Life Changes

I have left my beloved Colorado for the new and different North Carolina.  Jake is stationed here and needless to say I wasn't overly pleased about it in the beginning.  We left Colorado, by far the best state, on July 18th and made it here on the 21st.  That was a long three day drive behind Jake in the UHaul with truck and motorcycle in tow.  Not nearly the fun road trip I envisioned but when you have all of your belongings in a truck and animals in the car you can't really stop and smell the roses if you know what I mean.  We just pushed on through.

Luckily we were smart in that we closed on our house the day we got here.  Not so lucky in that in North Carolina you don't get your keys right away, which is the stupidest thing in the world if you ask me.  We were not pleased.  But it all ended well.  We have a house that is perfect for us.  Good kitchen, good yard, three bedrooms.  Unpacking and getting everything just so was my mission.  A mission that I completed as soon as I could.  Completely done.  Well, mostly done.  The garage is the one we have to tackle next.  So help me I will get rid of all the boxes.  They bother me.  No more boxes for three years when we have to pack up and do this whole thing again.

Did have a job.  Hated the job.  Quit the job.  Need to find a new job.  *sigh*  That front sucks.

Jake needs knee surgery.  Hopefully they invent cyborg parts before he fully falls apart.  I love him so and would like to keep him for as long as I can.  He got the go ahead to get that done as soon as possible so we're waiting for the doctor to call back so we can get the surgery scheduled.

North Carolina isn't really so bad.  Up in the mountains... "mountains" was very nice.  We spent our anniversary up there enjoying the cooler weather without humidity.  If there is one thing I would completely get rid of it would be humidity.  It's torture.  Humidity and mosquitoes.  Wipe those off the map please.  My first act when I become a God.  The beach was fun and I really really need to go back there.  So basically, I like North Carolina except for Fayetteville.  Fayetteville is the Pueblo of North Carolina, which is a reference that people from Colorado will get.  Basically it sucks here.  Not a great town.  But if we get out of town, it's not so bad.

We got dirt bikes.  I finally get to learn how to ride and hopefully I won't kill myself in the process.  Or give Jake a heart attack.  We got brave and took the bikes to the mountains and attempted to ride.  Maybe bit a little more off than I could chew seeing as it was my third time on the bike.  I can't wait to get good enough to fly up the mountain.  It will be fun to ride with my hubby and get his friends out with us.  I look forward to it.

I've been having some fun doing prompts with Kathleen.  It feels great to open up that door again and write.  I've been stifling that side of me and it needs to get out more.  Creativity is a good thing.

Speaking of creativity, I'm having fun with clay too.  I make the gosh darndest cutest things.  I am on a Pokemon kick to sell to the other kiddies downtown eventually.

Well, love to all!

Musings

Things are coming together for the wedding.  I have an appointment for cake tasting on Thursday and picking invitations today.  I am going with the lavender theme since that was the first thing I picked out for my wedding.  Next is just the small touches that I am so interested in.  Excited about the whole thing now.  I always wanted a wedding but I wasn't always sure that I actually wanted to get married.  Well, I guess your outlook on life changes when you find that person that you can see sharing everything with.  I'm so excited about everything.  Can't wait to see what changes come in the next year and a half.

I don't know if I ever posted but I recently changed jobs.  Things kind of blue up at WNW but I am SO SO SO glad to be out of there.  Blessings happen in all different kind of ways.  I just don't do well when I feel people are taking advantage of me or treating me badly.  Fault and a strength.  I don't put up with it well so I am willing to sacrifice things to get away from it.  But now I have a job that I really love.  It makes such a difference to work with a different quality of people.  Professional people handle themselves differently and that is such a load off.  I hate petty, spineless people and I'm glad to be away from them.  And more than anything I am SO THANKFUL to be away from retail.  I don't like people enough to work in retail anymore.  It sucks.  It's a draining and horrible feeling when people walk all over you just because they can and you have to smile and be nice.  Hopefully never again.  I work at a vet's office now and I love it.  I thought about doing vet tech but I am glad now that I didn't do that.  I wouldn't want to spend all that money and time in school doing something it turns out I don't think I would like that much.  I love dogs but bleh.  I am happy to be up front doing more organizational stuff.  I always wanted to be a veterinarian as a child but that so is no for me.  Maybe with the move coming up in a year I will be able to focus on my loves, writing and animals.

