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Monday, October 28, 2013

Incredible Lightness

Finally finished this very long and ugly piece of a project.  It was a task I dislike with a burning intensity, and a good chunk had to be re-done because of a loss in the computer crash.  And now, I get to move along to the more fun parts, and it feels like a giant burden lifted!

In more mundane news (W division), I think I'm gonna have to hear every detail of the cousins' hunting trip -- there is already considerable information on people waking up too early and frosted with ice, and how the camp heater almost carbon-monoxide poisoned everyone.  In anti-whines, the deer and elk in Idaho seem to be incredibly smart about hunters.

But I'm feeling so good that I won't even whine about being the dish fairy.  How's by you?

51 comments:

Miranda said...

Glad you have the worst of the albatross out of the way. (((Kathy))))

Just doing my thing for Uncle Sam. It's hard getting my focus back after this past month. I feel like I don't know what is going on but work marches on whether we want to keep up or not. In another week or so, I will feel more caught up, I am sure.

kathy a. said...

Go, Miranda! Hope things settle right down.

esperanza said...

W: Halloween. Bah, humbug.
W: overloaded week. Too many parties, too much candy. See? Bah, humbug, I say.

AW: knocked out a bunch of things off the To Do list today.

AW: my parents, newly released from Grandma Pete Watch Duty, are off on a mini-vacation.

AW: Mini is attempting to be devious. She is so transparent that it is hilarious. Here's what I mean: she always always always wants me to tuck her in, no matter how many jillions of times she's gotten up, nor how irritated I am about it. Tonight she runs back to her door and says, "you don't need to come in tonight. I can put myself in bed. Don't come in my room." Hmm. Mama gets suspicious. Sure enough, she has figured out how to turn on the closet light.

kathy a. said...

heh! sneaky mini.

kathy a. said...

Good old Buddy can't stand any more. My beloved has taken him to the vet; think this is the last car ride. :(

Sue said...

Aw kathy a - I'm so sorry about Buddy. (((hugs)))

Yay about the work albatross being done though.

I hope things settle down for you Miranda - and soon!!

I hear you on the bah humbug esperanza. I'm not a big halloween fan.

Lol on sneaky Mini!!

AW: Our son is going to France for a week. I'm really happy for him!

W: The Tired. Oh good grief, the tired.

kathy a. said...

France! How wonderful.

Sorry about Le Tired, Sue.

Liz said...

Oh, I'm so sorry about Buddy.

Queen of West Procrastination said...

I have a timer running, because I need to take advantage of as much of E's naptime for writing. So:

((((kathy a))) Poor Buddy and poor you guys.

Sue, I'm sharing Le Tired with you.

AW: MIL went and bought E an elephant costume, because it's basically a sleeper, and so she'll be able to move around in it freely (and it's big enough to fit other clothes underneath, which is vital in the Frozen North).

W: Frozen North plus near-toddler. Last year, we could just put her in the car seat, put on her hat, cover her in blankets, and use the carseat cover. She's too big for the car seat cover this year, and cried when I put her toque (knit hat) on her head. And she's angry at mittens. I also can't warm the car ahead of time, and it's a bit of a walk to our car from the apartment building. I think we're going to have to keep her in the carrier-style carseat until winter's over (it goes up to 30lbs). My arms ache at the idea of it.

It's so frustrating that all of the recommendations for safely securing a child into a carseat (no big jackets!) fully comprehend HOW COLD it gets here.

W: I have a fussy, restless baby. I hope she hasn't caught her father's cold. Please don't let her have that awful cold.

Timer! Back to work.

Queen of West Procrastination said...

It looks like E isn't sick, but teething again! So: both a whine and an anti-whine? I dosed her with some baby painkillers and put her to bed, which is a definite AW.

W: headache. Maybe I need painkillers and a nap too.

kathy a. said...

Oy! The toddler + frozen tundra + carseat conundrum sounds like a definite winner.

Teething is better than a cold! But still very definitely in the W category. Hope everybody's better soon.

Think I'm going with lasagne as the comfort dinner.

esperanza said...

I was full of whines about how hot and sticky it was on the Baboos' field trip, and how sunburned I got. But now I am full of antiwhines that I do not live in the Great Frozen North.

kathy a, many hugs for everyone who knew and loved Buddy.

W: a corn maze was just as much fun as I thought it would be.
AW: some other activities were lots of fun. And I learned some things about modern dairy farming (did you know cows have water beds? Yes indeedy)

Queen of West Procrastination said...

Wait. Cows have water beds? This dairy farm that you toured is much more modern than my Grandpa's.

Whines about feeling hot and sticky: it's like a happy dream to me now.

AW: I got E to bed all by myself, because Mr. Q is at a supper thing! She was asleep exactly one minute before bedtime. I feel so accomplished. I'm just going to leave the house messy.

