Things That Only I Can Do

I'll have you know that my position in this household is assured. I have job security. I am made aware of this regularly. Because there are things that only I can do in this house. I have hypothesized this formulated upon the following postulates:

1. I am the only one who does them.
2. My darling husband looks at me blankly when I mention them. 
3. He actually tells me that he's waiting on me to do them. 

Ignore bad handwriting. And water spots on my bathroom sink.
And terrible photography.

But in all fairness, there are things that only he can do, too. Not because I'm incapable of doing them, necessarily, although that is the case regarding things that my current level of education/knowledge doesn't cover.

Like automobile repairs. I could probably learn how to do that stuff, but it's not my thing, and it is his thing. Sometimes it's because I'm forbidden to do them, on pain of stink eye.

For instance:

• I am not allowed to take out the trash. I'm capable of this, and if it needs to be done, occasionally I'll do it just to get it done. But, and here's the really wonderful thing about my darling husband, I'm not allowed to. So I get the "that's my job" speech, while he gives me the stink eye, and takes the garbage can out of my hand and empties it. He actually prefers that I tell him that a trash can needs to be emptied, rather than emptying it myself. Isn't he a dream boat? 
• I'm not allowed to mow the lawn. Or run the weedeater. Not because I can't do those activities. When I was single, I did them. Because they're in his domain. Not my problem. He doesn't want me doing those tasks. He doesn't even want me thinking about them. His domain. I am allowed to help with weeding, plant watering, etc., and occasionally, we'll do outdoor, lawn, or garden projects together. But he runs the yard. 

Getting back to the origin of this post, however, my job security as a housewife is not in question. (Not that it was ever going to be, anyway.) This is why.

• Only I can purchase toilet paper. Way back in the day, when I was single, I got hooked on soft,
  three-ply toilet paper. I always preferred the extra-cushy stuff, but when I became an Amway IBO, I started using the brand they carried, and it was three-ply, pillowy softness. It came to my door on a regular basis, and I got in the habit of knowing it was there, not having to think about buying it. When we got married, I quickly got my new husband hooked on it, too. He didn't even know there was such a thing as three-ply, until I introduced him to it. Poor thing. 

  

  My new TP holder that my darling husband installed for me.
  It pivots on a hinge instead of doing the squeezy bar thing.
  I love it. 

  But then, Amway stopped carrying the paper products that I had become reliant upon. I found myself venturing into aisles of the store I hadn't traversed in years and wondering what was most similar to what we were accustomed to using. Through lots of trial and error, I finally found the toilet paper (and paper towels, napkins, etc.) that we are now using. Ordinarily, because he's still working full-time and I'm not, I do the shopping, but occasionally he will go with me. This week, that happened. He watched me, mystified, as I rooted around in the toilet paper aisle, finally coming up with a case that matched our preference of brand, type, and roll-size (mega-rolls don't fit on all our TP dispensers), and was budget-friendlier (because of the case size). I looked up and realized that if I was ever in a coma, he would be clueless about how to provide for the needs of his tushy. Clearly I need to educate this man. 

• Only I can make doctor appointments. My darling husband tells me that the moment we were wed, his brain dumped all of the information and ability it had to locate new medical service providers, therefore, if I don't find him a doctor, he won't have one. We moved to Kansas from South Carolina almost a year and a half ago. We're due for checkups, dental cleanings, glasses prescription adjustments, etc. He claims complete ignorance (while calling it "delegation") of what to do to find these professionals. So, I'm finally getting around to doing that. We're still in a standoff over who makes the appointments, which I will explain. 
• I, as you may know, occupy the far, hermit-end of the introvert spectrum. Talking on the phone is anathema, unless there is a really good reason to do so. Also, the really good reason must be on my end. Answering calls from numbers I don't recognize is the technological equivalent of picking up a hitchhiker. Now that I'm no longer required to answer by an employer, it's never gonna happen. Also, I keep my voicemail full, so that I don't have to worry about ever getting new messages and having to deal with them. I carry a smart phone. I text. I use it to google stuff so I don't have to actually converse with anyone. There are apps for all kinds of things. It is a phone call prevention device in my hand. I'm available via multiple routes on my phone that don't involve talking to anyone. YAY for technology! I need to find us doctors who allow appointment scheduling via website, app, or text. Hmmmm... Surely doctors do that now. Right?
• He, as you may not know, will go to an appointment, if I make it. But he will not go out of his way to subject his body to regular maintenance. When we got married, I made appointments for him to have a medical checkup, an optometry appointment, and all of his dental care/prevention/and repair. He hadn't gotten around to these things for some time. I found the doctor. I found the optometrist. I found the dentist. I made the appointments. He went. The thing is that he has the schedule of meetings for his work, and I don't, so I'm going to use that as a reason for him to make his own phone calls. So there. 

Of course, he takes excellent care
of the yard.