I have a hard time sorting out my priorities.  Anyone who knows me, knows that I am a bit of a workaholic and in the past put everything I had in the world into it.  It has been a difficult transition away from that and thinking more about my social side of life and doing things outside of a work environment.  I struggle with feeling like I am letting people down and I still do.  But I am starting to understand that it is okay for me to have my limitations and it is not my responsibility to try to keep up with people who don't enforce the same limitations.  It does not mean that I am lazy or letting people down.  It simply means that I have to live my life in a way that I can maintain long term.  That is a hard learning curve for me.  I feel like I have been making so many changes in the last couple of years that not everyone understands.  I am just trying to find my way through life just like everyone else.  Maybe when Jake and I are facing the future together, the stress will ease on me.

Move forward in life.  That's all you can do.  If you're not happy, move forward and change it.  That's what I've been striving to do and that's what I will continue to do.  I don't understand how else to do it and I don't understand people who don't do it.

That destruction thing

You know, human beings are strange creatures.  We crave attention and companionship which lead us to form and put up with all sorts of societies.  We love each other and express friendship and relationships in one breath then turn around and systematically destroy the ties we've spent so much time cultivating.  We leave destruction, hurt and anger in our wakes at the same time we feed the fire of our own hurt and anger.  It turns into a vicious cycle of bitterness and self loathing.  Yet we do it over and over again all over the world.  It's amazing we obey laws when they tell us not to steal or murder.  Sometimes it's amazing the human race manages to continue without snuffing ourselves out.

I've spend the last 24 hours witnessing such a destructive act between two people I both care for and respect.  Things were said that were both unfair and cruel.  A relationship, a multi-layered relationship, went up in smoke for no good reason.  I wish I could have headed it off.

First, I was reminding myself that people grieve in their own ways.  Sometimes that means lashing out.
Second, I was reminding myself of my own advice of "if you can't say anything nice, don't say anything at all."
Third, I was trying to stay on top of all the shit flying around while being respectful to both parties.
Fourth, I was shocked by the mushroom cloud of the explosion and didn't know what to do next.

Fifth... deal with the fallout.

Hopefully the core group of us that have managed to keep ourselves mostly clean from the shit flying around can come together and form a stronger group.  Maybe we'll be stronger after we lick our wounds and move on.  Those of us that can keep a clear mind and head above the storm clouds can do our best to pick up the pieces and find a new way for them to fit together.

It sucks though.  I wish everyone could have taken a couple deep breaths, counted to ten, dealt with their hurt and anger in a mature way then sat down in a couple of days to work everything out and come to an understanding.  But that frisky human desire to destroy got in the way.

Damnit.

Oops forgot to post this

This was a post that didn't actually get published.  A while back Jake helped me pick up my new bed.  I love it:

So you date a guy with a truck so that he can help you pick up your new bed.  Yes, I finally got a queen from my parents, switching it out for my full.  Finally, a bed big enough for myself and both my boys.  It isn't always easy to sleep when you can't move because you're squished by a dog and a cat.

I really need to stop talking about my bed though because I'm super tired.  Don't know why but I just feel beat.  Didn't sleep very well last night so that might be it.

Exercising!

I'm spending this Sunday mostly at work.  I went for a run this morning and it kind of hurt but I managed 3.52 miles.  Ran from my house almost all the way down to Uintah St.  I am still really loving this Zombie app.  It does a good job easing you into it and making sure you're not running for too long without acknowledgement.  This week I was doing a regiment of 5 minute walk, 5 minute run, 1 minute run/1 minute walk/10 knee lifts (repeating those walking and running drills 5 times), 8 minute run, 2 minute stretching and then another 8 minute run.  For some reason today I had a stitch in my side but I worked on my breathing and ran through it.  I'm pretty proud of myself.  I was going to take today off of running but yesterday Kathleen and I went out to run and there was a 10k going on using our trail.  So I skipped yesterday and ran today instead.

Tomorrow I get to rest then I start my next running regiment.  I will be doing 5 minutes walking, 5 minutes running, 10 knee lifts/1 minute slow walk/1 minute fast walk (repeat 5 times), 1 minute walk/ 30 second run (repeat 5 times), and 15 minute run.  That's going to be fun.  I hope the story continues to be good.

