Kimba

Hack, hack

So I've been lying around the past few days, trying to get over this ugly cough thing I've developed. I WebMD'd my symptoms and think I have Acute Bronchitis. I know, I know, I hate when people "decide" that they have something, but really, everything matches up. And lucky for me, it says there's not much to be done but wait it out. I had hoped that by chilling for a couple days I'd recover much faster, but I don't think it's helping. So. There's not much to write about, except to say I've been sleeping and watching a lot of day time TV. Taking some nasty Delsym cough crap that makes me gag and feel as if I've just stepped off a roller coaster.

Once when I was younger, 5th grade I believe, my mom and sister and I all got sick. My dad was in Hong Kong for 3 weeks, and we all spent several days in our beds, doors open and chatting through the hallway. They got better, and I contracted walking pneumonia. I was out of school for weeks, sleeping and watching television, and sleeping some more. I remember I was watching TV one night and they were having a special on Pocahontas, the movie that was coming out soon. I didn't want to spoil it for myself, so I decided to switch the channel for a few minutes and come back. I woke up the next morning. I watched my homework slowly pile up, I didn't have enough energy. To this day I have no idea how I passed 5th grade, I must have had some really great and forgiving teachers. I think I ended up doing a lot of "makeup" work. Like those string picture things. You know, where you made pictures of pumpkins and candy canes by threading string through thick cardboard?

Anyway. I'm fine. Just a lot of ridiculous hacking. Makes for great conversations at work and is also very handy when answering the phones. Can you hold? Thanks. Hack Hack. Sorry about that...oh, sorry, hold for a second?

Also? I'm really sick of soup. And I'm really sick of the same three commercials.

So to make up for this lame post, enjoy this clip of the dog we're considering. If we're going to get one, of course. Because we're nuts, and because we've both always loved them.

Second thoughts much?

The Kraken strikes back

Taken as soon as we managed to pull ourselves out of the restraints on The Kraken at SeaWorld. She did have perfectly coiffed hair. Until...The Kraken!

A bit dark, a bit blurry. You'll have to forgive me, it was taken with a cell phone at night. So far this is the only picture we have of the trip. And it sums it up perfectly.

Like lemon juice in the eye

I don't understand why, but it always takes me forever to find the lemon juice at grocery stores. I use lemon juice quite a bit in my cooking and therefore find myself searching for it often. And I can never find it. For some reason I think it should belong in the cooking isle, as in, baking goods. I don't know why. I continue walking down the isles, gathering everything else on my list except for the lemon juice and then have to double back through and search. I know it's always on the very top shelf. This should make it easy, but for some reason it doesn't. You'd also think that since I profess to use it so much, that I'd remember where it was in the store. Sounds logical, I know, but apparently it's too much for me.

Anyway.

We're back, if you can't tell.  We got in late last night, minus my bag. Of course. Because it only had nearly every single clothing item I own, and all of my toiletries. I'd like to thank Brian, Caleb's business partner, for forgetting his toothbrush the last time he was down, forcing him to buy a three-pack of Batman toothbrushes. This is also one of those times that I am slightly grateful for my job, because mascara is not mandatory. Neither is perfectly coiffed hair, which, ya know, isn't exactly what I'd call mine on a good day anyway. But whatever. There my bag sits, waiting for me to unload it. Maybe I can convince Caleb...

I'd love to post pictures, thank you for asking, but our camera decided to run out of juice three minutes after entering Epcot. And we'd charge it, of course, but SOMEONE (someone who thinks that bratwursts should be it's own food group) left the charger plugged into the wall near the fireplace at my home in Utah. Ha! So funny! I plan to pick it up next week when I head home for a few days to see my sister before she leaves for her mission. Yes, I just got back from Florida, why do you ask? (My work hates me, for sure. Who takes off at least once a month?! Hmm?!)

