First off, it's been quite a hectic week! 

I'm feeling a LOT better - almost super - even though I still have remnants from the ick I've been fighting off for a few weeks now.  Not even the best diet pills  have been needed  to keep me in check, though.  It's amazing what the state of my mood, mind, and possibly getting myself put to rights health-wise, has done for my appetite.  I really like this feeling, too.......and oh! how I hope it lasts!  I obviously returned to work late last week, am returning to derby tomorrow, and plan to start running again as soon as possible.  I am desperately trying to take better care of my health, sinuses, lungs, etc, but it is getting so expensive.  Of course....taking care of things when they go wrong is pretty expensive, too.  Hopefully once I get straightened out, it won't cost as much to be physically comfortable and capable. 

I got my yearly review at work.  It reflects the current economy.  No surprise there.  But....I am glad I still have a job.  And they are giving me more hours, so that's a definite plus.

Well, I know you're probably wondering what the post title alludes to, so here it is:  we committed to a new puppy about a month ago.  She'll be weaned and is coming home soon.  I don't have a photo of her yet, but the boys tell me she is a chocolatey-colored Daschund.  Mini will be incredibly jealous, as she's been the only pet (not counting things in enclosed habitats) for her entire life.  I think she will be okay after an initial adjustment period, and when she sees she's still going to be getting LOTS of attention, though.

In the meantime, life threw us a curve ball in the form of a stray. 

This is Copper/Buddy/Little Boy:









(Ignore the overgrown yard; it's been raining every day here for forever, and this shot was taken during a fifteen or so minute lull between thunderstorms.  And that holly is NOT in his good eye in the first photo, it was just in the way of my angle.  If I got closer, he'd back off.)

I called him Copper, because the first thing I thought when I saw him was "My name is Copper, and I'm a hound dog!", even though he's obviously a Beagle.  It sort of stuck.  As has Buddy, and Little Boy.  He's not very big.

Joe and I pulled into our driveway after I picked him up from school, and this sweet little guy was between my house and one of the neighbors'.  He was kind of loping along, and a bird kept swooping down pecking at his back!  Poor baby!  We got out and he flinched and bolted as soon as I shut my car door (mine has to be somewhat forcefully shut after being sideswiped a few years ago), but he didn't completely run off.  We were able to lure him back with a slice of bologna, which he wouldn't take from my hand, but gobbled right up once we set it down.  I also got him some water, but never saw him drink any of it.  He was obviously beaten or smacked around at some point, looked malnourished, had some ticks, had flies buzzing about, and a mighty uncomfortable looking irritation in one of his eyes.

After spending some time with him, he started to trust us just a bit, and would sniff our hands.  Any sudden movements or loud noises....from anywhere....and he immediately flinches and bolts, or flinches and drops to the ground.  What's so sad is he obviously wants to trust people.  We couldn't get the poor guy to go under a makeshift shelter we made for him on our front porch to protect him from the rain, and he huddled next to our house in the open rain.  He ran off when we put a towel down to try to keep him from the damp ground once it stopped.

Come to find out, he's been going under the other neighbor's porch.  They don't mind.  I had a talk with the neighbor to try to find out if they planned on keeping him.  They don't want to, but he's been around, and he doesn't bother anyone's property or animals.  I told the neighbor that I would like to try to get him nursed back to health..that it would probably be a while before I can really afford to get him to the vet and seen about, and fix up a small enclosure for him in our non-fenced back yard.  He will be an indoor/outdoor dog, since he's a hunting dog.  Danny was able to somehow get Buddy to let him pick him up, and he's already come in our house for a few minutes at a time, a few times.  Mini is not happy with it, but she's getting used to it.  I'll let him stay in a bit more often once we let the vet give him the once over - he seems healthy other than the near starvation, and Mini is due for a checkup and boosters this week, so no worries there - and get the vet to give him a flea bath. 

In the few days we've known Buddy and have been feeding and playing with him, he's more energetic and happy, and the irritation in his eye is going away. 

