i guess the fact that i never really posted my review of the boxesful of Dove chocolate i got FedExed worked against me when the people from Matchstick asked me to apply to get clean hair. i did mention it on Flickr, though!
at least Kimli’s tresses will be bouncing and behaving in no time!
in other news, i’m going to a play tomorrow night! a photography friend is once again directing a play, which means Christopher and i will be getting dolled up and heading out to Granville Island to see “The Glass Box”. i like going to plays, but hardly ever bring myself to go see them. knowing someone who is making one happen on a regular basis has been fantastic for getting me out to the theatre more often. i always like to support the endeavours of people i know in real life.
so, this morning, i woke to find a Facebook friend request in my inbox. i looked at the name and drew a complete blank. i had absolutely no idea who this person was. it took a little bit of rooting around in the boxes in the back of my head, but it turns out it’s a guy who i went to high school with. someone i never talked to, but his sister ended up having sex with a guy i’d known since third grade on a park bench in Stanley Park on our grad night (or so the story went).
this is the thing i hate about Facebook. if you didn’t even TALK to me in high school, when we were in the same place every day for five years, why do you want to be my “friend” now? almost nineteen years later? seriously! yeah, yeah. i know why, because my profile is protected and you just want to see if i’m as fat and sad as i wasn in the 80’s. well, too bad. my new Facebook rules decree that if you aren’t someone i want to hang out with on a work night (HUGE!), then you don’t get to be my friend.
i feel a friend list cull coming on…
did i mention i’m going away this weekend? i’m really looking forward to that.
well, except when they’re in regards to my car.
so, you might have noticed that the blog looks different than it used to. after server upgrades by my webhost broke my original, and very old, Movable Type installation, i started the sucky and obsessive task of upgrading the CMS which drives this site.
it took me a while to decide between upgrading MT or switching entirely to WordPress; but, after test-driving WP and hatehatehating its style system, i went back to what i knew better (not best, as i found out) and went ahead with the MT upgrade. that’s when the real fun started.
luckily, my familiarity with MT (from all those hours making it bend to my will) meant that even with a few hiccoughs, i managed to get things looking and working fairly okay in a semi-short period of time. but, for the last three days, the very first thing i do when i sit at the computer is fiddle with something on the blog. now that i’ve figured out how to make it make permalinks which don’t break all old incoming links, i think i’ll leave the futzing for a while. i hope.
oh, btw, if you’re an RSS subscriber, please ensure you’re subscribed to this URL or you’ll not be so blessed as to receive my crappy blogging. ;)
in other, non-blog-related news, the car went to the spa again last week. there went my hope to not see the shop more than once in Q1 of 2009. it turned out cheaper than first thought, but it was still another $400 i wasn’t planning on spending. at some point, there’s got to be nothing left to fix on it, right? at the very least, it feels so much better, Christopher and i actually washed it, inside and out, on Saturday. and, this time, no windows exploded!
also, totally out of the blue, my second-favourite Jim (sorry, but my dad gets first-favourite honours) called this morning to say he had six hours in Vancouver to kill and, hey, did i want to save him from the rain? the answer to which is always, always “yes!” so, after a mad dash to clean, shower and get presentable, Christopher and i took Jim out for some pub food and a short drive around some very crooked corners of Deep Cove before he had to head for his ferry reservation. i was so happy to see him, especially since i missed my chance the last time i was in Victoria.
so, back to work tomorrow. woo? we’ll see. the boy and i are headed to Parksville next weekend for a small getaway. it’ll be good to get him out of range of his family for a while. i may have to arrange for him to “forget” his cell phone on this side of the water to ensure he actually gets a break, though. ;)
i think i managed to upgrade movable type without breaking much stuff.
please to be reporting any errors and don’t mock the stock template. things will change eventually. i hope.
– my website is broken. it’s in a subtle way most visitors will never notice, but now that i know of it, i’m annoyed. just not quite annoyed enough to go through the hassle of upgrading my CMS in hopes of fixing it. nix that. after posting this, i discovered it’s even MORE broken than i thought. *sigh*
– the blood donation devirginization did not occur on Saturday. when i called for an appointment for the fateful day, i was denied. seems the good people of the province of British Columbia have been opening their veins in record numbers since the blood company’s advertising blitz during the winter holidays. never fear, though. i have an appointment all booked for next month and will soon know the joy of saving lives and eating cookies.
