This morning I joined Mission 101 and it has taken me all day to create my list.

As of this very moment, I am a 25-year-old, engaged, working woman. I own my own home and car. I'm in love with an amazing man and I have an excellent family and wonderful friends. I am looking forward to the future and what it holds for me.

( My Mission 101 )

HAVE FOR SWAP/SALE:
Shipping is $2.50 in the U.S., $3.00 elsewhere. I accept Paypal only. Throwing in a few extra cents in for Paypal fees is appreciated but not required.

Extra goodies will be included.

Imps: $2 each
none

LE: $3
none

Discontinued: $4
none

5 ml:
none

( wishlist )

Yesterday morning Andy and I got up and went to the Corn Festival in Shippensburg. Our main objective was to obtain a gift to give to my parents to thank them for all the help they gave us with the house and the move. The corn festival was huge. It would have been nice if we had had more than a couple of hours to walk around and see it but we had to be back home before my mom and Budd arrived at 1 p.m. We ate some food at the festival and also purchase a cute framed embroidered piece to give to my parents. I forgot to take a picture of it but it had a sweet saying about family on it surrounding a heart.

In addition to the gift for my parents, we got new, handmade collars for Gage and Una. Until now Andy has made all of Gage and Una's collars our of leather (and from now on since I have one to look at and follow, I could make any number of collars for them from fabric) and we wouldn't normally look at buying a collar but there was one done in Penn State fabric that Andy really wanted to get one for Gage. And since he was getting one, Una needed to get one too, of course! Una's has polka dots, bones and hearts on it. They are ridiculously cute.

( Want to see? Pictures of Gage and Una sporting their new gear under the cut. (And some photos of Benny for good measure.) )

Shortly after we returned from the festival, mom and Budd arrived. We gave Budd the tour and he was very complimentary about the house! Whew! I was nervous that he was going to find things to hate about it and would tell us we were idiots. (He doesn't hold back.) But he said that he really liked it, thought it just needed some painting to make it look really good and said we made a good decision! Yay for parental approval! Ha. Andy, mom and I walked down to the Appalachian Whole Foods Market (which I wrote about in my 'In shades of green' blog). Andy wanted to get some soy ice cream and I wanted to get some new natural skin care products. Mission accomplished. I also got a Thai Deodorant Stone to try. I am excited about that. Anyway, that's all in the blog if you're interested in my search for natural skin care/hair care products and such. We watched most of the movie "Swordfish," and then walked down to Market Cross Pub and Brewery for dinner. It was delicious. We all sampled some of their brews, including a hard cider and three beers. The cider was good but I wasn't a fan of the beers. And the food was just excellent. We had a great meal and our waitress was very nice. After dinner, we came back to the house and watched "Juno."

This morning we made breakfast together and just spent some time together before my parents had to go. We had a really nice visit with them. I am glad that they were able to come down. It was fantastic.

Andy and I plan to just take it easy for the rest of the day. We have no plans. Tomorrow we're going to hit Lowe's to get fencing for the backyard (finally) and also go to PetSmart to get new tags for the dogs and cats.

This weekend has been really relaxed and great. I am so glad I don't have to go in to AutoZone until Wednesday! I have an interview at Gannett Fleming on Tuesday for the technical editing position they called me about. I believe in addition to speaking with them, they'll have me complete some tasks to show my skills. I still haven't heard back about the marketing coordinator position even though they said that they would let us know by this Friday that just passed. I still want that job pretty badly.

I took some photos of the mess Gage made of his kennel yesterday.

( Check it out. )

My allergies are killing me tonight. I keep sneezing and blowing my nose. Hate.

