It's snowing.

Don't talk to me.





No, for real. Don't.





Okay, fine... but just for a second. I have a lot of work to do.


Last night, Andrew tried to put toilet water in my glass of water on the night stand.

Then we had a fight.

Then I fell asleep and we woke up friends.

I think we are a strange pair. But it works.


P.S. Snow is dumb and for babies*

*Shout out, @sarah2kforever

Call me in six months...

My neurologist's office just called and said they want to follow up with my B12 levels in six months. Um... I WANT TO FEEL BETTER NOW. HOW BOUT WE FOLLOW UP NOW, BITCH?

Okay, sorry. I'm grumpy.

In other news, Andrew told me a few nights ago that when we first started dating he actually thought I wore a diaper. Something about him giving me a playful smack on the tush and hearing/feeling "a smooshy diaper."

Hey men, there's this feminine hygiene product out there. I think it is called "a pad." Check 'em out before your assume your girlfriend soils herself.

Thanks for tuning in!

I'm going to beat that groundhog to a pulp

Just kidding PETA... heh... NO BUT SERIOUSLY! I thought it was supposed to be spring now? We've "sprung ahead" with our clocks and all that jazz and busted out our spring wardrobes... so what gives? I'm sporting my winter coat for the second day in a row since our 70 degree weekend. Sad face.

Speaking of beating up animals... did you see this? Are you going to click on that link or what!? No!? Fine. I don't care if you read about ninja kangaroos or not. I'm just trying to help.

(Sorry, I'm a little grumpy today.)

In other news... have you watched episode three of Cooking Thyme With Andrew?

No? You didn't? Why not!? Just kidding. I don't care.

Get off my lawn!

Snap Snap: A Friday Spoken Word Performance

Okay, not exactly "spoken" but if you read this aloud, I'm sure your coworkers will swoon with delight.

A Poem By Andrew (received via e-mail at 10:15 a.m. Friday)

I heart you, it's true
More than new shoes
Or nothing to do
Or a trip to the zoo.

You're very fine
Like gross French boxed wine
Or a theme park with no lines
Or a pet walrus that's mine.

I like you.

snap snap

Don't print this blog unless you really need to*

The following statements are 100% true and Mermanda-approved. 1. In the five issues of The Printed Blog to date, there is definitely a total of EIGHT BOOBS and possibly a NINTH--depending on your definition of the word "boob." That's a lot of boobs. Possibly many more boobs than necessary. But I'll leave that up to you to judge. Are 8-9 boobs too many? Not enough? Answer below. 2. Andrew has a new blog. It's a cooking blog. I'd recommend you watch his video if any of the following apply to you: you are bored, you like to cook, you enjoy watching weird people on the Internet, you want to hear me sing a duet with Andrew. Go watch. I'll wait. 3. There is SOMETHING WEIRD on my blog! Get it off! Kill it! I knew I shouldn't have left the bamboo on my blog overnight. Crap. [Want to see something cool? Drag the bottom right corner of the browser up towards the top left corner of the screen. Mind blowing, right?] 4. Twitter makes me have weird dreams about yogurt. 5. When Hillary and I hit the lottery in our respective countries, we will purchase and wear matching monocles. 6. I have a hell of a time trying to spell monocle. I swear there should be another letter between the c and l. Jeeze. 7. I'm on page 516 of New Moon and back in love with Edward. Dammit. 8. I will buy Drew a beer if he fixes my ibook. If he doesn't, I will buy MYSELF a beer. And cry. And then dry my eyes and get my butt to the Apple Store and buy a shiny new Macbook. Happy Day! (Ok, but for real, Drew, please fix it. Kthxbai.) 9. If you are one of those people who hate learning the dirty truth about "reality tv" now is the time to skip to number 10. I know someone who was on an episode of HGTV's Property Virgins. One of my favorite shows, okay, kids? I worship Sandra. I can recognize her voice from another room as easily as the voice of my own mother. But I have some bad news for everyone. That show is a sham! (HGTV, I will take this off my blog in exchange for casting me on one of your shows. Thanks.) The woman and her husband on this particular episode already owned the house they were "seeing for the first time" on the show. It's freaking pretend! I HATE YOU, SANDRA. I HATE YOU. 10. I added this little thing to the bottom of my work e-mail signature: "Please don't print this e-mail unless you really need to." Now tell me, if you saw that on the bottom of someone's signature, would your reaction be: "What a little snobby jerkface! I'm printing this thing right this second to show her who is boss!" Or more along the lines of this: "She treasures our natural resources. She's nice." Tell me. Please. Don't hold back. I can take it. *Title refers to #10--not #1. I'm among the small army of bloggers who've granted permission for The Printed Blog to use our work.