I could continue about all of the activities that I prefer to do myself, like laundry (which is my favorite chore), and all the things that I like to do but aren't strictly necessary (insert art/craft of choice here), but you get the gist. There are, of course, all the necessary evils that we toss back and forth, along with applicable guilt-monkeys, like washing dishes, and the tasks that we each accept as assigned to one or the other, without having strong feelings about either way, and the tasks that we share, in the interest of mutual benefit. But some things are mine to do. Mine, and mine alone. Because only I can do them. 

Co-dependence is really working out for me.

Much love,

LL~

P. S. Of course, my darling husband is an adult, and he is perfectly capable of all of the tasks that are necessary for his life and maintaining a household. He did them for years before I was ever around. He just chooses to allow me to add value to his life. I don't mean to give the impression that he is a bumbling fool without his obnoxious wife keeping him going. He's amazing, talented, capable, generous, and kind. But he lets me think that I'm helping, and that makes me feel good. :)

Word of the Week: EXULANSIS

Fortunately, it is the week (-ish) after one of my writers' conferences, since that type of thing rarely translates to the individuals who were not in attendance. That makes this word pretty perfect for where I am right now. I'm trying to crawl out of my recovery fog. It's time to try to be on top of silly little things like paying bills, answering emails, making doctor appointments, cleaning up my sewing disaster, etc. All those little demands that are placed upon us by life. You know what I mean. In the mean time, people keep asking questions like "how was your conference?" and "did you have a nice vacation?" -- but then their eyes glaze over when I attempt to give a real answer. Heh heh.

Much love,
LL~

This week's word is: EXULANSIS

Used in a sentence: Ellen looked around the dinner table at the polite, yet blank faces, and exulansis took over. 

Word of the Week: DEFENESTRATION

Welcome to the Word of the Week.

I hope that this particular word isn't required for you this week. I've had days that required this action and its accompanying, lovely word. I know for some of you the provocation is generally technological in nature. The definition I'm using for this is a formal humorous one, and it is not limited to people-- this action can be done to any manner of item.

May your tech behave itself for you this week.

Blessings,
LL~








This week's word is: DEFENESTRATION

Used in a sentence: Susie's defenestration of Dave was brief, and he laughed when he landed in the pile of leaves she had prepared to cushion the ground-floor fall.

Word of the Week: CLINOMANIA

Hi, again. I hope you are having an excellent week.

This one is sort of related to the last one, in my mind. When the weather is brumous, it could cause this. 

I keep imagining these little story vignettes when I do the sentences. Maybe I'll use these as writing prompts from time to time. 

Blessings on your blankets, 

LL~

This week's word is: CLINOMANIA

Used in a sentence:"It's so brumous out, that my clinomania is acting up, and I don't think I'll make it to work, today," she said, hoping that her boss wouldn't care enough to check into the alibi.

Word of the Week: BRUMOUS

The thought occurs that I could do this alphabetically, so here I go.

Last week's word was apothegm. Did you use it in conversation or writing? Did you have occasion to?

This one needed to get used before the groundhog - foreshortened winter escapes us. I love winter. For many reasons, not the least of which is the opportunity to use words like this one. :)

Warmth and blessings, 

LL~

This week's word is: BRUMOUS

Used in a Sentence: The brumous day seeped through my coat and turned my thoughts to home, warm drinks, a cozy fire, and my stack of waiting books. 

Word of the Week: APOTHEGM

Recently, my aunt asked me to provide her with a new word, its definition, and to use it in a sentence. This was instigated by a phone call that my husband and I shared with her and her husband, in which I used a word in a context with which they were unfamiliar. I thought it would be fun, so I agreed. Might as well put all those words to use, eh?

Ideally, I'm sending this to her by email on a weekly basis, and apparently, she sends it on to others, as well. She has an extensive email community, and email Bible study ministry, so that's a bit daunting to me, that it's getting put out there. Heh heh. The thought occurred to me that if I was going to do this, I might as well post the word to my blog, as well, so here goes nothing.

Please enjoy this word of the week, and I'll try to post these regularly. As I do, I'll add them to my series list (see tabs above).

Blessings,
LL~






This week's word is: APOTHEGM

Used in a sentence: "I grew weary of the speech, which seemed to just be one apothegm after another, with no discernible purpose."

Creative Ventures

As I mentioned yesterday, I have been in creative mode, since we've moved into the new house. Sometimes, I've even allowed that urge to take precedence over getting things unpacked, organized, put away, etc. Should I be chagrined about that?

Surprisingly (to me, anyway), much of this creativity has come out in paint. I've never been much of a painter, but it seems to be something I do these days. Part of the problem is that I can see what I want something to look like, but I don't have the technique down to get that out of my head and onto whatever it is I'm painting.

Now, I have not been exclusively paint-bound, but it has accounted for the majority of what I've done, lately. I've painted concrete, canvas, fabric, and paper. I'll show you a few of the things. Please pardon the cell-phone pictures. I don't have a good lighting/photography setup in the new house, yet. None of it is great, but there are some bits and pieces that I'm pretty proud of. It'll take some time for me to be proficient enough to do this well, though.

