Just Thinking About Stuff

I'm thinking about the dinner we just had.  It was the Borg Queen's signature meal:  Spaghetti!  We pretty much have it weekly, but in all honesty I think I could eat it daily!

I'm thinking about the fact that I haven't crocheted since January 14.  And also about the fact that my arm is better, but not much better.  So I feel safe to say that the crochet probably had some effect on it, but not much of one.  I'm thinking I'm going to wait a few days more before I attempt it again.  I probably should explain that yes, my arm is better.  My elbow is feeling much more normal.  It's just that I keep forgetting about babying it and use my right arm/hand for something heavy or hard to hold.  Then I get muscle cramps!  It's frustrating, but oh well!

I'm thinking about this time last year.  About how we'd been to the gas station that morning and it was nice and open, I had a nice talk with an older gentlemen about how it would be busy later.  About how we stopped at the grocery store for dog food before dropping Otter off at school.  About how we went to Wally for two things after school and ran a couple of other errands, including standing in a looooooong line at the post office to mail some crocheted hats.  Which didn't actually leave the post office for a few days, because of the weather.  About how we drove past several grocery stores and gas stations on the way home, and they were all crowded and the parking lots look like they were way beyond capacity.  About how we came home and had hamburgers.  About how Bill's and Otter's school districts cancelled that night and my boss called me about us being closed the next day.  I'm thinking about how we went to bed that night and really didn't think we'd get anywhere near what we actually did.

I'm thinking about how I'm so glad to it was in the low 70's today and the rest of the week, while cooler, will still be fairly warm.

I'm thinking about how much I enjoyed the walk we took the pupsters on after we got home today.  We've been trying to take them out a couple of times each week, it's good for them as well as my knee and Otter always likes to spend some time with her beagle.

That's what I'm thinking about today.  What about you?

Reflections

Just a few thoughts today.  Reflecting on this time last year.

This is our current forecast:

Notice the temperature for Wednesday, February 1st.

Then, look at this:

This picture was taken last February 1st.  It's the whiskey barrel in front of my yard, the one that is a few feet taller than the street.  The street which looks just about even with the top of the barrel in this picture!

Because it was just about even.

And I'm not going to complain about it not being cold this year, not one bit!

Sunday Fixins

As previously stated, Fixin is one of those uniquely TEXAN words.  It has various meanings and we all use it.  Today's title refers to one thing in particular:

You know you are a TEXAN when your pantry has a whole, entire section devoted to one thing:  chili fixins!

We finally made it back to church today, after a long absence caused by our Christmas trip and then the bronchitis, etc., bug I had.  Pastor Dave said that he thought we might have stayed in San Antonio, and that he was going to have to come get us.  I told him it was always tempting, when we get back Home, to stay there and he agreed - he said that non-TEXANS just don't get it, how strong the pull of things south of the Red River is on us.  (Pastor Dave is one of us, by the way).

Otter and I had a couple of errands, we went to a thrift store but didn't find anything and we also went to Wallyworld.  To a specific one, since her favorite cashier works there.  I'm not making chili tonight, but I did need to get a few things.

It's a meat loaf day today.  Also, I have a bunch of potatos that are on the verge of going bad so they are going to be cooked up as well.  Not sure if it will be Bill's Famous Mashed Potatos or Sweetie's Potatos today.  Either way, they will be good.

It's a really nice day today.  Pastor Dave was also remarking about our weather and how he thought that this time last year was when we had 42' of snow hit us and he had to cancel services but he is a week early.  On January 29 last year, it was 70 degrees and it was still around the mid-60's on Sunday the 30th.  But we knew it was coming and the stock-up shopping frenzy had begun.  I remember having to run to the store for a few things and realized that I'd better go eary, but it was still very crowded on that Sunday.  And it didn't get any better until probably late on Monday January 31, because the first of the many blizzards hit that night.  Nothing like that is forecast this year, for which we are very thankful.  We're prepared, but then we always are.

It's a Borg Queen thing, I can't help it but I don't think I really want to anyway.

Resistance is Futile!

It's Finally FRIDAY!

OK, we made it to Friday.

And not a moment too soon.

It's just been a crazy busy week, but not for any particular reason.  Just the usual stuff at work, nothing out of the ordinary.  But it's just been a looooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooong week for some reason.

But, it's Friday and I'm happy.

I'm also happy that we still have ice cream pie left, and (if we have any room after the steaks & baked potatos) we'll probably get into it tonight.

I realized something yesterday.  I haven't had to have any work done on my car in over a month now.  The oil change in December doesn't count, that's routine stuff.  But, and I would be willing to put money of this one - and I'm not a gambler by any stretch of the imagination, if I'd gone back to the first place I probably would have been told that there were at least 3 or 4 things wrong that they needed to fix.  Glad we finally came to our senses about that place!

We don't like to be lied to, in case you haven't figured that out.

Other subjects now.  Red hair!  For once, I'm not having to mention RHTW* in connection with the car, that's a nice change.  She's still ready to be deployed at a moment's notice, however.  But there was a news report a few weeks back that caught our attention.  There was an older lady in the Tulsa area who heard loud noises at her front door, and when she went to check it out a man forced his way inside.  He was "under the influence" but still dangerous.  She yelled at him to get out and he promptly sat down and exposed himself to her.  At that point, she ran outside and yelled for her neighbors.  A couple of men that live in her apartment complex came to her rescue and dragged the guy outside, where they proceeded to teach him a lesson until the cops got there to haul his sorry rear off to jail.  Although she'd already given him a black eye - and, this is the kicker:  she said that she WASN'T AFRAID OF ANYTHING BECAUSE AFTER ALL SHE IS A REDHEAD!

Redheads rule, no two ways about it.  Especially Redheaded Women and that goes double for Texan ones.

*RedHeadTexanWoman.  Let's just say that you do NOT want to get her riled because she'll make you regret it.  :)

27 Years and Ice Cream Therapy

Today is our 27th wedding anniversary.  We had originally planned to have steaks but have them  tomorrow because we like to have something fun on Fridays, as a way to wind down and start Sabbath.  We're still having the steaks then, but we decided that we wanted to have something tonight as well.  So we made french Bread Pizza (france never, ever gets a capital letter in this house unless it happened to be a person's name).  We stuffed ourselves, but it was very good.  It's always fun to make.  Otter's pizza had pepperoni (lots!) and bell pepper.  Bill's and mine had those toppings, along with a few others.  Onions, black olives, mushrooms and his had jalepenos.

