Tuesday's Top 10 and TV Tramps

Last night, while Hubby was out to dinner with one of the nephews, I ate my dinner in front of the t.v. watching the previous evening's Pan Am on the PVR.  I confess that I had an inkling from the start that this show was not going to be winning any grand awards, but it started off tame enough, all about the lives of Pan Am flight crews, particularly the "stewardesses" of the 1960s - back when flight attendants had to be female and single.  Anyhoo... I watched as the show progressed.  One of the pilots, having dated his beau of all about 2 weeks, proposed to her to which she said "yes" and then promptly made out with one of the pilot's female co-workers.  Seriously?  Where did THAT come from??  So... there is yet another tv show I will be discontinuing as I am growing ever weary of these storylines where everyone is bi-sexual and making out with the same sex.  Yes... I know that happens in "real life", but I still don't want to watch it, thank you very much Mr. TV Producer!  Sheesh!

So... this caused me to think back to the TV shows I do love, or have loved in the past and that's where we're going in today's Tuesday's Top 10:

Top 10 TV Shows (past or present)

Again, in no particular order, here are my answers:

1. Gilmore Girls
2. The Mentalist
3. Survivor
4. Amazing Race
5. Little House on the Prairie
6. Pushing Daisies
7. Eli Stone
8. The Brady Bunch
9. Bewitched
10. Parenthood

If you want to play along with this week's Tuesday's Top 10, feel free to copy the TT10 logo above and make your own list of your top 10 favorites.  Once you've got them on your blog, link up using the Mr. Linky below and see who else is playing along!

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Laundry Casualty

I'm back... and twice in one day.  (Don't fall off your bloggin' chairs at this turn of events!)  I've taken a page from one of my favorite writers and have decided to blog whenever I feel like it... whenever I have something I want to say, am inspired, have something to get off my chest.  Perhaps this will be "too much" but for now, I've got something to vent!

The Culprit

This innocent gray Tommy Hilfiger (I'm assuming knock-off as it was brought back from China by our next door neighbors for Hubby as a Christmas gift) was innocently thrown into the laundry amidst the other "light" colored clothes, but who knew that it would turn on it's fellow cotton-loving garments?

The Victim

... one of my favorite green cotton Izod fleece cardigans.  Oh the trauma of it all!! (Fortunately I had foresight and have a 2nd of this sweater... newer, fresher, greener... in my closet upstairs!).

What is it with manufacturers of clothes these days?  This isn't the first time horrific "bleeding" has happened in my washing machine.  A couple years ago Hubby had a pair of green plaid shorts that became a casualty... from their own red-edged inner waistband.  Who puts red piping along a waistband in green/white shorts?!

Ooooh... to go back to the days when our clothes came from local manufacturers and held quality as a standard!  Sigh...

Got an Itch

It's been a gloriously sunny (and HOT) week in San Marcos and I've spent most of my days reading by the pool while Hubby works.  I'm thankful for my 30SPF sunscreen that is keeping me from becoming a human piece of toast, although I must confess that self-slathering one's back with sufficient sunscreen is a bit tricky.  Even with my limber limbs from all my exercising, there are still a couple of little sections of my back that I can't quite reach and now those little sections are a bright pink color (and becoming increasingly itchy).  I realized yesterday after taking stock of my newly damaged tanned skin, that I was unable to reach certain sections.  Today, I mustered courage and asked a total stranger (a friendly, young mom in the pool with her adorably polka-dot suited daughter).  if she wouldn't mind helping me with my sunscreen dilemma. She kindly agreed to help me out!

I observed during my time at the pool today how some children are completely unaware of pool etiquette.  Instead of enjoying a section of the pool, they tend to take over the entire pool, or just the immediate area that I tend to be swimming in.  Why is that?  Do I have some strange magnetism that attracts them to me, similar to people who dislike cats and find the cat rubbing up against them continuously? I'm not saying I dislike children... it's just that not having them, I perhaps don't have the same, um... tolerance (?) that parents have for their young cherubs.  If it wasn't the beach-ball cross-pool hogging kids this morning, or the soggy "splash bombs" kids, throwing them in my lounge chair vicinity constantly in the afternoon, the clincher was the young boy sneezing his little head off INTO the pool right in front of me.  Nice!!  Swimming in snot is just how I long to spend my afternoon!  I don't mean to sound like a summer-time "Grinch", but it just fascinates me how this happens in any public pool whether I'm 1000s of miles from home in Texas, or in our own neighborhood pool.  Hmm.

Only a few days left of the 30 Day Photo Fun Challenge.  For today's entry (which includes yesterdays and today's photos), I will have one picture taken this week, and the other taken from my "archives" of photos since I was too lazy to go down to the parking lot for a legit challenge pic.

Day 27 ~ My Weakness

The last two nights, Hubby and I were out to dinner with clients but tonight, we made it home just in time to watch The Voice on t.v.  Before we left for dinner, I had gone down to the "Manager's Reception" at the hotel lobby for my nightly glass of White Zinfandel wine which I had put into our room fridge for later.  Along with the wine, I thought of my other "weakness", Diet Coke.  Oh, I know how horrible it is for my health, but as of yet, I have not been able to "kick the habit".