Two other little side notes, because you care, and because this post is just a jumble of them, American Airlines is not my favorite. We flew over to Florida on Frontier and enjoyed our own little screens with Direct TV or movie options. I think I already mentioned that. We flew from Orlando to LAX yesterday on American Airlines, a 6 hour flight, and the only complimentary refreshment we received was drinks. Not even a tiny bag of peanuts, which I never eat anyway, but still, I'd like the option. It's a good thing I purchased those gummi Life Savors. Just for future reference, pack a lunch. That's all I'm sayin'.

Somewhere during the week I caught a cold, or a cough, really. I had my Zicam so I think I've kept it at bay, except for the cough and a voice like a squeaky rat. Makes for a great day of answering the phones.

Speaking of which, I'm going to bed now. The shallots from dinner are still burning my eyes.

Oh, I nearly forgot. I do have one picture to share. Will be up soon. I promise. Hopefully my mind will return also. Would be nice.

The Kraken

Hello from mostly sunny but very warm and super humid Florida! As you can tell, we did survive our flights. It was long, and we spent an exorbitant amount of time at the Quizno's in Denver trying to kill time. We all reeked like yeast the entire day. The last leg of the flight was enjoyable for Abby and Brian and I, we all sat together and watched Direct TV on the TV's on the back of each seat (thank you Frontier!). Caleb sat on the isle seat across from us and had somewhat of a different experience. The two men who sat on the other side of him must have decided to do the gallon challenge or something, because they literally got up to go to the bathroom 10 times. At least. Toward the end it just got comical, at least for us, and we'd look over every few minutes to see Caleb either in the process of standing up or sitting back down, having to unplug his earphones, unbuckle his seat belt, and make his way out for the men with the itty bitty bladders. At one time when one of the flight attendants were coming down the isles picking up trash, one of the men held up two HUGE and very empty water bottles to be trashed.

Right. That would explain things.

I don't quite understand why someone would knowingly place themselves in the middle seat if they knew they'd be downing 64 oz. of water on a nine gazillion hour plane ride.

We arrived in Orlando at 11 pm and after arriving at the hotel, switching rooms (I don't know why hotels are so ridiculous, if someone requests a king bed, why would they place them in a room with two twins?! I got all jiggy with it, "Uh uh, no way, no they DIDN'T!"), and noticing how the pictures on the website don't look QUITE like the real thing, we walked across the street to Denny's to get something to eat. It was midnight, but the only thing we'd had for dinner had been a small bag of Sun Chips, and I don't know about you, but that just doesn't cut it. So to top off our superbly wonderful day I ordered some toast and a slice of ham and then discovered weird fuzzies all over the cut edges of my toast.

Ya gotta love traveling. It's so great.

Day two was lovely though, we lounged around, ate lunch with the boys and then settled into an afternoon of magazine reading and Oprah watching. I love vacations. Last night the company had rented out Sea World (rented out? Reserved?) and we ate dinner (of mostly seafood. Is that weird to anyone else? After wandering around and looking at all the sea life, we were to sit down and eat scallops and crab? Eh? Sorry Mr. Crab...) and then we were able to enjoy two of the larger rides, some Journey to Atlantis ride, and The Kraken. Fabulous, fabulous rides. Especially when you don't have to stand in line. If anyone gets the chance, ride The Kraken and sit in the front. Once our car pulled into the station I looked over and Abby's hair was straight back, and the back section was all twirled up. Like someone had taken a hand mixer to her head. I laughed so hard I had tears streaming down my face, Caleb had to unbuckle my restraint and help me out of the chair. It was the best thing I've ever seen. I'm going to try to acquire a picture of it from Brian who snapped a shot on his phone. It has to be published. That's all there is to it.

I'm off to lunch. I'm so hungry I could eat...a lot.

On evolution

I was hanging out in Abby and Brian's room today while Caleb was catching up on some sleep. I called down to our room to tell him that Ellen had a sloth on her show. Caleb loves sloths. Very, very much.

"Let's get one, Kim." He said, and then went on saying, "what if I go to Sea World tonight and want a baby walrus or something. Or a whale. Do they have mini whales yet?"

"Yes," I said, "they're called fish."

When the suitcases come out, he knows...

