(mmmmmmm...brunching on leftover pot roast with potatoes, carrots and gravy......)

Um, Thanksgiving? Is like two days away. I am just not as prepared as I was last year, so I hope everyone is forgiving this time around! *ahem* I've decided to give myself a break since I'm working this year - I just don't have the time that I used to, ya know? That's the way it goes.

I still need to hit the liquor store, but other than that, I've done all the shopping. I swore I would not go near a market until after the weekend, so I got it all done yesterday - picked up the turkey from Farmer George even! Here's the menu:

Turkey
Mashed potatoes
Stuffing
Gravy
Butternut squash
Home canned corn
Home grown green beans
Home canned baked beans
Home made refrigerator rolls (thanks to mom)
Home made cranberry sauce
Pumpkin Cheese cake
Blackberry pie

Also for the relish tray:
Home made dill and sweet pickles
Olives

And then Cousin Maria is bringing:
Ham
Oyster stuffing
Fruit salad
Relish tray
Brownies (not the fun kind)

Plus we'll have:
(hopefully) homemade hard cider
Captain morgan's and coke
Raw milk from Farmer George
Greg's homebrew

Think that'll do it?

Today we're cleaning up the house, not too much to do, just tidying up and cleaning the floors. I think I'm going to ask Greg to vacuum while I'm at work tomorrow so I don't have wear a mask around for the rest of the day.

I have to work on Friday, so I was convinced there was no way I would go to the Black Friday chaos at Fred Meyer again...but then I just looked at the ad and I think I may just do it. I need a winter coat and all of theirs will be 60% off, plus I can get new underwear and socks on the cheap. Last year Fred Meyer wasn't so bad...not nearly the crowd I expected. We actually had room to push a cart around! So I don't know. If I can get in there and get out again without too much trouble, I may even be able to nap before I have to go to work. We'll see.....

Greg has some jowl bacon from the pig that he help slaughter up on Shaw Island a few weeks ago with Podchef. Friday morning we're planning on having that and our own fresh eggs for breaky along with the Stumptown coffee that Hal is bringin. Yum! A whole weekend of awesome food - my favorite!!

Also - Greg had a road show this weekend, so we finally got the car in to get all the brakes serviced. Hurray! We can stop! Any time we want! I should be picking the car up any time now. And we also got all of the crawl space vents insulated and the back yard cleaned up and fit for visitors. Color me motivated!

Now that I'm working again, I find it hard to sleep in. Saturday I come home tired and it's all I can do to stay up past Nick's bed time! This morning I woke up around 8 (which is when my alarm usually goes off) and decided to just get up about half an hour later. It was the perfect morning to make a cup of coffee and sit outside in the sunshine. It's cold, but I was bundled up. I fed the chickens and then sat down to watch them.

The squirrels are out in force. I watched one run up through the trees around our back yard. Every once in a while he would start barking and a squirrel in the neighbor's  yard would answer. Lots of small birds around in the forest too. Everyone was busy except me. Maybe that's why it's so relaxing.

Our biggest Orpington, Lemon, was acting anxious while I was out there - pacing around the pen and going back and forth from the chicken house to the trough. She was getting ready to lay her egg for the day. When she finally went into the hen house and I could hear her in the nesting box, Little sort of went on guard: she stood very still and made this very low trilling sound. All the other chickens were still for a bit. Then after about 2 minutes, they all started grazing again. Lemon was in the house for another few minutes when Apple, one of the Reds, started BawkBawk-Ba -GAWK-ing really loudly. She did it five or six times and then stopped for a few minutes, then stuck her head inside the hen house and did it again for a longer period of time. It was like she was shouting at Lemon to hurry up! I think she wanted to be in there laying HER egg! I heard Lemon lay the egg (no loud BaGAWK-ing from her, though) and opened up the lid to take out the still warm egg. mmmm! I told her thank you while she got a drink of water and then before I could close the lid again, Apple was up in the nesting box.  All this time, I expected it was the chicken who was doing the actual laying that was making so much noise, but it turns out Apple is just bossy. Ha!

These are my favorite days of the season. The sun is out, it's cool and crisp and the maple leaves are turning. I can wear my sweaters and start a fire in the wood stove. Aaaaaaaaah so nice!

This weekend it's my mission to buy new shoes for work. Mama needs a new pair of Danskos! Hurray for shoe shopping!

