The Drunken Gnome's Ramblings

can you say STRESSED!?!

2011-01-31T10:15:00.000-08:00

I really don't want to use this blog to vent all of the stresses and negativity in my life. I want to use this blog for just the opposite and to keep myself motivated to continue my crafting endeavors. But, today I need to rant.

I'm finally moving on from my job. This job was supposed to be a temporary job until I found something better. Then the economy took a dump and I've been stuck here for almost 3 1/2 years. It hasn't been terrible. I would actually LOVE my job if it weren't for the greedy, rude, disgusting, insensitive, controlling pig of a boss. (Man do I have stories to go with all of the words I just described him) I am the store manager, but with very limited control of the function of the store. I have many years in retail, but have not once been treated like I know what I'm talking about. I am a person that will give my all to do my job as best possible and try to make sure that the business improves because of it, even if the person I'm working for doesn't deserve it. I bust my ass and get no reward. No "thank you" or "good job" have been uttered, let alone a bonus or incentive to do my job and keep improving. I make less today than the horrid job I quit 3 1/2 years ago, and drive farther to get there. Sure I get paid, and can usually pay my bills on time, but I could prob be managing a McDonald's and be making more, with benefits and paid time off.

With all of that said, I finally got a new job, that could actually turn into a career. I will be managing a Phoenix Coffee in downtown Cleveland. I've already been working there part-time as a barista and I love it. The people are great, the hours are awesome, the company has their shit together and works like a real business should. I never knew how much I took some things for granted working for a small business owner. Phoenix is still a small business that is growing and functioning like a real corporation, minus the bullshit. The best part for me is that everyone in the company is respected and has a voice. Every employee matters. That, and I'll have nights and weekends off. I've never had that. I'll actually have time to work in my sewing room again and focus on my business! (And hopefully this blog)

In leaving this job though, there's a lot of stress. The owner is out of the country on a buying trip. So the timing isn't great. I hate to leave while he's gone, but I know that the current assistant manager will be just fine running the store while I'm gone. I'm just a phone call away. That doesn't mean though that the owner has been easy to deal with. All I know is that I hope I can get through this next couple of weeks.

Things I want to do in 2011

2011-01-03T15:40:00.000-08:00

- make more time for crafting
- start and maintain a new exercise routine
- put together a recipe book of all of my favorite recipes
- go bowling more often
- go roller skating
- go ice skating
- ride my bike more often
- make a financial plan so we can one day buy a house
- take advantage of living close to the lake
- read more books
- have a 30th birthday party at Cinema Wasteland
- organize my office
- finish decorating my bedroom
- de-clutter the house
- take my Etsy store more seriously
- learn how to take better photographs
- make and wear more dresses
- drink more water
- learn to knit
- take a real vacation with my husband
- go camping
- get contacts
- try more vegetables
- learn how to master my wok
- finish a project once I’ve started it, every time
- write in this blog more often

Etsy

2010-10-12T10:12:00.000-07:00

I've been working 7 days straight and finally have a day off! I haven't had time for anything worth posting about.

I just made a treasury on Etsy with a zombie theme.

http://www.etsy.com/treasury/4cb495c9b5fb6d91b735d96a/ill-swallow-your-soul?index=0"
(I couldn't get the clickable link to work. Sorry guys, you'll have to copy and paste.)

I hope to get the sewing room cleaned up today. I'll be posting before and after pics so you can see how bad it was. Then it's on to more crafting!

2010-10-06T07:36:00.000-07:00

So to start on a new path of blogging, I thought I'd share what I picked up at Borders using my Gift Card from my lovely sister:
I don't know why it's sideways, I can't figure out how to fix it.
I can't wait to start making these little guys! I'm not sure that it would be legal, or even morally right to make and sell them, but I may make some similar ones that I can sell. Zombies are hot right now! I've always loved zombies. In a way I'm glad that they are popular. I sold a pair of my zombie severed hand earrings yesterday as a result! And I was able to pick up that rad book. But I've always had places to get zombie stuff.

Which brings me to re-cap my birthday weekend. Friday I worked and then we went to my husbands co-workers house for a fire. It was nice to be outside in from of the fire on a chilly night. The fire pit was in the middle of the hanging branches of a weeping willow. It was beautiful. It felt like being in a secret garden, with fire and beer.
Saturday I had to work 11am to 9pm so that was crappy, but my employees/friends surprised me with a birthday cheese danish and fresh roasted coffee from Phoenix! They even had candles and sang! I couldn't ask for better people to work with! When I got home my husband surprised me with a card and gift. He wasn't supposed to get me anything since he bought me a pair of boots for an early present a month ago. The card is hilarious I got (kinda as a joke):

My first real concert was Weird Al back when I was a kid. The first song on it is Eat It. Awesome.
Anyways I pretty much crashed on the couch after that. It was a long day and I couldn't muster up the energy to go out. Which was good because then I woke up early and sober to go to Cinema Wasteland! I love this horror movie convention so much. I started going on the very first one and this show marked the 10 year anniversary! I can't believe it's been that long! I haven't gone to all of them, and I don't have all good memories of going either. I've had some really great times at this show and my husband and I intend on making more memories there for years to come. I may even have my 30Th b-day party there next year since it always falls on my birthday weekend. We got some pretty cool stuff too:

To put on our wall of Signs.

Signed by Tom Sullivan who did the special effects for the first Evil Dead. He also signed my Evil Dead back patch.
After the convention, we headed to the nearby mall to get some lunch and then wandered around the mall for a bit. We didn't go into a single store. It's been a long time I went to the mall and that trip reminded me why. AND, the bookstore is gone! What the hell! Do people in Strongsville not read?
Later that night we walked to Now That's Class to see Agnostic Front. We stopped by Amanda's on the way to say hi to her and Layla. It was good to see them if even only for a few minutes. At the show I drank too much beer and almost got my glasses broken, but it was a good time. I woke up around noon the next day (my birthday) a little hung over. I played around on the computer, drank coffee, ate some scrambled eggs and showered around 3. It was great. My husband came home early but needed a nap. He was coming down with a cold, so I went out to get some food to make dinner and stopped by the bookstore. I got another book as well as the felties book.

All in all it was a great weekend!

Back from the dead.....

2010-10-05T11:14:00.000-07:00

It's been so long that I've wanted to post anything, I was thinking of deleteing my blog. I'm not much of a writer like the bloggers that I read. Some days I worry about privacy and putting all my business out there. Then again do I really put too much info out there? Not really. I originally started this blog with the intentions of promoting my business www.TheDrunkenGnome.etsy.com Then I didn't have anything to sell anyways because life was just getting in the way. Well, I've listed some items in my shop, and have even had some sales! It's time to get back on the saddle and get crafting!

P.S.- I didn't get accepted to Craftin Outlaws or Bazaar Bizarre this year, which also means I'm out $20 ($10 each non-refundable application fee) Grr. I'm thinking of organizing my own show for the spring.

Stay tuned......

I know people have bigger problems but I feel like venting.

2010-05-22T08:14:00.000-07:00

So today is sucking big time. I've only been up for 45 minutes, too. It's my day off and I should be happy. It was one of the craziest weeks at work I've ever had. It was a good crazy, but I'm burned out. I was really looking forward to hanging out in bed and on the couch with my hubby on the only day we have off together. We have the season finale of Bones and Fringe to watch and new books to crack open. BUT, he got called into work which almost never happens on the weekend. He didn't really have a choice and we need the money desperately, but we both need our snuggle time just as much. As well of a vacation. A real one. Where we go somewhere out of Ohio and do fun things. We've never been on a real trip together since we've become a couple. We didn't get a honeymoon since we became man and wife. We've been poor and working as hard as we can for the past 3 1/2 years. Don't get me wrong, we have a lot of things to be thankful for. We have an awesome apartment full of a lot of cool stuff (most of which we don't really need). We have an awesome dog, great friends and great family. That's all we really need in life. But we need some real down time too. Time away were work doesn't call us on our days off reminding you of all of the responsibilities we have to go back to. Unfortunately even if we do get some time off this summer, I'm not sure we'll be able to afford to go anywhere. Not anywhere out of state that isn't camping anyways. We love camping but we've done that.

