When you get right down to it, life isn't terribly complicated. We are born, we grow, we learn, we get jobs that are almost entirely unrelated to what we learn, we make money which we then use in a perpetual cycle of purchases to maintain food, shelter and transportation (also, in our case, various video games and books).
Oh, and clothing. No naked people in this house!
So why has it taken me so damn long to write this blog post?
Its not as though a great many exciting things have happened- well, exciting for our standards. Life continues in its little cycle of work and play, work and play (way more work than play right now, but we're getting there) and slowly but surely we make our little path towards the holidays. But that's not what you're here to read about. Lets recap.
OCTOBER
Most of October consisted of THE PLAY (I will use capitals here to imply the level of importance this has in my life right now) and Loki getting huge. At some point there was Thanksgiving, which we spent with Terry and Nenna, Sarah's really lovely grandparents who came down for a visit and promptly thought that the farm was lovely (which it is) and that our lives are very quaint (which they are). For the record, love those two to death.
So why is THE PLAY so important? Because surprise surprise we forgot what its like to be a new theatre company starting out. We forgot what it was like to not be taken seriously. We forgot just how hard it is to get people to come out and audition for you when people don't know how awesome you are.
We forgot that people drop out.
So the first to go was the woman we asked to play the lead, which given the age disparity in our cast left only one person to pick that up- me. Ok, cool, no problem. So lets just go with in October, we switched up me for the female lead- did I mention romantic lead, which is not my strong suit- and we rehearsed a lot.
Also, this happened, and I laughed until I cried.
NOVEMBER
Michael's favorite holiday is Halloween. His second favorite holiday is Dia De Los Muertos, the Day of the Dead. His birthday falls right after them. So usually we have a big Halloween/birthday party. It's harder to do that when you know less people, so instead we had a Dia de los Muertos party with the cast. And you know me, party = themed foods and decorations. BEHOLD! This is what happens when Leigh is set loose on Mexican culture.
These are Sugar Skulls, a traditional treat. Usually they are covered with colored sugar and icing, but that took a little more time than I had, so the cast and I painted them with food coloring.
The lovely Rosalind, who plays my mother.
The equally lovely (I swear, don't judge by the picture) Jan.
Prepare for the three cutest girls EVER. Cute #1, Sarah.
Super cute #2, Helen
Super Cute #3, Anna!
These are fantastic in coffee.
Another wonderful tradition is the creation of an altar. It is believed that the day of the Dead is the day that the spirits of the departed make the journey from the afterlife to visit us back here on earth. Altars are built in honour of those spirits, and covered in objects and foods that were important to the spirit in life. Our altar includes items from mine, Michael's and Sarah's families. We and the cast also wrote messages to those we miss on flash paper, which we then burned at sunset. We may also have had a little whiskey, but its spirit honouring whiskey, so that's ok.
This was very moving for all of us. Until Loki was left un-attended and ate all the spirit honouring food. And 27 mini cupcakes I left on the counter. Lessons for everyone.
So November was off to a good start. We found a wonderful off leash dog park for Loki, who proceeded to fall head over heels in crush (or maybe its just us humans) with a gorgeous Malamute named Tripper.
You just try and tell me that he is not the Ryan Gosling of dogs.
And LOOK HOW CUTE THEY ARE TOGETHER. LOOK AT IT. NOW!
They would have such beautiful puppies.....
But, they won't. They both get the snip snip soon. Sigh. Ah, for the things that could have been...
Things that WERE however, included the weather getting chilly. As in Nov here = A very mild September in Michigan. Let me put it this way- its nearly Christmas, and last week there were new pansy blossoms. Just sayin.
Because the weather gets a touch chilly, the Grumps (my daily older gents who come to Starbucks and sit outside smoking and bullshitting) complain about how cold their outdoor seats get. So, with some donated fabric from my shift boss Heather, I made them these chair covers.
During this process, I had a great deal of help from two members of the household.
How I get anything done is a mystery.
Although, I did finally finish my summer dress.
It does not look as flattering as I had hoped. But, I learned a lot from making it!
General updates for the month of November involving people who are not me.
Cam- Doing awesomely at work. Being trained for big important jobby things, like counting lots of money and generally being in charge.
