To-Do Lists.

Another throwback. 
Hopefully, you can't remember anything from 9 yrs ago or you weren't reading me 9 years ago and this will be brand new.
😀
I'm sorry but I have a ton of things to cross off my to-do list for work and personal today. I also have an MRI at 2:30p on my torn Achilles. 
Ah, that end of the year rush for tests because you have met your deductible!

Today's throwback is from 2010 & the dreaded Holiday/Christmas Party.
I seriously don't know when it happened to me. I used to LOVE a party.
I am going to assume somewhere around age 50 my love of parties began to die. Not certain but it came on me quickly and unexpectedly.
I couldn't wait to get dressed up and go to a party and mingle.
Now, I'd rather have a root canal without anesthesia.
So here I am trying to get out of a holiday party.
___________________________

WEDNESDAY, DECEMBER 15, 2010

The Christmas Party

But I don't want to go!

Yes, I said this like a whiny child on Saturday.
I gave him a ton of hints and he just was ignoring them.
Then I said it outright and he continued to ignore me.

Since having a dog I have met an abundance of people with dogs in the neighborhood.
My husband is the social butterfly of this relationship and he will talk to anyone and everyone. I will smile and say hello and on I go.  Oh no, this man will pet their dogs, chat with them, make them laugh and next thing you know they are pals.  I see them later when walking the dog and they know me now from my dog and they tell me, "Oh your husband is so nice and my goodness he is funny."  It generally will make me have to smile and chat.  This is not what a misanthropic person wants to do.  But seriously I should have been an actress because I fool 'em every time.  Now my husband comes home and tells me how people tell him how "charming" and "friendly" I am.
"I want to accept this award on behalf of all you little people haters out there"  will be my academy award acceptance speech.

My husband comes home one evening and tells me that we are going to get an invitation to a Christmas party.  (Oh great, can I get seriously ill by then?) 

Who Rick is inviting us to a Christmas party?

Dave and Krista

Who the hell are they?

Their dog is Hope.

Well, our dog is lucky...that doesn't tell me squat.

Margaret, you know who they are.

No, Rick, I don't know all these people you bond with.

The guy who lives on blankity blank Square. (street omitted to protect the innocent)

Honestly, I don't know who the hell this is.

His wife is drop-dead gorgeous with black hair and ice-blue eyes and carries a gun.

She carries a gun?  Like a purse that looks like a gun?
He is laughing at me now.

Margaret, they have the black lab, they are cops.  He is an undercover cop  & he now has long hair remember?

Ah kinda.  I think I remember you pointing him out to me.  I don't think I have ever met his drop-dead gorgeous gun-toting wife though.  And why the hell did she have a gun you could see?

I saw her when she was coming home as I walked by her house and she was in uniform, she is not undercover.

Did you walk by her home with our dog Izzy or were you stalking drop-dead gorgeous woman with a gun?

Funny woman.

I knew I did not want to go but I honestly thought, "he may be full of shit and we'll never get this invitation and I won't have to think about it."

But lo and behold we got an invitation on our door. Yipee.
Rick saw it first.  DAMN IT.
Oh, he couldn't wait to go.  He heard it was a fun affair, 80+ people and Dave just finished his man cave. (oh yipee)

I whined I moaned, I promised sexual favors.
It didn't work. He said the sexual favors would be great but I was going and I wasn't going to be anti-social.  He promised we didn't have to stay long.
I began licking doorknobs, going outside with wet hair, not washing my hands, really doing anything I could to get sick.
Great.  Fine time for my immune system to start working well.

Come Saturday I tried on outfit after outfit.
I had just gotten a pair of black slacks taken in and settled on them.
It said casual but you never know what the hell that means.
I had a major meltdown while trying to style my hair. (still growing out)
I screamed out of frustration and Rick came running into the bathroom and took one look at me and went, "eeww" and left.
I ran after him and said, "please don't make me go I would so rather stay home and drink wine and watch a movie"
"I knew you'd say that he laughed, but we're going even if you have to wear a hat on this"....as he circled his finger around my head.
I stuck my head under the faucet and started over again.  It was better but bad hair should be an out to not have to go to any damn party!

The party was lovely as party's go.  I knew NO ONE.
I am great at acting like I am loving this and I am super friendly and outgoing.
I went to the bar and poured myself a Tanqueray - straight up no chaser of course.
Everyone was young. Most were in jeans and/or clothes too tight and trying too hard.
Ample bosoms falling out everywhere.
Oh to be young and stupid.

Rick was right - the hostess was drop-dead gorgeous and nice as could be.
She was warm, gracious and a great hostess getting everyone to talk, etc.
Her hubby had made his garage into a man cave complete with heat and huge screen TV.
All the beer was out there along with all the sports memorabilia and the TV with sports playing. (the bar was set up inside with the food)
The majority of the men found their way out there pretty quickly.
These men came in from time to time to get food (which looked fabulous) and or liquor.

I made my rounds and knew as soon as I saw my hubby I wanted to go home.
Everyone was nice but this was not my thing and the majority were so damn young.
(did i say that already?)
Rick came up behind me and put his arm around me and whispered in my ear, "ready to go home?"
"I was ready before we got here."
So we found our host and hostess and thanked them for a lovely evening and walked home.

