Olympics to take over my life in six days

Of the three library books I have in my house right now, one will be returned tomorrow, and the other two will be sitting on the To-Be-Read Pile for at least three weeks. Thankfully, they both have multiple renewals available. The one I'm returning tomorrow does not, and it's due on Friday, but I know I won't get to it this week because Mom will be here and she's more entertaining than the latest Brad Meltzer.
Why will they be sitting for so long? Obviously, Mom being here for a week is a factor. But more than that, the Olympics are beginning on Friday, and they are definitely going to take up a huge chunk of my nights. I won't even try to lie to myself and say that maybe I'll get one read during that time frame. I know myself and my love of the Olympics way better than that.
So books, magazines, other television shows and all that stuff will just be hanging out for a while. I'm okay with that. Go Team U.S.A.!!

The donkeys are amazing, yes?

11:45 a.m.: I played around with the idea of calling in sick today, and honestly, I should have. It’s been slow all week, where the only thing to do is hunt for things to do. Sometimes I’m successful, sometimes I hang out on Twitter. But I think I spent a collective three hours just staring at my computer screen on each of the last two days. I anticipate more of the same today.
I didn’t call in sick today though because I may do it on Monday, depending on how the weekend goes, and how badly I just need to not spend the day hanging out staring at my computer screen. The kicker is that no one else is busy, and it’s super quiet. Like, legit, we all could have taken the week off and no one would have missed anything. That’s how dead it is right now. Apparently, it is supposed to ramp up next week, but who knows. And next Friday the office is closed anyway.
At any rate, I probably should have stayed home with my kid and gone to see Ghostbusters.
10:24 p.m.: I spent the entire day at work, and was pretty bored for a majority of it. I'm beyond excited that at this moment, I'm not going to work for a couple days. And during those couple days, Mom will be arriving for a several-day-long visit. And that's awesome.

Really, do not Google sore toe images

I slammed my baby toe into the ottoman at the end of my bed last night. It hurt so much I almost cried, and I spent a good five minutes sitting on said ottoman cringing, moaning and flexing my foot to try to make the pain scoot away. But let me tell you something, that toe still hurts tonight. It was achy and annoying all day, and even right now, as I'm sitting in my bed, it is twinging with every movement of my foot. Nothing looks too swollen, and the toenail still seems to be attached well. In all outward appearances, the toe is okay, but I'm skeptical.
How bad do you have to slam your toe to do some real damage to it? Asking for a friend.

There's no crying in politics

I don't like to critique Stephen Colbert. You all know how much I love him. But tonight, he made clear to me something misogynistic in the media's treatment of Hillary Clinton, and how she's kind of caught between a rock and a hard place. Colbert did a full-on bit with "Cartoon Hillary," basing the comedy almost entirely on how robotic and unemotional the actual Hillary is perceived by some.
So here's the thing, Hillary has to be unemotional. She has to seem as if nothing can faze her. Because you all know that if she cried as much as John Boehner, or flipped her lid over little things, like Donald Trump, then the men and the media would do nothing but talk about how unhinged and emotional she is, how she's being a "woman." And how no one could trust an emotional woman in the White House.
I mean, think about it, there's no way for her to win. On one side, she's a robot. But then, by displaying emotion or passion any other way would make her a "woman" who can't handle the job, stress, pressure, whatnot. The interplay there between her not acting "womanly" enough to prove she's fit for humanity, but can't really act too "womanly" for fear that those emotions would be used against her, is frustrating to the extreme. No more so than for Hillary, who, no doubt, has been very aware of this tug of war for many, many years.
Personally, I enjoy the idea of having a female president who is a badass and not overly emotional. She'll be a tough cookie, and I'm looking forward to seeing how she does.

She's kind of a big deal

So, today is a big deal.
Right now, currently, at this moment, there is a woman candidate for president of these United States. I honestly didn't know if I would ever be alive to see a woman sit in the Oval Office ... behind the desk ... and I'm pretty giddy with the history that I'm witnessing. And that she rolls the direction I like on so many of my pet causes is the super thick gravy on the whole situation. (If she thought the way Trump does I'd be far less enthusiastic, but still interested in witnessing history. But would there ever be a female Republican nominee? I'm thinking no. The Grand Old Party is chockablock full of penises.)
My daughter, who is 9 years old, has only ever known of an African American president. And she's so excited to have a potential female president, too. For her, it'll never be a question that someone of a color different from the other presidents, or a gender opposite of every other president, couldn't do the job. To her, anyone could be president, because that color barrier and glass ceiling have been broken. It's amazing that kids nowadays will see that anyone can be president, and, if I may deviate for a moment, that anyone can marry anyone they love. (It would be awesome if her right to choose also was guaranteed, so let's get on that and make those other people exit the uterus that isn't theirs. Also, no big guns would be super.)
And while you've probably guessed what my pet causes are, and you're blinded by how bright blue my political leanings are, take a moment and appreciate that a woman, one of the millions who comprise 51 percent of our country' population, is a major party's nominee for president for the first time in American history. I'm looking forward to casting my vote in November.

