She finally succumbed.

I'm supposed to start bleeding soon or I'm just stressing too much.

Because I was MISERABLE last night.

Not feeling too hot this morning either. I ended up rescheduling the finance/will meeting for Friday.

Ken Shardick came down Saturday. Saturday night was the rum and the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame 25th Anniversary concert.

Sunday night was Godzilla and Top Gear while I laid on the couch being MISERABLE.

Today was about two hours of Animal Crossing. Now it's nap time to...something.

Annual Camping in Liberty with Festive Overtones.

*finds tick on neck, takes off, washes down drain*

Now then.

Went down Friday afternoon with whole lamb and new camp gear. As first camping comer, I got first pick. Whoot! I ended up further into the woods but a direct line to the gate, which made finding my way in the dark much easier. New tent was easy to set up with help from Polar, Chezzie's primary. Ten-fifteen minutes, as advertised! It's big and comfortable and while it did get a bit damp inside from humidity, it did NOT leak in the rain Saturday night. One foam exercise mat is not enough padding between me and the ground, next time I'll take the air mattress. Sleeping bags were warm and comfy too. Cuteness and IDK thoroughly approve.

Saturday was Lamb Dissection with Pageofswords. It was a fun lesson in anatomy and we got lots of choice cuts, much of which came home with me due to the Metric Ton of Food that showed up despite the 10-15 head count. We ate WELL. IDK got more camp set up lessons and Cuteness spent the day running around with His Royal Highness. It was a laid back day with good conversations and good times.

Sunday was Event Day. We had a Hunt. I was the Hunted. I insisted on perching on the large flat rock that was our Starting Point grinning madly at the Hunters before handed my Tracking Bag of Birdseed. For the record, black sunflower seeds are NOT good trail makers. Popped popcorn next time. I headed west and laid a few false trails before crossing the creek and tucking myself under a fallen tree. I didn't get a chance to run once I was spotted, but the Hunter WAS only about 10 feet away before he saw my back. Good Times.

We danced the Maypole. It was the most innuendo laden Maypole I've been to in the last five years. Now I really understand what Wolf was talking about with that Maypole picture I had commissioned. I got dizzy and fell down amid much giggling on my part.

I skipped the Spring Procession due to my reproductive system taking vengeance with great prejudice. I DID join the Campfire and kept it going. (^_^)

Today was Break Down. IDK and Pageofswords broke down my tent after I took off the rain fly and everything removed from inside. We packed the car slow and easy, with a lot of breaks, and got home in reasonable time. I have a load of laundry to put into the dryer, the kids are eating peanut butter sandwiches and soon Tick Checks must be done because, well, I've already found one on ME.

I have 2/3 of a lamb in the freezer, a container of vegetable skewers and some other stuff that will need to be cooked tomorrow once I figure out how. The non-DEET bug sprays, commercial and home made, worked pretty darn well, all things considered. My kids weren't as compliant and they only have a few bites. I don't seem to have any. Whoot.

Now for Random Quotes!

D: I'm making pancakes!
RBDarkly *on her first cup of coffee*: Bless you!

Me: *waving spools of blue and green ribbon* Pick your primary!
*Polar points to Chezzie*

Pageofswords *during Hunt*: RBD, I think this Hunt rates as an 11 on Difficult Mode!

Chezzie: The neat thing about my new grill is once you put coals in, it cooks for hours and hours. The problem with my new grill is once you put coals in, it's hot for hours and hours.

My icons are insufficient to the amount of GLEE that colored this weekend. OMGS it was AWESOME!!!

First!

Mad props, hugs, thank yous and "I LOVE YOU GUYS" to pageofswords, Bonfire and Shenzi and Nightfall for being wonderful, fantabulous hosts/guides/escorts/super cool friends. You four MADE my trip. I'm not kidding.

Second!

Mad props, hugs, thank yous and "I LOVE YOU GUYS" to Looooo and Mama A for taking the kiddos so I COULD have the trip. (Not that they read LJ, it's principle)

Third!

Highlights: Intro to NY subways and Good Coffee by pageofswords.

Metropolitan Museum of Fine Arts with pageofswords. Dude, we HAVE to go again, just you and me, and you can show me all your favorite sections.

