Appliances

The rain is pattering on my roof. The dryer wasn't working, but I think it might be working now. The dishwasher repair guy didn't get the switches on the breaker box all pushed back correctly. Will go check. Yay! It's working again! At least I didn't tell Mom the dryer was broken, she would've had a cow. I get along pretty well with my landlord. :)

I had a creative breakthrough today. This is for my Prehistory class. I think I may actually get my homework done this weekend! Another victory, I finished the St.Patrick's Day coasters for Star. All I have to do is get them laminated and put feet on them. I'll probably do that on Tuesday. I also did my meditations for Ancient Rites, just have to type them up.

Saw The Hurt Locker and Up last night. Jean Jeanie came over and watched the movies with me and my brother. The Hurt Locker was really intense, grim. Up was OK. I recommend the first movie. We are going to watch more Oscar movies next week.

I've been in my jammies all day. I didn't feel so hot today. Achy and tired. The neighbors moved out at the end of January. They've been doing some work on the mobile home next door today. I hope I get good neighbors. We share a fence. That should make good neighbors, but doesn't always.

That's all for now! bye

Punchy

I just finished watching Wimbledon, the movie. It was a nice light romance. I used to watch a lot of tennis on TV. Nice! I get most of my movies from Netflix, a few from the library. The Oscars are coming up so I put a few Oscar nominated movies in my queue.

I had a really nice day all around. It started early when the dishwasher repair guy came and fixed the dishwasher. Then Mom was over for awhile. We had apple cinnamon rolls and coffee together. I got two packages at the PO, a book I traded for, The Anatomy of Motive, all about why people kill and commit violent crimes, from Paperbackswap.com. The other an order from Joann's containing a kitty crosstitch that I mostly bought for the 3-inch embroidery hoop, some more transfers, a booklet of embroidery stitches, and a punch embroidery kit and punch tool. This leads into my next paragraph.

So this afternoon I did some embroidery for awhile, just boring stitching around a border. Then I opened the punch tool and punch embroidery kit. The kit is a flower in a vase with a backround, all in pink, cream, and green colors. I've never punch embroidered before. I figured it out, but I spent about half the time threading the punch needle. I may have done about a quarter of the pattern, if that, in 3 hours! Fast and easy, hmmmm. I'm not really into kits, but I wanted to learn how to do this. Then tonight I crocheted on the afgan for my mom during the movie.

I think it's the stress, really. If I'm learning something new or crafting I don't have to think about things so much. I saw my job counselor, Mary Jane, I'll call her, yesterday. We just did paperwork. So that is not so stressful except I'll have appointments once a week for awhile and maybe a job search support group to go to, once a week. I miss my best friend. I will go visit her cat tomorrow, he is staying with my family for a few days. I'm really scattered right now. I'll probably be up late since my sleep schedule is so off the charts lately. I'm seeing my doctor on Friday. I'm wondering if I have the balls to say No to someone if they ask me for a big favor. We shall see. Star always said I was good at saying No.

It's still Winter Vacation at Nature U. Until the beginning of March when a few classes start. My class doesn't start until Mid-April. Yes, Runes 4 is happening! I'm looking forward to it. The thought of no classes 'til next Fall was really weighing on me. Like a big empty space. I thought the class wasn't offered since it wasn't on the final list. Someone must have registered for it late. This class is supposed to be about doing Rune spreads and learning how to read them. Sweet! I'm kind of lost when it comes to the Runes.

I'm listening to U2 videos, The Best of 1990 to 2000. The 90s pretty much sucked for me, but some of the music was good. :) That's all for tonight!
bye

Mantra

My computer is running sweetly. Went to church today, still don't feel entirely comfortable there. Not many people my age, although I do agree with the church's basic social philosophy. That's actually more important to me than agreeing with the whole Christian thing. Not sure if I buy all 9 yards of that, more like 2 and a half. :) I'm beginning to realize that someone can be a good person, but still be a bitch. That's a hard dichotomy for me to wrap my head around. You see that a lot at church, bitchy women who would do almost anything for a stranger, much less a friend. Weird! I still don't like them. The only other problem I have with church is it's too early in the morning, and all the singing, not real fond of singing hymns. Although I do like to sing. I bring water, my mouth gets dry.

Star finally called me. She doesn't sound too happy. Guitar Hero, notwithstanding. Hospitals are not my thing. Spent way too much time there, including a whole day of waiting for my dad to die. Unpleasant associations. Our mutual horoscopes said she might be having money issues with me. If that's true, I'll find out soon enough.

My brother watched District 9 with me. We both loved it. It was entirely believable once you bought into the premise. A great sci-fi movie, highly recommended! Listening to Phil Collins.