  

The first two projects were before we moved into the new house. My mom needed her paper towel holder repaired and repainted, which I did, though I didn't take a picture of it. And my aunt was getting rid of a concrete garden frog that she no longer wanted.

I took him off her hands, and took him home. He was just bare concrete, and I didn't take any before or during pictures. Wish I had, now. I had originally used some yellow paint that couldn't stand up to the elements, and it washed off the first time he got wet. I have since redone his belly (much better) with the proper type of paint, and he's clear coated and everything. He lives on my front porch and greets visitors with his big grin.



I was surprised to be invited to join a friend of mine at her painting class, on 6/30. When I got there, I found out that it was watercolor painting, which, elementary school aside, I've not done. I didn't have any supplies with me, or for that matter at all. Except paint brushes. I have tons of cheap paint brushes that I've bought over the years for various craft projects. At the class, my friend handed me some supplies, pointed me toward a stack of "inspiration" pictures, and told me to get started. That was very humorous to me, since I had no clue what I was doing. But, I did as I was told, and wound up with something that, while not great, I'm not too ashamed of.

I think someone said these are plumeria. Is that right?
Not too lousy for a first attempt at a new medium
without any instruction, eh?

I'm continuing to attend the painting group with my friend, and I'm working on quite a few other things at home, too.

Since my handsome husband and I are both nerds, I have been trying to figure out how to add elements of the nerdtastic to our home decor. Our lovely new abode is a 105-year-old stately old lady of a home. I truly want to do her justice, and therefore I am feeling somewhat torn between keeping everything true to her era origins and the reality of the fact that houses change to accommodate the years. Fortunately for me (and her), she feels like the sort of house that morphs into what her family needs her to be. She's not SO Victorian that it seems impudent to do anything non-Victorian. She's not fancy, but she is stately.

Another watercolor attempt. 

Due to the alterations to our budget, both by my layoff and by virtue of the move, I am doing my best to not purchase decor for our house. That leaves me three options. The first is to not decorate, leaving holes for things I can purchase as I budget accordingly. The second is to make do with what I have and pretend that it's fine. The third is to make, preferably with supplies I already have, anything I need to use as decor. Truthfully, I'm doing all three. There are things that I'm leaving holes for, until I have them made or bought. I am making do with what I have (read as "no new furniture or shopping sprees"), though not pretending that it's fine. And I am creating. Oh, so much creating. :)

One of the things I've done lately was to paint a few nerdy items to add to our decor. Still to come on the nerd-front are some needlepoint/embroidery pieces, which feel era-appropriate to me, while still making space for my inner geekdom. Smile.

I have long planned to do a post about fandoms and creativity and how that intersects with faith, specifically Christianity and the Judeo-Christian God. Hold tight on that. I will get to it. It might go on Choosing Holiness instead of here, but I will write it. I am writing it. It's just not finished yet.

My nod to the TARDIS. Attempted
watercolor on canvas. Not great.
Not horrible. 

Anyhoo, we are participants in multiple fandoms, as well as being Christians. Some of them are Firefly/Serenity, Star Trek, Doctor Who, Discworld (me), Star Wars (my husband), Stargate, Lord of the Rings/Hobbit, Narnia, Sherlock, etc. So, it's only natural that some of these things creep into our surroundings. They make us smile (and cry and scream and sigh and laugh and stuff...), and they point us back to our infinitely creative God in their own ways.

I have started several projects, not pictured here, and have planned several others in great detail. But these two I did before I learned enough about watercolor to know that I couldn't do them. Well, at least not the way that I went about them. Heh heh. Funny how things get done when you don't know that they can't be done. Now, admittedly, there are things that I could have done to make them turn out better, had I some of the technique information that is now at my disposal, but for creating out of sheer ignorance, I'm not too upset. I will probably either do some more work on or entirely redo the TARDIS picture at some point in the near future. I wasn't thrilled about how the sky under the clouds turned out, and that's one of those technique things that might turn out better if I knew what I was doing.

This little dragon is from the Discworld series (by Sir Terry Pratchett). His name is Errol, and his original artist is Paul Kidby, who is the official artist for Sir Terry's work. My apologies to Mr. Kidby, but I love his artwork and this is one of those "sincerest form of flattery" things. I'm pleased with how this one turned out. Kidby has done some really great Discworld art, and there are many pieces that I'd like to use for practice in developing this skill set. Now all I need to do is some sort of protective clear coat to prevent Errol from being damaged.

I'll prepare some other posts for some of the other projects I've been doing. Right now, my Pinterest boards are burgeoning with ideas for various things, for my home, to develop talents and skills, and to figure out how to make some additional income. (More on the income topic is coming soon, too. See? I told you my brain is bristling with blog post plans...)


Much love,
LL~