Moving is the best!

Posted on April 14, 2009 by kristiane

Maybe I am getting excited over some new mysterious place that will be as disappointing as this, but I am really fired up to move right now.  Why?  Last night, Max fell asleep in my bed.  I am well aware that he is far too old to be sleeping with Mommy, but sometimes I am too lazy to drag him out.  He likes to play the Wii, and the Wii is in my room for the time being.  In the middle of the night, he says to me, “Mommy, the ceiling fell on me.”   He was half asleep and so was I.    So, like any good mother would, I ignored him and went back to thinking about little red wagons and coat buttons shaped like soda bottles or whatever crazy dream I was having.

My alarm rang at 6am and I grabbed my mp3 player and turned on, Ruby Tuesday, (our wake up song of the day.)  I was lying there listening to the song, and staring at the ceiling…whoops.  It was kinda gone.  Sure, it was there, but it was also, gone? I looked over at the floor, and there it was.  Crap.  So, I checked the boy for cuts, bruises, and a pulse.  He was fine, thank God.  The pieces that fell were sharp and I imagine if it had hit either of our heads, we could been less alive than we are.

001

AHHH!!

002

Oh, there it is.

There it is.  My ceiling.  I have had leaking in the past, that was ‘fixed’ but I guess it was not fixed all the way.  The bummer big time is that my landlord is not a bad guy or a slum lord.  He’s really great.  Anytime I have a problem, yo, he solves it…and within a day.

However, I have been planning on moving this summer anyhow,  but I think I will do it sooner.  Went to some stores to day and begged for their boxes, packed up a bunch and threw away more.  I called several house listings and property managers.  My fingers are crossed that I get the deal of the century.

But, here is why I love moving…in a hasty Top 7 fashion.

7. Packing

I LOVE packing.  I love the idea that all my things are contained and organized. If I could put literally everything in a box, I would.  They don’t make couch sized boxes, so far as I know.

6. Getting rid of Stuff

While packing, I usually dump a lot of things.  I already have filled the dumpsters at  this place until next garbage day.

5. Writing on boxes.

I never move all my stuff all by myself.  So, when I pack, I like to write notes and or tape pictures onto the boxes that people will be carrying.  I hope they enjoy it as well.

4. Having a clean house.

When you move in, the place is typically immaculate.  I always promise myself it will stay that way, though it never does. But I am still reciting this lie in my head for my upcoming home.

3. New neighbors

Sometimes neighbors are fun.  Sometimes you never talk to them. And sometimes they yell at you for not accepting their invite for pork chops.  But there’s always the hope that they are going to be nice and enjoyable.

2. Something will be better.

I probably won’t get to be in a as great of a neighborhood as I am in now.  I might have to do the suburbs.  But, something will be better.  I might have a laundry room, a yard and heat that works!  I will enjoy those things.

1.  Buying ‘Things’

When you move, you usually have to buy something.  A new shower curtain, a rug, etc.  I don’t typically buy house goods, as I feel silly for purchasing things for a place I don’t own.    But when I HAVE to, I love it.  Consumerism, it’s a disease.

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I hate E-mail Forwards

Posted on April 13, 2009 by kristiane

I received an email forward from someone today.  I actually watched it.  It was just silly enough that I laughed.  Here…you can laugh too!

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The Pilver-in Urban Dictionary

Posted on April 7, 2009 by kristiane

Twelve years ago, my friends and I coined the word ‘pilver’.  I’m pretty sure I was the only one in that room that still used it for years after.  But I did get a few people to understand and use it in proper context after that.    Then, when I started using the internet more and more, I used that as my screen name often.  When I set up a website and blog, I decided to use that as the url.

Here’s a silly silly fact.  Secretly, I want the world to use the word pilver in everyday talk, cause if anything says success, it’s having Merriam Webster acknowledge your slang.  Well, that hasn’t happened, but someone has decided to send the word to UrbanDictionary.com.  I’m flatter about this non-achievement.   So, click on this, and go vote for my babble, for no reason whatsoever.  (Vote for whichever you want, but there are three, and only one is mine).   It’ll give me a thrill, and I like thrills.

CLICK HERE TO VOTE!

And thanks to Meaningful Beautiful Male, whoever you are, for adding it to the UD.

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‘Pete’ Died

Posted on April 6, 2009 by kristiane

To preface, I would like to say, I am NOT looking for a YOU GO GIRL! sort of reaction.

When I was fifteen years old, I was square.  Maybe not in the way where you dress in Hush Puppies and pleated khaki pants, but still.  I was a straight A student and I never got in trouble in any way.  Every teacher expected that I was just going to do my homework, not cause trouble in school, and there was no way I was going to be the student to get reprimanded for any action.  Like I said, square.  Obviously this is an alright position to be in.

