How .75 cents Made Me Cry.

My plan:

Go home. Do the laundry. Decide on delicious dinner. Greet boyfriend as he walks in the door, make him sit down and relax because he was super stressed out earlier. Present with delicious dinner and silly movie. Cuddle. Relax.

What happened:

Get home. Start laundry. Go back upstairs, snack for a bit, relax, go downstairs to continue laundry, more clothes in hand. When I get down, I find every single washer has been taken, except the two I had used earlier. ..Okay, not a problem, but a bitch for drying. I foresee a problem but shrug and accept it.

I transfer my clothes to the two remaining driers open, start them up, put the rest of my dirty clothes in the now-empty washers, start those up, and head back upstairs.

*inhale*

Relax for a bit, read. Head back downstairs to move now-clean-but-wet clothes to drier. Eeeexcept every drier is taken and running. ...Poo. Again I shrug and note the remaining time on my driers, go back upstairs and wait.

Chris gets home as soon as I head back downstairs. I will note that I still have no idea what I'm making for dinner, nothing is thawed, and I have no brilliant plan. *sigh* Oh well.

We head to the laundry room, hand in hand, so I can finish it up and get it done. He empties one drier, grabs clothes from the second one.

"Uhh.. these are wet."
"...What?"
"They're really wet."
"Well god dammit.. I guess we'll have to run them again."

Annoying, but manageable. I insert the laundry card, select the cycle, hit go, remove card, wait... ...wait... ....waaaaaaaaaaaiiiiiishit.

C: "Derp."
A: *blank stare*
C: "Piece of shit.."
A: *continued blank stare*

...

And then I snap. See, I only had .75 cents left on the little laundry card. Enough for one more load of laundry. ONE. I now have THREE loads of wet clothes that need to be dried.

Except the machine to load the card doesn't accept cash. Plastic only.

Not only is it JUST plastic, but it only allows increments of $10 to be put onto it at a time.

...

My electric, water, and internet bills are doubled because they're past due. I have $20 in my bank account, $13 on my credit card, and a shitload of change in a jar taunting me with it's precise amount of uselessness in this situation. I need to pay for gas, and food, for another two days before I get a smaller-than-usual paycheck, which will be going entirely to past-due bills.

And now I have to put $10 on this little fucking laundry card so I don't have 3 loads of wet clothes growing mildew in my bathtub until I can deposit all those jar-coins into my account at the bank tomorrow like the poor son-of-a-bitch that I am.

I managed to hold myself together while paying to dry the clothes that were supposed to be dry already. Again. Meanwhile my clean-but-wet clothes continue to lurk in their washer-based dens of mildew growing wonder for another hour.

I managed to grab the hamper with the dry clothes in it, storm out, stomp home, throw the bag down in disgust and sit on the bed for a full two minutes before angry bitter ashamed tears started (against my strict orders that they discontinue) while Chris sat next to me apologizing for not having any money of his own to help me do the laundry.

I even managed to completely deny that I was crying for another five full minutes until it got to be too much and I clung to Chris sobbing about how idiotic it was that the money machine didn't take cash and how that would have solved so many problems.

I finished crying, Chris made me giggle against my stubborn I'm-still-sad-so-there mentality.

C: "We'll be okay. We always pull through bad times."
A: *sniff* "Times have been bad?" *weak smile*
C: *blink* "Pffft! No. What bad times. None." *too big smile*
A: *giggle and hug*
C: "What's for dinner?"


***

Not really moving things, just a shift.

I know I think a lot and change things a lot, but I've decided to move all the cooking posts over to my new blog, Mostly Mise En Place. I'll still be posting on here, but it probably won't have much to do with cooking. ^^; Sorry for the confusion.

Alex

New Years Dinner, totally not late at all.

This totally isn't late. It's even in the title, see?

