Yehaw!!

My cable is fixed!

The cable guy showed up right after 9:00 AM.  He was supposed to call before he came, but he didn't.  Since he didn't call, I didn't have the dogs shut up, so he had to run the gauntlet of dogs through the yard.  I'm not worried about mine.  I'm about 99% sure they wouldn't bite him (all dogs can bite, and you can never be 100% sure how they will react to someone; responsible dog owners know this), but when the neighbor's gigantic chocolate lab showed up, it gave us both a moment of pause.  He's pretty friendly, but since he isn't mine...well, you know.

I won't go into all the details, but basically what it was is that I had the economy cable package before Monday.  What they do is put some sort of a damper (he called it a lifeline) on your cable down at the box on the corner.  That blocks the channels you aren't supposed to be getting with the cheap service.  When I upgraded Monday, they should have sent someone out to remove the lifeline, but apparently not one of the three reps I talked to knew that.  Yes, I did tell all three of them that I'd just upgraded from economy.  The tech seemed annoyed that they didn't figure that out.  "They should have known to take that off," he said. 

Nevertheless, it's fixed now, and I can watch The Walking Dead with the rest of you!   And football!  I get both ESPN and SEC Network now! 

A very nice thing happened this week.  Remember the baby shower we had at work last Thursday?  Well, when I got to work Tuesday (we didn't work Monday), one of the three ladies we'd brought gifts for had actually written thank you notes.  

Not only that, Wednesday I received another thank you note from someone I'd sent some leftover sock yarn to.  I thought that was really sweet.  Not many people write thank you notes any more.  I must admit that I'm terrible about it myself.  It's not something my mother enforced when we were kids, and I didn't get into the habit of it.  I never know what to say, and I make too big of a deal about it.  Then I end up just not writing them.  A bit not good, yeah...

But this is good.  While I was waiting on the cable guy to fix my cable, I finished the hat I was working on.  

It's a full size stocking hat with a 96 stitch cast on.   The yarn is Plymouth Encore.  No color name, just a number -- 1405.   I had enough yarn to cast on another, albeit smaller hat. 

This one will be an infant/toddler size hat with a 72 stitch cast on.  I might have enough left for a pom pom.  We shall see. 

Well, today is Halloween and I forgot to wear my Great Pumpkin socks.

I thought about it this morning, then the cable guy showed up, and that thought went the way of the dodo.  Oh, well, I guess they'll be twice as fresh for next year.  So I'll just leave you with my traditional Halloween prayer:

From ghoulies and ghosties

And long legged beasties

And things that go bump in the night

May the Good Lord deliver us.

Oh, wait, that's no ghouly.  That's just my group leader, Fernando.  He's not scary at all.  (Although he might get a little scary if he ever finds out I took that picture, so don't tell him, OK?)

Insert winky face icon of your choice here. 

Inventory

Today was inventory day at work, and it went about as well as inventory usually does.  Which means not well.

But there is a bright side, and that bright side is that it's not as bad as it used to be.    In this case, the good ol' days weren't so good.  We used to have to go in at 5 AM and stay sometimes until 8 or 9 PM.  So, as much of a disorganized headache as it is, at least it's better than it used to be.

When I got home, the first thing I did was get my plants inside.  It's supposed to get down into the 30s tomorrow night.  Yesterday I was running the air conditioning.  Today I had to put on the heater.  Welcome to winter in the South.  

Speaking of tomorrow, I broke out the Halloween candy a day early. 

Then I had to hide it from myself, or there wouldn't be any left for trick or treaters.  But since I never get any trick or treaters, I don't suppose it very much matters. 

I might get some if I didn't lock the doors and turn out all the lights, huh? 

Cable Woes

I still haven't gotten my cable fixed.  Just to recap, the local cable company is finally switching to digital, so we all had to get converter boxes.  When I hooked mine up, I wasn't getting all of my channels.  The rep told me to bring the second box back and that should fix my problem.  OK.