I was just about to say, "See how awful that was, why do you make me do this Rick?"
When he says, "See Margaret that wasn't so bad now was it?"

Throw Back Thursday

I'm dealing with work and contractors today.
Please give a read to something from 2008.

FRIDAY, FEBRUARY 29, 2008

I Don't Think So

Before GPS's...

My hubby and I don’t often fight. There has always been 1 exception to this.....being in the car together. Oh, he can make me so mad when he is driving.
He tells me to be his co-pilot and he hands me the map and then will say, “you’ve got to tell me where to go okay?” 

I tell him to turn right. He says, “I don’t think so” and continues on his merry way.

I am holding the map and I have the address who do you think is correct? 

After driving aimlessly in circles for 25 minutes he turns around and goes back to where we should have turned right and says, “We should have turned here” as though I never mentioned it. He thinks he's funny. I do not.
Oh God, how he frustrates me in a car!
Now having told you this you should also know that he is hopelessly directionally impaired. Oh, that is so not an exaggeration. 

When he used to travel for work I always wondered how the hell he got off a plane in a strange city and ended up where he needed to be on time knowing that he is so bad at directions.  He is a freak about being prompt so I know he was on time but how the hell he got there is anyone's guess including his. I now believe when he did arrive at his destination at all it should be considered another wonder of the world.

Now hubby is delusional about a lot of things. (for instance, he thinks I’m cute and he thinks he has way more hair than he actually does) 

But it’s important to note that he isn’t delusional about the fact that he is so directionally impaired. When I suggested he get a GPS he too thought that was a great idea.

Imagine my surprise when one day I get into the car and the woman's voice on the GPS tells him to turn left and he says to her, “I don’t think so”  

He is talking back to this automated woman for heaven's sake! 

For most of that trip all I keep hearing is the GPS woman say, “recalculating” because he won’t listen to her either. Imagine that!
Then a couple of weeks later I get in his car and the GPS woman is now speaking with an Australian accent. I asked him why.
He answers me with a laugh, "because the other bitch was pissing me off".
I ask him if her lovely accent helps him to listen to her directions he responded with, “You’d think so wouldn’t you?”  Meaning – NO.  Now that made me laugh out loud.

So now it’s a little less stressful for me when driving with him with much less arguing.
I always know that we will get wherever we are going in a very unusual way and I no longer take his not listening to my directions so personal. I mean if he talks back to an inanimate object and argues with her......

Ready for the Laundromat Round 2?

My new washer should be here in a week.

Which means I get the lovely experience of returning to the laundromat.

Rick asked this morning, "Do you want me to go with you?"

I laughed and said, "do you mean it because that didn't sound so sincere buddy"

"No, but I thought I'd make a lame offer. If you really want me to go I will you know"

I just laughed and said, "Nope you carry it out to the car and I'll deal with it. You can stay home and deal with the dog."

"Are you guilting me, Margaret?"

" I hope so even if just a little bit." (he knew I was joking)

"Okay as long as I know."

He does make me laugh. He will start talking to everyone and he will begin making strange friends at the laundromat, I know this man. I'll go and do this quickly and come home. He will bond and then stay and help old people (he is old people) and women. He will help to carry things for women or old people out to their cars. I'll be carrying my own because he is so busy chatting up whomever.

It's like the grocery store, in theory, I want him to come with me (I mean he does a lot of the cooking) But in reality its cheaper if he stays home and then he is helping every short woman in the store to reach things. Next thing you know he is chatting up the manager. He will talk to everyone. The last time we went together it was double the time to shop. He and the butcher I told him should get a room and I took the cart and moved on while he continued to make a bro friend. I guess from one carnivore to another makes a beautiful friendship.

And yes, of course, I have busted his balls about this, c'mon who wouldn't?

The insurance adjuster showed up today.

We are getting new floors on the entire 1st floor. 

We are getting a new ceiling on the 1st floor

We are getting new kickplates under our cabinets in the kitchen

That is the trouble with an open floor plan - there is no place to cut it off point. Even though the damage is in the kitchen/great room, the dining room, foyer, and powder room all have to be done as well. 

I am getting a new floor in the laundry room. 

And lastly, the carpet on the 2nd floor where they cut out the padding will be redone. But the same ole carpet. But it's only 2-3 yrs old so that is a-okay. 

That is a helluva lot of work and none will be done before Xmas. 

While I know all this "new" sounds nice, I was fine with my old.

They will pay for Izzy to board for the days/doggie daycare so she does not bother the people doing the floors. From what the adjuster said it will be 1-2 days to remove and 1-3 days to install.  Our floors are engineered hardwoods on concrete so they are glued down. Apparently, it is the worst demo there is to do. The adjuster told me, Rick told me, and then last night on HGTV I saw the same thing and the contractor complaining about removing engineered hardwoods.

So that is going to be the biggest pain in the arse.

It would be nice if my new floor in the laundry room could go in before the new washer but I don't wish to wait for months for a new washer. They will have to move it to the hall and deal with it. I am not going to the laundromat for 2 more months.

I have never wanted to do laundry as much as I would like to be doing it today...in my own home.

Soon....soon.....

Quiet

They came at 8:15 this morning to remove all the jet engines and to see if my floor was dry enough to take them out of here.  They were, so YEE HAW!

