Meet Piper!

This is Piper...so named because she has lived for quite some time in a drain pipe on the corner of two very busy roads just outside of the city limits...

oh wait...you can't "meet" Piper because Piper chewed up my laptop adapter cable and I'm using Mr G's old laptop that doesn't have my camera software loaded onto it...

Piper, for a dog accustomed to getting handouts from passersby while living in a filthy drainage pipe, has managed to develop a Champagne sort of lifestyle right off the bat...

Vet bill: $800 (femur surgery, shots & spaying...apparently, Piper met the wrong end of a car before Mr G won her confidence with loaves of white bread making it possible to capture her...I think the sheared off femur helped with that too... I'd have fainted dead away if we actually took in an animal that was already spayed/neutered...and in possession of any tags or identification, much less current correct tags or identification)

Matching Collar & Harness: $23 & change

Dell laptop adapter cable: some ridiculous amount that when you include shipping is around $80 or so...$100 if you want it shipped 2 day...

Black 3-strap Birkenstocks: $80-ish

Generic extension cord: what, a few bucks?

ya'll have probably gathered Piper is a puppy, of sorts....somewhere between 6 & 8 months...so far, all of the Piper's victims have been My Stuff...and Mr G just gives me a look while sayin' things along the lines of Well You Know She's a Puppy...and Puppies Chew...

Crate training lasted 1 night...fortunately, we trained right quick & in a hurry to not put Piper in the crate the next night...Piper now sleeps in the bed....our bed...

Housebreaking is coming along...thank goodness...there are only so many things you can face in the morning before First Cup of Coffee...

Thanks so much for all the well wishes...Piper & I are both speeding along in our recoveries :)

...off to see if I can download my camera software from Kodak's site...
***here she is***

Just a Brief Hiya

I'm having a little knee surgery tomorrow so things have been a bit frazzling & I haven't a nice post planned...

be-cause...did you see it coming? I am a Freak of the First Order...that's right...I am one of those people who when about to embark upon a long trip (that would be anything over 2 hours...total...both ways) must clean the house from top to bottom and complete all half-finished projects...



that means:

no dirty laundry...or laundry left hangin' to dry

no dishes in the sink...dirty or clean...not even that pot that has technically been "soaking" since someone burned the bleep out of the rice

no mail or recyclables piled about the place

no grubby encrusted bathroom sinks (did I just confess to something?)

no mammoth dust-slash-fur balls floating about the house muttering to themselves

Clean Clean CLEAN...all must be clean...because Heaven Forbid I die in a fiery car crash and have people come into my home and it be a slovenly pit...

Of course, I am the woman who scrubs kitchen & bathroom floors on her hands & knees with rags rather than use a mop...who works up a drenching sweat cleaning the bathroom triad (tub, toilet & sink)...and who absolutely cringes if there is a stray cat hair plastered to a refrigerator shelf...ugh...

so my house is not exactly filthy from day-to-day...more like, "Slightly Fuzzy" from day-to-day...
but for me to hit the highways...and, apparently, to head to the OP Surgery for a few hours, this house must sparkle like Mr Clean and his SO are in residence...

So far, in preparation for Tomorrow in the past 48 hours I have (on top of my Regular Stuff):

• re-arranged the chest freezer


• cleaned the veggie bins & fridge


• changed the linens on our bed


• cleaned off the dresser top


• made stacks of library books to return before proceeding to the OPS


• worked on painting patch marks on our bedroom walls


• painted the deck door/console table/half bath's vanity


• found my Living Will (every one has one, right?)


• fertilized the tomato plant (this "problem of mine does extend beyond the 4 walls of our home straight on out into the yard...we won't go there right now)


• got things mailed

I mean...if something should happen, then I really want people to come into our home and think "DANG! This House Is SO Clean! I Wish My House Was This Clean"...and then they tell 2 friends...and they tell 2 friends...and so on...and so on...*

But I have not cleaned my car yet...it really needs a vac...and I should get my cross stitch ready so I can mess about with that over the next few days...oh forget it...that's ridiculous...I'm going to lay (lie?...I always forget the rule about that...dogs lay & people lie? or dogs lie & people lay? or is that completely Out of the Blue of My Mind?...okay...over caring about that...I'll look it up later) around, reading old magazines & watchin' movies...and I think I'm going to Bust Outta This Diet and have some Pizza...maybe a Ginger Beer Float...

