"Pet Shenanegans" Clinches It (as do the Cubs)!

While Amanda's support was lovely and Matt's critique was predictable, I need to give the people what they want. And since Bill and Phay were the only people who actually said what they wanted, I will be sharing the lastest and greatest pet news.

Being very cautious from the beginning, Arlo and I decided it was best to keep the pets apart for quite some time. So, the cats were living in our room, and Marley was in his bedroom if the cats were out. The cats had free reign when Marley was in bed and during the day when he was in his bedroom and we were out. All of that changed last week when we began letting the pets see one another. It started with Arlo walking Marley by the bedroom door and not letting him push in. Both cats stared at him, freaked out entirely, but for the most part stood their grounds. After this event, Fizgig became bolder, and anytime Marley walked up to the bedroom door or sniffed underneath, Fizgig would hiss and make this other weird sound that wasn't growling, but sounded like coughing, and he would hit the door. It was pretty funny to witness.

Since then, there have been other pet interactions, always with Marley on the lease. Sidd has finally seen him and not gone running right away, and he hissed at Marley. Last night, Fizgig actually growled at him, a low, suprisingly loud growl. While I felt really bad for Marley (after all, he is doing nothing wrong except for being their instinctively hated species of animal), a small bit of me is actually kind of proud of them, kind of like when the parent of a scrawny kid finds out that their kid made the bully cry or wet himself. I'm hoping that eventually they can learn to get along, and I have no doubt that at least Fizgig will be able to exist in the same room as Marley eventually. Sidd on the other hand may take up permanent residence in our bedroom, which would be fine by me except for the occasional poo after I've scooped.

Other news- Arlo and I went out for the Packer's game. We walked up the street to what is literally our neighborhood bar, as in it is in a house in our neighborhood. That's right, Deb and John who live on Plainfield Ave. have created Deb and John's Plainfield Pub. It was awesome! I wish I had taken pictures. There was Packers stuff everywhere, pretty much everyone there but us was in Packers regalia, and there were 4 tvs all displaying the game, so I was surrounded by football. Sounds like my personal hell, right? Actually I had a lot of fun! We had beer and snacks and I actually watched a good almost half of the game. Unfortunately the Packers were slammed. We got to vote for the Best Dressed Packer Fan (we weren't even nominated as we were both wearing brown.) And, I saw the Best Women's Restroom ever! (not actually called that or voted by the people.) Ask me why. Well, because the place was plastered with pictures of half-naked men and jokes and forwards covering such topics as menopause, the menstrual cycle, men being idiots, and the need for chocolate. Hilarious!

So, just to conclude, as I was typing this, Arlo went to take Marley out to pee. While walking him by the bedroom, Fizgig tried to swat at Marley, shutting the door and then proceeded to open it again to posture at him, as if to say, "You wanna play!?!? You wanna play??!? Oh, I see how it is! Yeah, run away, little doggie. Go running back to your daddy." Oh Fizgig, you badass.

p.s. Pics are of the cats' favorite "TV" show- the nature channel going on outside of the window and (soon to be posted) picture of Deb and John's Pub.

I miss you all!!! Take care!

Finally, The Pictures!

Okay, so the plan was to put pics of the house online yesterday, but I was in a crazy rush to get out of the house for a music festival, followed by a concert by Abigail Washburn and the Sparrow Quartet (cue knowing laugh by Kevin). Two, count them two, occurrences of live music in one day!! Add that to the tally (which hasn't been updated, by the way). Abigail Washburn was amazing, but more about that later.

