Post Thanksgiving thoughts

I didn't post yesterday, as I was busy cooking and getting the house ready for company.  I am thankful to be able to invite people into our home.  I am blessed with wonderful friends, whose dinner conversation was lively and thoughtful.

Thanksgiving is my traditional "calm before the storm" as I get ready to "gear up" for the holiday season. I DO NOT go to "Black Friday" sales.  There is NOTHING in the world I need SO badly that I need to be at some store at 6 in the morning and fight with someone over some discounted item.    Nothing says  "Merry Christmas"  like the fistfights, screaming, pushing and genuinely bad behavior you see at this kind of "event".  I dislike crowds to begin with.  Crowds in a  feeding frenzy is my idea of a preview to hell.

So I will do a few necessary things today, but mostly I plan to relax and read and rest.  The next few weeks promise to be a whirl of activity, starting with the McGroarty Holiday Boutique - aka the Chili-bowl sale.  It's Saturday the 7th from 10-5.  I will be working the Bakesale, as usual.  I am not sure just what I am going to be baking, but I WILL be making my California BBQ Chili for the event.  You buy a handmade bowl and get to fill it with the chilli of your choice for ten bucks. It's a GREAT deal!  If you haven't been to McGroarty  Arts Center in Tujunga, you should come up for this event.  Local vendors and the house decorated for the holidays.  It's a lot of fun!

a funny thing happened.....

I was getting ready to leave work yesterday to go to my LAST Tai-chi class.  I will probably try to get a DVD to do it at home, or find a class that is more suited to my time limits.  I need something to help with my strength and balance, not so much as defense training ( I got THAT from my childhood, thankyouverymuch).  I went into the ladies room at work and quickly changed out of my work clothes into my workout clothes.  Some of my stuff fell off the hook and onto the floor.  I heard the bathroom door open ( we have stalls and I was in one of them)   I heard the person leave RAPIDLY.  Oh well.  I thought.  I got myself dressed and went back to my office.  AS I was coming down the hall, I met a phalanx of Security Officers, game faces on.  "what's up, guys? I asked.  One said "There's a mess in the Ladies restroom. '" "Huh, I was just in there"  I replied trying to recreate what they might be talking about in my head. " Did you see a bunch of clothes on the floor?" He asked.  OH!!!!!  "That was ME! ' I said " I was changing to my workout stuff.  I don't like to change in my cubicle."  They all laughed and went back down stairs.

I'm gonna hear about this!


and least I forget; today I am thankful for the approaching holiday and the chance to get together with good friends.  Let the baking begin!  Tonight I prep the cranberries and bake the pies.

For Ogechi

This weekend, the world lost one of the sweetest souls I have ever encountered.  Ogechi Anum passed from this life on Saturday.  Her friends and her family hold her and each other in our hearts at this tragic time.

I knew Ogechi for a long time.  I met her when she became the Area Secretary for the Western Region.  We shared joys ( our children) pain ( children and ex-husbands) and life in general.  She always had a ready laugh at her misfortunes.  At one point, I told her "Girl, if either one of us looses a pet, we are a country song"

Her name, taken during her marriage to her children's father, meant "God's Time"  She told me once, her given name was Jessica, which does not suit her at all.  She was always "Ogechi".  She had had a difficult childhood, but managed to remain upbeat and loving to both her parents.  Here life was not an easy one.  I worried about her.

The last time we talked, it was about some mundane thing that was happening at her branch- perhaps mice, or the roaches that were as big a battleships.  We laughed and I said as I always did that we should get together for tea- or something stronger!  She laughed and said that we should and that would be nice.  Sadly, this will never be and I am thinking about her and ALL the friends I promise to get together with "someday".  Sometimes "someday" never comes.  To honor her, I will be contacting all my "we'll get together someday" friends and MAKE A FIRM DATE.  I encourage all of you to do this.  Don't wait until it's too late to share a laugh or a heartfelt talk with someone.  Ogechi was my friend.  I will miss her and wish like hell we had made the time for that cup of tea.

ARGH! Thanksgiving is THURSDAY and I'm NOT ready!