I'm really enjoying my new gig! So here's the scoop:

I am officially the Manicurist at Jax Salon and Spa in Gig Harbor. Jack, the owner, has worked and owned his own salon in the area for over 20 years. He has some of the most loyal clients I've ever met. He has been in his new location for just over a year. It's a "5 star" Aveda salon and full spa. As the "manicurist" I am part of the spa team, I do spa manis and pedis (no artificial nails at Aveda). This is very different from doing hair - but I like it.  Don't get me wrong - I still like to do hair. However I'm feeling that at this point in my life I am more focused on taking care of people and healing and the spa is the perfect place for me. Last week I had my Esthetics license transferred over from Oregon (Hurray!) so that I will be able to do even more of the spa services - facials, body treatments, waxing. We also do ear candling, which is totally awesome.

Everyone at the salon has been great; supportive, gracious, friendly. I couldn't have fallen into a better spot. I'm feeling really grateful to have been given this opportunity.

The extra paycheck doesn't hurt, either. ;)

In other news....my allergies! I just can't believe how bad it's gotten. I've been reduced to using an inhaler about twice a week, even. I'm like the nerdy kid with the bad glasses who can't breath because you're wearing CLOTHES. Made of MATERIAL. This is simply intolerable. I refuse to be made an invalid by dust and mold. Last week Greg and I did a thorough deep cleaning. And we've kept it up all week, this week again dusting and vacuuming. I don't know what else we can do. I may have to fork over some of my newly earned dough to a doctor who can give me shots for my allergies. I have got to get some relief at some point. NONE of the drugs that I'm currently taking are effective: either they make my sinuses dry up so that they hurt and still not be able to breath, they put me to sleep, or I notice no discernible difference after I've taken them. Or a combination of any of those things. Stupid drugs.  For now I'm going to try going herbal again - nettles and eyebright, local honey and now raw milk from a local farm. I would be eating raw garlic every day if I didn't have to go to work at a 5 star spa. heh. Yeah, I'm thinking that would NOT go over well.

*sigh*

Our garden is growing right along. We had another batch of fresh green beans for dinner last night - the plants just keep on giving! And we have a fridge full of tomatoes, cucumbers and radishes. Something is eating my new red cabbage shoots like crazy...I may have to spray. We're getting ready to mulch everything for winter. We should have more lettuce before too long. And spinach too!

Our chickens are laying!! It's so exciting! I was so happy that I got to be the one to find the first egg! I felt like a giddy little girl. LOL They are so awesome - bright orange yolks and still really small pullet eggs. For the last four days, we've been getting three eggs a day - wow. I may be able to sell some of them to people at work. If we start getting six eggs a day, I'm not sure what we'll do with them all! They are such good girls!

We've had some beautiful sunny, cool Autumn weather here this week. I'm trying to soak it up. I love this time of year! We really need to get out and hike some more before the rains come. And I've got to start knitting again soon. So many things to do, so little time!

I was out running all over town most of the day, picking peaches and then going on a wild goose chase to find a moving sale that ended up as a big goose EGG. Bah! So comfort food was in order.

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This week I:

~started reorganizing our utility room/pantry due to finding mouse droppings. Boo! We mouse-proofed all the edibles and actually caught one of the little buggers last night in a sticky-trap.
~switched with Greg who has been using the third bedroom for his music gear to using that room for my crafting. Greg's keyboard is now in the living room and all my crafty crap is in the "office".
~with all the reorganizing and room-switching did a lot of cleaning, dusting and laundry...
~Freecyled a bunch of crap I haven't used in years, paints, Christmas stuff, fabric, etc.
~Baked bread, twice
~canned some blackberry jam: it didn't turn out. It's more like blackberry syrup - that Ball Blue Book let me down! It was their recipe for jam without pectin. Note to self - always use pectin!!
(we'll just have to use it on our pancakes, heh.)
~had my final interview for a position as a nail technician at a local Aveda salon.
~ Got hired!! Hurray! I start next Thursday.
~home schooling: we are reviewing third grade stuff and getting ready for fourth grade things. A couple hours every day for now.
~watched my winter crop start to come out of the dirt! Radishes, carrots, lettuce, cabbage and squash. We also planted some pumpkins, but I'm not going to hold my breath.
~started watching season three of Battlestar Galactica, which we picked up at the library. It's totally evil! I can't stop watching it!
~got to see Greg catch an escaping chicken, which was flying at him - he snatched her right out of the air! Now *that's* entertainment, folks.
~made some jewlery - a bracelet and most of a necklace.

Tomorrow I'm going to pick peaches. Wish me luck!

We call it the Fecal Roster. Here are the top contenders: 1. Qwest, 2. Washington State Board of Cosmetology, 3. The public health care system - oh wait WE DON'T HAVE ONE! 3. People who complain about the president not 'changing' anything while they sit on thier butts and do nothing themselves. If you can't get out from in front of your flat screen TV and do some thing in your own community, you don't get to complain. So do something!

