SEVEN THINGS- Tagged By Serendipity!!

Seven things I want to do before I die-
1)lose all the weight I've gained
2)visit another country
3)let my hair grow back out long again
4)have someone throw a huge suprise birthday party for me(and NOT let me find out about it)
5)own my own home
6)be able to quit my job
7)have a picture taken of me that I am actually proud of

Seven things I can't do-
1)read without my glasses
2)drive at night
3)walk past a crooked picture without straightening it
4)listen to rap music for more than twenty seconds at a stretch
5)sit for more than three minutes without talking about something
6)stop my PMS
7)stop eating chocolate- if it's there I HAVE to at least taste it.

Seven things I say most often-
1)I love you Paulius!!!!
2)I wish I didn't have to go to work tonight.....SIGH......
3)I don't THINK so!
4)WHY?
5)But I WANT to!
6)Why NOT?
7) DAMMITT!!!!!Where the bloody HELL are my f-ing KEYS NOW?????

Seven books I love-
1)The Harvester
2)A Woman Of Substance
3)Rage of Angels
4)Harry Potter Series
5)Highland Warrior
6)"Key of" series by Nora Roberts
7)"The Cat Who" series by Lillian Jackson-Braun

Seven movies I can watch over and over-
1)Dirty Dancing
2)The Full Monty
3)Harry Potter
4)White Christmas
5) Home Alone
6)It's a Wonderful Life
7)Toy Story

Seven TV shows I love-
1)M.A.S.H.
2)Wheel Of Fortune
3)Jeopardy
4)Who Wants to Be A Millionaire
5)Fear Factor
6) CSI-Las Vegas
7)Roseanne

Seven places I've been-
1)Charleston SC
2)NYC, NY
3)Leesburg Virginia
4)Cinncinatti Ohio
5)Detroit Michigan
6)Ashville NC
7)Pensocola Florida

Seven people I would have loved to have met-
1)Amelia Earheart
2)Mark Twain
3)John Candy
4)My great-great grandmother-Lilli Texanna McCall
5)Marilyn Monroe
6) Jackie O
7)Moses

It's Broken- We Have To Take It Back.

My grandson, Devon, took some of his Christmas money and bought himself a Yo-yo.

He took it home, put the string on his finger and let it drop to the floor. He stood with his hand out looking at it as it rolled to a stop and declared,"It's broke. It doesn't work- we have to take it back."

I just think it needed new batteries.
Paulius says he just needed to update the drivers on it.

;-)


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Only a week until we find out what the new baby my son, Frank, and DIL, Marie, are having will be.

It's a win-win situation for me, tho. If it's a boy- I get to name it-(Nicholas Braydon)- and if it's a girl- I get the grandaughter I want. Three grandsons with guns and footballs and video-games and GI Joes are great- but I want lacy socks and tea parties now.

If Marie gives me that granddaughter- I am getting her an opal necklace.(She LOVES opals).
If not, then my other son, Clayton, and his wife Kathy will have kids someday. They haven't been married but a bit over a year now and they are both very career-minded right now so we don't think they will have kids for a few more years, yet.

They could suprise us tho.


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I can't wait til this weekend- Paulius and I are trying to keep it low-key this weekend. I am exhausted and need some R&R.

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I will be so glad when the Super Bowl teams are decided! Are the Panthers still a contender? With my work schedule I haven't been able to keep up like I normally do.

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I kinda like this new format I am using to blog. It's more like the way I think....sort of chaotic and all over the place.

Any thoughts on it?

Getting a A Grip on Gaming........And A NYR I Can Keep!

Whine, Whine, Whine.

People whining about gamers......

"I just don't understand about the gaming. It seems more addictive than crack cocaine...."

Whatever.

You know- I know a LOT about addictions- and if my husband is going to have an "addiction" or a "vice"- I would choose gaming ANYDAY over any of the others he could have.

Even if he games for 8 hours plus a day......

Just because other people don't do it seems to make it a BAD thing to them.

They need to just get a grip and leave us alone.



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Speaking of gaming- Can any of you HARDCORE gamers give me a review of Gun?

I game for relaxation........an example: I played ZELDA-Ocarina of Time- just until I could get into the fishing pond. That's where I go now as soon as I turn the game on. I stay there a couple hours fishing. It's something to do that is relaxing to me and has a competition to it without having to do something that is a mission that will make me more frustrated and tense.

With that in mind- can y'all recommend another game that will relax me in the same manner?

I also like 007 games for the actual missions- you know for REAL fun but not relaxation.

Any comments will be most appreciated.


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Have you thought of any New Years Resolutions?

I have, and it's very simple.

I resolve to try and live a more healthy and simple lifestyle in the coming year.

No unrealistic resolutions like I will become Barbie this year.
Just a simple promise to myself to try and do better.

That's all I can do anyway.

Speaking of which- I'm tired- I'm going to start my resolution early this year and go on to bed now.

Nighty- Night!

WHAT I WOULD DO.....

Thanks, Pete- I realized I had neglected to say what I would do after I posted.

The FIRST thing I would do is quit my thankless boring job.

Then I would have a three week party with my family and friends.
And I would make a LOT of love with my husband. I would leave this world living life and loving it and all it had to offer and had given me.

That's it.

Why am I not doing it now?

Debt.

Life goes on- until it doesn't anymore.

A New Personal Record....

Just to let yall know- this is the 5th post today..............

I certainly don't have writers block- or writers clog- or writers constipation either.


:-P

And In Conclusion........

I won't be posting again until after Christmas Day is over- so much to do until then. I WILL be taking short breaks to read your blog posts and responses to my questions- if y'all have time to do answer them yourselves.

;-)

So I just wanted to say...................




MERRY CHRISTMAS TO ALL- AND TO ALL A GOOD-NIGHT!!!!!




HAPPY HOLIDAYS EVERYONE!!!!!!!

Second Question.........

And now that you know what you would do if you thought you only had three weeks to live........





WHY aren't you doing those things NOW?

How do you KNOW that you DON"T have but three weeks to live? Or less?



These are things that keep me awake at night sometimes.............

Two Questions......

Actually, it's one question now- and one later........

Have you saw the trailer for the new Queen Latifa movie asking "What would you do if you thought you only had three weeks to live?"?

She quits her job, goes to Monte Carlo, goes Base-Jumping, Goes Skiing, - basicly does all the things she wants to do before she dies.

That's Question #1- What would YOU do if you thought you had only three weeks to live?



Think about it.

Question # 2 later.........................

And You Thought MC Etcher Was Bad......

Okay- I thought I would PROVE to MC he isn't alone with his......insanity.

I work at night- alone- no video equipment spying so I can pretty much do alot of nutty stuff and get by with it as long as my work is done on time.

I have all the automatic timed doors and elevator times down to a science on opening and closing- so I pretty much spend the whole night walking around and doing the Jedi Mind-Trick on all the doors and elevators. (I would LOVE to be able to do that in real life. That would just be THE BOMB!!)

Trouble is- last night I did it on my office chair in the reception area as I came back from a tour of the facilities- and it moved about an inch- and I was a good twenty feet away from it.

It's not near a door or a draft- so unless we had a small undetectable earthquake- something else was going on.

Can it be that practicing so much has actually increased my psychic powers?

GOD I HOPE SO!!! I could have ALOT of fun with THAT power!!

A Wealthy Widower.

That's what Paulius almost became yesterday.
Let me explain............

Because of the line of work I am in I have a substantial amount of life insurance taken out on me- I figure if my Paulius loves me enough to have moved all this way away from everything he knows, not to mention away from all his family, if anything happens to me I want him taken care of.....WELL taken care of for quite a few years. So here I was, driving along home from work, minding my own business, went over the crest of a hill and the traffic was at a dead standstill because of the utilities trucks repairing the lines.

No problem for me-I was going a normal 10 miles an hour from a red light before the hill..... However, the huge dump-truck that came barreling over the crest of the hill doing 40 MPH trying to beat the red light about 30 seconds behind me was a totally different story. Seems it takes a LOT more time and distance than the 30 feet or so he had to stop a dump-truck than a little Ford Aspire like I have. He crested the hill as I was looking in my rear-view mirror and all I could think is "OH F--K........" He applied brakes and shifted hard to the right, I cut my wheel left sharp and quickly pulled forward the 18 inches I had allowed between me and the car in front of me.

He missed my back bumper by MAYBE two inches -(the wind off it rocked me AND the car in front of me)-and came to stop about 20 feet in front of me on the other side of the road. If by some chance he hadn't missed me- I would have been a dead duck. Literally.

Paulius and I had been fussing when I left for work the night before and I came so close to not being able to say what an idiot I am and being stupid for bitching about the small stuff.

It just goes to show- you never know when your time may come- don't let a day go by that you don't tell your loved ones how MUCH you love them.

And don't sweat the small stuff- and when something like that almost happens- you realize for sure- IT'S ALL SMALL STUFF!!

Next Year.......

it'll be different.

I swear.

I am NOT having a good week- no- make that MONTH.

Just to not have to go into details-(I know you guys are busy this week)

Ice storm-
Not got all shopping done-
Missed two days work due to ice storm- therefore may not have FUNDS to make all bills this week- or finish shopping-
Auntie Flo is supposed to visit any day- and is LATE. Either way makes it SUCK.

Next year- ALL shopping will be FINISHED by Thanksgiving Day. No ifs, ands, or buts.

I hate this.

Maybe I'm just feeling this way because I'm missing my dad. I just haven't been able to get it together this year to take care of all these usually fun things. I haven't felt like shopping, I haven't felt like baking- I haven't felt like decorating much either. I want to- but it just seems that everything has went wrong this holiday time.

I have faith it will be better next year, tho.
I just have to actually believe it and make it happen.

This Years Title.....

If I had to describe my life this year in a title- It would be something like.....