Tomorrow Caleb and I are leaving for Florida, Orlando to be exact, for the week for his work convention. And despite the fact that we have a 12 hour traveling day tomorrow (yes, that's right, 12 hours to the other side of the country, and YES WE COULD DRIVE TO UTAH IN THAT TIME. I'VE ALREADY THOUGHT OF THAT, THANK YOU VERY MUCH), including a 3 hour layover in Denver (anyone know anything REALLY GREAT to do in the DIA for 3 hours? Hmm? No takers?), (ohmigosh, where was I? Oh yes...) I am really excited. This is one of my favorite trips of the year. It's a bit selfish, but it's true. I love it. I get to spend the entire week sleeping in, lounging by the pool, shopping, and generally not working, and my best friend Abby just so happens to be there as well. Sweet.

And because it's work related, it also happens to be nearly free. It's like a dream or something.

I hate packing for it though. I search through everything I own to find something to wear, and my suitcase ends up being nine thousand pounds. And I don't even own that much clothing. I just spent the last two hours pouring over it, adding this, taking out that, I haven't even cleaned the house yet, and all I really want to do is curl up on the bed and watch Will and Grace re-runs. Is that so much to ask for?

Wish me luck. If Caleb and I make it through the 12 hour day tomorrow, our moral intact, we'll know this is for real.

(Thanks for the puppy advice...I'm still trying to figure this out. Is there any other way?!)

(And will you please check out that posting time?! I am completely insane.)

And sometimes he needs companionship...

Last night I found myself searching the internet for one of these:

Or something. You see, Fussy posted the other day about a subject I've been mulling around a bit. I think there's some itty bitty little minor chance that Bear might stop being such a complete wuss if he had a little companion. Somebody to boss around. Beat up. Bully a bit, and then collapse in a heap to cuddle.

And I know what you're thinking, what I'm thinking, I must be positively certifiably insane to even be considering another pet. Even as I'm typing this, I'm back-peddling. There's no way I want another dog.

But.

If there's even a slight chance that it would change our neurotic mess of a mutt into, oh, I don't know, a DOG, it's worth considering. At least that's what I'm telling myself. To make myself feel better. And not like I'm giving in. Something small. Little to no shedding. Not yappy.

Holy crap, I don't want two dogs.

Someone please tell me I don't want two dogs.

Ants Marching

A few days ago I noticed some ants at work. I mean, at the office, of course they were at work. Ants don't know how to do anything but work. Anyway, they were pretty busy at the office. A day or so later I was still seeing them, but not wanting to bring it up for fear that it might actually make it true, that we were in the middle of an ant infestation, I kept my big mouth shut.

And then one day I went to the bathroom and while I was thus squatting (it's the only way to go when not in one's home) I spotted an ant on the toilet seat. And that's pretty much where I draw the line. The ants were now on my toilet, getting it grubby with their little ant feet (and who knows where those feet have been. In the dirt that's where..) and that did it. The next morning I picked up a few ant traps at the local Safeway and set out the four little boxes of deadliness and waited. And watched, because I am a sick person who likes to watch ants carry little morsels of poison back to their colony. Eat up!

It's been a few days now, and by golly if there aren't MORE ants than before. Despite the fact that the box said it contains TWO types of poison and kills several different types of ants, these little buggars (ha!) seem to be thriving on it. Like we've just placed a smorgasbord before them with our blessing to eat, drink, and be merry. Oh, and invite 7,000 of their closest friends to join them.

"Jim! You won't believe what the humans have placed RIGHT OUTSIDE OUR DOOR. A little house! With two delicacies inside! All for the taking! Come! Tell thy spawn, we dine tonight!!"

There is a huge line of ants leading up to each trap, each one carrying back twice their body weight (thank you Bill Nye the Science Guy!) of poison. Either there is going to be one large death sweep, or those suckers are gonna get FAT. Which might mean they won't fit through their little hole to get out.

Either way, the problem is solved I guess.

Sweet. Ant Carnage.