Yes, let's get the weekend started

I've had two night in a row where I haven't been able to fall asleep before 1 a.m. I can't explain it as anything as easy as insomnia. I'm super tired up until I'm ready to go to bed, and then my brain decides that I need to stay awake until later. It's a drag, for sure. But tonight, the plan is to go to sleep when I first get sleepy, like right now as I'm yawning as I type this, and to not spend any extra time dong anything before going to bed.
Other than that, my day was a day, and I'm eager to get my weekend started.

Waiting, waiting, waiting for Jon

Sitting here watching the news and waiting for "The Late Show" to begin. From what I've seen, it looks like Jon Stewart will be taking over Stephen Colbert's desk for a bit, and I can not wait. I've missed him like crazy. And the news is making me wait and I'm ready to see him RIGHT NOW.
[Editor's note: Photo attached way after the post was published.]

I love these random afternoons together

I worked late last night and the night before getting the magazine out, and was rewarded with the afternoon off today. Sydney is in a half-day camp this week, so I was able to pick her up at 1 p.m., and we spent the rest of the day together. It makes us both very happy to do that kind of thing. So, what did we do today?
Arby's: I know it's frowned on by so many people, but I was starving and needed a sandwich for lunch. It hit the spot. I did not order potato cakes or mozzarella sticks.
Glasses: It costs a full $110 less to order the child's lenses and frames than to order just lenses for her current frames. Sydney was having a hard time finding something that she liked, so we priced out just replacing her lenses: $360. As a child younger than 12 though, her lens-and-frame order would be 50 percent off, giving me a price tag of $250. So, we ordered the new glasses in full, and should be able to pick them up in a couple days.
Disney Store: We always wander through, because it's Disney, of course, and today's trip was an awesome one. We found a Tsum Tsum of Chewbacca, and it's gloriously amazing. It's in my car right now, sitting atop my rear-view mirror, because Chewbacca is my copilot. Sydney found a totally adorable Tinkerbell t-shirt, which we had to buy in a large because she's growing up, and she was super happy with that.
Wetzel's Pretzels: Because we can't go to the mall without getting some pretzels. I think I may have finally convinced her that she'll never get Bitz again, since she never, ever finishes them, and they're more expensive than just a pretzel. And to prove my point, she totally didn't finish even the pretzel, and it was less money wasted. But the portion of pretzel she (and I) ate, was tasty.
Albertsons: Sydney and I decided that today and the weekend needed a cake. I had a suggestion for what we should have written on it, and it was enough to give Sydney the giggles all last night and all day today. So we found a chocolate 1/4-sheet cake with some pretty frosting and had them write "Because Girls are Awesome!" on it. And the cake is delicious.
Pineapple: I planted the pineapple top in one of the plant pots outside, and let's hope that it'll survive. Unfortunately, it had started to smell a little as it was drying, and I discovered some wet and potentially moldy bits, so I thought it would be best to go ahead and plant it. It should root within the next six to eight (!) weeks, and maybe in three years, we'll have fruit. Seems like a long time to find out if we'll be successful, but it'll be worth it if we get a home-grown pineapple.
Minecraft: And then she ditched me for FaceTime with her friends and a computer game.

I just moved in with mine

So, how's this: My newest coworker is a sweet, young girl from Kentucky, who moved out to Arizona to be with her boyfriend. (She also happened to be deeply enmeshed in the industry of my magazine, so she just called my boss and asked if there was a job for her, and she got hired. But that little bit is neither here nor there.) The girl is nice and intelligent. And I found out today that she has her own apartment. I am intrigued. I have several questions.
The first being, how the heck is she affording an apartment in Scottsdale, and eating and going to the gym, on a salary that I hope is less than mine? How is she doing that? And then I thought, well, her parents are helping her; duh. The life of a young 20-something.
Then I'm all, hold the phone. She moved out here to be closer to her boyfriend who has a job in Phoenix, and got her own place? They're not living together? Honestly, that may be one of the bravest things I've ever heard. There is little to no commitment there on the part of the boyfriend, and all the optimism in the world for her. Sure, he moved his television and PlayStation 4 into her place over the weekend, but really, that's not a whole lot when it comes to sharing stuff. And he did it, apparently, because he said he spends more time at her place than his. But really, why not just dive in and get a place together? Why not see if this is really a good idea at all? Well, she's been quite sheltered all her life (her words, not mine), and I assume her more-religious-than-not parents would probably frown on that. But still, moving all this way and then not getting a place together? That's ballsy.
I admire her chutzpah on that one.