I need to stop whining. I usually feel better after venting but it didn't work this time. I'm gonna go shower and drink more coffee and hope it doesn't rain for my sisters commencement tonight.

Stalling...

2010-04-28T09:32:00.000-07:00

So my last post was lame. I hadn't felt like writing much lately, mostly because not much is going on. Work, gym , chores, sleep. Repeat
My husband finally went back to work after being laid off since x-mas eve, and then the company gave everyone a huge pay cut. Yay for going backwards. I thought we'd be able to catch up and also put money away for the future but I guess not. Not yet anyways.
There was also some drama with a friend that I shouldn't really talk about. We'll see what happens with all that but for now I'm staying away from the drama. I don't like it. I'm not in high school anymore. We're all adults and have to deal with real life so therefore I don't have time for all that crap.
I did lose 15 lbs sine Feb 23rd! I'm feeling good, though going to the gym takes away the free time I barely had. I'm going to have to give up sleep if I want to be ready for the show on July 31st. I bought some things to make my table display. I haven't worked it all out yet but it should be awesome. Now I just have to make more stuff to put on said table. I'm sticking with only 4 types of items. Stuffed monsters both crocheted and sewn, purses, and either laptop sleeves or wallets. I have a lot of work to do. Plus I just got business cards and need to post some items on my Etsy page. Can we add some hours on to each day? I need more time!

lame.

2010-04-19T11:02:00.000-07:00

It's been a long time since I've posted again. Not much has been going on lately or I haven't felt like writing. I have something to vent about today about this weekend but I'm going to keep my mouth shut in order to not make the situation worse. So I guess this post is really lame.

Where the hell is Spring?

2010-02-24T09:13:00.000-08:00

Yeah, I'm a little impatient, but I miss going outside without 80 layers. Hell, I miss being inside without 80 layers on. But before I start peeling off the layers, I need to loose a few layers of fat! I made one of my goals for this year to lose weight and be more healthy. I'm doing ok, but not great. My husband has been laid off since Christmas and there has been some serious couch time on a daily basis making up for all that time I didn't get to see him this fall. BUT, both of us have no excuse to not be doing something active! We bought a Wii fit in order to keep active this winter and so far we've been too lazy to play very often. It didn't help that I had a cast on until the beginning of this month either! All the weight I lost (10lbs) I gained back during that time. So I need a kick in the ass to get moving! I found a free on-line program yesterday to help me along. www.caloriecount.com So far it seems similar to Weight Watchers without the points system. Basically it helps you monitor your calorie intake, activity, weight and all that jazz. There tons of tools to help plan meals and stay motivated. Man, I sound like I'm working for these guys. I'm just excited. As long as I can keep entering my food intake, and man you'd be surprised on how many calories are in things you think are healthy, then I think this will work. That and getting off my lazy ass.

So I decided that I needed to set some goals for myself in order to keep focused. These are not the exact weeks yet, but just an idea of what goals.

*week 3, lose 10 lbs and get these sweet shoes form Iron Fist.

*lose 20 lbs by week 6 and get a new tattoo!

*lose 30 lbs by week 14 and get a spunky new hairdo. Yeah, I said spunky.

* lose 40 lbs by week 22 and start my half sleeve!

and so on..... I'll probably be rambling about this stuff from now on because it's going to have to be part of my life forever! My family is prone to gaining weight easily and if I don't get it under control now, I never will. I have enough time on my hands and no excuses right now. If I can get into a habit now, it will be easier once I have more going on in my life.

One reason for the need to lose weight other than just the health aspects is I'm tired of my knees and hips hurting. I've had joint pain in both since high school, but it has gotten way worse since gaining weight. That combined with planning a family. I want to be at a healthy weight by this time next year. More than likely we'll be trying for a baby by then and I can't carry a pregnancy to term if I can barely walk because of the pain in my knees and hips. Yeah, I'll gain weight with pregnancy and have to go through the weight loss process again, but hopefully by then I'll have established a healthy way of life and the weight won't be significant and will be easy to take off after.

Whew. I didn't mean for this to sound like I'm turning this into a weight-loss blog, but I do need to keep track of what I'm doing and what better way than on here! Ok, time to go do something active!

Time flies when you're having fun

2010-02-01T15:26:00.000-08:00

I had a good weekend. Nothing spectacular happened, but it was good. Friday night we wentt to see Motorhead USA at Now That's Class. As we parked, we happenned to park in front for Amanda's place so we popped in to say hi. She had her mom in town and her uncle David was over. He's hillarious. It was nice to see Amanda one more time before she had the baby, which could be RIGHT NOW! She was being induced at 10am this morning but I haven't heard anything from her since (it's 9:03 pm) so I'm guessing she's either still waiting or exhausted and enjoying her little one. Either way, I can't wait to see her little one! The past 9 months have flown by. I remember the night she told me she thought she was preggo like it was yesterday. Anyways, once we got into Now That's Class for the show, I met Erin (Hi). She's one of the chicas that is doing the show in July that I am also attending. I'm super excited for it and it was awesome to meet her, though I didn't get a chance to talk to her much. Motorhead USA was great! It was loud and fun and better than any other cover band I've heard. We later then stopped up to the Hullett aka the Spitfire for another beer before heading home. All in all a good night.

Saturday I had off and slept in. I ran a couple of errands and stopped by my favorite store Pat Catan's to get a couple of supplies. I managed to get out of there spending less than $20, which is pretty amazing. My sewing room isn't organized yet, but eff it. It hasn't stopped me from crafting. I worked on a purse that was suppoed to be an X-Mas present for my sister before I broke my wrist. It's almost done. I plan on finishing it tomorrow. Saturday night we went out for dinner to celebrate our 3yr anniversary of dating. We went to the Harp. Ringo had never eaten there before, he's just seen shows. He was a bit undewhelmed with the corned beef. He said he's had better from the grocery store deli. My chicken boxty was awesome but I don't knw if we'll be going there again any time soon. After that we met friends up at the 5 o'clock. I haven't been there in a while, so it was nice to head back to my old hangout. We drank too many pitchers of beer and came up with 50 more Motorboating terms!!!! (A new post is in order for www.motorboating101.blogspot.com) It was hilarious and crass and a good time.

Sunday I worked and just crashed on the couch with the Hubby and dog. A nice quiet evening was in store.

Today I've been crafting while at work. I've been making crocheted stuffed monsters and critters. They're super cute and fun to make. I've got a sketch pad with pages of sketches and ideas. I hope to have lots of stuffies to take to the art/craft show in July that I mentioned before. I also plan on bringning my bottle/can cozies and maybe some fun purses and laptop covers. I need to come up with a plan if I'm going to get it all done by the end of July. I also plan to re-vamp my table for the show. I wasn't too happy with my last show but I think I ran out of time and I may have suffered for it. Displays really make a difference!!!! I have a plan in mind, I just need to wait until we have money again.

Off to eat some dinner and meet Kevin for a birthday drink!

It's on

2010-01-27T07:10:00.000-08:00

So I'm finally motivated to make stuff again. I've made a new item each day for the past couple of days and plan on doing the same every day. I can't wait to post them. No purses so far this time, hut you'll all have to wait to see. After I have at least 15 items, I'll update the Etsy page.
The only downside of being motivated to get crafty is that I keep putting all the important things I need to do aside. Oh well, it'll get done eventually.