Yesterday after work, I took the extra box back to the cable office.  I explained to the person there what the rep on the phone had said, only she said that having an extra box shouldn't cause that issue.  She took the box off of my account and sent an update to my remaining box.  I came home, and checked, and I'm still missing 14 of my channels.

I called back and talked to Charles (the first rep didn't tell me her name).  We tried a few more things, and I'm still not getting those channels, so they are going to have to send a tech out to the house.  He could have come out today, but it's one of those things where he said the guy would be out sometime between 8:00 AM and 5:00 PM.  I asked if the guy could come out after 3:00, because that's when I get off work.  Charles said he could make a notation, but couldn't guarantee it.  I'm not willing to call in, miss a day's pay, and lose my attendance bonus just for 14 TV channels -- even if one of them is the one The Walking Dead is on.  I told him just to schedule the tech for Friday.  I would be home all day, so he could come anytime.

So that's where we stand with that. 

The other day when I was getting my tire fixed, I saw Fisher Price is bringing back some retro toys.  My sister had one of these record players.

When Cody was 4ish, we had gone home for Christmas.  I got some of our old toys out for him to play with, including Deana's Fisher Price record player.  I was showing him how to work it, how to wind it up and put the records on, and where to put them in the little storage slot.  About the third time I said something about the record, Cody looked at me like I'd lost my mind, and said indignantly, "Mom, it's a CD!" 

Then I had to tell him, "Back in the olden days, we called them records."

Look, a new shirt. 

I ordered it from a place called TeeSpring, and I must say I was very disappointed in the quality for the price.  The material is very thin, and the size seems to be like a full size smaller than a normal XL.  I'm not sure I'll even be able to wear it. 

I doubt I'll order from them again. 

Random Thoughts Of A Tuesday Evening

1.  The Cowboys can't win the big game.  It's only a big game if they lose.  The games they win couldn't possibly be big games, because Romo can't win the big games.  Like the time when they went into New Orleans and beat the then undefeated and eventual Super Bowl champion Saints.  That wasn't a big game.  But when they lost to the Steelers up in Pittsburgh, that was a big game.  Had to have been.  They lost.  And they can't win the big games.

2.  Romo is not a clutch player.  He can't handle the stress of a last minute comeback.  Apparently, all those last minute comeback wins weren't stressful.  You know, like when he lead them to a last minute, overtime win over the eventual NFC champion 49ers-- and he did it with a broken rib and punctured lung-- no, that wasn't stressful at all.  Or earlier this season when he led them to a victory from the largest deficit in team history wasn't a bit stressful. 

3. Every single loss is Romo's fault, because of him throwing interceptions, even if he didn't actually throw an interception.  Doesn't matter.  Still his fault. 

4.  Simultaneously, every loss will be blamed on Romo "choking", even if it is the defense that gives up a 97 yard, last minute touchdown drive to the opponent.  Somehow, that is still Romo's fault.

5.   After every loss, this



is still being brought up nearly 8 years later, while this



has been all but forgotten. 

6.  Most fans don't know nearly as much about football as they think they do. 

A Very Long Weekend

When they told us that we were going to be off Friday and Monday this weekend, I said I wasn't going to spend all four days sitting in front of the TV.  I was going to get up, get out of the house, and do something.  I didn't know what I was going to do, but I was going to do something.  So, what did I do?  I spent all four days sitting in front of the TV. 

Well, OK, I did do my grocery shopping and paid bills.  And I did laundry.  And I finally made that phone call I've been putting off for a week.  Yes, I waited until the last day, but I finally made it.  More about that later.

While I was doing all of that sitting in front of the TV, I started -- and finished-- this scarf.

It is made from Red Heart Supersaver in the colors Old Rose and Gumdrop.  I like the result, but changing colors every few rows is a bit of a pain.

It was such a pain that instead of warping the loom again, I cast on another hat.

This yarn is Plymouth Encore.  I don't see a color name, just a number, and that number is 1405.  I bought this out of the clearance bin up at Hank Of Yarn a while back. It's been marinating in my stash ever since.  I always knew I wanted to knit hats out of it, and I am finally working on them.  I ought to be able to get two hats out of it. 

