Instead of posting a particularly cranky entry, I'll post what I was working on over the weekend in honor of Halloween coming
DH is a mellow, even-keeled guy. He has had a bunch of weird experiences, though, and he doesn’t like to talk about them much. Most happened before he met me and I must be psychically “blocking” him in some way, because I’ve never had anything otherworldly happen to me (even though I love reading about it) and I would probably panic if something actually happened to me personally.
A few things happened after a family member has died. After we started dating, but before we moved into our own place, he and his parents were living at his grandmother’s house (his dad’s mom). Her brother lived in Wyoming and was dying of cancer. One night, not too late, DH was up watching TV after everyone else had gone to bed. There was a loud bang-bang-bang at the front door, and when DH ran to the door there was no one there. DH’s dad, a notoriously heavy sleeper (slept through tornados, earthquakes, etc.), even woke up and asked, “What the hell was that?” They found out the next morning that the uncle had died that night.
Soon after we got our own place, his parents moved back to Ohio (DH has a brother and sister who still live there). His mom had gone through treatment for breast cancer while in California, and though it went into remission it came back after they returned to Ohio. She got sick very quickly and passed away within a couple of months of it recurring. Obviously everyone was devastated, and DH flew back to Ohio for the funeral. He was staying at his sister’s condo and since she had the biggest home it seemed to be the central gathering place for the family. At one point several people were standing in the kitchen talking when suddenly everyone smelled the strong scent of roses, like someone walked into the room with a huge bouquet. There were no flowers in the house, and it was February in the midst of a snowstorm! DH’s sister’s ex-husband was a strange guy, very cerebral and a prickly personality, but the type of guy no one could fool – the guy you’d want with you when you’re buying a car. Even he, a total skeptic, smelled the roses, and was convinced there had to be flowers somewhere; he went through the whole house, opening cabinets and getting frustrated that he couldn’t find the source of the scent. Eventually the scent disappeared suddenly, just as it had appeared.
The closest thing that happened to DH when I was around was when we were apartment-hunting for our own place. We went to a small apartment building that looked like a 1920s Spanish bungalow. The open apartment was in the back, on the second floor with an outside balcony/walkway. We walked through the place for a few minutes, then as we were getting in the car I asked him what he thought. DH said, very seriously, “I wouldn’t spend one night in that place!” I asked him what was wrong and he said there wasn’t anything specific, other than he felt like we were being watched and it wasn’t a nice presence. I didn’t feel anything strange, but again I don’t think I’m as tuned-in as he is. The next day we talked on the phone and he said he slept awful the night before; he kept having nightmares of that apartment. He dreamt, over and over, that a guy had pushed his girlfriend off the balcony/walkway. I asked how DH knew that was the guy’s girlfriend, and he said he just knew from the dreams.
Coming soon: part 2, where DH lives in a haunted house!
In our mail on Wednesday was a collection notice addressed to me, for what looked to be a landline phone number in Southern California as I recognized the area code. This collection agency wants almost $900!
I am not worried because:
--although we lived in SoCal previously, we moved to Ohio in July 1995 (and paid all our utilities, AFAIK. We certainly didn't leave no $900 phone bill )
--Regardless, statute of limitations on an old utility bill is 7 years max
--I don't recognize the phone number as one of our old ones
--we were never contacted by the actual phone company, just this collection agency purporting to represent the phone company
--I check our credit reports every few months and there have never been any weird charges or accounts popping up
However, I am worried because:
--my name is fairly unique and have never heard of anyone else with the same name. Is someone using my name?
--the collection agency might start reporting this on my credit (which has no other blemishes) and wreak havoc until I pay
--there's little recourse for a lowly individual against an aggressive collection agency, or without hiring an aggressive attorney
I sent a certified letter denying responsibility for the bill and demanding proof that I owe the money. I found a good form letter online; the Fair Debt Collection Practices Act has all these requirements they have to follow, like they can't contact me by phone, only in writing when I request it.
Now it's time to wait and keep my fingers crossed
This weekend we went to DH's old workplace one last time. We moved to Dallas 5 years ago because the music retail company he worked for in Ohio was begging him to take over a store -- he was offered places in Vegas, Denver and Southern California before he accepted here. He was excited because he would be involved from the ground up, as the outdoor, urban retail complex wasn't even finished yet, and he would be involved in construction and inventory and fixtures and hiring and everything.
