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I love vivid dreamscapes like that, especially recurring ones.
Commented Dec 26, 2018 on That Place in My Head at Surrender, Dorothy
That Place in My Head
Over the past year or so, I've been having what I'll call a stress dream over finding an apartment because I suddenly realize I have to go back to college. I graduated from the University of Iowa over twenty years ago. In all the time I lived there, through two dorm rooms, one sorority house and...
That's why I'm so hopeless about making coffee at home. I've been considering switching to the basic pour-over method just to make things simpler, but then there's still the whole issue of having the coffee ground properly.
Commented Apr 1, 2015 on Coffee, a complicated kettle of ball games at The Sturdy Soapbox
Coffee, a complicated kettle of ball games
I've not bought coffee from a supermarket in easily a year. I've been getting it from a specialist supplier online called Coffee Real. They do varieties from all over the world and very very good they are too. A while back, I started having problems with my machine. Well, I have a lot of probl...
I've been filling a small feeder with mixed birdseed for the little sparrows and chickadees that nest in the bushes near my front door. I switched to just black oil sunflower seeds because they were dumping so much cracked corn on the ground, but they're less excited about that. So much for trying to give them a treat.
Of course, one of the reasons I'm feeding the birds is to give the cats something exciting to watch. They'll still stare at the birds in the bushes, but they're much more interesting when they're flying around.
Commented Jan 26, 2015 on Back on track at The Sturdy Soapbox
Back on track
That run in with Lyxumia was a pretty unpleasant six weeks. Fortunately, my bloods are now much more near normal early in the morning, better still, I feel almost human again and have more energy. January bills are a drag. I'm still cutting the Christmas tree up. Had to go out and buy some new s...
That sounds like fun!
Commented Dec 18, 2014 on Bang Bang Christmas at The Sturdy Soapbox
Bang Bang Christmas
The Coffin Dodgers had their annual Christmas shoot again yesterday. No one had great scores, but the medals were handed out as many are related to long term overall performance. The Dodgers are a friendly group who get together every Wednesday morning at Hereford and Worcester Shooting Ground a...
Black cats are the best!
Commented Dec 17, 2014 on Black Kittens at Surrender, Dorothy
Black Kittens
I am working, at the moment, with a big black cat who used to be an overly-long-yet-still-skinny black kitten asleep in my lap. He has utterly ruined me for the rest of the cat world. I'm in love with black cats. His fur is silky beyond compare and shines in lamplight. He has tiny tufts of white...
I think the Christmas tree hat is my favorite!
Commented Dec 4, 2014 on Tis the season at The Sturdy Soapbox
Tis the season
Anyone who's been reading the Soapbox for any of the years it's been running, will know that I love the Christmas season and for very simple reasons. I like the smell of a real Christmas tree and earlier this week, Wireless Tone came by with a really nice little Nordman fir which will be deo...
Good luck!
Commented Nov 14, 2014 on I'm Scared at Surrender, Dorothy
I'm Scared
The week after I got back from BlogHer '14, I started training for the Longview Half-Marathon. Which is tomorrow. And tomorrow there is this: JACKSON: ...WINTER WEATHER ADVISORY IN EFFECT FROM 6 AM SATURDAY TO MIDNIGHT CST SATURDAY NIGHT... THE NATIONAL WEATHER SERVICE IN KANSAS CITY/PLEASANT ...
We have more problems with the delivery services than the retailers themselves. FedEx in particular likes to deliver our stuff to various random neighbors. We frequently find ourselves cruising slowly through the neighborhood to see if we might spot our missing packages on other people's porches.
Commented Nov 11, 2014 on Rubbish customer service, it's the norm at The Sturdy Soapbox
Rubbish customer service, it's the norm
I've written previously some time ago about the horror stories I've experienced with rubbish customer service. I now have two examples festering on my plate. 3 weeks ago, I ordered a gift for OBC's birthday from Debenhams. They'd sent me an e mail crowing about their amazing range of tailored de...
Dweezil Zappa tours playing some of his dad's music with a lot of his dad's old bandmates and other fantastic session musicians. We saw them perform a few years ago and it was amazing.
Commented Nov 6, 2014 on Do yourself a favour... at The Sturdy Soapbox
Do yourself a favour...
For the last year or so, I've been getting deeply into the work of Frank Zappa and boy is it good. I didn't listen to this sort of stuff when it was current in the 60s 70s and beyond, my musical youth being more Beatles, T Rex, Slade and Osibisa. I will of course listen to things people introd...
Ha! Dr. Jones needs one of those.
Commented Nov 6, 2014 on For Average Jane at The Sturdy Soapbox
For Average Jane
It's a fine public service you're providing for our feathered friends.
Commented Oct 29, 2014 on Not as cute as they look at The Sturdy Soapbox
Not as cute as they look
I can hear you saying it now, oh, isn't he cute. I had to switch from putting seed out on the bird table, to hanging feeders, as frankly the pigeons were pissing me off. If they got an opportunity, they would eat everything in sight leaving not a speck for the smaller bids. I used to get a lot...
I like it!
Commented Oct 24, 2014 on antes y después at Oh, my stars and garters!
antes y después
You like before-and-after pictures?* Woohoo! I have a few more since we did a minor kitchen facelift in September. Here is our kitchen as it'd been for the past seven years. It's okay, right? I like the gray-green and zzzzzz. Yeah, it is kind of drab, and we're extremely clumsy cooks. It wo...
Poor Charlie! Scrubby, scrub, scrub!
