SundaySundaySunday!

It's already 7pm on Sunday. The weekend is very nearly over. *sigh* It never seems to be long enough, does it? I need about a month off to do everything I want to do. Well, in actuality I need about a week, but three weeks' worth of video games would go into that.

The Toad was back on Friday night again, just peepin in the sliding glass door. I just let him hang and he was gone my morning and I haven't seen him since. Guess he got what he came for, finally.

Yesterday I took the dogs for a nice long walk in the morning, and another brief one in the afternoon when Monica called and asked if someone could come over to see the house in 30mins. Ack! They must have really loved it or really hated it, because they were here less than 15 minutes. Haven't heard anything, so I'm guessing they didn't make an offer. :( St. Joseph got mailed out on Thursday and I'm anxiously awaiting his arrival at this point. I'm needing a fast sale. I need to get to Arizona and see my honey!

Last night I went Salsa dancing with my friend Carmen and her friend Sonia. I didn't really get to salsa, but we did go out on the floor-just us girls-and pretend. :) Carmen is supposed to be inquiring whether they do lessons earlier in the evening, because I need a refresher before I'm confident enough to partner up. It was cool to be in that club, tho... I was, for probably only the 2nd or 3rd time in my life, the minority. I was feeling VERY caucasian! lol The music was great, though, and the vibe was a lot different than most dance clubs. I would like to go back...

I got home about a quarter til 2 and dreaded the 6am wakeup call. The pups surprised me by letting me sleep til nearly 7! Then, after they went out and had some breakfast, they actually let me go back to sleep til 9!! JOY!! I got up and picked up around the house a bit (lest I get surprised by another showing), and then took the pups to the Dog Wash. Yes, there is a dog wash here in town. Self service automated dog wash. It's pretty stinkin' cool. The "tubs" are elevated, which makes it soooo much easier... And there is a big hose that drops from the ceiling with the perfect water pressure and temperature. It's just like a car wash, but it's a dog wash. I took the pups seperately, not knowing what to expect, but I could probably take them both...well, if I had a bigger car! Anyway, they are clean and shiny and currently in the back yard rolling around in spite of me!

And that, as they say, is that.

Funny Stuff at the USPO

So was at the Post Office just a bit ago, mailing Russell's mail to him. As I'm standing in line, I take note of an advertisement for USPS Express Mail... The tag line says something like "The USPS Hauls it Fast" and the graphic being used with this statement is Donkey from Shrek. Think about it. Someone with a sense of humour got away with a good one. C'mon....Donkey? Ass?? "The USPS Hauls ASS!!" I just about fall over giggling.

As I move up in line I am quickly sobered by the sights and sounds of the TV in the corner. At first it's not clear what I'm seeing...could be any kind of talk show... But then I catch a glimpse of the guy bowed in prayer, grasping the hand of the woman in the chair next to him. Someone had called in to the show with problem X and they were sending out prayers and whatever sort of Christian advice is going on these days. Normally I wouldn't really mind this sort of stuff--to each his own, I say. But I'm in a public place--a GOVERNMENT OFFICE at that--and basically being made to watch this as I wait in line. What, I ask you, is wrong with this picture!??

eesh.

Just needed to rant. Enjoy your day.

Do I have a booger on my face or something? 

Exploding Plastic Inevitable

name that reference!

I need one of those little voice recorder things so that I can "jot" down my thoughts throughout the day and come back to them here. I always have these wonderful little ideas go through my head, but by the time I sit down to regurgitate them, they're nowhere to be found.

I'm home at lunch, so it's probably just as well that I don't remember a lot of what I have to talk about. Gotta keep it brief. The pups are outside wreaking havoc on their chewies, and Delilah is certain that the neighbours are staging a coup against us and that she's our only hope of survival.

I have a rogue Toad in the back yard that is intent on getting into the house. He's been nosing around at the back door for a couple of days now. He just sits at the sliding door, looking in and from time to time sort of "pawing" at the glass. Do toads get hot? Maybe he wants to come in and enjoy some A/C. I keep putting him in the fenced in garden area in the corner of the yard (so that the furkids can't enjoy any toadmorsels), but he keeps coming back. Odd.

