...just a few thoughts...

Domestic bliss

2009-12-21T00:01:09Z

What an idyllic family day: the four of us put all the ornaments on the tree. Matt played trains with the kids. And the kids helped me decorate Christmas cookies. :)

Facebook is evil

2009-12-15T14:55:30Z

So I finally succumbed and have joined Facebook. This was after a weekend of doing Christmas cards and realizing there were so many of my college friends that I've hardly spoken to this year. They have been bugging me forever to join. I've decided to be super strict and limit it to just friends from the college sorority. No family. No high school friends. No other friends from college. No co-workers. Not even Matt! So far... I admit I don't quite see the point of Facebook. Seems like it is a series of very superficial contact with people. Just becuase someone says they "like" a comment, does that count as interaction? The whole sending virtual hearts or other twinkling items seems weird. I am not 100% sold on this Facebook thing (good God I sound like an old woman!!). Of course my friends list is very small right now. As I look at other friend's friends lists, I am adding more and more people.

Christmas Cards

2009-12-13T00:04:23Z

Yep, it's that time of the year again. I love handwritten Christmas cards. I take care to write something thoughtful and personal to everyone on our list. And yes, it usually takes a long time to finally get all the cards written and in the mailbox. I have succumbed to one small concession this year: printed address labels and return address labels. I know - welcome to the 21st century finally! LOL @ myself. But I feel like I am cheating somehow by doing this. But I'll tell you this: I am about halfway through my stack of cards and I just started today. I think next year I'll get schmancy Christmas labels.

It's been the perfect afternoon for writing cards: Matt has the kids doing errands, so I am sitting in the kitchen writing them out without interruption. I have my Christmas song playlist on shuffle - no one does Christmas songs like Frank Sinatra and Johnny Mathis! My friend's dad did a few instrumental Christmas albums over the years, and I think those are always favorites of mine. And every year I look to see if I can find them on the internet for sale, and he doesn't even list them on his official site. (Les Hooper, in case you are interested).

We have the outdoor lights up (we decided a few years ago to put the lights in the backyard since our street is empty and gets no through traffic, and that way we can enjoy them all night.) I got a brand new wreath on the door. Tomorrow we are taking the kiddies to see Santa for the very first time. We'll see how that goes! Next weekend we'll get the tree.

Halloween 2009!

2009-11-01T04:48:32Z

This was the first year we took the kids out Trick or Treating. So much fun. Lots of great homes really decorated all out. Sidewalks crowded with kids young and old. Lots of fun.

Thought I'd recap the costumes in the past 3 years:
2007 - octopi
2008 - Holly Hobbie and a farmer
2009 - a lion and a kitty cat

Arguing with a 4-Year Old

2009-10-03T17:38:58Z

I am a horrible person. I said something mean to a 4-year old at my son's daycare.

When picking up the kids yesterday Zachary was playing with several boys from the various age groups. An older kid took the car Zachary was playing with a wouldn't give it back. Zachary asked him to share. The kid said no. Since I was standing right there, I suggested "Why don't you share the car with Zachary?" The little snot sneered contemptuously "I don't share with babies." We were leaving anyway so I told Zachary to help me get his stuff from the cubby. I turned to the kid and said meanly "Only babies like you don't know how to share their toys." And I felt bad the instant I said it. The kid didn't react, and I surely hope I didn't hurt his feeling, but his bullying ways aroused the mama bear in me. Plus I know the books suggest that kids need to learn to resolve such situations themselves. I solved nothing by saying it. I think I am the only one traumatized by the event LOL. So bad.

Blocked!

2009-09-16T02:03:10Z

I don’t have writer’s block; I have gardener’s block. I have a blank slate of a raised vegetable bed and I have planted nothing. Instead I have busied myself with gathering information, researching climate zones, making charts and planting schedules, deciding on which cool season crops to start with, buying seeds, and… doing nothing. I am not sure why I am putting so much pressure on myself. It is just a garden. Just dirt. Just plants. A relatively low financial expenditure (but potentially a high effort expenditure). I already know I will make mistakes and it will take several seasons to figure out what works for our yard, for the type of soil I have, for the amount of veggies our family actually eats, etc. And yet I seem paralyzed by this entire effort.

