Thursday, March 31, 2011

Blog neglect is bad for everyone

I am an inattentive blog-mom and have been neglecting my blog-child.

Sorry.

If it makes you feel any better, I've also been neglecting most everything else that crosses my path!

Not better?

Hmmm...

Well, I'm not one for making excuses, unless I have a really good one which is all the time because I can justify anything, but if you'll remember, I do have a tad going through my brain currently.  Even though I'm not a bucket of nerves like last week, I still have tons to think about in addition to, you know, actually performing the duties for which I'm paid.

It also doesn't help that Corey gives me no material.

Besides pretending he's an Iron Chef and whizzing through the kitchen, I've got nothin'.

Oh, but he did kinda lock us out of our apartment last night.  We had to wait outside for our landlord's son, me in my walk-the-dog gear, him in work pants and a holey undershirt.

And then he may or may not have gone out onto a ledge to clean the outside of our windows, in full view of every passing car, in a t-shirt, boxers and black socks.

Ok, so he gives me a little material.

With or without his input, I should be fully operational by mid-June.  Or tomorrow.  We'll see.

Tuesday, March 29, 2011

Ten on Tuesday

More fun food questions over at Roots and Rings, and I'm pretty sure I'll need to find me some pancakes ASAP.


1. What is a food that you never thought you would try, but then tried and liked?
Calamari.  I'm not a big seafood eater, and I'm even less of a squishy, slimy eater.  But one night I tried a little squid ring with lots and lots of special sauce.  It didn't kill me, didn't even make me gag a little, so since then I've managed to cut back on the sauce to taste more of the rubber...I mean squid.

2. Do you subscribe to any foodie publications? If so, which ones?
Nope, I just get my food news from Pioneer Woman.

3. What ingredient do you find yourself reaching for the most when you cook?
Butter.  My dad just fell off his seat (I tend to nag slightly about his liberal use of the stuff) but I don't use a lot, I just use it often.

4. Are there any foods that you hated as a child, but then learned to like as an adult?
Onions.  Is it possible I just mentioned my love of onions three times within seven days?  When I was five my dad brought home onion rings and I loved them.  But then I found out they were made of onions so I swore them off for at least a decade. 

5. What do you like to eat that others may consider weird?
I've really grown to love the combination of baked beans with hot dogs over cottage cheese.  As I was never a cottage cheese eater, I wasn't aware this isn't a normal combination of foods until I mentioned it to someone and got a "you ate what??" response.

6. What is the weirdest ingredient you’ve ever cooked with?
I rarely eat things that are weird, therefore I don't cook with them either.

7. Do you have any major food allergies?
No.  But I would like to be allergic to mushrooms.

8. Is there an ingredient that you would like to cook with, but are intimidated to try?
Phyllo dough.  It seems so finicky, but oh boy would I love me some cheese and spinach wrapped goodies.

9. Do you bake?
Yes.  I bake more than I cook.  Probably because the end result is tastier.

10. If you could go on any “foodie” show to compete, which one would it be, and why?
Man vs. Food.  What I wouldn't give to get paid to eat five pounds of pancake....

Weekend Update

...with Stacie Lucas.


"Hello, and welcome to the show."


But seriously, we have a lot of ground to cover.  I may actually revert to bullet points just to get this thing in at under 25 pages.  Maybe we should get started:

Hey, I love laser tag.

That's all I really wanted to talk about.  There was a bunch of other stuff, like a day of baking, freezing my bones outside, and coffee with a friend.  But the big ticket item was the laser tag.

My family is slightly addicted.

"Hmmm, what should we do for Katie's birthdaylaser tag!!"

...and then:

"Kimberlie, what do you want to do for your birthdaylaser tag!!!"

Next will be:

"Happy April 4thlaser tag!!!"

Followed by:

"I have this annoying little hang naillaser tag!!!"

My sister, Kimberlie's, birthday dinner was Saturday night.  So we had friends over for dinner, which was just to carbo-load and strategize for an evening of running (but not running because it's against the rules) around with a bunch of fifth graders shooting at stuff. 

"What's the point?"  Corey always asks.

Adrenaline.  There's kind of a rush in stalking your prey and then shooting the bejeezus out of it.

Winning.  It's nice to win.  And then rub it in everyone's faces.  However, I believe Charlie Sheen now owns this word so I'll probably have to pay him now.

