Writing Every Day

It's time for me to face the fact that I'll be far more successful journaling online than I have ever been on paper.  As part of my continuing effort to do SOMETHING that will be here tomorrow, to show for today, I'm making it a goal to blog daily.  I apologize in advance for over-sharing and run-on sentences.  Possibly also for excessive use of parenthesis and dashes and ellipses.

We had friends over for supper tonight and they were kind enough to bring the food, so all we had to do was be presentable.  We failed  a bit.  The air conditioner/furnace went out on us today, and we spent all day scrambling to find a temporary fix. I should mention that it has been in the very upper 90s for a week and will be at least that hot for a week more.

 Our guests arrived just as Toby was trying to rinse the dirt out of a borrowed AC window unit and dropped it, slashing his fingers on the sheet metal housing.  Our dining room table was covered with debris from when he brought the beast into the house, only to realize it was dirty and take it out again.

I was standing in the bathroom, putting on makeup when he stepped into the room with an ominous look on his face and a towel wrapped around his hand.  That is never a good sign.  He said he'd cut his fingers up and maybe broken the air conditioner, too.  I calmly finished putting on my makeup because freaking out wouldn't have helped much.  Besides, if we were going to have to get it stitched, I didn't want to look like white trash.  I contemplated if our guests were going to be willing to watch kids for us if we had to visit the Emergency Room.

Luckily, it was just a flesh wound.  One that made me cringe to look at.  In fact, my toes are curling now writing about it.  As a woman who married a man who does lots of manly dangerous sharp and hurty things, I should be used to it.  Three months before we were married, he lopped the corners off two of his fingers in a power miter box building houses with his dad.  He once mangled the pad of his thumb enough that I'm not sure there's a fingerprint left on it.  What I'm trying to say is that Toby is used to getting hurt, and seeing blood.  

All was well with some super glue holding the wound shut.  No ER visit today. We managed to take a deep breath and enjoy supper and a visit. Now it's bedtime, and the AC in the dining room window is happily whirring away.  Somewhere, our electric company is smiling.

The Importance of Being Late.

Lately, I've been "discovering" things in the most tardy of fashions.  We don't have the TV hooked up to the antenna, or cable.  We mostly entertain ourselves with the wonders of the internet.  Netflix's "Watch Instantly" feature is a definite friend of mine.

We've spent many a happy hour working while watching "Sherlock Holmes" with Jeremy Brett, who I have an inexplicable old-man crush on.  If you haven't seen any of these, go out and find them immediately.  They are old-school PBS stuff in the best way possible.  I defy any Robert Downey Junior supporters.  Jeremy Brett is Sherlock all the way.

We also finally got around to watching "Firefly."  I'd seen the movie "Serenity" a few years ago, and liked it all right, but the show was great.  Now I want to see the movie again, except they kill off a main character that I didn't know I liked until seeing the show....It's a total shame that this series ran for only one season, and I know that all the rest of geekdom already got over it years ago.  It's still fresh for me, though.

It's kind of the same with music.  I have been so spoiled by MP3 players that listening to the radio is a real chore.  While working, we visit Pandora, Last FM, and Slacker a lot.  I also found Grooveshark recently, and it is awesome.

I'm discovering all these bands that have been around a few years, maybe even since I was in high school, and I completely missed them.  Coldplay and Radiohead fall into this category.  I'm also listening to the Killers a lot these days.

Sometimes, I love something for convoluted reasons.  I now adore the song "Total Eclipse of the Heart," after watching the masterfully done literal video version of it a dozen times.  I jumped on that bandwagon about twenty years late, because someone was making fun of the randomness of the video.

I always liked the fifties-ballad sounding dance song at the end of the movie "Twilight."  It seemed sweet and soft and delicate and I always wondered what the words were.  Go look them up for yourself.  It's awesome to me that what sounds like a cute little romantic dance song at the end of a girly movie has such dark, creepy words.  Now, guess how much more I love it?

One of my favorite bands to listen to these days:  OK GO.  It all started with this music video, which, considering my track record, you have all seen years ago.






Oh, heck.  That was done in all one continuous shot.  It took lots of engineers (the ones cheering at the end), and lots of takes.

But wait, there's more:  This is a different version of the same song, done marching band style.  Soo awesome.  For a former band geek, anyway.




How could I in good conscience not love this band?  I even like the music.

One Last Fling

Bass Pro:  where it's free to straddle and otherwise mildly abuse all manner of expensive outdoor equipment.  At least, no one told us to leave.

