So, a few weekends ago I watched several fire districts come together and burn a house down just a couple blocks from where I live. I have a huge amount of really great pictures, but I'll limit my sharing to a handful.

It was very interesting to watch them set up, organize everything and run drills. I have even more of a burning desire to try on a suit and try it myself. I might even be able to make that happen. I'm working on it.

They set up pools to hold the water for the drill, and carted the water in from town. It took 2 tankers apiece to fill each tub. This water was sucked into the engine and pushed out the hoses. Nice little get up!

Anyways, here are some pics. Enjoy! I did. *smiles*

So, I did most of my Christmas decorating this last week. I finished the inside, and am going to finish the outside this weekend. Just need another extension cord...My Window of Joyous Lightage!

My tree of Glorious Pinkness!

I also painting a little decorating I bought 2 years ago, and covered bits of it with happy, sparkly glitter, and I put out various little trinkets and whatnot's. I hung my Snowflakes, and I am done. It's not much but I love it.

I have the nativity that Lady Mockingbird gave me; the one with the pissed off baby Jesus. Love it! Giggles galore every time I see it!

This made my entire day worthwhile!

Our weekly merchandise trucks are huge this time of year. Last week it took us 3.5 hours to get the truck unloaded. However, for most of that time, I had this to look at

and that made me smile and giggle. Yep! There was a leak in the truck wall, and it froze these boxes of freight to them and I couldn't get them off. We had to cut them open where they were and take the freight out. Hahahaha!

I think I have about 3 inches of snow. Should be fun driving today. They have been plowing the roads on and off all day, so I'm not worried. From the sounds of it, this is the winter I have to look forward to, so I might as well suck it up and get used to it. Can't hide in town for the next three months.

Off to shower and get ready for work. I charged my camera battery, so I should be snapping some pretty pictures on the way home today. Stay tuned!

Eeeeeeeeevil!

This is a picture (poor, but adequate enough) of my finger pointing at the first flakey-flake of evil. Wonder what things will look like when I head to work tonight at 10:30pm?

Happy dreams

Not sure what he's dreaming about, but I know it's a good dream!

Apparently, after I left, the cats carried on and on about the horribleness of it all. "Mom kicked us out and we are all cold and damp and starving and neglected so please let us come into YOUR house neighbor lady because we are making a racket and will continue to do so *insert kitty swear words here*. "My neighbor was amused. Thank goodness. I think I will need to clarify to her that unless I call her and tell her to let them in the house, they need to stay out. She knows where the spare key is, and was telling me she had been thinking about it because they were SO miserable and sad and whine-eee. They spent a whole 7 hours outside. Poor dears! They are sound asleep from their exhausting trial. They will probably sleep into next week from the stress of the "I had to be outside for 7 hours" incident. Poor dears indeed. *insert human swearing here*.
I had a fantabugrandious time crafting with Mary Lou and Merle. It's been to long, and we had a great time eating home made clam chowder and my apple pie. They demanded the recipe, so I have emailed it to them. In return, they had to pose for a picture. Merle is on the left and Mary Lou is in the middle.

Lost power again last night. My phone wakes me up when it comes back on, though. The instructional voice tells me I need to press the center button for 'menu'. Then it beeps. The microwave helps the phone by picking up the beeping and continuing until I put in a time. Then there is the red flashing of my alarm clock, and the green flashing of my oven clock. Really? Seriously? There is no way I can sleep through a power out in this house.

The cats decided to have an exchange of words about 4am. If I had a machine that could translate cat-speak into english, it would break. The sounds that come out of these cats mouths would make words that I am sure would make a sailor cry. Since I can't understand them, I try to play referee and calm the masses. "Misty, what are you growling at? You can't even SEE Pug from here!" "Smudge, he's not even TOUCHING you!" "Pug, stop laying so close to them. There is plenty of room up here. You are just trying to annoy them!" After a few minutes of this, one of two things happen. They settle down, or I kick them out. This morning they went out. They will stay out until I come back from crafting at the fire station. It will (hopefully) do them good.

So, it is Saturday, and I choose to arise at 5am. Why? Well, because I want to bake a pie to take to craft-o-rama day, and I didn't want to mae it last night. So, I have my hour to coffee and computer it up, then I will make pie, shower, pack the care with the entire contents of my magical craft cabinet, and head out. I be all excited! It's been months, and I am looking forward to hearing what everyone has been up to this summer.

Pig pile and recent swap.

This morning I saw this fabulous Kodak moment! These two sisters truly adore each other.

This is a recent hand drawn/painted ATC swap I finished.

