friday 9.25

So nice sleeping without chirps. Now we have snoring from Ryan and constant sniffles from Andy when he climbs in at 5:30.

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Ryan is back to waiting outside for the bus early. He went out at 8:10 and the bus doesn't come until 8:50. I was editing more zoo pics until he came in and wanted me outside as well.

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I am not usually so far behind with photo editing. (Ugh the music at TF sucks!) I am still working on my second trip to the zoo.

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thursday 9.24

Not starting out so good. The chirp! continues. I slept but I wonder if it affected my sleep. I feel exhausted. Grumpy. (Chirp is gone! It was another smoke detector sitting in a bin.)

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Two things are at odds with each other. My diet and my new fondness for hanging out at Starbucks. The program I use for my diet reduces the amount of allowed calories as you lose weight. Since spring, I have "lost" about 200 allowed calories per day. A venti non-fat awake tea latté is 200 calories. See the problem? I need to exercise more so I can indulge. Or I could switch to plain tea, only 32 to 48 calories depending on how sweet I want it.

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Bugger! I walked this morning. Just a short one before water aerobics. I stopped to take a photo and forgot to hit resume. Also, bad chemicals inhaled as I had to walk by a man cleaning the masonry wall. He had a mask on.

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Burning new music to disks. It just sounds better in the car than my iPod.

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Totally stuck my foot in my mouth at water aerobics.

All summer long when we went to the pool there was a creepy guy in a black speedo. He would come in wearing baggy jeans and a t-shirt then strip to his speedo. He never got in the water, just sunbathed and listened to his music. Sometimes he would slowly walk around the pool.

Two weeks I mentioned his to Colletta and she said he was her husband. I thought she was joking. She never mentioned his name said it in a way that I took for very dry sarcasm. (my specialty) I though she said something about the others teasing her about him staring at her.

Today... someone mentioned how we were only ones there. There were no ______ here. And I chime in "... and no weird guys in black speedos." Silence. I decide to let it drop. After we are done, Reneé comes over to me and says "weird guy in black speedo" really is Colletta's husband. Crap! What do I say? Apologize or just let it go?

This is why I don't have many friends. I say the wrong things at the wrong time and feel like a complete eejit long after the faux pas.

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And yet... I am no longer content to stay home. I am at Barnes & Noble. I had some chai. I am weak.

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I find out today that Andy can/is going bowling on Saturday for Special Olympics. His teacher says I signed the permission slip but I don't think I did. I have no record of it. So... do I let him go? It's all the way near St Pete. His bus leaves at 9:30 and gets back sometime between 3 and 5. (I found the permission this morning and signed it. Ryan agreed to go and watch Andy bowl. Or maybe just go and play video games.)

wednesday 9.23

It was rather moist this morning when I went walking. I am still struggling to find my groove.

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I just don't "get" the tattoos that look like you were bored in class and wrote all over your arms. Not that I really like tattoos anyway. I do appreaciate that some are beautiful and could be considered art. Connect-the-dot? Nope.

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I haven't heard one thing from my siblings and inlaws in regards to the album pages I did. Too little too late? Sure some compliments would be nice but what I really want to know if anyone cares. Should I bother continuing this?

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One more order. The plus side is that the recent orders have been small and no free shipping. Then again, it's mostly sale stuff and the $6 doesn't always cover the full shipping cost.

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Rather dull these days.

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Smoke detector started chirping last night. It was quiet enough and I slept. Tonight I heard it again. Ryan said it was OK but I knew it would bother me. I changed the battery. chirp! I removed the unit. chirp! I took the smoke detector out to the garage. chirp! It's in the ceiling and continues. chirp!

tuesday 9.22

Ryan is in a miserable mood. Making everyone else miserable. Happy Birthday. Bah!

I don't know what is wrong. He says doesn't want his bike. He says doesn't want gifts. I think he would have loved to crawl in my lap but I had to take a shower. He won't say but I wonder if he is feeling anxious about getting older. He wants to celebrate it and forget at the same time.

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TPF meeting today. More social this morning. I didn't get a chance to show my photos. Two new people today, Ross and Ana. He is a model photog and she is a doctor. She showed up to ask about cameras. I cringed but then realized she had a direction.

