Beck and chickens

I saw a Bimbo Bakery delivery truck this morning. With a name like that, I imagine hard working topless young women in hairnets kneading dough at 3AM in the morning, baking fresh loaves of bread just for you and me.

Cross your fingers. I may have gotten the computer running smoothly again. Over 9 months of agonizing, wondering what the heck was wrong with CD and DVD burning, more recently camera memory card uploading. I'm not getting my hopes up. But signs are encouraging tonight. Too complex an explaination. If it turns out that I fixed it, I will be promoted from King of the Nerds to Dictator of the Nerds. Here's to hoping.


Puddles, not poodles.


Yellow beet seedlings. I think. It could be some sort of weed. Who knows.


I hauled all this dirt. Filled it in and tamped it down. Maybe half a ton of dirt. Wet dirt. Uphill. Dammit.


This is probably the fourth sand pile. It keeps growing and shrinking. This pile of sand is relatively large and new. Which is kind of sad because it means there's still lots more work that needs to be done.


Slate's been sitting here for ages...... eons and eons of sub-surface sedimentary rock formation, only to surface and have to wait and wait and wait some more.... yet to be installed.


I just like how the feather is growing out of the grinding wheel.


Zankou Chicken. The same Zankou Chicken immortalized in one of Beck's songs on Midnite Vultures. Zankou Chicken makes me happy. Chicken tarna plate. Red pickles. I'm drooling again as I type this. I think the winky woman behind the counter likes me. She gave me two containers of garlic sauce tonight. Everytime I go, I try to buy a Zankou t-shirt. They never have them. Getting to be as frustrating as that damned ice cream truck that never stops for me. I hate them.


A level showed up tonight. I hope this means they're starting the tile work soon.


Red bag of plastic cement. Showed up tonight also.


Blue bag of portland cement. I have no clue what the difference is between the blue bag and the red bag. And what the heck does a city in Oregon has anything to do with concrete?

Frictions of belly

Je suis déplacé la terre aujourd'hui encore. C'était extraordinairement dur à faire sans une brouette. Je serai endolori demain matin. Un travail entier du jour, mais vraiment rien noticable pour montrer pour lui. Harumph.

Je suis très bummed que mon ordinateur est sur le fritz. Les problèmes avec la presse détachable. Je ne peux pas importer d'image de mon appareil-photo directement. Ni je pouvoir la synchronisation le téléphone via USB. Pour le dépasser de, brûlant CD écrasera la machine aussi. Vraiment ennuyer. La solution stupide sera obligé à sucer dans les photos sur le ipod, et alors importer les photos à l'ordinateur de là-bas. suce.


Ceci est Daisy. Elle me garde la compagnie quand je travaille dans le yard arrière. Les gosses de voisin ne semblent pas la payer la beaucoup d'attention. Daisy vient à la clôture pour moi donner ses frottements de ventre. Chose pauvre. Je manque Preston.


Un gros chat. Molly. Molly habite à la maison de Ken. Comme un caméléon, elle est camoflaged dans ses environs. Je peux comprendre qu'elle traverse. Je sens la façon pareille ce soir.


Sachi a fait pâtes ont inspiré par Giada de Réseau de Nourriture spectacle Italien de tous les jours. Très délicieux. J'ai coupé l'ail et la moitié du rabe de brocolis. C'est été si long puisque j'ai fait n'importe quoi dans une cuisine. Je manque mes jouets de cuisine.

Wet hair, dry feet

Some progress. Wet paint. I'm trying to get excited about progress again. But it really is underwhelming. Another coat of primer on the ceiling. Ho hum. Sheesh. I could have done that in a couple of hours. Is this really all that they can do right now?


Somebody finally swept up the floor. Door knobs showed up in little boxes. At least the water on the floor dried up fairly quickly. Should be good as new. Still needs a few passes with the ole shop vac. Cleaner, but plaster dust is really embedded everywhere.


Some detective work. Uncovered orange walls. I am intrigued. I am considering painting the staircase this orange color. Orange is the color of insanity.


Something to nibble on. Maybe. It's been so wet that mushrooms are growing on my tree stump chair. I hope they're not poisonous. I suspect they are poisonous because Squirrel Thief is still alive. And Squirrel Thief tends to eat everything in my yard. These mushrooms will go very well with the garden gnomes that I plan on hiding in the yard.


