The library smells like baby powder

I've been kind of stressed lately. Kind of a combination of things but nothing major. Want to hear me whine about a few of these things? Keep reading.

I should have bet some money on who I thought would be getting the full time positions at work. Even though my manager asked me to put in a resume for it, the whole time during the interview she kept saying things about how "if you don't get the position, your resume will be on file for next time!". So it was pretty obvious. I don't know if I should have gone through the trouble of rushing to the only library open that day and printing out the resume and then rushing over to the store to get some white-out to fix a "the" I typed as "then". I guess I'm just a bit annoyed with things at the moment. While part of me is thinking, "Well, at least I don't have to worry about how difficult the switch to full-time would have been" the other part knows I could have really used the money.

I have also been having some personal little health-related issues. Nothing huge or anything but still annoying and kind of getting me down. There are some things I rather not share with the internet... or with anyone, really.

Ziggy's not well, again. She always seems to have something wrong with her. I know it's to the point where vets won't be able to do much. The only vet that would take her costs $100 just to go in, anyways. I hate to say, "Oh I won't because it costs too much" because I do care about my birds but Ziggy has been through these things a lot and she's a tough bird. If I took her to the vet every time she had something wrong with her, we wouldn't be able to pay rent probably. I wish there was a vet that took birds that was as affordable as the one I take Penny to. For normal visits, even if they give her medicine or a shot, we get out of there under $30. Peter's doing a good job taking care of her, as always. I captured some of the cuteness on video and I'm currently in the process of uploading it.

As I said these things are really no big deal but when you combine them with the other little things I have going on, I kind of have a hard time handling it. I still have an awesome husband and doggy being loving to me this whole time. :)

BLECK I'm starving. I only had 3/4 of a piece of toast this morning (which I forgot to finish after I dropped an almost completely full cup of coffee all over the carpet) and it's now 2:30. This video better upload a little faster so I can get home and unstarvify myself. I'm going crazy.

[Edit: Upload froze at 64% so I gave up on it. Will try again tomorrow.]

[Edit Next Day: It took like a minute to upload it this time so here it is!]

Sick Ziggy, wedding dress, and a sore ass!

It has been almost 2 weeks since I've updated but it feels like longer, for whatever reason.
It's really hot in here and I have the fan blowing directly on my face but this blocks out any sound coming from around me. My mom just walked up behind and said something and it scared the crap out of me. Not literally, ew.
My week has been pretty hectic... but more mentally hectic than anything. I mean, I worked and was busy but I was constantly worried.
Ziggy has been sick for a while now. She had diarrhea and some days would seem alright and some days would just sleep. I should have taken her into the vet at that point. I am kicking myself for not. Well last Friday, the 17th, I woke up to see her on the bottom of the cage lying down with her head facing all the way up. She wouldn't put it down, just move it side to side. I've always heard about birds going to the bottom of the cage when dying so I assumed this was it.
I spent that day crying and holding her in a shirt. She wouldn't eat or drink water and only tumbled around a little on the bottom of the cage.
The next day, her head was no longer looking up but she still couldn't walk. She just slept, wrapped in the shirt and I called in work so I could take care of her. She began eating some millet but seemed almost too weak to chew much. I had to hold her over the water to get her to drink.
By Sunday she was eating the millet on her own after crawling over to it. I still had to help her to her water. She seemed bored at one point, pushing a ball around a tiny bit with her head. She also slept slightly less but still couldn't walk or perch.
I'm sure you get the idea. Still bad, but not great.
I finally got her into the vet on Wednesday morning. $164 later, she had her nails clipped, blood drawn, 2 shots, and all that jazz. We also went home with a medication and new organic bird food. I should have been giving them pellets this whole time, not seeds.

The vet said that she has some kind of neurological problem. The blood results came in yesterday and he suspects it may be lead poisoning. My question is, from what? Peter shows no signs and I don't know what Ziggy could have gotten into that he didn't. I always monitor when they are out.
Well today Ziggy is perching and is able to balance. She goes down to eat and drink on her own. She also won't shut up sometimes, she keeps singing which she hasn't done in a while. I put her back with Peter and they are staying side by side. It's so cute and I feel really relieved. I'm still worried because I don't know what the lead poisoning could be from. I am trying to think if there's anything new she's been chewing on (well, new at the time that the signs started).

