I am hurting enough now and it now feels similar to what I had while away a month ago that I hustled my way into the chiro this morning under the assumption that my hip is back out.  I didn't get to see the doctor I've been to in the past here and this guy wasn't as vigorous with his correction.  I'm back at work and still feeling it, so we will see how it goes.  Last month it seemed to dissipate pretty fast.

It is a short day for me to get my time in, which is good.  I need a bit of a weekend escape.

I had a showing yesterday where the post-showing email sounded like two different people filled it out.  Not sure what to make of that one, but I'm hoping they liked it enough to take some further action.  I still feel like I'll be somewhere else for Christmas.  I don't know if that is my mind or my heart talking.

Crap.  That's what I feel like.  I'm not sick.  Instead of the days of pain I was getting a while back, I now appear to get days of this not quite right/bloaty feeling.  Six in one hand half dozen in the other, right?

Word of more people leaving has gotten to my desk.  Seems like the next wave has begun.  For my own personal shift there is nothing new to report at this time.  I'm continuing to practice that patience thing.

More than half of my day was on the phone. That should tell you everything I need to know about my day. *sigh* Brain so tired. Thank God for the hands free headset.

And so it begins... the onions are sauteed and the tomatoes and spices are poured in.  Let there be sauce!

I never did make the vinaigrette salad last night.  But the stuffed peppers were delightful.  Maybe I'll get on the vinaigrette salad and the garlicky green beans tonight.  It was super cool this morning, but the sun warmed things up.  As it starts to fade maybe I'll fill a bag with overgrowth and weeds.  Maybe.  Motivation, please come find me.  I feel like I'm stockpiling energy to rake leaves, which will be here all too soon.

For now, tea and maybe a nap.

I'd rather be home and bored than at work, don't get me wrong, but I'm feeling pretty lame.  The big excitement of my day is going to be taking Saffy to get her nails trimmed at Petco.  I've been watching the clock waiting to go until the time they told me to come.  I asked the vet's office to trim them when we were in back early July, but they're looking pretty rough again.  I am such a slacker, I should be taking her walking now that it's cooler.

I could have done some things outside, like migrating the tomato plant that I started from seed to the larger pot and the nearly dead tomato plant currently in that pot to the trash, but I didn't.  I almost allowed myself a nap, but forced myself to sit up so I am not flopping about in bed tonight.

I do have plans to make some good grub tonight with food from the farmer's market tonight.  I'm thinking stuffed peppers and a hot bacon vinaigrette salad.  I have enough tomatoes in the freezer to do another batch of spaghetti sauce which would help me get through more of the garlic, maybe I'll get that underway tomorrow.  I put a small bottle of port in the fridge for this evening.  So there's that.

I'm staring to think the primary objective of the post office to avoid delivering mail.  When I returned from vacation I had a notice of a certified letter from the township waiting for me.  I signed the paper and told them to deliver it in my absence.  Only THEN did he boldly mark the box saying I MUST be present or I must go pick it up at the post office.  (This has happened once before a while back.)  Well then, you can go ahead and return it.  I work and I am NOT driving the whole way downtown to pick up something that I'm not expecting.

Now today I get a notification from Amazon on a package that says the post office attempted delivery.  This tells me they didn't leave it.  Why?  There is nothing about this package that should require my presence or a signature.  In the past when Amazon has allowed things to get shipped via UPS and then handed off to the post office it incurs a several day delay.  You see the package arrive in town and it waits for a couple of days to get to your door.  What's up with that?

Dear Amazon, please ship UPS and NOT with the post office; they cheapen your user experience and delay your otherwise prompt service.

Leather seats == way less time spent vacuuming dog fur out of a vehicle.  The floors aren't perfect, but that task is done and it looks WAY better. My back windows aren't a dark enough tint to have allowed that to go on much longer.  Of course, as often as they're in the car as of late it won't last long, but I feel better.

I gave into a desire last night to put some black back into my hair (this craving seems to come on with the fall).  So, the underneath is black again, which surprises me all the more of a difference there really is.  I guess my brown is only a couple of shades off of black.  Next I'll touch up the top with a bit more vibrant of a color.

