Rischa's Rants, Raves, and Ramblings

Day 3 & An Incredimail Stat

This is day 3 of my "alone time". I don't remember it being this miserable when I was single. I guess I had a more exciting life back then. I worked 2 jobs at a night club and enjoyed the night life quite a bit. I had places to go and people to see. So when I got home and it was just me I was perfectly fine with that. Plus, I was never alone for too long at the time because Kolby was with me. When he went to visit my parents it was only a few miles away. Not a few hundred. Joel is saying the rain and lack of work may send him home sooner than he thought, though, so that's good. It will mess up the plans we had for him to pick up Kolby on the way back, but we can always go get him Friday.

So anyway, I have to admit that it isn't totally horrible being alone. I haven't had to do nearly as much cleaning, I get the whole King bed to myself, I can cook (or not cook) anything I'd like, and Joel's alarm doesn't wake me up at 5:30 AM.

Joel called between the last paragraph and now and says he'll be home tomorrow morning. Yay! Thank you RAIN!

I haven't been creating much art; Digital or Real LIfe. I did make a little something in PSP a few days ago just so I wouldn't forget how. I used a tutorial. It took me a while to find a tutorial with all free materials, but I did it. It's a Christmas one, which isn't my favorite, but it let me stretch my PSP skills so I'm happy enough. I made several tags and an Incredimail stationery with it.

Here's my tag:

And you can download the matching Incredimail Stationery HERE.  

I also did some updating on my Photoshop Group's blog. I gave it a Christmas background and added a couple of gadgets to the sidebar. Check it out!

www.PhotoshopPhemales.Blogspot.com

Okay, that's it for now. I've got chores to work on.

Alone & Packin' Heat

I'm drawing a blank on what to blog about. I had something in mind when I went to Typepad.com, but now that I'm here I don't remember what I was intending to say. Well, I guess I'll just state the facts of the day to get things started.

Joel is in Fort Walton on his business trip. You know, the one I was supposed to go on with him. Anyway, this is my first day all alone. Kolby is visiting my family in GA. It's just me and the critters. I'm not afraid to be alone OR admit online that I'm alone. Why? Because I'm packing heat! Haha! So don't any of you weirdos get any ideas unless you like the taste of hot lead!

I haven't really done very much with my day. I'm almost done with my usual chores. I did go for a run. I'm enjoying the runs. Even though they almost kill me. lol It will take me a while to work my way up to jogging more than a couple minutes at a time. I took Lacey with me. She might be getting too old to run for any length of time. I thought I should probably take the larger of the two girl dogs since I was alone and it was night time. It's too hot to run during the day. I called Joel before and after the run so he'd know I made it home safe. A girl can never be too careful with all the crazies in the world. There are a lot of runners/walkers at night in our neighborhood. It's pretty safe. There are lots of cops that live here, too.

After I got back from my jog/walk I had some Chicken Corn Chowder. I love that stuff! I'm yearning for some more sugar cookies with cream cheese icing now. I'm forcing myself to wait until my Sunday night shows come on, though. That way I can have a little treat while I watch Dexter and Californication. I hate that last week was the last "Curb" of the season. The Seinfeld reunion was great!

Alright, I'm outta here. It's time to feed and water the birds and then the gliders. By that time I can slip into my gown and watch some shows before bed. Oh, and the cookies....can't forget those!

(Photo taken with my blackberry) 

Thanksgiving Day 2009

I hope everyone's Thanksgiving feast and family time was excellent. We had a pretty okay day. I got up at 8:30 and started cooking right away. By 1 PM our feast was ready. The turkey took a bit longer to get to its optimum internal temperature. It always takes longer than the recipe says. It was extremely yummy, though, once it was finally ready. I'm more of a fan of the fixins than the bird, though. I enjoyed the gravy and the green beans most. I think Joel is a fan of the stuffing & gravy. Oh, and the pumpkin pie with whipped cream. I'm not a fan of pumpkin pie, so I had red velvet cake with cream cheese icing and pecans. After that things pretty much slowed down to a halt. Joel got interested in something on TV and in his computer and I took a nap.

I haven't heard from or called any family yet. I guess now is as good a time as any. Happy Thanksgiving to you.