Exercise.  We all came outta there sweaty so I'm sure we got a little cardio workout.

Target practice.  For those of us who hunt for real.  Or fight crime.  For the record, I do neither.

Youth serum.  Being silly is good for wrinkles.

Team building.  Learning to not shoot your fellow red team members will help you in the real world.

After all this, I can't see why anyone wouldn't want to play.  I'm pretty sure I know what you're thinking:

"I'll see you on the course."

Right you are, my friends.  It's on.

Friday, March 25, 2011

Five Things

The following was written last summer but never posted...probably because I thought I should re-think my answers to sound a little less, um, shallow.  But nevermind that.  I post now.

The Times Union, Albany's newspaper, recently interviewed my boss.  They touched on everything but the political mess in New York (thank goodness because there's more than enough material there to fill every newspaper).  One question was what five things could you not live without.

Easy.

But that couldn't include people.

Whammy.

So it got me thinking about what I couldn't live without:
  1. Bible.  This is what we call a Sunday School answer, the kind where you know what the right answer should be even though you think you'd much rather have your Xbox. Yes, I know I should not live without my Bible but sometimes I really just like TV time....but that's for another discussion.
  2. Cell phone.  Because it does everything from tell me which direction I am heading to how level my desk is.  On the rare occasion (read: often) when I leave it at home, I feel disconnected from the world.  Lost.  Confused.
  3. Sneakers.  Not to be confused with Snickers, number six on my list.  Without my sneakers I could not play.  And if I could not play I would be bored, and cranky.
  4. Craft supplies.  Again, bored and cranky.
  5. Computer.  I can't imagine how I survived before computers.
There are other very important items I could include, like underwear, television, and hair ties, but I think I got the best ones up there.  My boss had things like her convertible, cell phone and pictures of her family.

Very clever.  You can't include people so you use pictures of people.   And if I had a convertible I would not want to be without it either.

Nice exercise Times Union.

Friday Confessions

1.  I always seem to have a little gnat following me around.  He's buzzing around my office, then I find him keeping me company while I fold the laundry at home. 

Do I stink?

2.  I got my confrontation on last Friday.  Our parking lot was full of cars because of the basketball tournament going on at the Civic Center and I needed to save a spot for my boss, so I packed a trash can full of law books, taped a neon green sign to the front that said "RESERVED", and set it in the nearest spot.  Four seconds later a lady ran the thing over.  We had words.

3.  My little friend just flew up my nose.  I think this relationship has run its course.  But in all honesty I never was really that happy with it anyway.

4.  I mentioned on Tuesday how I love onions, but let me be very clear here:  I LOVE onions.  So, yes, I guess I do stink.

5.  Here's a major pet peeve: when I'm driving along on a two-lane road and someone up ahead stops to make a left turn and none of the cars ahead of me use the shoulder to go around.  I wouldn't call myself a road-rager except in this situation.

6.  Lysol tells me it's groddy and dangerous to use a regular soap dispenser because a million little germs are living on the pump and are transferred to your hands.  I do not understand why that matters.  Don't you use the soap to wash them off anyway?


7.  I work in a very fun office environment.  On Monday my co-worker brought in what she found under her bed.  It was a dead chipmunk.

8.  I was sad to see BYU lose last night to Florida, I love that Jimmer Fredette.  But then I was secretly glad because I don't have them going further in my bracket.

9.  My new favorite show is NBC's Perfect Couples.  Sorry Community and The Office, you're just going to have to step up your game.

10.  I'm starting to feel anxious brain again so I'm really glad this post is over.  You should be too because everything that follows is going to be written version of me pacing back and forth muttering nonsensicals.

...

Peace out!

Thursday, March 24, 2011

The things that run through my head

I started a few posts yesterday but I didn't like where they were heading.

They weren't all political or whiny, just boring.

I was in a mood yesterday, and probably will be again later today.

See, there aren't too many complaints to be dealt with at the moment.  And as the unofficial complaint department that leaves me time to find other things to do.

Like file.

But I hate to file.  Hate it more than folding laundry and washing dishes.  So I take a few mental breaks where I let my mind wander.

Where does it wander to, you ask?

(and here we bring it full circle...)

The things that put me in my mood!