12 days to go

2010-01-21T10:25:00.000-08:00

I get my cast off in 12 days!!!!!! I can't wait! I itch like crazy and I can't wait till it's out of the way! For the past month or so, I'll be at work and I'll be on Etsy browsing and getting motivated to get my crafting going again (it's been too long). I'll get home and start cleaning up my sewing room and my cast gets in the way, I get frustrated, and I give up. Not to mention every time I start working out, my arm gets all swollen and I need to stop. The 2nd of February is gong to be a good day! Not only do I get my cast off, but I get to meet the newest member of TFK! I won't get to meet her the day she's born (the day before) but hopefully by the 2nd, mom will be rested and happy to see people. I can't wait to make cute baby gear! Hopefully my bio clock doesn't start ticking too loud, we're not ready till 2011. Also, Zombieland comes out on DVD and the first episode of the last season of Lost starts!!!! So excited!

day 14

2010-01-14T10:55:00.000-08:00

I don't have much to talk about today. The hubby and I have been watching a lot of movies and making dents in the new furniture. I've also been trying to get my sewing room organized so I can actualy work in there. It's a huge project.

Anyways, I started a new blog if you're interested. For some reason the link function still isn't working, but here's the new blog:
http://motorboating101.blogspot.com
Enjoy!

day 8

2010-01-08T10:43:00.000-08:00

So the eating healthy goal is going pretty well so far. We'll see what temptations the weekend brings though.
Tonight is a white elephant party and god knows what kind of food will be there. Tomorrow I work all day, so I need to bring food so I don't go buy something delicious and bad. I need to make sure I do some moving around, otherwise I'll be sitting for 10 hours. Tomorrow night we're going to the PBR Art show at the Roc Bar. I made a cute hair clip to wear that's a red flower with a PBR bottle cap in the center.
No other crafting this week so far because I desperately need to re-organise my sewing room.
I have been reading a new book I got this week called Boneshaker by Cherie Priest. So far it's awesome! It's a steampunk, zombie-filled adventure. Or so it says on the cover. I haven't met any zombies yet but there has been mention of them. Can't wait. I've been obsessed with the whole Steampunk fashion lately! Hopefully I'll be thinner this spring so I can rock a corset dress or something cute. I really want a pair of sweet goggles but have no idea where I'd wear them. This is a great site for some fun clothing and accessories: http://www.steampunkemporium.com
Etsy has some great stuff too. Drool. Not good for the whole saving money part of my goal. Another reason to clean out the sewing room, I'm sure I have lots of fun stuff to work with to make my own clothing/accessories..........

Happy New Year!

2010-01-06T09:33:00.001-08:00

I know, I'm 6 days late. I'm finally feeling motivated. Things in this gnomes life are finally starting to calm down. The last year was filled to the brim with too many things to do and too much stress. I don't even know if I know how to destress at this point. I'm going to try my best. I have decided that I need to make an effort to write at least once a week this year. We'll see how that goes.

I didn't really make any resolutions but I do have a few goals for this year:
1. Make an effort to work out at least 5 times a week.
2. Eat healthier
3. Make more time for crafting
4. Read as much as possible
5. try to get a hold on my debt
6. save money
7. make more of an effort to stay in touch with people

I'd say that's a pretty hefty list, but I need to do all of it! Especially 1,2, 5 and 6.

I have a lot of ideas for crafting and hopefully by spring, will have enough items to restart my Etsy site and do a show with some fellow crafty folks. We have a plan in the works to do our own craft/art show. I'm tired of doing a certain show, paying out the ass for a table and not really getting much out of it. The person running the show only cares about money and hardly advertises or takes care of the vendors. And they had some non-handmade vendors. That is unacceptable.

have a great New Year everyone!

it's been a while

2009-12-21T07:23:00.000-08:00

I've been hibernating lately. I pretty much hate this time of year. I loathe the cold and driving in the snow and the stress of the Holidays. Even though these past couple of years since I met my husband it's been easier, I still don't want to leave the house. This year I have the added bonus of breaking my wrist and having to be in a cast until Feb. as well as pain that pain killers don't touch. I had a tantrum/breakdown yesterday. It was my day off after working a very long week and normally I would be very happy and content because I get to spend the day with my hubby. Unfortunately, even though he was sweet as pie and helped me out a great deal, I just couldn't shake the grumpiness. All I want to do is to be able to do normal things for myself and I can't with one hand a lot of the times. So I yelled and threw something and then was embarrassed that I broke down like that all because I couldn't get a piece of plastic wrap out so I could cover a bowl. Even typing right now is pissing me off. If I try to do anything with my left fingers that are still available to me, I end up in pain. Pain that won't go away except with alcohol. I can't exactly drink all the time, so I just have to deal with it. I really should just stop whining though. It seems everyone around me has similar or worse problems to deal with. I usually try to look on the bright side, but for now, Ba Humbug!

I'm baaaack!

2009-11-06T06:15:00.000-08:00

My Red Queen costume from Tim Burton's Alice in Wonderland, due out next year......

So I was m.i.a. when it comes to writing on this blog for a while (I've still been silently reading). I'm not sure why. I guess part of me just didn't feel like it and part of me didn't think I had anything to write about. I don't really feel like writing part 2 of the wedding. I was a little disappointd with some things and really can barely remember a lot of the actual wedding to write about it. I still haven't gotten the video either. Maybe as a Christmas present...... Don't get me wrong, I loved our wedding, but I've come to realize that even though it was a big day, I'll have even bigger and better days in my life ahead. And why does everyone ask "So how's married life?" If anything changes in your relationship (unless you weren't living together before) then you have a problem. My relationship is the same aweomeness that it was before we threw a big, expensive, stressful, wonderful party and signed a piece of paper. Anyways, I did go change my name, which made it seem more official. Now we can file jointly on our taxes. Woohoo, exciting!

What else has been happening in my world. My assistant manager had back surgery, and will hopefully be coming back next week *fingers crossed* He's been out for about a month and a half and work has been a roller coaster. I basically work evenings and weekends, which means I hardly see my hubby. Hopefully that will change soon!!!!!

I threw a baby shower for Amanda. It wasn't just a run of the mill pink and ribbon-filled baby shower though, it was a Halloween themed baby shower! We had apple cider and fun cupcakes and lots of Halloween decorations. She got almost all the big important items she needs, so I'd say it was pretty successful.

I also found out that my husband HATES Halloween! How can that be?!? It's my favorie holiday! He had a bit of a breakdown the day of. Apparently growing up he always hated it but was always forced to participate. Luckily he's still understanding and said that he loves watching me go ape-shit decorating the house and making my costume. He just won't be doing the same.

Speaking of costumes, mine turned out awesome! I just didn't get to show it off as much as I wanted to. So the plan is to make some improvements on it and wear it again. Besides, the movie doesn't even come out till next year and maybe I'll be able to find some more stuff to add.

I went to the lady doctor yesterday to get my next Depo shot. I love Depo because

1. I don't have to think about it except every 3 months

2. It's less expensive

3. It works

4. No period (which was freaky at first but wonderful later)

BUT it also comes with weight gain and an inability to lose said weight as well as bone density depletion (which can be couterbalanced by taking calcium supplements). I thought I'd be ok with a little weight gain, but then I gained about 60 lbs. Not cool. Then before the wedding, I tried working my butt off with maybe only losing 10-20 lbs, to be gained back shortly after. Some of the gain was stress. Some of it was me just saying"Fuck it!" But either way, I CAN"T SEEM TO LOSE IT! So I talked to the doc and may be starting something else soon so that I can lose some weight and get my body in better shape to make some babies in the next couple years. I don't want my period back, but I rather get skinny again.

I think I'm done for now. Next time I'll talk about what I'm recently obsessed with.......

OOOH, and New Moon is coming soon!!!!!!!!

2009-08-05T08:26:00.000-07:00

I'm not going to post part 2 of the wedding today because I'm so freaking mad! (I promise I'll post soon, if I ever get a day off again) Recently I hired a person I'd call a friend. He's more of a friend to Ringo, but I met him when Ringo and I first got together. Today he quit so he can go on a trip with his girlfriend, knowing that the other part-time employee is currently on vacation. So I get to work on my day off instead of going to take our postponed wedding photos. That and I have to go through the hiring process again, which is grueling. Everyone wants a job, but no one wants to work. I mostly just feel betrayed. I feel like since he started he's tried to take advantage of the fact we are friends too many times. He probably wouldn't have worked out here in the long run, but I didn't think he would quit when we needed him most. This also makes me look like an as to my boss, or at least I feel that way. I recommended him even though my boss had the final word on who we hired. Ugh.