Someptin' someptin' getting hummingbird. I wonder..... can you roast a thanksgiving hummingbird in an easy bake oven?

Nugguts

In Denver today. Via South Central LA. Damn shuttle bus. Old lady forgot her purse, then we had to do an emergency pickup in South Central for a wishy washy woman who wasn't ready. I hate shuttle buses.


Bbbrrr..... having trouble breathing at 5000 feet. Lungs don't seem to work too well. Like someone squeezing it all the time. Finished up the last of our focus groups at 10pm. Aie. Tired. But good beer afterwards, of which I've already forgotten the name of. Something to do with A Streetcar Named Desire. Stella....... beer.


I got the tall room at the Hotel Monaco this time. I can jump on the beds not not worry about hitting my head on the ceilings. I'm considering trying to read my Italy books. But dead tired.


The adjustable showerhead for tall basketball players. I'm not anywhere near resembling a tall NBA basketball player, so it's on it's lower settings. I'm also nowhere near being able to afford a million dollar giant pink diamond I'm sorry I'm screwing around with strange hotel concierges ring. But thankfully, I'm not screwing around. I do plan on stealing their nice Aveda bath thingys.


The presidential seat. It's got stars. I'm not feeling especially patriotic right now, so my ass ain't touching it. Training myself to be less American because I'm going to Italy next month. I may get a bunch of Canada patches to sew on my backpack and say "eh" a lot.

Off to Irvine in a few hours. I seriously question our travel schedules. It is just insane.

Blame it on the rain

Still raining. Southern California is basically a disaster area right now. Hail, torrential rain, tornadoes. Hasn't been fun for everybody.

Random thoughts.

I was going to draw little tornados on everybody's office windows.

If Milli Vanilli had stuck it out, they'd be able to cash in on all the royalties of "Blame It On The Rain."


Water seeping in from the corner. Not so bad.


Water seeping in from under and around the back door. Bad.


Water seeping in from foundation. Very bad.


But at least my Japanese tea is kosher.

But I will avoid all this. Off to Denver in a few hours.

Reduce reuse recycle

Disposable dinnerware scarce. I've been using the same paper cup and plastic tray for the entire day. So sad.

Unprecedented record rainstorms in Southern California this winter. Completely putting a monkey wrench in all constuction around here. I'm not the only one suffering. We're all in the same boat so to speak. More like Noah's ark with the rains we've been getting. I'm tired of it. Now it's personal. Rain let up an hour or so for me to do some weeding in the backyard. Thing is, I was pulling weeds that have grown only in the past week. Most of these weeds did not exist last week. Sigh. But any dirty fingernails this weekend is better than no dirty fingernails. And I did get to turn and fluff up the compost. Cold weather slowing down the decomposition, but I like fluffing up decaying vegetation. And weeds add nutrition to the new compost pile.

Sorting and shredding files. Even with my pared down existence, I'm still able to find things to throw out. Feels kinda good to do some "cleansing" of some old paperwork. Unclog the paper plaque that fills the arteries of my life. Anything to procrastinate doing my taxes. I even ironed.

The episode of The Simpsons where Marge does an insane remodel of her kitchen was on again tonight. The cost of her new kitchen was a punchline. I didn't find it funny, because my kitchen is going to cost more.


Ah.... an installed toilet. But mine is still in a box in the middle of the living room. But that's what it would look like without the cardboard shroud.


The past. One of the reasons why I loved this house in the first place. Peaceful, relaxing, private, and inviting. I must remember this when I see the scaffolding, sawdust, mud, and debris.


And the openess in my bedroom is very much a luxury when I don't cram my entire existence into a single room. It will be spacious again. It must. Though I have to admit, I do enjoy having a sofa upstairs. Mayhaps I will look for an danish modern sofa at a vintage furniture store. Small in scale, with thin sexy legs.


I miss having "stuff" in my living room again. I miss my house. There is a toilet in a box where the dining table once was. Poop.

Ghostly soles

Plaster dust is still everywhere. The bottoms of all of my shoes are white.


