The Scene at my house last night....

My sister, friends and myself all enjoyed a lovely evening at the Neponset Valley Annual Flavors Gala. It was filled with lots of yummy food and good drinks. Kudos to the guys at the Bacardi booth who made everyone full drinks of which I enjoyed two: A Dewars and Ginger beer and a Bacardi Razz with Sprite....yummy. If you are ever in the south shore area I highly recommend it for next year http://www.nvcc.com/.

My sis drove me home and decided to pop in to see the doggies who were sitting outside barking like lunatics to see her. She then said I'll pop my head in to say hi to the hubby. I opened the door to my kitchen and a wave of stench came through. The bathroom door was shut so obviously the hubby was indisposed. My sister laughed and said "It smells like he is busy so just tell him I said hi" and then left. He emerged approximately 30 seconds later and said wow this house smells like crap. I agreed and told him next time to open the window and use the lysol can. He was immediately offended spouting "That isn't me, I don't smell like that" he then paused and said "Wait, does your sister think that was me?" "OMG -- you must call her immediately and tell her" at which time I fell down laughing. The smell was from an accident that Rem Dog had on the kitchen floor that had been bagged (loosely) and tossed into the kitchen trash can. I spent the rest of the night trying to console my husband "stinky" all the while refusing to call my sister and offer the true explanation.

All things Icky..

So the topic for today is all things icky.

Ick 1 -- A toothbrush with a long hair stuck in its bristles (inserted into my mouth albeit briefly). I don't even care that it was my own hair, the feeling first think in the morning made me wretch.

Ick2 -- Flaking skin that cannot be controlled. Being sick for what seems to be the past decade has left me with tissue inflicted dry skin around my nose. I am a complete skin care whore and no product I have used is working. I have tried the netrogena exfoliation tool to sand off my skin, multiple lotions, various cleanser and my skin texture is just not getting back to normal. This means no makeup for me this week which is scary enough in itself. This is due to the fact that the only thing I may hate more than flaky skin is bad caky\streaky make up. I would rather go bare and scare. I may break out the nail file and take it to my face soon.

Ick 3 -- Dirty Converse sneakers. Yes I am lucky enough to be able to sport jeans and sneakers to work any day I like. I woke up VERY late today and literally threw my hair in a pony tail, tossed on a sweater and jeans and jumped into my favorite lace less converse sneakers as I headed out the door. It wasn't until I was ascending the steps to my office that I noticed that my previously white kicks are now dirty beige. I forgot I wore them for a dog outing last week. It is a good thing I am working a half day in the office and the remainder at home because I am feeling a bit scuzzy, no makeup and dirty sneakers scream messy Marvin to me.

Any and all other offers of Ick are being accepted. Any entries??

Summer Daydreaming.

Is the winter ever going to be over? I am being honest as this year seems to be dragging on relentlessly. I have been daydreaming of outdoor living lately.....flowers, green grass, cook outs, warm breezes, etc. It seems I am SOL until July. We are going to look at new gas grills this week to replace our old one. I am pretty excited to actually get a large enough grill to entertain with. I am also stoked to get one that has a built in light and encases the propane tank. I know what you are thinking, wow she is boring!! If anyone has a grill they LOVE shoot the model my way as I have no grill knowledge other than I have heard Webber is good. I have been a bit obsessed with home and garden Chanel shows lately, especially Moving Up. I have decided I am going to transform our outdoor area into a tranquil oasis for myself this year, oh and the dogs :) The grill is the first step and the second will be a new umbrella and comfy chairs.

In other mundane news, this week I am starting to get sick again. My immune system is waging war on me for some reason. I am pretending it isn't happening. I refuse to have to say yes I was sick for the entire month of March. I just started back at the gym late last week and then Sunday night I felt it creeping back. I have a wine\food Tasting with my ladies this Thursday night, Friday night I am hitting up Wendell's for some wings with another friend and Saturday night is our friend's 40th birthday at a bar in Boston. No time for sickness, so this time I am just not accepting it.

Sweater

I am in search of a Kelly Green cable knit sweater. I saw Cindy Fitzgibbon of Fox News fame sporting one last week for the flower show and I loved it. I have yet to be able to find a nice cotton long sleeved one of decent weight. I want something between a thin clingy material and a thick merino so I think cotton will do. My google search continues......as all the standard places have turned up nothing in that lovely shade of bright kelly green :(

In other news I cut another 2 inches off my hair and dyed it back to dark brown. My highlights had moved from a nice light brown over to a horrid shade of orange in the last few weeks, sprinkled with some nice gray hairs at the crown. I feel a little more human now, its funny how a haircut can do that for ya. I am still hoping to get a bob at some point this year. It is my goal if I hit a certain weight and maintain it for a couple of months. I love a long bob look with sweepy bangs but I don't sport the thinnest face around so some lb droppage is necessary.

Suffering....

