Sorry....In Advance

In a few hours we're heading out for a much anticipated, much needed weekend away. The chosen spot is once again Green Bay. I'm going with a positive attitude that I will leave the Casino with more money that I came with. Although I would like to repeat the fun I had last year, I don't want to repeat the ride home. Let's just say the boys got us drunk. Hence the drunk dialing. I will apologize in advance for any calls that may be made Sunday. Seeing as my parents don't read my blog I will have to deal with them on Monday.

I'm a little shocked that Sadie isn't on to us yet. There are bags and coolers sitting by the door which usually sparks something in her. As I'm typing she's laying next to my chair snoring away. This has me a bit concerned as normally she'd be pacing and wondering if she was going to her hotel or to my daughter's house. She has been slowing down a bit lately but I try not to think about that. She's only 9. It still seems like we just got her. Cute little puppy that peed on me on the ride home. You would think she is sensing the cats are not here and trying to get all the love and attention.

I hope the rest of you enjoy Superbowl weekend. I'm sure we'll be calling!

Big Day For The Boys Tomorrow

Yes, the mean lady is taking the cats in for a fixin and declawing. I walked downstairs after work today and found Barney talking to both of them. I figure he feel's their pain or something. Seeing as they are starting to scratch their claws on everything downstairs they will be taken care of.

We still keep them downstairs during the day so coming home is sometime humorous. I've found Mitchell in the laundry basket a few times trying to claw his way out. We find things out of place or moved. They kept getting this goofy troll doll so I hid it in a box. Came home and found it in their bed. The best one was trying to figure out how they got the chain that hangs about 5 inches down from the ceiling. It was no where near a chair or table.

Mitchell will venture upstairs when we're home and has been exploring a little bit more each day. He's gone from hiding under the dining room table to jumping up on it. The squirt gun seems to have become ineffective with him, but a loud bang on the table works fine. Today he went as far as to try to eat Sadie's food. "Hey, if it's in a bowl and on the floor it's free game".
I tried to get a picture of this little cat (I don't think he's going to grow) eating out of the 71 lb. lab's bowl. Sadie goes downstairs and can gulp their food down in one second flat. I left the room for a minute and came back to find Mitchell siting in Sadie's water bowl. Must have felt the need to take a bath. The big Ragu will come up the steps but go no further. He's still a bit of a wimp. I'm hoping that tomorrow doesn't throw him completely out of whack.

The best part about this is that Barney will be delivering them to the vet for the butchering....I will be picking them up, so I'll be like the savior.

All Is Quiet

We had the kids and grand kids over for dinner last night which actually turned out pretty good. I say good as there were enough left-overs for my husband tonight. Then the grand kids all stayed over last night. Most of the night was taken up by twin #1 & Barney working on a school project for her. She had to make a musical instrument, so they were occupied with that the whole night. Twin #2 , Dylan and I decided to play a Wii game he got. After about 1 hour of watching them create their Wii people & pets I went and found something else to do. I'm not sure if I'm okay with the fact that they don't need me to help them anymore.

This morning I stood back as they made breakfast (french toast & sausage) and only needed to ask me a few questions. I should be happy with this right?? Although I did find out I was needed when it was time to do the dishes. Barney & twin #1 used the excuse that they still had work to do. #2 & Dylan used the " Well, I cooked the food" excuse. I guess I'm okay with that.

The rest of the day was spent Wii bowling, boxing (I kicked butt) tennis and then we decided to ski. I'm the mean grandma that actually makes them get off the couch to bowl. When the phone rang and one of the parents wondered if they were ready to come home yet they answered that they'd be ready around 5 or so. What???? I softened and let it go at that. We managed to get a movie in and the project was finished by 5. Had to check twin #2's jacket as she was leaving to make sure my cat wasn't in there. He took to her and followed her around all day. I think she may have had some remnants of french toast or syrup on her.

So now it's quiet. Sadie is pooped out and both the cat's are sleeping. Having them here took the boredom out of a winter weekend.

Not The Silver

This, I feel is worthy of sharing. Last night after a good meal with good friends at BW3's we opted to head home rather than hit the bar for a beer or two. My husband claimed that is was because it was to cold outside, but deep down inside I think he didn't want to wash off the spray paint in minus zero weather again.

