it's been crazy busy up in here

so, i know i haven't updated in a while and it's only because i've been kinda busy, uh, having a life... i promise to get better at it with more regular posts.

where we left off: just kidding, i don't know where we left off. but i do know in the last couple of weeks, i've made three necklaces, been drunk twice, passed out at a friends once, and had two visits from Austin. one from Addie. one from Seth.

i also made it down to the Lone Star Rally. i went down there after work, because i was supposed to meet Lil Bit (who almost killed my dog! another story for another time) and her guy. of course, she wasn't there at designated time so i ended up hanging out with Durty. Durty is SBW's new boyfriend. he was a good stand-in, tho. we hung out, walked around, had a few beers. i have a few pictures and a lot of video from that nite. none that i've downloaded to Lappy yet because i've just recently (last nite) moved stuff over to my external to make room for it. i'll try to get that done this week. get pictures and video up, that is. of the rally. we saw a guy riding his motorcycle inside the "wall of death". that was pretty cool!

in the time i hung out with Durty, i got to know him a little better. i think he's a pretty genuine guy. young and in love. it's so sweet to see his eyes light up when he talks about her. she finally got a guy that appreciates her for who she is. i wonder... do HM's eyes light up when he talks about me??? duh! of course they do! j/k! no really, do they?

the day after that, Addie came down with her friends David and Javier. they did the museum thing while i slept off a light hangover. when they got to the house, i was already all better. =)

i gave HM the nite off to go play with his BFF down at the rally and the rest of us went to Claudio's for dinner. yum! i was Addie's date. she wouldn't even hold my hand, tho. =( After dinner, we went down to the boardwalk to ride The Bullet! good god, man, it was fast!! super fast! like, almost peed my pants fast! but really, i think i had more fun jacking with the kids in line. kids are so easy. i think we embarrassed most of them, which is nice. cuz that's really all that matters. i had some kid "dare" me to spit on the people below us. i acted like a was hawking up a lugi and he freaked... boy: i was just kidding! of course, then, he had to tell all his buddies what i was about to do and immediately, i was solid with them. i was, like, the coolest person in line! of course, pack of raccoon-eye girls behind us, were not so thrilled. who is teaching these girls the basics of eye make-up is what i wanna know??

it was a super fun nite! we laughed all nite! and my honey even came home early. =) we won't go into why (cough*B.A. blew chunks*cough).

sunday we started off towards the island at 8AM. yes, 8AM! because, guess who wanted a Nopalito breakfast...??? uh, it wasn't me. but she was my guest and had been deprived for so long and had got my dinner the nite before and... okay, this page just isn't long enough. it was like the girl was in heaven at the first bite. sweet momma maker of burritos, Addie was in heaven!

sunday afternoon, was the best. we went to see Avenue Q! it was so much fun!! it was such a cool show!! lemme tell ya, tho... one is never really quite ready for muppet sex. that's all i'm sayin'. if you ever have the chance, i highly recommend it. the show. not the muppet sex. well, unless you're in to that sort of thing...

after i said good-bye to Addie and my two new friends (who are allowed to visit even without Addie) i made my way over to El Patio to meet up with some friends who came in from Georgia. i got see baby Alexis in person! she is the cutest thing! we had some dinner and caught up on everything; life, love, and the pursuit of happiness. i think we're blessed in all areas. =)

that's enough for one post. i'm gonna have to do this past weekend's update later this week. i gotta get back to work. until next time, i'm sweet t and you're not.

p.s. to Addie: tell David i'm still waiting on my SHREK!

weekend update/recap

friday - busy busy busy. first, i had to make an appearance at our new director's happy hour. didn't stay long because i had a TON of shopping to do to get ready for COOKIE DAY!!

i flaked out on Woz, not really thinking about all i had to do. we've really been wanting to see Across The Universe. yes, it's a musical. yes, it's probably cheezy as all get out. but it's The Beatles' music. and what's not to love about The Beatles' music?? i mean, really? we'll see it one day.

anyways, after Hobby Lobby and Wal-Mart.... yes, in an effort to save money, i went to Wal-Mart. and anyone who knows me, knows i LOATHE Wal-Mart! blech! what made it worse was that Lil Bit was on her way to my place and I GOT LOST GOING TO WAL-MART!! don't ask. i ended up behind it and having to trail back up.

needless to say, i got home at 9:30 and pretty much passed out after that.

saturday - "bake bake bake, all day long. bake bake bake while i sing this song."
Mamalane was sick. she got food poisoning so she couldn't make it out. =( thank goodness Woz came over. i'm such a bad influence... she called in sick so she could come hang out with me. i lurve her. she's my motivator, seriously. i get so much more done when she's around.

oh, and a surprise guest showed up. BA came over to help us bake cookies, too! he's such a girl. j/k! it was a good thing he came over, tho. Woz pretty much fizzled on the cookies and was ready to move on to cupcakes. and i thot I had A.D.D.

after HM grilled fajitas for dinner, i ate and was passed out by 10:00.

sunday - the big day! kids were all there by 2:00. after chocolate pudding snacks with white chocolate webs on top, they got to decorating! there were A LOT of cookies and cupcakes to decorate and a lot of stuff to decorate with. they didn't take home as many cookies this year as they did last year. i think because they spent more time decorating them this time around. there was so much more to do with them. i'm such a good aunt. =)

there were gummi lifesavers for eyes, mini kisses for noses, twizzlers for spider legs, cones for witch hats, icing for whatever you wanted it to be. you name it, i had it! i even made special ice for their drinks. i froze gummi worms and red twizzlers sticking out of the ice cube trays and served it in their cups. yum!

