"By general consent, it is one of the best blue Clematis." -DeGroot Inc.com

Remember how sad this looked?

May 8, 2015 - H.F. Young Clematis. Maybe 1 foot tall.

 And now!

July 30, 2015 - Growing & climbing!!

I love when things grow.....in spite of me.

"Since when does grass need to be manicured. Is it going to prom or something?" -Maxine

Mowing was harder today. I don't know why. My arms, especially my forearms & hands, got really tired! I'm so old. Today's the first day I'm properly clothed in a week & a 1/2 and so far, it's been o.k. I'm not naked yet, so that's a good sign. I'm just so damn tired!

Did I tell you I took some old windows & shutters from my brother's fire-house? Well, I did and they've been sitting in my garage, waiting for me to figure out what to do with them. I painted one shutter and would like to screw some coat-hooks onto it and hang it by my side door...but I've only gotten so far as to paint it. 

But today I started AND finished this....

I cannot take a straight picture to save my life!

Nor can I hang anything straight, apparently, either.

I cleaned up one of the old windows - didn't bother painting it because I like the way it looks - and Dad staple-gunned fabric to the back of it. I hung it. It may fall directly onto my t.v. but I think it's hung pretty solidly. Unless we get a massive earthquake in Iowa, I think it'll be o.k. And since I had to hang it from studs, I had an open space to the side so I filled it with that picket-fence-thingy.

I realized the other day - everything hung in my bedroom was horizontal. It started to drive me a little bit crazy and annoyed me to no end, so that's why I decided to hang the window & fence vertically. The "craziness" is what really motivated me to do something with that window.

Now what?

A nap. Definitely a nap.

How much does a newborn giraffe weigh?

130 freaking pounds, that's what!

Nobody is more surprised than me. I actually GASPED! when I stepped on the scale. Gasped. I almost choked on my own oxygen.

I've eaten so much this week. For lunch, I've been eating cheeseburger pie + that cauliflower/cheese/cream cheese concoction. And for dessert.....peanut butter fudge! Though, I wouldn't necessarily call it "fudge". It's peanut butter, butter, protein mix and a squirt of liquid stevia. I think that's it. Not too fancy but mmmm-mmmm. And for dinner? A sandwich. Followed by the fudge, of course.

I think all the fence work in that blazing heat has finally caught up to my body. Or my body finally caught up to it. And then next week, I'll be 135 lbs because of all the crap I've eaten this week.

But for now.....for now I'm going to celebrate this momentous occasion. 130 lbs have eluded me for almost 5 months. It's good to see you old friend!

Three posts in one day. The world may be ending.

For not having anything to do today, I sure have done a lot.

I had to do a load of laundry because even though I thoroughly wiped Shooter's paws off this morning, he still tracked dirt/mud on a rug & the couch-cover (a sheet). While I was pouring the homemade laundry detergent into the wash, I noticed it was getting a little low and I thought, "With all the freaking laundry I'm doing lately, I'm going to need a new batch before I know it..." so I made a fresh batch of laundry detergent. It's just sitting in the garage, making the garage smell wonderful, waiting for 24 hours.

Then I realized what a pain in the ass it is to pour the Borax & Arm/Hammer Washing Soap out of the boxes so I poured them into these:

Then I made a Laundry Booster (on the left). Never used it before so I made a 1/2 batch. We'll see. Rosemary/Mint...my favorite!

And then there was this:

Mom had a good needle & thicker-than-normal thread for me to use so I went to town. It'll hold, though I'm not sure the umbrella will last. I mean, how'd it lift itself out of the stand last night? The wind must have caught it just right...but it's a little breezy today (probably not even 10mph) and it was doing a little wiggle-&-shake after I set it back up so we'll see.

We'll see about a lot today, won't we?

"I'm one stomach flu away from my goal weight!"

This helps me feel better...

SO DAMN CLOSE!

But I thought, for sure, I'd be 5 lbs heavier after all the crap I've eaten the last two days and lack of movement due to "the sore". There should be a scary t.v. show called "The Sore". It'd be a show of people doing nothing but laying down with their legs splayed. Fun!

"Whenever I feel sad, I just go to my happy place....The fridge."

