Snooty Primadona's Sparkling Outlook On Life... Or Not

It's Amazing What You Find When You Clean The Cobwebs Out....

2012-01-23T06:58:00.036-06:00

Hmmmm... Let's see. Mr. Snooty's fabulous set of Bakelite poker chips that were from his paternal grandfather turned up while he was cleaning out the old playhouse last week. For the past 20+ years we have been certain someone we knew had stolen them. Uh-Huh. Please don't judge. We were young and stupid then.

Then Mr. Snooty found my old bowling ball (engraved with my name) from pre-children days, when we bowled together in a league. We were both sure that I'd sold it in a garage sale. See? It's fun getting old! It's almost like Christmas, every day of the year. Only not. Quite.

For years I've looked for the pictures from my 1982 trip to NYC (as a chaperone to the Pickwick Players theater group (pre-children days), associated with our local Community Theater), to no avail. Mr. Snoots, bless his soul, found them. Frankly, he's been pulling junk out of the *old playhouse* for four days. Yes, the very place Felicia the Fox had her pups (underneath) for many years. Someone else had to do it because I certainly wasn't going to. To me, it would be like invading hallowed ground, right? Nah. I just didn't want to get all dirty and covered in spiders, m'kay?

Back then, my best friend was Ozzie Whitten, who was gay. Every woman needs a good gay guy friend. So. Not. Kidding. I adored Ozzie and our trip to New York City was magical. Sadly, he died from Aids (brain cancer) in 1992, but he had already carved a permanent spot in my heart. We did so many things together and they are all such wonderful memories.

Oooooh!We also found many incriminating photos of our days before children. Enough said about that subject. My lips are sealed from this moment on and the evidence has been destroyed...

So, no outstanding fortunes of any kind were found and now we can move on. Hopefully. One out-building down. Two out-buildings and a rented storage unit to go!

Does anyone recognize this lovely shawl I'm sporting on my 1982 trip to NYC?? It has been a yearly staple in my wardrobe since that time, when I purchased it for $250.00. I'd say it was a good investment and I've always guarded it like a hawk. I dearly love this shawl and often buy my wardrobe around it. Good pieces really do last forever.....

That was the same year I did my first Jr. League placement as an Assistant Director for one of the Pickwick plays, and it was a wonderful and enlightening experience. The two real directors of the Pickwick Players were Michael and Elizabeth Spicer, both actors who were implants here from New York. They divorced more than a year later and I don't know what happened to them after that, but they were fun on the trip.

I was able to also meet Mayor Ed Kotch, which was really a treat. I always liked him. He always just seemed like a man of the people...

On this trip we saw "Evita", "Amadeus", "Pirates of Penzance", "Othello" (with Christopher Plummer & James Earl Jones), and "A Chorus Line" , plus one off-off Broadway show called "Cloud Nine". Now that I've seen the pictures again, it all seems like just yesterday...

Houston, We Have Lift Off... AKA The New Guest Room Is Done!

2012-01-18T06:21:00.003-06:00

Of course, this doesn't mean I have the bathroom finished, because I don't. I still need to do the counter top, hang a decorative black iron hanger for towels or clothes, find a suitable window treatment for the bathroom window, have sliding door repaired (yes, the painter broke it), as well as have the cabinet doors repaired (that he also broke) and find a replacement for the toilet paper holder (which is darkened-by-time brass). Then, I will actually be finished.

However, for now, the bedroom is finished and I'm so pleased with the way it all turned out.

I just finished repainting SD's old camp trunk that was ugly as sin. It used to be hidden in her closet, being used to store excess junk. I like it much better in black, situated at the end of the bed. The best part is that it's located right by my new craft closet, so I'll be able to hide my large and small containers of paint, etc.

Oh, and here's a picture of my new craft closet. I just love having everything in one place, all organized and easy to find. The excess is located in the next closet, inside our old Heywood-Wakefield dresser, which is also hidden away.

Also, I finally got the curtain tie backs up today, which was a rather major improvement to the look of the room.

Here's a picture of SD's camp trunk before I started on it. Let me just say that I had to do a huge amount of scraping and sanding before I could even begin to paint it, which was a necessary evil...

Oh, and I also still have to hang another item for the wall that displays the two Oriental hats, but first I need to spray paint it black, but it's really just an afterthought, to add more interest to the wall. It's not what you'd call an important element to the room, but it will make the wall less boring....

Yet Another Mini-Snowmageddon In West Texas....

2012-01-11T06:14:00.024-06:00

Yes, it's true. We received a total of 14 to 15 inches in 24 hours, which set another new record. Haven't we just been the record setters this whole last year? I'm now certain that everything left outside is dead or close there to. We simply aren't accustomed to this kind of weather. Besides, we have no HILLS, much less mountains for skiing. To me, that renders snow to be useless. Can't ski on it? Don't need it. I never cared for cross-country skiing, which is too bad since we've had so much snow the last few years.

We've set records for snowfall amounts, consecutive days of triple digit heat, number of destructive wildfires for a record setting number of days, consecutive days without rain and our first ever city imposed water rationing. It's been like living on another planet, really. It no longer resembles Earth and has seriously cut into our golf playing time. It's almost like we're living on some planet in the Warp Zone. Or the Twilight Zone.

Year before last our yard had begun to look like it had before life got in the way, giving us brief hopes for revival. The last two years have stripped us of any hopes of returning to those glory days. It would just take more energy than either of us have and Mr. Snoots wouldn't even consider having someone aside from the man who mows once a week during the growing months. So, it would be ridiculous to replant everything without someone or a crew to care for it all. We are on a double-sized lot, after all. It would all merely die again, therefore causing us to throw more money down the drain. We have better places to throw our money down the drain, thank you.

Mr. Snoots still hasn't told the painter to come back and finish the back exterior of our house (and the doors). Not sure what that's all about. Surely it can't be Moi? Anyway, I'm still not missing him, if that tells you anything. The painting of SD's tiny room and bathroom nearly did me in.

Amazingly, Mr. Snoots told me today that he's going to call a local company about windows, which means Mr. Molasses won't be doing the new windows. Thank. The. Lord. I might have gone stark raving mad.

I finally finished hanging the Roman shades in the guest room, as well as the curtains our friends gave us for free. We tried to hang the curtains in SD's room today but found that we're going to need a stud finder. When we tried to hang them today, the whole deal just fell out of the wall, which made me wail at the damage to the new paint job. We are such novices when it comes to DIY that it's almost comical, but not. Really.....

My First Masterpiece Of 2012....

2012-01-09T06:08:00.024-06:00

Last year at this time I had made the horribly painful but lovely Coffee Filter Wreath but since it was filthy with irremovable dirt by October, I spray painted it black and added mini pumpkins, to serve as our new Halloween wreath. Not wanting to go through the painful process of another coffee filter wreath, I searched high and low for a new wreath project.

I really hated to put away my Christmas wreath because I love it so much, all sparkly and bright. So after a bit of thought I decided to make a Valentine Ornament Wreath. When I began to look for a heart wreath form to build upon, I found everyone in town to be out of them, save for one smallish wreath on the bottom shelf (at the very back of the shelf) at Hobby Lobby. Of course, thinking that I could easily acquire plenty of red/reddish ornaments, I was further disappointed to discover that NO STORES had any left except for some at Target. I immediately became overwhelmed with greed and piled every single box of medium and small sized red ornaments all marked 80%, yes 80% discounted, into my basket.

Who cares if people were staring at me as if I'd lost my brain somewhere in the parking lot? I was on a mission. Assuring myself that these would be enough for the project, I checked out and raced home to get started. As usual, it wasn't enough but no place in town had any left and I went everywhere that sold (or had sold) ball ornaments, probably spending a small fortune in gasoline, right?

I worked feverishly for two days until I reached the point that I knew I couldn't finish without more red ornaments. Fully aware that there were no more to be had locally, I searched the internet for miniature red balls that would be used to fill in the gaps of my wreath. The cost was astronomical on the scale of after Christmas ornaments, so I declined. Then I did the unthinkable. Yes, I unpacked all of the ornaments I'd already carefully packed away and I robbed what few red ornaments I could find. Then I robbed the front porch decorative trees of their red ornaments as well. Frankly, I decided I could just worry about them next year when supplies are plentiful.

Still, I had gaps that needed to be filled in on the wreath, so I finally had to break down and use some champagne colored mini ornaments I had put away for next year. I suppose I'll have to replace those as well, when the time comes. Until then, they did a nice job of filling in the remaining holes, don't cha think?

The most amazing thing to me is that you can't buy ball ornaments out of season and fleaBay is always a crap shoot. You never know what you'll end up with and it almost always costs more than it's actually sold for at retail prices. Who runs these places anyway? Don't they know that people craft 365 days of the year? They could have made a tidy sum, but they had nothing to sell. Too bad for the retailers, huh?

Did I mention we are scheduled to have another snow tomorrow night? I'm cynical but the hubby says it's guaranteed by the weather service. A guarantee from them is absolutely worthless, thank you anyway. Why does anyone believe them? Their ratio for being accurate is like 2%. Hello......

2011... A Look Through The Rearview Mirror

2012-01-04T06:29:00.002-06:00

Looking back, I must admit 2011 hasn't been the best of years for us. A huge chunk of time was spent going to doctor appointments, countless hours on the phone with AT&T trying to get our services to work, trying to redecorate for showing the house (someday) and attending far too many funerals for family and friends. Somehow, we were able to survive a record setting drought, late record setting freezes that jumped straight to record setting heatwaves, the wildfires from Hell and city imposed water rationing because there are so many idiots in our city that just didn't get it that we are seriously running out of water. Soon.

The entire year has been riddled with repairs in and around the house and we've still only taken a tiny chunk off the *Big Picture* of things that need to be done. We still have so many things to update and repair. However, if we keep hiring people who are slow as molasses, then we've still got a few years ahead of us before we're even ready to put the house on the market, much less move. Luckily, I've also learned many things already, about the way things are done and not done.Always good to know, right?

Whew! That is the most we've ever had to deal with in one year. Maybe one other year. The year we lost both of Mr. Snooty's parents to cancers (7 months apart) was gut wrenching but we didn't have insanely drastic and unpredictable weather to deal with, in addition to what was going down in our lives. But I'm getting off track here.

So taking everything that has happened this year into consideration, I'd say 2011 ranks pretty low on my list of the *good years*. That said, there have been some pretty grand perks to the year. I was able to see Celine Dion for the first (and last) time, zip-lined for the first (and second) time, learned I could successfully do my own home decorating, discovered the joys of spray painting and Goodwill, taken 4 or 5 nice trips together, and I had one of the highlights of my year, going to Seattle and getting to know my *blisters* (blog sisters) better.

Probably the best part of 2011 Christmas was having Mr. Snooty's brother and his family come to visit after Christmas. We had so much fun with them and we all found one another to have mellowed over the years, allowing us all to have nothing but fun times. However, we all went bowling yesterday (which neither of us have done in years) and today we are both miserable with muscle aches, back aches and various other pains.....

What were we thinking?

So, for a HUGE laugh today, go here to see the top 25 Twitter auto-correct fails. Never have I laughed so hard at the many reasons I don't text...

The Joys of Christmas.... Or Not

2011-12-28T14:48:00.000-06:00

After attending the Griswold party we came home to discover there was nothing for the poor cat to eat, so I ran up to the nearest convenience store for a can of tuna (she won't eat cat food). After paying for the tuna I left to get in my car and a strange woman came up to me, saying she was sorry to ask, but she needed help with either a place to stay or the money to find a place. I'd heard on the news that Salvation
Army and other shelters around town were all full.

My first reaction was to tell her no and bolt for the car as quickly as possible. Then, that question came to my mind. You know the one. What if it was Jesus testing me? So, I gave her every penny I had in my wallet, which only amounted to approximately $37.50. When I told Mr. Snoots and SD they just rolled their eyes and laughed at me for being such a sucker. Perhaps I am, but I felt good knowing I'd helped someone to have a warmer Christmas (as opposed to believing she was a con artist).

Yes, I'm one of those people who still believes there are lots of good, honest people left in the world, whether they have fallen upon hard times or whatever. I'm also the person who can only toss so many coins into the Salvation Army pot before she begins planning new routes to avoid them. They always tug on my heart strings too hard.

Last night I went to see the yearly light and music show that a local paraplegic works on all year. As always, it was so fun and he has music to like 8 different songs in a row, all set to the beat of the lights.

As I'm sitting there recording one song, a young man comes up to my car from behind, startling me. I nearly dropped the camera. Luckily all he wanted to know was what radio station to turn to for the light show music. But he still startled me pretty badly so I decided it was time to head home before something else happened.

Anyway, this is the best recording I was able to get:

The Griswold Party & A West Texas White Christmas...

2011-12-24T12:29:00.000-06:00

We almost never have a white Christmas, but this year Mother Nature treated us to a big snow, making everything look like a Christmas card. Yipppeeee!

We trekked through the snow to the Griswold party and boy, were we ever glad we did. It was really a hoot and some of the costumes were hilarious. SD borrowed an ugly Christmas sweater from a relative and and she looked great. We only wore hats because I don't own any ugly Christmas sweaters & Mr. Snoots doesn't even own a sweater. Seriously.

As usual, I said I'd take lots of pictures, which I failed to do except for when we first got there and then when we were leaving the party. I know. But I always just get so wrapped up in talking with people that I just plain forget.

There were lots of men with squirrels pinned to the back of their sweaters, but the best part was the RV they had parked out in front of their house, proclaiming it to be cousin Eddie's travel trailer. They put up lighted palm trees & put out an old club chair and neon pink flamingos as well.

They had the entire roof of their house loaded with lights, just like the Griswold's house in the movie. I mean, this couple was really into it!

We stayed for a couple of hours, then left SD there to party on with her friends, with her friends promising to bring her home later. So, I received a call from SD around Midnight and had to venture out in the snow to fetch her ( but this seems to happen every year and I'm always happy to rescue my babies).

We were trying to remember when we last had a white Christmas, all of us certain that it had been many years ago. Our memories are obviously failing us. The last White Christmas was in 2009.......

Well, Merry Christmas To Me & To You All...

2011-12-21T12:40:00.001-06:00

This morning I received *the call* from the doctor who did my colonoscopy. The nurse told me everything was perfect and they want to see me again in 5 years. Woot! Woot! Always good to know, right? I have mild Diverticulitis, which is not a big deal if I increase the fiber in my life. So. Can. Do.

So, I think I'm all ready for Christmas and the *in-laws* on the 27th. I'm so excited I can hardly wait! It's going to be like an extra Christmas for me. Yeehaaaaaw!

Our son hasn't been looking very hard for a job and I suspect that he just wants to come home while his cousins are here. If he gets a job now, that wouldn't be possible, but I understand and I'm okay with that.

On the 22nd is the Debutante Presentation at The Petroleum Club ( which we declined this year). Mr. Snoots usually agrees to attend for the sole purpose of lingering over the bottomless bowl of fried quail, while I'm usually at the smoked salmon buffet. It's always the best party in town at Christmas, but I decided to decline the day after my bone grafts for tooth implants, which might have been a bit hasty. I hate missing those festivities. Seriously.

