All Things Considered, I'd Rather Be In Pittsburgh

 This morning I did a practice run to the office in Monroeville. To me it's a moderate drive  - but when you add in different factors such as weather, traffic, etc it can turn into a bear. If I go by highway it will be close to 80 miles. That is not the scary part  as it's highway miles- right before the Pitt Tunnel it backs up HUGE and I haven't even seen it in full swing. Even though its' only a ten mile stretch you can sit there for 45 minutes of so. I have been map questing and calculating, figuring out where the tunnel is exactly and what the shorter route runs through. I can either highway it or there's a short route according to GPS of 56 miles - but 56 miles of what it doesn't say. It can be 56 miles of dirt roads, winding, potholed back roads that will end up taking twice as long to navigate. One of the women in my knitting group told me there was a back way through Uniontown so I map quested that - 62 miles so it very much splits the difference. I was going to head up on Thursday, I got up early as I need to go when I'm actually going to be leaving, dressed and so forth - and then it started to snow. Big, fat, snarky snowflakes started pounding down - it got so bad David ended up staying home for the day. I suppose that would have been the mother of all practice runs but I decided against it. If I'm going to wreck it should be on an actual work day, don't you think? So this morning I got a little bit of a late start leaving at 8:10, I ended up stopping a couple of times to check my directions, bathroom, but even though made it in less than two hours. That time will eventually get reduced when I know where I'm going and can find the workable short cuts. Since I was out that way I discovered a mall, went to the only knit shop in Pittsburgh I haven't been to (it was OK, but I much prefer Kid Ewe Knot and Natural Stitches in that neck of the woods). I still have no debit card and I hate using a credit card. We just pay it ahead of time to avoid charges, but still. I bought myself some yarn of course, can never have enough of that and then headed home on the highway just to see - I think it will be the back roads for now. We are not doing anything for Valentine's today, David wants to make up work and I was out all day so during the weekend we plan on going out to dinner. According the weather report it's supposed to be warming up _ I can not wait for that! I do like snow, but even I'm getting tired of it. The Hooligans never do of course, Molly has recently decided she likes it - I'm not sure if it's because after 6 months in a foster home and a year in our home she's finally realized she doesnt' have to live in it all the time or if it's just snowed so much it was unavoidable. Either way she happily eats, rolls and flies around it in, she and Reuben are quite delighted. I'm about halfway done with the shawl, this time off has given me extra time to work on it. I finally made it to the knitting group the other night, due to the weather they've only met once since before Christmas!

Off With Her Hair!

w

Well, its a picture at any rate. I've been talking about getting my hair cut for the past few months to the point I'm surprised David didn't sneaky chop it off while I slept. If you have thin, fine hair like mine getting a hair cut is a terrifying adventure at times, so it takes awhile to get your nerve up. Most of the time you either end up with someone afraid to cut it much so they just snap the scissors around the edges hoping you'll be OK with that. Or even worse, the one that makes it their mission to make it Look Thicker. First off , the only way it ever looks thicker is if you cut it all off and then it's a pretty limited engagement. I KNOW my hair is baby fine and it's alright. It takes two shakes and 30 seconds to dry it, it's not a bad color and it's not like I ever had thick hair to begin with. After doing some errands I passed by a small salon in Carmichael's with a sign out front welcoming Walk ins. Since it's early I figured I'd give it a go and was indeed, warmly welcomed. There was one other customer getting their hair done, so I was up now! The stylist was pretty young which was encouraging - I tend to make out better with a fairly recent graduate. I think it's because they're so used to practicing on their friends and family, etc and they haven't entered the amazing world of Negative Feedback it makes them more adventurous. I don't end up spending twenty minutes arguing about what my hair should look like - or worse, when they "OK if that's what you REALLY want" like it's some sort of threat that will end in I Told You So. I got my hair shampooed and was put in the chair next to the other customer that was super debating getting an inch cut off with her stylist, who demonstrated with a comb that it was not that much. Mine asked me what I wanted and when I showed her how much, she said..... OK!, grinned and had at it. So while  the stylist next to me was carefully snipping off an inch - no more! - mine was shearing away, 6 inches of hair hitting the floor, pulling up gouts of hair and chopping them off. The woman in the next chair was madly sneaking peeks like she could not believe someone would have that much hair lopped off in one sitting - but I did. What hung below my shoulders is now up past my ears. I told the stylist she did an excellent job and asked for her card. I also tipped her $10, given the amount of hair she whacked off she certainly deserved it. So that's one more thing off my list. I left my job as a visit nurse last week and am taking a week off between to get stuff done. It's a great time of job to start an office job by the way - EVERYTHING is 80% so I got about two weeks worth of outfits - including shoes - for under $150. I have to start looking for another bank this week too, Community Bank is on my last nerve. They cancelled my debit card again due to suspicious activity which I appreciate. I do NOT appreciate not being told it was cancelled (again). I had gone to the ATM on Saturday to check my balance and take out a little bit. It came back declined. I tried it again. Declined. Called customer service - they are only there Monday through Friday, which really sucks because now  I have no idea if my account has been drained or what's going on. Great. Since the main branch is open for a couple hours on Sat I drove over there to find out what had happened, only to find it had been cancelled and yes, it would be another two weeks before I got a new one. What's really galling about this is this bank is 10 miles from my house and it takes two weeks. Adam had the same thing happen to him and Navy Federal closed out his account, opened a new one and overnighted him a new card in 24 hours. That is the kind of bank I'm looking for.

