Pumpin Blood

The rain is relentless in it's attack on us! We have had record rainfall numbers this past weekend! Jeez Louise.... enough already! I actually had to get my umbrella out which for an Oregonian is about the craziest thing you can do! 

When I got to work this morning I was immediately 'pounced' on. Pounced is not the right word but it's the one that comes to mind. Once I had settled in and clocked in the bombardment began, which is very typical on Monday morning. After all of the issues were handle the day went on as normal but I noticed that everyone seemed grumpy which in turn made me feel grumpy. Stupid Mondays. By the end of the day all was well but again stupid Monday. 

One happy, wonderful, exciting thing that happened at work was that one my co-workers, Mindy, stopped by to say hi. We don't get to see her very often and I miss her terribly. Anywhoo, I was able to chat with her for a quick second and give her about a million hugs! She is such a lovely person both inside and out!  

I called my aunt, Macrina, at lunch today becasue I miss her. I just wanted to say hi and see how all was going for her. When I go on vacations out of state it's always to her house. I want to go there right now.... :(

After work I went to Brittany's house for left over chicken enchiladas and of course to see my love bug, Toby!
 

After Brittany's house I headed over to change David's finger bandage. His momma, Bonnie, came back from Utah tonight so I was able to show her how I had been dressing the wound. Grossed out yet??? Oh goodness! Well all I will say is that I had to call the nurse to double check that what I was seeing was okay. Well, it sort of was but after following the nurses' new instructions I dressed the wound and that was that.  

The rain has been merciless on us! This is what I drove home in...

Oh and it's music Monday... enjoy.... pumpin blood... don't be put off by the title!

Puzzles

On Sunday evening I went to my friend, Brittany and her hubby Kevin's house for dinner. We made chicken enchiladas, watched a movie and worked on a puzzle. 

The beginning of the puzzle making...

Toby stayed around for a bit. BTW - I LOVE him!

But eventually Toby put himself to bed and Kevin finished the puzzle. 

There is something about working on a puzzle that puts my mind on hold. The simple task of completing the puzzle makes my mind go blank and forget about all of the stupid stuff. Do puzzles do that to you too?

Pumpkin Cream Pie

I found this recipe on a blog I love! I decided that it 

seemed simple enough.... well it almost was!

The recipe calls for one 3 ounce package of cook and serve vanilla pudding mix. Well all of the stores around me only have the 4.6 ounce kind. So, I decided that I only needed 2/3 of the package. So, I went back to elementary school and used a tablespoon to scoop 2 scoops in one pile and one scoop in another pile until I had 2/3 of the package. Weighing this would have been a lot EASIER but I don't have a kitchen scale..... hint-hint-Christmas is coming up!

 Instead of using milk the recipe calls for heavy cream and half and half. 

Dump 1/2 cup cream, 1 cup half and half and the measure 2/3 of the packaged vanilla cook and serve pudding mix to a pot. Wisk to combine over medium heat.

When it gets thick and bubbly turn off the heat. 

Add 1 cup plus 3 tablespoons pumpkin puree and pumpkin pie spice. The original recipe calls for a pinch of this and a pinch of that... I made it easier on myself.... I added 2 teaspoons of pumpkin pie spice.

Stir it all up! Cover with a lid and place in fridge for a few hours to cool and set. 

While you are waiting dump 2 tablespoons brown sugar in a bowl with 1/2 cup heavy cream. 

Beat the heck out of it and put in fridge for later.

After everything is set gently fold whipped cream into pumpkin pudding mix. 

Pour into prepared graham cracker crust and refrigerate overnight. 

When ready to eat, take it a friend's house because it's nice to share. Top the pie with fresh whipped cream and dive in!

ENJOY! 

***I didn't use the whiskey and I used a store bought crust... GASP!***

Deep breath

I have a lot on my mind at the moment and in order to help me figure some stuff out I thought I would just type away. Deep breath.....

