anymore. Some if it are things I made her when I was little, so that's kind of hurtful, but honestly, she can't keep everything and I understand. We had to clean out some old glassware and dishes from a cabinet, and Angie picked up a vase that had an enormous Brown Recluse in it. I almost wet myself, because I've never seen one of those in real life. That sucker was mean, too! I still have the heebs from that. She killed it, because I was too busy running across the room to do anyone any good. :P There is so much stuff! I had no idea that mom had so many things that she didn't use. I am taking a few things home with me, but the rest is going up for sale, and what doesn't sell will be taken to Goodwill or otherwise donated.
On a related note, I'm going to be getting my mom's console piano. My sister has always wanted that piano because she was the only one who stuck with lessons long enough to really play it, but her husband doesn't want it in their house. I still don't understand why he doesn't want it, but it is coming home with me. We have a place for it in the living room, so that's good. I feel kind of bad, though, because I fussed with Steve about getting rid of the old piano we used to have when we first got married until he finally did it and now I'm bringing another one in. I promise I'm not normally that irrational. I honestly never thought I'd have the option of having that piano. It's really nice and Steve is glad to keep it, I think. I just look at it this way, I'm keeping it for her until my brother-in-law changes his mind. Certainly he can't keep it from her forever.
Anyways, if you are in Athens on August 1st, come and buy our stuff! :)
Tuesday, July 21, 2009
RAoB REVISITED!
2) I don't know if 4,000 people were here yesterday, but it was close! It was crammed wall to wall with people. It would have been nice for the SpRocket if the majority of the visitors were PAYING guests, but that was a bit too much to ask for I guess. :P I didn't even get to hide up in my office like I wanted because I had two sign emergencies (and yes, apparently those actually exist). The worst one was that I misspelled the name of one of our guest astronauts! I was so embarrassed. To be fair, I'm fairly sure I just copied and pasted the text I got the request email, which means I didn't spell it wrong myself but still, I should've been more careful. I got a call asking for two replacement signs with his name spelled correctly. I asked when they needed to be done and the guy said "Um...now?" So I knew that even though they had these signs over the weekend, no one bothered to read it until they sat it next to the guy. I hope he wasn't offended, and I still feel really bad about spelling his name wrong. I did manage to fix, print and mount the signs in record time to replace the ones already at the book signing. I actually got cheered for when I replaced the old sign, and some lady from NASA hugged me, so it must've been embarrassing for everyone. *SHAME*
4) I did some checking, and I'm fairly certain that my moccasins are actually just slippers! No one noticed, though. It probably wouldn't have been a problem at all, but I had one mishap that has taught me that I should be smarter in my choice of footwear. My first sign emergency of the day yesterday was that they needed a sign with an arrow that pointed to the "Grassy Knoll" where MSFC had tents and free moon pies (haha) to give away. You'd think the big-assed tents and music would have made their location somewhat obvious, but alas, people still needed a sign to point the way. SIGN LADY TO THE RESCUE! Anyways, the sign is what we call a "real estate" sign, which means it is like the annoying signs you see on the side of the road during election time, and we have to stick a metal stand in the ground to hold it up. The stand is shaped like a capital H, and to plant the stand, you just step on the cross bar to push it down. Since my slippers didn't have any grip on the bottoms, I slipped while trying to push it down and almost impaled myself. Luckily I fell sideways and missed the pointy bits by a few inches. I live to fight another day!
--In an unrelated post: I learned to make Alfredo sauce from scratch yesterday! It was yummy, even if the cheese didn't melt all the way. It isn't for anyone wanting to watch their weight, but you don't have to eat much of it before it fills you up! Fear my culinary prowess. FEAR IT!
2) I don't know if 4,000 people were here yesterday, but it was close! It was crammed wall to wall with people. It would have been nice for the SpRocket if the majority of the visitors were PAYING guests, but that was a bit too much to ask for I guess. :P I didn't even get to hide up in my office like I wanted because I had two sign emergencies (and yes, apparently those actually exist). The worst one was that I misspelled the name of one of our guest astronauts! I was so embarrassed. To be fair, I'm fairly sure I just copied and pasted the text I got the request email, which means I didn't spell it wrong myself but still, I should've been more careful. I got a call asking for two replacement signs with his name spelled correctly. I asked when they needed to be done and the guy said "Um...now?" So I knew that even though they had these signs over the weekend, no one bothered to read it until they sat it next to the guy. I hope he wasn't offended, and I still feel really bad about spelling his name wrong. I did manage to fix, print and mount the signs in record time to replace the ones already at the book signing. I actually got cheered for when I replaced the old sign, and some lady from NASA hugged me, so it must've been embarrassing for everyone. *SHAME*
4) I did some checking, and I'm fairly certain that my moccasins are actually just slippers! No one noticed, though. It probably wouldn't have been a problem at all, but I had one mishap that has taught me that I should be smarter in my choice of footwear. My first sign emergency of the day yesterday was that they needed a sign with an arrow that pointed to the "Grassy Knoll" where MSFC had tents and free moon pies (haha) to give away. You'd think the big-assed tents and music would have made their location somewhat obvious, but alas, people still needed a sign to point the way. SIGN LADY TO THE RESCUE! Anyways, the sign is what we call a "real estate" sign, which means it is like the annoying signs you see on the side of the road during election time, and we have to stick a metal stand in the ground to hold it up. The stand is shaped like a capital H, and to plant the stand, you just step on the cross bar to push it down. Since my slippers didn't have any grip on the bottoms, I slipped while trying to push it down and almost impaled myself. Luckily I fell sideways and missed the pointy bits by a few inches. I live to fight another day!
--In an unrelated post: I learned to make Alfredo sauce from scratch yesterday! It was yummy, even if the cheese didn't melt all the way. It isn't for anyone wanting to watch their weight, but you don't have to eat much of it before it fills you up! Fear my culinary prowess. FEAR IT!
Monday, July 20, 2009
RANDOM ACTS OF BLOGGING
1) My random acts of blogging are becoming the norm around here! I think I must have Adult Blogging ADHD or something. Don't be alarmed, I'll remember to take my meds. :)
2) Happy 40th anniversary of the moon landing to NASA! If you're in the area, you should stop by the SpRocket and catch the new movie about Dr. von Braun. I don't know anything about it but it's title: "Rocket Man." It should be very cool. If I'm understanding things correctly today, a great many people from MSFC will be here celebrating. If I could be a part of the celebration, that would be cool, but all that means to me at this point is that I'm going to have to sequester myself in my office and not go downstairs for any reason unless I want to get trampled by engineers. They are expecting as many as 4,000 people here just due to the day. That isn't counting the regular public. I'm afraid! :P
3) Speaking of the moon landing celebration, I remembered yesterday that when I was 16, I was at the 25th anniversary celebration running a coke booth with people from my high school band. I had almost completely forgotten about the event. It was a lot of fun, and I got to see Grass Roots perform live and all kinds of fun stuff. It also occurred to me that I should feel old. I refuse.
4) I think I might be wearing house slippers to work today. I got a $20 gift certificate for Plow & Hearth the other day, and I used it online to buy a pair of wool lined moccasins that were on sale. I love shoes that are lined with soft stuff, and they are beautifully made and embroidered by a free trade business. I received them on Saturday and fell in love with them immediately. The only strange thing I noticed, though, is that they are true moccasins - meaning they are all leather and suede without a rubber or hard sole. I didn't think anything much about that though. Well, I slid them on this morning to wear to work, and it wasn't until Steve and I were almost to work that I mentioned something about the shoes and Steve said "Wait, aren't they just house slippers?" It never dawned on me that they might only be slippers! Now I'm plagued with the notion that I'm wearing house slippers at work on accident. If I was doing that on purpose, I wouldn't care, but doing it on accident is embarrassing.
5) I went to do some shopping the other day and realized on my way home that I had a big silver earring caught on the smaller earring I was wearing. It was obvious that it didn't match the other one and that it was completely different kind of earring just sort of dangling there, yet no one said a word to me. People, please, I'm begging you...don't let me go outside looking like that again!
6) I was sick all day yesterday because I was too stupid to remember to take my allergy medicine before I went out to mow the lawn Saturday morning. I didn't go anywhere or do anything. I was a slug. It is weird to me how something like an allergy can make you feel so terrible all over. Anyways, I'm hopped up on allergy medication today and I have plans of getting some of the good stuff from Target this evening. They should already have my DNA on file, so it shouldn't be much of a hassle.
7) It's official: the house I grew up in is going on sale very soon. I'm going to be so sad to see it sold, but I understand why it has to go. If anyone is looking for a house in North Alabama, it's a really nice house and it is a lovely place to live! Yes, OK, my dad died in it, but he wouldn't haunt you, I swear. Keep a lookout for the listings. I hope a nice family buys it and takes good care of it. So many good memories were made there.
1) My random acts of blogging are becoming the norm around here! I think I must have Adult Blogging ADHD or something. Don't be alarmed, I'll remember to take my meds. :)
2) Happy 40th anniversary of the moon landing to NASA! If you're in the area, you should stop by the SpRocket and catch the new movie about Dr. von Braun. I don't know anything about it but it's title: "Rocket Man." It should be very cool. If I'm understanding things correctly today, a great many people from MSFC will be here celebrating. If I could be a part of the celebration, that would be cool, but all that means to me at this point is that I'm going to have to sequester myself in my office and not go downstairs for any reason unless I want to get trampled by engineers. They are expecting as many as 4,000 people here just due to the day. That isn't counting the regular public. I'm afraid! :P
3) Speaking of the moon landing celebration, I remembered yesterday that when I was 16, I was at the 25th anniversary celebration running a coke booth with people from my high school band. I had almost completely forgotten about the event. It was a lot of fun, and I got to see Grass Roots perform live and all kinds of fun stuff. It also occurred to me that I should feel old. I refuse.
4) I think I might be wearing house slippers to work today. I got a $20 gift certificate for Plow & Hearth the other day, and I used it online to buy a pair of wool lined moccasins that were on sale. I love shoes that are lined with soft stuff, and they are beautifully made and embroidered by a free trade business. I received them on Saturday and fell in love with them immediately. The only strange thing I noticed, though, is that they are true moccasins - meaning they are all leather and suede without a rubber or hard sole. I didn't think anything much about that though. Well, I slid them on this morning to wear to work, and it wasn't until Steve and I were almost to work that I mentioned something about the shoes and Steve said "Wait, aren't they just house slippers?" It never dawned on me that they might only be slippers! Now I'm plagued with the notion that I'm wearing house slippers at work on accident. If I was doing that on purpose, I wouldn't care, but doing it on accident is embarrassing.
5) I went to do some shopping the other day and realized on my way home that I had a big silver earring caught on the smaller earring I was wearing. It was obvious that it didn't match the other one and that it was completely different kind of earring just sort of dangling there, yet no one said a word to me. People, please, I'm begging you...don't let me go outside looking like that again!
6) I was sick all day yesterday because I was too stupid to remember to take my allergy medicine before I went out to mow the lawn Saturday morning. I didn't go anywhere or do anything. I was a slug. It is weird to me how something like an allergy can make you feel so terrible all over. Anyways, I'm hopped up on allergy medication today and I have plans of getting some of the good stuff from Target this evening. They should already have my DNA on file, so it shouldn't be much of a hassle.
7) It's official: the house I grew up in is going on sale very soon. I'm going to be so sad to see it sold, but I understand why it has to go. If anyone is looking for a house in North Alabama, it's a really nice house and it is a lovely place to live! Yes, OK, my dad died in it, but he wouldn't haunt you, I swear. Keep a lookout for the listings. I hope a nice family buys it and takes good care of it. So many good memories were made there.
Wednesday, July 15, 2009
STUPID KELLY TRICKS
OK, for some of you (those on Facebook) this isn't a new story. Bear with me! :)
Last week was completely crazy here at work. We had a lot going on, because as I've mentioned, the departments that were directing one of the two huge events this weekend had forgotten that they needed signs. I had people e-mailing me all day every day adding to or changing things that they needed. It's not really a big deal, usually, but when we have the kind of events that require table signs, name tags or anything that is very repetitive, it gets tedious and confusing. The two events we had over the weekend, The Apollo/Saturn Reunion and the SC Hall of Fame event, each required individual table signs. Making a table sign is easy, but making a lot of them becomes a pain after a while.
To make them you have to A) set up each sign in Photoshop B) print batches of 6 on a large sheet of sticky-back paper C) cut them out individually D) stick each one of them down to plain sheets of copy paper E) trim the edges of the copy paper F) score the fold with a blade G) spray glue on the backs of the pages H) fold and press the signs flat and I) trim all of the edges again to make them neat. See, easy-peasy.
OK, so I was working like crazy trying to get all of these table signs done so that I could move on to the other signs that needed to be made. I was told in school that you should NEVER-EVER spray glue indoors because it is nt good to breathe and it gets all over everything. Like many of the things I learned about production in school, I thought to myself "Screw it." I didn't have time to run outside every time I needed to glue a sign because it would have slowed me down too much. So I pulled my big garbage bin over to my side and held the sign down into it whenever I needed to apply the glue. Of course, the glue didn't just stay in the can, but as long as it wasn't getting on my other table signs and messing them up, I was OK with that. Well, at some point I realized that I had over sprayed the can and accidentally sprayed the handset of the phone sitting on the shelf next to the bin. Yes, it was sticky, but I didn't have time to worry about it or clean it off because I was too busy. I promptly forgot about it.
Cut to a few hours later. I had finished the table signs and had started working on the signs for the silent auction. My phone rang, and when I answered it, it was my friend and former co-worker Ed on the other end. He will sometimes call and chat with me when he is driving to or from work on his lunch break, and since I was busy with my hands, I put the phone between my shoulder and ear while I was working. It actually turned into a longer conversation than I thought it would be, so I sat like that for a good 15 or 20 minutes until he had to go. It wasn't until I tried to hang up the phone that I realized that I had managed to glue the phone to my head. It was stuck in my hair! I probably should have called for help, but it wasn't my first reaction, so I ended up ripping the handset out of my hair. OUCH! It made a horrible sound, too. It sounded like slowly ripping a piece of thick paper. My head was sore afterwards, but I did manage to escape giving myself a bald spot. :)
So lets add this to my list: I've fallen down our stairs twice, stabbed myself in the chest with my exacto knife, laminated my head onto a big sign and now I've glued my phone to my head.
I'm fairly surprised my boss doesn't make me wear hockey pads and a helmet every day!
OK, for some of you (those on Facebook) this isn't a new story. Bear with me! :)
Last week was completely crazy here at work. We had a lot going on, because as I've mentioned, the departments that were directing one of the two huge events this weekend had forgotten that they needed signs. I had people e-mailing me all day every day adding to or changing things that they needed. It's not really a big deal, usually, but when we have the kind of events that require table signs, name tags or anything that is very repetitive, it gets tedious and confusing. The two events we had over the weekend, The Apollo/Saturn Reunion and the SC Hall of Fame event, each required individual table signs. Making a table sign is easy, but making a lot of them becomes a pain after a while.
To make them you have to A) set up each sign in Photoshop B) print batches of 6 on a large sheet of sticky-back paper C) cut them out individually D) stick each one of them down to plain sheets of copy paper E) trim the edges of the copy paper F) score the fold with a blade G) spray glue on the backs of the pages H) fold and press the signs flat and I) trim all of the edges again to make them neat. See, easy-peasy.
OK, so I was working like crazy trying to get all of these table signs done so that I could move on to the other signs that needed to be made. I was told in school that you should NEVER-EVER spray glue indoors because it is nt good to breathe and it gets all over everything. Like many of the things I learned about production in school, I thought to myself "Screw it." I didn't have time to run outside every time I needed to glue a sign because it would have slowed me down too much. So I pulled my big garbage bin over to my side and held the sign down into it whenever I needed to apply the glue. Of course, the glue didn't just stay in the can, but as long as it wasn't getting on my other table signs and messing them up, I was OK with that. Well, at some point I realized that I had over sprayed the can and accidentally sprayed the handset of the phone sitting on the shelf next to the bin. Yes, it was sticky, but I didn't have time to worry about it or clean it off because I was too busy. I promptly forgot about it.
Cut to a few hours later. I had finished the table signs and had started working on the signs for the silent auction. My phone rang, and when I answered it, it was my friend and former co-worker Ed on the other end. He will sometimes call and chat with me when he is driving to or from work on his lunch break, and since I was busy with my hands, I put the phone between my shoulder and ear while I was working. It actually turned into a longer conversation than I thought it would be, so I sat like that for a good 15 or 20 minutes until he had to go. It wasn't until I tried to hang up the phone that I realized that I had managed to glue the phone to my head. It was stuck in my hair! I probably should have called for help, but it wasn't my first reaction, so I ended up ripping the handset out of my hair. OUCH! It made a horrible sound, too. It sounded like slowly ripping a piece of thick paper. My head was sore afterwards, but I did manage to escape giving myself a bald spot. :)
So lets add this to my list: I've fallen down our stairs twice, stabbed myself in the chest with my exacto knife, laminated my head onto a big sign and now I've glued my phone to my head.
I'm fairly surprised my boss doesn't make me wear hockey pads and a helmet every day!
