Time Flies . . .

The last day of the year.  Wow, time flies when you're having fun.   This year went crazy fast for me.   Lots of things changed, lots stayed the same.   Three children in the home for the last 18+ years, then three children out of the home - just like that.   We added a daughter-in-law.   I guess that was the biggest change this year, but in my book - that's change!   Our house is quieter (except when the kids are home from college) and our house is cleaner (again, except when the kids are home).   

Fortunately, lots of things stayed the same - like our jobs.  We still have them, which I know a lot of people aren't blessed to be able to say.   We still have our home (which is actually worth more than we owe on it).  And, again, I know a lot of people can't say the same thing.   We have our good health, we can afford food on our table (although prices seem to be out of control), and we have love in our hearts.

May we put others before ourselves this coming year and, in turn, be blessed with a prosperous 2012 for ourselves, others, and our nations.

Hope you all have a safe and happy new years celebration tonight!

It's Fun (Not) at the Y.M.C.A.

So, yesterday I was sitting in my car in the parking lot of our local YMCA.  We have a really big, nice Y with a large weight and exercise room.  My husband had gone to work out in an effort to counteract some of the damage done by the food extravaganza that always seems to accompany the holiday season.  I was picking him up.   Why was I picking him up instead of working out with him, you ask?   The answer is simple.   Public. Humiliation.  I'm not really into it.   I would rather lock myself in the room at home where we keep the treadmill, turn on the TV, and walk to my heart's content - alone.  So any humiliation taking place is private, not public.   No witnesses.   No tee heeing.   No self-consciousness.   Just me.  No cheerleader-type, cute young, thin girls in their lycra work out clothes looking at me thinking that if they looked like me they would shoot themselves (why are they even there anyway?).  No old gross men who think they're still 25 looking at me and enjoying it (probably because most of them are blind without their glasses, which they leave in their locker).   

AND - -  no chance of seeing someone I know.   That's the worst part for me.   I could probably deal with the young lycra cladden girls because - hide the guns, honey - little do they know, they WILL look like me someday.   And I can handle the drooling old guys who stare because they're just blind and pathetic.   But people I know seeing me??!!   Maybe even people I work with?!?   That I couldn't handle.  Some things to me are just meant to be private - working out is one of them.

So, I'll continue to pick up my husband when he needs a ride.   And I'll continue to lock myself in the treadmill room.   The young girls and the pathetic old geezers will just have to find someone else to laugh or stare at.  

      

Hope Springs Eternal

As I sit here looking out of my office window at the gloom and rain, my first thought is "What great ghost hunting weather!"   Someday I will go on that ghost hunting safari . . . Really.   I will.   I want that experience.    But this weather also makes me want to be home . . . to be in front of the fireplace . . . or in the kitchen baking . . .  or at least eating the baked goods that someone else is baking.   The gloomy skies also make me want to curl up with a good book and shut the rest of the world out as I plunge into the adventure that awaits within its pages.     

The weather has such a huge impact on my feelings and psyche.  Probably yours too.  I don't think I could live in Alaska.   Although it is gorgeous (I watch Alaska State Troopers, so I know this to be true) and I would love to visit someday, I would not want to live there.  Where the skies are gloomy and dark most of the time.   Where there's nothing to do but go crazy.  And kill things.   Well, that's probably not true, but I think I would at least get a severe case of cabin fever.   And I think I might doubt that the sun would shine again.   I would much rather live in a place like Washington, which is kind of close to Alaska, but has a big country in between - and I don't think we can see Russia - not even from the Space Needle.   Here in Washington I am certain that the sun will shine again.   And that winter is in its proper place in the cycle of seasons.  Spring will come.   And it will be glorious.  Of that I am sure.  And because of that certainty, I can enjoy the winter, because I know it will only last its allotted time. 

Flowers will bloom again.   The gray and gloom of winter will be replaced by vibrant, beautiful colors.   Yes, spring will come again, at its proper time.   And I look forward to that.   Because the blue skies and colors of spring make me want to smile.   Yes, definitely smile. 

   
But, in the meantime, I would really like to be home watching the rain from the comfort of my living room.     

L.A.Z.Y. I Ain't Got No Alibi

¹la·zy

adj \ˈlā-zē\

la·zi·erla·zi·est

Definition of LAZY

1

a : disinclined to activity or exertion : not energetic or vigorous b : encouraging inactivity or indolence <a lazy summer day>

2

: moving slowly : sluggish

As I was getting my hair cut yesterday, feeling so relaxed and not wanting to get up out of that chair, I realized something.  The kind of "thing" that almost made me sit up straight and go "ah ha!"   (Which would have been a really bad idea since the woman behind me had scissors in her hands.)  The kind of "thing" that, after sitting up and going "ah ha," would have made me crouch back down in the chair and silently and sadly go, "oh."    What I realized is not some "thing" that I am proud of.   But admitting it is step one.  Right?!   No more living in denial.   So, this is what I realized - - I AM LAZY!   Or, rather, I have become lazy this last year.   I have been disinclined to activity or exertion.   I have no energy.  I am not vigorous.  And I encourage inactivity.   I wasn't lazy a year ago.   But for some inexplicable reason that I'll have to explore (maybe with a therapist!?!), my couch and I have become exceptionally close friends during 2011.   I am inclined to recline.   In a nice comfy chair or on a nice comfy couch with a nice comfy blanket.  Watching a totally mindless reality TV show.   Which really isn't such a terrible thing . . . unless your couch and your reality TV becomes more important to you than, say, making dinner or doing the laundry.   Then, maybe, not so good.