Here is what I need to do:

The soil sucks and I need to make it better. I was so grateful that Matt made all that effort to build the bed and put the dirt in it. It wasn’t until it was all done that I realized how completely rocky and unsuitable the soil is. He just used the crappy stuff we had in our berm – filled with a billion rocks, broken glass, etc. Good lord – this is going to be a back breaking effort! I can’t just get rid of all that soil – too much of it, no money to replace with good stuff, and nevermind the issue of insulting Matt’s hard work (I think I just presumed he’d realize that rich, dark, loamy soil is ideal!)

I need to take a section of this bed (the bed is HUGE by the way – 17’ x 8’!!) and just work that small section.

I need to start modestly. Thank goodness I didn’t go with my original elaborate layout for multiple beds! I don’t need row after row of the same plant. Just a few of each. Save the seeds until next year.

And good lord – just plant and learn! (…grumbles… damn gardening is supposed to be relaxing…)

Facebook is evil

2009-08-24T03:42:49Z

I have totally resisted Facebook. I like LJ. I keep track of my friends in other ways (email, phone, real life). And I swear there always seems to be an article each week about privacy abuses or invasive behavior from the Facebook sfotware. Or how there is a new scam involving Facebook (i.e. "I'm stranded in London - wire me $800??"). So many of my friends and my sister keep bugging me to join. And just when I think that maybe I am being too critical and ridiculous and probably should join... I get a flurry of emails today that seem to indicate that there is now a Facebook address with my email associated with it. Maybe. I can't tell. I am afraid to click any of the links in these emails. But they specially mention my email address and the friends have comments attached that a computer probably couldn't have made up. But then again it is Facebook - it probably already knows what color underwear I am wearing.

Edit: These are different than the usual "Susie Jones has joined Facebook - You should too" emails. But more "Susie Jones has added you as a friend" with a note that somehow references fun high school stuff Susie and I did together.

Feverish ramblings about Life and Death

2009-08-06T03:24:43Z

The kids were sick this past weekend, and now I am like the walking dead this week. Since I had a vacation all last week, I feel particularly crappy asking for more days off, so I do my zombie shuffle to and from work...

Anyway a weird theme of topics today: LIFE and DEATH.

Yesterday was the one year anniversary of Mom's death. God I love her and miss her so much. She was the greatest grandma. The kids hadn't hit their their first birthday when she was diagnosed. They will never know her. And she hardly got to enjoy them. And dammit I miss my mommy. /sob So many times I want to talk to her. Share stories with the kids with her. She would totally love the way they've grown.

I found out today at work that my friend who was not in today a) was apparently pregant, just entering her second trimester, and b) when they went in to the ultrasound appt. last week bringing their son to hear the heartbeat for the firs time... there was nothing. No heart beat. I think what makes this particularly sad for me is that before the birth of their son, their first pregnancy was a tragedy. Around the late 2nd trimester they got the horrible news that the pregnancy has gone horribly worng. I can't remember what, but one of those deals where it would be impossible for the baby to live outside the womb. Their choice: terminate now, or carry the pregnancy to the end (with really no hope.) What a horrible, horrible choice. My heart bleeds for her today.

And because I live so close to where the Manson family ranch used to be, the news that Squeaky Fromme will be let go is interesting. I think I am okay with it because she was not involved in the Tate/LaBianca murders, and the gun she had when she saw President Ford didn't have a bullet. Then I hear the interview on NPR today with director John Waters pleading his case that Leslie Van Houten (sp?) who did do the horrible murders, deserves to be set free because she is a model citizen in jail. Nope. I don't think she deserves it. I am glad she has reformed; but seriously no one involved with those murders should be let out.

Moral of the story? ... I am hopped up on NyQuil so you will get nothing profound from me. I probably should go to sleep. :)

quick notes

2009-07-10T05:58:47Z

The raised vegetable bed has been built. Chicken wire underneath to (hopefully!!) thwart the gophers.

I cannot make up the odd things my children say: "Baby Jesus is not an egg." Um... I guess that's one way of describing Him. LOL

Yay me. At my mid-year review my boss said I was basically perfect.

Just read "Lamb: the Gospel According to Biff, Jesus' Childhood Pal" by Christopher Moore. I laughed out loud while reading it.

