Derpy Sunday

Been that kind of day today!  All day long.

 

Not helped in the least by the fact that I had a nosebleed to deal with, with no warning.  I thought my nose was trying to run when it was in fact bleeding.  Not a good time to discover that I'm down to one box of Kleenex!  (TEXAS speak:  All forms of tissues are Kleenex.  Even the Puffs with lotion that we use.  They just are.)  It's allergy related, nothing to worry about.  IF I didn't blow my nose too soon and have it start bleeding again, that is!

 

Otter does have an ear infection.  She was supposed to get off at 6:00 Friday evening, but by 5:00 her ear was really starting to hurt so her boss let her go a little early.  I took her to the urgent care clinic we use and she saw a doctor there.  It's not bad, it was caught early.  But she still has an antibiotic to take which is in the form of horse pills.  She has to split them, they are huge.  Yes, Froggy.  We did get a lot of yogurt!

 

Otter and I went to a fabric store in one of the small, neighboring towns yesterday and we also went to a few yard sales.  We didn't really find anything at any of them.  We did see one estate sale sign on one of the main streets so we followed signs until we found it and I bought a few things there, but I still spent about $1.00 there as it was the last day of the sale and everything was 75% off.  We went to the Hitching Post, Froggy that's where I sent you the pictures from.  One of the booths has something I really like, one of these:

This isn't the actual lamp, but it is very similar.  The shade on the one I saw is much bigger and a different style.  I like it a lot, but it's kind of big and I am not really sure where I would put it.  I could put it on the sofa table for the moment, but I don't know if I want to pay $30.00 for it.  I'm still thinking about it.

 

I found a different hat pattern that I decided might work well as a Chemo Cap.  I have been looking for a good pattern to make them with, a lot of organizationpings that work with people who are being treated for cancer take donations of them and then they are given to people who have hair loss due to chemotherapy.  The pattern I found was more of a stocking cap and it looked like it might work.  I made it with very soft yarn, so that if it did work I could donate it - they need to be made as soft as possible.  It worked, but it used up a huge amount of yarn and also took way too long.  Also, I don't like the way it looks - at least not for what it was intended for.  I'll keep looking, I'll find a good pattern eventually.  I can use my standard hat pattern, it would need to be made slightly looser and larger than I normally make them but that's not a problem.  But I want to see what else I can find first.

 

I have a slight headache, courtesy of the nosebleed.  I kind of have to just deal with it, since anything I could take for it is a potential blood thinner and that's the last thing I need right now.  One of my least favorite parts of the Redhead Curse is the bleeding issues we have.

 

The weather has been really nice lately.  Last week was really unusual for July in NE Oklahoma - 70's and 60's at night.  Today is nice, I think it's in the 80's but it was very cool this morning.  I was out trimming tree limblets about 8:00 a.m., and it was actually almost cold.  I had a lot of help, in the form of a beagle!  Maggie Moo apparently decided that she needed to help me.  Help me keep the limbs from flying!  She was very bouncy and playful, and as soon as she saw me by the tree she literally bounced over to me from the other side of the yard.  She got in my way quite a bit, but she managed to get her delicate little furry behind on top of a bunch of branches, then she settled down and stayed there.  Even as limblets were falling (and nearly falling on her!)  She had leaves on her head at one point, but she didn't move until I was through.  Then, she got up and bounced (literally) around the tree, behind the shed and on top of the shell-top to the El Camino that is stored behind the shed.  Who knows what goes on in that little furry head!  Frasier was out in the yard with us, but he's smart enough to stay away from falling limbs.  Maggie is such a goof sometimes.  OK, most of the time.  When I got ready to go inside, I yelled for Frasier and he went straight to the back door to wait for me.  I hollered for Maggie a couple of times, but didn't see her anywhere so I figured she was probably under the shed again.  Then I got to the deck and she was sitting in front of the back door, wagging at me and apparently just waiting until I was ready to go inside!

 

We have been dumping the dog's outside water dish just about every day lately, because it's had wrigglers (mosquito larvae.)  Nearly every day.  It's now sitting empty, we always put their inside water dish out in the garage when we leave for the day and we'll continue to do that, but the outside dish might stay empty for a day or two.  The frog hasn't been seen in days anyway, and that might have something to do with why the wrigglers have been so bad.

 

Otter's harvested a few jalepenos from her plants on the deck.  They are not huge, but they are good.  Bill's been helping keep them under control!