P.S. Please don't look at the "Insect Index" on the Raid website. It is frightening. Especially right before bed.

Le Tree of Stressfulness

Another project I worked on for Christmas, the one that took up most of my time, energy, thoughts, and entire self was this one, the mammoth of all projects. And I didn't even take any pictures of it. Most likely because I was completely insane, couldn't stop thinking about it, stressing about it, obsessing over it.

So you can go see it here.  Because this is where I got the idea, except that I didn't want to spend $120 on it, not even $98 (so NOW it's on sale...) because hey. Dude. I could totally make that on my own.

And I could, it just added about nine million decibels of stress to my already stressful life in the most stressful season of the year (how do you calculate stress? Miles? Metric tons? Jiggawatts?). Except for CPA's of course, April is their stressful hell.

I was lucky too, because my lovely friend Bridgette already had a nice tree that I could use as a template and I just needed to come up with the frames, a mat, paper, some sort of die cut (let me tell you how fun THAT was to find, especially for one as creatively / artistically challenged as I am) for the leaves and of course, the names. An ordeal in an entire other realm.

I spent hours on this project, cutting, gluing, stickering, tracing, and completely stressing myself out. The first frames I bought at Ikea broke the second I pulled them out of the package. So that sucked. Also, the frames were a freaky size, so at 9 pm one night I made Caleb run to the frame store AGAIN (for the gabillionth time) to have them cut me four new mats. This is just a small sampling of the OCD-ness that overtook me with this project. Caleb can attest. This is the one I stayed up until 2 am completing the night before we left. Plus hours logged at Mark and Bridgette's house, forcing them to stay up until well over midnight while I freaked out. Sorry guys. We owe you several baby-sitting nights.

It also looks great, and produced the desired effect when presented to it's owners, who in this case happened to be both sets of parents. I highly recommend it, despite the stress it induced, and am even going to make one for myself. In a few months, when I've sufficiently forgotten how much it sucked. I'm hoping I'll mentally block those few weeks, sort of like what they say happens with childbirth. Or else why would anyone ever do it again, right?

Nailed it

Today I had another fertility appointment and Caleb stayed home to go with me. That meant we were both getting ready for the day in our one-butt bathroom and that is always an ordeal in and of itself. "You almost spit your toothpaste on me!", or "Could you move over ONE INCH PLEASE?!"  and the ever popular "Your butt is in my face." Such is life when your toilet sits 8 inches behind the sink. You can imagine the rest.

So today while I was finishing my hair Caleb sat on the toilet to clip his fingernails. His nails grow at an inexhaustible rate, 20 minutes after he's clipped them I find myself wanting to ask him if he's thought about clipping his nails any time soon. You just did? Are you sure? Hmm. Well. Okay.

As he was clipping, he lost one piece, and bent to pick it up off the floor. Normally you would think that one would pick up their errant nail clipping and toss it, but not Caleb. He held it up to the window as if looking at The Hope Diamond. I told him to throw it away, that it was gross, but he looked up at me with a smug face and said, "What? I'm proud of it."

And I really didn't have anything to say to that. If he wants to be proud of the rate at which his body can produce fingernails, that in two days his nails are longer than mine will ever be, fine. To each his own.

Nelson's Own

So, you want to see one of my forty Christmas projects? Yeah? Good, because the only other thing I can think about right now is my bum knee, and I doubt you all want to hear about that. But just so you know, a little cloth knee brace doesn't magically make the pain go away. Fancy that.

Anyway, we made our own apple cider, from scratch. We even grated our own nutmeg, which is a really weird spice bytheway. Looks like a normal nut, but you grate the outside and it just sort of disappears. Smells good, though.

Then I acquired a few wine bottles from the winery around the corner.

It wasn't until later that I discovered that in order to make sparkling apple juice  (my original idea)I'd need champagne bottles because they're thicker. Otherwise, the weird dude said at the beer & wine shop, the pressure from the carbonation would build up in the wine bottles and cause them to burst. Especially while driving to Utah, what with that whole elevation thing. Psh. Science. It took me about 2.5 seconds to imagine Caleb and I jam-packed in our little car on the way home for the holidays and 24 wine bottles bursting in the back, coating everything in sticky-appley-goodness. Apple Cider it was, then.