Cab drive through Central Park. 40mph and no seat belt. (^_^)

Dinner at Jean-George. My first foray into the World of the 1%-ers. I like to think I looked fahbulous, but I don't have pictures to prove it. Having an SNL-er be seated at the table right next to ours, wicked. (Don't ask how much that meal was, you'll have heart attacks)

Chinatown with pageofswords, Bonfire and Shenzi. Too Damned Crowded, but the dim sum was worth it. And the bubble tea. And the tea shop.

Times Square with Bonfire, Shenzi and assorted others. Dave and Busters did NOT have Robotech. I am sad. I did manage to beat Bonfire in two out of four races and scored over 2k in tickets. I'll save the card and when IDK is old enough, we'll go together and I'll give him all the points. Oh, and Janice? Remember how I gave you Xellos that one time? Yeah, I'm scared now. Chevys was yummy, even being half full from dim sum.

Jesus Christ Superstar with Bonfire, Shenzi and assorted others. Bonfire and Shenzi were being spit upon while the rest of us were up in the mezzanine. Hee. A good way to pop that cherry, nice and gentle. Except for the high As. Judas could shatter glass.

Bistro dining. Amaretto cappuccino at noon. 'Nuff said.

Massage and Brooklyn with Nightfall. Lovely, lovely. I am full of knots. No one should be surprised. Turkish food is sweeter then Greek and the waiters are just as hot.

Finally! Random Quotes!

"And this is the closest I'll EVER get to Versailles." Me
"I doubt that" pageofswords

"I get Song in the divorce!" Shenzi

"I just want to know who I'm sticking my penis into tonight" Bonfire

"I could never go to Turkey, I won't come back!" Nightfall
"I'll be getting postcards saying 'Having a wonderful time. See you in two weeks'." Me
"And two months later you get a postcard saying 'Still having a wonderful time. I'll be there for Samhein in spirit'." Nightfall

IDK's 12th birthday last Friday. Pizza, soda, Cheetos, cake, ice cream and Matrix Marathon. Zahde came down for multiple reasons and enjoyed the colored-flame candles I had found for the cake.

Saturday I had to work. Zahde watched the kiddos, gods love her, and after work I did the grocery shopping. I still get heart twinges walking through a grocery store by myself and knowing Wolf is NOT waiting at home for me. We had wet-aged steak and spanakopita.

Sunday was laundry, dishes and hanging out. Zahde made blueberry scones with fresh blueberries. So yummy!

This weekend is supposed to be IDK's sleepover (pending good behavior) and the Family January Birthday Party.

Next weekend is Imbolc.

Gods help me.

I have a cauliflower and mozzarella quiche in the oven. Perhaps tomorrow I'll have another What to Eat?!

I'm still fighting a sleep deprivation quotient.

Bu and I ROCK on Lego Rock Band. Seriously. We are kicking super easy lego butts. We have an ALBUM.

Lots of food was made. About half was left here. Yay, I have a lunch or five.

The next weekend will be watching His Royal Highness.

I'm going to commandeer the TV at the end of this T.U.F.F Puppy episode and either watch Top Gear or play Harvest Moon: Animal Parade. Yuki has much wooing of Phoebe the Explorer to do. Smart chicks are haaaaaawwwwwwtttttt!!!

And Bu has cursed me, CURSED ME I TELL YOU!!!, with another damned plot bunny involving Inuyasha and Full Metal Panic! Fumoffu.

Well, that plot bunny will have to wait for the Fruits Basket Dreams plot bunny to get satisfied. It has seniority.

Three hours from RBD to Brooklyn. Whoo.

I hate parallel parking with a deep and abiding passion. Thank Squat there was an uber-large spot that allowed me to wiggle in while only annoying one Audi.

Nightfall has a NICE place! He is also an awesome cook.

Good work was done.

Ritual was Divination and we all got slapped in the face. OK, I got slapped in the face about my job and Zhade got the classic "Listen to your MOTHER!" (insert proper accent here) and RBD got "No, I'm not telling you!" and Nightfall got "Look, honey, Tarot is not for Song and I'm putting my thumb over her Third Eye because this is YOUR job!" That was NOT comfortable.

Dreaming about releasing the souls of dead children in the apartment building was a horrible way to start the day.

