My Soup

Using this one as my new header on Finding My Happy Medium

Just found out that someone has been stealing my pics and putting them on their site as their own...will be modifying all my pics to small and removing the link to the bigger version...sorry but I can't put up with this kind of jackassery....

Yardwork Kick Butt

Well, I got out there and got more than I thought I was going to do done. I was just planning on weedwacking our little patch of backyard (easier than bring out the mower) but I found these awesome choppers in our yard bin that I had forgotten about and that gave me ideas.

First I took out too large branches of the plant that grows in our garden off the bathroom that has the tub in it. They were getting too big and needed to go. I threw them over the wall to gather later. Next I went out the side gate and cut back all the vines coming over from the neighbors. I planned to cut down these little sucker trees that we have growing along the fence but when I got over to them, not only were three of them too big for me to cut, the way they were spaced, they started to look intentional so I will talk to the rental company first. I also discovered now that they are bigger that they are papaya trees....so if they are intentional, I will be thrilled to have them in the yard.

I swept up leaves and debris and bagged it up, and then I weeded before I hit the backyard with the weedwacker. Finally I raked and bagged up all the stuff and hosed off our back step (that was covered with grass from the weedwacking).

My arm muscles hurt a bit today (shows how weak I have gotten), but I know it was for a good cause and now when I open the blinds in my bedroom each morning, I see a nicely cut yard, instead of the mess I had going.

Eating Soup

Okay, the soup has gone really well but I still have tons of it. I am hoping to have a few more friends over today for lunch and be able to put it away for good. For sure, I'll be eating it for lunch and dinner. I'll try to get a shot of one of my bowls full before it gets eaten...they are 100 yen bowls that I love. I want to get more of the bowls but I haven't found them in a while at the store (I got them when we lived here last time). On Friday morning, I was able to find "paper" bowls to use in case I ran out of mine (I only have 4 of these really big soup bowls) but I ended up being able to wash them as people came and went and we never had to use the "paper" ones.

Along with my soup, we had a birthday party for one of my friends at the bowling alley on Friday. My bowling sucks, especially since I haven't done it in ages but I did okay on Friday night. At least I broke 100 in the last two games...haha. We had a lot of fun, being goofy and laughing. I have some great video of the girls but I wouldn't be that mean to put it on the web...although I did threaten that. Some of it is very dark too because at 9pm they turned off the lights and turned on the black lights.

Anyhow, this week has completely messed up my eating log for Finding My Happy Medium, but on Monday, I am starting with a strict program anyhow. Not changing my food too much (although Valentine candy will be out), but I will be getting some exercise in even if I have to do it in the rain and cold. I want to be fitter when it gets warm so I can go to the beach without feeling like I am going to scare away the tourists. I already eat pretty healthy (minus the Valentine candy) but I am not currently getting enough exercise in and that is going to change tomorrow.

So it is back on the bandwagon in many areas for me....still have the taxes to knockout and plan to get some yardwork in today but I also have decided to do some hanging plants in the yard this spring and I'll have to get started on that pretty soon as well.

Making Soup

I am making one of my favorite Thai/Vietnamese soups on Friday for a bunch of my friends. I basically told them when the food would be ready and people can come and go as they please and to what fits their schedule for the day.

This is the soup I made when my mom came out to visit and since we are having the weather that matches "winter" for us (high 50s at night and low 60s during the day), I figured this would be a good time for it. I hope that everyone likes it.

I got the filing done just in time to get the living room cleaned up and presentable, and I'll get some errands and cleaning done tomorrow so I won't be stressed at all. I'll pick up the last fresh ingredients on Thursday afternoon or early Friday morning so they are nice and fresh. I need to pick the basil out of my yard and get it washed and prepped and double check that I have everything I need for the soup on hand....I'll definitely need more soup base after this round, that is for sure.

Filing Is Done

and the sun is out...if only for a second....the sun, not the filing...haha. I even went through the pile of instructions and paperwork from our new house. It feels so good to have a cleaned out system and know that it is not done half-assed this time.

I can now officially get started on our taxes (although I am waiting for paperwork from our rental company still).

In the meantime, I have some yardwork, shopping, and cleaning to do tomorrow because I am having friends over for Thai soup on Friday. Tomorrow also involves some errand running so hopefully, I will get it all in....

I still have stitching to finish up on my quilt squares before I can post pictures of them and I also want to get some movie watching in since I have several on loan from a friend and two Netflix ones that I need to get to...oh well, the list never gets smaller...haha.

Rash Attack

I have a rash under my chin and on my neck on the left side. It is typical contact dermatitus for me but I don't know what I got it from. Usually I only get it from poison oak or ivy....but I think I might have gotten this from my poinsettia plant I have in my kitchen. I was pinching off some leaves on Wednesday and I am thinking that maybe I don't like the sap for some reason. I have never had a reaction from poinsettia before and I am not allergic to latex or anything like that so I am not sure what is going on. I wish I knew for sure that it was the poinsettia so I could just beware but since I don't know anything for sure, I could be running into whatever is giving it to me again and not even realize it.

I have two other spots (one next to my left eye and one on my left hip) but they aren't as big or irritating as the two on my neck. They are already starting to dry up because I have been taking benedryl at night and putting caladryl clear on during the day but they are still red and irritated looking and it makes me not want to see people. It is also making me look like I have a huge double chin.

I have not seen any people since Saturday night and I probably won't see anyone until tomorrow night if I can help it. I really do have a lot of will power when it comes to the itching, and I wouldn't even be that uncomfortable with it if it wasn't on my body where I can't really cover it up....sucks.

Anyhow, that is my life. So I have been indoors for two days working on stitching my quilt squares and filing....the weather sucks so I don't mind being inside too much right now. Enough babbling....

The To Do List February

Well, since I feel like I have been making some headway in my taskings, I thought I would put up my list from the beginning of this month and see how it looks.

1. Taxes
2. Filing
3. Quilt Squares
4. Pillow covers
5. Photos for Gma
6. Yardwork
7. Wireless network
8. Cutting hair
9. Washing car
10. Bleaching teeth
11. Reorganizing harddrives
12. Scarf for Sonia
13. Color hair

As you can see, along with my daily crap, I still have a ways to go but at least I am tackling things....

Amy's Enchiladas Are Awesome

Okay, for heathly and low calories this stuff is awesome. I don't know if Chicken and Mindsprite can eat this on their Weight Watchers plan, but I hope they can because this one is great.

It has no gluten either so Jo, this one is for you as well. It has the best taste for a microwave meal that I have experienced in a long time. Beats most that I have tried. My friend's daughter turned me on to them and they are organic as well. There are several different ones but this one pictured is the one I had for lunch today and really enjoyed.

Just thought I would share the discovery.

Hybiscus

Pillow Covers

I made these the other day for my friend K to put over her current throw pillows on her couch. She has lived in Hawaii forever so is very big into Hawaiian prints and such and they are just so very her. I leave one side unsewn and I just put velcro in it so they can be taken off and washed....I made 4 of them total.

Getting It Done

I started tackling the huge filing and tax project the other day after I got the livingroom cleaned up from the quilting and pillow cover project. I decided to separate everything first and then tackle the little parts instead of getting overwhelmed in the bigness of it all.

I got a lot of the filing done yesterday before I had a few friends over for lunch. I even got most of the year end pulled out and separated into what gets shredded and what just goes in the trash. I am determined this year to do a thorough job of it and really get rid of stuff that we don't need and so far, I am doing well.

Today, I tackled the banking/investments pile. I had to go through the prior year stuff on the investments and retirement accounts because I was keeping everything, and I really don't need to do that. I managed to trim it down quite a bit. Then I started organizing the bank statements. I have been very bad and have not reconciled our main bank statements since the end of February 2007. So I had almost a year of statements to go through and check. Now, probably for most this would be a quick thing to do but I have a method and my method is a bit time consuming.