I bullied Kathleen into running too because my goal is to hike a 14er.  I know she would love hiking a mountain so I bullied her into getting into shape so she can do it with me.  We'll see.  If she decides she doesn't want to then I'll be hiking this mountain alone.  I guess I can bully Geoff into hiking with me if worst comes to worst.

Went out and saw RIPD last night and it was actually pretty good.  I thought maybe it would be too much like a Men In Black throwback but it was cute on its own.  Ryan Renolds is a good looking guy let me tell you.  Then we went out for ice cream at iTopit.  It has been a while since I've been there.  That place always makes me feel like a child again, happily clutching my bowl and dazzled by all the toppings.  Good times.  

You know what sucks about Sunday?  I don't have it off.  I really should get dressed and get ready for work.  Blah.  Don't want to work at the location I am at today.  It's so whiny up there.  Oh well.  It's a paycheck right?  I should be grateful for the work.  That's what I need to keep telling myself.

Put in the effort

There's no excuse not to be happy in life.  If you want a change, make a change.  If you want to be a different person, then make strides to be a different person.  None of us knows truly what we want 100% of the time nor how to get from point A to point B without tripping a couple of times.

What really pisses me off is when people won't get out of their own way and do the work to be the change they want to see.  Quit bitching and griping until you actually try to do something.  If you're not willing to do something yourself then you can't really expect someone else to do it for you.  Or listen to you complain about how things aren't changing.

And it's not like you have to change who you are or completely take a different path overnight.  Do something small.  I just, arg.  It's been something I've wanted to say for a long time.

I try to live up to that as much as possible in my own life.  I don't expect handouts.  I don't expect people to put up with me if I'm not doing something for myself.  I do things my own way.  Maybe that's not always the best way and maybe that doesn't mesh well with others all the time but that's the only way I know how to do things.

I'm making an effort in my life.  Maybe not the way you would but it's the way I am.

I don't want to do this!

Unpacking is such a bitch.  I'm usually pretty good and fast at it but this time around I am dragging my feet.  I think it's because I have Best Friends hanging over my head.  I know I am going to unpack this and get it just the way I want then I'm going to have to pack it all back up and move again.  I am just so sick of moving.  I haven't had a solid foundation of a home in a long time.  It is so frustrating.  I get easily overwhelmed and then stop unpacking.

I've had people ask me why I'm bothering in the first place.  Obviously those people have not spend a prolonged period of time living with clutter and boxes everywhere.  I can tell you that living out of random boxes is not cakewalk.  It stresses me out.  It stresses me out beyond what I can handle at the moment.  I don't like stress.  I don't do well with stress.  I generally like to have things organized and clean.  I haven't lived that way in about nine months.

I'm really ready for life to get back to normal but I fear it is going to be a while before I find my normal again.  I guess that's life huh?

On a lighter note, I have been making some kick ass meals recently.  I made this incredible salmon dish with asparagus.  I think that jumped to the top of my favorite dishes... and I don't even like asparagus.

So at least my kitchen is unpacked and mostly done.  Mostly... some.

Gah.

I should really get back to cleaning and unpacking.

Blah

If you've been reading my Facebook page you know I've been in a terrible mood.

I'm in a terrible mood because people as a whole tend to disappoint and annoy me.  I am not a people person.  This is a fact widely known.  I'm a dog person.  I'm much more likely to tolerate you if you have a dog.  And I'll probably like you if I like your dog.  I have my friends and my really close friends and beyond that I would rather not deal with people a whole lot outside of their dogs.  That doesn't make me a mean or rude person.  I think I'm nice and polite and would never outright be mean to people but no, I'm not all that interested in knowing everyone's life story or getting coffee with strangers.

People have just been irritating the hell out of me lately.

And add on top of that a lack of sleep and I turn into a really charming person.  In the past week and a half I've fallen asleep before 1 AM only once.  And yes that still would give me about 5 hours of sleep and that would have been a Godsend in college but I'm an old woman now and I do not do well with anything under 8 hours of sleep.  10 days of 4-5 hours of sleep on average is killing me.

I'm also frustrated.  I'm frustrated with so many things.  Mostly my job.  I don't want to be one of those people who complains about everything and I know I've spent my fair share of time complaining about my job but I'm just so sick of being the one with the shitty job.  I've recently realized that I can't put the time or energy I want into training because I am burning myself out.  13 hour days is way too much work.  I need to find a part time job that will allow me time off to work on and build up training.  The problem is, I just bought a house and I have expenses.  Can I risk taking another pay cut right now and hope training compensates for it?

