The “Re” Post

I finally finished my audit of optical yesterday…what a hot mess!  It will be easier going forward because I can audit it weekly or even daily if I have time…so more than likely, weekly. I am hoping that things will be better and everyone gets to keep their job. I am worried for my coworker…fingers crossed she comes out of this okay. She is a good person who just  happens to be very scattered.

Last night was the last stamp club of the year and here are the cards we made…

I sent this photo to Big K and Force of Nature Girl and Force of Nature Girl sent back with laughing emojis…”what are you going to do with that card?”  I knew she was referring to the religious one and while I don’t believe that Jesus is the reason for the season…I will send it to my friend who does.

It’s all about compromise…I don’t sent out Yule/Winter Solstice cards…well, only to a few people but that’s not the norm. I can believe my beliefs and tie them into the “let’s kill everyone until they believe what I believe” christian/commercial holiday. I really don’t want to have that debate so I will move on… I was inspired after stamp club so I decided to sit down when I got home and sign and address all of my holiday cards.  All of them….I don’t have the best handwriting and by the end it was getting worse but it is done.

This morning as I lay in bed refusing to get up so early, I thought about the cards from the night before. In another time and place when someone took the time to write out Christmas cards, they also took the time to write something personal to each recipient. Then I felt guilty over my hurried attempt to get one more thing checked off of my list. I felt guilty because I didn’t take the time and then the rational me responded with “like people care anyway…they might tape them up on a display and then throw them away in a month.”

What still means something in this world??? Not a lot…that’s for sure. I can’t speak for others, only for myself. Very few people care…like 3% of the population..okay…maybe that’s a tad dramatic….maybe not? Our world is a hot mess! We had a new patient come in on Thursday. She was an emergency patient…. a cigarette to the eye. Her statement “my boyfriend flicked it across the room and it hit my eye” This all happened at 4am. The doctor who saw the patient said that the burn was a perfect circle and above the burn was an indentation of a half moon. That monster held her down and held that lit cigarette to her eye. It makes me sick…throw up sick whenever I think about it. Monsters are real and they walk right along side of us everyday. There is nothing that girl can do to protect herself and there is no one that can help her and that makes me sick too.

I hadn’t intended to write about that and yet there it is…. These are the things that make me want to move into secluded area, away from the population. I can’t say off the grid because while I could use an outhouse (not that I would like it)….I cannot give up my wifi. That is a sad statement in itself.

The Girl and I went out an ran errands today and there were mobs of people everywhere…it was ridiculous!!! The lines, the parking, the traffic…and it’s not even the holiday season yet! I’m glad I went into Hobby Lobby because they had exactly what I needed and it was on sale. It was a nightmare to get in and out of…I took the long way home which included backtracking but was less stressful. I would rather take the risk of getting pulled over for going 25.5mph in a 25. mph zone than fight that mess. Hopefully anything else I need I can find at Michael’s across town, where I can take back roads and not fight with any traffic. I am not interested in that mess!

This Brooke Hampton quote popped up in my Instagram today …I had to delete a photo from a previous blog to get it here but here it is. What do you do on WordPress when you hit your maximum free photos?

This chick hits the nail on the head almost every time!!!  This list is getting done this weekend!! It’s funny how I have been going through things and as I am purging, I find old lists from years ago that still have the same things on them….those are the things I need to look at and decide why have I not attempted/completed these yet?  I need to reassess, reevaluate, regroup, readjust, and refocus! Things have got to change stat!!

I turn 49 next week and that brings me into the less than 30 years left….I need to get busy not being so busy…Zia

On the Down-Low

I hate talking about work when I am not there….it’s taboo with me. Unfortunately, that has been where my energy has been focused. I also didn’t want to say anything because I was worried that it would put BV in an awkward position. She has been following my blog almost from the beginning and now that we work together…even though it’s in different offices…it does make a difference.

Not being able to write about what is happening has been driving me crazy! Tonight I called BV told her what was happening and made sure I answered all of her questions. She has eyes…she knows where the problem is, but saying it out loud is different. So here goes….

I will try and keep this simple so I don’t bore you with the details. Every month I reconcile the contact lens statement. I first make sure that every packing slip matches the lab bill. Then I add up each of the three OD’s total sales for the month. I separate these as I receive the invoices which helps so much! I run a report that shows every contact lens order for the month. Then I go line by line on every invoice for both offices to make sure the charges are correct and have been entered. This is where I find the mistakes. I have even mentioned these previously. Every month I audit the sales of contact lenses. Need a copy of an invoice? Give me ten minutes or less…I know exactly where they are and they are in order my date. What happens when you do a good job at work? You are assigned more work.

