After a day of hot weather this past Monday, the rest of the week has been much colder. And today was bitter with gusty winds.
When the hell is Spring coming?
I mean my daffodils are up and blooming. My pansies are blooming as well. Even my lillies are growing like mad and are sure to be blooming by late April.
It's just weird.....the weather can't decide on whether to be warm or cold, winter or spring.
My first entry of the New Year comes on the last day of the first month. And so far 2006 is not shaping up too good. And to top it off the spammers have put 900+ entries that I had to delete from 5 entries....Oy.
Death to spammers..........
I'm in the process of finishing my Christmas cards. I sent 16 on Friday and have written 4 more today. I've been sorting through who I need to send a card to and who I actually have current addresses for. And who has sent me a card. I try to make sure I send cards to those who took the time to send me one.
And then I need to start wrapping gifts so I can figure out if there is anyone that I still need to buy a gift for. After a while I forget what all I bought for whom, and in some cases, some gifts have changed recipients as I found other items. Hopefully I have enough stuff that I don't have to do anymore shopping, LOL.
I guess I should say a sentence or two about my birthday.
Now generally, my birthdays aren't terribly exciting because they fall two weeks before Christmas, and many people forget what date it falls on or even that it's in the month of December.
And this year was not too different than usual. I did have a very yummy cake made for me as incentive to show up for a planning meeting. And I did go out to dinner, though unfortunately the steak I had at Longhorn took wayyyyyy too long and was overcooked. But hey, at least my brother Brian did take me to dinner, LOL.
The best thing about this weekend was that I didn't have much to do outside of the house and I did accomplish some stuff at home. It's not anything exciting to talk about, but it's something.....
I had a real crummy day today. I'm not sure what's causing it but I'm really feeling miserable and bitchy....maybe it's just the weather and that I'm kinda tired.
This evening I tried to download a new version on the Norton's Internet Security and had a hell of a time with it. I even called the tech support twice. Oy. I ended up having to cancel the order and just renewed the subscription instead. what a pain in the ass.
I just have to get to Turkey day....that's my mantra.
I feel like I never have any time to myself anymore. I'm constantly on the run going from one function to the next. Otherwise I'm organizing events myself. I definitely need a vacation.
Meanwhile, I almost missed a credit card payment. Luckily using online bill payment, I was able to get it payed on time. Phew.
You blink and next thing you know Summer is over. It really goes too fast. This summer was particularly hot and for the last month or more, very dry with little rain.
This week, however we may get a bunch of rain from hurricane Ophelia. Nothing like what New Orleans and Mississippi got from Katrina, mind you. Ophelia is not likely to be much more than a Cat 1 or 2 storm.
Until then, it will continue to be fairly hot and sunny. Last weekend, my parents had visited and we went to see the Phillies play the Nationals at RFK stadium. The Phillies lost of course but it was something different for us to do. We had Metroed down there, which was a crowded experience. (Sitll better than driving and parking down there.) Interestingly enough we encountered a good number of Phillies fans where their team hats and/or shirts. We didn't have any Phillies attire, so were were incognito.
I guess that was no big thing since they lost.....
Anyone who lives by a big city has had to play tour guide on more than one occasion. Since I live near DC, I get to bring people around DC from time to time. I always try to cater what we see based on those who are visiting me--what their interests are and what they are hoping to see. Within reason of course, because some people want to see everything. And due to the vast amount of walking it requires to see everything, you just can't do it all in one weekend. And since 9/11, DC keeps changing to upgrade its security, things do change a bit, so I have to adapt to those changes.
For example, this weekend I took Sarah and her husband Nino around. We went to the Postal Museum (since Sarah collects stamps) and the National Gallery of Art (since both Nino and Sarah wanted to see some art.) However Sarah also wanted to see alll the monuments and the White House. We did see the Capitol as we entered the mall by way of Union Station. We saw the Washington Monument from a distance and we did swing past the White House. That was enough walking for one day. (Since 9/11, you can only tour the White House if you request tickets 6 weeks in advance. Tickets for the Capitol and the Washington Monument require getting there very early in the morning. All things we were not able to do.)
The next day we did the DC Ducks tour, which did take us past the Jefferson Monument. (A great tour for the kids and if you like getting close to the runway at National airport, LOL.) And we saw Lincoln from a distance when we visited Arlington Cemetary. Not sure if that's quite how they wanted to see all the monuments, but hey, they did see them. ;) We also stopped in Chinatown for a lunch.
They wanted to see the Air and Space museum, but I said that would likely hard to get into...it's usually crowded on the weekends and with the bag check it gets tricky. The IMAX was mentioned, but I think we ended up forgetting to do that.
The only major sticking point was Sarah seemed annoyed that I wouldn't agree to me or them driving into DC on Sunday. I knew that parking tends to be scarce and also that I don't know my way around DC by car very well at all. I mostly Metro down there.
Today when I asked others about that decision, every single person agreed that driving down there would have been not a wise thing to do. None of them would have even considered driving. The places where Sarah saw parking, she didn't realize were by permit only. Parking really is problematic. So I feel even more justified that I insisted that we take Metro into DC.
Hopefully, I succeeded at getting them to many of the things they wanted to see. I did get to see and do some new things, which always help make the touring interesting for me. However, my poor pinky toes have blisters on the bottom in spite of me wearing my sneakers both days.
Today, my brother and I rented a canoe and took a three hour tour of Lake Seneca. Besides a whole lot of paddling, we saw a good sized turtle swimming and a doe and her two fawns on the shoreline. It was particularly sweet to see the mother deer licking her spotted offspring. You don't get close enough to see that too often.
We found the turtle fairly amusing as well. We kept paddling our canoe around him so that we could continue to watch him. His shell was light in color which means he wasn't a painted turtle. And he didn't look like a snapper either. Doing a bit of internet searching, I belive he's a mud or musk turtle. Or he might even be a northern red-bellied turtle. He was too big to be an Eastern Mud Turtle, so I'm guessing if he was a mud turtle, he was a different variety. He was easily 12 inches long, if not bigger.
I guess it is the year of the turtle for me. I don't remember seeing so many different turtles in the span of a few months.
It's definitely egg laying time for the turtles. This morning I found a female Painted turtle with her tail end buried in mud next to my house this morning. Apparently she decided it looked like a good spot for her to lay her eggs. LOL. I took a couple photos of her, so I'll try to put them up soon. Also, I've been taking photos of all the blooming plants in my gardens.I just gotta get them all downloaded from the camera and then uploaded here.
Today, while driving to work, I saw a turtle in the road on the opposing lane. By the time I pulled over, the woman in the car behind me also had pulled over. Since she was closer, she went and picked the turtle up and put him in the grass. I'm glad to know I'm not the only one who would stop to move a turtle, LOL. Hopefully the good sized fellow (or more likely, lady) was smart enough to stay out of traffic. Perhaps its egg laying time?
Another reason I don't blog so much....I spend more time reading quality blogs. For example, Riverbend's Blog gives me a real live perspective of what's going on in Baghdad from an Iraqi point of view. I feel a need and desire to read this sort of journal/blog because the crap that passes itself as news (in particular, TV news) certainly doesn't provide that kind of info. Granted there can be misinformation spread over the internet too, but text is much more easier to scrutinze than news spin and images coming over a TV screen. At least with text you can reread it and mull over it as long as you need to.
Entry triple 8. With almost 4 years of blogging, the amount of entries I write has been in decline for awhile. Both time and material have been lacking of late. Early on I spent a good bit of time writing about the crap that Bush & Co. were doing. Back then there weren't a plethora of blogs on the subject. Now I don't feel the need to write about it too often since their are others who do a far superior job of it and the subject has gotten real old for me. I certainly was ready to change presidents in 2004. Alas, it didn't happen.
Instead I have started focussing more on the daily events in my life. Most minutia, things I've seen or did. But things that are of an interest to me. However, I often fear they are not of interest of anyone but me. Whether that's a good or bad thing, I haven't figured out.
