Tuesday, August 26, 2008

I CAN DO EUROPEAN BI- LEVEL CUTS ALREADY !


haircut from the right
Originally uploaded by wip-hairport
We practiced sculpting the 'solid form' today - meaning the same length all around (no layers).

I was so good at it that it took me about 20 minutes longer than everyone else. (That's what you call 'sarcasm.')

I would get everything straight, then check a piece from each side in the front. They were NEVER the same length; thusly (as my father would say), one side would be longer than the other. We, in the business, call that 'asymmetrical.'

But what we, in the business, were supposed to be doing was 'symmetrical.'

Clearly, I have a lot to learn. But I'm having a blast.

~Oh, and by the way, the photo is NOT the cut I goofed up. This girl actually wanted to look like this!

Monday, August 25, 2008

THIS CAT THING MAY NEVER END!


Today Lacy started to act wonky. She's been sneezing and sniffling, and then began to look as though she was having little seizures. This morning, we realized that Sid had been giving her 1/10th of her antibiotic, so neither the incision nor the (usual!) cold she caught at the vet was being treated.

AND. . .yesterday, we took the adhesive tape off of her good leg because it was getting ratty and frayed and was really bothering her. It covered the fentanyl pain patch, but Mark said that the usefulness had probably worn off. The patch itself was completely stuck to her fur, so we left it. No biggie, right?

Wrong. Biggie. Evidently, since then, she had licked a patch that still had active meds and they probably made her loopy!

We had discontinued her oral pain meds (per instruction), so the vet said she was probably still in pain and because of her cold, she couldn't breathe right if she put her head down. When she started to fall asleep, she'd catch herself and jerk up to stay awake. She would be laying on her side and just spaz. But what finally pushed it over the edge was when she sat facing the wall with a glazed-over look, and just start to tip over.

Well, of course, all of this seizure-tipping over deal started at about 7pm, so I figured, "What the heck. Why not spend another wad of cash on a cat that we've already spent a fortune on?" I mean, which is worse? Spending nearly $2000 and letting the cat die within a week, or putting out another $170 to get her back on track.?

They gave her an IV of fluids to re-hydrate her and flush out the fentanyl, as well as some tranquilizers to help her rest.

WE got lots of reassurance - and a nice VISA charge.

Crazy-expensive cat ---- but she's dang cute.

Sunday, August 24, 2008

A TRUE VIENNESE "HOT" DOG.


Viennese 'hot' dog
Originally uploaded by P.U. Who?
I took this photo last fall when we stopped in Vienna on our way to Ukraine. We got there during an unusually wet time, and it was clear that this little dog found the weather as unpleasant as we did. But it didn't stop him from hitting the shops with his ladyfriend.

********************

On a different note, Lacy the kitten had her surgery a few days ago. Luckily, it cost $300 less than anticipated, so we can still buy lentils to keep us fed.

She's actually pretty pathetic. Her bad leg is shaved all the way up her backside, and she has a 3" long row of big stitches along her hip. I thought her injured part was lower down, but that turned out to be her ankle - so it's good that I didn't open my own veterinarian business.

She was in the hospital for 2 nights and when she came home, she was so excited (and still had a fentanyl pain patch) that she raced up and down the stairs and ran around the house. I just knew that she had blown out almost $2000 bucks worth of work. But we locked her into a crate and hoped for the best.

That night, we decided she'd be more comfy in the little bathroom, but knowing that she loves sitting in the sink and waiting for someone to save her in the mornings, we put a full laundry basket on top of the sink and my big sewing box on top of the toilet so she couldn't make it up there. The next morning we found water, food and litter all over the floor

- and Lacy was laying on the laundry.

Cats.



(photo originally posted by 'P.U. Who?' on flickr.com)

Saturday, August 23, 2008

I'LL FIGURE OUT HOW TO GET THERE -- EVENTUALLY!?


chaos by design.
Originally uploaded by D.James | Darren Ryan
What the heck have I done??
WHAT THE HECK HAVE I DONE?


I got through my first week of school, even tho my brain exploded on Wednesday.

This picture SO represents how I feel right now. I know there's a finish at the end of this whole program but how in the heck am I going to figure out how to get there?

The week was madness. We covered 14 chapters - and it's a foreign language. It's not hair 'cutting,' it's 'sculpting.' They're not 'scissors,'
they're 'shears.' There are design lines and projections, activation, mobile, and uniform. Each term has a definition, and each definition has 2 to 7 parts - each with IT'S own definition.

After a while, it all blended together, and nothing stuck in my brain. I read and read, and I felt like I was swimming upriver. Naturally, all of the other students are catching on quickly, and shouting out the answers. And I sit and stare - but at least it's not with my mouth hanging open.

