Random leftovers

Well, I guess it is time to eat again as I am no longer full from Thanksgiving feasting! Luckily, there are Christmas cookies on the counter. Unfortunately, my plans for heading to decorate them with the Queen of Culinary Quirks today fell through when the boy child stayed home with a sore throat. I was so disappointed that the decorator bags and tips would not be flying...and that I would not be able to try to swipe some of her, bound to be fancier, finished products to pass off as my own. At this point, it would be acceptable to just make the frosting and dunk them in, right?

In an attempt to make myself feel better about today's disappointment, I decided that a to-do list was in order, so that I could revel in other accomplishments. That was not necessarily a grand idea, as I was quickly overwhelmed as I pondered who I thought I was to be galavanting around leaving a sprinkle trail when I had so much to do. The list is not quite half done (six out of sixteen, but really only twelve I might actually do), and since this blog post was on it, here I am. Speaking of things not on the list...I did not have "break garbage disposal" written down, but now that I have done so, I will have to add "fix it"! I also neglected to add "suck up blanket with Oreck in order to make laundry room super stinky", but I did that too.

On with the Random...

On the way downstate, we passed a septic system cleaning van, whose proud owners had named the "STOOL BUS". Had to be mentioned, but not further discussed (or disgust).

I did not go on the city field trip the day after Thanksgiving, but sent along the camera. Here is one of the shots that came back...
I did not judge, mind you, as I have my own irrational fears, but I never understood how some people could be afraid of clowns. However, after finding these gems in my mother-in-law's attic, I totally get it.
Perhaps I was too quick to question the faux denim Huggies diapers. I had no idea what true genius was at work there, or that they'd be popular enough to start a trend...It gets chilly where we live, so maybe soon they will come out with a full length version! (Please note that I am happy to see that there is a cause, and I think the packages for the wipes are very festive.)

I had a brief discussion with a friend about Sunday night's Amazing Race. Since I hadn't watched it yet, she was just telling me about how she and her daughter wanted the Belgian Waffles they showed, and how they made do with some from their freezer. The snack sounded okay, but I really couldn't imagine myself having a waffle craving. Here's what happened half way through our viewing of the episode. I even ran some frozen raspberries under warm water to get them apart. Mind you, I don't think I have ever had anything other than butter or syrup on my waffles before.

Thanks to Stacy for giving us somewhere to put our random leftovers! Stop over and visit to see what randomness other folks are rocking today!

(And there are now seven things checked off the list.)

Happy Thanksgiving

May your plate be overflowing with jellybeans, toast and popcorn (and may Lucy be seated at the other end of the table.) May you steer clear of the Rockettes flying legs. May you be surrounded by several turkeys and appreciate the fun and joy that they truly bring to your life.

Random Tuesday kitchen edition

At one, well actually more than one, point today I lost my mind in the kitchen. I spent four hours at Meals on Wheels slicing and dicing and serving it up. After a quick stop at the grocery store, I was home to get started on my treat baking for our holiday travels. I had some sort of quality control and fresh is best issue that prevented me from getting started sooner than today. I made the turkey cutouts, as you can see here, they seem to have had pop up timers. Why is that?
I moved on to some sort of other toffee and chocolate chip cookie. Sticky toffee+cookie sheet removal=not so much + hissy fit (to the power of three). Then I thought about pumpkin bread, and if you give a lady a can of pumpkin, she's gonna want to make that pumpkin bread. Yes, I would've been the only one to notice if it was missing, I am sure of that now. I really still wanted to make caramel corn too. The thing I often forget to account for is that cut-out cookies are not done when they come out of the oven. There is that business of frosting them. Not a single one of those turkeys was willing to hop into the sprinkles on his own!

The caramel corn is on the oven, but there seems to have been a possible mishap in the doubling of the caramel ingredients. I am hoping for the best. Right now I am just thankful to sit down!!!! I will save my holiday gratitude for another post, as it's time to let the random gobble! Thanks to Stacy for hosting all of us turkeys! When you are finished here, head on over and check out what other random stuffing folks are dishing out!

I know I have seen this delicacy on someone else's blog, but when I saw this can at the grocery store today I couldn't resist sharing.Should I have skipped the pumpkin bread and started a new tradition?

