Rambling & some minor weirdness...

I got a call from my friend, Elle, who was hoping to stop by on the way up to Buffalo since we haven't hung out since I left Virginia. Pittsburgh is on the way and only 3 or 4 hours from Buffalo. We went out to eat and caught up. It was a nice diversion from my usual, nothing. She's always driven through Pittsburgh or past it on the way to Buffalo and never really stopped, so she got to see some sights.

I decided to take advantage of some of the holiday sales this weekend while I was out. First stop, my local comic shop, where I picked up Darwyn Cooke's Parker The Hunter. I also hit Borders & Marshall's.

Marshall's is always hit or miss with me. I did find that they have Marilyn Monroe Intimates there! I've seen them online and really like the designs, but was unsure. When someone puts a name like that on them, quality can be questionable. I have to say, this is not the case this time! My only complaint is that they don't make the bras in my size. I'm a DDD and it doesn't seem that they make them that big. The designs are cute and they seem to be made well. I've been looking online to see if I can find them anywhere, but so far, it's just eBay. I'll probably check a few other stores to see what they have since the prices are so good at Marshall's. They also had Converse sneakers in a few colors for $25 & tons of Hello Kitty!

I decided to stop into Starbucks for a Frappachino since they make them w/ soy now and while waiting, I think this guy was trying to hit on me. I really couldn't tell...He wasn't rude, just clueless. He kept tell me that he saw me come in. Yeah, OK...that Starbucks isn't that big and it's all glass on the front, so I'm sure a few people saw me come in. I got my drink and left and he was still staring. Whatever...

Sunday, dad and I headed to PNC. Sunday's are kid's days and they have special giveaways just for kids. My dad and I went though separate lines and he somehow convinced the guy in his line that he needed the Parrot toy for his kid. My dad is in his 60's and might have been more convincing if he said "grandkid." While standing in line for food, he kept terrorizing me with it, putting it on my shoulder while I ordered and putting it in my face while making parrot noises.

It was hot and I was glad our seats were in the shade. It was a good game, too. We thought it would be another loss, but they managed to come from behind to win, which was great.

We came home and watched Wonder Woman on DVD. The 70's TV show w/ Lynda Carter. Dad & I used to watch it together when I was little. That's how we spend our 4th, baseball & Wonder Woman. :)

I went to get something out of my bag and found a note in there; "You're cute, call me!" with a phone number. I don't remember anyone that was sitting around us or anyone near my bag. It was on the back of a receipt from PNC, so I know it happened there. Maybe it was when I had it on the seat next to me, but I don't remember seeing anyone my age around. I was paying attention to the game and the stuffed parrot that was in my face.

Part of me wants to know who it was, but it would be stupid for me to actually call the number. I just think it's odd. I did make sure nothing was taken out of my bag.

Maybe I should get one of my male friends to call it, just for fun. ;)

Antique store finds!

It's been a bad week. I ran out of meds because my prescription was written for the wrong thing and they're slow to get me a new one. I don't have withdrawal effects, just massive amounts of pain. The bad weather hasn't been helping either. It's rainy and it's not helping my mood.

Friday I got a call from a friend suggesting we go check out a few antique stores and have a girly day.

The first place we went to was awful. The woman working there stalked us like we were going to steal or break everything. We left and went to another place. The second store was one that had several booths in an old grocery store. I've usually had really good luck at this place. The only problem I have with it is there are too many booth with crafts.

As soon as we walked in, I spotted a train case for $5! I pounced on it. The tray is missing, but I don't really care. I can either find one or make something myself. The man working at the shop told me I could leave it in the front so I wouldn't have to carry it around. We were rummaging through a table full of costume jewelry and the man came over to tell me one of the locks was broken. I got it to close and the man made a joke about his manliness. I wear braces on my hands because my thumbs don't work, so it was even funnier that I got it closed.

