Drum roll....

I was lonely at work. So I decided to get a beta for my desk. He's a very pretty blue with some shades of deep red. Gorgeous fish. I typically don't name my pets, other than dogs & cats. For some reason, though, I usually name the pets I bring to work. (This is not the first beta I've had here. I had "Blue Boy" - named after the famous painting - for 3 years.)

Anyway, one day, as I was trying to think of a name for him, I said out loud, "What should I name my new beta?" From the cubical next to me I hear my boss say, "Alpha". What a great name! So I made a little sign that says "Alpha Beta", and the greek letters for same, and stuck it above my fishes tank.

See? Watching fish is calming, and can make you smarter. And with a name like Alpha (the beginning), this is just the beginning of the brilliance that will be mine after watching Alpha day in and day out while blogging, er I mean slogging, through the day at work.

TGIF

I'm so glad it's Friday I could dance. My goal for the day (right after I get done posting this) is to get through about 40 diaries (um-hmmm), make about 46 phone calls (uh...), and answer my boss's 9 e-mails. THEN, I'm going to go home and not think about work for TWO DAYS.

Elizabeth is due next Wednesday. I can hardly wait for little Elli to come into our lives. The entire family came over last Wednesday, and while Matt & Eliz went to the doctor, Yuki, Sofi & I hung out. Whenever they come over, I give them Popsicles. So, Yuki says, "Can we have a Popsicle, Grandma? I want Orange!" I say, sure, and look in the freezer in the EMPTY Popsicle box. I show them it is empty, but say, "I have cookies! I have white cookies and black cookies. Which do you want?" I hear an emphatic, "WHITE COOKIES!" So I pick up the package - the EMPTY package, and say, "OH OH - the package is empty! Someone ate all the white cookies!" I see disappointment on Yuki's face. Before he can utter, "I want some cookies, damn it!" I show him we have LOTS of black cookies (Oreos), and he seems somewhat mollified.

TGIF (again).

The Secret is Out

Sarah knows about Mama the dog now. What a relief. It was very hard to tell her. But, the family Mama is with love her. Her name is no longer Mama. It's ROCKET. Rocket because she's so FAST. It sounds like a good match.



Sarah is at Don's house now. She sounded VERY relieved. Don sounded stressed. I hope this will be a good thing for everyone involved.



I have had a very sad and weepy day. I wanted to take this afternoon off so I could sit at home and have a pity party, but too many people were gone and my boss said no. This is probably a good thing, really. I got a lot of stuff done this afternoon.



Elizabeth comes down tomorrow to the doctor. She is now "officially" at term. She tells me her back has been killing her and she thinks she may be having "back labor" but she'll ask the doctor tomorrow. Picture me rolling my eyes here. I kindly say, "Elizabeth, pay attention to your body and and if the pain doesn't go away, call the doctor and see if you need to come to the hospital." She giggles and says, "OK, Mom". Like I'm so stupid for even thinking she may actually be IN LABOR. She only has an HOUR to get to the hospital from where she lives. Kids.



This brings to mind a story from Sofi's birth...

http://christyjo.blogspot.com/2005/08/new-baby-and-drama.html


I'm sure there's some really cool way to make it so I could say "Click here" and it would take you right to the story, but I don't know what it is. Someday I'll ask Sam...

Yuki gets creative

This morning at breakfast:

Yuki: Mommy, my spoon said "Damn it".
Elizabeth: Yuki, you do NOT say that word!
Yuki: Why not?
Elizabeth: Because it's not a nice word.
Yuki: But my spoon said it!

Guilty Conscience

Sigh.

Here's the deal. When Sarah left for California. She asked me if I would keep her dog, Mama until she got back. She said if I didn't want to, one of her friends would watch her if we would pay for her dog food (!). I told her we'd see how it goes for now.

She has not asked about Mama one single time since she's been gone. Mama, meanwhile, is getting more and more excited and full of nervous energy since she doesn't get the exercise she was. She barks, literally bounces off the furniture and is entirely too big for our "small dog" townhouse. She has to be kennelled all night and most of the day. How unfair. She tears the house up if we don't kennel her when we are gone.

So, I decided that she needs a home elsewhere. At lunch on Friday, I mentioned to 3 of my co-workers that I'm going to find a home for Mama. Before I knew it, one of my co-workers said they have been looking for a dog for their family. He called his wife, and wa-la, a done deal. I took Mama over to his house. It's HUGE. With a HUGE back yard to run in. Better yet, with two boys, ages 6 & 8 who adored her immediately and were so excited to have her they were beside themselves.