More Trip Stuff and Miscellaneous Rambles

It's been a busy week.  Monday was spent dealing with the Houston airport and waiting for Southwest to get it together and a) get a pilot, b) get a plane for the pilot and c) the weather to cooperate so that they could get a) and b).

Work has been somewhat busy this week, it's the one week of the month where I have a lot to do in a short period of time.  I scheduled my TEXAS trip for the days prior to Crazy Week at work.

No particular reason for this next picture:

Well, there is a reason.  Froggy knows why!

 

Otter had to be in at 7:00 this morning.  It was originally 6:00 a.m., but the boss called her yesterday to reschedule her.  She wasn't complaining, 7:00 a.m. is still early but it's better than 6:00!  She got off at 1:00 and went to the post office for me (we have a p.o. box) to see if we had mail.  Froggy, remember the post cards I mailed from your house last week?  They got here yesterday (the one to work) and today (the ones to home.)  I was beginning to think that they had been lost in the mail.

Or maybe this is the reason the mail is "confused"?!?!?!

 

I put two hummingbird feeders up yesterday and we saw a female on one of the feeders this afternoon.  She was probably wondering why I hadn't gotten o the ball and put the feeders up yet, but at least they are finally up.  Better late than never, I guess!

Well Let's See If This Works

Here goes nothing!

 

Descriptions will be underneath the picture.

This is the area that is mostly my stuff, but there is a little bit of Otter's.  Since Otter took this picture, some of the things pictured have been sold.

Bill's part of the booth.  Between the shelves are two hooks with Otter's necklaces and above them is a stack of joke framed million dollar bills that Bill came up with.  I think the million dollar bills thing is dumb, but at least one of them has sold so somebody must like them.

 

Bill was able to transfer all my pictures onto a flash drive, then he deleted the corrupted files on the hard drive and reloaded the pictures back onto the computer.  I was afraid that I'd lost all my pictures.

This is not one I made, but I made one like this for Otter.  It's a character from a video game called a Creeper.

 

One more, because I loves me some Derpy!

Stuff We've Been Up To Lately

Mousies, mostly.

 

The tally is 7.  Maybe 8, we may have forgotten one.  One was a male, the rest have been female.  We got the latest one in our bathroom yesterday, it was the trap behind the door in our bathroom.  Two have been in Otter's room, there are probably more there.  One has been in the dining room, it's probably the one that came in the dog door when I was in the kitchen.  The rest have all been in the back part of the house.  Otter has been rearranging her craft/sewing/fun supplies in her room in an effort to give the mice as few places as possible to hide/nest in.  I'm thinking that I need to take everything out of my closet and look for any access areas.  They are coming from somewhere!

 

A lot of it is probably because of all the construction behind us.  Speaking of the construction behind us, we were making breakfast yesterday morning and Bill noticed that he could see the lady who lives in the house behind us.  Specifically, he could see the top of her head and she was standing on her patio up near her door.  And she was very obviously trying to see over our fence into our windows!  We don't know if she could see in the window itself or not, but when I walked to the window she very suddenly turned away and acted like she'd been caught out at something.  Yes, we were dressed - but Bill said that he's very tempted to not be the next time he stands in front of the window in the dining room.  :)

 

This is a test to see if blogger will let me post a picture:

Obviously, it did.

 

I'm still having computer issues, I've found my pictures but only through blogger.  The computer itself still says that the drives/files/folders do not exist.  I have 3 or 4 pictures Otter took of our booth today that I've been trying to post.  But the computer won't let me save them because the drives/files/folders do not exist - except that they do!

 

I'll keep trying.

 

Anyway, Otter and I went to the booth today to add a few things.  Finally, something has sold.  Not a pachinko machine, however.  Bill had a marble statue of a bird that he got at an auction many years ago, he put it in the booth and it was gone today.  Also, two of Otter's crafted My Little Pony necklaces have sold.  Lots of things were moved around, so people are at least looking at our booth.  We are probably only going to keep it for the 3 months we are obligated to.

