Looking for love in all the wrong places

It has been a month of internet dating and well, do I have a story for you! I have been communicating with a few online, messaging back a forth and met the horse owner/truck driver last Sunday. We had originally planned a date on Monday but his truck was in the area and he called Sunday morning and asked if I would be interested in lunch. Sure. He parked his big rig in a lot and jumped into Blue with me and off we went. I had no idea where to take him, we ended up at Pizza Hut because it was early and salad sounded good. He was nice. We ate and talked and then I took him back to his rig. And looked forward to meeting him on Monday for dinner. My bad. Geez. I guess I am just too danged nice. I felt terrible because of all the driving he had to endure. He had to drive forty five minutes in the opposite direction of me to get to work, drive his semi all over, drive home forty five minutes back to feed his horses and then another hour and a half to get to me. So, instead of him getting here and then driving another thirty minutes or more to a nice restaurant, I made a big mistake. I invited him to my house and I would cook for him. I figured he would leave by 7:00. Almost as soon as he got to PC, HE WAS ALL OVER ME. At one point I said he was ruining it for me. And I was serious. He would stop and start up again. At 7:00 he said he didn’t have to leave until 8. I started watching the clock. I basically fought him off for 4 hours straight. I do not know why he got the impression I was gonna, um, you know, do him any favors. He told me he wanted to tell me something. He did. The next day on the phone. He loves me. OMFG. He texted me several times and we spoke on the phone and he was fully aware of someone else I wanted to speak to that lives near me. He had even agreed that there would be a “what if”  hanging over my head if I didn’t contact the other guy. Then he emailed me and asked me to call, I emailed back and said I was expecting a phone call. Which I was. He asked if I would rather talk to the new guy that he refers to as “MR CONVENIENT”. Well, hell yes. He told me he would love me like no one else blablabla…over and out Mr. Trucker.

D (or Mr. Convenient as trucker called him) and I had been communicating through messages for quite some time. At least he is patient. I had gave him my phone number via a message on the dating site. He is old-fashioned and nice enough to message back wanting to know a good time to call. We spoke for a couple hours Tuesday. What a great sense of humor. We spoke again on Wednesday and Thursday he asked if I would be interested in coming to his place for dinner, he loves to cook. I was expecting Skeeter so I politely turned him down and asked for a rain check. He then asked if I would like to go out some time and I said sure. I met him in town Friday evening and we went to the restaurant I suggested. He is average looking, not as tall as I like them but what a fun time we had. He kept telling the waitresses that it was our anniversary. I said yeah, we have been together an hour. Make that two before we left. He took a different route back and asked if there were any other place I may be interested in going. I could tell he didn’t want the date to end. Neither did I. So we stopped at a bar. I was  there last weekend with a girlfriend and they had a kick ass rock band. Unfortunately this weekend was country. And it wasn’t good. But we got a couple dances in, a slow one and a very hard-to-dance-to version of Sweet Home Alabama. After the second set I couldn’t take it anymore and asked if we could leave. We arrived at my car and he said he wasn’t ready to say goodbye. He asked me, telling me he would behave and be a gentleman, if I would follow him back to his house so he could play his guitar for me. Swoon. The guy has amazing talent. He even played a couple songs that he wrote. Too awesomely cool. He writes straight from the heart. He used to play in a band years ago and has started practicing with friends again. They are planning to line up some gigs in the future. They will be country rock and I think I like it, so far. Did I mention he built his house? It is small, only two bedrooms and very nice. But he doesn’t like living in the country and the only neighbor he had died. Dang! My poor Stella was stuck at home, crossing her legs to keep from peeing on the floor, so I had to leave. He emailed me this morning, thanking me for the date and that I exceeded all his expectations. LOL  And wants to cook me dinner sometime soon. What a sweety…

BaBaBaBaby, It’s Cold Outside

WTF?

So I stopped by the local grocery store today. I had my camera. And then I saw this living in the meat counter and it cracked me up. I shall call it Pig in Sausage.

Have you ever?

I made a decision before the New Year. “B” and I weren’t going anywhere and getting there fast. I told him I was going to sign up for an online dating site after the first. Oh joy. One of my requirements is the person must be patient and not be in a big hurry to meet face to face. Men are very impatient!  So far I have spoken to two  three via the phone and well, so far two eliminated without ever meeting.

I found Rick very attractive. Great smile. Ambitious. He lives in another state but works less than an hour from PC. He was very polite and snuck his phone number into one of his messages and mentioned hoping he wasn’t being too forward. I said probably and called him the next evening. We had three days of phone conversations until the. last. one. He had told me he didn’t like drama. Who does? I don’t have any but concluded that he did. Alot. Because of all his (non)drama, he decided he just didn’t have the time to spend trying to get to know me better. Maybe later. Probably not! I really think he is still in love with his ex fiancé, “the party girl”. His loss…next!!!

