I like these cookies so-ho-ho much!

Finally found my favorite cookies at the local Kroger store (Fred Meyer).  YAY!

Pepperidge Farms' Brussels Mint cookies used to be available all year 'round, but somewhere in the late 2000s (or early 201x's), they discontinued it.  My favorite cookie. Gone!  

I was thrilled some 5 or so years ago when it returned as a seasonal cookie.  But then...

It seemed to disappear for another year, two, maybe more.  All I know is it seems like it's been a few years since I last saw them, but yesterday at a quick stop in to the grocery store...

Hooray! A Christmas miracle!  My favorite cookie was back this season!  I  had to buy a few extra. I'll treasure them throughout 2024 (and I may go see if they're still there tomorrow to buy more to stock up so I don't have to be as careful about making them last).

Merry Holiday!

I (Really) Like Coming Home

So we (husband, dog, me) made it 1.5 years living back in the desert.  It was absolutely miserable, alrhough sone things were tolerable. 2020 had nothing on 2021 for challenges. I look back on my March 2021 post and marvel at all that has happened since then, so much we had no idea was going to hit, the least of which was my Mom dying unexpectedly. So many changes. When times were tough, my Mom always said, "Just think of where you'll be a year from now and this will all be over."  I had no idea.

At any rate, while the new job was okay, I had to get a different  job so I could get back to the green. The new job is okay so far, too. It's remote and mostly pays the bills.

So in late September, after starting the new job and saying goodbye to the old job and the cursed desert, we moved back to the green.   After much soul searching (and house searching), we decided to be house-poor for a year to try to heal from the trauma of frequent days over 110 degrees and living in the moonscape that is the Nevada desert *shudder*.  Not being able to leave our apartment and enjoy the outdoors for the last 1.5 years due to the ridiculous storms, dust, pollution, and heat has also caused some serious weight gain for us.  It is time to recover and regain our health!

So we're now happily ensconced in a beach house in the PNW for a year of recovery & zen!  Rent is far too much money and it's costing savings, but sometimes, especially after environmental trauma, you just have to suck it up and treat yourself! (YOLO, you know?)

And so we did.  I do so like coming home!

(Photo: Our living room view of the ocean on a rainy day.)

I love the Green outdoors!

It's been awhile and a LOT has happened since I last wrote.  We changed our puppy adoption to a foster (long story), then returned him to the rescue after we gave him loads of love, play, and a little training - along with all his shots and neuter.  And he found a forever home!  He'll always be my puppy baby though.

Since then, we adopted a goofy, sweet, and seriously neurotic Chihuahua girl, and she's been with us for 2 years now.

In 2019, we moved from the desert back to the Green.  Finally!  I have loved every minute of living in this climate again!  It also kept me sane (ish) through 2020 LOL!  But 2020, the bastard,  kept us unable to go out camping, hiking, to the beach, and generally enjoy the outdoors like we had planned.  But at least I can look out my window and see trees, and step outside and smell fress. cool, pine-y air, sweet grass, and flora with that beautiful silvery overcast sky like a soft blanket protecting and shielding us from the harsh sun. Everywhere I look, color abounds, and when the sky us occasionally blue, every plant gives a show rejoicing - it's novel to actually enjoy the sun instead of rue it!  I love this place.  It owns my heart.

And so, here we are in a nearly empty apartment, getting ready to move back to the desert.  I'm excited about why (new job), but not so much about where.

So today, my last day here, I'm just going to commune with nature a bit (although it's freezing out haha), so I can take that Green, securely stowed away in my memories, locked in my heart, with me.

(Pics taken from my little porch.)

I Like My Puppy!

We recently adopted a puppy from a local rescue group. This has reminded us that the word puppy is also a verb!

(Our very sweet and absolutely perfect Peppy boy I wrote about adopting some years ago died last November from old age - we think 18 years old-ish - congestive heart failure.  We will love him forever!)