All is quiet

There's nothing much going on in the house today. Joel got off work at lunch time, came home and took a nap. Kolby is playing video games. The furry kids are snoozing. The Finchies make a "meep meep" noise every once in a while. Otherwise, it's just the sound of me typing this blog entry. I'm on my laptop because it has been storming. Every time the lights would flicker my desktop restarted. Annoying! Anyway, I just finished cleaning off some unnecessary programs from this computer, so hopefully it'll be smokin' once again. It had slowed to a snail's pace. Or like Katie Lynn said yesterday, "like a sloth on as skateboard"....or something similar. Heheh

I just finished making Rice Krispie Treats. Now we have the torture of waiting on them to cool before we can munch on them. I haven't made them in years. I forgot how easy they are to make. They're not QUITE as bad for you as some other yummy treats. They're not exactly healthy, though. Too bad. Everything yummy makes us fat. What a cruel trick!

Yesterday Kolby had his annual homeschool evaluation. He always dreads that even though he passes every single time with flying colors. She's very sweet to Kolby, too. We're both glad the evaluation is over, though.

Today started off very stressfully. Mom texted me to let me know Mam-maw had fallen and broken her hip. She has to have surgery tomorrow. Of course that has been all that I could think of all day. It's hard to live so far from family in these situations. I wish I could snap my fingers and be with her. I talked to Mam-maw and she said she was in a lot of pain. I wish I could take it away from her. She doesn't deserve to be in any pain. She's the sweetest person I know. But I guess it doesn't work like that. Sometimes it seems like the people who deserve to suffer don't and vice versa. Please pray, if that's something that you do, that she comes through surgery with flying colors and heals quickly.

In other news, I haven't been to the gym in 3 days. I'm feeling quite guilty about it. I was on such a roll. Maybe tonight I'll go if this head ache and queasiness goes away. Oh, did I not mention those things? Yeah, not feeling so hot today. All 3 of us (Kolby, Joel & myself) are feeling a bit sick in the tummy today and last night. I think we ate bad subs from Subway. The head ache is just a bonus for me. Ha...lucky me!

What would a blog post be without a little eye candy. Here's Queen Penny-Penny on her throne.

Click the image to view it a bit larger.

I'm going to go check on the treats and maybe set up the web cam to show what my Finchies are now doing. They're building a nest. One of them (Blake) is anyway. L8r!

Freebies! Who wants Free Photoshop Actions?

I don't recall sharing these before. I could look over 5 years worth of blog posts, but I'm just not that bored. So I'll either be sharing these or RE-sharing them if they've already been shared.

Here's what the B/W High Key action will give you:

The header of this blog was also done using the B/W High Key action. I've used it many times. It's fun to run the action and then drag the black and white image over the top of the same image in color and lower the opacity of the b/w image. It will result in a very cool look.

Here's the result you will get with the Dreamy action:

 

This may not have been the best photo for the before/after, but you see what it does. This action is good for wedding photography or dressy events or perhaps a little girl in a field of flowers. You get the point. Also, I created these actions in PSCS2, but I have used them in PSCS3, as well. I can't say whether they'll work in 4 as I just don't have it to try. If you try it and find out please let me know if it's a ya or nay.

DOWNLOAD HERE

You don't have to give me credit if you don't want to do so, but please don't take the credit yourself if any credit is given. ;-) That's just not nice.

If you want to show me your work just leave a link to your uploaded photo in the comments section. I'd really love to see what you can do with the actions.

Nyquil Take Me Awayyyy

Yeah, I know it's Calgon, but tonight Nyquil is taking my troubles away I hope. Nose? Clogged! Head? Aching! Throat? Making me cough! I'm hoping that I'll be ready to dose off by the end of this entry.

So it has been a while....sue me! :-P I just haven't been in the mood for blogging. Not that there really is anything to blog ABOUT anyway. Hmm...blog topics? Oh, I know!

