Plodding On

So today’s another gloomy day out. We’re supposed to get snow/rain today and/or tomorrow, depending on the forecast you listen to. I think they’re all just tryin to cover their bases. lol

Visit Forecast

The extended forecast looks pretty good, though… I’ll keep tabs on it, but it looks like Fussbudget will be able to make the drive after all next week. :) Yay! Was just talkin to Mom about it at lunch (she REALLY needed to get out, so we substituted today for our usual Tuesday lunch outing) and she wanted to know how long Fussbudget would be here (Thursday night through Monday morning) and if she should plan for 5 for Sunday dinner. I told her I’d leave it up to Fussbudget, but I don’t THINK she’ll mind.

I’d hoped that mebbe Columbia’s Downtown Living Window’s Festival would be taking place while she’s here, too, but I just looked it up and it looks like it’s this weekend instead. Oh well… Mom and I still want to go. It’s pretty interesting… all of the downtown shops compete for the best “living” holiday window dressings, with actors sometimes depicting whole scenes.

Forgetful Start

Today’s a fairly slow day at work… had a difficult time getting up this morning (more than usual with my head and neck screaming at me, though they’re better with drugs now)… so I got to work about a half hour late. But I always make up late starts with short lunches, so it evens out. Of course, since I took a full lunch today, I’ll just make it up through the rest of the week. I’d meant to bring in my box of holiday decorations for work, (since I have room to store it here now) but left it right there on the floor in front of the door. *smackin forehead*. But that old adage is especially true for me: “The Hurrieder I go, the Behinder I Get”. *sigh* ‘Sokay… everybody else forgot their decorations, too. Well, aside from The Retiree, but she could only carry so much and will bring the rest tomorrow.

Mom and I also tried to drop by Martin House at lunch, only to discover they’re gone! Oh well… as it turns out, the Ornament Exchange party takes place on the very night that Fussbudget gets to Columbia, anyway. Oops! But I’m not really heartbroken over the matter… My anti-social self much rather visit with Fussbudget than a roomful of peeps. :)

Shocking Article

One last item before wrapping up: Read an article in the paper about this dood who’s wife was literally hit by a train one year ago. The article featured a photo he took of her holding their toddler just minutes before it happened. At first I read that and thought: “Now HOW does one NOT hear a train coming in order to hop OFF of the tracks?” But turned out that they were standing on a rather long train trestle. By time they heard the train coming, they started running for the nearest end of the bridge (which happened to be in the direction from which the train was COMING) He managed to make it just in the nick of time, and she evidently threw the baby over into some bushes before the train hit her and threw her into the water below. Talk about a mother’s sacrifice… :( It was just one of those truly shocking stories… one you’d think you’d see in a movie rather than the local paper.

I suppose the lesson we come away from this is: Scratch train trestles off the list of ideal photo spots. *shakin head sadly*

Studious Day

Stationed at the Desk

So not much to report today. I made a decent dent in my paperwork, though it's still not all done. Bus Snob ended up callin this afternoon, and we yapped for a bit, so my attention was split. But we haven't had a chance to talk for a li'l while, what with the holidays, and her latest week bein a doozy for her at work. So it's all good. :)

Again didn't start on the Newsletter. I'll see how I'm feelin this week after work. Can't be Tuesday, cuz if the weather's good, I'll be takin another shot at that appointment in Jeff City. Mom and I also need to get to Martin House (that neat Christmas place I mentioned previously) to look for offerings for the Ornament Exchange next week. But we might be able to do that over lunch. I think we did that last year, anyway. Plus, I need to get back to the Duplex community to drop off my application, after I make a copy of it at work. It has also occured to me, though, that if I get any slow days at work, I can also utilize that time to start composing the Newsletter. It won't be the first time it's been written at work. I'll just have to see how things go.

Dinnertime

Amway, I was workin away on my paperwork and before I knew it, it was time for Family Sunday Dinner. I was late as it was, though... and I was proud to see that they didn't wait up dinner for me. I keep telling them that if I'm late, just start without me instead of grumping cuz they had to wait for me. I can always catch up, and if I'm hungry, I'm only getting in the way of myself. And there was plenty of food... we finished up the last of the Thanksgiving leftovers. Then on to a game of Trivial Pursuit... which I think Mom and Pop threw so we could finish it up and get Gram home.

So that's pretty much it. Nothing much exciting, so I'll wrap this up and go sit with Ms. Pukesalot, whom I've shamefully ignored ALL day.

Christmas Shopping

Reading

So I ended up not accomplishing much of anything yesterday. My mind was still on the book I'd finished the night before, which was the second in a trilogy by Mercedes Lackey: Exile's Valor. It's actually only the latest of a rather extensive series based around her world of Valdemar. Good stuff. Amway, my mind was on the second book, which made me think of events in the first book... and so I ended up curled up in the recliner for most of the afternoon, reading half of the first book again. So much for plans, eh? lol

Oh well. I won't force myself on the Chirstmas Letter... don't ever want it to become too onerous a task that I won't want to continue. I DID get a few chores done around the house... ran the dishwasher and a load of laundry. As I'd fully intended, I never even stepped outside the apartment all day. Mom called me up to invite me over to watch the new batch of movies she got in from Netflix, but I didn't really feel like gettin out. She was cool with that, and was even nice enough to wait to watch em with me later. 'Sides, she had other stuff she could watch, anyway.

Prep

I DID manage to review my Christmas card list, though, this morning. And fortunately, part of my checklist was already done. I'd evidently logged all of my received cards before I put them away LAST year. So all I had to do this morning was make a quick scan of the list, decide who I hadn't heard from in a while, and pare it down. All I needed was a rough estimate of stamps I'd need to buy at the post office today, anyway.

Shopping

Then I put together a rough Christmas gift list (I really only buy gifts for those close to me whom I will be seeing personally at Christmas time... generally Mom, Pop, Gram and the IHOP Family) and set off for the mall. I knew I wanted to get calendars and gift certificates for all... with the sole exception of Gram. She never gets out much at all, in order to take advantage of a gift certificate. So I'm buying her a subscription to a large-print Crosswords Club. She really likes crosswords. I'm afraid it's one of the few things that keeps her occupied. And she barely even comprehends the concept of a computer, so I don't have to worry about her reading this and ruining her surprise... lol

Amway, I then poked around for another small gift for each... and one item that will serve as a gift to my family as a group. I won't detail it yet, in case Mom pokes around. Now, she's not one who likes to have her surprises spoiled... she doesn't poke around on purpose. But I'm taking no chances on an accident. *grin* I even ran into my folks at the mall... Mother giving me the stern "I told you you're not supposed to buy anything for yourself until after Christmas" look, but I assured her that none of my purchases today were for myself. Except for one calendar and one book, which she wouldn't know what I needed anyway. I think I'd accumulated at least 3 bags by that point, but nothing could be seen inside of any of em. We agreed to give each other a call when we got done with shopping, and mebbe get together for one of those movies.

I did my usual run to Barnes and Nobles for the book IHOP Buddy had told me about earlier in the week... plus a gift certificate. I also ran by the post office right there in the mall for stamps. I got almost 95% of my Christmas shopping done all in one swell poop. The rest of it was finished at Michael's, when I picked up my pics that were framed and ready. They look very nice, by the way. Even hung one of em up straight away as soon as I got them home. :)

Movies

I took my purchases directly home, unloaded, then went right back out to handle the rest of my errands going in the other direction. Mostly dropping off my recylables and stopping by the grocery store. By time all was said and done, it was about 5:30 and time to call the folks. They were finishing up a Laurel and Hardy movie they'd just bought today, and told me to come on over. Mom and I were all for some Thanksgiving leftovers for dinner, but Pop had a hankerin for Taco Bell... so tacos and burritos it was. Then we watched Shrek 2 and still had plenty of time for another movie.

Thus ensued a 10-minute argument about which of the other two movies to watch. It was between "Kate and Leopold" and "Harry Potter: Prizoner of Azkaban". As soon as Pop heard "Harry Potter" he said "Let's watch Kate and Leopold". And Mom wanted to watch Harry. Now, Pop is one of those guys who actually likes chick flicks, but I hadn't realized he actively didn't like Harry Potter. I mean, in the course of the conversation when we were asking him about it, he was like "well, what's Kate and Leopold about"? He wasn't even voting FOR the movie... he was simply voting AGAINST the other. Kinda took me back to the Presidential election... lol

But as it turned out, he doesn't like the Harry Potter movies cuz they're so loud and hurt his ears. Dood can't even go to movie theaters anymore cuz they positively kill his ears. So then, they both (my folks) turn around and start INSISTING that they watch the one the other wanted. Grrrr. I finally had to be tiebreaker, and went with Harry Potter turned down really low with subtitles. lol We do that with almost any movie we watch over there, anyway, so it was all good.

Tomorrow

Amway, I just got home a little while ago. I felt up to checkin in on my message boards and bloggin a bit, so here I am. Dunno what exactly's on the agenda tomorrow. I'd LIKE to get workin on my Christmas Letter... plus some other paperwork that's been waiting for me to settle down and focus. We'll see how it goes.

Until then... good night!

Gettin Down to Business

Christmas Newsletter

So I really need to get my creative juices in gear and get goin on my Christmas Newsletter. As previously mentioned, I indulged in sleeping in this morning… probly got up around 9:45. I also caught myself in the start of another Pace-and-Think session, so I set myself down in front of the puter to catch up on my blogging. My brain’s not engaging into composition mode very well at the moment, though… took me a while to catch up on Thanksgiving’s activities cuz I keep wandering.