I took pictures of my house today and of my works in progress, the craft projects I'm actually working on. I love my Canon camera now that I got the battery issue worked out. I use long life lithium batteries now. One reason I took the pictures of the house is to remember my house the way it is now, the way I have it set up. I hope I like my next place as much or more. "Home, home, home, home, home..."

bye

Lone Ranger to the Rescue?

The Lone Ranger, I'll call him that, came and fixed my computer today, sort of. I still can't burn CDs, but my searches hit more than they are hijacked, by a long shot. He wants to take Miss Thing and work on her at home this weekend, but I think not. I found him to be really abrasive if knowledgable. The Lone Ranger didn't like my wireless mouse (it's red, it doesn't eat batteries, I love it), hates Facebook and Firefox. Well, he deleted a bunch of programs, even Firefox without saving my bookmarks. Needless to say I reinstalled Firefox and imported my bookmarks, I saved them in November and was able to do that. But I will use Explorer for awhile, although I'm not convinced it's safer. I guess I'm just a rebel. I don't like Facebook either, so can give that up easily. And chatting is the Devil! LOL! All in all, a pretty crappy day. He was here for four hours! It was painful watching him uninstall anti-spyware programs I paid good money for. AVG is supposed to be good though, according to the LR, now you know!

I talked to Jean Jeanie on the phone today for awhile. We talked about supplements for better health and energy. I'm not an expert on that by any means. I guess she's gonna look on the interwebs for info. Star was supposed to call me back but she was playing Guitar Hero, maybe tomorrow.

It's so hard for me to ask for help, even with my computer. Resistance may be useless, but I feel it anyway. Out of my comfort zone I guess. (don't have Yahoo for a homepage either, sigh, now my homepage is coachcreativespace) Oh well, I'm getting hungry. That's all for tonight! bye

A Going to Town Day

I make so many decisions according to how I feel, from what I wear to what I do. I haven't been wearing makeup lately or zip-up pants. Well, I did today because I had an appointment. I guess normal changes from year to year or season to season. I know since I've gained some weight I haven't felt as good about myself. I have all these jeans in my closet that are too small. Lame! I'm actually feeling better today, probably because I got out of the house for more than going to the PO and put on makeup and jeans, etc. I've been thinking way too much about my situation. I'm gonna have to move one of these days and find an apartment that takes kitties, not in that order. :) My dishwasher is broken too. So I actually washed some dishes by hand today. I'm kind of spoiled. I like to be as comfortable as possible on my fixed income. Maybe it's my Mars in the 4th house, but I tend to do a lot of stuff at home, plus decorating. Not into housework though, that gene didn't get passed along, the cleanfreak gene.

Today was a going to town, shopping and appointment type day. My mom always has to go like 8 places, only 6 today. Still, when I got home I took a nap. Muy exhausted. I live in the boonies, so the nearest "big" town is 20 miles away. It's always a trek, whenever we head for civilization. I live in a town without even one stoplight. We have a roundabout now though. Oh my! Lots of wildlife though. One of my cats killed a baby mole the other day. Poor little thing. It was left at the bottom of the steps by one of the kitties. The thing about days like today is I have no energy for anything else. I did do a little embroidery. My brother, Jed, was here for a couple hours using my computer. He mostly just reads news stories, weird news, or watches kitty videos. We visit. I do housework. It's nice having him over, most of the time.

I suppose I should say something about school. Mmmmmm... I think I'm too serious about school. It's one of the ways I motivate myself, like it's life or death if I turn my homework in on time. I need new ways to motivate myself, I guess. Have to work on that. All for now! bye

News from Sparta

I had a good Valentine's Day. There was even a little romance involved. I got a Valentine and a phone call from one of my online friends, Leonidas, I'll call him just for fun. That was really sweet. :) He lives a ways away, but hopefully we'll get to meet someday.

I decided to take Runes 4 instead of the Goddess class. Unless no one signs up for it, then hopefully the Goddess class will be open. I registered!

The post office was closed today because of the holiday. Kind of a bummer. I'm expecting some packages and I have stuff to mail. Tomorrow, tomorrow, there's always tomorrow...

I made a couple St.Pat's coasters today, they turned out pretty good. 4-leaf clovers. I have nothing to write about. My head is empty. This is not a new thing for me. I used to think all the time, think, think, think. Then I tried meditating which involves emptying your head. I think it worked! That's all for today! Bye

Coloring Pages

I made a mistake in my last blog. I enjoy the chat classes the best. Now you know. Not that we are having any this spring, but that may change. I haven't registered for a class yet, still on the fence.

