In my dreams

In my dreams it is spring and the flowers are blooming.
I took this photo a week ago when it hit 64 degrees and sunny for a few hours. 
This is a flower box on my patio.

I made the mistake of thinking this morning was 3 degrees but that was in the city.
Upon my return from a dog walk I saw the television and I realized I had read it all wrong.
Out here in my 'burb the weather man showed me it was a big 0 with wind chill.
Silly me, I thought we were having a damn heat wave. The local weather man also pointed out how the average is 51 degrees this time of year. Gee, thanks for that tidbit I feel so much better now with my hand warmers in the gloves and wearing 2 pairs of everything to walk the dog.

***Also found it interesting that no one commented on my spelling error for yesterdays header. I assume because you are so used to all my errors. ***

***I saw evidence yesterday of my birthday gift. Oh my goodness my man is so clueless when it comes to this. But I am thankful he tries and is thoughtful. But it still makes me laugh***

Here is your Friday Funny

Holder of the Purse Strings

Because we have had debit card fraud I am now paranoid.
I check our accounts with a fine tooth comb. That is how I found the fraud and was able to be on it quickly before more money was taken. Nothing makes you feel so awful as that whole scenario of people taking your money.

But this practice drives my husband nuts. I see everything he buys. I knew that he bought me something at Christmas when we don't buy Christmas gifts for one another. I always know what he's up to. 

Last night he said, "How the hell am I to buy you a birthday gift without you knowing what it is?"
Poor thing, I didn't have the heart to tell him I always know, with one exception, what he buys me.  I don't need to look at the bank info, he makes things pretty transparent. But I went along with him.

I just said, " Rick just take money out of the ATM and I won't know what you are using it for?"

"You don't think you'll ask me if I took money out."

"Of course I will but I promise not to ask you what for since my birthday is around the corner."

"Uh-huh, not sure I'm buying that Margaret."

Okay I'll make you a deal. I will not ask, but if I don't get a gift that matches the money I will assume your girlfriend got it and I sure am not letting that go without saying something."

He laughed so hard his cocktail flew out of his mouth.

11 or more years ago was the one and only time he really surprised me.
I used to say I wanted a rock before we were married. 
I told him I wanted it big and simple, like my men.
But in all seriousness I didn't care. I wasn't getting married for the jewelry.
We choose matching bands. I did not get an engagement ring.
I love bracelets, watches and rings. Just my thing.
I would put pictures of those things in his jewelry box and when he'd get his watch or cuff links for work he'd see these things. He would laugh and show me and say, "fan mail from some flounder?"  For you young 'ens that is from the Bullwinkle show I believe. 

For years I had a photo of an anniversary ring that was gold with 3 stones  and platinum prongs. It was our joke. I did this since the 80's so it wasn't what I ever really thought would happen. It was just our little joke.  Never in a million years thinking I'd get this huge thing.
(well huge to me, i guess that is relative)

When he was VP of HR he got yearly bonuses. If he reached certain "goals" he was rewarded. One year he came home and told me he didn't get his bonus. I was livid. 
I ranted on and on about "how could they do that to you?" Did others get theirs?  Did you say anything? and on and on. I bitched about this for weeks. But in the mean time he got the bonus and since I see the money come and go he didn't put it in our bank.  Instead he bought me this gorgeous rock of a ring in cash to hide it from me. 

The morning of my birthday he gave me what I really wanted.  He can never wait to a decent hour, no I'm awake and he must give me my gifts. 
New bathrobe, these tempur pedic sleepers I wanted, and a new watch. I was thrilled. 
He was listening!
Then there was this little ring box. I was so excited. 
It was a ring that had a huge single rock but the rock was candy. 
That made me laugh like crazy.
He said, "I never got a photo of this but its big and simple so I thought you'd like it, it's cherry."
I did love it, it tasted great and I loved all my gifts. 

Several hours later he says, "Oh hey I forgot one of your gifts."  
"HUH?"
He reaches into his pocket and pulls out another ring box. 
Now I'm figuring this must be cake, cookies or candy since those 3 are my favorite things. But no, it was the platinum pronged 3 stone gold anniversary ring that was put in his jewlery box over the last 10 years and it was enormous. 

I looked at him and said, "Is this real? Where did you get the money for this?" (translation: I didn't see any money missing from anywhere) 

He laughed and said, "Remember that bonus you bitched about for weeks that I didn't get? Hah- I got it and I just didn't deposit it. You were driving me nuts!"

OMG!  It was truly a surprise. I love this ring.  
But in all honesty it's too big. Back in the day those are words I never ever would have uttered. But I'm old now and it just doesn't matter to me in the same way. 
I don't wear it a great deal anymore because it is now also too big in  ring size as well as the size of the 3 stones.  I tend to bump things with it. But I do really really love it!

Now that was my last surprise and I believe it was 11 years ago.
I think I know what he has up his sleeve this year.
I don't want to say it here because that would be the only time he'd read my blog and then he'd change it. If it is what I think, I don't want him to make any changes.
Then again, I could be completely off on this hunch.
So next week I'll let you know if my hunch is correct.

Stay Tuned....

It's my baby's birthday today.

What you thought I meant Rick?

My girl is 5 yrs old today.

