ICE: you are not my friend

Well, I just got official word that there will be no school tomorrow. That would be day 3. Day 1 is always exciting and much appreciated. Beyond that, we in education start waving goodbye to those precious end-of-year holidays that are so desperately needed. Now it seems we'll also be waving goodbye to at least one summer day...perhaps more if the darn sun doesn't come out and start melting some of this ice!

Day 1:
-made muffins for breakfast (got ingredients the day before in anticipation of being home to make them)
-looked at potential honeymoon spots...this may not have been such a great idea...pictures of beaches and imagining laying there soaking up the sun with a frozen beverage in hand...yeah, that idea gets sort of ruined when you attempt to look out the window, but can't because of all the frost and condensation on it from outside
-listened to Mazie meow to go outside, only to open the door for her, have her look at the snow outside the front door, and run into the bedroom. Like 50 times. Can cats have amnesia?
-once we'd bored ourselves of the TV, we decided to try and venture to 7-11 for a movie and snacks, most importantly to get out for a little bit
-bought horrible gas station snacks (and ate them!!), adult beverages and 2 Red Box movies
-made spaghetti squash for dinner
-painted my nails
-attempted to watch Anchorman...I just couldn't do it
-watched The Social Network instead
-used only cold water since the hot water pipes are broken at the apartment complex (=no shower yesterday)
-tried negotiating with a photographer...I'd say I was 60% successful

Day 2:
-slept in without interruptions
-cleaned out and wiped down the inside of the fridge
-decided to venture to Target for some groceries, and again, to get out of the house. Realized Target was not a terrific idea because the parking lot was one giant sheet of ice. Whimpered about parking and having to back out on ice. Finally decided to park far away from all cars in an open area where I could just pull forward to leave. Shopped in the 1/2 dark for the first time (electricity is evidently a precious commodity in North Texas right now, thank goodness it hasn't affected my apartment).
-went to the gym to shower. Yes, I had all the time in the world to work out but was seriously lacking motivation. So instead I just enjoyed their hot water and hair that no longer looks liked I emerged from the Gulf oil spill.
-Signed my first child away to a photographer. Well, really more to the wedding album she'll be making for us.
-Attempted to do my taxes. I didn't like what they said I owed, so I'll try again later.
-Started calling my work phone tree peeps
-I'd pour myself a glass of wine right now if I weren't going to pick up my sweet boy from downtown in about 30 minutes

Day 3:
I'm predicting:
-an actual gym visit that includes some exercise and sweat (and probably a hot shower since I'm doubting anything can be done about the underground pipes here in the 14 degree weather)
-catching up on 3 weeks worth of People magazines
-Modern Family season 1 marathon (it's ok to be jealous if Santa didn't bring this to you)
-banging my head against the wall
-creating a list of recipes to make for an entire month in an attempt to curb my lack of inspiration cooking rut
-mixed feelings if I get "the call" for day 4

very superstitious

Yesterday was Friday the 13th. Never before have I believed in bad luck on this day or been the least bit superstitious...however, after yesterday I might be a bit swayed. Like they say about deaths, my bad luck came in threes.

1. My blow dryer died about 5 seconds after turning it on yesterday morning. It just so happened that I'd gotten my hair cut the day before, by a brand new person, and I had a lot of new layers that needed to be fiddled with and styled. Scratch that plan; my hair spent the day in a ponytail with bobbypins. Luckily it was a super casual day at work.

2. Once I got to work with my semi-wet, semi-dry hair, I realized I'd left my phone at home. Obviously I knew I'd survive just fine without it, but I couldn't help but feel a bit off until I got home. On the upside, I was way productive because I had no phone to play with.

3. We stopped by Target on the way to dinner so that I could replace my deceased blow dryer. While in the checkout line I realized my wallet was not in my purse and was instead at my house. Luckily my sugar daddy was there to pick up the tab.

I ended this less than stellar day with a highly tasty frozen margarita, which helped everything.

did i speak too soon?

Remember how just days ago I showed you pictures of my shiny and organized office?

Remember how I said there is never a dull moment in my new job?

Well, to quote one of my favorite movies, The Little Rascals, "the clouds opened up and God said 'I hate you Alfalfa'!" Although, perhaps that should say Mary instead of Alfalfa.

I walked into the school today and was greeted by one of our secretaries who curled her face up and said "I just sprayed about half a can of Lysol in your office to make the smell go away." Um....come again???

Turns out, the roof and ceiling of Blue Haze Elementary, along with the clouds, opened up this weekend. Score. I'm really, really trying hard to choose my attitude and for that attitude to be a positive one. However, when the overhead lights start crackling due to water contact, there is nasty brown water dripping from the hole in the ceiling all the live-long day, the planner which is your Bible gets ruined, all the paperwork on your desk, including the sole copy of a child's psych. discharge papers are also ruined, and the library books you had laying out for lessons get destroyed, it gets tough. Oh, and did I mention the smell?

