Old Fashioned Boo

As you may or may not know, I love to find old vintage cards on the holidays, and for lack of a better term, make fun of them.  First off, I enjoy looking at these old cards and thinking about people sending them to friends and loved ones.  I like seeing what was popular in times gone by---  ( without a doubt?  BIG pumpkin heads), but most of all, I like to see just how weird those cards can be.

So, I begin my usual pre-holiday perusing.  (thank you Google)  I found many oddball cards, filled with ugly children, scary moons and the big headed pumpkins.  But, then I started noticing something even creepier.  And, thus, I present to you this year's version of Halloween Holiday Pictures. 

I'm starting off easy folks.  I mean, I do want you to keep reading.  

I am guessing these folks all, literally, found something from their drawers to use for a costume.  (the exception might be the guy on the back row, not sure he had that on hand.)

Fairly creepy free, right?  Cute dog and they look like they're all having a good time.

This one is starting to move into the "gives you the willies" zone---

Especially dude on the right.  Hey, I'm seeing a trend here.

They're putting the creepy dudes on the end.

Why is it that children from this era just look haunted?

 

WHOA!

Okay, now I'm freaked out.  Kid on the right was surely in the movie, "The Shining"

The combination of innocence and creepy is going to give me some freaky nightmares tonight.  

And those suspenders are pushing it over the edge.  Pigs and suspenders.

 

Person on the right = Freakiest of the Bunch.

Although, all four of these are pretty darn weird.

Mustache Kid and two big breasted somethings.  

Just what ARE they?

Shiver running up and down my spine.

Written While Being Tortured

I am writing this to you from Boredomville.  Our computers are down at work.  Our phones are down at work.  They’ve been down since yesterday afternoon.  An underground cable was cut, and now we have no connection to the outside world.  We’re not even connected to the inside world.  No internet.  No way to do all this work.  Finger tap, finger tap, finger tap.

I’ve played 47 games of Solitaire.  (Won only two) I’ve played 10 hands of hearts.  I even tried to play, “Purple Palace.”  That one stressed me out. You have to make cakes and it ends up being like an “I Love Lucy” episode.  No thanks.  I don’t need that stress in my games.  The Queen of Spades is bad enough!

Let’s talk random junk: 

Go Cards!  (I really hope they win tonight and push it to Game 7.  And, of course, win Game 7 please)

No Halloween parties for me this year.  What is your most favorite costume of all time? I think I really enjoyed the year I was a gypsy.  I had a lovely black wig and wore a lot of mom’s jewelry.  Those were the days.

Why are slutty costumes so “in?”

Remember when the only color that highlighters came in was yellow?  Now, they come in all colors.  I still prefer the yellow.  You can call me old school.

I love the McRib.

Favorite Halloween Candy?  I love those little paks of Sweet Tarts.    And Smarties.  And Butterfingers.  And Baby Ruth.

Icky Halloween Candy: Those individually wrapped orange and black things.  They’re some kind of chewy peanut buttery thing?  Oh, and circus peanuts. Keep ‘em to yourself please.

I love Elmo, Grover and Bert.  However, Oscar, Ernie and Big Bird get on my nerves.

Only 63 days left until the mountains.

I had to add 34 and 29 on my calculator get that total.

Did I mention I do a lot of accounting in my job?

I haven’t seen my homeless man since I tossed/threw him the bottle of water.  I hope one doesn’t have anything to do with the other.

If Anya wins Project Runway, I may have to stop watching the show.

I A M S O B O R E D T H A T I A M W R I T I N G A S E N T E N C E L I K E T H I S B E C A U S E I T T A K E S L O N G E R.  S E E Y A L A T E R A L L I G A T O R.






***There is a happy ending to this story.  We are back up and in the midst of the world again.  Ahhh.***

Mid Week Mute

Three Annoying Things I Do, Two of Which Are Hurting the Planet

I complain a LOT about other people in the world and how annoying they are.  I'm now going to tell you a little secret.  I am pretty annoying myself. 

For one thing, I am physically incapable of closing doors and cupboard doors.  I don't know what my problem is with this?  I've had this bad habit for as long as I can remember.  My grandmother (the one with the yellow table) would always call me out on it.   Currently, the one that is the real challenge for me is our linen closet.  For some reason, I just hate closing that door.  I open it to get a towel, and will shut it most of the way, but for some reason, I just don't want to make that final "click" of the closure.  I got issues.

I'm a water runner.  I turn on the shower LONG before I enter it.  When washing dishes, I turn on the water and leave it running the whole time.  When I take a bubble bath, I leave the water running for the entire bath. The only time I turn off the water is when I'm brushing my teeth.  I mean, come ON!!!  I'm not a water waster!  I love the sound of the water running.  It calms me.  It's like white noise that takes away some of the dirty parts of the world.  I'm pretty sure this one is singlehandedly causing the drought in Texas.  (Sorry Grandma K!)