In a way, I think I'm looking forward to the surgery just so I can rest for a couple of days afterwards...I'm certain Mr G is...

yawwwwnnnnn...well...see ya'll later, alligators :)

**********************************

*no lectures, please, about More Important Things in Life Than a Clean House...I get it, I truly do...but something in my upbringing has just Permanently Warped Me in This Area...it's okay...I still gaze at sunsets, play with kittens and tell my loved ones that I, um, love them :) ...

The House Project Category Known As...

"Is It Supposed To Look Like THAT?"

This is the Faux Wall that is really part of the kitchen cabinetry...that I decided to turn into a Big Magnetic Wall so I could move all the Really Important Stuff off the face of the fridge thus givin' the kitchen more of that Model Home Ambiance...

In Reality, I do realize I'm just makin' space for more Really Important Stuff on the face of the fridge...

Anyhoo...so what you have to do with this Magnetic Paint is apply 3 layers & then top coat with any latex paint...this is the second coat of latex paint...

I'm not sure this is going to have a Happy Ending that doesn't involve me sanding all of this mess off & just painting the dang Faux Wall with oil-based paint like the rest of the cabinets...

With Great Reluctance, I admit this may be my fault...since the Instructions say...in itty bitty print...to use a Roller with a 1/4" nap...well...it never crossed my mind that you would use a roller on paint of any stripe that comes in a small can...so I was already half-way through the magnetic primer coats before I saw that Little Bit of What Seems to Have Been Important Information...

Really...the only thing that makes me more irritated than Royally Screwing Something Up is Royally Screwing Something Up & Having No One to Blame But Myself...

Oh wait...there IS something that makes me even more irritated...Royally Screwing Something Up, Having No One to Blame But Myself and Then Havin' to Fix the Mess I Made to Begin With...

Well, Finally...

as soon as I read this issue of Veggie Times I'll know the answer to Paper or Plastic? Thank Goodness!

and in other news...

my very first etsy purchase came home today...from Simply Me Art

no, this isn't my purchase...this is just the wrappings! I know...when the package is this cute, you know what is inside is just going to be simply grand :) (get it? the play on Simply?...sigh...I know...awful) so wonderful...I do not possess this type of vision of what some tags, ink, a stamp & some Glittery "Bling" as Jamie says can be...I'm always amazed by what creative people come up with :)so I forgot what the second banner said...and opened it with Mr G standin' right there...crud...I was going to tack this up Sunday Morning while fixin' a beautiful Father's Day breakfast for Mr G...

that is such a lie...

I might have tacked this up while Mr G went out for Dunkin' Donuts became I am not a Big Breakfast Eater or Maker...

I'll take a better pix when the banner is up on the wall or something...my back is a little fried from all the Ladder Standing (because I am the Hired Help, that's why) so my patience level is depleted...Mungo especially likes this banner...he is so CUTE when he takes his little hands to hold things while he examines them...the Summer Banner...a gift for SIL#3 and attached nieces and nephew...I hope takin' this banner out becomes a Summer Tradition for them...holding a lot of Summer Memories :)

Jamie also sent me some of her beautiful things last week (as a Totally Not Required Thank You But Boy Am I Happy She Did Gift)...a bracelet that is just beautiful, a handmade card and some Glittered Vintage Little Girl Tags...

I took photos for ya'll to go on this post...they stink...

Oh, Jamie...Mr G, since he was, as previously noted, STANDIN' RIGHT THERE when I opened up the package, said "she made these herself?"...that is quite the compliment :)

Moving along...more kitchen photos...yep...cats on the counter...and dishes dryin' in the sink...I thought about shooing the cats along (ladies, I gave up that fight a long time ago), drying and putting away the dishes...maybe put the rice cooker, coffee maker & carafe into the pantry and put Old Kitty's fan up (he is 19, has thyroid "issues" and thin fur...so he gets hot and he gets a fan...I expect I'll need a fan when I get that old in Human Years, too...I hope some one gets me one...but I decided that I'm Too Lazy, My Back Hurts Too Much and Why Not Let Ya'll Feel Good About Your Kitchens Compared to the Current State of Affairs in Mine :)and yes I have a Serious Problem with tackin' stuff to the fridge...which is why I spent a good bit of time this morning messin' with that awful magnetic paint primer...I'm turning the "fake" wall beside the fridge into a Big Butt Magnetic Board...and I'm thinkin' about doing the same with my pantry doors...

oh, speakin' of Big Butts...please note my loverly blue padded swivel cushion on the stool...

I've in Serious Consideration Stage about painting the shutters black...they are So White compared to the soft white I used on the cabinets...opinions?

