Sirius Radio...Am I Serious?

Santa was good to me and brought along a Sirius radio. Why did I choose Sirius you ask? Well I can assure you it was NOT because of Howard Stern! After much research I found that Sirius has quite a bit more music channels. You do the math.

Right now I've got it set up in the plug and play environment. Which means that I'm using my FM Tuner on my radio to dial in. Not the BEST option or the best reception but considering the other options require more parts, more installation and more money (Despite the fact that I'd install it myself.) I decided I would give it the trial run and be sure that I actually like the thing before going through all the trouble.

Here is my delimma. I was never a big radio person to begin with. This is why it's taken me so long to get the thing in the first place. I'm also not a big channel flipper (Unless I'm the passanger.)--Which is why I was never big into listening to the radio in the car. I always found it so much easier to just pop in a CD or plug in my iPod. So I'm going to have to find a station or two that I really like to make it worth my while. I was honestly hoping for more indie music, and it seems as if there is only one station that plays this. And it's indie/college at that. Which means that there is some indie and a bunch of what you'd consider "college radio music". I dig the "1st Wave" station which is old 80s new wave. And it was cool to hear all the old MTV VJs on the all 80s station... I dunno I'm still debating!

Highway Robbery

With a little help, I finally figured out what was going on with my car door. (About a year ago it stopped opening from the inside, causing me to have to roll down the window to let myself out of the driver side). The culprit is this little white plastic clip that holds the bowden cable in a stationary position, while still allowing it to do it's job -- open the door. I looked on line to no avail and finally had to call a dealer out in my old stomping grounds of Mentor, Ohio. The part was 12.00 and shipping was 10.00... $22.00 for a 1/2 inch piece of freaking plastic. Ridiculous! Unfortunately any attempts at rigging were unsuccessful and I had to break down and order the part.

'Tis the Dang Season

Around 4 o'clock this morning a trip to the kitchen for a glass of water led to a startling discovery. The Christmas tree had fallen over.

You’re joking right?
Nope.
Tell me this is a joke!
Nope.
It's kinda funny if you think about it! Christmas stories for the kids and grandkids...
Tell me this is a joke...
Nope.

Broken bulbs (Along with the majority of my favorite ornaments.) littered the floor. Bits and pieces of poor teddy (A Christmas cookie ornament I had made long long ago.) were found from the living room far into the kitchen. The area rug was speckled with a glittery array of tiny shards of red, gold and silver bulbs. Wrapped presents--because I was trying to stay far ahead of the game—lay crushed under the tree, some of them having grown soggy from the absorption of water that spilled out from the tree stand.

How the hell?

The glass was swept, the tree set right, and the soggy gifts laid out in such a fashion as to hopefully allow them to dry. "Awww this will eventually be funny... It'll make a great memory..." I'm told.

I’m planning on going to the store to get some more bulbs today – though some would tell me to quit while I’m ahead I’ve decided that this tree will not beat me. You can blow lights, you can topple over, give me your worst. You WILL sit pretty in my living room until at least December 26th damn it! (Makes a mental note to ensure that the alarm system is set up to dial the fire department in the event of fire).

Tis the season to be jolly?

And I Thought *I* had Problems!

So I go to take Kelsey in for her blood test to figure out what is going on with her Lysodren levels so we can stop the Thorazine shuffle she's been doing. While waiting for her to be admitted (Yeah this place is like a human clinic I swear!) one of the receptionists decided to impart this little bit of information on me:

"We have a dog in the back that was brought in because he chewed off his penis."
A look of shock quickly appeared on my face. Or more like a look of complete horror. "Are you serious?!" I exclaimed.
"Yes," she said. "The doctor said he's either going to have to do a sex change or put the dog down."
I felt my eyes go *blink* *blink* *blink*
"Wow! That's crazy".

The more I thought about this the more it made me wonder.
What exactly would cause an animal to do this?
Gender confusion?
Is this proof that creatures are born gay in the animal kingdom?
Obviously they're not giving the thing hormone replacement therapy or anything, they won't be constructing a vagina. But will they change the dog's name from Brutus to Babs?

And hey, Isaac Mizrahi has created some damned adorable doggie gowns available at Target! (If they’re into that kind of thing).

