The best intentions go kaput

Well I really intended to get some cleaning done today. I really did. But not much got done.

I left off coffee on the porch, and made breakfast. Pancakes, snausage, and eggs with tea. I decided to eat a good breakfast so I wouldn't have to worry about stopping for a while. After that, I went on over to the flea market, which was once again nothing but junk. Since I was so full, nothing looked good to me, and I didn't get any produce either.

When I got home, I decided to take a nap, since I am so drug out from not sleeping well last week. I put in Sense and Sensibility to go to sleep by, and did sleep for a while, but then got into it, and ended up watching it, then going back and watching the parts I missed while I was asleep. I just love Emma Thompson in that movie. When she cries, I cry. I'm becoming a senitmental old fuddy-duddy, and I just love movies where everyone ends up happily paired off to the perfect guy. I suppose I enjoy it vicariously if not in real life.

After that I wanted more costume drama, so I put in Jane Eyre with Samantha Morton and went in the bedroom to roll my sleeves up and get started. I did get some heavy-duty dusting done - things I hadn't done in a while. But I got distracted doing little things. I cleaned my jewelery. I cleaned the brass with catsup (it really works just like on How Clean is Your House? on telly). Then I decided I had to eat some lunch before I went to my spa appointment.

The plan was I would leave at 3pm for my 4pm appointment. They encouraged you to get there early to socialize and partake of light refreshments. I stopped at 2 to eat lunch, and get cleaned up. Well after lunch, I decided I needed to lay down a bit more. I still felt drug out. The next thing I knew it was 3pm. So I dashed though the shower and headed for Miss Jan's for what they were calling Le Jour De Luxe.

It was interesting. When I got there, there was no one there that I knew, which surprised me. But Miss Jan was nice, and I came in and sat down and talked to her a bit. She had a Sarah Brightman concert DVD in, and we talked a bit about opera. After she shared with me that Ms. Brightman was her idol, I kept some of the more controversial opinions of the arts community regarding Miss Brightman's talent and career to myself. She did sing "Nessun Dorma" from an impressively soaring stage. I had never heard a soprano sing that aria before, as it is of course written for a tenor. Sadly, I think it lacked. Either the soprano range or Ms. Brightman's voice just didn't have the power needed to really project those big notes at the climax of the song. But then I have a recording of Pavarotti singing that at the height of his talents, so my ear is a bit jaded, perhaps.

After a few moments, and some kind of awkward h'ors deurves served by two make subs (they were on high protocal, and were to kneel with all offerings, and serve the plates for us - plus I'm sure some of my straight guy weirdness was going on) I was told my manicure was ready. The woman who gave me my manicure was very nice, and we chatted as she did my hands. Her Sir was at the table at the same time I was, and he was very nice and personable, and we chatted about this and that while our hands were seen to. My favorite part was the hand massage afterwards, which was great. After that, it was on to the pedicure station. I have to say, this was my first pedicure, but it won't my last. I LOVE having my feet played with anyway, and having them soaked in warm vibrating water, then pumiced, then massaged with lotion was WONDERFUL. The sub doing all this was called Liz, and she was really perfectly service-oriented. She blended into the background, communicating what was needed in a quiet voice, or by gesture. I really did feel served.

I went to the massage table feeling good and relaxed, but the best was yet to come. The woman who did my massage was from Columbia, and very much into high protocal. She had been doing the manicure for the other guy while I was sitting there. I have to say, as with many of the people I have met through LOCK, she wasn't someone you would probably look at twice on the street, but was really nice, obviously doing something that she enjoyed and that resonated within her. She also had magic hands. She gave me a great massage that was relaxing, but she didn't hurt me. I'd had two other massages before. One that was great, and one where they guy hurt me so bad I had to stop him. This was another great one. She worked out knots, but I was in heaven. It was lovely. If I could have purred, I would have. She is gay, and in service to a woman in Columbia. Lucky woman.

So I left, fat, happy, purry, and greasy. I had oil all over me from the massage, but I really didn't mind. It was off to Russ and Billy's to feed Oliver, their little special needs dog. They have three, but Oliver is a little Pomeranian. He's slightly imperfect. He has problems walking, among other things. He always looks like a wind-up toy that is just about to stop moving. Sometimes he gets over on his back and can't get back up. He has an enlarged heart, and has to have special food. He's also spoiled rotten. For some reason, though, he knows that stuff doesn't work on me, and he doesn't do it to me most of the time. He has Russ completely trained though. I mixed his food, set it down, and went to make a phone call. When he saw he wasn't going to be begged to eat, he ate pretty well with no fuss. I had a little puppy time, and loved on him some, then loved on the others as well before I left.

