tDIYm

( I want these!!! )

A coupIe weeks ago, I bought some bath and shower stuff at Ulta called "Pink Champagne". While I usually have no interest in ANYthing pink, during October, Breast Cancer Awareness Month, pink becomes more tolerable. Appealing, even. Anyway, I went into an Ulta store and there on display as soon as you walked in, were these bath products. I sniffed the "Pink Champagne" and fell in love with it, bought one and now use it as shampoo and shower gel and want to smell it MOAR.
The reason I'm posting this is because champagne fragrances are hellishly hard to come by. I'm busy sampling them trying to find something that will smell like that delicious Ulta Pink Champagne. I'm sure I will have an impossible task trying to  find anything that is like what I want, but in two or three years, champagne will become the next big thing and it will be available in everything. I've had this happen so many times already; something I love is impossible to find, I keep searching and finally after I've moved on to something else, lo and behold, suddenly the thing I was searching for becomes popular and it's everywhere. Mark my words. You've heard it here first. And if anybody knows of a fragrance version that smells like that wonderful Ulta Pink Champagne, send the recommendations my way. I'm still looking for some...

I can't believe this. There is fucking SNOW in the forecast for the rest of the week, and into next week. This isn't Alaska. I can't fucking believe it.

Doomed summer, supported on the shoulders of winter and autumn: citrus-infused Baltic amber, red valerian, marigold, blood orange, and sunflower subdued by somber myrrh and dry geranium alongside the leaves of autumn and a breath of winter wind.
This is "Summer's Last Will and Testament". On me, it smells like dried grasses and leaves. I love it and just ordered a boatload some. The other ones I got are nice, but this one is my favorite. It reminds me a bit of October from a couple years back, but is sweeter and so pleasant on me.
I ordered a couple of wand caps, too. I like wand caps.

Egad, will I ever be done with this? The DVD and CD player wasn't working on the new computer. I tried everything, I checked the drivers, and there was no problem with those. But whenever I'd put in a disk of any kind, it acted like there was no disk in there and said that I needed to insert a disk.
I called the Staples store and described the problem and they said bring the computer in. So I had to drive down there again and it turned out there was actually something wrong with the computer itself and they replaced it with a brand new one. Now I have to download all my stuff again but I can listen to CDs and watch DVDs so I'm happy. The other option was they could send the computer back to HP to fix it, which would take a while and since I use the computer every day I didn't want to do that. So now I've got a new new computer and am getting it set up again.

Ok, so that file transfer thing I got didn't work. I had to download drivers for it, which worked successfully on my old computer but not on the new one. I could only see the files on each computer respectively but not on both. It was supposed to show me both computers on the same screen so I could drag and drop files from one computer to the other. No dice.
So I went and returned the transfer thing and bought myself an 8 GB memory stick which should pretty much capture everything I have on the old computer so I can stick it on the new one, plus have a backup to everything I move on the jump drive.
I have teh dreaded Windows Vista on the new computer, which doesn't seem to have Windows Explorer like every other computer I've ever used in my entire life has had. So how do I see my files to arrange them the way I want them? And then how do I find them again? One of the main reasons I bought this computer is that it comes with an upgrade to WIndows 7 when it comes out. Hopefully Windows 7 will eliminate even the memory that WIndows Vista ever existed in the world, because I HATE it. I used to be expert using Excel and Word, and now I suck because even tho I know I should be able to do something I can't figure out how to get it done. Things that used to be a keystroke or two now take viewing the stupid help menu which shows videos to do everything, and then still not having it be instructive -- I just HATE Windows Vista. I expect I can get all my files downloaded but they will all be lost somewhere on my hard drive since there's no way I can find to actually set up folders and then find them again. I always used Explorer for that, but I can't find Explorer or anything like it on this Vista stuff.
I also made the mistake of "upgrading" to some new version of my internet explorer and now can't figure out how to add favorites without them ending up as new tabs across the top.
I guess I'm just becoming a Luddite about all this crap. I learn and get really good at dealing with things and then they change so that there's no resemblance at all to what I used to be able to work with so easily. No instructions, either.
I guess I should have had kids so that when I can't figure out this stuff they could come fix it up for me. Bwah ha ha ha ha! no worse than some peoples' reasons for having had them.

