My good friend Sass over at Life of Sass tagged me for a random things meme. Which seems to be the cool thing to do, as I got tagged for 2 on Facebook the other day. I'll refrain from repeating the tale of the pube-decorated greeting card, and will come up with some additional random stuff about myself. God knows there's a lot out there. EEK!
Thanks, Sassypants!! I feel like one of the cool kids now!
Here's the deal:
The rules:
1. Link to the person who tagged you.
2. Post the rules on your blog.
3. Write six random things about yourself.
4. Tag six people at the end of your post and link to them.
5. Let each person know they’ve been tagged and leave a comment on their blog.
6. Let the tagger know when your entry is up.
1) I jump to the next year for my age on January 1st every year. My birthday is in March, so it isn't so far off, but one of my friends, whose birthday isn't until November, gets pissy when I start saying, "Well, now that we're 33..." since she just turned 32 a few months ago.
2) Every household project I undertake fails horribly. I watch the DIY. I watch the HGTV, and yet my doorknob is installed upside down and doesn't latch properly, the coat hook by the back door ripped out of the wall, taking about 5 square inches of wall with it, and there is still paint on the trim in the kitchen from when I painted it last June. And yet I keep trying. And failing.
3) I stalk people all the time. Online only, mind you. But seriously, give me a first name and approximate location for someone, and most of the time I'll hunt 'em down in no time flat. This is made a lot easier with Facebook, wedding and baby registries, etc. But it is something I get a kick out of. In one charming stalk, I found out a guy I dated in high school is on the sex offenders list for Illinois. Great fun! I'm going to just tell myself that the girl was 17 and it wasn't skeevy...blech.
4) My husband has been mocking me lately because he claims I don't go more than 7 minutes without having an electronic device in my hands. The laptop, texting on the cell phone, playing Gameboy with Charlotte, it's really true. And the sad part is that freshman year of college, 3 of my friends had to physically drag me out of the computer lab. This was 1994, email was still pretty new-ish, and IRC and chat-rooms were in full effect. I was in awe. And apparently have some kind of internet addiction. If only I could use that for good instead of evil.
5) I have lied for many years about movies I've claimed to see. Many of them are classics that I would likely mock others for not having seen. Usually I have enough of a frame of reference that I can pass for having seen the movie in question, and sometimes I just cruise IMDB so I have general knowledge of more flicks that I haven't and/or won't see. Michael just found out about this about a year ago, and I think it really offended him, and that he doesn't look at me the same way now. I can't say I blame him.
6) And for my obligatory disgusting random thing: Freshman year of high school, I was in a huge feud with a girlfriend of mine, and things were seemingly okay and over but apparently I'm really messed up and wanted to get one final jab in. I made cupcakes for her birthday and baked dead moths (or was it flies?) into a couple of them, and made those ones especially for her to eat. What the hell is wrong with me??? I hope that she doesn't read my blog, or doesn't know who she is.
And now, for my 6 friends to tag:
1 - One Smarmy Mama As I'm expanding my circle of blog friends, she is one of my faves that I have to check in with every day.
2 - My real-life friend, Sara, who got me started on this whole insane blogging pastime. You all have her to thank for having my delightful tales and random thoughts to read every day.
3 - My homegirl Lotta over at Mom-o-Matic. In addition to being a great blogger, she makes some awfully cute, awfully fun jewelry, which is available in her Etsy shop.
4 - Gwen at Woman on the Verge. I got to meet Gwen in person, which is rare in this crazy blogging world!
5 - Dr. Zibbs at That Blue Yak. I'm a recent fan, but a fan nonetheless.
6 - Lulu over at Lulu's Sandbar. She likes me, she really really likes me! And I like her, too!
Roll Over, Beethoven and Other Random Musings to Wrap Up the Weekend
Ever go to record something on your DVR and you get the low recording space message, telling you to delete some stuff, and fast? It always takes me by surprise when that comes up, since I feel like there is never ANYTHING I feel like watching on our DVR except for every Big Bang Theory, as we'll watch them over and over and over again.
