Thursday Thirteen - Edition #2

February 28, 2007

Thursday Thirteen - Edition #2

Thirteen ways to pamper yourself! (Because you are worth it!) Take a bath. Make it an event with bath salts and bubbles. Use dish soap if you don't have bubble bath. Turn on your favorite soothing music. Light a candle. Use aromatherapy oil or a diffuser. Poor a glass of wine or your favorite beverage. Make a cup of tea. Try a cup of English Breakfast tea or earl grey or herbal tea is great. Put a little sweetener and milk in it and use your prettiest cup. Lavish your entire body with a nice smelling lotion. After bathing pamper your skin. Buy yourself a rose, or a bunch of flowers. This does not have to be expensive, you can get some nice bunches at most grocery stores for $4.99. But enjoy it, put it somewhere where you can see it and enjoy it. Or go outside and pick a flower, it doesn't have to cost a thing. Enjoy a bite of good chocolate. There are certain properties in chocolate that make you feel good and dark chocolate is even good for you. Take a walk. Most of us can do this no matter the time or season and it does good to get the blood flowing and to move our bodies. Doesn't have to be a long walk. Read a book. Take time for you, even if it's just 10 minutes. Lock the door. It's OK to be by yourself. Try a new lipstick. Maybe it's a color you haven't worn for awhile or not sure you like. Try it again. Try a new red shade! Go get a pedicure. Worth every penny! Journal. Write down your thoughts for the day, or write a poem. Write all the things that you are grateful for. Give yourself a facial. Take that extra time to thoroughly wash your face and then do a mask and relax for 20 minutes. Follow-up with your toner and moisturizer and eye cream and put on some lip gloss. Pet your pup or scratch your kitty. Animals give us so much back, take a little time to be with them. Links to other Thursday Thirteens! 1. Raggedy 2. Read, Write, and Dream 3. Amy's Random Thoughts 4. chicken-scratch.ca 5. Welcome to the Sanctum Santorum 6. Dragonheart's Domain 7. Babysteps 8. hello, self 9. Wackymommy.org 10. A Knight's Lady 11. The Mis-Adventures of Captain Poopy 12. Heidi's Kitchen 13. Title Deleted 14. Who's Yo Mama 15. the witch doctor is in 16. Daddy's Roses 17. (leave your link in comments, and I’ll add you here!)

Get the Thursday Thirteen code here!


The purpose of the meme is to get to know everyone who participates a little bit better every Thursday. Visiting fellow Thirteeners is encouraged! If you participate, leave the link to your Thirteen in others comments. It’s easy, and fun! Be sure to update your Thirteen with links that are left for you, as well! I will link to everyone who participates and leaves a link to their 13 things. Trackbacks, pings, comment links accepted!

View More Thursday Thirteen Participants

I am part of the harmonious whole, as we all are.

I am part of the harmonious whole, as we all are.

Happy Birthday to Julie!!

She's my buddy, my pal. We met in high school and life was never the same after we met. Oh, the stories we could tell... about old boyfriends, and Bob's Big Boy, and perms and partying and going to the beach and the desert and husbands and kids and our families. Nicknames we've had for each other, Mitch and Muttley, Spaz, Big Bird... :) She's one of a kind and the best friend a girl could have! We have a little tradition of calling on our birthdays to sing happy birthday to each other, and you have to end it with a big, HA HA! Well, Jul, enjoy your years and I hope your birthday is as special as you! (And we all know... you are SPECIAL!!)

Tom is adjusting well, I'd say he's more curious that mad about Henry. Henry is still skittish but he comes out to visit and when we hold him, oh, he's so sweet! I really can't wait til he feels comfortable to just be with us and Tom.

Thursday Thirteen is under new ownership and will continue with no lapse! Yeah, so come check my Thursday Thirteen tomorrow! And visit some of the other participants. I find it very interesting.

pics

February 26, 2007

pics

Here's some promised pics...
Here are the beautiful roses I received. I did call him and thank him. He asked me to dinner Saturday but I had plans.


Here's my Tom, sitting by Mamacita who is holding the new addition Henry. I think he's a little jealous, my poor guy. And he had to go to the vet today and get two front nails trimmed. He has an extra digit, kind of between his thumb and paw that is hard to cut and it was growing in to the skin. I may have them removed in the future, but he'll be better with those cut now.