Does time speed up as you get older?  It seems like it.  Chris and I celebrated our 4th anniversary this week.  Hard to believe, it seems like just yesterday that we were married.  We went to the Getty Villa.  I had never been there.  It is beautiful, with LOTS of statuary.  I will have to post a picture of my favorite "The Muse".  While wandering through the rooms, I saw some pieces that made me think "what if these are kids school projects and we are revering them as great examples of the art of the time?" Ok bad.

Thanksgiving is coming at me way too fast.  I have about eight people coming for dinner and I need to get the house in some semblance of order.  I look forward to the meal with good friends, but the WORK at getting the house "company ready" is a drag.  So what am I doing?  Sitting at the computer, fooling around.   Admittedly, my housemates are still asleep, so there is no way I can do some of the stuff I need to do, but I am feeling LAZY.  I need some motivation ( as if the prospect of a houseful of people isn't enough!)  I need to look in my pantry to see what I need and get my tail to the store.  I love cooking and Thanksgiving is a MAJOR event around here.  It's always fun to have good friends in our home.  I am thankful to be able to do that.  It wasn't always the case in my life.  I am glad for the peace in my home and the joy of the beginning of the holiday season.

Do you remember this day?

Every generation has it's defining moment of innocence lost.  For our parents it was Pearl Harbor.  For our children, it was 9-11 But for the generation of Baby Boomers, it is November 22, 1963, the day John F. Kennedy was killed in Dallas.

I remember exactly where I was; in the back seat of my parents green Belair.  It was a long car and it had fins.  My mother has just picked me up from morning session kindergarten when the news came on the radio,  She pulled the car over at the corner of Bartee and Van Nuys and wept.  I didn't really understand it, I suppose, but I knew something terrible had happened.   People walked around in a daze.  We watched the services on television, still not understanding the "why" of the equation.

We still mourn JFK and the promise he brought to us; a promise unfulfilled.  I think about those he left behind, how every year, his life and tragic death is played out in the media.  It must be difficult and I wonder if time and repetition makes it any easier to bear.  The Kennedy family has had their share of very public tragedy, I wonder if they learn from an early age how to bear grief stoically and publicly.  I remember reading that the nation looked to Jackie to show us how to mourn.  What a terrible burden that must have been on a young woman with small children.  It must have been agony not to be able to shut herself away from the public and bear her personal tragedy before the world with such grace.  I could not have done it and I wonder how she did it.  From all accounts she was a very private person, thrust into the national spotlight by her marriage to a very high profile man.  In our grief, we turned to her, forgetting she was a woman needing comfort, not the one we should look to to comfort us.  We forgot she was a woman and tried to make her into something else.  I think that's why she married Onassis, not for love but shelter from the storm.  I don't really know, just conjecture I suppose.

Still the iconic images of those days, fifty years ago are burned in our collective conscious.   The motorcade, JFK grabbing his throat,  the secret service agent crawling on the trunk of the car, Jackie's hand stretched out to him, young John saluting his father's casket.  The young widow in a black mantilla holding the hands of her young children.

Where were  you, fifty years ago today?

Happy Anniversary- MUSHY alert!

I am truly thankful that back in September of 2007, I decided that staying home and brooding was not for me; that I was going to get out there and have FUN!  I went to a bar called Studio Suite in Studio City to see a band called "Evita Freaks"  I liked the singer's voice.  They had contacted me on My Space and  I  thought it would be fun to see them live.  Arriving at the venue, I immediately fell into conversation with Evita and liked her a lot.  They had this bass player, named Jajuba.  One look at him and I knew.  I believe in love at first sight.  I have to.  It happened to me.  He had a girlfriend at the time, so I decided we could be friends.  THAT relationship ended and we started dating.  Four years ago today, we were married. 

Chris is my best friend, my soul-mate and the best partner a woman could hope for.  He "gets"  me and makes me feel safe and happy.  He has been by my side through some pretty rough days, always loving and supportive. 

I am so glad I decided to go out that night.  Happy Anniversary, sweetheart.