I don't think I'm feeling sad. At least, I don't feel sad. I may be sad, but I don't feel it. Of course, that doesn't stop me from, lately, wanting to eat every-damn-thing in my house, whether or not it's low-carb. Hello TrailMix! How I've missed you! If I'd had a family-size bag of Peanut Butter M&M's in the house two nights ago, I'd've eaten the whole damn thing in one sitting. What is up with that?

However, I don't think I'm sad. No, what I'm feeling is something all-together odd. I felt it yesterday, too. I can't even describe it to myself but it's a mixture of anxiety, disgust and....fear, I guess.

I'm still not 100% but I can walk without looking like I've been riding a horse for a week and I'm sitting here at the computer with my legs crossed for the first time in days so that's an improvement. I'm not going to venture into not going commando today, though. That'd just be pushing my luck and I don't think I have much luck to push around.

I woke up for the 50th time last night at 3:00am from a wicked nightmare that hit too close to home. The owner of the house next door and a friend of his were taking down my fence. I got my heavy-duty hammer and scared them away with it but the next thing I knew, the fence was completely down and there were huge holes in the yard and the fence was piled to the side.

I didn't wake up feeling good about that.

And then this morning, I took Shooter out and found this:

One day! I got to enjoy the umbrella Mom & Dad gave me for ONE FREAKING DAY! I say this because the cloth that wraps around one of those poles ripped. I'm going to need to get out my sewing kit to repair it and it's too wet to do anything right now. *sigh*

I knew when I saw this

Rain water from the outside door to my inside steps. I really need a storm door here.

this morning that we'd gotten more rain & it was windier than I thought it was going to be. I don't even remember thinking it was going to rain overnight. And muddy! Ooooh boy, Shooter's paws were caked. I'm an idiot. I, obviously, wasn't quite awake this morning. Ah well. 

If this is the worst that's going to happen to me today, ok. I've been waiting for some graffiti artist (living here? Doubtful, I know.) to go to town on the outside of my fence. It's a perfect blank canvas. How could they resist? And who knows, maybe someone did last night but I've got enough to deal with today so I'm not even going to check. 

So I woke up this morning, determined to Google Iowa's laws regarding defense of one's property. I can use reasonable force. Reasonable to who, exactly? Reasonable to a normal human being. Is wielding a heavy hammer "reasonable"? I'd say so. It's not like I killed them in my nightmare. I just scared them a little. Ok, a lot. I think, in real life, I'll use my baseball bat. Better arc. 

Oh, and the ex-man Facebook'd me last night. I know this is clearly a psychological issue I have, but all I feel when I see his name or his picture is disgust. I think, because, it reminds me of a time when I wasn't entirely myself....or I was more like my very old self and I didn't like that person very much. Not that I like this person much better, but still...I like me now more than I liked me then. I don't even know who that person was. So, I just ignore the ex-man and hope he'll go away for good. 

*sigh* Is this day over yet? 

"Measure twice, cut once."

Or in this case, measure width but not height and you're without a storm door for 3 weeks.

*sigh*

Who'd've thought my doors would be more than 80"? Not me or my Dad, that's for sure. So we got the old door off, started working through the steps of the new door: attached the hinge rail to the door: and then went to hang it....actually did hang it.....and it was 4" too short. Four freaking inches.

*sigh*

I'm going to *sigh* a lot. A.Lot.

I called Menards, breathed a *sigh* of relief that we could return the door, and we proceeded to take it apart and put it back in the box. We drove to Menards and, of course, had to special order the 84" door. It should be here sometime before Christmas, lol. No, really, August 11th...so they say. Hopefully it's not 96 degrees, which feels like 110.

I am so sick of this heat & humidity!

And while the gauze I taped to my body did its job, here's the problem with it: actually, two problems: 1. It did keep the blood & pus from dripping down my leg or onto my shorts, but it also held the blood & pus, which is just flat-out-disgusting. And it smells. It smells like death. I could smell it on our way home. So gross. And 2. the tape was really starting to chafe my ass where there was no gauze. I think if I'd had gauze that went all the way around my body and the tape didn't touch any skin, it would have been better.

I'm just going to walk around my house partially naked today. It's still swollen - hard as a rock - which means there's more infection and I have an open wound that's probably still seeping...so it's best I just lay on a towel all day and nobody bother me.

