Oh, I forgot: The siding work is done - here’s the updated album. I took two pictures this morning before heading to work (it was 28F outside, but you can’t tell that from the pictures.) I’ll post better ones after I touch up the shutters and prep the porch railing for painting tomorrow.
And I just heard the most tasteless joke ever. I fear that if I type it here, I will be banned. It’s that bad.
:dubious: There’s always e-mail, dammit.
The FactFortress is lookin’ good there Sean. Hard to believe that’s vinyl (vinyl right?) siding. BTW, it’s not nice to tease with tastelessness. You know of course you must email.
I just got a nice surprise. Today is payday (YAY!) and in my payslip thingy there was a hunnert dollar gift card from WallyWorld. For a non-profit, that’s a pretty dang good bonus. So ima get me a hunnert dollahs worth of stuff from the WallyWorld. Perhaps I should dress like a Walmartian before I go on my spending spree. 
::flings a bowl of instant Cream of Wheat in a southerly direction… ::
You look cute, rosie. I love your smile. It’s a great “Hah! I’m wearing cool antlers! Nyah!” smile.
Up, about to drink tea, organize laundry, and run out. I have to work again tonight, so I’ll point out to my manager that the reason not a lot got done yesterday is that his sticker-removing project took until 10. Bleh.
VBob and The Bear, you asked for it. Check your emails.
The siding is 100% PVC. The front is molded to look like cedar shakes, and the sides and back are clapboards. The color, of course, is Tuscan Clay.
I have a language question…
in a few threads around here I’ve seen references to “bless your heart” being some sort of Southerner euphemism. Would it be equivalent to the Spanish “vaya con Dios”, which when said in good faith means “God be with you” but otherwise “the Devil take you”?
Just wonderin’, it’s still 45’ till I can leave and my brain is bored (is it possible to get ADHD in your old age?)
It’s the same, in that the intended meaning is opposite the face value of words, but the context is different.
When I had Spanish in high school, back when dinosaurs roamed the earth and Jimmy Carter was President, ‘Vaya con Dios’ was taught as an eloquent way to say goodbye, given the face value of the words. ‘Bless your heart’, well, I’m having a real hard time trying to explain that one to someone who didn’t learn Amurrkin English, but it’s more like saying “Isn’t that nice?” or “Isn’t that special?” in a snotty tone, or “F*ck you” in a casual manner.
Confused? I am now…
Nava, depending on the inflection used when that’s spoken, it can be a patronizing way for someone to excusse what you just said, or a deadly insult by someone that’s very polite but wishes you a painful and prolonged death. “Vaya con Dios”, as I understand it, is always a good wish.
At least you didn’t say “…a perfectly fine bowl of instant Cream of Wheat…”, because, like Santa Claus, no such thing exists.
Cream of Wheat should be flung directly into the trash in the container it was purchased in, bypassing all of the messy cooking and eating steps.
Saying “bless her or his heart” when talking about an elderly person or a beloved pet is an endearment. “Bless your heart” or “Bless his/her heart” when talking about anybody else is an insult.
“He fell out of the ugly tree and hit every branch on the way down, bless his heart”
“She wasn’t born with the sense God gave a gnat, bless her heart.”
It’s a southern thang. You can get as nasty as ya want to along as you bless a heart at the end of it.
The interviewee I perceived as a potential PITA (bless her heart) flaked. She called and cancelled. Ummm… YAY!!!
It’s cold here. I was thinking it seemed to feel a lot colder than it actually is, so I checked the local weather. As of right now it’s 30 Amurrkin with a windchil of 19. :eek:
Good morning, and welcome to Frigid Friday! And lard, tunner an’ Jesus did it get cold last night, bay. I swear it must have exceeded -20C with the wind chill. My late evening coffee run became the Iditarod, only thankfully without all the snow.
I got my Christmas bonus yesterday! The company has started giving cash (well, cheques) now instead of a couple of $50 gift cards. This is good, though the cash is taxable, which stinks. Bonuses are based on seniority, and unfortunately I haven’t been here two years yet (year and a half) so I didn’t quality for the $300 tier. Instead I got the $100 tier. $82 after taxes. Meh, better than nothing. It paid for a couple of Christmas gift cards. And next year I get the good bonus. And I still have the Christmas luncheon to look forward to; we go to a semi-swanky place for some good food and a random gift draw. It’s always a good time, and we get to kick off around noon.
I’m also thinking of signing on to be a reviewer/blogger for MobilitySite, since they’re looking for A Few Good Geeks. They’re a good mobile news site, I’m a gadget geek, I like hearing myself type, and I’ve even written for a magazine in the past, so it seems like a good way to kill some time and get to play with (but sadly not keep in most cases) the latest mobile tech. What’s not to love?
