since monday:

got a gorgeous bouquet from old dog haven. which they got from beach bouquets - they do a nice job. also got a new old sheltie from old dog haven. well, from the shelter in olympia via odh. she's a beautiful little girl, except for what looks like stick-in teeth from a halloween shop. they are nasty, filthy, stinky, dark, and sticking in multiple directions with gaps in between. eeeeeew. since she's a dainty, petite little dewdrop, but her "overbite is an understatement" her new name is connie conundrum. i'll probably drop the conundrum part after her teeth get fixed. which might be tuesday. (please please please).
cracked and bought water and more laundry detergent. got a drink and did laundry.
packed enough stuff that i had to open two boxes today to get out stuff i needed...
finished painting the ceiling (finally!!!)
spent lots of quality kitty time. found lots of little owies - hobbes and balloon don't just wrestle i guess. they've been doing some nipping and slapping. so i trimmed some toenails and gave them a talking to. not that it'll work, what with them being cats and all, but hey.
worked and worked - i've kept my desk majoritarily (hee hee - new jumbleword!) cleaned off the last couple of weeks. it's been easier than i thought it would, and very, very nice. i can actually find stuff and get things done in a timely manner... who'da thunk?
went to the zoo yesterday! we were invited to tour their animal hospital, and (of course) said yes in an excited manner. we crammed the boss' car with staff and set off pretty early in the morning. sang a bit and laughed a lot in the car on the way up (someone has a droid phone with multiple fart functions - how could we not laugh until we nearly peed our pants?). toured the hospital and saw how they do things. then got into the zoo for free. even got to leave the car in the employee lot. yay - no parking fee! had a nice long day in the sun, with some shade and drinking fountains and handfulls of wild huckleberries. saw some awesome critters - the african wild dogs were out and about, and the great apes were very accomodating, making faces and kids and all that. we saw komodo dragons and a king cobra, and about a bajillion brazillian cockroaches (say that ten times fast - i dare ya!). all in all a very fun excursion.
then went to elmer's for lunch/dinner. YUM!!! try grilled swiss cheese, tomato, grilled walla wallas and avocado sandwich! and nearly five beverage refills. i guess that day in the sun made me thirsty...
after the fabulous meal, we went on to summit referral and emergency medical center to see their hospital. amazing! the doctor on shift was able to give us a tour. she's showing off thier ultrasound equipment and our staff got all excited about the over-the-door shoe holder they use to organize endotracheal tubes. ("wow!" "hey guys, check this out" "this is so awesome - we need to get one of these!"). it was nice to see the place and meet the people we've heard such awesome stuff about. i'm pretty sure that, based on the experience, we'll keep sending our specialist referrals their way.
also this week - getting excited for romania - now less than four weeks away. how am i ever going to get everything done in time? i'm supposed to move! if the bank comes through for me and/or if i can get alternate financing. and if they finish building! the place isn't done yet! and i was supposed to close on thursday. but now, well, kind of in a bind what with already having given the bank that owns this place a notice of my intent to vacate... what does one do? i think i'll call the bank, but i'd rather do it after i hear back from my bank about if/when i can expect to really move, pending that construction gets done. i think they're still just putting in cabinets and hardware... so pending, pending, pending, and then maybe pending that i'll get some relief.
just in time to finish packing, move, unpack, and leave the country. for two weeks. to somewhere i don't even know any of the language (in nicaragua at least i knew "hola", "bueno", and "habla poqiutito espanol"). and then stop in amsterdam for some fun on the way back.
and then get to know the new dog all over again - if i still have her by then. if she's as healthy as i think she is, she ought to get adopted out quick!

goals for the end of the year:
be moved in, unpacked, sorted out, decorated, and no longer ridiculously behind on laundry. this may necessitate getting rid of some clothes, as i generally store large quantities in the hamper.
replace the digital camera.
make huckleberry cookies at least once before they're all gone.
build a fire pit. use it.
chop down scrub and dig out a garden. mulch said garden with poo from the stables.
get the cattery built.
learn the lines to and not mess up too badly on either play.
get signed up for dog training certification.
save a couple hundred bucks.
finally get the car's brakes worked on.
maybe even the speedometer fixed.
decorate for christmas? recognize at least the existence of a holiday?
and whatever other billion random things come my way.

bring it on, world! i got my cocoa today, and i am soooooo ready to mix it up (multiple meanings there)!