Wordless Wednesday: Everyone Needs a Shoulder to Lean On

Ramblings of a Riddler...A Horn, Iced Tea and 1993.

I was driving behind a mini van when I noticed that the driver and the passenger are in some sort of argument. The driver gives the passenger a shove. Then, out of nowhere, the passenger whips out a huge musical horn (like a big band horn) and blows it at the driver. Because it is so big, though, it is really blowing in front of his face and not by his ear. Just like that it is gone. Where did it go? Where did it come from? Was I seeing things?

***

I was so hot after the walking house tour this year that I decided I needed two Starbucks iced teas. Since they were both for me, I just got one straw. I met B at the car and told him I was glad he was there so it looked like I had bought him one, even though I hadn't.  We were driving off when I see B out of the corner of my eye pick up the tea to drink. Of course he has the one without a straw. Of course I watch to see what will happen. He tries to find the straw with his mouth three times before looking down and then looking at me and saying "How many times were you going to let me do that?"  Is forever a good answer?

***

I told B that I won my first win of June, a CD. He responded by saying "Way to win a prize from the past."  Yes, 1990 is supplying my prizes these days.

***

Wordless Wednesday: Friends or Foes?

Sunday Sweats: The Walk-In Closet Gets a Face Lift

When I told you about our walk-in closet here, I told you that we were not done with it. It was a beginning.  Now we are somewhere in the middle with our recent add-ons. Excuse the crappy iPhone pictures, I will take more quality pictures when I fill up the closet (can you say SHOPPING?).

Remember that by the closet door and window there was empty space? Not anymore.

There are shelves and a lower hanging bar near the closet door and shelves under the window. Now every wall is covered in some form of closet shelving/clothes bar unit.  Can you see the "real" closet door peeking out there on the right?

What you are looking at below used to be a ceiling to floor shoe rack as evidenced by the shelves that still have shoes on it. We added some drawers there as it was really the only place we could feasibly add drawers and I moved my shoes to the other ceiling to floor shelving unit.

When B asked me what other things I might be interested in, I did not ask for this. However, it is certainly something he needed and it is pretty cool.  A little organizational rack for belts in the area by his shirts (to the left of the window):

What I did ask for was a valet, or a pole that would pull out so I can hang the next day's outfit from it:

Like so:

It should be noted that I have only used that pole so far one other time. I am not that much of a planner. It should also be noted that B immediately said "why does this suit still have tags on it?"  Huh. 

Another thing I *had* to have was a hidden/retractable ironing board.  We had the regular ol' kind and I hated putting it up and taking it down every day or so, which meant that I inevitably just left it up in the middle of the room all the time which B *loved*.  So we got one that can disappear. Can you see it?

It pulls out and to the left like so:

Then you just pull the legs down and it is good to go:

My only minor complaint is that it is really half of an ironing board, but since I am not entering any ironing competitions, it seems to get the job done.

Another view point of the room:

See where those sweatshirts look like they are about to fall off the shelves to the right? That is because they are making way for my shoes. That is the unit where I moved all my shoes to. It is not because I am sloppy and cannot fold properly. Not at all.

Don't you just love it??

*UPDATE* I was just watching the show SuperNanny and saw that the Nanny was wearing that exact same suit that I hung to show off the valet. I mentioned this to B and he stated "it probably WAS that suit since you are not wearing." Whatever.

Roly Poly Bugs Have Nothing to Do with Watermelons

The other day when it was about a bazillion degrees out, I decided to eat some watermelon. Nothing odd about that, right? What was odd was when I looked to my left and a bug was running up to me. A water bug!  I decided that was hilariously clever and took to Twitter to tell the world about the irony of such events.

Then B came upstairs and I relayed the story to him.  His exact words? "Couldn't have been a water bug."  He was so definitive and stern. And so wrong. Why, yes it was a water bug, I KNOW WHAT A WATER BUG LOOKS LIKE, I GREW UP COLLECTING THEM! (Maybe I didn't tell him that last part as it sounds kind of serial killer like).  B was insistent and then informed me that waterbugs are really roaches and that landlords just call them that so people won't complain about them.

Then I lost my shit.

ROACHES? ARE YOU SAYING I JUST KILLED A ROACH? WE HAVE ROACHES? I GREW UP WITH ROACHES? I REFUSE TO BELIEVE THIS IS TRUE.

He tells me to Google it, so I do and I get this:

INSERT AWFUL IMAGE OF GROSS ROACH BUG HERE.

Seriously, I cannot even pick one for you to look at because they are all freaking me out.

Suffice it to say, that is NOT what I saw and NOT what I killed and most definitely NOT what I collected as an oddball child that might have serial killer tendencies but never killed anything.  What was I referring to? Well, as I said to B:

No, no, no.  My bug was like a roly poly type thing that rolls into a ball when you touch it.  I then googled "roly poly bug" and up came this:

source: flickr.com

Much cuter, right? People (other than me) collect them and give them playgrounds even:

source: toyreport.org

Nobody needs to use their imaginations these days. Geesh!  Also, I no longer feel like the biggest used to be nerd kid.

While I am relieved to note I do not have roaches, it kind of makes the whole watermelon story a lot less ironic, doesn't it?

Also? I write about bugs a lot.

It's Summertime and the Sprinkling's Easy

Is it hot enough for you? Don't you hate when people ask that? But they all do. It is like the easy button of small talk.  Anyway, it has been hot here the past couple of days. It started on Saturday, the day of our annual walking tour. It was so hot, I didn't even bother taking pictures.  Check out pictures from a prior year here and here.  Same type of houses, same type of heat.

When we got back, B decided he was going to water the dogs. Literally.  He broke out the sprinkler, which Jersey loves.  It was Nevada's first time.  Luckily, B had the camera at the ready and captured some fun moments:

How does this work?

Where does it come from?

Where does it go?

Oh there! In my face.

If I turn quickly I can catch it.

Maybe I should just contort.

Jersey lets Nevada know she has it under control.

A sprinkler challenge!

And a face-off!

Mid-shake fest.

My name is Nevada and I am FEROCIOUS!

The rest of us humans just showered and took naps. A perfect summer day.

Can you believe it is summer already?