Crazy Cleo's House of Cheese

I'm not dead yet...... Really!

2005-01-08T13:07:00.000-06:00

To all of you who have cared enough to miss me - thank you!!!! Sorry I've been off-radar so long, but it's been a chaotic couple of months. The short version.... Mike and I are engaged!!!! <> We've set a date of March 11, 2006, which gives us plenty of time between his exams and the holidays and stuff. Charlie the kitten broke my PC monitor. I came home to find the monitor broken on the

Iowa

2004-11-05T07:12:00.000-06:00

Went to Iowa last weekend to meet Mike's family. It was actually quite a lot of fun!! Mike thinks they all love me, which is good. And I like all of them, so it all works out. And we ate at this kick ass "grill your own meat" restaurant. You go to the cooler, pick a ginormous steak, and throw it on a huge grill for as long as you like. Mike's brother grilled for all of us, and it was DAMN good.

Postmortem

2004-11-05T07:07:00.000-06:00

Wow. Tuesday and Wednesday were quite disheartening for me. But I am taking some comfort that, at least THIS time, it was a real election, with real results. No funny business, no hanky panky -- well, at least not much. While my initial reflex was to take Mike and the critters and move to Australia, that inclination has passed. Now, I want to stand and fight. This "mandate" business scares the

Vote!!!! Please.

2004-11-02T06:22:00.000-06:00

Yall know where I stand, but to be honest, I just want you to vote, no matter who for. Though if I find out you voted for Keyes, I may thump your head. Go forth. Become empowered. And democratize.

My cousin's wedding

2004-10-22T15:48:00.000-05:00

So I know I mentioned that my favorite cousin got married. This occasioned a trip back home to Ohio, which I usually enjoy anyway. This, coupled with the chance to see extended family that I haven't seen in forever, well..... I was excited! The rehearsal dinner was Friday, and the wedding was Saturday. Both were just great! It was the first time I had met my cousin's wife, and she was so sweet

Parrot

2004-10-22T15:35:00.000-05:00

So we hired this girl to work in neuro a while back. She had worked in research medicine, and done all sorts of cool stuff, and we were fairly excited about having her. Well, things didn't work out quite as we had expected. She was very high strung, and quit once in the first week because the doctor told her she needed to be on time, and only had half an hour for lunch. Yeah, *that* kind of high

Ex stuff

2004-10-20T16:32:00.000-05:00

So I emailed the ex to let him know about Cleo. I also asked if he had a pic of her, so I could put it with her urn. I didn't hear from him at all until Sunday night, when I got an email saying that the pics, with four boxes of my stuff, were on the porch and if I didn't get them by Wednesday, he would toss them. I can understand why it is that he would hate me. (Reasons I don't care to go into

Eternal Sunshine

2004-10-20T13:20:00.000-05:00

Watched this movie last night. Not sure what to think. Not a happy story, or even a nice story, by any stretch. Some neat quotes, though. I guess I was just disturbed by the idea that people would erase their memories, just because they're painful, and lose the ability to learn from them. And then found myself wondering if any of my exes would do that, to forget me. I suspect the most recent one

For later

2004-10-18T10:06:00.000-05:00

Parrot Wedding Jersey Girl Cleaning Ex stuff

New Job

2004-10-18T10:01:00.000-05:00

Also, started the new job. That's sucked up a lot of my time, and I don't have a desk anymore, so no computer access during the day. But.... In some ways it's better. Better hours, definitely. Hell, I have today off!!! Yay me!!!! But I'm frustrated. My co-workers are all 'certified', meaning they went to school and sat for the national boards. Me, I've just worked at this for like 5 years. So

Charlie

2004-10-18T09:58:00.000-05:00

Yeah, I know, I've been remiss. Many, many reasons, but the biggest is - I got a new kitten. His name is Charlie. He's darling and funny and loves my other critters. He's black and fuzzy, and will probably have long hair that will shed everywhere and give him hairballs. Emma was afraid of him at first, but they've gotten over that. Last night, as Mike and Emma and I sat on the couch, he jumped

Balance

2004-10-07T14:04:00.000-05:00

Fortunately, I got some balance at work today, in the form of newborn (2 day old) kittens. It was just what I needed, to see new lives starting. And a darling orange tabby kitten who's neurologically not right, but so very sweet. I love him. Yeah, today hasn't been all bad. But I still wish it were over!