And here is Henry, in his favorite spot, lounging on Mamacita!

King Henry VIII

February 25, 2007

King Henry VIII

May I present to you:

King Henry VIII

Isn't he adorable! We went to meet him Saturday and this group of volunteers, well they are really quite remarkable. Very impressed with them and their efforts. They are called P.A.C.T. That stands for People and Cats Together. They were calling him Red Rufus, but we didn't think it fit him and we have a dog named Rufus, we tossed it about, tried to see his personality and agreed that he is regal and royal and so we decided on a royal name. Henry fits him I think. He is a polydactyl, he has extra digits on the front and back and we're not sure how many he actually has yet. He is a lap cat and a real love. Mom is really happy with him. Tom is not sure what to think but he's more tolerant than I thought he'd be. I love this pic of him and am amazed that he has his eyes open, because every pic of Tom he seems to have his eyes closed. So he's my new model cat because he has an eye for the camera!

We had very sad news tonight. My uncle in MN had a heart attack and passed away today. They were to celebrate their 50th wedding anniversary this May. Such sad news, especially since this family also lost a son-in-law in January. Poor Uncle Clete, he and the whole family will be in our prayers.

randomness

February 23, 2007

randomness

I just got the hang of the whole idea of Memes and the purpose and added the code, blah, blah and then I posted my first one on Thursday and when I go to the Thursday Thirteen blog I see that the owner decided to retire it! Hey! No fair! I think it had to do with some people who abused her copyright, but the stress of it I guess was too much. Not sure what the real problem was but I was sad because it seemed like a great way to get to know others in blogland. Well tonight I see that it may have a new owner and so I may get to continue posting my Thursday Meme. Even just the one time posting was fun and some great people stopped by and even posted!

I had a nice surprise this morning at work. I got a delivery of a dozen long stemmed pink roses! They are light pink with a darker pink edge, really pretty. I hadn't mentioned it before but the guy i was dating forgot Valentine's...I was a little disappointed. And I haven't talked to him since. He finally figured it out I think on Monday because he left me a cell message saying how sorry he was to have forgotten and to slight me and then he called me at work too which is out of the ordinary. I didn't talk to him. I was being stubborn and also I wasn't sure, still am not, that I want to date him so I left it alone, but it was very nice of him and I will talk to him and thank him.

We are going to go look at the cats to adopt one tomorrow! Can't wait to see them. I hope there is one that we fall in love with. Pics to follow!

I have to go in to work tomorrow to sell a policy but I'm really hoping to get some sleep and knitting and cleaning done this weekend.

My best friends Grandma passed away and she's busy with the services. Why are we not going? Well, it's a long story, but basically, we are not invited...and it's OK. They are very old-fashioned and into their culture and this culture/religion does not welcome all, let's just say. But I feel bad for her, she's had so much loss. Her birthday is soon, I wanted to take her to dinner this weekend, but it's not a good weekend. My birthday is the week after her...

Thursday Thirteen (#1)

February 22, 2007

Thursday Thirteen (#1)

Thirteen Things about Mitchypoo I'm participating in a new to me Meme. I like the idea of it and thought it might add some interest to my blog. I am able to pick the topic but the general idea is 13 things about me or my list of something on each Thursday. We'll see if I can keep it up. For my first list and because so much of me is about food I'm choosing the topic, 13 foods I adore... 1. White chocolate. Lindt's white chocolate truffles are to die for. 2. Coffee flavored anything. Candies, desserts, ice cream, I love the taste of coffee. 3. Gorgonzola and most bleu cheeses...saw a whole show this weekend about moldy foods. Weird but good. 4. Filet mignon. If I'm going to eat beef, this is my favorite cut. 5. Crab cakes. Or crab in any form for that matter. I love the delicate taste and sweet taste. 6. Sour - I have a real taste for sour foods. Candies mostly, but I also like a Thai Shrimp Lemongrass soup called Tom Yum because of the sour taste. Sweet and sour together ~ not so much! 7. Bread, it doesn't seem to matter what kind or who made it. If it's crusty outside and soft inside and can be toasted, I usually love it. 8. Melted ice cream. I don't like it so much when it's hard and really cold, it hurts my teeth. 9. Pasta ~what can I say, I'm a carb girl! My favorite pasta is homemade of which I use to make all my own pasta. That was a long time ago although I still hope to find time in the future to take it up again. 10. Victoria Toffee from See's Candies. I usually limit myself to one box at Christmas time and see how much of the year I can make it last...this year, it was bought after Christmas...and it's gone already. 11. Dirty Martini's~ Grey Goose with olives. OK, it isn't a food, but it makes the meal better! 12. Red Wine ~ Merlot, Cabernet, Shiraz, I like the reds. 13. and finally to round out the list, I have to stick a vegetable in here I guess so it's potatoes. My favorite being of course, the most fattening kind, the ones that are baked with butter, sour cream and chives or mashed with cream and butter. Links to other Thursday Thirteens! 1. Raggedy 2. Read, Write, and Dream 3. Amy's Random Thoughts 4. chicken-scratch.ca 5. (leave your link in comments, I’ll add you here!)