June is the month of graduations and ending of the school year. In thinking about that, I just realized it has been 15 years since I graduated high school. My God, time just skitters away. At that age, you are looking to grow up. However at 32 I still don't really feel grown up. I don't feel like a self-conscious teenager, but I don't feel like I'm settled in as an adult either. Perhaps it's because I'm not married and don't have children. However, a woman my age who is married and has two children, mentioned that she often feels the same. So maybe that's not it.
Maybe we never really grow up. Perhaps adulthood is more a perception made by children, LOL.
There--I've rambled and had my profound thought for the day, LOL. ;)
The trip back from Hagerstown was a bit more tense than I would have preferred. Coming home, I drove through a line of thunderstorms. As I was driving up into the mountains, the skies erupted in a terrible downpour. There was so much water pounding my car, that my car struggled going up the mountain. I could hear it groaning as the tac hit 3000 rpm. I had to keep easing off the gas and coax it uphill. (I realized later that I did have the AC on low, which probably didn't help.)
However, when I started going downhill, I had more of a fright. As my car picked up speed, I could feel it hydroplaning. I know I need new tires, and this incident proved it. I had to carefully apply a bit of brake to slow the car down withouut hitting it too hard which could have caused me to lose control of the car. There was just so much water covering the road surface as it was intensely pouring from the sky. Luckily it eased up within a couple miles. But I ended up driving in the rain the whole hour home.
It's just not a good feeling when the car is not responding the way it normally would due to hydroplaning. What struck me was how many people still attempted to drive 70 mph in their SUVs. Don't they get how difficult it can be to stop in those conditions especially in a big vehicle??? At about 60 mph going downhill I could feel my car hydroplaning. This wasn't just a little bit of rain! LOL.
Thankfully I made it home safely. However, I made it home in time as the rain pulled into my area. Which meant I had to run to the house as it started to pour, LOL.
Yesterday I helped a local group collect items for CASA in Hagerstown. It's an organization that helps abused women and children. I sat out by a Hagerstown grocery store and asked folks if they'd be willing to donate some items. I distrubuted a handout that listed the types of items that CASA needs. Of course, there were a number of folks who wouldn't even consider donating, as they were too in a hurry or not interested. Many seniors shopped at this store and being on a limited income wouldn't allow for them to donate.
However, most folks that took the handout did return with at least one item. Sugary cereal (Pops, Apple Jacks, Fruit Loops) was the most popular item, as it was on sale for 1$ a box. I think I collected 30-40 boxes of cereal. But folks also brought soap, shampoo, school supplies, juice boxes, etc. I had a few individuals that were very generous and brought bags full of items.
However, the most touching thing was the several women who indicated that CASA had helped them. And there were others that indicated that they were very supportive of what CASA does. It made me feel really good to know that I spent a few hours of my time helping an organization that really makes a difference.
And so Friday begins. It's not been one of my better weeks. Not that it was horrible. And actually it's more like Thursday sucked. Yeah....that's more accurate.
So I'm very relieved that it is Friday. A group of ladies are getting together to watch a few John Cusack films tonight....it's just the kind of fun I need.The only down side is I need to drive out to Silver Spring and it's supposed to be very rainy.
My parents are planning to visit next weekend. And my brother Joe and his kids have decided to tag along as well. So I'll be having a full house next week.
It's good thing I took yesterday off. I still was fairly congested and tired. I even took a short snooze on the sofa. Gee, my gray kitty thought it such a good idea that he took a snooze with me, curled up against my belly.
I am annoyed that my HOA mangement company did not return my phone call as their answering service message indicated they would by a certain time. I guess that means I'll have to try calling again today.
News Flash -- I can finally breathe some. My sinuses have drained and I'm only mildly congested now. My face actually feels a bit tingly because of the pressure subsiding.
I'm taking the day off because I still don't feel 100%, I desperately need more sleep, and it's going to be a nice day where much of the rest of the week it's going to rain. Sound reasonable? And hey, my weekend was completely trashed by my feeling awful.
I'm here, sick as a dog. Congested and miserable. Though in some ways I'm better than I was on Thursday. For instance, I'm not achy and feverish anymore. But having my head clogged with congestion adds a different form of torture. And not sleeping, due to Nyquil causing me to be wired, doesn't help matters. (Sometimes Nyquil works great and sometimes it causes more harm than good....I can't figure out the disparity....)
It never fails. I'm sick and stay home one day. The next day I need to go to work to take care of X, Y or Z. I don't feel too bad and work a whole day. Then the next day I'm back to feeling horrible. And in this case, I feel horrible on what appears to be a lovely Saturday. Arrgghhh....
It's just not fair.
At least it appears we didn't have a freeze last night. I covered most of my new plants just in case...but I'm still thankful it didn't freeze.
Why is it we get beautiful weather during the work week and crappy weather on the weekends? How is that going to help me to have a good attitude towards work? LOL. ;)
While this weekend was a washout weather wise, on other fronts it was productive. I managed to not only do the normal kitchen cleaning, but I took apart my refrigerator, cleaning all the shelves and drawers. I shredded a bazillion credit card balance transfer checks that had been piling up. (Why must they keep sending me this shit????) And I vacuumed and did some laundry.
I also had a lunch date that didn't go badly, in spite of a shaky start. I was running late, but he ended up at the wrong restaurant. Once we ended up at the same place, all was well. We talked a lot. I just hope I didn't talk too much. But I guess that's better than the dinner that only lasted 30 minutes. LOL. At least lunch went close to 2 hours.
If we get to a second date, I'll know I didn't talk too much. If it doesn't, well....
Work just keeps getting more depressing and bizarre at the same time. And yet I've not seen anything worth even submitting my resume for......
Meanwhile, my cat seems poised to step on my keyboard. Eh...nevermind. He changed his mind. Ahh..to be a cat. No work and all sleep and play. And no mortgage either. Doesn't sound like a bad deal? LOL.
Awful Online Dating Pickup Line:
Hello Beautiful Princess,
I noticed your profile. I have a feeling that we would get along well.
First off, I don't find someone calling me beautiful princess a turn on. I find that kind of greeting cocky and patronizing. And otherwise the message tells me nothing about him nor does it offer up what about my profile he liked.
I interpret it as saying: "Yeah, I could do you."
That's all right, I'll pass.
I did receive a message from another guy that was more promising. He did offer up what he had in common with the stuff I wrote and seemed like a down to earth guy. Now I need to get a reply written and go from there. I find this online dating stuff to be awkward and almost tedious . As I found in the past, online chemistry and offline chemistry don't seem to translate all that well.
I guess all the online stuff does is allow you to screen the possibilities. It's the first date that can make or break the deal.
I carted my butt to the gym tonight and actually attempted a Step class. I made it through the whole class, but I find Step classes challenging because I have poor hand-eye coordination. I always end up using the wrong foot or turning the wrong way. It makes me feel like I'm mentally challenged or something. I much prefer strength training classes or Pilates because it doesn't require me to be quite so coordinated, LOL. But hey, I got some cardio in for the week.
After having a fabulous trip to Hawaii, I am back to work. Yesterday, I was pretty tired, but somehow made it through the day. Having no boss for the day helped, LOL.
A comment I kept hearing over and over again is that I didn't get much/any color. I actually did get a bit, including burning my ankles where I missed with the sunscreen. But by wearing 30 or even 15 SPF sunscreen, even in Hawaii, I don't get that much color at all. I need to wear 8 or 10 since I have olive toned Italian skin. The bit of color I did get was from my day hiking at Volcanoes Nat'l Park when I didn't wear any sunscreen, except for what my facial moisturizer provided.
Hopefully I'll be posting more about my trip over the weekend. For now, I gotta make it through a Friday at work. ;)
One more entry before I go.....
Thank God for inaccurate forecasters! Had we really gotten a foot of snow, I might have had difficulties flying out tomorrow. Anything delaying my trip to Hawaii would have been BAAAAD. LOL.