On the other hand, isn't life too short to do something you don't like and don't enjoy?  Or is that a childish notion?  I get torn between the two.

Some days I'm shocked that I'm one of those adults with a mortgage, a 8-5 office job, and a chip on my shoulder.  Some days I think that's part of growing up is accepting what the real world is.  Not all of us can have the adventures and live life like we see in the movies.  In reality, that young girl who got her dream job right out of college in NYC and lives in this wonderful loft doesn't exist.  Really she's a waitress trying to break into the journalist business while she lives in a closet with 3 other roommates.  Yay reality!

Of course reality is what you make of it.  So do you just accept that and live that life or do you do something else?  God I wish I could sell off everything I own and go ride a motorcycle around the world or something.  I'd love that.  Course I'd have to get a side car for Whitman and Gerani.  Theo wouldn't like that much.

My animals are probably the main reason I haven't done that.  I love them.  They keep me grounded.  Honestly they keep me a productive member of society because I have to take care of them.  Sucks on one hand but on the other I wouldn't trade them for a life of adventure.

And that's just about all the complaining and bitchiness I want to let out today.

Taking a half day from work today and a day off tomorrow or else I'd burn the place down.  Need some me time.

And time to finish up the house so I can move in.

So much to do...

Only in the movies

I've been on a Grey's Anatomy kick lately.  I used to love the show before it got all weird and they started killing people off right and left, or so I hear.  Anyway, wanted to see if it was back to being good so I had to watch it from the beginning.

Anyway, I was just sitting here watching and I got to thinking about love stories.  I love movies or shows with good love stories.  And if there isn't a good one often times I'll make one up in my head.  I love good love stories.  In the movies...

In the movies no matter how messed up are you personally, someone loves you dearly.  That person finds all your quirks and hang ups endearing and they enrich your relationship instead of driving the other person absolutely crazy.  That person is your partner and absolute match.  In the movies you break up and everyone is incredibly hurt until someone makes a grand gesture.  Someone holds a boombox outside your window or builds a house out of candles.  Love conquers all.

I just don't know if those love stories exist outside of the movies.

I have many more cynical things to say but I don't feel like it.

Bah!

Small things

First of all can I just say God bless whoever fixed the volume control on my work computer.  I shall worship you while listening to music at work.  Suddenly this job is much more enjoyable.

Also I want to bless whoever invented the Hazelnut Cappuccinofor the Kurieg because it is damn tasty and makes me into a much more likeable person in the morning.

Third I love the person who made these:

Amen for chocolate covered strawberries.

It's the little things in life, right?

Red ink. AAAAAAHHHHHHHHH!

Have you heard this nonsense that teachers using read pens to correct student's work is the equivalent of screaming?  Apparently The University of Colorado did a study on this and red ink is just way too negative.  (LINK)  Leave it to CU to want a more cuddly way of grading.  These poor students just can't handle the red ink.  Well you know what?  Don't make mistakes or learn from the mistake you made so you don't have to see that red ink anymore.  That's the whole idea.  Handing in homework means you learn from the mistake you made.  HEAVEN FORBID that mistake should me marked in red.  But you know, if it's marked in blue that makes it all better...

A mistake is still a mistake no matter what color it is.  A blue mistake isn't any more correct than a red mistake.

Lord have mercy.  This is the same mindset that is making our generation and the generations after us selfish and unable to handle the real world.  No one wins because we're all winners!  Everyone gets a trophy.  Well I'm sorry, not everyone can win.  Sometimes we lose.  And when we tell kids that it's just too mean to lose then they're not prepared for the real world where you really can lose.  In the real world you lose, you learn, you try again and do your best to win.  The whole thing irritates me.

It's probably a good thing I'm not a teacher because damnit I'd be using that red ink all over the place.  Come on people... quit coddling your kids.  I got red marked papers back all the time and I didn't have a mental breakdown.  I turned out alright.  Your kid will too.  Give your kid the chance to be a strong person who is capable of understanding and making their way in the world.

Thoughts from my teacher friends?



Oh and I am exceedingly sorry I've been shouting at you in red this whole time.  You poor dears must be in tears by now.