Two parents, five kids, and two strollers can have a pretty decent time.

Mustache!

This word always makes me laugh.  It's probably some kind of character deficit.

Now go check out the Library of Congress Photostream on Flickr .  One of the tags is "Mustache." Another one is "Moustache."  They have great vintage pictures of random old men with both mustaches and moustaches.  So awesome.

Oh, historical mustache pictures, how I love thee!

I Write Like....

Depends on the post, it seems.

Country Road, Take Me Home
According to the site I Write Like, this entry most resembles the fine works of Stephanie Meyer.  I'm a bit miffed.  There is only one hot guy, and no whiny girl.  Oh, wait.   Crap!


Let's try another, shall we?
 Not For Arachnophobes
James Joyce



 Playing In The Creek
 Cory Doctorow


Family Time
Stephen King

What the.....?  Apparently, not only do I have blogger multiple personalities, but when I set out to write a nice little story about my family singing gospel songs, I sound like the King of Horror himself!

Don't hate me, English Majors, but I'm off to refresh myself on James Joyce, because I'm a bit fuzzy, and to check out that Doctorow person.

Curious about which writer your work most resembles?

Check it out!   Link above, I'm lazy!  Be sure to read the description of how it works.

For a Nerd....

...there's nothing out there cooler than this video.  He looks like an 80's steampunk Alton Brown.

Enjoy!



She Blinded Me With Science by Thomas Dolby

Not for Arachnophobes.

This was in my bedroom.  IN. MY. BEDROOM.

Please don't hold me responsible for jitters, heeby-jeebies, freak-outs, strong men weeping, wailing, gnashing of teeth, incontinence, girly screaming, etc....

I warned you.

A Whole Lotta Crap in One Post.

We're still recovering from our trip to Utah.  It's strange that even if it's somewhere you want to go, with people you want to see, trips are stressful and exhausting.  Especially with five kids in tow.

On the way there, we were stuck in a huge traffic jam for three hours in Denver, Colorado.  Toby had been asleep next to Ivy, until she peed on him, which is why he isn't wearing a shirt.  I don't know why he's showing off his biceps, but it seems like he does it a lot.

Maybe he's shaking his fist at the cars blocking our way to Utah.  I don't remember.  I DO remember that Olivia stayed awake and talked the whole night.  We are both masochists and cheap, so we try to drive straight through.  I've personally been training for the last eleven years to handle sleeplessness.

The kids were all mostly happy to see each other.  Maggie and Brynn are the best of little girly-princess friends about 95 percent of the time.  Ivy and Todd, are best of hooligan-mayhem friends 50 percent of the time.  Hollis and Olivia did a lot of packing Lochlan around while Toby and I tried to work. 

We haven't seen Dana and Josh and Corinne for WAAAY too long.  Late one night, we ran out to an all-night grocery store and giggled like teenagers while we all bought snacks.  Back at Michelle's, we watched a Rifftrax short called "Shake Hands With Danger."  Oh, good times.  Corinne, I'll be your kitchen wing-man any day.

Ivy modeled the latest in fashionable shark headwear.

We made a required trip to IKEA.   I had to get a picture of the fake buttocks assaulting a chair repeatedly to prove how durable it is.  The chair, I mean.

 
We visited Temple Square with Michelle and Tyler and all our collective kids.  I tried hard to feel the spirit and not just to notice the mullets and stonewashed jeans in the old-school church videos.  All joking aside, it is a beautiful place.

 We even managed to make it home with our little camera, in spite of the fact that Todd found it and used it.

And, shortly following our return, this little guy turned one.  Happy Birthday to Loch.

Not sparkly.

I found some old photos at my mom's house recently and just had to overshare.  The first two are from October 1996, I think.  Toby and I had been dating about six months.  I had latent goth/hippie/punk tendencies.  He had definite surfer/hippie leanings. Don't we look cool?  I'm talking as cool as two senior band students can get.


And this was October a year later.  We'd both graduated and were engaged to be married in January.  I was going to college in Springfield, and Toby was probably still living at home.  You can see that my goth tendencies came to a head at this time.  I inflicted white makeup and my polyester polka dotted shirt onto my betrothed.

You're welcome. 

This is how Edward should have looked, if he'd had a sense of humor.  

Post Name or Something.

We are slowly making progress toward moving into our new house. We're down to finishing a few things in each room, and then time to pack up our belongings and go.
Vea has graciously traded tomorrow's Hen Day to me, so we can all work together to make it so.