Now, about that phone call...

When I got my house phone cut off last week, it freed up enough money to upgrade my cable service.  That isn't something you can do on the website, so I had to call the local office.  Today, I finally called them, but I'm not getting all the channels I'm supposed to be getting.  Seems the problem is that about a month ago, the cable company finally started making the switch to all digital -- like two years after the government mandated it.  In order to make the switch, all customers have to get a digital converter box for each TV in the house.

Since I was planning on getting another TV for the bedroom this Christmas when they put all the electronics on sale, I went ahead and ordered two boxes.  Apparently, that was the wrong thing to do.  The CS rep said that because I had two boxes, but only had one hooked up, I was confusing the signal, and that's why I'm not getting all my channels.  Yeah, sounds like a bit of malarky to me, too.

She told me to bring the second box back to the cable office and they would remove it from my account.  That should solve the problem.   If not, they'll have to send a tech out.  OK, then...

I headed out to take the box back, but when I got to my car, I saw one of my tires was low.  I stopped at the gas station to air it up, but I could still hear the air hissing out of my valve stem when I was done.  OK, then, I had to get that fixed, and it took just a little bit of priority over the cable box.  In to Wal-mart I went.

I told them where it was leaking, and since I'd bought the road hazards warranty, they fixed it at no charge to me.  They got it fixed pretty quickly, but they didn't call me.  Or they did and I didn't hear it, so I spent about an hour wandering around the store that I didn't need to. 

Wandering around the store is a dangerous thing.

 It's not a Red Ryder Carbine Action 200 Shot Range Model Air Rifle, but it'll do.

By the time I got out of Wal-Mart, the cable office was closed, so I'll have to take care of that tomorrow after work.  Speaking of work, it's going to be another short week, due to inventory.  Those who aren't working inventory will only get two days this week.  Those of us who are working will get two and a half.

But, hey, at least we still have a job. 

Getting Wild

Before we go getting all wild and crazy, let me show you the new scarf I'm working on. 

The yarn is leftover Red Heart that I've used before -- Old Rose and Gumdrop.  Next time, I'm going to put another stripe of the Rose on the other side.  I'd actually thought of that while I was warping the loom, but then forgot to do it.  In my defense, I was coloring my hair and had to go wash the dye out in the middle of warping. 

Yes, I decided to keep the red just a bit longer, and since I decided to stay with the red, I got a better quality dye.  The cheap dye I'd used the first time had faded to plain brown already.  But I'm sure you're not interested in that...

Speaking of hair color, this is where I got crazy and went a little wild. 

Yes, I bought some hot pink temporary hair color.  Then I read the back where it said not to use if your hair has been dyed, bleached, or permed within the last year.  I wondered what would happen if you used this on dyed hair, so I did a little online research.  It would seem that the caution is there to prevent unnecessary litigation.  I mean, seriously, if you dyed your hair a year ago, by the time you used this, all that hair would have been trimmed off by then, especially if you keep your hair short.  Well, shorter than waist length, at least.

Now, perms are a bit harsher on your hair than modern dye techniques, so I'd be a bit more cautious if I had a perm in my hair.  But I don't, so I think I'll be OK. 

That was last week.  When I went back to the store today, I found this:

Body glitter!  I like the gold better than the blue.  I think I might go back tomorrow and get a couple more cans, since they only sell it around Halloween.  I know this isn't a good picture, but you can kinda see what it looks like in my allergy test spot.

That's the gold.  The blue didn't show up in the picture I took of it at all. 

While we're on the subject of allergies, I am allergic to eggs.  I'm not deathly allergic, though.  In fact, my allergist told me I could eat things with eggs as ingredients as long as they didn't bother me too badly.  Yesterday, me and another co-worker hosted a baby shower at work, and we each agreed to bring cupcakes.

Nobody at the front of my line has our act together enough to organize a dinner.  So we did cupcakes.