I know you look to these journal pages for substance (Hahahahahaha!!! I crack myself up!), and I have yet to give you any updatey goodness on so many things that have happened recently. Especially the fabulous visit of Peter and Ursi. However, I am just not in the posty mood. Work is in full retail holiday swing, and it's a tough on this year. Just pop in occasionally and see if I have had a moment of posty excitement. It's bound to happen sooner or later!

Being Ruths friend can be so hard!

I adore her, though, so it is all worth it. We have high wind and storm warnings starting around 8pm tonight. They are to last until Monday morning. So, I went over and put up the last support post and stapled the fencing to it. Then I started on the wind break of clear plastic. She has a bunch of small sheets we could piece meal together, but the prospect of doing that didn't make me happy. So, I measured the place up and walked to the local hardware/liquor store and bought a huuuuge roll of 4-ply white-ish plastic. With her help I have gotten it up, and we will check how it is holding up throughout the day, and see if we need to put up more. About 1/3rd of the outdoor cat hotel has been sheeted off.Hopefully that is all we need to do, but there is plenty of plastic left for more encasing goodness

Hmmmm,,,a little behind, aren't I?

I see I have no posts about the fabulous visit with my uncle Peter and his lovely side kick, Ursi. Seems like I have been to busy to post much of anything. I did just spend 3 hours at Ruth's house, steam cleaning her carpets for her. Only 1/3rd left to clean. I really must like that lady to do all this crazy domestic stuff. *grin*

I'd promise to post about the visit, but right now I am

A. Not in the mood to do anything else structured.
B. Lazy.
C. All of the above, and more!

So, sorry folks. Nothing to see here. Move along.

A veggie so full of cabbage-eee goodness shouldn't be so hard to prep! I just made a yummy apple-rabi slaw, but good GOD!!! Peeling and grating exhaustion! I need a little food preper...

What a way to end a week!

Today, in the fabulous town of Vernonia, two men were standing between their trucks comparing rifles. They were in the post office parking lot. Awesome!

On my way home a few days ago, I had a car with 3 kids in it (all 12 or less) pass me. The adult driving was in full clown get-up! Face paint, red nose, afro orange hair.OMG!!! I love my drive home!

Spent the last 15 minute making faces at two kids on a school bus. They loved it! I really enjoy my drive home!

Dinner drive.

Drove Ruth to dinner at the Blue House. However, we took the scenic route to the resturant, since it was such a lovely evening! Drove out of town about 7 miles and hung a left on McDonald road. The animals up there don't see many cars, or they are so inbreed that their response time is mega slow. I drove over a chipmunk. Literally. I looked in the rear view mirror and he was still sitting there, trying to process what had just happened. Then he slowly wandered off the road and into the grass. Freak.

Had a close encounter with a squirrel, except in slow motion. I saw him and by the time I came up to him on the road I was going about 6 miles an hour, and he was still trying to decided whether to finish making a run for it, or abandon his quest for the other side and move the 2 feet back to safety. I went around him and left him to ponder his choices. Weirdo.

Had a similar encounter with a small Junco. Seriously? A bird?!! Hey bird! Try flying away BEFORE I get to ya, not after. Dork.

Anyways, after our exciting Northwest Trek experience with the wildlife, I filled up with gas and we ate greek. Ruth had never been there, and was thinking of taking some company there. Now she knows how good it is. We then hit the grocery store for cat food so that the little beasties wouldn't attack Ruth in the middle of the night and try and chew her leg off.

I helped bring the stuff into her house, said goodnight, and then gave Pug a car ride across the street to my place. He doesn't quite know what to make of being IN a moving vehicle, so I try and do this occasionally. Would rather it be familiar in case I need to take him somewhere, like a vet.

To think this little girl would run away from me whenever I came within 20 feet of her. Now she hogs the bed and begs for pets and head scritches! She rewards me by sticking out her tongue at me.

It's only taken me almost a year and a half to win her trust. Well worth it! She will be warm and happy this winterI believe her to be about 13 -14 years old.

99% done!

I finished the yard yesterday. I haven't cleaned out the old fireplace, but I will. Then I can make little fires and roast little wieners!

So, this is a picture of the yard part done.

This is the yard done. Less tree branches, no poop in the grass, the garbage is gone, and there is a huuuuge pile of yard debris you can't see by the tree on the right. I have cleaned up 2 chairs Ruth has. At least they are as clean as they can get, and I am ready for company!

Any takers?

Yesterday.

It was full of a bunch of these moments;

And it had a bunch of these moments, too!

Hehehe!

Slow morning. Ha!

