FeatherLight » nablopomo

Chappy Chanukah

Amanda — Thu, 02 Dec 2010 02:44:08 +0000

Believe it or not, I only really know one Jewish person, but being in need of a title I figured why not wish my one Jewish acquaintance a joyous holiday? Even if it isn’t the Jewish Christmas.

I totally blew NaBloPoMo this year, so to ~~punish myself~~ make up for it, I’m going to try to post once a day in December. It’s not like I have anything else to do, right? Oops… wrong. I have classwork. I have papers to write! It occurred to me today that one of the things I hated about college the first time around was writing papers – I guess it’s good that it’s been nine years, or I might have remembered that before paying tuition. Boo.

Have I mentioned before how much I love this time of year? Starting with the Thanksgiving holiday and going all the way through to my birthday… I just love everything about it. I love the time spent with family, the shopping for just the right gift, the baking, the decorating, and the food. AND THE MUSIC (see, Listening). I’m so ready to do my shopping, but I’m having a terribly hard time figuring out what to buy everyone. I know what to buy for one person on my gift list, and everyone else is just a mystery to me. It’s frustrating! I’m sure I’ll figure it out – just hope I do it before all the good stuff is gone.

And now, I leave you with the number 1 item on my wish list… I hope Santa reads the blog, because I’m not sure who else is going to stick it under the tree.

I desperately want a Kindle, and have for some time. I don’t think it would keep me from buying any hardcopy books, it would just give me a different way to enjoy one of my favorite hobbies.

NaBloPoMo 2019 ::Day 11::

Amanda — Fri, 12 Nov 2010 02:54:56 +0000

Nevermind that I skipped days 4 through 10… what can I say? I sign up for these things whether I’m really into it or not, and then I FAIL. I didn’t want a prize anyway. Boo.

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A few weeks ago I got this midday text message from my sister-in-law: “Do u have the twilight series books???”. Well, of course I do, plus the movies that have come out so far on Blu-ray. I texted her back, which started this whole texting flurry about what happens, and does Edward ever change Bella, and on and on and on. I am not one to spoil a surprise, but I answered a few of her questions. She couldn’t wait for me to bring the books to her (even though I was coming for a visit just a couple of weeks later), so she got 2-4 from the library, skipping 1 altogether (sacrilege!!). By the time I got there she had finished them. I wouldn’t say she neglected her children in order to read them, but my brother took some very incriminating footage…

Since then, I have been trying to figure out what to get her for her upcoming birthday. It must be Twilight-related, and I think the cheesier, the better. I figured I’d see what I could find on Etsy, just by searching “twilight”. Here’s what I found… 3 cheesy, 3 not-so-cheesy:

1. Vampire Bite Silver and Red Swarovski Crystal necklace from adrienneaudrey. This is more True Blood than Twilight, but SO kitschy either way.

2. Twilight in a Bottle Gathered under the Full Moon from AngiesIris. So, this looney goes out to First Beach under the freaking full moon and bottles sand?

3. Twilight Meadow Bouquet Necklace from LilMissSparkley. GAH.

4. Twilight Bella’s Mittens from KnittingCarnival. These are actually cute. I might even wear them. My sister-in-law won’t need them since she lives in GEORGIA.

5. Hello Moon 8×8 Fine Art Photograph from SherriConley. What a pretty moon!

6. Bloodrop bracelet from edor. I actually think this is kind of pretty; it’s something I might actually wear.

But then, I found this, and I think it’s clearly the winner. My sister-in-law’s birthday is just before Christmas, and this will look perfect on the tree…

PERFECT.

NaBloPoMo 2010 ::Day 3::

Amanda — Thu, 04 Nov 2010 03:30:17 +0000

How about those post titles, eh? Love the creativity…

My cat is snoring. Loudly enough, in fact, that I can hear him over the dog (also snoring) and the sound of FedEx planes taking off from the nearby airport (they’re pretty loud). I suppose I can consider this preparation in the event I ever meet a man and subsequently share a bed, right?

Tomorrow evening I promise to write something worthy of reading, rather than this meaningless stuff I’ve put out so far this month. There may even be pictures… we’ll see.

NaBloPoMo 2010 ::Day 1::

Amanda — Tue, 02 Nov 2010 01:46:30 +0000

Have decided to participate in NaBloPoMo again this year… I’m hoping it gives me the kick in the rear I need to get back to blogging.