Day 28 ~ Transportation

Okay... I confess, I didn't take this picture... at all.  I "borrowed" this picture from the Carnival cruise line website.  The reason I chose this picture for today's pic though is that in 136 days, Hubby and I will be joining my NC sister & her family on this ship for a fun 6 day cruise to Bahamas and Key West FL.  I just thought it would be a fun picture for this topic!  Had I been on the ball though, I would have gotten up off my lounge chair this week, and taken a picture of one of the fire engines that pulled through the hotel parking lot where the Texas fireman from across the state are whooping it up at their convention.  Who is tending the fires though is what I want to know!?

Whose Afraid of... the Dentist... and Other Ghoulish Tales!

It's another busy week around the Lemonade Stand.  I barely remember the weekend, after having my first dental work in YEARS done on Friday.  Okay.  Confession time.  I am horrifically phobic of the Dentist and because of that, it has been a very long time since I had last been for even a teeth cleaning.  Gross.  I know!

It all started when I was a young girl.  My first recollection of the dentist wasn't too far off the pscyho dentist from Little Shop of Horrors, who loves instilling pain on his patients.  I remember sitting back in the dentist chair, that light shining in my eyes, the sounds... the smells... (I'm starting to have an anxiety attack just thinking about it)... and then the needles.  Yes, I said NEEDLES!  Four of them to be exact.  Dr. Muirhead was not a tender dentist either.  In my mind's eye it was as if the man was standing on my face to get the needles down to the back of my throat.  And you have to ask why would I ever be afraid.  Hmmmfph!

The remainder of my youth and adulthood has been in search of the "perfect" dentist, if there ever could be such a thing.  I've tried many times to get back in the saddle (or dentist chair as it were) only to end up with the heebie jeebies and go cold turkey off the dentist for a long stretch of time.  Up until recently I had been content to ignore the fact that good dental hygiene was up there with godliness, but somehow that nagging ache in my upper right jaw wouldn't let me live in my alternate reality where dentists don't exist any longer.  No wonder these poor guys have the highest suicide rate.  Heck with everyone dissing them constantly!


Thanks be to Google... I typed in "phobic of dentist" and to my surprise (and delight) came up a "rate your doctor" site that had entry after entry of this one doctor/dentist, praising his work and clinic.  Hmm... this is interesting!   I soon learned that this "wonder doctor" was actually in my area, a short 10-15 drive from home.  I was thrilled (or as thrilled as a dental phobic patient can be).  I called the number, figuring that it would take forever to get an appointment.  The delightful Scottish accent on the other end of the phone was not only comforting, but also hugely helpful in getting me in to meet the dentist the following week.  I was shocked!

I went in for the meeting and was immediately put at ease, not only by the kind reception of everyone I encountered, but also by the lack of dentist office smell.  The environment was homey and warm (including the gas fireplace in the room where I met the Dentist).  After x-rays were taken and my teeth were shown to me on a tv screen above my head (and can I just say... there is a reason why it's dark in our mouths!!), we discussed the treatment methods to help ease my fears and get me on my way to regular dental treatment and health.  A teeth cleaning session was booked as well as the first of 2 much needed appointments to replace old decayed fillings and cavities.

I was able to get through my teeth cleaning with just a little anxiety a couple weeks ago with the help of worship music playing on my iPod (drowning out the sounds), the comfy "massage" dental chair and the dental freezing the dentist administered.  My big hurdle would be the actual dental work.  This appointment happened last Friday and well... let's just say it was a huge success because ... I DON'T REMEMBER IT!  Yep... not a thing!  Thanks to this dentist's training as a dentist AND anasthesialogist last thing I remember was chatting to the nurse about which church she attended...(which is the same one as two of my niblings). I vaguely remember the ride home and have snippets of recollection of Hubby feeding me yogurt and apple juice.  Apparently, he tells me, I told him the story about the nurse being a Christian like 40 times on the ride home.  Oops!  Loopy does not describe me apparently!  Hubby told me that next time he plans to videotape me.  After seeing this video... I'm not so sure I want him to - ha ha.  Check out this video on Youtube and you'll get a slight idea of what my Friday was like!

At least I was semi-cognitive enough to remember the calls from my oldest brother and his wife, keeping me abreast of my niece in labor with her first baby.  Little Elijah was born safely on Friday night around 10:20pm.  Thank you Jesus!!  That's SIX great-niblings now!  How blessed am I?!

Saturday I laid pretty low.  After Friday I wasn't looking forward to going anywhere but Hubby really wanted to get out of the house so I dragged myself out with him to do a little shopping before we came home to hibernate with a movie Saturday night.