Get the Thursday Thirteen code here!


The purpose of the meme is to get to know everyone who participates a little bit better every Thursday. Visiting fellow Thirteeners is encouraged! If you participate, leave the link to your Thirteen in others comments. It’s easy, and fun! Be sure to update your Thirteen with links that are left for you, as well! I will link to everyone who participates and leaves a link to their 13 things. Trackbacks, pings, comment links accepted!

View More Thursday Thirteen Participants

I deserve inner peace, and I accept it now.

February 18, 2007

I deserve inner peace, and I accept it now.

Having a lazy Sunday and that is my favorite kind of Sunday. I do plan to get cleaned up and dressed today...but not yet, it's only a little after noon! Still have coffee to drink and a paper to read.

We had Sausage Gravy and Biscuits this a.m. Yum yum! Here's the recipe for the sausage gravy, it's so easy to make and very satisfying.

Sausage Gravy

1 tube Jimmy Dean Sausage w/Sage (gold label)
1/4 cup flour
2 to 2.5 cups milk (whole milk or lowfat w/some half and half)
1/4 tsp. pepper
Biscuits

This is a one pot meal. Brown the sausage in a heavy duty, high side dutch oven, breaking it up and browning over medium to medium high heat. Then add 1/4 cup flour and let the flour brown, about 3-4 minutes. Then add milk and lower flame to low. Stir and get some of the goodies off the bottom of pan. It will thicken, add pepper. The sausage has enough salt or salt to taste.

Make your favorite homemade or canned biscuits, split in half and spoon over. Enjoy!

I got some Noro Garden Silk Lite yarn from ebay and I made another Argosy scarf. Pics to follow, i'm going to try and block today. I have a mental block about blocking, it seems so difficult, but i'm sure it is not. Must learn to block, I have many projects I need to block.

We may get another cat! Mom and I talked about it and we think Tom needs a pal and she'd like another one so I found a place that adopts cats and I called and asked if they had any polydactyls (extra toes)like Tom because mom wants one and she thinks they are more laid back and they do have that reputation, they didn't have any polys at the time, but she called me yesterday and they will have 1, maybe 2 available. So we are going to the beach on Sat. morning to go look at them. One is a red tabby and the other is a white siamese mix with lilac ears, interesting. We'll see what happens. The only concern I have is that they will eat together and it'll be harder to regulate Tom's food while I'm trying to get him to lose 3-4 lbs. But maybe he'll get more activity and it won't be an issue.

It is safe for me to succeed. Life loves me!

February 13, 2007

It is safe for me to succeed. Life loves me!

Valentine's Day eve...should I be depressed or...? There is someone who I've been dating for about a month or so but we've known eachother for years. We lost touch when I moved away and have reconnected since the new year. He is really a decent man, he's very thoughtful and good to me. We had a dinner date Saturday which was nice, nothing fancy, just a casual date. Nothing was said about Valentine's, so we'll see if he remembers or cares. I hate that i'm wondering. I'd like to just not care.

Not sure I mentioned it but I finally got a copy of Mason Dixon Knitting and I'M IN LOVE! There are so many projects I want to make. There is a bath mat that uses 3 strands of cotton knit together and it uses a log cabin pattern. It's so cute and it looks sturdy and comfy for the feet. I think I'm going to try that.