we had a lot of fun this year. i think at Christmas, tho, we might limit the quantity of cookies. there were a bunch left over. i sent some home with BA for his nieces and i'm bringing some to work tomorrow. i think 1 doz per kid should do it. plus whatever i make. also, for Christmas, it might be fun to do a white elephant thing for the kids, too. a little five-dollar gift would be cool for them to exchange.

until next time, i'm sweet t and you're not. check out the slideshow for all the cookie fun.

so many cookies, so little time

weekend update/recap

this weekend we celebrated our FIRST (of many more to come) anniversary. it started with both of us taking the day off Friday to relax with each other. little did we know, Mamalane had a little surprise for us. it was an early Christmas present. we now have furniture! living room furniture! REAL living room furniture! not like Ikea college dorm furniture or plaid torn up furniture, but real LEATHER furniture! it's frikkin' AWESOME!! it should be delivered by Thanksgiving. so if you're gonna visit, please do so before then, so you don't ruin my perfect furniture. =) Mamalane's the greatest, isn't she?

so friday, we ended up going to Macy's and checking it out. we ended up with the Carlotta.

saturday - i was up early enough so that we could have "breakfast" at nop's (you ready for nop's again, Addie?) and then headed out to the shack newly built beach cabin. it is going to be so cool when it's done! we lounged out there for the day and had a really relaxing stay. it's not completely finished yet, but it's getting there. they say, by Thanksgiving it should all be done.

we have so many ideas for the cabin. ideas for the lower deck that will be put on (eventually) and ideas for the posts on the deck. HM wants to build small drink tables around them. you know, a place to hold your bags while getting keys out and what-not.

i have barstools that aren't being used that i'm going to sand down and re-paint to match the interior colors. i think we're also going to donate my queen bed to the cause, as well. we really don't need a queen in the kids' room. we're thinking of getting a day bed or trundle in there for the kids. something that isn't so obstructive and will make the room big enough for Duanita's crib one day. i'm so excited about the new cabin! it's really hard not to call it a shack anymore.

saturday nite - after the hour and a half long wait for the ferry, we went to paco's for our anniversary dinner. i just finished off the chocolate eruption last nite. YUM!

sunday - sunday morning, we attended a memorial service for a friend and co-worker of HM's. her life had a tragic ending. it was great to see how many peoples' lives she touched. everybody had stories and they all involved her laugh. her hearty laugh that they were all going to miss hearing. i felt for everyone there. she was a really great person with a good heart. she will definitely be missed by me.

sunday afternoon, we got to see ParkerBoy. he is SO cute! we went to visit with Mamalane and Papatom for a bit and were able to visit for a while. he's a cowboy now. i think he thinks he's John Wayne reincarnated. he has cowboy guns and now a log to shoot "cans" off of. that thing is so cool! Mamalane said he slept with his new gun sunday nite. too cute.

the rest of the evening was spent doing catch up and making chili. this week i'll be working on spider web necklaces. i sold 4 of them to co-workers and now i have to complete them. i have to have three done by Friday and the other one on Monday. i've got them all set up and ready to assemble. it's cutting out the spider that takes the longest. i looked for spider "charms" a couple of weeks ago because i thot that might be easier. no dice. no spider charms. anywhere! so if you happen so see any, let me know where, please and thank you.



until next time, i'm sweet t and you're not.

where it all began

happy anniversary

weekend update/recap

hey dad! hope you're feeling alright. i know you just got out of the hospital AGAIN, so i'm not calling you until tonite. i'm trying to give you some recover time. i'm sure the last thing on your mind is, "hey, i wonder what she's writing about today? let's take a look".

well, it started off bad. friday, i was hurtin'. it actually started thursday. i went to meet some team members out for dinner. we had a friend in from Atlanta. i didn't want to go. i was mucho tiredo. i went. but i didn't wanna. maybe i was just love sick. HM had just left for Indy and i was all alone =(

friday - i left work early. vicodin and soma are not a good combination, in case you were wondering. when i got home, i turned off all the lights, made it cold, and covered up. good nap. i still wasn't all the way right when i got up, but i had to be. Woz was coming over and were crafting. we were working on a spider web necklace. i think it's gonna look really cool. we'll see. i might try and finish it tonite since there's nothing on tv.

saturday - i was still tired (no, i'm not pregnant), but i had to get up and get ready for Shaggy's scavenger hunt. i had to clean up the office for our t-shirt making for later, get prizes for the winning team (that was us, by the way), and clean up the house.

it started out with a list: photo, video, get stuff. three teams of two; me & Shaggy, S1 & Princess, and S2 & Honey Bunny. you had an hour and a half to complete as many tasks as you could. S1 and S2 took off and left me and Shaggy (i had to wait for him to get his gloves so he could climb a tree-that was on the list). they took off one way and we went the complete opposite. 10 points for each task completed. 1 point taken off for each minute you were late to the finishing point. we lost 2 points (i was being generous cuz we were actually in the parking lot on time) and ended with 168... THE WINNERS! side note: i had to be reminded, by a six year old, that "it doesn't matter if you win or lose cuz it's just a game.. it's just a game". he sounded so grown up saying that.

