Be careful out there, folks

Weirdest thing. I jammed the top corner of my toe into one of the concrete and stone stairs this morning on our way up from Oliver and Daisy's morning walk. I've got a blood blister on the toe now, and it's super sensitive. Even if I step on my foot a certain way, and it maybe tilts and veers to the left off its center, the toe hurts. It's a very unexpected sting of pain. I even hesitate to call it pain, because it's more like a sharp twinge. But I don't think I've ever had such a bizarre injury.
It's also weird because I noticed, and we discussed, Ryan's blood blister on his hand this past weekend, and it's probably been years since I've seen one on anyone, and had one on myself. And now, there's Ryan's and mine. If bad things really do happen in threes, I'll be very concerned for all my friends and family, and hoping that no one else gets a blood blister this week.
Also ... stupid stair busted my pedicure.

Boxes are no longer being counted

I've stopped keeping count of my boxes. I did pack another two today, and started three others, but as to the whole number, I have only an inkling. I'm thinking more than 50, definitely. As the movers arrive three weeks from today, I am getting quite excited about leaving the state of Texas. I've got most of my kitchen done, and a large portion of the office. I'm starting my list for the last couple weeks here, and also for once we get to Arizona. I'm a "short timer," which is fun and exciting, but also it's getting a bit stressful. I can tell because I feel like this blog post is rambling.
Also, Sydney lost one of her front top teeth tonight. She's got a huge gap in her smile, and she's incredibly happy and excited about it. The Tooth Fairy will be visiting our house tonight.

Since when is candy this irritating?

I downloaded the Candy Crush Saga game the other day, and have been digging in to it regularly since then. It's a puzzle game that can drive you crazy. The worst part is that your "lives," as in chance you have to solve each puzzle, are limited. You only get a certain number. After that, you have to either wait a specific amount of time, or ask your Facebook friends who also play the game to send you some lives, or you can buy them. Also, you can't move forward in the game until you've solved the puzzle you're working on.
I'm at level 30, and I'm stuck on it. I refuse -- absolutely refuse -- to purchase lives for this game with real money. I have begun bugging my friends for lives, but usually, I just end up putting the game away until I can play again. This aspect is actually quite helpful, because without it, I'm quite certain I would have thrown the phone against the wall out of frustration by now.
I spent so much time working on the game today that I got a raging headache and had to step away from all screens of any kind for a few hours. Closed eyes and a cold pack helped a lot, but just avoiding the phone, computer and television was the best medicine.
But yes, the game is a bit addictive, and I'm going crazy with this one level. I may be planted on it for a few days before I can move on. Just what I needed, right? Another silly thing to drive me crazy in my life.

They weaken and frustrate me

Children's museums are my kryptonite.
I hate them in general, and the one in Houston is the absolute bane of my existence. Even so, we go fairly regularly (because I like it when she smiles), and Sydney loves it. While there, I suck it up and allow the venue to destroy my psychological and emotional core for an hour or so, and then we leave before I get too bad of a headache. It's a trial.
Today, I got peer-pressured into taking Sydney and Lydia, and Andrea and Ryan, to the children's museum. But when we got there this afternoon, there was plenty of parking in the covered parking lot. There was no one in line ahead of us for tickets. And more chilling, there was hardly anyone in the main lobby. And then, there was only a small amount of people in the museum itself.
I was confused. Disoriented. The environment was cool in temperature, relatively quiet in noise, and spacious with few people. It was like being in an entirely new place. I looked around, confused and intrigued. Was this really the children's museum? It almost seemed ... pleasant.
We spent more than two hours there, and the girls checked out every corner of the place, and investigated each display, activity and project space. I didn't have a single moment of, "ohmygod, someone get me out of this disastrous place and may I have a margarita please."
Because of that, I think this may be the last time we go to the children's museum in Houston. It was entirely too lovely of a visit. I wouldn't want to sully this experience by having another that will return my thinking to what it was before. Even though I know this was an anomaly.

A few of my favorite things

I'm very happy with my movie choices lately.
After watching The Impossible yesterday, I didn't know if I could thoroughly enjoy another movie so soon, but Star Trek: Into Darkness totally delivered. It was very awesome to sit and get completely sucked into another film, so involved was I that even my bladder cooperated by not making me pee halfway through the movie. This hardly ever happens. I am paying the price for eating an entire bucket of popcorn though. While my taste buds were all, "yeah, yeah, yeah," my stomach has finished the day, being all, "ugh, ugh, ugh." Still, my movie experience today was totally worth it.
I love going to the movies. It makes me happy.

