How Not To Dye

When you move to a new place, there are many things you need to find. Naturally, there are the things that are buried in boxes but I am talking about other, more urgent considerations. A new physician for example. But as a woman, a woman who has no idea what her actual hair color is, the hair stylist is the single most important person to find.

This stylist must be good at their job. They must understand your hair. They must be able to interpret your color and cut instructions. Like, wispy bangs, longish but not too long, brown but sort of red but not too red and sort of caramel but not really that yellowish. That kind of stylist.

I have not found one yet. Frankly, I haven't had time to look and I only know one person here and she is a cyber friend that I have never laid eyes on. So, I got nobody to give me a name.

So....I decided the roots couldn't hold out any longer. The RGH and I headed down to Walmart to buy some hair color. I have some advice for all of you do it yourself-ers out there. Here goes...

1. Do not let your significant other pick the color for you. Particularly if the significant other is a guy who does not know the difference between peach and mauve. I needed a dark brown color. Not cool brown, warm brown. According to the box, Natural Darkest Brown was exactly the color of my hair in the opinion of the RGH. Let me just say that I am aware color will fade. Perhaps one day my black hair will be brown again.

2. Do not color your hair and rinse it in a fiberglass shower. Our old house had porcelain tubs and showers. The new house is fiberglass. Unfortunately, Natural Darkest Brown hair color will also color a fiberglass tub and shower quite nicely. It makes a nice pinkish amber shade. Two rounds of Soft Scrub with bleach will turn it back to whitish. Be sure to wear a smock. The Soft Scrub with Bleach will splatter and you'll have lovely bleached out specks on your clothes. Trust me on this.

3. White towels are not the best choice when dying one's hair. Fortunately, you CAN bleach white towels but I don't use bleach. I had to buy some. I'm not buying new towels. Do yourself a favor if you are coloring your own hair; buy one brown towel. You'll thank me, I promise.

4. Do not dye your eyebrows if you are planning on leaving the house the same day. The dye will stain your skin. You will look like Groucho Marx for at least one full day. It helps if you wear glasses. You can also scrub the heck out of your eyebrows with a creamy soap and follow with a nice skin lotion. But you'll still be able to see the nice outline of color around your brows.

5. Do not rinse the dye out of your hair in the shower if you have a plastic shower curtain. It will turn lovely shades of purple if you use brown (or nearly black) dye. I imagine a blond or red would make a lovely yellowish orange tint. If you have a plastic shower curtain, I'd use the sink instead.

6. Once you are done with the dye job, admire your work...Even if your work is way darker than you anticipated. Repeat several times, "I saved a bundle today" followed by "color will fade, especially in the summer." Positive self talk is good for the soul.

Now, I have made all the mistakes for you. You should be confident to go forth and dye. Just be sure the person helping you choose the color is not color blind. Then, when you have made the perfect selection, buy the next lighter shade...I'm just sayin'.

Blessings,

MaryC

What Do You Get When You Fall In Love?

Oh, you've all heard the song. What does she say? Pain and Sorrow. Chains that bind you? What a crock.

I think when you fall in love, you get to clean the garage.

Okay, so maybe you get someone to snuggle with at night. Maybe that person is even a good snuggler. Maybe you get 'treats' and all that lovey dovey stuff. Trust me, I have gotten it all.

BUT...I have also cleaned the garage.

You have all heard we just moved to a new state. A lot of stuff was piled in the garage. The RGH has been saying he wants to get some shelves or cabinets to put his stuff in. But the RGH cannot make up his mind which to get. So that means he can't unpack or sort the garage because....wait for it....

WHERE will he put everything?

Well, if it stays the way things have been, he will put it in my studio which is where everything else that has no place has gone.

So, since I am in love with the big lug, I go out and start working on the garage.

You realise men are just little kids in big bodies. Like little kids who are told to clean their room, they just stand there, staring at all their stuff like they have never seen it before. Men do this when a chore is upon them. Once you get them going, they will participate. However, they seem to disappear quite often, returning with a soda, Popsicle or a handful of Cheezits.

So they can CLAIM they helped but how much did they really DO? And you cannot prove a thing. It's all well choreographed.

As I am stacking the last box into a corner, the RGH enters the now orderly garage and says, 'Wow, that was perfect timing.'

What do you get when you clean the garage?

I am hoping for Chinese food.

Blessings,

MaryC

Things I COULD Learn From the Move

I am saying COULD learn because I know I am likely to forget at some point. This way, I already have a disclaimer.

1. Stuff gets dinged up.

Every freaking piece of furniture in the new house has some ding, dent or scratch from the move. The only thing that made it unscathed is my red cabinet in the kitchen. The only reason the red cabinet survived without damage is my 'talk' with the driver of the moving van.