Monday, July 13, 2009
RANDOM ACTS OF BLOGGING
1) I almost died at the gym this morning. OK, well, maybe not died, but it felt like it. I have been doing the same elliptical training for months now, and when it was getting too easy, I thought I'd kick it up a notch (BAM! Sorry.) I didn't want to go in and completely push everything up too high, so I basically just adjusted the resistance a little higher. About 7 minutes in, I took a breath and nothing happened. I mean, I didn't die, but it felt like I wasn't pulling in any oxygen. My lungs felt hot and stuffed with cotton and my heart was pounding really hard. I had to stop for a second, but I didn't want to quit altogether, so eventually I just kept going. Eventually the feeling went away, but it was scary! That is the second time in the past week that I've had to stop early on during my workout to keep from passing out. I didn't have this problem before, so I'm not sure why it's happening now. What makes it even more frustrating is the fact that working out doesn't seem to be doing me much good at all, from a weight loss standpoint. Part of that is because I haven't been using my iPod program to count calories like I was before, but even without that, I have tried to eat better and I'm exercising, so you'd think I'd notice something! Darn my slow metabolism! :(
2) I didn't watch the Michael Jackson memorial show that they broadcast last week (or whenever it was). I wasn't really a fan of his, or at least I haven't been since I was in the second grade. Thriller was the stuff back then. Watching the "making of" feature from the Thriller video was what made me want to do SFX Makeup for movies, and I still stand by the idea that I'd be AWESOME at that, but there isn't much call for that kind of thing in Alabama. Anyways, I digress. I didn't watch his memorial service, but I did catch a clip of it on some website and it shut me down for a few minutes. I think it was at the end, and his daughter, Paris (?), said that she just wanted to say that he was the best daddy in the world and that she loved him and that she was going to miss him. Then she cried. Then I cried. I'm sitting at my desk boo-hooing along with this little girl. It was so sad. What made it even worse is that I knew exactly how she felt. I don't care how old you are, when a parent that you love dies, you are automatically a little kid again. If I had gotten up during my dad's funeral and had to speak, I probably would have said exactly what she did. Stupid YouTube clip making me cry at work!
3) I want to learn how to tattoo people. I know that sounds insane to some of you, but I think it would be an amazing thing to be able to do. I understand the process behind it, but I wouldn't even begin to know how to actually give someone a tattoo, and I wouldn't want to be that person who gave bad prison-tats or anything like that. Even if I didn't do it for a living, I'd like to at least know I could do it if I want too! Some of you would let me ink you, wouldn't you? Right?
(crickets)
4) I saw this year's Torchwood mini series and it was really good! I like that show a lot, but I didn't like the ending of "Children of Earth." I don't want to talk about it too much, in case some of you are waiting for it to be aired on BBC America, but I will say this one thing: I just don't see how they will be able to keep going on with the series with the way they ended the mini-series. If they don't, I'll be sad. I heart Captain Jack!
There is more, but I'll have to wait until later. I have to start making up for some of the projects that got shoved aside last week as we prepared for the two big events that happened over the weekend. Fun.
1) I almost died at the gym this morning. OK, well, maybe not died, but it felt like it. I have been doing the same elliptical training for months now, and when it was getting too easy, I thought I'd kick it up a notch (BAM! Sorry.) I didn't want to go in and completely push everything up too high, so I basically just adjusted the resistance a little higher. About 7 minutes in, I took a breath and nothing happened. I mean, I didn't die, but it felt like I wasn't pulling in any oxygen. My lungs felt hot and stuffed with cotton and my heart was pounding really hard. I had to stop for a second, but I didn't want to quit altogether, so eventually I just kept going. Eventually the feeling went away, but it was scary! That is the second time in the past week that I've had to stop early on during my workout to keep from passing out. I didn't have this problem before, so I'm not sure why it's happening now. What makes it even more frustrating is the fact that working out doesn't seem to be doing me much good at all, from a weight loss standpoint. Part of that is because I haven't been using my iPod program to count calories like I was before, but even without that, I have tried to eat better and I'm exercising, so you'd think I'd notice something! Darn my slow metabolism! :(
2) I didn't watch the Michael Jackson memorial show that they broadcast last week (or whenever it was). I wasn't really a fan of his, or at least I haven't been since I was in the second grade. Thriller was the stuff back then. Watching the "making of" feature from the Thriller video was what made me want to do SFX Makeup for movies, and I still stand by the idea that I'd be AWESOME at that, but there isn't much call for that kind of thing in Alabama. Anyways, I digress. I didn't watch his memorial service, but I did catch a clip of it on some website and it shut me down for a few minutes. I think it was at the end, and his daughter, Paris (?), said that she just wanted to say that he was the best daddy in the world and that she loved him and that she was going to miss him. Then she cried. Then I cried. I'm sitting at my desk boo-hooing along with this little girl. It was so sad. What made it even worse is that I knew exactly how she felt. I don't care how old you are, when a parent that you love dies, you are automatically a little kid again. If I had gotten up during my dad's funeral and had to speak, I probably would have said exactly what she did. Stupid YouTube clip making me cry at work!
3) I want to learn how to tattoo people. I know that sounds insane to some of you, but I think it would be an amazing thing to be able to do. I understand the process behind it, but I wouldn't even begin to know how to actually give someone a tattoo, and I wouldn't want to be that person who gave bad prison-tats or anything like that. Even if I didn't do it for a living, I'd like to at least know I could do it if I want too! Some of you would let me ink you, wouldn't you? Right?
(crickets)
4) I saw this year's Torchwood mini series and it was really good! I like that show a lot, but I didn't like the ending of "Children of Earth." I don't want to talk about it too much, in case some of you are waiting for it to be aired on BBC America, but I will say this one thing: I just don't see how they will be able to keep going on with the series with the way they ended the mini-series. If they don't, I'll be sad. I heart Captain Jack!
There is more, but I'll have to wait until later. I have to start making up for some of the projects that got shoved aside last week as we prepared for the two big events that happened over the weekend. Fun.
Thursday, July 09, 2009
A QUICKIE
I'm not dead or anything, just really busy. I had all kinds of stuff to write about, but haven't had time. Of course, I've forgotten most of it, but I'm sure I'll think of something else later on. We have two big events here at the SpRocket this weekend, and as usual, everyone who needs signs is calling me at the last possible moment. I think there is a bet between them all to see which one of them can cause my head to actually explode! It'll be a photo-finish, I can tell you that.
I'm currently listening to the audio novel of "Midnight In the Garden Of Good and Evil" while I'm working, and so far I'm loving it. It's fun to listen to the guy describe places I've actually been. I have noticed, however, that a lot of lines from the book sound familiar, and I think it's because the tour guide from our trip to Bonaventure cemetery was quoting from it. Granted, a lot of the info in the book may be common knowledge to the people out there, but I doubt that the stories would all be told in the same way. I should have read the book first and done the tour myself! It would have saved some money! :)
Anyways, just a short note while I've got a second to let you know I'm still around someplace. You know, in case you care and junk.
I'm not dead or anything, just really busy. I had all kinds of stuff to write about, but haven't had time. Of course, I've forgotten most of it, but I'm sure I'll think of something else later on. We have two big events here at the SpRocket this weekend, and as usual, everyone who needs signs is calling me at the last possible moment. I think there is a bet between them all to see which one of them can cause my head to actually explode! It'll be a photo-finish, I can tell you that.
I'm currently listening to the audio novel of "Midnight In the Garden Of Good and Evil" while I'm working, and so far I'm loving it. It's fun to listen to the guy describe places I've actually been. I have noticed, however, that a lot of lines from the book sound familiar, and I think it's because the tour guide from our trip to Bonaventure cemetery was quoting from it. Granted, a lot of the info in the book may be common knowledge to the people out there, but I doubt that the stories would all be told in the same way. I should have read the book first and done the tour myself! It would have saved some money! :)
Anyways, just a short note while I've got a second to let you know I'm still around someplace. You know, in case you care and junk.
Monday, July 06, 2009
RANDOM ACTS OF BLOGGING
1) It's not even 8:30 on this lovely Monday morning, and I already want to murder two of my coworkers in the face! That's right, IN THE FACE! One of them is my boss, who I normally like a lot. I walked in this morning and my office was destroyed (again) because he's been using it to make banners for an upcoming event. I don't begrudge him using my office, but he moves things around and leaves stuff all over the place, so getting to my desk is like going through a boot camp obstacle course! The other is a lady who I am currently making a sign for. It is a sign that will have a list of all of the sponsors for an upcoming even on it. I told her last week that I wouldn't print anything until I was sure that we had a complete list of sponsors (because they are always forgetting someone or adding someone on at the last minute). She never responded to me. However, today, I was copied on an e-mail from her to my boss, who apparently told her the same thing, and she was all "GREAT IDEA!" I don't care that I didn't get credit for the idea, honestly, but I hate that she acted like she'd never even heard of the idea before he sent it to her. Boo.
EDIT: My boss is off the hook. He isn't the one who moved my office around. Apparently someone needed roof access this weekend and came through my office to get out there. They didn't clean up after themselves, though. :P
2) My holiday weekend was kind of a washout because I was sick pretty much the whole time. Friday wasn't bad, but I didn't do anything useful that day and it made me feel like I had wasted the whole day. I hate having a day off and feeling like the day flew by before I got a chance to do anything productive! Saturday I was OK until just after lunch, and I got really tired. I was going to take a quick nap, but I fell asleep on the couch for several hours. When I woke up I felt horrible, so I drug myself around until it was time to go to bed. I didn't even watch any fireworks, although I did hear some. There are a few big displays not far from where I live, but none I can see from the back yard or anything. I didn't really care. I wasn't feeling well, and quite honestly, all of the stuff that happened last year around this time has kind of taken away my taste for celebrating the glorious fourth. Sunday I went to church in a complete daze. I don't know what was wrong with me, but I overslept and missed Sunday school, and when I actually got to service, I felt like I had taken a huge dose of NyQuil or something. I had to bow out of lunch with Mr. Lee and everything. I think I slept most of Sunday away because I didn't go back to church that night and I went to bed again around 9:00. I'm feeling a little better this morning, but I'm still really tired. If I hadn't already had mono in the 8Th grade, I'd think that is what is wrong with me now! I'll just have to try very hard not to nap at work today!
3) I've been watching a new show lately that I really like. Well, it isn't a "new" show, but it's one I haven't watched before. It's another forensic procedural called "Bones" and it's really good! It drives Steve crazy that they have some kind of computer 3D viewing aparatus in their office that doesn't exist in real life, but I think it's funny. It's also kind of disgusting. Steve and I were eating Friday while it was on and even though stuff like that doesn't usually bother me, it almost put me off of my food! It probably wouldn't have been so bad if we hadn't been eating Chinese food that had sauce on it precisely the color of the liquefied human remains that were on the show. Bleh. I don't want to think about it.
4) I didn't go to the gym this morning and I'm feeling kind of guilty about it right now. Why is it that I feel guilty for not doing something unplesant that is completely self imposed? I can't really say that I like going to the gym, but I know it's good for me to. It's like eating vegetables you don't like when you really, really don't want to and then feeling bad when I find a dropped piece of broccoli. I don't understand myself sometimes.
5) The Harry Potter movie is almost out! I shouldn't be as excited as I am, but I don't care. I've been waiting months and months for it. I don't think we are going to show it this year at the SpRocket, so that means I have to pay to see it, and that stinks, but at this point I don't care! Don't worry, I won't dress up when I go and see it or anything. Maybe. ;)
1) It's not even 8:30 on this lovely Monday morning, and I already want to murder two of my coworkers in the face! That's right, IN THE FACE! One of them is my boss, who I normally like a lot. I walked in this morning and my office was destroyed (again) because he's been using it to make banners for an upcoming event. I don't begrudge him using my office, but he moves things around and leaves stuff all over the place, so getting to my desk is like going through a boot camp obstacle course! The other is a lady who I am currently making a sign for. It is a sign that will have a list of all of the sponsors for an upcoming even on it. I told her last week that I wouldn't print anything until I was sure that we had a complete list of sponsors (because they are always forgetting someone or adding someone on at the last minute). She never responded to me. However, today, I was copied on an e-mail from her to my boss, who apparently told her the same thing, and she was all "GREAT IDEA!" I don't care that I didn't get credit for the idea, honestly, but I hate that she acted like she'd never even heard of the idea before he sent it to her. Boo.
EDIT: My boss is off the hook. He isn't the one who moved my office around. Apparently someone needed roof access this weekend and came through my office to get out there. They didn't clean up after themselves, though. :P
2) My holiday weekend was kind of a washout because I was sick pretty much the whole time. Friday wasn't bad, but I didn't do anything useful that day and it made me feel like I had wasted the whole day. I hate having a day off and feeling like the day flew by before I got a chance to do anything productive! Saturday I was OK until just after lunch, and I got really tired. I was going to take a quick nap, but I fell asleep on the couch for several hours. When I woke up I felt horrible, so I drug myself around until it was time to go to bed. I didn't even watch any fireworks, although I did hear some. There are a few big displays not far from where I live, but none I can see from the back yard or anything. I didn't really care. I wasn't feeling well, and quite honestly, all of the stuff that happened last year around this time has kind of taken away my taste for celebrating the glorious fourth. Sunday I went to church in a complete daze. I don't know what was wrong with me, but I overslept and missed Sunday school, and when I actually got to service, I felt like I had taken a huge dose of NyQuil or something. I had to bow out of lunch with Mr. Lee and everything. I think I slept most of Sunday away because I didn't go back to church that night and I went to bed again around 9:00. I'm feeling a little better this morning, but I'm still really tired. If I hadn't already had mono in the 8Th grade, I'd think that is what is wrong with me now! I'll just have to try very hard not to nap at work today!
3) I've been watching a new show lately that I really like. Well, it isn't a "new" show, but it's one I haven't watched before. It's another forensic procedural called "Bones" and it's really good! It drives Steve crazy that they have some kind of computer 3D viewing aparatus in their office that doesn't exist in real life, but I think it's funny. It's also kind of disgusting. Steve and I were eating Friday while it was on and even though stuff like that doesn't usually bother me, it almost put me off of my food! It probably wouldn't have been so bad if we hadn't been eating Chinese food that had sauce on it precisely the color of the liquefied human remains that were on the show. Bleh. I don't want to think about it.
4) I didn't go to the gym this morning and I'm feeling kind of guilty about it right now. Why is it that I feel guilty for not doing something unplesant that is completely self imposed? I can't really say that I like going to the gym, but I know it's good for me to. It's like eating vegetables you don't like when you really, really don't want to and then feeling bad when I find a dropped piece of broccoli. I don't understand myself sometimes.
5) The Harry Potter movie is almost out! I shouldn't be as excited as I am, but I don't care. I've been waiting months and months for it. I don't think we are going to show it this year at the SpRocket, so that means I have to pay to see it, and that stinks, but at this point I don't care! Don't worry, I won't dress up when I go and see it or anything. Maybe. ;)
Thursday, July 02, 2009
Tuesday, June 30, 2009
RANDOM ACTS OF BLOGGING
1) As I was getting the mail the other day, I found an envelope from the DOT of Savannah! Apparently, the sneaky traffic cameras caught me running a red light. Well, to be technical, the cameras caught Steve running a red light, but since the car is registered in my name, I'm the one who got the ticket. It had pictures of Lois completely blowing through an obvious red light, but I don't remember that happening at all. Sometimes Steve drives like a crazy person, but he doesn't do stupid things like run red lights on purpose! We must have, since there is proof, but I don't remember it. Sigh. Big Brother is watching us, indeed. He is also watching us more closely than we are watching ourselves!
2) My mosquito bites are almost gone, thank goodness. I don't get them very often anymore, since I don't go outside as much as I used to. I forget how much they itch! I had one on my ankle that looked like three or four bugs got together and shared a vein, it was about two inches in diameter! That one was the worst, but the others were just as ugly. Seriously, bug bites on a pale person look like measles!
3) I'm finally back at work and making signs again. I didn't think I'd miss it that much, but I'm glad to be back and doing something constructive. I mean, it's not that I didn't like the napping, catching up on the laundry or vacation, but I'm glad to be back!
More later. I've got work to do!
1) As I was getting the mail the other day, I found an envelope from the DOT of Savannah! Apparently, the sneaky traffic cameras caught me running a red light. Well, to be technical, the cameras caught Steve running a red light, but since the car is registered in my name, I'm the one who got the ticket. It had pictures of Lois completely blowing through an obvious red light, but I don't remember that happening at all. Sometimes Steve drives like a crazy person, but he doesn't do stupid things like run red lights on purpose! We must have, since there is proof, but I don't remember it. Sigh. Big Brother is watching us, indeed. He is also watching us more closely than we are watching ourselves!
2) My mosquito bites are almost gone, thank goodness. I don't get them very often anymore, since I don't go outside as much as I used to. I forget how much they itch! I had one on my ankle that looked like three or four bugs got together and shared a vein, it was about two inches in diameter! That one was the worst, but the others were just as ugly. Seriously, bug bites on a pale person look like measles!
3) I'm finally back at work and making signs again. I didn't think I'd miss it that much, but I'm glad to be back and doing something constructive. I mean, it's not that I didn't like the napping, catching up on the laundry or vacation, but I'm glad to be back!
More later. I've got work to do!
Thursday, June 25, 2009
Wednesday, June 24, 2009
BLOGGED ALONG THE WAY: SAVANNAH, GEORGIA EDITION
JUNE 24, 2009 - Not much to talk about today. We got up, are packing and soon will be headed on our way! Thanks again to Kenny and Lauren for including me as their wedding guest so that I had a reason to come out this way!
I'm going to miss you Savannah, but if I possibly can, I promise to come back and see you again! :)
JUNE 24, 2009 - Not much to talk about today. We got up, are packing and soon will be headed on our way! Thanks again to Kenny and Lauren for including me as their wedding guest so that I had a reason to come out this way!
