Updates

I keep trying to write someting here tonight and I just.can't.do.it.

So much to say, feeling so addled, so much I should be doing instead.

This week was a big week. My talented hubby was the Etsy featured seller, featured on decor8 (one of my fave design blogs), and in Budget Travel magazine. Right now the soundtrack to our lives is the packing tape ripping off the roll, accidentally stepping on bubble wrap (gunshot-like), and sandpaper.

But I truly could not be prouder of my husband. He's so talented, and he deserves all the success that comes his way.

Baby Momo is having a bad week. Er, she was until we got her on some professional-grade painkillers and muscle relaxers. Poor dog wants to be just like her mom, so she went and got some spasms in her back. Very painful. It's a sign of her aging and very hard for me to accept. Even worse was the fact that as I hoisted her (as carefully as possible) into the car, she cried out in such pain—I've never heard her make that noise before. And then she shook on her seat as I drove her to the vet, bawling myself, carefully trying not to hit any potholes (good luck with that in springtime MN). but now she's just like all the A-list celebs and pumped full of good pills.

I'm treading water. I'm so excited about some of the possibilities that lie ahead with my New Thing, but right now I'm just trying to stay afloat. Soon, tough, it should be smooth sailing.

Will y'all still be my friends? I'm trying to keep up with you all, even if I am not writing as much as I'd like.

Braindead

You guys. My brain is dead. Fried. Gone.

So much to do, so little time.

I need more clarity in my thoughts. Even though I just had a three-week vacation. Got any hints?

Today, in Bullet Points

People, I'm overloaded. Can't do any decent writing today. But I know you're just waiting on edge to hear what I've been up to, so here we go:

• Scraped my car windows not one, not two, not three, but FOUR times.
• Checked the snow emergency website like FIVE times.
• Drove all the way to work and then all the way back, so I could work from home and avoid rush hour.
• Felt grateful for my sweet little SUV, which powered me through the snow like nobody's business.
• Got a phone call from my auto body buddy, who asked how my new car was doing.
• Sang along to the radio.
• Did some research about British English and the differences between British English and American English.
• Ate some reheated hot-and-sour soup. And a box-made Ghiradelli dark-chocolate brownie (They are SO GOOD).
• Cooked dinner—honey-soy glazed chicken with bell peppers and snap peas stir-fry—with my handsome husband.
• Did the dishes.
• Went to the bank, dropped off dry cleaning, chauffered the dog, got crunched at the chiro.
• Daydreamed about the trip we're taking in less than TWO WEEKS!
• Heard my massage therapist warning me to stop carrying the weight of the world.
• Edited some fun stuff.
• Gave the UPS customer service people an earful.
• Listened to some new mp3s: Charlotte Gainsbourg, Regina Spektor.
  
• Made more to-do lists.

To do, to do, to do. . . . . .

Maxin'

There hasn't been much downtime around the Willikat household in the last few months.

We have had multiple weddings, friends giving birth (two more tonight!), and side projects going on...

One super positive thing is that William has been contacted by a very popular local store, and they will be carrying some of his work! How awesome is that? but it's been a lot of work to get there, and a lot of work to finish so they can finally go on the shelf.

I'm juggling a couple of different assignments myself, plus preparing myself for my best friend's departure to Thailand next Monday. Then there's meeting with an old source to give her the magazine she appeared in and her old photos. The friend I need to visit in the hospital. Yoga and dance classes. A wedding. A birthday party. Errands.

It leaves so little time for organization, contemplation, writing, my family, myself.

This is like month four of this kind of schedule. I kept thinking it was going to slow down eventually, but I think it's not. Because...here come the holidays! It already snowed four inches today. Good lord. With still-green leaves on the trees.

I'm really wondering how to keep myself from constantly feeling like a hamster on the wheel and running behind--even though many of those things are good things. HALP!

Cranky

Just in case you were wondering, I'm really crabby and hate everything today.

Which means I have absolutely no business blogging. I'm liable to say just about anything.

Because I am tired and wishing for another weekend and have been working so I am not too interesting

Here's a quick list of what I've been up to:
Working late
Working some more
Trying to keep up with staying neat and tidy
Tackling my year-long to-do list
feeling like I'm on the verge of a cold
Dying my hair red (photos to come)
Hoping Molly's cousin, Maggie, pulls through her weird, unexplainable episodes
Watching Milk with my husband Friday night at the theater, then the documentary about him on Hulu today
Cheering on the Gophers' hockey team at Mariucci with Wm, Fatty, and Cindy--we got to chant a lot! They won!
Had dinner at Big 10, thanks to Fatty, revisiting my college days.
Sleeping later today
Taking a nap
Dance class
Grocery shopping (mmmm, more Molokai coffee, people I am ADDICTED, it is so good)

It's a lot of daily grind, but this week had some fun little activities this week. Feeling like I need a couple more days to myself to get life straightened out. I'm tired.

