Thoughts from a Stay-at-home Mother

Out of the mouths of my babes

2012-01-27T07:56:00.000-05:00

A few years ago before New Year's eve, while out taking photos of my sister-in-law with as many palm trees as she could find in my neighborhood, the three of us (Cara, Kelly, and Susan) began talking in a British accent. I don't remember how it started or why we were doing it, but we decided we liked it and so we kept doing it until we couldn't remember how to not do it.

We got fairly good at it, or at least we thought we did, and when people asked us if we were from England we told them we were in a upcoming play or film where we had to speak in a British accent. We gave ourselves British names and continue to this day to play this little game when we are to together, or sometimes when we aren't together. I admit I'm probably more apt to speak in the accent then they are.

The other night Madison and I picked up Thai food at a restaurant near our house that I had never been to before. We called in our order while out grocery shopping and went to pick it up. We went inside the restaurant where an adorable young Asian woman brought out my food. When I handed her my credit card she squealed in delight.

Her: "OH Mickey Mouse! Cute! Cute!"

We laughed together. I paid and we exited the restaurant.

Me: "She was so beautiful, that girl. OH Mickey Mouse! Cute! Cute! That was so adorable and funny."
Madison: "I couldn't really hear her."
Me: "She was so enthralled with my credit card and I loved her accent. OH Mickey Mouse! Cute! Cute! Forget the British accent. I'm going to speak in an Asian accent now. I like it a lot more."
Madison: (sighing) "Mom. Maybe, and I say this loosely, you maybe could pull off the whole 'I'm from Britain thing', but Asia? NOT going to happen."

Thursday 5 tidbits

2012-01-26T07:33:00.001-05:00

My youngest, a 7th grader, partnered up for this year's science fair. She wanted to do an experiment regarding the difference between organic food and non-organic food. She wanted to taste kids to see if they could tell the difference, her thought being that if you couldn't tell the difference taen you should eat organic food as it is proven to be more healthy. Tom, Madison, Kelly and I tried to explain that this really wasn't a scientific experiment. We told her it wasn't science related at all. She ignored us, went ahead with the project, ended up doing most of it herself as her partner went out of town, dropped the ball on the board, and got sick. The day of the fair I visited it just as she was being questioned by one of the judges. My father was jumping up and down in his grave because that girl was selling this project like nothing! And she tied for first place and moves on to the county science fair. She thinks we know nothing. I think she has a future in sales.
When I was a teenager with a car I was expected to care for it, which I did. My neighbors across the street, however, were the kings and queens when it came to washing their cars. They would use toothbrushes and towels and buckets and sponges and vacuums and would spend hours cleaning each and everything on their cars. I use to think something was wrong with me because I was too lazy to do the same thing. I was in awe at their attention to detail and wondered if their parents had done something mine hadn't to warrant such devotion in car cleanliness. Every time I wash my car I think of them, and while I do more now then I did then, I still don't feel I have that dedication. Yesterday, however, I finally think I achieved it. I started out vacuuming my van and by the time I was done I had removed the seats in my van (something we have never done) and spent four and a half hours cleaning the carpeting and every place inside and out. Today, I am unable to move, and I wonder if my neighbors still put that much attention in cleaning their cars now or if they pay someone else.
I've tried the glove method for not chewing my nails, and that worked well during our cold weather time, but not so well during our 79 and 80 degree weather. I tried the olive oil, and while it gave my nails a healthy glow, it was messy. I'm now on the method of leaving four nails as my model nails, the ones I'm not allowed to chew at all. I only did this method because I chewed all the other nails.
I cut out a recipe in our paper two weeks ago for "cowboy cookies" that were made with chocolate chunks, nuts, oatmeal, and coconut. I kept saying I was going to make them, but I've never been a great cookie maker. I never liked having to mix the dough as it was too heavy holding the bowl with one hand and the spoon with the other. Sort of like car cleaning, I would give up halfway through and leave it to my mother or brother to finish. This time I was determined to make these cookies, and with the help of Madison's new Christmas present, I did! She got a standing mixer, and boy is that little thing the greatest thing ever! No wonder people spend the big bucks on it. It mixed up my cookie dough like nothing, no matter what stuff I dumped into the bowl. The cookies came out delicious, although next time I'd add more stuff then the recipe called for, and my friend suggested some more additives I want to try. Although, after four days of eating them I'm kinda thinking I need a break...
Giving up coke products is harder than I thought it would be. I gave up diet sodas back when I had my stomach issues and instead jumped into the sugary ones. That in turn raised my cholesterol (hey, I have to put the blame somewhere) so now I have to cut them out. While I am a huge water drinker I still need something to supplement. I've tried green tea and fizzy flavored waters, but seriously? I miss a good soft drink.

Taking my daughter to work day

2012-01-25T20:22:00.000-05:00

So last Friday Madison was out of school. She slept late and ate breakfast late and then she came into where I was cleaning and asked if she could help me. Instead of telling her to enjoy her day and just relax after a week of midterms I said, "Hell yes!" I put her to work vacuuming. I was pulling out furniture and dusting behind things and she went behind me and vacuumed. We finished two bathrooms and a one bedroom when I moved into the hallway to tackle the linen closets.

Madison: "Okay, so I'm going to go read."
Me: "No, we aren't done. This is like take your daughter to work day. You're seeing what I do while you are away at school."
Madison: "Uh huh."

At the beginning of the year I had read about something on the internet about starting the new year out right by organizing and de-cluttering closets. One of the suggestions was an entry about organizing sheet sets. I read it and thought it made sense and had schedule this task for the day.

Some time ago I wrote about learning how to properly fold sheets by watching a video on the Internet. While my sheet sets stacked better with the proper folding they were still somewhat messy and taking up room on two shelves in different closets. What I read on the Internet was that to organize sheets one would fold them up and put them inside the pillowcase. Meaning Darcy's flowered set of sheets would be folded, stacked, and then put inside her pillowcase and put on the shelf. The premise being that it stacked better, kept sheets together, and was simpler when making beds. I liked the idea.

So I pulled all the sheets off the shelves and proceeded to refold them and stack them together according to beds. Madison, who thought the whole idea silly, stood and watched me. So I gave her a lesson in how to properly fold sheets. Then we got down to the business of putting the sheets inside the pillowcases. I was glad that I had Madison's help in that as it was difficult to do without her holding open the pillowcase. When the set was inside the pillowcase I was left to wonder what to do next. I don't remember what the Internet suggested.

So I folded the top over and under and left it at that. It made for some interesting stacks, some a bit lopsided, but it was my first attempt.

The great thing about it was that all the sheets fit on one shelf in one closet. We had some extra pillow cases and sheets and Madison suggested we shove them all in one extra pillowcase which we did. The next thing the Internet suggested was that to keep the sets fresh one should insert a bar of soap between the sets. We decided to use a bar of soap from Auntie Marilyn's town that she put in everyone's stocking.

In went the soap and the job was done. This week I remade Darcy's bed, and I have to say that it was super easy to just pull out the pillowcase with the sheets inside and dump it on to her bed. I think this Internet suggestion was a keeper.

Then Madison tried to see how many toilet paper rolls she could stack. She tried for three, but didn't quite make it. We eventually finished organizing both linen closets and then Madison said she was done with take your daughter to work day.

And since it was my break time I agreed.

Monday Morning Sports Recap

2012-01-23T06:34:00.002-05:00

NFL football playoffs this Sunday...PRICELESS

Joe Paterno - RIP Joe Pa. Say what you want, believe what you believe, and feel what you feel, but for me Joe Pa is a legend, despite his part in the molestation scandal that rocked Penn State. Being the daughter of an older father who also coached sports, I agree with the comments that basketball coach Mike Krzyzewski made in Paterno's defense. But anything I try to explain here will just cause a stir. I think one has to have lived with that generation of men to understand their thinking. I'm not excusing Paterno at all. I'm saying that he did what he thought was the correct thing to do. He reported the incident to his superiors. And there lies the horror. It was the superiors, the men who were in charge, who didn't continue further. Yes, Paterno should have done more, but I believe he was the fall guy, the man who could take the heat off of the school and the real people who did nothing. And for me, that is inexcusable. And it killed Paterno just as much as the lung cancer did. A sad ending for a man who brought plenty more to the world of sports then he will now be remembered for.
Tampa Rays Fans - Get out your mothball closeted #23 shirts and give them a wash because Carlos Pena is back in the house!! Pena signed a one year deal to return to the team after leaving a year ago to play for the Chicago Cubs. We love Pena at this house because his daughter attended the same school as my girls and he was always very giving of his time and very kind to the kids. Welcome back Carlos!
Bruce Arians - The Steelers offensive coordinator announced his retirement this past week. I'm not sure if he was forced into it or not, but either way I'll send him some respect because the man got us to two Super Bowls in his five years as the head offensive man. I just hope we can get someone in there who can work toward getting us some points on the board!
Flacco's facial hair - Not all of us are supermodels and it is hard to be around beautiful people day in and day out. I know the Ravens quarterback knows he can't compete with pretty boy Tom Brady in the looks department, but seriously did he think that fu man chu look was a good one?
CBS - What was up with the commericials that CBS ran on itself that said more people watched football on CBS than on any other network? How about because the NFL controls the channels? How about because I prefer the AFC to the NFC? College football? Pfft. I'm not sure they can make that claim.
Helmet to Helmet - Again with the hits and again no big replays or half hour talks regarding the hit that occurred when a Patroit player hit a Raven player. It did happen on the Ravens sideline and kudos to coach Harbough for screaming at the ref for not calling it, but had that been Steelers James Harrison...
Joe Flacco - He got dissed by his teammate earlier in the week, but he pulled himself together after a shaky first quarter and played some mentally tough football for a kid who the Steelers rattle quite often.
Overtime - NOT. At least in the first game. Oops. Ah, gotta feel a little something for the Ravens kicker Billy Cundiff who missed a 32 yard field goal with 15 seconds left to tie the game with the Patroits. I would hate to go into that locker room and have to look Ray Lewis in the eye. Whoo! That's a tough one.
Fights - Quite a few scrimmishes in the first game with the Ravens pushing and shoving and the Pats screaming in faces, but the same thing happened in the second game with the Giants pushing and shoving and the 49ers mouthing off in faces. A few punches and face mask grabbing went on as well in games. Tensions were certainly high.
Steven Tyler - Maybe it was just me, but I enjoyed Tyler's rendition of the National Anthem before the first playoff game. Apparently I was in the minority, but then again I think I'm battling an ear infection.
Chad Ochocinco - No reason mentioned for his not being suited up or on the sidelines for the Patroits game, but Ochocinco tweeted earlier that his father had died. If it is true that he didn't play because of his father's death then I'm impressed. We don't normally see that in the sports world. Hmmmm...let's see if he is there for the Super Bowl.
Giants Offensive Line - Did they even show up? I must have missed them. Eli is going to be hurting this morning. That last shot of him before giving the ball back to the 49ers before time ran out in the 4th quarter said it all. He was covered in mud and grass and his shirt was pulled down to his elbow, shoulder pads exposed, weariness all over his face.
49ers Defense - These guys were there and all over that field. Our sports columnist said in Sunday's Tampa Bay Times paper these games would be all defense and it would be the kind like the 70's Steel Curtain; raw and brutal. These guys certainly showed up to play and play well they did.
Giants Defense - No one said they could do it. Pretty much no shows during the year, especially the last 5 regular season games, but show up for the playoffs they did. And in the end that is all that mattered.
Devin Thomas - This boy was on his game. The fact that he saw the punt that slightly touched Kyle Williams leg, picked it up and recovered it despite it being called dead. He had to have had laser eyes! And then, what the hell, he did it again forcing a fumble from Kyle Williams that set up the winning score in overtime. That is one guy who will be on cloud nine for the next two weeks. He's a hero in New York.
Overtime - YES! And it was a doozy of an overtime. Changing of the guard, a fumble, and a kick to win it.
Rematch - Come on, admit it, you wanted to see the Patriots try to reap what they lost from the Giants in their last Super Bowl meet up. Who wouldn't?
Kickers - One lost it and one won it. All the pushing and shoving, running and catching, and it came down to the kickers. One wakes up happy and the other probably doesn't sleep.
Harbaugh - Jim Harbaugh refused to give an interview to Fox after the game. One of the things about coaching Jimmy is the agony of defeat and having to man up and discuss it. Not cool in my opinion, but I understand it. Tough day for the Harbaugh family.
Team Game - Win or lose the game is a team game and let us hope that the players remind Billy Cundiff and Kyle Williams of that in the locker room. Long night and road ahead for these two.
Chip Kelly - Rumor has it that this will be the Tampa Bay Buccaneer's new head coach. Kelly, the coach of the Oregon Ducks, would be an offensive man to mold Buc's quarterback Josh Freeman. Kelly and the Glazers, owners of the Buc's, met in secret this week. Oh boy, here we go again. When the Glazers meet with people in secret it doesn't usually turn out well for anyone. And what is with hiring these successful NCAA coaches? Very few make it in the NFL (hello Steve Spurrier) so Kelly is going to have win me over before I applaud this decision.
Twitter - The fun thing about it is following football players, sportscasters, and comedic writers. After the second game I cried I was laughing so hard at the tweets regarding the game and the refs. If you aren't on it yet, and you are a football fanatic, you have got to sign up now and follow your fav players. Great insight. Great fun. Great stuff!

Should I buy one or just suck it up?

2012-01-21T06:05:00.002-05:00

When Tom and I started out our married life together we made the obvious "big" purchases all married couples do; house, carpeting, formal dishes, and a vacuum cleaner. I had the Kirby man come to the house for a demonstration of the "people leave these in their wills" vacuum, but despite the man's hard sale I couldn't see spending over $1000 on a house cleaning object, and we didn't have kids to will it to at the time. We eventually bought our first vacuum cleaner from Sears. It was big, bulky, and expensive by our standards, but it cleaned bare floors, something that wasn't a big deal back in the day. That Kenmore vacuum is probably still going strong today, but after spending tons of money on vacuum bags, which I had to drive to Sears to purchase, and suffering back pain from its weight we put it to the curb and bought a Bissell bag-less model from Target. The only requirement Tom wanted was power. The only requirement I desired was color, ease, weight, bare floor option, filters, and a bare chested sculptured abs man to run it. For the most part the Bissell gave us what we were looking for and was inexpensive to boot.

I liked it for about three months and then the canister where the dirt and grime from my carpeting accumulated began grossing me out. Each time I vacuumed a room I had to remove the canister and empty it, dust coating my shirt and the outside of the vacuum with a fine layer, not to mention my newly vacuumed carpet. The hose didn't reach up to my ceiling for cobweb cleaning, and the power of the vacuum was so great that when I accidentally ran over the trailing cord it chewed the coating and exposed the wires. It did the job, but it wasn't my favorite household cleaning machinery.

The week leading up to the Christmas holiday I spent cleaning my house, readying it for company. I assigned cleaning tasks to the girls. Darcy got the job of vacuuming. While she was attempting to clean the rug by the front door I heard a noticeable change in the sound of the vacuum. Being an expert vacuum user, I had her stop and empty the canister. When she did so and resumed her chore I noticed the sound had not changed. I yelled for her to turn off the vacuum and suggested to her that perhaps she had sucked up something that was interfering with the vacuum's stomach. She flipped the vacuum over to survey the situation, and after taking one look at the brush and roller, she threw her hands into the air, assured me she hadn't the experience to deal with this "mess", and walked away, not caring what her punishment would be for not finishing her chore. With a heavy heart, I approached the overturn vacuum and peered at the underside. The roller was so entangled with strands of curly, red hair that I couldn't even see the brushes. I was horrified.

Darcy: "That belongs to Madison, by the way."

I unplugged the vacuum and leaned over at the waist to set about removing the hair. I tried pulling it out, but there were four pieces of plastic strips two inches apart over the roller, making it difficult to get my fingers in the space to get a good grip on the hair. I straightened, rubbed my aching back, and got some scissors. I will admit that while I should have spent more time on my own surveying the situation, perhaps sitting down to accomplish my task, my adrenaline was quite high as I thought how my red haired daughters should be sheered for this nonsense. Instead I leaned back over the vacuum and proceeded to cut the hair off of the roller. It wasn't as hard as using my fingers had been, but getting the scissors through the spaces between the plastic strips to get a good cut wasn't easy. At some point my brain spoke aloud inside my head telling me to slow down and not cut the plastic piece, but the high adrenaline, blood pressure surge, and blood flow pouring into my upside down head drowned out the sound. Just as I finished cutting out enough hair to design a wig, I snipped one of the plastic pieces at the same time as the last of the hair. Again, instead of collapsing on the floor and inhaling to pull myself together, I marched around the house angrily shoving the two handfuls of cut hair under my daughters' noses.

Darcy: "That is NOT my hair. The color and curls belong to Madison. I'm just saying."

By the time I was done with my parenting message, the hair thrown away, I went back to the vacuum to tackle the cut plastic piece. I contemplated taping the two pieces together with duct tape. I wondered aloud if those pieces were even necessary as I couldn't see what task they were providing. Eventually, I said screw it, turned the vacuum upright, plugged in the cord, and attempted to vacuum the rug. Unfortunately, one of the halves of the cut plastic piece scraped the rug with its jagged edge and pulled out a few strands of the rug until my brain registered the problem. To solve it, I turned off the vacuum and put it back into the closet. Then I informed my husband we needed a new vacuum.

Tom: "You want a new vacuum cleaner for Christmas?"

My neighbor offered up his Kirby to finish my cleaning job, but I took the rugs outside and shook them, and swept the bare floors. Thankfully I had already vacuumed the carpeting before I broke the vacuum. The holidays passed, school started again, and finally I couldn't take the dirt anymore. One night while with the girls at Target after soccer practice I strode to the vacuum section and took a look. With their help I narrowed it down to three vacuums I thought fit the family bill, in more ways then one. I called the husband, who of course was still at work, and told him I was buying a vacuum. My first mistake. As I've mentioned countless times, enough that I should know better, one can not spring things like that on the husband. He began sputtering and asking inane questions and then wanted to know what the problem was with the old vacuum, despite my explaining the problem the same day it occurred. I could see I wasn't going to get anywhere fast, and it being late, I wrote down the names of the three vacuums that interested me.

Later that week one of the lead Yahoo stories was a consumer report on the best vacuums for the best dollar. I spent considerable time researching the three I had chosen, happy to find that all three came with a fairly decent and high rating on the sites I visited. This weekend I rolled the vacuum cleaner and set it in front of the closed bathroom door where Tom was hiding. He could not avoid it when he exited and together we turned the vacuum over, and I explained the problem, showing him the offensive piece I had cut. I then made mistake number 2. I told him I didn't think the piece was important and that a good snip, snip on both ends would probably take care of the problem. It did. Now he doesn't think we need a new vacuum cleaner.

A few days later I received this in my email:

Dyson Vacuum

I think Tom is totally gonna change his mind!

Thursday tidbits

2012-01-19T08:35:00.028-05:00

Connie had an appointment this week at a wound clinic for an evaluation on using a hyperbaric chamber for her wound. The doctor spent considerable time listening to the whole saga and taking notes. He also listened to my theories, which I told him saying, "I'm not a doctor, but I play one all the time." (I might wear my scrubs at next week's appointment) He is running some tests and we meet with him and the Foot God next week to discuss options. We toured the area with the chambers and Connie was relieved to see that they are much larger then the ones she slept in years ago.
My dog has a serious case of hero worship with my husband. He sleeps on the floor next to Tom's side of the bed. He follows Tom to the bathroom. He follows him when he wanders through our house. He sits at his feet when Tom is working at his desk. He sits at the front door and waits for him at night. He curls up with him on the couch. No wonder my husband wanted a dog!
I managed to remember to feed Kelly's cat while she was out of town. I have to leave notes all over my house that reads, "CATS" so that I'll remember. My kids pointed out to me that she only has one cat, but she use to have two cats and I can't seem to get past the plural. I also set alarms on my phone so that I wouldn't forget. Then on Monday, despite texting Kelly regarding her airport arrival back to Tampa, I forgot about picking her up at the airport. Luckily, fifteen minutes before Darcy began putting on her soccer cleats and that triggered my brain. I don't think Kelly was sitting outside too long....
While feeding Kelly's cat this weekend I had to schedule feedings between commercial breaks in the NFL playoff games. The first day I got to her house at the beginning of the Saints/49ers game. While Madison brushed and tossed balls to the cat (who plays fetch like a dog) I sat on the couch and watched the game. When I first sat down and turned on the TV I remembered Kelly saying something was wrong with her television, that it didn't get cable channels, or the picture wasn't good, something, but I couldn't recall exactly. The TV when I turned it on was on the video screen, and because Tom once had our TV wired to work through the VCR, I thought this was the case and turned on her DVD player. Then I realized that Tom hadn't been over to her place to wire something like that, turned the player off, switched the screen from video to TV, and punched in the channel of the game. The screen came on with a nice clear, beautiful picture of the game. It crossed my mind, rather quickly, that the picture was better then Kelly had let on and that she must have done something with her cable company. I even changed channels to catch the pregame show for the other NFL playoff game. The next day I watched another playoff game, on a different channel, and had the same wonderful picture. On Monday I never turned on the TV, there being no games, and when Kelly asked me how I watched TV in her living room when the picture was all snow, I told her the truth. She then went home, turned on the TV, got her normal snowy picture, and texted me asking if I was messing with her. Perhaps her TV is only tuned for football? Perhaps is is operator error? All very stange, but not enough for me to wander over during the day while she is at work to try out the TV again.
Our week has been turned upside down with Madison taking midterms this week for the end of her first semester in high school. She was able to choose three exams to exempt because she maintained an A average in each class and didn't miss any classes this semester. Having exempted three exams made each day a challenge for her mother. One day she went in later. One day she got out later. One day she had to be early. One day she stayed late for as study group. I've said, since she turned 15 in November, that I wouldn't be able to handle her behind the wheel of a car, but now I'm sort of changing my mind on that one...
My cousin's daughter, who visited us this Christmas, was out playing on the beach with my eldest daughter, when she brought up the fact that we had forgotten her brother's birthday in October. Madison, not having a clue about such things, replied with something like, "Oh, we did?" Anya nodded, very serious, and said, "So I don't want you to forget my birthday. It is January 28th." Put me right in my place upon hearing this little confab! Not only have I sent her brother a gift, but I ordered and sent her gift yesterday...TEN days before the big day. I'm patting myself on the back....

McDonald's is no Chick-fil-A

2012-01-17T06:57:00.001-05:00

Before my kids started school I didn't get fired up with things as I do now. Now it doesn't take much to get me going. On Thursday after Darcy's school soccer game we didn't have much time before I had to attend an IB high school meeting so we agreed it was a fast food night. Since McDonald's is the closest one between the soccer field and my house I quickly drove through there and ordered two #10 chicken nugget meals with drinks and a fillet-o-fish meal with a drink. The voice over the intercom in the drive thru asked me if I wanted sauce with my #10 meals. I ordered Madison some sweet and sour, Darcy some ranch, and then I also asked for ketchup for the fries. We paid our bill and moved through the line to the pick up window. There a frantic woman waved me forward.

FW: "Can you drive up? The fries are still cooking. Drive up, thank you."

She disappeared inside the window. I looked forward. There is a small area to pull up from the drive thru to throw away trash. The only other area out of the line of traffic is a row of parking spots. The ones directly in front of me were taken up with cars and a lone man standing in a spot talking to someone parked next to him. I drove forward to the garbage can.

Me: "Seriously? I had to pull forward? I can not be the only person ordering fries."

Darcy and I watched the next person in line, but he got his order and pulled around me, having a bit of difficulty, which made me in turn inch forward some more to get out of the way. One by one cars got their orders, gave me dirty looks, and pulled around me to exit. I got tired of watching and glanced down at my receipt. There were two #10 meals and a price. There was a sweet and sour sauce with $0.00. There was a fillet-o-fish and a price. There was a ranch sauce with a $0.00, and then there was an extra sauce with a charge of $.30. Also on there was ketchup at $0.00. I wondered what in the world was the extra sauce. Darcy and I debated it for the five minutes it took for the frantic woman to arrive with our food.

She literally thrust the two bags at me, trying to work around the trash can I was parked next to, and apologized for my wait. Then she tried to scurry away.

Me: "Excuse me. Can I ask you a question?"
FW: (still trying to make a run for it) "Yes?"
Me: (showing her the receipt) I have a charge here for an extra sauce that is for $.30. What is that for?"
FW: (still posed to run, shrugs her shoulders) "It is not my fault. Sorry."
Me: (a #3 on the about-to-blow scale) "Well, I was charged for something I did not order, and I'd like to know what it was for and why."
FW: (sighing, finally turns toward me and comes over to the car and looks at receipt) "You order ranch and sweet and sour sauces, you have extra."
Me: I ordered two #10 meals. They both should come with sauces at no charge."
FW: (shrugging) "It is not my fault. Sorry."
Me: (now a #5 on the about-to-blow scale) "So I just ignore the fact that I paid out an extra $.30?"
FW: (raising voice and turning back to the restaurant) "You want me to get you extra sauce?"
Me: "No. I want what I ordered."
FW: "You want more sauce? You want $.30? You have your sauce?"