I'm going to go hang out with the pups a bit before I have to head back to work. I'm training my replacement and I think both of our brains are about to explode. Tomorrow I think we are getting the afternoon off, though, so that will be a wonderful little break.

laytah

Cursed. . .

With a whiney *#(@(!!)@# dog.

Bucket has some sort of medical problem, I'm sure, that causes him to whine CONSTANTLY! It's worse than Ash's constant angry miao. This puppy, I SWEAR, never stops whining. If he's not constantly engaged or sleeping, he whines. It's driving me mad, and keeping me from much-needed sleep.

WTF?

Again Remiss

It's been a busy weekend, and while mowing the lawn this evening I had even more tales to tell, but of course they have since slipped my mind.

Kimbra and Bill were here this weekend, and as per usual, she wore me out! They got in late Friday and we stayed up chatting later still. Went to IHOP on Saturday morning because Bill was craving Chocolate Chip Pancakes... From there it was off to the OKC Museum of Art which, while small, has a nice little collection--if a bit disjointed. We were there for Chihuly, and it didn't disappoint. I've seen an exhibit of his before, and there was not much new to see, but it still astounds me to see the shapes and colours possible in glass. Some of the larger montages (can 3-D be a montage?) were breathtaking. Like some sort of bizarre combination of Willy Wonka and Hunter S. Thompson.

Don't even know what we did for the rest of the afternoon--think we chilled out at the house for a while before heading over to Flips for food. Game night was a ton of fun, then dancing--where Bill was fooled into thinking that Oklahoma is the friendliest place on earth. He was getting tons of handshakes, claps on the back, and "Heys" and was mightily impressed with us until we figured out that it was just because he walked in with three cute girls and we all seemed to be fawning on him. lol Of course we milked that for a while. Good times, good times.

Sunday morning was a sleep-fest, and then it was off to Ajanta for Indian Buffet. MAN! I love that place. I'm sure Phoenix has some great restaurants, but I will be hard pressed to love any place more than Ajanta. While there, I got a call from The Realtor that someone wanted to see the house, so Kimbra and Bill humoured me and home we went to clean up and rustle the dogs up for a walk at Lake Hefner. We'd been wanting to get up there for a walk anyway, so it was the perfect excuse. The dogs even did really well! I was concerned about Delilah going nutso on me, but she was terrific. Only got a little pissy when a couple little yappy dogs made a pass at her.

We've been playing hide-and-seek at home (it's been raining for days, so I'm averse to letting them play outside for very long--mud abounds!), and it's been quite a hoot. I have them sit and wait while I go hide somewhere in the house. I then yell "OKAY" and they come running. It makes them think a little, work a little, and use their doggy senses a little, and when they find me we have a little party. Good times, good times.

:)

So aside from Delilah having some HUGE vendetta against the lawnmower, and Bucket's fear of the dark (we went for a walk at 9:30 this evening, and you'd have thought the very earth was going to swallow him up for all the skittishness), all is well. The house is up at Realtor.com (MLS# 187544) with photos-FINALLY-so maybe that will bring in some buyers. Hope so. I'm ready to be with my honey again. This long distance crap is for the birds!

Nite then...

Langorous

Not a luxury I've had lately--being langorous... But it's really just an aside, and a joke of sorts at that, so I'll leave it there.

After 2 blissful nights without World Of Warcraft, I'm finally back online. I will get less sleep tonight and the puppies will be more restless than usual, but I've got my game on, man! All my stuff got wiped, clothes, weapons, a bunch of money...I've just spent the last 45 minutes or so trying to find something to wear to cover up the nekkidness! I just need a passable weapon, and I'm in business. The server is down right now for whatever reason, and thusly you see me here.

Still no more lookers at the house. Perhaps the weekend will bring more around. Kimbra and Bill will be here tomorrow evening until Sunday evening, so it will be fun if someone wants to come by and see the place...we'll all (dogs included) have to pile in the rental car and drive around the block a few times. hehehehe

yeah so anyway, I think I'll take this opportunity to go slip into my jammies and get stuff ready for that thing we call Friday. Yay it's the weekend.

