Fix It!

I'm having a bad day today. I just feel crummy and kind of sad. My stomach is really bothering me because I ran out of my pills about a week ago. And a lot of my kids are copping attitude I just can't get behind. This makes me cranky. Also, we're to the point already that I don't get to see the sun any more.

Mid crankiness, when the kids in my group just wouldn't shut up while I was correcting one of the papers for a kid to fix I said, "FIX IT!"

The kids all stopped, checking to see if I was kidding. One of them cracked a big ol' smile and started quoting the SNL skit I was referring to.

He's my new favorite.

Empire Records

I have been working for a large bookstore chain since the first of July. I figured a summer job would be a good idea to help me in my endeavor to get some extra cash during the whole obtaining a condo experience. I chose a book store because that's where most of my money goes anyway and because I was hoping it would be something like being in the movie "Empire Records." But... IT IS!

I decided to keep the job. I work most Saturdays. Every week is an adventure. Customers can be entertaining and sometimes all too disturbing but it's the employees that leave me feeling the need to scour my old psychology text books looking for answers.

Ever since they found out I was 27, I have turned into a sort of mom for them. This is terrifying to me. Even more terrifying was the immediate level of comfort they have when it comes to sharing intimate details about their lives. The other day one of them randomly showed me her bra. Just to show me. Because it was new.

Which leads me to three weeks ago when a woman at my elementary school asked me if I offended easily. I said I didn't. And then she flashed me. To show me her new bra. That was winking at me.

So maybe my question here (if I had one) wouldn't be what is it about people that makes them feel comfortable enough around me to show off their underwear but what is it about me that says to people, "I'm okay with whatever."

Because I'm not. I'm not okay with whatever.

I just work here!

Victory!

I get that a lot of you won't understand how deep I'm feeling this but work with me. This evening I moved into my condo!

I bought this thing in July and as I've mentioned in previous posts it's been a hellish monster. But the bedroom is finally pretty and ready for furniture which is coming on Friday and it's finally ready for people to safely enter.

My parents have been kind enough to let me crash at their place since school let out in June and I realize the hugeness of this so please don't think I'm a horrible person when I say how happy I am to finally be out of there! "When are you coming home?" "Where are you going?" "What are you eating?" "Will you make me a sandwich, too?" "Who are you talking to?" "What do they want?" "Do you like them?" "Do you really think that's a good idea?" "Do you have gas in your tank?" "How much?" "Do you really think it's wise to drive on less than half a tank?" "How about you fill up your tank right now?" "How about you pay for lunch?" "Why don't you want me to come?" "Why do you need alone time?" "Is your alone time over?" "Is it over now?" "How about now?" "You don't have to be so grumpy about it!"

They were killing me!!

But now I'm free! Free to pack whatever I want for lunch. Free to make dinner for just myself. Free to take as long as I want in the shower. Free to watch whatever I want on TV. Free to go uninterrupted for more than two minutes. Free to write a blasted email without somebody breathing over my shoulder. Free to walk out the front door without being interrogated. Free! Free! Free!!!

In my condo... which I love... wholeheartedly... despite its flaws and outdated fixtures. Because the cigarette carpets only smell like independence to me. Sweet independence...

Victory!

Good Point
 
Sarah brought up a good point.  I neglected to brag about my new nephew in my make-up post.  So here it goes...
 
My new nephew, Brayden Lee Cretin, was born a little over a month ago on Sept. 3rd.  He's the most beautiful baby I've ever seen!  He weighed only 5 lbs 3 oz when he was born but he was very healthy and is doing great!
 
At a month old, he's not talking or doing backflips or anything yet but I am whole heartedly convinced that he's a genius.  He's holding his head up already and has quite a grip on things that are important to him (food mostly).  Also, he makes the Zoolander face all the time.  So at least he'll have a modeling career in his future if nothing else.
 
His dad reads to him every day out of the Thunderbirds stat book and so far he hasn't missed a Seahawks game so he's learning all the players and a few choice words (the season's not going well, kids!) from the audience.  He attended about five Mariners games in the womb and watched them lose their 100th game this season so he'll be a true fan because he's already seen them at their worst.  This means I'll always have a little companion when it comes to rooting for my favorite teams.
 