True Blood; Are any of you watching it? If you don't watch the show just skip to the next paragraph now because this one won't make much sense to you unless you're a fan. I can't tell you how much I love this show! And, no, it isn't because of Erick and his sexy eyes, hair, bod, and everything else! Although, it doesn't hurt. Jason and Bill aren't bad, either! Wait, where was I going with this? Ha! Teasing....I remember. I wondered after the premier season if the show could keep up with how action packed it was last year, but I'm not worried any more. I mean HOLY CRAP! Did you all see that half man half bull tonight? And WTF is in that stuff Pig Lady is feeding everyone? Oh, and who all thought Sucki was a moron for slapping Erick? I mean HELLO! He's a vampire, you dumbass! I know she's supposed to be our fearless heroin, but come on....she was coming off a little on the dumbass side there, which reminded me of her brother. It sure isn't hard to talk Jason into changing his mind, is it? If I wasn't getting sleepy and could remember all the names on the show I'd keep going with my theories, but it's getting harder and harder to concentrate. So I'll move on to the next paragraaaaaaaaph.........NOW!

Joel and I watched "Hung" after TB went off and were not impressed. I mean, really....it's about a man that's down on his luck with a big third leg. You don't even see the main character in the show! It hides behind a zipper the whole time. Not that I'm wanting to see the thing, but if it's centered around how huge it is then....well.....it's not good to have an invisible main character, ya know? Donny, the guy that the show is really centered around is only interesting beCAUSE of his "you know". Other than that he's just a football coach with a crap life. Most Pilot episodes pull you into wanting to see more. This one just made me want to watch True Blood, Nurse Jackie or Weeds to get that one out of my system. Seriously depressing show! Since it comes on after True Blood I'm sure I'll see it again. If that happens and it looks any more interesting the second go around I'll be the first to admit it has improved. It could happen I guess. For now, though, I won't be DVRing it.

So to let you know I'm not some couch potato that just sits around watching TV all the time I should probably report that I've been going to the gym for about 3 or 4 weeks now. Joel and I joined Anytime Fitness in Leesburg. It's working out very well for me. Joel has been having some health concerns and is seeing about it. He's only gone 3 times I think. I hope he can start going with me soon, though. It's more fun when he goes. He'll be seeing the doctor tomorrow morning to get some test results back. Wish him luck. I want our next 10 years together to be healthy ones. Which leads me to my next paragraph...

Joel and I celebrated our 10th wedding anniversary a little over a week ago. Well, celebrated might not be the best description of what we did, but we were together and we were happy with that so it was a success in my book. I had a doctor's appointment and some lab work done, so that wasn't exactly a dream come true, but the rest of the day was purely fun. We spent it in Orlando shopping, eating, and just enjoying one another's company. We ate at Bahama Breeze, which is our new favorite. We gave each other the gym membership. Haha...what are you supposed to get for your spouse after 10 years? We're not traditional. 

I had some other thoughts that were going into this blog entry, but right now I"m thinking about the back of my eyelids and how comfortable this bed and my pillow is so.... 

Can't Sleep

I can't sleep, so I thought I'd post an entry in my poor, neglected blog. Sooo....what to talk about. Since sleep is what I'm after at the moment, let's start there.

I try every night to get in the bed at the same time as Joel. He decides he's going to bed and 5 minutes later he's snoozing. By the time I take the dogs out, close both computers, wash my face, brush my teeth, check all doors, get into my Pajamas, etc... It's too late. I really wish I could simplify my life so I could just say I'm doing something and DO it right then and there.

Speaking of simplifying my life, I really do need to do that in ALL aspects of Rischa-ville. Did I just say "Rischa-ville". How lame! Must be the sleeping pill. Anyway, first let's start with my email lists; I get about a thousand emails a day from different subscriptions. Most of them I mass delete. Why do I do this? What am I looking for out of these lists? I waste an awful lot of time sorting. I even have folder after folder to help organize them all, but I still waste a ton of time going through them all.

Second; Pets. I love each and every one of my pets. I REALLY do. Just like everything else, though, I go overboard. I take in every stray or sad face I see. I'm like the old lady that lived in a shoe, but with critters. I can't even go on business trips with Joel or visit family with him because I can't leave them behind. I have given serious thought to finding homes for my parrots. I love them so much, though, it makes me cry to even think of it. Let's say I did find a new home for them, though. I could then have my own room to work on my art rather than sweating my ass off out in the garage, where my current studio resides. I could also move my sewing desk and computer desk in there.

Oh, and then there are my treasures; I have various collections that are just stored in boxes in the garage and the attic. Don't get me wrong, Joel has some, too. I can't speak for him, though. Back to the point, I have bird houses (can you tell I have a thing for birds?), Precious Moments figurines, Piggy banks, shot glasses, and other small collections that I don't even display and bring me no use or pleasure at all. Why?! Some of them were given to me, but I did bring it on myself by starting these little collections to begin with. I don't even like these collections any more. They're just fun things to collect for a while and then they begin to collect dust, so I box them up.