I'm finding that I am redefining my realtionships with everyone: family, friends, co-workers.... EVERYONE. I don't know if something that has changed within myself or what but, because everything seems to be changing I know it's something to do with me.

Within in my family I find that I'm more and more independent which has it's up and downs. The upside is that I have been given a chance to voice my opinions. The downside is that sometimes my opinions don't always match up with others so I'm feeling a push back. Maybe the independence is more like isolation. I'm not sure.

Friends I have had for years I'm finding a strange new distance between us. There used to be a close bond and becasue we have all changed things are different. My friends have grown and are married now and I'm still single. I have a really hard time being the third wheel. I know it's something I have to get used to but it's getting harder and harder. Every time I see my friends with their hubby's I'm reminded that I'm still by myself. I know I shouldn't think that way but it's a glaring reminder that some how I screwed up and I'm not on par with them. It honestly makes me feel like a failure. I was always the kid who excelled at everything and now I'm the person that no one wants.... at least it feels that way.

Work has gotten a lot worse over the year. All of the changes in staff and the long drawn out remodel have taken it's toll. I wish things could be smoother, calmer, and less intense. I don't feel like I can change anything by myself so I continue on hoping that maybe things will get better if I just ride out this out.

My landlord still has the house for sale. This is a constant stress I have. I have had several friends tell me that I could stay with them temporarily but if I do have to move I want it to be just once. The places I have already looked at are way out of price range. Minimum wage is going up in January but I don't get to reap the benefit of it. Again why everything is stressing me out! I'm also 99% sure that my landlord has decided to star smoking pot in her unit. The horrible odor creeped it's way into my unit and I'm just about ready to scream!

I feel like I need a time out from life for a bit. Now that everything is out there I strangely feel a little bit better. Good night.

Raining sideways, upside down, and diagonally!

This morning I woke up at 7:27 am, looked at my alarm clock and I thought I had over slept for work. I flew out of my bed and in the process smacked the outside of my ankle on my bed frame which hurt like a son of a gun! I had to cover my mouth with both of my hands to keep from screaming like a banshee! Once I was upright I realized that it was in fact Saturday and I could go back to bed but my poor ankle was throbbing and wouldn't let me. So, after some ibuprofen and ice I fell back asleep. I re-woke up at 11:42 and decided I should actually get going. Before you think I sleep way too much let me tell ya that I typically sleep in a LOT on the weekends. I can't take naps like a normal person so once I'm asleep I'm typically out for a long time.

I needed to go change David's bandage from his accident.... remember this? So off I went in the crappy fall weather. It's actually sort of pretty if you are watching it form inside curled up with a book and some apple cider. 

Once I got to David's house I was able to get the dressing change done. I did take pictures of it but I think I will spare you and only show you this one: 

All done and re-bandaged! 

I ended up saying at their house for a bit and loving on this sweetie some more. The power went out due to the weather so we all piled up in my car and headed to town for a late lunch at Arby's. 

Once we got back from Arby's we decided to play a board game because the power was still out. Heather (Bonnie's other daughter... not to be confused with my sister), David and I played Risk. In between our turns I took more pictures of this sweet baby girl...

ok one more....

Isn't she cute????

Right after playing Risk the power came back on. Heather and I were going to start dinner but needed a few things from town. I suggested my Alfredo recipe and everyone agreed! 

So, I jumped in my car and headed back to town. On my way there it rained sideways, upside down, and diagonally! Right as I came to Cascade highway I almost crashed into a down tree. I slammed on my brakes and stopped right in front of the tree. I put my emergency flashers on and went outside to try and move the tree. Looking back that was a stupid idea. It was dark, rainy, windy and all I had on was a t-shirt and jeans. I was able to pull the tree over a bit to open part of one lane but there was no way I was going to be able to do more than that. I got in my car and headed back on my way. Well... the roads had water running over them making rivers everywhere. I called Heather and told her that I wouldn't be able to come back for dinner or help with dinner at all because there was no I could safely make it back. She understood and told me to be careful. I attempted to go home on Cascade highway but it was so washed out that I turned onto Evergreen. Well, Evergreen was worse but I felt like I couldn't go back so I pressed on. I eventually made it to Howell Prairie. I stopped at the train tracks and began to cry because I felt like I would never make it home, my gas light came on and my cell phone had no bars. I just kept thinking how nice it would be to have my knight in shinning armor drive up in a super tall truck and bring me to safety. Well, that was not going to happen so I wiped my tears, said a little prayer and forged on. 