Instead all is good. Now I just have to finish packing tonight. I'm so ready for warmth and sunshine!
One more day and then my vacation starts. Laundry and packing will be my priimary activities until then. I'll post about my trip to paradise when I get back. :)
I've been neglecting my blog this month so far. Not anything great happening here. My Eagles lost. Work hasn't been too bad as I've been keeping busy this week. I always feel better when I'm being productive.
My house on the other hand is becoming a disaster area. This is partly due to the fact that I haven't been home much. And partly because I've been feeling tired and lazy. So it'll be a cleaning weekend for me.
Also, I need to do some clothes shopping for my trip to Hawaii that's coming up in March. And maybe I'll sneak in some time at the gym. I can feel the inches creeping back on since I've not been exercising hardly at all these last couple months. Pilates really does wonders, but like anything else, you have to keep doing it for the results to last.
Oh yeah, I did have a date last week. But it didn't last more than an hour for dinner. We didn't really click. Not too mention joking *twice* about having women tied up in his basement didn't do much for me. *sigh* Yeah, that really makes me want to go back to his place to rent a movie. NOT.
It's snowing again, making the outdoors a pretty white winterland. However, I think I'm starting to get cabin fever. I should have done some shopping yesterday, just to get out for a while. But clothes shopping was out since I was all bloated yesterday--nothing would have fit right. Should have done a Target run. Except I'm really trying to limit my spending until I get my heat pump and my vacation paid off.
So instead on this snowy day, I will do my taxes. I got my W-2 the other day and Amazon.com shipped me Turbo Tax, so I'm all set to go. I'm hoping my tax return will cover my portion of the heat pump so that I can divert all the rest of my money towards paying for my vacation. After watching the PBS Frontline episode about credit card companies, I'm ever more determined to get them paid down to zero. And by next year, when I pay my car off, I'm determined to start saving some money. My intention is to try paying cash for items instead of using credit.
Several years back I mentioned my blog to an online acquaintance. Her remark back then was, "what the hell is a blog?" and more or less indicated she wasn't interested in my blog or any other blog.
Fast forward 2 or 3 years, and now she's decided to put together a family blog. A good idea in itself. Not a problem. However, she keeps emailing everyone with every update and every problem she has encountered with her blog. We're talking an email a day or every other day. It's getting old really quick.
I've considered teasing her about it in an email, or hinting at it in some way, but I haven't come up with a way to do that I can be sure she'll take it the right way. I just don't think it's worth making a big stink over, so I've avoided emailing her about it. Also, I think some RL stuff has got her overfocussed on this blog thing as a coping mechanism. So I don't want to take away from that.
What I really want is to not receive so many emails about her blog, LOL.
I've realized that I've been really depressed since the election and the breakup. My job has sucked for quite a while and the weather ain't been great either. So I feel I need to add something positive to my life. Maybe some volunteer work? A new project? A new job?
I'm just not quite sure what. All I know is that I've become a very angry and impatient person these last few months. I just can't keep going on this way. I need a change of attitude or something. It's simply not healthy or productive to be angry all the time. And unfortunately, we're all stuck with Bush & Co.and his acolytes (obnoxious Bush supporters) for approximately four more years. (Unless there is a God, and he strikes Bush down with lightning or something, LOL. There's a thought!)
I've got to base my happiness on something other than my job or current events. How does one break such a vicious circle of frustration and anger?
I made the mad dash to the grocery store this morning to get a gallon of milk. I was going to do it last night but was too tired to do it on the way home. When I got to the Safeway at 9:30 AM in the snow, the whole parking lot looked like a nightmare. It was jam packed. I continued driving to the Mobil Mini Mart in the same plaza and got my gallon of milk with no wait in line. Yeah me!
However, when I went to return home, I slid badly as I tried to make a turn. I wasn't going all that fast and the road just looked wet and somewhat slushy. I ended up making the turn, barely, but the guy behind me (who was going straight) laid on the horn.
Last I checked, the horn doesn't work too well as a brake. What the hell did the guy want me to do? I wasn't exactly pleased myself that my car kept sliding forward as I tried to turn right. But I don't think a horn blowing was warranted or even productive. What an asshole.
Unfortunately I did not have the opportunity to give the guy the bird, LOL. I was too busy trying to make sure I didn't spin out my car.
I went to college in Rochester, NY, so I do have experience driving in lots of snow. However, they know how to treat the roads and plow up there. The real culprit here is the county who are skimping on salt because of a budget crunch. If the road had been salted properly, it wouldn't have iced up at the intersection. Not to mention even when there is not a budget crunch, they don't come anywhere close to road crews in Rochester, NY.
I'll be staying home the rest of the day so I can avoid the assholes out on the snowy roads.
I'm so relieved that it is Friday....it's been a long week.
On a happy note, I decided that I need a vacation, so I booked a trip to Hawaii! A friend is going to a conference in Honolulu in March. I'm going to tag along and hang out at the beach while she's in her conference. Then she has a couple days after her conference where we will do some touristy stuff.
Not that I really should be spending the money, but I need a rest in paradise. And if I waited until I had the money, I'd be 80 years old and not able to enjoy it.. Besides I haven't taken a trip since 2002. But I guess that's what happens when you buy a house in 2003. LOL.
Now I just have to get through the rest of January and February.
You ever have one of those days?
One so bad, that finally makes you decide you need to change jobs ASAP or maybe even change careers?
I better start reworking my resume, before I end up having a breakdown. I'm just miserable stuck where I'm at. Of course, having GWB as president doesn't help my outlook at all either.
*sigh*
Made it through the first week back. It wasn't a bad week but it was at least one day too long. By Thursday I just didn't wasnt to be there, though Friday was a bit better. Yesterday was spent away from home, so today, I'm in the mood to siimply veg. However I have a bunch of Christmas stuff to put away, so I'd better find some motivation to get that done.
I survived the first day back to work. And I managed to hang onto a shred of a better more rested attitude. I figure it'll be gone by tomorrow or the end of the week at the latest. ;)
It seems I wasn't alone in being sick over the holidays. Much of the rest of the office had been sick as well. Apparently, we'd been passing the plague around the office in the last days before Christmas. LOL. My boss was one of the few who escaped it's wrath.
Most agreed that the only motivation for returning to work was knowing how much they charged up on their cards prior to Christmas. Ahhh...if only the things in life were free. Imagine how fun life might be.
Instead we have to work. ;)
Finally managing to get better from my cold just in time to go back to work. Next time, remind me not to get sick during my vacation. ;)
Not only is it not relaxing, but it prevented me from getting as much done around the house as I had planned to get done. And yesterday I had feared I was getting much worse, since I had a bad headache all day and had started wheezing. Thankfully a dose of Nyquil and a good long night's sleep did wonders for me.
My New Years Resolution? To stay healthy. ;)
Still sick here in dreary Maryland. I did manage to take my car to get the oil changed, get some more OTC drugs to treat myself, and bought some groceries. However, my house is still not in ship shape. I had hoped to spend a day or two getting it all spiffy, but being sick with a cold has all but put the kabosh on that plan. Maybe I'll get the cleaning done over the weekend.
It just sucks to be sick in a messy house. I'm disgusted with the mess, disgusted with being sick, disgusted seeing my free time spent feeling miserable. I can feel the cold starting to turn into a sinus infection as my face hurts. Of course, it didn't do this early enough for me to get a doctor's appt before the holiday. *sigh*
So my New Years is not looking too promising. Not that I had any real plans, mind you. LOL. But being healthy would have been a bonus.
I did purchase a bottle multi-vitamins as my body has been taking a beating the last month or so with the on-again off-again cold symptoms. I'm hoping that might boost my immune system so I can make it through the rest of the winter cold-free.
I come back from my parents to find that my blog has been totally spammed again. Bastards.
I keep closing entries, yet they keep finding the ones that I haven't closed....grrrr....
I guess it's something to do in between blowing my nose. Yeah, I'm sick again. Oh Joy.
