Random pics

So I guess I suck at blogging even when I have boatloads of time.

Update on the job situation:

Things moved amazingly fast on that front, then slow.  I actually got a call about an interview from the first job application I submitted (for a different position) and had an interview and an offer within a week.  Yay me.  Except due to processes at the employer, I don't start til May 9.  My summer vacation comes early.  I'm planning a trip down to South Florida for the end of April.

Here's a few pics I've taken recently to summarize what I've been doing:

Shopping!  I got this new welcome mat today.  I walked by it and did a double take.  At only $9.99 I couldn't walk away without it.

I wish my front flowers were doing better.  I planted a few red tulips that were looking good to the left of the door that have mysteriously disappeared (bulbs and all) before I got to snap a pics. The biggest pot has perennial orange lilies that are not back yet.

I'm jealous of the red tulips in front of the Hopkins Bayview campus:

On gardening, My indoor window boxes in the kitchen:

 Spearmint, a small pot of Armada Roses, an orchid.

And waiting to go outside:

 Tomato, Cukes, basil, rosemary, chives, lettuces (spring mix seed packet).

Here's the current sorry state of last year's lovely patio:

         aka a trash pile from a project of replacing the upstairs windows.  Ideally the lettuces will go in the shoe holder on the fence.  The rest will live in the raised bed that is currently covered in windows to keep the rats out (ick).

 Also I recently got back in to Acting! I was in the Vagina Monologues and most recently The Good Body, both by Eve Ensler.  For the latter I made a collage for the set:

              The idea is it is the messages from "the media" women get about what is beautiful (GOOD) and the products that will make us that way.  All in the shape of an "ideal" feminine figure.

Since I had the cast party at my place, it's actually clean enough to share pics.

 (Action shot of Sushi the cat.  Cats are always getting up in my pics)

              The chairs were a refurb I did with my Mom last summer.  A before and after post will follow, but I think they need something else, like cute pillows.

Cooking/making messes. Because I'm sitting around/surfing the net a lot I get random urges to try out a new recipe I find.  Cue Strawberry Scones at 3:30 to use some ugly berries in my fridge.

Here's the mess I made of the kitchen:

I used this recipe because I had everything on hand (uses yogurt instead of cream, I used a lowfat vanilla instead of the recommended orange flavor).  I gotta say my batter was way runny and they came out more like muffin tops.  The OJ-powdered sugar icing is delish.

Mostly, I've been running errands.  Trips to Home Depot, getting my car its maintenance (two trips to an auto shop), shopping, giving my friends rides at hours most people are working, etc.

Here's a kinda artsy shot driving over the Key Bridge.

Ok, maybe I'll remember to blog more. I still have to show off the projects in my bedroom!

One.

One job application in.  I think I will be awesome at the position, in a seemingly brand new department at a hospital.  Too bad I messed up their online application process and had to end up submitting my name twice.  Oh well, it's not like I'm claiming I'm highly technical.... Oh wait, I am... Sigh.

As soon as I finished updating my resume and cover letter my ADD (and the morning's coffee) kicked in and I ended up re-caulking my bathroom window and back door, and touch-up painting the half bath.  After about 6 years (I'm assuming) the toilet paper holder just wasn't staying in the wall, so I had to move it, re-mount it, fill in the holes, and repaint. My parents will be glad to know that the toilet paper is no longer mounted directly below the hand towel, which led to water drips on the roll.

I'm definitely more in the maintenance phase of my house.  While fixing the TP holder I noticed the floor could use a caulk touch-up and the air vent could look better white. Out of caulk and spray paint.  Home Depot run is eminent.

Gregory sensed I wanted to take a pic of something and sprang to action.

And here is the status of my plant babies.  Most of the ones on the right were planted two Saturdays ago, with the rest started Friday (productive first day of unemployment). Paper egg carton is a spring mix of lettuces, unlabeled white ones are tomatoes.  Also: cucumbers (tallest sprouts), rosemary, chives, basil, some tomato sprouts, peppers.

Patio complete!

8 days after it began, construction was complete.  The contractor said 3 days.  Contractor man, why can't you just overestimate and tell me 10 days, then leave me really happy when its completed early?  Instead I'm left frustrated.  If someone asks I'll say it was good work, but have to tell them about how it took more than twice as long as your estimate, you woke me up early for stupid questions, and you rushed cleanup, leaving concrete speckles on my door and trash cans.  Sigh, enough negativity.  Here's the pictures!

 Before:

(of course I waited until the crew showed up to snap pictures) 

Cellar door that I would never have been able to open.  And look at the nasty broken concrete!

Old gate.  No privacy.

Gregory the cat wondering why this looks so ghetto.  And in case you were wondering, IKEA Lack tables were not meant to get rained on.

During:

 Goodbye, wall!

Goodbye, door and stairs to basement!

After: 

Hello, place for Prius!!

Hello, private patio! (Gate is open in)

Hi, herb and vegetable garden!

From left to right, Basil, Tomatoes (I forget which kinds made it from seeds, so I will be surprised later.  Some Big Boys, Cherry, and heirlooms were planted at different points), Jalapeno pepper, green peppers, chilli pepper, eggplant, and squash. Not pictured: Dill, parsley, and Blue Basil to the left, Cucumbers to the right.

Grill where the awful metal door was.  Wildflower seed sprouts on the table.

New locking gate.  Red chair and cute pillow from Home Depot.

I also have a bunch of pictures on how I built the vegetable bed (it's pretty much the size of a coffin, and of course I had to get a pic of me laying in it.  Because I am weird.) that I'll save for another post. 

I'll probably hang some flower beds off the fence for more color in the future, but I'm invested enough time and money into this area for this month.

Time to grill some farmers market goodies (peaches, corn, eggplant) and steak tonight!  I don't want this long weekend to be over.

Construction!

Construction! is going on in my back "yard."  Having contractors around has been...interesting.  I got a million (or 6) quotes from different people who came recommended by neighbors, and went with the cheapest (big surprise).  After meeting him a few times to talk about the project, I signed a contract Saturday morning and gave him a check for a third of the project cost.  (A bit scary handing that check over)  He told me he would start Tuesday morning at 8am, given there was no problem getting the permit on Monday.  I called and checked on Monday afternoon that everything was good, and he said he'd be there at 7:30am. (Which is when I'm usually rolling out of bed and into the shower, grumpy.)  I got up (and dressed) early and his crew appeared at 7:15!  I guess early is way better than late or not showing up at all.

They've started early the last few days.  Yesterday he rang the doorbell right as I was getting out of the shower, causing me to run down in my pink robe, and got another peek at the robe as I had just hit the snooze button when the damn doorbell rang.  Plus, the house sounding like it is under siege (pounding, scraping, jackhammers) is freaking out the cats. 

I'll do a post when it is finished with before, during, and after pics.  This will be a busy weekend, as though I could have asked them to build one for me, I'm convinced I have to build a raised flower/vegetable bed by myself.  My plants (most from seeds) will finally have a home!

Here's a pics of my flowers out front.  Sunflowers (from seeds) and daylilies I bought at the Farmers' market last year that decided to come back for this spring!