Prunella

Prunella
Originally uploaded by MizVoid.

Tonight was our first night with time to sit at our new home and enjoy...or borrow some clippers from our grandparents and hack the shit out of our backyard.

I've uploaded some semi-before pictures here. I have a landscape artist (hee hee, Mrs. T) who will be assisting in such matters but I couldn't help clearing the way. It's bad but there is potential. From the little I cleared tonight, I already had visions of a water garden, dinners out there and all the wine we could consume on a chilly fall night. Plus! They are giving us a fire pit! SWEET!

Besides that, you can go here to view random pictures of the move-in over at theMan's site.

Tomorrow I will post about the hauntings our little house has. It involves fruit, bowls and toilet seats. P-p-p-pirate ghosts!

By the way, there is more 23 weirdness...my parking space at my new job? No. 23. Crap.

Honey we're home

First I have some thanx to give.

Thanks to Jen K & Jose (I like how that rhymes) who despite being busy, found time to come and help us pack up the truck Friday. True friends rock man, I'm glad they remind me of this even when we bail on them 2 days later when our house was full of people and boxes and we couldn't get away.

To Erica, who has let me call her in tears on more than one occasion over the past 2 weeks to remind me that this is the right thing to do and that she has the full Sex & the City box set 1/2 hour away from our new house, so really...how can I lose?

In an email from WLF co-founder, Jennifer, on Friday when everything was so surreal:
"Your new stage in life starts tonight. It'll be awesome. Love you, Jennifer" I could put her in my pocket.

Our Chicago crew that came by almost every other night to check on us and tell us they'd miss us and open their homes to us so we can come back.

My family who brought us food, cleaned, unloaded boxes and drank beer with us to remind me why we are doing this in the first place.

My husband for letting me get by with all my panic attacks due to all the boxes and mess and letting me pass on blow jobs until we got in our new place. He even let me sleep when I was tired while he stayed up to finish packing. He is my partner in this life, and these circumstances smack me in the face to remind me of that.

So yea, we made it and all is good.

Pictures later tonight because WE GOT INTERNET HOOK-UP BITCHES!!!

Good-bye Chicago

Good-bye Chicago
Originally uploaded by MizVoid.

Last night we had an impromptu last gathering on the Yeck?! for memories and peach pie. It was our last night being a resident in Chicago, surrounded by our loved ones, although I guess we are still paying utilities and rent here until September 1st. I never thought this day would come.

There is no good way to sum up everything I love about this town or the people in it. They know they take up real estate in my heart so a cute summary just won't do. And everytime I willing paid that $75 for a parking sticker, the city of Chicago knew I loved them as well.

So we're going as soon as I can get out of work today, of course, after some sushi with co-workers. Because really, raw fish is exactly the last meal I want to have here before we go to Applebee's-ville. Blah.

Full set of pictures from the YECK?! gathering here.

Internet access will be random for probably a week because we aren't getting it turned on at the new place right away. I will keep you posted.

And thanx for riding, keep arms inside the car at all times.

Edited: Oh and might I mention that the number 23 is following us again. 6/23/06. Let's hope it's a good luck charm.

More updates: On the side of the moving truck, "No. 23, dolly good, hernia bad." Damn you 23!

I'm an actress

I'm an actress
Originally uploaded by MizVoid.

2 more days in Chicago....sigh.

So I'm bored at work and there are a ton of Flickr Toy images I've uploaded. Enjoy.

Hipsters

Today in the Red Eye paper on the train, there was an article about "Urban Golf." At the mention of the word "golf" I think immediately of "there is grass that doesn't house a Wal-Mart." But no...this was different. There were pictures of what the paper called "hipsters" in tutus smoking cigarettes hitting tennis balls under cars.

Apparently there is a "fad" in Chicago where you get some clubs from a thrift store and hit balls down an alley at a target to see how few strokes you can get. The goal might be a dumpster or a truck or something, but the best part is the attire. The more fucked up the better.

DAMN...now I wish I wasn't moving. Wonder if I could spark some interest in this in my hometown.

There is also "capture the flag" for urban dwellers as well where you run into other people's territory to get the flag and get back without being caught. The hitch, it's usually set on a busy street or something. Love it!

Darn those "hipsters" are creative.

Today's use of quotes " " brought to you by Britney Spears interview on Dateline. I think she is my new obsession.

Hockneyed

theMan hockneyed
Originally uploaded by MizVoid.

If you have Flickr, check out Flickr toys. They are fun, yes.

God, I'm so bored.

Early 20s

Good-bye goth early 20s
Originally uploaded by MizVoid.

With this move comes the realization that we're growing up, we're fast approaching our 30s and our desires have changed from when we first moved here.

The first casualty of these changes, our wardrobe. No longer does theMan wear all black and protest if a white hanger hangs in his wardrobe. No longer can I hold on to my goth boots made for stomping out clove cigarettes.

Oh, early 20s I'll think of you fondly but I doubt I will miss your insecurities too much.

I just saved a bunch of money on my car insurance!

