YIKES!!!! Maybe a Little Scary Thing Going on Here

Hey, GL! (That's me. He calls me Good Looking, when he is being informal. The formal is, She Who). *


I looked at a couple of houses today. One house was in Siegelbach, but it was on the main street.

(He loves to do the view from the street thingee).*

The owner renovates old houses, and he does an excellent job. (Just like my Spousal Unit, a manly man.)* I told him that I didn't like the location, (Can't have a main street, people might talk about those crazy Americans)* and he offered another house in a village about 15 km from the base.

The house is in Sulzbachtal. It sits on the side of a hill, but it does not have a large yard. It has a double car garage (cars are in line), and 3 parking spots (2 on the street and one behind the house).

As you enter the house, there is a guest toilet (half bath) on the left and a small storage room on the right. You are basically in the stairwell.

(Please take a close look at the stairs pictures because I don't know if you will find these acceptable.)



[Doesn't look too scary, I like windy stairs. And, when I dust them (Yeah, right) I just push all the dirt down in-between.]*

(YIKES!!!! maybe a little scary thing going on here).*

You continue into the living/dining room. ( What no more pictures? Ya gotta be kidding me).* It is a good size, but our furniture would probably not fit. (If the STUFF won't fit, why are we having this conversation other than you really, really like the house and location).*

Outside the living/dining room, there is a small flower garden and a grilling patio set against the hillside. There are brick steps to a couple of apple trees about 7' higher on the hill. There is room for a small garden by the trees. (The landlord's mother lives across the street, and she offered to let us use part of her garden [about the size of our large garden]).

The kitchen is a pass-through with the sink on one side and the working area on the other side. (Where are the kitchen pictures)????* There is a pantry (with open shelves) about 9' wide and 4' deep. (Pantries are good. Must buy more STUFF).*


The second floor consists of a full bath and a 3/4 bath. There are 2 small rooms and 1 larger room.

The third floor consists of a "game room and a party room." I wish there was a bathroom there because that would be the master bedroom.

The basement has a laundry room (with a storage room adjacent), a very large room (suitable for a gym), a 3/4 bath, another storage room, and an exit to the street. Without the exit, I would make this the master bedroom and use the storage room as a walk-in closet.

Initially, the landlord put the rent at !!!!*, but he lowered it to ????*. It is an energy-efficient house with thick walls and windows. It has floor heat which is electric. The landlord claims that we would not need it much because of the design.

The house looks great, but I am concerned about the furniture fitting and the stairs. I think that you might have problems with the stairs (I told the landlord that you have leg problems) ( I don't have leg problems, I broke my ankle several years back and it didn't heal correctly because the doctors screwed up. That is another story in it's self).* because they are winding and steep.

Please look, and let me know, so I can call him back to thank him or take measurements. I was slightly embarrassed because the batteries died after about 5 pictures. He lent me batteries, but they lasted only 3 pictures. He gave me another set which lasted the rest of the way.

Yes, I got replacement batteries on the way back.

I saw (two of my coworkers-both reprobates)* yesterday. Now I know who (one of the reprobates)* is. I don't ever remember being introduced at the Dirty Penny (an outdoor bar on the Vegas Strip, where we all went, for another coworkers wedding last April).* Everyone assumed we knew each other after that.

I got a replacement card reader, and it works just fine. It has 5 ports that accommodate 6 different media. (I'm cookin' now.) Sometimes I gotta wonder about the Geek I married.*

Love you bunches,

S (As in Spousal Unit)*


*She Who edits

Guess Who's Back in Germany?

Spousal Unit??? Yes, that's the correct answer. Keep reading for the latest installment of our move to Germany.