On the one hand, she's going to be so much happier now. On the other, I wasn't REALLY ready to do this, and I haven't said anything to Sarah. So, I'm really torn about the whole thing.

Butch is certainly happier. And the house is MUCH calmer. And ... I miss her.

Sigh.

I know what you're thinking

You are thinking "Who cares about other insignificant events, what about the SPIDERS?"

I haven't seen a single spider since I sprayed Raid around the doors and windows and foundation. Not one. For that matter, I haven't seen any other bugs, either.

Problem solved.

Let's go to Kentucky!

No early morning calls from Sarah today, which is good news.

I got to work this morning, went to the kitchen, grabbed my first cup of coffee for the day and didn't even get to drink it. By 8:15 am I was on my way to Kentucky to investigate a fatality. If I could have picked a day to go, today would have been the day. It was gorgeous outside. The weather was perfect. I stopped at McDonalds, grabbed a coffee there and headed over the river into the Land of...what is Kentucky the land of? To my husband (who is from Kentucky) it's the land of the Wild Cats. To me, it brings to mind one of the hardest tests I've ever had to take in my insurance career. Holy cow. An adjuster has to really know his/her stuff to be licensed in Kentucky. I have licenses in Connecticut, West Virginia, & Rhode Island but none of those hold a candle to the Kentucky test.

There are a couple of things I need to point out about that test.

1. The study materials are FULL of misspellings and errors. Even some of the practice test questions have incorrect answers.
2. There aren't very many large cities in Kentucky. Like southern Indiana, once you get outside of the "city" you are truly in hillbilly country.

This begs the following questions:

1. Did anyone in Louisville or Lexington proof read the materials?
2. If I answer the question correctly on the actual test will I get it wrong if the answer is wrong in the study questions?

Don't get me wrong. there are many nice people in Kentucky (and Southern Indiana). But I seriously doubt if many of them could pass this test. Heck. There are people in my company with college degrees that had to take it 3 times before they passed. Luckily, I have uncanny test taking skills, and I've passed all my licensing tests the first time. Which brings me to another quick story.

We have had 7 "educational" sessions where I work to learn how to investigate accidents over a period of the last 7 months. After the last session, we had to take a test so the "big boys" would know we were paying attention, and prove that we learned something. (Interestingly, I passed, my boss didn't. HAHAHA!) Did I do any of those things I learned at the scene today? Ummmmm...I took photos. It was a SERIOUS waste of my time to go today. There was an attorney, a reconstruction guy from Canada, and independent adjuster, and me, all tripping over each other. The attorney talked to the driver and I got to ask a couple of questions. The independent adjuster will get the witness statement. The recon guy will do a very detailed analysis of the vehicles and the scene. So, I took some pictures. I stood around and admired the nice day and talked to the tow driver, ate at McDonalds twice, listened to almost an entire book on tape on the drive there and back, and will get paid for driving about 350 miles in my personal auto. All in all, not a bad deal for a day out of the office.

Only the young...

Sarah went to a concert in Chicago on Friday night with some friends. She got home at 6 am, and I didn't see her until about 3:30 or so Saturday when I got home from grocery shopping. She was cleaning out her truck. It must have been bad because I saw several trash bags leaving the cab of her truck.
After we put away groceries and she finished cleaning out her truck, we sat down together on the couch, and she informed me that she was "going to California". She said she met two kids her age at a party, who have been hitching from Michigan, down the East coast, and over to Bloomington. They apparently stayed with people along the way and cooked and cleaned for R&B. Sarah told them she'd drive them out to California, since they wanted to go out West. So, I asked her when she was leaving. "Today." "No." "Yes." "Nooooo." "Yes." She cried and told me she needs to do SOMETHING with her life and she will never get this opportunity again.
So, off she went with these two people. Andy found out she was going at the last minute and begged to come as well. She left with a loaf of bread, some turkey & cheese, chips and Gatorade with $100.00 and a 1/4 tank of gas. (The 'travelers' are allegedly paying for gas.) She took a skirt, the jeans she was wearing, 5 pairs of underwear and several t-shirts with her. She said when she is done in California she'll go to Colorado to work in a ski resort. She left to go say goodbye to friends and I cried like a baby for an hour.