Here's a couple gems that have snuck up on our DVR, taking up valuable space:
- 9 Yo Gabba Gabba!'s - worth keeping on there, as no matter how bad a day Ellie is having, the opening sounds make her stop in her tracks, whip around, and giggle at the TV.
- 2 Oprahs that I will never watch, but feel like I should because I was on a kick with her "Best Life Week" thing...but apparently I do not care at all about my spiritual or financial best life. Not surprising.
- FOUR, count 'em, FOUR Beethoven movies: Beethoven's 2nd, 4th, 5th, and Beethoven's Big Break. Seriously? Charles Grodin, Judge Reinhold, Dave Thomas, and Jonathan Silverman respectively? Wow.
- Fat Guy Stuck in the Internet from August with the MazeMaster - spoof on Labyrinth with a goofy song that Char enjoys. That we could easily see on YouTube, I bet.
- The requisite smart/political/"important" flicks that I feel like I should watch, but likely never will because they are too heavy, and I'm just waiting until I can get a free night to watch Stepbrothers instead.
So I got that going on. I don't know what could possibly be sadder than blogging about the contents of our DVR. Eek.
We had a sleepover at my sister's house last night for my nephew's birthday. Usually I'm the only adult that stays with Jill, mostly because I love having an evening to just sit and chat and gossip with my sister and catch up. This year, our cousin's wife stayed over, too, and it was great. We never get a chance to catch up with her so that was a blast. HOWEVER, at nearly 33 years old, I'm about 20 years too old for staying up until 4:30am (AM people. Like close to sunrise. Like 10 years ago, the time I would be stumbling out of a bar.) What a great time! I'm hurting today. Oh, the ravages of age. Char actually made it up 'til after 11pm. Usually she sticks pretty close to her regular bedtime and passes out before 9pm. However, she does always - ALWAYS - pass out in the middle of the floor in the room where we are all hanging out, playing Wii, chatting, yelling, and snacking. She'll just go trundle upstairs, grab a blanket, usually swap out her pjs with some from John's drawers, and come back down and just plop down in the middle of the room. Maniac.
And, once again, Char is star of the week at school this week. Hurrah! Apparently it isn't as trumped up for the 4 year olds as it is for the 3 year olds. Bring in about 5 pictures for the board, bring a snack on Wednesday, come in and read a book if you feel like it. Sadly, the only pictures of all 4 of us together are from Ellie's christening in November 2007, and St. Patrick's Day 2008. Sad. And I can't find the cord-thingy to get the pictures currently on my camera so I can upload them and send them to print at Walgreens to be picked up tomorrow, you know, on the way to school. So I should be looking for that instead of stalling on here.
I'm going to change my blog template again. I need to think SPRING. As much as I would have liked 2008 to end on Dec. 1 and just erase the last month, it seems like January could have ended on the 15th and just jumped into February. I think we're going to go into isolation and just keep to ourselves. I'm realizing more and more lately that my little family unit - Mike, the girls, and myself - are really my only priority in life, and everyone else can go hang. I'm feeling really battered and sad and frustrated and tired of self-created drama from other people in my life. I don't understand it, and I need to be done internalizing it because it is not worth me ramming my head into a wall over and over again being concerned with people that don't want to make any changes in their life. So I just say nuts to them, now, and I'm looking forward to spring and a renewed spirit and energy.
What a super long post about absolutely nothing of interest. If you feel like watching any of the Beethoven's or a Yo Gabba Gabba! marathon, you know where to go. Now I'm going to go eat some garlic dip and watch one of the heavy movies that will likely put me to sleep.
Have a great week, everyone!
Here's a couple gems that have snuck up on our DVR, taking up valuable space:
- 9 Yo Gabba Gabba!'s - worth keeping on there, as no matter how bad a day Ellie is having, the opening sounds make her stop in her tracks, whip around, and giggle at the TV.
- 2 Oprahs that I will never watch, but feel like I should because I was on a kick with her "Best Life Week" thing...but apparently I do not care at all about my spiritual or financial best life. Not surprising.