TGIF

Work is busy. Wedding planning is soul sucking. House hunting is growing to be painful and annoying.

I am thankful I have a job. I am thankful I found the love of my life. I am thankful I have the means to afford a house.

Sometimes you just have to slap some sense into yourself. Especially after a week like this one.

Thank you for all you Twitter followers/friends who kept my mom in your prayers this week. She was taken to the ER in an ambulance with chest pains at 2 a.m. on Thursday. After receiving a very scary call from my sister in the dead of the night, Andrew offered to drive me to the hospital. (I was too shaken up to drive.)

We were directed to my mom's room in the ER. I cautiously pulled back the curtain and was relieved to see her sitting up in bed and smiling to see me.

"This is my daughter," she introduced me to her doctor. "And this is my future son-in-law," she motioned towards Andrew, still smiling.

I leaned forward to kiss her cheek, my bottom lip trembling. "You scared me!"

"I'm okay," she said. "I decided to not be stupid and get checked out. Just in case."

My parents didn't even realize my sister had called me and were sorry that we made the trip to the hospital in the middle of the night.

I was just relieved that my mom was okay.

The doctors aren't completely sure what caused the episode, but it could be as simple as the fact that she forgot to take her high blood pressure medication earlier that day. They decided to keep her for a few days, and she should be discharged this afternoon.

Much love to this little community. You're all amazing.

xo

He's back on the wagon, folks

Check out the latest installment of this idiot's Andrew's blog. Don't forget to enter his contest!

Bye-Bye #47, Hello Bloggers

Though the big 20 Something Bloggers meetup isn't until the end of June, I am already crossing off #47 on my list--attend a blogger meetup. This weekend, Jenn, Maxie, and Deutlich traveled to the Burgh to spend Saturday with local bloggers Angela, Drew, Andrea, and Mermanda (me, duh.) Us bloggers and special guest Andrew enjoyed a cozy lunch at Buca di Beppo, where we practically had the place to ourselves. (Good thing, because bloggers are a chatty bunch when we get together! Shocked? Me neither.) Photo by Deutlich After stuffing our respective faces with lasagna, chicken saltimbocca, and other various Italian nom noms, we embarked upon a fruitless search for redbull to refuel thy tired and hungover blogging folk. Unable to settle for inferior energy drink imposters such as Amp and Monster, we sought our sights upon Starbucks, where caffiene flows like the Nile. Properly "juiced," bloggers walked to the Monongahela Incline to give the out of towners a proper view of the Pittsburgh skyline. Maxie read a sign that claimed the weight limit of the incline to be eight occupants per seating section--a total of 24 passengers per car. She wondered what the real limit was, and proposed an experiment. Not wanting to die at the hands of a curious blogger, we all respectfully declined our chance to be part of a Very Scientific Study. Maybe next time, Maxie, dear. That evening, we headed to Kaya for Latin American, Southeast Asian, and Caribbean-inspired grub and deliciously fruity drinks. Mmmmm.... Sangria! There was lots of polite dinner conversation--I swear the word "balls" was used less than a dozen times. And lots of laughs. I'm so glad we were all able to get together! My first blogger meetup a smashing success. It didn't end there, though... Andrew and I took in a few strays named Deutlich and Maxie for the night. After a good night's rest, Andrew cooked us all breakfast, which we enjoyed over some Backstreet Boys. Our guests then headed home with full bellies and stacks of The Printed Blog, which Jenn lovingly bestowed upon all of the bloggers after lunch.

RAYGE

Background information: Facebook ruined Andrew's plans to surprise me with Ray LaMontagne tickets by sending me an e-mail from the iLike application--alerting me of the show.

Me: Ray LaMontagne is coming to Pittsburgh!!! We have to go!
Andrew: Dammit! You weren't supposed to know that! Now what am I supposed to get you for Valentine's Day?
Me: You sure as hell still better buy me those tickets, you idiot!
(We love each other.)

I received this e-mail from him this morning:

Subject: GAHHHHH BAH GRRRRRRRR!
From: Andrew

I'M SO [BLEEP] MADDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDD!