Just have been trying to get through these last couple days before Christmas....finally tomorrow is Thursday. From Friday through New Years, I have off from work....thank God. I so need the break. Now I just have to figure out what projects I'm going to tackle during my week off......
It's fucking cold and windy out! I mean....*9 Degrees!* And Wind Chill of -7 Degrees?! In Maryland????!!! Brrrrrrrrrrrrr.......
Makes me want to call out sick and stay home in myPJs.
The wind has been awful since last night thiough it is subsiding. I'm sure the wind chill was worse around 3 AM. The wind was so gusty it woke my ass up!
One of the stores I went Christmas shopping at today was Borders. I went there solely to buy a specific calendar for my boss. When I went to get in line I found it extending down the length of the store! On one hand, I had no desire to stand in that insanely long line for 1 item. On the other hand, I really didn't want to have to come back later for this one calendar. So I started enquiring closer to the front of the line if anyone was willing to purchase my calendar with their items if I supplied the money for the calendar. One guy graciously offered to do it.
When I went to get the cash for it, I realized I was short 3 bucks. I told the guy I'd be right back--that I had to get a few dollars from my brother. I quickly scurried away and started to frantically look for my brother. When I finally found him, he was reluctant to give me anything as he was busy looking at something or other. After I insisted that I needed the money NOW, he whined that he only had $3. I told him that was all I needed and took the $3. I rushed back up to the front of the store as the guy was getting to the register. *phew*
In short, I was able to get my calendar without waiting in that awful line. Of course the guy joked that I owed him a date, LOL. Luckily he was just kidding. ;)
Feeling better as the week has progressed. Must have been hormones or something sending me out of whack Tuesday as I seem to be more even-keeled now.
I am in such a negative mood. I can't do anything right. No one else around me can do anything right. And I'm not scheduled to be PMSing yet.
God, Christmas break can't come soon enough.
I went from being sad to being pissed over the events of the last few months. First I had been sad to end the relationship, now I'm pissed that he was the one that backed away....and that he didn't have the balls to just end it. He required me to take the intiative, yet has whined that I'm one of his only friends around here. Too fucking bad. He should have thought of that before he went full speed into this relationship and then screeched on the brakes.
He went to some unusual extremes to start this relationship and to bring it to the level he did. And then he dropped the ball over so-called fear. Or actually "parallels" with his previous relationship which was an engagement they "mutually" broke off. (Still can't get a straight answer about the Goddamn parallels...other than we were going down the path towards marriage, supposedly.) Keeping me around for friendship and sex just wasn't acceptable in my book. Especially when I was now getting nothing emotionally from it.
Why must I always get involved with men who have some sort of issues? Okay, I guess most men have issues. ;) But still.....
At first I thought I wanted to remain friends. Now I realize I'm too hurt and betrayed for that to be an acceptable option. Especially since he kept stringing me along because he needed someone around. Fuck that!
However, I do have to be civil to him for the most part since we work in the same building. But that didn't stop me from shooting off a pissed off email. I just hope Hotmail manages to deliver it to him since I know it's been real cranky the last couple weeks. I told him to go get a freaking Yahoo account or something. Hotmail sucks!
I'm home again sick. This damned cold keeps coming back. Every time I think I've got it licked it comes back again. It's not the most terrible cold, but I want it to be completely gone. Being home alone keeps me trapped with my what-ifs and other thoughts. In this case I'd rather be working and occupied, rather than feeling sorry for myself.
I, in essence ended things today. The downward spiral got to be too much. I needed to be able to walk away with some respect for myself. Much of what derailed us had to do with some stuff he was dealing with. But I feel no comfort or glee in pointing the blame at him. The whole thing just feels so unfortunate....like bad timing or events miscued. I wish things could have turned out differently, but I don't think the outcome was ever in my hands to determine.
Meanwhile, my birthday is coming up Saturday. Happy fucking birthday to me. Hopefully, having my parents here for a visit will make my birthday more uplifting than the past couple days. If not anything else, they'll keep me occupied.
I'm home today suffering from a sore throat. Basically I feel like crap. The sun has come out today, but so has the wind. Gusting up to 35 mph. I'm hoping the shutters don't blow off the house again. I just had my dad put two of them back up. My house finally looked normal again.
Looking at the extended outlook on weather.com, I see that it may snow the day before my birthday. That's because my parents were actually talking about coming down here for it. I can't remember the last time I had my family around for my birthday. Since it falls between Thanksgiving and Christmas, generally everyone is too busy to make a special trip and actually usually so am I. But this year since it is on a Saturday, Dad decided that they should drive down. So you know we're going to get a blizzard here in MD now. So be warned, LOL.
Things have been up and down the last month or so with the relationship I've been in. I strongly suspect we're going down the friends path. I don't think I need this book to tell me that.
I knew going into the relationship that he had just ended a serious relationship. So I wasn't deluding myself that this was automatically going down a serious path. But for a while it did go down that path, in spite of my hesitation, and then eventually he got cold feet and stepped back. And since then he has been bobbing back and forth, confusing me as to what he wants and even what the hell I want.
In some ways I think it's a bummer since we think a lot alike on a lot of issues and enjoy many of the same things. But personality wise we are opposites with he being very much an introvert and me being mildly extroverted. So it shouldn't come as a complete surprise, I guess. But coming to that conclusion always makes me feel unsettled until there is actual closure. I have this bad habit of second guessing myself in spite of my certainty. It's a case where I'd love to be wrong, but I'm most likely right on target.
Shit, this sucks.
It appears for the last several weeks I've been receiving daily phone calls from Contact America, a call center to which businesses outsource their customer service and telemarketing services. I know this because it appears on my caller ID. However, I'd like to know what is so important they find it necessary to call me everyday, yet not important enough to simply leave a message? And who contracted them to call me?
If I could leave them a message, it would be, "stop calling, I don't accept solicitations."
Persistent buggers aren't they?
Motherfucking spammers.....I think I will be disabling comments completely since I found my blog with 876 comments for having only 816 entres.,...in spite of me having closed many of those entries. I don't think I get hardly any traffic other than spammers. What's the point of them spamming a blog that no one reads? Bastards.
This is why I never post anymore....by the time I delete all this crap, I'm in no mood to blog. Arggghhhh.....
Today is the day. I'm up early getting ready to go cover my polling place for the local Democratic Party. I'll be manning a table of democratic literature. Offf I go!
Why is it that so much of one's free time seems to be spent cleaning? This weekend I cleaned bathrooms and cat boxes. And I swept the floors. And cleaned the kitchen. You've got the idea.
Other than cleaning, I did go out and buy three pairs of new shoes, which were all sale priced. That was a plus. However I was not able to find any fall clothes that were legitimately fall clothes or sale priced. Heck, I diidn't find anything I would want regularly priced. Fall clothes shopping sucks.
And I did go to the movies with my guy, though the movie Forgotten was one I'd rather forget. LOL. At least it was better than more cleaning. ;)
My poor neglected blog.....every time I think to put an entry up, I find lots of spam and I spend the time to clean it up. Then I no longer feel up to posting an entry. Amazingly, there was no heavy spammage of my blog the last day or so.
So I guess I had better post an entry real quick.
An update in the romance department....yes I'm still dating the same guy now for more than 6 weeks. And it's looking serious. Cross your fingers and toes for me....he appears to be a keeper. Either that or he's damn good at hiding the red flags. ;)
Seriously, we have a great deal in common, including our values, belief systems, and our hatred for GWB, LOL. In the process he's trying to get me hooked on watching the Daily Show. ;) It really feels great to be with someone whom you feel comfortable being yourself around....and where he feels the same way.
With a little luck, this relationship will continue well into the future.......
It's been a long week full of activities that has finally come to a close. It feels funny to say that on a Monday morning, but it is true. Most everything went off without too much of a hitch. And the final event, Sarah's wedding on Sunday was lovely. The food was excellent. And the kids (mostly girls) were such a hoot to watch, dancing around and playing ring around the rosey.