I was kind of surfing through eBay and came across a silverware pattern that matched a set that my mom handed down to me. Awhile back she found it funny that I had kept it and told me I should try to sell it. I joked with her and told her that I was going to hang on to it until her and dad hit the nursing home and needed the bill paid for one month. Cruel daughter.

When finding this on eBay I decided to look into it further. I'm not planning on selling it I just was wondering the worth. I had the silverware case out on the dining room table and was looking at what pieces I had when Barney came up from downstairs. He walked past it and into the computer room and with the funniest expression on his face says "No, not the silver". He then just shook his head and walked away. I could do nothing but burst out laughing. I told him that there are a lot of things in this house of value that we should think of getting rid of. I'm pretty sure that he has all his antique trains locked away now. This morning I had to reassure him that I did not plan on selling anything. I asked him if he even knew the set of silver existed as I've never used it . I find no joy in sitting and polishing a fork so I can use it. Our company silverware is in my kitchen drawer or obtained from Sam's Club in best plastic ware you can find.
He wanted to know if the china was going next. "What China"? I've been married twice and have not yet picked out a China pattern. I explained to him that China is something you invest in, not go to Kohls or Walmart and purchase. I guess the next question he asked was well deserved. "Well then why did we have to spend so much money on a China cabinet"? See, he's not just another pretty face after all.

Last of the 40's for awhile

I'm not talking about 40 ouncers...
The 40 hour work week. Today was the last 10 hour day for us for the (see able future)? I tried to find out what that meant and was not given the answer I wanted to hear. Last week we were told April at the earliest. Today we were told maybe July.

I've listened to the comments all week regarding my co-workers looking for jobs. Most of them are looking for full time jobs. I'm wondering if that is wise right now. We have excellent benefits which they have not touched yet. Most of us have 3 plus weeks of vacation and we make a decent wage. I'd like to pick up something part time to make up the wage loss and will be seriously looking. Then again, if several people leave it could mean more hours for the remaining few left. Or if the housing market would pick up we'd be back to 40.

When we were given our hours today I questioned if these would be permanent. If I'm going to work part-time I would prefer to start at 7am. My boss was either really confused or just plain doesn't get life. He asked why and I told him that most part-time jobs start around 4 and you're done by 9 or so. Getting off a second job at 9 and getting up at 3 for this job might be difficult. His answer to the worlds problem "Work Friday, Saturday and Sunday". Not that I'm above working weekends, but I'm certainly not wishing to work 7 days a week. I'm not as brave as a co-worker who asked "Just how long are you going to dick us around". I had to turn my head to keep from busting out laughing. It's so true though. All in all, you have to do what you have to do.

I've put plenty of though into how to budget things a little differently. Here's my list:

1). Quit smoking- big on the list
2). roll my own
3). Cut down the dining out-(we don't do that to often)
4). Switch from diet coke to Roundy's cola (not a chance)
5) Start to see Connie for haircuts (she does a good job with Ken)
6). Watch the clothing allowance (gift cards are great gifts to receive)
7). Use up all the food in my cupboards ("Hey dear, what do you want for dinner...we have a can of pineapple and some re fried beans left)
8). Screw all that crap and look for a part time job

Here was my husbands suggestion..."I'll buy you Budweiser".

Who dun It & Why???

We went to a 50th birthday party for a very good friend of ours last night. Had a good time. It was more like a gathering of friends for a good cause. He's been somewhat unable to attend a lot of functions due to his ailing father so it was good to see him, and to see him happy.

The night went well until....Some jackass decided to spray paint my truck. I hate parking in the lot down the street from the bar and would prefer to park in the bank lot, but hubbie thinks it's illegal and he was driving. It appeared that we were either the only one's tagged or other's who had been were gone already. The first thing Barney says to me "Who did you piss off"?. I didn't think that Cleve was that upset with me over throwing snow at him. Needless to say at 2am here's Barney outside scrubbing the paint off my truck. There still is a little residue on the windows and grill which he's out working on now.