The next step, after brewing and capping and putting these fancy gold thingies on...

(They look fancy, but really are insanely easy to put on. Ever use those annoying little plastic Easter egg holders? You know, you put them around the egg and plop them in boiling water and it shrinks to fit the egg? Same idea.)

We made our own label and slapped it on. Or rather, spray glued the little suckers on until the skin on our fingers started peeling off.

(I was one step away from framing our faces with a giant dog collar, but stopped. No one wants to see that.)I wanted to also include a few of these gorgeous thin gingerbread wafers they sell at Trader Joe's, but I sort of ran out of time. You see, we finished this project at midnight on Friday and we got up to drive home at 4 am Saturday morning. And I still had two other projects to finish. Next year, I told myself, you can do that next year. (I was completely into OCD land that night, and literally had to force myself to forget about it.) Anyway, it was fun and super easy, and I give you all permission to copy. I sort of came up with the idea after flipping through the Sky Mall Magazine on my way to Oregon. So, props go out to Sky Mall. Love that catalog. The most ridiculous stuff you could ever imagine, but you strangely find yourself thinking, "I could really use this Salt Crystal Lamp Air Purifier", or "Why didn't I come up with this?!"

Who, me?

Just wanted to type a quick note, I checked a few of the blogs I read today and saw this post from my lovely Blogging Sensei Kelly, who had so generously given a little blog award to un-deserving old me. I have to admit I was surprised, I so often feel like I have nothing interesting to say, but it's nice when someone notices your efforts anyway. Especially when that someone is so much more fun / creative etc. etc. etc. etc. than you are. Thanks Kelly! Totally made my Monday.

(You know what didn't make my Monday? Going on a run for the first time in like...holy crap...a month, and my knee STILL hurts. So much for giving it a rest. I may need to bite the bullet and see a doctor. It's just I've been to one kind of doctor or another so much in the last few months, if I see another waiting room I might scream...)

(But! I used my new Big Gift and it was fabulous. Love the Ipod Nike Plus. Ok Go ran me through the pain today! Yeehoo!)

And now I need to pass it on. I'm tempted to give it right back to Kelly, since I am like, furiously taking notes from her recipes, creative ideas, etc., but I don't think that's the point. If ya'll aren't checking up on her blog though, you should. ("Ya'll" and "like" probably shouldn't be in such close proximity. It's Monday, I plead insanity.) I believe however, that I am going to pass the award along to Jennic from Sweetisu. She's fairly new on my Long Distance People Watching list, but I've so enjoyed her attitude toward life, despite her having had to go through so many challenges. She's a fabulous example. I am also in love with her company, Kangarooboo, and plan to take advantage of having found her lovely site if my ovaries ever decide to do as they're told. (You hear that girls?! "Is that a threat?!", "No, that's a promise." {three cheers to anyone who can come up with where that quote is from...horrifically cheesy movie I watched when I was younger}). Anyway, go check out her blogs, you won't be sorry.

And Happy Monday. It's nearly halfway over. How's that for optimism?! Eh?

Chocolate Fruit Parfait

A lovely dessert when you don't feel like making dessert. But you want dessert. But you just spent four hours in the kitchen fixing, making, and cleaning up dinner. But you need chocolate.

Chocolate Fruit Parfait (clever, no?)

1 box chocolate pudding (instant or cook and serve, depending on the intensity of your chocolate craving)

Fresh fruit (I used the blueberries and blackberries I had on hand)

1/2 c. heavy whipping cream

2 T. powdered sugar

Following package directions for the pudding. Fill a large glass 1/3 full with the pudding, layer your fruit. Add remaining pudding, leaving an inch at the top for your last layer of fruit.