However, I also know that just because the L.A.Z.Y. word became my 2011, it doesn't have to be my 2012.   And that, my friends, is one of the glorious things about life.   If we are dissatisfied or unhappy, we can change.   I really dislike it when people say, "that's just the way I am."   To me, that's a big fat excuse not to have to change.   Because that may be "just the way I am" TODAY, but it doesn't mean I have to be that way tomorrow, if I choose not to be.     Life is about choices.    

And I choose not to be lazy anymore.   I choose to be encouraging activity, and not to move slowly, and to be inclined to exertion.  Exertion of my brain as well as my body!  

I choose that 2012 will be an awesome, fulfilling, positive life changing year!    What do YOU choose for 2012?

P.S.  I also choose to watch those mindless reality TV shows occasionally :)

I "chose" this picture, not because it has anything to do with this blog post,
but because I think these are really cool shoes!!!

  

I'll Give You A Quarter If you Brush My Hair

I was feeling a little sorry for myself this morning when I got up to get ready to go to work.   You see, the rest of my family has the week off as part of their winter break.  Me?  I am lucky to get Christmas off.    So, my husband and children were all still sleeping soundly - probably having really good dreams - as I trudged out the door, shoulders slumped, ready to keep my fingers poised on the keyboard and my eyes on the clock, waiting for 5 p.m. to come.   To say the least, I was not looking forward to going to work today (okay, THIS WEEK), knowing my husband and children would be at home . . . having fun . . . without me.  

And then the lightbulb went on!   I remembered that I had an appointment to get my hair cut this morning!   I love getting my hair cut.   I love to have my hair brushed or played with or even just touched.   Just run your fingers through my hair, over and over and over, and you'll be my friend for life.   I've always been that way.   It relaxes me like nothing else.   I used to pay my brother and my niece to brush my hair (not at the same time).   My mother used to play with my hair . . . I didn't even have to pay her.   And now my husband plays with my hair while we watch TV.   It is heaven.    And he is an angel. 

All of a sudden, leaving my family this morning to enjoy life without me didn't seem quite so bad.   Afterall, I got to have my hair played with for an hour before I went into work!   And that makes getting up all worth it!   Maybe I'll get up again in another six weeks!

Tis the Season To Be Sick

I hope that everyone had a Merry Christmas (or whatever else it is that you celebrate) and that if you had something special on your Santa list (or whatever list), that you were thrilled upon opening your gifts. 

As for me and my family, after going to church and listening to a beautiful program of word and music, we came home and had a lovely, noneventful, relaxing day.  Opened a few gifts, had a fire in the fireplace all day.   It was a nice day.   That is, if you don't count my son being sick and in the bathroom most of the evening.  Poor boy.  Or man, I should say (he's almost 21 - -  but I guess he'll always be my boy, my baby).   But, anyway . . . that got me thinking about Christmases past.   Our Christmases past.    And it seems to me that being sick on Christmas is something of a family tradition for us.   Last year, I was in the emergency room with my daughter most of the day - kidney stone (hers, not mine).   I'm not sure what my husband and sons had for dinner that day, but my daughter and I actually had a lot of fun in the ER.   She wasn't in much pain, and we amused ourselves while waiting . . . and waiting . . . and waiting . . . for the doctor by making up stories about some of the other people in the ER.    Plus, there was the cutest little boy outside my daughter's room who kept peeking in.   And it all ended up okay.

The year before it wasn't a person but rather our kitchen that was sick.   Well, we didn't really HAVE a kitchen that Christmas.   A month before, right after Thanksgiving, our dishwasher broke and flooded our kitchen and part of the basement.    The entire kitchen, including the floor, was gutted.   Again, I don't remember what we had for dinner that Christmas day (fast food??) , but I sure have a nice kitchen now!   Homeowners insurance . . . I highly recommend it!

I remember my husband being sick one Christmas, me being sick another one. . .   But it's never deterred us from having a good Christmas spirit in our home.   From remembering the "reason for the season" (that's for you, Mark).   Because it's not what you have, or where you live, or what kind of health you are in that makes Christmas what it is.   And for that I am grateful!

Happy day after Christmas.   Time to start thinking about all those goals and resolutions now!

