Hah, bet you never even realized I left. I'm sneaky that way.
We went out to Phoenix for my sister's wedding a couple of weeks ago, and had a great time. I got to see a bunch of family, including many people who I had not seen in 15 years or more. The event was pretty much drama-free, which is pretty miraculous for that sort of thing.
The desert is really beautiful, and I'd love to have more time to get outside of Phoenix next time. I'm not sure how crazy I am about the city itself... every single business seemed to be part of some chain; couldn't find more than a couple locally owned restaurants. Phoenix sort of has that sprawly/could-be-anywhere-in-the-country thing, like Tampa but more so. The backdrop of the desert and the mountains was absolutely amazing, tho, and I can see why people enjoy living there. I posted a bunch of pics, if anyone is curious: http://larastewart.jalbum.net/Arizona%20Trip/index.html
Simon's brother has just moved back into town and is staying with us for a bit. It's really nice having him here; he's a perfect house guest. The timing of his move was excellent - he got here just in time to be our ride to the airport and housesitter, lol.
Because we just got done with the major expense & hassle of a cross-country trip, we're toning down the girls' birthdays this year. I'm having each invite a friend out for miniature golf and sushi this Saturday. Hopefully will be a fun, low-stress evening out. |
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Sep. 25th, 2009 @ 06:30 pm
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Just an update to let you know that I'm still here, bumbling around, generally doing alright.
I have pretty much everything taken care of for the trip out to Phoenix in November for my sister's wedding. Only things I still need to arrange are the rental car and her wedding gift.
I'm going to Howl-O-Scream at Busch Gardens tomorrow night. Allie's friend's family has a couple of half-price tickets, so it won't be *too* painfully expensive. We're taking the kids, which is a little iffy... I've heard the show is pretty intense this year. But, they are anxious to see it, and I've heard that they will tone down the scares when little ones are coming through. *Fingers crossed that this turns out to be hugely fun instead of massively traumatic for the girlies.*
Not a lot else going on. Went to a friend's wedding last weekend, and the aquarium the weekend before that.
I did have a weird/amusing dream last night.
I'm in a bakery because I want to buy a Raspberry Aplusk*. A Raspberry Aplusk, in my dream, is something like an overgrown beignet, but with raspberry filling bleeding out the top. For now, let's ignore the fact that I don't even like cooked berries; a Raspberry Aplusk was exactly what I wanted. I think this may actually have something to do with that scene in eXistenZ, with the fish gun, since I watched it again the other night.
I order, and, instead of my Aplusk, the clerk brings me a bottle of hot sauce, then abruptly walks away to serve other customers. I wait, with waning patience, to tell her that this is not what I ordered. She finally comes back and asks what's wrong with my hot sauce. We go back and forth a few times, with me pointing to the pastry I want. She finally relents and takes back the hot sauce, and bags up an Aplusk for me.
I get the bag outside, and realize that it's an Apple Aplusk. I dejectedly decide to eat it anyway.
*btw, I only realized when I woke up that "aplusk" is Ashton Kucher's twitter name... what the holy hell is that doing in my brain?
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Forgot to post this earlier.
Allie got a call back! We're leaving in a few for the next audition. Cross your fingers for her! |
Although I do read my FL almost every day, have not been posting much lately, and I apologize! I know I kind of left people hanging after the roller coaster spring I had.
Life has calmed down quite a lot. I'm doing okay financially (well, bills are paid, even if I don't have a lot left after), nobody has died recently, nothing hurts any more than normal, and all large mechanical objects used in my day to day life are generally operating as they should.
We finally got a new (to us) washer and dryer! So, no more laundromats. That's freed up quite a lot of time. Will have to see how it affects the power bill.
We're pulling together plans for our trip out to Phoenix this November for my sister's wedding. The wedding is on the 7th, but we will be in town from the 5th to the 9th, so, this will give us a bit of a chance to explore a bit while we are there. My girls are invited to her bachelorette party (she's doing it as a pajama party) so, Simon and I are actually going to even get a kid free night out while we are there. If anyone has any suggestions for must-see stuff while we are out there, or if any on my friends list live out that way and want to visit, please comment. :)
Simon had some tests done earlier this month. Everything looked generally okay, although there was some inflammation in the upper GI tract. We find out more next month when he goes back to his gastrologist.
