No Such Thing As Untrainable???

Let me start out by saying how smart my friends are. Three week in a row winners at Trivia. I do need to say I wasn't over joyed at the booing session. Jealous snobs!

I'm old so I've worked a lot of years already. I somehow always manage to end up in the position of training others. People either train well, or they don't. It's all in their willingness to learn. I can usually tell if someone is just going through the motions and really doesn't care. You have the one's that are nervous of every move they make. Then you have the "I got it, I don't need you" people. Some people just take a little longer to catch on but once they grasp it, then they do well. It's funny when I tell them to give it time and all of a sudden it will click. What we do isn't that hard but it can also be a chain reaction. The group I work with now all work well together, all help each other out. Between another girl and I we've trained everyone on the line in the past year.

We have now come to training who we refer to as Dorey (finding Nemo). She's a nice girl but it took a long time to train her in the other 3 areas of the line. In order for Dorey to get a wage increase she must now learn to operate the machine. A few weeks ago I was given that task. Now this girl has been on this line for 9 months so you would think she knows what's going on. Quite wrong. She's knows her own little world of her own little work area. Don't get me wrong, she is all about doing everything right. To the point that she will ask the same questions every day.
I worked with her on operating the machine for one week. Nothing sunk in. I asked another guy to work with her just to see if he could get through...one day. On to the next guy...4 hours and he was ready to pull his shiny thick Korean hair out of his head. In his broken English he told me " THis is shit...she can't learn, I think she is , how you say...untrainable." I almost peed my pants laughing so hard. This poor guy was a nervous wreck. I asked him if he could try again tomorrow and after rolling his eyes he said "She will forget everything by tomorrow". This is most likely true. She sure does put a lot of effort into not being able to remember things from day to day. That's the problem here...a lot of effort with no results. This girl went as far as putting a post-it note saying "Stop" on the stop button so she would remember where it was. Untrainable or not?

White Death

I was leaving work today when I was told to watch out for "White Death" tonight. I chuckled to the guy who said it to me and then had to listen to him for 5 minutes ,while almost in tears ,complaining how they canceled a basketball game he was going to attend. I need to learn to keep going when funky comments are made. I dislike the weather we've been given this winter just as much as the next guy but I'll be damned if it's going to ruin my life. This guy was upset. When I asked if it was a Bucks or Marquette game he replied that it was his son's High School Basketball game. Not that it wasn't an important event. He was upset because they rescheduled it for this weekend and he has other plans. Guess it's not that important than right?

Another chapter in the saga of brother-in-law has opened. He's been having some stomach pains for the past week or so. They spent 7 hours in the emergency room on Saturday just to be sent home with some medicine to clear his bowels. At 5am Monday they were back in the ER and at 7pm last night they removed his appendix. The guy is in some pain as there is infection from this all inside the cavities including the shunt they put in to drain his brain fluid. Now it's a waiting game again. They started him out on some hefty antiobiotics hoping this will clear the infection but the shunt is plastic which will probably need to be replaced. They want to clear the infection before changing it. Hopefully...yes the good doctor said hopefuly, the infection will not travel to his brain. When he said that my sister-in-law and I both looked at each other and must have had the same thought. This guy has had every issue they hoped wouldn't happen. It'll happen. The simple operation to remove the appendix which would have him home in a day has now been stretched out to 7-10 days.

On a lighter note, today was the first day in about a month that we actually ran a full day of production. Despite the fact that we had no boxes to put our produced rolls into we ran anyway. I think I will begin to follow the strict morale of "It's not my problem". Let's see how much of a raise that'll get me.

Mourning is Over

I took some good advice on Monday and did not watch the news or look at the newspaper. No one who called me Monday discussed the Packers. By the time I went back to work on Tuesday it was out of everyone's system. There is one guy who is still brooding over it. I think he may have lost some big money.

I have been in a football pool at work for several years now. I've always won a fair amount of times. This year sucked. I won 1 pre-season game, 1 instant and one regular season game total. I'm hoping the Superbowl is my last chance to recoupe my weekly contribution. This guy at work has made an excel sheet and I told him he should graph it out as I'm sure that my name would be way beyond in the red. On a lighter note I did win $$ from another pool several times so in the long run I am ahead.

