02.23.05
Posted in Food and Cooking, General at 9:07 am by Jules
The groundhog was WRONG! That little shit. He supposedly saw his shadow which means 6 more weeks of winter, correct? Well, that apparently doesn’t apply in south Georgia. It’s already warming up around here. *sigh* I guess that has its ups and downs. I just never seem to get enough cold weather.
I need to get my veggie & herb garden ideas in-line, so I can start planning and planting here shortly. I suppose since I can’t find some ingredients I want for cooking, I will have to try and grow them! That plus it’s a LOT more cost-efficient. 
I’ve never grown veggies before. Hopefully I will do it right.
Here is what I’m going to try and grow this year:
- bell peppers, green & red - maybe yellow or orange, too
- shallots (can’t find them in the grocery here)
- roma tomatoes or grape tomatoes maybe
- squash
- zucchini
- herbs: rosemary, thyme, basil, chives, dill, sage, oregano
- garlic maybe
That’s all I’ve been able to think of so far. Those are things I would probably use most often. Also, rather than planting in the ground, I think I’m going to do container gardening using 5-gallon buckets. My boss says it works well, and I think it would be better for our yard and circumstances. That way, if I find gardening isn’t for me, I haven’t put as much money into it and don’t have a big section of yard dug up. Plus, I don’t believe we have a good spot for growing stuff anywhere in our yard, anyway.
I have a book I bought - since this is my first attempt at any kind of gardening - so I will be reading it shortly and beginning my garden planning!
Here’s hoping for a green and not black thumb. 
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02.17.05
Posted in General at 9:44 am by Jules
Apparently, something is dead under our house or somewhere in the walls or something.
*gag*
The stench began in our master bathroom, and it has now begun to move throughout the rest of the house. The bad thing is… there’s nothing you can do except WAIT.
What’s sad is, this is my most exciting news recently. 
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02.10.05
Posted in General at 1:23 pm by Jules
My husband has had the flu for the past few days, and after watching him be miserable, practically incoherent, and unable to do much but be a lump, I find myself in the same predicament, only in early stages. The body aches started yesterday afternoon, grew worse throughout the evening, finally causing me sleeping turmoil as my legs hurt so badly, I couldn’t get comfortable in any position.
Today, the aching continues. The fever hasn’t really started yet, but I know it usually comes close on the pain’s heels. *SIGH* Maybe I can stave it off somehow, or I will just be downright lucky and avoid anything more severe than what I currently have. I doubt it, though.
I’m at work. I don’t want to be. But…. I’m not “sick” enough to justify (to myself) going home right now. Besides, I have work to do, and if I really get sick tomorrow, I will need to have already done this stuff.
I’m feeling worse with every minute that passes, though. I’m not sure how much of it can be contributed to actual ailment or just my state-of-mind.
Being sick sucks.
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02.07.05
Posted in General at 1:06 pm by Jules
I didn’t do hardly anything this weekend! I watched T.V., crocheted some, and did a very minimal amount of housework. Now, I have the Monday “blah” going on. I just want to go home and sleep! Which is funny because I didn’t do much of that this weekend, really. Odd.
I have undone laundry, the kitchen needs to be cleaned, the floor needs to be swept and mopped, and the the bathrooms need to be cleaned. Did I do any of that this weekend? Nooo!! I *did* clean out my plastics cabinet, though, so now it’s a bit more organized, and there’s room for my new skillet and dutch oven. That’s definitely good. Now, if my Smart Spin would just get here, I’d be all set!! (I hope that wasn’t a colossal waste of money.)
I did finally get to cook with my new cookware this weekend. WELL worth the money! I absolutely love it!!! I’ve never seen water come to a boil so fast.
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02.03.05
Posted in General at 11:38 am by Jules
I use Firefox. I love it; I really do. It’s such a better browser than Internet Explorer.
One of the biggest downsides to it (to me) is that every time you get a new & updated version of the browser, you have to check for updates on all of your themes and extensions, download those new ones and install them. It’s annoying. I guess that’s part of open source where the add-ons and extras you use are created by Joe Schmo and his neighbor. At least a lot of them are on the Firefox site - that makes it a bit easier.
I shouldn’t gripe, but hey… I have the right to. 
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02.02.05
Posted in Writings at 9:43 am by Jules
This is the beginnings of my abandoned NaNoWriMo project from 2003. First draft - no revisions.
==========================
Britta Lennox. There she was, center stage, all attention from the audience rapt with her every word. Amy snarled subtly as she waited in the wings for the end of Britta’s aria. Her fingers unconsciously rubbed together, twisting the fabric of her costume, all the while her lips moved along with Britta’s.
“Sì. Mi chiamano Mimì, ma il mio nome è Lucia.”
Her eyes were glazed and the sound of Britta’s voice seemed to resonate far stronger in her head than it did in the concert hall. That voice. That stunning lyric voice. It haunted her every waking moment. What a deceptive thief, that voice, like a siren luring men to their deaths with its onerous charm and beauty. That voice which stole her dream from her with its splendor. She deserves it, Amy thought. She deserves what she’ll get.
