Fleur de Liz

This is because I was being a whinyface to doctorv about not liking any of the theme community prompts. So Doc custom made me a table. Which I am putting here, instead of in pyrotechnic_ink because nobody goes there.

( Table behind cut. )

Ooooog.

Saturdate and I went to a water park yesterday. It wasn't exactly water park weather (needed to be maybe ten degrees warmer air temp, the water was on the chilly side), but we enjoyed ourselves.

HOWEVER. In spite of my sunblocking all the very important sunblock-needing areas (shoulders, chest, back), I have managed to fry those aforementioned areas. I've got those nice lines where my suit covered my skin.

But only my top half burned! Arms have some odd patches of burny where I was crap at putting the sunscreen on. Legs...I don't think they have anything. There's a bit of red on my thighs but I'm not sure if that's sunburn or razor burn from shaving. Nose...I think is burnt. Yeah, nose looks burnt. Neck is not burnt, I screened that pretty well.

So I'm hurty, but it'll pass.

We also went to a carnival and saw fireworks probably as close as you can be without being on fire, and even then there was a slight chance of burnination. YES.

And now, I am off to seek lunch, and do my homework, and knit, and be a lazy slob. Also, probably go buy aloe. Owwwww.

I changed all the keywords on my userpics to be more witty and clever, so now the icons on all my previous entries and comments have changed to the default.

WHY YOU DO THIS, LJ? THAT'S STUPID.

I haven't done a whole hell of a lot this week, I've just been lazy about posting.

Started my classes at Community College. I like the one I have to physically be at so far, but I'm not sure how I'm enjoying the online one. I have to go over to the school and get the book for the online class, I've got homework due. (They didn't have the book when I went on Monday.)

Saturdate and I enjoyed the Fourth...until the ride home. We watched the fireworks from the Cambridge side, and the train was chockablock full. Like insane, ridiculous amounts of people. I overheated and ended up puking in the Braintree T Station bathroom. Good times, good times.

I think we're going to a carnival this weekend.

Went to the unemployment office yesterday to see about my money. Apparently I have to talk to a claims adjuster, and they have to...I don't know, settle with Ex-Job or whatever. I really don't want to. Fleur de Father thinks I need to do it, but I just don't want to deal with the Ex-Job anymore. I applied to a few more places this week, hopefully I hear back. One's for assistant teaching at a chain of early childcare schools one of my classmates works at.

I'd much rather be teaching than office working.

My apologies to my commissionees, I've been slow, but I haven't forgotten about you. If you've heard nothing from me, it's because I'm nowhere near ready to start your piece. But I'm definitely thinking about them. Once I've gotten my homework out of the way, I'll get back to pumping out knitty friends.

I need to go put something other than pajamas on and get on over to the school. Also, walk Bitey. Maybe also take him for a ride. I'd take him to school with me, but I wouldn't want to leave him in the car. He'd get upset.

I'm going babysitting in an hour (if you're desperate for money and you know it raise your hand!), so I thought I'd crack off a post.

Still unemployed, going to call the Office of Unemployment next week and see where my unemployment money is. Still trying to find employment.

Starting classes on Monday! I'm taking one night class and one online class at community college to start earning certification in Early Childhood Ed. I also need to take placement testing on Monday, which is kind of bullshit since I have a college degree, but I'll do the damn tests and if they say I need a math class, I'm going to wave my BA from Hood at them and tell them fuck no.

Cupcake Charlie's. They will know my face.

Seems I will not be working at the yarn store. However, Yarn Lady left me and thisbirdcansing alone in the store while she went and got a cupcake from CC's. Weird? Yes. Hilarious? Also yes.

And now, for the shameless huckstering.

I have had and continue to have problems with my skin. I think it's a combination of hormones and the fact that I'm terrible about taking my makeup off at night. The Fleur de Sisters said that a bunch of their friends use that Bare Minerals stuff that's always on like QVC and the Food Network when it's too early in the morning for it to be the Food Network. They all love it, the FdSes say.

