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Oct. 16th, 2009 @ 06:26 pm I Return! (And World Bread Baking Day)
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Hi-ho!

Um, yeah. Let's see, I got to visit my folks for the quilt show. Not sure I like the new space. It's a converted factory and the floor feels like it. I also don't think it was as big as the Farm Show Complex. But nice quilts. And it seems that the spring quilt show has died a gruesome death due to the economy. But not to be left alone, there's a new one sweeping into the same town just a little earlier. So, we won't be completely without a quilt show. But it's still sad, my mom went to it ages ago, back when she first started quilting. (Which was before I was in high school.)

A friend and I got to the Renaissance Festival one weekend. We went when an out of state friend we hadn't seen in years was there. Was good reconnecting.

Speaking of friends, I've been roped into helping with a Mad Hatter costume from American McGee's Alice. *rolls eyes* He has little clue of making costumes and doesn't want to sew. I'm providing direction, and probably some sewing machine pointers. We'll see if he survives the stilts.

It's World Bread Baking Day and I'm baking! I'm half way through the rise on my Cheese Bread. It's from the Encyclopedia of Cooking by Mary Margaret McBride. My mom's mom picked it up from the store installment by installment back in the day. I only got to copy the recipe. I'm not allowed to borrow the actual book. Although, my brother is holding the Joy of Cooking hostage and said I can't have it.....

On the brother front, the two of us headed up to Penn State last weekend to see the Nittnay Lions cream the Eastern Illinois Panthers. It was fun visiting, but my calves hated me for awhile. Good times. Good times.

One of the baby turtles from long ago that I raised and then gave to my father when she got too big for an aquarium laid eggs this year. Wow, I feel old. But two of the eggs were fertile and hatched. We can tell the red eared slider liked her. But decided to take a few and raise them, before we found out that only two of the eggs were good. I nearly didn't do it, so my dad would have some babies to raise this winter, but I did end up going through with it. They're having fun in the mud, muck and seaweed. One is brave and sits out, while the other one always hides in the mud. So far, so good.
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Sep. 12th, 2009 @ 12:08 pm What a Month!
What a month! Has it really been a month? Wow. Went to Hersheypark again, had a blast! Then went out to Lewes, DE for a ride on a tall ship. Love sailing. Absolutely love it. My friend said all the lines disappeared from my face while we were out. And I saw a dolphin! :D

I then proceeded to spend a frantic week attempting to finish my Dr. Horrible costume and get ready for Dragon*Con. And I messed up the costume several times and had to resew, even at the convention! Stupid fat head.... Anyway, I need to translate those hand stitches to machine in the coming days.

I came home from Dragon*Con with Leonard Nimoy's autograph, a desire to do a steampunk costume next year, and a cold. Not sure if it's con crud, or the office cold. At this point, I'm hoping for con crud. The office cold leaves a nasty cough behind for weeks after. But I'm solidly recovering from the cold at this point. As long as I don't have to talk much. Then the tickling starts in my throat.
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Aug. 7th, 2009 @ 10:37 pm Sulky McSulkyPants
Bleh. Not a good day. Capped off by having to wait two hours and go out in my swing chair to read Harry Potter by porch light in order to avoid my neighbor. The fence is no where near enough. :(

Hit 100 tweets. Not much to report, except I do seem to have gotten back in the swing of doing my exercises again. My diet er portion control is not as good, but it's still improving.

My sad pathetic tomato plant only produced one fruit. And a midget fruit at that. Smaller than a golf ball, but still not a cherry tomato. It wasn't supposed to be a cherry tomato anyway. I gave up and plucked it after it started turning red. Fortunately, all was not lost, a coworker brought in tomatoes from her garden. So, the tomato sauce on the stove is made with two yellow tomatoes and a red one of normal size, plus the pathetic one. I think I used too much vinegar though. We'll see how it cooks out. Do need another can of paste though. I underestimated the amount of fruit.

Having fun with grilled cheese sandwiches on sourdough. Mostly cheddar and swiss/edam.

Arthritis is acting up. Joints are swollen. I spotted goldenrod in bloom too. So, in addition to the pain...hay fever.
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Jul. 31st, 2009 @ 09:35 pm Week two
Well, week two of twitter. Found Nathan Fillion and an in character twit for the show Castle, by the folks from the show. It's cool, if a little nerdy. Unfortunately, the DVDs of Castle don't come out until the end of September. But I got Eureka Season 3.0 and Dollhouse Season 1 DVDs this week. Can't say I think as highly of the first unaired pilot, as I do of what aired. Surprisingly, the network actually did make it better.

