Lightening the mood…

Yeah, life’s been crazy… what else is new?

In so many ways, it seems like we’ve been in Arizona forever, and in other’s it’s hard to believe it’s already been two months - heck, over two months…

In that time, I’ve started a new job, we’ve (mostly) unpacked the house, repainted the bedroom, torn down a wall, taken a jacuzzi outside, rebuilt the wall - and windows, and door - repaired drywall, plastered, primed and painted that room, shopped for a rug to cover the nasty stains on the linoleum (that isn’t getting replaced because our home repair budget doesn’t permit flooring just yet!), tried to stay on top of weeding the overgrown yard (who knew a desert scape could get overgrown?), tried to carve out the “usual” house keeping, grocery shopping, cooking, living, etc, all while getting used to a 45-hour work week (what the hell was I thinking when I took this job?), and oh so much more.

My writing - outside of work, that is - has fallen down the tubes to say the least!

My picture taking has followed it… And there are several pics sitting in my camera waiting to be downloaded and ’shopped.

But I had to share my weekend (and it’s only Wednesday! Wow, I’m finally getting to Sunday’s activities?)

You see, when we got this place, we knew right away that awful jacuzzi-in-the-family-room thing had to go. And go it did (look back for my home projects…) We also knew what we would put in its place…

A pool table.

And so - we investigated inexpensive tables. And The BF hated them. They didn’t “play” right.

And so - we investigate used tables.

And I hated them. Plus it seemed silly. By the time you bought the table, paid to have it moved, paid to have it refelted and rebumpered, plus bought new balls, cues, etc, you were almost to the price of a new table, but you had no warranty.

And so - we shopped. And we bought. In fact, we bought this table, custom done with burgundy felt. It’s a gorgeous piece in that room. (I need to take pics!)

But before we got that, I saved some money.

I found a furniture shop having a going out of business sale, they were selling their display rugs at dirt cheap prices. I found a beautiful area rug, 8×11, gorgeous, and typically priced at $550.

Wanna guess what I paid for that rug? Try $62. Yep. That’s it. Mind you, it doesn’t offset the price of that damn pool table, but I’ll save a buck (or a few hundred of them) when I can.

Oh yeah, I don’t even know how to play pool. The BF is teaching me.

Taking a walk down memory lane… Blog style

Yeah…

So, here I sit, up to my elbows in alligators (someone kindly remind me to look up the meaning/origin of that charming saying) and I’m trying to keep my promise to myself. That one where I said I would keep my blog all fresh and sparkly clean, full of cool updated posts by Yours Truly.

And then life got in the way.

Between packing my house, working out the final details of custody stuff, planning a move, working on training the new hire coming in to take over some aspects of my job, training the existing employees who are taking over the other aspects of my job, the job hunt for a new job (in a new city, where I’ve never lived before), and all that goes along with those things, my blog has fallen into disrepair. Or is it dishabille? Or… Oh, never mind.

In the interest of keeping things fun, and because I dealt with a charming gent on the phone who, after receiving my resume, apparently did some world-class digging and found my little hole in the Web (yipe), I am posting links to some of my older posts.

Why? Well, some of them are those “most popular” things, though I’ve no clue why. Others are just ones I like for some reason or another. And no, I’m not telling which is which!

Want proof that bigger isn’t always better? Go here.

How about a nostalgic look at color and those crayons we all loved? Click here.

A funny story about a family on a camp out and some rather pesky wind? Try this.

And finally, that question women should never ask, “Do these jeans make my butt look fat?” 

A man in the kitchen!

Alright, so I’m easily amused…

Or maybe it’s that I’m easily pleased…

After living with the guy for over a year, you’d think I’d be used to it by now…

But I’m not…

I spent too many years doing it all - working, handling all the cooking, cleaning, etc, etc, etc…

I still just can’t get used to a guy who does this stuff - and without being nagged, or even asked…

Now, how can I possibly resist a guy who comes into my kitchen after I’ve made dinner, puts the leftovers away, cleans up the mess, then makes lunches for both of us, and cleans up the mess from that as well? Huh? You tell me…

Daisy T.C.T.B.M.B.F.H. stars in - Master’s Shadow

We recently attended a wedding out in the middle of the desert. And yes, I mean out in the middle - it was six miles off the paved road, okay? The dog was invited.

Yes, that would be Daisy, The Christmas Tree Ball Munching Boxer From Hell.

Supposedly, the Dog is “mine” - as in, she came with me. As in, I’m the one who did all the house breaking, leash training, puppy Kindergarten, etc.

Then, she met HIM, the BF and as far as she was concerned, I could go fly a kite, so long as I left HER with HIM.

Is this a gaze of doggy devotion or what? (I do have to say - I understand that look… I think I have it too sometimes!)

Note - the “training collar” is because she was going to be around other dogs, in an unfamiliar environment, where pulling, tugging and other “disruptive” doggy behavior are not good things. Also because we were out in the middle of the desert and this little suburban doggy has never been up close and personal with the variety of flora and fauna out there…

Mysterious Events…

Can you identify this item?

For some, it’s going to be a snap; others may think this is some strange relic, or perhaps even a hoax, not a real thing at all, sort of like Bigfoot.

Make no mistake, it’s very real and it’s very scary. Sometimes, it’s even infuriating.

I found this specimen in my very own home! Imagine that! Something this disgusting, this frightening, this horrific lurking just down the hall from where my children and I sleep!

It caught me unawares as I sat peacefully in my home, then, out of the corner of my eye, I saw it and I screamed. Fortunately, I keep the bane of this oh-so-unpleasant beast always at hand and I was quickly able to tame the thing.

By now, I’m sure some of you are laughing, or perhaps simply shaking your head at my attempt at humor. Others are scouring that picture looking for a tiny spider, a speck of mouse poop, or some other sign of an unwelcome visitor.

I’m telling you, this beast is a common and frightening thing, and it never fails to make me want to hunt down the perpetrator and sentence them to a month of scrubbing toilets with an old toothbrush.

Yep, it’s the empty toilet paper roll. Grrrrr…