Have You Seen The Slush Monkey?

So, this is like a Texas thing.   I didn't have any because I just didn't feel like having any more junk food at the time.. but there's Count Monkula and Fruit Frankenmonkey flavors.  I regret not trying any.  Just like I regret not getting boiled peanuts at another gas station.

Anyway, I think I'm being lazy today with the blog.  Too much going on right now.  Nothing I feel like disclosing at the moment.  Okay, this is a personal blog, I think I'm just kind of ... menstrual.  If you want to track my menses, my visits with Aunt Flo, like my one friend used to do with all his female coworkers, here's a date to put a red dot on! Blah.  My insides feel unsettled, yet, I want a hot fudge sundae.  And a puppy.  And some Popeye's fried chicken.  And a fruit frankenmonkey slush monkey too!

Here's something to think about:

This is Bernie Fine - former assistant Syracuse basketball coach.  After the Sandusky horror show came out to the media, this case with Bernie Fine being accused of molesting boys came out.  It's so sad and horrible that these types of stories seem to be everywhere.  I mean look at Dateline "To catch A Predator".  So, there's probably always been this many pervs in the world, it's just more of a media interest now.  Anyway, my point is - look at Bernie Fine's mouth.  No upper lip.  No lower lip for that matter.  Pervert.  I should be an expert witness for these cases.  "See the upper lip, or lack there of?  Definite pervert, most likely a pedophile.  Lock him up judge."

Whelps, that's all fucks!!!

Stress In A Good Way?

House hunting.

That's 99.999% what's on the brain.  Loved the 2 houses we saw.  Thought about it for hours.  My sis asked how old the roofs (rooves?) were.  One had the roof replaced 4 years ago, the other was admittedly in need of a new one, although, there were no leaks.  I looked up roofing on the old google.  It could be thousands, or thousands and thousands.  Of course, we could ask the owner to replace the roof.  But it seems like a bad idea to ask the owner to replace it, because he's just going to find the cheapest roofer, right?

I really love both equally.  They both have pros and cons.  Cons and pros.  I think if we put a bid on one and it falls through, if the other is still available, then we will put a bid on that one.  That's how much we love them.  The FP loves one more than the other.  But in his gracious and adaptable and compromising nature, he will agree to the other.

You know, I am so horrible at making decisions, that it just can't be easy.  And I always ALWAYS second guess myself.  I rarely think I've made the right decision.  Barely ever.

Fuck it.  People put bids on houses and close on houses every day.  Deals fall through and people buy money pits every day.  That is life.  All we can do is take and action and then once it is taken, see what the results are.  Let's see.  We have to start the process somewhere.

Who Dat?!

We are here in the "apartment" watching the Saints Giants game.  Well, right now, it's a blowout.  Geaux Saints!

Anyhoo,  we've been looking for houses.  As you know.  So, it's not quite as fun when it becomes reality.  It's like a big deal, as those of you who have houses already know.  

Tomorrow, we are actually going to go inside houses at actually look at them for the first time.  There's one main one that the FP really loves.  I love like 80% of it.  There are little things that are easy to fix, but I also am not going to get all crazy over a place until I have all the facts.  So, we will see.

We do realize though, that if we get a place for a good price then we will have more $$ to personalize it sooner then later or never.  We also realize, that a fun coat of paint can change one's whole perspective.   If you ever saw our place in Nola on Magazine Street, you know what I'm talking about.  So, we'll see what we come up with.

Hopefully we will find at least one of the houses tomorrow are just what we are looking for.  I've been watching more HGTV.  There's the House Hunters series and Holmes Inspections and other shows.  I can't remember if it's on that channel or the green channel, but there's also the show where the people go into a house and show a family how to be more ecofriendly and save money too.  I really like that show particularly.  I would probably like it if we weren't looking for a house, though.  It's just funny.  Families are given specific instructions to follow for like one week.  If they comply, then they get their savings multiplied by a year, cash.  Some families can't stick with it.  I mean, if they have TV cameras on them and they stand to earn cash, how can they not do it?  Duh.

Anyway, that's all I got.  Here's a movie I made of pictures and video from our cross country travel.  I know.  I owe someone a CD.  I need to send that.  Only, I have a bunch of padded mailers, but I'm not sure where I packed them!

1 Week

Yes, it's been a whole week since we last rolled into sofla - sounds like a lazy couch or something.  What a week it's been.  Ups and downs and ups and downs and ups.  I can honestly say, I like it here.  I expect to be loving it here fairly soon.

Last night, when we went to bed, I smelled a poo smell.  I hate my weird sense of smell.  Dull for most smells, pretty perceptive for rank smells.  So, I was expecting a nice pile o cat shit.  I looked on the bed, and on the comforter.  Nothing.  I looked on the floor and on the suitcases under the bed where the cats like to sleep.  Nothing.  I tried to track down the smell.  I couldn't.  It was strong enough to not ignore, yet not a full on assult of the nose.  The FP didn't smell it at all.  Last resort, I sprayed the Febreeze everywhere.  I smelled my breath.  Fine.  I smelled my shorts.  Nothing.  I smelled my shirt.  Nothing.  But I changed my shirt anyway.  I wondered if it were outside?  Maybe someone's dog shat right under the window and even though the window was closed, maybe one could still smell it.  Or maybe someone shat in our air intake?   Or maybe it wasn't a poo smell, but rotting corpse.  Maybe there was a dead body stuffed in the mattress.  But it would And then I resorted to the ghost explanation.  A mischievous ghost fucking with me?  I know, that's just weird.  I basically fell asleep an hour or two later out of exhaustion.  The case of the phantom poo smell.

After laying awake for a while trying to figure where it would be, I woke up and didn't smell it at first.  After a while, I thought I smelled it, but not as strongly.  So, I washed all the sheets and febreezed the hell out of the room and searched again.  There are strange stains on the rented bed that I really don't want to discuss right now.

It's probably not as bad as the $25 beds my bff and I bought from the landlord when we moved into our first apartment.  We had been ratted on by our roommate for having illegal guinea pigs, so we were allowed to sever our dorm lease.  So we found a cheap ass apartment near campus in an area called Frenchtown.  Sounds nice, huh?  Well, the more appropriate nickname was Cracktown.  I don't remember if we made it up or if it was true, that there had been a murder in the complex.  Anyhoo, there were some college kids living there - we weren't the only ones.  Actually, people that lived there were pretty nice.  Anyway, we had just moved from a dorm, so we didn't have any furniture.  So, the landlord told us we could have these 2 crappy twin beds for $25 each.  I don't think he ever actually cashed our checks though, so they were free.  Funny.  I had that bed for a while.  Until a friend needed to trade his double bed for a twin, so we switched.  Score for me.  Scary unknown Frenchtown apartment bed for him.

I have to tell myself stories like this to show that my living situation could be way worse.  At least I'm not homeless, right?  At least I have electricity, running water, and CABLE TV and high speed INTERNET!!!!    

But if the poo were coming from the mattress, I would have smelled it before.    I don't understand.  I haven't looked behind the apartment, because I don't really want to go back there.  But if there is shit back there, it will lose it's potency as it ages, right?  I don't know.

So, I don't know.   I can't smell it right now.  But what happens when I go to bed?  Am I going to smell it tonight?  Man, I hope not.  I am going to have to drink enough to sleep.  I can't take nyquil, because that would just clear up my sinuses even more, then I would be able to smell the poo smell even more clearly.

I guess I'll have to go and lay in bed for a while to see if I can still smell the poo smell.  If so, it's got to be dealt with before bedtime.  It's not like I can sleep on the nasty couch!

