Imagine the Possibilities...

Yesterday was furniture shopping day. Looking for inspiration and deals. Didn't purchase anything though I did take dimensions and a few photos of the pieces I really liked. Here are the photos.

Keep in mind, this sofa and loveseat can be purchased for $280 - total. Low profile so good for the room leading out to the pool - won't block the view.

This chair is $65 at a thrift store. This one will have to be reupholstered.

And this one is $45. I think it's good as-is.

This chair is at a furniture store in Cruces and is in the $450 range.

This one is in the $450 range as well.

Another $450 chair.

This is the sofa style I really like. I like the straight edges and the narrow arms and the interchangeable pillows. But I worry about this sofa in a house of boys. The price tag is $575.
And here's the side view of the loveseat which is about $545.
This chair is at another thrift store. Again, I like the profile, the clean lines. Obviously, it will have to be re-upholstered. This chair is $25.

Nice looking coffee table but waaaay too expensive - $275!!!

So the idea is to pick a couple of the old thrift store chairs and make them LOOK like the $450 chairs. And I still haven't decided what I'm going to do with my ginormous sofa and loveseat.

I'm back to painting today and I might rip out a countertop. I don't know, it depends on my mood.

Good Thursday Morning!

Mike got home early last night - 11 PM. Woo-hoo! So nice to have a conversation with him! He finally had to tell me to shut up and go to sleep. But I'll tell ya, he told me a story that just had me dying. And I know I can't do it justice because Mike is a much better storyteller than I am (he can mimic voices like nobody's business). But before I tell you what he did, I have to give you a little background on the hubster.

Mike's an officer but not your typical officer. He doesn't kiss ass, he really doesn't see himself on "the track" - he's not pushing to make colonel before he gets out. He's prior enlisted and feels much more comfortable around the enlisted guys (and gals) than the Academy and ROTC folks. He finds it humorous when people take themselves (and their air force careers a bit too serious).

Case in point, when we were stationed in Colorado, his squadron had a wall of photos of all the officers. Photo after photo after photo of serious faces and stiff posturing. And then there was Mike's photo. Mike had his head cocked to the side, a grin on his face and he was giving the 70's cool cat two gun salute (thumb and index finger like you're shooting a gun). Some people found it amusing (the enlisted guys), some people wanted it taken down (the commander). In the end, it remained. It was good for morale. If I can find that photo, I'll post it - it's somewhere in my email.

So Mike has a new commander that just came in the past month or so and the guy is upset because there's no "tom-foolery" going on in his shop. He likes camaraderie and hi-jinks (and he's come to the right place where Mike is concerned). So someone (not Mike) posted a photo of the new commander on the wall and invited folks to add one-liners underneath it. Mike said the commander has a big Eddie Murphy grin so it just made sense to add a picture of the Donkey from Shrek. He then took it upon himself to add the words, "Can I stay with you, Shrek? We can make waffles and trade manly stories. You like parfait? Everybody like parfait."

OMG! "You didn't!" I said. "I did," he said.

So, apparently, the commander hunted Mike down and waited for him in his office with this big stick he carries that he calls "Hickory Love" (how could you not love working for this guy???). Mike said the commander opened with, "Are you retarded, Captain? I've been in this squadron for two days and you're already calling me a jackass?"

Mike's response? "It's an uncanny resemblance, Sir, and I stand by it."

OMG! That husband of mine.

I'd love to meet this commander's wife, I'm sure she has some stories to tell.

This message will probably have to be deleted when Mike sees it so enjoy it while you can.

Casey-Gate

By the way, did anyone watch Greta Van What's-Her-Name last night? They had an "exclusive" on the process of Casey Anthony getting bailed out of jail. Did anyone notice how the reporter gave the blow-by-blow of what door she would be exiting from and at what point the Sheriffs office would cease their protection of her? Literally, he was highlighting the exact spots of the parking lot where she would most likely be without police protection. It was as if he was sending out a message, "Hey crazy people! In the mood to shoot someone? Well, Casey Anthony's going to be here tomorrow, at this exact spot. Wide open. With no police protection for approximately 3 whole yards. So c'mon down! Casey Anthony. Alleged baby killer. Alone. Open. Catch my drift..."

