Matthew in Florida .... @$$.

I want to be in Florida. *pout



Mom sent these pictures today - Matthew and Rachael made it to Florida. I thought for sure after the 2nd picture that I was going to see her push him in the pool .... but it didn't happen. Dang it.

**Pool area looks great, Dad!

Have fun boys and girls. I'll be at work trying to figure out if we can get the windows on the 10th floor to open and jump out of. Ugh, how I dislike that place. I think I've hit the point of no return.




Not only am I supposed to do all the crap on the floor that no one else wants to do, no one else knows how to do or no one else wants to try and learn how to do I was supposed to be a mind reader today. Oddly enough I never quite hit the nail on the head. If you know what you want .. just tell me - don't make me guess, have to ask or assume what you mean. It's so draining.



Alex is spending the day hanging out with all his girlfriends at the vet tomorrow. The maint. men never came to rip out the microwave today so I'm calling first thing in the AM to make sure they are coming to do that AND spray for bugs.



I think it's time for me to go catch up with my friends in Salem, USA. Stefano's down for the count, Claire's still missing, Chelsea's still whiney and Stephanie keeps crying. Makes my life look soft and fluffy. :) LOL At least I've never killed a boy and put him in a hot water tank. Right?

TurboTax ... Finished and Filed!!

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A Post for Nothing

I got up early this morning and went to Y'allMart and ate breakfast all before 9. Already I felt so productive. I cleaned the downstairs bathroom and steamed the bathroom and kitchen floors. Even more productive.

The maintenance man came to fix the disposal. Once he was here I pointed out the busted microwave, the loud faucet and the cable outside that someone tried to pull out of my apt. And we also discussed the issue of the Texas sized bugs that I'd prefer not to deal with. I'm from Ohio, I don't like little bugs let alone bugs that wear pants and nod at you when you're trying to kill or flush them. They are coming back tomorrow to rip out the old microwave and coming back Thursday to kill all my unwanted roommates. Alex will be at the vet for the day.

He's got to get used to that for my New Orleans trip in 2 weeks. This will be his first overnight EVER without me. :'( Poor babe. Poor me. Haha.

I told Laci I'd be at work by 10:30 today. It was more like 1-ish. Oopsie. I was super productive at work for the short amount of time I was there minus the few minutes Laci called me and said "DO YOU HATE ME??" LOL Hertz tried to give her a mini van in San Antonio today. I would NEVER reserve a mini van for her but I would like to see someone trying to give her keys to one. He said it was an upgrade. ROFL. How about ... no.

The video below was just me messing around trying to teach Alex some español but got really funny around the 2 minute 13 second mark when he slapped me. Ok, ok, you don't want queso. I get it. How about cheeeeese?? LOL

(2:13 is the good stuff)

My new Canon Pixma MX310 All in One printer was delivered today. *dances* But I really have no patience setting this stuff up ... I want to pull it out of the box and have it already hooked up to my computer. At the very least I wish it would have come with all the cables I needed. I have power to it but no way to hook it up to my computer. Wow, helpful, thanks. Maybe if I wish it to print.

Nope, didn't work.

Sleepy time ... I have to work for a full 8 hours tomorrow. Ugh. Haha. OH CRAP!!!!!!!!!! I'm supposed to take brownies. *sigh

Brownies then sleepy time.

Video ... maybe?

FINALLY!!

{{See post below. :)}}

For Mom & Dad in Florida

Everyone loves and has missed Brutus since he moved to Texas. He is basically a cat-dog. If you showed him a mirror he'd be shocked. I think when he meows he feels that he's barking. He always tried to get love from Wally and was ignored. He would try to get love from Cory and get chased to the basement. He finally has a dog that loves him, licks him, plays with him and shares food with him.

There are some days when I'm ready to go to work and I have to drag Brutus out of the crate to shut the door. Literally ... drag. He would love to be in there all day with Alex.

If you listen closely, you can hear Brutus purring. Of course my iTunes is on but even over the music you can hear this motor boat purr that Brutus does anytime he's close to Alex.

It's guy love, don't compromise.

{{Video is above}}

AWARE

Aquatic World Awareness, Responsibility & Education

Project AWARE Foundation

Call to action - help protect threatened coral reefs. Take part during International Year of the Reef (IYOR) 2008, a year-long campaign to raise awareness about coral reefs and the threats facing these vibrant ecosystems.