I'm going to miss you Savannah, but if I possibly can, I promise to come back and see you again! :)
Tuesday, June 23, 2009
BLOGGED ALONG THE WAY: SAVANNAH, GEORGIA EDITION
JUNE 23, 2009 - This morning I woke up early, determined not to waste our last full day in Savannah. I had a list of things I wanted to do, so as soon as we got ready, we left. The first place we went was the river walk. Most things ended up being closed because it was so early, but we did manage to get a few souvenirs. We left there and went to Broughton Street, where we visited the Savannah Bee Company Honey Shop. We tasted honey and bought several things! I actually wanted one of the signature bottles of honey, but they didn't have the kind I especially wanted in a bottle like that. We did, however, get several small bottles of honey and half of a mason jar of the Black Sage honey (my favorite). We are going to have a LOT of honey at our house for a while, I believe.
We left there and had lunch at the Moon River Brewery, which had really great food, but since we don't drink beer, we didn't get to try any of their specialties. We didn't care, though, because we just wanted the air conditioning, really. We had several other things on our list, but we didn't do them for one reason or another. I was really afraid we'd just end up wasting the rest of our time, but we didn't. One our way back to our room, we almost added a new ghost to the "Most Haunted City In America." Don't worry, it wasn't us who almost joined the astral plane, it was the dumbass bicyclist who thought that his Schwinn was a match for several automobiles. We had just made a turn to drive along the edge of Forsyth Park, and I saw a guy on a bicycle riding closely beside us. It scared me because I thought that we were going to hit him. When we didn't, I thought that he was going to get on the sidewalk and ride, so I didn't think much else about him until I saw him whip around the car from the driver's side and get in front of us. He was really booking, so I figured that he was out of harm's way, but I don't guess Lance Armstrong was being too careful because he wiped out in a major way right in front of the car! BAM, the guy hit the pavement. I'm glad Steve was driving, because he was able to slam on the breaks in time to not hit the guy. There was also a car in the other lane who was able to stop in time, but it was almost creamed by a truck that was speeding along behind it. We heard a squeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeel of breaks and tires, but no impact. Thank goodness! The guy grabbed his bike and hauled it off of the roadway, but we didn't see if he was hurt. We probably should have. Hmmmmmmm. I don't think we played the good Samaritans, but it's kind of hard to do that when you are screaming obscenities at someone. It comes across as disingenuous.
We had to come back and drop some things off in our hotel room, and since it was still early, I asked Steve what he wanted to do. He hemmed and hawed for a long time and asked what I wanted to do, but since I had already told him a thousand times that I didn't know, I finally told him to just PICK something so that we weren't just sitting in our room all day. He did a bit of looking on the web and said that he wanted to go back to Tybee Island and go to one of the bigger, more popular public beaches. I was all for that, and I actually wore my entire suit so that I could go swimming! I didn't like it, but I did it. When we got to the beach, the place was PACKED to the gills. Streets were blocked off and there was absolutely no places to park. I couldn't believe that there were so many people there on a Tuesday afternoon, so we kept driving to try and find a place to park. We couldn't even go to the shops along the beach, which is one of the things we wanted to do! We finally pulled down a street and saw that it was blocked off at one end! Boo! We were going to have to turn around and Steve noticed that there were cranes with lights all over the place. I had totally forgotten that Miley Cyrus is somewhere in Savannah this week filming something. She was at the beach, and that was why so many people were there! CURSE YOU, HANNAH MONTANA! We finally drove back a little ways and found a stretch of beach and a parking space that wasn't covered by squeeing tweens and curious teenage boys. It was nice and quiet, and the water was as warm as a bath. It was very nice. I didn't swim for long, but I spent the couple of hours we were there reading and relaxing. After we left there, we went to one of the cheesy beach souvenir shops and then came back to the hotel. We spent the rest of the evening relaxing, watching TV, and ordering room service. Sadly, this is our last day in Savannah and we have to go home tomorrow. :( I really like this place. I just feel very at home here. I've also decided I'm going to live here one day. I'm going to buy one of the houses along Forsyth Park and be old, sassy and southern among the Spanish moss. That's my goal.
JUNE 23, 2009 - This morning I woke up early, determined not to waste our last full day in Savannah. I had a list of things I wanted to do, so as soon as we got ready, we left. The first place we went was the river walk. Most things ended up being closed because it was so early, but we did manage to get a few souvenirs. We left there and went to Broughton Street, where we visited the Savannah Bee Company Honey Shop. We tasted honey and bought several things! I actually wanted one of the signature bottles of honey, but they didn't have the kind I especially wanted in a bottle like that. We did, however, get several small bottles of honey and half of a mason jar of the Black Sage honey (my favorite). We are going to have a LOT of honey at our house for a while, I believe.
We left there and had lunch at the Moon River Brewery, which had really great food, but since we don't drink beer, we didn't get to try any of their specialties. We didn't care, though, because we just wanted the air conditioning, really. We had several other things on our list, but we didn't do them for one reason or another. I was really afraid we'd just end up wasting the rest of our time, but we didn't. One our way back to our room, we almost added a new ghost to the "Most Haunted City In America." Don't worry, it wasn't us who almost joined the astral plane, it was the dumbass bicyclist who thought that his Schwinn was a match for several automobiles. We had just made a turn to drive along the edge of Forsyth Park, and I saw a guy on a bicycle riding closely beside us. It scared me because I thought that we were going to hit him. When we didn't, I thought that he was going to get on the sidewalk and ride, so I didn't think much else about him until I saw him whip around the car from the driver's side and get in front of us. He was really booking, so I figured that he was out of harm's way, but I don't guess Lance Armstrong was being too careful because he wiped out in a major way right in front of the car! BAM, the guy hit the pavement. I'm glad Steve was driving, because he was able to slam on the breaks in time to not hit the guy. There was also a car in the other lane who was able to stop in time, but it was almost creamed by a truck that was speeding along behind it. We heard a squeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeel of breaks and tires, but no impact. Thank goodness! The guy grabbed his bike and hauled it off of the roadway, but we didn't see if he was hurt. We probably should have. Hmmmmmmm. I don't think we played the good Samaritans, but it's kind of hard to do that when you are screaming obscenities at someone. It comes across as disingenuous.
We had to come back and drop some things off in our hotel room, and since it was still early, I asked Steve what he wanted to do. He hemmed and hawed for a long time and asked what I wanted to do, but since I had already told him a thousand times that I didn't know, I finally told him to just PICK something so that we weren't just sitting in our room all day. He did a bit of looking on the web and said that he wanted to go back to Tybee Island and go to one of the bigger, more popular public beaches. I was all for that, and I actually wore my entire suit so that I could go swimming! I didn't like it, but I did it. When we got to the beach, the place was PACKED to the gills. Streets were blocked off and there was absolutely no places to park. I couldn't believe that there were so many people there on a Tuesday afternoon, so we kept driving to try and find a place to park. We couldn't even go to the shops along the beach, which is one of the things we wanted to do! We finally pulled down a street and saw that it was blocked off at one end! Boo! We were going to have to turn around and Steve noticed that there were cranes with lights all over the place. I had totally forgotten that Miley Cyrus is somewhere in Savannah this week filming something. She was at the beach, and that was why so many people were there! CURSE YOU, HANNAH MONTANA! We finally drove back a little ways and found a stretch of beach and a parking space that wasn't covered by squeeing tweens and curious teenage boys. It was nice and quiet, and the water was as warm as a bath. It was very nice. I didn't swim for long, but I spent the couple of hours we were there reading and relaxing. After we left there, we went to one of the cheesy beach souvenir shops and then came back to the hotel. We spent the rest of the evening relaxing, watching TV, and ordering room service. Sadly, this is our last day in Savannah and we have to go home tomorrow. :( I really like this place. I just feel very at home here. I've also decided I'm going to live here one day. I'm going to buy one of the houses along Forsyth Park and be old, sassy and southern among the Spanish moss. That's my goal.
Monday, June 22, 2009
BLOGGED ALONG THE WAY: SAVANNAH, GEORGIA EDITION
JUNE 22, 2009 - Today was our designated beach day! We went to Tybee Island and just had a lazy morning. We actually went to the quiet beach in front of the big light house, so it was not crowded and we just kind of hung out. Steve actually dig a hole and made a "recliner" in the sand, so he was happy. I didn't wear the bottom half of my suit (I know what you're thinking, and I just mean I wore shorts instead. Pervert!) so I didn't swim, but I waded. There weren't any shells to speak of, but I found a couple. There was also a large horse shoe crab that someone caught, and it scared the crap out of me. It was huge! I mean, if someone took the shell off of the crab, Steve could wear it like an army helmet, that's how big it was. They saw me recoil from it and laughed. Buttheads. Let me wield a humongous prehistoric sea creature in their faces and see how they like it!
We didn't stay out there long, and we decided to go to The Crab Shack for lunch. I've heard wonderful things about the place, so I was excited about eating there! They said they weren't seating inside yet, but they sat us outside in a place surrounded by fans so it wasn't so bad. I am really not fond of seafood, but I didn't want to come to a place called The Crab Shack and eat anything other than seafood, so we ordered a big platter of stuff for two. They brought out this enormous platter with potatoes, corn, crawfish, giant spider-looking crab legs, stone crab claws, steamed mussels, and sausage, all covered in butter and spices. I'm going to be honest, I wasn't a fan. I hate to say that since I've heard nothing but good things about the place, but it was gross. The crab legs were good, which I wasn't expecting, but everything else I tried was bad. Not only that, but flies began crawling all over our food. FLIES! We couldn't keep them off, and even though I tried to look past it, I know that flies are disease carrying carrion eaters, and they were walking and licking the food on the platter and that made me gag. I gave up and just ate crackers. I also played with the crawfish. Shut up, they were cute. I was disgusted about the flied, though. Steve doesn't get disgusted as easily as I do, so he ate what he could hold. I felt bad, but at least I tried. If I ever go again, I'd like to eat inside and only order crab legs. Otherwise, I just won't go back. It was gross. Also, there were bugs flying around outside and spiderwebs all over the place. I didn't tell Steve until we were back home, but there was a giant spider in a web behind him. If he had known, he would have died. Seriously, he would have died. He would have screamed like a girl first, but his heart would have stopped. I was glad to get out of there. Look, I know I sound like a snob, and trust me, I'm not squeamish about trying new foods or eating in out of the way places, but I draw the line at eating food covered in bugs. Until I'm a missionary living in the jungle and I actually HAVE to eat food covered in flies, I'm going to pass, thanks. GROSS! BLEH.
We went back to the lighthouse to visit the gift shop, and then we headed home! We were burned, tired, and covered in crab juice. We came back to the hotel and took a shower and then slept like dead people. I don't even think we meant to sleep as long as we did, but we were so tired. After we got up, we went to World Market and bought some candy and then to dinner. We didn't go anywhere interesting, because we just didn't have the energy, so we just ate at a Mexican place across from where we were staying and came back to sleep some more.
JUNE 22, 2009 - Today was our designated beach day! We went to Tybee Island and just had a lazy morning. We actually went to the quiet beach in front of the big light house, so it was not crowded and we just kind of hung out. Steve actually dig a hole and made a "recliner" in the sand, so he was happy. I didn't wear the bottom half of my suit (I know what you're thinking, and I just mean I wore shorts instead. Pervert!) so I didn't swim, but I waded. There weren't any shells to speak of, but I found a couple. There was also a large horse shoe crab that someone caught, and it scared the crap out of me. It was huge! I mean, if someone took the shell off of the crab, Steve could wear it like an army helmet, that's how big it was. They saw me recoil from it and laughed. Buttheads. Let me wield a humongous prehistoric sea creature in their faces and see how they like it!
We didn't stay out there long, and we decided to go to The Crab Shack for lunch. I've heard wonderful things about the place, so I was excited about eating there! They said they weren't seating inside yet, but they sat us outside in a place surrounded by fans so it wasn't so bad. I am really not fond of seafood, but I didn't want to come to a place called The Crab Shack and eat anything other than seafood, so we ordered a big platter of stuff for two. They brought out this enormous platter with potatoes, corn, crawfish, giant spider-looking crab legs, stone crab claws, steamed mussels, and sausage, all covered in butter and spices. I'm going to be honest, I wasn't a fan. I hate to say that since I've heard nothing but good things about the place, but it was gross. The crab legs were good, which I wasn't expecting, but everything else I tried was bad. Not only that, but flies began crawling all over our food. FLIES! We couldn't keep them off, and even though I tried to look past it, I know that flies are disease carrying carrion eaters, and they were walking and licking the food on the platter and that made me gag. I gave up and just ate crackers. I also played with the crawfish. Shut up, they were cute. I was disgusted about the flied, though. Steve doesn't get disgusted as easily as I do, so he ate what he could hold. I felt bad, but at least I tried. If I ever go again, I'd like to eat inside and only order crab legs. Otherwise, I just won't go back. It was gross. Also, there were bugs flying around outside and spiderwebs all over the place. I didn't tell Steve until we were back home, but there was a giant spider in a web behind him. If he had known, he would have died. Seriously, he would have died. He would have screamed like a girl first, but his heart would have stopped. I was glad to get out of there. Look, I know I sound like a snob, and trust me, I'm not squeamish about trying new foods or eating in out of the way places, but I draw the line at eating food covered in bugs. Until I'm a missionary living in the jungle and I actually HAVE to eat food covered in flies, I'm going to pass, thanks. GROSS! BLEH.
We went back to the lighthouse to visit the gift shop, and then we headed home! We were burned, tired, and covered in crab juice. We came back to the hotel and took a shower and then slept like dead people. I don't even think we meant to sleep as long as we did, but we were so tired. After we got up, we went to World Market and bought some candy and then to dinner. We didn't go anywhere interesting, because we just didn't have the energy, so we just ate at a Mexican place across from where we were staying and came back to sleep some more.
Sunday, June 21, 2009
BLOGGED ALONG THE WAY: SAVANNAH, GEORGIA EDITION
JUNE 21, 2009 - This morning Steve and I went on a tour of Bonaventure (which I keep wanting to call Bonaventura for some reason) Cemetery which is a huge, old and unbelievably beautiful place. We had arranged a tour with the same people who did our ghost tour, and it turned out that Steve and I were the only ones to sign up for that day. At first we couldn't find our tour guide, but we finally located him waiting on us. I felt kind of bad for him, because it must be kind of a drag to give an elaborate tour to only two people, and I could also tell that he had the actual tour down to a patter that wasn't as effective to just the two of us. We also had a very strange vocal tic where he kind of hummed after everything he said. It was kind of weird, but he was a wonderful guide. We walked a long way and learned a LOT about the people buried there. I wish I could have spent longer looking and taking pictures, as I am an avid taphophile, but it was just too damn hot out there. I don't remember how long we were out there, and it was a LONG time, but we were hot, dirty, sweaty, and thirsty by the time we were done. That has to be one of the most beautiful cemeteries that I've ever seen, and the headstones were amazing. If I ever get a chance, I'll go back and do some grave rubbings. When we left, we tried to find a Target because we needed some essentials, but the stupid GPS must have gotten mad at me for abusing it the night before, because it took us WAY out of town. I'm not sure where we ended up, but it certainly wasn't Target. We had to find a way back into town, because we had made reservations for that night at a fancy, historical restaurant called The Olde Pink House. We heard it was (possibly) very haunted on the ghost tour last night and we wanted to eat with some dead folks.
I'm not sure how long we were actually gone, but I was in quite a state by the time we were able to rest and get ready. I apparently didn't hear Steve right when he told me what time our reservation was for, because 15 minutes before we were supposed to be there, I still wasn't ready. I still stand behind my belief that he told me 7:30, but he said he told me 6:30 (he didn't, I swear) we had to call and push our reservation back until 8:45. Luckily we were able to do that! Yay!
We did have another small problem while getting ready, and I should probably be ashamed for thinking it's funny, but I'm not! When I got out of the shower, I walked back into our room and saw Steve looking distressed. He had been ironing his dress pants before getting dressed, but now he was just standing there staring at them on the board. Bless his heart, he hadn't payed attention to the setting on the iron before he got started and he had burned an iron-shaped hole in his pants! He looked so pitiful, but I couldn't help but laugh! I've never actually known anyone to do that in real life! Poor guy, though, it was the only pair of nice pants he had brought, so he had to wear jeans. He looked handsome anyways!
After we got ready, we decided to try and find that elusive Target again!
After driving a considerable distance, and being miseld by the stupid GPS again, we finally did find a Target on our own and we bought a new GPS holder, which made me happy because I was having to hold the dumb thing up the whole time we were driving. I also had to buy a new pair of shoes because none of the many pairs of shoes I brought with me were doing my feet any good. At this point, I had blisters, wounds, and hurty spots all over my feet: in short, my feet hurt. A lot. I got a pair of Chucks and a few other things and even though it was a little early, we finally made our way to the restaurant. I'm glad we decided to go early, because it took us a LONG time to find a place to park. We finally found a spot about a block away and walked over. They were able to seat us immediately, so that was awesome! The restaurant was wonderful and the food was spectacular. I had pecan-crusted chicken with some kind of sauce on it, whipped sweet potatoes and collards. I know the food was good because I ate the collard greens and I usually HATE them. We also got dessert, which I can't exactly describe because there was a lot going on with it, but I will just call it Awesome with Fruit and Ice Cream. I could eat one of whatever it was every day for a year and still think it was good! *drool*
As for ghosts, I didn't see anything. Trust me, I looked. The Olde Pink House is supposed to be one of the 7 most haunted locations in the country, and I didn't see or feel anything. Steve, on the other hand, did! BOO, I'm jealous! He and I were talking and he kind of jumped a little and looked weird and asked if anyone was behind him. There wasn't anyone there, not a server or even a table with people at it, so he looked kind of funny when I said no one was there. His chair had slid away from the table, and he didn't do it! He even tried to do it and the chair wouldn't move like that when he pushed it! No fair! :( I got nothing.