I was eating lunch at Tim Horton's with a friend of mine last week. (Yes, we are that fancy.) Our paninis were wrapped in take out paper, but put on a real white plate since we were eating in. The wrapper said "Consume immediately. Do not reheat" It was difficult to thoroughly enjoy our sandwiches when all the while I was wondering what would happen if I reheated. Which toxic ingredient would blow up?

The other day my husband walked by carrying this sign, while he told us how he just couldn't believe his ipod (that is 8 years old) only lasted for 45 minutes with a full charge. It cut right out during his workout.I love it when I am reminded of his sense of humor, especially when I am actually in the mood to appreciate it! Good one!

I was so excited when our kids became interested in my favorite tv show, Modern Family. I thought it would be so swell that we could all watch it and share some laughs together. So far this has meant that we watch it on a one night delay so that I can pretend to get these folks upstairs at 9:00. It also means that the overall atmosphere has changed a bit. The husband and I used to settle in to watch the show with our snacks in hand, and a sigh of relief that we had some bit of sanity left at the end of the day. The only time we missed a joke was if we were still laughing from the previous zinger. Now when we tune in, there is usually a bathroom break, plus a time out to get a drink or snack. Someone is talking to the dog (explaining a joke, perhaps, I don't know), and there was even a bloody nose during the most recent episode. I think I may have to resort to a sneak preview before our general public viewing! I know they put up with me shouting at the screen during the Amazing race and Survivor, but they do it too, and they never had it any other way.

This tool claims to be 14 tools in one. I am thinking anything beyond 5 starts to reach a bit, or enters some very specific realms of weaponry.
Julie's Place is a local restaurant. Do they really need to rub it in that you are having a crappy lunch hour by making you find somewhere else to park if Julie's is not where you're headed? How can they tell which folks went where?
Update on caramel corn (now 10:15 p.m.)...It would've been just fine if the batch in the metal pan hadn't started to burn, while the batch in the corning ware next to it was slightly undercooked! Argh!

Aha, I almost forgot to mention that somewhere around 4:30 I started peeling what would be twelve pounds of apples for applesauce. Yes, I probably had enough already, yes the batch in the fridge was probably fine even if short on cinnamon, no it didn't matter that it was made with several kinds of apples, yes there was plenty in the freezer if I refused to be satisfied. I have no one to blame but myself.

Oh well...Gobble 'til you wobble!

OK...here they are...

So apparently all I needed to do to find my five bloggers to pass this on to, was to stop typing for three minutes and actually pay attention. Go figure!

My Own Brand of Crazy - She is honest, funny, touching and inspirational. There are so many different things going on in her life, and they are all so interesting and fun to read about!

Good Day Regular People - This one goes to two people, and this is not cheating (because I said so). The first half goes to Alexandra (the Empress--how do you not love that?) who shares so much of herself with beautiful writing and wonderful stories. I love her wit. The second half goes to Baby E, nine year old son of the Empress, who posts most Mondays. He is current and so hip, providing a fabulous perspective to remind us what life was like before double digits.

Leigh vs. Laundry - The Freakshow Friday posts alone are worth a visit, but I do love the photos and other heartfelt highlights as well.

Bella Sinclair Doodlespot - It sure took me awhile to scroll through all of those shiny badges to see if she already had this one. Just go check her out, you'll see why!

Us and Them - When I first started checking out the blog scene, I found this one. He's been rather MIA as of late, which is a bummer, but our family enjoyed so many of his Tuesday musings that I am including him. If you feel a need to get your Star Wars fix, or check out some other really cool stuff, head over. Beware of the cute from his sons though!

Are we there yet?

We are? We're here? It's Friday? Well that was just a lovely week. It is now 4:00 in the afternoon and I still have pj's on. The pj's plus the snow on the ground and general chilliness served as deterrents from me leaving the house today. This place needed to be cleaned up so any residual cooties would be dusted, vacuumed, sprayed or just frightened away. I started this mission at 7:45 this morning...I am not done...I am going to cry! Sure, I spent some time on the computer and nourishing myself, plus a minor stop to take some allergy medicine to ward off the dust induced sinus condition that almost sidelined my efforts. However, even if I fiddle-farted away two hours (which I would like to think I did not), that still means I cleaned for six!

I have reason to be joyous as this week wraps up. I actually had reason to be joyous LAST week, but somehow missed the post telling me so.