Got lost on the way out of NYC and somehow STILL ended up on the 17 side of Tappenzee bridge at roughly the same time and only about $10 more in tolls by way of Staten Island and Jersey. WTF? Next time when you get on the Brooklyn Queens Expressway out of Brooklyn, GO TO QUEENS!!!

Got home on time, even with a stop for dinner, and picked up a Cuteness that wasn't feeling good.

Cuteness went from runny nose and light cough to wheezing in about 24 hours. She went to the walk in clinic this morning and three nebulizer treatments later, she has bronchitis. I already have a nebulizer, so Mama A gets to keep the one from the clinic at her house. She'll also handle the meds. I love Mama A, she's such an awesome grandmother.

I'm still feeling the lack of Wolf, but I agreed to let IDK have the TV for a while. I'm going to finish the sweet potato soup and then kick him off. For the record, Aura got a Shining Apple from the Harvest King! That's the first sign of affection. I'm going to try and see if he'll come with her to the Animal Festival at the end of Spring. He may poo-poo "rowdy human events", but it would sooo kick ass to have a redheaded GOD walking around with her. I've also started a Boy game. His name is Yuki (I blame Fruits Basket) and his ranch is named Subaru and one of his animals WILL be named Ladybug in honor of the GetBacker Subaru that looks JUST like a VW Beetle. I've also picked out his wife, because I rock that way.

Kenshardik came to visit. We went to a good Chinese buffet for dinner, picked up snacks for everyone (the kiddos are having Pizza Rolls for dinner tonight), and we watched movies.

I have now seen "Dirty Harry". I had to remind myself 70s cop dramas are paced differently then 90s cop dramas. The full frontal nudity left me blinking and saying, "Well! Alrighty then." The blood was obviously red paint and there was very little, all things considered.

Fascinating how the movie standards have changed in the last thirty years. Do breast shots still garner instant R ratings? Because I saw more naked women in "Dirty Harry" then I've seen in anything outside of porn in the last 10 years and one of those was supposed to be 14!

I also managed to feed Sheshanaga! For those who weren't in the loop, Sheshanaga hadn't eaten since September. I was offering him piping hot mice once a week to once every few weeks and he would back away like he was scared. This past week he finally shed, and last night he was nosing the top of his cage and acting all antsy.

"Will you actually eat a mouse this time?" I asked him. Nudge nudge. "Okay." I gave him a piping hot mouse and he struck and didn't drop it! As he was on top of his hidey-box, I waited until he had settled down to swallow before closing the lid of the cage.

Now I don't have to worry about him starving for another three months. Snakes are very low maintenance pets. I approve.

Slept in until 9 am today and was glad for it.

The kiddos and I got the living and dining rooms cleaned. I found the missing switch for the floor lamp (the main reason I insisted on cleaning the living room) and evicted a warren of dust bunnies from under the couch. The dining room table actually LOOKS like a dining room table and not a catchall with about four squares for eating. My silver tea set, while not properly polished, has been washed and looks very nice.

It took the three of us about an hour or so to tidy the living room. It took IDK and I about the same amount of time to tidy the dining room.

I also got Cuteness' laundry and a batch of blankets and towels done and IDK emptied and reloaded the dishwasher, so the kitchen is about halfway to tidy.

There's a baked acorn squash cooling on the stove to be made into soup tomorrow. There's a good start to a clove orange sitting on the dining room table.(Time consuming, but good magickal work. I need more cloves and my hands smell wonderful)

Tomorrow will be apple picking (if available), grocery shopping, finishing the kitchen and the rest of the laundry.

I get an extra hour of sleep tonight. Huzzah.

My fingers are tingling with the desire to be crafty. I guess I'll crochet for a while.

For the record, if anyone wants to buy Queenie Christmas presents this year, I need pot holders, stick incense and a full sized broom. Fire-themed pot holders would be nifty, but no chili peppers. I despise chili peppers.

Saturday was the official Tattoo day. Things worked out beautifully between a birthday party/slumber party for IDK and Mama A offered to take Cuteness so none of my friends or me had to worry about chasing a 4 year old around the Ithaca Commons.

I took a different way to Ithaca and naturally missed a turn. Only one, though, and I soon recognized where I was. Yay for Phoenix Books.

Zahde was working on IDK's InuYasha costume when I arrived. Bu was also there. I modeled pieces as needed until the alcohol spray drove me from the room. I HATE having asthma.