JUNE 21, 2009 - This morning Steve and I went on a tour of Bonaventure (which I keep wanting to call Bonaventura for some reason) Cemetery which is a huge, old and unbelievably beautiful place. We had arranged a tour with the same people who did our ghost tour, and it turned out that Steve and I were the only ones to sign up for that day. At first we couldn't find our tour guide, but we finally located him waiting on us. I felt kind of bad for him, because it must be kind of a drag to give an elaborate tour to only two people, and I could also tell that he had the actual tour down to a patter that wasn't as effective to just the two of us. We also had a very strange vocal tic where he kind of hummed after everything he said. It was kind of weird, but he was a wonderful guide. We walked a long way and learned a LOT about the people buried there. I wish I could have spent longer looking and taking pictures, as I am an avid taphophile, but it was just too damn hot out there. I don't remember how long we were out there, and it was a LONG time, but we were hot, dirty, sweaty, and thirsty by the time we were done. That has to be one of the most beautiful cemeteries that I've ever seen, and the headstones were amazing. If I ever get a chance, I'll go back and do some grave rubbings. When we left, we tried to find a Target because we needed some essentials, but the stupid GPS must have gotten mad at me for abusing it the night before, because it took us WAY out of town. I'm not sure where we ended up, but it certainly wasn't Target. We had to find a way back into town, because we had made reservations for that night at a fancy, historical restaurant called The Olde Pink House. We heard it was (possibly) very haunted on the ghost tour last night and we wanted to eat with some dead folks.
I'm not sure how long we were actually gone, but I was in quite a state by the time we were able to rest and get ready. I apparently didn't hear Steve right when he told me what time our reservation was for, because 15 minutes before we were supposed to be there, I still wasn't ready. I still stand behind my belief that he told me 7:30, but he said he told me 6:30 (he didn't, I swear) we had to call and push our reservation back until 8:45. Luckily we were able to do that! Yay!
We did have another small problem while getting ready, and I should probably be ashamed for thinking it's funny, but I'm not! When I got out of the shower, I walked back into our room and saw Steve looking distressed. He had been ironing his dress pants before getting dressed, but now he was just standing there staring at them on the board. Bless his heart, he hadn't payed attention to the setting on the iron before he got started and he had burned an iron-shaped hole in his pants! He looked so pitiful, but I couldn't help but laugh! I've never actually known anyone to do that in real life! Poor guy, though, it was the only pair of nice pants he had brought, so he had to wear jeans. He looked handsome anyways!
After we got ready, we decided to try and find that elusive Target again!
After driving a considerable distance, and being miseld by the stupid GPS again, we finally did find a Target on our own and we bought a new GPS holder, which made me happy because I was having to hold the dumb thing up the whole time we were driving. I also had to buy a new pair of shoes because none of the many pairs of shoes I brought with me were doing my feet any good. At this point, I had blisters, wounds, and hurty spots all over my feet: in short, my feet hurt. A lot. I got a pair of Chucks and a few other things and even though it was a little early, we finally made our way to the restaurant. I'm glad we decided to go early, because it took us a LONG time to find a place to park. We finally found a spot about a block away and walked over. They were able to seat us immediately, so that was awesome! The restaurant was wonderful and the food was spectacular. I had pecan-crusted chicken with some kind of sauce on it, whipped sweet potatoes and collards. I know the food was good because I ate the collard greens and I usually HATE them. We also got dessert, which I can't exactly describe because there was a lot going on with it, but I will just call it Awesome with Fruit and Ice Cream. I could eat one of whatever it was every day for a year and still think it was good! *drool*
As for ghosts, I didn't see anything. Trust me, I looked. The Olde Pink House is supposed to be one of the 7 most haunted locations in the country, and I didn't see or feel anything. Steve, on the other hand, did! BOO, I'm jealous! He and I were talking and he kind of jumped a little and looked weird and asked if anyone was behind him. There wasn't anyone there, not a server or even a table with people at it, so he looked kind of funny when I said no one was there. His chair had slid away from the table, and he didn't do it! He even tried to do it and the chair wouldn't move like that when he pushed it! No fair! :( I got nothing.
Saturday, June 20, 2009
BLOGGED ALONG THE WAY: SAVANNAH, GEORGIA EDITION
JUNE 20, 2009 - Savannah is hot. I only say it that simply because there are few words to describe the drowning-on-dry-land feeling that I encountered today. Steve and I were woken by a shaft of light so bright that for a moment I thought that the sun had gone supernova. Apparently, we haven't quite figured out how to close the curtains all the way! Something to work on later! Our first adventure this morning was a trip to Forsyth Park. I have seen tons of pictures of the park, but none of them did it justice. The place is beautiful! I'm really falling in love with the live oaks and Spanish moss. We saw a farmer's market, which was kind of interesting. There were also lots of dogs out today, but I only got to pet one of them. :( We walked the perimeter of the park and looked at the beautiful houses all around. I would love to live in one of them! I love old houses, and a lot of these were just so interesting! We also located the famous fountain, which was just a nice in person as it is in the pictures. By the time we had gone all the way around and then some, we were both dripping sweat and kind of feeling gross, so we stopped at an antique store to get out of the heat for a few minutes, and we ended up in a place where we could afford nothing and it was housed in a crumbling, old mansion. I'm not exaggerating about that, it was really crumbling. We walked through four of it's five floors, and I think the house would be beautiful if it were restored, but it was kind of scary. We were beginning to be afraid that we might fall through the floors, so we left and went to have lunch at Clary's. It was small, and reminded me of Aunt Eunice's, and the food was great! We had some trouble getting the car out of the tiny lot, but we finally managed it and did a couple of errands before returning to the hotel.
I made sure to get back to the hotel in abundant time to get ready for Kenny and Lauren's wedding! After holding up the dinner the night before because I was late, I didn't want to take that chance again. I almost made myself late again, but I managed to get ready and use the GPS (for the first time) to successfully locate the Mansion on Forsyth Park. It was so beautiful! Since I don't understand valet parking and didn't want to embarrass myself, I found a place to park on the street (that is an important tid-bit for later, so pay attention) and went into the hotel. I immediately found a very handsome Kenny who didn't look at all nervous. :) I spoke to him and had someone take our picture, and then I got out of the way of the bustle. As the guests arrived I found that another guest, Elizabeth, and I had on the exact same dress! We have never met in person, we live in different towns and we bought them from two different places, but they were exact down to the bow on the sash! We just have very good taste! Heeheehee! The wedding was outside (gulp) but under a nice tent in the courtyard. It had a chandelier and everything! The actual ceremony went over without a hitch, and Kenny and Lauren are now married! I think my heart grew three sizes that day. :) I had a tickle in my throat at the absolute worst moment, the "does anyone have any reason to object" moment, but I managed to keep in on the DL. I didn't feel like getting beat down by the bride! The music was beautiful and everything was so lovely. While the bride and groom were off taking pictures, I got a chance to talk to more of the people whom I've only ever heard of in stories, and I found them all to be lovely people.
We moved to the restaurant next door to begin the reception, and had drinks and nibbly foods while waiting on the dining room to be prepared. I got to know a guy I've heard about for years, Stephen, an old friend of Kenny's. He's a lawyer, and in spite of that, a lot of fun to talk to! :) I also got to meet the lovely Elisabeth, Kenny's unofficial sister, who I liked a whole lot! I finally got to meet Rick, Bonita's husband and Kenny's Step dad, Lauren's parents, her god sisters, and there were so many others! They were all seriously great people. It took a little while, but as soon as the newlyweds returned, the reception dinner finally began. The dining room was very beautiful and I was afraid I was going to break something or knock something over, so I found a seat at the very end of the table and parked myself. I sat across from Wendy Brown...ahem, I mean WENNYBROWN! (exclamation point is a part of the name, not punctuation.) I'm fairly sure she is a kindred spirit of mine. She was a hoot! We were also sitting next to Lauren's God parents and one of her family's neighbors. We had so much fun with them, because they were bonafide, dyed in the wool, Connecticut Yankees! We spent the whole dinner discussing the differences between being from the north versus being from the south. It led to very, very entertaining conversation, and I'm seriously afraid that I laughed entirely too loud. Seriously, I actually laughed like my Atnip relatives, and that involves throwing the head back and pretty much shrieking. I'd like to apologize to everyone at 700 Drayton, Lauren, Kenny, their collected friends and family and the state of Georgia for my behavior. The lady who was sitting beside me kept saying "She's like this and she isn't even drinking!!" At least I kept them laughing along with me. I had way too much fun! Dinner was absolutely wonderful, and everything was fancy and lovely. I didn't spill anything or knock anything over, so score a point for me! Unfortunately, I was going to have to leave before the festivities were over because Steve had gotten into the "spirit" *ahem* of things and made reservations for us to go on a ghost tour through the city! I figured out that if I left by 8:30, I'd have plenty of time to make it back to the hotel and change before we had to meet the group, so at the appointed time I stood and said goodbye and hugged a series of very wonderful people who I had spent the evening with! I even managed to hug Emo Waiter Andrew, because he looked like he needed one. Miss Bonita caught me at the door and we talked for a few minutes and she asked me if I could wait until the cake was cut, and I hated to miss that, so I agreed! I'm so glad that they didn't smush cake on each other, because I really hate when people do that! :) I stepped into the foyer, and Bryan caught me to hug me good bye and talk for a second, and at this point I completely lost track of time. I kept hearing a weird noise, but I didn't think anything about it. When he walked back into the reception, I realized that this annoying noise I kept hearing was my new phone ringing! Oh, Crap!
I looked at the time and nearly fainted! I saw that it was Steve trying to call (he didn't know how long I was going to be gone and had gotten worried about me) but by the time I figured out how to answer the damned thing he had hung up. I tried calling him back, but I couldn't figure out how to send a call! I kept looking at my phone and yelling "CALL DAMNIT!" which I'm sure the host at the desk behind me found amusing. I ran out of the building yelling at my phone and trying to find my keys. It was a disorganized mess. I had my hands full, things were falling, I was shrieking and running and trying to get the stupid phone to make a call. Oh, and I also had to pee really bad. I didn't have time to run back in, so I figured I'd just do it when I ran into the hotel to change clothes. I finally got to my car, and two cars...oh, friends and neighbors...two cars had me trapped in the space I was parked in. You wouldn't think that could happen on a curb, but these numbnuts idiots had parked within about 7 inches of each end of my car. I don't know what they were thinking when they parked where they did, but they were way too close for me to just pull out. So there I was, still yelling at my phone, trying to get things organized enough to actually drive, freaking out because I thought I was going to be late for the tour that I was looking forward to, needing to pee, and add to that I was trying to start the GPS and hook it into the holder! Of course, in about 30 seconds of trying to affix the GPS to the holder, I managed to snap the hinge off of the holder. I screamed an explicative at it as it fell apart in my hands. Then my phone rang again, and it was Steve, asking where I was. I was having a small scale come-apart, but I managed to answer the phone this time. I had to throw the GPS aside and try to pull out of my parking space without plowing into one of the cars, all while trying to give Steve directions on the clothes he needed to get out for me so that I could change when I got back to the hotel. I went in reverse, and immediately bumped into the car behind me. My only saving grace is that I was going less than 1 MPH since I had pretty much only let my foot off the brake when I rolled back. I figure that anyone who parks THAT close to another vehicle doesn't care much what happens to their car, so I didn't even get out of the car to look. I pulled forward about 6 inches, then reversed, back, forth, back, forth...ect. I was finally able to get out of the spot without hitting anyone else and began my ride back. Luckily I had at least set the GPS before I broke the holder, so it helped me get on my way. Steve was worried that we weren't going to make it, so I just told him to meet me outside with my flip-flops (I NEEDED to ditch the shoes I was wearing, because it was a walking tour) and that I would run in and go to the bathroom while he jumped into the drivers seat. I would just wear the dress I wore to the wedding.
We made it, just barely. We did end up waiting a few minutes before our group set off, but it wasn't long. I was severely overdressed, but at least my feet were comfy! I really, really enjoyed the tour! We had an awesome tour guide and she told a lot of great stories of ghoolies, ghosties and long leggedy beasties. We walked two miles, and my ankles and legs were a buffet for mosquitoes the size of seagulls. We also took a lot of pictures, as the tour guide suggested, to get "Spirit Orbs" and ghost photos. We got a lot of orbs in our pictures, but I generally follow the TAPS rule that orbs usually mean dust. Of course, I did a have a couple of orbs in my pictures that looked different than others, so maybe I got a spook after all!
By the time we got back to the hotel, it was almost midnight and my feet felt like they had been beaten with switches. They were even bleeding in places! However, I wasn't worried because I'd had a wonderful day. I was also exhausted and I will soon be passed out asleep.
JUNE 20, 2009 - Savannah is hot. I only say it that simply because there are few words to describe the drowning-on-dry-land feeling that I encountered today. Steve and I were woken by a shaft of light so bright that for a moment I thought that the sun had gone supernova. Apparently, we haven't quite figured out how to close the curtains all the way! Something to work on later! Our first adventure this morning was a trip to Forsyth Park. I have seen tons of pictures of the park, but none of them did it justice. The place is beautiful! I'm really falling in love with the live oaks and Spanish moss. We saw a farmer's market, which was kind of interesting. There were also lots of dogs out today, but I only got to pet one of them. :( We walked the perimeter of the park and looked at the beautiful houses all around. I would love to live in one of them! I love old houses, and a lot of these were just so interesting! We also located the famous fountain, which was just a nice in person as it is in the pictures. By the time we had gone all the way around and then some, we were both dripping sweat and kind of feeling gross, so we stopped at an antique store to get out of the heat for a few minutes, and we ended up in a place where we could afford nothing and it was housed in a crumbling, old mansion. I'm not exaggerating about that, it was really crumbling. We walked through four of it's five floors, and I think the house would be beautiful if it were restored, but it was kind of scary. We were beginning to be afraid that we might fall through the floors, so we left and went to have lunch at Clary's. It was small, and reminded me of Aunt Eunice's, and the food was great! We had some trouble getting the car out of the tiny lot, but we finally managed it and did a couple of errands before returning to the hotel.
I made sure to get back to the hotel in abundant time to get ready for Kenny and Lauren's wedding! After holding up the dinner the night before because I was late, I didn't want to take that chance again. I almost made myself late again, but I managed to get ready and use the GPS (for the first time) to successfully locate the Mansion on Forsyth Park. It was so beautiful! Since I don't understand valet parking and didn't want to embarrass myself, I found a place to park on the street (that is an important tid-bit for later, so pay attention) and went into the hotel. I immediately found a very handsome Kenny who didn't look at all nervous. :) I spoke to him and had someone take our picture, and then I got out of the way of the bustle. As the guests arrived I found that another guest, Elizabeth, and I had on the exact same dress! We have never met in person, we live in different towns and we bought them from two different places, but they were exact down to the bow on the sash! We just have very good taste! Heeheehee! The wedding was outside (gulp) but under a nice tent in the courtyard. It had a chandelier and everything! The actual ceremony went over without a hitch, and Kenny and Lauren are now married! I think my heart grew three sizes that day. :) I had a tickle in my throat at the absolute worst moment, the "does anyone have any reason to object" moment, but I managed to keep in on the DL. I didn't feel like getting beat down by the bride! The music was beautiful and everything was so lovely. While the bride and groom were off taking pictures, I got a chance to talk to more of the people whom I've only ever heard of in stories, and I found them all to be lovely people.
We moved to the restaurant next door to begin the reception, and had drinks and nibbly foods while waiting on the dining room to be prepared. I got to know a guy I've heard about for years, Stephen, an old friend of Kenny's. He's a lawyer, and in spite of that, a lot of fun to talk to! :) I also got to meet the lovely Elisabeth, Kenny's unofficial sister, who I liked a whole lot! I finally got to meet Rick, Bonita's husband and Kenny's Step dad, Lauren's parents, her god sisters, and there were so many others! They were all seriously great people. It took a little while, but as soon as the newlyweds returned, the reception dinner finally began. The dining room was very beautiful and I was afraid I was going to break something or knock something over, so I found a seat at the very end of the table and parked myself. I sat across from Wendy Brown...ahem, I mean WENNYBROWN! (exclamation point is a part of the name, not punctuation.) I'm fairly sure she is a kindred spirit of mine. She was a hoot! We were also sitting next to Lauren's God parents and one of her family's neighbors. We had so much fun with them, because they were bonafide, dyed in the wool, Connecticut Yankees! We spent the whole dinner discussing the differences between being from the north versus being from the south. It led to very, very entertaining conversation, and I'm seriously afraid that I laughed entirely too loud. Seriously, I actually laughed like my Atnip relatives, and that involves throwing the head back and pretty much shrieking. I'd like to apologize to everyone at 700 Drayton, Lauren, Kenny, their collected friends and family and the state of Georgia for my behavior. The lady who was sitting beside me kept saying "She's like this and she isn't even drinking!!" At least I kept them laughing along with me. I had way too much fun! Dinner was absolutely wonderful, and everything was fancy and lovely. I didn't spill anything or knock anything over, so score a point for me! Unfortunately, I was going to have to leave before the festivities were over because Steve had gotten into the "spirit" *ahem* of things and made reservations for us to go on a ghost tour through the city! I figured out that if I left by 8:30, I'd have plenty of time to make it back to the hotel and change before we had to meet the group, so at the appointed time I stood and said goodbye and hugged a series of very wonderful people who I had spent the evening with! I even managed to hug Emo Waiter Andrew, because he looked like he needed one. Miss Bonita caught me at the door and we talked for a few minutes and she asked me if I could wait until the cake was cut, and I hated to miss that, so I agreed! I'm so glad that they didn't smush cake on each other, because I really hate when people do that! :) I stepped into the foyer, and Bryan caught me to hug me good bye and talk for a second, and at this point I completely lost track of time. I kept hearing a weird noise, but I didn't think anything about it. When he walked back into the reception, I realized that this annoying noise I kept hearing was my new phone ringing! Oh, Crap!
