11-30-01
At midnight tonight, @Home cable internet went bankrupt and this website went off the air. Comedy ensued. As I type this, I'm still off the air, and will continue with my December journal even though no one can access it. I hope to be public again by the New Year.
Tonight was Kristin's Going Away party at Six Arms. They reserved the entire top floor for us, and we filled it. She's driving from Seattle to Maine with a boat on top of her car. I told her at least she didn't have five cats. And that's speaking from experience.

11-29-01
I am proud to announce that Jon was told on his third hospital visit that he has mono. So there.

11-27-01
CD's I am embarassed that I don't own:
Death Cab For Cutie: Photo Album
Modest Mouse: Everywhere and his Nasty Parlour Tricks
Les Savy Fav: Go Forth
Radiohead: I Might Be Wrong (Live Tracks)
I dyed my hair brown tonight. Now I'm going to watch West Wing. My evening is complete.

11-26-01
Qdoba told Sean they are not hiring, so it's yet another job that's not gonna happen. He went to Lee's in frustration, I cleaned out the kitchen cupboards. Stress relief.
So about that Thanksgiving.....
We called Jon around noon to see what the timeline was for the day - cooking and such. We knew that the turkey should be in the oven by then. He didn't answer and I panicked, because I knew how sick he was the night before. Sure enough, he called about ten minutes later to say that he was at the hospital again, and they are now calling it strep throat, although that seems like a vague diagnosis to me; I'm not buying it. I think it's mononucleosis.
SO! That leaves us with the groceries and a fat dripping turkey and Sean and I looking each other up and down ("I can eat the sweet potatoes, can you handle the turkey and mashed potatoes?" "I'll take the turkey if you take the....... okay this isn't gonna work") In a mad dash I called Starbucks, who got Truly on the horn to organize employees to come over after work and have Thanksgiving at our house. She did an awesome job.
Part of the Thanksgiving crowd
The Starbucks girls
 

Mono-Boy serves up a heapin' helpin' of
mono-turkey!		 I picked up Jon, grabbed his share of the groceries, took our chairs back, and we headed in the rain to Marc's. Marc handed over Mom's pumpkin pie and wished us well (he was sleeping the day away). Jon in all his virus-laden glory helped with the turkey (we are bad, bad people) and Sean did a crapload of cooking. Numerous phone calls later, I had an RSVP of ten. I had one bummer of an artichoke appetizer and a box of crackers. So I took all of the various leftover cheeses in our fridge (brie, white cheddar, bleu, and cream cheese), threw it in an oven-proof bowl, and sprinkled it with pecans and brown sugar. It worked!
We played some cards and Uno, had the big table set up in the living room, candles, music (ahhh.... Thanksgiving dinner with System of a Down), lots of food, it all turned out great! Well, not all. Jon was dying in our bedroom for the last half of the night.
The oven was a champ and we had enough silverware for everyone. And everybody was out of the house by ten. Amazing. Holly even commented that it was great to go to a Thanksgiving dinner where the food was actually good. Heh!

1 1-24-01
I've been avoiding the journal on purpose.... it's been a difficult week to write about.
Tuesday night the three of us went grocery shopping and spent $85, which really isn't too bad considering it's Thanksgiving dinner for six. Anyhoo, we got everything except for drinks (Marc) and dessert (Jon's Mom). We split up the groceries so Sean & I could prepare some at home and Jon could fit everything else into his kitchen. Wednesday night at midnight Jon called - he just got home from the hospital. Turns out he didn't have the flu this week - he has a virus. He left the hospital with a few prescriptions and doctor's orders: he has to fast for two days. He called everyone to say that Thanksgiving will be delayed until this weekend.
I worked at 4:15 a.m. and it was totally slow since all of our regulars were at home sleeping in. I was extremely tired because I had these horrible nightmares - three in a row - right after Jon called. They were so bad I had to wake up Sean and make him talk to me until I could fall back asleep so I wouldn't slip into another nightmare.
Of course, Jon's parents couldn't make it back out for the weekend, so now it will just be the four of us. They were here Thursday and took Marc to Marie Callendar's for Thanksgiving dinner (after looking for a good place to eat for 2+ hours) and Jon's Mom gave Marc two pies for this weekend. I missed them yet again. I haven't seen them since my trip to Yakima last August.
Sean and I drove around trying to find something to feed and entertain ourselves. He had a chicken dinner from Safeway's deli, I had broccoli and cheese. We rented two movies. I had to open again the next day. It was slow again. Grrrr......
So tomorrow, Sunday, is supposedly the big day for the four of us to have Thanksgiving dinner, but I just visited Jon tonight (forcing him to watch the movie Dogs in Space) and I must say I'll be impressed if we pull it off. He's still very sick. The turkey is just sitting in Jon's fridge, completely thawed and nearing the danger zone. The potatoes have been peeled since Wednesday night and probably taste like the interior of our fridge by now.
I also left a message for Marc tonight just begging him to help me with some Photoshop issues so I can streamline my work for Johnston Architects, as I know there's just got to be a shortcut lurking in there somewhere, but I don't know it.
You should see our Halloween pumpkins. They're still by our front door. The head of mine collapsed.