Speaking of which, I watered plants for two of my neighbors while they were away on vacation and haven't gotten a word of thanks. Now, they may have stopped by while I was away on one of my excursions, but I find that doubtful. I don't expect much, but a thanks would be nice. I'm really not too bothered by it...I just think it's rude and you know how much rudeness bothers me! So I guess I am bothered...

For some fun & happy news, not only am I a dog-sitter and flower-waterer, I am also a buzz-cutter:

Connor before

Connor after

I haven't buzzed anyone's hair since an ex-boyfriends in 2005 or 2006. I used the #1 blade. When I first started buzzing his hair, I thought, "Oh shit, this is really short!" but I'd already started so there was no going back. I think he likes it. If he doesn't, I'll never have to do it again!

"Hidradenitis suppurativa (HS) is a common (though rarely diagnosed), chronic skin disease characterized by clusters of abscesses or subcutaneous boil-like "infections" (oftentimes free of actual bacteria) that most commonly affects apocrine sweat gland bearing areas, such as the underarms, under the breasts, inner thighs, groin and buttocks." -Wikipedia

This is a picture of my armpit. Don't be alarmed. It might look hairy & bumpy but it's just an armpit.

See that little bump right in the center? That bump's been in my armpit for a year. It doesn't hurt. It doesn't itch. Nothing. It's just there. What size is that? A size of a pin? That seems about right.

Now imagine it about 10 X's as large...like a golf ball

I wanted a picture of "actual size"...thus the hand.

Imagine it fully inflamed. Imagine it bright red. Imagine a very dark center with white pus in the center of that. Imagine it's not in my armpit. Imagine it's on my bikini line, exactly in the spots my underwear would be. Pay attention to your own clothes and how they might rub. Imagine it because I can't show you.

I woke up this morning and one of them (there are three distinct boils in the same spot) popped last night in my sleep. I didn't even notice. I mean, I wake up 100 times anyway, so maybe one of those times I woke up, I did so because of that...but really. I didn't notice until I actually got out of bed. And my shorts were damp. And there was a distinct "dead" smell.

Aren't I sexy? Who wouldn't want this body?!?

I still have two (or more, who can tell?) to go and this morning Dad and I are planting three more shrubs I bought yesterday and taking off my old storm door & putting on the new one (I'm a glutton for punishment...really, one of these days, I'm just not going to move...). I've tried to MacGyver a way to maybe "stem the flow" if one were to explode while I'm outside....in public....working. I haven't figured out a way, yet. I can't put a band-aid there. Uh, hello, hair? I thought about wrapping gauze around it but I don't have any.

(Pause to call Dad - yep, he thinks he has some...)

Could I wrap an old t-shirt around there? I need a loin cloth, that's what I need. A cloth diaper.

This could be me!

But, really, no matter what I put there is going to hurt like hell. Anything touching it (them) just about sends me to my knees. But that's not the point. The point is to catch all the gross that comes out when they pop so that normal human beings don't have to witness my disgustingness.

Is this shit done, yet?

"Don't get your knickers in a knot. Nothing is solved and it just makes you walk funny." ~Kathryn Carpenter

I'm an idiot.

In all my infinite wisdom, I decided to spend 3 hours (or more) laying those paving stones yesterday. Then I walked to Mom & Dad's for a family get-together with my brothers & their families. Today, I went to Menards because the bulb above my washer/dryer area burnt out & it's a special bulb (Walmart doesn't carry it...can you imagine?) and I wanted to look at new storm doors - for both of my main doors, but mostly for the South door, which sucks ass. Mom & Dad are in town, so they're going to pick it up.

And I have a sore the size of a golf ball. I.Am.Stupid. It started about two days after all the fence work, so I'm pretty sure sweating my ass off caused this one. Ok, Ok, the fence was well worth it, but UGGGGGHHHH!

You've seen people in stores using the store-scooters because they can't walk? Well, sitting is immensely painful so that wouldn't work for me....though walking isn't all that much better....so I decided stores should offer Segues.

Or I need to invest in one because let me tell you - I am in such pain from this damn sore. In fact, I think it may be the worst I've ever had. I don't know if it's a clump of several sores or just one ginormous one but holy shitballs, it's freaking huge.

I wanted to post a picture - not of mine because that's gross - but of one in a more appropriate area of the body so you could see how bad it is but seriously, don't google it & look at the images. It's disgusting. Too disgusting for public consumption. BUT there is a FOUNDATION set up for Hidradenitis Suppurativa. Can you believe it? I have a chronic skin disease which has its own damn Foundation. Who knew?