Rain rain rain. Slow going at the house. They did sand and prime the doors. Pretty new doors. So now everything is matchy matchy. Everything's the color of plaster dust.


Even outside. Primed, and waiting for final color paint. There's still some texturing to do with the stucco, but everything's wet.


Barn doors. The "bling" part of the remodel. This will be the last time I use that word. No more. Now that all the suburban white bread moms are using it. So passe now. I may have to invent a new word to describe the house's badunkadunk.


Photos from new camera. Not sure if quality is any better. Will have to do more testing.


Lumber lumbering around. I nearly trip over these boards everytime I head to the head.

Tuppence a bag

Despite the insufferable V-day, feeling slightly better tonight. The red itchy ears have yet to return tonight. I'm taking that as a good sign. Be gone strange allergic reaction. Be gone.


Ugly door banished. Svelte sexxy one has taken it's place. Hopefully more ugly things in my life get replaced with svelte sexxy things.


Topping. Topping. Topping. 5 bags. Instead of the traditional hot fudge, caramel, strawberry flavors. These are Jesus flavored toppings. You can tell by the fish on the top label. Blessed walls be.


Right now, there's plastic protecting it from the rains again. Plastic obscuring the view. Though, I could probably do a pole dance behind it and have the silhouette give the neighbors heart attacks.


Very fine wood shavings from a block plane. Not sawdust. I am a nerd for knowing that as there are no saws or planes lying nearby.


I've given up on the seedling starting project this season. The seeds do great and sprout, but then conditions in the house aren't conducive for optimal growth. Not enough light inside from all the plastic sheeting on the east side of the house. And though the heating mat is great to get the seeds to sprout, room temperature is still in the 40's at night. Stunted, and then withers away. Hhmmm... kind of sums up my love life.


One of the casualties. The lamp is sad.

This little piggy stayed home

Strange allergic reaction this weekend. The ears became red and itchy. Not suitable to show in public. Benedryl canceled Saturday night plans. Sigh. Absolutely annoying. Reaction certainly stress related, but I have no clue what triggered it. Shampoo? Cashews? Chocolate? Allergic to construction dust? Post-rain mold? Work related? Allergic to love?

I do have to be careful over the next few days with my moodiness. Seems possible that I can become majorly depressed again. I've not been very happy this past week. How did I wind up like this? What the hell am I doing?

For some reason, this description of the new episode of Monk struck me as interesting.

"Mr. Monk Gets Stuck in Traffic"
Monk must deal with being in a traffic jam, caused by a car, containing a corpse, abandoned in the middle of the road.

Sort of rhythmic in a Clue boardgame and tur-duc-ken sort of way. The butler, in the study, with a wrench. A chicken, stuffed in a duck, stuffed in a turkey.


These piggies showed up in my dinner. A bit of levity in an otherwise sad and lonely, red and itchy Saturday night. Humor surely welcome, but very temporary. Tasty though.


This week's cherimoya harvest. As these ripen, I will freeze them. They're normally too sweet to eat by itself, so I'm going to save them for later to cook with. Perhaps cherimoya bread, or more cherimoya ice cream.


I miss Preston.


He misses me too.


I'm tired. It's been nearly five months now. And well, the house thing isn't really that important to me anymore. Fun and exciting in the beginning. Definitely it will be very beautiful when finished. And I'd very much enjoy living in the house once more. But really, it's just a self-indulgent shrine to myself. With all the crap at work, in my social life, and at home right now, I'd like some of them to come to some sort of resolution, but everything is just dragging on. Feeling powerless and alone. What the hell am I doing?

Hurry up dammit

After days of inactivity, I was surprised to see progress when I went outside this morning. Not much progress, as this is maybe 3 hours work for one person. Things are happening v e r y s l o w l y ......

dammit.

But I have to say that they did a very good job in getting the slats to line up with the corners and space them so the fall just right around the pipes and outlets. The door has to go though. I don't like it. A bit on the fugly side. I will make them change it. Make it so.

dammit.


Seedlings transfered to outside. Air circulation is good for them. And they need to be toughened up for the colder outside temperatures. I hope some critter doesn't eat them right now. They're just tender inexperienced youngsters.

dammit.


Wood paneling, homage to New Jersey family rooms.