 

Bill and the neighbor got the issue with his Impala solved fairly easily.  Bill did some research online and discovered that the later models of the cars built on the Impala frame have an access panel that is underneath the rear seat.  He had to remove the seat, but that wasn't too difficult.  But it was dirty!  There was quite a bit of debris that was obviously from when I was driving that car - like candy that young Otter lost behind the seat, a couple of toy tags, a quarter, etc.  They got the access panel off and the tank was right underneath it, it was basically a "plug and play" operation after that.  Remove the old piece and replace it with the new sensor.  Then they just had to replace the access panel and the seat.  Bill went to fill the car up when they got it finished, the sensor obviously works now.  Otter's relieved, she was afraid of running out of gas when she was driving it.

 

Testing, again:

That about sums up my philosophy of life!

 

I'm going to make chili for dinner tonight.  We still have tamales in the freezer, I think I'm going to get a dozen out and we'll have them with the chili.  If Otter is lucky, we'll save her some tamales.  She's gone to meet J at a local game arcade that is across the street from where she works.

 

But we might just eat them all!

Playing in the Dirt

(Play on the phrase Digging in the Dirt, which is from the fantastic Monty Python movie Monty Python's Holy Grail!)

It's kind of been a Derpy Day today, mostly due to whatever allergen is in the air.  I've been tired for a few days, which is an allergy symptom and also I've been sneezing.  A lot!

 

Which probably wasn't helped by the fact that Otter and I got out and did some Digging in the Dirt.  But the tulip bed won't get itself ready, unfortunately.  Bill mowed the weeds the other day, then I got out with the hoe and got as much of the roots & stems out of it as I could.  Today, we got the shovels out and "stirred" the dirt around.  Then I treated it with rain water which had a full bottle of baby oil and quite a bit of dishwashing liquid in it.  The water helps it all soak in,  The moles don't like the oily dirt, the gophers don't like it either but the soap kills any grubs that the gophers might want to eat, because they also destroy the roots of the plants when they are going after the grubs.  We'll hit it again in a week or so, the general idea is to plant the bulbs around Nov. 1 but it depends on the weather and the ground temperature.  We use baby oil which is essentially mineral oil with scent, buying mineral oil by itself is expensive and it also only comes in small bottles.

 

My favorite Teenager is turning 97 tomorrow!  I'm going to get cupcakes or something similar to take in to the office tomorrow.  We spoil him as much as he'll let us.

Otter managed to get a picture of the elusive Chupacabra!  She had to essentially stalk him around the yard, but she got the picture.  Frasier does not like to pose!  He's a lot more tolerant of the vacuum, but not the camera.  We were trying to figure out his age last night, we knows he's at least 11 but he's probably a year or two past that.  Which is a very good life span for a big dog, and we hope he hangs in there for a long while longer.

This is what we see anytime the back door is opened - the Magginator wanting to go out!  She did get to, as soon as Otter took the picture the door was opened and the beaglebrat shot out the door as fast as she would got.

 

This is what is known as "Deploying the Ears" and is usually employed when the dog wants something she's not getting.  Snack, a trip to the yard, my blanket, whatever it is that she doesn't have.  Dog might not be the sharpest crayon in the box, but she does know when to turn on the Cute!  Usually, she sticks both ears straight out and they stay that way.

1500! Alternate Title: Snappy Turtles

(Froggy, the title is a hint of what is to come!)

 

This is my 1500th post.  Wheeee!

Otter and I were heading off somewhere yesterday.  We have a route that we like to take when we have time.  It takes us by a miniature horse farm.  PONIES!! 

  

 

It also goes past a cow pasture that has a stock pond close enough to be seen from the road.  There are usually what we refer to as "floaters" in the pond - cattle of assorted age & size, and lots of them are calves.  Calves are generally a little too small to walk, they are obviously floating and they look like they are having a good time.

Anyway.  Yesterday, we were heading down our favorite 2-lane road and noticed an oncoming car suddenly stop.  Then the driver got out and he waved to make sure we saw him.  We slowed down in case he needed help (I would have called Bill but would not have gotten out of the car myself nor would I have given him a ride anywhere, safety first after all.)  But then we realized that he was actually getting something out of the middle of the road, in front of his car.

It was one of these:

A snapping turtle!

 

It wasn't huge, by my standards anyway.  But my standards might be different than most - it was at least as wide as a dinner plate.  A large plate.  He looked like he knew how to handle one, he was carefully and slowly grabbing it and grabbing it back far enough to hopefully not get nailed.  Turtle neck length varies, so it's always a good idea to grab as far back as you can.  Just in case.  He carried it over to the side of the road and gently tossed it far enough away from the street again, hopefully it was smart enough to keep on going the same direction which would have kept it away from the street again.