Ahhhhhh. The Wedding, Part 1

2009-07-28T08:05:00.000-07:00

It's all over! Well, my new life as a wife has just begun, and it's prety swell so far. The wedding is over though, an it went by in a blur! Lukily we had it filmed. I hope we get the film soon, and of course I'll post it for all to see when I do.

I feel so free and kind of lost. The past 6 months plus has been a crazy whirlwind of planning and making stuff. I have plenty of things to do with my time as always, but it definietly feels wierd. All I know is that I am elated to be Ringo's wife! He's such a great man and I love him unconditionally.

I guess I'm going to back up to the bachelorette party. Last Sat, Amanda and I had a great time being silly blowing up baloons and turning our fingers purple pitting cherries. The girls started showing up at 9 or so and we all got started right away on the cherry mojito's. It was very tasty, with or without vodka. Martha Stewart knows how to make a cocktail! (I recommend looking up cherry mojito's on her site) We painted skull masks and chatted about boys and wieners. Then the boys "crashed" the party and helped us eat the food and drink the beer. We played Taboo until the wee hours of the morning and it was a blast! Ringo and his party had been to the strip club for the lunch special (word of the day was "loosemeat") and then mini golf where there were beer vending machines! We're so going there for our next date! It was a good time had by all!

This past Thursday was shopping day for all food items we were in charge of. Lisa, Amanda and I went shopping and talked about penises some more and had a good time. It was an exhausting day. I had a little more to do for the wedding and time was running out. Plus the DJ decided last minute that he wanted us to burn him cd's of the music instead of just providing a list for him as previously agreed upon. I have more to gripe about that but i'm not gunna.

Friday was the day to go set up the hall. We loaded up the car and got started. When we arrived at the hall, we noticed that HALF of the parking lot was torn out! We solved the problem, but it was still a headache. Of course, I forgot my direction sheet and diagrams, so I was pulled in every direction when it came to decorating the hall. It was chaotic, but turned out nicely. I only yelled once. The whole wedding party was there and a few others to help and I was grateful! I definitely have a great group of friends and family that helped us and suppored us all the way! We couldn't have done it without them. Thank you guys!

The film crew also came out and filmed us decorating and then interviewed Adri (the Best Man) Ringo and I. I'm a little nervous about watching that part. I wasn't prepared for the questions and I'm not good on the fly. Thank God for editing.

After the decorating we all went to Prosperity and had dinner with Ringo's parents. It was a beautiful evening and felt really good to relax and know that by that time the next day, I'd be married!

I slept like a baby Friday night. I wasn't nervous at all and I was so exhaustd from the past couple of days, let alone the past few months, I had no trouble sleeping. We got up and Ringo took Mondo to doggy day care and I made coffee and chilled. The only thing I was woried about was the weather. They were calling for severe thunderstorms, hail and high winds. Perfect. So we had to cancel the morning photo shoot and pics with Grandma, but we are going to do that another weekend, and that means I get to dress up in my wedding dress again! I cut Ringo's hair and then showered just in time for Amanda to come over and help me get ready. The film crew came over too and filmed all of us gettng ready. That was a little nerve racking, but Amanda kept me talking. Finally we were all ready and I got to come down he stairs for my big reveal to my soon to be husband! When I got down there, there was a huge package waiting too. After the oohs and aaah's, (I did look pretty damn hot, thanks Amanda!) Ringo explained that his cousins came over and droped off this gift. It was a pallet of PBR Tallboys! How cool are my new cousins!

Next it was time to get to the hall and maybe take some pictures. Unfortnately it was too windy and time was flying by. So I just got a beer an tried not to get too caught up in all the comotion of preperation.

That's all for now. My fingers are going to fall off and I need to go visit my Aunt while she's in town. More to come later..........

5 days to go....

2009-07-20T11:33:00.001-07:00

...and I think I'm getting sick. Fabulous.

I'll recap the party later when I'm feeling better.

9 days to go...

2009-07-16T06:42:00.000-07:00

I got 2 more things checked off the list last nigt. Check. Lisa informed me of a new delimma. We were planning on telling everyone we couldn't invite and the people at the reception that still wanted to party to met us at the Spitfire after the wedding. A band we like is playing. We just found out that it's got a $6 cover, which means for the Spit to charge, it's a big band and will probably sell out. So do I spent more $ and buy some tickets? I really feel like I've spent waaaaay too much already, but I want people to come have fun with us after the wedding. So we decided to buy a few, see if anyoe else can chip in to buy a couple and then just tell anyone we think will go to get tickets in advance. I much rather be able to make an announcement at the end of the reception to meet us at said bar, but it looks like it's going to be more complicated than that. I don't even know why I'm stressing about it. I guess I just want to make sure everyone can celebrate with us and have fun.

My bachelorette party is Saturday! Amanda and I will be going shopping and preparing the house tomorrow morning and Saturday. I'm really excited. I don't really have a game plan, so hopefully she does. All I know is that it will be nice to hang out with the girls. I still dont know how many people can come. We forgot to put rsvp info on the invites and I sent out a myspace invite, but i don't think it's working right. I know I spelled something wrong and tried to edit it like 300 times and it hasn't changed. All I know is that it seems that people are too lazy to rsvp these days. I sill don't even know how many people are coming to he wedding. I have about 100 people out of 150 that we invited, but that includes the wedding party. So I'm still planning on 150 and hoping we don't have a shit ton of food left over.

I still don't know if my DJ is 100% He hasn't contacted me at all. Luckily we have a back-up, but it's not really helping me stress about it less.

I had a dream about a sandwich last night that i really need to make now. It was grilled chicken, avacado, tomado, cilantro, a little mayo, on a crusty bun. Mmmmm.

2009-07-15T08:38:00.000-07:00

I ONLY HAVE 10 DAYS TO THE WEDDING! I can't even believe it! I still have a couple things hanging over my head that's stressing me out, but I got a lot done Monday and Tuesday. I'm This Close to having everything I can DONE! I have a few things left to do that can only be done a couple days prior to the wedding, but I might actually be able to relax for the next 7 days. Yeah right. I'm getting a little nervous about having a camera crew following me around, and the rest of the wedding people as well. I'm not one to like being in the spotlight. Sometimes I wonder why I planned a wedding this big. Ringo and I both hate crowds. Hopefully we can find a place at the church that we can hide for a moment or two.

That's all for now. Yay!

16 days to go......

2009-07-09T08:46:00.000-07:00

I can't believe I have just over 2 weeks before I'm married! I'm getting excited as hell and super anxious! I have 2 days off back to back next week (that never happens) where I'll be TCB in finishing any wedding related crafts. I still have to make the buttons, decorate the wedding arch, make a photo album, finalize the programs and print them, as well as finalizing the seating chart (which may be frustrating seeing as I've only gotten back about half of the rsvp's) I'm sure there's more I'm forgetting. I have the 2 days off before the wedding and an awesome group of people that said they are my bitches for those 3 days. I'm still waiting to hear if we get access to the hall the night before so we can set up. I really hope we do, it'll make me a lot less stressed!

One thing that has been helping me in the stress department is reading. I read the Harry Potter series and the Twilight Saga (shout-out to Lacey!). I just read New Moon again in preparation for the movie, even though it won't be out till November. The books are sooo much better than the movies of course, but I'm totally addicted to the movie too. I just hope Kristen Stewart has become a better actress since the first movie. This will be a more Jacob heavy movie, but I don't mind. Taylor Lautner's hotness got even hotter for this film. Yum.

29 days to go....