Took the ferry this morning across the sound to Seattle. So beautiful! I actually take a foot ferry (pedi-ferry? - ew!) from Port Orchard to Bremerton and then the big ferry from Bremerton to Seattle. They have coffee. And snacks! But I was going for "brunch" so just coffee. By 11:30 it was already up to 80 in Seattle, but the sound was just gorgeous! It was Gina's birthday celebration so we had breaky and mimosa at Tillicum Cafe. I got to meet Barbara who was completely charming and fun. Seattle is great because even when it's 80 in the sun, the breeze is blowing and it's just damn near perfect. I don't get to see Gina and Michael very often so it was a real treat. And I love taking the ferry, especially when I get on the right one. haha.

There was something going on at the mall downtown and there were just hundreds of people in green and blue shirts with 'X-Box 360' on them. Soccer maybe? I have no idea. Anyway, they all came home on the same ferry I did (okay, not ALL....) and they were all equipped with those long blow up noise makers - they look like giant summer sausages, and you whack them together to make a clapping sound? Yeah. So this group of young men (old teenagers? I'm gonna say 19-21) were sitting in front of me on the ride home. They were intermittently hitting each other upside the head with these things or beating out rhythms on the hand rail. Ahhhh...little boys. When we were all standing up ready to disembark, I was watching them screw around and one of the guys was just standing there with the thing between his legs, absent mindedly poking the "head" of it down over and over. Hmmm....then he reaches over and sticks it between his friends legs and I swear, they totally started slappin' each other around, like between their thighs?? It totally looked like a game sort of a step up from "noogies", but seriously? With the Large Green Sausages? Just a bit homo-erotic. I have to admit I was fascinated and gawked unapologetically.

The ferry makes for some pretty great people watching. Did I mention that?

Came home and had and early dinner with the family and then crashed for about an hour. Now I think I'm going to try to get my sleep schedule back on track and maybe go to bed before 2am! What a concept!

It's the Fourth of July...isn't it a law that you have to eat potato salad? This recipe is tried and true - mom taught me to make it and she is the Pro From Dover (hi mom!).
Don't be fooled into thinking that that stuff in the deli case is actual potato salad. It's *something* with potatoes in it, sure. But it never tastes like potato salad.
There are no frills here, you probably already have everything you need for the basic salad already. All you have to do is put 'em together:

(for the "5 lb" version - No, I've not actually weighed it, just a figure of speech, but it IS huge)

8-9 medium sized potatoes
7 eggs, hard cooked
1/2 cup chopped dill pickle
1 1/2 c. Best Foods Mayonnaise
Tbls mustard (whatever you like)
Tbls horseradish (optional)
Salt
Pepper
Spike (or whatever all purpose seasoning works for you - it's optional. Mrs. Dash is really good)

Wash, but do not peel, the potatoes and put them into a large pot, make sure they are all submerged in the water with some room. After the pot starts boiling, it'll be between 20 and 30 minutes - after 20 start poking them to see if they're done. you don't want them too done or you'll have mashed potato salad. Under done - obvious blech. When they poke to your liking, drain them and set them somewhere to cool. You'll want them cool enough that they won't burn you're hands when you peel them, but not cold, otherwise peeling will suck.
Go ahead...peel them!

As you're peeling, cube them into a big pot and when they're all in there, salt them really, really well. REALLY well. Because over night, in the refrigerator, the potatoes will consume about half of what you put on them.

A note about the potato salad vessel: The bowl that is just big enough to hold your 5lb Potato Salad is not, I repeat NOT, big enough to mix the potato salad. See how good I am? I'm saving you pain. I use the huge pot that I boiled them in to mix it all together and make the transfer at the end.

Next, peel your eggs. And since I've been reading up on eggs and chickens that lay eggs, I'm going to throw this in: Don't be hatin' on the eggs that are hard to peel! Those are the fresh ones! Especially don't hate them if you buy non-organic eggs (at our house we call them the "scary eggs") because you have just reduced your chance of poisoning considerably! Yay you! Just suck it up and spend that extra time peeling the difficult ones.

Cut the eggs up into pretty small bits and throw them on top of the potatoes.

Next the pickle - chop and throw. At our house we like pretty good sized chunks, but I've also used dill relish for the job. User discretion is advised.

And that's it..the hard part is over. It wasn't even that hard, was it?
I'm going to confess that I don't actually measure anything from here on out. So if you think you want more of less of something, err on the side of less first, eh?

Now for the Mayo. Please, please, please, for the love of all that is good and right in the world, do not use Miracle Whip!!! It is disgusting and slimy and wrong. If you must have the *taste* of it, sub a Tbls of Balsamic Vinegar and a Tbls of honey in addition to the MAYONNAISE. Trust.

