The way to a man's heart is through his stomach

....or something like that.

Spent a fair amount of time in the kitchen yesterday, cooking up a bunch of meatballs and two small meatloafs, then freezing everything. The hard part was keeping hubby's paws off the meatballs. I like to make my time in the kitchen worthwhile. If I'm going to be in there, it's going to get me out of cooking a whole bunch of times in the future!

I didn't realize it was going to stay cool. It's damp and cold tonight (and drizzling off and on). It would have been a perfect night for my yummy minestrone soup*. Instead, I already broke into my reserves and heated up a batch of meatballs and served with spaghetti.




*per hubby, it's a keeper.

My friend recently stirred up childhood memories of Memorial Day. The town held a Memorial Day parade every year. It consisted of a couple fire companies, town clubs, the school band and, of course, the town political figures (which weren't many, I can assure you).

But, when I first read her e-mail mentioning the old parades, I honestly couldn't remember much about them. A later, bigger parade came to mind, with its week-long carnival that followed. Funny, though, as the day progressed today, I remembered more and more about those days so long ago...

I remember leading off that small-town parade as a Brownie one year. I would have been terrified to do such a thing, marching by myself in the front of the parade, but my uncle was driving the old fire engine behind me, so I wasn't alone. (thank goodness he didn't mistake the brake for the gas!)

I also remembered the nice ceremony at the end of the parade in front of the town hall. Each year, two participants would carry a wreath and place it in front of the town hall as a token for our fallen heroes.

Then I even remembered setting my flute aside one year and foregoing marching with the school band, in order to march with the 4-H club. OMG, am I even admitting to this?? I carried one of the other member's pet rabbits. It was a big hit with the spectators...

BUT, and I couldn't believe I forgot all about this next thing. I remembered my aunt and uncle held a picnic every Memorial Day for a number of years. How could I forget that? It was one of my most absolute favorite times of the year!!!! There was a huge field with rolling hills and a pond behind their house. We would have a softball game back there, throw frisbees, and fish at the pond. Not to mention, swimming in their pool. And the FOOD! Non-stop all day and into the evening!

Wow. I can't believe I'm forgetting this type of stuff. Why? Have I been away that long? Recently, this friend posted about falling back in time when returning home for visits. I'm very familiar with that syndrome. It would happen to me all the time and would confuse the heck out of me - although easily understood since NOTHING changes in that town, or my parent's house. I'm glad to know I'm not the only one to experience it, though.

Anyway, maybe it's good I'm not looking back at past experiences as much anymore. Maybe it means I won't feel like a 14-year old when I go home? .....Or is that such a bad thing?!

This is a vent. It's gonna be pretty harsh. Don't worry, I won't be offended if you decide to skip this post. I'd rather you do instead of being affected by the negative vibe. Ha, I knew it, I've peaked your curiosity, haven't I?! I'm going to put it in letter form. It's what I'd like to say every Memorial Day to a certain person....

My dear FIL,

Tomorrow morning, you will call like clockwork to wish us a Happy Memorial Day. You will be oblivious, AGAIN, that your son's birthday was two days earlier. You never remember and we know, quite frankly, you don't care. Something we would never dare do to you, however, because you'd be highly offended -- not hurt -- because you demand the attention. I'd love to call you on this. I'd love to say something, such as, "Aren't you even going to wish your oldest son a belated happy birthday??" But, I must respect my husband's wishes and keep it all in. Something he has done all these years. I am not accustomed to this, however. Not speaking my piece was a whole new experience. Come to think of it, becoming part of your family was a whole new experience. You see, I come from a world of love and laughter and close family ties. A world you belong to, too, but for some reason choose not to be a part of. What is it that you are so afraid of? Are you that insecure with your own feelings? I have come to the sad conclusion that you are an empty shell of a human being. You have no idea how hurt and disappointed your son will be on this, another forgotten birthday. He will not say it, but I will see it in his eyes and watch it in everything he does the rest of the day. He'll carry a heavy heart when his hope will be shattered yet again. His hope that your expectant phone call will, this time, carry that birthday wish -- a simple sign that you remember a very special day in your life, the arrival of your first-born son into your world.

