I am still alive. I've been spending time on the Avatar Refuge site. There's a fun contest going on over there to get us in the mood for the grand finale.

Other than that, life is okay. Since I last posted here, I found out I have Lyme Disease. That explains why I was feeling so bad this past winter. I've been taking antibiotics for two months now and I'm starting IV antibiotics tomorrow. Lyme is really hard to get rid of once it's in your system for a long time.

My grandma's house in WV - the house I grew up in - got flooded several weeks ago. I spent some time up there helping them clean up. She didn't have insurance, but FEMA helped her out with some of the expense.

My garden is doing pretty good. I'm disappointed in my zuccinis. They are not nearly as productive as last year. I planted tomatos this year and they are growing like crazy.

Thats all for now. If anyone is interested in the Avatar Refuge site, let me know and I'll hook you up with the right info.

Take care!

I kept thinking earlier... "Why does April 24th ring a bell? Was I supposed to do something today?" And then all of a sudden... DING DONG! It's the date in my little box over here -->

No wonder it seemed familiar.

So here's my attempt at throwing a blog party....

Entertainment courtesy of Haruhi and the SOS Brigade:

Snacks: (All organic of course )

Music:

Fluorescent Adolescent by Arctic Monkeys

Let Me Think About It by Ida Corr

Paper Planes by M.I.A.

Drinks: (Sorry to disappoint, but all drinks are virgin in this blog)

Good news!!
I am happy to report that my team lead has moved to another project! She was a good programmer and self-motivated, but her and I didn't click very well as a team. We had the opposite of synergy - I'll call it drainergy just because I feel like it.

Not so Good News..
The folks I work for (in a round about way) had nearly forgotten about the project we've been working on, but when they heard she was leaving it sparked their memories. Now they have moved the completion date waaay forward. So basically the amount of work that used to be distributed between her and I that was to be completed by December is now all on me and must be done months earlier. I haven't heard a solid date or plan just yet, but I can tell it's not gonna be pretty. Oh well, I guess it's all a matter of motivation anyways.

Other news...
I've been submitting stuff. Yeah, weird, I know. But it's kind of fun once you get started.

I'm almost finished with Kodocha. I think I'm on episode 90 out of 102. Only a few more to go. I think the major story line is already pretty much wrapped up at this point though. I am actually getting used to watching with subtitles. I'm able to catch some of the really common phrases in Japanese now, and I'm not even trying to learn it. I do think it's a nice sounding language though.

Anyone have any recommendations for what anime to watch next?

My van is a magnet for other vehicles. I have had it for less than two years. Bought it brand new after driving a clunker for years just waiting for the chance to buy 'the car' I really, really wanted. Less than a month after driving off the lot, I got rear ended. I was sitting still at a red light and a guy just rammed into the back of me. He claimed that someone hit him and pushed him into me and then ran away. Consequently, I ended up paying for some of the damage out of my own pocket because it had to be turned in under the 'uninsured motorist'clause on my insurance policy so I got stuck with a deductible.

Two months ago while I was in WV for my grandfather's funeral, my van was parked in my grandma's driveway and my uncle backed into the front quarter panel. At least that time I didn't have to pay anything out of pocket since his insurance covered it, but still it is a huge inconvenience having to leave work several times to take care of the repairs.

Finally, just yesterday, I was at the local recycling center trying to do something good for the environment, and this guy cut too sharp going around me (while I was parked) and swiped the front corner. He wants to pay out of pocket, which is fine with me, but now I have to go though the trouble of taking it to get it repaired again.

This makes three times my van has been hit. All three while it was standing still. I have frequent flyer miles at the local body shop. Has anyone else had their car damaged this many times or is it just me? Is my van cursed? I waited for so long to take the plunge on a new car. Am I doing something to attract this type of 'attention'?

Anyway, happy monday to you all. Now I'm off to the repair shop for my lunch break - trying my best to keep a positive attitude.

Now that I've taken the dive and posted a picture of myself, I might as well change my profile image to the real me. I'm gonna keep my sheepy icon though.

I've been procrastinating on work. My team lead has been on vacation all week so I kinda blew off the stuff I needed to get done until now. So basically I have to write a weeks worth of code tomorrow. Oh well, I'll get it done. At least I had some fun and relaxed a bit.

