Woot!

The last box has been dealt with and I even cleaned house on Sunday. Now if I can just get some of the pictures up and the ones that we aren't putting up, tucked away. (Some of my older pictures just don't go with the current decor. The walls in the living room and master bedroom are sage green. My old master bedroom was done in blues so the pictures I have just look hideous, lol).

I want to buy a decorative clock for the living room. There's a niche above the fireplace that needs something in it to make the fireplace the focal point. Right now the TV is the focal point, not so much what I want.

I've discovered that even though the condo is smaller than the house we were living in, the only space we lost was a spare bedroom. We actually gained cabinet space and drawer space in the kitchen, even though we lost an island. I actually have two cabinets with nothing in them at the moment (3 if you count the weird cabinet that goes all the way back into the corner, but only has a little skinny door. If anything fell over into the corner I would never get it back out again!).

The master closet is big enough to use as a craft room (my old kitchen table in in there at the moment!), or even put a bed in for the kiddo should we have visitors. it's absolutely HUGE! You get to it through the bath, so there's a little nook with shelves for linens and towels. So nice to have the towels right there!

And my bathtub! Oh I get tears of joy when I think of the tub in the master bath. After 2 1/2 years of a hideously uncomfortable tub in the hall bathroom at the old house (there was an odd ledge that hit right in mid-back. Ouch.) the new tub is heaven! It's larger and deeper than most kid's wading pools and comfy enough that I can quite happily take a book in there and read in the bath for hours *grin* And conveniently, water is the one utility we don't pay!

There are actually cabinets, and even drawers in the master bath. I can keep the toilet paper right there instead of in the hall closet, where I kept the towels and linens as well. And I finally have a place to keep all the junk that one has in a bathroom. There are even *gasp* towel racks!!! (The master bath in the old house didn't have a single towel rack!)

I find that the longer we are here, the more I realize how much I actually disliked that house. (I said from the day we moved in that it was obvious it was owned by a single male, just by looking at the master bath. It was small, only had a shower and had NO storage what so ever). The layout of the house was odd as well. The layout here makes much better use of the space we have and the rooms feel larger, yet more cozy (that's the paint I think, no stark white paint in this condo, except for the kiddo's room).

And you can't beat the view from the back deck. I our last two houses we rarely sat outside, though at one point we ate dinner outside on the deck of the first place a lot the first summer, until the weather got unbearably hot, then never got back into the habit. In the last house I don't think I ever sat out on the patio.

Here though, we sit outside every morning and have breakfast and watch the lake with its ospreys in the nest, pelicans and geese, while listening to the red winged blackbirds calling (talk about a sound that brings back wonderful childhood memories!). We even saw 2 Great Horned owls one morning.

The other night we sat out there and heard coyotes yipping and howling. It truly is lovely and makes all the trips up and down the stairs while moving worth while!

Anyhoo. I will try and take some pictures and post them soon, since I need to send some to my mother anyway, haha.

PS. Speaking of pictures, my external hard drive just gave up the ghost. It has every photo we've ever taken on it. My boss is going to try to recover them for me, but it's maybe a 10% chance. But I don't have $1000 to send it off for data recovery. So keep your fingers crossed for us that it works, please!

A soggy 4th

was very, very wet! We spent a lovely morning and early afternoon just puttering about, the kiddo and I went to the bookstore and then we grabbed the hubby and went out for a late lunch, early dinner. Then the wind came. I had to move my poor plants down so they were out of the direct line, it was so bad. Finally, clouds that had been threatening all day opened up and poured. I had to tell the kiddo that if the rain kept up we weren't going to the fireworks.

Even then, I thought maybe we could find a spot to park and watch from the car so around 8:30pm we set off. We got to the golf course and parking nearby was nearly empty and the rain slowed to a slight trickle, so I pulled in with the though of just standing in the parking lot to watch. Then the rain started again and I told the disappointed kiddo it was time to head home.

We got stuck at a stop light while the police let massive crowds of people cross the street and I thought I heard an officer yell, "If you're here for the fireworks, go home!" But he never said they'd been canceled and between the radio, the rain and the windshield wipers I wasn't positive that's what he said.

So we drove home disappointed.