The Reason for the Season

                                         MERRY CHRISTMAS TO YOU ALL!!

Who Was That Masked Mom??

Thank you, Masked Mom at http://maskedmom.blogspot.com/ for thinking me a worthy blogger and awarding the Liebster Award to me . . .   

Liebster is the German word for "beloved" and it's an award given bloggers with under 200 followers (I'm up to 30!! - woo hoo!) - to bring us some love and attention!  And now, it's my turn, as a recipient of this amazing honor, to pay it forward (the best part!) to some of my favorite blogs and blogger people.  I've only been blogging for about six months, but it's amazing to me how relationships are built . . . and I am so happy to count you all as friends.  

Okay, so here goes.   I could name at least 30 blogs to check out, but I am nothing if not an  abider of rules so I will just name five - -

Frazzled and Frumpy at http://frazzledandfrumpy.blogspot.com/
Noisy Quiet at http://noisyquiet.blogspot.com/
Life With A View at http://lifeandaview.blogspot.com/
In Search of a Title at http://sebtown294.blogspot.com/
Homekeeping, Down Syndrome, Autisum Stuff at http://pahomekeeper.blogspot.com/

Checking out these blogs will uplift you and make you think and make you laugh and it will be time well spent.  

Merry Christmas Eve to you all!    Now go clean out those chimneys to make room for Santa!!

Holiday Tradition!

It just occurred to me that my family hasn't watched our favorite Christmas movie yet!   This is a tradition for us.  We need to all watch it together - - at least once - - multiple times is better.   I know it may seem childish and immature to most of you reading this - - seeing as I have such sophisticated followers :)    But our most favorite Christmas movie is . . . drum roll . . . Christmas Vacation!    I'm sure you already guessed from the picture.  Most people would probably say something like, "White Christmas" or "Miracle on 34th Street" or "It's A Wonderful Life" - - - those are some of the more "respectable" and "popular" Christmas movie choices.   Don't get me wrong  - - we like all those movies.   We really do.  We even watch them.   But nothing brings our family together quite like Clark Griswold and family.    We will find ourselves laughing and repeating lines from this movie all year long.  

Clark: Let's burn some dust here, eat my rubber!

Rusty Griswold: Dad, I think what you mean is "burn rubber" and "eat my dust".

Clark: Whatever Russ, whatever. Eat my road grit, Liver Lips!

---

           Eddie: You surprised to see us, Clark?

Clark: Surprised Eddie?... If I woke up tomorrow with my head sewn to the carpet, I wouldn't be more surprised than I am now.

---

And probably our favorite (I'm not sure why) - -

Margo: And why is the carpet all wet, Todd?

Todd: I don't know Margo.

My boss's wife's name is Margo.   And everytime any one of my family members says that name, we always always always say it with that derisive inflection - Mar go.   And we laugh.  It's kind of like having Christmas with you all year long . . . kind of.

Maybe we like this movie so much because the Griswolds remind us a little of ourselves.  Not that we pull Christmas trees out by their roots or threaten our neighbors with chainsaws.  But, Clark, in all his silliness, is a true family man above everything else.   So, we will gather around the TV on Saturday and watch Christmas Vacation.  We will laugh together, we will repeat the movies lines and we will be grossed out at Cousin Eddie and his dog Snot.   And we will remember how much fun it is being together.   

And we will look forward to the next time.  

Memories Light the Corners of Our Minds - or something like that

I've been feeling a little nostalgic lately.  Kind of missing my mom and dad and sisters and brother (I live far from all of them).  And so yesterday I was looking at a Christmas gift my sisters and brother and I gave my mom and dad a couple of years ago.   It was a compilation of a bunch of our collective childhood memories.    Some made me smile, some made me laugh out loud, and some made me tear up.  And a lot made me think "man, what a bunch of weirdos!"   But they each brought back some really, really good memories.   And at the end of the book was a poem.   And it kind of says it all about what kind of parents we have.     

  

“When You Thought I Wasn't Looking”

When you thought I wasn't looking,
I saw you hang my first painting on the refrigerator,

and I wanted to paint another one.

When you thought I wasn't looking, I saw you feed a stray cat,
and I thought it was good to be kind to animals.

When you thought I wasn't looking, I saw you make my favorite cake for me,
and I knew that little things are special things.

When you thought I wasn't looking, I heard you say a prayer,
and I believed there is a God I could always talk to.

When you thought I wasn't looking, I felt you kiss me goodnight,
and I felt loved.

When you thought I wasn't looking, I saw tears come from your eyes,
and I learned that sometimes things hurt, but it's all right to cry.

When you thought I wasn't looking, I saw that you cared
and I wanted to be everything that I could be.

When you thought I wasn't looking, I looked...
and wanted to say thanks for all the things
I saw when you thought I wasn't looking. 

Author Unknown

I hope as you read you thought of someone in your life who has been influential and has helped you become the person you are.   And hopefully, each one of us is that person to someone else.  

