Next year, try not to fuck up back on birthday weekend. Or the day before your birthday. OR EVER AGAIN.

I am this close *hold finges an inch apart* from dinging 40 and getting a mount in World of Warcraft but it hurts too bad to sit at the computer. I’m on the laptop on the couch sitting the only way it doesn’t hurt.

BUT GOOD NEWS! Soembody is coming to look at the Range Rover in a few minutes and afterwards I’ll be hobbling myself into the Apple Store with Ben to pick up my second birthday gift, and 8GB iPhone. Yesterday we went to the camera store after breakfast and I got to pick up a Canon 580EX II flash and a hood for my 17/85mm lens. I got three things that I REALLY wanted so I’m a very happy camper.

Once I’m able to move again I’m going to take some photos with and without flash to show a comparison. It absolutely rocks my socks and is going to completely change what I’m going to be able to do with inside shots. Expect a bazillion pictures of the Princess and The Felines.

I hope to be back to my regular posting schedule in the next week or so. And like every other time I’ve ever said that, that means that I’m completely lying to you and you can probably expect a post about once a week. Or less. Unless Ben does something funny that has to be made fun of mentioned.

I grew tomatoes!!! TADA!

I know, I know. Big deal right? Well, YES! It is a big deal! Because I’ve been trying to grow them for THREE SEASONS and this is the first time I’ve had a plant ACTUALLY produce a tomato.

In the past everybody told me to use Miracle Grow but I kinda feel like that’s cheating. I mean, do they genetically alter these fuckers to ONLY produce fruit if you chemically force them to? Maybe it’s some conspiracy that Miracle Grow has going on to up sales. But I dunno, I can see using it on flowering plants to balloon the bloom size to unnatural proportions but not something I’m going to eventually let Cassidy eat. I don’t need whatever chemical it is that causes the monster blooms to get into her system and somehow make her feet grow any bigger than they already are because they are already pushing the ‘unnatural’ envelope as it is.

I got some great news about a friend yesterday. And even though it wasn’t MY news I was so excited for them because I remember what it felt like to be in the spot they are in now and how wonderful it can feel and hearing THEIR good news actually put ME in a great mood! Funny how that can happen. Anyway, you know who you are and, YAY! Happy for your great news!

Ben was supposed to go to the track this weekend but money (it would be over $500 MORE then the $300+ he’s already spent on it AND he was at the track last week anyway which was probably another $500) and his head has started being a bastard again. He gets these headaches that come on randomly and literally floor him. He instantly gets hot (I’m sure his temperature goes up because he actually feels hot to the touch), feels nauseated, lays down and tries to sleep it off. He lays there and moans. That kills me. Two weeks ago when he was helping me with my exhaust he practically drove a screwdriver THROUGH his hand, washed it off and kept working like it was no big deal. So when he’s in so much pain that he’s on the couch groaning, I get worried. Really worried.

They have given him migraine medicine and so far it’s basically done: NOTHING. They are still coming and the medicine doesn’t seem to help AT ALL to get rid of them, or even help with the symptoms. Then for the entire following day he has what he describes as a ‘headache hangover’. Anybody else have these? Idea’s what it might be? I’m wondering if maybe some more drastic testing should be done…

Anyway, that was my Full of Randomness post for the week!

Last night I ate pasta. I couldn’t help it. It came on the plate with the chicken I wanted and it might have accidentally wrapped it’s way around my fork and found a way into my mouth. Like, eight times. Or possibly eleven.

I started having to scratch my leg before we got out of the restaurant and by the time we got in the car my stomach started to bloat and my head was pounding and I couldn’t get my temperature to regulate and I knew that for the rest of the night the wheat would ravage through my body like a herd of pissed off elephants trying to find a way out.

Me: I’m going to spend the entire night crapping.
Mom: ANNA!
Me: What!?
Mom: I’m trying to set a GOOD example for Chrissy!

Break to insert: my niece had been having some disciplinary issues and has been sent to my moms house (another state, away from her friends and the brunt of the problem) to live for the rest of the school year, about two months. My mom offered to do this because my brother has a lot going on that I’ll have to post about later but she’s 15 and all girl and ALL ATTITUDE.