Codes

2004-10-07T13:59:00.000-05:00

We have three different codes here. A green dot means go for it, crack their chest, internal defib, the whole nine yards. A yellow dot means drugs and CPR. A red dot means no code, just let them go. I had a red dot code on me today. I almost resuscitated her, not thinking about it. But she needed to go to heaven. Her owners were trying to get her a kidney transplant, which is great. But she

Dick Cheney is evil incarnate

2004-10-06T09:11:00.000-05:00

Okay, not the most fair and balanced title, but it's true!! I could go into a bunch of reasons and documentation that show how Dick was distorting at best, and flat out lying at worst last night, but I just am not that ambitious. For a decent (if left-leaning) critique, check out Talking Points Memo. Hell, check it out anyway. Ever seen They Live? It's a cheesy sci-fi movie about how aliens have

Thank you

2004-10-06T09:09:00.000-05:00

To everyone who had kind words for me about Cleo, thank you so very much. Monday and Tuesday were very very very hard. Frankly, it's still hard, but getting easier. The other critters miss her, but then, so do I. But I appreciate all your warm thoughts and comforting words. It made an awful day easier.

How to make a 'redsonja'

2004-10-06T08:57:00.000-05:00

How to make a redsonja Ingredients: 5 parts competetiveness 3 parts silliness 3 parts empathy Method: Add to a cocktail shaker and mix vigorously. Top it off with a sprinkle of fitness and enjoy! Username: Personality cocktail From Go-Quiz.com

Sweet dreams

2004-10-04T09:21:00.000-05:00

Just euthanized Cleo this morning. My poor, sweet, retarded girl had gotten progressively worse with the spraying. And the no-kill shelter wouldn't take her, because she wasn't adoptable. So rather than take her to a "traditional" shelter, where she would sit for a few days, be scared to death, and THEN go to heaven, I thought I should do it myself. She sat on my lap, scared but still snuggling

Stung

2004-10-01T11:16:00.000-05:00

So Emma's face is all swollen today. Poor thing apparently got stung or something. So she had to come to work with me today so I could 1) make sure it didn't get any worse and 2) give her some benadryl. It's helped, but now she's mad at me. Probably because I gave her the benadryl with a needle in her butt muscles. I love my job....

Debates

2004-10-01T11:10:00.000-05:00

Watched last night. Personally, I think Kerry kicked Bush's ass, but I am biased. Watched on CSPAN, which showed both candidates split-screened the whole time. Very instructive. Kerry takes notes, Bush fidgets, grimaces, and rolls his eyes. Besides that (admittedly shallow) observation, I thought Kerry was much more articulate, and managed to succintly state his positions. I think Bush just

Hospital Administrator

2004-09-29T14:32:00.000-05:00

In case anyone cares, we hired a new hospital administrator. His resume includes building a new building for Alameda East animal hospital - from Emergency Vets. I'm excited, but frankly surprised we can afford him. So we get to meet him on Tuesday. Yay us!

Scarred

2004-09-29T14:29:00.000-05:00

I love my job. Especially today, wherein I nearly lost an eye. No, really. We were taking xrays on a dog, and trying to get him to lay on his back. I had the back legs. Suddenly, he starts flailing around and manages to drag a rear paw down the side of my face, just missing my eye. (We're talking by millimeters!) So now I have some lovely gouges, that will hopefully heal by next weekend, and my

Pics

2004-09-28T13:05:00.000-05:00

For pics of the two of us..... Go here. Login is sonja1023@gmail.com. Password is 'password'. Enjoy!!

Slacking off

2004-09-28T11:46:00.000-05:00

Sadly, I have been falling behind on the blogging thing. Partly due to lack of time, partly due to lack of angst. There hasn't been much, thank god!!! Once I change departments, it will fall off even more, mostly because I won't have access to a computer during the workday. Ah well. But I'm trying to do better. Really. :)

Wedding Madness

2004-09-27T15:50:00.000-05:00

My cousin -- well, to be honest, my favorite cousin -- is getting married in less than two weeks. So I'll be driving back to Ohio. Which is a lot of fun, in and of itself. But it gets better.... Not only do I have to come up with an outift for the wedding, which has sucked enough, but now we're going to the rehearsal dinner, as well. AUGH!!!!!!! So now poor little old me has to come up with yet

Road trips

2004-09-27T15:32:00.000-05:00

I like road trips. But they're not too much fun when you're the only one going. Such was this weekend, or at least the driving portion. But I had a trashy James Patterson novel on CD, and so it wasn't too bad. My parents are well. My sister is enjoying marching band, and they played extraordinarily well Saturday night. Ran into my fifth grade teacher, which was rather surreal. Saw kids that I

Mike's mom

2004-09-24T11:18:00.000-05:00

Has been very supportive through the stress of the whole "do-my-parents-hate-Mike-before-they-meet-him?" situation. Here's an email she sent me..... K is Mike's sister. I'm going to be serious for a minute Amy. It will be interesting to see if your family can tell a difference in YOU because of having Michael in your life. It was SO clear to me when I saw Michael in person. Of course I could