Last night I finished washing down the walls of the living room with a half and half warm water and vinegar mix. I don't know whether or not it worked better than, worse than or the same as a commercail cleaner like Mr. Clean. Part of that problem is, I think, that the 3 walls that are painted with a matte paint, which doesn't wash well as you can just scrub the paint right off (gloss, satin, semi-gloss paints are much easier to clean). The wallpaper on the accent wall is in decent condition. The border around the top of the room is in decent condition. It looks good from the floor but up close you can see that it is pulling away from the wall a little. That is fine by me as, ideally, I'd like to remove the border. But I would like to remove the border without removing the wallpaper. The wallpaper seems much sturdier than the border, so it might be possible. If not and I have to take down the wallpaper, I will and I won't be too upset. The other three walls need to be primed (because the former tenants were smokers and I don't want any remaining grime coming through the new paint) and then painted. The trim should also be painted but there are a lot of layers of paint on the trim around the floor. It might need to be stripped and then painted. I don't know how much work that is though. My mom says that there are so many layers of paint on there that just adding another layer won't make it look any better. I am thinking I would like to paint the walls a cream (as the wallpaper on the accent wall is deep jewel tones, so it needs to be something bright and clean to offset that and not clash with the wallpaper or stained glass windows), so I suppose that the trim should also be cream. Though I think trim is generally painted an enamel. Though Andy shampooed the carpets before we moveed in the carpet in the living room is pretty dirty. I think if I get down on my hands and knees and physically scrub the crap out of it, I might be able to make it look nicer and not so grimy. Anyway, as I have straightened up and vacuumed tonight the living room, it is almost ready for my parent's to come this weekend.

Both bathrooms are also ready.

There is nothing good to say about work so I won't say much. The dread I feel each night for the next day's work is increasing and the anxiety I feel while at work is also increasing. I am not happy there. I am trying not to focus on it but I spend 10 hours of every weekday on my way to or from or at or around work. It's a huge part of my current existence. I haven't been sleeping very well. I am exhausted. I am waiting anxiously to hear from Gannett Fleming. I am so scared I won't get the job.

Thank you to everyone who offered suggestions as to where we could find window treatments. We needed curtains or shades for the guest bedroom as my parents are coming down this weekend and currently the windows are bare. I don't figure either mom or Budd wants to disrobe in front of the whole neighborhood. The window in that room is a bay window, so whatever we looked at for it, we needed three of. We checked out Walmart, Kmart. Target., Ross and TJMaxx but to no avail. We could not find anything we liked in the right size and colors for a price we could afford. We ended up ordering fabric shades from the JCPenney website summer clearance. These shades in particular in linen (which is pictured) for the guest room. I chose such a neutral shade as that room has a bright red carpet. The walls in there desperately need to be painted as they are a mess (the former owners pulled down wallpaper and then... stopped there... I think we're also going to paint the guest room a cream or an ivory as the carpet is red... I don't know what else would not either clash or be overwhelming) but that will have to wait. We also bought those shades in sage for doors in the mud room/laundry room. The price for those 5 curtains even with express shipping (which was expensive as all get out) was cheaper than the cotton tie-up shades at Walmart that only come in primary colors or neutrals. Check out the outlet at jcpenney.com if you need curtains they have some really nice ones for great prices!

Andy's first days of law school have gone well. He's enthused and working hard already. I know he's going to do great.

EDIT: I just opened a $222.36 refund check from our former cable company! Woo! Holy crap, that is so needed right now. I am stupidly excited and delighted by this.

This evening my grandma was out walking her and my grandpa's dog, Want, when another dog attacked Want. Want did not survive. My poor grandma watched as another dog grabbed her little dog, threw him into the air and grabbed him again. And now Want is gone.

I can't even believe that it happened. It's horrifying. I just keep thinking about how scared and in pain Want must have been and how terrified my grandma must have been.

My poor grandma is extremely distressed. My mom called me crying.

Want was just a little white Maltese. Maybe 7 lbs. He was so sweet tempered and was the perfect dog for my grandparents. He looked like a live little teddy-bear and was always happy to see me. My grandparents spoiled him so much because they loved him. He was my grandma's birthday present to my grandpa about 6 years ago. Just this past weekend, he was at our family reunions and I held him in my arms, cradled against me, multiple times. I never would have thought it would be the last time I would do so.

Not being able to find my suit pants really inhibits the hemming and wearing of said pants.

ETA: Found them!