Nava --here is a good example: That teacher who had never read The Hobbit et al, well, she was doing the best she could, bless her heart…
Hello all-off to the library. My husband called me and asked me out to dinner(?). this is odd, but I said yes.
Welcome to newbies here and all that. rosie -I love that pic! You now figure prominently in some of those Alzeimer pts’ thought processes…and when they mention the green antlers sprouting out of the singer’s head-the doc will up their meds! (just kidding).
kai -sorry to hear about your Mom and hope the ANA on daughter comes back normal.
toodles!
PS-cream of wheat is an Abomination against God.
My goodness, we’ve been very chatty this week!
kai, my prayers for your mom. I can truly empathize about maternalus battus shitelus insanitus. I’m glad you were able to reconcile.
My dad is comfortable. He says they are taking good care of him in the nursing facility and that’s all I care about. BarbeeDoll[sup]TM[/sup] and I are visiting every day to make sure. I am taking this little breather to recharge the batteries in anticipation of the next round. Thank you all again, for your support.
In other news…IT’S FRIDAY!!! WHOOT!!!
Remind me again who’s got Monday? And, speaking of, did you see the post in the “I Miss” thread about missing Rue, no offense to us who are keeping the tradition going??? WELL…CHA!!! :dubious:
Tupug
Fooey on you Creamy Wheats bashers.
Fooey.
First of all, prayers, hugs, and good wishes to kai, Puggy, and anybody else who needs 'em.
Second of all, I am sad. 
<--------- me being sad. See, last year, my old college roommate and I (as many of you may recall) began what was to be a new tradition, wherein we spent my birthday (Christmas Eve) and her birthday (Christmas Day) drunk on my couch in our pajamas watching Strictly Ballroom in a marvelous celebration we called 48 Hours of 30th Birthday. We were very much looking forward to doing the same for our 31st birthdays, until this morning. She has to work on the 26th, which could still give us a day and a half to spend together, if she came down on the 23rd and left on Christmas, but alas, her ex has to work on the 25th, and cannot take the kids.
So now, I have a clear schedule for my birthday and Christmas. And nothing to do. I suppose I could go to my parents’, but I’ll be there the weekend of the 16th, and I’d rather stay close to home and not have to drive three hours for anything–especially two days of watching my nephew play video games and fending off my mother’s attempts to give me all the clothes she can’t fit into anymore (although I scored a nice, stylish white velour sweatsuit at Thanksgiving :rolleyes: ). I’m just really disappointed, and it’s going to be another year of me sitting on the couch on my birthday with nothing to do and nobody to hang out with because everybody else has a family obligation. Roomie will be around for at least part of the day, but … I don’t know. I guess I would like to do something special on my birthday, you know? Something I can’t do every other Sunday afternoon.
Did I mention I’m sad?
{{{{{drae}}}}} Bummer. Try to do something to pamper yourself. I know…switch houses with somebody in the UK! 
Can I trade Jude Law for maybe Jonathan Rhys-Meyers? I mean, I’d take Jude happily if he were all that’s available, but if I can get the upgrade, I’d be willing to fly coach.
Good morning everyone. Took me awhile to read through the posts since I last posted.
kai, I’m so sorry to hear about your mother. Sending good thoughts to you and the family. Also sending good thoughts for your daughter. I hope it’s just that she’s overdone it and needs a rest.
Puggy, I’m glad to read that Grumpus is fairly comfortable. Continued good thoughts being sent your way.
Drae, it sounds like you need to come up with a new birthday tradition. Maybe treat yourself to a SPA DAY! I’m sorry your plans didn’t work out. If you lived on this coast, you could spend the day with us!
Hey! I happen to LIKE Cream of Wheat. However, it must be kind that’s cooked and it MUST be cooked with MILK. After cooking, butter and brown sugar are de riguer!
Hi Nava! Glad to see you back. Where’s my chocolate?
What are these Christmas bonuses you all speak of? I’m a civil slave; we don’t get those.
Sean, the house is lookin’ good! What do your NEW garage lights look like?
Finally, I am sure there’s much more to be addressed, but I need to work now. Oh! Welcome to the newbies here! You’ll find this a warm place to be.
[begin traditional whining]
I would love that, but I somehow doubt there are a lot of spas open on Christmas Eve. Although it’s no a bad idea to look. All the things I can think of doing are either closed for the holiday or will be so crowded with people doing Christmasy stuff that I’ll be pissed off.
[/traditional whining]
I know I just need a few hours to cry over this and then I’ll be fine. I know it’s nobody’s fault–except maybe my parents, and even if I could blame them, what would I say? “Damn you two for having sex in March!”
And now that I’ve thought about my parents having sex, I need to go find some brain bleach. le sigh