D R A M A !

So, Chris and I just had to throw someone out of our home. I don't mean ask nicely to leave...I mean TELL and YELL to leave. About 2 weeks ago, Chris made an appointment with Midtown Home Improvement to do a siding estimate. They came to our door, and I wasn't home, and he made the appointment. Anyway, tonight, this guy, probably around 23-24, came to do our 'estimate'. When he first walked in, he commented that he was glad we were 'young' because most people don't take him seriously when he does estimates because he's so young. Anyway, he starts talking like a mile a minute and doesn't shut up. I sat in my chair in the living room, and just listened while Chris talked to him, or listened to him, in the kitchen.

After about 45 minutes, he was ready for Chris to go outside with him and help him measure. WAIT. We've had siding estimates before and we've never had to help someone measure our home. So, that took about 30 minutes or so. He comes back in and talks some more. Talk Talk Talk, non stop for 1 hour. It was complete bullshit. At one point, he asked for a calculator because his batteries were dead. So, the first amount that comes out of his mouth is $17,000. That's about $7,000 higher than the other estimates. At that point, I went in the bedroom to watch TV and make a phone call. I figured Chris would handle it. About 20-30 minutes later, Chris comes in the bedroom, pissed. He tells me he needs me to come outside and talk to this guy because he won't leave. I'm like "What do you mean he won't leave?" Chris says he told the guy to leave, and he said he wasn't leaving until he talked to me. So, now I'm annoyed that I have to get off the phone and stop watching TV. So, I come into the kitchen and Chris is in the process of telling him no again, and to leave. The guy says to me, "Don't you want to save $3,000?" I just say, "Hey, he makes the decisions here. So, I think you need to go." He starts ARGUING with me, and with Chris and says he's not leaving. At this point, I can see Chris starting to get really really pissed and I'm starting to get really really pissed, and I obviously have a worse temper than Chris does. So, I tell him to stop talking and get out. He interrupts me and says no, and at that point, I start yelling and tell him to get his shit, and get out of my house, NOW. At that point, he's very belligerent and grabs his bag, mumbles some shit, and starts walking out. I follow RIGHT behind him. He tries to turn down our hallway, instead of going out the door. Oh man I was so pissed. I just kept yelling at him and basically pushed him out the door.

We wrote his license number down and we do plan on calling and writing Midtown Home Improvement, and probably filing a complaint with the BBB. I am so unbelievably pissed right now I can't stand it. I don't get it. This guy basically wanted Chris to sign a contract RIGHT NOW. WTF? Who signs a contract for siding RIGHT NOW? It was absurd. If he's trying to get our business..at what point do you start yelling at the customer and trying to force them to sign something. Oh yeah, that's great business.

Anyway, almost 3 1/2 hours later and we're finally getting ready to eat dinner. I'm so pissed. I'll post more later, but I've gotta eat for now. If anybody has had any experience with this company, please let me know. I'm very concerned at this guys actions, and now I'm thinking he could come back and do something bad to our home.

Help

Where is nice, fun place for me to go eat on my 25th birthday? I need suggestions.

Ahhhhh

Today was a very long day. Food has been consumed and now I'm sitting on my butt. I'm tired and really, I'm ready for bed.

That is it.

Weekend Things

Friday night my cousin came in and we headed to Truffles for dinner. It was good. Good food and extensive wine list. You should go. However, let me just say that if you do go, don't forget to wear your khaki's, pastel colored shirt, and boat shoes. Yeah, I'm aware that there really isn't any water near Ladue. Oh, and don't wear socks with your boat shoes.

We didn't get home until late Friday, so we didn't get up until late Saturday morning. We headed out to my aunt's in Eldon. We were supposed to lounge by the pool all day, but their pool wasn't finished so we didn't get to do that. Instead, we hung out with everyone and consumed multiple bottles of wine.

All of my cousin's were there, as well as their girlfriends, and babies. Yes, multiple babies. And yes, they are all younger than me. It was good to see everyone, but I left there today feeling really conflicted.