First, I have to take the statements and check off things in the checkbook as they show up in the statements and then add to the checkbook any dividends that I might not have known about. After I do that, I take the checkbook into the office and input everything from the checkbook into the MSMoney program we use. After I do that from the checkbook, I take the statements and reconcile the MSMoney against it. This is a way for me to triple check the numbers against each other and it keeps me straight on the money.

Needless to say, I managed to reconcile the checking, savings and market saver at our main bank. Tomorrow, I have to do the investments and the small savings accounts we have at two other banks. I am proud of myself for getting this huge hurdle out of the way, even though it was there because I was not doing it all year long like I should have been. I am one step closer to being able to do my taxes soon. I still don't have all my documents in the mail yet but I am sure they are on the way now that January is over and by the time they get here, I will be ready to start.

Musubi

Okay, I don't know if this is what it is called in Japanese but I learned about it from some friends that lived in Hawaii for a long time. They are these great little nori (seaweed) sandwiches (for lack of a better word) with rice and various fillings. The one I went for was the Spam and egg version so that my first try would not be a complete surprise. It was very yummy and I am definitely going back for more, as soon as I can figure out what are in the other versions (meaning I need to learn my Japanese). You can get them at the local convenience stores. You warm them up in the microwave (they'll even do it for you at the store if you want). I am so happy to have found these and now I have another little thing I can eat without feeling too bad on the run if I have to.

This is mine in the picture on one of my sushi plates with my tea in the background...yummy lunch all around and Popi, I am getting in some Spam...our hidden family secret...haha.

Helping Out

I helped my mom switch over to the new layouts on Blogger and spruce up the blog a bit. I put in a picture to the header I took during the winter last year so she would have a wintery feel. I'll change it up for her as needed since getting the header right does require a bit of work these days.

Anyhow, if you want to check it out, her blog is called Haha's Perspective and it is here. Let us know what you think.

Reading Updates

I updated Mishka's Reading with my January reads. Check it out when you have time if you want.

Lame But True

Now that I check the blogs I read via the Google reader so I am not to miss an update, I find it very irritating when a blog doesn't have full feeds. I hate that I have to click over to read the full post even if I am not going to comment.

I know that people do this so that you will go to their blog itself and they get the visits on their counters and even on their ad income but it still peeves me that I can't read the full post in my reader.*

Oh well, that is my peeve for the day...

*Chatty brought up a good point. Some people have to do it because of cyber stalkers. I didn't think of that....sucks that there are people out there that do that kind of thing and force others to have to be so careful.

Ebi Filet

I had never even heard of this, but if you read my fitness blog at all, you will know that on Friday night, I ended up at McDonald's (because the people I was with wanted to eat there). I decided to try this sandwich because I thought it might not be as bad for me as some of the other options (and it wasn't), and because it was different. McD's is known for having regional food depending on where their stores are and this apparently is one of the regional things for McD's in Japan.

It is a shrimp filet sandwich. Called Ebi Filet. It was very good and I felt better about eating it over my other options (Big Mac's have never tasted as good as they do in Asia, but they still have a ton of calories). I was thrilled to get home and find out that the sandwich was not that bad on calories and that I now have another option to a grilled chicken sandwich when I eat at McD's (which is rare to none).

New Fish

I have been busy, busy, busy but I did get a chance to photograph one of my new inhabitants. I got two of these and then three new mollies on the last purchase. The mollies were being shy so I'll have to post pics of them later. All are doing well, no sickly ones this time.

Adventures in Drying

For the last few months, I have noticed that I have to run the dryer for a full 60 minutes twice to get stuff to dry (even if the load is not huge, this is the case). I figured it had something to do with the voltage or the age of the dryer but when I told my friend K about it the other day, she said I should check the exhaust hose.


I had looked at it in the past and thought it was a bit large for the amount of distance that needed to be covered to reach the outvent but I figured that professionals put it in, so they must know what they are doing, right? Wrong...


I finally decided to pull the dryer out and find out if I could fix my issue on my own. Turns out, I could. I took about 3 feet off the hose and also took out a huge clump of lint that was up against the outvent. Now the dryer is drying in one turn of the clock rather than in two. I am sure I will have to clean it out again soon but I am hoping that the purchase of new towels was the main culprit in the fast fill up and that I won't have to clean it out too soon.

Drums Are Mostly Done

Well, I managed to get the drum body cut out and ironed on my third and final square for the quilting project. I have to do some detail stitching on it before I can add the drumstick but it should come out looking pretty nice when I am through.

We found another fabric store and this really cool kitchen store yesterday when we were out exploring. We had soba at this shop near the Ginowan 100 yen store that was awesome and I managed to find a few things to pick out from the store (big surprise there...haha). We also went to eat at this Thai place (that doesn't have a Thai person working there) that wasn't half bad. It wasn't the most authentic I have had (although that would be hard to do since the most authetic I have had is in Thailand or at my Thai friend's house), but it was still pretty good. I had a red curry chicken with rice that was yummy.

We have a few things that are coming up in the next few days to keep us pretty busy around here but I am sure that K and I will find time to laze around as well. I need for it to stop raining so I can get some yardwork kicked out as well as some exercise...the sidewalks are super slippery for walking fast (much less lunges) when it is raining or has rained recently.

We are getting a Thailand shipment in at one of the gift stores we frequent so I guess I will be checking that out next week and then there is a Sophi sale too that will be interesting to see. I don't know that I will get anything for sure but I would just like to at least look as what the options are.

Okay, have stuff to do....

Koi Are Done

Well, I am done with 2/3 of the basic quilting project....I have finished cutting out and ironing on the koi pieces to my blue background. I need to get with one of the other girls that has done this before because I know we are supposed to put our names on the square but I didn't know if she said just to write them on in permanent ink or if we need to stitch them on....

I'll post pics of the two squares I have as soon as I finish up some of my stitching on them.

New Art

I purchased this print from Kanda's BOQ gallery here (the link goes to the Tokyo gallery) last night at a meeting we had at the gallery. I wasn't expecting to buy anything but this one in particular really grabbed me because, like my Andrew Wyeth's, it has a story to it. I am sure there is a full story, but for now, I am content to look at it and imagine a story of my own.



I hope that some of my family can get over to the Portland Museum of Art to see some of this artist's other work. His name is Hiroto Norikane. He is supposed to have a collection there but I don't know if it is current or not.

He has some other pieces that I loved (and might have to get at future dates) and I also found another artist (Kunio Kaneko) that does wood block that I loved as well. This gallery runs auctions throughout the year as well so I am hoping to cash in on some of those. I would love to purchase some of the smaller prints as gifts.

Vomit Eater

I am sitting here trying to catch up on my morning email and comments when Chase (after woofing down her food) decides she needs to hurl. She does so, on the hardwood floor and as I start to get up to clean it up, she eats it all again.

I guess the first time was just not enough for her....

Fans Are Done

I picked three different squares to do for the quilt and I have finished the fans (they were the easiest to do). I am doing a little bit of stitching on the one I am keeping for myself as well as the one I will be donating to the charity quilt since everyone has to do their own stitching.

This is detail stitching on the "wood" part of the fan to make it a bit less 2 dimensional. I'll post a pic of it when I have completed the stitching for mine. I'll probably do the outline stitching too on the one we were donating since I don't know that anyone else will be up for it, but I'll have to check first to see if they want us to do that (who knows if they have a color of thread issue or not). The detail stitching I am doing by hand. I learned to do embroidery from my grandmother when I was a kid and amazingly enough still have some of those skills although I haven't embroidered in a while. I do cross stitches too but that is a different ball of wax....I just thought....I probably could use embroidery thread too instead of the regular thread I am using....duh!!! Oh well, I'll do it on the next one...haha gues that is the good thing about making 20 squares of each design, huh?

