Didn't Go

After I finally went to bed, I slept until 6:15. Set up was to begin at 5:45, and the thing started at 7:00. I'm not going to perish, I guess. But I have to have something to show for having the whole day off to myself.

I'm planning the meals for the week, then I'm off to the farmer's market to get some goodies.

I've got a powerful hungry for mac & cheese, and I don't know why. Guess I'll whomp up a batch of whole wheat mac/cheese, and keep it in the fridge for the week. I'm become so used to whole wheat pasta, I find I don't much care for the other kind.

The Giant had taco dinner boxes on sale. Now I'mnot one to buy packaged foods, because they are usually full of hidden crap, salt and preservatives and all that other junk, and also there's just so much packaging! Anyway, the El Paso Taco dinners are shells, taco sauce and taco spice mix. (Mostly salt) I won't use that. If you bought 8 items on the special list Giant had, they gave you 200 extra bonus points. Thats twenty cents off a gallon of gas! Which in my mind is a big deal.
It sounds stupid now, but it made sense yesterday. So we have 4 boxes of taco dinners and 4 boxes of micro popcorn. Which we use anyway. So there.

Now it's off to the market. I've got ideas on what this week may bring. Obbie works Monday, Wednesday and Friday, so those days will be make ahead meals that he can just warm up when he gets home. The other nights may be grill nights. We're getting kind of tired of dinner salads, sad to say, so it's back to cooking. It's okay, there are a million easy recipes out there.

Carry on!

The Forf Weekend

Dang, it's Saturday already.

Work was brutal last week, especially since it was condensed brutal, four days of hell instead of five days of the same old crap. Too bad next week is going to be worse. PA is on vacation all week, so I shall be PA. Including whatever it is I do too. Oy. I'm glad there is vodka in the freezer.

Yesterday, for the Forf, we cleaned the fridge. I mean CLEANED the fridge. As in, threw away old stuff, including FOUR half jars of salsa, and several desiccated limes. Obbie scrubbed the inside with hot bleach water too. It is showroom clean now, boooy.

Today we're going to Big Mommas for the delayed Forf pic-a-nic. She's showing houses in the AM, so she asked us to come between 2-3. Which means we'll eat around 5 or 6. We won't tell her we ate breakfast....sssh....it's a secret.

And Mrs. Cat brought me her kittens yesterday. I couldn't figure out why she was yelling and sitting at the kitchen window meowing. When I fanlly went out to see what her malfunction was, out of their hiding place came four sweet tiny, TINY little babies. Breaks my cold, black heart, kittens do. I have no idea whats going to happen to them now. It's interesting how she trusts me enough to bring me her babies, but I can't pick her up. I ran into the spay/neuter folks today, and they gave me an application to get her spayed. I have to wait 6-8 weeks til she's weaned the babies though. Hopefully she won't get knocked up in the meantime.

Tomorrow is a lazy day. I'll make a couple jewelry things, and that'll be it. Ha. Take that.

And Monday will start a week of hell. Oh boy, I can't wait.

Over

We're back.

It was great! Nice weather, cold beer, good food. The ocean. The sand. Camping. What more can you ask for?

The Chef couldn't join us, too bad for her. And that's all I've got to say about that.

Saturday morning we went to an absolutely fantastic farmer's market. And I've been to a LOT of farmer's markets. Fresh bagels, fresh coffee, spring peas (oh peas! I'm so happy) lettuce, breads of every variety, pies, cookies, pastries, cheese, mushrooms, beets, spring onions, and my favorite early summer treat of all: STRAWBERRIES.

I've got a couple reasons why I should hate strawberries.

When I was in high school, big momma wanted to teach us the value of money, and the 'joy' of earning the buck on your own. So she drove my bro and I to the local strawberry farm to pick berries all day. Oh how it sucked. Long, hot days for little money. I was put off strawberries for a very long time.

