New Year's Blues

(I started this on January 5th. It's been a busy year, so far!)

Oh well. Christmas is over. We had to go ahead and take our tree down on the 26th b/c of allergies. The D-man is allergic and I've got a wicked sinus infection so we decided it would be better for everyone if we went ahead and did it. I've taken the decorations down, but haven't put the regular stuff back up so our house looks sadly empty. Except for the toys. It looks like Toys R Us had a sale in my living room. Trains, trucks, books, $piderman EVERYWHERE! Can I tell you how much those little trains hurt to step on?!! Just ask D-man who stepped on one and took a header in the kitchen. It wasn't pretty.

I actually took a header too, on Christmas eve at my folks house. They have a tiny galley kitchen and it leads into the den area via a single step. This step has been the bane of my existence since I could walk. When I was little I'd go tearing through the den into the kitchen and I would hit the step and land midway through the kitchen and it would knock the wind out of me. This time it took me out going down the step into the den. Busted my knee, bashed my elbow, crushed my wrist. Good times. Happy Holidays! I'm not drunk, I swear.

I did attend midnight mass. Yes, I'm a Christmas Catholic (or Cathoholic as we say sometimes). They even had a "brochure", if you will, about coming to church and how even if you are a "Christmas Catholic" there's still a place for you in God's yada, yada, yada. Thus, solidifying my reasonings as to why I only go to church once a year. Would you like a side of guilt with that wacky wafer and Jesus Juice? Thanks. I'm full. :-) However, I do like the tradition and the ceremony. Although, this mass was done in English and Indonesian. There was also some interpretive dance which I couldn't get into. Okay, so it wasn't "Interpretive" dance, but they looked silly. I didn't realize church was dinner AND a show, now. I miss the old Latin "productions", if you will.

At any rate, the holidays are over. Let the New Year begin!

The Holidays are Coming, the Holidays are Coming...

Hi, I'm Tara and I'm a Christmasoholic.

I fully admit it. I'm a junkie. A Christmas junkie. I'm totally digging 94.9fm's "All-Christmas-all-the-time" playlist. I get giggly when I walk into the mall-type area (although, you will not see me in a mall until absolutely necessary this time of year. I may be additicted, but I'm not stupid) and see the Christmas lights and decorations everywhere. I just ordered our Christmas cards. We got our tree this weekend. Some of the regular decorations and pictures have been carefully nestled away and in their place are winter, Christmas and general holiday themed items. My Christmas tablecloth and Santa cookie jar are on the table. I hung my Mistletoad (that's right, he's a frog!) up above the dining room door and Doug hung most of the lights on the house. It's not as obnoxious as it sounds. I promise. It's all tastefully simple. I just love Christmas. I will start shopping this weekend and have everything done to ship up North by the 15th. Christmas Eve is probably my most favorite day of the year. I love having my family over and eating tons of food (that I will bemoan later) and drinking drinks and watching 24 Hours of "A Christmas Story" and "It's a Wonderful Life". I'm always very sad December 26th.

We used to decorate cookies for ourselves and for people who would come to the house and save a few for Santa, of course. One of my most favorite Christmas memories was one year my mom was looking for a project to keep us busy, I guess. I'm not really sure the reasoning behind it. We made a miniature Christmas tree out of a phone book. (This was way back when the yellow pages were all in one ginormous book.) We folded the pages back from the top to the middle to make a triangle and then we spray-painted it green and broke out the glitter and the star stickers. It rocked! My mom was a friggin' genius! She gets embarrassed by that story. I don't know why. I love it. Perhaps it didn't turn out as glorious as I remember it, but that doesn't matter. It's the memory that counts. :-)

I also love Christmas because no matter how much (or really how little) money we had, my parents always made Christmas special. They remember it as "that Christmas everyone only got one or two gifts". We remember it as "remember those cool pop-up toys we got that year?" They are silly folks, but I love them. They sacrificed a lot to get us here. They are still married after all the crap they have been through and they are my heros. Absolutely.

Great movies come out of this time of year, too. "Scrooged", "How the Grinch Stole Christmas", "Merry Christmas, Charlie Brown", "Die Hard", "A Christmas Story", "A Christmas Carol", "The Ref", "National Lampoon's: Christmas Vacation", "The Nightmare Before Christmas"....I could go on. And yes, I did say "Die Hard". That is a friggin' classic!