SD will be home Friday, which is the day we are to attend the Clark Griswold party at a friend's home in the evening. What fun that promises to be! The last party they had was a *Disco Down* Christmas party, dressed in full 1970's garb, with literally hundreds of people in attendance. What a hoot this couple is! I'm taking the digital camera this year and getting pictures. It's all just too good to pass up, really. I know. I'm shameless when it comes to obtaining blog fodder.

In addition to this, it looks to be smooth sailing from here, on in to the New Year. It makes me feel so blessed. I'm so thankful for every single thing in my life.

Merry Christmas To All...

Colonoscopy? No Problem. Finding A Vein? Kind Of A Problem...

2011-12-15T18:32:00.001-06:00

If you've ever heard anything about having a colonoscopy, you've probably heard that the absolute worst part is the preparation and drinking a gallon of the stuff they give you. It's all true. It was awful.

However, the remainder is pretty much a blur since I was given Demerol. I barely remember a thing! The doctor removed one pollyp, which was sent for a biopsy. I should know the results within a week. So, Mr. Snoots brought me home where I immediately fell into a very deep sleep for several hours and he went back to his office rather than stay & watch over me.

However, I also had a nurse who was trying to find a vein in my hand and missed, spilling blood under my skin. It's really a lovely look and it hurt like the devil at the time. I almost went to a holiday *coffee* today until I realized my hand was still swollen, as well as being black and blue, among other colors. Not wanting to explain to everyone, I opted to skip it and stay home.

So, I spent the day cleaning the house, trying to get everything ready for Christmas (cleaning up the mess made by the painter). Only then, did I bother to look at the post-op instructions that said there should be no heavy lifting or straining. Oops. Too late for that. Or where it said no aspirin products for 7 days. Oops. Too late for that as well. Plainly, someone should have been keeping an eye on me the same way I kept an eye on them. Didn't Happen......

Christmas Tree Bling... And A Colonoscopy Cocktail!

2011-12-13T09:56:00.004-06:00

Yes, I've lost my mind ever since I figured out I could fill in all the gaping holes in the tree with Christmas bling! Duh. So, I went to Michaels Arts & Crafts again today and bought some more of that bling for 70% off, which might actually be closer to what this stuff is worth.

Unfortunately, they barely had anything left. In the last two days the place has literally been cleaned out. Wah. Still, I was able to snatch up some great deals, although not as many as I'd hoped for. You see, once I develop a *bug* for something I want it all then, but I didn't properly estimate the amount I needed, as if I could have. I also wanted more ribbon for the tree but it was all gone as well. Note to self: Next time just go ahead and buy all of the ribbon and all of the bling the first time you go to Michael's.

Luckily, I'm loving the results and I'm wondering why I've never tried this before? Can we spell *R-U-T*? Oh yes we can! But, that spell has now been lifted. Yippeee!

So, I tweaked the tree when I got home, before Mr. Snoots could see that I'd done anything new (sometimes he does take notice). I also did ribbon on the two rather pathetic front porch trees, which makes them look far more presentable and festive.

All of the presents are wrapped, the goodies for friends & family are in their assigned bags & adorned with more bling, and may the holiday festivities begin! Oh. Wait. We declined all of the parties because of my bone grafts. However, we didn't decline one particular party, so we're going.

How am I celebrating? I'm having a colonoscopy on Wednesday. Please, don't be jealous. Frankly, I couldn't weasel out of it any longer and our insurance deductible of $5,000.00 was already met, so it's the perfect time, right? During the holidays while I still have missing teeth? Nothing makes you want to party more than a colonoscopy and missing teeth, let me tell you! I even bought a party hat for the occasion. I think it might even be a *fascinator*, but it surely looks like a hat that one of the Whos would wear in "The Grinch Who Stole Christmas". Actually, we're going to a Clark Griswold Christmas party on the 23rd, so I bought 2 of them for SD & myself, then one like Clark's for Mr. Snoots. It ought to be great fun as long as the colonoscopy turns out alright, or even if it doesn't. At this point, I don't care who sees the gaping Grand Canyon holes in my mouth. I need contact with people. In fact, I'm craving it.

Anyway, I finished the outside lights as well, with the help of Mr. Snooty this year. He kept asking why I never let him help , so I finally told him, as gently as I could. He always just wants to throw them up, helter skelter, and I want them hung right. So, this year he was as patient as a Zen master. I kid you not. The Magic of Christmas never ceases to amaze me. I'll give you a thrilling glimpse of those outside decorations after I have my colon invaded. Mkay?

Our painter still hasn't gotten around to painting the front door (or any of the other three doors) but I pleaded with him to get it painted before Christmas or I'll do it myself. I'm not sure why he looked horrified. He knows I've painted it the last 3 times and it looked perfect. He said he'd have to take the door off the hinges to paint it and I said, "I. Don't. Think. So. I never had to." That is totally ridiculous and I won't allow it.

As it turns out, Mr. Snoots told him to work outside today since it was up in the 60's. Not my choice, but apparently there were priorities I was unaware of, like building a shed over the new water well pump before it freezes again. Okay, I can can deal with that. Then I walked into ~~SD's~~ the guest room and saw this mess, nearly swallowing my tongue. It was just fine before but evidently Mr. Snoots felt as if something that wasn't broken, needed to be fixed. Mr. D-I-Y-er himself. Whatever. It still looks like this as I write. Evidently, none of this is within my control so I give up. For now. Check with me after my *procedure*.

Our sons bathroom no longer has a leak but it's all still a mess. I tried to get the room cleaned up today but there is a lot to be done & difficult to do alone with a bad back. Yes, I put my back out during my decorating frenzy.

Furthermore, I don't care to have a worker in the house when I'm preparing for the colonoscopy. Is that unreasonable? I. DON'T. THINK. SO. Jeez, I want my privacy.

How am I ever going to find time to do the counter top if the painter never leaves????? Hello! And what about those new windows we were supposed to get this year, with a compensation refund from the government? So. Didn't. Happen. Mr. Snoots wants Mr. Molasses to do it, so we might be moving by the year 2014, maybe later. That is, if I'm still alive by then.

The louvered closet doors are still gritty and missing paint in spots, but apparently that's not an immediate concern to anyone but me. This is just one of four bedrooms, people. Okay, perhaps we'll be ready to move by 2015. I might shoot myself before then. (Just kidding.)

Actually, I'm truly thankful for everything I have this year so I vow to quit whining. Your. Welcome.

Merry Christmas!

Ever Had A Snowball Fight With Yourself? It's Kinda fun!

2011-12-06T10:08:00.004-06:00

You all knew I couldn't quit blogging, right? Mr. Snoots told me I can't quit. He said we've not had any fights since I started blogging because I'm venting here instead of to him. Okay. I'll buy that. I always have an enormous amount of venting to do, which makes him want to *fix* everything, which isn't what I want. I just need someone to listen to me. I hope you don't mind me doing just that... Now, to the day's story.

Yes, we have snow. LOTS of snow. Last night the electricity went off like 11 or 12 times, so I finally just turned everything off, went to bed, and read my book on Kindle. In fact, we have so much snow that 2 large branches broke off of two different trees (yes, the same two Texas Laurels as before) in the backyard today and flattened out my Oleanders that had grown to 6 or 7 feet this summer. Argh!

So, when the going gets tough, the tough get going, right? Armed with my trusty broom, I decided to go outside and start knocking some snow off and it was really heavy, wet snow (I wouldn't want to ski in it for sure). I went for the Oleanders first because they just looked so pathetic. Thirty minutes later, they had risen from the ground a few feet. Then, I moved on to the Eleagnus bushes. Done. Lastly, I decided I'd better rid those trees that lost branches of their heavy snow. Then it happened. BAM! My first swat at the tree branches brought it all down on top of my hat-less head, as if I'd just been in a huge snowball fight. I assure you that it wasn't near as fun as the real thing but it made me laugh because I thought, "I'm having a snowball fight with myself."

Then, after an hour of that, I gave up trying to save anything else. When I came inside, I started putting away all the Christmas containers that hold the decorations and when I went into son's old room to put one large container under his bathroom sink, I found a very bad leak under the sink, that had already completely soaked the carpet and the wood of the cabinet under the sink. So, I had to call my favorite plumbers. Yay!

I'd had a lot of the things from SD's room in there until I can figure out what to do with them... Like her curtains I still haven't hung and my entire bag of scrap-booking *stuff*, among other things. Oh. Joy. To. The. World. We have another problem. *Sigh*

Luckily, the plumber came right away and fixed things, saying that he'd never seen a leak like that one. How special is that, right? Then, I realized that we hear those words from almost every worker that's ever been here, which made me feel even more special. Anyway, a lot of stuff got ruined. Oh. Well. Old houses are fun that way.

So, our son is moving back to Austin this week (to finish school) and wanted me to drive the U-Haul down for he and his girlfriend, while they each drive their cars. Deja Vu. I recall doing that for SD when she and MC moved out to L.A. (lala land) and it was a total nightmare. Unfortunately he's leaving the same day that I have a doctor appointment for my colonoscopy in the morning and later in the day, an appointment for my follow-up on the bone grafts for my teeth implants, so I can't do it and Mr. Snooty just can't (for numerous reasons). Frankly, it's a ridiculous time to be doing ANY of this but we've met our high insurance deductible & need to cram in as many (health related) procedures as we can, right?

However, the good news is that I've finished decorating for Christmas, inside and outside, so I'm a happy camper, for now. Well, except for all the other things I have to take care of, like putting the crystal prisms on the tree, dealing with life in general, like getting the Christmas cards addressed and mailed, getting the Christmas bags ready for friends and family, and buying more paint for the painter (ugh), among other things.

Tonight the weather is supposed to get worse, which means colder with more snow. It seems like it was 100+ degrees like last week. It's difficult to be believe that this is West Texas. Gah.

Don't miss this video. The snowflakes were absolutely gargantuan, for hours. I apologize for the quality of the video. It was so bright outside, which didn't come across.......

Still Flibbertygibbeting About, Trying To Finish SD's Bedroom Makeover....

2011-11-29T10:47:00.001-06:00

Of course, the painter was still here working to finish SD's bathroom when she arrived like the whirlwind she always is. No, he didn't get finished AND he painted the bathroom with the gray exterior paint, which was very likely my fault. I used the gray to paint hubby's bedside table and instead of putting the paint back in the guest house where I got it, I just put it in SD's bedroom, so he assumed I wanted the bathroom painted with that color. *SIGH* What we had here was basically a failure to communicate.

So, on Wednesday, we told him to run along and not come back until Monday (today). It was so nice to have a break from him being here all the time. So today (being Monday), after many hours of the water being turned off, he was able to install the new sink and satin nickel fixtures for that same sink. Jeez Loueeze. He also still needs to repaint the louvered closet doors because his spray painting technique basically sucked. However, in his defense, it's nearly impossible to spray paint outside here, as the wind is ALWAYS blowing. ALWAYS, I tell you! The closet doors have numerous spots where the spray paint didn't entirely cover, as well as places where it just flat peeled off after contact with the other louvered doors. Honestly, should this really be such a hard task to accomplish? SD's room is 15' by 15', which (I think) should take less than a week, much less a whole two weeks, shelving & closet doors or not. Gah. I have to keep reminding myself that he mends everything before painting. So. Worth. His Weight. In. Gold.

Also, by Wednesday Noon the bedding I'd ordered online still hadn't arrived so I ran out to Target and picked up a cheapie *Bed-In-A Bag* to suffice until the other bedding arrived. As soon as we got the bedding opened and put in place, the items I had ordered, arrived. It's just another one of Murphy's Laws, right?

Anyway, I'd also bought a new shower curtain to go with her previous shower curtain liner. In addition to all this, I painted all of the cabinet & door knobs black and the brass fixtures on the ceiling fan as well. Then I painted her wastebaskets black as well as a couple of Chinese decorative hats for the wall. I haven't actually hung anything on the walls as yet, but I will as soon as I give up the struggle with Christmas lights (ie: buying a new pre-lit tree), which is at last, wearing me down. Sometimes being stubborn is just plain stoooopid, right?

Soooo, I really hope that you can all cut me some slack for not blogging much these days and I'm ~~fairly~~ absolutely certain that you're all as busy (if not busier) than I am. I've kind of had a full plate lately but I still read everyone's posts. Sadly, I just don't have any extra time to leave comments these days because I just can't ever seem to keep them short.

Things Left To Do In SD's Room:

refinish the ugly pink counter top in the bathroom

hang bedroom window rod and curtains

hang the decorative pieces I painted, on the walls

see to it that the walls of the bathroom, louvered closet doors and sliding doors are painted (with the appropriate colors)

make sure the rest of the hardware is hung in the bathroom

hang bathroom window curtain rod and curtain

paint glass and brass bedside lamp in mercury glass finish

buy another set of sheets for SD's room during the January White Sales

I'm sure there are more things for the list that I'm just not thinking of, but I feel like a flipping genius for remembering this meager amount of items. So not joking. I apologize if this is boring but this is my life these days and I'm actually having a grand time learning to decorate without hiring a pro. Perhaps yet another self reinvention? Well, of course!!!!

Apparently, I Lack The The Whole Christmas Lights Understanding Gene...

2011-11-27T06:19:00.003-06:00

Every year it seems that I struggle with the lights on the Christmas tree. I mean, what the heck is that all about? I pondered just getting a new tree but they all look so jicky that I rejected that random idea. The only ones I liked were $350.00, which just put me in a foul mood. Besides, the new trees have plastic branches mixed in with the *papery* branches, which just totally look grossly fake to me. The tree I have currently doesn't have any plastic branches. So, I'm in a major dilemma.

I earnestly tried to find all of the tree light plugs, for the entire day, yesterday. No. Can. Do. I am now to the point of total frustration. I laid under the tree for hours trying to find the missing plugs I needed to make the entire tree light up, not just parts of it. Again, no can do. No, there are no pictures of this atrocity, just the mess I've made while trying to make the freaking lights work.

We even went so far as to take the tree apart AGAIN, but I still couldn't locate the missing plug to make the unlit lights come on. I'm seriously not a moron but this whole ordeal is making me feel like a complete and total IDIOT/MORON!

There has to be an easier way, right?

My neighbors across the street spend like 30 minutes putting up their fabulous tree and outdoor lights. Sadly, it takes me ~~days~~ weeks to get mine up and running, which of course, makes me feel like an idiot all over again. I'm convinced that they are watching me, laughing hysterically all the while. I would be.

Now I'm in tears over this. Yes, I'm still the town crier and I cry over the slightest little problem. I'm so not mature. I'm thinking I should just toss this tree in the trash and get a real one, but I hate the mess of having real Christmas trees (I'm pretty sure it would be way less stress than I'm experiencing with our artificial tree for the last 2 days). How ironic is that?

