The Last Monday Of 2008

Wow, where has the year gone? I guess it has vanished into the past like so many others have done. I'm hoping the year will end with me in a better mood than I've been in lately. Not that I've been in a bad mood, but things have been getting on my nerves. In fact, I sent Sis a long-winded ranting email tonight about one of my former BILs. She was kind enough to read the whole thing, and then tell me that I'm right and he's wrong. So there.

Work was ok today; a little slow. Tomorrow is month-end since we have Wednesday off. I'm not real thrilled about having 2 days off this week. I mean, the time off is great but the lack of pay isn't so great.

Did two loads of laundry after work - that was sure thrilling. I've been puttering on the computer for a while and listening to the tv. My "normal" evening activities. Think I'll turn this thing off for now and knit another knuck. After all, I'm not Michael Jackson, so I need one for each hand!

Wrong On So Many Levels

I was watching "Robin Hood: Men In Tights", which ended at about 8:45. Switched over to one of the country video stations and was treated to a new video/song about NASCAR. Sung by ... Kevin Costner. What??? Yes, you read me right ... Kevin Costner. Just so very wrong.

Had breakfast this morning with The Kids. The Ex didn't join us because he and The Boy were having issues. Seems The Ex has decided that The Kids have to get all their stuff out of the house and into storage --- today. Yeah, today. He called me shortly after we met at the restaurant to let me know why he wouldn't be there (I already knew) and then again after I got home to see if The Boy had complained about him all during the meal. I told him he hadn't said anything and NOT to drag me into it. Just because he's decided he wants to get the house in shape he thinks we should jump when he says to. He'd just better not be getting rid of anything that doesn't belong to him. I should have gone over there to check on things today but had a headache and ended up staying on the couch all day. Read a little, ate some dinner and watched a little tv. Didn't really get a nap in (maybe about a 10 minute snooze) but the headache seems to have eased. Hopefully it won't come back!

I also worked some on my current knitting project, and am considering going to bed. I'll check in at FoRT and see what's going on there, and then head to bed. Wonder if The Kids are planning on meeting for breakfast again tomorrow...

A Problem With Henry

Or, to be more accurate - a problem with me! Got ready for work this morning and went out to the car. Unlocked and opened the door, tossed my purse on to the passenger seat, climbed in and started the engine. Turned on the windshield wipers to get rid of the moisture on the windshield only to discover that it wasn't moisture - it was ice. Grabbed a card out of my purse and got out to scrape the windshield. Apparently, being a bit under 5'3" tall makes me not tall enough to scrape any of the windshield that would allow me to drive safely. So I had to turn the defroster on "high" and wait about 5 minutes before I could safely drive to work. Guess I'll have to look for a long-handled ice scraper this weekend. Oh, and not only was the windshield iced up, but the side window was too. I couldn't even open the window; it was frozen shut! I was really glad that I was wearing my new jacket ...

Work was very boring today. There wasn't a whole lot to do, so time dragged. It was worse knowing that almost everyone else I know had the day off - even The Ex, who never takes time off. The only other one that had to work was Rafe. Feel bad for him, but it made me feel better for me. Since things were so slow, I was told to go ahead and leave about 20 minutes early (my time sheet had already been signed and faxed to the agency, but DB said that was fine. It was either go home early or go on the internet until time to leave - those were the choices she gave me, so I opted to leave).

AZ brought in more tamales after lunch today; these were all packaged up in foil and given to us to take home. Yum! Now I don't know if I should have tamales for dinner or my leftover ham and yams. Maybe I'll have one tamale, a slice of ham and the yams... and now I'm hungry.

Christmas Night

The gifts have been opened, the dinner has been eaten and I'm back home with my cat. What a fun day this was! It was, as I thought, a little weird not "hosting" the dinner this year, but it was a nice change. I went over early to help with a couple last minute things, and had a chance to spend some time with The Kids.

They ended up with a group of 13 - Dad and J, Sis and Rafe, myself and The Ex from our side of the family and The Girl's brother, grandmother, two uncles and an aunt. It was a little crowded but nobody seemed to mind. And, actually, it wasn't really all that crowded. There was enough seating for everybody and space to walk around so there was plenty of room. The dinner was fantastic (ham, yams, mashed taters, rolls, deviled eggs and snackie things). Plenty of desserts, too ... I'm stuffed!

The Kids seemed pleased with their presents; as was I with my gifties. The kids gave me a nice warm, lightweight jacket and a really nice denim knitting tote, along with a Borders gift card. Also received a Borders card from The Ex, so I'll have plenty of reading opportunities.