Allie has an audition today for a "light teen horror movie". We don't really know anything else about the project yet but that. She got chosen to read for a speaking role, and they also mentioned that there are some extra parts. So, could be a fun few weekends for her.
Aside from that, not too much going on. Simon and I are on an 80s movie kick, and he's just put on "Morgan Stewart's Coming Home." Next up, "Desperately Seeking Susan."
(Heh... spellcheck doesn't like "bachelorette". Among the spelling suggestions are "perchlorate" and "dichloride." WTH? |
Christmas the year my youngest daughter was born was a pretty chaotic holiday. There were easily 20 people at the Christmas eve present exchange party. And, my then two-year-old daughter Alex had just learned the wonders of opening presents, and was tearing open every gift that came near her, whether it was for her or someone else.
So, when I got all of the presents home and saw the very pretty charcoal gray silk cardigan folded up in one of my bags, I just thought that it was a present of mine that Allie had opened without me seeing it. It was just my size, very soft, and looked great on. The biggest dilemma was that I couldn't find a single card that might explain who had given it to me.
I wore it to Christmas dinner the next night, planning to ask a couple of relatives if they were the one who purchased it.
When my ex's mother arrived, I asked her, "Geneva, did you get me this sweater?"
She squinted and looked closely.
Then, four things happened in rapid succession:
- Andy walked up and handed me the baby
- the baby spit up milk all down the front of the sweater and my dress
- Geneva said, "Isn't that Sue's sweater?"
- the front door opened, and Sue and her husband walked in
So, not only did I accidentally steal Sue's new sweater, I returned it to her covered in fresh baby puke.
I did pay the dry-cleaning bill.
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| » Help my friend out |
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Hey all-
A friend of mine who working on creating a job doing viral stuff online is trying to prove a point to a client.
Can you visit an LJ post of hers and leave a comment, any comment?
http://chaoticerotic.livejournal.com/1438704.html
Also, would be thrilled if you'd repost the link for her. Thanks!
May. 1st, 2009 @ 12:15 pm
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| » I :Heart: Florida |
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Blargh...
Around 3:00 am, a weird rustling sound woke me up. I had the window open, and was still trying to figure out whether it was inside or outside when I felt something under the blankets crawling on my leg.
I yelped, which woke Simon, and we both jumped out of bed.
I pulled off the covers, and a two-inch long palmetto bug flew out. While I was looking for something to smash it, I see another crawling up my wall, and a third comes out from behind the dresser.
We spent the next ten minutes breaking up the party -- those bugs are fast and hard to hit -- and, after that, had quite a hard time getting back to sleep.
Still keep getting icky-shudders every time I think of that thing under the blankets with me.
In other (only mildly interesting) news:
- I've rewatched last week's episode of "Bones" (Double Death of the Dearly Departed) three times. That so needed to be a feature-length film. I've also realized that I really like comedies about funerals.
- Took the kids to 4th Friday in Clearwater last night and had a blast. Jenna got called up to participate in one of the street magician's acts, and it made her night.
- Today, mostly lazing around during the morning. Taking the girls to Chuck E. Cheese later, since we still have a buttload of tokens left over from our last visit. Gonna play lots of Ski-Ball. If that place had decent beer available, they'd never get rid of me.
Apr. 25th, 2009 @ 10:48 am
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| » Okay, it's pure celebrate. :) |
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Finally got through to Social Security. The error will not make a difference in benefits.
So, I can get back to celebrating Simon's first customer unencumbered, woohooo!!
Apr. 17th, 2009 @ 02:46 pm
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| » *Can't decide whether to panic or celebrate* |
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On the panic side...
I was looking over the Social Security forms, and discovered that they erroneously list that Allie lived with Vaughn prior to his death. This is obviously not the case. I have no idea whether that error is going to affect Allie's benefits at all, and I'd like to get this straightened out as soon as possible. I called the 800 number to correct it, and they told me I need to call the local office. I called the local office where I entered a bunch of information into the automatic system, was put on hold for several minutes... and ultimately kicked back to the original menu. I repeated the entire cycle three times before I finally hung up. I hope I'm going to be able to handle this by phone, since I really cannot spare the several hours it will take to handle this in person without an appointment.
