Kitty Deschanel

Springtime in Albuquerque means only one thing. Miserable, butt-kicking allergies. Wait...it isn't even spring yet. Darn you, Albuquerque. We should dig up all the juniper and institute a state-wide ban against it. I'm too stuffed up and groggy to post anything new today. Here is an allergy post from seven years ago. It's awful every single year. You know, the allergies...not my blog post. Oh geez, I just realized my allergy post was originally published in May. Does that mean I have at least 3 more months of suffering? Blech. Funny Boss Quote of the Day My boss called me from her home and pointed out that it sounded like I was losing my voice. She proceeded to have me continue talking to her for the next half hour, concerned about my voice the entire time while simultaneously talking about nothing. She also gave me this little gem of allergy advice: "Take that ricotta candy from Switzerland, with the bee pollen, and it will cure your allergies." Her teena

In response to my last post, Lamb Quote of the Day , spiffy long-time reader My Husband's Watching TV commented "So...what's the show?" Hey , I thought slyly while writing my reply, I can get an additional blog post out of this! Another year older, another year wiser, and another year more diabolical. Muah ha ha! (The evil laugh. You know you love it.) You see, the answer isn't as simple as merely telling the name of the show. I wrote that blog post around 3am. Originally, I omitted the name because Sexy Nerd's preposterous paranoia has rubbed off on me over the past 7 years. It seemed best to save the name until after the show, lest a reader know exactly when I would be out of the house, making it easier to (A) abduct me from the parking lot after the show (or before! Extra cruel) or (B) steal Pica and Biscuit and my fanciful new camera (jokes on them - I am bringing my solid, weapon-like camera with me and Pica is a pain in the butt whenever she is

Sexy Nerd and I have been together since 2004, plenty of time to learn all the wacky traits that irk the other.  One of my pet peeves is that he is the kind of person who will go into the kitchen at lunchtime, make himself a sandwich, and eat it in front of you without the thought that you might also like a sandwich ever crossing his mind. I've nicely (and maybe occasionally ever-so-slightly less than nicely) tried to remind Sexy Nerd that this behavior borders on selfish cruel lazy being a huge, smelly jerk not very nice. He has slowly made improvements. At least, I thought he had been improving. Sexy Nerd announced that he would be smoking a chicken for dinner. He brined it and put it inside the smoker. For hours, our home was filled with the aroma of hickory. When it would be done smoking was a complete mystery (and the source of a funny  Sexy Nerd Quote Of The Day ).  I made us a pitcher of iced tea and imagined us enjoying our chicken out on the patio, listening to the

I have been a bit peeved with Woman's Day ever since I subscribed a few months ago. The magazine is marketed as  being "written and edited for every woman to live well every day." Scanning through the pages, you'll find a variety of recipes, organizational tips, and inspirational stories. There is only one thing that I don't like about Woman's Day magazine. Scratch that. There's one thing that I can't stand. It's at the beginning of every issue, casually placed in its own little 1/8 of the page. I had been looking forward to the April issue because there was a new editor, Elizabeth Mayhew. Surely , I thought, she'll do away with this one, stupid out of place item. What am I talking about? Here's this month's thing that ticks me off: "Sing to the Lord a new song; sing to the Lord, all the earth."  Psalm 96.1 Are you kidding me, Woman's Day? I've asked around and I'm not the only one who was under the impr

*This post was written last night and updated this morning. See #4. 1. The word Sexy Nerd was referring to in his recent, ridiculous Quote of the Day was flexitarian. Oh! Sadly, it took me over a week to think of this. 2. I've researched and researched and have my heart set on the Canon EOS Rebel T1i. It's on sale at Target right this very moment. I called all 6 stores in our area (okay, so Santa Fe and Rio Rancho are not technically our area, though Target.com says otherwise) and there is only ONE left anywhere. Why aren't I on my way this instant? In my pre-Sexy Nerd days, I wouldn't have thought twice about going out at 9pm. The store is open for almost another whole hour! He's such a worrier. He doesn't even think I should try to go before work tomorrow because I might get stuck in traffic and be late. Sheesh! 3. I'm going to go before work anyway. Think positive thoughts for me and my fellow Albuquerque drivers (an ideal thought would be that th

Sexy Nerd and I have been together more than 6 years, during which we've learned each of us has our own wacky traits that irk the other (though I must insist that mine are nothing compared to his!) One of my pet peeves is that he's the kind of person who goes into the kitchen at lunch time, makes himself a sandwich, and eats it right in front of you, without the thought of asking if you would also like a sandwich ever crossing his mind. I've nicely (and maybe occasionally ever so slightly less than nicely) tried to train remind Sexy Nerd that this behavior borders on selfish cruel lazy being a huge,smelly jerk not very nice and he has slowly made improvements. At least, I thought he'd been improving. This morning, Sexy Nerd announced he would be smoking a chicken for dinner. He brined it and put it inside the smoker. The house was filled with the tasty smell of hickory for several hours. When it would be done smoking was a complete mystery (and source of a "