I look in the bags and discover that I have two ranch sauces, no ketchup, and no sweet and sour sauce. Not even the sauce I ordered is in the bag! I am now rising on the about-to-blow scale. I guess at this point I'm a 7.

Me: I don't even have the sweet and sour sauce I ordered. It isn't even in the bag. And there isn't any extra $.30 sauce here either."
FW: It is not my fault!" She runs away. She returns and thrusts 7 packets of different sauces in my hand. "It is not my fault! Sorry." And she runs away back into the restaurant, leaving me sitting with packets of sauce that I can't possible eat in my hand.
Me: (now at the blowing point, a complete 10 on the scale) "Darcy, take these sauces back into the restaurant and get your ketchup. I do not want these and it is a waste to throw them away at $.30 a pop."

Darcy took the sauces back into the restaurant and got her ketchup. We left the trash can area and all the way home I blew up, ranting and raving about the frantic woman and her unconcern with her customers issue. Darcy tried to calm me down, but at a 10 on the scale she had no real chance. We got home where we discovered the food was cold and inedible, although Darcy ate hers. I told Madison the whole story and she tried to perform her zen, lawyer-like, peace and love explanation on what had really happened, but again at a 10 on the scale she wasn't going to get through to me.

Madison: "It's only $.30 I think we can survive."
Me: "Only $.30! Only $.30!"
Darcy: "That is the one thing I made sure I did not say to her, Madison."
Me: "Only $.30! That's two days of the library fine Darcy is racking up with her lost Be Nice to Mice book! Today it's $.30. Tomorrow it's $1.30!"
Madison: "You know what I mean."
Me: "Yes, yes, I do, but it isn't really the $.30 that gets me. It was her attitude. She told me four times it wasn't her fault? You're the employee and I'm the customer, lady, who's *&6%ing fault is it? Oh, I wish I had said that to her. Who's *(&^ing fault was it? That's the answer I want to know!"
Madison: "I...
Me: "No! No! Stop trying to tell me how this should be. It comes down to customer service. You don't know because you haven't had to work for a living. (whoo writing that sentence conjured up memories of my mom and dad saying that very same thing....) Well, I'll tell you now that the customer is always right. That's what they teach you in the business world. The customer is always right! How hard would it have been for her to apologize by saying, "Oh, my goodness, ma'am, I am so sorry about. That is certainly a mistake. How about two complementary apple pies to go with your meal this evening? That would have diffused me right away and made me happy."
Madison: "You don't like their apple pies."
Me: "That is beside the point. You two do. That would have been a better response then "It isn't my fault!" Well, who's (*&^ing fault was it?"
Madison: "I'm sure it was very busy there tonight."
Me: "Madison, you are missing the point. I don't care how busy it was. That isn't an excuse. Wait until you have a job. You will understand then. What if someone had drowned at the pool I worked at? You think as Pool Coordinator I would have shrugged my shoulders and said, "It isn't my fault?"
Madison: "Well, know you're just getting carried away. This isn't the same situation."
Me: "That's what I'm trying to tell you. It is the same. It is customer satisfaction. It is how you respond in situations. She sucked. You think the window girl at Chick-fil-A would have handled things this way? No, because they "look forward to serving us". They are taught the customer is always right. The one time they charged me for a meal I didn't order at the restaurant they refunded my entire meal and gave us complimentary milkshakes!"
Madison: "Well, Darcy actually worked at McDonald's that time for her school project. Darcy, how was it when you got really busy?"
Darcy: "I was trying to stay out of this conversation, Madison."
Me: "Darcy didn't work the counter. She had a higher end management job."

Darcy: "I was the bookkeeper, but I did work the counter because I finished my job fairly quickly and they needed help. It was quite busy and things did get difficult."
Me: "But you didn't make a mistake and tell someone too damn bad, did you?"
Darcy: "I'm not allowed to say that word."
Madison: "Well, now you're just being ridiculous. And it says right here on the bag that if you have a problem to call this 800 number. Maybe you should do that."

And so I did. I didn't call the number, but instead used the website address that was listed under the phone number. I clicked on the tell us how we did button and left a note explaining everything that had happened. As everyone knows I am more than capable of writing notes and felt this one was a good one. Madison came in and read over it before I submitted it, and she too approved. I ended it with, "the whole experience just annoyed me. Yes, it is $.30, but I think perhaps the manner in which it was handled needs some attention. Either way I feel better getting it off my chest, so thanks for reading this and thanks for allowing us this option. Because of the five minute wait for fries plus the extra time dealing with the issue our food was cold and dry by the time we got home. Sigh. Not my best experience with McDonalds."

I felt much better after writing the letter and could then explain in a calm voice how customer service is important no matter what job one is in. The girls put up with me again, knowing I would soon be off to a meeting, and soon I was. A day later I received an email from McDonald's thanking me for my letter and letting me know it had been sent to the proper person. Two days later I received an email from someone in the customer response center who apologized for my unsatisfactory experience and assured me that action had been taken on my feedback. Then she went on to tell me what that action had been on her part. She had contacted the local franchise owner of the restaurant to explain my issue. Additionally she had contacted the McDonald's Regional Consultant so that that person could follow up with the owner and restaurant for "corrective action".

I shared the email with the girls. It may all be a load of crap, but it satisfied me just to be able to get the issue off my chest, get an apology, and be assured that action would be taken.

That lasted about two hours, and then I was annoyed that no one sent me any apple pies. Seriously? How do I know any of that stuff really happened? How is that satisfying me in the fact that that restaurant still owes me $.30? The one time I wrote a letter to the Frito Lay company years ago in college when I put money into a machine for some Cheetos and the bag was empty the Frito Lay company sent me a box of various bags of chips (full sized, not snack size), and a handful of free coupons to boot and that was $.50 that I lost with them. McDonald's obviously is not at the same level in customer satisfaction. I'll probably not go there for a few weeks just because I'm still a 3 on the about-to-blow scale regarding this issue, but I can guarantee that restaurant has lost my business. Unless I would receive an apple pie in the mail....

Monday morning sports recap

2012-01-16T09:50:00.000-05:00

What did I say? In the playoffs it isn't how good you played all year long, but who wants it more. Two teams expected to win, both picked at various times to win this year's Super Bowl, gone. No New Orleans Saints. No Green Bay Packers. Out. A team not expected to even make the playoffs is still in it. Hello New York Giants.

1. Great football - The Saints/49ers game went down to the wire with both teams coming back to take the lead and the 49ers left standing in the endzone in the end. Exciting playoff game. The Packers/Giants game too was a doozy with Eli Manning leading his team to the win while the Packers Aaron Rogers tried to hold his team together at home. Fun, fun, fun.
2. Tim Tebow - I don't blame Tebow for that terrible game. I blame his offensive line. Although I wondered where the energetic, yelling on the sidelines Tebow from last week went. Gotta have a leader who fires up his team.
3. Tom Brady - One thing Brady doesn't like is to be ignored. All week the only name on everyone's lips and in all the papers was Tebow. So Brady went out and reminded them of Tom.
4. John Elway - Where was he? Not on the sidelines preening.
5. Harbough vs. Harbourgh - Will we see that in the Super Bowl? Might be a possibility.
6. Ravens - They thought about collapsing, but the defense dug down, held it together, and forced some turnovers that led them to a win. Can't stand them, but think they're the best chance against the Pats.
7. Saints - Drew Brees has nothing to be ashamed of for his play. Great guy. Great quarterback. Just ran out of time.
8. Pulling Brady - The talk began before halftime. Should Brady sit out the second half? Would we see the back-up QB? Jim Nantz and Phil Simms babbled so much about this I had to wonder if they had been watching the comeback Broncos at all this season.
9. Eli Manning - Not having to stand in his big brother's shadow this season, Eli is showing us why he is the Manning man we should be talking about. He stood tall in the pocket and led his team, throwing great passes, including a Hail Mary before halftime that was caught in the endzone.
10. Veteran QB's - Yes, Andy Dalton, J.J. Watts, Tim Tebow and Matthew Stafford made the playoffs. They are now sitting at home on the couch. There is something to be said for experience and these playoffs have proven that.
11. Packers - I'm thinking that they should have been concentrating more on their upcoming games instead of acting in those god awful State Farm commercials. Sort of like the Steelers and their tweeting...
12. Hoosiers - Oh, Indiana, where has your team gone?
13. Federer- Rafael Nadal made some comments before the start of the Australian Open regarding Roger Federer's lack of complaining when it comes to his fellow player's grievances. Roger shrugged it all off, told the press all is fine and that Nadal has grown up enough to have his own opinions. Nadal, for his part, apologized for mouthing off. And here we go... Anyone else wonder if this is just a get-in-your-opponents-head attempt?
14. Federer 2 - That being said I understand and support Federer's reasoning (that and I just love him) on why he doesn't stand up and shout. He feels the media gets involved and it gets turned into something more. He would prefer to go about it in another way. “I was in the meeting. I completely understand and support the players’ opinions,” Federer said. “I just have a different way of going at it. I’m not discussing it with you guys in the press room. It creates unfortunately sometimes negative stories.” He supports his fellow players and agrees there is problems in men's tennis, but he prefers handling it in a different manner. Perhaps his Switzerland background kicking in...

Library book saga part 2

2012-01-15T11:19:00.000-05:00

The day that I knew I was going to handle the missing library book issue at Connie's library I went into Darcy's bedroom after dropping her off at school and stood and surveyed the room. I checked her bookshelf for the book. No go. My adrenaline was quite high by this point as I had been on my way to Connie's when Madison had texted me that I needed to return home as she was missing her folder with an important document in it that she needed THAT VERY DAY if she was going to exempt her midterms. I hadn't found the folder and so I had moved on to the library book issue and was quite fired up. I picked up her bed and heaved it to the side and stared in wonder at the mess under it. No book. I left the bed where it was and got down on my hands and knees to look under her six drawer, very heavy, dresser. I couldn't even see under it as there was so much stuff crammed under it. I swept my hand under it and pulled out money, candy wrappers, a sock, crumpled papers, a ruler, an old test paper, a cough drop, a die, a headband, and a peppermint candy. Using the ruler I swept under the dresser again and got another whole batch of crap. The adrenaline was pumping now and so I stood up, while the dog grabbed the peppermint candy and took off running, but that's another story, and used that pumping adrenaline to heave one side of the dresser away from the wall and out into the room. This is what I discovered:

Okay, to be honest these pictures were taken the last time I pulled out her dresser, but seriously the crap behind the dresser was the same as these pictures. No book however, and being really annoyed that she was still leaving crap behind and under her dresser, I left the dresser as is in the middle of the room.

When she returned home from school the two of us tackled her messy room. We pulled all the furniture from her walls into the middle of the room. We cleaned all the stuff under and behind the furniture. We vacuumed and cleaned baseboards. We cleaned out drawers. We rearranged her room. By the time it was all put together we were sore, tired, and hungry. But NO library book.

The saga continues....

Library book saga part 1

2012-01-14T12:19:00.000-05:00

We have lost a library book. Wait. Well, okay, I'll say "we" as, despite the fact that it is Darcy's library book, I might have been responsible for turning it back in. The problem is we have no idea. We are a family of readers, and since our world now consists of library-ing online we rarely enter the library. I can sit down at my computer and research books that interest me, order them on my library site to have delivered at my local library, receive an email confirmation that they have arrived, and pick them up at my library's convenient drive-thru. I managed my account, Darcy's account, and my mother's account online. Madison manages her own, and probably wishes I had taken over that task as she recently had to fork over $24 in overdue fines for books she checked out for a school project.

When it is time to take the books back I use two options. One is to drop the books off at the same drive thru I use to pick them up. The drive thru is close to Madison's school and on the same route as our recreation soccer club and there is a book drop next to the drive thru window to use when the library is closed. My second option is to use the drive thru book drop at my mother's library which is directly on the route to her house. That is usually the one I use the most lately as I am up that way a few times a week. I can zip in, toss the books in the drop, and zip back out again. Only problem with that is I don't get a receipt. It becomes my word against the library's word.

And therein lies the problem. I say I returned the book. The library doesn't have it. He said, she said. Darcy recalls returning the book at our library. I recall returning it at the other library. The problem with my recall is that it was a series book and she had checked out several of those books. I found one of the books lying on my dining room table, and knowing we own these series books, thought it one of ours. I went to put it on our bookshelves and then saw the library stamp. I'm sure that the book was hardback and a tad skinner then most books. I put it in the pile to be returned. Darcy is sure she gave me the book to add to our pile one day that she was with me when we went to our local drive thru library. Sigh.

Now on three separate occasions I have discovered mistakes the library has made. The first one was when Madison was about three years old, and this was before libraries went computer age. We returned a book and then I got a threatening notice in the mail telling me the book was severely overdue. I was pissed. I marched into the library, but the line to the desk to discuss the issue was very long, and so I went into the children's section and found the book on the shelf. When I stood in the long line with the book and explained the situation to the librarian, she looked down her nose at me and said in unbelieving tone, "You found this book on our shelf?" I was so stunned I didn't reply and she scoffed and said, "Next time bring this to our attention and WE will look for the book on our shelf." I still hate this librarian to this day, and she still has that same pursed lip and stern expression every time I see her.

So the next time I suspected the same situation I went to another librarian as instructed, told her the problem, and she said, "Oh, that happens a lot. Go check the shelf and see if you can find the book there and bring it back to me." I did and she checked it in and fixed the fines and all was good. The third time I did the same thing, having learned my lesson the first time, and another librarian told went with me to check the shelf, found the book, and said, "Next time just find the book and bring it to us and we will fix your account." AAHH!

So having had these experiences I thought perhaps the missing book was already on a library shelf, just not checked in properly. I have renewed the book the two chances that I'm giving to do so online. The book was due back the 27th of December and since then has been racking up $.15 a day. It has been weighing heavily on my mind, and finally this week I marched into Connie's library, where Darcy had gotten the book on a take-Conne-out-day, to see if the book had inadvertently been placed on the shelf. The librarian was a youngster in her late twenties with an expression on her face that did not change at all the entire time we conversed. I explained the situation. She wrote out the information on the book, gave it to Madison, and told her to check the shelves. Madison did so, and returned with a book with the same title, but the wrong barcode. I said that the book was hardcover and thus not in the paperbook area Madison had checked. The librarian said no the book was paperback, but check in the other section to make sure. No book. I sighed and said I would just pay for the darn book. The librarian said no and suggested we check with the other library to make sure they hadn't put it on the shelf by accident. I asked if we could renew the book so that I wasn't racking up charges, something my library does all the time for us and tells us to call them on the phone to do this, but she shook her head and told me, "Sorry, but as you can see you already had the two allotted renewals. I'm sorry." But she didn't look sorry. She looked the same as she did when she told me "hello" and "thank you". We left.

Yesterday Madison and I went into our library. My favorite librarian, Shelly, who is the sweetest, kindest, and funniest woman ever was behind the counter and I practically ran to it so that she could deal with my problem. I explained the whole situation, and she led us to the children's book area to check for the book. She was in the fiction section and all the series books were hardback. I told her the other librarian and told me the book was paperback. She disagreed. No book. I repeated the paperback assumption and we checked there just to make sure, despite the fact that Shelly believed the book to be hardback, as did I, since I remember finding a series book on my dining table. No book. Shelly led us back to the counter where she renewed the book for another four weeks, "to buy you some time to search for it". Something that other librarian could have done, but refused. I tried to pay the $2.60 fine racked up now for the late return, but Shelly waved it away saying if I had to pay for the book this library usually overlooks the fine. Something tells me the other library won't. So we have four weeks to find the book, and Darcy also has four weeks to work to raise the money to pay for the book if we don't fine it.

Despite the fact we returned it.

Thursday 5 tidbits

2012-01-12T13:52:00.000-05:00

A family that I met via my brother and his family has a seven year old daughter who has three brain tumors. They are cancerous and inoperable. She is in a children's hospital in Indiana. As a parent, all of this scares me as I start to think about my own children and the fear of anything happening to them. I also met the little girl when she was smaller and drank margaritas with her mother so knowing them makes it more real. My brother and his wife drove the three hours to the hospital to be with the family when they heard the news. They are good about that, comforting and being there for families, having lost a child themselves. I worry too for them as I'm sure it makes them relive their ordeal. I'm trying to think good thoughts and send prayers to the family, but it is hard to stay focused. I do know I hug and love my girls even more since this happened. Makes me just want to get out and do the things now that I want to do. I should probably add that to my resolutions.
I sat outside with my two neighbors, back together again after the holidays. Our conversation jumps all over the place from discussing what parts of the house we have cleaned, what is happening in our lives, what is planned for the weekend, to silly things like how we should be on the bikes that hang in our garage, wondering where the mail lady has been, and peering at a neighbor we only see once a month. I could probably make a weekly entry in our inane morning conversations which I look forward to on days I'm home.
My mother's foot wound was a bit bigger at this week's appointment. A downer for all involved. The Foot God has decided to send her for an evaluation at a new wound clinic for trying a hyperbaric chamber. I'm thrilled just to have someone else look at the wound. Connie is a bit upset about the chamber, having used one in her past. We shall see how it goes...
Since moving to Florida I've gotten more involved in Florida sports (and written about it on this blog,) and I was a Tim Tebow fan back when he played quarterback for the Florida Gators. I've been a Tebow believer last year and this year (again, which I wrote about on this blog), but I'm really getting tired of all the bandwagon people, especially those that want to rub it in my face since the Broncos beat my team. There is an etiquette in football (another thing I've written about on this blog) and if your team is the Broncos and has been the Broncos for years then feel free to rub it in my face I'm good with that. But those of you whose team didn't even make the playoffs? Not cool to call me and mouth off. And speaking of Tebow. I enjoyed this article about him. Thought it well said.

The stopping the nail biting is off to a start, albeit a slow one. I thought that taking a weekly photo would help me. My main problem now is how much I like feeling the new length of each nail with my teeth. As if to say, "Grow little nail, grow. So I have more to chew." Reading, watching TV, and stress is when I notice I chew the most. The first two are necessities in my life. The last is my life. I'm not sure how I'm going to manage this one, but I have 12 months to work on it.

Hitchcock's birds have visited

2012-01-11T07:07:00.000-05:00

This past holiday one day in the late evening Elliot (our dog) began whining despite the fact that I had just taken him outside. The whining suddenly increased in velocity and he became quite agitated, running from the back door to the front door barking furiously. As usual, I was the only one who noticed the odd behavior, and the only one who acted on it. I went to the back door and let him out. Our door leads to the pool patio and another door leads to the outside. Thinking perhaps he had an upset stomach or that an intruder was cutting our metal fence instead of hopping over it, I opened the door to the outside. When I did the dog took off like a crazy animal. He ran around the corner and tore down the length of our back yard to the side gate. There he looked up into the sky and barked and barked. I too looked above the sky and saw this:

Okay, I thought, birds. We have a few different varieties of birds here in our Florida neighborhood that happens to be a bird sanctuary. We get egrets, herons, wild parrots, seagulls, osprey, and the occasional pelican, as well as the usual birds such as doves, owls, blue jays, cardinals, sparrows, etc. For the most part Elliot ignores birds. He chases the egrets and the herons, and he barks at the wild parrots that perch on our electric pole out back, but the rest of them he ignores. I thought it odd he was barking at these black birds in the sky, but he was suddenly crazed over them.

I ventured further out into the yard, joined now by my cousin Maya, and we watched as Elliot ran from one side of the house to the other, running as if he were after a rabbit and barking as if the intruder was already through the cut fence and now working on breaking through a window. I wondered what in the world was up with him, and I went out into the middle of my yard, out into the open, and my jaw dropped.

The tree behind my neighbor's roof was completely covered in black birds. (This picture was after most had flown off so it doesn't do it justice, but gives you an idea) We could hardly see the branches of the tree as birds were perched on every limb. They were also perched above on the telephone wires above my neighbors' and my house. They were making some racket. Maya thought they sounded like ducks. I thought they sounded like a herd of geese. We stood in awe at the sight and wondered aloud what the heck was happening. While we stood Elliot took off running to the other side of the house again, looking up into the sky and barking.

Across the back of my other neighbor's house came more birds. They flew and flew and flew, passing over our heads so close we could hear the flapping of wings, and they too settled in the tree. There were so many of them that the sky was dark with birds, and we wondered aloud if we should be concerned. Scenes of Alfred Hitchcock's movie, The Birds, began playing in my head, and I told Maya that that movie seemed so mild to me when I saw it, but that witnessing it in real life was just slightly terrifying.

Not long after saying that the birds flew off the tree. The sound they made as they left in one giant flock was amazingly loud and ominous. Maya and I stood and stared at one another. Then suddenly the birds were back again. They flew over our heads again and landed back into the tree. By this point our screaming had brought out the rest of the house. The kids took one look, thought it cool, but not exciting enough to tear them away from whatever game they were playing, and they went back inside. Maya's husband, Jay, thought he would be sneaky and try to get close to the tree. He opened the side gate, went outside it, turned around to close the gate so that he was facing us, his back to the tree, and then the flock left the tree in that same loud, ominous, haunting noisy way. Jay's eyes about popped out of his head and he instinctively tucked his head between his shoulder blades. The birds flew over our heads and house, flew toward the back, over the neighbor's house and disappeared. The sky became clear and the squawking stopped and once again my backyard was silent. It was as if nothing had ever happened.

But did it?

Very superstitous toast?

2012-01-10T08:48:00.000-05:00

I am very superstitious, and when I got a call on Saturday from our friends who wanted to bring me over a surprise gift, my first thought was to tell them no. I knew, of course, that it had to be a Steelers gift, but last year they brought me a gift the day of the Super Bowl. It was a huge Steelers pinata that they had seen in a shop in Arizona, bought, and carried home on the airplane that very day, and they had driven from the airport to give it to me minutes before I left to watch the game. And we lost the Super Bowl.

And yes, of course, I know it didn't have anything to do with their gift, which I love and have hanging in my Steelers room, but still when they called the day before the playoffs... Sigh. I told them to come over and I unwrapped the gift which was a Steelers toaster that makes Steelers toast.

It is really cool. Darcy made Steelers toast all day long and ate it for breakfast yesterday. We tried to come up with ways to integrate it into an appetizer so that I could take it to my buddy's house when I watched the playoff game, but other than peanut butter sandwiches and BLT's we didn't come up with anything tasty.

And then the next day we lost in the playoffs. And my superstitious nature has kicked in. And I might just be blaming the family who loves to get and give me Steelers gifts. And definitely next year I will tell them to hold off on giving them to me until the off season. But until then I'm going to have some toast and jelly...