**Attention** About to get sidetracked...

What I did notice was the email from a woman who "ran into [my] blog and absolutely loves it". I was so excited! She wanted to GIVE me some scrapbooking software to use as a giveaway and other fabulous prizes. I emailed back to tell her I was interested (of course!), and asked what other info I might need. I was pretty fired up to get started on that when the in-house vomitorium opened. Many hours into operation "cabin fever", I snuck into the computer room (office makes it sound like I do something far more important in this chair), to find an email from a different woman who saw that I featured designer purses on my website, and she wanted me to advertise her forum where fashionistas would apparently discuss their love of bags? Um, ok, I am fairly certain that even with all of the background clutter in my photos, there have been no designer handbags. Moreover, if she had somehow connected me with fashion, she had never actually read the blog to begin with.

A couple days later, I was vertical and focused and catching up on some blog reading when I stumbled upon I Like Cheese, and his thoughts on scam emails, specifically as they relate to interest in our blogs. Uh-oh. I suddenly felt a little less special, and embarrassed for being a sucker. I immediately clicked over to check on my followers field, only to find that the software woman who "loved" my blog was not even willing to be a follower. The neurons started firing more quickly in my now healthier brain. Yes, I believe this person wanted to use some space on my blog, but it had nothing to do with the blog itself. I emailed to tell her that I didn't have the time right now to entertain her giveaway. I was a little deflated to find that "Maybe It's Just Me" had not won the love and admiration of a complete stranger whose work I was unfamiliar with.

Then, lo and behold...**Attention** Getting back on track...

I was perusing the recent post titles of the one and only, Wily Weez, when I saw one I had somehow missed (having read all of the ones above and below it). It was another one of her consistently awesome gems, but in this particular one....TA DA---she gave me a friggin' award!!
Sure, four other bloggers got one from her too, but I was already following two of those folks, and after checking out the other two, I am in super sweet company! Look how pretty...
Now, I read the rules of acceptance and understood them completely the first time, but had to check back 5 times to satisfy myself that I was doing the right thing! I must start with a dedication to the award giver, Paula:

It was Friday, September 23, 2011 when I clicked on a link to a blog post titled F*ck you Fridays: Round Three. I had missed rounds one and two, but that did not dissuade me from seeing what this was all about. It was a letter she crafted to herself, on behalf of her son, to critique her less than stellar Tooth Fairy skills. I laughed my ass off. I shared the post with my 14 year old son because the little bit of language was well worth the laughs in my opinion.

The love did not stop at Paula nearly causing me to nearly pee my pants in my hysteria. No, she then invited us to vent about our own low points of the week. There was some truly hilarious stuff going on there in the comment section too! No therapy bills? I get to just gripe about something? Cool. She even replies to the comments people leave. Holy Awesome Batman!

Not only are Friday posts great, but she brings her best game every single time! Seeing my blog mentioned on her blog was way better than the misplaced designer handbag shout out! Way better, and I stumbled on it just when I needed to!

hmmm...ok, now I have to tell you all some things about myself. I know, every time you read this blog, you've been thinking "Damn, I wish she just give us more of glimpse into her world", so here's that...

* I have never traveled west of Buffalo, except for the time I had a layover in Detroit, but not leaving the airport nullifies that experience.

* I have never been to any of my high school or college reunions. (You are assuming I am not old enough to have had any, I know, thanks.) The fact that makes this pitiful is that I live less than thirty minutes from both schools.

* I have not thrown up in over twenty years. If you leave out my four years of college and whatever the beverage of choice was, that number increases to over 30 years.

* I love the Muppets and Sesame Street. I always have and always will. My engagement ring was offered on a plush Kermit the Frog's flipper.

Moving on...now comes the part where I pass this award on to five other bloggers. I need to make sure these folks don't already have the same one because I didn't get a receipt, so they wont be able to return it for cash...Stay tuned for this portion of the program because my initial five minute scan shows that only two of the blogs I follow aren't wearing the versatile green yet (but they do have other pieces of flair)!
Plus, it is now Sunday afternoon, and while yes, I am out of pajamas and dressed, I have yet to publish this post!!!!!!