Unfortunately for him, 2 weeks after he opened was 9/11. Retail across the country tanked, and his brand-spanking new store was no exception. Add in management changes, and suddenly the golden boy was a problem child. Without going into detail, things ended on a bad note, but it was a company-wide problem. They've since closed a bunch of prominent retail stores, and they're closing the one DH worked so hard to open.
So we go there on Sunday, a couple of weeks before their closing, and it's like a mausoleum. Empty, cavernous and depressing. But DH wasn't depressed, because he actually got a better job afterwards with lots more security. And he can Scoreboard!
The sports radio station we like here has a term: "Scoreboard!" Like if someone is bitching about how much greater a coach is over Phil Jackson, you just say "Scoreboard" and realize Phil Jackson has won 9 NBA championships. Not that I like Phil Jackson, he's a pompous ass , but he has scoreboard over Larry Brown or Pat Riley or whoever.
I'm babbling, but my point is to appreciate when you can Scoreboard over something -- not in a mean, malicious way, but more self-affirming.
--We've continued to go to estate sales every weekend, but I haven't bought much. Last weekend I bought a couple of vintage bandanas for $1, and when we got in the car and I rolled one up and put it on my head, DH made a face and said he was never a fan of the bandana. Yes, they're pretty frumpy-looking, especially because I'm no expert putting them on, but I like the retro-cowgirl-housewife look so I wore one to work last week anyway. Yeehaw!
--We went to a few sales yesterday and DH got a boss pair of binoculars for $15 -- they were in the original '60s or '70s case and he can use them the next time he gets nosebleed Mavericks tickets. The houses were cool though; another was an updated bungalow which was rehabbed and for sale (not a technical Estate Sale, she was a flipper) but she wanted way too much for it, considering it was next to a couple of skeevy-looking duplexes and apartment buildings.
--I went to a BPAL Meet-n-Sniff on Saturday, which was a blast. I posted already in another thread, but it's so great to be able to talk about notes and scents and just how crazy this hobby/obsession can be. I know DH just rolls his eyes at times when I'm babbling about LEs and evil carnivals and monthly orders, but everyone at a Meet-n-Sniff gets all that.
It was 4 of us: one gal brought a whole box of Villainess soaps so she could slice off samples, I brought a bag of frimps I was saving for everyone to paw through and take new things to try, and everyone had new GCs and LEs to sniff and test. This was the 3rd one I've attended and I hope everyone had a good time.
Estate sales dropped off over the holidays and they’ve started back up again, so we’ve gone to a few. It seems we aren’t the only ones jonesing for them to return, as the past few weeks most houses we go to have been packed with people. This weekend I bought a souvenir shot glass from San Francisco ($2) and an unused Las Vegas postcard of the original Aladdin hotel for 10¢. The coolest purchase was at another house: two big bags of matchbooks for $4! Going through them last night was a lot of fun -- they were from the ‘60s and ‘70s mostly, lots of restaurants and some old Vegas ones, and some from Paris, London, Mexico, Singapore, Brazil, Cairo, and most were unused. The funniest was from a Chinese restaurant in Berlin named Hung Wang. Hee hee! Yes, I’m ten years old.
We like going to see the houses, but there’s a constant struggle with buying things. I’m trying to be good and not fill the house with crap (especially with my weakness for old souvenirs). I don’t like shot glasses in general, they’re kind of a give-up souvenir that seem to be for sale everywhere, but I have a soft spot for San Francisco and since it was so cheap I bent the rule a bit. I don’t want to start collecting shot glasses though -- I like the older weirder wackier souvenirs like plates or tablecloths or matchbooks.