So a good night ended like crap. I'm more ticked off that some jackass felt the need to deface something not belonging to them. I keep thinking it could have been worse.

Paper or Plastic???

Well the downhill economy has now hit home. At the very end of a meeting held at work yesterday, which was supposed to be our monthly production meeting, we were give the news. As of Jan. 26th we are cut to a 32 hour work week. This affects only the hourly production workers and shockingly maintenance.

The first part of the meeting was all about cutting costs and improving production. Then we had a little safety spoof on the safe use of electricity. I felt a little sorry for my boss as he stood up there and read the bad news from his notes. It hit me half way through that he's never really had to bring this kind of news to us. It had always been Randy who had to stand up there and do the dirty deeds. It sucked to because had it of been Randy I would have had a little hint.


When I called home after work and my opening line was "Do you want fries with that"?, it took Barney a second. At first he thought I was stopping at Kopps on my way home. He didn't seem to concerned about the loss of income, but I think he's all about helping me find a part time job. We were also given the option to work 5-1 or 7-3. As I am sick of getting up at 3am I chose the later hours. This way I'll have plenty of time to get home, change and get on over to Walmart.

This reduction in hours is predicted to last until at least April. My guess is there will be occasional weeks that we'll work 40 hours. In the mean time I'll stock up on Ramen noodles and start looking for something to fill the gap. I already have a lead for something. I don't see any tragic losses coming from this if it only lasts a few months.

On a lighter note...Crap! It's damn cold outside. Ol" Barney also has off work today and here I am at 7:30 a.m. wide awake and he's snoring away. I was the one who said last night I wanted to sleep in and he was going to get up early and get some things done. I'm not used to someone infringing on my lonely day off. I surely hope there's no breakfast expected.

Dirty Cat

With not being at home during the day I wondered what these cat's would be up to. I took a sick day today due to plain out being sick. I have contacted both the cold and stomach part of what ever is going around. Yesterday was no more than laying around with a box of Kleenex and my remedy of Day Quill (coupon at Walgreen's for $3.00 off). I went down at my usual time this morning at gave them water and food and had a few minutes of them crawling all over me. Went back to bed. Around 7am I heard some noise and decided to investigate. It seems as if Mitchell had gotten his toy stuck around the leg of a bar stool and was determined to get it off. I noticed that the water bowl was full of food for some reason, so I figured rather than let them learn a lesson I'd just clean it out and refill it. It was then that all hell broke loose. Barney has put doors on to the laundry room just to keep them out for a short while. We have some cleaning to do in there before they can be let loose. They have a habit of sitting by the door when I go in for water and usually a little nudge will make them move. This morning they both escaped when my hands were full with two water bowls.

After about twenty minutes of trying to get them I just sat down and waited for them to come to me. They have to get hungry sooner or later right? I got Mitchell and then rather than let him escape again while waiting for the big Ragu to appear I put him in the cat carrier. I think what drew the big Ragu out was Mitchell's crying. It only took about 2-3 minutes. Got the door closed and realized I'd left the water in the other room. Armed myself with the squirt gun and went back in. I required only one shot and they both scattered. Felt so proud I wanted to blow on the end of the gun like the movie stars do. No holster, and I didn't feel the fool as the gun still had water in it. The helpful hint on using the squirt gun is much appreciated. For the time being I will be bringing water from upstairs.

As for now, they seem to be spent after spending quite some time bathing themselves after their adventure.

Just Call Me Charlie Brown

Here's a little picture of the nightly meeting between Sadie and Mitchell. Mitchell actually pets Sadie's nose. No claws. All went well tonight until Sadie attempted to give Mitchell her rather huge bone she received for Christmas. (a dog bone). Kind of spooked the cat a little and we saw her hiss for the first time. I'm not sure I like the way he's eyeing up the house. You can just see the thoughts racing through his head. "I could do some damage up here". So for now when we're not home he'll be staying in the basement. We'll try the upper level this weekend.

