36!

So yesterday was my birthday.
I am 36 now.

What might I be doing on the first night of slumber as a 36 year old?

Not slumbering sadly, but instead up, looking at facebook, not doing work work or school work like I should be (why not be "productive")? Instead I am FINALLY blogging again after months.

Larry woke me up and now cramps are keeping me up, so i figured there is no time like the present to get present if you know what I mean.

the rest of summer was really very good. i worked a lot and then played on the weekends either at the pool, working in our yard, or going on bike rides with jes and angie b. it was seriously the most relaxing summer i have had in a long time because i didn't have some "project" that i was working on like my dissertation, a revision of my dissertation, finding a house, etc. even though we did work a BUNCH on our yard and such, it didn't feel as burdensome as some of those other projects. i feel like i got to spend time with friends more than i had in a while and that was really nice. i guess that was my "project" this summer: learn how to relax and connect with friends. good one, dt.

horace is scampering across the floor like a sidewinder snake. i think he is hopped up on catnip. we celebrate his bday with mine. we are both libras. then we celebrate larry's bday with jes's. they are both scorpios. go figure.

even though i had cramps for a good part of the day, it was an outstanding bday. i got so much facebook love, text love, voicemail love, and also IN PERSON love. it was sort of ridiculous. i am still trying to soak it all in and savor it. my co workers got me cupcakes from this local place. i had a banana bread one and it was GOOD. then i had a meeting with the ESL working group and they sang happy bday to me over a chocolate brownie with a candle in it. we had dinner with the crimmins and i got lots of giggles and snuggles from becker while nolan slept and got real sweaty. they got me this card, well really an envelope shaped like a boom box and when you open it, the song "the right stuff" by the new kids on the block plays." i couldn't stop opening it. i think jes was getting annoyed. i thought it was hilarious.

also, when i went down to move the laundry from washer to dryer I found my bday present from jes: a wheelbarrow (!), a push broom (!) and TWO PLANTS for my office. it was pretty much the most perfect gift ever. i have wanted a wheelbarrow since we moved in and now i have one. i think it is going to make the raking of our dead front lawn so much easier.

i also got THREE serenades today: first my sister and nephew ben sang happy bday to me. zach sat by quietly wishing he knew the words. then azad called and sang a stevie wonder version of happy birthday. it was very extensive and sort of ended in a rap, but i couldn't understand all the words. and then right before bed i got a piano serenade from rolita with finn in the background yelling "donna" or "donald" (what he calls me) and maybe some other stuff i could not make out. totally adorable. it helped me go to sleep very happy.

we lost the cord that connects the camera to our computers to download pictures, so hopefully we can get another one and i can download some photos from various things we have been up to the past few months.

until then...

blame it on facebook

i know i have been so remiss about writing
but honestly it's b/c i just post short quips on facebook
i know, no excuse really but let me just say this:

there is an owl hanging out in our newly cleared out backyard.
i have named hir oscar. i think ze is either a barred owl or a spotted owl
let me show you a few pics of each:

barred owl:







and here is the spotted owl:





oscar is more rectangular or boxy than the spotted, but hir markings are similar. jes thinks ze is a barred owl. i have put in a text to my friend stacia who is the closest thing to an owl expert that i know. i will let you know what her thoughts are on this. or perhaps if she reads this she can comment so everyone can learn from her.

i don't know why i am so excited about this owl. some say owls are bad luck, but others say they are sign of good luck and prosperity. i am going to go with that. i am also going to go with the fact that ze just wants a human friend. i told her i was excited to get to know hir and that i loved her (too much too soon you think?). ze just looked at me (intently listening i believe) while perched on ernestine and angela's clothesline. we MUST put our clothesline this weekend! jes is also looking into how to build an owl house.

stay tuned.

what i have not told you about: the clearing of where the wild things are in the backyard, my bout with poison ivy, mary's wonderful visit, jes's trip to new york, the ridiculous heat here in the atl, and nolan and becker's half birthday.

who knows if i will ever get to it.
oh yeah, and what about michael jackson dying? i still can't wrap my head around it.

