I'm a Volunteer!

How cheesy, huh? I signed up to volunteer for the Inauguration and was accepted. Who knows what I'll be doing, but, I'm just happy to be a part of things. Wooo.

Hazardous Material?

I found this picture on my nephew's FaceBook page and thought it was too funny not to share. So, if you received it via email from me, well, tough luck. Here it is, again.

Life-Changing Events

We went to Michigan for Christmas. We had a great time with the sibs and got some great gifts. I like to think that they liked what we got them, too.

Of course, we didn't want to advertise that we were not going to be home beforehand, so I didn't say anything in my blog about it. We learned our lesson long ago when my sister died. Because the Rosary and Funeral details were posted in the paper, our house were burglarized while we were at the services. Pretty crappy, huh? Lesson learned.

Yesterday, Hannah auditioned at the local Youth Film Academy. Eric said she nailed the audition and, sure enough, they called back today inviting her to be a student there. She may or may not do it (it's pretty pricey) but she was glad to have had the experience.

Today, we had some not-so-great news, too. My stepmother, who has been suffering from Multiple Sclerosis for years, passed away this morning. When my dad retired from the Navy, he brought his hard-drinking lifestyle with him to Michigan. His life was in a downward spiral when he met Barb. She and he both quit drinking completely and his life became the better for it. It enabled me to have a better relationship with him. Sure, he's still a grouchy curmudgeon, but he's alive and he's coherent. I'll credit Barb with much of the purpose in his life these last years.

Thanks Barb. May God greet you with open arms and a warm smile.

A couple of updates...

Saturday night we went out with a group of good friends. We had supper at Olive Garden and then went to see a movie. We saw "Yes Man".

Let me preface the next couple of sentences by saying that, as an actor, I am not fond of Jim Carrey. The overdone theatrical sight gags grate on me. That said, he was hilarious in this movie. My husband and I were laughing pretty much through the whole movie. There were a couple of cringe-worthy moments, but, overall, I thought it was a fun flick. I wouldn't mind seeing it again, actually.

We opened presents tonight (for a bunch of reasons) and, while the kids got all they wanted, I really made out on this one. I got a Garmin Nuvi 205 (since I get lost at least once a week, this will be very useful.) I'm trying to figure it out, still. Also, I got a lovely purse and wallet by Anushka. Here's an example of the purse since I haven't taken any pictures of it yet. I got some other stuff too, but that was the absolute highlight of the night. Other than Hannah shrieking when she got the boxed set of the Twilight Series by Stephanie Meyer. My eardrums have barely recovered.

Curses!

Foiled again!
Isn't that what all the cartoon criminals say when they're nabbed by the good guys? Other than, "I would have gotten away with it if it weren't for those nosy kids..."

Long ago, Heroes was recommended to me for my television-viewing pleasure. I wanted to see it, but didn't want to get in during the middle of it and wonder what plot devices I had missed. So, I never got around to it. I signed up for Netflix and have been getting the first season of Heroes in the mail pretty regularly. I have to say, I'm hooked. I love the show. So does Eric and even the kids! Wooo. So it was family popcorn night to watch the show. Good stuff.

Eric and I got up and went hiking today in Prince William park. We went about 5 miles or so but it felt like 20. Could be the hills. I dunno. I know that my body was screaming at me that I'm out of shape. Yeah, I know, round is a shape. Unfortunately, the Air Force isn't keen on round being a shape. They're more interested in svelte. So, I'm working on mah fitness. (that's a Fergie reference if you didn't catch it. *grin*)

Girls' Night Out...

Hannah and I did some Christmas shopping tonight and decided to stop for dinner at the Melting Pot. If you haven't been there, it's quite the experience.

First, the waitstaff was excellent. They knew their stuff and were always timely with the refreshments without being intrusive.

Second, the food. Whoa. I think I ate more tonight than I have in the last week altogether. We decided to do the Fondue Feast. It came with a cheese fondue appetizer, lovely crisp salads, the main entree, and dessert. Fantastic. the cheese came with savory breads, granny smith apples, and fresh crunchy vegetables. I had the cobb salad and Hannah had the Caesar salad minus the dressing. The entree dish had a choice of meats. The one we chose came with filet mignon, chicken, salmon, shrimp, ravioli, and pork. We substituted the pork for duck. It was incredible. Juicy (not greasy as I have been led to believe!). Oh, and we had a boullion broth to cook the meat in. That's not even to mention the fresh veggies that came with it. Potatoes, broccoli, squash and mushrooms. They had this green goddess stuff that you put in the mushroom cap to "stuff" the mushroom. MMMMmmmmm. Bliss.