Merry Christmas, Happy Hanukkah and Happy Holidays in general to everyone. (chances are I won't be able to blog until after then so...) Merry Christmas to all and to all a goodnight!!

Peace!

Halloween in the Mind of a Three Year Old.

CANDY.

That's it.

He was so excited to get his one lollipop he couldn't wait to get home. When I was a kid, my sisters and I would come home to assess the loot.

I'm sure you all (okay, the two of you who read this) can relate. You dump your bag out on the floor or table and let the trading begin. It's a good think I don't like Tootsie Rolls b/c my sister did and I got some good chocolate for those nastly little turdy-looking chews.

Fortunately or unfortunately (depending on how you look at it), for The Boy, he's an only child right now and gets all the candy(that his father doesn't eat) to himself. However, in a couple of years that may change. Either with neighbor kids coming over after or if a sibling comes along. (No word on if that's ever going to happen. A discussion for another day.)

Anyway, I hope everyone had a safe and Happy Halloween. Now, Let's GET READY FOR CHRISTMAS!! I've already got my Santa Hat out and ready.

Kidding, I'll wait at least until after Thanksgiving.

Reality Strikes Back.

I've recently discovered myspace.com. I really think it's funny. I'm sure it's a great networking tool for some people, but mostly I see it as high school online. How many "friends" do you have? Are they the "cool" people? I can't believe that person thinks I want to be their "friend"? Like, OH MY GOD!

I've got 4 friends, as of yesterday, and I'm totally cool with that. Mostly, it's just a silly past time. Is is fun to talk all about myself? Sure. Post pictures of what's going on in my life? Sure, why not. Then you get the freaks who want to send you naked pictures of themselves. What's up with that? StarzB, I really don't want to look at your soapy naked butt. Thanks, anyway. I really don't care about Dave, in Tampa, 27 years old, looking for friends. If you've got to go online to find friends, perhaps you just need to get out of your mom's basement. It's one thing if I know you and you want to be a "friend". It's another if you're a complete stranger. Dude, I'm not looking for a date. I'm not looking for a dirty e-mail. I'm just here to check out what my friends from high school and college are up to.

Thanks, but I think I'll "deny".

Erin's Journey

Okay guys,
This is not a plea for money. Well, it is, sort of. It's actually for a cause, not a person. Well, it's in a person's name.

My friend, Erin, is going through her third round of chemo. First, when she was 12 then, second, two years ago. She had a baby last December and is going through chemo again. She asked that if anyone wanted to do anything, to please donate to St. Jude Children's Hospital. They saved her life when she was twelve. Check out the link (b/c I'm a dork, I still don't get all that html stuff) below and donate to a great cause. The bracelets are cool, too.

http://bwhitewoodstock.tripod.com/id11.html

The term "Erin's Journey" came from when she came back to work from her second bout of cancer, a co-worker was talking with Erin and found out about the first round, when she was a child. The co-worked expressed sorrow that Erin had gone through that and that it came back, and Erin said, "don't be, it's just my journey in life".

We are selling the bracelets for $5 and 100% of the proceeds (minus shipping, if it has to be shipped) goes to St. Judes. 100%!! We're on our way to reaching our goal of $2, 200 and you can help!!

Erin has an AMAZING spirit. If you do go to the link above and you can click on a couple of other cool pages. "Erin's Medical Blog" is maintained by her husband and gives great insight as to what they are going through. Also, you can check out her little boy, Tanner on "The Baby's Page". He's the cutest thing you've ever seen. A picture of Erin is also there, she's sporting her recently purchased, new "'do". The top picture is her husband and he's wearing one of the bracelets.

http://bwhitewoodstock.tripod.com/id11.html

Ever Wonder...

Ever wonder how someone who's not even 3 feet tall can rule your world? Maybe not. But I do. I'm the mother of an amazing (almost) 3 year old. He's funny. He's silly. He's completely all "Boy". Yesterday, as I lovingly picked him up from pre-school (how guilty working mothers refer to daycare) he proceeded to kick and scream and tell me he didn't want to go home. Meanwhile, he's got a full (and I mean FULL) load in his pull-up. (read: Ewwww!) He's thrown himself on the blacktop parking lot and yelling at me that he doesn't want to go home. (yes, I'm LOVING being a parent right now.)