Also! Best. Foods. Mayonnaise. That is all you have to remember. Hellmann's to those of you on the East Coast. I swear to you I have tried everything else, and it's not as good. I've tried Kraft, Safeway, Hain, Spectrum, along with a host of others that my brain has chosen to block out. Nothing else will work. It has to be Best Foods.

Go ahead and add (it's okay, I trust you!) the mayo, mustard, horseradish, black pepper, all purpose seasoning of your choice and give your arm a good work out! Stir it all up! Make sure you get the ones that hide at the bottom. mmmmmm.......it's starting to look good! If it looks a little dry, add Mayo a little at a time until you get the consistency you like.

Transfer it to the Big Ass Bowl, reserving a small taste for yourself to check the salt. If it's just a wee bit too salty? You're golden. Smooth it out and if you like to be fancy, sprinkle some paprika over the top. Get the cover on that bowl and get it into the fridge.

You will be tempted by the potato salad before the next day. It will call you to; I just finished my own and it's in the refrigerator actually screaming at me right now. If the neighbors hadn't been setting off fireworks until 1am, I might worry about waking them. You will want to eat the potato salad and if you cave, know that you are in good company. I hardly ever make it to the next day before I have at least a teeny bowl. But the next day it will be soooo much better.

Plus you won't have to re-sprinkle the paprika to hide the evidence.

There have been a veritable butt-load of meme's on Facebook lately. And nearly all of them ask something about your name - what it is, what was it, what would you want it to be. Mostly inane questions. But it did get me to thinking: People take the naming of children very seriously. People take their own name very seriously. It's sort of strange how much significance we put on names. In different religions, naming something creates a particular shift in power one way or the other, depending on the name. As a society we seem to put a lot of stock in the social stigma of names (ever hear of someone named Bambi, or Cherry? What immediately comes to mind? How about Mildred?).

Several people in my family have changed their first names. It's no small feat. The family always rails against the name change and it seems that they take a personal affront to being asked to change their behavior. It's an emotional response to the biological way our brains learn. The idea of having to associate someone with a new name seems to create anxiety and mistrust. Unless it's a woman changing her name to that of her husband. Then it's perfectly normal! That really speaks to how our society is built.

I wonder how different our world would be if, when you showed up at work, someone could just come up to you and say, "Hey, today, would mind calling me Dave? I decided that Steve just didn't feel right today."

When I was about 5 I remember asking my dad and his wife to call me by my middle name, Elizabeth. I can't remember what precipitated the request - I suspect that it came after I met a family friend named Liz. Liz sounded exotic and dramatic. It didn't hurt that she had a personality to match and *also* was super nice to me. I wanted to be a Liz too! The request only lasted for a few hours. I think that my step mother may have called me by my middle name once or twice. I have a vivid memory of feeling very self conscious answering to that name. I blushed and tried to act normal, but it was clear after a couple of tries that it would take a lot to get used to being called by a new name.

Today I was thinking about what I would want to change my name to if I changed it and how it would feel to be called by a new name at this stage of life. Years ago, when I went to Alaska, I had toyed with the idea of telling people that my name was something totally different - not anything exotic or flashy, just new. I chickened out because I didn't think I'd be able to pull it off. I was sure that I would tell people the new name and they would call me out, and make me give up my real name and then think I was a whack job for lying in the first place!

Part of it is that I know that I have attached the way I think of myself to this name. It's like hiding under a blanket: if I used a different name, especially one that I chose for myself, wouldn't it be too revealing? People would know how I saw myself and it may seem pretentious or self important....wouldn't it?

I don't know - I have changed what I called important people in my life and it was only uncomfortable for a short while. After you say it out loud a few times, it doesn't seem as strange. Soon, it's like the other name wasn't ever even a proper fit! And I think maybe that is also part of what makes people so uncomfortable - that we can be so easily molded into our own vision of what we are. That we would force others to see us for what WE wanted and not what everyone else is comfortable with. The ultimate in self fulfillment!

How perfectly naughty!

Last night we had the first rain in over a month! And it really didn't rain all that much. I'll be surprised if our rain barrels are even half full. This is a complete switch from last year when we waited until JULY for summer to show up. Crazy weather!

I've been so happy about the hot weather - I'm getting tan again, we spend a lot of time outside. And my garden is doing really well. I'm so happy! I love to just go out and look at all the plants. We're thinking that next week we'll put in another plot for more tomatoes, squash and pumpkins. I might even try to grow a cantaloupe!

The chickens are now Pullets. Not babies anymore! They still peep though. Every once is a while, if one of them is surprised, you will get a sort of clucky sound - it's too much! I just love them. They are probably the most spoiled birds in the state. We are ridiculous - hand feeding them bugs and worms and picking them up to hold them and pet them every day. I know. What kind of farmer talks to the chickens?! *sigh* I guess these will be layers. We'll have to get others if we want to actually eat them.