Making Changes

I decided I was sick of our template on the Finding My Happy Medium fitness blog so I changed things up a bit....might get around to doing the same thing here....would like to load my own header to it and I think that playing around with the other one has given me some ideas of what I can do.

I have had this template since I started this blog so it is definitely due for a change....I even change my myspace more frequently than that...haha.

Project Update

Along with other things I accomplished today, I managed to get all my fabric washed and ironed again. I also designed my squares and purchased the Wonderunder to start the construction of squares. We are now each making 20 squares of each design so mine better be easy or I am in for some work.

I am also in the process of making 4 pillow covers for my friend K's livingroom. She really loves Hawaii and we found this cool print when we were shopping for our quilt material so we decided it give it a shot. I have made them before my own throw pillows (I have Christmas ones I put over my regular pillows so I don't have to store a whole pillow). I use velcro to close them so they are also washable...they should be cute when I am done. I'll take a picture.

My back is pretty much back to normal....I am not weight lifting on it yet but other than that, I am back to exercising (except I failed today). I better get going so I can get to bed and get up and get started on things bright and early tomorrow. I would love to knock my squares out and at least two of K's pillows before too many days go by because I do have filing, taxes and a hoard of other things pressing on my To Do list....

Done Messing Around

Okay, today I am finished with messing around, procrastinating my life away.

I managed to get up at 6:30am (which is a feat when you don't have to get up that early), and went for a 2 1/3 mile walk. It started to sprinkle on me a bit while I was doing it but nothing I couldn't handle. I did my loop that takes me down near the beach and then back up through this cute park, and home through the sugar cane fields, mum farms and bull homes. It felt great to smell the ocean (not so much the bulls) and get some exercise in after having to take it easy for over a week now.

K and I were able to get a bit of the fabric we wanted for our squares yesterday. I found everything but the background for two of my squares. We are meeting a couple of the girls for coffee this morning and then hitting the shop again to see if we can get inspired. I will bring the fabric I have to match up and hopefully I'll come home with the right amount and can get started with my stuff. We found a really cool fabric for the Koi...it is going to be so cool.

I have some other errands to run as well but I hope to get some more exercise in this afternoon if I can. I don't want to overdo it on my first day but I also want to grab the inspiration while I have it and not let it slip away. I am tired of feeling fat and looking tired and worn out....time to get it into gear. I know from experience that just by working out, I will feel a million times better about myself, have more energy, get more things accomplished and definitely be less stressed. I also know that all of those things make me feel more positive and that comes through in your posture and face as well so there is really no reason to not get with it.

Memory and Friendship Project

Some of my friends here (girls I have known for a while and those from our bunco group) are attempting a friendship/memory quilt this winter. The idea is that each person picks an idea for a square and then makes a bunch of that same square and then we get to get together and give each other person one of our squares, so you end up with however many different squares to make a quilt from. Unlike the one pictured here, ours will be Japanese themed. We are also making one for auctioning to charity.

The process of making the square is relatively easy (no stitching required). You find a pattern you like and then hunt down fabric that will work with your pattern. Then you traces a pattern transfer the pattern onto the fabric and apply wonderunder to make it stick to the background, so all you are doing is cutting and ironing to make the square. Once you have all your new squares from your friends, it is on you to do the stitching around all pieces of fabric to secure them down in a fashion that will be uniform throughout the squares you now have. So to make the squares for everyone is really not that hard. I am signed up for three pretty simple squares (fans, taiko drum, and koi fish). I think it will be pretty fun and I have always wanted to see the process of making a quilt, in case I ever wanted to make one on my own in the future.

Oh, and to get the finished product, you need to actually do quilting or pay someone to finish the quilting part of it. I am hoping to get someone to show me how to do it so I can do it on my own when I am ready....but we will see.

I know I really don't need another project on my head but this is pretty simple and I only have to do the cut out and ironing part to meet everyone else's deadline. The finished project is then on me to do. So I can take my time on that if I want. We are planning to exchange squares near the end of February....

Getting Motivated

Well I made a dent in my to do list today and that always makes me feel better. I have to run shortly so I can get up to the post office before they close and mail all the stuff I just packaged up. I still am hobbling around a bit with the back thing but I am not going to let it completely deter me.

My friend really did a lot at her house to get some stuff taken care of and it has motivated me to do the same. I am hoping to do the flea market this weekend (weather permitting) and greatly reducing the amount of stuff that is in our laundry room so then I can declutter a bit around the house and overall feel better.

I plan to start working on the year end, filing and tax situation this week. I know I won't finish it all in one sitting but I need to get started or I will be scrambling before long to get it done and I hate that.

Sitting for long periods still hurts some so I am thinking that I just need to space out my sitting projects and go for some that require moving around or laying on my back...not hard to do, just have to make some adjustments.

Well, that is it for now, gotta run to the PO so I can get these things out and check that off my list....whooeeee!!!

Movies

One good thing about my back issue is that I am catching up on some movie watching I have needed to do. I have had one movie since July (yes, before we even moved here) and I finally watched it today. Thank goodness for Netflix or I would own the damn thing by now in late fees.

So my recommendations: If you haven't already, watch Mr Brooks and Letters from Iwo Jima....both are great flicks and I thoroughly enjoyed them even though I was alternating between the heating pad and ice packs through both of them...haha.

Mishka's Reading Update

Added my December books on today. Will try to get my year synopsis done in a few days....means trading all the posts over to Powell's from Amazon because I don't buy from Amazon anymore....I just don't have time to do it right now.

Hasta.

Back Strain

I managed to strain a muscle in my lower back doing absolutely nothing yesterday, and then stilll went out dancing with the girls. Needless to say, it is not healed by this morning, so I will probably not be online much in the next day or so because I want rest it up so I can get back to things I really need to do (like filing, taxes, computer cleanup, work on our wireless network, yardwork, exercising...etc), and sitting seems to hurt more than any other position.

So I guess it will be movies and motrin for a day or so and we'll see how things stand tomorrow or the next day. Have fun in blogging world.....

All It Takes

is a few days of cooler weather (cold by our standards here) to make those days in the 70s look awesome. We will be sunny and 70 today and then sunny and 73 tomorrow. I will try to get the yardwork and car cleanup done while I have the chance and I will spend as much time as I can in it and absorb some sun. I think before it got cold, I was a bit spoiled, thinking everyday was going to be gorgeous (which they are even when they are cold unless it is windy and raining sideways) and warm. Now I know, that for the next few months, I need to take advantage of the really gorgeous days because they are going to be much much rarer.

I better run, still in PJs at 8:44am and have to be at a friend's for birthday coffee and then lunch after starting at 10am....toodles.

Learn and Live (Barely)

Read this.....enough said.

_______________________________

Clarification so those that would worry, won't. I am fine. I accidently got some Pledge on the floor near a turn in our hallway the other day. I knew when it happened that it was going to be slippery for a few days. What I didn't expect was to come around that corner and have my feet go completely out from under me and end up on the floor on my side with my feet almost knocking over a shelf. If I had been elderly, I would definitely have a broken hip now but since I am not, I am fine. I don't even have any bruises but I thought I would (in fact I thought it would be my entire right side). I will probably have a worse bruise on my leg from running into a table chasing the cat a few minutes a go (no Pledge involved). I am lucky I didn't knock my head on the concrete walls and give myself a bump on the back to match the one on the front...haha.

Mishka's Late Friday Feast

Appetizer
Name 2 things you would like to accomplish in 2008.

Too many things in all different departments of my life, so I am going to list a couple that are not resolution types, just on the list of things to do.

Taxes, and pictures for my grandma (both of which I know I will get done)

Soup
With which cartoon character do you share personality traits?

The jury is out on that....I would guess like a mix between Daphne and Velma....

Salad
What time of day (or night) were you born?

I think early morning like 5:30am or something....

Main Course
Tell us something special about your hometown.

The park downtown has so many different parts of it that each have a different feel. You can visit it day after day and never feel like you are seeing the same place over and over.