I applied for a craft fair a few weeks ago.  It's only the major crafting event of the year in this area, and as a newbie to the art of selling my wares (but not those wares) I want to get as much exposure as possible.  I'm finding out not all of these events follow the same application path.  Sometimes it's who you know; sometimes it's first come, first served; and then others are exclusive to who's stuff is "good enough."

This craft fair is the "good enough" kind.  And I'm s'posed to find out this week, by Friday, if I'm good enough.  So during my thinky-time I think:

Why haven't I heard yet?

Is my stuff that bad?

Oh Lordy, I didn't make it.

But if I did, I'll have a million felt balls to make.

Yeah, I totally made it.

So why haven't they let me know??

Because I didn't make it!!

As Corey said this morning, "Stop thinking."

But then there's another issue that wracks my brain when I'm not otherwise full of doubt/pride.

I want a house.  Now.  Yesterday would have been better, but NOW will do just fine.

I'm not normally very patient, but I'm even less so when I have that gut feeling.  You know, the one where you just know whatever it is you're thinkin' is what you should be doin'.  Like when I bought my car.  I was with my parents who were actually the ones doing the shopping.  I was planning on looking in the very near future, but when I saw my little Tucson sitting on that lot I just knew she was the one.

I spent a few weeks looking at other cars but eventually came back to the car I now own and love.  Because I knew.

With this house stuff I knew it was time last fall and I have since had to wait.  Four.  Whole.  Months.  And it's finally starting to kill me.  How many times each day can I check MLS listings and Craigslist postings?  I may find one new listing every other week.

But as I've mentioned, I've already found my dream house.  Enter number three "things that make me anxious": how to convince Corey it is also his dream house when he is already "10% sure we will get that house."



Sometimes he says things in weird ways.  This is how he says he doesn't like it and doesn't want it.  But he's only 90% sure he doesn't want it, so that means I still have a chance.

So you're tellin' me there's a chance?!

(if you can name that movie we were probably separated at birth)

So this is why I could not put anything into words yesterday; too much junk swirling around in my head.  The only reason I'm able to write out the above right now is that I have a large amount of heroin...just kidding.  I just haven't had a chance to fret.  But give me time.

Tuesday, March 22, 2011

Ten on Tuesday

More fun questions over at Roots and Rings...the kind that make you hungry.


1. What condiments are always, always in your fridge?
For me: mustard.  Gotta have mustard on almost anything.  For Corey: ketchup and mayonnaise.  They guy can't have a sandwich unless it's completely saturated with mayo.


2. How do you like your steak cooked? Your burgers?
I don't eat steak.  Never been much of a fan of red meat.  And for the occasional burger I'm starting to lean more toward a dab of pink.  Before I preferred it well done plus ten more minutes.

3. What’s your favorite use for fresh tomatoes?
On someone else's salad. 

4. What’s your go-to dinner when you haven’t planned anything in advance and you don’t feel like going out?
It used to be pancakes, but I married a non-pancake eater.  So now it's either hot dogs with whatever we have in the fridge slathered all over it...or cereal.

5. What’s your favorite snack food lately?
Cheese and onion crackers.  It's the onion that does it for me.  I'm a sucker for all things oniony.

6. What’s your favorite weekend breakfast to make at home?
Again, pancakes.  But for breakfast Corey will do waffles, so I compromise.  Otherwise our favorite breakfast is walking down to the Bread Basket and picking up some fresh pastries.

7. What’s your favorite thing to grill? How do you do it?
Chicken with anything but barbeque sauce.  I also enjoy meat 'n veggies on sticks.  With onions.

8. What’s your favorite wine for under $10? If you’re not a wine person, what brand of beer is your favorite?
I drink wine but I'm a dummy when it comes to brands.  For beer I like Yuengling, but don't ask my what kind of beer it is because I would say, "the good kind."

9. Give us your most delicious cocktail recipe.
Kahlua and whole milk.  But that's more of an after dinner, put me to sleep drink.

10. How do you like your eggs?
Scrambled in a burrito, scrambled in rice, over medium with corned beef and hash.

...

And now I'm not sure if I need to party or fry an egg.

Monday, March 21, 2011

Spring Has Finally Sprung

Yay!  And I've seen brave little green sprouts all over the place!

Unfortunately, they are now all covered by about three inches of snow.