Because of the lack of precipitation, our lawn is already mostly brown. I'm not a green grass sort of girl. Partly because I'm not real fond of mowing, but also for conservation of water. To tell the truth, with the cost of water in the Puget Sound, I'm not sure we could even afford to keep our grass green. No matter. I water what's important and let the rest die. It always comes back around October when it starts raining again.

My cousin Ria's boy Dafyyd is here visiting for the summer. He's been living in Texas with his daddy. It's been so nice to spend some time with him! He's 13, and even though he's a bit older than Nick, they've been having a pretty good time together. (Hi, Dafyyd!) Looking forward to some more outings with him and the rest of the family.

Around Nick's birthday, the grandma's all got together and decided to buy us a Wii. I've been pretty against video games in general (we got rid of our X-box when we left Wilmington in favor of a DS because I said we couldn't have BOTH - I'm such a stinker!). But I've really been enjoying how we all play the Wii together. It's the new family game night. And I have to admit, we'd really over played Monopoly. There are just so many times you can get excited over having Park Place and Boardwalk. We have Wii Fit, Wii Play and Wii Sports. Yesterday, Nick totally kicked my behind at tennis. I countered by taking him to school on the baseball game and then we boxed and bowled. My arm hurts! I keep telling Greg we should get Dance, dance revolution, but he just rolls his eyes at me. LOL You never know....he might be really good at it! And I think I've been getting much more exercise.

My bike is broken - part old used bike, part sitting in a moldy shed all winter with burning man playa all over it. The shifting mechanism broke right off the first time I tried to ride and we just haven't gotten it into the shop yet. Last year this time, we were biking at least 3 miles a day. I miss it! I've got to get it fixed soon.

*******************

So, I've reached the one year mark for the Puget Sound. I keep trying to compare it to when we moved to Wilmington. It's just not the same! Wilmington was so FAR from our family and friends - it was like completely starting over. Here, we see people a lot more often, but are far enough to make it feel mostly isolated. I haven't made a single friend here yet. A whole year! It did take at least a year before we had really good friends in Wilmington, but I think I was more out going there. I just don't have it in me to make friends that I might move away from again. For all my bitching about being on the east coast, I would gladly move back there to have my awesome network of peeps again. I miss it.

That said, the Puget Sound is absolutely beautiful. There is so much to see and do here. I am in love with the mountains, the water and the GREEN. When it rained last night, I just stood outside and smelled the green. Amazing. There isn't anything like it.

I am actually disappointed I'll have to wait for Grey Gardens.
I love Drew Barrymore and Jessica Lange. I hope they do the old girls justice. Do you think I'll be able to watch it on line?

I'm home now from a perfectly lovely trip to Colorado. I love to go visiting, but it's always nice to be home. Yesterday Greg and I decided how to proceed with the garden area. I'm going to start the seeds this weekend. I'm going to see if my Morning Glory seeds are still viable. I've had them for a few years...do seeds keep? We'll find out, I guess. I want to plant them all along the cyclone fence. This yard needs color.

Oh! And Greg has agreed to buy me the bird song identifier! YAY!

I'm reading an awesome book right now, recommended to me by my cousin Anj called, A Walk In The Woods by Bill Bryson. It is just fantastic. It totally makes me want to walk the Appalachian Trail. Or at least part of it. I guess we'll start with Mount Elinore and then work our way up. Heh. Inspiration!

I guess it's time to post again, eh? Sorry Livejournal! I've just been distracted lately. Damn Facebook....

So, lets see...sadly, not too much has changed. LOL I got to reconnect with a cousin that lives only a few miles away from me (hurray!) and that has been great. It's nice to have a girl to hang out with close by. Estrogen is a good thing. I'm still looking for a job. I have never been turned down for so many jobs! I tell you! I think I'm going to be forced into renewing my Hair license (which I should do anyway) and getting something part time. I think it would be a good thing. I hope I can find a good salon around to work at. Why, oh why, didn't I become a dentist??

Dentist, you say? Yes. Because that business is a total RACKET! (sorry Braden! I still think you're worth every penny!) But really! They charge CRAZY amounts of money. Crazy. I've been going through steps at the dental school to get a root canal and now a crown and I'll just say, Thank YOU for the dental students. *whew* Otherwise, I'd be gummin' it with the other 30 million Americans who are denied health care. *rant*

No, I won't rant on that today. I've been pretty down lately, what with all the ways our world is just fucked up. I go through those stages where I rant and rage about it for a month or two and finally I just have to throw my hands in the air and say, "I can only do so much! I can't fix everything the rest of you fuck ups keep FUCKING UP!!" and go on with life. So.