I think I may love my quilt more than ever

ITEM!: It occurred to me the other day that this will be the first time ever that I will spend the entirety of an Arizona summer in Arizona. There will be no visits out to California to get away from the heat; there will be no week in May and week in August. I am not at all impressed.

ITEM!: I bleached my bubblegum pink quilt today, and I think, right now, it is the perfect shade of pink. And if I didn't have yellow walls, the bedroom would be close to perfect. But I do, so it isn't.

ITEM!: We finally watched the last Divergent movie, Allegiant, this afternoon, and sadly, found it lacking. What a drag finish to a pretty good series.

Today, told in a story of men

The first of which, an older man, did a favor for someone. He wasn't asked to do the favor. He took the favor upon himself to do, and apparently did it just fine. The favor was appreciated, to be sure, though one always questions why someone would think that they could make decisions for another someone, and then just do it without asking the person if they were okay with the favor. But, what's done is done, and we just hope that the favor continues to be a favor instead of a screw-up.
The favor, of course, cost money to accomplish. When the man was asked what was owed to repay the favor, his response was, "You're my slave forever." Problem. Taken literally, what the hell would possess someone who does a favor without being asked, to expect someone to be so indebted to them that they would be their "slave forever"?
Secondly, as they presumably mutually consider each other friends, it's insulting that the man would suggest any other repayment, like the obvious financial kind (duh), as something sexual. And don't tell me that he didn't mean it sexually. Ew. Just ew.
Three, you weren't asked to do this favor, and you didn't have permission to do this favor, so technically you spent someone else's money without the person's knowledge or consent, which is really kinda stealing. You shouldn't get paid back for it.
Four: Dude. What the actual f*ck is up with that. I can only presume that your age and generational outlook on women would make you think that a "joke" like that would be considered even the slightest bit funny. It's not. And perhaps the person you told your "joke" to may not be as insulted and irritated by it, but I certainly am.
The second man, a considerably younger man, answered a question and was helpful. Sydney and I visited Best Buy today to get some noise-reducing headphones for her because she's sensitive to loud noise and we're going to go see Meghan Trainor next weekend. I asked the guy at the front where such headphones were, and he pointed me to the area, explaining that the Beats, Bose, and Sony headphones would probably be my best bet. Certainly, Best Buy guy. I'm sure the $300 headphones would do a great job, but no.
We were stuck in the headphone aisle, trying to find the cheapest set that still would protect the baby's hearing, when the young man who worked in that area asked if we needed help. I told him our predicament, and after some thought, he made a suggestion: "You know, I go to a lot of concerts, and I see a whole lot of people wearing those earplugs that shooters wear. You know, the guys at the shooting range? Those plugs will dull the noise of the gun, but the shooters can still hear someone if they're loud enough. You should find those, and see how they would do. Go somewhere where they sell guns, and you'll find them."
The kid was totally right, and we found them in the gun section of our local Wal-Mart, which I knew sold guns because Wal-Mart. The plugs' cost? A whopping $1.97 for six pairs. Sweet. He gave me hope for the male portion of our species.
Bonus third man story goes to the "helper" in the Wal-Mart gun section who, when asked where the earplugs were, stood right where he was, pointed to the full and long aisle to his right, and said, "They're right there. I can see them," and then went back to his business of offering huge guns at a discount price, but no additional information.

We want teacup pigs and baby goats

I powered through a good portion of my list today, and I'm feeling super about it.
First and foremost, my windshield is being replaced tomorrow. They're coming to my work to do it, and once that's done, I'll be a happy camper. This crack is out of control.
Secondly, the summer camp situation is handled. Both the final weeks have been booked, and almost all paid for. And she's pretty happy with the selections, too.
Third, my dogs have appointments at the groomer this weekend, too. So, they'll smell much better soon.
All that's left is the auto shops to check out, and I won't lie, I'm pretty intimidated about deciding which one I like best. I'll call around on Friday, since I'll be busy at lunch tomorrow, but I have an idea about how to approach them.
Like I said, I've been powering through my list.
This is our new desktop wallpaper, and Sydney and I are pretty obsessed with it. I told her that I was going to start finding random wallpapers and change them up regularly, but this one is super cute. She'll stay put for a while.