We're also having Ice Cream Therapy.  Last week, I picked Otter up at school one day and took her to lunch.  Braum's is where we decided to go.  We decided that we needed two things:  she wanted french fries and I wanted something with gravy, such as their chicken strip meal.  I forget why, but we started calling it Therapy.  Froggy asked me if we'd had ice cream therapy as well, but we didn't have it that day.  Today, since it's our anniversary, we were hoping we could find a rare and elusive strawberry cheesecake ice cream pie.  We were in luck, it was the last one Braum's had.  It's still in the freezer, we're a little stuffed from the pizza.  Today, along with it being a treat for our anniversary, we've decided that we're having Ice Cream Therapy.  The other reason for needing Ice Cream Therapy is because it's not Friday yet.  Hey, it works!  Like we actually need a reason...

Today is also International Spouse Day.  Not sure exactly what that means, but that's what Froggy told me this morning.  A couple of days ago, it was International Peanut Butter Day.  Peanut butter has always been one of my favorite foods, and it was also one that Mom really loved.  Sometimes she'd make sandwiches, but mostly I remember her grabbing a long handled tea spoon and eating her peanut butter straight from the jar.  She didn't gorge on it, just the occasional spoonful when she wanted a snack.  Froggy, do you remember if Mom liked chunky or creamy?  I think she liked creamy, but I'm not really sure.  Tomorrow is International Chocolate Day, so it's going to be a good day!  Of course, chocolate and peanut butter go very well together.  If we're looking for a sweet snack, it frequently involves a bite of chocolate with peanut butter on it.

My arm is much better.  My elbow is still a little painful but not nearly as much as it was.  It still gets stiff, though.  Mostly, what I'm dealing with at the moment is a very tight muscle.  When I took my shower last night, I turned the water temperature up much higher than I normally like and held my arm underneath it.  It helped quite a bit.  But then Otter and I had a shoe shine party, which undid a lot of the benefit of the warmth.  I probably should have thought about that before I started polishing my boots!  I also did Bill's leather tennis shoes and Otter took care of the combat boots that Granpda gave her a while back.  She wears them as often as she can, by the way.

OK, I think maybe I have room for that pie now.

Tuesday. Gonna Rain.

At some point tonight, it's supposed to rain.  Anywhere from 1/2 to 2', and possibly a lot in a short amount of time.

Or none at all.

You never know, with our forecasters!

Otter had a "make her day" experience.  We went to the library and someone asked her if she was a librarian and did she work there?!  It absolutely thrilled her.

My arm is much better.  I had it immobilized most of Saturday, we found the sling that Otter used many years ago when she broke her arm.  I'm still having some issues with my elbow, but it's a lot better.  Haven't tried to crochet yet.  I don't want to push it.

I was thinking that this time last year, we were just a few days away from getting pounded with snow and ice.  At this point, there is nothing even remotely similar in the forecast.  We're hoping it stays that way.

Our 27th anniversary is Thursday.  We'll have steaks.  And baked potatos.  And, if I can find it, an ice cream pie from Froggy's favorite ice cream place.  If they don't have the strawberry cheesecake pie, I'll probably just get that flavor ice cream if they have it.  If not, then any one of their other flavors will do.  We'll probably actually have the steaks on Friday night, but the ice cream will definitely be on Thursday.

Getting hungry just thinking about it!

Ouchiewawa!

The title refers to my right arm.  I'm not quite at the point of calling it my stupidrightarm, so far only the left knee gets the title of "stupid."  But my arm is about to get it!

It's been bothering me for a few weeks at least.  It's not in the elbow joint, it's in the muscles close to my elbow but not actually the elbow itself.  It's not arthritic, nor is it carpal tunnel.

But, I think we've figured out what it is.

No, it's not crochet!  Although crochet does aggravate it.

A few weeks back, I bumped my arm pretty hard.  I don't remember exactly what I did, but I think it involved a door closing unexpectedly and smashing me.  I was brainstorming about it with Bill last night and that's when I realized just how long it's been hurting.  I started listing my symptoms and what makes it worse/better.

I think I've got a bruised tendon.

Bill had one once and it was a similar situation.  They can take weeks to heal, but since I'm right handed and have to use the computer mouse a lot, as well as frequently having a crochet hook in my right hand, it hasn't had time to heal.

Bill suggested that I immobilize it, which I was already planning to do, with an elastic bandage made for elbows.  He also thinks I should put it in a sling and leave it still as long as I can.  So, Saturday there will be no crochet for me!  :(  I think he's right, though.  I'm just not sure if that will be long enough or not, but we'll see.  So, it might actually be a lot longer before I can pick up my hook & yarn again.. :( 

But, if it works, it will be worth it.

I've also realized that how I rest my arm, the position and hieght it's at as well as the surface (desk, etc.) it rests on affects it.

Of course, I can't sleep on my back or left side!

I'm attempting to be left handed, which is not easy.

Miscellaneous Wednesday Thoughts

I'm still coughing, but not as bad.  Not as often, or as much when I do cough but it is still there.  Probably going to be for a while, based on what I've heard from other people who've had the bronchitis bug.  But, I've only had one really bad coughing spell today.  While it did make me a little dizzy, it was the only bad one so I'm not going to complain about it.

I haven't gotten any crochet done in a few days.  Just been a lot of little things keeping me busy.  I took the scrap blanket project to work today, thinking I'd work on it at lunch.  But I read the paper instead!  I did eat lunch, I had some of my beef/vegetable soup that is stockpiled in the freezer.  It was good, by the way.

Tomorrow, I am going to pick Otter up from college at lunch and have lunch with her.  After that, I think I'm probably going to drop her at the library for the afternoon since her classes are only in the morning.  She'll have plenty of time to load up on books, although I told her she needs to take a tote bag with her and not get it too full to carry.  She said she'd try!

Doggies go to the vet tomorrow, Maggie gets a rear squish and Fraiser just gets to go for a ride.  He'll be happy.  Maggie won't be.

Frasier is really goofy today.  I was making dinner and he had been ouside for a while.  He kept coming back into the garage and peeking through the flap on their door.  I think he was looking for roadkill (dropped food) because he never actually came inside.  He just stuck his head in a little bit, or just his nose a couple of times, and one time he didn't even do that - I could see him on the other side of the flap and he was just sitting there.  Who knows what goes on in that pup's mind!  Well, Coydogs (father coyote, mother dog) or Dogotes (Mother coyote, father dog) and their next several generations are supposed to be extremely smart and that certainly describes him.  We think he's probably about 1/4 coyote, but it could well be higher.  Whatever the mix is, he's a goofy boy!

Not much else at the moment.

Monday. Again. Urg.

I don't like Mondays, by the way!