Sunday was church, a visit from one of our nephews at lunch and then the invasion of Trick or Treaters in the evening.  We were thrilled when our friends dropped by late afternoon with their little 18 month old "Frog" to show us her Halloween costume.  We were sure to load up her little basket with candy... for her folks!  All in all we had drips and drabs of kids over the 2 hours of handing out candy.  Maybe 50 kids in all showed up.  Of course, the one time Hubby ran over to the neighbors was the time the ugly "Scream" masked kid shows up at the door and I am forced to give him candy.  I HATE creepy costumes.  Why must I "reward" the older kids with either lack of creativity (aka not dressing up) or evil, creepy costumes with candy?  I really am not a huge fan of Halloween.  Thankfully the costumes were mostly cute.  By 8pm we shut the door, turned off the light... and head downstairs for our Sunday evening of Reality TV.  Glad it's only one night a year!

Time Out

Not having small children, I am not a regular on the "time out" circuit. That doesn't mean though that "time outs" are not needed in my home. Today for example... I did/do indeed need a "time out".

I'm not sure if it's hormones or staying up too late but for some reason today I am BIG TIME "Miss Crankypants". Remember her? She is that cranky, overbearing, impatient and rather ugly individual who shows up on my doorstep unannounced and takes over my body.

She first made her presence known today when I went downstairs to start laundry. I know... MORE laundry. Like the 6 loads I did last week weren't enough, let's add 4 more today! I think I told you about the green shorts and top that hubby AND my brother-in-law bought while down in Raleigh. They looked like bobbsey-twins. Anyhoo... those green shorts are the bain of my existence right now. Last week, I washed the said shorts and hung them neatly to dry on the rack for fear that they would shrink in the dryer. Fine. No problem. A couple days later I took them off the rack and noticed that there were pink stains along the waistband on the outside of the shorts. I looked inside and WHOA... there was tons of pink stains... right along the edge of the binding tape along the seam... the RED binding tape along the WHITE seam.

Okay. I may not be the sharpest tool in the shed but seriously... who puts RED binding tape along a WHITE lining in GREEN/NAVY/WHITE shorts?? Anyone?? Anyone?? Bueller??

I called my sister to ask her what she did/would do if/when this happens to her hubby's identical shorts. Fortunately for her, D's shorts hadn't made their way into the laundry yet. "Thanks for the warning" she tells me. She suggested that after I try "Spray'n Wash", "Sunlight" bar soap, Dynamite (okay maybe not that one), that I should use a mix of vinegar and water to set the red dye in the waistband. Okay. I can handle that I think.

So, Tuesday, I scrub and scrub at the shorts getting almost all of the pink out, dosing the one last little spot along the side of the band with more Spray'n Wash. I go back this morning and now there is MORE pink along the front by the zipper, worse than was there originally. Oh my goodness... I just about lost it. I was ready to find a match and burn the stupid shorts. Instead, I called hubby like the hysterical SAHW I can be somedays, and we try & figure out what to do with the shorts. He suggested that I leave them with the pink and just do the setting with vinegar so no more gets pink and he'll just wear his shirt out with the shorts. Whatever!

I was SO upset that I actually went online to find the company that made the shorts and give them a piece of my mind. Lucky for them they don't have a website! Grrrr.

So, after my meltdown, I decided to knit and watch a movie to calm me down forgetting of course that prayer and meditation on God's Word would be a MUCH better alternative. I spent 2 hours with Julia Roberts and Hugh Grant in Nottinghill. Can I just say how much I LOVE that Ronan Keating song, "When You Say Nothing". Have you heard it?



I felt better and thought Miss Crankypants had taken her leave but nope... she came back again at dinner as I was making a mess of our meal. I'm so glad my hubby is patient and has a stomach of steel! Let's just say... too much lemon on the fish. That's all I'm going to say about THAT!

So... that was my day in a nutshell. Laundry/meltdown, movie/knitting, dinner prep/meltdown. Now I wonder what tonight will bring??? Let's just say that quality time with God will be part of it for sure!

Ch..Ch..Ch...Changes

Okay. I just have to say... I think I'm starting to really go through the "change"... you know that time in a middle-aged woman's life when her hormones go completely whacky. Yep. I think it's started... big time.

I noticed over the past year that my cycles were changing. Last summer Aunt Flo was on her own little vacation and I didn't see her until September. This year... she's gone again which on one hand isn't so bad. Saves cash for one thing

For the past month I think I've noticed that my body temperature is changing. In years gone by I was ALWAYS cold, especially in the summer with air conditioning on I'd have to bundle up in sweats, etc. While at my sister's house these past couple weeks, I found myself getting hot and clammy despite the air conditioning. I asked my 52 yr old sister, who is nearing the end of the "change", "What do hot flashes feel like?". Her reply, similar to other women I've heard, "feels like a power surge." "Hmm. I think I might be experiencing that."

