Heather, the dumbass.

So today we went to Sandy Point. It is a stunningly stark and beautiful beach, the water is a little rough but still amazing. I swam, I read, and I did NOT wear sunscreen. Can anyone explain why I am this stupid? So, I am a little (lot!) red on my back. Tomorrow--sunscreen AND a shirt.
For those of you wondering, yes, I have taken a work day off to spend with my husband. It is going to make for a long 4 day week, but totally worth it. We are snorkeling again tomorrow--this time back to Buck Island.
Wear sunscreen! And don't tell my dermatologist!

Wilkes on island!

We did the west end snorkel tour today, then came down to Rhythms to grab lunch. We played some chess, then a kid jumped in and they are in a death match. :)
No matter how much kids irritate him, this patient man is a born teacher. Of course, the rum prolly helps. :)
Happy Saturday folks.

Additional Lunch Moment

The dude to my left is eating pig tail and corn meal.
Dude.

Lunch moment

So, I am sitting here in a trailer on a bench. The dude next to me is eating his lunch, a thermos full of fish and some bread. I'm eating a granola bar and a diet coke.
Dude.

Pictures, Pictures, Pictures...

Do to many requests here is the link for all the pictures that were taken during my friends visit. I haven't named them all yet, but since I know you are all avoiding work to read this blog...here ya go. :)

http://s5.photobucket.com/albums/y189/heathea/Erins%20Visit/

Enjoy!

Thursday

Dear Blog Readers,
I am sorry I didn't update you during my friend's visit, but in all honesty we were out having too much fun.
We took a ton of pictures, which I am hoping to have time to upload tonight. I did all sorts of touristy stuff and can't wait to do it again! We laughed, we drank, we snorkeled, we drank, we ate, we drank. It was big fun. Erin mentioned that she found my road a tad too bumpy for her taste, but I shall let her leave a comment about that. :)
It was relaxing, big fun, and a much needed break from work. I love you Erin!!!

Less Than Kind...

Today the world took a small turn to the worse. Nothing too horrible, just a few small things. This morning I awoke, got dressed, attended our weekly safety meeting where I learned the refinery lost many more millions due to the evil economy and that consultants (that's me!) were a huge expense. I knew all of this, but let me tell you there is an unpleasant pressure when you feel you have to prove how much value you provide--all of the time.
So then I made a mistake. I am sure 99% of you have done it. You stop at a stop sign, no one is around, you go forward. Well I got a ticket in the refinery for failure to stop. *sigh* this is an embarrassing stupid thing that I shouldn't have done. It added just a little more stress to an overloaded plate. I had to go breathe in a private place for a little bit.
At the end of the day I went home, to my sanctuary, my clean comfy little apartment. Odd, what was that smell? I could not trace it. I smelled my garbage can, my drains, drawers...nada. I just kept getting whiffs of...well, bad.
I went upstairs. Nope. It's the carpet.
Where the carpet got wet from the roof. GAG!!! Mildew.
Smells bad. I could give descriptors, but let's just stick with bad.
Then I went out to bathe the beasts. Per the vet they need to be washed once per week out here. So, I scrubbed and scrubbed and then rinsed them. I did this bent over using the hose.
Turns out, if you stand up fast from a bent over position you can actually hear your back say something that sounds suspiciously like "Duck You" before the throbbing twang noise.
Then. My internet went down.
At this juncture I gave up, took an ice pack out of the freezer, a handful of advil and went to my stinky bedroom.
Some days man...some days.

Okay, but on the super happy bright side Erin shows up tomorrow! (Yay!!!) So as of tomorrow evening I am on vacation. I will take tons of pictures and post next week. *hugs*
-H.

Drip. Drip. Dark.

So now the power is out.
Its kinda like camping. Except I have to go to work in the morning.
:)

Drip.

I am listening to the rain pour down. It sounds really pretty against the steel roof.
Sadly, there is another sound.
Drip, drip, drip.
*sigh*
My roof is leaking again.
So I have 2 buckets out. I think I am catching most of it.
Goodnight everyone, I am hoping you are all warm and dry tonight.

See!

Sometimes our weather is crappy and rainy too. And we have barbed wire fencing. :/
*hugs*

Monday

Hey everyone, Happy Monday.
I am sorry I haven't written more, I spent my weekend really relaxing. It was nice. I planned to go to the beach on Sunday but it rained all day. So I went to the grocery store, etc.

I have exciting news! In 4 days (yes, I am counting) one of my best friends in the world is coming to visit! She will be arriving on Thursday evening and then the big fun shall ensue. I am taking a few days off of work and plan to beach, do touristy stuff, and visit many a local tavern. :)

I am sorry I haven't been writing much of late, last week was stressful because I had to finish my quarterlies (the test I take every quarter to determine that I can still identify asbestos) This round was particularly tricky, but I think I did okay. Mainly thanks to a great teacher (Thank you Karen!!!)
So, I am working through Thursday and this week I shall probably meet with big wigs who will tell me whether or not my contract will make it through the entire year. I shall let ya'll know how it goes. I believe that day I will put on makeup and actually brush my hair (I am sure my mother just cringed in horror as she read that. But to be fair I usually end up wearing a bandana on my head all day anyway, seems like a waste of time to brush it.) hmmmm, I am going to have to see if I actually own a brush...well, I definitely have a dog brush...(okay, mom, I'm kidding, sheesh!!!).

