My New House

Hello Dear Reader,

I thought you like to see my new house. Well, it technically won't become mine until mid March when I win it from HGTV.com.

It's in the Florida Keys, on the water. The only trouble is it'll be part of a small community of six other homes, when the building is complete.

One thing about HGTV really pissed me off: This is the 12th Dream Home giveaway. All the others have been hosted by Joan Steffend of Decorating Cents. This year they ditched Joan and hired a twit named Monica Pederson (of Designed to Sell) whose teeth count rivals Giada DeLaurentiis. This broad is younger and sexier than Joan so I figure that why the boot was given to my girl Joanie.

Anyway, I'll still take the house when I win it, but I'll give the HGTV execs a piece of my mind about this matter.

I'll host a Shelf Meet in the Spring when I win. Well, maybe not a Shelf meet---but a Emmawrites Blog Reader Meet--gotta keep out the riffraff.

How am I supposed to go to work when it's been frigid cold most of the week? Not fit for man or beast or Emma.

It's supposed to be 50 degrees and raining this weekend. Oy.

We evicted the deadbeat tenants. Of course they left the house in a mess (who takes down smoke detectors??) We go to small claims court at the end of the month. They owe us close to $2000 so far. It'll climb when we do some repairs they caused.

Meme, we have a vacant house if you and the boys want to be Hoosiers.

My computer has a new hard drive.

Happy 2008 to all.
We went over to my friend's house about 9 and stayed until 11, came home, watched the ball drop and was in bed by 12:05.
We played a game called Left, Right, Center--it's a quarter game involving three dice, each one having an L R C or a dot. Depending on what you throw you have to give a quarter to the person on your Left or Right. If the die shows a dot then you get to keep it. It you throw a C for center a quarter goes into the bowl in the middle of the table. The last person with
at least one quarter wins the pot. I won one of the pots--it was fun--especially when the party's hostess started rubbing the dice on her nipples to bring her luck. Snort--she was a little drunk.
We got about 2 inches of snow overnight so as soon as LP gets up and shovels a path I have to go to the grocery store.

Sticks and Stones

Easiest candy you'll ever make:

2 packages Butterscotch morsels

1 can La Choy chow mein noodles

1 cup of cashews, rough chop

Melt the butterscotch either in a glass bowl over a pan of simmering water or in the microwave. Take off the heat and stir in the noodles and chopped cashews until well mixed. Drop spoonfuls onto waxed paper or Reynolds No Stick Wrap and let cool. You can also refrigerate them.

They are terrific! I call them Sticks & Stones

Inspired by Tree's List

Favorite Books in 2007

**Harry Potter and the Deadly Hallows by JK Rowling. A satisfying wrap up to the best series about a wizard and Muggles ever written

**The Wild Trees by Richard Preston. About the secret lives of California Redwoods and those who climb and live among them.

I’ve read a lot this year—just nothing else stellar, but I’m sure I’ll think of other good ones.


Best Television

**30 Rock. Tina Fey is a comic genius as is whoever cast the show. If you're not watching this, you're a gay looser!

**The Office. The only thing that disappointed this season was that because of the writer’s strike it was so short. They need to make one more season—any more and I’m afraid it will Jump the Shark.

**Colbert Report. Steven is obnoxiously funny, whereas O’Reilly and those he parodies are just plain obnoxious.


Television Messes

**Big Brother. This show just gravitated mean and stupid people. None were humorous—just mean and stupid

**A show I won’t watch anymore: CSI because I loved and will miss Jorja Fox, sorry Gil Grissom, I’ll miss you.

**Whenever Dubya shows his smarmy, smirky face

Notes:

**If I ever read “S/he’s in rehab” it will be too soon.

**In 2008 I hope I’ll never have to read/hear about: Britney, Britney’s sister, Lindsay, Paris, Dannielynn, Anna’s decomposing corpse, Racheal Ray