But I'm not even going to let that bother me because there's something more exciting than the early signs of spring.

House Hunting!!

Officially, that is.  I've been lurking the MLS listings for months now.  I would go so far as to say I have our dream house, the house in which we will raise our seven children, all picked out, and mentally decorated.

Which it needs.


Badly.  But the charm is in the bones of this house.  And I love, love, love me a good before-and-after project.

Would you believe I have a step-by-step plan for this room which I am assuming is supposed to be a dining room?

Believe it.  And it includes buffing the glorious hardwood floors I'm assuming lie under this hideous checker board.


The kitchen...well, the kitchen will need to be ripped out completely.  But this just means we get the kitchen we want instead of the kitchen previous owners wanted.  Again, I have ideas.  Think cork floor, open cabinets.  That's all I'm saying.


This house has five bedrooms (so our seven dear children will have to bunk-up), two bathrooms, fireplace, a nice open yard, and a little apartment over the detached garage.

Not to mention it's in a neighborhood of Saratoga that is on the verge of a boom, the arts district and downtown are within walking distance, and the elementary school is less than a block away.  But because it's a little ugly the asking price is practically a steal (one I hope to take advantage of...ahem, Corey).  I know, with a little TLC and handy, capable contractors we could make this a cozy home.

But then there's this little gem...


The "kitchen" in the apartment over the garage.  I'm not quite sure how to tackle this project yet.

But first I'm trying to convince Corey this is our house.

Officially.

Friday, March 18, 2011

Friday Confessions

1.  Oliver has been in the figurative dog house.  He has developed a pre-teen, defiant attitude despite being the equivalent of a 46 year old man.  When I call him he walks the other way.  Oh, and there's the issue of him chasing after joggers and scaring them into on-coming traffic I'm a little concerned about.

2.  I frequent several grocery stores.  In the one near my parents' house there is a darling little cashier who hits on me by asking every single time if he's seen me before.  My response, "Yeah.  Here."  Every.  Single.  Time.

3.  The English language frustrates me: "i" before "e" except after "c"?  Why??  Aren't "receive" and "retrieve" practically the same word??  And don't even get me started on "weird".

4.  Sometimes I randomly start singing Tina Turner or Mariah Carey songs.

5.  But I definitely don't whistle the tunes.  When you whistle your mouth takes the same shape as draggin' on a cigarette and I prefer not to have ciggy wrinkles, causing people to think I've been smoking all these years when really I just like to whistle.

No offense to smokers.  I'm just not a fan of smoking.  Or wrinkles.

6.  I have no idea what WASP stands for.  It's probably something offensive, and I should have looked it up before I wrote this, but I didn't.  I've seen it in a buncha places and I've always just pretended I knew what it meant.

7.  I believe it is my civic duty to flash on-coming traffic if they are going to pass a police car.

8.  It is not safe to share my cereal.  I tend to be very hand-on when selecting each shredded wheat biscuit, which means I've handled just about every single one in that box.  Eat at your own risk.

But the chances of you being at my house in the morning are slim so just never mind.

9.  My sister calls my dog's weenie "the deceiver".  If you've ever had a male dog you know occasionally they get a little excited and a little red rocket makes an appearance.  On such occasion my sister told me his "deceiver" was out and we all got a little grossed out.  Then we realized what she said.  "What?  He's fixed so he's deceiving all the female dogs."

10.  I filled out a bracket for this year's basketball tournament like I have since I've been with Corey.  I've never come close to winning since that first year when I could have placed third but didn't because Mr. Know-It-All-About-Sports didn't like one of my selections and suggested I change it.  That move cost me several years of gloating and $30.

...

Have a happy, sunny Friday!

Thursday, March 17, 2011

Top 'o the Mornin' To Ya!

I am wearing green today!  It's a lovely shade of pea soup that covers most of my body.

I have two pairs of pants that I only wear one day a year:  my red velvet pants I wear once right before Christmas, and my pea green pants I wear on St. Patty's Day.

So today I have my specialty pants on and I feel a little stupid.

See, I look 100% not Irish.  There is a big bunch of ethnicities swimming around in my gene pool, one pinky size bit might be Irish, but with my big round head and purple skin I just look like a wannabe.

But, because I'm a little more Irish by marriage, I don my pea pants with pride!