I've finally decided to make some submissions. I've been meaning to figure the system out for a while now. Thank you Angus_Mac for helping me fumble my way through it. I honestly don't know how you keep up with all your editorships. It seems like a huge amount of responsibility.

Yesterday was my baby girl's 6th birthday! I can't believe it's been 6 years. We made mini-cupcakes the night before for her to take to school and share with her c1ass Orange cake with chocolate chips and vanilla icing.

I went home from work early and took her out to Target to get some goodies. She picked a pair of pearl earrings, silver tennis shoes, pink jelly shoes, a pink dress, a kiddy picnic basket set, and the biggest hit - a voice sampler. Maybe I've watched a little too much Kodocha lately, but I saw it and said heeeyyy! Check this out! I showed her how it works and she hasn't put it down since. The last thing she said into it this morning before getting out of the car this morning was...
"My teacher's gonna love this!"
"My teacher's gonna love this!"
"My teacher's gonna love this!"
"My teacher's gonna love this!"
"My teacher's gonna love this!"
"My teacher's gonna love this!"
"My teacher's gonna love this!"

Of course I took it from her at that point because I don't think her teacher would be amused.

In honor of my baby girl's birthday, here is a picture of her and I taken a few months ago.

It has been a month and 2 days since I last posted a blog, and even that wasn't a real blog. Life has been a roller coaster lately. I can't put my finger on anything specific, but I feel so drained.

I apologize for not being around for more than a month to comment on your blogs.

Obsession of the Week: Kodocha

I saw a few episodes of this anime series on Funimation and decided to check it out online to fill in the parts I had missed. Then the few episodes turned into 20, and then 30, and now I'm on episode 41. It's not the best anime out there, but it is entertaining. The characters I like most are:

• Mama - I love her attitude on parenting. I see myself a lot like her as a parent. I like to encourage my kids to experiment and discover things on their own. I can also identify with the way she enthusiastically procrastinates on work. I don't have a squirrel living on my head though.
• Akito Hayama - He's such a bad ass and know-it-all. When Akito sees something stupid happening, he flat out says "that's stupid". I love that in a character!
• Sana - Definately third on the list because she can be annoying and dense, but her energy is amazing. When she sees a problem, she faces it straight on no matter how complicated or uncomfortable.
  

Things I don't like about Kodocha:

• I wish the characters were a little older. Maybe 14/15 instead of 11/12. It made sense for the whole fallout with Rei to happen at that age, but it seems the series could have skipped over a few years rather quickly and plopped them all in late middle school before going into the whole gf/bf thing. I guess they make their maturity case for Akito because of his mother dying and his family treating him harshly for so long. As well as Sana having a tough job and being treated very grown up by her Mama. Still, the characters act more like college students than grade school students.
• The stupid rabbit thing is so annoying, and I also don't like the host of the tv show. He seems like a total pedophile.
• No dubs! The first few are dubbed and then it seems to stop. Even the subtitles were horrible once I got to episode 40. If anyone knows a solution to this, please, please let me know.

lalala...
What is going on with Avatar? Are they ever gonna show the last few episodes? Isn't the last Season 3 DVD slated to come out soon? I haven't been keeping up with the Avatar news. Could somebody fill me in, please?

Take care!

Whoever leaves the most interesting comment wins.

I've been all over the board these past few weeks so I'm not going to post an 'Obsession of the Week' for now. I have asked to be moved to a different cubicle at work, and my request was approved. I'll be on the 1st floor soon instead of the 3rd. At least I won't have the air conditioner blowing on my head all year long and I'll be able to walk outside to see the sun without having to climb 126 steps. Also, the first floor has higher ceilings and seems more open in general. I think I got a decent cube. It's kind of in the back of the room so there won't be a lot of traffic. It's also not too far from the bathrooms and kitchen - both essentials.

I'm taking the whole week off next week to go spend some time with my family in WV. I was only there for the one day when the funeral took place last week when I went. There's so much stuff that needs to be taken care of. My mom asked me to come help her so off I go. I'm taking my daughter out of school for the week too. She's only in kindergarden though so I doubt she'll really miss much. Her teacher said she would send home some worksheets or something. I'm sure she'll enjoy having something to do.

I can't wait for spring to arrive so I'll leave you with some springy pictures to get us all in the mood...