I looked at the time and nearly fainted! I saw that it was Steve trying to call (he didn't know how long I was going to be gone and had gotten worried about me) but by the time I figured out how to answer the damned thing he had hung up. I tried calling him back, but I couldn't figure out how to send a call! I kept looking at my phone and yelling "CALL DAMNIT!" which I'm sure the host at the desk behind me found amusing. I ran out of the building yelling at my phone and trying to find my keys. It was a disorganized mess. I had my hands full, things were falling, I was shrieking and running and trying to get the stupid phone to make a call. Oh, and I also had to pee really bad. I didn't have time to run back in, so I figured I'd just do it when I ran into the hotel to change clothes. I finally got to my car, and two cars...oh, friends and neighbors...two cars had me trapped in the space I was parked in. You wouldn't think that could happen on a curb, but these numbnuts idiots had parked within about 7 inches of each end of my car. I don't know what they were thinking when they parked where they did, but they were way too close for me to just pull out. So there I was, still yelling at my phone, trying to get things organized enough to actually drive, freaking out because I thought I was going to be late for the tour that I was looking forward to, needing to pee, and add to that I was trying to start the GPS and hook it into the holder! Of course, in about 30 seconds of trying to affix the GPS to the holder, I managed to snap the hinge off of the holder. I screamed an explicative at it as it fell apart in my hands. Then my phone rang again, and it was Steve, asking where I was. I was having a small scale come-apart, but I managed to answer the phone this time. I had to throw the GPS aside and try to pull out of my parking space without plowing into one of the cars, all while trying to give Steve directions on the clothes he needed to get out for me so that I could change when I got back to the hotel. I went in reverse, and immediately bumped into the car behind me. My only saving grace is that I was going less than 1 MPH since I had pretty much only let my foot off the brake when I rolled back. I figure that anyone who parks THAT close to another vehicle doesn't care much what happens to their car, so I didn't even get out of the car to look. I pulled forward about 6 inches, then reversed, back, forth, back, forth...ect. I was finally able to get out of the spot without hitting anyone else and began my ride back. Luckily I had at least set the GPS before I broke the holder, so it helped me get on my way. Steve was worried that we weren't going to make it, so I just told him to meet me outside with my flip-flops (I NEEDED to ditch the shoes I was wearing, because it was a walking tour) and that I would run in and go to the bathroom while he jumped into the drivers seat. I would just wear the dress I wore to the wedding.
We made it, just barely. We did end up waiting a few minutes before our group set off, but it wasn't long. I was severely overdressed, but at least my feet were comfy! I really, really enjoyed the tour! We had an awesome tour guide and she told a lot of great stories of ghoolies, ghosties and long leggedy beasties. We walked two miles, and my ankles and legs were a buffet for mosquitoes the size of seagulls. We also took a lot of pictures, as the tour guide suggested, to get "Spirit Orbs" and ghost photos. We got a lot of orbs in our pictures, but I generally follow the TAPS rule that orbs usually mean dust. Of course, I did a have a couple of orbs in my pictures that looked different than others, so maybe I got a spook after all!
By the time we got back to the hotel, it was almost midnight and my feet felt like they had been beaten with switches. They were even bleeding in places! However, I wasn't worried because I'd had a wonderful day. I was also exhausted and I will soon be passed out asleep.
Friday, June 19, 2009
BLOGGED ALONG THE WAY: SAVANNAH, GEORGIA EDITION
PROLOGUE: This is the story about our trip to Savannah and what we did there! It was a great trip and we had a lot of fun. It was also very, very hot, and I believe that I finally, honestly earned the title (given to me by Greg P. in 1997) as the "Showerin'-est Taking Person" in the world. I think it's just Georgia, because I don't feel the need to shower twice a day at home. Also, forgive me for the rambling and for leaving out some details, because it was a long and busy trip, but if I remember anything later on, I'll tell you about it! Enjoy! :)
PROLOGUE: This is the story about our trip to Savannah and what we did there! It was a great trip and we had a lot of fun. It was also very, very hot, and I believe that I finally, honestly earned the title (given to me by Greg P. in 1997) as the "Showerin'-est Taking Person" in the world. I think it's just Georgia, because I don't feel the need to shower twice a day at home. Also, forgive me for the rambling and for leaving out some details, because it was a long and busy trip, but if I remember anything later on, I'll tell you about it! Enjoy! :)
My phone died last night, and I couldn't find my charging cable anywhere, so in a quick Wal-Mart dash to find a new one (which didn't happen because my phone is so old and outdated that they don't carry that kind anymore) Steve got me a new phone! Shut up, we were desperate. It's a Razor phone, or something like that, and I have no idea how it works or what it sounds like yet. Also, since my old phone was completely dead, I couldn't get into my address book to copy any numbers to the new phone. Steve transferred the old SIM card to the new phone, but none of my numbers transferred over. Luckily I had gotten a text from Kenny the night before and that showed up on my phone, so at least I had HIS number. Of course, his is the most important, right? :) I played around with it for a while while we drove, but I still don't know much about it. I hope I learn before I have an emergency. I don't even know how to actually make it dial out a number, but I'm not going to worry about that yet. I'll figure it out.
Today was the day that we drove across Georgia to get to Savannah! I've been wanting to come here for a long time, but we had never gotten around to it. Now, however, we had a really good reason for the drive because Kenny and Lauren were getting married here! Driving across Georgia takes a long time and we got stuck in a TON of traffic in, you guessed it, Atlanta. I needed to be here at 7:45 pm so that I could eat dinner with the collected friends and family of the bride and groom, and we made it just in time for me to shower, change and get skanky before I had to be there. Steve drove me to The Lady & Sons, because I was too afraid to drive myself at this point, and I ended up being a little bit late and they didn't go in until I got there. I felt so bad! I got to meet a lot of people I've only heard stories about, so that was a lot of fun. The food and the company were both great, but I was beat. I don't know if it was my new allergy medicine or just the toll of the day, but I was a zombie by the time I was done with dinner. Thinking about it now, I'm kind of afraid I came across as rude or something, but I hope I didn't offend anyone, I was mainly just tired. Before I left, though, I caught Kenny for a second and got a chance to carry on the "Best Man" joke that is a tradition in our family. Since Kenny isn't having a Best Man, I got to be the one to offer him the keys to the car for the last minute dash. Of course, he didn't take me up on the offer! Good man! :) I declined joining everyone else at Savannah Smiles, a piano bar close by, and called Steve to come and pick me up. After that we came back and I changed into my jammies, and now I'm writing this post. The wedding is tomorrow, and Steve has all kinds of things planned for us to do while we are here. We've decided to stick around for a few days and make a vacation out of it, so there should be lots more stuff to come!
Thursday, June 18, 2009
I dreamed a terrible joke last night:
Q) What did Admiral Akbar say to the gastroenterologist?
A) IT'S A TRACT!
I'm sorry, but I had to share that. I can't believe my subconscious wastes its time thinking those things up. It sounds like something my high school Agriculture teacher would have come up with.*
*He was notorious for the bad jokes.
Q) What did Admiral Akbar say to the gastroenterologist?
A) IT'S A TRACT!
I'm sorry, but I had to share that. I can't believe my subconscious wastes its time thinking those things up. It sounds like something my high school Agriculture teacher would have come up with.*
*He was notorious for the bad jokes.
Wednesday, June 17, 2009
WHAT I'VE LEARNED DURING MY SUMMER VACATION... (SO FAR)
1) I am completely incapable of applying self tanner! Since I'm going to go to a destination wedding this weekend, and it's going to be as hot as hell in Savannah, I didn't want to have to wear hose with my dress. My main reason for even wearing the God forsaken things is that my legs are so very, very pale and I will not risk skin cancer by going to a tanning bed! A lady at my church told me about a fake tan spray that is supposed to work really well, so I bought a bottle of it. I thought I was following the directions, but apparently I missed a step, because my legs look like I waded through a vat of Cheetos! It's quite unattractive. However, I am going to suck it up and show off my orange-streaky legs with pride! I just hope I don't clash too badly with the flowers at the wedding! :)
2) If I were a stay-at-home wifey, I'd get bored of it very quickly. I like the sleeping late and being able to do my housework in a leisurely manner, but I need regular interaction with other grown up people.
3) Laundry sucks. It sucks a lot. I may get a small sense of accomplishment when I finish folding a basket of clothes, but it's quickly displaced by the knowledge that everything is just going to get dirty again! It's a never ending cycle! Also, I've realized we don't have enough room to store all of our clothes, especially when all of them are clean at the same time.
4) I make awesome brownies!
5) Even when I don't have to go anywhere afterwords, I won't go to the gym like I will on days when I have to go to work after. Apparently I am just not waking up on time to go first thing, and the longer I'm awake, the less likely I am to go. I'm not happy with that at all, so I'm going to have to work on it! Boo!
1) I am completely incapable of applying self tanner! Since I'm going to go to a destination wedding this weekend, and it's going to be as hot as hell in Savannah, I didn't want to have to wear hose with my dress. My main reason for even wearing the God forsaken things is that my legs are so very, very pale and I will not risk skin cancer by going to a tanning bed! A lady at my church told me about a fake tan spray that is supposed to work really well, so I bought a bottle of it. I thought I was following the directions, but apparently I missed a step, because my legs look like I waded through a vat of Cheetos! It's quite unattractive. However, I am going to suck it up and show off my orange-streaky legs with pride! I just hope I don't clash too badly with the flowers at the wedding! :)
2) If I were a stay-at-home wifey, I'd get bored of it very quickly. I like the sleeping late and being able to do my housework in a leisurely manner, but I need regular interaction with other grown up people.
3) Laundry sucks. It sucks a lot. I may get a small sense of accomplishment when I finish folding a basket of clothes, but it's quickly displaced by the knowledge that everything is just going to get dirty again! It's a never ending cycle! Also, I've realized we don't have enough room to store all of our clothes, especially when all of them are clean at the same time.
4) I make awesome brownies!
5) Even when I don't have to go anywhere afterwords, I won't go to the gym like I will on days when I have to go to work after. Apparently I am just not waking up on time to go first thing, and the longer I'm awake, the less likely I am to go. I'm not happy with that at all, so I'm going to have to work on it! Boo!
Thursday, June 11, 2009
I work with a guy that scares me a little.
Don't get me wrong, he is a really nice guy, but he has this quality about him that makes me nervous. Before I actually got a chance to meet him, I just saw him around and thought that he was kind of sinister. He's a really tall man who walks hunched over a little, and he has the smile of a super villain/serial killer. I nicknamed him (as I do almost everyone who's name I don't know) Flesh Coat, because he kind of made me think of the bad guy in Silence of the Lambs. I could actually imagine him throwing someone in a pit and telling them to "rub the lotion on the skin." I know that's bad, because we aren't supposed to judge someone by their appearance, but I was powerless to stop it. I actually got a chance to meet him later on and while he still looks kind of scary, at least I'm fairly sure he isn't a serial killer. He is an unusual guy though. He is one of those people who complains a lot about the younger women who talk to him or like him, but you know he's secretly thrilled that they pay attention to him. He also talks a lot about the things he's good at, as if they are kind of burdensome, but you can tell he just wants to let you know what he can do. I've also been told by other men that he works with that he's a complete pervert , but I've never heard him say anything like that. Of course, that may be because I'm WAY too old for him. Not that he's a pedo or anything, but I think I'm about 10 - 12 years too old for his tastes (BTW, he's 6 years older than I, so that makes it creepy).
Anyways, yesterday Steve had to stay at work later than usual, so I got to spend an hour with that guy. A whole hour. We talked, or rather HE talked, a lot. I never really know how to talk to this guy because sometimes he doesn't realize when I'm being silly or sarcastic, so I just spent that hour listening to him, not knowing how to respond/react to him, and praying that Steve would hurry up and get there. At one point he did something strange, and while Flesh Coat's back was turned I leaned over and whispered to the girl sitting next to me that I thought the guy was really weird. I think he heard me. :( I may think he's weird, and he may make me feel uncomfortable, but I certainly didn't want to hurt his feelings! I felt bad. I also realized, too late as it turned out, that while I was talking to him, I had leaned over to look out of the window and the neck of my shirt got pulled down. Way down. Like, super way down. I accidentally flashed Flesh Coat. I'm scared he's going to think I did it on purpose, or worse, tell people I did that on purpose.
*shudder*
Don't get me wrong, he is a really nice guy, but he has this quality about him that makes me nervous. Before I actually got a chance to meet him, I just saw him around and thought that he was kind of sinister. He's a really tall man who walks hunched over a little, and he has the smile of a super villain/serial killer. I nicknamed him (as I do almost everyone who's name I don't know) Flesh Coat, because he kind of made me think of the bad guy in Silence of the Lambs. I could actually imagine him throwing someone in a pit and telling them to "rub the lotion on the skin." I know that's bad, because we aren't supposed to judge someone by their appearance, but I was powerless to stop it. I actually got a chance to meet him later on and while he still looks kind of scary, at least I'm fairly sure he isn't a serial killer. He is an unusual guy though. He is one of those people who complains a lot about the younger women who talk to him or like him, but you know he's secretly thrilled that they pay attention to him. He also talks a lot about the things he's good at, as if they are kind of burdensome, but you can tell he just wants to let you know what he can do. I've also been told by other men that he works with that he's a complete pervert , but I've never heard him say anything like that. Of course, that may be because I'm WAY too old for him. Not that he's a pedo or anything, but I think I'm about 10 - 12 years too old for his tastes (BTW, he's 6 years older than I, so that makes it creepy).
Anyways, yesterday Steve had to stay at work later than usual, so I got to spend an hour with that guy. A whole hour. We talked, or rather HE talked, a lot. I never really know how to talk to this guy because sometimes he doesn't realize when I'm being silly or sarcastic, so I just spent that hour listening to him, not knowing how to respond/react to him, and praying that Steve would hurry up and get there. At one point he did something strange, and while Flesh Coat's back was turned I leaned over and whispered to the girl sitting next to me that I thought the guy was really weird. I think he heard me. :( I may think he's weird, and he may make me feel uncomfortable, but I certainly didn't want to hurt his feelings! I felt bad. I also realized, too late as it turned out, that while I was talking to him, I had leaned over to look out of the window and the neck of my shirt got pulled down. Way down. Like, super way down. I accidentally flashed Flesh Coat. I'm scared he's going to think I did it on purpose, or worse, tell people I did that on purpose.
*shudder*
Monday, June 08, 2009
RANDOM ACTS OF BLOGGING
1) I stayed with my brother Friday night while my mom and her husband went out of town for their anniversary. Things went well! I didn't burn anything down or have to call 911 at any time, so I'd say it was a success! :) Since it's a brand new house, and I have only been there a couple of times anyways, I wasn't familiar with anything or know where anything was. I felt like a burglar most of the time because I had to go through drawers and closets to find things. I like to snoop as much as the next person, but when it's not actually snooping, I feel guilty! I found almost everything I needed, though. Poor Tommy, I don't think he trusts me very much. Any time I would try and do something for him, he'd get this look in his eyes like "Oh, Lord, she's touching me again!" Granted, by the time Angie came to stay with him on Saturday, he was probably sick of me. I can't lift him by myself, so getting him in and out of his wheelchair, or into bed was a chore. I managed it, just barely, but if he could talk, he would probably have cussed me a few times! :) In the process of attempting to lift him, I managed to pull several of the muscles in my back and legs, so that was fun. I've been walking around like Quasimodo since I got back! However, he is still alive, so I didn't do too badly, I don't think!
2) I was so sore Sunday morning, that when I got to church, I needed to take something to help with the pulled muscles. All I had in my purse was Excedrin, so I took that and hoped I'd feel better. I had forgotten that because of the caffeine, Excedrin makes me really shaky, and that was bad because I was supposed to sing the special music during the morning service! Ack! I already get really nervous when I sing, and I get doubly nervous when I sing in morning services because I know the choir is sitting behind me and can see me get shaky. It was really bad this time, though, because of the Excedrin, and no matter how much I tried not to shake, it just kept getting worse! At one point, I grabbed on to the pulpit to keep my hand still, and that helped a little, but I looked over at the pulpit microphone and saw it was bouncing up and down. I almost laughed, and I had to let it go. Luckily, though, my voice didn't shake and I hit all of my notes, and people seemed to enjoy the song...so there's that! I love singing, I just wish I didn't get so nervous!