The pictures are of the various rooms of the house, namely the bedroom (Elsie), Marley's room (Susie), the Kitchen (The Daisy Diner) and the living room (The Planetarium) (Arlo and I gave them the names the first day we moved in to make putting furniture and boxes away more fun). It's tough to see the colors perfectly, but the main bedroom is a sky blue and Susie, Marley's room, is a bright green. The living room is a khaki tan. I made all the sets of curtains and Arlo helped me pick out two of the fabrics. Please notice the new couch, which is comfy, big enough to nap on, and sporting a fantastic ottoman. Also, the bedroom is definitely a work in progress as far as stuff on the walls. We have to move that one painting to over the dresser and put more pictures up. Fortunately, Amanda and Bill sent us a great frame with four pictures and we are going to be hanging that up, so that will definitely add something, especially with Bill's handsome face! I'm really pleased with the way that everything in the house turned out. Our place isn't perfect, but it's pretty awesome! I know we're both very happy here.

Okay, so here's where you come in, Choose Your Own Adventure Style. I would like to know where you want me to go from here. You can either hear more about my new job at Louise's Trattoria, the Abigail Washburn concert, or the recent shenanigans amongst the pets! You choose. Whatever has the most votes by Friday will be written about thoroughly. But not too thoroughly. Entertaining, concise, and titillating. That's my style.

Night, y'all.

Damn! I've been lax!

So sorry to those of you who check on a regular basis! I really wanted to wait until I took pictures of the house, which meant I wanted to wait until the curtains were done, and then my sewing machine was a bit possessed, and there you go. It didn't happen. So, despite the fact that I STILL don't have pictures, I decided to write about what else is going on. I did actually finish the fourth and final set of curtains (hurrah!), but I don't feel that the place is fit to take pictures of, as there is still A: a lot of crap around, B: the process of switching over to the fall clothes in the bedroom and hence, piles of clothes, and C: A CAT LITTER BOX IN THE BEDROOM!!!! Emphasis on that last tasty morsel. The plan right now is to clean up the laundry room so it's kitty-proof and move the litter box and food dishes in there, but it hasn't happened. So, please continue waiting for those pictures as it's probably going to be a few days. This is not due to sheer laziness, I assure you. It's due mostly to the fact that I recently accepted a job at Louise's Trattoria, an Italian restaurant in the city. I worked a double there today, and will do another one tomorrow and another on Saturday. They are all stupid training sessions, so I'm trying to pack them in so that I can get on the floor and start making money!!
As for the other job, you know, the one where I do social worky type stuff? Well, haven't found one of those yet. Unfortunately, this continues to be a bit difficult, but I am still sending out my resume, calling places and checking online. I'll keep you all posted on that.
I guess nothing new to report otherwise. Oh, yeah, there is one thing. I saw an Indy race last weekend. It was the Indy 300, held at Chicagoland Speedway. I went with Arlo and his friend Scott. Having experienced it, I can safely say that while aspects were enjoyable (the crashes once the people were discovered to be fine, the company, and the finish), I have to say that I was wondering why people would pay actual money for this. I mean really, it's a bunch of cars driving in circles 200 times! However, who am I to judge. If given the choice, I would so dig watching a marathon of shows from E! and Style to my heart's content.

Alright, time to go study the 10 Points of Service for my quiz tomorrow. Man, this puts the LCSW-C exam to shame! Night, y'all. Pics to post soon. Love you!

Milwaukee Invaded By Bikers!

This weekend was Harleyfest in Milwaukee, and so all restaurants, bars, convenience shops, and hotels were welcoming the bikers from around the country to descend upon Milwaukee with fervor. And they did. You pretty much couldn't go anywhere this weekend without seeing hairy men and their ladies strapped to the back of their bikes. And, since Arlo and I neither have motorcycles nor would look good in a leather vest and pants combo, we did not join in the festivities. Instead we have found plenty of things to do by foot, by car, and by non-motorized bike.

On Thursday, we went to see a jazz concert in Chicago. This weekend was Chicago's Jazz Festival, the largest free jazz festival in the U.S., I believe, and the kick-off was Sonny Rollins on Thursday night. Despite not being a huge fan of jazz, I took part, mostly because I knew it would make Arlo happy, and I didn't have anything else that was calling to me, besides E! or the Style Network. It was really cool! He played each song for like 20-30 minutes! It was like the Grateful Dead of jazz! And with the backdrop of Chicago behind the outdoor stage (Millenium Hall), it was perfect.

