corpora lente augescent cito extinguuntur

It's been quite a few days- I'm sorry to all of you who just got comments I left on 10-day-old posts. My apathy is overwhelming sometimes.
But HAY- I'm here now with so much to share!!!


First off- I finished painting the study, FINALLY- and now just have to rip up the carpet and sand/ finish the floor... just. *sigh* yeah-
But we GOT A ROOMMATE. He's a friend-quaintence of ours who we both adore but hardly ever see. Christopher is highly gay and highly awesome. He's into really great movies, he's clean, quiet, has awesome taste, and, well- I just can't say enough how happy I am to get him. I think it's going to be grand, and we'll be making 450- a month that will cover our evil winter heating bills, and now we'll be able to buy FOOD and possibly even PAY THE MORTGAGE on time. AMAZING.
It won't be till November, which gives me time to clear out the library:


and relocate ALL OF THAT CRAP elsewhere so he will have somewhere to live.

Therefore, my remodeling (painting and carpet removal) (the room was blood red and black, now it's pale grey-purple and white= lots of paint) of the old study (which will be the new library) has to get DONE.

Much painting and cleaning has been done this weekend, and now I'm back to work-

as a matter of fact- on that note- I'm working 2 weeks on the graveyard shift. 10pm to 10 am- today is my first. It's 3am and a bit.... surreal. But very peaceful.


What else have I been up to?
Well- I finished the CAT YARN project (part one- this is going to definately continue since i had such success)- I made about 12 feet of cat-twine, which became 6 feet when put together and 3 feet when twisted in half. I soaked it in water, and discovered that it was REALLY STRONG. I didn't have enough to KNIT a cat toy, so instead I constructed one in basket-weaving fashion with red thread- and stuffed it with catnip.
So far the reaction has been: Bafflement, sniffing, disintrest, OBOYFUNBATBAT, disintrest, sniffing again, disintrest, slight fear, more sniffing, forgotton.




*****************************************************************
Yes, I've saved the best for last.


I got MAIL.

two AWESOME things came for me in the past few days.

( Check it oooouuuut!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!! )

Probably many of you are familliar with this (Stiff: The Curious Lives of Human Cadavers) amazing book, and if you're not, you should be--- well joy of joys I just found out she has TWO MORE
Spook: Science Tackles the Afterlife
and
Bonk: The Curious Coupling of Science and Sex

So I immediately spent my last few dollars on them and will be waiting excitedly for their arrival.

Also, as of today, I have some dreadful infection on my tonsils. I'm hoping it gets really bad so I can stay home sick, but for now, it's just annoying and makes me feel like I need to swallow all the damned time.

Last Thursday was unparalelled for awesomeness. My dearest friendstheeflappergirl and Paris (with the magnanamous Freya) took a long walk up Mt Tabor, sat in the shade, then went to a French bistro and had strawberry mimosas.
I saw this along the way.


( Also )

Had a lovely 4-day weekend.
Wednesday I pretty much slept, but then Thursday I hung out with the outragiously cool theeflappergirl and her amazingly awesome daughter Nattie.
Then I went and spent the rest of the afternoon with Paris and Co.
Little Freya is already exhibiting signs of decisionmaking, even though she's but a month old, and it's truly fascinating.
On Friday, Hunter and I went to go see our friend Ama's band play, which was highly entertaining, and then hung out with him for a while back at our pad sending fry1138 obnoxious drunken xbox live messages and getting hammered (sorry about that).
It was great fun.
Saturday was spent doing almost nothing.

Also, this weekend I finally saw Death Proof and Planet Terror, and I have to say I was truly surprised by how much I liked them. I was really not expecting much, but I thoroughly enjoyed both- and would be loathe to have to pick a favorite.


In other news, the funeral home about a block from me has shut it's doors, so I took some photos.

( Fun in Funeral and so on )

Went to Paris's today to get her opinion on the color scheme of my kitchen after picking up a ton of color swatches at Fred Meyer. I've settled on a deep maroon for accents, black on white for the cabinets, and pale green for the walls. I also got handles for all the cabinets, and will be working on this project for the next two days.
I sang "Bandit Queen" to Freya. I've been learning the lyrics specifically so I could sing her my off-key rendition of the tune. It's one of my favorites, and I didn't write it (the Decemberists did), but I still dedicate it to her:
"As the sun is sinking low
and the evening's tucked in tow
On the horizon, my true love I see.
She ain't fancy, she ain't fine
While her fingers number only nine
She's the belle of the ball of the insurgency.