The Ray Lamontagne tickets were supposed to go on sale tomorrow at 10 [BLEEP] A.M. so I went to the theater's site today to make sure that they were going to be up tomorrow and everything and I discovered that THEY HAVE ALREADY BEEN ON SALE SOMEHOW. I HAVE NEVER BEEN MADDER IN MY ENTIRE LIFE. Every single goddamn seat that is good seems to be sold already. I WANT TO PUNCH SOMEBODY IN THEIR FACE! [BLEEP]! AND THEN! AND THENNNNNNNNN! I TRIED TO PURCHASE WHAT SEEMED LIKE DECENT SEATS IN THE BALCONY, BUT THEY HAVE LITTLE STUPID ROWS OF 3!!!! 3! WHAT THE [BLEEP] IS A ROW OF THREEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEE????? YOU AREN'T ALLOWED TO BUY ONLY TWO TICKETS IN THE ROWS OF 3 BECAUSE THAT LEAVES ONLY ONE SEAT LEFT FOR SOME ASSSSSSSSSSSSHOOOOOOOOLLLLLLE. AMANDA I'M GOING TO MURDER SOMEONE. MUR-DER THEM!

Tell me what you want me to do. There are seats available in the LOGE section, which is theater code for [BLEEP] [BLEEP] SEATS. They are all the [BLEEP] way back on the floor like pretty much in the [BLEEP] LOBBBBBY. THERE ARE ALSO some seats open in the balcony or other terrible places. [BLEEP] A. I'm really sorry about this, I was so [BLEEP] EXCITED to get you amazing seats up by the stage. I had the [BLEEP] THING bookmarked and an email reminder set so I would be the first person to buy them tomorrow morning. I HATE MYSELF. And I HATE THE PALACE THEATER.

The way I see it there are two options:
1. Buy shitty tickets and boo really loudly the whole time we're there.
2. Kill someone.
3. Kill everyone.

Your choice.
[BLEEP].

-Andrew

P.S. Please disregard this email. In my rage I purchased us two balcony seats that I believe will not be too terrible. If they are, I'm going to go down to the orchestra level and punch every single person sitting there IN THE FACE.

I love you! Happy Valentine's Day.

Fangs and Football

My weekend in photos: I saw Twilight. Yeah, I loved it. So what? I crossed another one off my list. My first taste of Sake.
(And probably my last. Ick.)
Welcome to the SUPER BOWL! Go Steelers! Eat 'n Park really is the place for smiles. If you aren't familiar with the Smiley cookie... you obviously aren't down with the Burgh. Nom nom nom! It was a really close game... you could cut the tension with a knife. But I don't have to tell you... I'm sure you've already heard all about SIXBURGH! Woop!

Andrew Has a Flavor: Episode 1

Here's the debut of my semi-regular feature devoted to the amusing things uttered by Andrew. Enjoy!

Andrew: Can I eat this mac and cheese? Or is it for a special occasion?

All by myself

Andrew started taking evening classes tonight--leaving me to fend for myself two nights a week. Yeah, I have to remember how to feed myself (living with a partner who cooks is something I recommend to everyone). But what else am I going to struggle with? Figuring out how to watch the new HD TV, sigh.

Andrew must have saw this coming...

I came home to find these on the coffee table:







How cute is he?

Andrew Is Fired

I'm launching a semi-regular feature on Cusp of Normal, devoted to the crazy/sexy/cool things that come out of Andrew's mouth. I asked him to help me think of names for this feature, and a ten minute g-chat brainstorm session commenced.

Among the gems that Andrew suggested:
"Things my cool [bleep] boyfriend said, [bleep]"
"WTF Andrew?"
"Really, Andrew?"
"What are you talking about?"
"What an idiot!"
"Asshole of the Year!"
"The go [bleep] yourself hour, with Andrew"
"Andrew, you so crazy!"
"Wiggity-whack tracks with Andrew"

I interrupted his streak with my own suggestion: "The Barnacle Chronicles"

After I thought of it, I told him I loved it too much to waste it on the name of a dumb feature. "The Barnacle Chronicles" should be the name of something awesome. Something Earth-Shaking. I began thinking, this should be the name of my super-secret blog. Yeah, that's when some huge IDIOT FACE sent me a link to his new super-secret blog...

Thanks, honey. This means war.

P.S. Go tell him what a naughty little fella he is!

