I’ve decided to name the unknown plant in the corner of my garden…Austin Powers: International Plant of Mystery.

Just so you know.

Musings on Saturday:

Saturday we shopped, as we have a little money right now, and soon we will have a lot less. We stopped by ULTA and made a hair appointment for Koshvader straight away. Then lunch. Which I didn’t eat much of, as I had in fact eaten before my fellow had gotten up. Then we went to the mall. I had a fruit craving, so I got a smoothie before anything else. (Translation: I stared in horror at the seriously disorganized line. Tried to talk Koshvader into putting off the smoothie until later to avoid attempting to figure out where said line ended. Koshvader stood firm, however, and the confusing line was conquered in due course.) Originally, I had planned to come to the mall to buy clothing, but we ended up in the kitchen/home area of Macy’s somehow instead. There we purchased a small vacuum for the stairs and a griddle that you can put over two burners on the stove. I need a griddle if I am to finally make crumpets, you see. We ended up saving $80 on these purchases. (Yes, I called my parents to share the Sale Squee.)

By this point it was time to go to the hair appointment. Our hair-stylist insisted that she could do both of us, so after Koshvader’s hair was done (and my, he looks nice) it was my turn. It would seem that my hair makes our stylist a bit crazed. Every time she sees me, it looks the same, she said. So, instead of just taking off two inches from the bottom, I have a new, sexier haircut. Everyone seems to like it so far, but it is a bit weird having such a light head.

Once we were done with hair, we decided to ignore responsibilities for the evening (’cause really, they’re always there. You have to make time for fun, or you won’t have any.) And went out to get tickets to the cinema. Our plan was to see different films at the same time. That didn’t work out. I wanted to see Nim’s Island, but it was sold out. So, we got two tickets to the new Harold and Kumar film. (No, I haven’t seen the first one.) And then went off to have sushi. Yum.

Done eating, and with time to kill, we went back to the mall to get clothing. This time we managed it, but I still didn’t find any new work shoes. Hanging out at Border’s afterwards did bring two surprises. 1) I already had the Torchwood and Doctor Who Magazines and 2) Someone had re-arranged three of the Sue Grafton Alphabet Mysteries to spell NOM. Needless to say, I LOLd.

And then we saw the film. I still can’t decide if I liked it or not. On the one hand, much of the humour was not my thing. But on the other hand, it actually had a couple of layers to it. The parts with a certain celebrity were amusing, in any case.

When we finally made it home, I fell over with a thud into bed, knowing full well that I had a party to attend the next day. So…I had to put off watching Doctor Who.

Oh, the tragedy.

They have no customer service skills, and that’s the good part. They over price. They revel in the hard sell. Don’t try to cancel anything, as they will threaten you.

No. I’m not joking.

Our romantic fireplace.

Today we shopped and walked a lot.

Did I mention the walking? (Yeah. My legs are tired.)

We walked out to the American Tin Cannery for breakfast and shopping. We had breakfast at First Awakenings. Or rather, brunch, as we both managed to sleep through the free food this morning. Sigh. KoshVader went with the Lemon Chicken sandwich which was “pretty good” and I went with the fruit crepe which was okay. Brunch was actually fun, as there was a little bird in the building, and two kids kept trying to sneak up on it. I swear that they moved like cats. Very amusing.

The shopping at the ATC was actually quite fruitful. We managed to find KoshVader some new shoes that were not black. (Don’t faint, Linds and Dani.) We popped into many of the shops. There was one place that said it was open, but you needed to go downstairs to a different store and ask if you wanted to browse. Normally, that is not the sort of thing that we would do. Introverted tends to be a fairly good descriptor for both of us. Today, however, KoshVader really wanted to browse in the gem and rock shop. (He collects minerals.) So, downstairs we went. The little shop was very nice. Lots of eye candy. Oh, to win the lottery. I love jewelry. Have I mentioned? I have a metal allergy, but that doesn’t stop the love. It…just stops me from wearing earrings very often. I purchased nothing (*wistful sigh*), but KoshVader found a nice Spinnel.

New Not-Black Shoes enjoying the firelight.

What’s a Spinnel? This is a Spinnel. Specifically, the pink bit. The white rock is just the vehicle, apparently.

We ended up not playing Blacklight Miniature Golf, even though it looked really fun and kitschy. Our hands were full by then. Well, too full to easily play golf, anyway. Sadly, we didn’t make it back over there in the evening, either. A wee bit more shopping found us no size 5 shoes for my Mother-in-Law. Yes, I’m doing my Christmas shopping on my vacation. As such, I have only purchased a book and a little St. Andrew’s Cross flag for myself. Witness my virtue! Okay…really, I just like saving time, and it’s the right time for such shopping. Add to that interesting shops and small crowds and you have shopping paradise for the Celtic Angel.