I am here. It was a trial getting through IAD (Dulles Airport*). The plane was late into STL (St Louis*), and we had to circle for weather going into IAD. I had 20 minutes to catch the next flight. I made it,...and then we held for lightning (45 minutes). I sat between 2 armrest hogs. (Bad armrest hogs.*)

I'm doing pretty good for being up 25 hours. I am staying on the opposite side of the room from the rack monster. (In other words, he is tired and staying away from the bed 'cause he still needs to do some work. The rack monster is sneeky and will grab him and throw him into bed*).

I am in a "standard room" in the "historical" part of the hotel. Stefan informed me that this part is 300 years old. I recall that someone warned you about this section (Very noisy from the street noise*), but it is about the same size as the "suite". It has all the amenities of the suite. I guess we'll see how quiet it is. Obviously, that won't affect me tonight.

As I was unpacking, I remembered what I forgot: the cable to connect the camera with the laptop. Please inform me of what I need to procure, and I will do so (hopefully tomorrow). (See how the man is??? He will do anything to get out of sending me pictures of the houses he is looking at.*)

On the way in, I drove through Alsenbach. It is just south of Sembach. It is about 20 minutes from the east gate. There is about 2 km of 2 lane road, and the rest of the drive is autobahn. I will try to see the property this week.

I'll close now. I have to get some Fanta (Great orange soda*)for the morning, and maybe a beer for tonight.

Love you bunches,

S


* She who edits

Waltzing Matilda

At this time of the year I usually hum this tune except I substitute "Plucking Petunias, Plucking Petunias" for the lyrics. Try it it works.

Good News, Bad News, You Choose

A little bummed right now.

Spousal Unit is on the plane to Germany and I am home with a torn apart house.

The good news is that the toilet is no longer on the front porch. It's in the garage because of the storm last night.

The bad news is that Son # 2 is laying the guilt trip on me right now.

He is claiming that he is getting shafted, a short end of the stick type of deal. What he doesn't understand is that he can't come with us. He will not have a car. He probably wouldn't be able to get a job. He has not done well in college and therefore has no insurance that we can afford.

The company will not pay for his ticket over to Germany because he is no longer in college. And, I am not willing to pay for his college tuition. He tried the academic route, the chef route, and then the electrician route. He passed nothing, Nada, Zip. That's a year and a half's worth of tuition, books and fees just thrown out the window.

Ya gotta sink or swim boy. You are almost 21, as you keep reminding me, and ya done been grown. There is little I can impart to you, at this point, even if you would listen to me.

All I can say is, you're a good kid; grow up a little, find a real job, and get serious about your schooling and future.

Love,

Mom

Petunias, Toilets, Spousal Unit, and Germany Update... Sorta

Spousal Unit, bless his little heart, is going through his clothes closet.

The gal that was here recently to do our pre-move inspection, casually remarked that he had more clothes than I have. That is so true, because I have gotten together with my girl friends and cleaned out the stuff. They take what they want and I FreeCycle the rest.

Spousal Unit is starting to feel the pressure. He is leaving tomorrow, to go back to Germany. When he returns, he will have two weeks before he's outta here. So, he is cleaning out his closet and deciding what to keep and what to FreeCycle.

Lord knows, I love the man, but he should have started doing some of this stuff weeks, months ago. He needs a girl friend. NOT, in that way, but I hope you know what I mean.

We can barely get into the bedroom because all his stuff is on the floor or the bed and he is only half done.

I am almost to the point that I am either going to drop everything off at Goodwill or order a roll-off dumpster to just be done with it all. If you know me, these actions are totally, not me.

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A couple of readers suggested that I plant the petunias, as I mentioned last night in the toilet. Now, normally I would think that is an excellent idea.

True, I could only do so if the toilet was in the back yard.

One does not have a petunia, planted toilet on one's front porch. So Gauche.

I also need to reinstall the toilet in the "Powder Room" after the new tile floor is grouted.

Jim is THE man.

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Guess what? Spousal Unit is going back to Germany. We get to have some more fun with his emails. Let's hope that this time, he sends pictures, and takes measurements of the rooms in the houses.

