The Cocoon Ate My Lawnmower

I went outside with the dogs a few minutes ago, and it is so nice outside! So I thought maybe I would mow part of the lawn. I went to the garage door, and looked it over carefully, like I always do, because I have a lot of spiders where I live, and I definitely don't want to take the chance of touching one or having one fall on me or anything. Shudder. And I did find some spiders, but I also found this:

(Shown next to a Daddy Long Legs, so you can get an idea of the size of it - it's very small.)

It's a cocoon. Or chrysalis - I'm not sure. Whatever it is, I don't want to take the chance of hurting it, so I didn't open the garage door, and my lawn didn't get mowed. I wonder how long this thing will be holding my garage door captive?

If anyone who reads this has any idea what type of creature this is going to end up being, drop me an e-mail or a comment, would you? I'd really like to know. Thanks!

Edited to add: I did some research online, and it looks like it's a Monarch butterfly cocoon! So exciting. It takes them about a week and a half to come out of the cocoon. I have no idea how long it's been hanging there, but I'm going to keep an eye on it. Apparently they turn transparent a day before they emerge, so when it gets to that point, I'll take another picture. But, yay! My garage door is hosting the birth of a Monarch butterfly! So cool.

Finally! Two days off to relax

Aaaahhhh. The only good thing about working 12 days in a row is the incredible feeling of freedom and appreciation it has made me have for this weekend. You know what I did yesterday? Almost nothing, and it felt great. Okay, so I did a couple loads of laundry. And I ran a few errands (grocery store, library, bank), but I got to take the dogs with me, so that was even okay. And I got Chinese food for dinner, so really it was just about the perfect Saturday. And today is shaping up just as well. I need to mow the lawn, but it is a little rainy and actually cold out (weird, for August), so that's not getting done today. Instead I will be sitting here all day, playing the Sims, catching up on my recorded TV shows, and maybe sweeping the floors. Oh, and I have already done two loads of laundry and my sheets are in the washer. But laundry is almost nothing, it's so easy - the machines do all the work.

Anyway, I'm just checking in to let you all know that I did in fact survive my 12 days of hell, and I am really enjoying my weekend. And now I just have to work five more days, and then I get a THREE day weekend, because I took Labor Day off (we don't get it automatically, because the office doesn't close). And I'll get my first overtime paycheck on Tuesday, and I can't wait to see how big it is. They better not kill me too much with taxes, because I need to feel like all that time with no days off was worth it.

And now I'm going to go back to playing my game. I hope you all are having fantastic weekends!

Hanging In

I've made it to day 11. I just have to get through today and tomorrow, and then I will finally have two days off, to sleep the sleep of the dead, because frankly that's how I've been feeling the last few days - dead.

But yeah, blah, blah, blah, I'm exhausted, haven't had any time off, boringness. Right? Yup. And I'm afraid it doesn't get much more exciting than that, because that's what my life has been for the last 11 days. Work, sleep, get up and work again, Sim a little, lather, rinse and repeat. I'm existing on Diet Pepsi and junk food. Not healthy, but whatever it takes to keep me vertical for the work days. And the junk food is okay, because I'm starting another weight loss challenge at work.

Yeah, remember when I talked about that last one? All those months ago? Yeah, I never mentioned it again because I crapped out on it at about week four. Yup. But I'm trying again, because you never know - this may be the time I stick with it. I've been trying to do some self improvement lately, anyway. It's taking a while, but I'm trying to work myself back into the person I was before my Mom got sick and life started beating me down. And by that I mean, I'm trying to get back into actually caring about how I look and how I treat myself. The first step was starting to wear jewelry again, the second step (newly accomplished) was starting to take the effort to wear make-up again. The third step is the weight loss and starting to exercise so that I can feel healthy again, which will be followed by step four: shop 'til I drop and buy all kinds of new, smaller, girly clothes. Obviously that step kind of hinges on the one before it. So I'm giving it another shot.

And now I have to go to a stupid meeting, so that's it from me for now. I hope you all are having good weeks. And if you have any good willpower thoughts that you could send my way (starting about Saturday), I would very much appreciate them. Thanks!

