It Sucks to be Sick

So, I decided that perhaps I should make my blogging be as regular as checking email. Since I do that once a day, right after I check email, I should blog.

So, we will try this little experiment.

So, I am sick. Or at least I was. I am feeling better now. (Except for this swollen upper lip). Don't know if its a cold sore or something else. Feels huge! (Doesn't really look it though).

Monday when I woke up, I had a 103 degree temperature. So I stayed home from work. Then Tuesday night, I still felt crummy, so I left early.

But, I am feeling much better now. I just wish my lip would heal itself.

EEEEEKKKK!

Yes, that was me. And yes…I was screaming like a little girl…

Why, do you ask?

A mouse.

Not just any mouse, but a mouse IN MY BOOT...

Not so bad, you say…

MY FOOT WAS IN IT!

I was getting ready for work, the Sunday Night before Christmas Eve. I was getting my boots on and stuffed my right foot into my boot.

There was something hard in, what I can only describe as, the ‘corner’ of my boot, by my little toesies. It didn't seem big.

I thought my sock had balled up, when putting my foot in. It was a tight fit.

So, I took part of my foot our and sort of ‘slammed’ it back in…twice..still there. K, maybe it is a lego or toy Riley dropped in there (this has happened before).

I was going to just leave it and deal with it at work. I was running late.

But then I thought, no, this is my driving foot, this is gonna bug me.

So I took my foot out of my boot, raised it up about eye level (to see in) and shook it.

Nothing.

Well, if I had been paying attention, that little stone I saw fall out would have tipped me off…as I later realized...it was a mouse nugget.

So I then reached up into my boot and felt something furry and somewhat hard.

Let me back track. The day before my wife had spotted the mouse when we had company over.

So I immediately though, “OH CRAP. Megabyte caught the mouse and put the dead thing into my boot.”

EEEEEEKKKK! I touched a dead mouse….I dropped the boot and ran to my mother's room right behind me. (As most of you know. She is the terminator of icky things in our house).

“MOM! I just touched a dead mouse in my boot!”

“Oh Lord…” was all she said. As we turned from her room and toward where my boots lay, I saw a mouse jump out and run towards the couch.

“EEEEKKKK! I touched a LIVE MOUSE!”

Suffice it to say, we didn’t find it (until the next day, when Amy accidentally killed it—another long and entertaining story). But I still haven’t and refuse to wear those boots.

Eeeek. Yes. Eeek. I think that about sums it up.

Portrait Studio Now Open

Good Morning everyone!

I wanted to update everyone with a few announcements.

As some of you already know, I am starting up a small portrait studio. I have found that I really enjoy photography and enjoy (and have the patience) for retouching and editing photos. My little gimmick is that I do all my 'portraits' in front of a green screen and so clients can choose their own backgrounds.

So, I wanted to announce (or re-announce to some of you) my online portrait gallery. From here you can view photos, and purchase prints or gift items. The site is at: http://tiggermn.smugmug.com

Any questions, please let me know, and I hope that you'll consider me for any family portraits you would like done!

Another thing I wanted to alert you to (and this will mainly affect family and close friends) is that I will no longer be offering my photos to anyone digitally (i.e. burning them on a disc).

The reasoning behind this is, if I am serious about doing this professionally, I need to be consistent and make the process as less confusing for myself and my clients. You will notice on my site that many photos have a watermark and that you cannot right click and 'save as' the photo onto your desktop. I have enabled a locking feature to protect my 'assets'. This is standard practice in the photography world.

Please Note: the watermark will not appear on purchased prints.

If there is something you absolutely must have digitally, you can purchase a digital copy of the photo from the online store under 'downloads' or contact me and we can work something out. I will need to charge a minimal fee, or a more substantial fee if you are requesting a 'final' portrait versus an untouched one.

The reason for this, is that I do need to consider my time. I don't just snap a photo and print it (even for family functions). 95% of the time, I still am correcting the photo, making sure the color is good, etc. I really spend time in making sure that my photos (no matter the setting) really capture the moment exactly and are portfolio quality.

So, I hope everyone can understand and respect the changes that I am making. I know that for some, it will be upsetting, as some depend on me to capture a moment at family gatherings. But, with the way my life is right now, I can no longer do things for free. I really need look at what I am investing in the procedure and receive a fair compensation for it.

Please note: I am still offering family members a discount.

So, I hope you all understand and I look forward to working with you!

Yes, I am still alive.

Sorry, I haven't posted in awhile. Lots been going on.

• I resigned from my position on the Communications/Marketing Committee. Too much drama to deal with.
  
• I became a registered Girl Scout (Don't Ask). Mainly so I could be a Co-Service Unit Cookie Manager with Amy. We manage around 60 troops and their cookie orders.
• I got a second part-time job back at the Print shop I used to work at, AlphaGraphics.
• Still going to school.
• Working on more training at work, to have more responsibilities.
• Amy and I became Creative Memories Consultants. Mainly because they came out with so many new opportunities for folks and their photos! Contact us for more info!
  

Just lots of stuff. So I have been really busy. I get about 4 hours of sleep a day, sort of. It's been hectic.

Talk later when I ain't so tired!

Banned Book Week

Read a banned book!

Here’s a thing I picked up from KayRay.org (she a librivoxer and admin). It’s a list of the 100 most frequently challenged books in the US, 1990-2000, according to the American Library Association - that is, books that people have wanted to ban. Bold the ones you’ve read.

