I *heart* WillowTech House.
Oh my goodness! So, yesterday was a big mix of good and bad. The good: Greg’s birthday(!), seeing Smackdown in Raleigh in honor of Greg’s birthday, realizing I had more money than I thought and was not in fact dirt-poor, and buying myself some birthday presents from WillowTech House since I had some extra cash. (My birthday’s not ’til the 12th, but I’ve been wanting WTH stuff forever, and I think it’ll get here around my birthday, so, squee!) The bad: feeling ill from overindulging at Thanksgiving meals, not getting any sleep Sunday night because that damn noise has come back, and having to miss work due to the combination of the two.
And then last night, that damn noise showed up again, at two in the morning, even though I thought it had been fixed yesterday. And so I got a little over two hours of sleep last night, and was really, really, really cranky this morning because of it. Like, seriously about to burst into tears any minute, over nothing in particular. And I especially hate that at work.
And so, a little later this morning, I get this lovely email from the WillowTech ladies (Emilie and LeeAnn), asking if I’d like them to handbead the shirt I ordered yesterday, as a special Holiday gift. Fucking awesome! It totally made my day. Love, love, love! I can’t imagine handbeading just flies by, so to be like, “Hi. Not only did you get a special Holiday sale-price for some of the stuff you ordered, but we were wondering if you’d like us to add beads and sequins to your shirt for free?” Fucking awesome! I love you, ladies!
And then I had to get up, and actually jump up and kick my heels together in my cube, and “squee” to myself quietly, and tell Greg (who proclaimed the shirt to be “cuteness,” because it is). And I just couldn’t be cranky anymore. PLUS, it was like a harbinger of good fortune, because my day has just been getting better since. Like, in my good mood, I called our complex’s office to talk about “that noise,” and it’s all getting fixed. And here I thought I must seem like some crazy lady, but no, they were all nice and excellent about it. And I had been having some difficulties setting up a vendor code at work (because it’s my first vendor code for electronic ordering, so there are extra notes and stuff), and then one of my awesome coworkers hooked me up! And I had forgotten to bring a mug for tea, so I thought I couldn’t have tea, but then I realized that I could make tea in a glass bottle I’d left on my desk. See? Good things just keep popping up, all starting with WillowTech House’s fucking awesomeness. Love!
Yesterday morning this narsty multi-legged thing ran out of the bathroom while I was brushing my teeth, and Skeeter just stood there and watched it run off. So then I had to chase after it myself and kill it (and seriously, I shrieked when I saw it), and only THEN did he “stalk” it, pounce on it, and start eating it. Once it was already dead. Like, way to be ineffectual AND gross, cat.
The Dante’s Inferno Test has sent you to the First Level of Hell – Limbo!
Here is how you matched up against all the levels:
| Level | Score |
|---|---|
| Purgatory (Repenting Believers) | Very Low |
| Level 1 – Limbo (Virtuous Non-Believers) | Very High |
| Level 2 (Lustful) | Moderate |
| Level 3 (Gluttonous) | Moderate |
| Level 4 (Prodigal and Avaricious) | Very Low |
| Level 5 (Wrathful and Gloomy) | Low |
| Level 6 – The City of Dis (Heretics) | High |
| Level 7 (Violent) | Moderate |
| Level 8- the Malebolge (Fraudulent, Malicious, Panderers) | Low |
| Level 9 – Cocytus (Treacherous) | Low |
Take the Dante Inferno Hell Test
My Cottrica came today!
Skeeter seems to have shaken off most of the anesthetic and is back to his normal hijinx. Although we’re “supposed” to keep him from running around and jumping and generally doing what he normally does. After the vet tech told me no jumping, no running, no rambunctiousness, she said, “You have a kitten, right? Good luck with that.” Hee.
Greg and I worked out in the complex’s workout room – he used the treadmill, and I let the elliptical machine give me a thorough ass-kicking. I mean, there really wasn’t much I could say about it – I was too busy focusing on not giving up to complain to the elliptical about it’s shoddy treatment of me. Here’s Greg post-workout:
And here’s me:
Notice how my face is almost matching my hair. And notice how I look so much shittier and more wiped out than Greg. Who looks not at all wiped out.
And last but not least, here are some pictures of me and the fireplace:
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Bleah.
Skeeter’s at Nick’s. The dentist was pretty cool, but my teeth got a hardcore cleaning and now they’re really tender. And the driver’s license office is all about giving me a new license – they led me through the sign test WAY more than I was expecting – but their printer isn’t working, so they can’t make any new licenses. So I’ve been mooching around, calling them every hour or so, waiting to go have my picture taken and get my new license. I kinda think today isn’t going to be the day for that, since I’ll be going to pick Skeeter up in about thirty minutes. Ah well. I’d much rather have plan-disrupting issues at the license office than at Nick’s or the dentist’s, anyway.