Like any good mom I sent her to play with her buddies and brought treats for the humans.
Her favorite thing is to swim. I couldn't accomodate that for her today, so doggie day care and running with other big dogs was the 2nd choice. 

I can't believe I've only had her for 5 yrs.  Rick has taken to calling her Chubba Wubba now.
Poor girl needs to get her figure back by bikini season. Last night she sat and stared a hole into me just like this photo. It lasted an hour. She wanted food and damn it she was going to wear me down. And she did....I gave her 1/4 cup of green beans. She had already eaten her dinner so this was her treat. Honestly she is so stubborn and I am apparently weak. But beans are the preferred treat to the vet vs. her food so at least there was that. 

I hope after the 1st week of this diet she starts to get used to this.  Because I think she has my number. 

Oh just a wee bit of housekeeping....

Okay some loose items you are dying to know about.....

**Remember the nut who wanted me to call the county to plow her driveway so Rick could get inside the house? And she was so angry that he just didn't shovel his way in?
Here is an aerial photo I found of her place for sale.  Wanna shovel this for her?
You can't even see the driveway leading up to her gate!

**Izzy now thinks the whole sectional is hers. Why now that the sofa is leather does she do this? Honestly! When it was fabric she never did this. Guess she thinks she can damage leather so why the hell not bug that woman in the house?

** Rick got his new smart phone. Getting it was the major pain. We sat in a Verizon store for 1.25 hrs and what a waste of time. We had a $100 credit so we had to go to a real verizon store. But it was a nightmare that made Rick so angry he walked out. I followed and said, "well Mr. Stubborn now what are you going to do?"  So we went to Costco to stock up all too much stuff and viola there was a Verizon reseller there. We didn't get the $100 credit but the phone was the cost of the accessories we needed and we got the accessories free here so it was really a wash. He loves his new phone. 
We spent some time together with him"learning" all about his phone.
He is a very bad pupil so I made him stay after class. 
But he is now diggin' his new technology and it works. Phew! 

**Speaking of my boss, he told me to take my birthday off last night while we were watching television. I laughed. You see when we met I told him my favorite holiday was my birthday. He thought I was just making a funny. 
No, I feel that way. I don't have to share it with a religious figure or any fictitious figure like a bunny or a fat guy in a red suit or while growing up 4 other sisters. It is just all about me. 
I also have always worked where they gave you your birthday off. If you didn't want to take it off you could you use that floating holiday in another way. Me, loving my birthday, took the day off to travel since I could travel for free. Rick asked me that first night if I actually took the job for that reason. No, but it was a great perk that fit me to a T.  
But now, if I take time off, we lose money. And that isn't really a birthday gift to me now is it?  So I may go out to lunch with a friend but come back to work damn it. There could be worse things right? I'm pretty blessed, just poorer now damn it.

**My eyes have been so itchy that last night I went to Walgreens to get allergy drops. OMG they work. They say 12 hour relief, but in reality I would say 8-9 hrs relief for me. But relief none the less. Now you ask why are your eyes so itchy Margaret? I would assume that these are allergies since they start every February. But since it's snowing out right now who the hell knows. I shoveled this morning after our 10:00AM walk and it was about 2 inches and falling. It was light and hopefully something that will melt quickly. It was 64 this weekend and now snow. Spring is lovely.

**I am going to my hometown in March. It is my step mom's birthday and I want to see Dad. His back is better. They have tried everything to avoid surgery on an 86 year old. But he is in so much pain that I'm not sure where their next step is going to be. Although the shots have made the pain more manageable but he is still in a great deal of pain. I hate seeing him so small and frail. So different from what I think of as Dad. So I'm trekking up there on a Friday in March and I hope they only have 2 ft of snow by then and most is melted. I believe they have had way over 110 inches so far. I can't cope with that anymore so it should be interesting. I'm also going to teach my mother email, if it kills me. It just may. But they always have liquor so I can drink while I teach and she frustrates me. It probably will be funny, only to me of course, but I know her and it will be funny mixed with frustration. 

**Izzy is on a diet and I find it as stressful as she does. She sits at the pantry and stares a hole into me.  She herded me to the food bowl yesterday, looked at it and looked up at me. I laughed. I knew what she was doing. But it was 4pm, not time to eat yet. If I feed her to keep her from bugging me, she'd only bug me later while we're eating. Rick has an even harder time. The man who will give her some cheese or some of his foam off his coffee cream can't say no to her. The vet stated that a 1 oz piece of cheddar cheese on a 20lb dog is equivalent to 2.5 hamburgers. YIKES. Izzy goes from 75 - 89 in a blink of an eye. I would like to see her at 70lbs. The vet said 75. 
I showed Rick the vets email and then he finally agreed to stop that nonsense. 
She has to lose 14lbs. That should take us all year. Dogs don't seem to lose weight quickly even with all the walking and running she does daily. Or perhaps its Rick's sneaking bad food to her like the other day when I see him throw shredded cheddar onto the floor. He saw me look at him and said, "It's raining cheese!"   Well now that is a world Rick would love to live in, 'raining cheese world.'  I can handle her staring at me, Rick can't. So I repeat to Rick what the vet keeps saying, "food is not love"   Apparently this vet has never met an Italian family before. 

