Wednesday, November 29, 2006

The CRACKHEAD Plumber Visit

We are redoing the guest bathroom. There was a "builder grade" fiberglass shower/tub in there and we ripped it out and are installing a basic steel tub, tiling around it and retiling the floor to match. This all started with a trip to Home Depot for something entirely different-I have no recollection for what-and I noticed a sink/cabinet. The one we have in there now is cheap (also builder grade) and I just said, "I wonder if this would fit in place of that one we have in the bathroom?"
Fast forward one week, an overzealous significant other, many unforseen details and unexpected issues later, and we are midway through the process of redoing the entire bathroom. It's a small bathroom- you wouldn't think it would be that expensive to tile. The contrast of the projected amount of money and the actual cost is laughable. HAHAHAHA We absolutely wouldn't have undertaken this project had we known $$$$ what we were getting into, but with the way it unfolded it's too late to stop. I'm not upset, though. It is an eye-candy improvement. We will enjoy it. And when we do put the house on the market, I really think it, along with other upgrades will help our house to sell more quickly. Something I learned in real estate school is that many people make the mistake of assuming upgrades will allow them to sell their house for more, but that's not the case. A house typically appraises and sells for very close to what houses of similar size and style are selling for within a certain radius of that area.
Anyway, Rickey personally took on our master bathroom as a tile project before, and let's just say that it took over a year to complete. This time I insisted we hired someone to lay tile while Rickey was going to pull out the tub and put in the new one. The new tub didn't line up with the pipes -although we had been told repeatedly that it would line up- and we had to call a plumber.



to be continued
I'm really not in the mood anymore to describe all of the details of our time with the very obviously drug-addicted plumber team (you know how you can just tell that someone is definitely on something) that consisted of two men. I'll just share the gist of it. First, they made sure they stretched their time into two days and totally over charged us. We were billed for three hours the first day, although we realized later that they were only there for just over two. Then, yesterday one of the men came at 12:31pm (we were timing it this time) and was finished at 1:36pm. He was going to charge us for an hour and a half. I very sweetly and calmly said "Oh, I'm being charged until 2:00? Hmmm, let me see, I think we can find something else for you to take a look at until 2:00."
He responds, "Well (fidget).....uh....I gotta (fidget) pack my stuff up and (fidget) put it in the truck. (fidget) And get my bill pad (fidget) and write the bill up. That's all a part of (fidget) my time."
He also tried to get away with charging us extra for using a standard plumbers tool, which of course was never mentioned as part of any charges prior to that moment. Just supposed to be parts and labor.
Rickey, after calling another plumbing company to find out if we should be charged for the usage of a chipping hammer, got on the phone with the man's boss (the other crackhead that was there the day before) and let him know in no uncertain terms we would not be paying for the tool usage.
Glad it's over. The tile guys haven't been a problem and have been working for several days, removing the tile floor, hanging sheetrock around the tub, and now starting to lay the tile. They should be finished Saturday. I'll post more pictures soon.

Tuesday, November 28, 2006

Inspiration Of The Day




click here to see video of the workout

Saturday, November 25, 2006

I don't mind change. I like to grow, seize opportunities that can broaden my horizons, and the sense of adventure and accomplishment that can come with venturing into the unknown. I try not to be the kind of person who is too afraid to try new things..... becoming caught up in an existence which is stuck in mundane and predictable circumstances, just to remain secure in familiar surroundings.

But-

I absolutely despise when I take that vulnerable leap of faith, only to regret it, coming to the conclusion that things were better before, and for whatever reason, I can't turn back.


Should I switch to Beta Blogger?

;)

Wednesday, November 22, 2006



Question Of The Day

I want to try some new recipes for Thanksgiving.

On the menu so far:

turkey

dressing--would love recipe

heavenly hash

sweet potato souffle

corn

potatoes of some kind-would love recipe

pies (assorted)

rolls

cranberry sauce

stuffed celery--mmm so good

deviled eggs

gravy

That's all. :)

Question of the day: Do you have any new dish suggestions or a recipe for any of the above?

** I just got back with everything for tomorrow.

I'm prepping and cooking some stuff right now.

I have been making my own Thanksgiving dinner at home for the last 3 years. Doing very well if I do say so myself.