Sigh.  I never even thought I would get even ONE more dog, and here I am with two.  Thankfully, they're all small.  This means daily baking soda vacuuming, every-other-week steam cleaning (or as needed), and probably weekly baths for the dogs.  But I'm ready for it.  I definitely never thought I would own a boy dog.  (I have two females, and keeping Buddy will mean he has to get neutered.  I hate to do it, but the procedure will be less invasive for him than it will be for the two females that we can just continue to diaper up when they go into heat until we get them fixed.)  But he is here, and he is here to stay.  It just feels like he belongs to us, and I think he feels the same way, too.  He even came to the neighbor's to 'get' me the other afternoon.  He really  is a sweetheart, and I can't wait to get him nursed back to health and give him all the love and attention he deserves. 

My grandfather owned one of the simplest, yet prettiest old Victorian houses I've ever seen. Sure, it had its share of problems, such as (but not limited to) poor insulation, inferior wiring and plumbing, lead in the paint and windows. Still, it was a huge part of my heart and soul. It was the second-to-last house on a one-lane, dead end street. The huge lot it sat on was shaded by mature pecan trees, and adorned with cherry and peach trees. After my grandfather passed away, it remained in my family's hands. I had hoped to live in it at some point. My father and aunt rented it out to one group of careless, disinterested tenants after another, until it fell into such a state of disrepair that it had to be sold when my dad no longer had the time, money, or energy to keep repairing the damage. I was living in another state by then, but still wish my family had at least offered to let me buy the place. It would have been a really long shot, but I would have come over every weekend, made all the necessary repairs bit by bit, and given it all the TLC it deserved. With its quiet, relaxed setting, it would have made a BEAUTIFUL bed & breakfast until I could pay the repairs off and pay the house off, and move into it myself.

My mom told me the other day that it is now for sale, again. I looked the property up online, and was floored to see what it is selling for. You can see the listing here. (And I hope you will! Link opens in a new window.) **Okay, this link won't work no matter what, sorry.**  You can also take a a virtual tour of the place. (And again, I hope you will.  Link opens in a new window on this one, too. **This link works**) I used to have a swing Papaw made for me hanging from a limb (which is no longer there) of that tree you see in the listing picture, in the right hand corner. It looks like a lot of changes/improvements were made. There is hardwood and tile throughout, Central air has been added, and it looks like maybe the ceilings were lowered? The circular driveway in the front of the house, the tin roof, one of the pecan trees, and the gardens papaw kept are gone, of course. There is now yard area where the gardens used to be. And it looks like the storm shelter has been removed.

Sigh. I STILL want to eventually buy the place, and go back there. I had such huge plans for it, too! For one thing, I wanted to lower the ceilings and finish out the attic. Add a garage with a game room/home theater above it, detached from the house so that my kids could have friends over and be as loud as they wanted to be.

Water Valley is a small, quaint town about twenty minutes from a somewhat progressive college town and about two hours from two different large cities. It is one of those places which has not yet been raped by investors with no personal involvement in or attachment to the community, buying up dilapidated properties at a cheap price, divesting them of whatever colorful character and charm they may have once had, and replacing that with a neutral color palette and trendy materials. This particular house has been decked out with buyer-friendly colors, upgrades, and materials, but still….while I would definitely have done things differently, those are huge improvements over how the place once was. I sincerely hope that if *I* don't someday get it back, whoever ends up with this place will love it as much as I do!

(crossposted everywhere)

I mean, REALLY fucking hate?  That I just spent HOURS trying to get my music loaded on my damn phone.  And?  On a few songs (only about three or four, but still...), the phone kicks out the genre the file is labeled with and substitutes it with "none"!  I have checked the music file itself.  I have checked the file properties in VCAST.  They all say what they should.  I am told, "Well, what did you expect from a free phone?" 

Um...I expect it to WORK LIKE IT SHOULD!  Yes, it was free, and yes, it would be a small irritation to most other people.  But guess what?  I don't care if it was free.  I don't care if it would matter not one bit to anyone else.  I spent hours uploading and meticulously checking and re-checking and re-typing in information that was already on the file when I purchased it, to no avail. 

I finally gave up, but I hate to admit defeat.

In honor of Discovery Channel's Shark Week 2008 (July 27-August 2), I'm posting a link to Go Shark Yourself, where you can upload a pic and see what you'd look like as a shark!  I tried, but never could get mine to turn out right.

I love Shark Week, and am especially looking forward to the Mythbusters and Dirty Jobs specials!