**Rick is still doing PT and his exercises are killing him. He was so sore last night when he got home from therapy that he made noise with every move he made. Getting into bed was a big loud groan. I tried not to laugh, but I didn't try hard. He was funny. He sat on the toilet and I heard him groan from the bathroom. I laughed of course and yelled, You okay in there? Apparently that squat was very very painful, because he yelled, "It hurts to sit anywhere." 
I am familiar with all Rick's exercises because those are what girls normally do at the gym. The bands on the legs and the squats with them. He actually moved while on the sofa last night  in the corner of the sectional trying to reach his glass of ice water. He made such a noise it startled the dog. It made his mean wife laugh. I handed him the glass and reminded him this will get better. He knows that in some strange way I am enjoying this. I am doing these exercises with him and hopefully we'll both have a better toned ass. I'm not sore like him but then again I'm not going to PT on top of this. He calls the little guy his PainMaster. Apparently he comes up to Rick's armpits but Rick said the little guy could break him. 
Why do I find this all so funny? I just do sadly!

**Those ugly lights are down! Old shades are back. Thank heavens!

Girl Scout Teeny Tiny Cookies

Our girl scout cookies arrived yesterday.

We ordered from a few kids in the neighborhood. So this young girl only got an order of 1 box of Tag-a-longs for Rick. He loves these. 

Because I am an old shit I am always amazed at the price of GS Cookies to begin with. When I rode my bicycle around to deliver my cookies I got 50 cents a box. But today your mother drives you down the block because heaven forbid the kid walk it. I paid my $4.00 and brought the cookies in to Rick. 

The Big Guy immediately opens the box and says, "Did my hands get bigger or are these really small?  Jeez!"  Right now I wish I had had the forethought to take a photo so you could see how they fit in the palm of his hand with room to share. He popped it in his mouth and said, "See I could never do this before. These are so tiny"

Not good Girls Scouts of America. 
I can't believe that another blogger and I are the only ones who have noticed this. 

In other GS news, I found the young gal who sold her cookies outside the Medical Cannabis store to be a brilliant entrepreneur. What a great audience to market.  
Giving the people what they want. 
I read that her mother called the dispensary and asked if they could set up shop there and they said okay. I would think it would help both businesses in a fun sort of way.  

I then read that in Colorado where pot is actually legal, Girls Scouts will not allow them to sell their cookies in front of any dispensary.  They also won't allow them to set up shop outside a liquor store either. I found it a head scratcher that Colorado felt this way when both are legal. That didn't make sense to me but the Girl Scouts of Colorado claim this isn't "the girl scout way." 

So now I am assuming "their way" is to make the cookies smaller, put less of them in the box and raise the price so you make more money.  I suppose they think that is a better way instead of feeding people with munchies who will now have to spend their money on double fudge archway cookies.  Whoops, that may just be me. 

End of the week updates

End of the week.....end of a very long week.

**Snow is melting and that makes Izzy happy for one reason. 
She is now able to poop without added stress of where!
We went to the vet this morning. $414.00 later.....
Jeez, I could never afford children AND a dog.
Right now Miss Izzy is traumatized from this visit as she normally is and is sleeping. 
Yes, on her new spot on the sofa with my blanket Guess it's hers now. 
She freezes like a statue in the vets office. They keep saying she's so good. She is frozen and will not move or make a sound except to stare at me like she hates me for doing this to her. It is not good behavior I explained but fear. I hate taking her as much as she hates going. 
But the best part was they now take her temp in her ear. So this time when she walked into the room and automatically backed herself up into the corner so they couldn't get to her butt we all laughed. But the needles and other intrusions weren't so great for her I suppose. 

**The crazy nut job in Middleburg who wanted me to call the snow plows for her....well Rick is finished with her home. She was very happy with her 3 bathroom remodels and we are happy she has paid and is out of our life. We are currently having a wind and thunderstorm out here and I imagine if she was still in our life she'd have me call God to make it all stop.

**Our kitchen is so damn close to being done. The backsplash and the foyer paint and I'm done.  We have 3 hanging pendant lighs over the kitchen island. They looked like this.

My husband got an idea over the weekend and when I came in from the grocery store he had taken down the glass shades and hung in their place mason jars.  
Honestly they are hideous. If they were a cluster it would be better but 3 separate mason jars with a long light bulb looks like a phallic symbol inside the jar. HIDEOUS. 
An insurance agent (Michelle) who has worked with us for years came over on Tuesday night and said, "Ooh those are new" but not in a nice way. 
I laughed and said, "We are not keeping those up there we just haven't changed them back to the old shades yet. I hate them! That was Rick's idea of a surprise to me" 
She then exhaled loudly and said, "Oh, I'm so glad because they are awful Peg." 
That cracked me up. Then while Michelle was there working our door bell rang. 
It was a neighbor spoiling Rick with another bowl of her fish soup which he devours in record time. She walked in and it looked like she was smacked in the face, she literally jumped back and made the most awful face. Rick and I both laughed and he said, "Wow no one likes my lights." And my neighbor said, "No Rick these are awful, the table is beautiful though!"   
When everyone left he said, " Gee, I really thought they were cool. I take it they are really coming down this weekend huh?"  
"Ah, Yes they are....you are not Nate Berkus, don't give up your day job."
He made a beautiful table so I will forgive him. But seriously ladies, having a husband with an opinion about these things isn't all it's cracked up to be. Most men don't even know what light are in their kitchen. Rick has all kinds of opinions about color, furniture, accessories. It isn't as nice as you'd think. 
But look for yourself at these horrific lights. When off they are worse. 
So I will show you both.

awful is the only word for it.