For now, my plan is to not drink any water so I don't have to constantly get up to pee; to move as little as possible; to try a soaking bath and later a hot, wet washcloth.

Geezy lou, this sucks.

Oh! And, of course, on top of that, I'm still F-ing square. I'm going commando. I just don't care if my shorts get ruined. I'll take a decrease in pain over "pretty" any day.

I hate these damn things.

"Yard work is fun!" Said no one ever.

O.M.G. I didn't think this would be so hard!

Pavers looking East...Notice Shooter? He hates it.

Pavers looking west

I can't hardly move. For multiple reasons. I'm not sure I recovered fully from the Friday/Saturday Fence Awesomeness and then yesterday I started getting really annoyed with that area by the AC and knew I had to fix it. I had these pavers...I think they're my brothers? Or Mom & Dad's? IDK, but I've been saving them & saving them for just this occasion. Dad's wanted to use them for odds & ends things and I've refused to let him because I knew I'd want them for this....Man, this fence has been on my mind for 2 full years! 

Anywhoo, I figured out what to do and went at it. First I had to shove more rock out of the way and move the line of bricks further back that were near the AC. 

Ok, not so bad. 

But then I figured out I couldn't just toss the pavers on top of the ground and leave it at that. Oh no. I had to dig down and get them to lay somewhat level with the ground. 

Geezy lou, why was I so ambitious? 

I did the three pavers around the AC unit first...and then I had to decide: go East or West? Since I only had so many pavers, I couldn't go both ways. I decided West because Shooter's poop spot is to the East and if I dug up all the grass around there, he'd be totally confused & get constipated. 

At this point, I took a break, came inside to get Shooter to go out and found him......in my damn bedroom. *sigh* I'd closed one door and left the other open because I figured he'd be too lazy to jump the gate, but I was wrong. AND to make matters worse, he'd peed on Garfield's little dog-house. 

So, on top of yard work, I did laundry. And put Shooter in his kennel....without yelling at him because I don't want him to see his kennel as "punishment". I need a shock-collar for this beast!

OK, so back to work I go - and I almost quit. I really did. I did about 5 of them & had started on the 6th and looked back and saw I still had 4 more to go. My back was so sore. The sore I have is the size of a quarter and makes moving very, very difficult. My hands were cramping. I was losing strength in my arms from hand-digging everything. And I was dripping sweat. Of course I was. 

But then I thought how good it would feel to get it done and how I wanted to do something else tomorrow - not this shit again - so I went at it. I know I was breathing heavy and grunted a time or two and wondered if anybody was on the other side of the fence to hear me, but I just didn't care. That was damn hard work! 

Once it was all done, I got Shooter again (who hates change, apparently, because he didn't do anything...just laid down and gave me that "I don't know what the hell is going on back here, but I don't like it!" look. And then I gazed down the line of pavers and saw this:

Goddammit I could have shoved those bricks near the AC further back to be in line with all the others!

Screw it. I.Am.Done. It's nap-time!

"I've got 99 problems....and they're all my sore muscles."

The pain has begun. I knew it'd be a couple of days until I really felt it and I was right....boy, do I feel it. I could barely get out of bed this morning and getting up after sitting isn't any fun. The pillows at night are helping me sleep but not enough. I'm living on Advil. Good 'ol Advil. Oh, how I love you! And a new sore....Yippee. Waaaa, waaaa.

Yesterday I put a couple of bells on the inside of the gate doors so I could feel better about leaving the gates unlocked all day...I thought maybe the bells would help me to hear if anybody came & went.

They made no noise at all.

So today I got these at the Dollar General.

Butterfly windchime

Sunflower windchime

Eh. They sound pretty but I'm not sure they'll make any more noise if someone opens the gate or not. We'll see. At least they're pretty to look at, too.

And on the way back from Walmart......

It's hard to take an in-focus picture while driving...

The car I bought in November 2012 has finally hit 10,000 miles! Only took me 2 years & 8 months, lol.

I'm too tired to even think. I took a nap this afternoon and didn't want to (i.e., couldn't) move afterward. Mowing tomorrow should be a fun experience!

“Don’t ever take a fence down until you know the reason it was put up.” –G.K. Chesterton

Eleven hours later (plus 3.5 the night before) and we're done!