My table-mate is a young gay boy named Cory, and he is the nicest kid. He's 6'4" and has this huge body that takes up more than half of our space - his stuff spreads onto my side of the table, and his legs are always shoving my chair over. Luckily, he's already had 1300 hours at another Cosmo school, but his dad decided not to pay for it. (He couldn't get student aid cuz he lived at home, so he moved out for a year to be eligable for a loan.)

So he knows TONS already, and since he is also a drag queen (!), he knows more about make-up and famous product brands than the teacher! He actually owns his own blow-dryer that he paid $350.00 for, and has a studio partnership lined up. Anyway, since he's my partner on procedures, he's a great help to me. And his hair is really short, so he's easy to style!

We did get to cut our model head's hair on Friday, and that was pretty intense, but I did well and it was a real boost for my ego! It gave me hope that even tho I flunked my very first test that morning, I might just get through it. The funniest part was that when we had to shampoo the heads in the sink, mine ended up face down, and I got water all over the floor. It was a mess, but everyone got a real kick out of it.

Anyway, it's really fun - while I'm there - but when I wake up in the morning, I'm ready to quit because it's sooooo hard. They say it will get better, so I'll tough it out and it will finally sink in one of these days.

Bye!

Thursday, August 14, 2008

Some things are just pretty!


Yesterday's Bugs !!!
Originally uploaded by bevcraigwhite
I love bugs and I adore this bee.
So I just decided to post it.

I guess I should fill in on what happened at the vet's yesterday.

Lacy is only about 10 months old and she is has long black angora fur. She is dainty and demure, but is as independent as can be, and will put up with cuddling for no more than 20 seconds ~ unless she's sick and too tired to care. Then she'll last until she wakes up enough to leave. She always acts as tho she's offended by more than a couple of pats and gives the most pathetic and whiny little meows. Nothing scares her.

I got her at the pound when she was about 5 months old, but she was long and light as a feather. She came into the house like she owned it and bullied Charlie into being her buddy. I don't know what he'd do without her.

So. . . as mentioned before, she was favoring her back leg and it would turn in bizarre angles when she sat down. She didn't seem as tho she was in pain, so I didn't think much of it - oh, except for that whole "it'll be my luck it's cancer or something" because I'm always sure that the stuff I love will be taken from me cuz I'm not worthy. Gee, that was deep.

Anyway, when we went to the vet, Dr. Jenny put her thru the ringer. After she put her on the floor and tried to get her to walk around - yeah, right. Every cat wants to stroll around a terror-smelling vet's exam room. So, the first chance she got, she made it into a little crawley-hidey-hole and the vet had to get down and drag her out. Good start.

Then the mashing began. This woman pushed and pulled every little piece of her back end and basically tried to find a bump or defect - and if she couldn't do that, she wanted to make her yowl or jump. She even warned me to watch out for the front of me if Lacy went nuts.

Finally, she laid her on her side and smooshed her a bit more until Lacy hissed. I have never heard Lacy hiss, so it was clear that she'd had enough. Poor little cat. It's like taking a baby to the doctor and not having a way to explain why you're helping them hurt her.

Turns out that her knee keeps popping out of place. (Yes, she popped both knees in and out to see.) The knee cap is off to the side. But, hey. Let's take x-rays.

That must have been fun for the poor little thing.

After the x-rays, Dr. Jenny took me back and showed me the films. It was so gruesome. It was clear that they had to splay her out flat to film her hips and legs. It looked like they did x-rays of turkey thighs, and I could just picture her skinned like a rabbit. I know that's sick, and it made me want to cry.

But there was the knee cap. Right there on the side of her leg. Where it's not supposed to be. So far, there's no damage to the joint, but it's bound to happen if it's not fixed. And it will get more and more painful, so she'd be miserable and crippled. So we talked about what the surgeon would do and it's awful. I picture this gentle little thing with a tube in her throat.

So I came home from the vet feeling sick and wanting to cry.

Anyway, looooonnnnggg story short, it will cost about $2100, and that's not a great thing for the budget. Mark and I differ on how to handle it, and he can't imagine spending that much on an animal. And I don't know what to do. I mean, I could wait on school so the money could go for the surgery. Or maybe Heavenly Father will bless her and cure her so she can get better and everything can go on as before. But is that selfish? Should I sacrifice if I want to keep her? Am I not sustaining my husband if I want to spend money he doesn't want to spend - and that we need for Sid's and my school? And does Heavenly Father want me to learn how both of those things? I hate this.

But I'm like Charlie. I don't know what I'd do without her.

So. How about that bee picture.