Whirlwind weeks like that just don't allow for much time to be blogging, and I miss it. Hopefully things get calmer soon.

Uhhhh....

Well, hello, strangers.

I know it's been awhile. It's been a busy couple of weeks, in a good way. Lots of activities going on, including work, so I haven't had very much free time to write.
And, quite honestly, I've been really, really boring besides that. So there hasn't been much to write about.

Um.

Halp, plz? Anything you're interested in right now?

Dizzy Bizzy

Dudes, this has been a crazy busy last week or so. Been working a lot. Have a few freelance assignments coming up too.

So sorry for the delay in posting, and sorry to those of you who haven't received your questions yet. They are en route in the next day or two.

I am currently in the zone and must keep writing, writing, writing for a deadline tomorrow morning. Eeek! I figure I have about three hours before my brain shuts down.

I just heard Cake's Frank Sinatra, and I can't believe I failed to include Cake on my feel-good song list. I just love Fashion Nugget. Reminds me of being 16.

I'm diggin' for fire

Things have been good, but hectic, over here. Sorry for the absence. Christmas was wonderful with lots of good food and presents (hopefully photos to come when we get a camera).

However, I have been hovering on the edge of some stupid cold that won't come to a head, and it's been dark as crap out, and snowing/melting/raining/slushing, and I just sort of feel like lead. I think it's the stress of the last couple months starting to come down. Two nights of almost 12 hours of sleep has helped some; I bought lots of superfoods at Trader Joe's today to help my body do whatever it needs to do to get better.

I'm finishing the last book of the Twilight series this weekend. I'm sort of sad and dragging it out. But I HAVETOKNOWWHATHAPPENSNOW.

William has made a new, brilliant thing that you should at least take a look at. It was under embargo until after Christmas:


If you're interested, and this is not a sales pitch, but just in case, you can go here.

OK, off to read.

xoxo

Those Pretty Faces Always Stand Out In a Crowd

So, I've had a weeklong bad mood, pretty much. I swing back and forth, but I've just been feeling tired and overwhelmed and running my fool head pretty much clear OFF, so I haven't been around on the blogs lately. So sorry.

I have a few more things to do tonight and tomorrow, and then I'm finally ready for Christmas and done with some projects. Then I have time to RELAX! I have Christmas to the 4th off, so I'm gonna be all up in this blog when that time comes.

I promise to make it up to you.

In the meantime I'm listening to songs that make me happy. Have you heard the Subways' "Shake Shake"? Go listen to it right now. I'm dancing around in my house to it and I can't help but giggle. See also: Jackson 5.

Overwhelmed

That's all. Lots to do. Terrible mood. Frustrated. Feeling like this week has been a big FAIL on life.

Bite Me

This is getting ridiculous.

I swore up and down I wouldn't love Twilight (and the ensuing books).

Oh god, talk about obsession.

But no! I have so much to do this week! I must ignore my vampire books.

Also, I like this song lyric:

"Oh, whoa, whoa, habits die hard/When you got/ When you got a sentimental heart."

Have you heard the She & Him record?

I know, I'm late to the party on both Twilight and She & Him, but will you still let me in?

Where's All My Mad Rappers At?

As with any blogger, I thrive on the comments I receive. It informs what I write about to some degree. And I see my blogging as a community—yes, it's an outlet and I get a lot of personal reflection time with it. But I also love the friends I have made here and love to have conversations with them.

So tell me! Me and Dre are asking, Where's all my mad rappers at? (Excluding you, WeeMo, my most faithful commenter.) I have noticed a gigantic drop-off in conversation. Are there things you'd rather read about? I know usually these questions are met with crickets, but I'm asking anyway.

I'm hoping NaBloPoMo reinvigorates my writing to some extent, too. And I still have some ideas in the hopper. It isn't so much that I'm interested in getting ideas as I am in improving my blog.

XOXO

frozen

Sorry kids, I have really been phoning it in lately on the blog writing. Last week was really busy and I've got a to-do list a mile long. I promise some quality posts coming as soon as I thaw from freezing this morning.

