Sunday Guacamole (& Books!)

Well, to start with I have a bruise that has developed over my right eyebrow. It's not bad, but it's there. It's actually not as big as I thought it might be. I just don't like it! It's not nearly as sore, and only when I bump it. I've been putting peroxide on the cut places and they are a lot better as well.

Today is February 28. The last day of the month. 17 years since our move from TEXAS to Oklahoma. I've addressed this in previous posts, so I'm not going to repeat all the changes that have happened in the last 17 years but there have been quite a few of them. Mostly, losing both Mom and Dad. Those are the biggest changes. But not all the changes have been bad. There have been a lot of good ones along the way. And there are still more coming, life is about change. And a big one is going to happen on the 31st of March.

This is from 2/28/08:

"I've posted before about the trip, how hard it was and a lot of memories. so I'm not going to get into that much, but I can never, ever see a UHaul truck without remembering ours and how it had trouble in Dallas. I also can't pass a truck stop without remembering how fortunate we were that the trouble was discovered when we stopped for gas at a truck stop, and how nice everyone there was to us. The other big thing that we remember from the trip itself was Otter's reaction. She hadn't seen her daddy in about 2 months, as he'd already come to OK to look for a job. She was so excited and so happy to see him again, she spent most of the trip reaching over the side of her car seat to pat his arm and smile at him. When we got to OK, we went straight to Bill's dad's house since it was about 3:00 a.m. or thereabouts and we wouldn't be able to get the key to our apartment. We parked the truck in the driveway, then we went straight to the guest room and collapsed. And here we are 15 years later, in the same house! Only this time we aren't visiting."

And now, 2/28/10, it's 17 years later. And the guest room is now Otter's room.

I'm cleaning house and cleaning out today. I started with the back of the house - our room - and have cleaned it top to bottom. I haven't hit the bathroom yet, other than dusting & cleaning baseboards. But the bedroom itself is done. My cleaning out includes deciding to donate the big lamp with the moonstone glass. It's not Fenton, so I'm not going to miss it! My original plan was to try and find another one like it so I would have a matching pair, on either side of the bed. But I've never seen another one like it and it's really just too big anyway. So I put it in the donate pile, which will probably go to Salvation Army sometime this week - when the pile gets a little bigger. I had another lamp with a milk glass base, hurricane style, and it very well could be Fenton. But, even if it's not Fenton, it's a good size and I like it. I moved it to my side of the bed, if I don't ever find another one, it will still look good by itself because it is so much smaller and won't overwhelm the rest of the room decor.

This is going to be an all day post. I'm taking a break now, to go read the paper and then get back to cleaning. I'm not sure if it would be considered Spring Cleaning or not, since Spring isn't for a few more weeks. I do this type of cleaning every few months, drives Otter & the dogs & Bill nuts but they cope. Bill's smart enough to make himself scarce so I don't put him to work! He's playing with power tools in the garage, so I'm keeping one ear open for him. Just in case.

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OK, breaktime is over! Well, my break included vacuuming the entire house & dusting the living room. Plus motivating Otter to unload & reload the dishwasher (2nd time today, I've already unloaded it from last night and run it again), change her bedding and deal with her (2nd in 3 days) nosebleed. And I also crocheted 2 1/2 rows on my wrap/scarf.

Here's the book list:

1. Popular Mechanics Outdoor & Garden Projects. Rock walls, walks, etc. A few good ideas but probably not anything we really want to do.

2. Texas Public Gardens by Elvin McDonald. Love the author's first name. Interesting pictures. Got a few flower ideas.

3. Batman

4. Batman

5. False Impressions, the Hunt for Big-Time Art Fakes by Thomas Hoving. Interest, but a little dry and not the easiest read. I've read other things this author has written, his style is not that good but I learned a lot.

6. Silent Partner, a Memoir of My Marriage by Dina Matos McGreevey. He was the governer, New Jersy I think, who came out of the closet and basically destroyed his political career - along with his family, which was obviously not important to him (his family I mean). Strong woman, she has had a great deal with handle. And he is pretty dispicable. By his own admission, he only married her and had a baby with her for his image and political career. I would think that about him even if he weren't on the other side of the aisle politically from me.

7. The Zombie Survival Guide, Recorded Attacks by Max Brooks. This is a cartoon type book, a companion to the great book Otter and I read a while back. This one was really fun.

8. Batman

9. Get Hooked, Simple Steps to Crochet Cool Stuff by Kim Werker. Didn't find much of interest.

10. Blizzard by Jim Murphy. This was about a blizzard in New York City, in the late 1800's but I don't remember the exact year. It was very good.

11. It Itches, a Stash of Knitting Cartoons by Franklin Habit. Froggy, you have to read this one! It applies to crochet as well as knitting. Really funny cartoons.

12. Twist & Twine, 18 Ideas for Rag Rugs and Home Decor. I had been thinking of making a rag rug, but I realized that I have absolutely no place to put one. But the book was very interesting.

13. Knitting Loves Crochet by Candi Jenson. This was was about how to embellish knitted garments with crochet. OK.

14. Batman

15. Batman

16. Lion Brand Yarn Just Hats. Didn't find anything I liked. Both crochet and knitting patterns.

17. Lion Brand Yarn Just Bags. See comments on # 16.

18. My Sister's Keeper by Jodi Picout. I read this one because Froggy & KN#3 really wanted me to give this author another try. OK, I tried. And I still am not impressed! This one was probably the best of her work I've read, but it was extremely predictible and she's just not that good of an author. I might still read more by her, but she's not at the top of my list. But I did try!

19. Star Trek - the most recent movie in novel form. It was ok, but that's about all it was.

20. Have You Seen My country Lately? America's Wake Up Call by Jerry Doyle. This one was very good. I strongly recommend it. Jerry Doyle was an actor, he was on the series Babylon 5 which was very good. He made a serious mistake which cost him his career - he ran for office. In California. As a Republican. Which was a death sentence for any more work for him. So he became a talk-show host for a conservative network and I wish we could get his show in our area. I think I'm going to buy this one.

21. How to Slice an Onion - Cooking Basics and Beyond by Bunny Crumpacker. Love the pen name! This one was a decent cook book, but I"m not sure if I'll actually use anything I learned in it. Although I do like one thing - she doesn't always measure when she cooks and it still turns out great! Bill wasn't amused when I told him that. I don't think he believed me.