Update:
 I could still smell the poo.  I looked at the suitcases again.  No poo.  I was about to take everything out from under the bed.  But first I made the FP smell.  He could smell the poo.  I wasn't insane.  So he got under the bed to look, and he found it.  it was between the suitcases and all the music stands under there. He grabbed the poo and wiped up under there with Mr. Clean.  No more poo!  Yay!  I can sleep soundly tonight.  As long as The Fuzz doesn't poo under there again.  And yeah, I'm positive it was The Fuzz.  She will shit and piss on the bed and then lie down right next to it.  She's gross like that.  No wonder Stinksy stopped going under the bed.  Because there was poo under there!

Thanksgiving Dinner

So, we didn't cook a traditional dinner on Thursday for Thanksgiving.  Our oven door is kind of fucked up, and we didn't feel like digging through all our boxes to get out everything we would need anyway.  So, we ate out at some fancy restaurant, and we went to the bar later, where the FP had wings and I had key lime pie.

Anyhoo, I mentioned to the FP that we should have a Thanksgiving dinner when we move into our new abode, whenever that is.  Hopefully sooner than later.  But anyway, I'm throwing this out there to those of you who are close friends and family, you are all invited to our Thanksgiving dinner, whenever that will be!

So, we drove around a lot today.  A LOT.  So, since the FP had his eye issues going on, I drove.  Which is fine.  Except we were delving into new unknown territory.  And the FP had his eye issue, so I basically had to drive and navigate most of the time.

Have you ever had an eye infection?  Well, it can hurt like fuck, and one can be very light sensitive, as the FP was this morning.  Kind of sucks when you are in South Florida!

Anyway, we drove down the coast to Miami Beach.  So, cool, and weird and strange.  I have a phobia of tall buildings.  I think I've discussed this before?  Anyway, I hate being enclosed by tall buildings.  So, like South Beach where there are just tall condos felt claustrophobic to me, but that parts where there were only condos on one side were what I liked.  It's so urban, yet on the water.  It's just like a foreign country, as my BFF described it.

So, I had made a google maps list of places to look at.  So, the first place was not wrong.  It was a place of business, not a house or condo.  It was somewhere right near South Beach on the other side of the water.  Anyway, it was probably a condo with a issues or something.   So, then we had lunch.  I needed a break from the driving anyway.

So, then we went to look at a house in El Portal.  Mind you, we know nothing about the area.  So, we got off the interstate, and the FP had to poop.  Because we had just had lunch.  So we went to one shady gas station, and the john was already occupado.  He waited for a while, then he gave up.  So, then we went to another one and he was good to go.  Both gas stations had cuban coffee, which one has to appreciate, even though they were shady, right?

Then we went to look at the house.  Which was right off the interstate near the shady gas stations.  So, we were driving down the scary street with boarded up houses and shady characters hanging out.  I thought about just turning around and not bothering looking, since the house was farther down.  But then the street got nicer, more manicured.  So I figured, I was right there, might as well keep going.  And the house was nice!  It was really nicely painted and had landscaping and stuff!  But there was no for sale sign.  When I came back and looked it up, it was an old listing!

So, then we went to Hialeah.  This is the suburbs.  But it's the suburbs of Miami.  And a friend recommended the area.  And indie bands come out of the area.  So we went there.  The first place was in a gated community, so we didn't go in.  The second one was in a non gate community that was very nice.  Very nice.  I wondered how there could be a place in our price range.  So, we drove down a winding road that kept changing number name.  And then we got to the street.  And the house number did not exist.  We tried to look it up on google maps and on realtor.com, but we couldn't find it.   Later when I looked it up, I found out we were on the other side of the subdivision.  I also found out that there are a few different properties in that area in our price range.

So that was it.  We looked at one house in a scary location that wasn't even for sale.  But it was good to drive around, no matter how nerve wracking it was.  I just need to get an automatic, damnit!  And maybe a GPS navigator.  It's difficult to look at printouts and grab the iphone while driving.  I want to be familiar with the area now, not later.  I guess all I can do is keep driving around.

We need jobs too.

Can't wait to get to that Thanksgiving dinner!

Same clothes different day

So, yesterday, I changed my clothes four times, if you include changing out of my clothes that I slept in.  So, when I changed the first time, I put on a black wife beater and a skirt.  I wore it for maybe 6 hours.  I didn't exert any energy really.

So today, when I got up, I put the wife beater and skirt back on.  I wore this outfit for about 12 hours today.  I didn't work up a sweat or anything in these clothes today either.  So, I was contemplating how much more use I could get out of these two items of clothing.

I mean, what do you go by?  Hours or days?  And if I never see anyone from day to day besides the FP, what does it matter that I'm wearing the same thing if it's not dirty yet?

I know I told you before about my friend who used to wear the same outfit two days in a row to work.  She was a server at a cafe.  So, some people saw her wear the same thing two days in a row.  I think if she had to wear a uniform every day, it would be the same situation.  But knowing that she wore the same thing two days in a row is different, I guess.  So her shift was 7 hours, and I know that she went home immediately and changed.  So, her standard was 14 hours.  Do you think that's a good standard?  Of course, as long as you aren't doing any heavy sweating or anything.

I guess I've gone over the 14 hour limit though, for this particular set of clothes.  So maybe I shouldn't wear it again tomorrow.  Maybe I should just freeze the clothes.  You know, like the way people freeze their fancy pants that they don't wash.  What if we never washed any of our regular clothes and just froze them all?  Would that be a "greener" solution - I mean besides green as in bacterial buildup?  Hm... then stores could market freezers that were specifically designed for clothes.  They could have a hangar bar or something.  What do you think?  I bet some rich dumbasses would buy it......

Special Thanksgiving Day Supplement

So, here we are at a sports bar down the street.  The FP is here to watch the 49s and the Ravens, I'm here to be the DD (although I was told by a TV commercial tonight that being the DD means no drinks at all... well, that won't quite happen) and use the free wifi.  There's this baby behind us that has been squealing in such a high pitch since we walked in.  I have to say it's annoying.  It hurts the ears.

From what I can see, this place has 35 TVs.  That's a lot.  I don't know how many receivers it has, but that's a lot of TV shows at one time!  Of course, most of the TVs are showing the football game, a few are showing food network, and the others are showing other miscellaneous sports channels.

So, I smudged the apartment today.  This was my first smudge.  One night when I couldn't sleep and I was laying in bed thinking about bed bugs and roaches and snakes and ghosts and stuff, I thought it would be a good idea to smudge the apartment so that we would feel more at home there.

For anyone who doesn't know what smudging is, it's a native american tradition of burning white sage to purify or clarify a place or one's state of mind.  Sage is used in sweat lodges and stuff. So, it was funny, because when I thought of it, I wondered, where do I get the sage bundle?  I don't know where the hippie new age or smoke shops and stuff are here.  So I was like, what do I google, hippie new age shop?  I think I tried that, to no result.   So, when we were at Whole Foods this morning in the checkout line buying some stuff that we didn't even eat yet, it dawned on me - they have to have sage bundles at Whole Foods, duh!  So, I actually found it right away.

So, I went home and I smudged the hell out of the place....literally.  I lit it in the living room and then I left it in the bedroom on the nightstand.  I came back later and it was out.  I lit it again and put it on the dresser where the air wouldn't blow on it, so it smoldered a little longer.

Do I feel better about the place?  Yeah, I think so.  We spent a lot of time today in the apartment.  I put a bunch of sheets and blankets on the gross couch.  It was fine.  It wasn't the greatest experience in an apartment on Thanksgiving Day that we ever had.  But, it was good.  There was a nice breeze.  We left the apartment door open all day that opens to the patio.  It let a little light in.  Stinky got to sit on the chair by the screen and look outside all day.  The Fuzz...well, she was The Fuzz.

So I'm thankful for friends and family and all that stuff that obviously we are all thankful for.  But I'm also thankful for the chance to make a new start of our life.  A great start.  An amazing new life.  We can do it.  Rah rah rah, sis boom bah!  Man how the hell do those cheerleaders keep that big ass smile on for  all four quarters.  I guess I gotta figure it out.  Can't be my old Negative Nelly self....