Emma the Hero

2004-09-24T10:46:00.000-05:00

Emma's a blood donor. Yes, dogs and cats get blood transfusions. And yes, they have different blood types. Emma happens to be the doggy equivalent of O-. So every two months, like clockwork, we bleed her. Today was easy, because she was already here. She's so good about it. She does get some happy drugs, a mild pain medication to mellow her out, because she hates the whole deal. So she's

Road Trip

2004-09-24T06:49:00.000-05:00

Leaving today to visit the family. It's about a six hour drive without traffic. Here in Chicago, that's how we say it. "It's about a ______ hour drive, without traffic." Because traffic is a variable all its own. There have been times it has taken me 3 hours to drive the seventy odd miles to the state line. So, the goal today is to avoid that. I'm going to leave straight from work, and leave

Parents (take two)

2004-09-23T13:34:00.000-05:00

Whew. Got a clarifying email from my dad last night, explaining what he and my mom meant. Apparently they've had a lot of stuff going on at home lately, and are uber stressed out, and aren't up to a new guest. That's what I was hoping they meant, but it's always too easy to go with the worst case scenario. So, with my high spirits restored, I'm getting set to visit. Have packed my bags, which

Parents

2004-09-22T13:25:00.000-05:00

I love my parents. Really. Things haven't always been great between us, but they're family, and lately they've been sooooooo supportive. So yesterday I emailed them to see if Mike could come with me to visit them this weekend. I REALLY REALLY REALLY want them to meet him, since he's such an important part of my life. Imagine my surprise when my stepmother's response was that she didn't have the

Questions

2004-09-19T22:11:00.000-05:00

asked and answered. Happy tears. An amazing weekend. Glad I was lying down.

Ack!

2004-09-17T10:54:00.000-05:00

I can't believe I forgot - a big thank you to all of you for missing me. Makes me feel warm and fuzzy, despite this crappy crappy cold. And don't worry - should I be abducted by aliens, I'm sure they'll put me back. :)

What feeling do you represent?

2004-09-17T09:48:00.000-05:00

You represent... happiness. Boy, are you full of cheer or what...? You have a sunny disposition and enjoy trying to spread your happiness. You have a tendency to be a little hyper, but you have the ability to make your own fun no matter what. What feeling do you represent? brought to you by Quizilla

Survivor

2004-09-17T08:49:00.000-05:00

So, Mike is a Survivor addict. Me, I managed to never watch a single episode, until last night. Sadly, I think the show is so well known, that the contestants try to think too hard. For instance - last night, one guy was obviously not as fit as the others. And he used the phrase "raining like pouring piss out of a boot on a flat rock". (I'm not making that up, I wish I were.) Yet, rather than get

New Orleans

2004-09-17T08:47:00.000-05:00

Dodged another hurricane. I'm so glad. Have I mentioned that I love that city?

Rolla

2004-09-17T08:43:00.000-05:00

So, a few weekends ago, we watched Spellbound, the documentary about the national spelling bee. One of the kids was from Rolla!!!! So they showed some footage of it, and --- wow. The kid's family was uber-redneck, and all I could think was "How does Jess survive there?????"

Cold germs

2004-09-17T07:02:00.000-05:00

Apparently are super stealthy. I felt wonderful last night, went for a walk, made dinner, watched (with a healthy dose of mockery) Survivor, - and then, suddenly, realized my throat hurt. Just a little. Not even twenty minutes later, I could feel my nose stuffing up. By the time I got home, I was miserable. Which is why I was up so early this morning - my throat hurt too bad, and I had to get up

Exhaustion, or How to Kill a Tech in Just Three Days

2004-09-16T14:27:00.000-05:00

First things first - I am dating the best man in the world. He has fed me, walked my dog, made me drinks, and tucked me in through this horrible, exhausting week. I am so very, very lucky. Okay, that out of the way.... Where to begin. The weekend was okay, but I was feeling low enough that I didn't much enjoy it. But we did discover this amazingly wonderful drink concoction - banana flavored rum

Still alive

2004-09-16T09:58:00.000-05:00

I'm not dead yet. Thank god. I'm actually feeling better, and would have blogged sooner, but work has kicked my ass. Literally. I already have 35 hours for the week when I clocked in this morning. Hopefully I'll have time to write more later, not that it's been that interesting a week or anything. Oh, and sounds like everyone is doing okay. I'm glad! Enjoy the new car, the trip, the exciting (

Memes to make me chuckle

2004-09-08T11:35:00.000-05:00

Bettie Boop Who 's Your Inner Sexy Cartoon Chick ? brought to you by Quizilla You're Betty Grable! What Classic Pin-Up Are You? brought to you by Quizilla You're a water Dragon! Congrats! Like ice dragons,you are extremly powerful, but show it moreoften. You are a leader, and like to speak youropinion. AND, you are charming, swift, andgreat at dancing. You enjoy getting stuck in therain,

Laying low

2004-09-08T10:04:00.000-05:00

Sorry I've been crappy lately, but just feeling - well, ick. And when I feel ick, I tend to duck out of the world for a while, conserve energy and all. I'll be better soon, and I promise I'll catch up then.