He dresses really well.  I understand that he doesn't have a say in this yet.  But that doesn't make him less of a good dresser.  It just makes him awesome.  And don't worry, I bought him Mickey Mouse ears while I was in Disneyland.  I'll be sure to take pictures.
 
Another thing about this kid, he's really mellow.  He has a "chill" way of life that I can really get behind.  Even when my sister's huge German Shepard/Ikita mix dog gets in his grill and sneaks a lick in, he's chill.  I like that about him.
 
 
 
Condo Update
I didn't have to work at all this weekend so I got to work on my condo.  Julie came over on Saturday and helped me add texture to my walls to make them all look the same and to make it look purposeful instead of the wonderful disaster it was before.  Yesterday when the mud was dry I went back and put on two coats of primer to even out the color and almost attempted to fix some electrical wiring myself before my mom stopped me and told me to wait for somebody that knew how to do it.  I felt okay about that because there were a lot of wires and they were all different colors back there.  I don't think I'm ready for that yet.  Today after work I'll go back again and paint it yellow.  I'm nervous now, though, that I made a bad color choice.  The yellow in my closet looks awesome but I'm concerned it will be too bright for my bedroom.  Maybe I should have gone with a light blue or lavendar.  I don't know.  On the other hand I really don't care.  I'd paint it black if it meant I got to move in there tomorrow.  So... yellow it is!

Making Up With the Blogging Universe

So it's been about a century since I've posted. In my attempt to make up for my neglect I am telling you everything. Everything...

Juice Squeeze
I have this new fondness for Odwalla meaning that I'm convinced now that I can't live without it. It tastes the way fruit is supposed to and has all the vitamins that would be in the pill I can't swallow. It's usually 90% or more real juice or puree so it's healthy (although not low calorie) and when I drink one in the morning I don't get hungry until I'm supposed to at noon. Odwalla makes me happy. Except... I might have to start selling organs to afford it. I only ever buy them on sale which is usually 2 for $6 at my local Safeway. If I drank one every day like I want to, I'd be spending $90/mo. And if I decided that only work days justify the goodness, I'm still shelling out $60/mo. At least there's no tax on food in WA. But still, I'm going to have to tone it down. I canceled my extended cable and that bill was less than my juice bill. Sigh...

Halloween Heartache
I love Halloween. Pretty much everything about it. I have a problem, though, because I can never decide what I want to be. The first week of the month I happily think of what I could be for Halloween and decorate my apt/condo with monsters, ghosts and witches. And then, around the middle of the month when I still haven't made a costume decision, I decide it doesn't matter anyway because I have nowhere to go that would require a costume anyway. Then, about the third week, I buy a costume (for my dog) along with tons of Halloween candy "for my dad when he takes the dogs out" and start watching my Halloween movies and devouring what my dad has left behind of the chocolate. By Halloween night when everybody I know (and by that I mean everybody I might recognize if I ran into them at the grocery store) went to the lame single's ward dance, I stay at home in my Halloween pajamas holding a bowl full of wrappers waiting for the single trick-or-treater that comes across my door. "What are you supposed to be?"
"Just take your candy!"