Oh no, she's just like me

I could be considered a bit of a neurotic person. I have my issues, certainly, and some are fun and some annoying, but they make me into the person I am. I see my mom, and I know that I come by my neuroses honestly. And when the baby girl popped out of me and into the big, wide world, I was intrigued by what her signature issues would be. I have discovered one, and we can't come to an agreement regarding it, as it's in conflict with my own thing.
The thermostat for our air conditioner is upstairs in the main hallway between my bedroom and the stairs, but is in full view of anyone on the second floor. During the summer, the thermostat is in a constant state of flux. During the day when no one is home, it's set to 84 degrees. When I get home, I lower it to 82 degree. When Brian gets home, I lower it to 80 degrees. When Sydney goes to bed, it lowers to 78 degrees, and when I get in bed, I have it set at 77 degrees. It doesn't seem like any of those changes would make much of a difference, but they do. The a/c doesn't have to work as hard because the cooling is incremental. At night, power costs less, so I take advantage.
Anyway, I leave the thermostat's cover open because then it always catches my attention when I'm walking around upstairs, and I remember to lower and raise the thermostat's temperature dependent on the time or circumstance. For Sydney, the open thermostat cover is an irritant, and something that must always be closed. She's said as much to me, and while I appreciate that she has an issue with it, I have to leave it open otherwise I'll forget my own system. Our neuroses are at war. We passive aggressively growl at each other every time one of us has to either open or close the cover. The ridiculousness is that the cover doesn't even need to be open to make the temperature changes; it's just so unsightly that I always notice it, and always remember to mess with it. And then she closes it. And then I open it. It's never-ending ... until summer is over.

[Editor's note: I'm not sure why this image came up in a search for "thermostat images," but it did, and I'm running with it.]

All I'm missing is the chandelier

ITEM!: Mom and I are creating a kind of bleach-positive response to my too-pink quilt, and I'll go that route on Saturday. Apparently, mixing a cup of bleach into the washing machine water, just as I did the dye, will lighten up the quilt without that random tie-dye effect one gets with accidental bleaching results. Will it work as I want? Only time, and the bleach, will tell. But I'm definitely trying it, because I can't live with the pink going on right now. You see this pic to the left? That is legit how I feel like my bedroom looks right now. A vomitous explosion of bright, unrelenting and cavity-inducing pink.
ITEM!: I have an incredible laundry list of things that need to be fixed on my car right now, and the dealer wants the GDP of a small country to fix it, so I'm on the hunt for an independent Volkswagen shop in Scottsdale to take care of it for less. There is nothing better than Google, you guys, because that little dude helped me find three different shops within my acceptable distance radius. I'll be making some phone calls tomorrow to see what it would cost me to get the brakes fixed, and to hook myself up with some free inspections.
ITEM!: Speaking of the car, I have another lovely crack going across my windshield. You won't believe me, but it didn't even start with any rock impact. I know I'm a magnet for rocks, but this crack, no shit, just appeared the other morning. And now it's doubled in length, and is starting to creep up into my eye line. That's not good, so yet another phone call tomorrow will be to the insurance company's glass claim department.
ITEM!: And as for the kiddo and her ongoing summer camp scheduling, I was stuck on the final two weeks of the summer, but I think I have finally solved my problem. For the one that, if I remember right, had the crazy expensive after-care hours, I've decided that we'll only do half-days. That way I can pick her up on my lunch hour, and she'll still have five hours of activity and fun for the day. The other week is a second week of the other camp that she liked. Happily, the very last week of the summer will be hanging out with Grandma. ... But just so I don't get too excited about a normal schedule again, I've also started the list of camps to remember for next year.
ITEM!: I had hoped for an early bedtime tonight, but my surge of productivity took some precious minutes away from sleep, so I'm just now settling in and dosing myself with the NyQuil. Who knows if I'll get any of it done tomorrow, but at least I have a list. 

So frickin' much PINK

You remember my not-pink-enough quilt that's been bugging me with its less than pinkness? Well I went ahead with the pink dying today, and I really wish I hadn't. According to the instructions, I should have used one packet of dye for every like three pounds of fabric or something like that. So it's a king-sized quilt, so I used three packets of dye.

