Ssssnowmagedon...brrrr!

Well, it is certainly a snowy one. It didn't look so bad all day. I thought i'd be able to stay at work til 4:30, but at quarter to two the wind suddenly picked up and the blizzard, well the blizzard was suddenly HERE. i left at two-thirty and asked bret to shovel the drive and walkway. it took me an hour (twice the time as normal) to get home and the walkway was already drifted over! when i went out later, i had to literally shovel my way out the door!!  when i went out a little bit ago, the snow drifts are as tall as the car, the one on my back porch is nearly 1/2 way up to the window.  and we saw that AFTER we shoveled to get out.  bret wedged the door open far enough that he could fit thru & then shoveled the porch, then when i came back in, i couldn't get the screen door closed!  d'oh!  finally got it... : )  

and bret just discovered a fb group dedicated to this blizzard. lol!!!!

i really don't know if i'm going to work tomorrow or not.  all the blowing snow, it's supposed to get worse around midnight, until...?  idk when.  and the crews aren't coming out til it's all over - which makes sense in a way because they'd have to be at it constantly at this rate.  i'm not entirely sure how i'll know what the roads are like tomorrow, tho... anyway, i think i'll just plan on going in late & see what the day brings!  

other than all that craziness... 

i made breakfast for dinner - french toast, SPAM & eggs.  mmm!  bret & i watched a Merlin marathon while i finished my book!  : )  next is book #2, Twice Tempted By A Rogue.  main character's name is Rhys.  not sure how to pronounce, so any help would be good!  

now we're watching criminal minds & i'm catching up w/ a couple blogs & then ... i'm hittin the hay.  sleepy!  zzzz  : )  might have pictures of SNOW tomorrow.  aren't you excited?  LOL  

what's the weather like for you?  this system is like 2,000 miles wide, so chances are you've been or are experiencing some snow of  your own.  do share!  

ttfn : ) 

let's play that tune again!

gearing up for another SNOWSTORM.


this weekend was very nice, very relaxing.  started a new book yesterday & read 1/2 of it in one sitting!  One Dance With A Duke.  it's the first in the trilogy i won from brandi's site awhile ago, by Tessa Dare.  she's brilliant, really!  i will have to let andrea borrow it when i'm done, too.  : )  check out her site & watch the video.  it's great!  


i found Buck Rogers at WM for $10!!  the complete series!  i thought i was gonna marry gil gerard when i was little, i really did.  : )  i also got the first season of macgyver!  we watched the first disc last night.  my observations, from not having seen this show since i was little (other than the random rerun many years ago) - he lived in a planetarium?!  so cool!!!  i didn't remember him being quite so much of a fighter.  am curious to see if he gets less so as the seasons progress ... and also he makes science COOL.  heh.  love it!  


also, while at WM, i saw THIS:

parked right behind it, and immediately thought "COOLEST CAR EVER!"  yes, i'm a nerd.  i'm sooo okay w/ that.  : )  i kinda hung around a little longer than normal, hoping the owner of the car would come out, but they didn't.  alas!  i didn't take a picture of the back, because i didn't want to show the license plate, but the back was all space & 3 more ships.  awesomeness!  


today was an interesting day.  work at 7:30, very productive!  hooray!  got lots of claims in, and other than some problem-solving, that was pretty much my day.  i'd hoped to get some photos in, but i'll get to work on those tomorrow, so it's all good.  heh.  and ... *gasp*  i actually got to leave ALMOST on time!!  i'm celebrating that, because idk how long it'll last!  *laugh*  


it was snowing when i left, but still light, and really okay.  everyone was pretty much going slowly, which was good!  i stopped at hy vee gas for a diet pepsi & smokes, cuz who wants to be outta smokes if there's a blizzard?  not me!  then home to make a delicious dinner & watch NCIS: LA, NCIS, and BONES.  : )  bret's at his brother's playing games & hopefully having a great time!  