I do wish that baby would stop his high pitched squeals though.

Nightmare Hair

11/23/11

Let’s take one blog to get away from the feelings of guilt, self loathing, second and third guessing, and miserableness at aparently inflicting Broward County on the FP when he clearly has no desire to be here and the only reason he agreed to moving was hoping that I would just give in easily to moving to the more expensive Dade County... which I will probably end up doing even though we’ll be in this place that is just a little too small to have more than one guest, but we’ll have to make it work because it’s not like we’ll be able to sell for a profit any time soon.

So, since before we left San Diego, I had been saying how I needed to get hair detangler.  My hair has been a big brillo pad.  I had been busy doing other moving related things in SD, so I never got the chance.  When we were in New Orleans, I mentioned again how I needed to go to a beauty supply place to get detangler, but we were there for such a limited time and tried to cram as much as we could in that time, that I never had time to go to the beauty supply place.

I mentioned it again when we got here, but we’ve been doing stuff.  It seems like too much effort to leave and go out just in search of detangler.  So, today, when we were in Whole Foods siphoning free internets, I went into the Ulta Beauty Supply place next door when we left.  There were aisles and aisles of brands of hair care.  It took so long, and I was down to one of the last few aisles before I found the first product that said it was a detangler.  There had been one for “unmanageable hair”  but my mop is way beyond unmanageable - it’s like calling Sandusky (Penn State underprivileged boy rapist)  unmanageable.  

So, anyway, we went to the beach this afternoon for a run - well, jog in my case.  So after the 1 hour drive home, we took showers.  I took my shower, then I started to comb my hair.  Ok, I tried to run a comb in my hair, but I couldn’t.  So I whipped out the detangler.  And I shook and sprayed and combed.  It took me a while to realize I had to try to separate by hands the really big tangles before trying to comb them out.  The hair was falling out like I had alopecia.  Small bits, big clumps, long strands.  An hour and a half.  I had to cut out 2 gnarlballs.  I struggled and tried not to, but there was no choice.  The hair on the back of my head was one huge dread.  I told the FP, and he said, “Just dread it all?”  But, I painstakingly raked it with a comb little by little.  The FP had been waiting and waiting, and three or four beers later, I had it under control just enough that I could leave it.  Even though we sat at dinner, and I obsessed about how I wished I had a brush with me.  Although, that would be uncouth, right, to brush one’s hair at dinner?  Anyway, I can’t wait to wake up tomorrow and brush my hair outside - as my sis had showed me was better for cleanup.  I also need a new brush.

today's post

11/22/11

Dear Diary,

I learned a valuable lesson today.  I woke up thinking I knew more about life than other people because I have a higher degree than them and I know how to save a dying man.  I go to bed knowing, I’m still just a dumb kid who has a lot of growing up to do.  

Oh, pardon me.  I sometimes go a little crazy and think I’m Doogie Howser, MD.  It must be the lack of cable and internet.

So, day 3 in Hallandale.  We tried to go to a different coffee shop today.  We looked up coffee shops in the trusty iphone, and a place called Mia Cafe came up.  Sounds charming.  I yelped it, and there were good reviews - as in good coffee.  So, we went there today.  It’s this little Italian cafe next to a gas station.  The owner is kind of intimidating.  When he looked at us, imploring what we wanted to drink, I felt nervous.  

So, I asked him for the wifi password.  He didn’t want to give it to me.  Finally, he did, but he said, don’t share it with anyone.  As if.  It didn’t work.  I don’t know if he purposely gave me the wrong password or if he gave me an old one.  Anyway, I was totally too chicken to ask him again since he didn’t want to give it to me in the first place.  

So, we went to Whole Foods and sat inside at the tables.  We looked up some houses that I had searched the internets last night.  So we looked at them.  2 out of 3 were worth looking into.  The third was a dump of a foreclosure.  One of the 2 we liked didn’t have a for sale sign out front, and the guy who lived there came out and stood on his porch staring us down, so we got out of there fast.  

We’ve been waiting for our relocube, which has more stuff that we can comfortably fit in the apartment, but we’ve got to find a way to make it fit somehow.  I was told it’s coming before 4... but it is 3:39 right now.  The driver is supposed to call me when he’s on his way, so I’m doubtful.  I just hope it doesn’t show up after dark!  Although they probably stop dropping off around 5.  Not that I don’t trust the neighbors, I don’t trust the neighborhood.  

Anyway...here we are.  In Hallandale.  Crappy temporary apartment.  No jobs.  Do I feel guilty?  Yes.  Do I feel like if anything bad happens or if anything doesn’t work out it’s all my fault?  Yes.  At this point, it’s not quite the fun adventure.  But I know things will change.  All we can do is make the best of it.  I’m horrible at that - making the best of things.  But, the FP is not exactly very thrilled right now to be here, so I have to try to stay positive and not let all this guilt weigh me down.  I know we are resourceful enough and energetic enough to make things happen for us.  It’s just that, maybe I need to have everything be okay right now, and it’s not.  But we’ve been here 51 hours.  That’s it.  It took us a while to find our way and our place in Boston, New Orleans and San Diego.  Why should I expect to land anywhere else and have everything exactly the way I want it right off the bat?  Because I get anxious and self doubting and guilty very easily.  Do I regret leaving, even though I know the FP is not happy to be here?  No, I don’t.  Could we have done things differently?  Sure, we could have.  But this is how things are.  Me sitting in our sad apartment waiting for all our things that we don’t need.

yesterday's post

11/21/11

Well, I don’t know when I am actually going to publish this, but I figured I would do this the antiquated way - writing it on a word processing program and then saving it and publishing it later.  It seems so behind the times to not publish in real time.  But, alas, I won’t have internets until Friday at the earliest.  I say earliest, because the cable guy will show up and I’m sure something will not work out.  That’s how it usually happens.  

Anyway, I apologize for not posting last night, due to the lack of internets.  We actually went to a bar in Hollywood and I used the internet there.  So, you’re saying why didn’t you write the blog last night.  Well, the internets was pretty slow.  We were looking at houses, and that took forever.  Not only that, this was one of the worst places to do anything other than drink beer, watch soccer, or play soccer video game.  So, there were so many rowdy soccer fans and they were ear splittingly enthusiastic.  And the TV was piping through the surround sound system at max volume.  Not a big fan of all that.  

So, anyway, we are at our temporary home in Hallandale, Florida.  Let me tell you about our temporary apartment.  It’s in a questionable neighborhood across the street from the Gulfstream Race track.  There is a shady motel that had 2 different Mercedes parked in front of it last night.  There’s a trailer park.  There’s one garish house that looks like the people maybe came into some money and decided to fix their old house up rather than move.  There are shopping carts in the empty lot across from our apartment complex.  

And then there is our place.  The little rock garden with stone patio furniture is cute.  Plenty of parking for how many units there are.  Our apartment in furnished.  Weird, huh?  Well, we got rid of all our old cheap shabby furniture and figured when we move into a permanent place we would then buy stuff.  Who wants to put their old furniture into a new place?

So, our furniture is a weird mix of old stuff that looks like it came out of an old relative’s home, and some stuff from one of those more modern discount furniture places.   But, we keep telling ourselves it’s temporary.  It’s difficult to find a short term rental.  

Anyway, the important part is that the cats are not cooped up in their pet carriers in the car anymore.  They know that we are going to be here for a while.  They are still scared though.  They hide when we leave, but they come out as soon as we walk in the door.  And they are very affectionate.  They can’t get enough love!  So, The Fuzz went from -I’ll let you pet me when I’m in the mood, to I can’t get enough attention.  So, if you have a standoffish pet, just move him or her across the country, cooped up in the car for several days in a row alternated with several strange hotels, and when you end up at your final destination, they will love you all the more!

