Bad White Trash Memories

Sick day.

2011-08-12T18:54:00.000-04:00

Vintage skirts are not going to happen today. I'm not feeling well.

Plus Size Shopping

2011-08-11T13:48:00.006-04:00

I was really excited about today's them because it addresses an issue that I understand all too well. When you wear a larger size, clothes are really hard to find. Cute clothes are even harder to find and vintage clothes are nearly impossible.

Having fomerly worn plus sizes myself and being the lover of vintage clothes that I am, I had a few great pieces that I've been holding on to, despite the fact that they have been too large on me for more than a year. But they are so rare and special that they are hard to let go of. But the time is now. It's time for me to pass on these great rare vintage plus size dresses to some other girl with a hole in her heart where a plus size vintage shift dress should be. My heart is full. :)

These dresses are all available on the Bad White Trash Memories Esty Shop. Please take them home with you and love them as much as I did.

Get distracted by the pretty colors!

2011-08-10T13:20:00.010-04:00

I know you think you got me. You think that I didn't follow through with my theme week, but HA! Joke's on you, cause I did. I posted some vintage Pyrex for sale yesterday, I just didn't write about it here. Behold:
Vintage Pyrex and it's pretty pretty colors.... The first and last piece, the butter dish and the orange mixing bowl are both different variations of the Butterfly Gold patter, the white mixing bowl is part of the super mod Square Flowers variation of the Verde pattern and the turquoise divided casserole is from the Snowflake pattern, which was apparently recently seen on Mad Men. All of these pieces are available at the Bad White Trash Memories Esty Shop.

The next piece of Pyrex isn't a pretty color. Actually, it isn't even Pyrex. It's a Federal Glass Heat Proof casserole with an awesome black, white and gold leaf deco/mod design.

Available here.

And today, theme week continues with dresses! I posted three lovely bright fun summer dresses today.
Click the links to look at more photos, to buy or just to find out more information.

Tomorrow I have four plus size vintage dresses to share so stay tuned.

Theme days!

2011-08-08T10:04:00.010-04:00

Okay, I've been so slack in listing items for sale (although not slack in shopping for items) that I now have a pretty substantial backlog of stuff to put up. Looking over the merchandise this weekend, it became pretty clear that the backlog could be divided up into several categories, which means THEME DAYS!

I love nothing more than a good theme. I'm the kind of person who has themed dinner parties. Well, I don't actually have them so much as plan them out in my head, but when I finally get around to making that mid-century nuclear Holocaust pot roast, you're all invited. There's going to be a JELLO mold that will blow your mind.

So, this week is going to break down like this:

Monday: Bags.
Tuesday: Vintage Pyrex.
Wednesday: Vintage Dresses.
Thursday: Plus-size Vintage Dresses.
Friday: Skirts.

According to my calendar, today is Monday, which means BAG DAY! I have several vintage bags going up for sale today, but two in particular that are so awesome that I must talk more about them.

The first is a retro bowling bag available here.

I picked up this bag at an estate sale. It was in the basement of a house full of fabulous stuff from the 50s and 60s, that was mostly overpriced. In the bag, there was a 20 pound bowling ball, a pair of blue suede ladies' Brunswick bowling shoes (watch for those to be for sale in the future), and a couple of pairs of dirty ladies' socks- the kind with the puffy little pink ball on the back of the ankle. I tried to negotiate for just the bag and shoes, but the seller required that I take all the contents and I was like "Sure, whatever." So, I left with the whole package, then took it home and laid everything out on my bed. I lovingly cleaned the bag, tried on the shoes (they are a 7.5 and I wear an 8), touched the sock puff and then forced myself to throw out the socks. I mean, they were charming, but keeping someone else's dirty socks is bordering on hoarder territory. The bag, I knew I would sell since I already have my own retro bowling bag in yellow that was a gift from my fabulous friend Sarah last year for my birthday. The shoes... I'll probably sell those too. I do need bowling shoes, but honestly, they are just a little to snug and I wouldn't want them to throw off my game. That's hysterical to you if you are in my bowling league and happen to be reading this. I'm looking at you, Norm.

So, then I was left with the ball. How to you dispose of a 20 pound bowling ball? Can you recycle them? No. I thought about just putting it in the trash, but I didn't want to inadvertently kill a sanitation worker. I mean, I don't know what they do with trash, but it's not too hard to imagine a scenario where some hard-working family man is moving refuse from one location, like maybe a dump truck, to another location, like maybe a landfill, and my bowling ball comes crashing through the Hefty bag, even if it's the kind that employs new Flex Force technology, and kills him. And I just couldn't live with that, so I set it in my closet, next to my awesome Madden Girl black knee boots with the buttons up the sides. And then it disappeared in the the Bermuda triangle which is the floor of an over-crowded closet.

Then I moved last weekend and took the ball, along with a red and green Christmas wreath with faux trumpets stolen by my former roommate from his parents' basement last holiday season, my VHS copy of Bram Stoker's Dracula, a glass vase, and some other stuff to Goodwill. Naturally, all the stuff was bagged up, except for that ball, which I just handed to the guy. I only mention the vase because last weekend, when I gave it to Goodwill, I literally thought, "Like anyone's ever going to give me flowers!" And then yesterday, my boyfriend gave me flowers. Awwww. :) They are in a drinking glass.

The second bag I'm going to talk about, I got at a church yard sale. Church yard sales are either hit or miss. Everyone knows old people have the best junk and old people are also seemingly really interested in church, probably because they are close to death and having issues with mortality. In any case, that would make a church yard sell seem like a can't miss, but for some reason that I can't really figure out, it seems like church yard sales are just a lot of broken toys and microwaves. Shrug. Before I go to a yard sale, any yard sale I do a drive by first. If I can see toys from the street, I don't go. It's a pretty hard a fast rule. Usually someone selling toys is not also going to have a C. Jere' sculpture that they don't understand the value of or a pill box hat, you know? But Sarah was with me this morning and she was lured in by a mid-century dining set that she saw from the road. So, we stopped and I found this purse.

I bought this purse for its condition. It's in almost perfect condition. The interior is pristine. The wool outside is spotless. The gold trim isn't rusty and worn. And I know why. It's because this was someone's fancy purse. It's the purse they never used because no occasion was ever good enough. Like my eggplant purple python Vera Wang shoes. I don't wear them. I've never worn them. This isn't the kind of purse that you casually toss on the floorboard of your car for your kid to eat crackers all over. It's a designer purse. It was made by Crown Lewis and it's so awesome and available here.

So, that's the best of what Bag Day has to offer. I'm also listing a hot pink little number and a burgundy clutch with an awesome lining.

Tomorrow, we take on Pyrex.

Days of Disco!

2011-03-22T16:31:00.002-04:00

Etsy user Etcetorize featured my purse in her Days of Disco collection!

It's also featured on her blog.

Thanks, Tamara!

Heavy Metal

2011-02-26T12:11:00.006-05:00

I liked posting a new item every day this week so much that I'm doing a bonus round today!

This is a small clutch in black and metallic shades. It basically changes color depending on how you look at it. The trim is gold and it's in really really good condition.

I don't remember where I got this purse. And the condition is so good that I actually questioned if it was even vintage, but it just screams late 70s/early 80s. Click here for more information.

Anchors Aweigh!

2011-02-25T15:27:00.004-05:00

This is another dress that I would love to wear this summer but it's too small for me. It's a hand-made vintage sailor dress in seersucker. I mean, seriously? How could it be more adorable? Oh, I know. Square buttons!

I bought this dress at a yard sale last summer and put it in my purse box that I keep under my bed. Then, somehow, it became invisible. You know, sometimes you just stop seeing things. Then, yesterday, I was looking through the purse box and suddenly, there it was! Like I heard a little angel choir when I saw it.

Click here to make this dress your own little miracle!

Hare Krishna Blouse

2011-02-24T12:18:00.006-05:00

Most of the items in my store come from the past, but not this blouse. I'm pretty sure it comes from the future. Specifically, it's what all the post-technical revolution Hare Krishnas are wearing

This is designer vintage, ya'll. It's designed by Linda Allard for Ellen Tracy, a line carried by Nordstrom in the 80s. It's 100% silk and my very most favorite thing about it is that it buttons down the back. It can be yours by clicking here.

So, like I promised, I've been posting a new item everyday. Tomorrow's is going to be awesome.

But in addition to posting, I've also been working on the social media for the store. You can see, over to the right here, links to the Bad White Trash Memories Facebook page and the Twitter feed. You can also "like" the store on Facebook, right here from this page. I've also set it up so that all my blog posts automatically post to Twitter and Facebook. Unfortunately, this is causing a few redundancy issues right now that I'm not quite sure how to resolve. But I'm thinking on it. So please be patient if you're getting over-notified about new items.

My plan is to use this blog for entries like this one that go into detail about new listed items and give information and updates about the store in general. I also plan to share stories of my adventures in hunting for merchandise. I'm planning to use twitter to live-tweet shopping trips and give short notices when a new blog is posted or a new item goes up for sale. Facebook will provide links to new merchandise and new blog entries, plus there's a virtual store on the Facebook page as well that allows you to browse items directly from Facebook.

Thanks for the love everyone has been giving me on Facebook. I'm so appreciative of the support that Bad White Trash Memories is receiving from my friends and from strangers. I get all tickled when someone I don't know "likes" my store.

Hare Krishna.

Kelly Green Vintage Wrap Skirt

2011-02-23T13:17:00.003-05:00

Challenge Day 2!

Ok, this one was easy. Sure it's one of the adorable summer skirts I was talking about yesterday and trust me, I would love to wear this one. It's so unique with its pockets and wrap tie style, but it's a tinge too small. So, skinny girls, enjoy! I'll just be over here eating cookies. Nom Nom.

Click here to buy!

Please Pardon Our Progress

2011-02-22T16:38:00.001-05:00

This is just a little test post to see if the automatic feeds I set up are working.

Etsy Personal Challenge Week!

2011-02-22T12:41:00.004-05:00

This week (yes, I'm aware that it's already Tuesday) I have challenged myself to list a new item for sale at Bad White Trash Memories over on Etsy. I'm going to do this EVERY SINGLE DAY this week. For real. Well, except for yesterday. And maybe Saturday and Sunday.

Today's item is an awesome little white vintage clutch.

I'm so excited about this little purse because it's going to look awesome with my new (vintage) summer wardrobe I've been working on. Lately, I've been finding lots of quaint little housewife skirts in bright bold summer colors.

Oh wait. I'm selling this purse. And probably most of those skirts. You should buy them so that you can live out my summery hipster dreams. Go here to buy the purse.

Real Garage Sale

2010-05-14T11:24:00.001-04:00

Kim Zolciak from Real Housewives is having a garage sale tomorrow. Designer kids clothes, shoes, furniture, toys & more. The corner of 141 & Wilson Rd in Duluth 10am to 3pm. Don't be tardy for the garage sale.

More Craigslist Goodies

2010-03-19T15:21:00.007-04:00

Craigslist is killing me today! I could furnish my entire house for like under $1000. Unfortunately, I only have about $75 right now.

Please someone buy this stuff!

Retro Wood Coffee & 2 End/Side Tables (3pc Set) - $95 (Conyers)

3 Pcs. Retro Modern Bedroom Set $550.00 or Best Offer - $550 (Newnan Georgia)

Retro - office, sideboard / bookcase and drawers - $90

And this one is a budget blower, but gee whiz... all those Eames chairs. Still a good deal.

Mid-Century modern dining table & chairs - $2000 (Atlanta)

Everyone is doing it.

2010-03-08T17:35:00.002-05:00

I've been putting off putting some of my clothes up for sale on eBay, but I've been inspired, once again in my life, by Oprah Winfrey. The same woman that told me that "you can't change anybody but yourself," is now selling her junk on eBay. Seems wise to me.

Click here to see what she's selling. The prices are ridiculous. Of course, she's giving the profits to needy kids or whatever. Any profits I make, will be pocketed.

Craigslist

2010-01-27T17:36:00.006-05:00

On days like today, when I have nothing to do and have no money, I like to go window shopping on craigslist. Since I can't buy anything, I thought I'd share some of my finds with you guys
.

Retro/Vintage Chair

Glass top retro dining table and chairs

2 Blue Retro Chairs

All of these are good deals and would likely resell for more. Plus, those last two blue chairs would be adorable in my imaginary office.

Goodbye Hanging Orange Ashtray

2010-01-27T12:02:00.003-05:00

The Savannah trip didn't turn out exactly as planned and I wasn't able to make it to any thrift stores.

I miss yard sale season and I can't wait for it to start up again. In the meantime, I'm going to try to hit up some stores in Forsyth County this weekend. The store really need some fresh goods, although it's stocked pretty well right now. There are a couple of dresses on there that I'm hoping don't sell so that I can wear them this summer and one that I still haven't listed, because, well, because I'm keeping it.

I seem to be shifting more into vintage clothing than housewares of late. Which is fine, but I need to come up with a better way of photographing it. I'm looking into getting a dress form or some such. I also need to get a new camera now that I am no longer with my husband, although I'm sure I can borrow his super nice semi-professional camera when I need it, but still I'd prefer to have my own.

I recently sold the hanging ashtray that, at least in my mind, had become a sort of symbol for the store. You can see it up in the banner at the top of the page. And here it is in full:

I picked up this ashtray at a flea market somewhere between Atlanta and Macon one weekend last September when my friend Sarah and I went flea-marketing down 75. After a long hot day searching for flea markets and wondering the aisles, we floated around in the pool for several hours that afternoon talking about boys and sex. We spent the night in Macon and after dinner, went to a little shit-kicker bar next to our hotel, where we were viewed as some sort of exotic species of woman, who drank cocktails, not beer and who wore shoes with heals.

The ashtray sold for $75 and could not have come at a better time. The buyer was a local and I met her daughter in Little Five Points to make the delivery. They were both happy with the purchase and I'm so glad. It was truly a unique piece in excellent condition and I was sorry to see it go.

