Rainy Weekend

The furniture that Dave and I picked out and ordered finally arrived yesterday. So we woke up and started cleaning the living room and moving everything out of the way. Part of what needed to happen was the furniture that was in our living room was being moved to the (kids) front room. We took the opportunity to finish spring cleaning and got everything all situated. The new furniture is nice, but it is different. Dave does not really like change, but I'm sure he'll come to love it. The best part is that his old, favorite couch is still in the house and he can go sit on it anytime he wants. In fact, he's been spending more time in that room anyways, listening to his "cans" plugged into the Deep Tracks channel on XM. Then, I can have the other room to myself to either listen to podcasts or watch all my TV shows that he hates. It's perfect. Since we have a Tivo in each room, everyone can have their own shows and watch them wherever they want.

Pepper and Chloe seem to like the new furniture as well. They're very happy with the new location of the old sofa since it allows them to see outside the window and bark at more stuff. Last night there were 2 cats outside and they were going crazy. I finally closed the blinds.

Jeff was up early this morning headed to some video store to get the Pokeman Diamond for his DS. He came home thrilled with his purchase and I doubt we'll see him the rest of the day.

This next week at work is going to be crazy. I start it all off on Monday by leaving early for a haircut. That should make everything else run smoothly as my hair has been driving me absolutely crazy since my bangs are so long and the rest is just overgrown and out of control.

Aaron got his internet working again and is still trying to decide on a phone upgrade. Now he wants to take bake the bike I bought him over Spring Break and get a trick bike instead of the 21 speed mountain bike he picked a month ago. I've got to dig out the receipt and see what Target's policy on such returns is. He also got suspended from school last week, for something stupid (doing something stupid, it wasn't stupid that he got suspended) and I was amazed that he wasn't in worse trouble from his Dad. He called me during the school day that he was home and apparently he had full privileges. I guess I can't expect Bob to know everything I've come to learn in 10 years of single parenting but it seems obvious if you don't punish a child, how do you expect him to be motivated to not do it again? I guess all the more reason he's with his Dad. I miss him like crazy, but I don't miss the trouble, the suspensions, the stress and the worry of the next call from the school or a distressed parent.

In addition to my usual addiction to Podcasts and now Twitter, I've added Stumbling to my list of things to occupy my time online. You install a toolbar into Firefox and when you are ready for a site (you setup categories) you click "Stumble!" and are taken to a random site that someone else has submitted. You then can give it a thumbs up or down. You can also submit sites that you find that might of interest to others. It's a lot of fun and definitely more broad than what I pick up in my Reader and I've found some really interesting stuff.

This last week Adam Curry from the Daily Source Code (on of my oldest and my favorite podcasts) was on vacation and had Mark from PCH filling in for him. It was hilarious! I don't listen to PCH because I think it's a little over the top, but the way that Mark made fun of Adam and pretending like he was tied up in the next room and he was using his laptop and interacting with his fans was priceless. Good times.

Hot and Cold

Last weekend we "decorated" the newly planted tree in the front yard. I even put some flowers around it. Hopefully they make it through the freezing mornings we've had.

Though Spring has sprung, it's really been a variety of weather these days. We had some warm days, followed by wind and then freezing nights again. I hate this time of year because no matter how you're dressed if it's windy, you're going to freeze and be miserable. I'm typically on the cool side so I like to dress warm but then if I go out and do any walking during the day, I roast and sweat. Oh well.

Saturday I went to the Fun Match at Ann Morrison Park and met Heather who showed both Tootsie Pop (Chloe's sister) and Tico. The weather started out nice, but as the clouds built up and the wind picked up it definitely cooled down. By the time we left, I was glad I was headed back indoors.

Saturday night Dave's friend Rick got married. It was a nice, simple ceremony and there were some of Dave's work friends there so I mostly visited with their wives. It was nice to get out and dress up, though I didn't wear anything fancy because the party was originally suppose to be outside I was (again) afraid of being cold.

Sunday I really just lounged around and even took a long nap. I spent a good part of the day up in the guest room with the computer, the Tivo, a stack of magazines and my heater blanket. I sewed up some of the girls' toys that had been ripped open and also straightened up the desk a bit more.