So, that’s that.  I feel like I’m on the show survivor - no internet, unless we go to an establishment with wifi, and no cable TV to watch the stories, only local antenna channels.  Oh sure, there’s Target and Starbucks and Publix and  Petsmart and Petco and Ross and Best Buy and Guitar Center... and Whole Foods all within a 1 mile radius.  But, still.  How do I cope without internet in my apartment, or without comedy central, TBS, FX....Animal Planet, or NGC?  I don’t understand.  It’s so hard to be underprivileged!

Oh Rege!

So, I apologize for not blogging last night... we got back to the hotel reeeeeeeeeally late, and then when I tried to log onto the internet my access was denied.  Sure, I probably just needed to call down to the front desk for the password, but I was so exhausted, that I used this as an excuse not to do it.  There.  I admit it!

So, anyway, I'm trying to write this, but The Fuzz has graced us with her presence in the bed.  She obviously has been scared and confused.  Every time we get to a new hotel she meows and then hides under the bed.  Then she comes out when we are asleep.  But tonight, I was taking my vitamins.  She thought I had the cat treats, so she came out begging for them.  So, of course we found the cat treats and gave her some.  And when she was done, she jumped up here in the bed.  She's been marking the computer, and then she even went in the middies.  The middies is the middle of the bed, obviously.  She never goes there because she is scared of being enclosed.   But I guess she is having a hard time and needs some reassuring affection.  Hopefully when we get to the apartment tomorrow they will acclimate fast.

Anyhoo, yesterday was a long day.  We did sleep in til 10:30, which was nice.  I think I got around 7 hours of sleep which is on the high side lately.  We got up and went to the quarter, got iced coffee at CC's (boy do they know how to make it properly) and then walked around.  It was already after 11, so we decided to eat lunch at Coop's, which was delicious.  Then we walked around some more.  We went down to Royal Street and watched a band play Doreen's Jazz Band.  We had seen them last time we were in New Orleans.  Doreen plays clarinet and she sings as well.  Amazing voice and an amazing clarinet player.  Everyone in the band was great.  The FP teared up, if you must know.

So, then we walked down to the blue dog gallery, Rodrigue.  I hadn't been in since it moved down the street.  Amazing.  To see the big huge paintings is something else.  And a lot of the paintings have these beautiful ornate gold frames that really made them so......... New Orleansy.  I love Rodrigue.

After that, we went back and got the car.  We went to see our friend in the hospital.  She had just had a baby a couple days before.  A teeny boy.  So we got to hang out with her and her twin sister for a little. It was great.  So good to see old friends.

Then we went back down the riverbend to Cooter Brown's.  I won't go into it too much.  Oysters and beer.  After that, we went back to the hotel room to relax.

After that dinner with some friends at the FP's old place of work.  We closed the place down, then we went next door for drinks.  Until 2:20 am.  I was so ready to leave at 12:30, but I tried to be patient.  I don't think I did a good job.  But not only was I tired and cranky and sleepy, the smoke in the bar was killing me.  As talking to drunks.  I stopped drinking after dinner, while everyone else knocked em back.  Is it bad that I've come to realize that my socializing threshold is about 4 hours.  So, I think I can conversate with others for about 4 hours, and then after that, they generally are drunk, and then they start repeating stories, or start to talk about things they shouldn't talk about or start to become a caricature  of themselves.  So, I like to get out before that all happens.  I used to be in the thick of it all, getting fuuuuucked up.  But now, I kinda don't like to get fucked up.  And I can't tolerate others getting fucked up very well.  I'm getting old before my time.  

Anyway, TBC........

Day 3 Drive Coast To Coast

So, it's 1:17am, but really my body says it's 11:17pm.  Either way, I am tired.  We went to bed fairly late last night, and we overslept an hour - but I still only got about hours sleep at best.

So, the FP was edgy and impatient from being behind schedule.   I was cranky from being awaken abruptly and being expected to move and think fast before I was allowed to wake up and have coffee.  I've said it before, I am a big baby without enough sleep and especially when I am abruptly woken up from a deep sleep.

Anyway, I never checked the tire pressure before we left for our coast to coast drive.  Stupid.  But I just kept forgetting.   And I hadn't checked the oil since right before we left.   I remembered while we were in the long and slow Starbucks drive thru line.  The FP was not happy.  So, of course, it was a pain in the ass to get back to a gas station.  But we did, so I started to check the tires.  They all could use air, they definitely were on the low side for all the weight we were carrying.  Probably would have saved us a few bucks.

So then we got on the road.  The FP asked for some Alleve.  I asked if he knew where it was.  He didn't.  He held his hand out expectantly while I madly scrounged around the crowded car looking.  Then he remembered.  It was under the driver seat in a container with change.  So I had to move all this shit to get to it.  I threw some bag.  The FP asked, are you mad?  So, I gave him his Alleve.  And yeah, I was mad.  I was cranky.  Everyone in the car was cranky, even Stinky.

So, I tried to sleep, but I couldn't breathe.  My sinuses were congested, and the generic claritin d was in the back of the car where I could not reach it.  So, I just tried to breathe.  It was very tiring and annoying.  I had to wait until we stopped to get the meds.  It was a quiet ride, but none of us (all four of us) seemed like talking much.

The drive was long and tiring and never ending.  And then it was trafficky and windy and just way more annoying than the previous day.  But, then, we finally started to see signs that Louisiana was approaching.  More and more cajun food.  But it seemed to take forever to get to Louisiana.  At some point we did finally get there.  At one place, we stopped to pee and to switch drivers.  Chevron.  There was a sign that mentioned boudin.  So I was looking for it.  The cashier asked me what I was looking for.  I said sausage.  So she reached into a crock pot and retrieved a foil wrapped tube meat.  So, we got in the car, and I unwrapped it to discover it was like andouille or a similar smoked sausage.  Oh well, it was still delicious.  And then, that kind of got us more excited for the drive to New Orleans.

Finally, we got into town, and we got into the hotel.  It was Staybridge Suites.  While it's not one of those charming hotels oozing with New Orleans character, they do allow pets for a low fee, and it's cheaper than other places we looked into.  And we didn't really want to stay right in the quarter.  So it was perfect.  Clean, big enough for the four of us, so much better than the night before.  It was great.

So, we unpacked/organized, got the cats set up, had a beer, then our friends picked us up for dinner.  We had a pleasant time at Jackson's on Magazine street, then we went to Tracey's to watch the last half of the NFL game.  Our other friend showed up, we shot the shit, next thing I knew, it was 12:30 and the FP was shitfaced.  So.....New Orleans.  So, I assisted him to the car, and our friend dropped us off.  He's in bed snoring away peacefully, while I'm here at the desk, writing this blog.  Boy am I tired, but everyone seems relaxed now.  None of us had gone #2, but a while after we checked into the hotel, the FP and I both went.  The cats have only just #1ed, but hopefully soon, they will #2, as it will relax them.  I know it relaxed me when I went!

Day Two Drive From Coast to Coast

So, here we are in San Antonio, Texas.  In an Econolodge a bit on the outskirts of the city.

I spent almost an hour and a half trying to figure out what hotels in the area were pet friendly.  So, I went online on the iphone, and let me tell you, the internets is not always as reliable as you think.  So, there were allegedly a bunch of upscale hotels in the riverwalk area that are pet friendly, but that's not in our budget.  So, then I found a couple like Best Western and such that touted being pet friendly.  So I called, and no.  False advertising.  I called a La Quinta downtown.  That place is pet friendly.  So the guy started to take my reservation, and wouldn't you know, dropped call.

So, anyway, we were driving on the outskirts, and there were plenty of hotels with lots of conveniences around.  We thought about exiting by one particular area, but we missed the exit.  So, that's when we saw another La Quinta.  But there were more hotels on the other side of the street, so we thought we would try that side first.  So, Days Inn didn't look too bad, but no pets.  Econolodge shared the same parking lot, so we figured we would try it.  I walked into the office, and there was a sign saying the pet fee is $15.  Not the most ideal place, but we knew it took pets and we were tired.  So we took it.