On The Road

2010-01-21T22:49:00.003-05:00

Wow. This blog is amazing. I want to be these guys when I grow up. I haven't seem American Pickers, but plan to check it out the next time it airs.

I recognize the need for me to get a regular 9-5 job with benefits now that I'm on my own, but clearly, my passion is vintage housewares. And clothes. And accessories, so while I'm still looking for a 9-5 and even after I land one, I'm really going to focus on growing this business for a while. Already, my profits cover my expenses, which is pretty remarkable for a new business. It's a good model and I have an eye for it. And it is my dream.

I need to work more on my marketing and building up my inventory more, although it's pretty respectable. I need to take better pictures of my merch. There's lots of stuff I need to do and I have the time right now, so what better time?

I'm headed off the Savannah this weekend and I'm going to try to hit some thrift stores while I'm down there.

I'll post my finds when I return on Tuesday.

Also, I've decided against the divorce blog. Bad idea.

Now, all I have to do tonight is decide if I want to watch the Jersey Shore Reunion or The Real Housewives of Orange County. Sophie's choice.

Twitter

2010-01-17T22:01:00.000-05:00

You can now follow me on Twitter @badwhitetrash.

Blogity Blogity Blog Blog- New Direction

2010-01-09T01:16:00.003-05:00

Ok, so this isn't my only blog. I know a lot of the people that read this blog also read what is basically my personal journal over on Live Journal. That's where all the real dirt is. You can also find lots of whining and nonsense over there. I started this blog to be my sort of "professional" blog, but I don't really know what it's amounted to. Certainly no income.

Mostly, this is my fault because I update it so rarely and my content over here is pretty weak, but since it is my "professional" blog, I have to keep things somewhat professional, which means that I just skim the surface of my personal life and try to keep my opinions as mum as possible, as not to alienate any potential empolyers. So, why does this blog even exist and what do I hope to accomplish with it?

Well, the name of this blog is also the name of my fabulous online vintage store, Bad White Trash Memories, and I've decided to use this blog as a way of expanding on what I do there.

That means that I'm going to be talking a lot about vintage housewares. I can almost feel the rush of people unbookmarking me. I'll also be sharing my adventures in yard saling and thrifting, etc.

But because I have this ridiculous need to share my personal life with the internet, I'm going to also be starting a new blog that chronicles my experience with divorce. This blog will be anonymous and not have my real name attached to it in any way, but if you'd like to read it, shoot me an email and I'll send you the link. Well, maybe I'll send it to you, depending on who you are, but if you only know me professionally, I won't be sharing that link with you since I plan on chronicling all the ins and outs of my (very) personal life there. The live journal ridiculousness will also continue, so those of you that read that blog can keep up with me there.

I'm just trying to give this thing direction. Trying to steer the ship a little better. Get hold of the reigns. Etc.

Short Fiction and Burlesque

2010-01-07T13:52:00.002-05:00

Last night, my friend Leah and I attended Creative Loafing's Fiction Contest Party at Eyedrum. The theme of this year's contest was "slip" which resulted in three finalists, with stories tackling cross-dressing, the disintegration of a relationship and the death of a parent. The cross-dressing story won the contest, and it was, definitely, the best of the three, but unfortunately, it also inspired a burlesque theme for the party, which resulted in four awkward performances, including at least one wardrobe malfunction leading to nipple exposure.

But one thing I did learn (I've seen nipples before) is that short fiction is where it's at. I've long since fancied myself a writer and after having moderate (okay, fine, semi-moderate) success with poetry, I moved on to novels and I am proud to have no less than four incomplete novels under my belt. But I just can't finish them. I don't have the patience and my desire to write poetry left with the angst of youth. But there's this whole intermediate genre out there that I've completely neglected. And I don't even know how this is possible since I love Flannery O'Connor so much.

Tonight, I'm off to my friend, artist Amanda Dumas-Hernandez's, closing reception of her "Blessings and Curses" exhibit at Studioplex on Auburn Ave.

Tomorrow, I'm taking my niece for a tour of Kennesaw State and then going out to dinner with my friend Wendy. Saturday and Sunday I'm working for the man.

It's a good life. Busy. But also lonely. This song seems to be stuck in my head a lot.

And speaking of Jill Andrews, I'll be seeing her February 4 at Eddie's Attic.

Hire me!

2009-12-19T06:51:00.003-05:00

The cold weather is decidedly a downer. I've always been a fan of cold, especially in comparrison to hot, but this winter just seems to be chilling me to the core. I feel frozen in so many ways right now, but especially with my career.

I've always been pretty confident about my chosen profession, but that confidence has been shaken by the past year of unemployment. Technically, unemployment was a choice for me, but I didn't forsee the other circumstances of my life changing so dramatically.

I guess, honestly, maybe I thought that I'd have a baby and be a stay-at-home mom. Clearly, that didn't happen and it isn't likely to happen anytime in the next five years or so.

It's funny, but right now, what I want more than anything is a job. A job equals money and money equals freedom. But, it's more than that. It's something to do. Something to focus on. Something to keep my mind occupied.

I don't mind working. I get a great deal of satisfaction from my work. I want to work. I want to do good work and work hard.

So, I'm putting this out there into the ether. Someone hire me. I will work hard. I will do a good job. I am smart and adaptable and talented. I'm great under deadline pressure and stress.

Someone take a chance on me!

Less is More

2009-12-14T19:18:00.003-05:00

I am 32 today. Thirty-two. Single. Childless. Jobless. Homeless.

I've never felt more hopeful about the future.

It's complicated

2009-12-09T14:49:00.001-05:00

Paul and I have separated.

Well, Well, Well

2009-11-24T14:05:00.003-05:00

Isn't Adam Lambert a dirty little boy?

Okay, seriously, people are up in arms because he kissed a dude. Um, hello? That's what gay guys do and this one has never made a secret of his sexuality, so you get what you pay for. It's just a kiss. Britney and Madonna kissed. Also an uproar, but not so much anger and hate. Like Joy Behar said, everyone loves a lesbian kiss.

But what really amazes me is that so much attention has been given to the kiss. I mean, the whole performance and song were pretty filthy. I mean, didn't the AMA producers listen to the lyrics before they signed off on this performance?

"It’s alright
You’ll be fine
Baby, I’m in control
Take the pain
Take the pleasure
I’m the master of both
Close your eyes
Not your mind
Let me into your soul
I’ma work ya ’til your totally blown

No escaping when I start
Once I’m in I own your heart
There’s no way ‘ta ring the alarm
So hold on until it’s over

Oh, do you know what you got into?
Can you handle what I’m ’bout to do?
‘Cause it’s about to get rough for you
I’m here for your entertainment"

What were they expecting for the performance? Personally, I have a soft spot for filth. I'm an old school NIN fan and I've listened to and enjoy much heavier and more subversive music than this. I think the real issue is that this dude is from American Idol, which is pretty much synonymous with wholesome family entertainment. Adam Lambert is no Carrie Underwood. This performance is certainly far from wholesome and probably not appropriate for the venue, but I might try to check him out when he comes to town.

Do Over.

2009-11-17T17:51:00.003-05:00

I'm being reflective these days. Reconnected with some old friends who I let slip away. Making new friends. Trying to remember what is important. Basically, right now, I'm completely open to new experiences. What I've been doing isn't really working out for me in terms of emotional development. Sometimes, to move forward we have to reach back to the past and set right things that once went wrong, not to get all "Quantum Leapy" on ya.

I wouldn't call any of the choices that I've made about my life "mistakes." I'm only sorry that it took me so long to get where I am now. I'm not fearless. In fact, I'm pretty terrified, but I'm not letting fear hold me back anymore. Rhonda Britton says that fear is a result of not having faith in yourself. When you are afraid, it's because you don't trust yourself to be able to handle what might happen. You're not secure enough in your sense of self to know that no matter what happens, you'll be alright. But, I'm starting to feel just that. That I'm going to be alright. That I actually have what it takes to take chances and start over. Fear is my enemy.

There is no such thing as "safe." No matter how close you play your cards or how many rules you follow, none of us are ever safe. Seeking safety is a waste of time. Efforts are better spent taking chances, making mistakes and picking up the pieces. That's how you live life. Otherwise, you're just passing time until you die.

Sniper

2009-11-11T13:08:00.003-05:00

John Allen Muhammad was executed last night. Maybe it's a sign that I'm getting old, but it seems like his sentence was carried out rather swiftly, comparatively. In 2002, during his killing spree, I worked in a newsroom and had some exposure to the story daily. A coworker attended a wedding in the DC area during this time and I remember him joking that he was going to wear a shirt with a target on it. Ah! Newsroom humor! This is the same guy that once said that he was considering cancelling his planned tour of Israeli sidewalk cafes. Humor can really get you through the daily death and destruction you are exposed to in a newsroom.

I remember once, a coworker and I were watching some aerials of a found body feed in. The chopper was over a parking lot and there, right in the handicapped space was the body and we both erupted into a fit of giggles. It's not that we don't care. Really. We care. It's just that we have to somehow cope and often, that's through humor.

I don't believe in the death penalty. I don't think the government has any business killing it's citizens, but it's not a cause I'm all up in arms about. I mean, there are people out there that are more deserving of my compassion. Even animals are more deserving of my compassion. I'd rather see a killer like Muhammad be executed than an innocent stray.

I don't know where I'm going with this. His death just feels like a bow on a tidy little package. That story is over now. The affects of September 11 are still with me daily. The wars continue. Daniel Pearl's beheading still replays in my mind. But the DC sniper is a done deal. I'm sure the families of his victims don't feel the same way.

Coat Sale!

2009-11-11T01:05:00.003-05:00

In case you haven't heard, Old Navy is having a half-off outerwear sale this week only. Which is perfect for me, since I'm cold. I'm thinking something plaid, although I don't know when plaid came back in style or when I started liking it, but I've been kind of drawn to it lately. I guess my inner alternative-seattle-flannel-90s lumberjack is coming out.

Super Thrifty!

2009-11-08T12:27:00.000-05:00

I wish I had the patience for this.

Email Hoax

2009-11-06T14:14:00.003-05:00

I had a funny conversation via Facebook chat with my old pal Nick yesterday. Nick recently got married in Vegas and sent out a facebook message asking a bunch of people for their addresses, I presume to invite them to some sort of reception. In any case, in the message he sent out, he wrote, "Please do not 'Reply All'" Of course, everyone did.

1:42pmJennifer
Everyone keeps replying all
despite your warning
1:43pmNick
I am going to put them on direct mailing lists as punishment
1:43pmJennifer
hahaha
I'll just give my mom their email addresses
so she can send them warnings that Obama is the antichrist and it's dangerous to wear deoderant and heat water in the microwave
1:45pmNick
hahaha
I've got some awesome ones from my mom too
"This isn't a hotel... it's a house!"
1:46pmJennifer
I haven't gotten that one, but I can imagine
1:46pmNick
look at where your money goes when you fill up the tank! This sheik's house!
1:50pmNick
http://www.snopes.com/photos/architecture/nahyan.asp
Jennifer
hahahahahaha
awesome
1:53pmNick
I got so many crazy emails from my mom before the election
1:53pmJennifer
that's his home in Afghanistan where he worships Satan and kills puppies
2:05pmNick
what is your email address?
2:05pmJennifer
oh no
you don't really think I'm going to fall for that, do you?
2:06pmNick
I will send you my fake obama thing, then you send it to your mom, then we'll see if it gets back to my mom
2:06pmJennifer
wait
that's actually a good idea
I'm in

We then continued to collaborate on a terrific email hoax. I'm not willing to reveal it yet, because it will ruin the results of the experiment, but I assure you that I will alert you when Nick receives the email from his mom, if all goes as expected. I'm only sending it to one person- my mom. Let's see what happens.

2:22pmJennifer
ha
I gotta go
talk to you later
I'll be looking forward to the girl you're apparently about to send me
2:23pmNick
send me that thing when you're done!
girl?
2:24pmJennifer
hahahaha
gift
2:24pmNick
I'm actually sending you a girl to raise
have fun!
she likes to steal

Fall Fashion

2009-10-08T12:06:00.006-04:00

After falling in love with dresses this summer, it's been hard for me to leave that love in the past and move on to fall. Normally, I love the warm roomy sweaters of the season, but this year, they seem so.... I don't know... cumbersome?

I'm in the process of a total image makeover. While my current frumpy and conservative look has served me well, I guess there's a certain sophistication that comes with aging that I've been lacking. Suddenly, I'm caring about designers and actually thinking about what my clothes say about me artistically. Formerly, my checklist went something like this:

- Does it fit?
- Is it comfortable?
- Is it appropriate?

I don't know how I fell into such a rut, but NO MORE! Really, it's been an issue of self-esteem. We've all laughed at those ridiculous people that go out of their way to look terrible. Behold:

It is my fear to be one of these people. The thing is that it's so much worse to put so much effort into looking good and then end up looking ridiculous, than to not put in much effort and look like it. I've been opting for the latter. But, now, I'm ready to take some chances! I mean, don't expect to see me in furry yellow boots anytime soon, but maybe I could do some fishnets. Under a pencil skirt. Not with white Reeboks.

I hope to be posting some pics of me sporting some new looks soon. Goodbye frumpy mom suits! So long careless jeans and t-shirts of my youth! Wouldn't want to be ya, pink velour sweat suit!

Schooled, Biden-Style

2009-09-27T22:56:00.005-04:00

"Your dopes just got schooled, Biden-style!"

As you may have heard, three weeks ago, it started raining and it didn't stop for 15 days.

Photos Courtesy AJC.

