Thursday, December 31, 2009

Wednesday, December 30, 2009

Tick Tock

I do not particularly like lists, but on my drive to town this morning I came up with this, my Yin Yang List of 2009.

Hated/Despised/Disliked ........ Loved/Adored/Liked

Losing Buster........ Getting Princess

Turning fifty-two .......... Living to see fifty-two

Living in a small, nay, tiny town.......... Country living

Good neighbors.......... Evil neighbors

Losing chickens to predators........... Raising baby chicks

Not spending Christmas w/family........... Spending Thanksgiving w/family

Sweetie losing good job........... Sweetie getting a good job

Summer with low cash reserves........... Sweetie getting back unemployment cash

Allergies............ Drugs

Depression........... Drugs

Beer............ Beer

Truncated vacation to NM........... Coming home

Bush............ Obama

Evil renters........... Evicting evil renters

Going to small claims court............ Judge Davis

Crazy Neighbor Josh............ Crazy Neighbor Josh

Bad acquaintances............ Nancy, Ricky, Nancy, Dara Bob, Betty Bob, Scott, John O, etc.





Thank you all for reading me and commenting, I love and appreciate all of you.

May 2010 be better for everyone!

Wednesday, December 23, 2009

Learn English at Home, in Your Spare Time!

For what it's worth, if I hear one more person in the media describe something as The Perfect Storm, simply because they cannot come up with some other phrase that means a fucking clusterfuck, I will….I will…..

get angry and grump and blog about it.

Tuesday, December 22, 2009

Keep Left

There are times that I love living here in the hinterlands of Republicanland.

When I came home from errands in town today, I saw a white bunny at the neighbor's house across from the post office. There were chickens on the left in my yard and in the alley, and five other bunnies in the grass in front of my house. Two cats awaited me, in their different lookout locations. Princess was in the car.

People slow down to look at my creatures, my pets, my children by eckstension. I would slow down to see such a sight at someone else's house. Wouldn't you?

The solstice has come, and daylight will be 6 seconds longer today. It was sunny most of this day, although with a haze. I am still not in love with much of anything, and play solitaire a lot, but there is hope.

And people, uneckspected people, read my blogs, and that makes me happy! I am sorry to not comment on anyone's blog lately, even though I read every post, and write answers in my head.

I slog onwards toward mid-January, the July of Winter - the real cold and colder of the sesaon. I think that something will, must, change, but I dread the change. I am not talking about seasons.

Little Brother had invited me to Ohio for Satyrday, and if weather permits, I will go.

The more you spend, the more you save.

I couldn't have said it better myself. Go and read this from Praying to Darwin.

Sunday, December 20, 2009

Press any key

Length Of Visible Light: 10h 30m
Length of Day 9h 31m

Tomorrow will be 2s shorter.

Thursday, December 17, 2009

Paid in Full



This is a wonderful website! It will keep you entertained for years, possibly.

This little short film means something to me in several different ways. First, I love the black and grey gloom of the mise en scene, and the constant surround of negative people. (Life here in Laconia, with our sour, dour farmer folk.) Secondly, I like the reminders of the real austerity and rationing that went on in great Britain after World War II, long after life here in the US rebounded almost immediately. Thirdly, though, it makes me sad that we Americans are mostly not touched one little bit by the two wars we waging, unless one has someone in the military serving over there.

I despise the orgy of Christmas. Sorry, but I do. Not the idea of the holiday, if that is your thing, but the crass consumerism of it all. It makes me sad.

Tuesday, December 15, 2009

Recycle

First, Sweetie gave me asthma. Then psoriasis. And now, his Whereinhellisit syndrome. You know, the one where you are looking straight at something, yet cannot see it?

This happens all the time here at Chez Fur. Car keys, wallets, important papers, cars in parking lots, that thing I just had a minute ago, ear plugs, and now, eye glasses. I have been the triumphant Finder of Lost Things for our entire relationship. I mocked him unmercifully.

But now? I have this disease and I can't find anything, either. Oh, I can still find his things, I just can't find my things.

I mean, I know the drill with his lost stuff. It's either in the bathroom, in his last worn pants or coat, on the kitchen table under something, or near that big RV.

So far, still lost is a dress. A whole dress. This morning? A bottle of medicine for the bunnies. Look, seek, look on top of, search, straighten up, look behind, look under, think. And repeat.

I don't have a Finder Goddess of my own, so I'm fucked.

Guess I'll play solitaire.

Monday, December 14, 2009

Invalid Password

Lady Euphoria, I am sorry to not play vacation, but that is something beyond me right now.

Right now? I am playing hand after hand of solitaire online, the Klondike version, in order to make the time just pass.

I used to do this with a real pack of cards when I was a kid, and I must have played ten thousand hands. To pass the time.

I tried to ecksplain depression yesterday so someone who does not suffer from it. It's hard. It's hard when one's disease is internal and not based upon one's status or belongings or needs. I have everything I want and need. Yet, I still... I am so tired of life. It is so hard to merely get up from the couch. If I didn't have my creatures, and my spinning dates, I just might not ever get up.

It's been difficult. But it is a disease, just as real as diabetes or asthma or cancer.

But I'm hangin' in there, passing time.

Today, I washed dishes, did three loads of laundry, went to the bank and recycled. For me? An accomplishment! I'll make chili tonight and play solitaire until seven thirty, when I can go to bed.