There was a BBQ joint right in front of the motel, but stupid us, it closed at 9 pm, so we missed out!  Anyway, I will discuss that on the food blog.  So, it is windy as hell and cold here.  I don't like it.  We had to go in the  big ole Walmart (because everything is bigger in Texas) to buy beer, and it was hot and stuffy in there.  It had high ceilings, lots of aisle space, it was a warehouse, yet they seemed to have the heat cranked up to the point that I felt like I would have to throw up or pass out.

So, yeah.  Sitting here writing this blog drinking a Ziegen Bock amber, whatever that is.  I am ready to exit Texas, but we still have several more hours.  But after that it's on to our beloved Louisiana.  :)

Today the cats were pretty quiet.  Of course when we took The Fuzz out to the car this morning, she was meowing so loudly it was echoing through the carpeted hallway.  In the car, she mostly kept quiet, but every once in a while if one of us looked at her she would quietly meow.  I opened her carrier for a bit, but she just sat there without moving.  I let Stinksy out, and he sat on my lap most of the time.  Of course, he eventually wanted to get in the sweet spot of the car to all cats - the space under the driver's feet!  I kept him out of there though.  Eventually, he just lay down on the back seat right next to The Fuzz's carrier.

Anyway, parts of the drive were pretty, El Paso was cool, and the plateaus were pretty, but it does feel like a never ending drive.  What I can say, is I definitely can tell I'm in another part of the country.   We needed gas and a pee, so we exited one of the first exits that we saw for about 50 miles.  There was a sign for Chevron there.  So we exited, and the sign said to go down the road 2 miles.  Two miles!  So, we did.  And this crappy little Chevron was about half a mile from the other gas stations, that were off the second exit.  So, kind of to spite the 2 mile from the exit Chevron, we went to another place, called Stripes.  Let me tell you, the place had all stripes and all colors... cars that is.  There were weird old cars and remodeled old muscle cars and red jettas and diesel pickup trucks and saturns and hybrid cars.  Weird.  Just strange because it was a tiny little town and it seemed like everyone that lived there was getting gas at the same time.

Well, as the FP says, there's no turning back now!

Exhausted

So, I'm in the lobby of La Quinta in Las Cruces, New Mexico.  The wireless signal is too weak in the hotel room.

Hell of a long day.

So it started around... 4:30, I think.  I took a shower.  Then we finished packing stuff and getting rid of stuff.  We went to our friend's house at 6:30 to drop off our desk - yes, we woke her up for it.  Then we started packing the car, and we realized we did not have nearly enough room for all this stuff.  So we had to reopen the relocube and figure how to add more stuff to the pile.  It is pretty full now, as is the car.   We threw away some stuff that could be useful, and the morning recyclers/dumpster divers took some of it.  Just not the bed and futon that is just leaning again an electric pole......

Our landlady, the FP's girlfriend, came over at 8:30 sharp to "check us out".  We were just finishing packing and cleaning.  You have to understand, we are dirty people.  Under the time constraint we had to finish the cleaning, it was a good job for our standards.  She walked in and said, did you clean at all?  She looked around for ten seconds and said, the refrigerator is clean, but you didn't clean anything else.  We looked at her.  Pause.  I went into a spiel about how with the short amount of time we had, packing the cube and then cleaning right after while still living in the apartment, we did the best we could.  If we were moving locally, then we could have vacated and had a couple days to clean.  So, I said, whatever you have to take out of the deposit, you can, because this is all we had time for.  She kind of backed down then.  I really didn't care at that point.  I was exhausted, and it was only 8:40 am!

So, we got the hell out of there.  We had to go to Cox to drop off the DVR.  So, we get there at 8:48, and there is a line outside waiting to get in.  So we get in line.  At about 2 minutes to 9, the security guard comes and tells us it's going to be 10 or 15 minutes because of a comupter problem.  A communications company with a computer problem!!! LOL!  We were not happy.  Most everyone else was pissed too.  Finally, we got in, and we left San Diego around 9:34.

It is now 11:49 pm.  My cats are tired and uncomfortable and thirsty and restless.  The FP is probably passed out in bed already, lucky.  So, now, I too am off to bed.

Moving Tetris

So, I completely overestimated how much stuff we had to move.  I  panicked and ordered 2 storage containers.  I was so worried about it all not fitting in the "relocube" (which is not a cube) but I was way way waaaaaaaaay off!  We had room to put way more stuff in the first one, and we didn't even open the second one.  So the dimensions were 6'/7'/8'.  So I had measured off the closet, and I figured 4/5 of the closet was the same size.... not quite accurate.  There is the hangar bar and shelf in the closet.  Plus, I stacked things a little different in the closet than in the relocube.  Luckily, I only pay for whatever I use, so they just take the second one back with no charge.

Needless to say, I'm pretty tired.  The FP is already passed out, 15 minutes after he hit the bed.  He did most of the bringing the stuff down to the front, and I did more of the rearranging.  So, if things get fucked up during the move, it's my fault!  Anyway, the relocubes are just sitting there on the street like two sentries.  We don't have the best neighborhood, so I'm hoping no one tries to fuck with them.  I had to put a lock on the empty cube, because I didn't want anyone going in there and leaving a dead body in it or anything like that.  The only thing is, I have to remember to take the lock off before the containers are picked up.

We have to meet with the FP's girlfriend (the landlady ... see numero ocho) at 8:30 tomorrow morning.  Kinda early, but we want to get on the road as early as we can.

We do have to drop the DVR box off at Cox, and we need to drop our desk off at our friend's house.  Hopefully she will be awake!

So, yeah.  Weird night.  We have the desk, the mattress and the TV on the TV stand.  That's all the furniture.  Tomorrow, we are going to get rid of everything except the TV.  We had Luigi's Pizza for one last time.  Stupid us, we didn't think that they delivered, but we found out tonight that they do deliver.  It's a little too late for that.  Anyway, one of the things about Luigi's is that it's cash only.  So, usually if we get delivery we don't have cash anyway, so that's probably part of why we never checked to see if they delivered.  Anyway, it was good pizza.

Right now, The Fuzz is using the litter box.  She doesn't know how to scratch to cover.  She just scratches the side of the box, not the litter.  So she will do this for a long time, and it's irritating, even though it's cute in a retarded (excuse me, mentally challenged) kind of way.  Anyway, we had moved the litter box into the bedroom.  There's nothing else in there, so it is really loud and echoey in there.  Needless to say, the scratching of the walls of the litter box is even more annoying when it's amplified.

We put collars with microchip ID info on the kitties tonight.  They fuzzed, I mean fussed a little, but then after, they seemed to not bother about the collars, almost like they like having the collars.  They look silly though, because the tags are so big.

So here's Stinky with his collar

And here's The Fuzz

The tag looks like a bib on her!  LOL!!!!!

Anyway, I have to eat my daily yogurt and watch TV and attempt to sleep at a reasonable hour.  The bullshit is, I'm really exhausted and have been suffering sleep deprivation, but it doesn't mean I will be able to sleep soundly!

Crying Tiger

What can I say?  We went to the Bluefoot tonight for the last time.  We saw our close friends, except for a couple who couldn't make it.  It was very sad, yet very not final.  I think our close friends are lifelong friends, and we will see them again.  All the same, even with the excitement with a new adventure on the horizon, it's still sad to say goodbye.

We ate crying tiger for dinner after, seems appropriate....

Do You Remember When?

All this packing, combined with reading some old letters that my BFF still has from our teen years has made me very nostalgic.  It made me want to play Do You Remember When.  So, I apologize if you are probably under 32ish, you may not get any of these references.