Hi ho! (I don't know why... just felt like it)

Got a lot done yesterday.  That feels nice.  Not nearly done cleaning the house but I did clean and organize the laundry room.  I moved my dogs' food down there so now they're both confused about where they're supposed to eat.  My brother had piles of laundry in there that have been waiting to be done since September when I moved in.  So I went ahead and did those for him.  Never say I don't do anything nice for him.  My papers that have been piled up got sorted and I have a lot of them with me at work today to put in the shredder.  So handy that I can do that now instead of trying to coax my decrepit shredder to do it for me at home.  Tonight I will be folding laundry then I have to clean up the kitchen.  Which reminds me I need to make a shopping list for myself because there are a few things I need before I go home tonight.  The list of things I need to do never really gets shorter does it?  I think I have a problem.

At work today feeling fairly bored.  I have a lot to do but the pile has intimidated me so I'm instead posting on my blog and looking at Pinterest.  Helpful I know.  I'll get to that pile eventually.

In other news, my boss put in her two weeks notice yesterday.  Very sad about this because she's a very good boss.  She has renewed my faith in bosses everywhere.  There are good people still out there who care that you have a good work environment to look forward to everyday.  We will certainly miss her especially since that means that the Vice CEO will be at our location more and he's wacky.  Who knows who will be in that position next.  There are two people here who could do it and they both don't want to.  So who knows.  I hope that the next one isn't a witch.  My new found faith would be shattered again and that would be terrible because I don't much like this job in the first place.  If I had to come here and be miserable it would just throw my whole life in the toilet again.

Oh well.  Nothing I can do about it but sit here and pretend to work.  That's what I plan to do today and I'm very good at it.

Laziness

Another weekend gone and yet again I got nothing accomplished.  I need to break free of this lazy cycle I'm in and actually get crap done.  I have so much to do and it piled up and piles up.  Then the pile is so huge there's no way I could get it all done in a reasonable time so I just don't do it.  Vicious cycle.  And it stresses me out so yet again, I do nothing.  I really could just kick myself.

It's hard to work so many hours and still have time in the day to be sane and get everything done that needs to be done.  I've been choosing to stay sane and get nothing done but that doesn't really help either.  Dunno what to do about it either.  I might have to take a day this week and just get everything I need to do done.  That will take some serious ass kicking.  I need someone to kick my ass full time.

Sigh.

Well in other news...  I have no other news really.  Work.  Sleep.  Work.  You know my life.

My little brother is headed back to his end of the country for his last semester of college.  Enjoy it while you can bro.  The real world is gearing up to kick you in the teeth when you graduate.  Or that just could be Monday morning talking.  I'm proud of you!  Another English Lit degree in the family.

Finally think I came up with a name for my main character in my novel.  Keller.  Which of course I stole from somewhere else but if you don't want to end up with a name like Salkagoindlasd, you have to steal names.  I am on the fence about it in that it may be too unique, which you will see why that might be a conflict as I work further into the plot of my book.  Eh.  For now I think it will have to do.  I just love it too much to move off of it for awhile.

I'm editing and writing a bit up soon so I may post that later.  For now this will just have to conclude my thoughts for the morning.  I wish I could have more coffee but I haven't yet finished my water.  At least that's one rule I'm sticking with.  I'm lazy but hey at least I'm drinking water!  Progress!

Maybe not

A lot of things have been bouncing around in my mind.  I've been doing hard thinking on myself these past couple of weeks.  Self reflection is important.  It is important to think about yourself and who you want to be.  It is important to know yourself and respect yourself, even if you're an idiot sometimes.

That's what I'm trying to do.  Inner reflection is really important as long as you don't get lost in it.

I have a lot I want to say but I'm also unsure of how I want to say it.  I'm finding, the problem with a blog is that once it is out there it's out there.  Can't take it back.  I don't know.  I'm in a weird pensive mood.

And I was going to make this a longer post but I find I am not in the mood for it.  So... eh for now.

This, that and the other thing

Okay this is the last thing I am going to say about politics for a long time.  This election has pretty much beat what little patience I had for politics right out of me.

Obama wins.  We get four more years of him.  Honestly, I hadn't paid much attention to him over the last four years so I am hoping he'll just kind of fade into the background.  I did vote and I did not vote for Obama.  Although I agree with many social and cultural things he supports, I thought it was more important to get a strong economy going.  Guess most of America didn't agree.  Though This was a pretty close election based on popular vote.  Can I just say that I don't have any idea how the electoral college works but it seems like a pretty stupid system to me.  I'm sure it serves some purpose but it could also be one of those strange bureaucratic things that don't really make any sense to anyone but it's there because it has always been there.  I hope the country doesn't go too far into debt over the next four years but at least I hope there will be some good social strides made.