anywho, gotta watch true blood now.

sunday morning

it's a lovely sunny and warm sunday morning
jes is still sleeping, the kitties are lounging, and i am blogging

i got up, cleaned up all the "presents" larry left me overnight, and did the dishes left over from our mother's day/father's day celebration we had last night.
jes's folks were in italy for mother's day so we celebrated last night. we made a delicious dinner of peach/ginger/chipotle pepper grilled chicken, grilled zucchini, and grilled beets with feta cheese. for dessert we had HOMEMADE strawberry rhubarb pie (jes made it!)it was so good yall, seriously.

jes's dad put up these new railings on our front porch because there used to be an awning and they cut it off and so there was all these sharp edges from where they cut it off. i think jes and i are going to caulk and sand it today and then paint it black (to match the black iron the railing is made of. jes's dad also helped up take down our old mailbox that had no door on it and then put up the BRAND NEW mailbox i bought months ago. i absolutely love it. i mean it's now chicago bears helmet mailbox, but it is really nice and new.

i wanted to post a few pictures from our housewarming party. the first one is of nolan and becker chilaxin on the couch:



and here is a picture of me with baj, robby and christian:



and here is the sundress crew: nikki, christian, christina, and andi:



lastly, me and jes in the glow of the party (and the summer heat):



it was a really lovely day filled with delicious food and great friends. jes's mom brought all this great stuff. the thing i think i liked the best were rosemary cashews. i also loved these spicy little potato cakes that seema made from a recipe in the indian food cook books she got us.

other than that, not much to report. i have poison ivy and i hate it. it itches all the time. i have a bunch of stuff to put on it and i think i might try to see a doctor about it tomorrow. oy i need to put some cream on it now.

happy sunday!

what is my problem?

why can't i get it together and blog people?
i blame it on the house and the nice weather really.
here is my first installment, really just an excuse to post a recent picture of maya and nifa's babygirl zuri:



i mean can you handle it?
i don't think you can handle it.

more in a minute...

i love this photo

i got this photo from this blog i read called "Anti-Racist Parent."
The author wrote about how this picture demonstrates the importance of having a man of color or biracial man as President of the United States.

The little boy asked Barack Obama if he could touch his hair because he wanted to know "if it felt the same as his."



God Bless America

a new addition to the family

i am very excited to announce that azad and sam got a new kitten
her name is bella and she is ADORABLE
az is generally very allergic to cats but apparently bella is magical and does not make him sneeze

here are some pics of her:





i am looking forward to meeting her!

h.o.t.n.e.s.s.

This is the chuck bass i love:





where the hell yall been?
oh, right it's my turn to write.
i promise to get on that this weekend.

happy friday.

a few new additions

so i have two new babies and one new puppy to announce.

1. i posted earlier about nifa and maya's new babygirl. they have named her zuri (zoo-ri). it means beautiful in swahili. look at how lovely she is:



2. my friends tony and laura also had a baby a few weeks ago. i have posted in the past about their first son diego. here is a picture of their sweet baby jesse:



3. the last baby has a tail. it's molly, the dog. my friend angie got her a few weeks ago. jes and i met her today and she is adorable. here is her picture:



i am thrilled to welcome each one into my life!

great weekend

yall

i had a great weekend with lots of friends and lots of sunshine. I am totally tuckered out but my goal is to write this blog post, then do my bills, and THEN i can go sleep.

so glennda and nancy arrived on friday afternoon and we all went and got taqueria del sol for lunch. after that we headed to piedmont park and walked around and looked at the cute puppies at the dog park. after that we got a drink at midway and sat outside and watched the world go by.

glennda and i were exhausted after that so we took a little nappy on the couch (separate couches folks) while jes and nancy checked email and made dinner. i was woken up by a knock at the door. jes opened it and it was this guy who said he was renting a room from our next door neighbor and could he use our wireless internet if he paid us. for the next hour he tried to make it work and even brought over his own fancy mac router. in the end, it didn't work and he left feeling defeated. it was sort of random and weird and we all made jokes about how he could be stealing our identities (which, actually is totally possible).