We turned them off Saturday evening. We have a hotel in our development that is brand new. They had no room at the inn. 
So we tried a few more but they were all over $250/night and we didn't know if we'd be reimbursed and honestly, this month is so tight we just couldn't do it.  So we turned 'em off and Izzy immediately relaxed and took a very long nap. We could hear one another to actually converse.
It was beautiful. We kept them off until morning. We got to sleep in our bed and we all slept finally! 
But they went back on after we had our coffee etc so we could all have another day of misery.

I only use white towels in my home for the bathroom and hand towels etc.
So when there was water everywhere I was grabbing beach towels instead of my big fluffy white towels. Then I grabbed for my oldest white towels. In the kitchen, I even grabbed dish towels. I had so many wet towels in a basket it was too heavy to lift. 
I couldn't get to my dryer due to the way they had the fans. Oh, we tried.
I took what is normally 4 loads of laundry and went to the laundromat on Sunday morning.  Now let's talk about laundromat fun, shall we?

I have not been to a laundromat since the late '70s/ the very early 80s.
My ex and I did not have a washer and dryer. We were 23 and we would go to the laundromat. We both always waited until we had nothing left to wear because who enjoys a laundromat?  Once I wore a pair of my hubby's tighty whiteys and it was so uncomfortable it would have been better to go commando.
At our laundromat, in those days it was $.50 to wash and $.25 to dry.
The bad thing was there was a pac-man machine there. So we'd sit and play pac-man and then have no quarters left to dry. We'd bring home wet clothes to hang around our apartment. How silly of us.

I was trying to determine how much I'd need. 
I thought by now it's probably $1 or $2 a load to wash.
I brought $10 in quarters thinking that was surely enough. HA.
I get to the only laundromat in my city and was quite impressed with how clean and nice it was. Boy was it busy this Sunday morning.

I grabbed a machine and began to laugh. 
It was $7.00 for 1 load of laundry! 
HA that made me that old person who thinks well in my day it was only $.50 a load. I really thought it may be $2.00 but never $7
I looked around to see if there were machines to get more quarters, whew, there was. So I load up my front loader and realize I can make these 2 loads of what I can do in my home washer. I got my clothes in the washer, put in my $7.00 and could not reach the top where you put in the detergent. I was jumping and a tall nice young man came over and said, "Isn't it silly that these are so far back from the front, it's not easy when you're tall so you short people I see struggling all the time."  He just took my cap of detergent and put it in the machine for me. I thanked him and he said, "I'm in the back if you need anything else." 
That was sure nice of him. I looked around and realized I would take the dryers on the bottom row so I could reach everything.  Dyers were $.25 per 6 minutes. A load of towels took more than 6 minutes, more like 50 minutes. 

The dryers. 

It sure was an eclectic bunch at the laundromat. I saw a well-heeled looking woman come in fancy clothes, high heels with a full-length fur and jewels to wash bedding. Never taking off her coat. I saw all kinds of people. 
A couple next to me were speaking a language I was not familiar with. Living here I have learned the difference between Mexican and Venezuelan but this was neither. I was playing a game with myself to see if I could figure it out. I thought it was perhaps Portgegues.  Not far from the sounds of Venezuelan but I was not convinced but it kept me amused as I sat and watched my clothes spin. They smiled a lot and spoke so fast. They too were doing large bedding items.  
The nice woman next to me at the folding table was from Oklahoma. 
I saw her folding warm weather clothes and wondered where she was from so I asked, being the nosey sort I am. 
She said she was a trucker and she was from Oklahoma and she was just in Florida. I said, 'ah that explains the shorts and tank tops and today you're wearing a sweatshirt" She was so nice and we chatted for a bit. She asked why I was there and I told her. She told me I was awfully happy for going through all this. I told her that it may appear that way but I am not. I am just not crying in public today, just on the inside and that made her laugh. 

Wednesday the adjuster arrives and we will begin the fight to see what they will take care of. If you are a praying person please send them my way.
I need some good news. 2019 sucked.  
Right now it is quiet in my house and for that, I am most grateful. 

Is 2019 over yet?

The video I wanted to share with you today won't allow me to share. I guess it's too big. So I will do my best to articulate the last 24 hrs.

I threw in a load of laundry and went to work at 8:25am on Friday.
Izzy was asleep in her bed in front of the fireplace on the 1st level of our home.

Around 9 I was on the phone with a customer when I was hearing a ping, ping noise. I couldn't get this woman off the phone fast enough to see what was happening on the 1st floor.
I assumed Izzy got into something. She never has even once in 10.5 yrs but you never know.

So I run downstairs to see a huge amount of water dripping from my pendant lights onto the island and over the kitchen island onto the floor. Water is all over the floor.  I turn off the water immediately. I see poor Izzy's face, she looked so confused.

I ran back upstairs to the laundry room and opened the door, water poured out from under the door and went into the hall and the master.
I was ankle-deep in water. One of the laundry room walls butts up to Rick's walk-in closet. I was concerned for his stuff.  I tried to turn off the machine and it wouldn't turn off so I unplugged it and it was still going. WTH? I climbed up onto the machine to reach the two "things" that had to be turned off. But I couldn't budge them.
Oh, why isn't Rick home when I need him?