This guy is Rigby! (His name always has an exclamation point at the end.)  We had his DNA tested.  You can clearly see that he's mostly Australian Cattle Dog (43%) (aka Blue Heeler), but he's also got some German Shepherd Dog (12%), Labrador Retriever (11%), Collie (7%), Cocker Spaniel (6)%, Chow Chow (3%) and 18% Other (we think maybe pirahna).



He's adorable and smart - and an absolute monster (who is super sweet - when he's sleeping)!  Overall, though, he's a Good Boy (when he's not throwing bitey temper tantrums because he's sleepy).  I like him. #puppylove 😍

This is him at 10 weeks.

This is him at 12 weeks. It's amazing how quickly he's growing and his colors are darkening up just as expected (#heelerthing).

And here he is at 14 weeks. One ear is trying to pop up - they might both stand up at some point (Heeler, Shepherd?) - or not (Lab, Collie, Cocker?).  They are rounded and super furry, silky soft!

I like rad hair color

Yup, still alive on this blog, just having some pauses now and again with posts.  And to keep the spirit alive, today's likeable stuff is my iridescent hair color.  Purple is prevalent, but there's also blue, teal and pink.  Also, because I'm old, I think it's rad, which is to say:  I like it. <3

It's been how long?!

So much time has passed since my last post.   It's not because I stopped liking things.  No, it's just, you know, life.  I still need to find and share likeable stuff, though - it makes me happy, so here we are!

Oh, and here's a pic if the Pacific ocean near Eureka, California on a glorious, cloudy, rainy, windy, chilly Spring day.  Loved it!

I Love the Rain

I was born amd raised in the Arizona desert.  The sun is relentless: 360 days a year of miserable scorching, drying,  hardening, blinding sun. 

Just weeks after finishing high school in 1991, on a whim with my (now long since ex-) boyfriend, we moved to Oregon (he had family there).  There was no Internet to research it - the only thing I knew about Oregon was from the month of April in a horse calendar I'd had as a little girl (we do all love horses, after all).  It was a pretty photograph of a bay running in a green field with trees shadowing the forefront of the image.

I got there in July.   It was beautiful.  It was GREEN full of life and vivid colors, (although sunny, but that was a norm to me).  We lived in the country with his family until we could find work and move out (took a few months but we did).  In late August it started raining.  It just rained.  Nothing dramatic too often, just... rain.   Wet.  All the time.  The air was moist and cool.  I was in love (although I could live without the 3 or so weeks of ice and smattering of snow each Winter). The rain stopped sometime in late June the following year.  I missed it and the silvery skies that were a balm to my soul.

I lived in that beautiful, rainy Eden for 20 years until the Universe bade me return to Arizona where I remain still dreaming of the steady, encompassing, comforting rain and shimmering clouds, trying to get my memories to blot out the present horrible, incessant sun and the empty blue sky that is everywhere...

It rains in Arizona briefly during the monsoon season at the end of each summer, but these rains don't speak of comfort and life.  Rather, just as everything in the desert, the rain is violent.  It reviles anything beautiful, delicate, or loving.  It lashes out in downpours and hail to flood, drown, and break whatever it can.  Arizona rain isn't a balm.  It isn't soothing or a comfort bequeathing life to the land.  No, it's a torrential downpour which will kill you if it can from which we must flee and hide.  It is every bit as sinister as the sun.

In my time in Oregon, I met many people who were depressed due to Seasonal Affective Disorder (SAD).  10 months of rain isn't for everyone, but it is for me.  They needed sun.  I always recommended Arizona to sear away their ailment.   I think I have the same -- but in reverse.  The sun is depressive due to being oppressive.

I love the rain. 

I've been back in Arizona for just over 6 years now.  It feels like a lifetime. When my dad for whom I was caring in Az died 2.5 years ago (the main reason I moved back), I thought I could finally escape the desert and return to my liquid utopia.  The desert doesn't forgive, though.  It doesn't seem to be done with me, yet.