Then, I get him in the car and he does that straight-back thing that gets him out of his car seat and sliiiiiiides down onto the Cheerio-covered floorboard of my Ford Escape and wails at the top of his voice that I was indeed NOT his friend. (38 hours of labor and all I get is this stinking .....well, you know)

Okay, so I wrangle him into the car. He then yells, at the TOP of his lungs, completely incoherent thoughts about his elephant and "Where the Wild Things Are" until I finally just tell him to keep yelling, ..."c'mon, a little louder. Not everyone in Dunwoody can hear you, yet." For whatever reason, that stopped the tantrum. About a minute later he was asleep. He slept from 4:20pm until 6:00am (the next morning). I got home and I changed his pull-up and put him in bed. He didn't stir until about 9:00pm, I went in and said to him "Goodnight, I will see you in the morning" and he went right back to sleep until 6am the next morning.

It was awesome and at the same time a little scary. D-man and I didn't know what to do with ourselves. So, we finished watching the last 30 minutes of "Walk the Line" and did laundry. Then, I folded clothes and watched our newly purchase, "The Little Mermaid", and then watched "Nip/Tuck". I haven't watched that much TV in one night in a long time.

The Boy woke up at 6am and was a whole new kid. Apparently, he hasn't been napping at school much and it's caught up to him. I also think he's a little anxious about potty-training. He's a little bit high-strung (which I have no idea where it comes from....okay, it's me...) about certain things.

That's my life. My, how things change in just 3 short years!!

Two Days of Meetings and All I Get is This Turkey Wrap and some Baklava.

The title says it all.

17 hours of meetings
1% of said 17 hours actually pertains to me.

Jason's Deli Baklava: Priceless

Where'd my blog go???

Okay, so I typed out what was probably the next "Great American Novel" and blogger decided it wasn't good enough for it's site and it has disappeared. Does that happend a lot to you guys. Oh well. Perhaps it doesn't think my content is blogger-worthy. If I could just figure out those stupid links.....

Anyway, good day, All!

A Flower for You All.

I just felt like sharing a flower grown by my bro-in-law. Isn't it pretty!!

I'm Feeling Better Today. Thank you Tom Cruise!

I feel so much better today. Exercise is a wonderul thing. I feel much more clear-headed today. I did 35 minutes on the elliptical and a full circuit on the weights with 2 sets each (totaling 8,840 lbs. Fitlinxx at the Y is awesome!). I'm sore, but in a "I did something good" kind of way.

Tom Cruise was right. Vitamins and exercise are all a person needs to feel better. YEAH, right!

I still need chocolate and vodka. In that order. I do feel better after exercising and once we have gotten fully back into the habit, it will be better. As for right now I need my CV and I will be happy. Until then, all beware.

The military should really learn to harness the power of the PMS-ing female. We could seriously win some wars. Just send 1,000 PMS troops in and BLAM... Buh-bye O$ama!

PMS...SUCKS!

That's right. You guessed it. Today's the day. I made my son cry and my husband hates me. I suck as a person and I really hate it. Hormones are something that NO man can ever understand and I don't think that in the 13 years that D-man and I have been together that this has changed. I am fully aware of the fact that I seriously need some PMS drugs. I just don't have any right now. We're going to work out this afternoon and I need it. BAD.

On one hand, I feel like the worst mother and wife of all time. On the other...why don't they just F&(#@ing understand????? Do not piss me off right now.

Duh na na na na na...You say it's your birthday....

Holy Oldness Batman!


No, I really don't feel older. Saying 32 or 33 feels no different. I'm having a great birthday (week). Saturday, my WONDERFUL friends surprised me at our annual cookout with a party. My friend, (we'll call him) Super Greg, even decorated a cake for me. It was a volcano and all of the teddy wahinis were sacrificing themselves to the volcano gods instead of turning 33. It was pretty cool. There was MUCH in the way of good food and presents.

Tonight D-man is taking me out to the KT Tunstall concert at Center Stage and my son (with some help from Daddy) gave me a necklace and earring set from www.twotreesbeads.com. Friday, my bestest friend, Sara, is taking me out to dinner and a movie, my office buddies are taking me to lunch on Monday and my old boss is taking me out to lunch on Wednesday. (get thee to a gymnasium!)

So far I have totally raked it in. I've gotten 2 gift certificates, flowers, a pair of shoes, two books, a DVD set, two necklace and earring sets, 3 bottles of wine, a volcano cake, concert tickets, two kinds of pound cake, a handmade scarf and a decorated desk. This birthday is ROCKIN'! I have awesome friends. I love you all!

