Marvelous Monday Update 2/22/2010

WEATHER
We ended up getting about an inch of the white stuff Friday night, but most of it was gone by Sunday. Today I got up early enough to watch a beautiful sunrise. :)




COMEDY NIGHT
Our local assault and abuse agency sponsored its second annual comedy night. The MC for the evening was a local attorney I've known (of) for years. I kept thinking "Who would've thunk it?" as he did stand up comedy and was actually funny. The main comedian was Los Angeles based, Jackie Kashian. She's been on Comedy Central and Last Comic Standing. Pretty funny lady :)

I had looked online prior to buying tickets to see if she had videos online of her act. (She does) So, as she was doing some of her act, I knew what was coming and I started giggling (more like snorting) to myself. Yeah, I know. Bad me. LOL

Unbeknownst to me, ALL of my coworkers were there also. I invited "new guy" to go. We both enjoyed the show. Today, my coworker (and friend) came up to me and she acted like she was going to faint over how HOT he looks. She also said we made a great looking couple. This woman is old enough to be MY mother! LOL


STITCHY STUFF
I did get some stitching done this past week, but not enough to warrant a photo. Why? Read on...


HOMESTEAD CHRONICLES
I found a couple of boxes marked "display cabinet" that have been hanging out waiting patiently to be unpacked. Now that I have the china hutch, I could do that. Ever start unpacking stuff and then think, "I really don't want this on display anymore?" I'd say at least 1/2 the stuff went back in the storage box.

I'm a bit miffed because I have a box of really old cameras that I wanted to put in there. Can I find the box? No. I have a feeling I'm going to have to pull all the boxes out of the closet in the spare bedroom. Do I want to do that? No. *sigh*

The china hutch really doesn't feel "arranged" to me, yet. Know what I mean? But stuff is in there.

They Say Things Come in Three's

As if my life hasn't been stressful enough, one more thing has been added to top the cake. Yikes, I feel like such a downer :(

I owe a bunch of you email responses. As you know, I have just not felt up to par emotionally, but I will try to respond back to those who've taken the time to make sure I'm OK.

What's been happening?

WHOPPER NUMBER ONE:

The relationship with JT started going askew at the end of month two. For the next four months, I hoped things would be OK. As time went on, it became apparent he portrayed himself as someone he wasn't. As a male friend puts it "You can't argue with crazy." Crazy referring to JT's actions and statements he's made.


WHOPPER NUMBER TWO:

I had my review a couple weeks ago. The review itself was fine, however my employer informed me that due to lack of work they are cutting my hours to 32/wk (from 40) which equates to a 20% pay cut, starting Feb 1st. The way it sounds, they don't expect the workload to pick up, nor are they seeking it out in our area (My firm has 5 offices). So, that has left me wondering if I can survive on the paycut or if I should look for another job.

In addition, I've done a search online and all the jobs in my pay range require a Bachelors degree which I haven't gotten yet. I didn't want to have to go into debt to finish my degree, but it appears I'll have to.


WHOPPER NUMBER THREE:

Last Friday (Yes, Friday the 13th!), I was on my way home from working in one of the other offices. BLAM! Out of the cornfield came a deer. Yep... I hit the thing and it flung back the way it came. Bambi was done for. The front end of my car has been obliterated and the hood it quite crinkled. :( Thank goodness I didn't cancel the collision portion of my auto insurance like I'd been contemplating a couple weeks ago. Also thankful the car is still driveable. Now comes the repairs... Fun stuff (not).


I know... I know... there are people out there who have it MUCH worse than I do. As the title states, people say things come in three's and I'm hoping this is the end of it. I'm not used to so many stressful things happening at the same time...

Marvelous Monday Update 6/29/09

WEATHER
The heat and humidity has finally broke (amongst other things, but more on that later)! Morning temps were 66F and it's forecasted to be in the upper 70's with little humidity. Woo Hoo!!


