I was amazed to wake up finding today is Friday. The week has flown by and believe me I am not complaining. Right now I am in the waiting game. Waiting to hear from several people, looks like I may be heading to Montana Sunday or Monday. I should know by the end of today. Last night when I talked to my mom, my grandfather was hanging in there, but there were definite signs that he was fading. At this point I don't anticipate seeing him before he passes. The weekend will be spent organizing some things (animals that I am taking care of for other people) laundry, cleaning and getting ready to go.

Editing to add that my dad just called. My grandpa passed away last night.

This morning Aubrey, Lisa and Scott left to go back to Phoenix. I think they all had fun while they were here. I know I did. I was grateful to get to spend some time with my niece since I don't get that much time with her. I do have pictures galore to share, however my AC adapter went kaput early last week. I sent it back with Lisa to give to my dad since he is the position to get me a new one. However he didn't like how I was explaining it to him. So it was easier to just send back with them. I should hopefully have a new one in the next week and then I can post some of the pics. Life is good when you can watch a baby discover new things. I love how Aubrey growls, she would crawl on over to me and point to my lion tattoo and growl. I did get head butted a few times when we were playing, she has a strong head. I can't wait to see them all again.

Yesterday as I was holding Aubrey while Lisa tried on some clothes, I got a call from my dad. It looks like my grandpa only has a few more days. I haven't seen him in a really long time and there are no excuses as to why I haven't. I just got busy and then moved further away. It makes getting back to Montana a whole lot harder. I have just been looking at flights and it isn't cheap to get up there in the next several days. Flying straight to Missoula would cost me close to $900. Flying into Spokane, WA is a bit cheaper but not by much. I did check the possibility of flying to Phoenix and then driving up with my mom and sister and that is a bit more reasonable, however there is no guarantee that they will drive. At this point we will just sit and wait. Like my sister said, my grandpa has nine lives like a cat and might not have really hit that 9th one yet. If that is the case I need to get up there and see him and the rest of my family. It is quite possible that they forgot I existed.

As I was driving the family to the airport this morning I did say that I really hoped I would hear about the job today. They had told me that they hoped to know in the next few days, that was on Monday. I had a voice mail on my phone after I said my goodbyes. I called back and was offered the position. I will be starting on August 11th. It is going to be a great opportunity and I am really looking forward to it. This is one of the first jobs that I have been really excited for. Which of course puts me in a really weird state of mind, hence the title. I am experiencing a roller coaster of emotions today. Sadness at having to say goodbye to my sister, Aubrey and Scott. Happy about having job, sad about the possibility of my grandfather's death. I wish there was a way to release all these emotions. If anyone has any ideas let me know.

I have not fallen off the face of the earth. I am around, just been busy for the most part. Actually technically not REALLY busy, just away from the computer and experiencing life.

As for the interview. It went really really really well and I hope to find out later this week if I in fact will get the job. I had to send in a writing style sample which I did this morning and I hope they like it! It is an administrative position and the company sounds amazing and there is so much room for growth there. I know it isn't in the music business like I would like to be working in however it will be helping out New Orleans and that is something else I am passionate about. So now the waiting begins.

As I said last week, my sister, brother in law and Aubrey came to town. They arrived on Friday evening. It had been a long travel day for Aubrey, with her taking only on 45 min nap. She usually lays down at least twice a day for about 2 hours each time. (The kid loves to sleep) For that little amount of sleep she was in really good spirits. We got them to the hotel and Aubrey got settled in for bed while her dad and I ran to the store to pick up some food items for the little one. I got to hang out in the hotel while everyone ran out to meet some people for dinner. Really I didn't mind. Even if she was asleep I enjoyed hanging out with my niece. Later my sister came back to the room while I took out my Brother in Law, one of my sister's friends and one of their reps.

Saturday it was up early to take care of animals then out to the hotel to play with my niece. Scott and I did take her out for a walk, the plan had to go swimming however the storm that passed through put a damper on that. We did take Aubrey out to d.b.a to see Paul Sanchez and Shamarr Allen. They played the early set so we snuck the baby into her first bar! We snagged one of the window seats so it wasn't too loud and away from the smoke. Craig stopped by on his way to Snug to meet Aubrey for the first time and say hi to my sister. After grabbing some food from 13 I dropped the family off at the hotel then went to care for the dog I am watching.

