One part The Mama's and the Papa's and two parts Beach Boys

So today I was driving to my American Lit. class, listening to the radio, and NOT talking on my cell phone b/c my soon to be wuzband had it disconnected (this is me not being bitter), and guess what I heard?! Come on, guess!!

It was Wilson Phillips! "Hold On" to be exact. Now, I must admit, I like Wilson Philips. Now when I say that, I am talking about pre-1994 Wilson Philips. Pre-Daniel Baldwin marries Chyna, Wilson Philips. Pre-Carnie has stomach surgery on the internets and still goes on Celebrity Fit Club, Wilson Phillips. Circa the "other" girl dresses kind of trampy and seems to just sit on a giant rock on the beach while they sing and Carnie looks way too hot in head-to-toe all black and should consider a different cut for those bangs, Wilson Philips.

Did you know, if you turn the radio up loud enough, you sound just like them? It's like you are the missing member. You should call them, tell them that you can harmonize with them perfectly and tell them they don't know what they are missing without you. While you're at it, you might as well tell them that you have the power to resurrect their careers with your awesome vocalics.

Listening to them gave me a bit of a flashback to middle school. Man, those were the days and I didn't even know it! I had the most awesome hair in all the land, and a leather bomber jacket to go with it! Tight rolling and multiple pairs of socks were all the rage and so was tucking in only the front of your shirt, all of which I rocked by the way.

Yep, that's me. I told you I had awesome hair. 1991 is where it's at.

Those were the days when a girl wasn't ashamed to carry a (full size)can of Rave or Aquanet in her purse. It was a status symbol really. Rave Extra Hold for me, can't have those bangs drooping half-way through the day!

I also kept all of my Wet N' Wild makeup in one of these! Yes my bloggy friend, it's a Caboodle. You know you had one, and if you didn't know you wanted one. I seem to recollect having a travel sized one to keep in my purse as well....

Yes, those were the days of Wilson Philips, Color Me Bad, and Prince. Throw in a little Guns N' Roses and some Bon Jovi to go with it and what more could a girl with lacquered hair ask for? Nothing, that's what I say. Well, maybe some Pop Rocks and a glass bottle of Mountain Dew or something, but that's it!

A little bit of knit and a little bit of that

Hark, my bloggy friends! It's been a good while since I have sat down and did a nice blog, so today is your lucky day (to be baptized in the Greek Orthodox Church)! Anyone?

First things first, Caps is having a wee bit of a contest. Just follow the link and you can enter to win a 4 disc Very Chappy Christmas cd set and a little piece of knitty handcrafty heaven. Tell her that I sent you and you can get two entries! Ok, maybe not, but you should still enter.

Now, down to business. Things are going ok, winter seems to be considering rearing it's ugly head here in Alabama....sure is a good thing I have this lovely Quickie Cowl that I whipped up to keep my neck warm! I used Cascade baby Alpaca yarn and it is SOOO nice. Shhh! Don't tel Peta.

Nothing like a nice self portrait to show of a little handcraftiness. Just one more up close picture so you can really see the lace rib pattern.

Sunday was a great day here in the land of Bammie. I was sitting minding my own business (which means knitting) and Abby decides she wants to learn how to knit. Then Mo chimes in and agrees. We sat down in the living room floor and the knitty ensued. They both picked it up rather quickly and aren't doing too bad if I do say so myself....and I do.

I have also been compiling a mental list of knitty goods for Christmas, and since you have been good I will give you a sneak peak.

My grandma will get some yummy slippers made out of this yummy yarn.

I will attempt to make a wonderful Celtic Cable Neckwarmer out of this delicious red Natural Caron yarn if I can ever find a cable needle.

Seriously, does anyone in the state carry cable needles? I have been to the Hobe (that's what I like to call Hobby Lobby) and they have none. Three different Walmarts, negative. My LYS not a single one to be found! If I only had a smelting pot I could make one myself....but alas, the hunt continues.

In more knitty knews (snark!) I started a charity knitting group at my church. I am really excited to be able to donate my love of the knitty to those in need. This month we are knitting and/or crocheting baby washcloths to the local battered women's shelter. Now, my lady says I need a washcloth intervention. But I'm gonna tell you something. I love knitting them. They are fast and easy. I particularly like to knit them up while I am watching t.v. or when I am on the go.....I have made so many that I know the pattern by heart and it's an easy start-stop project.

Now, in knon knitty(I am on a roll today) related news, well not much to report. The semester is coming to a close and I couldn't be happier. I will have 5 glorious weeks of no school! I can't believe I only have one semester left before I start nursing school. Time flies.....even when you aren't having fun.