The appliance that makes me dinner

Can I be thankful for my crockpot?   Well, I am.  As the autumn cold comes in, I drag the pot off the top of my refrigerator and place it on the counter, where it stays until some time in, oh, APRIL!  I love the comfort foods I can start off early in the morning before leaving for work and come home and MOST of the meal is waiting for me.  I recently made a pork loin in it- something I had never tried before. It was heavenly!    Who knew it wasn't just for making chili and spaghetti sauce?  Apparently you can COOK in the darn thing!  Tonight's dinner, chicken stroganoff, is on it's way this morning.

I love cooking, because I like food.  I actually knew someone once who said he didn't like food, but ate because he had to!  I wonder if he just wasn't exposed to good food or there really are people who don't like to eat.  Alien concept here. My dad was a professional cook and I git the gene from him.  I exposed my daughter to good food, as well a traditional kid comfort food so her palate was expanded when she was little.  I read an article about these people in New York who were complaining that their nanny didn't know what quinoa was and they were SHOCKED.  Geez.  When Kate was little and I put new food on her plate, I told her she only had to take two bites; one to taste it and one to be sure she didn't like it.  I am not fond of forcing kids to eat things they don't like, but she had to try it at least.  It worked very well.  There were no battles as the "two bite rule" was a firm one.

My crockpot will be getting a workout this season.  I am looking forward to expanding my recipe base and seeing what it can do!

Requiescat in pace, Cherie Maylis

I hate when you get that phone call, out of the blue, telling you someone you knew has died.  This happened yesterday, in the middle of my workday.  I got a voicemail from a co-worker, telling me that Cherie Maylis had died.  I was stunned, as you usually are when you get that kind of news.  I knew she had been ill, but didn't think she was that ill.  Her funeral was SUNDAY.  No one thought to call me and tell me.

I guess a lot of people didn't know about my relationship with Cherie.  She was my first mentor in the Library Department.  She was my first real  "boss".  She hired me as a ten-hour messenger clerk in 1976 at Pacoima Library.  I had been her "Girl's Day" girl.  "Girls' Day" is the precursor to "Take your daughters to work day"  I remember going with her to Central Library for "Book Look", the cheery nickname for "Book inspection that the then-admin did not like. I always called it "Book Look" Cherie was a Young Adult Librarian at the time .  I learned a lot about working with people and the public from Cherie. 

I know her given name was Cheryl, but I knew her as Cherie and that's the name I used most of  the time.  I know later in her career she preferred her given name, but gave me a pass on using it as I had known her so long.  She was an expert quilter.  I won a quilt she made at a raffle, " The Bremen town Musicians"  I am glad I still have it.

I am thankful I knew her, thankful for friends who have guided me on my career path,as she did.  We had lost touch, but the last time I saw her was in our local Denny's ( the only DECENT place to eat in Tujunga- lol)  She was with a young friend and they seemed to be talking about something that was  private and important to the young girl.  Cherie was a kind person, always helpful to the "kidlets" as she called them.  She was a wonderful Children's Librarian and an advocate for her profession.  A few of us are planning some kind of get together to remember her and what she meant to us.  I think she wanted a private service, but memorial services are for the living and grief shared is grief relieved.

Rest well, my friend.

Poetry

I woke up this morning, confusing the last lines of two Robert Frost poems with similar themes "  I kept thinking "the woods are lovely dark and deep, but I have promises to keep and miles to go before I sleep" and "Two roads diverged in the woods and I, I took the road less travel by , and that has made all the difference" were lines from the same poem.  It took me a bit to remember that they were not, but because they are BOTH Frost, and I was half awake, you can understand my confusion.  Just why I had Frost on the brain ( in more ways than one) is unclear, except I was at McGroarty on Saturday and the actor playing John McGroarty ( Joe DeCenzo, who did a masterful job of staying in character)  read some of John's poetry.  When he announced he would be doing so, a wise-guy in the crowd asked if he would be reading Robert Frost. He didn't, but Frost must have stuck in my brain.


I don't know if I take the road less traveled all that often.   I am usually in a hurry and taking the shortest route.  I take the road that appeals to me, however and seldom take direction well.  I make my choices for me- and THAT has made all the difference in my life.

The feeling I get from the last lines of "Stopping by the woods on a snowy evening" is that Frost is taking a moment to reflect, to slow down for a moment and enjoy something.  The horse is in a hurry ( sure -HE'S the one standing in the snow, as it "fills up" the woods.)  Frost would like to stay, but has much to do.  The dual meaning of the poem and the use of the word "sleep" meaning both the physical act of sleeping and death is what has made the poem resonate for so long.  Perhaps my subconscious was reminding me to slow down, for although I too have "promises to keep"  I also have "miles to go before I sleep."