We had a very sad death in our family last week. My grandfather passed away after a battle with Alzheimer's disease. He started transitioning into the late stages of Alzheimer's less than a year ago and in December fell and broke his hip. He never walked after that. The fracture healed, but was such a huge mental setback that he was unable to recover. Last Wednesday, my mother drove him around in the car and he even asked to go a few places. That night he got very sick and began vomiting blood. He was taken to the hospital where he died the next day.

My mother was very young when I was born so I was raised by my grandparents. I called him 'Dad' my entire life. I have many lovely memories of him including sitting with my grandfather listening to his old records, playing with harmonicas, and sitting on the back of his pick-up while he sliced apples for me.

My grandfather was in his late 70s and in very good shape physically. He retired from the coal mines just a few years ago. Some of the things he enjoyed were riding his four wheeler, taking care of his cows and chickens, playing with the kids, fishing, collecting scrap metal, and mowing the grass on his riding lawn mower. He was also very frugal and loved to save his money. He was a veteran of the Korean War and had 3 children, 5 grand children, and 3 great-grand children.

We will all miss him terribly, but I know he is in a better place now and no longer suffering from the dementia that overtook him this past year.

Goodbye Dad.

Hey look, SBS is still alive!

So last Monday I was greeted with a surprise Monday morning. I tried to log into my computer at work and was promptly told that my account no longer existed on my computer. Turns out the 'tech refresh' I have been waiting so long to get (I have been working on a 512MB processor that would barely compile a project) was finally taking place. The big problem at that point was that the internal switch was done before the physical machine got switched. It took me 3 days to finally get back up and running and able to do work. Monday was a waste because 90% of the people I work with were off for Martin Luther King Jr. Day. The people I work with are from various companies and mine was the only one working that day. Tuesday I managed to get the actual new machine and then spent most of the day on the phone with the central IT guys getting them to remotely control my old computer and copy my files over since I could no longer log in. Had I known all of this was happening I could have done that before being locked out. Then Wednesday I spent most of the day getting my software packages reloaded on the new machine. It took most of Thursday to figure out what in the world I was working on before all of that happened and then I was off Friday.

Obsession of the Week(s): Garden Preparations!
The past two weeks I've gotten really into starting seeds and planning out my garden. I made a spreadsheet based on info that I found on a few different websites to figure out when to start which seeds and when to put the plants in the ground relative to the date of the last hard freeze. It's pretty neat because the way I set it up I can change the freeze date and all of the other dates will adjust automagically. ;D

I ordered some oddball seeds from all over the world off of a website and I also got this seed starting rack to keep all the little pots in. It's got a plastic 'greenhouse' cover to keep them toasty and wet. At the moment, it resides in the kitchen, but I plan to move everything outside once the weather warms up.

I can't wait to get working on my gardens outside. I don't have much space, and my gardens are technically more like 'flower beds' so I have planned out what I'm going to plant where to make it look all pretty and landscape-like so my neighbors don't complain too much. The front-right side (as your facing it) of my house gets the most sun so that's where I plant my veggies. Some people don't think that's appropriate, but I don't really care much about their stuck up opinions anyway so I will go on planting and try not to make it look too horrible.

Here's a sampling of some of the things I'm planning to grow...
Hyacinth Beans:

Calabash Gourds (or Bottle Gourds): There's no point of reference here, but these things are huge. Like 2-3 feet long.

Kohlrabi:

Red Carrots:

Oriental Eggplants:

Thai Eggplants:

Japanese Cucumbers:

There's lots more, but I've got to stop some time. I could go on and on about gardening. ;D I think I will dub garden preparations as my obsession for the past two weeks. I've had a few other interests pop up, but really this has been my focus.

Oh, if anyone is interested in the site I orderded the seeds from it's called Evergreen Seedsand there's the link.

I missed the beginning of the week, but I'm still going to post this.

Obsession of the Week: Drawing Fan Art

I never in a million years dreamed that I would be drawing fan art. I had never even tried up until last week and then all ofthe sudden it's an obsession. I've uploaded a few things on my DeviantArt account - which was sitting idly until a few days ago. I'm gonna put the thumbnails here, and if you want to see the full size versions just go to my Devaint Art account. These are chronological btw. The first one I drew is first and the most recent last. I'm up for suggestions as to who/what to draw next.