The Optician was told last week that I would handle all of her billing….that went over well. She is barely speaking to me. Why? It’s not like I volunteered to clean up her mess and mess is an understatement. When she reconciles her statements she matches up her invoices to the lab bills…that’s only half the job. So last Friday when she was off, I reconciled the October statement. Nothing was in order so first things first, I had to organize the invoices by date. I breezed through the initial part and then I started using the computer to make sure the charges were entered. I can’t even tell you how many things never made it to the computer!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!! Complete pairs of glasses that were never billed or paid for??????

Then I started finding the Optician’s family member invoices…..I walked into Big K’s office and she looked at my face and said “Oh my God…what?” I replied with “my stomach physically hurts after this.” Then I handed her the invoices that were never entered or paid. I get it…mistakes happen. The family member invoices…and I stress the plural, really make this look bad.

For the most part I think that these are just mistakes but some of these don’t feel innocent. Then there is the part that Big K pointed out…I am only seeing the lab invoices that were never billed to the patient…what was the frame cost??? This is so much bigger than I anticipated! I honestly don’t think that the Optician will lose her job but a conversation will have to be had for sure. I guess they could fire her? I really hope they don’t. Now that all packages and invoices go through me first…things won’t get missed…I hope.

I also suggested that we get rid of all back stock of frames. The whole system is a hot mess. Why can’t we just keep the frames on the board and order/drop ship for every patient? The back stock is in a plastic tub that is full of frames that get jumbled and the finish on the frames get chipped off…did I mention the hot mess part? I just can’t..oh wait…I have to…

Since the Optician is barely speaking to me this week, she has been running her own VSP  jobs…. funny how she suddenly remembers how to do this? Not So New Girl and The New Girl always give things to me to double check…thankfully. The Optician never gives me all of the information but I know, so I fix it it before it makes it to the front desk. I called The New Girl over to my desk and showed her what was wrong with the order. The Optician gave this to them before we went to lunch and the two of them couldn’t figure it out?? They saw where the Optician had circled things but didn’t question why there weren’t prices? Not So New Girl has been there for a year now and she still doesn’t know the prices. There isn’t an emoji with a big enough eye roll to insert here!

Some of my regular tasks have been pushed to the side this week because of this new task. I have one more month of optical invoices to go through and I will have audited the year to date. I am not a stare at the computer all day kind of girl so this has been a struggle for me too.  Once I finish that last month, I get to try and figure out the frame invoices…I am not looking forward to that chore, but it has to be done. I guess I will learn as I go.

So this mess is why I have been silent. I feel like I went from audit to evidence in 5.9 seconds. I like the Optician…I really do. I think she would do anything for anybody. I also think her energy has been off the last six months…maybe longer. Either she is on medicine and it is wrong, or…I don’t know what the or could be? I know her mom committed suicide when she was a little girl and her dad drank a lot…I don’t want to talk about nature versus nurture because then I would be in over my head. I know she is a good person but something is off. I hope she doesn’t lose her job because of the things I have found.  Boy, it’s been a rough week….Zia

Hiding Out

I didn’t plan to be silent these past couple of days but I am not feeling it…any of it. The energy of this past week has taken its toll on top of fighting off this cold. I think the only reason I haven’t been as sick as everyone else is because I have my elderberry syrup and my freshly brewed fire cider….plus I never miss a day taking my probiotic. I have been sleeping a lot too and that is my number one defense against anything.

I went to bed early on Thursday night only to wake up at 3am with an awful headache. I eventually fell back asleep and it wasn’t as bad when I woke up a few hours later. I woke up to stories of car accidents, trucks flipping over, roads and interstates being closed. What the heck happened last night? The news crew made more than one snarky comment about how people forget to drive in the snow and this was the first of many snows to come. I was in the bathroom getting ready when Big K text me to be careful…the roads are terrible. Great…just great.

I warmed up my car, begrudgingly put on my Winter coat and headed off to work. They kept referring to black ice on the news…my street was white and shiny…a solid sheet of ice. You know it’s bad when I am driving 11 mph and nobody behind me is getting any closer. The stop sign at the end of the road made me nervous but we all stopped. I had to battle an S bend and knew enough to pick up the speed around the last bend….I only felt my tires slip for a second. The closer I got to work, the better the roads got. There wasn’t even any snow on the grass at work. The town I live in had a two hour delay…not a promising way to start the snow season.