2009-06-26T08:27:00.000-07:00

We're now under the month mark. I keep saying out loud but I don't think it's sunk in yet. I'm still feeling calm. Hopefully I stay that way. I think with all of the drama surrounding the wedding and outside of the wedding that's happened in the past 6 months, as long as all the important people show up, I don't care what else happens. I just can't wait to be Ringo's wife. I don't want to use the word fiance anymore!
I'm already feeling the pressure to start a family though. I have one friend who just had her second kid, and two other friends that are knocked up, as well as many other people we know that have small children. I was planning on waiting at least a year after we're married to start planning, and we probably still will, but I'm feeling the pressure nonetheless.

32 days to go...

2009-06-24T10:21:00.000-07:00

I just made a list of things we still have to pay for/buy. Ugh. This wedding is costing us way more than I thought it would. I could've probably paid off my debt with all the money we've spent! It'll be worth it in the end. I'll have had a kick-ass wedding with all of my favorite people! (and maybe there'll be some cards with cash in them at the wedding)

Hopefully I'll sell my old car soon! I'm selling my Kia on craigslist. I have 2 people interested, but one is asking me to do a trade (an Acer notebook) with her. I'm not sure if I should trust this. I need the cash, but I've also been putting off buying myself a laptop for years. Gotta talk to the pre-hubby about it first.

We're also planning a yard sale after the wedding to sell anything that we've replaced or don't need anymore. Even though we got a much bigger place, we need to try to live a more clutter free life! Though with the forgotten expenses, maybe we should do the sale before. Yeah, like i need to plan something else!

Oh! I almost forgot. My soon to be sister-in-law called us the other day. She and some of her colleagues are shooting a documentary in Detroit the day after the wedding. She wanted to know if we wanted them to film the wedding for us! Kick-ass! We went from having no one film the wedding to professionals! Hopefully it doesn't make me nervous and I can forget about the camera being there!

2009-06-18T09:42:00.000-07:00

I can't believe it, but Ringo and I only have 38 days till we're married! I keep going from excited to anxious to freaked out. I think I'm only freaked out because I want everything to go smoothly, which I know it won't. All I can do is keep on truckin' along. Before we know it. it'll be over.

2009-06-17T10:01:00.000-07:00

I haven't written in a while. Things have been a roller coaster around here the past couple of weeks. I found a dress! It's great, though not exactly what i was thinking originally. And since I've bought it, I've lost 15lbs. I think the stress of not having one was keeping me from losing weight. Now I just hope it still fits in 5 weeks!!!!!!!! Yeah, 5 weeks!

Work has been rough. The boss is freaking out about everything, and since I'm the manager, I take the brunt of it all. Ugh.

The memorial for Tony was last weekend. It was rough. A lot worse than I thought it would be. There was a bagpipe player. Tears all around. Sigh.

I had to replace my MOH too. It is shitty and I'm not sure I really want to talk about the who, why and how. I'm getting more done now with the new MOH, which is good now that it's crunch time (and Adri is ready to have the baby any minute now.) I needed to do this for my sanity. I was having crazy ass dreams relating to this issue. That and panic attacks during the day and overall shitty feelings. I'm still having shitty feelings, mainly guilt, but I still feel i did the right thing. Ugh.

Hopefully I'll have a happier post next time.

2009-06-05T08:23:00.000-07:00

So I'm the bride that does everything backwards. Most women, after they get engaged, pick a date then start the search for the dress. Well for me, I have less than 2 months, after being engaged for almost a year and a half and I'm just now going shopping for a dress. I'm insane, I know. My only excuse was that I was going to make my dress and waiting till the last moment I a: work better under pressure and b: didn't want to make 800 alterations because of my weight going up and down. I may still take a stab at making the dress depending how tomorrow's shopping trip goes. I'm so exited to go try on dresses! I think that if I had gone to try on dresses and found one a year ago, the anticipation of wearing it would kill me.
I'm waiting to hear from my friend Lisa about the table arrangement for the hall. When Adri and I originally estimated the guest list and made a crude layout, I went shopping for all of the table stuff. Now I know that unless a lot of people don't show up (which I keep having nightmares about) then a lot of people will be standing for the ceremony and dinner. Not cool. So it's time to go shopping for more stuff assuming that the new layout will work. I only have a few more things to do before the wedding. So exciting! OK, probably more than few, but I'm getting close. That and I have a new person to help me TCB!

I forgot to add.....

2009-06-03T10:57:00.000-07:00

...we only have 52 day to the wedding!!!!!!!!! We can officially go get the marriage license now! YAY!

a lot of catching up to do...

2009-06-03T10:08:00.000-07:00

Whew! Life has been uber crazy lately! I guess I'll start with my bridal shower. My mom and sister threw it for me at their church hall. It was cute and they definitely worked really hard. I didn't invite a lot of people because i really didn't know how all of this crap works, so I ended up hurting some feelings. Also, my Maid of Honor didn't show up. I was not happy explaining to everyone that my friend Amanda that was sitting next to me wasn't my MOH, just a friend showing moral support. All in all though, it went well. We got lots of great gifts, and no doubles! I also got a new sewing machine! Now I really feel the pressure to make my dress instead of buy one. I'm going shopping with my mom and sister Saturday. Wish me luck!

We moved all of last week. OMG, I hope that is the last time we move for years! Like at least 5. Then we're hiring people to do it for us! We have sooo much stuff! After the wedding though, we plan on having a yard sale to hopefully clear away the clutter and make a few bucks. And let me just add that the people that work at the Gas co. are complete assholes! I fucking hate dealing with them!

I got the invites in the mail yesterday! We ended up having to cut the list a bit and invite some people to the reception only because we were running out of room. I think people will understand though. If not they can kiss my grits.

Other than that it's just been, stress + hard work + little sleep= a cranky me! I've got 2 friends that just ended their relationships and one that just got a big life-changing surprise. It's all crazy and more things that are taking up space in my already full head! Hopefully the man and I can take some sort of honeymoon weekend so we can decompress. It's just not in the budget right now, so we'll see. sigh.

2009-05-21T05:40:00.000-07:00

So I'm having a minor crisis when it comes to the invitations. I bought a set really cheap and the design on them is a fern leaf. It's not exactly my style so I decided I could come up with a design and cover it up. This is proving to be a real challenge. Initially I wanted a tattoo style heart with banner with "True Love" inside. Then I couldn't find anything I liked that I could make small enough without the image getting blurry. I'm not much of an artist when it comes to drawing, so that was out. Then I turned to the fiance for advice and he said he'd design something for me. It turned out great except it wasn't very wedding-y. It was more horror movie, but I love it anyways and decided I'd make it work. Now, it's not working. I printed the image on sticker paper and cut it out and stuck it to the invites and it looks crappy. I used scrap booking scissors with a fun edge to cut them out and then stuck them to another layer of paper, cut that out with the scissors and stuck it on, and it looks crappy. My biggest problem is I need to get them in the mailbox the week of the 1st and next week I'll be packing and moving! So I basically have a couple of days to get them ready and I want to love them. I might have to ditch the design and use pre-made stickers and this cute stamp I bought. Ringo thought the invites were fine, but he's a boy, what does he know. I'm running out of ideas and really regretting not spending a little more to have ones i like printed. But now I'm running out of time and money........

75 days to go!

2009-05-12T08:03:00.000-07:00

I started this blog with the intention of writing about my crafts and Etsy site, but since I started planning the wedding, it's taken over my life! I did make something recently. I was feeling like getting crafty but i just couldn't bring myself to make something for the wedding, so i made this little guy. He's the size of a Zippo. I'm in love with him. So cute.

Anyways, I'm getting more done for the wedding every day. I still have one dilemma to take care of. I'm not going into that though. My bridal shower is this weekend. I didn't have my mom invite a lot of people, but maybe should have because now it seems that not a lot of the people i invited are showing up. I'm not really looking forward to opening presents in front of everyone and i hope i don't have to give too many details about the wedding, because i want there to be surprises.
Though here's a sneak peek at the fabric flowers for the bridal party and parents:

We get the keys to our new place on the 23rd! I can't wait to get away from all the crazy neighbors and their barking dogs! Hopefully even though moving is stressful, this one will be easy. Ringo is in charge of everything. I'll probably be helping too but as soon as we're in, the sewing room is getting set up and it's back to the wedding grind. I don't even care if everything is still in boxes until after the wedding! I'm hoping I have everything done by July 1st with the exception of the place settings. HA. We'll see....