Monday morning sports recap

2012-01-09T07:00:00.001-05:00

Steelers:

Sigh - Hate that it is over for the year, but I have to say that the way we played this year I'm amazed we made it into the playoffs. The playoffs are the time of the year when the teams who want it most move forward. Tim Tebow wanted it more. He had more to lose. He had more to prove. He did that and more, leading his team down the field with amazing throws. Can't be unhappy about him especially since he is our Florida boy.
Defense - Somewhere the ball was dropped here. They really weren't expecting the long throw in OT? Really?
Pregame #1 - I liked the opening of the Steelers/Broncos segment with the beeping noise with Curt Menefee saying, "That sound you hear? That's the Broncos backing into the playoffs." Yep, and they are continuing.
Ryan Clark #1 - sat out against the Bronco's due to his sickle cell disease. Several years ago when he played in Denver he ended up in the hospital where he had surgery to remove his spleen and his gallbladder. He lost thirty pounds as he fought to recover. The next time the Steelers played in Denver Coach Tomliin made the decision that Clark wouldn't play and he made it again this time. Clark later tweeted he was relieved that Tomlin took the choice out of his hands because he thinks he would have played. "Y'all have seen me play, I run into people all the time, so clearly I'm not all that bright," Clark said. This is how a coach takes care of his players and tells them what is going to happen, not the other way around.
Ryan Clark #2 - Boy, did his loss hurt us. Probably why Denver's quarterbacks coach decided to go long.
Troy Polamalu - Made some of his usual great plays, but missed some reads out there that hurt us. He'll be back.
Big Hits - James Harrison went low for a change and again rang someone's bell. Harrison hit Denver's Erick Decker, tackling him below the belt the way the NFL would prefer him to do, and still Decker had to be helped off the field. Not long after the refs got Harrison for roughing the passer, and Ed Bouchette of the Pittsburgh Post Gazette tweeted: "They just found a way to penelize 92 for his previous hit on Decker." Yep, because even the announcer didn't like that call.
Home field advantage - And speaking of bad calls... That's why you win your division so that you play at home. Wow. Haven't seen so many poor calls and challenges in a game in a long time. And Denver's Quinton Carter hit helmet to helmet with Pittsburgh's Mike Wallace was just ignored by the refs, and I'm sure, by the NFL. It wasn't long after that call when Harrison got called for the roughing call. Makes the I-think-certain-players-are-being-targeted theories a tad more valid. My advice there? Get hit by a helmet lie down on the field and act confused.
Pregame #2 - I liked John Lynch's Pittsburgh/Denver segment with him addressing Tim Tebow getting James Harrison's name wrong in an previous interview. Harrison is really a very funny guy and he enjoys playing up his bad boy image. "He'll know my name," he told Lynch.
Comeback - Got to give it to Big Ben pulling out that comeback to tie the game with his high ankle sprain injury causing him problems in the pocket. Every time fans start to wonder what the coaches are thinking by leaving him in the game, he shows us why. Go home now, be nice to your new wife, stay out of trouble, and heal.
Antonio Brown - Another big game for him. He stepped up when needed and was huge in the comeback, catching and running and catching and running.
Tweeting - Is it just me or does anyone else think it odd that the Steelers players tweet before the game? I don't know...I'd prefer them to think about their upcoming job and get their head in the game. Tomlin? What do you think?
Injuries - All year we dropped like flies and yesterday's game wasn't any different. Already sitting out was our center, Maurkice Pouncey, defensive back Allen Cortez, running back Rashard Mendenhall and Mewelde Moore, and Ryan Clark. Injured but playing was Polamalu, Roethlisberger, Woodley, Harrison, and Legursky. We added Casey Hampton, Brett Keisel, and Max Starks during the playoffs. I certainly hope that we heal over the off season and come back healthy and ready to play. Depending on who we keep that is....
Hines Ward - Sure hope he returns! I still believe he has plays in him.

Others:

NBC - Having Saturday's playoff games on the peacock because that meant Chris Collingsworth was in the booth for one of the games. I still think he is the best in the business.
Jets Pepsi Commercial - Terrible. Even more so now that we know all that went down in their locker room and huddle in the last game.
Santonio Holmes - He won us a Super Bowl and I love him for that, but somewhere he loss sight of himself and what is important. I've said it again and again. The team and owners and coaches you want to pay attention to, want to follow their lead, and want to emmulate is the Pittsburgh Steelers. If they cut a player, there is a reason. Rex Ryan has got to start building a TEAM that plays together as a TEAM, and he has got to start acting like a grown-up and leader.
Commerical #2 - And speaking of terrible commericals...the State Farm "discount double check" with Packers QB Aaron Rogers? They should have stopped with the first one.
Jay Glazer - Who knew he was so tiny? Doesn't matter though. Man gets the scoop first hand.
Andy Dalton - I know the Cincinnati Bengals QB threw three interceptions, one of which was run back for a touchdown, against the Houston Texans in the first playoff game, but I think Bengal fans have a reason to smile. Dalton impresses me and I forsee him and the Bengals giving the Steelers trouble come next year.
Texans - It is nice to see someone new in the hunt. Would have liked the Lions in there too.
Pregame -Michael Strahan said that when he sat down with Giants QB Eli Manning he saw a calmness in him that he hadn't seen before, and he chalked it up to not having to live up to his brother, Peyton's winning ways. Nice insight.
Saints - Ran away with the game in the second half although the Lions held their own for a half. Drew Brees just has the experience, the power, the leadership, the heart, and the arm.
Quarterbacks - These playoffs and Super Bowl might just come down to the quarterbacks. A lot of big arms in it.
Atlanta - Did they even show up?
Giants - Powerful in defense. Powerful in offense. All over the field. Couldn't be stopped.
Indiana Hoosiers - This is what the Colts fans are holding on to now and this is what this Hoosier, who didn't have an Indiana football team as a kid and chose to back the Steelers, has now too. Great down to the wire game against Michigan and Penn State. Now I just have to find where I can see all the games....

Saturday's snippets

2012-01-07T00:01:00.002-05:00

The Steelers are broken, wounded, old, and run down, but we will still show Tim Tebow how football is played come Sunday late afternoon. I hope.
How hard is it to write a thank you note? I guess I remember hating to do such a thing as a kid. What do I say after I say thank you kind of thing, but seriously? It takes all of three minutes to churn out one of those babies, yet my kids spend HOURS working on these notes.
I need an outlet besides Farmville, which just annoys me each time I go on the game. And really is it a game? Am I using any brain cells on this thing? I am entertained, but the building and asking for materials thing is what made me quit in the first place and it will be what does it for me the second time.
I need a hair cut. I'm keeping my hair long for the winter and it brings back my youthful days of my twenties, but where did that gray stuff come from?
The no nail biting thing is hard. As is the working out and lowering cholesterol and eating healthier. Tell me again why we look forward to the new year?
I finally got to see the movie New Year's Eve and it left me so happy. A fun, feel good movie for the new year. And oh, my god, I just LOVE Zac Efron. Absolutely love him! So talented. So adorable.
How can I wash my hair before bed after the husband has gone to bed? That means I can't blow dry my hair because the dryer is so loud. But I must dry my hair because the weather is so cold. These are the things that keep me awake at night.
Who invented lint brushes? And could they have done a better job of removing the papers?
I was concerned that my high school daughter doesn't have a social life, but then I ran into some of her peers out on Friday night and I was thankful she chose to stay at home and do homework.
Go Steelers! Go Steelers! Go Steelers!

Christmas is over dammit

2012-01-06T06:44:00.000-05:00

We began taking down the Christmas decorations after the company left for home. We did a little bit at a time taking it slow, not rushing, almost nonchalantly. The kids didn't want any of it to come down, but I think that had more to do with working then it did with nostalgia. By the time our last day of vacation rolled around everything inside and outside the house was down except the tree. Tom decided the tree should stay up longer, and because I was too pooped, I agreed despite the fact that the garbage pick up was the next morning.

The next evening I suggested we take down the tree and dump it on the neighbor's curb as their garbage pick up was scheduled for the next morning. Tom whined that he didn't want Christmas to end and that the tree should stay up through the weekend, and I began to think he too wasn't all that nostalgic.

The third day after being gone all day I arrived home to find my house permeated with the delicious smell of stinky, month old evergreen. Ugh. I pretended that it was a fresh, newly cut tree and plugged in the lights as if Christmas were going to start all over again. Eventually I got use to the smell, but a freeze warning was announced for that evening, and because all the Christmas boxes were strewn all over the garage my poor car had been stuck outside for several days. Now with a freeze coming I had to march out into the garage and haul and lift boxes and put them away, leaving out the three boxes to be used for the tree. My car was put into the garage.

The fourth day I sent everyone off without letting my intentions known, and after everyone was gone I began taking down the tree. I took down the ornaments and stored them away, leaving the boxes for my husband. I thought about leaving just the lights and the tree up, but since I was on a roll I continued. The problem with that is that I hate the lights. I never liked putting them on, and since my experience several years ago with helping my friend Kelly take down her tree, I definitely hate taking down the lights. Kelly wraps her lights around each branch of her tree and taking them off was a nightmare that still haunts me to this day. Thankfully, my daughter isn't as bad as Kelly, but it wasn't easy. I wound around and around the tree, going up and under, and over and across until the five strands of lights were off. At one point I discovered that Madison had just wadded up the end of the lights and jammed them into the middle of the tree, attached the next strand and wound them around the tree. By the time the lights were off and wound and boxed I was exhausted. But that left my empty tree and the million needles still hanging out in my dining room, and I didn't have hope that my husband would get home at a decent enough time to remove it to the curb for the next day's garbage pick-up.

So I moved the furniture out of the way and started dragging the tree inside its stand across my tile, watching to make sure I wasn't leaving scrapes anywhere. All was going fine until I got to the entry of the dining room and living room. The drop in the entry way did not allow me to drag the tree through and so I had to tilt it, which worked fine, and then I continued my way across the living room floor until I got to the entry of the front door area. Again I had to tilt, and this time the tree fell into the door, but using my knees and leg and one arm I manage to open the door, keep the dog inside, and get the tree outside to the front porch. I then drug the tree into the yard and set it up and went back inside to access the mess of needles. Apparently, I had not thought much about there being water in the base of the stand, which was now in puddles in each entry way where I had tilted the tree. I had to get towels and sop up the water. At one point I noticed that one of the puddles had run down the floor, under the dining table and was slowly inching toward my wall of handmade wooden bookcases. I had to get down on my hands and knees under the table to mop up the water. The dog thought this was a game and began jumping up on my back, nipping at my hair. I yelled, tried to push him out of the way, raised up and bumped my head on the table. That was the moment I put the dog went into the kennel.

Finally the water was soaked up, and I turned to the millions of needles in a trail from the area the tree had once stood all the way to my front porch. There were needles in my bookcases. Needles on my dining room table and chairs. There were needles in my couch and love seat, and needles on the table in the front entry way. There were even needles in the dog's water dish. I bet I spent more time sweeping up the needles then I did taking off the lights or ornaments. But I got it all up, let the dog out of the kennel, and we both collapsed on the couch in time to watch the tree, now in the front lawn, fall over on its side. Total time spent: 2 1/2 hours.

Elliot went to sleep from all of his hard work, but every time he heard a noise he would open his eyes, see the fallen tree in the front yard, and begin barking like an intruder was making his way through our windows. This went on for about an hour until I had had enough, stomped outside, grabbed the tree by the top branch like a cave women, and hauled the tree to the curb.

I would have jumped up and down this morning while watching the garbage men haul off my tree, but my back was too sore and I was doped up on ibuprofen. Bah humbug.

Working...one resolution at a time

2012-01-04T06:41:00.000-05:00

Onychophagia is what I have; compulsive nail biting. I didn't know there was a name for it until I started researching how to quit. I figured that if there were drugs and methods to help people stop smoking that surely the same would be true for onychophagia. And I was right. I can purchase some hand cream that I rub all over my hands. It is full of natural ingredients that taste terrible, but that also deliver vitamins and nutrients to my nails and cuticles. Only $34.95 plus shipping and handling. I left that idea for a last resort.

I have to stop this habit because it is ruining my teeth. My dentist tells me it is because I grind my teeth in the night and during the day, and while I agree this is true, he has no clue how often I chew my nails. I've tried to explain it to him, but he obviously hasn't been around someone with onychopagia before.

I spent considerable time searching the net and discarded five suggestions:

Putting latex finger protectors on my fingers - I rejected this one when I read that these protectors look like "tiny condoms".
Have someone smack you when he sees you chewing nails - All I had to do was envision my friend SueG, who HATES my nail biting habit, being given this task, and I threw this one right out the window.
Take a photo of my ugly nails - Pfft. My nails aren't that ugly, thank you. I never chewed until things bled.
Paint my nails - Been there and done that on the painting. All I ever did was pick off all the nail polish and then chew the nail.
Put animal feces under my nail - Okay, this one was listed as an old wives tale and not widely suggested, but just in case I vetoed it too.

The ten suggestions that I did like and decided to try are as follows:

Add calcium and magnesium to my diet - Some of the sites said my onychophagia could be related to a lack of these two nutrients in my body so I figured this was a good one to begin with. Foods high in calcium include milk, cheese, broccoli and brussel sprouts, all foods I should be eating in my regime of lowering my cholesterol. The same can be said for the foods high in magnesium with almonds, cashews, black beans, spinach, and whole wheat flour listed as foods to do the job.
Rub olive oil all over my hands - Not only does this help keep the nails healthy, but the taste puts many nail biters off. Plus olive oil is on my list for cholesterol lowering!
Putting gloves on my hands - Gloves are on sale at Target right now and this seems an easy thing to carry in my back pocket.
Rub lotion or hand sanitizer all over hands - This one seems easier to do then the olive oil one. I got some little hand sanitizers in my stocking for Christmas!
Snap a rubber band that I wear on my wrist - This is an old behavior modification that is suppose to lessen my desire. Hmmmm...
Eat carrot sticks - Again this one works with my new health regime, but carrying carrot sticks in my back pocket seems harder then the gloves.
Find another habit - But the site stresses not to find one that will be bad for me. My mother is worried I will continue my hair twirling which for some reason drives her crazy. Which makes it more enticing to me...
Start out with a "protected nail" first - The idea is to just have one nail in the beginning that you don't chew. When the urge hits you can chew the others, but not the "protected" one. Then the beauty of the "protected" one will spur me on to add another "protected" one until all ten will be "protected" and beautiful.
Chewing gum -This is one I've done a thousand times, but it is a good one. It also helps in curbing your appetite so it is an added plus.
Get fake nails - I've also done this one before, and despite the cost, it works. I don't chew the acrylic nails and my cuticles and sides of my fingers look nice. Because the of the cost I'm adding it as a last resort as well.

Holiday Photos

2012-01-03T06:23:00.000-05:00

The Boston kids swam in the unheated pool at the condo, as well as my heated one. They shivered through it all and never cared. Not one little bit.

Instead of turkey we chose beef rib roast for the holiday meal because it was on sale at Publix. Jay was the master chef for the rib roast and it was so delicious we pretty much devoured the entire 13 pounds on Christmas Eve.

We had millions of boxes delivered to our house from the beginning of December through the end. Only one box, mailed two weeks prior and delivered the day before Christmas, came damaged.

Shell Island was built by Anya, Darcy and Ewan. Darcy and Ewan spent considerable time with the construction, lying on their bellies side by side placing each shell meticulously on the island.

Shell Island was in close proximity to Snowman Island.

Neither the Boston clan nor the Floridian youngest cared about the cold of the Gulf, especially when it came time to pee or rinse off sand.

Watching the sunset never gets old...it just gets colder after the sun disappears...especially in the winter months.

We could not get enough of beef (especially Ewan)

It got colder on the beach as a small cold front moved into Florida for a few days

The kids didn't seem to mind

Happy New Year to all my readers near and far!

Monday Morning Sports Recap

2012-01-02T06:51:00.000-05:00

Steelers:

Are these guys just trying to lose? I'm hoping that we play better in the playoffs then we have all year long, but seriously? I'm not too hopeful.
Troy had another good game running all over the field and doing his jumping on the opponents back tackle. Again, he missed some interceptions. Sigh.
Heath Miller set a record for tight ends.
Hines Ward set a record of 1,000 career receptions.
Ben Roethlisberger set a record of 5,000 throwing yards for the season.
Once again we racked up injuries, possibly loosing Mendenhall for the playoffs. Well, if Redman is our answer to replacing him I certainly hope that he can keep the *&%$ ball in his hands. Holey Moley how can someone fumble more than once in a game? I'm afraid I lost it on the second fumble and scared my daughter to death.
The big question will be can Ryan Clark play in Mile High Stadium with his sickle-cell disease? Clark set his own record this year with the most tackles of the season on the team. We need him, but at what cost?

Other:

The Indiana Hoosiers kicked some more rated butt again knocking off #2 Ohio State. I got to see this game and boy, was it a doozey. Felt good to watch Indiana winning basketball again.
Poor Tampa Bay. Can anything be said here?
Congrats to LeBron James for his engagement? Pfft. I say congrats to the mother of his children, Savannah Brinson, who will finally have some financial security with a ring on her finger.
I always wondered if teams gave it their all here at the end when they had nothing to gain. I mean did the Bengals want to beat the Ravens to give the Steelers the number 2 seed or do they like the Ravens better? Did the Colts lose so that they could sew up the number 1 draft pick? Hmmmm...
What will Rex Ryan do now that he isn't in the playoffs? Exercise, I hope.
I read that 2011's biggest sport story was Mike Krzyzewski topping his mentor, Bob Knight as the winning-est coach in college basketball. The author seemed perplexed that that story topped the Penn State diabolical, but I say, it should! How about 2011 in sports be about the positive side of sports? The good in sports? Cheer!

2012 Resolutions

2012-01-01T09:00:00.004-05:00

Each year since 1989 my family has made resolutions. We wrote them down, and I've kept them all these years (except I lost a year somewhere). They are now computerized and when we are not together for the holidays I make sure to email everyone to collect their new resolutions. It is a cool thing to have as we can see when people joined our family and when family left us.

Some of them were insightful:

Connie - 1990 - To get out of everyone's face without resorting to suicide. I want everyone to live his/her life without my interfering, and I want to live my like without interfering (i.e. no lending money for cars, taxes, marriages, graduations).

Aunt Helen - 1993 - Not to be so judgmental about other people's foibles.

Rusty - 1998 - To get Sultan's Run back on its feet and to spend more quality time with my boy.

Some of them hilarious:

Russ - 1990 - To eliminate all this chaos!

Connie - 2008 - To try and keep all of my blood in my body flowing through my veins and arteries like it is suppose to be...(pauses to wipe up blood dripping down her leg).

Maya - 2006 - Well I have to get those friggin' pictures done! I'll resolve to try to relax more with Anya and to not get so uptight when things don't go well. Added later: Forget that relaxing crap. I resolve to go out one or two times a month sans Anya.

Rusty - 1999 - To start a barnacle collection. To become very close friends with Bill Gates. Take a class on Presidential relationships and their effect on a nation. Switch from Fruit of the Loom to Hanes. Grow as much hair on my head as I do on other parts of my person. Grow a money tree in the back yard since Austin thinks we have one there anyhow.

Some of them gave us great quotes:

Tom - 1994 - To make music more a part of my life. "I am haunted by the absence of music."

Russ - 1994 - "Hell, no, I don't have a resolution!"

Helen - 2001 - "The same as last year's...not be so judgmental. I'm not sure I'll ever get that one resolved."

Some years some people didn't participate and some years everyone did. Most of the time the theme was the same. Many times we revisited resolutions from past years. About five years ago we began keeping count on whether we had kept our resolutions. Most often we hadn't.

My resolutions for 2012 are as follows:

To "work on" not chewing my nails. I liked the "work on" quote because that way it is an ongoing process as opposed to just quitting cold turkey.
To lower my cholesterol. This one, in looking back through the years, was another one of mine a few years back. Unfortunately, it is high again and thus I am working on it.
To find time and do things only for myself. I added this one with the cholesterol since I check in on my resolutions every two months and that cholesterol one will be a tough one to track...
To do a better job of keeping on top of my SAHMly chores. If I could just get back to my days of following the FlyLady...
To have a monthly theme song and believe it. Sort of like the lawyer on Aly McBeal who believed his theme song was one by Barry White. I like the idea of that, but there are so many songs out there I thought I'd have a new one each month.

Year-end Resolution Check

2011-12-31T15:14:00.001-05:00

It is ending, this year of 2011, and while it is drawing near I'm checking in on how I did for the last two months as well as the year.

To not text while driving - So sucked at this one these last two months, which is really awful when you look at how dangerous it is to text and drive. Why do people text me when I'm driving? How does one let people know that one is driving and therefore unable to text back? I'm thinking I shall try to get the whole thing outlawed here in Florida, because if there is one thing that I do it is obey the law. I did, however, do well for the most part the rest of the year, and I plan to really turn off my phone as soon as I enter the car in the next year so I should be good. Score for last two months: 0 Score for the year: 8
To get some form of exercise daily (10 minutes at least) whether it is walking the dog or performing jumping jacks. - Another resolution on health that just went down the toilet. Didn't do it, didn't do it, didn't do it. Have lots of excuses. Doesn't matter. Score for last two months: 0 Score for the year: 1
To finish my slide project and to get important photos on CD's to have for...prosperity? - Slide project finished? Check. Important photos on CD's? Uh, no not really, but a lot of them made it to the computer so that is good enough for me! Score for last two months: 9 Score for the year: 10
To continue to work on toning down the potty mouth. - Nope. Nada. Hell, no, didn't happen. Think perhaps it is a lost cause. Score for last two months: 0 Score for the year: 7

TOTAL: 25 out of 40 Doesn't really matter in the end, does it? Some resolutions went well. Others didn't. Only thing to do is jump right back on the 2012 resolutions and get to work!

Last Connie Foot Photo

2011-12-28T21:10:00.001-05:00

I have decided that not only am I tired of taking pictures of Connie's foot, but I'm tired of looking at the wound. I think even the Foot God is tired. This week he didn't touch the foot because the apligraft from last week was still attached, and he doesn't want to see her weekly, but bi-weekly. Perhaps another apligraft will be available in two weeks.

So I shall periodically update Connie's foot, perhaps only monthly, unless there should be a break, and by that I mean a miracle, in things. She is on 15 months of this wound in her foot and there doesn't appear to be an end in sight, but curious minds want to be informed of progress so I shall report when there is something to mention!

12 Christmas Gifts

2011-12-26T21:04:00.000-05:00

12. Speakers for my computer
11. Steelers charms for Iphone
10. Flowered backpack
9.   Cold Cash
8.   Steelers Flag
7.   Earrings made by second born daughter
6.   Iphone earphones and mic
5.   Steelers chair
4.   Iphone resting pod for car
3.   Jade pendant from China
2.   Magazine protectors
1. Steelers mailbox

A Christmas memory

2011-12-24T09:18:00.000-05:00

My father loved to do his own Christmas shopping. He would go out a few days before the big day and wander shops looking for the perfect gift, which was always a wallet for me and lotion for my mother. He also got interesting gifts that one would never think of owning, and Christmas was quite entertaining when opening up his presents.

The second Christmas of Madison's life my father drove to Florida. Along the way he stopped at a Cracker Barrel and found a gift he was sure Madison would love. It was a typical Russ Mason gift. It was a creepy real-life looking bass fish on a plague with a Santa hat. On the front was a sensor that when activated would start the bass, named Billy, singing. His little fish mouth would open and close and his tail, with a bell attached, would shake. Madison was scared to death of the thing. Which in turn only made my Dad laugh harder.

We had to put Billy Bass away for several years because each time we would bring him out Madison would run in the opposite direction screaming bloody murder. It got so we would just take him out of the Christmas box and put him to the side never to peek inside his bag. This year, however, I got him out and put in batteries to see if Madison would do her thing. This year she just giggled. At some point Tom took the fish and glued him to the front of our house to the right of our door. It had to have been done at night.

Because the next day after everyone was off to school and work Billy Bass began singing. Apparently, Tom did shut off the sensor button in the back and apparently it has bionic sensor because every time a car passed my house Billy Bass sang. I could not turn off the button in the back because Tom glued the animal to my wall. All day long Billy sang as cars passed by, and every time Billy Bass sang Elliot ran to the door barking. By the end of the day I thought I would kill Billy with my bare hands.

The second day was more of the same until I went outside and surveyed the scene. I wish I had done it earlier because a little piece of black duct tape over the sensor shut Billy right up. I am thinking of taking it off tomorrow since I don't think many cars will pass by my house, but maybe the few that do will bring us a little cheer. And Madison and I will think of Russ and laugh...

A few Christmas photos

2011-12-23T09:57:00.000-05:00

I'd like to say I've been too busy to blog, but in thinking back over my days they have been fairly normal, well, except for that pesky Christmas shopping. Today I decided to post my long awaited Christmas decorating photos.

Up until last year my hubby liked purchasing and decorating a Christmas tree about two weeks or less before the big day. For some reason that all changed last year and he got the tree at the beginning of the month, just like he did this year. While Darcy and I were at her soccer game the first Saturday in December Tom took Madison and brought home this tree. The tree sat empty for over a week because with school and soccer Madison didn't have time to do the lighting, and Madison ALWAYS does the lighting on the tree. I did add the hat for some decoration, and I thought it quite lovely during the day.

Eventually the lights got put on and then the ornaments and then the presents were put 'neath the tree. Our living area is quite small and now that we have the flat screen on the wall we were unable to put the tree in the corner of our living room. So we put the tree in the dining room...where everyone has a tree. But in our house the living room flows into the dining area and so we can see the tree all the time. That room use to house the tree anyway back when it was still an extension of our living room.

This year since the dining table is right smack dab in the middle of the house we began using it as the wrapping table instead of the pool table in the Steelers room. Darcy worked hard at cleaning the area and making it into what she calls the "wrapping station".

Each year we change the outside of the house. When the kids were little I insisted on a candy theme with lollipops and candy canes and gingerbread men that Kelly made. Eventually the gingerbread men bit the dust and the lollipop colors lost their shine and no one was interested in fixing either so the candy theme was retired. Plus the Steelers flags that hang outside my house from September to February need to be incorporated into the decorating.

One of the things I insist on is that the house has to look good during the day as well as at night. I dislike looking at the dangling white icicle lights on people's houses, the dead blow up objects in a heap on the lawn, and the empty animal structures that you can't quite see in the sunshine. While it all looks festive and beautiful in the evening, it looks awful and depressing in the light.