So, in spite of it being horribly expensive, I hunkered down and bought their "starter kit" today. Just washed my face and put it all on. So far, ladies? I really like it. It's all powder, so it's really light, and you don't really need all that much. I was surprised.

Again, it's very expensive, but it's one of those things where the really good makeup's always gonna be expensive. We'll see how much I like this stuff in a couple of weeks.

I think Saturdate and I are going into the city tomorrow. Suicide? Probably. Fun? Hopefully.

Ew, it's getting dusty in here. Ewww.

Still unemployed. Still don't seem to have money from Unemployment. Still haven't heard from Massasoit.

There's the tiny possibility I might be working at the new yarn store downtown, but no word from the woman just yet. Maybe I'll email her tomorrow and send her my resume as a follow-up.

Should probably call Massasoit and see if they're letting me in or not. Haven't heard anything and night classes start next week. *sigh*

In less depressing news, Bitey has a new hobby, one that's got a bit of a story to it. See, Fleur de Father has a birdfeeder hanging on our porch, and the birds have spilled seed all over the porch. There is a chipmunk living somewhere in the various flora in the beds next to the porch. The chipmunk comes up on the porch and eats the birdseed.

Bitey sits at the door and watches this chipmunk. He could watch for hours. He'll sit there and watch even if the chipmunk's not there, in case he shows up. Doesn't bark, doesn't go bananas, just watches with fascination as the chipmunk stuffs his face.

I finished my first commission today and sent it off in the mail. thisbirdcansing, there is an email in your inbox. Go answer it. It's your turn now.

Nnngh, I'm watching a show on Food Network about BACON. BAAAAAAAAACON. I hate you, Food Network. I hate you, and I love you.

Cupcake Charlie's opens for reals tomorrow. I need to stay away from there, or I'm going to end up blowing all my money on cupcakes and looking like The Blob.

...I think I need to go get an ice cream cone from downstairs. Maybe I'll wait until after Law and Order's started.

So Saturdate and I decided to go to Plymouth for dinner, because there's a really good barbeque joint and it's relatively inexpensive.

We parked over in the free lot and walked, and on the way, I mentioned that thisbirdcansing mentioned that there's a new knitting store in town. He said we should go find it. I happen to look across the street and go, "...I think that's it right there."

But that's not why I'm writing this post.

I am writing this post because THERE IS A NEW CUPCAKE BAKERY OPENING IN PLYMOUTH.

I saw the little ad for it in the paper either last night or this morning. We also stumbled upon this cupcakery as well. It's not officially open yet (July 1), BUT! There was a little sign in the window that they were open for "test hours" and that they were, indeed, OPEN. So we went in, and the girl was explaining that they were doing training and thought they'd whip up a couple of batches for sale, but that they didn't have all the flavors.

WE DID NOT CARE. We got two cupcakes, which was a relatively pricey $5.87. BUT OH MY GOD.

I got their rendition of a Hostess cupcake. It had the nice chocolate ganache on top with the little swirlies. The cupcake part was nice and moist and not too sweet. AND IT HAD THE FILLING. Saturdate got a chocolate cupcake with chocolate frosting and IT ALSO HAD CHOCOLATE INSIDE IT TOO. The other ones they had on display included vanilla with chocolate frosting (and M&Ms on top), chocolate with vanilla frosting, and vanilla with chocolate chips inside, I think chocolate frosting, and a little cookie about the size of a Cookie Crisp.

If you're wondering where this Mecca of Cupcakes is, it's next to the Weathervane restaurant. Where the Pepperidge Farm outlet used to be.

We boxed those cupcakes up and proudly paraded through Plymouth with them. The waitress at T-Bones was totally jealous of our cupcakes. So jealous that we didn't get to play the piggy game (which I suspect is actually for bills higher than $20...the piggy game is a game of chance that could result in free dinner).

In conclusion, CUPCAKES.

I swear to God, you guys, when Michael Jackson died he took half the Internet with him.

Google seems to be borked, so does Wikipedia. For a while there so were all the major blogging sites, though I think those are okay now. Youtube seems okay. Gmail works.