That reminds me of being a kid. My mom had a fondue pot that she'd dust off every now and again. I remember those nights fondly. She'd get stew meat and we'd cook it in the vegetable oil in the pot and then dip it in a garlic and salt mixture before eating. It was good, but, tonight's fare was miles better.

And finally, third, the dessert. We ordered the Cherries Jubilee. It was dark chocolate and cherries flambe with assortied sweeties to dip in it. Cheesecake, brownie, marshmallows, strawberries, bananas, rice crispy treats, and spongecake.

It's been three hours and I'm still stuffed. I'd go back again in a second, though. Maybe a good thing coming from tough economic times is the better service by waitstaff. I guess they DO need those tips.

Nobody

Gets perms any more. Curly hair is not in at all. But Hannah is her own girl. She got a spiral perm yesterday. It looks great, but, it's still stinky. She can't wash it until Saturday morning. Poor baby. I bought her some scrunchy stuff that smells nice, so hopefully she'll like it.

I'm pretty beat. I've been going to bed late all week long. It's hard to sleep with what sounds like a chainsaw going next to your ear, ya know? I finally got up the other night and went to sleep on the couch. Eric blearily asked me why I was going. Ethan was complaining the next day about how loudly Eric was snoring. (He has the room above ours) So, ha! You DO snore, Eric.

Since When?

My daughter and I went to fetch supper from the local fast food place and we were discussing her day at school today. She mentioned that, in gym class, they saw a bunch of younger kids on the track and they were riding bikes under teacher supervision. She and her classmates speculated that maybe that was part of the local elementary's gym schedule - to teach kids how to ride a bike.

True or not, it got me thinking.

Since when did teachers have to do most, if not all, of the parenting? Teaching a kid to ride a bike? Holy cow, that's a memory that should be made with the family. Not under the scrutiny of your predatory classmates. Teaching a kid table manners? C'mon. If you have supper with your kids every night at the dinner table and not in front of the television, they should learn, at the very least, the most basic of table manners.

Don't get me started on the parents. Since when are parents their kids' friend? How can a parent be both an authority figure and a friend? I am friendly with my kids and I think that they can confide in me when it comes to the little and big things. But, they know that, at the end of the day, I'm their mother. If they deserve to be grounded or have their manners corrected, by God, I'm gonna do it. Getting on the computer? A privilege. An allowance? A privilege. Well, maybe not a privilege, but it should not be paid without the chores that earn that allowance being done. My kids used to complain loudly about not getting an allowance. But, they know if they want most anything, including money to go to the movies with their friend, they will get it if I have it. If they want to earn money, it won't be for the normal chores that are part of being in a family. I'm not paying for my kids to do the dishes. I will, however, pay for them to wash my car.

Funny story about that. Last night, Hannah and I were laying on my bed, chatting about girly things, and she said she needed to earn some money to get Christmas presents. I asked her what she was going to do to earn the money and she looked at me, in all seriousness, and said, "Mow the lawn". I reminded her that it was winter and she said, "then it shouldn't need to be mowed much, huh?"

Did you know?

...that if you fill your garbage disposal with egg whites and turn it on, it'll make meringue?

Yeah. I didn't either. One of my buddies always makes homemade noodles for Thanksgiving and, apparently, he needs about 5 dozen yolks but no egg whites. So in the sink they went.

Incidentally, he noted that water doesn't get rid of meringue. But Drano does.

Today was a good day. Spent about an hour on my Wii Fit. It reminded me that it had been 72 days since it had last seen me. Sigh. I promise, my Wii Friend, I will see you more often!

Meh Blechy...

We've been doing a bit of fall cleaning around the house. It was great until Sunday night when I realized that I was out of migraine meds and didn't have the case for the prescription (I had thrown it away in my cleaning frenzy) so I could go (well, Eric could go) to the all night drugstore. He was waiting like one of those little lost puppies staring at spaghetti through a window when our regular pharmacy opened up.

When he got home, my hand crept out from underneath the duvet to get the pill. I was feeling much better a few hours later when I woke. I was still light sensitive this morning, though.

I started off the day wearing my shades. I got too many Stevie and Elvis jokes (not sure about that one - it better not be a dig at my fat...) so I finally removed them. By lunchtime, I was feeling almost 90%. Yay.

Mental note: NEVER RUN OUT OF MIGRAINE MEDS.

The name is Shawn

Shawn Blair.