Reading: Frankie's Place, by Jim Sterba (purchased while I was in Maine)
Listening: to my Yahoo radio, which is currently playing some Wham!
Watching: my computer monitor, for another 5 1/2 hours, ugh.
Wishing: that it was Friday at 4:30, because I'd be on my way home.
Drinking: Diet Pepsi

Tired, Oh So Tired

Day 9 of 12. I'm losing steam big time. It's 9:18 a.m. at this very moment, and I am already drinking a soda, because I don't drink coffee, and I needed caffeine to keep my eyes open. Willow woke up me up a few times last night growling, and in fact got herself kicked out of my room for the first time in a few weeks. But then, of course, she woke me up again at 5:00 this morning scratching at my door to get back in. Stupid dog. It's a good thing she's so darn cute and (usually) lovable.

It's only Tuesday. Someone wake me when Friday afternoon comes, okay? Thanks.

A New Semester Begins

Welcome weekend is over - the students are all back on campus. The freshmen are charging up their new laptops, getting to know their roommates, and anticipating the first day of classes. Their backpacks are ready with textbooks, notebooks, folders, pens, pencils and calculators. They've got their outifts all picked out so that they will look just right. A load of new experiences await them, some good, some bad, but all necessary to make them into the people they will eventually be. The traditional students won't appreciate it for what it is - a chance to learn the skills they will need to give them a bright future. The non-traditional students will, because they know what else is out there.

I am not taking classes this semester. And I am so happy about that, I can't even express it. I will get up tomorrow morning and go to work, and I will be very grateful not to have to pack up my laptop to start a couple of new classes. This break is going to be fantastic. Let those students go to classes and do homework and struggle with group assignments and study for quizzes and tests. I'm going to relax.

Snapshot

So, I'm bored. For anyone reading this who isn't Sarah, and therefore doesn't know what laptop distribution is like, this is how my day is going. I showed up at 7:30 this morning, and stood around and did nothing until 9:00. Then I herded students into a room and signed their contract copies and directed them to another room. That lasted about 15 minutes, and then I sat and did nothing until 11:00, when I got to do that all again. And then (are you getting a picture here?) I ate lunch and did nothing until 1:30, and now I'm sitting here doing nothing again, waiting for 3:30 when I can work for another fifteen minutes and then hopefully go home. So basically, I'm working for about an hour, but spending 8 1/2 hours or so here to do it. Fun!

But I'm getting paid overtime for it all, so I guess I'll shut up now. :)

Introspective entry about work, brought on by severe tiredness

Five days of work down, seven to go. I hate the week that the kids come back. So, yeah, work has been kind of crazy. If you have been reading me right along, you know that I changed jobs in January. I work for the same company, and in the same building, but for a different department. That transition has been harder in some ways than I thought it would be. I've had to adjust to not working with my two good friends anymore, which was made easier by the fact that they're just on the other side of the building, so while we're not working side by side anymore, I still get to see them everyday, and we usually get to have lunch together too.

Although, I'll admit it here and now, I did have to deal with some jealousy when the summer first started, and they were over there together, working in the same space, and I was all the way on the other side of the building, missing all the fun. That was totally my issue, and I got over it eventually. And yes, I did say fun and work in the same sentence. How can work not be fun when it involves two crazy people who make jokes out of everything?

So, I adjusted to that, and I learned the ins and outs of my new job, and I enjoy it a lot. I don't love it, but I like it, and it's a very good job, and I feel lucky everyday to have it. But the fact that I work for the same company, in the same building, can make things weird sometimes. Yesterday my old coworkers had to move 800 or 900 laptops from our building to the one where they're going to be distributed to the students, while I was helping out with stuff in my own office. And I felt guilty! I felt like I should be over there, sweating along with them while moving those laptops. Telling myself that I have a different job now didn't make me get past that. Then today I was in the gym where all of the new students were coming through for orientation, doing stuff for the old office (I get shipped out to them for things like this, because they're a little shorthanded right now) - selling laptops and answering questions. But mostly it was very slow for me, and I sat there for amost nine hours not doing too much of anything useful. And I was thinking about my friends, back in the old building, handing out cell phones to what must have felt like thousands of students, with lines backed up the length of a gymnasium (four lines, that is), and I felt guilty again. I would have been far more useful down there with them, handing out phones (or helping in the store, not that I could have been much use in there).

