Hobbit-ish Potpurri: Back In Action

Howdy Humble Readers!

I'm baaaaaack!

Beauregard the computer was finally returned to me last night, after I had to go into the computer store/repair shop and raise holy heck, and then had to call to speak with the manager.  Needless to say, I won't be going back there again and I'm going to make sure that everyone I know hears about their crappy customer service.  Three and a half weeks for a virus clean up was ridiculous!

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During my absence from the blogosphere, the Shire received its first snowfall of the year.  Yeah, it was earlier than any of us would have liked, but considering how easy we had it last winter, I'm not surprised.  Thankfully, it didn't stick around and we're back to seasonal temps for the moment.  It is forecasted to get pretty chilly this weekend (daytime highs of around freezing), but so long as the snow stays away until after Halloween, I'll try to be ok with things.

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One thing that is always a battle at this time of year is when to turn on the furnace.  I confess, I'm a miser when it comes to the utility bills, and the longer we can go without running the furnace the happier I am.  Not to mention the noise... living in a small condo with its own forced air furnace means that you hear all the furnace noises.  The longer I can go without that aggravation is a victory.  I'm hoping to get through to the end of the month before I have to turn it on, so that means we are bundling up a bit more in the house.  Despite my hobbit-ish tendencies, I'm wearing socks on a regular basis, we're all wearing more sweaters or long sleeved shirts, and Ginny has an extra blanket on her bed. 

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I've gotten a really good start on my Christmas shopping (thanks in large part to a bogo sale at Toys R Us).  The wee-lings are almost done and I actually have some really good ideas for what to get my Beloved this year.  He's normally so hard to buy for.  Now I just need to figure out my homemade gifts for the people at my Beloved's office. 

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My Beloved has had a couple of job interviews in the past few weeks, but no good results.  His experiences at those interviews solidified our conviction that the only way doors are going to open for him is if he gets his accounting designation.  So, we bit the bullet and he's now enrolled in the CGA program.  He needs to take 15 courses!  And he can only take one at a time. Yikes!  I'm in the process of trying to find out if there's any grants that he might qualify for to help with the cost.  We're taking this step on faith, in hopes that even just being enrolled will help move him up the queue for some of these job openings.  Who knows, maybe he'll get hired by a company who will help pay for his courses.

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AF is here, and she's kicking my ass again.  I just keep hoping that things will go back to the way they were before.  After Ginny was born, and my cycle came back, things were pretty much the same as they had been for most of my 30s, cramps on cd1 and cd5 with a fairly moderate flow.  After Pip, things are much heavier, and cramps are non-stop from beginning to end.  They aren't like the cramps I had in my teens and 20s (needed rx muscle relaxers to help control them), but I'm living on ty.lenol to get through. 

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Well, lunch time approaches, and I've got a little girl here who's saying she's 'hun-geee'.  I'm looking forward to getting caught up with you all.  Hopefully I'll get a chance to read some blogs this afternoon while my wee sweet girl naps.