Me: Mom, everybody poops! Haven’t you read the book?
Mom: But they don’t use that word! They say “poop” or “diarrhea” or something else.
Me: Crap was a MUCH better word than what I was originally going to say!
Mom: *vein starts throbbing in forehead* Anna…
Me: It is!
Mom: What kind of example does that set? What are you going to say when Cassidy starts saying that?
Me: She won’t say it. She knows she’s not allowed to use that word.
Mom: Monkey see, monkey do…
Me: Monkey get her butt whooped.

Meanwhile… Chrissy, Cameron and Cassidy are in the back of the car about to keel over from laughter.

My mom totally loves me.

Right after this we told stories of some of our best farts and how we’d used them against each other. One time I almost caused my little brother to get PHYSICALLY ill because I let out an SBD in the BMW and he couldn’t find the window button. German engineers are crazy guys and put them on the center console instead of the doors. Cameron almost OMGDIED and I was laughing so hard I almost had to pull over the car.

My mom just drove, white knuckled, trying as hard as she could to pretend that we were talking about kittens and butterflies.

As we took the elevator up from the parking garage:

Mom: I swear I don’t know how you people turned out this way. THESE are NOT my genes!
Me: You’re right. Three different fathers, but total coincidence. NONE of it is you. At all. Nope.
Cameron: Oh man, something big just hit my lower colon.

Cameron graduated from high school yesterday. It warms my heart to see the mature, intelligent, talented man he’s grown into.

This post was brought to you by the letter T as in ‘Trashy’. And the number 18, the number of years it took him to grow into one of my most favorite people EVER.

My first photo hit Explore today on flickr. The highest it got was #371 #299 #210(!!). I’m excited because I’ve secretly wished to have something Explore but at the same time I’m perplexed that it’s a picture of my FEET! Not flowers, or a cute kid, or a car. My feet! (Although they are my feet in some of my very hot shoes. ;)) It’s kind of silent vindication for all of those who have called me vain or narcissistic (my dad used that one and I thanked him for finding a much longer, more sophisticated word to make fun ot me ;)) because it was just a road to better photography people! That’s all! Okay, so it was totally me being vain…

So, original plans were to do that Half Dome hike this weekend. A part of me is kinda sad we don’t get to do it because I’m sure I’d end up with some amazing shots with the XTi. A bigger part of me is happy that I won’t be left on the side of a mountain with an ice ax in my head.

The reason we can’t go is because Ben has some stuff that HAS to be done to the track car this weekend or he won’t make it to next Friday’s track day. So since I already had approved PTO for Friday and Monday off, I’ve decided to take it anyway. A four day weekend sounds FABULOUS, yes? I got up and took Cassidy to breakfast before school today. Took a long hot shower with nobody knocking on the door to ask a question, or worried that I was going to use all the hot water, and I SO DID! Then I met Ben for a nice long lunch. Picked Cassidy up from school and now I’m blogging before I lay down and take a nice long nap! She’s off to the park with the neighborhood posse and a few parents to play some baseball.

I had originally planned to do a power cleaning on the house today but, WHY?! I’m on vacation! That’s my montra for the next three days. ‘Why? I’m on vacation?’ I wonder how many times I can use it till Ben snaps?

And! Because I’ve had nothing better to write about lately, another conversation!

This one happened when I got home and Ben had left the cell phone bill on my chair. The same day that my site got hacked and I still had a sense of humor! Previously he said that if we were billed extra for all the Twitters being sent to my phone via SMS he’d not be happy. We weren’t being charged. But GOOD LORD, did you know that Cingular sends you a log of all the text’s? ON PAPER. All 2,356 of them I got last month.

Antigone078: SEE?! I TOLD you the texting wasn’t extra…
Ben: can you call the parents of the tree you killed and give them the bad news?
Antigone078: BWAHAHAH! When I get my blog back: TOTALLY GETTING POSTED!
Ben:

Last week I bought a Canon 100mm f/2.8 USM Macro lens for the XTi. It’s. Amazing. Simply amazing. I’ve only just begun to explore around and play with it and so far it’s just blown me away. I should have gotten this MONTHS ago but I guess now was a perfect time because the weather is clearing up and I’ve realized natural sun light + this lens = MAGIC!!

Here are a few of my favorites so far but there will be many, many, many more to come. Oh, and I started 365 again and I promise not to be a complete failure this time. *grin*