I just said "Good morning!" to my neighbor. I'm gonna blame it on Daylight Savings Time.

The Clue Just Came to You

I haven't been home during the weekdays for a long time. So when I was sick last week, I noticed several things.

Most notably, the hot hippie dudes that have moved in!

Where did they come from? When did they show up? I guess maybe in the early mornings, when I leave for work, they're still sleeping. And when I make it home, they're out playing music for crowds of five.

Saturday, I did laundry all day. It was annoying.

When I do laundry, I'm always careful to leave washers and dryers open for anyone else. Because I hate it when I get down to the laundry room and they're all full of the same person's crap.

So all morning I was rotating everything just perfectly so there was room for other people. And of course one of those people came in and scared the crap out of me. A tiny little rabbit could come into that room all fuzzy and sweet and I would jump out of my skin. I'm jumpy in that room.

The man that came in wasn't scary. But he wasn't friendly, either. No response to my neighborly "Hello."

The next time I went down, there was someone already there. And my clothes were stacked on a dryer.

"Hello," I said to the woman who was shoving her clothes into the dryer I had been using. She was the kind of lady I'm pretty sure could beat me up.

I grabbed my clothes off the dryer and put them on a washer for the time being. At first I felt guilty because maybe I'd been hogging the laundry room. And then I felt panicky. What was I going to do with the wet clothes in the washer?

"Are those your clothes?"

"Yes! I'm sorry!"

"I was in a hurry."

And then I noticed one of the dryers just sitting there empty. Curious . . .

And my clothes were folded. Even the underwear. Curiouser . . .

"Nice clothes," she said. And winked.

Why couldn't it have been one of the hot hippie guys touching my stuff?

Oh that's right. They don't wear clean clothes.

Good Ol' Solitude

Okay. You got me.

Yeah I walk around in slippers with no pants.

That'll keep you from looking in my windows!

Memories Made in the Coldest Winter

Okay, friends. It's super freaking cold.

It's been really cold and not just outside, but here in The Penthome. I usually handle cold pretty well. Just throw on some pants and one of my many blankets and I'm good.

You see . . . my building is old enough and crappy enough that everyone is on the same heat/cold vents. That means I don't have crazy gas or electric bills, but also means my body temperature is at the whim of my landlord.

I haven't seen my landlord's car in a few weeks. So I'm thinking maybe they moved and forgot to turn the heat on. Because I don't even hear it running.

Of course, when I'm awake, I'm usually listening to something. Maybe I'm just not hearing it.

Whatever the case, what has worked for seven other winters just ain't cutting it this year. I can't sit at the keyboard without my fingers turning to ice.

So today I finally bought a space heater. And now the cat and I are both huddled around the two inches of heat it seems to be producing. This side is warm. Now let's get the other side toasty. What's that smell? Is it burnt hair?

Maybe I should have spent more than twenty bucks. Or I guess I could call the landlord . . .

Choice in the Matter

Here's the thing . . .

I have enough quilts and blankets and throws to keep my whole family toasty at Thanksgiving. I'm not even kidding.

My Granny quilted and I've inherited several of her quilts. My grandparents' neighbor made one for me a few years ago. I have a quilt I bought online because I thought it was gorgeous.

I have comforters I've collected over the years. The one I left home with, a terribly over-used Pooh and the Ralph Lauren with the giant rip. Oh and a few more.

And then there's the throws and various other blankets I've piled into my closet. What's worse, I don't really get cold and never even really use them!

So what in the world could I have been thinking when I looked through that catalog at Jacque's? Why would I see a comforter and think "I need that right now!!!"

Because I'm insane and don't have enough stuff crammed into this place. That's why.

So now you have to help me out. Which color? I'm really leaning toward the darker. In fact, I'm almost certain. But I also need you to talk me out of this. I don't really need it! Help!

Option Danielle

Option Queen Anne

Every Move You Make

So the sucky thing about The Penthome is that all the side windows face the building next to mine.

Tonight, I was leaving a voicemail while walking through my bedroom and noticed a flashing light. It looked like someone in the building across from me was holding a light up to their window and moving their blinds around for like, Morse code signals. I was fascinated and peeked around my blinds.

I was just in time to see a guy open the blinds all the way and then point all his lamps out the window. I'm pretty sure he was aiming all the light into my apartment. I was creeped out.

So I went to get my camera.

I forgot that my camera has this little green light that flashes when I'm taking a picture to help it focus better. Luckily, I didn't see anyone in the window any longer.

I zoomed in for another picture and just like in a scary movie, all of the sudden, the guy was back!

I threw myself behind the blinds and down to the floor. An instant later, all the light that had been flooding my room was dimmed. Dude had quickly closed his blinds.

I don't know what's going on over there. But if something happens to me, you might want to investigate that guy's freezer.