Okay!  Enough of the serious stuff for now!   I need to go have me some fun!!

Ode To A Date Roll

I just read my sister's blog (she doesn't write very often, but when she does, it always makes me smile).   It's been a difficult time for our family these last few months as my dad's health has declined.   My mother has been a rock.  When I grow up I want to be just like her.  My sister was reminiscing about some of her childhood memories - in particular, Christmas memories.   We both have a ton of really great Christmas memories.   The one, however, that my sister recounted this morning was about date rolls.   You see, every year at Christmas my mother would make a delicious date roll.   And it was perfection.  My sister loves to bake, and tries to recreate this date roll every Christmas, and she says she mostly fails (I don't believe her!).  This year, though, I think in honor of our mother, she was determined to make it perfectly.   Just like mom did.  I don't think it worked out so well.

ODE TO A DATE ROLL (by Emma's daughter, who cannot make a date roll to save her life)
The color's not right, it tastes like a shoe.
I honestly, truly, don't know what to do.
I went to the store, bought all the right stuff,
And yes, I'm pretty sure I bought quite enough.
I carted my groceries out of my car,
Into the house and onto the bar.

I got out the thermometer, the pot, and the spoon.
I knew that the grandsons would both be home soon.
And, oh, they would marvel.  They'd oooh and they'd aahh
At this wonderful creation as soon as they saw.
But what did they see when they walked in the door?
My pot and my spoon and myself on the floor.
I give up, I give up I said in a stateYou can all go fishing and use it as bait.
So now I give up, I won't do it again,
At least til next year when, who knows, I might win

My sister can't make a date roll to save her life, I can't write a poem to save my life.  So, I stole hers.  Cherish your families, with all their imperfections.  They are the greatest Christmas gift ever!

Mom - - we love you.

The Hunger Games

I haven't read a book in a very long time.   

My daughter and I went to the movies during Thanksgiving break and saw previews for "The Hunger Game," which is coming out next year some time.   It looked good and we placed it on our "to see" list.  I know.  What's that got to do with not reading a book in a long time?  I will tell you.  The movie is based on the book of the same name, written by Suzanne Collins.   My daughter bought and read the book and loved it, so she lent it to me.  I started it at 7:30 p.m. last night and finished at 2:30 a.m.   Yes, I'm just that fast.  And it was just that good.

I could not put it down.  It's one of those kinds of stories.  Set in the future, in a land which used to be called North America (which was obliterated due to the wickedness of the people - - hmmm).    Each year there is a national competition . . . a Hunger Game.   They celebrate it like we do the Olympics.  It's a big deal.  A huge party.  Well, except to the children who are chosen to participate (and their families).   24 children are randomly chosen to play in the game.  The game?   Simply put, the last one standing (or, not dead) wins.   I know.  It sounds barbaric.  And it was.   But I couldn't put it down.   And now I have to get book two (it's a trilogy), and then book three.

Yea for good books!!    

Pay It Forward

Short and sweet today.   Saturday my daughter came home from college for winter break.  We drove through Starbucks to get an eggnog steamer (which, by the way, are delicious).   As I got to the window to pay, the Starbucks guy told me that the car in front of us had paid for our drinks.   I had never been the recipient of anything like this before.  It was . . . great.   After we got over our surprise, my daughter and I looked at each other and then asked the Starbucks guy what the car behind us got, and we paid for them.  It was so much fun!!   And even though we ended up paying a couple dollars more for the car behind us than we would have if we had just paid for ourselves, it was . . . exhilarating!   Seriously!   I know . . . if you're driving through Starbucks, then you can afford to pay for it.    But, still, it was fun.  Next time we may try to help someone who CAN'T afford it (and I'm not talking about Starbucks).    

Pay it forward (or, in our case, backward) . . . all year long!

Happy Sabbath Day!

Beautiful Hawaii

Beautiful dashboard hula girl!).  

Lazy Does It!

Okay, I am writing this on Friday to be posted on Saturday.  My husband is out of town and I am anticipating a nice quiet evening at home tonight.  Alone.  Just me and the dog.  This doesn't happen very often.    I'll have total control of the remote . . . and I can make buy whatever I want for dinner.  Hmmm.  The possibilities . . .    I can be lazy.   I can eat a whole pint of Ben & Jerry's if I want . . . who am I kidding - - IF I want?   

But what will probably happen is that I'll enjoy the first hour.   And then I'll get lonely.   And I'll wish my husband was home.   And I'll probably do laundry.   And maybe clean the kitchen.  I do have to color my hair, so maybe I'll do that, too.   I looked at the living room floor last night and thought that it needed to be vacuumed.  So, I may do that, too.    Oh, man!  I gotta snap out of this!   Focus!    Lazy.   Remote.   Ben.   Jerry.   One night out of my life, I shouldn't feel guilty - right?!

My favorite :)

Okay, then.   Here's to a lazy, relaxing, self-absorbed Friday evening!  