I've been on this daily regiment of taking Sadie for a walk. Her and I both need the exercise plus I think it helps her to not feel slighted. We headed out tonight around 5. Most of the sidewalks were shoveled or had light snow on them. We were about a mile from home when we encountered a pretty snowy sidewalk. Had we not been on a busy street I would have headed for the road. Sadie did a complete Bambi on ice show for me and I managed to stay up right....for a moment. She gained her balance and we took a step and I did a very nice imitation of Charlie Brown kicking the football that Lucy just pulled away. Feet up in the air and down flat on my back and clunked the ol' noggin. "Damn that f***ing hurt". Sadie did exactly what she is supposed to do. Sat down next to me and didn't move. Then I go to get up and my feet are slipping all over. I was pretty close to walking up to their front door and ranting. This wasn't just a patch of ice, the entire sidewalk was like an ice rink. There ought to be a law. Oh, wait, there is. We continued on our way with no further mishaps. I have a nice bruise on my leg and a knot on my head. Good thing I had my hat on to shield my head from to much damage. I shall choose the other side of the street tomorrow.

She's Not Having It

We got our adopted kittens yesterday. The featured guy here is Mitchell. He settled right in. The other one let us hold him with no problem at first. Because of the dog we thought it would be best to get them used to us first and then gradually get them upstairs. Barney spent most of New Years Day (after he finally got up) putting doors on the other areas of the basement to keep them confined to the rec room. After about two hours of them being here we decided to bring Sadie down. It took her a minute or two to notice that something was amiss. Mitchell went right up to her and batted her in the nose. This forced a little growl out of timid Sadie. They probably would have been okay after a minute but then came the hiss out of the other one. Sadie's hair stood on end and the cats tail was about 10 times bigger. The cat (Carmine) took off for the only corner in the basement that he could hide in and immediately got stuck. Got him out of that jam and he took off again and headed for the air conditioner. Managed to get himself stuck in between the fan. Tool man had to take the thing apart to get him out. We then let him go back into the corner and figured he'd come out when he was ready. Mean while Mitchell was just having a good time.

We had to take a trip to Waukesha last night to visit Barney's aunt who had a heart attack New Years Eve Day. She's a talker and after about 1 1/2 hours of being there the nurse came in to check her vitals. We got a chuckle when she said her oxygen levels were low and Aunt D proclaims "Well that's because I've been talking non stop for almost two hours". The ending of the story she was telling was about South Dakota but I don't quite remember how it started. I have learned to just nod and not ask questions as it will throw her off. I though for sure I'd look over and see Barney nodding off but he was just staring at her in awe.

Upon our arrival back home I was happy to see that they are indeed litter trained. We had to search around for Carmine and found him in a box behind the bar. He may be the damage inflicter as some glasses and bottles were teetering. Some adjustments must be made to secure the safety of the cats and our sanity. I heard some commotion at 6 am and went down to check it out. Mitchell was in the playing mood so the laser light came out and he was tuckered out after a bit. The big Ragu made an appearance, walked by my leg, took a poop and went back to his corner. All in all day one went okay. Sadie knows I still love her more.

We Rang It In Good

I woke up late this morning and wandered into my kitchen and hit the fridge for some ice cold water. A chuckle escaped as I spotted the bowl of albino cashews in the fridge. It was way to early for me to make any sense of why they were in there. On my way back to bed I spotted my newly acquired Christmas quilt I had gotten in the White Elephant exchange. Although cute, it will probably look better in my mother-in-laws home then mine.

I laid in bed for awhile and thought about the crappy things that happened in 2008. Things that I try to block out of my head because I'm not all that ready to accept them. Things that have made me forget the good. I then started to think about the good. The everyday good that I guess I have taken for granted. The fact that I wake up everyday, I am healthy, I have a roof over my head, I have a job, I have an awesome family & husband and the best friends anyone could ask for. Friends that I spent New Years Eve with. What more can I say besides "These guys are the best". I just need to investigate the green and gold Christmas bows left on my front porch.

I have no New Years resolutions. Just can't set myself up to fail. What I do have are New Year's goals. Things I would like to change in the next year. Some of them are the normal...quit smoking...loose weight...look for a new job...blah...blah..blah. The smoking being the highest priority goal. The little bit of TV that I watched today must have had a weight loss gimmick commercial on every 3 minutes. Good marketing strategy. I watched them while shoving a Connie cookie in my mouth. I looked in the fridge for other food to eat and decided to skip the eating for today as all that's in there are things that contain BBQ sauce or dips. I think a trip to the grocery store is in order.