Where was I? Oh, yes. My Mother-in-law wears size 5 shoes, so I’ve picked up the habit of checking out any shoe store I enter to see if they have something she might wear. Oh, speaking of shoes, KoshVader’s new ones were 60% off. The ones I liked, but did not need, were only 30% off. Not good enough.

After our shopping excursion at the American Tin Cannery in Pacific Grove we trekked back to the hotel to drop off our purchases. As luck would have it, we only had a half an hour left until the wine and cheese reception when we arrived. So, we killed some time and then headed on over. They were offering a couple of 2005 local wines, which is a bit young in my opinion. At least the Syrah tasted young. It wasn’t terrible, but I was glad to have the cheese, grapes, and cute butterfly cracker to cut the tannins. KoshVader was glad to see that they were also offering lemonade.

After our break we headed back to Cannery Row. We enjoyed the Steinbeck Wax Museum. It was a total tourist trap and was obviously hasn’t been updated since the 1960s, if the Kit Carson reference is anything to go on, but that didn’t stop it from being educational. Yes, we have a thing for tourist traps. After more wandering, KoshVader tried to take some pictures down at the beach. That was when the batteries died on our camera. With the light going, we went on a battery hunt. The lady from the flag store didn’t let us down. We loaded up the camera and headed back to the spot.

Here is the result:

Straight ahead is the Fish Hopper.
To the left is the Blue Moon Bistro/a hotel that I forget the name of.

Eventually, we had dinner at The Fish Hopper again. This time I had the Ahi and KoshVader had the Halibut. The Halibut was great. I felt that the Ahi wasn’t as good as the previous time we had it. The seasoning was a bit different. *shrug* After dinner we went to a Garlic Gift Shop. There we found some of the Joe Perry hot sauce we like. Yay for the not having to pay to have it shipped! We spent some time in the hotel room before heading out for dessert, and here comes the angry part.

After much staring at menus on the side of buildings we stopped at the Blue Moon Bistro for dessert. The atmosphere was romantic. The service was good and the dessert really tasty. That’s not the the angry part. You see, KoshVader and I sometimes play cards while we wait for food to arrive. It doesn’t generally last too long, and we have been told several times in the past by servers and friends that it was a clever way to pass the time. Tonight…well, tonight another patron took it upon himself to tell us that the sound of shuffling cards had no place in a restaurant like that. In short, he yelled at me, and then he left. Now, I do not deal well with being yelled at in the best of times. Generally, I either burst into tears or just barely manage to stop myself. But lately, my emotions have been a lot closer to the surface. It totally destroyed my enjoyment of the evening. I burst into tears in public, and KoshVader sent some angry parting words after the fellow in question. Luckily, the restaurant wasn’t brightly lit so my bright red nose wasn’t that noticeable. When the waiter returned with our drinks, I couldn’t even talk. It was *so* embarrassing. Hey, but I managed not to smudge my mascara somehow. When we explained what had happened to the server later, as I didn’t want him to think we’d disliked any aspect of the meal experience itself, he told us that they had no problem with us playing cards there. (For the record, there are many places we do not play cards, but this place seemed relaxed enough for it.) So, wherever that fellow is, I hope that he’s happy. Growl.

Don’t worry. I large dose of LolCats cheered us right up. We’re leaving tomorrow, so I’m off to pack up. Night!

So, I spent most of yesterday asleep. Even when we had to go get food, as we had nothing in the house, I was still out of it. I had my one cup of Chai with dessert (now the absolute most chai I allow myself. Caffeine + me= hummingbird on crack, dontcha know.) A couple of hours later I woke up, and actually got some stuff done. (I did laundry and photographed my socks.) Eventually I was tired enough that I didn’t want to wait for my blanket to dry. And of course, I couldn’t sleep until sometime after 5am. I woke up several times, but finally got up feeling fuzzy about the edges, but rested-ish.

I spent most of the day working on one of my blogs, but otherwise completely unable to focus on getting stuff done. Finally, at about 5ish, I got enough concentration together to attempt to come up with a shopping list. The cupboard, as they say, was bare. Oh yeah, and my blood sugar was tanking hard. KoshVader had been feeling unwell (I think I gave him what I have…oops. Sorry Honey.) so we wanted to go someplace close to a grocery store. We managed the eating part, even being distracted by the 4 children at a nearby table. (*sigh*) Sadly, I had to drop my sweetie home before going shopping as he started feeling much worse.

And then…I went to Safeway.