Work was okay, the big changes didn’t happen until the end of the day. It was really hard on M and I don’t think she will quit, at least not right now. Tomorrow should be interesting. I keep hearing about some 11:11 portal and I hope it’s a good thing because last week was really hard!

Friday night was book club and SW brought my new used serger with her. The lady who was selling her aunt’s stuff also sent a bag of thread. I have never purchased thread for a  serger but I am absolutely certain that I got more than my money’s worth on this deal. I took all of this home for $100.00. I should be able to make most of my projects without buying anything else…I hope. Now I just have to figure out how to use it….

The Girl and I did our running around yesterday. All I wanted to do was come home and when I got there, I wanted to stay there. Things rarely go as planned. I decided last week that I was going to make a turkey this weekend. The Girl requested to make it with strict supervision. Both of her grandparents are currently in the nursing home but should be coming home soon. Her Grandmother will be in no shape to cook a Thanksgiving dinner. She also wanted to test out some deserts. Since she wanted to cook the turkey I needed to go buy a new meat thermometer. My old one died a couple of years ago and I never replaced it so I ran over to the Dollar store and grabbed one and dropped off the recycling on my way.

I just got home when I heard my phone beep. I checked the voicemail and it turns out that I won a basket at my local health food store…yay me! So I got back in my car and drove into town and retrieved my prize. There were a few winners for me, one for the Girl and I will take the stuff with stevia and xylitol to Force of Nature Girl tomorrow at work. It was still nice to win something.

I came home, made dinner, and then sat down….that was the end for me. The Girl watched some holiday baking competition to prepare for today and I was stuck in the endless loop of searching ideas on Pinterest. I was on there so long my head hurt but I have solid ideas now. I bought a lid at Goodwill yesterday and SB gave me one Friday and today I glued them to the half gallon mason jars. I have just enough for all of my cousins. Will they like it? I have no idea? I upcycled jars that are no longer fit for canning and lids without pots. I have to buy the feeder part and attach the twine. Saving things from the landfill and feeding the birds in the form of a present…I only realized recently how many of my projects are eco friendly. I don’t think it was intentional, more like a happy accident.

I woke up at 4:18 this morning to the sound of a woman screaming. It was coming from the stupid house on the other side of the empty lot. It went on for almost an hour. I only watched for a couple of minutes to make sure she was safe as far as I could see. He keeps finding these girls and they are always so loud and angry. I  think he looks for the ones that appear strong and a little mouthy so he can take away their power. It makes him feel like a man when really he is a loser! Which reminds me… I should be able to look up the police report from the last girl he had living with him. Last I heard she pressed charges but I heard that second hand from the neighbor who heard it from a local police officer. Things tend to get lost in translation and since we no longer have a newspaper in this dying town, I have to wait a month to snoop.

Somehow I made it back to sleep and wok up after 9am. That’s when I realized I never answered PT about breakfast. I knew I wasn’t coming but it was rude of me not to respond to the group text.

The Girl made apple cider cupcakes with a brown sugar cinnamon buttercream icing today. I even pulled out my cake decorating supplies for her to experiment with, although she kept making the same design. I convinced her to play on the last six…think like Erin did on that show last night…outside of the box. I like those last six the best.

The turkey is cooling now. I thought it would be nice to take a picture of her first turkey but she went at the skin like she hasn’t eaten in a week. Needless to say…it’s her favorite part. It wasn’t too bad helping her…there was only that one incident when I needed her to lick the mashed potatoes off of the spoon before I did. I haven’t had a potato since January and boy do I miss them! They have turkey, mashed potatoes, gravy, stuffing, rolls and green beans. I have turkey, fresh cranberry sauce made with coconut sugar, fresh spinach cooked down in real butter, and mashed butternut squash. The Girl and I will share a salad that I “sneaked” in some fire cider in place of regular apple cider vinegar. She asked to learn and I taught her, although she is trying to shirk the clean up but that is NOT going to happen.