I was quite uncomfortable with that "exclusive report."

Hi Ho, Hi Ho, It's Off to Thrift Stores I Go

So after painting yesterday, I have come to the conclusion that I have ginormous furniture that doesn't exactly match the more contemporary, urban look I'm going for. It's big and dark wood with a key-west flavor. So, today I'm going to amuse myself by checking out some local thrift stores for furniture that's more to scale. I've made buddies with a local thrift store owner who has lots of cool things and frequently just gives me stuff because I always call him up when I'm cleaning out closets. So I'm going to see if he has anything I want and see about a trade. I'm also going to hit up Good Will and other thrifty-type places for inspiration pieces.

Yesterday, I went to a local upholsterer to see about getting some of the sofa cushions re-upholstered. The price came to $200 for 5 cushions. Better than the price of a new sofa but still too rich for my cheap ass. I'm also going to look at possibly slipcovering the sofas or the cushions or selling the sofa and love seat to get something more to scale. We'll see. No hurry with that.

Got an estimate from my guy Frank at Lowes to paint the interior walls (that are 20' feet high) and paint the exterior stucco. His estimate came back at $1350 for labor only.

Home Depot has 15' scaffolding I can rent for $62 for as long as I need it.

Frank, it looks like I got this.

Mike's been working from 6:30 in the AM to 12:30 AM this week for an inspection- I'm not sure he even knows I've painted anything. These are the same hours he kept in the middle east - for nearly 6 months!!! Last night when he came in, I told him these hours weren't working for me (I can't sleep when he's not home). And he said, "Oh, I'm sorry. It must be hard for you to lie in bed with the tv on for that long. I'll tell my commander you're having trouble sleeping so I'm going to have to cut out early tomorrow."

I think there might have been a note of sarcasm in there somewhere but I was too tired to notice.

MoGilly is a "Designed to Sell" Wannabe

So here's the deal, The job hunt is not going great and we may or may not be living here next summer so Mike and I have decided that my main job right now will be to get this house ready to sell. If we sell early, we can move on base and that way when we get orders, we'll be ready to go.

I just did a little check on the mls to see what my competition is and what's sold in the past 6 months. It looks like homes in our neighborhood are taking approx. 4 to 6 months to turn over and I'm shooting for a $285,000 sales price.

After commission and closing costs (plus the money we'll be putting in to the rehab) that should net us approx. $20,000.

When we bought this house I saw it as a fixer-upper and thought we would be living here for 4 years. We're at the 2 year mark right now and the real estate market isn't the greatest. So if we're going to make a profit on it at all, Mike and I are going to have to bust our ass and be smart about the changes we make.

This weekend we took down a kitchen cabinet that hung over the bar and was too high for me to reach into the cabinet but too low to make conversation without bending over. That demo went well except for the hole we made in the wall when the cabinet came crashing down. It wasn't supposed to come crashing down - Mike had one end of it and Matt and I were supposed to get the other end but when it started to fall we both went screaming in opposite directions. That thing was heavy - I don't have the money nor the time for cranial stitches. Besides, it's just sheetrock, right?

I also discovered this weekend that my hubby is FABULOUS at installing recessed can lights!!!! GORGEOUS! Now I want the whole house done. They're the little 3" lights like you see Candace Olson use on Divine Design. I keep turning the lights on and off for my cheap entertainment - FABULOUS - dark - FABULOUS - dark - FAAAABULOOUS - dark.

Anywho, I have a window lady coming by today at 1 pm to help me decide what I should do with the windows in the living room.

I'm posting the BEFORE pics here so you can see the hideousness of what I started with. These are the pictures that were on the realtor's mls site when we bought the house. Terrible! Then, I'll show you pics as I complete rooms.

SEND YOUR IDEAS. I'm hooked up to HGTV 24/7 and I WELCOME INPUT!!!!!