"Do I Really Want To Get Up This Morning- Or What's The Deal For Today?

The Story Of My Life In 2005"

By Sunny M.


On the upside- it's almost over...........


This Year- Not my Life.


:-P

Feeling a BIT better....Except for the Fat Lip and Sprained Wrist.

Yeah- I do. Only a bit of a sore throat this morning.....
and a busted lip-
and a mildly sprained wrist,
and a skinned knee.
(I had forgotten how much those HURT.)

See, I had a bit of an accident at work last night......well, more like this morning very early.

I went to work doing a bit of field work at the hospital last night at midnight. I told my boss that if he was going to send someone home at 0600 ,as is his habit sometimes, I wanted to volunteer as I wasn't feeling quite up to par, still.

So him being the nice guy he is, let me clock out at about 0630 after the second Lifereach Helicopter had taken back off. I clocked out, then headed up the main entrance drive to go to my car when a car came DOWN the drive and flashed it's high-beams directly into my eyes. I am night-blind anyway- and that just completely disoriented me and I turned my head quickly, got dizzy and almost passed out. At the same time I realized that being dressed in black (Our uniform trenchcoat color) was not a good thing and knew the car might not be able to see me in the drive as it came round the corner again, so I tried to step onto the grassy part of the drive so if I did pass out completely I wouldn't be laying in the middle of the road looking like a lump of tar-paper and get ran over. However, I was sufficently disoriented enough to have completely forgotten about the new curbing they had installed since I was there last week and caught my boot on it and fell flat on my face and wrist.

Luckily, I fell far enough onto the grassy part that the car missed me as it came round the second curve of the drive. They didn't even see me there in the grass.

I lay there stunned for a minute or so, and then slowly got up, feeling my fat lip, checking for loose teeth, flowing blood and flexing my wrist to see if I needed to go to the Emergency Room. Luckily, I wasn't that badly hurt and rather than report it to my supervisor, (I was off the clock, after all) and have to stay and write up an hours report AND go for a required exam in the ER to make sure I was okay,(taking at least three hours- remember we had just had TWO helicopters come in and another was due any minute), I just dusted myself off and highed myself on home.

I came in, went to sleep and am a bit sore, but much less worse for wear than I thought I might be.

Next time, I think, instead of walking I'll wait on the Mobile Officer to come give me a ride to my car. Knowing me I'll probally trip on a shoelace and fall out of the mobile van onto my face on the asphalt parking lot, tho.

Some days it just doesn't pay to get up early.

And how was YOUR day?????

I Need Chicken Soup.

I probally won't be posting for a few days.

I don't feel well. Like Paulius, I have the grandmother of headaches- have had it for about 5 days now- and I have a fever and ache all over. I hope it's not the flu. I got a flu shot this year- about a week ago- but you are still able to catch a full blown case of the flu for about three weeks after recieving the vaccination.

I just wanna be babied, but with my Paulius not feeling well either , there is no one here to baby me. He doesn't like to be bothered when he's sick, which I fully understand. Different strokes for different folks.

I want some chicken soup- And my ragdoll I have had since I was 6 years old.


Did you have a favorite doll or stuffed animal or toy that you had to have when you were not feeling well when you were small? My grandmother made my ragdoll whom I named Rhonda.

She will be turning 39 years old on Christmas Day. And I still drag her around when I don't feel well. (It's my "inner-child" crying out for attention-I also have footy PJs.) I just can't get to her right now because she is in the closet in the room where Paulius is trying to rest.

To be honest- He probally wouldn't mind me going in there and looking for her, but I feel so horrible I really can't be bothered.

Sigh...............................

I'll just lie here on the couch and die a slow and agonizingly tortuous death from this bug I have picked up.........sigh.................................................all alone..........except for the cat who will laugh at me as I weakly call for help with my last breath................sigh..................

Later All..............
Signed,
The Drama Queen

(Lois- I'm learning. Soon I may actually BE the DQ that she thought I was, but until then- practice makes perfect!)

How I Did It.

Okay- since you asked here it is.

A few years back I went to my doctor and found out I have high blood pressure, an irregular heartbeat and I needed to lose weight too- a significant amount of weight to take the strain off my heart and I needed to de-stress.
I asked him about giving me either a specific diet to follow or a pill to help with my energy level.
He told me NO PILLS. He did give me a very easy diet to follow- and I DID and it WORKED.

Here is the diet.....

MINIMUM salt(BP)
No Sugar(weight)
No pork-(BP)
Minimum Starches
Eat all the fruits and veggies I want- especially raw veggies and fruits.
Limit red meat-no more than 3 times a week.
Drink at least 8-8oz glasses of water a day.
No caffeine.

That's it.
I followed it and was walking up and down 5 flights of stairs three times a day doing my job as a courier supervisor. And I LOST the weight. It stayed off for three years and then slowly I have gained a significant amount back.
Not all of it-THANK GOD!!- At that time I weighed 267.

I actually lost down to 145 before I started gaining it back- but the 67 pounds in the 4 months was GREAT and faster than I ever dreamed. It seems that the more you have to lose- the quicker you have a significant loss.

So now I find myself again overweight, stressed, and with my heart skipping beats again occasionally, so I figure- it worked once...... And yes, I went to the doctor a couple or so months ago and he fussed at me about gaining again and warned me about the implications of not following his advice. So I have his okay to go for it again.

Anyway- That's how I did it.

And how I will do it AGAIN!!!!!!

The Little Engine That COULD!!!!!

Well, I did very well last night.

Drank only water except for one small cup of coffee- you know, those small styrofoam cups that are practically non-existant? And I only had one packet of non-dairy creamer with it and NO sugar.

Today I had a few baked fries and then went to sleep.

My doctor put me on a strict diet a few years back and it combined with all the stair-climbing I was doing at that time with my job, I lost a grand total of 67 pounds in 4 months. It was amazing! And it was doctor supervised.

So I am going back to that diet and combining it with the once a week treat of a cup of Irish Creme Coffee as a reward for staying on track. Maybe once a month I'll go OUT to eat too. MAYBE.

I don't see why it won't work now too.

And I have this sexy little pink bikini that I wanna be in and looking GOOD by this summer anyway.

I can do it, I can do it, ! I can do it......!!!!!
I think I can, I think I can....Just call me Choo-Choo.

That does it-

After all that walking and climbing stairs and sweating at work for the past two months- I gained 8-yes EIGHT- pounds (of the 20 I had lost during the 2 months) back over the Thanksgiving holiday.

Midnight tonight I am going back on the diet full speed ahead.

This really sux.

Dammitt.

Crap.

Sigh..........................................

Pulling A Monica......?

Well, here I am again, Sunday(oops- Saturday) morning, waiting for everyone else to get up so I have someone to talk to/annoy...whatever.

I got up fully intending to clean the kitchen properly. You know- wipe all the cabinets, clean the stove and oven. Wipe out the fridge, vacuum the floor and wipe everything down. Then make a big breakfast and a pot of coffee and enjoy the rest of the day.

Well, I got up, cleared out the sink and then started on the stove. I got it done- all vacuumed out and sprayed down and wiped up. Clean as a whistle and smells divine!! Then I vacuumed the floor. I had done that last night but when you wipe out the cabinets and clean the stove you HAVE to vacuum and sweep again. Right?

I also am trying to put off doing the dishes as long as I possibly can. I HATE doing the dishes. I have a dishwasher- but alas, it seems to have gone bad on me. I can rinse the dishes, put them in the DW, turn it on, and when it's finished the dishes are worse than when they went in. Seriously. I tried cleaning the filter and the hoses and everything- Changed the detergent I was using in it and nothing helped. So I just wash the dishes by hand now. And as I said- I DETEST doing that job.
Paulius tried to wash them on many occasions, but it's one job I am absolutely ANAL about. I have to have a sinkful of HOT sudsy water to wash them in, and cold running water to rinse them in so they come out all sparkling clean. I can't rinse them in a sinkful of water- it has to be running water. I got food poisoning once and ever since I have been like that about kitchens and dishes. I also have a certificate in Culinary Arts and that was a whole quarter of book-learning; food poisoning, bacteria, all sorts of gross stuff that STUCK in my mind. I also had a bad experience with someone- (not Paulius)- who washed a glass with DAWN dish detergent on a dishcloth instead of in a sink of water and didn't rinse it properly. They poured me a glass of Pepsi and the tiny bit of detergent not rinsed off went in my mouth and down my tummy and I swear I was sick as a dog for four days. I couldn't eat- couldn't drink- and I tasted that stuff constantly for a month after that! So, yeah- I'll admit I'm anal about how my dishes are done.

And, yeah, I'm doing this so I can put it off for another 30 minutes or so.
(Aren't I the wily one?)

Another thing I am abit strange about is bed-making. I have to have the sheets straight. They have to be even all around. They have to be tucked at the bottom and they HAVE to have ALL the wrinkles smoothed out before the rest of the bedclothes go on the bed. There is a perfectly VALID explanation for this behavior tho. I must be a princess. If there is even ONE SINGLE wrinkle in the sheets, I have to get up(and make Paulius get up too) and smooth them out. They HURT me. Seriously- I am NOT joking. If I sleep on a wrinkled sheet- I wake up feeling like I have been sleeping on a field of sticks and stones all night. I have actually gotten a bruise a couple times where I lay in a wrinkled blanket when I was taking a nap.
I'm not a bit finicky about making the bed every morning as soon as we get up tho. I DO have to make it up all neat before I go back to bed, however.

I have a thing about ashtrays, as well. I rarely smoke- and if I do- I don't mind emptying the ashtrays. But if I am not smoking, I don't feel it's MY place to empty them. And for God's sake, don't leave them laying on the arm of a chair to be knocked off. Put them on a table-AFTER you empty them, of course. Nobody wants to smell a stale ashtray. Not even smokers.