No Offers

Open House Sunday, three showings yesterday, no offers. I'm on a freakin' roller coaster, and I want off! The Tauran me is so far from loving all this upheaval and uncertainty.

And DAMN the mosquitos love me.

Was outside with the hounds a bit ago, and provided meals for days for the little shits. I need to hose myself down with some bug spray and take the kids for a walk, but I'm a bit discouraged now. And itchy.

I've got some BioRitmo playing in the back ground and I can't concentrate on writing. So let me just get back to my ironing. Can't play WoW cos the new patch came out and we have to download. ack. Russell is doing it on the Mac now, and then he'll walk me through this. Someday I'll be computer savvy.

I got nuthin.

Okay Okay!

Must keep this brief, as this is the first night I'll be getting to bed before 10pm in months...

The Open House apparently went well--Monica said there were 6-8 people/couples/families through, including one guy who said he would call back for an appointment later in the week. Woohoo. Only one woman made note of the nasty smelling back room, and most everyone loved the painting and floors and stuff. Today there were 3 appointments! One at 2:40, one at 3:00, and one at 4:45! How lucky that the dogs were still at the boarding kennel...I'm wondering if I should have left them there...for my sanity as well as for the sake of showing the house. That's a guilt issue I don't really want to get into right now, however. Suffice it to say that a lot of folks have seen the house in the past two days, and I REALLY hope we get an offer soon, cos apparently I'm leaving in 3 weeks weather or not the house is sold. Yipes.

Scary, to say the least.

I'll try to get some photos of my afternoon with Diego up soonly. He's fabulous...such a cutie. But with parents like that, he really had no alternative! ;)

nite...at 9:59pm! woot!

Bad move for critters. . .

So far this move has not boded well for the furred and feathered friends that also call our house home. Bucket and Delilah have suffered endless hours of entertaining themselves, or being carted off to a strange kennel for days at a time... Kiki has been relegated to the garage (although he gets more attention now than he has in months...) Three mice--that I know of--have succumbed to the deadly poison that is DeCon, and just last night a family of birds was lost to my extension paint roller. They had been nesting in one of the vents on the front of the garage and all their crap was hanging out looking very white trash. With the Open House today, this had to stop. I couldn't get an extension ladder, so a stepstool and extension paint roller had to do. Let me tell you, this led to a tragic--and messy--end. I prayed to whatever deity watches over little critters that there was no family brewing up there. That the grass and fuzz was just preparatory. Well the CritterGod wasn't listenin'...or thought it would be fun to punish me with a couple eggs in the face, cos after a few minutes of digging, I got it. Not in the face, really, so much as down the back of my neck. Ugh. It would have been easy enough to get over except that a bit later I was cleaning Kiki's cage and was loudly chastised by one of the big birds. It just sat in the Maple tree and screamed at me. It was almost too much to take. Guilt, anyone?

So, yeah...

The Open House is today. In about 4 hours. I bought one extra sign and put it up in a neighbour's yard. I think their should be more signs still, but whatever. Supposedly there is an add in the paper about it, and that is indeed how Russell and I found out about the ones we went to... The house is as clean as it's going to get--at least with me at the helm--and the yard is trimmed and tidy (again with disclaimers). I've got to try to tuck the carpets in before I take off, and a few little nit-picky things if I can get to them, but other than that, I'm DONE. In all senses of the word. I didn't get the St.Joseph statuette yesterday, but hopefully some stuff will go into motion today and he can just seal the deal when he arrives. If you think about it, send some good thoughts our way, won't you?

I'm leaving around noon or so to drive halfway to T-town for my Diego Rendezvous. And yes, I brought the camera home from work, so there will be photos. I never ended up with anything to gift him with, but I'm sure he will understand. :) I'm a little nervous, as I'm not that great with little kids (i.e. babies), but I'm sure Dean will back me up.

Well, I'm going to go step out front and make sure the Birds have rebuilt. Have a good one.

oops

I'm throwing my race, apparently. Well, both of them for this weekend. I really, honestly thought that my CC race was at 11am this morning, so I was a little shocked to look in the book and see a 10am start time for the event. Considering that I was still in my skin at that point and needing to take a shower and it was already 10 after 10, I didn't think I'd make it. It was just one 50m FS race, but I probably would have taken first--for my heat, anyway. :) Julie (my sorta-boss) won't be pleased, but I think given the mayhem of my life lately that she might forgive me. Hope so. She can be....difficult...when she's peeved. And I need her recommendation on my resume. And no, I'm not exaggerating. It could come to that.