We did the process just fine, because the quilt definitely dyed. What isn't just fine is how frickin' PINK my quilt is now. I was hoping for a nice pastel pink, and what I have now is a definite bubblegum pink. It's so pink it affects the wall color when walking into the room. It is SO pink. I'm at a loss, because I knew that I should have gone one packet at a time. In fact, that was the plan. But then I read the instructions. I let the correct instructions mess with my head, and now my pink quilt messes with my head.

I keep telling myself that I'll get used to it, but I really don't think I will. I hate it quite a bit.

Hot Saturday night activities: ITEM! list

ITEM!: Sydney's friend is here tonight for a sleepover, and because I did not allow Syd to plan the activities, I think it will be a smashing success. We went swimming, ate pizza, and watched "Mary Poppins." The girls stayed up chatting until 11 or so. Tomorrow morning, I'll make blueberry muffins.

ITEM!: We tried a new ice cream shop, which makes customizable ice cream sandwiches, for our family sweet snack this afternoon, and we were not impressed. The cookies weren't terribly yummy, so the whole sandwich kind of suffered. And the shop didn't have straight strawberry ice cream. How is that possible? Seems like a huge oversight, but whatever. Brian announced that he'll never need to go back there. Syd didn't like hers at all. We'll be fine with DQ for a while now.

ITEM!: We did discover an Italian deli though, while we were out and about getting ice cream. We picked up a container of their homemade sauce, which is delicious, and are eager to make some spaghetti tomorrow night for dinner. We bought that edamame spaghetti at Costco, so we'll roll the dice with that, but I think it'll be a super tasty dinner.

ITEM!: I ran all my errands on my own today, which gave me the luxury of wandering Target alone. I picked up a pile of socks to supplement the sock inventory I have, since I'll be cleaning out said inventory soon, and donating the socks I don't want anymore. We'll have to hit Target again soon fr school supplies too, which is my favorite thing to do. I love, love, love buying new school supplies! I saw a Dory and Hank spiral notebook that I'll take for myself when we do out shopping. I think we'll go soon too, so we don't have to pick through the leftovers, or be crowded while making decisions. I hate to be jostled when shopping.

Still cheaper than a new car, but barely

Well, I had a day today. Rather than focus on the one thing, let's focus this post on the other thing. And that thing is the Jetta. I mean, realistically, we knew that the car was going to start needing some major maintenance. It's got 108,000 miles on it, so it's no spring chicken, by any definition.
I had a random light go on indicating a low coolant level the other day, so I took the car into the shop this morning to get it checked out. I also agreed to an oil change, as I hadn't had that done since February 2015. (I could swear I had it done more recently, but I guess not.) So, the oil was changed. And yes, the coolant level was low, so they topped that off.
And then came the laundry list of things that also need to be addressed. First and foremost, rear brakes, as in rotors and pads. The whole smash. Tied for second on the priority list is a transmission service, and the replacement of the CV boots that are cracked, which are axle-related, which is as much as I can remember about them right now. Third, spark plugs and that service. Fourth, a cracked other thing that's leaking. And fifth, another cracked thing that's leaking.
Now, all the cracked things are protecting other things from the oil or whatever, so they need to be replaced before the oil or whatever destroys the thing the cracked things are protecting. So that's pretty important. The other things help the car go, so they certainly need to be fixed. And the brakes help the car stop, and that's even more important, so of course those will get done lickety split.
Each one of these little list items is expensive. The cheapest thing, the brakes, are $545 according to the dealer. Oh, I know there are places that will do the work for less, and I intend on finding one. But each of the the things runs from $650 to a lovely $970. Given my entire list of things to fix? Oh, probably a close to $5,000 bill at the Volkswagen dealer. That is way more than I can afford, so my search for an independent place to do the fixing begins in earnest tomorrow. I started some hunting tonight, but the residual issues from my day required me to take a break and pretend like everything was awesome.

Loofahing the loofah the loofah

So I loofahed my underboobs tonight in the shower, because in the summer, one can develop clogged pores in their skin where it is squished between boobs, stomach skin (when sitting), and a bra that gets sweaty from the heat. I am disgusted with the amount of bumpy skin I've got going on in that random space. Granted, if I had less stomach skin, I wouldn't have as much of a problem with it. However, as life has tossed more skin at me lately, this is an issue that I am forced to deal with. Also, it's the only skin that I loofahed tonight, because I didn't want to spend too much time dwelling on the state of all the skin, and also because nothing else is bothering me presently.
So how do we cut back on all that skin and the random bumps in the underboobs? I don't like to think about all that entails really, but there must be some way to prevent this. My short-term goal is to be sure I wipe down that area every afternoon when I've gotten too warm, and again at night before bed. I suppose some baby wipes would be good for that? Not the lotion-y ones, but regular baby wipes. That may be my best bet. Duly noted that I didn't have this problem before I had to sit at a desk for eight hours a day.