That pretty much set off our weekend on a good note. On Friday, we headed down to Racine to hang out with his mom and Mary and to go to a fish fry. I will not be describing my meal in detail, but if you want to know exactly what I ate, you can comment and I will give you a critical recall of the tasty delights of Chartroom Charlie's. On Saturday, Arlo and I were committed to cleaning the garage, or at least I was, and Arlo went to it full force with me, despite not being a huge fan of the idea, much like me with the jazz concert. We successfully emptied and organized our garage enough so that we could actually fit our two cars in the 2.5 car garage. Huzzah! Now, unfortunately, we still have lots of crap to go through out on the porch...but at least it's out of the garage! Afterwards we celebrated by taking an awesome photo series in which we are doing a jumping high-five. I really want to post it, but it's currently trapped in Arlo's camera, so check back later to see it. Energized by our organization and photographical success, we packed a lunch and biked to the shore of Lake Michigan for a picnic. Sandwiches made from tomatoes from Jerry's (Arlo's dad) garden and local cheese. It was delicious (spoken like Matt's impression from SNL of all the news stories about Gerald Ford dying in different ways). Lake Michigan is very cool. Because you can't see land across the way, it's almost like the beach. No great sandy shores though, and the water just a bit too cold for swimming.

Today was not as exciting, as most of it was spent following the directions of our GPS to various furniture shops in the hopes of buying the perfect couch during Labor Day sales. Alas, no couch was to be had. Rest of the day spent cleaning the windows, doing laundry, and other stuff way too boring to add.

Other exciting tidbits:

1. I now have homemade curtains in two, count them, two rooms. I will post pictures toute de suite.
2. Facebook is slowly becoming my favorite thing to check out when I wake up in the morning (sadly).
3. I find that Shannon Dougherty's lop-sided face still bothers me after all these years.
4. I wish I was as smart as Bill.
5. This Wednesday is our 1 1/2 year anniversary!

Word!

Minneapolis and More

Arlo just burped! Really loudly! It was funny. And a bit gross. We just got back (or not just, more like two days ago, but still) from Minneapolis, where we went for a wedding reception, to see Arlo's campus and to see the sculpture of a huge spoon with a cherry on it. We also hit Electric Fetus, Arlo's favorite music store in Minneapolis. At the wedding reception, I got a bit tipsy (shocker there!) and probably embarrassed Arlo by getting into a bridge and headstand competition with two of the kids (and some of his friends) at the party, and dancing to 70's hits. Oh well, he should be used to this by now. Oh, and I forgot to add something from that weekend that was very much fun and since I've added a pic from it, I should explain. We went to the Minnesota State Fair, which puts Maryland's state fair to shame. It was huge!! They had all of the necessary requirements of a state fair; cute but smelly animals, lots of junk food, and of course, butter carving. That's right, they carved the faces of the nominated Dairy Princesses into frozen butter. It was awesome! I'm just sad that we didn't get pictures of it.

Nothing else new really, just half-assedly looking for a job. As you can probably imagine, this hasn't actually gotten me any closer to having a job. However, I do have plans to go to Chicago, Madison, and Milwaukee proper to see live music in the next month-and-a-half. I also have plans to keep organizing, fixing up the place, and taking pictures to post so that everyone can see the progress (I'm sure you're all waiting with baited breath).

One last thing....I wish ALL of my friends on the East coast well, and I miss you all, not just those of you living in Maryland. But I do miss those living in Maryland just a little bit more. (Just kidding, Matt!) Oh, and one more thing...Bill is great!

Pictures to be posted later!