But then I just received in the mail 3 skeins of Noro Silk Garden Lite and I'm debating if I should make another Argosy scarf or I'm looking for another pattern. Any ideas?

Had to take Tom to the vet yesterday after work to have the final worming pills put down his throat, he won't let me do it. Poor guy started drooling once I got him in the carrier and in the car to go. I asked about it, and they said it was because he was stressed. I felt awful for doing that to him and I think he was actually mad at me. He didn't come see me this a.m. like normal, I had to go find him and give him some lovin'. Well, atleast the medication is over with. Now I have to work on his weight. Kitty diet.

I release stress with ease. I am at peace.

February 9, 2007

I release stress with ease. I am at peace.

Yesterday I woke up with a migraine, felt horrible, so I stayed home. I knit, I tried to get rid of my migraine but couldn't. I stayed in my jammies all day and around 4 pm I went to bed to sleep it off, but i ended up sleeping until this a.m. And I feel great today!

And TGIF! No big plans for me this weekend, some cleaning, some organizing, some knitting and I may have a dinner date Saturday night too. We're trying to get ready for a yard sale the first weekend in March, so I'd like to really get things together for that.

I ended up finishing the Noro scarf with the skein turned around and it ends with a repeat of purple and I think it's wearable. I have to block it this weekend and see how I like it.

Today I choose to see myself in the most positive ways.

February 7, 2007

Today I choose to see myself in the most positive ways.

My Fortune Cookie told me: Flee at once, all is discovered. Get a cookie from Miss Fortune

Californians are kind of funny. I'm originally from Southern CA, but after living about 5 years in central Oregon and about 5 years most recently in Minnesota and now being back in Southern California, I don't quite get it when people complain about the weather. I get the weather updates on bloglines and I always look at Minnesota and the other day I think they a high of -9....BRRRR. I actually had someone come in yesterday complaining about the heat. It was almost 80 degrees yesterday, but I am thankful. Today it's overcast and foggy and will be raining sometime today, but I'm still thankful. It is Winter after all people. And if it does rain, all of sudden you see the news and it's STORM TRACK...and all this other over the top coverage. It's raining....big deal. Slow down and shush your mouth.

It looks like the unnamed yarn store does have truly horrible customer service. They won't exchange the yarn, they told me that it was how Noro is and it's part of the "charm". I told her that I had never used Noro before and I did not find it charming at all. I will not go back there. Why should I spend money on another skein only to maybe find the same problem? I will maybe turn the skein around, knit from the outside and have the last purple repeat on the end of the skein. Or I'll find another project for that yarn.

My uncle's services were last night and today in GA. I sure wish I could be there for my cousin. Well for all of them, but especially for her and her daughter. It's been a week of doom. No kidding, on Monday, I had almost 3 back to back calls about someone dying on the policy, or verifying information and the person is gone, it was really odd. And then yesterday my childhood friend told me that she lost her 43 yo sister-in-law, died in her sleep and they don't know yet why. Makes you realize that it can happen to anyone and at any time.

I made a decision for the month, that I would not eat fast food. It's just a conscious effort to stop the daily morning and lunch tendency to pick something up quick. It's only the 7th but I've done really well. It's not a rule or law so if I do it's OK but it's made me feel better even just this week to be conscious of it. And it definitely keeps me more on track. My body is craving carbs because I got my monthly, and I didn't bring lunch, so I think I'll eat out, which is OK, as long as I don't allow myself to go back to the daily thing. It's a different thinking for me. Instead of thinking that today I screwed up or blew it, I'm going to eat out, enjoy it, and then continue my quest not to do fast food like before. Baby steps. And a leap in a muddy puddle once in a while.

I finally won an ebay auction for a copy of Mason Dixon Knitting. What a cool book! It's a must have I think. And I also bought but haven't received yet a copy of this! And all because of the pompom rug that I must make! Must make, it is so darn cute! Looks like I'll have to go a pompom maker now.

Enjoy your weather today, even if it's rainy or cold. Sounds like a good reason to keep indoors, knit, and cuddle with those you love.

Promised pics!

February 5, 2007

Promised pics!