And the bike race tomorrow, well, that's just an effort in torture, really, at this point. I haven't ridden AT ALL since the last race (at which I sucked quite a lot), and besides, I have the opportunity to meet Diego!! Dean, Kirsten, and Diego are in Tulsa visiting his family, so we're going to meet halfway for a rousing rendezvous at McDonald's On The Turner. I don't really care--I get to meet the Happy Baby! :) I should take him something, huh? What tho? No clue. Maybe I'll make him a comp cd. lol.

So I'm going to hop in the shower, head to the store and pick up a couple additional Open House signs to put up. There is one up in one entry to the neighbourhood, and Monica gave me two more, but I don't know that that is sufficient for ppl to be able to find us back here. The neighbs next door are having a garage sale, so maybe that will draw some ppl back, too. :) Since the stupid mail didn't go yesterday (The Reagan Funeral Holiday--wtf kind of memorial is that?), I will hopefully recieve Mr. Jesus's Dad Statue this afternoon so I can get him in the ground before tomorrow's Big Day. If not, there's always Buddy Jesus here pointing right at me. :) Probably not the same at all, although he was a carpenter too, I'm told.

Lots to do, lots to do. It's wierd not having the dogs here, but very liberating. I actually WANT to go for a bike ride! Sad that I have to work. Perhaps I'll get a boatload done and allow myself a trip out. It would probably have to be a road ride at this point, though, as it's still very muddy out, and looks again as though it could rain. *sigh* At least maybe I'll be able to take the hose and sprinkler back to WallyWorld and get my dough refunded!

Anyway, I'm gonna run and get my busy on. Later.

Holiday

The pups and I are getting a holiday--from each other. With the impending Open House this weekend, it seemed best if they got to spend a couple of days on the farm. There is a boarding kennel about a million miles away that we checked out a while back...it's out in the country and surrounded by horses, cattle, and a world of other new smells and sights and sounds. The pups will only be mildly upset that I'm not there to share it with them, I think. In the meantime, I can get some work done around the house and yard with out having to worry about muddy feet (it's been raining for about 3 days now), yard poop, or puppy-dog eyes. I just talked to the lady, and we're going to drop off tomorrow evening and pick up Sunday evening. Then I can clean to my heart's delight tomorrow night and Saturday, and Sunday I'm going to skip the bike race and go see a movie or go shopping or something. Or maybe I'll stalk the Open House. Go AlterEgo and chat the place up and see what ppl say.

My cousin Scott from Chicago is sending me a St.Joseph statuette to bury in our front yard. Apparently this is a fool-proof way to a quick sale of the house. I have to wrap him in plastic (so's not to get him dirty) and bury him head-down facing the direction I want to move. I'm a bit skeptical, as you might imagine, but far be it from me to decline any assistance at this point. He swears it works--it's been around the house circuit in Chicago for at least 6 sales now (or so I'm told)--so I'm going to try it. With any luck I'll have it before the weekend and I can get it buried before the Open House. As always, I'll keep you posted.

On a completely separate note, I bought some self-tanner the other day (swimming for corporate challenge this weekend, and I have biker-legs. I also figured if I'm going to be moving to the Valley of the Sun that I might as well not look like a little ghostly thing.). I'm now a lovely (if a bit streaky) golden orange! Hopefully I can get it evened out before Saturday morning. If not, the Team might find itself a swimmer short.

4pm Looms. Or, rather, beckons. It's Thursday, and I have shopping to do. It's been suggested that I stay late and act as a cheering squad for the over-achievers in I.T., but I think I'll pass. I have puppies to wabooge and undead to slay. Level 30 Awaits!

Denied!

Yeah, well, seems the chap who came to see the house last night was a single guy not into the updating the house requires. Bah. Lazy bastard. He doesn't know what he's missing. Monica still feels confident about the quick-sell capacities of the house, and she said the realtor who showed it last night thought it was really cute, so that's cool. Maybe she'll put the word out in her office and amongst her friends. That's what it's all about anyway, right?