Happy Day Everyone!!

Queenfrog Swims with the Fishes...

(Okay, yes, I know, they're not fishes!)

Holy Cow! I figured something out! I can now post pictures!

This is one of me and Pegasu (I'm on the left) when D-man and I went to swim with the dolphins in Mexico in 2001. About 2 weeks after 9/11 we went to Playa-del-Carmen. We figured it was probably the safest time to fly. We had an awesome time. It was extemely intimidating to swin with the dolphins. They are such beautiful and powerful animals. I don't think I'll do it again b/c I don't agree with animals for human entertainment. (Don't even get me started on the circus elephants...), but I do have to say, it was the most amazing thing to be in the water with a creature that breath-taking. They were well taken care of and seemingly not over-worked, but I still have my issues with it. I didn't until I went through it. I would be content just sitting on the dock feeding them fish.

Just a note out of nowhere...
Watched Dane Cook's "Vicious Circle" last night. Very funny. Especially the part about how men fight versus how women fight. Dead on!

Take Off, eh!

We just got back from a visit to the Great White North. (I mean that figuratively and literally.) We had a visit with the in-laws. They live in western New York state. VERY western New Nork. Lots of trees and water (and toxic waste). Good times. It's absolutely beautiful up there. My in-laws live right on Lake Ontario. You can see Toronto from their backyard. We actually boated across to Toronto once.

My brother-in-law (we'll call him K-dog) docks his boat at a marina just above "The Falls". That's right, Niagara Freakin' Falls. Normally, when we've gone out, we've gone to the river below the Falls. Nice and safe. No fear of plummeting to our death should the motor poop out. Now, there's a whole new fear factor to boating with K-dog.

My little guy got to spend some quality time with his grandparents and cousins. We got to see our 4 nephews, sisters-in-law and brothers-in-law. The D-man and I even got to spend an entire day sans child. We don't get to do that often. It was wonderful. We went to a little town called Niagara-on-the-lake. Beautiful, quaint little town. Had some lunch and some wine and a prailine the size of my head. It was amazing. We did a quick drive-by of the Falls (I make the D-man take me there every time we're there.), did a little shopping (duty free = cheap beer), did a little outlet shopping (alas, no new Liz Claiborne purse this year) and just hung out. Got to talk and hold hands and be goofy kids again. It was great. Got the boy a shirt that read "Moosely Canadian". Appropriate b/c D-man was born Canadian. Get it?!

My sister-in-law (D-man's sister) even cooked a "Thanksgiving" dinner the day before we left. It's good to see them. D-man's sister's husband (we'll call him Ranger)is going through a particularly rough time. He's a teacher and having to deal with some dirty politics from the power-hungry school board and a psychotic board member who stalks them. It's ugly. Ranger is a good and honest man. Hopefully, this will all work out. They are considering moving, which I find upsetting b/c they are being forced out, it's not their own choice. It sucks. Bad school board. Bad!

All in all it was a good trip, but I'm glad to be back in my own bed. We'll be see my mother and father-in-law in January when they come to stay for a visit. I'd better get my list ready. They like to fix things when they come down. I just wish they would come in May...we have lots of outdoor projects to do. New fence, new porch, pressure washing...the list goes on and on.

What's in a name?

Okay, I know there's a name for people who go around the office scrounging for food. What is it? Does anyone know? I can't remember. Anyway, we have one of those in my office right now. I will call this person "The BFG". You remember the book by Roald Dahl, don't you?

My co-worker and I share an office. It's a nice large space and I can see out of the window in the person's office across from me. We have a plant (fake) and a coconut man we've dubbed "Wilson'. Occasionally, we plug in the Christmas lights. It's generally pleasant. We have our own little contraband microwave and fridge that 'Catbert' the evil HR director constantly threatens to remove b/c it's not "to code". Yeah, okay. Whatever. Try it and we'll just hide it in the closet where there is a plug and no one ever goes in there. HA (so there.)

Quite often, one person in particular comes in and opens the fridge and starts scrounging. My co-worker and I are the only ones who put food in there so if the BFG gets anything out, we know it's does not belong to said BFG. Duh, it's not rocket science. My co-worker once was missing low carb yogurt. Gee, I wonder who the culprit could be??? Argh. And trust me, a couple of things of low carb yogurt are not going to do this person ANY good. (okay, that was mean.) As I said, ARGH

Anyway, to you office fridge vultures I offer this advice. We know who you are. Stop it and stay away.