after dinner, we came back to the house to download all the pics. Shaggy decided he only wanted to stay if the girls stayed and to be honest, i just couldn't take all three of them that nite. any other nite, maybe yes, but not that one. i was wiped! so they all went home and i crashed early. we didn't get to make the t-shirts. =\

sunday - i was lazy. lazy all day. i washed some clothes and laid on the sofa all day. i think i only got dressed cuz HM was coming home. i missed him.

until next time, i'm sweet and you're not.

do we even look alike?

weekend update/recap

• good times. we met some folks out for happy hour. got to catch up.
• ryan's truck got smashed
• sister's wedding
• halloween decorations up
• cs3 install
• pool table delivery

conversations

islebehere: did you see some of the comments?

islebehere: some people really need to get a life

aaonvimeo: oh yeah. wow

islebehere: maybe we should offer them FREE vimeo accts so they'd have something to do!

aaonvimeo: some people really hate people they've never met and don't know anything about

aaonvimeo: I think they already have accts at youtube

islebehere: LOL!

~discussing the recent GAWKER obsession with Jakulia

dogfight

so this is how it all went down. might i add... it seems to happen more when BA's around. and for that matter, it only rains when BA comes over, too. ;o)

the setting is a rainy saturday-early evening. all is well. BA and i are hangin' out, making jewelry (yeah he was), playing with the Dremel, waiting on his brother and family (sister in law and sister in law's sister).

the boys (Ringo & Rosco) are fine. they're being lazy, putting around the house.

the family arrives.

Ringo & Rosco: PEOPLE ARE HERE!! look at me! look at me! pick me! pet me!

Rosco to Ringo: get back! i was here first.

Ringo: you get back. i'm a brat. i can do whatever i want.

Rosco: i'm bigger

Ringo: i'm cuter

Rosco: oh yeah?

Ringo: pa-shuh...yeah!

they're climbing all over these people. at this point, we put them outside. once outside it continues:

Rosco: oh great! now, look what you did

Ringo: whatever, you started it

Rosco: oh no you dih-int!

Ringo: oh yes i dih-id!

Rosco: bring it!

Ringo: oh! it's been brought-ed!
____________________

$650 later, we leave the emergency vet clinic with...
Ringo's got little pet syndrome (always has something to prove), where as Rosco has aggression issues (needs anger management). they've always fought, but it's really gotten worse since Henry-dog passed. they're both fighting to be the alpha-male.

Rosco is in surgery today. one, for a tumor removal found at his last checkup. second, for the neutering. thirdly, to check on his eye. apparently, that's the only place Ringo can reach, to get his hits in. we'll take Franken-Dog in for his neutering, after he recovers.

i REALLY hope the neutering helps and it's not too late. they honestly do get along. i just think they're both suffering right now and acting out. HM mentioned "permanent separation", but how do you do that? how do you just "get rid" of your dog after so many years with him? i can't do that and i won't make him do it. that's like having two kids that fight all the time. what are you gonna do... get rid of one of your kids??? ship one off to boarding school? (hmm, keep that note for later).

soooo, wish us luck. cuz, we're definitely gonna need it!

discussing a co-workers reports

dork: he probably thinks i'm gonna mess it up

super cool co-worker (me): uh... i think he's got a valid point

dork: what..?? i'd be careful

sccw: and??? you can be careful all you want and still screw it up.

dork: oh, do you want to do it?

sccw: aw hell no... i'd screw it up

sccw: but i'd be careful while doing so! =)

dearest blog,

i know i've been neglecting you for a while now. i'm sorry. it's just that, i've come down with something. something called adult onset A.D.D. for real! i have it! okay, not really...

i've got so many other projects i'm working on right now. i'm making jewelry. i've made a couple of album cover journals. i want to experiment with melting vinyl. i also want to experiment with resin. i've been pretty consumed with all that i needed (supplies and what not), to follow through on these projects. i think i'm done for a while, tho. i've got a pretty good start on what i need.

hopefully, you'll be seeing some of these things soon as i'm sure i'll be posting them. i've done a couple of necklaces so far that, i gotta say, "not too shabby". i even got kudo's from mom AND grandma-queen of all that is beads. for my grandma to give me props on a beaded necklace i made, that's pretty awesome! let's just say, that woman does not lie to save your feelings. of course, it was made out of sterling silver wire and had a sterling silver clasp. i'm not sure if that had anything to do with it, but i'm sure it didn't hurt.

i also just opened an etsy account. it's online shopping for crafty things. i only opened an account because that's the only way you can communicate with other etsy members and i had a question about resin, so i had to join. anyhoo, that's where i'm thinking of putting my stuff when i get a "collection" of things to sell. as you can see, now, i have nothing. but you will be the first to know, when i do.

if you're wondering, "what makes her think she can sell crap she makes?" no worries, i wonder that myself. if i fail, so be it. at least i tried. and if i succeed, that's just money in my pocket. i will get a pool one day!

until then, i'm sweet t and you're not.

p.s. i made a video. check it out over there on the right.

p.s.s. think of a name for my "shop". winner gets a free necklace!

just to tide you over

things to learn

-three point turns

-parallel parking for boats

-pulling in sideways

awesome-ness defined!

this video is so incredibly awesome! i SO want to do this when the shack is back... maybe the grand opening?