I suffer from a poor office location. I used to like my spot by the windows, close to the kitchen. But lately it is like an obstacle course just attempting to get out to use the ladies room. I wonder if I have a sign that says please stop me and ask a technical related question because where ever I was headed (with purpose) is clearly less important. I am contemplating setting up shop in the broom closet adjacent to the loo so that all my needs are filled and I can get some work done. Don't get me wrong I don't mind answering questions but when I am clearly in motivated motion then please be polite and allow me on my way. A simple email request will suffice, I will get back to you. Thats all I ask......

Happy St. Patrick's Day!!

My second favorite holiday. I happily made it out to work today although I am still not feeling 100% but another day in that house and I would have taken myself out back.....

I do have to mention that today is my beloved pup's birthday. She is four years old today!! Happy birthday bumblebee a treat is in your future. I may even make her a hamburger cake tonight with cheese. Have a pint for me, lord knows I would love me some alcohol.

Useless Husband was not mentioned on WebMD...

In the list of symptoms for the FLU.

My husband and I have been couped up in our house for the past four days both grossly ill. And yes by day three we were really starting to get on each other's nerves. I am confident in saying that women handle sickness better than men. Let me offer a few examples. We had exactly the same symptoms that made it near impossible for us to move but yet I drove myself to the doctors on Friday full body aches and a 102 degree fever in tow. I get a call from my loving spouse asking for me to pick him up a sub on the way home because he can't move from the couch. Ummm, yeah exactly what I wanted to do after I sit and wait in CVS. I am then told later in the day that we are out of tissues and water, instead of offering to go purchase them he continues to moan on the couch and is now using a hand towel to blow his nose. I drove out very early yesterday to the supermarket and picked up the necessary FLU remedies including water and tissues. I am not one for using linens in place of such things like tissues and TP. Later in the day around 11am he says "are you hungry?", neither of us have cash so delivery is out of the question. I waiting thinking he would possibly offer to go grab us something considering I had made the last million trips including all the potty trips for both dogs. I was mistaken. By 2:30 pm neither one of us had eaten I finally gave in and drove to the local sub shop. The only thing he did move for was to grab my laptop so he could continue in the fantasy baseball draft without moving from his molded spot on the couch. This infuriated me as one would think that he would return my laptop back to me upstairs when finished but that was a no go. That was my breaking point and we got into a spat. I told him something along the lines that my laptop was no longer available for public use and he would have to go downstairs to his office to use his own. Might I mention same symptoms, not same level of responsibility. The irony is just moments ago he just finally came upstairs looking for the laptop. I told him I was working, I feel blogging is working in a way. I am definitely going to make him wait it out. I may even "forget" to bring it downstairs with me on my next trip. And yes childishness is a symptom listed on WebMD for the FLU. I think we both need to get healthy and out of this house before we start sparing like American Gladiators.

I can only hope that today I will have enough energy to clean up my house. Two weeks of two sick adults it looks like a it should be condemned....seriously I am disgusted by myself.

Annoyance of the day...

Since my house has been transformed into a MASH unit I feel I should keep my posts in line with my mood.....yucky.

High annoyance award of the day goes to, drumroll.....Diesel truck in the drive through. All I wanted was a latte. I am far to sick and scary looking to be seen in public so a quick trip through the drive through was in order. My luck staying true to form for the week granted me the gift of a huge diesel Ford Super Duty (driven by a woman) behind me in the drive through making any order in audible. It was maddening to say the least, especially when you voice is hoarse to begin with. If you have an engine that rates on the Richter scale, for all that is good and holy park your jalopy and walk in. This also applies for those motorist who have a base system in their car that can vibrate a person's fillings.

Thank you, that is all.

Reason 142 Why I hate the doctors

So I finally broke down and called my doctor after being sick for the better part of a week. I came down with a wretched cough and sore throat that I could no longer ignore (on top of the intermittent chills, fever and headaches). I got an appointment for this morning. I arrived at the office 10 minutes early to check in and found the waiting room packed. I will not mention which care facility I go to as I really like my doctor but I hate the hospital she is affiliated with and also the geographic location is questionable. The lobby was filled with lots of angry sick people. I found out that they were angry because they had all been waiting so long. It never fails, even when I have a pre-scheduled appointment that I have to wait for a long time. I did witness (while waiting) a woman who brought in her daughter with a possible broken foot. I was within earshot so I heard her pleading with the woman behind the desk to fit her daughter in and that she didn't have a phone to call in advance. The desk clerk was trying to convince her to bring her daughter to the emergency room but the woman did not have the $$ to pay the fee, only enough for her primary co-pay which was why she came there first. They didn't have an appointment available until 2:45, this was 9:30am. The girl, no more than 15 was sitting in tears in a hospital issued wheelchair. I felt so guilty sitting there not having to worry about paying my co-payment. If I hadn't been sick for the past week and secretly worried that I had something major wrong I would have given her my appointment. The healthcare system just really sucks sometimes. I am in the process of switching doctors because there ain't no way in hell I am giving birth in the hood. And no I am not preggo but I am planning for the distant future. I waited for 45 minutes to find that I am fighting a strong case of the FLU, nothing more. I have never had the FLU or been sick this long in my life, with the exception of Viral Pneumonia when I was 20 I (that was some scary shit folks). She prescribed me Mucinex and inhaler and told me to rest. She did give me chest x-ray for good measure, that and all cultures came back negative. Apparently I need to just suffer until it goes away. Hubby is also sick again but I was assured you can't "pass" the FLU to each other. I just find it strange that he was sick, then semi- better, then I was sick, then semi-better and now we are both sick again with the same symptoms. On a happier note, my fever broke at around 2pm full sweats and all ( feel the cuteness) and I am starting to feel a little bit better. This mucinex stuff seems to be working, even though I picked it up over the counter because as per norm my prescriptions at CVS weren't ready. That is a rant for another day. I swear I am going to go back in to work and my office mates are going to be looking at me sideways wondering if I was really sick or not. I called my boss several times today as I was working (with fever) from home and he got to hear my Demi Moore to the 100th power raspy voice first hand, so he knows I wasn't fooling.