We went and saw Quantum of Solace, the new Bond flick, tonight. Well worth the money. I won't ruin it for you - I'm sure you've seen the reviews.

Daniel Craig. Whoa. That guy can wear little very well. *grin* Rawr...

My deep, dark secret...

Well, I guess it's not a secret any more if I'm telling you, right? Here it is...

I love cheesy movies. The cheesier the better. Red Sonja? Own it. Beastmaster? Got that one, too. Alan Quartermain in King Solomon's Mines? Yep.

It's not like I've hidden it or anything, I say defensively.

Looking at the drawers of DVD's that I have should clue a person in.

It can't be just me. I know it can't. Right?

All I need for Christmas is...

a GPS. I can't find my way out of a cardboard box. I have several requirements for the GPS: Bluetooth availability and voice activation. Anyone have any suggestions?

I'm surprised these guys didn't end up getting Darwin Awards...

I love it.

Click Here for the story!

What a week!

Whether you voted for the Democrat or Republican, this has been an historic week! I had reservations about both candidates, but did, indeed, vote. Heck, I figure if I DON'T vote, I have no business saying anything about who's in office.
...
I've been playing in camouflage all week. It's been pretty tiring, but I'm having fun with it. Some of the folks I used to play in camouflage with were here this week, so it's been nice catching up with them. One of them is moving to the area for at least a year so we went house (for rent) hunting last night. It was fun going from place to place. We didn't realize, though, that nobody would have yesterday's paper. Apparently, everybody and their brother had to save yesterday's newspaper. For a buck fifty, it should be printed in gold. Sheesh. She's got a good head start on finding where she would like to rent, so, any progress is good progress!
...
Eric is off to fetch my nephew from North Carolina so he can come and spend the weekend with us. Yaay. I haven't seen him since before he headed off to boot camp. I call him "little guy", even though he's about 6'5". Heh.

Things your kids teach you...

I'm sure you've all seen the emails that go around with the funny things that kids do. Here are a few that I've thought of. Feel free to add your own!

1. Apples do not flush down toilets.
2. You have to use a wet rag to remove toothpaste from cat fur. On the plus side, the cat has minty fresh breath for several weeks.
3. Baby oil is nigh unto impossible to get out of cat fur.
4. If adults say they feel poorly, they generally have time to get to the toilet to throw up. If children say they feel poorly, the next second they throw up.
5. VCR's cannot toast pop-tarts. Nor can they eat peanut butter and jelly sandwiches.
6. DVD's are not frisbees. Neither are CD's.
7. Sliding across a hundred year old wood floor in socks is a bad idea.

Oh, I need to start posting some cartoons again. I've been awash with ideas the last couple of days. Nothing like training with other reservists to tickle your funny bone.

Will this day never end?

It started with me getting up at 0330 this morning. No, it wasn't a fluke. I have been getting up that early to make it to work by six at the new job out in Reston. Eric went and started the Jeep to warm it up and noticed that things in the Jeep were awry. The cupholder full of change? Empty. My trinket jewelry that I wore the other day? Gone. Thankfully, I didn't do as I was contemplating and leave my work laptop in there.

Then, Hannah and I had prepared for the last month to do the trick or treating thing. I was eager to go with her and also eager to do her makeup and help her get ready. She chose the extra long black press on nails and white face makeup for her goth-scary witch. But tonight, she balked at every scrap of makeup that I tried to apply. We argued and she decided not to go trick or treating.

Disappointment doesn't even begin to cover it. I figured this would likely be the last year that we'd be doing this together, but, I guess I was wrong. What's a helicopter mom to do? (Helicopter mom = mom who hovers)

I need a big drink. Then it's off to bed because I have duty for the next seven days. Wooo.

Of note...

I didn't realize that the settings on my blog were set to only accept posts from gmail users. I've since changed that, so feel free to post if you like!

Shawn

Tweeny-Boppers

Tonight, I sacrificed myself on the altar of girlish hormonal bliss. Hannah and I went to see High School Musical 3. When she asked me afterward if I enjoyed the movie, I said, truthfully, "I enjoyed watching the people in the theater more than the movie."

The opening scene has Zac Efron all sweaty. Girly shrieking erupted in the theater and I knew I was in for a fun ride. They did not disappoint. As the movie progressed, they were clapping along with the songs, raising their arms to sway back and forth, and offering loud applause when they felt that the scene deserved it.