Ping Island from Blake Whitman on Vimeo.

response

i'm not sure where leroy brown is, but if he's the baddest dude in the whole damn town, then i would like to hire him to find these peopel who broke into my car and kick the living shit out of them for me. :-)"

~Loonachic, vimeo user, responding to my comment about this video

weekend update/recap

friday - date nite! yay! well, i guess Sweet Cheeks had a late nite on Thursday, so she didn't make it out, after all. all good. we got to have that "surprise" date nite, HM wanted to take me on. he's so sweet.

he took me to a little hole in the wall joint i've been wanting to try out. good stuff! afterwards, we rented some movies; Fracture and some 300 Spartans rip-off. Fracture was good. i didn't watch the other one, but HM fell asleep watching it, if that's any indication.... CRAP, i didn't take them back this morning!!

saturday - up early. AGAIN! who can sleep with that creaky-squeaky-creak of the mop bucket? i know he means well and i should be grateful, but come on... who cleans at 8AM??? he was up doing all kinds of stuff. washing and waxing cars (getting them ready to sell), sweeping and mopping floors, i don't even know what that man does before i get up, but i am SO not complaining about it. unless, of course, it's the creaky-squeaky-creak of the mop bucket waking me up!

i got up and did some running around. i ran to Target to get a couple of cards (one for party later and one for Woz) and to Office Depot to look for some stuff for new crap i hope to create as a gift for someone (not S1!). i was gone for an hour or so... when i got back, Big Red was gone. =\ i didn't even get to say good-bye. Big Red, sold. gone.

Mamalane and Papatom came in around 3-ish. poor HM was so worn out (from all the car washing and waxing) and it was way too hot to do anything or leave the a/c, that we watched Fracture again. we had enough time before our reservation.

dinner was so good. we went to a local place, a "piano" bar. i think it says "piano" bar on the building somewhere. no where did i see "synthesizer" bar! i totally thot i was going to hear the Beverly Hills Cop theme song at some point in the nite! truly not the piano bar i was expecting. but really great food.

saturday nite - after dinner, i made my way down to our neighbor's party. the 2 G's were celebrating 10 years together. so sweet. i only went down there to say hello, give them a card and be cordial for a few minutes. an hour or so later, HM's walking down the street, wondering if i'm still alive. i was. i am. it was just so cool finally getting to meet everyone and get all the scoop about all the neighbors that weren't there.

these people have been in the neighborhood since it was first built, so they know it ALL. one woman is a realtor, so we got scoop on new development and why we we're not allowed to use the neighboring public pool. she even told us about a body being found near our dock. sad. we have a DEA agent living four houses down and a pot-head that lives across the street from him (they weren't at the party). they were all very cool people. i really hope we get to know them all better.

sunday - up early. breakfast at Nop's (don't hate, Addie)! we had an early start because we wanted to go down to the shack. the shack that no longer looks like a shack. it's sad and exciting at the same time. it's so amazing! the deck is higher than the old roof! i think it's sitting on 12ft pilings..? four bedroom, two bath, and a shower/rinse area downstairs. i took pictures and some video so i'll try and get that up, sometime, this week.

we also looked at colors for it. i'm pretty sure Papatom has his heart set on a certain color, but i'm not sure. it's either lite grey, blue grey, mauve grey, grey blue, or gray. i could be wrong. in my opinion: if it looks drab, people are going to treat it "drab". we need bright, cheery, clean colors to invite bright, cheery (clean) renters. oh yeah, it's going in the rental pool. so, no more 4th of july blowouts. =(

after we got back to the island, i went into the Lounge, looking for cheap drinks from HotBrian. he wasn't working, but i knew the guy who was, so we stopped in. there was talk of volleyball on the beach... say no more. I'M IN! i so miss beach volleyball. we only played two games, but those two games seemed like a lot more! i had so much fun. HotBrian and Lounge said they'd call me for the next game. yay!
_________________________

in other news: my Daddy's doin' fine! he went home Friday and i talked to him yesterday. he's all "good in tha hood". he goes back to work this Friday and after he's recovered enough from the defribillator/pacemaker install, he goes back for stints. he works 12 hour shifts in three days (Fri-Mon), so they will do the stint operations on Monday mornings and he'll have the week to recover before returning to work on Friday. the man is crazy, i tell ya.

i'm just glad he's better. miss you Daddy!

until next time, i'm sweet t and you're not.

conversations on IM

manny: what's wrong with emelda

islebehere: SHE'S CRIPPLES

islebehere: SHE'S CRIP NOW. THE BLOODS GOT TO HER

manny: STUPID

islebehere: :P

~asking about a co-worker walking with a cane

all better

*virtual hug to my daddy*

yay! my daddy's all better. well, not all better... something happened with the defribillator and he has to get that fixed first. but he's getting out and he'll be back to work tomorrow nite... freak! i'd be milkin' that! he really sounds good, tho.

the st00pid hospital gave me the wrong room when i called earlier and had me talking to some old guy who sounded like he was taking his last breath! uh, needless to say... I FREAKED OUT and hung up. that couldn't be MY dad! it wasn't. whew!

byop pics

these are just some of the pics taken: 1. BA 2. snack bar 3. sbw and breck (yes, that's his real name) 4. red velvet 5. snackage 6. jaws 7. fish hats 8. pollie freezing her butt off 9. HM and sbw (i love this pic) 10. gator pool 11. eat me 12. projector set up 13. JAWS! 14. hildy 15. baby pool with no baby in it 16. tha screen!