So, after conferring with Chris, I've decided the following will be my format: Post the recipes -> Post any differences I made, things I didn't like, or places I screwed up -> Post my pictures, with captions. Anything I cook without first referencing a recipe I post in detail, step by step.

Sound okay? Let me know. ^^;

Pan Seared Top Sirloin with Pan Gravy, Roasted Brussel Sprouts with Mushrooms, Baked Potatoes.

I started the potatoes first, set the timer for a half hour. At the half hour mark I put in the brussel sprouts and mushrooms. When I put them in, I started everything for the steak.

The Steak + Gravy

- Approximately half a white onion.
- 1 garlic clove
- Half a stick of butter
- 2 Sirloin Steaks
- Worcestershire Sauce
- Beef Broth
- Dry Cooking Sherry
- Salt
- Pepper
- Dry mustard (optional)

Before you do anything, put your largest frying pan on the stove. Turn the burner to medium high, and let it warm up.

Salt and pepper your steak on both sides. I used dry mustard powder to add a little bit of flavor, but I'm not sure it added anything.

Start with your onion. Chop that puppy up! You want it to be fairly well chopped, but not iddy biddy pieces. For the garlic, just slice it up fairly evenly. Not see-through, but not huge chunks, either.

Something like this. Cry your eyes out, you deserve it.

Put the butter in the pan and wait for it to melt. If it starts to bubble a lot, turn the heat down a little. Some bubbling is okay, but you don't want it to burn. If it turns brown, that's way too much heat, and it won't taste good.

When the butter is melted, toss the onions in. Spread them out so they're evenly on the bottom of the pan.

It should sizzle a little when you put it in. It should also smell delicious.


When they start looking a little soft, toss the garlic in.




When you start to smell the garlic (it shouldn't take long), move everything to the very edges of the pan and put in your steaks.


Mmmm...

At some point, before you flip the steaks, you should give both of them a splash or two of that Worcestershire Sauce. This stuff is the essence of wonderful tasting beef, and I damn near always use it on my beef.

Steak isn't steak without this stuff.

Let it cook in the middle of the pan for about 5 minutes. VERY IMPORTANT: Don't fuss with your steak! Leave it alone and let it cook for God's sake. If you keep fussing, it won't cook evenly, and you won't get those wonderful charred bits that have all kinds of flavor.

This part is totally optional, but I like to crowd my steaks with the onion and garlic. I don't know if it does anything or not, but I like to think that the aromatics infuse themselves somehow into the meat. I only leave them there for one flip (about 5 minutes). Any longer and they'll start to burn and become little bits of charcoal.. Not tasty.



Cooktime for the steaks (at least for me) wound up to be something like this:

Put into pan -> Cook 5 minutes -> Flip -> Cook 5 minutes -> Flip -> Cook 1.5 minutes -> Flip -> Cook 1.5 minutes -> Remove from pan.

When they're done, they should look deliciously brown with tasty crusty bits on both sides. The onions and garlic will probably be browning at this point, that's fine.

Oh my...

If you timed everything right, the potatoes should have been done by now.

Some of the skin came off the potatoes while cooking.. that's fine, they make delicous pre-dinner chips. ;)

When you remove the steaks, pour in enough beef broth to cover the bottom of the pan. Using a spatula (preferably wood), scrape all the little black bits off the bottom of the pan and stir around. Add a splash or two of the sherry, and stir occasionally.

It should look something like this when you pour everything in...

Season to taste. When the liquid in the pan reduces by about half, remove from heat and put into the gravy vessel of your choice.

And it should look like this when it's ready.

Pull out the brussel sprouts when they're done.

*drool*

Prepare your potato to your desired taste. Unfortunately for Chris, we didn't have any sour cream. :(

Results

Steak: Omg delicious. It came out somewhere between Medium and Medium Rare. Steak isn't worth eating without any red in it. :P

Potatoes: Also delicious. The fake bacon bits I used had turned stale on me, so while that was a little distracting, there was enough potato to hide it.