So I run next door in my bare feet in 30-degree weather and ask my neighbor Tom to help me. He walked in and said, OH MY GOD.  Yep, but it's the 2nd-floor laundry room is where I need you, Tom. 
Having the same layout he knew where to go. 
He was able to get those suckers turned the correct way to turn it off. YIPEE.

I grabbed all my beach towels and my older white towels and ran downstairs to clean up. I dropped them on the island and ran to the garage to fetch the wet vac.
I began to sop up the water. Used the towels for the rest. Then I went up to the 2nd flr and began again. What a mess.

I called the insurance company immediately after that. Then I called my home warranty people after that for the washer.

My homeowner's insurance had Service Masters at my house in 1.5 hours. A team of 8 people went through my house like they were on fire. 
Man, did they move. Talk about thorough and professional. 
When they came into the house the lead guy told me what would be happening and he asked that Izzy and I leave this floor. I told him the info he wanted and needed and Izzy and I sat on the staircase and watched the. They were a well-oiled machine. Plastic went down on the floors, they moved furniture, they covered furniture.  Then had this thing that looked like a stick and when they pressed it into the floor they knew where there was water on both the rug and the wood floor. They burst a couple of bubbles that were on the ceiling (I was afraid if I did that water would have gone everywhere so I waited for them) Water and drywall were falling everywhere. I now have a big hole in my ceiling. Water was coming from more places than where the hole is but those will be able to dry out from the opening in the ceiling and the fans.  

Oh let's talk about the fans, shall we? 
They are big, they are loud like a jet engine. They have these things on the floor that a hose goes into and it sucks the water from the floor. Then a machine it goes into and a hose that is into my kitchen sink. There at 6 big ass machines in the kitchen. I can't speak to people and have them hear me with these machines on. The clincher you ask? I MUST keep the machines on for 24/7. They come back on Monday. I asked if I could just give us a break and turn them off for a little while? NO, you can't. 
He read me the list of reasons why and I swear I heard, yada yada yada. I just couldn't imagine having to have this kind of noise in my house.

I have the same set up in my laundry room bedroom. 
They ripped up all the flooring in the laundry room and there are fans and machines in there too. 
In our bedroom, we have some other things supposedly drying out the carpet.

Tom stopped over after he saw the Service Masters trucks leave. He asked if I needed anything. I told him to come in and see what they did.
He stood there with his hand over his mouth. He screamed, "How long do these machines have to be one?" I screamed right back, "24/7 until they come back on Monday." OH MY GOD was his response.

At 5:45p Tom text me and asks if I'd like to come to his house for some quiet, bring Izzy and we'll fill your glass with wine.
I wrote back, I'll bring a bottle and I'll be there as soon as I get my shoes on.  Izzy and I practically ran over there.  I forgot to leave Rick a note though. Oops. 

Rick walked into this house that was perfect when he left in the morning and he sees holes in the ceiling wet floors, machines and fans and noise.
He went upstairs and he saw the same thing, calling my name.
He then went to the 3rd floor calling my name and Izzy's.
He assumed I was walking the dog when he couldn't find us in the house.

He then text me and said, "where are you?"
I told him I was at Tom and Danielle's and come on over.
We talked and laughed and finished the wine and said I have to go home.
I had not had one single ounce of food all day. The 2 glasses of wine hit me like a ton of bricks. Rick laughed at me and said, well it may help you sleep through the jet engines in the house. 

So how does one sleep in the middle of a jet engine? 
That's correct, one doesn't. We could do it if it were only the 1st floor but being the 1st and 2nd and our master is on the 2nd floor it is impossible.
Poor Izzy this really upset her. The noise bothered her immensely. 
She just doesn't want to be here. If I unplug as I did this morning for 30 minutes, the big one that sucks the water out of the floor, she calms down and will chill out for a bit. But I can't keep it off. I put it back on and she gets up immediately and runs to the door. I don't know if it hurts her ears or what but this is not good for any of us. Last night she was miserable and made it worse for us.  I took her to daycare today just to give her a break. (and me too)  Rick is working. I am having to listen to this until the washerman gets here to see about a repair or a new washer. I planned on doing laundry this weekend. Guess that's out until I find a laundromat.

I can't watch TV because I can't hear it. We went to the 3rd floor last night and watched TV. Izzy was still oh, so antsy. It was a bad night. We slept in the guest room which is only a queen bed. My husband is a king bed man. His long body ends up diagonal so he's not hanging off the bed so I am squished into this corner. I don't know the time I got up because he put the clock face down on his nightstand. I guess it bothered him, who knows. I went and slept in the 3rd floor tv room theatre seats. At 4 I just got up and thought the hell with this. Izzy was already up and she and I went downstairs to my bedroom and got dressed and brushed my teeth and we went for a walk. Pitiful when a 4:20a walk is better than being in your own home.

After Rick got up the shouting began. WHAT? hand in air to stop talking and he moves closer to me and in my ear says, "say that again" 
So I scream it so he can hear me. He left for work and Izzy and I had to deal with this. I unplugged it as I said above for 30 minutes. Only 1 machine, the loudest one, so Izzy could chill while I showered etc. 
She laid in her bed after it was turned off. I have a feeling the sound or frequency of this loudest machine hurts her ears. But I could be wrong.

