can i make a skirt?

i'd like to point out that i've been working at a fabric store for a full five weeks now, and i'm just starting to seriously think about buying fabric to make myself something. that's impressive, right? we have this fabulous crushed taffeta - or something - that will make the cutest skirt! i love it in purple, but i'm thinking i'll use the black and put some colorful netting underneath it. that way i can wear it to work and still be mostly following the dress code. and mostly is good enough when it comes to a dress code.

offset weekend

i worked 9-5 today, but now my weekend has begun. i don't go back until 4pm tuesday - yay! don't get me wrong, i'm loving my job. it's just always nice to have back-to-back days off. :)

items of note for the day

- no matter how in love you are, it's not acceptable to swat your partner's fanny while at a fine retail establishment.

- if you ask me for directions, don't walk the opposite direction and get upset when you don't find that for which you're looking.

NaBlo around the corner

NaBloPoMo officially begins on monday - yay! i'm having some trouble coming up with my topics, but i'm sure they'll come to me. i read mel's blog this morning, and she has a friend who's going to join us, too! that made me very happy. there's still time to join. just let me know you want to participate, and give me a few topics you'd like to see every one blog about. the bigger the group of bloggers, the more fun. :)

weather-related productivity

my plans for yesterday included grocery shopping, boot shopping and getting my hair cut. i decided that could all wait until the wind died down, however. so i finished my san francisco scrapbook instead. the san francisco scrapbook i started after my first two trips to the city. 11 years ago. yeah. that scrapbook. after i finished that one, i worked on my duck scrapbook. you know, the fiberglass duck april & i painted for the town of highland's outdoor art exhibit. 7 years ago. yeah. that duck. every thing is now completely organized and in order, broken down page by page. all i need to do is actually get it into the album. i'm thinking it'll be done in another ... 4 years?

weathered

the online radar says the worst of the storm is past us now. pardon me while i go collect the pieces of our fire pit from the neighbor's yard.

must. sleep.

i've been sleeping horribly lately. when i finally do fall asleep i'm tossing and turning all night. that's not normal for me at all. generally i move a total of 2 times per night. lately it's been more like 22, at a minimum. so i'm thinking tonight i'll pop some tylenol pm around 8 and hopefully be in bed before 11. with any luck, i'll actually feel rested in the morning.

lazy morning

after a few long days at work, it's nice to start a sunday with a mug of hazelnut hot cocoa.

what?

early this morning three people from Old Job moved in my parents. there was an obnoxious hedge planted around the oak tree, and the garage and the neighbor's back yard had been commandeered for a science experiment. the experiment was being led by my brother and two friends from high school. two metal rockets were built and filled with pine cones. one pine cone per rocket, as the pine cones were 3' in diameter and 5' long. the point of the experiment was to see if the pine cones would generate enough oomph to launch the rockets. i don't think it would have worked, but the smoke set off my alarm clock before i could see the end.

not being 9-5

the whole TGIF-It's-Friday-Wahoo! commotion has less meaning when you work weekends. :)

bullets

- last night i dreamed i took over the advertising department at Old Job. i told my new subordinates that i knew i was crazy for taking over.

- apparently the words dreamed and dreamt can be used interchangeably.

- my automatic spell-check does not like the word dreamt.

- i find it nearly impossibly to say the word dreamt without adding a p sound between the m and t.

- my ten hours at work today went by very quickly. hopefully tomorrow will be the same.

- while i was sleepy during my break at work, i am now wide awake.

- i opened my laptop to renew my library books, but i posted instead.

tactical switch

so this afternoon i realized that the cast list of Law & Order: Criminal Intent i was working off of wasn't complete. it listed cast by the number of episodes appeared - but it ended with 2-episode appearances. but half the point of the research is the guest stars who are only in single episodes. so now i'm going through the cast list by episode, which includes every person credited. with each new name, i'm realizing how ridiculous this undertaking is. i'm only on the first degree shows. somehow i'm doubting i'll make it through second degree shows. i mean, there are well over 800 one-degree shows.

without actually counting, i think the show with the most links is currently either Third Watch or The Sopranos.

NaBloPoMo, anyone?

november is National Blog Posting Month. the goal is to post to your blog every day. last year a group of us all submitted topics, and each day a new topic was drawn as a focus for our blogs. topics included gratitude, panic, 5 ways to lose a fight, orange and peg leg or hook? it was a lot of fun to see how each blogger approached the subject, and it gave us something new to talk about each day.

so ... anyone want to join me this year?

dreams remembered

a. i was driving home from a shopping trip with my sister in the seat next to me and my mom in the back. my car was freaking out. first it told me i was low on fuel, which i knew wasn't true because i'd just stopped on my way home from work the other day to fill up. (i had actually done that in real life.) then the blow up gauge started rising. seriously, in the dream, i knew it as the "blow up" gauge. so apparently i didn't want my mom & sister to know there was possible trouble because i asked my sister to open up this fleece blanket set (like we sell at work) for me. so she did, but when she opened it the blanket expanded and made it so i couldn't see. that was bad because the blow up gauge was still rising and i couldn't see where to turn off into the animal clinic's parking lot to fix it. fix it? i was going to stop the car and start it up again. that fixes all problems, right?