The good news was that they rescheduled the fireworks for the 5th and we all got to go see them. And it was a really good show. Short, less than 30 minutes, but the fireworks were different and fun. My favorite was a purple spiral, followed closely by the fountains that literally hung in the air for ages and slowly trailed into the lake (which reflected all the colors beautifully, I wish I'd had my camera and tripod, but I'd never have done it justice!).

The bad news was that traffic was an absolute bitch going home. I've never lived on this end of town before, and apparently most of the fireworks viewing population lives over this way as well! Next year we are taking back roads home lol. Anyway, hope y'all had a nice holiday!

Thank you

Thanks to y'all for your sympathy and kind words.

It's been a crazy week, trying to get ready to move (Tomorrow!) And of course there's today...



;)

Today is going to be the day from Hell

I have to have my sweet little boy cat put to sleep today. I've had him for nearly 20 years, since he was a tiny little kitten. He was my first pet when we got our own home, and he has outlived the other three sweet animals I got after him. But he limps so very badly when he walks, and throws up nearly every day. He's gone from the big nearly fat cat he was in his prime to skinny as can be. He has very few teeth left and has a hard time eating. Wet foods make him totally sick, so we never had that route. I wish they'd never done away with Tender Vittles!

This is going to break my heart. Which is why we've kept him around probably a lot longer than we should have. So now it's time to think of him first, but oh it is sooooo hard. I barely made it through work yesterday, knowing what the next day would bring.
He's put up with a lot of the years. And very seldom did he ever really get mad.
I will miss the fact that he talks to me, every day. A lot. I saw on tv once that American Shorthair cats are quiet animals. Whoever said that doesn't know my Merlin. He has a lot to say, and if he thinks you're not paying enough attention to him, he lets you know.
He was my cat from day one, following me around the house and crying if he lost sight of me. But he's been remarkably tolerant of the kiddo as well. Our female would just take off and hide under something or up on something. Merlin would let her poke at him for ages before he would just jump down and find a kid-free spot.

I will miss you dreadfully, sweet cat.

Good grief, y'all!

People really need to start taking responsibility for their own actions. I'm so tired of they way people blame others for things that they're responsible for.

Case in point: Our assistant manager was on maternity leave. Before she left she showed another woman how to do certain aspects of her job so that when she came back from leave she wouldn't have piles of work to catch up on. The other woman never did a thing, so sure enough the a.m. came back to a large pile of paperwork. When she sarcastically thanked the other lady for not doing it, the other woman said,"Oh I forgot and [the manager] didn't remind me."

For crying out loud, you're in a position of responsibility and you're a grown woman. you screwed up. Admit it and it ends there. But because she tried to blame it on someone else it just upset the a.m. even more.

And now a group is trying to sue McDonald's because it says Happy Meals are making their kids fat because, '"McDonald's marketing has the effect of conscripting America's children into an unpaid drone army of word-of-mouth marketers, causing them to nag their parents to bring them to McDonald's,"' said the leader of the group bring the lawsuit.

I don't know about the rest of you parents out there, but my kiddo can nag all she wants, it's still my decision to give her the Happy Meal or not. And frankly, if you give in to nagging all you are doing is reinforcing bad behavior. In which case, as a parent it's your own damned fault that your kid is not only fat but a brat as well!.

It's ok to say no to your kid. And if you stick to your guns and let them know that no means no, they will get the picture soon enough. (By the way, the lesson that NO means NO is a really huge lesson that everyone needs to learn and you're doing your kids no favor but letting them think that no means maybe, and if they whine enough it means yes!).

No one makes you eat at McDonald's. (Just like no one made that infamous lady take the lid off her HOT coffee in her car. Traditionally coffee is served hot unless you ask for an iced coffee, if you take the lid off while driving then, yeah, you'll probably spill it. And holding it between your legs, pure stupidity, but god forbid she should take responsibility for her own actions... See? We're teaching people to be stupid!)

Argh!

Ack!

The guy who was going to help us move just broke his elbow. Poor bastard, that has to hurt. But now who's going to lift my couch?? ;)

Hmmmm...

