Thises and Thats

You're gonna get a little of each today. Here we go!

Things I Appreciate About My Apartment (Another Eclectic Calendar Celebration)

-I can afford it.
-It is small and cozy.
-I have neighbors nearby to keep an eye on things.
-The kickass red door.
-If anything goes wrong, I don't have to fix it.
-The pool.
-The lizards that live in the bushes out front.
-Feeling safe and happy there.

Books You Might Want to Read

-Round Rock - Michelle Huneven
-Jamesland - Michelle Huneven
-The Music Teacher - Barbara Hall
-Last Standing Woman - Winona LaDuke

Fun Songs to Hear on a Friday While Driving to Work

-Poison by Bell Biv Devoe
-O.P.P. by Naughty By Nature
-Fantastic Voyage - Coolio
-Shoop - Salt n Pepa

Things You Don't Want to Deal With at Work

-The disgruntled co-worker situation. Dude, you didn't get the job. Get over it or move on, because you are stressing the rest of the department right the fuck out.

Things I Now Know About Monorails

-We could run them along our flood control channels.
-They can be built and operated at about one third to one half of the cost of light rails.
-For some reason the people in charge of mass transit in this country cannot be persuaded to take them seriously or even consider them casually.
-They would look cool and futuristic. I'd ride them!
-People who are interested in monorails can talk for a really, really, really long time about why they are interested.

After a Really Long Day, It is Nice to Come Home to...

-A package mailed just to you, with fun stuff inside and an awesome note. Long live snail mail.

I bet you have lots of thises and thats built up by the end of the week too. I'd love to hear about some of them...or all of them, even!

Getting All Stuart Smalley On You

Hey, did you know that today is Self Affirmation Day (”I’m good enough, I’m smart enough and…doggone it! People like me!”) That's the word over at Eclectic Spaghetti. It has been awhile since I've celebrated an Eclectic holiday and this one strikes me a one I could use.

So...self-affirmations. Always so hard, don't you think? Let's see...Oh! I meant to mention this...here is a good one. On Sunday, my Musical Message was also my 1,200th post. So, I may not be the best blogger in the world, but I'd say I'm showing some stamina or something, right? Yay 1,200!!! What else? I have raised / am raising 5 human beings to adulthood without doing any serious damage that I know of. Right on! Um, hm...even though at work I am a paraprofessional rather than a professional, I think I behave in a professional manner. I know of a professional or two here who are far less professional than I am. Of course this is all just semantics :-) But I'm a good worker. Rah! I can be sarcastic, but I believe that I am basically a kind person who is willing to think the best of people...and that seems to me a very positive trait. So I'm giving myself kudos for that too.

Okay. This is weird. Self-affirmation feels so boastful. I know it is to make you feel good about yourself. I prefer to hear it from other people...but I know we shouldn't need that...we should be able to find it in ourselves. So, I tried. You should too. Tell yourself (and us, if you would like) about all the things that make you good enough, smart enough, and so gosh darn likeable!

Waste Not, Want Not?

You came! Thanks. Now you get to play Choose and Defend, because it is after all Wednesday...the day to dig deep and show us how your mind works. Today's Choose and Defend is about things we all waste on occasion. It just happens. But...which is worse? Which bothers you more? And why?

Is it worse to waste....

Time

or

Money

Think it through before you answer...which one really bothers you most...and why? Choose and Defend! Show us what is going on up there in that big brain of yours.

What Pet Are You Like?

You Are Like a Cat

You are independent and a bit stubborn. You are content to do your own thing. You are curious about the world but still an individual. You prefer to be a solo explorer. You enjoy your alone time, but you also like some quiet company from time to time. You crave companionship, even if it means just spending time in the same room together.

What Pet Are You Like?

Um-hm. I knew it! Puuurrrr....

Don't Argue with a Twelve Year Old

You might come out on top, but you'll feel like crap. haha! I know...after five kids I should have known. I do know. Still sometimes Handsome Lad and I just have to duke it out. He is a VERY emotional kid.Here he is enjoying a giant icee in happier times.
haha! I get it...I am kind of emotional too. Presumably, though, I've learned to take better charge of my emotions. Sometimes it works that way...mostly it does, but not always. In the end though, it didn't do any damage. We both said what we wanted to say and I think he was reminded that people outside of his own head have feelings too. We all forget that once in awhile.