I'm not sure what the point of this post is, other than that I shouldn't write entries when I'm tired and only have work on my mind. But I guess overall I'm just having trouble separating my old job from my new job. My loyalties are mixed. I loved my old job, and I have two great friends who still work there, and I want to be able to help them out on these hectic, busy days. And I can't. And I'm sorry about that.

And maybe I need to get the fuck out of my head, and go lay in my clean bed and relax and go to sleep early, because I have to be at work at 7:30 tomorrow to hand out laptops. (Which, for anyone keeping track, is being done for my old job. Is it any wonder I have trouble saying good-bye to it?) I hope you all have great weekends - those of you who have it off, that is. Sarah, Jamie and I will be at work wishing we weren't.

This Entry Rated PG-13

My job can be pretty boring, but every once in a while I get a cool assignment. Like this one: the college where I work makes ice cream, and they're probably going to be rolling out four new flavors soon - I was asked to help come up with names for the new flavors. One of the flavors was vanilla with halved cherries. I came up with the perfect name! Only I don't think the college will go for it - what do you think?

The name I came up with? Popped My Cherry.

Hee. Something tells me the chancellor would have a cow.

Good-bye Weekend

I had a good weekend. A bridal shower on Saturday that turned into dinner at Applebee's. A lazy day today doing not much of anything, and the weather was absolutely perfect - if it could be low 70s everyday, with nights in the 50s, I would be so happy. It's great. Weird for August, but I'll take it.

It's a good thing I enjoyed my weekend, too, because school starts a week from tomorrow. The students will be back, and I have to work next weekend. Sigh. So sad. I have to work for TWELVE days in a row. Twelve, people! Two of my readers feel my pain, because they work there too. That doesn't make me feel any better, though.

And I have a cat yelling at me, and I don't really have anything else to say, so that's all for now. I hope you all had great weekends!

Ren-Purse

I promised you the picture of that very weird purse that I saw at the Renaissance Fair on Saturday. Behold (and I apologize for the poor quality of the picture - I was kind of snapping it on the sly, and she was standing in the sun):

Can you make it out? That is the fur from the head of an animal - I couldn't quite tell what, but it seems like a coyote, maybe? If you know something else that it may be, leave me a comment to let me know. Anyway, the fur head makes the flap, and the bottom seems to be a turtle or tortoise shell, with leather fringe hanging off the bottom. I'm kind of glad that I can't see what the back of it is made out of. Freaky.

I had dinner at my sister's house tonight, like I do every Monday night (my sister rules), and she told me that my nephew, who moved out to Los Angeles less than a month ago, I think, landed a bit part as a hostage on Medium, which is so exciting! It would be exciting no matter what show it was, but I actually watch and love that show, so I can't wait to see it. He doesn't know when it's going to be on yet, but I'll mention again when I know. So cool.

Okay, wow, my head is so not into writing something interesting here, so I'm ending this entry here. I hope you all are having a great Monday!

Ren Fair - An Entry in Pictures

Jamie and I went to the renaissance fair today. It's a very interesting place, and we had a fun day (albeit a hot, tiring one). You wanna see some pictures? Cool.

The entrance, with two of the first actors we came across.

The King! Who looks more like the Pope in that hat.

A parade of actors. It turned out that all of these people were heading to their first show of the day - we caught part of it.

Outside of the show I just mentioned, there was this lady hanging out with a live owl on her arm. Very cool! She was involved with the show.

God save the Queen!

There were rides all around the fair, and they were all hand operated. If you look closely, you can see two guys in the middle of this, pushing on the spokes to move the swings. Pretty cool, but I SO would not want to be one of the operators of these things.

We watched part of a joust. We didn't watch the whole show, though, because we were standing right in the sun, and it was very hot.

And that's all for the pictures. I was going to post a few more, but blogger crapped out on me again. All you're missing is: a picture of a turkey leg that Jamie ate for lunch. It was giant, people were eating them all over and in my opinion they a little gross. I'm just not enough of a carnivore for those things.