I checked out the Verizon website today to see if there were any specials on the phones I am interested in and I ended up order an EnV2 because it only ended up being $29.99 out of pocket. I can't wait to get it. So send me your phone numbers!

Last night Andy and I went to meet some of his new classmates. That was nice. We walked to the one girl's apartment and spent a few hours talking with 6 other law students. It started storming while we were there and we walked back home in a light mist of rain. It was nice but I was really tired by the time we got home, as it was about 10:30 p.m.. Andy is going out to meet them all again tonight at a local bar. I opted not to go because I have to get ready for the interview tomorrow.

As to the interview, I am going to make sure my portfolio is in order, look up directions (ETA: OKAY, GET THIS, THE GANNETT FLEMING OFFICE IS RIGHT NEXT TO HOLY SPIRIT HOSPITAL. SHEESH), hem my suit pants, compare my experience with their requirements and write down a few questions to ask my interviewers. Any suggestions as to questions I should ask or anything else I should do to prepare?

I have tomorrow off from AutoZone, so that's nice. After the interview, we are heading home. I am excited. I hope it goes well tomorrow.

I received a call this afternoon from Gannett Fleming asking me if I would like to come in to interview for the marketing cordinator position that I spoke to them about last Thursday. I, of course, said, "Definitely!" So I have an interview at 1:30 p.m. on Friday at the firm.

The job advertisement reads as such:

Marketing Coordinator - (NV10510)
Job Type: Salaried
Requisition Number: NV10510
Location: Camp Hill, PA
Last Updated: 07/29/2008

Job Description:

Gannett Fleming Inc. is an international planning, design, and construction management firm providing quality, full-service, multidisciplinary engineering services in the U.S. and abroad since 1915.

The Environmental Resources Division in our Camp Hill office is seeking highly-motivated Marketing Coordinator for our growing solutions-oriented group. If you are looking for new and challenging ways to apply the latest technology come join our team of engineers, scientists, and analysts servicing a variety of Practices. Our team members have the opportunity to be involved in multi-discipline projects while developing diverse skill sets working with our company's engineering experts. Consider joining our team and contributing to our on-going success while setting the pace of your career.


Duties/Responsibilities may include the following:

-General qualifications creation and updates
-Service sheet creation and updates
-Brochure creation and updates
- Advertising
- Marketing materials database
- Marketing research
- Marketing Plan assistance
- Award submissions
- Website updates
- Intranet site updates
- Client contact database
- CRM
- Conference and/or trade show attendance

Education/Requirements:

- BA/BS in Marketing, Communications or related field
- Five or more years experience, preferably with an A/E firm.

In addition to excellent salary and benefits, Gannett Fleming, Inc. offers the opportunity to work with a nationally-ranked engineering firm in a highly professional environment.

While speaking to me, Nancy said that in addition to hiring a marketing cordinator, the Environmental Department will also be hiring a proposal cordinator. Now the job I originally applied for was proposal cordinator for a different department, so they thought they would speak to me about the Environmental Department proposal cordinator position when I came in, in addition to speaking with me about the marketing position. So two possible positions with one company! I am keeping my fingers crossed tight. The proposal cordinator position isn't listed on their site.

I also heard back from Portrait Innovations, which whom I applied for a photography position. But I can't tell if I think they are legit or not. There seems to be something hinky about them. I applied to their job posting on Sunday and they emailed me back yesterday to give me more information about what they are looking for and to invite me to contact them for further information and a possible interview if I am still interested. Their email is a form letter and very much comes across as a sales pitch.

Regardless, I applied to PetSmart tonight (as a pet training instructor).

Pennsic Wars XXXVII is over. Andy and I had a great time at Pennsic, as usual.