Other than that little bit of bad mommy-ing my weekend was good enough. I worked on Saturday with my new boss. She had this great idea to split our desk time down the middle of the day day. She asked if I would do 10-2 and she could do 2-6. Usually we do 1 to 2 hours on the desk at a time and alternate with whoever is here. But I was all over this idea. She was giving me the less insane 4 hours...and also giving me 4 hours in a row free! Well, not free...still plenty to do, but not public oriented. Anyway, I thought it was fine, but I'm not sure if she'll ever ask to do it again :-)

Saturday night both Girlie Girl and Handsome Lad were out, so I just hung around on Facebook. It gave me a chance to catch up on my many, many gifts from my friends (Randall, do you ever read here...you are the champion!).. I let them build up for awhile, but they accumulate suprisingly quickly...so usually once a week I go through my request list accepting things and sending things back because I am a good Facebook friend like that. There is almost always someone to chat with there, too. Facebook on a Saturday night. Don't be jealous.

On Sunday, I slept in. It felt like heaven. My son, Social Animal, called and invited me to come have pizza at the park with he and his friends.This is the company Social Animal works for as an EMT while he is going to school.
I'm not sure what inspired him to throw a pizza luncheon, but it was nice to be invited. When I got there, it was Social Animal and four of his friends sitting around just talking and eating pizza. I joined them and it was fun to talk with them...and to just sit quietly and listen to them talk. They are all young men on the brink of adulthood...Social Animal will be 20 in a couple of weeks...but they are still so sweet and childlike in some ways. After lunch they decided to go on a hike, so I excused myself and went on home to watch the last episode of Six Feet Under, season one. I am making my way through that series again on Netflix. So far, it is just as awesome as I remember it to be. Also watched the season finale of Breaking Bad. Oh. My. Gawd. That show is amazing and very dark. Again, I can't recommend it strongly enough.

I also got a phone call and invitation from my friend The Activist. He wants me to come out to a screening on Thursday evening in Echo Park. I am not clear on all the details, but it seems to involve some sort of video and speaker...and the subject is monorails. Well, yeah, why not? What the hell else do I have going on? Nothing wrong with learning more about a clean, quiet alternative form of transportation. And we do stuff like this for our friends, right? Right.

....Yikes...just now Princess Diva texted me and told me she had taken Miss Personality to the doctor for a rash and it turned out to be scabies. Ew. I know it isn't that uncommon, but I am a little grossed out...I can't help it. Sorry Miss Personality. I still love you, but I'll see you guys when this is aaaaallllll gone. Add bad grandma to my resume, s'il vous plait.

Um, hmmmm...well, now it is Monday. Let's see how it all goes, shall we? Talk back is welcomed, as always :-)

This is NOT a Musical Message

I just posted this for anyone interested in Stanky Leg. In fairness, if you are not, say, 18 or under, you may not be into it. But if you want to dance with your friends and be awesome, you might want to learn it. Pretty soon though, because these things don't have much of a shelf life...

This Musical Message is for Being Your Whatever You Want

Let's Go Howlin' at the Honky Tonk Moon

I want to thank Tara at Eclectic Spaghetti for choosing such a fun, interesting word for this week's Saturday Scavenger Hunt. After all, who doesn't love getting RAMBUNCTIOUS? I have far too few opportunities for RAMBUNCTIOUS behavior...and whatever I do get up to, well, I might not want to post photos documenting such behavior. However, I did come up with a couple of RAMBUNCTIOUS shots.

Like many of my phone pictures, this one is blurry. In fact, this one is extra blurry. But, it is an action shot! Girlie Girl, Handsome Lad, Miss Personality, and Love Bug were having a dance party. If I recall, they were all attempting da Stinky Leg. What could be more RAMBUNCTIOUS than that? Hmmm.

When I am feeling RAMBUNCTIOUS I simply take my action figures and photograph them in compromising positions. I have showed you this one before I think...and come to think of it, I didn't do this...Handsome Lad did. Drat. Upstaged by a tween.

Well, I tried. What can I say? In my heart, I am as RAMBUNCTIOUS as the next guy. The proof though... oh that is hidden away :-) I can't wait to see you all getting RAMBUNCTIOUS...and I can't wait to see who Tara tags for next week!