Now is the time to get involved. For the first time in history the IUCN (World Conservation Union) Red List of Threatened Species includes corals in its annual report of wildlife going extinct – climate change being named one of the biggest threats to marine life by IUCN scientists. Additional research indicates more than half the world’s coral reefs could die in the next 25 years. Healthy reefs are tremendously valuable to ecosystems, human health and global economies.

As an eco-operator, we will…

Provide dive experiences that enhance visitor awareness, appreciation and understanding of the local aquatic environment.

Use recycled products whenever possible.

Participate in local conservation efforts and support established parks and reserves.

Not sell items made from endangered species, threatened species, corals or tropical hardwoods.

Respect local people, culture and traditions while abiding by local laws and regulations.

Provide pre-dive briefings on responsible dive practices such as:

-Proper buoyancy control

-Securing equipment and streamlining body position

-Maintaining distance from sensitive environments

-Not touching or chasing animals

-Abiding by all fish and game regulations

Use mooring buoys or drift diving techniques whenever possible to avoid damage to underwater habitat.

Offer Project AWARE specialty courses that teach customers about ecology and conservation.

Practice buoyancy control skills in a pool or sandy area before swimming near a coral reef or any sensitive environment. Make sure your equipment is secured, you’re weighted properly and be careful not to touch, stand onor collect coral.

Display environmental public awareness materials and provide community involvement opportunities.

Use environmentally sound methods of rubbish disposal.

Ocean Facts:

~The oceans cover 70 percent of the earth’s surface and compose 97 percent of the earth’s water.

~Scientists estimate that 80 percent of all life on earth is found under the ocean’s surface.

~Life in the sea developed more than three billion years ago. Land dwellers appeared comparatively recently – 400 million years ago.

~The ocean contains the largest biological structure on earth – Australia’s Great Barrier Reef.

~Coral reefs support 4000 species of fish, 700 species of coral and thousands of plants and animals.


Learn – Discover how you’re connected to the ocean and how it affects your life. Learn about the diversity of the sea and how to protect it.

Change Your Ways – No matter where you live or what you do, your actions are carried downstream. Making small efforts in your home and community contributes to ocean conservation.

Donate – Join the Project AWARE Foundation. Your support helps conserve underwater environments from inland waters to the ocean floor.

WorldPoints™ - Show your affinity for diving and the underwater environment with the new PADI® WorldPoints™ Visa® Credit Card. A percentage of your purchases will help support Project AWARE’s conservation efforts including beach and underwater cleanups, coral reef surveys, grass-roots education programs and species research.

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Project AWARE Foundation is a nonprofit organization dedicated to conserving underwater environments through education, advocacy and action. Project AWARE offices located in the United States, Australia, United Kingdom, Switzerland and Japan combine efforts to protect aquatic resources worldwide.

Free Root Beer Float Night @ Sonic (old blog dated June 8,2007)

Alex loves going to Sonic and getting his cheesey tater tots and tonight was a great night to go. Except everyone in San Marcos was there. The main road was packed with cars and it took a little bit to be able to pull in. Those girls were so busy running back and forth.



*bark*bark*bark*bark*bark*bark*

"Hi, I want some tater tots with a little bit of cheese, please."

"GIMMIE!"


I love this dog. He does get everything he wants. I guess ... He doesn't really have a list but I'm 99.9% sure he's one happy puppy.

Saturday, the 2nd of Boring (old blog dated June 2, 2007)

My life is about as thrilling as a fish in a fish bowl.

Woke up this morning to the worlds most slowest and annoying computer. Which forced me to clean the apartment. It doesn't even smell like I live with 3 animals. I then watched 2 very old episodes of Melrose Place and knitted. Aaron Spelling will be missed.

Alex and I went on a walk to check the mail. Thank GOODNESS Netflix came through with 3 movies. Alpha Dog, Smokin' Aces and Catch & Release.

Alpha Dog - true story and they should have just left it at that. Pearl Harbor was a true story and they made a movie about it and it worked, Alpha Dog, not so much. Sorry Justin. I loved ya without your shirt on but your first movie .... blah.

Catch & Release - Loved it! Jennifer Garner is adorable and Kevin Smith is always wonderful. Juliet Lewis I could typically do without but she wasn't so trampy in this movie as she so plays in just about everything else. It was just a good movie.

I haven't watched Smokin' Aces yet. I just thought I'd sit down at this Flinstones-like computer and raise my blood pressure a bit by calling Time Warner. When the tech guys first suggestion was to clear my "temporary internet files and restart", I hung up. I'm not interested in playing Monkey say, Monkey do. *click* Buh-bye.