The last few weeks, I've really been struggling with depression and missing Aaron. It seems to get harder as time goes on and not easier like I thought it would. Combine that with being crazy busy and stressed at work and trying to workout and diet to lose weight for summer clothes and it's just overwhelming. The first phase in the work changes will happen on the 28th. We will be changing from GroupWise to Outlook for our email. This is going to be a MAJOR change for people and I'm really nervous about how it's going to go. Also at the end of the month, my gym that I've come to enjoy so much is closing. The owner has it for sale, but I doubt that someone would buy it and keep it open for business in such short time. I've been walking the dogs in addition to biking to the gym and working out so I'll just have to start taking longer walks. I've looked into joining the YMCA and may do that just so I have somewhere to go for Yoga/Pillates. I do enjoy that.

I really thought that once Aaron got his computer that I took him over Spring Break, I would hear from him more. I've emailed him more and still never hear from him. He calls when something isn't working right or he has question. I sent him money to get new pants since he apparently ripped his new pair that I bought him last month. I also sent him money for Easter since I had no idea what to get him or send him. I talked to him yesterday and it seems as though the one unsecured access point he was using at the apartment complex him and his Dad live in got locked down so now he has no internet :( I reminded him that his Dad said he would get him internet if he had a computer, so we'll see what happens next.

With the whole Twitter / Jaiku debacle (Leo leaving Twitter) I'm glad to see most like me, have stayed with Twitter and just signed up for Jaiku and put the feed in. I think that's an excellent solution. Twitter is fun, I enjoy seeing what others are up to, especially the ones I listen to their podcasts.

Spring Cleaning

Almost another month has flown by. After our trips, having company and both of us working a ton, we've started Spring Cleaning. This is mostly finishing moving in for me, but Dave is working on the yard and outside. After two weeks, it looks really nice. I finally got the linens put away this weekend and boy am I glad to have that done! I literally had 6 yard size trash bags full of linens to incorporate back into Dave's already full linen closet. It was all in there before, so I knew it was possible, but it was definitely like building the Flintstones closet.

I've still been going to the gym 4 times a week and have even been riding my bike to and from (1 mile each direction). I don't think I've lost any weight, but my clothes are fitting better. I didn't walk the dogs this past week because Madison has been over and a few days it was windy and I just didn't feel like it. So, I need to get back into that this week.

Another project I did this week was to swap out the "storage" pc to a faster one. The storage PC has all my music and audio books and I also sync it to the video ipod so it has my video podcast subscriptions. The old storage PC is going to become a true network storage for our home network and I'm going to try to use FreeNAS that I heard about on Dl.TV. Yes, all this because I watched a video podcast on home storage and thought it would be cool.

I've only talked to Aaron a few times when he's needed tech support on either using the Slingbox remotely or having me give his Dad the password to the ComputerTime program running on his PC.

Jeff was on spring break this past week and has recently gotten a job at Albertson's as a courtesy clerk. He seems to like it ok and I think at his age, it's definitely a good idea to work and if he's ever going to drive, he'll want the money.

As far as websites and podcasts, nothing really new, still Twittering and Folding and keeping up with all my favorite shows. I did sign up for Virb from Cali's recommendation and have been looking for old friends on MySpace.

Whirlwind March

I can't believe it's been almost a month since I last posted. But then I think about how much stuff has been going on and I'm not surprised. I think I last wrote when I was in Ketchum and that started the craziness.

After I came back from Ketchum I left for Nevada on Friday, March 9th to pick up Aaron. The weather was good and I made good time to Sparks. Aaron and I unloaded the car with all the stuff I brought him and then went on to my Dad's in Georgetown, CA. There we met up with my 2 step-sisters Rayleen and Alecia. Alecia's daughter Neira was cuter than I could have ever imaged. She's almost 3 and super smart. Her and Aaron seemed to get along well. I was proud of Aaron for how he was with her. We spent 2 nights there and then went onto Sacramento. We went by Alecia's place and then while Rayleen went home, Aaron and I went to see Jen. This is my friend since the 3rd grade and she grew up in Garden Valley and went through the same schools as I. We used to get kicked out of everything we did together because we could never stop laughing. It was great to see her and her cute apartment. She is blond and cute as a button and looks like Sarah Jessica Parker who I am a big fan of. I unfortunately did not get to meet her daughter as she was with her Dad. From the pictures, she's a mini-me of Jen.