and then there's SNOWGATE 2011.  ugh.  i'm praying for NO BLIZZARD, because even tho it's a delicious treat from DQ... i don't want one.  *laugh*  anyway, depending on what snow does come our way (they were saying a foot, then i heard nearly TWO feet, so i don't even know anymore) i might be leaving work early tomorrow & stuck at home wednesday.  and someone mentioned the possibility of needing to shovel my roof?!  so, really, dear Lord, please let it just be a little sneeze of snow & not a great big ACHOO!  


i think that's all the fun i have for you today.  oh, i guess a couple more things - my friend jessica from elementary found me (and april & becks) on FB!  i love it!  : )  and, i'll leave you with 2 lovely cards i received in the mail - a postcrossing from the east coast & a lovely card and letter from micaela.  thanks, love!  also thank you to kaitlyn for the note, that was sweet!  : )  

ttfn!  stay warm & safe my dear friends!

three men and a little lady

another $5 bin find at WM!  and it's really cool cuz bret & i were both excited about it, so we got it & are watching it while dinner cooks.  : )  speaking of dinner, bad food blogger that i am i forgot to take pictures as i made it... and it just doesn't look right after it's done w/o the context.  lol  but they are goooood!  made a sauce of white cheese & mild enchilada sauce.  mmmm!  we had fun shopping for everything, too.  i like going to the grocery store anyway, and he has fun, too, so it's good times!  : )  


before we went to the store, we went to RC's to pick up bret's car and then took it over to the old house to park it for the weekend.  i'll need to have words w/ the office on monday - i forgot last week, too much going on!!  *laugh*  and before we left the house, we watched Over The Hedge (which i liked better this time) and bret took a nap while i watched Royal Pains & caught up on a couple blogs.  


it was mostly a nice, relaxing day.  i even got to talk to leyton on the phone for a bit!  : )  


yesterday, last night hanging out w/ the boys was quite fun!  they have colds, tho, so leyton was a little cranky, but we had a good time & watched barney's circus (oh dear) and stuff.  lol  

anthony doesn't like to have his picture taken, but leyton got a couple... 

we played lots of toy story 3 kerplunk!  

i've taught him well - always reaching for the camera to take some pictures!  : )  

anthony also likes to be the taker of photos, and gets some good ones as well!  

i didn't get home til almost 1, tho, and went right to bed!  had some crazy dreams - one of them was about saving leyton from the zombie apocalypse.  really, very strange!  later, boo, bran & bay were w/ me in a house in the city, and we were trying to keep the zombies at bay.  thankfully my brain didn't produce any ACTUAL zombies, just the knowledge that they were out there & we were only safe in very populated areas.  yeah.  weird.  lol  


so, tonight will be this movie & maybe some more reading, and praying for a blessed day again tomorrow.  : )  i hope your saturday has been relaxing and fun!  love ya!  


ttfn!

i sing along with richard marx

i do this because our voices harmonize well together, i love his music, and WOW singing along to richard marx makes me feel good!  i found a random 80's cd in my car the other day & popped it in ... i haven't taken it out yet, and have been listening & singing along & remembering a simpler time when i didn't have stress.  (except i think i did have stress, i've just repressed it, because when i talk about not having stress ppl tell me stories about bad things that happened that i don't remember.  do you ever wonder why the mind represses what it does?  i mean, i do remember plenty of crappy stuff that happened, so ... ya know?  anywhoo...lol)  


hold on to the night
wild wild west
get outta my dreams (and into my car)
wishing well
*announcer voice* and many more!  


today was crazy.  a good day, even so.  


7:30 start time. productivity ensued.  answered questions, helped w/ timecards and did vacations and finally put a dent in my error report!  hallelujah!  then it was time to go to the doctor for my diabetes check.  everything went fine, except a little attitude from the dr that made me growly.  there are a couple tests/what have yous that i'm not comfortable with, and so i don't do them.  i've explained my reasons and feelings to the dr before, a few times in some cases.  and yet, every time, every visit, she seems surprised and even irritated that i won't do these tests.  and today she was like, "you know, i'm trying to work with you here, but there might come a time if you don't follow my directions that i refuse to see you."  i was like, "uhh, what do you mean?  i do everything you've told me to do, except these two tests, and we've talked about why i don't want to do them."  she backed down, but it still kinda ticked me off.  don't try to blackmail me or bully me into doing something i'm uncomfortable with!  i'm taking my meds, moving more, eating right (i've lost 30 lbs since september, thankyouverymuch*raspberry*)... 


