Phoebe

This morning, Phoebe woke me up at 3am howling. I got up and let her out of her crate and she used the puppy pads. Fritz and Steffi wanted outside so I let them out. Once they came back in, I put Phoebe back in her crate and went back to bed. Unfortunately, I didn't fall asleep. I was almost drifting off when the alarm went off for me to get up. So, I got up and got ready for work. When it came time to put Phoebe in the bathroom for the day, she didn't want to come to me, she wanted to play. She thinks when I reach down to pick her up that I'm chasing her so she runs all over the family room and living room. I finally caught her though and put her in the bathroom.

Tonight, Phoebe wasn't feeling well. She was throwing up a lot and had runny poo this morning. But I think she's doing a bit better. I fed her earlier and so far, it's stayed down. I'l have to watch her for a few days to see if she has any more trouble. I hope she holds it all night tonight and I can get some sleep.

What have I been doing lately? I worked out yesterday and today. I cooked a turkey breast for Steffi. Did some laundry. Worked on the novel I'm writing. Not the manuscript destiny story over in the sidebar. This novel is something new. Watched Raphael Nadal win his tennis match today. Mary Carillo and John McEnroe have a way of creating so much suspense when they call a match. I turned the channel a couple of times because I was afraid Raphael would lose a game or a set. Watched golf today - did not see Sergio or Jose Maria. Brushed Fritz and got about 5 comb fulls of hair off of him.

Today is mom's birthday. I got her a present yesterday when I went to the store. I'm going to take it to her tomorrow morning. I don't think I'll take Phoebe to see them this time.

No Longer a Volunteer

I got my paycheck today in the mail. So, I'm no longer working for free. Yay! Otherwise, work sucked today. Hopefully, this writing thing will pan out and I can someday quit. LOL. That would be nice.

Pay to Play

I did not get my paycheck today. It comes like clockwork in the mail every payday. But I didn't get it today. Tomorrow I will email the personnel office and report it. There may be a chance it was misdelivered by the mail carrier and will turn up in a couple of days, but I will report it anyway because if it doesn't, I want it on record that I reported it missing as soon as I could so that if someone forges my signature and cashes it, I won't be out the money.

It's been so hot here lately. In the 90s. This evening we had a good thunderstorm and it's cooled off some. I'm glad.

I'm back on the chicken soup diet so I can lose some weight. Today a woman at work told me I was too skinny. I didn't tell her I'd gained 8 pounds. They would kill me at work if they knew that.

I bought a miniskirt today at Walmart. I can't bend over in it, but I like it. I'll find somewhere to wear it.

I'm working on some writing. I don't know if I'll finish it or if it will be anything but horrible, but I'm writing.

Good Day Off

Today was a pretty good day off for me. I went to Mom and Dad's for a bit and took Phoebe. Then I came home and worked out on the treadmill. Later, I got to see Raphael Nadal win his 54th straight match on a clay court (tennis). Nadal, Sergio Garcia, Jose Maria Olazabal - I have got to move to Spain. I bathed Phoebe because she was starting to shed and then watched some golf.

Pretty Good Day

It was warm and partly sunny today with a nice breeze. I walked outside and got some exercise. Phoebe used the puppy pad twice today for #2 without me being there to remind her. She still walks off the edge of the puppy pad for #1. I found an idea in a book I might have to try: placing shower curtains under the puppy pads. But I have a feeling she would walk off the edge of the shower curtain too. Anyway, I stuck to the diet today along with all the exercise. Tried to nap with the dogs but I don't think I slept all that much.

X-men 3

I just read some spoilers for the new X-Men movie. I'm glad I read them. I didn't like it when they surprised us by 'killing' jean in the second movie. So, now I know what to expect in the 3rd movie.

Email Lost

The only thing I lost in the computer tantrum was my email. So, SB West, send me an email so I will have your address again!!!

So You Had a Bad Day.....

Everybody sing!!!!

Here's my day:

I got rained on while taking Phoebe for her afternoon walk.

Work sucked - Tony was being more of a 'man' than usual. I actually rolled my eyes in his presence at something he said.

My computer threw a tantrum. I turned it on after I got home and it kept saying that some file was corrupt or missing and that I needed to load the original windows start-up disk to try to repair the file. Well I don't have an original windows start up disk. My computer didn't come with one. What I have is the 10 disk recovery disk thing that I had to make myself. So, I played with the F buttons until I got to the Compaq System Recovery thing and I got to recover the computer stuff while keeping all my stuff I have on my pc. The only thing that isn't working right now is Incredimail. I don't know why that isn't working but I'll figure it out. I can log into my email from my isp's website so I can still get email. The computer has been running a bit slow since I did this. I thought maybe I might have to do something because my tech geek in the next town who fixed my modem also added more ram. But just a few seconds ago I got some popup that said Spy Subtract definitions had been updated. So, I guess the computer was slow because it was updating that crap even though I thought I had closed out of that program. I hate computers. I had to go through the whole process of naming my computer again and everything. So, I gave it the same name (Sergio) but for the description I wrote: This cursed piece of technology.

Taylor Hicks Wins

American Idol Results Show Review:

Toni Braxton - she was completely unaware of what the song was all about.

Clay Aiken surprising his fan was good.

Eliot's mom winning the award was good.

What does Meatloaf, the singer, have to do with the Celine Dion song?

The three cowboys' performance was good.

I miss Bucky.

American Idol

If the judges pan the cheesy have to song at the end (the song the show makes the winner sing) then why don't the judges take a stand and pick the song for the winner. Taylor's song was ok for the cheesy have to song. And Carrrie's and Bo's (they did the same song last year) was ok. But wasn't that hideous "A Moment Like This" a cheesy American Idol have to song? And Kat's song was the epitome of the cheesy have to song. I don't know if Simon said it to help Kat or what but he told the world that he thought Taylor had won the contest. It seems to me this would move more people to vote for Kat just to thwart Simon. Hmm......

Goodbye Alias

Last night was the series finale of Alias. It was on from 9 to 11pm so I had to record it to watch later. But I did read some reviews of it on the web. It sounds pretty good. Apparently, Sydney, Vaughn, Isabelle and Jack survive. I'm glad. Now I just need to get the season 5 dvd.

In other news, I've been working out a bit and I've gone back to the chicken noodle soup diet. Just in time for cake and ice cream at work tomorrow. Oh well. I can have ice cream here.

It's Warm!!!

It was freezing cold this morning - under 40 degrees. But this afternoon it was warm enough for shorts. I went out and walked after taking Phoebe for her walk. yay!!

It's supposed to be cold again tonight, but then stay warm for a few days. I can't wait. Now if only they would fix the a/c at work. All those fat, old, menopausal women have to have it turned to 40 degrees in the office.

I'm Tired of the Cold

It's supposed to be warm, but darn it, it's still cold around here. I'm wearing two pairs of sweatpants, a t-shirt and a sweatshirt, and a pair of socks. Jim Nantz just had to brag a couple minutes ago about how warm it's been in Texas for the golf tournament.

I took Phoebe to Mom and Dad's this morning so I could get an extra pair of hands to help clip her nails. Well, Dad got a couple too close and she bled some. She only whimpered one little time. I don't think it's slowing her down any. She dragged me all over the pasture and yard after we got home.

I made chicken noodle soup for this week's suppers. One more full week of work and then I get Monday off for Memorial day. Yay!

How Sad

I just saw on www.fark.com that one of the horses racing in the Preakness hurt its leg. I hope the horse will be ok.

What's that Bright Orange Ball in the Sky?