So I think I’ll keep this short. My gameplan for today will probly be to review my Christmas mailing list… which entails going over the cards peeps sent me last year, the cards I got back returned to sender, cross checking new addresses, and reviewing previous newsletters to get some ideas about what to update and include in this year’s offering. Hopefully I’ll be able to sit down and focus tomorrow or Sunday to actually start writing it. It usually doesn’t take too long. In fact, before I realize it, I’ll have 4 pages churned out and I’ll have to start editing and resizing to get it down to a decent length. And even then, I’ve been accused of writing War and Peace… lol Shocker, right?

Decorate?

Otherwise, I hope to finish up the little straightening-up I still have left in the library. Plus, I’m thinking about MAYBE starting to decorate for Christmas. I’ve foregone very much decorating the last few years, cuz all of my decorations are so carefully packed in storage, and pulling it all out and then putting it all back after the holidays just was too much work for me to admire my apartment all by myself.

However, with Fussbudget coming to visit, I have a reason to share a li’l bit of Christmas decorating spirit. We’ll see how I feel… and how much I get accomplished on my newsletter. If all else fails, I still have next weekend to decorate... and clean. Oh, and speaking of Fussbudget, I’ll need to call her today to wish her Happy Birthday. :)

So until tomorrow… signing off.

Happy Thanksgiving!

So I’m back-posting for Thanksgiving, cuz I just didn’t feel like gettin on the ‘puter yesterday. It was a good day, though.

Wednesday Night

I ended up not getting out of work any earlier than 15 minutes Wednesday evening (and that’s cuz the last PM left at that point, there was absolutely nobody left in the office but myself, and I was damned if I was gonna stick around for 15 minutes just for principal’s sake) so I didn’t get any extra time to prepare the Garlic and Basil Mashed Potatoes for the next day. They weren’t difficult to make, but had a lotta steps and WERE time consuming. And required quite a bit of clean-up. However, they were a pretty big hit at Thanksgiving dinner, so at least all the work was gratifying. :)

The folks called to let me know I missed a great Kodak moment just before 5:00 as the sun was going down and the snow was glistening in the trees against the brilliantly colored sky. Would have been nice to see… I know I’m the official shutterbug in the family, but hopefully THEY remembered to break out a camera. We also coordinated when I should show up at their place in the morning for our traditional Thanksgiving morning homemade donuts. Pop suggested I take my shower that night, so they wouldn’t have to wait 2 hours after they call me in the morning. He didn’t need to exaggerate QUITE so much… though I DO tend to somehow lose time in the shower.

Almost on Time

I ended up showering in the morning anyway (I’m always too tired at night to muster myself for all that fuss) but I got up early so that I was stepping outta the shower just as they called at 8:00 am. I ALMOST got to their place in the projected amount of time (I rarely manage it… knowing myself, I always try to give myself extra time, and Pop always tries to cut down the timeframe, presumably to hurry my ass up. You’d think he’d have learned by now) except I forgot to account how long it would take to get into my car. The temp had dropped well below freezing again overnight, and the small amount of slush left on my car that had melted somewhat the evening before had now frozen my car door and trunk shut, and the windows were frosted/iced over. And, of course, I’d forgotten to break out the ice-thaw spray I keep in the trunk… which was frozen shut. I managed to get the car door open, then grabbed my scraper and pried open the trunk to get the stuff to spray down my windows. I just LOVE Winter. *sigh*

Donuts

The rest of the day was great, though. Mom was just fryin up the donuts as I got there, so it ended up good timing… for me, anyway. As usual, the donuts were awesome… she makes ‘em out of a raised hot-roll mix, and dips ‘em in a simple powdered sugar glaze. After we cleaned up, we actually had a li’l time to sit and relax before starting to prep for dinner. Since there’s only 4 of us, and none of us like white meat anyway, she decided to make 4 turkey thighs rather than a whole bird, so it didn’t require quite as much baking time. We ended up only eating 2 thighs between the 4 of us, anyway, so it was plenty of meat and still enough for leftovers.

Thanksgiving Dinner Preparation Assignments

My job during the preparing of Thanksgiving dinner has always been to keep the cooking accoutrements washed, dried and ready for her next need. But since I got into cooking, myself, in the last few years, I’ve also started helping with some of the prep as well. She set me to work chopping and mixing and stirring and loading up the table. And, of course, finishing up the potatoes, which still required a last minute sprinkle of topping and baking. She’d already set the table the night before… painstakingly setting each place just right and elegant. Her whole home is in a Victorian theme, and her dining room is no exception. She set out her new China Set for the first time, and it all looked quite nice.

Pop’s contribution was running down to the storage room (where extra food stuffs are kept) and/or to the store for last-minute supplies, and picking up Gram just before dinner. Gram has a difficult time getting going too early in the morning, so she usually opts out of Thanksgiving morning donuts. Pop would have turned on a football game, but Mom just recently agreed to be a Nielson family for a week, and they were slated to start logging everything they watch, that very day. So us females were spared from football by Pop’s aversion to keeping tabs of his channel surfing. *grin*

Excellent Spread

Dinner was a pretty great spread… I wish I hadn’t forgotten to take my camera, or I’d have gotten a shot to share. Oh well. The menu consisted of: bourbon basted turkey, gravy from the turkey drippings, garlic and basil potatoes, mashed maple sweet potatoes, cream baked asparagus (a required staple every holiday), corn bread stuffing, baked beans, cranberry salad (Gram’s contribution), cranberry sauce, deviled eggs, stuffed celery and home-made rolls. Quite a lot for 4 peeps, but it leaves plenty of leftovers for all for at least a week. :)

The clean-up didn’t take TOO long (relatively) between Mom and Pop and myself, though Pop commented on how inequitable it seemed to have hours of cooking and hours of cleaning for the sake of ½ an hour of eating. lol Oh well… we decided it’s worth it for the awesome meal we had that day. We’d tried quite a few new dishes, and we usually don’t have that kind of luck finding such great tasting experiments.

Kickin Back

Afterwards, we relaxed in the living room for a pleasant game of Taboo. Mom was pretty beat… her back had already been hurting her before cooking, but then all that leaning down over the counters and sink had only made matters worse. She didn’t get up much for the rest of the night… which was okay. I handled serving the dessert right there in the living room (once we had room for it several hours later). I’m not a big pumpkin pie fan, so I ended up having some more of Gram’s cranberry salad (definitely good stuff).

When Gram started to poop out, we wrapped up our game and Pop took her home. Mom broke out with the extra features from the Star Wars trilogy pack she’d recently bought and had told me about earlier in the week. It was pretty interesting seeing how they scrounged together some of the ground-breaking effects for the first set of movies. George Lucas really had a vision to which he remained true despite vast amounts of setbacks. Gotta respect the dood. :) Oh, and there were some sneak previews to Episode III, which should be comin out soon. Don’t remember exactly when, but I’m thinking at least next year.

Home

Amway, I ended up getting home probly around 9:30 pm. I was tired, and just didn’t feel like putting my brain into gear to blog, so I curled up to finish up the rest of my book. As I frequently do, I pushed myself to finish it and didn’t finally crash until after 2:00.

Overall, a good day. Pop was in a great mood, and Gram seemed a little brighter than her usual quiet and frequently pain-filled self. Mom wasn’t doing so well, but I think it helped that she didn’t have to do all the work by herself. I was actually feeling pretty good, though. My head didn’t really start objecting until I hunched over my book that night and forced myself to stay awake long enough to finish it. But I took a half dose of meds just before I crashed, and had the luxury of sleeping in this morning, so it’s all good.

Amway, that’s about it for Thanksgiving. On to today.

Let it Snow, Let it Snow, Let it Snow

White Out

So I’m actually very glad I headed home when I did last night, cuz the snow hit this morning. And flurries, my ass… this stuff is big thick fluffy sticky snow, and I’d say we’ve already accumulated at least an inch or two this morning. It’s supposed to continue on into the evening. Mom loves the stuff… so does the Retiree... and IHOP Buddy, for that matter. Ms. Pukesalot spent most of the morning glued to the patio door, fascinated by it. I’ll be happy enough with it after I don’t have to drive in it anymore today.

Uneventful Wednesday

I woke to smoke filtering down from upstairs (with school out, I’m sure I’ll be treated to it all day for the rest of the week). And it’s been pretty quiet at work… as evidenced by my being able to blog all morning. We’re treating it as casual Friday, which is a good thing, since jeans and thick tennis shoes with traction are best for dealing with the current weather. Hopefully we’ll get to take off a li’l early, bein the day before a holiday… I know Mom’s takin half a personal day so she can start preparing for tomorrow’s dinner. I’ll be whippin up the potatoes this evening, myself.

More Renovations

They’re painting again in the new office they just created yesterday by splitting the copy room in half. Our new PM will be starting in a week, and they’re really bookin to get his office ready for him. I’ll just be happy when all the friggin painting is done. Though, I have to admit that being out in this open area somehow gives me better ventilation, and the fumes don’t get to me as bad as they did when I was in the enclosed office. Plus, I have my fan going, and I may have to go out and admire the snow a time or two to get some fresh air.

Finished Framing

Oh, and I forgot to mention I got a message on my answering machine the other day from Michael’s, letting me know that all of my framing is done and I can come pick them up any time. Woo-hoo! I’ve been somewhat busy the last few evenings, though… and there’s no way I’m drivin any more than I absolutely have to in that snow out there, so it looks like it’ll have to wait for this weekend. AFTER black Friday, of course. I’m not a big fan of battling the After Thanksgiving Sale crowds.