Some highlights:
- Spending great time with friends who we don't get to see enough. I love the members of our household, even if we can all be a little moody at times. We have some great times full of laughter.
- Eating smores around a campfire. Making smores with friends who are your chosen family is one of the best things ever.
- Living in a community of SCA-dians for a little while. A group of SCA-dians are almost always very friendly, helpful and welcoming.
- A canvas tent and camp bed. These things made camping so much better, canvas tents are totally the way to go. SO much better than nylon. And I am so glad we didn't have to sleep on the ground. It did rain a couple of times over our Pennsic but our tent stayed perfectly dry. So worth the expense.
- Merc party at The Norselands. Partying with a bunch of mercenaries is bound to be entertaining. It was worth going if only for the bartender. He was funny as hell.
- Andy's first Pennsic as a fighter. He did great and received a number of compliments on his hole-making ability.
- Our fighters getting a lot of recognition for their abilities. Of course, you get some notarity for having a fighter in a wheelchair but everyone was noticed.
- Waterbearing was... not as enjoyable this year due to all the restrictions they placed on us. However, Nissan proposed to mirroreyes and I had someone call me a glorious creature and another fighter claim that I must be Athena. (People trapped in armor on a hot day are very grateful for water/gatorade).
- Excellent vendors and foods. I got myself an inkle loom (Yay!) and Andy bought me some brooches to wear with my viking apron dresses (Double yay!).
- Interesting classes. I went to one on steaming bread and another on weaving.
- Inducting new members into our household. Ally, Ryan, Steph and Sparky. Our household is really growing.
- Making plans to get a kit together and become a fighter myself.

It's nice to be back home and it was great to take an actual shower (we've been literally shower out of a hose). I missed the puppies and kitties so much. I have been cuddling them all day. Andy and I slept in today, I got my hair trimmed, we picked up some groceries and now we are just relaxing on the couch. I am going to dye my hair later.

I will post pictures as soon as I unearth my camera.

I'm not dead.

I am glad it is nearly the weekend.

I have been kicking ass and taking names when it comes to sewing for Pennsic. I may actually look like a proper viking for the majority of the time. (Or as proper as Pennsic vikings are... which isn't very, it's just too damn hot to wear layers of clothes. Besides I'm completely improper anyway, odds are I would have been back then too. I just would have been punished for it.)

Speaking of sewing, apparently I may poke my nose into the upholstering arena and see what I can do about redoing a seat cover for a street bike (crotch rocket). Perhaps my calling is really in auto and motorcycle upholstery.

Work is going okay. I tried to tackle the afternoon alone on commercial. Dan played a practical joke on me because I'm still new and don't know anything. I had to hound Ken for help all the time but I did manage to get things done (though I didn't get to leave early because 2:30-4:30 p.m. was crazy). I didn't have a ton of calls but I had a few with some complicated requests that kept me busy. But I think, in the end, everything was okay. And I didn't burn the store down. Dan is really nice and I feel like I could call him for help with anything (he's in commercial at a neighboring store). I thanked Ken profusely before I left tonight and apologized for being a pain. He swore at me and asked me what I expected after a week there, perfection? I am on commercial tomorrow by myself all day. I am worried. Mostly because Ken won't be there. I'll be stuck with Ray (the store manager), old man Dan (my driver) and HeeHaw (yet another Dan but redneck does not even come close to describing this boy). I could always call Dan from the other store though, and I expect he'll call me a few times throughout the day to see how I am doing and offer his help.

Apparently Verizon changed their new every two deal and now one can only get $50 towards a new phone but you can get that after 20 months instead of 24? They just didn't bother to tell people about this, I guess. Lame. But it does mean that I could go get a new phone now instead of waiting until October, which is cool. It just sucks that I only have a $50 credit to do so. I'm not sure how their online deals differ from their in-store deals but phones that are in my price range (besides another Chocolate, which I am not sure I want) are the Juke, the Moto and the VX9400. I'd like the EnV2 but I don't necessarily have $50 to put towards a phone. What to do, what to do.

My cell phone (LG Chocolate) has slowly been sucking out more and more lately. The battery has just stopped holding a charge. One short call completely drains it. My New in Two dealie comes around in October, so I'll be able to get a new phone then (Verizon has a deal where you get $100 towards a new phone every 2 years.). But until then I have transfered my number to another older phone that we had. This one is one of my mom's old phones that she didn't use for long at all. And it has a car charger, which I didn't have for the chocolate. Unfortunately, I can't use my blue tooth with it. But I'm not sure that will work anymore anyway as I accidently sent it through with a load of laundry the other day.