Enter: Jon. Eliz called Jon and told him Sarah's plans (she asked Sarah if it was o.k. first). Jon calls Sarah, and for whatever reason, Sarah answered. First words out of Jon's mouth is "F-you!!" Imagine him yelling at her for 20 minutes with every other word the f-bomb and telling her what a loser she is, and that he's going to send a body bag out that way because she'll need it to come back in once they find her dead/raped/mutilated body by the side of the road. He told her if she left Indiana that night he'd never speak to her again. She challenged him on that and asked if he really wanted to make that ultimatum. He said "F-yes" and then hung up on her.

Sarah calls me, hysterical. Now, Jon is an A*s-hole we can all agree. But if nothing else, his call shook her up enough that I was able to ask her to please call my brother Don and see if she can come out there and live and if he would find a job for her. She did (thank God) and he told her he could get her a job at any ski resort in northern Nevada, and would find something for her to do before the season starts. He told her she'd have to sign a contract that she would stay through April. So, I feel better, she feels better, she has a plan.

She left at 12:30 early Sunday morning. I talked to her once and she was in Kansas. She said she'd call me today and let me know where they are. She did. She called me at 2:30 am, told me that they blew a tire, and were in Mesa Colorado (which is close to the Utah border). Andy was insisting they get a hotel room. She has $70.00. He has $150.00. I told her just to sleep as long as she possibly could so they would be rested and start out again today. She'll need to buy a tire. Apparently, Andy has a buddy that owes him $$ and they were going to call him and have him bring it to me today so I can deposit it into her account.

Ah, adventure.

Honestly, I think it would be fun to do what she is doing, but not with $100, no clothes, no food, no idea where I'm going and certainly not with 4 people in an S-10. A little planning would have been good.

The Flaming Lips Girl Made It Home

I haven't seen her yet, but her truck's here. I don't see any new dents or scratches on her vehicle, so all must have gone well. She got up long enough to let Mama out of her room at around 11:00 am, but she didn't make an appearance.
_________________________________________

So, I've been noticing lately that my hair is falling out. I'm seeing hair on my hands when I wash my hair. Joe thought it was my imagination. Today, I got my hair cut and guess what? Casey (that's my hairstylist's name) said my hair is considerably thinner, especially on top. Holy crap. I'm turning into Grandma Crouse. Short, round, balding.

_________________________________________

Minus 6

My boss, who calls me Miss Herbalessence because he can't remember my real name, just informed me that I'm -6 for the week. I know this sounds negative (get it? -6, negative? HAHAHA) but it really isn't . It means I've closed more claims than I received this week. So let's say I got 20 claims this week. -6 means I closed 26 claims. Seems like quite the feat, doesn't it? The goal is to be at 100% or higher (another oxymoron) by the end of the year. How can we POSSIBLY close more files than we get during the year, you ask? That's what we ask too. But, it can be done, and is EXPECTED.

Today, Sarah is going to Chicago to see the "Flaming Lips" I wonder if their lips are on fire while they sing and that's why no one can understand them? She's taking her Chevy S10 pickup that she informs me "chugs" sometimes at stop signs. She didn't do any of the things I told her to do, like change the oil, get a tuneup, save her money for gas, etc. Luckily, another car load of kids will be going along too, so someone else will be there to help should anything...break. I WAS able to talk them into leaving at 10 am instead of 1 pm. I convinced them that being in Chicago rush hour traffic on a Friday would be worse than missing the concert altogether. So if they actually get out of town by 10, they should make Chicago by 2 pm (maybe 3 pm with potty breaks and all that).

This morning when I got up for work, Sarah was up (!). I took a shower and then got on-line to check her bank balance and decide how much money to give her for the trip. This is a touchy area. I don't want to give her more than she needs because she'll spend it. But I don't want to give her less than she needs in case she runs out of gas or something horrid like that. So while I was debating with myself, one of her IM buddies popped up with this, "!". I said, "This is Sarah's mom, not Sarah." It was her friend Ryan, and he told me he was so excited about the concert he only got 2 hours of sleep. Oh, that makes me feel WAY better about you guys going to the concert. I didn't say that, of course. But I did make him promise to be careful. He said they would, and of course I believe him.

I'm fairly certain I'm going to get a frantic call at 2 am saying one of these things:

1. Mom, the car broke down in inner city Chicago! What should I do?
2. Mom, I'm out of gas and I don't have any more money because I spent it all on t-shirts and food at the concert. What should I do?
3. Mom, I'm in jail. What should I do?

