Is it the end of the year already?

Where did this year go?  HOLY MOLY.  They go faster all the time.  Wasn't it just yesterday I was a little kid with brown hair?  (Trust me, that was a L O N G time ago.)

I guess it's that time of year when we all look at our lives and figure we better do something to make it better in the coming year.  You know, exercise more, eat less, all that jazz.  Of course, I need to do all that as well, but this year I'm going to make resolutions based on photos taken at a wedding yesterday.  With that in mind---

 

 I'm going to spend more time helping this young gal keep that big smile on her face.

 

I will worry less and enjoy the moment more.

 

 

I will do whatever it takes to bring joy to those around me.

 

I  will remember the things that are important and make them a priority.

 

I will surround myself with those who make me smile.

 

 I will live in the moment.

And I will laugh, laugh, laugh.

Happy 2013 to us all!

(and congratulations to Tiara and O'Brian!)

Boxing Day Randoms Mixed In With Photos of Hand Painted Wine Glasses

Happy Boxing Day! 

Taylor bought me some lovely wine glasses and painted them for me.  I can't begin to tell you how much they mean to me.  No way will I drink wine out of them, they're keepsakes for a long long time.

Once again,  we work hard and fast to get Christmas organized and ready and BAM, it's over before we can say Noel.  I think I found this a tad bit discouraging this year.

Did you get a gift that you really don't like?  I did.  Of course, I can't tell you about it, in case that person should happen to read this post.  Let's just say that I found myself wondering what I'd done to annoy that gift giver.

Did anyone else eat way too much food the last few days?  Last night, I hit the wall.  I was carbed out.

Can you tell I woke up on the very wrong side of the bed this morning?

I went to see Lis Miserables yesterday.  I am a Les Mis addict and have been for years.  I was tentative about the movie, knowing full well it could never match the live play for emotions and quality.  I was wrong as wrong could be.  I was blown away.  BLOWN AWAY.

Speaking of addictions --- homemade party mix is like crack cocaine to me.  Good Lord, I can't have any of it in my house without eating it non stop. I find myself shoving the stuff in my mouth without even realizing it. 

 

 I bought my first pair of bifocals today.  Please don't tell anyone.  I have a reputation to uphold.  I am afraid to wear them, for fear of looking through the wrong part.  Of course, I bought the ones without lines, vanity reigns.  Can anyone offer advice?

I think that next year I'm going to find something to do other than wrap packages.  What a waste.

Yes, this is Rockett. I will treasure it forever.  Thanks Taylor. xxx

Woof.

Merry Christmas

From the Funny Farm

Rockett's Christmas Present

My dog loves going for a walk more than anything.  She loves walks more than treats.  She loves walks more than she hates squirrels. 

So, for her Christmas present, we took her to the Wannamaker Trail.  Sir has been biking this trail for a few months, and when Matt was visiting, he ran it while Steven biked it.  But, up until today, neither Rockett, nor myself, had ventured anywhere near the Trail. 

You know I don't like to sweat.  Or exercise.  Or get up off the couch.

But, the spirit of Christmas means giving to those you love, right?  Or something like that?

So, we took Rockett on the Trail.  And, she loved it.  She smelled every leaf, every stick and every blade of grass shooting up through the leaves. 

I loved how this tree grew over and to the side.  It's the little tree that could.

I broke a bit of a sweat.

I was fine except for one bit --- we veered off the trail to get closer to the swamp.  Sir then warned me to be on the lookout for snakes and gators.  Yeah.  Right.  I DON'T DO SNAKES OR GATORS.

But, obviously, I made it out of there unscathed and unbitten.  Rockett had a ball and is now napping.  Oh, that sounds like an excellent plan. 

I hope this Christmas Eve finds you and yours enjoying each other.  Without gators, snakes or sweat.  And filled with love, food and naps.  

Reminder

Like all of you, I've been running around like a chicken with my head cut off for a few weeks now.

Making lists.  Thinking, shopping, wrapping.  Going to parties.  Drinking too much wine.  (if there IS such a thing)  Exchanging gifts.  Worrying about forgetting someone.  Sending Christmas cards.  Busy.  Busy.  Busy.