Anyway, my point is that I don't have people's phone numbers in my new/old phone, so send me a text (don't forget to let me know who it's from), so that I can save your number into this phone. If you don't have my number and want it, let me know.

So my testing day at AutoZone was this past Thursday. I had to go in and take some tests on their computer. I had to do a couple of them over again because I failed them the first time (and the second time on some of them) because I know hardly anything at all about cars/trucks. roses_in_may finished a couple of them for me. Ha. I asked her whether or not I was supposed to be retaining information from these tests. I am scheduled for two days this coming week, Tuiesday and Thursday. I am scheduled as driver, which basically means I'll be working for roses_in_may making deliveries and such. I thought it was kind of... silly... to put the girl who just moved to the area as driver since I don't have any clue where ANYTHING is but oh well. The time I'm not out driving I'll just hang out in the store, I guess. I'm not sure what to think about the job there yet. I definitely don't feel comfortable. Mostly because I feel like I have no clue what I am doing. I know I can learn but I'm still stressed and anxious about working there. I was there for 3 hours on Thursday and got paid for 8, so there's at least that. My title is parts sales manager. I don't know what that means. Ha.

On Friday I interviewed at American General Financial Service for their secretary position. I think that the interview went well. I was there for an hour and a half. I interviewed with the lady in the office I would be working most closely with if I got the position and after meeting with her, she had me meet with the head of the office and interview with him as well. It is a small office (4-5 people) and there would be days I would be there alone if I were secretary. I would mostly be maintaining databases and reports and such. All stuff that I know I could do. They have very good benefits and I know it pays more than $12/hour. And it's closer than the AutoZone job by like 10 min. I should hear from them by Wednesday.

On Tuesday at 4 p.m., a lady from The Patriot-News is calling me about a custom publications clerk position I applied for. I guess it will be like a mini-phone interview. She didn't call it that. Just said she wanted to call and talk to me for about 15 min. about the position. I almost desperately want to cling to the idea of getting that position because it's with another newspaper and I feel like that's all I know anymore.

I also still have to redo the copyediting test I took for the copyeditor position for the medical book company. I flubbed it up the first time and have to go over it a second time and resubmit it. I don't know if I'll do well enough the second time to get offered a copyediting position with the company but I am not to proud to try for it again, even if it means failure. I have to give it a go. I think working for newspapers and proofing AP Style has screwed me up for other writing styles.

So, the move was chaotic. Big time. We have so much stuff. My family was a fantastic help. Unfortunately, we did have a few casualties. The serving bowl that matched my dinnerware broke during the journey and our most expensive sheets (that we were given as a wedding gift) were ripped. Also, our full couch (it's a sectional) doesn't fit into our new living room. A couple of things that were meant to go upstairs were unable to make it up the narrow, steep stairway. We had to cut our box spring in half to get it up the stairs and the dresser to our bed set is now in Andy's dad's basement (the top of the dresser with the mirror and shelves is in our basement). That big beast wasn't making it to the second floor at all. And there wasn't really a place for it up there besides. But most everything else has found a place and we managed to get most things we needed to up the stairs.

Saturday through Tuesday we spent completely exhausted and sore. Moving into the new house was challenging because we did not have nearly so much help unloading the truck as we did loading it. Thankfully bellasmommy stopped over to help and bring us sustenance on Saturday. Sunday we went back up to the Valley to collect a few more things and the dogs and cats. We brought them all down on Monday. They seem to be settling in well. The cats have settled in just fine and are doing dandy. Una is doing really well adjusting too. Gage is still a bit uncertain about everything but he'll get there.

My mom came down Monday through Tuesday to help us get things set up and she was a tremendous help. She and I get the kitchen cleaned and arranged. It's almost completely done. With her help we also got the living room and dining room mostly arranged. We did some cleaning in those rooms but there is a ton more to be done. The house is pretty filthy. I don't know whether it is because the people we bought it from didn't clean often or because they were smokers. Either way, there is a lot of grim.

