Where in the world....

...have I been?!

Oh, here I am! Whew! Thank goodness I'm alright. I was beginning to worry about me. :-)

Well, 2008 has roared to life with energy and activity. Work has been INSANE with new clients flowing in every second it seems. I've got a case in federal court, my first one, so it's been interesting (to say the least) navigating the procedural behemoth that is the Federal Rules of Civil Procedure. I have to focus on NOT going cross-eyed reading the miniscule print in the 6 inch thick rule book.

But, I prefer being busy to not since it makes the days fly. Every night this month I've arrived home exhausted and ready to unwind with my golden babies and the Man-Boy, only to find that I have a shitload of studying and papers to go through. I find time to get the boys out for walk (or see if Man-Boy will take them when he gets home), make & eat dinner, and then settle in for a few hours of focused energy. In the midst of all this, I must find time for sleep, showers, friends, family, and attend to my health and fitness. It makes for a very exhausting week by the time Friday rolls around.

The couple of weekends we’ve had so far in January seem to have literally whizzed by. So packed full of STUFF to do that by the time Sunday night arrives I’m ready for a vacation.

Guess what? Ed has decided that this year we’ll finally go ahead with the addition/remodel to the house. If you've ever been to our humble abode, you already know that the prior owners pretty much treated the house like a Lego building block set and added rooms with no attention to flow or efficient use.

So, we're undoing their crazy half-assed job and building our own master suite complete with a "Man Cave" for Belov-Ed. We figured it's about time to have an adult house rather than a frat house. So, that has meant a flurry of contractors feverishly measuring our space and trying to win us over with their designs and bids.

The master suite will have a bedroom that is a sanctuary and NOT a storage closet/dorm room/library/shoe deposit/whatever. There will be a real life adult closet with room for both of our clothes, so we will no longer need the countless Rubbermaid storage containers, and I won't have to keep my socks in one room, my work clothes in the laundry closet, and my daily clothes in the computer closet, just to make it all fit.

The master bathroom is going to be SWEEEEEEEEEEEEEEET! Since neither of us are real bath-takers (plus we already have our hot tub in the backyard) we are opting for a dual rain head, two person, roomy shower. I can't wait. If finances permit, I'd like steam jets in the walls. My skin will glow like a newborn baby's after every shower for sure! It'll be doorless, kind of like the cool sauna showers in spas. There will be a teak wood or tile bench so I'm not slipping and sliding all over town when shaving my legs. I'm a slight bit accident prone.

The MAN-CAVE will be exactly what it sounds like it will be. Belov-Ed's own little sanctuary where he can retreat to enjoy hours upon hours of scratching his man parts, playing video games (God of War anyone?), blogging feverishly on various favorite sports sites, and watching the Military Channel's umpteenth documentary on one Navy ship or another (what indeed happened to the USS Maine? Was it a mechanical issue or a terrorist attack? Hmmm...)

I'm much more of a slob than Ed, so he also wanted just ONE room in the house that didn't have my shedding long hair all over the place, where any available door knob is not used as a drying rack for delicate undergarments, and where none of my untidy habits are visible. For example, I cannot for the life of me find the trash can when it comes to rolled up Hershey's kisses tin foil wrappers, wadded up pieces of napkins/tissue or the little plastic price tag holders on clothing. Ed finds them all over the house and it drives him crazy.

In addition, he's driven nuts by the fact that on any given day he'll find one of my several glasses/cups just lying about the house. Ed has one glass he drinks everything in. It's even got a name ---

"Mr. Big Glass"!!! (I kid you not.)

He's had Mr. Big Glass for almost twenty years. I, on the other hand, have a water glass, a lemonade/pop glass, a tea mug, a smoothie cup, and various sports bottles of one sort or another all over the house in various states of "I'm almost done drinking that, don't throw it away!"

Boy, I needed to blog today. I'm already feeling somewhat better. There was a minor ambush at Mom's house last night, where the clan KBL decided that an intervention of sorts was needed to prevent me from marrying Ed the Qufar. Bobo solidly cruel words will haunt me forever and ever. Even as I type my heart rate is increasing.

It was awful. God, it was SO FUCKING AWFUL. Do you hear me, God?! I want to scream so loud right now that the back of my throat tickles. How I crave one giant Grizzly bear of a scream just to see if it'll make me feel better. But, I don't need to go and get fired in the midst of all this shit, now do I?

