Ever Feel Like You Don’t Have Any Time to Do Anything at All?

Yeah, me too.

Sorry I have been absent from writing for the last few days. We have been having a lot of fun with our visitors and I have come to realize that A) I am not a spring chicken any more, 2) there is a LOT of Texas to cover just in a 100 mile radius, and iii) there is no such thing as “waiting until tomorrow” to do anything. My legs are killing me, but it was totally worth it.

Anyway, today finds my friends packing and relaxing before their flight out tomorrow.

This is why I am writing right now 😀

I shall miss them, and the food, and the wonderful company, and seeing Texas through their eyes. They made me realize just how special my state really is. I mean, I already knew it was special, but they made it specialer. And according to the spell-check, that’s a word, so I am winning this morning. So have a funny!

Yes, that made me snort my coffee.

I’ll be back in my writing groove in a day or two. Until then, I hope y’all have a great day 🙂

Everything is Bigger in Texas

Yeah, I’ve been very busy. Awesomely so! I have been taking my friends to see our fair city and surroundings. Monday I took them shopping, and as a reward my friend made the sauerbraten. I had wonderful dreams of gravy that night. Tuesday they were a bit under the weather, so we hung out at home. Wednesday, though, we hit downtown like a tornado. Because THE ALAMO, that’s why!!

So we arrive, and parking is a pain in the hind quarters, but we manage to snag a primo spot. We walk down and begin our tour of the mission, taking note of the many countries represented during the battle. Oddly, there was a professional harpist playing in the middle of the building, but I figured they wanted mood music. Personally, I think folk music would have been more appropriate, but what do I know? So, we tour the barracks area, and stop to gawk at the outrageous prices at the gift shop, and then cross the street to go down to the Riverwalk. It was a nice day, a bit overcast and cool, but thankfully, the walk was almost deserted. YAY!! And it wouldn’t be a good time without Mexican food, right, RIGHT? So yes, we had Tex-Mex food, and were serenaded by Mariachis, and then we wandered around some more to let the food settle, or we would explode. We did the obligatory cheap souvenir shopping, and meandered back up the way we came in. As we climbed the stairs to the street, we got a surprise: a film crew was set up!! I had no idea this was going to happen, so it was a pleasant surprise for my friends. The scene was that of a gal in a tight fitting, very short, sleeveless red dress crossing the street towards the Alamo.

Keep in mind it was about 55* Fahrenheit and most of the “extras” were in jackets, sweatshirts, and long sleeves. But what do you expect from a cinematic masterpiece called Killer Women, huh???

So that was our day yesterday. This morning I had to take them to see the most wondrous boots in the whole world!!

Because it’s not enough to have cowboy boots. We have to have GIANT cowboy boots.

Everything is bigger in Texas 😉

Polyglot-ony

Polyglot and gluttony.

There’s plenty of both here right now!

My friends from Germany arrived without incidents, and we have been having a wonderful time cooking and sightseeing. Last night we had sauerbraten, and cucumber salad. ZOMG!!! I gained three pound just making the stuff.

So far, my pants still fit. That’s not guaranteed to be true in the next two weeks.

Along with the wonderful food, we are enjoying wonderful conversation. Not only in German, but also Hungarian, and Spanish, and English as well. Tomorrow, I hope to learn to make Amerikaner danish and soda bread. I am going to be one heck of a gourmet by the time they leave.

That, or one heck of a whale. Either is acceptable.

Anyway, just wanted to give y’all an update as to the happenings at Casa de Aggie. I will make an attempt to post tomorrow. Unless my friend decides to make schnitzel. Then y’all are out of luck 😉

Reflections on a Friend

Yesterday, I received some really bad news. A friend of mine passed away. We were members of the same blog, and had chatted weekly about all and sundry. I had the great fortune of meeting him a few years back. At the time, he was 29 years old, looked 18, and had the vocabulary of a drunken sailor in Singapore. He was hilarious. And unusual, because he was a person who took living very seriously.

For him, “living” meant “squeezing out every bit of enjoyment”. He didn’t put off going some place or seeing someone for another day. He felt like doing something, he would do it. Once, he decided to go find feral hogs, because he was bored. While he was at DFW on a layover, he ordered three different Mexican meals at the restaurant, because he had the opportunity right then. Ate them all, too! When I told him about the passing of my friend, who wanted PJs at her funeral, he said, “You need to wear them for her. But you need to wear lingerie for the rest of us.”

Uh, no 😀

He was rough when people were looking, and a complete gentleman when they weren’t. He loved his life, he lived it fully, and did more with it than most people do in three lifetimes. In short, he was an everyday hero.

I miss you, my friend. I weep for the loss to this world, and rejoice for the gain in Heaven. And when I see you in the future, I’ll have my comfy PJs and my llama, just so you can laugh at me again.