Like our friend STB we make trips to my husbands mother's house to shovel. Why, you ask? Because my sister-in-laws lazy kids that live downstairs need a swift kick in the ass. This has been a problem for several years now. When we lived in the unit below her my kids who were much younger than her's would shovel, no problem. The next family that moved in took care of it. These kids are just plain lazy and uncaring. Mom-in-law walks with a cane and they will clear a path wide enough for a rabbit to get through. What is bothersome is that she carts one to school every day and the 19 year old boy to work. The other morning rather than get a free ride to work by shoveling so she could get to the garage he took a cab. This boy had $20.00 to blow on a cab for a job that would have taken him 15 mintues tops. We've all been over there and proded their lazy butts outside. Last Christmas I even purchased shovels for them (a sore subject on their part). At least this year they stopped calling to find out when Arnie would be over with the snowblower. We used to keep one at their house but it was destroyed when they left the dogs chain on the sidewalk and ran it over with the snowblower. No cost to them to repair. I'm just trying to figure out how these kids just have a plain lack of respect for their grandmother who does so much for them. I see a butt kicking coming on! Who's got my back?

He Needs To Move

Yes, it's cold outside. We live in Wisconsin where it's cold every winter. The last few years we've been robbed of a true fall season. It's hot and then all of a sudden it's frigid. This year I do believe we had our fall in late November and for a few days earlier in January.

Every year for the past five or so years I've listened to my husband complain about winter and how he needs to move to a warmer climate. I'm pretty sure he has a five year plan to move to Arizona. Then I know for sure that from May until October I'll have to listen to "It's fucking hot out there". I know the perfect plan would be to live there from November until late April and here for the summer months, but that's not in the cards unless we win the lottery. Like I said, that's not in the cards.
In the past we talked about moving there but I'm not sure that's what I want. My parents made the move about 15 years ago. They were going to give it a year. I know my dad would move back here in a heartbeat as he misses all of us. My mom is a person who cannot change from her routine. I can remember she had a cleaning schedule and to a tee washed the floors at the same time, on the same day forever.
She has a hard time adjusting whenever they come up to visit and I swear she's packing to go home as soon as she unpacks. It's nice out there but I'm not sure it's where I want to live. It's always nice to visit another place and I know we've all thought about moving elsewhere, but would that change once you set up house and possibly had to work?

We had an invite to my son's house for dinner tonight. A good time was had. He's quite the cook and made some great Mexican food. Gas boy is downstairs now wallowing in his fumes. While at my son's I opted to take on Dylan in Madden 08. I don't want to get picked on but I'm not real familiar with PS2 or We or any of the newer game systems. The last time I played any of that stuff was when the kids still lived at home. So this little snot thinks he's going to forget to show me a few things. I get sacked and this little voice says " oops Grandma I forgot to show you that". When we were leaving I told him to pack up the game and system and I would take it home over the weekend and practice my skills. This kids face turned green. His dad said get the stuff for your Grandma. I had to remind him of all the things he got from my house in the past 8 years. In the end I couldn't do it. By the time I got it down pat there would be a new system anyway.

Hope everyone stays warm this weekend. Dress well for the deep freeze!

We Rock!

First place in the Team Trivia! $50.00 richer. Thanks to the stainless steel answer by Ben and the dipstick help from my hubbie. Could use a little help with the sports but we managed to win. We won't talk about scratching Arthur from the answers and loosing a few points.
Got to sample a new snack sample which I have to say was mighty tasty. Fried mac & cheese squares.
What more can you ask for..bucket night, a trivia win and a tasty snack.

Boring, Boring, Boring

Our line at work has been down since last week. We've been unable to run due to:
#1- lack of materials
#2- technical work being done to our line
#3- lack of knowledge by the technician doing the work.

In the 7 years I've worked there it was normal to have a lull once or twice a year. This was the time they spent cleaning, painting and doing inventory. We've now run out of things to clean. My new job this week is to go over Work Instructions and safety items. The problem is that there is one computer out on the floor to be used by several people. I could use the one in the office but that would entail walking back and forth to the line a million times a day to review these work instructions with others. I don't mind an idle day once in a while but this is not going to end until maybe Monday. We were urged to take vacation days but who the hell is going to take a week off in January unless they have the money to go some where warm? I'm telling you, I am in the wrong industry.

Chef Arnie whipped up some yummy home made pizzas yesterday. In the midst of cooking one of them my brand new pizza stone broke in the oven. Thankfully the pizza was saved. The stone has been quickly replaced by Pampered Chef but I'm a little nervous about trying it again.