This may be the first time a Harry Potter movie comes out and we don't see it the first day. :(

hadgm @ 2009-06-08T20:24:00

2009-06-09T03:25:30Z

I haven't posted about the twins lately. They are over 2 years old (28 months? 29 months? LOL I am starting to lose track of months as they
get older!). Such big kids. They LOVE LOVE LOVE their new tricycles. And these things are really nifty with a tall handle on the back that
allows us to reach out and grab them if we need to in a hurry. Going to a walk with them while they bike is just a blast.

Potty training hasn't been too successful yet. Every time I think they are ready, they seem to fight it. When I give no pressure, they are
totally anxious to do it. ::sigh:: Hopefully we'll have some successes in this soon. I will admit this has been the one area of parenthood
that has been surprisingly difficult. I know they will become potty trained eventually; you never see 28 year olds still unable to control
themselves! In the meantime I am just doing what the books advise: be patient, be supportive, make the potty fun, watch and listen for signs that they are ready, etc. etc. etc.

A new trick they started is holding each other's hands. It is very precious. When I took them to day care this morning, they were standing
in the chaotic classroom holding hands, looking unsure of what they should do just then.

They are loving animals. We got the annual pass to the Zoo and it has been worth every penny. We started putting some pictures of animals on the wall and they talk to them all the time. "Good morning, Rhino." "Good bye, Monkey. *kiss* " And while they are great at discerning different animals, all bugs, insects and spiders fall under the name "ladybug". So I dread what I will find when they hold their hand out to give me something while saying "Ladybug!" It is never pleasant. And it is never a ladybug.

Some of the flowers have been growing and the kids are noticing them. I look forward to when we start the vegetable garden (see previous post - no, we haven't started yet!) because I think the kids will love it!

Rules is rules

2009-05-13T03:10:23Z

I saw the news story about the kids who was suspended from his religious high school because he went to his girlfriend's public high school prom.
http://www.msnbc.msn.com/id/30669405/

I was surprised that the boy involved is surprised that his school reacted the way they did. It is a Baptist school. It is not like they made up the rules (no matter how silly they may seem) at that moment just to thwart him. It is like those people who move right next to the airport, and then complain to the city about the noise. Seriously, how did they expect the school would react? And why is this news? I went to high school 50 billion years ago. And Faith Baptist was nearby and had similar rules. Every year there was a kid who did the same thing about a dance or a concert or whatever, and is somehow shocked that the school comes down on them.

If the kid feels that strongly that the rules are wrong, then I applaud his efforts to do what is in his heart, but then he also needs to accept the consequences.

Garden of worries

2009-05-09T03:44:01Z

I need help. I’ve been itching to build a vegetable garden. Especially since the kids were born. But I feel overwhelmed when I look at my big sunny empty backyard and I think about the vegetable garden I want to build. I mention “empty” because we’ve never done any landscaping in the back. It is still the raw land from when we built the house a few years ago. So even though I know I am thinking about at first just a single raised bed of veggies, I think the large size of the yard is overwhelming me.

First – I am just not sure how much to plant. We have more than enough space to feed several families… but I and my two-year old twins are just about the only ones who will eat the veggies we grow. My husband dislikes almost all veggies. How can I tell what is the right amount to plant? I’d hate for everything to go to waste because it turns out I’m only eating one tomato a week. I’ve been monitoring my own veggie intake… and it is sporadic. But is that because I simply don’t buy them? It’s not like I am buying the vegetables at the store and throwing them out uneaten.

Second – I have looked at the lists for warm season crops and cool season crops. …wait does this mean I have to continually buy new plants or seeds? These plants don’t just grow year after year? And when exactly do I put the warm season or cool season crops into the ground?

Third – I have no clue on how to care for these plants. How much water? How much is too much? Pests? How do I know if they have pests? I don’t want to use chemicals. But I can’t be out there everyday fighting off plagues of locusts! We have lots of wild animals big and small in our yard. How do I protect this garden? We already plan on building raised beds. How will I know what is a weed and what isn’t? How often do they need tending? Is being just a weekend-only gardener good enough?

I know a lot of this stress is knowing that Mom knew all of these answers and she is not here anymore to teach me. She had the greenest of green thumbs. And while I learned a lot of her knowledge about non-edible plants and flowers, I never paid attention to the vegetable garden she had. I have just no sense of how much effort this will be.