after that whole thing, i kept mostly cool, thankfully.  grabbed lunch & then went to my other doctor appt about my anxiety.  ironic, really, because i had to fight so much anxiety to even make it to the doctor to talk about my anxiety.  *laugh*  but it went well, for the most part.  i liked the dr, he wore a neat sweater and was really nice.  i wasn't too fond of the making me freak out so he could see what my anxiety attacks look like, however.  i didn't fully relax again until i was back at work, even tho he took care of the problem causing this anxiety.  thank God.  the amount of relief i felt when i finally did relax & let the fact that it's over wash over me... i still feel that relief... is monumental!  : )  even the stuff that had been causing me stress all week, i handled with ease and didn't get the icky feeling in my stomach - which tells me that i was even more worried about the whole parking incident than i thought.  oye!!


i helped some more ppl in the afternoon, sent some confirmations, entered some FRA's.  : )  and i left at 5:15, to meet michelle at applebee's.  YUMMMY!  (no photos for the food blog, which is a bummer because they would have been good.)  it was so nice to visit w/ my friend over a good and delicious meal!  


and then home to finish The Cat Who Went Up The Creek(soooo good, i think i'll pick up some other Cat books.  thanks, aunt janie!!), watch some Wipeout (oh, Winter Wipeout, LOL) and then Finding Forrester, which is such an awesome movie i can't even explain.  if you haven't seen it, please rent it straight away!  and i think it counts as a teacher movie, even!  : )  


TGIF tomorrow!  it's the first day i'm actually fully looking forward to in a long time.  after work i get to hang out w/ the boys over at mom's.  fun fun!  


and now that i've shared with you my day, won't you share a bit of yours?  : )  ttfn!  

p.s.
postcard from stephen.  : )  he's now 7 1/2, enjoying school, and wonders if i'm coming to chase's birthday party.  idk if i am or not...i'd like to, but i just don't know if i can!

how can there be a "final" warning if there was never a "first" warning?

so, bret's car has been broken since december, i think.  he bought it from a guy & the guy was supposed to mail him the title papers, but he didn't.  so, you can get a new title if you have proof of purchase & $100, bret was missing one of those things - plus the paperwork, which you have to get one piece from the DMV and one from ... the post office?  that doesn't seem right... anyway, from somewhere else.


i'm not entirely sure on all the details, but just in the last week everything has come together w/ paperwork & money & whatnot & he's able to mail off the paperwork to get the title.  he hasn't been able to drive it until he gets this paperwork - and it has had a flat tire, but he hasn't fixed it yet because he's not supposed to drive it.


anyway, so it's been in the driveway, and it hasn't been driven in a month, it's true.  however, NO ONE from the office has said one word about it to me.  no one has asked me anything, no one has SENT me anything.  until TODAY, when they left a note on the door, apparently, saying FINAL NOTICE and that they were going to two his car tomorrow because it's "abandoned."  


you have got to be frakkin kidding me!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!


so now i have to call the office tomorrow, to voice my displeasure.  if anyone had bothered to ask about the car, i would have explained what was going on & that we were working on getting it legal to drive.  it is MY driveway that i pay RENT for, for pete's sakes!  it's ridiculous.  


ugh.  and the whole irritation for me, is the fact of the "final" notice when it's the first i've heard of it.  i understand that broken down cars can't be littering yards & whatnot, making the place look like a trash heap.  i get the logic there.  however, not being able to drive your car does not make it junk.  or abandoned.  we live here, the car is here, how is that "abandonment?"  