I am really coming to understand that I hate the Safeway down the street. Here are some reasons why:

1) I hate the parking lot. It’s stressful trying to navigate it.
2) The store, even now that it is newly renovated, makes me claustrophobic.
3) It’s always busy.
4) All of this stuff overloads my senses very quickly.
5) They charge a whole dollar more for my frozen Amy’s Indian lunches than Whole Foods (and that makes it $.90 more than even Draegers charges), plus they have far less selection.
6) I can’t even buy spices there without reading the ingredients.

I tried to get out of there as soon as possible, with the stuff I came for. By the time I got home I was still shaking. Yes. Overload my senses and I get shaky. Bleh.

I unloaded the car, put stuff away, and left again. Which was, as you can imagine, the last thing I wanted to do. The thing was, I needed Chili Powder for a recipe I wanted to try out. (Yes, Lindsay, I’m going to try Pirate Stew. Arrr!) At Safeway, both of the Chili Powders on offer have mysterious ingredients like “spices” and “natural flavors” which are often where companies hide MSG. As you may imagine, I refused to buy those. (Grrr…)

I arrived at Whole Foods, and discovered the easiest way to deal with their parking lot. (Yes!) Parked near the downstairs entrance, popped upstairs, and found Chili Powder that listed all ingredients…and didn’t include any salt. I got the few more things that I needed, discovered that I had my reusable shopping bag with me, paid, and went back down the stairs to my car. Easy Peasy.

Did I mention that I like Whole Foods? Well…I do.

And now. I have food in my house, and therefore no excuse to go out to eat.

In other news: I discovered that one of my friends is pregnant! I finally have an excuse to buy a certain onesie that I saw at Whole Foods. (Yes, I also am feeling a stab of self pity, but…I’ll have another baby to play with. And who knows what the next few months might hold. I refuse to think negatively.)

And now…the socks I mentioned earlier. November is [tag]National Novel Writing Month[/tag], but last year it was also [tag]National Blog Posting Month[/tag]. I hear tell that [tag]NaBloPoMo[/tag] will return this year, and I’m ready. I will be posting at least once a day every day of November on this blog, and, just to make things fun, I will be wearing different [tag]silly socks[/tag] each day…and posting pictures of them. I hereby declare November to be Silly Sock Month! You have a month to get ready. More on this when the time gets closer.

Well…that’s about enough rambling for today. I’m feeling well enough to go to work. My nerves are shot, but that isn’t anything new. A good night’s sleep should help with that.

Night all.

Friday was the very definition of “shop ’til you drop.” Seriously. I started out with some grocery shopping, at…11am? I finally arrived home to stay at 9pm. May I just say… Oy!

Normally I’m more of a spend-three-hours-at-the-mall-I’m-exhausted type of person. It’s an [tag]HSP[/tag] thing. The mall is the definition of lots of sensory input. The worst shop for that sort of thing is The Sharper Image. They have something like 10 different commercials running in a constant loop in there. All at the same time. Bleh.

Anyway, this time I 1) got a bunch of stuff done and 2) got to go shopping with my Sister-in-law. So, while the day was exhausting, I actually had quite a good time.

My day of much too much shopping by Me

The Beginning:
I started out my shopping day at the [tag]British Food Center[/tag] in San Carlos. I try to get over there at least once a month to replenish our supply of HP Sauce, Branston Pickle, Red Leichester cheese, Curry Chicken Pasties, etc. It’s a nice little shop, but I can’t help feeling a little nostalgic for [tag]Touch of Britain[/tag]. I’ve been going there off and on for…dear heavens…for twenty years. They make the best egg and chips. And I love the ladies who run it. My family calls it “Love’s” after one of the owners who refers to customers in this fashion. Oh, the look on her face the first time I brought my husband to meet her. Sniffle.

Where was I? Oh, yes. The British Food Center. Well, they were out of my cheese and no [tag]Twiglets[/tag] were to be had. (Good thing my very yuppie grocery store has some.) I was informed that they have a bunch of stuff coming in at the end of October, including Christmas Crackers. (yay!) So, I paid for my tea, etc. and took my purchases back to the car. Getting said car out of the parking lot was a bit hampered by the muckle huge truck parked across the exit. They backed up a wee bit, and my lovely little green Subaru squeaked by and escaped.

My next stop was [tag]Whole Foods[/tag], land of things that I can eat. (You see, I have a few allergies to additives and such.) I actually parked in the garage for the first time. It was fun entering the store via the stairs from underneath. Mind you, it did make getting back to my car with my purchases a bit interesting, but I didn’t mind that much. I was going to get some crumpets while I was there, but the ones they had were a bit old. (Actually, that didn’t surprise me too much. Their scones are often the same way.) The main thing I love about Whole Foods is their cheese section. *swoon* *thud* I adore their [tag]Sottocerene Al Tartufo[/tag]. I did a cheese tasting at my place once, and that’s there I found my cheeses. I brought a list with me, but I still managed to leave without wax paper or bananas. I found a chocolate bar with chilies in it though. (It turns out that chocolate is the only thing I like chillies in that my husband doesn’t.)

