How am I supposed to do homework with this?
October 11 and I can sit outside in the morning and drink coffee and try to take pictures of birds?? October 11 and I can sit outside in the afternoon and drink water (?) and read a magazine and try to take pictures of birds?? October 11 and I can sit outside in the evening and drink wine and try to read a magazine in the dusky dark while STILL trying to take pictures of birds?? And not get bit by a hundred mosquitoes??
I may have taken some artistic license with that coffee/water/wine analogy. Since I still don’t have a job and school is only on Wednesday, it’s pretty much coffee to wine, on a daily basis. The direct route to alcoholism is usually the straightest and quickest way to get nothing done in a day. (I also use the term “wine” loosely here. Wine can be vodka or whiskey, and even actual wine depending on what is in the house. Lately I find myself experimenting with tequila. No. Not good with a variety of things like its versatile friend vodka. And Gin. Also no. It has a fruity, plant-like taste that I do not find appealing. So that’s probably a good thing right?)
Anyway. It’s gorgeous out. We never get to have this nice weather so late in the year. I say it’s extra good because I don’t have to turn on the furnace or the air conditioner. Open windows all the time. Ahhh. Nature. But it’s also extra bad because who wants to stay inside and do boring crap when you know this won’t last?? Also I have been sick for the last week so I am glad for nowhere to go but my head hurts and I can’t do my homework. But I can type here….hmmm…that’s because this is supposed to be short and from my brain, without needing editing or spell check or fonts and spacing. It’s Tuesday and I said I would have it done by the time the kids got home from school. Well unless I can wrap this up and squeeze out a miracle 3 page paper plus observation notes in one hour it’s not going to happen. I have successfully pressured myself into staying up late to finish something that I could have had done hours ago. Poop. At least I am dressed and prepared to leave the house if I had too. That’s something.
Besides, my fans—all two of you—want to know, “How was that delicious looking pie??” Well, it’s gone. That’s how. As I commented to my cousin in the previous post, that pie did not last 24 hours. It really was good.The apples were sweet and tender, the juice was thick and cinnamony, the streusel topping was crunchy and sweet and buttery. Even my kids who declared that the pie was way too big and tall and that the topping was way too much and looked thick and weird, agreed it was the best part. They can’t believe I somehow made this magical pie with the crumbly top. And they watched me do it. Making stuff from scratch is fun but it takes a long time. I didn’t even make the pie crust. I am not ready for that kind of homemaking. But the store kind works really well and I don’t think it took away from the pie at all. As a bonus to making the pie, when I took it out of the oven and let it cool on a wire rack I felt just like some old-timey, Wizard of Oz, O Brother Where Art Thou, country cook. Cooling pies in the window sill. Hilarious.
I really better get started on that homework. I’m feeling uncomfortable with the stress of underachieving and the anxiety of joblessness so I better do something productive to soothe my nerves. FYI, for all the kids out there, alcohol DOES NOT take away the underlying current of manic desperation from not contributing to society in a useful way. Especially when you work hard to be able to do just that. And it doesn’t help you sleep at night either!
But, I do think it helped speed this cold along…germ killing effects or something like that. Kidding. My cold has been progressing in it’s normal pattern without the added benefits or the hindering properties of any alcohol related treatments.
Serious disclaimer: (before my other sister jumps all down my throat): All alcohol related content and posts about over consumption and drunkenness are HIGHLY exaggerated for story telling purposes. I find it much funnier to talk about drinking and the effects it can bring about than the actual drinking part. I mean, please, there is no way I could do half the repetitive, boring, day-to-day, household crap I actually do do, if I sat around all day drinking alcohol. Nice role model for the kids too huh?? Ha. I said doo-doo. Immature!
If I post more later it means I finished my school stuff and I can relax for a few hours. In the meantime, here’s another picture of my beautiful sky from the back patio sitting-chair. Enjoy!
Are you sick of looking at that gaudy duck too?!?