Oh, that's the sun. I haven't seen that in a while. It's finally warm for a change. I was able to take off the sweatshirt and jacket and go outside in a t-shirt and sweatpants and walk for exercise this afternoon. I took Phoebe, Steffi and Fritz out with me. Phoebe got hooked up to the tie-out stake with a bowl of water next to her and shade within reach. She didn't drink any water though. I stayed out until her tongue started hanging out and then I brought her back in. About 45 minutes. I might go back out later to get more exercise. I'm hoping to work off some of the weight I've put back on since I got Phoebe.

Enough About Brittney Spears!

There are plenty enough mothers out there actually abusing their kids and these news people are focusing on Brittney Spears. What has Spears actually done? She drove without the kid in a safety seat, did not wreck the vehicle and hurt the baby, and she tripped but did not drop the baby. The one time the baby did get hurt, it was allegedly the nanny, not the mother. In school, one of my teachers told a story about how she dropped her son on his head when they were at a football game. I can only imagine what the press would have done if she had been famous. I followed my dad up onto the roof of the house when I was about 4 and fell off the roof. They were such bad parents (not). The media has the power to change the world and they are squandering that opportunity by making mountains out of molehills.

Weird War Story of the Week

Lionel Richie big in Iraq

Since Tuesday

Wednesday, I watched the American Idol results show. Elliot should have stayed. Taylor should have stayed. Kat, I'm not too fond of. She can sing well and has a great performance personality, but there are more established singers who sound like Kat than there are those who sound like Taylor and Elliot. I'm not sure if I heard Kat on the radio that I could identify her.

Thursday, my sister, her kids and mom and dad came up for a visit. Timmy, my nephew, dumped my supper in the floor and threw some tantrums. He could be the next American Idol in about 20 years if he continues to have that kind of lung capacity. Jasmine warmed up to Phoebe and Phoebe warmed up to her. Jasmine calls her Feefee though. Phoebe was such a good girl. Even though she was scared of the kids and her routine was ruined, she still used the puppy pads the whole time they were here. After they all left, I straightened up the house, did my dishes and around 9:30 laid down with Phoebe to watch some golf. We napped.

Today, I went to Walmart this morning and bought Phoebe a dog bed and nail clippers. I have dog nail clippers but they are almost as big as her whole paw and I didn't think they would work for her. So, I bought people clippers. Tonight, I went to the grocery store after work and found more of the doggy squeaky toys shaped like a cat. Phoebe loves those.

It's supposed to warm up this weekend and stay warm all next week. So, hopefully I can work out some. I'm hoping to get back on the treadmill or walk outside. I've been gaining weight back since I got Phoebe and had to stop working out to keep an eye on her.

Best Laid Plans

The ice diet didn't work out. It's too cold for ice. So, I made chocolate fudge instead. I took some of it to work and gave some to Mom, Dad, my sister, niece and nephew. Wind the kids up on chocolate and have them stay with mom and dad. That's a good auntie plan. Hahaha.

I came home tonight to find a dead cat in my driveway. My gray cat, Curly, died. I didn't see any marks on her and Dad thought she had had a heart attack. But she was only 5 years old or so. That seems young for a cat. I know I didn't hit her on my way to work this morning. At least I hope I didn't. Dad thinks it was natural causes, so I'm ok with that. I imagine 5 years is old for a farm cat who didn't get regular check-ups with the vet. So, after pushing the cat out of the road with a snow shovel and taking my dogs for their walk, I called mom's house, got my sister and told her about Curly's demise. Dad came up and buried Curly for me.

Ice, Ice Baby

Have you ever eaten so much that you decide eating ice for a week is a good diet plan? I got there today. I was stuffed after dinner at mom and dad's. I was invited to mom and dad's by my sister who was going to buy supper for them for a mother's day thing. So, I put Phoebe in the bathroom (I wasn't going to take her to mom and dad's knowing my niece and nephew and all the baby stuff would be filling the house) and I went to mom and dad's. I left half of the subway sub at mom and dad's because I couldn't eat it all and because I have turkey meatloaf in the fridge for this week. I ate a 6in sub (turkey, lettuce, and tomato on wheat bread), three breadsticks from pizza hut and a piece of chocolate cake. I was so stuffed I felt miserable. So, I decided eating shaved ice for the next week would be a good diet plan. I plan to eat the meatloaf and slim fast bars too. But the ice will be dessert.

Phoebe did #2 on the linoleum tonight instead of puppy pads. She was waiting for me at the baby gate and wouldn't leave until she found me.

Also.....

Mom weighed Phoebe today. Phoebe is still 4.5 pounds. I think she's stopped growing. I've never had a chihuahua this small before. All my other ones have been mixed breed chihuahuas.

News

What's happened since I last posted? Well, I caught the mouse. I went to the grocery store last night after work and stood in line longer than it took me to shop. If you're going to pay by check, why don't you have it written out except for the amount before they finish ringing up the sale. This morning I went to mom and dad's house and took Phoebe. I needed my hair cut and mom wanted to see Phoebe. I took my camera and got some pictures of mom and dad with her. I got to mom and dad's around 7:30am. I think Dad now regrets making me get up early all those years when I was a kid. Now I get up early and he sleeps in. I was there in time to answer the phone for mom. It was my sister. She, her husband and the kids are on their way here from Florida for a visit. I think it confused my sister to have me answer the phone. LOL. Dad kept giving Phoebe treats even though she wasn't doing her business on the puppy pad. I told him that if he un-house trains her, she will move in with them and they will deal with her messes. Anyway, Phoebe played a lot and kept begging for food, she used the puppy pad twice and had no accidents, and then she napped. I took Phoebe outside after her nap but she wouldn't do anything. She kept going from one porch to the other looking for mom and dad. So, I packed up everything but the toys (I forgot them) and brought Phoebe home. She did her business here. Right now she's chewing on a rawhide. I traded her that for the plastic squeak maker from her squeaky toy.

Squeak, Squeak: Volume II

I have another mouse. I set out the only trap I have left and hopefully I will catch the little disease carrying rodent. Walmart didn't have any more of the see no mouse, touch no mouse kind of traps when I checked there tonight. Hopefully, I just have the one mouse.

America Has Made A Mistake

They voted off Chris tonight on American Idol. How could they do that?! He was better than Kat. That is just so wrong.

Ouch

I burned my finger on chicken noodle soup tonight. It still hurts. I put the soup in a ceramic bowl and microwaved it for 3 minutes. I reached in and picked up the bowl and that's when I got burned. The bowl was really, really hot. I dropped the bowl on the counter and soup splashed out everywhere. Steffi and Phoebe cleaned up the floor. I did have enough soup left in the bowl for supper.

Not Happy

I washed a shirt today for work. Hand washed it. Put it in the dryer on medium heat. Took it out once it got dry and went to iron it. I checked the label and it said 95% cotton, 5% spandex. So, I set the iron on cotton. The iron burned my shirt. I think they translated the label wrong from whatever 3rd world country produced the shirt.

Another Picture of Phoebe

Saturday

Today I went shopping this morning and got a flat panel monitor for my computer and a fleece jacket that was on clearance at walmart. I also did my grocery shopping and got some ground turkey breast to make tacos. After getting back and eating lunch, Steffi and Phoebe got baths. Phoebe didn't like the bath. I'm going to put flea drops on them later. Then after the baths, we took a nap. Fritz had to bark, so I put him outside and he stayed out for probably an hour while we napped. But it was warm and dry so he didn't mind.

Progress

I am very happy with Phoebe's progress in housebreaking. She is doing her best to use the puppy pads. Sometimes she walks herself off the puppy pad because she has this desire to pee just on the edges, but all in all, she's doing well. She just did #2 on a puppy pad all on her own. I'm not ready to trust her with the whole house yet, but she is coming along.