DATING

Last Thursday marked the two month anniversary of my first date with JT. Time has gone by so fast! Yet the comfort level is such that we've known each other a long time. He's very considerate, thoughtful, helpful, and affectionate. I can't say enough good things about him! To celebrate the "anniversary", I cooked us a nice stir-fry dinner. JT brought me flowers, candy, and this:

Isn't it beautiful?!
As part of a local festival, a "movie in the park" was shown on a 30ft screen Friday night. JT and I sat amongst many parents with children to see "Surf's Up." It was a cute movie.

I found it kind of amusing that two adults with no kids show up to an annimated movie riding in on a Harley, with JT looking like the quintessential "bad boy", which he is not -- but he pulls the look off really well! I'm still getting used to riding on the back of a motorcycle, since I haven't been on one for close to 20 years.

Since the weather was so nice yesterday, JT and I went on a 14.25 mile bicycle ride on the bike trail outside of town. The last few miles, both of us were two tired pups! I ended up with a slight sunburn. It was a beautiful ride with a nice breeze, though.


INGENUITY
I can't tell you how many times I've had to iron ribbons, either for clothing, or for crafts. It's always a pain to get out the ironing board and iron to iron something like a little piece of ribbon. Isn't it? Yes, it is!

Introduce the flat iron! I use it every morning to flat iron my hair. Over the weekend, I was wearing a shirt that has a ribbon which always needs ironing. It dawned on me... "If I can use this to iron my hair, why wouldn't it work for a piece of ribbon?" So, I tried it! Whaddya know!! It works wonderfully. Just make sure you don't leave the ribbon between the two heating elements too long, otherwise there's a good possibility it will get scorched due to the high temperature.


YUM-YUM's
I haven't shown my culinary skills in a while, so I thought I'd share one of my more recent creations:

Yakitori Noodles
This was a budget-friendly recipe I found on Rachel Ray's website. Instead of using soba noodles, I used noodles I'd bought from an Asian food store. I added sliced carrots and peas. Next time, I'm thinking about adding some broccoli and cutting the chicken pieces smaller. JT said it's a keeper!

Marvelous Monday Update 6/15/09

Wow... Here it is.... the middle of June already! Where does the time go?


BIRTHDAY SHOPPING
On Friday, I took my 17yr old niece birthday shopping. Her birthday was actually in April, but we just couldn't get it together then. I had a list of things I needed to get on Friday, so I told her I'd take her anywhere she wanted as long as I could stop get the things I needed. We started out at the mall, of course. I was impressed with her shopping skills. She's quite the careful shopper! We had a good afternoon together shopping and having "girl talk"... both of which was nice.



STITCHY STUFF
Last week, I started a new mail art piece for an exchange. I'm not very far on it, and can't show pics until it arrives to its destination. Not much fun without pics, eh?


DATING
JT took me to Capri Restaurant & Pizza on Friday night. They make most awesome Italian food, ever! I've been there a couple times and never had a bad meal. Neither of us could eat all of our entrees, so guess what we had for lunch the next day?

On Saturday, we spent the afternoon at a local village festival. The firemen put on a pork chop dinner that is so scrumptious. (Hmm... I see a food theme, lol)

JT came over on Sunday morning... Mowed my grass, removed the overgrown vines from the side of my garage (I can actually see out the windows now!), and trimmed my tree. He tries to make my life easier :) What a sweetheart, eh? Meanwhile, I finished creating my planters with the annuals I bought a couple weeks ago.

My niece who graduated two weeks ago had her graduation party on Sunday afternoon. More food! My Mom made pulled BBQ Pork and eggrolls! Yum-Yum-Yummy!!! JT was brave enough to accompany me and meet the rest of the family. I could tell my Mom liked him (a lot) right away. My sister didn't say a word to him, but my BIL did ask him "How's it goin?" LOL After the party, JT and I went to my parents house and visited for a while. (My Mom bribed me by telling me she had more eggrolls at home! Who can resist that?!?) My Mom was quite animated and chatty with JT. My Dad talked some (me thinks he was tired) and laughed at some of JT's jokes.