I'd take them down but then I would not be able to stand in front of the kitchen window at night with the sink light on...because I find that completely freaky even tho' (because?) there are only woods next to us...just creeps me out thinkin' about it...

Hey! we all have our Little Twitches, right?

the eating area adjacent to the kitchen...I need a Big Ol' Wing Chair for that spot right next to the hutch...actually, I need two...and I'm waffling about those shutters, too...

Holy-Vintage-Japanese-Movie...

Giant-Albino-ish-Mothra-Bug, BatGirl! (to mix my genres a bit)Isn't She Beautiful? White Bug sat just outside our deck door a few days ago...I don't believe I've ever seen a Moth (is she a moth?) like her before...

Anyhoo...this is just one of many reasons why projects never exactly go accordin' to schedule at Number 17...

yes, that is Henri Henri peering at ya'll from my cabinets...which were still "tacky" from their first coat of paint...

yes, I had cat hair to remove from the paint before applying the second coat...

and, yes, after Henri Henri demonstrated what a Fun Thing climbing into the cabinets was to his brethren...I had more Cat Plucking to do...

I had to double-check that cabinet shot to make sure there was nothin' shameful in there before I posted :) ...

like double-stuff oreo cookies...which, BTW, I saw in an organic version last week! can you believe it? ya'll remember those HUUUUGGGEEE Oreo cookies? the Big Stuff ones? man...talk about heart-attack in cellophane...but sooooo good...because I treated them like the regular ones...you know...take 1 Oreo apart, then another, makin' sure to keep all of the icing intact on one wafer of the Oreo...if you break it, then you have to just eat the whole cookie & try again...once you have successfully removed those extraneous cookie sides, then you mush the remaining sides with the icing together thereby making a Big Cookie...works best with Double Stuff...worked even better with Big Stuff Oreos [just imagine a big foolish grin of delight on a round face]...

no...no weight issues here...

some finds from this weekend...after seeing all of the success so many bloggers have with garage sales (particularly this lady and this lady) I decided to try stopping at a few garage sales, something I don't usually do...I'm not wild about garage sales because, well, I feel obligated to buy after I walk up the drive way...while being watched by whomever is holdin' the sale...and then looking over the tables of things...and not finding anything at all that is remotely what I would consider havin' in our home...

if I don't buy something, anything, I feel as if I'm sayin' "Oh...so sorry, old girl, but your C-R-A-P isn't quite up to snuff"...I know...I've brought car salesmen to their knees after hours and hours of negotiations...but I feel badly about not buying some body's "unwanted stuff" off their driveway...

some pixs:

because I needed yet another chicken ($3)to perch a top the armoire...which Mr G told me, BTW, is his armoire...silly nice man...

more vintage Christmas ornaments and that attractive crooked-up basket for a buck...can you believe any one doesn't know that vintage Christmas ornaments are 1) mega-cool and 2) mega-expensive in most places? well, I can't believe it either, but Thank Goodness :)
Just a cute cute cute basket for 50 cents...how could I not?...and don't ya'll love my Pig Planter? that is, of course, a rhetorical question...just an old ironstone plate for 50 cents...love it against my really grubby old ironstone platter...yep, Mr G doesn't even try to figure these things out any more...

a Dolphin Bell (a quarter!)for when I have knee surgery next week...I've been practicing with it...practice makes perfect after all...I would hate to ring my bell and not have some one come running...that would be tragic...well, the neighbors might find it tragic when I have to screech at the top of my lungs for some more ice cream...you do get ice cream when you have knee surgery, right?

A Confession...

after all my Big Talk (see #3) on June 7th I found a way to go beyond forgettin' 1 item on the list...I forgot the Whole Bleepin' List...

man...and since it was useless to proceed without The List...since there were many many things a Nameless Somebody (okay...me) let #17 run out of...I left the store parking lot, drove home and went straight back...

It never fails...when I think I have gotten 1 Little Thing in Life down pat, the Universe gives me a swift kick for my amateur Hubris Attempt...

oh well...I'm still workin' on my 5 New Things (I actually have 2 of them...)

and My 100th Post is comin' up here shortly...in the Manner of Many Bloggers, I'll be doing a Drawing for Comments on my 100th post..I'll post a pix of the prize some time soon...

5 Things...

we do at Number 17 to lessen what has become that proverbial Carbon Footprint...

1. Almost all of our laundry is hung out to dry...for the winter months (such as they are in Georgia), I have a line in the garage...and I hang things on the shower curtain rods...unsightly? yep...but I feel better for using less energy and my inner Tightwad loves really takin' a Big Bite out of our electric bill...