So, hopefully this year we will be able to hold onto the everyday good and hope that the bad isn't too bad. Maybe the bad can hold off until we'll able to heal from the last bad. Like my other friends have mentioned..we couldn't ask for a better support system. I must also take a second to apologize to someone for picking on his albino cashews. Never....ever....give a drunk a phone.

Under Control

Knock on wood, I think we are rid of our visitors. We are holding at 7 and haven't seen one or evidence of one since the 25th. I guess instead of coal, I got a family of Mickey's for Christmas.
There are enough traps around this joint to catch quite a few and either they all wised up or we got them all.

The other night when we first found them I mentioned that we should have a cat. I've had cat's before and they seem to take care of any mice or creepy things around the basement or house. My husband always claimed he was allergic to them. We go to K & J's and they can crawl all over him and he has not affects. He does have an issue with his Aunts cats, however they are long hairs. I browsed the Humane Society site and mentioned it to him and from the lack of an answer I got I figured it was water under the bridge. Saturday morning he woke me up to ask what time they opened. At that point I was then the negative one. I mentioned a place near the bar we go to that adopts out cats. At 2pm he was ready to go there. Nice place, and the cat's seem to be well cared for. We found one right away and threw the idea of two around. We decided it might be a good idea. Finding the second one was a chore. One made me itch and sneeze immediately and another one was just weird looking. I felt a little bad taking it back to it's cage we had it in a room with us for 15 minutes and the thing just hovered in a corner. The first one was very lively and friendly. Third times a charm as we found one (Carmine. The name will change) that was a little timid at first but then came around. So we made our choices and had to fill out some lengthy paperwork and are waiting to be accepted. We also mentioned that we needed a few days to think it over ourselves. Yesterday I made a negative comment and Mr. Tough Guys face looked a little sad. I may have him sign something stating that he wants them more than I do that I can pull out the first time they claw something. I'm more worried about Sadie feeling a little put out but I'm told that dogs don't have those feelings. Not quite convinced of that. What I am convinced of is that the boys will be getting fixed and de-clawed ASAP.

Eeeeekkkkkkk!

Things were a little amiss at this household today. I had shoveling in mind when I got home and found that we must have ticked off a snowplow driver enough that he would direct the entire blocks worth of snow into our driveway approach. I'm not kidding when I say it was up to my knees. I parked on the street and made my way up the driveway and into the house. Did the usual, checked the mail, checked my email, let the dog out and then ventured downstairs to retrieve the polish sausage from the fridge. As I rounded the bar I saw something out of the corner of my eye. At first glance I wondered why my husband would play such a cruel joke on me. I got the polish and turned when I realized that what I saw moved. This was no fake mouse! The little creature jumped off the bar onto the floor. I heard the little plop and then it started running in circles. My natural instinct was to scream and try to get away from it. I had no weapon except the box of polish sausage which I was not about to try to explain to my family tomorrow. It took off under the fridge. I took off up the stairs and slammed the basement door. WTF! How did we get a mouse in the house.

I made a quick phone call to my husband at work to pick up some traps. He seemed a little irritated when I said it was on the bar. "You know, the same place you were eating crackers and herring last night" was my explanation. I then made a hasty retreat outside to tackle the snow. I kept telling myself I was being silly, the stupid thing is only about 4 inches big. I kept shoveling until he got home an hour later. Like a scared ding bat I followed him into the house. He had brought home sticky paper instead of a trap. He neatly laid them down in a few places in the basement and then with broom in hand I got the rest of the things I needed. I kept looking at the laundry basket under the magic chute wondering in the little bastard crawled in there. I whacked the basket a few times and then moved it to the top of the washer. I looked for droppings in the area and found none. Hopefully this thing just got in.