So let's see... the parents like him, coworkers like him, BFF LOVES him, online friends like him, but sister doesn't. My mother actually said to me outloud in front of JT: "He's a keeper! You need to hold on to him with both hands." Way to be subtle, Mom! (Moms... whaddya do?!) One of my coworkers has echoed the same sentiment, just not in front of him. LOL

Marvelous Monday Update 6/8/09

THE SICKY BUG
Yep, it's still with me. I went to the Dr last Thursday just to make sure I didn't have something serious since I still had a sore throat (which I think is due to all the coughing) and cough/congestion. The Dr looked at me and said I had a cold and allergies. LOL, well I knew that! So, I'm just waiting for it to get out of my system. Last night was the first night I slept thru without waking up in a coughing fit. Maybe I'm getting better?? Let's hope so!


STITCHY STUFF
I've made quite a bit more progress on Oriental Kimono:

(Sorry about the bad pic)
Other progress pics can be seen HERE.


GIVEAWAYS
My friend, Kathy, is doing a "surprise" giveaway on her blog. Go on over... take a peek at her new, adorable "baby" and sign up for her giveaway.

Gaynor is also hosting a surprise giveaway. Take a peek at the lovely WIPs.


DATING
Ya'll have been pressuring me to give "new guy" a name, so from now on I'll call him "JT" which are his first and middle initals. Are ya happy now?!? LOL

We had another great week/weekend. Now that school is over for the summer, we've been spending time together almost every day. A little over a month, and he is still very considerate, thoughtful and helpful. This past week, he brought me more flowers:


Saturday night, he took me out to eat at ThunderBay Grill. He ordered a grilled steak that tasted like it was fried with no flavor. I had the shrimp linguini, which was OK. We probably won't be going back there anytime soon.

On Sunday, we did a picnic at the park with grilled pork steaks, macaroni salad, and watermelon. Yummy! It was the first time our doggies met. After the initial "sniffing", they went about their own business and didn't really "play" with each other.

Thanks for all your comments about JT. They're all very much appreciated! :) (Can you tell I'm very happy with him?!)

Marvelous Monday Update 6/1/09

Thanks for all the well wishes regarding my "sicky" situation. I thought I was getting better, since the fever broke on Saturday. I "drugged up" with cold and allergy meds and felt fine until Sunday afternoon. I woke up this morning with sinus and chest congestion, coughing... plus all the allergy symptoms. Fun stuff. NOT! Feeling crappy and looking crappy, I trudged my way to work.


SCHOOL
This time it's not about me, but about my niece who graduated HIGH SCHOOL! Where does the time go??


It seems like yesterday she was a little girl.
Here she is... a proud big sister.

Now she's a high school graduate
on her way to college for pre-med.
I am so proud of her.
2009 DHS Graduating Class


STITCHY STUFF
Wouldn't you all agree that stitchers have the biggest hearts?

A while back, I showed off the fabric postcard Wanda from Canada sent me. On Mother's Day, I took it (along with my recent "finishes") to show my Mom. My Mom practically snatched the postcard out of my hand (LOL)! Being that she's asian, she (like me) loves anything of asian design. She wanted to keep my postcard and frame it. I swear she was coveting that thing, LOL. When I got home, I emailed Wanda with my "cute" Mom story. Wanda then offered to send my Mom a fabric postcard... Isn't that just the sweetest thing??? One day, my Dad walked into the house asking my Mom, "Are you Meari's mom?" I could picture the entire scene in my head as my mother was sharing the story with me. My Mom answers my Dad, "Yeah...?" Then he handed over the postcard, and of course my mother was ecstatic. She has it proudly displayed in one of her china hutches. Thank you Wanda, for making my Mom's day!




Last week, I received some good stitchy mail. Just more proof that stitchers are the best! Courtney in LA came across a tutorial to make one of these. Knowing I'd like it, she said she just HAD to make one for me. Isn't it adorable?