Here's the Culprit!

This is Katie, or as I like to refer to her - Katiekins. She's the guilty party previously discussed. How can you get mad at a face like this?

I'm not a photographer, but there was just something really cool in the lighting and the color of the shades against the white of Katie that I thought was really cool and caused me to grab my camera. Enjoy!

When Good Pets Go Bad

It's been a hectic couple of days. Hell, the last week and a half has kicked my arse. So I finally got to the point where I was going to take some "me time". I figured a few extra minutes in the tub today wouldn't be out of line right?

But first, lets step back a moment. Last evening I noticed that Katie (my foster dog of sorts) was overly preoccupied with the corner of my office--So much so that she was beginning to pull up the carpet. I found it half amusing, but considering it's new carpet and all, I yelled at her to cease. Continued reprimands were the order of business for the remainder of the evening, so I decided when leaving the office, the best course of action would be to shut the door. Miss Katie, who happens to be my friend's dog for which I am sitting, but I love as my own, rewarded me this morning by peeing in the hallway by the shut door.

Fast forward to today. Katie wasn't bothering too much with the corner. A few "Uht Uhts" in her direction were enough to keep her at bay. So when I got into the tub I didn't even think twice about closing the door. A half hour later, I'm dressed and searching for my brush to tackle the now wet and knotted mane on my head. I walk into my office (This is where the brush was last seen.) and a gasp escaped my lips. I stood in total shock for a moment before yelling, "Katie!" followed by an "OH MY GAWD!" and a "You get out of here!" while pointing towards the door. Katie did the right thing, dropping her head while instinctively tucking her tail and ears as she slunk out of the office.

Please take a gander at the following photograph to share a little in the joy of what lay before me:

Ready?

Tis the Season

I started my Christmas shopping early. I'm bound and determined to get everything purchased, wrapped and sent so that I don't have to pay next day air fees on everything I have to ship out of state this year. That's one of the downfalls about living away from your family. Shipping charges. Hey shouldn't that be figured into the over all gift? "Look! I obviously love you or I wouldn't have spent $20.00 to get this package to you on time!" I'm just saying!

Harddrive Shmarddrive

I've installed SATA hard drives before, but never had one of my own (my computer being the last thing to get fixed and/or upgraded). Things have been humming along with work and I'm thinking that I'll be able to get cauht up. But what's this? My computer decided to turn itself off and then not restart on Friday. After spending all day Saturday trying to figure out what was going on, it seem that my other hard drive has gone bad. Now considering my SATA hard drive is my master hard drive it should have started just fine. So, after unplugging my secondary hard drive I'm humming along just fine again. Weird...

Another Season of This...

Every year I get excited for the new football season and hoping against hope that my Browns might do SOMETHING impressive. First game of the season... Lots of turnovers... Another lost game. *Sigh*

The Bug Whisperer... Or not!

I've been battling fire ants both in and outside of my home. Apparently, due to the unusually warm and dry climes this year, the fire ant population has exploded (Most of them in my yard). After being badly bitten while weeding I decided to be proactive (Two bites caused a large swelling on my arm that lasted for three days and itching that continued for two weeks - and bites on my back and left breast - Crap if I know how they found their way there!) Not being a fan of poisons and their results on amphibious life. (Or the potential hazards to my dog.) I was avoiding this option. But reaching the end of my proverbial rope, I was out of options. After talking myself into using the spreader to treat the entire lawn I come to find swarms of birds in my yard. Upon further inspection I see little inch worms all over the place.

New delimma. If I put the poison down while the birds are feeding on the worms, am I going to wipe out the local bird population? And are the inchworms bad for the lawn? So my next plan of attack - get on line and research the damn worms and the effects of this type of poison on birds (Because this is what ya do). It seems the inchworms are not in any way harmful to my lawn and yes, the poison will probably kill the birds. Damnit! So after a few days - once the birds had moved on to other feeding grounds, I spot treated the lawn. Once this chore was completed I took to straighten up the yard. I pick up the pool cover, which had been errantly cast on the lawn only to find that ants had also decided to move in here. Four new bites... *Sigh*

But wait, we're not done. Today I leaned over while putting away my hoover and immediately felt a sharp pain in my right breast. I jumped up and started yanking at my shirt. No, not a fire ant this time… A wasp! (Let it be known that I'm allergic to bee stings). In response to almost being squashed while I leaned over, it decided to fight back!