I Give Up.

I have tried everything - this blog will no longer post pictures. I've done everything I can think of - and then some - it will load the pictures but will not post them if that makes any sense.  So I need to decide if I want to continue to post without pictures - which I find a bit boring - or start on another blog site. Annoying! I guess I'll blog without and see what happens. Things have been going mysteriously well lately, which for this time of year is unheard of - I keep waiting for the other shoe to drop. I rejoined Weight Watchers but online this time, I just don't have time for the meetings and honestly it brings me back to my original issue which is I should not, at the ripe old age of 52, need someone to watch my diet. I should be able to do it myself.  But I find their point system easiest and after a week am feeling better not to mention the 4 pound weight loss. My biggest issue is vegan related, all of the soy based cheeses, etc tend to be higher in fat. The only low fat version I've found is Go Veggie which should be called Fakers Incorporated since it's made entirely out of milk casein. On that front I'm not entirely vegan but pretty close. My actually dairy intake is probably a quarter cup of cheese and a quart of milk a week which is not bad. I still cannot look at meat, every time I do all I can see is that poor pig electrocuted and while it's still seizing being pushed into a vat of boiling water - screaming and  alive. And yes indeed, that IS how they kill your livestock these days, enjoy your bacon. We're still looking into buying local after we use up what's in the freezer. And we know the cows are not abused since we see them every day on the way to work. My biggest news of course is I'm going back to Bayada to resume my position as a clinical manager. I get the updates and when I saw it opened up I contacted the recruiter who emailed me back the position had already been filled. Then two weeks later she contacted me to let me know the applicant had decided to decline the position and did I still want it? Four interviews later I start mid Feb, I'm taking a week off to get things straight at home. It will be a drive to the office - 65 miles each way, but I drove to Stonybrook for years on LI which was 50 miles each way and really, all the driving I do as a visit nurse it comes out the same at the end of the day. Rather amusingly I still have my Bayada lab coat and badge so I'm good to go! I will miss working with Tammy and being a visit nurse but I think at the end of the day this is really what I want to do. David has to get the health insurance since we'll be swinging free for 90 days but I had my Big Eye Exam and did very well so I now only have to go every 6 months instead of every ten minutes. The dentist is another story, I have a cavity under a composite tooth and it's HUGE. So he's doing a root canal and cap, hopefully it will be save-able. I have four more days of work (yes, I'm counting, thank you for asking) and of course I continue to knit. Due to the weather I haven't been able to make the knitting group for two weeks, but hopefully this week will be better weather wise.

Happy Anniversary Molly!

After Jackson and Brandi had left, we were discussing Molly and realized - it's been a year already! I find it hard to believe our spoiled, outgoing, hoodling dog arrived here just one year ago, head hung low, standing and trembling - so afraid of us. It has not been easy at times, after she backed away from me and defended a corner of the kitchen when I went to put a leash on her, when she went darting off to the neighbors with us in merry pursuit - David said he had some second thoughts as to the wisdom of this decision. But he got over it, and so did she. We moved gradually with her training, she eventually allowed me to leash her, (thank goodness!), stopped darting off into the road, and learned to leave the cat alone. sort of. From there she's transformed into my hiking buddy, hitting the trails with great anticipation and joy. She enjoys seeing her pal Libby and even though she won't allow anyone she doesn't know to touch her, she doesn't freak out either. Adopting a dog from a rescue group is almost like having a child - you get so much joy from the happiness they radiate on a daily basis. Molly takes nothing for granted, not her food, not her bed - but she is so delighted at meals it's hard not to smile as she does her great leaping and bounding. That is not say she walks around like a refugee, she believes she deserves everything she gets and if you're not performing up to standard, has no trouble letting you know it. With all the guests we've had and friends over, she has been gradually getting better. With Brandi and Jackson I gave them her favorite stinky treats - a rather hideous concoction of  little round things that are made of fruit and bison - and that warmed her up. Anyone that would hand that over has got to be a friend. In the spring we'll be back out on the trails again or if a warm weekend should happen. Pearl will be forever missed but Molly fills the hole she left behind quite nicely, doesn't she? She loves her Reuben and the two of them spend most of their days raising merry hell. Fetch has turned into a complicated game which involves very little fetching and a lot of chasing, barking, and rolling in the mud.  She often sleeps with her head resting on Reuben's  back, the face of contentment. So Happy Anniversary Miss Molly, we're sure you're grateful for the home, but not as grateful as we are for being allowed to host you.

