Was looking for my cell phone this morning and couldn't find it anywhere. Not in the car, not in my coat pocket, not on the counter (the three places it would be). Didn't think much of it as I'm a bubble-headed twit who would misplace her own head if it weren't firmly attached to her neck.

After not finding it anywhere, called my cell phone company to report it lost. Figured I'd suspend the service until it turned up. Decided to look at usage online to see if someone might have it.

Lo and behold, there is a number I don't recognize. I get an answering machine playing music. Steve calls the number gets an "ethnic lady" (his words).

Alarm bells start going off, so I call our (new) cleaning company. They look into it and call me back to ask for that phone number to see if it matches any of their employees. I get a call 20 minutes later from the owner of the company apologizing and saying that he will pay for a new phone because the number matched one of the ladies that was in my house yesterday and she denied all knowledge of a cell phone not actually belonging to her. Despite the fact that there is one outgoing and one incoming call from her home number.

GAH! Seriously, after my wedding ring and necklace go missing with a previous company I went a long time with a never-quite-clean house because I was hesitant to have anyone in my house again. Unlike last time, I was able to get in touch with the company and have the issue resolved within an hour. The owner surmised that she may have dropped the phone and thought she broke it, but the fact that she used it and tried to access voice mail tells a different story. Either way, I'm getting a new phone. And he said he is going to have the same team in every time they clean and they will be employees that have been with him for quite some time. At least this time I had proof that something belonging to me was in their possession. Funny, but I remember hearing something crashing to the floor yesterday when they were here. Still, pretty ballsy for them to take it right out from under my nose.

It's ultra-tempting to get an iPhone as a replacement, but I'm not going to be greedy. No sense in giving them actual reason to steal from me or do shoddy work. Time to go phone shopping. *sigh*

You know what is worse than getting online and finding out your eBay account has been hijacked? Downloading anti-virus software (that I had uninstalled ages ago = moron) and have it find a virus it calls a "downloader" that is extremely high risk in all areas and also functions as a way for a third party to grab hold of personal information. Now I'm wondering what else could have been compromised. I think I'm calling my credit card company next.

I could talk about how I had to take the girls to two separate soccer practices at two separate fields, at the same time, and how Becca wouldn't peel herself away from me, and was in tears the whole time, so we left, then she wanted to go back and there wasn't enough time, and the world was a bitter, bitter place for her this evening.

*inhale deeply*

Or.....I could tell you about the horror we discovered lurking in our basement, it very well might be a gate to hell. The workers had to, uh, rearrange our junk stuff so they could work. So they moved the desk, the fridge, the boxes, the piles of junk stuff. At one time I had mentioned how it smelled like something died in our basement. Well, we are slowing putting stuff where it belongs since the basement is about 90% done. We have the couch and chairs down there. Steve and the guys wrestled the big projection TV downstairs. Steve's dad shows up tonight to help him put his desk together and rearrange our shit stuff. They went to move the refrigerator back where it belongs and opened it up.

Big, big mistake.

Apparently, there was still food inside.

Take a minute to take that in. It was unplugged for about two weeks or so. Enough time for the contents to become sentient, evolve, and become extinct from global warming. The smell wafted across the basement, up the stairs, and straight up my nostrils. I gagged and very nearly threw up. And the fridge is over 50 feet away from me. Steve instructed me to run to the store for bleach products. I was more than happy to get a lungful of fresh air, so I grabbed the keys and sprinted out the front door. With all the shit I bought at the store, I feel like I should be cleaning up after a murder. Bleach, vinegar, and baking soda, to be used in that order. Oh, and scrubber sponges and rubber gloves.

Just thinking about it makes me want to puke. Of course I took a picture for you. Whats a little dry heaving if it results in some excellent blog fodder.

While I was digging out my Starbucks card to pay for my latte this morning, I happened to glance down at my driver's license. Whoops, it expired on my birthday....a week ago.

Well, no problemo, the DMV is across the street, I'll just pop over there and renew. After waiting for 45 minutes, my number is finally called and I go up to the counter. Apparently, the state I've lived in my entire life feels the need to verify my social security number, can they see my card please.

Uh, no, I never replaced it from when I lost my wallet a year or so ago. I'm told to go to the social security office. Just to cover all bases, I grab my birth certificate, my passport and anything else I can find. I go back to the happy friendly DMV and I'm told, no dice, they need the actual card.

Ok, fine. I go to the social security office because I have nothing but time and unlimited gasoline to burn (*sniff sniff* was that sarcasm?). I fill out the requisite paperwork and wait, again.