I'm avoiding bugs of any kind at the moment!

Computers, computers, computers

I finally got that motherboard and processor my brother sent me. I finally upgraded my computer - While not a huge upgrade, a little faster processor, a hell of a lot better graphics card, lots and lots of RAM and a new SATA hard drive. I've decided that this time I'm going to set it up perfectly so that there are not any of those little annoyances (Everyone has these - something goes wonky on your machine and instead of fixing it, you deal, or find a work around and vow to deal with it when you have more time. In my world, more time means working on everyone else's computers before my own.) So we're up and running and humming along. Life is good for the moment. (Other than finding that a 400GB Harddrive that I had laying around is toast.)

My Theme Song - Thanks to Cristy for this one!

Your Theme Song is Back in Black by AC/DC

"Back in black, I hit the sack, I've been too long, I'm glad to be back" Things sometimes get really crazy for you, and sometimes you have to get away from all the chaos. But each time you stage your comeback, it's even better than the last!

What's Your Theme Song?

Stupid Human Tricks

Do not...I repeat do NOT attempt to mow your lawn when it's got at least a month's growth on you (Thanks to lots of rain and a vacation) all in one day, during the hottest hours of the day, when it's 88 degrees and sunny. I don't think I've ever sweat so much in my entire life. Thank god for the kiddie pool! I think it prevented heatstroke and a total meltdown.

Gay Friendly Fayetteville

You've may have already seen a previous post where I explained how I had seen the local little theater rendition of Rocky Horror Picture Show a few months back, and how I was pretty sure that the role of Frankenfurter was played by a gay local hairdresser. Well, the other night I went out to a favorite local tapas/sandwich place where the staff is always pleasant (So much so that my partner-in-crime at said restaurant claimed that one of the waiters had a thing for me. I protested on account of my certainty that the man is gay). So guess who was behind the counter making the yummies? Yup, none other than Frankenfurter. Anyway, after making our way into our second bottle of wine and noshing on salmon, hummus and other goodies, the gay waiter approached us with an invitation to a new local bar. Surprise! "It's a gay bar" he said, but defended that it was "About 50/50 gay and straight". Out of curiosity, and after having a few drinks at our favorite watering hole, we wound up at the club. Seems you have to have a membership but we insisted that "Mario" would vouch for us. We walked into the club and upon seeing us Mario happily exclaims "You showed!" A little later we were also treated with his shriek "Ahhh, straight people!" Mostly in response to the fact that we were the only straight people in the club that evening. But hey, the dancing was great, and the company was fun. I'm now a member at the only gay club I know of in Fayetteville.

I WANT This!

It's an inflatable pub! Tell me that woudn't be cool next to the kiddie pool!!!

Modem Hell aka I'm back on line!

Good ness that was painful! I finally got my modem and I'm back on line (after threatening to take my laptop to the local coffee shop just to get this month's update done - thankfully I didn't have to do that). You don't realize how much you depend on your computer until you don't have it anymore. What I needed it for in the past three days besides work? Checking movie times, paying bills, and a small research project. I'm currently digging out of the mound of email and getting the update done. Woot woot!

Wild Kingdom

Living out in "the country" has provided many an interesting vista over the past year. My yard has been dubbed "Wild Kingdom" and a few days ago "National Geographic Land", based on a recent find. While hanging out on my back deck, the following creature was spied. This is known as a "Hummingbird Moth" also known as a "Clearwing Month" The size of a large bumble be, reacting like a hummingbird but actually belonging to the moth family this little guy has a means of gathering nectar from flowers (no stinger thank goodness). He's a really cool creature to be sure:

Rain, Rain, Go Away...

It's done nothing but rain all week. I'm starting to feel waterlogged, I can't finish staining my deck (I need a promise of at least 24 hours of no rain) or kill the fire ant hills in my yard (again with the 24 hrs of no rain so as to avoid contamination of aquatic areas thereby killing all my little toadie and tadpole friends). So today I wake up to sheeting rain, high winds (thanks to the latest hurricane) and my poor doggie had to go outside in her little yellow raincoat (because I was damned if I was going out there with her). Can we PLEASE have some sun sometime soon? I'm drowning over here!