In other news, I got my wedding dress! I'm more excited about this fact than I thought I'd be.It fits perfectly around my body but obviously needs to be hemmed. I thought I'd have to buy it myself but after making a deal with my mom to go 50/50, she ended up deciding she'd pay for it all. Isaac and I have to pay the wedding though. Not sure how much help we'll get with that. Oh well! But the dress is really nice, and simple. I like it. You guys will see a picture, I'm sure, but not until after the wedding. This means you'll have to wait until next year!
I went shopping with Lindsay the day before and I didn't see a single thing I liked. But the next day I went back to David's Bridal with my mom and I tried on a few, falling in love with the second dress. It was all really awkward for me though. I am not used to getting any attention from employees when trying on clothing so being the only one in the store and having all eyes on me was just weird. I'm really shy, so I'm sure I looked awkward.
The lady who helped me was nice though and seemed to understand what I was looking for, unlike other stores I went in. I went in an hour before closing and walked out of there with the dress in my arms before the store even closed! They called me a power shopper, my mind was made up. She even hand wrote me a letter a few days later!

I know they do it for everyone, but it's still thoughtful.

Lindsay and I rode our bikes for a few hours yesterday. We went a lot further than we thought we would. The ride there was fine but by the time we headed back I was just hot and tired and my butt hurt like a bitch. Those bike seats aren't made for women's wide set butt bones.
So today I went out and got a nice "womens" bike seat only to find out it doesn't work with the kind of pole I have. In fact, I'm not sure anything does. So my dad is taking it into a specialty bike store tomorrow for me and seeing if they have a replacement pole thing. Or if anything can be done. Seriously, my ass hurts like crazy right now and that's not fun.


P.S. If you don't have any Human Bean coffee places in your area you're missing out. I find so many coffee places to be way too expensive and not that great but I really love The Human Bean. The employees always seem to be nice PLUS you always get a chocolate covered coffee bean with it and that totally makes it a WIN.

Bubblegum ice cream 'n' things (Picture Blog)

I looove bubblegum ice cream. I can't explain why, I just think it's wonderful. Maybe because it's not an easy find. Maybe because it brings back memories of getting it as a kid. Whatever it is, it's awesome. Both of those are bubblegum ice cream, both from the same place. Sometimes they have pink sometimes blue. My mom sometimes takes me (either just us or with niece and nephew) to this one supermarket that also sells ice cream by the scoop. If you're like me, you agree that most ice cream places are a HUGE RIPOFF. I mean, most charge the same for one tiny scoop as it would cost to just buy a WHOLE carton of ice cream. But can you believe that ice cream cone is what they call a "one scoop"? AND IT COST $1.20! I'm not kidding you! This place is seriously the best in the whole world. YES! Though "one scoop" on a cone is definitely more than you get in a bowl so I will always go for the cone.
My nephew really enjoyed his child size chocolate ice cream too:

HAHA!


Peter and Ziggy are just chillin'. Peter recently went through his first molt since I've had him which is why he has all those pinfeathers on his head and his cere looks flaky. Pinfeathers never look that nice but he will always be cute!
Both him and Ziggy have been pretty um... *clears throat*... randy lately. Not with each other or anything... yet... but with toys. They both have a different toy that they have been humping like animals... because they are animals. It's funny because Ziggy never did that before until Peter was in there. I never thought that she would, being a girl and all. Oh well, it's pretty funny to see them do. I don't think they will start going after each other anytime soon. They do feed each other which looks like kissing but as soon as Peter tries getting too close to Ziggy, she'll attack him. Poor thing. He has learned to defend himself a bit though but knows to just get out of her way. Ziggy has permanant birdie PMS.


And here's me with my friend Jackson. Isaac and I got him from the Family Fun Center or something, if I remember correctly. He accompanies me in my car every day. There is no reason as to why I am making that face. None at all.


I have had many of these coins since I was in elementary school. I don't know why and I don't know what to do with them either. They just sit in a box in a drawer. There are a couple from Isaac, if you couldn't guess, but the rest have no significance. I have never been to the places and there are a few that I can't even figure out what country they are from! Bahh! I also have a bunch of "fancy" rocks in the same box. What am I supposed to do with it all??

Peter and Ziggy video

Worried about Peter...