**My husband is very good with change. But not his technology changes. Those cause him stress and he has a difficult time with that. Took him years to get a smart phone and throw away his flip.  Only when his flip died and he had to get a new phone and only then did he make the change to a smart phones.  Now his smart phone is dying. It has been for some time now but he just won't get a new phone. This week it won't keep a charge and he doesn't get all his texts or calls. He sheepishly said, "I have to get a new phone. "   I really do think that they make these phones to only last as long as your contract or when you can upgrade. His lasted 1 1/2 years past his contract but it has been funky ever since.   So now I will have to deal with Mr. Cranky Pants as he attempts to learn a new phone. Will he go to the free classes they offer? No, I will be asked to teach him.  If you pray, say  a few for me to get through this and not kill him.
Or you'll see me on CNN and not because I did a good thing. 

New Today

Well, this is new. 

Comfortable there Miss Izzy?

Apparently she thought because I had the blanket all askew on the sofa that meant she could lie down there.

I came down stairs and saw this and laughed out loud. 

Her head is actually on the pillow and everything. 

Quite the Diva.

Wednesday Random Bitch Fest

The snow is melting and that is never a bad thing. YIPEE

I would like to suggest to this area that they recruit men and women who run snow plows in Erie PA and Buffalo NY to come here to show them how its done. They know snow.

I constantly hear from nit wits that the reason they don't know how to plow snow is they don't get it that often? I've lived here for 14 years. I see snow every year. Some more than others. So that isn't a real excuse. If it is 3 inches or 18 inches it's snow and it should be done the same way. 

1. Snow removal isn't over when the snow stops coming down! That to me is a DUH! 
You then go back over your route and move the snow to make the roads more passable.
So cars can see around drifts or piles of snow. 
In this area and especially in my neighborhood the plow never ever gets remotely close to a curb. 3 feet if lucky, to 6 feet from the curb is normal. Insane!  
If there are cars there you get as close as possible and then get in front of the car and get to the damn curb.  Then if you would go back after the snow and the cars are now gone you get all the snow TO THE CURB. Image that, complete snow removal. So then you don't have the ice ruts in the street because it is now against the curb. I know, simple huh? 
C'mon I'm giving you job security snow plow people. Work smarter.

2. You need to put the plow to the ground. Not close to the ground, but to the ground.
Ask those in Erie and Buffalo they don't graze the snow, they friggin' plow the snow. You know the reason they don't close school, delay school or work? Because they plow the roads, not a path.

3. Your babies will not die if they go to school on a cold day. You  may have heard they have heat in schools in 2014. Tell your dumb 13 year old standing at the bus stop to put on a pair of pants and get his/her ass to school. I see these twits wearing barely any clothes standing there whining about how cold it is. The girls look like they belong on the pole. The boys are wearing summer fabric shorts that don't cover their ass and their legs even look cold.
Their parents whine with them and encourage this behavior. I had an acquaintance tell me that her child should not have to go to school when its in the 30's. Okay, then send them when its 95 in July and August. I'm sure her prima donna would find a reason for that to be awful too. This gal will be on the pole when she's 18 anyway and she won't have to worry about dressing appropriately for winter weather.

Does this all happen in other places of the world or just the self entitlement area I live in?
Or has reality tv and our culture made everyone a self entitlement nut job?
I'm a fish out of water here that is for certain.
I don't think anyone owes me anything. I am not afraid of hard work. I don't think others should do things for me and I certainly don't think I am entitled to more than anyone else.

Calgon Take Me Away!

This is why I don't have guns, I'd use them.

The snow has caused havoc for everyone in a multitude of ways.
Sadly people around here don't shovel their walks let alone their driveways.
It's nothing like where I grew, in Snow Country on the lake.

Oh sure there are some who do their walks and their driveway but most hope it will just melt.
These are the idiots who call us for a service and expect us to somehow get in their home.
Apparently they think we can fly.

There is a woman person in Middleburg Virginia who is selling her $2.9 mil estate.
She has 27 acres of a horse farm. A 6,000 sq foot home that is updated and beautiful with the exception of the bathrooms. Her realtor told her that the home will not sell unless these bathrooms are done.  She no longer lives in this home it is vacant. She lives a couple miles away on more acreage with horses.  Oh yes, the life of rich horse people in Loudoun county.

The job for her will be a 3 1/2 day job. 
Rick got started on one of the bathrooms and was to go the next day.
But mother nature had other plans and the next day was 18 inches of snow.
We couldn't get to her so I called her and asked if her one lane road was plowed because if we do get plowed at our place this morning we'd still like to come to her home..
Her snarky answer was, "how should I know I don't live there." 

Jeez. I realized that but she literally lives 2 streets away so I guess I assumed if her road was plowed the one her vacant house was on would be too.
So I say all that but in a much nicer professional way.  (you know my alter ego Margaret who is nicer than Peg)

We knew we couldn't get out of our place since no plows had come through, so we still had her booked on Monday and Tuesday of this week to finish up her job.  

