Who's the sleepy kitten?

I always know when Brian's asleep on the sofa because I've been hearing the same television show for an extended amount of time. Like right now. I don't know what he's watching, and I can't understand it beyond the noise over my headphones, but it's been the same basic voice noise for more than 30 minutes. This is not typical "Awake Brian" behavior. And then, I hear the snore.
HOUSTON: I am beyond pleased to tell you that I accomplished everything on my list for the day. The results: We have an official residence when we arrive in Houston. My mail is changed and being held until we settle in to Houston. Our auto and renter's insurance is being transferred to Texas. Now, all I have to do is pack more boxes. I got three done today. Tomorrow, more. Actually, a lot more: kitchen and bathrooms.

My Dancing with the Stars voting (6 votes allowed):
Ricki Lake ~ 2 votes.
J.R. Martinez ~ 2 votes.
David Arquette ~ 2 votes.
Hope Solo, Nancy Grace, Rob Kardashian ~ 0 votes. It's crunch time, people, which means that the points go to the people I think most deserve them. With only six votes, every vote counts for that much more. (I find myself to be incredibly pretentious right now, as if my little votes actually make any difference!)

Getting ready for Thursday's launch

Well everyone, tomorrow is the day. Tomorrow, I start boxing stuff up in my house. It's the big day. I'm digging into my kitchen, into my bathrooms, into the living room. I may even start the packing for the several days we'll be homeless. I don't want to start stressing out, but I think I'm gonna.
Also on tomorrow's list: call the apartment complex and find out what the hell is going on with my place; call the insurance company and get that transferred to Texas; and change our address and hold the mail in Texas. I have only four things to do tomorrow, and only three of them need to be completed. I can do that. Right? Right?!?!
Monday. Monday. Monday. Bring it on.

Well, that sounded brave, didn't it?!?! Love it!!

My purple pig won ... TWICE!

Is it wrong that I'm actually kind of disappointed that we didn't get lost in the corn maze today? Every year, for the last two years, Brian, Katy and I (with Sydney present as an observer) have managed to get ourselves lost in the corn maze at the pumpkin patch. I'm pretty convinced that it's an easier maze at the Queen Creek patch, rather than the west Phoenix patch we went to the last two years. The corn rows were a bit too thin, and the paths were too well-walked. We let a five-year-old guide us in the maze and we made it in and back out within about 15 minutes, without a single moment of where-are-we? panic. Not fun!
But still, the pumpkin patch was pretty awesome. We got to pet goats, watch pig races (YES!!), launch pumpkins, pick pumpkins, and bought a delicious, homemade apple pie. All in all, it was a pretty perfect day.

She's STILL my baby!!

Also, today is Sydney's birthday.
It's amazing how just the acknowledgment of the day can bring back every single memory of the day. I can remember it so clearly. It's bizarre to me how vividly I can recreate every single moment of her being born. And how melancholy it makes me throughout the day. I could sit and stare at her, and cry my eyes out with love for her. I rarely let myself get all "I'm a goddess because I made her," but on her birthday, I let the thought and emotion run free. The kid rocks. And she's mine.
And, she's five.

Weird. That looks like a ... cold

I'm still so tired.
I got a decent night's sleep last night. I took a two-hour nap this morning. And yet, still tired.
I've taken my NyQuil, and I'm thisclose to getting into bed and going to sleep. In fact, I just had an incredibly difficult time typing out that last sentence. I must have backtracked and re-spelled half of it.
Because of my tiredness, I didn't get any of my phone calls done today. This is not a big deal, I don't think, because it seems as though some of the stuff has been taken care of without my prodding today. I like it when that kind of thing happens.

More and more posts about moving

I packed a box today. APPLAUSE!!
It was just a small box, and it was filled with a bunch of randoms. But still, a box! I honestly look around my house and don't see anything that I can pack right now. It's like everything is in the last-minute box. You know, bathroom stuff, kitchen things, food, clothes. I'm ready, and eager to get going, but I'm in a bit of a stalemate until next week. I figure I can make us live off paper plates and stuff for a few days, but not for a full week. Besides, I don't have that many boxes to get done.
I'm not avoiding the project, of course. I'm too much of a moving/packing freak to be avoiding the activity. In fact, I'm frustrated as hell that I don't have a whole bunch to do right now. Not to fear though, my dear readers, I will find little things to pack.