Brussel Sprouts: I made a mistake with these. The rack was in the top slot, and I was preoccupied and busy and totally forgot to move the rack to the middle, where it should have been to cook these correctly. So while the outside was perfect, there was a tiny core that, while warm, was not the deliciously cooked vegetable I was aiming for.

Mushrooms: My bad. The recipe I normally use involves a 400 degree oven for 30 min.. The brussel sprouts and potatoes require a 350 degree oven.. It didn't work out. They tasted a little funny and didn't have the texture I was looking for. *sigh* Oh well. I learned.

We had Mexican bottled Pepsi to drink with dinner as a treat... Also delicious. Overall, we were both incredibly pleased with dinner. :)

Suck it, 2010.

The end of the year is nigh, bringing about an almost inevitable look back at everything that's happened this year.

*deep breath*

1: We get a new apartment!

2: Chris lost his job the day before we move in.

3: A man falls through our roof, wtf?

4: We buy the BMW!

5: BMW explodes. :(

6: We get the Talon!

7: I become a dog bather. Suddenly I'm wet and smelly all the time.

8: Chris gets screwed out of one job with the school district because of a typo, is given another. Hooray income!

9: I become a dog groomer! Yay way more income!

10: A drunk driver plows through the fence of our complex on her side, the fence and trees in front of it land on the Talon. >_O

12: Chris finds out that the "permanent" position at this school is, in fact not permanent.

11: Chris replaces the radiator and alternator, only to get into another accident which breaks the new radiator.

12: Dad fixes the BMW! Hooray car!

*deep breath pant.. pant..*

I also got some new friends, gained a crafting buddy, met a tea fairy, threw a Silly Hat Tea Party, and managed to survive all of it in good health.

:)

Dinner tonight! Pan seared top sirloin, baked potatoes, roasted brussel sprouts, and roasted mushrooms.

Mmmm...

Now, I'm going to -try- and make sense. Don't expect a lot, because this is my first time. For a lot of things. I've never taken pictures while cooking before, so I missed a few steps (sorry). I've never tried to blog about making something before, so I'll probably miss something.

Also, most blogs only do particular dishes, for good reason come to find out. I'm not sure what my layout should be. Do I post a breakdown of how I cooked the whole thing, and note how I screwed up (as I will do almost every time, somehow)? Or do I just do a recipe at a time? I dunno. I think I'll start with the first, and see how it goes from there.

I'll still be posting where I pulled all the recipes from, if I can find it.

Results to come. :)

New Template!

After lots of fussing, I think I'll stick with this one... Let me know. :)

I was worried 'cause it's all red... and this is called "my green blanket"... but I'm beginning to not care.

But look! Some complete stranger drew me in the corner! That's cool, right?

Yeah.

Don't mind me.

I'm fussing with skins for this thing right now. If it's a little rough around the edges, it's cause I had to go to work and couldn't finish what I'm doing.

Sorry for the mess. ^^;

*blink* Oh crap, I have a blog, don't I. ...huh.

Well. ...This place is dusty. Internet... dusty.

What would count as dust on the internet? God knows. ANYWAY.

Let's pretend I've been a good little girl and have actually been posting on here. So it will totally not be awkward for me to pick up this poor thing and pretend it's not rusty and dusty and disused and start using it.

Shabby chiq is in right now, right?

---

So Chris challenged* me to start cooking more! Our culinary experiences lately have roamed all over the fast food spectrum, and frankly we're both tired of it. He suggested that instead of grocery shopping every week, we go every day. That way, we would eventually build up enough in the fridge and the pantry to have a lazy day and make something from strictly on-hand items.

At first, my old argument of "But I only buy things that are on sale and it's cheaper that way" sprang into mind. ...But then I also remembered exactly how God-awfully expensive fast food is and, in the end, we would probably end up spending around the same amount of money.. if not less by doing it his way.