From the Halls of Montezuma

And you could add to that - - The Embarrassed

I'm not sure why I thought of this . . . but I had a childhood memory come to my mind just now and it made me laugh out loud.   It involves my second oldest sister . . . and the United States Marine Corps.

I have three sisters - two older, one younger.  My second oldest sister (I'll call her Mahala), unlike me, was very social, very cute and very popular in high school, which really has nothing to do with this story but may help you to better visualize as you read.   We grew up in Southern California in a house right next to the Santa Ana Freeway (5).   It was separated from our backyard by a brick wall, and we were constantly hearing the swish swish swish of the cars driving by - and the occasional crash! bang! crunch!   This also has nothing to do with the story.    To the south of us were two Marine Corps bases - El Toro and Camp Pendleton, which will come into play later.

Mahala used to like to watch Hawaii Five-0, and she would stand on the table and pretend she was surfing as they played the theme song.   She was funny/crazy.  Still is.  In a good way.   Mahala also used to like to watch the Johnny Carson show, which came on at 11 p.m.  She would lay on the couch in the living room, watching Johnny and Ed for a few minutes and then usually fall asleep.   In front of the couch was a coffee table (the Five-0 dancing table).

In my bedroom was a rather large window (almost as large as a sliding glass door, but not really).    And it faced the driveway, which you could see from the street.   And now that I think about it, how creepy is that?   People could probably look in my room anytime they wanted.   Eewwww.    Anyway, I was sleeping soundly and all of a sudden I was awakened by my sister running into my room screaming!    And as I sat up in bed, I saw a figure running past my bedroom window toward the street.   Holy cow!!!   Needless to say, I was scared . . . and Mahala was even more scared.  I'm sure we got our parents, but I can't really remember.

This is what happened.   Mahala fell asleep on the couch in her usual fashion.   The TV was on, the front door was locked.   Mahala was changing positions and her arm flopped over onto the floor.   Or, what would have been the floor if there wasn't a man asleep in between the couch and the coffee table to break the fall of her arm!!!   She felt the man, immediately jumped up (I'm sure her eyes were bulging and her face white) and came running into my bedroom.  (I don't know why she didn't run into my parents' bedroom).  We heard the front door slam.  The figure I saw running outside my bedroom window - - of course, the sleeping man.  Although he was wide awake now and he was bookin!     

What we found out the next morning . . . the front door obviously was not locked.   Okay.  Note to self - - double, triple check all the doors before you go to bed.   The sleeping man on the floor?   Actually a sleeping 21 year old Marine who drunkenly entered the wrong home.   He was stationed at one of the Marine bases and was visiting a friend who actually lived down the street from us.   Said Marine had been out drinking and I guess all the houses look the same when you're drunk.  He thought he picked the right house.  Wrong.   When my sister's hand came down on him, it SCARED HIM TO DEATH!!!   He went running out of our house and apparently found the right house this time (nothing like a good scare to sober you up!).   He was way more scared than my sister, and very embarrassed and apologetic in the morning.   We never saw him again!

Moral of the story? - - I'm not sure.   Lock your doors at night.   Don't get drunk.  Sleep in your own bed.  

But thinking about it again this morning just made me shake my head and laugh.  

Versatile Blogger

I wasn't sure what I was going to write about this morning, until I saw that I was nominated for The Versatile Blogger award by my new twin sister, Jewels!  Jewels and I clicked right away - I think we're both a little crazy (the good kind of crazy, of course!).   Check her out, cuz she is awesome - frazzledandfrumpy.blogspot.com.    I'm still not really sure what a versatile blogger is . . . but it's an AWARD!   And I was nominated!   The last time I won an award was in high school (the Bank of America Business Award).   I hated high school.  I was not one of those cheerleading popular types who the other girls always wanted to hang out with.   I was the quiet and shy one . . . you know, the one who everybody thought was conceited.   aah, high school.   The best thing I can say about it is . . . it's over.  

But, I digress.   Thank you so much, Jewels, for this great honor.  I am humbled.   So, now I think one of the rules for receiving this award is that I have to tell you 7 random things about me.   If you fall asleep, I'll wake you up when its over.

1.   I lived in Venezuela for a year and a half - before they became angry with us.
2.   I watched Harry Potter every day for over a year while I walked on the treadmill :)  Every single day (but Sunday).  Ask me anything about Harry, I dare you!
3.   I'm a cougar (well, they didn't call it that when we got married, but I AM older than my husband!).
4.   Finding 7 random things to tell about myself is very difficult.   Does that count?
5.   I've had beignets at Cafe du Monde in New Orleans.   That's random.
6.   I saw Herman Hermits at Disneyland once.   (Well, I don't think they were really Herman's Hermits, but we stalked them as if they were).  I know some (most) of you don't even know who Herman's Hermits are . . . :)
7.   I do not like lobster.