The Middle:
Still with me? I rushed home to drop off my purchases, inhaled a bit of lunch, and drove over to pick up L. Then I happily spent a couple of hours in [tag]Target[/tag]. (We pronounce it Tar-zhay, you know, because it is a chic boutique. Well, according to my Mum anyway.) I had an excuse to wander up and down the aisles of a Target with two floors. It was great! Among the little bits and pieces that I bought was an organizer basket for the four (yes, four) microwaveable heat pack things we have lurking under the mail spot. It fits perfectly! Now I have space to add more stuff there. (I saw that eye roll.)

One thing that we learned from the Target portion of our expedition is that the cart will not leave that part of the parking lot. So, we had to gather up all of our bits and pieces (my basket came in really handy here) and lug them across the connector ramp to the JCPenny parking lot. After all of that heavy lifting, we deserved pretzels. Do we trudged back into the mall and found ourselves an [tag]Auntie Anne’s[/tag]. While we were waiting for our garlic pretzels with salt, we happened to notice that the back of the Pretzel Worker’s shirt said “Resistance is Futile.” I have to say that I agree with that sentiment. Those pretzels were really good.

Once we’d finished our light repast we wandered into a couple of stores, one of which was [tag]Bath and Body Works[/tag]. This was where I discovered to my despair that they have canceled my scent. That’s right. [tag]Pearberry[/tag] is no more. I searched the whole store, and I finally gave in and asked. (I hate asking. I don’t even ask for directions.) My worst fears were confirmed. *sob* Well, they won’t be getting any more of my money for a while. It’s a shame, too, as they seem to have finally done something about the scent bombardment problem in their stores. I didn’t have to run out after only a couple of minutes due to oncoming headache. If only they had done this sooner. Oh well.

It wasn’t much longer before we professed ourselves exhausted and I took L back home. Was this the end of my day? Nope.

The End:

I went home and picked up my husband so that we could have dinner out (for the first time all week!) Oh, yeah. And do some shopping. *sigh* After dinner, we popped by the pet shop to pick up kitty food…and talk to the animals. This time there was a new bunny named “Rambo.” He didn’t look very fierce, but then you can’t always tell a vorpal bunny on sight. We had usual argument…er…discussion about needing a new scratching post.

Me: We need a new scratching post.
Him: I know, but they still use the one we have.
Me: It’s completely shredded.
Him: They don’t seem to mind.

I swear that someday I will get a little extra money together and buy the cats the coolest scratching post/hideaway ever. Yes, money is the real issue, but we seem to have the same conversation every time we’re in there.

Next stop? The Mall! Yep. One day, two malls.

By this point I was seriously running out of steam, but we were on a mission. First, we dropped into [tag]Cost Plus[/tag]. We were there to buy a few more butter knives, as we always seem to run out of them first. (Actually, my hubby had called me at Target to ask me to pick up some knives while I was out. I just didn’t see anything I was happy with there.) He found the knives and I found…Gummy Eyeballs. Yes, indeed. I have decided to give out body parts for Halloween this year.

We paid for our purchased and strode off to the next store. It was [tag]Hot Topic[/tag]. Quite a dangerous store for T-Shirt lovers like myself. We had to stop there so I could show My Sweetie some things that his sister had mentioned that she would like for her birthday. That was the original plan, anyway. I did show him a few things, but then I saw the geekiest baby onesie ever. It’s R2 D2. I try not to make a habit of buying baby clothes. After nearly four years of trying with no results, buying baby anything leads to depression. But for this I made an exception. How could I not? It’s freakin’ R2 D2! So, of course, I bought it.

Heading for the car, I thought that we were going home. I pondered how nice it would be to just collapse. But no. My Husband made a left instead of a right, and we pulled into the parking lot of [tag]Borders Books[/tag]. This is rather like taking a smoker to a tobacco shop. It’s not just the Librarian/Book thing. No. Borders knows that [tag]Doctor Who[/tag] exists (unlike Barnes and Noble down the street.) Borders is where I buy Doctor Who Magazine. They have the new Tie-In novels. They also have the other magazines I love. Danger Will Robinson! I managed to escape with only four magazines and a copy of Finding Neverland. It was only $8 and I’ve been wanting it forever. I managed to talk myself out of buying any of the Doctor Who books, but I couldn’t leave that film in the store. You understand, right?

And then I went home and collapsed. It’s a good thing I got paid Friday. Wow. Just recounting my day is making me tired. For all of the fun I had, I hope that I don’t have to shop quite that hard again for a while. Next time I think I’ll just skip parts one and three, and just hang out with L at Target.