I had talked to Miss Kat and dana about visiting with them tonight, since I knew I wouldn't be getting anything else done after the massage. They were going to make banana splits. So I grabbed some dinner, showered off the oil, and headed their way.

It is always good to see them. We had a very enjoyable evening talking, smoking, eating ice cream, and laughing. It was a good visit. About the time I was feeling really sleepy, Miss Kat said she was too, so I left. On the way home, though, I got the munchies in the worst way and went through Wendy's for a blizzard and some fries. I almost never do stuff like that. Especially at the weight I am right now. I was thinking ruefully, even as I was eating it, that I would regret this next week when I'm at River's Edge.

The weekend is here

But I have to say I'm not particularly looking forward to it. I have to clean house. Russ and Billy will be out of town too. Bleah. On the upside, my desk is in good shape at work, and I'm all ready for month end on Monday.

I have just been kind of doing the minimum it takes to keep things barely acceptable on the house for a while, and it shows. Mom is coming on the 10th, and things have to be ship-shape by then though. It's enough she's coming to stay with me. I'm not having her cleaning house too while she's here.

Since I'm not doing anything much for fun this weekend, I took the night off. I finished Darkly Dreaming Dexter, and tried to watch some television. Direct TV is on my last nerve right now. My service has been on the fritz for two weeks. It's making me crazy. When it is working (when it is perfectly clear out, and there isn't a cloud for a 60 mile radius), all the channels don't come in. Grrrrrrrr.

I embody Sloth

Well I am cleaning house this weekend. And I have a really good book. So I just came home and read tonight, because that was what I wanted to do. Darkly Dreaming Dexter is as good as I thought it would be, and it was hard to lay it down last night on the cusp of yet another cliff-hanger chapter ending.

I did run by the store for breakfast stuff, did a load of laundry, and made some tea. That was it.

Saturday I have a spa day planned for charity, and I'm supposed to take my slippers and a robe. It's bad enough I don't have slippers and a robe that match. I looked at my slippers last night, and they were just grody. So I did a load of laundry so I could throw them in. Hopefully they'll have time to dry before Saturday afternoon.

Kind of a bad day

I slept terribly last night. I woke up hungry (God knows why after that huge meal I ate) and then couldn't get back to sleep. So I woke up this morning feeling drug out.

It was Wednesday, so I had the hell slides to put together for my boss. It went OK, with the exception that one of the people I have to get information from was being snappy about the deadline with me. Admittedly it is dildonic, but it's not like I set it or anything.

At lunch, I spilled half my food on the way to the microwave. That made me feel kind of like I was a kid and dropped my ice cream cone. Anna, my friend in the cafeteria, was really nice about it though, and refused to let me help clean it up.

My boss then dumped some urgent work on me at 5:29pm, just as I was getting ready to walk out the door. I had to stay and process at least some of it before I left for the day, so I ended up working late.

***

After work, I went to get gas. I am VERY grateful that a) I have a discount membership that allows me to buy gas for a few cents less a gallon; and b) that I have a smaller car that isn't too bad on gas. Some of my friends are paying $60-$70 for a tank! I'm really glad I can drive on a week for less. I'm carpooling with my friends more too, although I have started offering to kick in for gas so I don't seem like a mooch.

Then it was off to the library. I had four books waiting for me - Yay! Especially since it has been overcast, and I haven't had a TV signal for several days. I went out in the yard for a while tonight to see if moving some branches near the receiver would make a difference, but I'm pretty sure it's the weather.

Once I got home, I finished the latest Thursday Next from Jasper Fforde, First Among Sequels. It is just as good as the others in the series, and I was very satisfied with the ending. I'm also glad he's planning on writing more of the series.

Then I had to get in the kitchen. I fixed my bland potato salad by making more sauce to go on it, and adding a bit of asian pepper garlic paste, which just makes everything better. Then I had to fix my soup. I made it after the camp out from some left-over vegetables, and it just turned out really bland. Plus I haven't really been in a mood for soup. But I figured it would be great for after the surgery. So I doctored it up some, washed some new containers I bought, and put it in the freezer. That way I can just throw a serving in the microwave if I don't feel like cooking.

By the time I got all that done, it was time for bed. I needed to get to bed early since I slept so badly last night. I did start a book called Darkly Dreaming Dexter by Jeff Lindsay. I have been wanting to read the series for a while, and finally ordered the first one from the library. It seems like it's going to be a really good read.

A trip to Spartanburg

After work tonight, I went up to see Justin. He had a piece of furniture he needed help moving. Turns out it was a big old wardrobe he had gutted and painted to use as an entertainment center. It was big, but not that heavy. We got that in and he fixed it the way he wanted it while we talked about the rest of our weekends (he was at the pool party Saturday) and what was going on with us.

