Thursday Blurbs

1. Not much time for blurbing today. I just finished making the first two (of three) batches Christmas cookies. Next, I need to jump in the shower and get ready to take gifts and cookies to Suhey's. Then, I still need to pick up toys for the dogs' gifts, go to the grocery store for last minute items for tomorow's dinner and return the empty mini m&ms container I got for the kids' stocking. Also, I need a few more things for said stockings.

2. Then? I need to clean the house and the boom boom room. Someone has to take the dog out for a walk. Today that someone has to be someone other than me. I just don't know how I'm going to squeeze that in. Oh! And let's not forget all the presents I need to wrap.

3. I'm hoping I'll be able to sit down at the end of the evening with a cup of tea and watch "White Christmas" that I DVR'd earlier. That would be the perfect end to a hectic day. Here's to making it happen!

4. Suhey's baby is due in 3 weeks! She's having a boy... can't wait. Dee Dee (Deanna) is now 3! Wow, can't believe how much she's grown. Hope she likes the gifts from the boys.

5. Okay, time is wasting. I've really go to get going now. I have that big date with Bing Crosby and Danny Kaye tonight!

6. Merry Christmas and Happy New Year!

7. *PEACE*

Things I know for sure Wednesday

1. I know for sure that there are not enough hours in the day to finish what needs to be finished.

2. I also know for sure that better planning would solve some of this angst and take some of the stress out of the holidays. Next year there will be a plan. A good plan. A really good plan.

3. I know for sure that minor setbacks can be dealt with (i.e., getting a $50 parking ticket) when so many others are truly suffering.

4. I know for sure that I am blessed with the love and support of family and friends. As dysfunctional as we are sometimes, I still find ways to be grateful.

5. I know for sure that there are many, many, many (many) things that I wish I didn't know for sure.

6. I know for sure that commercials for "as seen on tv" products are the cheesiest things ever. They should really consider hiring my cousin for a pr makeover.

7. I know for sure that tomorrow is Christmas Eve and that I sincerely wish one and all a very Merry Christmas, Happy New Year and peace in your hearts always.

Really?

I mean seriously. You cannot be for real. A $50 parking ticket... for parking in my OWN driveway? You've got to be kidding. 4 days before Christmas? Really? REALLY? Are you serious?

I don't even have a job. This is the most bare-boned Christmas in the history of Christmas. This is the coldest winter we've had in the history of cold winters. I don't know how we are even going to pay the PG&E bill that I'm estimating to be at least double of what it was last month. And you want to give me a ticket for parking my car in my driveway?

Seriously? Really? Are you really serious?

Let me tell you something Officer N. Pezzaniti of the City of San Jose Police Department. In your infinite wisdom as a San Jose Police Officer, what can you possibly be thinking? How can I be violating section 22500F CVC (blocking or parking on sidewalk) if I'm parked in my own drive way? I practically live in a cul-de-sac (more like in the corner of a 90 degree angle). No one even walks by my section of sidewalk/driveway. They cut across the street so the don't have to walk as far.

What could possibly have motivated you to issue this ticket? I mean, seriously. Were you pissed off because the cars on the street are all up to code, you got called out here to take care of them and you couldn't go back to the station empty handed? Was it the neighbors? Did they call and complain about the cars parked in the street? I mean honestly. In all that is good, why would you do this?

And just what exactly constitutes "blocking or parking on sidewalk?" As you can see in the photograph, there is clearly enough room to walk by. In fact I have parked this way for the last 7 years since we bought this house. There is a bush in front of the garage and if I park to close I don't have enought room to walk by and then I have to walk all the way around the back of the car to walk into my house. Which I pay property taxes on, btw. Property taxes that help pay your salary.

And you choose today (practically Christmas day), of all days, to give me (me! can you believe it?) a ticket?For $50? F-I-F-T-Y FRICKIN' DOLLARS! That I don't have! You explain to my kids why they aren't getting Christmas stockings this year, officer Pezzaniti (does that mean Scrooge in Italian?) because I'm done. DONE! But before I go I just have one question:

Really? Seriously? Are you really, seriously for real? *annoyed*

Random Top Ten Lists (my other blog)

Check out my other blog, "Random Top Ten Lists." I just updated it with my top ten favorite Christmas movies... go check it out and let me know your favorite top ten.

You can also follow the blog or become a fan on Facebook. Click here.

Waiting for his letter

LOL!