For those of you in your 30's and early 40's... this is NO FUN! Let me tell you how uncomfortable this "change" is. Last night, I decided that the flannel pj pants I wore the night before were too hot. Instead, I put on a slinky little nightgown, hoping that this little spaghetti strapped number would keep me cool. Long story short... I woke up in a hot sweat this morning... blankets flailing off the bed... gasping for fresh air. The sheets were damp, my hair was damp. "Eve... you got some 'splaining to do girlfriend!!!"

Tonight, hubby has brought a fan upstairs to our room which should hopefully keep me under wraps in the blanket department. It really is a gross feeling when you feel chilled one minute and the next minute your skin feels like it is suffocating with an overheated feeling.

I truly didn't expect for this "change" to happen so soon, having just turned 45 last month, but I guess when your cycle doesn't stop for any length of time with a pregnancy (or two or three), the egg basket depletes a little faster than fertile women's. Oh well... what can ya do? At least my sister and I can go through this together!

The Honor System

Whatever happened to the honor system in our society? You know what I'm talking about. Respecting one another. Following the rules.

Our townhouse community has a pool that our complex shares with the complex to our north. For the past 14 years we've lived in our townhouse, every summer the pool has had a lifeguard protecting and monitoring. This year the condo board decided to switch the pool from chlorine to saline (or whatever the salt-water type pools are called) and forego the lifeguard. At first I thought it was a great idea. Having had a pool in the backyard growing up, I hated having a stranger stare at me while I huffed and puffed my way through laps. But all that has been changing lately.

When the pool switched over from lifeguard to no lifeguard, the hours of the pool changed as did the scheduled "adult time" swims. Fair enough. From 5pm to 7pm each evening the pool is supposed to clear out of all children under the age of 16. Unfortunately, though, few seem to want to go by the rules.

Yesterday, hubby went for a swim after work. As the clock turned 5pm, a gentleman in the pool with a handful of kids with him, asked hubby, "Do you need a lane?" Hubby is very gentle and quiet and didn't want to kick the guy out, but it bothered him. Obviously, the man knew the rules of the pool but just chose not to follow them. What's with that?

This afternoon, hubby and I went over to the pool around 4:30 when he got home from work. Again, there were about 8 people in the pool and not a single one budged at 5pm to get their small children out of the pool. By 5:15 I was getting perturbed but was, like hubby, too timid to enforce the rules, partly because it's not my job to police the pool (or is it?) and I really don't want my neighbors hating me and thinking of me as the mean child-hating barren woman.

Needless to say, we intend to write a letter to our condo board to complain about these new pool rules and the lack of enforcing. But what really bugged me was the fact that we HAVE to complain and enforce the rules. What happened to people just following the rules. Every single person got the letter telling us the pool hours. It's open from 9am to 9pm with only 5-7pm set aside for adults only. Is it THAT difficult to take your children home for 2 hours at dinnertime? Geesh!

I think this incidence speaks to a deeper problem. We live in such a self-centered, disrespectful society now that rules really don't mean anything. Every day as we drive around our city, shop in our malls and live in our own homes we see the effects of the sinful nature. Numero Uno is most important to the majority of people and if they don't like the rules, they just ignore them ore rewrite them. It's tragic!

Just had to get that off my chest!

Just a quick little blurb about my obsesession tonight... WOOHOO... Reid WILL be back on the finale!!! A true love story might just happen this year on the Bachelorette!!! I only have one more week left of my obsessive behavior (I hope) and then hubby can stop laughing at me, I can sleep properly again, and clean my house - lol. It's gonna be a great show next Monday... I can barely wait!

Why Can't They Just Leave Well Enough Alone!

This afternoon I turned on my t.v. while I was doing my weekly ironing (yes I am one of the few housewives left in the world who irons on a regular basis!). I was flicking between channels when I came across the Rachael Ray show. Today's guest was Rupert Everett. You may remember him for his adorable role of Julia Robert's gay best friend in "My Best Friend's Wedding".

Well, had you tuned into Rachael Ray today you would have recognized his voice... but holy smokes... what happened to his face?

Caption reads: This is an impressive difference. He looks 10 years younger...
but I say he looks like a complete different person!

I completely didn't recognize him from the ghastly work he's had done to his otherwise, previously handsome face. It reminded me of another celebrity who really should have thought long and hard before going under the knife.... Kenny Rogers. Not even HE likes it I've read.

First time I saw Kenny's new face I had to find
an old picture to remember what he looked like

Now I get that none of us enjoy the aging process. I have to take a double look some mornings when I take a gander into my own mirror but seriously... did these guys really think they looked THAT bad that they would actually pay someone tons of money to do THIS to their face and LIKE it? I shudder at the thought!

I worked for almost 7 years at a clinic where every year the sale of Botox and Restylane and/or Perlane dominated the books. Women in their early 20's would come in frantic because they found a wrinkle on their brow. Are you kidding me? Why do you think they invented bangs?

I confess. I color my hair. I vowed I would never do that EVER when I was in my late teens and then by my 30's the gray stragglers were starting to pop up and I gave in to the pressure of the L'Oreal ads. But I also confess... I'm cheap and somehow $22 every 4 months to keep away the gray hairs doesn't bother me, or the budget too much. But some of this other stuff. You need to remortgage the house, get a second job AND sell your children to the highest bidder to keep up with the costs of "maintenance".