Long time, no post

2004-09-07T09:26:00.000-05:00

Yeah, busy weekend. Well, not all that busy. More just that logging in and posting seemed like too much work. Oh well. So, went up to Chris's family's cottage in Wisconsin Friday night. That was kinda awkward, because we beat Chris and Yolanda there, so it was me and Mike, Chris's mom (who's a real piece of work, let me tell you!) and her drunken friends. Whee. Fortunately Chris and Yolanda

2004-09-03T14:25:00.000-05:00

This is too freaking funny. Check out the third picture from the top. Specifically, look out the window....

Adults Only

2004-09-03T13:37:00.000-05:00

Foreplay for couples. A really neat site, especially if you're looking for a new twist on stuff. Or just to distract your partner at work.

Kindergarten

2004-09-03T13:27:00.000-05:00

I spent a lot of time in daycare growing up. My parents divorced when I was very, very small, and Mom had to keep working, so I went to Children's World (I just went to link it, and they've closed the one I went to. That makes me sad...) five days a week from about age 3 on. Apparently I was sorta precocious. In fact, I got bored. And when I got bored, I caused trouble. Mostly whining and

Phone call

2004-09-03T08:51:00.000-05:00

So I got this surreal phone call from my half sister yesterday. She's on my mom's side, eight years younger than me. She's not a bad kid, she's just - young. And fairly spoiled. Anyway. She called me to see if I wanted to move back to Ohio to move in with her because "men suck and we need to get our lives together". Or something to that effect. Now, this is totally out of the blue. I haven't

Happy dance

2004-09-03T08:49:00.000-05:00

It's Friday!!! Yay!!!! Leaving tonight for a friend's cottage for the weekend. Looking forward to just hanging out, going to a rural fair, getting hammered, and having a bonfire. It will be mucho mucho fun. However, it's likely we won't leave until late, because I'm the "senior" tech here today for neurology, so I get to scrub in on the surgery he's going back in on today. Whee. And surgery has

Spoke too soon

2004-09-02T10:38:00.000-05:00

Alan Keyes hasn't shut up yet. Yesterday he called Dick Cheney's daughter a sinner, and called homosexuality "hedonistic selfishness" or "selfish hedonism", I can't remember which. Even the Republicans are calling his comments "idiotic" and the like. Finally. I still think they should've just let Obama run unopposed, so Keyes could jump into the presidential race again. And again. I need the

Is it just me

2004-09-02T10:34:00.000-05:00

or did Zell Miller come off looking like a rabid sewer rat last night? Okay, that's probably a bit biased, but still. I mean, why the hell is he so - angry??? Oh, I bet I know - because he's a Dixiecrat, and Clinton didn't lean that way, even though he was from the South. Oh, and they had an African-American keynote speaker. I bet that really chapped his hide. Okay, done on the soapbox. For now

Awww, how sweet

2004-09-01T16:55:00.000-05:00

Neurology got jealous when I did a CT for another department... It's good to be loved!

Spiderman and crayons

2004-09-01T11:45:00.000-05:00

Umgawa put this link up on his site, and it cracked me up. Spiderman Reviews Crayons

Interviewees

2004-09-01T11:44:00.000-05:00

Not for my job, for the hospital administrator job. I actually like this one - he acknowledged my existence!! Sadly, very unusual for administration around here. Apparently he helped a very famous hospital get their new building built, and it looks fantabulous!!! (I don't want to say here, in case he hasn't told them he's looking....) I have high hopes. Sadly, chances are good that we won't be

This weekend

2004-09-01T11:40:00.000-05:00

Going up to a friends' cottage in Wisconsin for the weekend. Taking Mike and Emma, which means I have no reason to come home. Ever. We're planning on hitting the Walworth County Fair, which I incorrectly listed on Sunny's blog as the Wadsworth county fair. Oh well. I'd invite her down, but it's kinda far, and probably can't compare to the Shawano fair, anyway! Before, though, need to get

Slutty teacher story

2004-09-01T11:35:00.000-05:00

Jess, you inspired me! :) When I was a sophomore in high school, I was in Honors English. I really don't know what that meant, except we had to read crappier stuff than the kids in the other classes. I never did figure out the symbolism of the sharks' order of appearance in the Old Man and the Sea was.... But. Anyway. Our teacher was Ms. Woods. Cheerleading advisor, chain smoker, frequently

Good to be healthy

2004-09-01T11:31:00.000-05:00

I'm feeling SOOOOOOOOOOOO much better!!! (I inserted those extra letters in there for emphasis. Not because I don't know how to spell.) Amazing what nearly 10 hours of sleep will do for you when you're sick. All sorts of interesting stuff going on here, but I think I'm going to break things up into smaller, more edible pieces. Easier than reading one big long novel. Plus, it'll get my post count

GOP

2004-08-31T10:29:00.000-05:00

I have not been able to independently verify this, but I've heard tell that the Iowa caucus showed up at the convention wearing buttons that say "God's Own Party" or "God's Original Party." God's own party, translated into Arabic -- Hezbollah. I think my head just exploded from the irony.

