Life Viewed Through an Amber Focus

Today I received 7 pages worth of email notifications for a gift I receved in March. Umm...yes, LJ, I already know I got this item...5 months ago. And even if I didn't, one would have been sufficient. Not 175. Bad LJ.

And since I'm on here, I wanted to thank everyone who sent me information of how to get free books for the Kindle...or as we are now calling it in this household Free Kindle Krappe (TM). It is nice to see that there is so much of it.

I am hard at work on the drabbles and hope to have them ready, or at least some of them, by this evening.

Why is it the one morning I have to sleep in is the only morning in a week that I get an early moring phone call? *yawns* I was really tired, too. 26 laps yesterday and a walk. Plus it was too hot to sleep until 2 a.m. Yesterday was 90 at the height of the day. Right now it is only 67, but will get higher as the day goes on. Still, a day in the 70's is much easier to tolerate around here than a day in the high 80's, like most of the last few days.

Anyone have any experience with becoming a landlord? One of the workmen working on our house to get it ready for sale is interested in renting it long term (like a two year lease). Since the market is sucky out there we are thinking about it, but have very little idea of what to consider, other than criminal and civil background checks, credit checks, and calling old landlords for payment history. We have no idea what the tax ramifications are, either.

I'm writing again.  I have finally adjusted to my new glasses.  Progressive lenses are a trip, but now that I'm used to them it is so, so nice to be able to see everything, even if at 41 I think I should be too young to wear trifocals.  *sighs*

So I've been working on the lovely challenge at then_theres_us, writing a Noir Doctor/Rose fic, and having a great time of it.  And Leap of Faith is coming along nicely once again.  I cut out 1500 words yet again and finally have the story back on track.  I don't know why it kept veering in the wrong direction.  I'm thinking maybe Wednesday.  It's hard to say though since I have physical therapy Monday, drive DH to the airport Monday night, meet with the nutritionist on Tuesday as Rose is borderline diabetic (can't remember if I said that) and Tobias gets his tonsils out on Friday so he may be extra clingy this week leading up to that.  Still, the groove is back so Wednesday is definitely my goal to finish the chapter by.

( Spoilers for Fringe and Supernatural )

We spent the whole weekend practically out at the house.  Except for the stuff under one bathroom sink and a few scattered things on the floor everything is out of the house except the piano.  It has been such a chore.  Next time DH comes home we are going to rip out the carpet.  At least if all goes well at Virginia Mason.  My appointment is on the 27th.  We are driving down the night before and probably spending the night at the Inn at Virginia Mason.  It's got comparable prices to other hotels in the area but has a full kitchen and I'd much rather eat my own food than too much restaurant food.

( Job Stuff and V update )
Not much else going on right now but I suppose that's enough, hmm?

 

I'm really excited about how much I swam today.  Last time I swam 15.5 laps so I told myself I at least had to do 16.5, but that I wanted it to be 17.  Funny thing was I was really tired at fifteen, but powered through it anyway, by the time I hit 16 I just knew I wanted to do more.  I'd hit my second wind so 17 went sailing right past and I decided to take it as far as I could go and that's when I hit 20.5 laps.  I am so close to my goal of 25.  I think it's achievable during the next few days.  I'm going swimming on Saturday, Sunday and Monday so possibly really, really soon.  It feels so good.

I found out that with the adult lap lanes you can actually reserve a lane to yourself so you can swim at your own speed (be it fast or slow) without having to share and be aware of anyone you are swimming laps with.  This is nice for me because I'm still pretty slow.  It took me 40 minutes to do it, which roughly translates to 1 minute per length or 2 minutes per lap.  I suppose as my strength comes along, so will my speed.  I used to be such a strong, fast swimmer, I want that again.  I am definitely noticing strength returning to my legs and arms.  My knee joints don't seem as weak as they once were.

I know I'll move on to adding the Cybex machines back in once I can get some personal trainer time once school starts.  Plus maybe some stuff with the treadmill, bikes, elipticals and rowing machiens.  I'd really, really, really like to get myself fit again, but the machines are something I need someone babysitting me on for a while, and making sure I'm doing my technique right, becaue technique is and always has been, so hard for me to learn.  Once I get it, I never let go, but it definitely takes time for me to get it.

I added another 600 words to LoF.  I hope I can finish the chapter tomorrow.  I have to go to the pawn shop and take back the Nintendo DS we bought there under their 7 day return policy because the microphone doesn't work.  Fortunately we found one elsewhere that does work, so this one can go back.  Then we need to go back down the street to Sally's Beauty Supply which carried spray in hair color that Rose wants to experiment with in shades of blue, green, pink, and purple.  It washes right out, but it'll give her an idea of what color she really wants to keep once I let her put a couple streaks of permanent color in.

We're still waiting on the virtual school to send in release forms for the kids.  They released them back in July and were have supposed to have sent them but didn't.  Hopefully we will hear back from them on Monday so we can get those papers in.  It's really annoying when people don't follow through on their jobs.

Tomorrow I'll be swimmng again plus going to Costco and Trader Joe's, and moving some boxes back to storage, so hopefully there should be some time to squeeze in writing somewhere.  The nephews descend on us tomorrow night and will stay for a week whch should distract my kids a fair bit.  I'll be able to hole up in my room and type away with no one to bother me much and only have to worry about feeding times at the zoo.

That icon is about how I felt tonight.

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I hope to find time to write this weekend, but I'm not holding my breath on that, either.

(Why does that sound like ajlrpuck fic title?)  Anyway, just wanted to do a quick life update.  I turn 40 in five more days!  Oh, my gosh, how did I get here?  I swear yesterday I was only 17.  Now I'm the mom of a thirteen-year-old who is taller than me by two inches and my baby is about to turn 10.  How does this happen?  Where does the time go?  And Chris won't even be here for my major milestone as he flies back to Alaska on Tuesday. *pouts*  Oh, well, I'm used to that.  Don't think I'll do much, except make the Best Butter Fudge Cake out of the Best of 2010 Cookbook I bought last week and then I'll probably freeze most of it since I don't want to be eating off it all week.  (Hmm, wonder if I could just make half the recipe and do cupcakes?  They'd be easier to freeze in portion sizes.)  I'm not really a big birthday celebration person.  I like cake and presents and that's pretty much it.  I suppose if Chris were home we'd go out to dinner, but I think I'll be happy to just stay home and veg.

Chris' boss wants him to apply for a new job at their company.  It'd be supervising 6 to 8 people and would be a step up the pay scale.  If he got it we'd be assured of a 2 and 2 schedule, instead of half the year being 2 and 2 and the other half of it being 3 and 3.  I hate 3 and 3's, so hopefully he'll get this and we can not have to deal with 3 and 3's come spring.  Keep your fingers crossed for us.

I haven't been writing this week and I miss it, but we've just been so busy working out at the house and rearranging our storage locker.  We're going to get a bit more done tonight.  There is just so much to do and I want to get as much done as possible while Chris is still home.  But I am aching to write the next bit of HM!

So today was quite the productive day.  I wrote chapters 2 and 3 of Pushing the Boundaries and posted chapter two.  I've got 1000 words of ch. 33 of Of the Vortex done.  I plotted out chapters 34 through 40 of Of the Vortex Born, figured out how Jamie is going to get her memory restored, what the heck was up with the Ganyites and the Ritauels and how the story ends!  Excited on that one.  DH helped me brainstorm over a meal out.  Oh, he also helped me brainstorm the two follow up stories to Pushing the Boundaries in the Crossing Boundaries series.  They will be called The Boundaries of Temptation and The Boundaries of Desire.  At least those are currently the working titles.

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