I am thankful for poetry.  I haven't written any in a while and  may try to reawaken my passion for the art form.  Up here in Sunland-Tujunga, we have a poet laureate, some year they have been excellent, one year the guy just disappeared.  He was a total disappointment!  It's not something I would take on, but one of these day, I am going to muster the courage to read something I wrote in public!  My poetry is still personal for me, most of the time I like it but don't know if it's "right" or ready for public viewing.  One of these days.....

Sunday morning

I am on my second cup of joe this morning and I will probably have more.  I love my morning joe.

We had a full house for last night's "Thanks and Giving" event for McGroarty Arts Center.  There wasn't a seat to be had and it was nice to see so many people who had never been tot he Center before.  I wound up helping to tend bar, which I usually do.    People had a good time and I HOPE we raised a lot of much needed funds for the Center.  I know people will be back and we did raise awareness of  the place, in any case.  Save December 7 for the chili bowl/holiday boutique.  I am making my world famous chili ;)

Went to class yesterday morning and yes they DID give us real food for breakfast.  Good thing.  The topics are vital for Stewards to understand, but FOUR HOURS of training reminded me that I haven't been a student since 1980!  UGH.  One of my peers looked like he fell asleep during the last half hour!  Good information, just too much of it at one time, I suppose.

I have my work cut out for me today.  I have to start getting the house ready for the holidays.  They really snuck up on me this year.  Next week is our anniversary, then Thanksgiving, then Christmas.  Where did the year go?

I am thankful for an evening at McGroarty with friends old and new.  We had a "special guest" in the form of John McGroarty ( wonderfully possessing the body of local actor and all around nice guy Joe DeCenzo) Great job, Joe!

Saturday Morning

Up early on a Saturday, getting ready to go to Stewards training.  They promised us breakfast, but I am sitting here having coffee and thinking about what I have to do today.  All I can say is it had better be a REAL breakfast, not a muffin and juice!  I am going to need FOOD and if they don't have FOOD ( pastries do not count as real food) I am going to be disappointed  AND I will probably have trouble focusing.  I always eat a good breakfast when I have an early morning meeting so I don't zone out.

Had a lovely session at Heart and Soul Healing Arts Center last evening.  I always come home very relaxed and happy  Unfortunately, the center is experiencing some change and they will be moving to a small location.  I hope they can continue some of the classes they have offered in the past, as I find it helps me to focus.

Today, I am thankful for the classes I am taking that will help me grow.  My dad used to say "If you stop learning, you stop living"  He was right.

Being busy

Last night, lying in bed, I "composed" a complete blog, but as the computer is downstairs and I was upstairs and cozily settled, I thought "I will remember it in the morning.  I should know better.  I can't even remember what I wanted to talk about!  Age.  Sigh.  My memory is not as sharp as it once was, and I worry about Alzheimer's, as my mother died from it.  It's probably just overload.  I need to slow down.  Really.  I say that all the time, but it's true.    For instance my schedule this week included TWO meetings on Monday ( yes it was a holiday, but these were personal commitments)  Tai  Chi on Tuesday, a meeting of the Sunland Tujunga Neighborhood Council on Wednesday, My Union's Election on Thursday (I'm the chair)  and a class this evening.  Tomorrow I have a class in the morning and McGroarty's "Thanks and Giving" Dinner in the evening.  Chris asked what I was doing Sunday."SLEEP" I announced.  I fear he is getting the short end of the stick here.  I am making more time for reading, which I find relaxing.  Trying to spend less time on computer games and more time doing things I enjoy.  I like being busy, but sometimes I just need to stop and relax!

Still being "thankful"  I am thankful today is Friday and the weekend, although busy will afford me some quality time with my husband.