Another dilemma is furniture -- we like some of the pieces we see, and by the time Sunday afternoon rolls around they’re usually 50% off the tagged price, but 1) where are we supposed to put all this? and 2) how are we supposed to get it home? The house with the matchbooks had (along with the very cool Wurlitzer organ) a huge beautiful bar, like a pirate bar! Two pieces, front and back with 3 barstools, the guy said they paid around $6000 for it and we could have taken it all home for $600. We have a Camry and an Altima, and we don’t know anyone with a beater truck or van. Maybe this is a good thing, as we’d be filling the house with furniture instead of smaller things. Oh, but I want a bar! In my house! I’d never leave
I know I probably spend too much on what others might consider incidental or frivolous: perfumes, incense, candles and soap especially. This money could very well go towards more responsible things, like paying off the mortgage or saving for the eventual new car. I realize this, and still shop for little things anyway. Am I in denial?
Side story: there were some eBay auctions ending on Saturday that another forumite was holding -- I've actually met her in real life at a couple of Meet-n-Sniffs and she was very generous with her substantial collection, so I wanted to pay her back for her generosity. I gave myself a certain amount max to bid, and first thing Saturday morning I was sniped on a GC bottle I was bidding on. It really irked me, especially for a catalog blend, but I know in order not to be sniped I have to bid the very very maximum I am willing to spend. If someone snipes that, I have to be comfortable with the fact that they wanted it more than I did. So I bid extremely high on a rare bottle and won!
I was telling DH about it at dinner that night, and when I got to the end he rolled his eyes and asked, "how much was this tiny bottle of perfume?" I started to explain that this bottle was rare and that was the only one I purchased from her, but of course felt ridiculous doing so.
But I've justified to myself that it's more than a tiny bottle of perfume: this is a hobby. I have a nice-smelling hobby. I like smelling nice things and smelling like a nice thing.
--I placed an order today; I got bottles of Litha and Obatala. I ordered only 2 because of the extra April Fool's bottle I ordered -- it's complicated. Basically I limit myself to 3 bottles or about $50/month, and if I go over in one month I try to make it up the next month. Oh, never mind, it's stupid
--Happy Mother's Day to pet moms too! The blog of valentina, she posted her puppy pics and I know DH has our cat pics posted somewhere but I'm an intarweb doofus and don't know how to access them. We have 2 cats, Cookie and Shadow, who are very sweet and very shy. We've had them over 11 years, since they were 8 weeks old.
--One funny Mother's Day story: we were living in Cincinnati and were in some shopping area north of the city on one Mother's Day, maybe 1997. Of course every restaurant was packed and we espied a Kenny Rogers Roasters. We had never eaten there, but had always made jokes, like "Is the piped-in music all Kenny?" and "Do all the workers have to wear fake white beards?" Yes, we crack ourselves up. Anyway, we ended up eating our words as everything was seriously good -- the chicken, the sides, it was like the Seinfeld episode where everyone was addicted like crack. We were moaning at the table, it was some good eatin'.
--Ack, I was bumped to the 2nd page of blogs! This means that 1) I'm not updating enough, and 2) there are lots of other people updating! I'm glad to see people joining us on Blog Island (TM Antimony)
--As to my previous post, this collection agency has obviously been carpet-bombing people across the country with demand notices for phantom amounts. Lots of complaints posted on ripoffreport.com and complaintsboard.com. I filed a complaint with the FTC online, and since I demanded proof of the debt I'll hopefully never hear from this company again
--We went to World Market on Sunday to spend some gift cards. I love being able to walk through that store and grab anything that looks interesting without having to spend cash. We got a couple bottles of wine, some beer made by Trappist monks, shortbread cookies, Irish oatmeal, mushroom & wine pate, pasta sauce, a bunch of incense, a big candle, and some replacement forks. Rats, I listed all this and now I'm hongry! (TM darkitysnark)
--I definitely read everyone's blogs, even though I don't comment most of the time. We have a great bunch here
I've had a spate of aggressive sales-type people call for all manner of things: pitching a payroll service, hiring them as a salesperson or a Director, etc. I try to be pleasant but firm, and it's in one ear and out the other. I especially like when they try to get people's phone numbers and I guess I'm supposed to be all, "Oh, here's everyone's personal numbers, just because you asked for it."
I'm especially impressed with the lady today who seemed to be eating during the entire call. I don't know how she managed to interrogate me, write everything I say down and eat what sounded like a burrito. Really endearing.
