Hello, LJ-land! Now that I've rested, eaten, and come out of my turkey-induced food-coma, it's time for some long overdue babbling. Sticking with the Thanksgiving theme, we'll go with what I'm grateful for.

I'm grateful that the kitty I adopted last fall has completely recovered from the nasty little parasites she'd picked up from life on the streets, and is now a healthy & happy - albeit weird - member of the clan.

I'm grateful that my older cat has mostly accepted her as a member of the clan, despite the occasional bout of Greek wrestling.

I'm grateful that I took a bad situation and made it work to my advantage. I love being debt-free. And even though the housing situation isn't straightened out yet, in 3-6 months it will be.

I'm grateful that I'm in a position to take the time to figure out the next steps, without being bogged down by way too much work.

On that note, I'm grateful that I'm not working 7 days a week, 60-75 hours a week anymore.

I'm grateful for a wonderful family and fabulous friends. Can't beat that!

Now that I have some time again, hopefully I'll be able to update more often. Yay!

H A P P Y T H A N K S G I V I N G ! ! ! ! !

I wish I had the time to explain this summer's absence. I have many thoughts to post; however, in lieu of musings, I give you:


see more Lolcats and funny pictures


see more Lolcats and funny pictures

...AND...


see more Lolcats and funny pictures

This literary agent's blog is always interesting to follow. Her most recent post is one of those oh-yeah-duh moments, but in a good way. She's talking about her policy of submitting just the first five pages plus a query. Sending in that one small fragment seems so difficult, because the urge to explain the rest of it is so strong. I remember prepping a selection for a 20-page writing sample for grad school submissions (never actually submitted, by the way) and the process drove me nuts. What's the strongest bit? Will it make sense out of context? Do I choose the best bit of prose or the best character moment, and how much of the plot do they need to know? I love the agent's answer to this. So simple. Submit five pages that make you want to read the sixth.

Oh, yeah! Duh. *smacks forehead*

This is actually quite helpful! Good stuff.

Last summer, an enterprising little hummingbird built her nest and hatched her baby just outside the sliding glass door on the back porch. The nest has remained relatively intact since then, and I just noticed that another hummingbird has adopted it and is in the process of rebuilding. I can just picture it: "Ooo! A fixer-upper! I don't have to build from scratch!" I got some cool photos of the whole spectacle last year, and hope that I can get a few good shots this year, even though it seems I'm never home these days.

Posts! I owe more posts! Gah!

Bizarre days this week and last. Maybe I'm just so tired that I'm looking at the world through freakshow glasses, but seriously...lots of strange happenings.

My beloved PowerBook G4 went dead this week. I took it to the Apple Store for resuscitation. They got it up and running again, but one of the RAM ports had fried 'n' died, so if I ever want to increase the RAM, I'll have to send it out for repair to the tune of $300-$400. I'm so grateful that it was just the one RAM slot that fried and not the logic board, and that I have the opportunity to back everything up before any other wackiness happens. (This is the first time in the four years I've owned it that it's done anything of the sort - let's hope it doesn't become a habit.)

Back felt twingy on Wednesday, so I stayed home from work. Cats decided to get into a fight, perhaps to amuse their human? Jack is stronger and bigger, but Bella bites. When Jack started squealing (Bella had him by the neck) I had to break it up by shouting and clapping my hands. They froze mid-wrestle, paused, and then Bella spat out a tuft of Jack's white fur from her mouth. Total cartoon moment. I was furious and amused at the same time. They're both fine, BTW. Weirdos.

Sadness this morning on the freeway as I passed a double-fatality on my way to work. I rarely rubberneck, especially when driving past an accident that you *know* was fatal, but nobody could miss this one. The freeway was closed for the majority of the day, so I left work early and just settled down for the loooong drive home. There are many things to love about Los Angeles. The traffic is not one of them. Those people who lost their lives this morning are in my thoughts.

