Toothache gone...so is tooth. =(

I got one of my back teeth extracted on Tuesday cause it was causing alot of pain. Sadly, I had to have it removed because almost the whole tooth was one of those old metal fillings that was only decaying so they had to remove it. After I got home I pretty much couldn't focus on anything cause the pain was just bugging me, not really agonizing pain but just an annoying pain, almost just like having a toothache again. Tonite is much better, I can actually focus on some stuff I need to get done, thank God.

In other news, my laptop has been unable to connect to my wireless. Mainly, it can't find my IP address or something like that and it's been so annoying! So I just totally disconnected it and resorted to using the desktop for now. Hopefully I'll get some answers regarding that soon. It was so convenient being able to move around the apt. and going online. Ho-hum.

I got to sleep in this morning a little cause I had to change out some lettering at Golden Spoon here in Chino at 9:30am, which was very nice. :) But actually, since last week I've been getting to bed earlier and getting up earlier, about 5:30am. That's been my prayer for so long -to end that bad, bad habit of staying up so late! I think the Lord has been working to make that happen, cause I admire people in my life who are able to wake up early, and I just love it when I have the opportunity to be up early and it's cool and fresh in the air. So I think the Lord recently put on my heart, 'If you enjoy the mornings so much, then change your thinking: desire to be up early rather than desiring to stay up late. Instead of enjoying the night, enjoy the morning!' When that sunk in, I took action and made it happen! And I'm continuing to make it happen with prayer and diligence. Yes it can still be a challenge, but I'm going to change this around once and for all cause I'm so tired of this old habit. Plus I hate having to cringe whenever some event is early in the morning or they ask me to come in early. I don't want to cringe...I want to invite it. So far, so good.

I also just recently signed up to be someone's prayer partner for The Call at CCCH, and in a nutshell, it became more of a blessing than I would have ever thought! We're both designers and creatives and want to do so much with it, so we're going to lay down some idears and see what happens. But yes, I'm very excited to see what the Lord may do with this new friendship we have and the ideas that are floating around up there. Thank you Lord! :)

Ahhh, now on to getting some bills in order, then on to bed. Nite =)

In other words...tights!

Fashion insiders claim this model's outfit from the waist down is the must-have for men. Wha? Are you freakin' kiddin' me?? a must-have? Oh my! Yes, I must have these new trend-setting leggings! Forget the sweat pants...I want some tight fitting leggings man! I gotta just have 'em you know, cause, after all, it's from a woman designer who knows what men want! lol Yes, Castiglioni, one of several 'smart' women setting the fashion agenda in Milan, has decided that this is the new trend setting fashion for men. Well Casti, I hate to break it to you but, this may be the big trend in Milan, Italy, where the culture and fashion sense for men have been more feminine and sleek (no offense guys), but here in America the opposite is true: men definitely want more masculine-looking outfits. I might say maybe among more contemporary men or even queers (I can say that right?) that may be the case, but among most middle class men...I don't think so. Although, funny enough, I do see somewhat of a small trend of sleeker-type pants among the punk/gothic crowd, so hey, that might be your market right there! lol

As for me, I'm doing just fine with my nice, comfortable sweat pants. They fit comfortably and perfectly and on cold nights do just the trick to warm me up. Besides, I don't know if it's just me or if this is true with all men but, I can't stand shirts or pants that are too clingy or tight. I get extremely fussy when my clothes are too tight. And as far as leggings, the only time I've ever worn tight leggings of any kind were when I used to work out years back, and those were men's tights/shorts or whatever they're called.. But in more recent times I've just worn shorts, which are just fine with me.

Anyhow...we just celebrated my brother's birthday today. It was actually yesterday but his girlfriend took him out that day, so my mom, me and Isaiah spent the day with him today, mainly at home because he was actually sick. Poor bro. Hope he feels better. It was kind of nice, actually just staying in for a bit, cause I'm usually just rarin' to get out! So we sat and watched Star Wars 3 and just relaxed.