We just bought "Harry Potter and the Half Blood Prince" on DVD. I know it has been a while since I've bought a new dvd, but it cost $27! Ouch, that hurt. I could have rented if for $1.09 at Redbox. However, we own the others in the series, knew we would eventually own it and all really wanted to watch it tonight. So? I plunked down part of Jacob's Christmas present money the cash and came home with the movie only to find out it wasn't even the one that had a special preview of "Deathly Hallows" that I had seen advertised on t.v. Ugh... fail!

We started watching the movie and began reminiscing about the previous films and how when we went to see the movie in theatres their cousin "jumped out of his seat" during one particular scene. Then Alex says that he used to think that the movie was real and that Hogwarts was a real school. "What do you mean?" I asked.

"Yeah," he said, "when I was 11 I kept expecting to get a letter."

I looked at Jacob. He looked at me. I looked back at Alex to see if he was being serious (he was) then looked at Jacob again and we both started cracking up.

He must have been so disappointed when he turned 12 and never got his Hogwarts letter.

Most Quotable Friday

"We believe as much as we can. We would believe everything if we could." – William James

"There are only two ways to live your life. One is as though nothing is a miracle. The other is as though everything is a miracle." – Albert Einstein

"Believe those who are seeking the truth; doubt those who find it." -Andre Gide

"Everything is based on mind, is led by mind, is fashioned by mind. If you speak and act with a polluted mind, suffering will follow you, as the wheels of the oxcart follow the footsteps of the ox. Everything is based on mind, is led by mind, is fashioned by mind. If you speak and act with a pure mind, happiness will follow you, as a shadow clings to a form." – Buddha

"Wisdom is knowing what to do next; Skill is knowing how ot do it, and Virtue is doing it." – David Starr Jordan

"One's first step in wisdom is to question everything - and one's last is to come to terms with everything." - Georg C. Lichtenberg

Thursday Blurbs

1. I have a job interview tomorrow. It is the first one on nearly 3 years. And that one wasn’t even a job interview. It was more of a “hey, how have you been? I googled your e-mail address and found your blog. Well, your office is over there… see you in two weeks!”

2. And the last interview before that was… ? The last interview before the, other, last interview was 12 years ago. 1998? Can that be right? I am sooooo out of practice. They will know it too. Wow. This is certainly a train wreck waiting to happen. Go me!

3. On a positive note, Alex emerged last weekend, after the second week of invitation-only tryouts, with a coveted spot on the 1995 Boys Cal North State ODP soccer team. He has worked so hard and faced so many obstacles since he first started playing this game nearly 8 years ago. Now he is almost at the top level possible for his age group. I am so happy for him.

4. After dropping the kids off at school this morning I went to drop off “G-Force” at Redbox only to discover (much to my delight) that they had “Julie and Julia” in stock. I picked it up and indulged in a morning of movie watching. What a nice film. Perfect companion to snuggling up in a blanket on a cold, foggy, rainy morning. The laundry would just have to wait. And it did. It still is. No worries though, the laundry elves are around. I can sense their presence.

5. Day 18 confessions: I’m almost done with my 21 day cleanse mentioned in this post (blurb #4) last week. I have been eating saltine crackers (high fructose corn syrup). I should be eating the all natural corn chips instead, but the crackers are so good with hummus. Also, I had a glass of wine on Sunday to celebrate Alex making ODP. Oh, and the Nyquil. That one couldn’t be helped and is completely without regret. And I’d do it again.

6. Alex just asked me what “Julie and Julia” was about. I gave him a brief synopsis (blogging her way through Julia Child's cookbook). He looked over my shoulder at the computer screen and asked me if that is why I’m “blurbing.” Hahahahaha. Well, I thought it was funny. Ok, maybe it was funnier out loud.

7. I still don’t know what to get Jacob for Christmas. He is usually the easiest. Maybe that’s because his lists are usually the longest. This year “I don’t know” seems to be at the top of his list. I wonder where I can get one of those or what size he wants. *Sigh*

Things I Know For Sure Wednesday

Sorry Oprah, but I know some things too...

I know for sure that my son is a WARRIOR and that I couldn’t be prouder of him.

I know for sure that dreams really do come true and not only at Disneyland.

I know for sure that Christmas trees smell awesome.

Speaking of Christmas… I know for sure that I only have 9 more days left to shop.

I know for sure that the shadow on my 11 y/o’s upper lip is… not a shadow. I know this (for sure) because I dragged him by the ear into the bathroom to look under the direct light.

I know for sure there is not enough estrogen in this house and that my supply is only getting lower… sigh.

