I love the Etrade commercials. LOVE them! I never tire of the babies telling me they went to Vegas or that riding your dog like a horse is "FROWNED UPON IN THIS ESTABLISHMENT". They make me laugh. Hard. Every time I see them. I also love the TV show Minute To Win It. Those games are much harder than you think and are fun to do. I love Harry Potter...but you already knew that. I love coffee, Guitar Hero, the color red and handbags. I love my family and that I have a dog named Kevin. I love my fish tank, my car and polka dots. I love Lip Smackers, bread and pedicures. I love drinks with friends, sushi and painting walls. I love books, getting my hair done, live music, genealogy, and holiday lights. I love Pho', Prada, pictures and Prince. I love travel, my house and my gal pals. I love St Patricks Day, art museums, diamonds and massages.
I love a lot of things. I also don't love a lot of things. However this is the time of year to focus on what you love and not what you hate. There is no place for them during the Holiday Season. Love the people and things you love, forget and let go of the things you don't.
Tuesday, December 7, 2010
Monday, November 15, 2010
Purple Velvet Frog
Contrary to what the weather thinks, it's the Holiday Season. Thanksgiving is right around the corner and soon Christmas upon us. This year has me a bit stressed for a couple of reasons. One, this is the first year we are on a tight budget for the holidays and two, I have family coming for the holidays. My family doesn't stress me out in a bad way, just the "really want them to have fun and enjoy themselves" way. The budget on the other hand....ugh. With my son's birthday being a few days before Christmas and our anniversary being a few days after it has always been an expensive time of year. Truly though we have never worried to much about it because between our two jobs we were able to spend what we wanted. This year, with one less job, that isn't so much the case. I've been looking into more personal, less materialistic gifts trying to find something people might really want or need instead of "this will work, don't care how much it is". I've been stressed however about what people, mostly my kiddos, will think when their gifts obviously aren't as expensive as they have been in the past. And yes, they will notice - they are 12 and almost 17. But then I was reminded of something....
Growing up we didn't have much money. And by not much I mean none. One Christmas was particularly lean and my Mother kept saying "don't expect much". The age I was at the time, I didn't really register what that meant and thought I'd only get two or three gifts instead of 5. Christmas morning came and we had stockings like always and my sister and I each had a couple of gifts. One of my gifts was a very large purple velvet frog. My Mother had made it out of some scraps of fabric she had found and an old pillow. I LOVED IT! Not just a little bit, I loved it A LOT! That frog lived on my bed until, when I was 15, our new puppy decided to use it as a chew toy and it had to be thrown away as it was completely ruined. I was heartbroken. I've always remembered that Christmas very clearly because it was such a great present.
As that story was brought back to my mind I let some of the stress go about my kids and Christmas. My extended family won't care if I spend a little less on them this year and honestly, I don't think my kids will either. They are old enough to understand economics and if I try really hard to find things they love...that is all that will matter. Now I'm off to find my kids their very own "Purple Velvet Frog".
Growing up we didn't have much money. And by not much I mean none. One Christmas was particularly lean and my Mother kept saying "don't expect much". The age I was at the time, I didn't really register what that meant and thought I'd only get two or three gifts instead of 5. Christmas morning came and we had stockings like always and my sister and I each had a couple of gifts. One of my gifts was a very large purple velvet frog. My Mother had made it out of some scraps of fabric she had found and an old pillow. I LOVED IT! Not just a little bit, I loved it A LOT! That frog lived on my bed until, when I was 15, our new puppy decided to use it as a chew toy and it had to be thrown away as it was completely ruined. I was heartbroken. I've always remembered that Christmas very clearly because it was such a great present.
As that story was brought back to my mind I let some of the stress go about my kids and Christmas. My extended family won't care if I spend a little less on them this year and honestly, I don't think my kids will either. They are old enough to understand economics and if I try really hard to find things they love...that is all that will matter. Now I'm off to find my kids their very own "Purple Velvet Frog".
Tuesday, November 2, 2010
Soapbox
Today is Election Day. A day when we can change our government to better serve us. Right. If you believe that I have a bridge to sell you. What today really should be called is "$300 Million down the drain" Day, or "I'll tell you whatever you want to hear" Day. Yeah today makes me a little grumpy.