When you're not a mental health professional and have a support job in the mental health field, things sometimes get very interesting. I support a psychologist and a psychiatrist, both of whom are primarily administrators, so I almost never deal with patients. However, every now and then someone goes off their meds and starts calling random numbers amongst the whole organization, and those calls are hard to field for those of us who don't have expertise in that area. Today's caller was a disturbing case, as I've never talked to anyone so in need of help, and things got even weirder when the veiled threats started coming. I'm not the only support staff that this individual talked to, and he said even more uncomfortable things to other people. The clinicians who spoke with him didn't seem as concerned - I guess they've seen a lot of this before. But I haven't, and neither have some of the other non-clinicians. I hope this person receives the help they need, but I still can't help but be a little freaked out.

See? Weird week, right? Wish I were more upbeat. This weekend I'm going down to San Diego to chill out with mah friend and have a relaxing massage, and then I get Monday off of work, so hopefully I'll come away rejuvenated. I also must catch up on posting - since I stayed home on Wednesday I had some time to gather my thoughts about the BSG finale and the Twilight Series. I will be kinder to BSG than Twilight. And lest I appear too critical or rude, I'll post lovely and positive feedback about random books, movie, films (stories!) that I love, just to keep things balanced. I think I need to send out some positive vibes after the past couple of weeks!

Because I appear to be a sucker for the combination of zombies + kittehs, I offer linkage from icanhascheezburger:


see more Lolcats and funny pictures

...AND...


see more Lolcats and funny pictures

Two more episodes of "Battlestar Galactica" left to go, and my cable provider finally gets the Sci-Fi Channel in HD. It figures! I'll still take it, though, because that means I can watch it three hours earlier. Whee! I have to say, the previous eight episodes have been a whole lot of noise and not much story. They have a lot to wrap up, and so far they haven't given us many answers. I have a feeling they'll explain everything in the very last half hour of next week's 2-hour finale, or they might not bother explaining anything at all. That will be annoying. Hmm. At least the first season and a half was excellent.

I'm still loving "Chuck", and happy that Oatie's Mom is now loving "Chuck", cuz I loves to talk with Oatie's Mom about stories 'n' stuff. I miss doing that!

In book news, I finally read the "Twilight" series, and aside from the cringe-worthy writing, I now want to press charges against Stephenie Meyer for crimes against feminism in general. Surprisingly, I’m having some of the same problems with "Dollhouse", and I was surprised at this since I normally feel that Joss is pretty perceptive when it comes to females and power. Weird. Will post rant at some other time, have no energy for it at the moment.

Other than that, not much to report - nothing but work, work, work. I'm chipping away at my goals, and so far the financial plan is working, though it's slooooooow going. I've got my 9-5 thing, my weekend singing thing, and I'm the Communications Guru for my friend's business, which means web design, web upkeep and some writing. Cool. It's a lot, but it's also all necessary. I enjoy the weekend work and freelance stuff, and the 9-5 keeps chopping my loans down and gives me health insurance...all necessary.

And what do I do when I'm super busy? I make myself even more busy. I've registered for two online courses: an introductory public relations course and a web design course. Both are, again, necessary for my long-term goals, though I could have put the PR course off for another time. But I'm always busy anyway, so it's never a good time, so why not now?

Kitties are good, though they both decided to have some pricey quirks this past week. Jack's allergies made him scratch a big ole gash in his neck, so we're dealing with that one, and Bella started being weird about her litter, which meant a bladder infection, so we're dealing with that, too. They are actually super-healthy kitties, though you'd never guess it from how often I have to take them in to the vet. They are both troublemakers, though they make up for it in other ways - they have their adorable, snuggly moments and their hilarious antics which crack me up.

Some fun is around the corner, though. I'm thrilled that sams_ceara and elfcat255 will be in the 'hood in May. Whoohoo! It may not be a lengthy trip, but it certainly will be fun!

Well, 2009 is here. That was really quick! Is it just me, or did the past couple of years just fly by?

Ah, well - new year, new start, blah blah, etc. etc. New look for the journal, too. It just felt like a good time for some change. Purple butterflies and default icon of the awesome and bizarre musical genius that is Tori Amos. (That Wikipedia summary is pretty good, actually.) Not to everyone's taste, that's for sure, but she's my hands-down favorite musical performer/artist/poet/spacecase of all time. And I don't say things like that lightly. You go, weird Faerie-Queen-banshee-woman!