Today is Andy's first full day back to work. He got up early this morning and left. I tried to sleep some after he left but couldn't really. Today I go in for training at AutoZone. I went to Ross yesterday and got some cheap black pants and shoes. The shoes have pink on them but I think they will be okay. I have an interview for a secretarial position in Mechanicsburg tomorrow. If they like me, I'll have to go in again next week.

There is so miuch to get done around the new house and so many things we need to get but we don't have the funds at all. The move really drained us financially.

Tomorrow is Andy's birthday.

If everything is supposedly working out and moving forward and all that, then why am I so depressed?

So things are going full-steam ahead with the mortgage. My mom went and signed a bunch of paperwork today and her name will be added to other paperwork. Unfortunately, she's probably going to have to go to closing with us now. That is kind of shitty because now, in addition to everything else, we have to ask her to ask for a day off work. I FEEL LIKE A SHIT. I am losing points as a daughter rapidly.

Sue, our loan officer, is saying that everything will probably be ready by closing. The only damn thing I have to say about that is that it better fucking be ready or she had better leave the country if she entertains any dreams of escaping my rage. FUCKING HOMICIDE IS WHAT I AM GETTING AT.

The ancient furnace was inspected today and it's completely inefficient. It might be a miracle that it actually produces heat. The inspector/service man said that he expects it would use probably a gallon of heating oil an hour. LOLOLOLOL. GREAT. FUCK I WANT TO STAB MYSELF IN THE EYE. But I guess the sellers are apparently very willing to work with us on getting a new furnace installed. You bet your ass, they are. They are closing on 4 properties on the 30th, one of them being their new home. They might be in something of a tight spot. So yeah. Andy thinks we should ask them to go halfsies (halvsies?) but I don't know. I want them to pay as much as possible, of course. We'll have to pay at least $500, as that was what we marked for a deductible if there was work that needed to be done. Andy called Budd and Budd said that if it was available, we should get a natural gas furnace installed. Under the list of things we can't afford: A NEW FURNACE.

I am going to go slam my head in the cupboard door about a million times now. Someone bring me some wine.

ETA: I guess we're going to ask the sellers for $2,500 at closing, in addition to the seller's help we've already agreed to, to go towards a new natural gas furnace.

PREVIEW



( TONS OF PHOTOS FROM THIS WEEKEND - PUPPIES, PLANTS, WATKINS GLEN, ME AND AMY )

They verbally accepted our offer!

Tomorrow Bill will take our original offer with a letter from our mortgage lady, Sue, stating what we've been approved for to the seller's and their realtor. They will then reject that offer, counter offer with the offer we've agreed upon and then Bill will overnight the papers to me to sign. I'll then sign/initial where necessary and then overnight them back to Bill. Once I do that, Andy will go to Bill's office and sign/initial the papers. So we're not out of the woods yet but we're nearing the clearing.

Shipping is $2.50 in the U.S., $3.00 elsewhere. I accept Paypal only. Throwing in a few extra cents in for Paypal fees is appreciated but not required.

Extra goodies will be included.

Imps: $2 each
White Rabbit (top of label)
#20 Love Oil (just under the top of the label)
Jazz Funeral (just under the top of the label))
Black Forest (75% full)
New Orleans (just under the top of the label)
Caliban (just under the top of the label)
Pontarlier (just under the top of the label)
Twenty One (75% full)
Uruk (75% full)
Fire of Love (75% full)
Love Me (70% full)

LE: $3
Hungry Ghost Moon (nearly full, handmade label)

Discontinued: $4
Gamiliel (75% full)

5 ml:
Poisson d'Avril (LE April Fools 2007, full to just above the label), $12

So I went to the realtor's office tonight. She called me this afternoon to let me know that she couldn't be there but that another agent was going to be there to go through faxing everything to Andy to sign and initial. However, we still hadn't talked price. I mentioned that to the agent who was helping me and so he called Eileen on her cell. I talked to her for a moment and she said she hadn't had a chance to pull a list of comparables but she was thinking we might list at $68,500. I froze. Obviously that is less than what we were hoping to get espeically considering she gets a 6% commission. I didn't know what to do, especailly without Andy there to chime in, so I didn't sign anything and we didn't fax anything to Andy and she is going to call Andy tonight to talk about pricing.