I'm still looking for work to get back up there where my soul still lives.   Need min. 80k a year +health ins. in a permanent position.  I'm a fantastic technical program manager, data analyst and project manager with an MS in Info Mgmt & a PMP who admins an SAP system on MS SQL Server platform. I'm not a DBA, but I have skills.  I've had interviews, but no go.  I get nervous despite practicing.  There always seems to be someone who meshes better and I don't make it in all the way.  I'm too geeky often times -oddly enough.  Too much of a comedienne for my own good.  But I like to laugh and play while I work!  Or I tone down and then I make no impression, or something, I guess (I've asked for feedback - I'm always told I was fine, but someone else was a better fit).  

The right thing will happen when it's supposed to, I just wish it would hurry. .. but not in the Winter.  I actually hate snow more than sun and the thought if having to move aka drive through those snowy mountain passes is terrifying.  I don't like to travel (that rules out consulting gigs).

But I'm not really desperate.  I have a great job I like most of the time with a lot of flexibility and benefits (telecommuting isn't one of them, though, so I can't move away), I have a beautiful little home.  I have my love and my life (my husband) beside me. We have our sweet dog, food and air conditioning.  Life is good; I'm actually not complaining.  I just miss the steady rain, the green everywhere, and being coddled and bouyed by the trees -- I'm just in the very wrong geographical location for my spirit. 

I love the rain.

I love staying in pajamas all day!

Hahahaha!   Just thought I'd throw that one out there.   I do, indeed, love being in pajamas all day!   Don't you?  😆

I Like Flowers

Yes, yes, yes, I know.  It's been awhile since I posted last.  Well, sometimes a lot of stuff happens and it takes a bit to get settled down.  Today, I'm settled enough for another post about likeable stuff!

I like flowers.  They're pretty and fresh.  Carnations are my favorite.  Each week when I go to the grocery store, I buy a little something.  I don't have much money to spend on extras, but they do make me happy.  

I picked up a bouquet from Whole Foods that has lasted over a week now!  It's got lilies, a gerbera daisy, a carnation, a spray of mini carnations, a rose, some small mums and a big spider mum along with some greenery.  Gorgeous!

Yesterday, I picked up some tulips while at Safeway.  They're so cheerful I have to smile!

I like how time flies (sometimes)

I can't believe that over a year has passed since my last post!  Really?!  I guess time flies when life happens!  In the interim, I've managed end of life care for my elderly father (it's almost a year now since he passed away), had my gall bladder removed, baked endless batches of cookies, have had an ongoing home drama that has yet to be resolved, completed another incredibly busy 60+ hr work week for 5 months budget season, attended a great conference, become involved in several projects both personally and privately and tried to regain balance that feels like it was lost somewhere along the way.

But looking back here is a poignant reminder that no matter what's happening in life, time marches on.  I like that, somehow.  It means bad stuff will eventually fade yet also means that good stuff may be fleeting.  Live, love, laugh (as the pithy meme sign says).  Or, find comfort in Winston Churchill's words about something like "if you find you're going through hell,  keep going."  Or maybe Steve Miller said it best with "Time keeps on slipping, slipping, slipping... into the future..."

I Like the Notion of Learning to Code

I've always been intimidated by coding because, well, programming isn't exactly my strong-point.  I always feel like I'm only sort of understanding all of the slippery syntax.  I know enough pseudo-code to break things down into logical sequences and tasks, enough SQL to take care of my queries in Microsoft SQL Management Studio and enough VB to figure out what macros are doing, and that's pretty much it.  But, as I get older, I find that I want to expand my options both in the technology industry and in professional growth, particularly after completing a Masters in Info Management program and now that I'm looking for career opportunities.  So, when I came across this Code.org promotional video today, it just seemed like providence.  This is just the catalyst to get started!

I Like My New Vacuum Vroom Vroom!

I gave my somewhat average Hoover vacuum to my Dad as his was a complete piece of junk that couldn't even suck up lint.  So today, my husband and I went out and invested in a new one to replace our old one.
 
 We got this Shark model NV502 (click there for a video that shows all the cool stuff).