Last week, I was tired and worn out and kind of resented the time-suck the Ivy House has become. We have decided it's neat enough and sturdy enough to live in indefinitely, so we're trying hard to finish things before moving. We've learned the very long and hard way that it's much harder to work on any home improvement projects while occupying said home.

Some projects have dragged on past funny. I'm talking to YOU, sanding the wood floors. Some projects have popped up unexpectedly, like hanging new sheetrock on the dining room and bedroom ceilings. Mostly, it's just lots of work and not enough time. I spend a lot of time half-handedly trying to accomplish something while Loch hangs from my hip.

Today, I walked around the house and fell in love with the place again. The setting is lovely, in a little cup of a valley with a nice mix of run-down fields and trees. All the leaves are coming out, and when the sun warms up, everything smells green and wonderful. I inherited two lilac bushes, and roses, and four fruit trees of some kind. Out behind the tumble-down shed, there are wild blackberry bushes with tiny nubs of green berries already growing.

Toby and I used to discuss our ideal "dream property." Our wish list included rolling hills, big trees, a few acres for kids to run, seclusion, location near both sets of parents. We have everything we wanted, and more. I must remember that, when I get impatient. This will be a great place for us all to play and grow up.

Did I mention that Sunday,the kids spent HOURS outside playing? How awesome is that?

Setting My Sights on the Improbable: To Do This Week.

Business

Take pictures of skirts & list.

Take fabric pictures & list.

Call Cheeptrims.

877-289-8745

Cut black ECTR bodices.

Paisley Pirate Coat Replacement

Bustle Vixen

Purple WC

Check Ready-Made orders.

Make 3-5 RTS bodices every day & list.

Family

Mo Taxes

Send Bills on Dresser

Make week plan & menu plan.

Buy Groceries.

Pack up books.

Fill 1 Walmart bag per day with Crosslines stuff.

Primary Meeting Wed.

New House

Install mailbox.

Finish painting Dining Room.

Finish Staining & Polyurethane floors.

Bedroom Ceiling

Close Bedroom Doorways

Patch & Paint paneling.

Replace bathroom wall(s)

Tape, texture & paint bathroom.

Paint & install vanity, counter, & faucets.

Paint Laundry room.

Paint kids' room.

Close door between kids' room & kitchen.

Pull carpet in kids' room.

Mouseproof kitchen cabinets.

Texture Living Room.

Paint Living Room.

Install door to garage.

A Quite Random Pile of the Things We're Up To.

Well, the kids are back in school. We've had to drive them three times already for missing the bus because we (the responsible parents) slept in past bus time. If we're late enough, we have to accompany them into the building in shame and sign them in. We have to fill out a paper for each kid with slots for name, time, and reason for being late. By the end of the quarter, we have a neat blackmail paper filled out with each time we've been crappy parents in the past.

My favorite part is the "reason for lateness" column. I usually just put "late," because it's none of their business. I would like to write:

New Baby
Bad Choices
Hangover
Sex
Laziness
Meth Lab Blew Up
Voices
Mormons Don't Adhere to Your Schedule
We've Decided to Homeschool for the First Twenty Minutes Only
Issues With Authority

Oh, the fun we'd have, until they sicced Child Protective Services on us. By the way, in case you were wondering: yes, yes, no, yes, yes, no, no, yes, no, and yes.

Where was I? Olivia has become obsessed with audio books, and she doesn't want to lie on her bed and stare at the ceiling. Instead, she ambles about the house cleaning it. I said CLEANING IT. Like, spontaneously. Um, without being asked. WHAT THE CRISPY CRAP? I think it's awesome and a little freaky at the same time. But on the other hand, my bathroom is spotless, and I have proof of mirror-polishing. (See above.)

We've committed to a Utah trip, leaving in two weeks. Mostly, we want to see family and show off our sweet little boy.


I just like the way he looks with a bunch of bananas....

BREAD! I managed to bake for the second time since Lochlan was born. I'd like to get back to regular baking because store bread is what it is.

I just heard of literal music videos. Basically, someone rewrites the lyrics of a song to describe what's happening in the music video, scene by scene, then overdubs it and posts it on You Tube. Most really suck. I think "Total Eclipse of the Heart" (by Bonnnie Tyler) and "Anything for Love" (by Mr. Loaf) are painfully funny: "Emo Kid is throwing Slo-Mo dove in my face, I guess that means that he just flipped me the bird." Humor me and watch the first one at least. Oh, and also watch David Hasselhoff singing "Hooked On A Feeling."