The Heavenly Hash I mentioned above is a fruit medley and is absolutely awesome. I got the recipe from an old friend and mother figure...a true Southern Belle. She passed away over 6 years ago, but her tradition will carry on. She was a wonderful cook. I'm not a fan of fruit salads, because most of them have mayonnaise in them-yuck-but this one has whipped cream. mmmm

recipe:
tiny marshmallows--1plus cups

crushed pineapple—-1 small can
mandarin oranges---1 large or 2 small cans
crushed pecans---1/3 cup
chopped coconut—1/4 cup
sour cream-teaspoon
whipped cream---1 cup plus**

I'm thinking of adding a few fresh strawberries.

Happy Thanksgiving!

Tuesday, November 21, 2006


click to enlarge--check out her eyes in this picture

Friday, November 17, 2006

Okay, to recap on my obsession preoccupation and explain how the Tom-Katie-Suri saga has continued to keep me suspicious.

I have always been a Tom Cruise fan, loved almost all of his movies and he seemed like a nice guy. I think that I, like alot of mainstream America, have seen practically everything he's been in. And I liked Katie Holmes as well.

I first noticed that they seemed to be heavily selling their relationship to the media and to the general public...as though on a campaign trail (see some photos) for their relationship. Tom had always been known for his privacy regarding his personal life. We heard them over and over professing their undying love for each other and repeated statements of how "amazing" the other one was to them. Kissing directly for the paparazzi. Struck me as odd. But I threw it off to the timing of promoting his movie and thought that it was pretty tacky to exploit a new relationship to sell a movie. Soon though, I became more suspicious due to noticing and reading articles and comments about certain pregnancy photos looking really off. Fake. Then came up and down pregnancy bumps.
Let's also not forget all the reports of Tom Cruise acting completely strange for the last year. There were continuous rumblings of a hush-hush contract between the two, saying arranged marriage and babies were part of the deal. Mutually beneficial to both parties...

What's that saying..."Where there's smoke there's fire?"

Why did the pregnancy photos repeatedly look "off"?
Why all the delay and mysterious signing discrepancies with the birth certificate?
Why ----after they were SOOOOOO public with every single other aspect of their relationship and pregnancy...advertising and announcing each step----why the very delayed and heavily re-touched -professionally shot photos....?
Why so long to see Suri out in public, although Tom and Katie are constantly out and about???
Why does she look odd?
Why does she look Asian?
Why does she look older than 7 months?

I believe they thought we'd easily buy into it.
He's rumored to really be a gay guy, obsessed with keeping his image hetero...with just enough fame, arrogance, and money to get away with this SHAM. She's a b-list actress, his "beard" as they say in Hollywood... and she received A-list status and mega $$$$$$$$$$$$ for this.
Who knows?
All I do know, is that my suspicions haven't been alleviated and I sincerely hope that eventually the truth is exposed. Until then I, along with many others, will be watching with unwavering interest.



---and one more observation:
The pictures from the post below were the first ever public Suri photos.
The photos were obtained from this event:
***live video footage

What strikes me about it, is Tom and Katie would obviously know that this moment is a very big deal. They of course knew paparazzi would be going absolutely crazy for this moment...first shots of Suri since Vanity Fair. See the smiles plastered on their faces to look relaxed and so happy? Listen to how insanely loud it was and all the chaos and flashes happening around an infant. Maybe it's just me, but it seems it would be natural for a parent to feel extremely protective in this situation, and instinctively would keep checking on her well being --and carefully shield her from flashes and noise...but watch him. He seems intently relaxed and nonchalant.

Thursday, November 16, 2006







photos perezhilton.com

I seriously think she looks plastic. Plastic surgery....(surgeries) to Westernize her eyes and more to look more like them.
I wonder when they adopted her if they used something like
THIS
service, but obviously more discreet.

My opinion/assessments:
Older looking than 7 months.
Her eyes look strange...
Above/ in between her eyes looks red and irritated, as though not completely healed from surgery.
Her whole face just looks surgically contrived.
Random Ramblings

Thanksgiving a week away???? November is positively flying by....which of course means Christmas will be here before I know it. As usual, even though I resolve every year to shop early in the year and have it over with, I still have all of the shopping to do. There's alot of stuff to get to complete Thanksgiving dinner, and only one Christmas present has been purchased so far.

Speaking of Thanksgiving, (food) I am still battling my weight. In a continuous war with myself. I am lazy. That's at the core of my problem. Laziness usually wins over good intentions. *insert battle scene, swords drawn*
I'm thinking of joining a yoga class.