Still sick

2004-08-31T10:26:00.000-05:00

So as soon as I finish this damn MRI, I'm going home. I spent much of yesterday afternoon, once I got home, puking my guts out. Took a shower, ended up sleeping in the bottom of the shower till the hot water ran out. (That's a favorite sickie pastime for me. Don't ask me why, I don't know.) By then Mike was over, and made me chicken noodle soup and grilled cheese. I waited to make sure the soup

Wil Wheaton

2004-08-30T10:21:00.000-05:00

Is actually a fairly cool guy. He's come a ways since being Wesley Crusher. Anyway - he has a blog! Who knew?

Monday Memes

2004-08-30T10:15:00.000-05:00

Brownie- Your like a brownie you melt on people and people stick to you your kind and affectionate. Your a good listener whether you know it or not and people look up to you no matter how they act everybody has a place for you in their heart. JUNK FOOD QUIZ! What junk best decribes you? brought to you by Quizilla

Weekend Update

2004-08-30T08:51:00.000-05:00

(On an utterly unrelated note, I couldn't stand Weekend Update with Colin Quinn. He is so utterly unfunny. I'm not sure if Kevin Nealon or Dennis Miller were the best, but it was so NOT Colin Quinn.) A mostly good weekend up here in Six Flags territory. Friday night went out to dinner at this place, which has utterly yummy food, and a pretty fun atmosphere. Then we went and saw Hero, the Jet Li

Life is good

2004-08-27T14:15:00.000-05:00

I'm realizing, while perusing others' blogs, that my life really has very little drama in it. I am so fucking grateful. I mean, stuff happens to piss me off or whatever, but I have food, a roof over my head, transportation, a job, and people who love me. I'm not a candidate for a Springer show, or even Maury. I'm not in love with a married man. Or woman, for that matter. I have a great dog. I'm

Anacondas

2004-08-27T14:14:00.000-05:00

I want to see this movie soooooo badly! But Mike's vetoed it. I wonder why.

Bitchfest 2004

2004-08-27T08:06:00.000-05:00

I hate all-employee work meetings. Especially here. We have a large staff, and many of them are spoiled and narrow-minded. So frequently these meetings turn into a "Well, surgery does this" and "Neuro does that" and we get to hear every grievance everyone has ever had. I get frustrated, at least in part because I feel like there's a place and time for stuff like that, and a 7AM all-staff meeting

Ha!

2004-08-27T05:40:00.000-05:00

You know how they do traffic reports on the morning news? Well, I just heard that traffic was slow because of "the taste of grease" going on on some thoroughfare. It took me a while to figure out that they said "the Taste of Greece". (The Taste being a food festival we have here.....) I love homophones!

Life's too short

2004-08-26T14:52:00.000-05:00

When I was in high school, we had a rash of student deaths. One boy, older than me, passed away from cystic fibrosis. An elementary school girl had her jacket string caught on the hand rail of a school bus, and was dragged to death. And we had three suicides. The first was a kid at the county juvenile corrections house. Nobody really knew him, but it was - odd. Hard to imagine life just ending

Random thoughts

2004-08-26T13:21:00.000-05:00

Umgawa thinks I'm a raving liberal. I'm not sure I agree with the raving part. I think I'm usually fairly lucid. But I'm okay with the liberal. He also has a great pop culture blog. My boss has so much trouble with computers, it's sad. Yesterday he gave me a URL for some animal imaging center in Cincinnati. He had me go to the site and PRINT EVERY PAGE, because he can't use the internet. Fucking

Yech

2004-08-26T11:56:00.000-05:00

I feel gross. Nauseated gross. And not because I've been reading about sunny and B, either. I think it's my ulcer, but let me back up. I have (of course) been eagerly awaiting my transfer to another department. After fighting for about two months to get said transfer to happen, the next task was then to get someone hired to replace me. Now, besides the self-serving "Nobody can replace me"

