Thoughts about home So, conversations in the home lately have vastly been related to home. Kevin and I have done some serious talking about it, and I've been thinking constantly about it. The realization is that there just aren't jobs here. I'm never going to find a job I'm really interested in here. My desire is to be in non-profit volunteer training/recruit, or back into children's programming for non-profits. I could go back into social services, but I'm not sure my mental health can take it.

We're now looking at other possible places to live. I would love to move back closer to Atlanta, I miss it a lot. Kevin has no desire to be in a city. I have no desire to drive 60 miles one way to work. So, we're kind of stuck between a rock and a hard place. And, to top it off, we live in a house for free. It's ours to do what we want with. We can't sell it though, so the minute we move it is a big financial difference. Not to mention that we have two horses we'd have to find a place for. We're going to go and visit Dahlonega this summer, scouting as a possible place to live. It's in the mountains and rural enough to make Kevin happy - but it's also within 40 miles of places that would actually have jobs. We'll see what happens.

On a good note, it finally rained here this weekend. Everything looks very green and lush, it's quite nice and not too hot yet. I still have a few more things I need to plant in the yard. My day lilies are popping up, nothing else is yet. The cockscomb is doing okay. I think my dog decided to take a nap on top of some of them, so some are smooshed. Oh well (there are 24 of them). On another good note, the dog food we've been using has not been in any of the recalls. This makes me very very happy.  ¶ 3:58 PM 2 Comments

  Busy busy bee Kevin and I, along with his little cousins, have been very industrious in the yard the last couple of weeks. I've gotten tired of the ugly front yard, so we are changing it to a pretty front yard. For exampled, up until recently there was a nonworking Chevy S10 in the front yard under the maple tree (you might be a redneck if...). Now, there is no S10 in the front yard (there is one in the back though, oh well).

When Kevin's mom lived back here she had lots of flower beds. I've discovered that there are loads of irises that Kevin has not killed with the lawn mower, so that is cool. I've planted some calla lilies. Today I am planting some cockscomb (celosia). I bought some at Wally World that is already blooming and I need to get it in the ground. Kevin's first cousin, Davey, has their grandfather's tiller and came over to till some flowerbeds for me, but the tiller needs a new coil or something and so he couldn't finish. So, I'll be turning the dirt the old fashioned way.

Davey has also given Kevin a chainsaw on permanent loan. Davey built it himself. It's a Husquavarna motor with (currently) a 20 inch bar and chain. Kevin says it can take up to a 32 inch bar, and from the look on his face when he told me, I'm assuming that is a very manly length. I think Kevin has cut down about 10 rogue tress throughout the yard. We've got lots of random poplars coming up in places such as...under the back porch, next to power lines, things like that. So, he cut them down (well, I did the ones under the porch with big clipper thingies).

I also trimmed back the roses that Kevin's mom planted. She came back and looked at them and said they all needed to be trimmed back to about 6-8 inches. They haven't been trimmed in several years and one was trying to get in the house though the wall. And, I also trimmed the box hedge. Yeah, that didn't work so well. It looks stupid now. But, as Davey said, it'll grow back. It was like box hedge gone wild. Okay, what really happened is a I broke down and let Kevin "even it out" with the chainsaw. Yeah, not so much next time, just have to make sure to trim it regularly. I also want to figure out how to grow some more. Vickie (Kevin's mom) told me about a technique where you cut a stem a bit and wrap a moss around it and it will sprout roots. I need to look more into that.

Let's see, the list of things I am planting....calla lilies, day lilies, snow-in-summer (alyssum), cannas, snapdragons, petunias, and morning glories. Wish me luck!  ¶ 10:30 AM 2 Comments

  Accomplishment of the day So today, because I am going crazy being at home alone, Kevin stayed home with me. Part of it was also the fact that by yesterday afternoon he had already worked 44 hours. Ouch. We cleaned the bedroom. Woo. This is not and excited Woo, this is a I hate cleaning, dejected Woo. But, it needed to be done, and the laundry is hanging instead of in baskets now.

