Found out today that the computer tech was able to retrieve all our data from the hard drive. He wanted our authorization (and a lot of extra money) to back it up on DVDs, and of course we said yes. The reason it's costing so much is that we had 59 GB of data - and that's not counting all the application stuff. Why we kept so much on the computer, I have no idea. Insane!

So we're picking it up tomorrow, and we'll have ALL our pics again. Yaay!!!

Well, D's attempt to retrieve files from the hard drive himself on Friday was unsuccessful, so we went ahead and took it in for repair that afternoon. I figured it was worth having someone see and possibly save our pics and vids in order to get them back. Maybe it'll give the guy a cheap thrill. Either that, or send him running from the room screaming and rubbing his eyes! LOL

That's if the files can even be retrieved. The technician said he thought it sounded like the problem is with the hard drive and, if so, there's a good chance our data will be unrecoverable. We won't know until Friday at the earliest.

The only good news is that our heat finally broke yesterday. It rained here this morning and it's only 80 degrees right now. Supposed to hit the high 80's today, but I doubt it will. Haven't had to turn on the A/C at all so far. Yippee!

Sorry for my silence, but D and I are in the midst of a possible crisis right now. We're having major problems with our desktop computer which meant no Internet yesterday but which might also mean the loss of EVERYTHING on our hard drive. And since we foolishly have not backed up files since February 2005, that would mean the loss of all of the thousands of pics D's taken of me, our videos, everything we've downloaded from the Internet and also been sent and had saved, everything I've written since 2/05, pics taken at family events and, most devastating, all 1500 pics taken during our recent vacation. The only vacation pics we'd have would be the ones I uploaded to Flickr to post in my blog.

We don't want to bring our computer in to be fixed right now because of all the identifiable pics of me, explicit videos, etc. on the hard drive (if they're even still there, and not totally corrupted). So, as I write, what D is doing is taking the hard drive from our "good" computer and installing it on an old one out in the garage. He hopes to be able to offload files from there and then destroy everything on the hard drive before bringing our computer in for repair. I've got my fingers and toes and everything else crossed that he'll be successful. I do not even want to think of the alternative.

The reason I'm able to write this now is that we went out last night and bought a laptop. It was definitely not in our budget and not something I thought we'd be buying this soon, but we cannot be without the Internet. Just can't happen. Thank God for zero-percent financing!

You can bet that from now on we'll be backing up files on a regular basis. In fact, we plan to burn the nude pics we take onto a DVD right after we finish a photo shoot. Which reminds me, if D can't get our files from the hard drive, I have NO pics to post until we have another photo session. What a bitch.

Talk about a tough lesson to learn...

Yaay, American League!!! Go kick some NL butt tonight!

...of how much I love Patsy Cline.

Road trips are great if you have sufficient quantities of three things: water, snacks and tunes (air conditioning goes without saying *lol*). We brought dozens of CDs to listen to while driving but ended up mostly listening to a select several. One of them was Patsy Cline's 12 Hit Songs, an oldie but such a goodie. I'd forgotten how much I enjoy her torch songs until I listened to them over and over on vacation. What an ache she could put in her voice, and what range she had. D's favorite song of hers is I Fall to Pieces and mine is Crazy, penned by Willie Nelson, of all people.

It's a crime she died so young.

...why I never order ribs when we eat out. I make a mess! BBQ sauce all around my mouth, under my fingernails, on my shirt (well, that might have something to do with the size of my chest - it's hard to eat "cleanly" when you have big boobs, just like it's hard to swing a baseball bat or a golf club *lol*).

As messy as they were, though, they were sooo good. Worth the four napkins and the dirty shirt!

Hope everyone has a great day. Fourth of July's dinner has always meant barbecued ribs at our house. We prefer St. Louis-style pork ribs, D puts a rub on them (2 T. salt, 2 T. garlic powder, 1 T. black pepper, 1 T. paprika), bakes them for about half an hour, then finishes them up on the grill with some KC Masterpiece barbecue sauce. Yum!

Have fun and stay safe. Happy Birthday, America!!!

For me, the hardest part of coming back from vacation and returning to Real Life is having to cook again (and having to wash all the dishes after - drat!). Not just cooking, but also having to plan meals again and going grocery shopping, two jobs I'm not crazy about. I could sooo get used to eating out all the time. But, alas, not an option for us. So after having some survival-type dinners this week (spaghetti, soup & sandwiches, bacon & eggs), I broke down and planned a week's worth of menus and did a big grocery shopping yesterday. I lucked out, though, because the warm weather and holiday weekend means we'll be barbecuing a lot and that's D's domain, not mine. Also means less dishes to wash!

Barbecued hamburgers...chicken...steak...ribs...hmm, maybe being back isn't so bad. LOL

Here's the recipe for my favorite spaghetti sauce. It's actually adapted from a recipe for meatballs & spaghetti sauce, which is excellent but more time-consuming.

* * * * *

1 lb. ground beef
1/2 c. chopped onion
1 t. minced garlic
12 oz. tomato paste
1-1/2 t. sugar
1 t. salt
1 t. leaf oregano
1 t. leaf basil
1/4 t. pepper
2-1/2 c. hot water
1 can (4 oz.) mushroom stems & pieces, drained

In a 3- or 4-qt. saucepan, cook ground beef, onion and garlic over medium heat until meat is brown, crumbling it into very small pieces as you stir. Drain off fat. Add tomato paste, spices and hot water; combine thoroughly (I use a large whisk). Stir in drained mushroom pieces. Heat to boiling; reduce heat, cover and simmer for at least 30 minutes, stirring occasionally.

* * * * *

We're having pot roast tonight for dinner. Don't usually have that on such a warm day, but it just sounded good.

Today was an absolutely great day! Wow! Afraid I can't go into detail, all I can say is we got some unexpected but utterly fantastic news.

Had a celebratory fuck in the afternoon. I think I was more giddy than horny, thank God D doesn't take offense or feel emasculated when I laugh while we're making love. I just couldn't help myself!

*still doing the Happy Dance*