My daughter called to remind me...

... that my driver's license was expired.

Duh. It's been a frequent discussion topic. It expired May 31. We have not one but TWO teens with permits. Every time I tag along as the licensed driver, SOMEONE mentions the expired status of my license.

So... DD called last night. She said, "Hey Mom. I just got pulled over by a cop. He told me to remind you that your driver's license is expired."

She swears she was going 29 in a 25 - on a road notorious for the frequent presence of police officers. I don't even speed on that road; that means I keep it at 30 or less. So I believe her.

The officer approached the car, and said, "This is your mother's car, isn't it?" [yes] "Well, tell your mother her license is expired."

um, thankyouverymuch officer.

Yes, I renewed my license today. It took about 20 minutes to gather the required 6 points of acceptable identification AND a proper proof of address. I grabbed my Mustang registration form, due this month - it was sent by the state government in the last six months. Well, they assumed I was taking care of that too -- so, one line, two transactions! woohoo.

Now I have to remember to get the car inspected in August. Wish me luck. A few years ago, I thought I was getting it inspected two months late. Um, no - it was fourteen months overdue. I like skipping a year - but it does make it harder to remember when inspections are due!

Bargains and Me - SO not together

Bargain #1:

I want maroon and white M&Ms for the upcoming graduation party. I found 50% off bags at Party City. So I recalled the M&Ms online price ($6/bag), the bulk store price ($6), checked the regular price ($6/bag) and grabbed four bags of maroon, two gray and two black. {What? You didn't know that black and gray make white when mixed? Me neither; there wasn't any white.}

Only ages later did I really think. And recall that yep, the per-SEVEN OUNCE bag price is $6. BUT the local bulk candy store located right on the corner in the center of its adoreable town sells loose single-color M&MS for $6 PER POUND. Oh so stupid.

Six dollars for seven ounces isn't the same as six dollars per pound, is it?

Please do not tell my children. I tell them constantly that the units are important. Sure enough.

Bargain #2:

I read about a LSS [local scrapbooking store] in a news article, so I decided to visit today. I wandered and gathered stuff - stuff I surely do not need. But -- I rattled off my name, and got 10% off my purchases today.

Not much of a bargain. I know.

But -- I will get 30% off my future purchases. Yep, 10% today and 30% in the future. Really.

Now that IS a bargain.

Rain on my tents

If you camp during a torrential downpour, you'll get wet.
The rain is that fast and furious.
And it will be during the night; never during the day.

If you drag all the wet sleeping bags and clothes and stuff to the nearest laundromat with dryers - yea, that would be any laundromat, huh? -- remember to
1) check the pockets and the inside of sleeping bags for laffee taffee.
2) check ALL the dryers before leaving the laundromat.

If you forget #1, some things are going to be sticky-icky.
If you forget #2, grousing at the kids that the sweatshirts must be SOMEWHERE won't change the fact that you umm, sorta forgot a load at the laundromat. So while they are somewhere, it's nowhere nearby.

When you realize #2, your 2 yr old DD will cry and forever have abandoment issues because you slam yourself into the car and race to the laundromat, reaching the door with one minute to closing. With an all teen-aged crew, you know that door was almost locked.

just sayin'. Five wet tents, two semi-dry ones, and 20+ 9 - 12 yr old girls. Oh, and one freaked out 2 yr old. Twenty years ago.

A tale of unhelpful help...

So, I needed to get my yogurt and wanted another cup of tea. But I had to play queen first. I left my mug w/ tea bag on the break room [makes it sound so grant… it’s just an office] table. When I came back, my mug was gone. Ok, I know I can be forgetful, but I knew I’d put my mug on that table.
I walked down to my office, hoping to find my mug. My lights were out, so that meant nobody had been there in awhile [motion sensors]. Yup, there was my mug, sitting on my table. I know the walk between my office and the break room isn’t long. It’s just aggravating to know that someone felt they had to return my mug, instead of leaving it where it was.

And that’s my tale of unhelpful help.

RTA: reason to argue

Well, RTA really means 'ready-to-assemble', but it might as well mean 'reason to argue'. How many pieces of RTA furniture have you and your SO assembled? And how many times have you argued over some part of the instructions - or argued about even reading the instructions? Those numbers are the same, aren't they? I thought so.

We've had a 50" plasma TV since Circuit City announced their stores were closing. (THAT was a fiasco! DH spent oh, six-hundred dollars more at CC than he would have spent at Best Buy for the SAME TV.) The box - unopened - has been hanging out in the DR ever since.

