Vibrant.(Still) Unrepentant. Badass. Old. Queer

Hi, Kittens! It is that time of year again - Tax Time!  I did my taxes this weekend.  And, since I recently donated to the Washington Animal Rescue League in honor of Miss Psychokitty Isabella's 14th birthday, I will more than likely be donating 10% of my refund to Food and Friends and/or the Whitman-Walker Clinic . Those of you who are loyal reader-kittens of this blog, may remember that I have challenged you to donate at least 10% of your tax refunds in previous tax years, and, then, rewarded one lucky Challenge winner with a piece of my pottery.  This year, since no one really reads blogs anymore, I will send a piece of made-to-order pottery* to any kitten who donates 10% of his/her refund and emails me proof that the donation has been made.  Please, when you send your email proof, include any pottery/design/color preference.  If you need my email address, leave a comment to let me know. Of course, since the pottery is made-to-order, you may not get...

Good Evening, Kittens! This week at work, I've been participating in some sort of Walking contest sponsored by the Occupational Health and Safety Office.  I got a pedometer and have been wearing it from 9 to 5 as I go about my daily bidness. The annoying thing is that I start work at 7:30.  BUT, I guess they want to make the contest fair-ish. Fair or not, I am still losing. On Monday, I walked 5,661 steps ... about 2.5 miles, maybe?  That night, I found out that K also has a pedometer.  So, we decided to have a little contest on our own (Tues-Thurs, b/c he's going out of town for the weekend).  The loser would become the Personal Sex Slave of the winner for ALL TIME!* On Tuesday, I walked 7,740 steps.  K did not walk that many. On Wednesday, I walked 13,401 steps. K did not walk that many either. I also did laundry.  And, then, when I went to cook dinner, I sliced open a delicata squash from our CSA.  and the seeds were all rotted an...

Good Afternoon, Kittens. Whew! Busy day today! I've planted chrysanthemums and ironed 10 shirts. I still need to take out the recycling, iron a couple of pairs of pants, and clean clean clean ... and maybe go for a run (although I might put that off until tomorrow). Anyway, good weekend. Friday, I had happy hour at Molly Malones in Eastern Market/Barracks Row. Lots of beer. Maybe a tequila shot. Little food. VUBOQ was a little durnk. Saturday, very. hungover. Lots of blobbing. And a 3.5 mile run. Then, Carolyn came over and we went to dinner at 8407 Kitchen Bar, a new-ish restaurant near Silver Spring Metro Station. It was delicious ... but expensive ... especially when you add in cocktails, a couple of glasses of wine, and dessert. After dinner, I went to K-Factor's birthday party at Buddha Bar in DC. It was fun, but the drinks were pricey. And it started to get really crowded. And sometimes really crowded places make me uncomfortable. And the second drink I orde...

Good afternoon, Kittens! And, we have a winner in the Labor Day Vase Giveaway ... Congratulations, EmCityChris! Please email me your address (environyATgmailDOTcom) so I can send you your cute little blue vase. Thanks to everyone for participating and don't give up hope! There will be a lot more pottery giveaways in the coming months. Have a Happy Labor Day! *smooches*

Good Evening, Kittens. As we head into the long holiday weekend, how about a little pottery giveaway? I went to the studio to finally glaze the 5 mugs I made at the end of the Summer Session. As I was looking over the shelves to find my unglazed mugs and two glazed pieces, I found this cute little three-legged hand-built vase (pictured) that I had completely forgotten about (awwww. Poor Little Forgotten Vase). It's about 6.5 inches tall and glazed in Lisa's Favorite Blue. I have always wondered who Lisa is ... she has great taste in blues. In the middle of the vase, I used the dragonfly stamp I made last summer. The dragonfly kinda cracks me up as it flies and tumbles around the middle of the vase. So, the burning question is: Who wants the vase? Leave a comment and on Monday, I will choose a winner. Yay! We haven't had a pottery giveaway in quite some time (stay tuned for more though, b/c ... 5 mugs? they gotsta go at some point). Good luck and have a fabulous and...