Combine whipping cream and powdered sugar, beat until fluffy and smooth, add a large dollop to your pudding, and garnish with remaining fruit. Refrigerate until you can stand it (or your husband asks you for the 99th time if it's ready yet) and then enjoy! This is obviously very simple and totally interchangeable. Vanilla pudding? Sure! Banana? Of course. Cheesecake? Obviously. The possibilities are endless, here.

Not that I needed this, but tonight I really needed this.

Kimba's Favorite Things

So I know that Christmas was like, nine thousand years ago, but humor me. Sometimes I procrastinate. Check out the lovely gifts Santa left in my stocking (it would be the Mary Poppins of stockings, I know...):

My favorite decoy gift:

The Swiffer vacuum and sweeper thing. I say decoy gift, because that's what it was, something to throw me off the trail. For weeks Caleb has been lamenting to me that the gift he got for me was terrible, that he'd talked to his brother who'd "shown him the light" and made him realize it wasn't a good gift. Also, he said, it's non-refundable. So I was stuck with this really bad gift. I believed him for a while, he can be a pretty good actor when he wants to be, but after a bit I got a little suspicious. He's done it before, totally lie about things to throw me off the trail, and I suspected it this time. But then he made me open this gift first. And my heart sank a little. He'd broken the cardinal rule of life, never give a woman a vacuum.

But secretly? I am in love with it. I use it every single day, it's a godsend for my wood floors. It's fabulous. I highly recommend it. Thanks Cabe!

My favorite unexpected gift:

It's a Christmas cookie / treat tray from my mother in law. It's done by the same person who made this cake stand she gave me last year. I love it, whimsical and fun. She always seems to find the little fun gifts that I wouldn't think to buy myself but always need. Perfect for all the goodies that pile up during the holidays (pile up and then somehow manage to find their sneaky little way to my waistline...). Thanks Cindi!

My favorite homemade gift:

This gorgeous purse from my good friend Bridgette. She and my other other good friend Abby and I made purses for ourselves last year in Oregon and I've used mine to death. She'd noticed this and decided to make me a new one for Christmas, and I love it. Nice and stiff (the one I made looks like a deflated balloon when nothing is in it) and she chose the perfect color combination. Not that I'd expect any less from Bridgette, she has The Eye that I covet so much. Thanks Bridge!

My favorite expected-but-always-appreciated gift:

My uncle owns this shop, The Gem Smith, in my hometown of Bountiful, Utah. In Colonial Square, if anyone needs to find the perfect gift, go see Blaine. And my sister. And cousins. And stuff. Anyway, because my uncle owns it, we tend to get something from his shop for each birthday, Valentines Day (my dad usually gets us something...how sweet is that?) etc. etc. It's a little expected, but I always love it. These are some gorgeous black pearl earrings, something nice and fancy to dress up my wardrobe. Love it. Thanks Dad!

My favorite known gift:

The Kone. Ohmigosh, it's another vacuum, I know, but holy crap I was so excited to get it. It's lovely, compact, and it does a fabulous job. I put it in my bathroom so that while I'm brushing my teeth I can suck up all of Caleb's leg hairs. If you don't know Caleb, just believe me when I say that if I didn't know any better I'd think we really did evolve from apes. He's got some serious leg hairs. I once watched a mosquito fight it's way through them, only to give up half way. It hung, panting I'm sure, until Caleb brushed it off. Anyway. I love it. Thanks Mom!

My favorite White Elephant gift:

An informative educational read for children! Yippee! My favorite part is where they talk about which kinds of foods change the smell. How carnivorous animals tend to smell worse than their vegetarian counterparts. There's also another book, Everybody Poos. Also a classic.

My favorite nostalgic gift:

A calendar my other good friend Kjersti made for me. I have a love / hate relationship with this gift, only because it showcases my friends and I when we were younger and people, we were freakin' weird. And not only were we weird, but we liked to document our weirdness, so that in later years we could be blackmailed with it. I spent forever looking at it, laughing until tears rolled down my face. We were weird, but we were weird together and that's all that matters. I have fabulous friends. Kjersti, I love it. Seriously. Thank you!