So, what to write about? It’s been an uneventful summer, for the most part. So uneventful, in fact, that I’ve decided to create my own little drama by going back to school. Yep, I will – once again – be a student. I’m not looking forward to the studying, but at least it’s just one class at a time, and it’s independent study (aka, online classes), so I get to live the introvert’s dream and avoid interacting with classmates. Yay! I also found that I don’t have to take quite as many classes as I thought I did. I had actually started this program once before (9 years ago), and apparently I got through most of my required electives and some of the core credits. Now ask me if I actually *remember* anything I learned in those classes… NOT ONE THING. Should be interesting.

So, stay tuned for the next month. I have a few crazy stories… one or two involving my nutso neighbors! I know you can hardly wait.

Daring rescue

Amanda — Sun, 01 Feb 2009 03:11:49 +0000

Daring because I totally brought an unknown, stray dog into my house (gah) today. Rescue, because this dog has been wandering my neighborhood since January 23, and NO ONE else has done anything about it. Oh, one other person called animal control, but no one has tried to catch him, I don’t think anyone has been feeding him… nothing. We had 13″ of snow fall in my neighborhood Tuesday night, and some really cold temperatures, and yet he was out there sitting on my cross-the-street neighbors front porch and yard, shivering, all week long.

I first called animal control Tuesday morning, but with the impending snow and subsequent chaos because of the amount that fell, no one was able to come out until Thursday. Evidently they did make a trip, but couldn’t find Stray anywhere. Friday night was really the first opportunity I had to do anything for him… I had tried to offer him a bowl of water earlier in the week, but he wasn’t interested. Cat food, however, he was interested in. This morning when I opened the front door he came flying across the street to see me! I fixed up a spot in the garage, led him through the house, and installed him out there with some more cat food and a bowl of water. A friend (thanks, Amy!) brought a spare collar and leash and some actual dog food, and for the rest of the weekend I’m keeping him in the kitchen, gated or crated away from the cat, rabbits, and guinea pigs.

He seems like a nice dog – he’s not terribly skinny, so he’s been eating something, but his coat is long and thick, so he’s probably been an outside dog for a while. He doesn’t like being left alone, so I’m kind of trapped in here. He also hates the crate, so much so that he destroyed my kitchen curtains while I left for an hour to get some supplies at PetsMart. Crazy Stray. I’d take a picture, but that means I’d have to leave the kitchen and right now, he’s flat out on the floor sleeping up against the gate in the kitchen doorway. In order to get out, I’d have to step over him… he doesn’t want me to leave. Unfortunately for him, I have other animals to care for, as well. He’s going to have to get used to it.

I’m not terribly excited about taking him to animal control Monday morning, but his chances there are better than if he remained a stray. I know he’s just as likely to be euthanized there as to be placed for adoption; they have too many animals and not enough room or staff to care for all the animals surrendered there. Taking him there buys him 4 days of warmth and safety, though, with guarantees that he won’t be hit by a car or injured by another animal. It’s sad; I don’t know why he’s a stray, but I’m a rescuer. I had to do something. Doing nothing, just waiting to see what happened, just wasn’t an option… it never is. I may be apathetic about many things, but animals are not included in that list.

If you live in the Indianapolis area and are looking for a nice Lab mix, check with Indianapolis Animal Care and Control next week… he’s an adult dog with some scars on his nose, black with a white chest, ears that stick up and then flop at the ends, and a curly tail. He needs people, and probably a fenced yard…

Checkin’ in

Amanda — Mon, 26 Jan 2009 19:06:45 +0000

So, hi… hey, this NaBloPoMo thing is working out really well for me, eh? All this blogging… wait, what blogging? Oh, RIGHT. I haven’t written anything in about a week.

In other total failure news, I spent about $100 since Friday that I did not need to spend. It all started Friday at lunchtime – I decided to go out to eat, but I can’t just eat by myself. I have to have something to read while I eat. Since I had forgotten to carry a book with me all week, I figured I’d stop by Barnes & Noble and pick up a magazine… just something quick. I ended up with two books and two magazines. What is wrong with me, that I can’t walk into a store, buy one teeny magazine, and walk back out?

This morning as I got dressed, I realized the pair of pants I was planning to wear just felt… a little tight. So I figured I should replace them, right? The replacement pair at Old Navy were on sale for $19.50, so that’s not so bad. But then I added a 3/4-sleeve cardigan… still not terribly pricey, but I didn’t really need it.