We finally settled on a TV stand. BTW - try not to get a TV bigger than 48". The price jump for TV stands is huge once the TV exceeds 48"; just sayin'.

The TV stand arrived. RTA, by Sauder. We have a long pallet with three or four packages w/ long wood pieces, all wrapped up with that plastic stuff that reminds me of Glad Wrap. Just needs a bow to complete the ‘present’ illusion. NOW the fun will begin.

I'll provide a yell-by-yell report once we're done arguing. Well, putting the beast together.
Adding to the frustration will be: moving all the VHS tapes and DVDs, running the tangle of wires from point to point, and my DH's perfectionist habits. The ultimate argument may occur when he realizes the current entertainment center is headed for the basement.

I don't think I'll tell him that ultimately, the two will swap. Nope, that tidbit of info can wait.
How much ready to assemble {RTA} do you have? We’ve got four desks, bookcases, loft bed, small armoire, filing cabinet, dresser, credenza, two TV entertainment centers [plus the new one], a table for my craft studio that still needs to be assembled, and a standalone closet. I’m probably missing something. Yup, the tall hall bench with baskets in cubbies at top, and bench is storage.

This is what we'll be assembling this weekend:

Tale of the Traveling Dining Room Set

Our current china cabinet

We discussed the lineage of 'the junior dinette set' at Easter dinner. (Each piece is smaller than the typical dining room set.)

• A young married couple bought the set - table w/ butterfly leaf, six chairs, buffet and china cabinet.


• Their son, years later, married my mom's sister.


• My aunt's in-laws [the orig buyers] bought a new dining set for their 25th anniversary.


• When my aunt & uncle declined the old set, it was offered to my parents.


• It was our kitchen table until I was in HS, when we moved into a house with a DR. At that point, it became the DR set.


• While I was in college, my mom bought a gorgeous old full-size DR set from an old man whose wife had just died. The family was thrilled that another family was going to enjoy it. The junior set went in the basement.


• When I graduated from college, my mom and I painted the entire set gloss black. The six chairs were down to two. I picked up four bamboo chairs from a Goodwill-type place.


• It became our DR set after DH & I got married.


• Years later, when my dlilsis was graduating from college, we bought a DR set. The old set moved to my parents', temporarily.


• Dlilsis painted the set cream and rag-washed the china cabinet with brown. She got rid of the two remaining chairs. The four bamboo ones are in our basement.


• When she bought her condo AKA tiny place, the china cabinet moved into our basement.


• DD is agitating for the table and buffet since she's graduating in May.


• Dlilsis says DD has to wait until she and BIL buy a house. I'm guessing we're talking two years at the most.

My parents think the young couple bought the travelling set soon after they married in 1938, so it's around 70 years old.

DD says that NOBODY she knows in her age group has travelling furniture. She finds that incredibly sad. I do too. Yes, we have more furniture that's been passed around.

Brokendown rental car - a tale from long ago

A friend had problems recently with her rental car, which reminded me of this tale from over a decade ago...

For my FIL's memorial service, we rented a car. One morning, the car wouldn't start when we were in the hotel parking lot.

Destination: Church.

Contents of car: three squirmy children and two exasperated adults - and that was before the car rebelled.

• DH got the car started, and after some back and forth about
  calling the rental place,
• needing to use the phone in the room,
• and - the last straw -
• DH proclaiming that he could drive the car but that would damage something -

we finally headed for the Church. On the way, I used the oh-so-cumbersome mobile phone installed in the car. (Once upon a time, it was considered a small car phone...)

I told rental dude the story, and got the line about bringing it to the airport location for exchange.

Umm, no. We're headed to a funeral. How about sending someone with a new car for us?
..... I'm sure you can do that for us.
..... Here's the address. Car must arrive during this 30 min window.
.....I'm sure you can figure out how to arrange that.
.....No, I can't give you a phone number. We're going to be inside a Church [mentally: ya know, the one for which I just gave you the address???].

We were a bit late. The %$^&^ priest was walking out of the sacristy to start the Mass -- while the widow and the deceased two children and their spouses and offspring were still standing at the back of the Church. (He was a jerk in many ways.)

When we exited the Church, the car was still sitting there. sigh. Just then, a tow truck with a car on its flatbed pulled up. Timing perfect, the guy handed us the keys to the replacement, we handed him the dud's keys, we moved two car seats and all other kid-stuff to the new car....The rest of the family and friends were shocked.
And that's my rental car breakdown story.

they thank me for having FUN

The swim team end of season banquet has come and gone.