Our weather has taken a turn for the better these last few days. It’s our last blitz before the horrible cold and (according to the weather predictors) record breaking freezes and snow inches. Yay. The only good thing about the snap in temperature is that it ends any allergic sneezing and runny eyes and noses. Annoying. The cold sucks though. I don’t know why I stay here where it’s all “seasonal”. Oh wait. I know why. Family. No job. Can’t sell the house. Can’t buy a new one. Etcetera.
Anyhow this nice weather really causes me to procrastinate on the schoolwork. But it does inspire me to get off my fat butt and exercise. Which I desperately need. How long can I keep pushing the 40+ envelope before I get some medical problem that I will actually have to go to a doctor for?? Let me tell you, you creeping, increasing, scary pounds on the scale…not much longer. After my initial health kick earlier this autumn where I shed a pants-applicable 5 pounds. I have managed to hold steady without a lot of effort. That means little to no exercise but no eating either. I’m squeezing the clothes on, but it is not pretty. There are lumps and bumps where there should be none.
So here I am again. Finding myself having to go run and eat healthy. If only I could keep it up for longer than a week or a jean size. Now, at least, I have the added inspiration of trying to outrun my daughter. Since she started cross country (it’s over now—but she did really good) I tried to help her with practice runs, but I am far too slow. These damn kids are fast. And they make it look pretty easy. I was practically having a seizure on the trail. I was counting down in my head by hundreths of a quarter mile just to make it two miles without stopping. I felt pathetic, old and out of shape, but there was no one around to hear me count and watch me dry heave and it did give me something else to think about besides my collapsing lungs.
And I did finish that two miles. 26 minutes. As usual. Every single time I start “running” again, that’s my go-to time. (Let’s not forget I broke a foot this summer so back off!! It’s a miracle I can run at all!! Let’s go with that excuse ok??) Anyway. It’s only been two days of avoiding crap food. Processed, sodium infused, alcohol infused, fried, etc., and I have to say I think I feel a bit better. I can breathe and my head doesn’t hurt too bad. The key is to drink alot of water. Something I have also been neglecting. I can tell that right away though. Because my eyes get all loopy and I feel dizzy. I also tend to go for the dramatic flair and claim that my throat feels like it is closing and I can’t sleep. I actually went to bed last night feeling hungry. My stomach was protesting the fact that I didn’t stuff it so full of food it could try and trick me into sleeping flat so it could give me massive heartburn and laugh in my ear, “HA HA, you have to sleep sitting in a chair!” Spoiled American.
I have heard of this anti-inflammatory diet (which is very similiar to a blood pressure diet or sodium restricted diet) and I guess that’s the one I will have to settle into. It seems to be credible and addresses quite a few of the problems I have been having as a woman aging in this world. It’s so hard to make the right changes even when you know you should. I give myself until 45. That’s the outer limits of my neglect and disregard. After that I think my ability to skate by like a paunchy middle aged lady will totally catch up to me. And I would hate to wait that long and be forced to change. Fun stuff huh??
I wanted to do more than just this post today. But typing on the computer for hours on end makes me really really REALLY crabby. I’m not sure why. But I am feeling the irritation building. I was able to finish my paper. With 7 hours to spare! And I applied for more jobs today. I think that’s what sets me over the crabby edge. The internet is awesome for job hunting and applying but it can be super tedious and repetitive at the same time. Now I am here. Getting ready for school tonight and trying to post something worth reading.
I’ll do some lighter, fun stuff later. No need to keep it so serious. Here’s a picture I took of Stevie’s cross country conference race. These are the 7th grade girls lined up and ready for the whistle. I like the way it looks. Kind of fishbowled out with the coaches behind them. It looks like something exciting is about to happen. These kids are awesome! Track is in the spring so we need to get training! It gives us something to look forward to during the long winter and a goal to shoot for. Skinny and fast. Fall back. Spring forward. All right.