Anyway, I made it back to work and managed to stay all day.  I was exhausted by the time 3:30 rolled around and I could leave.  I'm feeling much better but I'm still coughing, the cough seems to hang around for a while from what I've observed about this bug.

It was in the low 70's today.

It will be in the low 40's tomorrow.

Oklahoma weather is bi-polar!

Sunday Waffles

We don't have waffles too often, but since we didn't go to church this morning I had time to make them for breakfast.  (We didn't go to church because I wasn't feeling too good this morning and had a sinus headache, but after I'd been up for a couple of hours I did start to feel a little better.)  My waffle iron is square, unlike the round ones pictured above!  We'll also have waffles for breakfast tomorrow, since I doubled the recipe with the idea of leftovers.  Well, Bill and Otter will probably have them tomorrow.  I'll probably be back to my standard oatmeal.

I'm actually a lot better, but I am pretty tired this afternoon.  Otter and I went to the mall.  Actually, we went to the eye doctor (his office in in the mall) so she could get her eyes checked and then to Lenscrafters so she could get new glasses.  Mostly, we killed time while waiting on her glasses.  We looked at a couple of stores, and we had lunch while there.  Since it wasn't actually a shopping trip, I don't think we bought anything other than lunch & new glasses.  We did have a couple of tea samples at Teavana while we were there.

I have made a little de-stashing progress.  I made another hat for Bill, I brought him a bunch of yarn balls to chose from and he picked a dark green color.  I had two small balls of the same color and used one up entirely.  It made the entire hat except for the last row, so I had to switch to the 2nd ball but it still worked.  I've also used up a couple more of the really small yarn balls on the scrap blanket (formerly known as the scrap scarf).

Yesterday's movie:  Rise of the Planet of the Apes.  I was never a fan of the original movies, they were not exactly aimed at girls my age when they came out.  But they were very popular with boys in the same age range!  So I wasn't expecting much out of the new movie.  It was Otter's choice.  I was pleasantly surprised, it was a much better movie than I expected.  It had several nods to the original movie, which was nice.  It was very well done.

Froggy, we had the tamales Friday evening.  I made chili to go with them.  They were very good, but they weren't spicy at all.  We still have some in the freezer, I'm not sure when we'll eat them but they won't go to waste. :)

It's back to work for me tomorrow.  Bill and Otter are both off tomorrow.  He was acting like he was trying to come down with the bug, but I'm thinking that maybe he's going to avoid it.  At least I hope so!  Bill doesn't make a good patient.

Friday the 13th!

I'm not superstitious, never have been.  But Mom was.  As a result, one of the ways I used to tease her was to walk under any ladder we happened to see.  She used to get so mad at me!  I don't think she had a problem with black cats, considering that I had one once.  OK, Bandito was a tuxedo cat but he was still a black cat!  I'd forgotten about him until just now.

I'm still fighting the creeping crud, but I'm getting there.  I am coughing some but not bad, I don't have a sore throat anymore but it does get a tickle every so often.  I'm still not feelilng 100%, but I'm so much better than I was earlier.  I went to the store just now and re-stocked on yogurt, since I'm on an antibiotic and it's playing havoc with my stomach.  Also, I just like yogurt!

It's sunny today but still a little cold.  It was 17 degrees this morning, now I'm not sure but it might be in the 40's or low 50's.  It was cold enough for a fire last night and we'll probably have another one tonight.  Maybe tomorrow morning as well.  I'm sure the dogs won't complain, seeing how we usually have to fight through them to get to the fireplace ourselves!

I've been crocheting a little bit since I've been home so much this week and had time on my hands.  I haven't gotten to it today, but I'm probably going to head in the general direction of the couch shortly and I'll probably grab the yarn and a hook and get busy.  I feel the need to work on my scrap throw blanket as much as I can, since it's a great de-stash project.  And it's fun as well, plus I don't have to worry about counting stiches like I would with an actual pattern so it's what I call "mindless crochet."  That means I can sit in front of the tv and crochet without having to worry about mistakes or just sit and stitch without worrying about goofing.

I'm also thinking I'm going to make another hat for Billyboy, probably green or brown.  I'm not sure which color, I have to look at the stash and see which ones I think will work the best.  He wears his camo hat pretty often, but I noticed that he forgot it today.  Since he's now beginning to show signs of the bug I've had, he's in big trouble.  Otter told me to call him and yell at him, but since my throat/voice/lungs aren't up to yelling yet he had to settle for a talking lecture.

He's such a Bad Boy!

Just Enough

Just enough snow to look pretty and not be a nuisance.  We got about 1/2" of the white, fluffy stuff overnight.  The ground is still fairly warm and it was sunny most of the day, so most of it's melted.  But it was pretty and I'm glad it's gone!  It was pretty cold today, it might have gotten to above freezing but not very far above.  If at all.

I went in to work this morning, coughing my head off.  The cough was better yesterday, but it showed up again last night.  I had to get a couple of things done, like paychecks, so I forced myself to go in although I really didn't feel good at all.  I did everything I needed to do and then I left, somewhere around 10:00 or 10:30 I think.  I coughed myself dizzy a few times and that's not fun.

Although I was feeling cruddy and the extremely cold wind didn't help a bit, we did get the grocery run done.  It was bugging me that I hadn't been able to go, so I decided that it was worth it.  With Otter's help, we got in and out of Wally in about an hour or possibly a little under an hour.  It felt like hours and hours, but we made pretty good time.  Wallyworld isn't very crowded on a Thursday late morning.  We got home, got it all unloaded and put away quickly and then I parked myself on the couch.  Where I stayed pretty much from then until a few minutes ago, when we had dinner.  I've already arranged tomorrow off, so I'm going to spend most of tomorrow on the couch as well.

I was going to take the cough medicine, even though the headache it causes isn't fun, but the coughing did improve to the point where I don't really need to take it.  If it gets bad again, I will take it though.

Froggy, we're finally going to get into some of the tamales you picked up for us.  They will be our Friday night dinner, along with homemade chili.  I'm probably going to load the chili up with spice.  Maybe it will clear my sinus infection if I get the chili hot enough!

(dis)-Gusting!

The wind, she blows.  (I heard that somewhere, maybe from a movie).

The cold front that was expected this evening is hitting.  The wind has picked up, for about the last 10 minutes it's been roaring.  And it's getting colder.

We have a chance of white stuff tonight.  It's a "maybe" and is expected to be a dusting, if that.  But, with the well-known (bad) track record of the local forecasters, it could be anything from nothing to a repeat of the first week of last February!  Either way, we're prepared.  I haven't made it to the grocery store yet this week, but I did go get milk & oj this evening so we're stocked.  I just rode along with Bill when he went to the gas station tonight and ran in to get overpriced milk and oj, but this is one of those times when I really didn't care how much it cost.