Before I agreed, I reminded him that in able to do this sort of shopping schedule properly, we would have to create a menu a week or so in advance to prevent too many headaches. He nodded absently. *sigh* I don't think he really understands what goes into planning a menu.

BUT. He's also promised to start helping with dinner, especially on nights when I'm closing (9pm) and coming home dead tired and stinky. It's like he's challenged himself to start cooking and has finally taken what I've told him COUNTLESS times to heart: You have to actually cook to figure out how to cook. You won't learn if you don't screw up a few times.

He made us hamburgers and french fries the other night from scratch... I don't think he really realized all the little steps involved in it. Perhaps he even has a little bit of an idea what I get to do from now on.

I'm very proud of him, but at the same time I have a little 10 year old girl in the back of my head, covered in flour, pointing and laughing full out in his face.

..*cough*

Tonight was Beef Stroganoff, a dish that I have never ever had, cooked, tasted, or even knew what went into it before I looked the recipe up. Chris requested it, so of course I said "Okay!!" totally not knowing what it was.

I was pretty sure pasta went into it at some point.

I surfed AllRecipes for awhile before I found a fairly simple recipe (Butter, beef, onion, sour cream). Of course, I have learned to cruise the comments on AllRecipes, because there's always little helpful tidbits in there. The comment area is actually where I found my recipe for the evening. *laughs*

My simple four ingredient recipe had dry sherry, mushrooms, beef stock, salt, pepper, and paprika heaped on top of it with absolutely no measurements except to only use 8oz of sour cream.

Chris assures me it was wonderful, and while I did enjoy the taste a whole buncha lots, I still have no freaking clue whether I got it right. As it is, I think I got the sauce a little thin.

---

On top of Chris' challenge, I added a little a few of my own on top of it:

-I'm going to try to cook as many of the (hundreds) of recipes in my bookmarks folder as possible. All my favorite blogs will be scoured for recipes, keeping in mind the Chris will be cooking at least once a week.

-I'm going to write about my successes and failures on here (or have a minor tissy on facebook), and if you're really lucky, I'll even post pictures.

-I'm going to clean as I go. ie: Put dishes in the dishwasher after I use them, clean up my pans after I use them... You get it. This one will probably be the hardest, but I'm hoping it will become a habit.

It's a little early for a New Years resolution, and as a rule I normally don't have them... but I think I'll make an exception this year.

My favorite deals of the week

I have a confession to make. I'm one of those people who sit around, flip through the sale ads like it's on Oprah's reading list, and clip coupons.

Hi, my name is Alex, and I'm a coupon shopper.
*hi alex*

Laugh all you like, shopping this way saves me a crapload of money every week. Chris isn't that fond of it (because it involves driving to 3-4 different stores to maximize the savings), but even he admits the sense in it.

SO! I'm gonna start posting my favorites every week on here. If nothing else, it'll keep the dust from collecting on this poor blog.

Now, the thing you have to keep in mind when shopping like this, is that you can't get overly attached to brands. Yes, I know -this- is better than -that- but -that- is $2.00 cheaper today. And, oh wait, the store brand has another $2.00 off -that- one's price. Guess which one I'm gonna buy?

Also, you need to think further ahead than just -this- week. Are you almost out of bacon, but not quite? It'll probably last another week, sure, but there's a sale on 4 lbs of bacon for $2.00. Guess what keeps really well if you don't open it, and freezes even better?

Bacon.

In fact, most things freeze really well. I even found a way to freeze EGGS (which comes in real handy when there's a sale on an 18 pack of large eggs for $0.99.

To the deals. I'll start with grocery items and move on from there.

I like to guess roughly how much I'm going to be buying (either by pound or quantity) to get a better picture of what I'm spending.