Thank god its Friday. I am sitting in my bedroom in the middle of my bed, laptop in hand looking out over the lake with my dogs sleeping at my feet. I guess sick or not life isn't so bad.

Fighting through the FLU

Not much new in my neck of the woods aside from the fact I came down with the FLU. Yes that is right sick since last Wednesday. Love the delirious fever, chills, headaches, runny nose...yeah all the stuff no medicine can help. I ventured in to work today for fear that the walls of my house were closing in on me.

The only noteworthy events of the past week. I upgraded the family trashcan from a half circle simple human (that rusted) to this fingerprint proof one. Love it!! I also purchase a new spring Northface jacket for myself (in a really cool green\gray combo) and I also picked one up for husband (different color). He will be turning the ripe old age of 36 tomorrow. We have doggie training tomorrow night so dinner out will have to be later in the week. And the last of the oh so very exciting news is that I have been married for what seems to be eons and I am finally going to get to see my professional photographs this week. My photographer is such a sweetheart or else I would be far more sour for having waited this long. She said she loved our stuff so much that she is using one of of shots as the lead in picture on her website, pretty cool stuff (as long as I don't look fat).

Rockstar Puppy

Last night was an explosion of puppy cuteness. A ring full of every kind of 4 month old dog imaginable and our beast was the biggest. He did great though which surprised the heck out of the hubby and I. The instructor used him for a demo for teaching your dog to pay attention and he was stellar. I think she was using spiked treats because at home he is a demon. We whispered to each other that our dog was the rockstar of the class, the cutest, etc.. I can only imagine how we be when we have children. Can you say competitive??

We shot home to watch Big Brother 9 because we are in a heated contest with our friends. What else is there to do in doldrums of winter than to wager on cheesy reality TV. See I thought so too. I was rooting for my girl Alison who in real life would be the type of girl I would despise but she is one of my players in the show so go go Boston Bitch. I figured her status as a gambler would at least garner me the manipulation angle, so far she is has been terrible.

I awoke at 2am unable to swallow. It seems I may have caught the cold my husband was sporting last weekend. I am bulldogging it at work but so far I am not feeling it. Also, can some one please explain why every time I venture to try a cold medicine it make a line on my front teeth. This has happened since I was a child. I take medicine for a cold and I wind up with a distinct line across my teeth, the bottom appearing whiter. Strange but true.

Lets play pretend...

That is exactly what I did today at lunch.

I ventured over to Dunkin Donuts today after the gym and ordered up a big fat iced coffee. I am a rebel and even drove to the DD with my window halfway down. I know, crazy right? I am determined to make it though this terrible winter even if I have to resort to fantasies that involve me sipping my iced coffee while standing outside in the nice warm breeze. I almost forgot I had on a puffy black winter coat. Damn that iced caffeine tasted sweet....

Not much happeing.

Not much more than hibernating going on in my neck of the woods. When will winter be over? My highlights of last week were a trip to Johny Rockets and Sephora in Burlington. That place is dangerous for lunchtime sprees. I love makeup shopping, a little too much. I spent the weekend at the doggie park on Saturday and Sunday attempting to squeeze the energy out of the beast. On Sunday I felt inspired and cooked a homemade chicken soup, made chicken salad, a turkey meatloaf and cooked multple chicken breasts to stick in the fridge for lunch this week. I have almost no excuse to heat terribly and I don't have to cook this week to boot. The hubby wasn't too keen as he doesn't like leftovers but I have a feeling he will start to when I tell him I am not cooking. Salads for me this week, he can have the same or fend for himself. I am done cooking (and eating) cheesy broccoli rice.

Tonight we have our first training class for the beast which should be fun. He is a little devil so hopefully this will help improve his behavior. I can only imagine how he will act when he is cut loose in a ring full of puppies, chaos will ensue for certain.

More baby news. There have been four boys (well one set of twins) born in our friendship circle in the past two weeks. I have a feeling next year will be the year for us attending year one birthdays.