Good Evening, Kittens. I'm in the midst of the dryer cycle (and eating cookies) and thought I would take a few minutes to post. Work is work. Life is life. On the plus side, there may be a date on Friday (after Tomokito's Bad Mommy Happy Hour). How about we give away a Poor Little Vase Who Needs a Home? I have 20 pieces of pottery from this session. I have already picked the ONE I am allowed to keep. 6 others have been tagged as Xmas (or other) presents. Which means (if you are as good at math as I am), I have eleventygabillion pieces of pottery to get rid of ... This cute little vase, glazed in warm jade and Lisa's favorite blue, is 4.5 inches tall and 5.5 inches wide (at the mouth). It's a little heavy, weighing less than my refrigerator and more than a martini glass. And it needs a Good Home. Somewhere to be loved. Somewhere to belong. And, that, my friends, is not in my apartment. So, here's the deal ... take a look at the photos. Decide if you can...

Getting packages ready to mail is a Thing That Makes Me Happy ... Especially when what's inside those packages are prizes which should've been mailed months ago. Dorothee and Marve, these are yours. Torn, I didn't have a box the right size. I should be able to get one at the post office when I mail these tomorrow. Thanks for your patience :-) Also, giving away my pottery makes me happy. Stay tuned for more Great Pottery Giveaways. I've been productive this session! *smooches*

As I'm sure you are tired of reading about, y'know, the accident, here's a post which should brighten (at least) 6 peoples' day ... And, the winners are: The tall, blue/white spiral-ish vase ... ... goes to the lovely Ms. Clio Bluestocking ! The beige/blue curvy vase (on the right)... ... goes to the funny and talented Ms. Eight Lives Left ! The mustard/brown squaretop vase ... ... goes to the Hot Tranny Mess and Current Blogcrush, Ms. ShallowGal ! The small curvy blue/white vase (on the right)... ... goes to SuperIntellectual, Ms. Bala Wala Shi ! The mustard/brown vase ... ... goes to the UltraCrafty, Ms. Marve ! and, finally, the hotly contested pencil holder ... ... goes to the King of All Word Games, Mr. Sticky Crows ! Marve and Torn, could you please email your mailing addresses to environy(at)gmail(dot)com? kthx. Have a great day! *smooches* [ps. i'm feeling better. still a bit sore. and it hurts to swallow solids. but otherwise, a-ok.]

Good Morning, Kittens! How's work? Just think, it's almost the Holiday Weekend! Hallelujah! Labor Day! The day when we honor our mothers for going into labor! Send her flowers or something. Srsly. My goals for today are: 1. Shower. 2. Shave. 3. Apply for at least one job. 4. Clean off the kitchen table. 5. Revel in the joy of a clean living room. 6. Encourage more people to enter the Great End of August Pottery Giveaway ! 7. Sort laundry. 8. Do laundry. 9. Venture forth to Mike's to watch Project Runway tonight (because a certain cable-owning neighbor, who shall remain nameless (but it starts with a T and rhymes with " Romokito ") is off covering the convention in Denver. Let's all hate on her, shall we?). 10. Drink. 11. Go to bed. Seems very doable, no? Have a sunshiny day! Now, go enter the contest (if you haven't already). *smooches*

Well, kittens, this is it. I have six pieces of pottery which need new, loving homes ... But, first, some random pictures from my day (see how I am? making you wait?) ... My storage area in the boiler room: Scary, no? Oooh. Marigolds. Pretty ... I'm a Buff Bride! And, now, the moment you've all been scrolling down for ... the Giveway! Huz.Zah. The following objects need new homes: We're Homeless. Wah. In order to receive a piece of pottery, please leave a comment detailing which one you would like (pencil holder, big blue and white vase, small curvy blue/white vase, small curvy blue/beige vase, mustard/MI brown vase, mustard, MI brown square-topped vase). In the event that more than one person wants a particular item, a random drawing will be held (people who live in the DC/Metro area may receive special consideration ... b/c, srsly, postage can get expensive). Also, people who beg shamelessly and/or slather me with huge amounts of praise may also receive special consider...