Wow! I have been busy and it ain't even 9:30 yet.
Decided to start cleaning up the pretty little side yard at the apartment. You don NOT even want to know how much dog poop I have gathered so far. I probably only have about a 1/3rd of it. I have made a ginormous pile of branches, and will be racking up much debris shortly. I wish I had taken a picture of the 'before' but I have a picture of the 'right now, and will take one or two (hundred) more before I am done. I should have it all finished by Sunday. Then I'll stat on the inside of the house.
I am happy to say that I love yard work. If i didn't, I'd have less to bore all y'all with.

What a beautiful morning!

Opened my front door at 6am so I could watch the sky change from night to morning. Snuggle with Pug, which tends to be the highlight of my day. He is such a sweet little man! About 6:45 I wandered outside to sit in my lawnchair and enjoy themorning. Deadheaded some flowers and let the thoughts about my week rolled in and out of my head.
Work has been highly stressful. I am starting to wonder if I am on the 'out to fire' list. I feel I am being treated that way, but really don't know what to do about it. The management team was informed yesterday that labor hours will NOT get better. They will become even more sparse. Our feeling that we have had less hours this year to work with and more to do has been correct. I am really starting to dread the whole work thing, and finding it harder to more than 'bare bones appreciate' the fact that I have a full time job at all. I don't like that feeling, or the way the stress is making me act. I really need to do something about it, but at this point I can't seem to figure out what.

Anyhow, the weekend is here now. I am off to put on my outdoor work clothes and start my day. I do need to put another pot of coffee on, though, before I do anything else. I have been cleaning up all my picture files, and think I have a few gems for you that I will post later.

Hope you all are enjoying the sunny morning, too!

Sunday morning hair

I took this picture trying to capture how cute Pug is in the morning. Instead, I captured a picture of the morning hair I get up with every day. I laughed so hard when I saw this! What a beauty I am! Heheheh!

what did did this weekend.

1. I finished fencing in Ruth's carport, which included cutting and screwing a bunch of boards to cover various holes, and making a floor for a cabinet she has that will be a kitty sleeping home. Now she can put 8 of 10 kitties outside.
2. I cleaned up a lot of my front flower beds; dead heading flowers, weeding...you know the drill.
3. I picked up my little housie.
4. Two loads of dishes.
5. Hung a new curtain rod, moved some curtain clip holders around, and rehung my closet curtain with an added lace curtain over the top to soften the look. Turned out quite nicely.
6. Helped Ruth trim a large bush, and cut up most of the wood for my little outdoor fireplace. What I didn't get to cutting, I dragged back to my place to work on later.
7. Harvested some carrots and onions and made a salad.
8. Printed Peanut pictures out for A and spent some time with him, chatting and saying goodbye. Didn't know him well, but really liked the guy. I wish him all the best, and little Peanut, too.
9. Started a bunch of commissioned pieces for a child's 3rd Birthday party. Two pieces down, 3 or more to go (as she keeps adding stuff she wants)
10. sewed up 3 items that have been sitting around waiting for repairs for a while.
11. Mailed 42nd of July pics to Bill and Ls.
12. Watched several T V show episodes.
13. Slept 10 hours both Friday and Saturday night.
14. Worked on several silly little crafts which I shall take pictures of and post when they are finished.
15. Made chicken fried steaks. Yummy!
16. deleted, sorted, and reorganized all my computer pictures in hopes of getting a little more space freed up. No such luck.
17. Quiet time in the mornings, and a nap Saturday. Very nice!
18. Reading each evening for about 15-20 minutes. Super nice!

What I have left to do? Make a lunch and continue working on the commissioned pieces. Then to bed.

Beautiful morning!

I rolled out of bed around 6:30am. I have spent the morning playing with various kitties, trimming up my front flower beds , drinking coffee and watching the sun come up and the world around me wake up. It was a nippy 48F around 7:30. it's now a whoopin' 52F. My sidewalk looks like plants bombs went off, and I am on my second cup of coffee. I truly love lazy, quiet mornings like this, where I can wake up slowly with the world around me, and no one else is up.

Ah! I am home with all the windows and the front door open. The breeze is blowing the cat hair lazily around my floor. I SHOULD sweep, but I think I'll sew up the holes in my pants instead. Yes, folks, the weekend is here!

I just cleaned under my bed. I am surprised all the cat hair didn't meld and rise in the dark of night to smoother me. Esh! I love cats, but not sheding.

The weather at Loon Lake was fantastic. As a matter of fact, as I was waiting to fly to Spokane, I received a message from a friend telling me Vernonia was having a heat warning for the weekend. The lake itself was warm, with a bit of a breeze. It was fabulous! Great for sitting with your feet in the water, or on the porch swing, just a-rocking with your morning coffee.