(Photo originally downloaded by bevcraigwhite on flickr.com)

Wednesday, August 13, 2008

VISA Card


VISA Card
Originally uploaded by Bummz&Tubz
Well, here's my choice:

Cat knee surgery / no school

vs

Put the cat to sleep

I hate this. I really do. How do you kill a kitten because it costs too much to make her comfortable?

This sucks.

Cat Debt


09/09 Vet Day
Originally uploaded by Maricy_vet
Put it off as long as possible, I guess.

Lacy the shelter kitten has been hobbling around the house for a week or so - her left back passenger-side leg doesn't seem to be working right.

It's been about a month since her last visit (that was for a red, swollen eye that required antibiotics), and 2 months since the previous one (for a bad cold that required antibiotics), so I should just leave them a book of signed checks to use throughout the year.

Hopefully, she'll just have a 'hitch in her git-along' and it won't require surgery and chemotherapy and radiation and chelation therapy and a wig and a catheter and B-12 shots and then an amputation and a prosthesis and physical therapy.

Maybe she's just faking it.

Let's keep the old fingers crossed.

Monday, August 11, 2008

Can I bring Crayons?

It seems so out of balance that as I shop for school, my list includes a notebook, pens, and a padlock (It's been 34 years since I've had a locker - SCORE!) but I'm skipping the paste, pink erasers and round-tipped scissors.

But the toughest omission has to be Crayola Crayons. I'll miss the unique smell and the joy that those bright, hopeful colors bring every time the box is cracked open.

Somehow, I doubt that the smell of peroxide will be a good substitue, even if it does do the 'coloring' job.




Saturday, August 9, 2008

Gimme a Ring Sometime.


Olympic Logo
Originally uploaded by bergendahlc
Well, the Olympics are on, and we're watching some young, amazingly outrageous young men flipping around on the rings. It's amazing how they can hold themselves in those 'crosses' and fling themselves around into landing just SO.

Although their muscles are cut and defined and bulge with power, my first thought upon seeing a closeup of one young man was, "I could get a needle into those veins."

The opening ceremonies last night were extravagent and lovely, but I got bored so when Sidney admitted that she was as well, we switched channels and watched something vapid. Clearly it was memorable.

Of all of the events, I believe the gymnastics is my favorite - not just because I could draw blood from the contestants, but because the movements are so graceful yet strong.

A girl from our ward, Jill Camarena, is competing in the shot put, but I don't know when she's up.

This is boring, so I'm going to shut up now.

Sometimes I can be witty, sometimes I'm just boring. Right now, I'm afraid I'm just plain boring.

Thursday, August 7, 2008

11 ding dong days.

I am

soooooooooooooooooooooooo

bored.
I just want school to start.
NOW!

Is that too much to ask?


curlers
Originally uploaded by
JMS2 on flickr.com

Wednesday, August 6, 2008

"never stop"


never stop
Originally uploaded by stoneth

Today I went to the Wayfarer Center.

There was no meat in the refrigerator. None. So we opened the massive freezer thinking that there would be some hamburger that we could thaw to make spaghetti. But there were only a couple of boxes of hotdogs and a few tubes of Jimmy Dean sausage. Seems the stores are mostly donating baked goods now - rolls, cakes, cookies.

There was a little plastic tub with cut veggies - broccoli, baby carrots, celery chunks, cherry tomatos - and a small 4x4 bowl with carrot slices.

So my friend Connie Crandall went to the store to buy some lettuce and green onions, and while the hot dog buns thawed - there were boatloads of those in the freezer - Warren McCray (mid 80's and a teriffic cook - when there are supplies) and I opened up the frozen hot dogs and got the water boiling.

When the salad building was in full gear, Warren found some Portobello mushrooms in the fridge, so I chopped those into huge pieces*. They were a kind of double-edged sword: for the adults they were a gourmet addition to the salad. But an, 'Oh, GROSSS!" for their children. *so they could be picked out!

During the preparation, a weathered woman came over to talk. I made some sort of goofy apology about the sparse meal of just hotdogs and salad, and she said that she could tell that it was being made with love.

That's why I attached the photo. There is hope and courage, sadness and struggle in the faces of the many homeless people that I've seen. I'm always reminded that we are all children of our Heavenly Father and that He loves them ~ and I am His earthly hands to help lift them up. And that it is only by His grace that I am so blessed.

(Photo originally uploaded by 'stoneth' on flickr.com)

cherry garcia ice cream





Well, in the spirit of bolstering the shaky U.S. economy, I purchased 2 pints of Ben & Jerry's Cherry Garcia ice cream tonight.
In the spirit of OCD, I ate one entire pint an hour later.