And then the rational part of me says: relax it is just a vegetable garden. Start small. Learn each year. Mom didn’t grow up with this knowledge; she accumulated it over the years. Sunset.com was a great help, but it is almost too much information. Every time I read one of their online articles I think “wow I know nothing”.

Here’s the plan in my head…

I am going to start with the one planter box for all veggies, but we are going to lay out all of this at one time. At worst, it eventually becomes a somewhat formally laid out flower garden. At best, I eventually grow to have three beds of veggies and I earn my official Green Thumb. The curved beds will start as flowers. When I feel more confident in my skills and knowledge as a gardener, I will make more room for the vegetables. The star jasmine is something I have wanted. These super fragrant flowers to me just remind me of summer nights as a child. The area in the center is a bed raised higher than the rest. Either it will just be for some decorative flowers (ones that specifically attract butterflies?), or I will put a small birdbath in there as well. All of this has the walkways with the small gravel on it. Our yard is big and we live in a drought area. I really don’t want an entire yard of water sucking grass. This will certainly cut down on that while still leaving a good area for grass eventually.

So when will this all start? Well, I am not sure. We have a berm of dirt (and now weeds) that the city made us put in and traverses the length of our yard. It’s not illegal to remove, but we would not be able to sell the house without replacing it or selling it as is. We need to find a place to haul the dirt to. I think the neighbors with horses up the street will want it because the horse traffic continually grinds down the dirt roads to powder. Next, it requires some work on Matt’s part. I’ve already emailed him the plans on Sunset.com for the perfect raised bed. We’ll do slightly different dimensions. He already is thinking he may use different materials than what is listed on the web site’s instructions.

Future anxiety:

We need to consider how we are going to irrigate this. Do we plan to have drip irrigation from the start? Good news, it is in a great location in the yard that just about any irrigation option we can think of is do-able.
And then I need to start worrying about variations? What type of tomatoes do I grow? I’ve already culled the list of veggies down to the ones I know we will truly eat. Then I figure we can go from there to the more adventurous ones. Or not. Maybe next year this will be all pansies.

LOL can you believe this? I am angsting over a garden that doesn't exist. I need to play some WoW.

Easter is done

2009-04-13T03:13:02Z

Fun weekend. Great seeing my sister and dad. As promised, pictures of the infamous sirek... [Edit: ugh too tired to resize. sorry!]

Sirek, part two...

2009-04-12T04:11:31Z

Keep your fingers crossed. My sister and I attempted the make sirek (sp? whatever lol) today. The first one seemed really easy. In fact as it was hanging there dripping for two hours we said "wow this recipe was much easier to do than I thought!" Not so fast! When it came time to unwrap it from the cheesecloth, and to wrap it in glad wrap, we quickly realized that it was waaaaay too runny. So much so that hours later, long after my sister left for the day,I decided to run the store for another 15 eggs and try the recipe again. This time I cooked it much longer and (based on the comments left on my earlier post, which I did not read until I was done with the first batch!) let it get significantly thicker before putting it in the cheesecloth.

I took pictures of both attempts which I will update after Easter. Now all I can do is wait....

EDIT: SUCCESS!!! I'll post pics in a few days. Now I just hopes it tastes as good as it looks! lol

Sidec? Sirecz? Syrek?

2009-04-02T04:37:15Z

I know I haven't brought it up but Mom died in August. Yes - it was, is, beyond sad. Every so often I am confronted with silly situations that just remind me that she is gone. Easter is one of them. We did great during Thanksgiving (particularly tough because her birthday is always immediately before or after Thanksgiving). And we made it through Christmas and it was joyful. Easter is tough. Why? Because this is the only holiday meal that was entirely hers. Our traditional Easter meal is Slovakian. Many of the dishes have changed or disappeared altogether. This is the first time my sister and I are trying to do this meal. And it is tough. So much of the knowledge and lore is lost. Dad ransacked the kitchen and can't find everything we need for this meal.