I spent time with Lisbeth, Bill's lovely wife. This is the first quality time we have ever gotten together ion the 23 plus years they have been married/together. It was fun! She's an amazing woman, full of life and laughter. Smart as all get out and cooks like a pro. Our quiet time chatting in the mornings was the best part of my day. I've missed out on a great person, and hope to make up for that.

I also was glad to get time alone with Bill and his mom. They were a huge part of my life growing up, and being able to chat without others around was awesome. Again, I hope to make up for lost time here.

As the people trickled in I realized how much I had missed them, and the gathering we used to do. However, I must wait for the right time in order to move, and as to where I want to move, I am unsure. Sometimes, I wish hard for that winning lottery ticket. The friends I would visit! and the places I would live.

Clicky on the linky,or cut and paste it.

Here is a link to my facebook photo album of th 42nd of July party. Let me know if it doesn't work, and I'll put pictures here instead.

http://www.facebook.com/album.php?aid=31932&id=1791798792&l=63827976f4

Let the 42nd of July Party posts begin!

The 42nd of July party was wonderful! I spent 4 days napping, eating, swimming and doing nothing. I knew I was walking back into a bunch of old memories, but I was completely bowled over by the presence of love from Bill's Dad -Jim, and George, their dog. It was thick! Bill and Lis's kids may have never met him, but they are slathered in his love every time they visit that lake cabin. He is there and happy, and it was not what I expected to feel at all. He was buzzing with excitement when I got there, but when the grand kids arrived, he just sat back like a proud Grandpa and enjoyed! It was amazing and wonderful, and apparently I am not the only one who has felt or mentioned this.

We have all gotten older. The wild running around and drinking has slowed to a crawl. The joking, laughing and talking is still what we do in excess now. As if you can have excess for that! I am constantly amazed by this group of people and their ability to see things from different viewpoints, talk about it, and still get along smashingly. And the laughing and jokes! The fun we have, the ease in which we have it, well, I have missed that, especially since moving to Oregon.

Bill and Lis have 3 lovely and wonderfully behaved children who's humor will make you pee yourself silly! There family reminds me of mine; all the jokes and chatter and bonding. I think this is the longest I have been with kids and not been annoyed at any point. The 'three A's' as we shall call them, are 17, 15 and 9. This is my first introduction to one of the 3 As. Littlest A was helping to empty the car, and I came out to the landing to see this. This really made my day!

The 26th annual 42nd of July party

I made it to the 42nd of July party this year. The first I have been to in 20 years. It was held in Spokane at Loon Lake, and I promise you, I will have posties and pictures this weekend. I was in a fog most of yesterday- my first day back at work. I am tired today, and not wanting the last little shred of vacation feel to slip away. Alas; it is a truck day, and it shall be beaten out of me! I did manage to download the pictures I took, and hope to do a quick purge and sort tonight before I collapse into bed. We will see.
Anyhow, stay tuned everyone!

Yep, here I am again with more amazing redneck events for you! Needed a break from weeding the garden, so thought I'd amuse everyone with shots of the mower races yesterday.

By the time the race started, the crowd was double what you see in this picture. Each Mower had to complete 20 laps. These guys have been doing this for years, and you can tell they look forward to it. They all put on a show for us, and it made watching 20 laps worth it. Lots of break downs, stalls, cut offs, passing. It was an event full of excitement, drama, and men on lawnmowers who I am sure were not sober. Ah, the things I do to get out of the things I need to do!
The contestants.

The line up.

Dragster mower.

Jamboree

Now I will pelt you with an overload of pictures from yesterdays fun town event! I started walking around town at 9am. I wanted to avoid the crowds and enjoy the quiet start of Jamboree. Wrong, wrong, wrong! There were throngs of people out already. People were claiming space along the street for the parade, eating, shopping, doing last minute prep on the floats. It was a madhouse, and the energy was amazing! I was grinning from ear to ear, watching these people party as if they were at some big state event! This is quite the thang here in little Vernonia. Quite the thang!

One of the first things I saw walking into town was this shirt. It says "I'd rather miss a note than a meal". I saw many other shirts like this, all with different sayings on the back. Apparently, they were part of this band.

They were VERY good, and full of energy. It was hilarious to see baton throwers and cheerleaders in their 50's and 60's. They loved what they did, and their joy was very contagious!

Outdoor storage!