Learned a new little poem from The Girl's grandmother: I'm a one drink woman, sometimes two at the most. Three and I'm under the table, four and I'm under the host. LOL

The butter tarts were a big hit with my family; not sure that The Girl's family liked them (or even tried them). They're expecting her dad and stepmom for dinner tomorrow, so maybe they'll have some. If not, I'm sure The Boy will do his best to eat the leftovers.

Speaking of leftovers, I have ham and a large dinner roll for my lunch tomorrow, and enough ham and some yams for dinner, too. Too bad I have to work - I'd rather just stay home and relax. Well, I guess that's what the weekend is for ...

Merry Christmas

'Twas The Night Before Christmas Eve

and all through the apartment, nothing much has changed. Forgot to get ornament hangers so the tree is still rather bare; didn't need to get the ham because FM picked it up this afternoon. I did get marshmallows on the way home from work, and did a load of laundry. Technically I did two loads because I finished one for The Boy (he put 'em in the washer, I did the rest). Yeah, I know - he's spoiled. He likes it that way.

Duh's son is 28 today ... where has the time gone?

We were told at work today that as long as there was nothing urgent needing to be accomplished, we'd be able to leave "no later" than 1:00 tomorrow. That'll be nice - although it wasn't specified if I'd get paid for the time off or not. I did get paid for a full day when we left early the day before Thanksgiving, so I'm hoping I'll be paid full day tomorrow, too.

Received another "prezzink" at work today, too ... AZ gave me a black scarf/glove set. It was really sweet of her, I really didn't expect anything. Too bad there weren't any raffles today - I was all set to win another one ...

I guess my next post will be on Christmas Eve!

On A Roll

Arrived at work today to find two little gifties on my desk - a small container of home-made brownies from SR and some peanut brittle from JR (the boss). Yum! Haven't tried either of them yet but I'm sure they'll be very tasty. Then, this evening was the holiday party at the apartment complex. They served sandwiches and wraps, chips and tater salad, punkin pie and cake. They handed out raffle tickets - first one was for a $10 In-N-Out gift card - which I won!

Came home and did a little bit of baking. Got a phone call from FM; he was checking to see if I was at home because he bought me a Christmas tree. He set it up and put the lights on it for me. So, I guess I'm all set for the holiday! Have to get some ornament hangers to finish decorating the tree; I'll stop and get them tomorrow after work. Oh, and I have to remember to get the ham, or The Boy will strangle me...

OH - and I didn't post yesterday - but my elder bro's book has gone to press and will be available for purchase in January! We'll be able to order it from the publisher, or from Amazon, or actually go to Barnes & Noble and purchase it in-store. How cool is THAT???

Couch Day

Hm. I seem to have spent the majority of the day today on the couch. And quite a bit of that time with a cat in my lap. Watched a couple of movies (Love at First Bite and some stuff on Lifetime). Did quite a bit of knitting - started and completed the second wrist warmer. I had it about 2/3 done last night but then ended up with a major goof and frogged it. Figured I'd get a new start on it today. I think, all told, it took me about 5 hours or so to complete it.

Just got a text from The Girl -- she is currently at the theatre, waiting for "Twilight" to start. She's going to be one viewing ahead of me ... darn it! I'll probably wait for it to come out on video before I see it again. And what I'd really like to see are the deleted scenes and behind-the-scenes stuff. I read today that the director shot part of the story from Midnight Sun and it is going to be on the dvd. Also read that, in the movie, any time a tv screen is shown the program being watched is the ballet studio scene! See, so I need to see it once more so I can confirm that info. Of course, I could just ask The Girl since she's gonna look for it ... but can I really trust her to tell me the truth? HAHA. Oh, while I'm thinking "Twilight", I should make The Girl a copy of the movie score ...

Today's picture - can you find the cat?

Snow Dog Video

http://www.dogwork.com/dogsnow/

Nice Christmas Lunch

Today was the annual (obviously) Christmas lunch at work. The company supplied Vince's spaghetti with meatballs and garlic bread, and the employees were requested to bring in desserts. The morning started with muffins/danish/pastries. My supervisor, LC, came around and passed out little goodie bags to each of us in her department: mine is a small chocolate/marshmallow Santa and a quite large Hershey's Dark chocolate bar.