I came back downstairs to Izzy sitting at the bottom of the steps waiting for me.
She ran to the door when she saw me. 
I know she was begging to get out of here.
I plugged the loudest one back in and grabbed my coat and we left. We went for a ride, which this crazy dog loves to do. She will just lay down and sleep. I know she was exhausted and she just wanted out of the noisy house so even for me driving a bit was actually nice and quiet. I didn't even turn on the radio, the quiet was so damn nice. 

After a 20 minute ride, we ended up at the daycare facility. Daycare is a 4-minute ride but Izzy and I enjoyed the quiet in the car so we just drove around and wasted gas. 
After I stopped she sat up and looked where we were. 
She knew. Her tail was going nuts, She was so excited.
I was happy for her. She was going to have fun. 
I had to go home and listen to screaming engines.

(I started this a few hours earlier but got interrupted)
The washer repairman that my home warranty company sent arrived on time.
He said between 12-2p and he was here at 1:46p
He went right upstairs and was in my laundry room for less than 8 minutes and came out and said I am requesting you get a new washer.  
Yeah for me. But what a way to get it. He said he could fix it and it may hang in there for a month but we don't want this to happen again. It's old and you need to get a new one. I will let your warranty company know and they will research this area to see the average price and they will give you that to go buy one or they will send you model numbers and you pick one and it will be delivered. 
We moved into this house on January 15, 2000. We bought it then. 
So it is old in washing machine terms.

My neighbor went through something similar and got a new washer.
They gave her $800 and something. The washer she liked was 1200.
But she took the 800 and now loves it. I am curious to see what my warranty company will do for me. 

I imagine I will get a new floor as well. 
My floors look like crap. I wanted new floors but not like this.
Although I am not paying for them.

Monday Service Master returns between 8-9am
They will determine if they need to do anything more, how much water was removed and be sure all the water is gone where it should be gone. (rick's closet got pretty damp too). We don't want mold as they kept saying.
Then I would assume these god awful machines leave my home.

Wednesday the insurance adjuster will arrive to see about what is going to be done. He told me on the phone I can use their contractors or I can get my own.

Right now I have to wash clothes at the laundromat. Not thrilled.
But more than anything I just want quiet and these machines gone from my home.  I think tonight we may do a hotel for the 3 of us. I have got to get some sleep!!

Since I couldn't load the video I thought I'd show you a photo of my ceiling that is drying out. The repair will be far larger than the hole. That hole is just to dry out the ceiling. The dark line you see from my lights across the ceiling is a shadow or reflection of the lights - not any more damage.  I do wish they would let me upload the video, it helps show the scope far better.

I sure hope you are having a better weekend.

Who?

I don't know or even care to know any songs by Bille Eilish.
She is a 17yr old who I have heard in a 1 hr interview on Sirius but that is really about as much as I care to know about her.
I am not her demographic for her music.

In the interview, I was amused at how childish she was but she was polite in answering. But she is only 17 so of course, she is childish. 
She should be.
But after each giggle and question, I felt like I was listening to a kid who should not be in this situation just yet. She may be a good songwriter, singer, but she's not even an adult. Her answers at times were stuttering to sound like a big girl. It felt like she was trying to be something she wasn't. Clearly, she was uncomfortable.

How do parents let their kids go off and do their thing when she is clearly not an adult. Finish school. Your grammar is atrocious. Finish school because when green & black hair and looking like a suicidal depressed stoner is out of style then what?  
Her talent will be there when she is 21 or older.
Yes, you can see it bothers me.  
Listening to her interview for an hour was a real eye-opener. 
I felt very bad for her.
I felt like I wanted to hug her and bring her home with me.
Her answers will embarrass her in a few years. She sounds like she's 17. 
And there is nothing wrong with that when you're 17! 
But you don't need thrust into these adult situations just yet.

I guess in the last week or so she was asked about Van Halen or Van Halen came up in the conversation and she said she didn't know what a Van Halen was. Everyone laughed but she was serious. 
She had no idea who or what Van Halen was. She's in the music industry and never heard of them. So of course as all things do today this went viral. I saw it on my evening news, now that was pitiful. Old people were appalled that she had no idea that Van Halen was a rock band from the 80s and 90s. 

Rick asked me if I knew at age 17 singers, pop stars or musicians that were big the year I was born or years before that. I named some that I thought I could name. Mainly the stuff I had to endure in my home. 
He said he could too. "
So with the internet why doesn't she? It's not like they asked her about a regional band not one of the 80's biggest bands."
I said that maybe she was joking. 
But he heard the interview as well and said, you know she wasn't joking by the way that conversation went on. I knew he was right.

So at age 17, born in 2002 I get why she may not know who Eddie Van Halen is or his band. I think everyone should give this kid a break.
Rick was completely annoyed. I told him he was acting like an old curmudgeon and he asked, "You know why? Because I am"

I tried to explain that she could be isolated. 
Her parents are actors and screenwriters so maybe she lives a different nomadic life with no TV or no music in the house or no internet.  
Rick went on, "her father is a year younger than you. They never played that music in the house? The internet alone in the last year has been abuzz about Eddie's cancer so you'd think she'd have at least seen it."