Street Money Update! WTF-It’s-Been-19-Months!! Edition
So I checked back over my pages and yes, it has been 19 months. I know some of you are out there shaking your heads because you just can’t believe that it has been THAT long. And that you have been reading this crazy blog for longer than that. AND that you actually remember that I pick up loose change off the ground whenever I see it and keep a running log. And that I have my kids and BF sucked into the madness too!
It’s all true. The last posting was for February of 2010. I would say that’s pretty bad. We have still been collecting the money, in fact, that picture above is the bowl we put all of last years loose change into. (I have a separate container for the 2011 money). Stevie just found a dime today! I will picture and post that whole mess later tonight! Are you excited?? Are you going to change your plans and stay in just to see if I actually do it?? I am on a roll here. I think this is three consecutive days. But don’t change your plans—Shameless Self Promotion Alert—just subscribe to the site (upper right corner) and you can get an e-mail whenever I add my “two-cents” to the world. See, with laughs like that how can you NOT subscribe. Let’s just get to the count shall we?
Now, before I fell off the money wagon, I would post amounts as found, on what day and where. Intimate details about this dirty, filthy, left-behind money that you may or may not have cared about. I used to even write all that stuff down, Major OCD, the date/place/amount/condition…it really was/is a sickness. Takes alot of time too. Obviously I ran out of all that time during school, which is good thing so that I was able to re-direct that mental focus on more important tasks, like getting my degree. So it just got put in a random cup and here it is.
It’s still all 100% off the street. Or sidewalk, store floor, vending area, bowling alley, etc., etc. You get the idea. We found it. We picked it up. Pennies, nickels, dimes and quarters. That’s all we scored last year. Nothing big like previous years, and no bills. As the economy has buttoned down so has the available loose change. People are holding on to it. And when they do drop it, they pick it up. It’s still pretty slim this year too. We have some, and I will update the main pages to the left and try to keep track now with random posts as the money enters our lives in real time.
Unless of course I win the lottery. We have Mega Millions here and I just found out it rolled over again. I have a good feeling for Tuesday….and in that case, I will never post again. No wait. I will. But I’ll change the blog and format to:
All The Places You Can Go To And All The Things You Can Buy When You Are Filthy Stinking Rich And Just Shy Of Pretty.
It’s a working title. I can always tweak that later. Here’s what you read all the way through for:
Current date: September 24, 2011
Money found from 2/21/2010 to 12/31/2010 (that’s LAST year):
Total= $7.09 Seven Dollars and Nine Cents. Anti-climactic for sure.
BUT…If you add that giant number to the previous amount from the first few weeks in 2010, you get the equally unimpressive number of:
GRAND TOTAL= $10.89. Woohoo. Ten dolla and eighty-nine cent! Sad.
Hey it’s a way to pass the time. Here are some loose change stats you might be interested in, and super easy to list because all the money is sitting right in front of me!
First of all, this money is DIRTY. Seriously, it’s gross. Dusty and rusty and covered in white powder (road salt? I hope) and corrosion. Some of the coins are hard to read. They’ve lost their definition and edges. I had a hard time determining the denomination. With enough wear a penny can wear to the size of a dime and they both take on a sick grey color.
Second, the money stinks. Really. It just smells bad. Like rusty metal covered in dust. Gets in the back of your teeth and makes your mouth water. Yum.
BREAKDOWN:
124 Pennies
9 Nickels
14 Dimes
16 Quarters
So the pennies have it, but look at those quarters! Using that ability to roll away fast and lodge somewhere inconvenient and out of reach. Good for them! They’re still no match for my money-hunters. My kids will move all kinds of stuff to get at the coins they spot on the ground. They will squeeze in and work together, stuntman style, to retrieve that lost change. But never dangerously or with risk to life and limb. I mean it’s still just garbage on the ground, whether it’s money or not, and that’s not worth an injury.