Hopefully last week won't make me too tired for the week ahead. I'm particularly looking forward to seeing John Edwards debate Dick Cheney on Tuesday. The Edwards Smile versus the Cheney Scowl. Should be interesting.
I'm feeling quite overwhelmed this week with lots of activities and things to get done. Now adding to that list, I found this morning my gum is painfully swollen around my front lower tooth. Just what I needed. Hopefully the swelling will subside without me needing to go see a dentist about it.
Still alive and doing well. Life is hectic with a variety of activities including a new romance. *gasp* Imagine that!
Pretty scary, eh?
Now I just have to de-spam my blog. *sigh*
It's been a crazy couple weeks. I can't even begin to explain. I'll try posting more when I catch my breath.
I will mention that my narcissus in my garden are completelty confused as to what season it is as they recently decided to grow new shoots and even bloom. Bizarre.
BTW....I did order a new spiffy Dell last night since the deals over there were hard to resist...free shipping, free printer, free 2nd DVD drive (burner), no finance charges for a year, $225 worth of rebates, etc. I may not be heading back to school, but that doesn't mean I can't enjoy Back-to-School princing. ;)
I should have the puter by the weekend. *g*
It's very bad when you delete certain cookies from your computer...say the one that holds your username and password for your movable type account. It took me quite a bit to remember the proper combo. Thankfully I figured it out. Was getting a little worried there because my brother set up the account initially, so I wasn't sure what he set my username and password as over a year ago.
Usually I'm more selective as to what I delete, but this time I just deleted them all. Boy, was that a questionable move on my part. LOL.
It's really looking like I'm going to have to break down and buy a new puter. This weekend I had to update my antivirus software because I could no longer resubscribe to Norton's using their Internet Security 2001 software. After much wrangling, I've got it working with the 2004 version, but it has slowed down the speed of my puter significantly. They just keep making these programs bigger and bigger....arrrgghhh.
The reason I haven't bought a new puter yet is a) money, b) this one has served me so well, c) well, money, LOL. I know I need to purchase a new heat pump for the house this fall and could also use some new carpet by the spring. Putting out another $1000-$1500 for a new computer is just something I've been reluctant to do.
But on the flip side the nearly $2000 I spent in Jan 1999 has lasted me nearly 6 years. That's pretty damn good for a puter. ;) Hopefully my next one will last another 6 years. BTW ... my current puter is a Dell and my next one will be a Dell as well. ;)
With three years of blogging under my belt, I find myself blogging less and less. Is it because I have less time or less to say or both?
Ever have a day (when NOT PMSing) when you're just frustrated at everything for no real good reason? I'm having one of those days. I hope that it's just the weather. Otherwise, look out, LOL.
I mean, I even stopped at the mall and bought clothes at lunch, and I'm still feeling like a raging bitch! I must need a vacation.
[I did manage to buy 2 skirts, 2 tops and a camosole for under $60 total. I should be jazzed and instead I'm all pissy. Blah!]
Maybe I can get my brother Joe to design a new blog layout for me (when I see him this weekend) or have him create a graphic for it and I'll do the rest. I think after a year, it's time to spruce up the place again. This layout doesn't excite me at all. I guess I'm having the blogger blahs after blogging for nearly 3 years....
I think I'll be asking for money towards a digital camera this Christmas. I've decided I want to splurge and buy a good one. The one my brother has is okay but nothing to shout about. Maybe I'd blog more if I was able to put up cool, sharp photos like some other bloggers.
Two days ago I saw a raccoon just before dusk wandering around on a neighbor's patio. At first, I had thought it was a cat. But when it looked directly at me, I realized it was a raccoon. And he realized I was looking at him and he decided to scoot under the patio through a small hole. I wonder if these neighbors in the next street know they have a raccoon tenant living under their patio.
Thank God it's Friday and the start of another great weekend. Temperatures around 80 for another weekend. Gotta love it. So far, this has become one of the best summers we've had in a long time.
I prolly jinxed it now.....damn. LOL.
Tonight during my walk around the lake, I paused to look at the heron. (Incidentally, last night I saw *3* herons in one area of the lake, a new record)
I heard some splashing and moved closer to inspect what was splashing close to the heron. I soon realized it was a duck in distress. I'm not sure if its wing or foot was caught on something, but it quickly became clear that it would drown if not freed. Two women and a dog stopped to see what was going on and they too became concerned for the duck. We tried grabbing a long stick to use in our effort to free the duck. Before we knew it, a jogger stopped and he made his way to the bank in a position closest to the duck. (There's lots of trees and underbrush one had to contend with to get near the duck).
He quickly found that using a stick to move the branch near the duck was not going to be enough to free the duck. And the duck was running out of energy from struggling and was starting to sink below the surface. He tried balancing on a log close to the duck, but that wasn't sufficiently close for reaching out to grab the duck. So the fellow braved the muckiness in his running shoes, unsure how deep the area of the marshy area of the lake was and moved closer to duck until he could reach it and extract it from the water.
The duck began to flap its wings forcing the guy to release it quickly by the shore. Once freed and released the duck quickly swam away and squawked, perhaps for its mother. The guy was afraid the duck's wing may have been broken, but there was no way to check. The duck quickly moved from our view.
Hopefully, the duck will survive. If its wing is broken, it may not. But we just couldn't stand by and let it drown. At least know it has a chance of survival.
This week, Mom and I have been taking a walk around the lake every day. Most days we saw a momma wood duck and her 19 ducklings. Yes, 19!
We're not sure whether she layed and hatched all 19, but they are all hers now. Another wood duck has 6 ducklings as well, but we only saw her a couple times. And a third one has none, but seems to have wanted to abscond a few from the one with 19 yesterday, but the mom and even a few babies chased her away.
The sweetest thing is seeing all 19 plus momma wood duck perched on a fallen tree, snuggling together in a long line along its length. They look so adorable. We've found that in just a week they've already grown so much. They just grow up too fast! ;)
We also have a few sets of goslings at the lake, but they are already getting big and ugly. The ducks are so much more pleasant and amusing.
If I haven't said it before, I'll say it again. I'm terrible about email. And sometimes, I'm beyond terrible. Sometimes I get in such a pissy ass mood or am just too plain tired to respond properly, so I just don't. Especially if the response requires more than a few sentences, LOL.
I'm a bad friend via email.
Gradually, a year after moving in, I begin to meet more of my neighbors. Granted, one of those neighbors moved in during late fall/early winter. But the others I don't think I even saw them in passing. Do they just hide in their houses? Or is it me doing the hiding, LOL.
My latest wildlife story starts with the sound of drilling in the early morning hours of Saturday. Only it wasn't a drill I was hearing but a woodpecker right next to my house. Well, sort of.
I saw the bird climbing down the side of a large tree off my yard. From my window I could see it had a black blotch on its chest and a red swatch on the back of is head. So I did a few searches and found that it is what's called a Northern Flicker, more specifically of the Yellow-shafted Flicker variety. It is in the woodpecker family. To see one go here.
All I know is that thing pecking at the tree was pretty freaking loud. Woke my ass up. LOL. ;)
I vowed that I would blog about the March...so here I am. LOL.
Much of my time spent on the mall was getting nametags for all the members of my delegation. In retrospect, I wish I hadn't had this job simply because I didn't get to listen to many of the speakers, nor did I get to talk to many of the out of towners beyond small talk while getting a nametag filled out. A couple of the morning speakers I did get to hear were Hillary Clinton, Lynda Carter, and Cybil Shepard.
Once our group did get to march, it was impossible to stay together because there were just SOOOOO many people. As someone said, it was more like a shuffle than a march because you could hardly move. It was amazing. Women from all walks of life, men and children participated. I was actually thrilled to see as many men participating as there were. I even saw a pregant woman marching with her belly bare with "My Choice" written in big letters on it.