Why would she make note of an old fart with cancer? 
I asked, "did you know of her before the interview? "
He said he did from being on Jimmy Fallon and SNL. Okay, that didn't work. 
So I said, "what does she sing?"  
"Nothing I'd like" he replied.
Okay, I gave up.

I'm giving this poor 17 yr old who looks like a ragamuffin the benefit of the doubt. She was born in 2002. Just because she works in the music industry doesn't mean she is versed in music. 
No young person seems to know any history, only what is in front of them.

I realize now that in many ways I was more mature at 17 than 17 yrs old today and in many ways far more immature than 17 yr olds today. 
Either way, just be 17 and be a kid for a while. 
Being adult isn't all it's cracked up to be.

Who Doesn't Love a Gift?

When I was a kid I used to wrap my books in brown grocery bags.
Did you do that? Or am I just showing my advanced age here?
Hell if I know how it was all done, I don't recall any of it. 
I just remember all the folding and that the writing of the name of the grocery store went on the inside, not the outside.
I would always draw on mine. I love to doodle, but I'm no artist or have any drawing skills. Trust me.

Then when I was 14 or 15 I had to wrap a present for someone's birthday in my family. I am going to venture a guess that it was a sister because I drew on it.
Now beginning on January 24th there was a birthday every week to 10 days in our home until April It slowed down after that. 
It was what my husband calls Malizia Birthday Season. (malizia = my maiden name, Z=T sound, you know like pizza) 

I recall the panic that I didn't have any wrapping paper and no money or car to get some. What's a gal to do? I took the top of the box and wrapped it like my books with the brown bag. This was also easier to open the gift, just lift the top.
I drew the sun, birds, mountains, water and a home sitting by the water. (yea I had that dream then too)
I drew this whole scene with my crayons and colored pencils.

The wrapping was so well received it was kept. Then it was used for everyone's birthday. It became a "thing" in our family. My mom used it. We kids used it. We all knew where mom kept it so we could use it.
We had and used that damn box for years! It had become a family staple.
I even received it on my birthday and I made it. 
But as odd as all this sounds it became a fun thing in my family. 
It was funny looking, it was sturdy, it was unisex. It worked.
My mom mentioned this gift-wrapped box to me a few weeks ago and we had a good laugh about how long we used that box.

Rick used to wrap all my presents in something that wasn't wrapping paper.
The guy buys the best gifts and his wrapping while not the neatest it's always different and I love that. Once he knew I wanted a new NYY baseball shirt. He put my gift in a box and wrapped it with the T-shirt, it was cool.  He said it was because he was too lazy to go buy paper and tape so he came up with this idea. See? We are hugely different. I couldn't have thought of it, would have raced my butt to the store in a panic and rushed home to wrap it all. Or take it to the dept store and have them wrap it. 

I have received a lot of wonderful things from this man.
But on our first anniversary, I was stressed about what to give him.
Your 1st anniversary is paper. 
While it was 26 yrs ago I don't recall what I ended up getting him. Obviously, it wasn't as impressive as what he got me.
A calendar. My favorite gift ever from him.
Now do not laugh at receiving a calendar. It is paper so that was on point.
He and I were pictured on the front. As I opened it each month had a photo of what we did that month over the years together. I still have that calendar and I love it. It was so well thought out and it was thoughtful. Isn't that what a gift is? Thoughtful?
That ole calendar made me cry. 
I also felt like shit because I didn't think my gift matched his level of gift-giving. I looked at that calendar recently. It makes me laugh and be happy. The picture of use rafting down the Allegheny River will always be a happy picture and moment in our life. And apparently looking at that calendar we did that in July. :-)
And nothing has changed. He's still good like that.

On the shallow side of his gift-giving was on my birthday about 20 years ago.
Now what you need to know is that I would see photos in a magazine of a bracelet or a ring or earrings and I would cut them out and put them in his jewelry box. He would laugh when he finally found it and he'd hold up and say, "Fan mail from some flounder?"  I would laugh. But be it a year or 10 I did get some of those things like earrings, a watch and a bracelet that I put in his jewelry box. 

When we got married I did not get an engagement ring. He and I were just moving west with new jobs and things were tight. I told him I wasn't marrying him for the jewelry so it didn't matter. It did to him. I said on our anniversary some year you can surprise me with one if it means that much to you but I don't really care. So a beautiful gold band was put on my finger. He knew I cared but not enough that I had to have one to be engaged. I just like a nice rock. Hey, sometimes I'm that girl. But not so stupid to know that it is all meaningless. 

One day 7 yrs later I saw an anniversary ring that I thought was to die for.
3 stones. Gold ring, platinum prongs, and 3 good size diamonds. I cut it out and said when you win the lottery I'll take this one.  I didn't even know I wanted it until I saw it. Yea, one of those.

Fast forward to 2001 on my birthday. He had been bugging me about my birthday. He said why are you so quiet this year? (it's my favorite holiday and I make a fuss) I didn't know why to be honest. I just was. He said no hints?
I asked since when did he need hints? 
"So if I get you out of that shredding bathrobe you'd be fine with that?"
 I laughed and replied, "I would love a bathrobe and slippers if you really must know."