I inherited an outdoor cupboard from my neighbor when he moved out. Unfortunately, it was rotted out on the bottom, so when I went to move it, I ripped out the hinges on the bottom. Suddenly, I had a new project. I was, however, very motivated to do this one because having outdoor storage would remove things from in my increasingly crammed apartment.

So, wanna see some photos? Good!

First, I had to cut about a foot off the bottom. This involved power tools, which I love to use. I am afraid of them, but when they belong to me, I am not as worried about doing whatever I am doing 'wrong' and messing up the project or the tool. It's mine, so no one else can complain/supervise/ridicule.

I had plenty of fuzzies to check my progress, and they all gave it approval at various stages, so that boosted my confidence.

I then had to prime the inside, all the new cuts on the old board, the new bottom I made, and where the hinges had been. Once that was done (and approved) I put on the bottom and cut the doors down to size. I put on the new hinges and places the doors. Lastly, I had to move part of the latch so I could lock it up. I started on Friday and finished Saturday before 2:30pm. Not bad for a girl who has to wing it. My house id empty of a few space-consuming items, and I am enjoying the cleaner, sleeker look of my living space. Yeah me!

Vernonia Jamboree!

This is a crazy little town I live in. they have events for everything. To many events. However, THIS event is pretty fun-tastic! I mean, really, who can pass up a small town parade where they pelt you with candy. Who can pass up lawn mower races? Who? Not me!There will be pictures, but I am pretty tired and a little listless at the moment. I have been a crazy fool today, finishing up my cabinet, a shelf, walking through town to see all the Jamboree stuff, watching a sloooooow town parade full of old cars, clowns, horses, logging trucks and fire engines (yummy). I am pooped, I tell you. Pooped! I need food, hydration and an nap.But pictures are a comin'!

Mom and Dad, next year you HAVE to come to this!

Knowing the back roads.

I don't really know the back roads around here well. However, I have a thing for maps, and recently I've been peeking at maps of my county, courtesy Google Maps.All this peeking finally came in handy today.There was an accident about 5 miles from Vernonia, in the north bound lane. Actually, it was in both lanes. I came upon a very long back up of traffic. You know it's bad when people are turning around on a road where there really isn't room to turn around. I did a quick inquiry, and decided to follow the crowd and head for McDonald road, which was a few miles back. I wasn't positive I could find my way to vernonia taking that road, but had been looking at the maps enough where I had a pretty good idea of where I was going. Apparently, me and a lotta other peeps decided McDonald road was looking like a nice quick and scenic way home.It was beautiful!I will be taking it again on Monday. It's absolutely gorgeous, with it's fields of hay edged in thistles, Tansy, Queens Lace and Sweet Peas. It smells like country. It has old beautiful homes dotted along it's edge. It has those little groups of trees that when you drive through them, the air turns cool and damp and smells like rich, loamy dirt and the color green. I saw a few places that made me think, "I could live THERE"!I want a map of my county. I like Google Maps, but tend to get turned around when I have to tile the roads together in my head. I want to explore other ways home. I want to see all these beautiful places. I want to know my backroads.

Hey Kool-Aid!

I have been wanting cool refreshing drinkage at home, but balking at paying the high price for Country Time or Crystal Light. For some strange reason, I had forgotten all about Kool-Aid. Now, I figure it has about the same nutritional value as the other stuff, and I can get a
ba-zillionty packs for the same price of one huge container of the 'other stuff'. I am thrilled! I put in 3/4 cup sugar instead of the whole 1 cup, and I still like the taste. I have fun summery stuff to drink now, and I am happy!

Happy busy weekend.

I have been a putzin fool this weekend. I am bouncing between my place and Ruth's, doing this, that, and the other thing. I've been pulling weeds both at her house and mine this weekend, as well as putting fencing up around her carport. We are going to enclose it so she can put the cats out for the duration of the decent weather. This will allow her to get her house cleaned up and beck into some kind of order. hard to keep up with 10 cats. Even harder when you are 85!

My neighbor, Jon, moved into a home, and I have inherited a small storage cabinet of his. He was a bean and rice hoarder, so it didn't take long to empty the thing out.. It all went into the compost bin, and tomorrow I will cut the rotted legs off the bottom and put new 2x4s there. Slap a little Killz on it and place some scrap wood along the front of the door to cover the gap. I will have a place for things like garden tools, tire chains, and other stuff that floats around my home like dandelion fluff on the wind. Very heavy and clutterie dandelion fluff.

I have also spent the day doing various crafts, posts and cleaning. Peanut has been very...um-helpful? She did her book impersonation again, which was quite charming. Never knew books cleaned themselves.