Beef Taco Casserole

2004-08-25T12:32:00.000-05:00

Last night's dinner - super duper easy, and pretty damn good. 1 lb ground beef 3/4 cup sour cream 1 can navy beans (or pintos, or mexi corn, whatever floats your boat) 1 pkg taco seasoning 1 jar chunky salsa tortilla chips 2 cups shredded cheese of your choice Preheat oven to 350. Brown ground beef, drain. Mix beef, sour cream, beans, seasoning, and salsa. Layer into casserole, first beef mix,

More Keyes insanity

2004-08-25T10:24:00.000-05:00

From the Chicago Sun-Times.... Declaring "the front line of the war against terror once again involves the citizens," Republican Alan Keyes said Tuesday he believes the U.S. Constitution grants properly trained private individuals the right to own and carry machine guns. "You're not talking about giving citizens access to atom bombs and other things," the former presidential candidate said. "

Stupid freaking blogger....

2004-08-25T09:19:00.000-05:00

I had a whole post here, and blogger lost its mind. And thus lost my post. Oh well. Short version - been up since 5, since I had to be here two hours early. Brought Emma with me. Watched John Kerry on the Daily Show last night. Made a yummy casserole. Somehow, I liked the first version better. Oh well. No time now.

Ack!

2004-08-24T14:09:00.000-05:00

I just realized I missed post 200 some seven posts ago. Oh well. Today has not improved all that much, but I at least am keeping my sense of humor about it. We have a vet student with us this week and next week, and he is quite entertaining. A good sense of humor, and he enjoys flirting with me. It's cute. The sad thing is that I feel so - old. I mean, he's a fourth year vet student, so he's

Morning ick

2004-08-24T10:08:00.000-05:00

Today has not started out all that well. Traffic was hideous this morning. It took me twenty minutes to go three miles on the tollway, so I took a parallel road and only ended up being half an hour late.... Then, about forty feet from the driveway to the hospital, there was a cloudburst. I got soaked walking from my car to the building. Once I was inside, it promptly stopped raining. And the

My strip club story

2004-08-24T09:55:00.000-05:00

Well, not mine, not really. More a friend's story. Anyway. Several of my coworkers went to New Orleans for the conference last year, as well as me. When we got back, we were all comparing stories and stuff. One was telling me how he and one of our (male) doctors went to one on Bourbon Street. (The one with the legs swinging in and out of the window, for those of you who have been there.) It was

Outrage Fatigue

2004-08-24T07:38:00.000-05:00

In case y'all hadn't noticed, I'm a bit of a liberal. And I'm a lot of against President Bush and his lackeys. So the opportunity to watch Outfoxed, about Fox News Network, turned out to be a mixed blessing. It was good, because it reminded me that Bill O'reilly is just nuts. Him and Alan Keyes should have a show, with Al Sharpton on every day. That would be entertaining. But I digress. It also

Illinois

2004-08-23T14:11:00.001-05:00

You Know You're From Illinois When... You know if someone is from southern, middle or northern Illinois as soon as they open their mouth. When you say "the city" - you mean Chicago. You think ethanol makes your truck "run a lot better." You know what's knee-high by the Fourth of July. Stores don't have bags; they have sacks. All the festivals across the state are named after a fruit,

Missouri

2004-08-23T14:11:00.000-05:00

You Know You're From Missouri When... Everyone in your family has been on a "Float trip." "Vacation" means driving to Silver Dollar City, Worlds of Fun or Six Flags. Down south to you means Arkansas. The phrase, "I'm going to the Lake this weekend," can mean only one thing. You know what "Party Cove" is. (If you know where, you are a boating party animal) You think Missouri is

Winsconsin

2004-08-23T14:10:00.000-05:00

You Know You're From Wisconsin When... You can taste a difference in cheese made somewhere else You own at least one tie with a or peice of jewelry with a Green Bay Packer theme You can find and pronounce : Eau Claire, Oconomowoc, Menomonee Falls, Waukesha, and La Crosse, Fond du Lac. You can correctly spell Milwaukee. You know what "bubbler" means. At least one of your family members

Ohio

2004-08-23T14:09:00.000-05:00

You Know You're From Ohio When... You don't think of Florida first when someone mentions Miami. You snicker when someone's from Tiffin, because you think of the State Hospital. You think Pro football teams are supposed to wear orange! You've heard of 3.2% beer. Schools close for the state basketball tournament. You're proud of your state fair, but would rather go to Cedar Point. You

Sausage Roll

2004-08-23T10:51:00.000-05:00

Okay, gotta hop on the recipe bandwagon here.... My mom makes this for Christmas, and sometimes Thanksgiving. I absolutely love it. When I make it, I make all three rolls, and freeze two. They're great to thaw for breakfast or whatever. Frozen bread dough - 3 loaves Sausage - about 2 pounds, more or less Frozen spinach - 1 pkg Mozzarella cheese, shredded - 8 cups Thaw dough according to pkg

Which wench are you?

