Day 38 - Division Street

(The daunting project files that hang over my head...just think, 20 work hours and two deadlines to go....and then California and Mykaela)

Today I worked on site plans for a campus of buildings on the corner of Division Street and Dell Ave

And all day the the lyrics "lights out on Division Street" rang in my head

 They're from the song Division Street on one of the best albums ever made, War All Of The Time,

 by one of my all time favorite bands Thursday 

A small sample of the lyrics...

Lights out on Division Street

Lights out on Division Street

I held you tight like an empty bottle...

But the glass broke

(and the poison spilled out of your mouth)

Hello? Hello? Is anybody there?

The house turned black and sat in silence

(while a mockingbird sang)

lalalalalala, listen to yourself

go on and on, as if you spoke to someone else.

Lights out on Division Street

I'm repeating

Goodbye to the memories,

(the fever that will not break)

the night is pouring down,

its not enough to put this out,

i'll burn up before i wake up.

(on Division Street)

This is serious,

This is serious,

If this is serious

I'll hide my heart in dark parades.

Between the footsteps I hear crickets in the trees

a silent army marching with me through a swarm of bees

a needle dragged across a record slowing down

along Division St. the lights were dying out

Day 37 - Locking up shop

(the gates to my office...it's three small building in a little courtyard)

Steve and I are taking this Friday and next Tuesday off and making this Labor Day weekend

into a 5 day road trip vacation to California to see Mykaela.

That however does mean we will have to put in some extra (am and pm) time at work up until then.

So I will probably be unlocking this door every morning and locking it up every night.

But it will all be worth it once I get my sissy-sissy wiggle hug on Friday!!!

Day 36 - Dog days of summer

Nothing beats ice cream on a hot summer day!!!

Day 35 - One smart lady

Ashby is a pretty smart girl...

Today Steve and I sat at our kitchen table for a while after lunch just talking.

Ashby, who always want to be part of the "action", was busy chewing a bone in the family room.

After a while she brought her bone over by us and tried to chew it but it kept slipping on the tile.

So she got up, got her "blanket" (an old washcloth) out of her toy box in the family room

and dragged it over to the table and laid it out behind my chair.

She then got her bone and spread out on the blanket and started to chew.

Nice and comfy and no slipping bone!

Day 34 - Down the rabbit-hole

"You take the blue pill - the story ends, you wake up in your bed and believe whatever you want to believe. You take the red pill - you stay in Wonderland and I show you how deep the rabbit-hole goes"

- Morpheus, The Matrix

I have a sinus infection, my period (with killer cramps), light insomnia, and possibly a cold...

I don't like taking medicine and I almost never mix medicine (even when it's safe to)

So the question is: Which pill do I take tonight?

If I take the blue pill (NyQuil) I will sleep all the way through the night without any dreams (if you knew my dreams you would understand no dreams are a good thing) ...but I will be so knocked out that I wont move at all during the night so the back of my head is going to get all hot and sweaty and my back will probably be stiff...and it might take me a while to fall asleep because my sinus will still be congested and annoying.

If I take the white pill (Wal-phed or Claritin D) my sinuses will clear up and feel amazing ...but these pills do make me feel jittery and wide awake so I might not fall asleep right away and when I do fall asleep I will have what I call "flip book" dreams (it's when all night long my mind is running through split seconds of several dreams all scattered together almost like a flip book) This makes me feel some what mentally exhausted in the morning...but I am still "wired' and can usually wake up and get going instantly.

If I take the mini blue pill (sleep aid) I will fall asleep right away ...but probably wake up once or twice during the night with a very frustrating dream or a scary dream and then when I wake up in the morning I will feel sluggish and groggy for about an hour or so and be somewhat useless all morning. 

And as far as the red pill (Advil) and the pink pill (cramp medicine) these are useful during the day (and if I only had a period to deal with) but add in the sinus and sleep issues and I know these just wont cut it when it comes to trying to get sleep.

NyQuil it is...goodnight and see you on the other side!

   

Day 33 - R.I.P. Death Stick

This is the glue gun at work...that finally got a taste of it's own medicine!!!