22. Star Trek Encyclopedia, a Reference Guide to the Future by Michael Okuda. This was a looooooong book, and most of it I already knew. Otter checked it out actually.

23. The Art of Avatar, James Cameron's Epic Adventure by Lisa Fitzpatrick. I really have zero desire to see the movie, but the artwork is good.

24. Before Your Dog Can Eat Your Homework, You Have to Do it. Life Lessons from a Wise Old Dog to a Young Boy by John O'Hurley. A few months back, I mentioned how sometimes the large number of words in a title is a way to disguise a badly written book. This is a prime example of that fact.

25. A Walk Down the Aisle, Notes on a Modern Wedding by Kate Cohen. This one sounded good, it's a semi-biographical work about a couple's experience when they got married. It's a waste of time.

26. Creative Homeowners Texas Home Landscaping (Includes Oklahoma) by Greg Grant and Roger Holmes. Didn't learn much that I could use. But it was interesting. (Seems like I keep using the word interesting).

27. Crochet Gifts, Irrestible Projects to Make and Give by Kim Werker. I think I will resist this one, it was ok but really nothing new.

28. Felted Crochet Bags - Pillows - Bowls - Hats - Throws by Jane Davis. Felting is something that works with wool yarn, which I can't use. But the patterns were good and I enjoyed this book.

29. 1-2-3 Skein Crochet edited by Judy Crow. Some good patterns.

30. 1001 Things Everyone Should Know About WWII by Frank E Vandiver. I actually got this book at the library for Bill and he enjoyed it. I read it but quite a bit of it was information we already knew. But it is still one I'd recommend.

31. Batman

32. How to Eat Like a Republican by Susanne Grayson Townsend. This is the 2nd cookbook I read that didn't always require measuring. Good recipes, too.

33. Knit 2 by Kate Jacobs. I know I said I wasn't going to read anymore of the Friday Night Knitting Club. But Froggy really likes this series, so I decided to at least give it another try. It was a struggle, but I did manage to finish it. I do mean struggle, by the way. I don't know if there is another book in this series yet or not, but I think I'll skip it if there is. Froggy, I tried!

34. Batman

35. Batman

36. Batman (Remember, Otter and I are trying very hard to read all the Batman books out there. We are getting there. Slowly, there are a LOT of them).

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Later again. I have now cleaned out the dining room windows, which were very dusty and filled with cobwebs. I also replaced all my table decor, dusted the china cabinet (outside) and the corner plant stand in the dining room. And we've finished laundry. I also vacuumed everywhere except for Otter's room (she did that one) and the living room because Bill's still got pachinko pieces everywhere in there.

Frasier is grooming Maggie at the moment. She's purring. Beagle is strange, and so is BigDog! They were very funny earlier, when we were making lunch. There is a reason that Maggie's middle name is Intheway. The got lettuce and cheese bites, but they would have preferred the buffalo burger patties and the hamburger buns I'm sure.

I also found a bunch of stuff to file, I nearly forgot about that. And while I was at it, I found several floppy discs which had pictures of the rent house after we evicted our first tenant (for non-payment) and the mess she left. It was filthy, to say the least. I saved the pictures on my hard drive, I'll keep them for a while but I don't think we'll need them again. It's been over 5 years now.

OK, this is long enough. I'm going to surf the 'net for a while and then probably go crochet some more.

One more month until Otter's 18!

So Glad This Week is Over!

It's been a wild one, this week. And I have the war wounds to prove it.

Of course, my war wounds are all visible. And on my face. Courtesy of a stray cat! (Relax, nothing serious).

Yesterday started out ok, whoever is first in to the office (usually me) feeds Miss Whiskers - aka the Office Cat. Yesterday, Miss Whiskers had a friend. There was a grey, striped cat with her and it came right up to me and meowed. Loudly, but not threateningly. I think it was just very hungry. I had a handful of cat food in one hand and was holding the food bag in the other hand. I reached down to get the water dish we leave out there and I think the grey cat thought I was either going to grab or hit it. Because it jumped up and caught the right side of my face near my ear with one paw (Froggy, I think I told you it was my left side but it was my "other left" as Toadles says) and possibly the left side of my face about mid-cheek with the other paw. And the teeth? Well, they landed just above my right eyebrow. The cat let go as quickly as it struck and it just moved over out of the way - and started eating the food I'd spilled. Which is when I did something I NEVER EVER do - I tried to kick it. Actually, I was trying to chase it off as opposed to kicking it but I was also trying to keep blood out of my eye so I could see. I went back inside at that point, and the younger boss was just coming in the door. I felt kind of sorry for him actually - I think I terrified him! He immediatly dragged me off into the bathroom and started wiping blood off my face. Being a redhead, there was a LOT of blood. We got it stopped, mostly - the spot over my eyebrow bled for quite a while but it wasn't gushing anymore. Then he went after me with peroxide. Then he went out and chased the cat off - although it kept coming back for a while. (And then he "motherhenned" me all day long.)

Knowing Bill as well as I do, I called him to let him know - and was promptly told to call animal control, go strangle the cat, go to the doctor, go shoot the cat, etc. I called the doctor and they agreed with me - the cuts aren't deep so no stitches are needed and since the cat was not acting aggresive, rabies is probably not a concern. I just have to keep the places clean and watch for signs of infection. Then I actually saw Bill at lunch so I could get the inspection I knew was coming and another lecture. Which I expected, by the way!

Most of the spots are just scratches, the deepest is the possible bite mark over my eyebrow and it's not really deep. But it is sore, I didn't realize just how much I move my eyebrows in a day until yesterday. Now, it's mostly just sore to the touch and barely bruised.

Miss Whiskers was waiting patiently this morning, all by her feline self. So I fed her and she had to have her petting - cat likes belly rubs, too. But her friend did not show "his" face today. Which is a good thing, because I would have taken the broom to him.

And what was Otter's comment? If I turn into a werecat, she wants to be the first one I bite. Although I think that would probably be Bill and then Frasier - just because they both hate cats!

On to other things. I have avoided crocheting this week and it's not easy! My skin was better but it's kind of acting up today. I did crochet some last night (with the latex glove) and will probably spend several hours tomorrow with a hook in one hand and a yarn ball in the other. My neck & shoulder tightness has just about gone away, but it's an occupational hazard with crochet.