In another package, I received a handmade card from Shelley in CA thanking me for teaching a recent online mailart class. She also included several skeins of linen threads that were on my wishlist. Thank you, Shelley!


Since I worked out of town two days last week, I was able to make a lot of progress on Oriental Kimono. It's starting to look like an actual kimono:



Lastly, I have a finish to show off! I'm so pleased with how it turned out.

Quaker Pin Cube
Designer: Anita, Stitch-Creations
Time: 7 hours to stitch
Fabric: 28ct Antique White Monoco Evenweave
Fibers: Carries Creations, DMC


DATING

Curious minds want to know, right? I've had numerous requests to see what this "new guy" looks like. He's told me it's OK to show his pic on my blog, so here goes. Sorry, Christine... not showing the pic with me in it! This is "new guy" in his work truck. Isn't he adorable, handsome, HOT (LOL, any of those work, right?)? :)

Each year after the Get Fit Challenge, my coworker hosts a Pork Chop BBQ for the employees involved with the challenge. I took "new guy" as my guest. I was to take a dish to pass so I thought he was it. LOL, kidding! He volunteered to make the dish to pass (What a guy!): Chocolate Pie! Of course, I had to have a piece. It was really yummy. :) Considering there were at least 5 desserts to choose from, and only two pieces of his pie leftover... I'd say he did good.

While a few of us ladies were cleaning up the dishes, the hostess pulled me aside and told me how nice he is. Today at work, she and another coworker gave rave reviews about how good looking he is and how considerate he was. I'd say he got a big thumbs up from the coworkers!

And finally, "new guy" said he *had* to get me this....

... because it matched the necklace. Isn't it pretty?

Marvelous Monday (Tuesday) Update 5/26/09

OK, so it's not Monday. The holiday screws up everything, doesn't it? I bet ya'll didn't even miss me... LOL


SCHOOL
Remember how bummed I was last week upon learning that I passed my Intermediate Accounting class with a "C". Shortly after that, the instructor sent out an email telling students to add 4% to our final scores.... which brought me up to a "B"!!! Talk about thrilled to no end. *whew*


BLOG AWARD
I received the "Lovely Blog" award from CJ over at Tea & Stitches. She and I became friends a couple years ago, and I think she's a wonderful and talented lady. Not only can she stitch, but she also makes the cutest cards and beautiful baskets.

In the spirit of giving, I'm nominating the following people for having "lovely blogs" which I've enjoyed reading.

Ranae - Stitch by Stitch
Gabi - Lady of the Floss

Of course, there are MANY, MANY more that I thoroughly find "lovely" but I just chose two this time.


DATING
Last week, Emily and Courtney asked if "new guy" had a brother. Nope, only a sister. Not only that, my BFF would have first dibs since she asked shortly after my 2nd date with him. LOL And I even think there was one other person who asked after her. So, Emily and Courtney... You'd be third and fourth in line!

Now that school is done, "new guy" and I have been spending more time together... every day except for one, this past week.

On Saturday night, we met up with my sister, brother-in-law, 17yr old niece, and her BF at an Italian restaurant in Galena. To say it was a disaster would be an understatement. 98% of men probably would've ran in the other direction as fast as they could! I know my sister (and BIL) was just looking out for my best interests, but it was gone about in a way too aggressive route. Very intense! "New guy" felt attacked by both my sister and BIL. I was speechless and thought some of the conversation was very inappropriate to be having in front of two 17yr olds. I did find out that my sis apologized for being so aggressive -and- found out that she told "new guy" I don't pick the best men. (Thanks. Like we all haven't picked the wrong ones at times?) Needless to say, there was some calm "discussion" on the 45 minute drive home.

Despite "meeting the sister" not going as planned, things with "new guy" are still really good. He still is very much the thoughtful, considerate, gentleman. Over the past month of dating, we've found out little characteristics we have in common. Characteristics that *could* be annoying to another person (lol)... such as:

• We both squeeze the toothpaste from the bottom up, and can't stand when someone squeezes in the middle.
• We both pull the covers back on the bed in the morning after getting up.
• We both have to have the TP come over the top of the roll, and find it annoying when others don't replace the empty spool.
• After opening a can of food, the lid goes back in the can and the middle is squeezed before throwing it away. (Talk about weird! I didn't know anyone else did that.)
• We are both frugal for the most part, but there are things we just don't skimp on.