So this week is turning out to be like pulling off a band-aid that is on the hairiest part of your body very very very slooooooowly...

Packing is going slowly and we are running out of places to put boxes. Our water heater broke Saturday with a flourish by letting gas escape in our apartment resulting in a call to the gas company. The result is we've been without hot water since Sunday and the last shower I took was COLD. Like "kill your libido" cold. So a sink full of dirty dishes, everything else in the kitchen packed up and my ass expanding from the fast food consumed this week is how it's gone so far. Sigh.

Want to hear an irrational fear of mine though that popped up this morning? This new job is cute and small and in a comfy office, however there is one drawback that could potentially be huge. They have one bathroom and it's located in the middle of the office and it's got those slatted doors on it so everyone in the office can hear everytime a turd hits the water. Now I'm a regular girl, without going in to too much detail, and I go once a day every single day. Thankfully I can get home in 5 minutes now, but what if I have to go when the clock is nowhere near lunch hour.

Damn, maybe we shouldn't move.

See you soon dinner

Most of our gang
Originally uploaded by MizVoid.

Just got back from our "see you soon" dinner. It was really fun, only slightly sad undertones but ended with a drunk guy following us to our car and rats running across the alley from the trashcans. Oh Chicago...you know how to give a girl a big send-off.

But yea, damn, like I've said, I'm going to miss everyone so fucking much. Jen K. said we're the grandparents. When we go no one will get together for dinners anymore. That made me feel completely heartbroken but special all at once. I will miss our get togethers, but hey...they liked my dinners!

Anyways, this week will probably fly by full of packing, moving and getting things in order. I'll try to post as much as I can.

And to our gang: you can't get rid of us no matter where we live. Love you guys.

Curlers

Curler
Originally uploaded by MizVoid.

After a massive trip to Ikea, a cleaning of the garage, and stocking up at Whole Foods, I think we're ready to do this. We just have to get through a sad "see you in a few weeks" party tonight. I imagine the margaritas will help though, and forbidding everyone from uttering the "g" word (good-bye).

More pictures tonight of all my buddies in a margarita-$5 burrito haze....

Jesus Gay

Time to break up the melancholy posts with some serious fashion no-nos....brought to you by theMan when he was like 11 and should have known better.


My god. The Freddy Kruger shirt is the hotness.

Bittersweet Symphony

So as you know from our previous post, the magnet implanted in our asses when we were born in our Hometown has been activated and we’re moving back next weekend. I go simultaneously from super excited to so melancholy I just have to go to sleep so I don’t run out in traffic.

When I think about the good stuff I get that butterfly in my stomach...
-The farm we’ll be helping with which will make my husband tan and even more buff, and hopefully me too.
-The landscaping I can spend my nights doing with my cousin so my sis will have a beautiful baby shower by September.
-My cousin/BFF...oh the shopping which will commence.
-The fire pit we’re going to build in our yard to eat supper by every night.
-The 5 minute commute on my bike which will put me home before 5:30 p.m. I haven’t seen my home at that time during the week in over 5 years.
-I can now sleep in until 8:00 a.m. every single morning!
-The pumpkin spice color I will be painting a wall in our bedroom.
-Speaking of bedrooms, we’ll have one...for just a bed, not a mini-apartment. HOLY SHIT!
-The nakedness in which we can partake in throughout the day.
-The dog house I’m going to build for Dr. Kaboom. Every mad scientist needs a lab.
-The possible babies and the making of the babies, oh my.
-The fact that my BIL is now related so he can never escape us, even if we move. (Now how can we make Jason related so he has to come to family dinners for the rest of his life?…..hmmmm. Wonder if my mom would adopt him?)
-How our social calendars are already filling up and now they don’t require a 3 hour drive to get to them anymore.

The bad stuff that makes me want to turn off my head and my heart...
-When one of my best friends sat across the table at my favorite café and said, “This is going to suck” when reminding me that we’ve spent almost every other day together for the past 7+ years.
-When theMan drove me to work this morning and that beautiful Chicago skyline stared back at us.
-When my sister’s belly popped out and I realized I won’t be taking weekly pictures of it anymore.
-When I think of the friends that we’re leaving that we’ve been spoiled by having them so near for so long.
-Our going away party on Sunday which I don’t want to have because it’s going to be underlined with sadness.

I can’t help it. I have so many people I love here in this city. It’s scary to move away from them because I don’t want our relationship to change. We’re going back into the arms of people that love us and who I can’t wait to see more, but the other half of my heart will always reside here in these people. It’s just a fact.

That being said, I do find myself dreaming of that yard, that cute little kitchen and the aisles of Home Depot where I can now buy paint and cabinet knobs and lighting fixtures. I’m yearning to ride on our riding lawnmower. These are things, and my desire to start a family, that make me know it’s time.

18 and life

For some reason last night Sis's beebee decided to join the party. She can feel him, BIL (Brother in law) can even feel him and we can all now sure see him. (or her)

I've uploaded a ton I took of her tonight because I just couldn't help myself. She's adorable pregnant, I knew she would be.



