Domestic Geek

I ran across an article today that mentioned something about how you can tell whether a blog is good or bad by the amount of comments it has. The author's premise is that if a blog is not generating a conversation, then it's bad. I'm getting so sick of reading stuff like that. There are as many reasons for blogs to exist as there are people that have them. You can't declare a blog to be wrong or bad just because it doesn't fit into some preconceived notion of what a blog "should" be. If someone wants to have conversation, be popular and have tons of traffic, so be it. I don't really care if people read this or not. I blog for my own personal reasons. If I'm not interesting to others, so be it.

I was told at work today that they are interviewing a new preflighter tomorrow and if they hire this person, I'll have to give up my archiving room duties. I know I should be happy because it means I'm almost a full-fledged prepress operator, but at the same time I'm sad and almost angry that "my room" is going to be under the control of someone else. I like working back there. Not only does it give me a chance to get away from everyone for a while, it breaks up the monotony of being on the computer for a straight 8-hour shift. I've worked damn hard to get that place in order and it is the closest thing I'll ever have working there to having my own space. I'm sure it will all be fine in the end, I'm just a little bit of a control freak and I have to not let my perfectionism not get in the way of advancing my career. That said, I hope if this person is a woman that I can tolerate her. I personally can't take another woman in the department that I can't stand (I have a really hard time getting along with a lot of women - females for the most part really annoy me).

Well, I guess I'd better head off to bed. I always end up staying up too late on Thursdays because I really hate working Fridays. It ends up being the most stupid and draining day of the week. The energy in the department is always negative and yucky on Fridays due to the nature of our business and the particular supervisor that runs the shift. It's also not a payday Friday, which is worse.

I've got quilting and decorating to look forward to this weekend, though. We're supposed to get a little snow tomorrow, but I hope it's not a lot. I'd like to get the rest of my lights up this weekend and be done with it. We're going to go cut our tree on the 8th, so I'd like to have everything else done before that. We're hosting the annual Christmas Eve party for our friends and I vowed I would not save shopping, decorating and baking until the very last minute like I always do. I actually purchased the fudge-making supplies while I was out today.

I bought How the Grinch Stole Christmas today at the iTunes store with some of my birthday credits. I wish they had more classic Christmas stuff on there.

Dang, just realized I forgot to do Thursday Thirteen yet again. Thanksgiving seems like it was just yesterday — how did a whole week go by already?

I checked out the weather forecast before bed last night. I knew a cold front was coming in and we'd be nowhere near yesterday's mid-60 temps, but I opened my door to leave for work this morning to snow! The weathercasters on the radio were, "Oops, we totally didn't see that coming." No shit, Sherlock. Of course, it also happens to be the same day I left my phone at work the day previously, so I couldn't even call to say I'd be late. Since nobody expecting it nor was ready for it, the streets were yucky. Sheer ice in some spots. As per typical Colorado, it warmed up enough that the drive was absolutely no problem for Marcus a couple of hours later.

Every year I try to find an ornament that signifies something special that happened the previous year. I haven't been able to do it due to finances the last couple of years, but I hit the Hallmark store today to see what I could get for this year. I didn't find squat. I was thinking something to do with knitting since I finally learned how. No dice. Nothing really signified a full time with benefits job. Other than that, no major milestones happened this year. Well, except for having to put our beloved Skippy down, but who wants an ornament to remember that?

I have noticed a lot of ornaments from various manufacturers out for A Christmas Story this year. I thought maybe it was a 25th anniversary thing or something, but according to IMDB, the movie came out in 1983.

I agreed to go into work today, but I couldn't make myself get out of bed. When I finally got going and started driving, I really couldn't do it. Yesterday was a really trying day and I really didn't want anything to do with that place. I got as far as I-225/Parker Rd., then decided I was going to go check out the new location of a quilt store in Parker that I used to frequent instead. I called my supervisor and asked if it was OK if I came in tomorrow instead and then I continued on. The store I was going to is called High Prairie Quilts. I originally found this store way back when I worked at AutoZone and I used to have to drive the parts truck to Parker to deliver filters and junk to this one mechanic. The quilt store was in the same shopping center and I'd stop in and browse if I didn't feel like going back to work right away. I would tell my manager that traffic was really bad if he asked what took so long, and as that was the case on a lot of days, it didn't hurt to use it. One day when I went down there looking for something in particular, they were no longer there. I didn't think anything more about it until I started working where I am now. We actually print their newsletter, so I had their new address and made a mental note that if I ever had to go by that area again, I would stop in.