Well, the other lady got mad because she didn't feel like she received enough gifts, so she hid her cupcakes and didn't put them out.  When people asked where the cupcakes were, she sent them to get mine.  That made me just a bit angry, because I didn't get any gifts at all.  It's not my kid who is having a baby.  So, she should have been sharing her cupcakes, more so than me.  But she didn't.  She didn't give out one single cupcake that she'd brought. 





Even so, we greatly overestimated how many cupcakes we would need, so I had a dozen left over.  I brought them home, and have been eating them.  Without Benadryl.  Because I like living on the edge.  Other than some mild stomach cramps and a bit of tingling in my mouth, I haven't really had any reaction to them.  I had so little reaction that I seriously considered buying some egg nog, but I passed on that for now.  I may get a carton later -- closer to Christmas. 

Today is the first day of a four day weekend --unpaid, unfortunately.  But fortunately for me, I had the foresight to save most of my vacation days, so I will get paid-- this weekend at least.  If we have many more of these, I will run out of days, and have to tighten my belt to get through November and December, and work will pick back up in January.  At least that's what upper management is telling us. 

I said I wasn't going to sit in the house in front of the TV all four days, but that's exactly what I did today -- after I paid bills and went grocery shopping, that is.  Tomorrow is football day.  Sunday is church followed by football day.  That leaves Monday.  I'm going to do something Monday.

Really, I am. 

I don't know what, but it's going to be something. 

We shall see. 

Happy Birthday

Happy Birthday, Daddy.

Early Birthday

I'd heard about this new book coming out about the making of the movie The Princess Bride.

The movie is a classic.  So is the original book, oh by the way.  If you've never read it, I highly recommend it.  Naturally, as soon as I heard about this book, I added it to my wish list on Amazon.  One day, in jest, I posted a link to Facebook, saying that my birthday is next month.

(It is, by the way, and there are plenty of items still in my wish lists.  Not that I'm hinting or anything.  November 11.)

I do that sometimes, but I never really expected anyone to take it seriously.  Well, dang it all if one of my friends didn't up and buy me this book!  Thank you, Lisa!  You are such a sweetie.  Mwah!!


She asked me if it would do any good to tell me I couldn't open it until my birthday, and I said, "Yeah, that's not going to happen."  I can't wait to start reading it.  Unfortunately, it won't be tonight.

I've had an incredibly long and busy day.  Well, first off, there was our regular 8 hour work shift.

Funny thing, we've been having our annual hearing tests all this week.  I'm glad I got mine done the first day, so I don't have to strain to try to hear my name called.  What a piece of irony that would be-- to miss your hearing test because you didn't hear your name.  The problem is that the front office people who are organizing it don't seem to realize how noisy it can be out on the shop floor.  It is.  Very noisy, that is.  Hence the hearing tests...anyway...

Today, after work, we had our annual meeting about our health benefits and such.  We have these every year, but for some reason this year they decided to make it mandatory.  They'd been voluntary for so long that I can't even remember when they were mandatory last.  This year they did.  I don't know why.  It's the same thing they said last year, and the year before, and the year before, ect. Ad infinitum.  OK, maybe not infinitum, but for at least 20 years.  The bright side is, we got paid for it.  The not so bright side is, it lasted over an hour.  That made for a long work day. 

After the meeting, I had to run in to the store.  Three of my coworkers are having their first grandbabies, and some of us decided we were going to give them a little shower.  I was going to go yesterday, but I made the mistake of coming home first.  We all know that once I get home, I ain't going nowhere.  That means I had to go today. 

By the time I got home, my doggies were very glad to see me.  And I was very glad to see my house. 

In knitting news, I finished my second hat.

To prove that I didn't just show you another picture of the first one, here they are together.

A quick wash and block and they will be ready for the charity box/gift drawer.

And I finished my first 'Merica sock.   While watching Criminal Minds. 

I haven't cast on the second one yet.  I will get to that this weekend.  But for now, I'm going to take my tuckered out little self to bed.

G'night.

Running The Ball

They were going to run the ball.

The Giants knew they were going to run the ball.

Everybody knew they were going to run the ball.