I am disappointed that I can't go this weekend to the car show. Rachel is busy.

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I packed a wrap for lunch then went to mosi. I paid for the membership then went to the Butterly exhibit. It was much smaller than I expected and the part where the butterflies were was locked. Disappointed.

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So I had to stop at Starbuck's to make myself feel better. I did only order a tall.

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Crud! When Ryan said it was a toddler bike I thought he was comme ting about the seat being low. But I got home and looked at the bike. It is smaller than Andy's. It's not a "toddler bike" but has 20" wheels meant for tricks. His current bike has 20" wheels. So I called the bike shop and the only one with 24" wheels is black (like Andy's) and a lot more money. Crap!

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A happy boy got off the bus today. And he wants to keep the bike. He opened his gifts and then sat down to play Sorry. Alone. Even though I offered to play. He got some money and was happy to put the $10 back in his bank. All is well.

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monday 9.21

Falling behind. Last week seemed to go so well that I got lazy and now I am behind. I have so many photos to edit, so many things I want and need to do. I hate this feeling.

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Disappointed in my latest buy from Shannon's. Somethings just don't last. I had to throw away a melon this morning.

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Disgusted at how much gunk had built up on my earrings. I hadn't taken them out of my ears in over a year. My left ear love has been itching. I took out my earring and hearly gagged at the build up. I tried hydrogen peroxide then vinegar and finally got them clean and sparkly with Charlie's Soap. I wonder if Wendy has this problem?

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Picked up Ryan's bike. I hope he rides it. He can be so fickle. I need to get home and wrap his gifts. Bother, they arrived too late. I'll have to do it tomorrow.

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Why did I think chai tea was decaf? Is doesn't affect me like regular black tea.

special olympics bowling

We were told that the class would be at the bowling alley from 10:00 until 1:30. I didn't want to sit there that long so I took my time getting there. I arrive about 10:45. It was crowded. One thing that I don't think about are the variety of dsiabilities. Andy has mostly been around kids with autism. I don't recall seeing any kids with downs or similar disabilities at his schools.

As I walked through, one boys was taking French fries left on the plates by those who had eaten and left. A group of high school (girl) volunteers looks shocked and giggled at him. It reminded me of the time when a 4 year old Andy did this at an outlet mall. The man whose fry he stole was European and felt it his right to smack Andy's hand. Yep, I was pissed but not at Andy.

After two passes through the bowling alley, I finally did spot Andy's teacher. She told me that the kids were outside waiting to come in. Apparently they did this in shifts. The behavior specialist asked about Andy wearing a size 8 shoe. Huh? No, she read that wrong. 10 1/2 please. Oh are they ugly these days. After the 90s fashion craze of wearing bowling shoes outside the alley, they have made the fluorescent! And Velcro!!

Andy was actually doing pretty well bowling until he discovered the foot foul signal. He thought it was fun to make the light go off and hear the buzz. He lost a lot of points that way. There were volunteers supposed to help keep order but they were mostly useless flirting with each other instead. There were 3 boys in our lane and they got to play 2 games. Everyone got a ribbon but they weren't award per lane. Andy got a 4th place ribbon which he wouldn't pin on. I don't blame him as they weren't safety pins! S got a second place ribbon and was very upset that he didn't get a first. T was mad that they wouldn't give her more food. Watching the other kids made me more grateful for mine.

friday 9.18

Very typical, non-exciting day.


Walked

Pulled two orders

Did some laundry

Showered

Ate lunch

Starbucks

Groceries

I told you, dull.

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I had to leave Starbucks because the laptoppers were sucking all the bandwith.

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Andy came off the bus crying. A's mom wasn't home so they brought Andy home and then will go back to A's. Andy hates when this happens. He would rather have the bus sit at A's house and wait. In past years, one of the boys getting upset made the other one upset. Then it would twice as long to calm them down.

thursday 9.17

When did life get some busy? OK, I exaggerate. But it seems like I have something to do everyday that takes me out of the house. This is good since I feel like I have been house bound for too long. House bound is also an exaggeration. I had a job. It was in my home. I stayed at home to work. I was not house bound which is probably why I felt the need to go out to lunch everyday. Which is odd since I don't consider myself very social. I ate lunch alone and buried my nose in an eBook. Perhaps it is just leaving the house that is the goal. No, since a walk should work but it doesn't seem enough. I think I need to see other people in the world. Which means I cannot retire as a hermit afterall.