Dessert
If you could receive a letter from anyone in the world, who would you want to get one from?

My love.

Happy 2008!!!

Just wanted to wish everyone we know and that reads this a happy New Year!!! Hope this finds you celebrating with family and friends and staying safe and healthy.

Another Mission Accomplished

I managed to post something (not always quality something) every day this month (December) in my attempt to meet the Holidailies goals...it was fun and not really that difficult as long as I had material to go from....haha.

Blog Post Icon Issues

I noticed this morning that my email post icon was missing from my blog posts. I had to reset the widget to get it back and in the process the template wouldn't save. So I ended up having to reload a fresh template and then I had to put in all the hacks I have to the template to make it look the way I want....guess that will deter me from changing up my template for a while....grrr.

It took me several hours to get it back to the way it is supposed to be and I just now noticed that it is messed up on my fitness blog as well. I might have to try a different approach there because I really don't want to go through all of that again.....

I wish blogger would just fix this issue and not just leave it to us to do work arounds.

Chase's Catnip Christmas

Just a little something I put together today from a couple of clips I took of Chase yesterday.

Property Taxes

I am in the midst of a bit of a property tax issue with the county our new house is located in. They have my house valued at 70,000 dollars over what I just paid for it, which I think is blatantly wrong.

They didn't send me my tax bill on time (which you need to have the house re-appraised), so I was late in getting my taxes paid (which I did, even though I don't agree with the amount). I don't want to be in the rears even though I am displeased.

Anyhow, the clerks at the county office have been very helpful, it is the appraisers who need an attitude adjustment. I requested another appraisal as I just had the house appraised myself when I bought it and know exactly how much it is worth. It doesn't make sense to me that I am paying taxes on a value that even the bank would not agree too.

So they did an appraisal sometime last week. The new appraiser agreed with the old one, so I am filing an appeal. I got notice that the appeal had to be done before the end of the year (this year). Fortunately the forms are online, I filled them out and printed them. I had to include a copy of my tax bill and the appraisal I had done (both of which I was thankfully able to find considering my filing mess right now) and I express mailed the entire thing. I found out after the fact that it could be postmarked before the 31st and still be okay but I am glad to know it is on its way and will be there before the end of the month with no reason for it not to be addressed this year.

I realized based on the way our county does taxes (not on the real market value but on this other number they have made up) that I might not see much change in my bill itself but it is the principle of the thing for me. I should not have anywhere on my tax paperwork that my house is worth more than I am paying for it (at least not in the same year I have purchased it in). The housing market is not still going up where the house is....it is in a lull so there shouldn't be much change this year at all from last year (but the bill reflects a 40,000 dollar change in real market value). Would be nice to have that much equity but who is fooling who here?

I think our county is just looking for a way to get more money out of people that mostly don't have any extra to give in hopes that none of us will notice. I did notice that a large portion of my tax bill goes to the local community college and school district when both should be supported from our EDUCATION lottery....not sure how that works either but it is interesting to ponder*.

*Please do not misunderstand, I am all for paying for our schools, and I think that teachers should make much more than they do, but I question where our lottery funds are going if they aren't going to the school as intended when the lottery was voted in a million years ago. I am sure I don't know all the ins and outs but I do know that a lot of it was supposed to be earmarked for schools.

Beat Up

I have managed to ding myself a bit in the last few days. The other day, I was trying to find a cache that was located in a stupid spot and had to reach through some very sharp palm leaves to get it. I was stabbed in the arm a few times and then slid on the coral have scratches on my knees and shin.

Then yesterday when vacuuming the house, I ran over my big toe on my right foot with the vacuum during the back pull. My toe ached all night.

Last night after vacuuming, I was putting the bath mats back down on the floor of the bathroom and on the way down to the floor, I wacked my head on the glass sink counter. I actually saw stars...and now I have a tender lump on my forehead. I haven't looked in the mirror yet but I might also have a nasty bruise.

Fudge Is Here

I got a tin full of Darlene's fabulous fudge in the mail yesterday...it is sinfully awesome. I will have to take some of it over to my friend K's house because I will die if I eat it all by myself....

Feeling Better

I think I am feeling better today. Will probably get up to the post office and the library at least so I can get mail and change out some rental dvds....haha.

I watched Nanny McPhee, Red Eye and Pavement yesterday while laying low. The sun is out today as well so I might sit on the deck for a while and absorb some rays and some Vit D...I remember when I was a kid, sometimes the best thing was getting outside into some fresh air and sunshine when I had a cold.

I also am supposed to be getting some flowers from J today....he didn't forget me after all...haha. We were able to talk on the computers yesterday with webcams so I was able to at least see one person on Christmas day....haha.

Depending on how I feel, I might head over to K's for a while to see the kids and all their new toys since I missed out on going there yesterday.

Merry Christmas

Hope this finds everyone having a safe and happy holiday season.

I managed to catch a cold yesterday (Christmas Eve) so I am probably going to stay in and just watch movies today....right now, I am going to make some soup so I can see if I can get rid of this yuckiness in my throat.

Happy Birthday K!!!

Today is one of my good friend's birthdays. She is turning 40. She seems to be taking it pretty well, better than I think I will but that is just me. We are going to do some stuff with her this morning and then I have a few gifts for her. I am sure growing up with a birthday on Christmas Eve must have been hard.....kind of overlooked I bet.

Well, it won't happen today...we are going to try to chill and just have fun before all Christmas chaos breaks out tomorrow....(she has 5 kids...haha).

New Cache And Bug Drop

Went geocaching on my walk yesterday for one that is along one of my walking trails. It was in an interesting area but the spot itself was not the best. I would have chosen a few other spots but oh well. I probably won't ever go to it again. I was able to drop two TBs I had had for a while...and that was the main purpose of the search.

The walk was nice, it was blustery out but not cold and I was able to get 2.5 miles in by the time I was done. I should have done some lunges but I didn't....will have to try for that tomorrow.

Our Christmas Tree

Okay, a more reasonable size for the tree picture has been obtained and now I can post it. The boxes below it are the tins I keep ornaments in...I just thought it looked too bare with nothing under it (since I don't have gifts under there). The basket is a giftswap gift that I gave away at a party I went to a few nights ago. I ended up with a cigarbox purse that has a sushi theme on the back.

The tree is sitting on top of a cabinet I use to hold DVDs so it is up high (not a figment of your imagination). The lights on it are the led lights I bought last year for our porch rail and they seemed to light nicely on this tree and since they don't get hot I can leave them on all the time...which is nice for me.

Obviously, I didn't put all of our ornaments on this tree (or you wouldn't be able to see the tree) but picked out some that I love and then some that are just sized right for a tree this small. Our new ornament for this year is on it and I believe I put our first year ornament on it as well....just to cover the span. The angel on top is actually another ornament but she is perfect for fitting up there.

I'll try to get some pics of some of my other decorations now that I have all the wrapping mess put away....

Mum Lights

We live in the country on our small slice of the world. This means that while there are still houses everywhere, we do have quite a few fields of various crops, some animal pens and some roosters all very near by. Most of the crops are this wonderful purple sweet potato, sugarcane, or mums. They grow mums here and send them up to mainland for sale. The interesting thing about the mums is that they use grow lights on them at night to increase their growth time. My understanding is that this causes them to not only grow faster but also grow straighter and longer (which is apparently ideal for the market in mainland Japan).

Since we live the in the "country" we get to see a lot of the processes involved in all of these different kinds of crops and the mums in particular have this very cool feature (at least to me). On certain nights after 11pm or so, the farmers turn on the grow lights. So you are in pitch blackness and there are fields and fields of lights hanging from wires drapped over all these mums lighting them up. On balmy nights, it is so amazing to see. There isn't a sound but these lights, and it is just serene and beautiful all at once. I always have to stop and admire them on my way home if I am out and the last two times I have seen them, I have tried to put my new camera to work.

