Crash and Burn

So you wanna know what happens after a
fantastic manic episode?
You CRASH AND BURN, that's what you do,
you crash and burn.
I was still going strong last night at 12:30.
Decided I had to go to bed, still awake by 2:30.
Up for the day by 5:00.
And you know what greeted me?
No, not the gentle coo of Morning Doves.
A freakin' migraine.
Not a knock down, drag out headache.
Just enough to make me hate my life.
I was a bitch today, and a cranky one at that.
Well, there's always tomorrow.
Tomorrow and Xanax.

MANIC

There is an up side to living life as a depressed person.
Yes, I suffer from depression and have since I was a kid.
No, not the -
-"stay in bed all day thinking of how to kill myself"
kind of depression.
But the -
- "I'm sad and anxious but my friends would never know it"
kind of depression.
It's just a chemical imbalance that is not my fault.
Just lucky I guess. I know how to deal with it and I do.
Anyway, there is an upside. It's called MANIA!
I think I've had 3 manic episodes in my life and they weren't
Lifetime Movie manic episodes. Just big bursts of energy lasting
the whole day. Frankly, I'd love to have more of them.
Well, today was a manic day and I LOVED IT!
I cleaned my house. Really cleaned it. A big clean.
I folded laundry.
Made 3 entries on my blog.
Took pics.
I made Spanikopita (see below)
I worked on a scrapbook project.
I ran to the grocery store.
I then made a fabulous new dinner.
This is Chicken Marbella:

It's chicken with....get this.......
-prunes
-olives
-capers
-brown sugar
-cilantro
I know. Who the hell would think of throwing those things together??
I saw this in the Silver Palate Cookbook years ago and just ran across it recently.
Thought I'd give it a try AND invite my folks over to try this new dish.
I told them I'd keep the pizza place # close by just in case, but it wasn't necessary.
This was so delicious!
Here is a close up.

Hmmmm, the close up doesn't look all that appetizing, does it?
Well, trust me, this is so great! Very savory.
If anyone is interested in the recipe, let me know and I'll send it to you.
So, it is now almost 10pm, I'm not the least bit tired, sitting at
my work space ready to finish my project.
Wonder how I'll feel tomorrow.

Just call me Kerryopolis!

I am so impressed with myself!
I just made Spanikopita.
(Greek Spinach Pie)
I got the recipe from Jen, my art teacher.
It's her husband's family recipe and I cannot
share it or they will hunt me down and kill me.
Check this out:

I took it upon myself to cut the recipe in half because
it looked like a huge undertaking. Now that I've done it,
I'll make the whole recipe next time.
As you can see, it could use more filling in there.

This was also the first time I'd ever worked with phyllo dough.
I need more olive oil next time as it's very "crunchy" and I
also have to tuck the sides in when I'm finished.

but you know what...it was really good!!

Smile!

I have a fantastic camera.
I have a Rebel.

Isn't it beautiful?
I also have an additional super duper lens and
if I wasn't on my first cup of joe, I'd know what
kind it was or at least get up and take a look.
All I can tell you is that it's very phallic looking
and takes great close up shots.
Anyway - I have this terrific equipment and guess what?
I NEVER take pics anymore.
I used to take so many that Dylan wouldn't even smile.
I have all these scrapbooking plans for mini albums
but NO PICS to put in them.
What is wrong with me???!!!!
I think....that from now on....I'm going to carry
my camera around with me and make a point of taking
interesting shots, with or without people.
Maybe I'll have Photo Thursday on here, where I'll
post a shot each Thursday.
(you know I'll never do that, right?)
Ok, I can dream,lol.

Yeah, still here.

I have cyber friends.
A bunch of you guys emailed me to see if I was ok.
Wow! Thanks so much.
Yeah, I'm still here.
I'm fine, just blah I guess.
I didn't think I had anything FABULOUS
to say, but as I look back over the week
I see that I'm wrong.

