The Litter Box

I can't quite recall if the question was, "Why is there a litter box here?" or "Is there a cat here?"  Either way the question took me off guard when we first stepped foot in the condo we rented during our stay on Maui.  

We had risen before the sun the day we left for Maui and by the time we got to our destination it was well beyond our normal bed time.  Not to mention fatigue from travel and excitement!  My aunt probably dislikes cats more than I do.  I dislike them because I am a dog person and I am allergic to cats.  My aunt HATES cats, not sure what it is but she isn't too big a fan of animals, her loss I think.  But I think her fatigue was in part to blame for the confusion that ensued.

Upon entering the condo my aunt noticed a box near the front door under the coat rack.  This is what she saw:

Not a litter box!

Woke up on the snarky side of the bed.

Literally and figuratively!

Snarky, my dog was on the side of the bed I woke up on, that's a good thing.  Nothing like waking up next to undying loyalty and wagging tails right?  The morning started out so nicely, I was looking forward to work and later pottery.  I was looking forward to the child returning to school until I was reminded what a pill it is to get him going to school.  So my mood quickly shifted to snarky and seems to have stayed with me.  I left while he was in the midst of his school routine, not listening, lolly gagging and running late as usual.

I feel like Hank right now.

Any moment now I feel like I could just be less helpful than I tend to be at work.  Or tell a co-worker to shut up because I am tired of hearing about their children.  There is a child in my house, I don't want to hear, see or be around others when I am at work.  Work is the great escape and I like my job.  Well at least until recently.

Pottery

So, I'm taking a pottery class with my sister.  I was hesitant to take a class for my enjoyment when there is a little tyrant running loose in my house that needs a watchful eye.  But that's what his dad is there for so I decided to give it a go.

My first class was Wednesday and I thought it would be structured lessons, much to my surprise you just buy your clay and do your own thing.  So our first day of class the teacher recommended a few easy projects to try to get us used to working with the clay.  The evening escape was the mental break I have been needing.  I had fun, I laughed, I made stuff and I felt relaxed.  Relaxation feels like it's a bit harder to obtain these days... more so recently.  I woke up Thursday morning actually happy, smiling and said good morning to everyone I saw on my way to work.  I guess I must have been wound up a bit tight!

The school district Andy attends has Winter Break from 20 December until 22 January.  So he has been home 24-7, nerves are frayed and patience has been wearing thin.  This year I opted not to take time off during the holiday because work is a place I can handle and am comfortable with.  Andy is a wild card that takes active parenting on both fronts to keep him in line, properly engaged during schools down time and at the same time nurture him so he doesn't feel like we are always on his ass about shit.  It IS getting better, very, very, very, slowly.

Pottery is exactly what I needed.  I don't have to think about life.  All I do is work with my hands, think about the moment and create.  So after my first class I figure I should find something difficult to make or think of something awesome.  Otherwise, I will end up just making a slew of ashtrays... and I only really know five smokers.

I'm thinking maybe a wind chime similar to the one below should take me at least a class or two to complete and I can gift it to the MIL, she likes wind chimes.  I might make hers with an ocean motif; she likes Orcas.  I am thinking of trying to make a small teapot, I may be too wet behind the ears to make it look nice AND functional but I should give it a try.  Any suggestions are welcome.

Bras and Panties

I really hate shopping for them.  Shopping for a bra is time consuming, you have to try the damn things on to make sure it will provide proper comfort, support or whatever else it is you are looking for in a bra.  I have better things to do with my time than wade through racks of bras and try them on in a cramped, hot, smelly fitting room.  I HATE shopping for bras.  Shopping for panties is just as bad if not worse.  The sizing on them is all screwy!  The last time I successfully purchased panties I had to go back to the store to return them because I bought the wrong size.  Each clothing line has their own crazy sizing charts which just about drives me to drink.  Hmm, there's an idea!  Enhance my shopping experience with a flask?  Hmm, that might lead to waste of money, maybe that's a bad idea.

I have had a Kohl's gift card since my birthday, not the last one... the one before that.  I figured with some time off from work after the holidays it would be wise to use the gift card to invest in undergarments.  I was starting to run low and made the mental note to brave the department stores several months ago.  I actually went to the store twice before this last time and failed.  The first time, I walked up to the front door, decided I had better things to do and never technically stepped foot into the store.  The second time I made it through the doors, looked around and felt a sense of dread.  There were about a gazillion people, each with 3 or 4 little people running amuck in the department store.  I quickly decided it was not worth the hassle of hurdling over knee-high moving obstacles all in the name of new supportive undergarments, I had better things to do with my time.