Better than "over easy"

Both my dogs are sleeping "sunny side up," as my mother likes to say. It makes me happy when they do this. Because when they dream, as Oliver is now, their little legs move and twitch. He's even making some little mewing sounds. This is an old photo, and he's awake in it, so it's really not demonstrating what I'm enjoying right now.
HOUSTON NEWS: I called, and I still have no official address yet. The corporate office is still waiting for a last-minute call, and until they have that, we can't move forward. I've got my renting agent's e-mail now though, so I can start pestering her via e-mail as well as phone. I'm really hoping that the final okay comes in tomorrow. Then I'll be more justified in pestering her. I prefer to pester when I'm justified.

You've got guts, babe

I didn't get hardly anything done today. A couple loads of laundry, I suppose. Also, I took Oliver and Daisy to the vet for wellness checks this morning. I wanted to be sure that, even though I know they're healthy, I know that they are healthy for the drive and move into a new place. Happily, all is well, and my creatures should be just fine settling into Texas. That appointment though, was the only thing that had to be done today, aside from taking the kid to and from school. Who knows why I ended up being a lazy bones today, but there it is. Tomorrow, I got plans and phone calls.
Sadly, the ballroom said goodbye to Chaz Bono tonight. I love that he was able to give a voice to people with gender-identification issues. I hope some kids, young and old, were inspired by his participation in the competition. I hope he is able to hold his head high (despite the judging and judgment encouraged on the show) as he walks out of the studio tonight.

Totally on purpose!

I'm toot tired (and I left that on purpose). I had given myself today to get my head together, and then get started on Houston tomorrow. I think, because of my "toot" tiredness, I may wait until Wednesday, and take tomorrow to cath (not "catch") up on some sleepand (ha, ha. See what I'm doing here?) get some laundry done.

My Dancing with the Stars voting (7 votes allowed):
Ricki Lake ~ 2 votes.
J.R. Martinez ~ 2 votes.
David Arquette ~ 1 vote.
Nancy Grace ~ 1 vote.
Hope Solo ~ 1 vote.
Chaz Bono, Rob Kardashian ~ 0 votes.

In just a matter of days ...

My heart was in California this weekend, but my mind, most definitely, was still in Arizona. As much as I was here, I was there. It's a frustration for me, but that's my life over the next few weeks. I am destined to be distracted from one thing by another thing. I am going to be thinking of one thing while considering another thing. I am going to be packing things. Also, I will be organizing things. I shall be making lists and phone calls. I also, invariably, will be freaking out. It's that time again, when I'm too focused for my own good, and won't rest until my project is done. This project is, of course, Houston. It won't be done until I'm moved into the new place, and all my family is in a bit of a routine. So ... what do you think? About 30 days?
So, Project Houston officially commences Tuesday morning.

It's like ... a blanket

Sydney and I were up bright and early this morning to make our trek across the desert to the wondrously beautiful land of California. I didn't hit a stitch of traffic until I got to the junction of the 101 and the 405, and rarely went slower than 80 miles per hour. So, we made really good time, and were in the Valley well before my 3 p.m. haircut and color appointment. And good for Sydney, there is a fun toy store next to Malia's shop, so her pile of birthday goodness grew a little bit this afternoon.
The most awesome thing on my drive was cruising into Conejo Valley and seeing this huge wall of fog rising up and encroaching on the freeway and the cities in front of, and under, it. (See picture, left.) You just don't see weather like that a whole lot of places, you know? It's one of the things I love about Ventura County, in general, and Camarillo, specifically. The fog rocks.

MY CAR!! MY CAR!! MY CAR!!