I also had a close-up picture of the owl, who we saw hanging out in the shade between shows. He was very pretty. And the last picture was going to be of the weirdest purse I have ever seen. Actually, this has to be seen to be believed, so look for that in a future entry.

And that was our trip to the Ren Fair! It was a lot of fun, and a new experience for us both, so I'm glad we went.

Inside the...well, inside my head, I guess

I'm sitting here watching an episode of Inside the Actor's Studio with Hugh Laurie (of House) as the guest, and they just got to the end of the show, where James Lipton asks that same questionnaire that he asks every guest, and I was thinking of answers and realized...I could bug you with them! So here we go. Feel free to answer them for yourselves, too, in your blog, in your head, or in my comments (hint, hint). :)

1. "What is your favorite word?" Mine is...Peace. As in peace and quiet, when Willow isn't grumbling and the TV isn't on. Nice.

2. "What is your least favorite word?" Mine is...snow. Even in August.

3. "What turns you on?" A look from a man that just screams he loves me. You know that intense, trying to drink you in kind of look. It's great.

4. "What turns you off?" Religion talk.

5. "What sound or noise do you love?" The voices of the people I love.

6. "What sound or noise do you hate?" Screaming kids.

7. "What is your favorite curse word?" Fuck. It's the one I pull out when I get aggravated or tired. I also like to string it with other curse words - for example: shit fuck goddamn it all to fucking goddamn hell (for when I get really upset or aggravated).

8. "What profession other than your own would you like to attempt?" I would like to be an author of fiction books.

9. "What profession would you not like to participate in?" I would never want to be a waitress. It just seems like it's super hard work, with crappy hours and little appreciation. I tip well, because I think the people who do that job, and do it well, deserve to be rewarded, because it must suck big time.

10. "If heaven exists, what would you like to hear God say when you arrive at the pearly gates?" Well, there's no contest. I want to be directed to where my Mom, Step-Dad and Dad are, along with all of our other family members who have predeceased me. But mostly, I want to see my Mom, Wayne and I want to meet my father.

There, wasn't that fun? I could do this tomorrow, and my answers would be different, so consider this a snapshot of this exact moment in time. Okay, your turn!

Dodging Bullets

Whew, that was close. In a case of temporary insanity, I signed up a couple of months ago for the corporate challenge, which is a 3.5 mile race/walk held in Syracuse, sponsored by corporations to support charity. I was SO not looking forward to it. Exercise is not my favorite activity, unfortunately. But! I dodged that one. The race was cancelled due to record heat. Woo! Now I get to go home and sweat in the privacy of my home, instead of in the company of 7,000 other sweaty people. MUCH better.

Plus, I got a Day-Glo yellow t-shirt out of the deal. Seriously. They would have been able to see me from miles away, as I trudged my way across the 3.5 mile line.


This picture doesn't even adequately display the brightness of this shirt. M is for magically bright. (And check out my bathroom tile in the background. Hee.)

Summer Weekends

I'm sitting at my desk, looking out at the sun shining down on the freshly cut grass of my front lawn. I'm listening to the birds singing, I'm watching the weeds on the edge of the corn field across the street waving in the breeze. My cat Gracie is napping on the desk next to my computer, her sister Zelda is on top of the TV taking a bath. Bernie is sleeping on the floor behind my chair and Willow is, at least for the moment, being quiet laying on her bed. I've had another great weekend - not doing much of anything, but getting to spend time with someone I love, hanging out yesterday and just getting groceries today. And I'm thinking about how wonderful summer weekends are, and how great it would be if we all got to have summers off, like we did when we were kids.

Imagine it! Sleeping in everyday. Hanging out with your friends everyday, because you don't have anywhere you have to be or anything you have to do, so why not? Going to the pool to swim (in my backyard, if I had gotten it open this year), hanging out on the couch (in this fantasy I have one) watching movies while you eat popcorn and drink sodas. And going to bed late every night, knowing that tomorrow you get to get up and do whatever you want again, because it's summer, and that's what summers are for.