Rick drove out there yesterday and she has never had her driveway plowed.
Oh he was not happy about this.
The driveway up to her stone wall and gate is where Rick got stuck.  

He parked on the side of the driveway and walked to the gate to open it.
He took this picture from the gate.

The snow is hard as ice and is a foot high. 
But he decided to try it anyways. (numbnut)

He began to plow through but guess what? He got stuck. 
The ever resourceful man had a shovel in his van and began to dig himself out.

As you can see to shovel her driveway was a large task that the now Angry One was not going to do. 

He shoveled for 20 minutes and was able to get back to the road to leave. He called the number we had for her. She doesn't answer.
Then he remember she text him the other day so he tried that..
She does not respond to him, instead she calls me and is pissed that he isn't going to try to go up her driveway. I share with her what Rick told me that the snow is at the very least a foot deep and the top layer is very hard with ice and sleet. 
He can't make it through her driveway with his van, he does not have 4 wheel drive.  
I asked if they plan to have the driveway plowed. 
She yells, "NO! It's a flat driveway."

I pause because I know what I want to say but it's not nice.
I tell her that I understand it is flat but his econoline van isn't 4 wheel drive.
She suggested he leave his van on the one lane dirt road and walk it.
I explain that he also can't carry all the equipment up that driveway or to leave his van on the one lane street. I remind her that he goes in and out of the house several times to mix chemicals and being a city block away and through the snow just won't work.

She then screams, "I am trying to sell my house this is important!"
I let that just sit there. 
Silence after her yelling I hoped would make her realize how loud she was yelling. 

I replied, "I so understand Ms. XYZ, but I imagine it would be most difficult to show your home if a realtor or perspective new home owner can't get to your home to see it."

FINALLY!  The light bulb went off. She then said, well can you call Loudoun county for me?
I asked what for? She said, "Well maybe they will plow my driveway."

OMG!! She thinks the county will plow her long driveway just cause she wants them to? 
And even better I should do that for her? What the hell?
Oh rich entitled people.

I said, "No I'm sorry I can't do that because I know that isn't their responsibility" 
She then rattles off that she is so busy due to this snow with her horses and there is shit everywhere and she doesn't know when she can get her tractor out to do it."

I wanted to smack her.
I said nothing. I figured this was one of those, whoever talks first loses, like in sales.
Finally she says, "I'll call you back this afternoon to let you know if I get to it so you can come tomorrow." 
I said, If I don't hear from you we will assume that we will not be at your home tomorrow is that correct?   She said yes. 

I told her I could switch the man on Thursday to today and if she could get it done by then I will leave that day open today until 5pm for you. Otherwise I have no open days until March 6th. 

She calmly tells me she'll call me. Will she I wonder? 

I immediately call the man on Thursday who wanted Monday but it was booked with this woman and he was happy happy happy to take the spot.
Rick comes home and picks up his new paperwork and heads off to another city.

This all happened before 8:30am no less.

Saturday we had a call from the appointment he had. They called to say that their 4 wheel drive got stuck in their driveway so could they rebook. They said and I quote, "No sense in making you come out here if you can't get in my driveway"  
Yes,  now that is helpful, THANK YOU!  

So late yesterday minutes before I left she calls to tell me she took her tractor of some sort. (I'm sorry I don't know the name she used like i knew this piece of equipment) She told me she drove it up and down and packed the snow down but did not plow. "Rick should be able to handle this now.  It was really bad down there"   oh ya think?

And this is when I'd  have shot her if I believed in weapons and why I don't have them. 
I fear I'd use them.

So here is my tip to you - if you call for a contractor to come to you home. Be sure you have a way to get to your home. Rick's good but he can't fly....yet.

He got in today and only got stuck near the top.....he rocked it and was able to move.
So all is well.  He will finish this week thank heavens and we can move on to another of the rich and entitled.

My Personal Handyman

Remember how I was going to refinish my cabinets?
Well I did it but that started to steam roll into a huge project.
Like the cabinets weren't enough!

Then the color on the wall no longer worked with creamy colored cabinets as it did with light maple colored cabinets.
The chore of picking out something to match was an undertaking of great pain for me.
I don't mind painting, I hate to pick out the color of the paint.  

Everything that we put on the walls didn't work. 
I have more crappy samples than you can believe.
But finally we decided on a color. I was worried it was going to be too dark.
But I guess because we have a wall of windows it wasn't too dark.  It worked.
But I still have the foyer to do. 
When everything is open and one big big room it makes for a lot of painting.
It also makes for everything having to match and work. Aargh! Don't enjoy that.

Then I thought we needed a new area rug, few pillows, and before you know it I am doing everything on the 1st floor.  But because I don't have much money I have to do things "creatively" shall we say. 

I was drooling over my Pottery Barn catalog and muttering something about I wish I could afford these.  That made Rick ask to see what I was coveting. 
We both saw some similar at Restoration Hardware that we loved this past summer.
But as you know Restoration Hardware is so much more expensive than Pottery Barn so we forgot about them immediately until I saw these. 

