pants-optional wednesday

so i have this pair of black pants that i wear
a lot.
actually, i have several pairs of black pants that i wear a lot.
in reality i just wear a lot of black.

but i digress.
i have cats. yes, that is plural and i do fully understand the reprecussions of mulitiple cat ownership as a single woman. the path towards spinster-hood and that "crazy-cat lady" name is getting clearer and clearer everyday.
but due to the aforementioned black-ness of my wardrobe and the frisky felines carousing my house, my black pants that i have on today are COVERED in cat hair.

but not for lack of trying and that is where my frustration kicks in...
here is a brief summary of my average cat-hair repelling activites:

-swiffer when i get home. i have hardwood floors and go through those things like nobody's business.
-the lint remover. one in the bathroom right after i get dressed, one more time as i am feeding the little psychos before i leave and again when i get to the office. i should own stock in the company. and yes, that is with 3 seperate rollers.
-i keep blankets on my couch where naps are most likely to happen. i clean them once a week.
-2-3 times a week i take the little monsters out on the porch (where they proceed to freak out) and brush them. in the winter, i do it inside.

so keeping all this in mind, i still have pants that are covered in cat hair.
this leads me to the following revalation: i should either shave my cats, stop wearing so much black or simply accept it and move on.
i am going to try for dealing with it and moving the hell on.

i would also like to report that i left my motivation somewhere in the sub-flooring of my house today. i think it might have something to do with the fact that i have a dentist appt. this afternoon.
cavity fill.
2 of them
at the same time.

this would be the anti-hotness.
i am not sure which part i love better..
the feeling that my lower jaw is 5 times its normal size even though i can't technically feel anything due to the novacain
or the pounding headache that i will have for the rest of the evening courtesy of the drill that will be shoved into my mouth.
how is a girl to choose?

i applied for a job in london.
super long shot that anything will come of it, but what the hell? might was well see what happens.
anything for the off chance to get out of des moines. this is the one thing that i am not sure about. in all the job listings for the UK they either have an annual salary...or just Ł300. now, is that 300 a week? every two weeks? a month? what gives? not that all of them have a set salary of Ł300, that of course varies. my concern is how often you get that money. i am not that money hungry, but these are things that are helpful to know.

i will keep everyone posted as to my working oversees progress.
not holding my breath.

long weekend

nothing like a free day off.
not that today is that day, but monday will be.
in the true corporate american spirit, i will be trying to get out of here early today.

happy birthday julie.
i went a little crazy with the e-cards yesterday. i can't help it. virtual or actual, i can spend an hour in the card aisle.
i laugh out loud and then walk out with like 10 cards.
i came in for one.
this is one of those things that my mother does. she always has a stack of cards for just about any occasion, just sitting around the house.
for those moments in which the "oh shit, i forgot....insert holiday/special occasion" reaction kicks in, she always has them around.
well, i am getting there.

so that is about it for today.
wanted to have big, fun plans for this weekend,but looking like i am chilling right here in beautiful, metro des moines.
yipee.
should anything exciting happen, i will let you know.

don't hold your breath.

fried on a stick

car problems suck.
there is a shocker.
battery died on me this week. really not a big deal. however, it gets covered by my warranty, so i am not going to go out and buy one from sears or something. the catch is the dealer could not get me in until today...car bit it on monday.
you fail to realize how dependent you are on quick and reliable transportation.
that and i have been walking to work everyday.
now, i walked all over europe when i lived there. no big deal. you would think based on peoples reaction that walking to work was some sort of capital punishment.
perspective: it is roughly 10 blocks. we are talking 15-20 minutes tops.
people in america don't walk anywhere.
scratch that. people in IOWA don't walk anywhere. they drive 2 block to the 7-11.
now, it has been upwards of 95 degrees the last few days, so even at 7:45/8 ish it is pretty warm. but still.
i guess i never considered walking that controversial.
in some circles, it appears it is.

what else is new...?

i broke down.
moment of weakness.

i went to the iowa state fair.
perspective for non-iowans: the fair is a big deal. a REALLY big deal. over 100,000 people PER day show up. it is the largest state fair in the country. you can find a fried twinkie on a stick there.
so, after weathering 3 years of shocked faces "you've NEVER been to the fair!!!! how is that possible??" i broke down.
i went.
there is so much food you would not believe it. and it is all on a stick.
cheescake on a stick
pork chop on a stick
fried macaroni and cheese ON A STICK
fried oreos & fried snickers ON A STICK
perhaps you are picking up on a theme here... hint: fried & stick.

i saw a pig that weighed 1100 pounds.
his balls were bigger than my head.
his name was pepperoni.
i think the irony was lost on him.

i saw every form of individual style you could think of.
of course, i was blending. practiced my top of the line WT look, complete with wife-beater and the cowboy hat.
this is an insane thing to witness first hand.
you have to see it to believe it.
trust me.
no amount of prepping could really convey the true feel of the place.

so after that little bout of culture shock, i have returned to the normal world with no visable scars.
i made it.
a return visit next year is still undecided.

on a slightly more accelerated cultural note, damien rice. the album is "O".
buy it.
listen to it immediately.
listen to it again.
you will be hooked.

crap... does this mean i am an adult?

the day you realize that your relationship with your parents is no longer "parent /kid" but "adult/adult" is an odd one.
I actually had a conversation with my mother the other day in which we discussed her relationship with my dad. and somehow i ended up giving her advice. of course, i always caveat that type of conversation with the disclaimer of "i am single, so take this with a grain of salt"
mother or not.

still really weird.
learned some things that i never knew about. and in all fairness kids should not have to deal with or know about. it really brought home to me the fact that while they were trying to raise kids, maintain careers etc, they still had a realtionship to tend to as well.
i struggle enough with just the relationship aspect. i cannot imagine making all that other stuff work. but it does, daily for countless people i know.
i guess it provided a little insight.

don't really have much else to add at this point.
vacation was good, just not looking to go into all the details at this point. there was the usual drama and mechanical problems.
i have decided that will be my last trip with a group. it just gets too difficult to keep everyone happy and still have a good time. i have done 2 this year and both had their fair share of difficulty. from here on out, 4 people or less. that is my new limit.

having officially declared myself in a funk, i am going to go home, swiffer the floors, and assume the position on my couch.
i should do laundry.
i don't see it happening.

domestic goddess is not a moniker i strive to achieve.