On my birthday in 2001, I got a beautiful red robe, a great pair of slippers AND the watch that was put in his jewelry box 8 yrs earlier. I loved every single gift.
I was wearing them all while he made breakfast. Then he turns from the stove and says, Hey I forgot one of your gifts. He hands me a big sucker ring. I, begin to laugh as he puts it on my finger telling me, here is that big rock I promised you, babe. I was a happy camper, it was cherry flavored.😋

After breakfast, we are getting dressed for our day and he reaches in his pocket and pulls out a box and says, I keep forgetting things today I'm sorry. 
He hands me this ring box.  I look at him and he says, go on.
I open the box and immediately cry of course. It was a beautiful 3 stone anniversary ring just like the one in the jewelry box from so many years ago.

Now what is impressive about this is that he fooled me.
He doesn't often fool me.
I handle the money so the first thing I said is, "Is this real? Where did the money come from? was there a lottery win you didn't share?"  
Knowing full well that I didn't see any money move out of any accounts so how did he buy this? 
"Did you steal this Richard?"  He laughed.
"Nope remember that bonus you thought they screwed me on?"
"Yes, of course, they did screw you big time"
"Yes, it could look that way. But I got that bonus and didn't tell you and had to buy this so you wouldn't see a money trail. Do you know how hard that was Margaret? I had the check in my car because I feared you'd see it.  You bitched at me for WEEKS about why am I taking this lying down? Go to them you earned that bonus fight for it. You kept saying that this isn't right. It was in your contract....and on and on you bitched. The hardest part of all of this was that I couldn't tell you so you would shut up about it!"    Okay, I deserve that.

OMG, I love this ring. I love that he did this. But a gal at 45 and a gal at 63 are different. I don't give a rats ass about diamonds anymore. I know that when times are tough I have tried to sell it. You sure don't get much or even close to what you paid. Wouldn't have been that helpful. For a day maybe. Rick would have had a fit if I sold it so I never told him I looked into it. But when we were having to sell our 2nd home and cars believe me I sure as hell tried. 

He is a damn good gift giver.
We stopped buying each other holiday gifts several years ago. 
For many years we'd say if we want it we can buy it so let's not do that. 
At Christmas, we would buy ourselves something we wanted. Like a bigger TV.   Our birthdays are still fun but no gifts. We usually do something the birthday person wants to do. See the Yankees in spring training or Rick goes fishing for a full weekend with his fishing buddy. That type of thing. Besides, he always gets me little things throughout the year as surprises and that was more than enough for me. Now that finances are miserable tight I don't wish for him to spend the money. 
HA, you have to have it to spend it. 

This year the big gift is our trip to visit his family. 
I hope you all get the gifts you are hoping for this holiday season.
Gifts don't always come in a box so pay attention.

Commericals

There are a lot of things of late that remind me that I am old.
Sometimes I forget and then my joints give me grief in the early morning and it's like, Oh yea, I'm an old bat.  Nothing makes it more apparent than TV commercials.

The commercial above has always been one of my favorites. 
I don't know what they are selling because it is from another country. 
But I at least understand the story. I assume it is a cell phone or wireless service provider. It just shows the bond that dad and son made over the silly dad and song throughout the years will continue with the son and his child because they can connect via either this phone or the service provider. I think it's a nice message and if I think it shows the product. I get it and it's in a different language but my American commercials I am lost these days. 
There are so many commercials where I will look at Rick and ask, "What are they selling? What is this product for? I don't get it"  We laugh and said it is obviously something we don't need.

There is a Dior perfume ad. I don't get this silly one at all.
You see a woman running from someone on the beach, you see her jump from a bridge for no apparent reason in an evening gown, you see her roll around in the sand. As she walks away she looks into the camera and whispers Dior.
Rick looked at me and said is that perfume? How does that sell perfume?
"Well by God if I wanted to jump from a bridge Rick in my evening gown that is the perfume to do it in! I would need this!"
Then we both laughed. I don't get it either. How is this a commercial for perfume? 

Then there is all the fuss about Peleton. Oh boy, social media is not happy that this very thin and fit looking woman got an exercise bike from her mate. We will just skip over that major faux pax. 
A skinny pretty thing receives an exercise bike for her birthday. 
She is all smiles.
Oh, not just any exercise bike but a Peleton so not only are you $2,400+ invested you are miserable and sweating, then they add someone to yell at  motivate you while you are doing it.
I don't know a lot of wives who would be so thrilled to receive this as a gift. Oh, sure there would be some. Shh, we don't like them so let's not talk about it.
It's like getting a new vacuum for my birthday. 
Not if he wants to live he won't,  oh no.
I digress...
After receiving the bike then you see her getting up at 6AM to ride her new bike. Oh my! Then you see her sweating on said bike. The horrors!
All the while still skinny and nothing has changed. Or has it?
She has been video taping herself for the year and now she is showing it all to her husband telling him what a difference this has made in her life. 
For the love of God, how did we get here? From hubby buying his wife, an exercise bike to it changed her life? How? Tell us? We may wish to buy a bike so we can change our life. All of this is a big stretch for this company to think they are reaching the majority of women here. She is already perfect looking and after a year she is still good looking, very thin, lives in a gorgeous home with a view.  Yep, that is the majority of women who's husbands buy them exercise equipment for their birthday.
And how did it change her life? She got up at 6am is that the big change? 
She looks the same. I just don't get it. I don't want to spend thousands and look the same. Did it change her mentally? Is it like meditation? Spill it. Just not a good ad on so many levels. Tell me why this is so awesome, please! As an ad tell me why I need this!
Each time it is on though, I watch it intently to see if I am missing something. 
Obviously, I am, but I don't see it.