Thankfully, my home wasn't affected and I didn't work Monday, Tuesday or Wednesday during the major hoopla. But, Thursday morning, I was reminded of what it's like to be in a newsroom during a major local breaking story. It seems, that in order to avoid the appearance of national government neglecting a state during a natural disaster, Vice President Joe Biden decided to come to town and have a look-see. He was in town for maybe 4 house, first taking a helicopter flight with CNN over some of the damage and then poppping down the the Cobb Civic Center, a makeshift shelter for those who have lost their homes, to make a little speech, where he compared our situation to Katrina (?) and then personally reassure about three people, from what I could tell watching it on a live feed, that the federal government would come through for them in their time of need, though not any time soon. Seriously. That's what he told them.

Naturally, he decided to start his speech around 11:30am. That's thirty minutes before noon, for those of you who are bad at math. And what happens at noon? The noon newscast, of course! So, that gave us half an hour to listen to his speech, pick out the highlights, write a little script about it, edit it and get it on-air for the lead story. Chaos ensued, which resulted in a reporter in the field and the anchor talking back and forth stretching while we tried to get something cued up for them to toss to. It didn't happen. There was a "technical error" and we had to come back to it in the next block. Instead, they decided to do an additional hit with another reporter who was in the flood area. Naturally, since water runs downhill, this is a low area and therefore had to be a satellite shot rather than a microwave shot. And the thing about satellite shots is that you have to book a window on the satellite and that's expensive, so you only book for the time that you need for the reporter to do their scheduled hit. So, when they decide to go back to the reporter, to fill time, there is about 30 seconds left in the sat window. EXTEND THE WINDOW!

Essentially, it was a half hour of total chaos. I had expected myself to completely spazz out the first time I was in a situation like this, not having worked in news for a couple of years, but, thankfully, I found that I still have nerves of steel.

Oops.

2009-09-17T16:48:00.002-04:00

The look on the female anchor's face is priceless.

Come check out clips like this at The Atlanta Press Club's Gorilla Ball Saturday night! (Well, maybe not exactly like this)

Jackasses

2009-09-17T13:38:00.003-04:00

Man, working is really interfering with my blogging. Silly job!

So, I'm sure everyone has heard all they want to hear about Kanye West and Taylor Swift, but of course, I have to throw my two cents in.

I flip-flopped about doing this post because... well, because of what I'm about to talk about. I don't want to be part of the problem, but like any skilled journalist, I'm going to avoid responsibility for what I write by using the "attribution" technique.

For those of you not in the know, "attribution" as the name implies, is where you report on something someone else said and basically put all the responsibility of the content onto someone else. It's the journalistic equivalent of gossip. Often, it's legit, such as, "Police said that so-and-so killed someone." Because a journalist couldn't possibly have that information independently and certainly shouldn't be making accusations like that, right? But often, it's abused. I intend to abuse it in such a fashion right now.

In the wake of the VMA's, President Obama sat down for an interview with CNBC. According to TMZ, before the interview began, Obama was asked how he felt about the Kanye incident. The audio of his response can be heard here on TMZ.com.

If you listen to that clip, it is apparent that Obama meant for his comments to be off the record. There are ethical guidelines that dictate that when a person requests to be off the record, a journalist should honor that. It is critical in getting sources to trust you. Typically, if you are given information off the record, then you have to go out and find another source to collaborate the information. Sure, it's inconvenient, but it's the honest and decent thing to do. See the Valarie Plame incident for more on this.

Well, the audio and eventually the video of the Obama incident was leaked, presumably by someone working for CNBC or someone else in the Presidential press pool. The person that leaked it is clearly some jackass with no journalistic ethics, but the larger problem here is the TMZ published it. While not exactly known for their ethical conduct, there was seemingly little to no backlash about this and it's worrisome that in this age of new media, the tried and true code of conduct is slipping away.

Yes, I realize that I'm blogging about it right now and I see the irony.

Since the vast majority of people seem to agree with Obama's assessment of Kanye, he's not really getting any backlash over this, but the point is that it was off the record and no one should have ever heard it. There are those that might say that the President should never be off the record. That every aspect of his life should be available for public scrutiny, but I disagree. I actually found this particular clip quite endearing, but I should never have heard it.

There is certainly a mistrust of media and having worked in PR, I understand this even more. I am all too aware of watching what I say when I have a mic on and Obama should certainly be experienced enough to do the same, but when it all comes down to it, we are all just people and when, as a spokesperson, I ask to rephrase something I just said or ask not to be quoted and they agree, I expect them to respect that agreement. It's common. Very common and frequently done. When someone breaches that agreement like that, it gives us all reason to worry.

Sity?

2009-08-27T17:18:00.005-04:00

A hilarious little addendum to my earlier entry about the misspelled street sign- WXIA, the local NBC affiliate broke this story. Granted, it's not exactly as if someone plowed through historical documents and spied on underground political meetings. Likely, someone finally noticed that the sign was misspelled and called up the assignment desk. Since it was a slow news day, the producer decided to run with it, which is pretty cool. It's a fun story, worthy of note.

The fact that the other stations are following suit is what's funny. But, that's to be expected in this market. But where this story really gets funny is found in WGCL, the CBS affiliate's, morning assignment meeting notes, which for some reason, they publish on their website.

I'm really interested in local news. It's sad but true. Also sad but true, I get most of my information from fellow bloggers Doug Richards of Live Apartment Fire and CB Hackworth of Certain Speculation. That's pretty sad because I have much more time on my hands than either one of them, but they are just better at staying on topic than me. I mean, how am I supposed to find time to read assignment meeting notes when I'm busy looking for pictures of Kristen Stewart where she looks gay? In any case, it was on CB's blog that I saw this excerpt:

"JOHN CATER will follow up on this story. How does the sity misspelled the most prominent figure in Atlanta name incorrectly. How soon will the sign be repaired. We need to ask the city how many misspelled sign there are in Atlanta and how many they have changed for misspelling in the past year. TOUGH QUESTIONS!"

Tough Questions, indeed! Thanks for the, CB!

I know that Doug and CB have both at least visited this blog, but I doubt either of them are faithful readers, but it's really refreshing to finally have a critical eye watching local news. So, if they happen to be reading, good job, guys! I really enjoy your blogs!

Marin Luther King, Jr.

2009-08-27T12:25:00.007-04:00

Something else to be proud of in the ATL. Not only are we home to Nobel Peace Prize winner, Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr., but also home to his lesser known brother, Marin.

Typos can happen to anyone, but this makes you wonder how long this sign was up before someone noticed the mistake. Makes you wonder what you can get away with.

The Day the Moon Was Gone

2009-08-25T22:42:00.006-04:00

Paul and I do pretty good on agreeing about what to watch on television. Usually, we settle on something about home improvement or cooking, but tonight, he had the remote and landed on a show called "The Universe" on the History channel. Would have been more appropriate on the Science channel, because this is history that goes WAY back. The official topic of this particular episode was "The Day the Moon Was Gone," but it didn't really talk about that a whole lot. Essentially, in this one hour, they covered everything about how the Earth formed and life evolved. Every once in a while, they would throw in some facts about how something might have formed differently if there was no moon. I mean, basically, everything would have been completely different. No mountains (somehow the earth's core would have been cooler, so no plate tectonics). More water. Shorter days. Constant winds. No advanced life forms.

It's those last two that really got me thinking, because at one point, when it was talking about the imaginary animals that could have evolved if there were no moon, it said that they could have evolved to have more arms to shield themselves from the wind. Hum.

Well, naturally, I was thinking that, personally, I could really use another hand. And everyone else probably could too. So, why don't we have one? I mean, if I had an extra hand, I really think that would give me an evolutionary advantage. Ahem.

And while I'm at it, I don't understand why we don't have tails. It seems like I learned in biology or somewhere that the animals that we humans evolved from had tails and then we lost them during the evolutionary process. Well, who were these lazy pre-humans that didn't use their tails? I would love to have a tail, especially a prehensile tail. It would really be a help when I'm trying to navigate the treetops. It would help me balance during a field sobriety test. I could wag it when I was happy...

The ending of this particular episode was almost like a punchline. They kept building up to and teasing with promises of talking about what life would be like if the moon suddenly disappeared. But, then, in the last two minutes, they covered this by simply saying that although in billions of years the distance between the earth and the moon would be so great that they would lose their gravitational attraction and the moon would go spinning off into space, BUT that will never actually happen, because long before then, the sun will explode and the earth and the moon will both burn up and cease to exist.

Cue Credits.

Kristen Stewart

2009-08-20T13:42:00.010-04:00

I keep hearing all these rumors about Kristen Stewart and Robert Pattinson and how they are secretly in love, blah blah blah. I am not a Twilight fan. Sure, I read the book and saw the movie, but only because it was my duty as a member of the media sometimes writing on pop culture (ahem). Basically, Twilight is a sterilized version of Buffy, that lacks character development and witty dialogue.

But, I understand that it is a popular culture phenomenon, and somewhat validating, since my fascination with vampires dates back to 1994's Interview with the Vampire. See?! Vampires are cool! Robert Pattinson is no Brad Pitt. Or James Marsters.

Or even David Boreanez.

But, he's cute and I can understand why chicks dig him. Sure, it would seem natural for the lovely young Ms. Stewart to fall for him. Except for one clear fact that everyone is ignoring. Kristen Stewart is obviously gay.

Now, I'm not Perez Hilton. I'm not trying to out anyone. I have no inside knowledge of her sexuality, but what I do have is a highly refined gaydar and it's going off full alarm on her.

Do you see it? Like a little Jodie Foster, right?

I have no problem with gay people and this is not meant to disparage her in any way, but I'm just saying...

You heard it here first!

Cake!

2009-08-16T01:58:00.007-04:00

I've long since loved to bake and have served up quite a few delicious treats in my time, but now that I no longer eat such delicacies, I've developed a strange fascination with looking at them. I'm scared to actually bake something, fearing that it will send me into a fit of grief for my old friend Baked Goods.

I saw a link to Cake Spy on a weight loss support forum, of all places, and have been enjoying scrolling through the pages, appreciating the artistry. There, you will not only see the beautifully photographed desserts, but also the cutest little illustrations you ever did see.

It's also well-written and a good read, if you're into that kind of thing. Not to mention, the attire available at the online shop.

"Might as well burn all of your other tee shirts, because from now on, this is the only one you'll ever need.Yes, it's time to acquaint yourself with the newest CakeSpy t-shirt! It has basically the most magical scene ever: cupcakes, rainbows, unicorns, hearts and shooting stars!"

How could it get any better than that?

And while we're on the topic, but with a completly opposite sort of appeal, Cake Wrecks is another can't-miss Web site dedicated to confections.

Dedicated to cake-disasters created by "professional" cake decorators, this site will make you LOL, even if you're not into baking.

Back in the WAGA again!

2009-08-10T13:32:00.004-04:00

Well, it's been a while. Apologies for my absence, but I've been having some health issues taken care of and I'm all better now. Tip top shape. Ready to resume my blogging responsibilities.

So, first things first. I'm working again. Returned to work at the local Fox affiliate on Wednesday. As jobs tend to do, it has been sucking up an enormous amount of time! 35 hours this week. I'm freelancing there, so the work is irregular and the schedule is unpredictable. Not ideal circumstances, but I am thankful for the work.

Times sure have changed at the old tv station. They've gone digital, of course, but it's surprising how much this affects day-to-day activity. "Searching" for video no longer entails running around like a mad woman trying to find a tape, but instead simply conducting a query on a computer. Welcome to the 90s!

Of course, all this new technology means that I can't simply breeze in and resume my duties. I have to be retrained, so that's what I've been doing this week.

Other than that, during my convalescence, I have been making the most of my blockbuster membership (this is why I don't have netflix) and blazing through some excellent television shows- mostly Six Feet Under, Weeds, Mad Men and Big Love.

Big Love has been interesting. Paul and I agreed that we would not want additional spouses, but I think Paul may have been lying. Even in the show though, it seems like Barb is his "real" wife and the other two are like children that they have adopted that he also has sex with, which um... is surprisingly undisturbing. Although Barb has the most power of the women, it still seems like it would be easier to either be Margene or Nicki. Barb had a normal marriage with Bill, until whatever made her decide to be a polygamist happened (haven't gotten that far) and now she shares him. It would be easier to have never had a monogamous marriage than to have had one and then lost it.

Also, as discussed in the show, there are interesting implications for multiple marriage legislation, if gay marriage were to become legal. Who would ever have thought that traditional Mormons and liberal homosexuals would strange allies on an issue? Unlikely pairing (I almost said "bedfellows." Haha.). Also, it's hard to believe that there wouldn't be more affairs between the wives, especially in marriages with more than 10 wives. I mean, they barely get to spend the night with their husband, they share bedrooms, they are "married." Seems like it would work kind of like in prison, where there are no men, but plenty of women from which to choose.

Not sure how I feel about polygamy. It's not for me, that's for sure, but I suppose I don't mind if other people do it. Only, if it ever becomes legal, I would certainly hope that the law wouldn't mandate that men could marry multiple women, but that a woman could only marry one man. That would probably send everyone into a tizzy.

Mad Men

2009-07-20T00:32:00.007-04:00

We've been watching the first season of AMC's Mad Men on DVD this week. The show is completely absorbing, not in the compounding mystery way of a show like Lost or in the action-packed cliffhanger way of a show like 24, but in that it creates such an atmosphere that it's hard to return back to modern times. It's no secret that I'm slightly obsessed with all things mid-century modern, and this show delivers that in a big way. The set design is unbelievable. That alone would keep me watching this show, not to mention the fabulous clothes. I mean, seriously, the simple glamour of the late 50's and early 60s is perfectly represented. It makes me want to live in that time period, although, the female characters on the show... well, let's just say that they are largely oppressed.

All the men are essentially lying cheats and all the women are victims. Well, not ALL, but an independent woman is the exception here, certainly not the rule. I remarked the my husband, "I certainly hope that all men aren't really like that." And he asked me how I perceived those men and I told him and he seemed to think that I was missing a lot of the depth of character that he relates with. I guess because there is such a hard line separating the gender roles in this show, it's difficult for me to develop empathy for the male characters.

