some pics, some random, some bitching...

we got the ottoman!!! here it is with my "work at home" set up. (working from home on a big red couch is not so bad...)

dan's mom brought over fresh garden stuff, including a ton of tomatoes. YES!!!!!!

i also got important holiday weekend supplies from the grocery store:

the grocery makes me nuts. i am normally patient. i don't have road rage. i let other drivers cut in front of me. i don't honk. i stay calm. it's the grocery store that brings out my hidden anger. i become enraged when the person in front of me doesn't put down the plastic divider so that i can start putting my stuff on the conveyor belt. today the lady in front of me seemed oblivious to anyone else around her, as she slowly unloaded her cart, bumped into other customers, and argued with her husband. when she got her change back, she stood there for a moment, staring at the cash in her hand. she finally said to the cashier, "hey, you owe me money! the total was $182, i gave you $200 & you only gave me back $18! you owe me another $10!!!" the poor kid just stood there, looking so annoyed, trying to explain basic math to her for the next 5 minutes. she finally gave up and walked away. i wanted to drink a swig of sailor jerry's and then smack her, smack her real hard. thankfully it's a 3 day weekend and i have nothing planned except to relax and eat tomatoes.

another thing from the grocery story: what is "activia" yogurt? i think it's for ladies and helps them be "regular", but i'm not sure which bodily functions it's for. and what if a guy eats it?

in other news: dan thinks he looks a little like this creepy clown:

and finally: we had our first "barn groupies" in a long time. i was working from home and the dogs started barking like crazy. i saw a strange car parked out by the barn. i walked over and it was an older couple who said that our lake county barn was one of the last one's on their list. apparently they have driven all over the state, taking photos of each of the 88 barns. crazy! last week we had a professional photographer ask if he could shoot a girl's senior pics in front of the barn. of course we said ok. i still get a kick out of barn groupies!!!

one more thing: a google image search for "barn groupie" brings up my blog and a pic of groundcat!

some random type items

i'm bored and boring! i need some blog excitement!!!
this is.....as insane as the whole planting your baby's placenta thing...playing bongos naked....naming your kid miller lyte (his brother did that.) koo koo nutty.

awesome review of one of my fav movies. the review i've been wanting to write for years, but am too lazy and not as talented of a write. ok, bye bye.

tai chi groundcat

yeah.

i blogged a while back about things i don't understand. one thing i left off the list was "the hills". it's a "sort of" reality show about filthy rich kids, on MTV. it's been on for a few years and some girls from the show have become famous, for being rich and on tv. the show is controversial because it's billed as a reality show, but viewers have found discrepencies, and it seems as though producers sometimes manipulate the cast into storylines. basically, it ain't real.


i bring this up because i am reminded of "the hills" while watching the democratic national convention. politics in general these days, seems very scripted. mccain is on conan trying to make funny. (note to mccain, fire your comedy writer.) they all do this, no matter what party, and it seems fake. i caught some of the convention coverage on the drive in this morning, and hilary's "no way. no how. no mccain." was being played over & over. now really? is that the best a team of high paid speech writers can come up with? i know we need slogans...but this is up there with, "where's the beef? where's the mccain???"


ok, rant is over. i need to upload more old marching band photos! speaking of that. here's a website with 50 years of north high band photos. amazing!!! and i'll add a photo to this post that i've been meaning to use for weeks now. enjoy!

why i love my husband

look at the presents groundcat got me on ebay!!!

the funny thing is that he actually outbid me for the same creepy dolls. i was bidding on them for his birthday (september 26th, don't forget!) he didn't realize he was bidding against me when he entered his bid. it's ok, they ended up with us, where they belong.

stolen meme from live journal friends

choose a singer/band/group. answer using ONLY titles of songs by that singer/band/group. i pick warren zevon!!!

1. are you male or female? suzie lightning

2. describe yourself: mutineer

3. what do people feel when they're around you? desperados under the eaves

4. how would you describe your previous relationship? bad luck streak in dancing school

5. describe your current relationship: el amor de mi vida

6. where would you want to be now? splendid isolation

7. how do you feel about love? let nothing come between you

8. what's your life like? roll with the punches

9. what would you ask for if you had only one wish? don't let us get sick

10. say something wise: i'll sleep when i'm dead

now everyone else play along and do this. i boss you!!!

a hodge-podge (whatever that is)

(our beloved band director, circa 1985, allowing us to torture him, yet again...see #6 below.)