Onward brothers and sisters!


(and maybe next year I'll learn who this St. Patrick guy was...)

Wednesday, March 16, 2011

Chocolate Progress

I am officially one week into my chocolate fast, and I have to say I've had only a few minor meltdowns.

That may be due to my "break" on Sunday to participate in a Brownie Bake-off.

But in my defense that bake-off was planned months ago, I forgot about it last Wednesday when I pledged to abstain, and I'm pretty sure I got permission.

Then I heard from a semi-practicing Catholic that they take breaks on Sundays anyway.

So I'm extra covered.

Although I plan on going straight through to Easter with no more interruptions.

For five and a half more weeks.  Which is, um, a lot longer than I thought...

**breathe**
I should survive.  At least I can look at it as five and a half more weeks of telling people why I'm grouchy not allowing myself to eat chocolate. 

See, I always saw Lent and the practice of giving things up for 40 days as an obligation instead of a sacrifice, and I think a lot of other people do, too.  But the sacrifice is where the love is, and I think is what is honored more.

Hey, I'm grouchy, leave me alone sacrificing, come love Jesus with me!

But, alas, I'm still a sinnin' lady.  I'm going to want those leftover brownies sitting on my counter as much as I want to breathe and I'm going to pout a little bit when I realize I can't have them.

Next week's lesson: mercy and grace. 

Halleluiah!

Tuesday, March 15, 2011

Ten on Tuesday

Gotta bust these out lickety-split today...



1. What is your cleaning style like?
Corey says, "What cleaning style??"  But he's a brat.  I do a little here, then a little there, leaving half finished projects all over the place. 
2. What is your favorite thing to add to an outfit to take it from casual to classy?
A belt.  I spruce up pjs all the time with a fancy belt and am able to then wear them to work.   Yes, I wear my sleep clothes to work sometimes.  Don't judge.

3. Do you like stormy weather?
YES.  I am a big fan of disastrous weather.  Unless it's wind.  I'm afraid huge wind gusts will pick up garbage cans and throw them through my windows.

4. What is your favorite cold treat on a hot day?
Plum Dandy yogurt, and all the fancy fixin's.

5. What is your favorite warm treat on a cold day?
Depends on my mood, sometimes I need me some warm cider, sometimes I need a plate full of crispy tater tots.

6. Who is your favorite animated character?
Any one of those Looney Tunes.  Although I do get a big kick out of Sheen Estevez.  You know, the guy from Jimmy Neutron...?

7. What do you keep your jewelry in?
A jewelry stand with more drawers than I have jewelry.  But I'm working on my collection of Claire's fashion hoops.

8. Do any of the rooms in your house have a theme?
Yeah, brown.  I think I've mentioned before Corey's love of all things brown.  I've managed to sneak a little red and green into the mix.  Oh, and we now have bath towels in the colors of South Africa's flag.

9. Do you watch any interior design TV shows – if so, what is your favorite?
I am addicted to HGTV, more specifically any remodeling shows.  I almost have Corey convinced we, too, could take a dilapidated shanty and turn it into our dream house.

And I have just the shanty in mind...

10. When was the last time you did something risk-taking?
Yesterday.  I borrowed Corey's car while he's been in Vegas.  It's new, and fancy, and fast, and he thinks I can't handle it and will run over old people.  True story.

...

Enjoy Tuesday!  And if you're in the arctic circle (northeast), enjoy watching the four feet of snow melt!!

Friday, March 11, 2011

Friday Confessions

1.  I like cheese.  I'm not all ga-ga over it, but I do enjoy me a slice over crackers occasionally.  However, to think of how it's made, with all the bacteria nonsense, makes me a little queasy.

2.  Corey grades my posts.  Surprisingly, the ones where I mention him receive A+ marks.

3.  Speaking of Corey, sometimes he gets what he deserves for being so snarky.  Yesterday, a car drove through a huge puddle as he was walking down the sidewalk.  And, yes, he was drenched.  We later found chunks of snow stuck in the hood of his jacket.

4.  And then he was nearly sexually assaulted by the dog.

5.  I keep tissues in my sleeves.  Like your grammy.  Then I forget about them and find tissues laying all around the house.  Or in the dryer.  Or in my dog's mouth.

6.  I want to be famous just so I can be on Dancing With the Stars.

7.  My nails grow funny.  Because the skin creeps out I can't cut them short and when I type on a laptop my fingers slide all around them keys.

8.  I can never have a laptop and that makes me sad.

9.  I pick up dogs.  The little ones.  If you have a dog that is pick-upable I will.  And then I will ignore you.  Sorry.

10.  Yesterday was my parents' anniversary and I had to be reminded by my husband.  I am a bad daughter.  But then again it's something like 32 years they've been married so I'm sure they aren't making a big deal anymore.  But then again being married 32 years to my dad should earn my mom a gold star or a parade.  I just drive the guy home from work and I want to throw myself out of the car.

Just kidding daddy!!  Happy Anniversary!!

...

Peace out, foo's.  Just kidding.  I think very highly of you.

Thursday, March 10, 2011

Just Say No!...to Chocolate

I did the Mardi Gras thing Tuesday: I ate pancakes.

They were as thin as crepes because I had to use waffle batter, but I ate them anyway.  And they were good.

Then I did the Lent thing Wednesday: I gave up chocolate.

My sweet, sweet nourishment.

Because it's the least I can do for a savior who gave up, you know, his life.

Follow me here: I have an unhealthy love for Snickers.  I need it.  It makes my world go 'round

(my arm is not saying it needs candy, this is a pie chart, if you will.)

So by giving up Snickers and it's chocolaty cousins I have a giant, arm-sized hole.  My life as I know it is over.  I have no reason to be...

Uh, hey Stace, you think maybe you let your sweet treats get a liiiiitle more credit than they deserve?

......Yep.

So now I am giving up something I thought was keeping me going, what I thought I needed, and filling it with what I really need:

So, as much as I would like to shove Hershey's kisses by the handful down my throat, I will abstain.

Again, it's the least I can do.

But for your sake I'll be sure to take pictures of what Stacie with the shakes looks like.

...

P.S.  I'm not trying to minimize the importance of God in a person's life to what can fill up a single appendage...I  think we can agree He needs to be in everything, but giving up just one thing, one important worldly thing helps us remember what exactly our priorities should be...and I like to draw on my computer.

Wednesday, March 9, 2011

More on Snow and Ice

I feel my ten years spent in the northern part of Indiana, where we had our share of snow and freezing temperatures, did not prepare me for the winters I've experienced here in upstate New York.  Or, as I like to call it, the arctic circle of death.

But I exaggerate.

In my daily walks this winter I've had first-hand, up close and personal experience with five types of slippery situations you can expect in this part of the world.  I will now rank them in order of severity:
  1. Regular ice: this is easy.  It looks like an ice cube, cloudy and wet.  Very visible and avoidable, however not entirely difficult to walk on.
  2. Black ice: this stuff will fool you.  It looks like an innocent little puddle or wet spot, but as soon as you try to jump in it to splash your husband your feet are lookin' down at you asking what the heck you were thinking.
  3. Packed snow: not as slippery as black ice, but much more clever in its disguise.  "Hey, I think I'll walk on that snow instead of this ice....whoooooaaaaa bad choice!"
  4. Super slush: this is snow that can't decide if it's going to freeze or melt so it does both.  And there you go, walking out of the bead store on your way to meet Corey and all of a sudden you realize your feet are sliding out to the side and your butt's on its way to the ground.  Hypothetically.
  5. Hidden ice: this jerk is just laying there waiting for you.  Waiting for you to take that first confident step onto a fresh powdery snow.  But this snow is in cahoots with the ice.  It has no intention of giving you any kind of footing.
And there you have culmination of my research.  I hope it helps.  Walk gently my friends.

Tuesday, March 8, 2011

Ten on Tuesday

Here is something only a handful of people know about me: I hate being late.  I despise it.  Loathe it.  However, there are a few things that I will be consistently late for.  Like work, my mom's sewing class, church, and this Ten on Tuesday business.  I've come to terms with my lateness in these areas.  So should you.

Now, let's get on with it.


1. How did your parents decide on your name?
I remember something about an actress?  I don't have a good story, but my sister does.  When my mom was pregnant her mom was seeing this psychic who told her the baby was going to be a girl.  My parents wanted so badly for her to be wrong so they assumed they were going to have a boy, and he would be named Nicholas.  When Nick came out without the necessary extra parts my parents said, "ummmm, how about Katie?"  So now she is Katie Nichole.