Lunch was at noon, and it was really nice. Tables were set up in the warehouse (along with heaters) and decorated (the tables, not the heaters) for the holiday season. The spaghetti was as good as it usually is, the only downside being that the bread wasn't warm and toasty as it should be. But, that is to be expected when you get it as take-out instead of eating at the restaurant.

After everyone had eaten, we all sang "The 12 Days of Christmas" and each table had a card picturing one of the items. Someone from the table had to stand and hold up the card every time their item was mentioned. We had 4 Calling Birds, so the poor guy that was given our card had to stand quite often. Part of the decorations was a wrapped gift on each table. We were then read a story about the "Right" family and every time the words "right" or "left" were said, we had to pass the gift in the appropriate direction. SR won the gift at our table; it was full of holiday candies.

Then came the raffle prizes. My boss, JR, had left his ticket at our table so AZ asked MH to pass the ticket to him. Well, MH kept the ticket ... and wouldn't you know, the first number picked was one that he had! Well, he handed the other ticket to JR and went up to claim his $100 AmEx gift card. No telling whether it was really his or not, of course. The other prizes were awarded (all gift cards ranging from $25 to $100, some for a particular store or restaurant, others AmEx). MH then brought his card back up to the microphone and announced that he was going to re-raffle it. And then drew --- MY number! Everyone seemed quite pleased for me (several stopped to comment throughout the afternoon, including MH) and I must say, *I* was quite pleased for me, too!

Oh - and an "interesting" bit of trivia ... I read yesterday that the number one name for baby girls born in 2008 is, for the first time, Isabella. Wonder why. And Edward is number 3 for boys.

Good Food Day

Had a nice surprise today - one of the couples at work brought in their "secret pumpkin rolls" today for all to share. Now, mind you - I was told that they stayed up until 3:00 am last night and Tuesday night preparing them. They brought in 8 rolls. Yep, didn't last long. The slice I had was quite good, which is saying a lot since I'm not a fan of pumpkin. But the cake part had only a mild pumpkin flavor and the cream cheese filling was really good.

Then, for lunch, I had home-made enchiladas and Spanish rice. Nope, I didn't make it. One of my co-workers had made a huge batch (she generally makes 5-6 dozen enchiladas at a time) and told me yesterday that she'd bring me some today. They were very good, too ... in fact, almost exactly as I make them except that I didn't have to make them!

I'm bringing cherry cobbler for the work dessert potluck tomorrow, and I've just taken it out of the oven. Sure smells good. I kinda cheated, too ... I have some little egg shaped foil bowls and I made a little individual cobbler to have for dessert tonight. That way I can enjoy everyone else's desserts tomorrow, and still have some of the cobbler.

Leaving you for now with a picture of Little Thing, spying on the neighbors ...

An American Icon

Well, since I left all my cds in the office today, I was listening to the radio (the local all-Christmas-music-all-the-time-for-the-past-month-and-a-half station) when an ad came on for an upcoming concert. This concert is featuring an American Icon, singing music from his 26 years of hits. Yep, you guessed it. The one. The only Rick Springfield! I have a feeling there is a little bit of exaggeration in that ad. Yep, especially since I only know of one hit that he ever had ....

Just saw a tv programming change that I really don't like. One of my favorite shows, Bones, is moving to Thursdays starting in January. This is going to severely conflict with Survivor, which starts in February. *sigh* Why can't they just leave my shows where they are??

Started on the first of a pair of wrist warmers this evening. Completed the cuff and two pattern repeats (there are only three needed). Should be able to finish this one tomorrow night, and possibly get the second one at least started.

Gonna head to bed in about 5 minutes (after Bones is over). G'night!

Happiness Is

...sitting on my couch, wrapped in a comforter with my kitty sleeping cuddled up next to me. She didn't enjoy being put into the carrier, and hated the ride in the car. Her visit to the vet went fine (she got her shots updated) but then had to go back in the car. She meowed the entire time. After getting home, she spent quite a while alternating between investigating the apartment and hiding under the bed. She has settled down now and seems quite content. It'll be nice having her on the bed tonight ... although if she is true to form, she'll sleep at my legs so I can't move.

On a not-as-pleasant note, The Boy spent 7 hours in the dentist chair today, having 2 root canals done. Apparently, one of the teeth came out perfectly and the other is being a bit of a problem. He has to go back tomorrow and if the other dentist can't get all the bits out (the tooth broke) he may have to go to a specialist. Poor kid. He did it all awake, too - didn't even have the nitrous. I'm sure that in a couple of days he'll be glad he had it done, but for now he isn't too thrilled.