Hey everyone! Sorry I have been kinda MIA lately. I just couldn't find the right inspiration for a blog last week. I've been thinking about making a blog format for a while and today seems like a good day to start. I can't really make it a strict format though because then I will feel too confined. You see, I have a problem with following rules - even ones that I make for myself. My idea so far is to have a recurring blog section called "Obesession of the Week" at the beginning of the week. Probably Monday/Tuesday-ish. I'd like to make a little graphic as a section header, but I'm going to start out today with just some fancy text. So here goes....

Obsession of the Week: The Haruhi Suzumiya light novels
As you can tell by my blog banner, I am on a Haruhi Suzumiya kick. I watched the anime twice (first the Kyon way and then the Haruhi way) and then decided to read the novels. No spoilers here btw so feel free to keep reading. I just finished the 4th novel, and I must say it blew me away. Kyon's desperation literally moved me to tears. I am pretty sure that the 2nd season of the anime is going to include the contents of that 4th novel and the parts of the 3rd novel that haven't already been shown. It was also interesting to see the author's notes at the end of the story because he seems to have based a lot of the Haruhi Suzumiya story on real life experiences.

I don't want to put any details here and spoil the novels, but I will say that if you liked the anime you should definately pick up the novels. So far:

• The first novel is the basis for anime episodes 1-6
• The 2nd novel is the behind the scenes making of the SOS Brigade movie (much more interesting than the movie itself)
• The 3rd novel is a collection of stories including the giant cricket, the baseball tournament, the remote island, and one other short that is not a part of the first anime.
• The 4th novel is new and different. I won't spoil it, but really it's sooo good.

I started reading it Saturday night and couldn't put it down. Next think knew I glanced at the clock and it was 5AM! I was a total zombie on Sunday and was having company over for lunch so I fumbled my way through that.

Here is a link to the Haruhi Suzumiya Light Novels online. I should thank Zerocrossings for posting it on the Haruhi Suzumiya forums. Thanks Zerocrossings! Note: These are fan translations. To read the original translations you must download them or if you want I can e-mail them to you. I don't have a site for downloading the originals at the moment, sorry.

I'd also like to thank Kas_Dude from the bottom of my heart for including me in his blog as the Friend of the Week. It really is a huge honor to have people care about me and appreciate me for who I am.
This one's for you Kas!

New Years Eve 1994/1995 - I was 16 years old and lived out in the country in West Virginia. The closest town was about 20-30 minutes drive from our house. I had a plan to go to someone's house to hang out for New Years. I got permission from my grandma and waited eagerly to be picked up by my bf (I'll refer to him as 'the pshcho' from here on out) and his friend. The psycho was driving his dad's small Nissan pickup truck. I was sitting in the middle and the other friend on the passenger side. The weather was cold and there was some leftover snow on the ground but the roads were clear. As we drove along the twisty, hilly, narrow road it was obvious that the psycho was trying to show off for his friend who had never been to my house before. There is a hill a mile or two from my house that has a very sharp peak to it so if you drive over it in a certain way it will cause that roller coastery feeling in your stomach. Of course if you take it too fast you will lose control and wreck which is exactly what the psycho did. As he popped over the hill and lost control, he first cut to the right and smashed head on into a tree. That's when I smashed into the windshield. Then the truck spun around and flipped over and landed in the ditch on its side on the other side of the road. When the motion finally stopped, it felt like I was buried under a pile of sand. The three of us were stacked up on top of each other with the friend on the bottom, me in the middle, and the pshycho on top. As we came to, the psycho managed to climb out of the driver's side window which was now facing skyward. When I tried to free myself, I realized that I was trapped. My right arm had gone through the passengers side window and was under the truck. The friend was also trapped under the truck and had a broken jaw. I never really figured out exactly what part of his body was trapped, but I'm pretty sure he was in worse shape than me. I tried to keep my weight off of him as best I could by wrapping my feet around the steering wheel. We were trapped there for about an hour before rescue workers were able to lift the truck and free us. The ground was frozen and covered with snow. As I was trapped, I came to the conclusion that I would never have the use of my right arm again. Amazingly, I left the hospital that evening with only contusions and nerve damage. It was several months before my arm felt normal again, and I have had back problems since that day.
Do you have a friend who drives crazy and shows off? If you do, don't get into the car with that friend. Believe me, it's not worth it.