I have also become acquainted with the world of deadbeat daddery. Nice job fella, that's what I say. I have started looking for some sort of job that will work around my school/family/sleeping schedule. Only problem is, there aren't too many jobs out there! I'd like to find something where I have no responsibilities whatsoever and a boss that doesn't mind if I fill my time doing homework and knitting. If you have any leads let me know!

I am off to write a process speech that is due tomorrow, I will bring the love of knitty to the students of JSU. Yes, yes I will.

Please take a minute

We are all busy. We all have stuff to do. Sometimes we need to stop doing our stuff and help someone else with their stuff. Please take a moment and follow this link to Baby Mia's website or click on the contest entry to your right and help if you can. It's for a good cause! And if you aren't able to donate or add a link to your own site, do something to help someone else today, they will appreciate it!

Do ya ever?

Do you ever not have time to do anything? I do. Seems like lately everything has been piling up. School is really giving me a swift kick in the rear end this semester and I am counting the days until it's over. Okay, not really. Why? Cause I don't have time to sit down at count them. It was that or post a blog. You win.

It's funny....life has a way of throwing this at you all at once. You know what they say, when it rains it pours. On top of school and being a mother I am struggling with my impending divorce. Yep, I said it divorce. I have been in the closet about it for a while. When is the right time to tell people? I don't think you're really supposed to tell people before you tell your soon to be ex spouse so definitely wait until after that point. My opinion is you should begin to slowly tell people AFTER you have consulted an attorney and AFTER you start the paperwork, which I have.

I'm a bit surprised at the roller coaster of emotions that I have been feeling over the past few weeks. I have come to terms with the fact that my marriage of ten years is over. I am sad about not being married anymore but not sad about not being married to the person I was married to. Does that even make sense? Sure it does, in my mind anyway, and that's all that matters. So if you know any nice Mormon, temple worthy, independently wealthy, strikingly handsome (just thought I'd throw it in, since I'm listing), NOT married guys who are looking for a recently divorced (well, in a few months....we'll have to wait until it's final) mother of three with a slightly dumpy butt who is in nursing school for the next three years therefore cannot consider relocating any time soon, send him my way!

I have been doing a little knitting here and there to ease my tension, we all need an excuse right? I shall now show you a couple of pictures of my knitty handcraftiness since this is somewhat of a knitty blog and I haven't shown any recent pictures.

This is the baby blanket I have been working on. Designed by yours truely (nothing fancy but hey, claim it where you can!). This blanket is headed for a good home and is going to someone who can really use it. She should be heading home with her baby this weekend so that's my deadline....I think I might be able to make it.

This one is for me. I knit it up for everyone else so I decided to make a little sumpin for myself. It's just a plain scarf and it just so happens that I crocheted myself a scarf with the same yarn a few years ago. I must really like this yarn because I bought it again. It's almost completed and should come in nice and handy when winter rolls it's butt around to Alabama.

Now this last picture is a nice one. This picture is of what we affectionately call "the wart hand". Poor Josh. Josh has a wart hand.

Abby won't let him touch her stuff with it. They were eating cotton candy the other day and I heard her say, "Not with your wart hand"! A guy can't even eat cotton candy with his wart hand anymore. I am pleased to report that it is decreasing (slowly) in size. We have been treating it for over a month, it sure is a stubborn wart! Josh has an appointment with a dermatologist to have it removed in Novemeber but I thought I'd keep trying to get rid of it until then. November is a long time to walk around with a wart hand you know.

So I guess that's the skinny here as of late. I'm either going to work on my Chemistry homework or go to bed......I wonder which one will win?

Welcome Back Kotter!

Yes, school has O-fficially begun. Yesterday was the first day back and was quite eventful. I had pre-calculus at 7:30...yes, in the a.m, and we kicked it off by going over two chapters.

Next was American History, which my prof. emphasized was just a survey class which means we hit the high spots and should be expected to know everything else in between, yummy. My history professor was quite entertaining to say the least. I don't know if I have ever met anyone quite as "Southern" before in my life. Now, no offense to peeps from the south (for the record, I am from the North, you know, the side that won), but nothing is more entertaining to me (other than seeing people fall while not really getting hurt, which we will talk about shortly) than an over-exaggerated southern person, and I have found one in my professor. I will say this to make my point and move on, when going over the basic policies of the classroom; no cell phones, pagers (who the heck carries a pager anymore anyway!?), etc., she added the no video taping and proceeded to tell us of an incident of a "fella" who was apparently taping her one class and upon describing her realization of said incident she said "...and I thought to myself, well hells bells he's tapin' me"! Oh...my....gosh.