Although I appreciate when my husband cooks I chuckle at the mess he makes. I can cook a full meal and contain the mess. He's got shit spread out all over the place. It more so looks like a war zone when he's cooking. He also cannot be disturbed. There's a lot of thinking that goes into making a meal. So I left him alone yesterday. I proceeded to complete the painting project I started Sunday. He was home by 3:10 and started right in. At 515 I had to question the estimated time of delivery to the table. The downside being that I was hungry. My orange and jello I ate at 1130 wasn't holding me over. I just wanted one fricken slice of pizza. By 530 it was done. Although good, the crust was just a little to crispy for my liking.
He did also attempt a small pie pan sized stuffed pizza. He needs work with that. I look forward to his next attempt.

Things To Do When You Can't Sleep

Every once in awhile I can't sleep. I can't blame it on my husbands snoring as since he lost weight he is now pretty much a silent sleeper. I'm one of those people who can't have it completly quiet as then I hear every small noise in the house. So I usually have the tv or radio on. Once I fall asleep I'm good unless something wakes me up. I'm screwed then as I have a hard time falling back to sleep. Then I wander around. I get up get a drink of water, look outside, play a computer game, attempt to do something that will tire me out and get me back to sleep. Sometimes I just give up and stay awake. Tonight (or should I say ) this morning I flicked through tv programs. Watched a few paid programs and wondered how many of these people really used the so called product they're trying to sell. Then I got to True Life where I watched 3 poverty stricken teens. Half way through the show I was becomming irate with the stupidity of all 3 of them. Here's a clue..not one of them had a job!. One girl was living with a bunch of people who constantly stole what little money she had. Duh...bank. She had a waitress job but dropped a joint in front of her boss and he fired her. Duh...leave that shit at home, don't take it to work. Case #2- boy on probation trying to get into the Army. Parents are poor and being evicted. Boy really giving it a shot at studying for his GED to get into the army. Hello...you're on probation for 2 years. Get a job, study and try the army when you're off probation. I had enough of that show and flicked over to............Leave It To Beaver, where I learned the importance of telling the truth rather than sneaking around. That friend of his "Gilbert" tried to lead him toward a life of crime. Ward busted him out before he could get any further. June was proud and Wally tried to suck up to Ward as usual.
I shall now attempt to get back to sleep.

Enough Already

In my eyes a headach should not last longer than it takes the medication you took for it to work. Sometimes it's 10-15 minutes after I pop a few asprin or whatever. Last night while packing away Christmas items I had one come one. The one where you see spots. The "drop everything and run for the medicine cabinet one". Three hours later I still had it. By 11pm the spots went away but the dull ache was still there. That is how I woke up this morning. Re-medicated on went on my way. At least the spots were gone. This continued through out my day. Everytime I bent over or turned my head the dull ache was there. At lunch I popped a few asprin from the Company medicine chest and threw in a sinus tab for good measure. How bad could it be. By 2pm it was gone. It sucks working 7 of your 8 hour day with a nagging ache.

I've become so skilled as a painter that I can now phone paint. We took a little trip to Menards Sunday morning for a few things. Paint was not on the list. My husband should know better than to leave me alone to long at Menards. Ideas pop into my head. I roamed around the home decorating area and read a few brochures that were laying around. I bought 3 gallons of paint. He's lucky that he came along when he did or right now he'd be ripping up carpet and installing flooring. I was going to put off the painting but when I got home and felt a little bored I dragged out the stuff and began to paint my dining room. One stoke and the phone rang. Stupidly I did not look at the caller ID first. I winced when I heard the voice of my former roomie and good friend. This girl can talk! There is no cutting her off. So I listened, commented every once in awhile and proceeded to paint my entire dining room while on the phone. She was a little shocked when 2 1/2 hours later she said "I suppose I should let you go so you can paint" and I broke the news to her that I was already washing brushes. I have a hallway to paint...I may just call her this weekend.

Out With The Old

In With The New. Happy New Year Everyone!

2007 was a fairly good year. I was thinking back this morning to New Year's 2000 when everyone thought the world would come to an end. Our computers would crash, crazy things would happen and there was near panic. Life went on as it always does. We all somehow managed to make it to a new year. Good and bad things have happened. We lost loved ones and watched little ones have birthdays. We've gained friends and watched some go through difficult times. We've grown closer to some friends and lost contact with others.