My one cousin got pregnant when she was 16. The baby is only 4 months old. She quit school and moved out of her parent's house, to live with her baby daddy. In case you are wondering, he's not white. And while there is nothing wrong with that, there are just many circumstances that make it crappy. I feel sad for her, but I feel more sad for my aunt/uncle. I know that my cousin will never be more than what she is right now, and it just hurts me to know that. My other cousin, her older brother, has a baby too. He's older, 23, but still very immature. His girlfriend is only like 20 and she's more immature than he is. I learned this weekend that his girlfriend is pregnant again too. So, that's 2 kids for 2 'kids' to take care of. No money, and again, no prospect of a future. Then, there's my other cousin, who is really doing the best out of the bunch. He's 23 also, and his girlfriend is 23. She has a son that isn't my cousin's who is 5. She's done a great job with that kid, because he's really well behaved and very smart. They just had a baby together 1 month and 2 days ago. He works 2 jobs, and they have a place to live. It just kills me that he works 2 jobs and even with that, they don't have much.

Does anyone else have anything like this in their family? Sometimes I'm surprised at how my sister and I turned out. I mean, she's going to be a doctor. I can't say that about any of my other cousins. Most of my cousins started out going to college, then quit to work for the family business, or just quit and did nothing. It's so bazaar to me. Then, I find it odd that babies having babies is so widely accepted. Don't get me wrong, in some situations young people can make things work when a baby is involved. In this situation, things aren't really working. Maybe you can understand why I hate the "when are you & Chris going to have a baby?" question so much. I mean, I guess when babies are having babies, it's the most logical thing for a married couple to do. What about ambitions though? And, just living your life? And perhaps being a little more responsible, and financially stable, etc etc before you pop one out. UGH.

I just get aggravated and sad at the same time. I feel for them, but at the same time, think they're stupid. Hi, have you heard of birth control? Condoms? Abstinence? Any of those things? Anyway, basically, my aunt ends up taking care of all 3 (going to be 4) babies. She only has my youngest cousin left to raise before she's done. It appears that he's going on the high path and is going to do well, but he's only a freshman in h.s. so we'll see in a few years. Either way, she should not be having to raise 3 grandbabies all over again, like a parent.

Anyway, I slept in this morning, then started back home around 10:30/11. Since I've gotten home, I've not done much. Watched TV, did a load of laundry, made dinner. I'm thinking about making some cinnamon rolls later.

I was out from work on Thurs/Friday, so I'm going to be swamped tomorrow. Plus, my boss is going to be back. My class is on Thursday, and my cousin goes back to the airport early Friday morning. Busy week.

That's all from the peanut gallery. I hope you all had a good weekend. I know I did.

Finally!

The guest room is finished! We worked our butts off and it sucked but it was worth the effort. Now, the room has charm. It has feeling. I just want to hang out in there. Everytime we walk by, we stop and look in. Improving your home is a good feeling. Here's my advice. If you want the stress, go ahead and do wainscoting yourself. If you don't, hire a professional. Don't get me wrong, I'm glad we did it by ourselves, because it's a great feeling of accomplishment, but if I had it to do over, I'd hire a professional. So, here are the pictures. This picture is a "before" picture..it's kinda crappy, but we took it before we bought the house. And those above are the new improved room.



I might add that the room currently smells like lilacs (thanks to Fabreeze.) I need to buy 3 more pieces of 'wall flare' and we're also adding a TV and a rug in front of the closet, but after that, it will be completely finished.

My cousin is flying in tonight from Michigan and she will be the first to test out the room. I'm sure she'll love it. Tonight we're going to Truffles for dinner and to see Michael Schaerer play. Tomorrow we're heading out to my other cousin's at the Lake for a 'girls weekend'. Lots of alcohol will be consumed.

See you next week!

Nut.

I'm a nut. Sometimes I get into these radical, frantic, meticulous cleaning moods and I can't surpress the need to tear up the whole house and clean clean clean! So, in the middle of remodeling the guest room, that exactly what I did tonight. I didn't get to finish though. We did however, get the base board up in the room. So tomorrow, the plan is to go get the chair rail, paint it, put it up, put the corner molding up, and putty the mistakes. Then, on Wednesday we'll have to paint everything...wainscoting and trim. I can't wait until we're done! It's starting to look good so I'm anxious to see the finished product.

Hopefully I'll have some time between helping Chris to finish cleaning the house. I still need to clean the bathrooms, clean our bedroom, clean the kitchen, mop, vaccum, rearrange the furniture, and organize my bathroom counter and drawers.

My cousin from Michigan will be here on Friday, so I've gotta get my butt in gear! Unfortunately my cleaning lady won't be here until Monday, so I have to clean myself. Boo Hoo.

