and it's only Tuesday!!! Yesterday, when I walked up to get the kid from school it was sprinkling a bit....no biggie. I had the dog with me, and as a result, I also had a little bag of her business if you know what I mean. So, we get to the school and I'm busy yapping with another mom and the dog jerks toward another dog.....I go flying and the bag of poo slams against my leg and breaks open. Ugh. No joke. I had doggie defecation down my leg. To add insult to injury, the kid ended up going to Meg's to play with her daughter, so I walked all the way up there - and got doggie doo on me - for nothing.
Today is just an extension of yesterday. When we got up this morning, we discovered that we were out of oil, which meant no showers. With only two and a half days left, we're not ordering 100 gallons so we'll head over to the out-laws for showers tonite - and if we're lucky, they'll feed us too.
Hopefully, we'll get back on track tomorrow. The boxes are mounting and the days are running out.....I'm starting to panic that we're not going to be ready to go in time!!!!
Tuesday, March 27, 2007
Friday, March 23, 2007
My Panera Experience
Ocassionally, when I am on deadline for articles that are due, I will go someplace like Panera to work on them. The coffee is good, the internet access is free and it's pretty quite. Except for today.
I have no more than found a table in a corner and in comes two mommies with their 2 year olds. They promptly drop them in the lounge chairs next to the fireplace, move the coffee table against a nearby wall and then pull over their own little table and chairs right next to their kids. They have effectively blocked the walkway. Next, they've decided what to order - salads for them (no cheese, but extra dressing please, on the side) and muffins and fruit for their kids. Mom 1 goes to order while mom 2 stays behind to read - out loud. "Lemonade is made from lemons. Who can say leeeemmoonnsss?" and "Here's Peter Clocks, he has chicken poooxxx." Ugh.
When the food actually arrives - yes, mom 1 got them to deliver it to the table - she looks at the fruit cups and says "You don't do these on plates? My issue with these cups is that the fruit is probably not fresh." I thought the Panera girl was going to slap her. Instead, she took the fruit cups back and promptly came back with two plates full of "fresh" fruit. Now, you know as well as I do that she went in the back, dumped the cups onto plates and brought them back out..... maybe with a little extra something on top if you catch my drift. But mom 1 is happy as can be that her needs were met. The moms continue to complain about how they just don't have time for facials this week, they had to make a "rules and responsibilities chart" at home to give their kids more structure (they're 2 - maybe), and how, no matter how often they come, their orders are never right.
Now, one kid has just thrown a book at the nice little old man sitting next to them and hit him in the face and her mother has just dropped an apple slice on the floor, but is pretending she didn't do it and is waiting for the Panera girl to come back and pick it up for her. I guess that "rules and responsibilities" chart isn't working for anyone in the family.
I have no more than found a table in a corner and in comes two mommies with their 2 year olds. They promptly drop them in the lounge chairs next to the fireplace, move the coffee table against a nearby wall and then pull over their own little table and chairs right next to their kids. They have effectively blocked the walkway. Next, they've decided what to order - salads for them (no cheese, but extra dressing please, on the side) and muffins and fruit for their kids. Mom 1 goes to order while mom 2 stays behind to read - out loud. "Lemonade is made from lemons. Who can say leeeemmoonnsss?" and "Here's Peter Clocks, he has chicken poooxxx." Ugh.
When the food actually arrives - yes, mom 1 got them to deliver it to the table - she looks at the fruit cups and says "You don't do these on plates? My issue with these cups is that the fruit is probably not fresh." I thought the Panera girl was going to slap her. Instead, she took the fruit cups back and promptly came back with two plates full of "fresh" fruit. Now, you know as well as I do that she went in the back, dumped the cups onto plates and brought them back out..... maybe with a little extra something on top if you catch my drift. But mom 1 is happy as can be that her needs were met. The moms continue to complain about how they just don't have time for facials this week, they had to make a "rules and responsibilities chart" at home to give their kids more structure (they're 2 - maybe), and how, no matter how often they come, their orders are never right.