I showed Rick the Pottery Barn catalog and he said, "Oh please, it is only pine, not even good wood that's a crazy expensive price don't you think?  You know I could make those if you want.  Seriously Margaret I'd use nicer wood too that's for damn sure"

I laughed and said, "Well I want the console table too"  
He knew I didn't believe he could do this.  
He said it again, "Margaret I can make these both for less than the cost of just the coffee table."
REALLY? 
"No problem, really!"

"Rick if I hate them I don't want you to be upset if I don't want to put them out."  
He said, "I'll make you a deal. If you hate them you don't have to use them. I would love to attempt this though."

Before I know it he is coming home with 100+ year old wormy chestnut from an old barn. 
He brings me out to his work shop (our garage) and is so damn excited about this wood. 
Isn't it pretty?  Feel this, smell this, touch this, and off he goes!  
Okay I don't get that excited but I knew it was nicer than pine. 
Not a fan of the knots in pine or it's softness.
He goes off on what he plans to do as my eyes glaze over. 
At that moment he is like me in a shoe store or a chocolate store. 
I get it....sort of.

On Saturday as I am painting he asks me to come to the garage. He shows me the wood after it was glued and sanded. I asked about the color. He said the color will come out after he used tung oil or teak oil.  I wasn't sure but at this point I must trust him. The table legs looked exactly like the ones in the store and catalog so I was thinking.....so far so good.

Sunday he brought the coffee table in the house as I was coming down the ladder. 
I was pleased.  Hell, I loved it. 
Now I know this is rustic for some but this was what I wanted and damn, he did it again.
I show him a photo and he makes it for me.

Here is the link for the pottery barn table. 
C'mon don't be lazy - please go look so you can see to compare theirs vs. Rick's.

Here is my coffee table.  The console table is not finished just yet.

Needless to say I am happy.
Happy wife, happy life. :-)

Snow Snow Snow

We are supposed to get hit with another doozy of a storm.

I am going into hiding.

I am so tired, weary really of all this cold. 
I want to walk my dog without being bundled up like a mummy.

I want this.....without the bullseye of course.

P.S -. another reason Peg loves Canada and Canadians.

 http://world.time.com/2014/02/10/canada-beer-fridge-sochi-passport-scan/

Hallmark Holidays are coming your way.

I'm not a big fan of big grandiose gestures of love in public.
Valentines day seems to bring them out though doesn't it?
Are all these public gestures for the ones you love or for you to show everyone how great you are?  I always wonder.  

But I know many a woman who love these grand public gestures so they are happy when their significant others do these things. So that makes them nice.

Me? I like my grand gestures in private between us. 
I like that I am spoiled all year and that Valentines Day is just silliness and a hallmark holiday to me. Besides it reminds me of an earlier time in my life when we had a cookie company and all the days without sleep during this holiday. 
To us there are no past positives associated with that holiday so it doesn't have the same meaning to us as others.

Each year since, we celebrate/toast the fact that we aren't baking cookies. 
Seriously we toast and say, "We're not baking cookies baby!" laugh and take a sip.
Silly you say? Only to you. To us it's funny as hell and to those who worked with us during that time they get it. (Katie & Laura to name 2 of them who may see this)

We were chatting with some neighbors over drinks and they were talking about how they met and all the cute stories. Fabulously inventive and creative they all were. 
When they asked us Rick and I looked at one another and began to laugh. 
Our story to them would sound odd, maybe even sadly pathetic. To me it is perfect.
It is goofy and it is us. Isn't that what makes a memory?

We got home from another long day of cookies and business. Neither of us felt like cooking.
It was a blizzard outside so we decided to walk to one of our favorite joints. 
It was about 4 or 5 city blocks from our home. Even the same side of the street. 
We headed up there on foot but my face was being blasted by snow stinging me. 
So I hung back and walked behind Rick. 
He was my wall protecting me from the snow and he got it all. 

When we got inside the die hards were sitting at the bar. 
We walked by everyone and said hello and headed to the restaurant portion of the place. This was just a small neighborhood bar/restaurant.  
The owner was a short man as wide as he was tall. He was an awesome cook. 
The name of the place was Marucci's.  It is no longer there. Okay, let me rephrase that. 
It still is standing but the owner sold it. Now it is shiny and pretty and the food is generic. 
It completely lost its great neighborhood feel or real Italian American Cuisine. 
Another cookie cutter place you know?

We were the only people in the restaurant. 
The "girls" as we referred to them were sisters who were the wait staff. 
We waved hello and said, "We'll have the regular"
That was a carafe of Chianti, A white pizza and an antipasto salad.  
All for just a smig under $20, which makes me laugh.

I had done payroll that day and I was bitching about how the married employees get such tax breaks and we single people are getting screwed. 
Rick laughed and said, "See you should have married me when I asked you."   
Yeah right. And we kept eating.

(he had asked me over the years a few times and i always said no)

We were having nice conversation and again I mention a couple of things I noticed that day doing payroll when Rick PUT DOWN HIS FORK and grabbed my hand.  My fork fell.
He looked at me with welled up eyes and said, "Margaret marry me"

Now, I knew he was serious because HE PUT DOWN HIS FORK while he was eating. 
you just don't know how funny that is if you don't know Rick.
I looked at him and said, "Oh my God you're serious!"
He said it again with some mushy stuff and I said yes.