Camping Catastrophe
I have been camping at my parents' house since June. June! Do you realize that it's now October? I bought a condo in July. All of my stuff is there and I've spent countless hours in it trying to make it habitable. But it's not quite there. But tomorrow, so help me, I'm moving into that dump with or without the threat of harmful chemical exposure! Here's the story, kids. Although there are several things I hoped to change about my new purchase (replacing the permanent cigarette smoke they called a carpet, putting in new counter tops and kitchen floor, changing the bathroom fixtures...) the one thing I really couldn't tolerate was the HUGE mirror in the bedroom. It covered almost all of the largest wall. It was creepy and would possibly prove fatal in an earthquake. So, my friend Julie came over with her handy crow bar and knocked it down. This exposed some major problems. You see, whatever moron decided a huge mirror would be a good idea, also thought it was necessary to take a hammer and make tons of holes all over the wall. Maybe they planned to fill the holes with glue to hold the mirror on. But they weren't filled with glue. No, the glue was this black cement which they threw on OVER THE WALLPAPER! Wallpaper... it was still everywhere even though the idiot that lived there before me had just painted the room a nasty green color. And I'm using the word "painted" lightly because there were streaks on the ceiling, the carpet and he even painted over the top part of the blinds and all over the doors!! Yes, he painted over the wallpaper... on half of the bedroom. On the other half of the bedroom he had apparently ripped off the wallpaper but left the glue on the wall and painted over the glue. I have tried several different types of chemicals but only one of them took the glue-paint mixture off the dry wall. Unfortunately, it also took off the dry wall. So now I'm left with two choices. I can replace the dry wall or cover that crap up with some texture. I'm going with B because I'm not a millionaire. So all this evening and Saturday will be spent with some drywall texture crap (I'll have to wear goggles and a face mask because apparently it causes cancer) and paint. But by Saturday night... I'll have a bedroom!!! A beautiful bedroom! Well, at least not a hideously ugly bedroom.

DISNEYLAND!
My Heather turned 30 and to celebrate a bunch of us made a trip to the happiest place on earth. I got from it a break from my new stressful job, an opportunity to see some people I love, a visit with the sun that I'm going to miss so much this winter, a few new friends that didn't throw me overboard on the Pirates ride, about a dozen trips on the Tower of Terror's elevator and a new fondness for pineapple whips. I laughed more than I have laughed in years. Literally. And still, random giggles and smiles escape me when I suddenly remember something somebody said or did on the trip. "Guys, slow down. I can't make the minimum height requirement on my knees!" We witnessed a lot of birthday miracles with our awesome VIP passes, a camera recovery, extra rides on Thunder Mountain and vendors selling Coke as far as the eye could see. Why can't I live there?!

Gym
I'll be joining a gym today. I'm nervous because the last time I had dealings with a gym it did not end well because when the Devil has your credit card number and your phone number your life is over. When I tried to cancel my membership the guy called me over and over telling me how fat I was and how I would end up single without any friends unless I kept my membership. This is the same guy that had signed me up months earlier and had a freaking bear costume for a body. He was the hairiest person I'd ever met. I could see hair poking out between the threads of his gym pants and he had a 5 0'clock shadow on his exposed chest and it was only noon. Shudder.

Stalker
He was an Asian man probably in his mid 40's. He sat next to me while I waited for my plane to Seattle and watched me as I read. Just watched me. While I read. For two hours. Every half hour or so he'd poke me and make a comment or ask a question I didn't quite understand. I'd give an awkward smile and then go back to reading. While he watched. I loaded the plane with the first group and found a spot near a window. He loaded the plane with the second group and since everybody else mistook my pleading eyes of desperation as creepiness and left me to myself, there was a spot available for my stalker to have a seat next to me. Which he did. The plane ride went pretty much the same way waiting for the plane did. He watched me read and poked me every now and again. "Are you an American?"
"Yes."
"Are you married?"
"Yes."
At this he finally settled in and went to sleep.
Then he followed me to baggage claim. Not that you can really call it following when his bags are located at the same place mine are. But did he have to walk so close? I grabbed my bag and called my dad who was waiting in the cell phone lot. He said he'd be right there. But my dad is slow. Stalker guy came out and stood by me for a while. Then poked me and asked if I had a ride while pointing to his waiting car. Yes, I do have a ride. Good day, sir!!!

Freudian Slips

Last week I was at the M's game with my dad, brother and my brother's friend. I brought some snacks and was eating some Nerds. (Well, more sorting than eating really... it was a slow game.) My dad turned to me and said, "I'll have some of those turds."

"I don't have any turds on hand but if you'd like some Nerds I can hook you up with a hand full."







Then a few days later, my mom let me know that she had made some mint brownies. "They even came with those little Anus chunks."

"What?!?!"

"You know, those little mint rectangles."

"You mean Andes??"