In preparation, I asked everyone to upload their photos to snapfish. I gathered the photos and created a photo book for the coach. I had a BLAST! I also created a slideshow from the photos, with some extras not included in the book. I had FUN!

When we showed up, I noticed a gorgeous bouquet of flowers. Very nice. During the banquet, the slideshow played throughout dinner. The presentations drew to a close. That bouquet was still sitting pretty.

I received the flowers in appreciation for the work I did with the photos!

Wow. I had FUN. And I got flowers. Do you think I'll volunteer to do it again? You bet!

Pay no attention to that lady ....

doing prop work without being obvious
you're like Reagan - just get it done, don't care about getting the credit

sit at the keyboard, read and edit
calculate the cost in hours
consider what else has to be done

just doing my job...

all in a day's work,

for weeks on end

as the deadline slides and slides to the right

Tastes better IN the mug...

It's one of those days. The predicted snow is still arriving. My office is an icebox - the heat was off all weekend. So, a hot spot of tea sounds just charming.

• Mug? check
• Tea bag? check
• Hot water? check
• Sugar packets? check

Back in my office, I wait a few minutes, stir the tea, remove the bag. I get distracted, so it's a few minutes before I sip.

Blech. Tea tastes not-so-yummy. It's just one of those days.

About thirty minutes later, I look at my desk - really look at it, not the roving unseeing gaze thing. Yup. My sugar packets are sitting on my desk, plump and untorn.

Tea really does taste better with the sugar IN the mug.

I hope this lesson helps!

Feeling like a criminal ...

Have you encountered the nasty PITA requirements for buying "OTC" drugs containing pseudoephedrine? If not, you are lucky! Obviously YOU don't live in a family with chronic drippy sinuses or allergies. Lucky you.

But I do.

First, the drugs are available only by prescription. Then they make them available over the counter - Benedryl, Allegra, Claritin, you name it. Suddenly these are so safe, we don't need a doctor's note to obtain them. This stinks, since OTC prices are higher than my co-pay was. This is nice; no more doctor's visits just for a piece of paper with illegible Latin scrawls on it.

Then the brainiacs realize the drugkings are making meth using the pseudostuff from the now OTC drugs. That is so not good; we are still in a war against drugs, ya know.

So what does the gov't do? Establishes the honkin' big book, which makes you feel like a criminal every time you need to buy formerly prescription drugs which are now OTC. I sure don't recall ever giving a pharmacist or cashier my Driver's License number and more info to get my Rx drugs.... maybe all the drugs have fried my brain??

Oh, and do not decide you want to pick up some anti-sniff drugs along with some prescriptions at a pharmacy like CVS. You can't get the OTC - ha! - drugs from the pharmacist; you must go to the FRONT of the store for those.

Hello? Tell me this again.

• To get good anti-drip drugs, you have to ask the cashier in front - the one with the long lines of grumpy, sneezy, wheezy people.
• She hauls out the biggest black binder I've ever seen.
• She takes your DL, writes a novella, then s-l-o-w-l-y turns the beast around.
• You add another novella.
• Only then will she get the drugs and sell them to you.
• You must remember to get your DL back, for next time.

Oh - don't ask for two packages. So not happening. Be forewarned - if you go to several stores over too few hours, someone is gonna come knocking on your door. You better have those sniffling kids, your DH and the dogs ready as Exhibit A.

So far, we've avoided the knock on the door.
And DH buys our drugs; I refuse to deal with the mess.

whoa - time is flying by

November 16th was a long time ago. Sheesh. I'm going to have to pay more attention to my life, huh?

Thanksgiving, holiday rush, Christmas - all have come and gone. Flying by. Much like the wind we've been hearing, rattling the windows, the chimes, the wreath on the window -- fiercely swirling and spinning.