So the Wool Market was a bit of a let down. The weather was atrocious, chilly and raining. I made the mistake of going with something specific in mind and couldn't find what I wanted. Don't get me wrong, there were some lovely yarns spun from some amazing fibers and the prices were for the most part reasonable (although I think one of the more local stores had a pretty hefty markup for what they had to offer).

But I just couldn't get the perfect skein of red wool out of my head and nothing else compared. And to be honest, I don't have the money to buy a ton of wool just because it is pretty, with no plan on how to use it. So that lovely skein of hot pink silk with sparklies that was ever so soft was nice, but what to do with it? I need another scarf like I need a hole in the head (I've got the feather and fan scarf coming along nicely on the needles, and only one neck. Not to mention pink's not really my color...). And to buy enough for a "real" project is hard since I've no idea what I might need.

So I walked away empty handed. And the weather was so crummy we just went straight home. Scary, wet drive really for nothing (although I did get my ground lamb *grin*). Scary enough that when we were heading home we saw one heck of a wreck. We came 'round a bend to see flashing lights and of course your first thought goes to, "Ha! Someone got pulled over!" But then as you get closer you realize that there's an accident. This was a single car accident, and they managed to roll the vehicle (SUV) over onto its side. When we got close we saw someone jumping from the "top" of the vehicle to the ground, but I'm not sure if it was a passenger, or just the good samaritan that stopped.

There was heavy police presence in the area because of a marathon that day, so my guess is the State Patrol officer just happened to be in the right place at the right time, because he was right on it. I didn't stop since the officer waved me on, and I'd have been more of a hindrance than a help anyway. As I drove by I saw that the driver was still stuck in the vehicle. Never did see a news report about it, so I hope he was ok.

Just a word of warning to anyone who might be driving Highway 34 to Estes Park: It's a tough road at the best of times. And while I admit to frequently getting pissed at slow moving tourists when I am behind them (but I commuted up and down that road for years, I know the road very well and I still don't go crazy), if you don't know the road, slow down! Then use the pullouts to let people like me around you ;) If you need to be there by a certain time, leave home early. Some of the curves just aren't very forgiving, with solid rock on one side and the river on the other. And when it's raining it's even worse. If you want to watch the scenery (it's a lovely drive), let someone else drive.

Anyhoo. My current landlord is kind of being a pain. He has new tenants who want to be in as early as possible on the first. Well good for them. But we have until midnight on the 30th to move out and frankly, we're not even supposed to be in the new condo 'til the 1st ourselves. I think they are going to give us the keys on the 30th, we need to double check that today when we sign the lease. The new tenants here aren't my problem since my lease gives me til the end of the day, sorry but that's how it is. Hard to be concerned for them when I am concerned about our move.

Almost here!

Just have to get through today, then tomorrow is all about the WOOL! Sadly, the weather is abysmal (49 degrees and scattered thunderstorms tomorrow), so there will be no outdoor knitting in public for me(Worldwide Knit in Public Day has become a week now, it starts today. Does the break room at work count? I'd knit up front too, but they won't let me lol) 'til maybe next week.

This will be the first time in years that we haven't gone on the Saturday, but when we were planning my vacation time I wasn't thinking that by agreeing to work the Saturday after I came back I was hosing myself, I was just thinking about the joys of having 8 days off in a row, lol.

So all you wool addicts in Colorado, please leave me some *grin* There are 3 booths on my must visit list (as always!): Brooks Farm, Plain & Fancy Sheep & Wool Co. and Interlacements. last year I was a very good girl and *Gasp!* didn't buy anything but a felting kit (which I never got to use because my daughter snagged it while I wasn't looking and messed it up, waaa) and a couple of pounds of ground lamb.

This year I still have to watch my pennies, since we are moving at the end of the month, but if something jumps out at me, I'm buying. We shall call it my reward for winning $74 at Safety Bingo at work!). I hope the lamb vendor is there again this year too, because I need more.

gLee!

Ooooh, I just knew Quinn was going to go into labor! I also knew tonight was going to be a tear jerker, since "Will" said he had to battle tears all through filming in the behind the scenes.

Oops gotta go, it's back on lol.

K, so am I the only one who felt a bit let down? I guess after some of the awesome episodes this season, this one just didn't live up to the "finale" label for me. And Rachel's mother adopting Quinn's baby just felt too pat. (Yes, it made me tear up, but still... *g*).