The buffaloes were cute, but those type of pictures don't give me any information on what I need to bring.

Hilo Puppets

I was slightly disturbed, not that I ever am, and humming along. So what does that make me? Hmmm.

I Am Really Fighting the Urge to Plant Some Petunias

The house is coming together. The house is torn up. The house is torn up.

The work being done is awesome. The house is torn up. Take a deep breath. I'll deal.

Just spoke to the insurance company....

No, they will not insure us because now, they consider us a business.

They will only insure us as a primary home, plus one. This house will not be our primary residence, hence no insurance. When we moved into this house I didn't want to sell the house we moved from. So I talked Spousal Unit into renting that house. This choice has been a good arrangement for us. It is helping to build our retirement fund. It is not always easy being a landlord, but it has worked.

So, I called a couple of insurance companies today and am waiting for quotes. I'm hoping one of my gal pals comes back with a good quote. Wouldn't mind helping her out.

I also called DirectTv and requested that our service be disconnected on the 20th of May. The movers are showing up the next day and I don't want the TIVO to be packed. Movers tend to not think about stuff like. (I had my full garbage can packed once) My new BFF, Christie, assured me that my last bill will be pro-rated and DirectTv will stop billing (pulling directly from my checking account) me after May. We'll see.

OH, one little detail I thought you might want to know. My house is torn up and I have a toilet on my front porch. I am really fighting the urge to plant some petunias in it.

Are we there yet?

Jim, My Man

Life is starting to speed up.

Yesterday "the guys" showed up. They started out first thing in the morning to.... swarm over the house and tackled many of the tasks we are unable to do or have just run out of time to do.

Yesterday was amazing.

The guys knocked out stuff that would have taken Spousal Unit two or three weeks to accomplish. Not that Spousal Unit is incapable of doing any of these tasks; he is, after all, my hero. It is just that Spousal Unit is a major Geek.

He has come a long way in the 29 years that we have been married, but this type of work is not what he does every day. He would have figured out how to do the work, but it would take more time than he has left to accomplish those tasks.

As an aside, when we were newlyweds, I asked him to get me a screwdriver. He looked at me strangely and asked why I wanted to start drinking so early in the day.

Since then, he has gained several names, depending on the task, as I have mentioned in past posts and learned how to accomplish those tasks. So the man is learning "Manly Things" other than just "Geeky Things." He is, a "Renaissance Man", after all.

He just doesn't do them on a daily basis and tends to think....them through.

Any way, Jim is my man, Waki Jaki I am so sorry, I want your husband. Other than being in a Polygamy situation, at the moment, Jim, can I marry you?

My Free Sale

I held a Free Sale today. A Free Sale is a yard sale that people attend, to acquire new stuff (to them) and get to leave their money at home.

I advertised the Free Sale on my FreeCycle network Thursday evening and had over 100 responses. I answered many of them before 'pulling the plug' and reposting that I had too many responses to be able to answer anymore.

Spousal Unit got home from a week long trip yesterday evening and was greeted with a "Hi Honey, I really, really love you and by the way we're having a Free Sale tomorrow. 8-12 rain or shine. No, I haven't organized anything yet, but everything is in place in the garage. We just need to shuffle some of the STUFF around and make it a little more viewer friendly. Hide all the STUFF that we are keeping and have refreshments for our guests. Piece of cake."

Not really true on the refreshment comment. (Though I did run out to Subway @ 10:00am to get him a sandwich because I was hungry so that counts. Right??)

True to form, the way life is going lately it rained most of the morning.

I does my heart glad that the people that showed up were really nice. No one seemed to be greedy and want to take all the stuff. One lady was nice enough to offer a donation. I told her that I just needed to get rid of things because we were moving and if she wanted to make a donation to do so to a local charity.

Much of the STUFF is gone, but too much remains. I believe the Yucky weather had much to do with the poor turnout, but what happened to the other 57 people I emailed back that were begging for my Free STUFF??