And that's all I have to say about politics.  I want all the political signs and ads down.  No one better call me at work anymore to campaign.  Thank God that is over.  I was going to start slapping people here pretty soon.  Now I can go back to just having a general knowledge about politics for the next four years.  Then we'll go through this all again.  That's a drag but at the same time it is an incredible thing.  There are many  many MANY countries all over the world that do not offer that freedom to their people.  We are truly blessed to live in a place that the leadership of our government is so easily and bloodlessly transferred   And hey, you don't like this president, there will be another one in 4-8 years depending on terms.

Oh and if you didn't vote, shame on you!  Seeing how close the popular vote was just goes to show you that your vote does matter.  And if you didn't vote I don't want to hear a peep out of you.  You can't complain, bitch or moan about anything political for the next four years because you did not exercise your civic right to earn the right to bitch.  So hush it!  Me, I do have the right to bitch, complain and moan because I got out there and took 15 minutes to vote.

Okay, political ramble over.  Done and over with.

In other news, the house is trucking right along.  I am so over remodeling though and we aren't even half way done.  Ug.  I feel like I am banging my head against a wall repeatedly.  Mostly I just want to move in.  I am honestly considering doing it before the thing is finished.  That would motivate me to get off my butt and finish it.  I believe the electrician is almost done.  Furnace will go in here soon.  Windows are being done soon.  What else does a girl need really?  Oh right, fence for the dogs.

Spent last Friday in Denver with the LD training crew.  We were up there to attend a dog bite conference with Victoria Stilwell.  Victoria Stilwell, the positive reinforcement trainer from Animal Planet's It's Me or the Dog, is the most incredible person.  She is probably my all time most favorite person in the world.  I either want to hug her because she's so sweet and cute or follow her around in awe of her greatness.  Seriously, someone I very much look up to and if I could make myself like a "celebrity" it would be her.  This is the second I've seen her and I just love her.

Anyway, the conference was actually very very interesting.  It is such an important topic because dog bites do happen and they can be very bad.  I hate the fact that when it does happen though, often times it is the dog that is blamed when really it should be the owner.  Dogs are pretty much what we make of them.  We force them to live in our world, in our society and then we blame then when we didn't show them how to do that.  It is a tragedy that when dog bites do happen it is on children the majority of the time.  I came away from this conference with a new desire to really focus my career on aggressive dogs and the interaction between dogs and children.  It is SO important.  You can mark my words that if I ever have children, God help me if I do, that they will have a very healthy respect for dogs.  As will the children of my siblings.

There were some hard topics discussed.  I was really amazed and wowed by the courage of one couple who spoke to us.  They lost their two year old son to a bite from their family dog six years ago.  It was very emotional and hard to hear but very important that we do hear.  Dogs bite.  We need to be prepared for that and not shy away from that.  Their courage really moved me.  I was also fascinated by the dog bite investigator.  I almost feel like that is what I should be doing because it blends my love of crime and crime solving with dogs.  That would be an incredibly hard thing to do though.  I also need to look up the irresponsible owners law from Georgia and really give that a hard read.  I would like to see something like that passed in every state.

Victoria Stilwell is passionate about dogs and positive reinforcement training.  I love her!

What else?  Oh.  I am very much failing at my attempt to do the NaNoWriMon.  I am probably about 20 pages behind.  I just don't often have time to sit down and write.  That's what I am going to do tonight.  I need to sit down and write about 15 pages to catch up somewhat.  That and fold laundry.  What a night it will be.

Better get back to work so I can leave on time tonight.

My toes are freezing!

I got wonderful news in my email this morning.  Apparently a wealthy Nigerian businessman passed away recently and he has no family so he chose me as his sole beneficiary!  I can't believe it!  Millions for me to collect if I just send this very helpful but not so literate in English mystery person all of my personal information!  It is like winning a lottery I didn't enter!  ...  Please.  How do people fall for this?