Have a good monday!!!

Good News!

Okay, so its not great news, but it is interesting. It looks like I'm getting a new neighbor who is, as my landlord describes, " a couple bubbles off plumb".
So, the good news is I should have plenty to write about. Apparently he is moving in slowly...currently the only thing he has over there is (I only wish I was kidding) his stuffed animal collection.
Is it just me or is there somthin a little off about an adult male with a stuffed animal collection? Maybe I'm being too judgmental...I will keep you all informed. And I think I am going to invest in some curtains that aren't sheer, just in case.

Better Evenin'

I really have got to stop drinking so much caffeine with dinner!
Anyway, it happened. I kind of knew it would. You know, in the back of your mind there is that little voice telling you--perhaps toaster oven pizzas for dinner every night for a couple weeks is not the healthiest choice. But, in 7 minutes you too can have a crunchy taste treat...anyway, it kind of crept up on me. In my defense, I basically wear pajamas 24 hours a day. I wake up, take off one set of pjs and put on one piece coveralls. So this weekend I put on "my big girl clothes". This is not in reference to size in anyway, but is more of a reference to growing up and not wearing pajamas. Well, my jeans were tight. Not "lay down on the bed to zip them" tight; just sort of, "uh-oh, I've been living on toaster pizzas and wearing pjs" tight.
Ruh-roh.
So after my morning toaster pizza (dude it was ALL I HAD) I scuttled off to the grocery store. "Vegetables, I need vegetables" I told myself, mumbling like a crazy person. So I bought some. And some fruit. And some super-colon-blow...I mean, bran cereal. I only stared longingly as I passed the ice cream-settling on plain yogurt instead.
This is not a big diet plan, this is "I only have so many clothes with me" plan. Besides, I was going to end up with scurvey if I didn't eat some fruits and veg soon!
For those of you unaware--yes, my husband did about 98% of the cooking. I REALLY miss him, I was quite the spoiled princess. :)
Goodnight ya'll

Good Evenin'

I can't sleep. I can tell you right now this is probably going to be a lame blog posting. I feel the need to give adequate warning before the great ramble of '09.
There has been a bunch of stuff happening. So much so, that I keep thinking about how I am going to write it out. Lately I have spent too much time thinking and not writing.
I am going to start with the not so pleasant stuff and then move on to embarrassing personal stuff which I am well aware is WAY more fun to read.

The truly craptastic news is that my company had to do a reduction in force and although this is unpleasant for everyone the hardest part (for me anyway) is that my favorite administrator was one of the reduced. This woman was amazing at her job. The office will never be the same without her. She was the first person to meet me when I nervously walked into my new job "in the city" and I actually thought she would never leave. I am not ashamed to say I sobbed my fool head off on the way home--it felt like the end of an era! Lisa, you are loved.

Well, that was depressing. But wait, there's more! (This stupid economy is bouncing on my last nerve!) The next happy-ass ball of news is that ...wait for it...my budget may run out of money and I may have to go home early.
Gack!
So. I'm pimping myself out (I'm sorry, promoting myself) to another budget in the hopes of a Hail Mary Play.
Don't worry folks coming to visit, I'm good through June.
I will let ya'll know more as time goes on.

Okay, so that's all the depressing stuff. I am going to make this one posting and put the other stuff in a new one.

The world is a messed up place.

I have lots of things to write about, some good, some funny, and some bad. However, as I just wake up on a saturday morning all I can think is, "when did 7AM start to feel like sleeping in?!?"

A centipede, a dead rat, and a magic jack.

To clarify the lovely title of this blog posting here are our topics:

Centipede: yesterday evening I heard a shout from outside and then a sound of a shovel slamming into the ground. It was a centipede. And not a small one. Those things FREAK ME OUT.

Dead Rat: I live in the woods. There are rats everywhere outside (I think they play poker with the centipedes). I shall quickly describe a past event as a dog owner living in the woods of southern illinois my husband and I refer to as the "deer incident". One evening after we came home we walked into the living room and there in bright living color was our two dogs, happily chewing on a dead deer. An entire deer except for the head. In. The. Living. Room.
They had somehow worked together to get the deer into the house through the doggy door. I am fairly certain they set up a pulley system. Regardless, this was definitely the largest woodland creature to make it into the house.
However, the site of a many-day-old dead rat with the icky tail dangling was also not pleasant. *gack*

The bright side cool thing that I got today is a magic jack. I kid you not, the thing works. I made phone calls from my house without standing at a weird angle and afraid to move. Cool as heck, but more on that later.
Goodnight all!