2. Do your initials (First, Middle, Last) spell out anything fun/funny?
I'm SJL now.  SJD up until September of '09.  My old college roommate, Alica Swan, was going to have the middle name Samantha.

Everyone else has a great story...

3. Did you take your middle name from childhood or did you take your maiden name as your middle name?
I kept my old middle name, Stacie Jo Lucas.  But I could have went with Stacie Dina Lucas.  Sounds like a regular name, too.

Could have went?  Is that right?

4. Are you or will you name your children thematically (ie. same first letter, all of same origin…)
I shouldn't, because by the time I get to my ninth child I might start making up funky names that will scar the poor dear forever.

5. Did you decide on baby names as a little girl? Did you stick to them or change your mind?
If I had names picked out as a kid I don't remember them.  I did ponder a few names in college, but an ex-boyfriend beat me to the punch and stole one of them.  I have since revised my selection.

6. Does your family have any names that have been passed down through generations?
There are three Williams on Corey's side, that I know of.  And a couple Joseph's on my dad's side (three if you count my abbreviated "Jo").  I like the idea behind passing down names:

"Hey, I think so highly of you I'm going to stick my kid with your name for the rest of his/her life!"

Awww.  Warm fuzzies!

7. Do you look at the meaning of the name or just the name itself?
The name.  If meanings were important I would just call people Tuna Breath or Cheese Head or Knows How To Invest Wisely...or whatever our names really mean.

8. Do you name pets with human names (Sally, Henry) or with pet names (Fluffy, Mr. Bo Bo)?
I go with infrequently used names.  Like for the dogs: Zack, Dixie, Lucy, Indy and Oliver.  The turtle was Humphrey.  Guinea pig, Neapolitan.  Rescued bird that didn't end up making it, Archimedes.

Oh, but the bunny was Fluffy.  Only because she really was fluffy.

9. Are there any names that you have an affinity or dislike for based on a childhood experience/someone you once knew?
There are a few names that bring back some not-so-fond memories....

"Hey, let's dig 'em up!!"

Yeah....no.

10. What are some of your favorite names? Why?
I like unique names.  Not like celebrity "unique" (read: weird), but names other than your typical Jessica and Jonathan. 

(Note: I am in no way saying those are crappy names.)

But I'm not going to share them because one or seven may end up with my future offspring and I'd rather not go through the "wow, that name sucks" round of comments.  Thanksomuch.

...

Enjoy Tuesday!  I, again, woke up thinking today was a day other than today....so I'm off to enjoy not Monday!

Monday, March 7, 2011

Weekend Wrap Up, Or Maybe Not

Snow.

That's it.  That's all I want to talk about.

I've taken offense to this recent weather development.  Just when we start to hit the 50 degree mark, a brief reminder that spring is on its way, we get dumped on with a billion inches of snow.

Remember, I love snow.  Love, love, love it.  In December.  And January.  But eventually, as with peanut butter on an English muffin every single day, I get sick of it.  Really stinkin' sick.

It takes me 15 minutes to get dressed just to let the dog out to do his business.  And I have to wear two pairs of pants at all times.  Don't even get me started on the frump-factor of said pants, they score off the charts, my co-workers can verify.

And I slip and slide wherever I go.  Walking the dog, walking to my car, standing in the driveway.  When I'm struggling to regain footing I put my panic face on, which is a very contorted version of my own.  With the face comes an inside-voice scream/holler/"whhooooeeeeaaaooowww!"

It's embarrassing, to say the least.

I need spring to be here.

**sigh**

Friday, March 4, 2011

He should be ashamed

Sorry folks, no Friday Confessions this week.  I was exceptionally well-behaved.

But I did want to mention an incident that makes me shake my head in amazement:

Tuesday night Corey lost Oliver.

Not as in roaming the cold streets, but in our bedroom.

See, we have a nightly routine.  I go to bed first, turn down Corey's side of the covers then Oliver jumps up and we snuggle until I fall asleep.  Or until Oliver rolls over (ugh, men).  Then Corey comes in, O-dog jumps down and falls asleep on Corey's side of the bed.

Always.

Unless the dog comes back on the bed.  Next to Corey.