It all came to a screeching halt last night at the Harris Teeter.

After my nail appointment, Laura and I went to Harris Teeter for wine and cheese.  As I was checking out, I looked a few rows over and saw a familiar face.  It was the face of a woman who lost her son in an auto accident eighteen months ago. 

Her child was in Taylor's grade;  the two of them had literally grown up together.  I wrote about them in this post. 

All I could do was hug this woman.  We talked for about twenty minutes, and while she's so very sad, she is starting to heal.  She feels grateful that she had her son for eighteen years, especially in light of the Newtown shootings last week and the tragedy of parents losing their children so young. 

She talks to her son on Facebook.  It helps her feel closer to him.

All of a sudden, I just don't feel like I'm going to hurry through this season anymore.  I'm going to enjoy my family and friends and not worry about any of the crap.  I'm going to be thankful for those dearest gifts that have been given to me.

And, I'm going to offer up a little prayer for Jason's mom and his family. 

Oh My Mayan

If the world should happen to end on Friday, I'm going to be really ticked off that:

-I have been dieting for four months instead of loading up on carbs and potato chips

-I went to the dentist three times this year

-I never found the right pillow

-I haven't finished Breaking Bad yet

-I did all this Christmas shopping and no one will get to open their presents

-I wasted the last week of my life working

-and that we filled up the car today

On the other hand, if the world DOES end on Friday, I'm glad that:

-I'll never have to weigh myself again

-I won't have to worry about paying those credit cards

-NO MORE WORK

-I won't have to hear the words, "Hillsboro Baptist Church" ever again

-I won't see Taylor Swift's face every time I turn on the TV or open a magazine

-I won't have to think about the Mayan prophecy any more!

Red Bows and Fishing Poles

As I left work today, it was raining cats and dogs.  I walked quickly to my car and dreaded the ride home in the rain and accompanying traffic.

I backed out and turned my car toward the exit of the parking lot.

It was at that point that I saw a man riding his bicycle.  In the rain. 

If a person is riding a bike near our office, you can pretty much bet that he's not doing it for exercise, but that is his only means of transport. 

So, I looked at this man riding his bike and noticed he was carrying about four fishing poles with him.  All the poles had red Christmas ribbons on them,and his bike was covered in the same red ribbons.

He didn't care that it was raining.  (well, he didn't seem to anyway)  He had a big smile on his face and was just riding along; as if it were a sunny spring day.  He was taking those festive fishing poles somewhere on his very happy bicycle.  I don't know if they were Christmas presents, or if he was just decorated for Christmas.

But, I know he made my ride home a lot happier.

Not much else to say

Cat v. Dog

Oh, this video makes me giggle.  I hope it does you  as well.

Mid Week Mute

If only resumes were one hundred dolllar bills...

We are hiring a new receptionist at our office and today I put an ad on Craig's List.

I always use Craig's List, mostly because it's so darn easy and free. I can do it all from the comfort of my chair and don't have to speak to a human being to get it going.

I put the notice on CL at 11:00 this morning.  By the time I left work, close to sixty resumes had been submitted.  As I write this, just over three hours later, there have been over one hundred resumes sent to me.

And now I have to go through these and find just the right person?

HA.

This is how I weed through them when there are this many:

1.  Misspelled word?  OUT
2.  Stupid email address?  OUT  (by the way, I can't get over the number of people who use the word, "sweetness" and "hot" in their email address)
3.  Experience as a bank teller or fast food worker?  IN
4.  Volunteer at the SPCA?  IN
5.  Names of past employees?  OUT

I'm sure there are more scientific methods, but this seems to have worked for me thus far. But, then comes the dreaded interview.  This has to be one of the least favorite parts of my job.  I'll be sure to keep you posted.  Yeah.  I'm going to take you on the hiring trip with me.  Buckle up baby, it's going to be a bumpy ride.

One hundred dollars, instead of one hundred resumes, multiplied by one hundred submissions?  I could have taken the rest of the week off!

