My Dogs are Mooing

Over the last few days I've noticed a slight buzzing sound near my windows.  At first I thought maybe the wind from the open window was rattling the blinds, but tonight I determined the true culprit -- a cunning wasp that had somehow made its way into my tranquil abode.  My dad is wickedly allergic to wasps, and although I don't share his allergy I share his disdain (ain't genetics grand?)  The wasp made himself comfortable on top of my expensive (looking) picture in the living room.  I slunk off to the closet to get a shoe, but when I returned he decided to take things up a level.  Literally.  He chose to hang out in the skylight about twenty feet above.  Using a kitchen chair, some goggles, a bottle of Raid, and my killer instinct, Mr. Wasp and I went to battle.  I'll let you guess who won.

One night while tooling around northern Missouri, I found myself looking for something to do.  I had already visited Amish country, and the trailers that belong to hoarders but had signs that automatically turned them into "antique stores" were closed.  So, I found myself at Wal-Mart.  I was pleasantly surprised to discover that a small town Wal-Mart, despite having a similar floor plan as other locations, has its own unique perks.  Exhibit A:  The Violated Pajama Jeans Granted, I've always had a curiousity about these too.  However, there's a little opening on the front of the box that allows you to feel the "fabric" (I use this term loosely).  I guess that wasn't enough for someone; they needed to pull them out of the box in order to get the full Pajama Jeans experience. Exhibit B:  The Downfall of Britney Spears Ouch, not only is the Circus Fantasy perfume not selling well, it's on the discount aisle.  Oops, she tanked again....

On my recent sojourn through northern Missouri, I stayed at a lovely hotel for a couple of nights.  The room was clean, the staff was very nice, and there was tons of space.  There was one odd note, though -- this little gem was sitting on the counter in the bathroom: Uh, okay.  The waffles were yummy, though.

After having spent the last two weeks on the road for work, it's nice to be home for a change.  Even in small-town Missouri I managed to have some adventures along the way.  A few highlights... 1.  There are some, shall we say, amusing names in the northern part of the state.  Iconium?  Who would have guessed, although I'm told there are some killer peach floats to be had there.  Dry Sac Creek?  Yeah, I'm gonna keep this one clean for the kiddies.  Lingo?  I hope that's where Chuck Woolery films the show, because my sister and I love that game.  Callao, Kidder, Damascus...the list goes on and on. 2.  Despite the fact that I am functionally illiterate when it comes to maps and following directions, I managed to not get lost once.  Well, maybe once, but in my defense that was because of Mapquest.  How was I supposed to know that Gilman City (population 340) also had a Broadway Street?  Still, kudos to whomever laid ou...