My husbands feelings were not the same. He thinks they came in when we brought in some boxes from the garage. If this is true it's been shacking up down there for a month. Hopefully not in the motherly way at the time. He checked a few more areas and then went off to work.
I stayed clear of the basement. There was no way I was going down to "check the paper".
Also had to keep the dog upstairs lest she come up with sticky paper stuck to her nose.

He got home around 11 and we went down to investigate. The look on his face when he rounded the bar was priceless. He just let out this strained "Ohhhhh" and almost looked sad. "Did you get it I asked". "Got them" him...."Them"..me "Ahh, there's three". Then he was kind enough to tell me that I don't want to see the mess. He took off into the workshop and returned with a pliers and bucket. I figured he was just going to pick up the whole pad and toss it in the bucket. I asked if they were still alive and got a nod of the head. "Got to put them out of their misery" is what got me to fly back up the stairs.

As the count goes now....3. More paper is down and unless he checks it in the morning I'll be staying upstairs with a towel jambed under the door.

Brrrrr....Humbug

No big shocker here. It is cold outside! Snow, cold, repeat..seems to be the same old story over and over again. I ventured out of the house long enough today to put the peanut butter balls we had dipped in chocolate on the porch to set. Didn't take long. My compliments to my husband at the solid porch walls. I felt no breeze coming in, only frigid cold air. I don't hear my windows rattling any more so the wind must have died down a bit.

Last week we were given the option to have the entire week off. Seeing as I had only one vacation day left I pondered for the whole week on what to do. Thursday at 2:45 I gave them my answer. I would be in Monday & Tuesday. How do I feel about that now? Duh...how dumb could I be? Am I seriously going to want to get in my car at 4 am and go to work? Well, I have no choice now.

I though I was doing pretty good with all the Holiday things and I prided myself with starting early. Not feeling so much that way now. I just spent three days being quite busy. Right about now I could use a beer but I'm opting for a shot of cold medicine instead as I've developed a bit of a cold. That's par for the course though. I'm always sick on Christmas. The bad thing is feeling like yuck. The good thing is not being able to taste anything, therefore not eating much of it.

We received an envelope in the mail yesterday for "Cowboy's Fans". It was handed to me by my husband when I got home. He asked about the letter and then noted that he was wondering if that's why I made him put up all blue and white lights this year. He wondered if I was "turning". There was the one thing that I ordered off their web site earlier this year that has prompted these mailings. He doesn't check the mail to often, so is unaware of the fact that they come several times a week. I might just stop and pick up an ornament and hide it on the tree to see how long it takes him to spot it. Or maybe I could borrow one from my friend.

Holy Crap!

Remember not to long ago when it looked like this outside? I think that was back in October. Hard to imagine that we are on track to beat last years snowfall. To me this is not a contest we feel we need to win every year.

At 6 am this I asked my husband if he was going to work. They have a standard rule that if the public schools are closed they are also. I quoted this rule to him and he replied in his hero voice "That's just the production lines. I must go in". Then he has some dumb lady call him for a ride as she didn't want her husband to drive in this. That's just a point blank sign that she was calling his bluff. She wanted to stay home. I'm not sure I could ever call another guy for a ride in a snowstorm because my husband didn't want to drive. Her poor husband either didn't hear the call or is not feeling like the biggest wimp in the world.

For some reason I keep smiling at the image of my husband outside his work shoveling so the office people can get in. His beard covered in snow and his mustache icing up. I did notice that he had his shoes packed in a bag but left them by the door, so if he does decide to stay he'll be clunking around in his boots all day. He was nice enough to leave the shovel inside the porch today so I could shovel my way out.

Things were looking pretty upbeat yesterday. After work I went out with a few people for a Christmas drink. We were done within 2 hours as everyone wanted to get errands done last night before the big storm. I stopped at the mall to look into an air compressor for A. It was on sale but the added bonus was the man who handed me an additional $10.00 off a purchase of $100.00 or more. He was like a secret Santa, just walked past me and said "'Maybe you can use this". It was like finding a coupon at the grocery store right next to the item you are going to buy. So I bought it and then thought about how I was going to get it to my car. Suddenly this woman walks by with a cart from another store and asks if I need to use it. Double score! Got it into the truck and managed to get it into the house. I need to train my dog to help out a little more.