My biggest fear is that I'll lose my temper and they'll end up being hired, and forevermore see me as that rude girl in HR who's nasty on the phone. Heh.
--I know I’m evil, but I laughed out loud at the title of a thread in Get Personal, “Anyone ADD?” by “capricious.” I don’t know this forum member (who hasn’t logged on since March) and it’s nothing personal, but how funny is that? A word that means “impulsive or unpredictable” is starting a thread about Attention Deficit. Hee! I haven’t read it, but I want to hop into the thread and say, “oh yes, me too, I will be doing something and – ooh! Shiny! That reminds me, I need tinfoil from the store. What were we talking about again?” I’m going to hell.
--I’m not an Oprah fan, but now that my work schedule includes working from home, and afternoons are quieter than the mornings, I’ll have it on in the background sometimes. She had a great series last week called the Debt Diet which revealed what I have long suspected: many people are living way beyond their means and using credit to inflate their earnings. They followed 3 families, one of which seemed nice enough (2 schoolteachers), but the other 2 families were flat-out clueless. Seriously, one family ate out for every meal, they never cooked, they didn’t own a toaster or coffeemaker or dishes and ate everything off plastic plates and cups. They had 5 cars for 2 people!
So a big part of the series was not just saying “stop spending money” but asking why. At one point one of the women was saying how she didn’t even think about spending money, she just shopped. She didn’t know how much they owed for the second mortgage or credit cards, she just kept it out of her mind. When she was asked, “Why are you absent from your own life?” it was a lightbulb moment. “Oh, so this is my life? It’s not at the mall? It’s not in InStyle or Lucky? It’s not getting the jeans that Jessica’s wearing, or getting my glowing orange MysticTan?”
Celebrity culture is nothing new – I have a Photoplay from 1926, and in between movie reviews are “the latest fashions from Paris” so you could presumably throw out all your old clothes and run out to buy the new ones. But it’s so pervasive now. How do we know where Britney is shopping for baby clothes? Because the store manager is calling every news outlet to report it. Why should we buy the new $500 Louis Vuitton bag? Because they sent a free one to Lindsay Lohan to be photographed as she’s buying coffee.
So be like Chuck D and don’t believe the hype! Yeah boyeeee!
No, I haven't fallen off the face of the earth, but almost: we lost our DSL modem in one of the thunderstorms last week. Dial-up is working but obviously slow. Boo.
I'm trying to lurk when I can!
Antimony and darkitysnark have motivated me to post pictures of my favorite plants around the homestead. I take no credit for these, this is all DH's hard work.
Here's the front of the house with a couple of Silverado Sage bushes. This big picture is from last summer; unfortunately we've had a very hot and dry one this year and our grass in front is brown. These bushes are popular here because they're very drought-tolerant:
They seem to love the heat, in fact! This week has been over 100 every day and they're blooming these cute purple flowers like crazy:
My other favorite plant is in the back next to the driveway: a pomegranate tree! It must like the heat too because it has a bunch of small pomegranates:
Here's another good one, it's huge:
After reading darkity's previous posts about going to see Thomas Dolby, I just had to post about old skool concerts. Granted, it's been awhile since I've gone to a show -- I'm at the point now where seeing someone "live" means paying $50 to go to a crowded, smelly place and hear someone perform the CD that I could be listening to in the comfort of my home. Bleh. So here's my index:
First concert: Rick Nelson at the Palomino in LA, about 8th grade, 1984? This was the ex-50's-teen-idol-turned-country-singer and my friend had an obsession with him. He was pretty good! And looked damn fine!
Most memorable concert: Jane's Addiction, Pixies and Primus at the Hollywood Palladium, December 1990. I remember Primus started, and while I had never heard of them they were amazing live, great musicians. Pixies were next, and they were about to break up and probably couldn't stand each other -- Frank Black screamed a lot, that was the gist of it. Jane's Addiction was great, I love them.
Other concerts: (this is me looking through my ticket stubs)
--Monkees reunion tour in 1986 *hangs head*, but I was a sophomore in high school! What do you expect?