"Oh... yeah... I guess I forgot the d."

"Amongst other things..."






Also, a woman I work with looks almost exactly like Linda from The Wedding Singer. You know, Robbie's ex-fiance that left him at the alter. She even dresses like her. More to follow...

Pumpkin Butter

I went to Home Depot. Because I own a condo now and I get to paint my bedroom any color I want! So for the second time, tonight I contemplated the possibilities. I finally decided on a subtle yellow. But which one? Sunflower? Ribbon Yellow? Mellow Yellow? Lemon Sorbet? Sunshine? Bicycle Yellow? They all pretty much looked the same. But I knew that as soon as I got home and started throwing it on my wall that suddenly my decision to go with Ribbon Yellow might be a tragic mistake. As I waited for my paint to mix, two men came to pick up their orders. One a large, gruff, white man with a beer belly and the other a slight, younger, Hispanic guy wearing a painter's uniform. The beer belly guy (BBG) noticed that a can of paint was missing from his order.

"Excuse me, but I'm missing my can of Pumpkin Butter."

The painter shaker guy (PSG) looked around and realized that he most likely gave it to the other painter uniform guy (PUG).

"I'm sorry! I think I gave it to the other customer there. Sir?! Did I give you a can of Pumpkin Butter?"

"Yes, you did. I ordered Pumpkin Butter as well."

BBG walked over to examine PUG's large order. "How many cans of it do you have?"

"Five. I ordered five cans of Pumpkin Butter."

"Huh..."

PSG looked around some more for the lost can of paint while BBG and PUG started a manly conversation. "Oh, I see you also purchased Lemon Zest and Organic Orange. Are those your accent colors? I was thinking about getting Pineapple Soda but maybe Lemon Zest would be better. What do you think?"

"Oh, I think what you have there is going to look great!"

It was at this point that PSG realized the missing can of Pumpkin Butter was still in the shaker. He pulled it out, plopped it on the counter and slid it over to the waiting customer. BBG and PUG shook hands and walked away using their best manly walks... carrying their Pumpkin Butter, Pineapple Soda, Lemon Zest and Organic Orange paint.

The color names seemed kind of cute on paper but sounded ridiculously wonderful coming out the mouths of grown men.

Changes

This summer I will be...

Moving out of my awesome down-town apartment into a maybe-semi-awesome condo which I will be (fingers crossed) purchasing soon.

Switching school districts, moving from my middle-school position that I love most days to an elementary position further north that I also hope to love most days.

Gaining a nephew.

Enrolling in some enrichment type courses at a local college.

Getting a summer job.

Visiting my friends in Utah because I can hardly stand how much I miss them!

I'm in love

I'm in love with Brett Dennen. His new CD has been on repeat in my car since Saturday. I use the term CD loosely because I actually bought his new album on iTunes and downloaded it onto my iPod and plugged my iPod into my car... but you get the idea... it's 2008.