Interesting week. It dragged on at work. At home, I made a second attempt at a new vacuum. This time it was a Bissel and so far it's working. Also managed to prewash a lot of fabric, including the stuff for my Dr. Horrible costume. Down to just a month now, I'd better get moving.

I attempted to make pizza dough today for the first time. Something was off with the recipe I used, because it was way too sticky. Tasted okay, but had to add so much flour! I just made a little personal pizza and put the rest in the freezer. I think there are like 8 balls of dough in there. I put extra flour in the bags so it wouldn't stick as bad.

Tinkerfest is kinda not well thought out. Two quests, a bunch of glowies that are hard to get due to lag and mobs of players. And then it's done. *shrug* And if you're under 40, the one quest is very dangerous with all the aggro that needs dodging.
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Jul. 31st, 2009 @ 09:35 pm Week two
Well, week two of twitter. Found Nathan Fillion and an in character twit for the show Castle, by the folks from the show. It's cool, if a little nerdy. Unfortunately, the DVDs of Castle don't come out until the end of September. But I got Eureka Season 3.0 and Dollhouse Season 1 DVDs this week. Can't say I think as highly of the first unaired pilot, as I do of what aired. Surprisingly, the network actually did make it better.

Interesting week. It dragged on at work. At home, I made a second attempt at a new vacuum. This time it was a Bissel and so far it's working. Also managed to prewash a lot of fabric, including the stuff for my Dr. Horrible costume. Down to just a month now, I'd better get moving.

I attempted to make pizza dough today for the first time. Something was off with the recipe I used, because it was way too sticky. Tasted okay, but had to add so much flour! I just made a little personal pizza and put the rest in the freezer. I think there are like 8 balls of dough in there. I put extra flour in the bags so it wouldn't stick as bad.

Tinkerfest is kinda not well thought out. Two quests, a bunch of glowies that are hard to get due to lag and mobs of players. And then it's done. *shrug* And if you're under 40, the one quest is very dangerous with all the aggro that needs dodging.
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Jul. 25th, 2009 @ 01:57 pm Tweet Sensation
Well, I gave in and got a twitter account. The thought is, it might get me back into blogging. Or at least give me some way to remember the things I want to blog about. And no, no twitter feeds. I'm also blogging about things like what I ate and how well I slept and if I did my exercises. Not exciting stuff. But still, the butterfly sighting at work was cool.

But I digress. Twitter is also weird in how people choose to follow you at random, based on key word searches and then drop you when they realize that you aren't their kind of person. I mean on LJ or blogs in general, following is driven by how well you write or the pretty pictures you put up. But twitter is just 140 characters. But it does seem to be an interesting way to get bite sized news bits from things like Comic Con. Eureka is renewed for season 4! And I did find a few neat qigong sites.

For the other things that are happening.... My dad's health is acting up for a change. Mom's healthy. He's got cysts around his kidneys and of course, more kidney stones. He also has a preulcerous condition and his blood sugar is a bit high. Which means that I'm back to trying to up my fluid intake again. I've been low, because, I can't stand plain water and low sodium, low calorie drinks are lame too. And there's no way that I should drink two liters of cherry coke a day. Still, more effort is necessary.

Bermuda high is back in town, which means summer is officially here, after the nice damp, cool start.

Caught a red eared slider while canoeing today. She was a big turtle, over a foot long. She just kinda tried to hide under the canoe while I chased her, so I grabbed her hind leg. That gave me traction when I grabbed her shell. She hissed at me, but in the end, she didn't dive back into the water when I was ready to let her go. But she did go back in. And back under the canoe again. *sigh*

Oh, the lease was renewed. I'm here for another year. Gotta drop that paperwork off later today.
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Jul. 2nd, 2009 @ 10:13 am Skipping June
Oooo, more posts.

Anyway, Memorial Day weekend was fun. I actually spent it at home in the company of myself. Wow. I just needed a weekend to myself. Three of the four days were spent at the lake, but shoulders absolutely protested going on the last day.

The start of June saw a very wet weekend at Hersheypark, but I enjoyed myself despite the kevetching of friends. Unfortunately, there was a sunny day at the Gardens and I got a bad case of sunburn on a place that hadn't seen sun previously. That kinda killed my workout ethic. Two weeks of no exercise except for canoeing, and I still haven't really gotten back into the swing of things. I blame EQ 2. I manage some days a week, but it's no where as regular as I'd like.