weekend update/recap

first off, weekend was way too long! and people in my house get up way too early!! can a girl not sleep until the clock hits double digits, on a holiday weekend???

the BYOP party was great! there were some people who didn't bring pools, some people who didn't use their pools, and some people who just didn't show up when they said they would... (some people just don't get the concept of "babysitter"). some of our neighbors even showed up, which was very cool, sort of.

we've got the neighbors who live behind us - they have a pool and a really big dog and complain about our dogs barking. she was only, recently, nice to me when her kid had tossed a few tennis balls over the fence and they had to come ask for them, back. all pre-conceived notions about them being white trash lotto winners were basically confirmed. actually, not the lotto winning part.

our across the street neighbors - very nice people. older couple, married 10 years. pleasant, go with the flow people. she even came back for bloody mary brunch on Sunday and brought me a little towel thingy she crocheted(?) herself.
____________________

sunday - i got some not so good news from the Stepmonster. my daddy's in the hospital. his heart started "racing" while he was at work. the last time this happened was 2001. i've talked to him the past couple of days. he says everything is fine and they're just keeping him to check his levels. he says they only kept him an extra day because the lab was closed for the holiday. but seriously, even when he says he's fine, how can you not worry about heart problems when the man has already had two heart attacks, octuple bypass surgery, and random elevated heart beats???

we vegged out all day sunday and watched movies.

monday - yesterday, i played with some of my bead stuff. i had to, since my Photoshop sux0rz again! i almost made my first necklace... almost. it was too short. i have to add a few more beads. watched a couple of other movies.

the boys went fishing and caught nothing we could eat.

this week, HM is on vacation! he's going to be working on the mustang (YAY!) and have my dinner on the table every nite, when i get home (double YAY!).

until next time, i'm sweet t and you're not.

R.I.P. Henry-Dog

1995-2007

today is a tough one

i have an appointment with the vet today. we're taking Henry Dog in. he's 12 years old, arthritic, and has cataracts. he can't walk without limping and now he can't get up without help. in the last few days, he's stopped eating and groans at nite. this is the same dog who would eat his own food then everyone else's, just last month!

say a prayer for Henry, please. i'm hoping for some good news today.

conversations on IM

after checking a user's profile, when he IM'd for help on VHS to digital transfer...

islebehere: wait a minute... are you an intern at CV?

JMonaco212: ha

JMonaco212: no i work here

weekend update

so, we had a pre-party preparation weekend.

friday nite - Woz and i made test jello shots. gummi fish - way too big. no gummi fish in the jello shots for this weekend. cool idea, tho. we didn't do ANY of the closet stuff. we'll be hitting that Thursday.

saturday - more cleaning. BA ran the carpet cleaner upstairs while i continued to clear out clutter in the kitchen. then, saturday nite there was a lot of running around outside to see what needed to be done with the screen.

sunday - mamalane and papatom dropped by for a visit, after coming back from The Shack... ahem, excuse me.. The Coltharp Family Beach Retreat. it's coming along... i can't wait 'til it's finished!

we also filled our pool for the weekend. YAY!

in other news, seeing as we are screening JAWS in our backyard, we should probably go and GET IT! yeah, neither one of us had it. doh! so, i went and got that yesterday. along with some stuff i needed for party favors. yes, we're five! we need party favors! plus, they're super cheap to make.

oh, also... i've ventured into jewelry making. so, guess what you're getting for Christmas??? =D

until next time, i'm sweet t and you're not.

conversations

Addie: so did you get the closet done this weekend?

me: no

A: what'd you do?

me: jello shots

A: jello shots?

me: yeah

A: any spewing?

me: nah, Johnny wasn't there

mission: organization

so... my goal was to clean out Johnny's Room so that there would only be kitchen-type stuff in there. since it's closest to the kitchen, it made sense. until we get the hutch built, that is. everything that was non-kitchen went upstairs to the "Mother-In-Law" room. that's the room that was built behind the movie wall. it's all upstairs now, but not yet in the room.

Woz came over again, last nite, so we tackled more office. everything was cleared off the kitchen table and side stoop and put in the office\craft room. we built a desk to put the pc on and everything had a place. well, pretty much everything. i have to find boxes to put all my pictures in. tonite, we tackle the office closet! which is really more of HM's stuff. which is all going into yet another closet or the MIL room if he can't find a place for it.

i am super excited about getting it all done. no more clutter downstairs. no more boxes in the office. no more crap on the kitchen stoop. i feel like a big load has been lifted... aaahhhhhh. all thanks to Woz!

oh, and to drive the point home about decluttering and all, this is how OCD i got:

i took a picture of everything we put Johnny's room. this contact sheet is going in a recipe binder, in the kitchen, and also going on the inside of the door of Johnny's room. this is so we don't have to go digging for something that isn't there. i know... super gay, but i know it will come in handy some day!

new feature on vimeo

I put videos I create on Vimeo. You can see my profile.