Here's wishing all of you a Happy Snow Day!

No Auditions

I made a mistake last night. I had stated that I was going to start taking auditions for a new friend. Of course our group joked about it and comments were made.."Randy would have never said that" or "Randy would have got me a beer". Things that seemed funny at the time.

After much thought about my audition comment, which I now blame on my emotional state over the past week, I am retracting that comment. You see, I feel that every one of my friends are unique in their own way. They are all special to me for different reasons. Randy was special for many reasons. I made the comment that his shoes would be hard one's to fill. That is true, but I don't compare my friends. I care about each and everyone of them and enjoy spending time with them. We've seen each other at our best and worst. Over the past week we've all been here for each other.

As I looked around last night I was over whelmed by the amount of people that came out with one purpose in mind. To provide support for each other. We shared stories, attempted to sing, and saw a few tears. We helped each other through a rough time. This, to me, is why all my friends are special to me.

It Has Been An Honor!

To My Friend Randy,

The initial shock of loosing you has finally hit me. I was gathering some pictures tonight to add to your picture board and broke down. It was then that I realized that you weren't going to make that next trip to South Dakota. I would never be able to prove to you that Custer State Park is chuck full of buffalo. Then I had to laugh when I thought about how much ribbing we got from you the past few years for dragging you all the way there with the promise of seeing them.
This is the person I will always remember. The good hearted, there for everybody person. The guy who's laugh you could hear clear across a bar, campsite or any activities we joined you in. The guy who would always cheer me up, make light of a situation and give the best hugs ever.

We became friends when stuck working 3rd shift together. But my first memory of you is when I worked 3rd and you worked 1st. You would be coming in early and had do buzz in. I'd walk the long hallway at 4am to let you in and I'd hear the same words every morning. "Good Day". After a few weeks of this I'd get Ahoy Mate in before you could utter a word.

Pretty soon we met each other's spouses and my husband took a liking to you immediately. Social activities came after that and we'd always get the evil eye from the spouses for talking about work. It seemed as if you knew everybody. You always had a friendly word and a funny story about someone. You became a friend that I could talk to and trust. You became my boss and although we didn't always see eye to eye, I respected that fact that you had a job to do and vice versa. Any indifference's we were always able to talk over. This is what is known as a true friendship.

When you left our current place of employment you were missed. There wasn't a day that went by that someone didn't ask about you. I missed you, not only as a boss, but as a friend. I missed your crazy comments, your stressful hand through the hair motion and bitching at you for not having your safety shoes on.

My heart sank on Saturday. It sank for J your wife, for your family, for all your friends and for myself. You were loved by many people and will be missed by many. Your circle of friends is bigger than you ever imagined. I am not at all shocked by it. This is the kind of person you were.

We will all miss you terribly. I will burn every glow stick I can find in your honor. I will shine my flashlight into the sky and try as hard as I can to search for Major Tom. One thing I don't think I'll be able to do is down 21 Mike's Hard Lemonade's in one night.

We will take care of Jo. We will never forget you. I have my memories.

Touching

Last night I picked up my grandson and headed off for the twins annual school Christmas concert. Their school really goes out of the way for these concerts and last nights was even better then the previous years. The principal is very involved and demands that the parent's and visitors stay through the entire concert and don't just get up and walk out when their child is done.

Each of the girls had a solo, one vocal and one on the violin. Last year she was still a bit squeaky but as nervous as she was last night I heard not one squeak. They do more of a culture orientated concert so each grade did one. When the Christmas Rap part came it was truly hilarious. This was a 3rd grade class and they wrote the song themselves. There were several groups of 3 or 4 that would break into rap for a few lines. We happened to be sitting in back of one of the parents whose son was very Opie Taylor looking but when his turn came he transformed into a rap King. His parents just cracked up and explained how he had been practicing at home. The father who looked strictly the business type , took credit for practicing with him. Of course besides the girls, this was the highlight of the concert.

I also scan the stage for the kid that looks the most uninterested or simply did not care to practice. I found several last night. One little guy was not singing at all, just standing at the end of his row looking up at the lights and waving his prop mittens around. The little girl next to him looked completely disgusted with him.