Last year I magically got the lights to all work at the same time. I suppose I need to write down what I do to make them work. Argh. Christmas has always been my favorite holiday, but I have no idea why since it makes me nutso every year, so I've let out several primal screams over this dilemma, assuring the neighbors that I am indeed insane. I'm pretty sure they already knew that.....

Whew! What Fun To Be Had During Oral Surgery For Tooth Implants!

2011-11-21T12:33:00.000-06:00

Let me just tell you that I'm having the ~~best~~ time of my life since I started the tooth implant process. It seems like a month ago (although it was just last Wednesday) and I've left the house only once, for 10 minutes. It wasn't because I wanted to. Missing teeth tend to make you want to stay home and hide, as if you were some circus freak or homeless person. Why didn't I do a bridge? Because I always seem to be indecisive about everything from A to Z until forced to make the wrong decision.

I'm still in excruciating pain but refuse to take any more pain pills (Hydrocodone). I stopped taking those the second day after surgery because they made me start itching madly, all over my body. It was like I had massive mosquito bites and it was making me cuckoo. Now, I'm just taking handfuls of Advil.

I'm still trying to get SD's room finished but the painter moves at his own pace, which I cannot control. However, I can rest easy in the knowledge that he has done his job well, albeit slow as molasses. Having explained this to SD, I believe she understands things might not be finished in time for her arrival and she's good with it as long as she doesn't have to sleep in a fetal position any longer. Okay. Furthermore, we've given him that time *off* so that she can have her privacy. When she gets mad, she takes no prisoners, so we wouldn't want that to happen, would we?.

That said, I think her room is going to be amazing. I've done my homework & can't wait to get everything installed and put to use. I hope it's going to be fabulous but won't really know until I have a chance to finish it all!

Since my surgery last Wednesday, I've only had chocolate shakes, lots of water, scrambled egg sandwiches with the crust cut off, and potato soup (that I made yesterday). Mr. Snoots is stuck with cooking for himself but at least he can eat what he wants.

I'm especially excited about Thanksgiving and cooking all of the food I won't be able to eat. Let's see... I can eat cranberry sauce, mashed potatoes, gravy and perhaps some green bean casserole if I keep my head tilted far to the left. It could work!

Obviously, I won't want to smile but knowing myself I'm sure that I will, exposing my newly removed teeth in all their gaping grandeur. Each one resembles a miniature of the Grand Canyon, tied with a bow (stitch) and is about as attractive as it gets in my life these days. Please. Don't be jealous.

So, what are your plans for Thanksgiving this year?......

Houston, We Have A Problem.... This Might Have Something To Do With Aging, Or Not

2011-11-16T06:23:00.011-06:00

Since I weaseled out of my former appointment to start my tooth implants, I will be going in for it this very morning, as a result of abscesses that have persistently plagued me. Yes, I'm a little scared but that's probably because I watch far too much "Dr. G Medical Examiner". Frankly, these pictures have me paralyzed with fear. Yup, I'm strong like that.

Today is also the day that the new bed for the guestroom (ultimately to be SD's bed when we move) arrives as well. Since I went ahead and bought the queen sleigh bed & mattress (assuming I could just switch out mattresses between a queen and a full bed then switch them back upon moving), therein lies the problem. Hmmmm. Apparently, I didn't thoroughly think this through. What a surprise! Does this give you any idea of what a novice I am? This might be a Houdini act if I do indeed accomplish ~~everything~~ anything on my list today, aside from my dental surgery.

Honestly, I'm now laughing at that statement. I'm going to be heavily drugged this morning @ 9:30 AM while an oral surgeon works to rebuild the bone that will accommodate the 1st & 2nd ~~ouch~~ tooth implants. Color me happy. Now I'm thinking I should have gone with a bridge but, Ooops, too late!

The bed is supposed to be delivered between 4:00 and 7:00 PM and I need to go out & buy a converter kit to be able to switch beds. I am driving myself insane (seriously not joking). I swore to Mr. Snoots that I would absolutely make all this work out right, like I'm some freaking DIY-er on HGTV. I'm not! I'm a *fly by the seat of her pants* kind of gal & I'm so frustrated now that I don't know what to do. I'm also out of time. You can only spread yourself so thin. At this point I'm like chocolate shavings.

At least our painter got the walls painted today & will finish the molding in the morning. I'm so smitten with the color of the walls that I now want to use it all over the house, but will do what I can to restrain myself. Everything. In. Moderation. Right?

I thought SD's room was all cleared out until I had to ready the room for the painter. Its contents are all now in her brother's old room & bathroom. Hope this gives you a good laugh.

Say a little prayer for me & my dental surgery, please?

Now I'm Getting Excited...

2011-11-15T06:52:00.003-06:00

Today Mr. Snoots gave me the *go ahead* on buying new hardware for SD's old (teensy) bathroom, so I went forth and SPENT MONEY! Frankly, I'm pretty sure I don't have a clue as to what I'm doing but I bloody well tried and think I came up with the biggest bang for my buck.

I went with all nickel finish, which I just love.

Last weekend we brought the painter inside to paint SD's old bedroom in hopes that it will be ready for her by Thanksgiving. Not too certain that's going to happen but it will be close enough to please her. The bed will be delivered day after tomorrow and my excitement is mounting. However, I still have no walls painted and that's a problem and we still need to.

I'm really starting to like this guy. At first, I was perturbed because he's so slow, but I now find that his work is truly impeccable. The problem is that he started on SD's louvered closet doors instead of the room itself. He spent today beautifully repairing the doors and painted the ceiling. I've never had a painter who went to the trouble of fixing things before they painted them so that knocks him up a few notches in my opinion.

So, tonight before he left, he started painting the walls. When I went in to look I almost fainted. I think for such a small room, the color is far too dark. It's much darker than it looked on the sample.

Sooo... I guess I'll be up at 6:00 AM to get the paint back to my new best friend (she still doesn't know it) at Home Depot's paint department, Shannon. I'm certain she'll know how to fix this faux pas. I'm just worried that she'll grow weary of my screw-ups. I know I am.....

It's Almost Like Being In Love.... That Giddy Feeling!

2011-11-11T18:34:00.001-06:00

Honestly, I think this whole furniture painting thing is my new ~~addiction~~ obsession. I'm also thinking that I could make a whole business out of this... That is, if I someday have a garage in which to hone my new craft. At the moment, it's almost always far too windy to spray paint outside, or even on the patio. Obviously, spray painting inside the house is a total health hazard, for all of us. Besides, there's always the chance I might miss my mark and spray paint something that I didn't intend to, with one wrong aim, right?

So, I showed you my $10.00 table from Goodwill yesterday. I'd already sanded it down, removed the slide out for the former computer keyboard it once accommodated, primed it, used wood filler where needed, sanded it again for smoothness, then let it dry overnight. Today, I began spray painting it outside, on a plastic tarp. Unfortunately, the winds from Hell were blowing so after it dried just a bit, I brought the table back inside where I began to very lightly sand the top again (to get rid of the gritty feeling it had after being outside). Aargh.

Am I pleased with the outcome? No. I'm completely IN LOVE with the results. Because the table was once a computer table, there was an oblong hole in the back (to allow the wires to get hooked up to whatever on the wall), I decided that rather than buy a piece of plyboard for the back, I'd just hot glue some toille fabric and it looks truly awesome!

Tommorrow I'll go back to see my new best friend at Home Depot (Shannon) and hopefully get another can of Rustoleum Indoor Colonial Red. Unfortunately, I recall buying the only two cans, thinking that would be enough. Hmmm.

What say you, bloggy friends?

This Is The Time Of Year I Begin Hyperventilating...

2011-11-10T18:56:00.002-06:00

Yes, it always seems like I have time to kill until November hits. Then, it suddenly dawns on me that I'm already running behind since I vowed (last year) to start earlier this year. Didn't happen. Since I've been working on the house, going to far too many doctor appointments, transforming butt-ugly pieces of furniture, countless trips to and from Home Depot, and all the other boring details of everyday life, my priorities have simply gotten side-tracked. However, I did happen to stumble across what I want for Christmas.

Mr. Snooty might not agree, but I MUST HAVE THESE for Christmas. These amazing ski goggles are equipped with a camera, with which to take videos while skiing. Obviously, these ski goggles would be great for countless hours of laughs as everyone gets to ski with me, hear me curse, fall with me (wait. I don't fall, I crash), hear me trying to talk on the lift ride (or trying not to talk on the lift ride) as well as getting on and off the lift with me and countless unknown ~~morons~~ beginners. It could be funny or horridly sad, but it certainly wouldn't be dull, by any means.

I apologize for not being around of late. I've been redecorating SD's bedroom only it's not to the point that I can actually call it *decorating* YET. Her room is so small that I had to call and apologize to her after shopping for a new bed. SD replied, "Thanks. I'm tired of sleeping in the fetal position when I come home." How could we have been such awful parents? Our son's room is enormous, as is his bathroom. You can barely turn around in SD's bathroom. It's. That. Small. She never once complained while growing up. Anyway, I sold her day/trundle bed (with 8 sets of sheets & pillowcases, a comforter & 2 shams) for $200.00 on Craig's List, to make way for the new bed.

As it turned out, the queen sleigh bed would have only allowed her 6" of walking room. Anyway, it took me a while but I finally figured out that the new iron sleigh bed with pillow-top mattress will fit in the guest room and my great-grandmother's four poster bed (from the guest room) will fit in SD's room. When we move (if we ever move), the new bed will go in SD's room then. I took a couple of pictures at the furniture store but they are sketchy, at best.

Did I mention that it takes 4 to 6 weeks to get the bed ordered and in my home? Back when we originally bought our furniture (34 years ago), you could buy furniture and have it delivered that very day. Go. Figure. I can't believe it has to be ordered now.

I've also bought some more hideous pieces of furniture from our local Goodwill, that I hope to transform into something gorgeous. I just finished sanding this little table yesterday & got it primed last night. I'm hoping to get it finished today, in a red. I'll show how it turns out when I'm finished.

The painter will start on SD's room next week and I'm having him do it in a taupe with white molding. I'm desperately trying to get her old room finished before Thanksgiving, when she'll be home for several days....

It's been hard trying to blend new pieces with the old stuff we're getting rid of, while keeping a vision of what I want for the new place in my future but I'm certainly trying to keep perspective. I'm also trying to make the new blend with the old so that it will look good while the house is being shown to prospective buyers. It seems to be an uphill battle and I'm not sure who is winning.

I can't wait to get started on this pair of side tables from the 70's...

Wishing Happy Halloween To All....

2011-10-31T19:42:00.000-05:00

Hope everyone is having a spooky Halloween!

We're expecting hundreds of Trick Or Treaters.

Otherwise, we're going to be stuck with a truckload of candy.

Molested By Las Vegas Airport Security... Happy Birthday To Me!

2011-10-28T14:29:00.003-05:00

Remember last year when I ranted about this very thing?

Well, I am completely incensed over being molested by the Las Vegas airport security people. Mr. Snoots and I were leaving Las Vegas for home (I was hungover I might add), we were in the same line together, then suddenly we were separated. He went through with no problem. I was not so lucky.

I was singled out with many other women and I might add, no men. The security agents were all women and the entire scenario reminded me of how things went down in Nazi Germany. You just had to do as you were told or (I assume) go to jail.

I was singled out and put through a separate line, where I was treated to a full body scan as well as a full body *pat down* that included my breasts AND my crotch area. After that, I was ordered to hold the palms of my hands out so they could run some kind of pads over my hands to check my hands for traces of explosives. Good thing I washed my hands prior to that. Then, I was ordered to wait an additional 5 minutes for the explosives test to be done.

Honestly, I was severely hung over but I didn't think I looked THAT bad. I feel as if I were sexually assaulted... or at least molested. It was degrading and it was unnecessary.

Of course, a severely hungover little 59 year old blonde, pale woman from small town Texas is so indicative of a terrorist, right? I will never go to Las Vegas again. In fact, I might never travel by air ever again. I've had it with the idiotic practices of our government and our airport security in this country. I. Am. Done.

I've never in my life felt so violated or humiliated. I say screw this politically correct crap and go straight for social profiling just like every other country in the world (except for us). I mean, what is wrong with this country, that they would put their own people through such humiliation when they are supposed to be looking for terrorists? Well, guess what? All the people who looked as if they could be terrorists made it through security without being singled out. Hello? How stooopid is that? Not one solitary man was singled out. NOT ONE.

Obviously, I'm still pissed off about my experience. It ruined my entire birthday/anniversary trip (not really). Give me a day or two and I'll be over it....

What A Crazy Week This Has Been.....

2011-10-04T06:09:00.006-05:00

First of all, our paid-by-the-hour house painter is still driving me nuts. The scary part is that I'm getting used to it so that it doesn't bother me so much now. I'm not sure if that means I'm becoming more tolerant or I'm teetering on the edge of insanity.

Last week the painter told me that I'd accidentally bought interior paint instead of exterior. Indeed, he was right. However, since the paint department head at Home Depot has (unknowingly) become my new best friend, I knew she'd right the wrong, and she did. It was, after all, her mistake. However, I can't seem to go to Home Depot for just one thing. While I wait for paint to be mixed, I wander around the store and end up buying other things I think we need. Lots of other things.

Anyhoo, I finally got that potential disaster taken care of and then received a call from my San Antonio friend (SAF), telling me that a close male friend of ours had died. At this point, I was overwhelmed with sadness and the week was really starting to suck. Although he had been living in San Antonio, he was originally from here, so the funeral was to be here, on Saturday. Therefore, my SAF and her hubby would be coming for the funeral and I needed to make things ready for them to stay with us.

Then, my housekeeper's daughter-in-law called to say she was sick and couldn't come last week, so I had to get it in gear and do all of the cleaning myself, which didn't make me happy at all. But, I did get the job done, albeit I was too tired to even move after that. Mopping floors absolutely destroys my back, as does vacuuming.

So, my friends came in on Saturday and we all attended the funeral of our friend, together. Many tears were shed and even more stories were told about our friend who had passed. He had been quite the character, but also a wonderful husband and devoted father of three lovely adult daughters. I still can't get it into my head that he's gone. Every single time I went to San Antonio he would always drop by to see me if he was in town. I'm really going to miss that part of my SA trips and I'm really going to miss my friend. He had actually known my mother and always told me that I turned out amazingly well for having been raised by the Brown Recluse. I just loved him for that.

After my SA friends left on Sunday I desperately needed something to do, so of course, I grabbed my can of spray paint and decided to paint the coffee filter wreath I'd made this last spring. Over the summer the wreath had gotten filthy, no matter how many times I put the vacuum to it. So, I appropriately painted the wreath black, making it our new Halloween wreath. I also went ahead and painted the old wrought iron bench on the front porch, and it looks better too.

Hmmmm.... I wonder what else I can improve with spray paint? Well, how about pumpkins? So, I did. Spray. Paint. Them. They look amazing on the front porch and in the house. Why didn't I ever think of doing this before? I also started a new furniture project that I'll show you toward the end of this week. Everything takes time, my lovelies!