This picture is from the first night I tried to capture them. The camera automatically lowers the light intensity but I thought the picture came out well. The lights are very bright and this pictures is definitely muted but it kept the feel for me so that is why I like it. I took a bunch of other pictures last night with the night feature on my camera and while they are more realistic of what it looks like, the feeling was not captured like it was in this one.

Santa Cup

This santa cup has been a part of my Christmas as long as I can remember. We used to put milk in it when I was a kid to go with the plate of cookies we left for the old guy....(no not you Dad).

When my parents divorced, my mom sent some of Christmas with my sister and I and I ended up with the Santa cup. For a while, I stupidly put a candle in it since we weren't leaving milk and cookies for the old guy anymore but I finally came to my senses (and I am lucky the candle didn't ruin him).

Anyhow, I always have this cup displayed at Christmas time. It is one of the things that takes me back.

Late Presents

Okay, the ones I haven't gotten out yet are going to be late. Some of the ones I did get out are probably going to be late but these ones that are still in my house are guaranteed to be late....sorry folks...life has been busy here on this side of the ocean.

Snowflakes For Me

I did this one last year but Sourpuss reminded me of it so I am going to post a new one this year.



If you want to make one too, you can go here to get started.

Regrets

Do you ever get irritated about something and say something you wish you had better control over later?

I didn't say anything I regretted saying, I just wish I hadn't let such a small thing make me so irritated in the first place. Sometimes there are things about my daily life that just make me want to say GRRRRRRR!!!!!

Okay, got that off my chest, now I am okay....

Christmas Tree

Well I was going to post a picture of our Christmas tree right here since it has been up since the first of the month but I didn't have a camera to take pictures of it with. I can't post it today because I need to reduce it in size to upload it here and the picture I have is over 2 MB. The camera defaults to its second highest setting which is 12 Mpixels.....and that is too big for MS Photo Editor (the easiest way for me to reduce file size) to open. Can you believe that?

So I would have to open it in Fireworks and bring it down and I just don't feel like messing with it right now so I will have to post it later. I'll take another picture of it with the setting a bit lower on the camera and see what we come up with....

I did take pictures of the blanket I made my friend so I can get that sent in the mail too, before the kid is walking and doesn't even need a blanket....wouldn't that be nice? I know, it shouldn't have taken me so long to do it but I was busy moving to another country and I didn't manage to get it done before she was born because I am a terrible procrastinator and I had school work, and such to do as well...no excuses...I just need to get it in the mail.

Oh well, enough for now...I'll get the Christmas tree pic up tomorrow so you can see its cuteness.

Mishka's Friday Feast on Saturday

So I am a day late....fills in my need to post today so there!!!


Appetizer
Make up a word and give us its definition.

Schmirgurl- a term of endearment for my cat

Soup
What is currently your favorite song?

I don't have one, and I am so filled with Christmas music right now, I wouldn't know one if it bit me.

Salad
What’s at the top of your Christmas wish list this year?

Something I can't have and can't talk about here.

Main Course
Name a scent that reminds you of someone special in your life.

Jungle of Gardenia (my mom), this musk perfume I can't remember the name of (one of my grandmas), this spray all over body spray I can't remember the name of (one of my other grandmas), lilac (my grandma, because we use to pick them together), rose (my sister). There are more but those will do for now....

Dessert
Who is someone on television that you feel probably shouldn’t be, and why?

Any TV evangelist that takes money from people for their own desires.

Not Happening

Well since it is Friday and our post office is not open on weekends, and I only have 1/2 hour before the last truck leaves for the day, I would say I am not going to get my packages out....those that love me will understand and those that don't can just.....well you know.

I feel relief though, knowing I can now wrap and package at my own leisurely pace for the remainder of the weekend to dump the motherload on the postal workers on Monday morning.....(insert sinister laugh here).

It is time for lunch during my slightly unproductive day so far, but I did watch a movie and that counts for something right? Oh, and I folded a load of laundry too...whooeeee! I am on a roll. So as long as I get some exercise in I will feel accomplished today....I know, life seems easy for me, huh? Well it is not...you don't know the half of it but I can't explain it here because that would be telling oh too much. Let's just say that you can't judge a person by their blog...okay?

So, I am going to go have some left over tacos (when you cook for one, it means eating the same thing for days on end because it is impossible to just use half a packet of taco seasoning), and iced tea and get started on some packages, exercise and maybe some yard work if I really feel like stepping out.

Packages Are Rolling In

Well, I got the second calendar now....guess the third one will not be far behind. I haven't gotten an email back on what I am supposed to do with them so I haven't opened this second one but my friend K is waiting on one too (the same one) so if her's don't show up before the end of the month, I might just give her one of mine....

I also got the phone I ordered so we could have a phone in the guest room/office....this makes it easier on me when it rings so I am not running from one end of the house to the other.

I am still working on getting the last of my packages out....I finally gave up on making any cards this year and everyone is getting store bought ones...I just don't have the time right now and I was getting tired of worrying about it....life is too damn short as it is.

The Urge To Search

I so need to get out and get some geocaching done. I have two TBs that I need to move along and I just got notice today of a new one placed not far from my house. I wish I was a bit more adventureous because I am often afraid when people place them in places that I don't think are public areas. I don't want to get yelled at in a language I don't understand for breaking some rule I didn't know existed...this makes me a bit more careful than I would be if I was geocaching in the states.

I still have not found the one near where I took this picture because the tide has to be out to get to it and you have to climb up on something in a very visible place to find it....not a big deal but I think I am more geared to the caches that take me to new and interesting places or require some effort to get to, than the ones in popular spots that require a ton of stealth. I never feel I am being stealthy enough....

Christmas Shipping

I managed to get four boxes off in the mail today. Two to the East coast that were my big worries because the East coast takes longer from where we are. The other two were Westcoasters but didn't need to be wrapped inside so they were quickies....now I have to get the rest of the stuff wrapped and boxed and hopefully out of here in the next few days (definitely by the end of the week). Then I will feel like I have one less thing hanging over my head.

I still have cards to send but the pictures are here so I just need to get them out. I am probably going to not make as many cards as I was going to because I am just out of time and don't have the time to spare but I will at least get cards in the mail to everyone on my list....and I guess that is what matters.

Next year, I will get a much earlier start...I will be adjusted to the time by then....haha.

Good News, Bad News

Good news is that the calendar I ordered in October for the new year, finally came today. Bad news is that it is the very first one that was sent out, to our old address, which means the two replacement ones that they have sent out will probably arrive at some point too....

Good news is that I did get a great walk in this morning and even some yardwork done (11,000 steps today). Bad news is that I had way too many peanut M&Ms at my friend's while helping her to move furniture around.

Good news is that the package I have been waiting for with my new camera in it came today. Bad news is that they sent me the wrong camera (the one I ordered and paid for is 130.00 bucks more than the one they sent).

Good news is that I can get the camera I want (and did) at our local store. Bad news is that with the email receipt for one camera and the packing sheet for another, I am not exactly sure how I am going to go about returning the wrong one and get my full money back.

Good news is the package that my sister sent for my birthday got here today. Bad news is that my mom's didn't yet....thanks Sis and hang in there Mom....

Good news is that I am done Christmas shopping (even the online stuff). Bad news is that I still have tons of wrapping and shipping to do and I still have cards to make and send...

Little Thing For Me

I got one of these yesterday. I was getting one for a certain someone for their birthday and decided that I wanted one too. I know they are trendy and I am not usually one for trendy things but we were able to get some cool charms only relevant to this area and I didn't want to miss out on them. I actually have one that has Yoshi's face on it and another one with some sushi on it....

I figure now that I have one, I can get extra cool charms when I come across them, which I figure won't be too often but still something I might see once in a while.