There are many others such as values, outlook on life, and financial things. I just find the above very amusing.

My Mom called me at 5:45AM this morning to ask for the phone number of a relative. Apparently, she's hosting a 4th of July BBQ and didn't have some numbers. After inviting me, she said I could bring my "friend" (lol) if I wanted. So guess who's game for meeting the entire family in one fall swoop? I started to tell him that they're nice, and he teased me by saying: "That's what you said about your sister!"


STITCHY STUFF



I actually have a stitchy update! Over the weekend, I finished re-stitching the Quaker Cube side that I spilled spaghetti sauce on a couple weeks ago.








I also got some stitching done on Oriental Kimono. I'm not sure I like how dark it is, but maybe it'll grow on me.

It's Done... and Over... already

It started... it happened... and now it's officially over.

I met HIS parents (What? Did you think the "new guy" was history?).

He's asked me almost from the beginning to meet my parents, and I've been putting it off because my parents can be a bit eccentric or "different". I wanted "new guy" to meet my siblings first so he could see I have a "normal" family, LOL.

On Saturday, we were on our way to dinner (He *still* opens all doors for me!) and he brought up the subject again. He wants to take my parents out for dinner! I started to put it off again and he suggested *I* meet his parents first to show me his are a bit "different" (his words, not mine) too. They both were friendly to me and it really didn't feel uncomfortable.

Next weekend, we have plans for him to meet my sister, BIL and my niece. It'll be a triple date since my niece has a BF.

Other news:

"New guy" brought me these pretty flowers with a card. Aren't they gorgeous? He's so funny... While I went to the basement to get a vase, he says to me: "Am I a bad BF because I haven't bought you flowers in a vase?" What?! He's got to be kidding. I told him I had plenty of vases and actually preferred no more vases.


On Sunday, "new guy" came over with his weedeater and did all the weed trimming for me. I got into "trouble" because he had plans to mow his yard Sunday morning and then come over and do mine. But, I did mine Saturday afternoon before he picked me up for our date.

After the weed trimming, he helped me plant my planters and hanging pots. LOL, mostly he watched since he didn't know what to do. But, he did help some. He insisted on carrying the flats wherever I needed them, and swept up the dirt I managed to get outside the planters and all over the concrete.


Nancy commented on the earlier post about personal life interfering with school... Actually, no. "New guy" was/is really good about not bothering me on Monday and Tuesday nights (when I did my studying) and then making sure I had time to do my tests and such without his interference. He's so thoughtful and considerate!

Marvelous Monday Update 5/11/09

PROBABLY TMI
However, I'm going to share anyway! LOL Last week when I bought mouthwash (Listerine) it came with a small bottle of pre-brush teeth whitening rinse. I thought, "What the heck, I'll try it."

My gawd! For at least five minutes, I gagged, heaved, and almost wretched my stomach up through my throat. I've never had that kind of reaction to anything! And it definitely doesn't have the "fresh mint" taste as proclaimed on the bottle. I rinsed with water and mouthwash -and- still couldn't get that taste out of my mouth! Throughtout the day, I felt nauseated and occassionally could still taste it. First AND last time, I use that stuff!

So, me being me, I go online to read up on it and found all THESE negative comments! Some of them aren't very pretty. Yuck.


STITCHY STUFF
I worked on putting Quaker Cube together over the weekend. I had a mishap where *somehow* I spilled spaghetti sauce on the corner of one of the cube sides. I didn't find out until this morning. Sooooo... I frantically spent my morning trying to get the stain out. Talk about disheartening!