Once in town the main roads were also washed over so I had to be very careful not get stuck and I had to avoid other cars too. The first gas station I came was closing and putting up sand bags. I continued on and made it to Roth's where I was able to fill up and get a few groceries for dinner.

When I got home I made a grilled cheese sandwich, tomato soup, rice crispy treats and apple cider. It was defiantly a comfort food night. Paul (Bonnie's hubby and David/Heather's dad) texted me to make sure that I made it home safely. It brought tears to my eyes because I knew that someone was thinking of my safety. I'm thankful to be home and glad that I left when I did because it's only raining more and more. Thank goodness for pity parties, prayers and text messages.

Halloween ideas???

Friday at work I asked my co-workers their level of involvement/commitment for Halloween. We have several new staff and not everyone will be working on Halloween. The feedback I got was that most people were not willing to commit to very much. I was crushed! I wanted to announce the theme but now I'm scrambling to figure out something different because only a few will participate at the level that is needed. Before you go thinking I'm crazy you should know that Halloween at work is a BIG deal. See for your self....

 Halloween 2008- no theme YET and my first year in the department

Halloween 2009-Desperately seeking Cinderella

Halloween 2010-50's sock hop

Halloween 2011-Wizard of Oz

Halloween 2012-Snow White and the 7 dwarfs

So, now I'm scrambling to figure out what to do as far a theme goes and our one male in our department is off that day so all of the characters have to be female. My work policy states no cross dressing so I have to work with that too. I start planning for Halloween months in advance and now I feel like I have to rethink a lot! Everyone also wants to know the theme but now I have to re-do that too! Hmmm... I'm thinking a Disney movie marathon weekend to gather information is needed. Any ideas????

We have to stop meeting this way

On Thursday I got a call from my friend/second Mom, Bonnie. She is in Utah visiting with my friend, Nicole (Bonnie's daughter). Did I loose ya? Anywhoo, Bonnie was sobbing on the phone and I couldn't understand a word she was saying. I have know Bonnie for almost 7 years and she has only ever cried twice in front of me... and both of those times were at funerals. So, I was expecting something really bad. Once she took a few deep breaths she was able to tell me that David, her youngest, had an accident at school where he cut the tip of his finger off while in shop class. She was so upset because being his momma she wasn't able to be there for him and she was so worried. Bonnie wanted me to make sure that all was well with David's finger so I promised her that after work I would go over to her house and see what was what. 
 
Once I pulled in to the driveway David came walking out towards my car holding his left hand up. He had a bandage on his left middle finger. So, it looked like he was intentionally flipping me off! I immediately gave David a hard time about flipping me off. We laughed it off and headed inside. David had a bunch of sweets, a sympathy card, a balloon and to add to his collection cookies from me. 

David and I have a tendency to get together when I'm needed in helping him with injuries. I made sure to tell David that we need to stop meeting this way.  The doctors at the emergency room wanted the bandage left on for 48 hours so I couldn't take a gander at it to report back to Bonnie but I was able to remind David to keep his arm elevated, take his medications and drink a lot of fluids.

After I had smooched on this cutie I headed home. 

Alfredo sauce

Sleeping in my own bed was GLORIOUS! I slept liked a baby... well babies don't actually sleep very well at all so.... I slept like someone who had too much too drink.... no they puke... hmmmm.... I guess I should say that I slept peacefully, sound-fully and felt so rested! Nothing like coming home!