T. Out.

Circle, circle, dot, dot...

Is it just me or has traffic been actually better this week? Of course, I live up in the 'burbs, but 400 has been awesome. Dunno.

Anyway, as the great philoso-tater, Eric Cartman once said, "Screw you guys, I'm going home." Okay, well maybe not this second, but soon. Okay, maybe not soon, but eventually. It's Friday, afterall. Whew! Made it through the week. On Wednesday, I seriously thought I was going to "throw down" with this guy in IT. It was bad! Then, yesterday, I got yelled at for defending a new employee. Not by anyone important, mind you, but Evil (not her real name) was making fun of and bitching about a new employee and I stepped up and defended said new employee and got blasted. Basically, Evil is one of those people who wants everyone to like her and agree with what she says and when you don't she finds something about which to pick on you. Whatever beyotch. You can't intimidate me. Just because I'm short (okay, WAY short), doesn't mean I can't defend myself. I'm Irish... I'm scrappy.

I will push you down!

Today, I will have a good day. Why? Because. That's why. I'm in a good mood. I'm going out with a friend to see a movie while hubby hosts neighborhood poker night. I will have a beverage or two and life will be fine. :-)

Shoes from H.E.L.L.

Okay, so now I have come to fully realize that I should have gotten the red Aerosoles with the fabulous cushioning instead of the black pieces of death I bought. For some reason my feet swell two sizes (and those puppies are already 9s) when I come within two inches of these shoes. I don't know who Audrey Brooke is or what I did to piss her off, but she should be drawn and quartered. I'm just glad I don't have to walk around a lot for my job. Now, I'm just wishing I hadn't had those two glasses of tea and that the bathroom was closer.

Tomorrow...flip flops!

My Latest Facination..

I love stand-up comedy. Always have. I love Robin Williams, Bill Cosby, George Carlin, Steve Martin, Eddie Murphy, etc. The D-man and I always get sucked into watching C0m-Cent stand up shows. He even took me to Robin Williams at the Fox a couple of years ago for my birthday (love him!).

A long time ago we saw a guy on TV who was really funny, but we didn't see him again for a long time until one night he hosted SNL. Dane Cook. He's awesome. Su-Fi!! We've watched his HBO special religiously and can't wait for the September 4th special.

(If I knew how to do all that funky html stuff I would link, but I am lame-very lame-and don't know how. d'oh) Pointers anyone??

Anyway, if you don't know who he is, check him out. He's so funny and WAY out there and spins an awesome tale that always leaves me ROLLING on the floor, tears in the eyes, stomach muscles on the verge of collapse. I would love to see his live show, but he doesn't seem to come to GA often. If he does I'm so there! (this is where I am inserting a hint for a really good present for a special occasion... my birthday, Christmas, Halloween, Thursday....)

So, keep your ears to the ground and let me know if you ever hear of him coming to the ATL.

Out, out, damn spot!!

So, the D-man had to go in to work last night to do some stuff. So, I decided to paint my toenails and relax and watch the new mini-show by my favorite horror writer that comes on at 9pm. So, I get to painting and with one slip of the hand I knock my Opi "Cajun Shrimp" nail polish all over our cream colored carpet. Rock on.

What to do? What to do?

So, I spend the next 30 minutes trying to use nail polish remover. (by the way, this is a bad idea) This works on the first couple of splotches, but damn that polish dries quickly. So then, I get this idea. I will cut it out. It's really only on the top layer of the carpet(and it's kind of in a pretty pattern). So, back down we go with my little orange-handled scissors. I got most of it out, but it took 2 hours.

Note: When buying fingernail polish remover (for removal from carpet, that is), do not by the non-acetone kind. It's some kind of awful stink! My son woke up twice in the night even though we put a towel under his door to attempt to block the stench. We had to sleep with the bedroom door open and the 2 fans on full-blast. I feel sick today.

I just wish I'd thought of the scissors first. Some days, I'm not so smart. :-)

Time = Monday

Have you ever had the feeling that you just keep having a Monday. It's like that line in "Office $pace"..."Looks like somebody's got a case of the Mondays." (yeah, cheesey, but so appropriate.)