– today, i got my third parking ticket. ever. the fucking City of North Vancouver changed the parking signs outside my chiropractor’s office. who the hell designates a loading zone from 4pm-6pm, anyway? gah.
– the Vileda mop/Method Good for Wood solution combo worked wonders on my floors yesterday. it was lovely to have shiny, almond-scented hardwood. it wasn’t quite so lovely to feel like i’d gotten a severe case of whiplash from all that vigorous mopping. obviously, cleanliness is not all its cracked up to be. bring on the pigsty!
– i could really go for a cupcake right about now. or maybe two.
– due to familial obligations, the boy stayed home all weekend. which meant i was alone all weekend. it’s been a very long time since i’ve woken up alone on a Sunday morning. it was both sad and exciting to have all that time to do with as i pleased. hence the crazy cleaning. honey, don’t ever leave me alone like that again, okay?
it suddenly occurred to me today that, over the last year, i’ve made quite a number of changes in my life to avoid things which bring toxins and other dubious substances into my life.
i used to take Brita-filtered water to work in one-litre pop bottles. i’d re-use the bottles until they were, quite literally, cracked and ready to give up the ghost. i can’t even begin to bring myself to imagine the amount of icky plastic particles which i voluntarily drank as a result. some time last year, i recycled the last plastic bottle and bought a Laken aluminum bottle to take to work instead. it’s blue with a whole buncha cute sheep acting out around the outside.
shortly before ditching the plastic bottles, i found this website which documented a woman’s experiments with rats and Aspartame which really scared me. basically, she dosed her rats with relatively moderate levels of NutraSweet to see if she could get some clear results as to the safety of the artificial sweetener. if i recall correctly, all the rats died. most developed tumours or lost eyes or their offspring had birth defects. it was a frightening thing to read and look at (there are lots of photos documenting it all). after that, i swore off my non-sugar sweetener of choice: Splenda. while i know that white sugar isn’t the best for me, it’s got to be better than some franken-sweetener made in a lab. recently, i even purchased some Agave nectar to try to get away from sugar, too.
for Christmas, i received a gift card to London Drugs. with it, since it was free money, i bought myself something i’d been wanting but wouldn’t have ever brought myself to purchase: tempered glass lunch containers. so, instead of nuking my lunch every day in plastic containers, i now heat it up in tempered glass. no more icky plastic bits are being exited and finding their way into my leftover chicken fried rice. i pretty much refuse to microwave anything in plastic now. sometimes, i’m too lazy and do it, but i always feel guilty afterwards.
next in my quest for less bad things in my life, i’ve been trying to buy fewer processed food items. no HFCS, no excessive corn or soy by-products, less sugars and salts. generally, i’ve been moving towards eating closer to the source. maybe it was reading “The Omnivore’s Dilemma” and “In Defense of Food” (i heart Michael Pollan), but it just makes so much sense to try to eat real food instead of all the packaged crap which marketers call food. gah! it makes me a little queasy to look at all those boxes of shelf-stable food-like substances on the grocery store shelves. oh, i’m FAR from perfect in this regard, but to think back a few years… i shudder to remember what i was putting in my body.
i didn’t really MEAN to have made so many changes in my life in 2008. maybe that’s the key to continuing them? one small thing, followed by another small thing, until, suddenly, you realize you’ve actually made a whole bunch of pretty big improvements in how you treat your body!
p.s. do you want to join Kimli, Nelson and I this Saturday when we go to give blood and save lives? aw, c’mon… you can have all the cookies you want!
the lovely doctor-to-be jen tagged me in this meme. i’m not sure if i can come up with more things to say about myself — i pretty much blew my wad with the 25 things kimli tagged me with. oh, what the hell. here goes!
The Rules
– Link to your original tagger(s) and list these rules in your post.
– Share seven facts about yourself in the post.