Today was uneventful at work. I left early because I couldn't stand to sit there anymore. My boss is out ALL FREAKING WEEK. I miss her. I can't wait until she gets back. I did finish my paper today though. So that was a good thing. Tomorrow I have a meeting. It's either going to be really good, or really crappy. I'll let you know.

I'm tired and it's my bedtime. Wish me luck on the construction. Night!

Daddy Gets The Big Piece of Chicken...

Happy Father's Day, all you dad's out there. Hope you all had good days. We had Chris's mom & step-dad, and his step-bro & his girlfriend over and we grilled out. We had these big fat juicy ribyeye steaks, baked potatoes, fresh asparagus, salad and for dessert, we had ice cream cake from Dairy Queen & a really good strawberry black forest cake from McArthurs. It was soooooo good!

This weekend went by quick. I wish we had 1 more day. We're still not done with the guest room. Tomorrow we'll work on it when we get home from work. I really hope we can get everything done and be ready to paint by Tuesday evening. Cross your fingers! I definitely need to have everything finished by Friday. That's when my cousin is coming in from Michigan, and if it's not done, she'll be sleeping on the couch! Speaking of next weekend, we're going to go to Truffles and check out Michael Schaerer.

Recently, I got a sample of Olay Total Effects Night Firming Cream. I've tried it for the past 2 nights and I really like it. It doesn't have a greasy feel to it, and it does seem to moisturizer & make my skin feel firmer when I wake up. So, next time I'm at Target, I shall pick some up.

I've gotta finish writing my paper this week. Hopefully I'll have time to do it tomorrow at work.

This is all I've got for right now. Peace Out.

Busy Busy Busy!

Today was an action packed day of busy. This morning we worked on the guest room, which lasted basically all day. We've been putting up wainscoting, and it's proving to be a pain in the ass. We didn't finish today, but we came close to getting everything up. We have a little area left by the window. So, that's probably going to be the hardest part. Then we need to put the baseboard, chair rail, and trim up, then paint. I *hope* we're done by Wednesday.

Then, while all of this was going on, I had to go to Sam's & the grocery store, do laundry(all day), clean the house, sweep off the deck & wipe down the deck table, and fix dinner. It was just non-stop all day, and I'm tired.

My advice to you is this. If you are going to put up wainscoting, don't. If you are really set on that idea, like I was, pay a professional to do it. Trust me on this one.

With that little piece of advice, I leave you. I need some rest.

Real Quick

I'm in the middle of painting the guest room. We're waiting for the paint to dry so we can put the second coat on. How come projects always seem easier in your head?

So, tomorrow, Chris will go pick up the wainscoting and paint it. Hopefully it will be ready to go up by Saturday afternoon. Then, we have to paint the chair rail & the baseboards and put them up. At some point on Saturday, the lawn needs to be mowed and I need to go to the grocery store to pick up stuff for the BBQ on Sunday. It's going to be a busy weekend. If by chance, we get done with everything by late Saturday night, then Sunday morning will be spent moving everything back in the room. Cross your fingers for me!

So, I'm off to happy hour tomorrow after work. I had forgotten that I arranged a department happy hour a few weeks ago..so it would be kinda shitty for me not to show up. Hopefully everything works out, time wise. I have a feeling I won't be getting much sleep this weekend.

Peaches with a Ribeye???

What the hell were they thinking? I'm catching up on Hell's Kitchen.

Today felt like a Monday, but thankfully it was not Monday. When I got back to work today, I had like 3 people ask me where I was on Monday, and if I was sick or not. I was like WTF? I didn't realize I needed to report my schedule to you morons. I was out. So, I said this. "I was out. Why do you care?" The only valid response I got was, "Well, you know, you were just on vacation..." haha yeah, I was. Suck it. I hate people. However, it's important to note it was just the nosey co-workers out of the bunch. I didn't feel the need to explain to them that the reason I was out on Monday was so that I could take my mother to the doctor in KC. Oh well.

Besides my general hate of people today, It was a pretty crazy day. Since the boss was out all last week, and is only in the office 4 days this week, she was running me raw. Literally. She's the most multi-tasking lady that I know. Besides myself, that is.

In other news, I registered for my first class today, and got my books. I was nervous, but excited too. I actually have homework that's due the first day too. I have to read a bunch of stuff, then write a paper. It will be my first paper in a looooooonnngggg time. I hope I do good. I'll try and work on it this weekend. However, class isn't until June 30th.