In our own family we lost an icon. My husbands uncle passed away early this year at 87 years old. He was sticken with polio at the age of 10 and not expected to live past 12. This man over came every obstacle thrown at him. He lived a great life and was an inspriation to all.

My brother-in-law had brain surgery on October 19th for a brain tumor. Things were a little messy and we spent a lot of time at the hospital and rehab visiting him. He was sent home on Thursday and is doing well. A few hours of week of Therapy is about all he should need now. Thanks to all of you for your well wishes and prayers.

My sister-in-law J is now one year cancer free as well as my mother. We are thankful and looking forward to the up coming years free calls.

We also lost some friends this year. May they rest in peace and forever know we miss them and are thinking of them.

We had a good camping season this past year. The Brewers played well and the Packers are on their way to the playoffs. Looking forward to the next few weeks being exciting. I chuckle as every year when the football season ends we mull over what to do from mid Feburary to the end of May when camping starts. Some how we always manage to be busy. We have a vacation planned and I will hopefully be taking my annual trek to Arizona the end of April to visit my parents. This is like my jump start to summer. Whether I go solo or someone comes along this year is up in the air.

There's household repairs on the list this upcoming year also. Our enclosed porch is in need or repair, the driveway cracks are getting bigger and I still need to get the spare (not really spare J) room turned into my hobby room. Guess it would help to find a hobby first. And, the roof that is partially shingled will need to be finished. This may all make the summer go by pretty quick.

So let's all think good things this year. The best of luck to everyone and enjoy a safe and Happy New Year.

Tragic Short Cut

I had some errands to run after work today which involved going into stores. Not for returns mind you but for a few birthday gifts for people whose birthdays just happen to fall this week. I then had to make a run to Goodwill due to my cleaning frenzy yesterday. I opted for the short cut route from 35th & Layton to 27th and Rawson. I hate 27th Street between the hours of 330 and 6pm. So I did the little cut through on side streets to get there. Big mistake. First of all I had to go a block out of my way due to a water main break and when cutting back down another block had to pull over for an ambulance. I was going the same way and came upon where the ambulance was headed for. It appeared to be a body covered up laying by a driveway approach. There were 3 men standing around the body and one car close by with it's headlights on. At first glance (I wasn't gawking, I had to stop to let the ambulance pull up to the house)it appeared as though the car may have hit the person. Then I saw that it was a little icy in the driveway approach. May have been that the person slipped. These things make me sad. One could tell it wasn't the body size of a child so I'm guessing elderly person maybe.

As I drove away I thought if the person was hit this could explain the pulled over car. This person may have just taken responsibility rather than flee. I'm sure most of you read about or heard about the couple that was hit on Christmas Day while getting presents out of their car. The driver never stopped but has been located now. Even without hearing the entire story , there is no excuse. You will get caught eventually so going home and hoping you sober up isn't going to help you out.
We're taught not to pass judgement on people but how can you not in a case like that?

Going back to work today sucked! Although I may not have done much at home today it would have been nice to have another day. I might have tackeled the basement and then my husband would have really freaked. He didn't go through any of the boxes I had packed for Goodwill yesterday but he did ask what I did with the stuff on his dresser. I had to tell him that it just looked cleaner as the dust had been removed. I put everything back on it. He was growing some kind of dust farm up there. I do think he may have taken stock of the flannel as I heard no cussing when he went into his closet.

Stop This Insanity

For many years I have taken the week of Christmas off. Just this thing of relaxing after the holiday. This year I was lacking vacation time therefore only took today off. I had a plan. I was going to relax, maybe watch some movies, catch up on some laundry and take it easy. My head started ticking last night. I could really use to clean out some junk. I was going to do this a while back and put a stop to it as I thought maybe we could have a rummage sale and rid ourselves of some crap. Never got around to that.
It is now 12:30 and I am on the third bag of stuff to haul to Goodwill. This is only from two closets and part of the kitchen. Anything I haven't worn in the past two years is in the bag. As I stood in front on my husbands closet and viewed his collection of flannel shirts I used my better judgement and shut the closet door. My God what was I thinking? I would never be able to get even one out without him noticing. I did dig around a little and found two pair of gloves that he frantically searched for this season. Dare I tell him? No, then he would know I was in there. I just moved them to the top of the stack of crap in his closet with hope that he may notice them.
We have a program (5S) starting at work this year. I was given all the books to study up on it and will be one of the elected persons to start this program. It basically instructsyou on how to rid the workplace of un-needed items. There is a holding area for items you are not sure of or not ready to part with. At work we have begun tagging things to either hold or throw away. In the book it explains that usually the holding area turns into a big mess and you end up getting rid of everything in the end. It's just a safe zone for junk collectors. They also mention in the book that this program will rub off on people and they will begin to use it in their personal lives. Hello! Our safe zone items are in the bag. I also have several boxes that I need to haul up from the basement. I can assure you that someone will be digging through the boxes as he's loading them into my truck. I must be present to make sure none of this gets back in.
Must get back to work. I'm loosing valuable time. The desk I'm sitting at is the next thing on my list. (not the desk itself..just the crap piled up on it.)