2009-05-04T16:00:00.001-07:00

I officially had my first wedding nightmare. I showed up to the hall and didn't have anything ready! I had no dress, i had no decorations, nothing. So I set off to find a dress and in the meantime Ringo set off to find me. Neither of us showed up on time because we ended up looking for each other and everyone left the hall. I woke up freaking out, then proceeded to fall asleep and have another dream that was very similar.

I'm overworked and it's we're down to 82 days or something like that. We're meeting the landlord tomorrow. Hopefully we can start moving in early. Being in our noisy apartment building isn't helping the stress level and sleeping.

Also, Tony, Ringo's best friend and former best man, passed away Saturday morning in his sleep. He had been suffering from a stomach virus that spread to his already cancerous lungs. After blood transfusions and multiple medicines, his kidneys shut down and he was on dialysis. His body finally gave up the fight with his kidneys at 7:30 am. As far as we know, there won't be any big funeral plans. He was in Colorado with his family and didn't want anyone to come visit him and see him sick. He probably didn't want any services. Adri is having people over tonight just to remember him and hang out. We're planning a benefit show later to raise money to help pay his hospital bills.

2009-04-30T14:57:00.000-07:00

I forgot to add that we found an awesome apartment that is right next door to my MOH's boyfriend. It's huge and we can't wait to move in!

Also, my mother-in-law to be just gave me her 2002 Ford Focus! She bought a new car and decided since I have a P.O.S. car, that she would give me her old one instead of trading it in. she rocks!

2009-04-30T14:11:00.000-07:00

Wow, we only have 86 days before the wedding! Here's where I'm at with the planning:

1. I haven't started on my dress. I have no machine right now and we're getting ready to move in a month. So the plan is to set up the sewing room as soon as we get into the new house and hopefully my machine will be fixed or I may just buy a new one. Then if I start to panic, I may order one of the dresses I found online. I'll have almost 2 months to make it before the big day, so I should be ok. I also plan to set up my workout area in the basement asap so I can lose some more weight, so waiting to make the dress will be easier than altering a bunch of times.

2. I'm almost done with the jewelry, the bouquets and boutineers, and corsages.

3. I don't have room to decorate the arch yet, but I have a plan of action.

4. I have to make the tissue poofs, unless oriental trading gets them back in stock soon.

5. I decided to buy a hair piece from Etsy because that's one more thing I don't need to make.

6. I got all of the fabric for the linens and just have to cut them to size. I got the round table cloths in the mail the other day.

7. I still have to figure out what to do with all of the cute cardinals I bought, but I may just set them on the tables. They really don't go with the whole flow of the decorations except for the color, but I thought they were cute and bought them on impulse. I may take them back.

8. I need to practice my hair. I don't plan on spending money on a hairdresser. The last few times I got my hair done for a formal event, my hair was awful. I probably just haven't found the right person yet and all of the hair people I know are coming to the wedding. It's not really in the budget anyways. Practice makes perfect.

9. All of the ideas I put on my "wedding collage" have pretty much changed except my ring. I'm too damn indecisive.

10. I got all of the gifts for the bridal and grooms party, as well as my officiant. I've been told we should buy the parents gifts too? I don't know what to do about this. We have 5 parents all together. All of them are insanely hard to buy presents for.
11. The invitations and response cards are printed. I just have to finalize the design I'm putting on them. (There was a leaf pre-printed on the invites. I bought them super cheap and figured I could cover them up.)

12. We have most of the music picked out. I need to send the list to my DJ and then make the play list on Ringo's mp3 player just in case something happens with the DJ.

13. We ended up asking Adri to be the best "man". Tony has been in the hospital since January and it doesn't look like he's going to be in good enough shape to make it here for the wedding. It makes sense for her to be in the wedding, as long as she's recovering well from having the baby.

I don't have a lot left to do but yet it feels like I do. I normally hate planning things because I don't like to have things hanging over my head that isn't in my control. I'm getting used to having too many things going on at once....I think.

2009-04-08T16:53:00.000-07:00

108 Days! Gotta start on my dress and possibly order a backup..........

2009-04-06T13:06:00.000-07:00

Whew! I got sooooo much accomplished yesterday, when it comes to the wedding, at least. All thanks to Adri! She has been the biggest help when it has come down to planning this wedding!

I purchased all of the dinnerware and random things I need for the dinner. I still have to get/make table linens though. That part is turning out to be a bitch. I need to do inexpensive, but I don't want it to look cheap. I'm doing all disposable dinnerware, which may look cheap, but will only be out for maybe an hour or two, so I don't care about that. But I'm having a problem finding affordable linens.

I also have to come up with a way to decorate the 7' arch that I bought. The hall had one I could borrow, and we need to decorate the ceremony area, but I haven't seen the arch they have and know it probably won't be our style. I want it to look simple and elegant and not cheesy like it is on the box. I'm not doing a lot of flowers for the decorations, except some fabric ones, as well as little cardinals. So I need a way to incorporate all of my elements together. I don't want the place to look like I couldn't make up my mind. Adri and I are going to do a run-through soon, once I have everything in order.

I also tried on some dresses to see what looked best at my current weight, just in case I can't drop as many lbs as I'd like. I think I'm going to have to take my pattern back and get a new one. No problem, I hope. I kept all of my receipts together and I haven't even opened the pattern yet. I am waiting on my fabric in the mail too. I ordered way more than I'll probably need, but if I have time, I'll make purses or something out of it for the girls.

I also need to start practicing on my hair and make a hairpiece/veil that will work with it. I've been searching the internet and have lots of ideas, but we'll see what happens. I think my wedding attire collage is not even going to apply at this point, except for my ring.

Oh, and I got my bouquet finished! I love it soooo much! I took some pictures, but I'm not sure if I should share just yet. It's made of fabric flowers, vintage buttons, some fake baby's breath, and a few skull beads. I now need to make the girls' bouquets and the boutonnieres.

The house/apartment hunting isn't going as well as we hoped. We were supposed to go look at a house for rent tomorrow, but the woman rented it over the weekend. Argh! We were really looking forward to seeing and possibly renting this place too. Hopefully we can find something soon, or we'll have to stick it out until after the wedding and I'm not sure I can take living in that place much longer. The ceiling leaks everywhere and all of our neighbors are noisy as hell. So noisy that we don't even want to spend time in the house when we aren't at work.

And of course on top of it all, I need to find another car. My check engine light came on the other day and I have no idea what's wrong, nor do I want to fix it at this point. I spend sooo much money on that car every month just to have something else break the next month. I want to torch it!!!

2009-04-01T09:43:00.000-07:00

So as much as I think I've got done for the wedding, I have sooo much more to do. A lot of it is buying items for dinner, so I can't really do that until right before, that and I'm running out of room to store everything. I need to order my fabric for my dress, go try on some dresses to see what style is going to look best on me, and start drafting the pattern and making a muslin copy. I bought a pattern a while ago but now I'm thinking it's not going to look as good as I hoped, but I can probably alter it so that it does. I've got a lot of things to make, and I have plenty of time to make them if I work a little every night, but I've been reading a lot and putting it off. I'm bad. I'm going to go reevaluate my list.....

2009-03-30T15:22:00.000-07:00

I love working retail, but most times I loathe it. Every day brings a new annoyance. Every day brings a new hatred for the majority of the human race. I try to stay positive, but it's really easy to get jaded when you work with the public. My newest pet peeve is people that come in the store and want to purchase something, they come up to the desk and hold out the item and say, "Can I buy this?" Now I know it seems like a harmless question, but you are in a store full of things you buy, so why ask? Just put the item on the counter and I will ring it up. You pay for it, and, oh, you just bought it! I could probably write for hours on my pet peeves of the human race when it comes to working retail, but I really don't feel it's necessary. Though one day I may just have to make a list of all of the annoying crap that goes on in this store. My favorite is the tally I have of how many people run into the automatic doors. Yeah. It's a lot.