I'm glad this is Friday. I'm ready for a weekend, which is sad since I had Monday off. I think I'm spoiled with all these days off. I even have this coming Tuesday off for election day.

Alias

They brought Nadia back just to kill her!!! What kind of writers are these people??!! And you'd think Renee would have noticed that "Sydney" was wearing different clothing than the last time (an hour or less before) she saw her. Next week's previews were disgusting. Anna, masquerading as Sydney, finds Vaughn. Yuck.

American Idol

I don't know who they can get rid of now. All of them had pretty good performances tonight. The Against All Odds song was not so good and the Prince song wasn't so good. Chris had two really good performances, but if his album is all like the second song, then I don't think I could listen to it for very long. He will have to mix it up some because otherwise he will sound just like everyone else. I liked Elliot's rendition of "Home" and Taylor did really well. Katharine's Horse and the Cherry Tree song was really good and well performed.

Out of the Blue

I got one of mom and dad's computer monitors today and hooked it up. So, my screen now looks normal. Well, it's a little dark but I have the brightness as high as it will go.

I took Phoebe to mom and dad's today for a visit. She actually used the puppy pads. She was a little afraid of the rooster crowing though.

When we got home today I watched Samantha Brown's traveling in Europe show on the Travel Channel then went outside and walked. I actually got some exercise for once. I don't get much exercise now that I have Phoebe - I have to watch her to see if she's using the puppy pads. I had Phoebe out with me for a while, but she got a little hot so I brought her in, got her a drink, and put her in her crate. Then I went back outside. I think I got more sun tan too.

Well, better go see if I can get Phoebe to eat a little more. She isn't much of an eater when it comes to her meals, but boy does she beg for whatever you're eating.

Nap Time

The dogs and I took a nap today. I used mom and dad's rollaway bed and Steffi and Phoebe and I napped on that. Fritz was on the floor. Phoebe must have been dreaming. Her little feet were moving and she even growled a little, but her eyes were closed.

It's a good thing Steffi and Phoebe get along. They both have to be in the chair with me in the family room. So, Phoebe ends up laying on top of Steffi. They don't mind. They both just lay there and sleep.

I'm getting pretty good at the easy sodoku puzzles in a puzzle book I bought yesterday. But I'm getting tired of them too. I think I'll take a break.

I made home made mashed potatoes and biscuits for lunch and supper today. I even have some for tomorrow. Tomorrow I have to go up to mom and dad's. I don't know if I'll take Phoebe. It's supposed to rain. I think I will take them some biscuits though.

My monitor is still in its blue haze. I unplugged it from the cpu and the screen still looked bad so I don't think it's a problem with the computer. I think it's the monitor.

I haven't been able to do my laundry today. Phoebe has not wanted to let me out of her sight. And I've had to watch her closely to see if she's using the puppy pads. I had her out for nearly an hour today and she wouldn't do #2. She kept getting distracted. I was not happy. Finally after being back inside for about a half an hour, she did #2.

Pictures

Mom found some pictures of Steffi as a puppy and brought them over today. I'm so happy I now have some of her.

Phoebe is regressing I think in the puppy pad training department. I think the move into the family room has confused her. At least I'll have two more days home with her to get her used to the family room. I'm taking Monday off.

I walked down and got the mail a little while ago. I finally got my state tax refund. It only took them two months to process a one page form.

Moving Day

Well, I got the tv and satellite dish receiver moved into the family room. Mom and Dad came up and got some of their stuff and then dad helped me move my tv into the family room. Phoebe was very happy to have company.

I think my monitor is going bad on my pc. It has a blue film across the screen and lines. Oh well, I always wanted a flat panel anyway. I guess I will now have an excuse to get one.

Nice Sunny Evening

It was so nice this evening when I got off work that I decided to take the dogs out for a longer time than normal once I got home. They went out for the potty trip, then we all came in and had our dinner, then I took them back outside. Phoebe got chained up so she could run around but not run off and I got to walk for a bit. Not too long because Phoebe looked like she might want a drink of water after about ten minutes. But we all got a little extra fresh air and sun.

I got my books from eharlequin.com today. I can't wait to start reading them.

I got some gas for the car this morning. I remember when $10.00 could actually buy you something, but these days you can't buy a trip to work for $10.00. This is ridiculous. Especially since they said tonight on the news that Exxon announced an $8 billion profit for the first quarter of this year. They are talking about the government giving everyone a $100.00 gas rebate. I hope the government gets that money from the oil companies.

Matt Mason's Gone!!!!!!

I can't believe they voted Matt Mason off Nashville Star!!!! He was my favorite!! Now there's no reason to watch the rest. Chris Young would be the only reason and I'm not as big a fan of his. I will have to keep searching the web for news on Matt Mason. If anyone out there can tell me if he has his own website or where to go for news on any upcoming record deals, let me know.

Cookies and Treats

I had to make toll house pan cookies tonight. I've got egg beaters that are going to go bad in the next couple of weeks.

Phoebe lost the rest of her broken toe nail. Maybe her toe will will return to normal now.

I had to give Fritz a rawhide treat tonight - he was eating a rug. I don't know what it is with these dogs but I swear I think both Fritz and Phoebe are eating cloth. Some time ago, Fritz had chewed the tie strings off of a dining room chair pillow. Well those strings keep disappearing, piece by piece, after Phoebe chews on them. I took the rest of them and threw them away.

Phoebe is still peeing on the puppy pad to get a treat. I hope she sticks with this and it works.

Second Try

After I got my bath I saw that it was about 10 after 7pm. So, I let the dogs out for a few minutes and then took Phoebe to the vet. This time it worked. No smelly dirty dog to bathe. We did have to sit there for a while. But Phoebe got a shot and her nails cut. I don't know what the shot was for, but the vet says that was all she needed. His nail clippers were dull though. But the way Phoebe runs in the pasture, she will wear the rough edges down.

The Vet Visit that Wasn't

I was going to take Phoebe to the vet tonight to see about her dew claw. She broke her nail but it's still attached. The toe is swollen but I've been dunking it warm soapy water and it helped yesterday. Unfortunately Fritz had other plans for me. He somehow found the stinkiest, messiest mud hole in the pasture and rolled in it. He was covered in this mud and he wanted in the house. He came trotting up the steps like nothing was wrong. Well, he found out something was wrong. I bathed him before he could come back inside. Now I smell like the stinkiest, messiest mud hole. I have to get a bath myself now. By the time I get cleaned up it will be too late to take Phoebe to the vet. So, I'm hoping tomorrow evening after work I can take her to the vet. It will be tough because I get home about 20 after 4pm and they are open until 5pm. I probably won't be able to get Fritz and Steffi in the house in time. Maybe if her toe doesn't get worse she can wait until Wednesday when the vet's open from 6:30pm to 8pm.

Sunday

Today has been a pretty good day. Except for the fact that Steffi is sick again. She's been throwing up today and eating grass. If she doesn't feel better by tomorrow after work, I'll have to take her back to the vet. But otherwise, it's been a pretty decent day. I opened the door to the family room today and let Phoebe play. Come to think of it, Steffi was out on the back porch looking for stray catfood today. Maybe she got into some that had been exposed to ant spray or something. Maybe whatever Steffi has will run its course and she'll be better tomorrow. Anyway, Phoebe played and I cleaned the fans. Phoebe even intentionally left the family room, came back into the living room and used a puppy pad today. If only she would do that all the time. After lunch I took all three dogs outside and chained Phoebe up to a chair I was sitting in. She walked around and rolled around on the ground for a while and I got some sun. Then we came in and took a nap on the couch.