*sigh*  just another stresser, right?  but it's not really my stress - it's just the stupidity of it that is irritating me.  


other than THAT today was pretty good.  : )  


bret didn't have work today, which was a bummer, but i made it in at 7:30, so that was cool.  got tons of stuff accomplished.  read at lunch.  had a nice uplifting text from marianne at just the perfect time.  (thank you.)  i EVEN uploaded 95 of the 500+ photos, AND left at 5!  of course, dinner w/ michelle was postponed til tomorrow...


tomorrow's gonna be interesting.  i have dr's appointments from 10 - 1.  am trying not to be anxious.  blech.  


what else can i randomly share with my peeps today?  have you see Conspiracy Theory with Jesse Ventura?  gette posted an episode on her FB & i just paused What Would You Do? to watch it.  CREEEEPY!  i mean, i firmly believe that we as Americans have given up a lot of our rights & continue to give the government too much power.  but idk if i believe as far as this programme went!  i certainly would hope we as a ppl would be more logical than that, except i've seen how we're not, so... eeep!  back to creepy!


so, tell me about your day.  was it fun, frustrating, happy, sad?  a little bit of everything?  do share!  


ttfn

(_ < _)

is it seriously only tuesday?  


oye.


it was a long day, but also a productive one, and really not too bad.  i mean, i made a really good salad from the salad bar at lunch.  except there must've been something in it that REALLY didn't agree w/ me, because i spent the afternoon having an upset tummy.  :(  thankfully it cleared out of my system after a couple uncomfortable hours...  blech.  and then at the end of the day i was getting really grumpy.  the fact that certain ppl don't seem to appreciate my workload, despite CHARTS i've made up for them (at their request, to "explain" why i'm working til 6 almost every night - oh, goodness, could it be because i have enough work for 3 ppl?  oh yes, that could be it) is really irritating, and makes me feel bad.  


anyway.  i was happy to get home.  also i was HUNGRY!  i made some pasta, and bret & i watched House, Chuck & Castle.  tho bret fell asleep 1/2 way thru castle.  heh.  sleep sounds good, actually, so i think i'll head there.  i didn't even go to the tap performance at HQ tonight because i just wanted to go HOME.  (which saddens me, because i always love the visiting artists & i was really looking forward to this one.  alas!)  


hope your day went well!  i'll leave you with the postcrossings i received in the mail.  love love!  : )  

netherlands

china

poland 

california


: )  


bet you can't pick which one's my favorite.  ; )  


ttfn!

dream time

i did get a good sleep, and went in to work at 11:30, after stopping at WM to pick up my Rx.  one of them the dr refused to call in until i made an appointment.  i really should find a new doctor, but oye.  


my dream between 6 and 10 was intensely detailed and seemed to last for the full 4 hours.  it started in a line, and the line was moving really slowly.  i found it odd, because i had a memory of being in this line to get wherever i'd just been, and it had moved really quickly & efficiently.  i had a shopping cart full of my possessions and security ppl were "frisking" those in line ahead of me.  suddenly, there was a loud explosion and i could see a fireball just outside the door where the line disappeared.  then someone a few ppl ahead of me in line exploded, and someone a few ppl behind me exploded.  i felt something land in my hair, but the person standing behind me brushed it off before i could see/really feel it.  we were all herded into underground bunker type things, and we'd been handed papers telling us which groups we were to stay with.  my group consisted of 4 or 5 other girls & a couple guys.  we were in a room, around a table, kind of like a discussion group, but we all had shopping carts/suitcases full of our stuff, and we were talking about what had happened in the line.  somehow i got separated & wandered around huge hallways, kind of like the tombs under a football stadium.  i ran into an usher-guy & asked for directions back to my group.  he showed me how to read my papers & match them up with the sections in the building.  i made it back to a couple girls in my group & we had to go up stairs, so i had to ditch the shopping cart & just take out what i could carry.  we walked to this mall-like area, and stood in line to trade stuff for food.  


i think the stress might be getting to me in odd ways? 


i'm not sure how to even measure the stress i'm under right now.  i think work today was less stressful... but then again i had a knot in my stomach for at least part of the day.  still, productivity was had, and that makes me smile.  : )  


tomorrow will be another busy day, so i'm trying to relax tonight, read some blogs & watch The Pelican Brief w/ bret.  i love this movie so much!  makes me wish i owned Erin Brokovich, tho.   heh.


i hope your monday went well.  jen sent me a text apologizing for last night.  


ttfn.