When I worked, we had one woman who came to the clinic and had about $350-400 worth of Botox treatments (which I might add need to be reapplied every 4-6 months depending on the area it's injected). She paid by cheque and then two days later asked if we could hold her cheque. Long story short, the woman was going through some relational trauma and needed a "pick me up" of Botox and then couldn't pay the bill after it was done. Hello... it's called a LUXURY for a reason! As far as I know, when I left 18 months ago, the woman still hadn't paid her entire bill.

I do get concerned with our society that what was once a Hollywood addiction has now become the neighborhood addiction of having to be perfect and forever young. There is something just not right about a 70 year old woman looking younger than her grandchildren. I'm just saying! And as we can't help but stare at those whose lips look they've been sucking the pool drain (yes, you Meg Ryan), I just have to ask, "why can't you just leave well enough alone?"

Pet Peeve

Just a quick little Pepper tale or two today.

Here's a question for you dog people... why is it that some people (not all mind you) with large dogs find it necessary to bring their big dog up to the little dog (aka Pepper) while on a walk (or in my backyard). Usually the dog towers over poor little Pepper and either barks or lunges at him, scaring the poop right out of him (not literally but may as well).

I've already told you about my neighbor's crazy dog lunging at poor Pepper on Monday. Well yesterday we went for a long walk in the park by our home. As we entered the park, a lady with a Keeshond,

has her dog on the far side of the path while the dog does its business. Let me just interject here that my only contact with this breed of dog in the past was when my sister and her family, not once but twice tried to have this type of dog as their family pet. Again, not meaning to offend those who may have this breed, but my sister's dogs were nuts! They were the most unruly, undisciplined and out of control puppies I had ever seen in my life. I HATED their dogs with a passion so needless to say, walking into the park to find a Keeshond didn't sit well with me from the start. Back to my story...

As we head along the path the lady all of a sudden starts to move her Keeshond over towards us on the path. The dog had this look like Pepper was an appetizer to lunch and I quickly tightened my grip. I quickly informing the lady that I'm puppy sitting and "my" dog isn't used to being around other dogs and then I drag Pepper away from this dog. A little farther down the path I turn around only to find the lady following us along the trail which caused me to wonder, Did she just come over to us to "make friends" and if so, don't people wait until you show signs of wanting to make friends? I am so new to this world of doggieville and I don't quite understand the sub-culture at this point, obviously! Fortunately, we made it home from our walk without Pepper being eaten by a big dog!

The rest of the day was uneventful for Pepper as his human "sister, my niece, "S" came to visit and we went out to dinner and a movie, leaving Pepper safely in his gated room in my kitchen. In the evening, "S" and I met up with my sister, Pepper's Mom, on Skype where we caught up on the happenings up in the Yukon. We put Pepper on my lap and started pointing to the computer screen and my sister starting talking to her puppy which TOTALLY confused the little guy. He dashed off barking towards the front door, completely unaware where his mommy's voice was coming from. It was really funny! He quickly bored of that but we were entertained chatting for almost an hour via computer on Skype.

So I've survived my first week of doggydom and have enjoyed it much more than I ever imagined. Still not ready to run out to the nearest breeder or shelter to pick up my own furry friend, but I'm not as terrified of the thought. We are not certain how a dog would fit into our lifestyle right now, but we at least know that we have what it takes to give a furry friend the love and care they would need! And for now, I'll just savor the last 4 days I have with the furry nephew!

The Joys and Frustrations of Being Married to a Phlegmatic

I love my hubby more than words can say. I love everything about him from his gentle nature to his passion for Jesus Christ. I love the way he loves me and how he has shown me more about God's love and grace than anyone else. I love his heart that has such compassion for others. But his temperament... Hmm. Do I love that? I do but there are tremendous joys and frustrations with it!

My hubby is highly phlegmatic. What's that you ask? Here is a perfect description of my hubby's strengths HERE. In fact, my hubby is textbook Phlegmatic temperament and it sometimes drives me CRAZY!

On the upside of his temperament he will never make a snap decision that we will regret forever. He weighs every decision he makes very carefully and prays about everything so as to not make a move outside of the will of God. This is good. I never have to fear him getting us in over our head financially or otherwise.

But the downside of his temperament is that he moves like molasses! (Read HERE to see phlematic weaknesses) About 8-10 years ago we had the opportunity to purchase our "dream" house at a reasonable price but hubby wasn't willing to step out and take a risk even though the payments would be exactly what we're paying for our present home. Those same houses have gone up double in value over those years and now we couldn't afford one unless I went back to work full-time with a high paying job.

My temperament has some phlegmatic but I am mostly sanguine (strengths defined HERE and weaknesses HERE). Hubby's need to process everything with a fine tooth comb can make me in sane. It makes me feel like I'm living on a roller coaster ride and today, I just want off the ride!