I found a necklace that I kind of liked, but didn't get. After a few hours of wandering, I just didn't like it as much. I was tired, sore and hungry. S found a teapot and I had my train case and a hair bow. We got some noodles for lunch and went to her house so we could look online to see how much our stuff would be elsewhere. Her $6 teapot is Noritake from the 60's and apparently hard to find. We debated putting it up on eBay.

My train case isn't as valuable, but $5 is still much cheaper than I could find it online. They're usually $20 or more, not including shipping. There are a few scrapes, but they're minor. There aren't any funky stains inside at all. I cleaned it up after I took pictures. There is a tad bit of rust on one of the hinges, but I've gotten most of it off. I'd like to get keys for it, too.

Here it is:

Weekly update...

I was hoping things would be a little more relaxing this week, but I was wrong. A majority of the week was spent in doctors offices, both mine and my father's. His treatments aren't working, I may need another surgery. My pain levels are still up and I've had a migraine almost all week.

We did go to the Pirates home opener and they won. It was a nice day and it was packed. I didn't get the giant pretzel they're selling now. The line was really long, so I'll get one next time. I thought about going to another afternoon game, but it was supposed to rain, so I stayed at home.

That was the highlight of my week. It has been a down week for me. I decided I needed some retail therapy so I ordered a few things from Pin Up Girl Clothing. They're doing Bombshell Blowout sale weekends and I picked up a few tops. They were out of the skirt and two other shirts that I've been eyeing, but the one top I got, I've been wanting for a while. I shouldn't have spent any money, but sometimes you just have to. I spent about $35 and got 2 shirts and some lip gloss.

I really wanted this but I didn't feel like spending $36 on it. Maybe it will go on sale soon.

I was good and talked myself out of the Barbie Loves Stila 1959 bucket. I really only want the lipstick and wouldn't wear it because it's not a long wear lipstick.

I really don't feel better, but I can obsess over waiting for my package and once it gets here, I can get dressed up and go sip some coffee and read and be seen. I don't know why I do that, it's cliche. I'm not a club/bar person though. Maybe I'll go to the casino this time?

Ooooo! It sparkles!

Yesterday I actually got out and was social! The weather has gotten warmer here and I got an invite to go out to lunch with some new friends. We watched the Penguins game together and went shopping at Old Navy. I shouldn't have gone shopping, but I only spent $50. Everything I got was on sale: 2 pencil skirts (one black for $9 & a denim one for $15), a shirt & another rain jacket (in black). I like my yellow jacket, but sometimes it's too much for my mood. I really like the green they have as well, but do I really need 3? I keep reminding myself that I shouldn't buy too many clothes here because they charge sales tax on clothes.

Now I have to go back to behaving myself though I've spent the day online looking for a birthstone ring.

The ring search came from looking for a new hoodie. One site had sets of stackable rings in various team colors. Two were CZ/crystal eternity bands and there is a silver colored ring with the team logo on it.

The problem is they're expensive, just because they have a logo on them. I decided to just search for stackable CZ rings and get a black one and a yellow one. Easier said than done. The black is easy, but yellow has proved to be the tricky one. I finally found one and they had it labeled as a birthstone ring. One company had the black CZ ring as well as my birthstone so I decided to look for a new birthstone ring.

I'm a December baby and the December birthstone varies; however Turquoise and blue Topaz are the most common. I never seem to find any Turquoise jewelry that suits me, so stick with the Topaz.

In my search, I found a site that has a lot of Art Deco style filigree rings. http://pages.antique-silver-gifts.com/stores/waybelowretail/ My taste in things go between very simple, modern to the exact opposite. It all depends on my mood.

Here are some of the rings I found today (click pic for links):

Ok, this isn't my birthstone, but it's on my list of things to treat myself. I'm waiting for it to go on sale and as soon as it does, it's mine!

You're not really helping.