In Sacramento, we also saw my friend Tricia who I met when she was pregnant with her son Sean, who just turned 15. She is a great woman who is done an excellent job at being a single mother. We spent the night with them and then went onto Auburn. After we got checked into a hotel, we took a drive up to ForestHill across the big scary bridge I don't think I've ever been on, but you see each time you go through the canyon from Auburn to Mom / Dad's in Georgetown/Garden Valley. We stopped at Lake Clementine and looked at the dam close up.

The next morning, I drove Aaron back home and we did some shopping in Sparks. We got him a bike for his Dad's, a desk for his computer, some food and his birthday present which was a hydro rocket. His 12th birthday is tomorrow and I am very sad that I won't be spending it with him. Even though I saw him and bought him presents and sent him a card this week, it's just not the same as being around him for the day and celebrating.

I ended up coming back a day early sine we didn't go to the Bay Area, I didn't want to pay for another night's hotel so I just came home. Aaron was happy because he got to spend a day at home with his computer, scooter and new bike before him and his Dad left for their trip to AZ to see his other grandparents.

When I got back, Dave was still gone on his trip to WI for management training for his new job. He was supposed to be home the next night, but ended up getting stuck in Chicago due to flight delays. I spent 3 nights at home without him and missed him terribly. When you're away from home, it's a lot easier to be without the people you usually see. Heather watched the girls while we were both gone and when I picked them up, we had a nice visit. Dave got home Friday and the next day his Mom came to visit. She flew home Tuesday so this weekend we are looking forward to sleeping in and finally having some down time and relaxing. I still have a lot of unpacking and organizing to do, but I've realized it's not going anywhere and if it's been boxed up this long and I haven't needed it, it's probably not the end of the world if I don't get to every last box anytime soon. I would like to get the garage organized enough so Dave can park inside again, but it is nice having the extra room all to myself :)

Packing in the Snow Part Deaux

So, I have learned a very valuable lesson when blogging. Apparently you can't "recover post" unless you've at some point done a "save as draft" at least with Blogger.com. I spent over 2 hours working on a long post Wednesday and when the power went off at the office, I lost everything. It's funny since I do user support for a living and always tell users to "save, save and then save again" and I hadn't saved myself. Ooops.

Last weekend we continued moving stuff out of my rental house over to Dave's as I am moving back in and need to be out of the rental by the end of March. Sunday we went furniture shopping again and actually found a sofa and snuggle chair that we ordered. It will takes 10 weeks for them to come, but now that frees me up to sell my loveseat. I've had my loveseat and entertainment center since 1989 when I lived in the Bay Area, renting a small room at my Aunt & Uncle's house in Redwood City. I've sure moved them around a lot and am happy that I won't have to move them again. I still need to get them listed on craigs list.

Sunday after Dave and I went furniture shopping we stopped by Cobby's on the way home and had some delicious sandwiches, soup and a pitcher of beer. It started snowing out and it was a nice afternoon. When we got home, Dave re-proposed, so I've got my ring back! Yeah!

Thursday (yesterday, seems to long ago) I headed to Sun Valley to come to the Ketchum branch of HTEH to do RAM upgrades, personality captures and swap out some PC's and bring back a bunch of old equipment. The Subaru I rented is now loaded up with pc's and monitor's to go back to Boise later today.

I recorded episode 10 of the Mind and Body Cast last night and announced the show will be going on a temporary hiatus until June when school gets out and Aaron comes to visit for the summer. I was listening to Tee Morris on Podcasting for Dummies and had read another blog post that Adam shared and agree that if you're going to take a break, just let your listeners know. So that's what I decided to do. We may do a Bonus Episode over Spring Break when I see him. Also, I'll be taking him his computer and his Dad said he would get him internet, so maybe when he has a PC, we can do recordings together remotely. It's just too weird for me to do the show by myself.