I like drinking water in a big way

A few months ago, my big bottle for water drinking went missing. I think I packed it into the car for a road trip at some point, and then it didn't come back upstairs, and now it's nowhere to be found. I've checked the car, many times; the house, and every corner of it; and in the grass outside, because why not. Anyway, I've been without this bottle, and have been getting by with an awesome Starbucks reusable venti cup. The cup though, doesn't hold as much water, and therefore, I'm not drinking as much water. (It doesn't sound like that makes sense, but really, it does.) I realized the other day that I really don't like drinking my big water drinks out of a straw.
Thus began the search for a new water bottle. And wouldn't you know it, the first place I looked, my local grocery store, had an excellent replacement. It's comfortable in the hand, holds more than 30 ounces of water, and is, by Sydney's description, "a good color of purple." All very important attributes.
I filled up the bottle for the first time this afternoon, and have had to refill it twice already. Lots of water means a whole lot of healthy flushing through my system.
Daisy is less enthusiastic about my new water bottle, but I continue to enjoy it.

It's a dish; use it as a platter

ITEM!: So, when you move, and you are a DirecTV subscriber, they say to take the receivers and remotes with you, but to leave the satellite dish. What happens to the dish? Oh, they toss it out. Because apparently, there's no money in recycling them or anything. I said, "Wait. What? So you want me to just throw it in the trash?" That's what they want me to do. "So how many dishes are sitting in landfills right now because of this?" No idea, she said, but that's just what they're supposed to tell people. I'll get a new dish in Arizona. Still, that seems incredibly wasteful to me.
ITEM!: Oliver decided that I should hand feed him dinner tonight. I was sitting on the sofa, as he wandered through the living room and dining room, when he sniffed at his food bowl, looked at me, and then laid down next to the bowl. And then he just laid there ... staring at me. For like, 10 minutes. I finally crawled over to him, where he consented to a couple minutes of snuggles. But then, he stood up, circled back to his bowl, sniffed at the food, and then sat down next to it. And stared at me. I said, "Really? Am I supposed to react to that?" Then I fed him a piece of food. He ate it. I fed him another. He ate that, too. And because I'm a total sucker for my dog, I fed him his entire bowl of food by hand. And now, he's happy. Totes worth it.
ITEM!: There's something cathartic about cleaning out the pantry. It's even better when you're moving a longer distance, because then there's no guilt about tossing food that you just aren't going to eat, rather than move it "just in case I decide to make caramel apples or go on an instant oatmeal binge." I had a trash bag full of stuff, and I tossed it out. My pantry is now lean and mean, with nothing but cookie mixes, pastas and unopened salsas.
ITEM!: Also, I'm having awesome company this weekend, and I'm giddy about it.

Float like a protein shake

This morning, I woke up feeling better. I am almost absolutely positive that it has something to do with the Special K protein shake I drank for dinner last night. I woke up with a clearer head, and more energy. I am convinced that it's because I didn't eat anything nasty, bursting with badness, or loaded with a whole bunch of carbs before bed. Isn't that weird? By drinking/imbibing something healthy, I felt better. So weird.
I had another protein shake for dinner tonight. I'm all healthy now, you guys. But, I think I'm going to roll with the protein shake as dinner for a while, anyway, just to keep the healthy going.

Mother's Day is a brilliant invention

Well, even though my Mother's Day started off with Daisy vomiting on the bed; Sydney refusing to let me sleep in; Oliver's dingleberry incident; and, perhaps worst of all, no Starbucks waiting for me when I got up, it turned out to be a pretty decent day.
I got a card from my kid that, among other loving platitudes, thanked me for taking care of her when she was little (this is definitely a keeper, because it is totally awesome). ... There was plenty of parking at the mall, which was good, but there wasn't anything there that I wanted to buy, which was boring (and also good, because I should not be shopping). ... I had a plan for The Cheesecake Factory, which consisted of Sydney and I walking into the bar and eating there, since there was only two of us. And it worked brilliantly. ... My Starbucks, once I finally got it, was delicious. ... Sydney did a good job of keeping herself entertained in her room throughout the afternoon, so I could binge read my final Percy Jackson book. ... And the chocoholic cupcake is among my favorites at the cupcake bakery.
And since I haven't finished the Percy Jackson book yet, I'll be finishing here and shutting down the computer. I still have an hour and 15 minutes of Mother's Day left, and I'm going to spend it doing one of my favorite things: reading in a quiet house.

Oliver and Daisy are my muses

I follow the comedian, Dane Cook, on Twitter.
Most times, he's a bit of a ... comedian, but sometimes he breaks out with something awesome.
One of this evening's tweets: "If you're staring at an empty tweet box, trying to think of something to write for more than six minutes, you need to give up and walk away."
This is brilliant for most every writing forum, from Twitter and Facebook to blogs and your run-of-the-mill Word document. If I had a dollar for every time I sat staring at an empty Blogger page, I'd be a gazillionaire who wouldn't have to sell a book to move back to California. You can bet that most of the days that go by without a blog post, have included me sitting at the computer, fingers at the ready, but completely blank as to how to fill that Blogger page. And then, there's that moment, where I either have a somewhat-enthusiastic idea (or maybe even an epiphany), or I just say to myself (more times than not, aloud), "Forget it. You're not helping anyone with this. Be done and go to bed."
I like the six-minute time frame, though: the Six-Minute Inspiration Rule.