The hardest dish is what I would called sidek or sirek. Not sure how it is spelled. Searching on the internet gave me five billion spelling variations. And when I say hard, I mean that the knowledge is not totally written down and the items we need are lost somewhere. It's a strange dish. It is basically like a whole bunch of eggs, like 12-15 eggs I think. Milk. Whole peppercorns. Cooked for a little. Then poured into a bowl that is lined with a big cheesecloth. The cheesecloth is bundled up and hung up over the bowl and the thing just slowly drips out all of the moisture. What is left is wrapped in Glad Wrap and chilled in the fridge overnight. It is like a cold scrambled egg brain looking sort of thing... and it is completely yummy! There may be more to the recipe - I can't remember.

I miss Mom. Go hug your Mom.

Still here :)

2009-03-10T02:57:11Z

Yay – Happy LJ anniversary to me. I recently renewed my account. I don’t post as often as I’d like, but I do still read it everyday.

Some random thoughts in my head at the moment…

We're experiencing our first pink eye. First one child, now the other. ::sigh::

Amazing Race – I did not watch this week’s episode, but wow the old couple really messed up the week before when they missed their connection. Matt and I were talking (we debate Amazing Race strategies and what we would do all the time) and agreed that very often it shows that the first flight out is not always the best flight to take. It is possible better to make sure that you stay with the pack and instead focus once on the ground to beating the others.

ANTM – these girls are horrible and not model-esque in any way. We’ve all become so used to how average they are and it is not until you watch Bravo’s “Make Me a Supermodel” that you see how wide the gulf is between the two groups of contestants.

Lost – is so good again this season. This is the only show that I insist on watching live because I simply cannot wait to see what happens next.

Kit – if you read this, are you interested in a commissioned piece or two? I have no idea what it would cost, but I’d like to talk to you about a variation to your pufferfish painting.

ONTD is still the best LJ out there. I get all my celeb gossip in one place. But I seem to have an ever growing list of “celebs” that I swear I only know about because someone posts something on ONTD. These “celebs” don’t invade my consciousness anywhere else. And darn it I am tired of wading through those posts.

WWTDD (What Would Tyler Durden Do) is not nearly as prolific or thorough as ONTD, but I *love* this guy. His writing cracks me up every time.
I swear the kids make me sick every week or two. I feel like I am always getting a cold, have a cold, or getting over a cold. And believe me – constant handwashing and antibacterial stuff seems to have little impact. They are just germ factories. …Now that I’ve typed that, I must in their defense say that they are often not sick themselves. So maybe I am catching things at work. Must sterilize office…

I got runner-up in an Oscar pool at work (actually I tied for the highest score, so they drew our names out of a hat, and I won the runner up prize.) And it is a stupid prize. I got a “cut to the head of the line” pass for the cafeteria at work. It’s a cafeteria for about 1,200 employees, so the lines do get long. But I will feel like such a schmuck cutting in front of people. And the cafeteria food sucks and I wouldn’t normally eat there. But the pass is only good this week, so I guess I will have to. The top prize is what I really wanted – a series of sessions with a personal trainer and the gym here in the building. But I did get the mini Oscar statuette for my desk, so I think I came out ahead.

And that’s it. Love and (((hugs))) to my f’list.

Merry Christmas

2008-12-25T04:37:31Z

Hope everyone has a wonderful Christmas. Stay warm. Stay safe. I imagine everyone surrounded by friends and family. Lots of food (too much food!) and gifts you may or may not have wanted.

Speaking of gifts, we ordered four mystery gifts from The Somthing Store. Can't wait to find out what we got!

The twins have a holiday message for you:

Zachary: "Why are they taking our photo?"
Julia: "Just smile - we'll get more gifts if we do!"

No more

2008-09-05T18:49:49Z

One of the LJ communities I've always enjoyed has been wtf_inc. But lately, the stuff has turned so dark and so horrible, I just can't take it. It started with a few days ago with a post that showed a teenage (?) girl with a guy, some text message he left about killing her, and then a graphic photo of her decapitated and dismembered. Then yesterday there was the news story someone linked about a "father" raping his 8 day old baby girl. Yes, you read that correctly. No more. I've stopped following that community. Yes, all of the greatest WTF stuff I ever saw came from that, but no more. I don't care if I have to see stuff 8 months later than normal, and only then because an aunt in Iowa emails it to me. I can deal with that delay.

BTW, one of the greatest things I ever read in wtf_inc was a psychological theory called "uncanny valley". You should look it up in wikipedia. My friends and I use this phrase all the time now. :)

On the plus side, this should mean my daily reading of my friends list will take 2 minutes! LOL

18 months old!