I guess I get to do this again, in a couple of weeks, and get to meet some more nice people.

Emotion: A Little Scared

This morning I woke, as the house shook about me. What woke me, in a dreamland state, was the bedroom doors shaking and the dresser pulls rattling. What really jarred me into a full "I'm awake, I don't need any coffee to get me moving mode" was the bed and house shaking like a cheap hotel vibrator bed. I could feel the the whole house moving and shaking.

Hmm, whatever could be occurring? Earthquake? Mine Subsidence? I live in the Midwest. We're not supposed to have earthquakes. Tornadoes, yes. In this area Mine Subsidence can't be ruled out. Not earthquakes. Yup, it's an earthquake.

The aftershock didn't help much either.

Spousal Unit got home today. I am glad. I need his comfort.

That's Me Right Now

A guy at work sent me this today. He knows that I am not quite up to game speed and felt that I needed this. He's right. I am also brain dead at the moment and decided to share.

STRESS....That's me right now.

A lecturer, when explaining stress management to an audience,
Raised a glass of water and asked "How heavy is this glass of water?"

Answers called out ranged from 20g to 500g.

The lecturer replied, "The absolute weight doesn't matter.
It depends on how long you try to hold it.

If I hold it for a minute, that's not a problem.

If I hold it for an hour, I'll have an ache in my right arm.

If I hold it for a day, you'll have to call an ambulance.

In each case, it's the same weight, but the longer I hold it, the heavier
it becomes."

He continued,

"And that's the way it is with stress management.

If we carry our burdens all the time, sooner or later,

As the burden becomes increasingly heavy,

We won't be able to carry on. "

"As with the glass of water,

You have to put it down for a while and rest before holding it again.

When we're refreshed, we can carry on with the burden."

"So, before you return home tonight, put the burden of work down.

Don't carry it home.

You can pick it up tomorrow.

Whatever burdens you're carrying now,

Let them down for a moment if you can.

So, my friend, put down anything that may be a burden to you right now.

Don't pick it up again until after you've rested a while.

Here are some great ways of dealing with the burdens of life:

* Accept that some days you're the pigeon,
And some days you're the statue.

* Always keep your words soft and sweet,
Just in case you have to eat them.

* Drive carefully. It's not only cars that can be
Recalled by their maker.

* If you can't be kind, at least have the decency to be vague.

* If you lend someone $20 and never see that person again,
It was probably worth it.

* It may be that your sole purpose in life is simply be kind to others.

* Never put both feet in your mouth at the same time,
Because then you won't have a leg to stand on.

* Nobody cares if you can't dance well.
Just get up and dance.

* Since it's the early worm that gets eaten by the bird, sleep late.
* The second mouse gets the cheese.

* Birthdays are good for you.
The more you have, the longer you live.

* You may be only one person in the world,
But you may also be the world to one person.

* Some mistakes are too much fun to only make once.

* We could learn a lot from crayons... Some are sharp, some are pretty and
some are dull. Some have weird names, and all are different colors, but
they all have to live in the same box.

*A truly happy person is one who can enjoy the scenery on a detour.

Have an awesome day and know that I am think about you today.

***PS. If you receive the St Louis news channels, a breaking story about what happened, is happening very,very near work is starting to show up on the local news . I got home late because of it.

As An Aside

As an aside, my Google Ads drive me nuts.

Just to let you in on a family joke.... that's a short trip.

Not a Clue

I have no idea about what to blog.

I was busy all day at work. Yeah right, I usually am.

Wee One started a blog last night. I am major PG. She is not. I am looking forward to seeing how her story evolves, but I know it will not be PG.

Broke a couple of nails in the past two days. Really, the only vanity I have are my nails. I bit them as a child, felt shame, and now pay to have them look gorgeous. Once again, Vanity thy Name is Woman. That vanity stuff is starting to creep into my life. First the nails, then the hair.

Who knows what else?