Yesterday it was a bit more of the same, however my housemate is finally home so I didn't have to race to my house to take care of our cats. I did get a bit of sleep then went over to the hotel to hang with Aubrey again. We did take her to lunch at Mulate's (close to the convention center) and then later the convention my sister is attending had a mini Mardi Gras that included a few floats and a high school band. Aubrey caught a few beads and had great time!

I am getting off work in about an hour to spend more time with her and the rest of them. ;) Can't wait to get some more baby lovin!!

EDITED TO ADD: My birthday is in ONE MONTH!! Planning should have commenced already. ;)

*I have an interview today. I am hoping that salary is livable, that the job is workable, that it is something I want to do. I know it is something I want to do, maybe I mean somewhere I want to work. Yeah that is it. I was/am getting worried, as this job ends in two and a half weeks. I would like means to survive. That isn't asking for much is it?

*I hope I don't yawn during the interview. This lack of sleep is starting to grate on my nerves already. One full night of sleep. PLEASE! (especially when having a good dream and you want to continue dreaming that dream and for some reason your body wakes up!! grrr)

*Housemate will make it home on Saturday, so at least the running back and forth from my house to the place I am watching will stop for a little bit. That should help. I hope! Relive some of the stress. By the time she leaves again I will either be done house sitting or just about done. I can't wait to sleep in my own bed again.

*For some strange inane reason I thought today was the day that my sister, Aubrey and Scott were coming. Yeah. No. It is TOMORROW! She told me the 18th, I saw the 18th in the email, it registered. I just thought for some reason the 18th was on Thursday. Today. It wasn't until today when my alarm was going off and I looked at my phone and I saw that today was the 17th did it click that they weren't coming today. I mean I even took half a day off tomorrow so I could spend more time with them. You would think it would have hit me then. Nope. So now I get to go and switch so I have half a day off Monday and Tuesday. Going to blame it on the sleep deprivation.

*Did I mention that I have to do an interview today? Going to load up on the caffeine and hope for the best!

This weekend was pretty darn quiet. I watched movies. I read. I drove from house to house to house taking care of animals. One would wonder why I am so tired. Mainly it is because I don't sleep well when I am not at my house. I also need a bit of noise when I fall asleep. I have had neither for over a week. If I get 3 hours of solid sleep? I consider it a good night right now. Yes I did go and see some music this weekend. It was the same person both nights.

Friday night I went to Carrollton Station to see Paul Sanchez play solo. Saturday night it was d.b.a and Alex McMurray sat in. I know I have said this before, so I will sound like a broken record. If you have never EVER seen a Paul Sanchez gig you need to check him out at least once. You will either get it, or you won't. Which is fine. I have seen some of the "regulars" show up with someone new to check out Paul's music and more often than not you start seeing those people again and again, and then they start bringing people. Not everyone knows who Paul is, some do and therefore don't want to check him out thinking he is doing what he was doing before. See for a really really REALLY long time, Paul was in the band Cowboy Mouth. A rock-n-roll band. Some people often say a college band. Some people (myself included) started getting bored at the shows, with the same things being said and done over and over. (I know a lot of bands do this so it isn't a dig against CM) You are either really really in the mood for one of their shows, or not. Anyway. Over a year and a half ago Paul left the band among some disputes. I don't know the full story, I don't want to know the full story, I don't NEED to know the full story. There is no law that says I can't enjoy both. Sadly CM very rarely seems to play in town anymore (like a certain trombone band I know) ;) Paul however has taken off with his solo shows. He has played Jazz Fest (okay three and a half songs before the rain forced them to stop) French Quarter Fest, Wednesday in the Square, the upcoming Voo Doo Fest. He is playing all across the country. Sometimes like on Friday night it is a solo show. Just Paul, his guitar, his songs, his stories. (point in case, I know most of the stories by now. Sometimes he gives a bit more information, but I always laugh) Sometimes it is a different musician sitting in. Could be another guitar player, could be a horn player, could be just about anyone. In the past he has had Susan Cowsill, Matt Perrine, Craig Klein, Shamarr Allen, James Andrews, Todd Duke, Alex McMurray, David Torkanowsky, Sonia Tetlow. Sometimes it is a duo, sometimes a trio, and if you are catching a festival show chances are pretty good you are going to see the Rolling Road Show. Now the Rolling Road Show consists of the above musicians, mixed and matched. Whoever is in town. And you know it is going to be an amazing show. Not only will Paul do his own music but he makes sure to showcase who ever is playing with him. Paul is a true troubadour. His songs and his stories are like a warm hug.