Soon….Very Soon….

It’s almost time for Spring Break around these parts!

We have no plans.

Usually, some friends come and visit for a couple of days, and that seems to be the extent of our little break. But this time, friends are coming from overseas and staying for a couple of weeks, and I am sooooooooo excited!! Why? Because my friend is going to teach me to make sauer braten!!

Don’t know if that’s spelled correctly, and don’t much care. So soon, very soon, I shall be partaking of that wonderful dish, along with her should-be-world-famous strudel.

And did I mention this will happen AFTER Easter??

And furthermore, I kept all of my elastic-waist pants. I am not stupid. So, enjoy this German Vader while I begin to prepare for the upcoming awesomeness!

Hope y’all have a wonderful day, and have a beer for me 😀

Shaving With Occam’s Razor

Why do people make things complicated?

A friend of mine decided to redo her pantry. Good for her, I say! I love remodeling, and love to see the “before-and-after” pics people post on social sites. But her redo makes absolutely no sense to me.

See, she has wire shelving in her pantry, and hates it. Small things fall through, and some things just topple over. I have the same problem. I despise all of the wire shelving in this house, with the possible exception of the linen closet, because I do like air to circulate through the linens. It’s one of my Jones. Anyway, her solution is going to set her back about $4,000. She is ripping out all the shelving and putting in wood shelves and having them painted. All for an area that seldom will be seen by visitors. Now like I said, I’m all for home improvement, but NOT when I can find an easier, more cost effective solution, like this one!

That’s peel and stick tile, which you can get for less than a dollar per square foot. Simply peel the backing, and apply to the wire shelf. That’s it. I did the math, and it hurt my brain, but for my pantry the total cost would be about $40, and I would have enough left over to do a few shelves in the kids’ rooms. Can you imagine what you could buy with the $3, 960???

Even after I told her of my solution, she was undeterred. She wants to make upgrades to her home in case she has to sell it. I can understand that. I remember when she took a wobbly chair in to get the legs shortened. I told her a bit of cork under the short leg would have solved her problem. She replied, “But the cork wouldn’t match the color [of the chair].” She never thought of a Sharpie™.

I must say she is an inspiration to me. She always makes me think of the easiest solution to the problem du jour. It’s a gift, and a curse 😉

Words Fail Me

Sometimes friends know me too well. There was that time when I was trying out for a school play and my friend said I would be no good as the main character, but the witch was a sure fit for me because I could cackle. Things like that. But there are times when they know me so well, that words just fail me.

My friend Teresa is amazing. This is why:

That, my friends, is a Darth Kitty Pincushion!!!!!

Complete with pipe cleaner lightsaber!!!!

When I opened the box last night, and saw what it was, I started to laugh, and cackle, and wheeze, and hurt a lot. And it was completely worth it!! Truly I have wonderful friends.

The only quandary is, do I use it as a pincushion, taking a risk on voodoo, or do I let it reign supreme over my Sithy work area?

Decisions, decisions 😉

My 500th Post, a Birthday, and Update

And I really don’t know how that happened.

Today is my blogger friend XBradTC’s birthday!!! And like a good friend, I made him brownies. I say “good”, because if I were a great friend, I would have mailed them to him.

They were delicious. Take my word for it, Brad.

Also, an update on Eldest’s room. Yes, the big reveal was postponed forever due to school commitments, but here is a pic of the final big project I did for her room.

It’s a light fixture made from two hanging baskets, a lantern light kit and an Edison lightbulb. And as you can see, that is the cord cover I was sewing my fingers on that inspired me to ask for a sewing machine for my birthday, which I probably won’t get because I really have no room upstairs for it at this time.

Hope you like the sneak peek. I am counting on getting everything done today so that I can FINALLY do the Big Reveal™ tomorrow. If not, I’ll just make more brownies 🙂

Sunday Sithy for Roamy

Today is my friend roamingfirehydrant’s birthday, and in tribute I offer this awesome Sithy.

I always knew astronauts used the Dark Force™. I KNEW IT!!!

Happy Birthday, Rocket Chick!!! *MUAH* 😀

And the Winner Is…..

Before I reveal the winner, I want to thank everyone for commenting. Y’all were awesome! So awesome, that I ended up making another little pincushion jar to give away!! It’s empty, but ready for your goodies. Hey, there’s just so many spools I have laying around, ok??

The winner of the sewing kit is….

FlyOverHere!!!

When Little One pulled her name out of the jar she said, “Mom, what kind of name is Foh??” When I told her, she was all smiles and said she missed your other name 😉

And the winner of the pincushion jar, which is empty, but still pretty, is….

Jennie Outterson!!!

Which is great, because I know where she lives 😀

I will email the winners today. Thanks so much for entering my rather weird little giveaway. I’m glad y’all liked it enough to want it!!