happy pi day and other random bits
I love geek holidays, I can’t help it! Are any of you baking pies in honor of Pi day today? I wish I had time! I’d like a blueberry pie, or maybe a chocolate cream pie, or oooo, a bacon quiche? That totally counts as pie right?
In case you noticed my lack of internet presence, I’m completely swamped with work right now. As great as it is to have plenty of contracts and a good chunk of money flowing in, it makes my life completely insane. I never want to be someone who complains about work though, because oh, would it suck to not have any. This is just me saying, I miss you guys!
I really want to be a better blogger though, so in light of that, I’m going to Blog Better Boston in a couple of weeks. It’s just a one day thing, but I suspect I’m going to get a lot out of it! I’m really looking forward to the food photography course I’m taking there. If you’ve ever tried food photography you know it’s wayyy harder than it sounds.
I also decided I’m going to go to BlogHer 12 in NYC this summer. I’ve haven’t been to BlogHer since 2009, the timing just hasn’t been right for me the last few years. I’ve heard it’s gotten sooo much bigger and intimidating but that’s okay with me. I have a pretty good idea of what to expect, I want to spend some time seeing the city through my camera lens, and I have a fabulous roommate who I know will let me tail her like a puppy when I don’t know what else to do with myself. 
Will I see any of you there?
Okay, so speaking of photography, we bought the cutest camera you have ever seen! It’s small like a point and shoot, but has interchangeable lenses. I’m kind of in love with it and kind of afraid of it! I’m really hoping someone will buy me a macro lens for it. And teach me how to use it??
Soooo, that brings me to the reason we bought the camera – because we’re going on our first “real” vacation EVER. I think every vacation we’ve ever taken has been either to visit family, has been part of a business trip, or has been a staycation. Since we managed this one car thing for so long, and are planning to continue it indefinitely we decided to use some of the savings we would have spent on a second car and go on a trip to the Grand Canyon.
You guys! The Grand Canyon! This is truly a trip of a lifetime for this New England girl. It’s something we’ve always wanted to do but never thought it would happen. I’m sure I’ll have much more to tell you about it as it gets closer. Or hey, no promises, I might not have time to blog again until after it’s over! Either way, I guarantee you I will have a million and one photos to share with you. Heh.
I hope y’all don’t mind if this ends up being a photography blog!
Hello Spring! So glad you’re almost here!
Filed Under blogging, photos, Uncategorized Tagged blogging about blogging, BlogHer, photography
brainstorming always comes back to the cat puke
You know how right before you fall asleep you think of something so totally freaking brilliant you’re sure you’re going to remember it in the morning? And you wake up and don’t even remember you thought of something much less what that something actually is. I swear that’s why I haven’t written anything here for weeks. I always come up with great topic around 11pm. When I was a newbie blogger I would actually get up and write it out as soon as I thought of it, and then I would hit publish at 2am and no one would read it. By the next day I was happy that no one had read it because my middle of the night ramblings were never quite as good as I thought they were going to be. Usually I wrote stuff about cat puke. Wait, that’s not a good example because cat puke is actually funny. Unless you’re the one cleaning it up. Or stepping in it. Especially when it’s cold. And the ickyness of it makes you hop around on one foot, in the dark, when your muscles are already screaming at you because you went to Zumba the day before. Okay that didn’t really happen. Stepping in the cat puke after Zumba that is. That was a hypothetical situation that I made up to illustrate the typical things that befall me. Stepping in the cold cat puke in the middle of the night was actually 2 weeks ago, and well, the week before that too. Going to Zumba was only a few days ago, and although I couldn’t walk for days I laughed my butt off while I was there. If only that were true, right? That you could actually laugh until your butt fell off? I would be sooo dang skinny. But then I wouldn’t need to go to Zumba. And I wouldn’t be able to laugh with my friends there. And then I wouldn’t be skinny anymore. It’s a vicious, vicious cycle I tell you. Obviously Zumba is bad and I need to get my exercise some other way. Like shoveling the driveway. Which I am certain to have to do again tomorrow. Because of course it’s going to snow again, again, again. And January is never going to end. And I am going to have to rake the stupid roof one more time and my arms will fall off and we’ll get killer icicles. I won’t be able to defend myself from the killer icicles because I won’t have any arms and that is much, much worse than not having a butt. In conclusion, snow is even worse than Zumba and the only good thing about this post was the cat puke.
And I didn’t even write this in the middle of the night.
Go ahead I dare you to comment.
Filed Under blogging, humor Tagged blogging about blogging, humor, inner workings of my brain
censored!
We had a fabulous day at the beach with my sisters and their families yesterday. The weather was absolutely perfect, 85 and sunny, and the water was warmer than its normal freeze your toes off temp. Perfect shark weather, but no, we didn’t see any. 
I gotta tell you, I had better pictures than this one, (all taken with my new-to-me iphone!) but my boy won’t let me post them. ~sigh~ This blog has been going through some growing pangs lately, because he doesn’t really want me to write about him or post pictures of him anymore. He only approved this one photo because his back was to the camera.
I’m being censored.
