horrors

The cafe lady downstairs did something VERY bad this morning. I went downstairs for what was going to be my last chocolate croissant before Lent starts tomorrow, and lo & behold! There was one left. Just one. And, when she was taking it out of the case she dropped it on the floor. Sacrilege. Chalice! Mon dieu! Sacre bleu. Tabernaque. (sorry to the French Catholics out there). I'm trying very hard not to let that incident mar the remainder of my day. Small comfort was that she totally screwed up the financial transaction while she rang up my plain croissant (hmph) and I made $2 in the process.

i'm an enabler

I've enabled the comment section, so you can now comment on the blog if you like. It's moderated (by me!) so I reserve the right to edit/delete etc. if you post something that isn't family-friendly. Don't be shy.

isn't he romantic?

Isn't it romantic? Music in the night, a dream that can be heard. Isn't it romantic? Moving shadows write the oldest magic word. I hear the breezes playing in the trees above While all the world is saying you were meant for love. Isn't it romantic Merely to be young on such a night as this? Isn't it romantic? Every note that's sung is like a lover's kiss. Sweet symbols in the moonlight, Do you mean that I will fall in love perchance? Isn't it romance? (written by Richard Rogers & Lorenz Hart) My darling Richard bought me a paint pail. He went to Home Depot and came back with a 'surprise' for me! I guessed it was chocolate... boy was I wrong. A paint pail. It's like getting a vacuum cleaner for an anniversary gift. Eh, it's the thought that counts, right? Miss Maja thought it might make a nice toy... And then I took my little paint pail into action... and it's GREAT. Much better than the little plastic Gladware container I was using before. Thanks, sweetie!! I love it.

still painting!

The house is big. :) But, I've ALMOST got the first floor done, and I've primed the 2nd floor hallway... tonight I'll finish the first floor and maybe do the ceiling of the 2nd floor hall. And prime the windows? There are a lot of windows. sigh. Anywho, I've got a Cole Porter song running through my head: I get no kick from champagne, mere alcohol doesn't thrill me at all, so tell me why it should be true, that I get a kick out of you. Katia's version: I get no kick from painting, mere latex and oil don't thrill me at all, so tell me what it is all the fuss, that I must paint all of the walls! --------- I've come to a conclusion about paint. More specifically, my relationship with paint. We've been spending a lot of time together recently, and I've been sniffing the fumes (passively) and pondering. I've decided: I hate paint. Now, Richard would interject at this point and say: we don't hate. My response: yes. yes we do hate. and Katia HATES paint. hate it hate it. Hate. It. I hate the smell, I hate the drips, I hate it when it takes two coats. I hate the ladder. I hate worrying about spots on the carpet or the new floor. I hate inferior paint brushes. I hate painting ceilings because it hurts my neck. I hate getting paint splatter in my eyes. It gets on your fingers, under your fingernails, in your hair. BUT. Wow, does the house look good after it's been painted. :) So, I'll persevere. And dammit, when we move to the new house I'll paint again -- but only once. Before the furniture arrives.

ohmmmmmmm

I always think that people conform to society too much. If I even acted upon 1/2 the things I think about... then I'd probably be committed to a mental hospital. So, I'm going to start out small and start to shake things up! Today's teensy weensy bit of entertainment falls into the category of "Evil things I do in yoga class to entertain myself". The teacher makes us do 3 ohmmmms at the beginning of class. I'm not an 'ohm' person. But, today I did 'ohm' a semitone higher than the rest of the class... heh. Take that earthquake to your karma or centering or whatever 'ohm' is supposed to do! Nothing like some dissonance to disturb the mood. Oh! Happy Valentine's Day. Photos of Maja to come. I'm way behind in my postings... but the house is so big and there's so much painting to be done!

okay, it snowed!

So, it did snow! Not quite enough to bring the city to it's knees... but it did cause some trouble. According to my highly scientific and controlled measuring on the sidewalk infront of the house, we got 10". Not bad. It was fluffy snow, and not too bad shoveling. Of course, we all had to go for a walk in the winter wonderland. It was windy, so we packed Maja up in the too-big snowsuit, stuck her in the backpack carrier, and off we went! One of the UCity 'traditions' is that everyone goes sledding at the bowl in Clark Park! We trekked on down there, not to go sledding but to see what was going on. It was amazing! There were probably about 200 people there enjoying the snow. There were kids with sleds and crazy carpets; there were college kids with skis & snowboards! Some people were sliding down the hill on cafeteria trays, others were using old beer cartons. Hey, if it slides then use it! Then we said 'hi' to the new street... and toddled off home again. It was a good day!

they SAY it's gonna snow

Philly. Gotta love it. The big news story for the weekend: snow. S.N.O.W. And, here's the scarey part: 2-3 inches in the city. Oh my GOD. People are talking non-stop about it today; they're making a run on the grocery store (must. buy. bread.) GET A GRIP. Events are being cancelled in anticipation. sigh. Well, it's not going to hit until the afternoon, so I can go to Water Babies (skipped it last week). ----------- Things are frantic at the palace. Bathroom sinks are being ripped out. Painting needs to be done! Carpets need to be replaced. Stress levels are high. So, I'm leaving Richard to do work on Sunday at home and Maja and I have plans to visit Tricia in NJ and make Valentine's. Providing the big snow storm doesn't hamper our plans. But, I have hakkapelliita's on the car and I'm therefore invincible.

everybody gets 3 chances

You have to wonder what makes a person take verbal abuse and go back for more. I have an acquaintance who has now used up her three chances. Sorry, you don't get any more! You are cutoff from social intercubicle visits from me. After the first time I thought "huh. she must be in a bad mood"; after the second time I thought "ok. just a bitter person"; and this morning after the third time I thought "that's it." Mind you, these three instances have happened over a span of 2 years. But still. And, more background is that this person is not universally liked at my workplace, and (now, this is truely cruel, but true) associating myself with her socially COULD possibly reflect badly on me. So, it's time to step back and reasses the situation. ------------ Now that I've got that off my chest. The weekend was good! Maja and I skipped Water Babies because the teacher hasn't improved and I'm not enjoying the class anymore, and b/c Miss Maja has a nasty cough from her latest cold. Saturday afternoon was our first Babysitting Co-op meeting at our house. Really looking forward to getting started on that. Then on Sunday we went to a Superbowl party (go Steelers!) at Tricia & Dan's -- will post pictures when I receive them from Dan. (hint hint, Dan!). Tricia put on a fabulous spread with some very tasty bbq meatballs. mmmmm