Interestingly, one of the main characters is played by Vincent Kartheiser (far left). It took me a while (and google) to place him, but he was last seen as Conner, Angel's son on Angel. I pretty much hated him on that show, but he's really matured, both as an actor and physically, and he's a great fit for this particular role. Not so much for Conner.

The show also offers interesting insight into the origins of modern advertising strategy and the smoking hot Christina Hendricks as secretary, Joan.

Sewer Monster

2009-07-07T20:53:00.002-04:00

Don't watch if you're eating. Or don't like to be repulsed.

You may be asking, "What the hell is that?!" and the answer, unfortunately, is that no one seems to know. The video was apparently taken by an independent contractor working in the sewers of Raleigh, NC. The city of Raleigh has confirmed that it is legit, and suggests "slime mold" or "worms" as a possible explanation. Right. Can we get some scientist with a microscope down there, please?

Elektra Decked

2009-07-01T23:55:00.004-04:00

We just bought our first real grown-up piece of art. We have some pieces that we've inherited or otherwise aquired, but Paul really liked this piece by artist Lance Carlson. It's called "Elekta Decked." Paul immediately got the title, because of his familiarity with comic books, but it was lost on me. Apparently, the comic book character, Elektra, inspired by, but not to be confused with the Greek mythology character, Electra, was (in one version of the truth of the comic world) killed by a playing card.

It's hanging in the dining room, where is looks awsome. Paul and I always disagree over how to hang art. He always wants to hang it too high (ahem) but he won out on this piece because of a flaw in the paint on the wall left by a previous larger piece.

You can't really tell in the picture, but it's made from pieces of wire mesh. It's a sort of postmodern pop art, I guess, if I, with my limited knowledge of art theory, had to classify it, but it really compliments the classic modern tulip chairs we use in the the dining room.

Man, I wish I was rich.

Eddie "Edit" Stevenson

2009-06-29T02:18:00.004-04:00

It seems that a lot of people have died lately. A lot of celebrities. Michael Jackson and Billy Mays shocked me, but the grief that anyone can feel for a celebrity they'd never met pales in comparison to the grief that those of us that worked day in and out with Edward A. Stevenson, chief editor at WAGA, feel since his passing on Saturday.

The overall sentiment I am hearing from my peers is appreciation that Eddie took a chance on them, and I fall into this category as well. Eddie hired me as a freelancer while I was still in college and had barely crossed the threshold of a newsroom. I don't know how he did it, but Eddie seemed to be able to recognize the ambition and dedication in people that working as a news editor requires. There were so many of us- Randy, Garret, Jorge, Johnathan, Matt.... me, that Eddie took a chance on and although there were a few misses (none of the afore mentioned), overall, we were a group of hard, dedicated workers that gelled together as a team. I've had several jobs since leaving WAGA, but no group of co-workers has ever touched the familial relationship that we had there. We were like siblings and Eddie, our father.

There was no doubt that Eddie loved us. He not only supported us in our jobs as we learned the ropes of the news business, but he also counseled us on personal issues and regularly took us out for drinks and to play pool after work. Eddie, who had no children of his own, loved us and nurtured us and when it was time for us to leave the nest, he sent us on our way, just as sure that we would be successes in our future endeavors as he was when he hired us.

Eddie was my boss for six years and not only did I learn the technical aspects of news production from him, but I also learned skills that have been invaluable since I have pursued other interests- namely, I learned to be laid-back. Eddie was never frazzled. Never shaken. Never gave in to the panic that can so easily take over when you've got thirty seconds left on your deadline and fifteen seconds of video left to cover. Eddie was always calm, even when producers and reporters were over his shoulder, watching as he made the final few cuts on a piece, literally seconds before it hit the airwaves. I always admired him for that and I've strived to take those nerves of steel with me. I also learned from Eddie, that a positive attitude goes a long way. You may not be the best, but you have to approach every situation with a can-do attitude and you have to believe in yourself. But you must also temper that with knowing when you aren't going to meet your goals and making a contingency plan. Don't say that you are going to make slot if you aren't because other people are depending on you. You have to know your strengths and weaknesses. You have to be honest.

Eddie took a chance on me and I know that he was happy with how I turned out and I am forever indebted to him for seeing something in me that I didn't know that I had.

He will be missed and remembered and appreciated.

Rivoting video!

2009-06-26T20:35:00.006-04:00

Hahahahahaha. Okay. This is clearly a case of a reporter being forced to do a story for which he has repeatedly told his producer that he has NO VIDEO.

Sarah's Birthday

2009-06-21T12:32:00.007-04:00

A couple of weeks ago I went out with some friends for my good friend Sarah's birthday. It was an interesting evening full of new activities for me. First, we all met at thrive for drinks and then dinner.

I've been in the 101 Marietta Street building many times (that's where Radio One is located), but never really noticed the swank little restaurant adjacent to the lobby. It turns out that the food was delicious, although we were practically the only patrons. We started with the Thrive sweet crab & artichoke fondue, which was so good that I could have eaten it all myself and I think we were all embarrassed by how possessive we were being over the dip. It was great. For my entree, I had the Springer Mountain chicken breast, roasted red potatoes & rosemary port reduction, which was hands down, the best chicken dish I've ever had in my life. I mean, except for, you know, McNuggets. As far as I could tell, everyone was happy with their meal.

However, the restaurant wasn't chosen for it's food. It was chosen for it's proximity to The Glenn Hotel where those that planned on drinking had reserved several rooms. Due to my unfortunate unemployment, I could afford to neither get a room or drink, so I didn't actually stay there, but I did visit Sarah's room between dinner and a trip to the bar on the rooftop of The Glenn Hotel. From the lobby to the elevator to the room, no detail was overlooked in establishing the modern feel of the hotel. It's retro-modern style remided me of the famous Parker Hotel, where I've also never stayed. But aside from the fabulous modern decor, the real highlight of the hotel was the afore-mentioned rooftop bar. The building is just the right height... you are high enough to see all the city, but low enough to still be able to recognize the streets and see the people. Unfortunately, it was extemely crowded on that night, but it would have been quite enjoyable when it is a little less busy, perhaps on a week night.

But the real highlight of the evening was meeting Tohper Payne, the partner of Sarah's good friend Tommy. When I got home and googled Topher, I read that he was a "southern humorist." That's what I want to be! Like Hollis Gillespie or Lewis Grizzard. Or Jeff Foxworthy or Larry the Cable Guy! *sound of record screaching* Ok, maybe like Hollis Gillespie. In any case, Topher was every bit as charming and warm in person as he is in his column, which is hilarious. Of course, Topher's also an actor and recently wrote a book. OF COURSE.

This blog, admittedly, is mostly a marketing tool for my store, but reading Topher's work makes me a little ashamed of that, because he clearly puts so much thought into his posts. And not just thought, but heart. It makes me want to be a better writer.

I stole all the photographs used in this post from the respective web sites.

2012

2009-06-20T12:12:00.003-04:00

Hey, so have you guys heard about the impending apocalypse? Really, it's on wikipedia, an unwavering source of factual information, so we know it must be true.

Basically, the Mayan calendar ends on December 21, 2012 and because it seems that the Mayans had a better understanding or the solar system and the calendar than we do, then their calendar ending on this day must mean doom, right?

Well, since I'm always looking for something to worry about, I'm somewhat interested in this. I don't want to die, but more than not wanting to die personally, I don't want civilization to die. Why is it that the end of civilization is so much more disturbing that the death of an individual, even if that individual is yourself? Why does is matter what happens to the world if you're dead? No one knows what happens after death. Everyone has their beliefs, but from atheist to Muslim, no one thinks that once you are dead, you are terribly concerned with the living. But the world ending. It's disturbing. I guess maybe the end of the world is like the death of God, of hope. We are all part of something larger than ourselves. Some call it God. Some call it Atman. Some call it Humanity. Some call it Civilization. It's all that remains of us when we are gone and we live our lives hoping to achieve immortality through make some small impression on it. Some people have kids. Some write novels. Some blow up buildings. But we do all these things to try to make an imprint on society so that when we are dead and gone, our life will have mattered, even if it's in the smallest way.

But the apocalypse. That means that none of us matter. Nothing we do matters. And that's depressing!

So, if you only have three and a half years left until the world is consumed by fire, what would you do? Is it different than if you only had three and a half years left until you are hit by a car and killed?

And oh yeah. There's a movie staring John Cusack.

Sassy Lamb!

2009-06-19T12:20:00.009-04:00

Isn't this lamb sassy with it's coy over-the-sholder glance?

Sassy lamb and more, currently for sale at Bad White Trash Memories: The Store.

Chairs for sale

2009-06-18T13:03:00.005-04:00

Got these chairs at the church yardsale. Thought that they would work in my space, but after marinating on it for a week, I've decided they don't. They are awesome chairs though! I'm asking $80, if you're interested and local. And can pick them up. And have cash.

Like Ryan's...

2009-06-16T16:30:00.003-04:00

Went out to dinner with my mom last night. She promoted the restaurant of her choice as, "Like Ryan's. Only not as good." That should have a been a huge red flag, but I figured, it's one meal, what the hell. So, my sister and I joined her at Kacey's Home Cooking on LaVista near Northlake Mall. Upon entering, I encountered the second red flag, which I also ignored- a health department rating of 80. I try to hang with 90 and above establishments, unless it's, you know, some seedy, but especially tastey ethic establishment, which isn't exactly my scene either, but I can at least understand why someone would temporarily lower their sanitation standards to eat there. In any case, Kacey's was not worth the health risk. In fact, it was mostly inedible. I only attemped fried chicken, mac and cheese and a slice of cheesecake. It seemed as though all the food had simply been poured straight from a can onto the buffet. Admission: $7.

Despite what a horrible culinary experience this was, I remarked to my sister how suprised I was that it was so busy and she noted that she was not suprised by how busy it was, but by the average age of the clientale. Unlike Picadilly or Morrison's, this place was actually mostly families, rather than the elderly population, which is who I would typically expect as such an establishment. Go figure.

The interior of this place... wow. I wished so badly that I had a camera. One review I read on yelp.com said, "The decor and layout of this place was amazing. Imagine if they put a Golden Corral inside a strip club from the 1980s. This place seriously looks like Crockett and Tubbs are going to bust in at any moment and clean house - every vertical surface in the place is mirrored. It's Scarface's All You Can Eat Buffet." Seriously, could I say it any better?

Also, another fact that I found hilarious is that while we were in there, there was a crew installing a new television. The reason this was hilarious is because there was a television about every two feet in this place. And these are fancy flat screen tvs. I think that if Kacey's has money to spend, perhaps they might want to reconsider getting that 12th flat screen television and perhaps hit up a market or even a restaurant supplier and quit getting generic cans of green beans from Costco.

It was seriously, probably the worst food I've ever eaten, which I mean, I was expecting, but it was actually worse than my expectations. So, if you must go to an all you can eat buffet, actually go to Ryans or Western Sizzler or whatever. But really, just either cook at home or go to a real restaurant. Or at least get yourself fast food. Whatever you do, don't go to Kacey's Home Cooking.

Jim Axel

2009-06-15T11:38:00.003-04:00

I'm a little late on the draw on this one, but I would have been remiss to not mention it at all. If you're over 25 and you grew up in Atlanta, you'll remember WAGA's Jim Axel. He was an Atlanta television icon, much like Ken Cook is today. He was THE ANCHORMAN in town and much of my perception of what news was about came from Jim.

I never worked with him. He left WAGA in 1996 and I started there in 2000, but I did work with Amanda, Russ, Ken and Ken who all talk about Jim at the end of this piece. It isn't totally out of the ordinary for Amanda to cry on camera, but pretty much every time she does, she has good reason and seeing her cry always tears me up for some reason. I wouldn't call her an overly emotional person, just an emotionally honest person.

In any case, Jim Axel is dying of lung cancer. Back in the day, everyone who worked in television news smoked. Even when I started, the images of editors huddled in editing suites hovering over cellulose with cigarettes hanging from their mouths were still fresh. I smoked. My boss smoked. The director smoked. Eventually, I quit smoking and joined the new generation of professionals, who perhaps smoke in secret, but not at work. But some of those old school television news people still remain and still smoke and Jim was one of these. Well, it's caught up with him.

Here's is the moving tribute, produced by Executive Producer Marc Shavin who actually left his office and went to Florida for this piece, but who had the good sense to let Jim tell his own story, rather than muddle it with a voiceover.

It's a pure honest piece about what life looks like in hindsight, given to us from the man that told us what was news for over 30 years.

My only critique- I think that they would have been better served by not using cancer clips for his "career" montage. It would have perhaps been better to show clips of memorable stories. I know they did some of this later, but the cancer stuff seemed a little heavy handed and it didn't really serve to stir up the sense of nostalgia that would have given the viewer greater emotional involvement.

Much to say.

2009-06-05T15:32:00.010-04:00

Okay. First things first. The Hills Season Finale. Are you kidding me? Lauren just leaves. That's it. We don't get any idea of where she's going? And Heidi and Spencer get married AGAIN. And I guess this was just an open invitation wedding because did Spencer and Heidi ever even meet Justin Bobby? Was he just there as a prop for Kristin to sit next to? And what about Spencer's family. I mean, there's Stephanie, obvy, but don't they have parents? Were they at the wedding? The rehearsal dinner? It's hard to believe that two people who could raise such fame whores wouldn't be interested in being in the show. So, Lauren and Whitney are gone and I'm supposed to watch this show next season? No way. Well, maybe. No promises.

Now on the less important things. There have been some major developments with our dogs. Primarily, we've decided to go ahead and adopt Douglas. Shocker, I know. We've had him 10 months now and he loves us and we love him and just couldn't stand to lose him. Also, Duke finally got neutered. Other than his incessant licking at his stitches, he seems no worse for wear.

Yesterday, I went to a huge yard sale with my mom. It's the Decatur First Baptist Church yardsale, billed as "The World's Largest Yardsale." Here's some video I ganked off the inDECATUR blog.