Hallowe'en Past

Late on Hallowe'en night
With a full moon bright
She sits and taps
Foot and keys
Thoughts wander, crash, careen
Trying to be heard, be seen
"Make sense of us
Catch us if you can"
(are they the gingerbread men?)
So catch them she shall
And maybe
The telling will be the reality
And the threads will weave fabric
And then, maybe not

The day - costumes to be ironed
(Do that the night before? nah)One to be shortened - how'd that happen?
Takes the scissors
Fails to check
Cuts the legs - no going back now
And then sees - the waist is at the butt!
Luckily the top is long
And she's a safety-pin hoarder
Races to the parade
Police officer in sight -
AARRGGH, no reminders today!
Finds the ninjas, her sons
Plants kisses and runs
To work, to here,
to lists of calls
The furniture repair, the eye doctor, the dentist, the friend
My oldest needed striped hair
Green, Blue, Pink
Tiara
Bracelets
Glitter makeup
And plans with friends
Needed a ride
Came home to hand out treats
So fun - it's been so long
Since I didn't take the kids
And thought
Who says our youth are rude, bad, up-to-no-good?
From every child
"Please/Trick or Treat/Thank you/Happy Hallowe'en"
Rang through the air
"You may take two."
"Oh thank you!"
Many exclaimed how wonderful
The candle-lit pumpkins looked
Five perched on the bench:
Three ghosts on a white pumpkin - no paint!
Dracula
Alien
A Cat on a limb
A scary jack
And the flow turned to a trickle
And then there were none
Good night, Hallowe'en
Good night, moon
Good night, Storyland

Some Flotsam

Since it was amazingly gorgeous, I decided to walk from the physical therapist's office to Starbucks.

The intersection is really busy, so I actually waited for the 'walk' sign; {very odd of me}.

I stepped off the curb just before the sign changed to 'walk'.

One last SUV turned left on the yellow arrow.

The 20-something driver leaned towards me

and shouted through his open window

(what do you think he shouted?)

He shouted, "I'm sorry!"

I almost fainted. On the street. Immediately.

Did he just apologize for turning on a yellow light?

Yes, he did.

Smile!

When I entered Starbucks, a mother and two 7 - 8 yr old girls were in front of me.

{{Ever watch two little girls decide what to have?

I just knew I was in for a l-o-n-g wait.}}

They gazed at all the pastry options

- and rather quickly made their decisions. woo-hoo!

MOM took longer!

As she said, "I'm not familiar with ordering in Starbucks."

I was still smiling from my unexpected apology.

When my mocha was ready, so was the mom's misto.

I grabbed both and gave mom hers as I headed out the door.

She gave me a big smile!

Pass on the nice little acts of the day...

and smile even more.

Oops - as I sipped my mocha, I realized

THERE WAS NO CHOCOLATE in my mocha.

My mocha wasn't.

{{Have I mentioned I really dislike straight coffee?

It sends shivers down my spine.}}

Sigh. I went back inside -

only to find the mom at the pick up counter.

I asked her if her misto was really chocolatey.

"Yes! Do you have my misto?"

"Yes I do. I'm sorry. I must have mixed them up."

"Oh that's ok. I only took one sip. If you don't care, why don't we swap lids?"

{{OMG. Did I just hear the mom right?

Did she just suggest something sensible?

Something that avoided tossing two drinks down the drain?

Something that shows she's not a germophobe?}}

"That's fine with me."

We swapped lids, sipped, and smiled.

It was a two-fer day!

I'm still smiling as I type.

ah - nice

Today was absolutely gorgeous.

Bright sunshine, a brisk breeze, and cool temperatures.

It wasn't sweater weather yet, but the summer heat was gone.

Perfect day to eat in the park!

But I wanted company.

When you work FT, you don't know many stay at home people.

But my parents are retired!

Ah-Ha, I asked my parents to join me.

They agreed.

Mom even offered to drive since she needed gas.

I slogged through my shoulder exercises,

showered,

dressed, and

got downstairs just as they arrived.

I intended to grab a tablecloth

- a little formality for the casual setting

- something new for the park tables

But I forgot.

Imagine that.

WaWa for lunch - salads for the ladies, a hoagie for Dad.

Mom had packed soda, cups, ice, and a tablecloth!

You can imagine my surprise!

We've eaten in the park before.

Never thought about a tablecloth.

Yet,

today,

both of us had the same thought.

Of course, Mom remembered

and I didn't.

Go figure.

Lunch was great - soft breezes, nice conversation

Until

Mom and I talked about fastening bras behind your back

when your shoulder just won't cooperate.

That was the end as Dad protested the topic.

Like he doesn't know what we were talking about!

r-i-g-h-t.

You can try to claim innocence, Dad, but I'm on to you.

My Role as a Villager

I was reminded 'it takes a village' today. I went for an xray appt. While I waited, a young 30s guy was told his appt was cancelled because he had his baby son. The worker was robotic as she told him that there had to be a responsible adult to watch the baby.

Do you want to reschedule for evening? - "I work nights", weekend? - "I work".