I also just finished my MIS class last Thursday so I have some time off until my next class, which should start next month, most likely Literature class. I'm hoping to concentrate a little on my business and some personal reading. Speaking of that, I need to send my CRC's tonight, then probably get to bed. Yes, I NEED to start getting to bed earlier. Of course, I've been saying that for the past...hmmm...long time. Looong time. But I just can't seem to break that darned habit of staying up late and thinking I can get by on 5-6 hrs of sleep. But that's the thing: I need to get realistic and stop thinking I can do it when I CAN'T! My body keeps telling me I need more but i guess I'm too stubborn and unrealistic to listen to it. But I know when I need to stop living in lala land and get real so, I will go ahead and wrap this up!

As a quick side note, the Lord is doing amazing things to help me stick to my debt reduction plan! I've gotten help from both my mom and brother with some car issues, which would have really set me back, and been able to pay off Sprint and catch up on an overdue creditcard! In the past it's been things like car problems or other problems that have kept me trapped in debt. But the good Lord has kept me on track and things are going perfectly. Thank you Lord! =)

In Memory of Shadow

Last Friday, January 5th, we took Shadow to the vet to get an x-ray of his jaw. We noticed something wrong with him when he wasn't closing his mouth all the way, as if he couldn't breathe through his nose correctly or as if he had a cold. We finally took him in and got some blood samples and such, got some antibiotics to help in case of any infection and brought him back. He seemed to be getting better, but after about a week, we noticed he was getting worse. He seemed very picky about what he wanted to eat, and I observed that he wasn't eating quite right either and acting kind of bratty. I told my mom 'something is really wrong with him!' That's when she decided to get those x-rays, which was about the same time the vet told us to come back. Well it didn't look good at all. He told us he had a tumor on his jaw that had already caused alot of deterioration, which confirmed why he wasn't eating right. He said at this point, there wasn't much he could do, and advised putting him to sleep. It was a hard call, but my mom, who was with him at that time, decided it was best. So she spent a little time with him before she said goodbye (he was still trying to wake up from the anasthesia and not fully aware). Then they took him, and layed him to rest. =(

It's still sad to even write this, cause he was a part of our family so to speak. We had him for over 10 years and have so many memories of him. We had him since he was a baby. I even remember feeding him with a small bottle! lol I've never had a pet put to sleep, neither had my mom. When I got home that day, my mom had just gotten there, too, and she was very broken up about it. She said she was glad I got home when I did. Well, I'm glad I got to be there for her. I was a little broken up myself hearing the news. Even today I still think of him from time to time and get a little broken up because like I said, we had him for so long and it takes time to forget that he's no longer around when you get home, or when you leave, or even when you're just walking around the apartment! Sometimes I even make a 'tsk tsk' sound just because I was so used to doing that with him, even though he's gone. It can be sad, but it's actually healing.

I don't think we'll get another cat too soon. I think it will take time. I think for now we still think of Shadow as almost being around. In time I'm sure my mom will, since in time I'm not sure where I'll be, whether still here or out of the house. Well see. Even today I was going through some of the pics of him in my computer. That's where I found this one. I definitely want to print these and put them into my photo album. I have a nice black one that I started pretty recently. I think those can still be valuable and easily accessible. I couldn't think of just storing them all in my computer or drive and that's it! It's not very practical to me if you or someone else just wants to browse through your photos. I think of the pics on my computer as more of a storage device for them, not a 'picture time' moment thing, unless it's just me, of course.

Anyhow, I will definitely miss our little guy. He was a part of us for quite some time. I don't know exactly where he is, but I hope that he is at rest with the Lord even as we will be soon! The Lord knows that he was with us and that we took care of His creature. I pray that for all that, there is something special awaiting us that will bring much joy!

I will miss you Shadow. I will always remember you my little friend. =)

Made my Nite =)

I got a nice surprise ending to my nite. I got to see some Pseudo Echo videos!! yes! I thought it was so awesome watching videos I haven't seen in like 20 yrs!

Yes, I'm still living in the 80's. lol =)

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=k7B7GRlmE4M