Here's the 411 on what's making me nuts tonight. As you know from my weekend post we spent ALL DAY Saturday out test driving cars and "crunching numbers" with the salespeople. We have also been back to the Auto Mall Monday afternoon, Tuesday afternoon and now Wednesday afternoon. Have we purchased a car yet? No. Have we narrowed down our choices? Yes. Have we driven the salespeople around the bend with our indecision? Most definitely! Will we be buying a car soon? I'm not sure!

What???? you're probably wondering. Well, after all of this (which NONE of it was my idea), hubby is thinking that perhaps his 212,500km Protege has some life left in it and we should hold off. Fine! But he hasn't decided that. What he does keep "reminding" me is that if I went back to work we could afford it. I have mentioned in about 100 different ways that I am not opposed to going back to work part-time but I don't want to get locked into a situation like my last job where I lost myself and became depressed. I don't want to get locked into a position so I can't travel with him anymore but I am ready to get out of the house and try a new, "temporary" or part-time challenge. I can't do it today though. I can't go tomorrow. I can't even go most of June because of puppy sitting and baby sitting stints I have coming up. I don't know what else to tell him!

He is not pressuring me to go to work mind you at least not outwardly. He tells me the decision is all mine BUT if I want to move or have a car when his dies then I will have to get out there and work. I am confused. My brain feels scattered and my heart hurts from the events of this past week. I honestly feel like I've just been through the spin cycle in the washing machine. It's crazy!

I respect my hubby so much and KNOW that every decision he makes is what he feels is best for us but sometimes I wish he wouldn't have pulled me into this. I really could have done without my hopes being raised high in the sky with a beautiful new car (with a sunroof to boot!) only to have him now back peddling in his decision. I just want to say forget it & we'll stay status quo once again. I'm tired of hoping for change in our life only to never make any kind of move forward. And honestly, I feel like everything (a house, a car) rests on me getting a job. I'm weary!

Sorry for the rant but this has weighed heavy on my heart ever since we got home from the Auto Mall today. One of hubby's co-workers was telling him our buying a car was a stupid decision when we really want a house. The problem with that though is that there are no homes in the price range we can afford that are worth moving to and what's the point of moving to somewhere else if it's not what you want? Is your life this complicated and frustrating? Am I being unreasonable? Am I wanting things that just aren't possible? How do make it work with kids AND being home? I can't even imagine all of this with kids in the picture!

Thanks for indulging me tonight. I'm sure tomorrow's post will be less stressful! I leave you with one thought though... How did this hubby of mine decide to propose to me after only weeks of dating?? That was TOTALLY a God thing!

Christian Celebrity... Oxymoron?

I have been disturbed today and I can't seem to shake it. Actually, this feeling has been lingering for a while now and I'm just now beginning to formulate it into words.

First off I think I have to start by saying... I'm a celebrity news junkie. I truly need a 12-step program for my fascination with most things "celebrity". I liken it to the same rubber-neck reaction when driving past a car accident on the highway... you just can't not look!

So it is with my addiction to People.com, ETonline, Reality Blurred website and various message boards and fan sites for all my favorite shows. Friends come to me for entertainment news because they know I'm "in the know". I wish I weren't that interested, but I am. I hate that about myself but for now it is my vice but I think I want to be healed of this once and for all.

Which brings me to the subject of my title above. In my "quest for knowledge", I was surfing around today and saw that Kate Gosselin is "thinking about" ended her marriage to her "Jon and Kate Plus 8", hubby, Jon Gosselin after rumors have been racing around the media outlets of an "alleged" affair that Jon denies. I have only watched this show a couple times and couldn't get into it because Kate perpetually sounded to me like somone with a bad case of PMS. I felt for Jon having to hear her nag and complain all the live long day. Granted, from what I hear he is a bit of a lazy so & so ~ perhaps her nagging is a little justified... not to mention the small army of children she is parenting! Anyhoo... that's not my point.

My point I guess is this. Jon and Kate profess to be Christians and have made that part of their life public. I am in no way wanting to judge them because we all know how difficult it is in this world to live out our faith every day to the glory of God. What I am struggling with deals more with the whole concept of believers seeking out "celebrity", proclaiming their faith and beliefs to the world and then doing the exact opposite things that the Bible professes. I'm not just picking on Jon and Kate here. There are so many others I think of: Kathie Lee Gifford, Hunter Tylo of "The Bold and Beautiful", Clay Aiken, the entire Simpson family (Jessica, Ashley, Joe...) to name a few. Brittany Spears I think once proclaimed to be Christian, didn't she? I know there are others but my mind can't think of them right now.

As I was watching American Idol tonight I started thinking about Danny Gokey and what this new found fame will do to his testimony. Will he fall the way of the others who pursue fame more than faith? Or will he take the road of Mandissa, from Season 5, whose singing career is focused on glorifying God as she tours often with Bible teacher and speaker, Beth Moore.