There were lots of things that I wanted to get done and didn’t but that’s how it goes I guess. The Girl and I got half of the lights up on the front porch. First we ran out of the sticky things that hold up the clips. We have plenty of clips…just no sticky parts. It turns out we left our red lights at Marc’s. I called the store and yes, they had record of it. I went into the store to pick up my missing bag only to discover that they put the items back on the shelf after they are logged??? We had three boxes of 50ct red lights for the pillars on the porch and when I went searching for them on the floor…there were only three boxes left…not nice Marc’s….not nice. It worked out but it was close! The Girl got the lights up around the door, along the banister and the rail down the stairs. I will have to stop at Home Depot and get another box of mini light adhesive clips so we can do the poles on the porch in the red lights. I only like white lights outside except for the occasional white mixed with red lights and since the Girl found a random candy cane decoration for outside she agreed to the combo. She really didn’t have a choice but it’s nice to let them think they do on occasion.

I had wanted to bring my sewing machine up today and work on projects while the Girl was cooking but it turns out she requires the whole kitchen table. I think I should bring down my loom and the yarn so at least I can work while watching the things the Girl sucks me in to…..Zia

 

Tomorrow….the Shit….Hits the Fan…

The roots of change are deep and I feel like no one can escape?!  Except for the dream that ripped my heart out and knocked it around a bit before putting it back…I have been lucky. After tomorrow…nothing will be the same….

Somethings have already changed, whether people know it or not. Yesterday I was informed that I will be responsible for reconciling the optical statements, including all frame invoices. I knew that the optician would not be happy about this so I made sure I reconciled the lab statement yesterday while she was off. I have watched her reconcile the statement…she checks the bill against the invoices and then she is done. She doesn’t check things in the computer. The reason you check the computer is because things get missed…. Last month I found a big error on my part. A patient called and ordered one box of contacts. I charged her for one box but ordered two and then gave her two. I was lucky that she was an honest patient…she went home and checked and called me back and said “I do have two boxes…just bill me, I will use them.” I could have returned them if she didn’t want to pay…the point is…this is why you also check against the computer.

Yesterday I found three complete pairs of glasses that were not entered. One was a patient, one was the Optician’s sister, and one was the Optician’s husband and those last two really look bad. I found upgrades with no charges as well as repairs. I still have to do the other office and I am confident that there will not be as many mistakes. I didn’t feel comfortable doing it today. I was asked to go through last months statement tomorrow and maybe more??? None of this looks good for the Optician. The things that I have found are just proof that she shouldn’t be doing the paperwork. This is in no way a reason to get rid of her. That is not what this is about…as far as I know?

I feel bad that I am finding these mistakes but this is why things need double checked…we all make mistakes.  She was told that I would be taking over all paperwork today but she wasn’t told about the things I had found. She wasn’t happy about it and even tried to use the computer today??? I went in and showed her the steps but let’s get real…this program, in this office has been there longer than me and I have been there for more than four years. It’s a little late to try and gain control.

Tomorrow things are changing big time…people are moving around, responsibilities are changing and most of it won’t be pretty. If I could pick a day to call off that I wasn’t sick (which I never do) it would be tomorrow. I wouldn’t call off anyway…tomorrow is book club.  I will have to work myself up to go into work and I will double sage myself before I leave the house. It will not be pretty. I am worried that more than one person will quit…I don’t want anyone to quit…

I can’t control what others do, all I can do is stay in my own lane…..Zia

What Did I Leave?

I have been seeing Scorpio Season and Mercury Retrograde all over my Facebook groups. I have read some things that have been happening to some of these people while thinking “yikes!” I have even witnessed classic Mercury in Retrograde in action but I have been dodging the deep dark Scorpio Season until last night….

Most of my repressed issues tend to come up in my dreams which isn’t as bad as it could be and I get that, I really do, but this dream was a doozy.  I was at the old house (not the ghost house) and I knew the house didn’t belong to me anymore but I still had stuff there. I remember going into the basement but it was pretty empty down there and I’m not sure why I was down there. There were some beautiful white boxes that I upcycled (not in the real world…I wish) they had a creamy satin ribbon with a crystal shape tied to the bow. I couldn’t see the shape but I remember wanting them and putting them with the stuff I was taking. KB’s mom and dad were there to help grab things???? Her dad was taking apart a large TV stand that also never existed. My grandfather (dad’s dad) was never at this house but he was in the front yard watering the grass. I loved that man more than any other but I don’t know why he was there. That house had a well so there was never a hose? I was in the kitchen still looking for something when BAM!!!!