C'mon, people, I don't like Yahoo's search engine as much as the Googles. And I don't want to update Jacko's Wiki, I wanna look at somebody else's. Or someTHING else's.

...I just feel bad for Farrah Fawcett. She totally got upstaged.

In other news, when I left Bitey, he was lying on the couch on his back with his feet in the air. At one point he yawned and rubbed his eyes with his front paws. He looked a little like a cross between an otter and a crocodile. And maybe also a wolverine. I've got the stuffed red dog chew toy Saturdate and I bought him on my bed. He's kind of a little eviscerated. Might have to do some surgery.

Nngh, I should go to bed, but I wanna stay up. For what, I know not.

...and in the immortal words of Ahnuld, "It's not a tumor!"

Or, really, it's more like, "Eet's naht a toomah!"

So, yeah, the radiologist said it's just a cyst. I still have to see the surgeon next month, and he'll probably want to pop it or do whatever it is you do with cysts, but I don't have to worry about it because it's just a cyst.

Now I can go back to sleep, because I got up way too early for this appointment, because I can't find my way out of a paper bag and was afraid I wouldn't be able to find the hospital. And also because I wasn't sure of the traffic situation. Neither were problems.

In other news, still no job. And, obnoxiously enough, still no money from unemployment. As far as I know, Ex-Job hasn't contested, I just...haven't seen any money in the month I've been out. I tried calling yesterday, but they were too busy. I'll try them again later. Especially since Dad's been getting his unemployment money and he hasn't been out as long as I have. The 'rents think it's because Ex-Job is stupid and hasn't filed the appropriate paperwork to give me my money. I just looked at the website, and it said there's a waiting period, so maybe I'm still in that. The "check your pay status" thing says my claim is still being processed. God, I hope they don't contest.

In less depressing news, I think I saw the sun today. Possibly. And I still don't have to mow the lawn. And I've started writing again, in between my knitting. Which I should be working on. But I put down because I want a nap. Though I should probably be looking for work.

I hate this, by the way. I mean, it's my fault for opening my big mouth, but how was I supposed to know they were going to fire me? Uuuuugh. At least I don't have cancer.

What I do have right now? Is a Bitey on the bed. And probably his tickies. No ticks on the bed, Bitey. House rule.

Okay, this is a very true story that totally happened. Today, even.

So the Fleur de Folks, Middlest and I went to Christmas Tree Shop and the grocery store to pick up a few more things for Littlest's graduation party, which is tomorrow. (While at the grocery store, I ran into one of the preschool families from Ex-Job. I was cheerful and friendly, but it was SO DAMN AWKWARD. I walked away cringing just a little.)

We're driving down a back road towards the house, a road that leads onto a very busy street. I missed her, but the Fleur de Folks noticed a woman running down the road with a long green rope in her hand. They weren't sure what was up with that, but boy, was that a little weird.

About a mile down the road, we notice something. There's a very large horse just trotting right down the middle of the road, free as a bird. People are out in their yards on their phones, cars are slowing down (though one kind of almost didn't and we were worried the horse was gonna get nailed), everyone's jaws are dropping. We're following this horse down the road going "oh my God, he's still going, what if he doesn't stop, he's going to get out onto 3A and get nailed."

So Fleur de Father pulls the car over at the end of the road, where it intersects with 3A. Horse is still going, and we're afraid somebody's going to come flying down the street, totally unaware of this big horse in the road. So Fleur de Father gets out of the car and TRIES TO RUN THE HORSE DOWN. Middlest and I jump out of the car and go to see if he's okay, because Fleur de Father? Kind of not really the running type. The horse? Still loose. The lady with the rope got picked up by another car and gave chase and she kind of caught up with the horse and FdF, and he just let her take it from there.

The last we saw, Runaway Horse was still a runaway.

Fleur de Father was totally prepared to grab the horse (it had a bridle on), and nearly got him too, but as soon as Runaway Horse saw FdF, he put on some speed and booked it.

And that is the story of The Time Fleur de Father Totally Ran After a Runaway Horse In The Middle of Duxbury.