The Monday before I went to visit my folks for Father's Day/Mom's Birthday, my neighbor had a hissy fit. And those were what I thought were the nice neighbors. Claimed that a compost pile was "ruining" her experience on her deck. One level up from the compost pile. Really, that thing only stinks and has flies from about one foot out. So, I had to spend that week, between the raindrops, moving the compost from the big bin, into smaller trash cans. Ugh. I mean I'm a renter and there's an HOA, but I hadn't seen anything in the HOA rules about open compost piles when I started it. I bet she got something passed stating no open compost, if there is such a rule as she claimed. And yet, no mention of all the standing water I had around. (I mean I rained 4 out of 5 days there for several weeks, no way you could keep all that empty.) Hmmm. Still, when will my beebalm sprout?

Saw Up. Loved Up. I actually researched how to do the box step in the waltz. I adored Fred and Ginger when I was younger and American Movie Classics actually played classics. Now I just need someone to go dancing with.
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May. 22nd, 2009 @ 09:23 am Frost in May
I didn't get out to the lake last weekend.  Just one of those weekends.  It was cool and windy. In fact, there was frost in the counties north and west of me on Tuesday.  Crazy.  At least it warmed up and dried out for the long weekend.  Okay, threat of thundershowers Sunday and Monday, but I should still be able to get out.

Went to a coworker's mother's funeral last week.  The office went, because we're that kind of folks.  Was terrible, because it brings back the sense of loss from funerals that were for your friends/family.  Don't like the things.  I know why they are, but still. 
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May. 9th, 2009 @ 03:49 pm Hmm, Monthy?
Wow, update time already?  *smirk*

Since last time, I went on travel to Albuquerque.  So, hobby quilt 2.0 racked up a new location.  Although, the original hobby quilt had been there.  Speaking of original hobby quilt, I wrapped up stitching on the binding this morning and now have it all sandwiched.  I'll put it in the frame tomorrow.  I'm too tired right now.

Iris are blooming, despite needing hip waders to go in the back yard.  Speaking of which, the Big Ben peony does not appreciate all the water and lost its bud again to black ick.  I'm raising them up in a pot, soonish.  But this summer, definitely.  I'm tired of this nonsense.

I went to a qigong workshop with Master Li last weekend.  Very active one, everyone was tired.  But I think I've gotten the hang of it, all except for this one movement 
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Apr. 10th, 2009 @ 10:58 am Is it nearly tax time already?
Odds and ends since the last time....  In no particular order.
  • I got started on my new Hobby quilt.  First the long blocks, then I finally decided on the brown and was able to do a few nine-patch blocks.  Then out of impatience I put one of the larger units together to see how it would look.  Even sweeter than I expected!  Tres cool!  (I've been traveling a lot.)
  • Mom had a bad back flair.  Basically such pain that she couldn't do anything or think straight.  She didn't want to go to the doctor, due to the costs, since she is out of work, on my dad's insurance and family plans stink royally.  But my dad bullied her into going and it helped enough that we could go to the quilty show.  She even walked around the whole thing with me!  Yea!
  • Qigong is going well.  So well in fact that I had the yen to play an Akashic Brotherhood mage.  Such a strong yen, that I started a game myself!  (None of the others like the Mage system, or are willing to run another game.)  
  • Game's going well.  I don't want to talk about how late we ran the intro.  But they were all so jazzed and my two parter turned into a one parter.  Well, I've got a lot of little plot points going into tomorrow's game for them to burn through.
  • My arms have been pathetic.  I have carpal tunnel and other joint/tendon/muscle problems.  When my muscles are strong, they take the strain off, when they aren't....  Well, it was at the so pathetic point, including very floppy biceps, that I actually started a strenuous workout regimen.  Weight program three days a week and qigong the other three, with a day of rest.  Even went as far as to chart it out on a calendar.  I've flubbed the schedule this week, but there has been noticeable improvement.  I had to back off a little bit on intensity, because I still have joint problems and too much pain is not good.  But at the same point, I am pushing it a lot harder than I used to.  Hopefully this keeps up.
  • One of my friends got a fed job, and while it is miles ahead of the job he used to have, he's still frazzled, snappish and absent-minded.  Dark subject area and hyper long commute are eating at him.  Worst of all, he's snapping at me.  