That's what I feel like every week. It's Monday until it's Thursday. Because at least when it's Thursday, it's one day closer to Friday which means it's one day closer to Saturday.

Sad...I know. I like my job. That's the weird part. I really do.

Irked

You know what irks me...when someone says, "I felt like the third wheel." That bugs me. I believe the saying is "I felt like the fifth wheel". 5 not 3. A third wheel is a tricycle, people!!

However, please correct me if I'm wrong.

There, I feel better. Have a GREAT day!

Time Away...from WORK! Rock on.

I am back to work for the first time in 7 days. That's right, folks. Count 'em...7 days. I'm actually in a good mood b/c not only is it my first day back...it's Friday. Heck, yeah!

Things I did in the past 7 days:
1) Took my 2 1/2 year old to the GA Aquarium by myself. (...and this is why I drink...)
2) Saw "Superman Returns" (awesome flick)
3) Had a date night, much needed, with the D-man.
4) Went to a pool party for a friend's birthday. Fun. Except for that whole "bathing suit" issue.
5) Saw "The Devil Wears Prada" with my mom.
6) Walked my son down to the OR for his ear surgery (3rd set of tubes) and watched as they put him under. I still can't think about it without tearing up. (ugh!~) You'd think I would be used to it by now. 3rd times the charm, right?
7) Spent some much-needed time with my husband and little one.
8) Watched "Serenity", surprisingly good flick. I was impressed, but then again I love Joss Whedon's stuff ("Buffy", "Angel")
9) Realized I watch too much stuff. However, I did exercise 5 out of the 7 days I was off and lost about 3 lbs. Not just from the exercise, but b/c my a$$ wasn't glued to my chair in front of a computer for 8 hours a day...and hey, I think I need a snack.

Hopefully, I can keep it up. I've done well so far today. Just have to remember to exercise tonight... after the neighborhood cookout and I get the boy to bed and D-man goes to play poker...perhaps. If not, I will definitely do it when I get up in the morning with the boy. :-)

Life in the Fast Lane...

...or the suburbs. You know, whatever....

We got our new (rhymes with Conda) car. Our "Black & Tan" if you will. She's a beauty! And we really got a good deal on it as I think I frightened the sales people a bit. :-*
Our House Project is nearing completion...and it's not even Halloween!
Our 2 1/2 year old got his...count 'em...third set of tubes in his ears last week. (yea, daycare)

Mostly, I'm really happy about the house project being close to completion. All we have to do now is add the tiny moulding around the baseboards and the 4 transition pieces and VIOLA! Now, we'll see how soon that actually is completed. The pieces have to be cut to fit, sanded, painted, nailed down and the nail holes filled and repainted. Yippie skippy! I actually prefer this to laundry or mopping, but hey who wouldn't?? I'd rather go to the dentist...speaking of which, I have to make my appointment for my cleaning.

I think this is why I "blog". Just to keep track of the random crap floating around in my head. hmmm

More Cars

Okay. So, I've come down a bit from my "ready to obliterate all who stand in my way" day. We're ready to buy the (rhymes with Conda) car and we're going tonight to test drive ANOTHER car.

Let me interject here... Car salesmen don't really know what they are getting into with us. We looked at 31 houses before we found our happy home. We are picky people with a GREAT amount of patience when it comes to major purchases.

So, with all things being as they are, we're probably going to sign the papers tonight, get the check from the bank tomorrow and pick up the car tomorrow. We'll see. Did I mention I hate buying cars?

Cars

WTF is up with car salesmen? I had one bare-faced lie to me last night. They are evil, evil people. I get sick to my stomach every time we have to buy a new car. I did come to the ultimate realization last night that they need me WAY more than I need them. Never really thought about it before. They are trying to cut a deal and "oh, let me do this for you." BLAH! I say.

Here's what you can do for me, jerk-wad. You can stop jerking me around and be straight. I can go anywhere in this city and buy a (rhymes with "Conda"). I don't need you and your "deals" after you've lied to me. Oh, wait, perhaps you were just mistaken. ?? Too bad. You said what you said and I'm holding you accountable, ya friggin' punk!

Grrr. Arrgh. This is not the week to mess with me. I'm having all kinds of issues and a car is the last thing I need to deal with. However, we do "need" a new one, but we don't "have to have it" right now. I like having the upper hand. Being able to walk away is a beautiful and empowering thing. I think my hubby is a little unsure of how to deal with me right now. I love him.