CAR NEWS: I have the Jetta again!! And I think ... I THINK ... it may be perfect now. I got tape on my rear window until tomorrow. And I can't get it washed for a couple days. But really, who cares, I HAVE MY CAR. All done. Finished. And just in time for tomorrow's road trip! I swear, as I drove home from the body shop, and the Jetta and I drove through Papago Park, there was real joy. I think the car was happy, and I know that I was happy. It just felt right this time. Like my head, and the car talking to me through mind connection, knew that everything was finally right. Yes, the car and I had a moment. And it was real.

Dancing time for the awesome guy

So, I feel like the next couple weeks will be a quick (or not-so-quick) descent into madness. I'm starting to get pretty well freaked out about all the things I need to do, and get done, before November 3 and the move to Houston. I've a list that, even though it isn't a mile long, feels like it is. Also, I'm heading out of town for a few days. Going out to California for the weekend may not be the best thing for me schedule-wise, but it will do wonders for my mental, emotional and psychological well-being. The day after Sydney and I get back from Cali, my life of boxes will officially commence in earnest. Today, I stopped the service for both my cable and my electrical. Tomorrow, I've got a lovely list of people to call and things to check on.
CAR NEWS: I'm so sick of writing about this stuff. I'm sure you are sick of reading about it. But here's today's fiasco: The rear window, once they had it tinted, was discovered to be of an inferior glass grade. The window that was installed was after-market Chinese glass. Apparently, the glass needs to be American, else the tinting won't hold best, and the quality isn't as good. Everything else is fixed, it's just the glass thing. I explained to Garth that , sure, he could have the car for another day, but I had to have the car on Wednesday. I won't be driving anything but my car to California. I feel like I've exhibited an incredible level of patience here. And I don't normally do patience. (Brian once told me that I have patience for only two things: animals and jigsaw puzzles. Lately, that list has grown to include Sydney, but those three things are just about it for me.) There's no point in going on the warpath with Garth. This doesn't seem to be his fault, and he's the one that caught it and insisted the issue be rectified. Still, I'm over it. I want my car back.

3 ITEM!s for a Monday night

ITEM!: I read my last Frankenstein book today! Come to find out that I really didn't have a whole lot of ick to dig through before it started to come together. Of course, it is a horror story to the core, so there was still plenty to make me get kinda freaked out. But I enjoyed how the plot lines were pulled together. I think this may be one of the best book series I've read.
ITEM! (Also, CAR NEWS): I took the Jetta back to the body shop this morning. I had a decent list of things to fix. Upon checking out my list though, Garth suggested that maybe I would do best to get a rental for the day. Apparently, the four hours I could devote to sitting in the lobby wouldn't be enough. Also, he didn't call me this afternoon to come pick up the Jetta. Apparently, he needed much more than the four hours. Let's hope for a Jetta before noon tomorrow.
ITEM!: I want to go on record as saying that I support the Occupy Wall Street protests. I like a good revolution, and our government and financial systems are screaming to be the objects of one. I like that people have gotten so mad, and they aren't going to take it anymore. It's about time the people of this country rose up and made their voices heard. It infuriates me that politicians and financial fat cats are able to rob the people blind, and get away with it. I am loving the fact that people are screaming, making a scene, and bringing to bear their unhappiness with the country's current situation. Even if nothing real comes from it, I like that people have made their voices heard.

My Dancing with the Stars voting (8 votes allowed):
J.R. Martinez ~ 2 votes.
Ricki Lake ~ 2 votes.
Hope Solo ~ 2 votes.
Carson Kressley ~ 1 vote.
David Arquette ~ 1 vote.
Chaz Bono, Nancy Grace, Rob Kardashian ~ 0 votes.

Yeah, yeah, yeah. Not today

I didn't get into my book today. Instead, I chilled on the sofa watching football, eating hummus and pretzel crisps, and baking chocolate chip cookies. The angels that made this relaxing afternoon possible for Brian and myself are Katy and Jade, who took Sydney to the dinosaur museum and McDonald's and entertained her for a few hours.
Instead, tomorrow morning, I'll take my scary book to the body shop. And while I sit in the lobby waiting for them to finish my car, I'll do some reading.