Then there are those gawdawful 'truck berries' that come from California, in all their plastic clamshell glory. They're very pretty, and in the desparation of January, when a soul is jonesing for something fresh and sweet, they trick you into thinking you're getting something good. But when you bite into them, it's a cruel joke. Not the tasty berry of June, but a mealy tasteless trucked in berry who was picked green and allowed to ripen on the truck. So sad.

I digress. The berries we got at the farmer's market were exactly what a strawberry should be. Juicy. Sweet. One bite of joy. We ate them plain, no sugar, no whipped cream, no nothing. Just berry. YUM.

So there you have it. I spent the weekend with my best friend. We drank beer, ate strawberries, played backgammon, swam in the ocean, and laughed a whole lot.

I don't think that I could possibly ask for any more than that.

Later

I'll be leaving now.

I've got to get away from the foolishness and stupidity that is making my life more complicated than it needs to be.

For the next couple days, I'll be sitting on the beach, watching the ocean, feeling hot sand between my toes, and imbibing in a few craft brewed ales. If you need me, I mean REALLY need me, I'll be at campsite 98.

Bring beverages.

Hooky Hooky Monday

Back at the beginning of the year, Obbie was supposed to go to Atlanta for a conference during the last weekend in May. I was going to tag along, since I've never been to Atlanta, so I took off the Friday and Monday around that weekend.

Obbie didn't get chosen for the conference, so I canceled one of the two days off. Today is the day I didn't cancel.

And I'm just slothing around the house. I played with the polymer clay a little bit this morning. I don't think it's going to beat out beads as my art media of choice. It's cool, I just need to play with it for awhile, and get good at some things. I have found that the Liquid Sculpty is pretty neat, to make transfers of inked images, which one can put on the clay. It'll take more playing around with it, thought.

I also bought car insurance online for both Volvos. As soon as I get the blue one fixed, it's getting sold, and I'll save myself a little money. But in PA, you need to insure the vehicle before it's inspectable. Go figure. That's okay. It'll get done. Obbie's is next.

I also vacuumed the cornmeal out of the cupboard. I grabbed the container, and the lid flew off, and cornmeal went everywhere. Bet you can't guess what I said.

I've done a load of laundry, and that's getting ready to go out on the clothesline.

I also finished a cheesy little bracelet that I started months ago and lost interest in making. I figured, Why Not, it's already halfway done. I may just start another one too, but it's not even noon yet!

I have to go out and get cat litter and cat food, but alas, all my 'good' shorts (read-shorts that actually fit) are in the wash. I might have to get some Ivy Dry or some other poision ivy remedy, because the little bubble on the back of my wrist has migrated to the side. Uh-oh...

Aside from all that, I guess I'm not doing anything but laying around. Just an extension to the weekend.

Oh! At the bead show on Saturday, I ran into my old chum, the Bead Snot. Bead Snot is this woman who I met last year. She was set up at this local 'juried' show, and while her things were nice, none were particularly memorable. Her snotty attitude WAS. She was going on and on about a show she was going to be a part of at the local community college, and I asked if they were still accepting exhibitors. She looked down her nose at me and said, "You must send me pictures, because we need to make sure we aren't going to have any JUNK at this show." I understant her point, but her tone made me want to knock her off her chair. In November, I ran into someone who was also associated with this show, and asked if I was going to exhibit there. I relayed the above story to her, and she laughed, "Oh she's like that. It IS rather offputting, isn't it?" Oh yes, yuk,yuk, yuk, sure is. Eh. So I wrote this asshole off as another pretentious person who had delusions of grandeur matching her poor manners. Too bad, we ran into her again at the bead show on Saturday. I was inquiring to a vendor about some copper earwires. And Bead Snot overheard..."My jewelry is too nice to use junky findings" (uh, okay) and as we left, she was badgering the poor girl taking tickets about the lack of proper air conditioning. "Somebody needs to do SOMETHING! It's AWFUL in there! SOMEBODY should have come in early and turned on the AIR CONDITIONING" Wah, wah,wah. People like that should be shot on sight. They serve no useful purpose except to mock later. Idiot.