On the celebrate side...
The reason I gave up and hung up is that Simon's business* phone was ringing, with a number on the ID that I did not recognize.
It's our first response to the flyers he's been leaving with local businesses. First customer that is not directly word of mouth. Simon is out of the house, and doesn't have a cell phone, so, I can't call him to tell him, and I am just bursting with this. We've really, really needed both good news and extra income, so, this is just fabulous.
*Oh, I haven't mentioned Simon's business, I don't think. For years, Simon has done computer repair as a sideline. After being laid off, he was worried about getting a new job, only to lose it immediately because of being sick with his digestive troubles or incapacitated by a reoccurance of the sciatica. So, he's decided that the best way to go is to push for more computer repair clients while maintaining a part-time job for a bit of extra stability.
I guess this is as good a place/time as any to pimp the business a bit. If you are in the Pinellas County area, and need your home computer serviced, or you know someone who does, give us a call at 727-242-5955 or email Simon at support@computersthatrun.com.
Apr. 17th, 2009 @ 01:44 pm
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| » Meme Stolen From wldrose |
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***********FOODOLOGY***************
1. What is your salad dressing of choice?
lemon and olive oil
2. What is your favorite sit-down restaurant?
Cesares
3. What food could you eat every day for two weeks and not get sick of?
kimchi and noodles
4. What are your pizza toppings of choice?
mushrooms, artichoke hearts and sun dried tomatoes.
5.What do you like to put on your toast?
Butter and marmite
***********TECHNOLOGY***************
1. How many televisions are in your house?
1 (wait... does the one in BF's arcade machine count? if so, 2)
2. What color cell phone do you have?
silver
3. How long would it take you to look up who invented the Rubber Band?
30 seconds (btw, it ws William H Spencer)
4. Have any idea how many Megahertz your computer has?
2.2 GHz on this one
***************BIOLOGY******************
1. Are you right-handed or left-handed?
Right
2. Have you ever had anything removed from your body?
appendix, wisdom teeth, a baby (cesarian)
3. What is the last heavy item you lifted?
my old ugly couch (not solo)
4. Have you ever been knocked unconscious?
once, but only for a few seconds
************BULLCRAPOLOGY**************
1. If it were possible, would you want to know the day you were going to die?
not sure
2. If you could change your name, what would you change it to?
eh, happy enough with the one I have
3. Would you drink an entire bottle of hot sauce for $1000?
sure, why not.
************DUMBOLOGY******************
1. How many pairs of flip flops do you own?
None of the rubber ones that pinch your toes.
2. Last time you had a run-in with the cops.
hmmm... none in many years where I was the one in trouble.
3. Last person you talked to?
Allie
4. Last person you hugged?
Jenna
**************FAVORITOLOGY****************
1. Season?
spring
2. Holiday?
halloween
3. Day of the week?
it used to be Sunday, since that was my day with Simon. Since he's started a new Sunday-only job, tho, I need to pick a new one.
4. Month?
hmm, not sure
***********CURRENTOLOGY*****************
1. Missing someone?
Yes
2. Mood?
eh.
3. What are you listening to
fan on my computer's cooling pad
4. Watching?
looking forward to watching Dollhouse and Dr. Who w/Simon tonight.
***************RANDOMOLOGY*****************
1. First place you went this morning?
kitchen
2. What's the last movie you saw?
Days of Darkness, a semi-cheesy zombie movie
3. Do you smile often?
yes
4. Sleeping Alone Tonight?
no
***************OTHER-OLOGY*****************
1. Do you always answer your phone?
No
2. Its four in the morning and you get a text message, who is it?
probably Charles, but, even he knows better; so, no one? wrong number?
3. If you could change your eye color what would it be?
I'm pretty happy with the color I have
4. What flavor do you add to your drink at Sonic?
what?
5. Do you own a digital camera?
a bunch of them
6. Have you ever had a pet fish?
we have a pet crawfish
7. Favorite Christmas song(s):
I can take or leave most of them.