It's a really nice fantasy. But of course we all have bills to pay, so we have to work, and the summer fun is relegated to two short days a week, for the three short months that summer lasts. But you know what? That's okay too. It may not be the carefree months of fun that we had when we were kids, but every week of work is followed by a weekend, and summer weekends are the best. Thanks for sharing them with me, some of you by physically spending time with me, and the rest of you by just stopping in to see what I've been up to. I hope you all have been enjoying your summer weekends as much as I have. And try not to let the idea of Monday get you down. Because Monday is only five short days away from the next weekend.

Reading Update

I'm still on my quest to read all of the books listed in the lists I linked to here. I'm making slow but steady progress, and am discovering some great books along the way. Here, partly in case you care and partly because I want to keep track for myself, are the ones I have read so far.

The Fountainhead, by Ayn Rand
To Kill a Mockingbird, by Harper Lee
The Color Purple, by Alice Walker
Middlemarch, by George Eliot
My Antonia, by Willa Cather

Funny, I didn't realize until I wrote those down that all of them so far have been written by women. Interesting. I enjoyed all of these books, which gives me great hope for the rest of the ones on those lists. Of the five I've finished so far, I think To Kill a Mockingbird was probably my favorite, and Middlemarch was the hardest to read by far. The story isn't hard to understand, but the language is old fashioned and harder to get through. I enjoyed it, though.

On deck to be read next:

Women in Love, by D.H. Lawrence (there goes my streak of women writers)
Lord of the Flies, by William Golding
To the Lighthouse, by Virginia Woolf

This quest is going to take me years - even though there are overlaps on some of the lists, there are still hundreds of books listed. It's a good quest, though, and I look forward to every single book I'll encounter along the way. Although I have to say I may skip a couple, namely Schindler's List, because I saw the movie and it depressed me so much that I don't know if I can take the book, and The Lord of the Rings trilogy, because they just don't interest me at all. I don't know - I might make myself try with that one, though. Millions of people loved them, so they can't be bad, even though I didn't find the first movie at all interesting, and never saw the other two. It will be put off until the end, though, so I don't have to think about it for a long time.

I feel like I should mention here, too, that most of these books are being taken out of the library, but I'm also reading some of them online - go to www.gutenberg.org to check out their collection. They only seem to have older books, most likely because of copyright issues, but there are a lot of older books on these lists, so it's working out for me. It's a great resource if you don't want to purchase the books or make a trip to the library.

Movies and Books and Thunder, Oh My

I was going to mow the rest of the lawn tonight (I did half of it last night), but a thunderstorm came through, so I wasn't able to. Instead, I've been sitting here all night, pretty much bored to tears. This is what happens to me when I don't have my Sims to keep me occupied - my Simming computer is currently in the shop. I'll have it back soon, but in the meantime, I'm spending time reading and watching movies and TV. Which is normally fine, but tonight I'm just antsy. Sarah told me to jump on the bed, but I didn't. I should have - she said it would help. Sigh.

I hate when I get like this, though. When I'm in this mood, I pretty much don't want to do anything. Reading? Fun for a few pages, but then no. Watching one of my birthday movies (thanks again, Sally)? It took me about three hours to get through an hour and a half movie, because I kept pausing it and wandering off. And I haven't even had the TV on since right after I got home.

What I should have done tonight was watch some Netflix stuff. I've got three discs that I've had for a week, and for me that's a long time - I try to watch them and get them back in the mail as soon as possible. If I'm going to pay the money, I want to get as many movies as possible per month. But not this week - they're just sitting there. I also have Jamie's copy of season one of Tru Calling, and his copy of King Kong to watch. I'm putting off the Kong because I'm afraid of remakes. I liked the originals of the Kong and Godzilla movies too much. They ruined Godzilla when they remade it, what if they do the same with Kong? Plus, the ending makes me sad. Anyway, maybe I'll get some DVD time in this weekend.

And now even writing in here isn't keeping my attention, so I'm off. I think I'll go watch some of that Netflix stuff. Party of Five season one, coming right up. It's fun to see them in the very beginning, knowing where they're going to go through the years. And then sleep, and then tomorrow is Friday! Yay! And of course I'm just working for that weekend. Hee. I know, that was a horribly cheesy song reference. And now I'm out of here. Have a great night!