Bill's been playing with his toys in the garage. In other words, he's had access to power tools. But no injuries yet! (I think I've already covered the week's worth of bleeding).

Otter has had an eventful week herself. As in problems at school, with 2 boys who tried very hard to get her into trouble with the teacher. Except that their version of getting her into trouble was to compose a letter like it was from her - saying that she "likes" the teacher and wants to meet her outside of school. They got a serious helping of Redhead Texas Woman and were very surprised at it. (Well, she is her mother's daughter after all!). Then, Otter informed the teacher and this time the teacher actually supported her. I understand that one of the boy's parents had a nice telephone call from the teacher - nice being another word for as_-whupin! This is not the first time one of the boys has tried this, just the first time with Otter. And I would imagine, the last time he tries anything with her. The principal followed up with Otter and she made her complaint official and in writing. She also thanked the teacher(s - there were actually two) for standing up for her. One of the two heathens has been a problem for Otter for a while in class. I guess he didn't feel like he got enough of her attention. Needless to say, he now probably thinks he got too much of her attention! Well, if you play with fire you will get burned. The firey temper attributed to redheads is not just one of those stereotypical stories, incidentally - it's there and it can be incandescently hot.

It's a powerful weapon, being a redhead. Not just anyone can handle it. But we can. And Otter handles it supremely. Good girl.

Course Correction & Wonderful Surprise

Course Correction: I was off on the Pancake Day. I knew it was on the 23rd, but I thought that yesterday was the 23rd. Which means that anything I put a date on yesterday was wrong! Pancake Day is today. But Margarita Day was yesterday, that one at least I had right.

Wonderful Surprise: WE GOT TULIPS! (yes, I know - grammar!). We didn't get any tulip bulbs last summer/fall because we were pretty busy with the rent house and by the time we got through and had time to slow down, it was too late. Tulips as a rule do not last more than one season. Daffodills will come back for eternity, which is great. We like them. There are some in the tulip bed and each year they have multiplied. They usually look great with tulips. I checked the bed today for signs of daffys, and there are several. And they are not alone! WE GOT TULIPS! Several of them, in fact. Otter was overjoyed, and so was I. I'm very surprised that they came back this year, but it is a happy surprise.

I'm taking a self-imposed crochet break today. My skin is ok, it's not as good as it could be but it's also not as bad as it could be. My shoulders and upper arms are kind of sore, tight muscles in those areas are a result of crochet overload. I would imagine that knitters have similar problems. My wrists will bother me if I crochet for too long a stretch, but this time it's the shoulders & upper arms. I just took a looooooooooooooooong hot shower, it helped some. But I think I'm just going to stay away from the yarn and hook for a day or so. It ain't easy!

Here's Froggy's answer to my latest challenge, her simple pleasures:

Simple pleasures-
pretty much anything where some or all of my family is together.

Others are working outside in my flower beds, counting birds and just watching and listening to them.

I also get a lot out of my Master Naturalist activities.
I also like the quilting, and sewing, and learning new things.

Words that I can't stand- at this moment I can't think of any. I am sure that there are some and when I think of them I will email them to you.

Book list in the next few days. I have already read more books than there are days in this month. And I still have a few more to go. Otter and I went to the library yesterday after school - imagine that!

Today is a Fun Day!

It's a double duty day.

It is National Pancake Day.

And it's also National Margarita Day.

I prefer blueberries in my pancakes, but we don't have them too often. They are good spread with peanut butter - which is one of the many food habits that sound odd but are very popular in NE Oklahoma. This one, at least, is pretty good.

As far as Margaritas go, I'll take a large one please. Extra lime and very little salt.

Then I will need to be put to bed, because tequila makes me very sleepy. And also very stuffy nosed, so I don't drink it very often. I don't drink anything very often, but I drink tequila even less than anything else. I think I might have an allergy to something in it. The good stuff is made from agave cactus and it doesn't seem to bother me, but the less-than-good stuff is not my friend.

So maybe I don't want a Margarita after all.

Froggy sent me her Simple Pleasures list. If anyone else wants to participate, and have it posted on my blog, please send it to me via email soon. I'll probably post the responses towards the end of the week. More or less. Or thereabouts. Or somewhere in there.

Sunday Jalepenos **Edited**

Today's title was inspired by Bill. He's a hot pepper kind of guy.

It's raining today. It has been since early this morning. It's the nice slow kind that we need. It's also pretty cool and the rain makes it feel cold. But it's nice.

We've been running errands today. Well, actually we ran Bill errands which means pachinko hunting. He wanted to go to an estate sale that had two advertised, they had one left today but it was $100.00 and that is about 4 times what it was really worth. So it didn't come home with us. But he's got 12, so he's not about to go into withdrawl. He's looking for something specific, he needs to replace the playing field on one of his machines and he was thinking contact paper or wallpaper might work. However, they are very hard to find these days. They are both out there, but in very limited styles/colors. We went to several small stores that might have things like that and he did find some, but not what he wanted. We also went to a Goodwill, but nobody had any luck there. The only money that was spent was on sandwiches at a convenience store and Otter had to get hamster food at Petsmart. But we had a good time. **We went to Target and Bill found some contact paper that will work, at least that he can experiment with. I'll update later on his progress.

We made it to Church today! First time in 2 weeks, we had assorted illnesses to deal with that kept us home. But we got there this morning and it was really nice. Just cold! But I always get cold. I took a jacket with me today, I'm working on my wrap shawl but I have another project I have to get finished with first.

Otter wants me to crochet her a pillow cover, so that makes 3 projects including my wrap. No, there are 4 - I forgot about another one I have planned. They are still secrets, all will be revealed later but they are all crochet.

I have solved my skin problem, at least as far as crochet is concerned. I bought a box of latex gloves and they worked beautifully. I was afraid that the yarn would tear the gloves, but they seem to be strong enough to hold up to it. And, best of all, they protect my skin! I have a lot of allergies, but latex is not one of them.

We've been watching the Olympics some this week. We've enjoyed what we have been able to see. I think I prefer the winter Olympics to the summer. But they are both enjoyable.

Name Change: FutureJediMom will be referred to from here on out as JediMom. It's easier and shorter, and it's what she uses. Froggy is still Froggy, Toadly is still Toadly, Otter is still Otter, Bill is still Bill. And I'm still Ottermom. Or Borg Queen, either is appropriate.

C is For...

Chocolate Mint Day!

I knew today was a good day, aside from being Friday. Now, I know why.