My favorite big gift:

This was from Caleb, the Ipod Nike thingy. Nike Plus. Whatever. Basically that little chip thing goes in my NEW NIKE SHOES that came with the set (or the shoes I bought with the included gift card), and tracks my runs, calories, the things I eat, every bad word I say, and every little spontaneous purchase I make at Target. Really, I think he's just trying to keep tabs on me.

I'm really excited about this, not just because I get new shoes (apparently wearing the same ones you've had since like...junior high isn't the best for your form) or an Ipod (I've never had one before! Yeah for me!) but it's something new to get me jazzed about running again. I haven't been on a run since before the holidays to give my knee a rest, but I think it's time. I'm ready.

No juice

I was all set to post a lovely display of my Christmas goods, but then the laptop ran out of juice and SOMEONE forgot to bring home the charger home from work (I won't name any names...). So, here I sit in bed punching out a post on this itty bitty Blackberry while the mutt and Caleb snore in unison. So adorable, even in sleep they're inseperable.

I'm going to bed now, to catch up on some much needed rest. We rocked into the wee hours of the night last night on Rock Band. It's a rough life we have around here...

Lovely post will appear tomorrow. Think of the worst possible gift a girl could ever receive...I got two and love them to death. Because I am deranged.

That's all, my fingers are cramping...

Uh.....

I like to keep up on the news in Utah, cause, I don't know, I still view it as my "home". Anyway, I was checking it out today and ran across this little blip.

I don't even know what to say about that.

I'm speechless. I am without speech.

Thunder Mountain, or, Creepyville, NV

Thunder Mountain, originally uploaded by dancingnancy_1.

This is The Creepy House. Also known as Thunder Mountain Monument. It's the creepiest place I've ever been. Also, the most interesting thing on 1-80 in the middle of no-where-ville Nevada. I saw it on the way to Utah while Caleb was napping, and I talked about it the entire time we were home. "It's this DEATH HOUSE in the middle of nowhere! I SWEAR!"

No one believed me. On the way home though, we kept our eyes peeled and finally found it, outside Winnemucca in a tiny town called Imlay. We didn't know the history at all so we blindly walked around and took nine thousand pictures. It was creepy then, but even creepier now that we've read about it. Know why it's there, who built it. How insanely deranged the guy was.

Click on this shot, and it will direct you to my Flickr page where you can browse the shots, or not, if you feel like you wouldn't be able to sleep tonight. I'll understand. Trust me. If you want a bit of a challenge, go here to read the ghost story...

I especially love "The Visitors Center". It's a good one.

You know you're tired when...

You spend a good two minutes trying to get into your car with the wrong set of car keys. Trying the doors. The automatic opener. The trunk. In the parking lot of Home Depot. With two very awkward space heaters in the cart. Funny story, actually.

Ours went out yesterday morning, and as a result we, along with Caleb's business partner who is staying with us at the moment, froze to death last night. Under 7 blankets and thick socks. Hence the no sleep and using the wrong car keys to get into my car.

Hallelujah for space heaters. Mmm...convection heat...and a real fire...and thick socks...

Oh, and also? The dog totally ripped into the spice packet I was going to use tonight for dinner. I nearly re-neutered him.

The Incident of the Dog and the Deer

My parents house sits on top of a large gully, their property line going down the hill side and halfway up the other side. Being in the Rocky Mountains, this means they have a lot of deer that wander through the property, and this drove Bear absolutely positively nuts. Each time we let him outside to go to the bathroom, he'd bolt to the edge of the hill, little nubbin straight up, watching for them. If he saw one, or anything slightly resembling anything moving at all, like a stray falling leaf, he bolted down the mountain chasing after them. In vain, of course.

Here, his game face, nubbin down.

So by the time we made it up to Caleb's parents house I thought he pretty much had the deer thing down. Meaning they're faster than him, it's no use, give up, fuhghettaboutit.

Not so. I should have known, this dog never learns.

