a mish mash of streaming thoughts

I've done a lot of blog reading over the past few days, and as you can see, haven't done a lick of writing. I get caught up in the circle of thinking about all the stuff I could write about - a flu epidemic closing the school, the yearly visit from my longest childhood friend, updates on the neighborhood drama with the evil spawn child - but it all seems so "ho hum" and "zzzzzzz" compared to the writings of my personal blogging favorites. So, I sit here feeling guilty that I haven't written anything in almost a week.

Just look at some of the stuff people are writing about this week.

Sizzle and Stacie and Karl spent some time in the land of the blues this week. It kills me when I see such awesome people struggling and there's nothing I can do to help. We all have our own demons to fight, and sometimes it seems they're winning the game. I know because I fight with mine on a daily basis. Sometimes I just want to throw in the towel, let them all win. Then I get pissed and say "Eff you!! This is MY life and I'm not gonna let you get in the way!" But I never write about it. Even during times of struggle these people write. They write about what they're going through. What they'd like to change. What they're doing (or not doing) about moving forward. Why is that so difficult for me?

Then there's Tim and Kyra writing about parenting - what it means to be a parent, and how some parents seem to just not give a damn. I could write volumes on these subjects, talking about my own messed up experiences of being a single parent and trying to do everything right. I could go on and on about kids in the neighborhood, kids we encounter at stores and restaurants, and kids at school who's parents have seemingly taken a hiatus from parenting, allowing these kids to rule the roost. And sometimes I do write about these things, but they always seem to be rants and raves and bitches and whines rather than anything meaningful.

And Hilly is always diving deep into her psyche in one way or other, sometimes hitting issues head on, other times circling the wagons of generalities. Either way she writes what she wants, how she wants, and says what's on her mind in a deep, yet entertaining way. My psyche is in constant need of a deep cleaning (much like my house), but I don't go there.

Sometimes I think I have something to say, something beyond the mish mash of streaming thoughts that lead nowhere. So I write. Then I delete. And on rare occassions I consider pulling the plug, so to speak. But today I leave my whirling thoughts and appreciation for my fellow bloggers. Writers really.

two years and still going

I can't believe it's been two years since I first started blogging. Ok, let me rephrase that. I can't believe it's been two years since my troublemaking friend Stacie started me blogging. I was reluctant, to say the least, and made every excuse in the book as to why I didn't want to blog. But the more time passed, and the more I wrote, the more I enjoyed having an outlet for my rants, a place to share pics of the kiddo.

Looking back with the knowledge that we can only gain by moving forward in life, this blog started at just the right time for me - on the heels of my divorce and suddendly finding myself single again after 9 years. Once again proving to me there are no coincidences. Thank you, my friend!

I've met a lot of great bloggers in the past couple of years, many I call my friends. They've helped me to grow as a writer, look at life a little differently than I might normally see it, laugh, cry, and ask "WTF?". And I've grown and changed and travelled down the road of finding the me that I used to be, and looking forward to the me that's yet to develop. All in all, it's been a great journey! A journey that will continue on for as long as I have something to say. That pretty much leaves it wide open there, eh?

take me out to the ballgame

There's nothing like spending a Sunday afternoon at the ballpark with friends. The food. The crowds. The game. Oh, and don't forget the rain. Thankfully, we were under the overhang so the typical Pacific Northwest spatter didn't bother us at all until the bottom of the 8th when they had to call the game since the real wet stuff had started falling around the top of the 7th. It was still a great day.

The Tacoma Rainiers were playing the Tucson Sidewinders and finally broke their losing streak winning 4-3. And because I know how much you all enjoy useless facts, here's one for you - the Rainiers are owned by Nick Lachey. No. He wasn't at the game. Or if he was, we didn't see him. But the kids had a blast when Rhubarb, the reindeer mascot, made his way up to our seats and autographed their baseballs.

The food was pretty darn good too, though a little pricey. We stuck with burgers and fries. I opted to save my money and not spend the whopping $6 for one domestic beer when I knew I could buy between six and twelve for that price at the store. Guess I'm just a cheap date.

I'm pretty sure we'll be heading back up there again throughout the summer, only next time we'll be getting the 1st or 3rd base seats instead of behind homeplate so we can actually catch some of the balls, shirts and whatever else they're pitching into the crowd and not be blocked by the net.

Batter up!

my week in bullets

I've thought about bullets a lot this week. Being shot down. Being the shooter. Trying to catch you all up with my week in bullets. So, here we are. The highlights (and lowlights) of the week.