I don't really have a whole lot more to say at this point, but here's some chatter:
I thought it was Wednesday for a good part of the morning, so imagine my shock at receiving an email to the contrary. I've been up since 5:45am (thanks to the pups), so it just seemed like I'd been up for two days, I guess. I really need to lay off the gaming, and then 5:45 wouldn't seem so nasty early (but I hit Level 29 last night!!!). Bucket went to DayCare today, so Delilah and I had some quality time playing chase the cat-slash-ferret-slash-dog toy in the yard as well as a lame-ish attempt at beginning to shape the "fetch" trick. I'll keep you posted on that. I think Bucket has a better chance at learning it, as Delilah is pretty dis-interested in treats these days. Takes a food oriented dog to really make clicker training work, I think. Anyway. Delilah is such a better dog when it's just her. She mellows out considerably.

yadayada and on and on. it's just so much prattling on. I want BBC America! Maybe I'll go rent "The Office". Russell did, and says it's fantastic stuff. I've heard good things about it, and it is a BritCom, after all... I could do with a night on the sofa in lieu of computer chair! Prolly not going to happen, though--I can play for free with much less hassle. :) me <--- also lazy bastard

Hopes Escalate

Monica--The Realtor--just called...we have an interested party coming to see the house at 5:30 this evening! Woohoo. Just enough time (if I leave a little early, which I can) to get home, get the pups and get out of the way. She said it wouldn't take longer than about 20 minutes, so I'll probably just put on my walking duds and take them for a walk. It's mercifully cool and overcast today, so walking at 5pm won't be such a hardship as it normally would. I'm excited! I know it's silly to think that the first folks who see the house will make a bid, but it's not an impossibility. At least there is interest. :) Yay.

So yeah.

Monday abounds. It's just after 3pm, and while I have a nice project going here, it's been a slow day for the most part. I dreamed of dragons last night, so when the alarm went of at o-god-thirty this morning, I was just not prepared. I did, however, haul my happy ass out of bed and took the pups for a jog. I actually managed to keep a good pace for around 20 minutes--yay me. The dogs are much happier with me as a jogger, and I could certainly use the additional exercise, so think we're going to make it a habit.

I've had some reverse karma lately with the mouses... If you're an avid--or at least regular--reader here, you'll remember the story of my saving the field mouse family some months ago at my folks' house. That was a good chapter in my life. But in the past couple of days I've had to cart off three dead mice (poisoned) from my house to the trash bin. I wouldn't mind them so much, but most people--aka potential buyers--wouldn't be too pleased to share their home with the critters. Out the poison went, and up the mouse-bellies turned. Two of them were tiny little babies and I cried over them. I'm sure there will be more, and I'll deal with it. I just hope I find them all before they crawl into impossible corners and die a smelly death.

*sigh*

But there are lookers, so I'm going to think happy thoughts about that. Won't you join me?

Too Soon

The weekends are always over too soon. I never seem to have enough time to chill out and get stuff done and play. One or two of the three, but never all three. I miss having three day weekends. All in all, though, it's been good. I went out for sushi with friends Rob and Amy last night (another friend of Amy's who lived in Phoenix for 6 years was supposed to go to, to share stories and tips, but her cat got sick...), and it was wonderful! My brain hurts just a little when I hang out with them, which is such a great thing. We actually talk about THINGS instead of just idle chit-chat. I obviously need the work out, so I hope we can continue to hang out--at least for the next month or so.

Monica came over this morning to take some pics...it's listed, but I haven't seen it on Realtor.com yet. Hmph. I'll check out her site and see if it's there yet. hmmmm again, can't find it. I may give her a call in the a.m. and see what gives. She did get a call on the house yesterday morning, but the woman had to have a 4 br... :( But a call's a call. Hope they keep coming in.