So that’s it. I hope you enjoyed this update from nearly two years ago. Click on these words to go to the main 2010 page of money and if you still crave a little more money fun, feel free to check those numbers above. Do the math. See if the coins add up to what I said. I counted in dollar increments, then separated by denomination and counted those, but I’m not re-checking my math. It all gets dumped into a giant Pepsi bank anyway that we are trying to fill up so we can take to the bank and see what it will hold. Coins only. It’s an OCD within another OCD. The fun just never ends over here. Cha-Cha-Cha-Ching!
Yuk! Sorry for that ugly picture of strawberry jelly in a bottle. I blame the booze. And speaking of booze…I sense ANOTHER new feature coming!
The booze to blame is that bottle of wine above, and the martini kicker I had earlier that evening.
I think I may have over done it yesterday because I was feeling tipsy overnight and into the morning. Now in my defense, I think I may have an allergy problem, but since I don’t like to go to the doc or take medicine I will never know for sure. I was thinking a summer-transitioning-into-fall cold, but I tried some Benedryl and timed myself for 30 minutes and lo and behold, my eyes stopped running, throat stopped itching, nose cleared up and I wasn’t sneezing anymore. I use Benedryl with extreme caution because it makes me very tired. Possibly more than most people. So I buy children’s Benedryl, in the liquid form, so I can take as little as possible while still getting the good effects without the sleeping thing. And when I woke up this morning to get the kids up and out, I must have sneezed 100 times, so I took the Benedryl again, and waited. It stopped the allergies, but knocked me right back out. I crawled back to bed after the kids left and slept until 11 am. I hate to waste the morning, but I could not get up! Thank goodness I have nowhere to go! And luckily, thanks to the dog that lives behind us, I didn’t have the chance to sleep too long. It’s a Basset Hound that HOWLS, for real, non-stop, every single moment that it is outdoors. It literally stands in one spot in their yard and bark-howls until someone comes out or lets that damn thing back in.
But I’m up now and in fact I need to get dressed here and do some actual life-stuff. The wine picture is because I had this other idea for a NEW FEATURE, called: CHEAP RED WINES!! So what the heck, let’s just launch it right now!
CHEAP RED WINES!!
The above bottle is from Target. Uh huh. When I write: cheap red wines, I actually mean, cheap red wine. The Targets (usually SuperTargets) that have alcohol sections have a pretty good variety. Lots of hard liquors, beers and wines. I will be focusing on only reds because that’s what I like. I’m not really a fan of white or pink wine. And I like to buy variety wines. Things that are mixed together. So I try whatever looks good. My system is very simple. I look at price, usually under 20 dollars (most are around 10 or lower) and what kind of label they have. Lame I know. But a good label might have a good wine. Advertising is everything. I also like to see what wines they threw together. I guess that can be my third rating point. Sometimes you can guess what it will taste like based on what types are in there.
This particular wine is vin Parfait. From California. I don’t know if it’s a reputable wine company or a Target brand. I know that I did have a coupon for it. Yes. A coupon for wine. Wine in a bottle, not even a box. I picked the wine though, BEFORE I knew I had the coupon. (The coupon had come in a mailer weeks ago and I forgot all about it until I went to pay and saw that I had it!)
This wine was $12.99, but with my $3 dollar coupon, it was $9.99. So 10 bucks or so. and it’s a mix of 5 types. Cabernet, Zinfandel, Syrah, Petite Sirah, and Merlot.
It was smooth and easy to drink. No sharp flavors or a strong alcohol burn. It wasn’t overly dry or overly fruity or without flavor altogether. Some wines have an overwhelming flavor of one kind. They can taste peppery or spicy. I liked it. The BF did not. I ended up drinking most of it.
As you can tell by my descriptions I am a total professional wine connoisseur. I am not claiming any kind of extra knowledge and I am not going to look up terms and adjectives to describe these wines. In fact I will probably limit the next post to the name, price, content and drunk factor. This particular wine is a buzzy wine, not a drunk wine. I’ve had some where you can feel it after one glass. This is not that wine. But I think it would make a good wine to bring to someone’s house. It’s low ground but not gross tasting. And it’s good with food. We enjoyed it with some gourmet Cheeseburger Hamburger Helper. It’s a classy household over here.