In my house, if you trim your beard and/or mustache in the sink or if you shave- how about wiping the counter and sink out? And if you are a female and you shave your legs- or other parts- rinse the damn tub out! I don't wanna have to clean up your coochie and/or leg hair from my bathroom.

I love that my Paulius helps out around the house. I've never had anyone besides my boys do that.(I raised them so they could cook and clean by the time they were 8 years old- and their wives THANK me for it) I think the best part of him helping out is the time we spend together when we do the chores together, tho. It makes time go by so much faster and then we have time for other FUN things. Pulling a Monica isn't always a BAD thing.

;-)

SUPERSIZE ME!!!! EVEN "REGULAR" SIZE SUCKS!!!!!

How the heck are we supposed to lose weight in our society?

Have you tried lately?

I walk up and down 19 flights of steps every night- plus a quarter mile hike four times a night as well when I am working.

I have lost a grand total of 17 lbs since I went to work there two months ago. It should have been more.

I try to eat healthily. I bake my fries- I usually broil or bake meats- I DO have a sweet tooth- but even with that I try to limit how much I indulge(only time I REALLY give in is a couple days before Aunt Flo visits- minimal damage).

But to try and eat in public is hopeless.

Order at a restaurant and you get enough food for two people. I know you can eat half and take the rest home- or leave it on the plate...but WHY? I don't like warmed over food from a restaurant. I also don't like to waste food when there are so many people starving in the world- and besides- I don't wanna pay 12 bucks for a half serving of food and leave the rest either. I work too hard for my money to waste it like that. And we could share a plate- but Paulius and I don't always want the same thing to eat when we go out- he tends to like spicy foods and I go for a more bland type food- I have an ulcer and spicy foods double me over when I eat them.

Why the hell can't the food industry just serve NORMAL portions and decrease the price a bit?
Everyone would be happier,(except maybe the 600 lb people who think all that food is GOOD for them and would absolutely STARVE if they weren't served enough to feed a small nation at every meal), not to mention healthier. Even if they DIDN'T decrease the price- it would still be better for us because a) we wouldn't be eating those mega portions and all the fat and calories that go with them and b) we wouldn't eat out as much because it would be so expensive to do so,(which is exactly the reason that they don't want to do the sensible thing like normal prices and portions-everything has to be bigger and better than the competetions).

I can't even watch TV anymore without being bombarded with commercial after commercial after COMMERCIAL about food- every where I look its there- and turning the sound down doesn't help either- I can still see the cheese oozing all hot and steaming from the pizza slice as it's served up. I can still see the creamy chocolate dripping from the spoon as the ice cream sundae is gobbled up. I can still see the blissful expressions on the faces of the people eating the stuff too- and even tho I know they are actors- they are DAMN GOOD actors because I honestly want to run out and get some of the creamy, chewy, owwey gooey goodness they are having while I'm watching.

Looks like I am going to have to give up watching TV at ALL and give up going out to eat at all as well to be healthy again.

And sodas- Why in the world do they sell those things in twenty oz bottles? First they sold the little 7 oz bottles which were PERFECT for a person- Just enough unless you were DYING of thirst and then you were better off drinking water to satisfy your thirst. Then they upped the dosage to 10 ozs. a bit more- but still okay. Then it went to 12 ozs. Too much. I have a can of soda and a third of it is usually left and wasted. Can't cap it- it's a can. Looses the fizz and tastes like CRAP. ...Then the 16 oz came along. And the 20 oz.....GREAT- for two people- but if you are single- or driving along alone- who needs it? 16 ozs is enough for 2 and a HALF servings. No wonder we are so freaking FAT in this nation. They began making those little 10 oz bottles again for a while- but finding them is like looking for a needle in a haystack- not everywhere will stock them. The two litres are fine if you are a family of six and the three litres are fine if you are having a party. But for normal people it's just TOO MUCH!! But we are tempted by the more is less pricing.

It just ALL pisses me off.

And now I have a headache to boot.

Dammitt. I can't win.

Two Questions......

I have a couple questions for y'all.

When do Christmas decorations go up at your house?
And Who usually puts up what?

Paulius and I are trying to compromise on this issue.

I have always started to put up my Christmas decorations the weekend before Thanksgiving.
Sometimes even before then. It takes ME about two or three weeks to set up my house the way I want it- perfect. So I usually start dragging decorations out a couple weeks before Thanksgiving day. I start by putting up the beginnings of my Snow Village. Then T-G day i put up my tree to be decorated that night. Then for the next twoo weeks I finish it all.

Paulius comes from a household that puts the decorations up a week or so before Christmas day.


Our takes are as follows.....

Paul- Put everything up and out the week before Christmas- No sooner than Dec 15th. If you have it up longer than that it makes it LESS special.

Sunny- I have so much to put out and position that if I started a week before Christmas I wouldn't get it set up and finished before Christmas day. Let alone time to enjoy it- I would be frazzled.
Why put so much out and up, you might ask....well, because it's my favorite holiday and I love to decorate for it- I do almost nothing in the way of decorating for the rest of the year.

And besides- I am still a child when it comes to Christmas- the more colorful and glittery, the better. Not to mention BIGGER!! If it were up to me I would have a 15 foot tree every year- and I have enough ornaments to fill it up now.

I have a HUGE oversized chest with most of my christmas ornaments in it. last year I opened it up and Paul thought I was some sort of Pirate with a treasure chest. It really is pretty!!

Anyway, My idea of a compromise is this...

Put up the Artificial tree on Thanksgiving day.
Put up the Wreaths and/or Swags on the outside the following weekend.
Work on the Snow Village the first week in December.
Put out all the other decorations the next weekend.
Put up the Live tree on December 15th.



So, What do you think? Which is your vein of thinking when it comes to decorating?
And can you think of any other compromises?

HP Movie review-NOT a SPOILER.

This will be short.

Paulius took me out to dinner and to see the new Harry Potter Movie. I'll give you specific gripes later when it won't be a spoiler for anyone.

My opinion:

Not what I expected
Nothing like the other movies- at ALL
Definately NOT my favorite HP movie- Bottom of the list to be perfectly honest.

Will I add it to the collection when It comes out? Definately.
Will I watch it as much as the others? Definately NOT.

In all honesty- I might have enjoyed it a bit more had the seats in the theatre been a tiny bit bigger and more comfy.

Okay- That's it for today. I'm going to go clean my kitchen from T-G day. No- I haven't done it yet- first no water- then I went out last night. Not like me to leave the dishes like that- but what can I say? Every once in a while I turn into a slacker, but it only lasts a day.

Back to the Grindstone!!

He Said- She Said.......

Sorry about the delay, folks!! I forgot I had volunteered to work an extra day this week.

As promised- here is the -albeit late- post.



Paulius and I so often post about the same things that I have tried on numerous occasions to talk him into co-writing a separate blog with me in a He said-She said type format. We have very different tastes in lots of things like movies, reading material, fashions, foods.......however, I think we are actually about as compatible as two people can be, mainly because we embrace and accept our differences rather than let them come between us.

Anyway, if you read his Blog, listed in my links, you will see what I mean...........

Thanksgiving week was an experience to remember- one that will go down in the archives of our marital history as a milestone week.

First of all- I had worked all week on night shift and then had been coming home and running on about four or five hours sleep a day.
Sunday night I went to work and came home as usual-I had been sick with a horrible virus all weekend so was still feeling a bit weak from it and didn't much feel up to exerting myself too much.

So I arranged my schedule for the rest of the week around getting rest that day. It was going to be dead simple.
Monday-Usual routine- then relax.
Tuesday-Cash Check-buy dinner supplies-relax.
Wednesday-Blitz-clean the house-10 minutes for the bathroom, 5 minutes for the hallways, 30 minutes for the living room, and an hour and a half for the kitchen because I planned on doing everything from wiping the fridge to mopping to cleaning the oven.
Wednesday evening-Bake everything except the turkey and ham and the dressing which would be done on Thursday morning when I came home from work. Thursday- Set up the buffet while the turkey and ham are baking and then have dinner at noon. Eat, visit with my darling children and my gorgeous husband for a couple three hours. Then after everyone leaves for their other dinners, nap until time to go to work at midnight.


I went to work Monday night- same routine....came in, slept for a couple hours and then got up, checked the mail, went to the bank and cashed my check.
And then the FUN began.

We did the shopping for Thanksgiving Day Dinner AND for the week too. Around two hundred dollars and three stores later, We were almost sure we had everything we needed. (We didn't- we forgot the eggnog to begin with, not to mention cat litter and cat FOOD.-Translation- yet ANOTHER trip to the store later that evening)

We came home and unloaded and put everything away, then realized we had indeed forgot the aforementioned items and went BACK out to get them.

Decided to wait til the next day to wash my uniforms since I had one more to wear for work that night. HUGE MISTAKE.

Went to work- came home thoroughly exhausted and was sooooooooooooooooo looking forward to getting in my nice toasty warm soft bed and cuddling up to my sexy hubby and getting some much needed zzzzzzzzzs.

I undressed and crawled into the bed, scooched down, and was literally pulling the blanket up over my shoulder when the phone rang. I heard my son answer it in a fog as I began that sleep float and then suddenly, thru the foggy mist floats my sons voice outside our bedroom door...."Mom?..............Sorry but it's Nanny- she says she really needs to talk to you-RIGHT NOW- said it couldn't wait." He gave me a look of sympathy as he handed the phone to me.
I listened as my mom told me She had no water and for me to check and see if we did. So I grabbed my robe and trotted off like the good daughter I am(However I was thinking and half-muttering some really un-nice things under my breath the whole time- but we'll ignore that fact for now).....We did but the pressure seemed low and I told her. She said, "Well, SOMEBODY needs to go check the pipes under your house cause somebody has got a leak and it's not me- I've already looked."
This is the moment I decided to start voicing my displeasure.
LOUDLY & in NO-UNCERTAIN TERMS.
Mom voiced her displeasure right back with-
"Well I'm just sorry-Why don't you get Paulius or Frank up and have them go check the pipes?"