This is the exterior. Note the ugly diarrhea (cha cha cha) stucco and the glaringly white garage door. Also, the dead tree in the front yard (which has since been removed). This home needs a little "curb appeal"

This is the living room. Huge vaulted ceilings, oddly shaped windows. What to do, what to do...
Why would a realtor take a picture like this??? There's something on the floor and crap all over the counters. And are you digging the foil backsplash? Terrible. Kitchens sell houses and this one is saying "I'm not for sale, bitch. Keep walkin'."

The "dining room" - it's really just a breakfast nook. The dining room was being used as a gym by the previous residents. Isn't this inviting? (that should read with heavy sarcasm)

Okay, this room smelled like dog piss when we toured the house. HORRIBLE. But the agent swore the people didn't have any pets. Well then, they were just some nasty, nasty folks. And what's with Scooby Doo on the tv? Awful. Just Awful. This is the room, by the way, where Mikey is installing the canned lights. And we took that hideous ceiling fan down and ripped up the piss carpets. Mom came out and helped out with this room but you won't get to see the pics until we're done.

This is what the master bedroom looked like on move-in day. The 80s called, they want their vertical blinds back. Great thing about this room - the size and the view. The view from the balcony is what you see on the header of this site.

This is the backyard. That's a pool, in case you couldn't tell. The backyard is what sold me on the house but you sure wouldn't be able to tell it from this photo! I'll be staging the backyard as well.

So that's where we're at. A big contemporary house with a lot of white walls and 80s decor. Wish me luck!

Good Friday Morning!

We're getting some wicked storms heading our way today. Maybe even a few tornadoes this weekend. And I am without a basement. Or even a well-built home.

Are You a Believer in Psychic Detectives?

Mike laughs at me when I watch shows like Psychic Detective, Paranormal State and Psychic Kids, but I'm telling you right now, I truly believe that some people have that "gift."

I have experienced strong intuition before where I just "knew" something was going to happen and it did, my mother has a little freaky psychic thing that happens to her when she's about to receive money and we have an ancestor whose gift of "sight" was documented in a history book.

So, I'm a believer. And when it comes to a missing child, I would absolutely call in all reinforcements to help.

Last night on Nancy Grace the lead psychic mentioned that people can go to a site and check out the team notes on the search for Caylee Anthony- who knows, maybe they're on to something...

OMG! I'm one step closer to becoming a Super Hero!

Scientists from the University of California, Berkeley are on the cusp of developing materials that could render people and objects invisible. Read all about it here.

Researchers have recently demonstrated the ability to cloak 3-D objects.

How is this possible?

Here's the gist: People can see an object because the object scatters the light that hits it and then reflects some of that light back to the eye. That's the basic science of how we see.

BUT, with invisible cloaking, scientists use artificially engineered materials, known as metamaterials, to deflect and bend light so that an object doesn't create a reflection or a shadow.

How cool (and potentially scary) is that?!

Boys and Girls, I am one step closer to becoming a Wonder Twin or taking a flight in Wonder Woman's plane without my Underoos showing! Wonder Wo-maaaan!


I want an invisibility cloak for Christmas!!!!

Movie Monday

I watched Transformers yesterday. Yes, I know it's been out for a while but I thought it was a dude flick and I was just never in the mood for testosterone and robot cars. So why did I finally break down and watch it? Two words: boredom and curiosity. Boredom because it was Sunday. It was raining. And the alternative was cleaning out my closet. Curiosity because Mike told me a portion of the movie was filmed down the road from where we live and I wanted to see if I could identify some places. And I could.

If you haven't watched Transformers, it's actually a really good movie. If you want to know what the scenery is like in my 'hood, rent the movie and pay attention to whenever they mention Qatar--because that's not Qatar. It's New Mexico. It's my backyard. It's 20 minutes down the road - no joke. Go watch it. We'll discuss.

For your viewing pleasure, here are a couple of trailers for films I might actually pay $7 to go see (that's how much movies are nowadays, right?). First up: Tropic Thunder coming this Wednesday.



And, The House Bunny which will be released at the end of this month, I believe.


Don't forget to watch Nancy Grace and Greta Van Susteran tonight. I read that a team of psychic detectives are on the Caylee Anthony case.

This Just In...