So I have my wreaths and a few other items (Kelly calls my bags "Santa's trash") that are a delight during the day. Tom put the lights this year around the top of his little brick structure and added two light up figures on our poles. I would have put them on the two that aren't hanging flags, but he did it while I was gone.

My neighbor a few years back bought some cute magnet decorations that she puts on her garage door. I didn't like the price of them so I went to the craft store and made my own. The decorations died last year, but the lettering was still intact and I thought it all went well with my Steelers magnets. I think next year I'm going to do all my Christmas stuff in black and gold; the ribbons on the wreaths and the lettering on the door.

One of Tom's traditions is poinsettias. He gets them every year and then plants them around our house. None of them have bloomed after that, but at least we are recycling.

Not as decorated as we usually do, but I thought it simple and tasteful. Now I hope I get some more Steelers flags for Christmas so that each pole has a flag for next year!!

Tuesday Morning Sports Recap

2011-12-20T10:26:00.064-05:00

Steelers played last night so my sports recap had to be pushed back a day, but my, what a weekend in sports it was with locker brawl, fists flying and lights going out.

Steelers:

Should just start with James Harrison's one game suspension for last week's hit on Cleveland Browns quarterback Colt McCoy. The hit came in the fourth quarter and wasn't even really shown on TV live. It was only after McCoy lay on the field that the reporters quickly showed a replay, and we learned that Harrison had once again hit helmet to helmet, a now no-no in the NFL after an investigation on former players dying or going crazy showed this is a direct cause of brain trauma suffered from football hits. While I don't object to the NFL bigwigs making an example of Harrison with a one game suspension I do believe that they are just going through the motions. I don't think they have any idea how to stop concussions and brain injuries with the way the game is played. No one wants to be the one who changes the game rules as the NFL is raking in the money with the way it is played now. The truth is that the refs can't be all over the field all of the time and these types of hits are happening every play of the game, not just to quarterbacks. While the hits on quarterbacks are what draws the attention and fines, hits to defensive players like Troy Polamalu are status quo and largely ignored unless someone is knocked unconscious. Then there are the idiots on the sidelines that are sending these players back into the game despite suffering what turns out to be a concussion, such as what happened with McCoy after being hit by Harrison. The NFL has to do some fining on that too if they want to be consistent and show they want to stop this from happening. I just don't see any end in sight despite fines and suspensions unless the game itself is revamped.
The TV cameras caught Harrison on video talking to McCoy after he returned to the game, and the announcers informed us Harrison was apologizing to McCoy for his hit. Since McCoy has no memory of what transpired after his hit and the announcers have no idea what was really said we can only assume what was being discussed. I like to thing Harrison was checking in with McCoy and telling him he was sorry, but his attitude afterwards with reporters was anything but. I understand he has to be careful what he says, but since when is showing remorse going to get you in trouble? I bet if Harrison has shown the slightest bit of apology he might of played last night and only been hit in his wallet.
I understand that Ben is the leader of this team, but he needs to understand that sometimes he can't lead; last night was one of those nights. Ben playing hurt isn't going to be the Steelers answer to getting ahead. Charlie Batch and Dennis Dixon need an opportunity to get into the game and get some experience. I understand that last night was a huge night, but I'm not sure the team gave its all.
Candlestick Park lost its lighting twice last night due to some huge power surge or something. A fan ran around on the field acting like an idiot and the cameras caught Ben Roethlisberger and Byron Leftwich watching the fan. "Where is James Harrison when we need him," Ben said, referring to the incident several years ago in Cleveland when Harrison tackled a drunk fan who was eluding security on the field for several minutes.
Troy Polamalu looked fresh despite his injury. If only the rest of the defense had stepped up its game.
The Chargers beat the Ravens so to take the lead in the division all the Steelers had to do was win. Unfortunately, this team just can't seem to sizzle when they need it. I'm getting kind of tired of watching mediocre play from a team that is much better then it's showing us each week. Somewhere something has got to change.

Other:

In Dallas a cowboy defensive tackle apparently took exception with something a reporter said in an interview on Thursday and video surfaced of the two screaming *&^%$# words at one another. The tackle, Jeff Ratliff, had to be restrained by teammates. No word on whether anyone restrained the reporter. Dallas then went out two days later and kicked the pewter off the Buccaneers pants 31-15.
Moving northeast we find another locker room showdown and more drama at Penn State. Apparently Penn State's quarterback, Matt McGloin, one of the revolving door quarterbacks this season, was sucker punched by his receiver and teammate Curtis Drake after the team's loss to Wisconsin. McGloin reported suffered a concussion and a seizure after Drake delivered a mighty powerful whollop and McGloin was taken to the hospital, but later released. The school's campus police are investigating, but we already know how those guys operate. Scooby Doo and his pals could do a better job.
Heading westerly to Notre Dame is news that everyone's favorite walk on player, Rudy Ruettiger, isn't the nice guy inspired in the movie, Rudy. Apparently ole Rudy is working a pump and dump scam with his sports drink company as well as making up elements of his time as a Notre Dame walk-on football player. No campus police investigating this one. It's been turned over to the feds.
How about those Colts? Their first win put the Steelers in the playoffs! If only the Steelers acted a bit more gracious.
The Packers lost their first game, but in the end that will make them better. No team goes undefeated and then wins the Bowl. I'm seeing the Packers repeat against the Ravens come February.

The things kids say

2011-12-15T06:40:00.000-05:00

My sister-in-law had her Iphone out and was playing music while we sat chatting in the living room. In wandered my four year old niece. She crawled on the couch next to her aunt and began singing one of the modern songs played today on the radio. She was moving her lips quite pronouncedly and singing in a soft voice. As one song changed into another she did too. It was quite funny, and a bit disconcerting, to hear this little one singing Moves like Jagger, and we were all laughing as she entertained us. Eventually the music stopped and my sister-in-law flipped through her playlist.

Nancy: "I'm trying to look for another song that she might know."

Brea: (looking up at her from her slouch on the couch) "Do you have Sexy and I Know It?"

Connie Foot Photo #43

2011-12-14T07:17:00.000-05:00

Last week there wasn't a photo because I was relieved of my duty by my visiting brother. He did not honor my request to take a photo and text it. I have a feeling though that the foot looked much like it did this week.

The surgery went well and the wound is looking very filled and healthy. Next week he will apply an apligraft again. Eventually, according to the Foot God, the wound should close. Hmmm....when exactly he couldn't say. Meanwhile Connie forges along in her wheelchair wondering if she will ever be on her feet again.

Monday Morning Sports Recap

2011-12-12T07:00:00.000-05:00

No Steelers ball until a week from Monday, but there was plenty of action over the weekend.

Indiana bball is back! - The Hoosiers took on #1 Kentucky in Assembly Hall on Saturday night and totally dominated. After going ahead by 10 points, the Hoosiers let the Wildcats back in the game and actually get ahead, but Christian Watford hit a three pointer at the buzzer for the win. Assembly Hall cleared its seats and rushed the floor in a sea of red and white. It was a huge win and bit of nostalgia for Hoosier fans. Plus the state needed that after watching the winless Colts all season.
Court Brawl - At the tail end of the basketball game between Xavier and Cincinnati words were exchanged, punches were thrown, and both benches cleared to join the brawl causing the officials to end the game with seconds remaining. Cincinnati has already suspended players and Xavier is expected to do the same. Now days college students are kids in men's bodies hoping to make it in the pros. I don't know how these coaches keep them in control, but Cincinnati's coach sure was pissed at the news conference. Got to learn to walk away.
Albert Pujo;s - Yes, this happened earlier in the week, but no one can really be surprised can they? These guys aren't about loyalty anymore. It's money. And in this recession who can blame them, huh?
Colts Game - I was secretly hoping that the Ravens would think this game a no brainer and then lose, but alas, the darn Colts are still without a win this year.
Tampa Ball - Can this team seriously get any worse? I thought when Ronde Barber got the interception that they were on the way to kicking some booty. Instead the booty that got kicked belonged to the Buccaneers. Can't wait to see what the Glazer boys will do with this loss.
Tim Tebow - How about Tim for President? Another comeback win for the Denver Broncos led by their quarterback Tim Tebow, the same quarterback that analysts and coaches said would never make it in the NFL. And the more these idiots, who haven't jumped on the bandwagon, mouth off, the more Tim Tebow and the Broncos go out and win.
John Elway - And speaking of someone who mouthed off....I'm tired of the camera panning to Elway high and mighty up in the box. He always has this pompous, smug posture, and yesterday he was caught spitting tobacco juice into a Styrofoam cup. Ugh! The only reason Tebow is around isn't because of Elway's job as team president as he now tries to make it be, but because the fans and the higher ups wanted it so. Elway wants to be the only "hero" of Denver, but hey, buddy, that was years ago. You're a has been now, despite what you did years ago, and the city of Denver is behind their man Tebow. Better jump on the wagon now.
Matt Prater - And how about the Bronco's kicker people? I think more articles should be written about this guy because in the end? If he didn't make those kicks the last few games Tebow's name wouldn't be bouncing around the web or the TV.
Dallas Game - Dislike the Cowboys. Enjoyed the Giants winning in the last few seconds. Besides we need a Manning to succeed this year.

Week in review

2011-12-10T09:09:00.000-05:00

Brother came. I had some peace of mind. Brother returned home. My stress level rose.
In the beginning of the year while taking my brother to the airport from my mother's house I made the wrong turn and ended up in Tampa at the wrong airport. I DID IT AGAIN on this trip. Although, I recognized my blunder a bit earlier this time and got turned around quicker. My brother took it all in stride, but he tweeted it.
Could not do Christmas shopping until my window got fixed. Repair guy, Steve, liked to call me twice daily to "verify" our appointment day. He finally arrived late Tuesday afternoon and did a bang up job. I did not let my brother touch the window on the way to the airports airport.
I got an email regarding Darcy's holiday class party, and feeling chipper after a day of being among the Christmas elite, I answered the planners' plea for cups, napkins, and plates and volunteered. I said let me know how many are needed, thinking 12 or 15. The answer came back: 60 of each!
My dog gets cuter and more loving every day and just wiggles right into my heart. The little fart.
Finally headed out to do Christmas shopping and ended up only buying major household items like toothpaste, cleaning detergents, and toilet paper.
Decorated the tree that sat in our living room naked for six days. Maddy is our light girl. Darcy and I are the ornament girls. It is a great system and we played Christmas songs and ate candy canes while doing it.
Came to the realization that the month of December is not going to be the month I resolve all my years' resolutions.
Lost two pounds on my new health regime of no soda, no greasy fast food, and minimal sugar.
Listened to Red Solo Cup by Toby Keith approximately 1,045 times. I still don't have the fourth verse memorized.

Steelers football recap

2011-12-09T22:47:00.000-05:00

My, my how time has flown this week without me blogging a word! My Monday sports recap blogs have been nil the past two weeks much to my shame, but since I've been watching the Steelers games at my buddy's house I don't get to really multi task the channels and computers like I do at home. So I've decided to discuss the past two Steelers games in today's blog! Cue excitement sports fans!

Steelers vs. Bengals

Finally a game where we played the way I know we can! We threw! We ran! We scored! Oh my!
The defense was just plain solid. The youngster's played hard and the elders led the way. James Harrison was a brute with three sacks and another tackle that should have counted as a sack
Troy Polamalu was back and mightier then ever running willy nilly all over the field. Feel that pick a comin'.
It was nice to see Antonio Brown (I shook his hand) finally get into the endzone for a score after jumping and catching all evening.
Big Ben's protection still needs to improve, but he is a scrambler and he got the job done with some nice TD passes.
Welcome back the running game!
Darcy's science teacher is from Cincinnati and a huge Bengals fan. His desk sits facing the back door of the upper school building, and the back door and front door are lined up evenly. I wanted to go to school the next day after our 35-7 win, park, enter the building from the back, run through the building waving my terrible towel, and run right out the front door never saying a word. I didn't do it, but I wish I had.

Steelers vs. Cleveland

Got to start off with warrior Big Ben Roethlisberger playing on one leg and throwing with a broken thumb! How he came back into that game with the injury we saw on that sack is reminiscent of Terry Bradshaw back in the 70's. Not sure if he is just that tough or just that plain crazy. I'm sure it is a combination of both, but he knows that he is the leader and he has to lead and the playoffs are around the corner. Steelers were only up by 4 and they needed him. Bottom line.
Thought the offensive line did a super job of keeping everyone off Ben after the injury. Now if they would just do that for two halves we might be in business.
Nice to see some reaction from Ben after he threw a beauty of a bomb straight up the middle to Antonio Brown who dropped it. Ben rolled his eyes and groaned and then snarled, yelled at Brown, and banged his hands together as if to say, "Seriously? I'm playing with my leg about to explode. The least you can do is catch the damn ball!" I think he should have said all of that on the sideline myself. Sometimes these guys need to hear that.
Talking before the game with my brother on the phone, he told me he had the Steelers defense in his fantasy team, and he needed them to make plays. I told him no problem that Troy Polamalu would have his pick tonight. Oh yeah baby! Troy got his pick! It was a beautiful thing.
He also got a stinger (or something) on a play, and we got to watch as he told friend Ryan Clark to pull his arm out and relieve some pressure. Good thing we don't play until a week from Monday.
William Gay has played like a monster these last few games since he screwed up in October. His interception in the endzone sure made us fans breathe easier, not to mention take some heat off of Roethlisberger.
Here we go again with a helmet to helmet hit by James Harrison. It's getting kind of old. I've said it before, but I'll say it again. I think you have to look at each play in these cases. Browns quarterback Colt McCoy was running, and standing straight up. Harrison is running toward him. He tosses the ball as Harrison nears and ducks his head. I'm not sure how Harrison is suppose to stop his momentum and watch to see where McCoy's head is going to be. It has to be exhausting for these guys. Which is one of the reasons why Troy is always diving to make his tackle, going for the legs, instead of the upper body, and that has resulted in quite a few miss tackles, I might add.
McCoy looked knocked out there on the field, but the Browns had him back two plays later. What? They were trying to make him as tough as Big Ben? Shame, shame. The NFL can't afford mistakes like that in the middle of "concussion inquires". Trainer and coach should have been more respectful and caring of their player.
Props to Antonio Brown for clinching the win at the end so Ben could finally relax. Beautiful catch and a great "whoop" fake to get around the Brown defender. And then he ran like the wind with three guys chasing him into the endzone for the TD. Game in the bag.
Although I really prefer play like the previous game...not to mention the score.

Men....pfft.

2011-12-03T14:42:00.001-05:00

I should have written out my whole car window story in detail yesterday, complete with photos, but I had other things on my mind and so I just did what my husband begs of me daily - I told it quickly. But then yesterday when the window was suppose to get fixed it didn't and so I've decided that I need to get out my frustration of this whole car window thing by blogging it. So bare with me or exit out it's your choice.

A year ago my electric window on the passage side of the window broke. The motor or some piece with a name that was made up by some car mechanic to frighten women car owners broke. The window itself was just fine, but it wouldn't go up or go down. I wasn't too concerned about it since fast food drive thru windows back then were on the driver's side. But my husband thought that a broken window meant the whole car would suddenly just fall apart as he drove it down the road, and so he called around to get it fixed IMMEDIATELY. Turns out these window repairs are like over $250. I said, "WHAT?" because there are more things I want for $250 (like a Steelers mailbox in the shape of a helmet) then a working passenger side window. He made an appointment for someone to drive out to the house to repair the window because apparently these guys come to you in window repair instead of you coming to them, which hello might be one of the reason for the expense. The night before he came happened to be Halloween and one of our friends who shares the holiday with us owns an imported car repair shop. I had a discussion with him regarding the window thing, and he offered to do the job for $150 if I brought it by his shop, despite my car not being an import. So I did.

The window was fixed, although it now made a whooshing noise every time we got on the highway and traveled faster than 60 miles an hour. I could ignore that part as I'm an old lady driver and never go faster than 45 miles an hour in town. About ten months later the window began making some groaning noises as it went up and down. Eventually it began making crackling noises so I told everyone that rode in that seat not to touch the window. I did not put a piece of duct tape over the window control, which was my bad. One day, about a month ago, I accidentally hit the window control for that window, one of which is on the driver's side of the car. The window would not go back up after that so Madison got out of the car and pushed the window up and all was good.

The girls and I adjusted to life without a passenger working window. When the fast food drive thru windows were built so that traffic could move in either lane, we just drove a bit past the window and opened the van door to receive our greasy bag of food. We never had any issues, but in my pee brain I kept thinking that I should duct tape the control panels, but as usual I didn't do so even though I spent one whole day cleaning the inside and outside of the van and could have easily done so. I thought about calling my friend, but the fact that his repair job only lasted ten months didn't give me too much confidence. Then came the day I asked my husband to take the van in for an oil change.

I don't like to do this chore because one, they make you drive into the garage over that wide, open hole in the floor where the men reside to change your oil, and because two, those greasy hand mechanics always pull out something in your car and tell you the whole thing will blow up without a replacement and it costs $75. I think it isn't too much for Tom to do this chore for his beloved wife because after all, my father always did it for me. He agreed to do it and took off in my van at halftime of Darcy's soccer game. When he returned with the van he told me I had a broken window.

Me: "What? Why would you roll down that window?"
Tom: "Because as I was driving along someone put the broken visor back on the passenger window and it fell down."
Me: "So? So what did that have to do with the window?"
Tom: "Because it scared me, and I went to fix it."
Me: (knowing husband well) "So you forgot what the hell you were doing and hit the control to the window?"
Tom: "Yeah. Why didn't you have that window fixed?"

The worst part of the whole thing was that he had broken it so the window wouldn't close all the way and a small slit, about two inches, was open around all sides of the window. So husband, thinking the van would fall apart with a broken window, called around to have it repaired only now, a year later, places wanted $400 to repair it. Seriously? This is obviously a business our KelCar Repairs needs to check into because this is some serious cash. Eventually hubby found a man up north that was willing to do it for "like $90". Huh?

Me: "$90? He said he would charge us that? Why? Why such a big difference?"
Tom: "Well, you have to go to him up north. I told him he could come to your mother's house since you are always there. He agreed to that. If he has to come down here to our house he charges like $5 more."
Me: "This all sounds whanky to me, but if you want me to do that I'm game."

We made an appointment to have the window repaired on Friday at my mother's condo. On Monday, a day of many errands and trips around the county, we had a horrendous rain storm. Rain pelted the are,a coming down in sheets with the wind blowing the rain around in all directions, most of it coming through the small gap where my window didn't close. Every lot I entered was open air parking so the car began to get wet and smelly, but I picked up a towel along the way and covered the door and dash to protect it somewhat. The next day was sunny and the car dried out quite nicely, although the window whooshed every time I drove over 40 mph.

On Wednesday the car repair man called to tell me he was sick, but he felt better and he would still try to do my window on Friday. I felt sympathetic and told him it was no big deal if he couldn't get to it til next week. He insisted he would be fine and we agreed to a time.

On Thursday I had to pick up my brother at the airport. As I cruised along, I made a mental note to tell him not to touch the controls, and again I chastised myself for not putting duct tape over the controls. I pulled up to the curb and waited and waited and waited. He finally strode up, opened the van door and dumped in his bags. Then he opened the passenger door, climbed in, shut the door, and I pulled away from the curb. No sooner did I pull away from the curb and he was pushing the control to roll down the window, which rolled down about five inches. The window creaked in protest. I screamed. My brother jumped and immediately tried to get the window back up. The window began its crackling noises and then, as my brother and I watched in horror, the window slowly began lower itself a half an inch at a time until it had completely disappeared into the door.

Rusty: "Oops. Good thing it isn't raining."

I sighed and told myself it was no big deal as the repair was happening the next day. I proceeded to drive him to his destination, the 57 degree wind blowing what little hair he has left on his head.

Rusty: "I'm hungry. Want to pull into one of those fast food drive thrus where the window is on the passenger side?"

It wasn't until we got to my mother's condo that I realized wherever I went the rest of the day I would be leaving my car wide open to thieves in a parking lot. I still had two pick-ups and drop offs to do and two soccer games to attend before I could park the car in my garage for the night. I looked around my car at all the junk that would take at least an hour to remove. Then I yelled at my brother for being an idiot.

Rusty: "Well, really, get a car that works, would you?"

Lucky for me, I had my friend take me to one soccer game and my neighbor take me to the other. I was unable to go anywhere the next day because of the window and so the list of "to dos" that I had written out to do while my brother relieved me of mother duty didn't get done. The window guy called me on Friday, told me he was all set despite his chest cold, and we met in the parking lot of my mother's condo. He got out of his 1970's beat up car that he calls his "mobile service" and I wanted to hug him, but didn't want to scare him off so we shook hands.

Me: "As you can see, I'm glad you are feeling better because my brother broke the window and it now won't go back up."
Him: "Touched the controls, huh?"
Me: "Yep. I should have ducted them, but seriously he wasn't in the car more than 30 seconds before he rolled the window down to spit out his gum."
Him: "Are you sure this car is an 89? It looks like a 90."
Me: "Huh? An 89 or 90? This car is a 1997 van."
Him: "Really? Your husband told me it was an 89. I ordered a part for an 89." He strode around to the driver's side, opened the door, and read the date on the side. "Yep, 1997. Well, that part I bought isn't going to work in a 97."
Me: "Y-O-U H-A-V-E G-O-T T-O B-E K-I-D-D-I-N-G M-E!"
Him: "Sorry. And it is too late to get a part today. Plus, a 97 part will cost a lot more than an 89"

Really? And in my mind a check for $90 went flying out the open car window and in flew one for $400. The nice man tried to get a part for that day, but it was a no go. He told me the soonest he could get to me next week was Tuesday, but that he could do so at my own house as he had another service call in that area that day. Since I now can't go anywhere where I can park and leave my car safely I told him Tuesday was fine with me, and I watched him drive away. I called the hubby.

Me: "Uh, I'm here to have my car window fixed, but you gave him the wrong year for the van."
Tom: "I told him an 89."
Me: "Yeah, well, I was pregnant with Darcy when we got this van and she was born in 1999 and the van still had a two year warranty on it. Where the hell did you get 1989?"
Tom: "Ah, man, I was doing two different things when he called. I guess I wasn't thinking."
Me: "Obviously!"

Then I went upstairs to my mother's condo and smacked my brother around. Then I drove home with the breeze rolling through the window, my purse on my side of the floor so that no one could reach in and snatch it at a red light. At my daughter's school I waited for her to come out of study hall and entertained myself by killing all of the mosquitoes that flew in through the open window.

Guess my Christmas shopping for next week will be done online.

Week in review

2011-12-02T11:31:00.000-05:00

Had to call 911 for my mother who spent four days in the hospital with severe dehydration and stress to her kidneys.
Would have enjoyed hospitalized mother's entertaining hallucinations of sledding in the snow, visiting ladies' houses, seeing Madison hiding in corners, etc. if I hadn't been so worried about her mental state.
Asked husband to take car in for oil change and he returned it with a broken window. In his defense the window was already broken (motor issues), but the girls and I had it rigged so that it was closed. Husband lowered it and then could only close it so far, leaving a nice open gap.
Drove all day in a rainstorm with broken window. The towel I had to put across the interior of the door sopped up some of it, but not much. To rid the car of wet upholstery smell, I purchased fast food at McDonald's.
Had my yearly physical exam where I found out I had shot up in my total cholesterol levels, with the bad cholesterol higher than last check. Wondered briefly if McDonald's fast food contributed to that.
Picked brother up at the airport telling myself all the way there that I needed to mention the broken window so that he wouldn't try to open it. Brother opened door, got inside, shut door, and then proceeded to open broken window to spit out his gum. I screamed. The window crackled and lowered five inches. Brother attempted to fix it. Slowly, the entire window lowered into the door.
Was going to the gym this morning to work on cholesterol issue, but can not park the car anywhere but the garage for fear of robbery of car contents.
Read an article on Yahoo about how to clean your house in record time. Attempted this method in the Steelers room, starting in one corner like suggested. Got as far as the second corner before getting sidetracked by my own messy desk. Got waylaid there trying to clean and organize and instead created another dirty, messy, disorganized pile that now has to be cleaned. Gave up cleaning Steelers room for another day.
While cleaning desk quickly checked in on facebook which led to returning to my farm in farmville. Spent several minutes trying to remember how to work things and was depressed about how much I had forgotten. Wondered why yearly physical didn't include memory test. Must work on that in the coming year....if I can remember.
Fixed daughter lunch for school with delicious ham and cheese on Hawaiian rolls. Later when cleaning up mess, wondered where bread tie had gone to. Found out after school daughter discovered it in her sandwich. "I tasted something crunchy in my ham sandwich," was how she started telling the story.

Sharon in pictures

2011-12-01T06:58:00.000-05:00

I met Sharon when I first moved to Florida and started working for the city recreation department. She was eighteen, carefree, and so much fun. She made me laugh from the first moment I met her, and she still makes me laugh today. Darcy spent a couple of hours with her and said, "Aunt Sharon is the most happiest, go-lucky, carefree person!" She may have issues in her life, but she also knows that life is about living, and laughter certainly helps.