I'm not myself lately. It really sucks. I haven't gotten much done that I want to do and even less that I don't want to do. Very un-Virgo of me. I'm a little hypomanic tonight. I've been looking up coloring pages to eventually trace and turn into embroidery. They are in black and white and line drawings which is why they are good for that purpose. I say eventually, because I'm not ready for all those lines yet. I found some really awesome ones though, the Cheshire Cat, Wizard of Oz ones, a flying monkey even! I even found stuff that is delightful to me if no one else, a tank, a lobster, and Eloise drawings. :) I guess I'm trying to maintain my enthusiasm for crafts. I have so many unfinished projects. Well, only 4, but that's too many. I'm about in the middle of most of those. Crafts, not writing, that's another story.

I'm really having a hard time, not sleeping enough and all. I need a vacation. I just want to spend money too, which is an impulse I'm trying to control. I discovered punch needle embroidery and I want to try that too. I will have to get a kit for that. I'm not really into kits, but I've never tried that so would need some instructions. I watched a video on it on youtube and it looks really fun and easy. Here I just said I had all these unfinished craft projects, the irony! See, the thing is, I'm having a hard time concentrating so surfing the web is OK, but sitting down and doing something is harder.

My computer, Miss Thing, was acting up again today. I tried to burn a CD. Not happening. Usually I try to figure out how to fix things, but I tried to do that for hours today, get WMP to work properly. I think I may have to call the computer guy. Maybe tomorrow or Monday, not sure yet. My level of frustration is pretty high. I synced to my friend's MP3 player though, so it's working somewhat. Well, that's all for tonight! Bye

Crafts are keeping me sane.

Crafts are keeping me sane. I'm not kidding. I haven't been sleeping well. It seems like I'm getting all the bad side effects of anti-depressants without the good effects. Well, usually I'm OK and not depressed, on this one at least. But then there's the weight gain and the sleep disturbances. Might have to change...

Nature U. has 3 kinds of classes. The chats, which aren't offered very often, and are a fun and easy way to get credit, then there's my favorite, even if nerve-wracking at times, regular classes, which have deadlines, which I love. Deadlines are very motivating for me. Then there are the classes for those who have inner drive and motivation, the self-study, go at your own pace classes. Excuse me! I don't do well in those. It's too easy for me to put stuff off. I guess I'm actually "taking" a fourth kind of class, creative self-study classes. I put taking in quotations because I'm putting that off, for this week at least. I'm not as strong as the stress monster. I admit it!

Astrological digression. Mars is in Leo, retrograde. All this has done for me is make me very creative, almost to the point of obsession. I spent last night finding and looking for hand embroidery patterns, cool ones. Now, my embroidery skills are at a very basic level, so this is an exercise in frustration on the one hand. On the other hand, I love possibilities. Possibilities are like oxygen to me. The more possibilities there are, the happier I am. I put some of my ideas down in my Scanner Daybook, so I can save them for later. Mars in Leo is transiting my 12th house. I'm not sure what that means; maybe I should work in isolation. Something along those lines.

I'm listening to the Beatles on WMP. Tomorrow, Jean Jeanie is coming over and I'm going to help her put music on her new 2G MP3 player. She is bringing over some of her favorite CDs, which I'll rip and synch to her player. If all goes according to plan. :) Mom invited her to our Italian Valentine's Day dinner on Sunday. I think we might play Spite & Malice afterwards. Fun!

I got the class schedule for Spring Semester today. I'll either register for a Goddess class or Runes, both short classes. Haven't decided yet. I keep straying off the path. "Not all who wander are lost". Some exciting stuff is coming up Fall Semester. That seems so far away. It will be here before I know it. That's how time works. You think you are in today, then all of a sudden 5 years have passed and your in a totally different today, even if the sets are the same. Wow, I'm downright philosophical tonight! That's all for now! Bye

Miss Thing

One thing I have learned about using computers--simpler is better. I was having problems with Windows Media Player, it wouldn't recognize the CD I wanted to rip, so I started looking at all the help information. When I got to the part about changing registry values, I thought "maybe not". Instead I restarted the computer, I'll call her Miss Thing, because she's quite temperamental, and that worked. Often, if I'm having problems I just log off or restart and that works. I'm kinda mad at myself for taking an hour of fiddling with WMP and searching help menus before figuring that out.

Decisions have been made. I'm helping out my mom financially. She is in dire straits or this wouldn't happen. I finally got Star's number so I can call her if I want. It's unlikely that I'll get to Olympia this month, so visiting her is out of the question. Not sure if she can have visitors once she gets on the chemical dependency unit.