If we are doing anything fun or if I innocently take a photo I am often asked “you’re not gonna blog about this are you mom?” Huh. I guess not!
He and I have been here before…you may have noticed there have been several posts about him lately that didn’t really show him. A birthday post without a birthday boy, a science post without a clear face, a post about his treehouse with only one blurry image. As you can see, I’ve had to get creative with my photography. It helps that I’m not particularly good at taking pictures so blurry faces are a natural.
I knew this would come eventually. I just didn’t think it would be so soon! I kind of thought I had until he was 10 or 12 before he stopped letting me write about him. In fact, if he knew I wrote this recently he wouldn’t be very happy about it. I published it because I know someday he’ll appreciate it.
I’ve always self-censored anyway, not wanting to get overly personal on something that can’t ever really be deleted, but I’ve always felt pretty free to post about his childhood. Like I own it or something! Well, he is his own person, and has the right to keep his life off the internet if that’s what he wants. I still might write about him, but only if he approves it. Future photos will be faceless, like they were back when I first started and blogged anonymously. Or there won’t be any photos of him at all. I just don’t know yet.
What happens to a mommy blogger (ugh, it’s what I’ve become but I still hate that word) who can’t blog about her kid?? I really don’t have the answer right now! It’s why I don’t post as often as I used to, and I don’t foresee it getting any better.
Don’t get me wrong, this isn’t depressing. It’s just different. I have to make a change. Write about my own life, or don’t write at all?
Filed Under blogging, family, life, the boy Tagged blogging about blogging, meta, the boy
just give me something to blog about
(Disclaimer; If you aren’t blogger, most of this won’t make any sense to you. So don’t even bother!)
Somehow it’s been two weeks since I last blogged. As so kindly pointed out not only by the lovely folks behind the BlogHer ads, and by a real life friend who I didn’t even know was reading here but apparently is tired of looking at my last soup post. ~ahem~ So this one is for you Jen, such as it is.
Anyway, two weeks. There was a time, for a long time, when I couldn’t go two days without writing, much less two weeks. Heck, there were days when I posted twice! I know! What happened that I no longer feel like posting the exciting events minutiae of my day, every day??
Those were the days when I obsessively checked my stats, hoping for more than a handful of hits. I lived and died by how many comments I got in a day. I pimped my posts on twitter and commented like crazy on every blog in my expansive feed reader.
I got my own domain, and a unique design. I thought hard about branding, and niches. I got ads!! (A year and a half and $45 later…) I even started a second blog! Because one was not enough?!!
I envied those going to all the conferences and meeting each other in person. So I went to a conference, and I hugged people I never thought I would meet. I made real-life completely awesome friends. It was a once-in-a-lifetime opportunity,* and I loved every minute of it.
But my life got busier in so many ways, and twitter got boring and celebri-fied. I stopped checking Feedburner, and forgot my password to Google Analytics. I stopped using Stumble or Digg, forgot about Technorati, and I haven’t looked at my Page Rank in forever. Heck, I even forgot how to check my Page Rank. And Alexa, wha?
It’s the typical evolution of a blogger. I’m sure you’ve heard it before. (And don’t we all just love these posts?) I know I have, but I never thought it would happen to me! D’oh. and? Duh.
My kid is growing up, and doesn’t really want me telling stories about him here. Posting family pictures in public is getting awkward. One can only blog about a cat so often. (Unless I become the Crazy Cat Lady, and frankly there are too many doing it better.) Weight loss? Heh. Only if it was happening! I have no idea what to blog about. Or even if I want to bother figuring it out. Meh.
And yet, I’m not thinking about shutting it down. I haven’t lost the will to write, just the impetus; that driving force that can turn the smallest moment of the day into a great post. I’d like to be able to do that again.
* Yes, once-in-a-lifetime. I’m not going to BlogHer ’10. As much as I would love to go, I just can’t justify the expense. Sorry peeps. 
Filed Under blogging, writing Tagged blogging, blogging about blogging, meta
dregs
Dudes. My blog is depressing. Maybe that’s why I don’t come here so often anymore.
I seem to go to a lot of funerals. Another one of my Aunts died this week, another of my father’s siblings. And another funeral to attend this coming Tuesday.
I’ve seen so many people do this great “best of 2009″ round up posts so to cheer myself up I thought I would take a look at my archives and see what I could link to as my “best of.” Except all I can find are “not the worst of 2009″ posts.
I wrote far too much about trying to lose weight. I posted far too many pictures of my cat. I became a quintessential mommyblogger, (even though I hate that term.)
My one shining moment of true hilarity was cause I was doped up on pain meds. Honestly, I haven’t written anything humorous since them because I just can’t compete with myself. Ooooo, I last saw my funny at the hospital!! Maybe it’s at the lost and found! ~sigh~
See? My best posts are the pathetic dregs of the blogosphere.
Dear 2010,
Bring back the funny.
xo
Annette
ps. Rest in peace Aunt Lee.
Filed Under blogging Tagged blerg, blogging, blogging about blogging, death, life
I’m not gone, I just have blogger block
My brain is mush. I just can’t think of anything interesting to write about.