My number is called and I'm told it will be around two weeks before I get my social security card. There is no way to speed up the process.

So for those of you who want to know if I have a wild side, guess what? I'm breaking the law, driving on an expired license until I can get the required paperwork to renew my license.

The worst part of all this? I seem to remember getting a form in the mail allowing me to renew either by mail or internet. It is nowhere to be found and if I had just renewed when I had recieved this, I wouldn't have to jump through all these hoops.

And if you are keeping score, the albuterol/orapred rage has kicked in for Becca and I got a call from her preschool saying school was cancelled today. Apparently the entire school has the flu. You have to admire the consideration they show by cancelling.

Let's hope I don't get pulled over in the next two weeks or so. I don't feel like trying to explain this all over again.

Woke up to a beautiful winter fantasyland this morning. Emily arrived to indoor soccer a few minutes late because I couldn't put down the camera. More after the jump.

We have these cute, fat, little birds swarming the neighborhood. Before I took this picture we had probably 200+ birds on our front lawn (my movement scared them off - bah!). Anyone know what kind they are?

They were even on everyone's roofs (rooves?).

....and my wedding ring too. Remember when I said I lost my ring? Steve automatically suspected the cleaning ladies, I gave them the benefit of the doubt...until this weekend.

I wanted to wear my diamond heart necklace but when I went to get it, it was nowhere to be found. Now I know I misplace things often, but losing two pieces of diamond jewelry? That seems highly coincidental doesn't it?

I'm still not 100% sure it's them, but all other explanations have been exhausted. The necklace was the clincher. The worst thing is, it could have been taken at the same time and I just noticed now, since I rotate my jewelry and haven't worn that one in a while. Those were my two most precious pieces of jewelry, and not for monetary reasons, but for sentimental ones. Obviously my wedding ring (and engagement ring - they were fused together) means a lot to me, and the diamond heart was given to me after I had Emily. It was the first piece of jewelry that Steve picked out all on his own and it was perfect.

So I'm calling the company today and telling them I no longer need their services because I'm no longer comfortable having them in my house. I'm a trusting person by nature, so when stuff like this happens, it tends to totally throw me for a loop. It's incredibly disappointing to me because I really don't want to believe they took it, but all evidence seems to point that way.

Even if we replace the ring, it won't be quite the same, knowing it's not my original wedding ring and engagement ring. And I'm heartbroken over my necklace.

UPDATE: To add to my suspicion, the phone number for the office is being "checked for problems". Um yeah, since Saturday. I'm going to try to send an urgent email and see what happens.

UPDATE #2: I heard back from the company. They will be investigating on their end, and their policy is to submit a police report, which is what I am going to do as well. They had moved, hence the phone number problems. Yet, I don't have much hope in the jewelry being recovered.

Am tired today. I stayed up to watch the end of Game 3 of the World Series last night. The game didn't end until a little after 1 pm I think it was (my bleary eyes couldn't read the clock). It was a nailbiter the whole way. A pitchers duel from inning 9-13. You heard me right. The game lasted a total of 14 innings and lasted over 5 1/2 hours. The Sox went through I think it was 9 pitchers and one of their starters became a closer last night. I think they nearly cleared the bench with substitutions. Also, here is an interesting fact:

The 43 players used by both teams also was a Series record, as was the combined 30 runners left on base.

You heard that right, between both teams, 30 runners were stranded.

Funnier still, is the White Sox hero of the night, is currently batting 1.000 in the World Series. It was his first at-bat in the series, and he turned it into a home run. This series is full of surprises coming off of the Sox bench!

Gotta get the caffeine in so I can watch again tonight. Having the Sox in the Series has definately re-awakened my love for the game. I became quite disillusioned after the last player strike, and watching these two teams play with an obvious love for the game is contagious.

Remember the house I talked about way back when? The one where the guy put sod or something on his roof and his yard is full of native plants and looks like total crap? I finally took a picture. It's not fantastic as I was in the car and had to slow down to take it, but it will do. If you want to see the awfulness of this house documented, extend the entry.

Not the one where socks go, I think we all have that one, this is one where other things go, that are a little harder to lose. Like the digital camera. Steve swears he didn't take it with him and he was talking about downloading and cleaning up the memory card. So, that would lead me to his office. No camera in sight unless he's hiding it. Emily hasn't used it lately, and the last time I had it, it was residing in the bag with our 35 mm camera. It's not there either. I think it's the same dark vortex that sucks our remote controls and car keys into it from time to time, dumping them in a completely random location in the house. Like the bathroom.