Random bug edition

We are not talking about and fancy interesting bugs like lightning bugs or lady bugs. We are talking about the stomach bug. Apparenlt Monday was worried that he just wasn't getting the street cred he deserved as a crappy day, so he served up something extra special to remind us. Granted I did get to enjoy breakfast out with a friend, but that came with a price. I walked in the house, and had not even let the dog out of his crate yet, when my son called from the junior high school at 11:48 to tell me of his worsening stomach ache. I cannot remember a time when I had to pick him up early, so no convincing was needed, and I headed for the car. After arriving home, I had just grabbed some pillows to make him more comfortable when the middle school called at 12:20 to let me know that my daughter was "actively ill", so I headed out to pick her up.

I have wondered, over the years, if it wouldn't just be better to have everyone sick at once, as opposed to staggering the illnesses over the course of a week. I thought maybe just being done with everyone in one shot might be a better route. I will not wonder that again, because as far as any intestinal rage goes, better to focus on one person at a time. I am sure the daughter was thinking the same thing as she wrestled with her own tummy demons on the couch next to where her brother eventually succumbed to the bucket. I was trying to ignore the increasing ache in my own stomach while I had no place good to sit, and there was no decent consensus as to what we should watch. Head colds can be rested off without much supervision, but I didn't want to leave the room for long for fear of what or who might erupt next.

It was also a terribly gloomy day. Luckily the temperature was decent enough to open up the windows to air out the family room. Here are some photos to show our progress from yesterday......until today...They've switched couches, and the boy was downgraded from fleece and three blankets to just one blanket today. The dog's fake sympathy illness is still no less pathetic though.

(According to the boy, Foz thinks it is unacceptable that he gets kicked outside when he is throwing up.)

There was a bit of stress this morning trying to make sure I called the attendance offices at both schools and figuring out what time i had to call the guidance offices to request missed work, in the event that anyone decided to be vertical today. Nothing can be picked up until after 3:00, so we have much more time to lounge before we even consider such a thing.

I am regretting the toast I just ate, but it seems there were a couple of other random things I was trying to keep down...

If a woman is wearing a bra this size, is it really only age that is making her need some help, or is she just trying to overcome gravity?Is it not disappointing enough that I cannot shop in the cute and fun section of the lingerie department? Now they have to bring my age into it?

My mom brought this fancy tamale pie to a gathering over the weekend. Yes, I made a snarky remark, but please tell me it isn't just me who sees something a little extra calliente going on there on top.
By the way, the only saving grace I had this morning was that we had restored Blogpress to the iPad, so I could keep the peeps company while blogging. When I hit save, the entire app crapped the bed taking my post with it. That required an entirely separate hissy fit from the one I was already brewing.

Thanks to Stacy for hosting a germ-free place for us to air our random out! Stop over to visit and wish her daughter a Happy Birthday!

Sweet Sixteen

My husband and I celebrated our sixteenth wedding anniversary yesterday. I could dedicate a post to what a swell guy he is, but this is my blog, so shouldn't the space be used to discuss me? I thought so too, so I asked the husband if he would like to guest post...about me...specifically how wonderful I am. I didn't hear a clear answer, as I am sure the thoughts of love and admiration just put his mind on overload. Since I have been known to do just about everything around here, I might as well take on this task too. So, with no further ado, I bring you the post I am pretty sure my husband would've written, about what a swell gal I am.......

Hello, I am the husband, and yes, it is just her most of the time (which just adds to the charm). You all only get to read about the things she feels so strongly about that she bullies everyone else off the computer. You only get treated to her inner Andy Rooney once and awhile, and I feel badly for you for that because I get to live it...daily...in real time. Here are a few of my favorite things, in no particular order...

* I love watching her make a decision. The time and effort and examination of every single detail of any situation is just fascinating. I have gained so many new perspectives on what I naively thought were the simplest of solutions.

* The way she shouts at the television, during anything but a sit-com, is like a symphony to my ears. I'm not exactly sure what she goes on about, as I assume she is just creating chatter to help me work on fine tuning my focusing skills under a variety of circumstances.

* I truly appreciate the incessant questions she has for me. It is really a boost to my ego that she thinks I know everything...seriously, everything.

* I love her passion, even though I typically cannot at all understand the things she is passionate about.

* I really appreciate how she is not one of those women who takes forever to get ready when we are going somewhere. I just take her word for it that she feels she is/looks ready.

* It is so thoughtful how she makes dinner for us, and then goes to the trouble of pointing out whatever is wrong with the meal, so that we don't have to try to figure it out.