Puke and Pride

I took yesterday off from work and my blog to take care of my sick lovebug. He's feeling much better today--so I must have done a good job. Thank the Lord for the flu shot. For me to not be all pukey and poopy (sorry, Andrew) was such a victory for my usually weak immune system. If you didn't get a flu shot (cough, Andrew, cough, cough) I don't understand you silly people. Oh, and one more thing... Heck Yeah! Photo Credit: New York Times Forget about that "elect" business. This is our country's PRESIDENT! Whoop! Whooop! Update: Could Andrew's mystery illness have been caused by... (dramatic pause) ... SALMONELLA POISONING? The world may never know.

Cracking up about crackers

Yesterday afternoon I called Andrew while he was at work. He answered his cell and said in an urgent manner, "Can I call you back in fifteen minutes?" Assuming it was some work-related crisis, I said, "Sure," And waited patiently.

He calls me back a little later and I ask him a question about wedding planning, blah blah. Fast forward to later that evening:

Andrew: "Did I tell you about our cracker eating contest? That's what we were doing when you called me earlier."

Me: "A cracker eating contest?"

Andrew: "Yeah, you know those little orange peanut butter cracker sandwiches? Well, John said it's impossible to eat six of them in a minute."

Okay, people, so picture five grown men AT WORK stuffing crackers down their gullets with stop watches keeping official time.

That's a pretty entertaining image. But then when you add this article from yesterday's Washington Post--it's FREAKING HILARIOUS!

Maker Recalls Peanut Butter As 2 More Die of Salmonella
By Sue Lindsey
ROANOKE, Jan. 14 -- A peanut butter maker that sells bulk supplies to institutions issued a nationwide recall as officials on Wednesday reported two more deaths associated with a salmonella outbreak.

Lynchburg-based Peanut Corp. of America issued the recall late Tuesday for 21 lots of peanut butter made since July 1 at its plant in Blakely, Ga., because of possible salmonella contamination. The company supplies peanut paste to Kellogg Co., which on Wednesday asked stores nationwide to pull peanut butter crackers sold under the Austin and Keebler brands.


Oh, Andrew. You little idiot. :)

EDIT: Sorry, guys. I didn't mean to leave you hanging like that. No one was able to eat six under a minute... but someone got close with five. It took Andrew 1:47 to eat all six.

Okay let's see if I remember how this works

I'm baaaaaaaaaaack. And I have to say it feels damn good! What an amazing way to be welcomed back to the blogosphere! You guys nominated me for the most interesting blog in the 20SB community! When I read all of the nominations, I did not expect to see my own name appear on the list. When I saw I had been nominated for the most interesting category, I literally squealed with delight. I also might have done an awkward little dance in my little blue striped nightgown. (My superhero outfit, according to Andrew.) I told Andrew the news and his response? "Who would find your blog interesting? It's about BAND-AIDS!" Touché, my dear. Touché. I don't know who nominated me, but thanks! I never really believed movie stars when they say crap like "It's an honor just to be nominated" for the Oscars, etc... but you know what? I believe them now. I am beyond honored! (You like me! You really like me!) Okay enough of that... On to business. 50 Books in 2008 Some of you have been asking about whether or not I read 50 books in 2008 like I had set out to do. The answer is yes. Though, just barely. I finished number 50 with eight hours of '08 to spare. The final 11 books on the list are all plays (with the one audio book exception). Quick reads... was under the gun, ya know? I read a total of 9,325 pages last year. That's just craziness! Here's the list, in the order that they were read. I've emboldened the top ten books that I highly recommend you read for yourselves... I hope you like the Sedaris siblings... 1. Dress Your Family in Corduroy and Denim (David Sedaris) 2. Holidays on Ice (David Sedaris) 3. The Glass Castle (Jeannette Walls) 4. The Five People You Meet in Heaven (Mitch Albom) 5. Me Talk Pretty One Day (David Sedaris) 6. Your Blues Ain't Like Mine (Bebe Moore Campbell) 7. The Perks of Being a Wallflower (Stephen Chbosky) 8. Then, Suddenly (Lynn Emanuel) 9. The Man Who Mistook His Wife For A Hat And Other Clinical Tales (Oliver Sacks) 10. Lolita (Vladimir Nabokov) 11. The Little Book of Plagiarism (Richard Posner) 12. A Streetcar Named Desire (Tennessee Williams) 13. Fire Wheel (Sharmila Voorakkara) 14. I Like You (Amy Sedaris) 15. Tuesdays With Morrie (Mitch Albom) 16. Naked (David Sedaris) 17. Cat on a Hot Tin Roof (Tennessee Williams) 18. Happy Birthday, Wanda June (Kurt Vonnegut) 19. The Rum Diary (Hunter S. Thompson) 20. A Raisin in the Sun (Lorraine Hansberry) 21. When You Are Engulfed in Flames (David Sedaris) 22. Bait and Switch (Barbara Ehrenreich) 23. Post Office (Charles Bukowski) 24. Message in a Bottle (Nicholas Sparks) 25. Dear John (Nicholas Sparks) 26. At First Sight (Nicholas Sparks) 27. The Mysteries of Pittsburgh (Michael Chabon) 28. Look Me in the Eye (John Elder Robinson) 29. Snow Flower and the Secret Fan (Lisa See) 30. The Final Solution: A Story of Detection (Michael Chabon) 31. The Awakening (Kate Chopin) 32. Of Mice and Men (John Steinbeck) 33. Who's Afraid of Virginia Woolf? (Edward Albee) 34. Resurrection Blues (Arthur Miller) 35. The Sign in Sidney Brustein's Window (Lorraine Hansberry) 36. Not about Nightingales (Tennessee Williams) 37. A Model World and Other Stories (Michael Chabon) 38. Indignation (Philip Roth) 39. I Know Why the Caged Bird Sings (Maya Angelou) 40. The Baby with the Bathwater (Christopher Durang) 41. Hughie (Eugene O'Neill ) 42. Betty's Summer Vacation (Christopher Durang) 43. Barrel Fever (David Sedaris) (audio book) 44. Long Day's Journey into Night (Eugene O'neill) 45. Buried Child (Sam Shepard) 46. The Gin Game (D. L. Coburn) 47. Don't Drink the Water (Woody Allen) 48. 'Night Mother (Marsha Norman) 49. Barefoot in the Park (Neil Simon) 50. The Member of the Wedding (Carson McCullers) So what's next? My resolution for 2009 is to complete at least 40 items on my 101 Things in 1001 Days list. I already have a few items crossed off--I'll post an update tomorrow. Thanks Thank you so much for reading my blog. 2008 was a terrific year for me. I fell in love with blogging and this entire community, I moved into a fabulous house with Andrew, I got engaged, and started planning our wedding! Oh, and did I mention that I BOUGHT MY WEDDING DRESS? EEEEEEE!! Here's to a superb 2009. Muah!