I asked Frasier if he wanted to post today but I don't think he was interested. His response was to open one eye partially, sigh and close it again. I'm taking that as a no!

Th-th-that's all, ffffolks!

Words The Next Generation

(Yes, it's a Star Trek reference!)

A while back, Otter and I composed a list of words & phrases that we were not fond of. This is the continuation. It's probably not the final chapter, there may be more in the future.

Here goes:

**Means that it might have been on the first list

Carbon footprint**
Faux (it's FAKE, people!)
Tween

__________ American (either you are an American or you aren't. It's not a crime to have a cultural heritage, but I'm not Irish American - I'm AMERICAN with Irish ancestry. Native American is a different story, but the emphasis needs to be on the American part - yes, I realize that I am Cherokee.)

Recession
Bail Out
Friend/Unfriend (this one is really dumb)

Outside the Box
Comfort Zone
Greenhouse Gasses**
Literally (Sweetie's suggestion)

Otter's mini rant:

When you say a TXTSPK (Text-speak) prase in english (ie 'lol' as 'loll' and 'OMG' as 'Ohemgee') is the most annoying thing ever invented! It is also a horrid butchering of the first true language of the internet-1337 (or leet, l33t) For an example of true 1337- http://www.jessture.com/images/various/mtokyo_0009-420px.jpg is the comic that made it known.

--End mini-rant--

Good words, that we like:

Happy Place

Here are a few words/phrases that I call Craisglist words. Some of them are actually from eBay. They are more of a mistake in spelling than an actual word that bugs me, but they do bother me!
Chested Drawers (Bill would make a boob joke here)
Chester Drawers (I always want to ask if Chester knows that they are selling his drawers!)
Punkin (Think large, round, orange gourd)
Sequence (Sequins!)
Shaw (Shawl)

Anybody got any suggestions? Email me with them, and we'll consider them for the next word list.

Wednesday's Whining

I'm going to whine for a while. So deal with it! :)

Today's whine:

My skin is driving me nuts this week. My forefinger and thumb on my right hand have cracks. The one on my forefinger is the worst one, it happened between getting out of my car at work yesterday and walking into the garage. And it hurt like the dickens! The ones on my thumb are minor and pretty much healed, but the forefinger is one that I bump constantly. I've been keeping a bandaid on it as much as I can, but then there is another problem that is caused by that - I'm allergic to most adhesive on bandaids.

I have several crochet projects either in the works or planned, but I'm not going to even attempt it for a few days. I might see if I can come up with a way to shield my cracked finger, but I'm not sure if that would work. It's kind of hard to crochet with any type of a glove, and bandaids would be impossible.

I found this picture on loldogs just now. I think it's appropriate, just picture Frasier or Maggie Moo!

OK, whining over. For the moment, anyway.

Otter is enjoying her night school science class. She said it's basically the same class she took in 9th grade and is the same teacher. The teacher rembered her and was glad to see her. ACT testing is coming up in several weeks, just after her birthday.

There was more, but I don't remember what it was. I've had a headache for a couple of hours, so at least I have a good excuse for forgetting!

Sunday Chocolate

Yeah, I know it's not a spice or a condiment. But it is Valentine's Day and I like chocolate. A lot. A LOT. I've had some today, in fact.

I woke up Saturday morning feeling good so I don't think I am going to come down with the bug. I have had allergy symptoms off and on but just the normal stuff. Normal for me, anyway. Otter is better but she still has a lot of congestion. She's off from school tomorrow, so she has another day to recuperate.

She said she was feeling housebound, so she went with me/us when we ran an errand while ago. But she wasn't out long. However, she said it was long enough and she was just happy to get out of the house. She had her inhaler handy and lots of kleenex. I think it did her good to get out for a while.

We woke up to falling snow this morning. It didn't last, it's all gone now. But it was pretty. I refilled 3 of the 5 birdfeeders and there have been several birds visiting them. It's supposed to be cold this coming week, I think.

Our romantic Valentine's meal consisted of hot dogs. I hardly ever eat them, they are not on my list of approved food but every once in a while I'll have one. Bill and Otter wanted to roast them in the fireplace, so we did that today. They still needed to be zapped in the microwave, but they had the flavor they get when roasted. It was pretty good, but I probably won't have another one for months. I do buy the beef ones, but they still aren't healthy. Just tasty!

I've finally decided on a project for some of my new yarns. I found a pattern for a wrap style shawl, I started it last night. It's turning out very well and I think I'm going to like it. I am making it in two colors, both shades of green. I had 2 of a grass green color in the clearance yarn I got last week but I wasn't sure if two would be enough. I decided to alternate colors, so we stopped at Michael's today and I bought another of the same green plus three of a lighter shade. I'll eventually get it finished and pictures posted. I don't think it will take me very long, but I am making myself take breaks frequently because I don't want my arms, hands & neck to get so stiff I can't use them. My skin was pretty bad earlier in the week, but lots of lotion and tlc has improved it. I have to really watch it while I crochet, the yarn can absorb skin oil fast and that's usually the beginning of a bad spell with my skin.

The wrap shawl will probably be what I take to Church with me. I get cold very easily, and if we go to the theater (even in the summer) I have to take a jacket. Our church building is fairly new, but I like to freeze in there every Sunday. Even when the heater is on! I'd been looking for something like this to use for warmth and I came across a pattern yesterday when I was looking through my stash. (Redhead trivia: we get cold easily. It has to do with our thin blood and usually lack of iron that is also a redhead fact of life). (Oh and Like To is an accepted expression in Texasspeak. It means Nearly).

I've lost count of how many Pachinko machines Bill has. But he added another one to his collection Friday. I'm thinking he's close to a dozen. But that's just a guess, he could well have more!

It's Been A Few Days!

Since I posted last. I think it was Tuesday?

It's been a busy week. The first part of the week was taken up with Bill being sick and then normal life intruded. Now, Otter is sick. She started having a sore throat off and on about Wednesday but not bad enough to keep her from going to school. She was taking benadryl at night for the allergy symptoms she has been having. When she went to bed last night, she felt pretty cruddy so I wasn't surprised when she woke up this morning with hardly any voice at all. So she got to stay home today. Bill is better, but he was also off today and is off Monday.

I've been having allergy symptoms the last day or so and I now have a sore throat which started late morning today. So it might be my turn. I told Bill that I would blame it on him, instead of Otter. He found that amusing.