2008-07-14T03:30:58Z

The twins are 18 months old! Remember when they used to sit nicely for their monthly/quarterly photos?

We tried taking photos both Saturday and Sunday. I printed five signs and we went through all of them! Outakes:

For those wanting to see their progress, here is their web site.

Stimulus check

2008-05-22T02:39:10Z

I hate the IRS. They say that the babies are not eligible to be counted in the stimulus check thing because they do not have Social Security Numbers yet. Even though they have been issued Adoption Tax Identification Numbers, the IRS says they don’t count. Yes, I know it is free money. But that is BS. Hatred.

hadgm @ 2008-04-26T11:32:00

2008-04-26T18:48:48Z

Several thoughts rolling around in my head this week...

America's Next Top Model - A way better crop of girls than the last season. In fact, not one person last year was remotely good enough to win. The "winner" was I think totally rigged and we now are forced to watch that stupid Saliesha's stiff and wooden commercials. But this year, there are a few that could do great. Anya is a sweetie and seems to win every competition. And I am still loving the plus size model Whitney. Less crazy about Fatima or Katarzyna, but would be okay if they won. The only one who shouldn't win is Dominique. She just looks 40.

Danity Kane - I bought their CD when it came out and I cannot stop listening to it. So good. Almost all upbeat catchy dance songs. Really good.

Babies - The twins are over 15 months. They have learned how to get on to the couch which is a big milestone. They look so cute sitting there like a big person. The problem is they both want to stand on the couch and that is when bad things happen.

Dog - Maggie the dog is very needy lately. I just can't figure out what she wants. She is constantly trying to pratically crawl into my lap, and she ain't no small dog. As I type this she is positively squashing my foot in an effort to be as close as possible to me. Poor dog. I give her as much attention and love and exercise as I am able. I really am not sure what is causing this or what more I can do.

Work - Sucks. I need to win the lottery so I can stay home and raise my babies.

WoW - I know I don't ususally blog about World of Warcraft, but I am slightly annoyed. My main character is in a big guild. My highest alt created her own guild and me and four real life friends have our various alts in it. A mutual friend from another office started playing which is great. I would have no problem with her being in the guild. But her friend, who I don't know but only "met" online once just asked me if he can be in our guild. Caught unprepared I gave a noncommital answer. I realyl don't want him in the guild because, frankly, once we allow strangers in it ceases to be just a group of friends and becomes a real guild, with drama and everything.

Babies #2 - The babies aren't 20lbs yet, but they are very very close. So we are starting to think about car seats. 20lbs is the magic weight where you can turn them facing forward in a car. Seats are expensive. Not sure what we are going to do. I need to do some research on the subject.

Family - I am so very grateful that Matt's parents watch the babies during the work week. But I get resetful when they want to see the babies on the weekend. I feel like I hardly see them but for an hour and half before they go to bed during the week. The weekend is my only Mommy and Me time with the kids. They see them 5 days a week - isn't that enough?

Babies #3 - We recently took the kids to the mall to play in the enclosed play area. This was their first real adventure in interacting with other kids and adults, and with such free play. They LOVED it! And they learned how to navigate steps. There was a small slide and after watching other kids climb up they figured it out themselves. So smart!

Babies #4 - A sound that fills any parent with dread: the sound of velcro ripping. You know immediately that the babies have gotten into somethng they shouldn't have, removed something they shouldn't have, etc.

Jessica and Scarlett

2008-02-28T15:07:12Z

I was stopped at an intersection and was looking at the nearby Hollywood Video store. I noticed that the posters for The Game Plan and Good Luck Chuck are remarkably similar. Girl on the left in pink looking winsome and charming. Guy on the right with more closed body language. I know that the poster is supposed to give you a one-second insight into the plot of the movie. I think that works with the football one (big, tough football player opens his heart to this precious child), but not so much with the Good Luck Chuck one (…have no idea what this is supposed to be about…).