So Caleb and I are sitting in the kitchen when we hear a short bark and we look out the windows to see a rather large doe leaping across the stream and Bear behind it. They both stopped, Bear not willing to cross. We watched the deer watch Bear, and then suddenly, as if she'd sized him up and thought, "Yeah, I could take him", Big Momma Deer charged Bear, chasing him across the yard, around the tree, and into the front yard. I was laughing like a banshee, and Caleb was screaming "RUN BEAR!!! RUN!!!", JUST LIKE in Forest Gump. It was highly classic. Fortunately for the mutt, the deer slowed it's charge and Bear managed to duck into the garage where Caleb kept him the rest of the evening. Mostly because Big Momma stuck around the area like a watch dog for a good half hour. She meant business.

I can't say I blame her, the mutt drives me crazy, too.

Back! For real!

Wow. Hi. I am alive, if you were wondering, and have finally found a few seconds to sit down and actually compose a few thoughts. We just got back (like...4 days ago...) from our lovely long-but-not-long-enough trip back Home for the Holidays in Utah. The days leading up to our departure, our entire stay, and the few days since we've been back have been so filled and full and wild and crazy, and I have so many things to share it's been easier to just sit in the shadows and take slow, deep breaths. But more on that later. Since it's nearly midnight and I'm exhausted, you're getting a meme. I promise there will be multiple pictures and lovely stories soon.

Oh, and Happy New Year.

This one's from Liv(e), 5 random / weird facts about myself. As if you needed proof.

1. We've been living in this house for about six months now and are still receiving mail for the previous tenants. Not just any mail, but magazines. Magazines like Star Magazine and Rolling Stone. And I love it, am secretly hoping they continue to pay their subscription so that I can pour over all the smut and gossip that is Hollywood in the safety of my own home for free.

I have felt a little guilty though, so you'll also find (nearly...) every single magazine in a pile hiding behind our swinging door in the dining room, waiting for me to send them to their rightful owner. And I will, I swear.  Just as soon as I get around to it. 

2. I secretly love the thrill and danger of things like snowstorms, power outages and the like. I love the idea of buckling down, wearing four different kinds of socks, and sitting in front of the fire (a real fire, because that's how it goes here) while the world outside rages. These last few days here in the Bay Area have been pretty hairy, and we were very lucky to not have any major damage to our home or vehicles, our good friends weren't so fortunate and we'll be helping them fix both their fences this week. We've had power the entire time and that's more than many people can say, a large number are still without it and probably will be until the middle of next week. I'm not trying to demean their struggles, but I can't help it. I love having to make do, go without, and find ways to survive. Mostly because I naively picture the above euphemistic scene with the fire and the hot chocolate and the snuggling. Who doesn't love listening to the wind howl, rain beating down on your single pane windows, sipping hot chocolate and browsing for bathing suits online?

(How many commas was that? Nine gazillion? I thought so.)

3. One month ago (or there abouts) I saw the first half of the first Lord of the Rings. That's the only part of that trilogy I've seen so far. I may be the last person on Earth who hasn't yet sat through all forty hours of that series. I am taking autographs, if you're interested.

4. My secret dream job is to be an Interior Decorator, the kind that always manages to find the perfect obscure piece that fits the decor perfectly. Modern style, with a bit of that old-timey grandma stuff that's comin' back in. A little bit of modern baroque. With an unlimited budget, of course. I love it, all that design stuff, but don't seem to have that innate ability. I have to copy, and pretend.

5. I cannot stand Uma Thurman. I haven't even seen her in many films so I don't really know where this comes from, but she drives me crazy. Maybe it's her name, maybe it's the rolls she plays, maybe it's just poor luck, but she is totally on My Whoopie List*. I could barely sit through The Producers because my top lip kept curling up. Uuuuuuuuuuuma. More like Eww-ma.

(*our friend Mark has a similar disgust for Whoopie Goldberg and has named his list of actors he can't stand The Whoopie List. The name stuck.)

And there's my list. Again, I swear, I'll fill you in on all the gems of the past few weeks. Charging deer, wild storms, holiday gifts, and the like. It's juicy.