3) I helped to host a baby shower yesterday afternoon, and it turned out really well! The girl having the baby is in my Sunday school class, and she is just the cutest thing. She's a tiny person, and now she has this big belly. She's having a little girl, and so everything was pink and frilly. My main contribution was carving a watermelon into a baby carriage and filling it with fruit. It was a lot of fun to do, and it turned out really well! I wish I had taken a picture of it before anyone had eaten out of it, but I didn't get a chance. Everyone thought it was cute. :) I'm glad I can do stuff like that for people! I did have one problem with it, though, and that is I HATE melons of every kind. I like carving them, and I enjoy making melon balls (it's fun), but I cannot stand the way they smell or taste. By the time I was done with this particular carriage, I had watermelon juice and seeds and rinds all over my kitchen and all over me. Fun stuff. I like to make those, but I hope I never have to eat any of them.
4) Josh is home for a couple of weeks! He came to church with us last night wearing his white robes, but no one seemed phased except for the little kids. He's still driving his mom's BMW two-seater convertible, which I think is hilarous. Vow of poverty, indeed! :) He's lost a lot of weight, but he looks good! He's also started wearing glasses and let his hair grow out a bit, so he's starting to look a little like David Tennant. We all know how I feel about DT, so I try not to think about that when Josh is around. I will NOT let him ruin my crush on The Doctor! I won't! Hopefully we'll get to hang out a bit while he's in town. I miss Josh! :(
5) I have been listening to the audio novel of Jaws lately, and coincidentally it was also on TV this weekend. I hadn't seen it in a long time, so I decided to watch it again. The book is good, but Jaws is one of the instances where I believe the movie is actually better. There is a subplot in the book that kind of pulls down the tempo of the story. Anyways, I had forgotten how much that movie terrifys me! I know it isn't real, I know the shark looks fake, but my feet itch and my legs feel all weird and I can't breathe when I watch that movie! Sharks are really, really scary! Getting eaten by one would be decidely unplesant!
1) I stayed with my brother Friday night while my mom and her husband went out of town for their anniversary. Things went well! I didn't burn anything down or have to call 911 at any time, so I'd say it was a success! :) Since it's a brand new house, and I have only been there a couple of times anyways, I wasn't familiar with anything or know where anything was. I felt like a burglar most of the time because I had to go through drawers and closets to find things. I like to snoop as much as the next person, but when it's not actually snooping, I feel guilty! I found almost everything I needed, though. Poor Tommy, I don't think he trusts me very much. Any time I would try and do something for him, he'd get this look in his eyes like "Oh, Lord, she's touching me again!" Granted, by the time Angie came to stay with him on Saturday, he was probably sick of me. I can't lift him by myself, so getting him in and out of his wheelchair, or into bed was a chore. I managed it, just barely, but if he could talk, he would probably have cussed me a few times! :) In the process of attempting to lift him, I managed to pull several of the muscles in my back and legs, so that was fun. I've been walking around like Quasimodo since I got back! However, he is still alive, so I didn't do too badly, I don't think!
2) I was so sore Sunday morning, that when I got to church, I needed to take something to help with the pulled muscles. All I had in my purse was Excedrin, so I took that and hoped I'd feel better. I had forgotten that because of the caffeine, Excedrin makes me really shaky, and that was bad because I was supposed to sing the special music during the morning service! Ack! I already get really nervous when I sing, and I get doubly nervous when I sing in morning services because I know the choir is sitting behind me and can see me get shaky. It was really bad this time, though, because of the Excedrin, and no matter how much I tried not to shake, it just kept getting worse! At one point, I grabbed on to the pulpit to keep my hand still, and that helped a little, but I looked over at the pulpit microphone and saw it was bouncing up and down. I almost laughed, and I had to let it go. Luckily, though, my voice didn't shake and I hit all of my notes, and people seemed to enjoy the song...so there's that! I love singing, I just wish I didn't get so nervous!
3) I helped to host a baby shower yesterday afternoon, and it turned out really well! The girl having the baby is in my Sunday school class, and she is just the cutest thing. She's a tiny person, and now she has this big belly. She's having a little girl, and so everything was pink and frilly. My main contribution was carving a watermelon into a baby carriage and filling it with fruit. It was a lot of fun to do, and it turned out really well! I wish I had taken a picture of it before anyone had eaten out of it, but I didn't get a chance. Everyone thought it was cute. :) I'm glad I can do stuff like that for people! I did have one problem with it, though, and that is I HATE melons of every kind. I like carving them, and I enjoy making melon balls (it's fun), but I cannot stand the way they smell or taste. By the time I was done with this particular carriage, I had watermelon juice and seeds and rinds all over my kitchen and all over me. Fun stuff. I like to make those, but I hope I never have to eat any of them.
4) Josh is home for a couple of weeks! He came to church with us last night wearing his white robes, but no one seemed phased except for the little kids. He's still driving his mom's BMW two-seater convertible, which I think is hilarous. Vow of poverty, indeed! :) He's lost a lot of weight, but he looks good! He's also started wearing glasses and let his hair grow out a bit, so he's starting to look a little like David Tennant. We all know how I feel about DT, so I try not to think about that when Josh is around. I will NOT let him ruin my crush on The Doctor! I won't! Hopefully we'll get to hang out a bit while he's in town. I miss Josh! :(
5) I have been listening to the audio novel of Jaws lately, and coincidentally it was also on TV this weekend. I hadn't seen it in a long time, so I decided to watch it again. The book is good, but Jaws is one of the instances where I believe the movie is actually better. There is a subplot in the book that kind of pulls down the tempo of the story. Anyways, I had forgotten how much that movie terrifys me! I know it isn't real, I know the shark looks fake, but my feet itch and my legs feel all weird and I can't breathe when I watch that movie! Sharks are really, really scary! Getting eaten by one would be decidely unplesant!
Wednesday, June 03, 2009
YOU DON'T ALWAYS GET WHAT YOU PAY FOR!
I'm currently upset at the ultra-fabulous Le Creuset company and their fine, enamel coated cast iron pans.
About two years ago, I got a Le Creuset skillet for a birthday gift. I had a crush on that brand for a long time, and had hoped that eventually I'd be able to buy a whole set of these kinds of pans because they are supposed to be practically indestructible and last forever. Of course, I quickly realized that buying a whole set of enamel-coated cast iron pans was going to cost WAY too much and take way too long to save up for, so the fact that I had just one made me love it all the more. I've used it constantly, and I'm fairly certain that I never mistreated it in any way, but a month or two ago, I noticed that the inside of the pan had some chips of enamel gone. I was unhappy about this, and had planned to send the pan back to be replaced, but knowing how way leads on to way, I never did it. It wasn't causing me any problems and I was still able to use my pan, so I forgot about doing anything.
Monday night, I was in the process of making dinner. The pan had been heating for a few minutes while I got the porkchops ready, and when I put the first one in, it immediately started popping. That's not too weird, because food will do that when it gets hot, but then it started popping out at me and it hurt. I thought that maybe the olive oil was splattering out on me, but I didn't have that much in the pan to begin with AND the temperature wasn't up that high. So I spent the next little bit trying to keep my porkchops from burning. Normally I'm pretty good at this, but for some reason, things weren't going so hot for me at the time. Anyways, when the food was ready, I noticed that the porkchops were black around the edges. It wasn't bad, but it was enough for me to notice. I was hungry, so I didn't get picky about anything, I just dug in. At first I didn't notice anything, but soon I realized that there was something gritty in my food. At first I thought it was a seed from some blueberries I had eaten earlier that might have been stuck in my teeth, or some kind of spice in the rice I'd added as a side dish, but it got worse. I had eaten almost a whole porkchop before I realized that it was not just gritty, but it felt like I was chewing on sand. I went back into the kitchen and looked in my pan, and realized that the black stuff that had been on my food wasn't because it had been burnt, I had been eating bits of the black enamel coating that had popped off of my pan and stuck to my food. Not only that, but I realized that when the pan was popping at me earlier, it was bits of the coating that were hitting me! No wonder it hurt! I ended up having to throw away all of the food I had fixed, because even the rice had gotten the black stuff in it somehow.
Indestructible my ass.
Now I'm worried about how much of it I actually ate. It probably wasn't much honestly, but all I can think of is that I've got bits of sharp stuff floating around in my body! I hope nothing gets punctured! :( I'm going to have to go through a rigamarole trying to get the pan replaced now. I thought it was just as easy as sending it back, but apparently not. You have to call them and get their permission to send it back, and THEN they decide if you will be able to get a replacement. Normally I woldn't worry about it, but it was way too expensive to just toss away. It's also been a really good pan up until it tried to kill me.
I guess we'll just see what happens.
I'm currently upset at the ultra-fabulous Le Creuset company and their fine, enamel coated cast iron pans.
About two years ago, I got a Le Creuset skillet for a birthday gift. I had a crush on that brand for a long time, and had hoped that eventually I'd be able to buy a whole set of these kinds of pans because they are supposed to be practically indestructible and last forever. Of course, I quickly realized that buying a whole set of enamel-coated cast iron pans was going to cost WAY too much and take way too long to save up for, so the fact that I had just one made me love it all the more. I've used it constantly, and I'm fairly certain that I never mistreated it in any way, but a month or two ago, I noticed that the inside of the pan had some chips of enamel gone. I was unhappy about this, and had planned to send the pan back to be replaced, but knowing how way leads on to way, I never did it. It wasn't causing me any problems and I was still able to use my pan, so I forgot about doing anything.
Monday night, I was in the process of making dinner. The pan had been heating for a few minutes while I got the porkchops ready, and when I put the first one in, it immediately started popping. That's not too weird, because food will do that when it gets hot, but then it started popping out at me and it hurt. I thought that maybe the olive oil was splattering out on me, but I didn't have that much in the pan to begin with AND the temperature wasn't up that high. So I spent the next little bit trying to keep my porkchops from burning. Normally I'm pretty good at this, but for some reason, things weren't going so hot for me at the time. Anyways, when the food was ready, I noticed that the porkchops were black around the edges. It wasn't bad, but it was enough for me to notice. I was hungry, so I didn't get picky about anything, I just dug in. At first I didn't notice anything, but soon I realized that there was something gritty in my food. At first I thought it was a seed from some blueberries I had eaten earlier that might have been stuck in my teeth, or some kind of spice in the rice I'd added as a side dish, but it got worse. I had eaten almost a whole porkchop before I realized that it was not just gritty, but it felt like I was chewing on sand. I went back into the kitchen and looked in my pan, and realized that the black stuff that had been on my food wasn't because it had been burnt, I had been eating bits of the black enamel coating that had popped off of my pan and stuck to my food. Not only that, but I realized that when the pan was popping at me earlier, it was bits of the coating that were hitting me! No wonder it hurt! I ended up having to throw away all of the food I had fixed, because even the rice had gotten the black stuff in it somehow.
Indestructible my ass.
Now I'm worried about how much of it I actually ate. It probably wasn't much honestly, but all I can think of is that I've got bits of sharp stuff floating around in my body! I hope nothing gets punctured! :( I'm going to have to go through a rigamarole trying to get the pan replaced now. I thought it was just as easy as sending it back, but apparently not. You have to call them and get their permission to send it back, and THEN they decide if you will be able to get a replacement. Normally I woldn't worry about it, but it was way too expensive to just toss away. It's also been a really good pan up until it tried to kill me.
I guess we'll just see what happens.
Tuesday, June 02, 2009
Monday, June 01, 2009
Wednesday, May 27, 2009
Ok, apparently I was wrong on all counts about my candy order from Japan.
Even though I specifically asked that they hold my entire order until everything was in, they sent part of my order early. That is why I have had two conformations from the company. At least it better be the case because the candy I originally wanted to order, the special, delicious candy that had to be special ordered, wasn't in the box that came today!
I will give you some advice. If you ever decide to order candy through the mail, don't order anything gummi or chocolate during warm months. I wasn't thinking about that when I placed my order, so some of my candy was completely melted when it got to me. BOO! I'm still going to eat it, damnit! I'll use a spoon if I have to! I'm not proud!
Of course, I'll be doing my regular candy reviews as soon as I can, but they will have to wait until the melty stuff solidifies again.
Even though I specifically asked that they hold my entire order until everything was in, they sent part of my order early. That is why I have had two conformations from the company. At least it better be the case because the candy I originally wanted to order, the special, delicious candy that had to be special ordered, wasn't in the box that came today!
I will give you some advice. If you ever decide to order candy through the mail, don't order anything gummi or chocolate during warm months. I wasn't thinking about that when I placed my order, so some of my candy was completely melted when it got to me. BOO! I'm still going to eat it, damnit! I'll use a spoon if I have to! I'm not proud!
Of course, I'll be doing my regular candy reviews as soon as I can, but they will have to wait until the melty stuff solidifies again.
RANDOM ACTS OF BLOGGING
1) I hate screws! Yesterday I had some very good intentions of fixing the signs on one of the exhibits on the museum floor. I'd been putting it off for a while, but realized I had to eventually get off the pot if I was ever going to get the thing fixed. I went downstairs and began to remove the screws from the sign frames (there are two that have to be replaced) and on each frame there is one screw that will NOT COME OFF! I stood there, hunched over the barrier, trying to unscrew the darned things, but they would not budge. I thought I was going to be able to get the things apart and upstairs in just a few minutes, but I ended up taking way longer than I needed and having to screw the stupid things back down again until I could scrounge up some tools that will allow me to hold the nut still while I turn the screw. How come Mr. Harris' shop class didn't prepare me for this frustration?! :) Meh, well, I at least learned to arc weld, so it wasn't a complete waste of time!
2) I almost passed out at my desk yesterday! Sometimes if I stretch a certain way, I think I pinch a nerve in my neck or something, because I get that "tingly face" and tunnel vision feeling that means things are about to go dark. Normally if I just sit still for a minute, I'm fine. Yesterday, however, I was dizzy and tingly for a long time after that. When things didn't get better right away, I thought maybe I was having a low blood sugar issue, so I ended up eating several of those embarrassingly-shaped Hannah Montana gummis that I had hidden in my desk, but that didn't work either. It took about two hours for me to feel normal again. I still don't know what was going on, but I hope that doesn't ever happen again! No, I'm not pregnant, so don't ask!
3) Scarlett Johannson, bless your heart. Stop singing. Seriously. I normally would never say something like that to anyone, but I'm trying to help you out.
4) I think I'm going to have a moral dilemma soon, and I need advice. I don't know what's going on at this point, so I'm not sure if I'll actually have the dilemma or not, but this is just in case. It's not serious, so don't get scared. OK, a couple of weeks ago I placed an order for some candy from a company in Japan. Shut up, it is candy you can't find anywhere in the US and even in Japan it has to be specially ordered from some region I've never heard of. I had a jones for it. Anyways, when they ran my credit card the first time, it was declined either because I had forgotten to add "SE" to the end of my billing address, or because it was an unusual transaction. They sent me a message about it, and I told them that I still wanted the order to be processed and asked what I should do to make it happen. I had already gone in and fixed the problem with my address, so I didn't think anything of it when I got another message on May 20th saying that my order had been processed and was being shipped. Me = Glad. A day later I got a message confirming that the box was being shipped and would be shipped to me (hopefully) in 7 to 10 days. Again, Me = Glad. So color me surprised when I got an identical message this morning saying that my order (same order #) is being processed and shipped. I thought maybe something from my original order had to be shipped separately from the first box, but then I remembered that the reason it's been taking so long to have it shipped in the first place is because they were waiting for part of my order to come in before they shipped in the first place. So I went to my account information on their website. In the order history, it shows the steps they take to get the package out of their hands, like, "We have packaged your order" and "We have printed a shipping label and mailed your package." I now have that same series of things entered twice on the same order history. At this point, I've got three different ideas about this: A) I don't know if I've been processed for two different orders, charged twice and am being sent two separate orders of the same things. B) I have been charged only once, but am possibly getting two separate orders of the same things. C) It's possible that the two different order conformations I got is a mistake and for some reason they sent my conformation again for the same package that they supposedly sent last week, or my original order wasn't actually shipped until today and the first set of conformation e-mails were sent by mistake.
Here is my possible dilemma: If "B" is the case and I do get the two packages, but wasn't charged for one of them, do I contact the company and see about sending one of the packages back, or do I keep it because it was not my mistake? On one hand, it's kind of a pain to deal with their customer service because we are 14 hours apart, and it can take up to two days to get any kind of answer from them if you have questions about anything. Even then, you usually get an automatic message of some kind instead of an actual reply. If "C" is the case, I'm afraid if I contact them at this point and tell them to cancel that second order, it's going to somehow screw up my original order, so I don't want to say anything until I know for sure what's going on. On the other hand, I'm not sure I'll feel right keeping something that I didn't pay for. If it wasn't for the huge pain in the butt that comes with shipping a package internationally (and the almost surety that some, if not all, of the candy will ruined by the heat if they are shipped around for too long) it wouldn't even be an issue. However, who doesn't love free candy? I need some people to sit on one shoulder or another and tell me what they think I should do.
1) I hate screws! Yesterday I had some very good intentions of fixing the signs on one of the exhibits on the museum floor. I'd been putting it off for a while, but realized I had to eventually get off the pot if I was ever going to get the thing fixed. I went downstairs and began to remove the screws from the sign frames (there are two that have to be replaced) and on each frame there is one screw that will NOT COME OFF! I stood there, hunched over the barrier, trying to unscrew the darned things, but they would not budge. I thought I was going to be able to get the things apart and upstairs in just a few minutes, but I ended up taking way longer than I needed and having to screw the stupid things back down again until I could scrounge up some tools that will allow me to hold the nut still while I turn the screw. How come Mr. Harris' shop class didn't prepare me for this frustration?! :) Meh, well, I at least learned to arc weld, so it wasn't a complete waste of time!