8. What's on your wish list for your birthday?
I dunno
9. Can you do push ups?
yes
10. Can you do a chin up?
maybe one
11. Does the future make you more nervous or excited?
excited
12. Do you have any saved texts?
a couple
13. Ever been in a car wreck?
Yes
14. Do you have an accent?
no, everyone else does
15. What is the last song to make you cry?
not sure, but "Playboy Mommy" by Tori Amos usually does it
16. Plans tonight?
TV, alone with my guy, FINALLY
17. Have you ever felt like you hit rock bottom?
Yeah, but I try not to, since I've found that that is just when things find a creative way to get worse
18. Name 3 things you bought yesterday.
chocolate, jelly beans, shrimp (not to be eaten together)
19. Have you ever been given roses?
many times
20. Current worry?
Money (leaving ash's, since I agree)
21. Current hate right now?
A couple of specific meddlesome dickheads with too much of item 20.
22. Met someone who changed your life?
Yes, a few times
23. How will you bring in the New Year
Not a clue. We usually stay in, tho, since Amateur Night is dangerous.
24. What song represents you?
Mighty Little Man, original version. Except, you know, female.
25. Name three people who might complete this?
dunno
26. Would you go back in time if you were given the chance?
I've always thought it'd be kind of fun (and lucrative) to be able to redo the whole dot-com boom.
27. Have you ever dated someone longer than a year?
had a few multi-year relationships
28. Do you have any tattoos/piercings?
4 tattoos, pierced lip
29. Will you be in a relationship 4 months from now?
yes
30. Does anyone love you?
yes
31. Ever had someone sing to you?
Simon does it all the time. It's his cutest annoying habit.
32. When did you last cry?
not sure. I've been doing a lot of it the past couple months
33. Do you like to cuddle?
yes
34. Have you held hands with anyone today?
no
35. What kind of music did you listen to in elementary school?
top 40, with a noisy chick music tendency: The Go-Gos, The Bangles, Cyndi Lauper, stuff like that
36. Are most of the friends in your life new or old?
more old than new, these days. Really should get out more, lol
37. Do you like pulpy orange juice?
only if it's fresh squeezed. If it's from the carton, pulp-free, please
Apr. 12th, 2009 @ 09:27 am
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| » What. The. Fuck. |
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Okay, this shit has got to stop.
I just got some bad news about another old friend. He'd always struggled with addiction, and, he O.D.'d the other night. He is in a coma, and is not expected to make it.
I am putting the universe on notice: NO MORE.
We have far exceeded our yearly quota of death, violence, job loss, illness, weird legal entanglements, and acrimonious break-ups.
Universe, no one I know had better even get something as untoward as an embarrassing and uncomfortable rash anytime soon.
QUIT IT.
Apr. 3rd, 2009 @ 12:12 pm
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| » (No Subject) |
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Had an amusing conversation with a friend yesterday.
We were talking about words and phrases that annoy us, and he mentioned the tendency towards labeling anyone with a strident point of view a Nazi. You know, femi-nazis, smoking nazis, breast-feeding nazis. People who hold a perhaps authoritarian point of view but who, as far as is known, have never made anyone wear special identifying clothing, forced people to live in ghettos, and finally engaged in wholesale slaughter off the offending parties... like, you know, actual Nazis.
We moved on to another shared pet peeve, "literally." News programs in particular seem prone to misusing "literally":
Saying, "They LITERALLY threw him under the bus," when speaking of some shamed political appointee.... were he literally thrown under a bus, shouldn't the headline be something more like, "Political Figure Viciously Murdered by Raging Mob with City Bus?"
I mentioned that I've gotten my kids on the anti-literally train, and they often stridently correct people on that, sometimes when it is not appopriate to do so. They're Literally-Nazis. You know, figuratively speaking.
Mar. 23rd, 2009 @ 09:14 am
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| » (No Subject) |
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Fucking hell.
This keeps hitting me at weird angles.
This morning, Allie asked me what to do with his email. I thought she meant the ones he'd sent her, and I told her that she should print them out and save them.
She said, "No, mom, he's in my address book. What do I do with his email?"
I told her about how, when I had a friend who was on my yahoo IM die, I left him in my list, because it felt nice to see his name there.
She replied, "yeah, and I can still send him emails.... even if he can't write back."
Oh man, I can't fucking handle that.... my kid's unread emails piling up in her dead father's inbox.