Saturday I have a day of painting and construction planned! Wooo. Then, on Sunday we're having a BBQ for Chris's step-dad. Then, next week, my cousin from Michigan is flying in and we're going out. I'm not sure where yet. I'm thinking either CWE or Soulard. Any suggestions?

I need to go shopping for some new work clothes really bad. I'm running low on summer work clothes. I also need a new purse. I haven't bought a new purse in a while. Keep your eyes open for a cool purse.

Weekend Happenings

So, I'm back! This weekend, I went to KC with my sister & mom. Indy & I as well as Matt's sister and husband went to look at med schools for India. So far, she's decided to apply to SLU, KU, UMKC, and of course, Mizzou. I think she's also looking at a school on the East Coast. Anyway, Sunday night we went to the Plaza. It was really nice. I wish we could have stayed longer because the shopping appeared to be fabulous! So, Chris and I will have to make a shopping trip weekend to KC soon. All in all, the weekend turned out to be okay.

I didn't get home until almost 7pm tonight. There were a few accidents on 70 on the way home, plus it was raining. Sucky. When I got home, we went out to dinner, then picked up a few groceries. Now, I'm catching up on TiVo. Exciting, I know.

Tomorrow I register for class. Work will be busy I think. My boss is back. However, she's leaving again on Friday for another week. Woo. So, with that, another update tomorrow!

I'm off.

To go pick up my sister and head to my mom's. I just talked to my sister on the phone and she's already pissing me off. This weekend will surely be grand! Also, it's apparently raining from Columbia to KC and south, so the drive should be fanfuckingtastic.

Hump Day!

Thank goodness it's Wednesday. This week seems to be dragging by. I think now that Wednesday is over, the week will go by fast. Tomorrow, I'm going to a Passion Party with Kara, then on Friday, I'm driving to Columbia to pick up my sister, then we're heading to my mom's. On Monday, we're taking her to the doctor in KC. This weekend should be cool though. We'll swim in the pool and then we're going to see (my sister and I), one of our friends we grew up with, who now lives in Arkansas. Monday night, we're coming home because on Tuesday afternoon, I have to go register for my first class at Fontbonne! I start on June 30th in the OPTIONS program.

I'm a little excited and a little nervous. I just hope that everything goes well and I get straight A's!

Today at work, a bunch of us called Pizza Hut's corporate office to complain about the Pizza Hut on Lindell. See, that particular Hut offered the rather large firm I work for a special pizza deal for today. Large, 1 topping pizza's for $8, with no limit. So, when we went to order today, my department, we needed 20 pizza's. The lady I placed my order with told me we couldn't have 20 pizza's, but we could have 10. She said that my firm already had 67 pizza's to deliver and they only had enough dough to make 10. Well, obviously if we needed 20 pizza's to feed our people, 10 would not work, so we didn't order. However, I think it's total crap that they would make an offer to such a large company and then not have the supplies on hand to meet the demand. I guess it's just another reason to avoid pizza chains.

Have any of you seen Deadliest Catch on Discovery? This show is crazy! I didn't realize catching crab could be so dangerous. These guys really bust their asses. I don't think you could pay me enough to do that job. Waaay to dangerous. Anyway, it's a good show, if you haven't been watching it, you should check it out sometime.

UGH.

I have this cup at work, that every morning I fill up with water, to drink during the day. It holds 64 oz's of water. You should drink 64 oz's of water per day. I'm pretty sure most of the population knows this. With that being said, I am so f-ing tired of people making comments about my cup. Yes, it is a big cup. Yes, quite possibly the biggest you've ever seen, and yes, I do drink all that water. GET OVER IT. Come on people. It's a friggin cup. Yeah, it's a large cup, but seriously, do you have to comment on it every day? Stop. Stop telling me it's big, I know. That's why I bought it.

Key Lime Pukey Burps

I'm having Key Lime Pie pukey burps. Perhaps from the Key Lime pie slice I had earlier.

Tonight, Jason, Nicole and the baby came over for a BBQ. We had burgers and chicken and baked beans, corn on the cob, and fresh caprese salad. (Well, fresh basil from our herb garden) Everything was yummy! After we ate, we watched "Deadliest Catch" and just hung out. Now, I'm catching up on The Shield and feeling full.

