fubar with postwar miracles

Starbuck had to have another mast cell tumor removed today. A very small one - we caught it very early - but still, the second surgery in about 6 months. She's home and dozing. Since this one was on her inner back leg, she's kind of having a rough time moving around. She ate a bit (I had to feed her from the dog food can with a spoon, but she did eat) and drinks some water when I offer it to her (and by offer it, I mean hold the bowl up to her face area), but what she seems to mostly want is someone to curl up next to.

(I had a great-uncle who used to say he hoped to be reincarnated as a dog living in a member of our family's household. We should all be so lucky.)

Stressful week at work, and then this weekend was stressful too, both with the dog, and with the beginning of soccer season. The boy is both playing and refereeing. So he had to be at the field at 8 am to ref, came home long enough to change jerseys and socks, and then back to the field by 10:30 to play. Then home again long enough to grab some water and back out to another field for official opening day pictures. By the time we got home we were sweaty, sunburned, and exhausted. His dad is hanging out at the games he's refereeing for a few weeks, just in case he runs into any crazy parents. This is a relief. For all his faults, I'm pretty sure the boy's dad wouldn't hesitate to stick up for the kid to a parent going nuts over a call.

I'm going to have a nice glass of sangria and then crash. A meme is just what I need right now so I don't have to think.


1. What kind of soap is in your bathtub right now?
Tea Tree body wash from Trader Joe's. It's cheap and it smells good.

2. Do you have any watermelon in your refrigerator?
Ick, no. Not a big melon fan.

3. Is there anything moldy in your refrigerator?
Cleaned out the fridge today - I'm pretty sure I got it all...

What happened to #4?
It moved back home with it's parents.

5. What would you change about your living room?
The carpet's reaching the end of it's useful life. I'm undecided as to whether I want new carpet or wood floors, though. I love the look of wood floors, but I suspect the dog would slip and slide on it. Plus, this house is already prone to temperature extremes, and wood floors would just make the winters feel colder. Also, I'd like to get a custom-made shelving unit for the teevee, X-Box, and other sundry entertainment electronics.

6. Are the dishes in your dishwasher clean or dirty?
The dishwasher is currently running, so...a little of both, I guess?

7. Do you have a can of mushrooms in your pantry?
No. Again, ick.

8. White or wheat/brown bread?
Wheat, most of the time.

9. What is on top of your refrigerator?
A bunch of dusty junk that needs to go.

10. What color is your sofa?
Dark blue with light blue accents.

11. What color or design is on your shower curtain?
The shower in my bathroom has a glass door. In the boy's, the shower curtain is a blue dot pattern.

12. How many plants are in your home?
The only plants inside are in the fish tank. Outside - a couple of tomato plants, a pumpkin plant that is struggling for life, a grape vine that grows and grows but rarely fruits, a clipping from the beau's neighbor's raspberry bush, a small orange tree, a huge bamboo-ish tree that will have to be cut down soon, and a bouganvilla that's going to eat the house someday.

13. How many candles are in your home?
Too many to count. >.>;;

14. Is your bed made right now?
Kind of. The sheets are on it. It's not, like, neat or anything though.

15. If you have a coffee pot, what color is it?
No coffee pot, but a copper-bottom kettle for boiling water.

16. Electric or standard can opener?
Standard.

17. Comet or Soft Scrub?
Vinegar and baking soda, because of science.

18. Is your closet organized?
Not terribly, no.

19. What color is the flashlight that you use the most?
Silver

20. What kinds of things are in your junk drawer?
Scissors, craft supplies, wrapping tissue, instructions for kitchen electronics, and candles.

21. Do you drink out of glass or plastic most of the time at home?
About 50/50

22. Do you have iced tea made in a pitcher right now?
Yep, made some today.

23. If you have a garage, is it cluttered?
Deeply. The beau has adopted the work bench, so there's also a lot of sawdust around.

24. Curtains or blinds?
Blinds, which I am starting to get sick of, tbh.

25. How many pillows do you sleep with?
Two

26. Do you sleep with any lights on at night?
Nope.

27. How many ceiling fans are in your home?
Five, I think...living room, bedrooms, yeah...five.

28. How often do you vacuum?
As often as I can get the boy to do it. Vacuuming is his chore.

30. What color is your toothbrush?
Purple

31. Do you have a welcome mat on your front porch?
There's a mat, but it doesn't say "welcome" on it...does that count?

32. What is in your oven right now?
Nothing, just the racks. If I kept anything else in there I'd forget, turn the oven on to preheat, and then wonder what that weird smell was.

33. Is your microwave clean or dirty?
It could probably use a bit of sponge time.

34. Is there anything under your bed?
Stray feathers from the comforter.

35. Chore you hate doing the most?
The fish tank.

36. What retro items are in your home?
I have my grandmother's juicer in my kitchen. It sounds like a jet engine warming up and could probably get juice out of a bag of rocks.

37. Do you have a separate room that you use as an office?
Nope.

38. If you have a yard, who mows it?
I have a small back yard and a smaller front yard, but no grass between the two. The only grass here is in the common areas, so the Association mows it.

39. Is there anything on your kitchen floor right now?
Dog bowls for food and water. Probably a couple of footprints.

40. How many mirrors are in your home?
Thhh...three? Yes. Three.

41. Do you have any hidden emergency money around your home?
This hilariously assumes there's any money left over after paying bills and buying food and gas.

42. What color are your walls?
Off-white. Could be time for a change.

43. Which rooms in your house have wallpaper?
None. There was some ghastly shit in the laundry room when we bought the place, but I had the painters remove it with extreme prejudice.

44. Do you have a peephole in your front door?
Yep.

45. Do you keep any kind of protection weapons in your home?
Just the dog. Wait - there might be a couple of baseball bats in the garage.

46. What does your home smell like right now?
A little like rain...

47. Favorite candle scent?
Vanilla

48. What kind of pickles (if any) are in your refrigerator right now?
Once more: ick. None. Because, ick.

49. Who are in the pictures you displayed?
The boy, my parents, my aunt and her wife, my grandparents and older relatives, and several of my friends.

50. What color is your favorite bible?
Well. This is an awkward question for an agnostic.

51. Do you have plenty of cabinet space in your kitchen?
Yes. Too much crap, but plenty of cabinet space.

52. Ever been on your roof?
No. Pretty sure that sort of thing is against my CCRs.

53. Do you own a stereo?
Yes, but I don't think it actually works anymore.

54. How many TVs do you have?
Just the one. The boy wants one in his room, but I don't want my electric bill to triple.

55. How many house phones?
One that doesn't work terribly well.

56. Do you have a housekeeper?
HAhaha, no. Like I can afford one.

57. What style do you decorate in?
I don't know - geek chic?

58. Do you like solid colors in furniture or prints?
Solids for the most part, depends on the print.

59. Is there a smoke detector in your home?
Yes - six, maybe? I'm pretty sure we have to have them here by law.

60. In case of fire, what are the items you would grab if you only could make one quick trip?
The dog, the boy, and the X-box (to keep the boy happy).

61. Do you know how to work your electrical box?
Sort of, but it's on the exterior wall that faces the neighbor's yard, so it is, shall we say, hard to get to.

62. What temperature in your home is most comfortable to you?
78ish in summer, 72ish in winter.