I used to be a political junky. Election days were my Superbowl Sundays. I watched all the news channels endlessly to listen to the most up to date information and evaluations. I LOVED IT! Oh how silly and naive I was. Sadly what I learned during the Bush administration was that all politicians are liars. Oh not just Republicans...ALL of them! Repubs, Demos, Indi's are all made from the same cloth. The politician cloth. They spend millions on research to find out exactly what people want to hear and then spend millions more getting "their" word out. They don't care about you or your views. They care about power and money. Perfect example: Kevin Yoder is running for office in Kansas. Kevin Yoder is a republican. Kevin Yoder was first a democrat and when asked why he changed parties he said "Democrats can't win in Kansas". Not that he'd changed his views or grown into a different person with age and felt the repub party fit him better. Oh no, Democrats can't win in Kansas. Way to learn how to play the game Kevin.
Now I don't think all politicians start out this way. I do feel that some, on a smaller local level, really do feel like they want to make a change. That they can do some good. However the further up the chain you go, the less you find this attitude. Why is that, you may ask. Well, let me just tell you. You know how those stupid girls in Hollywood soon discover the more tabloid magazines your face is in, the more popular you get? Same concept for politicians. As they move up the food chain of politics they soon discover that Washington is just a game to be played. You scratch my back, I'll give you money. You vote for my lobby, I'll help you get the bigger office on capitol hill. Favors, money, power are all passed around like Halloween candy and it has destroyed our government.
So what is my solution other than starting a revolution? I've had an idea that I wish, somehow some way, would happen. I call it Citizen Review Commission. I think there should be a new section of government, made up of ordinary American citizens that review and either approve or deny all governmental bills/laws/taxes etc. They wouldn't be elected, instead using a lottery much like the our jury system. Mandatory attendance, jobs not allowed to refuse to let you go, exceptions following the same lines as jury duty, 1 year terms, small salary...you get the idea. Here's the kicker. All information sent to the CRC has to have NO NAMES OR PARTY AFFILIATION anywhere on it. You vote on the information without any outside influences. Call me crazy but I think it could work. You may not agree but you have to admit, what we have doesn't work and at least I'm trying to find a way to fix it. I know I know, I've thought way to much about this but if you have an idea I would love to hear it. Seriously! I think its time for some brainstorming.
Something has to give and soon. The blame game is exhausting, the money being spent on campaigns is insane and I'm sick of the bullsh*t. I mean do you have ANY idea what $300 million (the amount spent on campaigns this election) could do? Feed hungry children, health clinics, police officers, fire departments, education-it infuriates me. The current state of our country isn't Obama's fault nor Bush's. It is years of money ruling the roost and no one standing up against it. Its the fact that most Americans would rather fight about a cause than do something to further it.
I promise all of you I won't speak of politics in my blog ever again. I'm putting my soapbox away for good.
I used to be a political junky. Election days were my Superbowl Sundays. I watched all the news channels endlessly to listen to the most up to date information and evaluations. I LOVED IT! Oh how silly and naive I was. Sadly what I learned during the Bush administration was that all politicians are liars. Oh not just Republicans...ALL of them! Repubs, Demos, Indi's are all made from the same cloth. The politician cloth. They spend millions on research to find out exactly what people want to hear and then spend millions more getting "their" word out. They don't care about you or your views. They care about power and money. Perfect example: Kevin Yoder is running for office in Kansas. Kevin Yoder is a republican. Kevin Yoder was first a democrat and when asked why he changed parties he said "Democrats can't win in Kansas". Not that he'd changed his views or grown into a different person with age and felt the repub party fit him better. Oh no, Democrats can't win in Kansas. Way to learn how to play the game Kevin.
Now I don't think all politicians start out this way. I do feel that some, on a smaller local level, really do feel like they want to make a change. That they can do some good. However the further up the chain you go, the less you find this attitude. Why is that, you may ask. Well, let me just tell you. You know how those stupid girls in Hollywood soon discover the more tabloid magazines your face is in, the more popular you get? Same concept for politicians. As they move up the food chain of politics they soon discover that Washington is just a game to be played. You scratch my back, I'll give you money. You vote for my lobby, I'll help you get the bigger office on capitol hill. Favors, money, power are all passed around like Halloween candy and it has destroyed our government.