Save the tadpoles

Picture this if you will... Myself and my friend Stacy, and her little westie Katie, hanging out by the pond (also known as a retention pool for rain run off -- an attempt at avoiding flooding), when we notice roughly 1,000 tadpoles in a very shallow pool on the other side of the dam by the pond. We immediately took to rescuing the little suckers with old plastic cups (Hey man, frogs and toads keep the mosquito count down, plus they're awfully cute!) It was during this time that Katie decided it might be fun to run around the pond and then dive in after the poor stunned younglings. Thankfully she didn't catch any, but we had a lovely time getting the burrs and stink off her!

Rocky Horror Fayetteville

So I went to see a live "little theater" showing of Rocky Horror Picture Show over the weekend. First off, I'd like to say that I had no idea there were as hip a folks living in this city as the dude that played Frankenfurter. Great voice and stage presence (reminded me of Ziggy Stardust - aka David Bowie), I'm still trying to figure out if he's gay or not since, on the intermission this mesmerized young fellow came up and exclaimed how shocked he was to see his "hairdresser" in such attire. Yes, Frank is a hairdresser by day. Now, being a hairdresser myself I've met many a straight male stylist. Anyway, my point being - Fayetteville might not be as lost as I thought it was. Now if only I can find out where those hip cats hang out! Sadly I have a feeling their evenings are spent rehearsing. But it's nice to see that even small town North Carolina can put on a show like this! My faith is restored in the local arts!

LEAVE ME ALONE!!!

You ever get in one of those moods where you just want an extended period of time to yourself? This might sound totally unsocial but I'd love a good solid month where no one calls me (unless they're returning my calls). I know that sounds terribly selfish but I swear right now I'm being pulled in so many directions that I feel like a Stretch Armstrong doll (now I'm showing my age). I am not kidding when I tell you that I cannot get through a day right now where someone isn't trying to make plans to do something with me, most of which involves someone coming to visit here or me going out of town. It's almost laughable at this point. Alone time is good people! It gives you the opportunity to get all up inside your head, do some soul searching and commune with yourself. It's wonderful! Give it a go!!!

A Woman's Age

Most civilized people know that it's rude to ask a woman her age. This morning, over a strong cup of joe, I was wondering when that rule initially came into play. Obviously I don't want anyone asking my age, and when they do I respond with a polite "Young enough to have fun and old enough to know better." (Or some facsimile there of). But if you think about it, the simple fact that this has become the norm in society is a glaring reminder--being that it's okay to ask a man his age--that women are not allowed to age and men just get more distinguished and better looking with each new gray hair and wrinkle. So, men are a fine bottle of red wine while women remain that really tasty chardonnay that over-time, turns to vinegar? This explains my reaction (indignation and self-consciousness) when a man recently approached me with what I'm sure he thought was the best of compliments: "You are getting better looking with age. I mean, you were always a hottie, but your looking more seasoned."

Do I even need to point out the million ways in which this was SO not the way to win my heart!

Icky Sickly

In case you've been wondering where Kimmie has been hiding for the past odd thirty days... Beyond doing some behind-the-scenes web-related things for the Score! website to make things, I managed to go smack from the stomach flu right into the nastiest bout of Strep throat imaginable.

When I used to hear the term Strep I thought... No big--It's a sore throat and a fever right? In fact I was certain I'd had Strep in the past. These last two weeks have brought to light a very interesting fact. No, I've never had Strep before, because I'm pretty sure I would recall being in so much pain that I couldn't even swallow my own saliva, let alone eat or sleep.