One craft I have been dying to do is a button craft. It is cheesy and tacky and all sorts of fun! I ran out of blue buttons, so I will see what I can pick up tomorrow at work. I might take pictures and post them when I am done, or I might not. Right now, it could swing either way.

Off to do more stuff. Need to make food and a few calls. I can't believe it is only 1pm. Wow!

Wanna buy a purse?

Here is a link to Diana's Etsy store, where you can see the plaid Peek-a-boo purse and her beautiful jewelry.

http://www.etsy.com/listing/52458534/peekaboo-skirt-purse-no1

From three tiny seeds!

I love nasturtiums. They are bright, easy to grow, and you can eat them. Seriously. They also fill space up quite well. This explosion of flowers is from 3 tiny little seeds. It's about 5 feet across. I love it!

Peanut impersonations.

Little Peanut spent the day in my house, snoozing in various places. Here she is, impersonating a book. I had a picture of her curled up on top of my refrigerator on a stack of paper plates, but I have misplaced it in the vastness of my computer.

The lost post.

So, here is the post I could not post while in Henderson, due to computer hicups and whatnot. Enjoy!

Wow! Vacation is half over already. It's been unbelievably humid and hot, which I hear is extremely unusual for the area. However, that has not stopped me from having a great time! I should start at the beginning. Wednesday after work, I zipped over to Susies' house to catch a few hours of sleep before heading to the airport. Susie lives with her sister, Deb, and they own two little Yorkies- Elvis and Harley. They are very friendly puppies, and they loved that I was there. Harley was thrilled to have a launching pad laying on the couch. He spent 2 hours jumping off me and onto the coffee table. Elvis tried to sleep on me, but kept sliding off. He somehow came to the conclusion that if he licked me enough I would suddenly become skid proof. So, I tried to sleep, Harley tried continually to launch himself into space, and Elvis tried to morph me into a skid proof sleeping buddy. A very restful 2 hours indeed.

After such a restful nap, I arose and spent about an hour chatting with Susie and her sister before being whisked away to the airport. All went smoothly there, and I even managed to grab a few cat naps on the first leg of the flight, as well as an hour on the floor of the Newark airport. However, I had been up since 3am, so when I arrived in Syracuse, New York at 9:30 am on Thursday, I was pretty beat. Of course, I hit the ground running. Errands, unpacking, gift swapping and craft brainstorming ensued, so I didn't get to bed that night until almost midnight. Up at 7 the next day for a full day of vet visits, shopping, more shopping (all for the craft fair Diana was selling product at on Saturday) and lots of crafting. As a matter of fact, we went to bed at 2am on Saturday because we were busy packing up the car and making a few cool last minute craft ideas that I had come up with. Got up at 7:40am, showered and went to set up the booth and put out the jewlry. The fair was from 10 to 4pm, so it was a full and busy day. Met some great people, had lots of fun and had hot dogs for lunch! Seriously! It was a wiener Saturday for me, and that means it can't get any better!

Breaking down the booth took 2 hours, and we were both wiped out by then. Pizza was on the list for dinner, but we couldn't find anyone who would deliver to the middle of nowhere, so we zipped down to the local Italian resturant, where I had the best spaghetti ever! It had 2 big sausages on top, and really- sausages are just another form of wiener, so now I am thinking Henderson is 'Heaven' spelled incorrectly. I may never leave!

So, I am sitting at the dinning room table, making my post to catch all ya all up on my vacation while Diana updates her finances. Soon we will be drinking a few refreshing beverages and watching a few episodes of 'Trueblood'. Then we will collapse into piles of goo and sleep, sleep, sleep! I know I will be dreaming of jewlry, sweltering heat, and heavenly wieners.

Ah, summertime vacation!

home alone.