Sometimes I worry Sexy Nerd is too sophisticated for me. He has a real, grown-up career and a plan for retirement. He can teach you about expensive wine, international politics, and architecture laws. He thinks the movies I love, like Harold and Kumar and American Pie, are "stupid", though he supposedly shared my interest in them when we met a million years ago. Over time, he's become more and more of an old soul, to the point that sometimes he simply isn't any fun for me to be around. He often spends entire days tending to cactus alone, patiently pinching aphids from between the needles, knowing he'll never be able to get them all. Who in their 30s does that? I makes me worry...but sometimes there are glimmers of hope. Deep down, though, Sexy Nerd is still the fun guy I fell in love with. I was reminded of this the other night when we were watching the Olympics. The Men's Ski Jumping was on, and it made him laugh. What's so funny about this? Se

When it comes to planning a vacation, Sexy Nerd and I aren't always on the same page. I enjoy things like farmer's markets, antique stores, and botanical gardens. When dreaming of a trip to California, Sexy Nerd shot down all of these activities as being "boring". Disneyland, the San Diego Zoo, and Universal Studios were also considered borderline boring. The beach? "Boring." California Adventure? "Boring." I googled California tourist attractions for nerds. The La Brea Tar Pits came up - perfect! Sexy Nerd was intrigued. His response to this suggestion? "Do you actually get to see the tar?"  Photo from the La Brea Tar Pits site - family fun at its best! *Bonus Sexy Nerd Story Below - Lucky You* The Overachiever Sexy Nerd has enrolled in a second Master's degree program. All I have is my measly Bachelors. This isn't the overachiever part though. He's going to get a jump st

For the record, I'm using the term "crazy" in only the most loving of ways, especially if you happen to actually be my boss currently reading this. You are still my boss, right? C'mon, ol' buddy, ol' pal. Also, "ol" is not short for old in the above sentence. Sixties are the new forties, after all. I love my boss. I've worked for her for more than 12 years and am planning to stick with her until she retires. She's a pediatric dentist who gets enjoyment out of treating her patients with compassion and kindness. How can you not love a person like that? Okay, here is the quote: I was walking down the hallway at work and my boss and I crossed paths. I always feel a little out of place when this happens, thinking that because my job is at a desk up front, I must surely be loafering* around if I'm spotted in the hall. But nature doesn't care, so as we walked by each other, I awkwardly squeaked that I was just heading for the restroom.

My brother and his wife are moving to Australia, where she will attend medical school and he will mooch off our relatives get a job. Everything must go! We just returned from their house $200 poorer, but rich in junk. A backup bread machine? Ours squeals like a pig whenever it's in the mixing cycle, so sure. Speakers for the garage? We're building our house around the garage ; of course it's going to need surround sound. My sister-in-law was happy to let me have her old purse for free, pointing out that she'd received it for free as a gift from my mom, but my brother jumped in and charged me $20 for it. When I'd wanted it a few years ago, his price was $50. We aren't close. A surprising thing about my brother and his wife is that they are bodybuilders. I know, you re-read that last sentence, thinking you'd surely misunderstood. Take a look: A video posted by Joanna Neal (@joanna.n88) on Oct 19, 2016 at 7:14pm PDT A video posted by

I had the best weekend. Usually, I embrace my lazy and antisocial ways, hunkering down in front of my computer until it's time for work on Monday. Frankly, I was annoyed this wasn't the way my weekend was shaping up to be. But, oh, the fun I had! We went to a cool new brew pub (twice!) and I went to yoga (yay me!) and we participated in a fundraiser called Bowling for Rhinos (and I kicked butt!) and we got to show off our soon-to-be new house (nearly done!) to my in-laws and we went out for BBQ (yum!) and we even went to a fancy wine tasting, where I confirmed once and for all that I am the lightest lightweight in the history of lightweights. Seriously. The 6 tastings of wine were itty bitty pours that added up to maybe 1 full glass and the room, which was bathed in a glorious, hysterical glow, would not stop spinning. I had such a fab weekend that I've decided to shun Everyday Kitty Deschanel and put Fun, New-And-Improved Kitty Deschanel (now with glitter!) front and