AW: Mr. Q came home early, right as soon as school was out, so that he could have some time with E today. He sent me to take a nap, and made supper! I was all set to whine about dealing with a teething baby alone today, and then he made it all better.

esperanza said...

That Mr Q is a keeper.

This tour guide said the dairy cows have water beds. Cleaner (and I assume, easier to keep clean) than hay. She assured us they were tougher than human water beds. It's a 300-cow operation. We didn't see the cows because they were all out in the pasture eating the new green grass (it finally rained).

Sue said...

Yay QWP for bedtime skilz and yay Mr. Q!

I imagine a water bed would be relaxing for the cows, though I'm having trouble picturing how they would get onto and back out of said water bed. Clearly I know nothing about cows.

AW: I slept really well last night. Either that or I was unconscious, it doesn't really matter. I got some sleeps!!!

kathy a. said...

Yes, kudos to Mr. Q!

I had to google, and learned that waterbeds are the hot new thing in comfortable bovine bedding. Who knew? Who knew cows spend 12-14 hours a day reclining? A person learns the most amazing things.

Sue, yay for a good sleep! What was it like? I'm trying to remember...

My son ditched his night class and came over to hang out last night, which was really lovely. The kids picked Buddy out at the shelter, all those years ago; kids + dog were all exploding with happiness and excitement that day. And Buddy was basically the best birthday present their dad ever got. We were very fortunate to have Buddy in the family for a good long time.

The lasagne was perfect. Made it with a zesty filling of sausage, onion, mushroom, spinach, chopped tomato, fresh basil, spices. (I forgot that it is actually pretty fast to assemble with the no-boil noodles.)

Liz said...

So many AWs and Ws at the moment. Hugs to everyone. So sorry about Buddy.

Spotty the gerbil is going to follow his brother Runner into the great beyond this week.

My opponent is going negative in a mailer saying F@ctCheck.org said something about me that they didn't and that they've already gone on record as saying they didn't. He is toast.

Also, he's stupid. He's the incumbent. Incumbents are supposed to ignore challengers.

Sue said...

Nomination for Mullet "the hot new thing in comfortable bovine bedding."

I'm glad your son could join you last night and share some memories of Buddy - and lasagna!

The sleep was delightful. I woke up at one point and looked at the clock thinking I was doing that annoying thing where I wake up 20 minutes before the alarm. I still had - get this - four hours til morning!!! WooHoo! I was so excited I thought my happy happy would keep me awake - it did not.

Is it sad that a good night of sleep is a bit like a vacation?

Liz, sorry to hear about Spotty! Sorry also about the stoopid incumbent. Sheesh.

Liz said...

So sad about Spotty, but very happy about stooopid incumbent. Local press is ecstatic about this.

kathy a. said...

Cheers for stupid incumbents! Seriously, if a person's gonna make shit up, it's a bad idea to do that when the challenger is Liz the Magnificent, and the cited source can be checked.

Fact checking -- heard of it? Your opponent has. (This is, by the way, also a reason that schools need to focus on critical thinking and related skills.)

Spotty was a good gerbil, a brave and loyal gerbil. We know he missed Runner, and we will miss him, too.

esperanza said...

Now I'm off to google cows and waterbeds.

Re: good sleep...hooray, Sue! I have been sleeping SO MUCH better now that Grandma Pete's last journey is done. Apparently waiting for a phone call is not conducive to relaxing.

W: hungry for kathy a's lasagna, which is many miles away.

I'm not a political genius, but I think stoopid incumbent is getting scared of our Liz. Go Liz Go!

AW: nap

Anonymous said...

What a fun 18 hours this has been.

Son tells me that he and gf have broken up and that she had a restraining order against him. Son is pretty mellow so I am all, "huh?" The whole situation is bad. It will get worse. This is the second kid with contact with the courts in the last 4 months and I am seriously considering nominating myself for the Worst Middle Class Parent Ever. My small attempt to elicit some positive energy was hijacked by a relative's personal meltdown. Relative has since apologized but not before causing problems.

Can I go hide for about ten years???

- Eh, Nonny Maus?

kathy a. said...

(((( Eh Nonnie ))) It's not you. It's just stuff. xoxox

Find son a lawyer. Do your best to keep things from getting worse. And that is sometimes what one can do. xoxox

Anonymous said...

Thanks kathy. The whole situation keeps getting sadder and sadder. My heart breaks for them both.

Miranda said...

Hugs to Kathy for Buddy and Liz for Spotty. Pets are such an important part of our lives.

I'm going to scarf down some of that lasagna while pretending it is gluten free. mmmmm....I miss lasagna and I like just like you described, Kathy.

I'm going to watch spokaoke tonight. ie spooky karaoke. The place has margaritas so I think it will all work out just fine. ;)

Miranda said...