My Mother walked into the kitchen. She looked good, not the sick woman who died at 51 but a healthy, happier version. Her hair was longer, she was wearing makeup and she had on a pink jacket. It was a cross between a quilted puffer jacket and a leather jacket if that makes sense. I don’t even know why I remember that detail, it’s insignificant. I hugged her, she hugged me back and of course I started crying. I remember saying “I miss you so much….I suck at life without you. Seriously…I’m a hot mess…everything is so hard!”  I could see her, I felt the hug, she never spoke so I didn’t hear her, and I didn’t smell any perfume. I must have woken up shortly after this because I don’t remember anything else.

Wanna know the kicker??? Yesterday was the 18th anniversary of her death. I didn’t even put two and two together until this morning when I told Big K and Force of Nature Girl about the dream. It took a lot to pull myself together after this dream, I didn’t even tell them until I was at work for a couple of hours and it wasn’t so fresh. Of course I still cried…that’s what I do. Force of Nature Girl gave me a slap/push on the arm and said “you don’t really believe that do you?”  When I said the part about sucking at life. I do believe that and if she thinks I have my shit together than maybe I can act?

Since this isn’t the first time I have had a dream about going back to the old house for something, I think I may have lost a part of myself there??? I don’t believe it was a physical item which is a good thing since the house was torn down.  I don’t feel guilty about selling the house, it had to be done. Cockroach would have never stopped messing with me, I couldn’t stay there. Nobody can stop him from doing what he wants. Besides….the house was falling apart and I kept getting spider bites..two were brown recluse.  That house was too much for me, it needed a real man and I didn’t know any of those and with the whole stalker thing….it was easier this way.

Big K thinks that I feel like I left my mom there, maybe she’s right? I honestly don’t believe that, I really don’t. My mom is not in that cemetery and she is not trapped in that house…or land since the house isn’t there anymore. If I need my mom, I know I can call upon her and she is with me whether I can feel her or not.  I see her love every day…My bracelets usually cover up my unicorn but her love is always visible. In my mind, I questioned why he didn’t put the love above the unicorn but now I am glad he did it this way because I do always see it.

I don’t know if I will ever figure out what part of myself I lost/left at the old house or if I can ever retrieve it? I guess only time will tell….Zia

What Time is It?

Today begins the week of confusion….why exactly do we still observe daylight savings time?  It’s just an excuse to confuse the population twice a year….

I woke up this morning and headed to PT’s for breakfast…although these days it’s rare that I eat anything, I just go for the company. We talked about the Christmas project and it turns out that she doesn’t want to do it this year. I’m so glad she said something! I was beginning to get paranoid with her one word responses to my suggestions. I can’t imagine how hard things are for her with her healing wrist, so why add one more thing to feel frustrated about. This also takes some pressure off of me…it’s hard to find a project that appeals to both of us. Now I can make what I want and I can do it at home. This homebody thing does concern me a little….I just want to be in the space I have created.

The Girl wanted to stop at Barnes and Noble after our weekly trip to Sam’s Club so we stopped. Neither of us made a purchase and during this shopping experience I vowed to go above and beyond in my effort to avoid the big box stores this holiday. I want no part of the rat race although I did tell PT that I would work Saturday’s in December for L which is technically retail? It’s more of a specialty store but it’s still retail. I won’t say no to extra money before Christmas….

I do worry about the potential snow and the drive but maybe we will have no snow Saturday’s in December? A girl can dream…. I am concerned with the signs for Winter. The woolly bears seam to be all black which is the worst of the worst…the Farmer’s Almanac is calling for a bad Winter, and when I talked to my cousin Friday night he said the farmers in Tennessee said that one of the signs of a bad Winter is leaves that are larger than usual. As soon as the words left his lips I had an image of Force of Nature Girl last week holding an oversized maple leaf over her face while saying “I have never seen a leaf this big before!”  Oh boy….this may be the Winter that finally breaks me.

I did get a lot of cleaning done today, I even cut grass for the last time today. I am trying to get a head of the game because now it’s November which means Nanowrimo….So much to do and not enough time….the story of my life. It is time to narrow it down and purge the unnecessary ….Zia

 

Early Saturday

Some people aren’t sleepers which I can’t relate to at all. I love my sleep….I cherish my sleep, and I firmly believe that sleep heals a lot more than you think! As somebody who falls asleep in 5.2 seconds, it may sound strange to say that I have been struggling this week.