Now, one kid has just thrown a book at the nice little old man sitting next to them and hit him in the face and her mother has just dropped an apple slice on the floor, but is pretending she didn't do it and is waiting for the Panera girl to come back and pick it up for her. I guess that "rules and responsibilities" chart isn't working for anyone in the family.
Thursday, March 22, 2007
I try to be nice
So, here's my dilemma.....and yes, this is the 2nd post of the day. Anywho. Several posts back, I mentioned our new neighbors, who have been, to say the very least, challenging to deal with. Now, considering our landlord, I guess this should come as no big surprise to me.
A mother and her 17 year old son, along with her 85 year old father are residing above us. The mother works all day and I'm not really sure what the grandfather does. The 17 year old son stays home......all day. And it's not that he's home, it's that he insists on listening to rap music all day long. Not even cool rap music, it's "fucka, fucka, fucka, bitch!" over and over and over. When he finally does turn it off, he turns on his television and plays video games - he seems to enjoy the race car ones because all I hear is rapid acceleration and crashing......lucky me. Number one, why isn't he in school? And number two, if he's not going to go to school, why doesn't he get a job?
Why not just approach him you ask? Let's see. Probably because I tried that and he couldn't hear me pounding on the damn door. Then I called the landlord and was like "Look, I know you were desperate to rent this vacant apartment and stuff because you've probably got mad fines to pay off, BUT, could you at least have used a little discretion or something???" OK, I didn't say that exactly, but I was thinking it. And I did mention that we've had a really quite building for the last 2 1/2 years and this is just wreaking havoc all over the place. So, the landlord came over and started pounding on the door, but the kid couldn't hear him either! AAGGHH!!!!
Dan told me to just let it go; "we're moving in 8 days" he said. Yeah, too bad for that kid upstairs because that's 8 more days for me to think of ways to torture the damn twit.
A mother and her 17 year old son, along with her 85 year old father are residing above us. The mother works all day and I'm not really sure what the grandfather does. The 17 year old son stays home......all day. And it's not that he's home, it's that he insists on listening to rap music all day long. Not even cool rap music, it's "fucka, fucka, fucka, bitch!" over and over and over. When he finally does turn it off, he turns on his television and plays video games - he seems to enjoy the race car ones because all I hear is rapid acceleration and crashing......lucky me. Number one, why isn't he in school? And number two, if he's not going to go to school, why doesn't he get a job?
Why not just approach him you ask? Let's see. Probably because I tried that and he couldn't hear me pounding on the damn door. Then I called the landlord and was like "Look, I know you were desperate to rent this vacant apartment and stuff because you've probably got mad fines to pay off, BUT, could you at least have used a little discretion or something???" OK, I didn't say that exactly, but I was thinking it. And I did mention that we've had a really quite building for the last 2 1/2 years and this is just wreaking havoc all over the place. So, the landlord came over and started pounding on the door, but the kid couldn't hear him either! AAGGHH!!!!
Dan told me to just let it go; "we're moving in 8 days" he said. Yeah, too bad for that kid upstairs because that's 8 more days for me to think of ways to torture the damn twit.
It's a blurry world
I've worn glasses since middle school and I've been trying to figure this question out since the first morning I woke up and had to find them: If you're blind as a bat without them, but you don't sleep in them, how the hell do you find them in the morning?
The easy answer, of course, would be to put them in the same place every night before bed......I am not a fan of easy answers though. It's much more gratifying to have to track them down every morning, maneuvering my way through a blurry obstacle course; especially challenging when you have half of your apartment packed because if it's not already in a box, it's certainly not going to be in the right place.
The easy answer, of course, would be to put them in the same place every night before bed......I am not a fan of easy answers though. It's much more gratifying to have to track them down every morning, maneuvering my way through a blurry obstacle course; especially challenging when you have half of your apartment packed because if it's not already in a box, it's certainly not going to be in the right place.
Monday, March 19, 2007
*Gasp* It's a wedding!!
No silly, not mine. Did you forget we're not actually getting married? I have the shiny ring...... why bog ourselves down with paperwork? LOL......