- FOUR, count 'em, FOUR Beethoven movies: Beethoven's 2nd, 4th, 5th, and Beethoven's Big Break. Seriously? Charles Grodin, Judge Reinhold, Dave Thomas, and Jonathan Silverman respectively? Wow.
- Fat Guy Stuck in the Internet from August with the MazeMaster - spoof on Labyrinth with a goofy song that Char enjoys. That we could easily see on YouTube, I bet.
- The requisite smart/political/"important" flicks that I feel like I should watch, but likely never will because they are too heavy, and I'm just waiting until I can get a free night to watch Stepbrothers instead.
So I got that going on. I don't know what could possibly be sadder than blogging about the contents of our DVR. Eek.
We had a sleepover at my sister's house last night for my nephew's birthday. Usually I'm the only adult that stays with Jill, mostly because I love having an evening to just sit and chat and gossip with my sister and catch up. This year, our cousin's wife stayed over, too, and it was great. We never get a chance to catch up with her so that was a blast. HOWEVER, at nearly 33 years old, I'm about 20 years too old for staying up until 4:30am (AM people. Like close to sunrise. Like 10 years ago, the time I would be stumbling out of a bar.) What a great time! I'm hurting today. Oh, the ravages of age. Char actually made it up 'til after 11pm. Usually she sticks pretty close to her regular bedtime and passes out before 9pm. However, she does always - ALWAYS - pass out in the middle of the floor in the room where we are all hanging out, playing Wii, chatting, yelling, and snacking. She'll just go trundle upstairs, grab a blanket, usually swap out her pjs with some from John's drawers, and come back down and just plop down in the middle of the room. Maniac.
And, once again, Char is star of the week at school this week. Hurrah! Apparently it isn't as trumped up for the 4 year olds as it is for the 3 year olds. Bring in about 5 pictures for the board, bring a snack on Wednesday, come in and read a book if you feel like it. Sadly, the only pictures of all 4 of us together are from Ellie's christening in November 2007, and St. Patrick's Day 2008. Sad. And I can't find the cord-thingy to get the pictures currently on my camera so I can upload them and send them to print at Walgreens to be picked up tomorrow, you know, on the way to school. So I should be looking for that instead of stalling on here.
I'm going to change my blog template again. I need to think SPRING. As much as I would have liked 2008 to end on Dec. 1 and just erase the last month, it seems like January could have ended on the 15th and just jumped into February. I think we're going to go into isolation and just keep to ourselves. I'm realizing more and more lately that my little family unit - Mike, the girls, and myself - are really my only priority in life, and everyone else can go hang. I'm feeling really battered and sad and frustrated and tired of self-created drama from other people in my life. I don't understand it, and I need to be done internalizing it because it is not worth me ramming my head into a wall over and over again being concerned with people that don't want to make any changes in their life. So I just say nuts to them, now, and I'm looking forward to spring and a renewed spirit and energy.
What a super long post about absolutely nothing of interest. If you feel like watching any of the Beethoven's or a Yo Gabba Gabba! marathon, you know where to go. Now I'm going to go eat some garlic dip and watch one of the heavy movies that will likely put me to sleep.
Have a great week, everyone!
An Ode to Tom "The Guy" Riske
Not really an ode, just me bitching.
Some of you may recall when Tom Riske, the misfit "Guy" was rehabbing our bathroom a few summers ago. Our tiny bathroom, ringing in at about 6x5? If that? And it took him from Memorial Day to Labor Day and then some. Seriously, it should've been a weekend project. Seriously.
But no, we had a lot of fun, coming home to see that you left The U on full blast because you like watching The Munsters and other sitcoms from the 50s and 60s. And your overalls just lying on the floor in a heap. That's totally not creepy at all, expecting to find a pantless Guy wandering around the house. Oh, and mostly we loved when we'd come home and there would be 2 tiles on the wall. For real. You spent a full day putting up TWO TILES.