And Bill just called wanting to set up a conference call for 7:30 p.m. tonight. I don't know why. I didn't ask. He didn't sound happy. Andy things the seller's refused our offer but made a counter offer.

I don't know what to think. Or feel.

ETA: Bill just wanted to let us know he had met with the seller's realtor. She told him that they need to walk away with 80K from this house. He was expecting to hear from her before our call but hadn't. He expects to hear from them tomorrow.

Today bellasmommy went to look at a house in Carlisle for us. She met the realtor, got the low down and took lots of pictures. She's a peach and we are super grateful to her. We're fairly interested in the house. It needs a lot of loving but it doesn't look like it needs anything super intensive. So we're going to go down tomorrow night after the play and tour that house, along with five others, on Monday. If you want to see the pictures, they are here. Budd thinks that this house would be too much work and is more interested in some of the others we're going to see.

I feel like everything is moving so fast. It feels a little crazy and out of control.

I also got an email from a lead recruiter for one of the jobs I applied to. They said I had a solid background and they were forwarding my application on.

colleend came over on Friday night for a tour of our place. We've got to get on the move with selling it. We're going to list it with an agent soon because we just have to get the gears turning on everything if we're going to move before August.

Holy crap for crap. This is exciting and scary and crazy.

Are any of you getting married or know someone getting married? Or do you need some jewelry for a special occasion of another sort?

I made this necklace and earring set a while ago. But it has not sold. I would really like to get it to someone who could use it.


All pieces were created with all sterling silver metal components, Swarovski crystals and real pearls (dyed and natural). The photos as a rule don't do these pieces justice. The pearls shine with a creamy glow and the crystals give off brilliant sparks of light. They're beautiful. The earrings dangle 1 and 3/4 inches from the earwires and the necklace measures approximately 15 inches. Original price was $95. I'm willing to sell it for $70 now.

Are you interested? Do you know someone who might be interested? Please pass the information along.

~ My knees hurt. I am not pleased.

~ I am done with work for the day in half an hour.

~ We're driving to York Haven this afternoon.

~ POSSIBLY HANGING OUT WITH bellasmommy TONIGHT BECAUSE SHE CAN'T GET ENOUGH OF ME.

~ We're visiting Penn State University Dickinson School of Law tomorrow.

~ I hope opening night for the play goes well tonight.

~ I need to learn my lines for Act 2.

~ I am hungry.

~ I want to get my tattoo touched up before we go to California.

~ I still want to get a tattoo while in California but can't come up with any ideas that aren't large.

~ My nostril stud came out sometime during the night last night.

~ We pre-registered for Pennsic Wednesday night. We're going for longer than a week this year.

~ I need to get work done so I can leave.

Andy just got into an accident while driving home.

The part of Ohio that he is driving through right now is experiencing heavy snowfall. The vehicle in front of him slammed on their brakes, forcing him to slam on his and he lost control of the truck because of the weather and hit a concrete barrier. He's fine. The truck is a little worse for the wear but is driveable. It could have been worse. I just want him to make it home.

ETA: We think Andy's truck might be having a brake issue, which could have contributed to the accident. Also, his heater just stopped working. WTF.

ETA 2: He's home. We're off to Philly.

... a secret, a confession, a fear, a love - absolutely anything at all. Be sure to post anonymously and honestly. Post twice if you'd like, or however many times you want.
Then put this in your LJ to see what your friends, and perhaps others who you don't even realize read your LJ, have to say.

This post is public, so you can post anonymously. Comments aren't screened, by the way; it's much more entertaining for everyone if the comments are visible to all (although I do reserve the right to screen individual comments for various reasons).

As part of my job I receive press releases and such from the local shelters. I always put in everything they send me in order to help them out as much as possible. Some of the releases they send just break my heart though. Break it right to a million pieces. I wish so badly that I could make more animals' lives better. Here is one from today. I cried reading it. I hope that Bridget finds a wonderful home soon. if any of you in the area know of anyone looking for a dog, Bridget is looking for a good human.