My flights were fine. The only issue with the first leg were 2 kids behind me called Michael and Megan. I have come to the conclusion that all children below the age of 12 should be given a shot of jello with Benadryl in it as they step onto the plan. Or made to sit outside on a wing. Either would work for me.I had an invigorating sprint in Chicago to reach my plane. I made it through the doors with 3 people on my tail. Five minutes later the doors were shut and we were pulling out. Whew!I actually managed to snooze most of the trip home, and arrived safely in Portland. My bag, however, sent me a text explaining that the baggage areas at Chicago were very fascinating, and needed a bit more exploring. It stayed the night, and should be arriving around 10:30 am today, and taking a nice little ride to my house. I hope it gets a window seat.
As soon as I stepped out of my car, Spooky (neighbor's cat) was right there, demanding pets and greeting me warmly. I said hello, retrieved my carry on and turned to find Pug waiting for me. Smudge too. As soon as I opened my door, Misty was tearing around the corner, crying her fool head off with hellos. It's wonderful to be loved so much by these guys!
Then came the scary surprise. As soon as I walked in, I saw broken things all over my floor by my computer desk, and by my craft table. In a heart beat I knew I had accidentally locked a cat in when I left. I swear, my heart stopped cold! There was no cat, no dead cat smell, so I cleaned up the broken bits and went to bed. First thing this morning I ran like the wind to the neighbors. He met me halfway and assured me all was well. Peanut, apparently, hides much better than I could ever imagine. I had tossed her out, but she stealthed her way back in and camouflaged herself somewhere. I locked her in. She was in only about 24 hours, but they said once she got out she took off like a shot and the didn't see her after that. Poor thing! You can see scratch marks where she took paint down to the wood, trying to get into a window and get out. I felt so crappy! I am always so worried about this happening. I guess it was bound to sooner or later. Thankfully, I have great neighbors, and they noticed and got her out. Yeah for great neighbors!
I was worried I had mentally damaged little Peanut, but she's already been in the house several times for food and snuggles, and I have only been up for 2 hours. I think she is more okay with the whole thing than I am. I shudder to think of all the ways THAT could have ended. Note to self, making a spare key this week and giving it to the neighbors.
So, I am home, drinking my coffee and making a mental list of food stuff to buy at the local Sentry. I miss the warm sunnies and good company already. Work, apparently, is just as screwed up as ever. Susie filled me in on the ride home. The 'Big Meeting" I was so worried about was not anything to worry about. Susie isn't even sure why the 2 hours had to be wasted. So, yeah to that.
I need to get off my ass, get dressed and hit the market. need to make a 'Welcome Home' meal for myself and my suitcase.

last day

I cannot believe how fast this vacation went, and how full it has been. Last night and today are the first day I have slowed down. I always seem to need a vacation from my vacation.
I am on the sun porch, my feet on the sunny window sill, Tutti napping in the chair beside me, and Diana quietly crafting away in the room next over. It's comfortable here. Diana is a special friend. She and I get along well, even when we fight. I can say 'no' to her and it is okay. You don't just find that anywhere.
I could live here. It's a small town half an hour from a big town. There is yard work and crafting and job opportunities (possibly) here. However, my heart still seems to be lodges in the cracks and crevices of Mist/Birkenfeld/Vernonia. I know better than to leave before my heart is ready.

I am packed and ready to go home. I don't want to. The stress of work is lurking behind my shoulder. But I miss my kitties and my things, as always. Sometimes I feel like an unmixable combination of gypsies and farmer. I want the joy and thrill of the new, but the security and safety of the known. Oil and water.

Okay. Seriously? Really???

I can NOT believe how freaking hard it is to get a postcard in this joint. Or a shot glass. I mean, seriously. Every where I go in the REST of the United States is equipped to cater to the poor tastes of the American public. It seems I have found the one little bitty area along the east coast that has taste. Kinda.

Oh, but they DON'T have customer service. Nope. They see you here, and they scatter like cows running from the mother ship. Un-be-lievable! And when you manage to corner one between the store equivalent of a tree and the fence, you get "Ummm. I don't think we do. I'm not sure. Did you look by the gift cards?"

Um, yes I did. I actually looked there BEFORE talking to you. Okay? Okay.

So, obviously, my quick trip to town to pick up a few postcards to send to ya all failed. Not from lack of trying, though. We went to Arsonel Wine and Liquor, Kinneys, Rite aid, MacDonalds (ya never know) and Walmart. Oh, and Hacketts in Sackets Harbor, but that was closed. And the museum. The local post office was also a bust. However, the hot, melted gum I stepped in at Walmart really cinched the deal.

We are home now. You will get no postcards. I am going to move here and open a freaking postcard store. Seriously.

No postcards for you.

Justice IS blind!

This is Justice. He was brought to the vet as a kitten with massive eye infections. They had to remove them, and Diana had to adopt him because she is a sweet, caring soul who knows a good thing when she sees it! He is a sweet, playful little guy. You would NEVER know he cannot see from how he behaves. OKay, except for the occasional bumping of his head into a wall/table leg/human leg. He purrs like crazy, plays like crazy, and is going to be absolutelu HUGE when he is done growning. From the marks on him, we think he has a little bangel in him.

the shirt, and our peek a boo purse!

This is the shirt Diana made for me from 3 belts and a pair of lace up jeans we found at the Salvation Army.

This is the peek-a-boo purse we made from a skirt and jacket. My idea, Dianas' mad sewing skills! Love the whole peek of panty idea. Fun and silly!