I was taught to respect my elders, but you make it very difficult to do in this instance. You are selfish and cruel and live in your own fantasy world. Your sons love you, and I understand why, but at the same time, I do not. I do know you don't deserve it. I am thankful my husband is not like you in this regard. He is a great guy, with a great sense of humor, and thoughtful and kind and strong and smart. He has many friends that would help any time of day or night, and he would do the same for them. I suppose I should thank you, but for what I don't know, because you certainly didn't teach him respect, loyalty, friendship, love, integrity. He has a wonderful, caring heart and soul in spite of you. No, I don't care for you very much, yet I do, as I have a heart and soul, too. Maybe it's partly pity; I'm not sure. You have an incredible family, and you don't try at all to be a part of it. Your inaction hurts those that love you deeply. I can't wish the same on you, because you are incapable of feeling the hurt anyway. Or maybe you are. Maybe you are more sad than any of us will ever know. In any event, after all these years, nothing you do - or don't do - surprises me. You manage to hurt the one I'm closest to, and I can't do a damn thing about it. Don't worry, this is a rare instance where I give you any thought. You really aren't worth the time. Besides, you think of yourself 24/7, so you won't notice if I don't.

After we left the cemetery, my husband asked where else I planned to take him for his birthday... "What's next? A visit to a crematorium? Or maybe a tour of a funeral home?"

He can be so funny at times!

A Beautiful Day for a Stroll

.....through a cemetery?!?! Yup. Went to that Confederate Cemetery. Didn't spend a whole lot of time there, because I dragged dh there on his birthday--and he could think of better things to do (imagine!). I snapped some pictures; photos follow.

P.S. In a previous post, I talked about driving by this cemetery and it peaked my curiosity. A blogger friend (Chris) commented to go with the feeling. Just realized this is Memorial Day weekend. How befitting

"3,000 Confederate dead from every southern state are buried in this cemetery."

"Drummer ... Bill York ... Co. H ... 14 GA INF ... C.S.A."

"This cannon, which served GA Military Inst. from 1852 to 1864, was used by the Confederate army, captured by Sherman's forces, held as a trophy of war until 1910, and then placed in this cemetery."

Community Support

This is a tough one. I'm not exactly sure I know how I feel on this one. Maybe blogging about it will help me sort through some feelings. Maybe not. Maybe all it will do is confuse me more. We'll see.
Here goes.....

My doorbell rang about 20 minutes ago. As a general rule, I do not answer it when I am home alone. But then there was a very LOUD knock on my door. Pretty obnoxious, if you ask me. My t.v. was on, and I thought they must see it through the window. Then I caught a glimpse of a boy holding a large envelope, so I figured he was selling something. I try to make a point of supporting the neighborhood kids when they have fundraisers, so I answered the door.

The boy, about 11 years old, with a speech impediment caused by a hearing disability I think, asked if I would support his older brother, a wrestler, who is going to South Carolina. The rest was unclear, but I assume he'll be there to compete in the sport. He held an 8x10 framed picture of his brother. He also handed me a typed letter, which I only skimmed and should have taken the time to read. At the bottom was the family's name and address.

Okay, here's where my problem lies. The family is from the town next to mine. Why are they in my neighborhood? First, that means he isn't even in our school system. Maybe that shouldn't matter, so okay, on to the next problem. I am accustomed to parents and kids collectively doing a fundraiser by selling, say, baked goods outside a grocery store. In this instance, the school may be coming up short on funds, so the team turns to their community for additional support, and I am at least getting a little something in appreciation for my donation to their cause. But, I question why I'm supposed to help this family send their child anywhere, whether it be a school function or a personal endeavor. I pay my share of taxes for children to get a good education and a chance to participate in all the extracurricular activities provided by the school. Shouldn't it be the family's obligation to support their own child beyond that? Why am I, and other members of the community, looked upon to finance them -- especially in a blatant solicitation such as this?

Obviously there are differing viewpoints on this subject. It is fresh on my mind, and I thought it would make a good blog.

By the way, in case you're wondering ... yes, I'm embarrassed to admit, I gave the kid a couple of bucks. I'm not terribly enthused with the idea, but it's done and over with. The parents are pretty darn clever sending their younger son, with a disability, to the door.... I'll give them that! I was a sucker this time around, but if there is a next time (meaning, if I even open the door again), I don't think I'll be so inclined to hand over cash.

Well, I guess I know how I feel. Gotta love this blogging thing!

How can just two people create so much dirty laundry?!?!

Wow. I really feel for you people with children!