  Sure I can fall asleep faster than most but I feel that my sleep has been interrupted a lot more lately. Partly because of a road closure. I have caught more than one semi truck driving down my street because their normal route is still closed. At 3am…it’s not a pretty thing. It was worse when the windows were open but I can still hear them, even with the windows closed. The boy has woken me up more than once with his big mouth playing video games all night this week…..grrr. Then there was the sleep paralysis the other morning which I always find disturbing and those effects last for a few days.

The Boy was sick last week, the Girl feels like she is on the cusp of sickness, Not So New Girl was sick all week…that’s a lot of germs to battle. I guess it’s a good thing I finished up my batch of Fire Cider this afternoon.

Whoa is it potent! It surely will kick a cold out of you…or put hair on your chest? It’s that strong but strangely not that hard to get down? The Girl even took a spoonful today and it didn’t even take that much coaxing.

I had to get up early to take the Girl down to the University for a field trip. I dropped her off and then met my aunt at one of the first holiday craft shows of the season. I know I have mentioned my tribute to Mon Cher this season by going above and beyond with the present wrapping….and today I found some fun elements to tie on packages. I could and will buy picks when necessary from local craft stores but when I find something handmade and local that will work ….I will absolutely buy theses first. I bought some little 3 inch round slivers of wood with festive saying on them for a steal. 6 for $5.00 is the right price for me and it is supporting someone local.

I also found a new soap company…(insert a million heart emojis)!! I’m not sure how I have never heard of this local farm that raises goats and makes soap and fudge. I can’t eat the fudge but I can indulge in the luscious soap! I was sucked in by the fig soap and had no problem picking three more. Four bars for $20.00 was not unreasonable for something local and made from scratch. Did I mention the goats? I can’t wait to use it!

I only bought from those two vendors and then I bought some raffle tickets. I only put my tickets in three bags and I was surprised that I actually won one! It wasn’t the one I really wanted but I won something. I am a sucker for a crocheted washcloth and have none in my house that are store bought…only crocheted. I won a bag of 11 small ones….

I might use some of these for gifts….and I just might drive out to a farm I just learned about to buy some amazing bars of soap to pair with the washcloths.  I am all about shopping local versus a big box store and keeping the holidays a shop small event. If I can’t make it….I want to give my business to a local person who can.

The Girl’s phone wasn’t working right today…classic Mercury in retrograde. Luckily I was getting her texts, she wasn’t getting any replies. They were done two hours early and I received her first text right after I had fallen asleep for my afternoon nap. I set my alarm for 30 minutes but only got ten before the Girl text me. I picked her up and stopped at the grocery store on the way home.

I played in the kitchen for a bit and then tried to lay down for a twenty minute nap…..two hours later….I woke up. Geez Louise…that is not what I was planning. I guess I needed that sleep more than I needed to get random chores done. It’s a good thing I get an extra hour of sleep tonight….Zia

 

Want Vs Need

I have been trying very hard to work on want versus need but it doesn’t always work out. Today was the perfect example…I came home from work determined to put away the Halloween decorations and leave only the minimal fall decorations out.

Before I did anything, I walked down to the basement. Where was my fall sunflower wreath? Did I not put it up last year? I guess not… One of three things happened….1. I purged it during the move? 2. Someone purged it for me during the move? 3.I took off the sunflowers and used the wreath to make another wreath? All three of these scenarios are possible, I just don’t know which one is the truth.

I walked back up the stairs and asked the Girl if she wanted to go with me to Michael’s? I checked online and all fall and Halloween was 80% off. At that price it was worth it to drive out and see what they had left. She said “sure” and I said “go get ready” and then my phone rang, it was my cousin….much more important than a wreath for my door.

I have been talking to my cousin on his drive to or from home on the weekends since before the Renaissance gig started and now it’s almost habit. It’s a good habit. I can’t make up for or fix the damage that my other cousin’s wife has done to the family but I can sure as heck overcompensate the wounded. We always talked…just not as often as we do now, if that makes sense?

I have a weeks vacation coming up soon and I would really like to go visit but I just can’t find a good price on a flight and I am not about driving 8 hours by myself.  I am still looking and if it was meant to be…it will be.

The Girl and I did eventually make it to Michael’s where there weren’t a whole lot of choices on fall wreaths. I ended up picking this one…..

I could make something similar for way less than $80.00 but not for less than $16.00.  It still looked plain and I was struggling to find something to make it more “me”.  Then the Girl found this cute little fox but she was broken…

I knew that even broken, I could make this work but that didn’t stop me from asking for a discount. This little fox was already 80% off but it was still missing a leg so I asked….and instead of paying $6.00…..I paid $3.00.  Which made my new Fall wreath less than $21.00…perfect!