I'm going to have to clean up the family room and that back porch area. I think I'm moving into the family room next weekend.

Phoebe's Day Out

I took Phoebe to mom and dad's today. Mom was thrilled to see her. Phoebe had fun and she and I took a nice nap on the big couch. I miss that couch. Phoebe responded to Dad more than mom but that's because she sees dad more often. Mom won't come to the house. I don't know why. It might have something to do with her oxygen tank.

I did sleep in a little bit today. I got up at about 10 after 5am instead of 10 til 5 am. Phoebe held it that bit longer so hopefully I can get a little more sleep next week when I go back to work.

I mailed off her AKC application and stuff this morning and did a little shopping. I bought these cd roms that have cookbooks on them. I think I will like them except that one of the cd roms doesn't have pictures of the food. I like to see the pictures.

I bought some potatoes today and plan to make mashed potatoes with my ricer. I have a lot of cooking plans. I think I'll be making soup or something tonight. Tomorrow is turkey breast day. Steffi ran out and has been eating bologna for the last couple of days.

Last night I put some pictures of Phoebe in the photo album. I need to take more of them all. I don't have very many pictures of Steffi and not many at all of her as a puppy.

The Dog Whisperer

The Dog Whisperer just fed a dog chicken. Not dog food. So, I don't feel so bad now for feeding Steffi turkey breast. Everyone says dogs should not eat people food, but if Cesar Milan feeds dogs people food, then it can't be that bad. Heck, Tippy lived 16 years or more on bologna every day.

Sunny Day

Today after work, I came home and took Phoebe for her walk. Then I put her in her crate, changed into shorts and a sports bra and went outside myself for some exercise and to try to get a tan. I think I got a little bit of a tan.

At work we had a potluck lunch. It was pretty good.

Dad came up and mowed the grass today while I was at work. He brought instant coffee to make since I don't have a coffee maker and I don't drink coffee. He spilled coffee on the counter just like he did when he lived here.

Phoebe had two accidents this morning. And one this evening. We have more work to do on the puppy pad/treat thing.

Alias is coming back on tonight. I missed the last two episodes but I found a website that had a summary of the last episode that aired before Jennifer Garner had her baby. So, I'm pretty much caught up. I did record the episodes I missed, but I figure that Alias is so complex that you can miss a few episodes and it really won't matter in terms of the big picture. You know, bad guys, good guys and how it all ends in a few weeks. Plus, I plan to get the dvds when they come out. I guess I'll have to get online tomorrow night to see who America kicked off American Idol. I'll be missing it tonight to watch Alias.

American Idol vs Nashville Star

Nashville Star started after American Idol and Nashville Star is already down to the final 4 I think. American Idol is on 7 people. No wonder I like Nashville Star. It's efficient and doesn't waste my time.

Today

I got Phoebe's AKC application in the mail today. I have to get that filled out and sent in. Dad came up and cleaned out the vacuum cleaner and took apart the carpet cleaner for me. He said he might come up tomorrow to mow the grass since it finally stopped raining. I had to make no bake cookies tonight. We are having a potluck lunch tomorrow at work.

Speaking of work, it really bothered me today when one of the old women brought her daughter and grandbaby into the work area. They sat down in the file room right next to my cube and the baby started screaming. She screamed for a half an hour. I couldn't get any work done because it was so distracting. You have to be a little flexible with the employees' families coming in all the time since I'm surrounded by old grannies who talk baby crap all day long, but it is a place of business and people who are employed there should work there and not hold family reunions.

Treats

Tonight I gave Phoebe a treat for peeing on the puppy pad. She peed again on the puppy pad and she got another treat. Then she just started squatting on the puppy pad hoping to get a treat. That didn't work. She did do #2 on a puppy pad that I couldn't see from where I was sitting. So, she walked out until I could see her, sat down and looked at me as if to say "where's my treat?". How quickly she forgets though, later she peed on the carpet. So, we still have a ways to go yet.

She and Steffi are playing pretty well together. They are kissing each other right now.

Phoebe's AKC papers are in the mail on their way to me today.

Rest of Sunday

Well, the carpet is cleaned and dried and the laundry and soup are done. Phoebe and I actually took a nap today. Yay! Getting up at 4:50am every day to take Phoebe out really wears me out. I tried my snow cone maker and it does in fact make snow. It chops the ice up finer than mom's ice crusher. I have eaten way too many cookies today. I'm trying to get rid of them so I don't have any more in the house, which is a bad idea. I froze the last few cookies. I don't think I'll be eating anything else tonight and I'll probably be sucking on this snow cone ice for a few days to recover from the sugar overload.

As for the housebreaking of Phoebe, she's probably 70% trained or so. Most of the time she uses the puppy pads, but there are times when she doesn't. She won't get her freedom for the rest of the house until she improves.

Right now I'm watching Globe Trekker on PBS. You know, the show where the host goes to exciting foreign places. Well, tonight's port of call is....... Florida. Not too exciting. But at least she moves on to the Bahamas after a while.

I finished reading a book I started last week. It was a bit boring and slow, and it was part of a series that I didn't know about before buying the book. So, I skipped a few chapters and read the last couple just to see how it ends. I even wrote some on the novel I'm sort of writing. I'm having a hard time writing it though because I only read dialogue when I read books so I have to force myself to write the extra stuff.

Sunday So Far

Well, this morning I got up and cleaned the carpet in the living room. Phoebe has made most of her accidents in that room. The carpet is drying even as I type. I still have to make some chicken soup for this week and do my laundry.

The vacuum cleaner died this morning. It does that whenever the dust and carpet fuzz get stopped up inside there. I might buy a new vacuum cleaner. The one I have is the one Mom and Dad left here when they moved. They didn't want that dirty old thing in their new house. It's pretty old and is falling apart. There is a strip of rubber that runs along the outside edge that is dangling and flapping around. We lost a screw somewhere.

OCD

I think Phoebe has OCD. I took her out because she very nearly did #2 in the house. Well, she spent a half an hour running from one tree to another and trying to get back to that trail every time I picked her up and put her in another spot. I did that about 10 times and finally just gave up, brought her in and put her in her crate for 15 minutes like the book says to do. She was really trying my patience out there. The positive sign was that in the house, she was sniffing the puppy pads so maybe she would've done #2 on the puppy pads. Steffi growls and jumps at her though when she's trying to use the puppy pads. That's not really an ideal situation.

Dr. Who

I watched Dr. Who last night. Well, Phoebe and I watched it. She sat on my lap for part of it. It was a good episode. Supposedly the last of the Daleks committed suicide. They can't get rid of the number one villain of the series, so I'm sure there are more Daleks out there. I really, really am not going to like it when the Doctor changes at the end of the season. I like this one.

Shopping and Company

This morning I went shopping early. I left here about 8Am and went to walmart first. I bought a shirt that was on clearance for $5.00, a Doug Stone cd and a snow cone maker among the usual weekly items I buy. They didn’t have the chicken treats that the dogs love. I was very disappointed. Stopped and got gas and turned in my winning lottery ticket for two more tickets. Took my paycheck to the bank and then headed to the Dollar General store to see if they had any short sleeved shirts I would like. I bought two there. After that, it was time for the grocery store and then I came home. I put my groceries away and had Phoebe out for a while. Watched Nashville Star. I think it will end up being between Jared Ashley and Matt Mason. They are both pretty good, but I like Matt better. It was that Marty Stuart song he sang early on that did it for me. I had just finished making some spaghetti when Mom and Dad came up. Dad had to take the studded tires off of their car and put the regular tires back on. Mom puppy sat Phoebe while I washed the floor and her crate, cleaned the bathroom toilets, washed Phoebe’s squeaky toy, and sacked up the trash. Then I was able to actually get a bit of a nap. Yay! Phoebe took a nap too apparently. But she was really happy to see Mom and Dad. Dad took Phoebe out for a walk but she didn’t get off the porch. She was hunting for cat food. So, I took her out after my nap. It took her about a half an hour to get around to doing #2 and that was after carrying her off the porch about three times. I would take her off the porch and she would go right back. So, all the dogs were happy to see Mom and Dad.