– Tag seven people at the end of your post. (uh…)
– Let them know they’ve been tagged. (hrm…)
1. i have a very bad memory for things i’ve written. for example: once i’ve written a letter or email to someone about something specific, it’s gone from my brain. if you reference the content in that missive later, odds are i won’t have a clear recollection of it. it occasionally makes for some awkward moments. strangely, i retain scholastic information best when having to write or re-write something i’m learning — just so long as i’m writing to get it IN, not OUT. yeah, my brain, she be screwy. i will forget the details of this post as soon after i click “publish”.
2. i rehearse conversations, out loud, while i’m trying to fall asleep at night. it’s probably just my means of unloading stuff from the day so i can shut my brain off, but it’s kind of embarrassing to admit to.
3. i’m a fantastic salesperson for your awesome creative creation, but when it comes to my stuff, i lack the confidence to market myself. i’ve been making magnet sets and photo cards and selling them (surprisingly well, actually) to co-workers, but i have absolutely no idea how to expand my market. i don’t want it to become a HUGE production because start-up costs are not in my budget, but i’d sure like to figure out how to sell a few every month to raise a little extra cash.
4. i feel guilty that i haven’t put nuts out on my balcony for the big fat squirrels all week. i hope i will remember to do that tonight (see #1).
5. the idea of spending one-on-one time with people makes me nervous. unless you’re my parent or boyfriend, there’s a chance i’ve had an episode of anxiousness before we meet to spend time together alone. i don’t know why, but i’m worried that if it’s just me and you, i won’t be able to hold up my end of the conversation.
6. i’ve had a crush on just about everyone i’ve ever met. sometimes they last for years, but usually only a minute or two.
7. if i can stick to my “money plan” (budget is a dirty word, even though used it up there in #3), i’ll pay off the bank 21 months early. twenty-one months! that kind of blows my mind.
sorry, this one was so tough i can’t bring myself to tag seven people to do it themselves. i’m just not that cruel! ;)
i know i tweeted about this earlier today, but i don’t think y’all took me seriously.
on Saturday, February 7th, i want to go lose my blood donation virginity and i want ALL of my geographically-compatible friends and acquaintances to do it with me.
i also know that this will take more wrangling than a Project Runway premiere/sushi-making party, but this… this is all for the greater good.
plus, there is all the juice and cookies you can stand to consume! and a pin! and knowing you’re saving up to THREE LIVES! and, if you don’t already know it, your blood type (so you can finally fill in that “blood type” box found, oddly, on lots of Japanese paper products marketed to teens).
and, you can hold my hand because, frankly, i’m scared to death.
not of the needle (thank goodness i’m finally over that teenage phobia). or the blood (c’mon, i have a uterus). what i’m really afraid of is passing out in front of all those strangers. i’m fairly certain, intellectually, that won’t happen; but, my own issues with public humiliation are still great enough to insist on my nervous system quivering at the mere thought. will you be my security blanket?
today, i got the skinny on how the whole blood donation thing goes by a lovely lady from Canadian Blood Services. it’s all very thorough and medical with lots of questions about where you’ve been and who you’ve slept with, but it’s also entirely confidential and safe.
i’ve been wanting to give blood for years and years, but my ignorance of the procedure combined with that nagging fear mentioned above kept me away. i feel like it’s my duty to carry on the family practice of being a prolific blood donor. my dad donated regularly for decades (until he got cancer (he’s fine now, thanks!) and they took him off the list).
so, my awesome grand plan is for us all to gather in North Vancouver for a nice big brunch (they want you to be well fed & hydrated), then head over to St. Andrew’s United Church and get our blood drawn together! afterwards, who knows? the sky’s the limit!
who’s with me? who wants to save some lives?! if you’re reading this and can get to North Van without aid of a plane ticket or passport, i really hope you will consider joining me.
| january | new windshield | $500 |
| rear wheel cylinder replacement | $185 | |
| february | oil change & “engine vacuum”* |
$170 |
| march | fuel filter replacement* |
$90 |
| rad hose & spark plug wires* |
$140 | |
| april | throttle cable replacement* |
$182 |
| may | exhaust leak repair | $56 |
| window regulator* |
$50 | |
| june | new ignition* |
$228 |
| july | oil change, distributor cap & rotor* |
$188 |
| august | nothing! | $0 |
| september | timing & alternator belts* |
$328 |
| october | oxygen sensor* |
$380 |
| november | oil change & coolant temperature sensor* |
$190 |
| december | heater fan motor & resistor* |
$315 |
| total | $3002 |
no wonder i’m broke (sorry, jen).