I've been extremely stressed out lately. I haven't been able to read. This has settled down some tonight. I read a chapter in Refuse to Choose by Barbara Sher, an excellent book. I summarize each chapter on one of my creativity websites. Maybe I can get Chapter 4 done tomorrow. I made chocolate chip cookies today, from a 2 pound tub of cookie dough. They turned out really good. I gave most of them to my family.

I have 3 craft projects going for my mom and best friend. Coasters, floursack towels, and an afghan are all in the works. I need to do a project for myself. I have these rune bookmarks started, just simple lines, but I'm hankering for a new project. Have to think about that.

I'm wondering if I should announce this blog on Facebook, my creativity and divination websites, and the Nature U. website. It might be nice to get some comments. On the other hand, maybe I should wait til the current crisis(plural) blow over. Sigh. What to do, what to do? That's all for now! Bye!

Computer Hell--Another Level

Still having computer problems, but I'm seeing the light at the end of the proverbial tunnel. Tip: if you are having computer problems but can still do a search, search for the problem. You can get some good results that way.

Had Chinese with Mom today, this spicy chow mein. Pretty good. I still have leftovers. Talked to Star a little today, but I had to pee, so was kinda short with her. She is into her own transformation right now, like a former caterpillar, now looking for her wings. I miss her. I can't call her up or even email her. Weird! I made a couple Valentines today and mailed one off. Mom made about 8. They were so cute! She loves holidays. I'm partial to them too. All of them. We are having a nice dinner next Sunday and even invited a guest. A party of special magnificence. :)

My online college is now offering an MFA. You don't know how tempting that is. But I am signed up for 4 programs already. Maybe someday. I'm kind of worried about Dean Dharma, she is having some health issues. I guess they are more chronic than critical, but still. I've learned tons already. I'm not kidding. I'm listening to Erasure videos. I was watching them and crocheting, but then I decided to tackle the computer again. The kitties are being really quiet. They are both napping. I guess that's it for tonight. Bye!

Computer Hell

I have been in computer hell for the last couple days. I figured out that my Zonealarm wasn't working, bad install. I chatted with the customer service rep and reinstalled it. Already found about 8 viruses on my computer. My Google and Yahoo search results have been getting hijacked. Haven't tried searching today. Couldn't access my Word docs for awhile. Had to do a cold boot at one point. But things appear to be working better. Don't have to call my computer guy, yet.

Have been catching up with housework and laundry for the past couple of days. It seems endless. I finished another floursack towel. Have to take pictures of it and post it. Talked to my friend, Jean Jeanie, for a long time yesterday. Her ex-husband is dying. She gets along good with him, so this is a blow.

I'm still in some kind of fog. I hope things take a turn for the better soon. I told my teacher what's happening in my life and she understood. I will be taking a break from most schoolwork for awhile, except for Ancient Rites. All for now!

Update

Well, my best friend is in rehab. I miss her. She will be gone for awhile. She is probably going through computer and kitty withdrawals on top of everything else. *sigh*

My mom called me almost hysterical about her financial situation. I can't help her there, any more than I have. I rent from her, so this impacts me too. I hope she doesn't lose the mobile home. She is trying to sell it. It's no use worrying about the future, but I do anyway. I shed a few tears yesterday.

I emailed Dean Dharma about all the crisis going on in my life. I just can't concentrate on schoolwork right now, literally. I don't know if I have ADD or not. I think it is just part of my mental health status. It just gets worse when I'm stressed out. I'm not going to try reading right now. Well, that's all for now!

Crafts

Well, I haven't been getting any homework done for school and I'm tired of blaming other people for that. I'm over it. Over and done with! I think tonight I will at least do a meditation. I've been stressing, but there's no easy way out. Of my life that is. :)

I went to the Quilt Shop today and bought some embroidery floss to make coasters with. These are St.Pat's coasters for Star. It should be a lot of fun making them. I finished my first floursack towel a few days ago, the lemon one, fruit-themed. They are for my mom, but the lady in the shop said no one hardly ever showed her anything they made with what they bought there, so I'm gonna bring in the towels when I'm done. I didn't work on either of those projects today, but I did crochet a little today. The crocheting is on a afghan in fall colors, orange and brown. I think I'm over making jewelry, but I will probably pick it up again later.

I took two naps today, but every time I was about to drop off it was time to go somewhere. So I'm pretty tired today. The housework is piling up. At least I got a load of dishes in the dishwasher tonight. The kitties are both sleeping on the couch. They look so sweet! Little devils, they are sometimes. LOL! Tomorrow, me and Mom and Star are going grocery shopping. All for now!