--Duran Duran at the Forum in July 1987 (with Erasure opening) -- I love both of them
--David Bowie at Angels Stadium in Anaheim, August 1987 -- this was the first instance where I got up at 5:00 a.m. to wait in line for tickets, and we had the worst nosebleed seats ever! Never again, I swore. He was OK live, but Siouxsie and the Banshees opened and they were fab
--Sting at the Forum, March 1988 -- he was great
--Hothouse Flowers at the Coach House (teeny restaurant/club in San Juan Capistrano), February 1989 -- they were great, a crazy Irish jam band
--Midge Ure at the Coach House, April 1989 -- lead singer of Ultravox, yum. He didn't have to play a note and I would have sat there dreamy-eyed
--Replacements at the Hollywood Palladium, May 1989 -- just before they broke up and they probably all hated each other at that point. All I remember is LOUD
--Love and Rockets at Irvine Meadows, July 1989 (Godfathers opened) -- they were pretty good. Dang, I went to a lot of concerts in 1989!
--B-52's at Universal Amphitheater, January 1990 -- they were great
--Pearl Jam at the Empire Polo Club in Indio, November 1993 -- they were great live, but it was butt-ass cold standing outside in a field. My cousin and his wife live there and we all went to the concert and stayed overnight at their house so we had a great time, I just remember COLD COLD COLD
--Dave Matthews Band at Riverbend in Cincinnati, June 1997 -- I thought they were incredibly boring live. I'm not a huge fan, but every song I recognized sounded exactly like the songs on CD or the radio. *yawn* We wanted to see Los Lobos open for them, then we left afterwards. Los Lobos is great, always -- we saw them at Jazz Fest in Columbus (2000?) and the place was mobbed.
--Beck at Veterans in Columbus, Ohio, February 2000 -- he's crazy and the show was a heap o'fun. Hank Williams III opened and he brought the house down, everyone went nuts.
--Moby at Newport Music Hall, Columbus, October 2000 -- since DH worked at Virgin Music we were able to meet him before the show. He was very nice and signed our ticket stubs and CD, and drew little pictures. His show was GREAT -- seriously, I thought it would be him noodling on a keyboard but he had a full band and was jumping all over the stage
That's really been it -- since we've moved to Dallas we haven't gone to a concert. I'm old.
We recently spent some money fixing a couple of broken components -- we debated about whether it was worth it, and decided the repairs were cheap enough compared to buying something new. We have to laugh, though, at how we ended up with the latest in 1990s technology, among other decades:
--one repair was the minidisc recorder. Minidiscs were a Sony-only product when CD recorders were still prohibitively expensive. Sony did release albums on minidisc (Simon & Garfunkel, etc.) but these weren't in the US very long, they were more popular in Japan, and it was only Sony/Columbia artists. The best part was recording whatever onto blank minidiscs, like concerts off TV
--the other repair was our combo CD/DVD/Laserdisc player. Laserdiscs started in the early 1980s, the precursor to DVDs except record-size instead of CD-size. We have about 100 laserdiscs and it's nice to have one player hooked up to our big TV that plays laserdiscs and DVDs
--of course we have a couple of record players, with a couple of boxes of records. We have a Victrola from probably the 1940s, it's a record player in a nice wooden case with an AM radio with tubes. It needs a needle though, and I have no idea where to get one
--we have a couple big boxes of cassettes, boxes of videotapes, a wall of CDs (600? I haven't counted recently), the DVDs are overtaking another set of shelves, and don't get me started on the books
What are we supposed to do with all this stuff? It seems passe now to have "hard copies" of things -- you're supposed to buy your iPod and download everything. So are we just dinosaurs for keeping all this?
Oh crap. Just when I'm contented with my BPAL purchase, and we've gotten the gutters replaced ($2000 total), other favorite sites are updating too! Son of an Ass! (tm Samir in Office Space)
--Villainess has a huge update with a bunch more soaps. Crushed is back! It came and went so quickly I didn't have a chance to order the first time -- I'm a sucker for raspberries and chocolate. Plus I want the new Villainess signature scent (florals and leather), and Byzantium (resins and Egyptian musks), and Canaan (honey, berries and florals), and Krakatoa (tropical fruits! I coconut) and Vintage ("antique oak and yesterday's vanilla," what a great description!) and and and *falls over*
--feMaledictions is in the process of updating too, with a Sugar Butter Scrub! Oh jeez that sounds nice. I love her incense and she's added 4 new scents including The Golden Proportion (black vanilla beans! Where's my perfume to match? ) and New Rose (I love rose incense and can't find it very often, other than the bulk Indian incense packs at Cost Plus). Plus hemp soaps? And soy tarts? And a hint at 50+ new blends? *gets up off the floor, then falls over again*
BPAL is the priority, and every month I make orders there. But I like supporting these other small Internet businesses. If someone's making a good product and putting thought and heart into it, and bucking the bullcrap old-and-busted "retail" model, that's cool too.