I snagged two chairs for my living room, which aren't exactly what I had in mind, but at $15 each they will do until I find the perfect chairs, at which point I'll resell these on Craigslist. I also got a Brody milk glass vase, a mushroom-themed canister, a little sheep figurine and a cute pink clutch. I should get those up on the Bad White Trash Memories etsy shop early next week.

In the meantime, I've listed several new items, including the following:

That last one is a bracelet that I found at an estate sale a couple of weeks ago. It's from Morocco and it seems to have a strange Islam/Hindu combination theme. I'm not exactly up on either my Islam or Hindu symbolism, but it has charms of the crescent and star and a woman in a burqa. Also has a camel, an Arabic man and what seems to be a hand with a henna design. Good stuff and more coming soon! I love yard sale season!

Also, when I was trying to find out if what the woman on the bracelet is wearing is actually called a burqa and how that it spelled, I found this:

That's an Islamic swim suit. It scores very low in the "aerodynamic" category, but very high in the "modest " category. Good times.

2009-05-18T23:30:00.001-04:00

How many times am I going to have to watch Spencer and Heidi get engaged?!

AJC

2009-05-15T12:55:00.004-04:00

The local newspaper in Atlanta, The Atlanta Journal Constitution (AJC) has recently undergone some significant changes. In an attempt to stay relevant, they've rolled out a new look and format, which is good. It needed an update. Unfortunately, part of these efforts has included several rounds of layoffs, which has eliminated a good portion of the staff. Good, veteran reporters and editors. Many of whom are my contacts and friends. Being unemployed myself, I feel their pain and the worst part is, there's no where for them to go.

When I lost my job in November, I talked to my husband about becoming a writer- a real journalist. After all, that's what I went to school for. My husband, gifted with foresight, warned against those hopes. "A dying industry," he said. He was right. Newspapers are on their way out. It's the natural progression. Technology has given us a new way to get our news. It's inevitable, but that doesn't make those of us who love journalism and believe in it's virtues any less sad to see the era of print journalism ushered out in favor of blogs and video clips.

Don't get me wrong. I admire the power that the Internet has given citizen journalists and I believe that many of them have much to offer in terms of insight and perspective, but I'm also wary. My friend, CB Hackworth, who is a much better media analyst than me, has, ironically, posted an excellent piece about why we should be wary on his blog, Certain Speculation.

As a new generation comes along, raised on the Internet, they bring a sort of sophisticated skepticism with them that previous generations have lacked. Thanks to the Internet, my mom is convinced that Barack Obama is the Antichrist and she's terrified to heat water in the microwave. My 17-year-old niece is wiser in the ways of media, but she's unable to distinguish the new urban mythology from hard hitting news. Where do we go for truth? Who is still bound by the long-enduring ethical codes of journalism?

Certain Speculation: Why we still need newspapers . . .#links

Woodland

2009-05-14T12:58:00.004-04:00

I'm becoming obsessed with vintage Pyrex. I'm thinking that I want to start collecting the brown and tan woodland line.

It would go perfectly in my imaginary kitchen. It's not quite as desirable as the gooseberry stuff, but that's why it's perfect. It's a little cheaper, but also a little harder to find. Wouldn't my new imaginary cabinets look fab full of all coordinating Pyrex mixing bowls and casserole dishes? I think so.

Tonight, I'm going to an information session about how to become a teacher in Georgia. Substituting has been fun and it's a job with great benefits. Just interested in learning more. No commitments.

Gooseberry

2009-05-13T14:20:00.005-04:00

I'd like to think of myself as the master of negotiation. When we bought our Honda, I handled the negotiations while Paul was as work and I did really well. I was cool, calm and collected. I was ready to walk away. But, when it comes to vintage Pyrex, I'm a teenage boy meeting a Playboy model. For example, I was casually yard saling with my friend Heffie a couple of weekends ago. We were browsing a table where a lady had a Lenox elephant, that I was mildly interested in, but she thought really highly of her elephant, so I was going to walk away and then I saw them.... a set of three near perfect condition gooseberrry bake-serve-store casserole dishes (with lids!). I looked at my friend and said something to the effect of, "I'm going to buy these. I don't care how much they cost."

Smooth. But, thankfully, the lady didn't seem to hear me and when I asked her how much, she quoted a price that would allow me to buy them and still turn a profit based on market value. Shew!

I also picked up some more Brody glass that day. It's a white ribbed milk glass pedestal vase and I got it for a steal, so I'm returning the favor and asking below value for it.

Both these items (and more!) and currently available for sale at Bad White Trash Memeories.

Swine Flu 2.0

2009-05-12T18:02:00.002-04:00

I think I might have swine flu. Seriously.

I dig on swine!

2009-05-01T17:22:00.003-04:00

I'm not scared of swine flu and you shouldn't be either. I'm not going to play the whole media hype card, because, having been a member of the media, I realize that media hype is not possible unless it is fueled by the public. Here's the truth about swine flu, according to the CDC and World Health Organization. You see that? One person has died. ONE. Usually swine flu doesn't even require medical treatment and the symptoms are not as severe as the regular old run-of-the mill flu. The reason that this is news is because there's a new strain that can be transmitted between humans, and not just from pig to human. Nothing to get all worked up about. Diseases are constantly mutating. Just wash your hands and don't pick your nose. You'll be fine.

In fact, you're far far far more likely to have a slew of other more deadly diseases including cancer, AIDS, diabetes, heart disease and the list goes on and on.

But, in case you're still worried, click here to find out if you're at risk: Do you have swine flu?

Happy Birthday Duke!

2009-04-22T16:48:00.004-04:00

One year ago today, I saw a listing for a dog named Victor on petfinder. He was a scruffy little black dog that looked dirty and terrified and I fell in love. He was at Forsyth County Animal Control, which happens to be where my husband works. I called the shelter and make sure he was still available and got a little background. He'd been picked up as a stray. He was severely matted. And scared. I then dispatched my husband to go get pick him up and he came home with the ridiculous little terrified furball. We knew "Victor" wasn't going to work for a name for us, and after all, he'd only been Victor for a couple of days since he'd been at the shelter, so after much deliberation, we decided on "The Duke of Embry" a.k.a. Duke a.k.a. Dewey. From day 1, I was in love, but the elation was short lived when I took him to the vet and discovered that he had a urniary tract infection, intestional worms, and worst of all, heartworms. We began treatment and put Duke on "cage rest" which he was not happy about. He somehow Houdini'd his way out of his cage two days in a row (we still don't know how) and on the third day, we tried locking him in the downstairs powder room. I came home from work to discover a chewed up door frame and a shredded door bottom, so we decided to just let him stay out. After all, he didn't chew much, he didn't go to the potty inside and the stress of being locked up couldn't be good for his heart. Eventually, he recovered and became the happiest dog you will ever meet. His tail is in a constant state of motion. In the past year, I've lost at least three pairs of shoes, but for the most part, he's a good boy.

My love for Duke led me to become involved in an animal rescue group (AARF) and in August I took in a foster dog, who also had heartworms. Together, these two dogs make me laugh every day. They have brought so much joy into my life that it is hard to remember what life was like without them. They have taught me to live in the moment and to love unconditionally. They are what gets me out of bed in the mornings and gets me outside and moving and keep me connected with the outside world, during this time when it would be so easy to slip into being a hermit.

Tonight, we are going to the dog park and going to have some treats to celebrate. Duke doesn't know it's his anniversary, but it doesn't matter, because he is happy just to have a home and people who love him. He appreciates every day.

eBay sale

2009-04-21T14:25:00.002-04:00

eBay is having a sale today. $.15 insertion fees. If you're doing spring cleaning and thinking of getting rid of some stuff, now might be the time.

I went yard saling on Saturday and picked up some great items, which I'll be listing in the store later this week, so stay tuned!

Easter in Savannah

2009-04-14T20:20:00.002-04:00

Got back into town yesterday afternoon after spending the weekend in the lovely Savannah with my family for Easter. We drove down Friday evening with both dogs in tow. They do pretty well on road trips, although they darted out of the car at a rest stop and were caught be a lovely young goth couple, thankfully. Mental note to put the leashes on before opening the car doors.

Saturday morning, we headed down to Tybee Island with the family and my husband set foot in the Atlantic Ocean for the first time. Tide was low, but the beach was crowded. I spent my time of the pier people watching, since I hadn't planned on going to the beach and I neglected to bring my bathing suit. On the way home, we stopped by Bonaventure cemetery, which is somewhere I've always wanted to go, and being a Savannah native, should have visited long ago. I was sad to learn that the Bird Girl statue, made famous by being photographed for the cover of Midnight in the Garden of Good and Evil, has been moved out of the cemetery.

We spent the evening in, grilling burgers and learning to play Texas Hold 'Em. I came in second place! Sunday morning, I was disappointed that the Easter Bunny was unable to find me, but headed off to church for Easter services, nonetheless. Strangely, the pastor selected a chapter from Revelations for the sermon, rather than the typical more Eastery verses. I guess he was trying to do something different.

That afternoon, after having fried seafood for Easter lunch, Paul and I gathered up the dogs and headed to River Street for a couple of daiquiris at Wet Willies. I was harassed by a drunk, who was encouraged by my husband, who thought it was hilarious. It was kind of funny, but also kind of sad and uncomfortable. Paul took a picture of him sitting in my lap and smelling my hair, which I will not be posting to protect the identities of all involved.

Paul wasn't feeling well (allergies), so we headed back early and Paul went to bed early while I played cards with my nieces. Monday morning, we ate breakfast with the family and then headed home. We have to drive through terrible weather, but made it home safely and in good time.

Moonlight

2009-04-09T22:29:00.005-04:00

I've spent tonight watching "Moonlight" on the Sci-Fi Network. It's a television show about a vampire private detective in LA seeking redemption for his murderous past. Sound familiar? Yeah, that's because it's the exact same plot as "Angel: The Series," the Buffy spin-off. Same film noir cinematography, worse dialog, worse editing.

This show is complete with a blond-haired, angel-faced human love interest that finds out about his vampire identity and partners with him to solve crimes.

Behold, Elizabeth Rohm, "Kate" on Angel...

And Sophia Myles, "Beth" on Moonlight.

Also interesting to note that David Greenwalt, former Buffy and Angel producer, is also involved in this show.

Funnily, this show was originally called "Twilight." Don't get me started on Twilight.

"What does that meeeeeeeaaaaan?"

2009-04-09T16:21:00.007-04:00

I saw my share of whacky footage while I was working in news, but this one takes it to a 'ho 'notha leva'.

As a public relations professional, I admire her dedication to sticking to her talking points and plugging her website. I think she says "Matt Lauer was better!" at the very end.

Powdered PB and other random bits

2009-04-06T02:07:00.004-04:00

I am anxiously awaiting the arrival of my powdered peanut butter that I ordered last week from Bell Plantation. This was actually Paul's idea, but I must admit that I am intrigued. You mix this stuff with water, and apparently get a low-fat peanut butter, made from real peanuts and not much else. They also offer this product in a chocolate version.

I am also anxionsly waiting to hear back from a job interview that I had on Friday. I keep flip-flopping between thinking that I nailed it to thinking that I blew it. I'm supposed to hear something by Tuesday.

Paul had some family in town from Chicago this weekend who came over for lunch today. Paul made chicken and ribs and we spent the morning cleaning the house. Paul said that we need to get an HGTV show called "People Coming Over" that demonstrates ways to make your house presentable in 2 hours.

Cupcake Magic

2009-03-30T17:16:00.007-04:00

So, I FINALLY got my letter of clearance for substitute teaching late last week and decided to up my chances of getting called in by placing a few bribes. I spent most of Thursday evening baking 4 dozen cupcakes and then drove around in the rain all day Friday delivering them to local schools where I introduced myself and gave them the cupcake bribe.

Well, it worked, because at 7:14 this morning my phone rang and it was a school calling for me to be in at 7:45. I guess they expect people to be out of bed and dressed or whatever by 7:15, but I was dead asleep. I jumped out of bed and into the shower, threw on some clothes (I'd already planned an outfit in my head) and drove to the school. I was assigned a 4th grade class.

The students were fine. A little chatty, but nothing horrible. We did quiet reading until the bell rang, then I called roll, then I taught Social Studies where I had the honor of teaching the children that Eli Whitney invented the cotton gin, which happens to be one of the three things that I retained from my own 4th grade Social Studies. Then, we did Math, but I didn't have to teach them anything. They just did two worksheets. Then, they were "dispersed" to "Humanities" and I had a 45 minute break. When they got back, we took off for computer lab, where we had multiple technical (or possibly user) errors with no tech support. Some of the kids could never even log in. After that fiasco, we headed off the the "media center" where the ~~librarian~~ media specialist talked to them for half an hour about an atlas and then we went to lunch, which is when I realized that I was woefully unprepared. I hadn't brought anything to eat or any cash and in case you didn't know, the lunch lady doesn't take plastic. This reminded me of the time that I went to the laundr-o-mat with a credit card. So, I just sat there on my little attached-to-the-table stool and watched them eat- pizza, ice cream, chocolate milk- it actually looked good. After, lunch, I had another break because I wasn't on "recess duty, " but it was only 30 minutes, so I didn't have time to go get anything to eat off campus. When recess was over, they had "Reading and Writing" where I had them write a FULL PAGE WITHOUT SKIPPING LINES about what they were going to go over Spring Break. Then, much to my surprise, some other teacher lady showed up and taught them some grammar. She was the "linguistic specialist." Fine by me, but while she was jabbering about similes and metaphors, the fire alarm went off and I had to jump into action. Some kid thrust an "emergency bag" into my hands and sadly, I neglected to check a map, but we just followed the class next to us and ended up in the right place. I took role and every one was accounted for and the assistant principal came by and asked me if I was red or green and I told her that I didn't know what that meant. Ha. Apparently, green means that all your kids are there. So, after she told me that, I told her that I was green. Soon, the bell rang again and we went back to class. Then, we read a chapter in the Science book about ecosystems and answered some questions in the book and then, the day was over.

