Until Further Notice.....

It's official, we're moving. Which means, all of my spare time (thank GOD I actually have spare time!) will be spent cleaning out and moving!! Here's today's list, to identify and deal with all unnecessary items: KITCHEN: Book case: empty it out, box it up, move it! White plastic shelves: Bring all appliances except toaster and chopper to new apartment. Cabinets: empty out all that isn't necessary to determine how much room is needed for what IS necessary! LIVING ROOM: Brown cabinet:empty out (not much really), bring to apt., put in bathroom Brown book case: pack up all books Video cabinet: pack 'em up, move 'em out! Color drawers: Bring entire unit to apt. FOYER: (yes, I have a foyer. It's pretty cool, actually) Corner bookcase: Empty out photo albums, bring over. Determine if case is actually needed (it's kinda awkward to have, being that it actually fits in a corner) Full length mirrors & wall mirror: take down, bring over. Coat hooks on back of back door: Katie's. Weed out, leave behind what's necessary, bring over the rest. MY BEDROOM: All totes under my bed (mostly quilting fabric projects, sheets, that sort of thing) Old night stand: I've had it since I was 5, it'll hold the phone at the new place. Wicker mirror: hasn't had a home in forever. Will go into the bathroom. Both closets: One has my clothing and some junk in it, the other has all the bedding in totes. Totes will be emptied so I can use them to haul stuff upstairs (yes, I'm still on the second floor) Knitting stuff, small pieces of furniture (tall bureau drawers that will be cleaned out and reappropriated, a small CD cabinet that will hold other things, possibly) Wicker trunk: has sheets and other unnecessary items in it. KATIE'S ROOM: Truly, not too bad. My desk can go Tall lamp in corner Empty out toy box and reappropriate Spare cabinet (for things like paper towels & toilet paper. Cabinet belongs to landlord) Throw out stereo in corner (only the radio works, and it takes up entirely too much space!) BATHROOM: Go through shampoo/hair product cabinet & get rid of stuff that's not used!! Empty out underneath the sink, too! ATTIC: This is the most important space to clear out, and, it actually gets done first, while Katie is at school. There is sooo much CRAP up there, it's pathetic! When I'm done, it will be down to winter things, Christmas stuff, luggage, quilting fabric (if I can pawn some of that onto my mother...), and the gift bag of gift bags. I already know that I'll need to store (someplace else) mine & Katie's bed frames, and the Christmas stuff that's not stored in a gift bag ( I may be able to reappropriate some of my totes when I'm done!) and the bicycles (I'm hoping my landlord will let me park them in the cellar at the new house!) It sounds incredibly un-doable when it's all written down. Most of it can be done fairly quickly, it's a matter of doing it. ANNNNND HERE I GO!!

Color Class

So, I had my first official color class as a practicing hairdresser. Guess what I learned?? That I still don't know diddly squat. I also learned that the educators can sometimes be "snobs" about older methods that should still be in use...for example, a good, old fashioned double process. I got the "that's old-school". Like I was discussing life before the polio vaccine!! The funny thing about the industry I'm in, there are so many different "disciplines" to each phase of this career. Some people agree, some do not. However, Chrissy and I both found some interesting answers to provide the next time we do something that Ginger doesn't want us doing. An example: The color line, Color Sync, (which is a demi permanent color...has no ammonia) is applied to the hair with either a squeeze bottle (kinda like the red & yellow condiment squeeze bottles) or with a bowl & brush (like painting). It is left to process on the hair for 20 minutes, with NO HEAT, according to manufacturer instructions. Ginger, on the other hand, prefers us to apply it either method, then put a cap on their head (so they look like the cafeteria lady) and have them sit under a hood dryer, set on #2 or #3 (medium or high) for 25 minutes. According to the two educators we had today, that is not necessary. It doesn't hurt the hair to introduce heat (since there's no ammonia to swell the cuticle), however, it doesn't really help it, either. I also mentioned good ol' 11A in reference to using it like a high lift color. You should have seen the face the educator made!!! :) She showed us some techniques, however, she focused more of her attention on the two younger girls from JC Penney, and even more to Chrissy than to myself. It was obvious to her that I'm quite a bit older than the rest of the girls in the class. However, she didn't realize (because she didn't know) that I'm just as new to hairdressing as the others are! I do feel I have a slightly better grip on the Matrix color line than I did before. Hopefully, I can take what I've learned and apply it!! :) It also occurred to me that a good majority of my clients are haircut clients, not necessarily color clients. I need to work on that!!

What to blog about....

Sometimes, I don't blog because I've got nothing to say. For those that know me, it's a tad hard to believe, because, well, I don't shut up, most days! While much goes on, I don't always talk about it. There's a possibility we could be moving, too. My landlords (who are FABULOUS people) recently bought the home my father was born in (Mimi, you've been there!), and truly, I want to live there. I'm even willing to live in a smaller apartment (which means downsizing, not a bad thing) to make that happen!! The only problem?? Away from not knowing if it's going to happen (yes, I know...make a phone call, idiot!) is the actual moving process. When I moved from the house I shared with my Mom to my first apartment in my hometown, I used my best friend's suburban and moved most of it myself. She came and helped, and so did my Sister-in-law. It was a cute apartment (also owned by my landlord), but it was a storage unit due to all of my stuff. I had started to downsize when my current apartment became available. We've lived here nearly two years. The rent/bills are a titch of a struggle, and the smaller apartment at the ancestral home would be a small relief, financially ($75 a month cheaper), especially since I need to start looking for another car...the heavy chevy won't be lasting forever, unfortunately... And, it also means less privacy for the child and I...our bedrooms are part of each other (hers would be an alcove off mine), and not necessarily access to the attic space to store the off-season items. So, downsizing is the only option to making it work. If I had the ability to post pictures, I would. My landlords have done an amazing job of cleaning/repairing the ancestral home. Once my family sold it (when my Great Grandmother moved in with my Great Aunt back in the late 60's-early 70's), it pretty much became a slum. And, according to my mom, the apartments have been hacked up, pretty badly. There are walls where they weren't when my parents lived there, stuff like that. However, it's a fabulous home. And, apparently, there are ghosts there, too. More than likely, my family members. The other tenant (that I know) said she's heard party noises, random doors have shut, and she's heard music (not enough to identify the music, just the sound). When my parents lived there, they had quite a few parties (this was before children, obviously). While they weren't "hang off the chandelier" types, they had a good time...I've seen some of the pictures of my parents, pleasantly smashed. And, I have the pictures of my Grandmother (Nana, actually) and my Great Grandmother (Old Nan) with tons of people around, drinking & eating. I'm sure that when my Great Uncle (Eddie) came home on leave (military), they had parties to welcome him home. If nothing else, my family loved to get together and EAT!! (okay, drink, too...) So, that's currently on the horizon. The thought of downsizing is rather daunting, but it's necessary. The other thing I will be doing if the move does happen is GET RID OF MY STATION IN MY HOUSE!! I'm quite tired of doing hair at home. I don't do very much of it, but there are times when I feel taken advantage of. There's sometimes an issue with payment, which would NOT happen if I were doing this person's hair at the salon, which may be happening soon...stay tuned!!