While at work I decided that I would make homemade Alfredo sauce for fettuccine Alfredo for dinner but... it be would a healthy Alfredo! Brace yourself folks! Thanks to my sister for helping me while I was at the store trying to figure if I needed half and half or straight up cream.... I guess the sauce is slightly healthy!

So, here it goes folks....

Get every single pot or pan that you possibly own and get to cookin'!

Lower right: chicken, upper right: broccoli, upper left: 
pasta, and lower left: Alfredo sauce. 

Alfredo sauce:
1/2 cup butter
1 cup heavy cream
1 and 1/2 teaspoons crushed garlic (I use the stuff in the jar!)
1 and 1/2 cup freshly grated Parmesan cheese
2 cups steamed cauliflower
1 cup fresh parsley
Salt and pepper to taste

Melt butter over low to medium heat. Add cream. Stir while simmering for 5 minutes. Add cheese and garlic. Stir to combine and lower heat. 
In food processor add cauliflower, a smidgen of butter, a splash of cream, and dash of salt and pepper.

Mix to a pureed deliciousness in food processor. 

Add to Alfredo sauce. Stir to combine. Stir in fresh parsley! Keep warm while preparing other dishes. 

Plate like so: 

Inhale so fast that you almost get the hiccups! It was yummy! The cauliflower thickens the sauce without disrupting the flavor. I made extra and I'm happy to have this again tomorrow!

After dinner was done, dishes put away and my apple cider brewing I called my little brother to talk to him about my iPhoto issues. Of course once I had him on the phone everything worked just fine! Typical! I'm happy all is well! I was also able to catch up with him and talk about Christmas stuff. He's such a cool dude! Love this kid!

His first day as a freshmen (Fall 2012) and his bike had been stolen so I took him to get a new one... and we got ice cream!

I am funny

My day started out way too early! Gus and Otis decided to double team me and 'bull' (they are both bulldogs!) doze me to the edge of the bed. Gus would NOT let me turn all night long. I think they were attempting to get under the covers but instead we all had a rough night. I also think they understand me when I tell them that there family is coming back. 

 

Otis passed out once I bundled him up. 

Gus was debating about falling back asleep.... he eventually did.

 

Work was work. My co-hort, Vicky, announced to everyone that she had submitted an application for a different position on our campus. She had talked to me about this prior and I'm happy that she has the opportunity to advance. I will no doubt miss her but at the same time I know she will thrive in the new position. 

(Vicky and I at work on Halloween 2011. Vicky's is the Wicked Witch of the West and I'm the Good Witch of the East)

I also met with a financial planner from Fidelity at work today. A Fidelity representative comes out at least one a year and talks to us one on one about retirement. I had officially set up my retirement stuff two years ago and thought nothing of it, except that now I was OFFICIALLY a grown up! At the time two years ago I felt confident with my decisions about my future but after today's meeting I feel like I have a black cloud hovering over me. The financial planner basically said that because off the crappy stock market and even crappier economy people born after August 1987 (me) would NOT be able to rely on social security!!!!! It's not 100% but pretty darn close to it! So, now I basically have to work myself to death so I can retire with jack shit! I'm honestly crushed that I'm paying for other people's retirement! He continued to lecture me on the benefits of going back to school. I can appreciate his point of view but I checked him so fast.... I was quick to inform him that getting a school loan is not an easy process and not everyone has support. I'm just feeling like I'm no longer working towards a goal. Just crushed about this for now :( 

At lunch time I ran to Roth's where I picked coffee and lunch for Brittany and I. Brittany stayed home sick so I was the delivery lady. We were able to chow down, sip yummy coffee and watch Bones. I was also able to see Toby... I haven't seen him in quite some time due to my busy house sitting schedule and I missed him terribly. Toby could have cared less about all of the pets I was giving him... he just wanted my lunch!

I was able to leave work a few minutes early (1st time in a LONG time) so I could shut down at Gus and Otis' house. I made it to Gussy Goo and Ottie Boddie's house where I washed the bedding, tidied up and packed my stuff. The dogs were cute the entire time but seemed a bit confused as to the whole situation. This was my first time with them and I hope that they liked me. I know I liked the little sweeties! 