***
Chad closed his book and looked up at the clock. 3:00 a.m. Christ, where had the time gone? He rubbed his eyes beneath his glasses and let out a long sigh. He had been working steadily since 5:00 p.m. and had forgotten to check in with his assistant. Too late now, he thought. She would be long asleep by now. He sighed heavily and looked over his shoulder at his sleeping wife. How beautiful she looked lying there, her pink lips pouty, eyelids tightly shut, the tips of her golden lashes just barely brushing against her cheeks, and that one strand of hair moving across her face from her breathing. She had been quite upset after tonight’s performance, and he couldn’t get her to tell him why. She just kept mumbling to herself something about things being “unfair” and people getting what they deserve. Chad’s forehead creased in concern as he turned back toward his desk. Amy had never been one to let others know what was going on with her, much less actually ask for help. He sighed again, transferred his glasses from his face to his desk, and clicked off his desk lamp. He was too tired to do anything else but crawl into the bed. Chad pulled back the covers, stuck himself into bed, and curled up next to Amy, his arm draped loosely over her body. Maybe she’ll feel better tomorrow, he thought as he quickly fell into a deep slumber.
***
Amy’s chin rested on the car door as she watched the trees passing outside the window. Her hair was pinned back but had come loose and there were straggling hairs falling in front of her face. She blew at them absentmindedly and wiped at her face with her t-shirt sleeve. She was anxious and scared and didn’t want to be where she was going. Her fingers had nearly rubbed a hole in the hem of her Menudo shirt.
“Almost there,” came the voice from the front seat. The driver was nice enough, but she still felt alone.
As the car turned onto Fifth Street, she noticed how different this part looked than the rest of the city. [INTRODUCE HOUSE] There was an ivy-laden short stone fence of sorts lining the road next to the tall yet compact brick house. Shrubs were under every window and ivy crawled up the sides of the house. The variety of trees and shrubbery somehow made her feel more relaxed. She moved her head and tried to peek through the faded burgundy slats of the wooden fence which set off the backyard. She thought she glimpsed a small garden with a bird bath or some other sort of statue. Suddenly, the cab was turning into the drive, right into the big opening in the fence. Amy’s eyes widened and for the first time in days, she almost felt joy. Her fingers had abandoned their quest to make her shirt threadbare and instead she found herself smoothing out her stringy hair in an attempt to make herself more presentable.
As she shifted her weight across to the other side of the car seat, she saw someone emerge from the back door. That must be Aunt Tammy, she thought. She had never met her Aunt before and suddenly she felt quite nervous again. What if she hated Amy? What if she was mean and made Amy slave away doing housework while she watched television? Amy peaked around the head rest of the driver’s seat and tried to get a better look at Aunt Tammy. When the car finally ground to a halt, her Aunt stepped forward and bent down a bit to look into the window.
Her face was pretty and clean with very light makeup and no lipstick, her hair swept back away from her face and fastened into a ponytail at the rear of her head. Amy couldn’t move. She could only stare, her eyes wider than perhaps they’d ever been, into the dark brown of her Aunt’s eyes. Her face was so close to the window, the tip of her nose almost imprinted on the glass. She hates me, she thought, her fingers once again attacking her hem. She couldn’t help herself. The tears were starting to prick at the backs of her eyes, her throat twisting into a lump. She hates me, she hates me, she hates me. Just then, before the tears had a chance to spill over onto her face, her Aunt’s face was overcome by the prettiest, kindest, most welcoming smile Amy had ever seen. She couldn’t help but smile back.
***
The inside of the house was even more charming and welcoming than the grounds had been. Before Amy stepped fully through the back door into the kitchen, she smelled a heavy and comforting aroma of roasting meat. The stove was against the far wall and was host to several pots, some of which were steaming, some bubbling water. There were shelves along the wall to her right which contained small jars and bottles of liquids and herbs, some books, candles, pictures, and a small wooden nick-nack of a young girl caught up in a porkchop tug-of-war match with a fuzzy mutt of a dog. The small rectangular island in the middle of the room was littered with chopped vegetables, polished knives, and a small assortment of other cooking tools. Her Aunt gave her a tiny nudge.
“Go on in,” she said.
Amy snapped out of her trance. “Sorry,” she mumbled as she stepped further into the kitchen. There was a small dining nook to her left with an oblong wooden table and mismatched chairs. More shelves lined the walls around the table, but these were filled with all sorts of books and the occasional candle. As she began to make her way over toward the dining room, her Aunt stopped her.
“Leave your shoes here by the door, Amy. That’s one of the few sticky rules we have.” Amy turned and looked at her Aunt. She was still smiling. Relief flooded Amy as she kicked her shoes off onto the pile beside the door. For a second, she thought she was going to be reprimanded already.
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02.01.05
Posted in General at 4:26 pm by Jules
I just can’t seem to keep up with all areas of my life. If I concentrate on one section, everything else falls to the back. Is there any balance, or is it just a constant mish-mash?? SHEESH. You’d think it wouldn’t be so hard to stop by my own blog every day and jot down some thoughts.
I’ve found that the older I become… the more intellectually lazy I become. How sad is that?
I haven’t even been able to enjoy much interesting cooking this week. Stupid grocery budget. *grumble*
I’m alive, though. And getting spam comments here already. Yay!!
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