Drum roll, please..............We're done! 

I've never been so dirty & sweaty before. Haven't I said that in just about the past 3 posts? Well, this time I really mean it. My shower-poof is dirty. The. SHOWER-poof! It's covered in soap, for pete's sake! But it is and I'm glad I have a new one waiting.

My plan today is to, literally, not do anything. I may not even move....though I have already taken Shooter out once - he's getting used to the fenced-in area and I'm trying to make sure he doesn't make a magical 6' leap over the fence or start digging under or somehow smoosh himself through the gap at the front section (no way his head would even fit)....and it's pure bliss to be able to go outside without a hat on covering my bedhead...or to remember, late at night, that I needed to put the downspout down and not have to put a bra on to step outside! And to not have to gaze at, well, anything. Give me a wall any day.

I absolutely love it.

We worked our asses off in incredible heat & humidity but, really, it was a pleasant experience. I couldn't have asked for a better crew!

And now I'm going to go sleep the day away....

“Please be safe. Do not stand, sit, climb or lean on fences. If you fall, animals could eat you and that might make them sick. Thank you.”

The first panel is up!

The first gate is up! Brother is contemplating the latch instructions. Not so easy...

Back section is done! 

Side section is done!

I wouldn't normally call my brother a "stud", but he's a stud.

Front section - almost done! Brother is supervising...

Front gate! - Almost done....Wait, didn't I say that already?

Well, Blogger's being a piece of shit & won't let me place pictures where I want them....so for the finished product, see the next post!

I'm too damn tired to deal with this shit...

"Drinking a cold cup of coffee: The one real sign you're getting shit done."

We got shit done. Oh yeah we did!

Dad scooping dirt out of the 26" hole of our last post of the night

Brother using the post hole digger to "go deeper".

Holy crapballs. I think I used that phrase 100+ times yesterday. The work I did in the morning was a far, distant memory. It felt like days ago. The three of us started this work - placing 6 posts - at 5PM and worked until around 8 or 8:30.

I'm so damn grateful for my dad & my brother. My brother had me cracking up the whole time. When we were digging our second post hole, he hit something and my first thought was, "Oh shit, the gas guy marked the wrong spot & we're all going to blow up!" Then we joked we'd found a saber-tooth tiger tooth. And then we realized we were putting our post exactly where someone long ago had already concreted around a post. It. Was. Deep. And a rotted piece of wood was sticking out of the concrete. Dad & brother were both like, "You're not going to be able to get that out..." and then lo & behold, She-Ra stepped in a pulled the rotted piece of wood out. My brother said "We've found King Arthur!" We're a freaking riot. I think we were all delirious.

Oh, and I let Shooter out (on the tether, or so I thought) at one point and the next thing I know, I turn around and he's running across the damn street! Scared the bejesus out of me, but he stopped to pee on the fire hydrant so my brother was able to grab his collar. Shooter looked like he was going to be beaten. He just cowered. He knew that small taste of freedom was too good to be true...As far as I know (I haven't found any surprises...yet), he was good in the house for those 3 hours without being in his kennel. Whew. And I'm triple-checking that damn tether clasp every time now...

I've never dripped so much sweat or been so damn dirty in my life...but you know what? It felt damn good. I mean, it felt disgusting, let's get that straight. But knowing we all worked hard and did a good job (I hope the panels line up!) and none of us died from heat stroke - that feels good.

Nine more posts to go, two gates to build and around 9 panels to place and then I'll have a fence! Whoo hoo!

End of day - We're so dirty, the phone's dirty! At least we're all smiling & not killing each other...

"It's backbreaking work making a garden a nice place to relax in."

Air conditioning never feels so good as it does after spending 2.5 hours in sweltering heat & humidity. I walk into my house, literally dripping sweat, and just say "Ahhhhhhhhhhhhh". Such a great feeling. Same goes for a bath - a bath never feels so good as it does after playing in the dirt all morning.

Where there's dirt & not grass, that's where the brick & rock originally were. Not anymore! I can't wait to throw down some grass seed & watch it grow.....unless Shooter pees all over it & kills it, then not so much. I brought him out with me for a little while and all he did was lay in the mud. Seriously?!? Couldn't find a better place to lay? I just bathed you!!!! Oh well. We were both filthy.