I stayed home today, as directed by the doctor.  Nurse Otter took care of me, after she got home from class.  She ordered me to stay on the couch and then she told Frasier to keep an eye on me.  Which he did, when he actually had his eyes open that is!  Frasier was either practically in my lap, or snoozing at my feet.  Maggie was snoozing ON my feet most of the day.  I wasn't up to the grocery store, I might not get there before Sunday at this rate.

I am still coughing, but it's better.  I haven't taken the couch medicine at all today, it does help but it also has a side effect of a bad, almost migraine level headache.  I'm not sure if I'm going to take any more of it at all.  It did help with the coughing, but the headache was honestly a whole lot worse than the coughing.

I have enough to deal with when I get a real migraine, (Otter has one herself at the moment and is in bed) so I'm not inclined to take something that will cause one.

Spoke Too Soon! (Haven't I Said That Before?)

I woke up with a really bad sinus headache this morning and a lot of sinus pressure.  I also had a stuffed-up nose.  That's when it got really fun (not!).  After I blew my nose, I realized that there was bleeding going on.  Not from my irritated nasal passages, but from higher up in my left sinus cavity.  It wasn't gushing, but rather it was like it had been bleeding earlier.  I was pretty sure at that point that I was dealing with more than "just" a cold.

I went in to work because I had a couple of things that I absolutely had to do today, I got them done and then I left.  I went straight to the doctor and only had about a half-hour wait because there were a couple of people ahead of me.  I went to the walk-in clinic we've been using lately.  A gentlemen was checking in right after I did, and he told the clerk that he had a cold he couldn't seem to shake and his symptoms matched mine, so at that point I'm thinking that it's probably a bug that is going around and not a cold after all.

Turns out, I was right.  It is a bug that is going around and not a cold.  Because it's bronchitis!  So, the asthma issues I've had the last couple of days are in fact bronchitis.  Possibly, the asthma is triggered, but since the symptoms are basically the same it probably doesn't really matter.  I do have a sinus infection as well, which is not surprising given my history.  I'm on an antibiotic and a cough suppresant (sp?) since I have been coughing quite a bit.  I also have mucinex, but I haven't started taking it yet.  I'm not sure if I'm going to need it or not but I went ahead and got it so I'd have it on hand, just in case.  The doctor said it's up to me but since the cough medicine could make me drowsy and mucinex is basically super strength robitussin, I'm holding off on it for now.

I did make one other stop.  I went to Wallyworld and bought chicken soup fixins*.  Guess what's for dinner tonight?  (The recipe pictured above is not the one I use, I just thought it was a cute picture and appropriate).

Otter doesn't think that what I have is the same thing as what she had, and she might be right.  I could well have had the "cold" she had last week, and then the bronchitis bug came along after that and seeing that I was already in a weakened state it decided to attack me.  Based on my symptoms and how I was getting better and then got worse, it is possible.  Now, I just have to keep Otter from getting the bronchitis because it is always bad when she gets anything like that due to her asthma.

I'm off work at least tomorrow, the doctor told me to stay home and not even attempt to go back to work until Thursday.  I talked to my boss after I left the doctor's office, and he's talkling like he doesn't want to see me at all this week but I'll see what happens and how I feel Thursday/Friday.

*Fixins is one of those all-purpose TEXAN language words.  See my many previous posts for information about it.  It's probably our favorite word and we all use it, as often as we can.  :)

Ponies

I'm a little hoarse today.  (Yes, Otter.  I know that Derpy is not technically a horse, but she's my favorite pony!)  (Next to Dinky Hooves, that is)  (Along with Rainbow Dash).

Anyway, where was I?

Oh yeah.  I'm not talking too well today.  I feel a lot better but I don't feel the best, and I'm sounding pretty bad.  I stayed home today.  The dogsters and I watched tv, and I crocheted.  That way, I stayed on the couch and rested.  I thought I might have to go get Willieboy after work, he had to jumpstart his car this morning.  He's not sure what the problem was, the battery is just a couple of months old.  But it started fine this afternoon, so he didn't need me to come help him.  (He wasn't sure if anyone would still be around that could give him a jump start when he got off work, which is why I was on standby).

I think I'm going back to my orange juice now, and to help Otter keep the couch from flying.

Sunday S.A.B.L.E.

S.A.B.L.E., as mentioned previously, stands for:

Stash
Amassed
Beyond
Life
Expentancy

Otter doesn't think I'm there yet.  But, there is a reason I call her my Chief Enabler!

This is why I think I could be there, or at least very close:

10 Drawers.  All of them are full of yarn.  One of them has labels & crochet supplies, but it's also got yarn in it.

This is one of the drawers, and it's stuffed full.  There are other yarn balls in this drawer besides the ones that are visible.  Some of the drawers are kind of difficult to open and close, but as I said before, yarn is squishable.

This is one of the other drawers, it's got bamboo & cotton yarn that is as soft as bamboo, as well as a few other of the pricier skeins.  There's a sandwich baggie full of yarn pieces, which is what I take out to the yard in the spring and let the birds have for nest building.

These tote bags are full of yarn, and the blue one is pretty big.  The floral bag has 3 skeins of the Really Good Yarn that I got in Texas, which gives me 4 of that kind.

Also - not shown are the W.I.P. (works in progress) that are in the living room - but they are not all that much unused yarn, mostly already crocheted stuff awaiting final touches such as tails buried, etc.  The afghan is not shown either, because the yarn for it is not part of the stash since it's already dedicated to a project.  IF it ever gets cold again, I'll get back on the afghan.  (It's been a warm winter so far).  I also have a pillow cover that I'm working on, but it uses small end pieces that I don't have a use for otherwise but are too big to cut up for bird yarn.  It's not going to be finished any time soon, even though it's not a big project, because I'm out of end pieces that are the right size for it.

The stuffed animals on top of the drawers are my toys.  Some of them are from Bill and some of them are from Otter, for Mother's Day, Birthdays, etc.

I was going to pull everything out of the closet today and see about re-organizing it, but I realized that I didn't have to take it all out.  I just had to pull out a few things and put it up again, and some of it was Bill's stuff that had "accidentally" migrated to my side of the closet.  I also found a few things I wanted to donate, not sure how they ended up in the closet and they are now back in the donate pile I'm starting in the living room.

I had a scarf that I started when we were in Texas, it was also to use up yarn left from projects.  Small balls that are bigger than I want for my pillow project, but not big enough to make anything at all.  After I got a few rows done on it, I decided that I'd rather turn it into a lap-sized blanket instead.  Mostly, because I went back to my stash drawers to look for something else (I found it) and realized that I have a whole lot of small yarn balls, many more than I thought.