Enter ‘Pete’

Pete’s real name was Earl.  Or it was.  Apparently, he hated the name and went and changed it when he was still young.  Pete also hated being called Mr. Manring, his last name.  So, he told us all to call him Pete.  Pete was the shop teacher at my high school.  He was also the horticulture teacher.  I wanted to get some ectra science credits in for the college career I am still pursuing, so I signed up.

Pete was and always will be a poster boy for good ol’ boys. Example:  In class, he would mention certain types of trees, if the class was confused he would say something along the lines of, “Oh, y’know, like those new ones the Andersons just planted along their fence line.”  Uh, I didn’t know the Andersons, I would rather you prepared and showed me a picture of this tree you felt it was worthy I knew about, Pete.

This was in 1994, the same time era in which I was basically bound in flannels, jean shorts, baby doll dresses and hiking boots.   I was a new student, and new students at this school stuck out.  It was literally as though a flashing neon sign was attached to my back that blinked, “OUTSIDER…OUTSIDER…OUTSIDER”.  I was warned in the class that precede horticulture that the easiest way to do well was to sit up front, talk to Pete in between his pseudo lectures, and basically act girly.

Well, somehow I developed a feminist’s state of mind in the five minutes between those classes.  My sister (who took the class with me) and I sat in the very back row.  While we certainly did the work, I was not my normal square self.  And I saw what those who had warned me had meant.  All the other girls in the class were right there up front, chit-chatting with Pete and being girly.  These were not stupid girls, they just played the game and got their A’s.  And I, got a D-.  HO-LEE-CRAP!  During the duration of the semester, I was not disruptive, I did all my homework, but from the get go I hated Pete.  I am pretty sure he knew it too.  He referred to me and my sister as ‘Miss Prisses” which was exactly what we were trying to not be.

After that, I honestly cared a bit less about grades.  I had a big giant D on my report card.  No longer was I able to qualify to graduate with honors.  It was that experience that clued me into the reality that unfair grades existed.  I then saw school as largely, a joke.  And for years later, I wanted to send Pete a letter, telling him exactly what I thought of his strange grading scale.  This was not a class where you had tests and such and knew about where you stood the entire term.  I really don’t remember anything being graded, ever.  We really didn’t do much.  It was sort of a joke of a class where Pete would send us outdoors and tell us to find noxious weeds for the entire class period.  Or, he would give us a pop quiz with the only question being, “Write down your social security number.”

Last week, I found out I am too late to spout off what I feel about the man, he has passed away.    I really am not upset about my missed chance.  I mean, I don’t feel any need to tell the guy off any longer.   I almost wish I would have played his game.  Honestly.

Would it have been better to sit up front and played along with the backwards rules that he held in his classroom?  It might have been.  I do it now everyday in my job.  Today, while I was waitressing,  I apologized to a woman who said her fruit was cold.  I was not sorry in the slightest.  It’s fruit.  By law we have to keep it in a refrigerator kept at 41 degrees.  It will be cold.  I am constantly doing things to appease people at work  to get what I want/need.   And my performance of apology to this woman warranted in a 40% tip.   The payout was indeed worth my insincere  appeasement of her irrational behavior.  In that same frame of thought, I could have sat up front, BSed with the old redneck and gotten that gold cord to wear around my neck when I sat for that  graduation ceremony in the gymnasium way back when.  I guess it depends on if there would have been any worthy payback.  Had I kept up with the A’s, possibly I would have applied for all those scholarships and been serious about college when I was eighteen.  Maybe not.  I’m just not sure I feel better now, about being prideful about not giving in.

Posted in Blogroll, how to, job, Life, school, tonasket | Tagged , , , | 4 Comments

The Max Does Bourbon Street

Posted on April 5, 2009 by kristiane

bourbon-street

We just spent four near perfect days in New Orleans.   I found  steal for our hotel, the weather was gorgeous (with the exception of rain one night) and there was so much to do, I must go back soon.  I imagine that when many people thing of the town, Mardi Gras and flashing and beads come to mind.  I am sure there is a lot of that, but there is so much more as well.  One afternoon, I decided to venture into the French Quarter and see the site of so many Girls Gone Wild videos.