And I got a free new electric brush from the dentist, because my gums need massaging. And some prescription toothpaste, because I’ve got cavities starting and we want to nip them in the bud. The downsides? That toothpaste ain’t cheap. And I’ve got to start using Listerine twice a day, everyday. Which I wouldn’t have thought was really a problem, but they made me swish some around for 30 seconds at the dentist’s, and for real, my eyes started watering like ten seconds into it. That shit is no joke.
So Greg and I went out to dinner tonight at one of our favorite places, Jade Palace. They ROCK! And they had new tofu dishes on the menu, including Kung Pao Tofu. Yum!
Greg and I got to overhear this horrid couple being awful to their small child. Said child apparently looooooooves his tofu, which I think is awesome, and should totally be encouraged. And said parents were using this love of tofu to try and get him to eat his vegetables, but were going about it in a completely bullying way. (And, hello! Tofu is kinda like a vegetable, right?) Like, he wanted to eat his own tofu, off his own plate of food, instead of his veggies and rice, and so his mother gave his tofu to his dad, who started eating the tofu. And then they told him to hurry up and eat his veggies before his dad ate all the kid’s tofu. MEAN! So then the kid tried to spear some tofu off his mom’s plate, which I have to say I think is fair in this instance – since she took his tofu off his plate and gave it to someone else to start eating. And then she smacked his hands for trying to eat some of her tofus. I’m no expert, but I would have taken more of a “eat a veggie, and then you get a tofu” approach, where the tofus were NOT in danger of being eaten by anyone else. Because the kid got all sorts of upset about his dad eating his tofus. And then, after the kid finally eats a ton of veggies, and his dad has eaten all of the kid’s tofus but two, the kid gets to eat his tofus. But then his mom busts in with all this “But we have to share” bullshit, and his dad was like “How about you eat one tofu, and I eat one tofu. That’s fair, right?” Umm, no, asshole. You just ate like twelve of the kid’s tofus right in front of him. What’s fair is him getting both his REMAINING tofus, and then like, ten of yours. Since you and Mommie Dearest each have a full ass plate of tofu in front of you. Eating all the kid’s tofus. MEAN!
AND THEN! So the kid starts to get upset, but he’s not wailing loudly, or even really misbehaving. (And I know from misbehaving kids, folks.) But his mom says, “Now I remember why I never want to go out to eat with you” to the kid, and he says, pretty calmly, “Don’t talk to me like that, please” and that his feelings are hurt. Now, I’m guessing the kid was four, maybe five at the most, so I think that’s a pretty mature and well-behaved way of expressing his upset. Shit, I’d have been thrilled if the kids I babysat responded like that to an upset when they were little – and sometimes they did, but often it was tantrums and screaming. And kicking. And with one kid, rather vicious biting. But does this kid’s mom appreciate that? Of course not. So then she gets huffy and boots him off the seat he’s sharing with her, to go sit with his dad because she’s so mad at him. Like, who the fuck goes all “I’m so mad at you I can’t sit next to you right now” to their small child when the child isn’t acting up? And it just went downhill from there. I seriously wanted to stab them with my chopsticks. MEAN! I hope you asses remember shit like this when he’s grown and won’t visit with y’all, or GO OUT TO EAT WITH Y’ALL. For real. My dad had a similar parenting style, and I grew up well-behaved thanks to my own innate well-behavedness, and bitter as shit towards him for a long time for his craptastic parenting methods when we were all good kids on our own anyway. I mean, we talk and visit (because I’m trying to be forgiving and mature), but it don’t happen too often.
Anyway, GRRR!
And then we got our fortunes. Greg’s said, “The best profit of future is the past.” And Greg contends that they meant to spell it “prophet,” meaning, “The best way to predict the future is to base your predictions on the past.” But I contend that they spelled it they way they wanted it, and it means basically, “The best thing gained from the passage of time is experience.” So then Greg said I should put a poll about it on my blog, and here we are – the first poll on this blog:
| Who’s right? | |
| Greg! They totally meant “prophet.” | |
| Kathy! They so meant “profit.” | |
| Free polls from Pollhost.com | |
My fortune said, “Confucius say: show-off always shown up in showdown.” And Kathy say: LAME! Who’s with me?
| How lame is this fortune? | |
| Lame. | |
| Really lame. | |
| Really, really lame. | |
| Unbelievably, ridiculously, and obnoxiously lame. | |
| Totally not lame. | |
| Free polls from Pollhost.com | |
Tomorrow’s going to be a busy day: Skeeter gets neutered; I’ve got an appointment with my dentist to do some tests on my abscessed tooth (fun!); I’m swinging by the DMV to get my license renewed. I’m a little nervous about all three, to be honest. But I’ve got the entire day off, and I’m hoping that it doesn’t get eaten up by the dentist and the DMV, so I can get some crafting done. I’ve got some clothes that need minor sewing repairs, fat quarters sitting around waiting to be made into purses or some such, a bonnet I’ve been meaning to sew for ages, knitting to be done (including my first ever baby gifts), presents to wrap. And then the house could always stand some cleaning.