It's officially Monday a.m. but I promised I'd post pics, so here you go. And I need some advice. I went to a yarn store on Saturday that I've been wanting to go to for awhile and I was looking for Noro Silk Garden and they had a small selection. There is a scarf that I've been wanting to knit for a while. It's Argosy, from knitty.com. So I bought 2 skeins and I could hardly wait to get home to get started. I actually knit until about 1 a.m. last night, I was really into it. So today I started the 2nd skein and the join was perfect as far as color goes.... well, here is the scarf so far


So see the purple, how it has 2 repeats and the yarn joined in the light purple and the 2nd skein I found out has the one purple repeat and then no more purple...so isn't that going to look awful? So I called the yarn store and they can't help me because they are too busy but she told me I can't exchange the yarn because I pulled it out of the skein...but she'd take a look if there was another color 244 and let me know. Maybe Tuesday. So needless to say, I was going to tell you my take on this store, but after I discovered that their customer service sucks...well, I guess I'll keep it to myself. I'm hoping they will exchange it or I just may publish to blogland how crappy that store is...unless they redeem themselves. But what do you think? Should I go somewhere else and get another skein or I could frog to the join and knit from the other side and then the purple repeat will be on the other end of the scarf.



So then I got the bug and decided to frog the other scarf, the VK one and use the same pattern because I love the pattern of this scarf and the other pattern that was to be a braided scarf was so tedious I thought I'd never get thru it.


And finally, Tom has a new cat pad and this thing is so cool. It has a center that warms up without electricity. He absolutely loves the thing. I got it from Drs.Foster & Smith and I'm so happy I got it for him.

What are your weekend plans?

February 2, 2007

What are your weekend plans?

I thought the day was better but had bad news on the way home. Mom called to tell me that my Uncle in GA passed away this morning. He's been having a lot of health problems and was not able to make it to my Dad's service in May and here it is almost 8 months later and he's gone. I feel bad for my last remaining Uncle on my Dad's side. He's lost 2 brothers in less than a year and is the last of 5 brothers remaining. Mom and I won't be able to make it to GA for the services, which we feel terrible about.

Going to have our own little Superbowl party at the house. I love football but haven't kept up with it at all this season. I'm looking forward to the half-time show and the commercials.

I promise to post knit pics this weekend...geez, what a slacker.

Today is full of miracles.

February 1, 2007

Today is full of miracles.

FEBRUARY

Let's make this a "feel-good" month. Every morning declare out loud, "I choose to think thoughts that make me feel good today." As you go to sleep at night, say, "Thank you, Life, for a delicious day and a peaceful night's sleep."

The beginning of a new month and if months had a color, February would be purple, violet. I guess that's true with the birthstone being Amethyst. I like what Louise Hay's calendar says about this month, as quoted above. So let's declare together that this is the feel-good month.

I had a crappy day yesterday, all around crappy. It started by waking up during the night not feeling well and I think I was worrying about "things" so I couldn't get to sleep and then when it was time to get up, I just didn't feel good. So I called in sick to work. Then I couldn't go back to sleep, so I got up and then started feeling better so I got cleaned up and came in at noon. Then I found out that my boss forgot to tell me he wouldn't be in in the morning, so NO ONE was here to open until my other boss came in around 10:30...then the rest of the day at work just seemed stressful, like nothing was going well. After work I had a hair appointment and the town I had to go to is really horrible with one way streets all over the place, so I had to kind of circle around to find parking and then there is a new thing in this town where you can not make a left hand turn on this major street at night and I didn't see the sign, so I took that left turn and then I see flashing lights behind me...... and then there is no where to pull over because of this stupid way the streets are set up and the cop is on the speaker telling me to pull over at the next empty curb (which is red)...and then (and keep this in mind that I am an insurance agent) I do not have proof of insurance in the car AND....I still have an out of state license. He asked me how long I've been here and I told him the truth... He tells me that according to our state law, because I admitted that I could have been arrested for a misdemeanor... he was really lenient with me and wrote me a ticket for the turn and the license. So then I get to the hairdresser over a half hour late...and I had to reschedule because she had dinner plans. It was time for me to go home and forget the day. But that was in January and today is full of miracles and February is the "feel-good" month.