Merry Christmas

Here's hoping everyone had a Merry Christmas. I always get that "whew" I got it all done feeling once all the gifts are open and the hub bub is just about over. We had the traditional breakfast with the kids, grandkids and mother-in-law this morning. The food was good as everyone was here on time this year. (no crispy, burnt offerings to be had).
My daughter has twins and although I try to get them different things I've found that they like the same things. They were the highlight of the day. They had asked for the set of Little House On The Prarie books and I was able to find them online. They'll watch to see what the other one got and get a little jealous so when the book opening came the one was almost in tears as she didn't think she got the same thing. Joking around I remarked that I figured they could share. It appears that she didn't really want to read them. She wanted to save the set unopened so she could someday give them to her kids. When I told her that the books were around since I was little the look on her face was priceless. I had to take her and show her that I still had them.
We also got each of the kids digital camera's and were subjected to a lot of posing for the rest of the day. All in all the day went well.
Last night was our family gathering and Ben & J's house. This was also a good time. No family fights, good food, and holiday cheer. My parents had bought each family a set of silverware which some of us were confused about. When I talked to my mom she said she did it so we'd always have something to remember them by. This cracked me up a bit as I said "Yeah Mom, I'm going to pick up my fork and burst into tears someday." It's a nice set and the thought was truely there.
So now we're off for our last stop of Christmas. Brother in law is home for the day and we're going to visit for a bit. He's been out the past 3 days on a day pass and is doing very well. He may only need a week or so more and he'll be able to come home. The doctors wants to make sure he doesn't take a step back after the holidays. It was great to see her so happy also.
Hope everyone had a Merry Christmas..

Woudolph The Wed Nosed Wiendeer

Two little bits of cuteness came to my door tonight. Door bell rang, dog went nuts and I didn't see anyone at the door. At first I thought it was prank but then thought I should open the door just in case UPS left a package. Upon opening the door I spotted two little girls who immeidatly started singing their carefully practiced Christmas Carol. They sang their little hearts out with no coaching from their mother, my sister. Dressed in pink they were the picture of all that is good. My crappy day was made brighter. I love that they didn't miss a beat. I love that the 4 year old Tori did not look at me but directly at the Christmas lights on my porch and Savannah the younger sister looked me right in the eye while singing. After a quick visit to check out my tree and get a cookie of their choice and one for dad who was waiting in the car they were off to their next stop. "Yet's dough Mom, Daddy's in da van" and they vanished.

Do people still go Christmas Caroling? This was big when I was young. The neighborhood parents would get all the kids together, bundle us up and we'd go to quite a few houses on the block and sing away. We'd get pennies, cookies and sometimes hot chocolate. I know we did this for a few years but when we moved it stopped. Of course when we moved it was also a little remote for the first 5 or so years. In my early teens a group of us went but that died off. I can only recall once in my adult life that carolers came to our door. Must be a thing of the past as I guess you never know who you may "offend" by appearing at their door. It seems as if it's left to school or church groups visiting nursing homes. This is good as they probably appreciate this much more then others do.

Today was the shortest day of the year. The first day of winter. Apparently we got a little head start on that with all the snow and cold. Of course now that it warmed up a tad we have a river running down our driveway. By this time tomorrow with the falling temperature we will have a nice ice rink. Hopefully my husband can get some of the snow off our porch roof before we get hit again. If not we may be shut in's when the roof caves in. I have the notion to bring in all my Christmas cookies just in case. Hate to be running out then during the cave in to save the cookies. I don't think I'd be able to explain the loss of the sacred peanut butter balls to my family.