I've been using the ergonomic hook holder and it does seem to help.  My elbow doesn't seem to get nearly as sore as it had been, and my arms don't cramp up as badly.

I'm feeling better.  The cold symptoms are still hanging in there, but they are much milder than they have been.  I'm still coughing, I do have asthma after all, but I'm a lot better.  I don't really have a sore throat except that it does get a little sore after coughing spells.  I'm not sure yet about tomorrow and working, it's going to be decided on in the morning.  I have managed to sleep better the last couple of nights, which helps a lot.

I've been cooking today.  I haven't been overdoing it, but I have had a few things that had to be done.  Laundry (urg!) for one thing.  And cooking.  I put several containers of the soup I made last week in the freezer, along with one of Beanie-Weenie Surprise (Bill's lunch today) and I made tuna caserolle specifically to freeze for his/Otter's lunches.  I am probably going to make chili tonight, and some of it will be for the freezer as well.  I usually have several things on hand like that, Bill takes them for lunch and that way I can gaurantee that a)  he has a good lunch and b) he doesn't feel the need to run to Taco Bell or whatever's closest for things he shouldn't eat! :)  I was going to make pinto beans, but I've changed my mind.  I'm still going to make them, just not today.

Otter starts her second semester at college tomorrow.  She's at one of her friend's houses this afternoon, she should be home in a few hours.  We got her a messenger bag at the Army Surplus store so she can carry her books easily.  She's probably not going to need to take all of them each day, but we had to buy a bag that was big enough (and strong enough) to hold them all just in case.

I'm not sure if I ever updated about her foot issues, but she saw the dermatologist on Dec. 21st, two days before our trip.  The doctor feels like the plantar's warts are all gone, so no more freezing!  Which was good, because if it had needed anymore we would have waited until after the trip.  We still have to watch it for a while, but she thinks that it's probably gone.  Otter's happy because now she can get back to that stash of hers (shoes!) and she can wear her heels again.

We haven't been thrifting much lately.  We shopped at a few in TEXAS, and I think we've been to one thrift store since we got back.  Have to change that, and soon.  I'm not in a shopping mood at the moment, although I did think I wanted a Coach purse.  I had one picked out and had the money together ($298.00) but then I realized that I really did not want one.  I have one already, which was a thrift find.  I was just surprised to realize that I didn't want another one.  I might eventually change my mind on it.  Who knows.  They are expensive, but I have to say that they are worth it.  They are extremely well-made and they do last for years and years.  Some things, you get what you pay for, and Coach bags are definitely in that category.

It was in the high 60's yesterday or possibly the low 70's.  Today, we'll be lucky if we hit 50 degrees.  It should be cool all week, with rain possible early in the week.  But it's still not "winter" weather.  I'm wondering if this is the calm before the storm and we'll get socked like we did last February.

Hope not.  But, I have plenty of yarn to play with if it does happen.  :)

Wheezy Friday

The asthma bug is here and it seems to be in no hurry to leave.  At least it's my asthma bug this time and not Otter's.  She's had some minor issues with it this week, but mine is a little worse than hers.  Which is completely opposite of how it usually is!

I called in today.  I thought at one point last night that I might be losing my voice.  It's still there, but it's rough.  I wasn't sure if Miss Dorothy recognized my voice when she answered the phone this morning, as the 95 year old teenager was still asleep.  I'm actually a little better this afternoon, but I'm really tired of feeling bad.  Well, it's been a week since I first noticed symptoms so I guess I'm allowed to be tired of it!  It didn't take Otter nearly as long as it's taken me to work through it, but as she said - she had more time to rest (one day was spent in the car on the way home) and I haven't, since I had to work this week.

We did have to get out today.  (Otter doesn't have class until Monday).  I went to the post office and to the bank.  Then I remembered that I needed something from the grocery store (soy milk, absolutely can NOT run out of that) and then it was just after noon so I ran Otter through a drive-through for lunch.  We were probably only gone about 2 hours, but it was more than enough to tire me out.  Oh yeah, Otter had a bag full of books to return at the library and she replaced them in less than 15 minutes.  Some people power shop, Otter power reads!

Mostly, we've been watching Say Yes to the Dress Atlanta on tv today.  We like the New York show better, but it's still a good show.  I managed to run the dishwasher and I washed a load of clothes.  Otter's done her chores, not that she had many today, and she's now enjoying her new laptop.  She's searching for stuff on Etsy but I don't think she's found anything she wants to make.  She has found several crocheted items that she emails me pictures of so I can make them for her.  She says she's trying to help me de-stash, but considering that she's also my chief enabler...

I think I'm going to attack my stash closet on Sunday.  My plan is to pull everything out and re-organize the shelves.  I have several crochet pattern books as well as several tote bags full of "stuff" that need to be gone through.  Not all of the tote bags are crochet/yarn related, some of them might be sewing and could also be Otter's stuff.  It fits just barely, but I think with a little thought paid to it we should be able to get it all back in there and still have a little room.  Which is a good thing, because I'm at the S.A.B.L.E.* point.

Bill's probably there as well with pachinko machines.  He got two in Texas and he's gotten two since then.  At least my stash is squishable!  His just takes up room.  But, in his defense, he does sell them.  It's just the "fixing up to get to the point of selling" that makes it seem like we're up to our elbows in them.  Well, we probably are!

*StashAmassedBeyondLifeExpenctancy

Thursday Evening's Actual Post

The Teenage Torture post was just for fun!  But it was also 100% honest.  She's reading the instruction book that came with the laptop at the moment, she's obviously her mother's daughter in that respect and not like her engineer father!  Or maybe it's just a guy thing, most of them don't read instruction manuals and that's when the wife/female significant other/daughter has to step in, she's she is usually the only one who has actually read the instructions!

Anyway, I'm still sick.  The cold is still hanging in there and is now triggering my asthma.  I was hoping to avoid that this time, but no luck.  I felt pretty bad this morning although I did get some sleep last night (not as much as the night before however) and I considered calling in.  I decided to go in anyway, and since I had most of the morning to myself, I was able to get the things done that I needed to.  Then the 95 year old teenager showed up and progress stopped, but he's pretty cool so I didn't mind.  Also, that's when the lecture started.  The one about how I shouldn't have come in, and then he felt my forehead which is when I realized that I probably did have a low-grade fever.  I've pretty much been ordered NOT to go to work tomorrow, I told him that I'll keep him posted on that but I think I'm going to do what he suggested and stay home.