11-16-01
Some time last night someone smashed the window in Sean's car and stole everything out of it. He noticed when he left for a job interview, and had to miss the interview to stay home for the police report. It made today a very bad day. Sean then held me until I fell asleep for a nap after work, made phone calls until he found a side mirror for my car and a new window for his car, and woke me up with dinner.
He needs a good thing soon.
 
11-14-01

Our beloved kitchen floor
(that's the rotten wood below the tile)		 Sean and I went out this afternoon (to get an estimate on repairing my car mirror) and came home to an alarming roof leak pouring down on our cabinet which houses our stereo and two computers, including this webite's server. We dried things as best we could.
Our landlord, Dan, is here now to fix numerous things in the house. Our kitchen sink has been leaking for ages and the whole cabinet needs to be ripped out and thrown away. It rotted the floor a long time ago and we always wondered not if but when we'd fall through the floor into the crawlspace below.
So anyhow Ron's here fixing the oven, sink, and floor, and the light and broiler in the oven are working now - which is completely new to us. (He even brought in some salmon for the cats - I asked Dan if we could keep him) We will also get the fireplace cleaned/examined, as it may have suffered damage from last spring's earthquake, and it hasn't been cleaned in the three years we've lived here. And as I take this written tally on our beautiful home, my landlord is here insisting that I tell you what a great guy he is!
Did I tell you we're doing Thanksgiving dinner this year? Sean's Thanksgiving is in October, and I'm vegetarian, so there's usually no need for Thanksgiving dinners with us, but this year we're having a real, family-like dinner with Jon, his brother Marc, and his parents, and I'm so excited! Jon's doing the turkey and stuffing, we're doing sides, and Marc is doing.... well, we're not sure yet. And Jon's Mom may be assigned to dessert, but the plans aren't finalized yet. I can tell you that Jon's place will be creatively assembled to provide for a dinner for six. Keep in mind how small his kitchen is.
Take a look at the journal entries so far for this month. The pictures include the kitchen floor, me cradling a bundt cake in the kitchen, my refrigerator, and Jamey's salad bowls. Obsession?

11-12-01
I'm getting a scanner, so be warned - you may be seeing a lot more OLD pictures on this site!
Jon and I made a wonderful bundt cake Sunday evening - this time it was the Big Daddy's Cake. It made a great breakfast at Starbucks today.
We also studied for Jon's big architecture certification tests with flashcards and they were pretty cool. By we, I mean I held up the flashcards and he did a lot of thinking.
Sean has applied for a few more jobs and they are still not even responding. I don't know how to help him.
I found a couple classes to take this winter - intermediate sign language and a furniture design class!  I'm also still looking for a furniture upholstery class - if you guys know of any such classes in Seattle, please let me know.
Sean and Jon are still working on the concrete project in the garage. It will take a week to set - then after it's set, we have no idea what to do with it. Excellent planning!
....Special thanks go out to Truly, who gave me a bunch of hand-me-down clothes tonight, while her (thankfully de-clawed) cat Alex attacked me mercilessly (multiple fuzzy punches to the head - I think I'll live).

cakey

11-09-01
I love my fridge. My fridge loves me.