It was a good episode, don't get me wrong, but I guess, knowing that Glee had been renewed, I expected them to do better at Regionals. And dammit, I wanted to see Jesse get served ;)~ (Don't get me started on Bohemian Rhapsody, sorry Jonathan, you're no Freddie Mercury!) And wow, what the heck happened to Olivia Newton John? They made her into such a bitch, rofl.

I'm a gLeek! (Spoilers Ahead!)

I broke down and started watching Glee the other day. And I couldn't stop! I watched all 21 episodes in 2 days, lol. Now I'm jonesing for the season finale on Tuesday ;)~

I just adore Kurt, I wish they would give him more solos. I almost cried when he sang "Defying Gravity" (and then threw the high note, waaaa). I would have really have liked to have seen a bit of him singing with the Cheerios at Nationals.

Honestly, they all have great voices, and frankly I would like to see someone other than "Rachel" be featured a bit more.

I don't like Rachel, she's a whiny little diva, but I wanted to smack Jesse for being such a jerk. I knew the little sh*t was up to something, lol. A small part of me was hoping for a bit of redemption, when he told Rachel's mom that he actually liked her, then he smashed that egg in her face after telling her he'd loved her. Boo. I loved it when they got Funked by New Directions in the end.

"They did a funk number. We've never been able to pull off a funk number"

"That's because we're soulless automatons."

"I'm so depressed."

Is it Tuesday yet??

June is here!

And guess what happens in June?? The Estes Park Wool Market :) This year I will be going up on Sunday, since I have to work all day Saturday (blech, but I can't complain too much, since I'm on vacation at the moment!).

No idea what (if anything) I will buy this year, but it is always worth a look. I'm hoping the lamb vendor will be there again this year as I could use some more ground lamb. Gordon Ramsey says the secret to an excellent Shepard's Pie is using lamb, and we make Samosas out of it as well. Yum, I'm getting hungry, lol.

And of course Brook's Farm Yarn. Last time I bought their yarn I went in looking for red yarn and came out with a lovely hank of Solo Silk, in blue! Hmm, maybe I should spend some of my vacation time actually knitting up that Solo... (Goodness knows I am all out of wedding shows to watch On Demand. Where this new addiction came from, I do not know!)

Anyhoo, we won't discuss that other thing that happens in June (my birthday *cough, choke*), but at least it's a good reason to buy wool ;)

Cross your fingers!

I've got a call in to a Realtor to go see a condo that is close to work and very reasonably priced. If it's available when we need it to be (NOW!) I will send in the paperwork. But I would like to at least talk to the Realtor about the availability before I apply, since it's getting annoying having to pay non-refundable fees for applications.

I know our landlord will give us a good reference, because he did on the last place but the wait is killing me! I need to have this settled soon.

Edited to add: Went and looked at the place this afternoon, and sent in the application. Crossing my fingers that we get it, since it is available right now rather than the 1st of the month. I really, really want it, because that would be a load of stress off right now. But it will be at least 24 hours before we hear anything, likely longer, since they'll have to talk to our current landlord.

Well Hell

The apartment we thought we were going to get fell through. Now that hubby has a job we make too much money. WTF is that?? We still make crap wages, and yet now we make too much because they are government subsidized. When the hell is the government going to realize that one single poverty standard does not fit all? The money we make may be a good living in say, Michigan where you can buy a house for less than the cost of buying a new car, but not everyone lives in Michigan or a place like that. I love living in Colorado, but the downside is that the cost of living here is much higher than it is in Iowa or some other mid-western state.

My wages would have paid for the apartment, and hubby's would have gone to paying other bills and for once we would have actually been able to save a bit of money. But apparently if you can save money, you make too much. And what if hubby wasn't working nights and we had to pay child care? We'd be right back where we started, broke all the freaking time.

I'm not looking for welfare or a handout, I just wanted a hand UP. Just a chance to pull things back together, get our feet under us again. A chance to be able to let my kiddo do something fun for a change, rather than having to worry about every penny we spend.

Now we are in full blown panic mode, trying to find a cheaper place to live in less than a month.

Argh!!!