So I opened a beer and got out the wonderful crack dip that is Frito's Jalapeno & Cheddar Cheese. Akex was begging for some and I thought one lick and he'd stop. Wrong. He loves the stuff. Weird dog from Houston.

Time for Smokin' Aces. I hope it's good.

I just love this face!



Alex on his Hawaiin bed, upstairs, in the hallway.

I could scream (old blog dated June 2, 2007)

I got fed up with Blogger and have been on the search for a new BLOG site and came accross this one.

I signed up, typed out a whole new BLOG with pictures ..... and then, by mistake, deleted it.

What about the "Are you sure" box pop-up. That would be a BRILLIANT add-in. Grrrr.

Maybe I'm not smart enough to have a BLOG because I'm sure as hell not smart enough to create them. These sites are just frustrating as hell.

Anywho .... I'm not going to try and type out that whole, same, deleted BLOG, that I spent the last hour on, so here are some recent pictures for your viewing pleasure. :) (which btw, adding pictures here is just as annoying as it was in BLOGGER)

This is Alex in his new "Surf Dog" Tank Top ... as you can see by the smile, he loves it.




This is Gene and Alex watching Dane Cook.



This is too time consuming and I have Shrek the Third to watch. Until I have the patience again ... Adios!

Brutus REALLY loves Alex

I wish the dishwasher wasn't running - you could probably hear Brutus purring. Alex just went to lay in his crate and Brutus followed looking for some attention. The two of them are so good together.

A Minute of Barking

I warned you.

The Brutus Mobile

I've seen and been in many buses ... but this is probably the most classy vehicle of them all.

Got up to 70 Today!!

Okay so it was such a beautiful day, I had the heat off and the windows open. It got to at least 70, not sure if it ever made it higher but I'll take 70, right? I shut the windows a few hours ago and forgot to turn the heat back on. I'm kind of chilly but dealing with it ... Alex is trying to make me feel bad.

He crawled up on his pillow and under the blanket and is under there sighing loudly. Like I'm so mean to him.

Look how abused he is ....

Someone should call and report me. Alex abuse. This boy is in for a rude awakening next winter in Ohio. He already sleeps on a heating pad! He might need a special house with it's own heating unit or something so he doesn't shiver himself to death.

LOSER! LOSER! BEST BABY IN THE WORLD!!

Brutus Taught Alex how to Spill Water

Brutus will cry and cry and cry until you put a Solo cup in the tub full of water. He plays with it ... then spills it ... as soon as Alex hears the water he jumps in the tub, steals the cup and runs away with it.

Now Alex is spilling his own water. On the carpet.

Mamacita, send any Bed, Bath & Beyond coupons you have. I "need" to get the below listed pink items.

And ....

1 Puppy

1 Puppy and 1 Cat (Brutus)

1 Puppy and 2 Cats (Rare sighting for Petey)

Go Red for Women - March 29th, 2008

Every day in Texas, 74 women die from heart disease or stroke. Despite the severity of the problem, a majority of women don't realize that heart disease is their major health threat.

Everyone knows someone affected by heart disease or stroke. For those I love, I will be walking in this year’s Start! Heart Walk, March 29th, 2008. I have set a personal goal to raise funds for the American Heart Association and need your help to reach my donation goal of $150.00 or more!! We are raising critical dollars for heart disease and stroke research and education.

You can help me reach my goal by making a donation online. Click on the link below and you will be taken to my personal donation page where you can make a secure online credit card donation. The American Heart Association's online fundraising website has a minimum donation amount of $25.00. If you prefer to donate less, you can do so by sending a check directly to me.
Your donation will help fight our nation’s No. 1 and No. 3 killers—heart disease and stroke. You are making a difference.

Thank you for your support.

http://heartwalk.kintera.org/faf/donorReg/donorPledge.asp?ievent=246934&supId=202797593

For your local American Heart Association ...

Columbus Metro

5455 N. High Street

Columbus, Ohio 43214
Phone: (614) 848-6676
Fax: (614) 848-4227

OR

Austin
1700 Rutherford Lane
Austin, Texas 78754
Phone: (512) 433-4000
Fax: (512) 433-4200

***Also ... Some corporations support their employees through a matching gift program. For every dollar you give they will match. For example, if you give $50, they match $50, for a total of $100 raised to fight heart disease and stroke. Click http://case.hepdata.com/new_mg/kintera/B_company_search.cfm?CFID=132064&CFTOKEN=20351256 to find out if your company has a matching gift program!!