After attempting to make an appointment with my doctor I wound up going to the ER. This alone should tell you the amount of pain I was in and why I would suffer five hours of babies crying, people vomiting and one lady dealing with her mentally disturbed son, while I battled with a 104 degree fever and the chills - I walked out around the fifth hour (after having called and made an appointment at the evening clinic). I was diagnosed and given motrin and a lidocaine mouth rinse. Let me tell you, when the infection has reached your glands, there is no amount of motrin or lidocaine that is going to help. Three days of no sleep, and no food found me back into the doctor asking for pain relief. A steroid injection (let's hope I don't grow boy parts) and some Percocet was the answer this time. Two days later I'm still running at least a 100 degree fever and the pain has not subsided. Third doctor visit resulted in a first impression that I had Mono. Six tubes of blood donated, tilts (blood pressure taken while sitting, standing and lying down) and a refill on my current drugs sent me on my way.

It is now almost two weeks since the first signs of illness and the drugs are finally starting to help. I'm up every 3-4 hours for a redosing and I'm now able to eat maltomeal - that's about the extent of what I can get down. Water still tends to burn my infected tonsils. Small sips they say. Small sips.

My new mantra: Percocet is your friend!!!

Now back to my previously scheduled coma...

A Quiet Moment

Today the sky has a beautiful azure hue, punctuated by soft billowy clouds. There's a strong wind that reminds me of change--It feels like a promise. I close my eyes and let it wash over me. The sun kisses my face with soft adoration. I toss my head back in gentle response. Folding my arms--encircling myself in a protective embrace. Breathing in deeply the warm fragrant air, which hints heavily of last night's rainfall. A soft sigh escapes my lips as I think of him. "Lover..." I whisper, before inhaling his name, the corners of my mouth answer through an acquiescent smile.

Valentine Shmalentine

We begin this post with a little story. I'm standing in line at the store and I overhear this cute young girl say to her cute young friend, "I don't have anyone to buy me flowers this year". That statement alone is a wonderful expression as to why Valentine's Day stinks. While I myself did receive flowers, and I do have a date this evening (shhhh), I still firmly believe that the balance of this holiday equates to more harm than good. Yes it's nice to celebrate your lover--But honestly you should be doing that everyday anyway! Instead what the holiday does is make those people, who are currently mateless, feel "less than". And that's just bunk.

I'm Not In Love

You know how it is, you're tooling around wind up coming across a song from the past that just kinda hits you in the gut...Whether it's memories, something that's going on in your life or what not, you feel this visceral kind of shake. At least that's how I am about music. So I'm tooling around on Rick Springfield's website (Yes. Shut up!) And there is a snip of this cover of 10cc's "I'm Not in Love". It totally did it for me...

I'm not in love, so don't forget
It's just a silly phase I'm going through
And just because I call you up
Don't get me wrong
Don't think you've got it made
I'm not in love
Oh no, It's because

I'd like to see you, but then again
It doesn't mean you mean that much to me
So if I call you, don't make a fuss
Don't tell your friends about the two of us
I'm in love
Oh no, It's because

I keep your picture upon the wall
It hides a nasty stain that's lying there
So don't you ask me to give it back
I know you know it doesn't mean that much to me
I'm not in love
No no, It's because

Ooh, you'll wait a long time for me
You'll wait a long time for me

I’m sitting here with the TV going in the background as I try and get some work done and a commercial for a certain web hosting company comes across the screen. I would like to know what scantily clad skanks covered in soap bubbles have to do with web hosting. And I wonder as a web designer why this web hosting company thought it was a good idea to alienate me (and many other women web designers) by creating such a commercial. I don’t expect my male counterparts to understand my irritation, not having to spend every day of their lives barraged with partial male nudity and sexual innuendo by men to sell products on TV, billboards, magazines, radio, you name it! Though I’m fairly certain, despite whatever protests, that an exact duplicate of this commercial with role reversal would have them running for any web hosting company BUT this one. I do not know how to express this without being tagged as a feminazi (which I SO am not), a prude (now that is just funny), or being told I’m making more of this than it’s worth. But you know, I’m just fed up. I’m sick of the exploitation of women to sell products. I’ve long since grown tired of the unhealthy messages thrown at young girls making them believe that sexy is a skirt short enough to show their ass cheeks and a wet t-shirt. And before I start receiving messages that I’m giving sour grapes because I’m jealous, trust me when I tell you, I have far too much self-esteem to be envious of any tart whoring herself out to further line the pockets of a boardroom full of men. Yes honey, your parents must be so proud.