Watching "A Charlie Brown Christmas" - and not remembering parts of it. I wonder if they changed/added to it? Probably not - just my age kicking in again. OH, wait - this is probably the second one, I think the original is only a 30 minute one and they did another one that I don't care for. I read through the good one, apparently. I should pay better attention to the TV.

I'm also wondering why my shipment from Amazon isn't here yet - it was only about 30 miles away on Saturday afternoon.

And I guess that's about it for tonight.

And So It Ends

The season of Survivor: Gabon is over - and, even though I owe Sis some money I can't be happier with the outcome! I so very much wanted Bob to win. He was great from day one, and from what we were shown, and no matter what Whiny - um, I mean Kenny - says, I don't think he went back on his word. How can Kenny NOT see the hypocrisy in expecting Bob to give him the idol so that Kenny can have Bob voted out, but claiming that BOB went back on his word? And Corrine - what a witch she is.

Due to a bit of a late start and traffic, we got to CBS about an hour later than I had wanted to. In fact, we were half an hour late meeting Sis and Rafe at the restaurant. However, the food was fantastic, the waiter was great and I think everyone had fun. We then went back to CBS. Since the turnstile to the Farmers' Market is a one-way (anyone can go from CBS to the market, but you have to have an employee badge to get back to CBS) my son "badged" us all through while FM went and got the e-z go cart. We were then driven over to the check-in area. Checked in, got our wristbands and went to the "holding area" until it was time to enter the studio.

Our seats were pretty good; best we've had so far. The show started late because of the televised football game, so we were treated to some of the Ponderosa footage. The show, of course, was fantastic. Afterwards, we were standing outside talking, while waiting for FM. (He wanted us to wait because he was going to try and get us a souvenir). Sis was over by the press tent, peeking in at all the contestants. So, we're standing there behind a black Prius when a couple of people walk over to the car and go to the driver's side. Yep, you guessed it -- it was Jeff Probst! I said, "Oh, sorry - looks like we have you blocked in." (Don't know where that came from, I'm usually a lot more shy than that) and he said "Oh, no, you're ok. You're fine." I actually had a "conversation" with JP!

So, after all the rental stuff was taken out of the studio, FM was able to grab a handful of smaller props; we were each able to get something. The Kids didn't want anything, so Sis/Rafe took a large basket (she's going to fill it with fiber and yarn, if she hasn't already). LM and MM each got a bowl/pot, and I got what looks like a plant stand. (see the picture). Not sure if I'll put anything on it or not - maybe Mr Piggy...

All in all, it was a fantastic afternoon/evening/night and we didn't get home until about 10:30. And my butt was dragging all day at work.

A Posting From icanhascheezburger

more animals

Overheard At Work

One of the "upper management" guys at work (I don't know who) brought in a couple of 5 pound boxes of See's chocolates this afternoon. Heard a couple of coworkers discussing which candy to choose. One said, "How do you know which is which?" The response? "Experience." I think that about says it all!

I, like my sister has in the past, had a lot of things I was going to post about today - and I've forgotten all of them. *sigh*

Weekend Is Over

And I didn't get anything accomplished. Not like I really thought I would, but I should have. Did a very little bit of Christmas decorating on Friday evening; I had gotten out the box of stuff to take a few things in to work so I figured I might as well start on the apartment.

Yesterday, I met The Kids for a late breakfast and then The Girl and I went and saw Twilight. Yes, this makes three times. I don't see what your point is. I came back home and did a bit of housework. The Kids came over in the evening so The Boy could do his laundry (every once in a while he wants to put his clothes through the dryer). They brought dinner from the Mexican place on the corner and the dvd of Hitchhiker's Guide to the Galaxy. Had a pleasant evening.

This morning was breakfast with The Kids, Duh and Happy. From there, The Girl and I went and saw Twilight. Pathetically obsessed? What makes you say that? Hey - it was HER idea. In fact, so was yesterday's viewing. After taking her home I drove out to Duh's and had dinner with her and Happy. So, basically the weekend was spent in watching movies and eating. Not a bad way to spend the weekend, actually! Oh, and I read quite a bit last night as I couldn't sleep. I was still wide-awake at 1:00 a.m. And no, it wasn't the reading that kept me awake, it was the being awake that kept me reading.

And thus ends another exciting weekend in the life of me.

Besides, I have to keep seeing the movie until I figure out the knitting patterns for the hat Bella wears at the beach and the scarf she wears for the baseball game.

