6 months? Really?

I suppose I will defer to the the extremely lazy excuse: I've been busy. You know, bought a house, did the holidays, got a dog, job busy, etc. I certainly plan to come back but for now, the bug had dissapeared. I just wanted to pop on to say how busy I am. I cannot get by without creating lists of things I need to do. For instance, I just finished a work duties task list, and now I need to make a list for the things I need to do for my personal life before I really forget. I'd update here but I'm planning on being productive still today at work. Caio.

Everyone and Everywhere All At Once

Dear Reader,

Please excuse thisinquiringmind's tardiness. She happens to be forgetful as well as busy these days. She will bring extra snacks for the kids next week.

Sincerely,

Ms inquiringmind's Mom.

A few quick updates about my latest reads and the best of my life:

We're approved for the loan on our new house. We are just waiting for the "final-final" approval and a set date for the closing. The attorney we chose has been a huge headache and I would not choose them again if it can at all be helped. I'd tell her to skip the closing if it didn't mean we'd eventually be homeless and out hundreds of thousands of dollars. Just saying.

I am planning on taking some dance classes starting next week. Part of me is psyched that I will be refreshing all I know about dance terminology for use in my dance judging; the other part of me is nervous that my body will collapse on the floor the first week, going, "why? why would she do this to me?!" Seriously, it will be good exercise, and I've been meaning to do it for years now. It's not ballet, but I'm willing to explore new/re-visit old territory. Dance judging conference/training begins this weekend. I get to spend all three weekend days learning how to talk into a tape recorder while simultaneously taking in 650 bits of information within 3 minutes and then frantcially scoring before the next song starts. It's gonna be great! It makes speaking difficult sometimes when you are so caught off guard by all of the things needing work that you cannot possibly communicate fast enough. And that brings us to our next point: my lack of communication about the awesome books I've experienced recently.

One, I gave The Great Train Robbery by Michael Crichton a shot. Husband has been pushing this book for at least a year and telling me how great it is. I do admit. The story was fascinating; real people, pulling off an extraordinary mega-crime over the period of a year in mid-19th century England. I half & half'ed it on audio and reading. As irritated as I was that the book binding broke, I was equally amused that the audio narrator made the main character sound exactly like Jason Staham, of action-movie fame and husband's man-crush.

Two, Dogs of Babel, by Carolyn Parkhurst is by far, the most depressing book I have ever read. I almost hesitate to write about it here. While beautifully written, it is extremely haunting and I did not care much for the discussion of death on every other page, or the intensity of describing mutilated dogs at various points in the novel. If you can stomach those things, you're good. I'd say it's worth the read, but I sort of wish I could un-read it.

My two recent FAVORITES: Winterdance by Gary Paulsen (about the young-adult author's decision to just get a team of sled dogs together and go run the Iditarod race.) The tale is non-fiction and absolutely incredible. Very funny, informative, and at times, sad. It was an easy read that I couldn't put down. So good.

Second (or fourth of all) was my read of Catching Fire. This is the second book in The Hunger Games trilogy by Suzanne Collins. Even being crazed for Twilight at one time last summer, have I never been as entralled with such a quick-paced, well written adventure book/series. The writing is impeccable, makes you aware of each character's mannerisms, behaviors, & characteristics without over-explaining, and the story is fascinating. Basically, in The Hunger Games, a post-distaster North America airs a fight to the death between 24 kids, 12-18 years old that takes place in a set-arena until one victor remains standing. A sixteen year old girl fights for her life in the arena when she volunteers to take her younger sister's place. Catching Fire continues the story after Games ends. There are love stories, triangles, identity searching and some gore. These books have everything to make your life exciting for a few hours, at least.

On the flip.

Under and Outside of the House

Greetings and Salutations! As I recall, I left you stranded in the kitchen, therefore we will proceed to the dungeon downstairs. Not really. It's quite nice but we've got a couple of plans.

The view to your left as you walk down the basement stairs.

And the view to your right.

This is the family room area to the left. The photo below looks back into what they have set as a gym area and a connecting door waaay back there to the storage room. Planning on removing at least some of the red, not sure where yet. The boring stuff: Our laundry room and water softner. It has more shelving space built in on the right. The utilities are all enclosed in their own room near the stairs across from another storage room. The Packer half-bath in all its glory. We asked if they'd take the wallpaper down before they left but we didn't get any takers.
Get ready to party because the bar and the pool table are staying with us. The poster of Brett Favre on a Harley is sadly leaving.

Let us mosey on back upstairs and out to the yard...

This is the side entry into the back yard. The fence is coated chainlink, so it should not rust. Neighbors have a solid wooden fence.

That's our shed way back there. Some bugs were crawling around it but no damage. I love the tree because it shades almost the whole yard and we shouldn't have to worry too much about it falling on the house, since it leans away. Small brick patio to the deck. The kitchen door is on the right, some seating is attached to the deck behind the hedge but we've got to majorly trim the bushes before anyone could fit there.

So that's it. The end of our journey together and just the beginning for a young couple. Some work to be done, but no major projects to tackle. Thanks for looking and we'll let you know when the housewarming party is!