1. Scary Stories (Series) by Alvin Schwartz
2. Daddy’s Roommate by Michael Willhoite
3. I Know Why the Caged Bird Sings by Maya Angelou
4. The Chocolate War by Robert Cormier
5. The Adventures of Huckleberry Finn by Mark Twain
6. Of Mice and Men by John Steinbeck
7. Harry Potter (Series) by J.K. Rowling
8. Forever by Judy Blume
9. Bridge to Terabithia by Katherine Paterson (Saw the movie)
10. Alice (Series) by Phyllis Reynolds Naylor
11. Heather Has Two Mommies by Leslea Newman
12. My Brother Sam is Dead by James Lincoln Collier and Christopher Collier
13. The Catcher in the Rye by J.D. Salinger
14. The Giver by Lois Lowry
15. It’s Perfectly Normal by Robie Harris
16. Goosebumps (Series) by R.L. Stine (at least, some of them)
17. A Day No Pigs Would Die by Robert Newton Peck
18. The Color Purple by Alice Walker (Saw the movie)
19. Sex by Madonna (Don't ask....)
20. Earth’s Children (Series) by Jean M. Auel(I think… Was that Clan of the Cave Bear? Ghastly thing…)
21. The Great Gilly Hopkins by Katherine Paterson
22. A Wrinkle in Time by Madeleine L’Engle
23. Go Ask Alice by Anonymous
24. Fallen Angels by Walter Dean Myers
25. In the Night Kitchen by Maurice Sendak
26. The Stupids (Series) by Harry Allard
27. The Witches by Roald Dahl
28. The New Joy of Gay Sex by Charles Silverstein
29. Anastasia Krupnik (Series) by Lois Lowry
30. The Goats by Brock Cole
31. Kaffir Boy by Mark Mathabane
32. Blubber by Judy Blume
33. Killing Mr. Griffin by Lois Duncan
34. Halloween ABC by Eve Merriam
35. We All Fall Down by Robert Cormier
36. Final Exit by Derek Humphry
37. The Handmaid’s Tale by Margaret Atwood
38. Julie of the Wolves by Jean Craighead George
39. The Bluest Eye by Toni Morrison
40. What’s Happening to my Body? Book for Girls: A Growing-Up Guide for Parents & Daughters by Lynda Madaras (I think this is in our house....)
41. To Kill a Mockingbird by Harper Lee
42. Beloved by Toni Morrison
43. The Outsiders by S.E. Hinton
44. The Pigman by Paul Zindel
45. Bumps in the Night by Harry Allard
46. Deenie by Judy Blume
47. Flowers for Algernon by Daniel Keyes (sounds familiar...I think we read it in school)
48. Annie on my Mind by Nancy Garden
49. The Boy Who Lost His Face by Louis Sachar
50. Cross Your Fingers, Spit in Your Hat by Alvin Schwartz
51. A Light in the Attic by Shel Silverstein (I can't believe it was challenged!)
52. Brave New World by Aldous Huxley
53. Sleeping Beauty Trilogy by A.N. Roquelaure (Anne Rice) (Still own them!)
54. Asking About Sex and Growing Up by Joanna Cole
55. Cujo by Stephen King
56. James and the Giant Peach by Roald Dahl
57. The Anarchist Cookbook by William Powell
58. Boys and Sex by Wardell Pomeroy
59. Ordinary People by Judith Guest
60. American Psycho by Bret Easton Ellis
61. What’s Happening to my Body? Book for Boys: A Growing-Up Guide for Parents & Sons by Lynda Madaras
62. Are You There, God? It’s Me, Margaret by Judy Blume
63. Crazy Lady by Jane Conly
64. Athletic Shorts by Chris Crutcher
65. Fade by Robert Cormier
66. Guess What? by Mem Fox
67. The House of Spirits by Isabel Allende
68. The Face on the Milk Carton by Caroline Cooney
69. Slaughterhouse-Five by Kurt Vonnegut
70. Lord of the Flies by William Golding
71. Native Son by Richard Wright
72. Women on Top: How Real Life Has Changed Women’s Fantasies by Nancy Friday (Hehe...I wanna read it!)
73. Curses, Hexes and Spells by Daniel Cohen (I think my roomate had this)
74. Jack by A.M. Homes
75. Bless Me, Ultima by Rudolfo A. Anaya
76. Where Did I Come From? by Peter Mayle
77. Carrie by Stephen King
78. Tiger Eyes by Judy Blume
79. On My Honor by Marion Dane Bauer
80. Arizona Kid by Ron Koertge
81. Family Secrets by Norma Klein
82. Mommy Laid An Egg by Babette Cole
83. The Dead Zone by Stephen King
84. The Adventures of Tom Sawyer by Mark Twain
85. Song of Solomon by Toni Morrison
86. Always Running by Luis Rodriguez
87. Private Parts by Howard Stern
88. Where’s Waldo? by Martin Hanford (huh?)
89. Summer of My German Soldier by Bette Greene
90. Little Black Sambo by Helen Bannerman
91. Pillars of the Earth by Ken Follett
92. Running Loose by Chris Crutcher
93. Sex Education by Jenny Davis
94. The Drowning of Stephen Jones by Bette Greene
95. Girls and Sex by Wardell Pomeroy
96. How to Eat Fried Worms by Thomas Rockwell
97. View from the Cherry Tree by Willo Davis Roberts
98. The Headless Cupid by Zilpha Keatley Snyder
99. The Terrorist by Caroline Cooney
100. Jump Ship to Freedom by James Lincoln Collier and Christopher Collier

That’s 17 for me. Which ones have you read?