My mom was a teacher. She hated it and was constantly going on and on about how hard it was. My dad later became a teacher and he used to also torment her by saying that teaching was like "finding money." Based on this one experience, I'm going to have to side with my dad so far. It was a very easy day at work. Low stress. Not much thinking. Just a lot a patience and repeating yourself.

No REALLY ridiculous names as I had hoped. Nothing unpronounceable or with an unnecessary apostrophe.

ETA: I didn't mean to imply that being a teacher was easy. I can't imagine the stress and responsibility that comes with being an actual teacher. I realize being a substitute is basically just babysitting and not al all like being a real teacher.

219:The Show

2009-03-26T13:38:00.003-04:00

I wrote a press release this morning for an upcoming art show to benefit Atlanta's homeless pets. AARF, the rescue that Douglas belongs to is having an art auction to raise funds for foster animals and for their spay and neuter program. "219" is for the 219 pets that are euthanized in Atlanta every day. To give you an idea of how many this is, Chicago only euthanizes 54 a day and that are only around 400 a year in San Fransisco.

For more information, visit the 219 page at AARF's web site.

Ultra Lime

2009-03-20T10:59:00.005-04:00

We've spent the past two days painting Paul's office. After much deliberation, we decided on a lime green color. His office furniture is black and grey, so I wanted something that coordinates with that. He let me pick the color, which is a huge responsibility, and last night, I was kind of questioning it, but this morning after it's dried, I feel really good about it. It's also "inspired" by an old chair that one of our neighbors threw out and we snatched up. Yes, we're those kind of people.

But seriously, would you leave that on the curb? It makes me want to go knock on their door and ask to look through their house. We already have a set of 6 white tulip chairs that we purchased from our friend Leah. They belonged to her grandmother and she couldn't use them and had them in storage. We use them with our dining room table. I think we're at our quota for tulip chairs, but man, I love them. So beautiful.

I have several ideas for "art" on the cheap cheap for his office. He collects comic books, so I was thinking of framing some of them in black frames and putting them up. I looked up comic book frames and they are kind of pricey at $20 each, so I'll have to find an alternate solution if I go with this. He also has a collection of old toys- think 80s Transformer action figures- and I thought it would be cute to put some of those up on shelves. I also want to get some graphic black and white curtains for in there, but that might have to wait a while until the budget allows it (like when I get a job).

2009-03-13T16:28:00.002-04:00

Oh, do I have a blog? I almost forgot.

Things have been really really slow. Strange how not having a job makes you a sort of hermit. I've been doing some good freelance work, but I am at the point where I actually miss having a real job. While the idea of wearing more than pajamas on a daily basis seems a little daunting right now, the thought of going to work where there are people to interact with seems exciting. Also, one of my freelance jobs has somewhat bolstered my confidence and I miss the feeling of a job well done.

I've signed up with a temp agency and I'm still working the substitute system which is very very complicated, so hopefully I'll be out of the house doing something soon.

On the positive side, I am achieving record scores on Facebook games. Eh... maybe that's not so positive.

CVS Deal Alert!

2009-03-05T14:34:00.004-05:00

I was running low on three things today- toilet paper, laundry detergent and toothpaste, so I went to cvs.com and checked out my local flyer for deals and they had one custom made for my situation.

I got four tubes of toothpaste, two bottles of detergent and (this is the best part!) 9 rolls of toilet paper because they were out of the 6 packs. The detergent and the toothpaste were already a good price and the toilet paper was just a bonus! According to my receipt, I spent $23.48 and saved $18.49. Not bad. Not bad at all.

New items at the store!

2009-02-25T19:57:00.009-05:00

Okay, so funny story. The day before we left to go to the mountains, my husband had taken off of work, so we went out to lunch and then hit up the thrift store nearby. It's a miracle that I have a husband who likes junking as much, if not more, than me. He will often bring me home items to sell, like this:

So, we're at the thrift store and the junk gods are smiling on us. Our cart is filling up. Filling up to the point that we had to do several rounds of eliminations before reaching the checkout, but still ended up snatching up an old polaroid camera on our way out the door. Especially fun for my husband was that someone had donated a huge collection of comic books. Paul said, "Somebody's mom is a total b*#ch!" So, he spent most of the approximate two hours that we spent in there going through old comic books, picking up some valuable items and some purely nostalgic ones. You won't see those for sale though, because according to Paul, "Those comics are our retirement!" In any case, at one point we're huddled together in the back of the store between the desk lamps and records (we also picked up Suzanne Vega- Suzanne Vega, Billy Joel- The Stranger, Cowboy Junkies and Culture Club on vinyl) and this woman comes up to me and asks me how much the Pyrex Verde covered divided casserole dish I have in my cart is.

So, I tell her. And she says that she was just wondering because she collects that pattern. Ever the shrewd, but socially awkward business woman, I reply, "Oh really. You want to offer me more for it?" She kind of rolled her eyes and walked away.

After that episode, Paul informed me of how poorly I handled it, telling me that I should have offered to let her have it and shared my site with her, hoping for a new customer. He's right. But, wow, it's gorgeous, right?

All these items and more for sale at Bad White Trash Memories.

Starving

2009-02-18T16:42:00.002-05:00

When I was in high school, instead of eating lunch, my friends and I would sing, to the tune of "Row, Row, Row Your Boat"-

Starve, starve, starve yourself

Starve until you die

If you don't eat, then you'll be thin

and find yourself a guy!

I know. We needed therapy.

As of yesterday, I have embarked on a new eating plan where I count my calories. It's tedious, but I honestly didn't realize how many calories I was consuming before. I had a vague notion of "too many," but I'm just realizing how many too many.

Coming Down From the Mountain

2009-02-17T13:56:00.002-05:00

Got back in town last night after a weekend trip with the family to the lovely Pigeon Forge, Tennessee. I managed to avoid the tourist traps and enjoyed a fabulous weekend in a remote cabin in the mountains. I didn't particularly need a vacation, since I'm currently unemployed, but it was relaxing and rejuvenating nonetheless.

The dogs stayed with fabulous AARF board member Renee and seemed to have had a great time. She said that they were "perfect gentlemen." Makes a mother proud. Although I missed them terribly.

While in Pigeon Forge, my family went to see Magic Beyond Belief which I boycotted because of their use of wild animals solely for entertainment, something that I am strongly opposed to. In this case particularly, because they had a white tiger. My sister said that they talked some about how tigers were endangered, but I'm betting that they didn't mention the truth about white tigers. Click here to learn more about how white tigers are bred and the horrible deformities that result.

It's a sad sad plight and I urge you to also boycott any exploitation of these beautiful animals. That said, any reputable zoo would not participate in the breeding of white tigers and it is not permitted by the tiger species survival plan (SSP). If your zoo has a white tiger, it is almost certainly not participating in these breeding practices, but instead trying to provide a natural habitat for an animal that has been rescued. This problem is not with zoos, it is with private owners like magicians and circuses. I encourage you to support your local zoo, which does for more for wild animal conservation than you probably realize. Check to see if your zoo if accredited by the Association of Zoos and Aquariums (AZA). If so, it's a safe bet that it's breeding practices are ethical.

Facebook Part 2

2009-02-12T10:58:00.002-05:00

So, I know, just last week, I was swearing all Facebook for all eternity, but I joined a couple of days ago.

So far, I've had a couple of awkward interactions with people I used to date, been friended by two people I went to high school with that I have no idea who they are and said hi to just about everyone else I've ever met, which comes to about 52 people. The funny thing is, a couple of people have tried to hit me up for a job. It's rough out there! I even did the 25 Random things about me thing, which I will now share with you. Here it is, in its entirety:

1) I got married in Las Vegas five years ago this week. What happens in Vegas does not stay in Vegas, FYI.
2) I always wanted to be an anthropologist when I was a kid, but got distracted by film.
3) My father was a Southern Baptist preacher.
4) I have two cats who have names that begin with "C" for cat- ChiChi and Chloe and I have a dog who's name beings with "D" for dog- Duke. When I was looking to foster a dog, I took it as a sign that Douglas' name begins with "D."
5) I own an online vintage store that sells vintage housewares, accessories and clothing. (http://whitetrashmemories.etsy.com)
6) I am currently in the process of writing a novel.
7) I have had the same best friends for 18 years.
8) I am currently without a job for the first time since I was 15.
9) I love mid-century modern design and often go to garage sales and flea markets hunting for classic pieces.
10) I've never seen a ghost, but I'm intrigued by paranormal research.
11) I once got to bottle feed a baby orangutan and I've also hand-fed elephants and an alligator! I've also touched a panda!
12) I love scary movies!
13) I'm a sci-fi geek and I love Buffy the Vampire Slayer and Lost, but I don't dress up and go to conventions or anything. Okay, so I've been to Dragon Con, but I didn't dress up!
14) I'm interested in the English monarchy, especially the Tudors, but I've never seen that show.
15) I worked my way through college as an accounts receivable clerk at an architechture and engineering firm.
16) I waited tables at Shoney's in high school. Don't eat the breakfast bar.
17) I am the youngest of four children. My mom was 38 when she had me, which was old at the time, but now seems young.
18) I had skin cancer when I was three-years -old.
19) At age 7, I was diagnosed with psoriasis, which is an auto-immune disease that affects not only my skin, my also my bones and joints. Whee! In the past, I've had to take chemotherapy drugs to keep it under control and I'm currently doing radiation therapy, but not the kind that makes you sick. It just burns.
20) I got my tongue pierced when I was 18 and told my mom that it was"an outward expression of my inner pain." Angsty!
21) I went to Georgia Tech, but dropped out after the first semester. I later went to Georgia State. Dropping out of Georgia Tech is one of the best decisions I've ever made. It was not the place for me and I was on a path to a career I would have hated. My mom disagrees.
22) I went to my junior prom with my friend's brother because I couldn't find a date. We had a great time!
23) I am one of the two people on earth that do not like the beach. Thankfully, my husband is the other one.
24) I quit smoking four years ago, but still think about it every single day.
25) I hate loud noise and tend to avoid clubs and concerts, but it's not because I don't love music! I wish that I could get over this hang up so I could see some of my favorite bands live.

Poop

2009-02-10T16:45:00.002-05:00

I have two dogs that I walk three times a day. Like a good citizen, I take multiple plastic bags with me and pick up their poop, but honestly, I'm just about over it. I mean, dogs, along with every other animal, have been pooping on the face of the earth for thousands of years and nothing bad had ever come of it. You'll probably never even notice the little pile of poo in your yard for the few days that it's there before it's reabsorbed into the earth and speaking of, it's probably better for the environment than putting it in a plastic bag to go into some landfill.

And those people with the little signs in yards? "Scoop the Poop!" or "Please curb your dog" or my favorite, "Love your dog? Scoop its poop! Respect your neighbor!" I fail to follow that chain of logic. Yes, I love my dog, but that doesn't mean I like carrying dog poop in my hand for a mile walk around the neighborhood and it's not as though I'm throwing it on your front door or putting it in your mailbox. It's just sitting in your yard. Get a real problem.

The one that bugs me the worst though is the "Curb your dog" people because they have three dogs, two of whom live outside in the fenced-in back yard freezing and barking their fool heads off and their other dog- they never walk it and they leave it's poop in their yard all the time. I think that they don't realize how much their little dog poops and think that other people are letting their dogs poop in their yard. I want to write them a memo about everything they are doing wrong with their dogs and tape it over their sign.

Anyway, Doug pooped in the "Love your dog..." people's yard today and I left it. Sue me.

What my parents gave me

2009-02-09T11:54:00.002-05:00

According to Random Anny, this is a topic going around on blogs these days and I thought it interesting, so I decided to contribute. This is only a list of financial contributions so you won't see things like "fear of abandonment" or "obsession with weight" on this list.

Essentially, my parents paid for all my needs until I was 16 and got a job. From then on, I bought my toiletries, paid for going out with friends/entertainment, etc. Often, I'd buy myself clothing, but my mom would also take me shopping pretty regularly. She kept some food stocked in the house that I was welcome to eat, but she didn't cook dinner, so I either went out with friends, which I paid for or ate something frozen or canned that my mom bought. Sometimes, probably about once a week, my mom would take me out for dinner. She also paid for major expenses like prom dresses and medical issues, etc.

My father bought me a car when I was 16 with an agreement with my mother that she would pay for my insurance until I graduated from college (which was later revised when I dropped out of school), so I got a free car from them and I paid for the gas, oil changes and repairs.

I had a scholarship for my first quarter of college and my mom paid for my other school expenses such as my dorm fees, etc. Then, I dropped out of college and moved back home. My mom stopped paying for anything at that point, but allowed me to live with her rent free without paying utilities or anything and I also started paying for my car insurance at this point.

Then, I moved out and got a roommate and at this point, I was pretty much on my own in terms of living expenses. I also went back to college around this time and paid for everything myself, including tuition, but I mostly put it on credit cards.

About two years into this scenario, I totaled my car and couldn't get to work or school, so I called my father and asked him for financial help and found out that he'd been sending my mom child support for me the entire two years that I'd been living on my own. At this point, he took pity on me and gave me his wife's car and bought her a new one and he also began to send me the "child support" directly. When I confronted my mom, after some initial denial and justifications, she agreed to make monthly payments to me to pay me back for the money that she had taken from my dad. So, I was doing pretty good there for a while and I was able to pay off much of my credit card debt and trade up for a better car. Eventually, my mom paid me off and shortly after, my father passed away. He left me about $15,000, which was a small life insurance policy provided by his employer to which I was the beneficiary (apparently he made this designation before he remarried and I was his youngest child) and my share of his "estate," which divided by the 8 people who had a claim on it, ended up not being very much. I paid off the rest of my debt with this money, and used the rest as the downpayment for our house 4 years after my father died and I was 25. I continued to pay for my education myself and used my inheritance as an emergency fund, but knew that I wanted to save it to use to by a house someday, which I did.