Ugh, these allergies are driving me crazy. I never had them growing up in Southern California, but when we moved to Ohio after college, to a place that actually had "seasons," I started getting them. Most of the time it's nothing more than sneezing and nose issues, but this spring has been irritating, literally.
I have "dry head," where it feels my sinuses are dry and crackly. I wake up in the middle of the night with my sinuses hurting, they're so dry. My eyes are red and dry and itchy, and I have that weird empty-head feeling like after you've cried and you're done and feel better -- "airy head," maybe?
But the worst is I haven't been able to wear any nice BPAL smellies for 2 weeks. I'm breaking out in red itchy rashes wherever I apply, and it doesn't matter what I wear. I love the fruity winey scents the most, and just received bottles of Masque and Montresor, and while both smell great when I apply I end up with rashes that last for days.
I'm debating buying a locket, but will probably try a cheaper one first before shelling out the $70 for a BPTP one. Plus my very favorite Triple Dagger is sold out. They have some cute ones at www.necropolis.biz -- I like the celtic cross and knot, and they're cheap enough for me to try and not feel guilty about more jewelry.
I started a huge work rant, then deleted it all. Work today went fine, a lot better than I feared -- I'm not blamed for the vendor flake-out, I'm already making arrangements with the runner-up, they seem pleased that we're back, and I'm glad I didn't burn any bridges.
Beth posted a whole bunch of new TAL oils, and I'm really intrigued. I should read the forum section, but I'm under the impression that people wear TALs as oil, or anoint a candle. I'm very interested in Milk & Honey, as it seems to speak to my goals -- I'm not looking for a financial windfall, but I like enjoying what we have and hope it continues. The description is, "A subtle love and money combination blend. Tends to invoke the luxurious, pleasurable aspects of romance and prosperity." I really like the image that creates.
How would you use some of the Temple blends? I'm guessing that if you have certain favorite deities, like Egyptian, you would use that oil. I need to do some more research.
She isn't really insane, but sometimes I wonder about how her brain works. She sent e-gift certificates for my birthday (yay Amazon!) but the last time we talked she said she was sending a box too. That came last night, and inside was:
--the new Janet Evanovich book (she's bought me the last several Stephanie Plum books, they're pretty funny)
--a teeny purse with Marilyn pictures on it -- it would probably hold your ID/credit card and a small lipstick, and that's it. I wish it was bigger!
--some L'Oreal tube eyeshadows
--some bath samples (a company called Andrea?) of sugar scrubs, mud masks, etc.
--a hand-crank flashlight (no batteries needed)
--an exfoliating sponge -- am I too flaky?
--a couple of Lustreware salt-pepper sets, one are little birds and the other has a Japanese tree/garden scene painted on each one
I know where I get my pack-rat collecting obsessions from, but she obviously sees random things and thinks, "I need to buy this for ____" and out it goes for a gift. Everything was wrapped individually and it was like this crazy lottery -- what will be next?
She loves doing Christmas stockings too, and it's the same miscellanea; last year one gift was a purse hanger that you take with you to a restaurant, so you can hang your purse off the table instead of setting it on the floor. I didn't even know I needed one of those!
Random linkage: here's someone posting about his mom, who really is insane. Pack Rat Ahead! If I ever get to this point, kill me. This was originally on the forums in Something Awful:
http://www.auctions-registration.com/ebay/?p=1
I have a few stop-down TV shows: Sopranos, Intervention on A&E, original CSI, and Most Haunted on Travel Channel. It's a British show that up until a couple of weeks ago runs around England (with occasional jaunts to Ireland and Scotland) to spend the night in a haunted house, pub or wherever. The first half is the best part, they go into the history of a place and grab a psychic or two to find hot spots. The second half are the vigils, where people will split up and sit in different places with night-vision cameras and freak out over every little bump. The second half is kind of a drag, unless you like hearing people stare bug-eyed into darkness asking, "Did you hear that?"