Christmas Shopping

Well except for a couple of small things I have to order online, I am done Christmas shopping. I finished up on Wednesday and it is nice to be done but now I have a tatami room covered in gifts and wrapping paper until I get the wrapping all done. I hope to finish up over the weekend and get the packages out on Monday if possible. Then at least they won't be too late....haha.

Since we are not near family, everything has to be shipped. I will try to send as much as I can in flat rate boxes since that will probably be the less expensive way to go and I think that also gets them there faster. I also got the photos I ordered online in the mail so I can get those cut up, put in the cards they go out in, and then I will be officially done with cards too....all 95 of them. Whew!!!

Friday Feast For Mishka

I hope this one counts...


Appetizer
What was the last game you purchased?

I purchased a game for one of my best friend's kids but if I put it here, they might see it and it is for Christmas....

Soup
Name something in which you don’t believe.

Many things but I don't want to ruin it for those that do...if you know me, you know what I do and don't believe in.

Salad
If you could choose a celebrity to be your boss, who would you pick?

I am not a big fan of celebrities in general, they get too much money and fame when it should go to people who do things like fight fires, and teach kids....I would never want a celebrity to be my boss.

Main Course
What was a lesson you had to learn the hard way?

Not to tell fibs. I figured it was better to do it than to get in trouble for whatever I did but my parents always knew if I did fib and then I got in trouble for doing whatever it was and for fibbing.

Dessert
Describe your idea of the perfect relaxation room.

It is not a room at all. A hottub outside with no people or manmade sounds around . The only sounds I want are wind in the trees, the sounds of the ocean or another body of water, or the sounds of birds.

Fat Cat

When we were still in NC, we had friends who were cat sitting a couple of cats. They both had very interesting personalities but the thing that got me the most was the size and look of this cat. We called her Sissy...I think she had another name too but that was her nickname. She would hang out near the food bowls and keep the other kitties away.

She had some kind of nervous thing where if you pet her in the right spot, she would lick her forearms so she didn't have much hair on her forearms and I thought that just added to the Kliban look of her. We had several Kliban books when I was a kid (one our parent's wouldn't let us read until we were older) but we always like the cat ones the best. In fact I sometimes wonder if the Far Side was not inspired a bit by Kliban kitties....anyhow, when I first saw this cat, that is exactly what she reminded me of. The picture does not do her justice and you have to remember, we are talking about a 26 lb cat.....that is 2 1/2 of Chase.

By the way, who in our family still has those books? Anyone?

Dragonfly

We have a small rock pond in our back yard. It is off the dining room and the deck that is off the living room. That side of the house (looking out over the pond and deck) is all glass. I was in the dining room when we first moved in and saw something flying around out there. Couldn't figure out exactly what it was because of the coloring until it landed and took a break. Amazingly, it stood still on the edge of the pond long enough for me to get close and snap this shot of it through the glass. Isn't it beautiful?

Participation

I am participating in a little holiday posting thing through this place. I didn't sign up in time to do the portal which I am now glad of because I don't know that I would have time to do the required summaries each day but I am doing the at home version and we'll see if I can do an update everyday this month...I am not going any where so it shouldn't be too hard.

I put a link button on my sidebar to them as well if anyone else wants to sign up for the at home version. I signed up on the third but fortunately, I already had posted each day so I wasn't behind....haha.

Taiwanese Tea

Today, I went with a friend to run some errands and after lunch we stopped by this shop on the way home that allows you to make traditional style Taiwanese tea at your table (very similar to the Chinese traditional style as well). She taught me how to do it and all that the different parts of it mean. When she goes home to Taiwan in a week or so for a while, she will probably be picking me up a set for myself since it is much cheaper there than it is here to buy it.

There is a whole complicated process to it and the cups are absolutely tiny (in fact the teapot is also tiny). We were there for several hours just drinking tea and talking. It was a great.

The process involves warming/rinsing all the parts with heated water before the leaves are even added to the pot. The entire set sits on a tray that drains away the water that is discarded during the process. After everything has been rinsed, the tea leaves are put in the pot, hot water is added and then discarded quickly. Then hot water is added again and allow to seep for about 1 minutes. After it is done, it is poured into a picture and then from there into a smelling cup (smaller than the tea cup) and the tea cup is put on top, then held together and flipped. You wait about 30 seconds and then remove the smelling cup from the top allowing the tea to flow into the tea cup. Then you roll the smelling cup in your hands and smell it (it should smell like the tea, and give you an idea of how it is going to taste). Then you start to drink the tea. Once the original process is over, you just refill your tea cup from the picture...you are basically done with the smelling cup.

Apparently this practice of tea making is very common in Taiwan but has become less common in China. I was thrilled learn this new cultural aspect of tea drinking...my friend would probably hate to drink tea at my house....haha. I am planning to visit her while she is in Taiwan and I know she will show me all sorts of really awesome things about this country I have only flown through in the past.

Randomness

Well, I feel like I have been making headway on things but the list seems to grow as I work on it like some kind of virus.

I spent some time out of the house yesterday in the sun (which has been hiding behind a tropical depression for a week) and it was glorious. I think my cheeks even got a bit pink. Today is another gorgeous one and after I get some lunch in me, I am heading out to get some exercise in it...maybe even a geocache or two as well.

So this morning, I finished up another leg of the Christmas card saga....even with dropping some names off the list that we haven't heard from in years, I am still sending out over 90 cards, 30 of which I am making myself. Some of them I can't send quite yet because we have pictures coming in the mail that I want to include...hopefully they won't take too long to get here. Anyhow, that is a lot of writing, licking and stamping....but I figure we are only here once and we have to make it count and in the end the only thing that matters is who you love and who loves you (all the other material crap is dust once you leave anyhow), so I figure that I better make it worth it while I can, right?

I still have buttloads of Christmas shopping to do but since we aren't local to any of our family and friends that we shop for, it will be a light Christmas this year....nothing heavy or breakable if I can get away with it. There are a couple of cool sales going on at the various gift shops so I will see what I can find and hopefully get it all wrapped and mailed before Christmas gets here. We have a few things we picked up in our travels and adventures during the year that we are sending out so I have marked those lucky individuals off the list for now...haha.

I started decorating the house yesterday, and made a ton of headway. I need to get the little 3 foot tree out that I am going to use (we got this tree when we lived here before) and put on the ornaments I have already selected (it is small so I can't put everything up on it). I might be able to put some lights outside or on the roof, but I need to get out there and check out the outlet situation. I might need to see if I can find a solar cell too because if I do ones on the roof, I don't want to have to climb up there everytime I want to turn them on...and a solar cell would help me out (the outlet to plug them in might be on the roof too). Hmmm...will have to check that out before heading to the store.

Watched some college football this morning and can I just say that the Oregon Ducks uniforms were terrible....I know they are doing some kind of retro thing but I thought they looked like they were wearing leotards and tights. I shudder to think that these are their home uniforms too....how sad. I have to think that might be what caused them to lose to the Beavers in DOT. Not really but I had to throw that in there. The game was actually very good and I had to see it because the others that I was interested in were the LSU and USC games and they weren't close at all. Chicago is playing the Giants for us tomorrow so I have to get my shirt out and show my spirit even though their season is not going as well as they hoped.

I have a lot of other stuff on my to do list but I think I am just going to concentrate on getting the holiday stuff done on time and worry about other stuff after the new year starts...at least it will give me something to do (this is a joke because for those that know me, you know I am always busy....).

Anyhow, how is that for a quick catch up on all things Mishka???? (or at least the parts I can share on the Internet....haha)

Mishka's Reading: November 2007 Books

Updated Mishka's Reading with the November books today.

Mishka's Feasting on Friday

Appetizer
What is your favorite carnival/amusement park ride?

I like the loopy rollercoasters. Nothing with a big drop and nothing that spins....yuck

Soup
How do you react in uncomfortable social situations?

I think this depends on the type of uncomfortable situation it is.

Salad
On a scale of 1-10 with 10 being highest, how much do you enjoy discussing deep, philosophical topics?

