As the Stomach Turns - Day 1 of Items

So far here is what I have accomplished:

-Sent out House purge sale - ALL HOUSE WARES MUST GO message to peeps I know
-Contacted my US tax guy to help me on the rental situation and income exclusion while I work abroad
-Scheduled Cat clinic vaccines and sedation for this week
-Recevied call back from movers about international arrangmements
-Preparing items for International VISA for African safari trip
-Transferred funds to pay for African trip by 12/16
-Contacted my plummer to schedule faucet replacment in my bum bathroom
-Calling Fairfield Inn to confirm all of my room reservations with my Marriott points for Jane Thornley workshop first weekend of March 2009

Here is what I need to accomplish by today:

-Contact United Air to give me requirements and fees to transport my cats to Florida
-Contact the rental agency I spoke to earlier last week to confirm this is a done deal to start looking for renters

That's just for today...more to come. And then there is my work that I need to finish up by end of this week as well. I need a personal secretary!

Frank's Visit

I have to admit that Frank (Felix Unger) was not OCD this past weekend visiting me. He actually played with my cats! The only complaint he had was the small shower area in one of my antiquated bathrooms.

Here he is on the Pismo beach pier




Exposed him the best Clam Chowder at Splash Cafe, then we saw pelicans on the pier.










Here is one that is getting fish guts from a guy fileting a fish







We proceeded to go to Cold Spring Tavern, the historical location of stage coach stops. Frank enjoyed the historical site but that day there were no bikers as they would usually hang out there.

We had lunch at the Cold Spring the tavern itself; manager slipping out of the place. Mug shots of us waiting for our food inside.







We ended up going into Solvang because I wanted him to see the Dutch architecture and stop off for the pastry. He didn't refuse. He enjoyed the California countryside after all instead of the Los Angeles Hollywood crap. Hurray for Felix!

Btw, he helped me through the decision of taking the offer in Australia for work. He wants to go down there and work as well so we definately will be keeping in touch with each other. He has offered for me to call him to talk about the move anytime. So everyone - now you know: I am moving to Australia for work sometime next month! It's time for me to really get busy in my life. There may not be postings here for some time.

How do I Love to Spend Money - Let me Count the Ways

Today was the start of my sewer line investigation. Plummers are digging up the front of my yard to see how the sewage is draining. A camera was probed a couple weeks ago and couldn't see something after a certain point. Found out why...there is a clay juncture of pipe heading into the large Indian Laurel tree/sidewalk of my yard and it is installed higher than the main drainage coming from the house. No wonder I tend to see water not drain as quickly - reverse gravity. Having this problem around a large tree with penetrating roots, well I have no sympathy for such a healthy tree. I told the guy that if you accidentally kill the tree, I would not be disappointed - think it can happen? Not in this lifetime.
They have to saw through many thick roots around the piping to get what they see. So we have to wait until tomorrow for another camera view and possibly digging further up toward my house to see how the piping looks and possibly dig that section deeper for the downflow drainage - chaching! More money to spend!!





Well before this trauma of my home ownership woes, I did manage to visit Wildfiber in Santa Monica Saturday for their big 30-50% off on yarn sale. Got myself another boatload of expensive yarn for my stash. I came up to the register and told her, "I am working on blowing my house payment every time I come here". The owner didn't care but the customer behind totally agreed on my comment.
The shiny hanks of yarn with red tags are 100% bamboo and it's like knitting with silk - love it! Making the Romantic Lace shawl with the Scarlett color.




Oh yes, can't forget my trip to Loop & Leaf where I picked up a special ordered Sea Wool Blue Lagoon to match the one I bought before...well, the color was completely darker but I got the skein anyway for a scarf/shawl project. The original skein I started with the Coin Lace Scarf - a pattern I have been waiting for a long time from the designer Shui Kuen Kozinski.
Definately blocking is in order for both of these projects with the stiff fiber contents.

Meanwhile I got surprising news from my friend Frank the handsome Italian friend (Felix Unger). He is flying out to visit me this weekend! I can't believe he is actually wanting to stay here for a weekend. I guess he misses me ;) I suppose it's as weird as having this double-headed bloom out of a single stalk of this bird of paradise.

Heading to more Holidays

Last week I flew to Reno to help on a system conversion. I did manage to finish a lacey scarf on the plane ride over.


Well do you think I would have the opportunity to finish some of my knitting projects? No, instead went back to my other habit which knitting replaced: Blackjack. Hey - I was hot! For the 5 days there I won > $200; I consider that 2 knitting projects paid for :) Oh yeah....the system conversion was smooth and I felt like I helped out.

Came home and finished another project finally - I am distracted by many projects staying home since August.


I did have help keeping the pieces together while I sewed them...




Earlier I had a visitor and he/she actually came into my house and left poop pellets.


Both Freckles and Ditto were fine with this creature around, in fact it is larger than Ditto so they really couldn't do anything to scare it away. They were scared of this creature and the nerve of it coming into my house!




Meanwhile I received 3 offers to join Thanksgiving. I forgot I had one in August so blew that one off so I accepted another in Valencia. Had a 3rd offer in Fresno with more unfamiliar surroundings. I think I am ok with the choice this year. It will give me a chance to see Katy Gentry sober from Heroine addiction; last year's Thanksgiving dilema. (Thanksgiving 2007 with the cousins group - MacDonalds and Gentrys)

Rare Dinner Party

Last Saturday I hosted a dinner party at my house; which is rare for me to cook! There were 10 of us that were in my house that evening where I made chicken and beef enchaladas. For some reason I was suffering from a migraine Thursday and Friday so I was in bed most of those days preventing me from cleaning the place in stages for this event. Saturday morning, was fine and performed the Cinderella duties all morning, chopped and prepared the food all afternoon, showered and dressed ready in time for the first guest to arrive at 5 PM sharp! Exhaustion set in so I was not in the mood for knitting with the others that brought theirs. To my surprise, Beatriz brought not only Mexican rice but Chicken Mole and Chile Verde. A success for the dinner as we hung out, chatted then ate the wonderful apple pie that Lisa baked for us...yummy! I didn't take photos of the food but of the people who made my evening worth while.