There were restaurants and bars, gift shops and hotels.  It was about six or so when we made it to Bourbon Street.  Although there were people out already drinking out of huge hurricane glasses walking around the streets, the crowds were calm and there was nothing I felt should make me drag Max out of there.  We got to a block that was pretty much all strip clubs.  No biggie.  Max is seven and can read, but there was still nothing I was opposed to him seeing.  Then we came upon Larry Flint’s Barely Legal Club.  In the doorway was a girl, and if she was legal it had to have been her eighteenth birthday.  She was wearing her stripper pole get-up and dancing as though her clothes were already off.  There was nothing I could do to avert Max’s eyes at this point, she was literally two feet away.

His face turned puzzled and he said to her in his unmistakable and overpowering voice, “Did you know that what you are doing is really weird?!?!”  At that point the crowd roared and the girl had nothing other to do than keep on doing her job of choice.  But she looked a bit humiliated.  I felt horrible for her embarrassment.

We skipped over to the next street at that point.

Posted in Blogroll, dancing, drunk, entertainment, family, Life, travel | Tagged , , , , | 7 Comments

The Pilver Reviews Southern Food

Posted on March 31, 2009 by kristiane

southern-food

Today I drove to Biloxi, Mississippi.  I realize the last time I posted I was about Iowa.  I have much in the middle to share later.  The purpose of traveling to Biloxi was running around a beach, which we did.  I’ve got a pink nose to prove it.  Before hitting the sand, I was starving and found a buffet style restaurant serving things I had never seen before.  So, naturally, I took a picture.  From what I have heard second hand of Southern cuisine, there’s a way to add sugar or fry anything.   The restaurant I went to certainly wasn’t the epitome of home cooking, but it did confirm much of what I had heard.  The selections were not labeled, and although the person working there was very nice about telling me what everything was, I still did not inquire about everything.  There were these bananas slices in a red sauce that are haunting me as we speak…what was that sauce?  I chose not to pile the mystery side dish on my tray.   But let me tell you about what I did eat.

Fried Catfish and Shrimp

Nothing unique to my taste buds about this food.  They do have catfish all over.  They also have fried chicken everywhere.  Max ate the fried chicken.  The other day I saw a sign,  sadly I did not get a picture.  It read,

“FRIED CHICKEN CO.   WE CASH TAX REFUND CHECKS!”

So, the name of the place was not Fried Chicken Co., but like I said, I did not get the picture and the name escapes me.

Fried Okra

Not bad.  Though I’m pretty sure this is why I have stomach cramps as we speak.

Carrot Souffle

I think this was mashed carrots with marshmallows.  Somewhat like a sweet potato dish you might see on Thanksgiving.   It was amazing.  It also confirms my theory that in the South, they can add sugar to any dish.

Sweet Tea

I love tea. Iced, hot, luke-warm.  This, I did not like.  It tasted like liquid sugar.   But not when someone talks about sweet tea I will understand what they mean.

Bread

The lady asked what kind of bread I wanted.  In Minnesota this means white or wheat normally.  So I spouted off, “Wheat.” before noticing all the lovely other breads. There was something fried (seriously, have I mentioned yet that anything can be  fried here?)  Also, cornbread.

So that was lunch, super fun, huh? One thing I have yet to find is grits.  Honest to god truth, I have no idea what a ‘grit’ is.  Don’t tell me, I want to be surprised.  I think I am going to go to the Waffle House to get some.  Mostly because there are Waffle Houses every five feet.

Lastly, I would like to squash the rumor that people in the south always refer to females as Ma’am.  Not true.  Sometimes I get called Love, Honey, or Babe.  Yes, my waitress today called me Babe.  I like her.  🙂

Posted in Blogroll, entertainment, Fine Dining, food, health, how to, Life, ocean, travel | Tagged , , , , , , , | 6 Comments

Floyd, Iowa

Posted on March 27, 2009 by kristiane

I saw a lot today.  A very beautiful city I had never been to.  I visited  one of the most recognizable American landmarks, and saw green grass for the first time since probably October.  But honestly, I just want to talk about Floyd.

floyd-iowa

We all know Iowa is blah.  I am sure there are terrific things there, but I have never seen them.  My experiences with the state have included driving ten miles over the speed limit in efforts to get through it as quickly as possible.

I stopped for gas, in Floyd.  That’s the actual name of the city.  I was standing in line with Max and seemingly every farmer who lived in town.  They were all exchanging morning hellos and buying beef jerky and donuts for breakfast.  There was a guy, I’ll call him Bob.   I’m calling him Bob, cause I found out that was his name.  Bob looks like Larry the Cable Guy but maybe ten years older and only if Larry the Cable Guy ate Jeff Foxworthy and was no longer able to button the sides of his coveralls so I could easily see his tighty-whities.  As he had his wallet out, he was eying the jar of pickled eggs on the counter.  It’s a gallon jar with boiled eggs in a murky liquid and I just don’t get it, but hey, I don’t get sushi either.  So cashier lady stops, looks at Bob and says, “You only live once Bob.”  That convinced him.  He reached his hand into that filthy mess and grabbed two eggs and went on his merry way.

pickled-eggs

Now, that’s gross, but whatever.  If you are going to eat out of a communal package at the truck stop, you are going to get germs.  What I want to know is, Why were the eggs a guilty pleasure?  They’re eggs.  They’re pretty healthy right?  It’s not like the pickle juice adds more fat.