It's a bit early July for an ITEM! list, isn't it?

ITEM!: Come to find out that if my mother-in-law wins the $300 million lottery tonight, she'll still make Brian work by buying him his own practice, but I can quit my job. I love that woman so much, and she makes me laugh so much. I think they'll be coming up here this weekend, and it will be nice to hang out with them.
ITEM!: Annoyingly, I am still coughing from this cold that Brian gave me a couple weeks ago. It's an unproductive and ticklish cough, which is the worst kind, I think. Andrea tells me that Cold-Eeze works best for her when kicking something, so I guess I'll try that in the next day or two. All I know right now is that I'll be taking some NyQuil tonight so I get a decent several hours of sleep.
ITEM!: My gynecologist has left her practice, and is now floating, apparently, in the hospital, not to be found. I received a call from the office a few days ago telling me that I'd need to reschedule my appointment because she wasn't there anymore. I called today to find out where she was, only to be told that she's no longer in private practice. "Well, where is she?" "She's in the hospital now." That is most unhelpful. Is there really a gynecologist who does labor and delivery but doesn't have an office somewhere? So, I'm on the hunt to find my doctor. Mom says I can call the hospital and ask there for her new office information, and I will do that directly.
ITEM!: We are now home to a new and growing pineapple plant, I hope. I took the crown of the fruit that we bought for slicing and grilling yesterday, and I've decided that we'll be growing more pineapples. I read on the internet that I need to root it, so that's what is happening now. It's sitting in a vase of water for the next week or so, and after it roots, we'll plant it and nurture it along. My optimistically logical brain tells me that the pineapple will probably do better in the desert heat than the berries are doing/did. A new project!
ITEM!: Things currently bugging my head, heart and soul include Oliver's eye infections; both Oliver and Cooper's need for a groom and a visit to the veterinarian for check-ups; the new crack in my windshield, and having to get the windshield replaced soon because the crack is spreading quickly; Sydney's new glasses; Sydney's last two weeks of summer camp; how expensive it is to keep my house cool and how I keep my thermostat up so high that I get sweaty watering plants; I was running too late to put the trash out this morning and how that chore should really be Brian's; I had a dreadfully boring weekend, and no one seems bothered by it but me; I don't feel too terribly appreciated at work lately; and finally, I would really rather be living in California.

Yesterday was not the Fourth, you guys

I'm not a fan of firework celebrations not on the Fourth of July. I mean, if it's going to celebrate the Fourth of July, it should really happen on the Fourth of July. As I'm sure you can guess, the reason behind this post is because our local Fourth of July celebration happened last night, on the Second of July, instead of the Fourth. Not cool, local fireworks show.
But even though I complain about the planning, I'm still super pleased with the quality of the show. We had an impressive, well-planned 20-minute show that we didn't even have to leave our community to enjoy. In fact, we brought our chairs outside and sat in our street. A full 10 seconds from our house. It was phenomenal. Even if it was on the wrong day.

June over? Ju-lying! Is a joke I heard today

I picked this month's avatar because she looks like she'd rather be enjoying her vacation, but someone or something is aggravating her. As for me, I'd totally rather be enjoying a vacation, but this job and lack of money to go anywhere is aggravating me. Also, it's summer and she's at the beach, and she makes me feel like I'm somewhere beachy and not as hot.
So, it's July, and most of the year is gone. It seems like a good time to catch up on my EXPECTATIONs for the year, but I really feel like that will bum me out, so maybe not. In a random aside though, I need to go to Home Depot and buy the taller tree stake supports for my apple orchard. The trees are getting too tall, if that's such a thing. And they do need to be better supported. I'll have to see what I can figure out for them. Also, maybe Target.
I'd love to have a better plan for the long weekend. We should be going somewhere and adventuring someplace new. I blame my illness still, and that's boring. So I'll probably allow Sydney's sleepover plan for tomorrow night, just so she can say something awesome happened over the weekend. But I'm on the hunt for a cool thing for Sunday and Monday.
At any rate, I don't have to be back at work until Tuesday morning, and that is frickin' fantastic!