Yesterday, my Sublime Stitching order came in. I had forgotten I was expecting it, so it was an awesome surprise. Yay! I got a four-pack: Gothic Grandeur, Pirates, Chinatown, and Cat-a-rama. I can’t wait to start embroidering things, but I’ve got to figure out 1-which designs to embroider on what, and 2-how to embroider. Hee. I also want pretty much one of everything over at Sublime Stitching. Ooooooh. I could embroider the fat-quarter bags, and the bonnet, once they’re sewn up.
I also ordered some yarn over the weekend, even though I really don’t need anymore. But, you see, I just had to get some black Bernat Sox to make socks for myself with. And the beauty of this is, when I made Sarah’s socks, I had enough yarn left over to make one more sock. So I’ve got two skeins of black Sox coming, and that’ll be enough for a pair of socks, with enough yarn left over for one more sock. Do you see where this is going? And then – I’m going to use the leftover purply variegated (Jazz, is what it’s called, I think) and the leftover black to make some black and purply-variegated striped socks for myself! Because I didn’t want solid purply-variegated socks for myself, but striped with black? I think I’ll like it. I’m feeling very smug about the brilliance of this plan. Especially since that leftover Sox has been sitting around for AGES, and I couldn’t figure out what to do with it.
And then, I moseyed over to Elann and browsed their bargains, and decided I absolutely must have some of the Cottrica for a top-down pullover in the Red Cherry color. I did waver between the Red Cherry and the Crushed Raspberry for a while, but then I decided that I really do have enough pink things, and ought to branch out a little more. And then I tried to talk myself out of the Cottrica, and instead just get some Homespun, but then I figured that a sweater out of Homespun would probably cost slightly more what with Elann’s ridiculously cheap pricing of the Cottrica, and that was that. Plus, although I don’t usually feel yarn-snobbish, on days I do, I can be slightly more smug about the Cottrica than if I’d used Homespun. Even though I love Homespun.
This past weekend was pretty fun. I had to make up some time at work, but that went smoothly enough. Last night, we had people over for a pay-per-view: Survivor Series.
My big weekend excitement was starting and finishing a hanging planter liner for my mom for Christmas. It’s out of cotton twine, which was not terribly much fun to knit with, but now that it’s done, it’s cute. I opted not to do a pom-pom. Now I’ve just got to find the right hanging planter to go with it, and I’ll be set.
The charity knitting club had its first meeting…what, two Fridays ago? And we decided that our first project would be to knit 8″ squares, and then join them together to make a blanket. And since I wasn’t feeling very inspired about the shawl I was working on, and it was about the right size for a square, I knit a square instead.
So, we’ve had this infernal noise in the evenings, and it keeps me awake, and I hate it. There were a couple components: a metallic clanging, a ticking, and a sort of motor noise that ranges from a humming to a growling to a grinding. Last Wednesday night, I was up until about three in the morning because of it. So Thursday, our wonderful maintenance guy, Robert, came out and fixed some stuff in the apartment above us, and then I had two nights of blissful, noise-free sleep. And then it started up again, although minus the metallic clanging (thanks, Robert!). Anyway, so last night it ran from 7:30 in the evening until we left for work this morning (about 7:30). I was one unhappy camper. I put earplugs in, and I could still hear it. But as we were leaving this morning, we could hear the ticking outside, and it turns out its one of the HVAC units outside our apartment. And as Robert and some other guy (Al, I think) were planning on coming back out today to locate the source of the noise (previously believed to be a leak of some sort), I called the office to let them know that, no, in fact, it’s not a leak, it’s the HVAC unit. So I’m hoping that tonight will be quiet! That makes me unbelievably happy. So my big plans for tonight are to get home, start a fire and snooze in front of the fireplace, and then maybe (if I’m still knackered) go to bed early. YAY!
Gosh, I’m old. But I’m blaming this current bout of going-to-bed-early on that infernal noise (it’s been going for about a month, now), and on the cold that’s trying to catch me.
Yay! I love Nick’s, and the lost-cost spay/neuter program! Skeeter is getting neutered and microchipped next Wednesday for almost half of what our regular vets would charge for it. (I love our regular vets to pieces, though*.) He’s still too young for his piss to reek, and he hasn’t started spraying, YET. Although apparently we’re right on that threshold. I’m hoping he won’t start stinking or spraying before next Wednesday, and then it will all be a non-issue. Yay! Because unfixed male cat piss, for those of you who haven’t experienced it, is The. Worst. Ever.
*I can’t believe I forgot to post about this: one of our regular vets made a donation in Daoine’s name to a group that studies diseases like FeLV and FIV. I was really touched by it. But as it was a couple days after Daoine was euthanized, and I was still upset, I tossed the card, rather than have it around to remind me of her. And now that I’m a little calmer, I wish I’d kept it so I’d have their address, to send a donation myself. But I could just ask the vet for their address.