Oh yes, OOHM September on the beach.

Take a Deep Breath and Hold It, Exhale Slowly. Repeat

Little Rants.

Up and down, back and forth, up and down. That's how I've been feeling lately. The old, one step forward and two steps back.
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The job was hectic today. Being out yesterday allowed me to be very, very productive today. Heavy sarcasm. My coworker was also out most of yesterday and all of today. I hope she is back tomorrow. The job seems to be very hectic most days and right now I feel the need to coast to get the things done around the house that are required. A lot of that stuff isn't getting done. I am overwhelmed. I'll get through it. OOHM. September on the beach. OOHM. September on the beach. My new mantra.
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Yesterday the heater guy was here. We need a new heat exchanger. The heat exchanger is the most expensive part of the heater. I walked in as heater guy was talking Spousal Unit into a new heater. I broke into the conversation and asked WTF. It was sorted out that our heater was manufactured by a company that lost a Class Action suit. The heat exchanger and all the labor are covered in this suit. The other stuff that heater guy mentioned may or may not fail in the next four years. I'll nickel and dime that for a few years and replace when we return.
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My niece, by marriage, called the other night. I missed her call 'cause I had gone to bed. I called her back last night and we talked for a long time. Her husband of a 1 1/2 years is a Marine and has gone on a tour to Iraq. He's been there for a while. He does lots of Marine stuff that make me proud. She has never been around the military and doesn't seem to have the support system a military wife needs in times like this. I hope I can start to be a part of her support. She is a good kid and needs it.
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The accountant's admin type person called this evening. She asked, "Did you drop the signature pages for the electronic filing off in our drop box today?" Me, "What are you too lazy to go out to the drop box to see that we didn't drop them off because no one told us to drop them off, the instructions only mentioned that we needed to accomplish this ASAP. We did ASAP and put them in the mail. What's this gonna cost us? For the extension?"
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Life seems kinda sucky right now.

OK. The rants are over. Life is good. Take a deep breath and hold it, exhale slowly. Repeat.

I am So "Right on the Money"

I was naughty today. I called in sick. Actually, I called in sick yesterday evening. I may have to give my boss a kiss. NOT.

We had the Move Survey this morning. I didn't think that Spousal Unit was up to it by himself. He's a guy... just give him a chair to sit on at the dinner table, a sofa and the remote in front of the TV, and a bed to sleep on. This makes the guy happy. He might have had me put in storage. Ya never know.

I, on the other hand, collect STUFF. I have lots of STUFF. I no longer collect STUFF. But, I don't want to give all my good STUFF away. I have been giving alot of STUFF away, but not the good STUFF.

I also just decided that STUFF is now a new favorite word. Awesome.

The Moving Survey Lady showed up a little late, 'cause she got lost. This occurs often at the Fiefdom. The house is mostly hidden from the road. I like it that way.

When she arrived she immediately got down to business and asked several questions. Do we have boats, cars to ship, hot tubs, skidoos. None of the above.

Moving on.

Last night I printed out little labels. They are for Storage, Ship to Germany, and N/A (getting rid of that particular item). I scurried around the house and taped labels onto everything in the house. The house now looks like a preschool with everything labeled.

All in all, we did good. Her estimate says that I am so "right on the money" determining what we choose to take and the space allowance.

Can you give me an AMEN????

It's Cold and I'm Grouchy

The house is cold. Luckily, the furnace just needed to be recycled.

It is grey outside. Every time I think, Spring is in the air, the weather turns lousy and cold. We are now under a freeze alert and we may lose all the fruit in the orchard again this year.

My hair really is a Bozo the clown orange. The toning down is washing out.

The boys are in their own little worlds, Denial, depression, who knows?

Spousal Unit is leaving again next week, for a conference. He will not be home, for very much time, prior to his leaving permanently.

I am working on being overwhelmed. I know that the house is coming along and I just need to step-back. Stepping back has never been a strong suite for me.