anywho after we finished eating our black bean burgers, onion rings and/or chik patties it started to rain pretty bad. and then the hail came and it sort of felt like it was the end of the world, but after about thirty minutes it passed and we were ok, but it was bad enough to convince us to stay inside b/c the rain kept going and we didn't want to schlep out that bad weather.

then we saw the cop car pull into the driveway of our across the street neighbors. and then more cops came. and then for the next hour we watched these cops go up and down our street, down our driveway, and through our backyard. finally i went outside and asked if we needed to be concerned. the cop explained a house was broken into a few blocks over and the burglar went on run through our neighborhood. i described the neighbor who asked to use our wireless and luckily it did not fit the description of the burglar. soon after, we hit the hay b/c stakeouts are exhausting.

on saturday morning we walked to thumbs up and got some delicious breakfast. then we walked back, got the car, and headed to atlantic station to shop. after that we got some lunch at fellini's and then we had to drop nancy off at the airport. :(
then it was back home, shower, and off to the bowling alley where we saw our softball friends. they played all these old school jams that made me feel like i was 13. after that we headed to this bar bellissima. it was ok. we had a lot of fun taking pictures and acting silly and then once they started showing videos i pretty much checked out and started watching. we came home and crashed around midnight.

this morning we ate breakfast here and took glennda to the airport pretty early. :(
then we came home and putzed around a bit and then headed to this bar in inman park where we *thought* our friend was deejaying. it was sunny and warm so we rode our bikes. it was a good ride and i know i will be really sore tomorrow. ohio friends julie an liv met us there and we chatted and then headed to marta, took the train and then walked back to our house. we all sat around in our living and caught up on our lives. it was such a nice time. around dinner time we drove them back to marta so that they could train back to their friends griff and chad's house in east point.

now jes is watching rock of love and i guess i am too. i am so very tired.
i love long sunny weekends of friends and such. i hope there are plenty this summer!

welcome baby girl!

Behold Nifa and Maya's baby girl. She was born yesterday. The only specifics I know is that Maya was hella overdue and she and Nifa posted a video of them trying to "dance" the baby out. Clearly it worked.

I think she is perfect.



Congratulations to the happy family!

our new house part deux

right now bill maher is talking to this guy who plays jesus at this theme park in florida. totally bonkers.

ok jes wants her computer back so let me hurry it up. here are some before and afters of the living room:







is it extra bad we are watching this the week of passover and easter?

ok here is the dining room and kitchen:







ok so i have a few more pics to share with you. the first is of horace and orangina. orangina is a cat statue that leah painted. horace thought it was a real cat and he went bonkers and swatted at it. it's pretty cute:



and here is a picture of our first dinner guest. it's our realtor (and friend) gerry and he is showing us the tree he got us. we call it gerry the cherry kwanzaa tree. it started blooming this past weekend. love it:



gerry came over and we had pasta with vodka sauce, a nice spinach salad, and then guinness chocolate cake (jes made it). it was so good!

also, a few weeks ago sarah and kim celebrated the legal adoption of their boys. here is a picture of them on their special day and then a picture of us at the celebration afterwards:






ok lastly, here is a picture of jes and me happy in our new house:



ok now bill is talking to gay muslim activists. he is still making me nervous.
happy monday yall.

so about our new house FINALLY

yall,

it's been a month since we closed on this house, and let me tell you this:

1. i love it
2. it's a lot of work
3. we have done a lot
4. we have a lot more to do

so every weekend i say to myself "self this is the weekend you are going to blog about the new house" and then i painted something or collapsed on the couch or whatever. but here i am now, watching religulous, which is sort of hilarious so far.

so my hope is that i can do this before and after thing. it may take a few posts. and in reality, we are more in the middle than "after" but just humor me for now. let's get started.

here is our room "before":



and here is our room "after":





let me just interrupt myself and say that this movie is making me VERY NERVOUS. Bill Maher is so inappropriate, but hella funny. It might give me the hives.