Neighborly Drama - The evil spawn is up to no good again. This time I got the clear picture after he smacked another neighbor kid upside the head - twice. I finally went down the street to talk to victim's mother, and boy did I get an earful! Not only did I hear about all the crap evil spawn's done to victim, I witnessed a pissing match between Mrs. A and victim's grandmother (a fiesty hispanic woman who ain't taking evil spawn's shit no mo). I know evil spawn is ADHD, and I'm sympathetic to any child living with that. What I'm not sympathetic to is the slacker parent who sets the spawn free to reek havoc and then pisses and moans when she's told evil spawn's behavior will not be tolerated. Get off your lazy butt and control your spawn!

When Trains Collide - Generally speaking my commute to The Winnebago isn't all that bad. Drive across town, pop on the Interstate, and a couple exits later I'm off. This is assuming that two trains don't derail effing up the backroad traffic detouring it down the mountian and dumping it at the tiny little intersection in the basin where the onramp I use is. I'm pretty sure I was on time at least once this week. Of course being on a modified work schedule for the next couple of weeks has its advantages.

The Winnebago - Training is done and I'm in the pits. Seriously. Digging out from under all the crap that rolled downhill from two people ago. My trainer has been trying to dig out for the past 14 months and still isn't done. Now it's my turn to pick up a shovel. And this is all the back end cleanup, not counting the new stuff that comes in every day. I am in email hell. Within 5 minutes I can have upwards of 20-30 new messages in my inbox. And that's not counting the 20 or so that fill up my home email waiting for attention when I get home.

Elections - Most of the home email is related to the election. No, not the Presidential election. The BOD election at school. Somehow I was drafted to be a campaign manager for two new candidates vying for the two open spots on the BOD. The change is seriously needed, but with only two spots open and six total BOD members, it's not even enough to tie the voting at this point. What really needs to happen is ousting the administration. Then again, I'm not totally invested in this like others are since I've decided I'm tired of paying for the priviledge of an effed up administration and would rather have one for free. The kiddo's headed to public school next year.

Final Note - Thanks to all of you for your supportive messages on my last post. It will probably be quite awhile before I'll be able to say much more on the subject I was alluding to, but wanted you to know I have an army of support now and am confident things will work out. So no more thinking of bullets. And no more bullets to write about right now.

Enjoy your weekend!

just when you thought it was safe to go back into the water

I knew going back to work would put a damper on my blogging, telephone convos, keeping tabs on friends, etc. That was something I was prepared for, having done it once before. What I was NOT prepared for was the drama that reared it's effing ugly head this weekend.
*Editing to clarify the drama has nothing to do with work. It's personal life crap.

I can't go into any details here because I don't want it used as evidence against me. Just wanted to let you all know that I'm still alive, haven't forgotten you, and try to get around to at least a couple of your blogs every day.

my brain hurts

I'm home and freakin' EXHAUSTED. Mentally, of course.

The first day was full of all sorts of training - online and in person. This is the first job I've ever been to where I have the distinct advantage of having the person leaving the position sitting there training me. I'll have it down by the end of the week, I'm sure, but like I told Groove when he came to "check up on the lass" I'm taking it slow. Why show them what I can do right away? If I learned nothing else from my first stint at The Winnebago, it's bide your time.

Ran into at least a dozen people I knew (some I kept in contact with) from the last go around and got the "Woohoo! You're back!!" and "Look what the cat dragged in." Lots of hugs. Lots of "We'll have to catch up." Oddly enough it was almost like going to a high school reunion, or what I imagine them to be like since I've never actually gone to any of my high school reunions before.

All in all it was a good day. Though I am a little disappointed in Dan for not giving me my first day hugs.

And now it's time to crack open another cold one, put my feet up, and unwind. I just hope I sleep like the dead tonight or I'm gonna be one tired girl tomorrow.

today's the big day

I'm up at the butt crack of dawn after having slept maybe 4 hours last night. I've been running on nervous, excited energy for the past week, and my sleep schedule's been forked up. My friend Cathy told me I've been "talking fast" all week too. And aside from all that, there's been so much else going on in my little world I haven't even known what to do with it all.

But today's the big day! Back to the ratrace. I've polished my running shoes and am ready to go. Well, after I get a shower and a bit more caffeine in me, that is.

movies, teevee, and the start of another new me

This is the end. No. Not of refusing to blog -- though things might slow down over here a little bit in the days to come. Here, have a kleenex. I know you were getting all watery eyed there cuz you love me so much. It's the last day of the last weekend of the last 10 months of going from employed to unemployed to just plain jobless after draining my unemployment account thus falling off the headcount entirely to heading back to the ratrace of the employed world. I can't wait!