GARDENING
The weather is finally nice enough so I could go buy flowers for my planters and hanging baskets. Here's what I came home with:


I wanted to plant Mums around the base of the lamp post in the front yard. At the last minute, I decided I wanted to create a flower bed around it THEN plant the Mums. I'm still not sure I like it, but it'll do for this year.



Last year, on my way to work I saw a sign at the curb: "Forsynthia - Free" I turned my car around and went back and got what was the equivalent of a 1/2 palm of roots. I thought "What the heck" and planted them in 2-gallon pots I had. They started to grow last summer and I wintered them in my garage. Here's what they look like now:

Soon, I'll have to figure out where I want to plant these shrubs!

This is just one mound of Periwinkle, I got from a Freecycler last year:




DATING
Friday was a strange day for Ghosts of BF's Past! First, I get a text from XBF from 5 years ago telling how much he missed me. I responded by saying I was seeing someone. Flood gates opened, and berages of texts came from him about how great I am, deserve the best, how we could talk on the phone and be friends like before, how much he cares for me, yadda, yadda, yadda. I ignored them all.

Then... I received a text from S (BF from almost 2 years ago) asking if I wanted to go garage saling with him. What?! I responded back "No, I have plans". Then he texted me: "So do I" LOL, sure he did... That's why he was asking me to hang out with him.

Geesh... What is the problem with these guys that they don't get the hint?! 2-5 years is P-L-E-N-T-Y of time to go away. It's not like I encourage them! As a matter of fact, I've told XBF5 not to text me. Obviously, he doesn't listen.

On to better things.....

I'm sure there are a few of you chomping at the bit, waiting for the next installment re: the "new guy". He's still as thoughtful and considerate as ever! He's told his Mom about me and showed her photos I sent him via cell phone. I showed my BFF his photo and her response was: "He's HOT!" LOL -- Yeah, he's a good looking guy, all right. And he's good on the inside, too. So what did we do this week?

Wed: We had plans to grill dinner at my house after I got done with tutoring. Mother Nature didn't cooperate and rained on our parade. "New guy" suggested he take me out, instead. Who's gonna argue with that? Not me!

Fri: He invited me to his house (my first time) and cooked dinner for me. Grilled butterfly pork chops... Yumm. He even "suffered" through two episodes of "Wife Swap". It was very enlightening seeing his reactions to how different couples ran their households.

Sat: I invited him to see a play at the community theater with me, which was pretty good. Not as comical as the last one I saw, but still had it's funny parts. Oh, he took me out to dinner before the play. We ate way too much!

He still opens doors for me and allows me to enter first. He is very observant and tries to make sure I'm comfortable. Lots of good conversations about life issues. He calls and texts daily. The comfort level is such like we've known each other a long time. He's even made plans for us to go to a comedy show at the end of JULY!




For Mother's Day (no, I'm not a mother.. LOL) -- He bought me a planter of Hens and Chicks. I had been looking at them when I bought my flowers, but didn't get any.




When I got in his car for the play, I didn't see a box on the seat and sat on it. So I moved it to the console, and he gave it back to me. LOL (Apparently, it was for me) It was the other part of my Mother's Day gift:

Isn't it beautiful?

Courting

I can't remember if I mentioned the "new guy" told me he wants to court me, and is enjoying doing so. The cards, candy, doors, etc... all part of his courting ritual (plus I think he knows I like it!).



One time he said to me, "You know what happens at the end of courting, don't you?" Me, not really sure... I said no. He then told me he was giving me a little homework... to find out the answer to it.

Off and on, I've been researching the net and reading about courtship. Today I texted him: "Courtship... Process of building a relationship with a potential life partner... end usually resulting in marriage. How'd I do on my homework research?"

He immediately texted me back: "I'm impressed! U described just what I am attempting to do. :-)"

Holy cow... I don't know whether to be flattered or to freak out. LOL It's been at least 8 years since someone has *really* taken time to get to know me. Usually, they just want to get to know me to gauge whether or not they can get my clothes off by the 3rd date, LOL. But I digress. "New guy" asks a lot of insightful questions at which I'm always surprised! He has picked up on things that I'd not think a guy would.