Paul and I knew each other as acquaintances before the storm. After the storm I helped gut out his and his wife's home. It was one of the hardest houses to work on. Not because of the muck and the nastiness but because I knew whose items it was I was tossing out on the curb. It was a pretty emotional day for everyone both happy and sad. I rarely miss one of Paul's shows because like I said, it is a warm hug every time. You just need to let the music sweep over you and take you away. Paul knows that I was the local merch person for Bonerama so from time to time he will ask me to sell CDs for him as well. He would often make comments that if he could afford me, he would hire me full time. Paul has found a way to make us both some money, so as of this weekend, I am under his employ. No this isn't something that I can live off of, but it is a start. He gave me a bunch of CDs this weekend and I am going to get them into stores, bookstores, coffee shops, where ever I can. I will get a portion, he will get a portion and the store selling will get a portion. So it is a step in the right direction.

Seeing how the job search isn't going any where fast, it could be the only income I have coming in here. I have been sending out resumes for a month and a half and have only heard back from a Temp Company. That was legitimate anyway. So I will keep chugging along trying to find something. Only a few more weeks to go. Only as slight panic setting in.

I swear I just posted about my weekend and here we are again about to start a new one. I guess that is a good thing, however I just don't know where the time has gone. Okay that is a lie, I do know where it has gone. It has gone into caring for many animals. I mentioned in the last post that I was going down to 2 houses and 7 animals. Again I lied (seeing a trend?) Actually I forgot about some other friends who were going out of town and that I would be watching their house and cats as well. So on Monday I was done with one house and with one dog. Now it was 6 cats and one dog that I was caring for. Tuesday started me with a new house and 3 more cats. Total count at that time? 9 cats and one dog. Now 6 of those cats are pretty self sufficient. They do get a bit of snuggle time and really all they want is their cat box clean and some food in the bowl. The kittens? They require a bit more attention. They want to snuggle, play, be fed, run free and crazy. The dog? She wants pretty much the same. Throw in some walks and she is good.

Last night I said goodbye to the kittens. I had blocked off an area that gave them some running room. Really if you are feeling down, sit and watch some kittens play for awhile. I haven't laughed so hard in awhile. I wasn't down, but watching them? I could see how they could cheer someone up. At one point the two boy kittens, they were body slamming each other. Running full force from one end of the hallway to another and then launching themselves at each other. The little girl could hold her own as well. I sat in the hallway with them while they played and read a book. I became the climbing toy. For one of the boy kitten's it was like I was the "safe". He would constantly use me to hide from his brother and sister. After about an hour of running non stop, two of the kittens were tiring out and were curling up in my lap and purring. That is when the door bell rang. It was time for the kittens to go back home. They actually hissed at Amy and backed away from her. They had forgotten her! I felt so bad. They were all sitting calmly in their little box just staring up at me with the look of "do we have to leave???" It kinda broke my heart. So if anyone in the NOLA area was some sweet kittens let me know.....I would take them...if there wasn't already 3 at my house. Okay I would take one...but again with 3 already at my house? Not gonna happen. I think the dog will be my most high maintenance animal now, and like I said, she is pretty good. Other than the other night when she got into something that gave her diarrhea and made her throw up. She is better now.

So there will be a lot of running from house to house to house this weekend caring for animals. Don't worry I will get my fix of music as well this weekend. :)

We are also less than one week from my sister and family arriving in town!! WHOO HOO!!

I think long weekends need to happen more often. Maybe my next job will allow for me to work 4 ten hour days! That would be nice. I feel like I accomplished so much, when in reality? I didn't do that much. Most of the weekend was spent traveling between 3 houses and caring for 8 animals. Let's just say that having to bath 3 six week old kittens isn't a fun chore! Nor is them wanting to climb up onto your head with their little claws out. For some reason they like my hair....I don't get it. Onto the weekend festivities re-cap!