* I am interested in some of the ways she takes care of herself. I am not sure though, if the eye-rolling is to reduce eye strain, or if it is a yoga move I've not heard of.

* It's really supportive how she tells me a decision is up to me, and then provides extensive facts, based on what must be hours of research, to assist me in MY decision.

I'm sure there's more, but I don't want to boast.

Happy Veterans' Day!

Thank you to all who have served, or are currently serving.

This picture was taken when my cousin (human Marine on the left) returned from Iraq two years ago. The shorter hunky guy on the right is Peter, who was so glad to have his daddy home. Only one of them is brave!

Oh hey Tuesday, how are you?

There is not a whole lot rattling around in my head this week. I tried with all, of three days, of my might to work on a fiction piece for NaNoWriMo this year, before remembering what a serious lack of imagination I have. I tried to dabble in a little loosely based on reality sort of character, but couldn't figure out where the story should go. I mean, things couldn't just keep happening to her with no progress...with her not learning anything...oh wait...So I am way far behind in word count now!

I am far from speechless though, and since we don't want to leave Stacy Rocking the Random Rebellion on her own...

How big of a gadget drawer would I need if I was the kind of person who felt compelled to have this item on my must own list?Wait! I do have a knife for bananas...it's called a butter knife, and it even works on very firm fruit. Until now, I thought I was pretty speedy at it too. I love how the sign boasts about the uniform slicing...especially for smoothies!

I was not the one holding the caramel corn container, so I did not realize it was closed back up and put on the counter with this as its contents. I was very disappointed by this sort of mega snack offering decoy.
I don't think I can vote for these folks unless part of their "community involvlement" is a literacy campaign!

Can I open my eyes? Am I beautiful yet?

Hope you are feeling fancy today! Thanks for visiting!

Just say "thank you"

So my husband recently got to choose an item from the "peer-to-peer" award list, and while his new duffle bag is super swell and a nice upgrade from the one he had been using for his referee supplies, the concept still cracks me up. I could tell he was not as amused as I was about the reward system, but that did not keep me from asking numerous questions and trying (poorly) to stifle my giggles. I wondered aloud, if the prospect of receiving one of these awards was truly motivating. Adding to my amusement was the fact that the duffle bag he selected came embroidered with his company's logo on it. For your information (and jealousy), here are some of the other fine items he could've chosen from:
-BBQ set
-Beach towel (next thing to strive for)
-Umbrella
-Emergency tool kit
-Divot repair tool (with 3 golf balls)
-plus ten more!

If there were purses, shoes or gift cards on this list, my friend (whose husband works for the same company) and I would have them giving each other awards every other month. Sadly, the pair of movie tickets award has been discontinued.

I tried to envision an adult taking the time and energy to notice a coworker's efforts, and clicking on the appropriate buttons to assign an award. There are limits, mind you, and an individual can only give out six awards per year, but I think the amount of swag you can receive is unlimited. When I asked my husband if the days of just sending someone an email that said "Thanks for helping out!" or "Great work on that project!" (or just saying those things out loud) were gone. He responded that it was possible to send a thank you as well. That is not just an email from one's own computer that has the words "thank you" in it, but more like an egreeting, special company issued note of thanks. It's for when you want to do more than send an email of your own that says "thank you", but don't think a duffle bag, or other token gift, is warranted. [I was not even trying not to look amused by this point.] I pleaded with him to admit that he found some humor in the gift compensation, while I pondered whether it was a program that might do well at the junior high school.

The other day, the awarded one sent me an email requesting my assistance in choosing a color for an overnight sized (I was corrected, and this is bigger than the duffle size) bag. I was intrigued as to what he had done to have this latest carryall bestowed upon himself. Apparently he served on some safety committee.

Well, yesterday I worked for five hours outside hauling flower garden debris by the wheelbarrow full across the street to be dumped. I did this while the husband shared his disappointment in the Bills' defeat, along with thousands of others, at Ralph's stadium. Yes, the twelve year old who still lives in a little corner of me was looking for a pat on the back when I told him about the job I had done. He told me I could've left the piles for him. Um, first of all, cutting the stuff down was no picnic...second, it's dark before he pulls in the driveway, so they'd have sat a long time...third, I was not complaining, just informing. Now, not only can I not walk easily, due to the burning pain in the backs of my legs, for using what must be weed pulling muscles; but, I got no email, no fancy correspondence...AND NO DAMN GIFT SELECTIONS!