So, the holidays were quite busy, as usual. Christmas was wonderful, music-wise, but I was super-exhausted from the schedule. I've decided to scale back on at least one of my jobs, which makes me a sad because I'll miss the fantastic people and the top-notch music we make, but in the long run it will probably help me out a bit. Also complicating Christmas was the invasion of the ANTS that completely took over the kitchen following those intense, heavy rains that we had a week or two before the holidays. We ended up relocating Christmas (presents, food, everything!) to my brother's place. All was well, but it was just draining.

My Christmas 'haul', if you will, consisted of the loveliest assortment of all my favorite things: books, DVDs, music, gift cards, and a number of sweet little trinkets from loved ones. I definitely got a couple of big wish items: a new car stereo (iPod compatible!) since mine was completely giving out, and an iPhone. Whee! It took a number of people combining forces to get me the iPhone, actually, since they're not exactly a bargain, but it was so worth it. It's the niftiest little bugger!! I'm trying to keep from going too crazy loading up apps - so far, Pacman and Alien Attack (otherwise known as Galaga) have me playing with the phone far more than I should! I hear they have Frogger, too. So it's a phone, an ipod, and an arcade, apparently. Love it!

New Year's = quiet, not feeling well. Got much-needed rest. I'm not eligible for any sick days or vacation days yet, and by the time that rolls around, I'm sure I'll be feeling better. D'oh!! But I've gotta save them up, anyway, if I'm to accomplish one of my long-term goals. 2009 will be a big "planning" year, and one of the plans is to arrange a blow-out landmark birthday trip in '10 with some gal pals. Must accumulate money and vacation days to make it happen. Hope I'm able to do it!

Here's to "feelin' fine in oh-nine" as momosanla likes to say. Happy New Year!

Wishing you all a very Merry Christmas, Happy Hanukkah, and a Happy New Year!!

And, in creating the card from the previous post, I got some very silly pictures of the two feline dorks who took hours to settle down long enough to be photographed. Enjoy the show!

Looked high and low this year for holiday cards, but couldn't find anything that caught my fancy. Opted for digital-osity instead.

M E R R Y C H R I S T M A S ! ! ! ! ! ! ! ! (And all variations thereof!)

Once more, I have a surprise Saturday off. Some significant chunks of the ceiling of the temple sanctuary had broken off and fallen a few weeks ago - nobody was hurt, but they closed the sanctuary for renovations until further notice. Since then, we've been called in for only one service (now being held in their auditorium), and each week I seem to get the same email from the cantor telling us we're not needed. We're on staff, so we still get paid regardless of whether or not they use us (it's like a retaining fee, really), but it does make me nervous that we're not around as much. The temple board might decide that they could do just fine without us, and as grateful as I am for a few Saturdays off here and there, I want to keep that job! I don't think they're planning on axing us, but we'll see what happens.

That being said, I am ecstatic to have the day off. I plan on sitting in bed with the kitties, the computer, knitting paraphenalia, and the remote control all day long. Doing all the errands that have been piling up? Nope, that's not in the cards. I am VACATING, and I'm thrilled to do it. Yay!!!

Oh, but speaking of axing...those nasty rumors about "Pushing Daisies" going bye-bye seem to be true. I guess Entertainment Weekly could be considered a reliable source, esp. when they print comments from Bryan Fuller about it. And ( here's what I say about that... )

Anyway...

Right now, my life is dominated by work and the dumb cats. How did a dog person such as myself end up with two cats?? (Answer: Sucker!!) Jobs are fine (all three of them) and my mission to be completely debt-free is finally coming along. I still have my long-term goals (grad school, possible move, possible career change) in place, but I'm not rushing it. First things first, and what's first is financial freedom. I hope.

Crazy Cat post soon. They are exasperating and funny. Will try to tape some of their antics...they sometimes look like champion wrestlers, and at other times look like Victorian fops slapping each other's faces with gloves. "Good DAY, sir!"

I'm off to a good start with Nano - 1466 words for Day One. It's a tad shy of the 1666 words I'd need to write each day to reach 50,000 by November 30th, but I have a feeling that my progress won't be anything resembling even. It'll be sporadic at best. I might not get a chance to write tomorrow. It'll happen as it happens, if it happens.

But the word counter is cute. Right?

Nanowrimo begins on Saturday.