Do you remember when VHS and BETA came out?
Our family friends were one of the first families to get a VCR, so we would always watch movies when we went over there.  They had James Bond, Sound of Music, The Muppet Movie and most notably, Grease.  We watched Grease every time we went to visit them.


Do you remember when Sony Trinitron was the latest in cutting edge TV Tube technology?
We had one for years and years until it stopped working.  I think the color started to go, and then              the picture died.  Some time after that, we got what seemed like a huge TV.  It was probably a 40 inch or something, big and heavy.  The neighbor's drug addict son broken in and stole it.  Then my dad bought this tiny tiny white portable job.  He would watch it in the bedroom.  He would bring it to work and leave it in the car.  Then he would bring it home again at night and watch it.  I would come home to visit, and we would actually hook it up to a VCR on the kitchen table and watch movies on it.

Do you remember when The Simpsons first appeared on TV?
I don't remember the year, but I do remember watching it on the Tracey Ullman show.  There was the one where Maggie went on some big adventure.  And then when it became it's old series, it sucked, because it was on the same time as 60 Minutes, so I would have to surrender the TV to my dad.

Do you remember when kids could leave the house by themselves and go play for hours without parents even giving it much thought?
I was pretty much a latchkey kid.  I had two older sisters, so I think at a young age we were left to our own devices after school, sometimes until late at night.  We were not allowed to go anywhere without tracking down our parents on the phone (the landline, which was all we had) and asking, of course.  But, sometime in junior high when my sisters were always off doing their thing, I started riding my bike around the neighborhood every day after school.  I might go to the lake, or to a friend's house or just ride around.  If I had asked to go to a friend's house, there would have been suspicion or hesitation from my parents.  For whatever reason though, if I said I was going to go bike riding, no problem.

Do you remember when call waiting became an option?
It was a revelation!  My oldest sister was always on the phone.  My mom was a physician who was always on call.  So, my mom was always getting onto my sister about "tying up the phone".  So, my sister added call waiting onto the phone line.  I don't know how she got my parents to agree to an added expense - maybe she said she would pay for it?  Anyway, my mom got even more frustrated, because she simply didn't like my sister sitting and talking on the phone for hours.  Even worse, my mom probably saw that it irritated my dad, so she would have to figure out a reason for my sister to get off the phone.  Now, I barely talk on the phone, so I rarely have to use call waiting.

Do you remember when Laverne and Shirley moved to California?
That was weird......

Do you remember when most families of all your classmates went to church every Sunday?
Or maybe that just depends on where one grew up and what school one went to?

Do you remember, if you went to church every Sunday, going to eat after church? 
I remember.  It was usually special.  Not special as in fancy, special, as in, the moms didn't have to cook.  If we were visiting our friends (who had the VCR) all the Filipino families would go to either Popeye's or Captain D's.  It was fun.  The kids on one side of the restaurant, the adults on the other, taking up half the joint.  If we were home and it was just my family, we would go to Morrison's Cafeteria (I liked the corn and desserts there), Shoney's, Bob Evans, or maybe Taco Bell.  For some reason Taco Bell was a real treat.  I think it was because it was kind of out of the way or something.

Do you remember when CD players first came out?
Not to date myself, but I was in high school, I believe.  I saved my money and got a Sony portable CD player and these crappy speakers.  My first CD was The Stone Roses.

Do you remember when cell phones first came out?
My sister had one of those big phones with the suitcase power pack.  I remember thinking how cool it was.  We didn't get our first cell phones until pretty much everyone else already had them.

Do you remember when you stopped writing letters and notes and started writing emails?
I remember my email address in college was like 20 characters long, and some of the printers were still dot matrix!

Do you remember when "hooking up" could simply mean holding hands or kissing?
Back then, cheating on someone could also mean holding hands or kissing.  Now, cheating generally means vaginal and penile intercourse.  ("I did not have sexual intercourse with that woman.")

Oh, one more:  Do you remember when Michael Jackson was just an innocent pop star role model?
I mean, if it weren't for Thriller, would he have risen to anywhere near the fame to which he rose?

Feel free to add your own Do you remember whens....

No Turning Back

So, like every time we do something that has to do with moving, the FP says, "Well, I guess there's no turning back now."  Needless to say, he's said that about 20 times.  But it's kinda now just a thing he does - like how he says, "That was the best lunch I've ever had" after every lunch.  People, one of the keys to staying young is to become a live caricature of yourself!

Anyway, in the way of furniture, we are down to the desk that this computer is on, the 2 IKEA end tables that we will get rid of when we leave, 2 more little IKEA tables that we will also dispose of, and our mattress, which we moved onto the living room floor.  The futon is hanging out outside, waiting for someone, ANYONE to take it.  I put an ad on craigslist, for the futon, for free, and a lot of people have responded.  But then, no one seems to follow through.  It is free, so just take the damn thing already!  Ok, it's very fucked up, but it's perfect for the front porch, the back porch, the den, the game room, the dingy guest room, the frat house rape room, the play room, the cat room, hell, somewhere where transient people stay.

So, less furniture than a college dorm room.  Needless to say, the cats are FREAKED OUT!!!!!
Like, every time today when they would be walking around, one of us would happen to be going where the cat was going.  So, it would seem one of us was chasing a cat with a box or a hammer or something scary.  And then, the FP kept knocking shit over.  Mainly the mop and/or broom.  Now I understand how some parents use food to comfort kids.  Shaking the treat bag was the only way to get the cats to come out and relax, even if only for a couple minutes.

But, I have to tell you about something very special that The Fuzz did last night, when the futon was still in the living room.  So, we were on the futon.  I was watching TV, but the FP was already snoring. Stinky came up and sprawled out on the futon next to my head in the corner.  That is where the Fuzz has taken to sleeping lately.  So, at one point, The Fuzz jumped up on the futon and padded right up to Stinksy (we actually call him Stinky on a day to day basis) and started licking him.  Then she chomped him on the neck.  He attacked back, and they jumped down and chased each other for about 15 seconds.  Then The Fuzz jumped back on the futon and took her rightful place on the corner of the futon by my head.

Do you understand how, uncharacteristically ballsy that was of her?  This is the girl cat who gets scared of... of the feather wand toy!  It's amazing!  It was such a breakthrough, and then today just knocked her back down the ladder of progress..... *sigh*

So, I had this idea like years ago to transcribe all the high school notes and college letters I could find that my friends wrote to me.  Unfortunately, I threw a lot away.  But I asked my friends if they had any. Almost everyone did not.  Except for BFF.  Her mom was always going through her stuff and reading it and throwing things away, so, I think whatever BFF could salvage was very precious to her.  As I think any old personal correspondence is.  So, BFF had sent me these letters a long time ago, but I had never transcribed them.  So, I figured, I should get it done before I moved, so I could send them back.  I didn't want to be responsible for them getting lost in the move.

That was weird.  Reading all that old stuff.  I think, that it might be publishable.  There are letters from one person about some piece of gossip, and then there will be another letter from another party involved in the gossip.  So you get different points of view.  Really cool.  And so.... youthful.  It totally brought me back in time to places that I would not want to go back to, but that I appreciate.  Interesting stuff.  Hopefully, one day,  you will be able to read this shit.  Maybe you will find it trite and boring.  Or maybe it will seem universal to you.  I don't know.  But, I think these people we were friends with were such talented letter writers.  And yes, that is totally a talent.  I really don't know if it's a skill that kids today have not learned... just the act of writing on paper seems so much more personal, and sensual than texting a text or posting on someone's facebook wall... you know?  I'm sure that's what the old people said about the way we communicated when we were young.

Anyway, that's all for tonight.  I think I will do a "remember when" post tomorrow.  So please feel free to remind me of that... comment on my blog, on my facebook wall, send me a text, send me an email, or just flash it on the big screen at any major sporting event!