I actually broke down and bought a *brand new computer* to replace the old, old, decrepit one I inherited and saved from the recycle/junk bin at my old job. It's been acting wonky lately and I've been watching the ads to find a good price on a new one, and I finally did so I bit the bullet and went out and got it. Now my challenge is getting the files off the old one and onto the new one. I thought I had it licked with this "Tornado" thing I bought, but I can't download drivers and can't make file transfers like you're supposed to be able to do. >:( 
I finally gave up in total frustration after about 4 hours of trying. I may have to regroup and try a different approach, but meantime I have a super shiny new much faster computer to use and when Windows 7 comes out, I get a free upgrade to that, too! 
Most important functions (getting on the interwebs) are working. It may be a while before I have truly upgraded my entire system and gotten my files all transfered over. At least the old one hadn't crashed so my data is still there and still accessible by me. The trick is getting it from one machine to the other without wanting to tear what's left of my hair out.

Okay, I got my hair cut and I love it! It's very different from how I've worn it for YEARS. I'm so happy to have an actual hair STYLE instead of just something to do with my hair. I especially like that I can spike it up. And because it's short I can wear more eye makeup now, too! :)

   I like this hairstyle. I like it enough to start considering cutting mine. Last time I cut it (in 2005), I donated it to Locks of Love and was very happy with having cut it off and having shorter hair - just above shoulder length. This time I'm considering an even bigger change, really cutting it off short, like the picture.
I get sick of having it long because it's fine and straight and seldom, if ever, cooperates. When I have more bad hair days than good hair days, maybe it's time to consider a change....right now my hair is about an inch above my bra strap in back, but I wear it up ALL the time, never down because it tangles and knots up and is straight and flat with no body. I want it to look like the picture in the icon of the Gibson Girl but it doesn't have enough body to actually look nice like that. It just looks ... meh, not particularly flattering and not particularly anything.
But up until now I haven't seen anything I like enough to consider doing with my hair. I think this is cute, punky, and flattering. I could spike it up. I would leave mine dark, tho. I don't like being blonde. My natural hair is kind of reddish brownish nondescriptish and I currently have it very dark, almost black. My eyes are light (gray). 
Votes, anybody? 
Should I cut it off? 
Y / Y

SUMMER'S LAST WILL AND TESTAMENT
What pleasure always lasts? No joy endures:
Summer I was, I am not as I was;
Harvest and age have whitened my green head;
On Autumn now and Winter must I lean.
Needs must he fall, whom none but foes uphold.
Thus must the happiest man have his black day:
Omnibus una manet nox, & calcanda semel via lethi.
This month have I lain languishing abed, ...
Looking each hour to yield my life and throne;
And died I had indeed unto the earth,
But that Eliza, England's beauteous Queen,
On whom all seasons prosperously attend,
Forbad the execution of my fate,
Until her joyful progress was expired.
For her doth Summer live, and linger here,
And wisheth long to live to her content;
But wishes are not had when they wish well.
I must depart, my death-day is set down; ...
To these two must I leave my wheaten crown.
So unto unthrifts rich men leave their lands,
Who in an hour consume long labor's gains.

Doomed summer, supported on the shoulders of winter and autumn: citrus-infused Baltic amber, red valerian, marigold, blood orange, and sunflower subdued by somber myrrh and dry geranium alongside the leaves of autumn and a breath of winter wind.

( and . . . )

I love the way they go to Blackpool, how the bathing house is painted black, and they come out with their coffin lid surfboards and Docs!
This is funnier every time I see it!