These pumpkins are located approximately 20 feet from the carport and this area still awaits painting. Zzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzz.... I put black upholstery tacks in the lighter colored pumpkin and love the way it looks!

A New Throne For Our Little Princess, Trouble The Cat....

2011-09-28T19:45:00.001-05:00

Okay, I actually bought this piece and made the pillow for a friend (to go on her patio by the pool), for her birthday. However, Miss Trouble had other plans for it.

Apparently, Trouble decided that this would make a comfy spot for her. Who am I to argue with the thoughts of cats?

Anyhoo, it now resides where her old bed did, in the kitchen, so it matches the Roman shades and the chair seats. I'd say Trouble The Cat has awesome taste even though she's crazier than a loon.

So, I bought another piece for my friend and made a pillow to *go with*. She has like 5 grandchildren, so I hope one of them (or all) uses it. I named her *Isabella*. Isn't she adorable?

This week I'm hoping to finish up some other projects that I can show you at some point. I'm a woman on a menopausal mission to ~~move~~ change my life.

By the way, my favorite Townhouse in the area I want to live, is once again for sale. I'm paddling as fast as I can to get there, but the painter has been off this week. *Sigh.* Frankly, I've been working harder than he has. Welcome to my world......

Snooty Daughter, Dallas, And Dining....

2011-09-27T13:13:00.000-05:00

We're just back from spending 4 days in Dallas, with our daughter SD. It was the first time we had seen her since before she went to England to study, so we were really excited for this little reunion.

SD recently found out that she made The Law Review, so we just had to celebrate that, right?

On Thursday night we dined at Wolfgang Puck's FIVE SIXTY, atop the Reunion Tower in Dallas. It's almost impossible to get a reservation short of 2 months ahead of time.

The restaurant has spectacular views of Dallas and rotates so that you get the entire 360 degree view within one hour. The food is amazing, as is the wait service.

Everything we ordered was incredibly beautiful as well as delicious. We had Tuna Tartare in little cones, little pork pot stickers, lobster, steak, and of course, martinis. Then we sent all the leftovers home with SD, for which she's always grateful.

Since SD had school the next day, we parted after dinner. The next day, Mr. Snooty and I went shopping and then had lunch at Maggiano's Little Italy and their Chicken Parmesan is to die for. Unfortunately, I couldn't finish mine, so we took it for SD.

Friday night we dined at one of our favorite places, Eddie V's Seafood & Steaks, but were very disappointed. The food was not up to par and we were given a waiter who was experiencing his first night as a waiter. Poor thing, he was just awful. As badly as we felt for him, our dinner was far from worthy of what we paid.

Afterward, SD and I went to a bar near her house to listen to jazz, which turned out to be blues, but we had fun. Just being with her is a treat for me. I think I got back to the hotel around 1:30 AM, completely spent.

On Saturday we all went to lunch at Twisted Root Burger Company, where the burgers are really as good as it gets. They also offer fried green beans, fried pickles, onion strings and french fries, all totally scrumptious. After lunch SD and I got to spend a few hours shopping and I bought her as many things as she would allow me to. Let me just say that we did well. Dallas has such great shopping.

That night, we ate dinner at Kent Rathbun's Abacus, which was absolutely wonderful. We were also lucky to have SD's friend *K* join us for dinner, which made it really fun. We started out with Lobster Shooters, which were amazingly delicious, then on to steaks and seafood. The service was impeccable and we just loved our waiter.

We had to leave on Sunday, which I hated, but we were both exhausted by then anyway and SD needed to rest up for work (clerking for a Dallas judge) and school......

I Just Couldn't Wait.... I'm Impatient Like That

2011-09-21T06:33:00.003-05:00

I was so anxious to see how this whole project would look that I honestly rushed through the entire process. It did, however, provide me with a valuable lesson (or two) learned.

Be patient with the process and know that if you do everything right your vision will be fulfilled.

Always use the right tool for the job.

Unless you want a numb forefinger (like mine) I suggest using a paint that you use a paintbrush with.

Follow all directions.

Allow paint to dry before trying to put the hardware back on.

Rethink the use of dark colors if you live somewhere dry and dusty (I'm just sayin').

Try to refrain from painting every single item of furniture in the house until you've got it down to an art (again, I'm just sayin').

Anyway, I still have quite a few touch-ups to do with paint. I also need to add a shelf somehow. Then, I'll add a thick glass top for protection. Once that's done, it will go in the den with the sofa I bought at my friends' mother's sale last spring.........

Meet "Ugly Betty".... A Before And After Love Story

2011-09-17T16:39:00.000-05:00

This last week I went to a local consignment shop and found an old beat up TV cabinet but they wanted $50.00 for it. What? After pointing out all of the problems with this piece (including the fact that TV's that size are no longer sold), I worked the *fleecer* down to $10.00, which is far more than it was worth in its original state. I didn't want to spend much on my first piece, just in case I totally screw it up. And, it is one heavy SOB.

So, here she is in all of her non-existent glory. However, the moment I saw her I knew she had "good bones". So, this weekend I shall attempt to give her a total, fabulous makeover, to be revealed early next week. I should have taken a picture before I ripped the weird back off and threw it in the dumpster. It was awful and there were spider eggs everywhere. (shudder)

Anyway, I bought some ply-board, had it cut to my specifications, sanded it, and nailed it to the back, so as to have a *faux* backside. (No one will ever know, right?.)

The hardware has been a real bugger to get off but with the help of Mr. Snoots, we were able to finally remove all of them. Whew! Who knew it could be such hard work getting screws out? Actually, I was the one who STRIPPED the wood screws by using the wrong tool, but Mr. Snoots was still able to get them out. Unfortunately, he's now in a horizontal position for the remainder of the day. It's football season....

I learned last week about covering up when you spray paint, so here is my *new look* for the fashionable ~~painter~~ paintress. I even went to the hardware store looking like this. I think I scared people. First time ever for that.

So, what are the rest of YOU weekend warriors doing this weekend?

The Days Of Summers Past....

2011-09-15T19:57:00.002-05:00

I'll be the first one to admit that I'm pretty much a *fair weather fan* of baseball these days, in more ways than one. There was a time when we attended all of our kids games AND we had box seats at the local Double A (Minor League) games. Our private seats were practically in the team's dugout and were even with the third base line. I spent many spring and summer nights fascinated with the games and I was miserable when they played out of town, so I listened to the out-of-town games on the radio, at home. How crazy is that? I once sang the anthem for the opening of a game and got a standing ovation too. I can't believe I didn't cry. It merely fueled the fire of my passion for the game. Besides, it's the only game I truly know all the rules to. So. Not. Funny.

I attended all of those games religiously in rain, sleet, extreme heat, and even double headers. I loved those evenings, watching our guys proceed from the minors to the majors... or not. After watching Little League-rs running around like butterflies and moths in fall, I needed relief. Our team was a feeder to the California Angels back in those days. Good times. We used to know all of our players by name (and statistics) and would ~~yell at~~ encourage them all through the game. I mostly yelled at the umpire and the entire team knew I was their champion. And, I was. Really. Those young guys were always really kind to my children as well, which made me even fonder of them. Of course, you never knew who was coming back the next season until opening day, but that just made it more exciting.

Besides, I had a much younger friend who was dating one (or two) of the players at one time or another. They were probably just being nice to us so they could get to know her, but I always understood why. She was quite something....

Mr. Snoots never cared much for the games or for baseball in general, so I always took the kids with me to the games unless the weather was too nasty. Then, I would get the kids fed and ready for slumber, then I'd go it alone, armed with a rain poncho, umbrella, gloves, etc. I really miss those days. Hot dogs, beer, 7th inning stretch & singing "Take Me Out To The Ballgame". I had friends who would occasionally come join me at the games, but no one ever braved the weather like I did. Hey, I used to be a skier. I'm accustomed to inclement weather.

People that know me were always shocked to see me at the games, yelling as if I were ~~some sailor~~ someone's base coach. Yes, I was that into it. During those years the stadium was called Max Christensen Stadium, after the man who originally brought the minor leagues to our town. We also shared our box seats with Max himself, which was truly an honor. He had the right half of the box and we had the left side. They were basically the best seats in the house. Max was full of baseball wisdom and used to crack up over my fervor for the game but he knew I was a willing sponge for his wisdom and rhetoric.

One reason I adored Max was that he always told our daughter (SD) that she could be the first woman to play in major league baseball. She played Little League at the time and suffered the wrath of the Dads that thought she brought the team statistics down. She wasn't any *daisy picker*. SD had an arm as good as any of the boys and she could throw someone out at home plate, from the midfield. There were more boy daisy pickers than anything else, but they still needled her whether they liked the fact or not. Luckily, SD always let it roll right off her back like water, much the same way she does about anything that annoys her these days.

Sadly, Max was diagnosed with Parkinson's Disease and was gone from us within the year. Once our kids lost their fascination for baseball, we gave up the box seats, moving on to the sport-of-the-moment (mainly soccer and basketball). Still, I've always missed baseball and Max, since those days.

So, it only stands to reason that I should fall head-over-heels for the San Francisco Giants pitcher, Tim Linecum. I like going with a winner, and who doesn't? However, when I watched Tim Linecum pitch in the last game of the 2010 World Series, I was smitten from the get-go. I mean, how could you not like a pitcher who approaches the pitchers mound to the song "Come On Baby Light My Fire" by Jim Morrison and The Doors? Hello.

Anyway, it looks as if the Giants won't be making it to the playoffs this year, much less the World Series. But, it's always exciting to watch the playoffs and the World Series, no matter who is playing...

My favorite baseball movies are:

A League Of Their Own

For Love Of The Game

The Natural

Bull Durham

Field Of Dreams

Bad News Bears

Mr. Baseball

The Sandlot

Fever Pitch

If you've never seen these movies, then get yourself to the closest rental place and rent one. They are all awesome and inspiring....

Ooops! During A Spray Painting Frenzy.... I Might Have To Paint The Entire Patio

2011-09-12T09:03:00.001-05:00

Yes, it's true. In my spray painting frenzy of the patio furniture, I forgot about that little breeze. You know. The tiny little 5 mph breeze. Thinking I had more than enough plastic sheeting (I suppose I should have checked with Dexter first), I proceeded to spray paint my 60 year old patio furniture a new, shiny black gloss.

After painting 3 of the chairs, I noticed a bit of a problem. I - um- apparently didn't account for that little breeze, if you get my drift. Yes, I'm still an idiot after all these years. What was I thinking? Perhaps I was thinking that the patio floor (cement) looks like yuck anyway, so maybe I should paint it too. Or. Not. The jury is still out on that one.

You can see my *oops* in this picture:

My arms are going to be in such great shape after all the shaking of spray paint cans! I just love unexpected exercise surprises. I'll take it wherever I can get it, right? On the other hand, the tip of my forefinger is still numb after holding down the wicked spray can button for so long. I suppose I'll use my left hand forefinger tomorrow.

Anyway, tomorrow I'll move the pieces I haven't painted yet out onto the lawn, since it isn't really growing with this year's heat and drought. I'll still use the plastic sheeting but at least it won't permanently damage the yard. The damage is already there.

I also made a new cover for the porch swing cushion (all done with hot glue) and made a little pillow too, for all those friends who drop by to visit. Not. We have someone drop by maybe once every other month, if that. Furthermore, it's been too hot to sit outside, even at night. So, don't ask me why I thought this was necessary, but I at least like to pretend I have a life.

On another note, the painter is still painting the carport after 2 weeks. I'm thinking we might be ready to put our house on the market by the year 2013, if we're still alive... or sane. Honestly, I'm beginning to feel the agony of defeat, as if we'll never have this house ready to put on the market. I just try to stay busy in order to stave off depression. The frustration is already there. Help. Mr. Wizard.

Sooooo.... What have you been up to lately?

I've Been Rescued By A Fellow Blogger!

2011-09-07T09:10:00.000-05:00

In a comment on my last post, the Queen of Halloween made a suggestion that totally changed my front hall dilemma from confusing to totally making sense. Thanks QOH! Sometimes it's just a little thing that makes all the difference in decorating.

I moved the flowers to the floor by the bench and scored a sale lantern for $16.00 at Hancock Fabrics, which now resides where the flowers once were.

I'm loving it!

Looking Forward To The Future....

2011-09-01T19:41:00.000-05:00

I probably shouldn't be buying ANY new things for when we someday move, especially since we don't even have our house on the market yet. However, we will be selling most of what we have and going for a different *style*, when we do finally move, so I'm trying to offset total costs by buying a little here and there. I wouldn't want my dear Mr. Snoots to have a stroke over buying everything at once. Besides, this should be a process. Back when we married in 1977, I was 25 years old and had no earthly clue as to what my style was.

Looking back, I realize that I didn't really even HAVE a style. I was an idiot and bought things appropriate to my idiocy. Between the items we bought back then and the items we *inherited* over the years, I see that I cannot even call it eclectic. My home is full of things that really just don't even *go* together.

So, when I found this awesome little table at a garage sale for $40.00, I had to take it home. It was pretty beaten up and had numerous scratches and nicks. I spent some time repairing the damage with Scratch Cover, which worked ~~perfectly~~ rather well.

The table now resides in our front entry hall, by the front door. I don't like our prized Rolling Stones framed poster above the table, but I'm planning to move a mirror/coat rack there and move the poster out of the sun.

Yesterday, I spray painted the coat hooks on the mirror/coat rack to go with the knobs on the table and they look great. All of a sudden I've become obsessed with spray painting just about everything I can think of besides the cat. I'm thinking the chandelier in the dining room might be the next spray paint victim, among other numerous items.

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

Okay, since this post has taken me so long to get around to, I now have updated pictures. Unfortunately, I'm just not sure I really like the outcome. I'm thinking I need to raise the mirror/rack at least another 6" to 8" OR put the Rolling Stones poster back. I'm not sure. Since I haven't gotten to do ANY redecorating in 34 years, I'm just completely confused. All. The. Time. Right now I feel like telling myself to just pick a damned style and stick with it. Wonder how well that will work in the long run, LOL!

I am such a *wannabe* decorator. I always have been. However, when merely dreaming about what you'd like, it's difficult to see a finished product since you've only been dreaming for the last 34 years. Nothing to show for all those dreams, really. Nothing tangible. I'm not even sure everything that I like will even look good together. So, what the Hell was I thinking to change (or originate a personal style all my own) my non-existent decorating style? I mean, I like almost everything I see.

I feel like a total novice at this point. So, I assume it would be smart to only go with the purchase of one piece at a time, right? I really just want a more comfortable environment that is now more conducive to the way we live.....

Any pointers from you decorating mavens would sincerely be appreciated. I'm starting to feel SO overwhelmed.

On another note, we have had 2 fox sightings this week but our painter (yes, just one painter for a 3200 square foot home) is now here and has begun painting the outside of our house, so it may just be what runs the foxes off again. Hope not.

