Back in the saddle...

There is a single dirty brick holding up my desk. That about sums it up.

Traveling makes me manic, I think. Sunday I was basking in 80 degree (katie, I cannot make the alt/2/4/8 thing work, what gives?) weather, browsing the handmade soaps and salves at Lush in the Florida Mall, and gawking at the majesty that is the Ikea superstore. Yesterday I spent 4+ hours slopping out a fish tank and contemplating just when we'll have enough money that I can replace my sagging mess of composite veneer that I call my professional workspace. I can't focus on getting back in the swing, but back I am, whether I'm ready or not. Oh well. Such is life. Let's look at the pretty flowers instead.

Our visit to the folks was lovely--a bit of a lost week, like we dreamed it, seeing as we arrived back in Knoxville at roughly the same time we left it the Sunday before, to exactly the same drizzly weather. Seems some of you had some rather big news to share while we were out [ahem, Jessica...], and rest assured, I'm catching up with you all, slowly but surely. Anyway, now that I'm back, we have the wide open expanse of March to fill with projects for the house, and my list seems to double each day. If I can just get my feet planted, I swear, I'll get right on it.

We walked in the door Sunday night to a scene of mass ichthycide. The big 20 gallon tank was green and funky, every one of the 4 neons had disappeared, and the two upside down catfish were floating and fuzzy. I freaked out. How the tank just seemed to explode in algae and disease in 6 days is beyond me, but I quickly set up a makeshift home for the remaining refugees (3 zebras, 3 mollies, Jaws the female betta, and my little blue snail). And yesterday, I completely tore down all 20 gallons of tank, gravel, plants, logs, and decorations, gave everything a scrubbing, boiling, disinfecting, and a rinse, and set the whole she-bang up again. A new tank usually has to set up it's own bacteria cycle, which takes a few weeks from scratch, but I saved a bit of the water and the colony in the filter, so hopefully we'll cycle quickly and not kill any of more of my little friends. Stamp a big "FAIL" on my picture and post it at the pet store, for I am a BAD fish mommy. So, yeah, that--with cleaning the kitchen and slapping together a casserole for dinner--was Monday. ALL DAY.

Today my goals are few, but significant. Laundry, of course, tops the list. Sorting the massive stack of mail and bills from last week comes a close second. I need to do a sweep and dust in, well, just about every room; I have to make out my meal plan and head to the store; and, to be honest, I really need to set aside some time to put fake rubber nails on all the cats. Tonight, while Matt is off to class, I'm going to soak in my tub with a Butterball Bath Bomb, my fresh blueberry mud mask doing it's magic to my face, and think of a few (ten) more projects to add to the house to-do list. They're predicting snow that will never come tonight (Jessica has it all, I'm sure), and I'm thinking chicken soup is in order...