Merry Christmas

It looked like Christmas was going to be a big downer for me this year. There was drama at my parents' house and Andrew woke up feeling very sick on Christmas Eve. Insisting it WAS NOT a hangover, he got my sympathy and I went to the store for supplies to nurse him back to health. I waited on him throughout the afternoon, as he laid on the couch swaddled in blankets. After he threw up "a little bit" it became obvious to me that he was too sick to leave the house, I called my parents to tell them Andrew wouldn't be joining us for Christmas Eve dinner. When I told Andrew I thought it was best he stayed home so he didn't get my family sick, he gave me the puppy dog face. "I want to be a Christmas person," Andrew pleaded. "Well how do you feel?" "I haven't thrown up in hours." "That's not the same as feeling well. I'm not sure it's a good idea..." While I still believed it was a hangover from staying out late with the boys the night before, he claimed it was food poisoning from eating ham and potato salad that was sitting out for six hours at his office Christmas party. I thought that sounded pretty believable. And so (after a few shots of Pepto-Bismol) we met my parents, sister, and her friend at my family's favorite Asian restaurant for our traditional Christmas Eve meal. Afterwards, my mom talked the family into skipping church to go home and relax. (Bad Mommy.) We exchanged gifts, watched a movie, and played a game--which Andrew, my mom, and I dominated, thank you very much. The next morning, we were off to Andrew's parents' house for merriment and gifts with his sister and her boyfriend. Andrew and I were both slackers this year and did not give his parents a list of things we wanted. It turned out to be one of the most magical Christmases ever. They really shot themselves in the foot, though, because we're sure to never give them another Christmas list again. (Sorry, Susan!) The first gift I reached for had a pteradactyl ornament taped to the box. (How could I not go for the bait?) Well... does this look familiar? I think I squealed upon seeing "Origami Ink" on the box. Oh, and then I made out with the bird. So what? How unbelievably awesome does this thing look on our mantle? I have a problem with breaking fragile things, so Andrew made me promise him that I'd never touch it again. It's for the best. I love love love it! Thank you so much Jack and Susan! You are both very sneaky Santas. Snuggling with our new handmade Steelers blanket. Meet Smuckers. She's kind of a brat. Andrew's sister and her boyfriend gave me a rockin' cupcake book, so be on the lookout for some photos of the craziest cupcakes you've ever seen in the near future. (They also gave me salad hands. If you don't know what those are, your life is incomplete.) After we opened gifts, we ate a delicious french toast casserole. There was also LOTS of bacon. And I think we can all agree (except you veggies out there, of course) that bacon is the true meaning of Christmas. Much more Christmas fun in the evening followed; we had dinner at Andrew's aunt's house. (That's right, I used a semi-colon. I haven't blogged in ages, so I feel compelled to bring out the big guns.) I met some of his relatives from Nashville for the first time, and they all lived up to their reputations as being "the cool cousins." Oh, and I'm not just saying that because they all admitted to reading my blog after getting e-mails about the proposal video on Glamour. Yes, Andrew's entire extended family has now viewed Andrew ripping a bandage from my arm on the Internet. And that's what I love about techonology, people. :) There were three new babies at the dinner festivities, and I did manage to make one cry when I asked to hold her. In my defense, I think she was incredibly tired. I swear babies like me! The highlight of the evening, for some, was cocktail hour--featuring pomegranate martinis. I stuck with wine, and I'm very thankful for my decision. It was later revealed that each martini contained a half a cup of vodka. Oh, yes. That's about four shots of liquor. I can see how that would have gone... me hugging the toilet for Christmas dinner. Not exactly the impression I'd like to make. Not everyone was so lucky. Uncles slurred their speech. Aunts let curse words flow from their tongues. The term "tea bagging" was used--several times. Ben? I think that at least ties your Hummer experience. Christmas continues Friday when we celebrate with the other side of Andrew's family. Bring. It. On.