2) I almost passed out at my desk yesterday! Sometimes if I stretch a certain way, I think I pinch a nerve in my neck or something, because I get that "tingly face" and tunnel vision feeling that means things are about to go dark. Normally if I just sit still for a minute, I'm fine. Yesterday, however, I was dizzy and tingly for a long time after that. When things didn't get better right away, I thought maybe I was having a low blood sugar issue, so I ended up eating several of those embarrassingly-shaped Hannah Montana gummis that I had hidden in my desk, but that didn't work either. It took about two hours for me to feel normal again. I still don't know what was going on, but I hope that doesn't ever happen again! No, I'm not pregnant, so don't ask!
3) Scarlett Johannson, bless your heart. Stop singing. Seriously. I normally would never say something like that to anyone, but I'm trying to help you out.
4) I think I'm going to have a moral dilemma soon, and I need advice. I don't know what's going on at this point, so I'm not sure if I'll actually have the dilemma or not, but this is just in case. It's not serious, so don't get scared. OK, a couple of weeks ago I placed an order for some candy from a company in Japan. Shut up, it is candy you can't find anywhere in the US and even in Japan it has to be specially ordered from some region I've never heard of. I had a jones for it. Anyways, when they ran my credit card the first time, it was declined either because I had forgotten to add "SE" to the end of my billing address, or because it was an unusual transaction. They sent me a message about it, and I told them that I still wanted the order to be processed and asked what I should do to make it happen. I had already gone in and fixed the problem with my address, so I didn't think anything of it when I got another message on May 20th saying that my order had been processed and was being shipped. Me = Glad. A day later I got a message confirming that the box was being shipped and would be shipped to me (hopefully) in 7 to 10 days. Again, Me = Glad. So color me surprised when I got an identical message this morning saying that my order (same order #) is being processed and shipped. I thought maybe something from my original order had to be shipped separately from the first box, but then I remembered that the reason it's been taking so long to have it shipped in the first place is because they were waiting for part of my order to come in before they shipped in the first place. So I went to my account information on their website. In the order history, it shows the steps they take to get the package out of their hands, like, "We have packaged your order" and "We have printed a shipping label and mailed your package." I now have that same series of things entered twice on the same order history. At this point, I've got three different ideas about this: A) I don't know if I've been processed for two different orders, charged twice and am being sent two separate orders of the same things. B) I have been charged only once, but am possibly getting two separate orders of the same things. C) It's possible that the two different order conformations I got is a mistake and for some reason they sent my conformation again for the same package that they supposedly sent last week, or my original order wasn't actually shipped until today and the first set of conformation e-mails were sent by mistake.
Here is my possible dilemma: If "B" is the case and I do get the two packages, but wasn't charged for one of them, do I contact the company and see about sending one of the packages back, or do I keep it because it was not my mistake? On one hand, it's kind of a pain to deal with their customer service because we are 14 hours apart, and it can take up to two days to get any kind of answer from them if you have questions about anything. Even then, you usually get an automatic message of some kind instead of an actual reply. If "C" is the case, I'm afraid if I contact them at this point and tell them to cancel that second order, it's going to somehow screw up my original order, so I don't want to say anything until I know for sure what's going on. On the other hand, I'm not sure I'll feel right keeping something that I didn't pay for. If it wasn't for the huge pain in the butt that comes with shipping a package internationally (and the almost surety that some, if not all, of the candy will ruined by the heat if they are shipped around for too long) it wouldn't even be an issue. However, who doesn't love free candy? I need some people to sit on one shoulder or another and tell me what they think I should do.
Tuesday, May 26, 2009
Oy.
Seriously, I had the hardest time waking up this morning. I think I hit the snooze button 42 times before I had to force myself out of bed. I didn't stay up very late or anything, so it must be that I'm getting old. :( I knew it would happen one of these days.
I was *ahem* given the day off yesterday. I offered to come in, because that whole "getting paid" thing is fun for me, but my boss told me to stay home and have a holiday. I was nice, although not nearly as productive as I had hoped. Well, we did do some laundry, mowed the lawn and planted a tree (which I'm afraid I might have killed) but we spent the rest of the day watching old Dr. Who episodes and taking naps! I've also got a game of the Sims 2 going, and it had taken over my PC for a while. Quite frankly, I enjoyed the laziness of it all!
I think I actually had something to write about this morning, but I can't remember what it was at the moment. I'll be back later when I remember, or rather if I do. Maybe. This getting old thing is rough. :)
Seriously, I had the hardest time waking up this morning. I think I hit the snooze button 42 times before I had to force myself out of bed. I didn't stay up very late or anything, so it must be that I'm getting old. :( I knew it would happen one of these days.
I was *ahem* given the day off yesterday. I offered to come in, because that whole "getting paid" thing is fun for me, but my boss told me to stay home and have a holiday. I was nice, although not nearly as productive as I had hoped. Well, we did do some laundry, mowed the lawn and planted a tree (which I'm afraid I might have killed) but we spent the rest of the day watching old Dr. Who episodes and taking naps! I've also got a game of the Sims 2 going, and it had taken over my PC for a while. Quite frankly, I enjoyed the laziness of it all!
I think I actually had something to write about this morning, but I can't remember what it was at the moment. I'll be back later when I remember, or rather if I do. Maybe. This getting old thing is rough. :)
Wednesday, May 20, 2009
I need a new pair of shoes.
The other day I ordered a dress online, and I didn't realize at the time that I didn't have a suitable pair of shoes to match it! Ok, well, that's not completely the truth. I do have a pair of shoes that look fine with the dress, but they don't want to stay on my feet. I literally have to tie them on, and they aren't the kind of shoes with laces! I actually have to find a ribbon or something to attach around the back of the strap and tie that around my ankle, and I STILL wobble around like a new born giraffe. It's not at all graceful.
You know, I have misshapen, Ewok feet, and trying to find decent shoes that I can wear is a nightmare. It isn't that I can't find shoes that fit exactly, but I need shoes that won't pitch me over sideways or deform my toes for life. A) I can't wear pointy toed shoes. Not only are they ugly, my toes are almost all the same length, so my actual foot stops way before the end of the shoe, and therefore I have all this extra shoe to trip over when I walk. B) I can't wear narrow shoes, because my feet are too wide for them. C) I can't have super skinny heels on my shoes because I have no balance and I have actually snapped the heels off of a pair I really liked just by standing on them. D) I can't wear really high heels, because let's face it, I'm not a dainty woman. That would be like making a hippo walk on it's tip-toes. It might be able to walk a few feet like that, but it isn't something that she'd want to do for any length of time.
So, what I was looking for was a reasonable sized heel, dark brown, relatively comfortable shoe that would not look weird with my dress. That shouldn't be that hard to find, right?
I went to DSW to look for them because I figured that in an entire "warehouse" of shoes, I'd be able to find something easily. I had never been there before, so I was actually dazzled by the number of shoes on display. However, it wasn't long before I realized that most of the shoes weren't for me. In fact, I'm not sure those shoes were really suitable for anyone. I mean, sure, there were sneakers, flip-flops and sandals, but the dress shoes were kind of ridiculous. Seriously, I think shoes can say a lot about a person, but the majority of the shoes I saw either said:
I spank people for a living!
THIS IS SPARTA!!!!!!!!!!!
I didn't want to come across as either type of person, so I was out of luck.
I wondered through the aisles for about 45 minutes, looking and re-looking at different things until I found something that even remotely looked like something I could wear. You know what? They didn't have my size. Not only that, but I couldn't even find an employee to ask if maybe they had some in the back. BONED! So I walked out of a giant shoe store sans shoes.
I'm sure I'll find something at some point, but thus far I'm not impressed by this season's offerings of shoes. If not, I'm just going to have to find color coordinated bungee cords to strap my other shoes onto my feet. Sexy.
The other day I ordered a dress online, and I didn't realize at the time that I didn't have a suitable pair of shoes to match it! Ok, well, that's not completely the truth. I do have a pair of shoes that look fine with the dress, but they don't want to stay on my feet. I literally have to tie them on, and they aren't the kind of shoes with laces! I actually have to find a ribbon or something to attach around the back of the strap and tie that around my ankle, and I STILL wobble around like a new born giraffe. It's not at all graceful.
You know, I have misshapen, Ewok feet, and trying to find decent shoes that I can wear is a nightmare. It isn't that I can't find shoes that fit exactly, but I need shoes that won't pitch me over sideways or deform my toes for life. A) I can't wear pointy toed shoes. Not only are they ugly, my toes are almost all the same length, so my actual foot stops way before the end of the shoe, and therefore I have all this extra shoe to trip over when I walk. B) I can't wear narrow shoes, because my feet are too wide for them. C) I can't have super skinny heels on my shoes because I have no balance and I have actually snapped the heels off of a pair I really liked just by standing on them. D) I can't wear really high heels, because let's face it, I'm not a dainty woman. That would be like making a hippo walk on it's tip-toes. It might be able to walk a few feet like that, but it isn't something that she'd want to do for any length of time.
So, what I was looking for was a reasonable sized heel, dark brown, relatively comfortable shoe that would not look weird with my dress. That shouldn't be that hard to find, right?
I went to DSW to look for them because I figured that in an entire "warehouse" of shoes, I'd be able to find something easily. I had never been there before, so I was actually dazzled by the number of shoes on display. However, it wasn't long before I realized that most of the shoes weren't for me. In fact, I'm not sure those shoes were really suitable for anyone. I mean, sure, there were sneakers, flip-flops and sandals, but the dress shoes were kind of ridiculous. Seriously, I think shoes can say a lot about a person, but the majority of the shoes I saw either said:
I spank people for a living!or
THIS IS SPARTA!!!!!!!!!!!I didn't want to come across as either type of person, so I was out of luck.
I wondered through the aisles for about 45 minutes, looking and re-looking at different things until I found something that even remotely looked like something I could wear. You know what? They didn't have my size. Not only that, but I couldn't even find an employee to ask if maybe they had some in the back. BONED! So I walked out of a giant shoe store sans shoes.
I'm sure I'll find something at some point, but thus far I'm not impressed by this season's offerings of shoes. If not, I'm just going to have to find color coordinated bungee cords to strap my other shoes onto my feet. Sexy.
Monday, May 18, 2009
MONDAY'S RANDOM ACTS OF BLOGGING
Note: I know that there have been a lot of the "Random Acts" lately, but my life has become less dynamic of late. I'm not just being lazy! :)
1) It's official, I'm socially retarded. Last night we had 2 Mormon guys visit our church during the evening service. I'm not exactly sure why they were there, but since I saw them give one of their Temple cards to an elderly member of our church, I doubt they were there to be converted. However, I digress. I was feeling rather welcoming, so during our shaking-hands-time, I walked over to tell them hello. The first guy shook my hand and said "How's it going?" Instead of saying "fine" or "good" I just put on my big smile and said, "HI!" I don't know why my brain decided to lock up then, but I didn't have time to say anything other than that before I got to the other guy to shake his hand. I'm sure they didn't realize I felt like an idiot, but I was embarrassed. After church, I just happened to be standing near them before I walked out of the sanctuary, and I decided to make up for my earlier gaffe. I walked over and said, "I'm really glad you could be here." and one of the guys shook my hand and said thank you. Then I said "I hope you have a good weeken... Oh, wait, I almost said weekend, but that's over. Have a good week, I mean." They just smiled and I took that opportunity to walk away. My guess is that as I walked away they were wondering why someone let the special-needs chick off of her harness. Ugh. I'm never speaking to strangers again.
2) I also embarrassed myself this morning at the gas station. When I pulled up to the pump, I realized that I had somehow parked on the wrong side of where my gas tank is. I never do that anymore. Seriously, I've had the car forever, and I think I really only had that problem when I first got the car a couple of years ago! So I got back in and pulled over to another tank, and when I got out, I was STILL parked with the wrong side of the car facing the pump. In a fit of frustration, I jumped up and down and let out a string of what I can only describe as Yosemite Sam type mumblings, and then I looked up to see a man peering at me over the pump. "Park on the wrong side?" he says. I babbled something and jumped into the car again to finally get to a pump on the right side of my car. This time I made it. So, not only did I embarrass myself in front of a random stranger, I also parked at a pump on the wrong side of my car, not once but twice. This doesn't bode well for the rest of my Monday!
3) I went to see "Star Trek" with Kenny and Lauren on Friday night! We had a great time. Well, at least I did, anyways. They are both much too polite to say they didn't have fun, so I'm going to speak for us all and assume that we did! :) Kenny and I have gone together to see all of the Star Trek movies that have come out since we met (except for Nemesis, but it sucked so neither of us count it) so we were carrying on with our tradition. Lauren had never been with us before, so she got to experience the sheer power of our combined dorkatude when we see a Trek movie together. The movie was much easier to see on a regular screen, and I didn't feel like vomiting this time due to the motion of the ships in the battle scenes. Good times!
More later. Maybe.
Note: I know that there have been a lot of the "Random Acts" lately, but my life has become less dynamic of late. I'm not just being lazy! :)
1) It's official, I'm socially retarded. Last night we had 2 Mormon guys visit our church during the evening service. I'm not exactly sure why they were there, but since I saw them give one of their Temple cards to an elderly member of our church, I doubt they were there to be converted. However, I digress. I was feeling rather welcoming, so during our shaking-hands-time, I walked over to tell them hello. The first guy shook my hand and said "How's it going?" Instead of saying "fine" or "good" I just put on my big smile and said, "HI!" I don't know why my brain decided to lock up then, but I didn't have time to say anything other than that before I got to the other guy to shake his hand. I'm sure they didn't realize I felt like an idiot, but I was embarrassed. After church, I just happened to be standing near them before I walked out of the sanctuary, and I decided to make up for my earlier gaffe. I walked over and said, "I'm really glad you could be here." and one of the guys shook my hand and said thank you. Then I said "I hope you have a good weeken... Oh, wait, I almost said weekend, but that's over. Have a good week, I mean." They just smiled and I took that opportunity to walk away. My guess is that as I walked away they were wondering why someone let the special-needs chick off of her harness. Ugh. I'm never speaking to strangers again.
2) I also embarrassed myself this morning at the gas station. When I pulled up to the pump, I realized that I had somehow parked on the wrong side of where my gas tank is. I never do that anymore. Seriously, I've had the car forever, and I think I really only had that problem when I first got the car a couple of years ago! So I got back in and pulled over to another tank, and when I got out, I was STILL parked with the wrong side of the car facing the pump. In a fit of frustration, I jumped up and down and let out a string of what I can only describe as Yosemite Sam type mumblings, and then I looked up to see a man peering at me over the pump. "Park on the wrong side?" he says. I babbled something and jumped into the car again to finally get to a pump on the right side of my car. This time I made it. So, not only did I embarrass myself in front of a random stranger, I also parked at a pump on the wrong side of my car, not once but twice. This doesn't bode well for the rest of my Monday!
3) I went to see "Star Trek" with Kenny and Lauren on Friday night! We had a great time. Well, at least I did, anyways. They are both much too polite to say they didn't have fun, so I'm going to speak for us all and assume that we did! :) Kenny and I have gone together to see all of the Star Trek movies that have come out since we met (except for Nemesis, but it sucked so neither of us count it) so we were carrying on with our tradition. Lauren had never been with us before, so she got to experience the sheer power of our combined dorkatude when we see a Trek movie together. The movie was much easier to see on a regular screen, and I didn't feel like vomiting this time due to the motion of the ships in the battle scenes. Good times!
More later. Maybe.
Friday, May 15, 2009
visited 22 states (44%)
Create your own visited map of The United States or website vertaling duits?
...and miles to go before I sleep.
Tuesday, May 12, 2009
CHARMING
Prologue: I wore my old charm bracelet on Sunday for the first time in many years. I don't know if I've even worn it since I've been married, which may be why Steve asked me about one of my charms. It reminded me of this story.
When I was in the 10th grade, I was voted "Class Favorite" and also voted in as a class officer (I don't remember which one, though.) These were mainly honorary titles that didn't matter very much except that you got your picture in the yearbook on the opening page for your grade section. At the time, I was thrilled, of course, because who wouldn't want to be everyone's favorite?! I was also kind of confused. Seriously, normally I wasn't the kind of person to have been voted anything, except maybe for class weirdo. I'm not kidding. Go ask my classmates, I'll wait...
*waits patiently*
See? Told ya.
Anyways, later that year for my birthday or Christmas, my mom got me two charms for my charm bracelet that had those two uh...achievements (probably not the best word, but you get what I'm trying to say) engraved on them. I was tickled over it all, and I wore them proudly, as only an adolescent and rather naive girl could do. It's not that I flaunted the fact that I was apparently secretly loved by my classmates, but I didn't mind being reminded of that fact myself. Shut up! :)
I didn't wear my bracelet often, because I'm clumsy and I break things. Since the bracelet originally belonged to my mother when she was a teenager, I didn't want to destroy it, so I usually only wore it on special occasions. When I became a senior and began to dress up more often (can't remember why that was) the bracelet became something I wore more often.
One day while I was wearing it, and talking to one of my classmates, he took notice of the charms and we started talking about them. When we got to those two charms, I happened to mention that I had no idea how or why I was voted as a class favorite or class officer, because I didn't become "popular" and I had even heard someone once say "how did SHE get voted as THAT?" (Yeah, nice, right?) The guy I was talking to kind of looked embarrassed and admitted to me that in the 10th grade he had a crush on me, and since he was asked to help count votes he fixed the numbers so that I came out the winner.