So there you have it. Hooky in a nutshell. I'm off to play around with the clay some more, and maybe do some other bead related stuff. See ya

Plugging Along

Saturday was spent just messing around. Obbie & I went for pho for breakfast (mmmm...pho) and a quick trip to the farmer's market for minute steaks. (Yes, I know I can buy Steak-Umms, but frankly, they're criminal. I'll spend the extra couple bucks and get real minute steaks from the butcher) We ran into two of my friends from my past life in The Big City. It was fun to talk and catch up with them. I miss my old friends, but I don't miss my old life.

After the market run, we went to a craft show. What the hell is wrong with me that I have to go to craft shows when I'm not selling at them?! Research, babies, research. We sold at this one last year, and had an 'eh' day. It's very large, very crowded, and has a TON of crap. There were a lot of nice things too, but the promoter should start concerning herself less with getting as many vendors as she can, and more with getting QUALITY vendors. But that's just me. We talked a bunch of people, some we've met from behind the booth, and others we've met as customers.

It was a very educational experience (and not because it was held in a high school)
because I saw lots of nice jewelry, as well as lots of crap jewelry. There's a disturbing trend of selling jewelry alongside your other non-jewelry related items. I think that if you're making and selling jewelry, it should be your mission. Not an afterthought. But again, that's just me. I have to get my ass moving and make stuff. I have a couple pair of earrings and several bracelets made, but I'm not even close to my goal (yet here I sit blogging) We went down home way and had dinner with my Mom. It was a nice evening, yet she makes me sad because she's so lonely. I wish there was something more I can do for her. We're taking her on a field trip later in the Spring, but the guilt makes me want to do more.

We woke up starving this morning, so we went out for breakfast. Obbie left for work, and will be home around 5:00. I have a pot of vegetable soup going on the stove now, and later it'll be yummy, hot & filling.

Obbies going to San Francisco for 4 days this coming week, and while I'm looking forward to sleeping in the middle of the bed, I'm kind of sad he won't be around. I keep telling myself I'm going to be busy creating, and I won't miss him much, but we all know that's not entirely true. Oh we..

I must get back to the bench. There's a lot of beading and a little time before the show on Friday & Saturday. YIKES.

Carry on.

Weekend Recap

Happy Monday to all of you who are working, and Happy Presidents Day to all who aren't. I'm the former, not the the latter.

The weekend went too fast, as usual. Saturday I got to work a little on my necklace, while Obbie did some family public service. He came home in a semi-foul mood, and brooded around the house all afternoon. Luckily, our friends Jeff & Linda were playing an acoustic gig at a local watering hole.

That turned out to be great fun! I hadn't seen either of them for many years, and had almost forgotten how good they were. Obbie NEVER saw them play before, and was happily impressed. His bad mood was escorted away by good music and multiple beers. I took over as the designated driver, a role I don't mind playing at all, and was quite happy sitting at the bar drinking lime & seltzers, enjoying some damn fine music.

We slept in a little on Sunday, since after all, we didn't get home until ONE AM. (Horror of horrors..)
And Obbie was a little tired from moving all those Harps (Beer) A good breakfast at Grouchos cured him, and we decided to go visit another craft show. It was just as horrific as the last one, just not as big. Luckily, it didn't take too long to see all the junk. Er, I mean crafts, and we headed home early. Mark that off the list as a "Never Gonna Do" Ugh.

All that driving, eating and snarkiness made us tired, so after a homemade cup of hot cocoa, we both climbed onto our couches, turned on the Dayota 500 and commenced napping. Nothing says "Successful Sunday" like a good couch nap.

But reality intruded on me early this am, and it's back to work. Ob's home today, doing all kinds of Obbie things around the house. Lucky duck! That will be me on Good Friday. So there, take that, you state worker!