Photo from Bed, Bath & Beyond

So far so good; we're impressed with its power and versatility.  Overall, it consistently had very high reviews everywhere we looked.  The negative reviews for it said that it was top heavy and inclined to fall over when using the attachments.  We found that yeah, that can happen, but it's not a big deal because it's also overall lightweight, so big whoop - pick it up if it falls over.  And, if you bother to put it into the included wheeled base cart which turns it into a canister vac, then that takes care of that whole falling over issue, anyway.  Meh, the negatives with this machine are ultimately meaningless, while the positives are truly tangible - you can see how well this machine works immediately with dust, dirt, hair and lint -- and the air filters work great as the exchange vent blows out clean air instead of dust.  It is a lean, mean cleaning machine!

While not cheap, it was considerably less than the high-end models like Dyson and such, and had fabulous reviews everywhere we looked.  We bought it at Bed, Bath & Beyond for $250 in addition to the 20% off coupon, so 200 bones (plus a pile of tax because AZ has ginormous sales tax).  Not too shabby for a vacuum that I think works as well as the $600 ones, though.  Hopefully we won't need to buy another one anytime soon because the expenses really hit this month -- I also need new tires, my 40K tune-up, and car insurance renewals are due. 

That reminds me... I need to go buy a lottery ticket!

I Like My Tardis Minihub

Hubster got me this awesome Tardis mini hub from www.thinkgeek.com, my most favoritest place to shop aside from Zappos and Amazon.  I have it at work.  Already, one or more of my coworkers has appended it with wicked sticky notes - so far no one will fess up. ..

I Like That I Can Post From My Phone

Well,  I finally installed the Google Blogger app for my phone, which by the way, I still love - especially various responses from people ranging from horror to wonder and bad "she said" jokes a la:  Your phone is so big!

Anway, he's my first phone post.   It's been pretty easy so far!  Awesome!

I Super Like My New Phone and Case!

So, I went out with the hubster this last weekend when our contract was up with T-mobile and bought new cell phones and month-to-month plans at Verizon.  I'm just so over contracts.  And T-mobile, you were nice and all, but you were totally incapable of fixing the issue that we had no reception -- and our wifi stank -- in our new condo.  Since we decided that we weren't going to sell our home so that our phones would work, we requested to end our contracts early and please waive the termination fee; it should work in our area and doesn't.

And then we were denied due to them not being able to read the address on the copy of my driver's license that I faxed (you had to fax - couldn't email - or even talk to someone in customer relations; yes, you read that right -- no customers may have direct contact with customer relations). So, they sent us a letter in the mail, to our address, to say that they couldn't verify our address because they couldn't read the fax.  Um... you just mailed us a letter to our home.  At our address.

Anyway, I went and printed off a utility bill (we do all paperless so that was extra effort) and faxed that in, instead.  Waited a few weeks for processing, and then were denied again saying they'd like to try troubleshooting.  Um, yeah, what part of WE'VE BEEN WORKING WITH TECHS TRYING TO TROUBLESHOOT FOR A YEAR NOW did you miss in our original letter?  And why can't I call you?  And why won't you call me so we can talk and I can at least vent to an appropriate party instead of the poor person on the general "customer service" number who also can't contact customer relations (service is different from relations, apparently)?

So, well, we just suffered for a year, then as soon as we entered the last 6 months of the contract where we'd be paying the princely sum (as opposed to the kingly sum) of termination fee of $100 per line (dammit - ouch!), we just sucked it up and paid the fu***** fees (I'll get a tax return soon, right?).  It's more important to have phones that work.  If I'm paying $130/month, it better be useful.   Buh - Bye.

But, I've been dealing with the negative aspect of contracts for the last 5 years.  Prior to T-mobile it was Verizon who refused to work with us on getting a different phone from the Blackberry that was terrible and that was refurbished 4 times for my husband; we begged - just give us some kind of near equivalent that's not Blackberry, please - that was a $500 phone that randomly reset itself all the time and took 5 minutes to boot up and was majorly buggy in the software; we hated it, but didn't have the money to buy another phone.   They refused.

