Been a While! General Update...

Goodness! It's sure been a while since I posted. I guess school really took a lot of energy this semester. That is now done till late August.

First things first:
I got moved. The apartment is a dive, and pretty small, but once I get the organization worked out, I think it will be OK. I was able to get the books unpacked, but the crafts are a mess. The kitchen doesn't work for me, either.

I got stuff for the bathroom to get that going. I needed a towel ring so I could have a towel near the tub when I got done. Also, all my nails went missing, so I needed nails and screws.

The cats are settling in. It took a while. Beasley is unhappy a lot of the time. Mostly because the girls are so insistent on snuggles and he feels shunted to the side. Once I take him to task and snuggle him though, he seems fine.

TV reception sucks, though! I can't watch my favorite show, NCIS. I have to catch it online or not at all. PBS also is not around here over the airwaves. I got a nice antenna and can only get about 3 channels. And those go out every time someone walks by the apartment or it rains.

I finally got HughesNet internet yesterday. That has a lot to do with why I haven't posted, of course. That and school schedules. No internet at home made for short bursts and barely keeping up with email.

I plan to study for the GRE this summer, and crochet a lot. I hope to finish the sweater I was working on last summer. And of course, the book of collected essays. I want to get that done so it's off my plate. I have 3 other books waiting in the wings...

Retiring Comcast for a While

Financially, with running back and forth to school and the cost of gas, and the cost of everything else, I have to cut back. So, I'm cutting the cable bill.

That means I have to disconnect all the Comcast equipment and turn it in tomorrow morning on my way back to school.

I can use that $100/mo for gas and food. Right now, the costs have eaten up everything I have coming in, so there isn't money for anything frivolous, like cable.

The mortgage, car insurance, gas, utilities - I can't do any more. So, I won't be posting or even paying attention to the e-mail on weekends any more.

I hope my friends understand all this. Maybe I can find a hot-spot unit that won't cost too much given the limited usage it will get.

Time Limits!

I realized last night while I was on the phone, that I only have another 10 days or so for the book. I need to get OFF the internet and stay off it. But it's like I'm addicted or something. I really like reading e-mail, answering e-mail, forwarding articles to my friends, and staying informed on the issues that interest me (health, writing, cats).

And yesterday I filled out a scholarship application and wrote the essay for it. I even pulled out the old trusty manual typewriter to fill out the application, as they requested! Did you know that the @ symbol is not above the 2 on a typewriter? I forgot that and had to search the keys for it! I had to request some special people in my life to write letters of recommendation and get them to me by Jan 5th so I can have the scholarship application postmarked by January 6th, which is the deadline. I had a really short window, but I only found out about it yesterday, and it's a really good scholarship for me.

But I was talking to my sister, which was long overdue, and realized that my time on the book is getting pretty short.

I got overwhelmed by one of the submissions. A friend of over 40 years. I realized some stuff about my growing up that I didn't remember. Not nice, for sure! It reminded me of who I was all those years ago, all the stuff I'd forgotten, and from her point of view. She's a pretty incredible lady, to be sure, and I'm so very happy she put in her submission. But it triggered "stuff" for me. So, I took a couple of days off from the book. I need to write her a long letter, on paper, and mail it to her.

But first, back to the book, get it done, and to the publisher!

I hope to publish mid-January, so there you go!

Trees Planted, General Updates

I have my 5 trees planted, now. I got the first 4 in, but they were too deep, so I had to dig them up and raise them. They arrived bare-root, so had to go in the ground right away. I got the 5th tree in a pot, but it was basically bare-root as well. However, it took me a couple of days to get it into the ground.

So, the trees are in, and the asparagus crowns arrived yesterday. I have no place prepared for them. I need to build the beds for the vegetables. The beans I started are taking over the kitchen. The other starts are all showing distress and need to be re-potted into flats with better drainage. I'm not prepared. It may be that this year's garden is a bust. I would like to get the strawberries going this year, though. And I'm really looking forward to some home-grown tomatoes. They taste so good!

I'll do what I can, but I think I bit off more than I could handle for this year. Just getting the perennials and trees in the ground is a great start this year, I guess.

On a completely different subject, work is looking a little better. I don't have a steady job, but my efforts are paying off for internet marketing, cat whispering, and coding sites for better SEO and SEM. If you don't understand the terms, don't worry about it. Just know that my efforts are showing fruit.

I've had to crash-learn several things lately, too. Moodle, Word Press, HostGator, PHP, Javascript, and others. It's fine, really. I needed to learn but didn't have any way to apply it, so didn't push it. Now, I have places for all of that to be applied, so it's sinking in better. It can be overwhelming, and my brain feels like mush after 6 solid hours, but TV is a good diversion, and the biggest problem is that I forget to eat.

I finally passed the Census test with a 100%, so when they begin hiring, I may have a job. I've also applied several other places for full- or part-time employment. I just need something I can count on, so that the bills get paid. The extras can be cut, removed, or ignored.

Money is dwindling, and I have expenses coming up, as usual. I can't really go out and purchase lumber or blocks to build the beds - not even for the asparagus!

I've canceled cable TV. Not a bad thing in the long run. I generally don't have time for it during the warmer weather, anyway. Running around, yard work, and so on. I'm in a 3-year contract on the internet/phone, so the only way to reduce expenses with Comcast is to cancel the TV.

I need to put brakes on the car, and it needs a full tune-up, to keep it running right. I'll do that, if and when the government finally sends the money on the first-time homebuyer's credit rebate. That, and pay my taxes. If there's anything left, I'll schedule the surgery.

On the surgery, I've been having symptoms, yes. It's like having a period, but I'm too old for them. The pain in my lower back is increasing, too. I'm pretty sure there is a growth around my colon/large intestine. The tests show something in that area, but they aren't specific enough to know exactly what. When it all comes out, I bet I'll feel like a million bucks!

I'm grateful, though. I have a breather - time to shift focus. I have enough food, the lights are on, the bills are not late (some are ahead!) and my debt load is very small. The house is new, so anything that's wrong is still under the warrantee.

I'm thinking about renting out my sewing room, too. The rent I receive will help with the house payment and electricity. Since I have the contract on the internet, I can offer wi-fi as a regular benefit. I just need to set-up the room. I'm working on it. That's the room that is a total mess right now. I still haven't unpacked all the boxes, you know.

Well, that's quite an update from an unemployed, but positive person....