Peter really scared me. I was in tears because I already really love that budgie...
So he was out of his cage and on my arm and then he suddenly decided he felt like flying. His wings are clipped so when he tries to fly he doesn't get very far and he hasn't quite mastered... landing.
So he landed hard. I don't know exactly HOW he landed but I looked at him right after and he had his wings out and was kind of on his chest.
I freaked out and quickly tried to help him up.... but he wouldn't stand up. He seems to be lying on his chest. There he was in my hand being really weird and scaring the crap out of me looking like he was struggling to get up but he couldn't seem to be able to! Next thing you know, he stands in my hand. Then he shook out his feathers and acted as though nothing happened. He began to even look like he was about to fly again but I couldn't let him do that so I lightly clasped my hand over his wings. After a moment of trying to observe him (he seemed like his normal self) I decided to put him back in his cage. He seems normal now but you can never be sure...
I put a blanket on part of his cage and keep checking in and he is acting completely like nothing ever happened. I'm scared though! According to my book, loss of balance and inability to get up could be a sign of a concussion.
I really love this guy. He's so young too. I really hope he's ok!
Something tells me I will have a hard time sleeping tonight. I'm going to be checking in on him a lot.

Merry... Christmas.

It certainly doesn't feel like the holiday season this year to me and I have no idea why. There's snow, it's freezing, we have a tree, the consumerism of Christmas is here as always, and I'm happy. But it's not that jolly olly ness I used to get. I guess I'm growing up. And I don't have Isaac here with me.
But I am excited to try Jaffa Cakes!
Don't feel sorry for me because I don't feel sad about not being in the Christmas mood. I just feel like I do any other day of the year, really. It doesn't even matter.
But just because I love these songs:

I know some people find it kind of depressing but I don't.


Of course :)

Update on Peter: He now stands on my finger on demand and gets to come out of the cage every day. I'm really happy about his fast learning. Now I just need to continue on to build that trust.

I have a job interview thingy on Monday. I really hope I can get enough money in time to visit Isaac.

Christmas cookies!

Here are the pictures I said I'd post... click for larger image.

I have no idea why we are hunching over like that. Lindsay and I were doing weird dance moves, I believe. Like our aprons?


Jen and Lindsay talking about whatever. I was already done decorating mine while they were still going at it!


We had hot chocolate with marshmallows AND whipped cream. We also listened to christmas music. Oh the fun never stops!


Messy.


Jen's cookies. She made a 3d frog!! And that little man reminds us of her dad.


Mine. I especially like my snowman. :)


These two of Lindsay's were particularly funny to me. That first one is supposed to be an angel! And I love the snowman's rosy cheeks and the expression on his face!

So yeah, there's the cookies.

It has also been snowy the last couple of days. I fooled around a bit with Windows Vista panoramic photo thing and got this messed up image:

But hey! It did the best it could do. It's not like my camera has a stable spot to sit to move from picture to picture smoothly.

I did something else the other day too. That time it made my closet doors look awesome!


Oh yeah and Peter stood on my finger tonight! For quite a long time too. It wasn't hard, millet spray bribing really does the trick. Oh and here's a picture of Peter! The lighting isn't great, I wish it would show his true color...

Peter peter pumpkin eater

Peter ate out of my hand for the first time today. I'm pretty excited. It's nice to see a new bird relax a bit and trust you enough to eat out of your hand. :)

Lindsay and Jennifer came over yesterday and we made sugar cookies. It was fun, and messy. I will try to remember to post a couple pictures here some time.

Peter the budgie!

I got a new budgie today!!! I am so excited.
So he's a violet colored parakeet, kind of like this one:

Only just SLIGHTY darker.
He's clearly a male, not making the same mistake as last time. He's also very young.
So want to hear the name?
Sounds like a very simple name: Peter.
But where did it come from?
It was actually Isaac who came up with it.
So the drummer of Siouxsie & the Banshees goes by the name Budgie. So naturally, we just took his REAL name (Peter Edward Clarke) and that is my new keet's name. Yeah, I have a musical set of birds now!

Peter is currently just sitting in his cage trying to relax. He's very scared in his new environment. Ziggy doesn't even seem to notice him yet.
In case you are wondering, yes they are in separate cages. Ziggy probably wouldn't like it if her home was suddenly invaded by some annoying newcomer. After a while, I will move his cage closer to hers and then eventually hopefully they will live happily together. I know Ziggy would PROBABLY enjoy the company, but who knows? I can't wait until they start talking to each other. Ziggy enjoys "talking" to budgies on YouTube so I bet she would like to talk to another bird whenever she pleases, in stead of waiting for me to play a video.


Yes. That's all. I'm happy!