"Hold on! I forgot to shave before we came to the beach."

"Just a minute, I'm almost done."

"Sunscreen is very important on the beach."

"Watch your eyes!"

"Ben! Sunscreen is important!"

"This water is not cold"

"Let me catch that bird..."

"These boys are precious like their mother!"
"I don't care if you don't want a picture...I do!"

Connie Foot Photo #42 & #43

2011-11-30T23:00:00.000-05:00

Last week's visit was routine. Off came the bandage. In came the Foot God. Foot God muttered it looked good. Plan made to remove staples next week. Home health care to begin again. Bandage back on.

This week Connie didn't make it to the appointment, but instead ended up in the hospital with severe dehydration. The wound nurse appeared to change the bandage and discovered the graft had fallen off. The staples are still in place, with one in the wound itself. The wound looked very pink and healthy, but the graft to the side concerned me, as did the staple. The wound nurse didn't care as her instructions from the Foot God were to not touch anything. She bandaged it up again right over the top of the falling graft and staples. Jeez!

Connie's hospital physician put in a call for the Foot God to visit her in the hospital to set up a plan of action, and he arrived late last evening to take out the staples and fix everything up. He dressed it nicely and will see her on Monday. In the meantime she has taken a fall on the way to the bathroom, and been quite loopy with the combo of dehydration, stress on the kidneys, and the higher steroid dosage.

Out of the mouths of my babes

2011-11-29T22:11:00.000-05:00

Darcy: "There is something wrong with the ice maker. It is frozen or something."

Me: "Yes, that has happened before. You have to remove the container and get rid of the ice underneath."

Darcy: (attempts to remove container) "Ah, never mind. We'll just let Dad fix it."

Me: "What? No! We can handle this without your Dad."

Darcy: "Why? Leave it for Dad."

Me: "Because women can do anything that men can do. Women do not need men to take care of things for them. You are letting down many generations of strong women. What kind of example are you setting for the younger women?"

Darcy: "Uh, I'm just saying why waste our precious time defrosting this thing? Let Dad do it, and we can spend our time enjoying something else!"

And she is 15

2011-11-27T09:35:00.001-05:00

Happy Birthday to my first born who made us into a family. She is beautiful with a personality that doesn't fit her red hair and brown eyes. The little girl that ran this household with her kind and gentle ways grew into a loving, sweet, and caring woman. She is wise beyond her years. She has made us proud with the way she conducts herself, cares for others, and believes that there is good in all of us.

Where did the time go? I can remember waving away people when they questioned where we would send her for kindergarten. "We have years before that," I said. Now we are worrying about high school and driving.

That little girl who talked to us like an adult may be an adult now, but I still see the little one inside her. The little one with the tiny voice that never quit talking. The little one who shared her toys willingly with others, and who wanted to know everything about anything.

We are very proud of who she is today, and love her beyond words. Happy Birthday Madison!

Thanksgiving in Florida 2011

2011-11-26T20:46:00.000-05:00

The great thing about living in Florida is that during the fall and winter holidays we are able to be outdoors in the sand and water. Good thing that we have visitors from other areas to get us there!

Thanksgiving Pics

2011-11-25T20:24:00.001-05:00

Little helper Henry:

My dear friend Sharon, who I have known since she was a mere child of eighteen, stayed at our house for two days over the holidays. She and her husband and two boys live two hours away and with our lives in different directions it has been a year since we have seen them. Her boys are five and three, and on Thanksgiving morning while I was starting my pumpkin cheesecake baking, her three year old offered his assistance.

Turns out he was a great helper. He crushed the graham crackers and almonds.

He added the melted butter and stirred.

He whisked eggs and added ingredients for the filling.

He mixed it all up.

And then he cleaned the dishes.

He was amazing; very calm and relaxed. We chatted while we worked, and he told me how he helps his mother cook at home. After cleaning while the cheesecake baked, he helped me snap the beans.

Chef Kelly:

Kelly worked hard the night before getting the turkey ready for the oven. She made some sausage and apple stuffing, as well as the traditional pan of stuffing. She had recipes for some holiday cocktails, green beans, and a specialty cheese puffy bread thing.

But the most amazing thing she brought with her were her brand new turkey flipper tongs. These she used to turn over the turkey for browning, and she used them to transfer the turkey from the pan to the serving plate.

Connie's Milk Giblet Gravy:

This year Connie agreed to talk us through the making of her family's milk gravy.

First combine flour and milk

Second using the "powerful broth" from the turkey, I heated it on low

Then I slowly added the four mixture to the broth mixture and stirred and stirred

Then I turned that stirring job over to Madison who finished up the gravy with more mixture, more milk, and some seasonings. We added the giblets and had delicious gravy!

A beautiful table:

Our guests, who did not eat with us as they visited family, made our centerpiece for the table.

And we added a few leaves and some candles.

And then used the fine china and crystal glasses for a finished and very festive table.

It was a very relaxing and quiet day with lots of good food, good wine, and great company. Happy, happy!

Happy Turkey Day 2011

2011-11-24T10:20:00.000-05:00

I've written many times about my horrid wonderous cooking skills, and for the most part I am quite capable of simple meals, but when it comes to holiday meals I leave that up to the expert...mainly Kelly. Kelly cooks my Thanksgiving dinners and sometimes, depending on the year, my Christmas dinners. I have a few dishes I'm responsible for, and this year it turned out to be dessert.

I decided to make a pumpkin cheesecake because, frankly, I love cheesecake. I also found a recipe for a chocolate chip cookie cake with marshmallows, chocolate chips, butterscotch chips, and sprinkles. I thought that would be a delightful dish to take to my mother-in-law's house for the kids as most kids don't consume, or care for, pecan and pumpkin pies.

First the recipe called for "Thanksgiving themed" sprinkles, which in the picture of the cake looked like brown, orange, and yellow sprinkles with some colored leafy looking sprinkles. I could not find this at my grocery store so I bought regular sprinkles, and Darcy, Madison and I spent an evening digging out the "Thanksgiving colored" sprinkles. Madison thought me crazy, but it all worked out fine.

This morning I got up early and made the cheesecake with the help of my friend's three year old son, Henry. (Pictures tomorrow) Then, since the oven was still on and the turkey had not yet arrived to be cooked, I decided to tackle the cookie cake. It was to be put on a 12 inch pizza pan. I wanted to buy a disposable foil pan, but Madison thought that silly because we own a pizza pan. I didn't want to use it because it was a lot larger than 12 inches, and I am a follower of directions. But Madison went on and on about money and waste and so I compromised and bought two packages of cookie dough to spread across my pizza pan. (Yes, people I bought the damn dough, and why not? Life is too short to spend it in the kitchen whipping up ingredients that are right in a package nicely done for you.)

Before I had turned on the oven that morning, my friend, Sharon, and I cleaned the oven so that it wouldn't smoke as there was some food caked on the bottom. I have no idea where it came from, but since my girls are now cooking I blamed that on them. My oven is fairly new and the bottom rack is somehow attached to the door so that it comes out nicely when the door is opened. I have no idea how to remove the thing so Sharon and I had to work around that factor, and we did, and the oven worked great with the cheesecake.

Then I put in the cookie cake and set the timer. After it beeped, I opened the oven door and smoke began hurling out of the door, which in turn set off my smoke alarm. I shut the door and worked on the alarm, and wondered aloud, very loudly, why there was smoke in my oven. I tried the door again. Out came the smoke and on came the smoke alarm. This went on and on each time I opened the door until finally the cookie was done and out of the oven. That was about the time Kelly called to tell me to preheat the oven she was on the way with the prepared turkey to cook. I peeked in the oven and there was black gunk on the bottom burning away.

Me: "What in the world in that? Sharon and I cleaned that this morning."

John (Sharon's hubby): "What did you cook in there after you cleaned it?"

Me: "A cheesecake and the oven was fine."

John: "Okay, then you put in this cookie?"

Me: "Yes, and that is when the problem started, but it didn't spill over or anything so what the hell happened?"

John: "Is this a pizza pan? Are there holes in the bottom of this pan?"

Me: "Uh......

Yep, there are holes in the bottom of my pizza pan, and yes, the cookie cake dripped through the holes and burned the bottom of my oven. But what is a holiday without a little mishap? So wee are having to work around the smoke and the alarm, but the turkey seems just fine in there sharing space with burnt cookie dough. Who knows? Maybe it will add some flavor.

Happy Thanksgiving everyone. May you too have some holiday mishaps fun!

Out of the mouths of my babes

2011-11-21T13:31:00.000-05:00

Me: "Be careful in this car with the food!"

Grandma C: "They're older now. You don't have to worry about flinging food and spilling drinks now, do you?"

Me: "Pfft."

Madison: "I am much better!"

Me: "I do have to say that Madison hasn't come home from school with stuff all over her shirt."

Madison: "I have been very good with that, which is a miracle because I eat stuff in the cafeteria that is full of messy ingredients; ketchup and other stuff of suspicious origins."

(Laughter from all of us)

Madison: "It's said that the reason why we don't see the dead bodies from all the alleged shootings at high school is because they are ground up and used in the chicken nuggets in our cafeteria!"

Parenting Lesson #7564738

2011-11-20T07:35:00.000-05:00

I've spent my entire mommyhood protecting my children; from falling, from choking, from sickness, from other mean kids. I enrolled them in a small private school where I could pop in at any time if ever they needed me. When Madison started high school I wanted to walk her through the halls that first day to make sure she would be alright, but knowing that wasn't a possibility, knowing I had to let go so she could walk those halls on her own, I kissed her and sent her out to do so. Since then I've had to allow her more freedom, and each time I do, I feel a little more confident in her ability to handle herself.

She made the JV soccer team at school this year, but because the varsity team and the football team share the field, the JV team had to find a different location, and the coach transported the non-drivers in her van. The area isn't what I would consider the best area to leave young girls by themselves so I try to make sure that I arrive on time to pick her up each day. Trouble is the coach tends to end practice early on some days, and she doesn't wait around to make sure that each girl is picked up. When that happens Madison texts me to let me know, and I try to drop what I'm doing to rush to the practice arena.

This past week I got to the field right on time, after picking up Darcy from her school. I pulled into the lot to find the entire facility empty. No one was on the field. No one was playing basketball on the courts. The parklng lot was empty save for a lone compact car with a man sitting inside. My heart came up into my throat as I wheeled my vehicle through the lot talking aloud, "Where is she? Where is Madison?" I sent Darcy out of the car to look around, although I knew it was futile, while I dialed her cell phone number. It went straight to voice mail so I dialed again. It went right to voice mail, and I listened to her sweet voice tell me she was busy and to leave a message, at the same time Darcy reappeared at the car, her head shaking and her eyes starting to water.

"Where the hell is she?" I screamed. "Why isn't she answering her phone?" I wheeled out of the parking lot. "Who the hell is that guy just sitting in his car?" I was panicked. I was, seriously, crazed with fear. I pictured, in that moment while leaving the facility, all of the horrible things that could have happened, and I realized that I didn't even know where to begin to find her. I didn't have any numbers for the school or the coach. I didn't even know who to call at the school if I did have the number. I literally had no idea how to find my little girl. It was exactly the same feeling of hopelessness I had the time she wandered away from a group at the beach. I looked up one end of the beach and saw rows and rows of people. I looked up the other end of the beach and saw the same rows of strangers. How would I even begin to find her?

"We should go to the school," Darcy said. And so I headed that way. I also pick up Madison's carpool friend who is on the varsity team. Her coach, too, leaves her alone in a vacant area, and my thought was that I had to get to her too before she disappeared. I drove like a maniac down the road, frantically dialing Madison's number and listening to the same message. I was sobbing, tears running down my face, and as I hit a redlight I saw a police car coming up in the lane next to me. I almost put my car in park, jumped out and flagged him down. Only the thought that I didn't even know how to begin to tell him my fear stopped me from doing so. By then I had Darcy text another mother whose daughter was also on the JV team. We heard back from her as I pulled into the parking lot where I was to pick up the carpool friend.

"They are at the school field" the message read. "Scrimmaging the varsity team."

At the exact moment Darcy read this aloud, my phone rang. It was the carpool friend calling to tell me that Madison's cell phone was dead and that Madison was with her. It was now twenty minutes past our normal pick up time. I broke down again. When the two finally appeared in front of my car the relief was so great I just wanted to lie down and go to sleep.

When I was a kid my friend and I were playing outside in my yard. She lived across the street from me and for some reason or another she needed to go home for something. The street we lived on was a quiet, residential street, and she ran out into the road without looking. A car was coming and it almost hit her. It quickly braked, tires squealing, and the driver laid on his horn. This got the attention of my friend's mother who came running out of the house. I can remember her screaming. She tore out of her house and ran down the little hill in her front yard as my friend, scared, ran up the hill. The two met in the middle, her mother dropping to her knees and grabbing her in a fierce hug. They stayed that way several minutes in each others arms and then her mother stood up, began yelling, took her hand, and marched her in the house and spanked her. I can remember thinking how unfair a spanking was, yet somehow I also understood, because I had seen the look on that mother's face. I've never forgotten that moment in all these years.

That is the moment I felt when Madison appeared. I wanted to get out of my car and run to where she was walking toward me with her friend. I wanted to fall on my knees and hold her close. I wanted to never let her go. I also wanted to beat the hell out of her.

Instead I held it together as she apologized and got into the car. I yelled all the way home, dropped her off, and then drove the carpool friend home. I called my mother and cried and cried as I drove back home. Then I walked into my house and held my daughter. I did it again several times throughout the evening. We discussed what had happened, how to rectify it, and formulated a plan so it wouldn't happen again. We hugged some more.

I had a hard time functioning the next day. I was exhausted, as if I had run a marathon, and I spent most of the day in a daze. Every stranger I encountered seemed creepier for some reason. I was suspicious of everyone. By the day after that I was back to normal. I know that I should have kept more of a level head and thought about things before panicking, and I know that I still have to let Madison spread her wings. But I also know that I won't be the same. I'm just in a whole new phase of mommyhood. God help me.

10 things about Regis Philbin leaving

2011-11-19T08:00:00.000-05:00

Yesterday was Regis Philbin's last day on Live, a show he began in New York in 1983. I don't remember the first time I became a fan, it was long after Kathie Lee became his co-host, but I feel like I've been watching him forever. He did Live for 28 years, and before that several shows in California. He said he always wanted to make people feel better about themselves. He always did that for me.
I thought he was a caring, loyal, and very funny man. In so many ways I saw my father in him; his hands, the way he crossed his arms and leaned back against his chair, his humor, and his kindness. I am going to miss having him on my television every morning.
That first 15 minutes of the show was the best of television hands down. Regis always did it live and off the cuff. I use to only record that segment when I couldn't watch the show live.
I was upset when Kathie Lee left, but thrilled when Kelly Ripa got the job. I watched All My Children back then, and I felt like a proud parent to see her move up in the television world and sit next to the King. She's come a long way since those first days. She did a fine job this week with him, guiding him, and keeping a protective hand on his arm. Made me love her more.
I always felt like Michael Gelman, Live's producer, had a great relationship with Regis. I think it changed some when Gelman got married and started his own life, but he did a fine job of sending Regis off. Yesterday's beginning of Live with Regis walking his walk the way he has for 28 years, in black and white, live, was epic. I sobbed the whole time.
Joy, his wife, is going to go crazy. I just can't imagine what Regis will do every day without his show. I'm hoping that somewhere in the world of media there are still people who don't believe in shoving out the old to bring in the young, and that there is still a place for Regis.
I loved Regis' loyalty to Notre Dame and its football program. I'm sure we will never know jsut how much he has contributed through the years to the school, but I've always felt Notre Dame has been a big fan of his as well. When I took the tour of Notre Dame he was mentioned by our tour guide, and I wondered if that was part of a guide's training.
The fact that David Letterman, who never does talk shows, would come on Live tells me all I need to know.
My favorite Regis moments were his interactions with the public, whether it on the street or on the phone. He is genuine.
As I get older, I realize that there isn't a place for the elderly in this society. Everything is push, push, get them out so the next generation can show them how it is done. I hope my kids learn that the elderly have a lot still left in them; wisdom and experience that can't be found in books. Regis Philbin is one such elder, and I think morning television died yesterday a little bit with his leaving. I wish him all the best! Love you Reg!

Out of the mouths of my babes

2011-11-18T07:09:00.000-05:00

Me: "How did the ortho appointment go?"

Darcy: "She told me to massage my gums with this toothbrush while I'm watching TV."

Me: "Really? Why?"

Darcy: "Because my gums are growing over my tooth."

Me: "Ewww. That means you'd better get on that."

Darcy: "It means I better watch more TV!"

It's my birthday and I'll cry if I want too...

2011-11-17T07:03:00.002-05:00

In my brain, despite knowing the truth, I still feel that I look like this girl:

In my brain, despite knowing the truth, I am thin like this girl:

Many days I feel like this girl:

The mirror, on a good day, tells me I'm really this woman:

And I think, "How did that happen?"

Connie Foot Photo #41

2011-11-16T07:24:00.004-05:00

Nothing changed. The wound and graft look good; no pus or discharge. The graft will remain stapled on the foot for three weeks before he takes the staples out. No one to touch the foot for another week. Carry on.

Out of the mouth of my babes

2011-11-15T06:54:00.003-05:00

Darcy: "Let's go get in the car and drive to the Village Inn and get a pie."

Me: "I can not do that."

Darcy: "Yes, you can, it's easy."

Me: "Darcy, I'm not kidding. After what happened today I lost five years of my life."

Darcy: "Well that means you're younger so you can drive."

Me: "No, it means that I lost five years of my life, and now I'll die five years sooner than I would have normally."

Darcy: "Exactly then you should live your life to its fullest and eat some pie!"

Monday morning sports recap

2011-11-13T19:34:00.014-05:00

It was a good Sunday of football for me with a Steelers win, a Ravens loss, and me back on the couch next to my Steelers buddy. Even thought the game was televised locally my buddy invited me over and his family and I got to catch up while watching the game. It was made even better by the Seattle Seahawks taking down the Ravens! Thanks Pete Carroll!

Steelers:

Defense - Working more each week on the mistakes from the past. If we can just get Woodley back and keep the defense healthy, I have high hopes.
William Gay - I think he must have gotten quite a beating this past week from the coach, the staff, and the players. He obviously took his mistakes from last week's game against the Ravens and turned them around. He won the game yesterday for the Steelers with his interception in the last two minutes, but he made several key plays throughout the game as well.
Troy Polamalu - All over the field again.
Antonio Brown - He has taken over Hines Ward's position and boy, did he play it well yesterday. Hines will be lucky to take a few snaps now. Did I mention that I shook his hand and talked to him?
Big Ben - Played with a broken thumb? Again. He annoys me sometimes, but then he does something like that, and I think again how if he could just get his head in the game 90 percent of the time he will turn out to be one of the greats.

Others:

Penn State Saga - Okay, guess I have to start out with the Penn State saga. The whole thing is just sickening, but I think there is much more to the story. I think it is easy to say what one would do while sitting at home on the couch. I think that no one wanted to be involved so he passed the buck. I want to know how many of the trustees were on board during the first "indiscretion". I want to know who thought it okay for this pedophile to have an office at the university after he was fired back in the late 90's, let alone allowing him to bring young boys on campus. Penn State and its employees dropped the ball all the away around, but firing Paterno? I think he was an easy, big name, fall guy to try to remove heat from those who really deserve it more. Sad situation all the way around for the victims, the university, the world of sports, and the fans.
TV Choices - So after the Giants couldn't come back in the last minute and the game ended the network chose to switch to the Bears/Lions game where the Bears were ahead by 34 points? Whose bright idea was that?
Dallas - Were the Cowboys ready to play football this week or what? They creamed the Bills 44-7 and Romo was on the roll the fans and organization have been expecting from him the last 5 years.
Bad Decisions - The talk last night was about Atlanta Falcon's coach Mike Smith's decision to run on a 4th down in their own territory with the game tied in overtime instead of punting the ball. His explanation was a fear of Saints quarterback Drew Brees marching his team down the field and winning the game. Smith thought that if they got that first down they would be the marchers. He would have been a hero if it had worked. Trouble was that it didn't, the Saints got the ball, and won the game by kicking a field goal. The weird thing about the decision, in my opinion, was that it didn't come with ten seconds left on the clock, but more then ten minutes left on the clock. Smith's Falcons defense should have been given the opportunity to stop the Saints with that much time still on the clock. I agree with Coach Dungy on that one.
Patriots- Did anyone really think they would lose three in a row? Please. I think Ryan knew as well...
Rex Ryan - I enjoyed his interview with Bob Costas last night. I like him better when he isn't playing the part of the pudgy, full of himself, we-are-the-best and screw-you-world persona. He was contrite, funny, and I learned a few things about him and his love for the game.
Hank Williams Jr. - Enjoyed his entrance on the CMA Awards on Wednesday night after Brad Paisley and Carrie Underwood's little ditty. Trust country music to address an issue with hilarity and heart while backing their own. Football will never be the same, but maybe this will put ole Hank Jr. back in the spotlight once again.

Out of the mouths of my babes

2011-11-13T08:18:00.000-05:00

Darcy: "I think I did really well on the science test. I'm so excited and proud of myself."

Me: "Did you know all the answers?"

Darcy: "There was one I wasn't pacifically sure about, but I looked it up and I got it right."

Me: "Pacifically?"

Darcy: "Yes, pacifically. Yes, I know it isn't right. I said it today too and my science teacher corrected me."

Me: "And what did you say to him when he told you the word was specifically?"

Darcy: "Specifically, pacifically, whatever word it is! Who cares?"

The Internet is going to make me skinny

2011-11-12T06:15:00.001-05:00

Last night on Yahoo the lead story at that time was 5 Bizarre Weight Loss Tricks That Work, so of course I clicked on this seeing that I could certainly shed a few pounds. And what better way to shed then the bizarre way! These tricks are so going to help me, not to mention give me a blog entry while doing so.

Sniff a banana, an apple, or peppermint - Some researcher found that the more you sniff the less hungrier you feel because you are tricking your brain. The explanation did not say why one must sniff the three food items mentioned in the title, but who doesn't have these foods lying around? I'm also not sure how often I need to sniff these foods. Should I carry them in my purse and sniff every hour or only right before I eat? Guess I'll have to experiment, and it just so happens I bought some banana flavored Starbursts today!

Hang a mirror opposite your seat at the table - A study says that this cut down eating by a third. Hmmm. First of all, I don't look in mirrors when there is light. I shower and brush my teeth in the dark because I look better. I tend to avoid mirrors at all cost so I think I would just ignore the mirror when eating, but who knows. Don't know til I try it.

Surround yourself with blue - Apparently blue is an appetite suppressant so it suggests we eat on a blue plate, on a blue tablecloth, while wearing blue. Oh yeah, my scrubs are blue! Easy one to do here as I have all three of those things. Well, not the tablecloth, but I have a blue placemat, only it's for decoration, and I usually remove it before eating, but guess not anymore. Oh, and I have blue walls in my kitchen too.

Shoot your food - I was worried about this when I saw that header because it seemed messy, but turns out they didn't mean with a gun. I should shoot pictures of what I eat so that I can analyze it. According to the article I would analyze it after I ate so that I could avoid putting that much dressing, for example, on my salad next time. Uh, shouldn't I study the photo before I eat the food?

Tie yourself up - This too gave me pause until I read that they meant around the waist with a ribbon so that I can feel myself enlarging as I eat. And I thought the waist band of my jeans was already doing that job!

Connie Foot Photo #40

2011-11-11T06:05:00.000-05:00

This visit was the follow up to the Integra Graft surgery she had on Friday. She did well to stay off her foot, despite having to climb up and down the fifteen stairs to her condo. The bandage was humongous, although Connie was quick to point out it had been redone by herself as the original was a crappy job.

This is what it looked like before he removed the outer shell. I explained to him that I had watched an entire video and read all about the procedure, and that when I got to the end it told me to fill out a form to be certified.

Me: "So I'm now qualified to perform this surgery, and...I HAVE THE SCRUBS to do it!"
Foot God: (laughing) "Good because I'm not certified."
Me: "I'm ready when you need me."

This is the photo of the graft itself stapled to Connie's foot, doing its job of building and replenishing cells. Go cells go! Give me a "C"! Give me an "E"! Give me a double "L"! Cell! Cell! Cell! Work, work, work!

Then Connie told the Foot God how to wrap her foot the correct way, and he tried arguing with her in his nonchalant way, and then he did what she told him...or made her think he did. The two of them pretty much have each other figured out by now.

She returns on Monday as he doesn't want anyone else touching it.