I hate moves. And I just keep finding more stuff around the house that needs to be upgraded, or fixed, or painted .....whatever. Everything is starting to get very expensive. The car is just another added bonus. My van also needed to be refinanced so we could take it.

The good news is I have decided to resign from my job at the end of August instead of the end of September. I am going to Florida for most of the month of September. I am going to read and lie on the beach and read and lie on the beach. Do the yearly spiffy-uppie stuff, and read and lie on the beach.

And then, have a couple of girl friends for a girls gone 'just a tad' crazy, long weekend. This piece is a very bright note on the horizon.

That's the plan, Stan and I'm sticking to it.

But it's cold and I'm Grouchy.

Good and Bad... to Just Plain Ugly

Awesomeness of a Friday. Right. Just when we thought we had a plan, Stan.

The week has just sped by. Last thing I remember is that I was going to work on Monday morning and now it's FRIDAY!!!!!!

We made it through another week. I am working on getting past the Bozo hair. Spousal Unit got home safely. The rain has stopped, if only briefly. The wind has started to really blow, but it is drying out the ground.

Spousal Unit just called a bit ago and asked how my day was going. I say busy, very busy. What's up with you? Oh, I am at the car dealership.....to fix the passenger side air bag will cost $4,000.00.

The week just went from Good and Bad... to just plain Ugly.

I am 35 again and don't need to think about that stuff for awhile.

I had my visit with Len tonight after work.

I may have to talk to his assistant. She is great, but she only scheduled an hour and a half.

Len is my "Financial Advisor." He advises me on what to do with my money. I don't have much and he is kind enough to want to see me four times a year to discuss the money I don't have. It must be my shy personality. I really think he just has a thing for me and uses these meetings as an excuse. Tee Hee.

I really like him and look forward to meeting with him on a quarterly basis. We spend some time catching up on family, talk about our respective, bright bundles of joy, and then get down to the basics of where we are and where we need to be.

Tonight, he kept coming back to the subject of wills, living trusts, and long term care.

Didn't he see the red hair? I am 35 again and don't need to think about that stuff for awhile.

I Did The Deed - Revisited, Maybe, Sorta

Did I discuss my aversion to having my picture taken? Oh, yes, I did.

Well, if you have read any of my recent posts you will realize that I no longer look the same as I did last week. This is not good for a new passport. And, I just had my passport pictures taken, though not turned in.

My new look is also not good for a passport photo. Me, in all my bing cherriness, (the look hopefully) will not be around for too long, I hope. Love the cut, actually its growing on me.

My coworkers were all OMG, you look awesome, fabulous, didn't realize it was you, maybe with a few washings it will fade, you are so European looking, not many women can pull that color or look off, you know I have always loved red heads, I am speechless, if you trim it a little in the front, you have an aura in the sunlight, I love how your hair shimmers in the light. Nuff said.

Right now, all I can visualize is Pooh, standing in the middle of the 7 Acre Wood, with one arm across his body and the other tapping his head thinking. And thinking and thinking. The big think. Thunk?

Will they let me have my picture taken with a cartoon embellished She who, paper bag over my head?

Just Call Me "Red"

My three hour "pampering session" turned into, yet another, She who induced nightmare.

I showed up early for my appointment and started looking through books and saw several styles that I thought I might like. I figured I "might" need to cut my hair.

I was called right on time.

The gal asked what she could do for me. At that point, I let my hair down, from the bun it was in, and the poor girl gasped. The look on her face isn't one I hope to ever see again when someone is looking at me.

She quickly regained her composure and asked how I wanted to proceed. Highlights, lowlights, shaved head?

I explained what I had done and what I would like to do. Tone down the Bozo aspect and get rid of the purple/burgundy. She quickly grabbed several stylists, who all gathered around to check out my "outrageous infraction by using a box color." They touched the hair to determine the texture and condition. They consulted. I sat there feeling like a lab rat under the microscope, while they consulted on the best course of action.