When we did the walk through, I informed him that the red cabinet was the most important thing in the whole house and that I was holding him personally responsible for the condition of the red cabinet on arrival at the new house. His entire evaluation with North American Van Lines would be determined by the red cabinet. It worked. But the dryer top was caved in and I gave him good ratings anyway. I keep my word.

2. If an item means something to you, pack it yourself.

Say you have your father's retirement clock. Say it's brass and glass and is a perpetual motion clock. You think you should let the pros pack it. Then if it gets messed up, it's on them. WRONG. If it gets messed up, it cannot be replaced. If you pack it yourself, you will be extra careful, used lots of padding and make sure it doesn't get damaged. Trust me, you don't want to find an heirloom stuffed underneath two Webster's Dictionaries.

3. Some stuff will have to go.

Even stuff you love. Like the RGH's recliner, that is blue and looks horrible in our new great room plan. But even RGH's have to let go sometimes.

4. Even when you measure, something might not fit.

Do I really need to elaborate on that?

5. It takes awhile for a new place to be home.

I remember this lesson. It took months for me to feel like our last house was my home. That part is stressful. But get your life out of the boxes as soon as possible. Once you are out of boxes, put things away. If you aren't sure about where, stuff it in a closet until you do decide. Chaos will not help you relax into home mode. A tidy environment that is free of moving evidence will help.

6. Even when something sucks you can get used to it.

Like a stainless steel sink in a place with water harder than rocks. Eventually you find a way to deal with it. You can deal with almost anything for a little while.

Now, I am going to enjoy the rest of my Sunday. The RGH has just brought me a piece of Apple Pie. Now THAT feels like home.

Blessings,

MaryC

Peeing in the Shower and Other Moving In Confessions

Remember that Seinfeld episode where George gets banned from the gym for peeing in the shower? Fortunately, I cannot be banned from my own home. I confess that during this move, I have peed in the shower. Allow me to explain.

For two solid weeks before the moving van pulled away from our California house, I was packing, sorting, purging, changing addresses, cancelling services and eating out of cans. Then one week later the moving van dropped all our stuff here in Nevada.

Since that momentous occasion, I have spent every day from 5 a.m. to dark, unpacking, putting away, organizing, cleaning, sorting, sealing grout & granite, laundry, moving furniture, putting stuff together, buying groceries, ordering services, picking out fans, coordinating installation's, cooking meals and once or twice I shaved my underarms.

To say I am exhausted would be an understatement. I was too darn tired to walk past the shower to the commode. I don't have to bend my knees to take a shower. If I sat down, I might not have the strength to get up.

So yeah, I peed in the shower. I confess. I rationalize it by pointing out that it is the 'green' alternative. No flushing. The water was already going down the drain. I killed two birds with one stone. If you haven't tried it, I think you should.

On Thursday, I convinced the RGH that we deserved a day off. It didn't take much convincing. The RGH isn't much of a packer and he is even less of an unpack-er. He SAYS it's because he doesn't know where to put anything and if he put it somewhere, it would surely be the WRONG somewhere which would make me upset. Frankly, he's probably right but that shouldn't matter, should it?

Anyway, back to the day off...we decided to go out for breakfast and hit a movie. We had a two for one coupon for the buffet at Texas Station. They also have a 16 theatre cinema there. So we go to Texas Station, register for their rewards card and head for the buffet. The buffet is usually 10 bucks per person for breakfast but if you have a rewards card, it's $6.49. So we used the two for one and got both buffet breakfasts for $6.49!!! Score!

After that honkin' big breakfast, we weren't hungry for popcorn and sodas at the movies so we skipped that. We got in for matinee price since it was early. We paid $15.50 for both of us to see Public Enemy with Johnny Depp. Awesome movie. I recommend it. By then it was around 1 p.m. so we hit the local Trader Joe's for some 3 buck Chuck and headed home. Really great and inexpensive day out. We felt good after a fun day and are back at it again.

Things are progressing. As it always is when you change houses, some stuff works, some stuff doesn't and some stuff you just make do. I am in the making do part now. Not my favorite but it is what it is.

Next week, the RGH has to go back to work. When that happens, I'll tackle my craft room. At the moment, it is the room for everything that has no other place AND all my craft room stuff. It is a nightmare in there right now.

I'll update you again when I can muster up the energy to type.

Blessings,

MaryC

Halfway Home

We are in Las Vegas, staying in a nice place that I can actually cook in a little. We got here on Thursday in the late afternoon. I had to drive on with the cat so I could get her to the boarding facility before they closed. The Bakersfield part of the move played out something like this:

The packers came on Tuesday. They were there all day. I had no refrigerator by then so I was eating stuff out of a cooler. I called Restaurant Runner to bring me an actual meal about mid-day. The packing went well but did not get finished on Tuesday. They had a little left for Wednesday when the moving truck was scheduled.