Connie: "Well, I'll probably have to touch it as your last job was so bad I don't have high hopes for this wrapping job either."
Foot God: "Okay, you can touch it to fix my poor wrapping job, but no one else."

Old Pictures - Farm Holidays

2011-11-10T07:27:00.000-05:00

Since I checked in on my resolutions a few days ago I've tried to put forth more effort on them. One of the resolutions was to scan my old photos into my computer to eventually get them put on jump drives. I decided since I just came from the Indiana farm that I would start there in my scanning project. Here are a few of the old photos I scanned under the "Holiday" category.

I know this says it is Christmas, but I think it is probably Thanksgiving 1975 at the kid's table. As long as my grandfather was alive we still did the Holidays at his house, the farm. The adults had a table and the kids had a table. After spending Thanksgiving here my mother and I would then travel a couple of hours to her family's farm for another Thanksgiving, which is probably why I'm not in the photo.

I think I published this photo earlier during my slide pictures, but since it is 1975 as well I'm adding it. We always spent Christmas Eve at the farm and then we would drive home that night, Rusty and I falling asleep under blankets in the back of the station wagon. These are the cousins I grew up with and played with in this picture.

I have a feeling this was after Christmas since it is taken at Aunt Lorene's house. I thought it might be my grandfather's birthday, but since we are dressed so warmly I figured the December date was probably more correct. Either way we are giving out gifts and my grandfather is acting as goofy as my father always did!

This is Christmas at the farm in 1978. In the picture is my cousin Nikky, better known in the old days as Peanut, my cousin Ronnie who just died, my uncle Leo, and my cousins Shannon and Shad. I'm always amazed at how tidy and sturdy the old house looks...not to mention the people!

Apparently back in the late 70's beards were all the rage. This is Thanksgiving 1979 if my Dad's dates are correct. This would be the adult table, and by this time I'm sure I had graduated to it, although I'm not in the picture.

My grandfather died in 1982 and Aunt Lorene took over our holidays. This is Thanksgiving 1986 and the table is spread out the entire length of her living room. From left to right: some guy I don't know, my cousin Shannon, my cousin Little Scott, my cousin Ronnie, his wife Terri, her daughter Shannon, the head belongs to my cousin Shad, my cousin Big Scott and his wife at the time Myra, their son Ronnie, Little Scott's wife at the time Cindy, my mother's head, me, my sister-in-law Susan, my brother Rusty, my uncle Cockeye, my cousin's husband Ronnie and my cousin Cindy, their daughter Delaney, and Darryl's wife Kathy. Those dinners were always huge, messy, and delicious. This is the dinner where my mother and I messed around with Cindy, telling her we were eating animals that the men had gone out and hunted. I remember that my stomach hurt so much after all the laughing we did. It is a good memory, and one I talked to her about when I saw her at the funeral this past month. She and my cousin divorced so I don't see her much anymore, but that night we yukked it up.

Just a typical evening at our house

2011-11-09T07:00:00.001-05:00

My husband came home last night earlier then usual. I let the dog out to greet him and then went outside to my laundry room in the garage. When I finished there I messed around in the kitchen for several minutes. Finally, noticing that the husband hadn't come in to greet us I went to look for him, finding him standing in our bathroom his left foot in the sink.

Me: "Get your foot out of my clean sink! I just cleaned this bathroom today. What are you doing?"

Him: "I'm soaking my foot."

Me: "Why? What's wrong with it?" I peer at it closely, looking for cuts and blood. "There's nothing wrong with it. Get your nasty foot out of my clean sink!"

Him: "I didn't cut it. I twisted it or something."

Me: "Twisted it? What do you mean you twisted it? Just now?"

Him: "I was turning my foot around in my shoe and I heard a pop, and the thing hurts like a mother."

Me: "What? You were turning your foot around in your shoe? What the hell does that mean?"

What it means is that Tom bought a new pair of dress shoes for work. He wore them on Friday and again yesterday, but the shoes were very stiff and never really loosened as he wore them. He was sitting at his desk last night working and the shoe was tight on his foot so she twisted his foot around some to try to get the shoe to loosen. The shoe held in place while his ankle twisted and he pulled something.

Me: "You heard a pop? Is it broken?"

Him: "No, it's not broken, but I definitely tore something."

Me: "Well, we should probably get it x-rayed."
Him: "What? Why? I don't need an x-ray. I just need for it to stop hurting."

Me: "Well, get it out of my clean sink because soaking it isn't going to help it!"

He dried his foot and then tried to put weight on it to leave the bathroom. It was a no go. He couldn't put any weight on the foot and collapsed on his back on the bed. He whined and winced and moaned and cursed. The ankle was swelling some, and I suggested ice, which was rejected immediately. I finally left him on the bed and went about finishing up my nightly chores.

Darcy was in the shower taking one of her hourly cleanses complete with singing and steam rolling under the closed door. Madison was in the kitchen doing homework. I went out into the Steelers room to put away some belongings. When I returned to the kitchen it was to find the husband sitting at the kitchen table eating dinner, his foot and ankle wrapped with a bath towel as if it were an ace bandage.

Me: "What the hell is that?"

Him: "I have to wrap it because it hurts. I need some stabilization."

Me: "Seriously? How about an ace bandage? Connie has a whole load of those things up in Dunedin."
Him: "Do we have any? I know we don't have any hot water. I tried to take a shower, but Darcy had used all of the hot water."

Madison: (laughing hysterically at the entire conversation, as well as the wrapped foot)
Me: "I'm not sure I follow that logic, but I'll go to Walgreens and get you an ace bandage if that is what you want."

So Madison and I drove to the corner Walgreens and purchased an eight dollar bandage for his foot. It was self-adhesive and didn't come with the little hooks that Connie has on all of her bandages. I offered to apply the bandage to hubby's foot, having had athletic training, but he said he could do it himself.

He started at the ankle and wrapped it around twice and then brought the bandage under his heel and over his foot. At that point he declared it sufficiently wrapped and looked around the living room as if a pair of scissors would magically appear so he could cut off the remaining bandage. I shook my head and offered up some advice about using the whole bandage for better support, and because no scissors materialized, he took my advice and wrapped his ankle and foot some more. Darcy sat on the couch with him and critiqued his handiwork.

Darcy: "Where are the little hooks that go with the bandage? You need to use those at the end to hold the piece onto the other piece."
Him: "It is self adhesive."
Darcy: "Huh?"
Me: "It doesn't come with those hooks."

Darcy: "Grandma's does."

Tom: "Well, your mother got me the self adhesive kind which means it sticks so that I don't have to use hooks."
Darcy: "Well, if you want my opinion, you need the hooks cause that it isn't sticking so well. You need to press that dangling piece better."

Sure enough the end of the bandage wasn't sticking because hubby hadn't applied enough pressure to the end. He sort of patted it down to the rest of the bandage and then got up off the couch, his wrapped foot in the air behind him. He began hopping on his good leg around the couch and into the kitchen. Darcy and I looked at each other and rolled our eyes. Elliot, the dog, looked at us and then jumped off the couch to join in the fun hopping game. Tom hopped out of the kitchen on one leg and Elliot jumped up on him. Tom stopped at the doorway to the hall to catch his breath. Darcy pointed out that his bandage was coming unraveled and that he seemed out of shape. Tom made a snide comment about her trying to hop on one leg so she did just so, hopping around the living room. Elliot ran from one hopper to another, barking. Eventually, Tom began hopping away, his wrapped foot in the air, his bandage end dangling just enough for the dog to jump up and grab that end with his teeth.

Him: "Dog! Dog, stop it!" Hop, hop.

Elliot pulled in the opposite direction on the bandage. Hop, hop. Tom tried to get away. The bandage began unraveling. I sat on the couch and thought about how I would try to write this scene in front of me as it was too good not to blog. Darcy finally got the dog loose, Tom hopped back to bed, Madison went to take a shower, and I helped Darcy study for a test.

An hour or so went by and the girls got ready for bed. I went into the bedroom to find hubby curled on the bed sound asleep. I turned on the shower and brushed my teeth. I put my hand in to feel the water and discovered it ice cold. I waited some, but the water never got hot. Annoyed at Madison's use of all the hot water, I wrapped a towel around myself and went out into the living room to watch television while the tank refilled. About fifteen minutes later, Tom hopped out on one leg.

Him: "What are you doing?"

Me: "There isn't any hot water so I'm waiting."

Him: "What? What? There has to be hot water. Something's wrong if there isn't any hot water because there wasn't any hot water when I tried to shower. No way is there no hot water."

Me: "Well, there wasn't, but I'll try again after this show."

Which I did. I turned on the water and waited. It was cold. I got into the shower anyway because, as people know, I do not go to bed without a shower. While in the shower I thought it odd that the water was ice cold and never getting warmer, even a tad. A light bulb went off in my head. Earlier that day I had taken off the knobs in the showers and bleached them all. Perhaps...perhaps I hadn't put this knob back on correctly. I turned the knob toward the cold water direction. And I had hot water. I chuckled and began washing my body.

Hop, hop. I heard Gimpy come into the bathroom on his one leg.

Me: "If you want a shower tomorrow morning, make sure you turn the knob to the cold water for hot water."

Him: "What? Why?"

Me: "Well, I may have put the knob on wrong after I bleached it out today."

Him: "I knew it. I knew something was wrong, and I think I have the flu."

Me: "What? The flu? What are you talking about?"

Him: "Because I'm shaking and I'm cold. I have the flu."

Me: "That's probably shock, Tom, from your broken ankle or whatever is going on with that thing. You don't have the flu for heaven's sake. You had a flu shot! It's shock."

Him: "I don't have shock. And my ankle isn't broken, it's sprained. Like how you twist your ankle playing basketball."

Me: "Yeah, only you didn't do that. Although that is exactly what I'd tell people at work tomorrow as you hop around the office, because telling them you sprained your ankle by sitting at a desk twisting your foot around inside stiff, new shoes doesn't sound all that manly."

Him: "I have a fever, but I took an advil."

Me: "You don't have the flu."

Him: "Well, I have something because Melanie went home sick today. Isn't that weird that both things happened to me at the same time?"

Me: "Oh, my god, you are as bad as Gabby with the germ-a-phobia thing. Just because a co-worker went home sick doesn't mean you have the same thing? Just take your wrapped foot and go to bed already. What are you going to do tomorrow? You can't hop around work like that."

Him: "I'll have to stay home tomorrow if I feel like this. My nose is all stuffed and I've got congestion like Darcy."

Me: "Make up your mind on your illnesses, would you?"

He went to bed. I went to bed. I felt his forehead. He did not have a fever, despite his insistence that he did. He asked me to get him some cold water. I gave him my bottle that I had brought in with me. He went to sleep. The next morning he woke up and walked normally to the bathroom. He shaved and brushed his teeth. He walked normally around the bedroom.

Me: "How's the foot?"

Him: "Fine. Like nothing happened. How weird is that?"

Me: "Uh huh. How's the flu?"

Him: "Gone. And my nose is fine and the congestion is gone. It's as if none of that stuff happened. I feel kind of silly now."
Me: "Not half as silly as you're going to look when I put together that video of you hopping around!"(Which I wish I had thought to do, but I was too annoyed to do so)
Him: "Put it on Facebook."

And so off to work he went, strutting nicely on his ankles, his flu and chest cold gone. My little miracle.

10 month check on resolutions 2011

2011-11-08T10:15:00.001-05:00

It is time to check in on how well I'm doing on my New Year's Resolutions. I score from 1-10 with 10 being the perfect score. My goal this year is to actually make all of these things happen. To achieve that perfect score (at least once)!

To not text while driving - This resolution has been so easy to keep and I've been scoring perfectly in this category...except for these last two months. Ever since Madison started high school this texting thing while driving is stumping me. She insists on texting from school because she has her phone on silent during the day so she won't get her phone confiscated. She inevitably does this when I'm driving. Now that she walks to soccer practice from school her day is different then it was in the beginning of school, and car pooling has grown, and more people are involve,d and everyone wants to TEXT. And I'm always DRIVING! Seriously, we all should have our phones turned off in the cars. This has gotten out of control. Score: 7
To get some form of exercise daily (10 minutes at least) whether it is walking the dog or performing jumping jacks. - Suck at this one. I keep forgetting this resolution until I feel fat, which is usually in the evening, and I give myself a pep talk for the next day and then I forget. Score: 0
To finish my slide project and to get important photos on CD's to have for...prosperity? - This one is a done deal in the slide project, and I'm so grateful that I can finally score perfection. As for the photo's I do that a bit over time and since I threw that in for an extra I don't really give it much weight in the final score. Score: 10
To continue to work on toning down the potty mouth. - Sigh. This has been my tough one. It depends on who I hang out with and what the subject matter might be when I'm talking. There are times when these words are very necessary and useful. Unfortunately, I use these words more often when they aren't. I'm doing better then I was at the beginning of the year. Madison, who is keeping track, thinks I was doing better last month then this month, but she isn't here to give me a score so I'll leave it the same as last month because I think it is probably a true score. Score: 7

TOTAL: 24 out of 40 Okay, so I fell 3 points in this check. Nothing to do but get back up, dust off, and try for perfection by the end of the year. I'm determined. So determined in fact that I shall now finish this entry, publish it, and do ten jumping jacks! Oh yeah!

Monday Morning Sports Recap

2011-11-07T06:51:00.003-05:00

Blogger is updating its website and the one thing I've noticed is that pictures seem to play an important part of this update. So I've decided I must have at least one photo with every entry which means I must take more photos. Thank goodness I went to Pittsburgh this year and took plenty of photos for my Monday sports recap blog!

Steelers:

Cris Collinsworth - How good is this guy as a football analyst? I think he is the best in the business hands down. I would take him over all the rest, past and future. His call at the end of the first half was epic, with Al Michaels disagreeing with him on whether or not the Raven's Boldin had caught the ball to set them up for a field goal attempt. Collinsworth insisted he was right and it turned out he was. Never heard Michaels bow down to him, but he should because he makes Michaels better.
Troy Polamalu - Was everywhere in the first half stopping play after play. He jumped. He cut corners. He leaped over men taller then him. He is so close to intercepting that ball and running into the end zone. I just know it.
Helmet to helmet hits - Once again we get called, but the other team doesn't. Even after reviewing a play where Ray Lewis hit Hines Ward as he was clearly defenseless, Lewis hitting him from the side, nothing was called. AAAAHHHH! Lewis knocked Ward out of the game with what they called a "stinger". Tells me something ain't right. He had so better get fined.
Run, Ben, run - Nice to see him run a bit, but seriously he has got to finish his run...like into the end zone...and without losing the ball. The man is clearly bigger than half the football team so run over them for heaven's sake!
Losing - I hate it...especially to those guys and that coach. Not nice folks.

Other:

Penn State - Allegations of sexual abuse from a former defensive coordinator have resulted in several arrests after years of investigative work by the Pennsylvania state attorney's office. Apparently it all stems from someone witnessing a shower abuse incident with an underage male and Penn State coach Jerry Sandusky back in 2002. Others arrested for this incident include Penn State officials who knew about the incident but failed to present it to the proper authorities. Seriously? In this day and age? I understand that there are a lot of false accusations and charges out there (hello Justin Bieber??), but if someone makes it school officials have got to act on it whether it is done in house or out. And out seems a better solution to me as it helps cover the school's butt in the end, doesn't it?
Records - Is this the year that the zero win record held by the 2008 Detroit Lions will be broken? Or how about winning all 16 games? The Colts and the Packers look ready to do just so after the first half of the NFL season ended. The Colts lost their 8th straight against the Falcons and the Packers.....
Andrew Luck - I hadn't a clue who this quarterback was and I had to look him up with all the hype surrounding him being the answer to the Indianapolis Colts next year. He is the quarterback for Stanford University and supposedly the one who will be taken first in the draft by whichever team sucks the most by years end. The article I read about him had Phil Simmons commenting about how great Luck wasn't and that he wouldn't be a huge NFL player. Uh huh heard that one before...
Tim Tebow - about this young lad who yesterday led his team to a huge comeback that led to an interception that led to the Broncos with a win. Then my favorite thing of all was Jimmy Johnson giving Tebow kudos at the end of the Fox NFL OT like he never was a part of that negative talk way back when.
Exciting Endings - Whoa! How exciting was Eli Manning's comeback for the New York Giants against Tom Brady's New England Patriots? I watched Brady put it in the end zone for the go ahead score and wasn't so sure Manning would or could do the same by the Giants 3rd down and the clock dwindling down. I was wrong. Manning proved once again why he considers himself one of the elites. And then the San Diego Chargers/Green Bay Packers game came down to the wire with Phillip Rivers leading his Chargers down the field to make up ground. Unfortunately, his three interceptions of the night set a record and the last one proved to be the Chargers last hope. That's three in a row in the L column for them, but luckily for them they're in a conference that doesn't have much.
Jake Ballard - The Giants wide receiver was the main reason for their win in my opinion. His catch on third down was incredible! Then he caught the winning catch in the end zone to call it a game. Awesome.
Tony Stewart - Giving Hoosiers a reason to smile in sports with his latest win in the NASCAR Chase. Whew!
Loyalty - Loved when Fox's NFL OT show ran the tape of Michael Strahan watching his former team put the beat down on the Patriots. The former Giants defensive end jumped out of his chair, pumped his fist into the air, and then stomped a couple of times on the floor for good measure. He seemed a tad embarrassed when they played that tape, but I loved it because it showed loyalty and love for a team and fans that got him where he is today.

Happy Halloween 2011

2011-11-06T18:49:00.000-05:00

When I first began photographing my children and their friends dressed for trick or treating, I joked about how we would look back over the years as they grew against the red wall where the pictures were taken.

I'm not sure that I really believed the tradition would continue through the years as I know how friendships come and go with kids and adults, but I'm so glad that this is one that has. We have grown from our original 6 (Mika wouldn't get in the above photo) in 2004 and it has been a joy to behold.

Us: "How is it that the red wall has gotten smaller every year?"

Wishing everyone a Happy Harvest & Fall Season

Connie Foot Photo #39

2011-11-04T23:06:00.000-04:00

This week the appointment was just a look-see before Connie's Integra Graft surgery. The surgery entails a pressure washing of the wound before The Foot God would apply the two layer synthetic graft, holding it on with staples. He has done this once before on her, but for some reason it didn't do a whole hell of a lot.

Connie isn't certain it will do anything this time around, but I have faith; in the Foot God, in Connie's healing ability, and in my willing things so.

She went into surgery at the outpatient center at the hospital on Friday. It was a late afternoon surgery, and while she was quite apprehensive in the beginning, she snapped out of it before they wheeled her off.

She was there at noon and done by 5:30 PM. The plan is to stay off the foot, rest, and not touch it until he sees her next week. Fingers crossed this will speed the recovery up. In the meantime, Connie continues to wheel around her condo taking care of herself and keeping pneumonia at bay. She spends a lot of time with her plants.

This is her herb plant that she thought was basil. My mother-in-law thought it was thyme. Connie's neighbor, who gave her the offshoot that started this growth, says it is Italian oregano. Whatever it is it has taken over Connie's kitchen and she is quite protective and very fond of it.

Between that plant and her pineapple plantation that grows at the bottom of her condo stairs, she is quite the little farmer. If only she could move about more freely.... Fingers crossed!

Simple, serene, and silly

2011-11-03T07:00:00.015-04:00

Every time I go back to the farm I visit my father's grave. He is buried in a small cemetery next to the church that was built in 1837.

It is a beautiful church inside and out. I love the old country feel of it. I grew up in that church, attending services with my aunt. It is where I went to Sunday school and colored pictures of Mary and Joseph and sang, Jesus Loves Me.

Rusty and I walked the cemetery reading the names on stones, marveling at the 1800 dates and engravings. Many of the tombstones were the type that is used today to decorate for Halloween. Some of the sites had been visited recently, flowers adorning the area or headstones.

The colors everywhere around us were amazing. Rusty and I stood at my father's grave and talked. We told some stories; shared some memories.

Then we walked out together, and as I closed the gate to the cemetery my brother pointed and said, "Check to see if Dad got any mail."

Somewhere my Dad was joining us in our laughter.

Fall in Indiana

2011-11-02T07:00:00.002-04:00

Me: "Oh, my god, look at those colors. Just look at them!"

Rusty: "How many times are you going to say that?"

Me: "I forgot how beautiful it was in Indiana in the fall."

Sports recap part 2

2011-11-01T21:08:00.001-04:00

I blogged my Monday Sports Recap in the airport so I wasn't able to add this to it, but knew it had to be on the blog. Thus I'm adding an extra sports recap.

Kudos to the St. Louis Cardinals for winning the 2011 World Series beating the Texas Rangers. They pulled out what many thought was impossible just getting into the playoffs, and then showed those same people why they were there.
Nothing better then going out on top and our Tampa Bay native, Tony LaRussa, did just that announcing his retirement after managing the Cardinals to a win in the World Series.
My brother is a huge Cardinals fan, and I got to spend game 7 with him. I can definitely say I will never forget it...

Monday morning sports recap

2011-10-31T08:58:00.001-04:00

Don't have much since I was on an Indiana farm. Watched the Colts play something, didn't much resemble football. Obviously Painter isn't too interested in being a starter. Either that or he just isn't a player. I had some hope for him when I saw him in his start against the Bucs, but seriously yesterday was just painful to watch. Thank god the Steelers game was on in Indiana!

I wore my Steelers hoodie on the plane and truly the only winter coat I own is my Steelers coat, which I brought just in case it happen to snow. Those clothes didn't go over well with the Indiana Masons. Nor did my explanation.

Me: "I thought you guys needed to see what winning looked like."

Okay, maybe a bit harsh, but the Colts lived in Baltimore back in my day. Nice to see the state embrace the team, but I'm loyal to the boys I started out with!

Steelers:

1. Ben - He was on yesterday leading the troops down the field, remaining calm and collected. When he is in the zone you can't dispute he is one of the best.

2. Troy - How great was his last play of the game? Or when he got a tackle by jumping on the back of one of the Patroits? Just love his love of the game.

3. LaMar Woodley - Sacks, sacks and more sacks!

4. Antonio - Finally got in the endzone! I shook his hand you know.

5. Relatives - Having them watch with me? Priceless!

The end of my vegetarian experiment

2011-10-29T08:35:00.000-04:00

Rusty: "Are you hungry?"

Me:"Yes I'm starving!"

Rusty: "Where do you want to eat?"

Me: "I don't care, but remember I'm a vegetarian so we need to go somewhere I can get vegetarian meals."

Rusty: "Yeah sure you are. Where do you want to eat?"

Me: "No I'm serious. Did you not know that? I'm a vegetarian now."

Rusty: "Well if that's the case then I'll just pull off the side of the road and you can munch down in the median because you're in Indiana now and we're meat eaters!"

Heading back to the midwest

2011-10-28T11:30:00.001-04:00

Last week I received an email from my sister, who had heard from a cousin, that my aunt, who is around the 95 year marker, isn't doing well. She had been in the hospital for pneumonia and although home now her heart was weaker and she was slower. She is my father's sister, the oldest of four children. She is the only child still here, having outlived her three brothers. She tells me that is hard. She still hears her back door open sometimes and thinks she will hear my father call out to her, "Hey Sis!". I understood that. I too still hear his voice and sometimes smell his cigars.

On Tuesday she sat by her eldest son's hospital bed and watched him die. He has fought poor lungs for years. She told him to quit smoking. "Those cigarettes are no good. I told him for years, but..." she would pause, shaking her head at today's youth, "he wouldn't listen. I just worry for him so. He is in so much pain." He isn't now.

I'm in Indiana today for my cousin's funeral. I wanted to be here for my aunt. She has always been there for me. She came to my high school graduation. She came to my wedding. She bought me Christmas presents when I was younger and recently gave me her chicken dumpling recipe. I feel a calling to see her now. She has rallied and lived through many hardships, but I don't know if she can get past all that has happened in the last month. It is important sometimes to just drop everything and tell those you care about how much you love them. I plan on doing that this weekend.

Connie Foot Photo #38

2011-10-27T10:21:00.000-04:00

We think it looks now like a peanut. I think we should call it that instead of "the wound" or "your foot ailment" or "that damn thing on your foot". Peanut sounds so much friendlier? Although truth be told we are over the whole foot thing now.

We told the Foot God this at the appointment and asked what the game plan was in his mind. He gave a response that made me think he doesn't worry about his patients once he leaves the office for the day. He mumbled something about checking on dermagrafts and his new wound care center that is schedule to open next month. I cut him off at the pass and told him I was tired of coming to the office every week for the same old thing. I was bored. Next thing I know Connie is scheduled for an outpatient surgery next Friday where the Foot God will put on a type of graft that he put on once before while she was still hospitalized. I'm not sure of the name, but it is a two layer graft that he feels would be better then anything else and Medicare pays for it.

Sounded good to us. Anything to move on...