Sarah- also doing awesomely, and being trained up to be a dog trainer. Published her book online, and generally bamfs about with Loki.
Michael- Blowing everyone at work away, already up for a promotion in February, and irreplaceable. Generally speaking, most awesome husband.
THE PLAY
In November, the guy playing the male lead dropped out. Leaving us to shuffle Cam into the top spot. Romantic lead opposite me. Piles of awkward. As Cam described it, "I can't kiss you. You're my best friend's wife. It violates the Bro Code."
But he'll do it. For Theatre. If he has to.
DECEMBER
December, up until two days ago, has been decidedly uneventful. We've all been working a lot (just not necessarily me, and not necessarily at Starbucks). I did, however, pick up a paying performance gig with my friend Jan from the show. Ready for this? I promise you're not.
For the record, super proud of the hat. I made it myself.
Meanwhile, my awesome sweater from Dascha arrived. Thanks mom!
IN OTHER NEWS
I recently had the opportunity to talk to my good friend Reed. Reed asks the following excellent question.
What is the truth about Loki?
There are many truths!
Truth #1 No food is safe around this dog. We have gone through 27 mini cupcakes, two blocks of butter, three loaves of bread, and various leftovers that I was going to eat and then forgot that we have a 75 pound waste disposal unit made of fur.
Truth #2 She is very sweet. When she wants to be.
Truth #3 She's freaking hilarious.
Truth #4 She's a ton of work.
Truth #5 She's housebroken!!! Yay!!!!
Truth #6 She's getting huge. Observe.
I think thats everything for the moment. Stay tuned for a special Christmas update in about...whenever I get around to it.
Puppies are widely misrepresented in the general media. Various humorous pictures of puppies on the interwebs would have you believe that puppies are basically adorable and kind of dumb (while this is true, it is not applicable to the entirety of the puppy experience). Movies suggest that puppy training is both a simple montage of various slightly irritating but generally good-natured funny growing-pains experiences that are both a little gross, and comic gold. Take Beethoven for example- the movie, not the composer, I assume the composer was house trained- in the movie, there is a fun montage of the father being the butt end of peeing in shoes jokes, dog slobber in the briefcase, dog hair on the clean and newly pressed suit, and the classic stepping-in-fresh-doggy-poo-in-bare-feet moment. This is also not representative of the puppy experience. It is also not even remotely a preparatory learning tool for those about to have a puppy. I feel very strongly that Balto, Beethoven, All Dogs Go To Heaven, Lassie, Old Yeller, Marley and Me, 101 Dalmatians, The Fox and the Hound, Rin Tin Tin, Benji, Turner and Hooch, Homeward Bound, Milo and Otis, Where the Red Fern Grows, Lady and the Tramp, and MOST ESPECIALLY Wishbone, did nothing to prepare me or give me reasonable expectations of what having a puppy would be like. This is gross negligence on their part, and I wish to sue. Mostly so that I can hire a housekeeper with the money I would win who will mop up after Loki. Nothing I saw in any of these movies, particularly in the extremely misleading montage sequences, helped me get ready for the reality of puppy-hood.
So what is it really like? It is simultaneously better and worse. So, for the sake of posterity, here is what puppy training a strong willed, slightly dumb and sharp-toothed husky is like.
Well, its not a montage. And she doesn't quote Shakespeare.
Typical day with Loki.
11:00 PM- everyone goes to bed.
Sometime In The Hours Of The Night That Belong To Vampires And Not To Man- Loki needs to be let out.
Sometime In The Hours Of The Morning That Only Exist On Clocks And Should Not Be Seen By Man- Loki needs to be let out again.
In Between Those Two Times- She has either had several 'accidents' (which I refer to in my head as 'Willful expulsion of the bowl and bladder') Or she has managed to hold it all night. So it's kinda like gambling, which I occasionally enjoy.
Randomly Interspersed Throughout The Night- She chases the cats, who oblige her by running.
6:30 AM- Loki will not go back to sleep. Instead she will howl outside of the door until someone comes and feeds her breakfast, takes her for an hour long walk, plays with her for another half hour, and manages to wear her out enough that she will sleep.
8:00 (ish) Loki is back to sleep, but whoever woke up with her is in an extremely bad mood and depending on work schedules may or may not get to go back to sleep.
