Betty Crocker Listen Closely

This post was going to be about how women don't need to buy pink tools or call Mike the plumber, or Joe the plumber (if you're more into politics than Desperate Housewives) just to fix a leaky kitchen faucet. But now it's going to be about how even very competent women need to have an extra set of hands around while they're fixing a leaky kitchen faucet.

Andy's at work. I went to the store and purchased the repair kit for my Delta kitchen faucet, I looked up the directions online and got to work taking apart the entire faucet and replacing the worn gaskets, springs, seals and such and then I had a very easy time putting it all back together again...until it came to the metal hose...the hose is the main reason why I love my kitchen faucet.

The sprayer and faucet are one so there isn't worry about having another fixture just to have the pull out spray action.


My faucet is the one on the left, the one on the right is the typical sprayer I was referring to.


But, for some really awesome reason I can't get the metal hose back through the neck of the faucet on my own. I need hands under the sink and hands on the faucet at the same time.

No matter how I contort I just don't have enough reach. Now when Andy comes home, instead of finding a none drippy faucet, he's going to find this:

Yeah. This is going to be good. The super good news is that once I get that second pair of hands on it, I'll be able to put everything back together in under a minute and I won't need any help from anyone. Then maybe I'll bake some bread just to help bring back the softer lady side I'm lacking at the moment. ummm bread baking sounds good...

In other news I'm heading out to the garage to set mouse traps. I didn't buy glue traps, I didn't buy little houses that they would go into and be alive in. I bought little houses that have a large amount of poison in them so that they'll go inside, and never come out. I don't care what anyone thinks either. They're destroying our things that we store out there and they have to die. The end.

I don't have a clever title for this thing

We're sort of attempting to catch up with everyone this week, and it seems to sort of be working out. But then again, it seems not to be working out also (the Frenches...we'll get up there I swear). For all of the early mornings (it makes the day longer) and slowish work week help, we still can't get enough time together in the same room to even figure out when we can do stuff together, much less with other people.

And February is looking to be busy already (for starters I'm going to Vegas, VEGAS!).

But, I'm not complaining, okay I'm complaining a little. But listen. The blog has been quiet for a few reasons. Reasons I'm not ready to talk about yet, but you'll know soon enough, and some reasons I will talk about.

I'm tired for one. To tired by the time the day is just about over to even think about writing something intelligent, much less interesting. But that's just complainy and that's not what I want this post to be about. So we're on to something else.

Another reason I haven't posted is cause I've been irked. Bothered. Frustrated.
Maybe I'm getting old?

There are things I think I should post about, and then I realize I'd just be complaining and I do not want this blog to be about complainy things.

But I thought I'd make a list and you all could think what you will about my reasoning and frustration and I could just be done with it and then feel freedom move on to happier things. Cause people, I'm not an angry person, I'm a happy person. Here goes.

Things that Irk Me (in no particular order of importance, I just like lists with numbers)

1. Prop 8, specifically the reason why Christians looove prop 8
2. Ugly Betty, it used to be a fun little show to watch on a Saturday and now it's just all whiney
3. My husband snoring and waking me up at night
4. the Kitty scratching on the door and waking me up at night
5. I'm tired
6. The fact that people are saying Jessica Simpson looks fat, I mean that she has a "curvier, fuller figure" WTF
7. I'm cold all the time
8. I haven't gotten to just hang out with my husband in almost a month
9. I have to work all the time
10. the last thing is something I don't want to talk about

For the Watchmen Fans

I stayed home alone last night, well, first I went to work again and came home after 11pm, and then I was alone. Andy had a last minute show come up in Portland and he has to work in Salem today so they just stayed up there at a friend's place, and I, you know...was alone.

So I read a little Watchmen and went to sleep, but the real news is when I woke up this morning I took a moment to check things online and for some reason discovered this awsomeness.

Oh so it's like that huh?

It's a little bit like playing hookie, except I planned it, and my "boss" knows about it. Today I had a day off. It was supposed to simply be a: your birthday was on a lame day for everyone, so we're pretending it's today - thing. But I have to say...it's nice to clean the house. I pretend like someone else did it so that I can feel all good and organized and the small act of lying to myself makes it feel even more amazing. We're getting ready for a nice afternoon and evening together.

I'm going to the knit shop and I'm so happy about it. It's going to be a good year. I swear.
And now, as any good day should, I am now going to get in some laughs from the ladies over at this blog*.
*warning, not for the faint of heart, and by that I mean people that don't like to make fun of celebrities. Your Welcome

....

It was a nice day. Not fantastic, not, not fantastic. It was good. Better than some, but not worse than most. A few grand people made it better than it would have been and for that I'm so thankful. Andy did little things that makes me know how much he loves me. And now for my favorite thing. A list.

1. He cleaned the computer, wiped it down and made it white and clean again.
2. He made breakfast and coffee.
3. He cleaned the floors. I hate cleaning the floors. He picked up my things thrown about and vacuumed the floors.