i had a big, long, thoughtful post written about how i’m feeling confident about money and my financial goals for 2009. then, i suddenly had an overhelming sense i was tempting fate by broadcasting my optimism and freaked out a little about posting it.
so, you get this sucky post instead. sorry.
kimli tagged me with this meme about 25 random facts about yourself. i didn’t think i could come up with 25, but it was a slow afternoon at work. ;)
- i sleep with earplugs in most nights because i live in the central lonsdale ghetto, i like to keep the window open for fresh air and my neighbours are crazy loud & obnoxious. not to mention the traffic noise and sirens.
- speaking of noises, if there’s a barely audible hum, whir or whine in an appliance, air system or broadcast, i can hear it and it becomes all consuming. i don’t quite know what it is, but white noises are utterly penetrating to me and i lack the ability to tune them out.
- once i find a new food i like i want to eat it ALL THE TIME. i recently tried steamed barbeque pork buns and now i can’t stop thinking about them. hm… i have my car today, i could go get some! see? like that!
- after i’ve had a shower, the shower curtain must be pulled closed and be wrinkle-free. i don’t care if this means the shower doesn’t try out as quickly. it does mean that the plastic won’t get mouldy and slimey where the wet pieces have been touching each other. ew.
- whenever i dream of “home”, it’s the duplex my mom & i lived in just before we moved to vancouver island. always. as yet, it’s the place i’ve lived the longest amount of time, which is why i think its claimed that role.
- i don’t like phoning people when they aren’t expecting me to call. i always assume they’re busy or don’t have time/want to talk to me. it’s irrational, but undying. i’m sorry i don’t call.
- i always leave the microwave door open for a few minutes after i’ve used it. i hate hate hate the stuffy smell of old food when you open the microwave door; therefore, i make sure its fully aired out after each use. this annoys my co-workers to no end.
- i would rather work through a task from start to finish in one sitting than break it down and stretch it out. even yucky tasks.
- i hate interruptions.
- i am a crappy multi-tasker and i’m not ashamed to admit it.
- but, i am dogged in pursuing the completion of something once i’ve started on it. i will not stop until you yank it away from me or i’ve finished it to my satisfaction.
- during a telephone conversation, there’s a 95% chance i’ll be lying down on the couch, bed or even floor.
- if you decline an invitation i’ve sent you, for whatever reason, i’ll assume you hate me and be sad.
- about a year or so ago, my sense of smell suddenly got really acute. i immediately assumed this meant i was pregnant and freaked out. now, it’s just slightly annoying to be able to smell the cigarette of the guy two cars in front of me.
- i’ve driven a submarine.
- just once in my life have i driven a vehicle with a manual transmission. i was 12 years old and my neighbour took her twin sons and i down to the sand flats to let us drive her volkswagen van. when i let go of the clutch, the van lurched so badly a huge fountain of sand was kicked up behind the vehicle and scared me shitless. i’ve never wanted to try again since.
- if i’m bored or nervous, especially in meetings or classrooms, i push back my cuticles. it’s a tick i can’t seem to break.
- i’m a hypochondriac whose mother was a nurse. this combination means that every little physical weirdness sends me into a state of panic that i have a fatal condition that’s going to kill me in a matter of hours. this has meant i sometimes sleep with the phone in the bed with me, just in case i have to call 911.
- i’ve never lost my keys; but, i’ve locked myself out of my apartment and car — one time each.
- i sometimes eat leftover rice with ketchup & pepper. it’s yummy.
- i’ve been in the newspaper, on tv and on the radio.
- i chew the inside of my cheeks.
- i started smoking the second time because the movie Trainspotting freaked me out.
- i still don’t have a clue as to what i want to be when i grow up and this worries me sometimes.
- i’ve found a lot of similarities between myself and the other people who’ve done this meme. each time i find an item i relate to i think “me too! we should be BFF!”.
i don’t know 25 people to tag, so i refuse to tag anybody! nyah!
let’s see… what sticks out about 2008 (in no particular order)?