I went to see Public Enemies this afternoon. I guess I should have known it would be violent and end badly for Johnny, but it has Johnny Depp in it and he's just so freaking amazing. He can take a heinous guy like Dillinger and make him sympathetic. His acting is so amazing, he reminds me of Gary Oldman, who could even make Sid Vicious sympathetic. The cinematography is gorgeous, the music is haunting, Marie Cotillard is gorgeous as Billie, a woman with a spine made of polished steel. There was a LOT of shooting and some pretty graphic violence - I mean, what can you expect from the John Dillinger story? But it was definitely well worth seeing.
I'm also looking forward to The Imaginarium of Doctor Parnasus, if it ever finds its way to a theatre here. That will have Johnny Depp AND Heath Leger.

I bought this orange bag on eBay. I thought it would go nicely with all my black stuff and it's the trad color scheme of Halloween (orange and black), which is the holiday of my favorite season, the autumn. When it arrives, I'll dump my stuff in and try to get a photo of me carrying it. I think it will look really cool against my (mostly) all black wardrobe. I'm sure I'll catch plenty of grief for having such a bright colored object anywhere around my person!

I have a long weekend this weekend for the Independence Day holiday. I worked today in trade for being off Saturday and Thursday afternoon, so I won't have to be back at work until Tuesday. It's cherry picking season, meaning I will be able to eat myself sick on cherries yet again (you'd think I'd learn, but I never do!) and enjoy a long, relaxing weekend before it's back to work next week when my boss is back from 3 weeks vacation of his own. I'm sure it will be very busy and hectic when he returns, but the days go by so quickly when it's like that, there's no time to do much but react.
I'm looking forward to this weekend and all the time off! :D I just hope it doesn't rain!

I have ANOTHER stupid cold. Again. I've been sick with colds/upper respiratory junk more in the past 6 months than I have in the past 6 YEARS. I can't smell or taste anything, I'm congested and I feel like crap. I have no idea why I keep getting sick with the same shit all the time after so many years of almost never being sick at all. I'm making some what I think is sage tea for the congestion but I'm so congested, I can't even smell it at all to determine if it's sage or something else entirely. It could be peppermint for all I know.
Edit: It was comfrey, so not only couldn't I smell it or taste it, I STILL can't smell or taste anything.

There was a baby robin out of the nest the other evening and, of course, a cat had to be out there, too. I stood guard for nearly an hour until it got dark and the neighbor called the cats in for the night. The next morning, there was no sign of the baby robin, at least no feathers attesting to a cat encounter, so I can only hope that he survived his night on the ground. He was only able to flutter along, not strong enough to fly up into a tree yet, and there was an adult robin jumping down from the fence to the ground near a tree where I last saw the baby one, so I assumed/hoped the adult was attending to the baby one. I've checked around a couple of times and no sign of the baby, no feathers, so I'm hoping the baby one is safe. It doesn't take them too long to learn flying skills, but for the first couple of days they are pretty defenseless, particularly against a cat.
I really wish they had rules for cat owners the way they do for dog owners - keep the animals under control, pick up after them, etc. instead of people just being allowed to open their doors and turn the cats out unsupervised all day long. If a cat got hit by a car, the owners would be sure to be whining, but they sure don't take responsibility for anything their animals do around here.

Yeah, that's supposed to be one of them on the branch. I guess I was too wiggly with the camera, but I've seen both babies out on the branch and also FLYING after their parents. They fly as well as the adults now. Their branch skills are also excellent now. They can easily hop around whenever and wherever they want. They are now about 3/4 of the adults' size and their tails are about as long as robin's tails. I'm happy that they are both alive and flying.
The parents are so cute. When I go out in the morning to feed them (and the other birds) I will go put out food for them and turn around to leave and practically bump into one or both of the adults! They come up very quietly as soon as they see me out and land either on the gutter, which is a little higher than my head or on the fence or a branch at about eye level with me. They look right at me from about 18" away, and aren't afraid at all. They're nice and friendly so long as I'm not getting too close to their little babies. That day they were really mad! But now that the babies can fly and manage to get away from threats, the parents have calmed down a lot and are very friendly again.