what i've been doing the last week or so

so, i've been keeping pretty busy. i got really excited about a new project and now it is completely consuming all my time. in the last week, i've been to Hobby Lobby and/or Michael's no less that five times each. i even made S1 go with me, once, but that was for something else altogether that i can't even remember now. sidetrack much? (update: it was for coin purses)

i saw Hairspray, The Movie. very cute. i think Amanda Bynes is just too cute in anything. and Christopher Walken... how can you go wrong with anything Christopher Walken-related?? cute songs, cute kids, and i loved that Michelle Pfeiffer played her character so well.

i made flyers and fake money for a co-worker's daughter and her venture into school politics. she's running for Treasurer. they came out alright. her mom is really diggin' em.

also, Woz came over and made us finally do something with our office. SUPER EXCITED! she is such a lifesaver. really! i can now move all my craft stuff upstairs, set up the printer upstairs, and we're putting a desk together for the extra pc i have. this is the pc for guests so they don't MESS UP MY LAPTOP AGAIN, ROB! ;-) a table is going in there for when me and the kids work on projects. OH, and the best part... get this!... we think there may be extra space behind the closet! say, if we punched a hole in the wall, there would be a whole other room! okay, not that big, but at least five more feet, maybe...? i think we're going to try and tackle that, after the Labor Day holiday.

so that's it. tonite, i'm going to Grandma's to get some of her cast-off's for another project. and Thursday, Woz is coming back over to finalize the office. i think we're gonna tackle what got shoved into the closet. something about her really gets me motivated to do stuff. i don't know what it is. whatever it is, tho, it's working and it's getting things done!

until next time, i'm sweet t and you're not.

conversations

HM: when are you gonna update your "blob"? your fans miss you.

me: oh, all one of them?

HM: and meeee. that makes two!

best movie ending EVER

crawling up the ropes, struggling to their feet, everyone yelling "Get Up!" you'd think you were actually there, cuz you're yelling it, too. it doesn't even matter that Adrian had boogs running out of her nose. it just adds to the drama. =)

realizations of my day

- XM is really no different from listening to the radio. it's the same stuff played over and over again, only now you have 300 different stations to choose from. more variety, i guess, but when you're like me and only want to hear "good" music from select genres, it gets pretty monotonous

- music from John Hughes' films sound better in smaller clips. you really don't wanna hear the whole song

- S1 watches WAY too much reality tv

- i like the Lucy (channel 54) station best, on XM

- if Frisky and i actually dress for Halloween, like we said we would, we're gonna need this song playing all nite



- we are complete 'tards if we actually do dress

vimeo of the week

how awesome is this?



What is Vimeo - by everyone. from eric cwiertny and Vimeo.

thinking of def leppard

so here are just a couple of the pictures chosen for the circular/mailer. we had fun and laughed alot while we were doing it, but since it was outside there was alot of shadow i had to photoshop out. also, in the front picture, i had to cut her finger off cuz HM said it looked like she was flipping everyone off.

i just got an IM from him saying he's working on the mock-up right now. he says, "THE AD LOOKS COOL W/JESICA'S PIC". awesome. oh, his aunt also gave me a thank you card and some shea butter lotion stuff for helping out with a couple of their graphics on another thing.

i like helping him out. it gives me an excuse to be in photoshop without him griping about me being on Lappy. =)

in other news

today i do a "photo shoot" for the store's christmas mailer. i use this term loosely as i'm not exactly sure how it's gonna turn out. HM said he needed a cute girl with tangled christmas lights. i made a call to HennaJes (formerly known as Jessica Rabbit) and i'm going to shoot it today. HJ is always up for something kooky. she's even trying to get some christmas outfit to wear for it. we might even get HotBrian over to shoot something on a ladder. we'll see. i love my friends. they don't question... they just do. anything for Sweet T. ;o)

i'll let you know how it comes out.

weekend update/recap

so i went to see "once upon a mattress" and guess what...? there WAS reason to have a PG-rated version! they just made it fun for the audience, with their dancing is all. lots of bumping and thrusting and strategic bend over pausing. i'm just sayin'.

it was a good show. all except for the 2-year old that would not shut up two rows in front of us! good god, man! who brings a 2-year old to a theater? and you know, no matter how many times you point at the damn stage, the kid still ain't lookin' at it!! take her outside. why ya gotta ruin it for everyone else. oh, and the grandmother (or whatever) was txt'ing on her phone the whole time. arrgghh!!! uh... manners? no.

i missed dinner with granna and the in-laws and PB. =( i think i got a little heat exhaustion (diagnosed by Dr. Papatom) while out on my bike ride, Saturday. it's what i get. what idiot goes for a bike ride at 3:00 in the afternoon? this one. i was late only cuz i was watching parts of a Rocky marathon! don't hate. i also watched Four Brothers again before S1 takes it back. feel the vibration!

what else... oh yeah, the washer finally went out. we had to break down and buy a new one. =( it's kinda weird in it's little generic way. you don't get to select hot or cold by a hot/cold switch. it's determined by how long you want the wash cycle to run. odd. looking forward to fighting with it in the future. HM's happy cuz he got to wear clean shorts to work this morning! =)

we're also on our way to finishing the office. with no money to do anything, it's amazing the home projects you find to do... or finish the ones you started anyway. we're finishing the office now. we've got one more coat to put on and a ceiling fan with more lighting. it's so dim in there, it's almost gray. once it's painted, we'll set up all my DC Comics stuff and all his Star Wars stuff (if there's room) on the shelves. we'll give the printer a home and now i'll have the extra step of going upstairs to print everything i need. what fun!?!? ;o)