With the league's top running back, behind one of the best offensive lines they've had in a long, long time, they were going to run the ball.

So, yeah, the Giants knew they were going to run the ball.

They still couldn't stop them.

On this night, in this game, DeMarco Murray became the first player ever to rush for 100 yards in the first seven games of the season,

breaking the legendary Jim Brown's record that had stood for 56 years.  That's something that not even Emmett Smith could do. 

Now, the league has been put on notice.  The Cowboys are going to run the ball.  But it won't matter  who knows.

You still won't be able to stop them. 

Facing Fears

Y'all would be proud of me.  Remember that phone call I blogged about a couple of days ago?  Well, after much shaking, sweating, and even some heart palpitations, I finally made it.  I got my house phone cut off.  I only have a cell phone now.  If you're a real person and you need my number, message me on FB or send me an e-mail and I'll send it to you.

Now, that doesn't mean I'll actually answer the phone if you call....  Hey, I told you my phone issues run deep.

The customer service rep was very nice, but she did try to talk me into keeping my phone.  I politely declined.  To make it up to her, I let her talk me into getting a faster DSL package.  Because she offered me a special promotional rate, it'll only be about $5 more than what I'm paying now.

After I took care of that, I got dressed and went to the post office.  Two of my least favorite things to do, and I did them both in the same day.  Y'all would be proud.

As if that weren't enough, when I left the post office, I went to Wal-mart -- which isn't one of my favorite things to do, either.  But since I was right there anyway, I figured I might as well get it over with.    Then I came home and baked a cake, watched three episodes of Criminal Minds, and finished the hat I was working on.

I had enough yarn to cast on another, slightly smaller, hat. 

And here, I'd thought I wasn't going to get much done today because I laid in bed until 8:00.  Let me tell you, when you normally get up at 5:00, that is such a luxury.


Your PSA for today:  Do not let your radiator run dry.  Your vehicle will not appreciate it.

Back when I was in college, I had a friend whose car kept dying on her.  She'd put it into three different mechanics, and they couldn't find anything wrong with it.  But it still kept dying.  Finally, her then boyfriend (now husband) asked her if she'd checked the water in the radiator.  Sure enough, it was dry.  Three different mechanics, and not one of them thought to check the water.  She didn't know, either.  When she was telling me the story, she said, "Did you know there is water in your radiator?"  Yep, I knew, because my Daddy taught me.

I had another college friend who absolutely burned her engine up because she didn't know she was supposed to check the oil.  Even back then, I didn't understand these dads who bought their daughters a car, and sent them off to school without teaching them even the most basic maintenance.

Finally, here's a little fall color to brighten up your day. 

Now I think I'm going to go eat a piece of that cake I made.

For What It's Worth

For what it's worth, you can't cure cancer with herbal supplements.

You can't cure AIDS with essential oils.

You can't cure Ebola with Vitamin D.

And I'd be very leery the veracity of any information found on a site that claims you can.

While we're on the subject, the government did not mandate vaccinations in order to kill people off.  I mean, polio, measles, and smallpox were doing a much better job of that than any vaccination program has.  

So, let's use a little common sense out there, OK? 

Changes

It appears that my brief brush with popularity is over.  Checking my stats page,  I've gone from around 100 views per post,

back down to my usual number of between 15 and 20.  I'm not complaining, mind you.  I'm just wondering, what caused the sudden spike in views, and the just as sudden drop?  As far as I can tell, there was nothing special about those particular posts -- not even the one that got nearly 900 hits. 

No matter, I'm still here, and still blogging for my faithful readers. 

Another, but less interesting change, is that I'm finally planning on cutting off my house phone.  I never use it any more (except to find my cell phone from time to time), and I'm tired of paying for it.  I'm also tired of the political robocalls, but that's another rant for another time.  With the money I save by doing that, I think I can afford to upgrade my cable to the standard package.  Then I can watch Walking Dead with the rest of you -- except when the Cowboys have SNF, that is.

Speaking of the Cowboys, how bout them?  