2. Recycling...I realize actually buyin' less to have less to recycle is the Best Road to Take...I've got to figure out how to actually drag less packaging home to begin with...well, within reason...I don't see how to live without draggin' something home at some point...for a woman who truly gets the whole Don't Drag It in the Front Door To Begin With philosophy check out this blog...

3. Less Running O' The Streets...years ago I was the Queen of Oops-Forgot-To-Get-BLANK-At-The-Store...even tho' said item was almost always the reason for the trip to begin with...and I'd actually go back for whatever it was I forgot...now, unless it involves plasma and isn't a television, it'll just have to wait until someone passes that way...Lists and Combining Errands trips...the way to go...I did this even when gas prices were cheap...96 Cents a Gallon for Regular...remember those days? Now, it is just a painless habit...

4. Turn It Off If You're Not Using It...man...that one is so simple it doesn't bear explaining...well, that's a lie because I'm still breaking Some People's Bad Habit of leaving chargers pulled in...I find them in the oddest spots, hoping to elude my right hand and its bad habit of yankin' device less chargers out of the socket and tossin' them where ever they may land...not nice, I know, but I just get irritated about the whole Talkin' to Brick Walls thing...

5. Closing the Curtains (Drawin' the Drapes, Amelia Bedelia? odd the things you bring with you out of childhood :)...I close and open doors, blinds and curtains as the sun moves around the house...just keeping the deck door closed from late morning until early evening keeps the kitchen so much cooler even if there is a wind blowin' through the backyard...I don't get too excited about wind that is Hot...

But I know these are just little dribbles in the Big Bucket of Things we could be doing here at Number 17 to lighten our steps on the earth...I've been doing the Easy Things for so long that I've gotten comfortable about, if a little guilt-ridden, not moving onto the Bigger Things...

This is an interesting project/undertaking...I'm nowhere near advanced enough for these guys, but I'm going to watch and see what shakes out...

The problem, I believe, that keeps more people from taking bigger steps to ease up on the Earth and its resources (and that includes clean air, water and soil, folks) is there is no single definitive Yes or No, Good or Bad for a lot our Day to Day Stuff...

I mean, Paper or Plastic is a debate that has been goin' on for at least 10 years now...and there still isn't a Writ in Stone answer (I know...take your own...I've yet to see the person brave enough to take a buggy of groceries to the Wal-Mart checker who has been on her feet for 6 or 8 hours and plop down an armload of Brought From Home Bags for her to use on her little spinny bag thingie...of course, you could shop for less...necessitating more trips to the store...see what I mean? and no lectures about W/M, please...I'm really Not A Fan but our area has no cute little locally owned organic earth-friendly shops...I'd luv to have, please)

I guess we just have to start depending on each other to take all the steps that we can to help out with our negatively impacting the planet...and be willing to call ourselves and others when it doesn't happen...

and I'm going to start on my end by comin' up with 5 New Things to Do that will ease up some of our part of the burden...and I'm going to commit to doing these things for at least 3 months...surely they'll become "habits" during that length of time...

(I'll post my list after I sit down with paper...er, used envelope retrieved from the recycling bin...pen...sigh...I have no fountain pens, only disposables...and Mr G to mull these 5 things over...it's okay...he already thinks I'm a Bit of a Nut anyhoo...)

*photo courtesy of NASA.Gov

Bits & Pieces...

of things at Number 17

Our first tomatoes of the season...I've given up on growing the Great Big Fat Tomatoes...especially in the ground...I've gone to little tomatoes in pots...

A Big Sale

, as the bag states, at Bath & Body Works...

I only go into B & B about twice a year...I like the wallflowers and I like their Jasmine Vanilla liquid soap (I have very easily irritated skin on my hands & this soap doesn't ruin my hands like a lot of other soaps)...the Jasmine Vanilla Body Scrub is beyond divine if you're feeling decadent...and feel like scrubbin' your tub after using it so the next unsuspecting person to step into the tub doesn't break something...

Anyhoo...loaded up with wallflowers and refills...some birthday gifts for later in the year...and I "discovered" an Orange Blossom lotion and eau du toilette that is so dead-on with its scent that you will feel like you are an Orange Blossom much less standing near an orange tree loaded with flowers...I hope since these were in the 75% off area that B & B aren't discontinuing it...that would be disappointing...

