State of the Union [Super Crappy to be Honest]

Anything to make watching the State of the Union address tonight more fun is always welcome. Rachel Maddow from Air America Radio is attempting to continue the Air American traditional State of the Union drinking game which she has renamed "The Rachel Maddow Show State of the Union Drinking Game Which Can Also Be Played With Fried Foods If You Don't Drink" or TRMSSOTUDGWCABPWFFIYDD. Here are the rules:
When the following words or phrases are used take a drink as indicated-

• the union is strong!
• nuke-yuh-ler
• nuclear (noo KLEE urr) -- BONUS -- DOUBLE
• cutting the deficit in half in 3 years
• ethics
• bribery
• abramoff -- BONUS -- RUN OUTSIDE INTO STREET AND SCREAM

So be sure to have something to eat or drink close by as well as pillows or other soft items you can throw at the TV with minimal damage to the TV set. Unfortunately he can't hear me when I scream and cuss and he doesn't feel it when I practically knock the TV off of it's stand. We actually have a nice TV this year so all the more reason to keep the items soft, though I'm not sure if including alcohol in the mix is such a great idea.

A Queer Librarian-Who Would Have Thought

I found this [The Well Dressed Librarian: of course its cashmere...] super fun librarian blog, he isn't updating anymore but reading the archives are fun. ;-)

My Weekend-Update

I missed my lady but had a busy, accomplishing weekend. I was able to get quite a bit of cleaning done as well as our normal chores [laundry, grocery shopping & homework]. I even went out Saturday with our wonderful friend, her daughter, and son her and husband recently adopted from Kazakhstan. It was my first time meeting the baby and all I have to say is adorable and I can't wait to get one of our own! We went to Babies R Us and had a blast looking at all the cute little boy outfits and looked at all the frilly girly clothes our future daughter won't be wearing.
I'm planning to skip my knitting class so I can be home with my lady and do some homework. We have plans both Wednesday and Thursday night, don't want to try and cram too much in Tuesday. Plus I haven't had any questions and I can easily sit at home and knit rather than go somewhere else to do it.
I had a really nice talk with my mom over the weekend regarding my Grandma and her business. It had always been assumed I'd take over when she was ready to retire. I'm thinking she should retire in the next year, maybe sooner. I think it would be to her advantage to sell the business so she can get something out of it rather than leave with nothing. I could then go work for somebody else making a wage. It's taken her 20 years to build the business to what it is today. I just don't think she'd be able or willing to slowly give me the business, one client/one responsibility at a time. She has too much invested in this and has such issues with giving up control. I'd be able to make more money and gain more experience working for somebody else. This has also got me thinking if Accounting is really what I want to do for the rest of my life. I just wish there was an undergraduate degree in Library Sciences that I could get. It's going to take me at least another two and a half years to get my B.S. after I finish my Associates Degree in September. Then even longer to get a Masters Degree. I just wish there was a way to get a job at a library to gain experience before I even get my degree. If I'm going to need to find a new job in the next year it would awesome to get one at a library to at least see if it was something I'd want to continue doing before I invest a bunch of time and money into a Masters Degree. I just don't know...

This Weekend

My Lady is Leavin' Me...

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Well only until late Sunday. She's going down to Long Beach for a trade show for her work. I'm taking her to the airport early this afternoon and will pick her up late Sunday night. So it won't be too long, not nearly as long as she was gone for school. I don't expect this weekend to be as eventful as the last time she was gone. I plan to get caught up on homework, take Jack to play, clean, maybe go to a sit n' knit tonight, do laundry, and anything else I can squeeze in.

The Colbert Report

Stephen Colbert Rocks!

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I opened my copy of the Onion and found a hilarious interview with Stephen Colbert. Now that we get Comedy Central we can watch The Daily Show and The Colbert Report. I love Stephen Colbert, I discovered his amazingly dry humor when we watched Strangers with Candy.

21-Day Challenge

Starting today I am on a 21-day Challenge to start three (good) daily habits. They are:

1. Eat at least one piece of fruit every day
2. Do 20 minutes or yoga or take a 30 minute walk every day
3. Write at least a paragraph in my journal every day (I am choosing to allow my written journal or my live journal on "private" setting-for my eyes only)

I think this will be a great thing! After the 21 days are over I hope to continue these habits and add some more. It's easy to try and do too much at one time and fail them all, adding on habits a few at a time is a great idea and I'm exited.

Cable is Cool!

Angelina & Ellen

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One of the most awesome things about having basic cable and a free VCR is being able to tape Ellen every day. Friday we watched three days worth and it was great! I just need to figure out where she gets her clothes because we decided I'd look super cute in some of the outfits she's worn. I sent her an email and hopefully she'll reply ;-)

My Project Thus Far

The Start of Cindi's Scarf

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So here it is folks! My very first knitting project since I started knitting again. I think it looks pretty good if I say so myself. It's not the best picture, but it'll do for now. You can see my pretty knitting basket there on the floor full of fun knitting stuff. It was a great idea, it keeps the cats out of my knitting (most of the time). Aren't the wooden needles pretty? I like them much better than the metal ones I used as a kid. I'll post pictures of my progress. I started this last weekend and have got quite a bit done.

Knit.1

Cool knitting magazine for the hip knitter. That's me!

Clip Art Rocks!

Flower

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I am officially obsessed with free clip art. I feel I have to find a picture for every single post. It just makes it so much prettier.

