*&#(*^( dishwasher!!!

Great. So we're a few weeks away from having the kitchen torn up and replacing all the appliances anyway. And the dishwasher decides to break. That's OK since we were going to replace it. But it means I have an extra couple of weeks now of handwashing dishes. We talked about just buying the new one right now, but I haven't done my research as yet and am not sure we'd get one the same size. Boo!!!

Discovered there is such a thing as a countertop dishwasher. Seriously. Like the size of a microwave maybe. Might be a good short-term option. Don't want it cluttering up things afterward, though.

I had thought about getting one of those models with the two drawers. Seems like a good idea when you have only two people. I seem to fill up the top or bottom rack faster than the other. I've heard good and bad things about them, so they'll require a little more homework, but might be a good option. (Expensive though!)

I also need to decide if I want to have the stainless steel front like the fridge and oven or if I want to hide it with a panel that matches the cabinets like this Fagor model. Looks nice, but it might be weird to hide some appliances and not others. Again, more expensive to do this than just a plain front.

And then there's the weird ones I've found just in my initial research. I can't imagine giving up half my sink space for this guy, but maybe it's no different than just setting dishes in the sink. After all, they'd be getting clean at the same time.

Get your daily fortune

This is pretty cool and unfortunately, I can't put it on my Squidoo page for Kung Fu Panda since it uses Javascript. Boo! So I thought I'd post it here. Click daily to get your fortune!!

March concert is approaching fast!!

Well, the spring concert for the Women's Chorus of Dallas - of which I am a member - is approaching quickly here. Our theme this year is "City Lights" and we're singing a collection of songs on cities - Route 66, Little Old Lady from Pasadena, Wichita Lineman, to name a few. I'm planning to audition for a couple of the solos in the chorus songs, but then I'm also the leader of the band for a group doing The Boy from New York City - the Manhattan Transfer version. Our chorus outfits are black glittery tops with black pants and we aren't likely to have much time for changing - which is too bad as this song just screams for 30s dresses. So I'm looking into maybe hats and gloves to give us a 30s flair. Going to pick up some felt today at Joanns
and see if I can't make a hat base. (I'll be following directions I found over at costume.org.) Then I figure we can easily make matching gloves out of shiny satin. I hope. :-) We'll see what happens. My big concern is cost as these aren't things we'll use again. Maybe. Maybe I'll use them in a costume sometime.

Concert is March 15, 8 p.m. at Caruth Auditorium at SMU. Tickets start at $10 and we're really good!!

Poor Kermit!

I've had a lot of fun over the past few months making Sesame Street-related lenses. Kermit, Grover, the Count and Big Bird, plus a couple of video showcases. Those were the most fun and are totally timewasters for anyone wanting to kill some. Just a sample for those of you who don't remember those great Sesame Street News segments with Kermit. Poor guy could just never catch a break. I love this one!

How was your valentine's day?

I'm not a big fan of manufactured holidays - Valentine's, Mother's Day, Secretary's Day. The idea of a day someone else has picked out and decreed will be a day to share your love with those around. Christmas is rapidly moving into that category - just another deadline by which we have to buy a gift. Just don't like it. But, my husband sends me flowers every year - tulips. They're my favorite flower and it's when they're in season. The whole Valentine's thing just helps him remember to do it every year. So I enjoyed my beautiful flowers, but that was it. Worst part is trying to avoid all the candy and stuff that people bring to work and leave in the kitchen hoping to get rid of it. Hard to avoid it all!

Great deals at PBS.org

Owning a dog is hard work!

I had no idea before we got a dog just how much work it could be. No one told me you had to trim their toenails or brush their teeth or stuff pills down their throats. Seriously, did you realize giving a dog vitamins is a good idea? I had no clue, but now (along with the panalopy of pills Plaid gets) we have to do vitamins. I'm horrible about staying on top of their teeth and nails, but at least I can give them pills without any problem. And thank goodness for Drs. Foster and Smith!! I had all Plaid's prescriptions sent up there and I think we saved a couple hundred dollars by the time we were done. They also carry all the vitamins and mineral pills I have to get, also at a much better rate than we can get at the vet or pet store. With two of them to deal with, it starts to add up after a while!

They're celebrating their 25th anniversary this year, so you can save 25% off on lots of stuff during their anniversary sale.

Squidoo - population 30

We're building a little mini city of Squidoo. You can move in if you like. Just click the link below. For every click that comes in every day, the city grows just a little bit. Maybe you can move in by me!!