I refused to get them up because they stay up all night waiting on me to come home so we are all on the same schedule. They had gone to be an hour or so before I came in(I was running a bit late) and getting them up would be more trouble than it was worth so I told her that too- and then told her I would check the pipes myself and call her back in a couple minutes.
I re-dressed, went out, checked the pipes under the house(which were PERFECTLY FINE) and went back in and called her with that bit of news.
"Well, SOMEBODY needs to come check the lines from your house all the way to the road and find where that leak is."
At this point I'm really starting to detest that SOMEBODY person she keeps referring to- The bastard is really starting to piss me off.
"Fine"
I went out- took 20 minutes to walk the pipeline(I helped dig it- I know exactly where it is) and the after finding nothing, checked all her cut-off points and outside spigots. Of course the last one I checked was the one filled with water.

DAMMITT-DAMMITT-DAMMITT!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

It was the one at the corner of the house about a football field and a half from the road- exactly half-way between the road and my house.
I went in her house and told her the "good" news. I broke my wrist a while back and have little strength in my wrist, so I had to call my house and wake my son to come help me turn the water off at the meter at the main road. I knew a ringing phone would never wake Paulius up at that point.
So Frank got dressed, the came out and we got the tool and walked to the main and turned it off.
That meter was spinning so fast it put the old movies where the plane is going down and the altimeter is spinning to shame!!! We will be luck if we don't have a three hundred dollar water bill next month.

My mom had called my brothers to come fix it- but they were both at work and wouldn't be in until about 8 that evening. DAMMITT-DAMMITT-DAMMITT!!!!!!!

My son graciously offered to repair it. So I graciously offered Paulius' assistance and mine to help, since I realized I could do NONE of what I had to do to get everything ready for Thanksgiving dinner if I had no water.

So I trudge back down to the house, muttering and even making up some choice words to vent a bit. I walked into the house and tried to wake Paulius with the news of the water situation.
He was as thrilled as I was, but nothing could be done but to get up and get on with it. I have to give him credit- He came up with a suggestion that we just delay the dinner for the Friday, instead- but it wouldn't work because everyone had to work on Friday but was off Thanksgiving day.
(He's allowed to have a suggestion like that WITHOUT CRITICISM because he's a Brit and doesn't realize the implications of delaying Thanksgiving Day for a day.)
It would be like cancelling Christmas.

Anyway, to shorten this up a bit(If I don't it will turn into a post that would put Paulius' 2000 word posts to shame)
We made four trips to Lowes for plumbing supplies.
I had to keep my mom occupied most of that time because she likes to"help" and I use that word LOOSELY.
The guys were working in 30 degree weather, digging down 4 feet to reach the busted pipe which was encased in a brick and cement casing buried in red clay mud at the corner of the house and surrounded by a pyracantha bush with 3 inch thorns, a holly bush the size of a VW Beetle, and next to a nasty mound of fire-ants. And all this on the side of a hill with a 50degree incline working with a spade, a pick/mattock and a shovel.

Let me, at this point, say how much I admire these guys for even beginning this project- let alone spending all day on it. It was 9AM when I woke them- It was after 7PM when they finally finished and came in.
Read Paulius' account of the copperhead snake. That would have been MY personal quitting point- I detest snakes........EEWWWWW *shudder*
But they kept going til they were finished.
We came home and fell into a dead sleep for about two hours until I had to go back to work.

My brother came over after he got off work and tested the plumbing- it leaked a bit, so he had to leave the water off.
I got up, dressed, went to work and the officer I was relieving for shift told me there was a couple of gallon containers in the back storage room if I needed to gather some water for the next day. I thanked him- and found 6 back there. I filled them and took them home and had JUST enough to do my dinner and the bit of cleaning I had to do before my company got there. Meanwhile, my baby brother, Charlie, was working on the plumbing while I was having dinner with my family- His wasn't until later in the evening.

The water STILL leaked and he had to come back the day after T-giving to finish the job and it STILL has a tiny drip. But It's something that can be fixed with about two minutes time-in the DAYLIGHT!!!!

I went back to work again last night-even tho I REALLY, REALLY didn't want to after this weeks events.

I think it was one of life's little tests.
And I think we passed.

There's a lot of other little things that happened but to be perfectly honest- I am completely exhausted and I just can't bear the thought of doing anymore here today.

I'm going to sleep now for about 8 hours- at LEAST 6!
I have a HOT date tonight.

Paulius is taking me out to dinner and to see the new Harry Potter movie!!


I can't wait!!

G'Night all!!!

Happy Thanksgiving!!!!

Okay- It's been a very interesting two days and I promise I'll tell y'all all about them tommorrow.

Suffice it to say I am running on about 5 hours sleep for the past THREE days and I have to go to work now so a longer post will have to wait til then.

I hope you all had a Happy Thanksgiving.

Quickie.......

Okay-
I know we're all REALLY busy this week so I'll make this short and sweet.........

Turkey; Do you prefer:

Roasted
Fried
Or Smoked?

Smoked is my favorite- but i usually end up roasting it because I dont have a smoker.

I Make Plans............

It always happens.

I volunteer for an extra day at work, plan on my ONE day off to clean the house spotless and get some have to things done planning for the upcoming holiday dinner at my house, and then I get sick. Not just "I don't feel well" sick, but "full blown-headache-fever- throwing up- can't stand to hear myself breath let alone moan- stay in bed" sick.

Now today I feel MUCH better- but I am still weak as a kitten. So these things still won't get done. And I go back to work at my regular job tonight, too.

Oops- I forgot rule 1 in life.

I make plans- and God LAUGHS.

Much like Murphy's Law- but worse.

I would rant more- but I don't have the strength right now.

Maybe later. After a bowl of chicken soup or something..........

:-P

Will Work For Food

So what is your opinion of the mom who made her 14 year old daughter stand on the corner of the intersection holding a sign saying

"I won't do my homework
I smart-mouth the teachers and I'm always late.
My mom says I have to do this to prepare me for my future.

Will work for Food." ?

The mom says in the couple of weeks since she stood out there WITH her daughter on that corner there has been a dramatic turn-around in her daughters attitude towards life and school.

The daughter says it was absolutley humiliating- but it taught her a lesson...it's definatley somewhere she doesn't EVER want to be again.

The child welfare was called on the mom. But nothing on that yet.

I say the mom is to be commended!!
Good for her for taking a stand.
And good for the daughter for realizing that her mom isn't an ogre and for putting her nose to the grindstone and doing the right thing now.

My Thoughts.......in My 30 Minute Drive Home.

I listen to talk radio on the way home from work every morning. This is what I heard discussed on there this morning as Idrove home- along with what I thought about that is going on in my life at this time.

Radio-Clemson VS Carolina- last year it was tagged "FootBrawl" this year a ban was placed on the players shaking hands before or after the game It will not be permitted, however, in a show of solidarity the players and coaches have insisted on continuing the tradition, despite the ban.

ME- Owwwwww I hope Clemson wins again.......It was the Cocks fault last year the brawl started anyway. If they go against the ban they are gonna be in trouble........I wish it was gonna be broadcast on TV like it usually is. Pay-per-view has it.....for 84.99.....I DON'T think so.........who in their right mind would pay that to watch a game.

Radio- Just in- ESPN2 has just announced that they will broadcast the Clemson-Carolina game. After 45 minutes the rest of the country will be switched to another game but in the upstate, it will remain on the C/C game.

Me- Dammitt!!! I just went back to basic cable last week and now I don't have ESPN2. Why didn't I wait????!!!!! Oh well, there's always the SuperBowl.

Radio-In Britain, a woman has written a book claiming Teacher-Student relationships can have benefits since the charge and excitement of the affair can up the students scores in the class.

Me- What freaking morons.- Those kids are under age 18- still minors. Let them grow up to at least be able to drink, for Gods sake. Oh for crying out loud- move you ass lady. Get OFF the cellphone and turn. Pay attention!!Do not ride your brakes......the gas pedal is on the RIGHT!!!!! Don't make me jerk you out of that car. ..................Finally- all that makeup for going to the drive thru at the bank. Sheesh......

Radio-Should 14 year olds be allowed to date 18 year olds?

Me-I gotta figure out what I still need to buy for Thanksgiving Dinner. I need to call Clay and Kathy and find out if they are going to have to work- they should know by now.....wait- they spend Thanksgiving with her grandparents in Georgia if they aren't working. But they usually have a whole weekend and with his new job he may just have just that one day and they may not go to Georgia this year.........................................................................Better call and let them know when we are having dinner so if they don't go to Georgia and they want to they can come to the house. I wonder how many misplaced ones we'll have at dinner this year. It's been 10 years and so far every year we've had at least one or two extra. It's gonna be sad this year without Dad with us.................................I wonder if mom is serious about not doing anything for the holidays. Christmas i can understand since it was their anniversary day........50 years............I can't imagine how it would be to lose my husband after that long. It would be like I had died and only my ghost was here.......just going thru the motions..........Man................

Radio-Price gouging- do you think it was happening here in the upstate after the hurricane?

Me-I feel sorry for those people who lost everything during that storm.....but we have people here that are just as bad off- if not worse off. Why can't we take care of our own?They can spend millions helping Iraq rebuild but our own has to wait eons for relief. I wonder how many people are going to be able to have a decent meal on Thanksgiving................Speaking of- there is that regular guy who stands on the corner of this intersection every day with a "HOMELESS. PLEASE HELP" sign. Humph- hell, he's dressed nicer than me. If he put half as much effort into looking for an actual job as he does standing on that corner, he might be better off in the long run. But if he hasn't got a place to live, looking for a job wouldn't help him- no one will hire without a place of residence and a phone. Not even as a go-fer who just has to show up and isn't master carpenter.......... Why is life so damn complicated sometimes?