Grumpy

Grumpy Kitty~Kinda Like Me

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I've been noticing that I've been quite grumpy lately, at work and at home. I've been noticing it especially when Cindi asks me for advice, where to find something, or something similar. I didn't know why but it bothered me. Today I discovered why. At work my Grandma expects me to know everything. I'm supposed to know where everything in the office is located, from the instructions for the printer to my Grandma's stable remover, I'm supposed to know how everything works, all activity for clients I never handle, and just about everything in between. She never looks for anything or tries to figure it out on her own. She always asks me first. So all day at work I'm expected to solve all the problems and know pretty much everything. This is why I get grumpy at simple questions by my wonderful partner or when she asks for advice. It's not that she does it all the time, it's that my grandma does and the residual grumpy-ness from that has lingered. I need to figure out how to leave it at work instead of taking it home with me...

Funny Candle Story

Candles

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Cindi and I love to burn candles in our apartment, especially during the Winter when it gets dark so soon in the evenings. We have one candle that we've been burning that burns dirty, it's set our smoke alarm off and even make the inside of Cindi's nose black [yuck!]. The other night I decided to burn in on the stove so the smoke could go out the vent above the stove. We were sitting on the couch and heard what sounded like a muffled smoke alarm. I realized it was the apartment upstairs. I quickly blew the candle out and the noise stopped. Our candle made the upstairs apartment smoke alarm go off, I couldn't believe it nor stop laughing at how funny that was. I can only imagine what she thought was happening. I imagined her saying, "what the hell?!"

Girls CAN Do Math!

Currently I'm taking an Algebra class. The last math class I took was during the summer of 2000. With the help of my boyfriend at the time, and hours of homework, I did pretty well. Unfortunately when I took a visit home I missed a week of class and was never able to catch up. I always said I would take another math class to prove to myself that I could do well. I'm in the third week of nine and feel like I'm doing really well. I've only gotten my grades from week one-100% [A+]! The textbook we're using is really well laid out and explains the concepts step by step, plus the online resources are great! They have practice quizzes for each section of each chapter so I can make sure I understand the concepts as I go along. I don't expect to keep my A+ through the entire course, but it sure feels good for now!

Knitting Up-date

Well I should at least update in regards to my knitting class. I had a lot of fun though at first it all seemed pretty overwhelming. Once I figured out how to cast-on the knitting part quickly came back to me. I couldn't believe I remembered how to knit after all these years. I don't even remember how old I was when my grandma taught me to knit, I kept thinking it was ten years ago, but it had to have been longer then that. At the end of class we were assigned to decide on our first project and get our supplies before the next class. It would have been yesterday, but it was Martin Luther King Jr's birthday, so our next class is Jan 23rd.
I've decided to make Cindi a scarf from a pattern that was inside a Knit Knack Kit I bought in Canada in 2003. It's straight knitting, which I thought will be good for a first project. We went last Saturday to my local knitting store, In Sheep's Clothing, to get the supplies. I've couldn't wait and have already starting knitting, though I had to start over twice, but I guess that's not too bad for my first project. All I want to do now is knit!

Busy!

I know I've been neglecting my blog, I'm sorry for those few who actually read it. I've been working on simplifying my life and so I've had to be away from blogging for a bit. Once I get a routine I'll be back!

Sabbatical

I've decided to take short sabbatical from most of my email. I get way too much of it and don't have time to read it all. I am only staying on the lists I feel are important and worthy of my time, which does not include all my political alert lists. Listening to Rachel Maddow everyday keeps me pretty much up to date on what is going on. Plus 90% of the time my senators are not only doing just what I think they should, but they at the head of those efforts to do the right thing. I am sick of all these alerts to email my senators to oppose the confirmation of Samuel Alito. My senators is Diane Feinstein, she's the one who keeps pressing him to say if Roe is settled law or not, I don't need to email her! Anyway, in my efforts to simplify my life I am simplifying my email account. I wish unsubscribing to mail was just as easy. I considered canceling some of my magazine subscriptions for the ones I will be refunded for the balance. I hardly have time to read any magazines these days.

Ahh!

Baby Jack (& Mean Ivy)

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Cindi was home sick yesterday and sent me this picture over the messenger to make me smile. Boy did it! He was such an adorable little guy. He's still a cutie-pie, but as you can see, he was sooo freakin' cute. You can also see pissy Ivy in the background, her look hasn't changed, she's still pissy.

The knitting class went well. I learned how to cast-on, which had been my problem. Once I got that down the knitting part came back, though I tend to be a tight knitter, big surprise. I just have to decide on my first project and get my supplies before Monday the 23rd. The thing I'm looking forward to about knitting is being able to watch tv or a movie and knit or knit on our car trips. I am also exited to make most of our gifts for friends and family.

Tonight!

Knitting Class

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My eight week knitting class starts tonight! I got my basket I ordered, it's a bit bigger than I expected but I'm sure we'll find many uses for it. I'm exited and nervous about tonight! I hope I do well.

The Sun Is Out!

Beautiful Skies

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This afternoon it is beautiful out! It is so refreshing after all the clouds and rain we had over the weekend. I wish I was outside today instead of being stuck inside at work. It reminds of beautiful summer days in Seattle I spent with Peri & Lili down at the "beach". It raised my spirits despite that fact I feel the beginning of another cold. But positive thinking!!!

Music

This is so cute, and the perfect item to not only protect my mini iPod, but make more stylish as well. Here a guide to the Best Northwest Releases for 2005. Click the picture to check it out. The Three Imaginary Girls have an awesome web site with music reviews, interviews, and much more!

Harpers Yearly Review

Check out Harper's Yearly Review for 2005. Lots of stuff happened.

Another Gift

Cindi's brother and sister-in-law sent us a package for Christmas. It had two really nice blankets that can be rolled up for easy travel use, they have bands that velcro and hold them together. As well as a cute snowmen tealight candle holder. We sent their gifts but her brothers still hasn't arrived.