It's been a long week. I'm glad it's nearly over. I am so ready for it to be Friday today and Saturday tomorrow!

Anyway.

What else was I going to talk about?

I forgot.

I'm going back to my orange juice now and shortly will be heading for the couch. And probably a motrin.

Tuesday Stuff

First of all: Bill does have a sinus infection. He started out feeling pretty good Monday morning, got ready for work and had breakfast. Then about 5 minutes before he would have been leaving for work on a normal day, he started to feel bad again and got warm fast. I took his temperature, it was just over 100. And I know he was feeling cruddy, because he asked me to take him to the doctor. Which never happens unless he is feeling BAD. I tossed Otter in the car and ran her to school (when it's as cold as it was yesterday, I don't like her to wait at the bus stop. Super cold air equals lungs that don't work), then called in myself. When I got home, it was close to 8:00 and that is when the doctor's office opens. I called as soon as they opened, they said that our doctor (she's part of a clinic) had a 10:00 opening and to bring him in then. It was sleeting when I took Otter, but then it started snowing about 8:30. By 9:00, it was snowing heavily and we were concerned about the roads so we went to the doctor early.

We got there about 9:15, and she saw Bill right then. It is not the flu, but it is a sinus infection. In all probability, he had a bug and then got over it (or started to) and then the sinus infection hit after that. She gave him a prescription for an antibiotic, and told him to take mucinex (sp?), as well as either tylenol or advil for the headache. So I brought him back home, went to the store to get his stuff and while I was there I also got chicken soup supplies. Which is what he had for lunch! He was grouchy, which is probably to be expected because he felt so bad. He's not a good patient anyway. The doctor told him to stay home today, he is supposed to go in tomorrow but I'm not sure if he will. He is not feeling too good this afternoon, but it might be the side effects of the mucinex.

Incidentally, the snow came down pretty heavily and didn't let up until mid-afternoon. And then it all melted! There were a few issues with ice on the roads this morning, but they weren't a problem for me.

What was a problem, however, was the fact that I couldn't get the rear passenger door shut on my car. Of course, I didn't discover this until a) I'd already warmed the car up and b) the bus had already gone by (I was taking Otter to school this morning). So I transferred all my stuff and Otter to Bill's impala, which then needed about 15 minutes to warm up. Most of that time was scraping ice off. Bill checked on my car after I left for work, he thought it was ice that had formed in the latch and he moved it back in the driveway so it would get sun. It did the trick, I came home at lunch to check on him and the door was shutting then. But it was still frustrating!

I'm not a big fan of McDonald's. I was so glad when Otter outgrew the McDonald's stage! However, I picked up McD's for dinner today. It's their annual fundraiser for the Ronald McDonald House, and it might just be a Tulsa area thing. Anyway, 59 cent hamburgers and 69 cent cheeseburgers. Can you guess what we had for dinner? This is the only time I'll willingly eat McD's, and it's usually the only time per year. But it's worth it, it's a really good cause.

Otter is taking night school. Well, that's what it's called but it's actually afternoon school! She still had one credit to make up, which we knew last summer, but the class wasn't available until now. Or next summer, but she wants to get a job in the summer and we didn't want to wait for her to get this class. In high school, there is a requirement of 2 years of a foreign language or a tech class. She took Spanish 1 in 9th grade and Spanish 2 in 10th grade. Towards the end of 10th grade - when it was too late to do anything about it - we found out that her grades in Spanish 1 (9th grade) were not high enough to allow her to a) get credit and b) advance to Spanish 2. She did the work, she just had a lot of problems with the language - what makes me mad is that the counsellor knew it but didn't bother to tell us. We had to find it out on our own. There was a teacher change in the middle of the year, the first teacher was gone more than he was there and the temps didn't do much teaching - and a lot of confusion. I looked at some of the study materials and it would be a miracle if anybody at all was able to speak any Spanish after that class. There were a lot of other issues we had with the 9th & 10th grade school, most of which have been mentioned on here at various times. So we probably should not have been surprised at this, but we were.

We had a talk and she decided that she'd rather switch to the Tech classes even though it would mean that she would have to take 2 years before she was finished with that requirement. So we switched her to Spanish 1 so she could at least earn partial credit and then she switched to Tech at 10th grade. She was still left with a partial credit and needed to finish. So, I talked to the counsellor (11th grade and 12th grade are at a different school, different counsellor) and she made absolutely sure that Otter was only short this one partial credit. We were not willing to pay for night school for 1 semester of Spanish 1, not would we have been willing to pay for any other language class. But since it isn't offered at night or summer school anyway, the counsellor said that she could take a science class. It might be the same science class she had last year, but it will count towards the required credits to graduate. So, we enrolled her and the first class is this afternoon. Tuesdays & Thursdays, 4:00 to 5:50 p.m. and the same school as last year. So she gets on the bus after school, the first stop her bus makes is the previous year's school anyway, Otter gets off the bus and goes to her class. Then I'll go pick her up. Class goes for the rest of the year.

I think I'm taking the dogsters with me, they would probably enjoy it. Maggie Moo has been looking out the window repeatedly, and she's moping. I think she misses her kid!

Prayer Request

I've mentioned reading books by Ann Rule on here before. She's very talented and is the best of the best, in my opinion. I belong to her internet forum, and have talked to her via the net several times. Today, I would like to ask for prayers for Ann. I just got a message from her daughter, Ann has been hospitalized with what could be menengitis. It is pretty serious. Any prayers would be appreciated.

Super Bowl Commercial Comments

Although I think it could have been stronger, I have one thing to say about the Tebow commercial.

THANK YOU CBS

It's a start.

Sunday Relish

Mine is dill. Sweet pickles are disgusting!

Hello, my name is Ottermom. And I am a yarn addict. I admit it.

I have been cleaning out my stash, I had several small amounts of yarn which I've been adding to the blanket I'm making for Bill. I even donated a few small ones, and managed to get my supply down quite a bit. But then I looked at the Michael's add in the paper this morning. And they have yarn on sale. Guess where Otter wanted to go today? Michael's! It was my undoing. I bought 8 skeins. Six were clearance and two were sale priced. I still have two bamboo skeins I got a couple of weeks back, the skein I got at Hobby Lobby before the last ice storm and 4 I got at Salvation Army last week.

It's a sickness, I know. But I don't want to be cured!