(Aunt Cindy, before you think we're allowing a big, smelly, dirty dog on your beautiful quilt let me first say we only allow Oliver on the sheets.  There are two layers of stuff between your masterpiece and O's stank.)

So, Tuesday night was a back on the bed night.

Except Corey forgot.

He wakes up in the middle of the night.  Does a little stretch and looks over to where he expects to find the dog.  Only he's not there.

A tad perplexed, he calls for him, "Oliver?  Oliver-dog?"

There was a rustle under the covers.

"Oliver...is that you?"

Corey lifts them up and finds an eyeball looking at him. 

The dog was snuggled right up against him the entire time.

I'm not quite sure this man should have children.

But he will.

Thursday, March 3, 2011


Good day to everyone....from Oliver Dog!

Wednesday, March 2, 2011

Tragedy

I left my phone at home.  And I am now at work, 20 miles away.

So for the entire day, now until I get home around 9:30pm, I will be completely disconnected from the world.

Do you want to send me a text about how annoying your boss is?

I won't see it.

Is there a story you need to tell me that can't go through your email where network administrators may be snooping?

Don't bother!

Want to send me a picture of your dog dragging its butt across the floor??

Email it to Walgreens, have them print it out, pick it up, put it in an envelope with my address on it and mail it to me!

...

Maybe that is a bit overboard.  Just hold that thought.  Until tomorrow.

Tuesday, March 1, 2011

Ten on Tuesday


1. What type of cell phone do you have and how would you rate it?
I have one of the first versions of the Motorola Droid.  I loved it when I got it, yeah it was a little bulky and weighs about two pounds, but I could pinch my fingers and make the screen shrink!

A few months later a newer version came out and I was over it.  Sitting next to Corey's light-as-air Samsung Something, this sucker looks like garbage.

Despite it all, I do still like the thing.


2. What has been your most serious injury?
Well, I've never broken anything and I've never needed stitches.  I've been scraped and bruised, but nothing too serious.

On Sunday I pulled a muscle in my hip making the bed.  That was pretty painful...

3. What is one movie you hate and why?
I can only think of movies I strongly dislike (The Wedding Date and Leap Year) so I am going to hijack this question to ask a question of my own: do people really think the more f-bombs the merrier?  Does this make a concept funnier??

Wait a second, I think my old lady is showing...

4. How many email addresses do you have?
I have a hotmail, a gmail and an expired yahoo.  Then I have an account for an event my dad and I plan every fall now and will have another one for the event we're planning for this summer.

Needless to say, I have a little piece of paper in my wallet to help me keep track of user names, passwords, and my own name, as even that changes from account to account.

5. What website do you waste the most time on?
It's a tie between blogger and People online.  First I need to the minute updates on what all of my bloggie friends are doing and second I need to see what exactly is up with Selena and Justin.

6. Which Mexican restaurant makes the best salsa?
I'm not a salsa gal.  But I will tell you who makes the best tamales: my mom.

7. What is your dream car?
Currently, one that gets me from here to there using as little gas as possible.  But in a perfect, 70-cent gas world I would love Mercedes new mid-size SUV.  It looks like a cute little sneaker.

8. If you could spend up to $100 with no strings or restrictions or guilt, what would you buy?
I would like some new shoes, please.  I'm way behind in shoe fashion and it's 'bout to be embarrassing.  But I'm afraid if I were allowed to go willy-nilly in a DSW (because of course you want more bang for your buck in this situation) I would head straight for the orthotics.  My days of hurts-so-bad-I-can-only-sit-here-and-look-pretty are over.

9. What is your favorite board game?
Monopoly.  Even though I lose my patience and make careless investments that cost me the game.  Ugh.  But I have good memories of playing with the fam.

10. How often do you change your hairstyle?
Not often enough.  I used to change every couple months in college.  I'd go short, grow it out, cut it all funky, then put red in it, then put blond in it, then cry because the red and blond made pink.  It was fun.   But now that I'm a grown up I've gone all boring with my 'do.  Only just recently did I dare try a slightest hint of highlights.  And the idea of going pixie will probably forever be an idea. 

Whoopsie!  There goes my old lady again...

...

Enjoy Tuesday folks!  (More like Monday for me...I was laid up yesterday with a bed-makin' injury.  You know how it is.)