After everything was all settled at G. and O.'s house I headed home. My sister, Heather, had a work meeting in town so she came over and we visited while I put all of my stuff away. It was fun to talk to her because I can tell her like it is and she gets where I'm coming from and she has the same reactions I do. When I talk to her she just understands me. We went to dairy queen for some munchies and the following conversations happened:

Heather: "Oh yum Blizzards! What flavor do you like?"
Me: "French Silk"
Heather: "What is french silk?"
Me: "French silk, duh"
Heather (slightly pissed): "What IS french silk?"
Me (confused as to why I have to explain this): "It's like a chocolately base with pie pieces"

Heather ordered me meal which of course included a drink....

Heather: "What do you want to drink?"
Me: "A blizzard"
Heather: "What do you want to drink?"
Me: "A blizzard"
Heather: "WHAT DO YOU WANT TO DRINK?"
Me: "I TOLD YOU A BLIZZARD"..... finally dawns on me....."ohhh, I don't know"
Heather: :You are getting lemonade"
Me: "Nice"

As we were waiting in line we both were cracking up at the whole process of our communication fiasco! 

Heather: "Whenever I'm around you, I'm cracking up!"
Me: "I am funny"
Heather: "No, really you make me laugh."
Me: "I told you, I'm fucking funny!"
Heather: "No... just blonde!" 
In unison we began laughing!

We head back to my house but stayed in the car chowing down on our blizzards exchanging funny stories. I'm so happy to have a sister who is protective, gets me, and is on the same page as me. It's a good feeling having someone in the world who understands you and won't try to change you. 

(Heather and I at Brandon's High School Graduation June 2011)

So, here I sit typing away and iPhoto is still being stupid so I still can't upload any NEW photos.... I'm sensing a call to my little brother tomorrow for tech support.... fair warning JoJo! 

Anything Could Happen

Ohhhh Monday....

As I was leaving Gus and Otis' house this morning I had to get Otis to go in the master bathroom. He gets to stay there while I'm not home. Before you feel bad for the dude know that it's a huge space with all of the creature comforts... well for a spoiled pooch anyway! Otis KNEW I was leaving so he played all of his tricks on me! 

Attempt #1-Play dumb... I was clearly talking to him but like any man he all of the sudden had selective hearing.

Attempt #2-Play dead... I scooped him up and placed him on he ground and he decided to have spontaneous paralysis in all four limbs! 

Attempt #3-Apply brakes... I tried nudging him along towards the bathroom but he put all four paws on e-brake! 

Attempt #4-Pity card... I finally scooped him and carried him into the bathroom. The entire time he was dead weight. I gently placed him on the blanket in the bathroom and guess what???

He could hear and walk.... IT'S A MIRACLE! Nice try Otis.... I patted him on the head, complimented him on his many techniques for attempting to avoid the inevitable and told him to have a good day. Silly Ottie Boddie! 

Work was work but at least I was able to leave on time. Enough about that.

When I got back to Ottie Boddie and Gussy Goo's house they were so excited to see me. They kept wanting pets and kisses. Hey, anything for 'my' babies for a few days. They are currently scattered around the living room trying to out snore each other.

This is them hanging out in living room with me. Gus is the brindle one and Otis is the white one. P.S. -the flash on my camera made their eyes look weird.

Tomorrow I go home so that means I have to shut down Otis and Gus' house. Shut down is a word I use to basically say that I pack up my stuff and tidy/clean up the human's home. So, for tonight I made a 'to do' list. I'm a huge fan of lists! I better get going and get some of the items crossed off of my list!

Oh and I decided to have music Monday... I know it's random but roll with it.... enjoy: Anything Could Happen.

G. and O.

So.... it's been awhile....