But I will say in my own defense that all the yarn I bought since (and including) the bamboo is unusual and not plain or standard yarn. The yarn I got at Salvation Army is all yarn that I wanted to try but refused to pay the exhorbitant price for, however for 99 cents each they were practically free. Today's yarn includes two "wool" that I'm hoping I can use. It's not sheep wool, which I am allergic to. It's alpaca wool (like llamas) and I'm hopeful. I carried it around the store for a long time and my skin didn't seem to react. It was the sale priced yarn I got today.

Of course, my skin has been acting up the last couple of days so I'm not sure when I'm actually going to get to use any of it! But I will not use the alpaca yarn until my skin is good, since allergies are a very real issue for me.

Bill didn't say anything, he just looked at the huge bag of yarn I was emptying into my picnic basket and shook his head. But then I reminded him of the thread he started on the pachinko machine forum he's on - the one about how he's addicted to pachinkos!

The picnic basket has some structural issues, Bill looked at it and decided he couldn't fix it. So I moved my stash into a yaffa crate. Yaffa crates are similar to plastic milk crates but bigger. The good yarn is in the picnic basket, the everyday stuff including the acrylic and cheap quality stuff is in the yaffa crate. And then I have the large tote bag with my work in progress stuff, also known as UFO's.

Bill's still sick. Or maybe, he's sick again. I'm not sure. He was over most of the symptoms and seemed to be feeling pretty good yesterday. Then last night, he started getting fever again. He had the shakes, which he usually only gets when he gets high temperatures but he didn't have a high one. He did have a sinus headache and lots of pressure. The only thing we had was benadryl, so he took that and it helped him a little bit. Then as soon as I got up this morning, I went to Wallyworld and got him something that worked for his symptoms. There are so many different choices, it took me a good 15 minutes to read all the labels and find one for him! It's one of the sudafeds. He is better but not feeling the best. He finally admitted that he might need to see the doctor. Mostly because he's at the point where he'll need an excuse for work, I think that's the only reason but I'm not going to complain! I'm not sure if he's still got the same thing or something else that happened to hit as he was recovering. Froggy said that she's heard of several people who have been sick and seemed to get better before getting sinus symptoms. At any rate, I fully expect to have to haul him to the doctor tomorrow.

Otter and I went to the library today, we didn't leave Billyboy by himself too long but we did get out for a bit. We both have huge stacks of books to read, we turned in two paper grocery bags full of books we finished and still had some from the last time we were there. Now, we have more! Which is fine with me, books are kind of like yarn - addictive.

We might get more snow tonight and/or tomorrow. Ice is not expected, so it won't be quite so bad as the last time. Snow is a lot easier to deal with. Especially driving in it. But it's still not fun if I have to be on the road.

OK, I've goofed off enough. I told Otter I would help her clean the hamster cages, so I think I'll head in the general direction of her room now.

Saturday Stuff & Another Challenge

The challenge part first: Simple Pleasures.

What are some simple pleasures in your life? Something that makes you happy. Anything at all. The idea is to come up with something simple or easy, as long as it makes you happy. (And is family friendly/polite!).

Here's a couple of my simple pleasures:

Making S'mores with Bill & Otter on cold nights when we have a fire in the fireplace.
Watching birds out of my dining room window.
Waking up early and having coffee with Bill, sitting on the couch and reading the paper or just having a few quiet moments together.
Spending a couple of hours on Saturday afternoon watching a movie on dvd with Bill & Otter.

Anybody else have any they would like to share? Email me your lists please, then I'll post them. I'd like it by about Thursday.

On to other things.

Anybody care to guess what this is? Besides a blanket in the living room floor!

Here's a picture of the other side:

It's Maggie Moo! And she did this all by her little, furry self. Otter had been using the blue blanket today, she had a nest on the love seat. Maggie is a well-known blanket theif, and today she was living up to her reputation. She had already been trying to get underneath and on top of the blanket I was crocheting, I told Otter to redirect her and this is the result. Maggie went over to the blanket that Otter had just dropped and at first, she was on top of it. Then she started pawing it into a nest. Then, after a couple of minutes, she got it the way she wanted it and then she crawled underneath it. It took her a few minutes, but she managed to get it wrapped around herself very snuggly. Then Maggie gave a big, contented sigh and curled up - and promptly went to sleep! Dog likes her creature comforts, that's for sure. Kind of like her owner. :)

(Mostly) Fenton Friday

I went Fenton hunting yesterday. Actually, I also went the day before yesterday. But yesterday was the only day I found something. No, I also found something a couple of days ago, I think it was Tuesday - at Salvation Army. It's on here. But the bulk of my newest Fenton acquisitions are from Thursday, at the place where I got my picnic basket and Froggy found puzzles for Scooter last summer.

Anyway, here goes! Descriptions are below the pictures. A couple of them are sideways, sorry about that. Several of the pictures were taken on my table, the black background is Otter's t-shirt. Which she was wearing at the time! Thanks, Otter.

I have a rule that I more or less follow regarding Fenton. Aside from trying to find it cheap, if there is a piece that I'm not sure about or is more than my preferred price range then I generally leave it there and think about it. If I still absolutely have to have it and decide it's worth the extra cost, then I'll go back for it the next day. This piece is one of those "walk away" pieces. Except that it wasn't the next day. I saw it in December, when Otter and I were shopping during our vacation week. Because it has a chip (hidden, on the bottom), and was just slightly over my $$ range, I decided to think about it. I thought about it and went back the next day. Only to discover that the shop was closed that day. So I figured it wasn't meant to be. I'd been looking for colored hobnail and really like the blue, so I was disappointed but planned on getting back there asap since these things tend to get snatched up quickly. But then I got busy and never got back there. Yesterday, Otter and I made it back to the store and it was still there. Hidden behind a few other things, but it was still there. So, it came home with me. I have a french opalescent (clear glass with white spots) in this piece and Otter also has one. It's a bonbon holder. But the colors are hard to find, and blue is very rarely seen. The chip is not a major factor, because of where it's located. But if it had been at a flea market or yard sale, I would have bargained. It's still a good buy, but I would not have paid more for it.

This is the pattern known as Daisy & Button and might not actually be Fenton. A lot of glass companies made this pattern. This one is in all probability Fenton, but I'm not positive. But it was $3.00 and I liked it. So, into the basket it went! It was made for a candle company, I can't quite read the name on the bottom. Fenton made a lot of pieces for other companies and they usually have the company name on them - the one it was made for. It might eventually be destined for Otter's bathroom, it's in the right color scheme. It's a candle holder, but it could be used for many other things.