Stinky dirty

It feels so good. No other time does it feel so good to sweat my ass off. I don't hate sweating - I just think a person should have a designated time to sweat (from 8:00-10:30am) and then no more sweating the rest of the day!

Ah, but not today. Today Dad & I are going to get the gas-powered post hole digger and my brother's coming over after work to start digging holes for the posts....because he said, and I quote, "95 & humid on Saturday. Can we start at six, lol". Well, we can't start at 6am and wake up all the neighbors, but we can do a little bit tonight (in feels-like-100+) and a little bit tomorrow and be done. Short bursts of activity. Glad I got the quick-drying-concrete.

And just for your viewing pleasure....

So relaxed...

"All of the women on 'The Apprentice' flirted with me -- consciously or unconsciously. That's to be expected." –Donald Trump

Ugh. Puke.

I cannot comprehend how the Republican constituents of this great United States of America would vote for this megalomaniac. He's arrogant, egotistical, cocky and most importantly, an asshat.

I wonder if, when he sees his rating in the polls (top of the Republican party), he thinks, "Oh shit! These people are more stupid than I thought! I can say anything - ANYTHING - and do anything - ANYTHING!- and they'll still put me up front! Damn...I may actually have to be President."

*sigh*

Come on, people. We're smarter than that...

Last night I tried to sleep with a pillow under my hip and a pillow between my legs. Let's just say...not the best night's sleep I've ever gotten.

I hopped on-line yesterday and googled hip-pain because mine are killing me. Have been for a long time now but I just figured I was getting old. When I was running/walking, I figured my hips hurt because I was actually doing something. And then when I stopped that, I figured they hurt because I wasn't doing anything.

Now I think I've got hip bursitis.

The main symptom of trochanteric bursitis is pain at the point of the hip. The pain usually extends to the outside of the thigh area. In the early stages, the pain is usually described as sharp and intense. Later, the pain may become more of an ache and spread across a larger area of the hip.

Typically, the pain is worse at night, when lying on the affected hip, and when getting up from a chair after being seated for a while. It also may get worse with prolonged walking, stair climbing, or squatting. Ortho Info - AAOS

Yep & yep. When I stand from sitting, say after I eat lunch, I look like an old lady. I look like my 87-year-old grandma, who is in such pain she walks bent at the waist. I'm almost there and I'm only 40.

So I read up on what I can do to ease the pain. I took two Aleve at bedtime. I somehow got comfortable with a pillow under my hip & one between my knees....and then my feet were too hot. So I had to get up & turn the fan to blow on my feet....because if my feet are hot, there's no way I'm falling asleep. Back to bed, wrangle the pillows into position, try to get comfortable....and then my nose plugged up. Bad. Up I get to find some nose spray. I just about vomited when it ran down my throat. Now I need a cigarette after hacking up a lung. Back to bed to find a comfortable position. I lasted a little longer on one side - maybe 15 minutes longer than my normal 15 - and then I rolled over, adjusted all the damn pillows and tried again....and then I started coughing. Really coughing. So up I get to stop the drainage down my throat and now the pillows are off the bed because I just can't take it anymore!

I did, eventually...around 3AM, get tired enough that trying to sleep on a pillow & one between my knees didn't bother me enough to keep me awake. I actually fell asleep like that....and woke up not too long after, like that.

And then I wound up on my stomach like I always do with no pillows whatsoever. It's the only comfortable position for me. Why I don't start out on my stomach is beyond me. Maybe because I've always fallen asleep on my side and falling asleep any other way is just unnatural to me. It takes pain to force me to roll onto my stomach. I mean, what woman wants to smash her boobs while she's trying to fall asleep? None. No woman wants that.

What did I learn? Aleve is a joke. I'm not even going to bother with that again. Useless. I need to get comfortable with the pillows in their positions because sleeping on one did feel o.k. Or, I just need a pillow-top mattress pad and I can forego the damn pillow. Or, I need an actual good mattress that isn't trying to kill me. Or, I need new hips.

I go to the doctor next month. We'll see what she has to say....and what I can ignore.

“Serious is a word that must be entirely avoided when it comes to decoration.” –Kathy Ireland

I don't know. I just don't know....

Hmmmmmm

 You can't even see the toilet paper roll design when you look at it straight on. So weird. And, of course, something's crooked.