There you go, 7 random things that you probably never cared to know :)

And now, it is my turn to nominate someone for the Most Versatile Blogger.  I think I'm supposed to nominate 15 blogs, but no way.   So, I am just going to pick two that I really enjoy opening every day.  The first is Tammy at pahomekeeper.blogspot.com.   You will love reading about the challenges and joys of family.   And the second is Daryl at all-throughmyeyes.blogspot.com.  She has some awesome photos of NYC.  Some will take your breath away.

Thank you all for reading my blog, as random and silly as it is sometimes! 

Harry/Daniel

Alright, some of you know that I love Harry Potter.  The books, the movies.  The way I was so taken into that world every time I opened the pages of one of the books, or watched the movies, hoping they would never end!  I used to be embarrassed to say that, seeing that I am a grownup.  However, I learned to embrace my Potterism.  And now I can say it with no shame.   I love Harry Potter.   I was sad when it ended.   The anticipation of new books, new movies and the continuation of that wonderful Hogwarts world is no more.    I have all the books and all the movies, so I can read and watch whenever I want.  It's not the same as looking forward to NEW books and movies.   But at least it's something. 

And now Harry Potter has a new movie coming out.  I shouldn't call him Harry Potter.   Daniel Radcliffe.   But to me and millions of others he is and always will be Harry Potter.  Maybe that's not fair to Daniel Radcliffe, the actor.   But the truth is - he has been Harry Potter for over a decade.  

However, seeing as his new movie, "The Woman in Black," is a scary/horror movie, and I am a scary/horror movie freak, I am willing to try to look past my Daniel Radcliffe/Harry Potter tunnel vision and give him a chance.   If the movie makes me jump or cover my eyes or move closer to my husband, then just maybe Daniel, the actor, will have me looking past his Harryness.

I'm willing to have an open mind (it may be open just a sliver, but at least there will be an opening).

The Woman In Black
(This could be Harry, lighting up the halls of Hogswarts with his wand)

 

The Case of the Missing Keys

Okay, I have actual proof now that there are spirits around us . . . and they are sneaky . . . or playful . . . or thieves!  

My husband and I were ready to walk out the door this morning and . . . his keys were missing!   Oh ya!   No way they could have been misplaced or lost - it had to be those sneaky/playful/thieving spirits!   Man!  They've always been so easy to live with before, never causing any trouble - - we never even noticed that they were there.   But they've made their presence perfectly clear now - - they stole (or hid) my husband's keys!   Those rascals!

Seriously.   We looked everywhere - - they were nowhere . . . at least nowhere that we could see.    It had to be our household spirits!   And, come to think of it . . . it had to be them the last time I thought I had "misplaced" my purse, and the time I thought I had lost my shoe (just one shoe - I had the other - but you can't walk around with one shoe).   I looked everywhere for my purse and for my shoe, I was frantic (about the purse, not the shoe).   Then, it seemed all of a sudden, my purse showed up in a place I just knew I had already looked.   Hmmmm.  And my shoe appeared at the back of my closet (I never put my shoes at the back of my closet when I throw them in).   Very suspicious.

So, there you have it.   If you didn't believe before, here is proof positive - - spirits are mingling among us!    And the next time you "misplace" your keys or wallet or your baby's binkie . . . or anything . . . think about it.   Did you really misplace it?   Or are your household spirits just playing with you??!!

Oh, and we never did find those car keys.   So, if you are out on the road some time and see a car seemingly driving itself, don't worry . . . you're not going mad.

Good-Bye DeathTrap, Hello Car Payment

Well, we did it.   We are now driving a grownup car.   No more deathtrap, stall-at-the-worst-times, dented up, gas guzzling, embarrassingly ugly car for us.   We tend to drive our cars until they can drive no more.   Our deathtrap probably could have taken us a few more miles, but it was iffy.   So, an early Saturday morning conversation went like this: 

Me:   Want to go car shopping?   Not to buy, but just to see what we might like.
Him:  Sure.   But I really want a sun roof.  
Me:   Whatever.  But we're not going to buy, right?  We're just going to look.  Go to all the places in town and drive a bunch of cars to see what we like.
Him:   Agreed.  We don't want to jump into anything.   We're just looking.   And when those car salesmen swarm, our mantra will be 'JUST SAY NO.'

So, we were kind of excited to go drive some cars and find one that we both would really like and that would be good for our needs.   We had a car payment in mind and didn't want to go over it, so we wanted to see what kind of car we could afford.  But we weren't going to buy it, we were just going to make a list and start crossing cars off until we had narrowed the list down to . . . one.

We got to the first lot (and, as it turned out, the only lot.  What can I say?  We're efficient shoppers).   One car salesman came out - not a swarm.   And he let us walk around on our own, like grownups - - and he didn't even slink behind us, hiding behind cars, trying not to be seen (at least I don't think he did - we didn't see him - maybe he was just a really good slinker!)   