So the big decision is, leave the phone on, or turn it off? Don't worry. Even if I DID turn my phone off, Joe w0uldn't be able to stand it and he'd turn it back on. He is the ultimate "gotta be connected at all times" kinda guy.

Out of the mouths of babes part II

Yesterday, Elizabeth made some home-made shortcakes. She was cutting up the strawberries when Yuki asked her what she was doing. She explained she was preparing strawberries for the shortcake. Yuki's response? "I want some strawberries, damn it!"

When I was able to stop laughing and breath again, I asked her what she said. "Yuki, what did you say?" "Uh....I don't know."

Elizabeth went on to say that one of her friends went to the zoo with another mom and her children. It was hot (one of those lovely 95 degree days). Her friend's son was getting out of the car and piped up with, "It's hotter than a mo-fo outside today." OH MY GOSH. Personally, I thought it was pretty funny. But it's not my kid.

Whew. Those little ones soak up EVERYTHING they hear and wait until the perfect moment to spit it right back out.

No spider sightings yesterday

Yesterday was the first day I saw NO spiders in my house for quite a few days now. Interestingly, there is not one single bug stuck in any of the sticky traps. Apparently they know better. Or else I have no bugs in my house now. I'll go with the second option. I think the Raid around the doors and windows probably really did the trick.

Today is Wednesday. I know in an earlier post I said we should all have 1 or 2 three day weekends a month, but now I'm reconsidering. I haven't necessarily changed my mind, but I'm thinking it over. The problem with a three day weekend, is a four day week. What is it about a four day week that makes it seem to d-r-a-g on and on and on? It's a strange phenomenon.

Enjoy the day.

GROSS!!!

OMG! My brother Sam enlarged the photo of the spider I found in my bathroom a couple of days ago. Isn't it gross??? Look at those glowing eyes and the hair on it's legs. YUCK!.

I went to Wal-Mart today and bought some sticky pads and some Raid. Last night was the last straw. Joe saw a spider walking across the room and killed it. Then, when I opened the back door to let the dogs out last night there were THREE spiders, just like the one above, sitting on my door jam right next to the web they had presumably just woven. Normally, I'm of the philosophy that if the bug is outside, that's where it belongs and I have no issues with it. Inside is a different ballgame altogether. But, I think it's time for action. I sprayed the door jam and around the foundation with Raid. Man I hope it works!

Sam's blog is at http://www.samellis.net.

It's Sunday, but feels like Saturday

I love long weekends. We should all have a long weekend 1 or 2 times a month. More than that wouldn't work because it would just become normal, and wouldn't seem like a treat. I haven't decided what I'm going to do with my extra day yet. Joe is handing me all the sales fliers for the Labor Day Sales. That sounds like permission if you ask me. "Here honey. Anything in these fliers is fair game for your purchasing pleasure. Enjoy!"

Have a great Labor Day. Don't forget...after tomorrow, you need to leave your white shoes in the closet until Memorial Day. =)

Sigh

Sarah's room. AKA: Spider Haven

At the risk of being redundant, guess what I found when I opened my knitting bag? Yup. A spider. What the heck? This one I took outside because I was closer to the door than the bathroom. It took some serious convincing to get the spider to come out. Eventually, it took some serious shaking of the bag.

So, I've just spent the last 1/2 hour on-line trying to get information on how to get rid of spiders in your home. After reading many articles, I have come to the following conclusions:

1. It's not easy to kill spiders with "products".

2. The best way to get rid of spiders is to get rid of other bugs. OTHER BUGS? What????

3. One person suggested getting some of those sticky things to trap mice. I might try that.

But what if I catch a mouse? That would be just as bad.

4. Keeping a clean house is a good way to get rid of spiders. I think this means that the only way to get my house clean is to get rid of Sarah. Her room alone is probably a haven for many, many spiders. They probably just come downstairs to play. See above picture. It should be noted that this is what her room looks like AFTER she cleaned it.

Proof that Sofi is occasionally friendly...

Here is a rare photo showing Sofi actually sitting on my lap and looking happy doing it. And Yuki is cuddling like his normal affectionate self.

Spiders, spiders, spiders

Another spider. And bold as can be. It just sat there and let me take it's picture. We told the office about all the spiders and they said they would spray for them, but nothing so far. I think it's time to take matters into my own hands...

If you are wondering, this is the SAME bathroom in which I flushed the other two spiders down the toilet. This one joined the others. Yuck.