After that was Oral Communications (a.k.a. speech class) which seems pretty darn do-able (is that a word? I took it upon myself to add the hyphen to make it look more wordish, I think it worked out nicely).

Today was Chemistry and American Lit.....Lit, no problem, my instructor seems to have somewhat of a sarcastic dry humor, which I dig, and it's too bad to look at either (bonus). He does have this funny lisp thing going on, but I can overlook it. Chemistry, that is another story. It was made pretty clear today that this class is H-A-R-D. That spells hard kids, hard. It plainly states in the syllibus to expect to spend at least two hours a day just studying for the class, more if you are not familiar with basic chemistry. Do I need to even say that I fall into the "more" category. Am I remotely interested in chemistry? No. Do I have three plus hours a day to devote to one class outside of classroom time? No. Do I want a housekeeper to come in and clean up after me....um, yes, yes I do, thank you.

On to the very entertaining issue of seeing people fall without getting hurt. I know this is going to bring on some bad Karma, but oh man, it was SO worth it. As I was on my way to Lit, I was driving to the back 40 on campus. As I passed by the R.O.T.C. building there was a guy on a bike, talking on his cell phone, backpack on, and a drink in the other hand. Then, right before my very eyes, BAM! he ran right into the sign outside the building. It might have been the funniest thing I have ever seen short of seeing one of my very favorite people fall off the stairs to the patio one day while my lady and I were waiting for her to BBQ our dinner. I will admit, I laughed (both times) and couldn't wait to tell someone about it. Of course the first thing he did was look around to see if anyone saw him, he knew I was laughing at him, he could feel it. I was tempted to honk the horn, but I didn't because I always appreciate it when people act like they didn't see it when I fall (which is often, did it today as a matter of fact, except my friend Maryann laughed right in my face....thanks Maryann).

My bloggy future is uncertain, but I will try. I have a fun Labor Day weekend planned. It's going to be chock full of homework (already) studying (to try to get ahead) and assembling new bunk beds for the girl's room (woot).

Sorry, no pictures today, I am lazy.....tar tar.

Everyone goes to Milo's!

Yesterday my friend Julie and I ventured off to the Birmingham Temple. We left home at about 8:20 and by the time left the temple it was right at 12:30. Hunger had stricken us both quite some time before and the mission was to find lunch. We drove for a bit to see what was near and had almost decided on Pizza Hut when we spotted a Milo's.

I have seen the commercials for years and even catch myself singing their jingle sometimes, but I have never been there, niether had Julie. We like to live on the edge so we decided to go. I have heard that Milos has the best hamburgers ever. We both ordered the same thing......cheeseburger, fries, apple pie, and diet coke (we are watching our calories). The burger had pickles, onions and Milo sauce......the Milo sauce tasted more like BBQ sauce, so I am wondering why they decided to call it Milo sauce, my bet is it came right out of a Bullseye bottle. I guess everyone wants to have their own sauce, it's kind of a status symbol in the fast food world I guess. This is my friend Julie enjoying her burger. There is a possibility that we may not be friends anymore once I post this picture. I would kill someone if they did it to me, but since it's my blog and I am in charge of the picture department.

Julie, I swear if I had that fancy shmancy black bar over they eyes tool I would totally use it. But I don't.

I think Julie thought I was a bit of a freak for taking pictures of my burger and the Milo's sign, and the sneak attack I pulled of her eating her burger, whatevs. That's what I have to say to that.

I have to say, I was a little disappointed. I was expecting fireworks. There were none. My cheeseburger was good, as were the fries, I was just expecting SO much more. One thing I did appreciate was the hairnet factor. Everyone with longer hair working in the back had on a hairnet. God bless whoever came up with that rule! That alone might just make me go back.

I also realized after looking at the Milo's website, Milo's is only in Birmingham! I thought they were nationwide! Silly me. Maybe they would accomplish that if they would put some lettuce and tomato on those burgers!

Going to the temple inspired me to pull out my family history and do a little work on it. I finally broke down and brushed up on the new Family search website which is a little bit awesome. I like it much better than the original now that I sat down and tinkered with it a little bit. I have a lot of work to do though.

Well, my Milo's rant is over, I am off to do laundry, clean house, and enjoy my last week of freedom before JSU reclaims my life. The countdown has officially begun.

And the winner is......

Second only to anticipating who won American Idol, this is the moment you have been waiting for. Who is going to be the lucky washcloth recipient. Congratulations to Judy from Jacksonville, these babies are coming home with you. I used the integer generator at random.org to choose the winner, so it's all legit, no recounts, no Supreme Court. While I was pulling for everyone to win, I must say the fact that I know Judy and she goes to school with me is going to save me a little postage, woot.