I got an Easter card in the mail today from my niece and nephew.

I think tomorrow, I’ll use the carpet cleaner on the living room carpet. Since I get up at 5am to take Phoebe outside, I have all kinds of time in the early morning for work.

Weekend

Yippeee!!! The weekend's here. It's horrible to work a whole week after having time off. I have a lot to do this weekend. I need to go to the grocery store in the morning and to the bank and to some stores to try to find some t-shirts to wear. My shortsleeved shirts from last year won't work since I've lost the weight. I plan to leave early tomorrow morning and do all the things I can do before 10 am. At 10 am Nashville Star comes on the USA channel and I'd like to be home by then. I'm hoping mom and dad come up this weekend to watch Phoebe so I can clean the floors and her crate.

Phoebe used the puppy pad this evening. She also went outside and did her business. I'm hoping she's catching on to the housebreaking, but I don't know.

Sunny Day

I got home this evening and changed into a sports bra and shorts and took the dogs out. I'm hoping to get a tan. Phoebe didn't want to come in and her little tongue was hanging out all curled up on the end. I had to make her come in, but once Fritz and Steffi started following us in, Phoebe was more willing to come in. She got a drink and I put her in her crate for a nap. Hopefully, she'll stay in there for a couple of hours so I can watch Martha and clean up the bathroom. Phoebe did #1 and #2 on the pads in the bathroom. Last night and this morning she was good and used puppy pads. Hopefully, we are turning a corner in the puppy training project.

Martha says she's never used cool whip topping. She has eaten opossum and raccoon.

Why?

Why did I watch American Idol last night? I try not to watch that show, but I ended up watching it. There wasn't much of anything else on. They did Queen night last night and all the contestants sang Queen songs.

Phoebe peed today in the bathroom, but she held #2 until I got home and did that outside. And she held both 1 and 2 overnight and did her business this morning when I took her out at 5am. And tonight she was sniffing around the puppy pads in the living room so I took her out again. After a bit of running, she finally peed.

On TLC they have a life lesson commercial - the one where there are better rewards than food. I know what that's like. My dogs beg like that for treats and I give them treats just like that woman did the kid. That's funny.

Good Shopping

I've discovered that eharlequin.com allows you to pay by money order or check when you order books from their website. They will send you a bill with your order. I now have several things in my shopping cart over there. More than $25.00 and you get free shipping on some orders. I haven't placed the order yet. I think I read something about deals offered on Fridays. So, I'll wait until then to see what they have.

This morning

I don't know if it was a fluke or deliberate, but Phoebe waited until this morning when I took her outside to do her business. She did #2 this evening in the family room even though I had her out for a half an hour before that traipsing around all over the pasture. We still have a ways to go.

The Answer

The bare floor. I have to clean up the bathroom tonight and tape down puppy pads all over the bathroom floor for phoebe. I got her a couple more squeaky toys today. Dad was nice enough to take phoebe, steffi and fritz out when he was here today. And he got some biscuits for it. I made some yesterday and didn't want to keep eating them. I'm going to try to stick to the chicken soup diet for a week or two. I ate way too much while I was off. But housebreaking Phoebe is pretty stressful.

This Morning

Well, I got up at 5:40am this morning, just like yesterday, to take Phoebe outside to do her business. Yesterday I was working on the puppy pad thing, but today I'm working on the outside thing. This morning she peed outside. She had done #2 in her crate overnight. I've been taking her out for the last half hour or so to try to get her to do #2 again. She ate breakfast this morning so I know she has to go. Tomorrow will be interesting. She will spend the day in the bathroom so I will see if she uses the puppy pads or her blankets or the bare floor.

Maybe a Switch

I'm thinking of changing a bit of the puppy training method. Now that I know Phoebe will do her business outside, I'm thinking of using the 7 days method with taking her outside instead of having her use puppy pads. I don't think using the puppy pads is teaching her the right thing. I don't know how Fritz got to be paper trained and outside trained and learned the difference between the pads and the carpet, but I don't think Phoebe is going to learn the difference. I don't know if Phoebe will ever be really trained since I have to leave her for the 8 hours I'm at work and then when I'm asleep at night. Why can't the Pet Psychic, Sonia Fitzpatrick, just tell Phoebe to do her business outside? That would be easy training.

I went to Mom and Dad's today for a little while. Dad wanted me there to do something for him. So, he took my car down to the shop to get the tires and oil changed and I drove his car back to his house. He came back there a couple hours later and looked around and said "where's the dog?" I told him I left her at home and he seemed really disappointed. If he wants to see her that badly, then he can come up to the house every day I'm working at noon, like they first agreed to do, and let her out to help with the housetraining.

Wednesday's Mail

I just got around to looking at Wednesday's mail. That was the day that I was so rushed in the afternoon, with getting my pc fixed and taking Phoebe to the vet. Aside from the phone bill I got, I was happy to see that I got Season 4 A-Team dvds. I'm a little concerned though. There's a bonus episode from Season 5 on these dvds. Does this mean there won't be a release of Season 5? I hope they do release all the season 5 episodes.

This Morning

Phoebe had to be corrected once for trying to pee on the carpet. But later, she chose to pee on a puppy pad. So, I think that's a positive sign. I don't think we are there yet and that I can say she is trained. I still don't think she knows enough to think to herself "hey, I have to go, let's find a puppy pad."

Fritz chased her through the house this morning like he chases cats. That may not be a good thing, but I think I will need to let him chase her and catch her so he can settle down and realize that she's not all that special. Phoebe pounced on Steffi this morning and Steffi whipped around and snapped at her. She didn't bite. She stopped just short of that so I don't think she will hurt Phoebe.

I got Phoebe a stuffed doggy toy at Walmart yesterday. She loves it. She runs through the house with it and shakes it. Thankfully, it has saved my hands from the biting.

It's Friday

I worked half a day today as part of the puppy training thing. I went to walmart early this morning and got a super-duper surge protector power strip for my computer. I did not want to have to take it back to the computer fix-it guy again. We are supposed to have bad storms and we are under a Tornado watch until 11 pm so I thought I had better get the power strip. I took Phoebe out to work today so the people at work could see her. Then I stopped by Mom and Dad's for a bit. Uncle Harold is in from Indiana and he has his pomeranian, Penny, with him. I was hoping I would see Penny, but they weren't there. Mom's neighbor liked Phoebe. The neighbor has several dogs. I don't think Phoebe's had an accident today. For some reason she shredded the puppy pad in her crate overnight. I don't know why. Phoebe did do her business outside a few times today, both here and at Mom's. Mom and Dad seem to really like Phoebe. Dad even kissed her as we were leaving. Of course, she isn't there all the time.

I have a headache. I don't know if it's from needing more sleep, or from sinuses, or from the sugar I got from the two doughnuts I ate at work this morning. John brought in some for the office. He also brought in a brownie for his secretary. She hates the smell of doughnuts.

Puppy Training Obstacle

Fritz and Steffi were chasing and herding Phoebe tonight and she couldn't get to a puppy pad when she needed one. I try to keep Fritz and Steffi outside when Phoebe's needing to do her business, but I can't keep them out all the time. I got the water bottle after Fritz tonight because he was just too jealous of and overbearing to Phoebe.

