kirabug’s idea files

So I can finally move my arms and legs without pain. That’s a nice start.

Last Tuesday we moved into the 2nd bedroom we finally finished in January so that we could start working on our bedroom.

Our bedroom is 18×14, with a walk-in closet that’s at least 6×6. It’s freakin’ huge. Literally half the 2nd floor. And it’s lavendar. With lime green carpeting. So of course, that had to go.

And since once a year the condo association parks a huge dumpster outside for the whole development to use, and that “once a year” was last weekend, well, it had to go then. With the help of my dad and Nighthawk’s parents, we tore out the lime green carpet and the used-to-be-white yellow shag carpet that we found underneath it. We scraped the remains of the carpet padding off the flooring using a flat-nosed shovel, and filled at least two garbage bags. Then, just to make sure we were thorough, we tore out all the door trim and baseboard.

So needless to say, the first time I woke up this morning (at 4 am) I could about move.

This evening I bought the primer, ceiling paint, and wall paint necessary to go from lavendar to cayman blue (to match the second bedroom). Sometime this week I’ll patch the wallboard where necessary and sand so that I can paint this weekend.

In the meantime, today’s life lesson came while I was driving to work. It’s a twofold lesson, really.

Part one: While driving safely but at a brisk 75 mph pace in the left-hand lane down the highways of Pennsylvania, do not assume that the black car you just passed that looks like a Lincoln Town Car / limousine with the tinted windows and the heavy frame is in fact a limousine, because it may be an unmarked police car.

Part two: If you happen to be driving safely, but at a brisk 75 mph pace in the left-hand lane and pass an unmarked police car that looks like a limo, it’s handy to have some other idiot weaving through the much-more-crowded center and right-hand lanes going at least 80 mph, because the officer of the law is much more likely to go after that guy.

Or, to steal a phrase from my uncle, “Drive like an asshole, you’re gonna get hurt.”

Now it’s almost Tuesday and I just uploaded Saturday’s comic, so I’m going to bed. Sleep well, and drive safely.

Last Thanksgiving I got it into my head that I wanted a fresh turkey, so we bought Bob. But we also had a coupon for a free turkey from the supermarket, and free food is free food, so we also picked up Ralph, a beautiful 16 lb Butterball frozen turkey, and threw him in the freezer.

Ralph has been monopolizing the freezer ever since, so last weekend after playing post-food-shopping-Tetris, I declared that Ralph’s time had come, and we stuck him in the fridge to defrost.

Ralph is currently roasting in my oven. Mmmmmm. I’m having turkey sandwiches all week

Which means I have about an hour to clean the whole house, because my sister, and Mike and Steen and the baby, are all coming over to dispose of Ralph.

Which means I’m really regretting that while trying to move the cactus a few minutes ago I dropped it.

Today’s life lesson: never try to catch a falling cactus.

Well, after two years of work, I can officially declare the second bedroom refinished. Sure, it could use some more furniture, and I need a second set of curtains ’cause the current ones aren’t wide enough, but the floor, walls, and trim are done. The heater vent’s been replaced. The closet’s been refinished and reshelved. The bed and end tables are assembled. And most amazingly, all the trash is out.

I’m beat. We assembled the furniture and hung the curtain rod and curtains tonight. I bought the curtains and the blankets and washed everything. My feet hurt and I don’t remember having actually eaten dinner tonight. I still need to get a shower.

I bought loose tea tonight for my teastick but if I have it now I won’t be able to sleep. I got decaf chai for Christmas - time to crack that open.

So yesterday (meaning Saturday) evening, we went out to dinner at Red Lobster with a friend from high school who I hadn’t seen in four or five years I think. I had an absolutely great time, ate too much, came home and wrote a little, then went to bed.

This morning, we got up relatively early (for us), so that we could go out to lunch with a friend from elementary school who I haven’t seen since June of 2004and her family. Once again I had a ball, and look forward to seeing them again in less than 17 months this time.

Around this, I talked to my folks a couple of times, and was invited out to eat twice by a friend who I see on a regular basis (she’s local). Also did some light shopping and watched the football game and spent five hours filing. (I was a little behind.)

My back is killing me, my sinuses are all screwed up (my fault), and I have eaten waaay too many things over the past two days that contain bell peppers, which apparently now that I’m almost 30, have decided they need to kill me. Despite all that and a tendency to overcaffeinate, I’m really, really happy right now.

I hope you are too.

So I didn’t write today. I didn’t work out. I didn’t draw comics. I didn’t watch TV. I didn’t clean the house.

I, and two very close and wonderful friends, cut and hung crown moulding in my 2nd bedroom, then put down the laminate flooring.

We started out at around 11 and finished up about 10 hours later.

I ache everywhere. I feel like someone’s driven a railroad spike through the center of my back.

And we haven’t even done the T moulding or put the baseboard on. (Hell, I haven’t bought the baseboard.)

Tomorrow I think I’ll be catatonic. That sounds nice.

1. My x-ray is “clear”, meaning no broken foot, but still a big lump, so I’m trying to hunt down an MRI. Whee.
2. I received my copy of the Webcomic Telethon Book over the weekend, and it’s really nice. 8.5" x 11 ", not overly thick, but with multiple comics per page so you get a really good review of what was in the telethon. Definitely worth your time, especially since the funds go back to the Red Cross.
3. The Philadelphia Phillies did win their last game of the season, but so did Houston, so I’ll be getting a refund for my NLDS tickets sometime in the next few weeks (dammit!!). This year, I think I’ll be rooting for St. Louis through the postseason. And the Yankees, ’cause that’s what I do.
4. Redesign of the site is about 2/3 of the way done.
5. It’s October! That means we’re less than a month away from National Novel Writing Month . I’d really like to participate this year, so here’s the plan:
   • Fill up the comic buffer between now and November so I don’t have to worry about it.
   • Get some rough ideas thrown together on what I’m going to write about. (Feel free to throw suggestions in the forum.)
   • Subscribe to the NaNoWriMo podcast feed and the feed for their news service (done) to stay psyched
   • spend lots of quality time with my husband so he doesn’t disown me for taking on yet another project

That’s all for now, must go comic.

So a few weeks ago the arch of my right foot started to ache — not all the time, but sometimes when I walk on it funny or I’m on it too long. I stopped exercising to give it a chance to heal, but it’s been two weeks and healing has not accomplished itself according to plan. Went to the doctor today and he’s diagnosed tendon pulls with a possible very small fracture as well. X-rays were accomplished before work and all it theoretically going according to the new plan: advil, and heel cups in my shoes.

Of course it doesn’t help that the heel cup, while probably helping the tendons quite a bit, are making the bone ache like all hell.

What’s annoying (outside of the pain and inconvenience) is that I can’t walk the dog. But maybe that’s a blessing in disguise, considering that she’s currently scheduled for a specialist appointment later this week for a bad shoulder.

Anyway, today’s afternoon forecast is slightly grouchy with a chance of grousing, well on until morning.