Squeak, Squeak, Squeak

Ahh...Christmas. Time for shopping, wrapping, baking, decorating and Christmas Concerts. This year my grandchildren ( the twins) had a band concert at their school which was actually called a Christmas Concert. My daughter and I noticed while walking through the school hallways that they had various decorations up. Christmas trees, stars and Santa Claus. Last year it was called the "Holiday Concert". Not sure of the reasons for the change but I welcomed it.

I stopped at their house before the concert to see the new puppy. Bella is a 10 month old black lab that they adopted from the humane society. Actually all their current pets have been adopted. Cute little puppy and well behaved.

The girls were being preped for the concert. Hair combing, clothing check, shoes changed to match the outfits. They were nervous and of course admitted to not practicing their violins much. We assured them that they'd be fine and off we went.

I have many heart warming memories from seeing my kids in concerts. From my son nearly falling off the top step on the stage while goofing off to my daughter with her solo "Let's go Fly A Kite" slightly off key. Besides my brothers daughter who was somehow gifted with a beautiful singing voice no one in this family can carry a tune.

I now have another cherished memory to add. Four Christmas songs plus "Hot Crossed Buns" played by 6 children on violins with the band instructor playing along. There were more squeaks then one can fathom but it was heart warming none the less. They all looked so nervous but yet totally concentrated on their performance. This was better then some high class costly concert. Actually it did end up costing me as there was a trip to Culvers afterwards. I look forward to next years.

Brother in law is making progress in the rehab center. Not sure if he'll make it out by Christmas but happy that he's finally getting the help he needed. She went back to work this week, a break she really needed. Things may finally be on the up and up.

Looking forward to meeting some friend for a little Christmas get together this Saturday. I need a beer! It's been a while. I'm not supposed to be on the 12 step program. Just haven't had time lately.

Getting Things Done

This weekend was very productive for me. For some reason this year I was very behind in holiday "chores". The shopping is 98% done, the tree is up and decorated and I have lists laying around for the rest of the things I need to get done by next weekend.

For the past 10 or so years the woman folk in my family have gotten together the weekend before Christmas for cookie baking. We've pretty much gotten everything down to a basic science now. The cut-outs are all baked up prior to the day and several doughs are mixed up ahead of time and ready to go. My middle sister used to work for a bakery so she's all about the frosting and which one we should use. Of course you have a choice as one hardens quickly but doesn't taste very good but the other is quick to harden but tastey. We ususally let the kids decorate the cookies so unlike the pain stakingly decorated cookies, ours are more imaginative. Some how yesterday when I got around to decorating there was only one cookie left. Something tells me that my family knows my artistic talent therefore keeps me busy so I don't get near the table other than to clean it up.

I haven't been in to much of a Christmas mood up until yesterday. The cookie thing at my sisters and then my daughter and her girls coming back to my house to make a few other things may have finally gotten me in the mood. I hate when decorating or baking feels like a chore. One should do it because they are in the spirit, not because they feel they have to.

Like my friend Peve, I'm not really into wrapping presents. Maybe it's because I'm yet to find a scissors that cuts good. This year I ended up using the scissors that came with my set of knives. That thing rocked. Mental not to myself not to let my husband near it or it will then be in the same shape the rest of my scissors are in. I'm not quite sure what he cuts with them but after he uses a pair I may as well toss them. I bought a lot of gift bags and tissue paper this year. This cut down the wrapping a little. There are just some things that you can't stuff into a bag and pass off as not being lazy.

Pretty good Packer game today except for the last field goal which took the pool I was on the track to win, out of my reach. Not doing to good in that this year. I did catch pretty much of the last half of the Cowboy's game. I really though they'd pull it off in the final few minutes.

Well let's all hunker down for the longest work week of the year. Somehow to me the week prior to Christmas seems to drag on forever.

My brother-in-law is now out in Waterford in a speciality rehab center. He seems to be doing quite well except for still having some confusion.