As Promised: A Picture of Phoebe

Phoebe Today

I worked a half a day today so I could come home and look after Phoebe. I let her out of the crate at around 12:15pm. She did her business on the puppy pads (both 1 and 2) and so I let her out into the house. Since it was warm today, I put the leash on Phoebe and took her outside. She wasn't so scared of the outside today and she even peed a couple of times out there. She played a bit with Fritz and Steffi and even smelled one of the cats. Phoebe played a lot in the family room and I found a couple of rubber doggy toys for her to chew on. Maybe that will save my hands. After all that peeing, you'd think she would be peed out. But no. I brought all three dogs into the living room where I have puppy pads on the floor. Phoebe sniffed them all and then peed on one of them! Yay!!! I gave her a treat for that. I know the dog whisperer would get on to me because I'm sending her mixed messages - pee on the pad, pee outside, don't pee on carpet, here's a treat, but no treat for that. Hopefully it won't confuse her too much. I seriously think I'm going to give up my bathroom to her during the days I'm at work so she won't have to spend so much time in the crate. But I will still have to use that bathroom for baths and hair washing. The other bathroom in the house only has a shower.

Phoebe Notes

Here's what I wrote on 4/4/06 in my Phoebe Diary:

Tuesday April 4, 2006

I’ve had Phoebe for three whole days now. It’s 8:19am. I thought she was doing well with the housebreaking, but this morning she was a complete wreck. She had to be corrected three or four times on peeing and she peed and pooped on the couch. So, I have placed her in her crate and will be following the 7 days schedule from now on. Hopefully, that will work. One of the problems with the 7 days schedule is that Phoebe doesn’t pee and poop 30 minutes after eating and drinking and she doesn’t eat all at once. She likes to graze. I have a feeling she will be in her crate a lot. I wish I didn’t have a job and I could be with her for a few weeks to housebreak her. My parents could do it, but they don’t want to.

Phoebe also has a problem with chewing. She chews on my hands. It hurts too. I try to substitute but she likes the hands. She is a cute puppy. She tries to play with Steffi and Fritz and sometimes they actually play with her. But they also growl and snap at her. Phoebe will learn what she can get away with when it comes to Steffi and Fritz. Sunday night, Phoebe slept almost all through the night. She only cried once. But last night she cried a lot all through the night. I think this is just a setback day since not only is the housebreaking regressing but so is the nighttime crate behavior. But she is still going to follow the 7 days schedule. I hope I can get it to work. I have to cover the crate like she’s a bird to keep her from crying a lot. So, I can’t see if she’s doing her business in the crate. She isn’t supposed to be. Overnight she will pee in her crate. The crate is bigger than it should be and I don’t have a divider for it. At least the crate is big enough that she can sleep on one side and pee on the other so she’s not really laying in her pee. As she gets older she should stop peeing in there. Especially since I feed her in one corner of the crate.

Tomorrow night, Phoebe has to get her last round of vaccinations and her rabies shot and get tested for worms. She’s had two doses of worm medicine but the vet wants to check her anyway.

I'm Back!!!

My modem got fried this weekend. The electric went off and then came back on while I was online. My modem paid the price. Today I finally got to take my cpu to some computer tech geek in a neighboring town and got a new modem put in. He also added 256K of ram. He was really upset that my computer was soooo slow. Now it's fast.

As for Phoebe - There have been so many little things that she's done or not done that I could write about. In fact I have written about some of them. I started keeping notes on the computer since I couldn't blog. Yesterday I instituted the 7 days schedule. I gave her a couple of days here to get to know things and the dogs and me. She knows what the puppy pads are for, but she doesn't think she has to use them. So, she's on the 7 days schedule of being locked in her crate for most of the time and only getting out for potty time, feed and water time and play time. I'm only going so far as puppy pad training. I think it's too much to ask her to learn outside too when I will only have about 8 hours a day to train her - I'm sleeping and working the other 16. If I can get her puppy pad trained, I will be really happy.

Since I didn't have the internet to play on, I wrote a little on the novel I started some time back. And I watched some of my I Dream of Jeannie dvds. I like that show. I watched American Idol last night - it was country night.

I have to go to work for half a day tomorrow and Friday. It's Masters Golf Week this week, so I picked a good week to take off for puppy training.

Busy, Busy

Well, Phoebe is keeping me pretty busy now that she's here with me. Phoebe being my new little chihuahua puppy. I will have to post a picture sometime. Fritz and Steffi are tolerating her and sometimes even playing with her a little. Phoebe is very afraid of the outside. I don't think she had ever been outside before I bought her. So, I'm thinking puppy pad training will be the way to go. She did get to meet Lapcat today. No fights there. I've only had Phoebe at my house since last night and she already has some idea of what the puppy pads are for. I think it's now just a matter of making sure she remembers that she has to use them every time. Good thing her collar has a bell on it so I can hear where she is in the house. Mom's getting about three or four phone calls a day from me about Phoebe. She likes to get the updates. Although she does call Phoebe Susie once in a while. That's because Phoebe looks a lot like Susie, Mom's chihuahua who died some years ago. Phoebe doesn't like the crate at night. She cried and howled much of last night. But she will get used to it. I had her in the crate a little bit today and she settled down after a while. But when that girl on Nashville Star was singing, Phoebe started howling. I guess she liked that song and wanted to sing along. I'm taking a lot of this coming week off from work to work on housebreaking Phoebe. Hopefully, I can reinforce the puppy pad idea enough in the next week that the training will work.

What else is going on? Well, Dad got his other tree cut down. Mom's computer still won't work. It's a shame she's paying for internet service and can't use it. Oh well, the pc will make a good planter for mums this spring.

Yesterday was Mom and Dad's 39th wedding anniversary. Today was Dad's birthday. I got them a joint present for both occasions - A Roy Orbison Greatest Hits CD from Walmart. It was on sale. Dad's still on his diet allegedly so I didn't get him a cake or anything. He did make a cheesecake today, but that was because the expiration date was coming up on it and they had to get it used.

What's Happening

What's been going on around here? Well, I'm trying the puppy thing again. I got a chihuahua puppy tonight after work. Mom and Dad are puppysitting for me until Friday evening. Friday after work I'm going to get my puppy, named Phoebe, and bring her home. I hope Fritz and Steffi get along well with her. Fritz is a very jealous dog. Tonight I rubbed a towel all over Phoebe and brought it home. Then I sat on the floor with the towel and rubbed the towel up against Fritz and Steffi and told them that Phoebe loves them. I petted Steffi and Fritz a lot while letting them sniff the towel. I'm hoping they will associate Phoebe's smell with all the attention I'm giving them. That might make them more accepting of Phoebe. I'm also thinking that if Phoebe works out, I might have her have a litter of puppies before I get her fixed. She wasn't cheap (being AKC registered and all) and puppies would be a way to recoup some of my money. I have Mom and Dad puppysitting because I want to do the House Train Your Dog in Seven Days method and I won't be home all day until Saturday. At first I was thinking I would take all next week off from work. But I am really concerned that I will not want to go back to work if I have 9 straight days off, so I think on Thursday and Friday I might go into work and work from 8am to Noon for those two days. It won't interfere with the training as I have already worked out a schedule for Phoebe to follow.

Mom has plenty of time to puppysit since she can't get on the internet. Her computer is still broken and she still doesn't have her recovery disk. I was at Walmart this morning buying a baby gate for the puppy and I checked out the computers they had. The cheapest one was over $450.00. That's a lot of money. One month of Mom's medical insurance is probably that much.