I also picked up some

that's right...Pumpkin Pie Body Scrub...because I have a serious Pie Jones and I can easily imagine wakin' up one crisp fall (okay...I realize this is southeastern Georgia and that should really read "muggy hot fall" but just play along with me) morning and sayin'

"I think I'd like to smell like a Huge Pumpkin Pie today" :) ...really, I can...

and more on the Home Project Front

My second attempt at the painting the lower kitchen cabinets came out much better than the first (without too much detail, suffice it to say there is a paint salesman with his name on My List)...just a little touch up and I'll be movin' on to the upper cabinets

(these will be soft white with glass fronts and the walls are going to a soft grubby yellow...I know it is a cliche but I love a yellow kitchen :) ...now if I could only figure out how to get those black-and-white tiled floors I love in a kitchen...I'm seriously thinking about trying some light sanding and oil-based paint on them...them maybe some sealer...of course, keeping the furry ones off the floor long enough for it to dry would be next to impossible...sigh...

oh...do ya'll think these bananas are ripe enough to be made into banana bread?

(what I was supposed to be doing instead of painting cabinets)

I apologize...

I cannot figure out why blogger isn't lettin' me break between my paragraphs...I know this is hard to read...sigh...

Another Round of...

What is this?

This round is easier to figure out...mostly

Yes, it is a packet that formerly held White Pumpkin Seeds

"formerly" not because I planted them...except for 1 lone seed...but "formerly" because, apparently, one of the FBDs (Furry Baby Dogs) developed a yen for pumpkin seeds in the middle of the night

and ate all but 1 seed

I think I've been livin' with the Men Folk too long* because this morning as I passed a few little shreds of paper layin' on the dining room floor, I eyed them curiously, but went on about my business

Then, off to the side near the passageway from the dining room to the living room, I saw an odd little fat tear-shaped object...still no impulse from my brain to my feet to stop so as to investigate the gathering evidence of a Crime Committed

But eventually, I slowed down the Morning Whirlwind Pace enough to pick up the paper shreds and the Odd Little Object...and then discover the rest of the victim you see in the above photo shoved back behind one of the Windsor Chairs

I really don't even bother gettin' angry about these things any more

So, I took my 1 little white pumpkin seed out to the garden this morning and interred it there with a trace of hope that it will spring mightily forth from the dirt and I'll have tons of White Pumpkins artistically scattered about the front yard

I expect The Reality will be closer to I'll be cartin' myself to the Savannah's State Farmer's Market to buy expensive White Pumpkins come this October

*************************************************

*Admit it...if you have lived with a husband and/or male child for any length of time, then you have deliberately not picked something up off of the floor for at least a week to see if it will swept up/picked up/vac'd up by someone other than yourself or the dog...

Mr Frog Says...

about 4 inches of Much Needed Rain fell yesterday at Number 17! and I expect maybe even more because sometimes the wind gusted so strongly that the rain was comin' in sideways...

Of course, it was the Perfect Day to drive to Tybee Island for the Tybee Island Tour of Homes...[very wry look upon my face]...yesterday morning, I offered up a lot of silent prayers that the tour would be postponed...it wasn't...

Look, I can be a Trooper when the need arises...However, once my Inner Trooper literally gets Wet Feet...and Wet Pant Legs (is there much more physically discomforting than wet clothes slapping against your body?)...well...my butt rises steadily up until it sits firmly upon my shoulders...I hate having Wet Feet...30 seconds into the tour I had wet feet...shoes...and clothes...

After the first 3 houses, I kept waitin' for one of the Men Folk in the group to call a halt to the day's Romp in the Rain...by the 7th house, Resignation had set in...along with frequent and bitter commentary...from the backseat...somewhere in my general area...

But, seriously, ya'll...touring homes on the beach while a tropical system is blowin' through? man...I'm afraid my manners just deserted me...I think they went on home to change into some Bleepin' Dry Shoes...

However, I managed to spend some time in St. Michael's Thrift Shop while the rest of the party went into lunch...ah, the sunny spot in a miserable day...

And lookee what I found:

a vintage print (it weights a ton and had chain on the back to use for hangin'...about 22" x 29") for the bedroom...

I actually bought its mate (some type of purple flower), but swapped it back for two of these gorgeous large brass trays...I'm not likin' it on the fireplace, but I stuck it up there to get a pix since there is a large masonry screw already in place...

(this photo so you can see the scale of the tray...forgive the fire screen...I haven't taken it down for the spring/summer...)

and these...love these...(the ginger jar...got 2 of them)

oh...Gillie wanted her photo taken :)

and the cantaloupe vines loved all that rain!

and I imagine I will apologize for being a horse's behind..maybe...