For the first time ever I also stopped at the Farmer's Market that is at the Lutheran Church on Scalp.  I always forget about it on Tuesdays and I'm never headed that way to be reminded on sight - until today.  I scored some beautiful looking cherry tomatoes, butternut squashes, garlic, fresh/fragrant basil, some late variety strawberries, and even mixed color green beans (to smother in garlic and butter).

Final note - Christmas shopping officially started as the first item that made me think of someone on my list was spotted on Amazon.

I just realized that I regularly say masseuse... and I really mean masseur.  Never studied French, so... excusez-moi!  It's a bit embarrassing to admit this, but it's always a good thing to learn something new.  Feel free to correct me if you catch me using the incorrect term again.

My Favorite Egg and I had a good chat today.  I struggle to verbalize how I feel about things.  When I talk feelings I instantly cry, which is not something I enjoy doing.  I know my fears about expressing myself stem from the fear of rejection.  (Boo on the people in my past who scared me with such experiences and double-boo on me for allowing them that power by wasting my emotions on jerks.)

I cooked a little like a crazy person last night in order to use a few items I purchased that I didn't want to go bad (yellow squash, ground beef, onion, peppers) and some eggplant that I scored at work as put out for the taking.  My Favorite Egg came in for the weekend so we scarfed stuffed peppers last night and ate some of the pre-made meatloaf and veggie casserole today for lunch.  The good news is I don't need to cook for a few more days as I have plenty of leftovers.

We then headed out to my masseur's wedding!  Congrats Ben and Chelsey!  We visited a bit with Beff and J between the ceremony and reception too, so that was nice.  I'm home, it's barely 9:30 and I'm tired.  I should be cleaning - there is a showing tomorrow morning at 11am, but here I sit contemplating a hot shower.

Can't say I'm thrilled right now.  I cleaned last night.  I was running later than usual this morning due to some cleaning tasks first thing.  I left here at 11 and did the last minute cleaning and got the dogs.  I sat in the parking lot waiting ... and I checked my phone.  They cancelled at 11:25.  Seriously?  Take the dogs back, turn off all of the lights and re-lock up, and return to work - I lost an hour and a half of my work day vs 2 for an actual showing.  Great.  Super.  Thanks.

I swear, I no sooner typed yesterday's post and someone contacted their realtor.  I have a showing today at noon.  After work and again after youth group I did the work that has been piling up for the sake of general tidiness.  The dogs will be happy to see me midday.

I'm also happy it didn't land on Friday or I am afraid I would have needed to ask for another time.  The project I returned to PA for so many years ago is wrapping up for the last time.  Materials are being boxes/packed and shipped back to the client.  Two guys have found other jobs and have last days scheduled. A few more are worried and trying to find other work.  It truly is a sad week.  As I worked on one last thing yesterday I felt like I was fiddling while Rome burned around me.

I also got more word that tells me I can totally forget about the other interested party as they have vanished from the earth.  Go figure, right?

It's getting pretty cool at night.  The windows have been open the past few evenings and the ac off.  It makes for pleasant sleeping, but it also makes me realize that I need to get on top of bringing my boxes back from their current 'storage' location, which is not heated in the winter.  What on earth am I going to do with darn near a room full of boxes?  While I don't have water issues I still wouldn't want them on the ground in the basement or garage and frankly any huge pile is just going to make the space it is in look tiny and messy compared to how it is today.  Plus - gah, lots of heavy lifting and another week or so of major bruises all over my arms and legs.  That's something to not look forward to.

I look at the front yard and see how much weeding needs done in the driveway too and I have not motivation to do it.  I'm back from vacation, but still just too tired of trying to keep up there (for naught).  I haven't done anything in the line of cleaning since I returned home.  I'm asking for trouble if I don't start spending 20 minutes each evening to maintain - you know a showing will pop up out of no where w/ short notice if I don't.

The past two nights in my own bed have been odd. I don't feel like I'm in my space - you know that feeling you get when you wake somewhere unfamiliar? I guess on one hand that's a good thing, since I want to sell the place, on the other hand it makes me feel a little sad that I don't feel at "home". I'm just "there".