Paul has been sick for 2 weeks.
He thought he had either
- a cold
- TB
- mesothelioma-it's a lung disease that the 9/11 first responders are now developing.
- (No, Paul was not a first responder)
He went to the doctor.
He has a post nasal drip.

Dylan hurt his thumb Monday night at Scouts.
He was helping someone put something in their car
when the door to the rear cab thing flew open and
banged his finger. He said it really hurt but there
was no bruising, no swelling. I gave him some ice
and that was it.
In the morning, he said it still hurt, so Paul and I decided
to take him to the hospital...just in case.
Hello - broken finger!

And as for me.....
nothing exciting.
I'm tired.
I'm PMS ing. That's it.
I'll be back to my old self next week, lol.

If you made it to this point in this very
dull entry, then kudos to you!
Thank you.
Stay tuned.
It will get better.
I promise.

Friday Night

Paul is in the city.
Dylan is at the Mets game cheering for the Phillies.
I'm home ALONE!!!!
I'm sitting at my work/mess space
listening to the Wicked CD, singing along,
working on top secret projects for Worldwin Paper.
-oh, and I have a migraine.
I think it's going to be a bad one. I've taken all
the "first round" pills I can take.
I'm going to pull out the big guns before I go to bed.
Until then, I'm trying not to think about it.
I'm having too much fun singing and working.

Relief!

The weather gods must have heard me.
Today was beautiful!
Low 70's, breezy, low humidity!
More tomorrow!!!!

Freakin' Humidity!

I CANNOT TAKE IT ANYMORE!
When did I move to Florida? (sorry Milissa)
NY has become a tropical rain forest.
My curls are NOT happy.
Neither am I.
Things had better change - and fast.
If not, I cannot be held accountable for my actions.
Got it?

Back To School

Dylan and I went back to school on Thursday.
Here he is:


I can't get over how grown up he looks.
This is where I work, the art room
The view from my desk:

This is my desk, over in the corner. It looks a little sad right now. I don't have any of my "stuff" on it yet.

Jen's desk.

The drying rack and all the markers, glue and colored masking tape a girl could ask for!

Yummy paint. Doesn't everyhing look great - all in rainbow order? I am NOT going to let the kids paint this year. It just looks too good.

Tools. We have every type of paint brush you could imagine, but remember, I'm not letting the kids paint because the new paints look so good!

The kids LOVE this table. 12 shades of Playdoh, Etch-a-Sketch, popsicle sticks, pipe cleaners, beads, foam shapes, masking tape. You name it!

Each grade gets to paint a ceiling tile at the end of the year. It represents something they learned in art. So cool.

A Monet tile.

Light table, lots of construction paper and tissue paper - rainbow order of course!

I love my job.

"Annie, Annie, are you okay?"

We had CPR/AED training at school today.
I haven't taken it since Dylan was a baby and
I've never taken AED training (defribillator).
The course was very well taught, I feel I'm
ready for anything.
I also discoverd something....
If I sense that I may have a heart attack,
or choke on my lunch, there are some teachers
that I now know to stay away from. I'd rather die
with dignity than let these goofballs touch me.
Here is an actual converstaion that went on between
a teacher and one of the CPR people:

"What if he gets all fussy when I'm doing CPR?"
-"Then he doesn't need it."
"What if he tries to push me away while I'm doing CPR?"
-"Then he doesn't need it."
"What if he tries to talk while I'm trying to do CPR?"
-"THEN HE DOESN'T NEED IT!!!! HE'S ALIVE! LEAVE THE POOR GUY ALONE!!!"

Been Busy

I've been busy, take a look.



The frame is a lift from Gift Maker Mag.
The clipboard is great, love it. I'm going to do more.
The tea bags are so cute!

WOW to the MAX!!!!

WHOA!
Just tried this.
It has lots of caffeine and some ginsing.
WOW.
My heart was racing, I was buzzing!
Love it!
(if I'm not here tomorrow, I my heart exploded)