BUT!! The past couple of weeks they've been in America! Southern California to be exact, my old stomping grounds. I'm mad that I missed the first episode on the Queen Mary, but the next episode was at the Whaley House in San Diego and I really liked seeing the house and hearing the stories.
I'm so excited, because tonight they are at the American Legion Hall in Hollywood, where my sister got married a few years ago! What a crazy place. The ceremony was on the ground floor, where they have a two-story atrium with a balcony all the way around. Next to that is a theater that was way spooky. Upstairs was a crazy-ass library that I'm sure will be referenced in the show -- that's where we were dressing and doing our hair. Then the basement was a ballroom and a separate bar area and that's where the reception was. It really was a great place to have a wedding, because you didn't have to drive from the wedding to the reception afterwards.
I don't remember anything weird happening, other than before the wedding Dad and I were hanging lights from the balcony in the atrium -- they were red and white Christmas-type lights wrapped in white tulle. Of course everything worked great as we were hanging them up, then just before the wedding one rope went out. Then afterwards I remember going upstairs from the ballroom and they were on again. Probably nothing, right?
OK, last night's episode was awesome. Lots of stuff happened: a ton of ouija-type glass movement, the TV turning off and back on, and pool balls being thrown. It was great! Plus it was so cool to hear all about the building. I was a bit disappointed they didn't do more in the rooms upstairs, but they spent a lot of time in the cool bar in the basement which was rad.
I left a pretty giddy message yesterday for my sister to watch the show -- Mom and I are into haunted stuff more than she is, so she was probably like, "Whatever, it's Friday night and since we have a social life we're not sitting at home watching TV." I haven't heard back from her.
I wish I had a stronger psychic sense about things, but nothing weird has happened to me. DH, on the other hand, has had a ton of stuff happen to him and he said he didn't feel anything weird in the building. But since there were 150-200 people there, there was probably too much going on for anything to hang around. I'll put his experiences in another post -- he has some great stories to tell.
--We were testing our DSL on a streaming radio station and I wanted some '80s music. I picked a random station and it came up "ew Wave and Alternative" on iTunes radio -- HAHAHAHA! I listen to ew wave!
--sophia_helix had a general rant/complaint/statement a couple of days ago regarding people begging for LEs, like "OMG I NEED THIS LOL!!!" I can see where she's coming from. Everyone right now wants Monster Panties or the C12 blends, like those are the best things Beth has ever created. The fact is that Beth has many many blends that are great and are GC and wholly available.
I completely understand the lure of the LE: there has been many a blend that I bought simply because it was only available for a limited time and what if I love it and I'll never sniff anything like it again and and and *falls over dead* But then when you get them, they're not better than a GC blend just because they're LE. I can name a bunch of GC blends that I love and a bunch of LE blends that were meh.
In conclusion: don't fret over not getting a 5ml of Storyville. There are many other blends that are great.
I went to two different sales this weekend, which is unusual. One was on the way home from work on Friday, and there must have been 15 cars parked in front of this house. I thought, "Wow, this sale should be great!" and went in. Unfortunately not a whole lot was there, but I did get for $25:
--a Scooby-Doo lunch box from the '70s (no thermos)
--3 boxes of Japanese coil incense
Then DH and I went to one today that was in one of our favorite neighborhoods, Hollywood Heights -- yes, the houses are all little 1920s bungalows and I wish we could afford to live there. We got for $3:
--a few albums, Mahalia Jackson and a couple of touristy "Songs of Old Mexico" and "Songs of Hawaii" which I picked for the cute front covers
--a handful of old 45s of stuff DH liked, like Roger Miller (King of the Road!) and Allan Sherman (Hello Muddah!)