- i worked out a lot more than the year before.
- i learned i really like to run and want to do more of it.
- then i borked my knee.
- i went to physiotherapy and massage therapy. a lot.
- my new-to-me car developed mystery problems i spent a few thousand dollars trying to repair.
- my boss quit and i cried.
- my boss came back and didn’t give us his present back.
- i splurged and got really good sneakers (Nike Vomero+ 3’s FTW).
- i made pies! yum.
- i turned 36.
- i finally, finally! got a firm handle on my finances so, even though i’m still fairly deep in consumer debt, i feel more optimistic about money than i have in many years.
- i drove in the snow. and didn’t die.
- i spent a lot more time with my friend colene (whom i miss).
- i discovered the best sushi in Vancouver — but, i’m not telling you where so it gets too popular for me to get my fix.
- there was a lot of purging of physical things i owned but didn’t need/appreciate/want. it was liberating!
- i got orthotics for my shoes because my physiotherapist told me i have ridiculously flat feet.
- my friend, whom i’ve known for over 12 years but not yet met, came to visit and…
- we went to see REM!
- i sold a bunch of stuff i knitted/crocheted/crafted!
- i attended a mini highschool reunion and learned it’s true you can’t go home again.
- i broke my fake tooth on a piece of Dove chocolate.
- i cut off all my hair. well, a lot of it, anyway.
- i had a photo displayed in an actual art gallery.
- i turned into a clean freak (aka my grandmother).
- i lost some friends.
- i realized, thanks to facebook, that i don’t really care to rekindle a lot of relationships from my distant past.
- i had an MRI!
- i went to see a couple plays.
- i let myself try a whole bunch of new foods and liked most of them! but, i still refuse to eat mayonnaise.
- i went to two fantastic weddings!
- two hard drives crashed. one was recovered, the other died and took 14 years of net.memories with it.
- became dejected regarding my photographic abilities and hardly shot anything at all.
- i hope i learned to accept gifts graciously.
- there was a lot of being spoiled by christopher evans, my amazingly generous and sweet boyfriend.
- i went to Victoria and hung out with my lovely friend mrs. boo.
i’m sure i forgot some wonderful things, but these are what stick out with a few moments reflection.
2008 sure went by fast, though. even with all the trauma and stress (car, teeth, money, knee), i seem to have ended the year on a pretty positive note. i feel fairly optimistic about my self and my life. sure, there are things to be worked on (and be sure they will be), but nothing seems unsurmountable right now.
it’s taken me a long time to reach this place in my life. i sometimes feel i was a very slow learner that way, that people my age reached this level of maturity sooner than i did or, maybe i just think *i* should have reached it sooner. i suppose it doesn’t matter when you get there, just so long as you eventually do. it’s a much calmer place to be within yourself and the world at large and i highly recommend it!
him: i love you!
her: why?
him: you’re the only person who ever brings me coffee!
hi. my name is heather and it’s been over ten days since i’ve driven my car.
i parked it in its spot behind my apartment building after coming home from having dinner to celebrate my dad’s 75th birthday two saturdays ago. then it started snowing. then i went away for christmas, during which time it seems never to have stopped snowing.
by the time i got home (after a normally 20-minute trip from the ferry terminal taking almost 2 hours due to yet more snow), my car was utterly surrounded by the white stuff. snow was piled over a foot high on the roof. the snow on the ground reached above the bumpers and almost entirely obscured the wheels.
then my neighbour dug her car out, but piled all the snow behind my car. there’s this teasingly snow-free area just a foot to the west of liselotte. unfortunately, i lack a crane or superhuman strength to lift and move my car into the snowless section. there also doesn’t seem to be any hope that my building manager will even consider digging out the parking lot. hell, he wouldn’t even leave a shovel for me to do it myself.
so, i’ve been taking public transit to work. oh, and i’m filling in for my officemate while he’s on vacation. this combination means that my alarm clock turns itself on at 4:45. that’s a.m., in the morning. and, i have to be at the bus stop by 5:45 a.m. again, in the morning. if i’m lucky, and i don’t slip and fall on something (like i did this morning) or the train doesn’t get delayed at a station because some dumbass wouldn’t let the doors close (like yesterday morning), that gets me in to the office at either just before or just after 7 a.m. yes, that’s still the morning.