Save Mart Supermarkets:

-Foster Farms Chicken Breasts (with ribs) Max Pak: $0.99/lb. x4lbs (roughly) = $3.96
-Asparagus: $0.97/lb. x1 = $0.97
-Celery: $0.87/ea. x1 = $0.87
-Minute Maid Orange Juice 64oz: $2.00/ea. x1 = $2.00
-Bohemian Hearth Bread (mmm, potato bread): $1.79/ea. x1 = $1.79
-Sunny Select Cooking Oil (Canola's the best): $2.99/ea. x1 = $2.99

Raley's

-Large Bulk Russet Potatoes: $0.25/lb. x4 = $1.00 (-super- deal here. If I didn't already have 15 pounds of potatoes under my sink I'd be jumping at this.)
-Red Seedless Grapes: $0.95/lb. x1 = $0.95
-Barefoot Wine (Pretty good wine for the money): $4.99/ea. x1 = $4.99
-All Pepsi 2-liters: $0.88/ea with in-ad coupon (limit 3). x2 = $1.76
-Hefty One Zip Storage/Sandwich bags: $0.99/ea with in-ad coupon (limit 2). x2 = $1.98
-18pk Raley's LG Eggs Grade AA: $1.99/ea. x1 = $1.99
-Raley's Chunk Cheese 8oz: $2.00/ea. x1 = $2.00
-Kettle Potato chips 5oz: $1.50/ea. x2 = $3.00
-Bertolli Extra Virgin Olive Oil 17oz: $5.99/ea. x1 = $5.99
-Large Artichokes: $1.50/ea. x2 = $3.00

Safeway (a tricky one. Sometimes certain items are only on sale Saturday and Sunday, or you have to buy a certain number of them to qualify for the sale price. Keep an eye out for these... sometimes they aren't such a great deal afterall. Also, if you're going to shop here, you HAVE to get a Safeway card. Their prices are -ridiculous- otherwise.)

-Foster Farms Whole Chicken: Buy 1 Get 1 Free (not sure the price/lb, still a good deal.)
-Nabisco Oreo or Ritz crackers: $2.50/ea. x1 = $2.50 (yes, it was the oreos. Pfft.)
-Safeway Hickory Smoked Thick sliced bacon 3lb: $7.98/ea. (this is -really- good bacon for the money.)
-Hillshire Farm lunchmeat: $2.99/ea.
-Sweet red/orange/yellow bell peppers: $1.50/ea. x2 = $3.00
-Golden Grain Pasta: $1.00/ea. (This is -really- good pasta, and it's never this cheap.)
-Duncan Hines Cake or Brownie Mix: $1.00/ea. (This is the time to stock up!)

Safeway saturday/sunday only sales:

-Bananas: $0.48/lb.
-Kraft Macaroni and Cheese: $0.50/ea.

That's pretty much it for grocery stuff. It's a little list-y, so I think I'll save the other couple ones for a separate post. :)

New Situations

Every Tuesday at work we get our fish shipments in. Every week, it's the same delivery guy, an Indian (I think) dude named Jaz (spelling.. ...approximate). Every week, I chat with him politely as I help him unload his truck onto one of our big carts to push into the store.

Last week, Jaz decides to change up our polite routine and, at the end of our conversation, blurts out "You're hot.." in a quiet sort of voice. "..ah... thanks."

Initial impression? Shy guy blurts out something he regrets later. I thought it was a little cute, but I brushed it off. Eh.

This week, Jaz decides to try his hand at pickup lines.

"Are you cold?"
"Nah."
"That's because you're hot, huh."
"...ah."
"Are you single?"
"Ah, no."
"Oh."

..So, our polite conversation becomes awkward. Ugh.

Anyway, later on in the day, I recount the situation to my direct manager, who reports it to the assistant manager, who calls me in and asks me how I feel about the situation.

I'm at a loss. I don't know! I've never encountered something like this dude before. How do I handle it? Do I talk to the guy or do I have the A.M. change the driver on the route or do I have him file a report or what.