Did you know that Wet Naps (or moist towelette) could go bad? Not as in drying up, but getting musty. I was at work yesterday and needed to wash my hands, but seeing as I was by myself and every redneck, teenager, and uppity family in the Cleveland area decided to come to my store, I couldn't go to the bathroom. So I found a Wet Nap in the break room and used it. My hands then smelled like a dirty dishrag, or my ex-roommate Nichole. It was gross.

2009-03-23T09:55:00.000-07:00

I guess I haven't posted in a bit. It's been kind of crazy over here lately. The boss is coming back from his Bali trip soon, which means more craziness. We're getting really tired of our apartment but don't really have the gusto to look for a new one either. Plus, we can't really afford to move anytime soon with the wedding coming up and Ringo hasn't worked going on 4 weeks now. He did some side work, but hasn't really been paid yet. :(

The lunch with the moms and friends planning the menu for the wedding went pretty well. Some personalities came out that I wasn't expecting, well, one did anyways, but I'm not going to say who. Anyways, the menu is set and the food is going to rock! I got some of the decorations and had to come up with an alternative for the rest. I think it will be better in the end though. The only thing that sucks, but can be mostly remedied, is that the chairs in the hall are mauve! Mauve! Ugh! And the trim on the recessed ceiling is pink and mint green. The decorations I have are mostly red. If we dim the lights, you can't see the pink and green too much, and if i have enough money left over, i'm going to get chair covers. If not, I'll have to hope I don't care in the end. I still have to find a place to rent linens or buy cheap table covers. I also still have to order the fabric for my dress. I have the pattern and the adjustments to the pattern mostly figured out. I have most of my accessories and my shoes. I still need to make my birdcage veil and I'm working on making a fabric flower bouquet for myself and the girls, as well as bouts for the guys. The crafty part is fun at least. It makes me more excited about everything knowing that these touches will reflect our craftiness in the celebration. Oh, and I have the band booked! We still have to come up with more music for the DJ for the ceremony and all that, but that shouldn't take long. So much to do and time is flying by!

2009-03-06T16:31:00.000-08:00

So the car is fine for now. It was just the battery. Even though it was replaced last year, it as replaced by the KIA people, so I should've known it wasn't going to last long. I think I still have a fuel problem, but it'll have to wait till Ringo's job picks up. (If anyone needs any painting done in their house, call Patton Painting!)

I got the shoes I ordered in the mail today! I'm excited about them. I still have to give them a test run when my feet aren't hurting from standing all day. I just have to find the right fabric now. It's really hard to find a silver fabric on the darker side that would be appropriate for a wedding dress! I may have to re-think my plan........

The band is almost confirmed. I still have to order linens and table settings, but we didn't get to see the hall and the tables yet, so that's next. Sunday actually. We're going to the hall then to meet the MOH, the mom's, Adri, Lisa and her mom for lunch and discuss the menu. I'm hoping it goes well.

Tonight should be fun. We're going to the Spit for the inauguration of the Spitfire President and his cabinet members. Our officiant, Kevin, has received a new position as the Spitfire chaplain. It will be a TFK event for sure!

Happy weekend!

2009-03-02T16:18:00.000-08:00

I have a couple more things to check off the wedding list. I bought the sewing pattern for my dress. I went shopping with Amanda on Saturday and had a girlie day shopping for shoes and fabric. It was fun and agonizing at the same time. Fun because I got to do girly stuff with a good friend and agonizing because apparently they don't make cute red shoes that don't have a stiletto heel! I know that my collage of wedding attire has shoes with a tall heel, but I was hoping to find something in that style but in a 1" to 3" heel. I've searched zappos and amazon and just about every other online store that sells shoes. I've found a couple pairs that were ok and a couple pairs that would cost more than just about everything else for the wedding. They may be for the biggest day of my life, but I can't go broke buying shoes. So I ordered a pair off of Torrid's website and I hope they will work. If not I can take them back to the store and continue my search.

My car hasn't started since Friday night and it looks like I'm probably not going to be getting my mother in law's car now. If I do, it's not going to be for a while. So back to the repair shop and goodbye money!

I got more bad news today. Ringo's best man might be dieing. He's be in and out of the hospital for a while and now it looks worse. He's had a blood transfusion and a bone marrow transplant and it's not helping. I don't exactly know what sickness he has, Ringo was brief with the details, but it's some sort of stomach virus that is also killing his liver. All I know is that we may have to take a trip to Denver soon to see him.

2009-02-25T09:12:00.000-08:00

So 2 of my best friends just had parents die within the past couple of weeks. It's very sad, especially since none of us are even 30 yet. I couldn't even fathom having one of my parents pass away now. though I did have a close call with my dad a couple of years ago. The worst part for me is that I don't know what to say to my friends. All i can tell them is that I'll be there for them and help them however i can. I can't even get that right half of the time. I was asked to get a bottle of wine for one of them yesterday, and being completely in the dark about wine, since I don't drink it, I failed to get what she needed. I know it's not that important and it's the effort that counts, I guess, but I feel bad anyways. I really don't know how to comfort people when it comes to death. It's very frustrating. I just hope that the rest of the year brings life, and happiness for everyone!

Banned from the Beachland

2009-02-21T08:12:00.000-08:00

So I feel old now when I go to shows. There are always a lot of under age kids that tend to cause trouble. Nothing wrong with that except when us old folk get blamed for the situation even though we're trying to help out. Let me explain that a little better....

Ringo grew up on Coventry. He went to lots of shows in the pit and so forth. So have many of our friends. We expect when we go to a show that a fight might break out or somthing will get out of hand. Back then, we took care of the situations ourselves. Ringo can usually bounce someone out of the door without fighting or causing more trouble and the people working the club are thankful.

Last night however, some kid was in the pit and came at Ringo or one of our buddies (It all happened so fast I'm not sure who). Ringo grabbed the kid by his collar and belt and started escorting the guy out as he's trying to fight everyone around him (our friends). There was this off-duty dyke cop that was too scared to get in the mix so she just pulled out her tazer and started aiming. I was being pushed out by the crowd because I had been standing behind everyone when this happened. After Ringo got the guy out the door, this broad wouldn't let Ringo and Dan back in, saying they were causing the problem. So I went outside and tried to tell her that he was just helping when she threatened to taze me. She got in my face and put it up to my throat. I told her to go ahead knowing if she did, I wasn't in the wrong. Hell I wasn't even yelling at her or anything. So of course this pissed Ringo off, before this he and I were just trying to explain what happened. But that set him off and he got in her face. Words were exchanged but I don't remember exactly what was said. Something about her being power-hungry and a dyke and Ringo spat at her. She just told us to get off her property and we went across the street to call our friends that were still inside. As soon as they came out and she saw that they were with us, all of a sudden they were being told that they had the cops called on them because supposedly Jeremy punched someone, even though he didn't. So we left and passed the police as they arrived and went back to Jeremy's to get the stories straight and vent and drink some more. I know I won't be going back there no matter who's playing up there. Fuck that bitch. Fuck that place.

2009-02-18T09:43:00.000-08:00

Things are going well in my quest to plan my wedding. Adri has been helping me a lot as well as CJ, Lisa G. and her mom. I got a place booked. Well, sort of booked. We have it reserved and we're going to look at it and place the deposit Sunday. I got my wedding ring in the mail yesterday. It rocks! Things are coming together now that I have a place. I found invites super cheap that I only have to get a little crafty with after I print them out. I sent out most of the save the date cards, mostly to family. We're still pairing down the guest list when it comes to friends because there's the whole budget thing. We're getting the food made by family and friends and will be planning that shortly. My mom is planning the bridal shower. I still have to find fabric for my dress and get my sewing machine repaired. It's all cake from here, I hope!