I'm sure you've noticed if you stop by my bog, that I've started taking alot of pictures lately. I don't know what got into me. I've enjoyed it, though. I made the autumn bog, and then felt inspired to make a blog for each of the four seasons. I was thinking about winter yesterday, and thought, "Ugh...winter is kinda ugly." I'll be waiting for a snow or ice storm. I can take Christmas pictures, too. Oh wait, maybe I should start a Christmas blog.....no maybe a "Holiday Blog" to cover all of them. Nahhh. :) Who knows.

Just got through reading The Devil Wears Prada. Much different than the movie, which I saw before I read the book. I liked them both.

Still writing my novella. What NaNoWriMo truly did for me was open up a door, made me realize I, too, can write a book, and the only thing stopping me from writing a book, is me. I now feel like I can write 100 books if I want...childrens books, teenage romances, self help books, fiction, and more.
I have the right to reach out for it. I don't think I ever really understood that.... That was always for other people. So, even though I quit pretty early in the game, I gained something that will benefit me for the rest of my life. And there's always next year..... ;)

.....feels unfinished... "c'mon Shari, one more paragraph."

Recently, we sold some items in our garage and we are going to donate the money to charity.
We're deciding exactly what to do with it. We kinda want to actually see the money help someone, not just write a check. We talked about Christmas shopping and then donating the gifts. We'll see. Maybe grocery shopping.



aight. that's all.

Tuesday, November 14, 2006

Monday, November 13, 2006




the sky out back tonight

Saturday, November 11, 2006

CLICK PICTURE TO ENLARGE



Go see a few more new pictures at my autumn blog

Thursday, November 09, 2006

Rickey and I were playing around on the internet last night, searching MySpace for people we know or knew long ago. He got me to put in the name of my first love. You know the one. The guy you lose your...innocence to, the one you think will last for all eternity, until he eventually (10 months in to it) breaks your heart and it takes you forever to get over him. That one. Well, he was actually on there. Someone I haven't seen in over 20 years. The fact that I can even say a statement like "haven't seen in over 20 years" is so strange---sounds like an insane amount of time to me. Anyway, upon discovering that he indeed DOES have a MySpace page, we checked it out.

"That's not him!"
Gag, "When did he get fat?"
"He was not ugly like that."
"Oh. My. God."
"Noooo that CAN'T be him, he looks WAYYY to rough and too old."
"Grooooossssss."


Yeah, that was about it.
Yuck. Yuck. Yuck.

Very glad things didn't work out.
:)

Wednesday, November 08, 2006





NanoWriMo No More

Made a decision
Hectic week, stressed out
I am quitting, y'all.

Not like me to quit
I am the type to suffer
And never give up

But I feel relieved
When I step out of this box
Give myself more time

Annoyed by pressure
A burden off my shoulders
Maybe now I'll write?

Getting bored with it
Heroine's on heroin
HAHAHAHAHA

Denise and Eileen
I wish both of you the best
My novelist friends

Saturday, November 04, 2006



Her Highness, Princess Puddin'

Friday, November 03, 2006


(click to enlarge)
I cropped this picture that I took the other day and made it my desktop background. I can look at from an angle and it looks to me like a dreamy painting. I plan to take one there again in the spring. I made a blog for each of the four seasons. I had alot of fun the other day trying to capture some of the beauty of fall.

Thursday, November 02, 2006



Click on picture to enlarge

I made an Autumn picture blog. Come check it out HERE

Wednesday, November 01, 2006

48,991 To Go.......