Did I mention ~~we're~~ I'm changing the exterior colors on the windows and trim of the house? Yup. I decided to go with a combo of pale gray body, black trim, with cream colored accents. I hope I know what I'm doing....

Seattle More Than Exceeded My Expectations.... Part Two

2011-08-22T12:11:00.001-05:00

If you missed Part One click here. You can also read imom's posts about it here and here.

So, after we left Pike Place Market, we had a bit of driving ~~confusion~~ fun trying to find our way (through all the detours) to the entrance of the ferry we were taking to AG's father's and stepmom's house on the other side of the *pond*. I had never been on a ferry before (I'd seen them a trillion times in movies but it just isn't the same as being there), so scratch another item off the Bucket List. It was so cool, not to mention chilly. We parked the car on the ferry then headed upstairs to see the rest of the ferry and take pictures of the scenery.

Once we arrived on the other side, we went back down to the car, drove off when it was our turn, and continued on to Diane's Dad's home in the woods, on the beach. It. Was. Awesome.

He and his wife were truly two of the most interesting people I've ever met. They do have names but they go as Oma and Opa and I just adored them both, as well as their big cat Skipper (or just Skip). Opa is a man who has done it all and harbors so much knowledge that it boggles ~~the~~ my mind.

All of them were total sweethearts and Opa fixed us T-Bone steaks for dinner, we made some broiled (amazing colors) cauliflower we'd bought at Pike Place, some fresh home grown green beans from their garden, and we had a lovely wine to go with. No one was left wanting at the end of the meal.

Opa is a Master Gardener and their entire property is chock full of lovely deliciousness and beauty. He is also a major hunter and keeps most of his exquisite trophies downstairs on the bottom floor, where the pool table is. The house has 3 floors and we slept on the third floor. Oma and I stayed up until after midnight, talking. She is Austrian and truly a joy to visit with. It was all I could do to force myself to bed.

The next morning upon rising, Oma and Opa made us the loveliest Breakfast Feast on their scenic patio, ever! We had sausage, bacon, pancakes (made from 100+ year old sourdough), fruit, and Mimosas. Since they had guests coming the next day, we scooted out of there, but not without regret. I could have let them adopt me and I'd have stayed there forever!

We drove back to Tammy's and Diane's part of Seattle over a floating bridge, which was pretty amazing. We went right past the stadiums where the Mariners and the Seahawks play, which was also pretty cool. Seattle does love its teams and they are LOYAL, something Texans might want to get back to.

After a quick trip by AG's house to meet The Brute Squad and K-3 (they actually all liked me!), we agreed to meet up later for dinner, at a place near to Diane. Luckily, Diane brought K-3 with her, who is so adorable and sweet. As it turned out, the restaurant (called The Barnacle) had Oyster Shooters. Being the great oyster fan that I am, I ordered two and forgot to ask the size. They were HUGE. Like gigante cajones. I thought they would come back up my throat, but luckily they stayed down so I was able to enjoy my lovely shrimp dinner that came next.

The next day was Sunday and Diane's health wasn't up to par so we had to do brunch without her, but we really missed her! We ended up going to a place called Salty's (which has the best Sunday brunch, best service, and best Mimosas ever), located on Alki Beach of Puget Sound. It was fabulous and so fun! I experienced one of the most eye-popping buffet brunches, ever. I'm pretty certain that I consumed at least 4 plates of food. Yikes!

Tammy's husband *Handy Man* and *Drill Daughter* came with us and we all ate ourselves sick. I tried to concentrate on King Crab legs, but my attention kept getting diverted to other delicacies. We were there for at least an hour and yes, I frequented the dripping tower of chocolate and fruit. Yum. I think we needed to stay for two hours.

After we finished with brunch (it was a gorgeous cool day) we all walked for like 45 minutes, on Alkai Beach, which is lovely and provides an awesome view of downtown Seattle and the Space Needle across Puget Sound.

All of the beach houses, bungalows, and cottages made for a very scenic area. I loved it and found several places for sale that I could be happy living in, LOL! In. My. Next. Life.

Later, we went to a local (smaller than Pike Place) Farmer's Market and it was just as grand as PP, only a much smaller scale. However, we did actually see one of the famous Seattle Food Trucks. This outfit pulls a magnificent copper and brass oven behind their truck, where their delicious pizzas were made. I tried to get a picture of this incredible pizza but it was just selling too fast.

Sunday night we were all pooped so we just ate leftovers (which were awesome) along with more fresh broiled cauliflower w/ Parmesan, olive oil, and breadcrumbs. It was perfect.

Since everyone had to get back to their normal lives the following day, we all retired early. And me? I retired content in knowing that I had made such wonderful new friends who had shown me Seattle through their native Seattle eyes. It was a perfect trip.....

Sweet Seattle.... And More Bucket List Items Eliminated.... Part One

2011-08-17T07:25:00.006-05:00

Being that last week was such a crazy week, I'm only just now able to tell you about my wonderful trip to Seattle, Washington. On my trip, I was able to scratch a few more items off my Bucket List. Be sure to see the bigger pictures by clicking on the small pictures!

Both AG and iMom picked me up at the airport when I arrived, which was just plain fun. They had already discussed that I'd probably bring my entire wardrobe (which I did, almost), so they were both giggling while we wrangled my suitcase into the trunk. Yes, I'm that predictable.

Anyway, Tammy was keeping me at her house, which I thoroughly enjoyed. I felt so comfortable and at home in her abode. I also adore her entire family and I got to hear Star Wars Son and his band, practice and it was amazing. Then on Sunday, we were able to coax Dancing Daughter to have brunch with us, which was a major treat, as she's a lovely young lady. Besides, she was fun to be with! I love ~~kids~~ young people that can actually sit and converse with adults instead of spending the entire time texting or talking on their phone. But, I'm getting ahead of myself here.

I honestly fell in love with Seattle from the moment I saw it from above, inside the airplane. It was supposed to have been the great West Coast Blog Fest but because (I think) Tammy had undergone emergency gall bladder surgery the week before, which would leave her in a certain amount of pain, everyone else canceled. When I tried to cancel, Tammy and Diane both said "No, we can handle one fest guest!". So, there I was in Seattle with two of my favorite ~ ever ~ bloggers. I really had no idea of what they had in store for me, but I soon found out, delighting in all the lovely things Seattle has to offer. I can't imagine living in such a wonderful climate all year around. It seems I've always lived somewhere with nothing but extreme weather. You know. Like extreme hot or extreme cold.

Furthermore, I hit the Weather Jackpot while I was there... It never rained even once and I was able to see Mount Ranier the day I arrived. Did you know that it's a *floating mountain*? Okay, not really, but I swear it looks as if it's floating all alone in the air. Its beauty is simply overwhelming. Too bad I didn't get a picture. and I have no clue as to why. I'm an idiot in some ways.

Since I've been a West Texas Gal for the last 36 years and have always wanted to see the Pacific Northwest, I did a huge amount of gawking, oohing, and aahing. Seriously, I've never seen such enormous trees in all my life. Everything, everywhere, is clean, green, and breathtakingly gorgeous. Strike another item from the list.

Seattle is someplace I could live, for sure, although I'm fairly confident that I never will, due to family. I'm so glad that I was able to entertain Diane and Tammy with my accent and my awe although I didn't think I had an accent - unless I decide to pour it on, but evidently I do. ;-)

We ran by Tammy's house and dropped my suitcase off then headed for Diane and Tammy's favorite Pub for a light snack and it was all wonderful. Of course, we were talking so much that I forgot to take pictures (Duh!) Apparently, I was preoccupied with eating and drinking my Stella Artois beer, thank you! Afterward, we took a bit of a car tour of their surrounding area and again, I was gawking like I'd never seen a tree or a large body of water in my entire life. I suppose I really should get out and travel more.

Tammy later prepared a scrumptious salmon dinner for us, which we ate outside on the patio and it was totally delicious. After visiting a while longer, we all retired early since we had a big day planned on Friday. I'd been up since 4:00 AM so I was ready to drift off to dreamland. I. Slept. Like. A. Log.

On Friday, we got up and took off for the Pike Place Market which is THE BEST Farmer's (or Open) Market I've ever had the pleasure of seeing. Believe me, if they don't have what you want, then you probably don't need it.

I was able to score a fabulous and very colorful Pepper Ristra, some goodies for Mr. Snooty, some incredible dried pastas, a new (gorgeous) black top, and a new purse for me (which I totally did not need, but I was craving it). I also got to see mozzarella cheese being made at Quality Cheese, which was just really cool, and got to see the fish mongers yelling and throwing fish, which cracked me up. If you've never seen the fish mongers, it's really a hoot to watch.

I could have stayed forever at Pike Place Market but succumbed to Diane's and Tammy's urging me to leave. We had places to go and people to see!

Since this seems long enough for today, I'll call this Part One. I'll finish with Part Two in a few days.

To Be Continued.....

After 324 Days Of Drought, We Got A Pounding Rain!!!

2011-08-12T11:55:00.001-05:00

Yes, it's TRUE! After 324 straight days of no rain, we finally got dumped on last night. All I could do was race around taking pictures of the rain, laughing hysterically and bawling my eyes out, for joy.

I'm not sure if the rain came back from Seattle with me or if it was the passing of Mr. Snooty's closest living Aunt. Perhaps it was a little of both. It's been a rough week with all the family in town for the funeral, attending the viewing, making tons of finger sandwiches, the graveside service, the church service, and the loss of a lovely family member we will sorely miss.

Hopefully, I can get back into blogging when the dust finally settles. It's been a very long week.

......

Mosquito Bites, Really? When We're On Water Rationing?

2011-08-03T07:22:00.005-05:00

I mean, how is that even possible? Oh, yes. That's right. Someone isn't abiding ~~by the rules~~ the law. Now, that's some surprise, isn't it?

I'm truly irritated I was under the false impression that I didn't need my *patches* to protect me from the little devil mosquitoes during a freaking drought. Evidently, someone in the *hood* has standing water and it isn't us, I assure you. We've been excessively diligent in our conservative watering efforts.

I thought I had done a post on the mosquito patches I swear, but for the life of me, I'm unable to find that particular post. So, let me reintroduce you to my very best friends. The *Don't Bite Me* patches. Last summer during our flooding rains, I discovered this product and I am a total fan/supporter. I never received even one mosquito bite while wearing said patches.

These patches are:

100% B1 vitamin
waterproof
deet free
lasting up to 36 hours
safe for use on children

made in the USA
natural, simple, safe

And yes, they SHOULD be paying me for my endorsements, but they aren't. However, I've never found anything this fool proof. Worry free is the way I prefer to be......

"If You Don't Like The Blues, You've Got A Hole In Your Soul"....

2011-08-01T14:13:00.001-05:00

This past weekend was the First Annual Tall City Blues Festival. Let me just say that I was soooo skeptical when I heard this Blues Fest was going to happen here. I figured the bands would be amateur, at best. However, I was delightedly wrong.

I've never had the pleasure of seeing so much talent in one place, at one time, in this town. Ever. It was a mere $40.00 for a weekend pass to the festival and there were food trucks in abundance as well as some of the most amazing blues I've ever heard.

The best part was that you could listen to a sample of each band's music online, which made it easier to decide who you wanted to see. Mr. Snoots didn't really want to go, so I made the decision to go it alone on Friday night and I'm so glad I did. I saw a Dallas band called "Smokin' Joe Kubek" with special guest Bnois King and they were rocking HOT!

During the day on Saturday, various musicians offered workshops in guitar, harmonica and the like, which turned to be very successful by what I could tell. Being it's initial landmark year, I'd say the turnout was excellent and will continue to get better as time goes on.

Anyway, they had two stages set up at either end of the court house lawn which allowed them to have constant music and the sound guys were really professionals. I never did hear any feedback, thankfully.

While the attendance Friday night was sparse, as was Saturday during the day, Saturday night was a HUGE jammin' crowd. One of the odd things about where we live is that everyone complains that there is nothing to do here and yet, when someone DOES bring something to town, no one (or at least not enough people) support it, so it always seems to fade away. This, however, is worth supporting, especially in its fledgling year.

On Saturday, Mr. Snoots still wasn't convinced it was worth attending, so I went by myself again. I'm so glad I did! I ran into a couple of old friends so we were able to hang together for the day. I was able to see two of the most amazing blues bands. The first was Jeff Strahan (from New Braunfels, Tx) and the second was Jennifer B & The Blues Kings (from Austin).

Then a band I didn't care for came on so I headed home for a quick refresh, fixed hubby's dinner, and I was off again for Saturday night's festivities. I'd agreed to meet back up with my friends later. Luckily, I made it in time to chow down on a big plate of Crawfish (crawdads in my book) and they were quite tasty. Unfortunately, it was so crowded that I was never able to hook up with my friends again. For desert I had a scrumptious cheeseburger & fries. Anyhooo, first on the music agenda was James 'Boogaloo' Bolden Blues Band (from Houston). 'Boogaloo' was band director for 15 years for B.B. King. Yes, he was GREAT!

After that, there were 2 more bands but I was ravaged by the day's intense sun and chafing winds, so I headed home for the night. Next year, I'll have to plan a little better in advance.....

Update From Snooty Daughter At School In Oxford, England....

2011-07-20T17:41:00.000-05:00

This was my recent email from Snooty Daughter. She is such a hoot:

"Oh hey hey! Well it's finally time for the much anticipated and long awaited UPDATE EMAIL YAAAAAAAAAH!!!

I've been here for about 2.5 weeks now and everything is going great! Air travel was not too shabby, I took a red eye from Houston to London and slept the whole time, highly recommend that- jet lag was minimal this time around. I took a bus from London to Oxford and it had wi-fi on it! (what!) So that was pretty awesome...

My dorm is much better than expected. I have a view of the street which is pretty cool, and I'm on the top floor and have to climb 5 sets of stairs every time that I come home, which is good b/c we've been late nighting at this ridiculous food truck basically every night haha. I may have pulled a muscle dancing at the Purple Turtle the other night (doing the clock, no big deal), so the stairs are kind of a problem but I'm getting by! I just walked by the food truck en route to the grocery store and the guy yelled at me asking if I wanted a lamb wrap... Which is what I always order... Which means the people who work at the truck know me and my order :/ I can't decide if I'm proud or embarrassed.

I have a freakish amount of reading, but the classes are good! I have Comparative Law M-Th, and a tutorial class with an Oxford professor once a week and that one is Comparative Human Rights Law. So far in Oxford I've toured the Bodleian Law Library, and the other day we got to see the main Bodleian Library and see some cool Harry Potter stuff! I've done a run by the Thames and through Christ Church as well. Tomorrow night we're seeing Macbeth at a theater here, and later this week going to see the last Harry Potter movie, should be fun! I have a lot more sight-seeing to do in Oxford, but so far it's been great!

