updates and outfits and unemployment meltdowns

i am worrying incessantly about my grandpa. he was having a rough time while i was over this weekend. i am so thankful that i was able to stay in port orchard for three days, but i wish there was something i could do to help him. it hurts to think i may lose him.

i did nothing over the weekend except visit family. i crapped out on all the friends i was supposed to see. i just wasn't emotionally able to hang out with anyone. i'm not a wreck but i just wasn't "me." i'm sorry to everyone. please stop being pissed at me. no more bitchy emails and texts and voice mails, please. i'm sorry. that's all i can say.

i babysat xander on monday morning while my mother went to the eye doctor. it was so much fun! we played "chutes and ladders", studied his star words (words he needs to be able to sight-read from books), ate pb&j, played nickelodeon dvd bingo, studied number flash cards, and on and on. i even got to take him down to his bus stop. he was worried that i wouldn't know where it was even though i assured him that i had the same bus stop in grade school. here he is with his backpack and friday folder all ready to leave.

sometimes i feel like a mom or something! scary.

he made me promise to be there when he got home.

mom and i went to st vincent de paul and goodwill but we found NOTHING!!! that is a rare event. i did get an incredible fur and bow headpiece for $4 at the sidney antique mall and i found some amazing old photos in a free bin. gotta love that!

my dad came home from work with a treat - guitar hero 3! i put in the cheater codes to unlock all the song and activate the "no lose" feature so it wouldn't kick xander off the stage even though he really couldn't play very many notes. (i also put in the option that gives you bret michaels as the singer!) xander was actually hamming it up and dancing around with the guitar. it was hilarious! i think he learned that from auntie susie... check out those boots!

we were just getting into the game when the peacocks announced their arrival and desire for peanuts with their trademark honking.

the boy kept bashing his tail into my car. my mom thinks it ticked him off to have me parked there as that's where he usually fans his tail and puts on a show. he refused to put his tail up even though i let him eat out of my hand (which i don't recommend - he pecks).

xander snapped this great picture of me being ignored by them.

i totally kick ass on guitar hero, btw. i played until i got blisters.

while my dad attempted to play social distortion on guitar hero, xander and i played cootie. he made this cootie for me!

so i told him my cootie was just for him. doesn't he look less-than-pleased?
before i left, he dressed up in his wizard outfit so we could take a picture together. aren't we stunning?
i got back to work yesterday to learn what i had always suspected - i am the only one who defrosts the freezer. yuck - two inches of ice, spilled ice cream, straw wrappers, spilled shakes and who knows what else littered the bottom of the freezer. my sweater was too cute to defrost it yesterday so i wore jeans for the task today. here's yesterday's outfit:
vintage poly floral dress: salvation army last week (when kalilah and i went shopping)

coral sweater: anthro

wooden bracelet: palomasnest.etsy.com
bonnie parker's revenge necklace: victorianbustle.etsy.com

black boots: palladium

i seem to be cultivating a new pose - i think i'll call it the "is that me?" pose.

i swear i applied deodorant! here i am checking out my pit today as well:

not really sure what prompted the pose. here i am in a more natural position:

gold sweater: nordstrom juniors dept '04

pink slip: goodwill

fur collar: antique mall

hair bow with feather: uo clearance sale

vintage yellow floral apron: koffeeklatch.etsy.com

wide leg jeans: anthro

burgundy boots: frye

the freezer is all cleaned out, i'm back at home with the kitties who screamed for me the whole time i was gone, and unemployment refused to issue my check for the week. wtf?

their reasoning is that i may qualify for a new claim. if i do qualify for it, then i don't get my emergency unemployment compensation any longer. well, DUH! so even though i will end up getting one or the other, they will not pay me until they make a decision. this could take FOUR TO SIX WEEKS!!!!!!!!!!!! did they give me any advance notice of this? hell no! do i have any savings anymore? hell no! could i lose my home (it's a rental)? FUCK YES! do they care? FUCK NO! i can't even reach anyone over the phone and their website is so overloaded that it keeps crashing. what makes this even more frustrating is that they no longer operate physical offices that you can visit. everything must be done over the internet, telephone, or through the mail. i'm losing my mind. literally. is anyone else having issues like this? please let me know, especially if you are in washington state as well.

aw crap, linus went ourside and ate grass so now he's barfing on my floor. at least i can laugh at his discomfort! just kidding - but i'd better go clean it up anyways. 'til next time...