Then we went riding. We haven't gone riding, just the two of us, since before the wedding. So, we saddled up the horses and headed out. The accomplishment in this is that I road Stormcloud on my English saddle, instead of the Western. This is a Big Deal for me as about a year and a half ago I feel off of her and suffered from a concussion and some memory loss while using an English saddle (not much memory loss, just about 15 minutes, but enough to scare the crap out of me and keep me from riding her for about 6 months). I think this might be the first time I used the English saddle on her for any length of time. Didn't do much besides walk. Tried a little bit of trotting, but I have obviously got to work on that some, I kept leaning too far forward and almost falling on her neck. We're going to try to do some trail riding this weekend (which will be in the Western saddle).

It'll be nice to get back in the saddle again, literally.  ¶ 6:05 PM 0 Comments

  Wedding pictures online Well, I've finally done it. Wedding pictures are uploaded. I've tried to spare anyone who didn't like a picture of him/herself.

Pictures are here. All pictures were taken by Dave Nelson, Roger Benson, or Donna Barres. Unfortunately, I don't have each labeled as who took it currently. There were also pictures taken by Bobbie Jo Walker, but as they involve me getting dressed, they aren't online!

Hope everyone enjoys!  ¶ 11:49 AM 0 Comments

  Wanted! Reward! So, a couple of weekends ago we went to UAH for Saltare, an SCA dance event. Much fun was had. During the day I wore contacts, but as usual I took my glasses with me in case my contacts started bothering me towards the end of the day. Before we left my lovely husband went to get my "regular" clothes out of the van and we think they fell onto the parking lot pavement at this point. Didn't realize it until we were at home.

So, we contact a few people, and the glasses were turned in to lost at found at the UAH Student Center. This is a picture of them:

They were officially found. This is them on the countertop at the student center. So, we head over there yesterday and I ask for them. They look and they look and they look. And they can't find them now. Someone has claimed my glasses. I WANT MY GLASSES BACK! Be warned, if I see you wandering around with my glasses on, I will personally snatch them off of your head. If you find my glasses and contact me I will give you a cookie. Any kind of cookie you want.

I WANT MY GLASSES!  ¶ 9:40 AM 1 Comments

  Update Well, I don't know if anyone clicked the link from the previous post or not, but it was a good link.

Life is still busy, yet not. I am still sadly unemployed. Kevin is sadly employed. He has a job, but the pay sucks big time. I've been working on SCA projects at home for a while now. Let's see, I wrote a piece of music in the style of a 15th century carol, and I made a dress based on a 15th century Italian portrait of some girl. Dress turned out pretty. There are a few things that need to be fixed on it, but all in all, it's not half bad. The music turned out okay. I entered into an SCA "competition", and we'll see what feedback I get. I want to rework it some though. Currently, it is in 6/8 and I want to move it to 6/4 and give myself some time for passing tones and such without using 16th notes. I think I will also slow down the tempo somewhat. And it is currently in the Phrygian mode and I'm trying to be good and stay with that, but really, that f natural is going to become and f sharp. It rankles me.

Let's see, this past weekend I went to an SCA dance event. That was cool and fun. I taught 2 classes. One was on 15th century Italian dances for 3 people (instead of couples). The other was on bransles, which are circle dances from 16th century France. I want to learn more of the dances for odd numbers of people. I also took a class on Burgundian dances, which was surprisingly enough a good class. I'd like to learn some more of those, but to do so I may have to take the tenor line (which is written with the dance) and do harmonizations of it. I could do lots of research on that and make it an Arts and Sciences research and composition type entry. Or, I could just make pretty music and not worry about it. We'll see.

Kevin and I started attended a UU church. Went a few Sundays and got a call from the minister. There might be a possible job there in the future, so we are holding off on going until the minister and I can meet. I spent a lot of time thinking about it, and I think I'm ready to go back to being a religious professional. Don't know if Kevin is ready for it. It'll definitely change my lifestyle somewhat. But, one of the benefits is that my social life will be in another galaxy from the church.

And, I think it's time to find a place to go and sing. I'll probably go to the Huntsville chorus. Not the most amazing chorus in the world, but a chorus nonetheless. It's just hard to go anywhere after getting the opportunity to do the big stuff we did with the ASOC. I miss singing and my singing friends lots and lots and lots. And I miss singing John Adams music. And speaking of modern music...does anyone know when the Golijav Oceana is coming out on CD. That music still gets stuck in my head and I really really really want to hear it.

And now, back to getting ready for this weekend. Another SCA event and I am making chili for 100 people. I hate chili.  ¶ 3:07 PM 2 Comments

  Well, click the link Speaks for itself.   ¶ 10:05 AM 0 Comments