I then scanned the crowd as I like to see the looks on people's faces. I happened to be taking a drink of my water when I spotted the man with the worst beard ever. Needless to say it sent me into a choking fit and trying very hard to fight back laughter. My daughter looked over to see what was going on and I very discretely pointed it out to her. Broke her and my son-in-law up. This came at a time when we were able to cover it up as the little boy on the stage was dressed as a Sheppard and looked like Linus. Back to the beard thing. He had what looked like a Chi Pet on his chin. A very strawberry blond one. It almost appeared as if he just stuck it on there. Completely clean shaven with a nice hair cut and this crap on his chin. So you know how when you spot something your eyes always want to go back to this spot no matter how bad it is? Luckily I didn't spot it until 1/2 hour into the show. What made it worse is that he kept stroking it like he was proud. My son-in-law was attempting to get a shot of it but I tried to be the sensible one and stated that we should never laugh at others misfortunes. He stated that if it's out of your control it's wrong to poke fun...A purposely done thing is worth a laugh.

Recession...It's The Buzz

The front page of the Journal was the talk of the shop today. We have been in a recession since last December. Was this actually news to anyone? I got sick of hearing about it by about 10 am. When I went to lunch at noon I was soon wishing I could actually leave for lunch. Had it not been so cold I would have fled to my car to get away from the head of our Department. There were three of us in the lunch room just relaxing and chatting in between eating our lunches when in he walks with lunch in hand to "Eat with the workers". He went on to ask us all how we felt about the news. Then went on to explain it to us as if we had no clue of what was going on. As I left the lunchroom I commented to one of my co-workers that maybe he was preparing us for bad news. This is the same guy who comes in around 7, grabs the sports section and heads to the bathroom. I'm in tune to the fact that people read on the pooper, but do it at home not at work. Then don't bring the paper back and lay it down on the table when you're done. There is a mad scramble for the sports section prior to 7am. When he brings it back it literally lays untouched.
I am a little nervous about the next month or so because apparently what we're making right now is all inventory. You never want to see a warehouse full of finished product. Incoming raw materials is a good sign, but there's not much of that. May have to look into the library after all.

Through out the course of the past two weeks I have discovered that I now work with one of the moodiest people I have ever known. She's a former 3rd shift worker who made it through the last layoff. This girl doesn't utter a nice word until at least 10 am. She comes in with a scoll on her face every morning and answers in a grunt. By around noon she starts to chat. Yesterday I almost blew up at her, but couldn't lower myself to her level. I'm all about trying to get along with the people I work with. It makes for a shorter day when you can actually converse. Today after about an hour of grunty grunterson I decided to give her some of her own medicine. Yes, I actually went down a few pegs. Within fifteen minutes she was asking what was wrong. Tomorrow I think I'll try that right away.

On a lighter note, my mom's thyroid which was removed a few weeks ago is cancer free. She's still a little shakey as her meds are still being worked on. Now if I can just get them to move back here I'll be little more relaxed.

I Hate Wrapping

I've been putting this off for a while now. I keep walking in the spare bedroom looking at all the bags of gifts I started purchasing early in November. They need to be wrapped. For the past month or so that room has been a major dumping ground. I don't know why I hate it so much ,as once I get going it's really not that bad. Is it that every decent scissors I purchase seems to disappear? Could it be that the I cannot locate the 4 rolls of tape I purchased just for the wrapping?

I purposely got my shopping done early so I wouldn't have to fight the crowds and I would have plenty of time to get everything wrapped up. All I have left to purchase is gift cards. I think that way back in my mind I am upset because I do 99.9% of the shopping and then also need to wrap it. If I were to take "Mr. Stroller" along with me we would need to mortgage the house to pay for what he'd all buy. In the past we've had some fun shopping especially in the toy department. He wants to buy the kids everything. But then he wants to play with it all also.

Maybe this procrastination comes from the left over effects of the Turkey. It has become traditional that I would attempt the wrap session the day after Thanksgiving, but it somehow gets pushed out to the next weekend. Not this year. I intend to bite the bullet and get on with it. Unless of course something more interesting comes up in the meantime.