Work has been so busy! I believe the holiday season has officially begun. The traffic tonight agreed. UGH!
Today I met with Johnston Architects to consult with them for their website redesign. It looks like a fun project - I may even start making some samples for them this weekend. The job was referred to me by Matt (part of the 6rms group) who works there.
I've been so busy doing a lot of nothing, I've missed the last three episodes of ER (which Sean taped for me), so I plan on having an ER-Palooza tonight.
I was 15 minutes late for work today. I woke up at 4:15 - and I was supposed to be there at 4:15. You can imagine what I looked like by getting ready in four minutes. So here I am feeling gross and tired and bad-haired, and I got flowers on my windshield from one of our regular customers! He left a bouquet and wrote "from Bob" on the condensation on my windshield. Isn't that the greatest? (Note to readers: If I end up murdered, he is the strawberry blonde who works at the car dealership next door.)
This afternoon, Hobbes (our siamese cat) wouldn't stop meowing, and it was constant and annoying, so Sean picked him up (Hobbes gets straight and poised like a show cat when picked up), and Sean dusted the hallway walls with Hobbes' side. The whole wall was wiped with my cat. He just stood perfectly straight and Sean rubbed him along the whole wall. It was hilarious. And Hobbes was so confused (I'm serious - you could see it on his face), it successfully shut him up.

11-06-01
Tonight I made macaroni & cheese and cupcakes and the boys worked on concrete stuff in the garage.
Yup. Pretty dang exciting. 

11-05-01
Back from New York City.... what a chaotic 4 days I've had!
Security at airports is crazy - I got to SeaTac about two hours early and needed that whole time to get through ticketing and security. And this was for a 6:30 a.m. flight! On the plane I had a cocktail of gin & tonic and a valium from Tijuana, and don't remember much after that. Grandma and my cousin Ben arrived at LaGuardia an hour after me (perfect!) so we were able to catch a ride to the hotel together.
We stayed at the Crowne Plaza - but I kept forgetting the name so I'd tell cabbies Crown Royal, Royal Crown, Royal Plaza, Come On Now, and they'd finally figure out what I meant. It was at 49th and Broadway so we were on Times Square again! The crew wasn't near as fun as last year's crew at DoubleTree, and they had no room service or food anywhere after ten p.m., which we found strange (especially on our schedule). Otherwise it was still a nice stay.

Jamey's bowls
Made from patterned blocks of walnut and cherry, then hollowed out into giant salad bowls. The boy sniffs glue all day.		 Jamey's booth was in a much better location this year and his prize piece was a pool table which was completed minutes before he left for NYC. He sold a good 13 or so bowls and a few baseball bats, too. I spent most of my time at the show attending the architectural seminars and the cooking shows and taking notes. On Friday, Selina Kwan stopped by the show and I got to spend a couple hours with her which was very cool. Selina was an architect at GGLO in Seattle (where I worked last year) and she moved to NYC with her boyfriend Stewart a few months ago (I mentioned her in my Sept. 11 journal entry). She sat with me during the architecture seminars and listened to the architects she recently sent resumes to, and spoke to some of them afterward. Looks like nobody's hiring anywhere for anything.
[Speaking of which, Sean is losing his mind looking for work. He's now applying for restaurant jobs, which is exactly what he didn't want to have to resort to.]
Friday night Grandma took me to see 42nd Street and she bought me a fake Gucci (Jim Gucci) purse on the street. Before I left New York I also got Sean a fake Movado (Joe Movado) watch and a Jim Gucci watch for myself. I went to two different Starbucks - one at Times Square and one by the italian restaurant we went to with my cousin Jeremy, and although they were good, I still love my store the best.
I left the hotel at 1 a.m. Saturday night and caught a cab to the (empty) airport and sat and scribbled notes and read for four hours. The flights back were uneventful as I slept most of the way back. I pulled down that food tray, threw a pillow on it, leaned over (*thunk*), and slept on it that way for two hours, neanderthal style.  No shame.