Oof. Yeah, humble pie is incredibly bitter. :)
I have to admit that it was an incredibly sweet gesture, but it would have been nicer never to have known that the whole thing wasn't real. I mean, I appreciated his honesty, but I was left feeling kind of dumb. Even now I feel slightly guilty that, even though in reality they were stupid, meaningless titles to hold, that the person who really deserved it got cheated. For me it was an unexpected surprise, for some of those other girls it was probably way more important.
So there it is the story of the mysterious, discordant charms on my bracelet, and my one shining moment of "popularity!"
Prologue: I wore my old charm bracelet on Sunday for the first time in many years. I don't know if I've even worn it since I've been married, which may be why Steve asked me about one of my charms. It reminded me of this story.
When I was in the 10th grade, I was voted "Class Favorite" and also voted in as a class officer (I don't remember which one, though.) These were mainly honorary titles that didn't matter very much except that you got your picture in the yearbook on the opening page for your grade section. At the time, I was thrilled, of course, because who wouldn't want to be everyone's favorite?! I was also kind of confused. Seriously, normally I wasn't the kind of person to have been voted anything, except maybe for class weirdo. I'm not kidding. Go ask my classmates, I'll wait...
*waits patiently*
See? Told ya.
Anyways, later that year for my birthday or Christmas, my mom got me two charms for my charm bracelet that had those two uh...achievements (probably not the best word, but you get what I'm trying to say) engraved on them. I was tickled over it all, and I wore them proudly, as only an adolescent and rather naive girl could do. It's not that I flaunted the fact that I was apparently secretly loved by my classmates, but I didn't mind being reminded of that fact myself. Shut up! :)
I didn't wear my bracelet often, because I'm clumsy and I break things. Since the bracelet originally belonged to my mother when she was a teenager, I didn't want to destroy it, so I usually only wore it on special occasions. When I became a senior and began to dress up more often (can't remember why that was) the bracelet became something I wore more often.
One day while I was wearing it, and talking to one of my classmates, he took notice of the charms and we started talking about them. When we got to those two charms, I happened to mention that I had no idea how or why I was voted as a class favorite or class officer, because I didn't become "popular" and I had even heard someone once say "how did SHE get voted as THAT?" (Yeah, nice, right?) The guy I was talking to kind of looked embarrassed and admitted to me that in the 10th grade he had a crush on me, and since he was asked to help count votes he fixed the numbers so that I came out the winner.
Oof. Yeah, humble pie is incredibly bitter. :)
I have to admit that it was an incredibly sweet gesture, but it would have been nicer never to have known that the whole thing wasn't real. I mean, I appreciated his honesty, but I was left feeling kind of dumb. Even now I feel slightly guilty that, even though in reality they were stupid, meaningless titles to hold, that the person who really deserved it got cheated. For me it was an unexpected surprise, for some of those other girls it was probably way more important.
So there it is the story of the mysterious, discordant charms on my bracelet, and my one shining moment of "popularity!"
Monday, May 11, 2009
EVEN MORE RANDOM ACTS OF BLOGGING
1) Mother's day went well this year. I had bought her a gift that I realized too late would be hard for Mom to "get", so as a secondary gift we got her a really beautiful purple-blue hydrangea plant. Well, it was beautiful when we bought it, it was beautiful on Saturday, however, on Sunday it was all floopy. Seriously, I can't even babysit a plant for two days without harming it. I hope she's able to make it unfloopy! This was also the first time we had seen her new house since it was all finished, and it was really nice! I liked it very much, but it hasn't reached the "homey" stage yet. It's a lot smaller than the other house, but I'm sure she'll be glad not to have to clean as much.
2) I had to go have blood drawn this morning for a doctor's appointment later this month. That was lots and lots of fun, let me tell you. It wasn't that the lab visit was complicated or anything, but I hate being pierced with needles. When the nurse stuck me with the needle, it felt like it went directly into my spinal cord. How can a needle that was placed in my inner elbow reach all the way to my spine? I don't know, but that nurse managed to do it. Yipes. She also wrapped my arm so tight that it cut circulation off to my hand. When I managed to rip the bandage off (quite a chore) it left a hickey-looking thing on the inside of my arm. Very attractive! :)
3) My boss is still rearranging my office, and I still don't know why. He said it was so that I would have more room to manuver, but it's my belief that he is just a bit OCD or something. Granted, my office looks nicer, but it's a pain not to know where some of my stuff is. It's like someone coming into your bedroom and cleaning it for you. I mean, it's nice that someone else took the time to do it, but then you realize they've thrown something important away, or broken your expensive bottle of perfume and then it's not so nice. Hopefully his fever has passed for a bit.
1) Mother's day went well this year. I had bought her a gift that I realized too late would be hard for Mom to "get", so as a secondary gift we got her a really beautiful purple-blue hydrangea plant. Well, it was beautiful when we bought it, it was beautiful on Saturday, however, on Sunday it was all floopy. Seriously, I can't even babysit a plant for two days without harming it. I hope she's able to make it unfloopy! This was also the first time we had seen her new house since it was all finished, and it was really nice! I liked it very much, but it hasn't reached the "homey" stage yet. It's a lot smaller than the other house, but I'm sure she'll be glad not to have to clean as much.
2) I had to go have blood drawn this morning for a doctor's appointment later this month. That was lots and lots of fun, let me tell you. It wasn't that the lab visit was complicated or anything, but I hate being pierced with needles. When the nurse stuck me with the needle, it felt like it went directly into my spinal cord. How can a needle that was placed in my inner elbow reach all the way to my spine? I don't know, but that nurse managed to do it. Yipes. She also wrapped my arm so tight that it cut circulation off to my hand. When I managed to rip the bandage off (quite a chore) it left a hickey-looking thing on the inside of my arm. Very attractive! :)
3) My boss is still rearranging my office, and I still don't know why. He said it was so that I would have more room to manuver, but it's my belief that he is just a bit OCD or something. Granted, my office looks nicer, but it's a pain not to know where some of my stuff is. It's like someone coming into your bedroom and cleaning it for you. I mean, it's nice that someone else took the time to do it, but then you realize they've thrown something important away, or broken your expensive bottle of perfume and then it's not so nice. Hopefully his fever has passed for a bit.
Friday, May 08, 2009
Operation Low Maintenance isn't going so well for me as of yet. :)
You know I'm not a dainty person. I mean, I wish I was, but God had other plans for me in that department. However, ever since I was in the 6th grade and my parents let me start wearing makeup, I've always liked getting up in the morning and getting ready to go places. I know that sounds disgustingly girly, but it's just how I roll.
Anyways, I've been trying to streamline my getting-ready situation lately because A) who do I really have to impress up here and B) Steve and I carpool almost every day, and it sucks for him when I'm running behind. Since I've gotten my new haircut, I've realized I don't have to fuss with it as much as I did my longer hair. In fact, yesterday I didn't even blow dry it! It looked fine without the extra work! I thought that things would be much easier! By the time my hair dried completely, I realized something bad about my hair. My father had curly hair growing up, and even though I inherited stick-straight Native American hair from his side of the family, I also inherited one patch of hair that curls straight outward in what I've come to regard as a "bird." When my hair is long, no problem. However, now that it's much shorter, if I don't blow-dry or curl the bird into submission, it looks like my hair is trying to take off. *SIGH*
So, until I can figure out how to tame the bird on my head, I'm not going to be as streamlined as I had hoped. Oh well...I'll just have to muddle through being girly. :)
You know I'm not a dainty person. I mean, I wish I was, but God had other plans for me in that department. However, ever since I was in the 6th grade and my parents let me start wearing makeup, I've always liked getting up in the morning and getting ready to go places. I know that sounds disgustingly girly, but it's just how I roll.
Anyways, I've been trying to streamline my getting-ready situation lately because A) who do I really have to impress up here and B) Steve and I carpool almost every day, and it sucks for him when I'm running behind. Since I've gotten my new haircut, I've realized I don't have to fuss with it as much as I did my longer hair. In fact, yesterday I didn't even blow dry it! It looked fine without the extra work! I thought that things would be much easier! By the time my hair dried completely, I realized something bad about my hair. My father had curly hair growing up, and even though I inherited stick-straight Native American hair from his side of the family, I also inherited one patch of hair that curls straight outward in what I've come to regard as a "bird." When my hair is long, no problem. However, now that it's much shorter, if I don't blow-dry or curl the bird into submission, it looks like my hair is trying to take off. *SIGH*
So, until I can figure out how to tame the bird on my head, I'm not going to be as streamlined as I had hoped. Oh well...I'll just have to muddle through being girly. :)
Thursday, May 07, 2009
Wednesday, May 06, 2009
MORE RANDOM ACTS OF BLOGGING
1) I hate oysters. I hate them. They taste bad and they feel weird when your chewing them. If you ever see me out someplace, thoroughly enjoying a big platter of oysters, it's probably a pod person and you should kill it with fire!
2) I got invited to my old high school's annual FFA banquet! It'll be great to see Mr. and Mrs. Harris again. I haven't seen them in about 3 years or more. I believe he'll be retiring next year, so I'm going to try and make it out there. I just hope that I'm not expected to wear my official dress. I dare say it would be a tight squeeze! It's a shame, of course, because I look good in National Blue corduroy! Don't laugh, you know I do! :)
3) This morning I had Greek yogurt and honey for breakfast, and it was really delicious! I was a little scared I'd hate it and wind up hungry all morning, but happily I was wrong. If you like yogurt, I advise you to try it Greek style. It's far better than any other kind I've ever had!
4) I wish I was at the beach right now. I'd settle for being there even if I couldn't swim or if it were rainy. I need a change of scenery! Yeah, I know, I just went to Texas, but to be fair...every place in the south looks pretty much the same!
5) I'm currently listening to a Jodi Picoult (?) book called "19 Minutes" and it's very good. It's about a Columbine style school shooting and the events that led to it as well as the aftermath. I'm not that far into it yet, but it's really a good book. If you like to read fiction, I recommend this one.
6) Oh, and speaking of reading fiction! If you know me well at all, you know my favorite author is Stephen King. Granted, his more recent books haven't been as scary as they once were, but I'm giving the guy a pass on that because he almost died. I'm pretty sure being run over by a van is a lot scarier than a sewer monster! Anyways, I think that I have finally found the creepiest part of any book he has ever written! I can't really explain it here, because I'd basically have to write it word for word, but if you ever pick up "Pet Semetary," read the part where the old neighbor, Mr. Crandall, tells about the soldier that was killed in action and buried in the cursed ground beyond the pet cemetery. I've read almost every book by King, and that one particular story is the one that STILL scares me every time!
1) I hate oysters. I hate them. They taste bad and they feel weird when your chewing them. If you ever see me out someplace, thoroughly enjoying a big platter of oysters, it's probably a pod person and you should kill it with fire!
2) I got invited to my old high school's annual FFA banquet! It'll be great to see Mr. and Mrs. Harris again. I haven't seen them in about 3 years or more. I believe he'll be retiring next year, so I'm going to try and make it out there. I just hope that I'm not expected to wear my official dress. I dare say it would be a tight squeeze! It's a shame, of course, because I look good in National Blue corduroy! Don't laugh, you know I do! :)
3) This morning I had Greek yogurt and honey for breakfast, and it was really delicious! I was a little scared I'd hate it and wind up hungry all morning, but happily I was wrong. If you like yogurt, I advise you to try it Greek style. It's far better than any other kind I've ever had!
4) I wish I was at the beach right now. I'd settle for being there even if I couldn't swim or if it were rainy. I need a change of scenery! Yeah, I know, I just went to Texas, but to be fair...every place in the south looks pretty much the same!
5) I'm currently listening to a Jodi Picoult (?) book called "19 Minutes" and it's very good. It's about a Columbine style school shooting and the events that led to it as well as the aftermath. I'm not that far into it yet, but it's really a good book. If you like to read fiction, I recommend this one.
6) Oh, and speaking of reading fiction! If you know me well at all, you know my favorite author is Stephen King. Granted, his more recent books haven't been as scary as they once were, but I'm giving the guy a pass on that because he almost died. I'm pretty sure being run over by a van is a lot scarier than a sewer monster! Anyways, I think that I have finally found the creepiest part of any book he has ever written! I can't really explain it here, because I'd basically have to write it word for word, but if you ever pick up "Pet Semetary," read the part where the old neighbor, Mr. Crandall, tells about the soldier that was killed in action and buried in the cursed ground beyond the pet cemetery. I've read almost every book by King, and that one particular story is the one that STILL scares me every time!
Monday, May 04, 2009
RANDOM ACTS OF BLOGGING
1) I got to see the test run of Star Trek last night! I really, really liked it! It wasn't what I was expecting, and I'm fairly sure that a lot of the more serious Trek fans will commit seppuku when they see it, but if you can see it for what it is (a reboot of the original story) I think you'd enjoy it! I do have one word of advice, if you are going to see it in IMAX, specifically an IMAX Dome, the first 10 minutes or so are kind of vomitus, so be careful. There is a lot of J.J. Abrams trademark "shaky-cam" shots. After the initial battle scene, it gets easier to focus. It was also funny in parts, and the writing was very clever. It was really good! Two thumbs up! I'll definately see it again!
2) It rained in our offices again last night, but luckily (or unluckily if you work on the other end of the hall from me) the water stayed out of my office. It DID leak on the other side of my wall and also in my boss' office, but my supplies live to fight another day! They have a carpet dryer in front of my office door, and it's driving me insane because it's so loud. Imagine sitting behind an airplane engine and trying to work!
3) Speaking of rain, we got over 5 inches this weekend and I think our dogs are mildewed. Every time we'd let them out for even a little while, the rain would start back up again. I don't think they've been properly dry since last Thursday, even after being in the house a lot during the weekend. Butler's fur looked like Rod Stewart's hair this morning because it was all spiked up. Bear has shorter fur, so he only had spikes on his head. Poor boys. I'm hoping the rain will hold off for a while today so that they can dry off a bit and pee in peace!
4) Speaking of hair! I got my hair chopped off yesterday. I've never tried Mastercuts (shut up, they're cheap!) on a Sunday, and I don't think I'll try it again. It wasn't a terrible wait, but it was much longer than I'm used to. The poor girl who cut my hair had a migraine, and she was barely able to stand. I was scared when she told me about her headache, because I know from experience that a migraine will freak your stuff up. I kept imagining her vision blurring and me walking out with a mohawk or something (I pity the fool!). Surprisingly, my hair turned out good, or so people are telling me. It's possible they are just being nice, I guess. It's shorter than I thought it would be, but that's my own fault for the hairstyle I picked out. It's called an angled bob and the back is shorter than the front. I've had a very similar haircut before, but this one is much shorter. It feels weird in the back. Also, when I tuck the longer front bits behind my ears, I look even more like Velma from Scooby Doo than usual. Jinkies, Y'all! I'm hoping I get used to it in the next few days.
5) Mom and Grant moved into their new house this past weekend. I'm excited about seeing it with carpet, furniture and light fixtures. They picked a really lovely place to build it. I'm going to miss visiting the house I grew up in, though. Oh well. We've all got to move on at some point, right? I was just hoping I'd be in my 80's before that was necessary! :)
1) I got to see the test run of Star Trek last night! I really, really liked it! It wasn't what I was expecting, and I'm fairly sure that a lot of the more serious Trek fans will commit seppuku when they see it, but if you can see it for what it is (a reboot of the original story) I think you'd enjoy it! I do have one word of advice, if you are going to see it in IMAX, specifically an IMAX Dome, the first 10 minutes or so are kind of vomitus, so be careful. There is a lot of J.J. Abrams trademark "shaky-cam" shots. After the initial battle scene, it gets easier to focus. It was also funny in parts, and the writing was very clever. It was really good! Two thumbs up! I'll definately see it again!
2) It rained in our offices again last night, but luckily (or unluckily if you work on the other end of the hall from me) the water stayed out of my office. It DID leak on the other side of my wall and also in my boss' office, but my supplies live to fight another day! They have a carpet dryer in front of my office door, and it's driving me insane because it's so loud. Imagine sitting behind an airplane engine and trying to work!
3) Speaking of rain, we got over 5 inches this weekend and I think our dogs are mildewed. Every time we'd let them out for even a little while, the rain would start back up again. I don't think they've been properly dry since last Thursday, even after being in the house a lot during the weekend. Butler's fur looked like Rod Stewart's hair this morning because it was all spiked up. Bear has shorter fur, so he only had spikes on his head. Poor boys. I'm hoping the rain will hold off for a while today so that they can dry off a bit and pee in peace!
4) Speaking of hair! I got my hair chopped off yesterday. I've never tried Mastercuts (shut up, they're cheap!) on a Sunday, and I don't think I'll try it again. It wasn't a terrible wait, but it was much longer than I'm used to. The poor girl who cut my hair had a migraine, and she was barely able to stand. I was scared when she told me about her headache, because I know from experience that a migraine will freak your stuff up. I kept imagining her vision blurring and me walking out with a mohawk or something (I pity the fool!). Surprisingly, my hair turned out good, or so people are telling me. It's possible they are just being nice, I guess. It's shorter than I thought it would be, but that's my own fault for the hairstyle I picked out. It's called an angled bob and the back is shorter than the front. I've had a very similar haircut before, but this one is much shorter. It feels weird in the back. Also, when I tuck the longer front bits behind my ears, I look even more like Velma from Scooby Doo than usual. Jinkies, Y'all! I'm hoping I get used to it in the next few days.
5) Mom and Grant moved into their new house this past weekend. I'm excited about seeing it with carpet, furniture and light fixtures. They picked a really lovely place to build it. I'm going to miss visiting the house I grew up in, though. Oh well. We've all got to move on at some point, right? I was just hoping I'd be in my 80's before that was necessary! :)
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