Betty Rocker

33.

My 33-year mark hit this morning at 1:00AM. My mom said she went into labor while watching the Miss America pagent.

I took a "What Does Your Birthday Mean?" Quiz on Facebook and this is what it said:

Your birthday means that you are an early morning person.

You like water and water sports, and your best colors are blue and gray. You are artistic and love to express yourself in many different ways. While you tend to be more of an introverted person, that does not mean you sit at home. On the contrary, you have the best ideas when it comes to going places and finding things to do. You are very innovative and excel at creativity.

I highlighted the part in green because that's the ONLY Part that's probably true. I am so far from an early morning person; I stay up past midnight and I haven't seen 6AM awake since I Pugwatched. I'm uncomfortable around water; I nearly drown off the dock of my cabin when I was four and had some other scary near-drownings throughout high school and college (involving canoes, innertubes and a really strong current). Water and I only get along in shower form.

And what's this crap about being introverted? Bah! Hardly.

Poo on the Facebook "What Does Your Birthday Mean?" Quiz.

Off to get a birthday massage and rub these 33 year old muscles into relaxation.

Springy Clean

Today actually looks and feels like Spring!  We can now play the entire XTC Skylarking  CD to officiate its presence.

It is also our town's  "throw anything you want out" day and we took full advantage;  Paint cans, old roofing material, worn out shoes, busted electronics and broken chairs...it's all getting kicked to the curb and my house feels lighter for it.

Our deck above our porch is finally finished too. All we need is a big rain to make sure it doesn't leak again. It doesn't look pretty, but at this point, if it ain't leaking, we don't care.

The next project is actually going to be fun. Making the back porch look pretty for summer so we can chill out and sip fine booze and eat BBQ...

It's beginning to look a lot like Springtime with Summer not far behind...and it feels mighty fine.  Hope to see you real soon to enjoy it.

Here's a picture of my sister and I among the tulip fields in Mount Vernon, Washington. It's like being in Wisconsin, but instead they have rows of Tulips and Wisco just has rows of corn.

I am not an Animal Shelter, but I Play One on My Blog.

Ugh, I've been sick with some kind of virus for the last two or so days. Aside from some residual oogliness in my intestines, I don't have my headache, swollen throat or muscle aches anymore.  I'm heading to out West for a long weekend to visit relatives, so I hope my lower body doesn't pull any "funny business" on the plane or anytime during my travels.

Now, on to some useful information, if you are thinking of getting a dog anytime soon, this might be your calling.  There is a shelter in Indiana that is closing soon and all the dogs need to be adopted out and any remaining will be euthanized.

For any of you that are hesistant to adopt a dog because you don't want to "Adopt someone else's problem", it's time to start re-routing that thought. Shelter dogs aren't in shelters because they have issues- it's usually because their owner had issues or they just got stuck in a bad circumstance. Many of the dogs are perfectly wonderful, just looking for a home and many shelters do tests to make sure the dog you get is a good match- meaning it's good with kids, other dogs and cats. You'll KNOW when you've found the one that's right for you.

And while there's nothing more adorable than a puppy, puppies GROW and (shocker) get big. One thing I like about getting a young dog (4 months to a year) is that you can see just about how big it will end up and you might get a better sense of their personality. 

End of preach. Here's the link if you wanted to take a look at some of these pooches.

When I first wanted to get a dog, my heart was set on getting a puppy from a breeder or a pet store. Because I didn't think about the alternative. And also because I grew up in a town that didn't seem to have a big animal overpopulation problem and it was normal for everyone to go to a breeder or pet store. One step into the Oak Park Animal Care League and I found not  one, but three wonderful animals. And the only issue they came with was that they wanted some TLC...and some Snausages™.

You Got To Know When To Fold Em.

If there's one skill I need to learn, it's how to fold things. No matter how many times my mom walked me through lessons, I stink at making beds, especially folding corners. I confess- I make Mr. Rock make the bed everyday, mostly because he's last out of bed, but also because I can't be bothered to make it look crisp and pretty.

There's no point in me wrapping gifts- corners always look sloppy and the presents always look like my cat got stuck in the box and tried to fight her way out. Thank God for gift bags, or I'd be screwed.

Omelets, Burritos and Wraps...no clue how to tuck in the sides and all the meats and cheese falls out on my shirt, usually on days when I'm wearing white (naturally). I'm starting to watch how Subway and Quiznos wrap their sandwiches in paper---it's really an art.

Have I mentioned clothes yet? All of my shirts and pants are thrown into drawers- I just can't figure out how people do it. I always wanted to work at The Gap as a teen, but knew my folding skills were bunk and there'd be zero chance of me getting hired.

The more I  type about the things I can't fold, the more bother I am by this. Is it a  left brain/right brain thing?  Are there tricks to all this folding business? My home is open for anyone who can teach me how to learn this skill.

Is there any domestic skill that you suck at? Make me feel better.