On the other hand. My best friend and Maid of Honor's mother passed away recently. It is very sad and I really don't know what to say to her. I'm really bad with things like that.

My car is ready to die too. Like any minute now. Ringo's mom told me she'd be giving me her car as soon as she gets a new one, but I'm not sure how soon that'll be. I'll just have to figure out the bus schedule if necessary.

We're thinking about moving, again. our neighbors are driving us crazy and the roof is bad and we keep getting water in our apartment. The landlord says he can't fix it till spring, but he never fixed the leak we had last spring, so I doubt he will. We're just fed up with the place. The place we're looking at has people we know living right next to us. It's also cheaper and the landlord lives below so he can't get out of fixing things, which I hear he's pretty fast at. The only thing I'm worried about is that Mondo will mark all over the place. Apparently the people that lived there before never let their dogs out and I'm sure they pissed everywhere. Eve with a good shampooing of the carpet, Mondo will still be able to smell that. The place is bigger too, and we definitely need a bigger boat!

2009-02-06T10:45:00.000-08:00

I just found a website that got me excited about the wedding again. It's called www.oncewed.com
It has a bunch of DIY projects. A lot of them aren't my style but they give me inspiration to be creative. www.offbeatbride.com has always been an inspiration, but I think I needed something fresh. I just keep getting stuck on booking a place to get hitched. I wish we didn't have such a meager budget. Then things would be a lot easier!

Monday Monday

2009-02-02T10:56:00.000-08:00

I created a wedding attire collage (above, because I can't figure out how to have it below my text) Click on it to see a larger version.

I'm still playing with ideas, but this is what I like so far. I'm toying with retro hair or rock-n-roll hair. Ringo will be wearing his mowhawk up so I thought that rock-n-roll hair would be more appropriate, but the retro is more "me" so I'll probably go with that.

Saturday I appointed someone as an un-official MOH. She has connections. She's going to help me find a place to get hitched and possibly marry us. It'll be awesome, I hope. My deadline to book a place is the end of this month. I'll be lucky if I can get our date. If it doesn't happen by the end of this month, we're eloping. I can't handle the stress otherwise.

I just had a customer ask how many postcards he had, even though I hadn't finished counting. He's apparently from NY. Impatient much? I get a lot of dumb questions and statements from customers. I have a tally of how many people run into the automatic doors. It up to 13 since Sept 2007. I'm sure there's more I forgot to record. Dumbasses. I also have thought about starting a tally for how many times people ask if there's real water in the fountain. I didn't know there was such a thing as fake water.

I saw a man washing his car yesterday. Mind you that's not that strange, except It's February and there are HUGE mounds of snow everywhere. I guess the appeal of car washes, with their drying function and the fact that you don't get sopping wet, was lost on this cheap-ass.

2009-01-31T13:08:00.000-08:00

I still have a sick feeling in my stomach, but I think i just drank too much coffee this morning.

I just want to say that one thing I hate about winter is when I drop my keys in the snow. No matter how hard you try, you can't get them all the way dry. Then you end up with a wet knee from them dripping while you drive.

We've made more progress with the wedding planning, but I still don't have a place. So therefore I can't send out the save-the-date cards and everyone won't stop asking us about when we're going to send them out. Yet, none of these people have helped us find a place we can afford. I have them ready assuming we can get the date we want (July 25, 2009).

I have so many other projects to do on top of all the wedding stuff. I have no idea how I'm going to get it all done. I had to take a break after Christmas because I was too burnt out and sick, but now it's back to the sewing room. Too bad my sewing machine is in need of a tune up. I've been procrastinating on taking it somewhere. I love my Bernina and I'm afraid of handing my baby over to strangers. Even if they're qualified stranger. Weird.

Well, off to do more laundry.....

2009-01-30T14:53:00.000-08:00

So I had a talk with Ringo about how I'm stressed about the wedding planning and I feel a bit better. We still have nothing done, but he's going to be more help than he was before. He's really the one that wants a reception with as many people we can invite. I would love to go elope somewhere and have a vacation. I want to party with all my friends and family, but I'm so not cut out for party planning. It never works out like I want it to. Most of the people I invited didn't even show up for my engagement party. Will they even show up for the wedding? I just don't have any enthusiasm right now about this. I want to get married to Ringo. I don't want all this stress and pressure that comes along with it. Any suggestions?

Sick feeling in the pit of my stomach.

2009-01-29T15:23:00.000-08:00

So I stumbled upon someone's blog today about their wedding plans. She has only been engaged for a few months and already has almost everything done. Now mind you, her wedding is nothing like what I want. In fact, I want something much simpler, but I've seemed to hit a huge roadblock. I can't find a place that doesn't cater, that isn't trashy and is big enough for a guest list of about 200 people. I feel like I'm going to puke. I know part of my panic is my fault seeing is I've been engaged for a year now, but I didn't think it would be this hard!!!!
I'm going to either cry or get drunk now till I can maybe get something done about this tomorrow.

2009 is here!

2009-01-08T16:18:00.000-08:00

So far this first 8 days of 2009 have been full of being sick! Yet another year my immune system decides that its going to hate me just in time to start the year off! Ha. This year is better by far though. Last year I could barely get out of bed.

I decided I need to start writing in this blog every day or so, even if I have nothing interesting going on.

Day 1 -8
On New Years' Day I woke up stuffy and runny at the same time. I felt miserable until I took some Sudafed, then off we went for another Coburn dinner. It was crazy even though only half, maybe less, of the fam showed up! How Ringo has done this his 27 years without exploding is beyond me.

Basically since then I worked and bummed on the couch with the dog, being sick was my excuse for being lazy. No resolutions for me!

Not really true, I would like to lose about 35 lbs before my wedding. I also need to plan my wedding! What craziness! I started making the guest list and there's at least 100 people just family alone! WTF? How are we going to afford to feed all of those people?

I have a few ideas. 1. I'm going to have family and friends help me cook food. 2. Potluck! 3. Do appetizers and dessert only. 4. Save more money and pony up for a caterer. The caterer will be the easiest but most expensive choice, even if its only appetizers.

Finding a place is not easy either. Everyone says do the Metroparks, but I want Lost State of Franklin to play and that can't happen in the park! A VFW or American Legion hall is what we're going for. Our hookup, and also our officiant hasn't gotten back to us. I might have to get one of our friends to become an officiant or we'll have to pay someone to marry us. Very frustrating!

Trying to lift my spirits

2008-10-30T09:14:00.000-07:00

It's a sunny but cold day and tomorrow is Halloween, yet I can't get out of this funk. I only have one more night of Ringo being on the night shift and tomorrow is also payday, but Mondo has been a little shit all week, our bank account just went negative, again, and I have to deposit all of our change we've been saving for over a year just to avoid an overdraft fee. I'm so sick of being broke even though we make plenty of money to live on. We just need to manage it better!

I just need to look at the bright side, tomorrow I get to dress as a drunken gnome for halloween, I get paid, Ringo gets paid, I get my man back in bed with me during these cold nights, and I figured out how to use Rebecca's sewing machine so I can make more stuff for the craft show!

By the way there is now more info about BazBiz on their website and I'll be adding more info to the Etsy page and Myspace page real soon. (http://www.bazaarbizarre.org/cleveland.html) Al of the vendors are now listed with links to their pages.

I already feel better just typing this all out of my system.! I guess that's all for now! Have a Happy Halloween!

HELLO!

2008-10-23T15:37:00.000-07:00

Yay, I'm now part of the blogging world! I'm in a super good mood today because I just got into Bazaar Bizarre Cleveland 2008! (http://www.bazaarbizarre.org/cleveland.html) I'm going to be very busy in the next few weeks trying to do normal daily activity, making stuff, taking pictures (I really need practice with that one) and listing items on my etsy page. Oh yeah, and making x-mas presents. Whew! I'm tired just thinking about it!

I might also be doing a show at my favorite local bar the day after Thanksgiving, but I have to figure out a way to convince my boss that I don't have to be at work on the busiest shopping day of the year!

Wish me luck!