Uhhhhhhhhhh

 So you have to look at it from the side to see the toilet paper roll design. Well, that's something.

*sigh*

Good thing I only made two new holes in the wall because I suspect the original picture will be going right back up...

It just needs something.....more. The picture's too small. it needs something on the sides.

Good thing I only used cheap fabric, cardboard from the deep-freeze-box and styrofoam from the same thing. Not a lot of work....except for hot-gluing all the damn bits of toilet paper rolls together. *sigh* Oh well. What else was I going to do?

Now I'm painting an old, small shutter that I pilfered from my brother's fire-house. I have, I think, four more + two old windows. Can't wait to figure out what to do with them!

It's raining. Can you tell it's raining? I'm just making shit up to do because I can't be outside doing what I want to do.

I gave Shooter a bath this morning. He was all excited because I was using my high, happy voice to make him follow me into the bathroom, but then he saw the tub and hightailed it back to his kennel. I had to get the leash out & lead him back. He was very good. I didn't have to drag him, kicking & screaming. I just led him back to the bathroom, shut the door and lifted him into the tub. Easy-peasy!

I made my own dog-shampoo - duh, of course I did. 1 C warm water, probably a 1/2 C white vinegar and maybe 1/3 C Dawn. I dumped it all into a spray bottle & sprayed his ass down. He was ok until I started rinsing him off. Then he started shaking. Poor thing. It took 4 towels to dry him but he pranced around like a little girl.

And he still smelled like a damn dog.

So I mixed 1t of corn starch, 1t of baking soda, maybe 5 drops of rosemary essential oil and 2t of peppermint extract. I mixed it into a little tin can I had, rubber-banded tin foil on top, poked holes in the top and shook it onto him (outside). I rubbed it all into him and......eh. A teensy bit better. I still smell "dog."

"Good things come to those who sweat."

Do they? DO THEY, REALLY? I think not!

My apologies for the dirty feet....

Goddamn it!!!! Mother&^*#@$^&#@! Son of a &^*$#@^&!

HOW, in the name of all that's holy, does THIS happen?!?!?!? I weigh MORE?!? You've got to be effin' kidding me!!!!!

This is bullshit.

I'm going to assume I weigh more because my clothes are drenched in sweat & they're weighing me down. I'm sure when I go to take my bath and weigh myself again, naked, I'll be a svelte 130lbs. I'll be sure to document that picture!

This is what I looked like after mowing, trimming, weeding and digging out brick & rock:

I was wayyyyyy dirtier than this picture conveys...

My hat was sweating! Seriously. I finished mowing & trimming and then I picked the one shady spot on the North side of the house to start digging out the brick bump-out so I'll have more walking space between the brick/rock & the fence.

We, stupidly (me), dumped a bunch of new/old river rock right in the spot that I was digging. Duh, dumbass. I like to make everything harder for myself. It builds character....and the whole time, I was thinking, "Well, I had to have lost 1lb by now, surely".

I was right - my sweaty clothes added 2 lbs. 

Sucker.

I feel like I'm never going to see 130 again. I've never cussed at my scale so much before in my life. It knows I hate it.

So, here's a picture of "before" I dug out the brick & rock:

This was taken I-don't-know-when...months ago.

And today:

The yellow flags & paint are the gas line - yeah! It's not in my way!

Can you even tell what I did? Because if I didn't know I did it and had proof (all my dirty clothes) that I actually did something, I'm not sure I'd be able to tell.

Here's before again...with arrows:

*sigh* So difficult to convey how much freaking work this was! I have huge mounds of rock & dirt that I need to move elsewhere. I moved one full bucket of rock and one full bucket of dirt and that was the end of that, I can tell you! I. Was. Spent.

And tomorrow I get to do it two more times. I need to move the brick towards the AC and I need to do one more brick bump-out to the West and then I'll be done. Oh, except I wanted to move a bunch of rock from here:

and throw down some grass seed so the fenced-in area isn't all rock & weeds. But I suppose I can wait to do that after the fence is installed. I did dig out a bunch of rock & dirt from where I "think" a post is going to go.

I wonder how many bags of rock "whoever" had to use to go all the way around the house. More than a ton, probably. Maybe 2 ton? I don't know but it's amazing how much rock there is buried under the ground and on top of the ground and all around!

I think it's time for a nap. I'm rambling about rock. Who cares about rock?