I guess the question I should be asking myself right now is, "What is missing in my life that I overdo everything?" Is it a boredom thing? A perfectionist thing? A challenge? What the hell? This is my struggle for the moment. At times I think to myself, "delete everything!" That would include email lists, collections, or anything that complicates my life. The, other times, I think to myself, "What if I regret it later?" What to do, what to do?

Ahhh well, moving on....

I've been thinking of joining a Gym lately. There's one called Anytime Fitness that looks promising. I like going for walks and bike rides, but it always rains in the evening here. I set my alarm for a bit earlier this morning thinking that I could go early before it got hot out, but it stormed!! Grrr! What's a flabby girl to do? I bought an exercise DVD by Jillian Michaels, that Biggest Loser chick, but she had me doing jumping jacks, push ups, squat thrusts, jumping rope, etc... I can't jump up and down on these arthritic knees! I tried it and my knees hurt for a week. I also could feel that the workout was an awesome one, though. My muscles were that good kind of sore that you feel after you've worked out. I wish I COULD do it every day. I just can't, though. My rheumy would fuss at me if I did. On a more productive note, I have started logging everything that I eat and drink. I downloaded an application that helps you track your calories on my iPod Touch. It's really great because you can do a quick search for your food and they have a list from all restaurants and grocery stores to make it easy. It's really a great little weight loss tool.

I think I'll go surf the net a while until I feel like I can catch those illusive "Z's". I can tell that it's getting harder to concentrate on writing so my sleeping pill is surely kickin' in. See ya next time....

Oh and P.S. Don't judge me by the grammar used above. I'm not even gonna proofread this entry. It's too long and I'm too lazy to do it.

Just a Tuesday

Today was just another day. Not a particularly good one. I felt crappy all day and Joel got news that he'll be going out of town for a week (again) this Sunday. I felt so tired and achy all day that I just slept. I missed some of my RA meds, so it's not entirely surprising that I feel this way. I took it today all at once since I'm late, so I'm guessing tomorrow will be even worse. The med, Methotrexate, makes me feel sick when I take it all on one day like that. I usually break it up over two days and feel less sick.

The news of Joel going on another biz trip couldn't come at a worse time. His grandmother isn't doing very well, so he really needs to be home in case something happens. Also, I just don't want him to be gone for so long....or at all. It's bad enough that he works almost 24/7. I'm starting to feel pretty lonely. My art keeps me pretty busy, but that's an at-home thing, so I don't really get out much. I wish I could meet a friend that's into the same things as me LOCALLY. I have lots of friends like that, but they're not local. Most of the artists that I've met around here are on the older side of life. For once, I'd like to hit it off with someone my own age. I tend to get chatty with older folks for some reason. Maybe I'm one of those "old souls" that you hear about? Who knows....but it's lonely being an old soul apparently.

Joel is talking about us taking a short vacation for our 10 year anniversary. It sounds like fun, but for us it's always a hassle to go anywhere together. We have to find someone to take care of our fur children. The only person that I trust to come and do that is Mom and she's in GA 7 hours away. To be honest, I'd rather Joel just take the time off and us hang out together with NO phone or interruptions. Just a nice few days alone to go out to dinner, go to the movies,  or something like that.

Eek...I had more to talk about, but my computer just did an update and now wants to restart. I guess I'll take that as a hint that I should go back to sleep. I've already slept 2 hours, but I had to get back up to take my nightly meds and put the cloths in the dryer. Oh, the fun of having RA and a heart problem.....Woe is me. Sorry, it's just how I'm feeling right now. Maybe my next post won't be such a downer.

Getting to know your friends 2009

Instead of sending this each time I get it, I thought I'd post it here...