Today we went to Lowe's and got some paint for the guest room. We're painting and putting up wainscoting. Anyway, I picked this really light lilac color, and when we got our paint back, the little paint marks on the cans just look white. Chris says it's because I picked a really light color, but I'm not so sure. I guess we'll see when we open the can to paint. I can't wait until it's done. I think the room will look great! I've got a new comforter that is going to look great. Plus, I want to put 2 new bedside tables in there. I'll have to take some before & after pictures.

My boss is at a conference in D.C. all week, so things at work should be good all week. At least I won't be as busy as usual.

Well, that's it from me on this lovely Sunday. I'm going to get back to catching up on my TiVo.

Happy Birthday Geof!

So tonight, I went out with my friend Geof and some other people for Geof's birthday. On the way home, I heard "Fat Bottom Girls" on the radio twice. I think that's the first time I've ever heard that song twice in a 5 minute period.

First, we went to cute John's party. Then, we went to dinner at Lynch Street Bistro. It was yummy! I had coq au vin with garlic mashed potatoes. The best part, is that Geof paid for everyone (10 people). It was really nice of him to pay for other people's dinner on his birthday, but he was a sneak and got up and did it before the waiter even brought the check. I had a good time though. I met some new friends too. Afterwards, everyone went out dancing, but I came home.

On the way home, I had thought of a bunch of stuff to post, but now, I've forgotten most of it. Oh, vacation pictures are now up. I will say this. Chris did color corrections in Photoshop. He did shoot all of these in RAW though. For some reason, they look sooo different in Photoshop than they do in Gallery. I'm not sure why. I should have them printed sometime this week, so those of you who want to see them, let me know.

Well, I'm hot and feel like Googling. Happy Saturday night!

Vegas Baby!

So, Chris called me at 2:30am to tell me that because his flight got in to Vegas late, Bally's had given away his room. However, they put him in the 'celebrity suite'. He yelled into the phone "this place is bigger than our house!!@#@!". It was sort of funny. He was really excited about it. I don't get it. It was his first trip to Vegas. I've been to Vegas about 6 times and have never gotten an upgrade. Lucky fucker.

Tonight I went to CJ Muggs in Webster with Beckie & Ryan. I got a steak, and now I'm not feeling so good. I'm not sure why. My steak was cooked all the way..so who knows what it was. After Muggs, we hit the Maplewood Block Party. Well, not really. We drove by and made fun of funny looking people on the street. Does that count? I didn't think so.

Tomorrow I'm going out with my friend Geof and a bunch of other friends for Geof's birthday! We're going to cute (gay) John's party, then having dinner at Lynch Street Bistro, then going dancing! Should be a good time. I'm excited like a mofo.

My TiVo hasn't been recording anything good lately. That may be because nothing has been on that we record, but still. Sometimes I just don't feel like watching live tv. Know what I mean?

Ok. I'm really not feeling good. Must go.

So..

It's funny how when you are sick, everything tastes like snot! Including shrimp stir-fry. Mmm snot.

I don't know how people can live alone. I could never do it. I have been home all day sick, and Chris is in Vegas, so it's just me and the cat. I am so freaking bored. This is the longest I've gone without talking to someone. Thinking back, I have never lived alone. I've always had a roomie. If you live alone, how do you do it? What do you do for fun? I'm tired of watching TV, and I've already reached the end of the interweb. Oh, and I've also done all the laundry I can do.

I think I need a popsicle.

Sick

So, I'm home from vacation, and I'm home sick from work. I've been sick for almost a week now. Damn snot. Damn coughing. I hate being sick.

Chris is going to Vegas tonight, so I'm on my own tonight and tomorrow. He'll be back late tomorrow. I was supposed to hook up with my friend Kara tonight, but I cancelled because I don't want to get her sick, and I didn't really feel like going out anyway. Funny how being sick can make you anti-social.

Being home from vacation is kinda weird. We were gone for so long that it feels odd being home. I miss being on a boat, and having someone cook for me and being able to take a nap during the day, etc etc. And, I miss St. Maarten. I miss the beach and the water and the beautiful scenery. But, oh well. I'm back in St. Charles. No beach and beautiful scenery! Chris didn't get the pictures up, so it'll probably be this weekend or next week.

I'm thinking of making some shrimp stir-fry tonight. Chris hates shrimp, so since he's not here, I think I will indulge.

The sinus pills I took a while ago are making me sleepy, I don't want to take a nap, but I think I'm going to have to.