In the golden days

2011-10-26T07:00:00.000-04:00

This summer Susan and I spent time visiting relatives on my side of the family. We spent the day with a cousin and then decided to visit a couple of aunts. The first aunt was my cousin's mother. She lived not far from the second aunt who was in a nursing facility at the time. My cousin knew the name of the nursing facility, but not the address, so she and I quickly picked up our Iphone and began punching in the information. While we were doing this her husband picked up the phone book and looked up the address. We made fun of him, despite the fact that we both had the information at roughly the same time.

He then explained how to get to both places, adding in a Dairy Queen stop for the girls. Susan and I must have asked too many questions in regards to his directions because the next thing we knew he was drawing out directions...on a napkin, using both sides.

He was very serious in his directions and his penmanship. His wife and I reminded him we had Iphones with navigating systems built in, but he continued drawing and explaining. I halfheartedly paid attention because really who doesn't use their phone to get around now days?

Turns out we used the map. The town and its street signs weren't exactly a match on the Iphone. We drove up and down past both places before we turned to the map and made our way to see both aunts. I had told my cousin's husband that this map would be on my blog as I found the whole thing so hilarious. I mean who draws out maps now days?

This is the promised blog entry...and me...eating crow.

Overheard, but couldn't believe

2011-10-25T07:17:00.000-04:00

Gabby: "I'm going to watch television here now." (or something along those lines as I didn't really hear that part)

Susan: "NO! NO! I'm watching the game. I'm watching the game on this television until I finish these dishes. Then when I'm done with that I'll go downstairs and watch the game and you can watch your shows on this TV. But not until I'm done."

Huh? Anyone who knows my sister-in-law will be shocked to read that she was watching a game, let alone screaming about watching a game. I was driving when this conversation occurred. I'm lucky I didn't run off the road! It's only taken 20+ years in the Mason family for this to happen, but sooner or later we pull you to the sports, don't we?

Monday Morning Sports Recap

2011-10-24T08:05:00.019-04:00

Steelers:

Whew! Played like they played the day I spent at Heinz Field. The defense was sharp most of the time. The offense came to play. I wasn't too stressed. Made for a great game.
Troy made several mistakes and missed tackles in this game. I don't know if he was still reeling from his $10,000 fine from last week's cell phone on the sideline incident (something that really burns me up, but the rules are the rules) or what, but he will look at the game tapes and not be too happy. Again he had the opportunity for an interception and missed it. I keep saying he is due. Perhaps next week against the Patroits?
Big Ben got beat up as usual, more so in the second quarter then the first. He did some great stuff yesterday getting out of tackles and scrambling. In one incident a Cardinal defender had him by one leg and Ben was throwing. The referee blew the whistle and called it a sack, but Ben was far from the ground and still in control so the ref was wrong on that call. I thought he played exceptionally well.
LaMar Woodley was credited with two sacks and getting a safety. He is an animal! He has stepped up to the plate and taken over for James Harrison in that position for the past three weeks. One thing the defense does on this team is step up when needed when it comes to regular players sitting out. You go Woodley, do your dance.

Other:

Got to say something here about Albert Pujol's night on Saturday. Whew! Five hits, three of them homers, driving in six runs. Wish that same Pujol had shown up last night too, huh Cardinal fans?
Kudos to Denver Bronco quarterback Tim Tebow for leading his team to a comeback tie and then a win in OT. Tebow fans have been chanting his name for the past five weeks despite the critics coolness toward him. He came in a bit rusty, but rallied as we Florida fans know he can do. And he got the W for the 2-4 Broncos.
New Orleans is very happy with their 62-7 win last night over the Indianapolis Colts. Drew Brees threw for 5 touchdowns, 31 completions out of 35. Very impressive. He was taken out in the 3rd quarter, just missing his four games straight with 350 yards total. All the quotes I read said the team was beyond thrilled with the way they played. Really? Let's not get too carried away. After all you were playing a winless team who is last in the entire league. Go out and have a game like that against the Patriots and then I'll be impressed.
I totally missed most of the games in my pool this week. I don't think I've been this off in all the years I've guessed games. Not sure if it was me or the teams.
Who's bright idea was the whole travel to London during the regular season deal? First of all, why are we providing live NFL games to Europe? Second of all, how about doing that during the preseason when it doesn't matter? Why are we making players fly across the ocean for one game and then returning home to play another one the next week. It isn't rocket science to figure out that doesn't work.

Playing dress up

2011-10-23T23:04:00.000-04:00

I have never been a fan of adult Halloween parties. Mainly because I'm not creative enough to invent an out-of-this-world costume idea and pull it together. I can't sew. I'm not clever. I'm not crafty. All reasons to avoid dressing up. My husband, on the other hand, enjoys all of the above. He use to attend a party every year before he met me, and in his photos he is dressed to a "T" in a handmade costume. Once we started dating I usually got out of going to any parties because my job required me to be a part of our recreation department's Haunted Halloween, which was always the Saturday before Halloween and also the time everyone held parties.

In the course of our togetherness we have attended three Halloween parties together. The first was to his annual Halloween party with his triathlon group. I'm not sure how I got roped into that one, but I was the love police and Tom was my prisoner. I was young and thinner and didn't mind dressing up so much.

The second party was a last minute decision to attend as the city's Haunted Halloween was cancelled due to mosquitoes. Since it was last minute we didn't have much time to create costumes, and we each went as one of the baseball players in the World Series that year. I didn't even remember which teams were in it until I found the pictures. Everyone kind of booed us for not being more original, but I thought it not bad for a last minute thing.

The last party was six years ago. Tom went dressed as a cow. I was the farmer. We actually didn't look too bad considering I was a porker, but I was happy because those overalls were some of my most comfortable clothes.

This year we were invited to a casino Halloween party. I didn't really want to attend because of the required costume attire, but I hit the "yes" button on the evite without really thinking it through. Then I proceeded to whine about it and moan about it and wonder why I hadn't declined the invite. Finally I decided to steal Kelly's idea for her party and dress up as Troy Polamalu. (Whenever we dress up for trick or treating around our neighborhood I go as a Steelers fan since I own all that crap anyway) I decided Tom should go as Mike Tomlin. That was as far as I got until two days before the party. Then, of course, I panicked.

Friday I drove to Party City intent on buying a wig as I felt that was the main part of my costume. Before I went I did some research on Party City's website so that I knew what was offered before I popped in the store. I had it narrowed down to two wigs; one was a DJ wig with the guy on the cover reminding me of Howard Stern, the other was a pirate. The pirate was ten dollars cheaper and so that was the one I wanted. Once there I discovered that Florida has some weird law about returning opened packages containing wigs. Thankfully the store offered to let you try on the wig if you asked. Not wanting to do that, but wanting to see if I could make the wig work I asked to see it, saw that it would work if I cut out the bandana, and I bought it. After that I went home, exhausted from that bit of creativity.

The day of the party I totally began to panic. I had the jersey and the wig, but that was it. I needed pants and socks and mostly, a helmet. Darcy and I set off to look around. We first went to a second hand sporting goods store. We found a used kid's helmet, but it was too small and the wrong color. We headed next door to Michael's where we wandered around and around the store. I put a bowl on my head, but Darcy vetoed that. Eventually we found this and when I saw it I suddenly got a vision. Darcy did not like my vision, but I saw that with the right stuff (hadn't a clue what that stuff was) this would be my helmet. I bought the $3.00 hat, some black duct tape (Darcy's idea), and yellow felt. I came home and cut off the reindeer's antlers and ears. I then covered the hat with the duct tape, made a Steelers logo for the side, a yellow stripe down the middle, and added the number 43. I was totally pumped, but Madison wrinkled her nose at it because it didn't have the required face mask. So back to the computer I went. I found a Riddell picture of a helmet, blew it up, printed it, cut it out, and added it to my hat. It was awesome!

My second vision was for the shoulder pads. I had some pillow filler, but found it too itchy so while at Michael's I found some black skeins of yarn and used two of those inside my shirt. We added some men's black sweat pants (yellow not being a color found here in Florida) from Target, some yellow soccer socks from the sports store, and I wore Madison's soccer cleats. I wore gloves I bought in Pittsburgh for Kelly's costume, added a mouth guard and a football, and damn if I didn't almost look like Troy Polamalu!

Tom made his own costume with his black shirt I always said made him look like Bill Cowher back in the day. He added the logo to the shirt. He got a clipboard from the neighbor and made up a playbook full of naughty cheerleading pictures, added a headset and his Steelers hat. I think we did a fine job in the end, and thought we should have won the costume contest, but alas we lost out to two sumo wrestlers in store bought costumes. Whatever!

Fruits, vegetables, and hummus, oh my!

2011-10-21T12:26:00.001-04:00

Whenever I fly I like to purchase magazines to read on the plane. For my flight to and from Pittsburgh I purchased a couple of People magazines and an US or something along those lines. In each magazine was something in regards to vegetarians. One magazine had a huge article about a woman who had written a cookbook on vegetarian recipes. Another magazine had a page on the different types of vegetarians, and another one talked about how healthy a lifestyle it was and how more and more people were tuning in and becoming vegetarian. I read about the ways in which to get protein and the accompanying vegetable photos were colorful and made me hungry.

So I decided to become a vegetarian (albeit one who eats dairy and eggs). For one month.

I began the Tuesday I returned from Pittsburgh. I ate an egg and an english muffin for breakfast. I had a salad for lunch. That night we went to the grocery so that I could load up on vegetarian groceries and get sub sandwiches for dinner. I ordered my usual turkey forgetting I was vegetarian.

Madison: "I thought you were going to eat vegetarian."

Me: "Oh my god! Why didn't you say something before he made it? I forgot. Oh, well, I'll be a vegetarian starting tomorrow."

So I became a vegetarian on Wednesday. I have had lots of support.

Darcy's classmate's father: "Tom, do you call it eating at your house or grazing?"

Another father: "Cara, I have a little something for you in case you get hungry on the drive home." He opens his hand and gives me leaves he has pulled off a bush.

Madison has been helpful. Together she and I make different types of salads. She looked up a black bean burger recipe, and we made it. It was actually good, a tad dry, but that's because I got carried away with the bread crumbs. Darcy declared it too spicy. Tom thought it fine and very filling.

Tom: "It is sitting right here in my stomach."

I ordered a vegetable pizza, minus the mushrooms, the other night and even ate the diced tomatoes sitting on top. I find that I am trying more foods that before I would have turned my nose up at. I ate a spinach and egg white burrito yesterday morning. I'm planning on making vegetarian appetizers for our upcoming Halloween party.

So far I haven't noticed any difference other than an increase and regularity in my bowel habits. As everyone who knows me well knows I'm not embarrassed to discuss fecal matters. I haven't lost weight. I don't feel more energetic. I don't feel healthier. I do find that being a vegetarian requires more work. Whipping up a turkey sandwich is certainly easier then a salad for lunch. A salad makes more meals; however, and I've learned to adapt so that the leftovers can be served that night for dinner.

I craved bacon in the beginning. Now I crave a big, juicy hamburger. I had a small slip when I ordered baked potato soup and it came with chopped bacon on top. Perhaps it was unconscious. I ate the damn soup anyway and don't count the small amount. I bet it was tofu anyway.

It has only been a week so I don't think I can draw any conclusions just yet. I'm determined to make it a month, but I find that the longer I go the more I want to eat meat. In the beginning I enjoyed the novelty. Now I just want the hamburger. There are no easy choices in the fast food department and that is when I became a pescatarian, one who eats fish, although I'm not sure most pescatarians would consider McDonald's fillet o' fish as acceptable.

I'm not sure I can make it the entire month, but I'm certainly giving it the old college try. It might make a good science project topic down the road for my kids if it doesn't make me a healthier and happier individual. Either way...it gives me a blog topic.

Connie Foot Photo #36

2011-10-19T06:35:00.000-04:00

The home health nurse told Connie that he thought the foot looked terrible and that it was tunneling. Just wanted to reassure her apparently...

We went early this week as the Foot God is going to Europe on a "guycation" to watch the Tampa Bay Buccaneers play football. The hematoma was good. The foot was the same. He couldn't really agree with the "tunneling" action, but nothing much had changed in a week. The whole area is getting smaller, but that little area to the right isn't doing much. She needs dermagrafts or apligrafts and no one is schedule for one of those anytime soon. It is very frustrating.

Monday Morning Sports Recap

2011-10-17T07:00:00.000-04:00

I'm starting this entry out differently this week because yesterday we lost a local resident, Indy Car driver Dan Wheldon who was killed in the Las Vegas Indy 300. I had just been reading about him in our paper because he was in the race sort of on a fluke. He was chosen to drive for a $5 million purse that he would have split with a fan had he won. The condition was that he had to start at the back of the field. The crash that killed him involved fifteen cars and started when two cars in front of Wheldon rubbed tires. Wheldon went airborne and his car flipped.

I'm so sorry for his family and for the community of racing. These guys are only human, doing what they love, and we tend to forget that what some of them do is really quite dangerous. I hate to loose anyone in sports. It is a sad morning. All our best to the Wheldon family.

Steelers:

Me: "I just don't get it. Pittsburgh did so well the first half. They played like they played last week, but they just can't finish it out. It was like they came out the second half thinking, "We got this. It's boring. Too easy." And then they were like whatever. It's so frustrating. I mean, am I going to have to be at all the games to make sure they keep motivated?"

Madison: "Uh huh."

Me: "I guess I could go for the weekend to the home games."

Madison: "Sure, just fly in. Help them out."

Me: "I could fly in on Sunday and take a cab to the field. "Get me to Heinz Field STAT". Of course I couldn't spend the night at the field."

Madison: "You could fly back Sunday night."

Me: "Yeah, but that's hard and then its late."

Madison: "You could get a personal jet."

Me: "That's a great idea, Maddy. I could. Where would I get one of those?"

Madison: "I don't know. Ebay?"

Polamalu - I keep saying that he is so overdue for a pick, and I still believe it. He had a couple of chances this week, but he is so focused on getting the other guy to the ground. He left in the fourth quarter due to "concussion like" symptoms whatever that means, but again he had a good defensive game. At one point he tackled the opposition by flying around the defensive line for a two yard loss. If I were coaching the other team, I would have one guy whose job it was to just follow Troy around to make sure he doesn't cause any damage. (Note: Troy is fine and should play next week).
Mendenhall - Tomlin make reference to spreading the running game around among the three, Mendenhall, and last week's heroes, Dwyer and Redman, and Mendenhall must have been worried because he went out and ran like the devil was chasing him. 146 yards rushing kept him in the game over the other two, but after his 68 yard run I still think the Steelers should have Redman run into the end zone.
Run, Ben, run - He did get an important first down by running with the ball, but I'd like to see a bit more rushing from this guy when it is necessary. But then again I listen to all the experts telling quarterbacks to stop rushing and stay in the damn pocket, so maybe I'm missing something.
Heinz Field - I watched the game on my computer this week and pointed out all the places that I had been in the week before. I could hear the announcer say, "And that is another Steelers...." and I yelled, "First Down", pretending I was back in Pittsburgh. Still have that glow from last week.

Other:

Coaches Fight - Apparently the coach of the 49ers, Jim Harbough, started something with Detroits coach, Jim Schwartz, during the after game handshake. I've watched it several times. Harbough shook Schwartz's hand and then clapped him on the back. Look at it from afar and the smack on the back looks harmless, but look at them close up and it seems like a dismissive push. Apparently Schwartz felt like it was, and instead of just sticking out his tongue and walking away, he went after Harbough screaming and bumping into Harbough. Either way it was childish. Schwartz should have walked away, and Harbough shouldn't have been so smug about winning. Now everyone is asking whether the league will fine these two idiots. I understand that if the NFL expects the players to act a certain way, then they should expect the coaches too as well, but aren't we just looking for things to fine lately? Watch the tape again and you'll see all the players and people around the two babies laughing at them as if they can't really believe this has become something. Fine them? Come on. What they need is a good spanking.
Eagles - And then we have the opposite end of the spectrum. Eagles coach, Andy Reid, has taken heat all week long on the fact that his "dream team" has not done what everyone hoped they would do. His players rallied around him, took the blame, and then went out and proved everyone wrong by beating the Redskins.
Eye Black - I noticed on my HD TV while watching Brian Urlacher being interviewed that he was wearing eye black stickers under his eyes, and for a moment I felt that feeling I get when I've thought something for a long time and then get called on it for being wrong. I've always thought that the players painted that eye black under their eyes. So I got curious and researched it and found I wasn't so stupid after all as it was once painted under the eyes. Now, of course, there are stickers, although some players still use the grease combination of beeswax, paraffin, and carbon.
Cowboys and Patriots - All the sportscasters on Fox NFL Pregame were talking about how the Cowboys were going to win this week. They agreed it would be a close game, but that Tony Romo would step up to the plate and show America how wrong they have been in regards to his quarterbacking skills. Huh? I'm telling you right now, if I were betting my life savings on a game that was coming down to the wire and could choose a quarterback, Tony Romo wouldn't make my list of choices, but Tom Brady would be in my top two choices. It was a close game, but Romo got the Cowboys ahead with a field goal and more than a minute on the clock, and Tom Brady went ahead with a touchdown.
Sean Payton - As Penn State's Joe Pa will tell ya it is dangerous on the sideline. Payton got tangled up with his own player on the sideline and broke a bone and tore a ligament. He ended up coaching from the locker room while being tended to, but his team lost to division rivals Tampa Bay.
Aaron Rogers - Have you seen his commercial for State Farm? Could he look more uncomfortable? Something about this guy just seems odd, but I can't put my finger on it. And I felt this way before he demolished my Steelers in the Super Bowl. But it is a cute commercial.
Brandon Marshall - The Miami Dolphin receiver did some mouthing off this week about he was going to "get kicked out in the second quarter" on Monday Night Football. That sound bite made the rounds with everyone speculating and wondering if Goodell would be keeping an eye on him, but seriously? These guys get mikes shoved into their faces and are asked stupid questions and in the heat of the moment they mouth off. Apparently he got called into the office for some scolding, but he laughed it off and told everyone he was joking. Whatever. The way to show people? Kick ass on Monday Night Football Marshall.
St. Louis Cardinals & Texas Rangers - Let the World Series begin.

Connie Foot Photo #35

2011-10-16T22:50:00.000-04:00

Before she even got her boot off Nurse Kelly noticed blood coming from Connie's right leg. "What's with the blood?" she asked.

"Oh, it's a hematoma," Connie said. "It's fine. I took care of it and bandaged it."

In came the Foot God, in a hurry because he had his own doctor appointment. Nurse Kelly, who had removed Connie's bandage job, pointed out the leg to him and suggested he take a look. He did and he didn't like what he saw. It was deep and so he had Nurse Kelly measure it and now he is adding that wound to his care as well.

The foot? It looked "better".

"We don't want that," he said, pointing to the leg wound, "to turn into that," and he pointed at the foot wound. So she has added a wound instead of healing a wound. Somehow we think that isn't what she is suppose to be doing.

Now I'm the pied piper of dogs

2011-10-15T19:00:00.000-04:00

This past week was the end of the first grading period for one daughter so she had Friday off of school. It was parent/teacher conferences for the other daughter and she had Thursday and Friday off of school. I had to get up on Thursday to see the one daughter off to school and then head over for the other daughter's parent/teacher conference. Sleeping in was not an option for Thursday, but it was for Friday, and I planned a nice, long morning nestled in clean sheets.

At 7:30 AM on Friday morning the phone rang. It woke me from a dead sleep. Tom was in the shower, both girls were sleeping, and dog was at the foot of my bed watching me. I answered the phone, worried it was in regards to my mother, but it turned out to be my neighbor across the street. She told me that she had a stray dog at her house and did I know who might be the dog's owners. Immediately this picture popped into my head:

This is the dog that Tom brought home the morning after I told him no more dogs. This dog lives one street over and is known on that street as the escape artist. One summer a year ago the dog was at our house almost daily. Madison and Darcy would take the dog home and the owners were always very nonchalant. This last time Darcy and I returned the dog and the owners didn't even know the dog, named Hildy, was missing. Apparently she spends a lot of time in the fenced in backyard.

I informed my neighbor of all of this and then gave her detailed instructions on how to get to the neighbor's so that she could return the dog.

"Uh, Cara," she said, "I'm at work."

Oh, yes. Every time my children are home I feel like I'm off of work between the hours of 5:45 and 3:00 and forget that the rest of the world is not. Turns out my neighbor had discovered the dog at 5:45 in her garage, and not wanting the dog to be run over by a car, she put the dog in her house when she left for work at 6:00. The dog had no collar.

"Sorry to do this to you," she said, "but you are the only one with a key to my house."

Needless to say, by the time I hung up I wasn't too happy. There went my morning of snuggling in clean sheets, my brain in sleepyville. I began griping as soon as my husband exited the bathroom.

"What is wrong with these people? I should call the pound and have them take care of this dog. Clearly the owners don't give a damn. How many times is this dog going to escape? I wanted to sleep in this morning!"

Hubby suggested I call the owners. I suggested he call the owners. He did. As predicted, they had no idea the dog was missing.

"Oh," the lady owner said, "You have Hildy? Well, I'm looking around now and I don't see her."

Really? Because she isn't there! Tom explained the situation and how the dog was locked in the neighbor's house, but that we had the key. And the lady owner? Did she apologize and thank us profusely? No. She actually said, "Well, I just got out of the shower, and I have to get ready for work."

It is a good thing that Tom made that call and was listening to this nonsense on the other end because in my mood I might have started a neighborly war. Seriously? She needed to get ready for work? Well I needed to get more sleep, but that certainly wasn't happening.

Tom told her he was leaving for work in fifteen minutes and so she agreed to retrieve her dog. I stormed into the bedroom, ranting and raving, and began changing into my clothes. Then I decided that I wasn't going to change. I was wearing Steelers pajama pants and a black T'shirt so I put on a bra, hooked up Elliotto his leash, and went across the street to join my neighbor buddy, Sid, who was outside sipping coffee in the driveway. He listened to me rant and rave for several minutes, and we discussed all the things I was going to tell this lady owner when she appeared. Eventually my next door neighbor buddy joined us, and we all discussed things we would do if the dog escaped again.

Time passed and no lady owner. The next door neighbor buddy wandered home. I went over to the neighbor's house to make sure she really had Hildy as I suddenly had visions that perhaps I had guessed wrong on the missing dog. I hadn't. Hildy met me at the door, her tail wagging rapidly.

It took the lady owner one hour, ONE HOUR, to finally wander down the street to retrieve her dog. She appeared with a leash and full make-up, dressed in her work clothes and high heeled shoes. I felt great standing next to her in my pajamas. She was sighing as I opened the neighbor's door and let Hildy out. My anger had dissipated, but I did ask how it was that the dog kept escaping. She said something about the dog banging up against a board in the fence, but she just shrugged like "what are you going to do". How about nailing the damn board shut? But I kept my mouth closed and off they trotted down the street.

I went home, called the neighbor who had housed the dog to report it was all taken care of, and then, because I was feeling defiant, I went back to bed and slept until 11:15 AM. Ha!

Day 2 - Pittsburgh - Game Day - Part 2

2011-10-14T07:09:00.005-04:00

Before we sat down I watched the special teams practice. Tom was in line for a hamburger off a grill that was set up behind where we were standing so I joined these folks (in picture) to watch Shaun Suisham kick some balls through the uprights.

Then we walked up, up, up and rode a few escalators up, up, up to our seat level. I was out of breath by the time we hiked up, up, up to our seats which happened to be one row from the last row at the top of the stadium. In full sun. I didn't care. Because the view was breathtaking.

The players were on the field stretching and running through a few drills and then they headed to the locker room for some words of Tomlin wisdom. The announcer was great. He told us what was happening every minute from the band on the field, to it being breast cancer awareness month in the nfl. He let us know when the Post-Gazette took its weekly fancam picture so that we could all cheer and wave our terrible towels to we could prove later that we had attended the game. Note: I'm at the back, row 526, to the right on the end. (Darcy is hidden by the woman standing in front of her, but you can see her arm)

While the announcer was firing up the fans, they were busy filing into the stadium to take their seats. The Titans came out on the field first. Then Mike Tomlin. And then the roaring began. We sat across from the Steelers tunnel so I could see them waiting to be announced.

When they were announced the crowd went wild. We were all on our feet with our towels. I will admit I was crying a bit.

The offense came out first and formed two lines on the field. The defense stayed back in the tunnel and were announced one by one, and each one ran out between the two lines slapping hands with the offense.

Out of the tunnel came LaMar Woodley, Lawrence Timmons, James Farrior, Chris Hoke; guys I've watched on television and who grace my Steelers room walls. One by one they exited the tunnel running out on to the field to all the cheering. I alternated between peering through the binoculars and watching it with my own two eyes. Waiting...