In personal news, I saw the doctor today. I have to go in for an ultrasound on Thursday. I was standing by the phone going to make the call and mentioned it to the Fleur de Sibs and FdF, and he wasn't paying attention, so the sibs told him I was pregnant. He jolts up and is like, "WHAT?!"

I'm not pregnant. The ultrasound is for a lump I felt (not in my womb, Fleur de Sibs) during a self-exam. I've also got an appointment set up with a surgeon specializing in breast cancer. It's very unlikely that that's what this is, but given the fact that both my grandmothers had breast cancer, I'm not going to let it go unchecked.

Ugh, I'm tired. I found a bug in my bed last night too. D:

Maybe I'll go to bed soon.

...Then again, no.

All right, I'm going to do this now, but I'm just going to warn y'all that I'm going to be gone all day, so if I'm pokey at getting back to you, it's because I've got a Tuesdate.

We're going to see Chicago and Earth, Wind and Fire in concert. You have my permission to be insanely jealous.

( OKAY. COMMISSIONS. )

Still jobless, but Ex-Job hasn't contested my unemployment so I'll be getting money from the government, huttah. It's certainly not enough to live off, but it's enough for now.

I've been lazy this week, but I'm pretty sure my plan is to go back to school and get certified in Early Childhood Ed. Preschool children are a lot more fun to teach than smelly high schoolers, after all.

Had an awesome time in New York, though Saturdate and I decided that it's a nice place to visit but we wouldn't want to live there.

I've been contemplating this for a while now, and I think I'm going to do it. Next week, I'm going to open up a couple of commission slots for my dolls. They'll be $25 including shipping, Paypal only, so if you're interested, watch for the official post.

I've been trying to get back to writing again, but it's slow going. I start feeling guilty that I'm noodling around instead of looking for a job or classes, but then I start having flashbacks to the day I got canned and start losing self-confidence. I know I shouldn't let it eat me, it was a bonehead mistake I regret making, but in the long run, it was worth getting out of there.

*sigh*

I need to figure out what I want for dinner. Littlest is off on an adventure, and the Fleur de Folks are driving her, so they're not home. Middlest is going out, I think. I have to go to the groceria anyway. Part of me feels like I should just eat something crappy like Kraft macaroni and cheese (the real stuff, not Easy Mac), and part of me is like, "This is your opportunity to get something delicious!"

I'll have to see when I go to the store. I just hope My Personal Stalker isn't there.

Also need to figure out what Saturdate and I are doing this weekend. Blah.

Going off the grid for a few days. Saturdate and I are taking a long weekend and going to New York to visit one of his buddies.

Behave yourselves while I'm gone, and somebody make sure you feed Bitey.

In other news, wonderfish gave me the best worst present ever. A tangle of beautiful sock yarn. Seriously, this is like OCD at its finest. I have been sitting here trying to untangle it all day, because I want to stash it in my purse and knit on the bus. We're taking a bus.

If I can't get it soon, I'm gonna have to go to Tangled Sock Mess #2 and see if I can fix that really quickly. I don't want to bring the socks I already started knitting, since they require too much thought.

I hope I don't forget anything!

Littlest graduated from high school today.

And, as it is tradition, I ended up with bizarre sunburns. Half of both forearms and three-quarters of one knee are radioactive. I'm not sure what else is burned (back of my neck? I don't know) but those are truly the stand-out spots.

She was very pretty and we are all very proud. Yay Littlest!

Then I went and partied at boondock_duck's graduation from college party with thisbirdcansing. Good times, good times.

Now I have a Bitey Dog curled up on my bed. I don't know if this is where he will stay for the rest of the night, but he is pretty damn content right now.

Also, Saturdate and I are going to New York for a long weekend next week. He's got a friend who lives there so we're going to go have an adventure. I am excited, though I also feel guilty about the fact that I will likely be mooching off him all weekend since I am still of the unemployed.

...Which reminds me that I need to declare for this week tomorrow. It is very important that I remember to check in every week with them so I don't get busted by...I'm not sure who would bust me. The Feds?