Week two, another “contact” caught my attention. He is only 20 minutes away. Easy on the eyes but even his profile said I don’t know. He sounded too much like my old roommate. As in no hobbies, no nothing but a couple chickens. So I call him and he bored me on the phone. I ended up telling him my battery was about to die, true and thankful. Sunday my phone rings. The guy on the other end asks, Ruth? I say no, you have the wrong number. He says sorry but pauses. He asks, Judy? I recognise his voice. I ask, who is this? He says Mark. I say, hi Mark this is Deb. He starts with the nervous laughter and says that his phone must have messed up or maybe him. LOL Idiot. I suggested a bit of effort in keeping his woman straight. And then said goodbye (forever). Next!

Ok, Doug. He’s short for my standards. 5′10″. And in a big hurry to meet. He wants me to be the center of his world and I ask how can one tell that from a couple of photos and phone conversation? Yes, just a tad bit smothering. As in he has called me 4 TIMES today! He has horses. I love horses. Divorced twice, the second marriage lasted six months. He lives an hour and twenty minutes  away. He is very sweet. He is willing to take the drive and meet me in my home town. I’m scared.  He asked me to ride with him to check out the horse he wants to breed his mare to. On Thursday. We wouldn’t be getting back until well after 11 p.m. I have to work Friday. Arrggh decisions, decisions!!!

Dear Amos,

Do you remember when we first met ? You were perched in a big cage with several other babies, you being a bit older and larger. You, so pretty with your bright green body and fiery red head. The man said you were three months old and would outlive me. I rescued you from that big old cage and took you home to live with your new family. You let the cats and dog know right away who was boss and they left you alone. Skeeter was only a year old when you came into our lives.

 

I spoon fed you baby formula for the first few weeks. But you, Mr. Amos, turned into a junk food junkie. You loved eating food perched on my shoulder, me feeding you mac and cheese and veggies off my fork. You squawked at the sound of popcorn popping, knowing you would get to share. You enjoyed Mickey D’s french fries and pizza crust. You would munch carrots, apples and bananas, shaking your beak and scraping it on your perch, removing the stuck on food.

 

You learned how to talk! You picked up words including “ready, set, goooooooooooo” and “pretty bird”. I spent years trying to get you to say hello but only the “lo” came out. You could say “Tone” but never got the “knee” part. When I called your name, you asked “what”? You made many sounds. You did one helluva catcall.

 

When someone laughed, you would laugh. You mimicked a conversation; jibber-jabbering unrecognizable words in a mans deep voice. I taught you how to make an ambulance sound not realizing I was bobbing my head with each “whooo, whooo, whooo” and you picked up on that too. You learned how to cough as my “ex” did. When you heard a whistle you would whistle back.

 

Do you remember when Skeeter accidentally stepped on your foot? How the Vet said nothing was broken but you needed to be massaged? I would take you in my hands and gently rub your leg and toes. And once you caught a cold, runny nose and all and I had to give you antibiotics with a dropper.

 

Your squawking irritated most. It could be quite ear-piercing at times. It was just you saying you were hungry, you wanted out of your cage or you needed attention. You got very loud when I wasn’t in view or on the phone. When you were on my shoulder, you would go into attack mode, allowing no one near us. You would give them warning pecks and growl. You were my protector. You caused blood shed to a few fingers. When I woke up in the morning I would hear the familiar chirps. You would peak from under your cage blanket looking for me to uncover you and set you free so you could greet the day.

 

You spent countless hours on your tree perch, you always wanted to be near me. You would fly over to me, perch on my shoulder and sometimes walk up the back of the couch, where Hunter the cat was sleeping and torment him.

 

We took showers together, we did. You took baths in your water bowl, dunking your head and splashing the sliding glass door. You loved to take shoulder taxi rides, perched on me as I did chores. We spent loads of time on the computer, sometimes late into the night, where you would pick at my sparkly jewelry. You watched me drinking my coke and learned how to drink from my glass.

 

Remember the times I lost you? Once you flew up into the tree behind the garage and after many attempts of “ex” throwing rocks near you finally came down. One time the boys spooked you off the deck and you flew far away down past the back yard. I thought you were lost forever; we looked and looked for you. You were gone a couple days before “ex” finally found you wandering between the corn stalks, you looking up at him as if to say “what took you so long”? The third time you escaped we were alone on the deck enjoying the afternoon sun. You suddenly just flew off, fast and toward the busy road. I ran to see which way you went but lost you in the trees. I went home and waited and heard your screams far away. I ran barefoot through the woods and across the side street in the direction of your voice. It sounded as though you were up in the trees but I couldn’t see you. I knocked on the owner’s door to let them know I was on his property and he came out to help me. We couldn’t locate you – it was getting dark and you being green in all those trees was like the proverbial needle in a haystack. I slept on the couch that night- the slider door open so I could hear you. You woke me up about 6 a.m. with your screams and I ran to you. This time I spotted you, about as high up in that huge tree as you could get. You looked down and waited. Skeeter climbed that tree, fish net in hand – me praying the whole time – I was so scared for both of you. But he brought you back to me and I never let you outside again.