(Yeah, I know. Weird stream of consciousness.)

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Always follow your instincts. I almost grabbed another shirt to change after I went to the zoo. But I reasoned that I wouldn't be staying that long. Doesn't matter, I was sweaty in about 10 minutes! Now my shirt is damp and a bit chilly sitting in the car.

It was another good visit. I saw the African penguins and the Wallaroo Station. There are so many new things since my last visit to that area. Bunderling the koala is new and cute but rather boring. They are nocturnal and sleep a lot! Besides, he is behind glass with a flourescent light behind him so photos are crap. The small bats have been replaced by huge fruit bats. Yuck! The small jeep ride has been replaced by a small roller coaster. Why do they have to have rides at the zoo? Another new addition are the budgies. Lots of cute chirpy birds up close. I am sure they were cursing me for not feeding them.

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Expect a lot more zoo photos next week.

wednesday 9.16

Separate beds is a good thing. Or at least sticking to your own side of the bed.

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Andy suggested wearing socks and tennis shoes today. It's a good thing in case he has to wear bowling shoes. His new sneakers fit well with some room for growth.

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(Oops! I forgot to blog about bowling. Well, I have a lot of poor pictures to go through so I guess that will be another blog post. Maybe this weekend?)

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I had every intention of being good. Then I asked Andy if he wanted some pizza for lunch. "Yes!" And he waited patiently for the 10 minutes. It was a little 7" pizza. I cut it up and took a bite of the crunchy crust. Oh it's been so long since I have had real pizza, even at a bowling alley. I had baked salmon this morning and made salmon salad with it and wrapped it up on some flat bread. I had a cheese stick and a peach. It was in the car. But...

Did I mention that CiCi's Pizza was across the parking lot? I'd never been but was always curious. So after the bus left, I checked the nutritional info for CiCi's. It wasn't bad as long as you limit yourself to 2-3 slices. Oh... I had 6. But they seemed so small! And well, some of them sounded so... interesting. Let's see, nothing was labelled so I am not exactly sure but I think I had Alfredo with bacon, ham and cheddar, cheese, macaroni and cheese and mushroom. None of them were great. I probably won't go back. I almost got dessert but then remembered that I have to bake cookies. Why waste calories on something that won't be as good as what I make?

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Then again... I am not sure these cookies are going to be that great. I thought I was making them the same size as Martha reccommends, but then they are a little over cooked. They still taste good and chocolatey but are a bit thin and too crispy. And I had no idea I would use over half a jar of sanding sugar! That can get expensive. I think the chocolate sugar cookies are easier and better. I would like to get a good butter cookie recipe like Dorothea used to make.

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tuesday 9.15

Man! Tuesday mornings are busy! Once Ryan is on the bus, I hop in the car and go to my photography meet-up. I hate being late but there is nothing I can do. All guys today and me. Others had their thumb drives and were asking for critique. I hope not every meeting goes like this. I know most of the stuff Jeff is explaining.

I went to, wait for it, Tijuana Flats for lunch. Just as I walked in I got an email saying that TF was now following me. On Twitter that is. I did opt for a little different meal, spinach and artichoke quesadilla. It was OK. I prefer the plain cheese better.

I found Evening Primose Oil at Target! And it is a lot cheaper. This bottle has 75 capsules of 1000 mg for $6.99. The price at The Vitamin Shoppe was $10.99 for 25 capsules of 500 mg.

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I made some popcorn this afternoon. I don't know what possessed me but I decided to find out exactly how many calories it was. Oh my... ! OK, I have to cut down on the butter and I have to limit the amount I eat. Good grief! Now it is dinner time and I find myself without an appetite.

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I got the cookie dough made. But I will have to bake them tomorrow. When, I am not sure. Tomorrow is Special Olympics Bowling in Zephyrhills. Can I manage 3 1/2 hours without getting bored?

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Tetris is fun but not relaxing. I used to have Bejewled on my Palm. I remember there being no time limit and I equated that to relaxing. So I purchased it for the iPhone. It's not relaxing either. But it is fun.