I'd also like to add that Judy was the ONLY person who picked up on Cathy Number 5! Didn't anyone see Short Circuit?? I at least expected Marge to get it, but alas, he did not. Just in case you need a bigger reminder, let's all pay homage to our beloved Johnny Number 5.

Number 5 is alive!

That's it for now, I must go fix the debacle that is my class schedule for next semester.

Blah, Blah, Blah

This morning I decided to go through the pics on my memory card. My memory card is pretty much full, and every time I get on a picture taking roll I get the "memory card full" message. Whilst attempting to downsize my stash of pics I came across this one. How could I not post it?


I love this kid. I do believe I saw a Florida retiree with that same hat and glasses once.

I have also started my "winter" knitty! I actually started it a few weeks ago, but like I said, I was going through pictures. I know what you are thinking. It takes a lot of talent to make a scarf. It can be confusing knitting the same stitch the same amount of times over and over.

Now, don't forget about the contest! The deadline is actually Friday at midnight not Thursday at midnight. I have had a combination of emails and comments, so either one is fine, I will still enter you even if you aren't following directions and email me instead! Perhaps more later....I am off to do something. What, I don't know, but something other than what I have been doing so far this morning, which is sitting on my kiester.

The return of the Jedi (um, that would make ME a JEdi)!

I have been gone for a long time. I had these delusions of grandeur that when summer term was over I was going to be a knitty bloggy fool. I would do the aforementioned like I was getting paid to do it. For the record, I have been out one week, this is my first blog and I have yet to pick up a pair of sticks. Alas.

A lot has been going on, so I will update you, my bloggy friends. First, I'd like to report my grades for summer term. I got an A (woot) in the first section of Anatomy and Physiology and a B (blah) in the second. Not too bad I guess, considering that each was a full semester of material crammed into four weeks. One thing I won't miss about A &P (that's cool college kid slang for Anatomy and Physiology, I like to think I made it up, but I didn't) is my professor. I couldn't find a picture of him online, but I have found photograph of our class that I would like to share with you.Dr. James Rayburn. He has given me a new appreciation for the English language and the importance of the correct pronunciation of it. I'm telling you, this man could take the word "it" and come up with 43 different ways to say it. It's unlike anything I have ever seen in my life, and 7:30 in the morning is just a little too early to try to filter out the mispronunciations and compute the correct word.

In other news, I have been diagnosed with sleep apnea. Yes, it's the condition that makes old people stop breathing when they sleep. I have obstructive sleep apnea to be specific. I have been told that I snore like a freight train. I however contest this accusation since I sleep with myself EVERY night and I have never once woke myself up. Come on! So, I went to have a sleep study done, it was nice, like a little hotel room. They brought me root beer and water, offered me snacks and had some yummy little banana bread muffins waiting for me when I woke up. According to them I stopped breathing 50 times in about 3 1/2 hours and woke up (which translates into coming out of deep sleep) 42 times in one hour. No wonder I was tired all the time!!!!! I'm going to tell you, I feel amazing since I have remedied the problem, but unfortunately this is what the remedy is:

I look like the love child of a Hoover and a Snork. It's very alluring and I have had a long line of suitors at my back door ever since.

It could be worse though. I could have been fitted with this puppy.

Ok, now onto my last topic of the day. I have to limit myself so I can save it up. Now you know my friend Cathie. We have been best friends since the tenth grade. We were pretty much attached at the hip until I moved to Alabama when I was 18. She moved to Texas a couple of years ago, and we rarely get to see each other. Now about two years ago, I met another Cathy, Cathy Number 5 (anyone? please tell me you get this). Cathy Number 5 and I have become good friends and then guess what happens?! She moves. Wah! Her husband Marce ( I know, it's short for Marcelino, and I lovingly refer to him as Marge......whether he likes it or not, who knows, he might have relocated to get away from me and my name calling) got a new j0b. Yay for them, not yay for me. So, now I am Cathyless again. What gives folks?! I will miss them both like crazy, but the lovely entertainment center they left behind in my living room is softening the blow a little. I will think of them often, like whenever I see a physical therapist...that's Filipino......with glasses.....and a double crown, or whenever I hear Aerosmith and Run D.M.C. on the radio. I know they will miss me too, especially the next time they play Cranium. They are going to be in a world of hurt when they don't' have my mad Humdinger skills there to score them some points.

I will also now commence my first contest. I KNOW! A CONTEST! You can win some of my knitty handcraftiness! If you get my Cathy Number 5 reference, leave me a comment and I will enter you to win a nice little set of dishcloths! Won't they look too cute hanging near your sink?! I got this pattern from I live on farm , which has all kinds of nifty patterns and nuggets. You can use them for more than just dishcloths too! This pattern was actually meant to be a set of baby washcloths, I just made them a little larger. They look like this:

Heck, even if you don't know, enter anyway. I'm not choosy. Who am I to discriminate against those who don't get my exceptional humor and wit. Ok kids, you have until Thursday at midnight!