The "New" Guy

Can't pull anything over on you guys, can I? I debated about whether or not to blog about the "new" guy. I've had at least 4 people ask about him since my last MM update!


Thursday, we had an impromptu "get together"... not really a date, but more of a "hanging out" as he puts it. His friend/neighbor was quitting her job at a local bar and they were having a party for her. So he asked if I would go with. When we met up, he had his hands behind his back and said "pick a hand" (lol). In one hand he had chocolate and the other hand was a darling card that said he missed me. Aww... isn't that sweet? We made an appearance and spent most of the next 3 hours talking to each other. Again, he opened the car door for me -and- the doors to the bar, letting me enter first.

Saturday was our "official" second date. When he arrived at my house (Yes, I allowed him to pick me up), I was in the backyard up on a step ladder filling a birdfeeder. He asked if he could put the ladder away for me and then picked up my laundry basket of clothes and carried it into the house (wow!). For our dinner, I suggested we go to a sushi cafe that my bro and SIL told me about several months ago. He wasn't sure he'd like sushi, but said he'd try it. The restaurant was VERY small and really noisy. We started off with fried rice, which was absolutely AWESOME! The sushi came (I *love* sushi) and after about 3 pieces, he was done. I felt sooooo bad, and told him how bad I felt. He was so gracious about it, telling me that even though he didn't like it... I did and he was happy to take me there. He even said next time, he'd get the pork chops the waitress had recommended. So there might be a next time!

After we ate (really... I did feel awful he didn't get much to eat), we went to see "Ghosts of Girlfriends Past" -- his suggestion! He thinks Matthew McConnohey is a good actor. Personally, I think Matthew is HOT! He played a jackass in the movie, though.

We were about 40 minutes early for the movie, so we sat in the lobby and talked some more. All good things! He seems to really want to know about ME, and he's very complimentary as well as thoughtful and considerate. As with all the other times, he opened doors for me and made sure I either got into my house or car safely before he departed.

After the movie, we had plans to stop at his parents' house to pick up his other vehicle and drive both to his house before he took me home. He has a *really* nice (and FAST) car that he said he's only let one other person drive. He let me drive THAT car back to his house, and then to my house. He observed that I was very gentle and careful with his car. Well, yeah!

He knew I would be working on my test on Sunday, so he said he wouldn't bother me. The plan was for me to text him when I was done, which I did. I had plans to go out to the bike path... and invited him along but since he didn't answer back right away, I went by myself. He didn't get the message right away because he was busy working on a motor or something. By the time he messaged me back, I was finishing up cooking ribs on the grill. He hadn't eaten, so I invited him over. He arrived with another "I miss you" card. After dinner, he offered to wash the dishes! I declined, so he rinsed and stacked them on the counter while I put the food away. After a few more hours of talking, the next thing we know it was 11pm! Time for him to go... we both get up early for work.

So far he seems really "into" me, and I haven't seen red flags or anything that I don't like. We have a 3rd date set for Saturday night. :)

Marvelous Monday Update 4/20/09

Stitchy Stuff
A while back, I won a giveaway Shelleen was hosting on her blog. It's a Silver Needle Night kit depicting February events... Ground Hog's Day, Valentine's Day, Lincoln & Washington's Birthdays. I really enjoyed the last SNN kit I did so I'm sure I'll enjoy this one, too. Thank you, Shelleen!


In today's mail, I received this cute RAK from Jess. These block-by-block projects are designed by Craft Center of Fine Stitchery. They come in chart or kit form.


Lastly, I'll leave you with my progress on the Quaker Cube:


So far it's been a pretty quick stitch. I've only had to frog once. It takes me about 1.5 hours to stitch one square.


Giveaway
Nina is hosting a giveaway on her blog: "If you want to get a chance to win please show us your scissors on your blog. Not condition to have a lot scissors, you can show any what you have. Please leave a comment HERE if you want to be entered. To get one more extra enter put this logo on your blog and link back here, leave a comment again after it." The giveway ends April 30th, midnight (CET). You'll get scissors and the lot in the picture!