I heard about another coworker leaving while I was gone, he is staying in the area. I heard of another who got the job he was trying for out of town. As excited as I am for him, I am also a bit jealous. Change. I need change. Things have been pretty quiet wrt the house. I'm hoping that as people settle in their back to school routines things will pick back up.

I'm home.  I had a nice visit with family at my Sister's place.  I worked, using little vacation hours, so most of what I did was work during the day, but it still felt like an escape.  I was dreading coming back to reality. At least it includes my girls.  They were happy to see me.  The house felt stuffy when I got here and had a bit of stink in the living room, which I discovered was due to standing water in the bottom of a plant... issue resolved.  It's also cooler in the evening now, so I can open the windows and enjoy fresh cool air.

The full weekend I was there, what with the holiday and all, we drove to Lubbock and I got to see my niecey poo in her natural habitat.  We drove the campus and hit all of the yummy joints including amazing thai and a good burger.  We went to the local theatre to watch her first Texas Tech game where she didn't have to work!  I'm sure it was weird and a bit sad for her.  I came back with a pint glass, a jacket, and a shirt.  I'm all "guns up".

I got to do some shopping with them for living room furniture (couch for girl and recliners for my sister), which has gotten me more so thinking about what I might want to buy to replace my existing/old couches when the time comes.

I flew back on Satuday and spent the night at my Favorite Egg's.  Since I was there, I hit another open house - turns out the place was nicer in person than I expected from the photos so that's a plus.  I'm still not sure what I want to do and flummoxed.  For now, I'm still here... and that doesn't look like it will change if left to the existing reality's devices.

To me a counter offer means you change the price in some way.  It also does not mean you get to question me, asking why I didn't send another offer after the fact.  If you didn't counter with a new offer, why would I?  It's clear you're not going to move on price and... for what it's worth, maybe that was the answer I was praying for on other matters.

The whole process pisses me off.  I feel like I get screwed on both ends of these deals, no one will ever budge for me, but they all certainly expect me to move.  It takes two days to even go from start to submitting - but can be dashed in a second.

Oh well.  I'll probably be stuck in Johnstown for a while regardless.  Tomorrow I have to go "back to reality".  At least that reality includes my girls.

Ever feel like you made one of the biggest mistakes of your life within hours of making it?   F me.

The papers have all been emailed to my agent.  So that is happening.  I think I have a fairly solid offer.  I'm not low-balling, but I also don't want to budge much if at all as I am already having number anxiety.  If they counter, which doesn't everyone I may need to work another angle (some closing costs/home warranty etc to try and balance out a bit of my pain).

Now I wait, and continue to pray for my current place to receive an offer.  Here we are, offers have places closing just in time for Halloween.  It is but a blink of the eye before we're into Thanksgiving and Christmas.

Reading 41 pages of documents you need to read carefully and pick apart after working all day isn't my idea of a fun evening.  This should be a good/exciting time, but it's already tedious and exhausting.  Things sure have changed since the last time I was looking to buy a house... and every single item seems to mean more $$ for the buyer to put out.

Long story short, the notifications I receive on properties that I've favorite told me before bed last night open houses, which gave me a little bit of a sense of urgency... but it sure didn't look like the one place and I were close on numbers.  This morning I saw a price drop.  The combination of the two has me taking steps forward I was previously thinking needed to hold until my current place sold.  Unfortunately for me, I haven't heard anything else on that front other than hearing that one potential buyer made an offer on another place, so I guess I can cross them off.

Still no word on the house from either interested party.  I took the next step and dropped the price a bit.  I really thought there would be progress by now, but the timing will be what it should be, right?

31 was pretty good, but not my favorite of his makings thus far.  I did like the music before the movie though - it's been a while, but I may need to buy the next/latest Zombie CD.

The past few days have been food food food... and don't forget the little joint on the corner w/ a million flavors of fresh brewed iced tea.  I am so bloated.  I'll be okay if I don't eat again for a week.