I got to Mom and Dad's house with Phoebe tonight around 6pm. Mom and Dad had the door open waiting for me and they started grinning and cooing over Phoebe. Phoebe looks a lot like Susie, Mom's chihuahua who died a few years ago. Susie is also Steffi's mom. Phoebe looks gray in real life, but in pictures she looks red. I took Phoebe to the vet tonight for a physical since I got her from a pet store and the Vet says she is a healthy and good dog. She weighs 4.1 pounds, which surprised me. My ASPCA Guidebook of Dogs book says a chihuahua would only be between 2 and 6 pounds. I think Phoebe is going to be bigger than that. She's only 14 weeks old.

If Phoebe works out, I'll post a picture or two of her. I really hope Fritz and Steffi make up with her.

Nashville Star

Well, I taped Nashville Star Tuesday night. But, I thought it was only on for an hour so I apparently missed a half an hour of it. Luckily, USA showed the episode this morning so I got to see the whole thing and didn't have to watch the tape. I did tape the Dr. Who episode that aired last night. I was busy watching the Golf channel and didn't get to see most of the episode, just the last few minutes.

Another weekend - Yay!!! I baked a cake tonight. It's a low fat cake. I got in the floor and played with the dogs a bit. Called Mom and talked to her for a bit. She asked me about Dell computers. Since hers won't work, I guess she's thinking of buying one. It's a shame she would have to. I was planning to make the recovery disks for my computer - I have to burn the info onto cds. Well, I didn't know I needed 10 of them to burn a copy of the recovery disks. So, I have to go back to Walmart and get some more - I only have 5.

I watched Martha Stewart's show tonight. I think she really, really likes country singer Josh Turner. She gushed over him the way she does that soap opera guy who's always on her show.

Attack Dog Fritz

Tonight, I took the dogs out when I went to turn the outside light on. I looked out into the yard and saw the black and white stray cat staring at Curly, the gray cat. So, I said, "Go get the cat Fritz. The black one, not the gray one." And Fritz went after the stray cat. In fact, he pinned the cat into a hole in the hay shed. I had a hard time getting him and Steffi away from the cat. I heard the cat screeching and I figured Fritz was going to get scratched. But eventually I got them away and the cat ran off. If I'm lucky, the stray cat will stay gone. She eats my catfood. The gray cat, in the meantime, had caught a mole and was munching away. I really am shocked that Curly hunts. While the dogs were out, I took the digital camera outside and took a few pictures. They didn't turn out too well because it was getting dark outside. Oh well. It's still neat to have the camera.

Snow

We had snow and sleet overnight. I had parked my car at the road again so I wouldn't have to worry about driving it down the hill. Well, I should have left it up here at the house. Once I got down to my car this morning I had to brush off all the snow, then pry the car doors open (they were frozen shut) and then I had to scrape the ice off the windshields. I was frozen good. Luckily I had some of those hand warmer things you put inside gloves. They warmed up my hands some. My feet, however, stayed cold for a long while.

TV

I actually watched some of American Idol last night. I didn't think I was going to watch it this time, but there wasn't anything else on. Barry Manilow was on there last night. I can't believe he had never heard of Patsy Cline and Walkin' After Midnight. Hopefully he will take a closer look at country music now that he's been exposed to it. I still think Nashville Star contestants are better singers than American Idol contestants. I taped Nashville Star last night. I can't stay up until 11pm during the week. I'm thinking of taping the new NBC show Heist tonight. It looks interesting. The only problem is that I never watch what I tape. I'm bad about that.

PC Update

Mom still can't get online. Her computer is still in safe mode. And since we've had snow and it's been cold, Mom can't come up to my house to use my computer. The cold is hard on her as she is on oxygen. Tonight she had me look on ebay to see if we could buy a recovery disk since she no longer has one. I found some boot/recovery disks but I don't know if they are what we need. What we need is what we don't have. I told her she might have to take it to a local computer repair shop but that could cost who knows how much. And with her and dad on a fixed income with a lot of prescriptions to buy every month, she doesn't have a whole lot of money to spend. It's a shame that she is paying for internet access that she can't use.

Monday Recap

I weighed myself this morning and apparently, a pound of peanut butter easter egg, biscuits and butter, and nearly a whole loaf of pepperoni rolls all adds up to 2.4 pounds. That's what I ate extra last week. Not too bad considering the two easter eggs were a big indulgence. I finished up my laundry today, found some recipes on the internet that I may never use because of this diet. I took my car down to the main road tonight to park it in case we get the one to two slushy inches of snow the weatherman is calling for. I worked out today too.

Food Channel Faux Pas

Today, both Giada and Paula Deen had a recipe for fried cheese ravioli. Probably not good tv programming etiquette there.

Dr. Who

Dr. Who is now on the Sci Fi Channel. My sister was always the big Dr. Who fan, but I thought I would check it out today and I got to see the first two episodes. It's prety good. I could really like the ninth doctor, Christopher Eccleston. Unfortunately, he leaves after one season as pretty much all the doctors do. That sucks. I just know I'm going to really, really like him by the end of the season, if I watch the rest of the episodes.

A Good Day Off

Today I made some chicken noodle soup. I also sprinkled some borax into the carpet to start the war against the fleas that I'm going to be fighting this year. People on the internet say that borax kills fleas and flea eggs. It must do something because the dogs won't lay anywhere near it. I worked out and watched some golf on tv. And I bathed the dogs. Fritz caught onto me and took off into the pasture. I couldn't get him. Eventually he did get his bath. And I got one too thanks to him. But mine didn't really get me clean. I am protected for the next 5 to 10 days against fleas though. And I've also had a chance to see some of the movie, 13 Going on 30. It's playing on one of the channels I get. It's a funny movie. I had to turn the channel though when the bad girl tries to ruin the good girl's life. I hate that part in movies.

Shopping

I went shopping today and bought some clothes. I need new clothes now that I'm skinny. I hope to add some things as the year progresses.

I bought some photo albums to store the pictures I'm going to take with my new digital camera. I already have some pictures in there.

I also bought a couple of necklaces that were on clearance.

Before I got to shop I went by mom and dad's. Mom's computer is on the blink. It won't exit out of safe mode and it says something about using the original windows disk that came with the computer. Well, that disk was sent to my sister in Florida. It'd be a shame if my parents, who are on a fixed income now, would have to buy a new computer because theirs can't be fixed. I told mom she can come here and use my internet access anytime she wants.

And I got a surprise today when I went to cash in my winning lottery ticket from Wednesday's drawing. I thought I had only won $1.00 but in fact I won $2.00. That's good. I got two more lottery tickets with the winnings. I have a feeling I won't be winning any more for a while.

Got 'Em

I got the camera, the memory card for the camera and worm medicine for Steffi today. Mom called me at work to tell me that it had all been delivered today and I picked everything up after work. The camera's charging up right now.

I'm making biscuits right now. I'm on a bread kick right now.

I'm glad this week is almost over. I have Monday off. I need a break.

Cake

I made a cake tonight. I had an urge to cook. The cake is lowfat. It has egg beaters in place of eggs and applesauce in place of the oil and powdered milk in place of regular milk.

Impulse Buy

I just ordered the first season of I Dream of Jeannie on dvd from walmart.com. It was completely impulsive because I had just seen an interview with Barbara Eden and Larry Hagman on CNN. Unfortunately, the show ran for 5 seasons, which means I will be buying dvds for a while. I would like to get Dr. Quinn or McGyver but I'd be in the poor house if I bought those two complete sets.

Weight Check

I weighed myself this morning. 121.8 pounds. That's excellent considering I haven't worked out in two weeks and I was eating biscuits and butter and pepperoni rolls. This chicken noodle soup diet seems to work wonders. I worked out tonight but didn't do 300 calories.