So, yeah

The FP's girlfriend dropped by just now.  She was standing right by the window, so when I looked out the window I saw her standing right there.  So, no avoiding talking to her.  Which was fine, but I definitely didn't want her trying to walk in and look at the place.  It's been worse, but it's not the best.  I was possibly thinking of doing some work around the apartment, or walking to Albertson's to get some yogurt.  I wasn't sure which, but maybe I should clean.  She's fairly a nice lady, but she made a point to say how she didn't show the place to anyone yet because it's not ready.  And then she seemed disappointed that we wouldn't be ready to check out with her until Tuesday, the 15th, when we gave notice for.  Maybe she was just disappointed because she didn't get to see her boyfriend, but his wife instead.  Her grandson was with her, and he told me yet again how he saw the FP on Google Earth.  Like if you look up either our address or down the street, you can see him running.  I'll have to finally look it up and see.  It's probably been updated since then, though. (pause)  Well, I didn't see him, but I did see our car out front.  It looks cleanish in the picture which is weird.  But, as I looked down the street I saw that the post office was still open when these pictures were taken, so it has been almost a year at least since these images were taken.

So, we are needing to really wrap this shit up now.  It's kind of a waiting game at the same time.  If we pack too much shit, then we will have to open boxes to take stuff out.  We should pretty much stop cooking, but that would mean we would probably eat more expensive food, or more unhealthy food.  We have to get rid of the futon this weekend, and wrap up the cleaning.  We also need to go to In N Out, maybe Ba Ren, and hopefully Villa Manila.  We need to go to the beach one more time to see the Pacific.  Hopefully some people will show up on Sunday night at the bar to say goodbye.

Then we have to get rid of the bed last.  It's a bit of a dilemma because if we just dump it in the lot next door, everyone will know it's us because we are moving.  Or we can hope someone from craigslist will take it.  It's weird to be getting rid of ALL of our furniture.  I know I've said that before.  It's weird that people want a beat up futon.  It's weird that we are going to be living in a furnished apartment.  It's weird that we are going to be living in South Florida.  It's weird that we are going to be driving around New Orleans in our Element.  It's weird that we are going to be taking our cats cross country, when The Fuzz gets mad if I pick her up and carry her from the bedroom to the living room.  It's weird that I'm watching Living Single while I'm trying to write this.  It's not really a good show.

Not like... Degrassi, which the season premiere should be tomorrow night.  Which is exciting and disappointing at the same time.  I'm excited for the new season, but I don't know if I'm going to be able to watch the new season.  I'm pretty sure our new apartment has cable included, so it's some weird cable company that is not Cox, and maybe we won't have TeenNick!  Oh the horrors!  And maybe no Sundance, IFC, EPIX, etc.  I wonder if I should take this time to watch the shows recorded on the DVR one more time.  I know there is an easy way to attach a hard drive and copy shit from the DVR, but it's not really that important to save these shows.

So, anyway, I guess I am going to clean now.  I think I'm too lazy to walk to the grocery store right now, but not too lazy to do a bit of cleaning.  Oh, God, The Cosby Show.....must change the channel.  Guess I will watch the Raiders pound the Chargers into their own home field.  Who knows, maybe the Chargers will surprise us all!

So, here are the before and after pictures of my tattoo.  The original one of my mom's name below:

Then the added flowers here below.

It's only been about a week and a half, but it's mostly healed.  I'm very happy with it.  The flowers are so delicately done, and they are shaded so that they don't look like they were done last week, they already blend in with the name.

So now I've been told that I need to add something to my Nola tattoo.

I really don't have an idea for anything, and I kind of like having the two arms kind of asymmetrical.  Anyway, I've very happy with these.  I do also have my purple salamander on my ankle, but I won't show you a picture of it because I don't shave my legs....

Anyhoo, that was just a distraction, because I can't think of anything to write.  I have blogger's block.  I know, it happens all the time.  I don't really feel like bitching about anything tonight.  I don't feel funny.  Hm...

I can tell you about my obsessive or nervous ticks.  Everyone has at least one right?  I think I have several.  Let's contemplate them again, shall we?  I think I already wrote about some of them previously, but let's just talk about it some more.

I just noticed that when I put on chapstick or lipstick, I have to put on a lot.  With lipstick, I will put like three layers.  With chapstick, I will just absentmindedly rub it on for half a minute or more.  It feels good though.  I use Carmex or Burt's Beeswax, so it tingles so I know it's working.

I also tend to overuse antibiotic cream right after I get a new tattoo.  My bff pointed this out the other week.  I basically was using it so much though, because it hurt or itched.  So rubbing antibiotic cream on it kept me resisting the urge to scratch it.

When I'm waiting I look at my phone a lot.  I will look at my phone to see what time it is, then I will not really absorb the information.  So I will have to look at the phone again.  And again.  I can look at my phone for the time 12 times in a half hour time span.  I can also obsessively look at it if I'm waiting for a phone call or text message.

Same goes with facebook or my yahoo mail.  I will check the two websites countless times a day, whether it be because I'm waiting for some correspondence from someone, or if I'm restless.

I obsess over the car alarm.  I always ask the FP whether he locked the car.  To be fair sometimes he doesn't.  But even if I drove, and I didn't remember the act of activating the alarm, I will go back outside, even hours later, to make sure it's locked.  Part of that is because someone tried to hotwire the car, of course.  But I was obsessive about it before that happened.

I obsess over keeping track of my ID, my debit card and credit cards.  So, I sort of have these different pockets in my wallet for them.  I don't always organize them properly, so I'm always fumbling around for them.  It's so annoying, but I never learn.  And then, the times when I don't take my wallet and put my cards in my pocket, that's another nightmare.  I forget which pocket I put them in, and I end up touching myself all over in public.  And then, when I go home, instead of putting the cards back in the proper pockets of the wallet, sometimes I'll just throw them in my purse.  Like, why would I do that?!?!

I know I've already discussed the methodical eating - picking out candies by colors and stuff like that.  I also have to eat the crust first from a sliced bread sandwich.  I will eat around the borders, and then I work my way inward.  Sometimes I do this with pizza if the crust is edible.

I don't like to touch the handles of public bathroom doors and stall doors, yet the floor of the living room where I am sitting right now is filthy.

If I am looking to buy something, like a power drill say, or a flight case for an amp, or don't even ask me about buying a computer, I will research on the internet endlessly.  I mean hours and hours, as if I'm writing a thesis on the subject.  The sad thing is, that a month later I will have forgotten almost everything I've learned about an item, so I'm not very helpful in giving others advice on the object in question.

So, that's all I've got for now.  Sorry if it's not very entertaining!!!

Frankenbox

So, it might not look like it, but this took a long time to do.  Like half an hour.  Really.  I am kinda weak and slow, so don't laugh.  You wouldn't laugh if I had a handicapped tag hanging from my rearview mirror, would you?

We had to buy a flight case for the guitar amp.  So, I used the box that the flight case came in to make a cover for the bass amp.  The bass amp is sturdier, so it doesn't really need a flight case.  Oh, and I don't want to spend the money on a flight case for the bass amp.  So I had to take the box apart and bend and tape it to fit.  Pretty, huh?  Well, it should do the job anyway.  We have to bring the bass amp downstairs without the box cover and then put the cover on it before loading it into the "relocube".

Exciting stuff, huh?  Well, this blog is called unnecessary supplement!  So, you don't have to be nasty about it!

So, how about that guy Sandusky.  I assume EVERYONE has heard about him for now.  So, he was a former coach at Penn State.  He had a charity called Second Mile.  A program for underprivileged kids.  He privileged them, at least 9 boys, with helping soaping them up in the shower and bear hugging them, among other sexually inappropriate privileges.  So, someone at Penn State saw inappropriate behavior and told his superior who told his superior and so on.  So, they had him retire, rather than call the cops.