I had such an amazing time, I almost don't want to mar it by complaining.  So...I am going to say my piece and maybe get my complaints out of the way right off the bat.  

First of all, traffic was HORRIBLE.  We missed the Golden Knights because it took us an hour and a half just to drive to the parking field from the interstate.  Granted, I should have woken up in time to get there when the gates opened at 10AM, but a) I was too lazy, and b) I actually thought we'd be missing most of the traffic by waiting.  It was almost as bad leaving the place, too.  There were what appeared to be a few thousand cars all merging onto one paved road from at least three lines in the parking field, and and not a soul directing any of it.  And I even waited till a good bit of the traffic had cleared before I cranked my car up and attempted to go.  I'd have waited longer, but I was afraid it was about to pour down rain, and then I'd be stuck out there in the field because I have a sportscar and not an SUV, and my phone was dead.  And you know the police weren't going to drive through that field to make sure everyone was gone!  

My second complaint goes out to the generous people who decided not to allow folks to at least bring in their own drinks.  Seriously, WTF?  Not only that, but they were charging $3 for an $0.89, 12 oz. bottle of water inside the gates.  I didn't have much of a problem buying just one during the show, but (and this leads to my third complaint) I knew I had a long walk ahead of me back to the car once it was over.  There were NO concession stands near the entrance that I could see.  Some poor lady collapsed near the entrance, and once I set out for my car, I feared the same would happen to me.  I thought I actually LOST my car at one point, but, although I walked way out of the way, I spotted the car and it was just parked WAY out there.  It wasn't overly hot, but I was so thirsty!  Seriously thirsty, as in, I could barely swallow thirsty.  I was trying not to be a baby or a drama queen about it, but at one point I really thought I was going to just crumple to the ground in a heap.

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The air show itself?  Simply amazing!  If you don't go to air shows, you probably won't "get it".  But there is nothing in the world quite like seeing the aerial stunts, hearing and feeling the rumble of the jet engines, feeling the whoosh! and suction as they fly by.  I love hearing the music and learning of the history of the craft we're watching.  

Today's weather was mostly sunny/overcast, and windy.  Not too hot.  The Blue Angels, as always, were crowd-pleasers.  But I think I enjoyed Patty Wagstaff's performance the best out of anything I saw today.   She actually is able to cut a ribbon 22 feet off the ground, while flying upside down!  I was so impressed I think you should go watch her stuff on youtube.  I tried to just find a video of the ribbon-cutting stunt, but you couldn't really tell what was going on in the two that I came across.

So...I am sunburned, mildly dehydrated, came home absolutely FILTHY from all the sweat and dust, and feel a bit sickly...probably because of the goosebumps and the lump in my throat I kept throughout the show's duration.  Yep, I'm a dork like that!

Enjoy some pics from the event in my "Airshow 2008" album.  You can see the larger versions at my flickr page (http://www.flickr.com/photos/notyourtypicalsouthernbelle/ - if the link doesn't work there's the url) by clicking on the photo, then selecting the "all sizes" option :)

Every time myspace changes, or 'works on' something, my layout goes wonky.  Truth is, I'm actually in the stages of re-working it.  But that is so time-consuming, and I really had not wanted my hand forced on the issue.  It seems to just be comment related for the time being.  I've noticed that the comment graphic resize isn't working; hopefully that's all it is.  And hopefully that will be fixed soon!

Currently:  Amused 

I'm watching Rachael Ray (shhh, it just caught my attention as I was flipping through the channels!), and on today's show they redecorated a couple's Kiss shrine/home office. The couple is in the audience for the reveal, of course, and I noticed that the chick sitting behind the guy/Kiss fan LOOKS JUST LIKE PAUL STANLEY!!! Really, how funny is that? I wonder if that was accidental, or on purpose?

Currently: Desperately needing to be asleep; I have work tomorrow!

Time for baseball! Some of you may already know that my youngest son plays for our local rec league in the 14 + age group, and they started quite late in the year because at that age, many of the players also play middle school ball. So the season actually started last Saturday, but my sons were out of state visiting their bio dad. This past Friday night was my son's first ball game, and....WTF??....it was so cold out there! Not even the travel mug of hot cocoa that I made for myself kept me warm. I don't understand this. It is mid-May in the deep south. I should have been comfortable in a tee shirt, shorts, and flip flops; not shivering in athletic pants, socks, athletic shoes and a fleece hoodie! The boys lost this game, unfortunately.

