One Foot on a Banana Peel

We’ve made it to the end of another year, which can be cause for celebration or depression.  It depends on the kind of year you’ve had, I guess.  We’ve had a bit of a mixed bag this past year so while I’m not depressed, I’m not exactly jubilant, either.  Maybe I should be.  I made it through the rough stuff and have a shot at another year.

Typically, folks get reflective on New Years…remembering those who are gone, reviewing their lives, giving thanks for blessings and making those long lists of resolutions.  I’m no different.  I’ve thought a lot this holiday season about family members who are no longer with us and as I think of the bad things that have happened this year, I try to think of something I am thankful for to offset it.  The fact that I’m not in a deep depression must mean I’ve done pretty well with that.

Anyway, tomorrow is Day One of 2007.  The slate will be clean.  What will the year bring?  What will I bring to the year? 

Stacy’s Good Intentions for 2007

• Eat healthier….which means low fat, low sugar, low cholesterol, low calorie.
• Exercise….walk or get on the recumbant bike every day.
• Devote more time and energy to being a good homemaker (covers a lot of territory).
• Practice thrift and frugality.  Bye-bye impulse buying.
• Spend more time and energy trying to sort through my muddled feelings about church and religion.
• Stop living my life based on what everyone else thinks.
• Be a better friend.
• Learn how to make hooked rugs.
• Get involved in something outside the house.
• Rejoice in each day.
• Procrastinate less.
• Drink water/cut waaaaay back on Pepsi.
• Learn one new thing every day.
• Go to bed earlier.
• Play less games on the computer.
• Do at least one nice and unexpected thing for someone every day.

That’s more than enough, I think.  If I stick to even half of those I’ll be such an amazingly better person than I am now.  I hope your list is short and filled with things you can accomplish.  Don’t beat yourself up thinking about it.  Get out there tonight and celebrate with family or friends, whatever your tradition, and have a

Blinkie by LilmsGlitter

I am so glad for today.  This is the first time all week that I don’t have anywhere to go or a houseful of company.  I do have things to do…mainly cleaning up and putting away, but no running.  I can clean a little and if I feel like stopping for a while to read one of the books I got for Christmas I can.

The day’s biggest project is cleaning up and putting back together the kids’ bathroom.  As I was sitting here posting yesterday I began to hear what sounded like a river rushing through the kitchen vent.  I thought a pipe had burst.  Turns out the toilet was overflowing and running into the vent in the bathroom.  Son insisted he hadn’t used it and it was not clogged.  A call to Tim told us how to stop the flow of water and gave me the job of purchasing a new toilet at Lowe’s.  Tim said we’d already fixed the old one so many times it was just time to replace it.  I could fit it in the car he said.  Well, I could have except that Meg chose a one-piece style (she said it was her bathroom and she should get the potty she wanted).  No way was that going in the trunk so at 7:00 last night we were sitting in the car with our new toilet parked beside us waiting for Tim to arrive with the truck.  The poor guy had to install it when we got home and right off the bat he discovered two things 1) Matt didn’t mop up all the water like I asked him to (and that he said he did) and 2) the toilet was clogged.  Anyway, we have that mess to clean up today.  I guess it could be worse….

It’s not so bad when considered in the light of day and without the pain of a toothache.  I’m talking about son’s surprise engagement here.  When questioned yesterday, he showed some intelligence and said they have no plans to marry before 2010.  Yes!  That means they will both be through school and son should be established in a job.

As for the toothache……I did see a dentist.  Turns out the crown on the tooth in question doesn’t fit right and there’s a gap.  Just enough space for food to get under the crown and start decaying the tooth underneath.  I’m looking at getting the old crown removed and a new one put on and I may have to see a specialist because it may require cutting away some of the gum and bone.  Doesn’t that sound like fun?  I don’t know when that’s going to happen, though, because we’re talking about at least $1000 without the specialist.  Our insurance doesn’t cover dental.  Bummer.  I don’t want to get a loan if I don’t have to.  I’m still making payments on the last round of dental work I had done.

Megan had her cousin, Ariel, spend the night.  Once I get them moving, we have to take Matt back to Pittsburgh and later I have to take Ariel home to the middle of nowhere about an hour and a half from here.  It’s going to be a long day.

I’m up in the middle of the night because I have a toothache that won’t let me sleep (it also caused me to leave the theater before seeing all of Ben Stiller’s new movie Night at the Museum).  After 5 ibuprofen tablets, 2 Excedrine, and copious amounts of Orajel, it’s down to a dull, but constant throb.

Since I’m up I thought I’d check in and tell you all about the wonderful Christmas we had.  Tim got a very generous bonus this year so we were able to give the kids most of what they’d asked for, purchase much appreciated gifts for family, spoil each other and still have enough left to pay plenty of bills.  It was a load off both of our minds and really took the stress out of the holidays for us.  The kids loved their gifts…especially Meg, who got tons of John Deere stuff and all of her gifts were even wrapped in John Deere paper.  We all got movies, CD’s and books.  Everyone but me got clothes, which was unusual but I’m fine with it.  Tim got tools, which is what he always asks for, and gift cards for Lowes.  I got a stereo, a digital camera (that I don’t know how to work yet), a huge George Forman grill and a gift certificate to have an auto-starter installed in my car.  Woot!  No more freezing my butt off at 5:30 in the morning.

We’ve had great times visiting with family and just being home together (Tim came home early on Friday and has been home since, but has to go back to work tomorrow).  The only damper came this morning when my 81 year old aunt called me (she couldn’t get the numbers for my mom to come out right) in a panic because she was having her second severe nosebleed in as many days and this time it wouldn’t stop.  I called my mom and she took my aunt to the emergency room.  She takes blood thinners but they say the levels of those are okay.  All they did was pack her nose.  It has to stay packed for two days and she’s to take antibiotics to ward off a sinus infection.  No real answers.  Kinda scary stuff.

Anyway, all that is what I thought I’d be tell you about in my post-Christmas post….until a little conversation I had with Matt a little while ago.  As I was moaning around in a near-fetal position from my toothache, he chose to confess something.

HE WENT AND GOT HIMSELF ENGAGED FOR CHRISTMAS!

Talk about bombshells.  This family is having a blooming epidemic of really young people getting engaged.  Matt is the third to make the announcement in the last week. 

So, how do I feel about it?  The answer is complicated.  I’d love to tell him he’s rushing things, but I know that would backfire.  He’d just throw it in my face that I was 19 and Tim 23 when we got engaged and I just turned 20 before we got married.  I have reservations, too, because we really don’t know Ashley.  Tim has seen her a few more times than I have, but she is very shy and hard to get to know.  She’s never said much of anything around us.  I guess the official stance is to support the engagement and hope to heaven that they are smart enough to hold off on marriage until they finish school and get their futures on track.

by LilMsGlitter

There’ll be no more posts from me until after Christmas…..there’s just too much to do from here on out.  So, I leave you with a heartfelt prayer and wishes for a wonderful and blessed Christmas filled with love, family and friends.

Merry Christmas!

I got the best Christmas present from my boss today.  Yes, we got our bonus checks, but that wasn’t it.  No, what I value the most was the fact that he knew my name, thanked me for all I do, wished me a Merry Christmas, and HE HUGGED ME!  I was literally stunned. 

I just can’t quite lose the mentality of the company I drove for before.  There the Christmas bonuses were a really small gift certificate for a grocery store that was not convenient for me and a mug with the company name on it.  No one ever said "thanks", let alone the owner saying it.  After 4 years, with 2 of those being a top 10 driver (out of over 100) the man still had no clue who I was.  And hug his employees?  You’ve got to be kidding.  He made you feel you were a little less than human.

What a difference a little respect makes.

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

We’re getting down to the wire.  Today is the last day of school for all the districts around here.  The one I drive for has an early dismissal.  Nice, since the company Christmas party is tonight.  I won’t have to rush home in order to have time to shower and change.  I’m kind of excited about going.  I used to dread them at the last company I worked for.  Maybe because they weren’t company sponsored.  We had to raise the funds ourselves and most people took it as an excuse to get rip-roaring drunk….which I can live with, but most of them also took it as an excuse to do things that made it real hard to look them in the eye on Monday.  Tonight’s party is totally paid for by the company.  Including the open bar, which most people say they will enjoy but lightly.

Meg and I are going shopping tomorrow.  I promised to take her out to get hers done.  Hopefully, we’ll succeed so I can leave her at home on Saturday when Tim and I go out to finish our shopping. 

I still need to wrap everything, but that’s not unusual.  Wrapping presents is the part of Christmas I like the least.  I always put it off till the bitter end at which point I can make Tim feel sorry for me so he helps wrap.

About half of the cookies I need to bake are done.  I hope to find enough time tomorrow and Saturday to finish.  Last night I made lots and lots of chocolate chip cookies.  I’m going to take some with me this afternoon for the kids on the bus.

Well, I’m off to begin the process of putting Matt’s room back into some kind of shape so he’ll have a place to sleep when he gets here. 

I love Christmas.  Really.  I do.  So, I don’t know why it turns me into a frazzled mess every year right up until it finally gets here.  On Christmas Eve I will relax.  Till then….I don’t have it in me to think up anything worth saying so here’s another meme (borrowed from Serotoninrain) and a cartoon that cracked me up.

1) How old do you wish you were?   18 and heading off to college.  I’d do a lot of things differently.

2) Where were you when 9-11 happened? At home.

3) What do you do when vending machines steal your money? Report it to the office of whatever building they’re at.  The business usually is responsible for them so they give you back your money or unlock the machine and get you what you wanted.

4) Do you consider yourself kind? Most of the time.

5) If you had to get a tattoo, where would it be? On my ankle or the back of my shoulder.

6) If you could be fluent in any other language what would it be? Spanish.

7) Do you know your neighbors?  All but a couple of them.  I grew up here and everyone’s like family.

8.) What do you consider a vacation? Anywhere away from the regular day to day routine.

9) Do you follow your horoscope? Only to look and see how wrong it was and laugh at it.

10) Would you move for the person you loved? Yes. 

11) Are you touchy feely? With my husband and my kids….yes.  With the rest of the world….no.

12) Do you believe that opposites attract? Yes or the hubster and I wouldn’t be married.

13) Dream job? Interior decorator or my own antiques shop.

14) Favorite channel(s)? HGTV, CMT and the three major networks (I watch one show on each of them).

15) Favorite place to go on the weekend? People go places on the weekend?

16) Showers or Baths? Showers.  I have this thing about butt water.

17) Do you paint your nails? When I stop biting them long enough for them to grow.

18) Do you trust people easily? Yes, I usually expect the best out of people.

19) What are your phobias? Snakes and sharks.

20) Do you want kids? I have two that are 20 and 14.  If I were to get pregnant again I’d ask you to shoot me.

21) Do you keep a handwritten journal? Yes.

22) Where would you rather be right now? We’re dreaming here, right?  So I might as well dream big.  On a warm, sunny beach with Toby Keith rubbing on the sunscreen. 

23) What makes you feel warm and safe? Being at home.

24) Heavy or light sleeper? Heavy.

25) Are you paranoid? Only when it comes to my mother.

26) Are you impatient? Yes.

27) Who can you relate to? Tim, my friends and my son, who is so much like me it’s scary.

28) How do you feel about interracial couples? I can’t believe we still have to ask stuff like this.  People are people. 

29) Have you been burned by love? Blistered, baby.

30) What’s your life motto? Live so the preacher won’t have to lie at your funeral.

31) What’s your main ringtone on your mobile? Sugarland’s "Down in Mississippi".

32) What were you doing at midnight last night? Sleeping.

33) Who was your last text message from? I don’t text.

34) Whose bed did you sleep in last night?  My own.

35) What color shirt are you wearing? Dark green with multi-colored reindeer.

36) What are you listening to right now? A chainsaw somewhere in the neighborhood.

37) Name three things you have on you at all times? My glasses (can’t see a bloomin’ think without them), my wedding ring, and a watch.

38) What color are your bed sheets? Beige and brown paisley.

39) How much cash do you have on you right now? None.  It’s in my purse in the other room.

40) What is your favorite part of the chicken? The skin!  All fried and crispy.  Mmmmm.  Yeah, I know, I can feel my arteries clogging as I type.

41) What’s your fav city/place? I’m not much of a city person, but I do like Pittsburgh.  My favorite place on earth, though, is Chincoteague Island, VA.

42) I can’t wait till . . . My Christmas shopping is done.

43) Who got you to set up a blog? Wow, that’s going back a few years.  Uh……I think it was Dan, the youth pastor I used to work with.

44) What did you have for dinner last night? Steak.

45) is missing.  Odd.

46) Have you ever smoked? A few times in college (at parties), but never on a regular basis.

47) Do you own a gun? No.

48) Tea or Coffee? Tea.  Herbal.  Two sugars.

49) What is your secret weapon to lure in the opposite sex? It’s been so long since I tried to lure anyone that I forget.  I remember that I didn’t have any trouble, but how I did it will remain a mystery.

50) Do you have A.D.D.? I suspect so.

51) What time did you wake up today? 4:00.  Same time I get up every work day.

52) Current worry? Paying for Christmas.  Paying bills.  Paying Son’s tuition.

53) Current want? A winning Powerball ticket.

54) Favorite place to be? Chincoteague Island, VA, a bookstore or an auction.

55) Where would you like to travel in the future? Austrailia, Hawaii and the American West.  I love to do the Middle East, but am too chicken.

56) Where do you think you’ll be in 10 yrs? I don’t know.  The nest should be empty by then and Hubby will probably still be working just as much so I’ll have a lot of free time on my hands.  Maybe I’ll be back in school or in a new job.  I’ll probably be a grandmother.

57) Last thing you ate? Leftover fried potatoes.

58) What songs do you sing in the shower? None, usually.

59) Last person that made you laugh? Star, my coworker.

60) Worst injury you’ve ever had? A broken toe.

61) Does someone have a crush on you? Oh yeah, I leave men drooling in my wake.

62) What is your favorite candy? Clark Bars, Mallow Cups and 100 Grands.

63) What song do you want played at your funeral? I’ll Fly Away.

It’s early Sunday morning and while I admit I’d rather be sleeping (the dogs had other ideas) the peace and quiet is heavenly after all of yesterday’s rushing and hubbub.  Tim and I were up at 6:00 working on preparations for the party.  We had to be at the funeral home before 10:00 for the military service for Tim’s uncle.  Those services are so tough.  Seeing those ancient veterans salute their brother one last time always gets me…..and let’s not even talk about Taps, which leaves me a sniveling mess.  What is it about that tune?

It was on to the church for the regular funeral service at 11:00.  Then off to the cemetery and then back to the church for dinner.  We were able to leave around 1:45.  We zoomed home, took power naps and set to work on the last of the cleaning up and setting up for the party.  I was able to get the food going in time, but have to admit we were still sitting there slicing cheese when the first guests arrived.  It was a couple we do a lot with, but they were an hour early!

Ah, well.  Everything came together and we all had a good time.  The puppies behaved pretty well and even our friend’s new puppy who came to visit his "aunt" Stacy (I talked her into the puppy and am the designated doggie-sitter when they have need) behaved and didn’t have any accidents.  I think it was about 12:00 when the last guest left. And joy of joys, other than two crockpots there is no mess to clean up.  I get to relax today while Tim heads off to work.  Well, sort of relax.  There is that mountain of laundry I discovered Megan pitched into the spare bedroom and closed the door on…..it explains how her room got to be so amazingly neat and tidy. 

As if these last days before Christmas aren’t stressful enough, what with all the baking and shopping and wrapping and cleaning and partying and the 100 other things that MUST get done.  Tim’s family has struck again with… (insert sinister music here)… The Christmas Curse.

What is…(sinister music)…The Christmas Curse?  It is the little-known, but apparently unavoidable phenomenon by which anyone from Tim’s family that dies will do so during the period of time from two weeks before Christmas to one week after New Years.  And if they don’t die before Christmas, they will linger on the brink of death throughout the holidays causing all loved ones to spend Christmas in a hospital waiting room.

I kid you not.  His mother.  His father.  His grandmother.  Numerous aunts and uncles.  A brother-in-law.  Now another uncle.  Uncle Ralph.  He passed away Wednesday, about 15 minutes after I’d left the nursing home from a visit.  He had untreatable cancer so death was not an unexpected end, but no one was expecting it NOW.  Tonight is the viewing and the funeral is tomorrow. 

To add to the fun, we’re supposed to have a big Christmas party here at the house tomorrow night (and Tim says we’re going ahead).

Oh, yeah, and Megan woke up sick.

1. Hot chocolate or apple cider? Definitely hot chocolate. I have a great recipe using eggnog as the base.  Mmmm.

2. Turkey or ham? Gotta be ham for Christmas.

3. Do you get a fake or real-you-cut-it-yourself tree? Fake, but it looks very realistic and I burn pine scented candles. I just got tired of cleaning up pine needles till June.

4. Decorations on the outside of your house? Just candles in the windows this year.  With all the remodeling inside, I couldn’t get Tim to help with lights outside.

5. Snowball fights or sleddin’? Neither. There’s a nice cozy fire or a warm, sandy beach calling my name.

6. Do you enjoy downtown shopping? I don’t know. I haven’t done it since I was a kid, but I figure shopping is shopping.

7. Favorite Christmas song? ‘I Celebrate the Day’ by Relient K.

8. How do you feel about Christmas movies? I confess to a not-so-secret addiction to them. In addition to a whole box full that I own, I watch all the specials on television, too.

9. When is it too early to start listening to Christmas music? Before Thanksgiving.

10. Stockings before or after presents? Before. Keeps the kiddos busy long enough for Dad and I to grab a cuppa and try to wake up.

11. Carolers…do you or do you not watch and listen to them? We’ve never had carolers here.

12. Go to someone else’s house or they come to yours? We don’t go anywhere on Christmas Day. One thing I got from my dad is that kids should be home on Christmas. You never know who might end up here, though.

13. Do you read the Christmas Story? If so, when? We used to be so involved in the church that we didn’t really read the story at home since we heard it so many times anyway.  Now that we don’t have a church I should try to start doing that, but the kids are older.  I don’t know how it would go over.  Maybe I’ll just wait to start it with grandkids?

14. What do you do after presents and dinner? Nap, play games, watch movies, conversation. Maybe take a walk.

15. What is your favorite holiday smell? Pine. We had real trees when I was a kid and ‘Santa’ always brought them after I’d gone to bed on Christmas Eve. I would know Santa had come when I woke up Christmas morning and smelled pine.

16. Ice skating or walking around the mall? I guess I’d have to choose the mall because at least I can’t (as easily) break my ankle there.

17. Do you open a present or presents on Christmas Eve or wait till Christmas Day? We always wait.

18. Favorite Christmas memory? My parents coming to stay with us for our son’s first Christmas and all of us working together to make the stuffing the night before. Even my dad. It was the best stuffing ever.

19. Favorite part of winter? The end.

20. Ever been kissed under mistletoe? Yep. I usually have some hanging in the house.