Okay, I have been packing for two solid weeks. I have been purging for that long too. Yet, two guys who packed ALL DAY could not finish. One of the guys told me I had a lot of stuff in my kitchen. Yeah Dude, I cook. Translates into a lot of stuff. He also commented that I had a lot of glass and not much plastic. GO ME! Glass is forever. It doesn't wear out or leach chemicals into your food. It can go from the freezer or the oven to serving. But it weighs more and takes more effort to pack. Oh well.

I slept in my own bed on Tuesday, even though I had no TV or Internet and I could have went over to my daughters or the RGH's mom's house. Color me silly but I wanted my own bed. I am funny that way.

Wednesday, the packers came and brought along a gentlemen who crated our flat screen TV's. Yes, I said TV's as in multiples. The driver showed up about an hour later with the truck. I loved these guys. They made a crappy job fun by cracking jokes and singing and all kinds of weird behavior. It was a pleasure to watch their great attitudes all day.

The RGH drove up in his mom's new car about 2 p.m. I RAN out to the curb to greet him. He didn't even see me because he was fiddling with something in the car. MEN!

But he greeted me properly when he got out. Then I sent him inside to change into shorts and we hung out until the movers finished emptying our house. We cleaned it up for the new owners, said our goodbyes to the place we used to call home and headed to RGH's mom's to spend the night.

We had a nice dinner at a Country Club with the RGH's mom and then hit the hay early. We were both exhausted. Thursday morning, we loaded the cars and went for breakfast with A & J and the boys. It was Ty's fifth birthday and he was pretty full of himself. It was really cute. We had a hearty meal, said our goodbyes (with only minimal boo-hooing), picked up the cat and hit the road.

The trip was relatively uneventful and the cat did okay most of the way. The place I found to board her is a Veterinarian with a pet spa next door. I was really happy when I saw it in person. Everyone there was nice, the place was tidy and festive. We visited Bailey there on Saturday and she was in good spirits considering all the recent chaos for her. She is a timid cat and I have been concerned about her with the move. She was happy to see us. We loved on her and brought her some more food and left her snuggling a toy.

Since arriving in Las Vegas, we have been taking care of business and errands the entire time. We finally bought a refrigerator on Saturday. That was stressful. No one could get the refrigerator I had picked from my research. Even the distribution center didn't have any. We ended up getting my second choice, which I am certain will be fine. Even so, it is frustrating when you can't get what you want. (Does that remind you of a song?)

Today, we are scheduled to go back to the new house and check of some repairs we asked them to make. We will probably do more business via phone to set up appointments for cable, Internet and the phone. We also have to line up some people to do some painting and so on. This moving to a new state is a lot of work. I only had time to blog because I got up at 5 a.m. and the RGH is still asleep.

Keep me in your prayers if you pray. Send me good thoughts if you don't. I need all the help I can get. Thanks for 'listening' to my ramblings.

Blessings,

MaryC

Every Now and Then God Sends an Angel

My last post was about how tired and frustrated I was with moving by myself. I indulged in a moment of self-pity that I shared with the blog world.

Once written, it was done. It was like when I wrote the words, I didn't have to think about it anymore.

But I have been pushing myself to the limit to get things done. I am pretty much sore all over and so tired that any type of food in my stomach makes me want a nap.

But just a few minutes ago, I pulled into my driveway and there was a man getting in a beat up car right in front of my house. As I pulled in the garage, he followed me and waited until I got out of the car.

"Oh, I am just in the nick of time. I was leaving your flowers on the porch. I'll get them for you."

I am thinking, who would send me flowers? Seriously. It just isn't something that would happen right now. But as I pondered this, the man handed me a delightful arrangement of red roses in an adorable vase. I signed his form and he left me there. I walked inside, laid down my purse and the mail and reached for the card.

It read:

"Thought you could use a little packing pick me up. Hang in there my friend. - Tara"

Now you are all thinking, how sweet but you don't have the full picture.

I have never met Tara. She lives in Pennsylvania. We only know each other from a card making message board, scrap swaps and blogging. We have never spoken on the phone or done a video chat. But we have art in common, paper art to be exact.

Tara sent me a handmade card when I had surgery on my leg last summer. She has sent me cards just because I was feeling down. Today, Tara was God's Angel again. She sent me flowers and it was a very special gesture that I will not soon forget.

I have only received flowers from a stranger three times in my life. Once when I performed the Heimlech Manuever on a lady in a restaurant, once from my cyber friend Nicole and now today. And oddly enough, these times have always come when I needed them most.

Funny how it works out that way.

Thank you, Tara. You are the best.

MaryC

An Independent Woman's Pity Party

Even the most capable, independant woman is entitled to a pity party. Today I am enjoying mine.