Sarah awakened abruptly to a blood-curdling scream that pierced the silence of the nighttime air. “What’s going on?” she thought as she sat up in bed, listening intently. A shrill scream penetrated the quietness of the house once again. “Oh my God! What is happening?” she wondered again and quickly rushed out of bed. She pulled on her robe and was very careful to make minimal noise as she tip-toed towards the bedroom door. The voice had screamed twice now, was definitely a female and sounded like the person was a young adult. The only people that should be in the house right now should be Sarah and her aunt, Rebecca. She tried not to let fear overtake her as familiar memories from long ago came flooding back. “It can’t be…” she thought to herself, “I can’t even think about that now.” She willed her mind to focus on what was happening in the present moment. She could now hear the person sobbing and wailing as though in deep agony. Sarah stood at the edge of the bedroom near the doorway, anxiously trying to decide how to move forward. Her first reaction was to call the police, but the nearest phone was downstairs. She tried to decide if she should grab something to protect herself and rush to see what was going on, or sneak slowly through the hall and down the spiral stairs to the phone that was in the kitchen. She knew the situation at hand may be so urgent that there was no time to spare. It could be something that needed to be dealt with immediately to save the young woman’s life. What if Sara and her aunt were themselves in imminent danger? “Aaaaaaaaaaaiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiii!!!!!!!” This time the scream was more eerie and intense than ever, and now Sarah could tell that it was coming from just outside the house, somewhere very near the house out on the front lawn. That didn’t mean someone else may not be inside the house, she thought. She trembled, walked into the hall and instinctively grabbed a brass figurine, a small, yet heavy antique statuette, which had been in the McClaine family for years. Just as she grabbed it, Aunt Rebecca appeared at end of the hallway, also preparing to go downstairs. Relieved that her aunt was okay, Sara motioned for her to follow quickly and quietly, just in case someone was in the house. It was an extremely painstaking and panic filled journey, both of them creeping softly down the stairs. There was suddenly the sound of glass shattering, along with more crashing noises from somewhere downstairs. She could still hear the screams coming from the front yard. Sarah flew to the kitchen, grateful that it was completely opposite of where she could hear the noise from inside and grabbed the phone. Just as she started to dial she could hear someone speaking, “Hello? Hello? Sarah? Is that you? Rebecca?” She immediately recognized the voice as Justin Griffith, a nearby neighbor. “Yes, Justin. Rebecca and I...-” he interrupted, and inquired “Are you and Rebecca okay, Sarah? I heard screaming!” Sara spoke urgently in a hushed tone, “We hear it too, Justin! It’s still happening—and we just heard glass breaking from somewhere downstairs in the house! I was just going to call the police!” “No, Sarah, I’ll call them. Get outside now. You and Rebecca get outside this second and come over here as quick as you can!” he firmly instructed. They hung up and Sarah and Aunt Rebecca hurried toward the front door. They could hear more loud sounds happening inside the house as though someone, possibly more than one person was purposely destroying and breaking items in the home, but their only concern at the moment was one of survival. Sarah opened the front door and grabbed her aunt’s hand as she guided them outside as quickly as possible. “Where is the woman who is screaming?” she thought to herself. She looked around wildly as she ran towards her neighbor’s house. Rebecca let out a gasp, “Oh, Sarah! No, it can’t be! It’s--” Sara’s eyes followed the direction her aunt was staring in, frozen in fear, hoping this was all just a nightmare. “Oh, please God,” she thought, “Not now. I can’t deal with this again.” But it was exactly what she feared. “It’s Alison.” A young woman in her early twenties, twenty four years old to be precise, just three years younger than Sarah, was kneeling on the ground, rocking back and forth and screaming hysterically and incoherently. “That must be Derrick that is inside the house then,” Sarah realized. “Or who knows who it could be with Alison?” Sara exclaimed, “What are you doing here, Ali? Oh my God. Why did you come back?” Alison looked up, eyes glazed, definitely on drugs. What she was high on, Sarah couldn’t tell. Tears were streaming down Alison’s face. “It’s not what you think, Sarah. I swear I’m not on anything. I’m clean.” They had heard it all before and she knew from experience that no matter what Alison said during moments like these, that Alison was a liar. Not to be believed. Rebecca came up from behind Sarah and hissed, “I told you to never ever come back here again!” Alison’s long jet black hair was in a tangled mess, her clothing filthy and tattered, she smelled and looked as though she hadn’t bathed in weeks. Most likely she hadn’t. It was, as usual, heart-rending to see her like this, but at some point during the last ten years, both Rebecca and Sarah had found it necessary to somehow harden their hearts to her and her antics. Eventually everyone had turned their back on helping Alison or being fooled by her ever again. Since Alison was around the age of fourteen, she had repeatedly destroyed the well being of everyone around her. She had used and taken advantage of her family’s love and kindness over and over again until there was no more willingness from anyone to trust in her again. There was no emotional substance left in Alison that made it worth dealing with her anymore.

NaNoWriMo Experience of the day:

Things I've thought:
stuff in all the extra words I possibly can, even when unnecessary, to reach the 50,000 words ASAP.
I may go "Horror" with this, nahhh nevermind I'll go stranger/burglar, No, I'll go...., etc.
At one point I thought about letting some new, not yet introduced main character suddenly shut the book that she was either:

a.writing
b.reading (thus leaving me open to a new and wide open plot that would go back and forth intertwining the reader/writer's life with the book she was reading /writing. Not connecting them, just that I could write back and forth about both.

and then /I thought nahhhh, go ON!!! Get BUSY!!!!