Hi. My name is Bridget, and I would like very much to meet you. I am a young, medium-size female dog. They say I am a “labrador/pit bull mix,” but I don’t know what that means. As far as I’m concerned, I’m just a dog.

I came to the shelter last summer because my previous owner didn’t take good care of me. I had a chain cutting into my neck and it hurt a lot, but I am all better now. I’m healthy and looking forward to the rest of my life.

The only thing is, I would be a lot happier if I had a real home. It gets so lonely being stuck by myself in a cage all the time. I want so much to be with people; I really like them a lot. I’m very affectionate. I will stick right by you, give you kisses if you let me or even stand on my tip-toes to give you a gentle hug. Other dogs are okay too; it would be nice to have a playmate. I love to run and play with toys. Sometimes I am lucky and the people take me outside in the yard, and I just run and run. But then they have to put me back in the cage, because there are so many other dogs to take care of.

One time I went to a foster home. I think it was a test. They said I did really well. I got along with the other dog who was there; I was good in the house and didn’t make any messes. I was happy because I got to sleep right next to the bed. I don’t understand why I had to come back here. I’m working hard on my manners; I’ll sit when you tell me to and I walk nicely on a leash. I've even been told I’m quite attractive, especially the little white tips on my feet. Another thing that makes me special is that I like to sit up high on top of things, like my dog coop, so I can see all around. It makes me feel important.

I’m trying to not give up hope, but I’ve been here for such a long time. Other dogs come and go, but I am still here. I dream that someday I will be the one to be adopted. If you take me home, I would be ever so grateful. Won’t someone please give me a chance?

I can be adopted from the Bradford County Humane Society, Route 220, Ulster, (570) 888-2114.

Project Puppy Love is a way for dogs and their owners to help other animals who have, unfortunately, not yet found their forever homes. The project is just starting up and will continue throughout the 2006 holiday season. If the project is successful, I plan on making it a year-round venture.

The idea behind the project is really simple. Warm dogs, warm hearts. Buy doggie coats from Project Puppy Love at $20 a piece and 50% of the cost of each coat will be donated to a local animal shelter. The coats are handmade, by me, from a pattern I drafted but they are very similar to other patterns you'll find out there. Currently we offer two styles. I am hoping to offer additional styles in the future.

The two main local shelters Project Puppy Love will be donating to at this point are:
Stray Haven Humane Society
Bradford County Humane Society

A third local shelter that I plan to donate to in the future is:
Happy Tails No-Kill Animal Shelter

The donations to these shelters will be accompanied by a letter describing the project and how it works. I would love if, in addition to the letter, I could accompany the donation with photos of owners with their dogs wearing the Project Puppy Love coats, so that the people at the shelters can see the people and pets that are supporting and loving the animals that are in their care. So, if you order a coat, please e-mail a picture of your wonderful dog wearing his coat. You can e-mail me at darkeningstar @ gmail. com.

When ordering a coat, please include your dog's chest measurement (around their torso, directly behind their front legs), their neck measurement and note the breed of dog. If the dog is particularly long or broadchested, let me know. Please also note what kind of fabric and fabric pattern/color, whether general or specific. Keep in mind that if you want a specific fabric and pattern, I may not be able to find it or may not be able to find it at a price that is reasonable for Project Puppy Love. I recommend fleece or flannel for the coats if they are to be a winter coat for a short-haired dog. (Fleeces that I know are available are: solid colors, cartoon characters (Snoopy, Winnie the Pooh, Mickey Mouse) and football teams.)

Shipping for each coat order is $3.

Currently, I will accept Paypal and money orders. Send Paypal payments to darkeningstar @ gmail. com.

( Click here to see the current styles offered. )

Please spread the word. Repost it in my journals and/or your communities. Pass the word on to your friends who might be interested. Link back to this post. Feel free to use the banner. Think of the good you'll be doing, the animals you'll be helping. Thank you.