He came out last to the biggest roar ever. "At safety, number 43, Troy Polamalu!" And the hair on my arms stood up and a chill went through me. I was really here seeing all of this, experiencing all of this live... in the Steelers own home... in the city of Pittsburgh. It was a beautiful moment.

And then Mike Tomlin's niece sang the National Anthem, fireworks went off, and the players met in the middle of the field for the coin toss, which Pittsburgh won, and we were off!

I watched the defense.

I watched the offense.

I watched the 63,857 fans that filled the stadium.

And I soaked it all in. We were, literally, the last fans to leave the stadium. I can actually say that I closed down Heinz Field. We left the field and stood in the upper deck leaning over the concrete wall to watch the players as they exited the locker area into the secured parking lot where most of them were parked.

We saw Sanders, Kiesel, Wallace, and Roethlisberger among many. Mike Tomlin came out and went right out the gates to chat with some of the fans who were standing outside. I was waiting for Polamalu when security came up and told us we had to leave. They were very nice. "If this were my stadium you could stay here all night," one guy said to me.

And so we were the last to leave with security behind us chatting with us as we walked down, down, down and out the gates of Heinz Field. We walked around the corner of the area we had just been watching, and Polamalu, his hair tied back and his son in his arms, came out with his wife and his other son, and I caught a glimpse of them before they disappeared behind the covered fence where I was walking. We joined the handful of fans at the exit and waved to them as they drove past us, many of them shouting his name. It was a nice ending to a great day.

Thank you to my mother-in-law, Mary Anne, for making it possible. It was without a doubt one of the best experiences of my life and something I will cherish forever.

Day 2 - Pittsburgh - Game Day - Part 1

2011-10-13T06:14:00.002-04:00

The goal was to leave the hotel at 9:30 AM. We left at 9:36 AM decked out in our Steelers shirts, hats, socks, tattoos, beads, earrings, hair wraps, and bracelets. It was a chilly 56 degrees, but the sun was up and its warmth was slowly working its way into the day. We ignored breakfast and headed toward the stadium. As we got closer the streets were packed with fans in their black and gold and vendor booths selling all items from Steelers rugs to pens.

We paid to park and walked the streets enjoying the fans and the vendors on our way toward the stadium. Once there we found the street where we had parked the day before closed so that more vendors could hawk their wares and so fans could walk freely without fear of traffic. We collected free give-aways, purchased items, and had our faces spray painted. At one point we joined some fans in front of an empty parking lot where someone told Tom the players parked and then rode a small bus into the stadium.

We watched as players and families drove in and parked. We snapped pictures of a few players such as Issac Redman, but the most exciting thing happened directly in front of me. I was standing and chatting with Tom when a car pulled up and began backing into the space right in front of me. I had been watching the players and family members back into spaces for some time now and seriously they seemed to all have parking issues so I thought I should help out whoever was driving this car. I motioned for him to turn the wheel to the left and then I hand signaled him in backing up. He didn't listen to me all the way and so I sort of made a face at his parking job. Eventually after some tense moments of wondering who was behind the darkly tinted windows, the door opened and out came wide receiver Antonio Brown.

Immediately the crowd started shouting his name. He had on headphones and he nodded at us and began making his way across the parking lot to the bus. The crowd kept shouting his name and he kept walking away.

A man to my left wasn't satisfied with just seeing Brown and he kept shouting at him. "Antonio! Antonio! Come on, man! Come on, Antonio. I came a long way just to see you my main man!" I laughed out loud because I thought that hilarious and apparently Antonio was touched because he turned around and looked at us. And then he began walking back to us, a smile on his face.

He shook the man's hand and signed some terrible towels and some jerseys. Then he moved down toward me. I had stepped back from the guard rail and snapped two pictures, but I never shouted his name or muttered a word. A man behind me moved forward to my right and asked to shake his hand and Antonio Brown shook it. Then he turned to me. I figured what the hell, stuck out my hand, shook his soft receiver hand, and told him, "I follow you on twitter!"

He smiled at me and said, "Yeah?" I said, "Yep." He thanked me, waved at everyone, and turned around and walked toward the bus. Never once did any fan rush the guard rails screaming like maniacs. Those fans that were lined up on the far side of the parking lot never rushed to our side. Everyone was very cordial and respectful and gave him all the space he could possible need or want. A few people yelled his name as he walked away, but I reminded them that he needed to get to work. And then we left and went into the stadium which opened at 11:00 AM.

We entered at the same area we had entered the day before because Tom needed to take care of some business at the Sideline store. Then we walked into the area that the day before had been roped off. It was like a mini museum dedicated to past and present players, coaches, and owners. There were glass cases of personal items, large banners dedicated to important historical game events, and huge colored and black and white photos.

I walked past two television announcers getting ready for a pre-game show with only a glance, because I was too busy taking it all in. I walked through the Steelers walk of fame. I pointed out players to Tom and Darcy, testing my 70's knowledge and memories.

Darcy and Tom made their way to the concession stand to order our breakfast/lunch of hotdogs and sodas, but I was still too awed by what I was seeing to join them. Hanging above our heads were gigantic silver footballs; six of them to honor the six Super Bowls the Steelers have won.

We ate our hotdogs beneath the footballs and then we walked clear around the stadium. Tom stopped for a hamburger off a large grill in the end zone area, and Darcy and I made a few more purchases inside another store. We joined the throngs of fans and hiked way, way, way, up into the sky to our seats in the full sun at the corner of the end zone, second row from the top.

And waited...

Day 1 - Pittsburgh

2011-10-12T06:33:00.002-04:00

It is hard to describe to people the feeling I got from the moment I exited the plane to join the throngs of people decked out in black and gold. Everywhere we went there were Steelers fans. In hats and shirts. Carrying purses and bags. You couldn't go anywhere without running into someone with something Steelers related on his body. It was so incredible.

We left the airport, checked into our hotel, and then drove into the 'burgh. I had never actually been in the city just driven around it, once when on a greyhound bus and once while driving. This was my first trip there and it was so much more then I thought. The city is clean and uncluttered. The three rivers are gorgeous (and our 80 degree October weather made it that much more so) and the bridges stunning. The people, oh, the people, were some of the friendliest and kindest people I've meet, and I'm from the Midwest. It's like a little country of people in black and gold who understand the history, the legacy, and the importance of Steelers football. And I felt all of that before I parked in front of Heinz Field.

We weren't the only tourists walking around the stadium taking pictures dressed in black and gold. I think that even if you weren't a Steelers fan this stadium would still be on the list of "must see things to do" just because of the Steelers history. Theirs is certainly a good one with heart and it is told over and over around the outside of the stadium and the inside of the stadium.

We walked around the outside and then we got to enter an area inside the stadium where the main Steelers store, The Sideline, is located. Both sides of the stadium are blocked off and watched over by a security guard so one can only walk in and head into the store. But I could see what was there waiting for me tomorrow and I was awed.

We made some important purchases in the store and then walked around the stadium again so that I could catch anything I might have missed.

We had lunch at Jerome Bettis' place near the stadium. When we opened the door and walked in I thought I was back in Florida at the Steelers bar because the place was packed wall to wall with Steelers fans all in black and gold. Every room is loaded with giant flat screened television sets on every wall and hanging from the ceilings. Since it was Saturday each TV had a college game being broadcast and we watched LSU kick Florida's rear while we enjoyed homemade salsa and chips and Iron City beer. Afterwards we walked down to the river and sat in real grass enjoying the sunny afternoon and the boats and people.

From there we drove across the river and rode the old cable car up the mountain and learned some of the incline's coal hoist history.

Then we drove around the city stopping at Steelers stores and spending money to add to the Steelers room and collection. We met a couple from Texas and I refrained from mentioning the beating his team took from Oklahoma that day despite his telling me he was sorry I was a Steelers fan. The owner of the last shop looked at Tom's shirt and told him it was okay that he was wearing it as everyone was allowed one mistake in life. Darcy and I tried on hats and shirts, and I even found a Steelers scrub top (which I refrained from buying).

When we returned to our hotel we showered and climbed into bed. As Darcy turned out the lights she said, "We have a big day ahead of us and we need to get plenty of sleep. Good Night."

Monday Morning Sports Recap

2011-10-10T07:11:00.165-04:00

Only watched the Steelers this week IN PERSON... AT HEINZ FIELD...OMG! So my sports recap is pretty much only about them. Tried to catch Sports Center, but only got a bit of it so don't feel I can comment on any other sporting events. And really, who cares, since my boys were so AWESOME!

Steelers:

The defense was back - well some of them that was. Missing big man James Harrison and moving players from one position to another, the defense came out determined to make it through the game and boy did they ever. They held the Titans Chris Johnson to only 51 yards on 14 carries and had the Titans wondered what hit them.
Big Ben - First of all, the man is HUGE in person. His upper body is just plain big and muscular and his height adds to him giving him this power look. He was on the money for this game, despite playing with a metal plate in his shoe to protect his sprained foot, reading the receivers and the Titans defense. He ended up tying the Steelers single game record of touchdown passes with five, and he played by getting rid of the ball quickly instead of dancing around in the pocket, throwing off the Titans' defense.

Offensive Line - Again playing with a group of hurriedly put together players, Max Starks was literally plucked off the couch, the line kept Ben off the ground. They were like a group of hungry animals going after free meat, knocking linebackers right and left and giving Ben plenty of time to find his man.

Troy Polamalu - had a great game and looked to me like the Troy of old. I watched him a lot in the binoculars and I could see that moment when he realized where Hasselbeck was going to throw the ball. He had two close moments of almost intercepting the ball. Mark my words his biggest game with interception is coming soon!

Running Backs - No Mendenhall and no Moore, but Redman and Dwyer were the bomb. Redman twisted and turned through the Titans' defense like a men on a mission pushing his way through the throng for the downs. Dwyer ran 76 yards on one play and ended with 107 yards total for the game giving us all hope for the running game.
Special Teams - gave us the best play of the game with the fake punt. The crew was lined up for a punt on fourth down when Ryan Mundy gave the call for the trick play the Steelers had practiced all week. Punter Daniel Sepulveda faked the punt and threw the ball to Mundy 33 yards for the first down. Heinz Field rocked! That play eventually led Ben to throw for a touchdown to Hines Ward.
Hines Ward - And speaking of our Dancing with the Stars champion...Welcome back! Ward caught 7 passes, two of them touchdowns, for 54 yards, but they were awesome catches, one in which he had to jump over the Titans defender for the touchdown. He put to rest a lot of talk about whether he still could play with yesterday's game and it was so great to see him with the ball.

Antonio Brown - who started off the game with a 52 yard kickoff return that set up the Steelers first touchdown and got the stadium and fans fired up. And I think it was all because HE SHOOK MY HAND before the game. But that's a story told later in upcoming blog entries.

Other:

I don't really know much about Oakland Raiders' owner, Al Davis, except that he tended to piss off players, fans, and coaches, but apparently he also did a lot for the game of football and for the NFL itself. RIP Davis. Your team won one for you this week.
If the Tampa Rays can't be in the playoffs, then I'll root for my brother's team, the St. Louis Cardinals, who tied the series with the Brewers at 1 apiece. And how great is it that there are no Yankees or Phillies in the playoffs this year?
I agree with some the ESPN Sports Center crew. Just give Denver's quarterback, Tim Tebow, some playing time so that he can either man up or shut up the fans who yammer for him each week. Tebow came out and played fairly decent this week against San Diego, but he still has a lot to prove. I'm a fan of the man since football needs more guys like him in the decent department so I root for him, but I think the door is still open to whether or not he will make it in this league.

Connie Foot Photo #35

2011-10-09T07:00:00.000-04:00

Wheeled her in.
The Foot God looked at it. "Looks better."
He scrapped around on the edges.
The nurse filled in the wound with the Promogran and wrapped it back up.
Wheeled her out.
Not much exciting this week.
Ho Hum. On she goes.

What was that again???

2011-10-08T06:59:00.000-04:00

I have a terrible memory. I use to have a great memory. I think it's probably the only reason I made it through school, but since I've given birth my memory has gone downhill and is no longer great. I forget things I've thought of one minute ago. I'm lucky to remember what I'm writing about right now. It has gotten that bad. I do the daily crossword in the paper every morning, drink green tea, and take fish oil pills because I read all of that will help. I'm not sure it does.

Usually when I'm cleaning or cooking or doing any of the other number of household chores I'll think of something that we need. It could be food or toilet paper or any number of things, and unless I write it down, it is usually forgotten until I need that item and then remember that I have forgotten it. I try to be good about it and write it down on a piece of paper. That inevitably gets lost or gets left in the car while I'm inside shopping, but sometimes it makes it into the purse and all is good. Most of the time I don't have paper. For example I will be cleaning in my bedroom or bathroom, the room farthest from the kitchen or office. I'll replace the toilet paper and say to myself, "that is the last of the toilet paper so I must put that on the list." By the time I make it into the kitchen to put it down on paper I've forgotten what the item was that I needed.

I decided that what I needed was another method to remember what it is I need to remember. I started trying to remember the first letter of the item I needed. So in cleaning my bathroom I'd think we need toilet paper, T. T. T. T. When I would come across the next item, such as toothpaste, I would think, "TT. Toilet paper and toothpaste. TT." Sometimes the letters would spell a word and that would make things even easier for me, "BOAT...bananas, oatmeal, apples, and toilet paper." The system would work until I could get to paper or sometimes the store.

Wednesday I was making a mental list of all the things I needed to do before this weekend. I told Madison so that she could help me remember to do some of the items when I got home. She asked me if I could get her some cough drops. I told her certainly I could do that and that I also needed some powder to put in their shoes to soak up the god awful smell both girls' feet leave in them. In my head I thought, "CP". Later that night, not having been to a store yet, I thought of something else I needed and thought, "CPH...hmmm...CHP, chips, like the TV show. That will be easy to remember."

Thursday was SueG day, which is an every two week thing where we do food, fun, and maybe errands. I had told her I needed to run to the bookstore to pick up an order I had placed and since it was by the mall we ran in and picked up coffee and some hair products we both needed. As we drove home she asked me if I need a Target or Walmart run. I said oh, yes, I do, I need...and I thought, "CHIPS", and then I tried to remember what the hell that stood for. And I couldn't remember. The only thing I could remember was the P for powder. I explained to her the problem and she started naming off things she thought it could be.

SueG: "Candy, chips, chapstick, cotton balls, cologne, cat food, cell phone, comet..."

SueG: "Hair spray, hairbrush, hot tea, hammer, hand soap, helmet..."

We ran through everything we could thing of from personal items to household items. I could not remember. We never hit the right item or if we did it wasn't triggering anything in my memory. She wanted to go to Target and wander up and down the aisles hoping to spot the items, but I veteoed that. Instead I went home and got out my unabridged Webster dictionary. Elliot and I sat outside and I went through the entire dictionary in the "c" and "h" section. At some point my neighbor wandered over and joined in the guessing game.

Neighbor: "Chocolate, cake, coffee, hot dogs, headache medicine, ham..."

He too eventually got bored and went home. I completed the Webster dictionary to no avail. By this time I was sure I had a tumor pressing on my brain that was preventing my memory from working. I was contemplating calling my doctor to schedule an MRI when Madison came home. She knew the "C".

Madison: (coughing) "Cough drops. You were suppose to get me cough drops for my cough."

She had no idea what the "H" stood for and neither did Darcy, although they both ran through already named items until my head was spinning from all the help. I told my mother the problem.

Mother: "What was the I?"

Sigh.

I told my friend that night at dinner.

Jyoti: "What was the "S"?"

Sigh.

I gave up telling the story. I resigned myself to the fact that I might never know what the "H" stood for, and obviously it wasn't an important item that we all just had to have in our house. It wasn't until this morning that the item came to me. I was collecting dirty clothes for the laundry when I went into Madison's closet and there it was...the "H". Hamper. Madison needed a new hamper as her wicker one is falling apart and Elliot enjoys chewing the pieces that are falling off. I needed cough drops, a hamper, and some powder from Target.

Neighbor: "You realize don't you, that this anagram thing you had going will now never work again for you. You'll have to come up with a better way of remembering things."

Yeah, I'll work on that. If I can remember...

Pop! Pop! Pop!

2011-10-07T06:59:00.000-04:00

My friend, SueG, dupped that because of all the Susan's I know, works the night shift at our children's hospital. The other day she was cleaning up things around the house in preparation for her going to work. She loaded up the dishes and started to run the machine, but realized she was out of dishwasher soap. Knowing her mother had given her some dishwashing tablets to try, she searched her kitchen cabinets and pantry. After several minutes of frantic searching, she gave up and thought. Yes, she did. She shrugged and decided that, despite knowing one shouldn't, she put a couple of squirts of dishwashing liquid in her dishwasher and turned it on.

Me: "Oh, no you didn't. Did it work? I've always wondered that."

She went and took a shower while the machine was washing her dishes, and when she came out into her kitchen the entire floor was covered in bubbles. There wasn't any water on the floor, just bubbles. Everywhere. She had to clean up her kitchen...several times. Then she had to put her dishes through the rinse cycle. Four times. Then she had to leave for work and her husband had to put the dishes through the rinse cycle. Several more times.

Me: "OMG! On TV the bubbles always come pouring out of the dishwasher and I always wondered if that were true. You are such an idiot. Did you take pictures?"

SueG: 'No, I didn't take pictures. I was too busy cleaning up bubbles."

Me: "Because if you had taken pictures I could have blogged about it."

SueG: "Then I'm even more glad I didn't take pictures."

Me: "It doesn't matter. I'm going to blog it anyway. It's too good of a story."

The 2011-2012 TV Season

2011-10-06T20:19:00.000-04:00

The new TV season has been in swing for three weeks and I've tried to watch as many of the new shows that I can. I'm a drama queen so those are the shows I enjoy most. For the most part, I find most sitcoms silly, poorly scripted, and just plain crap, but I've missed some little gems like, How I Met Your Mother, so I'm branching out and giving it all a try. Here are my hits and misses thus far:

Mondays:

2 Broke Girls - I missed the first episode, but caught the second and wished that I hadn't. Stupid. Not funny. I actually like the character of Max and the actress playing her, but jeez there is no real plot and the dialogue and humor is nil. The whole thing, from the ugly waitress outfits and the Asian restaurant owner to the creepy cook and ding dong boyfriend just seemed wrong. I felt dirty after watching it. Rating: No Go.

The Playboy Club - This show is a look back in history when the Playboy Club was all the rage in Chicago in the 1960's. It stars LeeAnn Rimes' new husband, Eddie Cibrian, who is one nice looking hunk with dimples. The girls are all actresses that I've never seen anywhere else, but who are interesting and not bad. The storyline is the typical mob storyline, but then that is the the time when these mob stories started so I forgive them that. I enjoy the drama and am interested. Rating: Keeper

Two and a Half Men - Yes, I know this one isn't really new, but it actually is almost. Now that Charlie Sheen is gone, replaced by Ashton Kutcher, it has a new storyline so I gave it a try. I watched this show before in reruns during the summer, and although the humor is juvenile, I found it entertaining. Unfortunately, the "new" version isn't. Despite Chuck Lorre's attempts and Ashton Kutcher's gorgeous face and body, this was a show made for Charlie Sheen and his character. Without that it is just another poor sitcom with bad, prepubescent humor. Are writers not learning anything from Modern Family? Rating: No Go

Tuesdays:

New Girl - I enjoyed Zooey Deschanel in 500 Days of Summer so I thought this was one I might enjoy. It started off rough, but in the premiere when the three guys left their big party to make sure Jess was alright I decided it was sweet and I'd give it another go. Zooey is cute, although the big glasses to make her less attractive is so not necessary, but I do love the singing thing she has going on. The skinny guy who takes off his shirt all the time is too Axel from The Middle, but I liked the other two guys a lot (then they go up and change one character by the second episode).. Rating: Keeper View

Unforgettable - First of all, the premise of this show is actually fresh, not to mention real life. It is about a homicide detective with hyperthymesia, a condition in which the person remembers everything that has every happened in his life. I was fascinated in hearing about it so I did some research on hyperthymesia and found that it does exist, only about 10 people in the world have it, and that actress Marilu Henner is one of them. Then I found out she is a consultant on this show and I thought that genius. It wasn't the best of writing or plot, but it has potential. Rating: Keeper

Wednesdays:

Suburgatory - My first thought in watching the beginning of this show was how strange it was that this girl would actually listen to her father and leave college because he demanded it. Then I realized she was suppose to be in high school and I thought, really, they couldn't have found an actress that looks like she belongs in high school? That right there threw the whole thing for me. The humor is typical sitcom humor that we've seen thousands of times. I hated the whole plastic, blonde, boob-job mom cliche along with the one character that doesn't fit that mold ugly, and fat. I found Cheryl Hines' character interesting and I actually liked the Dad. By the end of the show I was a little conflicted on whether or not I would watch it again as I laughed at some of it and liked the ending. I may try it once more. Rating: Hmmmmm

Revenge - A good one here. I caught this one a week late On Demand and was so happy that I did. Good mystery with the past and the present. Interesting storyline and certainly interesting characters. It got me thinking afterwards, and I was disappointed that I had to wait until the next episode. I'm not sure how they will keep this show past a year, and I would be greatly impressed if it was around only for one year, but I'm sure if it is ratings gold it will continue on until it ruins it. The second show wasn't as good as the premiere, too pat for my tastes, but I'm still wondering what she will do next. Rating: A Keeper

Up All Night - Not exactly sure how this sitcom plans to continue with its storyline of being tired because their baby keeps them awake, but I don't plan to find out. While I like Christine Applegate and think her hubby actor is nice to look at I didn't care for the show. The only humor I found in it was when they decided they shouldn't bleep curse in front of the bleep baby. The rest of it was about a couple that I couldn't relate to, and I didn't care for Maya Rudolph's character at all. I never felt the need to go back to my earlier life after Madison was born. I certainly didn't go out and party all night long drinking til I puked while someone else took care of my baby til the wee hours of dawn. The next episode's previews looked a bit better, but I think there are other things I'd rather watch on this night.Nah. Rating: Catch it in reruns

Free Agents - Don't ask me what this show is about because I haven't a clue. Two people who have lost in love have a one night stand and they work together. The dialogue and plot was so bad that I gave up midway through. Even my husband agreed. Rating: No Go

Thursdays:

Charlie's Angels - I started this one late at night and hated it immediately. I thought the blond chick was the worst actor ever. I thought Charlie's voice sounded like a used car salesman or an announcer on a TV show. I hated the young Bosley. By the time Minka Kelly entered the picture I thought how she must really hate this job as she is so far above this show in everything. I stopped watching it and went to bed. I eventually finished it and thought it wasn't as bad as I had first thought. I still hate Charlie, but Bosley is easy on the eyes. I like the African American girl and I love Minka Kelly. Still not a big fan of the blond as she comes across as too pompous for me. Might try one more week of this before making a decision. Rating: Undecided

Person of Interest -I didn't really get the whole machine thing that spits out these names of people that are in some kind of trouble, but it is an interesting concept. Apparently this computer program tells this millionaire guy who developed it the name of a person who is connected to a violent crime. Unfortunately it does not tell him whether the person is a victim or the perpetrator, which I didn't know in the beginning and which was what made this show suddenly more interesting. The millionaire somehow finds an ex-CIA guy who is presumed dead and hires him to help figure everything out. The storyline seemed too easily wrapped up, but it was entertaining. Rating: Give it A Go

Whitney - I missed the first episode of this sitcom, but caught the preview that my cable company offered with Whitney and the actor playing her husband introducing some of the scenes. I thought it funny enough that I caught the episode the second time around. I think the preview was funnier then the show. I agreed with Kelly that although the show is filmed in front of a live audience they still used a laugh track which was just plain weird. Rating: No Go

Prime Suspect - So far the best new show on TV. I love Maria Bello's character. I love her rawness, her humor, her serious intensity to her job, and her love for those she cares about. I found the storyline good and plausible. I thought it far superior to any other new show. Highly recommend it. Rating: Keeper

Fridays:

A Gifted Man - Enjoyed this one. Patrick Wilson is the son of our local newscaster so I wanted to support him. I liked his character, thought he played the uptight surgeon well, and he is nice to look at. Like the story of his ex-wife's ghost coming to him so that he can help her finish up some things in her past life. Like the Anton character who wants to help the doc understand the other world. And really, let's face it, he is a brain surgeon and I certainly can relate to that having played on myself when I wear my scrubs. Rating: A Keeper

I still have Pan Am on the DVR and am looking forward to Grimm and Once Upon A Time. Read today that The Playboy Club has already been cancelled due to low ratings (really? we only give it three weeks?) so here we go already. Every new show I get hooked into watching tends to be cancelled so that's why I tried to watch as many of the new ones as I could. Also tried some old shows that I hadn't watched, but so far nothing stands out as great. Here's hoping some good ones emerge and stay around a few years!