Well, I guess that's it for today. I am excited to watch my new favorite show tonight, The Secret Life of the American Teenager, yes, I am fifteen, didn't I tell you that? I might just pair up my show with a little knitty too!

I tube, do you tube?

I was reading my friend Cathie's blog the other day (um, official shoutout) http://www.cappydoodles.blogspot.com/, and she had a link to a video. Of course I clicked, and couldn't believe what I had stumbled upon. I did a little investigating and was pleasantly surprised at what I found. I would like to introduce you to my new friend, Angeleye 732.



Wow. Angeleye is very serious about what he does. Note the intent look on his face when the intro music is playing. He knows he has a job to do and he intends to do it. I'll bet he is Mariah Carey's number one fan. I like his spunk. I also enjoy the way he sways just a bit to the music. Not too much, not too little.

Now, speaking of youtube, I'd like to also share something else with you. Now, I love the show Psyche. I can't get enough of it. I'd watch it all day long if I could. In honor of their new season, I would like you to see this:



I can't get enough of that one either. It is magnificent. Now I have one more for you this day. Just in case you don't realize (and I am sure you do) they guys from Psyche didn't make up the song Ebony and Ivory. Our good friend Sir Paul McCartney and his pal Stevie Wonder are responsible for that little gem. So here my bloggy friends is the original.



That's all for today, I am off to, well, I'm not gonna lie, I'm off to knit. One thing you can be sure of, you are gonna see more of Angeleye732.

Knitty, ankles, and other important stuff

Warning: This blog was written over the course of several days.

Here I sit two weeks since my last post. I have been busy (seriously). Sometimes people say they were busy when they really weren't. This is not one of those times. However, I am happy to report that I am out of school until Wednesday and I am living it up. I mopped my floors last night, I mean how much crazier can you get?

I have a kind of cornucopia of topics today since it has been so long. It's true, you can enjoy a cornucopia even if it's not Thanksgiving and you are without Pilgrim heritage.

1. I just saved a bunch of money on my car insurance by switching to Geiko. Ok, not really, but that would be awesome. Instead the Geiko lizard stopped by to try to strong arm me into switching.

Picture it. Sicily, 1942 (anyone?). I walk into my kitchen the other day after a long night of studying for finals to find this.

I am insured with Alfa kind sir, now if you would please leave. No such luck. He proceeded to try to woo me with acrobatics. When that didn't work, he got a little cranky.

Karen and I decided that it was time to devise a plan to get rid of him. This plan consisted of a pair of mismatched oven mitts, a plastic cup, a paper box, two mops and a headless Swiffer duster.

Armed and ready. Karen heads off to battle.

Karen tried to just grab him with the oven mitts (which Sissy likes to call muffins). Unfortunately Karen's agility was no match for that of the lizards. He is pretty quick. This just made him mad and he charged us several times. When this happened we screamed and ran in terror. Example 1:


Then we tried to lure him into the plastic cup, didn't work. He was having none of our ingenuity. Come on lizard, throw us a bone. He responded to the cup by charging us again. We responded to his act of hostility by running in terror. Again. Oh yeah, and we screamed. And then we climbed up on a chair. And screamed some more.

Example 2.

Finally after he uncornered himself, and we thought he had hidden himself behind the refrigerator. No, he was hiding among the twelve packs of coke (here is where the headless Swiffer and box come in). We placed the box in front of him, and I prodded him into said box with the Swiffer. At this very moment I am loving the Swiffer people. They should come up with a new slogan, "Swiffer, good for catching lizards too".

2. So last week I thought I might have broken my ankle. I was walking along in Karen's driveway minding my own business just trying to throw a paper towel away. The bowels of her driveway opened up and tried to swallow my foot. I distinctly heard three (yes, three) pops and intense pain. My first thought "Holy crap, I just broke my ankle" my second thought "I have to go take my final, I don't have time for a broken ankle". This was at 7:00 in the a.m. I finally went to the doctor at 5:00 in the p.m. I am stubborn and don't like to go to the doctor, but Karen made me. You will be happy to know it's just a sprain. I did however take a picture of the x-ray, cause well, I carry my camera in my knitty bag. That's right.

Notice how my tibia and fibula join ever so gently with my talus. It's magical. Also, in case you were wondering, that's fluid on the top of my foot. Yep, a little swollen.