 

All turtles can and will bite, snapping turtles are among the worst by the way - they are grouchy from the moment they hatch!  They can be very nasty to deal with.

 

This is a Snappy Turtle:

It's a little nicer than the other kind!

And Froggy would probably like it better.

Technical Derpyculties

Yay!  It worked!  I can post pictures.  Blogger has a notice that there have been some problems with loading pictures so they've posted a "back door" to use and it worked.

Otter, this one is very appropriate.  Don't you think so? :)

OK, now that I've figured that out, on to other things.  Such as the fact that I'm still sick.  And still tired of it.

I went to work this morning, I actually felt a lot better.  Not well, but a lot better.  Until I didn't.  At about 10:30, I cratered.  I managed to get quite a bit done in the short time I was at the office, but I'm thinking that it's going to take me days and days and days and days to get anywhere near caught up again.  When I'm going to be on vacation, I make sure I have plenty of time prior to being off so that I can get everything done.  But the flu caught me off guard.  I'm now pretty certain that my Redhead Anemia last week was probably the early symptoms of the flu coming on, or at least some of it was.

There are a huge number of people in this area that have it, and quite a few had the flu shot.  As I think I've mentioned before, the serum for each year is an educated guess and sometimes they guess wrong.  They did get part of it right, but they didn't get it all right when they were figuring out which strain(s) would be dominant.  I think that the fact that I got the flu shot did help, I don't have all the horrible symptoms and the ones I do have are not as severe as other years when I have gotten the flu without having gotten the shot.  But that doesn't mean I'm enjoying it!  In hindsight, I probably should have gone to the doctor last Friday when I was still in the magic 24-ish hour period for tamiflu to be effective.  But I really didn't think that the pain in my arms was anything other than the tendonitis and the fact that I'd been crocheting a lot.

Right now, I don't think I'm going to attempt work tomorrow but I'll decide for sure in the morning.  I did try not to overdo it today, and mostly I just sat at my desk and worked on paperwork.  But Fridays are kind of chaotic at the best of times and I really don't think it will be a good idea.  I will probably do what I've been doing most of this week:  stay parked on the couch with a blanket, a beagle underneath said blanket at my feet, a glass of water and my motrin close by and (most important!) my yarn and hooks in reach!  Daytime tv sucks, by the way.

Bill was off today and is off tomorrow, he's taking comp time and then he's off on Monday.  I'm fairly certain that I'll be back at work on Monday.  He's been working on pachinko stuff, he's been going out to the garage to work on his sanding/painting/building project and coming back in to the kitchen table, where he has his mold making stuff set up so he can cast parts for the pachinko machines.  Although he did move the mold making stuff off the table for dinner just now!

Dinner was pork chops, rice, brown gravy (yes, Froggy it's Pioneer!) and steamed green beans.  I have been "frying" pork chops when I make them lately, which isn't often.  They aren't really fried in the traditional sense, I think it's probably technically pan-fry but I put a very small amount of olive oil in my frying pan, turn on the heat and then when the pan is warm the pork chops get tossed in.  They are seasoned first with a little salt & pepper on each side.  It probably takes about 15 minutes to cook them through, turning frequently.  They are pretty good, actually.  Cooking dinner was exhausting, even with Otter handling the gravy and vegetable steaming.  The rice pretty much cooks itself, all  I had to stand in front of the stove and flip chops.

And I had to ignore doggies!  They were haunting the kitchen, in hopes of a hand out.  They did get a tiny bite of pork chop, after we'd eaten.  And in their bowls, they are not fed from the table.  Now, they are probably back asleep.

I'm Never Going to Have an Empty Nest

Because once Otter moves out, I'll still have the one I refer to as my other child!  The one who is actually 6 months older than I am in years, but is actually about 10 years old in his own head.

I just heard Otter screeching at the Other Kid.  Apparently, he wants to change the beagle's name to "Bait" and take her (the dog, not Otter!) shark fishing.

If Otter were a pony, she would be Pinkie Pie!  And I'd probably be Rainbow Dash, seeing how she's just a tad bit on the Control Freak side!  Bill's on his own with this one, Otter's on to his antics now!  :)

(But Derpy is still my favorite!)

Summer Reruns

Not the tv kind of rerun, either!