I'm Not Sorry

Dear Madam,

I'm not sorry. I'm not sorry for anything. OK, that's a lie. I'm sorry. I'm sorry that I pretended like everything was okay when I ran into you in the parking lot. I gave you a hug and made small talk and smiled. I went home with a sick feeling in my stomach. I couldn't keep anything down for hours. I'm sorry about that. But my apology doesn't go to you... it goes to me. I'm sorry to me that I still find it so necessary for everybody to like me that I let people treat me poorly and then go out of my way to make sure they don't feel any discomfort in my presence. I should have made you feel uncomfortable the way you made me feel uncomfortable. Because I'm not the one that did anything wrong. In fact, I went out of my way to give you every opportunity to make it right. You purposely and pointedly hurt my feelings for trying to do something nice for somebody else, even making me cry and then coldly telling my I was going against the family's wishes... a family I had spent lots of time (hours upon hours) with just recently (did I see you there?... no.) and talked to them and asked them how to help. You spread rumors about me (yes... I hear things too). And then, I sent you an email. A disgusting email where I complimented you, gave you details, confided. And you ignored it. You ignored me. You purposely avoided me at the funeral then again at the shower. Well... guess what? I've been avoiding you for years! Ever since that day at La Fuentes when my other young friends and I invited you along with us during a break. We were all on our way there and remembered the last time we were there with you and how fun you were. We called you up and you came to meet us. Remember? We ate and laughed and had a great time... until the check came. As we all reached for our wallets, you reached for yours too and said, "I suppose this is the reason you invited me... so I could pay!" And slammed down your plastic as the waiter took it away. We sat stunned. Maybe you thought it was guilt, but it was anger. We didn't know what to say so none of us said anything... until you left. We all knew why we had invited you and it hadn't included money. We ate there regularly and knew how to pay a bill. But we all decided we couldn't invite you anywhere any more because we knew you'd always assume we wanted you to pay. We didn't want your money, we just wanted our friend. But being in your presence reminded us that you thought so little of us. We were your girls... how could you think so little of us? We still wonder about it when we get together. Where we went wrong, what we did to make you think that. But now I don't have to wonder any more. Because I didn't do anything wrong. You did. You changed. Maybe money is such a huge part of your own self-worth that you put it on other people. Maybe money is so important to you that you think it's important to everybody. But still I tried. I wanted you to like me still. I wanted your approval. But I don't care any more. I don't need a friend that thinks so little of me, makes me cry and offers no apology, avoids me and treats me bad. I don't need you any more. And I'm not sorry.

Sincerely not yours,

Emily

I have allergies

And Claritin is an expensive friend.

Fried Worms

Last Friday, I got some bad news. A family friend had been murdered the night before. That was sad. And disturbing. On the same night I learned that my mom was having a particular complication as well. A litigation has been sparked. That makes me nervous. Later that same night, one of the security guards that patrols the docks where I live hit on me. And not in a smooth, cute way. In a creepy-now-I'm-scared-to-walk-the-dock kind of way. On Tuesday during lunch, I learned that my friend died in his sleep. I thought I would be okay. I wasn't. They made me go home and I drove to Renton. That night Taquito woke me up at 4:30 am puking. That was gross. On Wednesday after work while walking my dogs and scooping up the doodie, what was left of Taquito's flu made me dry heave as I bagged it and then Chalupa's doodie was wriggling. I hung up with my mom and called the vet which warranted yet another drive up to Renton. $145 later Chalupa was tapeworm free. And I just had to laugh because why wouldn't my dog's poop move on a week like this?

Also, I have two cavities.

The Big Surprise

My sister is pregnant!

Yay!!

I'm going to by an Auntie!!

Yippee!!

Baby will be arriving mid-September.

This makes me so very happy because my sister has been struggling. She's had two miscarriages and she was beginning to think it wasn't going to happen for her. But yesterday she went in for yet another ultrasound and the baby looks healthy and she's past that first scary trimester. Now I can finally admit to her that I have practically bought out the whole baby section of a half dozen stores...

A Long Time Gone

So... it's been a while since I've posted. I'm not too busy to post. I have great internet connection. And things do happen to me that might be worth posting about. But I'm lazy and I always want to post pictures with my posts and I can't right now because I lost my connection cord during Christmas break. I need to buy a new one because I got a new puppy that's really cute. I guess she's not really a puppy. The vet guessed her to be about a year and a half old... older than Taquito... but I consider them both puppies because they're young and small and cute. Chalupa is awesome. And Taquito graduated from his Advanced Class at Petsmart so he's a total genius. Also, a lot of crazy things have happened at work that I could write about if I changed a bunch of names and details so I wouldn't get fired by a random googler. I also have another announcement to share but I'm sworn to secrecy for another week or two so watch for that. I also got a Magic Bullet as a surprise from my mother for my birthday. I finally started using it a couple of weeks ago and have fallen in love with making my own Jamba Juices. It makes me happy.

Football Nightmare

I had a nightmare last night that I missed the Seahawks vs Packers game (the first scary thing) because I was shopping with my sister and brother-in-law. When I realized the time and that I had missed the game, my brother-in-law told me that the Seahawks lost 14-17. In the last 5 min of the game, Hasselbeck had thrown an interception and Green Bay ran it in for a touchdown.