I'm feeling both better and worse.  The cold symptoms are still there, but I'm not sneezing quite as often and I have slowed down the amount of kleenex I have been using.  But, and this is the "fun" part, it's definitely settled into my chest and the asthma is coming on strong.  So, less sneezing but a whole lot more coughing.  The coughing is not fun, but it would be a whole lot worse if I wasn't coughing because a cough is the body's attempt to clear the lungs out.  Asthma makes it that much harder to deal with, but as long as I'm coughing it's actually ok.  I've been taking motrin for the last few days but I think I'm going to skip it tonight and have a glass of wine instead.  Motrin in the one that you can take and have a small amount of alchohol, I just don't like to take anything at all with any alcohol so the last motrin I took today at about 1:00 is probably the last one for the day.

(Otter's now reading the manual out loud to the Resident Engineer.)

Froggy made a suggestion:  Chicken soup.  I can't believe I forgot about that one, I'm usually making it as soon as anybody has the slightest hint of a sniffle!  I did get a pot of beef/vegetable soup started this morning, Otter's been watching/stirring it for me all day and it was ready by the time I got home.  It was very good, too.  I might make chicken soup this weekend, along with pinto beans that I've been putting off.

(Otter and the Resident Engineer are about to start making a recovery disk.  He must be sick, he actually told her to read the directions!)

The news has been full of "this time last year" reports.  Well, this time last year was actually decent.  The white stuff wasn't until the first of February, not January.  Today, it was in the 60's and was really nice.  Tomorrow is supposed to be about the same and the next few days will be nice.  But, it is Winter and this is NE Oklahoma, so that could change rapidly.

We're prepared:  plenty of firewood and marshmallows!

How To Torture A Teenager/Student

Step one:  Order a laptop computer.

Step two:  Order a carrying case.

Step three:  Ensure that the said teenager/student is the one home when the FedEx guy delivers the computer and make her sign for it.

Step four:  Instruct her to leave the box in the floor and not open it until Dad gets home.

Step five:  Open the box with the carrying case first.

Step six:  Remind her that she can't use it until Dad creates the recovery disk.

Step seven:  Remind her that she can't use it until Dad has installed the gps/theft tracking device.

Step eight:  Take your sweet time doing all of the above!

Step nine:  Milk it for all it's worth, she'll do just about anything you ask if she thinks that will speed you up. :)

Better

I actually managed to get some sleep last night.  I went to bed about 9:30, which was about 2 hours later than I wanted to but I like to wait up for Bill when he works b(oring)oard meetings.  Last night's meeting started 1/2 hour earlier and ended 2 hours earlier than normal, so he was home about 8:30.  I was thinking I'd probably not wait up for him like I usually do, but I probably should have still gone to bed earlier than I did.  But, I did sleep.  All night long, I didn't even wake up for a midnight bathroom trip.  Bill said he didn't thnk I moved all night long.  I was very rested this morning and felt better but I'm still sick.

I slogged my way through work today but it was tiring.  I came home and got Otter at lunch because I was pretty much ordered by her unofficial grandfather that he needed to see her.  He was so happy that she was coming in, he went and got his precious wife and brought her up to see Otter.

After work, we ran by Grandpa & Sweetie's to visit them for a few minutes and then we went to the college so Otter could buy her books for the next semester.  $308.00 this time, which is a little better than the $375.00 we had to shell out last Fall.  Classes start Monday.  She's going to need a new bag to carry them in, they won't fit in the backpack we were hoping would work.  We'll probably hit the Army Surplus store this weekend about that.  The laptop was supposed to be delivered tomorrow - so we planned our errands for today.  We got home to a FedEx sticker on the door and it's going to be re-delivered tomorrow.  Otter will be here to sign for it.  I'm glad it's FedEx and not UPS because the UPS guy tends to leave the boxes on the porch, ring the doorbell and run as fast as he can back to his truck.  Even when he is supposed to physically hand it to us, he usually doesn't.  FedEx seems to have their act together a little better, and Otter should have her laptop tomorrow.  Of course, the carrying case won't be here until Monday or Tuesday.

After getting the books, we went to Wallyworld and then to the dollar store since they seem to be the only people anymore who have the shampoo Otter can use.  They were the only place I could find mine, but I think that White Rain has quit making the plain, non-scented kind.  Not sure what I'm going to do when I run out, I guess I'll figure something out.

Anyway, after all that running around, I am t.i.r.e.d.!  We had tuna caserolle for dinner and I nearly forgot to put the tuna in it.  I'm chalking it up to being exhausted and not feeling the best.  Once we finally got all the ingredients in, it was pretty good.

On that note, I'm going to post this and call it a night.

I'm So Tired of This Cold!

And I'm just plain tired in general, mostly due to the stupid cold.

I think I might have gotten about 3 hours of sleep last night, all spaced out over the several hours of nighttime.

I'm grumpy.

I'm tired.

And I'm so beyond ready for this stupid cold to be gone!

Revolutions

Mom always got the word "resolution" confused with "revolution" and as a result, she always made New Year's Revolutions.  That's been on my mind today.

I don't really do the resolutions thing, I think it's kind of silly and pointless because most of the time people either a) come up with wildly impossible things, b) last about a week and then quit or c)  all of the above.  I have general goals of things I'd like to get accomplished, but they aren't really resolutions.  Or, perhaps I should say reVolutions instead! :)

I'm still not feeling the best, I still feel like I've been run over by a truck.  But, only by one truck today and not two like yesterday.  I slept so-so last night.  I woke up a couple of times because I was stuffy and had a dry mouth, and one time was because Bill woke me up and told me to roll over because I was snoring.  Which I'm sure I was, and he was doing what he was supposed to.  Since we both have to go back to work tomorrow, and he has a b(oring)oard meeting to work tomorrow evening, I'm thinking about sleeping on the couch tonight.  That way, at least one of us can get some sleep.  Frasier will be very happy, if I do sleep in there.  He'll spend all night letting me know how happy he is that I'm in there!

I did get out earlier.  I needed to get some stuff mailed, so Otter and I went to the post office.  I stayed in the car and she ran in and also checked the box for me.  We went to Hobby Lobby for a specific thing, which they didn't have, but I enjoyed talking to another crocheter.  We went to Michael's and they had what I wanted (more in another paragraph), and we also ran into Goodwill.  Goodwill was a run-in, run-out trip and we didn't buy anything.  We probably could have skipped it.  We did need to stop at Wallyworld (so I could stock up on kleenex!).  I was really tired when we got home.  We had dinner early (my birthday steaks a few days late) and I'm thinking that I'll probably spend the rest of the evening in front of the tv.

