Like Crap on Toast, Thanks for Asking (The Mini Rant Post)

I have been coughing for nearly a week now. Nothing really seems to relieve it. This morning I woke up firmly in the grip of a chest cold. Or maybe it's allergies because my maple trees are covered in red buds. All I can tell you is I really don't feel good.

Queen had 10 puppies. They are healthy, squirming little things. Queen is a great Mom. She hardly leaves her babies and I have to coax her to eat or go outside. Halona and Sophie are spending a lot of time in the pen. Queen is very protective and I am the only one she will allow near the dog bed.

I dreamed of a Lynx last night. I dreamed I walked towards a car because I was going somewhere and a huge Lynx was laying on the car roof. I quickly backed away. The Lynx studied me for a moment then left. I got in the car on the other side and drove away.

I still love my job but I don't know about going in tomorrow. I may work half the day. Depends on how I feel tomorrow.

I am slowly working my way through a pile of books. Most of them I bought in a second-hand book store. I finished I, Elizabeth which I loved but it took forever to get through it due to the language. It very much sounded like the Queen herself speaking.

Next I read Bones which is about a serial killer and I couldn't put it down. Compared to how long it took to read I, Elizabeth I fairly sped through the book. The killer has a helper called "Moth" and I THOUGHT I knew who it was. Boy, was I ever wrong.

I just finished Respect the Spindle. It was informative and when I actually want to try my hand at spinning, I think I will be able to do it because the book explains everything you ever wanted to know about hand spinning. But it is boring. I started skipping sections. There's plenty of pictures and a good bit on spinning wheels. I can't recommend it unless you're a fiber artist looking for something to help you sleep.

I am about to start Dead Towns of Alabama. I ordered it (and Spindle) from Amazon. I like learning about my state. Since I grew up in a dead town (the cotton economy collapsed long ago) and I now live in another dead town (died with the birth of the Interstate system) I find dead towns to be a fascinating concept. My hometown and my current residence aren't exactly dead because there are still people in these places, but there is no growth, no business, and none of the things people take for granted like police, firefighters, schools, and gas stations. Police protection falls under the County Sheriff, the fire department is all volunteer, kids go to school in the next town over, the tiny post office takes over an hour for lunch, and you learn to fill up before leaving the big town. People still own houses, buildings, and land, but these places are no longer considered to be of any importance and thus not worth mentioning.

I am almost done with my Spring sign. I started the damn thing about two years ago. And now, finally, right before spring actually returns, I only have the background to fill in. I altered the design a good bit. I was getting really tired of it. The sign is plastic canvas and is supposed to feature several daffodils. Hah! I got sick of those stupid flowers. I stitched three daffodils then placed a humming bird above them. Much better, mainly because it was far less work. Did I mention I was tired of stitching this project?

I am almost done with a mirror I made for my niece. For her birthday. Which is in mid-February. Whatever. I was so proud of myself until I realized that I still have to find a box to ship it to her...

Will nearly fell through the bathroom floor. It's not as bad as it sounds, the board broke but there's no gapping hole. But we are going to have to crawl under the house for a patch job. The floor rotted because my landlord didn't believe me when I said the shower stall was leaking. A year after I told him of the leak, he replaced the plastic walls but didn't bother to replace the rotted wall studs and floor beam. I decided I didn't want to be without a bathroom again. So Will and I will patch it best we can and when I move in a month or so, my dumbass landlord can either make the proper repair while the house is vacant or he can pray our patch holds. I don't care.

Because I am moving, I am slowly going through stuff. I am throwing out useless things, broken things I probably won't repair, and stuff I don't want or don't like anymore. While I know I am making good progress, you can't see that anything is missing from my house. I hate moving. But it is good for the soul to figure out why we surround ourselves with stuff.

I have plenty more I could mention, but I'm starting to feel rather achy. I think I'll go back to bed.