--a hurricane glass from Pat O'Brien's bar in New Orleans
--a little clay dish with a lid (for salsa or guacamole, I'm thinking ) with Mexican-type designs
--a green 4-dish appetizer set from a pottery co. in California, probably 1940s
So I probably paid too much at the first one, but made up for it at the second
My super-favorite purchase of the moment: Blondie greatest hits with videos! I had a couple CDs already but couldn't resist getting a DVD of old videos. They're so much fun -- it looks like they woke up and said, "Let's make a video!" And Blondie dresses up in a Hefty trash bag and a bathing suit and some electrical tape and tube socks and Candies and they make a video. So great! Can I be Blondie? No? Damn.
Yes, the title is sarcastic. I do not understand the excitement of cultivating your ulcer around some dudes running around. DH isn't a huge football fan, thank goodness -- his drug of choice is basketball. So 5 guys running up and down the court dictate not only his mood for the evening, but it dictates our evening:
--we have to watch the pregame yakking about what a great game this will be. But I can understand anticipation (Update Speculation thread, anyone? )
--then it's the game, 2-3 hours of tense up-and-down, back-and-forth *yawn* At least DH isn't yelling at the TV during all this.
--don't forget, after the game it's post-game commentary! Oh goody. Lots of yakking about how the game went. If the team won then everyone played great against formidable opponents. If the team didn't win then it's the refs' fault.
I'm just bitter because I want to watch CSI reruns instead.
I have the worst attitude towards others sometimes, and it’s difficult to blame on Aunt Flo when it happens at any time during the month. I guess I’m not a very social person. I could do without interactions most of the time; the whole farcical song-and-dance is a big energy-suck.
--you come into work on Monday, and are asked about your weekend
--every morning you’re asked about the previous evening
--on Friday you’re asked about your weekend plans
I understand that people are just trying to be polite, and the big picture is that we’re all here just killing time until we die. I don’t initialize these exchanges, I just say “fine, how was yours?” I’m a hypocrite. Maybe if I was “brutally honest” like others so proudly call themselves, people wouldn’t ask me anymore.
Spoiler
“My weekend was great! I sat around on my fat butt, drank too much and blew my husband. How was yours?”
There are a few people who as they’re walking by need to say “Hi Dawndie!” every time they walk by, even if they walked by before and it’s later the same day. Can’t you just smile or nod? I don’t like interrupting people when they’re trying to work, but I don’t get the same courtesy. The secretary desks are basically in the walkways in front of the attorney offices, and sometimes people will knock on my desk as they’re walking by -- I guess if I don’t pay enough attention to them. :curses under breath:
Then there’s one person here who will go out of her way to butt into the conversation if she’s nearby. Does she do this with everyone, or am I just lucky? My desk was near Noseyperson previously (not recently, like 4 years ago) and if you were having a phone conversation and then hung up, she would usually have some comment about your phone call. Seriously, what was I supposed to say? It’s impossible not to hear when our desks were so close together, but can’t you try to ignore it? Isn’t it rude to insert yourself into someone else’s work or personal life without invitation?
I do have a friend here at work, and I don’t mind eating lunch with him most of the time because he’s funny and very dry. I guess we’re anti-social together. We were in the lunch area recently talking about suck-in movies -- the ones you flip by and you end up sucked-in watching, even if you’ve seen it 20 times before. I said DH was watching one of his suck-ins last night, Ocean’s 11 (yes, with the ARGH BLARGH!! at the end, although he had flipped it by then). Noseyperson at the next table (not even sitting with us!) pipes up, “Which one?” I mumbled “the newer one” and Noseyperson comments for a few moments on how none of those “hunks” “do anything” for her. (Noseyperson, if any of those “hunks” saw your Jabba the Hutt’s Grandma ass, they’d run in the other direction.) She then blew her nose really loudly and I had to put my head down to keep from busting out laughing. GROSS. But I won’t say anything to her, unless Brutally Honest Dawndie blurted out, “Noseyperson, we weren’t talking to you. We don’t care what you think. Please go far away, especially when it’s time to empty your sinuses.”
OK, I actually feel better after my crab-in. I know a big part of this is I went from semi-working-from-home back to a big office, and I just need to build up my tolerance, or Zen Out like Valentina, or be like Snarky’s meditating turtle. Ommm…