And for all those men drooling over these women, you know if that was your girlfriend, or heaven forbid, your daughter up there and all of your buddies were drooling on your coffee table as she’s writing on the hood of a sports car, you’d be the first to start throwing punches and demanding an end to the display. Yeah, yeah you claim otherwise but you know it’s true.

All I can say is, those clients of mine who have accounts with this company will be making a move come renewal time. Now if you’ll excuse me, I’m off to don my super-sexy, yet very classy black high-heeled boots before heading out for a beer with my buddies.

Casting Shadows

He is a shadow.
Birthed by daylight.
Spread across the mind and heart.
He is illusive.
Drifting in unison with the dawdling time.
An apparition masking a cool grayed surface.

He vanishes with the darkness.
A memory. A whisper.
Yet sustaining light keeps its promise.
He returns with radiance
Casting shadows of his own.

Acceptable Behavior?

I've been all up in my head about this recently and the more I think on it, the more annoyed I become. I would like to know when it became socially acceptable to maul and manhandle a woman. When did sexual assault become appropriate behavior? In the span of three weeks I've had an old guy attempt to grind up on my backside through my clothes on a dance floor in Tampa, and just the other night I had not one, not two, but THREE men, with absolutely no provocation on my part, grab me and smash their lips against mine!

When having conversations with various people about this, I've received everything from analogies that compare men to dogs and women to bologna; That I should wear burlap when I go out; That most people can't handle their liquor; and my favorite -- I shouldn't go out by myself.

All jokes aside, I don’t care how drunk you are--I'm fairly certain somewhere you learned simple manners. You know this is just WRONG! Further, my choice of attire (which was not skanky I assure you) and whether or not I'm attractive and/or arrive to a bar un-escorted, should not equate to my being held responsible for the actions of some obnoxious letches, that given better reaction time on my part would all be undergoing testicle retrieval surgery at this very moment!

Someone to watch over me...

I never realized one person could produce so much snot. My head is stuffy, my ears are plugged and my lungs are wheezing. It's a beautiful site. I attempted to work out yesterday and succeded in nearly passing out on the ellipitcal and smacking myself in the head with a free weight. I was told by Dr. Ryan that I need to rest. Rest is the answer. I realize this, but I've never been much of a lay-about. So when I'm curled up on the sofa with nothing but the "Dead Like Me" DVD series and a box of Kleenex to comfort me, all I can think of is the laundry list of things that need done. And then I feel sorry for myself.

Being independent and all -- and for all intents and purposes living alone most of the time -- I'm not one to ask for help. And I'm too "grown up" to call for my mommy (and even if I did she lives three states away). But damnit! I want someone to run me a hot bath, bring me a cup of tea, deliver my meds with a glass of water and a kiss on the forehead. Someone to wrap me in a warm embrace while I fall blissfully into a cold-med-induced coma. "Someone take care of me!" she whines with a big pouty lip for effect.

Bad Idea

I love my family. So when faced with a pseudo slumber party evening of movie watching with my mom and sister, I was all for it--Despite their hacking and coughing. I figured, yeah, I'll probably wind up with this shit... Considering I was sandwiched in the middle of them on the bed... But at the time I just didn't care. Mmm hmmm, I'm currently sneezing, stuffy headed and my body aches. Yeah I'm attempting to put my butt to bed early tonight.
Goodnight world!

Mother Ocean

The pungent salty smell is the first to attack the senses, causing an immediate clearing of the mind. Breathing in deeply as the sea air expands the lungs…Exhale to expel the remnants of the city. Soft white sand creeps between toes as the music of crashing waves hints of her serenity. Gulls squawk their song in response while darting away from foamy breaks along the shore. Her mist clings to downy hair and eyelashes like morning dew on blades of grass. She wreaks havoc on my long mane, creating unruly curls while a perfume of brine covers my skin. Answering her call, I dip my feet into her wetness, her breeze tickling my soul. Walking forward submerging feet, then ankles…Shins…Knees…Thighs…Hastily I dive ahead, skimming just under the surface before rolling onto my back beyond reach of the punishing waves. Her density supports me as I float weightless over the continually swelling, saline surface. She claims me with her tender embrace, allowing me to taste of her energy, experiencing her blissful freedom.