I’m going to extend my spending hiatus to try and make it up… I’m going to go for the end of February and see how things go. Somewhere in there I have a wedding to go to, so I need to get shoes and some undergarments (at least I already have a suitable dress!), but other than that I think I can do it.

Closed caption

Amanda — Tue, 20 Jan 2009 16:47:47 +0000

I had no intent to liveblog the inauguration, but I’m watching the live feed at the Joint Congressional Committee on Inaugural Ceremonies website. It’s nice, because they’ve got closed captioning, but that technology is just not right. Apparently, President-Elect Obama entered to “cheese and applause”. Hmmm.

Handy, take 2

Amanda — Fri, 16 Jan 2009 17:26:29 +0000

I think I’m just a lucky person. Or unlucky… but I bounce back?

I got up this morning to shower, turned on the tub faucet, and it went “pffffttttt”. No water. Frozen pipes. It was supa-dupah cold here overnight, with lows of -12°… and I completely forgot to leave a faucet running. Oops. I called my dad, who suggested that if the pipes had not yet burst they surely would, so I should attempt to thaw them with a hair dryer. I couldn’t imagine that it would work, so I (naturally) second-guessed him and checked on the internet. Lo and behold, every website I read said to use a hair dryer. I bundled up and headed into the garage with my trusty Conair and set to work – it took 45 minutes, but I was able to get things flowing again. According to a local news channel, it is currently NA°, which is why I left the faucet in my bathroom running and the furnace at a nice, steady 71°.

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In other news, I mentioned the other day that I ordered a hard drive enclosure so I could take the hard drive out of the decrepit Gateway desktop and try to recover files. It arrived yesterday – can you say quick shipping?? – and I was able to mount the hard drive and get it up and running. There’s clearly nothing wrong with it, so something else in the Gateway malfunctioned… I’m not even going to bother trying to find out what. If I had to guess, I’d say the graphics card finally died, but it’s just not worth it to me to try and keep it going. I am relieved to know that I didn’t lose any data, though, and I’m glad I can keep that hard drive for additional storage. I consider that $39 well spent…

Accountability

Amanda — Wed, 14 Jan 2009 04:07:48 +0000

I am so bad at this not buying anything new! I think I’ll post purchases here… at least that way I’m forced to face it.

Yesterday I bought a replacement bird feeder. The other one I had was kind of icky and didn’t come apart for cleaning. It could probably have waited until next month, but the birds have been spending a lot of time at the feeders lately, and I don’t want them to get sick! The feeder was $34 or so + tax.

Today, I ordered a hard drive enclosure so I can try to get all the data off the hard drive before I ditch the ol’ desktop. It’s definitely dead… I don’t know what, exactly, is wrong with it, but I’m tired of messing around with it. Total cost, including shipping, was $39.

I think I’m done for the week… if I can avoid leaving the house, I might be able to keep from spending any more money. Maybe.

The worst timing

Amanda — Tue, 13 Jan 2009 04:27:14 +0000

It’s been about three weeks since I’ve been needed overnight at my brother’s… my sister-in-law was on vacation over the holidays, and RC took vacation last week. While it was a nice respite, being able to sleep in my own bed every night, I’m now out of practice. The girls were SO excited to see me, even the four-legged one – you’d have thought they hadn’t seen me at all during that time! And they were terribly cute, playing “let’s dress up and pretend we’re playing in the snow”. Wia has such a big imagination for a three-year old, and Emma follows right along behind her.

Yep, they were cute until bedtime rolled around. Wia took the opportunity to get up no less than 10 times… “I need a little drink of water”, “I need to make a stinky”, “I need to take out my ponytail”, “I need a little drink of milk/juice/more water”. I finally had to threaten a spanking, and fortunately it worked, because I don’t think I could follow through with it.

But poor Bailey suffered the most… she’s now 15 weeks old, and is 99.9% house trained. She’s so good – she lets you know when she needs to go out, and will even come and get you if you’re in another room. But she still takes a long time when she needs to do her business, and I wasn’t paying attention to the cues tonight. I sort of hurried her back in after she squatted, and didn’t give her time to… you know. Wia and I finished up her evening ablutions, and came into the kitchen to get a sip of water, and there it was. In the middle of the living room floor, a steaming pile of Aunt Amanda’s Mistake. Poor puppy. She was so embarrassed; she just stood by it and kind of whined. I felt terrible. Thankfully she forgives easily.