Lindsay & Courtney (my roommates) came in town this past week and we had a blast! They started in London then came and slept on my dorm room floor (they slept on a sheet with travel pillows and Lindsay used a towel as a blanket... But it was free!) and they explored Oxford while I had class and reading. Then on Thursday we took off for Edinburgh! We took a train from here to there, and our first night we got in late and just stayed at a Holiday Inn in the outskirts of town, which had A/C, TV and hairdryers so I was in heaven! The next day we moved to our hotel for the rest of the weekend, the Ballantrae Albany Hotel. We were supposed to be staying at their "more affordable" sister hotel, but they overbooked and had to bump us up to their nicer one for the same price! It was beautiful, our room was huge and it was a great location. http://www.ballantrae-albanyhotel.co.uk/#.

That day we started at the Edinburgh castle then walked the Royal Mile down to the Royal Palace & Parliament. It was a really fun day, we stopped for some food and drinks on the way and tried Scotch eggs! That night we headed down to the Firth of Forth and ate on a ship on the water called The Cruz (http://www.thecruz.co.uk/). Afterward we went down to the bar underneath the restaurant and decided to buy a pitcher or blue drank and I won't say who but SOMEONE might have thrown up over the side of the ship... And... It was totally hilarious. We then headed to Jekyll & Hyde for the rest of the night.

On Saturday we decided to go on a hike and for some reason decided to leave the trail and just climb up the side of this ridiculous mountain. Court and I were wearing Toms and Molsen was wearing Converses, which, as you can imagine, are not all made for hiking. To make matters worse, it started raining and hailing and we pretty much just stood at the top of the mountain wondering what to do with ourselves before deciding to try to get down in the mud. I may have fallen three times on the way down, at one point ripping my jeans hahaha- I miss those jeans, but we needed some comic relief at that point and so it was worth it! After walking all the way to the hotel b/c no taxi would pick our pitiful sopping selves off the street, we went shopping then had dinner on Rose St. That night, we met up with some of my law school friends at Frankenstein's, which was AMAZING!

Then Sunday came and we had a night brunch at Cafe Royal then parted ways and I came back to Oxford. Court and Lindsay are in London and head back to Dallas tomorrow. I am headed to the Supreme Court on Thursday then Spain on Friday to see Abbey (a friend), so more updates are to come!"

As a parent, can I just say that she is waaaay too much like her mother? Just like a *chip off the old block*. And, what the heck is "The Clock" dance?...

Hell Really Is On Earth.... Disguised As Weather

2011-07-18T18:15:00.003-05:00

Yes, this is another whine from moi! We're still in the middle of this gawd awful drought, paired with stifling 100 + degree temperatures. I now know what a beached whale feels like. They feel like wilting crap, just before a slow and very painful demise. Local lawns, trees and shrubs are beginning to exhibit signs of failure, even death, as if there had not been enough vegetation carnage after that 14 day freeze we experienced in March. Then came the heat. No Spring this year. We simply went from freezing winter temperatures, straight to heat and onward to triple digit heat. There has been no rain for many, many moons, Kimosabes. Really, it just goes to further prove my theory that Hell is on earth, while we're here. We get the goodies after death, I suppose. Well, it seems that way for the earth itself, anyway.

It's safe to say that following last summer's carnage by rain, we are now being ravaged with the mirror opposite. I swear I'll never whine about too much rain ever again! I guess last year wasn't the year to invest in landscaping. Most of that investment we made is *kaput*, at this point.

So, when I heard there was going to be a Pray For Rain Flash Mob downtown in the Plaza the other night, I packed it up and headed there to strengthen the prayer power and hopefully get a video of the Flash Mob. I'm shameless, if nothing. Let me just clarify here that most West Texas folks just don't quite *get* the whole Flash Mob idea. There was nothing organized about the affair, plus it was just plain difficult to hear what anyone was saying. Out of a population of 120,000, a mere 50 to 75 people showed up. I. Was. One. Of. Them. It wasn't even my church. I dare you not to get a giggle:

Yes, their hearts were in the right place, but the whole attempt at a Flash Mob was really quite misleading since perhaps 5 people in attendance actually knew what a flash mob was (several 13 year olds and one 58 year old). Small groups of people standing around conversing in quiet prayer wasn't exactly what I was expecting. I was just sure it would be some great organized prayer-put-to-song, or something. I propose that if you're having a Prayer Meeting to ask the Lord for rain, then do it somewhere inside, where it might be a few degrees cooler, and call it what it is. A. Prayer. Meeting. Seriously, it was 103 degrees and there were old people there... like me.

And, did it rain? I think not. Perhaps it rained somewhere in the world, but it did not rain here. Thankfully, the Texas wildfires are under control for now, but the conditions are ripe for more. Last I heard, New Mexico is taking its turn at the fire devastation now. Oh. Joy. My favorite ski area is in dire danger of being burned, as they've had no rain either. Of course, that makes sense since they didn't get any substantial snowfall this year, and thus, no Spring run-off.

All of this fire and drought is not something I would wish on my worst enemy. This is what I imagine Hell to be like, only multiplied a few zillion times...

I tell you that I spend basically 2 t0 3 hours per day hand watering everything. We are in water rationing mode, so even though we have a water well, we are still trying to conserve as much as possible, but shrubs and trees and plants are still dying at a rapid rate. The sun is just killer in the afternoons. I spend perhaps 5 minutes at a time outside and come in wanting to jump in the freezer. Forget doing your hair more than every 3 days. You sweat 5 minutes after getting it clean, so it smells again, already. Ugh.

On another note, the foxes left for one of their other summer homes. Between the guys replacing the water well pump and pipes, and the guys doing a yard cleanup, they apparently didn't care for all the activity. Wah. However, we do have dozens of birds who come in the yard to feed every day. Then they go out front to poop all over our newly redone driveway. Grrr. By law, we aren't allowed to wash it off with city water during the water rationing that's in effect now, so it stays until the rains come. If they ever come.

In other news, did I mention it still hasn't rained? So, what else is new with you?

Oh. My. Gawd. What A Wedding Reception We Attended!

2011-07-11T18:30:00.003-05:00

Never in my life have I ever been to such an amazingly elegant and yet, Texas style laid-back wedding reception. Anywhere. I will probably never attend anything like it again. It was a *once in a lifetime* affair and we were soooo glad we had planned to attend. Our friends, (parents of the bride) enjoyed the marriages of their two eldest daughters in 2010 (the 1st wedding was the weekend of Mr. Snooty's 40th high school reunion & the 2nd marriage was in New Orleans the day after I returned from Italy), so this was the last daughter to go. Their baby, *A*. I was determined we'd make this one and we did. The ice sculptures, food stations, the band, the photo booth, the groom's Fender guitar cake of red velvet, and the brides cake of Italian Creme, were all part of the magic and it was fun, fun, fun! We definitely had fun in the photo booth ---->>

All of our children went to the same private school, throughout grade school, then their daughters each went off to different boarding schools back East (which includes college & grad school), while our children went on to attend public school. We had a lake house in the same private area in the Texas Hill Country as they ~~did~~ do, so the kids all learned to ski, drive the golf cart, hunt, drive the boat and drive the old Wagoneer, together. Every summer, as the adults drank, ate, and told stories, the children would all get together and put on plays and musicals for our entertainment. Believe it or not, it was always fun and made us giggle into the early hours of the summer mornings.

They always brought a nanny with them to the lake while I always hired a teenager every summer as a *mother's helper* (not always actually any help), so we were usually covered for almost any situation that might arise. We'd take *Sunset Cocktail Cruises* on the boat in the evenings, sometimes with the children, sometimes without (but always without the hired help). We'd serve caviar on toast points with freezing cold vodka, or Moet & Chandon champagne, and launch ourselves into the latest tales we had to tell. I tell you, those were such magical times.

I used to take all of the kids on midnight golf cart rides, which makes me wonder how any of us are still alive. Anyway, one night we were out tooling around and came upon a big fat SKUNK. Thankfully, I saw it first, told the kids to be very quiet unless they wanted to smell like skunk for the next 2 weeks (slapping my hand over our son's mouth to keep him quiet, he was the only boy), and backed down the steep hill until we'd all break into hysterical laughter that we hadn't gotten sprayed. Then, the skunk came down the hill one night and sprayed our air conditioner unit, which made us all wake up gagging. We ended up going home so that the place could have time to air out.

To keep all the kids entertained during the day when most of us were nursing hangovers, Mr. Snooty would pull ALL of the kids at once, on the various toys we had to pull behind the boat. The main game was *Try To Stay On Without Help*, which Mr. Snoots was well versed in. He always got them, eventually. Then the rest of us would come to life and the party would start all over again. I can't begin to tell you how much I miss those days. I still can't even drive by the old lake house. Seriously. As financially draining as the estate was, it was like a perfect slice of Heaven during the years we spent entire summers there.

Now, the baby of the group is married, while neither of mine even have any prospects. Yes, this is a bit of whine, and yes, I'd love some cheese, thank you. Still, I have to hand it to our friends. It's no easy feat to survive the enormous weddings (2 out of town) of all 3 of your daughters within one year, even if you have wedding planners. Someone still has to ride herd, right?

So, as I told the groom last (Saturday) night.... "Happy Wife, Happy Life" and he gave me a knowing wink of his eye. I think they are good to go. *A* is the second kiddo (from the left) on the Water Weenie. From left to right: *T*, *A*, *K*, *G*, *E*.

By the way, my camera wouldn't fit in my purse so I chose lip liner and lipstick. A friend is sending me the few pics she got on her phone but they are really grainy.....

Weddings, Water Wells, Weeping & Skype.... Huh?

2011-07-07T21:05:00.000-05:00

Saturday night we'll be attending a *Black Tie* wedding reception at the country club, which has had me in total fashion turmoil. Normally, when invited to a wedding, one must dress for the church as well as the celebratory reception following, which usually means a dressy skirt suit or a strappy cocktail dress with some sort of cover-up for the ceremony at the church. Right? After the invitation arrived I put it up on our bulletin board and made note of it on our big calendar, then forgot about it. Then, one day I started looking a bit closer at the invitation and realized this was just for the reception, stating that it was *Black Tie*, at THE country club.

Apparently, the young couple were joined in holy wedded matrimony with just family present, in some fabulous tropical location (no doubt barefoot), prior to this black tie event. First of all, I've never been to anything during the heat of a West Texas summer that required black tie attire. In the winter, black tie affairs abound. In summer? Like never. I mean, will they have the air conditioning cranked as low as it will go or what?

So, in my normal freak-out mode, I began to stress over what to wear. Men just have to wear a tuxedo. No muss, no fuss. No one cares what they look like, right? As women, we're required to determine (without trustworthy help) just what black tie means for us. After searching the internet I'm more confused than ever now.

At first, I was going to wear the dress I'd worn to our daughter's Deb Presentation. I mean, I'd only worn it once. Unfortunately, I'd forgotten how much weight I'd lost since then (SD's sophomore year of college). It's a size 14 and I didn't have time to have it altered to the size 10/12 I'm wearing now. You cannot get anything like this done quickly, in this part of the world. Trust me.

Of course, I then resorted to scouring the internet for a suitable dress, being full length or tea length. Macy's, Nordstrom's, Dillard's, Bloomingdale's, Neiman's, etc. The list went on and I was finding NOTHING. What I mean is that I couldn't find anything suitable for me, whose arms need to be slightly hidden so people don't throw up when they look at me. Seriously. The women (my age) here all look like they are 30, which I can't do, since it would require heavy workouts and massive amounts of plastic surgery. So, I have to work my magic in other ways.

If I thought my normal hot gluing techniques would work, I'd probably go for it but I finally found a dress. It's a gorgeous navy blue "Alex Evenings" dress that looks stunning on me..... I. Think. Actually, when on me, it's off the shoulders since I don't really have any shoulders. Hopefully, I'll feel gorgeous tomorrow night and have a marvelous time.

As yet another perk to my week, the pump for our water well DIED. In 100 plus degree heat. It was several days before the water well guy was able to come repair it. What started out as replacing an old pump, quickly became $3,000.00 worth of new pipe and a list of other items needed to get her up and running again. There goes my my new windows. But I'm not complaining. Not really. Without our water well, we'd be restricted to watering a mere 2 days of the week in this drought that just won't go away. Watering only 2 days of the week in 100 degree plus temperatures would surely finish off what little we have left. So, that was fun. Or. Not.

Then yesterday my week really took a nosedive when SD left for London and Oxford Law School, to have a wonderful experience and get some important credits in a short amount of time. I'm sure this will look outstanding on her future resume', right? Besides, she's also taking a side jaunt to Spain with friends she intends to *hook up* with. She has another side trip planned as well but I can't remember where she's going on that one. I wasn't there to see her off on her overseas flight (Dallas is a 5-1/2 hour drive from here) but I still bawled like a baby. I'm not quite sure why. I thought I was enjoying my *empty nest*. Perhaps I just wish I could be a little mouse in her pocket and go with her; keep her safe. But as parents, we can't really do that without ~~totally screwing them up~~ ruining their lives, can we?

So, my darling daughter, I wish you well. Stay safe. Study hard. Know that we will always love and adore you. Enjoy your half dozen Genie Bras. Come home to Texas when you're finished with your Oxford law studies.

As per your instructions, our new *Computer Guru* came here today and installed the Skype you said I needed. I can hardly wait to use it and see/talk to you. I already miss you and everything about you, but I know you'll have the experience of a lifetime, especially since you've already been to Europe once before and pretty much know *the ropes*. I. Am. So. Proud. Of. You. I hope you get to play some soccer as well. They might even teach you some new moves...

You are the shining light in my life. Whatever shall I do without you to talk to on the phone for so long? God Speed, my dear daughter. Have. The. Time. Of. Your. Life....

I feel like such a ridiculous sap of a mother but thank you for letting me live vicariously through you and your exciting life, I've always wished I'd experienced. You're my favorite person in the world and it's been one helluva of ride. Thank you.

My Latest Little Project Has Me Smitten With Bench Love.....

2011-06-30T18:00:00.001-05:00

Yes, I'm totally smitten with my little bench since I painted it and recovered the seat. Unfortunately, I was ripping it apart before I realized that I had forgotten to take a *before picture*. Frankly, I was on a mission and just got carried away. Oh, there's a big surprise (NOT). Anyway, the bench once belonged to Mr. Snooty's paternal grandmother and we'd had it for 16 years, never having done anything to it. Originally, it was a lovely cherry wood that had seen better days and the seat was covered in a canvas like mattress ticking of white with blue stripes.

Since I've been in the whole *re-purposing & re-furbishing* mode, I found a lovely Toile fabric on sale at Fabric Warehouse and there was just enough to cover the seat bench. SCOOOOOORE! It only took one can of black spray paint (I used Krylon's Indoor/Outdoor Flat Black) and it has completely changed the look of this antique bench.

It has returned to its place of the last 16 years, our dressing room off our master bath. Now, my only worry is someone actually sitting on it. I might go postal. Thank goodness it's where it is, otherwise someone might actually want to sit on it.

Now, I'm just waiting for a day (if we ever get one) when the Winds From Hell are not blowing so that I can spray paint our outdoor wrought iron dining table and chairs. I have the paint waiting and ready to go. However, the winds continue to blow over 35 mph, for 6 months now. I swear it's making me insane.