******************

Last week I made a White Crazy Cake and I had all this frosting left over from it and we're getting ready to leave for Colorado for ten days, so I was trying all week to think of ways to use it up. I also happen to have a lot of oatmeal, which I know I should be eating for breakfast with fruit and nuts....but what the hell.

In North Carolina, pretty much everywhere, you could buy either moon pies, or oatmeal cream pies, both of which were just a cookie with disgusting frosting type nastiness in the middle. Nick loved them, though. But I thought, I could makes some at home, we could take them on the airplane, even and they might even be good! So I did!

The first thing I needed was an oatmeal cookie recipe that made flat oatmeal cookies. This is not an easy task. I finally found it here:

Just combine the ingredients in the order given, roll the dough thin, cut it out in 2-inch rounds, and bake the cookies in a hot oven (375 °F is good) for about 7-8 minutes.

2 1/2 cups oatmeal
1 cup brown sugar
2 1/2 cups white flour
1 tsp salt
2 tsp baking powder
1 cup shortening
1/2 cup milk
1 tsp vanilla

No eggs! I used my kitchen aid mixer to do all the work, even. You roll out the dough, so it's as flat as you want, and there's not even very much sugar in there, so you won't feel too bad and slathering the insides of the two cookies with butter cream frosting.

Oh, and I used butter instead of shortening (because I don't believe in baking with shortening, unless it's pie crust - if you used the shortening and subbed soy milk, they could easily be vegan) and it worked just fine, but I'm not sure you could call it "healthy" (as the author states) with two sticks of butter in 30 cookies. What do we care?!! Home made oatmeal cream pies!!

(for my butter cream, I followed the recipe on the C&H powdered sugar bag and used Grand Marnier instead of vanilla)

Noooooow it looks like February out there - 40 something, rainy, gray skies. Ahhhhh..!
As long as it doesn't snow again, I'm good. Really. I'm just so ready to garden! And it has to quit freezing if I'm going to do that. So.

Went to the University of Washington Dental School yesterday to get evaluated and to get started on my root canal. Yay. My mouth is sore. I got back next Monday to have it finished up. I'll be so happy to have it finished. To anyone who is dreading dental work I say this: go to your local dental school. It may take longer than a private practice dentist, but you will get great, personal care for a *fraction* of the cost. Seriously. My root canal is costing me $290. Total. Can you even believe it??? We are still paying for the root canal that Greg got in 2000!

While I was in Seattle getting poked and prodded, Greg and Nick set up our two rain barrels! Greg installed the spigots last week, but we needed platforms to set them on under the gutter drains. Our neighbors had a shed fall down in the snow storm and they gave Greg the go-ahead to take any wood from the pile that he wanted (yay! recycling!) so he and Nick built two stands and now those barrels are nearly full! I think we're going to need more barrels - a couple just for run off from these first two! We get a lot of rain. I'll take pictures....of the barrels, not the rain.

So today, I'm all about taking pain killers. I'm such a wimp! I may make it to the library.
Another Fat Tuesday, down the tube!

I really do feel like I should have a baby by now. I mean, I've pretty much pulled up all the roots and and started from scratch on EVERYTHING, so why not?? meh.

I have applied for so many jobs, it's ridiculous. And I haven't even gotten calls back from the ones I was *afraid* I would get (Subway, Fredmeyer, et al). Really pathetic.

Okay, so lets try for the good news, shall we?

1. We got a cord of wood and stacked it. Just in time, too - we used up the last of the first load just last night. We got a super sweet deal, too - someone local. Yay us!

2. The snow is almost completely melted! Almost.

3. I made a kick ASS beef barley stew today.

4. I've nearly finished my current knitting project and I'm really happy with it! Pictures forthcoming.

5. We have been getting so many birds in the yard lately! The robins are the best...they come in, like, 50 at a time and search for worms. It's so great to watch them. I know I'm a total geek for saying so - who cares! There's a new bird I've see out there the last couple of days, too - about the same size as the robins, but all black and gold, with a gold stripe on his face. I've misplaced my bird book, so I can't look him up - doh! All the birds make me think spring should be here soon, though.

6. I am DYING to get a garden going! I can't wait. It's going to be so great! I'm growing salad this year - lettuce, tomatoes (beefsteak and cherry),radishes, carrots and onion. Plus beans, potatoes, squash, and pumpkins (later, obviously). The artichokes may come back, but I don't have any plans to plant more. I also have a bunch of herbs to plant. *squee* I got this great book called "You Grow Girl". Lots of awesome tips in there. It's getting me in the MOOD.

So, now I'm looking forward to a massage in Portland in the next couple of weeks. And spring. It cannot come too soon!

I decided to browse some clothing sites today just for fun. Summer is coming, after all! Eventually....