Friday 5 - Longs and Shorts

Aaaahhhh, Friday. Let me assure you that today was a much, much better day than yesterday. I do love my Fridays off...and although I am looking forward to the kids' summer vacation I will definitely miss my Fridays during those weeks.

Anyway, I thought I'd give the Friday 5 a go. Feel free to answer any or all of the questions for yourself. I'm interested. I care. The beat goes on.

1. What is the longest you’ve gone between haircuts? For-ev-er. For-ev-er. Okay, maybe not that long, but a disgracefully long time. I never know what to do with my hair, so I just tend to let it go.

2. What is the shortest hour of the day? I'm not sure if there is any one hour I could pick out. You know how time is...so elastic. So non-linear. But let's go with the cliche and say that my lunch hour tends to seem pretty gosh darn short. Mm-hm.

3. What is the longest line you’ve ever stood in? I don't know for sure, but I am guessing it may be a three way tie between Star Wars back in 1977, Journey at the Rose Bowl in 1982....and just about any ride at Disneyland on any given weekend, especially during summer vacation.

4. Who’s your shortest adult friend? Aw, my first library boss, when I worked at Altadena Public. Her name is Jackie and she is this tiny, round little lady, who talks really, really, really fast. Although she claims people just don't listen fast enough and she loves that I always understand her. She is about 4'9" and always wears these teeny little vintage heels, with her teeny little vintage suits. One of her greatest personal attachments is to her departed Rabbit, Bun Bun. He is buried in a pet cemetery, where she visits him quite regularly.

5. Who among your current friends have you known the longest? Well, there are people from my childhood, whom I would still consider my friends, but I don't see or talk to them on a regular basis. I guess the furthest I could go back is maybe high school...ah, and you saw Gerard in my last post! He was my high school sweetheart and we are friends to this day. I've known him...damn...32 years.

Friday 5, friends. You can't win if you don't play. Okay, that is the Lotto, but still....

My Brain is Fried

I don't know what the deal is, but I am so shot today. I can't think straight. I feel all beat up somehow. Do you ever just wish you could be someone entirely different? It is one of those days. So, since I can't talk and make sense I will show you some pictures. They aren't even my pictures. My friend went to Costa Rica last month and sent them to me. So please to enjoy....

I think I'd like this more without the car...but who am I to criticize someone else's vacation photos? :-)

Um, here is something in a tree. I told you, my brain is fried. You tell me what it is, mm-kay? Thanks.

Here is my friend. Smiling and relaxed because he was in Costa Rica. Thanks for the pictures, Gerard!

Tomorrow, I will try to do better. Although I guess a couple of nice pictures is not such a bad thing anyway, right? Right.

Mistress Mary Wasn't Contrary....

...she just needed to make a choice! And guess what? You do too, because it is Choose and Defend Wednesday in these here parts. This Choose and Defend is inspired by this season...this growing season. The crops are a-risin' and the flowers, they be bloomin'. Many of you are gardeners. Some of you may be simply garden appreciators. Either way, you surely have opinions and preferences. Gardening will do that to you. Okay. So, say that you had to make a choice (you do) and you could only grow one sort of a garden. And what if after you had made that choice, you were asked (you have been) to defend that choice, tooth and nail. Tell me about your one and only garden. Is it...

A Flower Garden
Or

A Vegetable Garden

Don't be contrary. Choose and Defend. How will your garden grow when your choices are very, very limited? Speak to me.

Digging a Little Deeper

I notice that most of the time after I post a particularly whiny post I feel compelled to go back and qualify stuff. Because I feel I get kind of harsh when I am feeling down and just letting it all out. So, here I am again, wanting to say something in the interest of absolute fairness.

Okay, so I did get my daughter's car over to her dad's house. And as I suspected, he is now tending to the problem. What I don't mention is how sometimes I am fine with just throwing up my hands. What I mean is...he picked the car, bought the car, presented the car, without a word to me. Fine. To me, that makes the car his responsibility. Imagine being freed from that responsibility! I admit that a part of me likes that. However, that is not the part of me I feel proud of. The adult me would prefer to talk something over, reach a decision together, discuss in advance how we might handle issues as they come up. But, in all the time I've known WTG, I can honestly not remember having a single conversation of that nature. Anyway, it turns out this isn't really about him and his issues. It is more about me and mine. How I sometimes like not being in charge. And how shameful that seems to me, when I really stop to consider it. It's really quite loser-ish and I feel embarrassed.

