Stupid Things I Did

For some odd reason I feel the need to post stupid things I've done, or maybe just silly things I've done. But either way they're usually kind of stupid silly instead of literally stupid, although maybe sometimes they're just a little spacey. I can be spacey sometimes.

Ok! Onto the list:

1. So, for clarification, I have a badge for work that gets me: into the building without going through metal detectors; into the space designated for our agency (I have to wait for the heavy duty plastic barriers to open first); and into my office space, or any other office space in the agency (well, except for the head honcho, our administrator's office, and stupidly once when I had only been working here for like a month I tried to get in there... long story). So, I have this badge, it's really important. Saturday I got a new purse. I switched a handful of stuff into my new purse but left the other one relatively untouched. Monday morning when I was a good 12 minutes away from home and 3 minutes away from the Metro I realized I forgot the badge, the oh so important badge, in my old purse, at home. I didn't leave the office almost all day because the temporary badges they give us are paper, and they don't get me into anywhere. So I have to wait and wait and wait in the hall after returning from the restroom until someone comes around to open the door for me. Stupid.
2. Tuesday morning I was putting on my makeup and luckily remembered that I needed to grab my badge out of my old purse to put it in my new purse so I wouldn't feel like a leper without her badge. Unfortunately my badge wasn't in my old purse's badge pocket. I looked in every pocket trying to find the badge. I panicked for about 2 seconds before I thought that maybe, just maybe I was awesome and had already moved my badge to new purse. And you know what? I found the badge in new purse, where I can only assume, I moved it on Saturday when I switched all things important to my new purse.
3. So what does that really long story tell you? I had my badge with me all day Monday.

and here we have gabbi the cat sitting on my lap... i'm sure for animal haters everywhere you're totally grossed out and disgusted by this picture. i feel like this picture might actually be a little creepy with the cat staring right at you or something. if it's creepy, whoops! not my intent. or is it...? now that i'm not a cat hater...

Unrelated to the stupid things I've done, cat/house sitting ends today. I'm going back to my real life (because this has been pretend life obviously). I won't be able to sit on the couch for hours uninterrupted (except by a nosey little kitty who just wants to be petted); or be able to listen to my book on tape while cleaning and cooking without feeling rude; or climb in bed at 9:30 and not be worried I'll be woken up, or embarrassed if someone finds me asleep at 9:45 (happened twice this week); and lastly, I think I'll actually miss having the cats around. (Minus the litter box, gross.) But, I've decided I don't hate cats anymore.

I also purchased a Groupon just now that's going to help me GRE prepare. Check it out, it's still available for purchase for the next two days...

Cooking

I've been trying to cook more and cook healthy meals. It's been really helpful for me to be able to come home at night, feed the cats and then get to cooking something simple and delicious while listening to my audio book. I'm really into soups right now because they're easy to make and last a few days. Lisa came over yesterday and I felt like I was giving her a cooking lesson because she was a fantastic sous chef and kept asking what she should do next.

We ended up with a colorful meal that our former roommate Debbie would have been very proud of: tomato bisque (really good, worth making), and pork chops with green beans and mushrooms (pictured).

(picture snapped by Lisa while cooking last night)

Things I'm Not Good At

Now that might sound like a really strange, self criticizing title, but hang with me here, it's not things I'm legitimately bad at like saaaayyyy, playing the piano, shooting three pointers, or painting (but those are things my sisters are good at), these are simple, easy things that seem really ridiculous that I'm not good at.

1. knowing my left from my right. I ALWAYS give people the wrong directions. Even though I'm really good at directions and knowing where I am and rarely getting lost, I still tell people my house is on the right side of the road when I clearly and thinking left.
2. cooking rice. How can someone be bad at cooking rice? I don't know, but I am. I rarely eat rice because cooking it stresses me out. Give me a multi-flavored cake, no problem. Throw a recipe I've never made before at me? That sounds exciting. But rice? Have someone else cook it. Except tonight where I'm making THIS, THIS, and THIS for dinner with my roommates and rice needs to be served.
3. not talking during class. I can't help it. It's a curse. My kindergarden "Indian Native American" Name was Little Babbling Brook. I've been chatty my whole life. And I especially cannot stay quite in church.
4. scooping litter box waste. Still can't do it. I'm still gagging. I bought gum, I plug my nose, I close my eyes (bad idea), and I still gag so hard I think I'm going to loose my last meal. So, I was a bad cat mama and didn't clean out the box for a few days. (Ok ok ok, like five days. Oops, that's kind of a really long time.) Well, they should be grateful, I went above and beyond my duty as a cat sitter and cleaned out that blasted litter box. I gagged once (more like a dry heave really) and then was done! Hoorah for me!

And for something I'm good at.

1. I can juggle. Thank you elementary school P.E.

What random things are you not good at? Or are good at?

Lent

I've given up anything that doesn't go with my diet for Lent. And I'm doing such a good job sticking to it. Probably because I'm currently living alone. (Remember I'm house/cat sitting?) But I also am doing a good job because the thought of eating a cookie when I promised God I was giving that kind of stuff up is good enough guilt to keep me on the program. Well, today marks the first seven days of Lent, I only have five and a half more weeks to go...

Triumphs of the last week:

• not even opening the Godiva truffles I have as a thank you for house sitting
• not eating the Girl Scout Cookies in the cupboard (Tagalogs, Thin Mints)
• not eating the Thin Mint handed to me this afternoon
• not eating any cake at Wendy's Golden Birthday
• not eating the itty bitty mini Reese's Cups Domineau brought over on Sunday (the temptess!)
• not buying food that was not inline with my diet (even though I know no one would see me eat it. well, except God.)

Though, none of that has stopped me from browsing food blogs and dreaming of the cakes I'm going to make for upcoming birthdays...

Gag Reflex

(Note: If you don't like animals, maybe you shouldn't read this whole post. Just read the first paragraph and then skip to the star or something.)

Starting a couple days ago I am house/cat sitting for a coworker of mine. I am a DC resident for two weeks (I like to think of it as a trial run for moving into the District) and I'm living alone. And after two nights I'm loving the quiet, the peace, even the company of the cats.*

Except I'm hating one thing. The litter box. Ew gross, just the thought of cleaning out the clumps of sandy cat waste is grossing me out. Grossing me out so bad that yesterday I bought gum to chew so I wouldn't smell, and then I plugged my nose for good measure. No smelling but then I just started gagging. Serious gags, like I'm about to puke gags. And I don't want to lean over the toilet and throw up in there because that's where I just scooped that sandy pee clump. Ewwww. Shudder.

And I have 12 more days of it. I'm afraid to clean out the box. I really hate throwing up.

Any advice from cat owners, lovers out there?


*That makes me sound like a sad cat lady. I don't know if I should be embarrassed or not. I'd be ok with a dog. A dog would be much better. And I wouldn't mind the dog coming up and trying to get me to play with it. These cats, unfortunately for them only get the minimal attention. That's kind of sad for them actually. I'll be nicer if they stopped running away anytime I wasn't feeding them. (And maybe if it wasn't for the whole litter box thing.)