I saw another piece that I'm pretty sure was made by Fenton, in a different pattern and style, but it was made for the Avon company and has the word Avon in a very obvious spot. So even though it was pretty cheap, it did not come home with me. However, it's a pattern that I like and Fenton did make for it's own line so I'll keep looking for one.

The jade bird in the front of this one is not the focal point of this picture! This is also Daisy & Button. This one is Fenton, no doubt there. It's not one I've seen "in person" before. It's slightly taller than the hats, which were originally meant as cigarette holders. The pattern is on the inside part of the ruffle, which is not something I've seen before. This is the $2.99 piece I got at Salvation Army this week. Sweetie asked me where I was finding all the cheap Fenton, and thrift stores are an excellent place to look.



This is the 2nd match holder, I got it in December. I'm seeing a great deal of Daisy & Button pieces lately, I like it but it's not my favorite. However, if it's cheap enough...

I have never been a big fan of the shoe pieces. There are a couple of different styles. They were actually ash trays. I always said that if I found one and it was in my price range, it would come home with me. Yesterday, I found one. It's got a couple of sharp spots, and if it had been flea market/yard sale I would have bargained. But $5.00 for a Fenton shoe is a good price. It would have been more if it didn't have the rough spots. But I decided it was a good deal and unless I find any more shoes for very little, I probably won't buy any more of them. I think that they are all made in the Daisy & Button pattern. Actually, the pattern name might be Buttons & Bows, I can't remember!


This is a good example of french opalescent. It's a Nappy, which would have been used for lemon slices, candy, etc. It was in all probability made for the Anchor Hocking Company, but by Fenton. It was just slightly over my price range, but it's a fairly hard to find piece and it is in perfect shape. I have several pieces in this line and I'm eventually going to have a full service. It's dinnerware, I have 3 plates, 4 cups and 4 small bowls. There are also several other pieces in this style, it was one of Fenton's biggest selling lines. I have a couple of pieces that are cracked, they are in my eventual mosaic project pile in the garage. I also have a few of this line in my bathroom decor, a cigarette box which I use for q-tips and the lid is a soapdish now, and a puff box (think powder) which I use as a sugar bowl. The most common one I find is french opalescent, but I have also seen a few milk glass (solid white) pieces. (For the record, I do know that french is a proper name and should be capitalized. But that does not happen with france as far as I'm concerned!)

The picture is not the best, I took several pictures and the flash kept washing out the details. It's a very pale blue, solid glass. The pattern is Grape Leaf and it's one I've been looking for. I paid more than I normally do, but it is pretty hard to find. It's recent, probably from about 2007 but Fenton has an older pattern that this is supposed to match and I just liked it. The older pattern is what I really want, I've seen it once at a Goodwill but didn't buy it. And I have regretted it ever since. But I wasn't sure at the time if it was really Fenton, and by the time I did the research and went back for it, it was gone. I won't make that mistake again. Although it was a little over my normal price, it was worth it. It might eventually make it into the bedroom decor, I'm not sure. The older pattern is one that I will relax my price limit on, up to a point.



This is the one I mentioned before, in a December post. Possibly in my year-end wrap up. I had been looking for this pattern for a long time. I was hoping to find this particular piece, but I would have been happy with anything in this pattern. It's called Rose. It's a footed compote in milk. It is in perfect shape. It was about $13.00, which is more than normal but is a very good price for it. It was also at the same place as yesterday's finds. I couldn't get a better picture of this one.

The object of this picture is the swan in the middle. I'm not really sure if it is in fact Fenton. It's definetely got the Fenton look. I've seen one other one, on eBay and it was described as Fenton. But that isn't a guarantee. It's not in any of my Fenton books. It could well be what is known as an "End of Day" piece, which is what happens at the end of the day when the artist still has glass and time on his hands. Some End of Day pieces are really good, but some of them are really bad! It is possible that it was originally intended to be a basket and the artist went a different way, but since I have seen one other one I'm not really sure about that. What I do know is that it is the exact color as the Fenton amber line and the size is right. The hobnails (pointed bumps) are also right. I got this last summer at a flea market when Froggy was visiting. (she was off buying the cranberry vase at the time, I think!) It's one that even if it's not Fenton, it's very unusual and is one of my favorite pieces. If there is ever another Fenton signing event in my area, I'll take it with me and find out for sure. But, either way, it's one I'll keep.

OK, this concludes the Fenton portion of the day's entry.

Bill's still sick. He's been fighting off a cold type bug for a few days. He actually started coughing last Saturday and tried to blame it on allergies. Which he has very few of. He said it was the lotion I was using on my dry skin, but it's the same lotion I have always used and it's never bothered him before. Then the next day, he spent a lot of time out in the garage cutting wood up and he said it was the sawdust. Which does occasionally bother him - and always bothers me. But when he didn't get any better, I figured he was getting sick. He went to work Monday and Tuesday, but then he had a low fever Tuesday evening. He stayed home Wednesday, he finally admitted that yes, he was actually sick. He went to work yesterday morning, where his boss took one look at him and ordered him back home. He actually listened, I'll have to ask his boss what he said to get Billyboy to listen to him and do what he was told. Bill's had a lot of congestion the last day or so and he coughed all night last night. I do mean all night! As a result, I'm exhausted from little sleep. This morning, he still felt warm - but he won't let me take his temperature - and is coughing. He asked me to stay home with him, which is a pretty good indication that he feels pretty bad. I was seriously afraid he might have pneumonia, but now I don't think he does. However, I'm still keeping a close eye on him. I just got off the phone with my boss, he told me to watch Bill carefully (he's had pnuemonia recently himself) and that he suggests Bill take a pint of whiskey. I don't think it would cure him, but he'd probably be happy! (He's not going to take that suggestion, by the way).

We had a chance of snow last night. It wasn't predicted to be anything bad. It rained off and on yesterday afternoon, not heavy but just enough to be really messy. And cold! But the snow held off, the storm system didn't come as far south as was originally predicted. Today is grey & misty, and I'm really getting tired of not seeing any sunshine! It's been days and days since we had anything other than grey, overcast sky. I'm beginning to feel like a mushroom! No sunlight.