Thanks Andrea or Rebecca

I have had MANY bad fast food experiences in my life.  Be it forgotten condiments, wrong sandwiches, sweet tea instead of unsweet, I've had it all.  There was even a moment, years ago, that I had a bit of an altercation with a young lady working the Wendy's Drive Thru.  (another story for another day)

So, when I have a good experience, it's one for the record books.  Mark it on the calendar!!

Today was a good fast food day.

As I've pointed out, ad nauseum, I'm watching what I eat.  However, on the weekends, I might treat myself more than during the week.  Today's treat was in the form of an Arby's Classic Roast Beef Sandwich. 

I was greeted with a pleasant voice, and when she checked my order, I felt confident that I was going to get my meal, just as ordered.

This is important, because in our picky household, there's usually a screw up with the sauce on a sandwich, or the amount of sugar in the tea.  (NONE, please)  Well, Rebecca, or Andrea (not sure if she was my cashier or my host?) was awesome. She even reminded me about the Horsey Sauce and the Arby's sauce.  (crucial elements to a successful sandwich)   The order was correct, she was a happy human,  and I drove away with a smile on my face and blog fodder in my brain.

Thank you Goose Creek Arby's/Rebecca/Andrea.  Your competence made my food taste that much better.

And no, the chocolate shake wasn't mine.  :-)

Ya Know

Sometimes people make it so difficult to be nice to them.

Just saying.

Letter to the Big Guy with the Beard

Dear Santa:

 How goes it at the North Pole?  How is the Mrs.?  Are the elves treating you right?  Just which one is on reindeer poop duty this year?  (I'm betting on Vixen...)

I know I'm late getting this letter out to you, but I sure hope you can find it in your heart to accommodate a few of my requests this year?  I appreciate any and all you can do.  In an attempt to make it easier for you, I'll just list 'em.

-some kind of gadget that makes good tasty food low in calories and high in nutrition
-another kind of gadget that makes sitting and doing nothing burn more calories than exercising
-a teleporter that would enable me to see my friends who live so far away
-something that would make our house animal-hair free  (this one is really for Sir)
-how about some of that World Peace?
-endless supply of toilet paper
-PJ bottoms that don't ride up in the middle of the night
-oh, speaking of middle of the night, how about a bladder that can hold on for about eight hours?
-more crime TV
-a big old house on a lot of land so I can have all the doggies and kitties I could ever dream of?  And maybe some chickens?  And a pig.  And a red barn.
-more Harry Potter books
-that trip to Italy that I keep planning in my head
-a never ending supply of blog post ideas
-a pillow I like
-Missouri Tigers trip to the College World Series
-happiness for my kids
-another meal at Papas and Beer
-Death to Bras
-maybe a cream cheese IV?

I know this list might be hard to fill, so if it's easier, just bring cash. 

Promising I've been more nice than naughty,

JuJu

Getting in the Spirit

My normal Sundays are very lazy kind of days.  I like to do nothing more than I like to do anything.  But for some reason, today I've been very productive. 

It also normally takes me forever to get my Christmas started, as I'm a bit of a procrastinator.  But for some reason, it's now starting to look a lot like Christmas on Bronwen Court.

It didn't hurt that the temperatures were in the 70s today and it made me feel like doing something.

And, it didn't hurt that I wasn't sitting in the car driving hundreds of miles.

The animals are loving the crunchy leaves.  Sir doesn't love them nearly as much as they do.

We pulled out the Christmas boxes and went to put up our tree.  But, that tree has seen much better days.  So, we trekked off to Big Lots and picked up a few trees.


Yes.  A Few.

You know we don't do anything by the book.


So, we now have three trees.  But hey, they are still hanging upside down, so we are keeping up with one family tradition.

I love looking at my ornaments each year. It's like revisiting some old friends.  My favorite ornament is the St. Louis Arch that Rose gave me years ago.  And the Cardinals World Series Ball. And the turd.   Yes Bill, the turd.

So it's the beginning of December and my tree(s) is up.

My stockings are hung.  (with care, of course)

I've even managed to buy a few presents for a few folks.

It's amazing what you can get done when you actually do something, eh?