2004-08-23T10:41:00.000-05:00

You are Winnie! To be a Winnie is to be a beautiful soap bubble floating in the summer wind…shiny, bright, transparent, and yet blissfully empty. You are sincerely in love with the world and everyone in it. Although shy, you express your love loudly and often, proudly using the direct approach - I love you…oh I love you…I love you…etc…to everyone and anyone who walks by! As the passion grows…

Alan Keyes (reprise)

2004-08-23T10:04:00.000-05:00

I stumbled across a site taking nominations for the, um, least ringing endorsement of Alan Keyes for Senate. It's freaking hilarious!! Take a look. Oh, and on a generally politically nerdy note, I also recommend Talking Points Memo, a liberally slanted, but reasonably so, blog. That's where I found the link to the Alan Keyes endorsement page.

Monday, Monday....

2004-08-23T07:18:00.000-05:00

Ugh. Not a big fan of Mondays. Particularly not these days, because we are short techs in neurology, so I become the multi-departmental bitch. So yeah, this weekend went really, really, really well. I got off work pretty late Friday night. Went over to Mike's. Went to dinner. His mom was thrilled that we were holding hands on the way into the restaurant. I mean, she literally tried to take a

"In my man pants, I can do anything!"

2004-08-22T13:23:00.000-05:00

Yeah. Renaissance festival this weekend. Much fun, and they had good beer. Mike's mom and I hit it off wonderfully well, so all is well in the world. Except that my apartment is a wreck, but once I finish this, I'll start working on that. I got Emma new bowls at Target this weekend. I think she likes them - I know I do. Much more attractive than the others. I really should go into more detail

2004-08-22T13:18:00.000-05:00

Which Rock Chick Are You?

2004-08-20T12:40:00.000-05:00

So I winged it on the CT thing and used what everyone recommends for their touchscreens - alcohol and water. Seemed to work okay. Brain surgery is done, and went very well. Now we'll see if the dog wakes up. Oh, and he got a frontal lobotomy. Which was better than the alternative, which was enormous frontal brain tumor. I'm supposed to do anesthesia for a dog for an EMG/NCV. That's when we

It's not like it's brain surgery!!

2004-08-20T11:01:00.000-05:00

Well, actually, it is. Going fairly well. Right now I'm the go-fer, as in "Can you get us the osteotome" or whatever. I'm okay with that. It's hot and stuffy in surgery, and frankly the novelty pales after six or seven four hour procedures. I'm really hungry. Oh well. Not likely to leave early today either, as every other department is getting all sorts of stuff that might need CTd. Whee. And

Duty calls

2004-08-19T22:47:00.000-05:00

Gotta go in early tomorrow. Ordinarily the neurologist only sees rechecks, or no appointments at all, on Friday. But the MRI we did today showed an enormous brain tumor, and he doesn't think the dog will make it through the weekend if we don't ask fast. So tomorrow - craniotomy. But since normally Fridays are slow, we only have two techs scheduled. So guess who got nominated to help? Yup. No

2004-08-19T14:52:00.000-05:00

So we're seeing a dog today. She's an ancient lab, probably 15 or 16. Has trouble walking. Has seizures. Has kidney disease. Has laryngeal paralysis. Her owner passed away several years ago, and left a trust fund for her dog. Ver responsible, very sweet. Except there are explicit instructions that no expense be spared. In otherwords, do everything. Always. I love that her owner thought to leave

Alan Keyes is nuts

2004-08-19T11:37:00.000-05:00

Not that this is a news flash, but my god man!! This guy has said that God allowed September 11 to happen because we allow abortion in this country. He thinks that federal income tax is unconstitutional. Oh, and he's leasing his apartment in Illinois, which he claims is "the land of my heart" on a month to month basis. Actually, that last is fairly pragmatic and practical. Out of character for

Wenchy, wenchy

2004-08-19T09:31:00.000-05:00

Feeling bitchy today. Not sure why. I think I just got up on the wrong side of the bed. I'm trying not to be, though. Lots of caffeine and happy thoughts, right? Ugh.

Audioblogger

2004-08-19T07:30:00.000-05:00

I'm not impressed. How long does it take for these freaking posts to show up, anyway? I'm at eight hours out, and still, nothing. And it sounds like I'm not the only one who's had problems. Hm.

Pet names

2004-08-18T13:52:00.000-05:00

There are some real winners here today. Black Lab - SabbathChihuahua - BeanAkita - Sarah (that just makes me sing that Bob Dylan song, you know the one)Siamese - SapphoRottweiler - TitaniumBullmastiff - WhopperSomeday, when I get my Mastiff, I'm going to name him Bucephalus. Alexander the Great's horse. Translates into Oxhead. I know, I'm a hopeless geek.