Radio- next hours topic-...........................................

(I don't know what it was- I turned it off. I sometimes think I actually Do have adult ADD.
Or maybe i just have a lot happening in my life right now.)

ME-I've got to decide what of my decorations I am going to put up for Christmas too..... I can do that this weekend tho. It shouldn't take THAT long.. Of course I am going to have to separate all the styles of village houses from each other and see where they would look best. I need to get a new power strip too. Power strip..............hmmmmmm.........I wonder if Walmart is open this time of morning.... I know the Superstore is- but that's way over on the other side of town. I wonder if the one here on the way home is... It's not holiday hours yet. I don't think they are and it's just far enough out of my way that it would just not be worth it to go by and see on the way home. Hmmmmmmm......... I wonder if Santa is at the Mall yet? He usually is here this time of year- but I'll bet it will be after Thanksgiving before he's there. I think that's right. I hope they have that cute house with all the elves and reindeer and snow this year. I wanna see if I can get all three of the grand-babies and take them up there and have their pictures taken with Santa. Hehehehehehe I'll bet Baby Scoob won't like Santa. That will be a great gift for the parents- a pic of all three of them together. the Three Musketeers. Ummmmmmmmmm....Three Musketeers..It's been awhile since I had chocolate. Longer than I can remember it ever being. Unless I count that cup of Swiss miss with Mini-marshmallows I had last weekend. I don't count that tho- it was milk chocolate cocoa-made with water and there is hardly any taste of chocolate to that stuff....more like a vanilla with a hint of Chocolate. How can I get them all together and keep it a secret from the parents? Not with those two five year olds. they have the biggest mouths to be boys. If I had to go by how much they tell secrets and whine about things I would swear they were girls. Marie and Frank find out what the baby is in early January. I would really like a grand-daughter, but I will be happy either way. It was sweet of them to say I can name it if it's another boy. I think they liked the name I chose too. Nicholas. After St. Nicholas. LOL- They both just smiled and said it figures when I told them. And I know I said I would give the Daughter(DILs are considered my daughters too- I love them that much) that had the first granddaughter my emerald earrings, but if Marie has a GD for me- the baby is due in May and emeralds are Mays birthstones and Marie's ears aren't pierced, so I am thinking I will give the emerald earrings to the Granddaughter and get Marie either an opal ring or opal necklace instead. She absolutely adores opals but doesn't have any yet,so I think she would enjoy that more than the emerald earrings.
Shoot- I'm home now. I should have taken off this blazer and hung it up. There's the stupid cat in the window.....he better not have torn anything up while I was at work. He will be okay once he gets out of this destructive adolescent stage. Do they make kitty Valiums, I wonder? I may have to call the vet and see if they do. maybe that would help him...okay- help ME!!!

Dang, Gotta go all the way back out to the car cause I forgot to turn off the headlamps. I probably shouldn't drive with them on as often as I forget to turn them off, but if some idiot pulls out in front of me they can't claim to have not seen me- not if my headlamps are on. I hate bad drivers. Okay the lights are off now. Maybe I can get in and get this uniform off now. Especially these boots. I'm gonna check the e-mail before I go to bed too. May post a short-short on my blog too...I haven't done that in a while.........wonder if I can think of something to post about..........hmmmmmmmmmmmmm, let me see.................. I'm hungry too....wonder if there's any eggs and bacon..... Or cereal and milk.............or chocolate syrup for pancakes or waffles.......

Well, It has been a busy busy week here at our house.

We have been doing some decorating- both home decorating AND getting a start on the holiday decorating.

Plus I have landed a job re-designing a whole house. I will be working on THAT project for the next few months.
Yay!!

Paulius and my eldest son,Frank, has been helping my mom "repair"(and I use that term loosely) her driveway.

Long story- you would be amused to say the least- but no time for that now.

My mom had surgery on Friday morning and I have been be-bop-ing up to her house every couple of hours to check on her all weekend too.

My mom is a strange little lady. She wants us there and is a bit clingy- but if we try and suggest things to her or advise her on anything- she will buck up and refuse to do whatever it is.

basicly we just let her have her way unless it's something we feel will endanger her health or well being.

I hope to goodness that when I grow old i won't be as damn contrary as her.

But I love her anyway.
And ,Yes- my siblings read my blog too- and they will be sitting there nodding their heads and laughing in agreement with me about that paragraph about Mom. Dad spoiled her rotten when he was alive. She has never had to pay a bill in her life. They married when she was 18 and he was24. This Christmas Day they would have been married 50 years- he tried hard to hold on for that- but his Lord had other plans for him. We are trying to get her thry these first holidays without him, but it is proving to be quite the mission. Mission Impossible on some days.

Anyway- back to what I started.

Next weekend is the weekend that we set up our Snow Village. I have the spot all picked out for it. I usually have all them set up- but this Christmas I am only going to set up 5 or 6 of them in my kitchen. I have a corner cabinate in one corner all by itself and that's where they will be set up. I may also put two or three in the livingroom on top of our small bookshelf so we can enjoy them with the tree.

For Thanksgiving this year, I'm not really sure who of my kids will be here to celebrate with us. My youngest son, Clay, is working 7 days a week now and i am not sure if they will be working that day or not. My Eldest son's wife, Marie, has been offered a job in Atlanta and so they may be there by then. My daughter, Julie, might be there- but her fiancee's mom may want them there too. So I have no idea. I have my menu all planned out- so if they all come it will be great- so will it be if only one or two make it- or if none come at all.

I am not one of those mamas who have a fit of vapors if their grown kids have other plans. One day is as good as the next for me. The only day I specificly ask for them to see me on is their Birthdays. It would be extremely hard for me if I didn't see my babies on their Birthdays.

Anyway- On Thanksgiving Day for dinner we are having....

Herbed Roast Turkey Breast
Cranberry Sauce

Rice and Dressing with Gravy
Ranch Mashed Potatoes

Broccoli Casserole
Holiday Squash Casserole
Macaroni-Cheese Pie

Dinner Rolls

Pumpkin or Sweet Potato Pie
Mince Pie
Pecan Pie

Coffee Iced Tea Pepsi


Unlike other days when everything is rush-rush hurry up -and -get it done- everything that day will be slow cooked and made from scratch!!
If the kids show up- they usually bring one of their specialty dishes with them.

I am so looking forward to it.

What are you doing for the holidays? Are you being adventurous and having everyone over to your place? Or are you going to someone elses house? Or are you going out to eat dinner?

I remember one Thanksgiving my then-MIL took the whole family out to dinner for thanksgiving. It was the most dissapointing holiday dinner I ever remember. No favorite holiday dishes were there- no chance of the family milling aroundtalking or cutting up with the usual shennanigans- just Proper Country-Club Manners and Deportment.
BLAH!!
YUKK!!!

I want my FAMILY HOLIDAY with all the Chaos that goes with it!!

Of course this year it won't be perfect- i have to work the night before AND the night of- But i can come in and put the Turkey breasts in the oven and sleep while they are cooking. Then get up and finish the dinner. I will probally do the desserts the day before too so that will be a big help.

Tagged By Serendippity!!

A-Z Sexy Celebrity Men

A-
B-Brad Pitt
C-Sean Connery
D-David Duchovney
E-
F-Oded Fehr
G-John Goodman
H-Tom Hanks
I-
J-
K-Keanau Reeves
L-Liam Neison
M-
N-
O-Oded Fehr
P-Patrick Stewart
Q-
R-Ryan Stiles
S-Ryan Stiles
T-The Rock
U-
V-Vin Diesel
W-
X-
Y-
Z-

As you can see- I don't think THAT many men are sexy.

Paulius is a REALLY TOUGH act to follow!

:-)

"Happiness is mine" sayeth the Sun.

Ever have one of those days when you just feel like crap?

Having one today. All this stuff going on in my life is driving me absolutely nuts. Seriously.

I like my new job, but there are days when I just don't wanna go in. I sleep about four hours and then get up and take care of housework and run errands....whatever needs doing. I also worry about what is going to screw up next with all the paperwork that Paulius and I am going thru right now. Then I have to take an hours or so nap before I go back to work at night.

Usually we have company when it's time for me to nap before work. And sometimes, like last night, it really gets to me that while everyone else is in here visiting and having a grand time in each others company- I can't be with them because I have to get sleep so I won't doze off while I'm at work. I can't afford to lose my job. And then I get to get up and go off to work and everyone is still here visiting and still having a good time.

It just doesn't seem fair. And when it really gets to me- I go off the deep end.
I apologize for that. I just wish they would realize that it really hurts my feelings that they don't have a tiny bit more consideration and empathy for me.
I wish I could go to bed late and the get up late and be able to sit with them and have a good time. But I can't.

I made a promise to my husband that he wouldn't want for a thing and I would take care of everything until his paperwork got straightened out and he was able to work. And I meant it. Paulius means more to me than anything in this world and that will never change.
I just wish there were a few more hours in the day so we could spend time doing things we WANT to do instead of things that have to be done.

I just keep telling myself that soon everything will be straightened out with his paperwork- and my family will at some point become somewhat normal again, and everything will be fine again and we won't have to stress so much.

I'lll try not to go off the deep end again.

Guilt Trips

It's one of my pet peeves.

Why can't a person just ask for what they want rather than beating around the bush about it?

I need to know exactly what you need from me and I need to know when you need it.

I have so much to do and it drives me crazy to have someone make me feel guilty because I am not giving them the attention that they want when they won't tell me that they want it or need it.

Sometimes I get wrapped up and focused on my agenda and everything else just kind of fades into the background until I'm finished. If you need me before that time you literally have to turn me towards you and say so.

Is it a form of Adult ADD?

Maybe. But don't guilt trip me if you haven't asked for what you need.