Former Democratic presidential candidate, John Edwards, has just admitted to an extramarital affair with a woman who bares a striking resemblance to a young Camilla Parker Bowles. Edwards says he is NOT the father of the woman's child. Read the story here.

See, that's the problem America--secrets! Secrets are bad. They just come back to bite you in the tush.

That's why for this election, I think we need an upset. We need a write-in candidate. Someone we know. Someone whose background is already out there and well-documented. Someone who could not possibly shock us any further.

That's why this November I shall cast my vote for Paris Hilton.


She makes a compelling argument, don't ya think?

Updates in the Caylee Anthony Case

Here's what we learned yesterday from Nancy Grace and Greta Van Susteren...

1. The June 9th date of Caylee Anthony's disappearance has since been disputed by (Grandmother) Cindy Anthony. In a video interview, Cindy Anthony stated that she mistakeningly gave the June 9th date because she had her dates confused. She stated that her daughter, Casey, never said June 9th but instead stated to her brother that she hadn't seen her daughter in 31 days. That would put the timeline back to approximately June 16 - which the family states is the last time they saw Caylee. UPDATE: an August 9th FOX news article stated that Casey did give the June 9th date but later changed that date when a photo of Caylee surfaced - a photo that had been taken with family members on June 15.

It was on July 15 when Grandmother Cindy Anthony called the police. In the first 911 call she tries to have her daughter arrested for Grand Theft and stealing money. When Mrs. Anthony is on hold (and still being recorded) you hear her threaten to take Caylee away from Casey.

Take a listen to snippets of the 2nd and 3rd 911 calls here. In these 911 calls, Cindy Anthony reports her grandaughter missing. All three of these calls occur within about an hour or so of each other.

2. We learned yesterday that Cindy Anthony, while going through the car in question (the one she reported to police smelled like a "dead body"), found a pair of slacks belonging to her daughter in the back seat. And because the slacks smelled like dead body, Mrs. Anthony WASHED them!!! Now, from what I understand police have since come in and taken the slacks into evidence along with a pair of shoes and a pair of boots that were also found in the car.

3. Remember in those 911 recordings when Casey Anthony stated that she received a call from the babysitter from a private number? And that the babysitter put little Caylee on the line for just a moment? Well, according to police no such call ever came through Casey's cell phone. Not on the date she gave, not around that date. According to police, the call never happened.

4. Now, here's where it gets really bizzare. Casey Anthony reported to police that she dropped her daughter off with the babysitter at the SawGrass Apartments. The police learned that the apartment Casey identified had been vacant for months. The Grandmother excuses that away by saying Casey showed the police the apartment building of where the babysitter lived but didn't want to show police the exact apartment because she was afraid something would happen to her daughter.

Police discover that a Zanaida Gonzalez (the name of the alleged babysitter) visited the SawGrass Apartments on June 17 and filled out a guest card. Folks started speculating that the Zanaida Gonzalez that visited the SawGrass Apartments that day was really Casey Anthony in disguise, setting up her story. But in a most bizzare twist, a hispanic woman by the name of Zanaida Gonzalez actually DID visit the SawGrass Apartments that day and came forward to police. She has been questioned by police and claims to have never met Casey Anthony or Caylee Anthony and when Casey was shown a picture of this woman, she could not identify her.

The Grandmother (Cindy Anthony) stated to the press that Casey had mentioned a Zanaida Gonzalez as far back as 2 years ago. But again, no one in the Anthony's circle of family and friends ever spoke with this babysitter or met the woman in person. Zanaida is not a common name, so how on EARTH did Casey Anthony pull that name out (supposedly two years ago) and a person that shares that name just happens to show up at the SawGrass Apartments around the same time Caylee Anthony goes missing. How does THAT get explained????

Mark Fuhrman searches for answers. Here's the coverage from Greta Van Susteren last night.

This Just In (From Lauren)

In response to the Caylee Anthony case, Lauren sent in a link about a young girl in Florida who suffered terribly from neglect. I hadn't heard of this little girl until now. She was found at the age of six and has since been adopted by a loving family. The question is, will she ever be able to overcome the abuse she suffered early on in life?