The only positive highlight so far is that all my documentation and paperwork for TCU happens to be kept in a hard plastic folder that I just happened to choose because it was purple. God bless plastic.

R.I.P. MJ

Apparently Mazie took the term "R.I.P." a bit too literally...or she was really bitter that I had left her alone all day. This is how she welcomed me home and showed her feelings for Michael. Is it wrong to be a little excited about watching the public memorial for him???

job security

There will always be a need for teachers, even in this unstable job market. Check out the middle two entrees....

this is how i spent my ice day

Jealous?

Due the fact that I haven't been able to breathe normally or finish many sentences without a series of sneezes or sniffling for over a month, I booked myself an appointment with an allergist.

Survey says: After 15 minutes of trauma (it was just as bad as when I was little), the doctor came back in and said my mountain cedar spot was "one of the strongest reactions I've ever seen" (letter D area in above pic). AWESOME. While I do like to excel at things, having such strong allergies is not one of them. I think shots are on the way, but we're gonna try the strongest medicine on the market for a month first.

Thank goodness I have learned lots of relaxation techniques in my counseling classes...I got really close, twice, to calling out for help. I was certain that my itching-which actually felt more like stinging-was some sort of freak reaction. Tropical beach and warm sand...check.

crashed...or something

Um, I am not sure what happened at my house while I was gone to San Antonio for Christmas, but according to the Middle-Eastern GENIUS at Dell, I did something to my computer (while I was approximately 250 miles away) that caused it to be "restored back to factory settings"...i.e. Mary lost every picture, paper she'd written, file, Itunes song, and Internet favorites pages she'd saved on this lovely computer. I calmly explained that I did nothing different that I've done for the past 2 years of using this laptop and that it must have been an angry ghost. Not really, but I wanted to say that-he was making me so mad!! Never mind that I could barely hear/understand what he was saying. I could have paid $70 for him to walk me though some recovery process. I asked for free instructions, got them, but it didn't work. I haven't shed tears in days, but I got really close today: 1.I got stood up by a lady who was supposed to be showing me a cool apartment. 2. Some of my material possessions are gone. Happy Monday to me!!!

Now I have the pictures I took over the break on this computer...temporarily....because every time I shut it down EVERYTHING is gone.

I went to the Spurs game with Kerry on Tuesday night over the break. Go Spurs Go!! Of course they won AND my love, Mr. Tony Parker, scored lots of points for them. Eva was nowhere in sight...perhaps they're on the verge of a breakup??...Tony and I did make eye contact...I felt sparks, I am sure he did too.

Mazie actually explored my parents' backyard for the first time, and she became BFF with the tree. She ran to it first thing every time I let her out and then she would just perch on a branch.

I got to play with Meredeth and Christine when I got back on Saturday-oh my, what an evening! At least Meredeth got her entertainment center up into her house! :)

Yay for having 4 pictures on my computer!! Ugh.

just a little venting

...because I couldn't reprimand the girl who frustrated me into needing to vent. So I went to Tom Thumb after school to get some pretty bell peppers; they were on sale 4 for $5 with your reward card. I planned to just run in and run out...not even use a bag from the check-out area. (I'm anti-plastic bags; plus I love my reusable ones from Target!) When I got to the express lane I was third in line. The girl checking out was gabbing on her cell phone, paying no attention to the apples falling out of her untied bag or to the cashier...this is probably my number one pet peeve as of late. I seriously can't stand it when people talk on their phones while checking out!! A-I think it's just plain rude to the checker. Really, really rude. B-The person on the phone is not paying attention to what they are doing, EVER, and therefore the line gets held up.

Back to my story. So this girl is STILL talking while the cashier is trying to tell her the total. Then, she hangs up, digs in her purse...and says, "Oh my gosh, my card is in my car. Just put my stuff to the side and I'll come back in." This would not have annoyed me as much had she not been on the phone...she would have noticed the missing card sooner and could have gone out her car sooner while her items were still being rung up. The nice checker lady says, "No, no, go get your card. I'll just wait." HELLO!! This is the express line and all I want to buy are 4 bell peppers. She calls for backup. Seriously! So backup comes. Being the kind citizen I am, I tell the lady in front of me, whose also been waiting on said chola, to go ahead to the newly opened express line. This chola finally gets back inside and pays.

And to top it all off, when I went out to my car she was across the lane putting her goods in her trunk. I get in my car, turn it on, check around me, and begin backing out. Guess who comes about 6 inches away from backing into my car?!?!

Those peppers better be tasty and crisp.