Funny how different everything looks when you aren't all wacked out on cold meds. :-) He is an ass. No way around it. But I think I kind of am too.

The Whiner Edition (You've Been Warned)

It's Memorial Day...Never Forget, Ever Honor...and all that.

Hope you are all having a nice long weekend...or that you had a nice regular length weekend. I need a moment to complain a bit and decided to indulge myself here. I mean, if not here, where? Okay, so I did get my computer, which had been ill, back in a pretty timely fashion and it seems to be doing what it should and not doing what it shouldn't. So that is a good thing. Otherwise, my weekend so far has kind of sucked. I've got a nasty cold or something, which I am totally blaming on breathing in stale, gross, uncirculated air in the library for the past week...and that little project isn't nearly over. Oh, no, I will go on wallowing in this air for at least another two or three weeks. This couldn't be good for anyone. I slept all day Saturday, a good portion of Sunday, and only this morning am I feeling more myself...although a stuffy version of myself.
No, I'm not quite finished, sorry. I have a bit of a WTG complaint, which you haven't had the opportunity to enjoy in a while. For some reason, a couple of weeks ago he decided to get Girlie Girl's car painted. Sounds nice, but you must understand...it didn't really need to be painted, he complained about what he was spending on it the whole time it was going on, and left him feeling like he had fully attended to her car for the next little while. Great, except that when she broke down last night, he decided he'd had enough of dealing with her car and blamed it on her...Why do you drive your car so much? Throws up his hands and says he can't deal with it. Ass. Since it was left up to us, we decided to wait and handle it in the light of day...today. My big plan is to have that sucker towed to his house and let him call his little mechanic friend. I'm pretty sure his managerial tendencies will kick in when he actually sees the car in front of his house. I consider it his responsibility, as he never talked to me before getting her a 14 year old BMW...I assure you, that would not have been my choice.
Um, okay. I guess I'm through and I do apologize. But also, I feel a little better just getting it out of my head. Here's hoping that today is a better day. Please.

This Musical Message is For Singing It Out

And It Will Take A Lot of Prayers to Save My Soul

Is it Saturday already? It sure is. It must be, because here I am with my Saturday Scavenger Hunt post. This week's word was chosen by rogue blogger AlienCG over at Swamp Gas & Moonlit Reflections. The word is....GROW. Very open ended, really. But as I so often do, I am going very literal. Check it out - - -

You can't actually watch your own hair GROW, even though at times I feel I am made almost entirely of hair.

But hair does GROW and here is the proof. This little picture was me with my haircut a little over two years ago. Since then, I've done virtually nothing to me hair. And it shows. Guh.

Here are some much, much cuter examples of how we GROW...again, literally :-)

Those first few months of watching a baby GROW are soooo amazing. Little Prince is coming up on nine months. I see him at least once a week, but sometimes I know he did some GROWing between one visit and the next.

Okay, I confess...this is just a sweet picture I had to post of Miss Personality and Love Bug hugging it out. But it works. This is how much you will probably GROW between the ages of 1 and 4!

What happens when you GROW too large for your beloved swing? If you are Love Bug, you sit in it anyway, just for old times sake. She looks rather pensive, but funny with her longer than baby legs dangling out. Soon, she will have GROWn too big for even a nostalgic rock there. Aw!

Thanks for looking at baby pictures with me. You know you run that risk when you come by here...so I extra appreciate you coming. I know from my own kids how quickly they GROW. And I know from myself how quickly hair GROWs. Also, I hope I can continue to GROW as a human bean, although I wasn't prepared with any sort of photo that might show you that. You'll just have to take my word for it.

Don't forget to check with the Alien and see who he's tagged for next week. Also, don't forget to let at least a little part of you not GROW up. We all need that inner child. *insert dopey new age music here*

Checking In w/ laura b.

I guess I haven't much to say today. So, I thought I'd just share some of my current events.

I have just begun reading Sock by Penn Jillette. It is a mystery whose narrator is a wiseass sock monkey. Pretty unusual...but it is Penn Jillette.


Just listening to "Beth" by KISS. Classic.