XM on IM

S1 is so generous sometimes. SOMETIMES. she gave me her login for XM online. it's so choice. i sometimes, don't even mind riding in the short bus, just so i can listen to it.

so i've been listening to XM for the last two days and i'm completely excited about it... so excited in fact that i tell Manny about it. he's all, "yeah, and...?". i'm all, "whaddaya mean 'yeah, and...'?" he's like, "you can get that online, for free, with your AOL login". i was like, "sure, but you gotta have AOL, right?"

no.

no?

no.

so i go to the AOL main page just to prove him wrong. i navigate to the XM - listen online thingy and sure enough, i logged right in with my IM username and password!

anyways, i like S1's login thingy better. it shows you the songs that are playing and you can see them all on one menu. how cool! i'm gay. whatever.

among the favorites of today:
Hypnotize - Notorious B.I.G
Hey Jealousy - Gin Blossoms (take me back to '95 why don't cha?)
Oops Upside Your Head - Gap Band(?)
Lots of Billy Squier and Journey!

my girl's back

but now she's leaking transmission fluid. i gotta take her in tomorrow or saturday. i'm hoping they'll say i'm okay until Monday. i've got plans this weekend that i really don't want to postpone.

i really want to go fishing with PoPo Larry on Saturday. i've been wanting to interview him and Grandma for a while, in their natural habitats. his is definitely fishing! i just want to hear their stories. i got the idea at our annual mother's day brunch. they were telling stories about his days in the service, overseas. stories about stealing corn and how my PPL had to drink 6 pints of german beer so my grandma could have a matching set of steins! also, when and how he stopped drinking. i want these stories. i want them all. to watch and smile at later. i'm hoping the weather holds out for us.

saturday nite, i'm supposed to be going to see "Once Upon A Mattress" with LilBit. for some reason, the weekend show is supposed to be more risque' than the matinee. uhm, i don't remember any version of this play warranting any reason to be risque', but okay. of course, this will only happen if we get comp'd tickets.

poor Sadie

my poor girl is back in the shop. this time for the brakes. i don't know what happened.. she was fine in the morning but after work, i had to press the brake pedal all the way to the floor just to slow down. scary.

by the time i reached the end of the seawall, the brake light had come on. i had to turn her around and take her to the shop. thus, having me start making phone calls for rides to get me home. HM said he would come get me, but i know he really didn't want to.

i called S1 first. after some attitude and giving me flack about "you're helping me cook", she agreed to come get me. she was at the grocery store when i called and had to go home first. on S1 time, that usually means, "i'll be there in a couple of hours". so, i called another friend... Sushi1. Sushi1 was out having margaritas at happy hour. i told her to suck it down so she could take me home. AN HOUR LATER, and after i made friends with all the crackheads at the shop, she finally came to get me. ha, and i thot S1 was slow! ;)

i had asked her just to take me halfway if she could and get me to S1's house. HM would come get me from there or S1 would take me the rest of the way (how sweet, she offered). Sushi1 wouldn't hear of it. she took me all the way home. that's 45 minutes one way! i would expect S1 to do it (while bitching the whole time about how i need a new car, blah, blah, blah) but i wouldn't really expect anyone else to, unless they were on their way, that way, or something. some people are good people. the people you don't really expect to be good, sometimes surprise you. Sushi1 was a bit of a surprise.

so Sadie's in the shop. i'm waiting to hear what the damage is. we really need to win the lotto. i guess i really do need a new car. =(

conversations

islebehere: my only real fear is that they'll send me to Buffalo Bill's house or something!

AA: put the camera in the basket!

islebehere: LMAO!!

AA: frrrrrrrrrrrreaky

~discussing the SAGAS opportunity a friend sent to me

conversations

HM: stop throwing stuff away i do for you!

me: stop being such a damn good husband!

~on why i threw the coffee out he had left, for me, in the microwave. i thot it was tea i had forgotten about, from the day before

testing

testing the new embed code from vimeo. they've made changes so that you can include, or not include, your portrait, title, etc... they've also given options for colors so that i can match my exact color on this page... AND you can change the SIZE!

this is a video tribute for Fuzzy Dave done by vimeo user, Buck Flashroy. dang, i thot we could frame them now, too. oh well.



Fuzzy Dave Avatars from Buck Flashroy and Vimeo.

welcome to galvatraz

"We put the ass in class."

~Jessica Rabbit, discussing the social status of locals on "The Rock"

conversations

AA: no, thank you for sending it
AA: Carl is going to be so happy

islebehere: awesome!
islebehere: see... reason number 58393 to love vimeo

AA: exactly! Hook-ups
AA: the non sexual kind

islebehere: =-O

AA: lol

~discussing the promo codes dalas found for Amtrak

repeatedly overheard this weekend

"it's not a hat, it's a sombrero!"

"sloppy dice! drink twice!"

"SOCIAL!"

"did you have spinach dip?"

"aaarrrgh matey"

"blaheh *snort*"

"what are the odds?"

"wow! that was really projectile vomiting!!"

"he didn't even have time to digest that."

"i'm not cheating!"

"anything Ryan did last nite has been forgiven and surpassed by what johnny just did."

"if you give him a beer, he lets you talk."

"if you find a house, with a barbed wire fence, with three trees but one is missing..."

"how do you get A.D. from Adrienne?"