I've also upgraded my data plan on my phone.  I got tired of having to be so stingy with using it-- or paying double if I went over.  The next plan up only cost $10 more, and gives me 3 gig of data, up from the 300 meg I was currently getting. 

The only problem I'm having now is that I can't cut off my house phone online.  I have to call them.  Those of you who know me also know that my telephone issues run deep.  Very deep.  Three days ago, I finally looked up the customer service number that I need to call.  But I still haven't called them. 

Like I said, my phone issues run deep.

Lastly, a bit of fun...I've discovered that you can shout "BEAT ARMY" at the end of any song, and it works.  Really, I've spent the last two days trying it out on every song I can think of, and it really does work.  Here, listen (imagine me singing...well, don't imagine me singing.  Imagine someone who can sing singing.)

Amazing Grace, how sweet the sound
That saved a wretch like me!
I once was lost, but now I'm found,
Was blind, but now I see.
BEAT ARMY!!

See?

Or how about some Johnny Cash?

Because you're mine, I walk the line.
Because you're mine, I walk the line.
BEAT ARMY!!

Still not convinced?  OK, how about some Proclaimers?

And I would walk 500 miles
And I would walk 500 more
Just to be the man who walked 1000 miles
To fall down at your door...
BEAT ARMY!!

Go on, try it for yourselves.  Let me know what you come up with. 

Happy Birthday!

Happy 21st birthday to my itty bitty punkin head! 

Rainy Days And Stormy Nights

It has rained all weekend long, and I do mean all...weekend...long.  And guess what...  it's still raining.  I moped around all weekend with the blahs.  I blamed the rain, until yesterday when I finally took my temperature.  99.8.  No wonder.

I decided discretion was the better part of valor and didn't brave the chilly rain.  I went to church on the computer, and just laid around the house all day.  I'd just laid around the house all day Friday and Saturday, so what was one more day?  I went to bed a little early last night.  I was all snuggled down under the covers, and just drifting off to sleep when the thunder crashed.  Loud.  Very loud. 

That, my friends, is when I discovered I have a 26" vertical leap. From a prone position.  Top that, LeBron.

The good news is, the rain is supposed to move off by morning, and it is going to cool off for the next couple of days. The bad news is, it'll only be for a couple of days.  It's supposed to be back up into the 80s by Friday. 

So, what did I do while moping around for three rainy days?  And I'm assuming you mean besides watching 12 episodes of Criminal Minds and 7 football games...Yeah, we won't talk about that.

I finally finished this scarf. 

I won't tell you how long ago I started it.  The point is, it's finished now.  The pattern is called Trekking Is For Necking, but alas, the website upon which I found it seems to have been taken down.  The yarn is Zauberball Crazy, but I don't remember which colorway since I lost the ball band. 

When I'd finished the scarf, instead of casting on something new, I picked up another half finished project. 

Yes, another hat.  This yarn is some my friend Sue sent me a while back when she was de-stashing.  It's Knit Picks Swish Tonal, which I can no longer find on their website.  I guess it's been discontinued.  They're bad about that. 

Speaking of yarn, you will be very proud to know that it is mid- October and I still haven't bought any yarn this year.  I know my knitting friends will scoff when I say this, but I still have plenty of yarn left. 

Do you think I could go another year without buying any? 

Dear Coworker

No, as a matter of fact, I have not forgotten where home is. 

It's right here. 

Hint:  it's the one in red. 

Thank you.

That is all. 

Thor's Day Mayhem

After several weeks of relative peace, mayhem once again descended upon the plant -- and it came with a vengeance.  I mean, if something could go wrong, it did.

Well, not exactly.  The plant didn't burn down or get hit by a tornado, but short of that....yeah.  It was mayhem.

For a long time, I wondered why all the poop seemed to hit the fan on Thursday.  I think I finally figured it out. 

It's Loki.  The Norse god of fire and trickery.  Maybe that explains why he plays his tricks on the brazers.  You know, because we work with fire.  Never mind.  I'm tired.