At least twice the Bible warns us that "No one can serve two masters. For you will hate one and love the other; you will be devoted to one and despise the other. You cannot serve both God and money." (Matt 6:24 & Luke 16:13) I'm not even a celebrity and I struggle with this. I can't imagine having people fawning all over me, throwing big chunks of moola at me. That can really mess you up I would think!

All this to say my heart is heavy lately. I feel like our Christian values and devotion to God is going to "hell in a hand basket". We are so far from what God's design was for His children and I'm not sure if it's conviction or what, but I can tell that I need to get more focused on praying for these "celebrities" and checking my own passions and pursuits to make sure I don't fall into the same sorts of traps (albeit on much lesser and much less public scale).

On a positive side of all this though... I found the site of Carrie Underwood's new boyfriend, hockey player Mike Fisher. Here is a "celebrity" that is "not ashamed of the Gospel of Christ" (Rom 1:16) and shares his testimony on his website and even with the Hockey Night in Canada, host during an interview. Yay Mike! Let's hope the enemy doesn't get a hold of him too!

Where Did I Put Them Now?

I hate being in my mid-forties. Can I just say that loudly? Not only did my metabolism stop on a dime, but my eyesight has gone so buggie that I'm forever misplacing my glasses.

I've worn glasses since I was in my early teens. I needed them for distance because I couldn't see the chalkboard at school. As soon as I could, in my teen years, I graduated to contact lenses, but because of an astigmatism in my one eye, I couldn't wear the cheap disposable ones, I had to wear the "special" kind that of course cost more. I found the soft lenses okay but they would feel so goopy most of the time.

So, for awhile I tried "Boston lenses" - the semi-rigid kind like my one sister wears. At first, the vision from them was incomparable to the soft lenses, but because they are "semi-rigid", they bothered my eyes. My eyeballs got so itchy with them in that I wanted to rip my eyes out of my head not long after putting them into my eyes. I gave the Boston lenses a valiant effort, but could never get used to them so back I went to the soft lenses.

Then... I turned 40! Why is that no one tells you how you fall apart after 40? You'd think at least my sister's would have warned me!

One day while out shopping with my BFF we were looking around Linens 'N Things (sigh... remember them!) With face scrunched, glasses perched on my head I squinted to try and read the price tag on the item in my hand. "AHA!" Startled, I looked up to find my BFF pointing at me with a huge smirk across her face. "I caught you!" she said. Yes, indeed, she had caught me in the embarrasing moment of my first realizaton that I do in fact need bifocals.

Last year at my yearly optical appointment, the eye doctor confirmed what my friend had so "discreetly" discovered. My prescription has changed and bifocals are inevitable. But, being the rebel that I am... or is it just denial... the prescription remains in my wallet where it was placed almost a year ago.

Instead, I prefer to just lift my glasses off in order to see close up. Watching tv and working on my laptop is frustrating because I can't do both at the same time. I don't need glasses for close up so wearing my glasses I either have to set them higher on my head and try to peer down underneath them (which I do in church when reading the passage the pastor is referring to in his sermon), or I have to take them off and watch t.v. blurry while tapping on the keyboard.

The worst part about this denial is that I keep putting my glasses down in the house and then quickly forget where I've laid them. Oh ya... the third big gift in your 40's... the gift of perimental-pause! The brain that you used to be so proud of all the crap you could retain in it... a total seive now!

Take tonight for instance. The time was nearing for DWTS. I've had my glasses off and on all day and then when I really needed them, they were nowhere to be found. I checked the sofa by my laptop. I checked the kitchen. Where are those stupid glasses? I wondered. I went upstairs and started ranting to hubby, "Have you seen my glasses? I can't find them again!"

Hubby walks to his dresser. "Are these your glasses?" Sheepishly I look at him. "Yes." I say. I had them on when I brought the laundry upstairs to put away. I must have placed them on his dresser, because apparently I can't see to put laundry away with them on my face (sheesh!). I forgot instantly that I put them down and wandered around the house for hours not missing them. Maybe it is time to get that prescription filled... or at least the "librarian's chain" I asked "Santa" for last Christmas!

What Was Up With That?

Have you ever woken up on a given day and just been annoyed at someone? I mean REALLY annoyed! The worst part of it is though, that person has done NOTHING to make you feel that way.

I have no idea what was going on with me today but all day long at various times I would just get so frustrated and annoyed with hubby and the poor guy hadn't done a thing. I tried to avoid him most of the day because just a simple comment or action made me so nuts inside that I thought I was going to snap at him, blow up at him or plain just pick a fight.

I even called out an S.O.S. with two of my best friends online, begging for prayer and affirmation that I'm not completely losing it. Fortunately, they too have experienced this kind of situation with their own hubbies! Phew! It's not just me!