I'm LATE, I'm Late I'm late

ok so I got so busy yesterday that I forgot to write something and by the time I got home it was after 9 and my brains were .. mush!  I went to a mind-numbing session of the Sunland Tujunga Neighborhood council.  There was this one guy who gave a presentation about how the Government was going to ruin us all because they haven't drained the silt out of the Pacoima dam in over 30 years and now it needs to be done.  BIG surprise, that after 30 years we need to do something about it.  The guy ranted on using all those words meant to incite.  He gave an outline of the plan, saying we needed to protest ALL of the options.  He failed to provide any reasonable solution to the problem.  He's just worried about the solution not being in HIS backyard.  Most telling was a picture he had taken from the view from HIS house and then superimposed what the view would look like if the "Government" was allowed to continue with it's evil plan to fix the problem with the Pacoima dam.  The guy was the epitome of a NIMBY.  You know "Fix the problem, make it go away, but Not IN My Back Yard!"  He would have had more cred with me if he actually had some kind of idea on how to solve the problem.  He kept railing about how it would ruin the neighborhood  for "our children and their children"  So will a flood if the dam breaks.  I would like to know what this group thinks should be done, not that the County Department of Public Works is evil and will ruin our lives and property values.

That being said, I came home ad relaxed my mind in a book.  I am reading Neil Gaimen's  "The Ocean at the End of the Lane"  Quirky.  I have never read any of his other books, at least I don't remember them.  It's quite good and I hope to finish it by tomorrow because it's due back at the library and I already have a few books I had forgotten to return on time.  I was JUST a day late on them but you know I am at the library EVERY FREAKING DAY, so it's.. well ... embarrassing!  I am thankful for books.  To probably misquote Emily Dickinson "There is no frigate like a book to take us lands away"  I find that reading relaxes that part of my brain that is wound up tight from the incidents that make up my days these days.  Reading has always been my joy.  So many books, so little time!

Happy Monday-Tuesday

While I am thankful for long weekends ( I was off Friday AND MONDAY) I dread what I call Monday-Tuesday.  All the work that comes in over the weekend is waiting for me PLUS what will happen today.  Just have to power thru it and do what comes next, I suppose. 

Yesterday I had several meetings , all of which went MUCH better than I expected.  It was a relief, really.  I need to stop what they call ANTS ( automatic negative thinking) and flip the script to think, "well, it won't be so bad"  Maybe it will be better than I thought.  Yesterday's meetings were.  I am hopeful at the progress I made at each of them. 

Thank you Veterans and Active Service members

Why do we only take one day to think about the people who served and are serving in the military?  Once a year, we remember the sacrifices that were made, so that we could continue to enjoy our way of life.  This was actually Armistice Day, the Day World War I  "The War to End All Wars" was ended.  At the Eleventh hour on the Eleventh day of the Eleventh month, all fighting ceased.  The poem "In Flanders's Fields" written by a doctor looking over the graves of the dead,watching the poppies blow "between the crosses row on row"  I read somewhere that the violence of the battle and the way the ground was torn up is what caused the poppies to grow.  The poem begins by mourning the dead, but ends by shaking a fist at the living, reminding them that they need to take up arms in the fight as well.  I don't know how I feel about that. Perhaps it is meant as  "do not let us have died in vain" and to complete the task they set out to do.  Finish the fight for us.  Probably.  But the poem that begins by mourning the dead, has the dead challenging others to fight and perhaps to die as well.   It's sad, in any case.

Do they still sell paper poppies to aid the veterans?  It used to be you would see them near stores and such, members of the VFW, selling poppies.  I doubt kids today understand the meaning.  A few year ago, I saw an old vet- probably WWII or Korean War- selling poppies near the museum.  I didn't have any money, so I went over and asked if I could give him a hug.  He took the hug and I thanked him for his service.  It was the least I could do.

I am going to try to get over to pack boxes at Operation Gratitude sometime this holiday season.  I enjoy the work, although it is so crowded these day it's hard to do the work!  That's a GOOD thing, though.  If you are not familiar with the organization, they pack individual boxes for the military and each box is addressed to an individual, not "Any soldier" but "Pvt John Smith" and "Captain Mary Jones"  It's kind of nice and the letters and emails the organization gets are very touching.  Worth the effort and I will try to make time this year.

Happy Veterans Day former and current service members!  I am thankful for the gifts your service has brought me.