In other news, I was up for most of the night with a twitchy leg.  It was quivering and twitching all night and kept waking me up.  It sounds like nothing until you're actually contemplating cutting your leg off so you can finally get some decent sleep.  I did find one position that was okay if I held my leg a certain way.  Then I would fall asleep and move so then of course in about 45 minutes I would wake up again.  It was still twitching a little on the way to work but now it has stopped.  Angie says I need to eat more bananas.  Usually I have about 6-10 bananas a week in my smoothies but I haven't made them this past week because I've been so tired and cold in the mornings.  So I need to get back into that and keep up with my smoothies.  That or cut off my leg.  Either or.

Speaking of being cold in the mornings, I am absolutely freezing right now.  Today is supposed to be 70 degrees so I am wearing a handkerchief skirt and my small slip on shoes and only brought a light jacket.  Since I park in my brother's garage my car stays fairly warm so that usually is enough to get through the morning chill.  Today however I took the dogs to LD and then stood outside chatting.  So that made me cold.  Then I blasted my heat in my car all the way to work so I was nice and toasty but then I get to the office and the AC is on to 60 degrees.  Doesn't sound cold but it is frigged because it blows right on me.  So I am sitting here shivering.  My toes are so cold.  I may go track down my sister and steal her sweater and put it on my feet for a while until the cold air cycles out of here.

It is true I would rather be cold than hot but that doesn't mean I enjoy being freezing cold while I'm sitting here pretending to work.  Even my fingers are cold!  I want a blanket!

The flu study at work is FINALLY over!  No more working Sundays.  No more dealing with the crazy flu people as much.  Thank goodness.  Since I worked yesterday I have tomorrow off!  YAY!  That is a good thing because I have about 15 things on my to do list that I can only do at home.  Since I spend the majority of my time outside of home that doesn't help me much.  And the best part, I get to sleep in tomorrow!  That means I'll probably wake up within half an hour of when my alarm would normally go off but it still counts because I won't have to listen to that damned alarm.  Days off are a blessing!  Though I still train in the evening so it is not a complete day off.  Still makes me happy though.

House news:

Pretty much finished ripping up the flooring that needed to be ripped up.  Found some gnarly flooring under the carpet in the spare bedroom.  It made me laugh because I can't imagine anyone wanting that on their floors.  We'll be laying new carpet in the bedroom to cover this and then getting new linoleum in the bathroom, kitchen and laundry room.  Someday I'll lay down tile but for now, linoleum will do.

I spent a lot of time pulling nails and hooks and screws out of the walls this weekend.  It was astounding how much was in the walls and just randomly everywhere.  I would have loved to see what was going on when the previous owners lived there.  It must have been a hodge podge of just everything imaginable.

My mom has been working hard in the backyard to make it habitable.  I really want to get that done so that I can bring my dogs over more often.  If my dogs could be there more I could work on the house more because I wouldn't have to go home to take care of them every so often.  Right now though there is just so many nails and random junk around that it isn't safe.  Not to mention that the fencing is extremely unsafe.

This week a lot of stuff is really starting to happen at the house.  At this moment concrete is being poured for my new porch.  Cheaper than a wood porch and I won't have to replace it in a couple of years.  Also it will be nice to be able to use the front door again without climbing up and jumping out that huge hole.  Tomorrow the electrician will be rewiring from top to bottom so that we can use the electricity in the house without burning it down.  The sheds in the back will be getting bulldozed either tomorrow or the next day.  Then this weekend we will be scraping the outdoor trim and repainting that before it gets too cold.  Though... it is supposed to snow on Friday so we may have to put that off.  I am going to paint the trim that is blue now a dark green.  The gutters that we put on will also be a dark green.  That should all happen fairly quickly here.  And we have also made the decision to put in a furnace instead of doing electrical heating.  I kept going back and forth but at this point I just need to make a decision and get some heat in that house so that it isn't unbearable to work in.  Windows will be done hopefully next week or the week after.  We are still getting a couple of bids there to see what we can afford.

I feel like things are really starting to get going on the house, which is fun to see.  I feel overwhelmed by it and I've been so busy that I have hardly been able to do anything on it.  Thank God for my parents who have been there almost every day doing something.  They are incredible people and know MUCH more how to do this than I do.  I would be so lost without them.

Flooring in the walk in closet

Flooring in the bedroom

Dad hard at work

Nailed it!