He's Spent

I am often very amused by my husband. I should end this here but I feel I must share this particular story. It appears that he decided to do some shopping last night. He called me around 4:30 ish to let me know he was at Southridge and he'd be shopping for a bit. He figured he'd only be able to take about an hour or so. True to his word he was home by 6. It was then that I got to hear the perils of Christmas shopping. Apparently he's bothered by the crowds and as he puts it "stupid people". The first thought that came to my mind was "he's a stroller. I can't imagine him in a crowd moving fast" (unless of course it's to get on the bus to exit Summerfest). I could picture the sceniro in my head. The big guy strolling through the mall and people passing him. Maybe he got bumped into a few times. It gave me a little chuckle.
I then started to think about all the shopping I've done. I also hate crowds but you have to go with the flow. Keep the pace. Be prepared at the checkout so as not to hold up a line of people because you picked up the one thing without a price tag. The checkout line is not the time to haggle over getting a few bucks off something as it has a small spot to pull in it. Do that with the department person or go to Customer Service. Know where your check book or card are. Have your 15% off coupon readily accessible and know the location of your driver's liscense. Don't bitch at the cashier for asking for ID. This is for your own protection. Expect that the parking lot is going to be packed.
My husband spent 3 hours one Sunday evening Christmas shopping with me. This was probably 1/4 of our shopping. I mentioned when he called last night from the mall that his mother's birthday is next week and maybe he should look for something for her. He forgot. He'll think about what to get her. Funny, he has not purchased a gift for her on his own in 23 years. Sometimes I'm nice and tell him about it before she opens the gift. She always hugs him first. She's a bright woman and she knows damn well he was clueless.
Don't get me wrong, he is a thoughtful shopper and buys great gifts that are meaningful. He's not an impulse buyer and he is a bargin shopper. I'm not into driving 5 miles extra to save a buck when it cost me 2 to drive there. A lot of my stops are made on my way home from work. I'm a little route planner. Kind of like a junior Cruise Director. I urge all of you who read J's blog to apply for the assistant job. I hear she has great benefits.

Broker Than When I Left

They got it all....All my money. Despite the fact that there wasn't much to do but gamble, it could have been worse. I spent no more that I planned on. I did manage to hit on two different machines, but rather than pocket that it got sucked right back into another one. Unlike J I just couldn't find the right machine. I did play for over 2 hours on a nickle poker machine with a $10.00 investment. Although the outcome was bad I was amused for 2 hours. At this point I felt the need to remove myself from that area which was close to the stage where the band was. Not quite sure of their real name but J's dad had nicknamed them Booger Snots and the Hanker Chiefs.
Made the trek to the Farmin Inn with good food as usual. Saturday we were going to venture to another casino but the snow was coming down pretty good. We opted to not risk it and return to our place. I do need to find out for Kim and myself what the shiny stuff is that they spray on an omelet. It almost appears to be some type of wax or oil.
On my weekly listening to Leroy Butler the DJ's were talking about an interesting email they received analyzing the Packers loss to the Cowboys. This person apparently believes that the Packers lost on purpose. Kind of like tricked they Cowboys into thinking they are not a very good team. See, and then the plan is to kick butt in the playoffs. Leroy was asked if this was true. He never hesitated before saying a flat out "NO". I chuckled listening to the letter and conversation afterward. I find it interesting that some people cannot just accept the fact that the Packers did not play well and lost..rather than make up excuses or reasons for it. Did the coaching staff plan for Brett to get injured to make it even worse? This guy's email was also about Woodson sitting out when he looked perfectly fine to play. In his eyes this was part of the ultimate plan. Let's just take it one game at a time. Anything can happen.
Happy Shoveling out in the morning everyone!

Off To The Woods

We're taking a little "mid-winter" trip this weekend to visit the Indian Casino up north. Nice place, small and I usually do okay. As always it's fun to people watch. Let's see how many chain smoking little old ladies require my assistance in putting their money in. Can't figure out how to insert the money or card but these broads can push the buttons like there is not tomorrow. This day just happens to fall on our anniversary to so a big win would certainly help that celebration along.

Brother-in-law is still in the hospital. Last word yesterday is that the CAT scan showed almost normal. He wasn't quite as confused. Let's just home he continues on this road.

So, the Packers lost to the Cowboys. It was a good game to watch...until Brett was out. That made it more interesting as #12 hasn't played much. I got a kick out of sitting at a machine which happened to be near a table of younger folk. The comments that were coming out were keeping me quite amused. "The assholes been on the bench all season so far. You think he'd get out on the field and do something", as he scrambles for a first down. She was a hoot...that is until she glared at my friend the Cowboy fan.

In my special message to my friend..Congratulations to your boys. Let's breath a sigh of relief that tattoos aren't quite as bad as a body piercing.