2-I think about them, but I don't know that I like to talk about them much. Maybe once just to get my ideas out there but not regularly. I would rather write it down.


Main Course
Did you get a flu shot this year? If not, do you plan to?

Nope, never do and haven't had the flu in ages....it is just not worth it to me. Maybe when I get old, I will.

Dessert
Approximately how many hours per week do you spend watching television?

Too many for my taste. Lately, a lot more because I am working on Christmas stuff in the same room as the TV so I just put it on the movie channel and go.

Typhoon Water

Our typhoon season is coming to an end at the end of the month. I have started drinking the 3 gallons of bottled water I buy and keep throughout the season because the plastic doesn't last forever and they will start to leak....it is weird to know the season is almost over.

A Fix I Could Live With

We need to all be driving these in the States and a lot of our problems would be gone. First off, the gas usage would drop because these things can go forever on a tank of gas. Safety would increase and deaths due to accidents would decrease because we wouldn't have to worry about someone in a hummer hitting us and crushing us. Insurance premiums would decrease because of less accidents and death...and last but not least, road rage would be gone....it would just be too hard to have an attitude in this little number.

Mystery Bumps

I have a few little red bumps on me that I would normally say are a bug bite of some sort but they haven't gone away of the last couple of days (like bug bites tend to do) so I am thinking that I might have touched something in the yardwork I was doing that I am slightly allergic to....took a benedryl last night and the itching went away but I still have the little bumps....sometimes I hate a good mystery.

Meme Time

Got this one from PoppyCede

1. What were you afraid of as a child?
My parents dying, Phantom of the Opera, and getting burned.

2. When have you been most courageous?
Probably the last 16 years during various points that those that know me will understand about.

3. What sound most disturbs you?
Breaking bones...

4. What is the greatest amount of physical pain you’ve been in?
I would have said my hernia surgery 15 years ago but my one time issue with tooth pain has now topped that. I feel for anyone that has to deal with tooth pain all the time...it actually gets into your brain.

5. What’s your biggest fear for your children?
That our planet will not be in a condition that they can enjoy for their lifetimes.

6. What is the hardest physical challenge you’ve achieved?
I guess I would say some of the rockclimbing I have done with J....I had to get over an emotional as well as physical issue to be successful at it.

7. Which do you prefer: Mountains or oceans/big water?
Both equally depending on how I am feeling. Right now I have lots of ocean so I take advantage of that, and someday when I am far from the ocean, the mountains will be my solace.

8. What is the one thing you do for yourself that helps you keep everything together?
I make time for me to just enjoy being alive and happy.

9. Ever had a close relative or friend with cancer?
I have had some relatives with cancer but most of them were not super close to me. I watched a few young friends die of it too so I know that no one is completely secure from it but I don't let a fear of it rule my life.

10. What are the things your friends count on you for?
Knowing stuff, being able to do physical things, being independent, being spontaneous, being giving, being a good listener and good company.

11. What is the best part of being in a committed relationship?
So many things I can't even explain them all. Knowing someone loves you more than themselves. Feeling that love everyday even when I am being a bitch or feeling crappy. Seeing how much that love is a part of both of us by just looking in his eyes. Having someone that knows me better than anyone else and loves me anyhow.

12. What is the hardest part of being in a committed relationship?
Missing them when they are not around.

13. Summer or Winter? Why?
I love all seasons for different reasons.

14. Have you ever been in a school-yard fight? Why and what happened?
It wasn't at school but I did punch a boy in the nose and make it bleed when he pushed me.

15. Why blog?
Because I love writing and I love sharing.

16. Did you learn about sex, and/or sex safety from your parents?
My parents were/are pretty open so we talked about all of this stuff way before it ever happened with me. I didn't actually learn it from them since they were not there when it finally happened but I also had some bad things happen to me that made the whole thing much harder than it had to be and fortunately, I am married to a guy that understood that and was patient with me when I needed it.

17. How do you plan to talk to your kids about sex and/or sex safety?
Since I don't have kids, I am not sure but I talk to my 16 year old niece about it pretty easily. I don't think it has to be a big deal...especially if you are trying to explain to them why it is so important to not give your heart and body just to anyone. I am just honest and I don't throw a bunch of guilt, religion or other complicating stuff in there. I ask her to make good choices.

18. What are you most thankful for this year?
My family, my friends, and my health

White Towels

I had to buy all new towels and mats for my bathrooms recently. We usually have dark earth tones in our bathrooms (and throughout the house) but with the frequency of towels being wet due to showers and beach activity, they were just not drying quickly enough and would get musty really quick.

Because they were dark colored, I couldn't bleach them in the wash to really freshen them up, which is why I have now changed over to white towels and tan mats. Since we have to bleach the bathrooms as well (humidity is sometimes not your friend), having light stuff is just easier all around. I'll keep a couple of dark towels for dirty jobs and dying hair but the rest of them are going in the swap meet pile.

So right now, I am in the process of washing all the new towels (lots of lint in the dryer filter) and getting the old ones out of there. Of course, I have to wash all the old ones too before I sell them so that means having the new ones done so I can "retire" the old ones. I figure since we keep everything forever...we'll probably have these ones for a long time....assuming they don't fall apart or something on me. I know bleaching is hard on them and I won't have to do it all the time, mostly in the summer when we are taking multiple showers in one day. I splurged a bit and bought ones that cost a bit more but hopefully it will be worth it. I hate when towels start to fray or something (especially right after you purchased them). JcPenney's (which has great shipping to here) had a set deal so I just got 3 sets of them to cover us.

Anyhow, I better go, I think I have towels coming out of the dryer so there is some folding calling my name, not to mention the yardwork I have to do today, that I have not even started yet.....bad...I know.

Yardwork Sunday

I have to do a bunch of yardwork today. I need to get my butt in gear but it really does need my attention and after I am done, I know I will feel great. I wish a had a camera already so I could take before and after pictures but oh well...such is life.

I am really hoping that it won't take me too long, but the getting started is the hard part. At least now, I know where the spigot is so I don't have to haul buckets of water all over the place like I was doing before....I knew they had to have a spigot up there in front, I just couldn't find it.

The weather is decent (around 73 degrees out) and not too much sun but enough to keep things warm. I figure if I can get it all kicked out then I'll be one step closer to getting my Christmas stuff up.

Caching at Zakimi Castle

I went geocaching the other day for two different caches located on or near Zakimi Castle (which is not far from my house). I didn't really think I was going to get a workout in, but I ended up getting a great one. I won't go into a ton of detail since I'll probably end up doing a post on this on my travel blog but I just wanted to share the site I found that can give you an idea of this castle ruins along with several of the others around her. The first one was off the grounds just a bit but the second one took me to a section of the grounds that I had never seen and a trail that was just great with lots of stairs and jungle. It was a lot of fun and I didn't have to make time in my day for a workout because I got both done in one...

Happy Thanksgiving!!!

To all those out there that celebrate it, Happy Thanksgiving. Hope this finds you healthy, happy and staying safe.

Money In The Bank

Whew....the house is done and we have the money in the bank...although it won't be there for long since we are going to pay down the loan on the house we just purchased this summer...but it is done, and that is nice to know, even if sentimental me is a bit sad about it.

Things To Do

Sorry to do this to you guys but I need to write it down somewhere where I will be forced to stick with it and get some things marked off (not in any particular order).

1. Laundry
2. Blanket
3. Filing
4. Cards (xmas)
5. Cards (bday)
6. Xmas decorations
7. Yardwork
8. Swapmeet
9. Wash car
10. Recycling
11. Post office
12. Pictures
13. Wireless setup
14. Computer maintenance
15. Close on house
16. Geocaching....(have to put fun on the to do list too... )

I won't add eat right and exercise because I can't ever cross those off since I need to do them everyday....but they are on the list in spirit...