The pups are outside and have been crackers all evening. I hope they sleep well! We went for a walk/run this morning, and it actually went pretty well. Delilah is still terribly rude and pull-y, but at least with the Halti it's managable. *sigh*

I'm pooped, and I still have to take a shower and put the dog beds back together (washed 'em) and clean up the house in case anyone comes over tomorrow. Not sure what to do about the dogs during the day...they just go nuts when ppl are here and they are in the crates--it will be annoying and distracting. I should just board them until the house sells! Maybe if Bucket is in daycare, Delilah will be more mellow? We'll see, we'll see. And as ever, I'll keep you posted.

Premature

Oops. I hit enter a bit too soon. Still working out the "Hello" kinks. All in all it's a great thing so far--I just need to learn how to use it!

So anyway, the house, which is looking fabulous, is officially on the market. Lockbox on the front door, sign in the yard...the whole deal. Now I just wait for the phone to ring, I guess. It's starting out to be a dreary day, but it's only just past 7am. Maybe the sun will dry everything out and lure folks out of their homes for some touring. I was over at some friends' apartment last night for some drinks and hot-tub lounging, and a buddy of theirs was interested in the house. I don't know how serious he was, as the Buds had been flowing freely (often all over the side of the spa, much to the delight of the pregnant little schnauzer), but he's supposed to get my number from Amy and Rob and give me a call or come by. Woohoo.

Amy and Rob are cool folks, and I'm sad that I'm just now getting to hang out with them. I work with Rob, and somehow we started talking about music one day...the floodgates opened. Oklahoma, as some of you may know, is pretty much the buckle of the Bible Belt, and a lot of the people we work with are very, erm, conservative in their views. Being not of that ilk, it is sometimes easy to feel ostracized, whether or not that is in fact the case. Rob, being a heathen like myself, was tired of self-sensoring and happy to find someone with more liberal, or at least open minded views. It's been a real breath of fresh air, to say the least. Anyway, he and his girlfriend were having some folks over last night, and he invited me along. He has been hearing about my stress and frustrations with the house, and I guess took pity on me! :) Amy is very cool--he kept telling me I'd like her and how well we'd get along, and he was right on the money. It was funny talking to them, because they remind me so much of Russell and I. There is a very real possibility that they may move to Phoenix in the near future (they have family there, and just appreciate it as a more open place), which would be wonderful. I'd love Russell to meet them, and it would be super-cool to have some built-in friends out there.

And that's just about enough rambling for now, I think! I'm going to gather some herbs (WoW), take the pups for a walk, run to the PO, and probably not much else. If it dries out later I'll mow the lawn and finish painting the planter out front. I have some laundry to do, and I should run the vacuum around a bit. *sigh* How much more fun is there?

These are the furkids, side-by-side. I think the largeness of Bucket is an illusion here. He is a few inches taller than Delilah now, but looks ginormous here. Anyway, these are they. Handsome pair, eh? You can see what they've done to the lawn--gardeners they are not, however hard they try. Actually the photo was taken over a month ago and the lawn is looking worlds better now, in keeping with the rest of the house. 

UpUpUpUpUpUpUp

Things are looking...

I think we've got the big nasty stuff done. We have the most amazing neighbours in the world, proven by the fact that they came over last night bearing tools and machines with which to whip our errant lawn and shrubbery into place. Maybe they were just tired of it looking like a jungle over here, but I prefer to think of it as an act of kindness. They trimmed the front lawn and shrubs, and I borrowed the trimmer and hedgeclippers to do the back yard. I only got a bit done before darkness fell and my mother begged me to put it away for the evening lest I do myself bodily harm. I was going to finish up tonight after work (and before Monica The Realtor comes over for her final walk-through)but there has been a largeish storm. Mowing is out, probably, but maybe I can still trim. There is plenty to do inside, though...

So yeah, I am feeling a bit better. Still I wonder how I will keep it nice by myself when mom leaves, but I guess I'll just do the best I can. It's all I can do, right? Having it clean to begin with will certainly help. I really want it to be on the market by the weekend...so hopefully Monica won't see any hugely glaring problems left to fix. We'll do the paperwork, and hopefully watch the calls come in! Sucks that mom is leaving Thursday morning to go back to Stockton--it will be a long lonely weekend--and if no one comes to see the house I'll probably go back into panic mode!

Anyway. The day is nearly gone, at least as far as office work is concerned. Woohoo. Homework awaits.