Quigley's birthday

2004-08-18T13:46:00.000-05:00

A few weekends ago, Emma and I went to her little Shih Tzu friend Quigley's birthday party. Yes, we took a gift. Anyway, here are some of the pics from the party. Emma is actually only in the last one.... But there's plenty of Quigley (white and tan and short and fuzzy), Gator (tall and brindle, another doggy friend), and Lottie (boxer, Quigley's "sister"). Please note the birthday cake in pic

Facelift

2004-08-18T13:38:00.000-05:00

Obviously made some changes to the blog. I can't decide if it's a Jennifer Aniston type facelift (actual, though barely noticeable, improvement) or a Michael Jackson type facelift (where the doc peels off the bandages and runs screaming from the room). Let me know what you think.

Felix

2004-08-18T07:22:00.000-05:00

When I was in sixth grade (I think), my stepmother's parents got me a teddy bear. He's brown, with a red sleeping cap, you know, with the poofball on the end. His name is Felix, as evidenced by the name "Felix" emblazoned on his hat. (I was rather disappointed, because I much enjoy naming my stuffed animals myself.) Felix is one of those larger teddy bears, like torso size. Perfect for snuggling.

This weekend

2004-08-18T07:18:00.000-05:00

Mike's mom and stepfather are coming to visit. I'm nervous. Granted, I've already made a pretty good impression with the cake thing and all. But I'm still nervous. I mean, what if I screw it up and she ends up hating me? Ugh. The other ick is that they're staying at Mike's, and he's sleeping on the couch there, so no spending the night this weekend. That makes me very very sad. The teddy bear

2004-08-17T15:15:00.000-05:00

So I alternate between fury and disgust at work. I find myself envying Pops his stay at home ways.... Though I suspect that's a case of the grass being greener. I simply hate, detest, and revile the bullshit I put up with so thatI can survive. It's not like I'm getting rich, either. But that's beside the point. I'm tired of the unethical, blatantly unfair crap that goes on here. I know, I know,

Separation

2004-08-17T07:15:00.000-05:00

I've never been very good at the whole separation thing. When I went away to college, and left my jerk of a boyfriend at home, I ran up a five hundred dollar phone bill. When my ex lived in Jersey, and I lived in Ohio, once again, an absurd phone bill. Plus I drove nine hours, to Jersey, every weekend, to see him. Until I got sick of driving and just moved in. So I shouldn't be surprised that I

Tick, tick, tick

2004-08-16T10:25:00.000-05:00

This place is a freaking baby factory. People get knocked up right and left!! Well, specifically women. But anyway. Last winter, one of the surgery techs found out she was pregnant. And she turned out to be one of those women who handles pregnancy really well. She just glowed. It was amazing. And, for the first time, I heard my biological clock tick. I had never wanted children. The joke was

Jealousy

2004-08-16T07:24:00.000-05:00

I am a jealous wench. And not really in a good way. More in a beat-myself-up-for-days-over-imagined-other-woman way. And in a you-dumped-me-and-I-hate-the-new-woman way. Neither of which is particularly good for one's mental health. Interestingly enough, I never felt jealous of the ex. Nor have I felt jealous of Mike. They were/are both so obviously, well, mine, that jealousy would just be silly

Crazy Cleo's House of Cheese

I'm not dead yet...... Really!

Iowa

Postmortem

Vote!!!! Please.

My cousin's wedding

Parrot

Ex stuff

Eternal Sunshine

For later

New Job

Charlie

Balance

Codes

Dick Cheney is evil incarnate

Thank you

How to make a 'redsonja'

Sweet dreams

Stung

Debates

Hospital Administrator

Scarred

Pics

Slacking off

Wedding Madness

Road trips

Mike's mom

Emma the Hero

Road Trip

Parents (take two)

Parents

Questions

Ack!

What feeling do you represent?

Survivor

New Orleans

Rolla

Cold germs

Exhaustion, or How to Kill a Tech in Just Three Days

Still alive

Memes to make me chuckle

Laying low

Long time, no post

Adults Only

Kindergarten

Phone call

Happy dance

Spoke too soon

Is it just me

Awww, how sweet

Spiderman and crayons

Interviewees

This weekend

Slutty teacher story

Good to be healthy

GOP

Still sick

Wil Wheaton

Monday Memes

Weekend Update

Life is good

Anacondas

Bitchfest 2004

Ha!

Life's too short

Random thoughts

Yech

Beef Taco Casserole

More Keyes insanity

Stupid freaking blogger....

Ack!

Morning ick

*My* strip club story

Outrage Fatigue

Illinois

Missouri

Winsconsin

Ohio

Sausage Roll

Which wench are you?

My strip club story