Welp, that’s about all I have. Hopefully, this evening will be as quiet and uneventful as my day, so I’ll be checkin back in for Thanksgiving. :)

Trippy Tuesday

Wake-up Call

So getting back to yesterday’s fun. It started with an early morning phone call from the Office Manager. She didn’t exactly wake me up (I’d been trying to get myself out of bed for about 45 minutes) but I certainly wasn’t entirely awake yet. I am NOT a chirpy morning person, so she got what she got. lol However, she didn’t take offense… in fact the woman laughed at me. And was deliberately entirely too perky. She’s always reminded me of my “wife”, Mikee… but especially so yesterday. Mikee used to call me about mid-morning each day back when I worked the night shift in the Navy at China Lake. Mikee lived just across the driveway from me, but she knew better than to come over… she’d simply greet me with an exuberant wake-up call and just laugh at me all the harder the grumpier I responded. *shakin head* The snot.

Amway, the Office Manager was just callin to ask if I wanted anything from Micky D’s since she was stopping there on the way to work. When I got into work about an hour later, she grinned at me and told me she was gonna have her hubby call me at 7:30 in the morning, and then compare the two of us… lol Evidently, she’s not a chipper person first thing in the morning, either. Unfortunately for me, her morning starts much earlier than mine, so she was plenty chippered up by time she called.

Work Errands

The rest of my work day was relatively uneventful. I stayed busy puttering around on little tasks and workin on the first steps of coordinating a big meeting. Mom and I went out to lunch, and then ran by Wal Mart and Office Depot to grab some supplies for the office. We had to go to the Super Wal Mart cuz that’s the one I have the University tax exempt card with, so Mom took that opportunity to make one last purchase she needed to make to finish up her Christmas shopping. She likes to have it all done by Thanksgiving to avoid the crush of holiday shoppers. I have a strong suspicion that this last purchase was for me, cuz we had to split up and she already had her purchase paid for and stowed in the car by time we met up again… lol

The Continuing Adventures of Halloween Nut

When we got back from our errands, I caught up with Halloween Nut in chat, and we chatted a bit. She was lookin up some info on the net about some cult or another that her sister is worried her hubby is getting into. Which was just plain wierd cuz then she told me that she’s been back in touch with her old boyfriend… the one that lived with us in our apartment before I joined the Navy, and who some could argue was Possessed and brought his little demons to haunt the apartment. Literally. That’s definitely an interesting story for another day. Part of a rather sordid soap opera going on at that time in my life. All I’ll say for now is: stability and sanity is a very good thing.

It’s a Date

I also caught up to IHOP Buddy again in chat, and I told her about the appointment I had that evening in Jeff City… which is only about 15 minutes away from her. She said if I was gonna be in the area, I’d might as well come visit. It HAS been a while since I’ve been over there, and I figured I wouldn’t stay long. 1) I would still need to eat supper, 2) I didn’t want to leave Ms. Pukesalot alone ALL night, and 3) the weather had been rainy (not too heavily, but pretty steadily) all day and evening, plus I knew that the weather was supposed to drop to freezing sometime during the night, and the gravel road she lives on would be impossible to get out of if it froze over, and I’d be stuck. So I told her I’d give her a call when I got out of my appointment.

In the CRS Category

Enter my first stroke of stupidity. I headed home from work so I could change into some jeans which would be warmer, and on the way I realized I’d left the information and directions about my appointment sitting on my desk at work. But I remembered most of the directions… just didn’t know the exact street of the place. So I decided to simply look it up in the phone book at home really quick before heading out. I also jotted down the phone number in case I got lost, cuz I didn’t have a map to keep track of streets and where I was.

Crappy Conditions

It was already dark out and still raining rather steadily when I started out towards Jeff City, but it started comin down a bit harder as I got closer. Now, I know Jeff City just well enough to know one main road… fortunately the very road I needed to take off of the highway, and which would lead directly to the street I needed. However, Missouri Blvd. is a VERY long road, and I had no idea which cross street was the one I needed. And my night vision sucks in the first place… made worse by even light rain, let alone the heavy stuff. Needless to say, I was pretty tense, and I was driving mega slow as I approached each cross street, staring hard to try to read the names of the street signs. I knew I needed to turn left, so there I was poking along in the fast lane, with folks honkin at me in irritation as they had to go around. Which only made me even more flustered, of course.

Fortunately, however, I finally came across the right street without getting lost or having to turn around. There was no way I’d be able to read street numbers, though, so I pulled over into the Ryan’s parking lot and decided to call to find out how far away they were from my location. Enter my second stroke of stupidity.

Wrong Day

The receptionist answered the phone, and I stated my name and appointment time and asked her far away they were from Ryan’s. She didn’t answer me right away cuz she was trying to find my name in their appointment book. Then she tells me “I’m sorry, I can’t find your appointment.” I repeat my name and appointment time and then tell her the name of the person I was supposed to meet. Well, this tipped her off to the problem, cuz evidently that person was off yesterday. So she flips the page and says “Oh, your appointment is for 6:00 tomorrow.”

Now, I have since confirmed that date after I got to work this morning and found my paperwork sitting right where I left it on my desk. There it is, clear as can be: “6:00 appt., Nov. 24th, Wed”. I have NO idea how I got Tuesday into my head. I even put it in my Outlook calendar for Tuesday. But there I was… battling horrid driving conditions in an unfamiliar town for absolutely nothing. I wasn’t happy. The lady was very nice, though, and handled my irritated grumpiness with aplomb. I told her there was no way I could make a Wednesday appointment (night before Thanksgiving, plus all the snow we were scheduled to get) so we rescheduled for next Tuesday at the same time. At least this time, Tuesday sticking in my head won’t be a detriment. *snort* And if the weather's bad again, I'm just gonna cancel the damned thing.

Makin the Trip Worth SOMEthing

So I called up IHOP Buddy as promised, and proceeded to my third stroke of stupidity. If I’d have used any common sense at all, I would have just gone straight home. However, I was seriously ticked and determined that this trip would be good for SOMETHING. So I told her I was on my way. I got to her place, and we got to chat a bit, and the kids dubbed themselves appropriate host and hostess by introducing me to the new kitten, Mr. Whiskers. Cute li’l sucker, I have to say… and seems like a sweet one at that. Very affectionate and gentle, even in “rough” play.

Hooked on a Game

Now, IHOP Spawn #1… a boy close to teenagerdom… knows how to engage this particular visitor. In fact, he is the entire reason I bought myself a PlayStation, because he got me hooked on the Haunted Mansion game when I was visiting about a year ago, and then I HAD to finish it at my own leisure. He, however, has not finished it, so we got to talking about the game and what to do on different levels, etc… which came to the natural progression of bringing the game out to show him. I noticed that all of the plays he had saved were left with 1 or no extra lives available to work with, so I started a fresh play from the very beginning to get him to his current progress point with a decent amount of backup lives, and giving him pointers on how to proceed in the game with the maximum amount. Because there are some levels in which you will simply lose a LOT of lives as a matter of course, and you’d best have plenty to lose. Witness stroke of stupidity #4. We got wrapped up in the game, and hours were eaten away.

Worse Conditions

The kids had gone to bed and IHOP Hubby got home from one of his few weekly runs just as I was tentatively getting set to go. He informed us that the rain and wind were pretty vicious out there, and I’d might as well take my coat off and stay the night. But I knew I really needed to be here at work in the morning, plus I didn’t want to leave Ms. Pukesalot alone all night (though she WOULD have survived), plus I was fairly certain I’d be iced and/or snowed in by morning. IHOP Buddy threw her 2 cents in saying that I have a hard enough time getting to work on time when I’m here in COLUMBIA, let alone trying to get in from out of town… lol She really does know me well.

So I risked the chance that the temp might start dropping early, and figured I’d wait it out a bit to see if the rain and wind let up. By that time, I finally remembered I hadn’t eaten, so we scrounged about in her kitchen for something that sounded appealing to eat. I ended up with a bowl of oatmeal and a bowl of ready-make mac & cheese. Strange combination, I know, but one never knows what notion will strike you at any given moment. lol I called Mom cuz I’d told her earlier where I’d be that evening, and knew she’d freak if she tried to call me at home I wasn’t there... Plus she could tell the folks at work in case I ended up stuck there overnight and couldn’t get in. She gave me the “You’re STILL in New Bloomfield?!” lecture, then told me to call her whenever I got safely home… didn’t matter how late it was.

Braving the Elements

Around 10:30, the rain seemed to let up a bit, so I took a gamble and headed out. I took the entire trip VERY slowly. It usually takes me 45 minutes, but I’ll tell ya… that is a very LONG and DARK highway when it’s raining at 10:30 at night. The rain didn’t get too bad that the windshield wiper speed that my car considers “fast” couldn’t handle it, though it still made a problem of being able to see the lines on the road. And the wind did buffet me about a few times, but didn’t provide too much hastle. The fog was an issue. I’d hit patches of fog, and slow even more considerably… especially since fog is evidently prime conditions for deer hopping out into the road. The roads are so twisty and turny and hilly, and I just can’t go barreling along without being able to see at least a couple of car lengths ahead of me, so I’d slow down again for each blind spot. I think I was even more tense than during my drive DOWN.