And then you wouldn't show up for 2 weeks. In the meantime, of course, we're taking showers in the tin can shower stall in the basement with Charlotte, who had only taken baths at that point and, I'm pretty sure, based on that summer will never fully recover from the trauma of very close naked wet quarters with her mom - the kid will be taking baths 'til she's 100.
Oh, and who can forget the Fourth? The Fourth of July? Oh, by this point, you were really pretty sure you were part of our family. Having spent so much time eating breakfast at my aunt's house with her grandkids at the kitchen table while you "worked" on her roof and patio, well, I guess I can see why you thought you were just one of the gang. However, when we saw you on July 1 or 2, and you asked my husband to stick around on 4th of July to help you with some stuff, and so off I went with Charlotte to a family party, leaving Michael behind at home to work with you and meet up with us later. Imagine my SHOCK when I walked into my cousin's house and THERE YOU WERE, sitting on the sofa, having a burger. What. The. Hell?
Anyway, despite all that, I think I finally got over most of my anger after we had someone else come finish the tiling and window for us, and we could start showering upstairs again, and giving our daughter baths again, living like humans instead of trolls.
And then I saw you at the restaurant when I was at a wedding shower. And it took me a minute to register who you were. But then the anger rushed up again and I just wanted to kick you in your shins.
Because more than almost anything else you did that made our summer hellish and annoying, more than all the not-quite-right things we came across in subsequent months, yep, more than anything else, what I despise you most for is every morning in this 10 degree weather, when I go into my bathroom and there is no heat. None. Not a bit. Because you closed up the old vent, and left a hole under the vanity to put the new vent, but never installed the ductwork for it. That -and that alone, actually - is what makes me want to kick you in the shins, hard, every time I see you.
Ass.
Some of you may recall when Tom Riske, the misfit "Guy" was rehabbing our bathroom a few summers ago. Our tiny bathroom, ringing in at about 6x5? If that? And it took him from Memorial Day to Labor Day and then some. Seriously, it should've been a weekend project. Seriously.
But no, we had a lot of fun, coming home to see that you left The U on full blast because you like watching The Munsters and other sitcoms from the 50s and 60s. And your overalls just lying on the floor in a heap. That's totally not creepy at all, expecting to find a pantless Guy wandering around the house. Oh, and mostly we loved when we'd come home and there would be 2 tiles on the wall. For real. You spent a full day putting up TWO TILES.
And then you wouldn't show up for 2 weeks. In the meantime, of course, we're taking showers in the tin can shower stall in the basement with Charlotte, who had only taken baths at that point and, I'm pretty sure, based on that summer will never fully recover from the trauma of very close naked wet quarters with her mom - the kid will be taking baths 'til she's 100.
Oh, and who can forget the Fourth? The Fourth of July? Oh, by this point, you were really pretty sure you were part of our family. Having spent so much time eating breakfast at my aunt's house with her grandkids at the kitchen table while you "worked" on her roof and patio, well, I guess I can see why you thought you were just one of the gang. However, when we saw you on July 1 or 2, and you asked my husband to stick around on 4th of July to help you with some stuff, and so off I went with Charlotte to a family party, leaving Michael behind at home to work with you and meet up with us later. Imagine my SHOCK when I walked into my cousin's house and THERE YOU WERE, sitting on the sofa, having a burger. What. The. Hell?
Anyway, despite all that, I think I finally got over most of my anger after we had someone else come finish the tiling and window for us, and we could start showering upstairs again, and giving our daughter baths again, living like humans instead of trolls.
And then I saw you at the restaurant when I was at a wedding shower. And it took me a minute to register who you were. But then the anger rushed up again and I just wanted to kick you in your shins.
Because more than almost anything else you did that made our summer hellish and annoying, more than all the not-quite-right things we came across in subsequent months, yep, more than anything else, what I despise you most for is every morning in this 10 degree weather, when I go into my bathroom and there is no heat. None. Not a bit. Because you closed up the old vent, and left a hole under the vanity to put the new vent, but never installed the ductwork for it. That -and that alone, actually - is what makes me want to kick you in the shins, hard, every time I see you.
Ass.