I realize that dreaming about football makes me a true fan... which is strange to say the least. Especially since I woke up from this nightmare sweating and checking my calendar praying it wasn't so. And it wasn't.

And it won't be.

Witness

Tonight was Taquito's graduation from the Intermediate Class. My dog's a genius. I got there a bit early so I could walk him around a bit and hopefully get him to chill before class began. I was about to make a right turn right in front of the store to score a good spot when I saw a van approaching. I was annoyed because they had basically cut me off to turn in front of me (my blinker was going but most people don't care about that) and they were going pretty fast and then they suddenly stopped so I couldn't get by and just stayed in the middle of the aisle for a few seconds. Then I thought they were doing a Chinese Fire Drill. Tons of teens scrambled out of the van and started running around. But then I noticed the panic in their movements and realized they either thought there really was a fire in a Chinese Fire Drill or something was seriously wrong. Something was seriously wrong. They had hit a pedestrian and the poor woman was lodged under the van. I squeezed my tiny car around the van (I love my tiny car!) and parked in the nearest spot. I rushed out to see plenty of blood, plenty of panic and part of a woman that wasn't moving. I asked three of the teens running around if they had called 911. Two of them said yes. One man was on the phone and I asked him again, "Did you call 911?" He said he had, that help was on the way and not to worry because he was a cop. One of the girls that was reaching her hand under the van told me not to worry because she was a nurse. They both looked like they were twelve. I started to walk to a quieter place so I could make a phone call of my own when I heard the "nurse" say, "Oh gosh, you guys! There's a lot of blood and I don't feel a pulse!" I called 911, fought with some Petsmart employees who wouldn't verify their address to the 911 dispatcher because "they didn't know" and "couldn't give out that information" so I yelled at her and told her to get her manager because something like an address should be available and because you don't tell a 911 dispatcher that you won't give out your address. Eventually I got the address out of the manager, verified my personal information to the dispatcher and watched two fire engines, an ambulance and and eight or nine police cars show up. When my class was over about an hour later there were still police officers there. The parking lot had turned into a full out crime scene with tape and everything and the van still in the same location. I told the officers that I had seen the accident, they asked me some questions, took down my personal information and let me know that the woman would be okay. She had a hospital stay in front of her and she was hurt "real bad" but that she'd be okay. Thank goodness! I still feel like I need to throw up.

Chocolate A-No-Go

So... Taquito ate chocolate. Kind of a lot. They were Cadbury candies. I had been eating out of an 11 oz bag for days. A little less than half the bag was left when I told Taquito firmly to be a good boy and then went to take a shower. I had secured the bag well... twisted it and hid it behind R2Delicious. When I walked back into the room Taquito tried to hide himself in the corner of the couch. I immediately knew he had not followed orders. When I saw the red, white, green and brown mess all over my sofa and carpet I gasped and immediately began cleaning up the mess. But within moments I realized just how much he had eaten. I felt the bag over and over, trying to remember how much had been in there before. I called the vet in a panic. After I told her how much my dog weighed, about how many ounces of chocolate he ate and exactly what kind of chocolate it was she told me that he should be fine but... to be on the safe side... because he's a small dog... I should make him throw up. To do this she told me to force feed him 1 tsp of Hydrogen Peroxide. I didn't have a medicine syringe or anything so I had to use a 1/2 tsp measuring spoon to do the job. It wasn't easy and I wore more of the stuff than he actually swallowed. The vet said it would work pretty quickly so she advised I do it outside or in a bathroom where it would be easy to clean up. So after I wrestled a bit of it down his throat I tossed him in the bathtub and waited... and waited. The vet had told me that if he didn't spew within 15 minutes to call the emergency line. I called the emergency line and went through the whole spiel again. She told me to give him another tsp of Hydrogen Peroxide, wait 15 minutes and if he's still puke free to give him another 1/2 tsp. If, in another 15 minutes, he's still puke free to just let him be... he should be fine. "Even with all the chocolate in his belly along with the 2.5 tsp sof poison I just gave him?" "Sure." So I hung up the phone and waited. I ended up giving him the whole 2.5 tsps. I waited some more... another 20 minutes... stroking his little head and waiting for the show... but it never happened. Eventually I decided that he must have a stomach of steel and let him out of the tub. He followed me around like he always does and then eventually settled into his doggie bed.