Home Safe

I finally got in just before midnight, though. I beat the freeze, so I at least didn’t have to deal with any super slick patches. I got in, was greeted by an extremely unhappy cat, and called Mom and IHOP Buddy as promised to let them know I was home safely. IHOP Buddy had begun to worry, but then had figured I’d probly be driving slower than usual. Got on the puter to log a post for the day, then crashed to the melodies of machine guns directly over my bedroom, and a blaring sound system directly over my living room. I’ve discovered, though, that having my own radio on (low) helps to focus away from the other noise.

I will say one good thing for the night. Though I have my thermostat set for 65 degrees, my apartment was warm and toasty in comparison to outside. And my furnace really is actually MUCH quieter than the last one. I guess it’s the AC that’s louder, for some reason.

Amway, so ends my trippy Tuesday. I’ve got one more post in me for today, then my brain is officially going on vacation. :)

Backing Up

Pooped

So it's past midnight and my evening has been a mixture of horrid and entertaining... all due to my own stupidity. I'm kinda tired, so I'm not sure how much I'll get out now and how much I'll have to catch up on later. Plus, Ms. Pukesalot's distinctly unhappy with me for abandoning her all night, so I'll probly need to crash in some sort of fashion which provides a lap for her.

Duplex Reconnaissance Follow-Up

First, lemme follow up on last night's activities. I headed straight to Mom's place after work, and we hopped in her car to head over to the duplexes I'm looking to move into next Spring. The duplex manager was very nice, and she answered all of our questions and showed us around a unit that had recently been emptied. She warned us ahead of time that it hadn't been cleaned yet, though the place could at least have used a good airing out. *pinching nose*

Otherwise, the place looked pretty decent. Evidently, there are a couple of slightly varying floorplans for the 3-bedroom units, and the one we looked at was definately NOT the one I would want. Instead of a 5th closet (which would be the coat closet), there was a fireplace that was evidently useless and didn't even look all that great. So I guess it's well enough that the folks who'd been looking into it already decided to take it. The bedrooms were a bit smaller than the ones I have now, but there were more of them... plus the living room and kitchen/dining room areas were much bigger. And good closet space. Storage is a biggie for me, with all the shit I've accumulated over the years. Pack rat... that's me.

It's All Good

Amway, the manager thought she MIGHT have a couple of other 3-bedroom units opening up in the Spring, and she said I could go ahead and submit an application now and still qualify for the special they're running. If she ends up not having anything, I'll get my deposit back. I'm okay with either outcome. I tend to do that... whenever I have a big decision pending that is out of my hands, I give myself an alternative outcome that will be just as appealing as the one I'm hoping for. See, I've decided that if I don't get a new place this coming year, I'll take the money I'll have saved for moving expenses, and sock that towards a new(er) car. So I'm either getting a new home or a new car next year... so it's all good. *grin*

Quiet Evening

I ended up taking the application home to fill out after discussing the matter over with Mom… and also to make a copy of my driver’s license to go with it. I still have to do that… probly over the holiday weekend. I came home and vegged for the rest of the night… doing absolutely nothing productive, except empty my dishwasher. IHOP Buddy called again and we talked for a good portion of the evening.

After that, I read some more of my book until it was too late for bed. I’m glad I’ve been able to get back into reading again… I DO so love to read. However, I have to regulate my indulgence as the eye strain gives me a migraine. Sometimes I simply take some meds in anticipation, but I don’t like to make a habit of that. I’ve also tried various forms of magnification (reading glasses, and magnifying sheets) since I discovered that reading one of Gram’s large-print books wasn’t a strain at all. I think the sheets work best, but they can be a bit awkward to hold over the book. Oh well… I’m still working on a decent balance.

Wet-Nose of Approval

Just wanted to note that I think Ms. Pukesalot might be likin the new desk. Plenty of nooks and crannies to poke her nose into, and she finally settled on the rather large desktop smack in front of me, after giving up trying to get into my less-easily-accessible lap. I still have perfect access to my keyboard and can see the monitor just fine since it’s elevated. And she has front-row seats to keep tabs on me. *grin*

Okay, I’m getting tired, and I’m caught up to today, so I think I’m gonna have to finish the telling of this evening’s misadventures tomorrow. Until then… g’night.

Just Another Mundane Monday

Work Stuff

So I’ve actually stayed pretty busy at work today. Funny how some days are so slow, and others end up having a buncha li’l stuff come up all day. But it’s all good. I like feeling productive and that I’m actually earning my paycheck. :)

Nothin new really goin on. The Secret Santa participants drew names today, and I’ve discovered the first benny of being a neutral party: I’ve already learned the names that all of this department’s participants drew. AND I’ve already been pressed to spill the beans… but my lips are sealed. It’s gonna be fun knowing who’s getting what from whom. And, if last year was any indication, I bet I’ll be used as delivery/messenger an awful lot, too. *grin*

IHOP Buddy Update

Oh, I forgot to mention that I finally got to talk to IHOP Buddy last Friday night. Briefly, of course, cuz my shows started at 7:00, and she wanted to finish up a book. But it was a good chat. I told her about the trip, and all my latest plans. She’s long learned to take all my grandiose plans with a grain of salt, cuz I usually change my mind halfway through anyway. She figures she’ll deal with the outcome when it actually happens… lol

She DID bemoan the fact that she’ll have to learn yet another new address for me. Just when she learns the directions to one place, I up and move on her. And before she could even ask, I told her I’m getting professional movers to handle the transport. There was distinct relief in her voice… needless to say, she was a part of the LAST moving party… lol I told her she was welcome to help me pack or unpack, though, if she wished. Unpacking is always the funnest part, anyway… kinda like opening presents, or going over everything you’ve just bought on a big shopping spree.

IHOP Hubby is doing much better… in fact, he’s running about one load a week (remember, he’s a truckdriver), getting back into the groove of things. She’s still working full time for his boss, though, and really liking the peeps she works with. Plus, I guess the boss makes a fortune in the trucking bidness, cuz she was telling me about his $80,000 sports car she gets to drive upon occasion to run errands for the company. She told me about all kinds of magical things I never knew a car could do. *shakin head* That’s okay. I’m perfectly happy with my li’l Toyota Corolla. Okay, correction: I’ll be perfectly happy with a NEWER Toyota Corolla.

Conditions

I’m still a bit sore… and getting a bit stiff… from all of the pushing and pulling and lifting and assembling lately. But everything looks awesome, so it’s all worth it. It’s another dreary day out… spittin on and off. And when the temperature dips down to 20 degrees on Wednesday, all that spit should be turning to snow. But it’s only supposed to be light flurries, so it shouldn’t be too bad. I’m not thrilled with driving in white stuff.

In fact, the weather reminded me that I’m not sure what driving conditions are gonna be like for Fussbudget’s road trip in about 3 weeks. We briefly chatted about it today, and we decided to just play it by ear. I’ll keep an eye out for weather reports, and if it looks like conditions will be bad, we’ll just have to postpone. Or get her on a plane. :)

Duplex Reconnaissance

Welp, I’m headin home about an hour early, for my appointment with the Duplex Manager at 5:00. Mom and I agreed I’d just drive to her place, and we’d take her car over. Here’s hopin the place looks acceptable and that I’ll be fillin out an application this evening. :)

Will have to report an update tomorrow.

Back to Busy-ness

Ready to Go

So I got my new desk chair today. Which has pretty much been the highlight of the day. I actually got a lot more done today than I did yesterday... but the breather definately helped. I got up rarin to go this mornin. Got a lotta chores done that were neglected in the chaos of the last few weeks (including my poor plants).

Checkin Out the Digs

Then went out with Mom to run errands, find a new chair, and check out the duplexes I'm lookin into. She wanted to see them in the daylight, seeing as it will be past nightfall after work when we meet the duplex manager to morrow. They looked very nice... in a pleasant little neighborhood. It's just a few miles away from where I am now... and possibly even outside the city limits, which would explain why the rent is so low with the absence of property taxes. Now, as long as everything looks as good on the INside, and they decide my credit isn't in TOO bad of shape (and my sordid criminal record has been sufficiently supressed), then a move is lookin like a definite probability.

Thanksgiving Preps

We also ran by the grocery store to pick up a last few things for Thanksgiving Dinner. I'd told her I'd be willing to help out with the cooking, so she's putting me to work on some Garlic and Basil Mashed Potatoes. I may even try a dessert of some sort, as well... but still need to talk to her about what she wants.

More Assembly

Amway, we just got done a li'l while ago, so I ran back home to put the chair together... of course. It's great. It's not fancy or anything, but it's adjustable and has lumbar support. That's pretty much all I care about... in fact the lumbar support was a bonus. The only problem is: the thing stinks with that "new-synthetic" smell. So I'm keepin the library window open for a while. It's pretty nippy out (in fact, a good many trees have already "phumped", leaving big pretty blankets of their entire arsenal of colorful leaves around them) but with the library door closed, the temperature in this room usually doesn't affect the temp in the rest of the apartment. So I shouldn't have to worry about the furnace comin on just to heat all of the outdoors.

Emergency Laundry

Welp, I'm headin over to the folks' place (again) a li'l early for supper, cuz somebody here in the apartment building left their laundry in the dryer all day, so I couldn't run any loads. I'm only in dire need of one load of laundry getting clean, so Mom agreed to let me bring it over to their place to borrow their machines. So I'll get that started, and hopefully mostly out of the way by time we're ready for dinner.