So what is my solution other than starting a revolution? I've had an idea that I wish, somehow some way, would happen. I call it Citizen Review Commission. I think there should be a new section of government, made up of ordinary American citizens that review and either approve or deny all governmental bills/laws/taxes etc. They wouldn't be elected, instead using a lottery much like the our jury system. Mandatory attendance, jobs not allowed to refuse to let you go, exceptions following the same lines as jury duty, 1 year terms, small salary...you get the idea. Here's the kicker. All information sent to the CRC has to have NO NAMES OR PARTY AFFILIATION anywhere on it. You vote on the information without any outside influences. Call me crazy but I think it could work. You may not agree but you have to admit, what we have doesn't work and at least I'm trying to find a way to fix it. I know I know, I've thought way to much about this but if you have an idea I would love to hear it. Seriously! I think its time for some brainstorming.
Something has to give and soon. The blame game is exhausting, the money being spent on campaigns is insane and I'm sick of the bullsh*t. I mean do you have ANY idea what $300 million (the amount spent on campaigns this election) could do? Feed hungry children, health clinics, police officers, fire departments, education-it infuriates me. The current state of our country isn't Obama's fault nor Bush's. It is years of money ruling the roost and no one standing up against it. Its the fact that most Americans would rather fight about a cause than do something to further it.
I promise all of you I won't speak of politics in my blog ever again. I'm putting my soapbox away for good.
Monday, November 1, 2010
Leaves...
"How silently they tumble down
And come to rest upon the ground
To lay a carpet, rich and rare,
Beneath the trees without a care,
Content to sleep, their work well done,
Colors gleaming in the sun.
At other times, they wildly fly
Until they nearly reach the sky.
Twisting, turning through the air
Till all the trees stand stark and bare.
Exhausted, drop to earth below
To wait, like children, for the snow."
- Elsie N. Brady, Leaves
And come to rest upon the ground
To lay a carpet, rich and rare,
Beneath the trees without a care,
Content to sleep, their work well done,
Colors gleaming in the sun.
At other times, they wildly fly
Until they nearly reach the sky.
Twisting, turning through the air
Till all the trees stand stark and bare.
Exhausted, drop to earth below
To wait, like children, for the snow."
- Elsie N. Brady, Leaves
Saturday, October 16, 2010
I made a bag.
I've officially been off work for 5 months now. A busy, over scheduled, fantastically wonderful 5 months. I've not been this calm in a long time. I'm busy with things I want to do now instead of cramming everything into the couple of days off I had. I'm busy with fun activities, parent activities, lunches with pals, doula clients, and a long laundry list of things I actually like to do. And, even after all of that, I still have a bit of spare time.
Because of the change in our budget situation I had been looking for ways to save money or at least cut back a bit. When my darling friend McKenna's baby shower came along I decided I'd make her a blanket. So I drug out my sewing machine, which had not seen the light of day in many many many years, and started sewing. I had made a blanket for my daughter when she was just a few weeks old and it became "the blanket". It was the that was toted around until she was almost 6 yrs old. I knew I could trust myself to sew a straight line and know it would hold up over time. After making McKenna's blanket I had some fabric left over so I made a bunch of burp cloths too. It was fun. Can't say they were perfect in anyway but I had a good time making them.
I decided to see what else I could make since there are a million free patterns online. I found a simple bag pattern that I thought I'd try. Low and behold, it worked. I made a bag. Look for yourself. It even has a cute little lining....
Now I know its not a Kate Spade bag or anything, but after making it I realized a bunch of different ways I could change it up, add pockets, etc. What I realized most, however, was that I was kinda proud of myself. Crazy little pat on the back. Maybe quitting my job was the perfect way to find my inner Martha Stewart.
Because of the change in our budget situation I had been looking for ways to save money or at least cut back a bit. When my darling friend McKenna's baby shower came along I decided I'd make her a blanket. So I drug out my sewing machine, which had not seen the light of day in many many many years, and started sewing. I had made a blanket for my daughter when she was just a few weeks old and it became "the blanket". It was the that was toted around until she was almost 6 yrs old. I knew I could trust myself to sew a straight line and know it would hold up over time. After making McKenna's blanket I had some fabric left over so I made a bunch of burp cloths too. It was fun. Can't say they were perfect in anyway but I had a good time making them.