That's how they roll in Texas

I'm seeing vehicles in Texas lately that I've never seen before. Not a specific make or model, but, we'll call them "customizations." Three come to mind immediately. And they are so Texas.
A couple weeks ago, I saw a man who had a trailer being pulled behind his truck. The trailer was one similar to the kind that landscapers typically pull, so, low, flat and rectangular. The gentleman had added taller sides to the trailer, so they were about three feet tall along all sides, and had painted them brown, with some subtle lines and horizontal striping. He had then fashioned a cover for the trailer, exactly as a stagecoach top. Rounded on the top and attached to the right and left sides of the trailer. The cover, in perfect complement, was painted as the Texas state flag. That particular car I was unable to photograph. Much to my disappointment.
Today, I saw a pick-up truck with blue duct taping on the bed's rear hatch, that read, "For God is Love" and a Bible notation, and "Follow Jesus," with what looked like actual Jesus feet fashioned out of the tape, too. Also, a cross, because, well, it belonged there. In the truck, a barbecue. I think Brian's assumption that Jesus must love barbecue is spot on.
And then, tonight, on our way home from a birthday party, I saw the little beauty there to the left. A camouflage truck, with a hunting blind atop it, also in camouflage. It was just hanging out, there by the side of the road, looking for someone to love it and take it home. As Marlo told me, they hunt and shoot and eat their food out here (with her Texan accent on full, and I'm sorry I can't replicate that here), so this is how they roll.
The awesomeness of these vehicles is matched only by the fact that I saw two of them on the same day. Texas, man.

The not-at-all-great Gatsby

I have no desire to see The Great Gatsby movie. I didn't like the book, and I don't want to see the film. People are going nuts over this film, and they're all talking about the book. I say, "phooey." Neither are worth my time at this point in my life. I read the book years and years ago, during my Fitzgerald phase, but didn't like it much. Right now, you couldn't pay me to watch the movie, especially in 3D.
I feel unpopular for feeling this way. Oh well, there's nothing wrong with being unpopular when it's regarding an overblown, falsely literary, crazy shiny movie about a meh book.

Ice cream really is the best

ITEM!: I tried the Lemon Bliss flavor of Blue Bell ice cream tonight. It's actually really, really good. Lemon ice cream with chunks of vanilla and cream cookies in it. I like the idea of the lemon ice cream, and it didn't disappoint me.
ITEM!: So, what's happening is that I'm getting so done being here, that I latch on to things that bug me and I get bitchy. I'm in the middle of a verbal and stubborn tussle with the corporate office of my apartment complex over their bookkeeping issue, and I'm dragging my feet about helping them clear it up. Someone tell me why I should pay them a $75 deposit for a satellite dish that I already paid once but they categorized it incorrectly, when they'll send me the deposit back in June after we move and the dish is removed. It's dumb, I think. So I'm being purposely irritating about it.
ITEM!: We have a signed lease for our new house in Arizona! A backyard and doggy door, rose bushes, a garage, a large closet in my room, and no downstairs neighbors, so the kid can run and jump as much as she wants. We are getting very excited about being a family in a house again!
ITEM!: I think I may get to bed early this evening. As of now, it's just a few minutes after 10:30 p.m., and once I'm done with the blog, I'll be ready for night nights.
ITEM!: I haven't watched any of my Netflix movies, because I've been too busy reading the Percy Jackson books on my Nook. I just started the fourth book, Percy Jackson and the Battle of the Labyrinth. I enjoyed the movie based on the first book, and with the second movie coming out this summer, I wanted to know more about the stories. The books are quite good, and I'm enjoying them a lot.

A day for haikus, because I wanna

A few she-may-be-going-crazy-soon haikus:

Houston just sucks at my soul,
I can't wait to leave;
Desert is better, you know.

A dog sleeps on my left side;
one snores on the chair;
warm and fuzzy sights and sounds.

Haikus make sense in my head;
some aren't that good, though;
thanks for letting me be weird.

At some point, no more moving posts

Well, life in Arizona is coming together nicely. We've got someplace to live, which is incredibly positive, and I've got a lease to sign and a deposit to pay tomorrow.
Can I just point out that the movers will be here in just a couple days more than a month?
I'm in good shape with the boxes. Though, as I predicted, I've lost interest in keeping count of them. I've done a few since my last note, but that's all. I don't have many more until we get closer to moving out, then it'll be all boxes, all the time. Also, the boxes have been around for so long that they're gathering dust. Tomorrow, I also run a duster over my boxes.