The girls walked by to ask if everything was okay and notice there were no dry eyes at our table. They asked if we were okay. I told them he just asked me to marry him and I said yes.
Well, Tony comes out of the kitchen and a bottle of champagne is brought to our table. 
The bar erupts with cheers and the old man who held down the corner of the bar every day I was ever there YELLS, "It's about time Cookie Man!"

It ended up being a fun night. 

Now romantic like their stories being told that night? No, it wouldn't be in any books. 
But it was our night. Rick had no idea he was going to ask me. It was in the moment. 
Lord knows I had no idea. So how romantic is it to be asked to be married so I will quit bitching about single people getting screwed on taxes? In my world it was perfect.

Now to Rick putting down his fork and why I knew he was serious when he did that.
This was a joke at work too.
Laura, Rick and I had lunch together most days in the kitchen of our business.
Let's say I was eating a sandwich. I may have two bites and get up and answer the phone, go to the restroom etc, I would come back to my sandwich having been eaten.
When I asked what happened Rick would say, "Well I thought you were done."
Because you see Rick never stopped until he was done. 
No fork was set down on the table if he was eating.  No way. He was eating. It was like a serious job for him.

One day Laura said, "Just because Peggy pauses while eating doesn't mean she's done eating"  Because you see Laura too had seen him do that to me. I don't shovel in my food, there are times I pause. He would reach over my plate and begin eating or say, "Are you done with that?"  NO, I am pausing for a moment. 
Once we pointed this out to him he stopped doing it. But it took a while to change that behavior. Or if I get up I would have to say, "I'm still eating." 

Thankfully he no longer does that, but at that time when he did do that I knew that if he put his fork down to grab my hand and ask him to marry him. It was a grand gesture and he damn well meant it.

So take that Valentines Day 

My Weekend

I have arms that I can barely lift.
I have arms that are so sore to even touch.
I am a big wuss, it was proven.

Rick had to deliver the countertops that he fabricated for a young woman's kitchen.
His part time worker had the flu and called the night before. 
He had no one to help him. He couldn't let this woman wait any longer since he had already inconvenienced her when he hurt his back.
So guess who helped? Yep, me.

They weren't that heavy but they weren't light to me.
The most difficult part was that Rick is a foot taller than me and there were times that was an issue.

The home was a condo. So there were a great deal more obstacles and elevators etc to deal with. When this was done I was dirty and already sore.
He laughed at me of course.  I hate being dirty so at that moment that bothered me more.

Sunday morning I could barely lift my coffee mug. My biceps hurt to touch. 
It's funny really. 

The kitchen turned out fabulous. I didn't love the countertops she chose but she was so thrilled and she thought it was so beautiful and that is all that matters right?

And here it is Monday and I'm still store. I'm pathetic aren't I?

Last night I watched the Beatles special celebrating 50 yrs since they touched down in America. And boy how that changed the world of music.

I like all that I saw. I missed the beginning but it is on my prime time dvr so I can catch it tonight. I thought Alicia Keys and John Legend knocked it out of the park with their duet!
I was getting a real kick out of Yoko Ono. Man that woman hears the beat of her own drum doesn't she? Wow she is out there. But at 81 I hope that I can move as well as she does.

Speaking of age, Paul and Ringo look pretty damn good for 71 and 73 as well.
I can only hope.
I think Paul sounded terrific. 
Ringo should stay behind the drums but that has always been the case.
Singing is not his forte shall we say.
Everyone who sang a Beatle song at the tribute did a really good job. 
Pharrell didn't disappoint and wore his Dudley Do-Right hat again.
That amuses me almost as much as Yoko Ono getting down with her bad self in the aisles.

I wonder if in 50 years we'll be talking about someone in the music biz today that made such a huge impact on the world of music?

Friday Funnies.

I thought this ad was so damn clever!
A swift kick to Russia for their anti-gay sentiment.

Add this to my list of reasons why I love Canada and Canadians.

When I was young.

A friend sent this to my email yesterday with the following line to me - 

"You may have already seen this, but it reminds me of the time you clocked the guy in the King's Rook  who touched your boob."

I forgot all about that "incident" from my young single days. But it made me laugh and brought back all the memories.

The ass who touched me fell back over a bar stool and they escorted him out of there.

I got free drinks the rest of the evening. The bartender was a sweet heart after that each time I was in there - like a big brother. 

An Ass Like A Girl

Yesterday Rick went to physical therapy for the first time.
It appears that this whole nightmare was his SI joint (hip area) that is moving. 
The muscles need strengthened there apparently to stop this from happening again. 
They said it certainly will happen again if they are not strengthened. 

This place is part of the spine institute I spoke of the other day. 
They care for the local major baseball and football teams. 
I've seen the pictures on the wall and once when there I saw a Washington Redskin there in the hall as well. Holy Big Sucker!
But because I don't follow football I didn't know him by name. 
I said to the PA walking with me, "Was that a football player?"  
Matt laughed and said, "Yes, it's so and so."  Which of course meant nothing to me.
I just knew I felt like a shrimp next to him.