Ok moving on. Here are some photos of the middle room which is the office. It comes in three stages: before, middle, and after. Here we go:









the middle room is the room that has made the most change. i mean we tore down the walls and then put some back up. glennda and nancy are coming this weekend so things are going to be pretty in order, so i will put up more pics after the weekend.

ok moving on to the "guest room" which is now known as "the pink room." check it out:





after thursday, we will have a bed in there so i will take pictures of it all done up. i think rather than overwhelm you with before and afters of the whole house i will stop there and then do another post about the rest of the house. let me tell you this though, last night we had katie and leah over for drinks and picture hanging. leah frames photos for a living and is an artist so she can just eyeball shit and hang it up. she is like a wizard! so we broke out the crown and ginger and got some pictures hung. i really did nothing but sit on the couch with katie and watch a show about women who didn't know they were pregnant and then had their babies in the toilet at work. totally bonkers. i unpacked our shoe box and found my high heels that i bought for julie and liv's wedding. i put them on with my jammies and paraded around the house. leah and katie almost fell over laughing. jes did this faux pin up pic of me:



ok let me get this up and then get to work on another post about the FRONT of the house. i am wondering, was this worth the wait?

i mean seriously...can you handle it?

i give you becker:



and his twin brother nolan:



sarah and kim make some cute ass babies people.
can i get an amen?

one more thing

it is snowing like a blizzard here in atlanta!
WTF?
i thought i left this weather behind when i left the midwest.
the kids in our neighborhood are going APESHIT, as is jes.
i, on the other hand, have on pjs, smartwools, my bears sweatshirt and my woolcap.
when oh when is spring going to start?
i hate it.

just a quickie

it's been a busy and challenging week and i don't to go into it just yet, but i do want to post a few pics.

first up is mary and dusty's dog blue. he got surgery on friday and made it through with flying colors and an elizabethean collar. how cute is he?



second is my other girlfriend, pink, waiting for me in her car. i'm coming pink, be there in a sec:



and to those of you who know me from ohio state, i wanted to brag and let you know i had a glass of wine with nancy campbell last night. you're jealous. she was in town for a conference and we met for a nice drink and some conversation. you are so jelly.

lastly, my neck and shoulders are jacked up right now and i think its because i slept funky but it hurts to hold my head up or look down. no me gusta.

happy sunday!

sunday morning

Hi All

And Happy Sunday morning.

I don't have all that much to report really. Jes and I spent all day looking at stuff for houses. We looked at couches and stoves and frigs and washer and dryers. We also continued to worry over what shade grey to paint the living room and what color green would look good in the kitchen. do we own a home? no, not yet. but keep your fingers crossed. All I know is that I could NEVER be a personal shopper for a living. It wears me out and makes me real cranky real quick.

We also have watched a few movies lately. We watched "Nick and Norah's playlist" or whatever it is called. I love the guy that plays Nick, but that has been true since Juno. It's pretty funny. A little slow in places, but worth a rental. We also watched "Secret Life of Bees" a definite must watch if not only b/c Queen Latifah AND Alicia Keyes are in it, and other people. And then we watched "Death at a Funeral" a sort of funny british comedy. Jes wasn't feeling it. Parts of it were funny, but if you miss it, its not the end of the world.

Today I have some work to do and then I hope to go to the Think Pink women's basketball game to show my support. I think Jes is going for a bike ride with Angie B. this morning. She went with Angie T. last weekend. She only rides bikes with people named Angie. Just kidding.

Anywho my sister sent me some lovely pictures of her family. Or maybe I stole them off Facebook. Either way, here are a few.

Let us begin with Zach and a cupcake for his first birthday:



ooh i want to eat that belly.

Next is the boys (ben and zach) together. cuties:



and finally the whole family. how lovely.



ok that is that. I need to give larry purrbox his pills and get jes's hiney out of bed.

welcome etta

i am thrilled to present the newest baby in my life: etta pearl





and here is one of her with her moms christie (holding her) and becky. what a lovely family:

almost one year old vs. cupcake

you tell me who won:



happy almost birthday baby boy zach
love, auntie donna who lives so far away
:(