I know for sure that in 6 days the days will finally start to get longer… woo hoo!

I know for sure that cucumber infused gin is not as good as it might sound especially if it's the only ingredient in a cucumber martini (blech!).

I know for sure that when you spew stuff out into the universe… it will come back to you.

Most Quotable Friday

1. "Every worthwhile accomplishment, big or little, has its stages of drudgery and triumph; a beginning, a struggle and a victory." - Ghandi

2. "A failure establishes only this, that our determination to succeed was not strong enough." - John Christian Bovee

3. "The price of success is hard work, dedication to the job at hand, and the determination that whether we win or lose, we have applied the best of ourselves to the task at hand." - Vince Lombardi

4. "What this power is I cannot say; all I know is that it exists and it becomes available only when a man is in that state of mind in which he knows exactly what he wants and is fully determined not to quit until he finds it. " - Alexander Graham Bell

5. "Obstacles don't have to stop you. If you run into a wall, don't turn around and give up. Figure out how to climb it, go through it, or work around it." - Michael Jordan

6. "It’s a very funny thing about life; if you refuse to accept anything but the best, you very often get it." - William Somerset Maugham

Thursday Blurbs

1. Snow, hail, official freeze watch in San Jose? Am I in the Twilight Zone? It was 32 degrees this morning on my car’s temperature gage… I haven’t seen it go that low since we drove to Tahoe 4 years ago for New Year’s.

2. I am getting sick. I am not fighting it anymore. In a few hours it will have totally consumed me. Where is the Kleenex?

3. I got into an argument with some of the neighbors on Sunday. They didn’t like that my dog went two feet into their yard and smelled their tree. Um? He was on a leash and I had a poop bag “just in case.” Ugh. If they care so much about their yard they’d do something about all those leaves. Rake much?

4. I am currently on Day 10 of a 21 day cleanse. No sugar, caffeine, alcohol or animal products (meat, poultry, fish, dairy). I did it last summer with great success and felt great.

5. Both kids got in trouble at school last week. One, right after the other. The Sharks are playing their worst hockey of the year. Financial outlook is bleak. I picked a bad week to not drink. Really bad.

6. It is supposed to rain for the next 4 days strait. At least we got the Christmas tree already. It’s not decorated, but it’s inside the house.

7. I love playing Farmville on Facebook. It is so addicting. Game developers are always coming up with new things to keep it fresh. Right now there is new Christmas stuff out almost daily. And, I just adopted my first bull, that makes baby calves when you put it inside the dairy farm. Lol! I’m on level 29.

8. My kids won’t stop bickering. I am soooooo over it. If only they could be too.

9. Just read the ingredients in Nyquil... among others it has alcohol and high fructose corn syrup (liquid sugar). It's medicine, I have to take it. No cleanse is worth going without when I feel like this. *sigh*

Things I Know For Sure Wednesday

** NEW FEATURE**

I know for sure that when the school calls to tell me that my child is in trouble and my first thought is “they must have made a mistake…” they didn’t.

I know for sure there will never be another Mr. Monk.

I know for sure that giving up caffeine was the best thing I’ve ever done.

I know for sure that giving up chocolate will be the next best thing I ever do (maybe not).

I know for sure that the second cup of coffee is never as good as the first (even if it’s decaf)

I know for sure that if my dog isn’t happy to see me… he has peed somewhere in the house.

I know for sure that bad things always happen in threes.

I know for sure that luck favors the prepared mind.

I know for sure that if you don’t save your word document every few minutes…at some point or another, you will regret it.

Most Quotable Friday

"There are some days I practice positive thinking, and other days I'm not positive I am thinking." – John Eades

"Always do sober what you said you'd do drunk. That will teach you to keep your mouth shut." ~Ernest Hemingway

"The weak can never forgive. Forgiveness is the attribute of the strong." ~Mahatma Gandhi

"If there were no schools to take the children away from home part of the time, the insane asylums would be filled with mothers." ~Edgar W. Howe

"We worry about what a child will become tomorrow, yet we forget that he is someone today." ~Stacia Tauscher

"My theory on housework is, if the item doesn't multiply, smell, catch fire, or block the refrigerator door, let it be. No one else cares. Why should you?" ~Erma Bombeck

"Housework is something you do that nobody notices until you don't do it." ~Author Unknown

"The statistics on sanity are that one out of every four Americans is suffering from some form of mental illness. Think of your three best friends. If they're okay, then it's you." ~Rita Mae Brown