Why I Love My House: A List

Well, I am only one car-load and a deep-clean away from turning in my keys to the apartment and walking away forever. It's kind of a good feeling. I am excited to put the past behind me and start walking forward for once. I am feeling a little antsy, like I want to continue unpacking, decluttering, organizing, or cleaning the new place; but I am just so beat that I can't. However, in my lounging I keep finding myself appreciating different parts and pieces of this new life. One thought led to another, and so I thought, 'Instead of just jumbled fragments, why don't I actually make a list of the things I like about this place?' In the words of my mother,  "...aaaaaand, so I did."


1. This guy lives here. 'Nuff said.

2. THIS. So Much This. Not only do we have a garage, but our garage has an additional shop. It's big enough to share, so one side is devoted to guns and camping, and one side is devoted to... this. It almost looks like I know what I'm doing! It's nice to have room to experiment and play, without worrying about it taking over bits and pieces of my whole living quarters. Downfall: Much less walk-by-arting going on.

3. For some unknown reason [our theory ties in to ridding living quarters of the scents of memories as a way of moving on emotionally, if you know what I mean] Miss Maow and Bill are actually--mostly--getting along. We even caught them cuddling the other day. She's practically had a personality makeover: she cuddles, she purrs, she talks, she plays... like she used to.

4. Cabinets. Cabinets and drawers, everywhere! Can you say linen closet? Towels, sheets, pillowcases, and even two  comforters fit! It's so nice. Oh, and Maow fits too.

5. There are two bathrooms. And the upstairs bathroom has a for-real medicine cabinet [behind the mirror style]. However, Bill has not yet mastered its usage, as he lacks opposable thumbs.

6. My plants--and Miss Maow--can finally get some sun! And without me running them inside and out every day, or worrying about them being 'cold' at night. Our kitchen has a 'planter window,' and so does the upstairs bathroom. 

7. Hanging the Ivy in the mud room--we have a mud room! With French doors, even!--has done wonders, and it is growing quite quickly with much less fuss. Hopefully it will thicken up, too.

8. All my clothes fit in my closet. Well, mostly in. Not including shoes. Okay, look, this is like huge progress for me, capicce? And Miss Maow has a nice soft cuddle spot, too.

9. We have side-by-side closets. They are somewhat organized. And/or, the upstairs might as well be a seperate studio apartment. It is HUGE. As in, don't-know-what-to-do-with-extra-space kind of thing. Not enough furniture, haha. I've never had a problem with having too much space, I've always had too much stuff!

10. Okay, the stairs are meh to me, could do without them honestly, but, the fact that our stairs are littered with kitties... always a bonus. Plus, for stairs, they are pretty comfy. Very wide and the perfect steep-ness... stepth?... or however you'd want to describe that.

Okay, usually lists are ten items long, but here's a bonus picture because it's just too cute. It strikes a super-deep chord with me, sort of nostalgia, because I grew up with a giant, black Great Dane named Scoby... and Scoby used to sit like this on the couch/floor. So the fact that Bill does this all the time--when he's not taking up a whole step to make you trip--just melts my heart.

+1 to Constitution

So, geek stuff first, then on to plant stuff.

I have some massive ADD. Mine generally manifests internally; I don't so much have the hyperactivity, just the racing thoughts and distractability. I also have a touch of the OCD:  I love charts, graphs, lists, and apps. So, today I found a great way to improve my life while also staying positive and having a bit of fun. HabitRPG is an online tool with mobile app accessibility that allows you to create goals, daily routines, and habits you want to improve upon. It's built off the RPG model, with exp, health, upgrades, avatars, etc. You can also customize rewards for yourself and tag tasks to organize them. I'm still exploring all the functions, but I HIGHLY recommend it so far! I'm actually racking up exp just for writing this blog post. teehee.

Spent most of today browsing really nifty lighting, storage, and gardening ideas. And other cool DIY stuff like this neat up-cycled photo frame. Y'all know I am a geek for photos and old things, so this would be a great way to put up some more pictures... once we have a room for it. I can't wait for this house thing to happen... I am going to go nuts. In the best way, of course.