I found a pattern for a table runner that I really want to do, but except for three fabrics, they didn't have what I wanted. This started one of my "Toodles." This is what Marcus calls my little treks that takes me all over town, the state or into another state (as one trip took me to Wyoming). I used to do it so frequently that Marcus would joke with me after I'd had a day off about what state my "Toodle" had taken me to today. Since my periods of underemployment hit a couple of years ago and the soaring gas prices continue to rise, I've not allowed myself to take such trips. It felt really good to just drive about.

After Parker, I hit Holly's Quilt Cabin at Holly and County Line Rd. I then went to The Creative Needle over on Broadway (South of Arapahoe). There is also a JoAnn's in that shopping center, so I hit that and all quilting notions were 50% off! I got myself a quilting square and a mini iron that I've been wanting for over 10 years and never allowed myself to get. I then went to Fabric Expressions on Platte River Drive and Bowles, but they were no longer there. The website is still up, but I don't know whether the store closed or moved. After lunch at Wendy's, I continued on to Harriet's Treadle Arts in Wheat Ridge over on 44th, between Wadsworth and Sheridan. I checked out the Pointsettias and other holiday goods at Paulino Gardens. My final stop was Heirloom Treasures' new location up at 136th & Huron. I wanted to make a stop at The Great American Quilt Factory over on Hampden & Tamarac, but by this time I was tired and I wanted to do was head home. I'll hit that one on my way home from work tomorrow. I think that's everywhere I went. I may have made a couple of other stops, but I'm not remembering at the moment.

While I was at Paulino Gardens, I saw the most pretty purple Pointsettias. There were also some navy blue ones. I was curious as to how they bred such a color, touched a leaf to inspect it and ended up with purple dye or paint all over my thumb and index finger. Yeah, these things are white plants that are airbrushed or something. Yuck. I would've realized that if I had seen the neon pink, blue or orange ones I came across later. I didn't get any yet because they're still a little pricey. I know if I wait until closer to Christmas or go to Lowes or Home Depot, I can get them cheaper.

It became official this evening that Marcus and I are hosting the annual Christmas Eve get-together. I've got a lot to do between now and Christmas to get ready, especially if I want to actually finish this table runner I got today. I'm also making a Christmas theme for the blog that I hope to have live next Saturday (since I totally never finished my fall theme). Guess I'd better head to bed so I can get to work tomorrow and then get cracking on holiday stuff.

I hope everyone had a relaxing and happy day of thanksgiving. I've got so much to be thankful for lately and with a little bit of work on my part, I will have so much more. I'm working on a Thursday Thirteen post about the things I'm thankful for, but I'll probably not get that posted until tomorrow. I was just reading the posts I did about Thanksgiving from last year and from 2005 and my life is changing so dramatically since those years. I'm definitely growing and making forward progress.

I did decide that I'm never offering to work my entire normal shift on Thanksgiving again. We didn't end up eating until after 6 pm and I hate eating a big meal that late. The cool thing about working today was the lack of traffic. I sure wish I could get to work that easily every morning.

It probably goes without saying, but the table runner didn't get finished. In fact, I didn't dig out most of my Thanksgiving decorations, either. It's been such a crazy, busy time. I did vow that I'm going to have it for next year, though, so I'm not going to pack it away and will get it done soon.

OK, I'm off to watch the CSI I recorded this evening and then I'll be off to bed.

Heh, I totally did what I said I wasn't going to do yesterday. I racked up almost 5 hours of OT today. I had a project that was kicking my ass and I wanted to see it through to completion. Partially because I love a challenge and didn't want it to beat me and partially because it was a real learning experience. What sucks is the files that were submitted shouldn't have been allowed. They were everything that a PDF for print shouldn't be (RGB, missing fonts, low resolution images), but we were told to make it work. Frustrating.

I did make it to the liquor store to get the orange liqueur I needed for my cranberry recipe. I also splurged and got myself a six pack of Michelob.

I've baked my pumpkin pies and am in the middle of a cheesecake. Marcus is going to put the turkey in the oven for me while I'm at work. I'm not sure if I'll put in my full shift tomorrow. Turns out the supervisor working is not one of my favorites. We'll see how busy we are and how crazy she makes me.