 

You changed. Perhaps the loneliness you felt from the recent loss of our dog Sweety? You spent 13 years alone with her while I worked. Maybe something you ate in that tree? You started that annoying picking of your tail feathers. No matter what I did, what cure-all parrot product I tried, you never stopped picking. I would yell at you until I cried. Put you on my shoulder to get you to stop. But you wouldn’t. The vet took all sorts of tests, shot you up with drugs and made me change your diet. I had to put that awful collar on your neck. It made you cry. We went to another Vet. It was all such a bad nightmare for us. You would  start to heal and then you would start up again. After many trips to  find a cure, I decided they weren’t helping you. I even gave up the collar. You were so much happier and I learned to accept you tail-less.

 

You were home waiting for me to return with newborn baby Scooter. You were there when I told that evil man you hated I wanted a divorce. You grew up with our family and even after the boys left home you were there for me.  Over twenty years you were here, home with me.

 

The  holidays have come and gone. I have noticed you have stopped eating. You are quiet and not as active. You spend more time in your cage. You fall off your tree stand. You no longer fly. You are growing weak. I ignore the food recommendations and start giving you all the foods you love, hoping it will give you strength. You eat but get no better. I hold you. I can feel the warmth of your body, your silky wing feathers on my neck. You just stand there, struggling for balance and I help you as you nestle your face into my hair. Tears run down my cheeks as I tell you I am so sorry. I know you are leaving us soon- this time for good.

 

I awake and you are quiet. I uncover your cage and you just stand there. I watch you and finally accept that we need to see the Vet one last  time.  It was terrible leaving you alone. I am so, so sorry. It was such an important day for Scooter. I hurry back, open the front door and call “Amo”!?! You don’t respond. I uncover your cage  and I can’t find you. Then I spot you, at the bottom, your back facing me. You stand there with your beak still grasping the rail and don’t acknowledge me as I softly say Amo one last time.

 

You are now near your doggie friend “Sweety” under the tree you viewed from the house. I am so saddened. You were such a big part of our family. I was supposed to go first. My family knew you were to be put to sleep and buried with me because I knew no one else would be able to take care of you. You were my bird. You didn’t have the trust in others. But now you go. Fly the blue skies high in the clouds with your feathered friends. I still feel you, I still hear your voice.

 

 But there is a sad, sad silence in our home. I miss you so much. Farewell my friend. My “pretty bird”. 

 

 

 Amos 

April 1997-January 2008

Goodbye 2009

Hello 2010. I don’t believe in resolutions. But I would like a few changes. Big changes. Let’s get things turned around in 2010!

Deb.

Check it out

So I tried out the Silhouette today. So far so good. FYI I am breathing through my mouth because, like when they were small, my sons are always sick on Christmas. And because Scooter and I had the same drink (flavored water) I took a drink of his by accident. Then I said, great, now I am going to get sick. Guess what I am doing on New Years Eve! Most likely sitting here under a blanket because I am sick. My cheekbones hurt. My nose is all stuffed up. My left eye is running and I am fighting a sinus infection. Lovely.

anyway, the Silhouette. Here are some of the images I own. The thing came with 50 and I used the free card to get more. I can’t believe they charge $1.99 for these. I’ll do my own. This thing is pretty easy to figure out. I suppose my experience with photoshop and illustrator helped. Kinda sorta similar.

It came with two carrier sheets, depending on the thickness of paper you use. I didn’t know the weight of mine so I used the thicker choice because I was using what I would consider card stock. The carrier sheet has a sticky side and you mount the paper on that.

There are a great amount of fonts to use so I chose one, typed out “Family” and sized it to fit a frame. I filled up the rest of the paper with random images I thought were cool. I basically fed it into the machine, pressed cut and away it went. (the hardest part was figuring out how to switch the printers. my laptop kept defaulting to another printer which is odd because I have never installed a printer on my laptop). Here’s the cut.

I attempted to peel off the paper. That carrier sheet is very sticky. It wasn’t easy trying to pull apart all the little chunks of paper. There were a few pieces that didn’t cut all the way through. I ended up getting out a razor blade because I was too lazy to look for the exacto knife. They sell tools made for this. Here are the images all punched out.