I decided to see what else I could make since there are a million free patterns online. I found a simple bag pattern that I thought I'd try. Low and behold, it worked. I made a bag. Look for yourself. It even has a cute little lining....
Now I know its not a Kate Spade bag or anything, but after making it I realized a bunch of different ways I could change it up, add pockets, etc. What I realized most, however, was that I was kinda proud of myself. Crazy little pat on the back. Maybe quitting my job was the perfect way to find my inner Martha Stewart.
Monday, October 11, 2010
Tetris was the key
I've blogged before about my son's college challenges. How he had no real interest in going other than he knows he should and can't see any fun in it at all. Well last friday, that all changed. He came home from school and was dying to show me something on youtube. It was a video his band instructor had shown him that day.
Marching band isn't going so well this year. This is the first year in a long time they have had to let the Freshman march because of low numbers in certain instruments. A few months into the season they are having a hard time getting it perfect. Mrs Watzke then found this video on youtube and showed it to the kids to get them to realize how important lines and being exact were. What Mrs Watzke didn't know is she inspired my son. He is now DYING to go to college. Here is the video.
If you're not a video game fan, the band is doing theme songs from different video games. But what got Hayden was the side bar next to the video on youtube. This marching band does great shows. Hip Hop, video games, Michael Jackson, Green Day...you name it, they've covered it. He was fascinated. He kept saying "Watch this part" and "Look at that!" After we spent an hour watching their shows, he looked at me and said "I had no idea college marching would be fun like that."
College night is this wednesday at Hayden's high school. He has picked up the map of where everyone will be located, picked out the schools he likes, looked to see if they have marching programs and numbered them in order of importance to him. Talk about a 180 degree turn. Honestly though, if a California marching band is what it takes to get him excited, so be it. I'm just thrilled he finally gets it.
Marching band isn't going so well this year. This is the first year in a long time they have had to let the Freshman march because of low numbers in certain instruments. A few months into the season they are having a hard time getting it perfect. Mrs Watzke then found this video on youtube and showed it to the kids to get them to realize how important lines and being exact were. What Mrs Watzke didn't know is she inspired my son. He is now DYING to go to college. Here is the video.
If you're not a video game fan, the band is doing theme songs from different video games. But what got Hayden was the side bar next to the video on youtube. This marching band does great shows. Hip Hop, video games, Michael Jackson, Green Day...you name it, they've covered it. He was fascinated. He kept saying "Watch this part" and "Look at that!" After we spent an hour watching their shows, he looked at me and said "I had no idea college marching would be fun like that."
College night is this wednesday at Hayden's high school. He has picked up the map of where everyone will be located, picked out the schools he likes, looked to see if they have marching programs and numbered them in order of importance to him. Talk about a 180 degree turn. Honestly though, if a California marching band is what it takes to get him excited, so be it. I'm just thrilled he finally gets it.
Wednesday, October 6, 2010
Writing, not just for breakfast anymore...
I've been doing a lot of thinking about books and authors lately. Anyone who knows me understands that books are a huge part of my life. I remember becoming lost in books as early as 2nd and 3rd grade, so saying I love to read is an overwhelming understatement. It seems over the last month or two I've been paying particular attention to authors. I was lucky enough to meet Diana Gabaldon (which I've learned I've been saying her last name wrong-she's Spanish not Irish so its pronounced Gab-al-don as in stone) and watched numerous interviews with JK Rowling. Now I know many of you rolled your eyes when I just said JK Rowling so lets just get this one thing out of the way...
Yes I'm obsessed. I think her face should be on Mt Rushmore with Lincoln. I think we should erect monuments to her in every library on the planet. If you believe in a God you should believe he/she/it put Jo Rowling on this planet to make the world a better place. I could go on for hours, days, YEARS about how perfect the Harry Potter series is. Yes, I do think the Potter series could cure cancer, end world hunger and facilitate peace in the middle east, and NO you can't change my mind about that. However that is not what this blog is about.