In spite of the heat, I smell like Caldrea White Clover lotion. Aren't you glad to hear that? Things could be much worse :-)


Chili dogs for dinner tonight. I make no promises about the way my breath will smell after that, but I know they will be delicious. I've been brewing chili all day long in the crock pot. Yum.


I am feeling sleepy. It is a combination of not enough sleep, duh, but also I think the fact that it is rather warm in here and quiet. The teens are watching a movie in the auditorium. I wish they'd show one everyday. haha!


Also, my feelings are hurt. Just one of those things, I suppose. But this too shall pass.

I'd love to hear all your most current events. If you are so inclined, do feel free to share. I promise not to hurt your feelings :-)

Duck! Ah, You Quack Me Up :-)

Today is two things. Well, more than that I'm sure. But here at What Fresh Hell is This? it two things: 1)Handsome Lad's Birthday (see post below) and 2) Choose and Defend Wednesday (see this post)

This Wednesday's Choose and Defend comes to us as a suggestion from Woman with No Regrets. I'm kind of excited to have received a request :-) As you know, there are many ducks in the world. Here, now, we focus with laser-like intensity on only two of them. Your job is to make a choice between these two esteemed ducks. Choose. Then, your job is to Defend your choice to the group. Easy as pie. Um, eating it, not baking it...I believe that was the call on that little statement, right? Yeah.

So, who's da duck, man? Is it...

Daffy
Or

Donald

Duck, duck...and that's it. Two ducks, one choice. Let's hear it, my fine feather-free friends.

Happy 12th Birthday, Handsome Lad!

I can't believe my baby, Daniel Handsome Lad is turning 12 today. When my oldest son was 12, he seemed so big to me...I think because of the younger kids that I also had...right down to Handsome Lad who was just joining us that year. Now 12 seems a much younger age. They don't call babies of the family "baby of the family" for nothing, now do they? No, Handsome Lad will always be the baby :)

I just want to recognize, on his special day, what a great kid he is. Here are some Handsome Lad facts for you:

- When he was very small he had a very large key collection. And whenever we went out walking anywhere, he would have to stop at any lock he found and try out his keys in it. Sure, it took us longer to get around, but his concentration was unwavering. There was something darling about it.

- He's very athletic and coordinated, but he doesn't particularly enjoy team or organized sports. Finally, a couple of years ago, he discovered skateboarding. Now he skates every single day if nothing else gets in his way.

- His performance in school seems to be based primarily upon his interest level in whatever is being taught. I have seen him go all out for teachers he likes and subjects he finds engaging. I have seen completely shut down if there is a personality conflict or an area that doesn't matter to him.

- He likes reading biographies and humorous fiction. When he was younger he wrote a little series of biographies about his favorite wrestlers. They were hilarious. He loves history. Math, not so much. He especially loves art and I am happy to say that he fully believes that art is like anything else...if you practice it enough each day, you will get good at it.

- Handsome Lad can be insanely funny. He is especially adept at prop comedy and odd impersonations. Sometimes when he and one of the other kids get going on something as a team, I have found myself reduced to helpless laughter.

- Maybe because of his position as the youngest, he has a deeply personal and close connection to each person in the family individually. It seems like he has made a special effort to find something to bond over with each of his brothers and his sister. He is also very close to both his dad and I, which has sometimes made him feel conflicted. I feel bad about that, of course, but that is definitely getting better.

- I feel certain that Handsome Lad, equipped with his intensity, his humor, and his sensitivity is bound to lead a full and interesting life. I feel so lucky to know him.

Happy Birthday, Handsome Lad. Next year...the teens.

How is Your Inner Child? You Know You Want to Know...

Your Inner Child Is Surprised

You see many things through the eyes of a child. Meaning, you're rarely cynical or jaded. You cherish all of the details in life. Easily fascinated, you enjoy experiencing new things.

How Is Your Inner Child?

What Primary Color Am I? BlogThings Tells Me.

You Are Yellow

You are bright, vibrant, and cheerful. Your energy can take over a room. You look on the sunny side of life. You are able to avoid stress, anxiety, and burnout. It's hard to get you down, and you've rarely been depressed in your life. You tend to have a clear mind and an unburdened heart. You try to bring as much light as possible into your life.

What Primary Color Are You?