I love the little witchy boots. I will save these images to make some cards or something later. But here is what I was really after. It turned out pretty good. I used stick glue and I hope it dries clear because right now I am not liking it so well.

I spoke to “B” a couple times today. As I was pulling out of my driveway, I met up with the mail lady and she handed me a big box. With his return address. aarrgghh. He sent me my Christmas gift! He has been so busy with his business and having all three of his daughters home at the same time that we haven’t had our Christmas. I refuse to send his. I proceeded to yell at him and then gently told him there was no way I was opening mine until we were together and he could open his. He is in a great deal of stress at the moment, his hard drive crashed today and he has lost all his work. His computer geek told him he wasn’t sure how much he could recover. I don’t know how to help him. I know he doesn’t need my cold.

Hey, I’m on Staycation!

wow, it’s 3am and I am still up. I’m a night owl when work doesn’t force me go to bed before midnight. I will share a secret with you. I bought myself an early Christmas gift a few weeks ago but with all the hustle and bustle of the holiday I didn’t get a chance to play with my new toy. Tonight was the night.

It’s a Silhouette-SD! I read great reviews and found it on sale at Amazon with free shipping and a $25 prepaid card for digital downloads. I spent alot of time figuring it out and had to go online to download a new driver and update my flash player for some unknown reason. I had some problems deciding which blade to use, mostly because the paper I had purchased didn’t indicate the weight and I guessed wrong. I cut out the words “eat it and like it” for my kitchen because I tell my sons that all the time. Especially when they turn their noses up at something new I serve. It’s a big joke in our family.

So, after getting a successful first cut, I decided to go ahead and get some free downloads. It appears these things are $1.99 each. Basically for a shape. But I have $25 to spend and the whole site is on sale for 99cents through the end of the year, woot! I don’t remember how many pages there were. I spent hours!

I really want to use the designs I create in photoshop and illustrator. I haven’t figured that bit out yet. But when I do I’m gonna have fun. I also have a coupon for 10% off for vinyl, replacement blades and sketch pens. I guess this thing will draw for me too. Doubt if I will use that function. It will cut perfect circles. I can’t! I am loving it so far.

Martha Stewart is on Jimmy Fallon tonight. She is talking about her Christmas trees. In her house. How many? 14. In. Her. House.

ok, my eyes are starting to cross. I pray that dude comes and plows my driveway soon. Or my staycation may last until the spring thaw.

goodnight!

A Crappy Christmas!

My sissy did it again. I love it. The wooden box will be perfect for storing some of the Cola Christmas deco.

My sissy and I have had a joke going on for several years now. It started when I wrapped a tacky votive candle holder and gave it to her for Christmas. The following year I got it back. And so on. This year I bought her a pot holder featuring the pretty pink bird. And since she had the flamingo candle holder, guess who got it back! It’s always pretty much a surprise. I never remember it unless it’s in my hand that year to give to her.

Here’s a few more of my gifts from her this year. The votive holder is on the left.

I love this sign. I have a small collection of Wizard of Oz, my favorite movie, which I don’t even own. I don’t know if she was going from that or because I have a bit of an attitude at times.

My sons came early to open their gifts from Santa and then my sissys family arrived. We ate. We opened more gifts. Scooter and Skeeter left to spend time with their dad and returned a few hours later. With a girlfriend and their dogs. I do not allow my granddogs, Token and Butters (yes, from South Park) to visit when I have a house full. Just too much dog going on. The first thing Token did was run to the kitchen, I suspected to find food. A short time later Skeeter went in there and busted out laughing. Token pooped in my kitchen. hohoho, not funny!!! Then a fight broke out. They slammed into a side table and everything went flying. They are much more fun when they are outside, where they can run and play and leave my house alone! Token is a baby. It wasn’t his fault! He dropped a yule log with all the excitement, it wasn’t on carpet and I didn’t have to clean it up.

And to finish off the day Skeeters girlfriend went missing. She had been texting him from my bathroom but his phone was dead. Turns out she had plugged up the toilet and had spent a great amount of time trying to fix it. When Skeeter found her, she was standing in the corner, crying, watching it overflow. My floor was flooded. My basement is wet. And the toilet still isn’t working 100%. I may have to call in back up!

I spent today vacuuming glitter, cleaning the kitchen, and doing laundry including all the towels used to clean up the bathroom incident. I took some trash out to the can. As I was coming back in I spotted a Target bag on the porch and thought, oh shit. Who didn’t get what for Christmas? I opened it. Dang Skeeter had scooped up Tokens log with a paper towel, put it in a Target bag and deposited it on the porch. So in the end, I guess I did assist with the clean up.

Have yourself a Merry Little Christmas…

From Poverty Corner to you…

Wishing you a happy funfilled Christmas. May it leave its richest blessing in the hearts of you and yours.

lovingly,

☮Deb.