Anyway, long story short . . . we bought a car.  So much for the JUST SAY NO mantra.  But, we weren't pressured (at least, I don't think we were pressured - maybe they were really good at pressuring and we didn't even realize it).   We got our car payment (well, sort of . . . ), and now we don't have to fear for our lives anymore every time we get behind the wheel. 

And . . . it has a sun roof!  Not a bad day!

Beauty All Around Us

Happy Sabbath Day!

Bucket List? Nah!

I was looking at someone's blog the other day and noticed a tab for a "bucket list."   My daughter told me that she has a bucket list.  I've never had a bucket list, although I set goals.  I've seen the movie, "Bucket List" and liked it alot.  I even cried.  But all of this got me thinking . . . why don't I have one and if I did, what would go on it? 

(And now that I'm thinking about it, I'm not sure I need a bucket list.  I'm the kind of person who doesn't need to know all the answers to life's greatest questions.  I know enough.  The rest I take on faith.  And I guess the same thing applies to bucket lists - I don't need to DO a lot of things or GO to a lot of places to feel happy.   And maybe that's not even the purpose of a bucket list.   I don't really know.)   But . . .

Before I was married, a friend and I went on a trip across the United States.   We quit our jobs, packed our tent, and headed off.   We were gone for three months and saw a ton of places and had some great experiences.   It was an awesome once-in-a-lifetime trip.  I suppose that's something that could go on a bucket list.   If I did do a bucket list, I should probably start from now, though - not put a bunch of things that I've already done and then cross them off.   That would be cheating.  So, I guess something I would like to do is go on a ghost hunt.   Sounds kind of dumb, I know.   But that would go in my bucket.  I don't have many other things to go in it.  I probably wouldn't even need a bucket - - I think a little mug would do. 

But, for sure, what I would really like to see happen before I die is that all of my children are happily engaged in life (hopefully married and with their own families).  That would be my ultimate bucket list wish :) 

Creeped Out

My husband had to be at work early this morning for a meeting.  And, since I hitch a ride with him, that meant I had to be at work early, too.    When we left it was kind of dark and very cold.  Frost everywhere.   Foggy.  Creepy (but cool creepy, not creepy creepy).   I thought of the Paranormalist.  And that Doris Day movie - - the one that takes place in London - - I forget the name.  But I remember being creeped out by it.   Anyway, my husband dropped me off at the dark stairs which lead down to my office and watched me go in.   I am in the corner of the basement and, when it's dark, it's very very dark :)  I was the first one in the building (it's a relatively small, one story with a basement).   I turned on the light and immediately locked the door behind me (I never do that).   But my imagination was starting to act up.  

I love scary movies.   And a scene from every single scary movie I have ever seen in my lifetime came to my mind.   The Shining - "Come play with us . . . forever and ever and ever."  I could see Linda Blair pushing a priest out of the window.  AND I could see a stringy haired dead girl climbing up my wall.  Sure, all of those are just movies.   BUT I believe that there are spirits all around us, and a few of them are not as sweet as Linda Blair!  So, I thought of that too, and was really creeping myself out.   I was just about ready to call my husband to have him talk me down from my self-imposed creeped-out mode . . . when I heard a voice . . .

"Good morning Judy!  Happy Friday!"    Okay, I can unlock the door now!

Just Say No

Okay, I'm thinking that it's seriously time to put the cookies down and pick up the apple instead.  Alright, I don't like apples (unless dipped in caramel).  But maybe I could pick up an orange or something.  I have many blessings in my life, but being naturally thin is not counted among them.  I like food.  I like junk food.  I like sweets.   I like to be able to fit in my clothes.  Sometimes those things don't mesh.   When that happens, it's time to make a choice.  

That happened.   And now it's crunch time (no pun intended).  It's time to find out what I'm really made of.   Do I have what it takes to SAY NO TO COOKIES??   We shall see.

Have A Pet? Own It!

I really have to stop watching "Animal Cops Houston."  I couldn't sleep last night so I watched some recorded episodes.  And after watching, I still couldn't sleep.  It is just beyond fathomable how cruel people can be.   Dogs with imbedded chain collars, dead dogs/puppies lying in backyards while their owners are inside oblivious to the suffering animals they supposedly love, horses so emaciated and neglected that, just to start back on the road to health, had to gain 300 pounds.  And on and on.  The Houston SPCA gets over 9,000 calls per year of negligence and cruelty to animals.   Some people just suck.   

And yet, most of those animals who suffer so much at the hands of cruel, cruel people are such loving, forgiving and nonjudgmental creatures.   And it was so heartwarming to see the dog with the embedded collar healthy and playing with its new loving family.   And to see the emaciated horse looking so regal as it was being ridden by its proud new owner.  

While some people DO suck, so many more people on this earth are kind and compassionate and loving.   And THAT is why it's worth getting up each morning.

Baby, It's Cold Outside!