We ran some errands this afternoon. We picked up a new Epson printer/scanner which hubby has been trying to get to work all evening... more on that later! We also drove out about 30 minutes west of us to view a couple of open houses. The first one, the agent wasn't there so who knows what happened with her open house. The second one we quite liked for the most part, although it is a 30 year old home which would need new windows soon and the upstairs bedroom section was not exactly our dream "retreat" we would hope for. The backyard though was amazing! There was a lovely kidney shaped inground pool backing on to greenspace (I think the agent said it was the Trans Canada Pipeline). The main floor sections (it was a side-split) were very nice too. All in all though, we're not quite ready to start bidding on places. We have much to do around here to get us buyer-friendly first.

When we got home from our errands, I could still feel that agitation of earlier in the day. I'm not certain if it's our home, our neighborhood or some strange PMS/perimenopause thing happening inside me. Whatever it is, that annoyance at hubby began to rear its ugly head again. While he fought with the new printer (which by the way should be making a reappearance at the store very soon), I decided to start dinner and keep me from saying something I may just regret later.

When hubby came down to grab his freshly made quesadilla, I decided to tell him how I was feeling. "Honey, I'm really irritated with you today for some reason but I know you haven't done anything to make me irritated and I know I'm not irritated at you, but for some reason I FEEL it" After giving me a little chuckle and a hug, we embraced and he began to pray for me... for us.

There is such power in prayer and I just want to say to the powers of evil around us... HA HA HA! By bringing those feelings into the Light (both with hubby and to God in prayer as a united couple), the irritation lifted. We even joked about it through the night as hubby would ask, "So, do you want to hit me now?"

I'm sure this weekend in particular, the enemy will try whatever means he can to get us Christians' focus away from Resurrection Day and the Victory we have in Jesus! I don't want to give him an inch. Not a foothold. Not a second thought! Oh, and I think I'll go back upstairs and snuggle with my honey!


P.S. The deal with the printer in case you're interested... from the moment hubby put paper in the paper feeder, he's had a "paper jam" signal on the front display. Apparently, as he's found online, many people have had tons of trouble with this issue. In fact many of the consumers writing said they wanted to take their new printers out back and either shoot them with their BBGuns or whack the crap out of them with a baseball bat. I think we'll just return it to the store for a refund. Too bad we hadn't found those reviews when we were researching this earlier in the week! Oh well. Bye bye Epson. Hello Canon!

Is it Live...

Or just really bad lip syncing? That's what I want to know about the new "format" for the group numbers on American Idol.

Actually, from what I've read it's lip synching and I don't understand what producers see wrong in singers singing LIVE anymore. When it comes to American Idol we expect it not to be perfect as these young people are ungroomed. We're really okay with it. Or at least I am anyways.

What really makes me wonder what the producers of shows are thinking is when performers the caliber of Faith Hill and Jennifer Hudson have to lip sync like they did for the Super Bowl national anthems. I get that a glitch "could" happen, but these women sing "live" every night in their careers. It's okay if it's not "perfect" either.

I am really tired of this over-processed world we live in. Everything from our facial wrinkles to singing voices have to have the "real" squeezed out and replaced with the "perfect". But guess what? Life isn't "perfect" and that's alright!

I am totally okay with having a few extra pounds on my body, and crow's feet around my eyes. And if the "live" singer on my t.v. doesn't sound perfect (i.e. Ashley Simpson, Brittany Spears, Taylor Swift) that's okay. Well, let me rethink that... maybe not!

Get Me Outta Here!

Vacation can't come fast enough! One of the downfalls of living in a major North American city is the traffic and with the traffic comes selfish drivers. You know what I mean! Take this for example... we are driving this afternoon out to friends' for dinner and we're going along the small 4-lane highway when this Audi cuts in front of us. No signal. No real space for her to come in without slamming the brakes. So hubby hits the brakes and we both raise our arms to say "What are ya thinking??" The Audi driver now in front of us starts pointing at the big truck in the lane she was just in as if to say... "I had to get over... can't you see that big truck". Okay Princess! Apparently YOU don't have to brake for cars in front of YOU! Sheesh!

Earlier in the day when I was out at the grocery store picking up a few last minute snacks for our drive tomorrow, I get back into my car, put it in reverse but can't go anywhere as there is a car behind me waiting to get into a spot on the other side of aisle. No problem. I don't mind waiting. But the man parked next to me, waiting to get into his car. Not so much! The older gentleman keeps waving me on so he can get inside his car, totally unaware that I CAN'T move back yet. He even moves forward to look into my front window to make sure I see him there. Uh... ya buddy! Where would you like me to back up to? OVERTOP of the red van?? Sheesh again!

So... thinking we are almost home free tonight, on our way home from our friends' we are on the same road as before but about 2 minutes from home. We're in the inside lane preparing to turn into the turn lane at the next corner when out of the intersection before our turn this guy flies out into the center lane almost on top of us. Um... HELLO... do you not see there is NOONE behind us? Ya couldn't wait 5 seconds more until we passed?


After being in the car today I am STRESSED OUT! What are we thinking going on a car trip 14 hours? I sure hope tomorrow all the crazy drivers are still back up here far, far away from us!