The wedding is my little brothers.....and after changing the date about 50 times, they've settled on May 26......which is like, two months away. So what does that mean for me? It means that I ate 4 pints of Ben & Jerry's, pasta and potatoes, and drank 2 or so bottles of wine this weekend. And this morning, I bolted out of bed, blew the dust off of my South Beach book and then whipped up some scrambled eggs with green pepper, onion, garlic and feta. And, I'm pleased to say, it's quite damn tasty.
Several years ago I SB'd it - not so much because I had any weight to lose, but I wanted to test two things: my willpower and whether or not it really worked. I made it through the first two weeks without being a cranky-pants, and I must admit it worked really well. I actually did have more energy and was sleeping better through the night. 2 1/2 years later, I've put back on the 13 pounds I lost though - primarily because I can't say "NO" to my sweet teeth; no, not a typo, I really do have more than one!! So I'm starting over and this time, I will continue with the Self Challenge and I won't cheat in my third week by eating an entire loaf of white bread with fried brie......or go to dinner at Elizabeth's house.......
The wedding is my little brothers.....and after changing the date about 50 times, they've settled on May 26......which is like, two months away. So what does that mean for me? It means that I ate 4 pints of Ben & Jerry's, pasta and potatoes, and drank 2 or so bottles of wine this weekend. And this morning, I bolted out of bed, blew the dust off of my South Beach book and then whipped up some scrambled eggs with green pepper, onion, garlic and feta. And, I'm pleased to say, it's quite damn tasty.
Several years ago I SB'd it - not so much because I had any weight to lose, but I wanted to test two things: my willpower and whether or not it really worked. I made it through the first two weeks without being a cranky-pants, and I must admit it worked really well. I actually did have more energy and was sleeping better through the night. 2 1/2 years later, I've put back on the 13 pounds I lost though - primarily because I can't say "NO" to my sweet teeth; no, not a typo, I really do have more than one!! So I'm starting over and this time, I will continue with the Self Challenge and I won't cheat in my third week by eating an entire loaf of white bread with fried brie......or go to dinner at Elizabeth's house.......
Thursday, March 15, 2007
Laundry Tip
Here's a tip for all of you out there who are blessed with laundry duty; when washing socks and skivvies, do not wash them with things like jackets - especially if they have velcro on them anywhere. I learned this the hard way recently when out in public -specifically, getting out of the car at Sunday River. Before leaving, I had grabbed my jacket out of the dryer......upon popping out of the passenger seat, I noticed something blue hanging on the front of my jacket - both being the same shade of blue, I guess I didn't see it before. At first, I thought it was the thingy to clean my goggles with....oh no my friends, it happened to be a pair of Syd's skivvies. I got the eye roll, the scream and the "Mom, you are so embarrassing!!! I love it.
Monday, March 12, 2007
Little House of Horrors
Several posts ago, I mentioned the vacant apartment above us and the irony of the FOR RENT sign outside our house.....it turns out, I was definitely on to something. The other day, as Dan and I walked in to the house, we heard a huge thud. Being slightly dark out, we were initially unsure of what had happened.....I thought maybe some ice had slid off the roof or something. What I was not anticipating was this, which we found the next day. "What is that" you say?
oh my friends, that would be a little something called our steps.
oh my friends, that would be a little something called our steps.Which apparently collapsed right under Dan's size 8 feet......now, couple this with the fact that the pipes burst not once, but twice this weekend and surely, you can now see how unfortunate the landlord's display choice truly is. So, today, I did a little grocery shopping and when I came home, it looked like this like the below.....I think that the red DANGER tape adds a nice touch of class to the place, don't you? Oh, and did I mention that the 2nd floor apartment is actually now occupied? That is a blog for another day......
Thursday, March 08, 2007
ch-ch-ch-chaattaaa
DAMN! It is cold!!! With all my meteorological training, I have determined that this is the coldest day we've had.....maybe not on the little temperature gauge thing, but when that wind blows, fo-git-about-it!!! And of course, in anticipation of our upcoming move to the new house, we elected to have only 100 gallons of oil delivered last week so we're using it vary sparingly. Which is basically a nice way of saying that if I don't move around packing boxes, I'm sitting, freezing my ass off. I think it might be Dan's secret way of motivating me to get all the packing done before the last minute......as for the dog, even she doesn't want to go outside today, which poses yet another dilemma for me because I'm worried that at any given second, her bladder might explode. If you know anyone who works outside and didn't call in sick today, do something extra special for them tonite.....maybe cook them a warm meal and give them a bottle of moonshine to warm their blood back up.