Just when I thought things were looking up. We were moving into an apartment that is a boat-load less in rent than what we are paying now, and hubby got a job.

But hubby HATES the new job and we're still waiting to hear about the apartment, which is stretching our last nerves, since we're supposed to move in the 1st of June!

Part of hubby's hate is the schedule, it's nights and he's having a helluva time adjusting. He's surviving on very little sleep and a lot of caffeine right now. And of course the current landlord wants to show the place every 5 minutes, or the handyman shows up to fix the sprinklers (and then fails).

And it doesn't help that school is now out so the kiddo is home and already bored. Right now it's not such a bad thing, because she can go out and play with her friends. But when we move, we're a bit hesitant to let her roam around by herself in a new area where we don't know anyone.

But really the biggest thing for me is seeing my hubby absolutely freaking miserable. It hurts to see him this way, and frankly at some point if things don't get any better for him, it's going to hurt our marriage.

I have been so very lucky with jobs. I've ended up working with such awesome people in each of my jobs. And awesome people can go a long way toward making a shit job a decent one. My previous job for instance. I stayed for 7 years because of the people I worked with. I stayed until the very end because of the people. It had nothing to do with loyalty to the company (because at that point I owed them none).

My current job is great. My boss stands up for me when I need it (he just got me a raise, because he felt like my previous raise, when I got my promotion wasn't enough. I'm due another raise in July after my yearly review. That's pretty cool!) Yes, my job can be stressful and yes, there are clients that I want to smack upside the head. But the people I work with make it better.

The people my hubby is working with are all miserable. So when things get chaotic at work, it's not in a good way, because no one talks to one another except to tell him to go do something or ask him why in the heck he's doing something (because the other guy told him to). Everyone is just there, grudgingly putting in their hours so they can go home.

I'm holding on to the thought that things will get better once he gets used to the hours, but I'm thinking too that I may be deluding myself. Hell, I know I am deluding myself.

So send some positive vibes our way. We need to hear back about the apartment, and we could really use one of the other jobs that hubby continues to apply for to pan out and be better. Honestly, I'd rather pay daycare and have a happy family.

Book blog

I read. A LOT. Like at least three books a week (ok, we aren't talking War and Peace here, but still...)

Mysteries, Fantasy/ Sci- fi, a good old Romance. There are certain areas of non fiction I am fascinated with, like ghosts and Old West histories, especially tales of woman in the west (I live in the west, afterall.) I don't read Westerns though. Not my thing.

So last year I participated in 52 Books in 52 Weeks through Ravelry and blew it out of the water. So now my book blog just sits. So I've decided to start blogging over there more. Mini reviews maybe. So anyhoo, look for me over here every once in a while.

Spring!

Playing with depth of field at the Sculpture Park

Reading Challenge Update

How am I doing on Pollyanna's Terry Pratchett challenge?

Well let's see. This was the plan...

1. Read a biography of someone who isn't dead. Started that one today. I found this one at my local library quite by chance when I went to pick up some books I had on hold. It's called I Am Ozzy, and it is of course by Ozzy Osbourne ;)

2. Read a book about an animal, or with an animal as an important character or plot point. This was supposed to be Cat of the Century by Rita Mae Brown. I couldn't even get through the first few chapters and returned it to the library unread and very disappointed. I will not read another book by this woman. So I guess this part of the challenge is a fail at the moment.

3. Still haven't picked a book for this one.

4. Read a book with an anti-hero or anti-heroine. Read Guards! Guards! and then followed it up with Men at Arms, just to be sure that I covered this part of the challenge ;)

5. Still not sure on this one yet.

6. Read a mythological book, or a book of myths, or a book about mythology. As previously stated, I re-read the Lord of the Rings trilogy.

7. Go to the library and wander into an aisle you do not usually frequent. Pick a book from the shelf and read it. One way to do this is to look in the new books section, and pick something from a category you don’t usually read. Haven't really made it down any new aisles. Too many new books by my regular authors right now. But I will eventually.

8. Read a book about money. Read the only Grisham book I've read, The Testiment. On the recommendation of a co-worker I read this book and highly enjoyed it.