In full disclosure, this bike if it were not over $2,400 without the cost of monthly fees for your person to yell at you is so something I would love. My hips wouldn't anymore but I used to love spinning so this would be right up my alley but change my life? If it made me 6 inches taller I'd get a loan if had to.

When is it too much?

While we're on the subject of Ms. Scrooge allow me to tell you this tidbit about myself. 
Christmas music wherever you go all the time is nothing but annoying to me. Even if you like Christmas music, it's too much. Goes on too damn long.  I feel like it is Chinese Water Torture.

Today I went to the doctors - it was playing in the office.
Then I went to Walgreens and it was playing there.
Then I stopped at the grocery store to fetch juice, it was playing there too.
Then I came home - whew - never going to hear that stuff at home.
But Rick is home today (long story) and he had on TV when I returned.
Yep, you guessed it, Christmas music.
I can't get away from it.

Growing up Christian you'd think I'd be used to this.
I feel for the poor souls who are not Christian and have to put up with this holiday music on a loop of nausea. No skin in the game and still have to listen to this all the damn time? It's enough to make you postal. But I know there are those very nice people out there who LOVE this. 
I want to slap them, but they are nice people. They are probably the same nice people who put glitter in your card. And we all love getting a card with glitter in it, don't we? 

When I loved Christmas I didn't like this music. So now add that I am the ultimate scrooge and I am not a fan. 
Oh, sure when we would decorate the tree and we'd have our spiked homemade egg nog Rick and I would play Christmas music on. But do I really need to hear this from Thanksgiving to New Years? Even music I like I would end up hating if I had to hear it on a loop like this. 

I worked a holiday season at the mall once.  
The operative word here, ONCE. 
Holiday mall workers deserve combat pay if you ask me. And you didn't. 
Oh my goodness the music was non stop. It drove us all crazy. Like the mean shoppers weren't bad enough but do I have to hear jingle bells for the 24th time today and not hurt anyone? Really you expect that from me? I'm not that strong. 

As teens and young adults my cousins and I would load up our sleds with boxes of booze and we'd carol through the neighborhood. 
My ex-husband was shocked at his first Xmas caroling adventure after marrying me.
He asked, "All your cousins do this? And they LIKE to do this?"
I explain to the best of my ability, "Hey, it's another reason to drink, walk and be together, it's fun"  We meet at Uncle Angelo's, we will pull our wagon and walk around the neighborhood singing and believe it or not it's a riot. We laugh a lot as we tend to do. The people love it and get so excited when they open their door, or pretend to. We can't sing a lick but it sounds okay when we are all together. We end up at Uncle Ange's for food and warming up at the end of the evening."  I do remember him shaking his head and I know he was thinking we were certifiable.

We were 23 and off we went caroling. He admitted it was a ball, the laughter, the falling down, (was it icy or was that too much hot toddy?)  even the singing. Because in my hometown it is always snowing so there was always snow and ice making it even more of an adventure.
So I didn't always dislike Christmas music. But again it didn't start at Thanksgiving. It was 2 maybe 3 weeks at best. That is enough!

Then comes December 31st - well I like that date in December.
That day in 1993 in Montego Bay Jamaica under a flower field gazebo overlooking the vast blue ocean I wed Mr. Right. 
So you see, December isn't all bad. 😍

Here is a favorite non-traditional Christmas song.

My Least Favorite Holiday

If I could sleep from Halloween to New Years Day I would do it.
I am not a fan of these holidays. Guess that makes me a scrooge.

Oh, I loved 'em when I was a kid. No pressure. Just all the cousins and Aunts and Uncles visiting and food and family and a ton of laughter for weeks. Our home was filled with relatives coming and going and oh so much food and cocktails.  Aunts and my Mom and her friends all got together and baked holiday cookies. I recall my mom saying she was making the pizzelles and bringing them to Aunt Filomena's and Aunt Fil was making her famous 'Knots' and she would bring some to our house. 
I guess it was their cookie swap or some such thing. All I knew was that my favorite food group, cookies/pastries/cakes were abundant at this time of year and Peggy was in heaven sneaking an extra cookie here or there.

But today....not so much. 
Now it just means to me money, money, stuff and more stuff. 
Stress, stress, and more stress.
Neighbors who bitch if you don't decorate. No one lives in the same city, state, country so now everyone is far and wide. It's certainly different today.  

Remember when the holidays you spent with your family because basically whether you liked it or not that was all there was to do. 
No 300 channels on TV or streaming movies. 
No stores to go return presents immediately after receiving them 
No movie theaters open because they were with their families.
Everything was closed so your focus was on one thing. 
That was the holiday and what that meant to you and your family.
No other options. My family's choice was family during this time BUT after church and the meaning of Christmas as my Dad would say to us all so often we would all roll our eyes. 
We did church, family, and food for days.

But now I'm just feeling like this song by Keb Mo