And, while Verizon customer service was equally as impotent as T-mobile's, they actually weren't as nice.  So, said buh-bye to Verizon, and paid the early termination fees back then, too.  Well, I'm done with contracts now.  But this post isn't about cell phone contracts, it's about my SUPER AWESOME new phone and things I LIKE!

After those experiences, I decided that all cell carriers were pretty much apathetic toward the customer experience (read - alignment:  lawful evil), and that it didn't much matter what carrier we had as long as: a) it worked in our home, and b) it had cool phones that we liked.  So, back to Verizon we are -- but without a contract.  Yes, we paid a lot for the phones, and maybe we could have saved a little (something like a net of $20/saved per phone considering all fees) if we had gone with the 2 yr contract, gotten the discount price on the phones, and then decided to leave and pay the cancellation fee, but I'm done with all that bureacratic mumbo jumbo -- I have neither the time nor the energy to sink into that kind of hassle.  Again.  So, the phone... Right...

I not only like this phone, I think I just may be in love with it -- or at least infatuated.  I have a new Samsung Galaxy Note II.  Okay, so it's too big to fit in the cell phone pocket in my purse, but it freakin' rocks!

It's super fast for everything, has the awesome note feature with the light pen, the virtual keyboard has the numbers there and you can hold the button for symbols on the letter keys (a feature missing from the other Samsung phones) so you don't have to hit the stupid symbol button to go to new screens, the battery  lasts an eternity, and best -- my aging eyes can see everything effortlessly! Oh!  Oh!  And my husband and I have been having fun exchanging files and photos with the S-Beam feature where we just touch our phones together.  Did I mention he got one, too?

I got it in the gorgeous white color (and it also comes in a brushed gunmetal dark grey type of color), but I also got a cover for it because until I get a new purse (that probably won't happen too soon after this purchase), I have to toss it into my existing one and didn't want it to get damaged or full of purse gunk (ladies, you know what I'm talking about -- how does all that grunge end up in the bottom of the purse, anyway?!).  I actually wanted the white cover to keep the stylish clean look, but they were out, so I got the light blue.  It's so cool -- no one else has a light blue phone.  Here's what it looks like (the back is a full replacement cover that's all sleek and blue and snaps right on in lieu of the original backside):

  http://www.samsung.com/us/mobile/cell-phones-accessories/EFC-1G6FLEGSTA 

Isn't it beautiful?

Hubster got an Otter Box case for his:   OtterBox Samsung Galaxy Note 2 Commuter Series Glacier Case - 77-24002 (Google Affiliate Ad)

I am so impressed with this amazing new toy productivity tool.  My only complaint is the cost.  Yes, these are incredibly expensive at around $700 each for the non-contract cost, so we're paying the handset insurance for both of them, which increases our bill by about $15/month.  That stinks, but it is feature rich, very pretty, sleek and powerful.  I like it, yes I do!

I like when I can work from home

I really love the days when I can work from home.  I am a total homebody, and I think that sometimes I'm actually much more productive working from home.  Of course, today I'm blogging, but I technically am taking today off as a vacation day, so the fact that I already spent an hour on work-related tasks means that I'm ahead of the curve. 

I'm one of two data analyst administrators of the SAP BPC system for my employer.  It's not particularly exciting, but it's a good job that I can often perform remotely.  In fact, my team-mate works 100% from home as he lives several hours away from the job site.  I, therefore, get stuck as the on-site person, which is kind of a bummer as I would love, I mean LOVE, to telecommute full time.  Of course, I do present trainings to system end-users and so must be in person occasionally, but I actually enjoy that.  But all of the documentation, creation of instructional material, website content composition, work with data, and system administration can be all be done remotely. 

Plus, I have a 40 minute highway commute back and forth to work every day and I hate driving when other people are on the road (which is most of the time).  At home, I have no children, no distractions and a gorgeous view. Oh, I suppose the husband and the dog do demand a small amount of attention, but it's negligible and they know to leave me alone when I'm working. ;-)

Ah well, that door hasn't quite opened up for me, yet, although I keep looking for a crack.  For now, I'll just savor these moments.