The forecast has a definite "been there, done that" quality to it.

I like this forecast better.

(Especially the 20% cooler part!)

Otter didn't see the dove this morning.  She was watering the morning glories along th fence line (which don't like heat or dry conditions, by the way), but the bird was nowhere in sight.  Either she is hiding somewhere such as the remains of the iris plants, she's recovered and left or she's gone because of one of the evil neighborhood cats.  I looked out this afternoon but didn't see her.  I didn't actually go outside, I just looked through the dining room window but that's how I spotted her last night.

I did manage to climb over the pachinko machines in the garage last night.  I got another mason jar from the collection of them that we seem to have out there, brought it in, washed it, put the pump on it.  And discovered that it was too tall.  So, back out I go and go through the whole process again!  But the 2nd one was the right size, it's now filled up and back at the sink.

Hopefully, this one won't get smashed into the sink like the first one.  But honestly, I'm surprised it made it as long as it did and that I wasn't the one who dropped it!  Well, I had dropped it but it didn't break then.  Of course, I dropped it into a sink already filled with warm, soapy water and Otter was just getting started on doing the dishes when she lost her grip on it so it hit a dry, cast iron sink.

I looked at Foreman grills again today.  And decided that I still don't want another one - the newest ones seem to be a little sturdier than the ones I saw right after the 2nd one wore out, but they are still too flimsy.  We used ours a lot (we wore two of them out) so I want to make sure that it isn't going to fall apart the first time we use it.  It's on the list of things I want, unlike a dishwasher, I just prefer to get value for what things cost is all.

Also, Bill's pachinko stash expanded today.  He found another one on Craigslist, they guy wanted $100.00 for it, because you kow they are so rare (not).  He sent Bill some pictures and it had several missing or damaged places, so Bill offered him $35.00.  Then he went to look at it today, and they settled on $40.00 which is a pretty good price for this specific machine.  But in Bill's defense, he did sell a machine recently so I'm not complaining!

Besides, all I have to do when he comments on the amount of yarn I have is to ask him how many pachinko machines he has!

Works every time. :)

We Made it to Friday, Finally!

Urg, what a week it's been.

At least it's finally Friday.  I don't have to do anything tomorrow.  That's a good thing.

(Just because I thought it was cute!)  (RIF, Y'all!)

Otter's just about through with her freshman year at college.  I was thinking that she would have to go most of next week, but it turns out that Tuesday will be her last day.  It's also the day she's going to see what books she can sell back.  Then I'm going to pick her up for our Girls Lunch (Cici's Pizza!) and then she'll spend the afternoon at the library.  Then she has about a month off before the summer term where she'll get the first part of the math requirements out of the way.

I managed to get her an appointment with the dentist in the middle of May.  While I'd love the dentist to say that the last two wisdom teeth are ready now and that she can get it scheduled for the next week, I really don't expect that.  Mid-May or sometime after the Fall semester starts, since her summer is booked up, are the two windows for the next oral surgery.

I'm just really, really, really glad that it's Friday!

Not Quite Friday

For some reason, I haven't been able to come up with a really good title for a while now.  No idea why, but the fact that this has been a wild week and I'm teeeiiiired might have something to do with it!

Today is April 19.  It's an important day in the history of Oklahoma, and the US.  Here's my post I wrote after we visited the Memorial in Oklahoma City:

April 19, 1995

I actually thought that tomorrow was the 19th, until we were watching the news this morning and they were talking about the bombing.  I was a day off, today is not the 18th but is in fact the 17th anniversary.

I had a pretty busy day at work, but I did manage to get a few things accomplished.  Unlike most other days this week!  I met Bill for lunch at Schlotzky's.  We don't eat there very often but it's always good.  After work, I picked Otter up and we ran several errands.  She needed something from Hobby Lobby, so we went by there for her.  We also went to Wallyworld for groceries, which seemed to take forever.  After we got home and got the trunkful of groceries shifted to the kitchen, I had to make a quick run back there to return the ground turkey meat that was obviously rancid as we discovered by the smell when the package was opened.  They gave me my money back, I didn't expect a problem.  But the clerk said that she was just going to take my word for it and not open the ziploc package I put it in.  Then she laughed because the computerized readout on her register told her (in capital letters I think) not to restock the item!  We both thought that was amazing, the thought that anyone would restock something like that.  I usually buy the larger 3-lb package of the ground turkey, then we split it into one pound packages in ziploc bags and put it in the freezer until we need it.  I haven't been able to find the 3-lb packages lately, the company apparently has decided to change their packaging up and they are now in a 3-lb roll (or chubb).  This was the first and probably last one I'll buy, if I can't see the actual meat I won't buy it.  I'll go back to buying the smaller packages, even though they will cost more.  In the long run, I think it's worth it.