I had wonderful company (my friend Teresa while her husband Bill is in Ethiopia!) last weekend but that would be a very long story. I have more company (one of my sisters – yay!) coming this weekend but that story hasn’t happened yet. I have an aunt who is very sick but that’s not my story to tell.
I held a day-old baby on Monday but I had to give her back. I have weigh-in coming this Sunday but I don’t think I’ve lost a pound this month. Josh is going to start t-ball tomorrow so the time suck begins again. I tried to go without wheat for a week, and I keep forgetting.
The rain is keeping me from gardening. Work is slow this week, although I’m sure it will get busy just as soon as my sister arrives. I’m not entertained by anything on tv. Twitter is irritating me – too many retweets, celebrities, and promotions, blech. Whatever happened to original thought and conversation?
I’m more than a little cranky. And worried. Very tired. Not to mention restless, boring, and repetitive. And perhaps whiny? Geez, I really need to get over myself. And I need to find my funny. It seems to have run away from home.
Yeah. I’m all over the freaking place. Give me something to write about would you? An idea, a question, anything you want to know about me? Help. I need to blog through the block.
Filed Under blogging Tagged blogging about blogging, inner workings of my brain, life, random
one year
A year ago today I jumped into the blog pond with this post.
It was short, mostly because I didn’t know what my voice would be or if I even had a voice. I was scared to put myself out there. I didn’t know what to say, if I had anything to say that mattered or that anyone would care about. I stayed anonymous for months even, thinking that if I was terrible at this, no one would ever have to know.
As it turns out, I’m not terrible at this after all. I have a voice and a few people actually listen and have things to say in return. I’ve taken chances and put myself out there for scrutiny like I’ve never done at any other time in my life. I’ve come out of hiding and I’m better off for it.
I may not be popular, or have lots of traffic, or make any money, but none of that really matters. What matters is that I love doing this. I’m a better writer, a better parent, a better photographer, and a better friend, all because of this space.
I’m glad I took the plunge, 235 posts later and I’m still here, and I know I have more to say! I mean really, when have I ever been able to stop talking?! I can’t wait to look back and see what I did in year two. I hope you’re all still here with me.
navigation
While I was away over the weekend, my dear husband spend a considerable amount of time fixing some little things here on my site. Some adjustments will just help me in the background, but other changes will make it easier for you all to navigate.
The best change of all is that my SEARCH function now actually works! It is in the upper left hand corner, and it does search all the text of my posts, not just tags. Yay!
You’ll also notice you can see the tags for each post, as well as the categories they are filed under. And squeee (!) look in my left sidebar at my sweet new tag cloud! Go hover your cursor over it, I’ll wait…
Isn’t it the cutest tag cloud ever?!
Btw, if you are using anything other than http://feeds2.feedburner.com/catnipandcoffee (or http://feeds.catnipandcoffee.com/catnipandcoffee) it would be great if you could change it. If you’re using the old atom feed I can’t guarantee it will work in the future. So update, I beg you!
so, it looks a little different around here
(Hey all you feed readers – you need to click on over today and see my shockingly different site design!)
Welcome to the new and improved Catnip and Coffee! I designed the header, but my dear husband did all the real work! I’m very luck to have a resident geek, and a cute geek at that. He’s been very good at putting up with my whining about nagging micromanaging of this process.
This look definitely feels more “me” to me! Black, white, red, and touch of pink – that’s definitely my style. I’m super happy to finally have my avatar incorporated into the design here. It just makes more sense.
There’s still some tweaking to do. Like the post titles aren’t quite right, and the photos aren’t working yet. I also lost my entire blogroll. The new blogroll will be in a separate page. If you were on it before, and are not yet, please feel free to remind me to put you back!
Also, the right column, which looks very bare right now, is going to have BlogHer ads soon! I’m very happy to be accepted in the the BlogHer ad network and can’t wait to get it going!
Anyway, I hope you like this as much as I do!
frustrated
I’m trying to work on a few design features here. You’ll notice I added MyBlogLog – it’s just so I can get a better idea of whose coming here (note: you do not show up unless you sign up with MyBlogLog and you don’t have to it you don’t want to.) See, when I started I was too dumb to realize I should have put feedburner in before anyone started adding me to their feed readers. Now I have no idea how many readers I really have and WordPress doesn’t really have a way to tell me those numbers. I’ve done it now so if you are already subscribed and you find you aren’t getting your feeds anymore PLEASE resubscribe, and I’m sorry for being a pain in the ass.
Note to the feed readers – ignore anything old they may come up again, I’m also editing tags and such!
So I have finally added the tag cloud – I’ve done this a couple of times and unfortunately a couple of the tags bleed out of the sidebar and I always end up deleting it. It’s really annoying me and apparently there’s no way to fix it without editing the css and I’m not about to get into that. Grrr. I’m going to leave it for a few days and see if it grows on me, and I’m going to stop using that dang “inner workings of my brain” tag so it doesn’t get any bigger!
There’s a few other things I’m considering adding so if you see any other changes, it’s just because I’m over here hurting my brain….
updated: Feedburner was irritating me – so it’s gone and I’m back to my normal feed. Stupid changes.