So, here's a picture of him.  While he does appear to have an upper lip, it does seem to be perverted looking.  Can't you just imagine tongue licking those gross lips while thinking about some young boy?  But, I think the more interesting feature is his pointy vampiric teeth!  Look at those incisors and canines!  He probably bit those poor boys with those fangs.  And you know, of course these boys didn't tell anyone at the time of the incidents.  They were boys.  And this man forced them to do stuff.  And these poor boys are probably pretty fucked up.  They were underprivileged boys that may or may not have been taught to talk about their feelings.

And all the coaching department at Penn State can say is, they did nothing illegal.  So, Joe Paterno's illustrious career is going to end with a very large hideous black mark on it.  You know, if I saw that guy's teeth (Sandusky)  I wouldn't hire him!  I know that we are not supposed to be prejudiced and judge people by their looks, but we do judge people by their looks every day.  I mean, if I had kids, any adult who I couldn't imagine being alone with my kid because of the way he (yes, mostly he) looked, I would be very wary of that person.  And, if he were really "good" and took a special interest in my kid, I would be even more wary.

I'm not going to equate this guy Sandusky with Frankenstein's monster, but didn't the monster kill a kid.  And didn't Sandusky kill these boys on the inside?  I mean, they were probably terrified of taking a shower after having to take one with him.

Sick people in this world.  I always thought I was a sick person, but man there are some fucked up psychos out there!

So, enough of my ranting and raving.  Let's look at a miniature horse and a puppy!

 

My Priority Isn't Yours, I realize this

So, last weekend, I got news that if I wanted this one apartment, I needed to send a $250 cashier's check as a deposit to hold it.  So, I was waiting for the address to mail it to, which I got Sunday or Monday.  So, I went to the bank and got a cashier's check.  Then I went to our neighborhood mailbox store to mail it.  So, asked how much overnight and other different way besides just putting a stamp on it would cost.  So, everything was like $35 and up besides priority mail.  So, priority mail is supposed to be 2 -3 days, although it's not guaranteed.  I figured normal mail from Florida to here usually takes 4 days, so, priority mail would be 3 - 4 days, with tracking.  So I did priority mail.  I guess I should have asked the guy if it would be picked up that day or not.  Because it wasn't.  It wasn't picked up, it looks like, until the next night.  If I had known that, I would have probably left and just gone to the post office.  Maybe he knew that, or he didn't care.

Anyway, the check was to be mailed to my realtor, who would give it to the landlady.  So the landlady called the realtor every day asking for the check.  I forwarded the tracking info.  But all it said, was the check left San Diego on Wednesday and was in transit.  So, the weekend came and went, no sign of the check.  It being a cashier's check, I was worried that if it were lost, I wouldn't be able to cancel it right away.

So, I don't know how much the landlady harassed my realtor, probably a lot.  So, this morning I got an email from the realtor saying that the check had not arrived and the landlady didn't want to hold the apartment for us any longer.  So, even though we thought that maybe the check would show up tomorrow, I went and sent a regular check fed ex overnight.  When I got home, I checked the USPS website for tracking on the first check.  It had arrived at a sorting facility in Florida.  So, they will get two checks tomorrow.  The priority mail check will have taken 9 days, 8 if you don't count Sunday.  It's like I almost don't want the apartment though, because this landlady sounds like a nightmare!  But, whatever.  Hopefully we won't have to deal with her much.  Just send the rent every month.

But, let's just be positive, shall we.  Whatever happens, happens.  It is what it is.  Que sera sera.  Shit happens.

So, here's a weird story.  We went to the health clinic to get the test results from my diabetes and thyroid tests.  So, it was around 12:30 and we were expecting it to be packed in the waiting room.  There were 3 guys there who were together.  They were acting very weird.  The FP swore they were on something.    So, I was at the desk checking in.  The FP sat down, and next thing I noticed, the one asian kid was sitting one chair away from the FP asking him about his phone.  I heard him say, is that an iphone?  Like anyone doesn't know what an iphone looks like.  Like an asian kid doesn't know the difference between and iphone and a droid.  So, I thought that was weird.  The FP was not in the mood to be chatting.  So, then he got up and he was standing next to me at the counter.  One of the other kids, the most scary looking one, asked us if we knew what the cross streets were that the clinic was on.  So, we kinda mumbled some streets that were not right.  So, we went to sit down as far away from them as we could, and scary guy said thank you.  We didn't even really help him.  Luckily, it was only a few minutes before I was called.  The FP hesitated to go, so I had to beckon him to come with.  I know he didn't want to be stuck alone in the room with these guys.

So, basically, I was told that I needed more blood drawn for more tests.  So, when we were walking out of the office, the waiting room was packed!  The scary guy was the only one of the three still there.  I guess we went in during the lunch break or something.  So, when we walked out, we went by the elevator and turned around to go back to the stairs.  The scary guy came out behind us.  He stood like he wasn't going to walk out, and then he did.  Like he was going to follow us.  He followed us to the stairs and then kind of stopped.  We picked up the pace.  I think we were both worried he was going to try to rob us or something.   Probably steal the coveted iphone 3gs, latest technology, that you can now buy for $20 from at&t.   Luckily, the stairs were very open.  And there were people around.  I was relieved that we were going to the lab rather than walking to our car.  I definitely felt like he either was going to rob us, ask us for a ride or try to do a drug transaction.  When we were leaving, we got in the car, and when we turned the corner, we saw them on the sidewalk huddled, looking shady.  Luckily, they didn't see us in the car.  Otherwise, they probably would have jumped out and carjacked us and raped us both, the FP in the mouth and anus, and me probably golden gated me while the other one filmed it on the FP's iphone or something.  Anyway, it was very weird, and I can't stop thinking about it.  They were just weird kids, and why bother with us?  We didn't look like we had money, we did have the iphone, but I guess we looked like easy victims?  I'm not much of a screamer, but put me in a situation like that, I can probably scream with the rest of them.  Anyway, nothing happened.  

So... let me leave you again with another video or something.... oh, this is an old one of Stinksy
sorry, you will have to click on the link.  Yes, I am making you do work if you want to read my blog!

http://youtu.be/qOyef5fMKgY

Every Day Is Another Day Closer To Moving

So, another landmark day.  We finished packing all our art, so completely bare walls now.  And, we gave Pete to our friends!  For those of you who don't know, this is Pete.

Our friend moved out of state and gave him to us several months ago, and now we are moving and passing him on to someone else.  So, it's pretty sad.  He has been a real part of our family.  So, when we sold the dining room table, I put Pete on the kitchen counter.  Stinksy didn't seem to care or notice.  But today, right before I was about to put Pete in his travel pitcher (yes, a water pitcher - that's how he arrived at our place)  Stinksy jumped up to see him.  It was like he knew!!!  So sad.  But, our friends have a little girl, and Pete will entertain her, and vice versa.  And, I figure they will take good care of him.  So, it's not completely sad.  It's happy time that Pete went to a good home!  Hopefully he will live a long and happy life with them!  And if not, the FP pointed out that they will have to keep buying a blue and red betta fish so that their little daughter won't know that he died.

We also gave them our not so thriving serrano plant that has been sitting on our outside walkway area.  After all these years, I still don't know what to call it.  Landing, patio, stoop.  Whatever.  It's the narrow walkway from the stairs to the door that we have as our own private space.  

Anyhoo, we also gave them the plant that they gave us as a housewarming gift when we moved in here!  They just put an offer on a house in Carlsbad, so hopefully they will get it, so the ficus can be like a housewarming gift for them!

So, it's down to our last week here.  I've been knowing this was for real for 2 months now, but it definitely is hitting home more now.  I mean, we are starting a new life across the country from scratch!!!

I'm sorry to dwell on this in every post, but this post is really about me, so this is what is at the forefront of my thoughts right now.  Oh, also, tough loss tonight, Stillers.  It was a really good, hard fought game.  But, that's that.  Good luck next week.

So, let me leave you with something from the past.  A video of The Fuzz when she was a baby: