goody! a new place to play!

* edited - i corrected the link to Linda's MB. very sorry for any inconvenience!*

thanks again, Linda...

stop by here. it's a new message board so stop by so Linda & i won't get tired of staring at each other.

dang - three posts in one day.

watch out, SusieQ. i'm out to break your record for Most Posts in One Day.

just kidding.

i've been courting the Muse this week. y'know - the crafty one? sorry, though, not the one that should be working on the full size counted cross-stitch Monopoly board.

but that's another post.

yep, whenever i feel stressed, i not only want to eat every blessed dessert in the house, but i want to do something creative. for me, if i can't control what's going on in my worlds, then at least i can control what i'm doing.

so what am i doing? (besides posting, that is)

this.

behold. an altered clock for a girl's birthday at work. an ID badge holder. a boo-boo box.

at least i made something for me.

OK - two somethings.

but it at least it's keeping me from root beer floats.

and suddenly, i'm disgruntled all over again.

did i ever tell you about this?

i made this clock for her Christmas gift.

that was in, oh....let's see...December.

Dee-sem-berrrr.

i have not received a note, nor a call nor even a psychic thought sent my way.

now i know she doesn't like me. her husband, however, is one of my best friends. when he saw this, he went nutty. as in "oh my gosh, i can't believe this, this is so amazing - thank you."

but you know, even with all that, you'd think i could at least get a thank you. even if she didn't mean it.

so why do i even try? because he is my friend. and i want to get along with her, as well as him. but apparently no matter what i do, or how well i do it, it's not ever, ever good enough.

i will always be a threat. i will always be viewed as suspect. and it's one of those things i never understood about women. why do we view other women as after our men?

is it a matter of trust? then, why marry them? why spend the time and effort in a relationship if you don't trust them.

i.don't.get.it. and never will.

but no matter what i do, she will never like me. and that bothers me. not because i think i'm all that and everyone should love me.

but at least i'm trying. couldn't she?

my defination of cozy..

a cool, windy day, right after a rain.

clean air.

fresh feeling out there.

watching my favorite TV show - CSI.

checking out my favorite blogs.

getting ready to work on an altered clock.

a warm furbaby snuggled on my lap.

a warm furbaby who's just pooted.

nice.

now that's love, baby.

or catfood. i can't decide which.

who asked you?

(or, me)

since i can't think of anything to write (that i wanna share) i thought i'd just blah, blah, blah my way into your hearts.

or your computer.

whatever.

on the Oscars
- love Ellen. she was funny, but kept enough out of the way that the show moved fairly well.
the Oscars is my High Holy Night of TV. the Husband kvetches about it every damn year.
on our way home from errands yesterday, we stopped at Blockbuster so he could pick up some movies.
four movies.
sorry, sweetie, the show only seems that long.
funny, though...he watched as much of the show as i did.

- loved that dance troupe. when they formed an Oscar, and the stiletto from Devil Wears Prada..well, that was freaking amazing.

- Jennifer Hudson was perfect. although one of the "i am SO right all the time" chicks i work with could do nothing but complain that she kept showing her boobies.

- last night, as it does every year, just reinforces my dream to write a screenplay that actually gets picked up, made into a picture, then wins the author (me) an Oscar for Best Original Screenplay.

well, a girl can dream.

- also loved the little musical number Jack Black & Will Ferrell did. oh, and when Ellen had Steven Spielberg take a picture of herself & Clint Eastwood...totally silly. and i love silly.

on work
- this nutty place. 'course it didn't help that i was a little tired and a whole lot cranky this a.m. but when i had to explain three times to the same guy where to put his work (and no, he's not new), well...it doesn't bode well for the day.