My third annoying habit is the fact that I turn all the lights on and leave them on.  Now, to be fair, I only seem to do this when getting ready for work in the morning.  I turn on the closet light, the bedroom light and the bathroom light.  Listen--I need as much light as humanly possible to get this body looking gorgeous on a daily basis.  (wink wink!)  I think this is the one that drives Steven the nuttiest.  He's constantly going behind me turning off the lights.  [note:  I think the fact that he goes behind me turning them off is eligible for an annoying trait?]  The electric company loves me, but I'm afraid some of the tree huggers in the world have me on their Most Wanted List.

I should probably work on being less annoying.  If not, my punishment might be getting locked up in a closet with no lights and no running water!  Eek!

What do you do that is annoying?



 

Why I Love Oyster Roasts

Yeah, Duh.  Oysters.

Cocktail Sauce.

Hot Sauce and Crackers

The perfect combination of all of the above.

 Interesting conversations.

Cooler weather.  (Oysters are best in months with "R" in them)

Fun Hats.

 The mingling of children and adults.

Kids trying oysters for the first time.

Kids grossing out by the texture of the slimy suckers.

Cold Beer.

Appetizers.

World Series Game.

 For some reason, there's always hot dogs.

The oyster table.

The steam that rises off the newest batch.

Chucking away the oyster shells.

Yakking and Gabbing.

Friends Together.

Mama's So Proud

Taylor just texted me and told me to check out a website.  Hey, whadda ya know, there she is!!!  Check out my baby girl.

Retro Memories

As a young girl, I was very lucky to spend a lot of time with both sets of grandparents.  And, I was very lucky that they lived well into their 80's, and two of them into their 90's.  (Grandma Miki is still with us at the ripe young age of 95!)


My dad's parents used to keep me every Friday night.  My dad was coaching high school football at the time, and the last thing my mom wanted to do was drag me down to a high school game in the late 60's when racial tensions were running high.  So, I would stay with Grandma and Grandpa J and everyone was happy.  Well, I think? they were happy???

My grandma had this really cool yellow formica table in her kitchen.  If I close my eyes right now, I can see the exact set up.  I look to the right and I see her stove, the sink, and the cabinet where she kept the paper and crayons for me.  I keep going and see the cabinets with all sorts of dishes.  I turn to the left and see the refrigerator.  She always had real butter in that "ice box."  And, when I look straight ahead, I see that yellow table with four chairs.  I ate a lot of grapefruit (with sugar) and grape nuts at that table.  (Bigger meals were served at the dining room table)

A few weeks back, a friend of mine, who buys and sells antiques, was telling me about a table she had acquired years ago.  As she described, it I thought it sounded an awful lot like Grandma's table.  I went to see it and had to have it.  Luckily, she was willing to part with it.  She even threw in some green glasses that Grandma ALSO had.  I felt like I had stepped back in time by forty years!

So, now I've taken down my nice wooden dining room table and inserted Grandma's table. I love looking at it and thinking of Grandma J.  I love the way it looks in my house, a house so very far from Peoria, Illinois.  The table seems smaller these days and our rear ends are a bit too big for the cushions, but to me, it's just right.  I'm pretty sure the food is tasting better too. 

Here's to you Grandma J!

Mid Week Mute

Boss This

Did you know it was Boss's Day today?  Did you wish your boss a happy day?

I didn't.

I spent most of my day grumbling and moaning and complaining, you know, a typical Monday. 

I'm the Office Manager/Director of Operations/Do the Crap Work at my office. I'm the day to day boss, but not the big boss.  I'm kinda the Mama Bear Boss.  I had one person wish me a happy day.  Was everyone preoccupied, or is this an indicator that I'm sucking in the job department?  I'm sure it wouldn't hurt for me to do some introspection.  I wasn't bothered by not hearing this, it was just different.

I have one boss, the owner.  I didn't say anything nice to him or get him a card.  No snacks.  Barely a smile.  I was preoccupied. 

Happy Boss's Day Bill.  Thanks for giving me a job and enabling me to do the things that are important to me. 

Early Fall Failure

I can't think of anything to blog about.  I can't even be bothered to re-write that sentence so that it doesn't end in a preposition.  I am hoping tomorrow will be a better day and provide me with some inspiration. 

And a good lunch.

Random Rut

Yeah, I admit it.  The creative juices aren't flowing freely.  I'm sure some of it is the fact that I've been busy busy.  The other part of the equation might be lazy lazy?  I apologize, in advance, for the use of  the random theme again.  But, we do need to catch up!

I love baby feet.  This lead picture is of Miss Addison Grace Caruso on her christening day.  I love the bare feet with the christening gown.  And, I love Dad's "hanky."

My birthday celebration lasted for about a week.  I am worn OUT.