It was determined that a brown tone with lots of green would take out the red and bring out a more ashy brown.

The gal slathered the hair with the evil smelling stuff and then excused herself to go make more. She finished slathering the extra stuff on the head and told me we were going to need to leave it on for a full 35 minutes.

40 minutes later we go to the wash bowl. The rinsing and head massage felt good. The silence was deafening. She puts a towel on my head and we go back to her station. The towel is removed and the silence gets even more deafening. The Bozo red is slightly toned down, but the purple was still there.

The other stylists regathered and plotted another course of action. Pull out all the color. Redeposit color. Come in every week, for the next two months, for deep conditioning and hope for the best.

I enter the conversation and said can we cut it? It took a little while for them to understand what I was saying. I finally said that I wasn't married to the long hair. I had short hair most of my life. Did I have enough of the toned down Bozo to have a decent cut without being totally bald?

Yes.

In the end I spent four hours getting a "total pampering experience", have a new BFF, who is probably terrified to ever see me again and I got a decent cut.

Totally not me, but very up-to-date. I'll learn to like it, maybe.

When Spousal Unit gets home, he can just call me "Red" and I'll call him "Sparky."

PS. The gal had the decency not to charge for the color, only the cut. I had the decency to tip her greatly for her effort.

These Things Never Happen When He Is Home

Well.... Where do I start?

The Dreaded Basement Revisited:

The Cuz and I really got a major handle on the Dreaded Basement today.

The main room has been sorted by Keep and Take, Keep and Store, Freecycle, and Trash.

I have two more rooms that need to be sorted, but one is really only empty boxes that the STUFF came in and the STUFF will go back into. The other room is mainly Spousal Unit's Man's Land. He has work benches and all his tools. I have a couple of shelves of STUFF that I know will be Freecycled.

Bozo Came to Visit:

Vanity, thy name is Woman. I had a lot of grey and figured that I would color my grey. Cuz wanted to do her hair also so we had a girl bonding evening after dinner last night. We colored our hair.

I called around this morning to several beauty salons. I feel the need to visit one, now. No one could take me today and I can't go out in public.

Please see the Cuz's comments from last night. I did indeed use an expletive or two. It ain't pretty. I am two-toned. On the box it said Auburn Brown. My Mother was a fire engine red head. Most of my life I have had red highlights. I don't mind red. Not really. Until now.

What I do mind, is that I also now have a dual personality on my head. Bozo the clown on the scalp for about two inches out and burgundy wine everywhere else.

I have an appointment for tomorrow afternoon.

The person on the other end of the phone said to expect at least a three hour "pampering session." I also anticipate that I will need to cut my hair short again. It is now in the middle of my back when wet and it shrinks up about 3-4" when dry. Did I ever mention that I have naturally curly hair? I couldn't get a wide toothed comb through it today even with major conditioner in it.

As much as I love him, I have determined that this is all Spousal Unit's fault. He is out of town visiting his parents and these things never happen when he is home.

She Who is changed!

This is the Cuz.

She Who is hiding in the bathroom, and been there a while with some words rising above the normal grumbling. I don't think those kinds of words are very appropriate for the blog but your imagination can certainly lead you in the right direction.

Well, She Who is kind of, ahh, just a tad red. It was to be auburn, a nice auburn brown. I'll be hearing it all night I'm sure. I suggested she go with some red highlights. Tomorrow we're going to the professionals for some doctoring up.

She's giving me the "eyes", OMG, I'll never be invited back again.

The "Cuz" Got Here

I picked up Cousin Kathy at the airport yesterday morning.

I took three days off work for her visit and she is staying until late Sunday morning.

Cuz wanted to bring a special bottle of wine with her that she really likes. She is not, a recently seasoned traveler, and didn't realize that liquids in hand-carried bags are limited. I told her to pack the wine in her suitcase and check the luggage. She did.