Japan fleet sets off to hunt humpbacks - Yahoo! News

So sad to see this....I love the Japanese culture but I don't understand why this needs to be done. I hope that someone is able to stop them.

HAPPY BIRTHDAY MOM!!!

I know I am a day ahead but for me it is your birthday and I hope you have a great one. I am so thankful to have you in my life and I hope you know that Chicken and I had a great childhood. We wouldn't have had it any other way!!!

I can't wait for you to come visit, we are going to have so much fun....just like your visit to the East Coast only more relaxing and fun.

Blanket Woes

I am making a blanket for a friend. I am really close to being done with it. I have pulled out the same stitches now 3 times trying to get it just right. I don't think it will ever be perfect so I am just going to have to live with it. She will know it was made with love and determination regardless of its level of perfection...I will have to wait for my new camera to get here so I can take a picture of it before I send it off (I take pictures of all the stuff I make)....new camera is not even supposed to be shipped until the 29th...don't know if I can wait that long...

Another Mishka Friday Feast

Appetizer
What was your first “real” job?

I guess by real job you mean not babysitting and paperroutes....my first paycheck job was McDonald's from when I was 16-18....then I started driving for Domino's.

Soup
Where would you go if you wanted to spark your creativity?

I don't need to go anywhere. I can read a book and get inspired to write, or make cards or bead and all of that can be done here at home. Of course, anytime I am out in nature, I am inspired in all sorts of ways, so I guess if I were to go somewhere, it would be into whatever nature was locally available to me...here it is the ocean or beach, and in the NW it would be the lakes, rivers, woods and coast.

Salad
Complete this sentence: I am embarrassed when…

people I think I "know" spout off racist, bigoted or prejustice statements about another group of people they can't even claim to know anything about.

Main Course
What values did your parents instill in you?

So many things, but most importantly, some of the things that seem to be lost in society these days, like not judging people without knowing them, being considerate of others, and having an open mind.

Dessert
Name 3 fads from your teenage years.

Cut open necks on sweatshirts that hang off one shoulder, leg warmers, and acid wash jeans....all fads that I hope never return....but a lot of the other ones from my childhood have come back so I won't be surprised if these do too.

Done!!!

I sent off the signed paperwork on our house in WA....it is sold. Should be recorded by early next week and hopefully we'll get a check in the bank around the same time. I love that house and I am glad that someone will be living in it that owns it and loves it too. It deserves to have people in it that care about it. I am also thrilled to not have that worry on my plate anymore....

I sent off a package of paperwork to the realtor too of all the manuals and info that I have on the house, minus any receipts I need to keep for tax purposes. I hope they appreciate having the info.

Mixup

Lately, I have noticed that I tend to type "right" when I mean "write" and "mail" when I mean "male" and I am not sure why but my brain puts those words to my fingers before I can get them to stop.....wonder if I am developing something that I need to know about.

Google Reader and iGoogle

I finally broke down and started using a reader for my blogs of interest....Blogrolling's "recently updated" function just doesn't work well enough for me to know when a blog has been updated or not....so I am not relying on it anymore. I just use my reader and it tells me exactly who has updated.

I also have the reader on my iGoogle page (much like MyYahoo) and it is nice to see news, weather, my Google groups (where I volunteer), my reader, my todo list, and the sports scores all in one place. I even have a sudoku puzzle on there that I can play anytime.

The thing I really like about my iGoogle page is that the theme I picked is the beach one (since I live on an island and only 5 minutes from the water), and changes based on the time of day...didn't know that when I picked it but it asked for my timezone and last night I noticed that it was darker with the moon out....what would be really cool is if the moon actually matches the phases but I don't think it does.

Anyhow, that is my new discovery and so far I am liking it....Google reader and iGoogle....just one more step in organization of my life.

Bunko

Just got home from a fun night of Bunko....it was a Japanese theme so I wore one of my kimono jackets I got at a sale and put my hair up with one of my cool dangly sticks in it....we ate lots of Japanese food and had a blast. Our bunko hat for the evening was a rice paddy working hat...and I had three bunkos so I wore it alot.

I ended up with the floater (had bunko at the end of the night) and then got the snakes prize so I have a new tea pot with two cups and then I got a couple of other cups as well....not bad considering I usually go home with the door prizes only...haha.

We took some pics in our outfits....hopefully I will get them by email soon.

House Appraisal Update

Appraisal went through....we are looking at being closed by the end of the month for sure....whoooeee!!!!. I need to drop a key in the mail to our realtor and now starts the long process of signing my name about a gazillion times....haha.

Mishka's Friday Feast

Appetizer
Which snack do you like to get when you go to the movies?

I like to eat popcorn if I can get it with nothing on it, or I'll get nachos with lots of jalapeños and mystery cheese.

Soup
What year did you start using the internet?

I started using the Internet as we know it now in 1995. I think I was using a rudementary version of it before that but my first "email" was in 1995.

Salad
What is your first name in Pig Latin?

Ishkamay

Main Course
Name something you are picky about.

Cleaniness and organization of my surroundings.

Dessert
Fill in the blanks: I ____ ____ yesterday and I ____ ____ today.

I did laundry yesterday and I went shopping today.

Anyone Want Anything To Drink?

I have a walking loop that I do pretty regularly (not regularly enough) near my home that is about 2 miles long. It takes me through the "country" farm land our house is in the middle of, down to a beach park and back. There is a school, lots of sugar cane and mum fields, and some bull pens along the way. I can hear roosters crowing from pens behind some houses, and smell the sea at the same time. It can be an amazing walk depending on the time of day and the circumstances of the environment. One thing I can always count on though, if I happen to get thirsty, is that there are soda machines around every corner....in the middle of nowhere, there will be a machine sitting out in the open offering cold or hot beverages for the road weary. I stopped to get a shot of these ones because they were such a perfect example of how they can just spring up anywhere. As long as you have some yen, you'll always be able to quench that thirst.

Caching It High

I had to climb up this.....

to find a stage of a geocache other day. This thing is located in a park near the seawall and the wind was howling. It doesn't look very tall but when you are on the top of it (and I was) on the outside of the ropes (because I don't fit on the inside up that high), it is pretty scary and I am not afraid of heights like some people are. I know I wouldn't want my kid climbing to the top of this thing...that is for sure. I would say it was probably about 30 feet up, and all I could think was "3 points of contact" the whole way down. The next day, I had some muscles I didn't even know I had (and I lift weights regularly) hurting...but I think that is because I was so intent on not falling, I was holding on with every muscle in my body clinched.
Note: I did go to this by myself and if I had fallen, it would not have been pretty....lesson learned....maybe.

House News

Word has it that our buyer is past the inspection stage. We are now waiting on the appraisal and it should be smooth sailing from there. We will hopefully be closed by the end of the month for sure.....whooeeee!!!!

One less thing for me to worry about, until tax time of course....this year is going to be a doozy!!!

Mishka's Reading Update

Got the October books up there today....still need to go back and modify my other posts to drop Amazon and transfer over to Powell's but I will get it done eventually....check it out if you have time.

Mishka's Friday Feast

Appetizer
How much money do you plan to spend this upcoming holiday season?

I don't know yet...probably not too much, I have quite a bit of my shopping done from other events....

Soup
What was the last television show you watched, and was it good?

I watched a taped copy of this week's Survivor and it was pretty good....it one of the only "game" shows I will watch.

Salad
If you had to paint the walls of your living room tomorrow, what color would you choose?

Probably some kind of sand color, but I can't paint the walls of this house for two reasons. One, they are cement, and two, it is a rental.

Main Course
Name something clever or practical you have thought of that should be invented, but hasn’t yet.

Now, wouldn't that be giving away my secrets?

Dessert
List 3 things you would like to receive as gifts this upcoming holiday season.

Books, online gift cards for places other than Amazon (since I don't do business with them anymore) that will actually ship here, candles (Gardenia or Jasmine smelling).