I was going to go home this weekend, but they got hit with more snow last week and I didn't want to deal with the mess. I decided to go shopping here instead. I found a cute rain jacket and umbrella at Old Navy:

I went to get some food nearby so I could eat while watching the USA vs Canada hockey game. The guy behind me in line decided to be "helpful". I wear a TENS unit when I go out because my back will hurt to the extent I have a hard time getting around. It's small and connects with sticky pads and the unit fits in my pocket. The guy behind me sees wires hanging out and yanks one. It ripped a wire off of the pad and shocked me, so I yelped because I was suprised and it hurt. The guy, sheepishly says "you had something sticking off of your butt."

I was livid. I don't have a replacement pad and the wires had been ripped out. I debated calling the police. I told him it was a medical device and he'd just broken it and he shouldn't be touching my dupa. Who the hell does that? How about just telling me I had something hanging there? I really wanted to call the police because I was so mad, I wanted him to be punished for not keeping his hands to himself, zapping me and breaking the electrode. He just stood there, not knowing what to do. "So it's broken?" Yes you moron, I have to order new ones. "Why can't you just go to CVS and get a new one?" I don't know if they sell them here because I'm not from here! The girl at the register started to get really uncomfortable and called her manager over. She probably thought I was going to kill him.

After several minutes of me yelling at him, it finally clicked that he should offer to pay me for it. Fine, dealing with the police would have been more trouble that it was worth. He gave me $20, which was more than they cost, but it covered my food, too. When I got home, I discovered I'd been given a free pie. Odd, I never mentioned anything to the employees...it wasn't their fault in the least. It could have just been an accident.

I ended up missing a few minutes of the game and my food got cold while I tried to figure out if I could somehow get the electrode pad fixed. I'm still angry, but I got cash to cover it and I'll hopefully never see that moron again.

Incidents like this make me want to never leave my house again. A few months ago I was smacked on the dupa while bending over to grab a bag to put in the overhead of the plane. He got kicked off of the flight. For some unknown reason, people feel that it is OK to touch me. It's not. I'm glad I cannot get pregnant because I'm sure it would be worse.

Once I calmed down and gave up on trying to repair the broken electrode, I realized I had forgotten to stop and get yarn. I found a few crochet patterns online that I wanted to try. One requires orange yarn. I have every other color, but no orange! I'll get some Tuesday when I go pick up my copy of Abe Lincoln: Vampire Hunter from the local Borders. I have a gift card, yay! I have some other books to read, but since it comes out on Tuesday, it will be on sale. They are calling for heavy snow here Tuesday night, so I'll have plenty to keep me occupied if they close work.

Rambling out of boredom...

I've been too busy lately and nursing some injuries. Instead of whining about my mauled ankle, I just took a break.

I'm stuck in a Southern city for work and during "Snowmageddon 2010" I learned that they have NO clue how to treat a sidewalk or shovel. Walking to work a few weeks ago, I slipped and sprained my ankle, which has kept me from wandering about too much, so I've been reading a lot.

I'm almost done w/ Sense & Sensibility & Sea Monsters. I've been taking it to work with me in hopes of finishing it before Dawn of the Dreadfuls comes out at the beginning of March. Quirk Classics was giving copies to bloggers, asking to have the reviews posted the first week of March. I don't have much time to devote to reading, so I held off. I did score a copy of Queen Victoria Zombie Hunter for $3. It's not done by Quirk, so I'll have to see how it is. I love what Quirk is doing with the public domain classics. I could never get through these books before and now I can put them down. Zombies & Sea Monsters make it so much better!

Yesterday, I decided to hobble out and check out the Pet Expo here. It was in a large exibition space in a part of town that isn't so hot. It's not bad, but the building is run down and normally hosts gun shows and MMA tournaments. The place was packed! I got to play with puppies, got a free cookie & got a cupcake necklace.

After the Pet Expo, I checked out one of the antique "malls" down the street. It was in an old strip center in a former grocery store. I was warned it was so-so and they weren't kidding. Most of the vendors charged WAY too much. "Oh, but this is an antique!" The same stuff at a flea market would be more accurately labeled as "junk." I found a cute hat, but it had a pretty big hole, that I could have repaired or covered, but for $70, it wasn't worth it. I left empty handed and went home.