Supervision

On the news at noon today, there was a report about a missing six year old girl. The news reported some disturbing information. Well, it's disturbing to me, and I'm wondering if anyone else is bothered by this type of thing.

The grandmother looked out the window to check on the girl and discovered her missing. She allowed this child to play by herself outside the apartment of this large complex? Why was this small child unsupervised? I don't get it.

The news report stated she's been missing for about three hours. Police have searched every apartment and the grounds, with no luck. Witnesses told police they saw her in the park across the street, and they searched that as well with no trace of her. At this point, they don't know whether she wandered off or was abducted.

I'm sure the grandmother is besides herself with worry. I bet she wishes she could take back letting that little, innocent child walk out that door...

There's a commercial out there for everyone

Commercials don’t usually affect me the way intended. Meaning, I don’t usually want to go out and buy the product after seeing a commercial. I view most commercials seen on t.v. as pretty moronic, insulting peoples' intelligence. That, or I just plain don't get them... so I guess in that instance, they're over my head.

Every once in a while, I find a redeeming commercial that invokes thought or, more importantly, good old fashioned laughter. Sometimes, even boisterous from-the-gut laughter. That is rare, however.

If I think long and hard, I could probably remember some past commercials that entertained me, making me laugh. One would be Taco Bell promoting the Godzilla movie using a Chihuahua. That little dog cracked me and my husband up. "Here leezard, leezard." (Okay, use your imagination here.) But, it never made us run out and eat Taco Bell.

Then there's the classic m&m commercials introducing the blue m&m. Particularly, the ones with John Lovitt. (i.e., his smartalic retort, "That was a brilliant idea.") Now, we were m&m consumers beforehand, so I can't say that commercial influenced us either.

But, a recent commercial has me almost signing up for the product. It is a woman sitting on her couch talking to the audience about Netflix. As the commercial progresses, so does the chaos of her family in the background, off camera. Kids screaming, phone ringing, husband yelling for her to answer it. At this point, her voice rises and she yells, "Mommy's doing a t.v. commercial." With that, she turns back to the camera with a pleasant smile. I crack up every time.

Now that, coupled with the same tired movies being shown on HBO and Cinemax, has me ready to pull up their website and order DVDs straight to my mailbox.

What commercials strike you as clever, funny, wacky, or otherwise?

Time for a new vehicle

...or so my husband will think when he sees what I did. Mind you, to the ordinary person it's nothing. It would probably be considered a typical hazard of the road. My husband, however, will react as if I smashed up the truck. You think I'm kidding?? Oh, no I'm not.

And by now you are wondering what I could have done that is so bad. So I will tell you. I took a corner too close and hit the cement curb, rubbing the tire. That's right. The tire has rub marks on it. **GASP** I know, the horror, right?! I mean, it's not even the rim -- it's just the damn tire. Besides, he'll Armoral the thing and it will look fine.

Anyway, I swear he inspects the vehicle before he walks in the house, or the radar will go off as he walks past it. Either way, he'll know. I think what pisses him off the most is that I don't show any emotion about it. Puhlease. It's just a truck. It's meant to be driven, for crying out loud.

You know the worst part? This happened when I went out on the spur of the moment to shop for his birthday gift, and the store was out of the item!! I'm going to have to order it out of a catalog I saw it in. I should have just done that in the first place! But, I don't know if it will be delivered on time. Now I'm going to just have to take that chance!

I stopped at Fuddruckers and treated myself to a ribeye steak sandwich (with lettuce and tomato). My last meal before he kills me. LOL

Talking about getting another vehicle got me thinking about all the vehicles we've had over the years. I would have preferred to just stick with one car, but I didn't marry a guy with that "drive a car into the ground" mentality. He always has some excuse why he has to get something else. I know I'm going to miss one or two along the way, but let's see how many vehicles I can name, and the order in which we had them:

As a single girl, I owned a charcoal grey 1981 Mazda RX7 (bought used, but in excellent condition). I loved that car and foolishly sold it for money to pay for our honeymoon. (I should have seen the handwriting on the wall. LOL)

As a single guy, he owned a brand-new red 1984 Toyota 4x4. He had just made the final payment, we were engaged at the time, and decided to trade it in on a new truck (blue 1989 Toyota 4x4), in which he put $1,000 on a credit card and took the remaining out in a five-year loan. (Again, I should have seen the handwriting on the wall.) I did want to kill him, but reasoned we weren't married yet, so I couldn't intervene with his decision. (What was I thinking?!)