And Nope- It's NOT Paulius I am talking about.

End Of Rant

We Have Needs

Pete posted this on his Blog and I tried it. It seems Paulius and myself have a lot of needs.

Some of my favorites are...

Sunny Needs-
*A distraction from self pity....(uh- okay. I really wasn't aware of this but if they say so!)
*Volunteers....(For what are they volunteering?)
*To be placed in a home with kids over the age of 12....(Why age 12? I can't be trusted with kids under 12?)
*A new crate for work....(a crate? For law enforcement? Not in my WILDEST DREAMS!)
*A business Manager....(Oh so now I can't be trusted with money OR children under the age of 12??)
*A nice warm spot by the window to watch the sun....(Sure- look directly at the sun and burn the retinas of my eyes.)


Paulius Needs-
*Specs....(meaning eyeglasses or was there supposed to be a manual with his specifications included?- If the latter, I really could use that and how do I get a replacement manual?)
*1000GBP....(I'll go for that! Cash is always a good thing!)
*Advice....(Which I TRY to give him but he usually ignores)
*A haircut....(no- he DOESN'T- why would they think thator more importantly- HOW would they know that?!)
*Space....(I don't THINK so- he has his own closet)
*Education....(He has quite enough, thank you, and if he decides to go for a masters or a doctorate it will be HIS decision, not theirs...whoever "They" are)

I just googled our names and needs after it....it really was funny some things that came up!!

What did we ever do before the net came about???!!!

Taking the JOY out of Christmas.

Yesterday I had a really great day.

I got up and started to clean the kitchen from the night before- I just hadn't had the energy nor the desire, truth be told, to do it after eating. Some days you just cant be bothered. Right?

Anyway, I was running a sink of water and went over to the radio to see if I could tune in something peppy to help things along, and as I was turning the dial, lo and behold I heard a snatch of Michael Bolton singing what I would have sworn was "I'll Be Bome for Christmas".

I stopped dead in my tracks and returned to it after a nano-seconds hesitation.

It was indeed exactly who and what I thought and I was absolutely delighted! Then another Christmas selection came on after it- and another and another after that one. The two easy listening stations in the area are now playing Christmas tunes all weekend until Thanksgiving Day and then it will be all holiday tunes-all the time.

I got my dishes done quickly and then it got me in gear to go ahead and dig all my Christmas decorations out of the hallway where everything we have packed for our move is stacked up. And that reminded me we didn't have a Christmas wreath because the Grapevine wreath I made about 6 years ago and didn't shelack finally disintergrated this summer in the hundred degree weather, which we have been having all six summers. So then I got out all my decorations and somewhere I had read about someone making a holiday wreath from a small sized hula-hoop and I had one just sitting there, not being used because I bought one last year and swore I was going to learn to hula-hoop again because since I had kids I cant hula hoop for more than one swoop, and decided to try to make one(Wreath) with what I had.

So I did.

I just wrapped the white flower garland from our wedding around it and taped it in place. Then filled in with a green pine garland from leftover Christmas decorations I had and secured it in place. Then I secured some artificial English Ivy along the bottom. A nice bit of it to fill the bottom out nicely and then I finished it off by adding a thin ribbon of red curly foil garland spiraled from where the ivy ends on one side up and over the top and down the other side to where the ivy begins on the other side.

It was very nice for something started from an unused Hoola-Hoop and leftover decorations and it looks perfect on our front door which is painted red.

Anyway- I hung it up for the day to decide if I really liked it or if it was just the novelty- and to get my kids reaction to it.

My daughters fiancee, Mike, looked out the window of their house and asked her to "Please tell me that's not a CHRISTMAS wreath your mom has hung on her front door".

Julie just laughed and said "Yep- probally is. She starts getting things out about this time every year."
She didn't even come look. She KNOWS me.

But this retail holiday thing is getting WAY out of hand.
Retailers are ruining it for us. Even Hardcore Christmasers like me.


I'm sorry, but starting to see Christmas advertising just after the 4th of July is really starting to piss me off. I don't wanna see that stuff that early! Sure I start my Christmas shopping about that time of year- but it stays put away until after just after Thanksgiving when it goes under the tree.
I think there should be a law that says Christmas retailing absolutely, positively CANNOT and or WILL NOT be started until the day after Thanksgiving. AND Christmas decorations cannot be put up in retail stores until the weekend AFTER Thanksgiving.

I have to start getting my things out three weeks before Thanksgiving to get everything sorted in relation to what theme I am planning on doing. (Someday, when we get a proper house of our own- I will have enough space to have it all sorted into seperate boxes and labeled so I wont have to go thru this process. But for now it's how I have to do it.) Then the weekend before Thanksgiving I put up my tree if it's an artificial one and have JUST the lights on it. It's Thanksgiving tradition to decorate the tree on Thanksgiving night- altho for the past couple of Christmases due to schedules with kids having the other side of the family to visit, Paulius and/or I have decorated it except for the kids "Special" ornament, which they always put on themselves.
Yes- I stole that tradition from the Horton Family on Days Of Our Lives but I knew that was how I wanted my holiday party to be with all the family there and happy and having a GRAND time, and if seeing them put their "Special"ornament on the tree makes me happy , so what? DOOL should be thrilled I DID steal the idea from them.

Anyway- that's just how I feel about it.
And it really makes me mad that anything about Christmas- my favorite holiday of the year- is being done this way.

Altho I have to admit that retailers aren't singling out Christmas as being special by early marketing. They are doing it with all the major money-making holidays.

But I don't want them to take the Joy out of MY Christmas.
They can just stop it right now.
I'm writing my Congressman.



***(Sorry about the run-on sentences and the rambling paragraphs and such. I just needed to write the way I was thinking today and that's how it came out. Come think of it- that's how I talk too. Read this non-stop as fast as you can without stopping to take a breath until you absolutely run out of breath and that's exactly how I talk. Have pity on Paulius, it's no wonder I drive him nuts!)***

Short & Sweet

One Word.

FRIDAY!!!!!!!!!!!!


One LAST word.

FINALLY!!!!!!!!!!

The End Of The World.....sob.......

as we know it.

I received some terrible news yesterday. It seems that the McRib is on it's Farewell Tour this season.

For some unexplained reason, McDonald's has decided that they will take the McRib off the menu. Forever. This will be the last season they will have them.

Now, Paulius said not to worry- It's just a marketing ploy. They are going to toot it as the Farewell Tour, everyone is going to buy gobs and gobs of them and moan and complain and write nasty letters to the headquarters, and then after a year or so- McDonalds will have a Nostalgia Tour- returning them for a limited time only. Then because they are so popular- they will put them back on the menu as a seasonal thing again.

I hope to goodness he is right.
It is always the cue for us that the holidays are here.

The first McRib I ever ate was in October 1989 at the McDonald's on Woodruff Road. I was working Security at the Greenville Mall and they had the Monster Mansion set up for Halloween. It was chilly weather- almost downright cold- and on my lunch break I saw the McRib ad on the window of McDs and decided to try one.

I got one with a large order of fries and a Chocolate milkshake- and it was love at first bite!!!

Every year since it has become a family thing to go out and get a McRib dinner as soon as they come out in October.
My oldest son, Frank, has the same passion for them as I do. The rest of the family like them- but don't anticipate the return nearly as much as we do.

A McRib stands for something. You can enjoy them all month long and it's the signal to us that as soon as Halloween is over, we can start getting out the Holiday decorations. Only three weeks til we have to have all the windows decorated with swags and/or wreaths, the Snow village set up in the place of honor, the front door wreath set in place, and the Christmas Tree set up for decorating on Thanksgiving Evening.(Artificial trees only- real trees must wait til after the 10th of December.)
We send someone after a bag of McRibs while we are decorating. We send out for a bag of McRibs when we are wrapping gifts. We stop for a McRib meal when we are spending the day shopping for Christmas gifts.

And all too soon, the holidays are over and the McRibs are gone for another year.

Sure, we can go out and buy the stuff and make a similar sandwich at home during the rest of the year- but it's just NOT THE SAME.

Maybe it has to do with the memories we associate with the McRib meal than the actual sandwich itself. All I know is- It just won't be the same without it and if there are ANY McDonalds executives out there in the "blogosphere" who are reading this now, PLEASE, PLEASE, PLEASE!!!!!!-(I'm down on my knees as I am sure millions of other McRib Lovers are)-
Re-think this HORRIFIC decision you have made! Don't take this icon of the holiday season away from millions of people who are loyal eaters of this truly wonderful memory-making sandwich!

I hope Paulius is right about the marketing strategy- but just in case he isn't- I'm going out to buy a dozen chest freezers now and as soon as they are installed, for the next month if you need me, you can find me at one of the 10 Million Gazillion McDonalds nationwide.

I'll be stocking up.

Disciplining A Cat???????

BaaaHahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahhahahahahahahahahahahahhaha!!!!!!!!!

ROTFLMAO.....


Good one, MC Etcher!!!

Obviously you have never been allowed to reside with a feline.

There is NO WAY to discipline a cat. Nothing works.

There ARE several things you can do to show your displeasure when they are bad.

You can yell at them. The first time it will startle him and they will hunker down and stare at you like you have possibly lost your mind. He will look from you to the phone-possibly wondering if it would be worth it to call the humans who bring out the straight-jacket, since obviously you have lost your mind yelling at him like that. In the end, he will decide to give you ONE more chance since , without you there, he will have no one to feed him and change his litter.
Lucky You.
After the first time, yelling is completely ignored- or worse, he will look at you and then at the phone as if to say"I WILL call them if you continue speaking to me in this tone. It's completely unacceptable.- I can always find another insignificant being to live with me."