3. I have a problem. I need someone to call the t.v. show "Intervention". I need one, and I need one bad. You might have picked up on the fact that I have taken quite a liking to the knitty. Oh, a liking is not the word. It has taken over my very being. If it weren't for the knitty, I might have a clean house right now. Instead I have two partial scarves and some wash cloths. I went to Hobby Lobby yesterday, and what did they have you ask? A sale. A sale like none other. They had yarns on sale for 99 cents!!! We are talking six dollar yarns here people. I took part of this sale I did. It was wonderful. My friend suggested that I should limit myself to only the yarns that I can fit into my yarn box. This is a good idea I think. I just might have to get a bigger box.

4. So my bloggy friends, I go back to school tomorrow. One more month, and then I will have three weeks off before fall semester. Although I have been tempted to drop out so I can sit around and knit all day, I think I would be expected to clean the house or something too, so it is back to school.

The thigh bone is connected to the...uhhh....

I would like to begin by giving everyone a small nugget of advice. Unless you don't have anything else to do (i.e. sleep, eat) don't take an Anatomy class over a mini-mester.

It has been reported that I have left the country. Not true. Just going to school. Next thing you know there will be false sightings of me working at Burger King, conspiracy theories speculating as to who might have done away with me and all the while I will be at Martin Hall in Jacksonville Alabama.

I have however (up to this point anyway) managed to keep my head above water and like to think I am doing decent in this class. My goal is to make an A. If I do, I will be convinced that I am of above average intelligence. The amount of information that I have been taking in is seriously ridiculous. I dream of anatomical terms while I am sleeping (I am not kidding), and today the first thought in my head when I woke up was "Deltoid Tuberosity".

So, now I must study some more, neglect ever other responsibility that I have ever known and manage to memorize every intricacy in the human skeletal system before Monday at 7:30 am.

I should really stop here. There is so much more that I could say, since it has been 9 days since my last post but I just don't have time. One day kids, I shall tell you about my fabulous bucket garden, my cat dissection, and how I have totally set up housekeeping in the library.......Ok, I'll tell you about that one now, and then you must wait for the rest.

The Houston Cole Library. 5th floor. I have officially taken up residence. I'm not sure when it started. Maybe when Karen and I decided that the couch on the other side of the floor would work much better for our mini naps than the two sitting chairs that were by our study table. We pondered for a moment, and then moved the furniture. It really has worked out nice for us.

Or maybe it started when we blatantly ignored the "No food or drinks" signs that are posed everywhere and started bringing in bags of groceries. Yes, bags. I should have taken a picture of it. There is an empty bookshelf right in front of our table and it provides a perfect privacy barrier and also makes a wonderful pantry. We bring boxes of crackers, pudding cups, Cup of Noodle, loaves of bread, peanut butter and jelly, and whatever else we think might be yummy and put it on the shelf. We leave it there when we go to class and take it in and out everyday. Much more time efficient than say, eating in our cars.

One more possibility is that it happened when we started giving others who came near "our area" dirty looks. Note that it's not just me and Karen that have claimed stake. There are five of us total. We have wondered if a mini fridge would be going too far, probably.

Twisted Blister

If I were in a band it would be called Twisted Blister. Seriously, there is nothing more gross (ok, there is, but not at this VERY moment) than the exuberant number of blisters I have on my shoulders. Without exaggeration, one is the size of a quarter. I am almost tempted to post a picture to prove I'm not inflating the size. I will, I'm not scared.

You are probably wondering when I will stop talking about my sunburn. The answer is, I don't have to, it's my blog. Eventually I will tire of it though, and I will move on to another intriguing topic.

But in the mean time Twisted Blister is headlining.

In other news: My first ever patterned knitty project is almost done! I am quite excited. I frogged it twice (for those of you "non-knitters" that's official knitter language for took it apart and started over), and have since almost completed it. You guessed it, it's a wash cloth. I am making my grandmother a set for her birthday (Tuesday), so I'd better hurry with the other one.

I also start my summer semester tomorrow, and am not looking forward to the dead rat that I anticipate is waiting for me to slice his furry little body open. What does dissecting rat have to do with nursing you ask? I have no idea.

I'm off to count my blisters. Sweet dreams!

Doogie Howser M.D. reporting for duty!

Just in case you were wondering how my sunburn is doing, it's worse. I broke down and bought some Solarcane today only to return to Walgreen's three hours later to pick up a prescription my doctor called in for me.

You have to love doctors in the south. Sometimes I think I could be one. I will relay my conversation with my doctor:

Me: Hello?

Dr: Mrs. Meetchell?

Me: Yes?

Dr: Iss Dr. Ismail, you got bad sunburn huh?