I was highly entertained by the crowd. Hannah was more restrained in her appreciation of the movie, but I did hear her singing along with a few of the songs. If she caught me watching her, she stopped, so I tried to surreptitiously look at her out of the side of my eyes.

Overall, the movie was like any of the other HSM's. Sweet but not a lot of oomph.

I have a feeling the soundtrack for HSM3 is going to be on Hannah's Christmas list.

C'mon, be a good sport...

soapbox


What is a good sport? Someone who can take a joke? Someone who cheers their teammates on?

Today was my son's last Cross Country meet for the season. I arrived in time to see the varsity boys running, so I cheered my son's team on. The varsity runners all looked strong and came in fast to the finish line. My son is a freshman and, while he's a good runner, he's on the junior varsity team this year. His race finally came around and, like a proud mama, I cheered him on.

They had the junior varsity girls and boys running together and I got a little upset when the main pack of runners passed me for the finish line. Most of the spectators had drifted off and kids were coming along the home stretch with no support or encouragement from their coaches, parents or teammates. I thought that was really sad. So, one of the guys I had been talking to and I stayed and cheered for the last stragglers. There was one boy who was well behind everyone else and was doggedly plodding in to the finish line. I was so proud of him. No matter how far behind everyone he was, he never gave up and kept running.

To me, being a good sport isn't about just cheering for your team, although friendly rivalry is healthy. Being a good sport is going to a game that, as a team member, you can't participate in because you want to offer support to your teammates. Being a good sport is cheering for another team's runners, especially those who might be struggling.

Being a good sport is not letting your teammate come into the final stretch without some encouragement from you or your other teammates.

Shame on you, if you were one of those who let your teammates down.

/soapbox

Out and About...

Eric and I went out to dinner without the kids tonight. We went to a place called The Log Cabin restaurant and were seated in front of a romantic crackling fire. For an appetizer, we had fried green tomatoes, which I had never had before. They had a special on lobster that Eric enjoyed and I had blackened salmon. Quite delicious! Then, we split a pecan tart for dessert.

I'll admit that I was really hungry because I had missed lunch today. I'd like to say that I was working really hard and all that, but, I was at a stopping point in my testing and needed a break. So, when a co-worker said that she was taking some pictures to Michael's to get framed and asked me to go along, I accepted with alacrity. I could hang out in there for hours. My problem is, though, that I'm an impulsive buyer. So, I end up wandering through the store imagining all these projects that I can do and how craft-y I can be (not to mention that they have a decent section with art supplies!). I managed to resist fairly well today, but, it was tough.

Now, to sit in my lake (er, I mean bath) for a bit. Ciao.

Because I can....

I'm making some banana-apple bread. I had some bananas that were a little too polka-dotted to eat and didn't want to waste them. Yum.
Oh, and I just got done ordering some soaps, bath fizzies and incense from the daughter of a co-worker of mine who just started up a business doing the handmade thing. Here's the site if you're interested. http://www.daisymousesoap.com/

What, am I a Sherpa now?

We went to Prince William Forest Park today. Lovely place. Because it's pretty old growth, there wasn't a ton of underbrush, so we ended up doing some off-trail adventuring. About half-way through our hike, we had to take the sweatshirts off. I'm going to tag that as my exercise for the day! The kids were trying to make me carry their bottles of water and snacks but I "conveniently" forgot the backpack. You know who the sherpa would have been. Me.

On a different subject, I ordered some parts for my laptop (new keyboard, touchpad, and DVD drive) and somehow forgot to change my address in PayPal. Doh! So our renters called and let us know that I had several packages arrive there.

Sigh.

Bonus part is that we have renters in our place in Michigan. Gotta look for the positive here, right?

This is probably more like it...

I've been thinking of selling my Malibu Maxx and getting one of these. The Cabrio version.

When I was looking it up online, though, one of the tags that came up was "scooters". Huh.

Scary.

My Ride to Work...

Since the ride to work is so yucky, it's at least made tolerable by car-pooling with one of my coworkers who has this car. Sweet ride. Oh, and it goes verrrrrrry fast.

New Blog...

So, this is my new blog. My old site went down around Easter-time and I've been missing it fiercely. Hopefully, I'll be able to do all my cartoons and pics here, too!

I started a new job a few weeks ago. While I feel a bit nasty complaining about my job (since so many people are unemployed right now), I'm just going to put a short gripe out here.

If you give a person a job offer and it says one location but you REALLY meant to put him/her in another location, don't look surprised when the person gets pissy about the "new" location. ESPECIALLY when it's about an hour further than the one in the offer letter.

Grr.