i don’t know, have i mentioned that i recently had an MRI which revealed some fairly substantial damage to my left knee? ever wonder what happens to an injured knee when it suddenly has to spend a lot more time than normal walking in slippery, unstable, snowy conditions? well, i’ll tell you… it hurts! and, shockingly, when the work day also suddenly requires a lot more walking and heavy lifting than usual, it hurts even more! not to mention the requirement of wearing quite possibly the worst pair of shoes for someone with osteo issues, complete with steel toes to add extra weight and less comfort, it’s a recipe for lots of yucky gimpage.
this is only day two and already i’m near breaking. it doesn’t help that i landed square on my one remaining good knee when i slipped on the icy sidewalk this morning. it was a fairly graceful landing — reminiscent of a curler throwing a rock — but wholly unnecessary and unwanted.
the small glimmer of hope is that tomorrow could be a short day at work, what with it being new year’s eve day and all. then, i’ll have a day off to recover, during which i hope to beg, borrow or steal a shovel to dig out my car and, hopefully that will mean an end to this ridiculous getting up early and hour-long commuting.
after my week on the island with the luxurious ten hours of sleep a night and lazing about on the couch, knitting and watching television, this working shit is really getting me down. too bad i like a roof over my head and food in my fridge so much, or i’d call it quits right now.
update: not five minutes after clicking “publish”, my boyfriend showed up at my door holding my very own blue snow shovel — which he’s currently using to dig out the hessmobile mark II. how awesome is he? excuse me while i go order pizza to feed him when he’s done.
since i blew my wad on yet another car repair last week (this time it was the defrost fan motor which decided to call it quits at pretty much the exact moment winter weather started in earnest – awesome!), i’ve started day-dreaming about what i’m going to do with my income tax refund come March.
yeah, i know; but sometimes you just gotta have something to look forward to, you know?
so, i’m thinking about selling my Nikon D70 and buying a new D60 or D80 to replace it. i figure i could maybe get $250-300 for the D70, body only. that would mean i’d only have to shell out $250-400 more for the upgrade. bonus: i’d get to keep my lenses! i’m mostly thinking about the upgrade because i finally got up to 10,000 actuations and i think i remember reading something somewhere which said it was all downhill from there. plus, 4 more megapixels would come in handy, not to mention 100 and 3200 ISO!
of course, this is probably just day-dreaming on my part. two weeks ago i was salivating over a desk chair at Staples, but when it came to shelling out the cash i totally backed down. it’s far too nice a feeling to see my bank account balances get bigger instead of smaller (or, worse yet, my credit card balances get bigger!) to succumb to the siren song of big ticket non-essential purchases.
official confirmation of my borked knee is quite soothing, in fact. it’s a feeling of justification. “see? it’s not just in my head!” yes, i’m petty enough to feel good about waving my MRI report in my boss’ face and saying “i told you so!” because i felt the disbelief as i hobbled around the office, up and down stairs, trying hard to continue my work-required heavy lifting and hauling all with a ruptured ligament and torn cartilage. i have RUPTURES and TEARS, people!
despite the caps, i’m not even a little bitter.
how could i be? i’m going to see a surgeon; and, if i’m lucky, he’ll decide i’m worthy of fixing. then, many months from now, i just might be able to get up, walk from here to there and not worry that my next step might gimp me up. again.
now that i’m waiting again and have told anyone who’ll listen about my horrible injuries (snarf), i hope to not mention it again until i: a) have seen the surgeon; or, b) borked it again. if i don’t shut up about it, i might just annoy people. therefore…
i’ve decided not to decorate for christmas this year. neither am i baking anything. i have so many other making things on the go i just can’t add any more to the pile without wanting to scream. the next two weekends are booked up with birthdays and weddings. work socializing is reaching a fever pitch with potlucks, pancake breakfasts and meeting dinners. that being said, all the presents are bought and wrapped. i have a couple of cards to send out, but that’s all i have left to do to prep for the celebration and i’m SO HAPPY about that.