Me: Yes, it happened Wednesday. I have used a suntan gel and Solarcane which both contain Lidocane, neither one helps for very long. It's hurts pretty bad, I think I need something stronger.

Dr: Hmmm, where is your sunburn?

Me: On my shoulders, upper arms and back.

Dr. Do you have blisters?

Me: No.

Dr: (thinking pause) I am trying to think.

Me: I'll tell you what I would like. I had some Silvadene cream a few years back for a burn and it worked really well.

Dr: Yes, Silvadene cream is good, I will call it in now.

I'm telling you, I am a regular Doogie Howser MD (except I'm 30....and not a boy....and I'm not a Dr., but other than that...). My doctor is just the middle man (an expensive middle man at that). I think from now on I should be allowed to write my own prescriptions. The last time I went to the Dr. (same one) I told him what prescriptions I needed then.

But alas, now I have blisters. I am convinced it was from the cream I prescribed myself. At least it's speeding up the whole process, I have things to do this weekend.

Since I am on the topic of what I am good at, I am also good at rescuing traveling husbands with flat tires who are in the middle of nowhere. It's a natural talent I do believe.

If it weren't for the sun I'd be unstoppable.

Sunkist, not just a brand of oranges

So I had a brilliant idea to take my kids to the city pool. It was going to be great. They were going to swim and I was going to read, knit, and take the occasional dip. It was going to be a day of leisure. Notice I said was.

The first stop on the way was to buy a new gigantor bathing suit because of course, last years is too small. I didn't think I would see the day when I chose a bathing suit with a skirt on it. I am officially old. I did it for the sake of public safety however, nobody should be exposed to the horror that is my thighs.

Fast forward to the pool now. We enter, there are people everywhere, and no available lounge chairs to be found. As we are making our way around the pool looking for a place to park we run into a family we know from church. We decided to take up camp next to them, the kids were happy to have someone they know to play with and the world is good. So there I am, lounging next to the skinniest woman I've ever met. She's almost like an accessory, every big girl should have a skinny friend as an accessory and ever skinny girl should have a chubby friend to make her look skinnier.

As the afternoon came to an end I noticed a bit of a burning sensation on my upper arms and shoulders. Hmmm, I bet I will be a little pink, I thought. Wrong. I am officially a lobster. My arms and legs were somewhat tan before, and they are absolutely fine. But the parts of my body that haven't seen the light of day this season are crispy, red, and sore. At thirty, you would think that I have learned to apply liberal amounts of sunscreen before I take up residence next to a large body of water. Wrong again.

I will spare the pictures on this one, for your sake and mine.

Knitty knitty bang bang

Hold on to your pants, I have a lot to say today.

I have this thing, more like an obsession. The obsession is knowing things. I like to know things. I like to know how to do things, and I like to show people the things I know and the things I know how to do. Follow?

This past week when I was in the good ol' Lonestar State I learned how to knit. It has become my new obsession. I know all of two stitches, and have no clue how to read a pattern (I like to start small). I might also add I have become an excellent washcloth knitter. Yes, I knit. I am a knitter. Wash clothes are pretty simple and are still holding my attention at this point. So, if you are on my Christmas list, guess what you are getting!? Below is an example of my handcraftiness. Note my new bamboo needles

Now, for my second little nugget of exciting news. I met a knitty friend today! Yes, I did. Her name is Linda and we shall knit together. I took my mother in-law to the Dr. today and while I was knitty my pants off in the waiting room a lady came up to me and said "I have my knitting stuff too, you have to do something while you wait". I concurred and explained that I had just learned how and I loved it. She proceeded to invite me to Knit Knight (I don't know if it's really spelled that way, but that is how I will spell it cause nobody is the boss) at a local yarn shop. I am totally there I said. Thursday's from 6-9, and get this, you can bring your kids! Don't know if I'll go that far but hey, it's nice to know I can bring my kids if I need to!

I also happened to be at the Walmart today and found some nice bamboo needles for $2.44. It's my lucky day I said to myself. This is quite the bargain since Cathie paid $11 for hers. $2.44 can you believe it?! I also got some yummy yarn to make my wash clothes with. Oh, fun times are ahead. I also got some scrumptious 100% cotton yarn for $1.27. I am raking in the good fortune!

I am sad that I will soon start my summer classes, (although the knit shop I just found out about is less than one mile from JSU and right on the way home. I don't even have to cross the street). this is going to seriously going to infringe on my knitting time. But then again, who needs to be a nurse when you can knit!?

Talk Amongst Yourselves

Boy do I have a lot to say today huh?

I did good this year not getting sucked into the movement that is American Idol. I hardly watched the auditions, managed to not know the name of a single contestant therefore keeping my Tuesday and Wednesday nights free.