P.S. That was the friendliest town I have ever been to.  Yes, I could figure that out from the ten minutes I stayed.

Posted in entertainment, food, happiness, health, how to, Life, travel | Tagged , , , | 5 Comments

Nerves…

Posted on March 26, 2009 by kristiane

I’m *cough*thirty*cough*.  To me that is definitely adult.  I have a place, a car, a job, good credit and medical insurance.  I live the life I tell you.

So, now I am on the verge on my First Ever Real Life Vacation *not on the way to see family.  And I am a wee bit scared.  No clue why.  I have taken the 1700 mile drive to see my folks back in Seattle more times than I can count (OK, like 4).  But for some reason, driving with zero people I know at my destination or along the way is frightful.  My guess is mostly cause I am female.  If I was a dude, certainly my masochonistic ways would intimidate all the boogie men the world has to offer.

Anyhow, I am leaving.  I am ready and embracing the idea of seeing EIGHT NEW STATES!!!  I think, I may have to recount at some point.  I think I see twelve in all.  The only downpoint thus far is this: I get online, rent a car as the golf ball is reliable, but sort of like your ninty-five year old grandma who you don’t want to overwork.  When the choice of car comes up I choose ‘intermediate’ just between compact and standard.  So, I’m thinking something similar to the Accord I drive now.  That should work.  Ample space and still good gas mileage.  I get there and there is one choice, just one. I ask if I can upgrade to the higher class, I cannot. I will be driving a PT Cruiser for the next week.  the car that says, “LOOK AT ME…I THINK I”M COOL.  BUT REALLY I NEED THIS CAR TO PROVE IT TO YOU!!!  NO REALLY, LOOK AT ME NOW.  WHY AREN’T YOU LOOKING??”

I swear it said that when I got in.  Anyhow, the speedometer works, so that’s a plus.

Road trip posts a comin’ my friends!

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A little song for the Postal Carrier.

Posted on March 26, 2009 by kristiane

A month ago, I lost my key.

Who knows where, you did not see.

I know your schedule, here at 9:50

You’re never late, it’s rather nifty.

Except today, when I have things to do

You made me sit around and wait for you.

…sit around and wait for you

At ten o’clock, I was not worried.

So, you slept in, your morning hurried.

At ten-thirty, I gathered my purse.

Hopefully, you’d be here before I finish this verse.

I have to leave dear postal carrier, I need to go

I’m picking up a car today, why are you so slow?

…why are you so slow?

So now it’s after one, my day is shot.

But do you care? My guess is not.

There is a check I need, in my mailbox

get here soon,  I’ll break the locks.

In one half hour, I have to leave

I’ll wipe my tears on the end of my sleeve.

…on the end of my sleeve.

…on the end of my sleeeeeeeeeeeeve.

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The Last Time…

Posted on March 20, 2009 by kristiane

…I will talk about having a difficult time writing is today.  Seriously folks, I have FORTY THREE unfinished blogs.  Some are so outdated, I cannot do much other than delete them.  Some have actual content that I need to just spell check and post already.

So, in a week or so, I am going on vacation.  I have been checking weather reports and visitors guides faithfully and have chosen a destination.  Not gonna say where, but it will be phenomenal, that I am sure.  No one knows where I am going, not my family, not tg, and certainly not The Max.  He is literally unaware that he will be going on vacation.  I’m excited.  I will wake him up one day, and just say, “Hey!   Let’s go to _____!!

And I need it. I have had probably the most emotionally challenging fall/winter of my life.  A whole bunch of personal stuff mixed with job details (that I have never gotten into here) have made me  lose my mind at some points.  And every time I faced something new and unpleasant I thought, “I need a vacation…today.”

Not to be Ms. Sunshine, but looking back, although it was lacking positivity at many points, I still had fun.   I am healthy, I have a job I love and crazy great friends…blah blah blah.  But man, am I excited to see something new and different.

So, though I find it strange when people email to let me know they want new posts (really, I am beyond flattered) I promise:  The end of my blogging drought is coming.

Oh, and Happy Spring!!

And since I feel like it, endure this video…chances are you haven’t listen to this song recently enough.

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