I'm such a fool...

Chatting with Andrew online during my lunch break, he told me how angry people get at his job when people call. I (half-jokingly) replied oh, me too! I get so angry when people call me. I have to take a deep breath...

That's when my phone rang. Suspicious of the timing, I answered expecting to hear Andrew cackling on the line.

I said my first and last name, my standard phone greeting at work, and listened for a reply. Nothing.

More certain than ever that it was Andrew messing with me, I said "HELLO?" It was then that I heard a small strange voice say "Helllllloooooooo."

Immediately recognizing the weird voice as one Andrew's goofy voices, I yelled, "I KNEW IT WAS YOU!"

Um... yeah. That's when a very confused reporter asked if he had the right person, and proceeded to ask me a question about a story he was writing. Ooopsie...

Harboring a fugitive creature

About a month ago I was kept awake late at night by the scurrying and scratching of a creature in our attic. I contacted our landlord and told him something--something possibly quite large, from the sounds of it--had made a home above our bedroom.

Our landlord wasted no time, cautiously exploring the attic for the suspect. He found the place where he assumed the critter had made his entrance, and sealed it up. There was no trace of any animals, so he assumed it had exited the way it entered.

Fast forward to yesterday evening. I went to the bathroom to primp for our engagement celebration dinner with Andrew's family. Upon entering the bathroom, I noticed something peculiar. Our shower items (shaving cream, razors, face wash, etc.) had been knocked from the window sill and side of the tub. Everything was laying in a pile in the middle of the bathtub.

"What did you do in here?" I yelled to Andrew.

When he had no idea what I was talking about, I screamed, "We have poltergeists!"

Andrew came in to survey the scene.

That's when we noticed the paw prints. Black dirty prints, about the size of squirrel's paw, were on the sides of the tub. "Uh... oh.... We have a CREATURE!!!"

"I hope it didn't lick my soap!" I cried.

"I bet it did..." Andrew said certainly.

I called the landlord and told him the creature had returned, and this time, it means business. He said he'd come check things out the next day, and set some traps.

Well, people. Let me tell you about this morning. As I was collecting our recyclables to take to the curb, I heard violent clawing at the basement door. There was also some audible screeching. Of course, when I heard this, I did what any sane person would do. I screamed bloody murder and ran far away from the door to the basement.

I quickly dialed my landlord and told him of the creature's location.

"Well, at least we know where it is," he said. "I'll call a guy and get him to trap it today, and maybe set a few more traps, just in case."

"Okay," I said. "Be careful. It sounds really BIG."

"It's probably just a squirrel. They always sound big," he said.

Glamour calls Andrew "Adorable" and I'm going to agree

See Andrew's proposal featured on the Glamour blog "Smitten," written by Joanna Goddard.

AHH! This is all so exciting! Going to call the venue of our dreams later today to schedule a showing.

xoxo