What is up with Torrid?? As a fat chick who went through the 80's as a fat chick, I am here to testify that the 80's were not fat-chick friendly!! They were not good to us, people! Plus? Why do they think fat chicks are more likely to wear 80's knock offs than any other person? Just curious. I do like Torrid, don't get me wrong. And I was looking through the clearance items. I will hope that the frilly skirts, leg warmers, zipper-ankle jeans, off the shoulder shirts and patent stilettos are there because everyone else thought the same thing I do, which is, are you crazy?! I wouldn't put that on my body if you PAID me to. It's for the best, really. Because nobody really *wants* to see me wearing it, either.

The problem with most clothing sites is that I get suckered into wanting things that I know I will not wear. Skirts, for example, look terrible on me. But when I see them on these sites? I want them.

I like jeans...boot cut looks good on my frame. Skinny jeans look awful on me.
I like the idea of the high heel shoe, but not the reality of them.
I wish I liked wearing skirts more, but I hate having my thighs rub together. Yuck!
I want clothing that is comfortable and fits well without it looking like it came out of my mother's closet. Not that my mom isn't a great dresser...but she is about 20 years older than me! Unfortunately, I'm reaching the age where it can not look like it came from the teenager next door, either. Goddammit.

This is why I don't shop for clothing very often. I often think I should have lived in Alaska all my life so that I could just bundle up with sweaters and long pants forever and ever.

In the 90's I went through a phase of wearing jean shorts with different color tights all the time. I really liked it, and it would make me happy, but people would think I was a total freak. I would be that crazy old lady who dresses like she's still 21. Mmmmmm.....*grumble* Maybe I *AM* that crazy old lady! LOL
*sigh*
Okay, so clothing shopping another day.

Also, I'm waiting for a load of wood to be delivered and am irked because not only has it not shown up, but it's raining AND I just watched one of our neighbors get a huge load of wood delivered. Hmph.

Also, I need to buy a nice sachet...preferably jasmine. Where does one get such things? I live in the sticks....hey in Wilmington I would have known exactly where to go! I may resort to something that Fred Meyer sells. I'm starting to remember why I always loathed shopping at Fred Meyer. How quickly the fairy tale fades...

I want a massage. By someone who's really good at it. Not just someone who does it by the book. Someone intuitive and gentle. I used to know a guy who did Reiki and it totally rocked my world. I doubt I can find anyone who does that around here.

Monday I have a dentist appointment with a young feller named Braden at the Dental School in Seattle. Hoo hoo! Braden seems to think that a root canal is one of the easiest procedures and that I have nothing to worry about. I'm rooting for you, Braden! (ha...get it? Rootin'? I crack me up!)

I'm officially completely and totally addicted to facebook. This is why I resisted for so long!! Don't you see?! I'm helpless in the face of virtual visiting. Helpless, I tell you.

That is all for now. I'm going to go brood over a poptart and a cup of tea.

Sunday we decided that we needed to get outside and get some exercise. We found a pretty good trail in Gig Harbor last week, but by the time we got moving, it was a little late (that trail is some 5 miles long or so), so I looked up walking trails in Port Orchard. We found a great little bit of land called Banner Forest - approximately 635 acres of forest trails for people, dogs, horses and bikes. Nice! When we got there, there were tiny little snow flakes falling and it snowed steadily harder as we walked for about an hour or so. The woods were really beautiful anyway, but in the snow, it was just awesome. By the time we got back to the car, there was about an inch on the ground. I don't know why we didn't think to put the chains on THEN - I guess we were feeling optimistic about the way home - we just didn't think it would stick!

Banner Forest in the east (sort of) of Port Orchard and if you know anything about the Puget Sound you know how hilly it is here. heh. We had to travel back down Sedgewick to get home, where there are three HUGE hills to go up and down. The first one wasn't too bad, I was a tad nervous when the car wouldn't stop (skidding!) but there was no other traffic to contend with so we made it just fine. I approached the crest of the second hill more cautiously, and as we came over the top we saw probably 10 vehicles struggling, in various stages of bedlam - two stopped in the middle of the road, two in ditches on either side of the road, several at the intersection waiting to meet their peril. I, not having chains on my car, was unable to stop. I slowed to a crawl and managed to get the car into first gear at least and then basically prayed for people to stay out of my way. One stupid man actually RAN across the road in front of me on foot, initiating a string of profanity that I'm not proud of and also prompting Greg to tell me (pretty calmly, considering the situation), "You are forgetting Rule Number One!! Don't Panic!!". I got around the craziness in the gully and got about halfway back up the hill where we pulled over in a driveway to put on our chains. Ha! Better late than never! I also put Greg into the driver's seat - we were all better off, really.