So, the Plant That Wouldn't Die. Still isn't dying. I got it really close this time, probably partially due to my tendancy to overwater. I still don't know what the hell it is. Almost all of my other plants have gone on to the great greenhouse in the sky, unfortunately, and I've come to the conclusion that right now I just don't really have the time or focus to keep up with gardening. It's a damn shame because I really do enjoy it. But, I have tried to incorporate some 'hardy' plants into my house in hopes that... I won't kill them. The hanging basket is a variation of English Ivy, which I believe is 'Mint Kolbiri'. Also, Orchids are all the rage here, they're for sale in practically every Safeway and WalMart around. I finally caved and brought one home. After reading the care instructions, I am pretty confident that I won't kill it off. I layered pebbles, cactus dirt, and sheet moss in a pretty glass dish to replant it and am quite pleased with the effect. Now if only I had a nice sanctuary in which to set up a zen corner. 

'And what do we say to Death?'
'Not Today.'

 

I've also added some Lucky Bamboo to my bathroom, a plant I have been dying to buy for quite some time now. Next to that you'll see some dried Eucalyptus, another favorite. It's toxic to kitties, so I have to be careful where I put it. One of my favorite arrangements, or decorations, or whatever you want to call it, is the one below on the right. It's kind of a long story, but it's got a lot of sentimental value. Reader's Digest version: when I was a kid, my dad brought home a 105mm Howitzer shell from work, which I used as a piggy bank. A couple years ago I asked if he could still get them,  and he sneakily and quickly responded simply by sending me one for Christmas. I wasn't quite sure what to do with it, until one day I got the bright idea to stuff it with the Eucalyptus. [Next to it is a shell from the clip for one of the smaller guns used on the AC-130s, but I'm not sure which one]

aaaaaaand, no day is complete without achieving your recommended dosage of kitty cuteness. I wish I had gotten a shot when he first came home because he has grown some, but it will be great to compare when he gets older!

Things I Have Learned of Late

--I can tolerate Bleu Cheese dressing.

--Not so much with the swordfish steaks. They have skin and bones, which is ew.

--Worcestershire sauce is more than just a marinade, it is apparently a condiment as well.

--Worcestershire sauce is tasty on kidney beans and over-cooked salmon.

--After-dinner-coffee is always appropriate, and AWESOME.

--South Asia makes way better coffee than anywhere else I know. Sorry, Seattle.

--Everywhere has nothing on home. Except Thailand. Okay, but Thailand would have been WAY better with any of the folks I currently am missing.

--A thin long-sleeved shirt is sometimes cooler and more comfortable than a tee-shirt. Temperature wise.

--Just because you clicked ‘record’ doesn’t mean your device is recording.

--Just because you batch-converted something to mp4 doesn’t mean every episode in the season will play.

--Just because there’s a Starbucks, doesn’t mean there’s free wifi.

--Always charge your ipod. Like, every night. It is nearly impossible to work out without some form of entertainment.

--Sometimes it’s best to take initiative and own up for your mistakes. Sometimes, it’s best to keep your mouth shut, because someone has your back. AKA, it’s really hard to recall emails.

--My phone makes a terrible alarm clock.

--My alarm clock makes a terrible alarm clock.

--You can always judge a person based on the music in their library, but you can’t always predict the library by judging the person.

--If you go to a Hard Rock Café overseas, ask if they honor the 15% “I’m an American!” discount.

--iPads are pretty damn convenient, when you can get them to work right.

--I should make coffee about half as strong as I am used to in order to get it to stop tasting sour. Go figure!

--Buffets in foreign lands should perhaps be avoided, or at least regarded with extreme skepticism. O She of the Iron Stomach has fallen.

--Sometimes you just gotta grow a pair and step up.

--Sometimes you just gotta shut your mouth and fade in to the background.

--I make an incredibly effective prostitute-repellent. Tested, tried, and true! [Although not hawker-repellent]

--I need to either go to bed earlier, or stay up later. I haven’t figured out which yet.

--Be motivated, but be quiet about being motivated.

--Find a way to de-stress. Whatever that may be.

--Some songs never lose their relevancy to you on a deeper level. You always like them and they always connect, but sometimes you have to -facepalm- over how things have changed since the last time you had a moment. You gotta listen to more than just the sounds, sometimes it’s the lyrics that need attention.