2. some guy i knew in the dream came home, but he knew there were people inside. sinister people up to no good. so he called 911, but found out that because of where he lived no town would assist him in his emergency. (i actually have this fear sometimes, and i think it stems from the fact that the good pizza place won't deliver to us because we're on the very edge of town.) but he can handle it. he waits for me to arrive, and we go in quietly and wait in the dining room, hiding around the corner from the top of the stairs. when the sinister people come up the stairs, we jump out & each push one down the stairs. then a chase through a manufacturing building ensues.

dreams rock.

did i see you today?

i'm pretty sure i saw you today. yup, pretty sure. because you see, every one bought fabric today. every one. so you must have been there, too. yup, pretty sure.

random day

i didn't want to get up this morning. my roommate is sick, and i'm trying to avoid catching it. i'm thinking a good 16 hours of sleep would help that, right? :) but that wasn't in the plan for today. instead i set my alarm for latest i felt would comfortably allow me to get ready for work without rushing around. so as i'm pulling things out of the fridge to make my lunch, i double-check my schedule. hmmmm. i wasn't supposed to be start at noon - i was supposed to start at 11. that meant i should have left 15 minutes ago. oops. thankfully i usually give myself extra time for the drive - i clocked in at 11:03.

i came home and got the mail, which included an envelope from my mama. (have i mentioned lately that my mom rocks? i love her.) my previous employer had sent something to her address for me. yeah, that was two addresses ago ... and they've sent things to me at both newer addresses ... but whatever. it's a check for about $25. why did they send me a check for $25? because i asked them to, apparently. only i asked them to do it in january of 2007 when i purchased some supplies for the marketing department. kid you not. it's money they've apparently owed me for almost four years.

today's strange.

pay day

i'm pretty sure i get a check today. not a bad thing. :)

the beginning

disclaimer: i know i'm a nerd for doing this. please don't comment telling me i have too much time on my hands or anything equally derogatory. i will delete it. judge quietly amongst yourselves. :)

so, i spent a couple of hours today looking at actors/actresses in Law & Order: Criminal Intent. i haven't hit all the guest stars, yet, but the main characters are accounted for. currently, there are over 250 tv shows just one degree away. meaning that the main characters in Law & Order: CI have been in more than 250 other tv shows (not including talk shows, variety shows or bio pieces). the most common shows? ER and Third Watch - each with 8 common actors/actresses to Criminal Intent.

autumn on the drive

cookies with mom

chocolate chocolate chip cookies ... with bacon. yum.

tv web

i'm a huge fan of law & order. it's my televised drama addiction in much the same way that friends is my televised comedy addiction in much the same way that johnny depp is my cinematic addiction. and the great thing about law & order? between the three major series (original, criminal intent and svu), there's an amazing number of guest stars from other shows. so i've started looking at who guest stars, what other shows those stars have been on, and how large the web of interconnectivity is. and it's ridiculously fun. plus, i'm learning that it's pretty common to link any tv show to law & order in just two degrees (think the kevin bacon theory). i wish i could get a spreadsheeting program to work on my laptop, as i'm pretty sure that would make the character logging easier. but i may just have to move my focused efforts to my big mac. you know, for the sake of good research.

breakfast

i'm seriously contemplating eating potato salad for breakfast. that's healthy, right?

still sleepy

or maybe not. :\ here's hoping today's a crazy-busy day at work and i can crash as soon as i get home tonight.

sleepy

after two nights of fitful sleep, i'm hoping tonight proves more refreshing.

quick time

yeah, 8 hours goes fast when you're busy. unfortunately the same is true when you're sleeping.

wednesday thoughts

i picked up some extra hours at work this week. i'm staying later tomorrow, and i'm going in on friday, which i wasn't originally scheduled to do. that's a good thing.

i've got a hankering to make macaroni & cheese. not from a blue box. something with a great mix of cheeses, gooey and amazing.

the house has been decorated for halloween. i left my hand & brain jello molds out in the garage, but i did bring in my bat cookie cutter. i wonder if i can find a kicky rolled cookie recipe. something with black pepper or red pepper flakes, maybe.

peanut butter and chocolate may be the perfect mixture.

today i learned that Man v. Food did an episode in indianapolis. his big challenge? a burger place in carmel. i may need to check that out soon.

i'm sleepy.

day off

yesterday's post chronicled last week, not this coming week. that was obvious, right? this coming week will be more relaxed. i work every other day during the week and saturday/sunday. yesterday was my day off, and i did very little other than sleep and lounge on the sofa. it was fabulous. :)

and netflix is rewarding my long week by releasing both season 11 of SVU and season 4 of 30 Rock for streaming through the wii. i love when netflix is good to me.

and now i'm going to go get ready for work. black pants & white polo, here i come! (yeah, it's an awesome dress code. i know you're jealous.)

crazy week

monday: bake peanut butter bacon cookies. drive to the region. have dinner with the family. play some beans.

tuesday: lunch with kathy. set up signage and work the front door at the taste of home cooking school - hanging out with the good folks at old job. have dinner with my mom. attend the taste of home cooking school on-stage show. have drinks & laughter with the good folks at old job.

wednesday: sleep about 5 hours. drive to indy. show up for first day of work at new job. dinner at qdoba. grocery shop for weekend's hoopla.

thursday: mow the lawn. do laundry. sew bags for corn hole. clean bedroom. day two at new job.

friday: day three at new job. greet beth. dinner at chili's. final shopping for weekend's hoopla. prep food for hoopla.

saturday: prep food for hoopla. hoopla. lose at phase 10.

sunday: day four at new job. crash on sofa. sleep for 11 hours.