We did a little clearing out of STUFF, after a little shopping for portable clothes hanger upper garment racks. Got the clothes out of the dining room and living room. More organized for giving away. We also both bought secret stuff.

We visited last night and all had a little Special Juice to enjoy the moment. Spousal Unit was home also, so we all got to visit and get caught up and had a nice dinner. I thought pork steaks would be a treat for her, since it is a local speciality not found in other parts of the country. They were a hit.

Today we stayed on the main floors and did more clean outs. The progress is amazing. I may have to keep her.

Spousal Unit left this morning to visit his parents prior to his final leaving. I got several goodbye kisses. I think he needed the extra kisses for luck. One of his parents is great with the move and the other is starting to put up emotional roadblocks.

Anyway Cuz and I are putting together a dinner of Five cheese fondue, tossed mixed salad, Boiled Cajun shrimp and Special Juice.

I really need the Special Juice right now. The secret stuff is...we're dying our hair tonight. Let's just keep this our little secret. Girl stuff. You know what I mean.

Traveling Tales

Meg is going on vacation to Hawaii. She won the traveling Starbucks thong. I wanted to win the thong at one point. Now, I do not. Please visit Meg's site http://www.megs411nosmoke.blogspot.com/ and post your traveling tale. Here is mine. Keep that thong moving.

I was 7 months pregnant and wanted to join my Spousal Unit in Europe. I had a 20 month old toddler and a dog that I needed to drug to travel. My Father dropped me off at the airport with the toddler, drugged dog, and all the worldly possessions that were recommended not to ship. Lots of stuff along with a car seat.

Dad was a salesman and traveled, so he was just doing as drive-by, as he dropped us off.

Enter the thunderstorms. All flights were cancelled out of Philly. Other passengers were offered alternative flights to their destinations later in the evening. I was told that I couldn’t take the one flight offered through London, because of the dog. (England has a mandatory 6 month quarantine).

When I went back to the counter to inquire about my flight status, I was told that they were not a 24-hour airline, that I had refused a different option, (Not true, because of the dog, it wasn’t offered) and needed to get out of the airport. Everyone else on the flight was able to make other flights or hotel arrangements, ala, the airlines.

Toddler and I were stranded.

Drugged dog was waking up.

The counter agent then recommended that I spend the night at the Salvation Army room in the basement. I went and checked it out, and it was not a pretty sight. Not in any way, shape, or form. Think, many drunken bums getting off the street for the night.

No way would I take my baby in there, or even a semi-drugged dog.

At my wit’s end, I called home.

Father was back home and said he would come for me.

An hour and a half later, Dad loaded us up, and took us home.

We got to do the airport thing again, 5 hours later.

This time we made it to NY and we were given preferential treatment to board the plane because of the toddler. Of course, the plane was overbooked because of the storms and a dude came up and said that I was in his seat. I showed him my ticket and just protruded my very pregnant belly. The flight attendant checked them both out (belly and tickets) and found the dude alternative seating.

I kept my seat, toddler kept his seat, and the drugged dog survived.

TWA went out of business. Yeah, I won.

In All My Rose Colored Glasses Glory

I just reconnected with a friend from High School. Yeah, High School for me was, back in the Ice Ages. Anyway, I sent a message Saturday night through Classmate.com to one of my Gal Pals, and she answered me back. This is totally Awesome... remember, one of my "favoritested" words.

She talked to me, and I got to talk to her, and it is great. We lost touch with each other after the Ice Ages ended, and just got on with life, as one tends to do. I am at an age now where I reminisce a little, about people I cared about, way back then, and wanted to reconnect.

We, my class, and several others are scheduling a Mega Class Reunion for all those 70's folks and I originally was going to attend, in all my rose colored glasses glory. Because of the move, I am now not able to see all those crazy people, probably now, solid respectable citizens, and be able to Hint, Hint, tweak them.

Pity.