After I get Aaron from his Dad's in Sparks, NV, we will head to Dad's and stay over for the weekend. My step-sister Rayleen is coming up from the Bay Area and then we're going to see her sister Alecia in Sacramento on Sunday. I haven't seen her in probably almost 10 years, since Rayleen's wedding. She has a little girl and I believe is expecting again so it will be fun to catch up with her.

This week I broke down and bought another Ipod. I have a 5G video and love it, but since I've been working out, it's too big for that so I've been using Dave's shuffle. Well, since I listen to podcasts and not music, it doesn't work very well for that, so I went ahead and ordered a 4gig pink Nano. I love it!!! So now I sync the Nano with my laptop which has podcasts and then the video will sync with my PC at work here I have music and now the video podcasts that I watch. For those interested, since I had to make a list and re-subscribe to them all, here are the shows I watch (all searchable in Itunes):

Rumor girls
ABC News 20/20
ABC News Medical
Amanda on ABC
Cesar Milan
Command N
Cranky Geeks
D & D TV
DL.TV
DogBlog
Geek Brief
Hound TV
Joel Osteen
Joyce Meyer
Labrats
Mobuzz
Pet Trends
Rabbit Bites
Starring Amanda
Daily 10's Hollywood Rap Up
Masthead
VideoVoom
YaZooMa


For this week's new technical sites and things, I've just been updating Twitter and started listening to Tom Merrit's Real Deal podcast. It's really good. I've listened to Tom for a while with Molly and Veronica on Buzz Out Loud, but I'm really enjoying Tom on his own. His podcasts are brief, concise and very helpful, even for a nerd like me :)

Packing in the Snow

I spent over 2 hours working on this post and was almost finished with links and then lost power. I'm frustrated and not going to re-write it today.

Crazy Busy

Last weekend was a 3 day weekend for President's Day and Dave and I painted the former Matt/Aaron room to make into a "guest" room or my "office/scrap/MK/media" room when not otherwise occupied. Yes, I am moving back in with Dave and that fun began last weekend also. After 6 months of living apart, we decided we can't go another day without each other. Or, living in a rental a mile a away is more of a hassle than its worth since I started staying over there all the time after Aaron went to live with his Dad.

So we painted, shopped and moved stuff over the weekend. Sunday, I met Heather for lunch and the movies. We saw Because I Said So which was a total chic flick, but fun to see with a girlfriend. Dave stayed home and finally swapped out Jeff's door that we had to buy like 6 times because Lowe's kept drilling the hinge places wrong. Well, I guess this last time it was still wrong so he had to hand dig out the spots for the hinges. When I found that out, I was glad I was gone! That door has been a nightmare since Aaron kicked a hole in it 3 years ago when him and Jeff were home alone and having some sort of disagreement.

Work has been crazy busy also with a huge migration project getting started which will involve changing all the desktop pc's out in a time period of 2 weeks. Typically this takes 6 months to do, so it will be interesting. On top of this daunting project is the fact that my wonderful assistant who has been with us almost a year, put in his notice on Tuesday. I'm very happy that he's found a job more suited to what he's learning in school, but I'm totally bummed that he's leaving and even more stressed about the timing.

I've been following the Free Trinity google group that Adam Curry started which is the project to get his biodiesel station wagon driven across the country to visit podcasters and deliver the Mercedes to it's new owners which live on the East coast. It's very exciting project. I was disappointed that Barbara, the Project Manager said Trinity probably wouldn't come through Idaho because it's too cold here :( Bummer. But I'm on the list so we'll see!

I've still been using Twitter and having fun making badges for my various sites and even did one for this blog. My blog is becoming a real catch all for all my stuff and I even put links to the podcast on the sidebar. Speaking of the podcast, I am overdue for a show and have one all prepped, just need to find 30 minutes to sit down and record. Hopefully, I can get to it before I go visit Aaron in March so the next show will be the two of us again. I hate doing it without him, it seems odd to sit and talk alone. It was always the plan that we would sit and chat about whatever topic we were covering and that made it a lot more fun. I still enjoy it, but it's just not the same.