Did I ever mention that my decorating style is actually called *whatever we've inherited or been given*? It's a tough row to hoe some days, trust me.....

Golf & Likker In Triple Digit Heat Can Most Often Bite You On The Derriere In More Ways Than One....

2011-06-27T18:20:00.002-05:00

Mr. Snooty and I just returned from a weekend golf tournament (with our "Desert Duffers" group of golfing pals) up around 30 minutes past Abilene, which for most of us, is approximately a thrilling 2-1/2 hours drive (Seriously, I'm kidding. It's ugly as all get-out). It's as dry as a prehistoric bone and flat as a pancake with the only signs of green being the Mesquite bushes, which all seem to suck whatever water and life there may be, until it's gone. Much like nasty cockroaches, Mesquite will most likely survive nuclear war. They often have roots that extend to well over 20-30 miles. I kid you not. It's a greedy weed of a plant (tree), but it really makes some incredibly fabulous wood furniture, counter-tops, and more, once it's been harvested. Luckily, IT ISN'T ON ANY ENDANGERED BOTANICALS LIST. And, I can guarantee that it never will be. Unfortunately, it makes for a lousy shrub unless you embrace the whole Xeriscape concept of landscaping, which many people do in this arid, dry climate.

So, we made our way up to Baird/Clyde, Texas for our annual (and most favorite) golf tourney with our crrrrraaaaazy *Dessert Duffer* buddies. It's a *couples only* tournament, although no one plays with their spouse or *significant other*. The format is always a Shamble, everyone gets one mulligan for each of the two days (if you're sober enough to remember you have one) and no one has to hit out of a sand trap, which all makes for a tremendously fun *tourney with friends*. It's so crazy that one never knows what the final outcome might be until it's all been said and done.

Okay, so the first night they drew everyone's pairs for Saturday and I drew a *YOUNG GUN* who was joining our tournament for the first time. His name is Kyle and I think he was like in his late 30's, but then anyone under 50 looks like a baby to me, right? Anyway, this kid could blister (as in: almost stripping the outer layer off) the ball and since the only shot we shared was the tee shot, I was in 7th Heaven, although I did have to bail him out with my drive a few times. I actually shot a 40 on the front nine.

Then we hit the back nine and we each began to fall apart like a House of Cards. It was so ugly that I would have cried had I not been having so much fun with my pard (or had we not each gotten so inebriated). Kyle and I kept getting the hurt-your-tummy-giggles, to the point that all we had to do was hear the other make a muffled giggle sound and it would start all over again. Honestly, you would have thought we were a couple of 12 year old knuckleheads the way we'd just start howling with laughter over.... like... nothing. Except, perhaps, when I accidentally let a toot escape me, thinking no one had heard. I forgot he wasn't old and deaf like us. He teased me unmercifully about it for the rest of the night, which would once again force us into hysterics and tears of laughter.

So, he thought I was truly awesome until we both got entirely too greased and experienced a complete and total *GOLF MELTDOWN*. Trust me when I say that it was UGLY. I ended up shooting a 52 on the back. By golly, I came through like the true hack that I am. Wah! Wah! Wah! I got over it far more quickly than I'd ever have imagined, which made me realize there are even more perks to aging than I'd previously imagined.

Sadly, we both completely choked ourselves to death on the back nine holes. Thank goodness Kyle has such a goofy sense of humor (like mine), otherwise he probably would have put me at the very top of his Sh*t List. Permanently. When it was all said and done, he was still speaking to me, so I guess there were no truly hard feelings.

That night, there were apparently some very drunk puppies in our group, as I saw this faux pas on my way to get ice on Sunday morning-------->

Then today(Sunday), I had the sheer luck to draw one of my good friend's hubby. They are actually the hosts of this tournament every year and they always manage to make it waaaay too much fun for all of us, God Love 'Em. Since Mr. Snoots and I were were the very first to cut and run when everyone finished playing their rounds, we still didn't know how it all ended up until today. Amazingly, my partner and I won 3rd place on the second day, winning a big $63.00 dollars a piece. Color me happy!

I had been so confident that neither Mr. Snooty or I won anything this year, in spite of the major expertise of our oh-so-capable partners. Last year, I could not miss a putt and was able to pull off 1st Place the first day and 2nd Place the second day. This year, most unfortunately, I could barely sink a putt, but then I never do well when someone tries to school me in putting but at least I didn't allow it to put me in a *mood* this year (which is another of the few perks to my aging process.... I don't throw near as many infantile tantrums on the golf course as I did during my impetuous youth). But really, I have no idea why I listen to anyone. I'm a putting genius, I swear. Until. Someone. Decides. To. Show. Me. Where. To. Putt. My. Ball. Oddly, I become a blubbering mess and can't sink a putt, which all makes me want to wail like a newborn baby (never attractive at any age).

WHY CAN'T MEN JUST KEEP THEIR GOLF TIPS AMONG THEMSELVES AND LEAVE US LADIES ALONE? You know. Like unless we actually request they share their immense knowledge of the game with us (since they're all obviously on the Pro Tour, right?). Does anyone have an answer? Uh-Huh. I'm pretty convinced we'd all give the same answer, unless you're married to a freaking saint.

I awakened at the azz crack of dawn to some strange noises outside. When I opened the door, this is what I saw. Llamas. Very. Loud. Llamas....

OMG! We've Got Baby Foxes Again!

2011-06-21T10:47:00.000-05:00

When I started calculating the mating period of foxes and the gestation period, I suddenly realized that they (the babies) should come out to play this week, if they're still alive. Mr. Snoots said forget it, there weren't any this year. Still, Fifi and Rolando have really been hanging together in our yard. Be sure to click on the pictures for a larger pic. They are just too cute!

Lo and behold, when I ran up to the store for a quick item, the pups revealed themselves to Mr. Snoots, which is so NOT FAIR! However, he did get a couple of pretty good shots of them. There are only two pups, which makes sense. Fifi is only a year old.

Mr. Snooty said they are like a couple of wild Indians, which they always are. I'm hoping to be able to see them tonight, and I'll try to get a video. They're always so much fun to watch!

Several nights ago, I was able to get some good video of Fifi eating her dinner (a squirrel). She must have known I was there because I was listening to music on the patio and singing. It didn't seem to bother her in the least. There's nothing like a captive audience, I assure you.......

Stuck In Another Whirlwind In Triple Digit Heat....

2011-06-09T18:18:00.000-05:00

Yes, I'm stuck in yet another flurry of appliance and household repairs in preparing to put our house on the market. Let this be a lesson for those of you who don't always keep up with repairs in your household. If you ignore your home (which is your biggest asset), you eventually pay the price.

It's much like the old adage "You get what you pay for". You think you're getting the *deal of a lifetime*, only to see whatever it is, break or fall apart in record time. So, if you think you're saving money by not attending to repairs in and around the house, you will eventually pay far more than you would have, had you kept up with repairs and improvements. It's just that simple. Mr. Snoots is finding this to be a very hard learned lesson. I can't say that I blame him.

Mr. Snoots still hasn't secured a painter for the outside or the inside. I'm not sure what we're waiting on. I've made enormous strides in cleaning out the house. It's actually beginning to look like hoarders don't live here. I have yet to finish cleaning out the guest house, but since most of it will go into *el dumpster*, I'm not worried.

I'm just SO READY TO GET THIS SHOW ON THE ROAD! Nothing happens quickly in this household. Really.

On another note, the new fox, Fifi, has a mate, which totally surprised us. Also, the foxes have discovered that we have a cat and they seem to be VERY interested in her. I find this to be a disturbing development. They are spending a worrisome amount of time in our yard and, like I said before, I don't trust Fifi completely yet. So, Trouble The Cat's outside time is down to when I can be out there to supervise. Frankly, the foxes discovered her hiding place, which means she IS NOT SAFE.

Yesterday, I was walking out to the back and Fifi went shooting out in front of me, to the back fence, and over. She briefly attempted to jump on top of the guest house but it was so hot she danced immediately off of the roof and ran down the fence line, out of view. She has taken to sleeping under the Eleagnus bushes after it's been watered, as it must be nice and cool. I keep forgetting about this.

By the way, it is 104 degrees Fahrenheit as I write.....

Guess Who I've Got Fresh Video Of? Fifi The Fox....

2011-05-29T08:14:00.006-05:00

Yes, it's true. I've decided on the name Fifi and yes, she's baaaaack! Either she made a miraculous recovery from her death experience or that was another fox that crawled up and died in the neighbor's yard. I'm guessing the latter is the case.

Day before yesterday Fifi was wandering around on our patio. I'm not quite sure how I feel about that. Like her, I'm still not ready to trust. Felicia and I had many years to become familiar with one another and live in harmony, so I'm not ready to ride the trust wagon yet.

I apologize for showing you Fifi while she's eating her evening meal but it was the only chance I had to get her on video. It's the natural rhythm of things I suppose.

On another note, I finished making the shade for the kitchen door, that goes with the others I made. I also hung a khaki colored Roman Shade I bought at Lowe's on sale for $23.00, on the den door. I like it too, especially since I didn't have to make it....

;-)

Things In Snootyville Are Really Looking Up..... Aside From No Rain

2011-05-27T18:18:00.000-05:00

I just finished making my new kitchen window treatments as well as re-covering the chair seats at the kitchen table. It took me forever to decide what style I wanted to go with and ultimately decided on a faux Roman shade with ties. I didn't have enough of the flowered fabric for the windows so I found some material with a subtle plaid that went perfectly with the flowered material, adding an extra piece of the flowered to kind of tie it all together. Frankly, I really am crazy about the results. I can't believe they look so great and I DID THEM WITH WITH ONLY A GLUE GUN & A STAPLE GUN. Yay me! Tell me what you think...

When our best friends bought their new house, they replaced all of the brand new ceiling fans and replaced them with some incredibly beautiful (modern retro) fans. When they said they were going to throw away the others is when I asked if we could have them and they were thrilled to not be throwing them in the trash. Today, the electrician came to install the 3 fans and I'm so thrilled with them I could almost cry. All 3 fans are Hunters which are the best, in my opinion. Now, after 25 years, we have new fans that look absolutely splendid and they only cost us the price we paid the electrician. How sweet is that?

On another note, we still haven't had ANY rain and it's 106 degrees as I write this. When I went out to water the plants today (which is becoming a daily requirement), I thought I was going to faint. This heat is miserable and it isn't even officially summer yet. Can we please have a collective "Ugh!"? I can't help but wonder when nature is going to take pity on us and shed some rain on our parched land. I'm just thankful that we have a water well or we'd be knee deep in doo-doo.....

Oh No She Didn't! Kirstie Alley Rocks Dancing With The Stars....

2011-05-24T11:37:00.000-05:00

It's true. Yes, Kirstie Alley, at 60 years old, not only did several lifts but also did a CARTWHEEL on last night's show. I'm in total shock, since we all know what happened when I tried to do a cartwheel on the beach in West Galveston.

Kirstie has now lost more than 68 pounds, which is amazing. And, she's had her share of problems throughout the show, which makes it even more exciting that she's now in the finals and looks FABULOUS.

So, if I had a hubby that liked to dance, I'd surely be thin and in fabulous shape, right? Yeah. Right.

Just In Case You Think I've Fallen Off The Face Of The Earth....

2011-05-17T10:08:00.002-05:00

Well, I haven't. I just have a couple of new addictions (as if I needed more).

For Mother's Day Mr. Snoots bought me an Amazon Kindle, which I'm in love with. Since Mother's Day, I've read 4 books, which is more than I've read in the last 2 years, and I started a new one last night. I read "Under The Dome" by Stephen King, "Stormy Weather" by Carl Hiaasen, "Crisis" by Robin Cook, and "Reversible Errors" by Scott Tyrow.

Before that, our daughter, SD, got me hooked on Words With Friends (Scrabble), which I play on my iPodTouch. All. The. Time.

Am I not supposed to be getting this house ready to put on the market? Uh-Huh.

I suppose the newness will wear off in time and I'll get back to blogging....

This Is Just Life's Way Of Telling Me It's Time To Move On....

2011-05-09T11:55:00.000-05:00

Mr. Snoots called me from the office one morning last week to tell me that he thought he'd seen our baby girl fox laying dead in the next door neighbor's yard. I rushed to throw on some clothes and went to look. The fox was no longer there. We've seen no evidence of her since, so when I asked the neighbor, he said he called Animal Control and they disposed of her.

I'm just guessing that she was hit by a car and crawled up to the yard with her last breath. We experienced that with our daughter's favorite cat once. When I found her, I thought she was asleep, but alas, she was gone to Kitty Kat Heaven. Delivering the news to SD was even worse than finding the poor dear, dead under a bush next door. You'll think I'm crazy but I even tried to resuscitate her while following directions from my vet. Of course, I couldn't possibly have tried to help a feral fox, but this development has just crushed my heart. The thought of having no fox pups and no fox, is simply something I've never lent any thought to.

So, it looks like I'm going to have to concentrate on getting this house ready to sell instead of obsessing over fox pups... or even just a fox. Perhaps the house will sell faster without in-residence foxes running all about and wreaking havoc. Ya think? We wouldn't want people to run away from our house screaming, right?

Some days I'm so overwhelmed with what all I need to do around here, I'll look to any distraction to keep me from doing anything constructive. However, I can't do much inside until it's been purged, then painted. There's no point in doing a *staging* until that's done. Frankly, the same goes for the outside. Other than cleaning off the dirt on a daily basis, I can't do much yet, until the painting is done. I know how painters are, so I'm not doing anything until they remove their messy selves from the property. It's almost a Catch-22, really. I'm pretty sure I might need Divine Intervention here.

Now, I'm quite certain that it wouldn't be a good thing to have foxes here while we try to sell this place, so perhaps this has all worked out for the best. Still, I'll never, ever forget the fun I've had with the foxes over the years and the sheer joy of seeing them raise their little families. It really has been an interesting ride but life is telling me that it's time to move on.....

When God Created Mothers, By Erma Bombeck....

2011-05-08T10:36:00.000-05:00

Wishing everyone a most Happy Mother's Day! Erma Bombeck expressed motherhood better than most:

"When God Created Mothers"

When the Good Lord was creating mothers, He was into His sixth day of "overtime" when the angel appeared and said. "You're doing a lot of fiddling around on this one."

And God said, "Have you read the specs on this order?" She has to be completely washable, but not plastic. Have 180 moveable parts...all replaceable. Run on black coffee and leftovers. Have a lap that disappears when she stands up. A kiss that can cure anything from a broken leg to a disappointed love affair. And six pairs of hands."

The angel shook her head slowly and said. "Six pairs of hands.... no way."

It's not the hands that are causing me problems," God remarked, "it's the three pairs of eyes that mothers have to have."

That's on the standard model?" asked the angel. God nodded.