Diana and I have been busy, busy, busy! Seriously. This quiet, lazy day has been neither. However, it's been a fun day. We sat on the sun porch and had coffee this morning. She has a beautiful sun porch, despite the fact that it is a daiquiri ice color. We enjoyed the breeze and much reduced humidity, easing into the day. Then, when all that resting and crap was over, we got busy!

I won't bore you with the details, but there was cleaning, laundry, packing, sorting and other such nonsense all going on up in here. Occasional photo snapping, cat playing and other short breaks were inserted. I pointed out to Diana that she is actually a 6 cat household. Yep. She has 3 feral kittens living in her back yard with their mom. The are veeery cute, and I can feel it in my bones that she is doomed to love them and care for them, even if they stay outside feral cats forever (which they will, but that ain't a bad thing).

I wandered off about 4pm for a long walk down some of the long roads in this beautiful, quiet, and very flat area. This town is a strange combination of old and dilapidated, and old but maintained. ALL of it is run down. No new houses here. Lots of quiet that consists of wind, birds and the sound of vast sky and forever cornfields. It is beautiful. It is soothing.

It jarred me into a little discovery about myself, as well. With the noise and distractions stripped away, I can see how hurt I am. Michael, Richard, work. I am pretty gun shy about people, noise, things in general. I don't remember it ever being this hard to just get over it and move on. I don't know; maybe all my past troubles and ghosts are starting to catch up with me a little. Not saying this to get sympathy or even because I feel sorry for myself. Just saying it cuz it's there.
I find it interesting.

So, the sun is setting, my chores are done for a bit. I see dinner in my future, although I do not think it includes wieners. Oh well. Life isn't perfect.

Diana is making a shirt from three belts and an old pair of jeans. It's for me and it's pretty cool! She's a fabulous seamstress. I envy her. I am getting ready to download another round of pictures from today, so when I am done, I will post some.

Window at Dianas' house.

She has a pretty home.

I was going to paste a post but this stupid medium won't let me. I have done it in my other blog, but you need an account to access that, so...all you will have to wait until it cooperates.

Thank you for your time, we will now return to our regularly schedualed programing.

Mural update

I did a lot of 'fine tuning' this last visit. Put stars in the little alcove where the bed goes, fixed the edge of the island where it meets the sky, changed some of the sand modeling, etc. I also blocked in the wave at the other end, and finished the water-meets-sand part. A few other little things were done and discussed, but I left feeling quite happy with where I am. The next visit will consist of putting some sand texture on the wall, and painting the underwater half of the attic. I need to figure out a few tricky spots, still, but I'm not worried to much about it.

Wow! Has it really been 12 days?

I can't believe it's been so long since my last post. Things are all crazy up in here, and I am ready, ready, ready for my vacation in Syracuse, NY. My job is getting to me, and I need to walk away from it for a while. I can't do that here. The friend I am visiting is Diana. I meet her 7 years ago, and we hit it off instantly. We have been fast friends ever since. She adopted the quirkiest of my MEOW cat rescue fosters, and still calls me with stories! I adore her, and she understands me. I hate that she lives so far away now, but that is life. I have a blissful6 days with her, and they will be even better than the last time I saw here because I am not dating Michael, so I don't have to watch a clock all day and call at specific times and whatnot. Yeah!

I was putzing around the house a few days ago and saw this gem of a photo shot.

Pug is such a character. I absolutely love the happy toes he has in the picture. He is so the guy for me!

Latest ATC swap.

This was a chicken swap, and the idea was inspired by a co-worker and all the crazy going on at work. It's not the greatest picture. I had to shoot a photo instead of scan it, but here it is! It says, "Her Karmic Chickens had come home to roost. It did not look good." I love all the rubber chickens, like some big joke. It's a bit how I feel at the moment. Glad someone out there is having a good laugh! *grin*

This is the first night in three weeks that I don't have to turn on my alarm clock. I am not going to work. I am not going to Seattle. I am not going anywhere. Okay, I will probably go to the bathroom, but that is an entirely different alarm.I hope I wake up to rain. I want that sound while I snuggle in bed with Pug and listen to my alarm clock not go off. Le Sigh!

Extra arty update.

I have been painting a mural in a friends show house. The room is an attic space that is 33 feet long. I'm painting a total of 875 square feet. I've driven up 3 weekends in a row, and will be up many more. I love how it is starting to look. Dad, thank goodness, helped me with blocking in the main colors the first time I was up. That took forever!
So, here are the basic pictures so far of the end I am working on. I want to finish that next weekend and get the fishy end started!