You are the winner of the Summertime Cold Soup Contest! YAYz! From Dorothee's emailed entry: My recipe is called "the super healthy beets and watercress soup" First, the ingredients: - 3 beets - half a bunch of watercress (I used a whole bunch but it is too much I think) - 2 or 3 cups of lowfat buttermilk - goat cheese! a lot! - around 2 tsp of white wine vinegar - some salt and pepper Now the recipe: - Use a steamer to cook the beets, it took me 35min (and now my bamboo steamer is pink...) When the beets are ready, wait for them to cool down (or you will burn your fingers) and then cut the ends and peel off the skin. Cut them and wait. - Put the watercress in your blender, add the buttermilk, the goat cheese and the vinegar and blend. Pour in a bowl. - Put the beets in the blender with some buttermilk and blend. - Then mix everything in the bowl with salt and pepper (as much as you want) Warning: Your fingers will be pink when you're done but no worries, it goes away...

Good morning, kittens! How's your Friday? Slaving away for the Man? Just remember Happy Hour is only a few short hours away. You can make it! I believe in you! Not much going on here. This morning, Kristi and I took a load of quarters to the bank to deposit in the co-op's account. On the way home, I bought my lottery ticket ($70 million, $42.5 cash option ... which is *almost* enough to achieve my goals). Keep your fingers crossed because there could be a Pottery Bar coming to a location near you. Later this afternoon, I'm heading to the pottery studio. Hopefully, my final projects will be out of the kiln. Then, I'll walk over to Y's for a little nookie and, possibly, go out for Happy Hour/Dinner/Something. My only other plan this weekend is to go to the AFI Silver to see Doctor Zhivago . So excited. Love that movie. And I think seeing it on the big screen will be fantastic. At 197 minutes, I wonder if it has an intermission? OH. And don't forget the Summerti...

which would be the answer to yesterday's little guessing game ... I hope you are all smacking your heads and saying "D'oh!" Anywayz, good morning, kittens! Yesterday, I didn't accomplish much at all. *sigh* I did make a fabulous dinner though: Cous Cous Salad. Teh Yumz. Then, DUN came down for martinis and a little jewelry making (more on this later, possibly). Once we finished, we headed up to Tomokito's for Project Runway and Shear Genius. VUBOQ was pleased with the results of both shows (although, perhaps, maybe the Jerell/Stella team should've won on PR. I know! Shocking!). Sorry this is so boring. I'z a bit overhung. *smooches* PS. Don't forget the Summertime Cold Soup Contest ends tomorrow at Midnight!!! Send in your entries SOON!

Good Morning, Kittens! I had planned to go jogging again this morning, but, when the 7:30 Alarum Bell rang, I could not drag my tired, stiff, sore body out of the bed. Alas, the best laid plans of mice and men, eh? Not much going on today. I need to go to the grocery and hardware stores. I need to organize a couple of lunch dates. I need to clean the house. I need to do laundry. And, I need to find a job. Not particularly in that order ... I also need to start the limoncello for SCGB's upcoming birthday. Limoncello is SuperEasy to make; however, the likker store has not had any grain alcohol (like EverClear) in stock the past two times I've been there. I'll try my luck again today. Otherwise, I may have to improvise and I'm not quite sure how. Knitting: The scarf is coming along nicely. I'm in the boring "background section" now. And will be for approximately 20 more inches. Dullsville. OH. I finally watched Infernal Affairs yesterday. If yo...

Good Morning, Kittens! How was the commute into work today? Traffic was great? Did you have to sit by some smelly man in a never-been-dry-cleaned-five-year-old suit on the train? I feel your pain. Really. VUBOQ is thinking that rather than numbering his unemployment in days, he may start doing it in bottles of gin. Martini, anyone? This morning, I sent off two resumes. One for a job (!); the other to an EPA contact. The EPA contact responded in, like ,5 minutes. I was surprised. He said my resume is "impressive" and that he'll circulate it among the branch chiefs. HUZ-zah. Maybe something good will come of it. Today, I have a BOATLOAD of laundry to do. *ugh* Plus, I need to go to the Whole Foods and the likker store (Unemployment Bottle of Gin 1 starts tonight!). Mike invited me to join him at AU for lunch, but I don't think I'll make it. Maybe next week ... I need to schedule a hair appointment with Leah the Colornatrix soon and the salon is near A...