The tour continues

I got sick of dragging images down and screwing up the formatting. (Excuse my illiterate-photo-inserting-blogging skills)

Some shots of the kitchen; tile backsplash, good space, enough for an island or a table in the center of the room. Note the builder model dishwasher that we'll need to replace. door to backyard on the right.

The paint colors in the kitchen: drab olive and this burgandy/maroon color. Like them separate but not together. Not sure what to do there. Door to backyard on left, garage door to the left, and dining straight into that yellow.

Because our dog is the coolest ever.

Congratulate Me: We're selling our souls for a house!

That's right, we've finally gotten a contract set for our new living space. The inspection went rather well yesterday and we did not discover any super creepy crawly things living under the bed, nor hidden corpses in the closet. I'm not certain that the latter is a violation of any building code, but needless to say, we're pleased the house is liveable. I'm so punny...

Anyway, a lot of people are asking, and I figure I should just post some photos of all the stuff we're going to be changing when we move in early October. Let the tour commence:

Le Outside of our new digs

Inside the front door looking left.

Check out that fireplace. (wood burning gas starter)





Standing in the living room. Door on the left goes into kitchen.






Hallway on the other side of the kitchen, the rockin' pantry doors & the linen closet at the very end.











Bedroom #1. It is much bigger than it looks here. Have not decided how to decorate it.








Guest Bath.

Sort of ugly paint & grout to clean/avoid on the tile bath! Excellent! :/






Bedroom #2: My favorite wall in the house. Unfortunately the current owner is perhaps the biggest GB Packer fan that has ever lived. As will be evident in later photos.








Master Bedroom. That's a king size, so our tidy "little" queen should work nicely. I'd like to paint it different than this ooky tan/yellow color but haven't decided what will be most calming...

Boring master bath & with shower...

To be continued....

Latest and Greatest

I did end up finishing The Poisonwood Bible. It was very well written, but it could have been about 100 pages shorter and I would still have been satisifed. Speaking of levels of satisfaction, my stomach is growling and I can't wait until lunch.

I'm almost a third of the way through a giant brick of a book called Pillars of the Earth by Ken Follett. Been listening on audio and enjoying it. I had to bring the cd's back to the library instead of renewing when I was smack in the middle of it because someone had requested it. Wouldn't you know, they brought it back within days and it's now riding along in my car again. I rented the hardbound copy in the meantime so I could catch up to part two of the audio and that bumped me up in timing. The story itself is about three characters; Tom Builder (the cathedral architect, Phillip, a Prior, and Lady Alieana, some earl's young daughter I don't know much about yet. It's really interesting because Follett combines drama with historical and technical material very well and I can't wait to see what happens next.

I am also beginning Along for the Ride, a predictable young adult novel by Sarah Dessen, and The Red Leather Diary by Lily Koppel. Red Leather is a biography using a woman's diary from early 20th century New York City. Waiting to begin at lunch but sounds great.

In the housing arena, big fat fail for our first offer. The sellers didn't counter our reasonable offer but wrote a very strange letter about how great their house is. We told them either counter or we're walking. 'Nuf said, I'm not heartbroken and we've got time to look for something better for us.

I got my heart rate monitor for the gym. I really like it but am torn about what zones I should stay in. The gym says they matter, other sources say they don't. I want to do what's best for my body and don't know what that is yet. Also trying to eat better, but it's hard when we've got awesome bacon cheeseburgers to eat from leftovers. Last night I ran farther and longer than I ever have before. I ran 3.25 miles in 45:30. I walked about 10 minutes of that, equaling about .6 miles of it. This makes me a lot more confident in my ability to do that and not pass out. I stumbled off the treadmill for a potty break and ended up rolling my ankle to the point of discomfort but not injury. If I hadn't done that, I could have gone longer. I did 3 miles in 41:40, which as I told my husband beats his recent run time. Anyway, today I'm meeting with a trainer and setting a good strength training plan for me. I should meet with a nutritionist too, but I feel like that isn't too necessary right now. Maybe if I get bored again I will use it to motivate me.

Wow, totally serious post here. Signing off.

Giggly Girl

Apparently I am making this a monthly blog. I just haven't had time in the last two months to either read, or stray from my hectic work schedule. Amidst all the economic turmoil, I'm trying to stay as current & valuable as possible. I finally finished a major grant application and celebrated by dancing in front of my boss' office. He did eventually ask later, but I appreciate the fact that he accepts that I would normally do that kind of stuff and is okay with it. Now, it's onto CDBG & green(er) grants.

In book news, I finally finished The Count of Monte Cristo!!! Jimmny Christmas, it.was.worth.it. Lots of characters to keep straight but the way it all intertwines is genius. I have already put other Dumas books on my to-read list. I just need a break from the super long period pieces. To break it up a little, I read Murder on the Orient Express, one of Agatha Christie's top Poirot stories. I do understand that it was written in a different time, but the racial stereotypes were very exaggerated. The plot & eventual solution was so crazy. Christie is definitely a master of her craft & her books are great for a little light mystery.

Now I am a couple of chapters into The Poisonwood Bible by Barbara Kingsolver. It is on the list of 1001 books to read before you die, and appears to be a recommended favorite. From what I gather, a family of missionaries go into the african jungle to live for a year. We'll see how this shapes up, it's a little churchy for me yet, but not to

Love how I ended this in the middle of a sentence. More in the next post.