For the record, we are firmly on Ted Nugent's side.  His comments were not threats at the president, but they were very much Free Speech.  We've always liked him, his music is probably not the most spectactular - although I did listen to a lot of it in high school, but his general attitude fits right in with our family.

I posted about Otter's pony that she refurbished, here's the link to the craft blog posting:

Otter's My Little Pony Project

She sold it today.  For $10.00.  Pretty good for a small plastic pony!

She's going to work on a couple more, she had started a couple but has not had much time this week.  She's going to get back to work as soon as she can, but she's not going to make a huge inventory.  Just a few, and as they sell she'll decide about making more.

We think she did pretty good, considering that she paid hardly anything for the supplies she used.

Just Thinking About Stuff

Such as the fact that I'm really tired and I want to go to bed early.  But I probably won't, because then I will wake up early and be tired again tomorrow...  Neverending theme there.  :)

It's just Tuesday, I guess.  Well, at least it's not Monday anymore!

Rick Santorum dropped out of the race today.  Not really sure what that means for us, as far as who we vote for.  I will not, under any circumstances, vote for the incumbent.  I'm not a fan of Romney by any stretch of the imagination and I don't see myself voting for him, either.  I don't think that Gingrich has a snowball's chance, but he probably hasn't ever had one.  This is going to be a very difficult election for all three of us in this household.  We are all having the same problem, and the probable answer to our conundrum is not one we particularly like.  More on that later, I'm sure!

Froggy, Otter is glad that you liked her pony redo.  She was in the middle of another one, but her allergies and school stuff due this week have prevented her from working on it much over the last couple of days.  But she'll get back to it asap and I'll probably post pictures on the craft blog.

Until then, this one's for Otter:

It's kind of for me as well.  RIF, after all!  (Yes, I meant RIF, Y'all).

Monday After Easter...

Known as Easter Monday in some cultures.

Otter and I kind of have a Soapbox Gripe Whine session planned, so be warned.  It will have to do with things like holidays that are faith-based, Christian holy days which have been corrupted by society and frankly, should not be observed in any way, shape, form or fashion by non-Christians.

OK, now everybody's warned.

Check this out:

Source # 4

Otter is her parent's daughter, and that means that she's crafty.  She's creative and very much a "think outside of the box" kind of girl.  (Well, I should probably say woman insted of girl, but I'm her mother and she'll always be my little girl!)  Anyway.  Among other things, she has been refurbishing My Little Pony toys for a while.  They are very popular, with both genders and with all ages.  The refurbishing thing is pretty popular as well, and some of the people that make these things are absolutely amazing artists.  Otter decided to submit one of hers to the site that the llink goes to, and Source # 4 is hers!  It was featured on their main page.  She said that she's now famous on the internet.  And she's already working on another pony refurbish.  She's also been offered more than a few dollars for the ponies, specifically the one in the pictures.

I have been crocheting a little bit lately.  I've mostly confined it to short sessions on Saturday afternoons.  I had been wanting a regular shawl, mostly for those (many) days in Church when I freeze because the a/c is turned down to Artic temperature.  I had a prayer shawl, Green Prayer Shawl, but it was really too big - because I listened to Bill's advice on size - and I didn't use it much.  I actually donated it to Goodwill or Salvation Army a while back and I wouldn't be surprised to find out that it was being used as a table runner or something because it was just so darn long!  Anyway.  I wanted a regular, triangular shaped shawl for myself.  I finally found a pattern I liked and realized that I have exactly twice the amount of yarn I need for the afghan, Under Construction Still!, so I decided to use the excess green yarn.  It's coming along well but I'm not at the point of taking pictures yet.  I'm not doing much crochet at a time, but I am able to do it and it's not really hurting my arm(s) much.  When my arms start to get sore, I put the hook down and quit.  I'm finding that I'm able to work longer each time I attempt it.