Good Morning, Kittens. How's work? Srsly. I think of you all, slaving for the Man in front of your dusty computers, drinking crappy office coffee swill, dreaming of the day that you, too, will be laid off and sitting at home in your boxer shorts, surfing the net, and thinking Big Thoughts. So, here are my accomplishments thus far this morning: 1. Got out of bed! Huz-ZAH. 2. Filed for Maryland Unemployment Insurance 3. Applied for health insurance. Kittens, COBRA is fucked. I mean, srsly. Nearly $300/month to continue my coverage (um. yeah. I don't have a job. How am I supposed to pay that?). I've applied for a high deductible plan through Blue Cross/Blue Shield that will be $72/month. Still, health insurance is a fucking scam. Fortunately, I'm not bitter. *cough* Things to do today (not particularly in this order): 1. Organize BOSSY's Guest Room (aka. "the office"), so I can do my job searching there. 2. Sort (and possibly do) laundry. 3. Nap. 4. Shower. 5...

Good morning, kittens! It's my last "Good morning, kittens!" from this computer, cubicle, office, building, street ... Doesn't that make you a little misty? *sniff* It's OK, kittens. Let it out. Meanwhile, I'm whooping and whollering on the inside. So far this morning, I have updated my resumes (changing everything to past tense ), printed several copies, signed my final timesheet, and had not quite enough coffee. It's free! Enjoy it while it lasts! Even though it is the crappiest coffee known to man (well except for a certain person I follow on twitter, who sometimes tweets about the nastiness that is Blueberry Coffee ). *shudder* My plans for the day include cleaning out the remainder of crap in my desk, meeting SCGB for lunch at Adega, surfing the internet, and then going to our final happy hour! With Tequila Shots for All! YAYZ! Last night, I didn't do much of anything except watch Project Runway (liked the judges' decision) and Shear G...

It's time. You've read the hints: Hint #1 Hint #2 You've made the guesses. And, now, it's time for the Big Summertime Contest Announcement . It's a Cold Soup Contest ! Perfect for Summer! Delicious! Refreshing! All Natural! What must you do? Very easy: Send VUBOQ a Vegetarian Cold Soup Recipe and Photo that you either (a) created yourself or (b) modified from an already published version. VUBOQ (and a crack team of Cold Soup Experts) will review the recipes and choose the top 3. VUBOQ will make each of the 3 Finalist Soups and determine which one is the Summertime Cold Soup Champion!!! VUBOQ loves this contest idea so very much, because (1) he loves the cold soups in summer and (2) it encourages something that he holds very near and dear to his heart: Creative, Experimental Vegetarian Cooking! The RULES. 1. All recipes and a photo of the finished product must be EMAILED to VUBOQ at environy(at)gmail(dot)com by midnight August 15, 2008. 2. All recipes must be OVO-L...

And, you may worship me ... from a respectful distance. Or you could just give me lots of money and/or gin. ANYWAY, thus far today, I have: 1. Completed the horrible essay question for the government job AND faxed my transcript to HR.* 2. Called the investment company which manages my 401(k) to find out how to roll my funds over to a personal 401(k) once the impending unemployment occurs. 3. Decided what I'm making for dinner tonight: Vegetarian Fried Tofu with Garlic and Black Pepper and Spicy Sesame Noodles with Chopped Peanuts and Thai Basil . 4. Made a sandwich and an iced coffee. OMG. I'm exhausted. I should take the rest of the day off! BUT, before I do, here is another hint about the rapidly approaching New VUBOQ Contest: The first hint is here . Allrightythen, guess that's it. *smooches* *The chances of me actually getting this job (even though I am highly qualified) are relatively nil. The position was announced on 7/22 and closes on 7/25. Such a short announceme...

The Upcoming Contest. A Hint: Care to make a guess? *smooches*