Speaking of Loki, brazers get burned all the time.  When you melt metal for a living, it's just one of the hazards of the job.  While it's never pleasant, you kind of get used to it.  Still, every so often, something happens that makes even the strongest of us get all squicky.  

Shortly before lunch, Supervisor Ronnie called all the brazers together for a safety brief.  Earlier this week, one of the brazers on second shift was wiping the sweat from her brow, only she still had her hot brazing rod in her hand.  She ended up burning her eyelid and eyeball very badly.  They don't think she will have any permanent vision loss, but I can't even begin to imagine how much it hurt.

The lesson here is, if you work with very hot stuff, make sure you put it down before wiping your face. 

Blood Moon

I got up in time to see part of the eclipse this morning. I couldn't stay out and watch the whole thing, because I had to get ready for work.  From some strange, odd reason, watching an eclipse is not an excused absence.  What's up with that? 

That isn't my picture, oh, by the way.  My camera doesn't zoom nearly that well.  I copped it from a space website.

Anyway, I walked back out after I'd gotten ready, but by then, a dense fog had rolled in and I couldn't see any more.  I did get to see a little sliver of moon over the cotton field as I was driving to work, but that was all.

I'm not sure why everyone is freaking over the moon turning red.  I mean, every single total eclipse I've ever seen has made the moon turn red.  It has something to do with the refraction of the light through the Earth's atmosphere, or something like that.  I don't remember, but you can research it if you're so inclined.

Whatever, the point is, there is a perfectly logical, reasonable, scientific explanation for it.  It has nothing to do with the world coming to an end or anything.  

Oh, and while we're talking about the moon, I just got one more thing to say: 

'Merica!!

Well, Dadgum

I was standing there at work, waiting to clock out.  I just happened to look down at my employee ID badge, and the photo of myself that was taken several years ago.  That's when it hit me. 

And I said, "Well, Dadgum it, I am a redhead." 

What with all the discussion of hair color, at some point, the question had to come up eventually, I guess.   "I thought you were blonde," someone said.  No, that color came out of a box, too.  "Well, what is your natural color?"

This is the most recent picture I have of Cody.  My natural color is about the same as this.  Gosh, it's been so long, I'd almost forgotten. 

By the way, I didn't take this picture.  One of his college friends posted it on Facebook, and I copped it from there.  It was taken in his school cafeteria. 

Speaking of Cody, next week is his 21st birthday.   I haven't bought him a single present.  I was going to make him some cookies, but that didn't happen.  Maybe this weekend.  Of course, it'll be late, but he ought to be used to that.  I'll text him...

Other than that, I pretty much got nothing today.  I had to go in early to get ahead on some really hard orders, so I'm a bit tuckered.  Back during peak season, when I was going in early every day, I could get used to it, but just going in early ever once in a while....that makes it rough. 

Basically, that's a long winded way of saying, I'm going to bed.

Goodnight.

Red Headed Step Child

So, yep, I got brave and put the red on my head. 

This morning, I took my red head to work, and got lots of compliments on it.  I was told it was very becoming.  It will brighten up just a bit after I wash it, probably tomorrow evening.  I read somewhere once that if you wait 48 hours, the color will last longer.  Besides, my hair is so thick that if I washed it every day, it'd never dry.

Speaking of color, I started putting out my fall decorations. 

Only a week after I dragged the box out of the closet...I'm on top of things like that.

Look, I finished another scarf. 

It is made from Red Heart Gumdrop for both warp and weft.

Chocolate cake?  No, that's not a chocolate cake.  How did that picture get into my blog post?  

Good news, I think I have finally found my egg nog substitute.  

The recipe calls it Butter Beer, but it's not the same as the stuff from the Harry Potter movies.  It is very easy to make, and very delicious.  It tastes more like egg nog than any of the other substitutes I've tried -- even though you drink it warm.  Aaand it doesn't look like I'll be losing any weight this week.

Oh, look, more fall decorations.

There is still more stuff in the box, but I don't know if I want to dig it out or warp the loom.  So, I think I'll have a piece of cake.