I started house sitting on Thursday for some new animals. Gus and Otis or as I call them Gussy Goo and Ottie Boddie. When I first arrived at their house Gus bolted outside. I immediately yelled for him to come back/stop/bolted after him. Well when I was yelling for Gus to come back/stop/running after him Otis got spooked by the whole process and wasn't too thrilled that I was there but at least he stayed inside. Once I had everyone inside Otis was my snuggle bug and Gus followed me around everywhere. The first night was a little tricky because the dogs sleep in the bed, which wasn't the issue..... the snoring was! Ha! I never thought I could out snore someone... well something! I got up the first night to use the ladie's room and this is what I found when I went back to bed....

 

AND

This past weekend I relaxed and hung out with Otis and Gus. Fall has begun and has brought rain, wind, and more rain. I needed a weekend of relaxing and I'm glad that I was able to spend it with Gussy Goo and Ottie Boddie despite all of the snorting, snoring, farts and burps!

Guess what day it is?

Today was a good day.... it didn't start out that way though.

My stomach and I decided to have a boxing match that caused me to be late for work. My stomach finally calmed down around 9 ish. I'm still trying to figure out what the issue was. I know it wasn't the previous night's diner.... no name soup ... because Karina didn't get sick. Hmm..... if only I had Dr. House to diagnosis me! HA!

Once my stomach and I became friends again the day was actually quite nice. I was able to get everything done and still have time to finish up some other projects which made me oh so very happy! I needed a good work day..... and someone posted a clip of this above the copier machine which I'M SURE made all of the difference. Just in case you don't know what I'm referring to: Geico Camel. I can watch that video over and over and still laugh EVERY time!

I start house sitting again tomorrow. This time at a new house with new animals to love! With that in mind I needed to get my place in order. So, the entire evening I cleaned, scrubbed, mopped, dusted and made a never ending to do list. I don't know if you know this but I'm in love with Clorox! It's works on everything in my place! You should try it out! BEST CLEANER EVER!

I have to wake up at the crack of dawn tomorrow in order to get some things on my to do list done and make it to Woodburn super early for my car's oil change/new sparks plugs. Off to dream land I go!

How was your hump day?

No name soup

We had a staff meeting today. Yours truly, me, made everyone cake in a mug. By make I mean nuked 'em in the microwave. Basically it's one bag of angel food cake mix and one bag of chocolate cake mix mixed together. We'll call that concoction cake mix. So, you take your mug and dump in 3 tablespoons cake mix and 2 tablespoons water. Mix and nuke in the microwave for 1 minute. I ended up making 14 of these babies and topping them with ice cream and caramel and/or chocolate sauce. My boss provided the ingredients, I nuked 'em and together we all inhaled them! It was a team effort!

After work I stopped by my house to chop up a bunch of veggies for soup. I went to Karina's (one of my co-workers/friend/she gave me peaches=HAPPY me) house for dinner. She made homemade bread which was AMAZING and I made soup. We decided to open a restaurant and by we I mean I decided that we should! 

I have made this sort of soup four times already in the past two weeks. I'm just saying... my soups are THE BEST! Maybe I have a big head....nah... my soups are seriously just that good! I'm going to share the recipe with you. It's not really a recipe because I just dump stuff in the pot and then mix it all together. Here's the basics of it anyway:

In a large pot pour some extra virgin (must have been REALLY well behaved! HA!) olive oil and crank up the heat. Add 1 whole chopped yellow onion, 3 large carrots sticks that have been roughly chopped, 5 celery stalks chopped, 4 minced garlic cloves, salt and pepper. Heat this up until the onions are golden and the other veggies are soft. Approx 15 minutes. Don't worry about making any of the pieces the right size because this whole thing is going to be blended. However, the smaller the pieces the faster the cooking time!

Then add eight cups chicken broth. I used the bouillon cubes this time because it's what I had on hand. Dump in 6 red potatoes that have been chopped. (Peeling potatoes is against MY religion. I don't like wasting my time on them! I always use red potatoes but if you want to waste your life away then go ahead and peel them) Plop a lid on this and crank up the heat. Let it boil until everything is soft. Approx 25 minutes. 