The true test will be when I see it from the road tomorrow. I think it may sit a little high? I can always make a new hanger if that is the case, I guess I will see tomorrow.

I don’t have  a lot of plans for tomorrow and I hope it stays that way.  The Girl has a field trip so I will be up early to drive her and I have to get eggs but there isn’t much that I “have” to do. I might stop at a craft show down the street to see if I can come up with any new ideas?

I have been hitting Pinterest pretty hard the last couple of days looking for DIY ideas for Christmas presents. I am hoping to have choices for PT by breakfast on Sunday. Today is already November 1st…it’s time to get making…..Zia

 

Happy Halloween!

I hope everyone had a great Halloween! It was touch and go in the beginning but it all turned around into a pretty good day.

I started my day with a bad case of sleep paralysis and that is never fun. It was really bad and when I came out of it my wrists hurt? That has never happened before? It left me with a bad feeling in my stomach for the first hour of my day.

The distraction of my costume and having to bring all of the components of a vegi tray with a side of puking pumpkin made it a tad easier. The Girl did all of the work on the pumpkin, I put it together. I still used my tupperware vegi tray/container for the vegis and I threw some olives on the tray with the pumpkin. It was fun and it was festive for the holiday potluck.

I dressed up as Medusa, the New Girl dressed up as Elmo, and Force of Nature Girl borrowed New Girls Hubby’s Oscar the Grouch costume. We were the only ones who dressed up. They were sweating to death but comfortable….I was sweating to death and my headpiece was very uncomfortable. I made it until around 3:15ish before I was done. This is a close up of my snake headpiece….

I only lost two snakes during the day and was very surprised that the two bigger snakes that I glued together to make a belt made it through the whole day. I think it came out pretty good considering it was last minute. It might be a few months before the green glitter finally goes away but glitter is a commitment that I will always make…..Zia

 

Throwing it Together…

The queen of procrastination is down to the finishing touches!  Last night I worked on my Medusa headpiece and I didn’t love it. This is where I started today….

It was before spray paint…using a headband that I found in the bathroom…I didn’t love it and it was uncomfortable. I decided to look for a grapevine wreath to use as a headpiece so I could start over. This was a harder task than anticipated. I finally found one at Joann’s that was comfortable and I had to add a grapevine garland to make it thicker.  This is what I have drying in the basement after spray paint….

It’s hard to see in the basement light and this is a side view but trust me….it looks so much better! I also found a velvet dress at Goodwill today for $3.00, it’s a lot bit big but somebody else already did the work of pinning the back for a better fit. The back doesn’t matter because I will wear my cape but it’s nice to not have to worry about it. I cut the bottom of the dress into strips and spray painted the tips and added green glitter. I like how the strips looked before the embellishments but I have to wait until it’s dry to know for sure. I will post a picture tomorrow of the finished costume. It may not be the best version of Medusa but it’s not bad for a less than $20.00 costume.

We are also having a potluck at work tomorrow where I am bringing the vegi tray. A vegi tray that features a hollowed out pumpkin that looks like he is throwing up the dip…It looked like fun on Pinterest? It’s all cut and ready to go, I will assemble when I get to work in the morning.

Hopefully it all comes together without a hitch!?!  Things have been so strange lately, so fingers crossed….

Last night the kids came home from their dads late….like 10:30 late. It turns out their dad had a surprise vacation. Translation? He is on a paid leave during an investigation.  WTF? A server accused him of slamming her against the cooler or freezer and sexually assaulting her. My ex husband may be an idiot and he does a lot of stupid things but he didn’t do this. It’s a good lesson for the kids in this sad but true world….you are guilty until proven innocent and you can destroy another person with your lies. If they said rubbing a servers shoulders or tapping/shoving her shoulder in a playful “I’m in third grade and have a crush on you” way…I would have believed it….hands down.   A leopard doesn’t change it’s spots and while he may be a self centered idiot….he is not a predator.  I also told the kids “his parents need a ton of attention right now and maybe that’s the real reason this is happening because he would never have dealt with it on his own? What the heck do I know? Not my circus….not my monkeys!

There are lots of energies at play so I am just trying to lay low. My dreams have been off the charts strange and I find myself holding my breath a bit. I am a little nervous over who or what may come out of the woodwork…mostly who….Zia