So I'll leave it at that for today. This chair really is quite comfortable, BTW... just thought I'd mention that again. MUCH better than balancing on four cushions to get halfway up to where I need to sit... lol

Lazy Day

Downtime

So I didn't get much done today. And I have nothing and nobody to blame but myself. But it's okay... I think I needed the down time. I've been pushing myself too hard all week. I only managed to finish up the chest of drawers around 2:00 this mornin. I'm glad it's all done, though. I guess it's a trade-off... either spread out the work and keep moderately busy for several days, or push to get it all done quickly, then recover without having to worry about the unfinished work hanging over my head. The first option would probly be better on my system, but I guess that logic goes right over my impatient self... lol

Putzing

Amway, at least I did get all of my stuff organized in the new desk... found all my pending paperwork so I could get my bills paid. There's just a few small tasks here and there that I can still do to straighten up here in the library, but the rest will have to wait until my new furnace gets inspected and I can get all this shit back into the utility room. I'll try calling again on Monday to find out if they know when that might be.

Pacing and Thinking

Otherwise, my entire morning was shot with pacing and thinking again... this time poring over the floorplan of the duplex I want to move to next year, and figuring out how and where to fit all my stuff. I kinda hate it when that happens... my mind gets wrapped around something, and my body can't sit still. I pace and think and pace and think and hours are eaten away. I usually have to stop when my body wears out from all the friggin pacing (and/or gets hungry). That's what happened today... finally sat down to eat around 2:00 and collapsed in the recliner watching tv.

Until Bus Snob called, and then I was up pacing again. Because, of course, I'm incapable of carrying on any decently lengthed conversation over the phone without pacing or otherwise DOING something. It's like my body feels compelled to keep up with my mind somehow. It drove Pop crazy when I was living with my folks. I'd get a phone call, and he'd demand I leave the room... lol Ya'd think I'd be skinny as a rail by now. *snort*

Evening Veg

So amway, when we got off the phone, I was in "action" mode again, so I finished up clearing up my desk, paperwork, and bills. And now I'm tired again, and my head's beginning to complain at me, so I think I'll watch some more tv for the rest of the night.

*off to veg*

Closin the Week Out

Finally Friday

So the end of the week has finally arrived. Yay! I’m feelin pretty good… if a li’l sore and somewhat tired for staying up so late these last few nights. I actually had to force myself to stop last night, but I’m glad I got done what I did.

It’s also nice having my own bathroom back. Of course, the only items returned to the utility room are the protective platform and the cat pan, since I have to keep the room relatively clear for the city inspectors… but at least I can simply ignore the cluttered half of my library in the interim.

I hope to putz some more around the new desk tonight, finding places to stow everything… as well as get the new chest of drawers together. I have to get the old one out of the bedroom and into the library, but that won’t take much. It’s not heavy at all without the drawers in it.

Higher Social Traffic

Not much to report for today. As expected, it’s been a pretty quiet day at work. Though, I meant to mention yesterday that my new desk is in a MUCH more social location. Peeps stop to chat as they pass all the time. Of course, many are asking how I like my new digs, but it’s still a much higher visible location. I don’t mind. I face the passing traffic, so I still have my privacy on the puter. And, equally as expected, the PM’s are remembering me more often when they need tasks. Which is a very good thing. :)

Disturbing Article

There was an article I forgot to mention I heard yesterday that I found rather disturbing…

Texas Officials Wary of Plan to Hunt by Internet

Now, I have a problem with hunting in the first place. I understand the necessity for keeping the herds thinned since people have removed natural predators by habitating the area. I understand the necessity of hunting for food. I cannot wrap my mind around the concept of killing for enjoyment and sport. And I know the previously mentioned necessities are answered within that “sport”, but I still can’t be comfortable with the idea.

So now here we have folks who want to kill from the comfort of their own home. These are not herds that need to be thinned… they’re being imported onto the ranch for the express purpose of being hunted. And these are not folks who need to hunt to eat. Now, I acknowledge that it’s easy enough for me to judge, and that I don’t appreciate when others show intolerance for differing lifestyles. So I simply try to accept that different people hold different values… and one set of values may not be any better or worse than anybody else’s. I certainly resent when “values” are brought into the political scene that effects everybody.

Disclaimer aside, this situation does not seem quite equitable to the animals. I heard an interview on the radio where the ranchowner answered that concern by stating that the animals are free-roaming, and it would not be a barrel-shoot. Except these animals will have every one of their natural defense mechanisms stripped from them… their instincts rely on their senses to detect physically present dangers. Even figuring out that cameras equate to danger won't help much when those cameras are at a distance under high magnification. I dunno... mebbe their odds are just as crappy with high mag power rifles in person. Either way, it just doesn’t seem quite right to me. I sincerely hope they follow through with that rule requiring hunters to be physically on site.

Communicating with Tact and Finesse

Well, I believe I will close with a story about Communicating with Tact and Finesse. The Office Manager got a flyer in the campus mail advertising a course by that title, and she joked that she really needs to take the class. She tends to be a very direct and/or abrupt individual. She said she needed to be reminded regularly, so I suggested she tape the flyer up to the cabinet where all can see… and she did.

Later, the Boss came by with a long pole he found somewhere, and said he was gonna give it to the Office Manager to keep everybody in line. We joked that she needed to take it with her class.

So now the flyer reads; Communicating with Tact and Finesse… or carry a big stick. *grin*

Victory!

I have a home 'puter again!

Got the desk finished up, set in place in the corner, and all my electronics hooked back up. All by my li'l self. Just tested everything, and all is a-okay. The desk looks awkward in the current configuration of my library, but it won't be staying here for long. Otherwise, it looks great! I'm very happy with it. :) I'll have to either get a new chair or a cushion, though. This sucker's TALL, and I feel like a li'l kid sittin at it.

I still have to get the rest of the stuff from my writing desk incorporated into the setup, but it's already past midnight and I'm propping my eyelids open. Plus, I've ignored poor Ms. Pukesalot ALL night for two nights now. Need to go sit with her... and most probly fall asleep in the meantime. I'll look at it all again tomorrow with a fresh brain.

Amway, just wanted to post... just cuz I can. *grin*

Here Come the Holidays

Thanksgiving Luncheon

So I’m pretty stuffed right now. Mom and I were invited to a Thanksgiving Luncheon hosted by the company that handles all of our reproduction business. It was a pretty good spread, and I predictably stuffed myself silly, and am about ready to take a nap.

Slow Work Day

Fortunately, however, it’s another slow day. I think the next few weeks around the holiday are going to be this way. Everybody’s taking vacations, or getting meetings crammed in before next week, so the place is pretty quiet. I spent a good portion of my morning putzing about my desk, shifting things, reorganizing, and finding places to store new responsibilities. I’ve discovered that I don’t have administrative rights to my own databases I created, in the new version of FileMaker Pro. It converts the files from the old version well enough, but it is a network version… the rights to which are controlled by the IT peeps that set it up. Ah well… I’m working with them on it now.

Christmas Activities

Got the e-mails today announcing the annual Christmas Ornament Exchange (girls only) and Secret Santa. I think I’ll decline the Secret Santa festivities this year. It’s hard enough finding gifts for people I KNOW… finding gifts for under $3 for peeps I DON’T know is positively hair-pulling. I mean, if I actually care that the person I’m buying for will LIKE their gifts, that is. Which, I do. Care, that is. Plus, I’m not that big on shopping. Spending money on something I KNOW I want is a whole nother matter. *grin*

I’ll probly do the Ornament Exchange, though. One or the other ladies in the building usually hostesses it at her house, we have a small potluck party and exchange anonymous ornaments… and then try to figure out who brought it. It’s tame enough, but a pleasant evening spent with peeps I’m comfortable around. Plus, Mom and I started a kind of tradition last year by checking out this really neat place in town that only has Christmas decorations… all year round. We went to look for unique ornaments for the exchange (which we found) but ended up just snoopin around the entire place… lots of neat stuff. The biggest problem is NOT spending any money. *sigh* It helps, though, when you know you don’t have space to keep everything… lol

On the Relocation Trail

Just got off the phone with the manager of the Duplexes I’m looking into. They’re running a special right now, knocking down the price of monthly rent and the security deposit if I sign a lease now. They’ll also hold a place once it becomes available, until I’m able to get out of my current lease. I verified their pet policy and found out they handle lawn care and snow and trash removal. It all sounds great so far… Mom’s comin with me to check the place out on Monday. She’s always good for checking and noticing things I wouldn’t think of.

If all looks good, I may turn in an application right then. *keeping fingers crossed* I also intend to look into the possibility of cutting my current lease short. Though, with as chaotic as they are at the moment in between management, now’s probly not a good time to ask.

Bandaging my Own Scrapes

I’ve rethought my finances, and if I hold onto the relatively large lumps of extra money comin up (extra paycheck in December, tax return, Halloween Nut’s loan payment from HER tax return) rather than socking them into my cc’s as originally planned… I should be able to handle all of my moving costs on my own. Hold off another year or two for a new car (and pray this one holds out), continue to manage my standing cc debt as I am doing now, and I shouldn’t have to supplicate to Gram for money. She already has a negative opinion of my spending habits, which is perfectly justified… even I have to admit I’m not the most fiscally responsible person in the world. However, I would rather not be indebted to somebody under that umbrella of disapproval. Call it pride. If at all possible, I’ll take care of my own scrapes, and be accountable only to myself.

IHOP Buddy

IHOP Buddy popped in very briefly to chat today. Wanted to let me know about a book we’ve been waiting on to be released. She couldn’t chat for long… I’m assuming she’s still working and that IHOP Hubby is still at home. I’ve been meaning to call her one of these evenings, anyway. She said she’d call me tonight on her free cell minutes after 9. We really need to hook up soon… mebbe get to Barnes and Nobles to pick up the new book we’ve been waiting for. :)

The New Arrival

I finally got my furnace… yay! I tested it out, and the blower is no less noisy, but at least the whole thing doesn’t rattle like it’s gonna come out of it’s case. And it still smelled rather heavily of gas in that room… if it’s still bad tonight, I’ll have to call up the manager. And hope it doesn’t kill the cat.