>__< I honestly don't know what I feel about the whole damn thing. Awkward? Yes. Would I like it to stop? Yeah. Am I going to file a complaint? No. I'm going to talk to the dude if he says something next week, and if he says anything else I'll talk to the A.M.

But my question: Who the -hell- tells a relatively perfect stranger that they're hot? More specifically, who says that shit when they're sober? I can see drunken slobs doing something like that (like a middle aged man named Doug in the bar... different story), but not sober people.

Unless they're stupid.

Or have no tact.

...

I miss people with tact.

My morning: so far.

So.

I got up early this morning so I could do the more than two weeks worth of laundry that had built up in our room. I forgo breakfast, thinking "Hey, I have an unthinkable amount of fruit right now, and dad has orange juice and raspberry sorbet. Smoothie!"

I get all of the clothes together (it took the entire hamper -and- a huge duffel bag to transport all of these) and Chris and I head off to my dad's house. Chris helps lug them inside, I kiss him goodbye, and head on in.

First problem: The washing machine's full. ...okay, not a problem, merely a setback. I set the thing to wash, head into the kitchen and start chopping up my fruit.

Second problem: There is no raspberry sorbet. When I investigate further, I discover it was apparently devoured just this past weekend. Note: This is my sorbet I left here when I first moved out and had been nipping at while doing laundry here.

Third problem: There is also no ice. The ice machine in the freezer is busted. And no ice cached anywhere else.

My dream of a smoothie is dying slowly. Horribly. Loudly (due to a small amount of cursing on my part).

Damn it all, I NEED FOOD. I plop my chopped fruit (mango/banana/apple) into the blender, pour in some orange juice and set that baby to full speed ahead.

I pour a bit out, it's still kinda pulpy. Pour it back in. Warp 9 for a few seconds. All stop.

As I'm taking the container off of the blender the second time, it decides to have explosive diarrhea all. over. EVERYTHING.

The blender is covered in pulpy goo.
The counter is covered in pulpy goo.
The cabinets are covered in pulpy goo.
The floor is covered in pulpy goo.

...I. am covered. in pulpy goo.

Brilliant.

>__< Luckily, I'm washing clothes, so I remove pants (undies and shirt were spared, thank god), and my shoes are washable. Not a total loss just a pain in the freaking ass.

After a couple minutes of just standing there in total shock, I clean the mess up (a procedure that involved more scooping than soaking/wiping), and proceeded to the computer to complain.

After all this I check the mail to see if I got anything sent here, seeing as how I never changed my address. Sure enough, I got a letter from Wells Fargo. Hmm?

My savings account is being closed because I overdrafted three times in a year. The funds will either be transferred to my checking account or the savings will be converted to yet another checking account. More cursing. Lots of cursing.

I'm now going to go play Fable, because I had the foresight to bring the XBox along with me. I'm not moving except for laundry.

The time is now 8:23 am.

Edit (8:40am): I forgot a controller for the XBOX. ...I may cry.

My Longest List - Things to buy

So I mentioned before that I have a few lists tucked away of stuff that needs to get done, what we need to buy to replace what we're losing, that sort of thing. The latter is my longest list. Thankfully, I've managed to stock up on essentials everywhere else in the apartment, but since the kitchen is so small and storage is a problem, a lot of the stuff I need to replace is kitchen-based items.

Anyway. THE LIST (of things to buy), by generalish catecory:

General:
-Vacuum Cleaner (the most expensive item on here, with the possible exception of a couch.)
-Iron
-Broom
-Hammer
-Mop
-Step ladder
-Surge protectors
-Flashlight(s)
-Doormat
-Desk
-Computer chair

Living Room:
-Lighting (A floor lamp at least)
-TV Stand
-Couch (we'll be leaving the one everyone has smoked/had sex on/spilled bongwater on with connor)
-Throw blanket
-Throw pillow(s)
-Wireless internet receiver for XBox (since we probably won't have cable/satellite for awhile, we can at least watch intant stuff on netflix)