i guess i should give up my dreams of being a runner, huh?
succumbed to pizza. i really wanted a steak, but knew i couldn’t cook it well enough so i opted for the more expensive, less satisfying option. i rock! and i have indigestion.
tomorrow is a big day! it’s MRI day at St. Paul’s! my appointment is at 7am, so i’m hoping to arrive around 6:30 so i can find where the radiology department in time. i’ve never done more than just drive past the hospital, so i’m way more nervous about getting/parking there than anything else. the last thing i want is to be late and get bumped. that would make me cry.
otherwise, i’m ridiculously excited about it! i totally expect i’m going to be like some annoying 5 year old asking “what’s that?” “what are you doing?” “what does that do?” “what are you doing now?” “can i take a picture?” “what’s that noise?”
i’m SO EXCITED i don’t even mind that my alarm clock is set for 4:45 am.
i sold two more magnet sets today. i took my latest into work and they went pretty darn fast. i have more square glass on order, but it could be weeks until it arrives, which is sad because i received three beautiful new chiyogami papers from portland in the mail and i can’t wait to use them.
i had big plans to do laundry and some house cleaning tonight since i have plans wednesday and company coming on thursday and super dessert to make tomorrow, but… it’s cold and rainy and dark and i’m so stuffed with mediocre pizza i think i’ll just park my but on the couch and work on my latest pair of booties while basking in the glow of the idiot box.
sound good to you?
you’d think i’d know better by now. time and time again, i’m given examples that my life follows this simple formula:
1. think something good.
2. something bad happens.
case in point:
1. think “hey, my car is running really well!”
2. that very same night, find huge puddle of water in backseat.
shiny newest example:
1. think “hey, i can hyper-extend my knee again! maybe i’ll try going back to the gym.”
2. that very same night, re-bork knee by crawling into bed and spend the next week hobbling.
at least my knee will be nice and unhappy for my MRI on tuesday. if that’s an upside.
beyond all the xmas presents, i’ve got a few significant birthdays in december/early january. then there’s all the socializing. to date, i’ve got two potlucks i need to prepare dishes for, one work lunch and the vandigicam photo swap. in addition, there will be at least three more work lunches, a possible third potluck and my dad’s 75th birthday dinner.
i just roughed out a quick list of approximate costs and we’re looking at well over $200! not including the presents i’ve already purchased and craft supplies i have yet to buy or expenses traveling to/from the island. when your budget runs as tight as mine, $200 is a lot of money.
no wonder i had an anxiety attack yesterday.
i’m not really complaining, either. i don’t begrudge the additional costs related to the season; but, i think having all these expenses lumped together during one month of the year is annoying. i’m just lucky and grateful that i can afford to do an all-cash christmas and not have to borrow money to pay for any of it. there’s a lot of people out there who don’t have the luxury of saying the same, especially with the way things are in the world today.
i can only hope that once i get stuff photographed and up on my etsy store, i’ll be selling like crazy and not worrying about where i can cut costs to pay for all the winter wonder.
see? i’m still an optimist at heart!
today, on my 11th work birthday, i discovered twitter is now blocked by the firewall from hell.
what does that mean for you? more posts here, probably.
what does that mean for me? an even bigger sense of disconnect from my online life and friendships. and sadness.
i’m now officially cut off from anything online which even remotely resembles conversation. for someone who has some major relationships with friends who don’t live in the same time zone, this is a mighty blow. hell, it’s not even good when you’re just nosy about local acquaintances’ social media expressions. it’ll even be more difficult to learn about such things as method products or where to get breakfast!
in other news, i got an order for a dozen teddy bear thank you cards from a co-worker who is about to have her first child. she’s planning on using them when the baby comes as “very unique thank you cards” (her words, not mine). i was pretty thrilled. luckily for me, michael’s has a week’s worth of 50% off coupons so i can stock up on supplies. i burned through my stash making cards for the craft fair (three sold and i took two to give to christopher’s sister & brother-in-law), so i was unprepared for a bulk order.
making crafty things is addictive and expensive. i need to sell one more magnet set and i’ll break even, but still… huh. i just got an order for a pair of booties from another co-worker. maybe i’ll break even after all!