The specific thing I wanted is a specially shaped "handle" for my crochet hooks.  I've been having some pain in the muscle on my right arm, near the elbow.  A couple of weeks back, I kind of sprained it - I don't remember how I did it now, but at the time I thought that it was probably sprained.  It's pretty much healed up, but now I've noticed that after (and during) crochet time, it's started hurting and sometimes it hurts B.A.D.  I'd seen the handle before and remembered it, it's an ergonomic handle and is supposed to help with muscle pain, etc. so I figured it was worth the cost.  I think it's going to work, I put one of my hooks in it and did a few stitches on the scrap scarf I'm working on.  I don't think it's necessarily going to completely cure the problem, but it did seem to help.  Also, using a computer mouse really bothers my elbow if I have to use it for a long time - which I frequently do, and there are a couple of other times I've noticed it bothering me so it's not just crochet.  Which is a good thing!  But crochet does bother it.  It's the muscle, not the joint.  I usually sleep on my right side and that doesn't help it either.

Otter's spoiled.  HP made a special trip out today, just to bring her a slice of cheesecake from the Cheesecake Factory.  And it even had fresh strawberries and cream!  AND he even brought her a bag of candy that he got in Pennsylvania when his family went "home" for Thanksgiving.  I told her that she needs to hang on to this one.  Bill's jealous - of the cheesecake!  :)

I think we're going to get Otter's textbooks for the 2nd semester sometime this week.  She might get a new messenger bag to hold them all in, but she might use her Army Surplus backpack instead.  We're getting her a laptop to use, and it's going to depend on how heavy it is as well as how big the carrying case is.  The one we've ordered is supposed to be lighter weight than a lot of them, which is specifically for students and people who carry them for work.

Also, the dogsters need to get their heartworm pills refilled soon.  I order them in 3-month increments because that is about how long Maggie goes before she needs to get her rear end squashed and it's easy to remember that way.  Although Maggie Moo would probably prefer that I forget about that...

OK, I think I'm going to either go take a motrin and hold the couch down so it won't fly into the ceiling or skip the motrin and get a glass of wine.  Either way, the couch is calling me and I'm going to answer it!

Now Back To Our Regularly Scheduled Program...

Or blog entry, if you prefer.

No funny title today.  That will resume next Sunday.  When I'm feeling better because right now, I feel pretty cruddy.  Otter tried to come down with a cold while we were in SA, which she probably picked up from JediMom's kids but could also have gotten from her cousin that we saw briefly on the day we arrived - and she thoughtfully shared the cold bug with me.  I started to be a little sneezish on the way home, but it didn't really hit me until yesterday.  I felt like it was coming on while we were running errands Friday, because I was starting to get a particular tickle in my throat that always means a cold.  I spent most of yesterday parked on the couch, we'd have been taking it easy anyway but I was taking it even easier.  I didn't even crochet!

Which means that I felt really bad.  I was thinking I might get the hook and yarn out today, but I haven't gotten there yet.  Otter's just about over the bug she had, but I'm in about the middle of it.  Good thing that tomorrow is a holiday from work.

Anyway.  We've spent the day watching parts of the Twilight Zone marathon that the Sci-Fi channel does on New Year's.  It's always good.  We're also having a pj day, although that was not intentional.  We didn't go to church, obviously, because I wasn't up to it this morning and nobody ever got around to getting dressed.  I have managed to get some laundry done but that's about it.

It's a pretty day today, at least it looks like it from the window!  We had a really strong wind most of yesterday afternoon and there was supposed to be a cold front hitting about midnight last night.  I don't think it was nearly as strong as it was expected to be.  I think it's cool but not as cool as was forecasted.

OK, now I think I'm finally hungry.  It's after 3:00 and I haven't had lunch.  We did have breakfast, Bill made us sausage and scrambled eggs which was delicious.  But I haven't been hungry today.  We are, along with having a pj day, having what we refer to as F & F as far as meals are concerned today.  Nobody is going to starve, we just are eating whatever whenever.  We didn't actually have our living room picnic Friday night - nobody was hungry since we had a late lunch.  So we had it for lunch yesterday, and it was good but we still have a lot of it left.  I might get into it and see what I can come up with.

Other than that, we are not doing much today.  I'm feeling better than I did earlier, I just hope that my supply of kleenex holds out and I don't have to go buy more today.  Tomorrow, I'm defintely going to have to get out - to buy kleenex!  And another toothbrush for Bill, since I accidentally used his last night and the last thing I want to deal with right now is a sick Bill!  (He's got a spare, from our travel kit). :)

Happy New Year! 2011 Review

Hard to believe another year has come and gone, but it's now 2012.  So I guess I have to get used to writing "12" and not "11" on my checks.  :)

2011 was a pretty good year, all things considered.  No major trauma that I can remember, and it had a couple of milestones.

Here goes:

January

Bill bought a couple of power tools.  That can be scary!

I had a cold.  Seems to be my thing for January because I have one now, in Jan. 2012!

I crocheted a lot.  And discovered that my alpaca yarn made me itch.  But since it's usually mixed with wool, as I discovered later on, I don't think it was the alpaca but was probably the wool mixed in.

I finally finished the blanket I started for Bill, it was made with scrap pieces of yarn and I'm happy with it.

We came very close to a head-on accident, in the dark one morning, when somebody crossed into our lane and was speeding.  I nearly hit a fence way off the side of the road trying to get out of his way and he still only missed us by inches.

We had a little snow.

February

This was the cold month!  We had a major blizzard and were essentially housebound for over a week.  There were a couple of breaks where we could get out, but we spent a lot of time home and were pretty stir crazy by the time the weather cleared up.  I still have the scar on my chin from when the car rolled backwards in the driveway and the door hit me.  I crocheted so much during that time that I was actually tired of it, and that is saying something!

I finally finished the quilt I started for Otter when she was in kindergarten!

Otter's Happy Accident with the picante/spaghetti sauce.  It was fun.

The tulips started coming up.

March

The redbud tree started budding out.

The bluebonnet that just showed up started to bud  as well.

We saw the movie Rango.  Which was fantastic!

Bill sold two pachinko machines on eBay.  They sold really well.

March is International Crochet Month, which I participated in every chance I got. :)

The country of Japan was rocked by a huge earthquake and tsunami.

The power steering leak in my car was discovered.

Otter saw her allergy/asthma doctor and he was amazed at how well she's doing.

The last Borders store in our area closed.  That was a bad thing.

Otter had an existential crises.  Her graduation stuff arrived!

Blockbuster closed, we bought a lot f dvd's.

A certain favorite Otter of ours turned 19!

April

The a/c drain in the garage clogged up.  Which caused a big mess, and we had to move more pachinko machines out of the way than I can count!