Here's my view of about 5 miles south of home.  Or condo is near that mountain.  It's a beautiful setting; I wish I could spend more time there.

I Really Like My New Shoes!

Last week I ordered a pair of Clarks Lexi Sycamore Slides in Brown, Size 7, from www.JCPenney.com.  They are totally awesome!  And kudos to Macy's where I tried them on, but they didn't have brown in stock and they didn't even have the model of shoe available online - so, hey, had to go to www.JCPenney.com.  So, sorry Macy's, but I did buy 4 new pairs of shoes from in-store as retail therapy for my pain and stress (see my Cat and Dog blog, if curious about that), so I don't feel too bad. :-)  Anyway, the shoes!

Photo from www.jcpenney.com

As you can see, they are cute.  Yeah, okay, so the picture only shows one shoe, but there are two in the pair.  Really.  And the other one's for the other foot, even!  So, even though the picture shows just one shoe, I actually got two shoes -- one for each foot.  But what a deal!  Two shoes for the price of one shoe!

What you can't see is that they are super lightweight.  They also fit my foot perfectly and I have a wider front of my foot with a high arch and a narrow heel.  Most regular width shoes are too narrow for the majority of my foot, but then when I get wide, my heel slips out of it all the time.  Shoes can be tough for me to find, but I love them anyway.

Plus, as you can see, they have a little bit of height on the bottom.  I'm only a bit over 5' tall.  And I have problems walking in heels.  As in, I wobble and will break my freakin' neck.  But these are almost wedgelike in their height-increasing-ness without looking clunky and like I'm trying too hard.  Not extreme like a wedge, but enough that I notice the lift (almost 2" on the heel and maybe 1" in front making the heel really only about a 1" heel?).  And since it's such a great feature, I'm going to mention again that they're lightweight -- which you can never get with a wedge, so this rocks.

Plus (yes!  another one!)  they're totally cushy.  As in, they're soft on the feet and cradle them, too.  I put my foot into it and it fits like a nice soft, supporting glove; I can wear them all day with no foot fatigue.  These shoes rock and I really like them.  A lot. :-)

I Like Homemade Tardises (Tardi??) with old-school video games inside! YESSSS!!!

I so wish that I could do stuff like this, but I do not have the shop skills (and I never liked shop class, either), nor do I have the electronic skills (although I'd really like to learn more about that), and I really don't have the time.  But this kind of stuff is so damn cool, and of course being a huge sci-fi geek, I love Dr. Who, and I've always had a crush on the Tardis - it's alive, you know...

From  http://www.asciimation.co.nz/tardis/   

I like my house.

Yup, I like my house.  I don't spend nearly enough time in it, but I like it. We bought a little 2 bedroom condo in January 2012.  After paint, new carpet, new window blinds and new kitchen countertop, it's definitely home!  I LOVE the paint color on the walls in the living room:  It's biscuit.  It looks a little tan or peachy in my computer monitor, but it's actually a mellow rich gold/deep ivory color, like French vanilla, that looks like inviting, comfortable, sunny and bright.  Paired with white crown moulding and 9 ft ceilings in swiss coffee and - it's home!  Hubster picked out the biscuit color (I picked out a cheesecake yellow for the bedroom and meh, I would have liked biscuit better!).  He is awesome and he makes it home, too. He can read my mind!  Seriously. This is the exact color I wanted!

I love being married and I love and adore my husband ♥

Happy second wedding anniversary, my Love! ♥  Two years (and a day - it took  me a bit to get to my blog) ago, I married the most wonderful man who complements me (and compliments me).  I am still incredibly happy and look forward to the years ahead with relish! (...And maybe some chocolate... but maybe not at the same time...)

We did it right and got married in Vegas, Baby!  Right here, at the Little White Wedding Chapel where Joan Collins and Michael Jordan were married.  Um... but maybe not to each other.  I think...