I make presentation boards at work and I use hot glue to attach all of the finish samples 

Some days I only use the glue gun for a few minutes...other days I use it for several hours...

Big deal? Yes! it's a very big deal!!!!

This glue gun is from an office supply store and unlike craft friendly glue guns, like the one I have at home,

this glue gun has nothing to regulate its temperature. The longer it's on, the hotter it gets.

On days when I have had it plugged in for 8 hours plus the glue gets so hot

it burns through paper, burns my fingers through laminate samples, melts carpet backing,

and basically becomes a deadly weapon of mass destruction.

I have burned myself so bad that instant blisters form around the glue sealing it to my skin!

Yes that can happen!!!

Over the past 3 years I have burned every finger and I have tried every burn cream, spray, and pad.

(don't even bother with the spray and cream...

go straight for the band-aid like gel pad...it is a miracle worker!!!) 

I have also learned my lesson over the years and now systematically turn off the glue gun,

let it cool all the way down and then plug it in again making sure it never gets "too" hot.

But today it wasn't me getting burned...oh no...today the death stick itself got burned!

The glue that comes out of the gun tip (like it is meant to) is clear...

The glue that started to pour out the side venting slots of the glue gun is brownish orange...

And I think it was this brownish orange glue that today finally exploded!

There was a loud "pop", then a sizzle, a spark of red, instant black smoke and a terrible smell

After I jumped and yelped (I didn't scream...it was honestly like a "yelp")

I ran over and unplugged the gun, ripped out the end of the unused glue stick and took a step back.

I wasn't quick enough with the camera to get the mini flame, or the black smoke...and for safety reasons I did wipe off all of the burnt glue from the hot side of the gun before I took the picture...

but if you look close you can see the a hazy burn ring around the glue stick where the mini fire started.

I actually plugged it in about 30 min later and tried to use it (I still had a board to make)

But although it did heat up some I wasn't able to get any glue to come out 

and when it stated to sizzle I gave it up as a total loss and started taping my last board with foam tape.

In the end I do feel a little bad about the glue gun dying...but maybe the next one won't be as deadly. 

Day 32 - Aug. 25th

A little grainy...but this is me!

I am 27 and 1 month old today

Favorite part(s) of the last month:

My sis coming to visit, art swap with Kipp, swim day in Copa with mom and dad,

going to Utah, and my mom falling (even more) in love with my puppies!!!

Hopes/goals for this next month:

Get tan before visiting Myk in Cali & work out at least 3 nights a week (on top of the morning walks)

Get at least one row of the family picture wall done!!!

Day 31 - Sunny side up

Today was one of those days...

No, there was no major drama or catastrophe...just a lot of little stuff that wears on a person.

First it was hot...114 degrees hot, and there was a hot dry wind that seemed to slap me in the face all day.

After a wonderful weekend in Utah of breathing and feeling amazing...

I am back to having heavy, irritated and draining sinuses. My whole face hurts.

All day these things wore on me.

(I know it doesn't sound bad but honestly the face hurting thing alone is killing me!!!)

Then there was the normal annoyances of: hating work, worrying about money,

cleaning the kitchen for the millionth time, sweating like crazy while out running errands

 (at 7:00 in the evening), and worrying about money again...

So I came walking out of Micheal's ready to give the day up as a loss

Then I saw this...

I love Arizona sunsets and Arizona summer storms

None of these pictures begin to capture what I saw...

the sky was a dark purple-blue with hot glowing spots of fuchsia, burning orange and brilliant gold

Thick sheets of rain poured down in the distance

 and small bits of bright blue sky peeked through shrinking gaps in the silver lined clouds

  It was breath taking...and a small reminder that even days like today or worth waking up for.

Day 30 - Home again

Okay not the greatest pictures ever...but this was dinner: Riehle style stroganoff

Not quite as good as my mom's or grandma's but it did feel like home

After being in Utah and having all of the traditional Patton/Cowley meals

I got to craving my own family's traditional meals

and decided to make a dinner from scratch while I had the extra time

(I took today off to get the house and laundry in order after our trip)

I think I will keep practicing this one...at least I already make a pretty mean Dutch Apple Cream Pie!

Day 29 - On a wing and a prayer

We left Utah on a wing and a prayer...

