Today I spent most of the day working on The Kid’s bedroom. Gosh it was a mess. We cleaned out old toys, sorted, organized, bagged and boxed. I posted three different ads on the local Freecycle, grouping the available toys by age group. I found five pairs of excellent jeans, size 7, that I had been saving for when he grew into them. He’s already outgrown them 
DH is going to repair (again) the little bookcase. We still need to sort through books, change the bedding, dust the corners and vacuum. I’d like to get some new closet doors, but that won’t happen tonight.
We had a very nice dinner and blew off the church party. Fireworks aplenty are going off outside.
Here’s to a productive and successful and prosperous 2008 for all of us! Happy New Year!
I hab a code.
I was freezing earlier tonight, even though it was 60 degrees outside. I bundled up in a couple of blankets and fell asleep on the couch for about 45 minutes. I’ve taken some code bedicid. Hopefully I’ll sleep OK tonight after my nap.
Received in yesterday’s mail:
December 20, 2007
Dear Dr. (Ann’s DH):
The University Rank and Tenure Committee has completed its review of your credentials for tenure based upon the criteria outlined in the Faculty Handbook. I am pleased to inform you that the Committee has recommended to President Medal of Freedom Winner that you be approved for tenure. (snip boring stuff about the process).
Each member of the Rank and Tenure Committee joins me in offering your [sic] sincere congratulations and good wishes. The Committee looks forward to your continued professional growth and contributions in teaching, scholarship, service and collegiality.
Sincerely,
Academic Affairs Bigwig
—————
This is what he’s been working toward for fifteen years. It’s been his career goal since he was in his early 20’s. I should probably do the Dora Dance here, but we didn’t do it. He did.
Congratulations, my friend. You deserve this.
Not much of a post, just a link to a recipe for Garlic Chicken Fried Chicken. I used to make it pretty frequently, but hadn’t made it in several months. We had it tonight and it was SO GOOD. YUM.
Tomorrow, the leftovers will make delicious chicken sandwiches for lunch. Yummy goodness two days in a row.
A blog I read regularly, Frugal for Life, has had great advice on making Frugal Living a way of life instead of just a “phase” for over three years now. The site owner, Dawn, has a contest going with a chance for a prize of up to $50! This post is my entry in the contest.
We save money by doing our own cooking. Saving money this way doesn’t have to take a lot of time - just planning!
Prepare menus for as long as you have between paychecks. If you buy in bulk, plan your menus based on what you already have on hand. Then, shop to the plan. Prepare one shopping list for items that will keep for the entire period, then buy them all at once. Prepare a second list for items you will need to buy in the interim that won’t keep for the duration (such as milk and fresh vegetables). Minimize trips to the grocery store.
It can save 20-30 minutes of prep time during the week to have your meat already browned and seasoned before you make that chili or casserole. Take an hour or two on the weekend and cook up three pounds of ground beef, seasoning it with onion and garlic. Divide into meal size packages and freeze. Do the same with chicken thighs (cheap!).
Prepare enough for lunch the next day for the working adults. Pack lunches for the next day when you clean up after dinner. You save even more by not eating lunch out, either.
The doorbell rang. I went to get the door. There was nobody there. Only a small gift bag stuffed with mini candy bars and a plate of chocolate-white chocolate chip cookies. A big green envelope was neatly and enthusiastically lettered:
You are loved!!
Merry
Christmas
To: The Porter family
From: Your Secret Santa.
Inside the envelope is a card that plays “Deck the Halls.” And inside the card was a gift card from WalMart for $25.00.
We are racking our brains trying to figure out who could possibly like us that much, and why!
I know some of my readers are also residents of warm climes. What fun things do you say to Northerners when they’re locked into an ice storm and it’s 72 degrees at home?
Just the other day, I asked a customer in Gurnee, Illinois (minutes from the Wisconsin border) to hold on for a few minutes while some software was loading. I went and refilled my cold beverage, checked the thermostat, and then got back on the phone. “Thanks for holding on for a minute,” I said. “I had to turn the air conditioner on.”
How do you rub the lovely weather in to the freezing Northerners?
My college student son got tickets to the BCS championship game. Two of them. He is going to the game.
He had considered selling them (there will probably be Ohio State fans who will pay $1000 each on game day) but he decided that this is once in a lifetime. He is a graduating senior, and his school is playing for the national championship less than 100 miles from home. LSU will probably play for a national title again someday, and they may even play it in the Sugar Bowl again, but he will never again be a graduating senior when those things happen.
I’m very excited for him. I’ve been telling people off and on all day. Every time I talk to someone in the home office (in Columbus, Ohio, home of the Buckeyes) I’ve mentioned “Hey, my son got ticket to the game” and they are all dumbfounded.
Geaux Tigers!
One of the many good things about working from home is the flexibility. I had to leave a little early today (4:45; not exactly early, but before I got my 8 hours in). So, I put in about an hour tonight. My time is all made up, I got stuff done and I didn’t have to leave my house. Just like usual, except after dinner.
I have been working on a routine for the last few weeks that has been really productive. I jump right into project work in the morning. After lunch, I take care of any customer issues that need addressing (this allows me to do same-day response), then I resume project work for the remainder of the day. I’ve caught up on a LOT of reporting, and have finished up over 300 data item definitions for the database. One of the real advantages of project based work is that you can point to accomplishments. That’s much harder to do with customer support - no matter what you get done, there’s another customer who has a different problem.
I have some fun new things to learn in the coming year, also, which will be good for my brain and my perceived usefulness to the LLC.
Tonight I went to the church Christmas party. They served (not kidding) PRIME RIB. I ate way, way too much medium rare meat. And then carrot cake.
Groan again.
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