And in the spirit of feeling like an out of control glutton, yes, I do.
(Photo originally posted on flickr.com by 'cafemama')

~~~~~~~~~~

In other fascinating news - that I'm only posting because I'm here and I feel like I should actually SAY something - Mark leaves for a massive 4-day Boy Scout Campout tomorrow morning, so the two of us went to Costco today to purchase bazillion potatos, several boxes of cookies, tons of sausage, and about $300 worth of other food. (No B&J CG, tho.) It was great fun for me, because I am always happy shopping and spending money.

The only problem is that we took Sidney's truck. The tail-gate doesn't go down, so we had to pass several 50 lb boxes over the top then slide and mesh everything together. It all fit perfectly - kind of like playing one of those fit-together games - but it was such hard, hot work that it wasn't even worth spending somebody else's money to get my shopping fix.

Maybe that's why I 'needed' an ice cream fix.


~~~~~~~~
Have you ever noticed that all of the "Hot Girls" and "Live Links" telephone hook-up commercials come on after 11pm. Oh well.

Ooops. Leave it to Beaver is on. Time to go.

Monday, August 4, 2008

wigs


wigs
Originally uploaded by honkytonks
Well, I'm ticked.

I had written a cogent and riviting entry about my experience with completing my FBI paperwork. But the attached (wigs) photo somehow became distorted and when I tried to re-format it, it got deleted.

Anyway, last week I put on my cutest little cruel shoes and Mark and I raced my little '75 mercedes 450sl to the school where I finsished signing my future away.

Afterwards, my perfectly lovely dream car wouldn't start and Sidney had to pick us up. So much for lookin' hot.

*FBI is Federico Beauty Institute - but I love the initials. So much for soundin' hot.


(Photo originally uploaded by honkytonks on flickr.com)

Peach Freezer Jam


Peach Freezer Jam
Originally uploaded by loumcf

Ahhh, the smell of too many peaches.

Our former neighbors dropped off a huge bag of peaches the other day and they've been mouldering on the table while we wait for the perfect stage of ripe-goodness.

I'm not a big fruit person (unless we're talkin' the cherries in Ben & Jerry's Cherry Garcia ice cream), so I wasn't a big help at the testing.

Unfortunaltely, some started to look like rodents, and juice was spreading across the table ~

UNTIL . . . Mark came home today with a gleam in his eye and a plan to whip up a quick batch of freezer jam. His reasoning was that it was much easier than canning since you don't have to cook it. Little did he know....

I helped him by 'poaching' and skinning them and he, Sidney and I sliced and chopped. We had so many that we had to get into our food storage (church canned sugar!) for supplies.

It's 3 hours into the project, and I don't think Mark will ever make simple freezer jam again.

But it will never, EVER again taste so good!

(Photo originally uploaded by loumcf at flickr.com)

Sunday, August 3, 2008

The Bleeding Edge


The Bleeding Edge
Originally uploaded by photobunny

I learned 2 great lessons today:

1) Once the baguette is old and hard, don't try to cut it with the long and serrated knife.

2) Don't use Puff's With Vics Vaporub kleenex on a cut unless you take morphine first.

Luckily after a few minutes of pondering how I could get to the hospital so Mark could sew my blood-pumping knuckle up, the blood dried up, the stinging stopped, and I was back at the breadboard.

~ But the serrated knife was in the sink.

(No, it is not my finger. I don't have that kind of presence of mind! The photo was posed - the blood is cherry juice - and originally uploaded by 'photobunny' on flickr.com. Creepy-cool, hu?)

Saturday, August 2, 2008

Abhor then Embrace?

WHY ARE THESE DOLLS EVERYWHERE?

I go to Flickr for photos all of the time, and no matter what topics I tag, there's a stupid Blythe doll.

Looking for the tags below?

TELEPHONE, BUCKET, ELEPHANT, CREPES

Don't worry. You'll at least find a Blythe doll!

THIS photo is relatively sedate. They're often posed as though they're the owners' daughters or friends - leaning against a wall, standing by their bikes (yes, they have myriad accessories), with curlers in their hair, or even looking secuctive.

Today I saw a custom Edward Scissorhands Blythe that sold for $5000.

What is wrong with the world?

Don't they know that there are people out there who don't even have a Barbie?

(Photo originally uploaded to flickr.com by 'hello-d & Shifty')

Friday, August 1, 2008

Slug


Slug
Originally uploaded by Marj Joly


I went to bed at 7 this morning thinking ~
This is the schedule I was made for!

But I woke up this afternoon thinking ~
I feel like a slug.

If there was a picture of low
self-esteem,
it would be

[ HERE ] (Photo originally uploaded by 'Marj Joly' on flickr.com)