March of Dimes 2008

I can't believe it's that time of year again. I set up my page this weekend and the giving has already begun! I've spent a lot of time with March of Dimes activities over the past couple of years and really appreciate any $$ amount you can donate. Like I say on my page, BoA decided to not sell Beanies this year. I'm not 100% sure why - they sold like hotcakes and raised a lot of money, they just needed to buy some different varieties.

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

There is a new look this year for the March of Dimes logo, you may notice. They did away with the pink and blue, joined the colors and came up with a purple color scheme to be a little more modern.

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

The March of Dimes has renamed its signature fundraising event, WalkAmerica, to March for Babies. The new name makes a clear connection to what the March of Dimes is all about -- the health of babies.

http://www.marchforbabies.org/dolphinmagic

THANK YOU!!

~Suz

And then there was a Couch

When I met Gene's futon it was in his office under a very, very scary dead fish named Harvey. I sat on it many days and nights watching Gene break, fix and curse computers. I fell asleep on it even though I was fighting for space with three doggies. It then moved down to the garage for a little bit, then to my parents house, then to Peques, my first apartment in TexAss where it was used as a bed, couch, eating area and ladder, when needed. Now it's here in my "office" back where it feels comfortable ... by a computer. All is good. Especially since Harvey is in Chicago.

Here are the girls. Sasha, Abby and Pelli.

Here it is in the garage, sporting its new fancy cover, after Gene and Jess left for Illinois. Chris, the shirtless wonder, and I had some beers and pizza rolls but no plates ... I cleaned out the microwave. I promise, I did.

Here it is in Clintonville. Boy, if I could go back in time I would SO cancel this move. Live and learn, right?

Here it is on Peques, in bed form. Looks comfy, huh? It wasn't. Go to a playground and lay on some monkey bars ... that's what it felt like.


Here it is in couch form, Brutus will model it for you.

Here it is at the new apartment with Brutus, again. You can see how badly he is ruining the futon mattress. It was in bad shape 3 years ago and in the above picture I was ready to light it on fire.

And when Sally came for my surgery she bought me a new futon mattress. YIPPIE!!!! Here it is with a handsome, new model, Alex. Thanks mom and dad!




TA-DA! Happy Futon.

Boy, I sure went off on a futon tangent there. Yesterday I moved it over into the dining room office area to make room for a new couch and chair. A guy at work wanted to get rid of it and I wanted a couch. It's a win-win.

Alex got really used to the space I made and was enjoying playing in it.

This afternoon, I met a couple friends way, way, way up North and they helped be get the couch and chair. All the animals are getting used to it ... Even Petey the Pee-er was down here for a little bit. So help me if he pees on this thing. I'll drive his little black butt to the railroad track and he can just live there. Good luck getting boiled chicken and cheese slices in your new home.


Here are a couple pictures ...


I know what you're thinking. Could that BE any greener? It's growing on me. :) I like it. Reminds me of Jess's Green Jetta with Kermit in the backseat.

Television Rundown:

Scott Baio is 46 and Pregnant:

We are two shows into this season and in the beginning of each show I want to slap the shit out of him, what is his problem?? I really feel for any woman who is having a baby with a guy like this. But then the last 5 minutes of each show he redeems himself. I still would never want to have kids with a guy with that many issues about growing up.

Rock of Love II:

Do people really own clothes and shoes like this?? Is there a legal limit for how big your lips can be?? Bret Michaels lets all the cute ones go and the nasty, butt ugly, whore looking, drunk bitches get to stay. Whatever. And if I have to hear him reference his boner one more time, I might stop watching. And stop using your arm to simulate the motion in your pants. Please.

Deal or No Deal:

Is it sad I think I know all the models by name? I just love this show. It's so easy to say you'd take the deal from your couch. (or futon). I like how if there's a Hispanic on that all the models suddenly become Hispanic too. Or ghetto. Or nerdy. Or funny. I guess that means they are really good at their job. I mean they look hot and never kick off those shoes -- I liked Ellen's outfit though. :)

Scrubs:

I so miss Scrubs. They are due to come back on January 24th but Zach Braff has said that there may be no ending to the series. What a slap in the face, huh? The writers really need to get back to there desks.

I hate my job and am underpaid but I can't just walk up and down the street. Although, many days there are several trips to Seattle's Best. :)

Time to make some coffee and start a movie. Aloha!