And speaking of Jessica Alba, has she really done anything good? I am not saying she is not beautiful. But talent-wise, I just don’t see it. It seems like any of the roles she has done could have easily been filled by a million other actresses. Another one I don’t get is Scarlett Johansen. I think she is so not pretty and totally not talented and gross in a skanky way. The only time she was remotely good was the Girl with the Pearl Earring movie, where her empty bovine stare and slack jawed expressions served her well. Someone please explain why these two keep getting put into movies

Cell phones at work

2008-02-22T03:25:14Z

My cubicle is the last on the one side of this building. On the one side of me is the sea of endless cubicles. On the other side is a hallway that leads to the beginning of the other edge of that same cubicle sea (think of it like a horseshoes-shaped sea and I am on one end). The problem is that everyone feels that they can stand in this hallway and have their noisy and very personal cell phone conversations. Do I need to hear you tell your friend about the guy you met over the weekend? No. Do I need to hear you battle with a company over some incorrect bill? No. Do I need to hear you arguing with your spouse? No. Do I need to hear you getting all mushy and lovey-dovey with your girlfriend? No. Instead, I need you to respect that there are others around you who are still working and talk quietly and more discretely. Or better yet, hang up the phone and go back to work.

Along these same lines are the women who feel that the bathroom stall is their private phone booth. There is something just so creepy about sitting on the toilet listening to a personal conversation. And, I am not joking, I’ve heard people who do these conversations with the phone on SPEAKER PHONE! With sounds of flushing toilets and other bathroom-specific sounds in the background. O. M. G. Actually I should do a whole entry just on the strange things I’ve seen in the women’s bathroom…

hadgm @ 2008-02-15T13:05:00

2008-02-15T21:05:50Z

Just some random thoughts –

Guns – What is up with all these school shootings? And seriously – why does this guy have multiple guns, two of which he just got last week? I just do not understand why people the need to have a gun. Nothing good ever comes out of it. Like that story from earlier this week where a boy shoots his sister in the face because they were arguing over a bag of potato chips. Can’t we just get rid of all the guns? I know the argument that if we ban guns then only the bad guys will have them. I agree – but I am not sure the current situation is any better.

Oscars – I haven’t seen a single movie this year except for the Harry Potter movie. I have no clue about any of the nominees. My friend Kathleen and I used to make a point of going each year to many movies and then catching up on any nominations we hadn’t seen prior to the awards ceremony. Just don’t care.

Election – I had forgotten that the Clintons took a whole bunch of items from the White House when they left last time. A comedian made reference to it this week. Does this mean that if she wins the election, she’ll bring the items back to the White House? Or will they just steal new items? LOL I hope Obama wins the nomination.

Strike – Yay that the Writers Strike is over. But part of me really doesn’t care. It’s been kind of nice not being a slave to the television. We spent the evenings playing with the kids and with the dog. We play WoW when they were all put to bed. I am not so sure that I care about any of the shows I used to watch.

WoW – Speaking of World of Warcraft, I am annoyed that Matt changed his main character to a different server. I know it is better for him because he can raid after the kids are asleep, but I enjoyed having a hobby that we could do together. It is not the same if we are not playing on the same server. ::prays to the WoW gods:: please let my T4 piece drop on Sunday!

Sick – Did I mention that I am sick? I am miserable as I type this (at work, yes, I know). I am only sticking around at the office because I am supposed to get my annual review this afternoon. My boss just emailed to say that it is possible it may be moved to Monday. I hope it does get moved, because then I am out of here! Anyway, I took a super hot bath last night that really helped the achiness. And I slept over 9 hours. But I am still a wreck today.

Paparazzi – And OMG the paps are crazy seeing all the coverage this past month with the swarms following Britney. I seriously hope there are some rules put around their behavior. They have these fancy cameras with the long lenses – why do they have to be 2 inches from their subject’s face? Although I will say they showed restraint in their coverage of Heath Ledger’s funeral (which seemed beautiful and touching. In fact, the statements from Heath’s family and from Michelle Williams were so heartfelt and heartwrenching.)

I have become complacent about reading the LJs on my friends list without adding anything to my own. Hugs to all.

Because I am a morally grounded person...

2008-01-29T06:25:13Z

I like to think I have a good sense of right and wrong. But somehow I am annoyed that my score isn't higher! LOL I guess I shouldn't have quibbled about fighting dirty against an angry mob of 5 year olds. I wondered how I would have scored before I became a mom.

15

(Still, I think I deserve to use my Kick Ass icon for this post)