I have a new phone.  I went back to my Blackberry.  It was like returning home again.  It was like seeing a long lost friend.  I can finally text again with no stress.  I felt very pressured to get the iphone, but in the end, trusted my gut.  And, my gut was right.

I yelled at a bank officer today.  I even used the line, "I am livid."  I'm not much of a yeller, but honestly, in this situation, it was WAY overdue.  Our escrow account, at work, is sacred to me.  Messing with that brings out the Mama Bear in me.  Still, the Libra in me is making me feel guilty.

My boss and his family have had a real rough two weeks.  If you're the praying kind, please send one up for them.

Remember my post about the lady giving the Gatorade to the homeless guy?  I saw him on Wednesday.  I was exiting the interstate and going at a good rate of speed.   But, I was determined to give him the water that I now keep in the car.  I ended up tossing it to/at him.  I hope I didn't hurt the guy.

Ruby Tuesday has the best salad bar.  Hands Down.

Feeling the need to plan a major trip.


I gave 35 pairs of jeans to Goodwill this week.  I think I was WAY overdue to clean out my closet.  More to come tomorrow.


It's been a LONG time since I wore a belt.

The nest is feeling very empty of late.  I miss having Taylor here sitting on the couch, both of us chilling and watching TV.

I love knowing I have two full days ahead of me that don't involve work, makeup, bras or stress.

Next weekend is oysters with the friends and family.  It's been too long since we were all together.  And, too long since oysters.

Steven just hissed at one of our cats.  It's always exciting at our house.

Happy Weekend !

Mid Week Mute

Tales of 48

Yum Yum Roll, Godzilla Roll and Sam Rittenberg Roll

Crazy Hats for the Hot Tub

The annual dog-a-day calendar

Steak, Crab Legs and French Fries

Pumpkin Pie Candle

Tickets to a Show, Note Cards, Candy and a Vase

Lunch with Daughter

Pillow with a ten year guarantee

Angry Pasta! made by Husband

Do Nothing Sunday

Mellow Mushroom Gift Card

Cards from Friends and Family

Phone Calls and Texts

Too many Facebook messages to count

More to come on Thursday

Completely spoiled by all of this on year 48.

Twas a very happy birthday.

Borrowed Content

It's Sunday afternoon, and I can't think of anything creative.  So, I'm borrowing from my blogging buddy, Angie for today's content.



Wondering---what happened to that little baby in Kansas City.  And why Celine Dion's neck is so darn long. 


Thinking -- about my boss and his wife.  She is not well.  I feel for both of them and pray that this week will bring them both some relief.  And, since I stole this idea, oops, borrowed, from Angie, I would be remiss if I didn't mention Nick.  Angie, I'm thinking of, and praying, for him.

Needing -- to really get on track with a food diary and eating more healthy.  BLECH.  This title should read, "hating."

Reading -- well, I'm listening, to, "The Forgotten Garden" by Kate Morton.  If you love epic novels, this is one for you.  And, if you get the audio version, it's like having the female Crocodile Dundee read it to you.

Stealing -- Um, well, I've already admitted to stealing this from Angie.  Besides that, I stole that lady's idea of giving water to the homeless/out of work person.  I had it all ready, and the dude wasn't there.  Go figure.

Clapping -- for the St. Louis Cardinals advancing to the NLCS.  And for Addison Grace being christened.  And for that yummy sushi I had on Friday.

Hoping -- for this gorgeous weather to continue.  Are you having this lovely autumnal weather?  I still wish it would be a little cooler, but I'm not going to complain.  Much.

Counting -- down the days until it's mountain time again.  73.

Missing -- Jake, The Big C, All My Children, my 30s.

And thanking my lucky stars for all the good in my life.  And, that includes Y O U.

Sushi, McCabe Style

I love Sushi.  Steven does not.

This is how we keep a happy household:

Steven's pre-sushi meal:

My Sushi Meal:

This guy would have taken either version of McCabe Sushi.

He's not very picky.

Mid Week Mute

Oktoberfest!

I love October.  I think it's my favorite month of the year.  May is a close runner up, but October wins hands down. 

I know I'm not alone in this.  I've been hearing people remark how happy they are that October is here.  Just why do we all love October so much?  Well, I think it's....

Cooler Weather

Fire Pits

Sweaters

Boots

Not sweating profusely every time you step outside.

Halloween Candy!!


Oktoberfest Celebrations


Pumpkin Latte, Pumpkin Yogurt, Pumpkin Ale, Pumpkin ANYTHING!  (well, except Pumpkin Pie.  Not a fan.)

Chili!

Kids in Costumes

 

 All that orange.

 Football, Baseball and Soccer.  All in the same month.

Wearing hats and scarves

Oh, did I mention that it's birthday month?

Leaves turning

Seeing your breath

Trick or Treat

(Pictures from the Oktoberfest held October 2nd at Blackbaud Stadium)