Rick had his 2 hr evaluation and therapy and came home oh so sore. 
Immediately taking a pain pill.
He proceeded to share with me the PT's thoughts.
The strength of Rick's thighs and legs are apparently as strong as any professional linebacker he has worked with. He asked Rick if he goes up and down stairs a lot. 
Rick replied, "All damn day every day"
He told Rick, "well the good news is that your thighs are as strong as an athlete, the bad news is your ass is as soft as a girls."

Well that made me howl with laughter. 
Rick too was smiling and he said, "Well that was a shock" 

Now their focus is to build up his ass so these muscles can hold his SI joint in place.
He was told this wasn't going to be easy or fast. A lot of hard work ahead of him.
And the most important part is that they told him that he needed to do more stretching because of what he does for a living, his hamstrings are as tight as a drum. 
Why is this important?  
Because his wife has been after him about this issue for 2 or more years now.
Once again he finds out she is right. 
When will he learn that I may at times be less right but I am never wrong?
Silly Silly Man. 

He loves Pilates and Yoga and once the local yoga place closed down he stopped going.
A new one opened and I suggested a few months ago he begin going again and he poo-poo'd me. Guess who will be going now that a professional told him to go?

So My Big Guy has the thigh strength of a great linebacker and the ass of a girl.

You know I'm enjoying this don't you?

Grounded

I had a childhood that revolved around family.
My friends were my cousins.
I didn't know that was different.
It was just how it was.

I grew up with a bunch of fun crazy kids.
On my fathers side of the family there were 21 of we first cousins.
(Damn Italian Catholics and lack of birth control)
Every Sunday without fail we were all together after Mass at one anothers homes.

I have great memories of playing softball in the backyard,  red rover, and badminton.
In the winter we played silly games in the house. At my Uncles house we would run around the upstairs and there were some who jumped on beds and the person in charge of the lights would flash them and when the lights stopped you had to freeze. First one who fell or moved then was in charge of the lights.
Oh yeah, we played some silly games. But great memories. 

During this time our parents were drinking, smoking cigarettes like chimneys, laughing, talking, playing bocce or cards in the winter.

As we got older our games just changed. I played the piano and I had a cousin who played the organ. We would play duets for hours on end. There were endless laughs and fun.

We spent the night at one anothers homes. I spent 2 weeks in the summer at my cousins who lived about 80 miles away in Cleveland. She introduced me to Sugar Loaf and the song Green Eyed Lady and marijuana. Oh that was a strange and fun summer for me....while it lasted. 

My mother had died and my father was "dating" and I was looking forward to my annual 2 weeks at my cousin Joanne's.  My life was so much more sheltered than hers.
She even got to dress way cooler than me. My father was a pain  - no hot pants( short shorts), no super mini skirts and the like. The more fringe the more shit he'd give me.
Honestly made no sense but that' s my father.

We went over to her friends house. I wish I could remember her name because I can vividly see her in my minds eye. Her family had a basement that was cool to me with orange shag carpeting. She pulled out an album and told me her Uncle gave it to her. He worked for a record company in LA. She played it and it was Sugar Loaf. 
I grew to love the song Green Eyed Lady. It wasn't on the radio just yet where I lived.
Then one day in her basement she said her uncle gave her something and she pulled out a joint.
I was scared but I did it with she and my cousin.
We later ate a cake. That cracks me up to this day. A whole cake/just the 3 of us.
I remember a lot of laughing and a lot of eating. I was 14 years old.  Jeez I was young.
My cousin and her friends mom both worked. 
Back in 1970 there weren't a lot of moms who worked outside the home. 

When I came home after my 2 weeks I began hearing that song on the radio. 
I thought that was so cool. I knew it before everyone else did. 
I wrote a letter to my cousin because back in those days there was no texting, emails or cheap phone calls for people who lived out of state. 
If I had asked my father to call "long distance" he would have flipped out to call to just "talk" So a letter was sent.

My cousin wrote back to me and she sent me a joint in the mail with my letter.
I about died! And not because I was mortified but because my father found it.
I could have been killed.  Whoa it was bad. I couldn't lie. How could I lie he was holding it in the envelope. Doesn't matter why he was in my room snooping he'd have just told me it was his house. I was shit out of luck at this point.

I was then grounded until the fall school year started. No phone calls, no mail, no magazines, no tv, no friends over. I was in solitude until we went back to school after labor day.
It was like prison camp. Chores, taking care of my sister, cooking, cleaning, laundry etc.

I recall a friend calling  my house, my father grabbed the phone and I hear him say, "She is grounded until school starts, you can talk to her then" ....And Hung up. 

OMG. I ran to my room crying hysterically but not without screaming at my father that I was going to be an old maid and I hate you!  I slammed the door to my bedroom which was my fathers pet peeve. (well one of many)
Next thing I know my door is coming off my bedroom as I lay across my bed crying.
(I got the door back in fall when my punishment was over)
That'll teach me to slam the damn door!

It was a long long summer. 
I would stand on the edge of my yard and yell to my neighbor friend Mark. 
Then he'd see my dad's car and say, "See ya" and run like hell.
Mark was afraid of my father like most of my friends.
That was the closest I got to my friends - yelling across our yards.

I have to mention that my father did call my Uncle and tell him what his daughter sent me. But my cousin just got a lecture. Lucky her. I was in prison in my house for 2 1/2 months.

Did it stop me from ever doing that again? Hell no.
I just got better at hiding things as I got older.