Click....Done

In the past it was a huge deal for my two sister-in-laws and myself to wake at the crack of dawn on Black Friday and hit the stores. Over the past few years it has dwindled to hitting the stores later in the day to maybe not going at all. We never really came home with a lot. Just people watching was fun in itself.

After prodding my son for gift suggestions yesterday, of course he shows me something from Kohl's that he wants that is a good deal in the Early Bird special. I read the fine print. Some of these items are available on-line but only during these hours. Hell if I was getting up a 4am. So last night around midnight I logged on to find that it was in fact on sale then. With my 15% off and free shipping it was well worth the click of the finger verses the trip to the store.

My brother-in-law has managed to take another turn for the worse. He woke up yesterday confused and agitated. Sister-in-law D spent a good part of the day trying to convince herself that he was not himself and to not let what he was saying affect her. She's a strong girl and managed to make it until around 4pm before she chucked it in and went home. She unplugged his phone first to assure he wouldn't make any phone calls. Earlier in the day she had left him for a few minutes and he had phoned his mother begging her to come and get him. This set off a round of events that occurred when I should have been mashing the spuds.

Today will be another CT scan as the area in his head where the shunt was put in is swollen. This could be a possible build up of brain fluid again. She had 12 hours of him being somewhat back to normal. She's thankful for that little bit.

Our family Thanksgiving turned out well. Good food, no arguments..good company and my son directed the clean up. J (Annette) was a huge help. We won't mention my husband waited until the last dish was done and the kitchen cleaned up before showing up with his dirty plate. From the sinister grin on his face one would think he planned this out.

Happy Day

Although one should be thankful on a daily basis we sometimes look at Thanksgiving Day as the day we should give thanks. My brother-in-law had yet another surgery today and the call I got an hour ago was one of joy. I have been friends with my sister-in-law for 34 years. We've been through a lot together. Our weddings, the birth of our children, a loss of a child for them, my divorce, my marriage to A, the death of her parents, the list goes on. For some reason their life together has been somewhat of what I'd consider a test. A test of love and a test of faith. There were times when she'd be so discouraged but then buck up and deal with things. Yesterday when she told me he had to go back in she sounded so down. They found a kink in the shunt that the doctor had put in from his brain to his stomach. Luckily the kink was in the stomach area. They tested the shunt by injecting die through it after the surgery and found it to now be working properly. She did not know what to expect when he came to as he's been very confused for about a month now. The man woke up knowing things he has not been able to remember for a month. Her and I were bawling over the phone. We can only hope that he moves forward from here. For this glimmer of hope I thank God.
Of course this got me to thinking...this can sometimes be dangerous. But in this case it's all for the good. I compiled a list in my head of things I'm thankful for but I took a little different route:

I bitch about going to work everyday..but I'm thankful that I wake up each day and that I have a job.
I bitch about cooking..but I'm thankful that we have money to buy food and a home to cook it in.
I bitch about aches and pains..but I'm thankful that I can feel them.
I bitched about all our boarders but I'm thankful that I could help each and everyone of them out.
I bitch about the price of gas..but I'm thankful that I have a vehicle to drive
I bitch about my husband..but I'm thankful that I have someone to share my life with.
I bitch about my parents living so far away..but I'm thankful that they are still able to enjoy their lives.
I bitched about my ex-husband but I'm thankful that I married him as without doing so I would not have the children I do.
I bitch about snow-but thankful that it paints such a pretty picture.
I bitch about mosquitoes when camping-but thankful that we have such a great time with good friends.

Things I'm just plain thankful for:

For the most part my family is in good health. Those that have had illness's are with us today.
My children and grandchildren. What a joy! I'm thankful that I now get to hear my kids scold their kids for the same things they did and I can secretly chuckle.
My husband-there are no words to express how thankful I am.
I'm thankful that my brother was divorced twice otherwise I wouldn't have the wonderful sister-in-law I have now.
I'm thankful for my upbringing. My parents did right by us.
I am thankful for each and every one of my friends. You are all special to me.
I'm thankful that I have a family to share tomorrow with. (even though I get to cook)
I'm thankful that they eat my cooking and don't wince when I'm looking.

There was a time in my life when things were just plain rotten. The days I didn't want to get out of bed. I am thankful that my father gave me the lecture of my life as I truly believe that he put me on the right track.

Happy Thanksgiving! Enjoy your day.