Art in my community

I attended the River Rock Arts Colony exhibit opening at Modest Fly Art Gallery last evening.  I am thankful to live that I live in a community that is filled with artists.  The exhibit was interesting and inspiring.  It was lovely to see so many people turn out for the event.  The small exhibit space was jam packed with people.  We were graced by the presence of The Oldest Rock In Sunland Tujunga, who made a rare appearance in the Community.  I hope there were a LOT of sales as part of last evening benefited McGroarty Arts Center.  I hope this is the beginning of a wonderful art colony in our community.

Regarding yesterday's post about Zarkana, if forgot to mention this.  How RUDE is it to show up halfway through the performance and not hurry to your seat?  People came in VERY late and because there was no discernible pause in the show were SEATED during the performance.  There ought to be a rule.  If you are more than 10 minutes late, you don't get seated.  I was annoyed at a very LARGE group of people who had obviously been having too much fun in the cocktail lounge to make the show on time.  Why yes, the world DOES revolve around you.

I bought some artist reproduction note card at the event last evening which are nice for framing and putting in my cube at work.  I need some new art in my cubicle.

Thankful day 9

I am thankful for road trips that go well, thankful for the journey there and the coming home.  I had a pretty good time in Las Vegas ( except the losing at slots part, that wasn't as much fun as I wish it were)

I saw the show Zarkana.  It was odd.  I had NO idea about the story line, so I bought a program for ten bucks, thinking it would be more like the one that I get every year at the Pageant of the Masters which is VERY informative.  Sadly , this was not.  Apparently the story is about Zark a magician  who has lost his love and his mojo.  They are in a abandoned theater where a number of women who try to seduce him away from Lia who is his true love.  I had to read that in some kind of review online.  It was impossible to tell, especially since they were singing in what I TOOK to be Italian.  I read that in another review.  It was some made up kind of language, based on "circus language"  They said they originally sung in English, but thought that it gave the audience "too much to pay attention to" so they decided to sing in the made up language.  I found it confusing.  Why bother to make up a story that NO ONE EVER EXPLAINS?????? How in the world was I to infer the story from the action?  I couldn't.  Let me just put this out there as well.  I don't like clowns.  The clowns in this show were annoying.  They did this longish bit about squeaking wheels and shoes that deteriorated into a long fart joke.  Sigh.  They changed the show recently as someone was injured on the "wheel of death" The acrobatics were wonderful , but the show was so slow in spots I wondered what was wrong with it. 

I had a wonderful time and am looking forward to my next two days off!

REALLY THANKFUL- and somewhat shocked

I am leaving town for an overnight trip with a friend.  My sweet husband insisted I needed some time away.  I was going through some bags looking for a few things I may need for the trip.  I put my hand into a bag I had used for a number of things and WHAT was in there?  My grandmother's 1930's style crystal necklace.  The necklace I took as a child from her jewelry box after her death and my mother let me and my sister pick two things each from her jewelry box.  The necklace that went missing when we were evacuated after the Station Fire FOUR years ago!  The necklace I mourned, not because it was worth anything, but what it was worth to me.  I never saw her wearing it, mind you, but it was hers and it made me feel connected to her by it.  I could scarcely believe it.  I had purchased one that was "sort of" like it, so I looked in the box for that one and there it was!  I still cannot believe that after four years, I have found it again!  Thankful?  You'd better believe it!!!!

The Seventh Day

Do you remember the Sunday night radio program- I think it was on KMET- called "The Seventh Day"?  They would play a full album.  I don't listen to the radio much up here, we don't get good reception and in my car, I listen to books on tape.  I used to love "The Seventh Day" and the DJs in the 70's and 80's who had music knowledge, not just people who mistake crash behavior for humor.  There IS a station I listen to sometimes 100.3, the Sound.  They have been hiring the older DJs and just did a KMET night.  It's nice to hear Uncle Joe Benson in the morning, although the morning guy they had was pretty good too.  I am thankful I was exposed to good music as a child (you thought I was going to forget to mention what I was thankful for, didn't you?)  My Dad was a Big Band and Dixieland fan.  I was a child when the Beatles hit and their music was my soundtrack.  I was more a Beatles than a Stones fan.  The harmony and sweetness spoke to me more than the grit of the Stones, but I do like the Stones.  My go-to music has always been the "California sound" the singer-songwriters like James Taylor, Jackson Browne and of course, America.  This was the music of my teen years, that brings me back to a happier and sometimes a sadder time in my life.  I often wonder if I love the songs for the memories they bring with them, or if the memories are clearer, wrapped in the songs?