11:00 Loki is awake again and chewing on EVERYTHING, EXCEPT the bazillion toys she has expressly for the purpose of making sure she doesn't chew on EVERYTHING. Which last night included my wedding bouquet. It's fine, no harm done, but I just about had a heart attack.
The Rest of the Day- She runs around being alternately adorable and exasperating.
The good stuff-
She's wonderful with people. She's entirely affectionate. She loves walking, going new places, and she's SMART. She learned sit, lie down, and come in the first week that we had her, which is apparently unheard of for a puppy her age. We're currently working on stay, drop, and "damnit Loki don't chew on that, chew on your toy!" She likes carrots, she makes a lot less mess than I thought she would, and she loves us.
The rough stuff-
Dogs talk with their mouths and ears. Thats just how it works in doggy communication land. Unfortunately, Loki's mouth contains a great many sharp pointy objects. So we're working on not nipping to communicate, and also working on not chewing on us. I also particularly enjoy wearing long flowy jackets, which apparently is an invitation for clothing tug-of-war, which we are also trying to train her not to do. Also also- puppy toilet training takes a hell of a lot longer than anyone ever tells you it does. It's those damn movie montages that make it look so easy.
The Best Stuff-
She whines when we leave, she cries until we come back, and then she wags her tail so hard her whole body wiggles and she covers us with kisses. She cuddles, she snuggles, she loves us. She's adorable, she's hilarious, (give her an ice cube and thirty seconds and you'll be laughing so hard you'll cry) she's loyal and she's beautiful. She is the best dog ever.
Once we get her toilet trained.
In other news-
Michael and Sarah have jobs!!! Hooray!
Michael is working at Future Shop (canadian version of Best Buy), and Sarah is working at Pet Smart, training to become a dog trainer, which is AWESOME. Especially since that means when Sarah has enough training and Loki is old enough, Loki can go to work with her and be a working dog, which is perfect for huskies, who need a lot of mental stimulation and new experiences. Also, free puppy training for Loki. WIN.
Cam is happy enough at his job, and is content to work and play video games and be the Production Manager for our upcoming first show.
THAT'S RIGHT, FIRST SHOW!!!!
What is it? You'll have to tune in next week to find out. And yes, I do promise to post one next week. I've been busy, y'all.
As for me? Well, my crafting and redecorating has calmed down some. I've only painted the hallway in the last few weeks, and I haven't picked up a sewing needle in ages. Today is my first day-offy day off in quite a while (the other ones were very busy with auditions or catching up on sleep and chores). So today I'm going to try my hand at canning. We have a wonderful pear tree in our yard, and it has just MASSES of pears, so I will make tasty things.
UPDATE-
About two minutes after I finished typing all of this, work called. It seems that the universe does not want me to make pear butter, as every time I sit down to actually do it, I get called in to work, or some other calamity occurs. So now I'm back home watching Friends and making Chocolate Cake. Why? Because its just that kind of day.
Fact- Anyone who has known me for the better part of a week knows its the good kind of crazy.
Fact- Even the people who love me best sometimes wonder if the above fact is true.
Fact- It is true.
Cam and I were walking in Pike Market in Seattle, looking at all the awesome home grown crafts and goods and produce and fresh fish, when I stopped to have a look at a very beautiful dressing gown. After taking a gander at the outrageous price tag, I tilted my head to the side in consideration, took a picture on my camera, and walked away.
Cam: You're going to make that aren't you.
Me: Well I'm not paying $120 bucks for it when I could make it myself in under 40.
Cam: That's what I love about you Leigh. If you like it but don't want to pay for it, you always find a way to make it yourself.
Which had bearing on a conversation a few months later. I had just picked up an old fashioned wooden window, from which the glass panes had been removed, and it was in pretty rough shape- it desperately needs sanding and re-painting and maybe some carpenters glue for good measure.
Cam: What the hell is this piece of crap?
Me: Well, its going to be a picture frame.
Cam: That's going to take a lot of work.
Me: Yep, and then it will be awesome.
Cam: How many projects do you have going at any one time?
Me: Depends. Do you mean ongoing, complete-able, or conceptual?
Cam: Um...complete-able?
Me: Probably about 15.