After that, it was time for dinner. I was really looking forward to that, because we were going to Thai Taste, the most delicious Thai restaurant I have ever eaten in. Yes, I think it is even better than King and I, the one that used to be in Greenville that I have mourned lo these many years. I wasn't disappointed. The food at Thai Taste is even better than I remembered. I had fried tofu, pineapple, and tomatoes in a garlic chili sauce so delicious I could have licked the plate. YUMMY!

As if that wasn't enough, there was a table with several lovely manly-muscled arm guys for us to look at while we ate. Truly a notable meal.

While we ate, Justin talked to me about what to do about this rut I'm in. I keep resigning myself to be single, but then trying to date again - usually with disastrous results. I really don't want to leave and upheave everything, but Billy is afraid his job will be eliminated, and if that happens, Russ is pushing for them to move to Savannah. If they leave, I'm going to have to really think about what's keeping me here.

The quandry is where to go. The logical place is Columbia. That is where my mother is, and is closer to Lisa and Cindy (my sisters) and my neice and nephews. It's also not really any further from Wilkesboro (where my grandparents are) than where I am now. The problem is that I really don't like Columbia. Plus I would lose all my friends here, LOCK, and the bear group, although I'm fairly sure the bear group won't last long if Russ and Billy leave. I don't want to live in Atlanta. I like Charlotte, but Charlotte really doesn't make any sense now that Mom and Lisa have moved away. My friends Lee and Clayton live up there, but I really can't base a whole social life around them. They don't do that much socially.

So that leaves me here. Still. Griping as usual. Sigh.

The Day Off* - Happy Memorial Day!

The one chore I had set for myself today was that I HAD to mow the grass. The lawnmower has not been running, the yard has been OK, and I just hadn't felt like fooling with it, so I had been putting it off. About noon though, I knew it had to be dealt with. I went and got fresh gas, drained the tank, and eventually got the mower running again. It was a big relief not to have to spend a lot of money to get it repaired.

After that, I felt as if I had earned a bit of play. I need to do tons of stuff around here, but I wasn't going to spend my day off doing chores. I called Russ and Billy, and we decided to go see the new Indiana Jones movie this afternoon. I cleaned up and even did a bit of laundry before I left.

The movie was GREAT. I wondered if it would be as good as the originals were, and I really thought it was. Some of the CGI stuff was kind of stupid, like the sword fight that supposedly took place between two moving cars in a jungle, but overall it was very entertaining, and I really enjoyed it. I really like the new baby Indy, Shia LaBeouf. La Beouf indeed. Another fine piece of man delivered to us from Disney, the company that discovered Kurt Russell.

After that, it was back home to get ready for the work week, and get to bed early. I haven't been to bed before 1am the last two nights, and figure my Circadian Rhythm is completely screwed up.

Some kitchen time

Today was a bit odd. Russ had talked about going to the flea market today, but I didn't really figure he would be up in time to go. I was up pretty early, and went on over to White Horse by myself. Again, there wasn't anything there. I picked up some produce, including a sack of potatoes, since I was craving potato salad.

Russ called about the time I was eating breakfast, and said he and Billy were still in the bed, but would call me back when they decided what they wanted to do today. I took a nap, since they were as well, but when I woke up, I still hadn't heard from them. I went on to the store, and then started cooking.

I usually hate making potato salad, but I was in the mood to do it today. I played with some left over green beans from last night, trying once again to nail the recipe they use in the cafeteria at work (which is REALLY good), and got very close. I finally got a line on the secret ingredient from a friend that works there, and I will be able to do it now. I ended up making a huge batch of potato salad. I used to have to make at least 5 pounds of potatoes for Michael and I, or it just didn't last any time. It is way too much for me, so I took two pounds over to Russ when I went over there tonight.

Miss Kat called while I was in the final stages of cooking. She was doing the discussion group today, and was calling to see if I would be there. I had intended to go, but then forgot all about it because Russ and Billy had been talking about going to Georgia today. As it was, I was elbow deep in potato salad, the kitchen was a smoking ruin, and I had to shower and change before I could go anywhere. There was just no way.

After I did all that stuff, I headed over to Russ and Billy's. We hung out and talked for a while, then went over to this little Columbian place I had seen for dinner. Dinner was very good, and quite an adventure. I had a whole fried Tilapia with plantain patties, rice, and veggies. We also had sweet corn cakes with cheese for an appetizer. After that we went out for coffee. Russ is a devoted Starbucksaholic.

We went back to the house and watched The Golden Compass, which I hadn't seen on big screen. It was EXCELLENT! I thought the movie was beautifully cast and thoroughly enjoyed it. It is the only movie I have ever seen from a book that looked exactly as the book did in my mind while I was reading it. I really enjoyed it. I need to read the next one so I can go see the movie.

It was a lovely evening.