havocandmayhem.com

It was time to mow the lawn. The stuff was tall enough to hide small children and medium sized dogs. (there is a small child hiding in this photo) It was tall enough to hide trees I was lucky to find the tractor. It’s because of all the rain The dinos are forting up. They are not happy about the sudden influx of dogs & kittens. Who? Us? For more Weekly Winners please visit Lotus at Sarcastic Mom

Yesterday was Mayhem’s last day of school. Havoc goes until June 9th and then we have about 10 weeks of nothing much going on. There will be some vacation bible school for the little pagans. I know of at least 6 so far, but we’ll probably limit it to one a month, depending on who else of their friends is going to which one.  The dog has training every Saturday at noon starting next week for 8 weeks. That is about as planned as I am so far. I’m hoping to get in a day trip up to the Smithsonian, maybe the Air & Space museum this time. I’d like to go spend 4-6 days in Wheeling but that depends on finding a place to stay. My parents are trying to organize something but I am not sure what. They rent an efficiency apartment for 6 weeks in the summer. No room for us. My brother & his family are bursting out of their house as it is, so no room for us. Jamboree in the Hills, Beast of the East and another little league tournament are taking up hotel rooms for nearly the who...

I’m used to Memorial day weekend being more or less the end of May. Yet here we are, still in May, with an entire weekend of it still to come. I want it to end before any more events overtake us. The unexpected dying car event, where a ‘let’s see what is out there’ fun car browse became a ‘who ever will give us the most for this dying car, assuming we can get it, steam billowing as it overheats, into the used car lot, gets our business’ car shop. We are now the proud owners of 48 months of car payments, that we were not planning on making until the end of the year, if not a little later. The unexpected dog event. DH’s boss gave him about $300 worth of dog kennel set up, while we were taking the unadopted kittens to the shelter (Kittens get adopted fast at our local shelter) I agreed to look at dogs and we found Athena. $45 adoption fee, $100 miscellaneous dog supplies and $108 vet visit for our kittens before the shelter would let us take her, we have a dog. The unexpected ...

On the plus side this weekend DH & the boys got to go camping & swimming in the river with friends I got to spend 24 hours alone I set the pool up I scrubbed the kitchen floor I mowed the lawn On the minus side The a/c fan started making an ominous, expensive sounding, squeaking noise at 10pm on Friday night (because nothing requiring service ever breaks at 8am on a Tuesday) My hands were raw & pretty much unusable yesterday. It hurt to just turn a door knob The dog got out of her kennel while we were at dinner. Making the 4th time so far. She stays in the yard but we don’t know how she did it this time. First time she broke the gate latch. Second time she dug under the fence. Third time we found and area that we assumed she had scooted herself under (if dog ribs squish flat).We fixed all those. This time we have no clue. Gate still bungee corded shut, hole still filled in and pavered over. Area she went under blocked off with another paver. All pavers sti...

We’ve had a lot happening this week at our house We picked up a dog from the animal shelter We had a load of gravel delivered I had to rake it out and level it So I could then set up this My arms, back, shoulders and hands ache so much I can barely type.  For more Weekly Winners please visit Lotus at Sarcastic Mom

We have a dog now. Her name is Athena. She is from the shelter. They think she is about a year old & a mix of Plott Hound, Greyhound and something else, probably Beagle or Retriever. In other words, she is a dog. She’s about dog sized & looks like a dog. Or at least she is more or less the vague image that comes to my mind when someone says “dog”, maybe a little taller and darker in the coat. The sort of dog found roaming the neighborhood when I was kid – your hound retriever huntin’ dog mutt. We had a miniature schnauzer, which is fine but small and yappy & not really what I think of when I picture a dog in my mind. Havoc is over the moon with joy. I’m just ok with it. I am not a dog person but I’ll get used her. She is a nice dog, knows some commands & is just a bit over enthusiastic right now, which is natural enough. We start obedience training next Saturday. The whole family is going. DH brings her in the house for a little bit in the evenings after their...

That’s the dog, in the back of DH’s truck, coming down our driveway.

I went to a bonfire & drumming circle last Sunday night & tried to take some photos. It was a very long exposure time. Next time I’ll remember a tripod I need new gym shoes Iris after the rain    For more Weekly Winners please visit Lotus at Sarcastic Mom

I moved into a new apartment. May 15 was, maybe still is, moving day in Morgantown, WV. It’s the day that apartment leases all over town began. Finals had been over a week or so and graduation was the prior weekend. It was time to pack up & move to a new place, maybe to stay in town for the summer, maybe to go someplace else for the summer, maybe to leave & never return. My boyfriend of 2 years had left a few days before – never to return. He was off to spend 2 years with Peace Corps in Africa. There had been plans to continue the relationship long distance. Plans we both meant at the time, though with time, we’d both let it go. I still had senior year & plans for grad school in my future, including an intensive French class over 6 weeks in summer school. (6 credit hours in 6 weeks!) I was moving into a 3rd floor apartment, over the pizza shop where I worked. I’d be rooming with 2 of my sorority sisters, who had moved out of the sorority house. I can no longer recall ...