Nngh, so much knitting to do. Need to do it. Have the time, should be doing it. I blame felonazcorp for being too damn interesting. :P

I should sleep soon, but I probably won't. Just because. I'm like that.

So I'm still unemployed. Threw my resume out into the seas of hope and possible drudgery, just gonna keep doing that until something bites. Also going to look into taking some classes and getting my EEC certification.

Had coffee with thisbirdcansing today. I think I should've put a leeetle more sugar in mine. It was good, though.

Also, felonazcorp and wonderfish (HAPPY YESTERDAY BURTHDAY FEESH) sent me "don't feel bad about getting fired" presents. Feesh sent me MOAR YARN. This is a danger the likes of which mankind has never known. I'll never get rid of all my yarn at this rate, hahaha. Feebs sent me BOOSTER AND BEETLE DUCKIES. LITTLE ONES. They are very cute! I think they shall find a home with Desk Elongated Man and his friends, Desk Fire and Desk Ice. I think Desk Fire fell down behind said desk. I must rescue her.

The cable isn't working on either the computer room TV or Middlest's TV, which patches into the computer room's TV. Everyone else has working televisions. Weird. Fleur de Father is being Handy Manny and attempting to fix it. Bitey and I are "assisting." And by "assisting," I mean sitting here and watching. Though Bitey might actually be sleeping. He is very sneaky like that.

I need to surgically graft my cell phone to myself so I stop leaving it places. Poor Saturdate never manages to actually call when my phone is on my person. I blame the fact that nobody ever calls my cell...or nobody did until I started seeing Saturdate. I'm not even sure what we're doing this weekend. I might have to go to Emergency Plan Aquarium. But that's pricey and he's paying for all our dates until I'm employed again. I shall consult with him.

Littlest graduates on Saturday. This is a thought too bizarre for me to truly comprehend. I don't even know, you guys. I feel old.

Man, you know what would be awesome? If Plymouth Rock Studios called (I sent them my resume even though they're not hiring right now) tomorrow and was like, "Oh hey, we actually need a secretary/receptionist/Fleur de Liz." That would be awesome.

Or, I don't know, I win the lottery and don't have to actually ever work. That'd be even better.

Maybe I can write the next Twilight. I wonder if tweenage girls would be as receptive to Creatures of the Black Lagoon? Hot, sparkly Creatures of the Black Lagoon?

So we went to a friend's college graduation party today, the whole Fleur de Family. We go to church with the graduate's family, have known them forever.

Skies got progressively darker. The wind picked up. It got cool.

People started moving things into the house. Everyone watched the skies. The food on the grill finished just in time. We all moved into the house, and as soon as the last cooler was inside, it happened.

The skies opened up like it was armageddon. Thunder and lightning like you read about. Torrential downpours. And then?

Hail. Small at first, but vigorous. In a matter of minutes, it was golf ball sized and coming down at a high rate of speed. We're talking ludicrous amounts of hail. We seriously thought the windows were going to shatter.

Everybody's car ended up dented a little and covered in debris. The family's yard was absolutely trashed (which was a real tragedy because their two sons, who are landscapers, had JUST finished doing their yard and it had looked absolutely beautiful), and the road out was flooded in part.

The weirdest thing was that back at Chez Fleur, it had just rained like nobody's business. Not a sign of hail. Oh sure, thunder to make Bitey go absolutely bonkers, but not a single speck of hail.

It was crazy scary, especially once it stopped hailing. We all went outside to look, and it had gotten significantly cold outside. The hail kicked up serious fog. It practically blanketed the lawn. It looked like a war zone.

...How the bleeding hell did I get a mosquito bite on the back of my thigh? I think I've worn shorts once all week. Can mosquitoes bite through denim? *itches like hell*

...Today clearly isn't that day.

Fuck you, tree pollen.

Oh God, I almost just threw up.

I don't know what it is with me, work, Fridays, and nausea.