It was late when we got back home, then I headed out to McDonald's for some food for us. I had to stop and get gas, go to McDonald's, order the food, and with a quick inspection of the bag, everything looked satisfactory. So I drove off with it. Of course, I didn't dig deep enough. I got home only to discover they hadn't given me any of the fries or apple pies I had ordered! I had to go back up there. By then, they were out of apple pies! It was after 11 pm when I got home with the rest of our 'supper'.

Saturday morning, we were up bright and early to head out to an out-of-state ball game. It's not as bad as it sounds; the park is only about twenty minutes from here. But I like saying out of state, because it makes me sound as if I am really hardcore and dedicated to shuttling my kid around to his games all over this part of the country! But I digress. This time, there was a double header. They lost one, and won one. The weather was pleasant, Italian ices were had, and I got to cuddle an 8 week old Pekingese puppy named Hank! And I have already started work on this year's flip flop farmer's tan. Go, me!

You know what the funniest thing is? Other than a brief period of Pee Wee Soccer (in which I coached a team, thankyouverymuch!) I was so happy to have kids who didn't seem interested in sports. Then we moved out here to 'the country', and sports are pretty big here. Of course mine wanted to play. I didn't hesitate to sign them up, but I worried I wouldn't be able to share their enthusiasm for spending long, hot days at ball parks and long, chilly nights at football fields and drafty gyms. But I love it! For the longest time, I really felt out of place among the other parents. It took a bit of getting used to, of course. I showed up for just about every practice and every game, each time either of my boys played any sport (except for my oldest son playing school football. No parents were allowed at their practices. But I doubt my son would have wanted his Mama out there watching over him, anyway!). I've been at this for years now. I have gotten to know other parents. I even like most of them! I don't mind watching my kids practice. I don't mind the travel. I love watching the games!

I would like to be able to say that I enjoy all the sports my teens play equally, but I can't. Each sport played has added to each of my sons' confidence, character, and commitment. But baseball is special. There is just something about spending hot summer days and nights at the ball park, getting sunburned swatting mosquitoes, enjoying my favorite time of year and watching my son and friends enjoy themselves. It is what some of my fondest memories are being made of, and I hope they will be fond memories for my son as well.

Currently:  Preparing for my road trip with the girls!  

Yesterday was just the most irritating of days.  Everywhere I went, people just would NOT stop staring.  Most people, when they stare at you, will look away once they've been caught, but there was one girl, I'd say she was about 13-14, who just KEPT ON staring at me the whole time I pumped gas (she and her brother were in the car next to mine at the gas station).  Didn't her mama ever teach her that was rude?  

I wondered if maybe I had sprouted a second head.   A quick check in the mirror told me that no, I had not.  Did I need to wear a posture corrector?  No, it was not that either.  Even though I really, truly do need to practice better posture.  Was it my stunning beauty, then?  No?  I figured finally it must be the steam coming out of my ears and the fire shooting out of my eyes or something.  

That was entirely possible, since I came home after dropping the boys off at school to find that the trash collectors IGNORED THE BAGS AROUND THE TRASH CAN.  

Oh.  My.  GAWWWDDDD!!!  I already hate the trash collectors of Madison county because every week without fail, they either set or throw my garbage can into the very middle of my driveway,  which means if I've been at work, I have to just bump it with my car to move it out of the way.  There is a drainage ditch that runs across my front yard near the road, and it is especially deep on either side of the driveway.  I can't just drive around it, nor can I just park my car in the busy road to get out and move it out of the way.  