Phew... all's right in the world of me. I started to get ready for the Christmas party.

Suddenly, he jumped up and ran to his red blanket that he had earlier dragged to the middle of the room. And on it... and my carpet... he puked. A lot. Now, it's been a long time since Taquito's had an accident on my carpet. So, I hadn't realized that I was out of Resolve... a pet owner's best friend. I tossed the poor puppy in his crate and ran to Walgreens to get some more. Landlords tend to frown on brown and green puke stains on their carpets...

Resolve did its job and once again saved my deposit. I washed the red blanket for the second time in as many days and called the folks to let them know I wouldn't be making it to the party.

I ended up doing four more loads of laundry, each time dumping then folding them on my bed. I'd put them all away once the last load was finished.

But then... tragedy.

Silly me to think Taquito was done puking.

I had left to get another load out of the dryer and when I came back in Taquito ran to hide in a corner. I thought maybe I'd caught him chewing on my mitt again and moved it to my closet but something smelled fishy... or at least really bad. Then I noticed it. Doggie puke streaming down a pile of carefully folded laundry, then onto my comforter and my sheets like a disgusting volcano taking vengeance on a small village. It was everywhere! I have no idea how such a tiny dog could produce so much nastiness!

So... I'm rewashing a load now... with an additional load of bed clothes waiting for the honor next to the machine.

Taquito's really lucky he's cute right now...

Search and Give

Microsoft is offering a way for you to donate money without having to really do anything at all. By going to www.searchandgive.com and doing your every day web searches you can aid an organization of your choice. Personally, I would love it if you would choose the school I work at (email me or post a comment if you're interested and I'll send you the name and zip code) but there are plenty of other organizations to choose from as well. Microsoft will donate up to ten cents a day (one cent a search for up to ten searches) which will really add up!

Also, you can use your same login (you can use your Hotmail account or create a new one) to play games at http://club.live.com/home.aspx which will allow you to use the points you earn on prizes such as free movie tickets, music, frequent flier miles, Microsoft software, Zune, etc or you can donate your points to the charity you have chosen. Each point is a penny and most games give you about 20 points a game.

It only takes a second to sign up, the games are actually really fun and we do searches on the web every day anyway. I'd love it if you'd choose my school as we're in desperate need of some new technology.

Chalupa?

I had a dream last night. I came across a Chihuahua puppy that looked
a lot like Taquito but had shorter legs and a shorter nose. She was
on sale in a pet store and I wanted her but I didn't like the idea of
buying from a pet store... puppy mills, you know? So I went home. I
came back to the store a few weeks later and she still wasn't sold. I
asked her if she was Chalupa and she jumped up and wagged her tail so
I bought her and took her home. When I got home I put her in
Taquito's crate because I didn't want her around him yet because I
knew that she might have mites or worms or something... puppy mills,
you know? So I called the vet and made an appointment and called mom
and dad and told them I was coming up and then I woke up.

Think it's a sign??

Did I mention that I woke up because Taquito woke me up? At 4am?
Because he refused to go to the bathroom at 10pm when I took him out?
So he had to go then? And he had the world's longest pee? And I had
a hard time getting back to sleep? So I'm exhausted?

Think it's a sign??

Sports Fan

I like being a sports fan. I wore my Seahawks jersey today and was greeted by all of these people who were instantly misconceived to believe that I a) knew the names of the players, b) had any idea what their jargon meant and c) could make an educated prediction for this evening's game. But it was fun. Really fun! I'd walk into a store and be greeted by 1 to 5 strangers as if I were an old friend. I even got high-fived! I got to pretend just for a second that I wasn't in a huge city where nobody knew my name but was instead in a small community that shared a common interest. And that felt kind of nice. Also, the Seahawks totally killed the 49ers! Woohoo!