Sleep-Deprived Monday Rambles

Currently Reading:  Thought I'd do some checking on that TBR list, and I'm not doing too bad:)  So far, I've read 9 print books (okay; I skimmed 1.5 of them!), and am now on the 10th, Class Reunion by Rona Jaffe.  E-book-wise, I've read four, plus two not on the original list.  Found 61 AD languishing near the bottom of the 'shelf', so opened up the file.  And Carol Preflatish's A Kitchen Affair landed on amazon last week, so read it after I finiished Love Lost and Found.  OMG....I loved it; gave it 5 stars everywhere!  Definite Recommended Read!!!  You will love this well-paced, sweet love story, and be hungry for cheesecake at the end.  This was well worth my 3 or 4 year waiting period from the time Carol posted an excerpt and I was immediately hooked!  So get this one NOW!  I'll make it easy for you; here's the link:

Amazon

B&N

Sweet Cravings

And while you're there, pick up Kellie Kamryn's Celery, Sex, and Other Good Things For Your Heart.  I'm loving this series!  Another Definite Recommended Read:)  Now I'm reading Christine Duncan's Safe House.  Since I once volunteered in a battered women's shelter, I find this topic interesting.  Others might think it too real but I'm enjoying it!

Okay, The Question You're Now Asking:  Why Am I Sleep-Deprived?
Not exactly sure.  I've been plagued by hot flashes the past two nights, and interrupted sleep patterns due to an over-active bodily function.  Plus, our cat is still missing; my oldest son tried to burn the house down for the 3rd time by leaving the space heater on in the shower (at 3am, the spouse smelled something and went downstairs to investigate.  K had showered at 6pm, and the heavy duty extension cord was very hot.); and last night the spouse had a nightmare.  At 5am, I gave up on trying to sleep and got up to watch my DVR'd news shows.

Went to karaoke on Sat, and since it was a new venue for me, I played it safe.  Plus, I wasn't sure if my voice was up to it or not, but enjoyed myself and did okay:

Before He Cheats:  According to BC, wasn't 'angry' enough.  And I felt my voice was too 'gravely'.
Do That To Me Once More Time:  A little low, but it sounded okay:)  I'll sing this again once my ear clears up!
Birmingham:  Nailed this one:)
I'd also put in for Black Velvet, but my time ran out.  But the Bottom's Up saloon was wonderful!  The music was low enough so people could talk to each other, only getting loud for karaoke.  And the bartender made me a rum and coke that tasted so good, I had to force myself to slow down on it.  And the smoke wasn't too awful either, though I smelled it on my clothes.

Update on Oreo:
If you've been following my FB statuses, then you know my cat has been missing for over a week now.  At first I wasn't too worried; after all, he vanished for 3 weeks last February, then arrived home.  We speculated he'd curled up in the back of the neighbor's tow truck and woke up on the other side of town.  The Pet Port reported they had been feeding a stray with similar markings, and would let us know if they caught him.  No phone calls, but about a week later, he was home.

However, this time, the day before I last saw him, my neighbor two doors down arrived home to find several cats in her living room, all marking their territory (they'd gotten in through her doggy door), and vowed to kill all the strays in the neighborhood.  Since Oreo refuses to wear his collar, he could have easily been mistaken for a stray....however, we've had him for 3 years and he's also well known around the neighborhood.   But anyway; that was Thursday the 11th.  I remember last seeing him on Friday the 12th; the spouse let him out sometime between midnight on the 12th and 2am on the 13th.  On Saturday, the neighbor reportedly baited a trap and took all the cats caught in it somewhere.  No word on if she dumped them; killed them; or what.  Hopefully we'll see her this week (she works 2nd shift, so it's hard to catch her home) and learn whether or not she took our cat.  Oreo's not one to pass up free food; he gets milk from another neighbor on the corner, and mooches food from the girl across the street.  And the neighborhood kids have even been on the lookout for him.

Space Heater?  In The Shower?
Our shower is downstairs in the basement.  And in the winter, it gets veeeeerrrry cold down there.  It's just a rigged shower spiggot, framed in with 3 shower curtains for privacy, and those rubber interlocking mats to stand on.  And so we have a tiny space heater set up at the end, so after the water is shut off, you can quickly dry off and warm yourself before getting dressed/putting on the robe.  I don't understand WHY my oldest can't seem to remember to shut it off; he said he was distracted the 1st time by a text message (really?  He took his phone downstairs to shower???); no clue why he forgot the 2nd and 3rd times.

I don't find it hard to remember:  Incorporate it into the damn routine!  Dry the body, put on robe; place towel on carpet side to dry feet for 'shower shoes' (my crocs); turn off heater; dry feet; put on shoes; hang up towel.  What's so hard about that?  Maybe his newly-acquired '21' status has affected his memory skills.

Spouse Had Nightmare?
Being trapped in the bathroom with a demon.  Maybe he's been watching too much SyFy channel.  That, and he 'heard' a cat meowing.  I checked the front porch; no cat.

I'm going to require a nap later today.

Update on Self-Edits for Love Weighs In (AU #7):
I'm well into Ch 5:)  Hoping to get this book in shape to submit it by the end of the month.

Come back tomorrow; I just remembered the good news I received on Sat!