Overall, with the obvious exception of when my mom was stealing from me, I feel like my parents were really generous with me. Sure, it would have been nice not to pay for college, but I could have had a scholarship which I blew, so I can understand why they wouldn't pay, although they did pay for my siblings, so at the time, I felt really slighted, but in retrospect, I learned to budget and live frugally during those times which are excellent skills to have!

When I got married, my mom gave me $1000 towards the wedding. When my oldest sister got married, my parents paid for the entire wedding and when my other sister got married, my parents were divorced and they each gave her $1000. These are the disadvantages on being the youngest. By the time I came along, my mom did not care one bit about my wedding (she cared very much about the marriage, but not about the actual wedding).

My mom continues to do small things for me occassionally, like take me out to lunch or give me pajama pants or something like that. Something that she saw a good deal on and thought that I'd like. She took me out to lunch on Friday.

Kinkomonics

2009-02-08T11:00:00.001-05:00

Here's an interesting freelance opportunity that I will not be persuing.

"Though dominatrix work is considered by many to be the hardest in the sex industry, being able to avoid actual intercourse is key to its appeal to “everyday” women who are just looking to pick up a little extra money."

Best of Times, Worst of Times

2009-02-07T19:05:00.002-05:00

Things are silmultaneously going terribly and wonderfuly. I got a new client for my freelance writing and a good solid repeat client who keeps coming back . Also, my eBay sales and going GREAT. I'm doing almost daily shipments, but the Etsy business is really slowing down. I haven't sold anything there since December, but I have some new merchandise that I'm going to list next week, so hopefully that will bring some attention to the store. eBay, though, gee whiz. I should have sold all this junk years ago when I could have enjoyed the money, rather than using it to live.

The job hunt plods along. I applied for three positions this week- a government job with a division that I've never heard of, a television job that I'm not really qualified for but would be great at, and one in Savannah that I would love, but the commute would be a bitch. Haha.

Hoarding

2009-02-05T00:53:00.002-05:00

I'm currently watching a show about hoarding on television. I am not a hoarder. I love getting rid of things. I hate knick knacks and trinkets, etc. A "collection" of something, does not appeal to me. Not to say that I don't have things that I like... I do! Particularly mid-century modern things, but most things that I buy, I sell (at my fabulous online vintage store Bad White Trash Memories). My mom, on the other hand, is a hoarder. Her living room area is pretty clear. Her bedroom has stacks in the corners, but it's still functional, but then she has two back bedrooms that are full of junk and she additionally built a shed in the back of her house that is also full of junk. She recently asked me to promise that I wouldn't throw out her things after she dies. I kind of changed the topic.

Amazingly, none of the children inherited my mother's hoarding tendencies. I have about 5 storage boxes full of stuff from high school, college, young adulthood etc. Some of this stuff I could sort though and throw out, it's just a matter of doing it, not a matter of being psychologically unable to let go. Some things I'll always keep- like notes between me and my girlfriends in high school or photographs of old boyfriends, but there are some things that I have been holding on to that I need to let go.

Here it is... my hoarding confession. I've kept every single greeting card, shower invitation, Christmas card, etc that I've ever received. It's ridiculous. I NEVER go through them. It's not like I enjoy going through them or anything. I just feel guilty about throwing them out. Especially if they are HANDMADE. I mean, someone thought of me. How can I just throw their thoughts and well-wishes in the trash? And what about if they die? I have a birthday card from my father, for my 20th birthday. It's a Far Side comic. The one where the guy is only a head. As in he's missing his body. And it's his birthday and all his gifts are hats. The card represents everything that was good about my father. That he sometimes remembered me and his sense of humor. He was in the hospital by my 21st birthday and dead by my 22nd. What if I'd thrown that card away?

I think that the answer is to throw things that you have a tendency to have emotional attachment to away immediately. If I'd thrown that card from my dad away immediately, I wouldn't ever remember it now most likely. But that thought also makes me sad. Stupid greeting cards! My secret shame.

2009-02-04T19:04:00.000-05:00

Looks like Michael Phelps knows what I'm talking about...

Weeds

2009-02-03T11:54:00.002-05:00

Saturday, my friend Sarah and I started watching Weeds on DVD. On Saturday and Suday, we watched the whole first season. I rented the second season on Monday and finished it up last night. It's a fun show, if you're not sensitive. It's definitly not for the conservative crowed. It's an easy watch with no real complications or mysteries in the plot. The characters are pretty surface, but Mary Louise Parker really brings life into her character.

Sarah lives in a neighborhood similar to Weed's Agrestic and she jokingly said that the show makes her want to start selling pot to all her neighbors. Neither of us are really considering a life of crime, but it does make you wonder how prevelant marajuana use really is. Is everybody smoking weed and just not telling me? I'm certainly no goody goody, but if I was smoking pot regularly, who would I let know? I definitly wouldn't write about it on my blog, that's for sure. My husband would know, of course. I probably wouldn't tell any of my friends. Certianly not my family or co-workers, which means that if I apply those secrecy standards to other people, it's entirely possible that everyone I know is smoking pot, as Weeds would have me believe.

So, sorry if you find me sniffing you in coming weeks. I'm going to conduct some research and if you want, leave an anonymous comment confessing your habit. I won't judge. :)

Teenage Suicide. Don't do it.

2009-02-01T23:38:00.002-05:00

A very close friend of mine committed suicide when we were 18. If he were alive, he would have turned 31 today and none of the things that mattered to him them would matter now. He'd probably be living in New York, maybe as a working artist. He'd be funny and charming and talented and women would be falling in love with him, but he'd probably be gay. He most certainly wouldn't be buried in a graveyard next to the Hooters in Jonesboro.

Maybe we'd still keep in touch. We'd be "friends" on myspace and I'd send him occasional emails when I was feeling nostalgic and we'd commiserate about growing up together in suburban Georgia and how far we'd come. About how we used to be so sad, but about what?

If he were alive, where would I be? Maybe I would have graduated from Georgia Tech, instead of plummeting into a horrible depression that lasted for at least five years, which rendered me completely useless in matters of calculus and chemistry. I certainly would have never met my husband and if I had, I would have never understood him.

I suppose, eventually, I would have lost my innocence nonetheless, maybe when my father died. Maybe, if I hadn't spent five years of my life grieving for the loss of my friend, I would still have some grief left for my father.

Death is like a stone thrown into a lake. Some of us get caught in the ripples, and pulled from the current of our lives. We get caught up and sucked under, but if you manage to escape the undertow, you emerge born again. A new person.

When he was alive, I defined myself by our friendship and after his death, I defined myself by my grief. And while I'm sure the immature 18-year-old version of him would appreciate my grief, I have to believe that the adult version, the person that never existed, would want me to finally, after 12 years of grief, learn to define myself by who I want to be, and not by the circumstances of other people's lives.

Tomorrow is Groundhog Day, but I won't be in Punxsutawney waiting for a rodent to tell me that spring is coming early this year.

Neurotic

2009-01-31T11:45:00.003-05:00

I get this great satisfaction from packaging up items that I've sold in boxes. I don't do anything fancy, although I have some great ideas for future packaging. I just bubble wrap the breakable parts, then create a little nest in the box for the item. I make the nest from old magazine pages, or more recently, the 2007 Ikea catalog. Ikea would approve, don't you think? It's more environmentally friendly then styrofoam peanuts. Then I tuck the items inside, wish them well and then fills the rest of the box up with more crumpled magazine pages and tape it all up. I don't know why I find this so satisfying. It just is.

Also, in case you don't know about this, you can get free flat rate and priority mailing boxes from either eBay or the post office. It costs a little more to ship priority mail than to ship first class, but you have to ship priority in order to get delivery confirmation anyway, which is always a good idea. I typically pay for delivery confirmation at the post office because I'm not quite to the point where I trust myself to figure out postage, but another great tip is that if you are paid through Pay Pal, you can print your shipping labels there and get FREE delivery confirmation. This is on my to do list for the future. Random Anny says that she doesn't even bother to print her shipping labels on label paper. She just prints it on regular paper and tapes it right on the box. Sounds like a good plan to me!

Another satisfied customer

2009-01-30T23:40:00.002-05:00

I encountered a new situation today... someone was unsatisfied with an item that I sold them on eBay. I sold him a wireless webcam and he said that the wireless feature didn't work and that he had to use a cable with it. When I sent the camera, it was still in the factory-sealed packaging, so, I really have no way of knowing if it was actually broken or not, but suspected that he wasn't telling the truth because he said that the seal on the camera was broken and it had been tampered with. If the seal was broken, it was before we owned it since we never even opened the box. I wasn't sure what to do, since I have a no refunds policy on my sales, but I didn't want to rip someone off if the item was truly broken.

So, I ended up reaching a great agreement with him! Since he could still use the camera with a cable, I offered to sell him another wireless camera for the price of a non-wireless camera, which worked out great since I have another wireless camera that is missing an antenna that I didn't want to list for sale until I got the antenna replaced. But, this works out perfectly because he can use the antenna from the one that he claims is not working with this new camera and use this one as his wireless camera and the other camera as a wired one.

Does that make sense? Basically, I took a complaint and turned it into another sale.

But, what do you normally do if someone claims something you sold them is broken? I guess you have to judge it depending on the situation.

Friend of Bob that used to work with Janet...

2009-01-29T23:59:00.003-05:00

Let me start by complaining. I like a lot of things about Blogger, especially how easy it is to insert pictures and links, etc, but I absolutely hate logging in to it. I have several gmail accounts that I use for various reasons- private, anonymous, professional, casual, blogging, storage, etc. Whenever I try to log into Blogger, it automatically fills in the username with whatever the last gmail account I signed into is, which is often not the account that I use for blogging. There's a link to click that says, "Sign in as a different user" but when I click it nothing happens. This happens even if I've logged out of gmail and logged into the account that I use for blogging. It's very annoying and every time I have to clear my history, empty my cache and delete my cookies, just to log in. Am I the only one that has this problem? Maybe it has something to do with me using Safari?

Anyway, I'm starting to get really worried about finding a job. I thought I'd be back to work by Feb. 1, but that's clearly not happening since I've applied for 20 jobs and I haven't gotten a single interview. If you have a job, keep it. I would say that I made a mistake leaving my job, but given my very unique circumstances, I still think it was the right thing for me to do, but unless your job is truly unbearable, hang in there. The job market is so different than the last time I was looking.

Tonight, I reached a new low. I sent an email to a man that I barely know who works at a company at which I applied for a job today. He and I worked at the same place briefly, but we know each other so remotely that I felt as though I had to go to great lengths to explain who I was to him. Then, I asked him to put in a good word for me. LOL. I figured that I had nothing to lose and as far as I am aware, his impression of me has been positive. Still, it's awkward, even in email. But sometimes, it's things like this that pay off.

I BARELY knew my old boss at the zoo when I applied for the job there and reached out to her and ended up with the job. I barely knew her as in I'd met her twice. Obviously, it helps when you're qualified for the job and I definitely meet (even exceed) the requirements for this position, but I've always heard that it's not what you know, it's who. Well, I know a lot of people and I've been working my connections, but I'm about to start working them more aggressively and getting more Kevin Bacony about it.

Affendoodle? Poopinscher?

2009-01-28T15:22:00.007-05:00

I've had a hard time writing here- or anywhere else, for that matter- lately. My life is excrutiatingly boring these days, aside from back pain, which has managed to keep me somewhat busy whining and feeling sorry for myself.

Because we got him from the pound, the history of our ridiculous dog, Duke, is a mystery. He's at least part poodle- that's obvious. Most likely, he's also part schnauzer, because his fur gets this 80's frosted look about it when it gets on the longer side and he also has a little patch of course hair on his rump, but thanks to Cute Overload, I was recently introduced to a new kind of dog (new to me) that bares a striking resemblance to him... The Affenpinscher. Behold:

And for comparison, here's Duke:

Obviously, Duke's hair is curlier, but the eyes and his wacky ears are right on and those of the parts of him that neither seems particularly poodle or schnauzer. And yes, I know his sweater is gay (not that there's anything wrong with that).

Cup Cakes

2009-01-26T16:27:00.002-05:00

I had my first ever paid cake-making gig this weekend. I made two dozen tennis themed cupcakes for an acquaintance's mother's birthday party. They were pretty cute and sure looked yummy, but sadly, I neglected to take a picture. It's my sister's fault because instead of taking pictures on Saturday morning, I ended up going to watch my niece and nephew play basketball, which was pretty funny. My niece, age 8, flubbed several balls, fell down and hurt her knee and cried, and spent most of the game on the bench. She was the cutest player though. My nephew was considerably better, scoring several points, and his team had their first win of the season. A real nail biter.

Douglas is in much better spirits today. For the first time in weeks, his tail isn't tucked between his legs and he's doing his awkward little tap dance that he does when he's excited about something like me talking to him or opening the drawer that the leashes are kept in. It's the little things, you know, when you're a dog.

Dance Dance Dance!

2009-01-20T23:39:00.003-05:00

I'm sitting here watching the Obamas dance for about the millionth time. They somehow make it look endearing each time, but I'm sure they are completely exhausted and that Michelle's feet are KILLING her. I don't remember all this dancing at previous inaugural balls. They have to go to ten of them, make a little speech (a different speech at each one!) and then dance a little dance, then pack up and go to the next one. Who on earth thought of that tradition?

Also, I wanted to comment on how heartwarming it was when the Bushes left Washington and the Obamas escorted them to the plane. Despite their many differences, they seemed genuinely respectful of each other. I'm so glad that I live in a country where there is a peaceful transfer of power. No matter what your political views are, you have to be proud to be an American tonight.

I bet the Obamas and the Bushes will both sleep well tonight.