- my boss is going on a trip to Minnesota this week to do a presentation to our newest sales division out there. i thought about volunteering, but with all the traveling i did last year, i thought perhaps i should let someone else go.

but now that he's going, i'm left in charge of our group. pray that i don't lose my temper and bludgeon someone. we've got some people that always think they know best and that i'm out to get them.
if only i had the time.

on life
- Husband's best friend called the other day - seems one of his adopted sons (a long story, suffice it to say that of the four boys he adopted, the older two have issues from fetal alcohol poisoning, and just never have adjusted well to normal family life here in the States{they're from the Marshall Islands}) managed to get his girlfriend pregnant.

oh irony. thee loves to stay at my house.

one of the (many) things i don't understand is this: the pregnant girl is a little "off" herself. so why her parents didn't opt to put her on the pill is beyond me. do these people really think that even though you may not understand what 12x12 is, that you don't want to have sex?

my mom
- called my mom yesterday, and immediately got an earful because i haven't called since Wednesday. wait...no, Thursday. mind you, i see her & my step-pop every week. and last i checked, the phone works both ways. **sigh**
- she and her Red Hat Society travelled down to Downtown Disney here in Anaheim today (for those unfamiliar, Downtown Disney is outside Disneyland and has movies, shops, restaurants and a House of Blues. it's a lot of fun, and is free. well, except for the movies and restaurants and whatever you buy in the shop.
so they carpooled together, and when they got to the parking lot (where it's gated), pulled in behind a truck, parked, and let the fun begin.

mind you, i mentioned to Mama that you got three hours free parking, if you go to the restaurant or movies, you got an additional two hours free.

but since they went in behind a truck, they didn't go in the proper 'entrance' gate. therefore, they had no ticket. therefore, they should pay the fee for a lost ticket: $25.

thankfully, the gate attendant had mercy on some older women dressed in red and purple.

my man
- right now, it's almost 8:30 p.m. post median. is he home? nope. still at work, proofing some work. he still thinks he's screwing up in the job, and the fact that no one has pulled him aside and said "what the hell are you doing?!" makes no never mind.

- yesterday, while at Costco, we were looking at the diamonds (OK, i was looking at the diamonds) when he came up to me and asked what i was doing (hmmm...Captain Obvious?!), when i said i was looking at the rings, he scoffed "Ha! keep looking, it ain't gonna happen."
well, while i dang well know i'm not getting a $2100 ring, there's no need to be sarcastic.
boys.

my life
- is just fine, thank you. well, as fine is it's gonna be. i need to start on our taxes, the sooner we do, the sooner the refund is in our account.
- i have a rendezvous root beer float.
- it's time for me to go to bed.
right after the root beer float.

late to bed, early to rise...

makes me grumpy as hell.

i have no idea how it happens - we both fell asleep here in the living room, i woke up around 1am, and we stumbled into bed.

i wake up at 6-freaking-a.m. with about six inches of bedspace. Husband is laying across diagonally, with my furball of love next to him.

hmmmm - no wonder i have a stiff neck this a.m.

and lately - i've had a bad attitude. a couple of you know why, and yes, it's hard. i usually don't begrudge anyone their blessings, but i do when they don't see that it is a blessing and something to not take for granted.

'nuff said.

so, i decided today, in a continuing effort to get myself out of the doldrums to list the good things i've got going on.

* i'm blessed with good friends - both in cyberland, in real life and in my own family. you are my touchstones and i don't tell you nearly enough how much you mean to me and what a blessing you are.
* i have a job, a car and a place to live. i don't have to rummage through garbage cans to get something to eat.
* even though we weren't blessed with babies of our own, i am fortunate beyond words that two of my nearest & dearest share their babies with me.
* scrapbooking. it brings two of my favorite pastimes together, photography & messing around, into one fun little package. i'll probably never get published. what i do isn't as wonderful as what i see in magazines. but it makes me happy. so to hades with the rest.
* in spite of stuff that has happened to me, i have good health. i'm not incapacitated physically or mentally. and i'm fortunate to be born when i was (even though i'm feeling oldern' a redwood), because i'm sure that with my back issues, even just 40 years ago, i would've had to just "live with it." but, because of modern medical technology, i don't have the daily pain i did.

so now it's your turn. tell me what you're grateful for. after all, it can't always be about me, right?

once again - no original ideas here - part II

sometimes, i feel like if it weren't for Linda, i wouldn't have a blog. so thanks again, sweetie...i'm taking your challenge.

here you go, kids; my five favorite beauty products that i couldn't live without (nor would i want to)

1. Olay Complete moisturizer for sensitive skin. kids, this stuff rocks. it doesn't go on heavy, moisturizes well, and doesn't irritate my skin.

2. Physicians' Formula correcting powder for red skin. if you have roseacea, or just red, ruddy skin, this is for you. it's different shades of green & white, and you just sweep the brush over the powder, and stroke it on. red goes away. and you don't look like the understudy for the Wicked Witch of the East.

3. a tie! take your pick: BeneFit Bad Gal mascara or Avon SuperFull mascara. both ROCK. both make me look awake, and do something for these deep-set eyes with short lashes.

4. Clinique Glosswear for Lips in Kissyfit. a oh-so girlie pink lipgloss that looks good on anyone.
anyone.

5. Almay Nearly Naked Touchpad Liquid makeup in Naked. it's a sponge that you press your fingers against, and put it on. it's light, doesn't cake and blends in oh-so-well with my whitern snow skin.

as long as i have these, i'm a happy, not red, still pale girl.
oh, with good eyes.

we could talk about hair products, but i don't want to bore anyone.

in other news...
we met up with my best friend and her mom, her two kids, plus three other boys ages 10-12. at a pirates dinner show not too far from our casa. totally fun, and totally perfect for knuckle-dragging boys. there were hats to be bought, swords to be unsheathed, and some pretty dang nice looking boys as pirates.

yarrrrrr.

they swung, they fought, they played Errol Flynn, swinging from one side of the ship to another.
and the Husband and i, once again, voiced our opinion that stuntmen do NOT get paid enough.
why, the 14 year old girl even told her mom that she wanted a picture taken with one of them.

oh yeah. good girl.

and, in a never-ending battle of wits between my friend & i sneaked our share for the tickets (that she would not take otherwise) in her car, then waited till she was about 40 minutes down the road before i called to tell her to look in her ashtray. (neener, neener, Kristie!!)

so now, it's on. what else is new?

i'm off. an actual Saturday night out with the Husband. a fun place that does lobster, shrimp, crab, etc like they do down in Puerto Nuevo, Mexico. yum-o. the only drawback is that we either need to drive down to San Diego (not too bad) or Newport Beach. in Newport, it's right at the pier, so to go in the summer is suicide. but it's February, and not that many of us go to the pier. when it's cold.

but i'm still wearing flip-flops. don't hate me.

happy eating. happy saturday night. just be happy.

the good, the bad, and the ugly.

in typical [Random Thoughts] style - there will be no rhyme or reason to the following. so sit back, relax and enjoy your flight. oh, and we have also now reached our cruising altitude so you may now use your approved electronic devices.

good
ain't nothing like sleeping in on a Saturday with a furball of love snuggled next to me.

bad
no Husband snuggled next to me - he went in to work for a few hours this a.m.

ugly
still feeling that he's a stumbling fool at the job. my patience is stretched thin. he's smarter than this. he knows what he's doing. i just can't get that through to him.

good
going to my best friend's kid's 10th birthday party. ten years old. consarn it, B & i were there when he was conceived. (git your mind outta the gutter. i live in California, but i'm not that liberal.) we had all gone to Laughlin for a weekend, and when Husband & i decided we were soooooooo hungry and couldn't figure out why they weren't ready for breakfast. so we did what every rational person would do.
we knocked on the adjoining door.
"be there in a minute" we hear, after a pause.

oops.

bad
very bad. a very quiet layoff happened at my work Wednesday. only two people from our office, but one is a woman i've worked with since i've started. right now, the Powers that Be are looking at the budget to find the money to create some positions that these two can take, if they're interested.

ugly
that we as a society cannot, apparently, get through a day without finding more about Anna Nicole or Britney. a dead celebrity cannot rest in peace, and a really messed up young mother seems to have trouble with her own image and finding help that she needs.

good
after work, i went on a mini shopping spree. found some super cute tops, and earned store dollars good for a future shopping trip. and i already know what i'm gonna get.
oh and i also bought four clocks at WalMart.
no, we are not so concerned with time that i need a clock every ten feet. but WalMart does carry them at a wee $4/each. these are the easiest ones to take apart to altar. nice.

bad
i still haven't won the lotto. maybe tonight...

ugly
possibly this post.

and now...a funny:
An Irish priest is driving down to New York and gets stopped for speeding in Connecticut. The state trooper smells alcohol on the priest's breath and then sees an empty wine bottle on the floor of the car. He says, "Sir, have you been drinking?" "Just water," says the priest. The trooper says, "Then why do I smell wine?"
The priest looks at the bottle and says, "Good Lord! He's done it again!"

enjoy a Saturday, won't you?

Fantasy vs. Reality: Final Score

i have a terrific fantasy life.
unfortunately, it constantly encroaches on my so-called real life.
dagnabbit.

being an only child, growing up in a neighborhood with much older kids, i had a wonderful time playing with my dolls, Barbies, etc. i made up stories, long, elaborate princess-kidnapped-by-ogres stories. but only if no one was around, because i also did all the voices for the dolls.

one of my favorite dolls was a HUGE doll named Sarah. Sarah and i had many things in common: same short pageboy cut, blue eyes, kinda chunky. but most importantly, Sarah was real. and woe be unto anyone who tried to talk me out of it.

then one Sunday, reality smashed my fantasy right in the face.

growing up, my church had a "March to Sunday School in March" promotion. for every friend you, as a kid, bring to Sunday School, you got points or a toy or something. but, since every kid i knew already went to church, i never had much luck with bringing anyone. until i remembered Sarah.

i could bring Sarah to church! she was real. she was my friend.
unfortunately the people at church didn't see it the same way i did.

needless to say, i was highly offended.
it was then i made a vow to never, ever grow up. or, if i had to, then i would do everything in my power to remember what's reality for adults, ain't the same for kids.

• kids believe. they believe in Santa, the Easter Bunny, that monsters are in the closet and vampires are under the bed (and to this day, if my arm slides off the edge of the mattress, i wake up enough to reel it back in. that way, the vampire can't grab my arm and pull me under the bed).
• they believe that toys have a party once kids (or adults) leave any room they're in.
• they believe that knock-knock jokes are hysterical.
• that stepping on a crack really can break your momma's back.
• that farting is the funniest.thing.evah.
• that a kiss will heal any boo-boo.
• that Mom & Dad can fix anything.
• and that "Where the Wild Things Are" is the the "War & Peace" of my generation.
• that Marathon candy was the best candy bar ever, that NO ONE, not the Colonel, not Mrs. Knott's, not anyone could fry chicken like my auntie.
• and nothing was better than getting a real, genuine Valerie doll for your birthday.

and i still believe.

once again, concrete evidence that i may be months away from turning 45, but i am not a grown-up. i don't ever want to grow up.

and that, Gentle Reader, is the final score. fantasy wins.

i can save your life.

well, i can if i'm in your vicinity. otherwise, it'll have to be virtual.

over the weekend, the Husband and i took a CPR class. for him, it was a re certification and for me, a virgin card carrier.

the class was small, only four of us. the man conducting the class has taught classes at the Pennysaver, so the Husband has a history with him.

it was four hours. but i have a card that says i have CPR certification, including pediatric CPR training. i was really interested in that, since we do spend a lot of time with the nieces & nephews and there is swimming involved in California & in Nevada.

the video watched was hokey. there were a few times when i had to dig my nails into my leg to keep me from snickering. it was like watching some of those old drivers training classes. and, like someone's grandma, i lectured myself to knock it off, this is serious, grow up, blah, blah, blah.

but today, as i was driving home from what could possibly be the weirdest, roller coaster ride evah, it slapped me hard. i have power to save a life.

save.a.life.

it's weird. it's a rush. it's scary as hell. i hope i never, ever have to use it.

ever.