(((eh nonnie mouse))

esperanza said...

((nonnie))

kathy a. said...

Passing the gluten-free lasagne! And also, I saw a recipe using zucchini thin-sliced the long way and then grilled a little (to remove some of the moisture), in place of the pasta -- and that just sounds wonderful. Virtuous, even!

Queen of West Procrastination said...

(((Nonnie))) This situation does not at all make you a bad parent. We're here for you.

Please pass the lasagna.

W: headache and tired. Teething it's killing me. (You know, unless she's getting another huge gap in her top teeth, she's cutting an eye tooth early. No wonder she's in so much pain!)

Liz Miller said...

((Nonnie))

JenR said...

I'm here to contribute Raspberry Oatmeal bars and brownies. And probably an enormous bowl of candy if the rain doesn't stop before trick-or-treat tonight.

Many Ws around here, but I'm choosing to ignore them at the moment. Our little guy decided to finally start talking! He's 26 months - I took a drink of his juice and he yelled at me "no! no! my juice!" and then proceeded to add about 40 words to his 8-word vocabulary in about a week. Yay!

esperanza said...

Go little guy!

((JenR))

W: holy cow is it flooding here. Well, not here precisely but not far away. Two rivers expected to flood here from runoff upstream.

AW: the lakes really need the water

Sue said...

Liz - I'm glad the press has picked up the BS-factor of your incumbent's stoopidity. I think kathy's right, you're shaking him up! Yay!!

More later...

Liz said...

No stories printed yet, but there will be. This is good stuff.

JenR, YAY on the vocabulary explosion!!!

Esperanza, I'm glad you're getting needed rain, but sorry that it's causing problems.

kathy a. said...

JenR! No stopping him now -- it sounds like the floodgates are open!

Oy, Esperanza. Doesn't rain but it pours, eh?

W: we thought the SIL thing was pretty much straightened out, but apparently we overlooked the joys of her tax situation. Which, we realize suddenly, is a mess.

Sue said...

(((Nonnie))) Many hugs for you...

Miranda - spookaoke sounds awesome!

JenR - yummy treats!! Yay about little guy!! (((hugs for Ws)))

QWP - ouch for the teething.

Sorry to hear about the flooding esperanza.

kathy a. said...

Even better than lasagne: hearty crockpot soup, with that one last sausage and some leftover beef, celery, mushrooms, carrot, onion, generous spices, blackeyed peas, and a mess of spinach. Mmm mmm mmm.

Liz said...

AW: This --> http://www.factcheck.org/2013/10/misusing-our-name-in-virginia/

Liz said...

AW: Just interviewed for radio about the above AW.

Sue said...

Yay Liz!!!

kathy a. said...

Go, Liz!

esperanza said...

Yippee Liz!

Rivers are rising...

kathy a. said...

Yikes, Esperanza!

esperanza said...

I should clarify...we are in no danger, just inconvenienced. And, really, neither is anyone else. It's going to be classified as a "moderate" flood, will fill up the city park (intentionally built in the flood plain) and maybe close the highway for a bit. No homes should be in danger. Since we didn't get all the rain, it's strictly a river flood event (so say the weather people). So it's a little scary, a little exciting, a little inconvenient (ie I'm not going to run errands in the next town over, because I want to be able to get back home!).

kathy a. said...

Good that it seems limited to inconvenience, Esperanza!

You know I hate guns. Just discovered that I particularly hate guns shooting at airports. LAX. Jeeeepers. I've used that airport dozens of times.

kathy a. said...

mini-W, Short person's lament: the director of this world-class airport is a short woman. She was completely hidden behind the mikes at the press conference, except the top of her hair. How stupid.

Queen of West Procrastination said...

AW: You guys, my baby just said her first non- "Mama/Dada" word, and it was "BOOK"! While we were reading The Very Hungry Caterpillar! This is endlessly exciting for me. (She was really cute about super-pronouncing is, too: "boo...kuh.")

esperanza said...

QWP, that was Mini's first "real" word, too! But she didn't pronounce it as well. That Lil E is a genius!

The Baboos and I drove by the river, currently at "minor" flood stage. The golf carts have all been moved to higher ground, so the golfers can rest easy (sarcasm).

Re: short person lament: no one will think of this except the short person him/herself. It stinks, but you've got to be the one to check it out and bring a stool. (Says the short preacher who travels around).

kathy a. said...

Lil E is on fire! My son's 3d/4th word was "cat," which he used for all animals -- ducks, pigs, horses... ["No" might have actually come before "cat."]

Esperanza, you're so right about we of low altitude needing to take the initiative.

Liz said...

YAY Lil E!

Sue said...

Yay Lil E!!! That is a good word!

I noticed that about the press conference as well kathy. Good grief - it's such an easy fix. Lower podium, or no podium...