I have to share that my nails look very pretty.  They're pink and cute.  And my toenails match!  Why am I excited about my nails you might ask, especially since I don't tend to be overly concerned with girly things like that?  It's because I've been a nail bitter since I could chew.  Up until high school I'd chew off all my nails and then wait a couple of days and do it again.  When I got to high school I began to covet my sister's long pretty nails but I just couldn't break the habit of nail biting.

I'm finally ALMOST broken of it.  My secret?  Nail polish.  I try to always have at least clear nail polish on.  That way I have something to pick at when the mood strikes instead of biting my nails clean off.  Granted it isn't a perfect system because once I pick off some of the nail polish then it all hast to come off.  I CAN'T stand having chipped nail polish.  That means I go through a lot of nail polish.  Also sometimes once the mood strikes I pick off all the nail polish and just keep going to the nails.

It also doesn't help that my jobs have generally been hard on my nails.  Working with dogs means I get banged up and things happen.  Polish chips and nails break.  And when nail's break you can pretty much assume I'm going to have short nails before the day is over.  If one nail breaks I have to bite them all off.  Compulsion.  OCD.

I'm trying to curb that.  Right now my pinky nails are the perfect length and so pretty.  They get broken the least.  They are the envy of the rest of my fingers.

Now I hope I don't crack on the pressure and bite them all off...

And yes, I did just do a post about my nails.  Because it's my blog and I can!

Dear Photograph

Discovered a new website today because I was bored at work.

Dear Photograph

A very sweet website where people recreate old photographs by incorporating them into new photos.  The photographs are accompanied by small notes and remembrances.  A lot of them are very touching.

Me being a dog/animal person, I pulled these out:

1

Dear Photograph,

When I think back to the beginning of summer, my favorite moments were on the deck soaking up the sun with Charlotte. In a few short months, we would have to make the hardest decision of our lives. Someday I hope those last few days together will fade from my memory, and I’ll be left with the nine great years we had. They say a dog is man’s best friend. Charlotte was certainly no exception.

Matt

 

2 

 

Dear Photograph,

I wish I would’ve cherished the moments we had together more. Looking back now, I definitely took them for granted. After one year of missing you more than words could ever describe, that same little piece of my heart is still broken. I just need to remember to keep breathing, knowing you’ll always be by my side…no matter where you are.

I love you Dixie,

Love, Megan

 

3 

 

Dear Photograph,

It was so much more than just a chair when he sat on it. We miss him.

Christiane

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

4 

 

Dear Photograph,

Bernice and Zeke fell in love at first sight. It was true puppy love. Even though Bernice has long since passed away, Zeke loves to sit on that same back step, just like always. I wonder who he is thinking about…
Kiley

 

 

 

 

 

 

I'm in the mood to go home and snuggle my babies.  What a week it has been.

 

Say Cheese!

In lieu of writing a post, I am posting some pictures that have been hiding on my phone.

St. Patrick's Day 2012

My mom's birthday

Fire and smoke

Triplet Fawns

Ren Fest fun!

Dad and his grill

Jak's birthday

As Promised...

After baring some of my pet peeves, I think it is only fair to show some of my life's simple joys.

• Post-it notes.
• The first good cup of coffee.
• Silent winter mornings.
• Laughing at my own random obscure jokes.
• Laughing at my own random jokes and someone else gets them.
• Finding out someone is just as geeky as you are on a subject.
• Reading a good book and finishing it is like saying goodbye to a friend.
• When you’re bored and obsessively checking Facebook and an interesting post finally shows up.
• Getting a package.
• When someone loves the same horrible movies as me.
• Finding that perfect cure for your craving.
• The smell of fresh lavender.
• Sea shells.
• Jamming in your car with the windows down.

And to top it off... more random facts about me:

• I name my plants if they have survived after a month.
• I have the magical ability to fall asleep on long car rides. (Or plane rides... or train rides...)
• I have an obsession with true crime shows.  (I know way too much about crime.)
• I regularly reorganize my furniture every couple of months.
• I can not sleep with my sheets untucked.
• I talk to my animals.
• I'm a homebody.
• My favorite color is green.
• My favorite animal is a penguin.  (I always wanted to adopt one at the zoo as a child and bring it home.)
• My favorite food is spaghetti.
• My favorite alcoholic drink is whiskey.
• My favorite books and movies are the Lord of the Rings trilogy.  (Obsessively.)
• My favorite quote is "Not all those who wander are lost."  (Three guesses where it's from.)