And then they'll close the account, too, when he doesn't log in for so long... so an email she sends will bounce one day, and that'll be another time that this hits her in the face.
You know, I can talk to her and be all zen, and tell her how this is all natural, and part of it all; how it hurts, but that's the way it is, and it's okay.
But, then something big like that hits me, and this is NOT okay and not right, and nothing, nothing at all, can be done.
I hate this.
Mar. 5th, 2009 @ 04:24 pm
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| » Do1 Thing |
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Cool site to help people with disaster preparedness.
http://www.do1thing.us/calendar.php
Jan. 12th, 2009 @ 11:57 am
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| » OMFG. *squee* |
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I haven't seen Bryan, my oldest friend, in nearly 14 years. We've managed to keep up to date on one another's lives through phone calls, email and IM through all this time. It's funny... if we still lived in the same area, we'd probably have grown apart years ago, because our lives have taken such different paths.
Well, I'm going to see him in about a week and a half!!
His girlfriend is moving to Washington DC, and he is coming along with her on the drive. They're going to swing as far south as Tallahassee, and I'll drive up to meet them there.
Simon's still suffering pretty badly, but, hopefully he'll be well enough to come with me by then. I would love for the two of them to meet.
Whhhhheeeeeeeeeeeee, mini-road trip!!
Jan. 11th, 2009 @ 06:45 pm
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| » Year End Meme |
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Where did you begin 2008?
( Read more... )
Dec. 17th, 2008 @ 10:33 am
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| » CSA - First Harvest |
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I picked up my first farm share today.
It was the first time I saw the farm, and I have to say I was impressed. They have three greenhouses, one of which is being used to grow hydroponic lettuce, plus four good sized vegetable plots.
It was nice to finally put names to faces. I'd talked to Hank (one of the farm's owners) before, but had not met him. I only got to see Pamela in passing, as she was busy with volunteers in the field when I dropped by.
The share is smaller than what I'd seen at the other local CSA (one plastic grocery bag as opposed to two), but, it's early in the season, and I saw a lot more growing.
In today's bag:
- a big bunch of basil
- around a pound of green beans
- mizuna
- turnips with greens
- beets with greens
- 1 head of lettuce
- bunch of lacuna kale
- bunch of arugula
- one head bok choi
I'm thinking of turning the turnips and bok choi into kimchi, and maybe also making refrigerator pickles with the green beans. The lettuce, arugula and mizuna will go in salads, and the rest of the greens into a big batch of soup.
Too lazy to take pics right now, but maybe I'll pull them out later for photo time.
Nov. 19th, 2008 @ 04:53 pm
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| » Grrr... Bad Kitty! |
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There's a large shrub right outside my window where the blue jays like to hang out. They squabble sometimes, but it's usually over in a minute or less.
So, when I heard the jays all screaming at once, and then the squirrels joining in, I peeked out to see what was going on.
My cat was out there being dive bombed by the jays, and had a smaller bird in her mouth.
I rushed around the side of the house, and startled her into dropping it. When the bird flew up onto the fence, I saw that it was one of the red-bellied woodpeckers (which actually have a white belly and a red spot on their head, go figure) that hang out in the oak tree in my back yard. The woodpecker appears unharmed, and is now calmly pecking in the tree, but sticking to the higher branches.
Jays are still going nuts, though.
Oct. 23rd, 2008 @ 10:32 am
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| » This is what I'm doing instead of working. |
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Your result for The Famous (and Not So Famous) Art Quiz... Art History Major97% Artiste! 
Art History Major: You scored 97% Artiste! You've studied art for years, and therefore you recognized almost if not all the works represented here. Way to go! Take The Famous (and Not So Famous) Art Quiz at HelloQuizzy
Oct. 22nd, 2008 @ 03:24 pm
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| » Claude Rains was the Invisible Man... |
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Anybody up for Movies in Pioneer Park tonight?
Dunedin's free outdoor movies have started up again, and tonight is The Invisible Man. Not sure what next week's pic is, but October 24th is The Wizard of Oz.
I go with the kids pretty much every time they do this, and we always have a good time.
If you're in the area, please swing by and pull up a blanket. I'll be there with my girlies and a big bag of homemade kettle corn.
Oct. 10th, 2008 @ 12:04 pm
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