After marching, my nametag duties were complete, and I actually did get to relax and watch the program. The most poignant moments for me was hearing from those who lost a loved one to a botched illegal abortion. Having them stand beforte the crowd telling their stories meant more than celebrities dragging their kids on stage. LOL.
I can't believe it. This morning, I happen to look out my computer room window at my young dogwood tree in bloom down below, when a movement catches my eye. There's this small dog trotting through the neighborhood.
Only it's NOT a dog!
It appears we have a red fox. I've seen possum, I've seen raccoons, now we have a fox!
It's not like I live in the middle of nowhere. I live in suburban Maryland, LOL.
Since the entry didn't take yesterday, here's the short version:
I saw the most wonderfully vibrant double arc rainbow ever on Tuesday. At one point it looked like I was going to drive into the thick band of colors. It was so cool. Then as I was driving on I270 away from it, I drove through an area of amber sunlight cast from the setting sun into huge puffy clouds and the wet mist on the road. Granted it made it difficult to see while driving, but it looked like I was driving away from hell (black clouds toward DC) and into a golden heaven. It was the most surreal driving experience I've ever had.
And the kicker was, I wouldn't have seen it if I hadn't gone to the gym. Score two points for me, LOL. ;)
I've been such a nut job lately. Sad I have to say that about myself.
Yesterday I was so freaking paranoid that my house was painted too brightly. You know, you just don't want to be the one that paints their house some god-awful color, that everyone cringes when they see your house. And when your colors are orange-brown and green, you do worry whether the shades you choose will work or not.
I was in a panic yesterday that the green my painter used was too light/bright, not thinking that the color might darken up as it got more dry, LOL. Of course everyone I asked felt it looked just fine. Like I said, I feel like such a nutjob these days.
Someone pass me some Prozac or something. I need to calm the fuck down.
Of course, having the job cost a good bit more than I thought it would, doesn't help matters. At least my tax return will cover it. Otherwise, I'd be postal by now.
*keeps saying to self--it needed to get done, it needed to get done....it's only money*
*sigh*
The only issue with living next to a lake, is some mornings the water fowl get loud. Quack, quack, quack.....that's what I awoke to. But this way I'll go to work earlier and leave earlier...to go pack! :)
I'm off to Miami this weekend for a bit of R&R. Can't wait. It's about time I had a bit of fun. 2004 hasn't been particularly positive thus far. Not particularly negative, just disappointing, I guess. And not much fun.
Do I sound wishy washy? God knows I feel wishy washy right now. *whine* *whine* *whine*
I had better come back with a sunnier attitude and a smile on my face. ;)
I had such a shitty day yesterday. I won't bore you with the details. But it sure doesn't make me too anxious to be heading off to work soon.
Days like yesterday make me want a new job--heck, a new career.
Hopefully today will be a vast improvement. Otherwise I fear I might go ballistic, LOL.
Ever have trouble waking up because you still feel exhausted and then you realize you've been doing nothing but running in each of the dreams you've had that night? That's my problem this morning. *yawn*
Spent the early afternoon cleaning out my home office. The whir of the shredder hummed in my ears as thin strips of white and colored paper streamed out.
After three bags of shredded paper and two bags of assorted trash, my office still isn't what I'd consider clean. Granted the bags I used were plastic grocery bags, not terribly large. But I still have so much shit in this room. *sigh*
What I did accomplish was:
shredding recepts for car repairs on a car I haven't owned in over 6 months
filing bills
shredding addresses and other dean related documents
removing old medical bills/documents from my file cabinet
put away assorted items
etc.....
My blogging frequency has been pretty shitty lately. I haven't had too much to say. But I find that to be the trend with me--that December and January are very skimpy blogging wise. Hopefully it'll start picking up in February or after the weather starts getting better.
God, I need a vacation. Someplace warm and sunny.
Combine PMS, lack of sleep, lack of sunlight, lack of warm weather and lack of time, and I become a royal miserable bitch. God, I hate when I'm like this. Thankfully, it'll not last too much longer. But I just gotta get through the next couple days and then I'll be myself again.
Of course, my mother will tell you that she never suffered from PMS. Ok, yeah, I buy that. NOT.
I'm disappointed. Here I was wishing for a Winter Wonderland and we barely got a dusting. What a letdown! LOL.
My Dad had pnemonia over Christmas. Bad enough to be laid up for two weeks at home. Because he had pneumonia last January as well, the doctor ordered a bunch of blood tests to see if there was something else contributing to it. Sure enough one of the tests showed my Dad's blood sugar was high indicating he may have the early stages of Diabetes. My Grandmother developed Diabetes around my Dad's age, so it's not all that surprising.
The doctor has ordered my Dad to go on a low to no carb diet and to lose 40 lbs. I think he could shed 20 no problem, but 40 may be a stretch. We shall see. But now the doctor called again and asked my Dad to come in for another talk. Mom and I are guessing his cholesterol may be high as well. Hopefully that is all it is--just the doc asking him to cut out the cholesterol or take a drug called Lipitor, which my Mom takes already. I guess we'll know soon.
Dad of course is whining that he won't be able to eat any of the foods he likes. Or any sweets. He especially likes Mike and Ike candies. Now we're gonna have to find him a sugar-free alternative.
I'm back. I'm tired of driving. Hell, I'm just plain tired.
Had a great 2 weeks break. More details on that after I sleep. :)
G'Night Gracie.
I probably don't have SARS, but I have been sick. Started with bad head cold, fever and moved to stomach bug. Either that or because I wasn't eating much due to the cold, it made my stomach sick, or it's nerves. Been planning a major Dean event in my area in the midst of being sick, so that doesn't help.
So far, I'm still alive.....
I slept a whole lot over the weekend. It was as if I was catching up on a month's worth of sleep. Which was great. But this morning I was still tired. I was like, WTF?
Well, by this afternoon, I started coughing, so that answers my 'WTF?' Sure enough I'm catching a cold. No wonder I felt exhausted.
And unfortunately it's the annoying non-productive dry cough variety. I whipped out a pack of Cold-Eeze in hopes of warding off a full blown cold. I got too much shit to do in the next few weeks.
Except now in trying to find the link to Cold-Eeze, I find a website that says they don't work....hmmmm......
It's been another Dean filled week. Watched the JJ Dinner on C-Span on Saturday, via the internet. Where the newspapers focussed on Hillary Clinton's presence, it was Dean who really commanded the attention, bringing 43 buses of supporters to rally around him.
Last night, I attended the late night Birthday Party for Dean, where Jesse Jackson, Jr. and other legislators/local leaders spoke of their support for Dean and wished him a a happy 55th birthday. The crowd was pretty pumped as Dean delivered another iteration of his stump speech. A Latino gentleman shouted out "Yes We Can!" in spanish at one point during the speech. Dean picked up on what the guy said and got everyone chanting the spanish phrase and then explained what was being said. At the end, Dean did the honors of making a wish (which he insisted we all knew what he was wishing for), blowing out the candle, and eagerly cutting his cake.
Today, one day after his birthday, Dean learned that his brothers remains may have been found in Laos. Charlie Dean was captured, held prisoner, and eventually killed in Laos almost 30 years ago. While I'm sure his family will find some closure to this painful experience, I'm sure the timing is strange in a way. Perhaps it is one door closing as another is opening. Things sometimes happen for a reason.
The final Dean event of the week to this point, was a group of us got together to write letters to undecided Iowa voters. And the week is not over yet. I'm certainly keeping busy. :)
The outside trim on my house needs to be painted. We did start to paint it over a month ago. But I've been too busy to call someone up to finish it. Part of the problem is I know some of the wood is going to need replacing. The question is, how much will need replacing? After paying for Tabitha's surgery and restitching, I don't have much extra cash.
Now with the bad winds last week, we lost a shutter off the house. It only broke a tiny piece off. (The shutters are plastic. Go figure.) But it is still sitting inside my house waiting for Brian to get a ladder so he can reattach it to the house. So the outside of the house looks odd at the moment, minus a shutter and partially painted.