One pair that sees through closed doors when she asks, 'What are you kids doing in there?' when she already knows. Another here in the back of her head that sees what she shouldn't but what she has to know, and of course the ones here in front that can look at a child when he goofs up and say. 'I understand and I love you' without so much as uttering a word."

God," said the angel touching his sleeve gently, "Get some rest tomorrow...."

I can't," said God, "I'm so close to creating something so close to myself. Already I have one who heals herself when she is sick...can feed a family of six on one pound of hamburger...and can get a nine year old to stand under a shower."

The angel circled the model of a mother very slowly. "It's too soft," she sighed.

But tough!" said God excitedly. "You can imagine what this mother can do or endure."

Can it think?"

Not only can it think, but it can reason and compromise," said the Creator.

Finally, the angel bent over and ran her finger across the cheek.

There's a leak," she pronounced. "I told You that You were trying to put too much into this model."

It's not a leak," said the Lord, "It's a tear."

What's it for?"

It's for joy, sadness, disappointment, pain, loneliness, and pride."

You are a genius, " said the angel.

Somberly, God said, "I didn't put it there."

— Erma Bombeck (When God Created Mothers)

"IF I HAD MY LIFE TO LIVE OVER"

I would have talked less and listened more.

I would have invited friends over to dinner even if the carpet was stained and the sofa faded.

I would have eaten the popcorn in the "good" living room and worried much less about the dirt when someone wanted to light a fire in the fireplace.

I would have taken the time to listen to my grandfather rambling about his youth.

I would never have insisted the car windows be rolled up on a summer day because my hair had just been teased and sprayed.

I would have burned the pink candle sculped like a rose before it melted
in storage.

I would have sat on the lawn with my children and not worried about grass stains.

I would have cried and laughed less while watching television, and more
while watching life.

I would have gone to bed when I was sick, instead of pretending the earth would go into a holding pattern if I weren't there for the day.

I would never have bought anything just because it was practical, wouldn't show soil or was guaranteed to last a lifetime.

Instead of wishing away nine months of pregnancy, I'd have cherished every moment, realising that the wonderment growing inside me was the only chance in life to assist God in a miracle.

When my kids kissed me impetuously, I would never have said, "Later. Now go get washed up for dinner."

There would have been more "I love you's" and more "I'm sorry's"

. . . but mostly, given another shot at life, I would seize every minute . . .
look at it and really see it . . . and never give it back."

— Erma Bombeck

A Dose Of Willie Nelson Is Always Good For The Soul....

2011-05-05T12:31:00.000-05:00

Willie Nelson, at 82 years old, can still get up on stage and wow the crowd for 2 solid hours with his guitar and songs. We are of the philosophy that we should always go see Willie in concert because we never know if we'll get to see him again. I mean, he's 82 years old!

So, when we got wind of his coming to town again, we scrambled to get the VIP tickets. We felt extremely lucky to get 6th row seats. This time the venue was an indoor arena, so he didn't get rained out like he did last year. So, we grabbed our best friends and made the show on Sunday night, as Willie played to a standing-room-only crowd.

Willie started out with "Whiskey River" and continued on (with no clothing changes, I might add) with "Georgia On My Mind", "How Time Slips Away", "Crazy", and all the old favorites we all wanted to hear.

It's difficult to believe that an 82 year old man can still go "On The Road Again" and keep the pace that he does. He's amazing and so was his concert!

And Willie, as long as you keep playing, we'll keep coming to see you.....

Just Back From The Royal Wedding....

2011-05-03T00:32:00.000-05:00

Actually, it was just a party to watch The Royal Wedding, in San Antonio. And, what a party it was!

Everyone invited was due to arrive at my friend's house at 3:00 AM and by 3:15 AM all 12 guests had arrived. Need I even mention we took naps that day?

Of course, there were Tiaras and fine attire in attendance. It was such a hoot!

Our host and hostess had planned an amazing feast including Eggs Benedict Casserole (to swoon for), oven roasted asparagus with garlic, Hollandaise Sauce from scratch, and a spinach salad with walnuts, red onion, feta cheese & a balsamic dressing. We also had Mimosas with freshly squeezed orange juice, that were entirely too tasty.

For dessert, my friend's hubby made a multi-layered strawberry shortcake that was unlike anything I've ever had in someone's home.

Also, another guest brought English Bread Pudding with a scrumptious sauce that had whiskey or something in it. Whatever. It was delicious.

Did you know that Diana called Charles *sir* up until the week before they wed? I mean, can you imagine? William and Kate know each other well and enjoy so many of the same sports and other activities. They love being together.

Anyhoo, by 8:30 AM all of the guests had gone home and we all went to take much needed naps. Still, it was so much fun!

Although many of the guests found criticism with Kate's dress and other details, I thought it was all wonderful and SO Kate. Not Diana. I have great faith in this marriage being one of the great ones of our generation. They looked so much in love. I know Diana was smiling down upon them.

However, don't get me started on Camilla the Witch....

Does Anyone Know How To Do A Raindance?

2011-04-23T15:36:00.000-05:00

We may have lots of oil and natural gas in the ground here but what we don't have much of, is water. Last year, we were actually out of drought danger for the first time in many years. Go figure.

I've lived in this city for 35 years and have never once seen water rationing. That is, until now. We have not seen one single droplet of rain for more than six months, which means our reserves are dwindling quickly with no possibility of rain in sight. This means that new businesses looking to open here will probably take it to a city with more water available. With all of this weighing on the minds of responsible citizens, why is it that I am STILL seeing water standing in street curb wells all over town? Sigh. The world is indeed full of sheep and outright jerks. We certainly don't have a shortage of those around here.

Our neighboring city 20 miles away has already issued mandatory water rationing and penalties will begin next month for those who abuse the watering rules. Our mayor has pleaded with citizens to cut back before he is forced to put us on rationing as well. This effects local nurseries, sports fields, fire departments, golf courses and more. And, with all of the wildfires, we're running out of water even faster than anyone ever anticipated. The oil industry also needs water to perform the fracturing process, which now allows us to go back into shut down oil wells and bring up deposits of oil that we were unable to extract before this process was introduced.

Furthermore, there are oil wells literally everywhere out here in West Texas and when wildfires get close, those are the first to be put out. Otherwise, we'd be having monster explosions out the wazoo and it's really unthinkable what kind of damage that could do to our little corner of the world. So, much of the water reserves in both counties are already low from using it to put out those fires. And yet, the high winds and near 100 degree temperatures continue to wreak their special kind of havoc upon us. The last figures I saw were saying that over 90,000 acres have burned in West Texas thus far. One ranch alone has had over 30,000 acres burned and that fire was started by downed electrical wires (from the high winds).

After the hardest freeze this area has seen since the 1920's, ailing plants and trees barely hanging on are probably not going to make it. Luckily, we have a water well for watering outside, but we need to conserve it as well, since we don't know how deep it is or how long it will last us.

Now it's time for me to ~~vent~~ whine. Remember my beautiful Oleanders in the backyard?

Here's what that pair of Oleanders look like now. The green you see is the blasted trumpet vine trying to choke out an already deceased pair of shrubs. Nothing can kill that damned vine, trust me. It's as hearty as mesquite bush. Those Oleanders were like 15 years old but the cold got them anyway. Frankly, it didn't make me feel any better to see that most of the Oleanders around town are dead.

And remember how hard I worked on the front yard before Mr. Snooty's 40th high school class reunion last year? It looked so pretty until that freeze hit us in February. I had even moved the potted Hibiscus trees to the guest house for the winter. That turned out to be a wasted effort. The freeze took them too. However, one day when I was at Sam's Club they had the exact same size Hibiscus trees for $15.98 a piece, so I bought four. Yes!

At any rate, here's what it looks like now, along with a dead ornamental pear tree and the barely-hanging-on Oleander. Wah. Okay, I'm done whining but I don't feel any better as I leave to go search for a remote new nursery that claims to have Oleanders......

Strike Two More Items Off My Bucket List.... Celine And The Zip Line

2011-04-18T06:15:00.000-05:00

Yes, after the most hair-raising flight I've ever been on, and the hairiest landing ever, we are indeed home again. We weren't even able to get cocktails on the flight (due to severe turbulence), which I really needed in order to get through the scary stuff. Didn't happen. Of course, the winds from Hell were still blowing here at home, which made for a very precarious and frightening landing. The pilot even had to approach the airport from a direction that we had never experienced before. It was crazy and the sky was full of blowing 50 mph gusts of dust and smoke from more wildfires. Everyone on the plane clapped and cheered when we were finally on the ground. Yes, it was that bad. I bowed to the pilots on the way out of the plane.

As always, we had a great time in Vegas even though we I lost all the money I had for gambling. The card gods completely failed to *cover my back*, which I just wasn't accustomed to. It went really well the first night, after dining at Hugo's (which we weren't so impressed with this year). I met some new *friends* I'll never see again and we were rocking and rolling with the cards, which was great fun. I didn't get back to the room until 2:30 AM because things were going so well. Then, I slept until 3:00 PM the following day. Apparently I needed the sleep, right? That was Sunday night.

Monday (after I finally woke up) we just walked around the Fremont Street *Experience*, did a minimum amount of gambling, AND I scratched another item off my *Bucket List*. Yup. They now have a Zip Line on Fremont Street, which I took full advantage of. Now, Mr. Snoots would rather have his fingernails removed with household pliers than do it, so he was the perfect (or not) photographer for my *Bucket List* chronicles. Yes, that's right. I. Rode. The. Zip. Line. With great enthusiasm. Woo Hoo! That night we ate at Vic & Anthony's (inside the Golden Nugget) and it was absolutely the best meal we had this trip, as was the service. Outstanding meal and service.

I actually wanted to do the zip line again but Tuesday I had to get ready to go see Celine Dion at Caesar's Colosseum, which I'd have had to be jailed or hospitalized to keep me from seeing her concert. So, Tuesday, April 12th, we hit the pool for some much needed vitamin D, then I spent the afternoon primping for the concert and yes, I dressed to the nines. It turned out to be everything I'd hoped for and, of course, I cried. I'm the town crier, remember? Before the concert we dined at BOA Steakhouse (inside the Caesar's Forum of Shops but I dutifully had my blinders on as we passed the dozens of high end shops except Judith Leiber but I merely drooled, nothing more), which was quite lovely but not nearly so much as its Santa Monica counterpart. They overcooked my grilled salmon and we had to make the concert so there was no time for sending back mistakes. Yuck. Wish we'd gone to Spago.

Anyhoo, Celine was divine and both Mr. Snoots and I were thrilled with her live performance. You can see it on video or on the internet, but nothing prepares you for the experience of seeing this talented woman up close and personal. Live. She puts on quite an astonishing show. Honestly, Mr. Snooty was almost as taken with her as I, which actually surprised him. He liked it even more than "Wicked". Celine Dion gives it everything she's got. Also, her 36 piece orchestra/band is an amazing collection of talented artists, as are her backup singers and all the others who work behind the scenes to make the magic happen. It's not just a concert, but almost a Broadway worthy *production*. Anyway, after the concert my eyes were so swollen that I didn't even go out to gamble that night. We just went back to the room, watched a pay movie, and fell asleep before it was over. We are such Party Animals!

But, I have to say that I would have preferred less bells and whistles. It's not about all that. It's about Celine and her incredibly beautiful voice. I had absolutely no desire to go into her store but somehow found myself buying a t-shirt. What is wrong with me? I DO NOT WEAR T-SHIRTS! I suppose I just got caught up in it all, which is what they're shooting for. I think I liked her better in the days of old. However, that's the Las Vegas Experience, right? Pay for all the extras that you really don't need or want. It's part of the deal.

Wednesday we ended up trying an Oxygen Bar, which I'll never do again. All they do is try to sell you hundreds of dollars worth of completely ridiculous items you don't need, which spoils the whole oxygen experience anyway, all the while making sure to not speak enough English for you to understand. Whatever. No more Oxygen Bars for me or Mr. Snoots. Extremely. Annoying.

We ate at The Chart House on Wednesday night, which is inside The Nugget. What a fantastic meal we had while gazing at their 75,000 gallon tank of tropical fish (but not for consumption). Our Tuna Tartare with fried plantains was to swoon for and the service was truly impeccable. I had their Lobster Francese which was unlike anything I've ever had. Needless to say, I gained like 3 lbs. on this trip even with all the walking. What a bummer. Then I ran into my new best friends again and proceeded to steadily lose my stash of chips. Why is it so much easier to lose those cute little chips? I was with some really high rollers and they lost way more than I did. Somehow, that was comforting. But then, they all deserted me because apparently I was the ~~loser~~ wooden nickel at the table, so I tucked my tail between my legs went up to bed to lick my wounds.

Thursday morning was the airplane ride from Hell and Mr. Snooty was really sick already. So, as he recovers from his *stomach thing*, I try to recover from my swollen feet, various blisters from wearing the *pretty shoes* instead of the *sensible* ones, along with a little leg shaving mishap, and a slight fall in the casino when I missed a chair at the blackjack table (I swear it wasn't the martoonies). Aren't you sorry you weren't with us to enjoy all the ~~mishaps~~ FUN? And No! There isn't a picture of me missing the chair. Thank Gawd!

I didn't mean to write a book, really. It just worked out that way. And today, we are finally recovered from the trip. Geeze! I need to start training for these trips.....

Baby Felicia The Fox Needs A Name.... Please Vote!

2011-04-12T06:10:00.001-05:00

Now that we know for sure that Felicia is gone, it seems Baby Felicia is here to stay, in her place. I see her out in the backyard from time to time, so she survived one of our coldest winters to date. Our plants, shrubs and trees didn't survive, but the little fox surely did (note that there are no longer 8 feet tall Oleanders). Anyway, we know it isn't Felicia because she is so scared of us. I can't seem to get a decent picture of her unless she's asleep on the roof, which is still quite the challenge). She runs whenever she sees me (even though foxes are practically legally blind), which means she must sense my presence in some other animalistic way.

So, I believe it's time to name this little girl. I'm not sure if she's had any pups yet but I did see her scarfing a little squirrel a few days ago, before jumping up and over the concrete block fence, that leads to the garden. If she has indeed had pups, she's still hiding them out in one of her dens around our property, since they are blind for the first 10 days of life. Perhaps I'll get to see them very soon. I wish she trusted us more, but I'm sure that time will make her more comfortable with us. Hopefully.

Approximately one month ago I took a short video of the baby girl up on the roof.

Then, a few days ago I tried to get a shot of her but had the flash on for the first one, which didn't work because it was dusk at the time. By the time I was able to catch a shot, she was too far away and already on the fence, on her way to the garden den I suppose.

I thought I could post a voting widget but apparently that's too far beyond my mental capacity for me to handle, so I'm just going to throw out some names I've come up with. Please leave a comment on which name you like best or you can even offer an additional suggestion for a name. Okay? Let's. Do. This.

So, here are the names I've come up with:

Roxy Foxy

Fertita The Fox

Francesca The Fox

Fergie The Fox

Fanny The Fox

Fifi The Fox

So, let me know what you think of the names......