It's the little things that make me know.

4. He came down to my work for the last hour I was there and sat at the desk across the way from me just to be there and work, cause I had been all alone in the office all day.
5. He unlocks my door and opens it for me before the rain soaks through my clothes.
6. He says, "come out here," so he can talk to me about my day while he makes a quick dinner for himself before heading to work.
7. He silently rolls down the window after he drops me off for dinner and gives me a kiss through it.
8. He calls when he's on his way home.

The day is looking up...even though it's just about over.

goodbye 2008. We will never forge...what huh, you wanna dance 2009? Okay, wait I think I was saying something....

I like the feeling of being "back". It's good to start the day with a run...we didn't today cause it was early to work instead, but tomorrow we will. I'm back calling people to hang out and stopping by to say, hey. I'm going back to knitting group tonight and beginning a new project which will hopefully become a gift for a new little man that will be joining little mister in a couple of months.

I'm back blogging, but that was obvious. So I'm back, back with another list for you, this one inspired by - er I mean stolen from - Jem and his blog found here

Things not invited back for 2009

1. Divorce
2. People leaving
3. house hunting
4. election related paraphernalia, or commercials, or rallies, or blogs, or news commentaries, or mass emails claiming this or that about one of the delegates, you get my disdain don't 'cha?
5. Celebrities buying- I mean adopting kids from Africa, what about China for a change? (Seriously, read through the linked article. It's got great quotes.)
6. Coffee breath at 3 in the afternoon
7. Stephanie Meyers lack of writing skills
8. the recession
9. my nephew getting bit on the face by a dog
10. blogs from women complaining about their husbands
11. clutter
12. oh, I almost forgot, World Hunger.
13. And...birthdays. Forget 'em. Who needs 'em, I'll just take the presents.

Also just so you know, I posted on the Push This Blog

It has nothing to do with a new year but...

I click the words "new post" and imagine the tapping on the keyboard I'll make. And then it appears. The blank page before me, it begins to become a group of words squished together to form sentences that then become paragraphs. It hits me. There is so much to say, but nothing that I'm ready to say out loud. And so. I'll hit you with a few facts from the last couple of months in the format I am most fond of right now, a list.

1. Parents from both of our childhoods (mom, and mom and dad) came to visit for Thanksgiving.

2. I failed to complete NANOWRIMO, or at least I stopped after 2 weeks because I figured out that although the acronym seems to work for using the month of November as it's time frame, life actually frowns on the idea with the holiday and visitors taking precidence.

3. I blogged like twice at the Push This blog so that was kind of the same amount that I blogged here, but then I failed to blog a promised follow up blog, so that's on the list for monday.

4. Andy's computer crashed and won't start up anymore. So, we've been sharing my laptop, which I guess now is technically "our" laptop and I sorta blame that for the lack of blogging, and general lack of internet use in the last couple of months. I would really like to remedy this soon.

5. My birthday is this coming Thursday. It'll be my last drink of the devil's fruit for a while. I'm cleaning out my body and trying to get rid of the extra fat around my *commence general waving of the hands in a circular motion* this section.

Which leads me to 6. I ran today.
It was freezing. It made my lungs hurt when I breathed. But, the good thing about it being so damn cold was that I ran for longer than I'd scheduled to cause I didn't want to stop and get cold again. Which eventually I did, stop...and get cold again.

7. It snowed at our little house.

8. I sent out Christmas cards. If you didn't get one, it's either cause I don't have your address, or I ran out. Sorry.

9. I spent Christmas Eve, semi without Andy. He had to work. Ya. Lame.

10. We spent Christmas day with other orphaned friends in Eugene and enjoyed our time with them immensly.

11. I thought the kitty was lost forever, but it turned out she was just hiding in a bucket under the bed trying to stay warm.

12. I'm really into Ghost in the Shell right now

13. Andy bought me the most insane Christmas gift - he surprised me with a Chi

14. We bought him rain gear so he can ride the motorcycle again now. Although I still need to get a helmet, so if you know of one, or find one that you'd like to tell me about, I'd be happy if you did.

15. I finally hung some stuff in the Living Room utilizing our sweet "picture molding" Which means I had to learn to tie sick, never loosening knots in fishing line that the frames hang from little hooks on the molding. It was great. I love the internet. I feel like if you know the right questions to ask, you can learn almost anything.

16. I read the entire Twilight series.

17. I'm trying to knit my first hat

18. I missed being with our family this Christmas for some strange reason.

19. on thursday I'll begin my last year in my twenties.

20. I love my little house.

This is not a New Year's resolution or anything, but I'm trying to be more social, hang out with people a lot this year and invest in people the way I want to but always don't, or can't find the time to. I hope this blog is filled with more posts of musings, lists, discoveries, and pictures of things and people I love. This is going to be a year of calm goodness. That's what I think anyways. What's your year going to be?