Nice Talk With The Boss

So, today I was requested to visit my boss in his office. Being the optimistic sort that I am, I figured he was going to tell me "so long, and thanks for all the work". I was pleasantly surprised at the conversation - no, I didn't get a job offer, but he spent quite a while explaining to me that if it were his decision to make I would have been hired long ago, everyone likes me, he hears nothing but good about me and my work (wok??) ethic .... He says that he is still pushing to get me hired full time and would like me to stay as a temp until he can get me hired. All in all, it was a very pleasant chat. He then mentioned that, at this time of the year, he likes to be able to give his employees a small holiday bonus and he considers me one of his team .... and then handed me a check! Man, was I ever surprised. It isn't a huge amount but is definitely more than the ham I used to get for Christmas. Oops - sorry, The Boy, I forgot to order the ham today. I'll send myself an email to remind me to order it tomorrow.

Anyway, that's about all I have for today. Survivor tonight!

What A Wednesday!

Started off with a bunch of bad drivers on the way to work. Seems like none of them wanted to be in the lanes they were in, so they just moved from lane to lane. Without signaling. Sometimes with just barely enough room to fit their vehicle in the lane they were entering. Fortunately I didn't see any accidents (or become involved in one).

Had enough work to do to get me through the day, with some left for tomorrow. I generally prefer to have everything done before I leave, of course - but it's nice to know I'll have stuff to do to keep my busy if there isn't a lot of mail.

Went to lunch with the Payables department for SR's birthday. It was nice to be included as part of the group (a lot of companies don't treat temps as part of the group, you know). We went to Wabi Sabi (I've never been to one before). It was really, really good. Had the chicken and filet mignon lunch combo which included rice, veggies and soup or salad. They cook the food right at the table (like at Benihana's) and our chef was very entertaining. The food was fantastic and I have enough leftovers for dinner tonight. Pleasant conversation, good times - and the boss paid for it all! Barely had room for the thin slice of birthday cake I had this afternoon, but I managed to squeeze it in.

And then, on the way home, I stopped to get gas for Henry. Put in 17.35 gallons at $1.729/gal and actually had time to get a bit bored while waiting for the tank to fill! Couldn't tell you the last time it took THAT long to get gas. Nice feeling, "akshually".

Another Great-Nephew!

Got an email this morning from my younger brother, which was a shock in and of itself. Then comes the message and attachments - pictures of his grandson! Nobody even knew my niece was expecting (well, I'm sure SHE knew). She had a picture of the baby posted on her MySpace a month or so ago and I sent a message asking who the baby was and she never responded. Guess she wanted to tell her parents first (smart girl) and she just did that on Saturday. So Dad now has q great-granddaughter and 4 great-grandsons. Unfortunately, they all live too far away to make a visit feasible. Anyway, here's a picture of Aidyn Michael.

More good news today; F confirmed our tickets for the Survivor finale! With just under 12 days to go before the taping starts, I'm glad to have the official word. LM at work was also totally thrilled!

I've had a few bad moments on and off during the day today; Buster sneaks into my thoughts at odd times. It's a bit odd, I think, that I miss him so much since I haven't lived with him in almost eleven months, but I always knew he was there whenever I wanted to visit. And I feel guilty because I didn't visit more often. I'm sure he's happy now; probably stealing the tennis ball from Gonzo or hiding macaroni and cheese from Nessie.

Good-Bye, Buster

Rainbow Bridge
Just this side of heaven is a place called Rainbow Bridge.

When an animal dies that has been especially close to someone here, that pet goes to Rainbow Bridge. There are meadows and hills for all of our special friends so they can run and play together. There is plenty of food, water and sunshine, and our friends are warm and comfortable.

All the animals that had been ill and old are restored to health and vigor; those who were hurt or maimed are made whole and strong again, just as we remember them in our dreams of days and times gone by. The animals are happy and content, except for one small thing; they each miss someone very special to them, who had to be left behind.

They all run and play together, but the day comes when one suddenly stops and looks into the distance. His bright eyes are intent; His eager body quivers. Suddenly he begins to run from the group, flying over the green grass, his legs carrying him faster and faster.

You have been spotted, and when you and your special friend finally meet, you cling together in joyous reunion, never to be parted again. The happy kisses rain upon your face; your hands again caress the beloved head, and you look once more into the trusting eyes of your pet, so long gone from your life but never absent from your heart.

Then you cross Rainbow Bridge together....

Author unknown...