Well, more like three cents a page. We spent the evening at the local 24/7 Kinko’s copying loan files for submission and popping them into FedEx. If Kinko’s had a Starbucks inside, I’d be completely in love with the place, even if the copiers don’t have sorters. They’re so FAST.

* * * * *

I haven’t been very social, online or off. I’m tired. I woke yesterday with a sore throat and a fever, and was sleepy and unfocussed all day. Fuzzy brought home NyQuil for me, and at least I got real sleep last night. A dose of DayQuil this morning kept me functioning til about two, at which point I crashed. Woke at six, and finished prepping for the Kinko’s run. Now it’s midnight, and I’m sleepy enough to sleep, but my mind is racing.

* * * * *

I’ve been reading a lot. Went through a stack of old Nora Roberts novels, a stray submarine novel, and now am back to Darkover novels, which I’m not really in the mood for, but it’s all we have. There’s a limit to the amount of fanfic I can read, partly because I don’t like reading WIPs and partly because my little laptop is being overworked. It’s putting out so much heat, in fact, that I was able to keep my coffee hot by placing it next to the vent. BUT my wifi keeps dying, so if we’re chatting, and I disappear, it’s not intentional.

* * * * *

Too tired to cook, we tried Steak-n-Shake tonight. I’d told Fuzzy that what I wanted most of all was grilled cheese and chilli, and they had both. Chilli is my new comfort food, even if it doesn’t start with a P ¹.

* * * * *
A solitary cricket managed to hitch a ride with one of the dogs, or with Fuzzy, and is now lurking under the bathroom counter. I nearly screamed when I glimpsed it out of the corner of my eye, thinking it was a scorpion or a cockroach, not because I’m afraid of bugs, but because its presence startled me. Now I’m hoping it won’t chirp all night.

* * * * *
We have Alaska Airlines debit cards on our Texas BofA accounts, even though Alaska doesn’t fly here (I don’t think), because hey, free miles, and also it lets us tell the cards apart.

* * * * *
Cricket Update: It’s become Cleo’s playtoy. Go Cleo! Eat the bug!

¹ In one of the V.I. Warshawski novels, Sara Paretsky talks about all comfort foods beginning with P. (Pizza, pasta, pudding, etc.)

So, we’ve got 18 more days of apartment life, and I’m fighting the nesting urge with a bat, and a credit card. Retail therapy works wonders, even if you only buy four shirts and a pair of pants. They gave me all the hangers, though, so I’ve got nothing to complain about.

So far, we’ve found a lot of cool things around here, like the local branch of Chipotle, which is like Subway, but with burritos, and a second-run movie theater where the most expensive ticket is only $1.50. We thought about visiting the zoo (one of the zoos?) but decided to put that off til after the move.

I was complaining that I had nothing to read, but then I picked up another Darkover book, and got back into the series. I have a bunch more of them waiting for me, so I think I’ll survive.

I bought a book of writing prompts, but can’t quite get into them. Bad timing, I guess.

I succumbed to my addiction, and bought filters for the (ugh, ick, yuck) flat-basket coffee maker here in the apt, so at least I can have coffee in the morning. Of course, I neglected to buy a scoop. One tablespoon to one cup of water is too strong; one tablespoon to two cups of water is too weak, and tastes like “restaurant” coffee, so more experimentation is in order.

I have found the local “underground” paper. It’s no Metro, but it’s more interesting than the Morning News, at least. I have learned that one should not listen to BBC world service on NPR as one is trying to fall asleep, at least, not when they’re talking about beheadings.

I fantasize about painting the blue wall in the new kitchen. It will be terracotta, which is one of the colors in the wallpaper. Just changing that one wall will warm up the room and make it *pop*. I think we’ll do the insides of the cutouts in pale peach, or pale salmon, to transition from the terracotta to the sage on the other side. Also, the lighter color will look like glowy sunlight.

I fantasize, also, about ripping up the carpet, one room at a time, and laying down a wood floor. I hate carpet, except in small doses.

I have not yet decided what to do about the master bath. Fuzzy likes the wallpaper, but I think it’s hideous. Of course, I always did say all his taste was in his mouth.

Today’s plans: Kinkos, Movies, RoomStore.
18 more days.