When are you going to reschedule this? gee - those listening knew he had no clue! I wanted to say I'd watch the baby, but I had an appt too. What were we going to do? Pass him between waiting patients? sigh.

Dejected, he left, pushing the stroller. I was next. Uh oh; my appt is for tomorrow, Friday; and she had no idea how long I'd wait if I just stayed. ICK.
I walked out quickly, debating with myself. Dad was just getting in the car. I offered to watch the baby, assuring him that I wouldn't mind. His smile was worth it!

I had so much fun watching this adorable 14 month old boy! He sat on my lap, just looking at everything that moved or made a sound. Dad was taken in right away for his xray; baby watched him go through the door. I thought "Oh no, here it comes. He's going to run for the door or cry." Nope.
Finally he got down, and looked at an old magazine, with Shiloh Jolie/Pitt on the cover. I asked him where the baby was, and he pointed at each photo. He figured out how to run a circle around the chairs, turned a trunk into a drum, and smiled at everyone. Thankfully, those waiting were older grandparents, and they smiled at his antics. There was plenty of space, which also helped.
When Dad returned, baby looked at him like "oh there you are!" Dad was so thankful, I don't think he believed me when I said I enjoyed it.

I guess I was supposed to be there this morning. I saw and heard the bells ring at Ground Zero to mark the first plane crash. The GMA show cut away and/or I stopped noticing. Seven years later, I spent that horrible first hour with living proof that the world will go on: a sweet innocent baby boy.
I am so glad I screwed up my xray appt date. I am grateful I was the helpful villager.

Random Writing from Years Past

The tears

For fear

For LOVE

For sheer exhaustion
The rollercoaster of emotions

PURE LOVE

PURE HATE

PURE JOY

PURE RAGE
RAW feelings screaming, tearing, roaring

through my veins, my heart, my soul
Sometimes I wish I was a flatliner

You know, one of them -

Those people without stories

Those people, always calm

Those people - not me -

Never get excited

Never get angry

Never get happy to the point of tears
Then I think

"What kind of world would I have?

No reaction to colors of the rainbow

No reaction to smells of autumn, cookies

No reaction to sounds of symphonies or babies gurgling

No reaction to touch of a lover's skin

No reaction to wine - or CHOCOLATE!"
I'll take the world I have

Full of turmoil and torment

Full of joy at sunbeams and moonbeams

I'll ride my rollercoaster

(Oh, the agony - I cry in line, then once in awhile I do it again)

Like I don't spend enough time at a keyboard...

I'm plunging into a new world. As though I needed another thing to occupy my time. Well, I do since I am six weeks into an untold number of weeks rehabilitating my left {dominant of course} arm. I can't actively use my left deltoid muscle for another six weeks, among other restrictions.

What's a deltoid? Where is it? I know only because I asked; HS bio was many blue moons ago. The deltoid is located somewhere around/behind the collarbone. It's the primary muscle that makes arms move on command. The doc cut through mine when my 'just a few little holes' surgery turned into 'pinky length slice and two holes' surgery. So I type one handed though I cheat once in awhile now that I've been released from the dreaded sling. That took five weeks.

I lived on mega-doses of controlled narcotics for the first two weeks. I "slept" in a recliner positioned next to our bed for ~2.5 weeks, waking up at least every 2.5 hours. I wore the sling for five weeks - 24/7 except when bathing or showering. I needed help pulling up my underwear and washing my hair for ~2 weeks. It was 2.5 weeks before I was allowed to shower - that's how long the stitches stayed in, plus three extra days for the tiny thread holes to close.

Physical therapists have tortured me since 19 hours after I came out of 3 hr surgery. The torture started w/ 5x/week and now is 3x/week. I PAY $50 for each session; now that sessions take ~1.5 hrs instead of one hour, I get more pain for the buck. The first place rejected me when they realized my insurance wasn't acceptable; I rejected the second place because I has three therapists in as many days - and the place made me think of an old 1950s gym. The third place doesn't accept my insurance either, but I only pay $10 more than m y insurance co-pay. "Only" $10 - who am I kidding? The cost adds up!

I was given permission to drive! Only 6.5 weeks of being the passenger. You'll learn - I don't like always being the passenger. My parents moved here ten years ago when the last child graduated HS and Dad retired. They stated that grandparents make decent taxi drivers, and they've proven it over the years, shuttling three grands everywhere. Now they've added transporting their oldest daughter to the list. DH appreciates their willingness to haul me there and here; he doesn't have to take time off from work.

Oh - I tend to drone on and on and.....