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Feb. 22nd, 2009 @ 04:23 pm Rewind to Good Times
I'm still making a recovery from the other weekend. Long slow time getting past not eating and stuff. And then there are those opportunistic buggies that strike while your defenses are down.

Had a win at work. Basically some thing that isn't really understandable, unless you know the personalities involved. Suffice it to say, someone who used to make my life difficult, had to fix something to make my life easier.

Over my birthday I went to The Spa at the Hotel Hershey. Chocolate package of course. Absolutely loved it. Didn't want to leave and want to go back. Unfortunately, it's a lot of money for a regular thing. *sigh* Still, wonderful. Although, the fondue wrap was the least wonderful. Next time I'll see if I can switch out that for a reflexology session....
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Feb. 16th, 2009 @ 08:20 am Plague
So, I had a nice long weekend with the plague. Not the head and chest plague, no nothing that benign. (I've had friends with that variety. I'd trade them in a heartbeat and they wouldn't.) No, I had a gastro bug.

( Disgusting details behind cut )
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Feb. 3rd, 2009 @ 06:56 pm Regrettably
So, I finally did what I'd been dreading for years. I sliced open the sleeve of my shirt while using a rotary cutter. And it was one of my favorite work shirts too. :/ I actually had matching thread to fix it, but still...
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Jan. 31st, 2009 @ 11:04 am Snowed In
Well, for the Inauguration, I sat in my la-z-boy and quilted in a sunbeam. It was all warm and cozy. My quilt is behind schedule, that's because I spent the time leading up to that weekend cleaning, but the visit was canceled due to weather, particularly cold weather. My parents came down the next weekend, which also necessitated a lot of cleaning. Some because I didn't finish, and some because things get dirty through the week. Stupid counters.

Had a good visit. Unfortunately, my mom was laid off last Tuesday. It kinda makes sense, with all her health problems and restrictions, she wasn't really contributing. But then again, she's one of the few white people working there, and an older woman. So....

We've had one snowy and icy January so far. Still snow on the ground, or rather snow under ice on the ground. Severely overworked my elbow and shoulder trying to chip 1/4 - 1/2 of ice off my car on Wednesday morning. Ouch. Fortunately, a nice neighbor offered to do the walks while I was "breaking into" my car.

I've been into the Sims. I'm making custom careers and gradually reading up on how to recolor objects. Part of that is I'm not at all fond of the latest MMORG all my friends are into, so Sims is getting my attention. I do like the customablility of it. I'm not stuck with what the designers were willing to give me. (Can you say 1 nerf too many?) I even went as far as to buy the two latest Stuff Packs and SimCity 4 so I can build new neighborhoods...

Oh, that reminds me, Circuit City is going out of business. Deals weren't much better than Amazon on software and movies, but still, no shipping...

Had my car into the shop on Monday. There was this whining/whistling/chirping sound that was driving me crazy. It was nonspecific too. It would go when I was breaking, when I was accelerating, when I was going steady, and wouldn't do it consistently. Then the front headlight went out. Ended up getting an oil change, new breaks (it was the low break sensor driving me mad) and the new headlight. *sigh* I feel poor.
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Jan. 6th, 2009 @ 07:44 pm Not so great endings
Last year didn't end so great. Bob had been sick and injured before Christmas. Still peppy, although, not eating, which isn't unusual this time of year. I knew it would be bad to leave him, but taking him to visit my folks would have been more stress, which also isn't good. In the end, I came home to a dead turtle. I buried him in the yard under the shed. I would have buried him in the back wetlands, but I was too concerned that a dog might dig him up. That would be bad. I should have been a better turtle parent, but it is rough when these things hit.

Zeppe's still doing fine. And eating. I worry when they don't eat, even if it is normal. I just need to keep him watered. The house is so dry.

In other news, the rosemary tree did survive Christmas, although it took a beating over New Year's. I brought it home yesterday and took in my red tinged philodendron and part of the yellow veined pothos. I'm using them to protect the ladybugs. There are ladybugs trying to overwinter in the office. Unfortunately, I'm battling one cleaning lady who got over eager with the vacuum cleaner and attacked them on time. Fortunately, there doesn't seem to be any end of them, but still, protection is key. I need to figure out some more little things to do in the window, as the vines aren't quite long enough at the moment. Still, lucky ladybugs!

I still like my job, and I really like the shorter commute.
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