Once everything is soft and the house smells yummy taste the liquid to see if anything needs more water/seasoning/whatever. At this point you can go straight to the food processor OR you can go up a notch.

For the kicking it up a notch: I added half of a block of cream cheese (approx 4 ounces), 1/3 stick butter, 1/4 cup flour, and a few splashes of heavy cream. I'm pretty sure these ingredients make my soup THE BEST!

It doesn't matter if the above yumminess doesn't quite mix in well with the soup because you are now going to pour this hot liquid deliciousness into a food processor and very carefully combine until smooth. You may have to do this in several stages. I ended up adding some corn starch to help thicken this up. More potatoes or flour would have also done the trick. 

Once the soup is all blended enjoy with a piece of Karina's homemade bread and call it a day. 

*the white shiny blob on the lower left of my soup is the flash from my camera*

I don't know what to call this soup..... 
blended potato soup?
creamy vegtable soup?
fall soup?
suggestions?

Oh and play with this cutie!

3 Strikes

Remember how I was saying to cross your fingers so Monday wouldn't suck? Well apparently neither of us did!!! 

Strike 1: My day started off at 1:19 am... yep ladies and gentlemen 1 freaking 19 in the morning! I live in an older home that was converted into apartments. My landlord is trying to sell it our from under us... anyway... someone, I suspect the drunk lady in Apt. B, of either being drunk or more than her normal level of drunk. Anywhoo...someone was slamming doors and smashing stuff. It only lasted a few minutes. I was somewhat prepared to do do some stern talking to but it ended and I went back to sleep. After waking up at a proper hour and getting ready I headed to my car. The drunk lady in Apt. B was smoking a cigarette on the font steps. As I passed her she said in the most slurred words possible, "thaaa ssshhherriess r ull ouuvver thaaa thsstteppss agggguun." I know I'm not supposed to judge others but I don't understand why people purposely impair themselves. I guess I would have more compassion if I hadn't been woken up at 1 freaking 19 in the morning!

Strike 2: Work WAS going well until a few things came up. Due to HIPPA, my gag order for life, I can't say what all happened but I will tell you that I feel so under appreciated and passed over. We had in-service a few weeks ago on ethics and in the start of the meeting someone read a story to set the tone. The part that stuck the most was "Willing to put up with less than the best." I can't get this out of my head! Rolls eyes.... I will forever hate Mondays!

Strike 3: My feelings towards my singleness (is that a real word?) come in go in waves of feeling ok about it to feeling totally worthless. Well, folks today was a worthless day in the kingdom of singles. Sometimes being single absolutely sucks! Would like to hear why? No? Well tough.... here is goes...

1) I have a flashlight that needs new batteries and for the life of me I can't get the damn batteries out! Several attempts by co-workers got one of the stupid things out but alas no luck. :(
2) There was a HUGE spider on the compost lid and it almost TOUCHED me! I may never compost again because of this!
3) After a long day it would be nice to come home and feel appreciated, loved and cared for. 

So, strike 3 goes to the universe for screwing up my (non existent) love life and reminding once again that I can only count on myself. 

Go to hell Monday.

A cup of tea, Cage the Elephant, and a puzzle for me will hopefully pacify me.

Orange Is The New Black

I find that the weekends are my opportunity to do one of two things:

A) Go outside and do something-meaning go for a long walk, hike, letterbox, or go for an adventure-I haven't done this in a LONG while

or

B) Sleep pretty much the entire weekend and watch netflix.

So, can you guess which one I did?

Big surprise here! B!

I find that lately with work and house sitting I need the ENTIRE weekend to reset myself and unwind. By the time I'm back to me it's Monday! Boo!

However this weekend wasn't a total bust. I talked to my friend Nicole for 3.5 hours. We were able to catch up one another on everything! I miss having her close by. 