I think I'm ADD

I cannot concentrate today. I have so much stuff going through my head. Work, cars, home, kids, work BS. It's Friday, I'm supposed to be happy. Instead I just keep getting dumped on. Some days it just doesn't pay to wash your hair. Maybe if I was all gross people would leave me alone!!

Urgh. Almost time to go home and I swear, to whatever being controls the universe, if anyone gets in my way at 4:31pm today I will beat them severely about the neck and shoulders with a large blunt object.

Urgh....

I will just listen to my IPod and be happy. I've got Vinx going right now. Rock on!

Urgh....

House Project Check-In

Get Toilet fixed...check

Get Toilet fixed again...check

Get Toilet fixed AGAIN...check

Put in hardwood floors....uh, yeah, about that. See, I had to go to New York for a week for work, then the toilet leaked and then we went to Florida on vacation and when we got back it leaked again....

Remember I said not to make any Christmas plans with us.....

I told you...that friggin' toilet is E-V-I-L!! Finally, we think the "stinkin' summbitch" is fixed for good. We're just waiting...and watching...

IPod...Coolest thing EVER!

I recently received an IP*d N*no from my dear sweet husband. This is the coolest thing EVER. I don't know how, as a race, we ever survived without it. I spent almost 6 hours on the computer loading songs and I could have done more. (For the record, I HATE being on the computer at home since I'm on it for 8+ hours every day at work.)

I just listed to "Come Away with Me" by Norah Jone$ and now I'm listening to "Because the Night" by 10,000 Maniac$. Who knows what's next, it's on "shuffle". Could be something from "Wicked", could be "Tainted Love" by $oft Cell, could be "Life in a Nut$hell" by BNL. Who knows! It's like Christmas in a tiny, little, flat, credit card-sized box thing. I love it. Oh, wait, it's "Last Beautiful Girl" by matchbox twenty. So cool!

Earphones could be a little smaller, though. Lefty hurts after a bit. Guess righty is bigger than lefty. That seems to be the way it is with my body. hmmmmmmmmm.

It's the end of the season...as we know it...

... and I'm not fine.

They killed Denny. WHAT....EVER! Honestly, it was almost worse than Edgar. If you didn't cry, you don't have a soul. Hopefully, Izzie will be okay. They should bring in a identical twin brother. Then I would smile again. Okay, okay, I know they aren't really real people, but (heavy sigh) that's what makes a good show. Characters you "care" about. I'll call them "caractors". Hmm? No? Too cheesy. Okay. Never mind.

Tonight. Lost.

(heavy sigh...Poor Hurley.)

Fake Henry Gale is SOOOO the bossman. You mark my words. (insert evil laughter)

LOST...(spoilers...if you didn't see May 3rd)

Oh
My
God!

Totally didn't see that coming. Michael...bad. Ana Lucia...Gone. Libby...Gone (maybe). DAAAAAMMN!

What an excellent episode and a freakin' fabulous Keyser Soze moment with Fake Henry. I'm conviced he's the head guy, "the man in charge".

Awesome show. What an amazing hour. Hell, what an amazing final 2 minutes.

Work in a word...

Sucks.

It didn't always, but now it does.

If I had a dollar for every second I've thought about cashing everything in and moving to the beach to be a bum, I would be (ironically) a millionaire. Hey, at least I could get the really, really thick cardboard to sleep in.

Sadly, I really like most of the people with whom I work and the work I do is alright. Nothing to where I'll change the world, but something to do to put food on the table. I met two of my dearest friends here. I'm just bummed a lot b/c the atmosphere has changed so drastically over the last three years or so. Managers coming and going, rules changing, perceptions changing. I get it. I mean, it's life. Things change. BUT this is not good. I don't love it.

Plus, part of me really wants to be a stay-at-home mom. However, another part of me screams that I would go nuts at home with kids. What to do? What to do? I think I'll just surf the net. That's always productive at work...

Children...

My son did the unthinkable last night. He ran away. Okay, granted he's 2 and a half and he "ran away" in a shopping center sidewalk with me hot on his heels, but my two year old can book!