Arrgh.

Sorry about the delay in posting, I'm having a lot of trouble with this blog. Posting pictures has become near to impossible - I can't seem to use the ones on my IPad and the downstairs computer refused to post them at all. I have managed to get one on and it seems to be sparkling for whatever reasons the Internet Gods have determined. Anyhow, Jackson and Brandi arrived last week after a miscalculation of time. They thought it would take them six hours and it actually took eleven - oops! But they managed to get here a day ahead of the bad weather which we were grateful for. They both look great and we were so happy to see them. We left the Christmas tree and decorations up for them - it was not a stretch since we hadn't put them up til New Years Eve anyhow. Molly was doing her usual noodling and carrying on, but after a day or so decided she enjoyed the guests, going so far as snuggling with Brandi on the couch. She has come a long way, hasn't she? Reuben is a Guest Slut and does not have to be asked twice and will sleep with the guest if the opportunity arises. And if the opportunity doesn't arise, he'll sleep with them anyhow.  We've been doing stuff of course, we've been out to dinner, I took Brandi shopping and David took Jackson to the WV Gun Club for his friends to see him. Adam has been very much enjoying spending time with his brother and new sister in law.  On Sunday we set out for Pittsburgh to the Phipps Conservatory - what an amazing place. It was established in the late 1800s and has grown over the past century of course. We were there for a couple of hours and then struck out for (mecca) a yarn store down the road. At that point there were varied complaints but Natural Stitches turned out to be housed in a strip mall that also had a Gamestop and a Chinese buffet so everyone got something and we all got lunch. While we were eating I was using my Yelp to see if there were any malls but we had passed the Carnegie Museum of Art and Natural History which was immediately voted for our next stop. It was GREAT. We were there for hours and managed to tour the entire facility. The modern art display got a few laughs - there was a stained couch cushion leaned up against the wall, Brandi accidentally stood on a piece of "art", there were two buckets of what appeared to be dirty water but it was actually filled with clear resin that imitated dirty water, etc...And there really WAS a blank canvas that has been on display since 1965. The gem room got my attention, there were dinosaurs, sculptures, paintings, it was unbelievable.  And Pittsburgh, it turns out, is not so far away after all, it took about an hour and 15 minutes, very do-able. Monday was a lay around day and we finally made the Turkey Dinner with all the trimmings which everyone enjoyed. Yesterday was a loss, the temperatures at 6 am were I believe about -7 and I don't think it every got up past 4 degrees, way too cold to do anything. We ended up letting all the dogs sleep with us along with the cat, with the low temps and the wind blowing like a freight train it was impossible to stay warm!  Today is a bit better, David is going out to check on the Bridgeport house and then will be back as Jackson and Brandi will be leaving either tomorrow or Friday to head off to see the aunts for a few days before going home.

New Year

 I  try not to make serious resolutions - they generally don't pan out, do they? Why on earth would it be more beneficial to start my diet now as opposed to July?  I think this time of year I try to sort out the past few months and see where I'm going, what's working and what is not. I'm on call again - most jobs one person works the eves of Christmas and New Years and someone else works the actual holiday, this job one person works both. I am mulling over my job situation of course, I try not to make decisions while I am being a crabby pants but the call policy of this outfit is not what I had signed up for - and it is beating me down, quite badly at times. But that is on the back burner for now - I'm on vacation for a week or so and Jackson and Brandi will be arriving here around ten pm tonight due to a slight misjudgement of travel time. I've got the guestroom made up and  did a bit of dusting, so we are ready I suppose. They want to go to the asylum and then on Sunday we are venturing into new territory - Pittsburgh! to go to the Phipps Conservatory and just do some general Peeping and So Forth. On the home front I continue to battle the woods, the briers for the most part are getting on my last nerve. I cut and throw them, they bounce back and stick to everything, I bleed like water spout some days. But we are making good progress and it's good for the dogs to be outside so much. That gets to be a chore some days, between my work schedule and David's plus it getting dark so early I have gotten into the habit of rushing home. I race in, throw the e collars on them and we race out the back so they can get a least a half an hour or so before night falls. We have been barbecuing at least once a week so that helps- we can cook while they race around the yard - and it jazzes up a blah menu in the winter. The weather continues to seesaw, it was so warm on Saturday I was running around without a coat, then it was a sheet of ice the other day - I slipped on the deck and really bruised my knee quite badly, still smarts. Then today it is a little cold, but warm enough for a mid weight jacket, the mud is spectacular. I'm stuck home today on call so not much going on, my knitting is not going so well - the pattern is complicated with no charts and little direction so it's a bit of a forced march. It will not look like the pattern but that's OK, it should look OK, unless you knit and know what your looking at, then you might get a bit snippy about it. So back to the musings of the new year - my job is on the list of considerations, I am staying in this house because I really like it here, I will continue to Battle The Woods and of course I will knit. Happy New Year!