Battle line drawn

Another installment of why I should be getting my Mother of the Year Award any week now played out this morning. I had been waging a not-so-secret war against my daughter's outfit selections since school started. I have no one to blame but myself if she doesn't wear something that I grabbed on a bargain hunt outing, or anything that I just thought might be cute. However, when she is pulling stuff out of her hamper instead of wearing perfectly good (and clean) items from her closet that she picked out, I get irritated.

I tried to grab some items during the return period, but she claimed she was most definitely going to wear them. Not happening. I just kept doing the laundry every Monday, and would then see her wearing the same select shirts over and over. This week I decided that I would do the laundry, but not put any of the freshly cleaned shirts back in her closet. There are so many choices in there, I wanted to see how long it would really take for her to "not find anything to wear". Of course it was no secret that I was doing laundry, as clean bottoms were appearing (as in the same black, dark gray, and black yoga pants that have become the sixth grade dress code). The shirts were all being stacked in the guest room. Yesterday was the first day I saw a shirt not in the usual rotation, granted it was a favorite a couple of months ago, so we still weren't wearing the "new" stuff.

I had laid back down this morning after waking her up, in an attempt to pretend that the day wasn't really starting, even though I had been up over an hour. My body was just rejecting its time on the elliptical and I was trying to make peace with it. Suddenly, the girl was at my bedroom door. I said "hello", and she just kept walking closer. I started to get concerned about what she was going to tell me that couldn't be broadcast across the room. When she got about two feet from me, she looked me in the eye and said, "You've been hiding my clothes." I made a lame effort to play dumb, "You have clean pants?" She inquired about her shirts and I told her I saw several in her closet. She informed me that she had worn something different yesterday (at least she wasn't playing dumb about what was going on) and wanted the purple Nike long sleeved shirt. I tried to send her for any number of other long sleeved shirts, but she said that one was comfy and it was a gym day. How could I argue with gym day?

I told her she had to stay put as to not know where my hiding place was. I tried to make noise in a variety of places before bringing her the purple shirt. For some reason it seems important to note that this is some random shirt that I purchased for myself, only to realize that human sausage was not the look I was going for. Normally she pooh-poohs anything that comes out of the mother's closet, but not this. In fact, just the other day she asked where it was purchased because she wanted more just like it.

Am I being foolish for fighting this battle? Sure, maybe a little. I think she's being crazy too though, and this morning I think she saw that she has competition in the totally unreasonable department!

It really wasn't my best

I want to be working on my "novel" project, but I have a story that is like one of those song ear worms stuck in my head. I was on my way to my grandmother's to cut those unsightly ten pieces of shrubbery that had sprouted since their last clipping, and my mind became a barrage of thought fragments regarding how annoyed I was, what to write next from where I left off last night on NaNoWriMo, and working through the events of yesterday. Now that I am back home, the agitation has subsided, but I do have this other matter to attend to before my mind can be free to roam to someplace fictional.

Yesterday brought one of those tough parent lessons. Not only are our children's celebrations our celebrations, but their disappointments belong to us as well. Our son did not make it into the select orchestra group at his school. There were three who tried out, possibly making it feel even worse that two were selected. He and I talked for awhile about our feelings and questions about what had happened. He made such interesting points. That is not to say he was correct on all fronts, but he wasn't just complaining.

Just a little paraphrasing to get us on our way quickly...I told him that he needed to not let this disappointment take over his enjoyment of playing the viola, and also reminded him that orchestra is an actual class that he is graded for. He told me that when he saw the list, it took over his head and he struggled to get past it. This disappointment was real and one that he truly had to own. We suggested some conversation points he could make with his teacher to help him better understand her decisions and move on. We then decided that I would send an email on behalf of us both.

The response to my email came this morning. She explained the numbers and acknowledged how hard my boy had worked for the week leading up to auditions. She was also kind enough (truly, not being snippy) to tell me some places he fell short. She has tried since last year to get him to push himself, but said it usually only happens for competitive times. She mentioned that he has natural abilities and could be playing at a much higher level.