William had his first bike race, and despite his chain falling off and taking a slight fall, he looked great!! Pictures to come.

Also, today it snowed. Boo Urns.

Crabby

I'm crabby.

I don't even fully know why. But I feel all owly, as my dad would say.

Then he'd make a pawing motion in air and say "yee-ow!" Like a cat hissing/meowing at me. He really does it best.

Blergh.

Olympic Fever

Can't blog now. Must.watch.Olympics.

Pray For Me

This week ahead includes a LOT of writing, on two long stories in which I have done a LOT of reporting. It's really important to me that they both come off really well in the first turn-in, so pray. Pray. OK, if you don't believe in God (which is totally OK in house o' Willikat) could you at least do one of those "Hey, let Katie rock the writing today?" into the universe? Thanks.

I am working on overcoming bride brain to just write, write, write my little butt off. I got my errands for today out of the way early, dressed and ready early, and coffee in hand. I even dropped Mo off at my parents' house (man, she loves my dad, I think more than she loves me) so she wasn't here for snuggles and walks.

I'm going to turn on my magic writing music (Belle & Sebastian, Beck's Sea Change, Billie Holiday) and write.

no postage

you will have to excuse my lack of postage (and lack of capitals in this post) these past couple days. i have been WORKING on some FREELANCE jobs. :) it's enough to keep me going until wedding-ish time... so that's good. next couple of weeks will be really busy because i probably took on a bit much, hence the reason i'm still editing at 9:16 in the evening.
but that's ok! i'm making money! on my own!

down side: what is UP with my skin? i am so broken out.

Totally Excellent

Wow, I'm so flattered. First a wonderful recap of my capers over at Doahleigh, and then I hit up Nanette's blog to see what's shakin' in LA, and she's awarded me an Excellence award! And I haven't prepared a speech!



I'm so honored. I've been reading Nanette for . . . well, pretty much as long as my blog has been in existence. I first saw her when she submitted some photos of her on the set of The Office. I was in love from that moment. Nanette also helped build my reader base a little—so thanks to you, darling!

This blog has been so good for me in so many ways. As a writer, it's therapy and practice. As a person, I've been able to meet people, both in person and online, who have provided advice, supported me, and been there to listen/read, not to mention I've read so many new people that I just love. I laugh and cry along with all the people I read, and I feel like I really KNOW them.

So I guess then what I get to do is forward the love onto 10 bloggers that I read. Now a few have already received theirs, so I took them out of the running to make my choices easier.

19 Reasons to Live Alone: Sharp commentary, funny and touching moments alike. From a fellow twentysomething.

Better Now: Writing that stops you in your tracks. Can break your heart or make it bigger.

Bookish Bent: For literary satisfaction, and great recommendations, head over there--I know her in real life, too.

Da Potato: I love her Potato-Head theme, and her writing.

Found Out About Me: A high energy blogger I know in real life.

Kirida [formerly Hello Insomnia]: Laugh out loud, achingly funny.

Married Not Buried: Cali sweetheart.

My So-Called Wedded Life: Always herself, her observations—sometimes touching, sometimes cutting—ring true.

Oltremare: Artsy blog from another Katie. I so relate to her, except I'm not artsy.

Sundry Mourning: One of the rocking-ist, funniest, most touching bloggers in the entire blogosphere.

three wild and crazy mutts

i am currently the stand-in mother for three wild and crazy mutts. they are attention hogs, food hogs, joy hogs, bed hogs. in general, they live the most hedonistic lifestyle of any dogs i know. and one's still a pup, so he's extra wild. come to think of it, he really does kind of remind me of a young steve martin...shaking his head, jumping all over, flirty, and brown-eyed. the second night we were here, we didn't sleep a wink with his antics, but things have calmed down now, which is good. so needless to say, i've had my hands full, and have not had time for blogging.
my ring is in at the jeweler! i am having my engagement diamond re-set, and got my wedding band. now we just have to work on william's, and we need to get GOING on that.
invites are ordered. i may have said that already.
it's freaking freezing again. again. i can't take it anymore!
a pretty famous beauty guy here in town called me pretty today. yay! that's always nice to hear. and he likes my nose, which i hate.
also, i like the buena vista social club cd.
as you can see, i have been rather boring lately despite really feeling overloaded. and i haven't been doing any good writing/blogging for y'all which might account for my sad comments sections.
sorry. i will try to be back with something better later.
96 days to go.....