9. Read a book about politics. Nope not there yet. Unless you count Rita Mae Brown's skewed political views in Cat of the Century. But I didn't finish it, so it doesn't count.

10. Read a book about a protagonist going through a mid-life (or later in life) upheaval. Highly enjoyed A Year in Provence. So much so that I then read Toujours Provence and enjoyed that as well.

11. Read a book about the truth – a non-fiction book, in fact. What the Dog Saw and Other Adventures. Mostly a very interesting read.

12. Read a book about a strange new land, or a travel book – fact or fiction. Stuck with Pterry on this one and read The Last Continent. As always, a wonderful read. I find something new to giggle over every time I read a Pratchett book.

13. Read a book about sex, sexuality, and/or sexual politics. Read The Heretic Queen and Nefertiti. I liked them both, though I have to say I thought The Heretic Queen the better of the two.

That's as far as I am going today ;) So that leaves me with 2, 3, 5 and 9 left to tackle so far.

*sigh*

Got a book from the library the other day that I had really been looking forward to. I'd had it on hold pretty much from the day the library ordered it. I got two chapters in and couldn't read it anymore. The author has now decided to take her books and turn them into her soapbox where she passes along her ideologies. It would be fine if it were actually relative to the plot or did anything to move the book along, or even was a bit more subtly slipped in, but it's just right there, shoving the author's beliefs down the reader's throat. And frankly, some of the ideas are so unrealistic that I had to laugh while I cringed.

If you want to write a book about politics, then do so. Don't try to hide it under a cozy mystery book jacket. Sorry, but I won't be reading this series anymore. :(

Edited to add: I guess I need to start reading the reviews on Amazon a little sooner. Apparently I'm not the only person to feel that Rita Mae Brown has crossed the line in The Cat of the Century

And yes, I hesitated to name names yesterday, but really, what's the point of "reviewing" a book if you don't tell people what it is? If I save one person some cash or even just some time, by cluing them in to the fact that this book may not be their cup of tea then it's all good.

Randomness...

Where in the world is my Monkey sock?? I know it must be in the house somewhere, but I can't find it. And starting the other sock isn't an option, because of course my needles are in the missing sock. Grrrr. I'm being forced to knit the never-ending knitting bag.

And speaking of grrrrrs. Would someone please tell Disney that most of their acting talent really can't sing? They make me crazy.

Baby quests for rep in WoW suck, especially when the items have seriously low drop rates.

Working on a Sunday when you've become used to having weekends off sucks. I'm already dreading tomorrow.

And a completely personal question... Is anyone out there taking Seasonique or Seasonale? I recently read a medical report that having fewer periods is actually more healthy for a women and goodness knows, it's a lot more convenient as well. So if your are taking them or have taken them, I'd like to know your experience.

Sad but true...

I talked to my former boss last week. She stopped in at work just as I was about to go on break, so I pent the entire time chatting with her. Her youngest daughter and her husband are going through a tough time right now, financially. Before they got married they decided they were tired of renting and decided to buy a house. And why buy a pre-existing home when they could build one?? So they got approved and had the house built. Odd little things have been happening since they moved in. All the little things have added up and since then the husband, who made really good money, has lost his job.

So they decided to get their loan amended, because of course everyone knows that the powers that be want families to keep their homes now, right? They struggled through the process, which included sending in their paperwork 4 times, and finally got approved. Their amended payment? $70 less a month than it was. And when the daughter talked to a friend who works for the bank that handled everything, she was told to consider herself lucky that they'd even been approved and not to bother appealing, because they'd never get more off. Apparently it's a long drawn out process in which most are not approved, if they aren't so frustrated by the entire process that they give up!

With one in every 136 U.S. housing units receiving a foreclosure filing during the third quarter of 2009 (realtytrac.com), you'd think that banks would finally be willing to take something rather than getting stuck with another property they can't sell. After all, half a mortgage payment for a few years is better than none, right?? But banks don't see it that way.

I don't know about elsewhere, but here in my town, banks have to pay for upkeep on homes they own. Lawns must be maintained or the city will send a company to take care of it and bill the bank. And of course over the winter at least, banks have to pay for heat or pipes will burst and they'll never sell the property!

Seems like a lose, lose proposition for everyone if you ask me...