I know that this was not my audition, not my deal, not my problem. I know this, I really do. I also know this is not something I would stand on the street corner sobbing about to strangers. I get it. However, what I could not shake was this feeling, after reading the email, and playing it over in my head for a few miles...In some way, I did own a piece of this defeat. I asked my son over the summer how badly he wanted to get into chamber orchestra. Bad enough to want my help? He decided he did, and I told him I would push him and hold him to the task of practicing. Guess what? I didn't. Sure we'd rally every now and then, but if he tried to blow me off, I pretty much let him most of the time. I know it was his challenge to rise to, but let's reach back to our teen years. I was certainly no overachiever. Yes, he let himself down, and that is an unpleasant feeling. Yes, he does need to learn to be independent. Between us here though, I feel awful that I said, out loud-to him, that I would help him do this, and turns out he wasn't the only slacker.

If you are still reading, thanks for letting me clear that muck out of my head. This taught me a very valuable parenting lesson, and I am sure that at some point I might figure out what that was.

Random sugar hangover

Our house is typically very well stocked with candy in a variety of shapes, sizes and colors. However, this year as Halloween loomed closer, it became harder to ignore the fact that I was going to have to go out to actually purchase more sugary yum yums that were wrapped individually. I was not going to be able to just shake the pretzel m&ms and Twizzler bites into outstretched pillowcases. I typically like to buy lollipops, be them Blow-Pops or Tootsie Pops or big Charms lollies. I figure the little kids can still gum them up, and it is safe to assume that I will not plow through an entire bag of such things in the days leading up to the grand giveaway. Plus, I am cheap when it comes to Halloween candy, because I either don't want to overbuy/spend and get left with tons, nor do I want to spend a lot if it is all going out the door.

The subject of caramel corn came up yesterday, and then I couldn't get the thought of its delightfulness out of my head! The only solution to my wanting was to make a batch. Yummy! The process kept me off the streets and the product kept me out of the candy for a little longer. Now, on the counter we have leftover brownies and cookies from the Office Warming efforts, leftover cookies from having kids in the house over the weekend, caramel corn, bakery leftovers from volunteer gig this morning, leftover rice krispie treats from girl child's Halloween shindig, and HUNDREDS of pieces of candy! Holy tooth decay batman!

For some strange reason I am having trouble focusing on my little list of random here in front of me. Maybe a nice crunchy apple would help clear my mind! Maybe just some milk to settle things down! Thank you to Stacy for giving us a loot bag to put all of our random goodies in. She's managing to invite us all over, even without power... she is a Superhero (even without a costume!) When you finish here, go see what leftover sweetness is brewing in her cauldron.

OK....
There was a car parked in the middle school lot this morning with a bumper sticker that read "If you are riding my ass, you'd better be pulling my hair." Um, yeah, soooo....hope that wasn't my eleven year old daughter's math teacher? I don't mean to judge, but seriously.

Did you ever feel like your Christmas tree was missing something, but you weren't sure what? I know......nothing says holy like a little Gene Simmons!

I was in line at the dollar store (I am not proud, nor do I wish to spend more than $1 on a package of doggy poop bags.) taking inventory of the boxes of candy next to the registers. There I saw, sandwiched between a couple of different varieties of chocolate bars, the dollar store pregnancy tests. Is that considered an impulse purchase, or a commonly forgotten item that was put there for convenience?

This is not the front window view that I was hoping for when I showed up to get my 89 year old grandmother the other day.Luckily, I could see she was breathing just by looking through the window.

I don't feel like I am the target audience for this company's business...(tagline under Masonry & Hardscape reads "Are you stoned yet?")

...and wonder if I will have the munchies when they are done. (Goodness knows I have the goods on the counter to accommodate an entire crew's worth.)

Looks like Barbie and Ken got into the spirit of dressing up this year.I see Barbie opted for the ever popular slutty policewoman. Oh wait, they are career dolls? I should've known from the pink sunglasses. Yes, that is what all female officers wear in our area, paired with skirts...very short skirts. I don't think Barbie is commanding much respect in that gear...such a tribute to female law enforcers everywhere. And what's with the pussy on the left...to the right of the little cat? (It was the sugar talking, I was helpless on that one!) Have you ever seen an EMT decked out in corn silk yellow?

Happy November, by the way! That means it's time once again for.......I have had an opening sentence rattling around in my head since Saturday. A very long sentence. That should be enough, right!?