Something Only I Might Find Exciting

It is not a Monday or a Friday, but I did feel it was a good night to post, b/c A. it's only 9:30 and I'm not incredibly exhausted, and B. I have good reason to post, only it may just be me who thinks that. I just got back from a fantastic dinner with Arlo at a restaurant called Triskele. He had all-you-can-eat mussels and I had a cherry snapper sandwich with awesome french fries. Oh, and a yummy martini with chambord and pineapple juice. We sat at the bar, talking and watching the cooks (so cool that the kitchen was at the bar), and we had a great time. Alas, that's not the reason for the post. The real reason is that I finished my first project today- the kitchen table. I took my grandparents' kitchen table from the 50's and refinished it. I sanded it off, got most of the rust off, and added some new paint. Arlo found these fantastic chairs outside our neighbor's house and we re-appolstered the seats with sparkley red vinyl. I attached photos for all to ooh and ahh if you wish. Next up, the curtains! Oh, and I did start my job search, only that's not nearly so exciting! I mean, anytime you add toxic chemicals and sparkles to the mix, that can only be a good thing, right?!?! One more thing, and this is probably only something Kevin would find cool, being my tool buddy (okay, not in that way...) there is a neighborhood True Value hardware store 3 minutes up the street from our house. I can walk to it, and in fact, we did the other day during a walk with Marley. I love the neighborhood hardware store. Perhaps not the choices you'd find at Home Depot, but the people who work there know much more and love to help you. Hell, I brought part of the table in that I couldn't get apart, and one of the guys there sawed off the bolt in the back, no charge, and he seemed happy to problem-solve. I get the feeling I'll be there quite a bit in the future.

Take care, y'all! I hope all is well in Baltimore. :)

A Day Late

I realized a pattern- I pretty much always (or at least all of the five times I've posted before) that I post on Mondays and Fridays. Not sure why it works out that way. I guess the rest of the week I am so busy that by the time I get some free time, I'm freakin exhausted and all I want to do is sleep. However, this Friday, yesterday, I was at the Irish Festival with Arlo. We ate fish and chips (Irish Friday Fish Fry), played bingo (we won! $20 for us!), and finished off the night with a beer at The Bubbler, which is what midwesterners call water fountains. It was a great bar, kind of reminiscent of Angel's Grotto before it became Little Dickies or whatever it is. There are a LOT of those kinds of neighborhood bars around here, pretty much one every block or so. We watched the highly entertaining Little League championship and discussed the possibility of joining a rec league ourselves. The thought of me doing this is both absurd and exhilarating.
So, the house is coming together nicely, as Arlo and I are trying to make good use of the space, straightening as we go. I have the fabric for both sets of curtains I'm making, and I will post pics of the finished rooms once curtains and artwork are hung. I started work on the kitchen table, which I'm really glad Bill didn't toss off the porch like most of the other stuff on it, and Arlo found these great diner-type chairs outside on the curb and I bought some fantastic red sparkle vinyl to recover them. Tomorrow, after visiting with his grandparents and picking blackberries at his dad's place, I will definitely be working on more projects. These projects are infinitely more pleasant and less daunting than finding a job, so that's pretty much where I spend most of my time. I'll be looking into jobs, emailing contacts, etc on Monday, so I still have one more day to completely dedicate myself to home projects.
I don't know how many of you check this, or check facebook, but I did want to add that I passed my exam and am now a certified clinical social worker!! I can practice, diagnose, and accept insurance, all without supervision. In fact, I can give you all diagnoses right now. Bill, from your response to an earlier post, you have Narcissistic Personality Disorder. :) That will be $75. Everyone else, you're safe for now. Going to bed now.
One last thing- from now on, I will be posting a "Live Music Total" (LMT) a tally of live music I've seen so far. As most of you know, Arlo's a pretty big fan of live music, and we have already been busy with lots of live music. So far the tally is 5, with Irish festival counting as 2, because there were several bands. We also saw Bon Iver, Brother, and I saw this guy and his band play on First Friday in Racine. By myself.
LMT= 5