My insides HURT. I have a headache today that would rival any other. It feels like a meat cleaver is permanently cleaved in the middle of my skull. I'm on my second round of ibuprofen and no relief in sight yet. My eyes are permanently swollen shut from all the fucking crying and screaming. I hate that. Is it possible to be allergic to tears? I don't know why my eyes get so flaming swollen.

I hereby call FUCKING BULLSHIT on the whole maternal instinct/protective drive. There is no such thing. I believe that the instintive need to nurture, love, defend, and protect as a mother is not born out of the simple fact that a female happens to become a mother. It has to be a driving force outside of that realm, meaning that anyone can possess it if their soul is kind and spirit humane. Case in point: my gay friends who have adopted children.

Driving back to Ed's afterwards I was in a daze. It was pouring rain and my ears were ringing. Probably the most dismal I've ever felt in my life. If it hadn't been raining so hard I would have stopped in Del Mar and slept on the beach. I wanted the sound of the pounding surf to drown the ringing in my ears. I wanted the loud surf to silence the replay of my family's words in my head.

Belov-Ed, of course, was his wonderful beloved self. Greeted me at the door with our golden boys and proceeded to make me giggle within minutes of being home. He even "allowed" me to drink out of Mr. Big Glass. I was so thirsty I couldn't wait to pour myself anything to drink. I love pulling into the driveway of our home. A feeling of peace washes over me. We talked for a while and he reminded me of all that makes me feel good, feel loved, and feel happy. So, I thought I'd post of those things to cheer myself up.

I got a cool Chicago Bulls shirt from my Secret Santa at work. I love this shirt even though the Bulls are sucking ass this season! Hey, are you diggin' the Christmas bow in my hair or what?! I also got that cool wooden salad bowl. I've wanted one for a while now...only thing is that the serving spoon & fork didn't come with it. So, now I've got to find a set that matches!
Kisses from my boys. Achilles thinks he's the best kisser. :-)
Ever heard anyone say that you start to resemble your pets after a while? So true. Achilles and I could be mistaken for twins here. Ha!
My happy little polar bear, Milo the Valiant. Lounging with his doggie cousin, Maxwell Pooh Bear, who had a sleepover at our house because his mommy Val and daddy Steve were out of town.
He looks like he's going to take flight. Sleeping Superman Milo, all he needs is his hero cape.
Captain Morgan likes to puff out his feathers when sleeping. He's none too pleased with my camera flash waking him up. I call this piece "Puffy Irritated Bird".
Another thing that's good in my life these days...my sister K has returned to our lives. Achilles & Milo are happy they have another KBL sister to take them to the dog park.

Our anipals bring me joy, like 220+ pounds worth of puppy love from Maxwell Pooh Bear. Look at the size of those Mastiff PAWS.
Our anipals also like to gift us with "aromatic" expulsions of the ghosts of dinners past.
Max and Milo, doggie cousins just hanging out.
Watching my Milo enjoy the Kong I've filled up with natural peanut butter and apples. What is it about the sight of his little paw in this picture that just melts my heart?
Achilles peeking in on Captain Morgan's "alone" time. Between my camera and curious Golden Retrievers, I think the Captain may be thinking of getting a hotel room for some privacy. Maybe we should build a Bird-Man-Cave for the Captain?

Noble head of the Golden Retriever. But in this case, it's Achilles staring daddy down as he eats his sandwich. "Is he going to eat the whole thing and not save me a piece? WTF?!"
Anipals Bacchus and Dolce, my friend Maria's golden boys. She owns a wine bar in town and how fitting that her oldest boy is named Bacchus? They are precious, precious, precious. Achilles & Milo can't wait until summer to have a pool party at their house. Maria even got my boys personalized beach towels for the occasion. I'll have to post pics later!
Can't leave a restaurant without something for my golden babies. Here they are enjoying grilled chicken breast from Chili's, where I ordered a fajita platter and ate all around the chicken. :-)
My Belov-Ed, of course. My own Man-Boy baby dolly. How patiently he adapts to my every lunatic whim. Max certainly took a liking to him. Sorry Max buddy, he's mine and he's a keeper. Love you baby dolly.