I did however get sucked into the finale, since there was nothing else on. I figured I might as well have some inkling of what everyone else was talking about the next day.

One thing I was not prepared for was George Michael. Man I miss the Wham! days. Who would have thought that anyone would ever prefer George in butt cheek revealing shorts, four pair of socks and Reebok high tops?

I have decided that George looks a lot like our good friend Linda Richman.

All I have to say is, The Prince of Tides was neither about a prince nor tides. Talk amongst yourselves!

Don't Mess with Texas

Last weekend was spectacular. I made the 900 mile trek to Texas to surprise my best friend for her birthday, went to the Alamo, and had no children in my midst to wake me up before I was darn good and ready. What more can a girl ask for?




Here we are....Aren't we fabulous? Cathie is on the left, and I am the one with the most excellent farmers tan.



I have had a theory about Texans for quite some time. Being in Texas this past week has only further engrained this belief into my very being. Texans like two things. Number one, and most importantly I might add, they like Texas. This was made evidently clear by the "Don't mess with Texas" and "Things are bigger in Texas" signs everywhere. You just don't see that kind of pride in say, Alabama. "Don't mess with Alabama" just doesn't have the same ring.

The other thing Texans like is high school football. While I didn't see any football signs anywhere, I did see a couple of ridiculously large football stadiums that rival that of U of M. It's high school people, come on.


All in all, if you subtract the obscene humidity, the hotness, and the heat, it's a pretty nice place.

Only in Alabama

Some things are only acceptable in the south. For some reason the differences between the south and north have really been on my mind lately. For any of you who are from the north and never really spent any quality below the Mason-Dixon, this blog doesn't do this topic justice. It's one of those things you have to see to believe.

Don't get me wrong, the south is beautiful, the people are by far much nicer, and the pace of everyday life is a little slower. But, I can't wait to move, and when I get out of school I am outy 5000. Haven't heard that one in a while have ya?

So, I must explain how this blog was conceived. It started with my grandpa. I love this man like no other. But folks, he is a nut. A nut I say. I can't really put my finger on one single incident that makes him crazy because there isn't just ONE, there are many, simple everyday acts that let you know the man might not be playing with a full deck, but in a good way. So I give you a picture of my grandfather's tractor. You could only get away with driving this bad boy in Alabama.

Now for those of you who are not very observant, here is the close up.

I tried to give my grandpa the cup off of the back of his tractor, but it is actually bolted down. He explained that's where he put his bottle of water when he's cutting the grass (Duh!). I laughed, made fun, then totally utilized the "redneck cup holder". It was a pretty fabulous idea

Look out Bob Vila!

Some really important t.v. guy called.....they want me to replace Bob Vila.

I'll tell you what, I have spent the last week busting my hump being a fabulous home improvement queen. I finally tackled one of my bathrooms. It was a horrid sight to see before, and now it is a little fabulous if I do say so myself. With the help of some great friends we managed to revamp the loo in about 2 1/2 days. Of course I forgot to take proper before pictures, I did remember about half way through, and you will be pleased to know you are still able to see the vomit inducing green bows in the before pic. Hold on to your cookies, here it is.

Now, the picture is not exactly flattering of those in it, so the people shall remain nameless (see Karen and Maryann, I am considerate!).

Now, I want you to notice the flooring. A nice blend of poopy browns once graced my floor. No longer! Also featured in this picture is my friend Karen's husband Tom. Tom came over late one night to remove the toilet and fix the sink. He also showed up in coveralls. You really don't see enough guys in coveralls these days.

And now for the after pictures. Please note: this is an immediate after picture that means my pictures are not on the wall and the calking has not been done around the tub, but it's better than nothing!






Laid this floor myself, I did. I have discovered I am quite talented at the ways of vinyl flooring. I did have some help, but darn it, they look pretty good!

Not sure what I was thinking my taking a picture at this angle. Note how the the toilet really brings out the purple in the shower curtain!

We will eventually redo the "theme" of the bathroom. Since this is the kids bathroom, they have chosen monkeys. I found a fabulous shower curtain and some whatnots at Bed Bath and Beyond.

We also ripped out the carpet in my dining room. Why would anyone in their right mind put down carpet over hard wood. Better yet, why would anyone put down carpet over a room that is surround by rooms that still have hardwood? I don't know kids, I don't know.





I of course forgot to take before pics, but with a fresh coat of paint and the hardwood floors, it really brightens up the joint!


A word to the wise for anyone with carpet. I was appalled by the amount of dirt under the padding. I mean it was seriously some nasty business.

That's it for now, stay tuned tomorrow for another nugget.

P.S. Bob Vila, you better watch your back!