So, I was listening to Christmas music this morning as I sat at my desk wondering if I would have any thoughts today.   And the song, "Baby, It's Cold Outside," came on.  I was singing along with it, thinking of the movie, "Elf,"  - - you know, the scene in the bathroom when that cute girl is singing that same song in the shower and Will Ferrell comes in and starts singing along with her and she freaks out (as would I if a strange man were in my bathroom singing songs while I showered).   Anyway, I was enjoying the song, kind of bopping my head and feeling it.   Then the line, "Maybe just a cigarette more," . . . I do not remember that line in that song!   I'm sure it was there all along (especially in the Dean Martin version), but I don't think I ever heard it.  I've heard that song a zillion times.  And I don't know why this time I heard it for the first  time.  And when I heard it, it bothered me.  I lost a little itty bitty bit of fondness for it - at least that version.  I know it's been done many times after, so I looked up the lyrics on a couple other versions, just out of curiousity.   That particular line is not in Rod Stewart's version, but it is in Lady Antebellum's.    Interesting.

I grew up in the days when it was perfectly acceptable to smoke.  Not only acceptable, but really cool.  My dad was a smoker (although not cool).  My mother was not a smoker  (although cool).  And none of us kids are (smokers OR cool).  And I'm pretty sure there was cigarette smoke in our house all the time, but I don't think I ever really noticed it.  Today, if I walk by someone who is smoking, or has smoked, I want to hold my breath until I'm in fresh air territory.  

I guess it doesn't really matter if that line is in the song or not.  It's a really nice song.  But I wonder how many other songs I sing to or bop my head to without really knowing what lyrics I'm singing or bopping to!    

 

Thoughts

The thoughts going through my head as I sit here with my fingers poised on the keyboard, ready to take off spelling out exciting and wonderful things  - -

Nothing.  My mind is blank.   But I like writing.   Gee, I hope I haven't run out of interesting things to write.   Heck, I hope I haven't run out of thoughts!   Wouldn't it be sad to have no thoughts?  Although I guess if you didn't have thoughts you wouldn't really know.   You'd just be empty-headed.   And that would be your normal.   But what is normal, anyway?   My children swear that I'm "abnormal," but at least I have thoughts . . . most of the time.   Sometimes they're abnormal thoughts, but they ARE thoughts.   Just not today.   Not right now. 

When I finally do get my thoughts back, I hope that they are good thoughts.   

 

Be A Hero

There are heroes among us. Everytime you open the door for someone or give up your seat on the bus to someone else, you are a hero. The world is in need of heroes. No cape required. Happy Sabbath Day!

My New Motto

I think I found my motto for the new year, 2012.   It speaks to me.   I want to be the kind of person who scares the devil.   Who is aware of the needs of people around me.   Who acts and not just thinks.    I want to be the kind of person who other people want to be around.   I want to be compassionate.   Do good.  Be kind.   Be a listener.   Be aware.   Be active in the cause of goodness!    Hmmm.  Maybe I just  found part of the Christmas spirit that I've been lacking this season.



P.S.  Thank you to my facebook friends from whom I borrowed this "motto."

Dreaded Day

It's grocery shopping day. Ugh. I have come to dread this day. You know that I hate planning meals. So making a grocery list is a giant pain in my side. But my husband and I have come to the conclusion that we eat out way too much. Personally, I like eating out! No meal to plan, no dishes to do. Delicious food. My perfect scenario. But we're going to try to make more use of that one room in the house . . . You know, the one with the stove and sink :) So, wish me luck as I make my list (I hope I don't forget the aspirin). And, if you hear a loud scream later today - it's because 5 little plastic bags of groceries probably just cost me $150!!! (maybe once I get over the shock of having to grocery shop regularly I should become an extreme couponer!!)

Confessions of a Weirdo

Confession time.  I think I discovered something about myself this morning.   Actually, if truth be known, I think I've known it all along, but have been in denial.  I'm just to the point now where I can verbalize it.   I'M WEIRD!   "Yes!", my children are shouting.  "Finally, she admits it!!"  

The reason (okay, ONE of the reasons) I say this is because I find myself thinking such bizaare and random thoughts when showering.   Here's a sampling.  

Am I the ONLY one who knows how to put the toilet paper roll on the toilet paper holder thingy???

How come when a guy doesn't shave for a week he looks sexy.   How come when I don't shave my legs for a week I look like Big Foot and NOBODY finds it sexy??   So not fair.

Why can a guy shave his face and, again, it's sexy?  Yet, a woman has to use facial hair remover while hiding so no one can see her and it is SO NOT SEXY??    Again, so not fair.

How come when a woman drives the speed limit she is a bad driver???

I wonder if Izzy has little doggy parties while we're at work?


Maybe it's normal to think weird thoughts while in the shower.   Maybe I'm not really weird at all.   Maybe the sky is really green.    Maybe chocolate is really good for you.   Maybe this is all a dream.