See the story here.

Welcome baby Caroline!

Big congratulations to my girl Renee and her family for their new addition - baby Caroline Reese Maples. Is that the name of a southern belle or what? Baby Caroline is shown here with sisters Eliza and Mallory.

Casey and Caylee Anthony. Let's Discuss!

I am obsessed, OBSESSED with the Casey/Caylee Anthony Case (the missing two-year-old with the mother who, seemingly, is a wackadoo). Have any of you been following this?

Here is the timeline as I understand it:

1. June 9 – Between 9:00 a.m. and 1:00 p.m., Casey Anthony allegedly drops 2-year-old Caylee Anthony off with her nanny at the nanny's apartment. She tells police this is the last she saw of her daughter. How does a mother get that date wrong???? (See #4)

2. Sometime around June 9 Casey steals her mother's credit card and takes off (she and her daughter had been living with her parents). Casey never tells her family where she and her daughter are staying. Casey moves in with friends and racks up thousands of dollars on her mother's credit card.

3. June 9 to June 12 – Casey tells her parents that she is having the nanny babysit Caylee so she can go on a business trip for Universal Studios. (FYI: Casey was fired from Universal 2 years ago)

4. June 15 - Father's Day. 2-year old Caylee visits with her great-grandfather at an assisted living facility. Grandmother has this on video tape. This is the last time the family sees Caylee.

5. June 20-21 - Time stamped photos of Casey were allegedly taken at this time showing her smiling and clubbing and having a grand ol' time. - not a hint of worry on her face about her missing daughter. Casey says these photos were taken a year ago.

6. Sometime in mid-June Casey borrows a shovel from a neighbor. Casey says she borrowed it before Caylee went missing.

7. June 24. Casey's ex calls her and reports to police that he thought he heard 2-year-old Caylee in the background. He says he heard Casey reprimand the child but now he isn't sure if he actually heard the child or not.

Later that same day, George Anthony (Casey's father) files a report that 2 cans of gasoline (worth $50) were stolen from his shed. He later finds the cans in Casey's trunk.

8. June 30. Casey's car is towed and impounded. Her boyfriend reports to police that Casey called him and told him the car broke down and she needed to be picked up. When the boyfriend picked Casey up she told him not to worry about looking at the car because her Dad was coming to get it. But Casey's Dad didn't know about the car - she never called him.

9. July 15 - A woman by the name of Amy H. calls Casey's mom (Cindy) and tells her where Casey has been staying. Amy later reports that Casey stole checks from her and $700 in cash. Cindy picks up Casey and makes 3 calls to 911 (reporting her grand-daughter missing).

It's also on this day that Casey's parents get the call from the impound lot about the car Casey left behind. Cindy reports to police that the car smells like there's been a decomposing body in it.
10. July 16 - Casey is arrested. She tells a series of lies to police. She lies about her employment. She lies about the alleged nanny's address. A nanny, by the way, whom she said had been working for her for a year and a half, yet no friends and family ever met or spoke with this nanny. Casey also said she had spoken with the nanny (and her missing child) on the phone but curiously, her cell phone is missing.

11. Sometime in late July. Two separate cadaver dogs pick up a scent in the trunk of Casey's car and under the playhouse in the grandparents back yard (where Casey and Caylee used to live).

12. July 31 - Casey gets a psych eval. The Dr.'s evalulation is rather vague but the comments following the post are quite insightful - especially the part about the missing child's father. Read it here.

13. August 1 - CSI return to the grandparent's house (where Casey and Caylee lived) and leave with two large bags.

THIS WEEK - Lab results from DNA evidence are due back this week. What will be revealed?

What do you think happened? What questions would you pose?

Daily updates from Nancy Grace (6 and 8 PM my time)

Good Monday Morning!

No word yet on the job front. Fingers crossed I get a call back on the paper.

Mike and the kids and I went to the mountains for a picnic yesterday and the boys got me to play a little tennis. Then they made fun of the way I run. But no need to feel sorry for me, I've endured mockery over my athletic prowess for many years. I've grown quite accustomed to it.

So what did you all do this weekend?