I've been explaining to everyone that there's no possible way I can participate this year. Not with the new job along with the two old jobs, the commute, and the time it takes to care for kitties with health issues.

Not to mention trying to prep for the GRE, which I'm still claiming I need to take.

Plus trying to keep up with regular tasks like cleaning and doing laundry, and trying to keep my other skills sharp for potential grad school entry, as well as actually researching and contacting said prospective grad schools.

On top of the glut of holiday singing, as well.

And the illusion of having a personal/social life on top of that.

Yeah.

I logged onto the Nano site with last year's information, and apparently I appear as a participant for this year automatically! I spent a chunk of time trying to figure out how to make myself "inactive" so as not to skew their participation/completion stats at the end of November. Alas, no success. I'm an active participant, whether I write anything or not.

And after all this protesting?

Damned if I didn't get an idea for a story that I could write.

*ROFL*

I have no expectations of reaching the finish line of 50,000 words during this crazy time, to be honest. But maybe I can contribute a few thousand words or so. And if my intent is to apply to graduate writing programs, be they creative or business in nature, shouldn't I, like, actually, you know, start writing again on a regular basis?

So cheer us on, we happy few, this rag-tag gaggle of LJ-ers who attempteth this nutty goal: sams_ceara, daisybuttercup, chajunkie, and Yours Truly. (elfcat255, are you doing this as well?)

Time flies when you're having fun you don't have any!!! *LOL*

I started a nifty new job on October 6th. It's a great non-profit organization within the medical/health services community, staffed with fantastic and interesting people. So far, so good...the only huge shift for me is trying to change my body's natural sleep pattern from 2am-10am to 10pm-6am. That's right - 6...A...M. I'm hoping that once Daylight Savings happens next week, the extra light in the morning will fool me into thinking that human beings should actually be up this early.

Also, I'm hanging on to my two weekend singing gigs. I'd vowed to give at least one of them up once I got a steady 9-5 gig, but I just can't bring myself to do it. Not yet, anyway. :( It does mean a 7-day workweek, which actually isn't all that bad, but the schedule is complicated by the kitten. Plus, money-wise, it is really hard to give up that chunk of change, especially considering that while my new salary is good, it is still a non-profit salary, if you know what I'm saying. I think you do.

So, I'm driving a lot, working a lot, singing a lot, paying off a lot of loans and such. I am not doing much of anything else, unfortunately, other than taking care of Bellatrix, the kitten who is still in isolation, coming up on week seven. The coccidia is gone (and with any luck, won't recur!) but she is still fighting off the ringworm. It's a fungal skin thing, not really a worm, and it isn't dangerous or anything, but it is highly contagious so she absolutely must stay away from Jack. The patch on her tail is getting better - I'd say that it's about 60% healed - and the spot on her nose is almost gone. It's the patches around her mouth that are stubborn, and I'm guessing that's because the cream we put on gets licked off during the course of the day. I can switch to giving her a liquid med called Sporanox, but I don't like what I'm reading about the fun side effects of vomiting, bleeding and liver damage, especially since ringworm isn't a harmful condition to begin with, so we'll keep on with the cream for another week or two and see what happens.

It's so sad, though. She's very bored with staying in the room all the time, and I'm not home very much right now, and when I am, I have very limited time to take care of Jack, take care of her, and then take care of myself! I think all three of us are frustrated, and definitely looking forward to the day when she can come out and mingle. Poor Bellatrix. She really is in Azkaban prison.

Other than that, not much to report! I considered doing NaNoWriMo again this year, but there's just no way I could pull that off with this schedule. I have a lot of other projects and goals I plan to resume/begin once the critters aren't eating up all my limited spare time. And god bless Tivo - I'm somehow keeping up with "Chuck" and "Pushing Daisies", with a side of "True Blood", based on the Southern Vampire series of Charlaine Harris. There's a certain weird, trashy charm from the books that's missing in the series, and it does lessen the fun when you already know who the killer is (!), but it's interesting to see the new elements that Alan Ball is bringing to the table.

And let's not forget - "Top Chef" starts on November 12th! Whoohoo!

Leave me a comment saying "interview me."
I will ask you five questions.
Post the answers on your LJ or other blog and then interview your friends!