Inside the house, I'd like to paint the kitchen. I'm still debating on the color. And whether to install a back splash behind my stove. I need to do something since we have a few grease stains on the wall. Yeah, the moronic person who painted the walls prior to us buying it, used a flat paint instead of a gloss or semi-gloss. Real rocket scientist.
I did send Brian out to buy some shelving units so that we can organize our storage area in the basement. (Yeah, I had to harp on him a few times before he went, LOL.) I'm pleased with the results...less clutter! Woohoo.
Little by little....
One of my dearest friends from college and her husband just welcomed a new baby into the world Wednesday. Rachel was almost 9 lbs! Lucky for Tiffany, she was delivered via C-section. I'm thrilled for them both and must say from the picture I saw, she looks just like her father. LOL.
I'm in such a funk right now. Or more off kilter. Something's missing. Just not sure what. I think I need to find myself again. And I don't think looking in the white pages is gonna work. ;)
A nasty thunderstorm rolled through the area, spawning a tornado which tore off a few roofs off some townhouses in the area.
As the storm approached my workplace, the sky just turned black. Very ominous as the rain pulled in. The wind gusts hit 65mph and the rain came pouring down.
By the time it was over, all the leaves that had been left on the trees were now littering the grown along with some tree limbs. Quite a nasty storm, late in the season.
I'm taking the day off tomorrow since my friend Sue is coming into town for a visit. Almost all week the weather has been gorgeous. But of course the day I plan to have off, it's supposed to get cooler and rain. Waahhhh!
I've come to the conclusion that some of my neighbors are mighty strange. I have one who has decided she is the champion of the row and feels she must lead/guide the rest of us. She's invited everyone over for a strategy meeting to deal with what she feels is a major issue, which is in fact quite minor.
Additionally I've learned she has three older single men living as renters with her in her house. She doesn't work, so I assume this is her way of making her mortgage. The problem is they take up 3 valuable parking spaces as we have limited open parking. The other thing about this lady is she wears the same outfit just about everyday. Very strange.
Another neighbor I've encountered has difficulty dealing with stress. She came over in regards to an item a few weeks ago. I suggested what she could do to get what she needed and she half spazzed, saying too much was going on with her husband's family--she just couldn't handle it. I wasn't sure what was going on, so I did the neighborly thing and dealt with it myself for her.
Well, last night she came over to apologize for how she acted that day and explain what was going on. Additionally I think I got to hear half her life story repeatedly over almost an hours time--spoken at warp speed. I almost went comatose during it all because I was so tired. LOL.
Meanwhile, I have a third neighbor who I talked to earlier in the day yesterday that clued me in on a few things about the other two...it all makes sense now, LOL. Now I know who to go to for getting the real skinny on the people around here. :)
My brother told me last night that he, my SIL and the kids are moving out of my parents house! They are going to be renting a townhouse starting in November. It's only taken them nearly 4 years to get their shit together.
Hallejuah. My mother will have peace in her house--finally!
Understand, I love my brother. But the situation has been fucked up from the start. My parents deserve to have an empty nest. They deserve to have some peace and quiet.
I suspect Mom will begin the remodeling now. The house has direly needed new carpets for the four years, but she refused to change the carpets until the kids were out of the house. I couldn't blame her. And she'll be getting new furnature. LOL. I suspect my Mom is doing the happy dance today. :)
My cold continues to linger on, interfering with my workout schedule. I had hoped to go to the gym tonight, but a coughing fit in the last hour of work convinced me that it might not be a good idea.
And tomorrow night I shall not be working out either. I have a hair appointment. It's time to get my highlights done again. The question remains if I shall stick to the colors I currently have or will I try something different. I'm still undecided. :)
This weekend was spent doing things around the house. My dad and brother worked on painting some of the wood on the exterior of the house. Mom and I went running around time trying to match the paint I have, and had no luck at Sears or Lowes. Duron, where the paint was originally from, is closed on Sundays and has limited hours on Saturdays. So they painted with the small amount that we had from the previous owners. The rest will have to be completed at another time. I will probably have to hire a painter, since my Dad informed me he doesn't go up that high on a ladder. I have to admit, I wouldn't be comfortable going up that high either. LOL.
Mom and I did some gardening. I had purchased more bulbs. I got a set of 10 bulbs of what are called Lily Tulips. They are red star shaped tulips that open much more than your typical tulip. I liked them because they looked different. Also I bought a set of 30 mixed narcissi bulbs. (narcissi = smaller daffodils)
On Saturday, we ripped out my portulaccas which looked to be in poor health and weeded the back garden. Brian raked up the leaves that littered the yard from Isabel. Basically we accomplished a lot this weekend...it's quite satisfying.
For all the hard work Dad (and Mom) put in, Brian and I treated them to dinner at Outback Steakhouse. It wasn't the best Outback experience we've had, but I think they were recovering from the Power Outage caused by Isabel. Again, I'm thankful we didn't lose power at my house. :)
I've been fortunate in that we never lost power here during the storm. Other folks in my area have not been so fortunate. I know of one person who was told it could take up to a week to restore his power. Uggh.
And when I was passing out flyers to people [as part of Dean visibility day] several asked if Dean could get their power back on and if so...they'd vote for him, LOL.
While several folks felt the need to tell me how they are Republicans and are proud to be Americans under the Bush administration, I had many more who voiced their support of Dean. One in fact told me that she had been a Republican, but Bush angered her so much with his policies that she had recently switched to being a registered Democrat just so she could vote for Dean in the primaries. I encouraged her to sign up at DeanforAmerica.com as a Dean supporter since the goal set for September is to sign up 450,000 Dean supporters. Currently that number is at over 410,000 people. She said she hadn't signed up yet and she would!
In passing out flyers today, I told people what information the flyers had on them and asked if they were interested in receiving one. I see no point in giving out flyers to those with no interest. There were plenty of folks who had heard of Howard Dean or who were interested in a Democratic Presidential candidate and eagerly took a flyer. Those were the folks I was interested in targeting. I find that it's important to be polite to everyone including those who did not wish to take a flyer. Pestering people will certainly not make a good impression upon them.
In all I think our group of three handed out nearly all of the 200 flyers that I had copied at Kinkos. I feel fairly satisfied that we reached some people who had never heard of Howard Dean. :)
I had written a new entry for today. But MT and my host conspired together to eat it. *sigh*
Now you'll get the short version: I'm getting sick. (sore throat continues...) And Isabel is eyeing DC. Therefore I may not go to work. And DC will be closed. LOL.
Actually my lab is mostly prepared for the storm. We covered almost all of our major equipment with plastic in case the roof leaks. And we are planning to unplug all unnecessary equipment in case there is a power surge. Those are likely scenarios. Not much we can do about worst-case scenarios.
And at home I've brought in most everything that can blow away. I'm about as ready as I'm gonna be. Now it's time to take the Nyquil...Good night Gracie, LOL.
In addition to anticipating lots of wind and rain, I'm now coming down with a cold. At least I think I am. So far I have a sore throat. If I'm lucky it's just allergy related. But there's been a cold bug going around work, so I'm not so sure. Lucky me....
It's been bizarre to say the least. And busy to boot. In spite of it being a 4 day week, I felt exhausted, and greedily slept in this morning. Ahhh...it felt sooo good.
I'll add that fall is definitely in the air. It's amazing how Labor day comes and goes and the season changes as if on cue. It was a cool beautiful day today, and we're expecting another one just like it tomorrow. Just perfect.
How do you deal with different personalities on the web and in real life? Is there a difference in the interactions between the two? I suspect on the web it is easier to fall into a mudslinging match, LOL. All that is on the screen is a persons words, devoid of any emotion, facial expressions, vocal nuances. But even with those cues, it's not always easy to deal with certain personalities.
Differences of opinion can be great if the people having the discussion/debate are willing to understand the other side. But have you ever found certain people will argue their point to the end and never hear what you are trying to say...they never hear your point of view, only themselves talking. And do such people bring up debate simply to hear themselves talk? Am I the only one that encounters these types of people? LOL.