Another thing you can do is to spritz him with one of those water misters. The cats' reaction will be to be startled for a second, then run across the room and proceed to clean the water off himself with his tongue. After he finishes cleaning himself sufficiently, he will then immediately do whatever it was you misted him for so you will mist him again because grown cats are WAY too lazy to go all the way to his water bowl in the kitchen for when there is a human-slave who is perfectly willing to mist him with water, sitting in the same room with him.

You can also try putting him in the pet carrier as a sort of "Kitty Time-Out". He will not like being confined and will glare at you for a grand total of about 5 minutes to show HIS displeasure with YOU- then he will make the best of a bad situation and turn his back to you and lie down for a "cat nap"(normally around three hours long) If you really want to piss him off, as soon as he goes to sleep, wake him up and tell him Time-Out is over, snuggle him close and tell him you couldn't stay mad at him, he's such a "cutesy wootsey widdle kitty" and pet him enthusiastically and vigorously. Make sure to rub his fur in all directions. He will reward you with a very disturbing DEATH-GLARE for a very long time as he grooms himself("Filthy human- actually having the nerve to touch His Excellency-You will PAY!!!!")(I always imagine cats as having Stewie Griffins (Family Guy)voice when they talk). It might be a good idea to take advantage of his being occupied with his intense grooming session to make sure all your shoes are secured in a room with a door, preferably with a handle he hasn't learned to trip open yet. Ditto on anything else you actually value and want to keep.

You could kill them- but they have nine lives and once they catch on, it takes a LONG time to get all nine of them done-in, and that's usually the first time you try it.

Or- you can get a puppy.
A very cute, energetic puppy. Or even better, get two. They will position themselves to annoy the cat from front and rear flanks at every opportunity.

And then you get to be the GOOD human by rescuing the poor widdle kitty from those annoying puppies- all the while smiling gleefully while the cat is looking over your shoulder at the puppies receding from view as you walk away..................

Kittens are wonderful, cute, sweet playmates.
Grown cats are Satan's Spawn.

That said- Please don't let your cats outside tonight. Usually it's a good idea not to let them out the entire week before Halloween. There are some real sicko people out there who will do bad things to your beloved Darth Furball- especially if he is black.
They might be annoying, but they do love us(I think) and they are a great source of entertainment if we can just find humor in every situation.


Happy Halloween, All!!!!!!

The EVIL Darth Furball Strikes Again !!!!

Our CAT is now going thru Kitty Puberty. Evidently, he has decided to become a Satan-worshiping Goth version of a teenager.

He has become evil incarnate the past month. I am ready to cut his evil tail off- right behind his ears. Paulius is a bit more easy-going than I am, he only wants to send Darth to Kitty Azkaban.

Whatever works and gets him past this stage is fine with me.

Examples of his evil habits now include:
*Climbing over EVERY surface of the entire house
*Scattering his litter from his box to every surface of the house
*Sleeping in his litter box
*Ignoring his kitty food and actually trying to steal food from our plates while WE are eating
*Using his litter that he has scattered all over the bathroom floor for the purpose it was intended(mind you, we have a carpeted bathroom floor as well)
*Gathering all the stuffed animals up from all over the house and imitating the Marquise De Sade with a select one or two- (the others just are forced to watch )
*Pouncing on our legs as we walk from room to room, tripping us up at every opportunity
*Refusing to actually catch mice but insisting on having them when we catch them in a trap. He then proceeds to play circus with them(juggling them from room to room) til we can steal them back from him and dispose of them properly
*Tearing up the trash bag to get to whatever he imagines is in there
*Tipping over the trash container if he can't tear the trash bag sufficiently
*Climbing on our chests and pawing our faces(YUK- remember WHERE those nasty paws have been lately?)
*Spazzing and racing thru the entire house at top speed - literally bouncing off of and/or climbing the walls.

I want to ask myself- where did we go WRONG?

How could we have been better masters?

I tell you the answer- we couldn't have been better. Nor did we go wrong.
We were perfect to him.
We fed him
We bathed him
We cuddled him and bought him toys
We even let him sleep on the foot of our bed at night.
We even let him drink water from the aquarium-just the way he likes it- ice cold and fish-flavored

All I have to say is-
Either he straightens out soon- or he's dis-inherited.

AND I'll go get a PUPPY!! Maybe even TWO!!!!!!!!!!

And don't think I'm kidding- because I'm NOT!!!!!

Well, In THAT Case............

Here it is- my weekend off. I still haven't quite gotten used to having TWO (tee-hee) days off.

I have a list about a mile long of things I need to do- and a couple of things I WANNA do.

So which do I do?

A few I NEED to do-

Sort out closets in master bedroom
Re-organize boxes we have packed in hallway
Wash dishes-again
Clean up and clean OUT car


WANNA do-

Go fishing
Sit my butt and watch movies and snuggle with my Paulius all day.

Ahhhhh....... Well, never mind. Paulius has just informed me of his game plan for this weekend and it sounds WAY more wonderful than what I had in mind.

No Details, folks- but it involves viewing, extreme concentration, and patience.

Gotta run now....Have a GREAT weekend!!

I am SOOOO Sick of it- WHEN does it ever END????

I heard the damndest thing on the radio coming home today from work.

A couple of banks in Britain are banning giving out piggy banks for savings for kids because- get this- it MIGHT offend Muslims. Not WILL- or DOES- but it MIGHT.

I swear- WHY do we have to be so damn PC all the time now?

I am sick to the eye teeth of it.

Let me tell you all what I refuse to do.
I refuse to be PC anymore.

I will not give up my piggy bank and I will give every baby born into the family one to save their pennies.

I will not give up birth-control(not that it's a factor right now) because I might offend a Catholic if I forget to take it at home and have to bring it out in a public place when I remember.

I will not give up my Christmas tree because it might offend a Jewish person who lives down the street if it's lit up when they pass by, neither will I give up my menorah because it might offend the Christians if they see it in my window during Hanukkah.

I will not give up going to church on Saturday because it might offend the Christians down the street who believe the Sabbath is on Sunday- Also, I will not give up going to church on Sunday because it might offend the Seventh Day Adventists who believe the Sabbath is on Saturday.

I will not give up wearing pants or jeans because there are people out there who believe that women shouldn't wear them and might be offended.

I will not give up eating meat just because the vegetarians might be offended.

I will not give up eating McDonalds burgers because the Hindu's might be offended.

I will not give up vegetables just because the Cannibals in the deepest darkest jungles might be offended.

I will not give up eating Chocolate just because there are diabetics who might take offense.

I will not stop smoking just because there are non-smokers who might be offended, neither will I smoke just because there might be some smokers who might be offended if I don't join them.

I refuse to give up my foreign car that is really good on fuel consumption just because there are some American auto-makers who might be offended.

I will not learn a second language just because someone from another country might be offended that I don't speak theirs. Hell, if I learned all the languages of all the people that don't know English but live in my area- I would spend all the rest of my time in life learning 87 more languages than I know now.
Hell-I'M OFFENDED THAT THEY MOVE HERE AND DON'T BOTHER TO LEARN MY LANGUAGE- DOES ANYONE CARE THAT I'M OFFENDED?
I don't think so- after all-
I'm just an AMERICAN ENGLISH SPEAKING FEMALE- I'm not an IMPORTANT MINORITY- am I?




Why do we have to ban or stop all these things just because they might offend someone else?

It's so freaking stupid. If I could get broadband-(or electricity, for that matter)-on a deserted island somewhere I would move there and tell everyone to KISS MY POLITICALLY INCORRECT ASS!!

I Want Some MORE Of That!!

I swear, this was a wonderful weekend.

Paulius and I actually got some yard-work done- lots and lots of mulching in front of the house. My oldest son, Frank, helped a lot, too.

Paulius and I stayed up late, and then made breakfast together and ate it in the kitchen.

When we first got married, we did that every day but the past few months instead of coming straight home from work I would go to the hospital to be with Daddy, so we kinda got out of the habit.

It is absolutely our favorite time to talk with each other and we really have missed it.
Not much is better than lingering and chatting over a breakfast of toast and eggs and bacon, with an over-sized cup of coffee. Lots of cream- not quite so much sugar.

After breakfast we mulched the yard- actually got out and did a bit of manual labor- something I usually try and avoid whenever possible. Wore old comfortable clothes and comfy sneakers. Worked with man-tools like a spade and rake and shovels and scoops wearing leather work gloves.

Arrrrr..arrrrr..arrrr....Tim Allen had nothing on me this weekend!

I don't know about you guys- but I have to be in a certain mood to get out in the elements and get dirty and tired. Not to mention sweaty. Sweaty I usually reserve for other- more fun, shall we say, activities.

It was really nice being out in the fresh COOL air and sunshine for a change. And the yard does look good if I say so myself!

I don't think we had the TV or the Computer on for more than an hour or so this weekend- until the cable-guy came to install the broadband.

Even then, my sweet, darling hubby set it to downloading a couple things and left it to it while he spent some more quality and quantity time with me. Am I not truly blessed or WHAT?
And no sarcasm is intended with that statement either, in case you're wondering.

I baked some made from scratch Chocolate Chip Cookies(and were they good!) and made a meatloaf and mashed potatoes -(real peeled and boiled and mashed- not imitation instant) -dinner. Then my DIL came over and since her and my son didn't have their 5 year old for the night, Marie(DIL- who is expecting ) and I went to Subway and got two foot-long Philly Cheese-steak sandwiches (she was having a craving and since I want a Granddaughter, I am trying to bribe her with anything she is craving) and brought them back and we had a midnight picnic together with our hubbies!!


Paulius and I celebrated our 6 year anniversary this weekend- no not wedding anniversary- it was the anniversary of the first e-mail we sent to each other!!!!

Anyway, It really WAS a wonderful weekend.

I can't wait for the next one!

Excitement!!!!

Today , I have been informed, is a RED letter day.

I can't remember the last time I got so excited about something.