Sevens

Several days back, I issued a challenge to anyone who wanted to particpate. The challenge was to come up with 7 random facts. Froggy (my sister) and FutureJediMom (my brother Toadles' daughter) decided to join the fun. So, here are their 7 facts.

Froggy's first:

1st memory- sitting on the steps with Grandma(Mom's mom) working on plants. This is where I got my love of flowers and gardening from.

2.Favorite flower-Sweet Peas, again this came from Grandma.

3. Best early memory from Mom-she saved all the empty tin cans, cut out both ends and then gave them to us to play with in the dirt and let us make mud.

4. Best early memory from Aunt Jessie- She always had time to play with me and all 8 of my imaginary friends.

5. Best early memory from Dad- climbing as high up in the tree as I could (higher than the top of the house) and waiting for himto find me, also playing croquet.

6. I am a Master Naturalist and this means that one of the things that I get to do is go to Natural areas and pass along my love for the earth.

7. I have been married once and have 3 adult children


My comments on Froggy's Facts:

I only had one imaginary friend!

Toadles, our wonderful & crazy brother, has his own definition of the word "Naturalist." Let's just say it isn't the same as Froggy's definition and leave it at that!

I never met Grandma, she was gone from this Earth long before I was born. I have always felt a sadness connected with that fact, I wish I'd known her and also Grandpa (her husband, our mom's dad). However, I am glad that Froggy has those special memories.

FutureJediMom's facts:

1. I have had pet rats, turtles, lizards, hamsters, frogs as well as dogs & cats.
2. I graduated from the same high school as my mom & dad, just 23 years later.
3. I have lost 10 lbs since Christmas.
4. I have never seen the movie Titanic & plan to keep it that way.
5. I love to eat dark chocolate covered almonds.
6. My favorite ice cream is mint chocolate chip, esp if I can add a hard chocolate shell to the top of it.
7. I have been to England twice and Disney World more times than I can count. Both are great vacations and I want to do them both again.

My comments on FutureJediMom's facts:

#1: Ditto, except that I didn't have rats. But I would have, if my parental units had let me.
#2: Also, both of your Aunts (myself & Froggy) graduated from the same high school.

# 4: I have, unfortunately, seen Titanic. Or part of it anyway. I think that she has a much better idea, because what little of it I saw (not by choice) was pretty bad.

Groundhog Day?

I don't think so!

Chupacabra Day, now that's more like it!

At least, in Texas.

And according to Froggy, the Chupa saw his shadow today just like the Groundhog did. So, 6 more weeks of winter it is.

However, if you look at the calender and count from February 2 - IT'S STILL 6 WEEKS UNTIL THE FIRST DAY OF SPRING REGARDLESS OF ANY SHADOWS BEING SEEN!

Just something to think about.

January Books

OK, even though it's February 1st, this is my January book list.

1. Loose Cannons, 101 Myths, Mishaps & Misadventures of Military History by Grame Donald. Don't bother with this one, it's a complete waste of time. Badly written, badly researched and I didn't get too far into it.

2. Complete Leatherwork, Easy Techniques & Over 20 Great Projects by Katherin Pogson. Interesting, maybe someting I can use. Bill bought me a leatherwork kit a few years back but I don't have the upper arm strength for most of the required actions. I still have hopes that I'll be able to use it one day.

3. Friday Night Knitting Club by Kate Jacobs. I know I mentioned this series in my December list, Froggy I think I asked you if you'd heard of it. At the time, I had the 2nd book in the series but was waiting until I got the first one - this one. Well, after I read this one I have one thing to say: I will NOT be spending my Friday nights with this! Or any other nights, for that matter. Just badly written, extremely predictible and frankly it was awful. I'm not going to read anything else by her, either.

4. Batman
5. Batman

6. What Would Dewey Do? By Bill Barnes & Gene Ambaum. Recommended by Otter, it's a comic strip called Unshelved but it's been put into book form. Really cute, it is about a library.

7. Batman
8. Batman

9. Biography (forget the name!) of Bill Waterston, the creator of the fantastic comic strip Calvin & Hobbes. The book was an prime example of "badly done" and I think I'll leave it at that.

10. Star Trek: Countdown. This is a graphic novel that is the prequel to last summer's movie.

11. Spinning Forward by Terri Dulong. Well, it had a little bit about yarn in it. But not much! It was very much what I would consider a romance novel and we all know my low opinion of romance novels. I forced myself to finish it, in the hopes it would improve. But it didn't. So I probably will skip other books by this author.

12. Ask the Animals, a Pets Eye View of Animals and the People They Love by Bruce R. Coston. I can't remember much about this one, but it seems like it was funny.

13. Simple Crochet by Erika Knight. Rerun, but I was looking for a specific pattern. Which wasn't in this book, so I'll keep looking.

14. Forbidden by Judy Waite. Otter recommended this one. It was very good, it is about a girl who is caught in the grips of a cult. This one makes you think. It was a little predictible, but it was a good read.

15. Yarn Bombing, the Art of Crochet & Knit Grafitti by Mandy Moore and Leann Prain. Interesting subject, probably not something I'm going to participate in but it was still fun.

16. Street Gang: The Complete History of Sesame Street by Michael Davis. Interesting, but then anything about Kermit & Company will be fun!

17. Batman

18. Echoes in the Darkness by Joseph Wambaugh. This is a true-crime murder mystery. It's one I've read before, many years ago. But someone was discussing it on a forum I'm on and I decided to re-read it. It was still a good book, and the author is very good. But the standard I judge by for true crime is Ann Rule and nobody holds a candle to her! But I'd recommend this book.

19. Batman.

20. Here's the Story: Surviving Marcia Brady & Finding My True Voice by Maureen McCormick. At first, I thought this might be like the book by Valerie Bertinelli - confession time with a "look at me" slant. But I was wrong. It was a confessional book, but this time it's by someone who knows she made bad choices and is trying to improve and not make the same mistakes.

21. The 10th Circle by Jodi Picoult. I'll probably still read more by this author, but she's not that good. This one was not a particularly bad book, it just wasn't the best.

22. That's Not in My American History Book, a Compilation of Little Known Events and Forgotten Heroes by Thomas Ayers. I expected to be disappointed, after all the more words in the title a book has is often an indicator of a badly written book. But it turned out to be surprising good and very funny. Did you know that England still owns California?

OK, new month and new book list starts today!