Side Note: "Obama" is not in the Blogger spellcheck program. I bet that will change in future versions.

Craigslist!

2009-01-20T15:19:00.003-05:00

I sit here waiting for a guy to show up to buy our old couch. He's 15 or so minutes late. Yesterday, a lady was supposed to be here at 4 to buy a table. She never showed and left me a voicemail saying that someone broke into a house in her neighborhood aournd 7pm. Um... okay. She says that she still wants to buy the table, but this is the 3rd time that her coming to get it has fallen through. I'm not sure if I even want to fool with scheduling a fourth pickup. Someone else wrote me about the table last night and I responded this morning, but haven't heard back from her yet. Craigslist is such a waiting game... for buying and selling!

Update! The guy paid for the couch and he's going to come back later this week and pick it up! Yay!

Refinance?

2009-01-18T00:53:00.002-05:00

I've been crunching the number on refinancing the house. We're right at the spot where it's almost worth it. We have 24 years left on our 30 year fixed, and with current interest rates, we could refi for 20 years and only add about 20 bucks to our monthly payment, taking 4 years off our loan, but we'd have to pay loan fees etc, that would pretty much make us break even, meaning that it we paid what we'd pay in refi fees on our existing mortgage and then added $20 to our monthy, we'd pay the house off in 20 years, so there's really no point in refinancing. The other option is to refi for 25 years, adding a year to our loan, but reducing our monthly payment for a little over $100, but we'd rather have it paid off a year earlier than pay less a month, I think. Ideally, we'd like to refi for like 22 or 23 years, keeping our payment the same, but taking off a couple of years thanks to a lower interest rate, but you can't get loans in those time frames. Maybe interest rates will continue to go down and I can relook at it in the next couple of weeks. I'm checking bankrate.com every day.

Bankrate.com is a great site for figuring out financial situations. They have a variety of calculators for playing around for money nerds. You can figure out how extra payments will affect your loan, figure out what your monthly payments should be on credit cards to pay them off in a particular amount of time and lots lots more. I used the credit card payoff calculator when we were paying off our cards several years ago and it was dead on. We were out of debt just when the calculator said we would be, and thank goodness we paid off our debt, because if we hadn't, we would not be able to survive in our current one income situation.

I'm totally ready to go back to work. Not only for financial reasons, but also because I need to feel like a productive member of society. There are many things that I enjoy about staying at home, but I would also enjoy shopping and remodeling my kitchen, which we've put off until I find a job. We worked really hard to get completely out of debt so that we could have more financial freedom and now my lack of income is preventing us for reaping the fruits of our efforts.

Junk Update

2009-01-14T23:16:00.003-05:00

The lady showed up and took away my 32 cans of partially used paint. She was happy to have it and I was happy to get rid of it. Just the way recycling should work.

I was also able to find a place to take the computers. I ended up talked to PC Trade Recycling, which is just a few miles from here. I'm going to take them the computers tomorrow. They will pick them up for a fee, but there's no charge if you drop them off!

I'm so glad to be getting rid of this stuff that's been taking up space in my basement since forever. I'm also getting up quite the yard sale pile and I can't wait until spring so I can have a major blowout. Plus, last week's closet cleaning netted two bags of clothes for the next time the American Kidney Fund comes. Actually making progress on this stuff has really gotten me inspired to try to get everything in order before I go back to work.

And speaking of, I hadn't heard anything from the school system where I applied to be a substitute, so I checked my status on their website today and it seems that they haven't received one of my reference forms, so I called the reference and it turns out that it had slipped her mind, so because I have to fill it out and sign my portion before she does her portion, I'm meeting with her next Friday so that she can fill it out for me. After that, I should be good to go for substituting, which would be awesome because I could really use some money.

I also need to look into what to do with my retirement savings. I don't have much, but what I do have is just sitting around losing money right now in a 403(B), so I need to find an investment advisor and find out how to roll that into a Roth that I can keep contributing to even after I get a new job with a new retirement plan. It's strange how not having any extra money makes it so much clearer about what you should be doing with it when you have it. Plus, I've heard that the stock market is having a huge sale right now!

Also, now that we know for sure that we can live off of Paul's income, that means that whatever my income is in the future should go right into savings without ever hitting the bank account.

Now, I just need to get a job and then I'll be all set...

Paint-O-Rama

2009-01-14T16:54:00.003-05:00

Good Gooley Moogley! I posted the paint in the free section on craigslist and had no less than 15 calls in the first 5 minutes. My phone was ringing off the hook! It was so much that I could barely manage it all. I had to take the ad down within 10 minutes of putting it up. I ended up telling some lady that was nice that I would hold it for her until 7, but after that, I'm calling other people back.

So, if you're trying to get rid of paint, post it on the free section of craigslist. Like hot cakes!

Junk Recycling

2009-01-14T16:21:00.002-05:00

I've been working on cleaning out our basement, which is quite a task and I've found myself at a loss on a lot of items. The first is paint. Googling has returned nothing in terms of paint recycling in Atlanta, outside of Rockdale County. All I've found is other people looking for a solution.

The second is old computers. Technically and legally, these can go by the curb for garbage pick up, but that doesn't seem environmentally responsible. We have a ton of old computer and computer parts due to my husband's career, and I have no idea what to do with them

This site: www.earth911.com has a nifty search feature where you can type in what you want to recycle and your location and it gives you a list of recycling centers, but it hasn't been able to provide a solution for my situation.

Bromance

2009-01-13T17:10:00.002-05:00

I accidentally watched Bromance last night. I like that Brody Jenner, but only kind of. First, I hated him on Princes of Malibu, then I liked him as Lauren's possible love interest on The Hills, but I never felt right about him exactly because how could he possibly be friends with that asshat, Spencet Pratt? Then, I saw Brody on Keeping up with the Kardishians and he was a jerk, so I didn't like him for a while, but last night, I kind of liked him again. The trouble with him is that somehow he has weaseled his way onto 4 reality shows. What kind of egomaniac does that? I mean, how interesting does he think he is?

Facebook

2009-01-12T00:30:00.003-05:00

I suppose I need to get on Facebook. I get asked if I'm on it several times a week. I'm hesitant to join for a couple of reasons- I jumped into Friendster years ago, then My Space, then Linked In and they are all really popular and then sort of fade away and never amount to anything except maybe some awkward emails from old classmates that you barely remember. Also, the last thing I want to do right now is spend more time on the Internet, and apparently Facebook is terribly addictive.

But, all the material I'm reading about how to find a job says that I need to join Facebook. Funny how being on My Space a few short years ago was considered a bad thing. I remember suggesting that the zoo get a My Space page and everyone freaked out and said that it wasn't something that we'd want to be associated with. In fact, when I asked the IT guy for access to My Space so that I could research what other local non-profits had My Space pages, he went to HR like I had asked him for access to pornography or something. My VP then confronted me and when I told her what I was thinking, she told me that I shouldn't be wasting my time with stuff like that, so I immediately went and disassociated my name with my My Space account. Not that there was anything scandalous on it- I was just afraid that being on My Space at all would be considered scandalous. N0t so with Facebook?

I'm 31. I'm not ready to fall off the technology radar, but somehow, I feel too old for it. Like it's for college kids or for trying to meet people to date, which being married, isn't exactly one of my current objectives.

Suddenly, I feel like my mom. "I don't need to learn how to use the email. I like typing letters!"

Outside the Box

2009-01-08T15:01:00.003-05:00

I tired to think outside the box today in tems of job hunting and applied for two jobs that I would not normally think to apply for. One was a temporary position as a Production Assistant at a local cable television station and the other was as the Membership Manager for a non-profit. The PA job is well below my skill level, but it's temporary and it might be a foot in the door for another job. Plus, it would be cool to have some money coming in while I'm looking. The Membership Manager job... not sure how I feel about that one. Looking over the qualifications, I feel that I'm fairly qualified, although I've not really done anything like that before, but who has? One thing that I've seen over and over again at non-profits is people getting hired for jobs that they've never done before. Basically, if you have a solid work history and a college degree, you're qualified. I'm not sure how much I would enjoy that job, but I am confident that I would enjoy the organization since it's animal related.

It really is a tough job market right now. I had been telling myself that as soon as the holidays were over, the calls would start coming in, but that's not happening. The search continues!

Little White House

2009-01-08T00:12:00.004-05:00

While Georgia has long been famous for Roosevelt's "Little White House" in Warm Springs, a new miniature version of 1600 Pennsylvania Avenue is currently the talk of Atlanta.
This eyesore, which was erected on Briarcliff Road, just a few short miles from my house, about eight years ago, is currently up for sale. The owners, who are home builders notorious for tearing down the character rich mid-century ranches in this area of town and replacing them with cookie-cutter McMansions, are currently in financial trouble. The house was going to be sold at auction today, but last minute negotiations with the lending institution have kept it off the auction block for now. They are asking 9.88 million, which is just out of my price range, but I wish that I could buy it just so I could tear it down. It's ridiculous and gaudy. And yes, the shrubbery says, "GOD <3 YOU."

Photo courtesy AJC.

Poor Douglas

2009-01-06T21:46:00.003-05:00

One of the gifts that I got for Christmas was a new manual can opener. It's something that I'd asked for and something that I've been wanting for a long time. We got an electric can opener as a wedding gift and I triumphantly threw the old manual can opener away. It was one of those ancient metal ones like your mom had. Old and dirty and hard to use. But, not being a fan of counter clutter, I have the electric one stowed in a cabinet and sometimes, it just seems like such a huge burden to take it out of the cabinet, use it and put it away- just to open a can of tuna!

So, tonight, I used to new manual for the first time and it's amazing. I don't know how they did it, but they must have discovered a new law of physics or something, because it's like effortless. So smooth. No imprints in my fingers or inflammation of the carpal tunnel.

This is similar to my hair dryer discovery of two years ago in which the purchase of a new hair dryer took half an hour off the time it takes me to get ready in the morning.

In other news, our little Douglas hasn't been feeling well. It started Saturday when Paul took him and Duke over to a friend's house to play in the yard and Douglas didn't seem to feel much like playing. The spent the rest of the day sleeping on the couch next to the space heater. Sunday, his tail was tucked WAY under and he stopped trying to walk up or down the stairs or to jump up on the couch. He mostly just laid around and slept. Yesterday, his tail was so firmly tucked between his legs, that when you pulled it out and then let it go, it snapped back into place like a rubber band.

We suspected, based on his lack of movement and the stiffness in his waddle, that it was arthritis in his legs, since such things can be exacerbated by humidity and it's been raining nonstop since Thursday. He also had a huge sloppy incident of diarrhea yesterday.

So, after getting approval from the rescue yesterday, I took him to the vet this morning. She said that it seemed to be lower back pain and that it was pretty common in beagles. She gave him an anti-inflammatory shot and some pain pills to take home, His tail is now pointed straight down, rather than tucked under, so his tailometer is telling me that he's feeling a little better.

The vet agreed with me that Doug is older than three. She said that she'd say 5 +. I think we're going to need to rewrite poor Doug's online dating profile now that we know that he's old, blind and arthritic.

As Seen on TV

2009-01-05T18:27:00.003-05:00

My Etsy sales are out of control! I've sold a total of 9 items, but 5 of them have been in the past two weeks! Still not making nearly enough to live off of or anything, but it feels kind of nice for people to like the stuff that I like. Sort of validating. Like I have good taste or something. It couldn't come at a better time either. Since I need to get my hair did like whoah, among other things.

I got a Ped Egg for Christmas, which I'm about to go try in the shower. My feet- sigh. I used to consider them one of my best features... creamy white with freakishly high arches. But, now I'm paying the price for those high arches and lots of pressure is being put on my heels which causes them to callous, so I'm constantly having to hack and sand them to keep them smooth. I got a pedicure about three weeks ago, but the effects are wearing off. My brother swears the Ped Egg will change my life. We'll see. I did get the snazzy pink breast cancer one, which is fun.

What's up with all the "As Seen on TV" items for sale lately? Doesn't there seem to be a huge influx? There's the Ped Egg and then there's the PediPaws (which my brother keeps calling the Petafile), which I could also use. Duke gets his nails done when he gets groomed, but Douglas doesn't need to be professionally groomed. He just needs his nails done and the groomer charges $12 for it. That's some BS. Doug hasn't been feeling well, so he's going to the vet tomorrow and I'll just get his nails clipped there for now.

I also kind of want the Snuggie. I don't know who came up with the idea of a blanket with sleeves, but they are a genius. The problem with the Snuggie is the colors.

ShamWow. I could use those too! I mean, how else am I supposed to dry my dishes or my boat?! ShamWows are dangerous though. You have to be super wary of imitators. Those imitators aren't even made in Germany! I've seen that commerical one too many times.

Back

2009-01-04T23:23:00.003-05:00

Back from Tennessee. Sold a major item on eBay and on Etsy while I was gone, so, that's awesome. I also have two articles to write, so things are going pretty well.

More tomorrow.

Clay

2009-01-01T22:23:00.003-05:00

Sadly, my cousin, Clay, passed away yesterday, so I'm off to Tennesee for a few days and probably won't be online.

Although, his death is quite tragic, we weren't close. I'm going mostly as a traveling companion for my mother, who is very close to his mother. He was 37 years old and has a three year old daughter. He had leukemia, so it wasn't completely unexpected, but extremely sad for his family.

Paul dying is my greatest fear.

New Year's Eve 08

2008-12-31T12:13:00.003-05:00

We've had two invitations to go over to someone's house and play Rock Band this NYE. You can't get away from Rock Band lately! I played Rock Band at Christmas with my family. I was the singer. I was thrown by the "Nature is a whore" line in Nirvana's In Bloom. It just didn't seem like a very Christmassy thing to be singing. I mumbled it and exchanged a look with my sister, the mother of the two small children present.

We're still not sure what we're going to be doing tonight, but most likely, it will involve Wii.

Happy New Year everyone! May all your rock star dreams come true!