Authors are an interesting breed of people. They live in a world where they get to make up worlds. They live surrounded by people who aren't real, except in the case of biographers. I am fascinated by them, wishing I had the talent to do what they do. Well, most of them anyway. I was in Target a month or two ago and was looking through the book section when I came across two books that were a continuation of Pride and Prejudice by Jane Austen. Some woman had gone to see the 2005 version of the movie, the one with Kierra Knightly, and fell in love with the story. She had never read the book or seen any of the tv/movie versions other than the one before and felt she needed to continue the story. I was intrigued. I received the books as a gift just a few weeks later. Oh my hell they are HORRIBLE! This woman has no idea what she is doing. She took one of the most beautiful love stories of all time and turned it into a harlequin romance novel. She has these people having sex every third page and on the two pages in between they talk about how and where they are going to have sex. She put no research into the life of a 19th century couple, doesn't use proper 19th century English, and don't get me started on social etiquette of the time. Horrific stories. What perplexes me is this...WHO decided to publish these books? Jo Rowling was turned down over 10 times for Potter when she first tried to publish it. Dan Brown was laughed at when trying to sell his first book. Clive Cussler was told no one would read his books. Hell even Stephen King was ridiculed. Not that these authors, with the exception of Rowling of course, is a literary god but they can write a good book! They have a story to tell. A well researched, well thought out story.
I understand that not everyone can be a literary great and just because you sell a lot of books doesn't make you great either (Hello Stephenie Meyer...are you listening?). I understand there are only so many Jane Austens, George Orwells or Earnest Hemingways. However if I, a literary novice at best, can tell the difference between a good book, great book and a straight out horrific book why can't someone whose job it is do the same? Authors are a dime a dozen, but the good ones, the ones who stick with you, are gold. I know, my opinion really doesn't mean much and I'm sure somebody somewhere likes the disgusting Darcy books, but its my blog so I get to say what I want to. And what I guess what I want to say is Go Read A Good Book!
Yes I'm obsessed. I think her face should be on Mt Rushmore with Lincoln. I think we should erect monuments to her in every library on the planet. If you believe in a God you should believe he/she/it put Jo Rowling on this planet to make the world a better place. I could go on for hours, days, YEARS about how perfect the Harry Potter series is. Yes, I do think the Potter series could cure cancer, end world hunger and facilitate peace in the middle east, and NO you can't change my mind about that. However that is not what this blog is about.
Authors are an interesting breed of people. They live in a world where they get to make up worlds. They live surrounded by people who aren't real, except in the case of biographers. I am fascinated by them, wishing I had the talent to do what they do. Well, most of them anyway. I was in Target a month or two ago and was looking through the book section when I came across two books that were a continuation of Pride and Prejudice by Jane Austen. Some woman had gone to see the 2005 version of the movie, the one with Kierra Knightly, and fell in love with the story. She had never read the book or seen any of the tv/movie versions other than the one before and felt she needed to continue the story. I was intrigued. I received the books as a gift just a few weeks later. Oh my hell they are HORRIBLE! This woman has no idea what she is doing. She took one of the most beautiful love stories of all time and turned it into a harlequin romance novel. She has these people having sex every third page and on the two pages in between they talk about how and where they are going to have sex. She put no research into the life of a 19th century couple, doesn't use proper 19th century English, and don't get me started on social etiquette of the time. Horrific stories. What perplexes me is this...WHO decided to publish these books? Jo Rowling was turned down over 10 times for Potter when she first tried to publish it. Dan Brown was laughed at when trying to sell his first book. Clive Cussler was told no one would read his books. Hell even Stephen King was ridiculed. Not that these authors, with the exception of Rowling of course, is a literary god but they can write a good book! They have a story to tell. A well researched, well thought out story.
I understand that not everyone can be a literary great and just because you sell a lot of books doesn't make you great either (Hello Stephenie Meyer...are you listening?). I understand there are only so many Jane Austens, George Orwells or Earnest Hemingways. However if I, a literary novice at best, can tell the difference between a good book, great book and a straight out horrific book why can't someone whose job it is do the same? Authors are a dime a dozen, but the good ones, the ones who stick with you, are gold. I know, my opinion really doesn't mean much and I'm sure somebody somewhere likes the disgusting Darcy books, but its my blog so I get to say what I want to. And what I guess what I want to say is Go Read A Good Book!
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