Wednesday, October 27, 2010

Dear Sephora.....

Trend: Glitter. Get party perfect with bright liners, shadows, and wearable gems. new . exclusive . limited edition . ships for free. Urban Decay Beauty in a Box ($91 Value), $52 > If I wanted to go blind from over-glitterization, I would. But since I don't, please quit trying to make me "try out a new look." I'm not twelve, I'm not a drag queen, and I'm not planning to head out to a rave anytime in the next...lifetime. So...stop sending me ads for makeup looks that make absolutely no sense to a normal woman.

Thank you.

Thursday, October 21, 2010

Updates, Hamwatch 2010, and A Few Introductions

Where the heck have I been for the last few weeks? Well, heck, I've been busy! What with my annual year-end planning drawing near, my new relationship with Business.com, and an upcoming product launch, I've had a lot going on. And as much as I love blogging about the fun, more personal stuff, something had to give.

Today, I'd like to share what's happened with my favorite furballs, introduce you to our new permanent residents, and get back in the swing of things.

So where to begin? Well, sad news first: Abe has not returned. I hold out hope that he's still in the house, maybe living off whatever the heck the mice live on when they find their way into the house. Yesterday I found an adult hamster-sized dropping near a bookcase on the first floor, and I got really excited, thinking Abe was still around, we just hadn't found him yet. But then I remembered Willa had spent some time running around in her clear plastic ball downstairs recently, so it might've been from her, but...I kinda have a little hope that my sweet little furry Abe is still running around after all.

HamWatch2010:
The hamster babies before they
headed to the pet store.
We took most of the hamster babies to the pet store last week. Leo and I just loved the experience of watching the babies grow up, and the pet store said they'll take whatever babies we end up with. So we now have two couples and Willa.

Willa has her own space and spends most evenings touring the house in her clear plastic hamster ball, and seems to have a wonderful time exploring. We even took her to my dad's house to check things out, and she wasn't even remotely bothered by their three cats, who didn't quite know what to make of Willa, safely ensconced in her clear plastic.
 
Introductions:
The Smiths:
Mr. and Mrs. Lucky Smith
There was one hamster we knew we were keeping from the second week, when we were finally able to see the babies. One hamster was born with only three feet. He was always able to keep up with the others, and didn't seem at all troubled. Early on, everyone was calling him "Lucky," which I didn't love, but it stuck. So I gave him a  fancy last name and now his name is officially Lucky Smith. Lucky is a black hamster, and I think he'll be a longhaired hamster like Abe was. Lucky spends his days with Mrs. Lucky Smith, a little blonde hamster who doesn't yet have a first name, but is quite a climber. I have a feeling we'll have to keep our eye on her, as she might be an escape artist.


The Nancys:
Mr. and Mrs. Ned Nancy
Another baby I wanted to keep was a blonde hamster who was super-friendly and seemed to really enjoy when I picked him up and patted him on the head. I'd marked his belly with a dot from a Sharpie to make sure I could easily locate him, and I named him Ned Nancy. Ned's mate is a  little black hamster who also doesn't have a name yet. I suspect we'll come up with the names for our little ladies soon, but for now, this one's just "Mrs. Ned Nancy." She's a huge fan of Cheerios. That much I know for sure.

So we have three aquariums in the office now, and frankly, it makes my workday even more fun, because now that they're adults, they're mostly nocturnal, but every once in awhile, a hamster will wake up and walk around sleepily, and I can sneak in a little cuddle before they head back to bed. And on days when I work late, I finish around the time when they wake up. I do promise more and better photos in the future.

I never imagined I'd have five hamsters and be in the business of raising hamster babies (LOL, we made a whopping $12 on the litter we took to the pet store), and I'm really surprised at how much fun I'm having. Of course, I do have a sneaking suspicion that my enjoyment may be tied to a quietly ticking biological clock. We'll see where that goes. :)

So that's the big HamWatch news. In other news, Leo and I are contemplating where we're going to spend Christmas this year, I'm still trying to find the perfect time to microwaving a baked potato (and wondering if it can still be called a "baked" potato if it's been nuked), and in the rare free moments, knitting my first pair of socks of the season while making my way through the first season of Murder One on Hulu.Stay tuned...more to come.