With the chains on we didn't have any trouble, of course. We had been planning on stopping at Lowes on the way home to get an extension for our generator anyway, and about 25 feet from the parking lot and one of the chains broke. We rolled right into Lowe's, and bought a chain repair kit along with our other stuff and made it home in the blizzard. It is REALLY coming down - probably two inches by the time we got home!



The snow is all but gone now (I think what's left is actually from the big snow over Christmas, actually). Last night there was a wind advisory - it was like a monsoon outside! Now the wind seems to have died down, but the rain continues. I like the snow - at least you can go out walking in the snow. Course, I doubt the rain is going to stop my crazy husband from going out to Banner Forest today with the GPS. We found a map of it on line and it's primarily a mountain biking area, and all the trails (there are at least a hundred different ones) have all these funny names like Wired Brain, Tunnel Vision and Sorceress Hollow, as well as some that sound like they should be avoided, such as Oh Crap, Bent Peddle, and Pulverizer. I would even be up for taking the bikes out there (Nick would love it!) but not in the pouring down rain. Today, I feel like putting in a book on CD and doing some knitting - I have a project that is WAY overdue for a birthday that I HAVE to finish. And then I'll vow never to try another lace patter again, ever. Hmph.

Well, that's what they call it in the northers parts of the world - when the snow starts to melt and the frozen ground, well, breaks up.

Anyhoo - we got enough snow (about a foot total) that there is still plenty of it on the ground, even though it's beenn above freezing and raining on and off for the last three days. Our area is in a condition RED flood warning all day today, although I have a hard time picturing a flood here - We are pretty much at the top of a hill! Maybe down right ON the water, I guess. The snow is now very, very wet - it's really just 7 or 8 inches of slush at this point - and the road in front of our house has these huge ruts. Greg drove into work last night and said that our neighborhood is pretty much the only one left to be plowed between here and Hwy 16. He even called WDOT and asked when they were sending a plow down and the woman who answered said, "Ya, we were just talking about you guys last night! Every time we drive by there it looks like a mess!". Well, at least they noticed! :smack If they don't get to plowing it any time soon, it'll be fine with me because some of the best entertainment I've had in the last three days was watching all manner of vehicles getting stuck turning the corner of the intersection right in front of our house! Jeeps, SUVs, small cars - all of 'em get stuck!! There were two women out there yesterday - they were stuck for so long, I actually started feeling bad about standing inside and laughing at them - this is so funny...the one young girl hopped out and was alternately trying to dig under the front wheels and then push the car - and her pants were SO LOW we could see all the way to Ass-crack-astan. I don't think I've ever seen Nick laugh that hard - ever. It was hilarious. After I wiped my eyes and got myself together, I started suiting up to go out and either help them get unstuck, or at least try to persuade this girl to pull up her pants so that the children wouldn't have to see her goodies. DO IT FOR THE CHILDREN!! Greg was trying to convince me to take my camera out and tell her, "I was blogging about this, but I didn't think anyone would believe me without the pictures!". :laugh By the time I got myself all dressed to go out and help, the neighbor had gone out and unstuck them. Now that's neighborly. Or he was just tired of staring at her ass crack, too. :smack

I'm pretty sure we are out of danger of falling limbs and losing power. Greg got home last night without even putting on the chains. I am feeling a little bit cabin-feverish. I think we are going to head into town on Sunday and do some after- holiday shopping. Greg's mom will be here late on the 30th and then we'll be having some fun! Yay! I can't wait!

In completely different news: Fuck you, DHL!!!
Yes, DHL, who was supposed to delivery my stuff (calendars I made using flickr and Qoop for the family) BEFORE Christmas has been delayed since the 17th!! THE 17TH!! For cryin' a tear. Everyone else - USPS, Fed Ex, UPS - has been in our neighborhood delivering. Not DHL! What, they don't know how to throw chains onto their friggin' trucks????
Yesterday, FINALLY, the tracking said that the package had been put on a truck and was scheduled for delivery. 10 days late, mind you. Did I get the package? NO! And you know what the tracking says this morning??? "Delivery Failed, no one home".
*RAGE*
I was home ALL FREAKIN DAY you assholes!!!! ALL. DAY. I didn't see one god damn DHL truck either. If I had, I would have forced him to stop at my house whether he liked it or not and explain to me WHY it is that they are the only ones who can't seem to keep up with the system in this town. Seriously.

Okay, I'm done ranting about DHL now. I'm just so appalled at their service. And, it's Saturday so the office is closed, otherwise I would have taken it out on some poor phone jockey.
*sigh*

I hope everyone had a great holiday. The new year is right around the corner and no matter how the media tries to cast doubt, I am optimistic for the future.
Cheers!