My friend Brittany and her hubby, Kevin, brought me an elephant ear from Oktoberfest. It was delicious! If you have never had an elephant ear you are missing out! Elephant ears are not actually elephant's ears. That would be gross and wrong.... eww! The elephant ears I'm talking about are a piece of dough that is fried and then doused in cinnamon and sugar. It's not good for you but man oh man does it taste yummy! 

Seriously though this entire weekend involved me sleeping and watching Netflix. I watched the entire season of Orange Is The New Black. I do have to say that it was awesome! I realize that a lot of people wouldn't watch it but I liked the drama and all of the back stories. If you think you are up for it I recommend it. If you have seen the show who is your favorite character? Why? I like Crazy Eyes and CO Bennett. Now, I'm wanting to know when the next season is coming out!

The one productive thing I did this weekend was bake cookies. I used one of my favorite blog's, The Pioneer Woman, recipe for chocolate cookies. These are not just regular chocolate cookies.... these are AMAZINGNESS!!! Here ya go: chocolate cookie recipe. I opted not to post a photo because that would be mean to tease you. 

I was looking at my blog's stats and I don't who all of the readers are out there but THANK YOU, THANK YOU, THANK YOU for reading my blog! On Saturday morning I had 135 views and tonight I had 316 views! So, many views in such a short time! Like I said I don't know who you are but THANK YOU! This blog to me is a place where I can vent, ramble, laugh and share the occasional recipe ;) .

One more awesome thing: Pandora has a Disney section!?!? I know, I know, I know.... I'm 25. But seriously where has this been all my life!?!?! I'm currently listening to Mulan's A Girl Worth Fighting For.... A.W.E.S.O.M.E. 

Have a happy Monday-fingers crossed it won't totally suck. 

Home Sweet Home

What a productive day! I woke up super early. I had to do so because I needed to 'shut down' Buddy's house. Shutting down means: cleaning sheets, vacuuming, cleaning bathrooms... basically making sure everything is clean so when the owners come home everything is purty! I also was so over hours at work that I could only work two hours so I wanted to maximize my day and get everything done. 

While I was writing a note to Buddy's humans telling them how awesome he was a man knocked on the window! I jumped out of my skin! Little back story.... the house has a 1/4 mile drive way in the middle of the country surrounded by cows and fields, the house has sensors that alert you when someone is at driveway, the gazebo etc, and Buddy seemed just as shocked as me! I went to the door and the man reached to open it. I quickly switched the lock not knowing what the hell he was doing! At that point he realized that he had scared me. He told me he was doing maintenance on the pool and just wanted me to know that he would be roaming around. Buddy remained growly, puffed up and kept barking loudly. I told him ok. I watched him walk down the drive way and then I moved around inside the house to see where he was going. The reason I didn't hear any of the sensors was that he had parked his truck in a field next to the fence line of the property. LIGHT-BULB! After realizing that somehow while walking up he missed the main sensors so thus he was legit. I called the owners just to be 200% sure. In fact he was. So, I left my note, smooched Buddy and was on my way.

I stopped at Starbucks on my way home and let me tell ya the Batista was mighty fine! He was seriously flirting probably wanting tips but it was fun none the less to flirt right back with his handsomeness!

Once I got home I unpacked my car, put everything away, sorted through my giant mail pile, paid bills and checked my e-mail. Surprisingly that whole process took me a few hours!

I headed to Oktoberfest early so I could mosey about with my friend, Linda. We scoped out our options and enjoyed a yummy lunch of potato pancakes, corn dogs and ice cream cones! Every year I get soap from the lavender booth. IT'S THE BEST!

Two bars of the citrus!

Two bars of the mint!

Two bars of the lavender!

And of course lemon lavender cookies!

The other thing I ALWAYS get is the Benedictine sister's coffee cake. It keeps me full all weekend for breakfast! 

After seeing all of the booths and food we headed back and then I went to work for a few hours. Since my house was bare I stopped at the store to re-stock on the basics.... you know like PEACHES! It's so good to be home! What are you doing this weekend? Are you going to Oktoberfest?