Just Gimme a Hammer and a Screwdriver

AND my crowning achievement for the last 24 hours is finally gettin started on my new desk! Woo-hoo! Of course, a good portion of yesterday evening was spent pullin out all the pieces… accounting for, checking, organizing and labeling all of em before I could get started. But then once it was all laid out, I relocated the loose computer pieces from the library back into the kitchen, along with my bulky coffee table I transferred in there too, to make working space in the living room. I conducted most of the preliminary work, and assembling the components in the living room, then brought them into the library to attach the components to the desktop (which has to go into the room sideways). I’ve completed the bottom half of the desk… and managed to flip it right-side-up all by myself. THAT was interesting in limited space… lol

Amway, with everything already laid out, it should be no large feat to finish up the top of the desk, and even get my computer stuff into it and all hooked up. Tomorrow I can work on the dresser, and then I’ll be free to catch up on my bills and Christmas newsletter over the weekend. Theoretically, anyway. *rolling eyes* I’ve learned not to plan on much, cuz something ALWAYS manages to come up. Lol

Welp… I promised the Receptionist to help her organize her computer files, so I’m off to do that. Should keep me occupied until the end of the day. :)

Until tomorrow!

Quote of the Week

Yeah, I've been somewhat remiss in my Pics and Quotes of the Week since I got back. But I haven't really had anything to contribute. I'll have plenty of pics to post of my trip once I sit down to download and edit them.

However, today I DO at least have a quote... which is actually a series of exchanges between myself and Pop today at lunch. (He and Mom and I went to Breadbasket today.)

Me, in response to the guy taking my order who asked what I wanted to drink: "2% milk, please"
Pop: Did you just say "2 chipmunks"?
Me: Did you just say "2 chickens"?
Mom, standing between us, sighing and rolling her eyes hugely: "Only between 2 deaf people can 2% milk become 2 chickens!"

Now, in our defense, the place WAS a bit chattery... but still. She's right. Neither Pop nor myself can ever hear correctly. And we both have the Navy to thank for our hearing loss... him as a sonar tech, and me on the airfield. Mom swears we deserve each other... lol

Moving Day

So I got moved this morning at work. Yay! And no paint fumes, so I may actually go home without a migraine today. Even bigger Yay!

Chastened

AND, I should have gotten my new furnace this morning. As I walked into the apartment building after getting home from work yesterday evening, I ran into the maintenance guy who’s been workin overtime to get all the furnaces replaced this last week. Nothin takes the wind outta self-righteous irritation like seein the poor dood who’s workin his tail off to get stuff done. I felt sufficiently chastened, though I never expressed my irritation to the apartment folks. We went over a few of my special considerations (ie: Ms. Pukesalot) so I feel confident that he’ll keep an eye out.

Moving Musings

Regardless, I’m still seriously considering moving into a bigger place here in Columbia. Mom agrees it’s a good idea. I passed my thoughts by her this morning to get her input and advice. She agrees I need more space if I’m going to remain in Columbia for a li’l while… plus an apartment complex that caters to students is not my most attractive option at the moment. I’ve moved past my temporary resentment of my neighbors for their behavior… they’re just bein students and having fun. They’re supposed to have fun at this time in their life. I simply don’t wish to be around them as they are doing so.

Finance Concerns

I’ll have to play around with a few options, but I think my most challenging task is putting forth a proposal to Gram in order to borrow some money. I’ve a combination of my standing cc debt, a new car, and moving expenses to consider, and I won’t be able to secure a loan from a bank for that combination without a ridiculous finance rate. The woman has a tidy sum saved in the bank, but she has a VERY difficult time wrapping her mind around the possibility of putting it anywhere but in that bank.

Gram, the Loan Institution

Mom and Pop have already secured a loan from her to pay off the last of their mortgage… reducing their FC by half, yet still giving her an interest rate 3 times higher than her money was making in the bank. And they’ll have her repaid in 4 years. But she fussed and fussed over the decision before agreeing. Having grown up in the Depression era, she’s still terrified she will lose every penny she owns, and will never see it again if she lets it go.

So… if I want to try a similar type loan (with a MUCH smaller sum of money), I gotta phrase my request in just the right manner. Mom says Gram has already commented on my “financial irresponsibility” so I may have to make a promise or two about spending until I get her paid off. The folks know I’m good on my word, cuz I borrowed a much smaller sum from them a few years ago, when I was struggling just to support myself… and they know I honor my debts to family first. I’ve never welched on a loan in my life, nor missed a payment, but I suppose it may be a bit more difficult to explain this to Gram. We’ll see. I’d like to get moved by time my lease is up in June.

Assembly, Here I Come?

Amway, since I’m so far feeling pretty good today… and the maintenance guy SHOULD be done coming in and out of my apartment, I think mebbe I can finally start assembling my new desk tonight. I suspect it will take a few nights to accomplish, so if I have to leave all of my ‘puter stuff out on the kitchen for a few days, I’ll feel more comfortable with no strangers comin through. Last night, I wasn’t good for much, so I just vegged in front of the tv all night… Bus Snob called and we talked a bit, but that’s about all that got done.

Welp, I have a meeting to work on, so I’ll wrap this up. My new location in the office is still taking some getting used to. I’ve always been at the end of the row… now I’m smack dab in the middle. At least I have a great view of who all’s in their office or not. :)

Farewell Old Friend

Oh, and I forgot to mention that I tearfully bade farewell to an old dear friend last night. It's been with me for so many years I can't remember. Unfortunately, it feels very much like a litter pan to somebody of the feline persuasion, and it met it's inevitable unseemly end.

Now, it's end was brought about by a series of events... it didn't just happen outta the blue. See, my bean bag chair USED to reside permanently in the living room. It was a nice, big, comfy chair made of stone-washed denim. But a couple of years ago, I actually CAUGHT Ms. Pukesalot utilizing it as a litter pan. Now, I know that when a cat urinates somewhere they aren't suposed to, it's frequently a sign that they are sick. And sure enough, she had a UTI. Fortunately, since I caught it right away, I was able to clean it immediately. But I also know that scent is always noticeable to an animal, no matter how well you clean it.

So, I threw the chair into the library, where the door is kept closed and the cat is kept out when I'm not there, so she wouldn't smell it and figure it was a normal place to conduct business. Well, unfortunately, I had to pull the bean bag chair OUT of the library in the midst of the recent chaos, and it went back in the living room.

And thus, my worst fears were realized. I spent all evening tryin to figure out why I was smellin a cat pan, when her cat pan didn't smell. *sigh* Then, when I crashed on the futon (right next to the bean bag chair), I finally saw (or smelled, as it were) the light. Unfortunately, by that time, everything was dried, and there was no knowing what or where to clean without taking it completely apart and throwing it in the wash... which I'm not sure how to do.

Thus ensued the somber ceremony conducting my poor old friend out to the dumpster.

*hanging head in remembrance*

And I'm NOT gettin another one... at least not while I still have a cat. *snort* I DO need to keep an eye out to see if she's sick again, though.

Movin Along

And Time Creeps By

So today’s been another excruciatingly slow day. The phone dood came by this morning to switch out the phones, but since I’m moving to the Retiree’s work space, and her new space at the other end of the room wasn’t completely ready yet, I’ve been without a phone all day. Which hasn’t been all that bad, actually. Except that the Receptionist is out today, and we had no students all morning… so if one of the other two girls in the office was busy and the phone rang, I had to run around and catch the call at the Receptionists’ desk. Oh well… it hasn’t happened much.

But, C.S. finally just finished up the new area, and the Retiree has been moving her stuff over there for the last hour. As soon as she’s out, I’ll probly start moving MY stuff over to HER desk. This was the gameplan. We’re hoping that folks will now start automatically coming to me with what they automatically came to her for. We have to start the process of phasing her responsibilities (and visibility) out since she retires next year.

A Pre-Move Move?

I’ve also been scopin out possibilities online for a new place to live here in Columbia. I found a few interesting duplexes that will give me more space (and options) than I have now, for a negligible amount more. And they’re still in the same area of Columbia, which I like. We’ll see. I just have to weigh my choices… if I don’t move to Cali for a while, I think it will suit me well to at least live comfortably in the interim.

Oh, and I still don’t have a new furnace, btw… and nobody answers at the apartment complex main office. *snort* Small reason behind my moving considerations.

VA Issues

Amway, with such goal in mind, I also finally decided to get my act together and find out what I need to do to request an increase in my VA Disability Compensation. When I was first evaluated 10 years ago, my migraines were not impeding my work. However, they have progressively gotten worse, and I now can actually miss 2-3 days a month of work. So I found the number to call from the VA website and talked to a counselor, who said all I need to do is send a letter explaining my situation, my disability, how much of an increase I want, and the name of my VA care provider and facility. I contacted my care provider to make sure my records are appropriately documented (which they should be, considering how much I’ve gone over it with her lately) before I send the letter. Of course, we’re playin our usual phone tag game, so I’m just waitin to hear back from her.

Accomplishing a Little at a Time

Last night I ended up finishing my errands, dropping off a magazine Mom had left at work while picking up a comforter I’d left at her place to finish hangdrying over the weekend, and then stuffing myself silly when I got home cuz I was absolutely starving by that point. Oh, and takin more drugs, cuz the paint fumes at work ended up getting to my head after all, despite my best efforts. In fact, I still have a migraine lurking right now… may need to go outside for some fresh air in a few.