Thursday after work I met up with some local tweeters/bloggers. I had met Nola and Pete before so it was nice to see them again. I finally got to meet Yatpundit, Charlotte, and Overflowing Brain. We all shared some conversation, margarita's and food from Superior Grill. It was a nice relaxing wind down from work. After parting ways I made my way home where I promptly slept from about 7 until midnight. When I woke up, I couldn't decide if I wanted to make my way to the bed (had been sleeping on couch) or if I wanted to head down to the Maple Leaf. I went to the Maple Leaf, of course this was an hour and a half after I woke up. I figured I could hear a bit of music however by the time I got there? The band was done! I was bummed when I got there and found out that Mr. Craig Klein had sat in. He had said he was going to call me, but didn't think that I would want to come out on a Thursday night. I reminded him the next day was the 4th of July. Oh well, we had a bit of conversation before he left for the night. There was a lot of laughs had at the Leaf that evening, that lead to the morning...

That would be Friday morning. Time to sleep in, relax and enjoy the day. Yet somehow that didn't happen. I was up after about 3 hours of sleep taking care of animals. I spent the rest of the day over at a friend's house enjoying a massive spread of food. We had everything from ribs to grilled shrimp. A boatload of cookies. We ate food for pretty much 4 hours straight and washed it all down with champagne. I didn't make stay for any fireworks, as I wanted to make sure all the animals were secure and safe. I ended up falling asleep for a few hours at the house, waking up and making my way to the Maple Leaf. This night ended significantly later than the previous. There was a friend in need who needed an ear, which I provided. This lead to me finally falling asleep at 7 Saturday morning. Once again it was for a short time period as I had animals to take care of! I added another one to my roster this day.

I did manage to get my laundry done, despite a power outage that last about an hour. You think I would have slept during that time period, but I didn't. I read a book. My sleep pattern got back on schedule just a tad this night. I decided to skip the Leaf and went to Dos Jefes instead where Rick Trolsen was playing. I had a great time, keeping it early. It was hard to leave the music playing but I knew I needed to attempt some sort of sleep.

Sunday it was more of the animals, grocery shopping and movie viewing. It was a relaxing day, not much sleep was had, yet it was relaxing. After the bathing of the kitties that is. One of the animals owners will be home this evening so I will be down to just two houses and 7 animals. Come Thursday it will be only 4. I need to make sure to get pictures of the kittens before they go back to their owner!!

I ventured out on a Tuesday night. I try to avoid going out on a "school" night, however this was something I just couldn't pass up. It was a reunion show for Royal Fingerbowl, as well as a birthday celebration for Matt Perrine, sousaphone/bass player legend. The show took place at One Eyed Jacks, a venue I have been to a few times and have loved every time. Last night was no exception. The guys actually started at 10, something that is virtually unheard of. I was sitting up on the small balcony with Matt's mom and Elyse and at first we didn't think that many people were going to show up. When the band started there weren't that many people there. Within minutes however the room was packed. For a band that hasn't played in a long time, they sounded so amazing. I can't convey the sound that they produced last night. It was killin. Alex McMurray is a terrific songwriter and amazingly wonderful guitar player and he just threw down last night. They played a lot of the Royal Fingerbowl catalog as well as a few other tunes. I do have to say I was most surprised when they played "Like a Virgin" Seriously haven't lived until you have heard Royal Fingerbowl's version. There was cake and champagne for the birthday boy during the break which lasted only 15 minutes. Again something unheard of. A short set break? shocking. I don't know if they will get together again, even if they don't you should check out some of their music!

Yesterday it was silliness and fun. Today I bring you babies and kittens. My friend Amy called me yesterday afternoon and told me that the person that had agreed to watch three 6 week old kittens had backed out and would I mind doing it? She tempted me with the use of her car as well, which really the kittens were the winners there. She brought them over last night and they are just too adorable. One is all white with big blue eyes, another has brownish/grayish coat with black stripes and gray eyes and the other one, well I would say almost a putty color with blue eyes. Two boys, one girl. They are still being fed via syringe. Actually only two are. The white one marched right up to the bowl of milk and drank his fill that way. Then he ran off too play as the other two climbed on me for the syringe. I will be watching them for a week. Liza Jane (my cat) hates me right now and the other two seem fine. OH I also start house/dog sitting on Saturday for someone else. Maybe I just need to make a career out of this?

On to the baby part. This month my beautiful niece is making her way here to NOLA for a visit. In about two weeks and a few days. I hear she is taking swim lessons already, just over a year old and it looks like she maybe a water baby.

She is looking so much like my sister in this pic!! It is crazy, I can't wait to see her again (of course my sister and BIL as well) I just hope Aubrey doesn't cry when she sees me!!