Oh- yes, I can- it was when I saw Paulius at the airport in Atlanta when he came back after us being separated for over two years.

I was actually giddy with excitement. I was nervous, and happy, and had butterflies the size of vultures in my tummy- I couldn't sit still- was pacing and almost jumping for joy-now I know what THAT phrase means.

Well, that's EXACTLY how excited my hubby was today when the broadband was finally installed and connected. I swear- I was afraid he was gonna pee himself he was so happy!

Paulius and I were talking about that yesterday. He compared his computer stuff and gaming to shoe buying. I told him that I wasn't into shoe shopping, but if he replaced it with anything Christmas- I understood totally.

His games are my ornaments. His broadband is my gifts under the tree. His computer is my Christmas tree.

I get it now.

I just wish I could have that type excitement every day.

I Love Autumn.

It's so nice out today.

Time to do a bit of yard-work. Spread a bit of mulch- cut the last bit of grass for the year....maybe go down and trim the grass around the pond.

Not too hot to do it- not too cool to do it....Like the baby bears stuff- It's JUST right!!

What I really wanna do is stay in bed and cuddle with Paulius all day, but duty calls. Must.... be.... a............. responsible............. adult.........


God- I wish I had such great wealth that I could hire someone to do all these mundane things and i could just waste away the day......every day.

I suppose I would soon become bored with that tho....It would take a few months- but then I would be looking for something of a challenge.

Maybe Paulius and I could live in a different country for 3 months at a time- then move to the next one.

A different home in a different country for every season. That would be nice!!!

Where would I want to be each season?

Amsterdam in the Spring
St. Thomas in the Summer
New England in the Autumn
North Pole in the Winter. ( I would get first choice of the toys for Christmas because we would be Santa's neighbor- therefore his and Mrs. Claus' best Friends).

Did I ever tell y'all that when I was 6 I was adamant that I was going to marry Santa when I grew up?
Childhood Fantasies.

Bleh.................

Ever have one of those days when your mind is racing about a zillion miles a second and you have three hundred and eighty seven things you could (and WANT) to blog and rant about but you just don't have the energy to do any of them justice?

Me too. Right now.

Bleh.................

Consumption Per...

Worldwide chocolate consumption per capita per person per year-

Austria..............................11.6 lbs
Belgium.............................13.6
England.............................15.4
West Germany.................13.8
Sweden..............................11.6
Switzerland.......................22.0
United States...................10.0



Add another zero to the US and that's about MY quota for a year.
No Joke.

I don't know why I don't weigh at least 500 lbs.

I'm just glad I DONT.

MY REASON FOR TODAY.....

My excuse....I mean reason......... to eat chocolate today is:

Watching the contents level drop in my candy dish will give me a sense of accomplishment.


Yeah- That's it.

Scratch & Sniff?

Just think about how much more interesting TV would be if there was smell-a-vision.

Scents emitted from the TV when commercials come on.

Just think....Pizza Hut Supreme Pizza-
Olive Gardens Shrimp Alfredo
Nestles Toll House Cookies

Febreeze Fabric Freshener
Downy Fabric Softener
Tide Mountain Fresh scent laundry detergent



White Diamonds perfume
Summers Eve- New scent!!

It would up sales by hundreds of millions- Especially on party night when everyone has the munchies and is sitting around just chilling, watching the idiot box!!!

On the other hand....there would be the comercials for things like Tidy Cat kitty litter-Ewwww.
But after that smell would come the freshscent of Tidy Cat kitty litter and it would make you go- It really DOES work!

Or how about Odor Eaters? Now THERE would be a real seller!!
It might even put an end to the false advertising for the products that DON'T work.

Just think guys- you could actually CATCH A SCENT OF that Morgan Webb girl who co-hosts with Adam Sessler.

And we females could catch a scent of that Diet Coke Guy.

I'm not sure I could ever watch CSI again tho....decomposing bodies smell might not work for me.

The electronic version of a scratch and sniff page in mags- would it really work?

My Reason For Today

My reason for eating Chocolate today.......

There are thousands of different types of chocolate candies and until I have tried them all I cannot be sure of my favorite.

Best on Halloween

Swamp Juice

Lime Koolaid
Pineapple Juice
Everclear

Mix. Drink. Enjoy

Party Girl......NOT

My daughter had a little party at her house last night.

Paulius and I went up and joined them. We had a rip-roaring bonfire going and the music was pumping- and Mike- her fiance- grilled burgers and brats..... it was GREAT.

We also did quite a bit of drinking.
We only had vodka and rum and Kahlua and we mixed it with tea(YUK)- OJ - and milk .

I drank 4 drinks- ( equal to about 8 if you bought them at a club). I haven't been out anywhere doing any drinking in about a year now-I've been taking care of other things- helping the parents with things, and working insane hours at work til I transferred to the new site.

It was so nice to have time off and be able to relax.

I don't know it is me getting older- or if it's just that I have been on the go for months now with no time off-so to speak- or if it was because I had only had 45 minutes nap for two days before the party- but I was literally falling asleep on my feet by 10:30 pm. (We had started partying at about 6 that evening.) One thing about when I party- I have to be DOING something- like dancing in order to not start getting TOO mellowed out. Unfortuately,We weren't dancing.

I held out til about 10:45 and then told everyone I was going to go home(about 150 yards away from my daughters house) and I was going to nap an hour or so and I would be back.

Didn't happen. I went in, laid down on the bed- and woke up at 5AM when Paulius came to bed.
He had stayed up there when I came home. I didn't mind- he hardly ever goes out and does anything without me.


I woke up this morning and got up around 10:00AM feeling fine....no symptoms of hangover whatsoever.....at least THAT hasn't changed!

I used to be able to go out clubbing, close the joint down, do breakfast afterwards and then grab a swimsuit and head off to the lake for a day of boating and partying there! Hell- we'd make a weekend of it, most times.

What is up with me these days?

I don't wanna be a TOTAL party animal- but I don't wanna turn into my parents either- never going out , always in bed by 9PM, saving and scrimping -watching every penny all the time.....I wanna LIVE life- not just observe it from a safe distance.

Does our lifestyle have to be an either/or proposition?

I don't think so- I think there is a happy medium. But I suppose it depends on what you are willing to sacrifice to have either/or.......

I'm CLEARLY Responsible.

A mistake is clear evidence that at least somebody TRIED to do something.


I did it- If you don't agree- the YOU do something. And do it FIRST.


;-)

having a bit of a bad week....

Maybe some of you can tell me.....

Is it normal for me to start crying at the drop of a hat?

Like when I hear a train whistle blow?
Or when I see my Dads tractor sitting beside the shed?

Is it normal for me to be having nightmares almost everynight about people that I love dying?

Is it normal for me to be so clingy?
When my kids come to visit me and they say they have to leave- is it normal for me to start another conversation so I can keep them with me as long as possible?
And do it several times before they actually get to leave?(I'm afraid that if I keep doing this they will stop coming by as much and I surely don't want THAT to happen.)

Is it normal for me to almost have panic attacks when anyone I love is out of my sight- that I'm afraid that at any moment another person I love could be taken away from me?

I don't understand why I am doing these things. It's not like Dad had a heart attack or just passed away in his sleep with no warning....we knew for years that this was coming- and we knew for several weeks it could be at any minute.

Why am I not handling this with more maturity and poise?

I am glad he's not in pain and suffering anymore- but


I WANT MY DADDY.

Calling All Iron Chefs!!!

Hey all you guys.

I don't know WHAT was up with the last post.
:-P

All I have to say in my defense is PMS.
Whether its PRE- or POST is your guess.

Anyway- I have a survey type question for you this time....

I know every one of us has at LEAST one dish we can make that gets RAVE reviews from the peeps-(apologies to the word purists out in blogland)-who are lucky enough to get to taste them.

So my question is-
What is YOUR specialty Dish?

(and be WARNED- I might ask for the recipe so if it's a family secret recipe-PLEASE-tell me beforehand.)

I have about a dozen that I make- but the top ones are-

Southern Buttermilk Pound Cake
Chocolate Oatmeal Drop Cookies
Made-From-Scratch Yeast Dinner Rolls
Cherry Yum-Yum
BBQ Ribs

YUM!!!!!
I can't wait to hear yours!

What The HELL Were Those Women Thinking?

I swear, if I could get my hands on them they would PAY.

Damn bra-burners.

Equal rights for women, my ass.

All those moronic witches did was get us women having to do the same job as men for less money, in most cases.

Nowdays, we don't GET to stay home and clean house and cook and look after the kids......NOoooooooooo NOW we get to do all that AS WELL AS hold down a full time job.
And face it ladies- unless you got VERY lucky(which I DID) the "Man" of the house doesn't do much more than take out the garbage and usually you have to nag the crap out of them to do that because we're EQUAL now.

I say it's all a load of HORSE-SH*T!
Pardon the language- but I swear I am sick to the eye teeth of being told that we women asked for "it" simply because we want and ask a man to do something.

I happen to be one of the lucky women....I not only have a husband who loves to cook and doesn't mind helping with the household stuff as long as he doesn't have to do it ALL by himself, But I have two sons and a baby brother who feel the same way as Paulius does. I got lucky- but almost every single day I hear that same old tired remark made to other women- or I see a man who sits on his ass in public while his wife or girlfriend runs around like a chicken with her head cut off after the kids or doing yardwork or something that is equally as much HIS task as hers while he calls to her- "Honey, bring me something to drink would ya?" or " Babe, little Johnny is about to run into the road- bring him back up here or watch him, why don't ya?"

Here's an idea, Buddy.... Get off YOUR ass and act like a real man and help her out a little. It wasn't OUR generation who started that horsecrap and I'll bet if you took a poll now- over 50% of us women would be saying we wanna go back to the old ways of doing things.

If I could get my hands on those women and their "EQUAL RIGHTS" movement , Why, I'd ........