2004 September

After realizing I was completely out of coffee this morning I decided to make a quick run to Starbucks.  I exited the main street from the apartment “Flame Tree Lane” only to find both exit ways coned off — HUH! — the management team of the apartment complex we live in often seem to bring new meaning to the word morons. So picture it, I'm in a t-shirt mussed hair shoved under a LG hat, every cell in my body is raging for caffeine and I'm staring at bright orange cones to both my right and left. Of course I called and raised hell. I was told a “flyer” was distributed on 09/11 explaining the exits would be blocked off until 6pm, no exit or entry. This is where I laughed (in a maniacal way) and said “Either you can come out and move these cones so I can exit or I am going to move them myself”  Rachel proceeded to appologize and told me to walk to the guard post and have him move the cones if I absolutely must leave even though no one is to enter or exit. HA HA HA— NOT! Of course, that's when I hung up and got out of my car and moved the orange cones out of my way.  

What idiot in apartment management would allow the only two exits/entrances to at least 50 apartments to be repaved on the SAME DAY at the SAME TIME? I'm no rocket scientist but damn people… WTF 

No worries… now, all is well, you see the caffeine has hit my blood system and light has fiiiiiiiiiiiiiinally entered my face - welcome - happy thoughts-  are entering as I write this rant…

At least I'm not trapped - I parked my car on the other side of the “cone barrier system” to ensure quick getaway, if needed.

Wicket puppy boy is in his new “punishment place” — the downstairs bathtub with the light off and the door closed. He hates it and is barking up a storm. We just can't seem to get these puppies house broken. It's awful. We are resorting to slightly torturous methods in an attempt to keep our newly carpets fresh- hence the bathtub “jail.”  The two pups are inseperable and no amount of “normal” punishment is working, so (sigh) seperation it is.

Poor Wicket puppy… bathtubs are so cold and lonely— especially in the dark. I'm crossing my fingers he'll get the message and STOP pooping on the carpet.  

There's a moment of silence… I better go make sure he's okay…

1. Yesterday was my nephew Christian's B-Day. Happy #2, Ki-Ki!

2. My niece came to spend the night with Chris and me last week. We had a ball - and are now proud owners of refrigerator art!!! It was cool to see Chris around kids. :)

3. We got YAHOO! as the official #1 sponsor of Gnomedex… YAAAAAAAAAAHOOOOOOOO!

4. If you want to see the old-timey fair picture and the “porkchop video,” go to Chris' site, he has it posted - I still don't know how to post video (he's working out now or I'd ask - and I keep forgetting to ask him when it's a feasible time). So, anyway, the video is HERE. The two bit hooker pic is HERE. ENJOY! Hee Hee Hee…

5. I'm getting my carpets cleaned today! Woo Hoo! I love freshly cleaned carpets. I also have a paint brush and paint to do touch-up work on the walls - before bed tonight, so it has time to dry. Don't you just love it when the walls are nicely painted? No nicks or smudges, and your carpet is fluffy and fresh? Now THAT is a turn on, yeeeeeahhhhhh baaaaaaaaaby! Wicket and Pixie are not allowed to make any “mistakes” after this! Yeah right, don't hold your breath, people.

6. We must be out of the house 4-5 hours to allow for adequate drying time of the newly cleaned carpets. Perfect movie and sushi moments. Yay! I may hit a thrift store or two and check for some vintage leather - I love '70s leather jackets. It's starting to get chilly at night here in southern Cali.

7. I must now get to work, just wanted to Hooooolaaaa! :)

8. I'll try and post some pics before I get back to business.

9. Hugs!

10. One of y'all wrote me! I officially have a “reader” (hee hee hee). I feel special, like it's my birthdaaaaay and it's nooooot. Thanks Debbie, you gave me a smile - when you find what you're looking for, send me a snapshot, please!

My weary feet are tired from visiting the fair. You know that tired - the good kind of tired - satiated tired? I've been restless for the past couple of weeks. I would write these really long posts and then delete them before pressing the 'Publish' button.

Where do you cross your line in the sand? Part of me wants to blurt everything out. The good, bad, ugly… and what about the downright nasty? Is there a place for that on your blog? Could you be open about hostility or ingracious feelings? Where do you cross the line in the sand for privacy?

So, anyway - where was I? That was a total mind fade…

Oh yeah, the fair. Mmmmm - it was comforting. The fair always reminds me of being a teenager. The obligatory carnival stuff was there - every food you could imagine on a stick, cotton candy, fried Oreos, etc. I can't say I saw any livestock, but we probably didn't cover the entire grounds. Chris told me the pork chop on a stick wasn't as good as a Mark and Gary chop from the Iowa State Fair. I'll have to find that out for myself.

It was fun to escape the normalcy of my life and step into the abyss of people doing the “family outing” thing. I took some movies, and Chris and I posed for one of those old-timey photos (where he looks like a drunken soldier and I look like a two-bit hooker). That was funny. I'll have to get some help and post those shots for you all to laugh at.

To all those who emailed me or posted here, asking how I am doing, I appreciate it. I'm okay, not fabulous, and far from unhappy. Mostly, just cautiously contemplative and busy of course.

I think I'm on some kind of internal reckoning, if you will. Maybe it's part of turning thirty? I'm taking inventory and making some larger-than-life decisions these days.