"the G is silent"

we can be heroes

during our spring Indy trip, i had a chance encounter with the son of the owner of the Heroes Museum. how fortunate for me, right? it was awesome! all DC Comics! my heaven!

apparently, the museum is pretty new and it's had a lot of news coverage. since i was up for breakfast brunch, i was there kinda early-ish. i talked to the owner a bit and seeing that i was such a fan, he gave me a personal tour! he told me a couple of stories behind the costumes and some things he has collected, to include in the museum.

it's mostly superman and batman. he said he's working on bringing in more Wonder Woman, especially since the movie is being made for release next year (don't hold your breath on that one). the movie that is, not his lack of bringing the stuff in.



heroes from islebehere and Vimeo.

conversations

- so it was dark when we left so i asked if she wanted me to drive.

- no, it's okay.

- are you sure, cuz i can drive. it's no problem.

- no, i'm okay.

my mom: i thot she couldn't see at nite

A.Linda: SHE CAN'T!!

~my Aunt Linda talking about my grandma (her mother) and her ability (or non-ability) to drive at nite

parker boy 5x5

Parker Boy 5x5 from islebehere and Vimeo.
1. he found a new toy
2. he learned how to use new toy
3. first ride on carousel (love his giggle in this one)
4. flying the fighter plane
5. superman pj's

sweet home chicago

happy birthday, frisky!




chicago from islebehere and Vimeo.

weekend update/recap

friday - watched Transformers. CGI, very cool. love story, very lame. could have done without the comic relief. oh, and it gets lame points for: the new transformers toys DON'T EVEN TRANSFORM into anything! how lame is that??? good enough flick, tho.

saturday - fun day! well, after i went with S1 to look for sheets that didn't exist and the ones that did exist cost $60.00 for three pieces of nothing.

mamalane and papatom came to visit and brought parker boy with them. that was so much fun! we really don't see him enough (haven't i said that before?). that's okay, tho, cuz when he does see us, we're like, the coolest people ever! he likes hanging out with his Aunt T and Uncle Drain. we took him down to the kemah boardwalk and went for a ride on the carousel and a fighter plane. the highlight of the evening, i think, was playing with him in the fountain. i wish i could have gotten video of him in the fountain. once he got the hang of what was going on, he was too cute! at one point, he was staring straight into one of the water holes and it shot straight up at him. he got the biggest kick out of it! but not more than when Aunt T got drenched by a falling water spout, of course.

after we got back home, HM and I wondered how we're ever gonna have children... and actually keep up with them. i mean, we're not getting any younger. and we're sure as hell not acquiring any more energy! we weren't even with PB a whole day and we were wiped. bedtime was the same for me as it was for PB that nite.

sunday - got up for "beeg" breakfast and watched some Speed Racer. we played around with some bouncy balls and then he got fussy all of a sudden. time to go. =)

the rest of the evening was spent editing video from chicago and we watched Premonition. not a bad flick. not a GOOD flick, by any means, but not a bad one.

i can't wait to see PB again. i don't know when that'll be but hopefully not long from now.





until next time, i'm sweet t and you're not.

questions and answers

me/HM (simultaneously): my/your sisters!

~when asked who i would take with me on the pop culture trivia show on vh1.

duh! i already know how it would go down, too. i would take movies, S2 on music, and S1 on tv. i don't know all movies. like that question on Conan The Barbarian the other nite... never woulda guessed it. but a quote from Caddyshack that neither one of the teams got... i totally knew it! how could they NOT know that?!?!??

S2 would take music being as she was in the womb with motown, born listening to 70's classic rock, raised on 80's, and now listens to all the new crap. i think she's got it covered.

S1 would take tv because she is a couch potato. not really.. but take away her dvr and she gets mean. i suspect we would crash and burn on the tv part. she mainly only watches the really gay stuff and doesn't know the more popular shows like grey's anatomy, scrubs, south park, etc... although, she does read enough "People" magazine to actually stay in the know.

we might have a chance.

i'm gonna miss you

bye, Honey. i'll see you Sunday!

LUB

seriously?

is this for real??

ground control to major tom

ground control from islebehere and Vimeo.

lots going on

there's been a whole lot going on in the last two weeks. in two weeks time, we've gone to see BB King. On the same nite, ran into an old friend who (whom?) I actually miss dearly. Had Princess and the Child Who Eats Nothing We Cook, over for a sleepover. Went "mountain" biking. Made marble magnets. Went to see The Police!! I did some editing. I played around with some VHS and got them to digital... only the first step to getting them put on dvd. Looked thru a TON of pictures of myself and siblings... all to be scanned. beta testing of vimeo version 5. i could go on, but i'm sure you're bored by now.

i have more video to edit, that probably won't be touched for a while since I'M GOING TO CHICAGO this weekend!! it's Frisky's birthday and we're celebrating in Chi-town! i'm super excited about it! i'm hoping to see my Daddy, but since his schedule has changed, it may not happen. i'll definitely be seeing the Stepmonster, tho. she's gonna take the train down and hang with the girls. also, while in Chicago, i'm going to meet vimeo contact Peika, creator of the Boomstick360, for lunch. that'll be super cool! maybe we'll make a video.

BB King

dear old friend

the police and BB King tix

anyhoo, that's all for now. until next time, i'm Sweet T and you're not.

my new hero

this happened last week, but i just recently saw it. this woman is a true reporter.