She's my Bandit Queen, lain beneath the moon
In a bandit cave, a blanket laid for two
If I could find a way to your hideaway by the sea
O Bandit Queen, steal away to me.

Somewhere on a mountain, by a starry water fountain
In an alcove hid by some trees
Amidst a pile of treasure, reclining at her leisure,
My ladylove sniffs as the breeze.

And sitting up, she adjusts her turban
And takes another swig from a bottle of bourbon
And listening to the whistling of a train at station
Odds are it will never reach its destination.

'Cause the Bandit Queen, astride her steed will ride
O let me be the on to lay within your theivin' arms tonight.

She's my Bandit Queen, lain beneath the moon
In a bandit cave, there's a blanket laid for two
If I could find a way to your hideaway by the sea
O Bandit Queen, steal away to me."

Anyway, I took a lot of pictures today, all of which were *awesome* and some of my favorites to date, but let's begin at the beginning shall we?


Bonding with the tiny mammal


( Wonderful People )

So I was on my way to work this morning, and I was *really* craving a bagel and cream cheese. I knew I shouldn't get one because I really need to watch my carbs and fat, but DAMN if it didn't sound good.
Anyway, so there I was- debating my breakfast---- as I was walking up a street, who should I happen to see but my EX-"bff" L, standing on the corner.
Many of you may remember me talking about her but leave it to say: When she was 16 she was a waif. She really pulled it off and looked great.
I moved out of town for a few years, and when I came back she was around 200lbs (at about 5'4), so no longer waifish.
After a few years of living with her as a roommate, I too packed on the bloody pounds, and once I realized she was a pathalogical liar, amongst the most self-absorbed people I've ever known, and had *no hobbies except shopping*, it was too late.
I was quite, quite large, having gone from around 130 to about 195. Yeah. Awesome.
It wasn't her fault- it was ME who listened to the dumb fat empowerment shit she would spout as a justification for eating and drinking too much.
Anyway.
I've lost most of the weight, though not ALL, but when I saw her and she looked about the same, and I suddenly had *no desire* for that bagel. Not even a little.
She didn't see me (thank god) and I skootched around the corner so that I wouldn't have to walk past her.

Am I petty? OH yeah!
When it comes to the few people in my life I have reason to dislike, I can apparently hold a grudge forever.
It takes a LOT to get on my bad side, like telling me I should hang out with *you* and not my mom while she lies on her deathbed, and getting self rightious when I recoil in horror.... or stealing my shit, or saying you have had cancer, can play the cello and are in a black metal band, your cousin is a Swedish churchburner, you got fingered by Steve-O, or getting me drunk because you know I'm generous when I'm tanked and waiting till I am to get me to buy all your drinks, and on and on.
One of those things individually would not make me seethe the way that I'm seething right now, but all of them together? Yeah.

I was just bragging recently about how I no longer am angry at her, and I'm not- REALLY I'm not- but seeing her reminded me of all the reasons I keep my IRL friendslist small. Because so many people are worthless wastes of space, and I'm too friendly to tell the damn difference until it's too late.
I'm naive, and trusting, and take things at face value when I shouldn't. I assume people have the best intentions and so very often they don't, and I just keep on assuming it, no matter how much I get burned.
That's why I'm SUPER picky about my friends- because I can't trust myself to not get taken advantage of.

Anyway, seeing her (and the resulting need to flee) made me think about how I've really let my diet go- I haven't gained back much, but enough that my pants are a little tighter than they were. It's not even food that's doing it, it's BEER. lol. So yeah, gonna cut back on that.
Maybe I'll just switch to liquor, HAHAHAHAHA


So seeing her fat ass really focused shit for me, so for that, L, I thank you. Thank you for reminding me that I don't want to look like you.

Some girls can carry that kind of weight and look smokin hot, but not you and me, we just look like overstuffed voodoo dolls.


Also, I have more photos. Yay for unsuspecting bystanders!
( PDX Folks )