New Years Eve 1999/2000 - The Melennium. I spent New Years Evepreparing for my wedding the following morning. So tomorrow is our 8 year anniversary. And no, I did not marry the psycho - thank God.

I feel like I should post a blog today. I realize I probably won't get many comments because I never do on the weekends, but still I've got the urge so here goes.

Life...

I am recovering from a cold. I've been sick off and on for several months now. Totally sucks.

My husband is back from his trip and doesn't have any more scheduled any time soon. He has been travelling for the better part of the last 5 months. It's really weird having a spouse come home after being away for so long. I've gotten really independent so now I kinda feel like he's just in the way. I guess we will re-adjust to each other eventually.

The deck is finished. I keep forgetting to call the inspector for the final inspection. I'm so forgetful at times.

Work is pretty much the same. The one guy in the cube to my right left a couple weeks ago and now the lady in the cube to my left is leaving today. I know I've joked and complained about it before, but this cube farm really does have a lot of the same qualities as a prison. It's just so depressing up here.This is a generic picture and not my actual office. My office is more depressing that the one in the picture. Lower ceilings, no windows, higher carpet walls, smaller cubes I think too.

The holidays are almost over so I don't have to think about it much longer. Maybe I'm weird, but I really don't like holidays. I don't like vacations either. I've just gotten to the point where I am pushing forward with my day to day life and I don't want distractions that show me how boring and monotonous my daily routine really is.

This whole thing is sounding really depressing. Hmm, I don't feel all that depressed at the moment. I'm just stating the facts.

I just finished a book called 'Uglies' by Scott Westerfield. My sister-in-law read it as an assignment for school and recommended it to me. I enjoyed the book, but there is some looseness in the plot. I keep finding myself saying "that's totally illogical, wouldn't he/she just do this?" The overall premiss of the book is good, but like I said I was able to easily poke holes in the plot. There are two more books in the series; 'Pretties' and 'Specials'. I'm planning to read the other two.

That's all I've got folks. Have a good weekend!

This is going to be short and sweet. I made a new profile banner. It's been a long time since I've used Gimp. I have really missed it.

A wool sweater for the first person who names the anime in my new banner.

And a pair of wool slipper to the first person who names the episode the images came from.

Take care everyone!

Hello! How is everyone? I feel like I've been away from this site for months, but it's only been a week and a half really, and I have been checking in occasionally. Work has been keeping me very busy lately. The project I've been working on finally has funding and is going into full swing. I like staying busy though, it makes the days go faster.

Home is as hectic as ever. I'm having a deck built. It might even be done by the end of the day today. I'm excited about the deck. It will give me more places to grow things.

My husband's brother's two year old daughter is staying with us this week. My kids are really happy they get to spend that much time with their little cousin. We live more than 400 miles apart so it's not like we can just hop in the car and go visit them on a weekend. We met half way before, but it's still quite a drive.

The cold has let up a little. It's in the 50's now so I'm back to my favorite red leather jacket again instead of the giant eskimo coat. I realize some of you are south of the equator. It seems so weird that people from half way around the world can interact so easily online. We probably correspond more in a single hour than our grandparents could have in an entire lifetime. It's mind boggling to think about it. And consider the amount of information available online. It would have taked our grandparents hours to go to a library and look up a piece of information when all we have to do is type it in a box and hit enter. Uh oh, I feel a deep question coming on....

Do you think the ease of information access and communication we have now is making people smarter than the generations before us?

One last thing. A game I like to play.

Take care everyone!!

I finally got awinter coat. It looks kinda like this...

So now I'm ready...

to cross the parking lot.

Happy Winter!

OMG!!! I didn't think it was possible, but they have done it again. This episode (two really but they go together) was by far the absolute best episode of Avatar yet!!!!!!!

I'm going to put the rest in spoiler tags, but if you haven't seen it yet, even if you haven't seen any of Avatar yet, you need to sit your but down and watch - even if you are starting from episode 1. This show is amazing! Better than any other anime I've seen. Better than any live action I've seen. Just watch it. You will thank me later.

***SPOILER***

I love Avatar. They give us all of the satisfaction and fullfilment that other shows just refuse to hand over.

I do have a question. Is theWestern Air Temple where the Guru lives? I get confused on the different air temples.

And I just HAVE to get a koala-sheep on my icon or banner. They are so cute! That is my mission for tonight. Watch for my profile to change soon!