Tomorrow?

Solitaire.

Sunday, December 13, 2009

Stay in Lane

I got nuthin'.

It has been cold, below freezing, and gray. Today? It's cold, above freezing, and gray. Plus drizzling.

There are no dead animals to report. Chickens, rabbits, cats, and dog are all alive.

There is no Christmas news, as I don't celebrate that holiday. I do need to bring something green into the house, though.

I've posted some photos over at Back Roads Harrison County.

I'm depressed and weary.

You know, all the usual December stuff.

These are photos of the front moving through last Wednesday, bringing in the freezing temperatures.








This field is just south of us. The house in the distance belongs to Danny Boone. Yes, he is a descendent of that Daniel Boone. Our town was platted by Dan'l's brother, Squire Boone in 1816 and I live in Boone Township.

(An interesting tidbit of history. The town was originally divided into four parcels, [intersecting where the 4-way stop is now,] and each lot was owned by a William Something.)

Soon, there will be another Habitat for Humanity house built neckts door, in that field.

I am imagining that my view from the kitchen window will change.

Tuesday, December 08, 2009

Monday, December 07, 2009

Not Responsible for Items Left in Vehicle.

There was our first snow on the ground this morning! Not much, a mere dusting, but still ~ I liked seeing it.

And it is about time, as it is well into December.

The temps are just above freezing again, so tending the barn bunnies will be more comfortable. When it gets really cold, their water bottles/crocks freeze solid, and without water, bunnies won't eat. When it gets very cold, I take a bucket and a big jug of hot tap water out there. I thaw the bottles/crocks in the bucket and then fill them up from the jug. I wear rubber gloves to keep my hands from becoming finger-cicles. So far, they are all doing well, but there is more coldness in store for later in the week. Angoras take the cold better that they do the heat of summer.

I went to the Friendship SpinnersRetreat at Shakertown (Pleasant Hill, KY) this past Saturday. It was wonderful to see such a turnout there, larger than I have seen in the last few years. I wore the fresh-from-the-oven Artisan Vest.



The metal buttons are from a denim dress that I bought at a thrift store in Springfield, MO earlier this year. (Remember my truncated vacation?) I like this vest very much. It is the perfect around-the-house, keep-me-warm garment that is also well-suited to public viewing.



My gauge tightened up somewhat about a quarter of the way through it, which worked out okay. It is a bit scant in the bust area, but a better blocking should eliminate the gappage that occurred upon first wearing, (which didn't look awful, but rather, artful.) I mean really, I blocked it Friday night, and sewed on the buttons Saturday morning - and it looked damn good. It hits me knuckle length, which for my size, is perfect.

Thank you Lynne for the bread/cake. Sweetie inhaled almost all of it immediately when I got home, but I did get a taste. Yum.

Thank you, NancyNeverSwept for the handwoven towel in those wonderful colors of turquoise/black/hot pink. I love it! Congratulations on achieving Crone-hood!

I was totally remiss in gift giving this year. But to be honest, it was about all I could to do forklift my ass out of the house and actually attend the meeting. My isolating tendencies hold sway especially during these dark, cold months. I don't do holidays of any sort very well. I love this post from Bizarro, as he pretty much echos my feelings about the commercialization of Ecksmas.

Last year, I sent out hand-made Bunny Pop-Up holiday cards, and I hope to maybe, possibly, do something similar this year. Just don't hold yer breath.

Thursday, December 03, 2009

Only 40 calories!

So.

My van has been "borrowed" since Saturday, and I needed, really needed, to ship those windows back to Home Depot, for which the van was required to haul said windows to a FedEcks drop off site. (By the way, the Home Depot customer service people have just been super. Thank you!)

The van was in my driveway this morning, and if it hadn't been, someone (Crazy Neighbor Josh) would have been called in for Grand Theft Auto. The real thing, not the game. I got the key back, and began the short journey to Brandenburg and....

ran out of gas four miles from home.

I will spare you the rant about returning someone's vehicle with mere droplets of fuel in the system. I will spare you the profusely spoken swear words. Mostly. Damn it! MotherFucker!

Fortunately, I bottomed out near the house of a person that I actually knew, who drove me back to town to get five gallons of gas, and then drove me back to my van. Thank you, Darryl! My best to Corinne.

This has been about the least of my troubles this week. It has been gray and dreary, and it is finally, actually, for reals, getting chilly. Therefore, depression has been my constant companion, along with general sick-feelings and balloon-headedness. I feel awful and should be the invalid character in some tragic Victorian novel who has a sad end, due to unsaid words of love, or a lost letter, an unknown inheritance, or some such crap. How goth.

Okay. Critter news. The two chickens in the barn finally discovered the windows and flew the coop yesterday. I still have not put up netting in the backyard enclosure. See above.

Silky, who had been ailing, died this morning. I had heard that liquid benadryl would help the process of dying, and so when I found him prone in his cage, I gave him two syringes of the cherry flavored. I don't know if it was that or what, but he quit breathing shortly thereafter. If it did work, it was so much less violent that a bullet. Bless his heart.

There are only 24 angoras in the barn now. I bred Sonya to Harvey last month, two young and healthy kids, and hope to have babies about mid-December.

Love you all, my few and scant readers.

Oh, here is something for anyone over 47.