Wiggles reads

I didn't pose this photo, I promise. The book was closed and she was snuggled up sleeping when I left the room. I came back to find that she'd opened the book with her paw and apparently had a hard time getting past the cover page. She's downright exhausted.

Oh. Hi, honey...

Steve and I are wandering separately around Walgreen's this afternoon. He's looking for a small container to keep vitamins in, and I've found what I need, so I'm looking for him when I happen upon the candy aisle. I have a candy problem. Anybody who knows me knows that. Well, lately the problem's been Raisinets and that could very well slip over into Goobers. And the movie box candy is on sale for 3 for $3! (I was just talking with my class today about this--why can't they just say they're a buck each?)

Though I know damn well I shouldn't, I'm picking up a second box just as Steve comes into the aisle and sees me.

S.: What're you doing?
A.: I was looking for you.
S.: In the box of Goobers?

Oh people, I laughed. I laughed and laughed at the image of myself looking for my husband in a box of Goobers. I wasn't picking up candy to buy, no not at all. I was just looking for you.

There you are!

orange alert

Last night we were reading on the deck and the girls were sniftering their way around the yard when Belly starts on her orange alert, barking like a freakshow (she never does that). Steve's getting frustrated, telling me she's yelling at nothing (she really never does yell at nothing--she's not stupid), calling her up on the deck. She won't come, just keeps barking. I tell him to go down there and GET her if it's bothering him so much. He's not wearing shoes, so he can't. I go into the yard to get her and I see this very old man a couple yards away doing something to his fence. See, I say to Steve, she's not yelling at nothing. There's a man there fixing his fence.

I get Belly to stop barking and we all go in to start making dinner (yes, the girls help). Steve decides to lock the girls in so that they won't keep barking at the man. About ten minutes later, Belly's staring at the dog door and I say to Steve that we have to let them back out. Well, he's gonna go check on where that man is first. He goes out there and sees the man being walked back up the little mound behind our neighbor's yard by two nurses. "Honey, he ran away," he tells me. He wasn't fixing his fence and he wasn't out for an evening walk. He was lost. He was holding onto the fence to steady himself. There's a retirement home behind those buildings behind the trees behind our yard. We were completely depressed the rest of the night.

And then it occurred to me that maybe Belly actually HELPED. I like this story the best. The nurses didn't know where this poor little old man could be but they heard my booda barking barking barking at him, so they followed that sound. And they found him safe before he got to Hershey Ave.

and they're off

We leave today for North Carolina and Massachusetts without our girls and that part is killing me. Last night when we were watching TV and talking about how much we're gonna miss those stinkers, they start barking barking barking at people walking by, and I say to S., "ya know, it will be kinda nice to get away from that for a bit." He says, sure, but the minute we're on the highway, you're gonna be crying about how you miss them. My response: I'm allowed to have mixed feelings. So there.

I sure showed him.

My hun bun FINALLY got a new position at State Farm. He'll now be working in Death Claims. He's always said he wants a one-name name like The Reaper, and that's how he told me he'd gotten the job. He texted me: I am The Reaper! (yup, we now text cuz we're hip like that). He was a bit late coming home that day and I was visiting with Sam and Lucky when he came into the house carrying a big plastic scythe. Probably not a good idea to take that into work with him.

It'll be so good to get away from work for a while. I need to stop thinking about all the things that aren't getting done. Leave them here, on this blog.

Instead, look forward to the fun reading in my bag. And a sunflower bagel from Lexington, MA. Yummers.

dining room, revised

I've been complaining about this wallpapered dining room for a while now. S. didn't think it needed to be changed, so his silent protest was to offer no help. The one thing he did was move the china cabinet away from the wall so I could get back there and paint.

Worked on this all week. Here are the before pictures. Note the wallpaper, the brown chair rail, window trim, and divider between living and dining rooms. Hard to see in this photo, but there was also a pink venetian blind that we never used, so out it went (we have no back neighbors).

Here's the "during" shot. Originally I was planning to paint the whole room in that clay color (technically: "Of the earth"), but I decided it would make the room too dark, so I went with that and a light yellow (technically: "Castle stone").

After. Holy macaroni. What a difference white trim makes.

I love this dark wall separating the kitchen from the dining room. So neat and clean compared to the craziness that was that wallpaper.

One of the things we purchased with out wedding gift cards was an air compressor/nail gun and holy moly, I love that thing. I feel so accomplished with that thing in my hands. No more banging nails in and hitting thumbs and swearing at the top of my lungs so that the entire neighborhood knows I'm using a hammer. Nope. Not with my fancy new nail gun.

And guess what's the best part: S. likes it! He thinks it's a big improvement. Yay!

intermittent haphazardousness

You've missed me, admit it. I've missed my self. My writing self.

The local party to celebrate our wedding was a huge success. Weather held out for us--it was threatening to rain all week, but we got through it dry. A bit chilly, but dry. The party made me realize again how many fantastic friends I have.

We leave for North Carolina and Massachusetts on the 9th. We'll spend just under a week in both places. We've decided to stay in a hotel in Massachusetts because a) my mom's house has no a/c; b) my mom's house has one bathroom; and c) we want access to a fitness center. Never thought I'd see the day when access to a fitness center determined ANYTHING in my life. But there you have it.

As always, I'm feeling stressed about how many projects I'm working on and my recent rejection and the fear that I'm all washed up. Finished. Nothing left to write about that anyone wants to hear. And then there's that damn tenure thing I gotta deal with this summer.

I've had many bloggable stories since I last blogged and of course I can't think of any of them right now. Most of them involve my Hun Bun and his funny funnies.

Ah well. I'm back.

miscellaneous edition

1. The party's on Saturday and my trusty weather.com is calling for AM thundershowers. I can handle that. Just clear up by midday, please.

2. Baking many many cookies today for the party favors. Didn't want people to go home with a stupid favor that they end up tossing. Instead, eat it. Wonka, when I told her about how I was designing the cookies: Will they be in a little treat bag with cute little ribbons that you've curled with scissors? Me: Yup. She: Is it okay if I just eat mine right then and there?

3. Mom had triple bypass surgery on Monday and is recovering very well. She seems to remember none of her time in ICU, which is great. She'll be in the hospital for a few more days at least and then may go to rehab for a week. Nothing's sure yet.

4. The semester's over, grading's done, and I eagerly await the next version of my life writing class next spring. Damn, that was a good one.

5. Our travel plans for the summer include a 2-week frenzied, harried trip to North Carolina and then up to Massachusetts. All at once. Two weeks away from our girls; don't really know how we're gonna manage that one.

6. Schmoozin comes tomorrow! To help clean! Heh. I mean, to help celebrate.