Thank you for your intergalactic epic and thank you for introducing me to this guy The object of my affection since 1977. 32 years later I still get that giggly little girl feeling when I see him. He’s everything my pre-teen dreams of dashing pirates wanted. It’s a bit more of a grown up feeling when I see Indiana Jones. Thank you for him too. Just something about a tough, rugged manly, highly intelligent, professorial guy with a bullwhip. He is such an awesome character - a sensitive badass. Thanks for creating him. My boys love the Star Wars & Indiana Jones sagas. They love the Lego Star Wars game. Mayhem is so obsessed with it, we had to enforce a game play time limit because he was getting up at 5am to play it. He is currently watching Return of the Jedi as I type this. George, you have brought a lot of happiness & imagination to my life. Thank you and Happy Birthday! I did the blogthings Star Wars name & title & this is my result You...

I’ve been catching up on my scrapping recently, doing some challenges at SSD. These are my latest pages.    Right now I am working on one from the festival I went to over the weekend. It happened to be on the 9th, which is the photo your day challenge at Sweet Shoppe. I’m not happy with how it is going so I may just scrap it & start over.  

I spent Friday & Saturday at a Beltane Festival, attending workshops and drumming at a bonfire.  While I was doing that, DH was doing this He’s turned our deck 90 degrees so we have a larger open space. We bought a 16ft Intex pool this year and needed more space. (We’ve had the 12ft one the past 3 years). In another 3-4 years we’ll probably upgrade again to an 18ft one, but we don’t want to move the deck again.I was was surprised he moved the deck. Previous estimates had indicated it would be a 2 person job.  I had cleared out as much rock, ancient wood blocking and random vegetation as I could manage prior to the festival. But I had thought the deck would not be moved until this weekend It’s been raining constantly for 2 weeks now and he is also in the middle of the retaining wall project. Which is now going into it’s 3rd and hopefully final summer (it requires a confluence of weather, equipment, time and funding that does not happen very often & then only in...

The week started out with sushi for lunch We had a kitten infestation under the sofa We got together with friends.   Games were sort of organized But didn’t last Back at home, someone armed these guys.   For more Weekly Winners please visit Lotus at Sarcastic Mom

I’m getting ready to go to a pagan festival. The Blue Ridge Beltane festival, which requires a bit of driving but not so much driving that I will be doing anything so foolish as camping, I’ll just be getting home late & leaving early. I’d rather spend a couple hours on the road than sleep in a tent. Cuz I am that sort of nature worshiping pagan. My biggest concern is what to wear. You can go so many directions with clothes at a pagan festival. Some of them even consider clothing optional (not this one). You can unleash your inner fairy and float around in sheer scarves & wings. You can go pagan primitive, wearing one long unadorned woven cotton tunic and carry a staff. You could be the pagan Mr T and wear every pentacle you own, plus ones borrowed from friends. Goth is always popular as is the Stevie Nicks gypsy look. Or belly dancing clothes.  Men in tights or kilts. Many people just wear parts of the Ren fest clothing. There is nothing wrong with jeans and tee sh...

Conversation between two girls and four boys pretending they are in Star Wars. Oldest Girl & Oldest Boy are trying to organize it. Oldest Boy – I am a Jedi! Second boy – I am Jedi too Oldest Girl – I am a Princess Third boy – I jedi too OB – We can’t all be Jedi OG to Third Boy – You are guard Clamoring of protests from the masses about not being Jedi Second boy – I’m still a Jedi – HMMMMMMM- waving imaginary light saber around Third boy begins sword fighting with second boy Oldest girl, shouting – No, guards don’t fight Jedi! are you a storm trooper? You have to use a gun Younger girl – I’m a princess OG – No I’m the princess, you have to be a guard too. Youngest boy makes phaser sounds and jumps around OS – You are not supposed to shoot other guards! YG – I am too a princess. you be a guard OG – I said I was a princess first Boys leap around waving imaginary light sabers arguing about who is on who’s side and how some of them have to be Storm T...

We visited some friends this weekend. It was their youngest’s 1st birthday. Other friends were there with their kids also. We have all known each other since before our kids were born. When we are together we are all equally in charge of the kids. If the actual parent isn’t around & a child is acting up, one of the rest of us intervenes. Not just an “Oh honey I’m not sure your mommy would want you doing that.” but “Stop that! You know better!” in true parent form. Actual discipline is left to the parents but immediate intervention & correction is done by whoever is handy. And we back each other up, like parents. “If she tells you to stop it, you know you are supposed to stop it.” It’s very relaxing actually. We can go off & talk or look at something or go do something sure in knowledge that our kids are not running wild & being menaces to others. I feel for the kids though. I grew up in a neighborhood just like this. My kids have eyes on them everywhere & th...

Some signs of Spring Flowering phylox Budding Iris And the shadows are shrinking I also have some macro shots: The Rebel pilot and this guy, who has been sweeping my counter for mines all week.   For more Weekly Winners please visit Lotus at Sarcastic Mom