Welcome to the 2009 edition of getting to know your Friends. 'press FORWARD' then change all the answers so they apply to you, and then send this to your friends including the person who sent it to you. The theory is that you will learn a lot of little things about your friends that you might not have known!      1.  What time did you get     up this morning? 9:15 2.  Diamonds or pearls? diamonds 3.  What was the last film you saw at the cinema?  I don't remember. I prefer HBO on my home TV since we pay so much for it already. LOL 4.  What is your favorite TV show? Weeds 5.  What do you usually have for breakfast Coffee with either cereal or grits. If Joel's home then pancakes. 6.  What is your middle name? LeClair (after Great Grandmother) 7.  What food do you dislike? sushi & guacamole 8.  What is your favorite CD at moment. Don't listen to CD's. I have a play list I listen to on my art blog, though, if I want music. My favorite is piano music with no lyrics. Otherwise I listen to talk radio. 9.  What kind of car do you drive? A Tucson (compact SUV) 10.  Favorite sandwich? Grilled Cheese 11. What characteristics do you despise? Dishonesty, narcissism, snootiness, know-it-alls 12.  Favorite item of clothing My blue satin night gown 13.  If you could go anywhere in the world on vacation, where would you go? Australia .14 Favorite brand of clothing? Fruit of the Luim or Hanes (comfy stuff lol) 15.  Where would you retire to? Where I live now, Central FL 16.  What was your most recent memorable birthday? 32nd 1/17/2009 17.  Favorite sport to watch? Dog agility (good answer, Fern! I'm keeping that one) 18.  Furthest place you are sending this? Not sending it. Putting it on my blog for all to see. 19.  Person you expect to send it back first? No one since I'm not sending it, but Mom will be the first to comment. ;-) 20.  When is your birthday? Jan. 17 21.  Are you a morning person or a night person? Definitely night! 22.  What is your shoe size? 8-1/2 23.  Pets?  Many 24.  Any new and exciting news you'd like to share with us? Hmm...I'm starting an online business, but I already shared that. 25.  What did you want to be when you were little? I don't remember when I was really little, but I had planned to be a Psychiatrist when I was in High School. I don't know if I told anyone that back then, though. 26.  How are you today? Happy as can be 27.  What is your favorite candy? Hedgehogs that Candice sends me at Christmas. 28.  What is your favorite flower? Orchids, Daisies, Tulips, Bouganvillias....oh, just one? lol 29. What is a day on the calendar you are looking forward to? Hmm...I guess the day of the neighborhood yard sale. March 12-14th. Kolby comes home from GA then, too. 30.  What is your full name? Rischa LeClair Heape 31.  What are you listening to right now? The running water from the turtle's aquarium filter and my dogs snoring. 32.  What was the last thing you ate? Pancakes (Joel was home till 12 today. lol) 33.  Do you wish on stars? sure do 34.  If you were a crayon, what color would you be? Magenta 35.  How is the weather right now? Perfection!! Sunny....not too hot, but warm. Mid 70's. 36.  The first person you spoke to on the phone today? Kolby, my handsome son 37.  Favorite soft drink? Coca-Cola (which I can't have....dieting *sobs*) 38.  Favorite restaurant? Palm Tree Grill 39.  Real hair color? Dark brown with Auburn tones. 40.  What was your favorite toy as a child? Caroline doll and then my He-Men action figures. Yay for tom-boys! 41. Summer or winter? Summer, but prefer Spring 42.  Hugs or kisses? Depends on who. Both from my fellas (Kolby and Joel, of course) 43.  Chocolate or Vanilla? Chocolate ALL the way! 44.  Coffee or tea? COFFEE!!! 45.  Do you want your friends to email you back? Always 46.  When was the last time you cried? Last night, but it was something sweet. 47.  What is under your bed? Dust, magazines, and whatever Penny has dragged under there. 48.  What did you do last night? Watched tv with Joel, blogged, talked to Candice, took photos, etc... 49.  What are you afraid of? Loss 50. Salty or sweet? Sweet if I have to choose just one. 51.  How many keys on your key ring? 3 52.  How many years at your current job? 16 (Mom) 10 (Wife) Artist.....just started 53.   Favorite day of the week?  Friday     54.   How many towns have you lived in?  5   55.   Do you make friends easily?   Online friends, yes. In person, not really. I never really go anywhere to make friends any more. 56.   How many people will you send this to?  Again...not sending.   57.   How many will respond?   None....not sending, ya know. ;-)

Happy Birthday!!

Today's my cousin, Katie's, birthday....soooooo....

 

Haha....I bet she didn't know I had pictures of her! The scanner was a great invention, wasn't it? Muhahahahaha!! Go leave her a comment with birthday wishes if you have a sec!