Some Weekend

This is supposed to be time off from work - unfortunately, I've just substituted home work for work work. I worked out today. I made chicken noodle soup last night (and washed those dishes), I cooked a turkey breast for Steffi, bagged it up and washed those dishes today, I fried hamburger for Steffi and Fritz so they could get their worm medicine and washed those dishes, I did laundry today and folded and put away those clothes, cleaned the bathtub. But at least I wasn't at work. And I've done a few things that were definitely not work related. I took a nap yesterday. Today I found some recipes on the foodtv website and put them in my recipe book, watched some golf. I got to watch Nero Wolfe last night on the Biography channel. I wish the weather could have been better so I could have taken the dogs out, but we got rain instead of snow so I can't complain much about the weather.

Oh, and I won $5.00 in the lottery last night. That was a nice surprise.

It's About Time

I am finally getting back on the treadmill after the last two weeks of being sick and having a sick dog to take care of. I worked out today and did over 3 miles and over 400 calories on the treadmill. I hope to stick to it for a while.

Picture This

I bought a digital camera. I went to walmart this morning before work and they had a bunch of boxes blocking my path to the digital cameras. So, I thought they had gotten some in. I went back this evening and checked the case, and didn't see any. I then decided that I'd had enough of people and just got a gift card and put some money on it. Went home and used the gift card to order a camera from walmart.com. I did buy a purse while at Walmart tonight. I wanted something a little more springlike than what I have now. My new purse is blue denim. I like it.

A New Blog

I've added a new blog to the Blogs of Note section. Check out Mountaineer's Musings.

Paying for Local Channels

Finally, it's paid off. There is a Barry Manilow concert on one of the local pbs channels that I can't get with my broadcast antenna. The satellite dish has come in handy this time.

I came home right after work today. It was nice and warm and I wanted to take the dogs out. They don't get out enough when I have to work all day.

I made biscuits tonight. They turned out really well.

Shopping

I went to walmart tonight to finally buy the digital camera. Guess what happened. The only one they had in stock was the display model. There is one that's supposed to be shipped to them in the next few days so I have to check back then. So, I bought some other things while I was there. A water dish for the dogs and cats, a couple of packets of seeds for the summer garden, a pair of workout shorts and a traders' guide (newspaper of things want or want to sell).

I wore my new fleece jacket after work today. It was too cold this morning, but I carried the jacket with me.

His Girl Friday

I'm sure this is a great movie. A classic. It's on tv right now and I watched the first few minutes of it. Cary Grant got on my nerves so badly that I couldn't watch more than those first few minutes.

I'm watching the Tennis Channel tonight since the Golf channel was sucking up to Tiger Woods. There's a player being interviewed on the Tennis Channel named Max Mirnyi. This man has to be very tall. They have him sitting in a chair that is way too small for him. His knees are sticking out and he has to be uncomfortable. I feel bad for him.

I got to work out tonight. I did about a half an hour on the treadmill. I thought I'd better take it slow my first time back in over a week. I'm still coughing some.

At some point I do plan to get back to Walmart to possibly buy a digital camera. I've been seriously thinking of buying one for a while and I actually looked at them Monday night. Maybe I'll stop in tomorrow night after work.

It's supposed to warm up some this week and get up to 70. I can't wait. I bought a fleece jacket on clearance at Walmart Monday night. It needs to warm up so I can wear it.

Steffi is doing ok. She still has pills to take. I think she's got about a day's worth of the white pills to take, but maybe 4 or 5 more days of the yellow pills.

Feeling Better

I think I'm getting over the cold. I should be able to get back on the treadmill tomorrow. I took the dogs out for a bit today. The neighbor's german shepherd was once again out there. If I didn't throw like a girl, I'd be trying to throw things at him to run him off.

I made some biscuits this afternoon. I really want to make a cake or brownies or something, but I chose biscuits instead - less dirty dishes and there's no sugar in biscuits. I also made some chicken noodle soup to eat this week. I got a pack of Mom and Dad's hamburger from the freezer to fry up for Steffi since she has about three or four more days of pills to go. That hamburger came from a cow I knew personally, so I don't eat it. But Steffi doesn't care.

I'm feeling like I should be making a conscious effort to do something. I don't know what. But with the nice sunny early spring weather we've had today and with some news I had this past week, I'm thinking I should start something new; make some kind of commitment. I'm sure this will pass as I get back to work and all this pleasantness is replaced with the suckiness of work.

2nd Success

The mashed potatoes turned out pretty good. I didn't get enough salt in them, but you can always add salt. I gave some of them to Mom and Dad.

Steffi's paw doesn't appear to be hurt that badly. She took off after a German Shepherd this evening.

I took a bit of a nap today after lunch, trying to get back some of the sleep that I've been missing out on because of this cold. As usual, night-time means the cold gets worse than it's been during the day. I hope I get over this soon.

Dad got my old 13 inch tv to work. The sound had stopped working on it so I went and bought a new one. He's now tinkering with an old dvd player I had. I forget now what was wrong with it.

First Success With the Ricer

I haven't made the mashed potatoes yet. I had some apples that were going to go bad so I made homemade applesauce. The ricer worked great. I can't wait to try the potatoes. The applesauce is pretty good. I plan to give some of it to my parents.

Somehow Steffi managed to hurt her left front paw. I don't know what's wrong with it, but she's limping. I'm going to watch her the next few days and see if it gets better or worse.

Last night wasn't the best of nights. I went to bed around 9pm. About 12:30am I woke up and didn't get back to sleep until after 3am. Around 3am I got up and took some cold pills and ate a Special K cereal bar. Sat up about 15 minutes looking at the Lakeside Collection catalog I got in the mail yesterday. Then I went back to bed. I actually fell asleep and got about three good hours of sleep after that. I'm feeling a little better. I think the coughing is helping.

Well, I think if I keep coughing, no matter how uncomfortable it is, I might get over this cold. I've been coughing deliberately today and I think it's helping. It's not doing my throat a bit of good, but I guess that's a small price to pay.

I went shopping today. This morning I went to walmart and I had every intention to return this evening after I went to the bank, but I just decided to skip it and go grocery shopping instead. I bought some potatoes for my first use of the potato ricer. I can't wait to use it. The store had turkey breast on sale for $0.99 a pound so I got one. I also bought more hamburger so I can sneak Steffi her pills.

Speaking of Steffi, I let her out when I got home today and she was in the yard for a while but it only took a second for her to disappear. Where did she go? Into the pasture, probably on her way to find the dreaded rotten bones that made her sick on Sunday. I had to change out of my dress shoes and chase after her, calling her name with my pitiful cold-plagued throat and voice. I finally got her to come back to the house.

Wait a Minute Mr. Postman......

I got my potato ricer in the mail today! I picked it out and Mom ordered it for me from Target.com. I paid her back. The picture of the ricer made it look small, but when I got it out of the box, I discovered it was pretty big. I'm glad I didn't get one of the expensive ones. What was weird though was that the ricer was in a box that fit it pretty well, then that box was put inside a really big box. They must own stock in box companies.

I still have this stupid cold. I'm better than I was Monday, but I don't feel like I'm better than yesterday. I hope I get over it soon.

Steffi is doing better. The pills aren't sticking in the hamburger that well, but she's still getting her medicine.

Update on Steffi

Steffi is doing a lot better. Monday night, Tuesday and this morning I had to wrestle her down to give her the medicine, but tonight I fried up some hamburger and hid the pills inside and fed Steffi the hamburger. I didn't fry the pills, I added the pills after the cooking was done.

I am still sick, but I'm getting better little by little.