Tuesday is my first day back to work after my excrutiatingly long hiatus and I'm returning to none other than the same corporate computer giant (which will from this day forward be referred to as "The Winnebago") I left 10 months ago. I'm sure there will be assorted pleas for my sanity, bitching about stoopidity, and maybe a few sighs of relief to keep you entertained during round two.

Last week was insane with trying to get a ton of shit done before the big day. How is it that I could be not working for 10 months and still not be caught up with everything around here? But this weekend's been about just hanging out, enjoying the simple things in life, and relishing in the fact that I'll now be able to pay my bills without looking over my shoulder to see if someone's coming after me.

And because I'm crazy and like to pack my schedule fuller than it should be, I've taken on another new venture and joined the gang at Snackie Teevee. I figure since I'm already watching enough teevee to choke a goat (but I have a coopin for the goat!) I'd might as well dish about what I'm watching. The fun part is I'm in the company of some other great blog writers and don't feel the pressure of holding down the fort all by my little self. Not that I consider myself a great blog writer or anything. Especially when comparing myself to them. Anyway, go check it out.

We're also gearing up for pirates around here! In case you don't already know, Pirates of the Caribbean: At World's End opens on Friday, May 25th. So last night we watched The Curse of the Black Pearl, and next weekend will be Dead Man's Chest. Both rewatches for me, but first watches for the kiddo. Enjoy the trailer, but keep your drool to a minimum as I can't afford to be replacing keyboards or anything.

who knew small animals didn't enjoy being stapled together

Seems it's never a dull day in the neighborhood anymore.

One of the nuisances of living in a developing suburban neighborhood is the disturbance of the wildlife and their habitat. As they keep building around us, the animals keep coming closer, and getting tamer. These buggers are so tame they actually stare you down, daring you to try something so they can come after you.

Today, these two decide to try to wrangle with my 100 plus pound dog but decided taking the high road into the trees was a better idea.

(Click on the pictures to enlarge.)

See what I mean about staring ya down?

And if one pair of eyes boring a hole through you isn't bad enough, how about two?

After 'bout 30 minutes, they came down and regrouped...

...then tried to get on the neighbor's roof.

on a mission

Date of Mission: 05/03/07

Name of Mission: Operation No More Shit (ONMS)


Mission Goal: Return shit to offender without being seen


Background:

On Tuesday, May 2, 2007, shit was discovered on sidewalk crossing driveway of complainant's home. Previous sightings of shit in the same general locale, matching in description, were sighted on Friday, March 30.


Suspects:

Duke. The neighbor dog of the complainant.

Evidence:

Shit collected by the complainant matching in size and description to that sighted on previous complaint.








Action Required to Complete Mission Goal:


Deliver said shit to neighbor's front doorstep in the dark of night.









[Update: Mission complete. Bag deposited on hood of trunk. As of this morning, bag has fallen over and shit has fallen out onto the trunk and bumper. Mission successful.]

alphabet soup

I'm elated. I'm stressed. I'm happy. I'm tipsy. What does all this add up to? Saying a bunch and nothing at all. So I'm filling the page with this meme that Sizzle tagged me for.

A - Available or Single? Single.

B - Best Friend? So I've been told.

C - Cake or Pie? No thanks. I like the me I've shrunk down to.

D - Drink of Choice? Coffee. Propel. Beer. Whiskey.

E - Essential Item(s)? Computer. Phone. iPod. Secret Embrace bras.

F - Favorite Color? Black. (Yes, I'm aware it's not a color. Whatever.)

G - Gummi Bears or Worms? Again, no thanks.

H - Hometown? Sunnyvale, CA

I - Indulgence? Starbucks. iTunes. Tanning. Getting my hair done.

J - January or February? January.

K - Kids? Yes. Just 1.

L - Life is incomplete without… Friends.

M - Marriage Date A distant memory.

N - Number of Siblings Nada.

O - Oranges or Apples? Apples. Fuji or Granny Smith.

P - Phobias/Fears Spiders. Horror movies.

Q - Favorite Quote: “Some people are like Slinkies. Not really good for anything, but they still bring a smile to your face when you push them down a flight of stairs.” -Unknown

R - Reasons to Smile? My son. I have a job. I am loved.

S - Season? Definitely Fall.

T - Tag Three Liss, Stacie, Dan

U - Unknown Fact About Me: Basically, I'm a pretty boring person. Hmm. Okay. I once had a water baloon fight with Lindsey Buckingham. Now, if that doesn't age me. Sheesh.

V - Vegetarian or Oppressor of Animals? Where's the beef?

W - Worst habits? Smoking. Cussing. Emotional binge eating.

X - X-rays or Ultrasounds? Neither. I hate hospitals.

Y - Your Favorite Foods Ice cream. Pasta. Cheeseburgers. Bagels.

Z - Zodiac Aries.