Gloria and Flo


Stephanie, Beatriz and Candace





Lisa and Nancy Vargas


Preita who claims she needs chest scaffolding that night




....and Terry the miracle knitter




Thank you ladies for coming over :)

Monthly Update

It has been a month and realized I haven't posted anything here. Wow! Here is the latest...

Went on a couple lunch dates with Mark, the guy who only wants to date one woman at a time. I convinced him to meet me since meeting is not 'dating'. I am not sure if he is seeing/dating the other woman but I didn't ask. We are currently exchanging email and texting but nothing chemistry or combustion is happening. He has his life together but he seems not as confident in public as I thought he was. He waits for me to get out of my car before he goes into a restaurant. Usually people go into the place and wait for each other. The second lunch, I was waiting for him with a glass a wine. 10 minutes delinquent of our scheduled time, I went outside the place and then he came out of his vehicle. WTF!? I asked him why didn't he go into the place... no sigificant answer that made sense. I am not sure if I should be honored that he evolves his world around the appearance of someone or that I should move on to someone more confident. I think the latter is my choice.

Being home every day has made me too comfortable. Letting the girls out in the backyard with the beautiful butterflys has made Freckles a hunter. She killed this marvelous monarch right in front of the terracing.


Ended up knitting a couple hats: first one was a catalyst to make for a little girl's birthday present for the end of this month. I made it in one day and asked for the mailing address to send to her mother (who requested I make this). I believe her mother is avoiding the payment that she agreed to surrender...she has not contacted me back with a mailing address nor a time to pick the hat up. I plan on using this hat myself. Note to self: no more exchanges with this person who cannot follow through on commited requests. I am not a slave!! Here is the wooly hat.


Meanwhile..I have been spending waaay too much time at my LYS. But I am helping to sell a certain type/brand of yarn with my fininshed shawl projects :)

My friend Nina went in for a right mastectomy on October 30 and had an uneventful procedure. The easiest part is over..now comes the recovery: psychological and reconstruction stages. I am hoping she will follow her post-op education. That evening I found out that my best friend, Camille is learning how to knit. She brought in her practice swatch and was knitting. I didn't believe it was hers but she was actually making knit stitches! I am proud of her.

Made a hat for myself in one evening. I am now into making socks again; toe-up method. Before it was cuff down finishing toe so this is a challenge to make them in reverse.

As you can see...I need to get back to traveling on the road for work. They have not given me a true start date for my next anticipated assignemt in Bakersfield. There is really no work her in the West coast but they don't want to send me to another region like I was for Detroit > 2 years. Got my sabbatical approved and going on an African safari March 2009! Can't wait to be with wildlife again!! Until then, I will have to enjoy the wildlife in my own yard. Check out the hummingbird I caught picking at my bird of paradise.


Then there is this beautiful butterfly - check out the terrific markings!


Then there is the indoor wildlife: Freckles watching her prey/gift that she gives me daily for attention.

Life Spinning Around Me

Ok..so I signed up for yet another singles dating online thinking I will have some luck somehow with the male species. I think I was prompted since I joined Facebook. There are commercial ads such as > 40 singles, blah blah blah. Signed up but I will not pay for the monthly fees to email the bastards :P
I snagged a really cool guy last week and I acutally received a response back in my personal email! I swear - I am mystified on why men do not want to take the plunge to correspond with me when I open my self to contact me in email, etc. Mark, a single father/widower contacted me in email and it was terrific. Until I gave him my land phone, he tried to text message me to meet him for a drink last Friday night. Come to realize it was my land phone. Meanwhile, he received a text message from another lady asking him to meet for drinks. I know all this since I did queue him to call me after that past weekend to connect in person. He is a genuinly terrific guy, gregareous and positive for what he has been through - truly a winner. He did confess that he does not date many women at once so I missed out on my opportunity when he went out with the other lady for a drink instead of me. I am wondering how men think that one date makes him homogenous in the dating scene. Anyway...he said that he wants to date this women and see what happens but wants to keep in touch with me anyway. We did speak for 90 minutes with the circumstances as such. I am not sure if I am impressed or disappointed. I believe he is a people pleaser and I did miss out for not giving him my cell number to be text messaged. Mark states that things happen for a reason. Thinking about this, he states that I wasn't meant to meet him and it was a better deal for the woman who asked him instead. I missed out again - timing is and always has been bad for me when it comes to these relationships! This is the story of my life so I must be waiting for the Cinderella story to climax.

Still working from home this week waiting for a full-time project to start; next week I travel to Winona, MN - great time of the year to be there. I can wear my sweaters that I knitted finally over there. Since I am unable to solve the puzzle of obtaining a mate, I continue to enjoy the beauty around me as much as possible. My bird of paradise plants are blooming like crazy this year. Check out the spider on this one trying to get the sticky sap.


Hummingbirds do fly around these blooms but by the time I get my camera out, they are gone.

Here is Freckles with her typical provacative pose when she rests, yes - she is showing a nipple (click on the photo for close-up).