Then there are others who cry out they have been attacked when a couple less than kind words are spoken about their actions towards others. How is one supposed to express disapproval and disagreement with ones actions, without being accused of personally attacking the person?
Apparently, I don't get along with this particular personality set, LOL. Or so I find.
And I find I end up holding a lot of shit in, stewing over it, because I can't express what it is that irritates the shit out of me. And when the actions keep repeating themselves it starts the whole vicious cycle over.
So then I isolate myself, staying away from the person in question. But then that causes me to isolate myself from other people I would enjoy interacting with as well. My only comfort at times is when someone else expresses that they've seen the same traits in said person, they've encountered the same attitude. That's when I don't feel so alone.
But in the same token, all I can do is try to rid this sort of stress from life and surround myself with positive people. People who don't see themselves as above everyone else. People who feel confident without having to compete with every person around them.
Somedays its just hard to find those people. Somedays it's hard to heal and put oneself out there again. To trust people.
But when I get to feeling my lowest, I keep having to remind myself that there is a lot worse shit out there. I have my health and I'm not alone. So that's not too bad off.
I wake up and find it is a new day.
I'm feeling much better now, the sinus pressure has subsided. And it's a three day weekend! Woohoo!
But now, I have a house to clean...stuff to catch up on since I've either not been here or felt like shit the last couple weeks. *sigh*
I have this terrible pain where the bridge of my nose meets my forehead. Sinus pressure is my guess. Regardless of the cause, I'd like to be put out of my misery.
I hate ragweed.
This week has felt like a downhill slide. Nothing wants to come easy. Nothing too terrible, just little shit that adds up.
Isn't it always when you feel your best that the someone comes along and knocks you down a couple notches? You go to smell the roses and a skunk wanders into the garden. *sigh*
Thankfully tomorrow is Friday. But a busy weekend lies ahead.
A bit of good news...the AC was an easy fix. Condensation drain was clogged. That is a relief...nice and cool in here again. *g*
It's still rainy...and now the Post is reporting about it. LOL. It's been an entire month since we've had a fully sunny day. And we've only had a handful of partly cloudy days. When will the rain ever end? Everyone has been bitchy for far too long due to the gloom. We need a break!
Not to mention I'm tired of bitchin' about the weather.
Sometime I feel bad that all I blog about lately is politics. But unfortunately I am of the belief that this country has taken a major wrong turn since Bush took office. Therefore it has a profound effect on my outlook on life.
But let me try to write some stuff about me. Yesterday I went to Marlo Furniture and Hamilton Furniture in Rockville to look at dining room furniture and sleeper sofas. Saw a few things I liked, but nothing that I felt comfortable buying just yet. The big question I have is should I buy the cheaper sleeper sofa, or invest in something more expensive on the premise it will last longer? The other issue is I have cats, one in particular who will claw the thing to some degree even though I discourage him from doing so. So that tends to make me want to go with the cheaper variety. Maybe I should just look in the classifieds and go that route? I just dunno.
It's been confirmed by my neighbor that it is a raccoon that's been eating my Gerbera Daisies. She saw one on her deck the other night trying to get into her trash. Ain't that lovely? I did see a squirrel on my deck yesterday as well. The wildlife abounds, lol.
That's all that is exciting here on the domestic front. No wonder I don't write much about myself, LOL. :)
Today will be my first day back at work after my week long vacation. It was so nice to not think of anything work related for a whole week. And even nicer was the beautiful weather we had during that time. Apropos, today and most of this week, it will rain. Of course that will make it that much harder to get my brain to return from vacation. Rainy weather always makes me sleepy.
Why is it that every freaking house around here becomes a bidding war when it goes up for sale? Even houses that need a good bit of work and shouldn't be priced as high as they are. How am I ever supposed to manage to get a decent house in this crazy market? And in the forefront of everyone's minds is the state of affairs with the stock market, economy, and the possible war with Iraq and God knows who else. Doesn't make one so comfortable to buy something so expensive. *Sigh*
Otherwise things are status quo on my end. Waiting to see if we are gonna get another snow storm on Thursday.
We're getting buried in snow here in Maryland. We had a few inches on Friday night and 10 inches last night and its still coming down at 1-2 inches an hour. We're expected to get a total of 15-25 inches today and tomorrow. (I'm thinking even more...closer to 3 feet total for the weekend) The best part is I don't have to go anywhere. The bad part is my realtor does. We're trying to put a contract on a house we saw Friday. We tried to put the contract in then, but the seller was not hearing contracts until today. And I fear it could get pushed off due to weather. But my realtor assured me he has 4-wheel drive, LOL. He'll be there so long as the contracts are being taken. If it gets pushed off it increases the chances of us having more people bidding against us.
I want this house. Period. But we don't have the ability to bid much beyond the asking price. So I suspect I'm gonna be disappointed...that I'm gonna be outbid. Any good vibes sent my way would be greatly appreciated. I've even been praying. LOL.
Just finished watching Chief Moose's latest briefing. I've found I enjoy watching this man speak. His words are purposeful, deliberate, and at times, moving. This morning he made pointed comments toward the media, specifically Channel 9, for releasing info leaked to them. He admonished both the reporters and any police officer involved. I found myself cheering. [my 10/7 entry details earlier thoughts on channel 9.]
While we are all desperate to catch this man, desperate to know any information, it is vital that the little evidence they find be kept confidential to ensure a later conviction, as well as to not tip off the perpetrator as to what direction they are looking. Clearly the channel 9 is more concerned with ratings numbers than the safety of the people of this area. Yet again they have shown journalistic irresponsibility.
Additionally, he showed his disgust at a retired police officer who has been making the media circuit in an effort to get publicity for himself under the guise of being an expert in terms of talking of the shooting and playing Monday Morning quarterback, so to speak. Neither the media, nor this man will be the ones apprehending this criminal. It is the committed police personnel working hour after hour that will break this case with the help of the public providing information regarding the case. The media is just trying to make a buck. I haven't seen any of the media outlets put their money where their mouth is and donate to the reward fund.
I find it interesting that I had no desire to watch Bush's blatherings the other night about going to war with Iraq unilaterally, but I am drawn to watching Charles Moose skillfully deal with the media. I find myself cheering 'Go Moose!' during his speeches while cringing at the idiocy of our president during blurbs of his speeches shown on the news. While I find Moose likely to have no interest in politics, I find him to be a leader for whom I feel great respect. I cannot say the same of the man the courts put into the Oval Office.
My Thursday was not one of my better days. I had to go into DC for a 2-day course. Living in the 'burbs this meant taking Metro (the DC subway). So I left at 7:40 so that I could get to DC by 9. However, Thursday morning traffic in Maryland was awful. I'm not sure why, but it was worse than normal. I-270 was jammed so the side roads were jammed too. And it hadn't even begun to rain.
When I finally did arrive at Shady Grove (Metro station), I looped around trying to figure out which lot had room. Of course I guessed wrong at first trying the garage, and then I had to exit onto 370, and go onto Shady Grove Road in order to get back around to the other station parking lots. I was yelling at myself at the situation as I was driving, frustrated that I might not be able to find a place to park--and then what would I do?
So next I tried the overflow parking that has been set up temporarily as they are building another new parking garage in a portion of what had been a parking area. Entering this lot it looked like it was full. I began to yell again in frustration--at myself--as I'm begining to panic. Why didn't I leave earlier and why didn't I check this lot first? Fortunately I decided to go down the last row, even though some cars had bailed and were leaving the lot as if it were full. It turns out that folks were parking alongside the trees in unmarked spots. There was room left for maybe 6 cars at best. And I pulled into one of these spots.
Now that I was parked, I hoofed it very briskly all the way to the station. Ironically all I can remember of my time walking was this one fellow who was whistling Irish tunes very loudly in a merry tone. The rest is a blur as I was most