Cam: I know that you will eventually make something neat out of that piece of crap, but until such time, you will have to endure my cynical skepticism and mockery. Which will be replaced with genuine praise when you complete your turning-this-junk-into-stuff.
Me: Acceptable.
Why am I telling you all of this?
Because many of those projects are complete, and now I'm going to show them off.
Project 1- Bedroom with canopy
Materials-
Paint, $50
gorgeous fabric that I found on sale, $20
Two pieces of wood- free
Staples- $1
Paint- leftover from painting the room, so technically free.
Time- In total, probably 2 hours.
Before
Project 2- Office
Paint- $20
Time- One afternoon. And it'll probably take me an hour or so to clean it up again.
Before
After
Project 4- Sewing Desk
Materials- Desk $10 (also, an antique belonging to a feminist newspaper columnist living on the island in the 1960's.)
Leftover paint
Shellac $8
Time- two days
Sadly, no before picture, just afters. Its not actually this yellow- that's because of the lighting. Its a night light butter colour.
Project 5- Workbench
cost- $25 at a garage sale
time- an hour with my dad. =)
I was convinced when I bought this that it would fit in the sewing room all in one piece. Michael and Cam loudly assured me it would not. ....they were right. So Dad and I cut it down to size!
Project 5- Sewing Room
Materials-
Paint and supplies, $50
Desk- $10
Lamps, electrical, rugs- Birthday gift from my parents and sister
Furniture- Birthday gift from Sarah and Michael
Time- a few weeks, in total probably about 4 days worth of work if you did it in one stretch.
Welcome to my Zen Den. Combination sewing, crafting, guest, and soon Wii playing room. That weird thing at the bottom of the second picture is my arm and a coffee mug, not included.
Sarah and Michael surprised me with the wonderful recliners and hide-a-bed, with which the former owners included sheets, blanket, quilt, and feather pillow.
While Sarah and I are sitting on the comfy chairs and comfy couch, enjoying the newly completed Hobbit Hole, Cam opens the downstairs door and hollers down to me.
" I apologize for my former skepticism, and the moral of the story is you should always get free furniture when you can."
....?
Turns out that when Michael and Sarah went to pick up the furniture, the people who used to own it asked them who they were and what they wanted the furniture for. When Michael told them about us and Noisy Mime, they lit up and said "We were just talking about you!" Why? Because one of them is the VP of Island Musical Theatre ( I think that's the name, I wasn't there so I will correct it if I'm wrong) and own and operate a music studio/school in Mill Bay. They have offered us rehearsal space, access to their wardrobe, have contacted their students on behalf of our upcoming auditions, and can accredit me as a voice teacher. Ah, universal synergy. God does not play with dice.
"Whew!" You must think. All that and work and turning 26? Yes. I am busy.
We had a lovely BBQ for my birthday, with new friends from the Dice Bag and Starbucks. Cam got me the latest book in the Dark Tower series, which means I need to hurry up and finish reading said series so I can read the book he got me, so excited!! I kept telling myself that I needed to take pictures of the bbq, and then of course promptly forgot, but it was a birthday party like any other.
What else is new?
This.
How do we deal with this level of cute?
Its hard.
Emma has discovered that while the dog is mostly an irritant, it can be lots of fun to antagonize it by walking right past it, enticing it to chase her, and then smacking it in the face from the safety of a windowsill. Our attempts to deter this behavior on both sides has failed substantively, and our days are a whirlwind of trying to wear out the pup and appease the cat, and keep them from constant sibling antagonism. Puppy is up at all hours of the day and night because she is either going full speed ahead, or sleeping soundly on top of an air vent where she can get the most benefit of the air conditioning through her thick coat. She is adorable, she is trouble, she is frustrating, she is entirely affectionate, and she has a very large problem with biting at the moment that we are working on training out of her. Its not her fault really- teething in human babies can be awful, teething in a puppy must be equally painful, and they can't have baby aspirin. Still, it is exhausting.
Did I say I wanted kids? We'll see.
Much else new? No. We've set up auditions for the theatre company for Sept 1, 2, and 7, and are getting more and more e-mails every day. We've also set up something called Chip-In, which is basically the Canadian version of Kickstarter to get our first show up and running. I've included the widget on the blog and the link is here;
And next, oh then next, do you know what he did?!
And said softly "Are you guys fans of Techno?"