1. this gum is awesome. i took a photo on my blackberry and tried to get the lighting just right. "Do you want a unique and delicious way to freshen your breath? ICE BREAKERS ICE CUBES are a totally new experience in gum. These cube-shaped pieces are packed with flavor crystals and specially frosted to give you an instantly cold mouth freshening experience that lasts on and on! ICE BREAKERS ICE CUBES is Instantly Cold Mouth Freshening Gum that you can enjoy anytime anywhere because it comes in a convenient flip-top package." i totally wrote that and did not cut & paste from some dumb website.

2. sladj said something in comments about chik-fil-a, about how the service is great and there are flowers on the table, and i realized this: i feel like eating fast food should be a dirty little secret. i don't want human contact. just take my cash and pass me the bag of junk. not unlike a drug deal. i think when someone goes into a back alley to score dope, they want to avoid eye contact, ya dig? he he he.....

3. speaking of sladj- our 20 year high school reunion is this november. i've blogged about it before and i am hoping to drag her, rachel, katie and other along for the big event. this has also sparked a hankering for a marching band reunion for some folks. so over on facebook, an old high school chum (and fellow band geek) & i have started a "eastlake north high marching band alumni" group. in less then a week we've got over 20 members and 100's of posts! old friends are getting in touch and we're all reminding each other of the fun/ weird/ crazy stuff we did back then. i was 100% hardcore band geek, and loved every minute of it. i loved band camp, orchestra, pep band, the whole thing!!! wow, that was a rant and a 1/2.

4. another product endorsement: these rosemary & olive oil potato chips. i can't find a good pic of them online and sadly, don't have a bag handy to photograph. but they kick ass!

5. i got to work at 7am today. crazy! chugging lots of coffee, getting all kinds of work done, plus blogging. i think i'm high on life! and we got the red ottoman finally so i'm walkin' on sunshine... (that horrible song has been stuck in my head since the weekend, for some unknown reason.)

6. i just got an email from my old band director! (see #3 above.) mr. rayer was my band director for 6 years. he encouraged me to take up the french horn when other music teachers said i was too young. he selected me to attend summer programs for "gifted musicians" and even talked to me about applying for music scholarships. he also let me hide in his office when i didn't want to go to gym class. i am adding his photo at the top. it's from band camp at lake chataqua, 1985. we put on skits each night and he let us TP him on stage. (if you don't know what TP is, you are not a band geek!) he remembers me as being a great french horn player and a pain in his ass. hahahahahaha, YES!!!!

7. also, another blog has a great post that i've been wanting to do myself, but haven't had time. it's all about madonna and the pics are....disturbing. i won't add any to my blog. they are more frightening then these pics!

8. i found this website through O&A and it's hilarious. it's a guy who actually answers an email from a nigerian spam scam crook (the ones that send form letters begging for money and promising more money in return for a loan.) he emailed with this scam artist for months and it's so damn funny!

9. question: how long are the summer olympics? it seems like it's been on for about 2 months and they are just now finishing. and taking its place in the "boring-est tv" is now the democratic convention. yawn.

10. speaking of boring and lasting too long, i started this dumb blog post yesterday! i need to hit "publish post" and be done.

the weekend in scenic mentor...

the deer came by to see the new landscaping out front. they seemed to approve....

we checked out the new chik-fil-a in mentor. groundcat has never had it, and i've long talked about my love for the chicken sandwich with pickles...

they didn't seem to realize that they have a drive-thru with an intercom, and instead has workers outside with notepads taking our orders.

side note: the new chik-fil-a in mentor has a vast menu that does not include melted cheese to dip one's waffle fries in. blasphemy!!!

thank god i could still get a slice of cheese added to my sandwich. speaking of that, all chik-fil-a stores are closed on sundays because they are a christian-based company.

we were eating our sangwiches and actually witnessed a wedding party exiting a limo-bus to have their photos taken inside. crazy!!!

and finally, big balls in front of the mentor target.

ok, good night babies!!!!

yeah!

BFFs

i got busted......

this is me truckin' on home after work 08/04/08 at 4:52pm. i was going 39 in what i thought was a 35 MPH zone. sadly, it is a 25 MPH zone.

stunning before and after pics!

i can't believe this is the same house! when i walked out to see how they were doing, i actually cried. i was just so overwhelmed and excited to see how nice it looked. i've got more pics on the photo blog here.

the transformation.......

click on photos below to see larger versions.

before and after:

(the front of the house. this blew me away.)


side view


back of house


view from living room window

more crazy landscaping pics: