Otterly Evil

quotes - your best one

2014-01-05T04:37:05Z

Was sitting here listening to a song when I started arguing with it - older country song and the lyric was "You gotta love that" and all I could think was... No, no, I don't.

I still think one of my best quotable moments was years ago on a road trip with friends(Ithildin, I know was there and S, who isn't on DW, and I think aka-Arduinna [and I can't remember how to link them right now] and an old Tom Petty song came on the radio and he sang "She's an American girl" and the first thing out of my mouth was

"No, she's not, she's a Russian spy." And the whole car just fell apart in laughter.

I also made a great one on Twitter once about my kitty cat not dancing for me, but Ith and Ninjababe hadn't seen the whole kitty cat dance meme and didn't get it :) Several other people did though :)

I've also made a few good HL-related ones.

So, tell me - what's the best line you've ever said that made a quote list somewhere that people cackled over?

[sigh]

2013-09-07T01:07:56Z

Hate to ask, but if anyone has a spare couple of dollars, could you throw it my way?

Had another water leak (actually more than one) and the last one isn't completely fixed. While the guy who fixes them for me might be willing to do it cheaply, I still have to buy the stuff and I'm broke. I also am kind of stiffing DirecTV for their bill, but when I was canceling the service, the rep said the company would try to bill my debit card and I should contact my bank to have them do a 'stop charges' thingy. The bank will do this, but they charge for it - $30, which I don't have. And buying some gas for the car and actual food might be nice. Kitty could stand a vet visit also, but isn't a pressing issue.

I've been looking at some work-at-home stuff, but have been having internet connection issues which make that a kind of useless venture until I get it sorted out (which I might have done) - phone & internet have been out twice in the past month. Niece says she'll pay me the money to cancel DirecTV, but I need a total bill so we can get it all paid off, which I should get this month (I'm a couple of months behind, plus the fee for early termination). Niece, in trying to get her inheritance from evil brother, let him intimidate her into moving back into her mom's house.

Just lots of little crap, piling up again. Can't figure out how to get ahead of it. But mostly the water leak and keeping DirecTV from overdrawing my account. If you can, Paypal address is trw2005@gmail.com. Maybe one day I'll be able to write something happy again.

interesting quote

2013-05-30T03:10:56Z

from River of Stars by Guy Gavriel Kay:

They did insure that he died accidentally under questioning.

I love the 'accidentally'. [An assassin who was caught before killing is the person under discussion]

Yeah, I'm warped. We all knew that. Move along...

about me

2013-05-07T03:52:46Z

tldr: I'm alive. That is all.

:)

Long version:
I (and niece) both have the current version of the spring plague. I blame one of her friends.

My insurance company went into receivership. When did I find out? While at a doctor's appointment. When they couldn't process my co-pay. So I got kicked back to regular Medicare for a bit and have since signed up with another plan that offers vision and dental (regular Medicare offers neither. Must have vision plan, at least!) Haven't used new plan yet.

Aaaannnnnddd, my back account got hacked. Today. Or yesterday. A yarn & crafting supply company call KnitPicks got hacked/somethinged back in January. And there was a huge fit about how they didn't notify people for a while (not sure it was a hack - something about an unsecure server or something was accessible for over a month or something like that) and people on Ravelry (the *excellent* knit/crochet/etc forum) have been reporting compromised accounts from then until now (ongoing). So, apparently, it was my turn. Luckily Bank of America was on top of things (for once) and we got it caught fairly quickly. So debit card cancelled, new one on the way, money being returned. And currently okay financially, so not in desperate need of funds.

Now I just have to figure out what was automatically billed to my account through the debit card and get those places notified - if the bill is due soon. I think my gym membership is billed automatically, but, now that I think about it, it might be through the bank account, not the debit card. But all the places online where I used my debit card will have to be changed . Plus I had the stupid thing memorized and didn't have to pull it out to use it, unless I was actually out somewhere. Now I have to learn a new #, code, expiration date, and pin. And will have to keep a close watch on the account the next few days. (well, longer, I know, but especially the next few days)

Kitty says I must stop typing now, so you will all go admire her pictures from the previous post. So, shoo! Go admire!

And a few of Honey being ... catlike

2013-05-07T03:32:25Z

which is to say - cute, snarky, disgusted, etc.

Spotlight kitty sneers at you with disdain

Faceplant kitty is disgusted with your stupidity

Kitty wants a warm tummy

Sleeping on a scarf I knit from scrap yarn

Bottom of picture is footrest for recliner, kitty is laying between my knees in the hole, pulling the covers with her.

She's on my left shoulder, facing the recliner, all snuggled up for sleepies :)

A few last pictures of Ember

2013-05-07T03:22:40Z

that I finally got off my phone :)

So, I didn't stab the doctor

2012-10-21T18:21:22Z

Though, at one point, my hand twitched toward my bag and needles :)

I have gallstones and ascites. And, when the doctor said that, all I could think was "Duh!" The gallstones are a fairly new diagnosis, but I've been complaining about the fluid buildup for a while now. But since I'm not having any symptoms of gallstones, they're not going to worry about them right now.

The probable problem is my liver. It was something they were worried about back when I had my weight loss surgery, but I don't remember anyone ever telling me that it was something to keep following up on, so ... I didn't. Probably cirrohsis, which, as Ithy reminded me, was something my mom had too - I said something about Mom having cirrohsis, but not being a big drinker. I know it's not necessarily connected to drinking, but you usually hear about it in connection with heavy drinkers. I'm deliberately not looking up info on the web, so as not to freak myself out until I have an official diagnosis & course of care.

I have to see yet another doctor - a GI specialist. My bariatric doc called someone and got a couple of names of doctors up here - I think one of them might actually have been Mom's doctor. And they're trying to set me up with an appointment, hopefully next week.

Fluid will have to hang around for a bit more, though I do know they can drain it, which wouldn't be terribly pleasant. I have had ascites before - back after my hysterectomy - so I'm pretty sure there are pills they can give me too, but they don't seem to want to do that until they know why. At least, now that seems to be what they're thinking, rather than the former "gee, no idea why you're bloated and not really caring either".

So no stabbing, and further doctor visits should be up here, rather than 2 hrs away. But it looks like another week of laying about in my recliner, trying to find a comfortable spot where I don't feel crushed and can breathe.

doctor on thurday

2012-10-17T01:05:54Z

to see what he wants to do about gallstones - probably surgery.

But I swear on my mother's grave, if he says something about getting rid of some of this fluid first and gives me a prescription, I might be texting Ithy from jail about bail money. Y'all will help, right? I've been suffering with this fluid buildup for 2 effing months or so, begging for something - and if he comes up with help now, I will be throwing a huge violent fit in the exam room and possibly stabbing him with a knitting needle. [Makes note to remember to take metal needles - easier cleaning than bamboo]

Thank you!

2012-09-14T02:34:35Z

Thank you to everyone who sent wishes &/or things :)

Immediate crises are over - Honey went to the vet, got a flea treatment, an allergy shot, a bath & vaccinations. Very unhappy kitty :) Niece & I both have bronchitis - hers is worse than mine and might require a 2nd doctor visit, but her Medicaid card came, and takes care of most everything. Ember's cremation is paid for and I'm not breaking down crying constantly - a bit still, but better.

Now we'll see how things progress.

I do love all of you - you make me feel like the world isn't doomed :)

i am in hell

2012-09-09T02:11:35Z

Ember died today.

Honey needs to go to the vet. I'm having Ember cremated and need $150 for that. Both the niece & I need to go to the doctor. One of my crowns came off. The car needs gas. We have no food except a couple cans of tuna and some ramen. And I have $14 until the 19th. We may or may not get her child support check this Wednesday, but that is, of course, for her - which means her to a doctor & gas for the car and some bills.

my sweet kitty

I don't know how to do this.

new knittings

2012-08-24T00:18:37Z

Added some new knittings to my Crafts2 folder including this one:

sucks to be me

2012-08-13T08:40:04Z

So it's around 4:30 am, and I'm sitting outside a McD's borrowing wi-fi. {Sigh} Power went off around 7:30 pm Sunday night - I think there was a car accident, which truly sucks. But no power, starting to get dark, no a/c, so I took off to Panera and had a bite of dinner and stayed cool. 9 pm meant I had to get out :) so I called the house to check to see if the power was back on (if my answering machine picks up, I have power. If the phone keeps ringing, I don't.) Well, the niece & boyfriend were there having their dinner and watching a movie on her laptop - no power. He takes her over to a friend's house for the night and he goes home. Meanwhile I'm sitting outside a different McD's using their outside light to read by (fairly bright actually) when all of a sudden everything goes dark - it's now past 10 pm and they're closed and going home.

So I decide to go home and see how it is. Temp is okay, so I'm using a flashlight to read by. Actually one of those wind-up flashlights - I finished a book and then read another on my Kindle. Which is so weird btw - having to wind every couple of minutes so the light wouldn't get too dark for the screen :) Finally tried going to bed.

Bed happens, but not sleep. I need cold and moving air to sleep - I can do without the music and the CPAP, but it needs to be around 65F and there needs to be a fan moving air around. So around 4 am I dec..

OMG!!!! Power's back on!!!!! Yessssssssssssssssssss!

Um, sorry, called home while I was typing and the machine picked up :)

Oh, well, the suckage isn't so bad now :) There's still a lot of it, but I'll stop whining now and maybe go get a little sleep. Thank you for reading.

updateyness

2012-07-22T01:42:12Z

Well, things are ... progressing :)

We have bunnies; we're plotting to steal a dog's loyalty; and tonight we seem to have acquired a tiny lizard and a frog.

Kids are doing mostly well, though niece is currently po'd. Brother seemed to be making an effort, at least for the last couple of days, but blew it today. Her mom and I are going to have to go to Social Security/Social Services - he won't send me the child support. He said he'd take her shopping for clothes but told her today that clothes weren't a requirement (thinking he meant new clothes) and then went off on his usual bullshit wherein he is all that is right and good in the world (which will be ending soon) and everyone else is an idiot. And apparently called her a drama queen and a little bitch.

She said, that when she realized he wasn't high on something, she should have known not to go off with him. She did get some toiletries and school supplies, but also a nice helping of verbal abuse and again being told she needs to be on Prozac. Nice, very nice.

So we're through being nice and taking the high road. He seems to think us being nice and not doing anything official means we're stupid and weak. Well, things change.

Still can't figure out how we came from the same family.

po'd update

2012-06-17T03:11:31Z

Niece picked up a local admirer this past week - guy w/moped who took them for a couple of rides. I talked with him a bit yesterday when he showed up - kids weren't here. He struck me as a bit icky. And niece actually told him later that day that he was a creeper.

So today we were going out to WallyWorld - and I have 4 flat tires. Stabbed with a knife. Brother says it wasn't him (yes, I asked)(snotty prig) and it really doesn't seem like him, so we think it was the creeper.

Made a police report and then had the brainstorm of car insurance! So, I have to get the car towed, which means a flatbed truck, and the car place will get me new tires and all I pay is my deductible, which is $100. So I'll get a tow on Monday and 4 new tires. Grrrrrrr!

So getting the wireless router gets put off for a couple of days just in case we need the bit of money I have left for something.

Oh, and as an addendum to the previous update - the cats are handling everything very well too.

updateyness

2012-06-16T22:05:10Z

I'm a parent! Sort of :)

Niece moved in with me a few weeks ago - problems with her half-brother(older). I was kind of freaked out about it because I've been here alone so long, but it's been okay. And there are usually 2-3 other kids here too - her half-sister(younger), niece's boyfriend, and sister's boyfriend/niece's friend. And by being here, I mean they're kind of living here too - the guys stay over too. But it's weird - I look in on them sometimes and it's more like a puppy pile than anything else. They're all asleep in the bed, fully clothed. The boys buy us groceries - and cook! - and have fixed a couple of things around the house. Niece has started back up with her knitting :) and went to the shop with me for part of the day - the boyfriend came along and was fine sitting there with her. I'm a bit pissed at the other kid's parents - apparently they've gone out of town and left him here. He's 15 - he's a fairly responsible kid and I could see being able to leave him, but as far as I can tell, there's no one checking up on him to make sure he's okay. Parents left brother home one time when we went off on vacation, but I'm quite sure they called to check on him and probably had the neighbors check too.

The big problem is that Brother is being a total ass about it. He thinks niece moved in here because she can manipulate me into doing whatever she wants and he's "offended by my liberal morals" because I let the guys stay.
And he wrote a letter to her mom questioning the incident with her half-brother and complaining about the boys, hinting at police involvement. Well, her mother let them stay over too - she'd rather niece be home with the guys rather than out in the streets, which is what I think too. Plus niece will be 17 in 2 weeks and it's highly unlikely the police will do anything especially since her mother doesn't object and I don't object. Brother doesn't think that guys and girls can just be friends - he thinks there has to be something sexual, plus the boyfriend is Hispanic and the other friend is African-American, and brother is a bigot. But he was fine smoking pot with them one day when they all went down there (argh!).

So there are a couple of things around the house that need doing, but the guy I usually get to do them isn't calling me back. Yeah, he's brother's friend. And brother said I might have to get someone else to do cut my grass (something his friend does, using brother's lawn mower). And it looks like I'm going to have to start taking my own trash off, since brother used to do that too. Because he wants us to do everything his way and wants to run niece's life and can't deal with the fact that we don't agree with him. He did give me the child support he usually sends to her mom - but that was before he got mad at us. We'll see how that goes next month. I may end up at Social Security trying to get her put under me and removing him from the situation completely. Man, wouldn't that piss him off!

Still trying to find a paying part time job. Have a couple of leads to try next week. May be setting up a knitting class for which I'd get paid :) But need to make up the sample first.

update-ish

2012-05-27T00:56:43Z

Seeing ithildyn post about her brother getting a job (yeah!) reminded me that I didn't post about mine :)

Mine is a non-paying job, but it has perks :) I'm 'shop sitting' at my favorite yarn store - it's the slow time of year with not as many sales, so her part-timers aren't getting many hours but she still needs coverage so she can run errands and do paperwork. So Friday before last, T. asked me if I'd like to be one. I don't get paid, but I get 40% off yarn :) Plus I'll also get retail experience to put on my resume.

My first day was yesterday - I'll be doing Fridays and every other Thursday afternoon. Yesterday was easy - scarily slow - then we remembered it was a holiday weekend, plus the kids got out of school. I had 2 customers who both paid cash and the only time the phone rang was when T. called to check on me. So I relearned how to do a cash register and she showed me the steps to doing a credit card sale (which is done online). I also priced some yarn and pattern books. But really, for the most part, I sat in the shop and knitted :) Which is what I do on Friday mornings anyways, so not a big change. I just stayed longer than usual. I'm sure my 2 days this week will be different.

But it's a nice way to dip my toe back into the working world. And I have a few applications out, though I still haven't gotten any calls back [sigh]. Otherwise, life goes on as usual, tight on money, low on motivation :) But if anyone would like some knitted items for winter/gifts, email and we can negotiate :)

knitting stuff

2012-03-08T04:32:53Z

Wow, long time no post :)

Had a few knitted things I wanted to add to my pictures here and one I wanted to show :)

These are some socks I made for my niece - she loves them. Wore them to school and had people asking where she got them, and then asked her if her aunt would make more. She properly told them that they didn't have enough money {eeg}

There are a few more new pictures over in gallery Crafts 2.

For David Tennant/Dr. Who fans :)

2011-10-04T11:58:28Z

DD.tumblr, Aaaaaaaaaah!! … Okay, that’s it: I’m dressing up...

40 years

2011-08-22T20:19:04Z

http://www.goupstate.com/article/20110822/articles/110829943

I wasn't the cousin who spoke :) We were happy with it - no time off, no parole - full 40 years. Now it's over.

cousin's case update

2011-08-16T01:49:37Z

Hopefully over soon - lady from courthouse called - guy is pleading guilty next Monday. We (the family) are supposed to meet at the solicitor's office at 8:45 am and then head to the courtroom together. Not sure if the judge will do the sentencing there or not, but I think so. Still need to call a couple of people and tell them.

whew!

2011-07-03T05:57:24Z

Well, it looked like a *really* expensive fix - around $6500 to replace the whole thing. And, while I'm sure the guy thought he was right and wasn't trying to scam me or anything, I got a second opinion from a friend of my brother's who has done this kind of stuff (brother has some very handy friends [g]) - Robert found that it wasn't the compressor that was bad, but a switch/wire that led to the compressor had pretty much worn through. So he fixed that, added some freon, and got the intake reconnected.

It's cooling off nicely through the main part of the house.

Price?

$100.

Whew!

Update-itis 2

2011-06-30T22:27:26Z

Okay, the leak is fixed. And I got the new bedroom a/c unit installed today (there was some kind of fault in the machine itself, not the house wiring) and the bedroom is cooling off now :)

Tomorrow the a/c specific guys from the electrical/plumbing company I called are coming to check out the house unit. Hopefully a cheap fix.

Update-itis

2011-06-29T01:15:18Z

Well, the funeral went well - service was quick and the graveside stuff even quicker. Little to no seen drama - behind the scenes didn't matter to me :) Beloved spoiled niece went with, as did the friend who was spending the night with her. Niece asked to go by the cemetery where Mom and Dad are and took a picture of the gravestone and then we went to lunch.

As usual, I am irritated with my house. The central air is working, but not well - main part of the house is staying around 84 degrees. With fans, this was livable until the other day when the bedroom a/c unit decided to start messing up. It keeps tripping the breaker and turning off. The fuse box is outside. But right now, it's just off because it won't stay going long enough to do any good. Electrician who rewired the house is coming tomorrow. And I have yet another water leak, so brother has turned the water off, until his friend can come over tomorrow morning and fix it.

So, it's kind of hot, I can't even take a cold shower, and I need to try to *not* go to the bathroom. Lovely. I think I'll be going out to the gym for a swim, a shower, and a bathroom run later on.

{sigh}

Down to one

2011-06-24T06:09:56Z

Dad was the youngest of 10 children - eight of whom grew to adults. Not exactly sure when the two girls who didn't live died. For the past few years, it's been my Uncle Joe, who's in his mid-80's, and my aunt Ophelia, who was either 89 or 90. Now it's just Uncle Joe. Ophelia died today, well, yesterday - one of her daughters is the cousin whose son sued Mom's estate and then my brother.

I'm... reflective. I didn't know her well and don't feel like I've lost much of anything, but still, she was family and she was 90. Mostly I think I wish I had asked her about what Dad was like back then. Though whether or not I'd get the truth is up in the air - Cousin has told me stories that were later refuted by other relatives. I wouldn't mind getting hold of her photo albums to see if there were any pictures of Dad though - I've got lots of Mom, but not many of Dad. Though that could just be that there weren't many.

Hopefully everything will proceed with a minimum of drama. ::hopes::

so...

2011-05-28T04:56:44Z

I got internet Thursday morning. Thursday evening I missed a call from the computer guy, who said my computer was there, they were putting it together and he needed to come by and get my hard drive.

Friday morning, bad storms, but I still headed out to lunch with a friend. Got home to a dead new modem - and a dead netbook. And later in the evening, when I was coming back in, there was a power company truck in my driveway. Apparently the lightning hit the transformer across the street - I'm on a different one, so I didn't lose power, but it looks like it hitting so close sent it through my phone line and fried some stuff. Luckily it didn't also take out the new phone set-up I got the other day.

Computer guy came and got the HD, went and migrated the data, then came back and installed the new computer. Which we couldn't finish setup on, because dead modem. So I called AT&T - because I called so late, my order wouldn't go out immediately and it was the weekend and a holiday, so the order would go out Tuesday and I'd probably get the modem by Thursday. Yeah, they overnighted the other one, so why not this one?

So I went out to Best Buy and bought a damn modem. When the AT&T one comes, I'll stick it in a closet :) And I still ended up calling them again, because I couldn't get an internet connection. But one of the tech's suggestions was changing out the DSL phone line - which worked! Internet! OMG!

And the computer is cool - part is see through and there's a neon blue thing that looks like a hot plate, but is actually the cooling unit :) I'm not going to type in all the specs, just know it's bad ass :)

But now I need a new netbook {sigh}.