Day 5 and other thoughts...

Well, it's Wednesday, and I am thankful that I have Friday and Monday off.  ;)  I am hoping for wonderful weather this weekend and I am looking forward to taking a small road-trip with a friend. It's been a long time since I did anything like that and I am looking forward to having a stress-free trip.

Mini rant.   I play "word with Friends" and I KNOW that the game is sponsored BUT WHY do I have to watch the same stupid 30 second spot every time I open a new game page?  Some of them are just annoying.  I am particularly sick of the toothpaste add- I think it's Colgate but I can't be sure.  The woman cheeses into the camera as she is brushing her teeth, she cheeses into the camera from the dentist chair and she cheeses at the end of the spot.  She's... annoying.  I stop playing the game after three or four adds. Can't they just put up a still ad?  I could look at it and then go on to my game, appreciating the sponsor, not getting pissed off at them. Rant over.

Day 4

As I go through the month of November, I am trying to focus on the small things I am thankful for.  Today, I am thankful for a good night's sleep.  It's been a while since I really slept without nightmares.  Last night when I got home, I was tired to the point of being crabby.  I felt myself snapping at Chris and Jenn and decided THAT was enough of that and took myself upstairs to bed.   I read for a bit ( the new Sue Grafton) and fell asleep.  I didn't wake up screaming or shaking from some Horror themed nightmare for a change and got a pretty good night's sleep.  Not enough can be said about how it feels to actually wake up feeling rested. 

I have a lot on my plate at work today.  I might actually get it all done!

Day 4

Trying not to get cliche here, but can I say I am thankful for friends?  Specifically I am thankful for dinner with friends.  There is nothing as nice as spending an evening around a table, eating and talking.  The thing I try NOT to discuss at dinner, I am sorry to say, is politics.  Although most of my friends are like-minded, there are one or two whose opinion may vary.  Getting into an impassioned discussion about it can be upsetting.  I firmly believe in the American political system but frankly one of the two parties has sorely tried my patience with their behavior. 

This weekend, we had the good fortune to have dinner with friends on BOTH nights.  Conversation and laughter is the best way to prepare for the week ahead.

Thanksfulness continues

I am thankful for crisp autumn days, where the sun is shining brightly and there is a definite "snap" in the air.  When I was a kid, I called these days in early November "Roller Skating Days" as the weather was perfect for careening down the sidewalks, zooming along in the clear cold air. Unlike Summer, where early in the morning you could feel the underlying heat that was just below the surface of the morning air.  November has always been my favorite month; days are cool and the air seems cleaner somehow. I enjoy the cooler temps and do a lot of soups and stews and baking!

Thankful. Day two

Can I be thankful for coffee?  Probably not, it seems a bit shallow to be thankful for a beverage.  So, I will be thankful that I can sit in my kitchen and listen to my coffee maker pumping out my morning java.  I am thankful that I am able to make a cup and share a cup with friends. To be able to say, after sharing a meal in our home "does anyone want coffee with dessert?" 

I am looking forward to having a meal this evening with an old friend I haven't seen in ages.   I am making lasagna, so I'd better get cracking!

November 1- I'm Thankful

It's November.  Someone started something last year, or maybe the year before, that every day in November they posted something they are thankful for.  I am going to 'try" and do that ( please don't quote Yoda or EST and tell me "there is no try only do.")  Last year I tried to do more than one thing a day and it got overwhelming.  I am going to post only ONE thing per day and I challenge you ( yes you reading this blog) to think of your one thing per day.  You can reply to my post or post it on your Facebook page, if you want to share!

So here goes.

I am thankful to wake up with my husband each morning.  I know, I know it sounds like a cop-out, but it is truly one thing I appreciate.  I am lucky to have found him and am grateful that he is in my life.  I don't mean to get all mushy, but life is sweeter with him.  He is my rock.

That's MY first "thankful".  What's yours?