Happy Valentine's Day, my bloggy friends! We had a romantic evening sampling Church's Chicken. Thumbs up for their chicken tenders. Now, we're settling in for the night with a cozy Pass and Play game of Words with Friends. Valentine's Day just isn't the same when you're old and married, is it? Who's up for an old, romantic story? Let's not call it a repost. It's a blog classic . Sexy Nerd and I spent Friday morning at the Albuquerque Zoo* (you know, the one notorious for dismembered giraffes and break-ins by idiots). There was a small group of women with their young children walking ahead of us when we crossed paths with a few peacocks. Hey baby. One woman began to explain to her children that the male peacock is the one with the beautiful feathers, which he uses to attract a mate. Normal enough. The other woman, however, jumped in very enthusiastically (and probably more loudly than she'd intended) and said: "If I

After waiting 3 months from our latest floor plan change, we finally received our quote from the builder today. I asked if it was at least in the ballpark of our budget and he said "sort of". Oh, it's just ONE HUNDRED AND FIFTY THREE THOUSAND DOLLARS OVER BUDGET. Sexy Nerd is diligently reworking our design to lower the cost. Many drastic changes and many hours later, he has saved an entire $9,035. While he scrimps and saves, I'm browsing real estate listings. My search hasn't been very reassuring, to say the least: This is the most terrifying cozy mountain lodge I've ever seen. What did they spill on this carpet?? It's so hard to choose the perfect flooring. Let's just get them all! Apparently, this broken TV (computer monitor?) comes with the house. Flamingos and tropical fish in the middle of the desert? Sure. I don't know if it quite fits the 1.3 million dollar asking price though. This is on every listing

I found a great deal on Groupon for our recent visit to Salt Lake City. For about $30 per person, it included admission to 12 attractions, including the Clark Planetarium, Red Butte Garden, Hogle Zoo, and the Tracy Aviary, as well as a tasty lunch at The Lion House Pantry Restaurant. One of the activities we redeemed was for tickets to an educational IMAX movie. There were many options to choose from and, knowing my Sexy Nerd, I was surely going to end up watching Hidden Universe 3D (the most educational-looking one of all.) Imagine my surprise when he wanted to see Island of Lemurs, suggesting it with so much out-of-character enthusiasm that I at first thought he was being a sarcastic punk. We received our tickets, picked our seats, and waited for the movie to begin. "You're not just watching this because you know I'll like it, are you?" I asked. "No," Sexy Nerd assured me, smiling. "I love lemurs! Who doesn't love lemurs?" The lights

On Halloween, I attended my 1st yoga class ever, which was part of a 30 class Groupon. Okay, my 1st 'any sort of exercise' class ever. It kicked my butt! I'm not sure who Sharon Gannon is, but her quote doesn't apply to me. At all. While I'd love to discredit the entire experience as being a little too hippy dippy - the instructor was a man wearing pink bunny ears, we spent a great deal of time playing with a ball of electric energy we'd created between our hands, and the experience ended with a "sharing circle" (I swear I'm not making this up) and a hug - it was a much harder workout than I'd been expecting. I must have been the youngest person there by at least a couple decades, but geez, those little old yoga ladies are limber! With the lights dimmed and soft music playing, we laid on the floor and raised our legs in some sort of relaxing breathing exercise. Simple, right? I could not get my legs to stop shaking! The instructor

As previously mentioned in a funny, albeit frustrating post , Sexy Nerd recently smoked us a chicken. Even after our smoked turkey fiasco (dinner at 10 pm, anyone?), we're still on two different pages when it comes to how something like this should be done. Me: So, how long until the chicken's ready? SN: I dunno. Around dinnertime, probably. Me: Well, how much does the chicken weigh? SN: I didn't weigh it. Me: Yeah, but the weight is listed on the packaging. SN: Why does that matter? Me: You can use the weight to estimate how long it will take to smoke. SN: I'll just use the meat thermometer. ME: *dies a little on the inside*  King of the Grill doesn't necessarily translate to King of the Smoker

*Update:  Construction on our dream house is finally finished! Sexy Nerd and I are planning to build a window seat beneath the windows in our dining room. Well, really Sexy Nerd is going to build it while I blog in my pajamas, but I'm still planning to take 98% of the credit. I love all the possibilities offered by a new window seat - extra storage, a reading nook, and even a place to stretch out and take a nap. Here are some photos I've gathered from various sites for the best window seat ideas . There's something for every style, from a traditional all-white farmhouse to a cozy mountain hideaway. Update: This post has been so popular that I've added more window seat ideas . Enjoy! Window Seat Ideas Which photo below is your favorite? My original  window seat ideas   post was written in February, 2011, when we were planning to add a window seat to our home. Two+ years later, how is that window seat coming along? To quote Christmas Vacation, I can picture it in my min