So, I spent the evening relaxing… and reading when my head eased up a bit. I obviously didn’t get started on the desk. I figured I’d rather start on it when I have more time, anyway… as in right after work, rather than after I’d spent a couple hours on errands. Here’s hoping my head decides to lean AWAY from the migraine so I can accomplish that this evening.

Long Time No Chat…

Oh, and my Aussie popped in to chat today. Haven’t talked to him in a while. Unfortunately, he’s sick again… messed himself up in a bar fight, and so now his system is rebelling. Kinda sad, actually, that the only time I get to talk to him anymore is when he’s home sick… doh! lol

Emotionally speaking, though, he’s doing much better than when last we talked… straightening things out with his Soap Opera and gettin himself back on track. His life is heading onward and upward… (ie: back into the Army), just as he wants it, so all is good. I did remember to ask him what had upset him about reading my blog, and he still kinda hedged… but I got the general gist that it was regarding an anti-social discussion we hashed out earlier in the conversation. I’m still not sure where the problem was, but I take his word for it that it’s not really a problem anymore, so that’s all I really need to know. :)

Amway, that’s about it for today. The Retiree is just about done movin, so it’ll be my turn next. Fun!

Until tomorrow!

Starting the New Week With a Nudge

Recovering

So I’m pretty sore today, from all the lifting and carrying this weekend. Fortunately, however, the soreness is all in my thighs… indicating I used all the right muscles for the work. I’ve always carried my own weight, as it were, when moving furniture and various and sundry other heavy items… just gotta know what to carry it with… and sometimes use a li’l creativity. :)

Surviving

Mom’s downright whooped today. She’s on several different kinds of meds for various and sundry issues (including a decongestant for her cold, and Benadryl for a systemic allergic reaction she had to whatever that new bedding was treated with), and is flyin pretty high… or low, as it were. Plus, my brilliant self forgot I had a couple of nails stickin out the side of my old computer desk (from my half-assed solution to tackin my new surge protector up to the inside) and they were, of course, on the side Mom was carrying as she helped me carry it to the truck yesterday. We bumped into a wall, she surged forward, and those pleasant li’l nails scratched her thigh up right pretty. *sigh* We were fortunately still in the apartment, so we stopped everything so she could clean it up with some alcohol and bandage it. But I still felt horrible. I owe my poor mother a LOT for this weekend.

Fortunately, this is an unusually quiet Monday, so neither of us have been pressed much today. In fact, Mom’s headin home early… skipping her Monday “Interior Design” class. She’s REALLY feelin run down. She usually clenches her teeth through migraines, colds and cramps to stay at work… rarely does she go or stay home sick. But today IS slow, plus I think I may be rubbin off on her (for good or bad, I suppose is up for interpretation). I absolutely refuse to stay at work when I’m either miserably (and/or contagiously) sick or incapable of functioning with a migraine. lol

Progress

The CS (Construction Services) crew is over on the far side of our newly elongated office space at the moment, finishing up the last touches on the new part of the room. I believe I see somebody painting over there now. We may actually be moving tomorrow as planned. Yay! The only downside is paint fumes... Not so Yay. I may have to take a few trips outside for some fresh air before it starts messin with my head… speaking of migraines.

Questionable Progress

I wish the same could be said for the peeps supposedly getting my new furnace in at the apartment. According to their last communication, I was supposed to have the thing between last Wednesday and today. I tried to call this morning to follow up, but nobody’s answering. So I SINCERELY hope that they’ll still keep to their deadline. The cat pan shuffle is getting mighty old. Plus, have you ever sat down on the pot sideways? Feels damned strange. Also feels damned strange when the cat decides to hop up onto the roof of the cat pan sittin right in FRONT of the pot, to keep ya company… and garner a scritch. *snort*

Evening Plans

Amway, not much else is going on. Which is somewhat frustrating, considering I have SO much to get done at home, and I’m watching the minutes tick by at work. At least I can look online for a large clear plastic tablecloth to protect my new bedspread. Otherwise, I plan to stop by the grocery store on my way home to at least get THAT errand outta the way. I really need more milk… took my last half-gallon into work today, and I GOTTA have my milk.

Then I intend to tackle the new desk. Everything has to be done in order of space… put the new desk together and put it up in the corner of the library… move the smaller chest of drawers currently in the bedroom into the library next to the desk (it already has all of my library stuff in it)… put together the new chest of drawers (which, coincidentally, matches my nightstand… didn’t realize that til I got it home) and put it up where the old one is now… then I want to look for a smaller tv and/or vcr to replace my 27” currently bowing down the small chest of drawers.

I transferred the 27” to the bedroom when I got a new 31” for the living room a few years ago. It’s nice enough for the bedroom, but WAY too big and bulky. I don’t want it to warp the nice new chest of drawers. Plus, I’m always worried the cat will hop up on top of the rather tall piece of furniture wrong one day, and it will all come crashing to the floor.

Out With the Old

And, of course, the 27” will go in the garage sale. Thankfully, the folks have agreed to let it stay on one of the desks in the basement. Pop gave me the evil eye once or twice last night, once we got the desks downstairs and realized how much space they’d take… but I told him to take consolation from the fact that my library is going to be an equally cluttered mess until the Spring… considering I’ve been finding things left and right around the apartment that I plan to get rid of. I tried to suggest placing an ad in the paper for the desks (plus a few other items, like my living room tables), but Mom insisted it was fine. Of course, Mom’s always going out of her way for me. I think it’s a mom thing. I honestly try not to ask her for much, or she does about 3 times as much as I ask.

Faster Than a Speeding Deadline

Okee, well… I think that’s about it for today. Oh, except to mention that I suddenly realized recently that December 1 is getting mighty close, and I haven’t even started on my annual Christmas newsletter and card. I usually try to get it out by the 1st to 1) make sure folks get any new contact information to and from me in enough time and 2) remind peeps they need to send ME a card, too. :) but I kinda hit the ground running almost as soon as I got home from San Diego, and the newsletter absolutely flew my mind. I hope to have my home ‘puter up and running by next weekend… not only cuz I have bills to pay (if all else fails, I’ll bring em to work and access my online banking account here) but also cuz I need to get crackin on that newsletter. Who knows when I’ll ever manage to download all my trip pics and catch up on my back-posting. *sigh*

Oh well… better’n bein bored, I suppose. :)

Sunday (Yesterday)

No Home Computer

So Sunday was a busy day, though not an awful lot was accomplished. It is, indeed, Monday by now, but I was correct in my guess that I’d get nowhere near finishing the desk assembly. In fact, I haven’t even started. I consider it a major accomplishment just to get the still-boxed furniture dragged into the library last night so I’d only have one room in chaos. Well, and cuz I needed to open up the futon, and the boxes were leaning up against it.

Not-so-Exciting Adventures at the Laundromat

My day started relatively early… finishing up the disconnection of all my ‘puter stuff and clearing off the desks. Then I picked up Mom and her comforters, along with a bunch of my own large blankets, comforters and sheets, to wash at the Laundromat. Of course, we had to head back to my place first to pick up the last comforter I’d forgotten and left right there on my floor intending to bring it with me on my last trip of loading the car. Doh! I swear, senility is striking early. Though, Mom insists that CRS (Can’t Remember Shit) is not age discriminatory.

The Laundromat only had so many mega-capacity washers for the comforters, so we had to wait a bit… by time everything was said and done, it was already 2:00 and we were due for another late lunch. So we dropped off the newly cleaned bedding at our respective homes and headed out to Breadbasket for some sammiches.

Side Trip

While we were in the vicinity, Mom wanted to check out Famous Barr to see what kind of sales they have (she’s been slowly building her new China set according to their sales) so we wandered about the department store for a li’l while until she started to poop out again and figured we’d best get my old desks moved before she lost all energy.

Move Em Out

So we switched to the truck back at her place and loaded it up with the desks at my place. (Fortunately, we’re only about 5 minutes away from each other). Bus Snob tried to call while we were in the middle of cartin one of the desks out, but I explained we were in mid-transit and she was cool about callin back later. The desks weren’t really very heavy at all, so Mom could handle them okay with her bad wrist… but she was really losing steam. I suggested we just leave them in the back of the truck (it’s covered) until Pop got home so he and I could get them out and take them down to her basement for strorage.

Tidying Up

By that time, we still had a little bit of time before dinner and another movie… and Mom knew I was itchin to get home and putz some, so she shood me out and told me she’d give me a call when they were about ready for dinner. I was hopin to mebbe get out to run some errands I’d missed all weekend, but ended up spending most of my time vacuuming up the newly vacated half of the library, and applying my new bedding to the bed. It’s a cute li’l set… dark blue comforter, bedskirt and pillow shams with lighter blue swirlies and big yellow suns and moons… and white sheets and pillow cases with li’l yellow suns. I’ve never had a bedskirt before, so I discovered what FUN it is to apply one to Queen-size boxsprings all by myself. lol

Happy 2-Days-After-Your-Birthday to You…

I was pretty pooped, myself, when I got done with all that, so I figured it was a good opportunity to get some good quality lap-time in with Ms. Pukesalot. I also remembered that I’d totally forgotten to call up IHOP Buddy to wish her Happy Birthday since Friday. In fact, I haven't gotten around to callin her since I’ve been back from San Diego, either. She wasn’t home, but I left a message and hopefully can get back with her some evening this week. I can always talk while assembling.