See the rest of the photos here.

Hijacked, yo!

Boxes

Boxes
Originally uploaded by MizVoid.

Tonight we pack up our things. Tonight our dog paces around the house because he has nowhere to sit. Tonight we tell our tale to some Chicago friends who wish us well. Tonight I dream of bathroom closets and acreage and space for gardens while trying not to think of those we're leaving behind. Tonight I'm freaking out.

On Thursday I was called for a second interview to a place far from here, but I had my doubts. The drug testing, the atmosphere, etc. So while I hemed and hawed over the second interview my old company back in Indiana emails and offers me a job at their place. The kicker, can I start in 2 weeks? Um....can I think about it?

Cut to Friday morning, on my way down the interstate towards Indiana for a bridal shower, I call the old company to ask for more money because the more I think about it, the more I wig out at the pay cut. Plus we will have no place to live, we'll have to get an apartment, etc.

Instead, when they answer they tell me they've bought us a house on Thursday night and can I come down and pick out some new carpet for it? They also say they can pay theMan to do odd jobs around their houses and rental properties. So now he's taken care of, we have a house and I have a job at a company I used to love.

I stutter an "OK," hang up, and then catch myself laughing out loud the rest of the weekend.

By the time I collected my grams and cousin for emotional support to meet the new boss/landlord at the house, he had the little house full of contractors, the driveway freshened up with new gravel and the carpet pulled up. The next day, there is a crew of construction guys, one in each room, painting the whole place. The weird factor, one of the contractors happened to be my brother!

So today I quit my job in Chicago, theMan put in his notice, and we start dumpster diving for boxes.

I finally got some sleep last night after laying in bed all weekend with my mind racing. I was the classic case of insomnia. I'd burst out crying, I'd laugh, or I'd threaten to cut someone. Even though I woke up screaming about 2:00 a.m. from a nightmare, I do feel better today, more calm. Plus my current job said I can come back anytime I want and I believe them.

My boss also said that if I am not running this new company in 3 years, move on because I was made to run a company. That is a hell of a compliment.

I always said I'd never move back to Indiana. It had nothing to offer. I guess my heart has softened because I'm actually excited. Or maybe it's the 5 minute commute on my bike I can take now?

This is one of the craziest things we've ever done. I'm not taking a job for more money for once, I'm taking a job because it will be good for our family.

Damn, this growing up stuff is WIGGING ME OUT. 2 more weeks in Chicago. Fuck.

Bridal Shower

Original GWO
Originally uploaded by MizVoid.

Sorry for the silence. Things have turned crazy. I've uploaded some pics from the gorgeous shower we went to this weekend. Always good to be with my girlies and the MONKEY! Speaking of the MONKEY, we taught her to check out guys, shop and say "Eeeewwwww" this weekend. So really, Harvard, you better start calling before Yale steals her away. I'm serious.

About the craziness, I'll expound more on that tonight. Today I've quit my job, found a house to move into and boxed up half our living room. Stay tuned.

06/06/06

06/06/06
Originally uploaded by MizVoid.

It's the most evil day in our lives so I had to post the most evil thing we own and it hangs right over the toilet.

A clown in clown heaven, not happy about being there, but I'm pretty sure it has something to do with the FUCKING CLOWN CLOUDS HE'S SITTING ON!!!!!

Half theMan He Used to Be

Thought I would lead you here because he amazes me.

17 Weeks

Bigger than boobs now
Originally uploaded by MizVoid.

I've added new belly shots (in the Prego set) and some random ones from the client gig I took pictures at last week. Sorry I've been away. I needed a weekend to rest up after 3 nights of cocktails. I was so sick of drinking that when I went to a going-away party on Friday for one of my cube farm mates, all I had was Sprite.

Although it did help me to get some good blackmail to spread about the office. I won't tell you what I took pictures of with his camera phone. Let's just say, when I came to work this morning several of the secretaries had to confirm that "yes, they really did get drunk and flash his camera phone for me". Opps. Sober sometimes can be fun! Plus, I left with my dignity!

Anyways....BELLY!

Sidebar Updates

I've updated my sidebar with some items I feel I must pass on to you, should you not already know about them! My pal Jordan gave me Before Night Falls by Reinaldo Arenas to borrow and I haven't been able to put it down. I'm told the film about it is just as good, but I want to wait until I've finished the book. I'll warn those of you with delicate temperments, there is a TON of gay sex in this book. Written about unabashedly. It's kinda hotly described though, some parts tender, some parts pure horny.

In my "Currently Rockin' My iPod" section I've put a few new bands we've discovered. I'm addicted to Wolfmother, it's the perfect summer CD to listen to while fighting traffic to the beach or grilling out. Eric M. this is a band I'll be making a sample of for you since you are as obsessed with Led Zeppelin as I am.

theMan recently turned me on to the Infadels as well. And as God said, "Damn, it was good."

So there you go, my attempt at reviews.