I had my worst hot flash to date.  I hope I don't have another one llike it.

April means spring storms and we had a couple.

Otter had what we suspected was strep throat, but it turned out to be "just" a virus.

The bluebonnet had a second bloom.  Then some heathen stole it right out of our yard!

May

After 10 years, vengence/justice was served!

Our PayPal account was hacked.  We caught it and the bank filled out the paperwork to freeze the account so no money would be transferred, but then the bank let it go anyway and they learned just how fun RHTW* is to deal with.  She got results, and the bank refunded us the money.  PayPal eventually got their act together, but it was a nightmare dealing with it.

Otter took me to the zoo for Mother's Day. It was really nice.

A wren started a nest in the planter that was Mom's and I have it on my front porch.

I made my soap pump from a mason jar, it's on the craft blog. It turned out well.

Otter was recognized at Church as a graduate.

Bill learned how to make molds & cast pieces in plastic for the pachinko machines.

The Big Thing happed on the 19th - OTTER GRADUATED!  She worked very hard to get to this point and we are so proud of her.

Nana came to visit!

I found another bluebonnet and promptly transplanted it.

Joplin had a major tornado, F5 and many, many deaths.  They are stil recovering.

We had a couple of close calls ourselves.

The last day of high school!  Otter celebrated with donut holes for breakfast.

We finally convinced Bill that he needed his own cell phone.

June

The baby birds on the front porch (4) flew off.  It was so much fun, we hope that we get another bird family to "raise". And the nest was built with lots of yarn scraps!

Otter picked up her diploma!

Spring Stoms continued, but June was a better month than May as far as storms go. We had a lot of rain, which was an issue at the time but also something we looked back on fondly later on in the summer!

Billyboy turned 50.

Bill finished up the 4 adirondack chairs for the back deck.  We enjoyed them a lot, until it got too hot to even breathe!

Discovered that the peace lily plant I've had since 2001 (Mom's funeral) actually knew how to bloom. I didn't think it was a blooming plant, but then it surprised me and started blooming.  A lot!

Found a coach purse at Goodwill!

We spent the last week of June on vacation, we stayed home but had a couple of our rambling trips.

July

Bill and Otter managed to use up most of the fireworks that Bill's had stored for several years.

It was H.O.T.

Robin built a nest in the redbud.

We saw the last Harry Potter movie and it was very good.

Fenton announced that they are closing. :(

Otter enrolled at college!

Otter had to get a filling.  The first one she's ever needed, 19 years without a cavity is pretty good. The dentist also officially decided that her wisdom teeth would need to come out. That was not a surprise, we'd been watching them for a while.

August

Otter had a really strange job interview at Build-a-Bear. The actually told her that their part-time job was more important than college!

Still H.O.T.  We hit records!

All the little robins flew off.

Sales tax free weekend!  We shopped.  A lot.

I crocheted the first sock monkey hat.  It was fun.

Bill replaced the brakes in my car.

We were without our internet for a few days, it was an area-wide outage.

The a/c in the car started acting up.  Again.

Somebody poured coke on Bill's car when I was driving it one day.  I know who did it, and they were in a truck with ou stickers all over the place.  So we're pretty sure it was because of the TEXAS Longhorns emblem we have.

The weather finally started cooling off.  A Little.  High 90's as opposed to low 100's.

Otter's oral surgery, the two lower wisdom teeth came out.  She was not a happy camper!

Otter started college 4 days after the wisdom teeth surgery.  That was a Big Day!

5.8 earthquake in Washington DC.  Odd place for one, we thought.  But we discovered a couple of months later that they were happening in odd places all over!

September

It got H.O.T. again!

We got flu shots.  As early as we can each year.

Lovely Neighbor started calling the cops on our dogs.  Even when they weren't barking!  Even when she was out in her back yard talking loudly, probably to make them bark.

Mailed off my scarves/hats for Troops.  I can't remember the exact name of the group that I mailed them to, but they were received and I got a very nice letter back.

The Future Librarian lost her library card and had to get a new one.  Anybody besides me see the irony in that?

10 years since our national nightmare.  But Justice was served in May.

One of my crowns came off but it was a tooth that needed a filling, so the dentist did the filling and then we able to replace the crown which bought me a few more years before I have to replace it.

The weather got better, cooler and we actually had some 50's mornings!

But we did have some rough weather mid-month.

Racoon tracks on the hood of the El Camino!

Got the car aligned and bought tires.  Also got the power steering leak fixed.  Froggy, I put an easter egg in the blog about being able to ramble farther and you missed it!  Because this is when we decided to go Home for Christmas. :)

It was also when RHTW* was officially introduced to the car mechanic place we were using.

October

A certain football game was in early October.  We got tailgated a lot in the days leading up to it and honked at a few times.  Which usually caused us to flash the Hook 'Em sign.

RHTW* made a couple of trips back to the mechanic.  They do not like her!  And She doesn't care.

28th anniversary of when we met!

Bill had an upper respiratory infection and bronchitis.

I had a sinus infection.

Otter's Adventures in Plantar's Warts started this month!  And it continued until December, so she was not a happy camper for a while.  I don't blame her, by the way.

Bill bought firewood.

November

Guess who took the car back to the mechanic?  RHTW* in full flow and with both barrels loaded, that's who. :)  They got more than one visit this month.  And no more after that.

Otter enrolled for the second semester at college.

It got Bouncy!  5.6.

Thanksgiving, we ate too much but it was a nice day.  It was a quiet day.

Frasier had an expensive snack, in the form of a library book.

Chevy became our official mechanic, and we're happy with them.

We finally got the tulips planted!

December

It was an interesting month, among other things there was an itrude on Otter's college campus.  It turned out to be minor, someone trying to run from the cops instead of pulling over when they wanted him to and he attempted to hide by leaving his car in the parking lot and running into the school library.  Where he was caught promptly!  But it was kind of nerve-wracking.

Bill had to get a filling.  And he nearly had to get a route canal.  Which may still be in his future.

Otter's first semester of college ended.  The finals were not hard, and she passed everything.

We went to TEXAS for Christmas!

I celebrated my 50th birthday with puffy tacos in San Antonio.

I'm half way done with the afghan I started in November of 2010.  I hope to finish it sometime in 2012. :)

We saw JediMom on our way to San Antonio.

The dogs got a vacation at the same time that we did.

We made the trip back to OK in record time.

It was a good year and an interesting one.  A lot of things happened and most of them were actually good.  We're looking forward to 2012.  And no, we don't expect the world to end on 12/21/12!  Although that is the day my notary commission expires. :)

*RHTW  See my many posts with the label Red Hair.  It's self-explanatory!