In place of my hot RX7, we bought a used 1984 Chev Cavalier. (An absolute piece of junk. I could have killed him.) The pattern started to emerge right at the beginning... and I was either blind or brainwashed or something. Just don't say it was love -- I'll have to hunt you down and hit you! LOL

The 1989 Toyota remained with us for 15 years. But, the list of cars I drove is ridiculous. Watch:

1984 Chev Cavalier (rust bucket) sold to his brother for $200 less than the asking price. His wife drove it for a while and they sold it for $200 over what he paid for it. (In other words, my husband should have sold it for that price. It was obviously a fair price.) Note to husband: Don't SELL a vehicle to a family member.

1984 Mercury Cougar (rust bucket) bought from his father. What a piece of junk. Ridiculously high mileage. Driver's bucket seat BROKEN. And after paying full asking price for it, we had to replace four worn tires -- that was expensive. Note to husband: Don't BUY a vehicle from a family member.

Think we junked that Cougar and picked up another 1984 Mercury Cougar cheap. This one actually made us money because my husband got hit two separate times. Car wasn't worth fixing - so we pocketed the small insurance payouts and drove it with a few dents.

Junked that Cougar when my husband was finally able to lease a 1988 Saab through the company he was working for. (had to wait until the points for speeding tickets were taken off his license) Wow. Now you think we hit the big time driving a brand new Saab around, right? Not so. When it came time to buy it, or turn it in, we did buy it -- but, the ball joint went. Fortunately, it was covered under warranty. If it hadn't been, we were looking at a $1,300 bill. I told him we couldn't afford the maintenance on it, which we truly couldn't.

Sold the Saab and bought a 1986 RX7. This one was in great condition, with very low mileage. It was the owner's joyriding car -- always garaged and brought out on the weekends. He was selling it because he was getting married (hhmmm.... sound familiar? What is wrong with us RX7 owners?! LOL) I always feel my husband had a guilty conscience all those years after I sold mine for a honeymoon trip.

The RX7 promptly got stolen (!!!!!) and the insurance company totaled it. We took that money and used it as a down payment on a leased 1994 GMC Jimmy. The decision for a Jimmy came about because, at this point, I wanted a 4-wheel drive vehicle. The Connecticut winters were getting to me. The only drawback -- it was an automatic. I feel safer in the snow with a manual transmission. Is that in my head or do you really have better control?

The transmission blew in the thing. Fortunately, it blew right before the lease was up. Usually, the way our luck runs, it would have blown after we purchased it. Needless to say, we didn't purchase it and turned it in when the lease was up. Warranty took care of that fiasco, too.

So, now what vehicle do we get? My husband talked me into a 1997 Nissan Maxima. I insisted it be a stick shift! We leased this one, too. Honestly, I never really liked it. It just wasn't me. We had such good luck with his Toyota 4x4 (remember that one -- we've had this whole time!), we decided to look into another Toyota. By now, they came out with 4-runners. My husband nearly choked on the sticker prices. So, we "downsized" from that dream and started looking at the smaller SUVs. We looked at the Toyota Rav4, but the salesman ticked me off. So, we bought a 1998 Honda CRV. The car I am still driving today.

So, you think that's it? Oh no. Just wait. The Toyota 4x4 was garaged a lot of the time because my husband eventually moved up in jobs and had company vehicles. But, when he took an "inside" job when we moved to Indianapolis, he had to hand the company vehicle in. By now, the Toyota was getting old. Still ran like new, but he "needed" a new car. Afterall, he was an "executive" now and needed a nice car to drive to work.

So, he bought a 2004 Chrysler 300M. That car didn't last a year. It had a transmission leak, and it never really got fixed right. Besides, the Toyota's air conditioner now went and he was going to have to start dumping major money into it, so he decided to sell the Toyota 4x4 and the 300M and buy a big truck. The truck we bought, a 2002 Chev Z71 extended cab, rode like a car yet he could use for hauling lumber, brush, or what have you.

Still not done. Last year, when we move into our house here, we discover the Chev truck would not fit in the garage. Funny, we never noticed that every house with an extended cab truck has it parked in the driveway!

So, that got traded in for a 2005 Chev Colorado extended cab. But, that's the one with the fresh road rash. Like I said in the other post, time to get a new one....

Now for the debate...