I am tired. I am tired of packing. I am tired of having a wrecked house. I am tired of being by myself. I am tired of taking care of every little thing on my own. I am tired of checking to see if others have done what they were supposed to do and finding that they did not.

My back hurts. My knee hurts. I want a hot meal that isn't from the microwave.

I need a hug.

Thanks for listening.

Back to your regularly scheduled programming.

MaryC

Life is a Refrigerator

Moving is stressful. Packing to move is stressful. Deciding what is worth moving is stressful. Making sure everything happens like it's supposed to when you move is stressful. Frankly, I cannot think of a single thing about moving that isn't stressful.

Let's back up a moment here. I THOUGHT getting a new refrigerator out of our move would be cool. I was excited. I was elated. I wanted a new refrigerator and now I had a good reason to get one. It is better to sell the old one and buy a newer, more energy efficient refrigerator when we get to Nevada. Little did I know that I would have a life lesson in a new refrigerator.

Did you know that refrigerator spaces are not universal? No? Join my club.

Did you know that refrigerators can be had in different depths? No? Add another item to my club roster.

Did you know that the manufacturers of refrigerators suggest that installing your refrigerator next to a heat source, say... an oven, is a bad idea? Oh, that's news to you also? Check.

Welcome to my world. 

The space in the new house for the refrigerator is shallow on one side and deep on the other. It is also a large width. It is also parked conveniently next to a double convection oven. Oh joy.

So now I am trying to decide what refrigerator to buy that will meet the following criteria:

Works.

Isn't so deep it sticks out to far on the shallow side.

Isn't so shallow that the door is blocked by the wall on the deep side.

Isn't so wide that it can't be pushed over to one side so it isn't so close to the double convection oven.

Oh, did I mention it must be stainless and have ice and water in the door? Did I mention that it would help if you could put something bigger than a Lean Cuisine in the freezer?

So, like life, our refrigerator has to meet certain requirements to fulfill our needs. So I am shopping the various choices and trying to pick the right one. It's almost like picking a spouse. I just hope I get a training period on the refrigerator just like I did with the RGH. You know, if I hadn't had the training period, I might have turned him in for another model too. But he grew on me. Maybe the new refrigerator will too.

Blessings,

MaryC

Confessions of Frustrated Artist

Being artistic is a beautiful thing. It really is. When my artistic mind sees the potential in something, my heart sings. When I touch paper or fabric or metal or paint, I feel high. Creating something, even in my mind is a type of freedom; like I imagine flying might be.

Now I am heading to a new home. The new home has nothing on the walls or windows. There is no furniture there. No art. No paint. My mind is a virtual assembly line of ideas. I long to hang in my studio and make art journal entries to hold my ideas. There is just one problem.

I have to pack and move.

Even my studio has to be disassembled and packed away.

The artist in me can't even go in there. I know I need to. I know it has to be done. I know I am running out of time. I know I can't let anyone else pack 'MY' stuff. Yet, when I walk through the door, the thought of tearing it all down feels like having the heart of me removed. I keep putting it off. I keep saying I'll tackle that first thing in the morning. So far, that hasn't happened.

At night, I lay in bed and worry over whether or not to pack and move all my idea books and magazines. I know technically, that it's a waste of money and space in the  moving van. But when I get to my new house, I want to have them there. The inspiration will help me acclimate to my new place. Am I rationalizing? Um...yeah, I guess I am.

I am really trying to be brutal in what we weed out before we move. There are however, some things that are sacred. I am afraid that every little thing in that studio will turn up in the new house. I might need those paper towel tubes for something. I am certain all that saved tissue paper could be the start of something fabulous. Doesn't every girl need three die cutting machines?

I realized I will have to be brave and cut back. I know some of the stuff can go to the Ronald McDonald house to help families cope with illness. I can feel good about that. I will try to anyway.

I do have my limits.

Nobody better lay a hand on my Crate Paper.

Enough said.

Blessings,

MaryC

Let the games begin...

Hello my good peeps!

The RGH got on a plane at 5 this morning to go back to work. It was a tumultuous time home for us both with surgeries, vacations, negotiations and house hunting. The last two of his days home were spent lugging boxes out of the attic and emptying the tool shed and the garage cabinets. These are RGH turf and I wouldn't touch them without his presence.

Now that he is gone again, I get to start working like a dog.

For all of my blogger friends, please forgive me if I seem absent on your blog. I follow about 48 blogs and I try really hard to read them all. Currently, I am picking out my 'real friends' blogs and only reading them. But I don't have time to comment each time. I barely have time to eat right now. But know, Claudette, Nicole, Felecia, Cynthia, Betsy and April that I read your posts and look at your creations every chance I get.

I am thinking that Bakerella, Pioneer Woman and Sew Mama Sew probably don't miss me that much. KWIM?

Blessings,

MaryC