But now those asswipes have really gone and done it!  This week our trash can was full because we did a lot of cleaning in the yard and started cleaning our shed out.  All this trash was in addition to our normal household trash, which is shamefully a lot to begin with.  I had to set some of our trash bags out beside the trash can since there was no more room in it.  Some of the bags I set on top fell off, I am sure of it.  When I got home, my trash can was oddly in a place I could drive around it, and this made me nervous.  I knew something had to be wrong.  I quickly spotted the ignored trash bags still in my front yard.  They emptied the can, set it back exactly where it was found in an attempt to TRICK me, and ignored the other bags which were obviously there to be picked up as well.  DAMMIT!  Those garbage men need their asses kicked in the worst way!  Maybe they are not supposed to get any trash that isn't specifically in the can, but if so, this is the first time it has EVER, in my four years of living here, been a problem.  If the neighbor's dog or a stray cat had gotten into my trash and strewn it everywhere, I'd have called and complained whether I was in the right or not.

So, my trash can is basically already full again.  There will be more, and the can will definitely overflow.  The trash will not be picked up if it is not in the can.  My neighbor has said I can put any extra trash in her can (I would have done that this week, but she didn't have her own bin out and there wasn't time for me to go get it from the back of her house), but I think these twats need a lesson.  I am going to stack bags on top of the top bag that will fit in the can.  I will duct-tape these bags to the tops of the ones already in the can, and to each other to make sure that they all stay in the can.  Since they won't get bags placed next to the can, let them pick up the garbage can made unwieldy by all the excess bags ignored from this week's round.  

Really...I have had it, and I am not joking.  Not at all.  It will be all I can do not to put a note on the very top explaining that I had to duct tape all the bags together like that because they ignored them when they were sitting beside the can the previous week.  

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Okay.  I feel much better now that I have a plan in place to deal with their laziness and smartassery.

Today is going to be a busy one for me!  I will blog, read, take a short nap, then get up and go do some shopping!  I am mostly ready for my Thursday night road trip, but I need to be sure I have batteries for my camera.  I may also pick up some fake eyelashes, since my own are stick straight and you can't even see them!  I know it takes me forever and a day to get ready for anything, but I want to be pretty, too, dammit!

I also think I am going to dye my hair.  I absolutely LOVE Ashlee Simpson's new red color!  (scroll down just a bit to see her pics)  Don't get me wrong, she is all kinds of annoying!  But snagging Petey Wentz and this hair color are two things she's done exceptionally well.

Currently: Gathering my thoughts

.....means a longer post today. Sorry. I didn't feel like posting yesterday because late Sunday evening, there was nothing to post about. Then I had to work yesterday. Then yesterday afternoon I was still TIRED and not in the mood. Since my days and nights are still mixed up, I'm still not sleeping well.

Speaking of work: Hottie McHotstuff, where were you yesterday? It was my only day to work this week. Don't you know how your presence brightens my day considerably? I don't guess you internet friends have been properly introduced to Hottie just yet. That is because I have debated with myself long and hard over whether to share him with you all or not. Hottie is my current work crush.  I hope he doesn't stop shopping there anytime soon!   Don't laugh! I have friends there that I love talking to, and they make the sometimes boring, slow days go by a lot faster. But having a cute man to look at every now and then doesn't hurt, either!

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After work, I went thrifting. I picked up two more cup and saucer sets, three additional saucers, and a gorgeous china plate; all eight pieces for only $2.55. Here is the plate. Isn't it gorgeous?



I even came across something that made me cry:



It's one of those plastic mugs you can put pictures or artwork in. This one said "Happy Father's Day. I love you, Dad." It also said "Love, **** M". I can't believe someone gave it away!

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Here is some meme-age from a blog friend. I haven't done a meme in a while, so here goes:

10 weirdo random facts or habits meme.

1. I have a widow's peak.
2. I have never been on an airplane.
3. When eating a sandwich, I eat the crust first, then turn the sandwich as I go into a perfect circle until it's gone.
4. I have a weird/bad habit of wanting to burst out laughing at the MOST inappropriate times. I am not even kidding.
5. I love Method cleaning products so much that I've actually subscribed to their People Against Dirty Blog.
6. I love looking at a word, any word, and seeing how many other words I can make from the letters.
7. The praying mantis is my favorite insect.
8. I was paddled every Friday that rolled around by my fourth grade teacher. And I wasn't even a problem child!
9. I dream every night. In color.
10. I'm just now getting around to trying those fancy, flavored, and hot teas everyone raves about.  I can't say that I like them very much.

I'm not tagging anyone over here....but if you're bored and want to do this, by all means please do. Just be sure to let me know, so I can come read. I love learning new and unusual things about people!