Umm...

This is happening in the chat section of a solitaire game of yahoo mah jong right now. I'm changing the user names to protect their anonymity, although since they're having this chat in a public forum, I'm not sure why I'm bothering. There are two people involved - a girl, who I'll call Skank, and a boy who I'll call StupidButt (hereafter SB). Abbreviations and misspellings are all their own.

Skank: do u have a girlfriend StupidButt?
SB: no
Skank: do u want 1?
SB: yeah
Skank: how bout me?
SB: i don't even know u
Skank: so i don't now u
SB: do u have myspace?
Skank: yes
SB: well add me minne is (myspace name deleted)
Skank: but you can send me pics of u in the mail
Skank: k
SB: u can look at my pics on myspace
Skank: k
Skank: so wat r u wearing?
SB: nothing but boxers
SB: u?
At this point a less morally deplete person pops in and asks them to take it elsewhere, because they have kids in the room. To which SB responds: no (He is such a class act. But hey, this teen loser is getting some action! He ain't going nowhere.)
Skank: bra & thong
SB: kool
Skank: i know huh
And their conversation pretty much ended there, with the additional exchange of myspace addresses. And now Skank is trolling for more guys:
Skank: ANY GUYS WANNA TALK
Skank: HELLO
Skank: A HOT GIRL WANTS 2 TALK 2 A HOT GUY

Skank? If you were all that hot, you wouldn't be on Yahoo trolling for strange guys. But thanks for the little bit of fun on this boring Wednesday afternoon. I hope you find the troll of your dreams.

My Number

Stolen from Deals. This is pretty accurate, I think.

You Are 2: The Helper

You always put on a happy face and try to help those around you. You're incredibly empathetic and care about everyone you know. Able to see the good in others, you're thoughtful, warm, and sincere. You connect with people who are charming and charismatic.

What Number Are You?

(Probably) The Last Birthday Post of 2006

So, I had my last birthday celebration yesterday. A birthday that lasts five days! I love it. Jamie, Sarah, her fiance and I spent the afternoon out. We went and played mini golf, which was fun. Sarah has a lot of power in her swing! Too bad you don't really need that much power in mini golf. :) None of us were lucky enough to land a hole in one, but that's okay, because we had fun.

After golfing we went to Applebee's for dinner. I had a crispy orange chicken bowl, and only ate the chicken, but it was really good. Well, all except for the one bite that was inexplicably spicy hot, which set my tongue and lip on fire. Stupid chicken. And when we were done eating, I started hearing the waitresses coming out singing, and I was all like, "Oh man, someone is going to get embarrassed. Ha." And of course, they were coming to sing to me. I never saw it coming. The whole time they were walking towards us, I was thinking that they had to be coming to someone else, because how would they know to come to us? Jamie hadn't had time to talk to anyone about it. But I was wrong - he mouthed it to the waitress somehow while he was giving her the menus back. He was very pleased with himself, I could tell. And apparently, my face turned all kinds of red. It was kind of fun, though, and we had free dessert! So that's pretty cool.

Jamie is just lucky that his birthday is six months away, though. :P

And on a totally non-birthday related note, I'm sleeping again! I got a really good night's sleep on Saturday night, and another one last night. I'm very happy about that. Of course, I have been kicking Willow out of the bedroom at night because she won't stop growling so that I can go to sleep, so we have to work that out still, but whatever. I'm sleeping again. I'm a very happy camper.

And now I must get back to work. I hope you all have great Mondays!

Not quite as tired, but almost

Well, your good thoughts last night (if you read the last entry and sent me any) worked to an extent - Willow grumbled a little, but she wasn't as loud as the night before. I, however, had a raging case of insomnia going, and it wasn't ready to go away. I shut the TV off at 9:00, fully expected to be asleep by 9:15, I was so tired, but I was still awake at 1:00 in the morning. So not fun. I got a few hours sleep, but woke up at 5:00 again and was awake until later in the morning. I did finally manage to catch four more hours then, and woke up feeling much better, but still a bit tired.

Now I just have to hope that I'll be able to sleep better tonight! If I have to go through that three nights in a row, I just may lose my mind! So keep those good thoughts coming!