Wednesday, March 07, 2007
Sweep the Leg
If you were once an admirer of The Karate Kid.......watch this; it's good for a chuckle on such a cold day. I am particularly fond of the last part.........
Tuesday, March 06, 2007
I'm just wondering
Why is it, that my dog only wants to stay outside when it is sub-freaking-zero? When it is so damn cold, that while dressed in long johns head to toe under jeans and sweater and fleece in addition to the traditional winter garb, the wind is still whipping through you and seemingly cracking your bones in half. WHY does my dog want to bounce around on ice-crusted snow like Tigger on crack? I just don't get it.....I suspect she revels in my misery and thinks it's great that I'm standing out there, swearing at her to "just go to the damn bathroom already" while my neighbors with the litter-trained pug sit in their cozy house laughing at me.....maybe that's why she's bouncing around....she's actually laughing at me......hhmmm......
Is the sickness everywhere?
Recently, Meg was saying how she feels like she has a sickly family; I too am beginning to think that we are living amongst some icky germs that just will not go away. I don't know what it is. Once upon a time, the pediatrician used to praise me for what a healthy child I had, now she furiously scribbles notes in the kid's chart and I'm sure the words "terrible parent" are in there somewhere......anyway, during the sickness today, I have managed to get sucked right in to myspace, which my friends reminded me was a "must-check on a daily basis" when we recently went to visit them in Boston for the weekend. I'm more of a "must-checker" of other blogs, flickr, and my bank balance to make sure that, while not necessarily employed, I haven't gone in the hole yet either.
On the plus side of the sickness, I have found my camera!! Thank heavens I can finally post pictures of all the progress I'm NOT making in the world of packing. Before I get to that though, I thought I would snag a shot of this:
The FOR RENT sign is innocent on its own, but if you take in to account that it is tacked to a Portland Public Works Caution sign, it gives it a whole new meaning. For those of you who are familiar with out landlord, you will know exactly what I mean. For those of you who are not, let me shed some light on it for you.
Monday, March 05, 2007
Beauty in an unlikely place
Many may find being unemployed a terrible state; I on the other hand, have embraced it. The beauty of unemployment is, it gives you tons of time to do other things that you've always wanted to do but just never had the time for. As an added bonus for me, this just happens to coincide with us moving to our new house, so I have plenty of time to pack us up.
Speaking of which, more beauty is to be found in the packing I am finding. For instance, I have located the missing piece to my sewing machine.....so I can now learn how to use it. I have found more yarn than I could ever dream for - it was still packed from the last time I moved and I have found oodles of crafting books - and we know what a crafty little fox I am - or at least try to be. All of these crafty discoveries have stirred up some very fab ideas that I can not wait to get started on.....my blog will finally start living up to its name!
There is a down side to all this goodness though.....I have misplaced my camera, so I can't take pictures of any of my progress OR my craftiness. Damn the boxes.
Speaking of which, more beauty is to be found in the packing I am finding. For instance, I have located the missing piece to my sewing machine.....so I can now learn how to use it. I have found more yarn than I could ever dream for - it was still packed from the last time I moved and I have found oodles of crafting books - and we know what a crafty little fox I am - or at least try to be. All of these crafty discoveries have stirred up some very fab ideas that I can not wait to get started on.....my blog will finally start living up to its name!
There is a down side to all this goodness though.....I have misplaced my camera, so I can't take pictures of any of my progress OR my craftiness. Damn the boxes.
Thursday, March 01, 2007
The MIS-communication of email
Have you ever gotten a response to an email where you end up sitting there, scratching your head, going "WTF just happened here?" I got one of those yesterday and as I was reading it, I was thinking "There is no way that what I said could have been taken that way." Hmm.....I don't know. And the response I got doesn't even merit a response in turn, however, I am one of those people who feel like my silence will mistakenly portray that there response is accuarate; what's a girl to do?
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