Hella Stella

I'm baaaack!

At least, I'm now in a schedule that should allow me to post regularly again. This doesn't mean that the house is ready for comfy human occupation.... Far from it.

Here's what happened:

The reno company got slightly behind schedule, which meant we couldn't finish our floors in time for the move, which meant the movers had to pile all our crap to the ceiling in one small part of the house that had a finished floor, which meant we couldn't unpack anything - especially our bed - which means that we've been sleeping on the old pullout at the old apartment every night despite not having anything there but our toothbrushes. And we have to be out of that apartment tomorrow, so we have no choice but to stay at the House With No Floor.

Yes. All true.

That's not the only thing to go wrong, either. My work is making cuts..... Big, gaping cuts... And I came back yesterday to find that my boss (an old friend who trained me and taught me everything I know) had been let go. Other people in my workplace are being cut too, and this is only the first round of cuts. More to come next year, apparently. It's not the safety of my job that's got me riled up, it's the fact that my boss was let go. I'm mad. So fucking mad. I haven't been this mad in a long time, and I'm worried I'm going to tell someone off. I can't decide if I should stay or not. I don't really want to leave, but this anger is threatening to consume my cubicle.

So I was all upset about this last night, and I couldn't sleep. I started to doze off around 3am when I heard Morty stir. Then he stood up, puked a pile of sticks on the floor and fell asleep again while I cleaned it up.

That, folks, is my life at the moment.

There are some positive things going on, however:

- Our EcoLawn is growing! It's green and fuzzy and we'll never need to cut it.

- We've discovered that Frida is allergic to dust, not grass. Oh well... EcoLawn is still fun.

- I finally found my underwear packed away in a random box, so now I can stop going commando.

I'm really scraping the bottom of the barrel for these cheerful bullets, hey? I'll quit while I'm ahead.

My BH and I have reached quite a milestone, if I do say so myself. Ten years ago, we went on our first date.

People often do double takes when we say how long we've been together... And I totally get it. We met when we were both pretty young (I guess we're still pretty young), and at the time, we thought it would be a short-term thing. I was planning to go to university in Montreal. He was planning to move to northern Ontario. We figured it would be a summer of fun dates.

It didn't occur to me at the time, but I think I changed my plans for him. Suddenly I wasn't so rushed to apply to Concordia and McGill. I considered working for a bit "to save money," which really meant staying in Ottawa. His plans shifted too, and eventually he wasn't craving the blackflies and frost like he used to. From that first date onwards, we saw each other every single day for MONTHS. It didn't seem excessive at the time, and we only realized what we had been doing when we were forced to spend a day apart a few months in.

It felt like a really big deal.

I fell for him the second I laid eyes on him, but it's not for the sappy rom-com reasons you might think. When he walked into the music store where I was working, I could not keep my eyes off his ass. Seriously. That ass deserved a prize. How could I see that ass again? Luckily for me, he returned to following week to ask me out. More ass for me to admire!

It's been ten years, and he still has a fabulous butt. The rest of him is pretty fine too. Happy anniversary, hot stuff!

+++++++++++

In other news, I was just chatting with my contractor, who is a sweet guy and also happens to be a friend of mine. I was asking if we were still on track to be done everything in time for my move this Thursday. He responded with a detailed itinerary of all the work he's got planned, but there was a problem. His itinerary went well beyond our move date.

Him: So we'll be all set for your move on Thursday the 1st.

Me: Dude, I'm moving THIS Thursday.

Him: Yeah, the 1st.

Me: No, the 24th. And I need to put my floors down before we move in.

Him: .......... OH. That's not the Thursday I was thinking of.

So! Now we're in overdrive mode while him and his boys try to finish the house in time. Things are about to get CRAZY folks. Wish us luck.

Progress:

- We are getting a fence in the next few days.

- My recording closet is nearing completion!

- Morty tried to poo in a rose bush yesterday and quickly changed his plan. Wise puppy. Nobody wants to pull thorns out of a bulldog's ass.

- Frida has nightmares and occasionally howls into my ear at night.

- My BH looks especially sexy when he is painting the new house. It's.... Distracting.

- Did I mention that my recording closet is almost done???

WTF.

I've really been enjoying the renovation process... Probably more than most people would. I'm actually depressed to be back at work because it means I can't supervise contractors and smash things with a hammer.

Still, I've reached the point where I'm ready to move. We don't have the movers booked until the end of the month, which makes sense, because we still have so much to do. In reality, though, I'd like to press fast forward and magically wake up at the new house, with the walls all painted, the boxes unpacked, and the grass all grown.

I know this will happen relatively quickly, fast forward button or not. But my apartment is a disaster (we are basically only sleeping there at this point), my landlord is still a shit, and amazingly enough, the loud renos that made me want to buy a house back in December continue to this day.

I guess I'd just like some quiet.

In related news...

I'm really enjoying being a landlord. I'm loving renovations. I like the house buying process. And now I'm wondering if I shouldn't plan a slow move away from the desk job into property management. That, plus music, could make me a very happy Stella.

Thoughts, dear readers? We're talking years down the line, mind you.... But it's food for thought.

Oh hai.

I'm just sitting here with my two gassy bulldogs, waiting for my asshole landlord to come by.

You know what's funny about that? I'm a landlord too, now. And I know what not to do because of this guy. I'm not going to thank him for it, but there you have it.



I go back to work tomorrow, which is both good and bad. It's good because it will give me a break from the renos so I can organize my lists and receipts. The rest will be nice.

It also means I'll miss the majority of the garage demolition, which is a bit depressing. How many times am I going to be able to watch a team of shirtless, sweaty men tear down a building in my backyard? I mean, really.

Morty can't wait to have a yard. I can see it in his eyes. Actually, it will happen really quickly.... The garage should be down in about a day and a half.

Hi friends!

I went to Peterborough for my little sister's graduation. It was awesome. I'm so proud of her. Just to make sure I fully enjoyed myself, I drank beer and went to my favourite antique store. You know how it is - without beer and antiquing, Peterborough makes me scream.

At the antique store, I bought a pair of vintage bulldog bookends, and a framed proclamation from Queen Victoria uniting the provinces of Canada. Pictures to come. That antique store impresses me every time I go. They also have an impressive collection of vintage porn.

The renovations are going well, minus a few hiccups. The hiccups relate mostly to the installation of our wood floor, which makes me want to cry every time I open a new box. Considering that the renos have been pretty smooth otherwise, crying over engineered wood flooring isn't so bad. But man, does it ever make me cry.

My demolition permit came through, and that garage is a comin' down next week. I can't wait!! Bulldozers and half naked dudes hauling concrete! It doesn't get any better.

That's all I've got in the tank for now.