My questions from sams_ceara

1. What was your first love as far as sci-fi shows or movies go?

Heehee...the original Battlestar Galactica. I was 8. I wanted to be Jane Seymour and marry Richard Hatch. Movies - I know I saw Star Wars in theaters when I was 7, but I don't really remember that, so I'd have to say Empire Strikes Back, 3 years later. Still one of my favorites. "Would it help if I got out and pushed??" "...It might!"

2. Out of all the actors you adore, if you had to choose one, which one would it be and why?

Oh my goodness, I think it would have to be Kate Winslet. She is an amazing actress and throws herself into each role - no matter how weird - with total abandon. Astoundingly, freakishly good.

3. What is your ultimate vacation?

The absolute ultimate would be a 3-5 month walkabout of Britain and Europe, but not backpacking or anything - I mean, staying in really nice hotels or renting houses in different countries. I figure that would cost me upwards of 25k, so it won't happen. *LOL* Plus, could I stay away from zee kitties that long? Nope.

4. If you could choose anywhere to live, regardless of cost, where would it be?

If I could bring everybody with me, probably England!

5. Not counting the actors you have already met, which actor would you like to meet the most?

No actors, so I'm gonna change it up and say that I'd like to re-meet Joss Whedon & have a muuuuuch longer conversation. *g*

I picked up zee kitty from the vet today. It appears as if the coccidia is all gone for now, but she is still fighting off ringworm which can take up to a month. Ugh. So, she still has to stay isolated. Jack is going crazy outside of her door, and inside she is tearing up that room. *sigh*

But, I'm glad that at least one of her health issues seems to be fixed. I've been calling her "Trouble", but might change it. For now, Trouble!

Storming the top of the scratching post for a sneak attack. Check out the claws on them flappers!

Ooo, updates!

Singing:
Finished Rosh Hashanah services. Seven hours of singing on Monday night. Four hours of sleep. Five more hours of singing on Tuesday. Now rehearsing and gearing up for next week's big conclusion, Yom Kippur. Yay?

Knitting:
Took long break after finishing first hat. Still must take photos, as promised. Finished knitting the first two squares of this scarf, which I've wanted to knit for several years now, but was afraid of the ruffle/trim. It might take me several more years to actually finish it. *g*

Kitten:
In 'hospital' receiving treatment for ringworm. Finished coccidia treatment, and is supposedly clear of that particularly joyous parasite. Am in process of sterilizing and disinfecting the room she stayed in, and kitten-proofing the house for her return. Her name, appropriately, is Trouble. Must post pictures.

Work:
Start nifty new job on Monday. Taking semi-hiatus from singing/acting/performing. Am totally okay with this, as it has been years since I've had access to medical benefits through the unions. Regular chunks of money will be nice, too. Still keeping weekend singing gigs for the rest of the calendar year, at least, and then we'll see...

That's Entertainment:
Project Runway? Kenley must go away...immediately. Chuck? Evolving, and still freakin' funny. Pushing Daisies? So happy it's back! "Ain't no bees walking around in no people shapes. Kentucky was wiggedy-wiggedy whacked."

Life in general:
Project Digitalization and grad school/GRE prep is on hold for a bit while I settle into the routine of the 7-day workweek, and integrating the two kitties. But I do get little blocks of time to have some fun now and then.

Speaking of fun...I'm off to watch the hilarity of the VP debate. Whee!

After a fabulous little vacay to Hotlanta, where I met up with my cousin sams_ceara and elfcat255 and had a most awesome time, I hit the ground running with rehearsals for High Holy Days. Busy Time is here! The craziness continues until mid-October, and then I get a little breather before things get nuts again for the Christmas season. At least there's a rhythm to these things.

Other than that, I've become somewhat addicted to Facebook. Teehee! I like blogging, but I could never get into MySpace or Friendster or things like that, so I was really resistant to Facebook at first. My friend Erin coaxed me into trying it, and now I love it! I've gotten in touch with all sorts of people from ye days of yore, college friends and whatnot, and it's also fun to be connected with your everyday peeps, too. So, yay Facebook! Highly recommended.

In other news, I decided (against my better judgment) to adopt the foster kitten (previous post). I should have listened to my gut instincts and left well enough alone. *LOL* ( Herein lies the tale )