Commented Oct 9, 2014 on Charlie Cries for Help at Surrender, Dorothy
Charlie Cries for Help
We have had the hermit crab twins, Charlie and Sebastian, since the little angel turned two. Never in a million years did I think they would live so long. Guess what? If you take care of your hermit crabs properly, they can live up to 40 years in captivity, with an average lifespan of 15 years. ...
I have two good Indian restaurants near my office, both of which have buffets at lunchtime. One is directly across the street within walking distance, but it's tiny and usually packed with people. The other requires a short drive, but it's really good and makes some of the best chana masala I've ever had.
Commented Sep 30, 2014 on A curry night out with the lads at The Sturdy Soapbox
A curry night out with the lads
Junior Cockwomble and Audie Not really had time to write on here for a week or so. Last week, I went out for a curry with Junior Cockwomble and Audie, two old work mates from Valen. Unlike last time, I got to choose the restaurant and I chose the Basmati at Great Barr, a place I have used on...
I've become quite the coffee snob myself. I tend to favor varieties that are described as "earthy" rather than the ones they call "bright" or "fruity." It impresses the baristas anyway.
Commented Sep 8, 2014 on Set up for the morning, oink ! at The Sturdy Soapbox
Set up for the morning, oink !
You know my routine for years on a Saturday has been up at 6, out by 6:30 and on the bus at five to seven to go see Bob the Butcher. I do this because it's a proper butchers with excellent meat, right down to the lovely pork sausages they make. Had two grilled for my breakfast on a soft bun. Two...
I think I have something in my eye...
Commented Sep 3, 2014 on More Than Two at Surrender, Dorothy
More Than Two
Her hair flies back in the wind because the motor's almost shot in Vicki the convertible so the top stays down now. It has to be helped up like an old man out of a chair, and most of the time, we don't feel like dealing with it. We leave ourselves exposed to sun and sky and wind because the sun ...
You'll do fine! Companies always give the new employee a little grace period to get up to speed.
Commented Aug 25, 2014 on Nervous as a kitten at The Sturdy Soapbox
Nervous as a kitten
A week or so ago, I was beyond nervous, I was having nightmares panic attacks etc. McBark (who is a doctor) once told me no one ever died from a panic attack. I take this under advice, but they still aren't very nice when you get on at 4am. The prospect of being sent on unpaid work placement was...
What an interesting story! Thanks for writing it down for posterity. :)
Commented Aug 20, 2014 on Tales from my dim and distant past at The Sturdy Soapbox
Tales from my dim and distant past
I've never had the fortitude to write a book, even if I had the material to hand. I did collaborate on one in the 80s though and here it is. A subject I don't talk about much, because Citizens Band or "Open Channel" as the government wanted to call it became so embarrassingly bad, a kids toy I ...
That kind of thing is really fascinating. Maybe my dog could save someone's life.
Commented Aug 18, 2014 on My dog's got no nose, how does he smell... at The Sturdy Soapbox
My dog's got no nose, how does he smell...
I see that story's in the news again about dogs being able to detect cancer by smell. I know it sounds like an April 1st story, but I actually think there is something in it. When I was poorly with that thing growing on my right kidney, whenever I popped to the pub up the road, one of the doggie...
I have decided that I'm going to hire a new cleaning service once my new job starts. But I will definitely not go the Groupon route to find one.
Commented Apr 9, 2014 on Groupon Will Just Not Clean My House at Surrender, Dorothy
Groupon Will Just Not Clean My House
I really want someone to come clean my house for me. I don't want to pay $100 for it. This is what leads me down the Groupon road, over and over, except this is what happens every single time. 1) Get email from Groupon that includes some half-price home cleaning service. 2) Buy Groupon. Think gi...
I'm still reading, of course! I'm happy to read anything you decide to write.
Commented Apr 9, 2014 on Ten Long Years at Surrender, Dorothy
Ten Long Years
So ... I'm never sure if anyone is still reading my new posts, but if you are ... next month is Surrender, Dorothy's ten- year anniversary. What would you like to see?
That's great! I'm at a new job myself, so I'm behind on my blog reading. Good luck lining up something else soon.
Commented Mar 16, 2014 on So where was I ? at The Sturdy Soapbox
So where was I ?
The closing months of last year brought about a turn for the better, I became gainfully employed. Was asked if I wanted to conduct an analysis of weld test failures for a minimum of three months to help ascertain the resons why the tests were failing. It's a quality related issue, so I have the ...
Poor Kizzy! I'm sending him healing thoughts.
Commented Jan 9, 2014 on Everyone Send Good Juju at Surrender, Dorothy
Everyone Send Good Juju
The little black cat is in the kitty hospital recovering from a blocked urethra. It could've killed him if it went untreated. It hasn't even been a year since we lost Sir Charles Buttonsworth. I really need Kizzy to be okay. Send good juju.
You win for the STP reference in the title. :)
Commented Dec 11, 2013 on Somewhere in the Vaseline at Surrender, Dorothy
Somewhere in the Vaseline
When she got on the bus, I could see the angry bright red skin between her nose and upper lip from twenty feet away. As she changed into her leotard and tights for ballet, I realized her lips were so chapped they were hours away from splitting. Over a week of rubbing tissues against her little f...
Way to go, Rita! I like a 5K as much as the next person but I'm leery of the ones with obstacles because I'm afraid I'll get hurt. You totally rock, even if you did trip over a stick.
;-)
Commented Aug 26, 2013 on Internal Monologue During The Warrior Dash at Surrender, Dorothy
Internal Monologue During The Warrior Dash
[Editor's Note: Prior to running the Warrior Dash, the blogger thought she was a badass. Also note: the blogger used a waterproof disposable camera, but it got "sent off" and will take two weeks to be developed, just like it's 1984, so she's relying on spotty memory of obstacles and their order....
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