After a weekend of wonderful weather we got to the airport just in time for a major storm to roll in

We sat at our gate for an extra hour waiting and waiting for our plane

(which turned out to be the smallest plane I have ever been on...24 seats only!!!)

When we finally boarded the plane the flight attendant told the couple in front of us that the delay was actually due to our plane getting "messed up in the storm while landing and it having to have some stuff fixed before we could board it" (why on earth would the flight attendant think this was a good way to reassure us)

So during the tail end of the storm we took off for home in a tiny "fixed" plane...

Waiting to board the plane outside in the rain and wind...

(Good thing I was dressed for Arizona's 110 degree weather!)

Sitting on the runway waiting to take off...

And then we were over Arizona and the big blue, rain free skies I'm so used to.

Day 28 - Green with envy

We spent the morning up in the canyon at the Snow Bird ski resort.

There we had a ski lift ride, rode a zip line down the bunny hill and got an early taste of "October Fest"

Then we spent the rest of the day at the grandparent's house in Holladay, Utah.

It is truly a picturesque neighborhood with raised porches and blooming flower beds.

The theme of the day was green, green, and more green!!!

I wish we could bring some of it back to Arizona with us.

(Mim, I know you have your heart set on living by the ocean 

but I really think this neighborhood was made for you!!! 

Wish you were here to see it)

Day 27 - A golden day

The day started with Ginger Ale and cookies...

...and ended with champagne and cake!

Happy 50th Anniversary to Mike and Rita Patton

Day 26 - Mad Plaidder

We just finished packing...and it was not an easy task.

I put out my four favorite, comfiest, cutes outfits (I always pack an extra outfit) 

and Steve put out his three standby/favorite outfits.

And there they were...a mess of seven different colors and variations of plaid shorts!

Apparently we have the same taste in clothes and both only buy plaid shorts and solid shirts.

Now normally Steve could care less what I wear but tonight he "put his foot down"

We can not be "that" couple; we can not walk through the airport wearing similar and clashing plaid outfits.

So we started swapping out comfy plaid shorts for some slightly snugger solid colored ones.

In the end Steve retained two pairs of plaid shorts and I kept one pair.

Tomorrow Steve is wearing his brown/tan plaid shorts and

 in keeping with our no "matchy-matchy" pact I opted for the cropped jeans. 

Basically we spent more time planning how not to match than we spent planning the trip itself!

Day 25 - Closed for cleaning

Busy cleaning the kitchen in preparation of my Mim to come and house/dog sit for us this weekend

(nothing brings me more happiness then a clean kitchen)

Day 24 - Carpet Tiling

Yup, you read that right...I am laying some carpet tile.

Well actually I already had the carpet tile laid out but today I got the all important carpet tile tape!

Carpet tile is literally what it sounds like; tiles of carpet.

They are hard backed squares of carpet (usually 12"x12", 18"x18", & 24"x24")

That can be used to create an area rug or cover an entire room's floor.

We used them all the time in commercial design because they can be pulled up and cleaned or replaced if stained or damaged. They are also becoming more and more popular in residential design too.

A few months ago one of my all time favorite Reps was so kind to give me some of my all time favorite carpet tile to use in my living and dining room.

At first we just laid them on our stone floor without any tape and called it a day.

But we have come to find that as the dogs tear around the house they kick the tiles out of place.

So my sweet Rep brought me the solution today...carpet tile tape.

It is double sick and stays in place while still allowing you to pull up individual tiles as often as you want or need to. So no more sliding tiles...just beautiful carpet tile area rugs.

Dining room carpet tile area rug

Ashby modeling how the carpet tile moves

 And the all important carpet tile tape!

Day 23 - Musical Chairs

Remember my new rocking chair?

 Well after a fun little game of musical chairs, I think I found it a spot in the house...

Upstairs Spare Room & Kitchen Nook Before:

Upstairs Spare Room After:

Kitchen Nook After:

Family Room Breakfast (and TV viewing, scrap booking, and blogging) Table After:

** Post  Note: We have almost been in our house a year but it's no where near being "done" and it's definitely not clean so please do not judge my design abilities or my tidiness on these pictures!!!