And the afghan will eventually be finished.  I haven't worked on it in months because it's big enough that it covers me like a blanket and it's warm!  I would have probably already finished it, except that as wel all know, we never really had winter and cold weather.

At this point, I'm just hoping that I'll be able to drag the afghan back out and get it finished some time this year!

Frasier Update and Other Stuff

Frasier went to the vet today, and he's probably ok.  The vet thinks that it's what I suspected:  he licked a new spot and it grew exponentially.  He was already licking that spot, but when I put socks on him and he can't lick his preferred places on his legs, he goes looking for other spots.  This one is just huge, and the vet thinks it may rupture.  Which is what I was afraid of.  He gave me a medicated spray to use on the dog, 3 times a day.  I have to spray it and then keep him occupied for about 10 minutes to give it time to absorb.  The thought is that it will shrink the spot down a bit.  If it does rupture, it's going to be messy and a possibly vector for infection.  He can operate, but it's an expensive operation and the dog is getting old (although he's still a puppy at heart) so he might have some serious problems with anesthesia.  We're going to avoid that if possible.  The vet said that he might be able to remove the spot with a "doggie downer" type shot that would make Frasier drowsy and then use a local anesthetic, but we'll wait and see on that.  He wants to give the spray a chance to work and it might not need to be removed if it does shrink up.  He said that it is not unusual at all for a "lick granuloma" as it's called to suddenly enlarge like this one has.  The vet did suggest that I keep putting socks on Frasier, since they are keeping him from licking the spots on his leg so much.

More confirmation that Friaser is part of the family, because we are very much "Go Big or Go Home" and he's just following the tradition.  :)

Maggie's part of the vet visit was for her quarterly butt squash.  Which she did not appreciate!  Maggie was happy to get a car ride, as was Frasier, but when we got there and she realized it is when the game of Drag the Dog started.  Otter got Maggie in the door, but then Maggie stood with her nose up against the glass door in hopes that someone would let her out.  Friaser was excited to get there, he literally ran and dragged me through the doorway.  Maggie had to be pulled into the exam room, then the tech had to drag her out of there for her procedure.  When they brought her back, Maggie ran into the room and turned her behind away from everybody.  Then she wedged herself between Otter and the exam table, and smooshed her rear up to the wall so nobody could reach it.

After we got home with the dogs, Otter and I went to buy groceries.  Wally was not as crowded as I expected when we got there, but they were starting to get busy by the time we were finishing up and checking out.  I'm glad we did not wait until tomorrow, even though I was tired before we went and more tired after.  They were starting to run out of eggs, which happens often the week before Easter.

One for Otter:

Also, the last post was a Star Trek reference (obviously!).  But one correction:  RIF, Y'all!  The Borg Queen is a TEXAN, after all.

Chirpy Wednesday. (Or Derpy Wednesday, Otter)

The birds are still chirping!  But the Robin's nest has been knocked down.  Probably by another bird, we get a number of bluejays and mockingbirds.  They are both territorial and will destroy nests belonging to other birds.  Otter noticed it was on the deck, yesterday she let the dogs out for a short playtime in the back yard and she spotted it.  The robin has not been back, as far as we can tell because there are no signs of rebuilding.  She was nearly through with the nest, judging from the size/shape, etc., but it's a natural occurance so she probably moved on to a better place.  Since it was right outside the back door, it's easier on us if it's not there but we were hoping to have baby birds.  The last robin's nest we had was last year, and it was int he redbud tree.

Allergies are kicking in!  Otter's had to take her allergy pills the last couple of nights.  I've been sneezing a lot lately and Bill's been congested for days.  The weather is absolutely beautiful, but it's also prime pollen weather.  We could get more rain over the next couple of days but nothing big.  Hopefully, it will be enough to at least clear the air out a bit.  Although rain will also cause an increase in plant growth which means more pollen!

Otter's birthday is Saturday.  She's ordered her birthday breakfast, she wants waffles.  And bacon!  She also decided on Breyer's natural vanilla ice cream to go with the cake.  Her birthday dinner/lunch is Sunday, she picked Chili's.  Her plans for Saturday itself include napping, napping, napping.  And cake, of course!  And probably another nap after that.  I think she's been talking to Maggie Moo, because the beagle has napping down to a fine art.

Otter, here's Derpy for you:

I thought the muffin cannon was something you'd like, Otter.

Also, I thought you might like this one:

Because if Otter were a pony, she'd be Pinky Pie!