Winding Down

The rest of my evening was pretty relaxed. We didn’t do the regular Sunday Night Dinner with Gram cuz Mom was sick and didn’t want to expose Gram. Neither Mom nor I was up for cooking, so we ordered in sammiches from Jimmy John’s, and watched Secondhand Lions… very good flick, btw, we all enjoyed it.

When I got back home around 9:30, I entertained the idea of starting on the desk, but then took a quick inventory of my physical and mental resources, and promptly dismissed the idea. I DID open up the box, though, and pull out the instructions to go over. It looks pretty straightforward. The desk is designed in such a manner that it can be easily disassembled for transport. Which is a good thing, considering I think it’s too wide to go through any doors. I’m definitely gonna have to assemble it IN the library.

Amway, like I mentioned earlier, I DID go ahead and drag the furniture boxes into the library, though… plus the computer monitor, CPU and printer that I'd temporarily thrown in the kitchen that morning to clear room to move the desks in the library. I STILL don’t have my new furnace, so I didn’t want all that shit sittin out when they come in to install it.

After a li’l more lap time with the cat, while watching an old episode of Law & Order: SVU, I could still hear the machine guns goin upstairs, so I pulled out the futon and crashed.

More stuff on today in Monday’s own post. :)

Helpful Neighbors

New Furniture

So I got my new computer desk and chest of drawers today. They're still in their boxes in the living room, waiting to be assembled sometime in the near future. I can probly handle most of the assembly myself, but a li'l help is always handy. I'll see how much I can get done... attaching the top part of the desk to the bottom part will probly be the stickiest part. Mom has volunteered to be of assistance, but she's caught herself a cold and doesn't have the most strength or energy at the moment.

Cruisin Wal-Mart with Mom

Plus, I still need to get rid of the two old desks before I can get the new one in here... we didn't get around to that today. With Mom bein puny, we figured we at least needed to get to Wal-Mart before she zonked out. We ended up wandering around the store (Mom avoids the Super Wal-Mart cuz of the crowds, so doesn't get to snoop around the place much) and we both picked up some miscellaneous bedding... she just wanted a comforter to wrap up in the living room while watching tv, and I got a whole new bed set. I still need to figure out how I'm gonna protect it from puke... I'm thinkin clear plastic coverings.

Big-Ass Boxes

Amway, then we had to get some help from a coupla big strong Wal-Mart employees to drag out the HUGE computer desk box (which, coincidentally was the third box down cuz the two on top were damaged, so they had to drag out all three... I felt bad for that, but I REALLY have no wish to drag it back to the store if I'd discovered any damaged parts after getting it home) and the equally heavy drawers, get em loaded onto one of their big long carts and out to the truck.

Now, since Pop was at work, and Mom has a carpel tunnel issue with one of her wrists, the sticky part was gettin the boxes OUT of the truck once we got to the apartment. Mom brought her sturdy furniture dolly, so getting it through the parking lot, through the complex front doors, and into the apartment was no big deal... but she couldn't help me lift them to get them onto the dolly. So I asked a neighbor.

Asking for Help

I really don't know any of my neighbors well. I know this is my own fault for being anti-social. But I HAVE met a couple... during The Great Canine Rescue last month. The chick who went door-to-door with me looking for li'l Taco Maria's home, is a dinky li'l thing who probly wouldn't appreciate my asking her to lift some heavy boxes. The other neighbor who contributed to the rescue effort was Parker's dad... Parker's the enthusiastic li'l dog that moved in this Summer and brought fleas to the apartment complex (which seems to be under control now, btw, so all's forgiven).

So it was to Parker's dad that I knocked on the door for help. They took a while getting to the door cuz Parker had just had a bath... So I got to meet an enthusiastic and WET li'l dog at the door. lol But the dood was really nice (again) and was very gracious about helping out. Of course, I know folks sometimes don't feel like they have much choice... unless they want to seem like an asshole for saying "no" to somebody asking for help, but he didn't have to answer the door so I didn't totally twist his arm. :)

Duh

Of course, I didn't realize until later that my social ineptitude caused my brain to hiccup and totally forget to do the polite thing of introducing him to my mom. I did the same thing in Santa Maria when I finally saw my tat artist for the first time in 10 years... totally forgot to introduce her to Radish and Halloween Nut. *smackin forehead* So I'm a doof.

But then, I also don't even know my neighbor's name. I know his dog's name, but not his... lol But that's typical, I suppose... I tend to pay attention more to animals than people. I suppose today would have been an excellent opportunity to LEARN the doods, name... but oh well. I'd like to do something for him in return for his help... mebbe bake something up. I can perhaps remember to ask his name then... lol He really does seem like a nice enough guy.

I also wanna ask him about where Parker got her name... doesn't usually sound like a female type name. But just today I remembered the female character from the show The Pretender... whom everybody called "Miss Parker"... and to some she was simply "Parker". I'll have to ask him if he was a Pretender fan. *grin*

The Rest of the Day

Amway, we dropped off the boxes, then went right back out to eat. I’d only had a Slimfast all day, and Mom hadn’t eaten much since one is rarely hungry when one is puny. By that time it was 3:00, though, and we were both needing food. So we stopped by KFC, and pretty much lost our wind while sitting down to eat. We decided that that was the extent of our agenda for the day and headed back to her place to chill until Pop got home and we could watch a movie. Mom had 3 new ones in from Netflix… Van Helsing, Second Hand Lions, and The Candidate.

I’d already seen Van Helsing in San Diego with H.N. and the Witch… but I liked it well enough to want to see it again, so that’s what we watched tonight. Then, of course, had to check out all the extra stuff, and by time we got done with everything it was 9:30 and I still needed to get home, blog and sit with my cat.

Tomorrow

So here I am. Here’s hoping I can get online tomorrow in order to post something. I’d do it first thing in the morning, but I doubt I’ll have anything new to say between now and then. But I’m gonna have to disconnect the computer to clear off the old desk and move it. I COULD possibly have the new one put together and my computer hooked back up by the end of the day, but I’m kinda doubting it. So I may have to backpost on Monday. Or type on the floor. *grin*

Until then… g’night.

Late

So I never got around to posting before I left work today and, of course, had my Friday night shows to watch, so I'm gettin in here kinda late.

Still No Furnace

Nothin much to report for today. I still don't have a new furnace. My luck, they'll get here with it while I'm trying to put my desk together sometime this weekend. *snort*

Archival Quality... or is that Quality Archiving?

My workday was relatively busy... spent a good chunk of time trying to archive one of the PM's large-file e-mail folders. I tried and tried to figure out what I was doing wrong... only to learn that I was doing it just fine. The files were too large and his e-mail space was too small for him to navigate very well at all. I called in the assistance of an expert (Mom, who's been teaching everybody this new process of transferring to file formats that will actually reduce their size) and the final solution was simply getting a hold of IT and having them temporarily increase his storage. I'll tell ya, though... we went over the archival process so many friggin times I don't think either of us will forget it anytime soon... lol

New Pan Tradition

The Receptionist and I seem to have started a new tradition. Last Friday, when she asked me what I was doing for lunch (we coordinate so that the office is always covered), I mentioned that I brought a can of soup but could seriously stand to order in something that was a bit more exciting. Now, I've had a fair amount of pizza lately... well, at least more than I normally eat. And all of it from Pizza Hut. And NOBODY'S been willing to go for a thick Pan crust with me. Until last Friday. I've found a fellow thick-crust lover! woo-hoo! So we ordered a medium pan pizza with pineapple and bell peppers, thinkin we'd have some left over for dinner... but it was so friggin good it disappeared between the two of us.

So today, when we went over the usual lunch arrangements, she and I looked at each other... and I asked if she wanted to go in for a pizza again. And so a new tradition has been born. I think. I usually don't keep an awful lotta cash on me, so goin through $8 a week might not work. But at least every other week, for sure. :)

Coming Soon...

*thinking* That's about it. Fussbudget called last night and we talked until neither one of us could remember what we were just talking about. I have a definite date for when she plans to drive out here next month, so I went ahead and put in for the Friday and Monday around that weekend off. I'm really looking forward to her visit... hopefully my apartment will be in somewhat presentable shape by then... *sigh*

Damned Bugs

Oh, and last night I was... well, relatively good at Michael's. I ended up getting another couple of pics custom framed at $150 total, and then managed to find pre-made stuff to frame another 5 smaller pics at about $10 a pop. So now that I've spent $500 total (including the 2 I took in earlier in the week) I think I'm going to stop now. I could do SOOO much more, but I at least have to PRETEND to be fiscally responsible at some point and draw the line. *sigh* But hey... ya gotta admit that, considering it was $1000 worth of framing... I didn't do too badly, eh?

Hopefully the picture bug will go away soon. Before that it was the book bug. The tat bug has also bit again, but at least indulgence in that one is severely limited by lack of proximity. The travel bug has been assuaged to a certain degree by my recent trip to San Diego... though, I still want to visit more folks in the next year. Just not one a month. And the furniture bug won't be completely dealt with until after the Garage Sale in the Spring when I can unload the old stuff.

Oh yeah... and then there's saving money. I'll figure that in somehow. Thankfully, I've already got automatic deposits goin into my IRA, or I'd find somethin else to do with THAT. *shakin head*

Oh well... busy weekend comin up, so I'd best wrap this up. Plus, I booted Ms. Pukesalot outta the library cuz she was pokin around and knockin shit over on the other side of the room where all the utility room stuff is piled about. So now's she's bitching at me from the other side of the door.

TTFN