Bathroom:
-Plunger
-Toilet scrubber

Kitchen:
-Trash can
-Pots (at least 3 in different sizes w/ lids)
-Roasting pan
-Cookie sheet(s)
-Pasta jars
-Plastic cutting board
-Wooden cutting board (since mine is on it's way towards death)
-Ice trays OR those super neat whiskey stones over at thinkgeek
-Oven mits
-Ice cream scoop
-Pizza cutter
-Cheese grater (Technically, I actually have one, but it's been so beat to hell here I'd like to get a new one)
-Knifeblock (like that super awesome Kapoosh one)
-Silverware organizer
-Silverware
-Kitchen timer
-Pitcher
-Can opener
-Vegetable peeler
-Slotted spoon
-Pasta ladel
-Bottle opener
-Cast iron pan(s)

Wanted, but not needed:
-Fine mesh sieve
-Slow cooker
-Kitchen scale
-Bathroom scale
-ONION GOGGLES.
-Wall art

I couldn't think of anything else.. let me know if you guys have any good ideas. :)

I has a doggie!

Let me esplain.

Today, 3 or so hours before I'm off work, I get a text from Chris: "I have something you'll like."

"OO! What is it?"
"<3"
...
"Tell me."

and repeat.


So when I finally clock out, head out to the car and ever so politely request to know what he got me. Chris, however, seeing an opportunity to bug the ever loving crap out of me, continues (for the -entire- ride home) to tease me and lay down false trails etc etc..

"It's in the fridge."
"Is it food?"
"Nope."
"..is it a drink?"
"Nope."
"Why is it in the fridge?"
"*grin*"
"You're a liar. TELL ME."
"It's nothing."
"...I hate you." etc.

When we finally got home (longest 15 minute car ride ever), he admits that it really is in the fridge. So I run upstairs into our room, open the fridge and, low and behold, there are two Crunch bars wrapped up in a note. Note: Earlier I was complaining that Rite Aid doesn't have Crunch bars, only these weird Crunch bar hybrids that are.. ...wrong.

I have an instant "Awww..." moment, open the note, and it says "Look under your pillow. <3 <3"

..wat?

I look under the pillow, where there is another little nothing with a note stuffed in the box.

"Look on top of the 360. <3 <3"

I try really (read: REALLY) hard to not run into the living room to see what's there, and there, hidden in the back of the cabinet on top of the 360 is Fable II.

Omg.

After about 10 minutes of super appreciation and hugs and lots of "you're the best ever"s, I set about playing with the game I've been wanting for years.

This was around 7:30. ..It's now 12:15 and I just put down the controller.

Addiction? naah.

So, anyway, about the dog: Your character in Fable II has a loyal canine companion that changes appearance (with you) as you go through the game (either more evil or more good looking). It also growls if there's an enemy nearby, helps you find buried treasure, and does tricks for you. :D

Best afterwork surprise ever. :D

It starts.

So, Chris and I are definitely moving out come April.

Omg. I just can. not. wait.

In the mean time, there's about 50 bazillion* things to do. This is why I have lists.

I love lists. Lists keep me sane.

So now I have a list for everything in one of two notebooks. I have a list for things we need to buy, because once we move out there will be some sizable gaps in our standard housing necessities. Things like trash cans, pots, and vacuum cleaners will be missing.

I have a list of things we need to move over (including things currently in storage.. I love you mom/dad.) I have a list of things we need to do before we move out.

I'm sure I'll eventually have a list of various people/agencies/chores I need to kill... but that's just standard per the whole moving process and isn't really all that special to my personal experience.

One of these days I'll even post these fabulous (and in some cases long) lists on this fabulous blog thingy I'm meandering into. So we'll see if I actually stay on top of posting on here and keep up with anything journal-related for once.

*50 bazillion = real number. All the kids at school told me so.