Was offered the position... lower salary than I want/expected. Still waiting on answers to some questions I had...

I better get busy weighing the pros and cons because, if they come up with the money, I have to be ready to accept or decline the job!!!

I forgot what being in this position is like. How do you know if you're making the right decision?!

THIRD interview tomorrow.

Wish me luck!

Z

Wow, that was easy...

Our neighborhood held a community yard sale (garage sale/tag sale/ whatever). It ran from 8am-2pm on both Friday and Saturday. Everyone sets up their stuff in their own driveways. We got rid of our junk before the move here, so we didn't participate. However, this morning we decided to put our old fridge out in the driveway with a sign on it stating the price and to ring the doorbell if interested. I didn't want to have to sit out there, like everyone else was doing, for one item.

I got a bucket of sudsy water and washed out the fridge. It was basically spotless because I cleaned it before the move, but I just wanted to "freshen" it up a bit. We put it out in the driveway and hubby rinsed it while I washed the removable trays, etc. We were towel-drying everything when a car slows up and the woman yells out the window, "Is that for sale?" We respond, "yup." She hops out of the car, checks it out, and buys it. The thing wasn't even plugged in, and she didn't ask if it runs. I do have to say it looks brand new, so I guess she didn't question if it is mechanically sound.

My neighbors couldn't believe it. All we did was wheel this thing out and it was sold within minutes.

If only everything could be so easy

Where is everyone?! Must be out enjoying the nice weather! I know I am :o)

Indiana daylight-saving-time-dilemma UPDATE: Saw on the news the other day that the senate voted for the ENTIRE STATE to follow daylight saving time. (As you may recall in an earlier post, most of the state does not change their clock.) So that ends THAT debate. Now, the NEW debate is which time zone are they going to all follow -- Eastern or Central??? No need to worry Hoosiers. You'll be able to go along status quo, as this will take another century to decide!

My prediction: They will follow central daylight saving time. Based on personal experience, Indiana has a hard time dealing with the East Coast. I say they'll kill themselves before they do anything like them.

Greetings..... southern-style

My husband and I were taking a walk and our neighbor waved and said --- well, I heard --- "how ya doin" ... you know, typical greeting. We kept walking and I stopped in my tracks like a lightbulb went off over my head and I asked, "Wait. Did he say 'How y'all doing' ?!?!" and my husband said, "yup!" ROFL

Now, you may not find the humor in this, but I'm apparently getting used to this southern slang. Mind you, I'm not talking that way ..... yet! (And don't you worry, I have a feeling I'll always sound like a New Yorker in one way or another.....)

The longevity game

This isn't meant to scare you ... ok, maybe it is ... but it's for your own good!


http://www.nmfn.com/tnetwork/longevity_game_popup.html

SOUTHERN FRIED ME

I am not used to the Southern sun. After spending the day out in the yard, my face and arms are dark red. Fortunately for me, this will be a nice deep brown tomorrow. Unfortunately, I am fully aware of the risks of ultra-violet rays ... so I will have to stock up on sunblock and be sure to use it!!! Oh, and extra-strength (the strongest they've got) for hubby, who turns red just looking at the sun! If I look like this, he's got to be 100 times worse. Oh, he's gonna be one hurtin' puppy tonight, and peeling by mid-week. LO... wait... I shouldn't laugh.

Help!

I've run out of time. I have to go change into something I don't mind getting ruined. Hubby is out in the garage gathering all the gardening tools for our day of landscaping. I must put my best foot forward and wear my crappiest clothes, so I don't worry about getting caked with red clay. It poured yesterday, so I can just imagine how sloppy it will be planting flowers. I must also brace myself for frustration and a few arguments along the way. LOL

Why did I get the husband that insists on planting a ton of flowers?!? Isn't that the wife's role, in which case I wouldn't have to worry about this nonsense?! What did I ever do to deserve this?????

3:00pm update: In case you were concerned, we survived. Legs and back may be sore tonight, but I'll deal with it. We didn't even get in any arguments! Well, we were close to getting annoyed at each other at one point nearing the end of the project, but we're fine :o) Now my concern is that this stuff, or at least some of it, survives and grows. He is out getting pine straw, and then I'll join in the fun task of laying that around anything that isn't moving. Then, I think we're done ...... with the front, that is. The back will get worked on another day ... or year :o)

Who wanted this huge corner lot anyway??!! LOL