Here are my scissors:



Stitchy Stuff of a Different Kind
I was totally floored when I got my mail last Monday and found a fabric postcard from Wanda in Canada! I was so excited, I took it to work with me and showed it off. It's truly a work of art! Even my coworker said it would look wonderful framed. I've actually met Wanda in person and she's a great gal. :) (I did wonder why she never responded to me when I asked about fabric postcards. Now I know why!) Sneaky girl...

The fabric postcard was mailed just as you see it... Just like a paper postcard. Isn't it totally awesome?! Thank you, Wanda!! I LOVE it :)


Blog Award
Carolyn, the sweet lady she is, gave me an award! Thank you, Carolyn, for thinking of me. :)

"This blog invests and believes in the PROXIMITY-nearness in space, time and relationships. These blogs are exceedingly charming. These kind bloggers aim to find and be friends. They are not interested in prizes or self-aggrandizement! Our hope is that when the ribbons of these prizes are cut, even more friendships are propagated."

I'm passing this award on to 5 others:

Kristin - Dragondreamer's Lair
Donna - Stitching For A Cure
Kathy - Kathy's Stitch and Other Comments
Rachel - What Crazy Looks Like
Ranae - Stitch by Stitch (Who I recently found out lives fairly close to me!)


Dating
LOL, ahhh... Where do I start?

Hand Sanitizer Dude: He seemed OK at first. He took me to a Superbowl Party hosted by some friends of his. We left early and finished watching the game at his house, since I had a 40 minute drive home. I asked to use his restroom and found that while the water in the toilet worked (thank goodness), the water in the sink did not. When I exited the bathroom, he handed me a bottle of hand sanitizer to "wash my hands" since the water in the sink wasn't turned on. As a parting gift despite my polite declines, he gave me a new bottle of hand sanitizer to take home. Proclaimed "work" gives it to the employees all the time. Oh, and I sha'nt forget to include the conversations about how athletic he was in high school... holding records that had previously been held by students who went on to be NFL stars. Picture a plump 38year old man bragging to me about his H.S. records! As you can imagine, it was the *first* and *last* date.

We Should Go out (Sometime) Guy: For almost two weeks, this guy texted me various messages of hello, good morning, sweet dreams, etc. The first time we talked on the phone, he asked me out, said we'd talk later in the week. Wed, he texted asking me if we were still going out. I said "Yes" and asked if he was still game. To which he replied "Yes!" Alrighty then. From that point on, no more texts. Thursday comes, no phone call. Friday comes, a few texts. No phone call. No mention of date which was supposed to be on Saturday. Saturday afternoon, he emails me giving me an excuse as to why he can't go out. Now mind you, I've been around the block a time or two with dating (LOL!) and I can tell when the games begin and when a guy is not really interested. In this email he said something along the lines of: "We can go out in a couple weeks, if you're still interested." Whoa.... Does he think I'm desperate? I emailed him back about how empathetic I was to peoples issues that come up, and that I felt it was discourteous to me to wait until that day to email me rather than pick up the phone... of which he should've done Wed or Thurs... not email on Saturday afternoon when our date was to occur. Can you believe he actually emailed me back after that with a simple... "OK" (ROFL!)

You Bet I Would Guy: I emailed this guy asking if he'd like to communicate a bit. His response: "You Bet I would." LOL So, I emailed him back asking him to tell me about himself, what type of relationship he was looking for, his hobbies, etc. His response: "I don't really know what I want, but I'll know it when I see it. You know what I mean? I want someone who's not afraid to get her hands dirty. Your turn, I guess." Hmmm, I thought to myself. LOL Another "Alrighty then" What I felt like screaming was: "How in the heck do you think you're going to find a woman if you don't know what you want???!" So politely, I wrote back that I did not know what he meant as I knew exactly what I wanted, that my profile gave a good indication of who I am, what I'm looking for, and what I'm about. My head almost spun off on that one.