So, in my Bravo-less life here in Casa Temporaria, I’m trying to find alternatives to reruns of The West Wing to watch at night. It hasn’t been easy, especially without the onscreen digital cable guide.

But even though I don’t have Bravo right now, I do have Oxygen, and they’ve been running reruns of The Sunday Night Sex Show at 11PM, and even though there isn’t much I’m learning from it, she’s funny and frank, and I get a kick out of the politely shy Canadians who call in with questions.

I went to the web to find out more about Sue, because I’d remembered seeing her do a guest spot on an episode of Degrassi (and don’t mock my watching Degrassi. Many of you like Disney movies. We all have our stupid vices.) Oxygen runs the new version of her Show Talk Sex with Sue, but it’s on hiatus so I haven’t seen a fresh episode.

However, in perusing the archives, I found a sex toy in her list of such things, that made me laugh. It’s “below the fold” if you’re reading this on my blog.
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Of course, no house is complete without a back yard to spend time in, so here are some pictures of that. Note that the pool has three fountains that spray across/into it (they’re on in the 2nd pool picture.)

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The rest of the first floor includes: the dining room, the master bedroom, and bath, the laundry room, and a half bath. While Fuzzy took pictures of all of it, I see no reason to share the thrilling picture of the toilet in the half bath, or the plain white washer and dryer that are NOT staying with the house. However, here’s the dining room (currently being used as an office. There are double doors that close it off from the entry, and a single door into the wet bar part of the kitchen)

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So, inside the house, you walk into the entry. Looking up, there’s a loft/bridge/thing that connects the upstairs bedroom, the right hand side of the bridge (viewed from the front doorway) has the guest room and the room with no specific purpose. The left side has the upstairs bathroom, and the rooms that will be our offices. (We took pix of the bedrooms, but, there’s nothing exceptional about them. They’re bedrooms.)

Here’s the entry, from which you can see into the living room.

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We spent the morning at the house, with the inspector. We took pictures (the sellers are still living there so look past the stuff), and hereby share them. This is a graphic intensive entry.

This is the front of the house, from straight on, and then from the corner (it’s a corner lot).

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Thanks to everyone who sent good house Karma. We heard from the realtor just bit ago, and our offer was accepted, apparently with everything we asked for. Yay!

Tomorrow, we go to watch the inspector do his or her thing, and we’ll take pictures while we’re there.

The closing will be in about three weeks.

Which means that my talking about houses will only be for a finite length of time.

::Girl Scout Cookies::

Onesome: Girls’ Night Out- Do you ever just feel the need to drop everything and go hang out with your pals? What do you all do when you go out? Something “wild” like partying at the bar, or something as “mild” as just hanging out at a coffee shop and discussing the latest books you’ve read? Or do you head over to a pal’s house to watch the big game?

Coffee klatsches, absolutely, movie night, sometimes. I’ve always wanted to have a live writers group, but have been too chicken to start one.

Twosome: Scout- Were you ever a scout as a kid? Which branch? Did you join willingly or was it something you did because everyone else was or your parents thought it would be “good for you?”
I was a brownie for a while, but we moved around a lot when I was a kid, so it was difficult to stay involved in such things. My friends were girl scouts, and I used to visit their troop meetings.

Threesome: Cookies- What’s your favorite kind of cookie? What’s the strangest cookie you’ve ever had or heard of but been too afraid to try? And do you buy Girl Scout cookies? Which ones?
My favorite cookies in LIFE are Thin Mints (Mystic Mints) whatever they’re called. Chocolate and mint, mmmm. (I like mint milanos, too). If someone at the office has a child selling cookies, I buy them, but as we don’t have any children of our own, or have any close friends or family with girl scouts of their own, we don’t get to do that very often. (So, um, if you read this, and you’re near the DFW Metroplex, you have an easy sale here.)

I say… And you think…?

1. Self-esteem:: issues
2. Migraine:: headache
3. Phoebe:: Saturn
4. Nervous:: system
5. Punctual:: reliable
6. Liver damage:: phenobarb
7. Legal disclaimer:: fine print
8. Reverend:: mother
9. Supple:: leather
10. Binder:: insurance