My throat was feeling kind of scratchy last night, and it was still scratchy this morning, so I chalked it up to allergies and took an allergy pill before I left for work. Okay all through the morning. About fifteen minutes ago, I started feeling kind of nauseous. Assumed it was just hunger, heated up my lunch, picked at it a little...

...and felt like I was going to vom. Hid out in the bathroom for a few minutes.

I'm okay. I still feel a little woogly, but I'm gonna go run my errands in a minute, see if the fresh air helps.

I better not be getting sick again. This week's Saturdate is the zoo. I love the zoo!

Bah, and I need to finish knitting my Mother's Day present and Obnoxious Coworker Guy is here. GO AWAY, OBNOXIOUS GUY. YOU WORK AT OTHER CAMPUS.

( A Visual Presentation )

We interrupt my not posting in LJ for over a week to bring you this special news bulletin.

MAINE NOW ALLOWS GAY MARRIAGE.

New Hampshire's working on it. Rhode Island...not so much.

New England > the rest of the nation. Except for Iowa.

In not-gay news, I'm still employed and still dating Saturdate. Middlest has a mouse in her dorm, Littlest is gearing up for the Arthritis Walk next Sunday and prom. This is the first year I'll be home to see a sibling get gussied up for prom.

I'm going to a trustee dinner on Friday for work. Very few of my coworkers seem to be going. Who's gonna get all the bonus points from Big Boss? That's right, beaches.

In yarn news, I started knitting a sweater. It was supposed to be Mum's present for Mother's Day until I realized that there was no way I could knit a whole sweater in less than three weeks. I'm trying to knit her something else right now, but the universe keeps getting in my way.

Hey, is anyone on Dreamwidth? What do you guys think of it? I'm thinking of getting another blog eventually for my knitting business (if I ever get it started) and want to explore all my options. I'll probably be getting a separate email address for it as well.

poisonivory, as soon as Sunday is over, I'm available to discuss options with your friend. Tell her to be ready for a barrage of questions. :P

Blech. I started using a skin regimen to clear up my face, and it made my skin dry out like the Mojave Desert, so I stopped using it, and now I'm breaking out again. CURSE YOU, SKIN.

I think I've seen more movies with Saturdate these past couple of months than I've seen in the last four years.

Should run to the post/bank. Maybe I'll stop at Dunkie's. Coffee sounds good. Coffee and a donut sound better.

Haven't felt like posting lately, except for stuff you can't see.

Changed my LJ Layout again. It's not that I didn't like the old one, which was very pretty, it just had the tendency to cut things off, and that pissed me off. This one's a little more open.

Yesterday was mostly spent in the garden, fighting horsegrass. I needed a horse to help with the grass, it was tough to pull and my hands are killing me. Also did battle with a tree growing in the middle of my patch of dirt. Thanks to some timely assistance from Fleur de Father and his trusty axe, the tree has been taken care of.

There's a lot of plants already in my patch, and I'm not sure what most of them are. We'll see what happens when they come up, and if I'll be yanking them all out later. Harharhar.

Decided to commit suicide by knitting: trying to knit Fleur de Mom a sweater for Mother's Day. I've got less than four inches of the back so far. It's, fortunately, not a hard pattern. I just have to devote all my free time to stockinette stitch.

Things aren't looking good for Fleur de Father's employment once again. He's been cut back to three days a week. I don't know what's going to happen, just that I need to start working on those dolls so I can get extra cash flow to help out. They've upped my rent by fifty dollars, but I might pay an extra hundred if things start looking really dicey.

Went pirate mini-golfing with Saturdate. I did pretty well the first round, considering my total inability to do anything sportlike. Second round...we both stopped counting after hole three.

Littlest's arthritis walk is coming up again. I don't know if I'll ask my coworkers to contribute. Probably not, since nobody has money and I feel awkward about asking people for money. I'll probably just write a decent-sized check or something. This is the downside of being not in college. No more bake sale fundraisers. D:

...Speaking of baking, I need to get something for dessert tonight. The Fleur d'Office has nothing. Or will have nothing depending on how many of my Secret Freezer Peppermint Patties are still in the secret freezer.

...It's lunch time!