Joe soon appeared and after a phone call to Alex, we all drove down to the Ithaca Bakery. I enjoyed my chocolate hazelnut croissant, but the "Milk & Honey" Latte was not the least bit sweet, which was disappointing.

Alex found us as we were leaving and we headed over to Medusa Tattoo.

I HATE PARALLEL PARKING WITH A DEEP AND ABIDING PASSION!!!!

After several attempts and no doubt annoying a lot of other drivers, I found a parking space about a block away. HAAAAAAAATTTEE.

My general idea for making this Sacred was to Cast Circle and have my friends chant while I went into a trance. Not wanting to be all Tat-zilla about this, I asked several times what people wanted to do and did anyone have experience with guided meditation? It eventually boiled down to "We are here for you. You tell us what to do." AUGH!!

What little planning was done got tossed out the window when it was determined that I was going to get inked in the front of the shop, behind the counter, and there wasn't enough room around the chair. So I pulled out my Stan Richardson flute meditation albums on my Iphone, borrowed Bu's headphones, and declared that I was going to self-trance and would everyone else please bless me when I was done. Zahde blessed me beforehand.

Here are some pics, taken by Bu & Skitten, in hopefully a proper chronological order:

( I am very good at holding still. )

My trance only lasted about 30 minutes, but I was able to talk to Wolf during that trance. He apologized for dying, which I found odd, but I reminded him of that bloody lung/pregnancy dream. Then "Brick House" came on over the shop sound system and Wolf started doing his Gopher Dance and I lost the trance trying not to giggle. I couldn't get it back, so I turned off my music and just lay still and chatted with Caesar. Caesar is Nifty.

After bandaging and post-tat care, we worked out getting to Taste of Thai Express. Bu went with me and we found a 1971 VW Karmann Ghia in Dark Green parked on the street. Those pics will be in a different post.

Taste of Thai Express was busy but the wait staff made up for it in spades. I got a good jasmine green tea and a Ginger Delight stir fry. I did try various appetizers, and the soup Bu had ordered was, well, weird. It smelled like warm dog fur. It reminded me of my lab Dusty, who was bred for the Guide Dog program but dropped for hip dysplasia. She loved sunbeams and sprinklers. The taste was okay until I hit a clump of cilantro, which tastes like soap to me.

After dinner Zahde and I went to my hotel and I checked in. My room had two beds instead of one, which was cool. We chatted while waiting for Joe to get back from dropping off SKitten and Bu & Alex to get back from a liquor run.

Alex whipped up an excellent rum punch that put me to the numb-but-I-can-still-walk stage after two glasses. Bu had brought some Jegermeister, which burned in the not fun way. We stayed up until midnight chatting. It was nice.

As is normal for me, I woke up at eight, lazed about until nine, and got the call for breakfast meet up at 10:30. Alex and I got there at 10:45. I apologized to Zahde.

Breakfast was good, a cool but tasty Belgian waffle with strawberries and whipped cream (which came very late). Mama A called as we were finishing up, so I had to book it back home.

My skin is still tender and a little red. Caesar gave me a pamphlet about after care that calls for thrice daily washing with soap and water, fingertips only, and hot compresses. I don't want to have to strip at work to do this, so I'll be doing that twice a day for the rest of the week.

I also have to find time to go jean shopping this week, as one pair has developed holes and the other is following fast behind. *sigh*

Here are the pertinent details:

Location: Medusa Tattoo, 126 W. State St., Ithaca, NY
Time: 4:00 PM
Work Done: Black wolf tattoo over left breast, will take roughly 1.5 hours

I honestly don't know how many people the artist will allow into the work area. I know of at least four people who want to attend. This was going to be Ritual in the sense that I would put myself into Sacred Space while the tattoo was being done. It has been recommended as I am bony, I should make sure I eat about an hour before hand so I won't pass out.

It would be nice if those who can attend could bless me before and after. I was planning on another meal, and it is likely I would be getting a hotel room.

It is also likely I will have my kiddos with me, so any volunteers to keep said kiddos entertained elsewhere would be greatly appreciated.

So! If you want to come, let me know in here, by email or a phone call. I plan on being in Ithaca around 2pm and heading over to Zahde's, as I know I can get to her house.