The part that scared me what that 6 feet to his right was a parking lot and people tear through it. I was mortified! To him, he was just running. I was envisioning his tiny head meeting a car bumper. I was yelling "stop" and by the time I caught up to him he was a good 25 yards from where we started. At one point I had to stop and kick my shoes off for fear of breaking my ankle. I finally caught him and did the whole, "You didn't listen to Mommy! That was bad! You stop running when Mommy tells you to stop..." yadda yadda yadda. My husband finally got to us and calmly said, "You're getting your first spanking" (gave him a swat on the butt through his diaper) and with a wagging finger said, "You listen to your mother when she tells you to stop." My son then realized he was in trouble and looked at me with his big blue eyes as if to say, "I thought we were having fun!" and began to wail. The whole thing was very heartbreaking for all of us.

Needless to say we didn't get ice cream and he went straight to bed after we got home. I cried the whole drive home (5 miles) and my son didn't say a word. At that point I wondered if I'd really gotten through to him or just made him mad. Then, I realized I didn't care if he was mad. I wanted him to be scared of the consequences of running away from us. Then, I thought about how many times I'd heard from my own parents, "We got mad because we just didn't want you to get hurt. We didn't do it to be mean." DAMN! Why did they always have to make sense, but I didn't listen or believe. I get it now. I totally get it.

Spring Cleaning

We have yet another house project! We found a small leak in our downstairs bathroom. Apparently, the toilet is actually possessed by the devil and hates us. We found the leak when we, innocently, walked into the dining room and squished through the puddle that had appeared. My dear husband (D-man) had been home for two days with a bad back and I thought, "d$@*, you could have at least thrown down a paper towel and stood on it to soak up the wet!" See, I thought he'd been a "man" and ignored something he spilled. He thought I had been in a hurry that morning heading to work and forgot I'd spilled something. HA-HA joke's on us! As you can see, the toilet is pitting us against each other!

Come to find out, the toilet (with which D-man has been fighting since we moved into the house) was leaking from the refill pipe (yes, I'm very technical) and the bathroom was semi-flooded at the back wall (there's a slight incline in there. Apparently, the potty is trying to escape back to it's home in hell) and ran into the dining room. Fortunately, it didn't make it to the china cabinet and warp the wood. However, it did try. It was headed there.

Luckily, we caught it in time and decided that if we were going to take the carpet up in the dining room (and who puts carpet in a dining room anyway???) that we should go ahead and do the foyer...if we're doing the foyer we might as well do the hallway... and since we're doing the hallway, we should probably do the living room, too. Then we went and priced it and decided to do it in two sections. Part 1: Dining room & hallway/foyer. Part 2: Living Room, but not until Fall or Winter.

We're going to be putting in either hardwoods or the Pergo wood/laminate flooring. So, we'll see. It most likely won't be completed this weekend. Knowing us, you should probably not make any Christmas plans with us either.... Wish us luck!

TV...Whaaaa?

Things recently on TV that bugged me:

1) The O$car$. I actually sat through and ENTIRE show. I hate awards show. I really do. This one is the worst. Although, I do have to say I thought Jon $tewart did a fantastic job. He didn't try too hard and he looked nervous, but it worked for him. He was funny, but not in cruel way. They had some good writers, but that "pimp" song was the worst! Sorry all, it was just bad. Perhaps I need to see the movie, but really. I just don't think you can put the word "pimp" in a song and it sound good...ever.

2) They killed of Edgar on 24. That was just wrong!

3) LO$T is my favorite show (ties with 24) but did no one in that hatch read The Wizard of Oz? Just curious. How scared were you that Mr. Eko was going to off himself?? I jumped.

4) Arrested Development. No need to say more. Sad. Fox, you are bad. Ratings be damned, that was a good and intellegent show.

5) How long does this week seem to $opranos fans? C'mon Sunday!! I just want to see Carmela's hair this year.

That's about it.

Ring in the New Year

So, it's been a while since I've posted. I've been really busy. Went to Burrrrrrrlington, Vermont for work. I'm talking FREAKING cold. It was minus 1 on the Monday I was there. Crazy cold for a girl from the South.

I've had foot surgery. Minor, but annoying. Bone spur in the big toe. Fun! They even had to take off (gulp!) my toenail. That was the part that grossed me out the most. So, I thought I would share.

Mostly, it's been a good year. So far. It's only February 1 and I'm already planning into March. I love being a grown-up. What happened to fly by the seat of your pants...don't plan it 'til it gets here...gal? That was me. Guess we all have to grow up sometime.

Dang! (ya'll)