Now don’t you feel like you may have learned something new today? If anything, you’ve learned that I am terrible at describing how wine tastes! That’s gotta be good enough for Friday! I’ll get to work on another wine to review right away! Cheerio!
HAPPY FRIDAY!! Oh. Wait.
Well globally it’s Friday somewhere right?
It’s amazing how hard puberty hits and also how annoying it can be at times. But with my magical, greenish-yellow elixir, of all that is calm and serene, two teenagers doing everything in their power to drive me crazy seems all so wonderfully “after-school special”.
I just thought I’d take a minute to acknowledge a fellow blogging site who took time out of their postings to “like” me! This is what I get sent to me:
Howdy,
imonthebandwagon recently read your post, titled NEW FEATURE!!!, and enjoyed it enough to click the ‘Like’ button. Congratulations.
Here is the post they liked:
https://masnstevy.com/2011/09/19/new-feature/?sn=l
and here is their info:
Name: imonthebandwagon
We think they’re from: London, England, United Kingdom
(Click on their name to check them out!)
You might want to see what they’re up to – perhaps you will like their posts as much as they liked yours.
(I did look them up and you might like them too!)
Thanks guys or gals, I appreciate the feedback! Good luck with the number 1 thing!! Cheers!
JSOP
Hmm…even school one day a week can be avoided w/out much effort!
Here, I didn’t think I would need that category, “Wasting Study Time Posts”, and yet, here it is! I have one class. At night. With one paper to write every week. And here I am again, waiting until today. Actually right now. Well, after I post this. And make a meatloaf. And put away dishes and do some laundry. It’s not even a paper. It’s two paragraphs. Of my opinion on an article that I read. (I did read it—bonus!) and I really need to be done so I can get to my serious work for an ACLS class I am taking. I really want to pass that one. I really need to read the material. Really really really…But, since we’re all here….
This is a grasshopper that jumped onto the car as we left the 7-11 Sunday afternoon. We were on the road, waiting to turn at a stoplight, when I took this with my phone camera. YES. The HTC ThunderBolt phone camera. From inside the car, through the window, inches away:
Then he kindly gave me his better side to photograph:
Once we started driving, he braced himself, picked his moment, and leapt off the car to destinations unknown. We hoped that he didn’t get run over by another car.
Happy Tuesday!
Good Morning America!
You look beautiful today! Sunny and bright with a clear blue sky. Very still. As if our morning is trying to pause itself for a while and stay in this moment. It’s early here in Chicago. No one is up yet. I just thought I would take a quiet moment to be thankful that I live in a country that allows me to have something so public like this to say whatever I want, whenever I want. And to be thankful that I am alive. My kids are good and healthy, my family and friends are well, and I have someone great to share these days with. I was avoiding TV and internet programs about today because I don’t like to cry very much. I remember enough. I worked in the city at the time, right across from the John Hancock building. I used to take the train and I had no technology available to listen to a radio or TV or internet, and when I got to work, our friend from New York was running through our hallways crying hysterically because he knew people that had been involved in whatever the hell was going on over there. We had no clue. We were evacuated and sent home. The whole city practically was. I got my kids from daycare and I sat home and watched like everyone else, what had happened, on TV. My kids were about to turn 3 and 4. They remember practically nothing. And I think that’s OK. Everything they have to do, everything that came from that period, as a result of that time, is just normal for them. It’s good. They understand enough right now. School is doing a good job of making them understand the what and maybe some of the why and how it impacted the world, our country, and our people. I just want them to know that tragedy strikes and the world keeps spinning. Take your moment and feel that pain. It’s amazing the support that you will receive, but it’s heartbreaking because it’s you, and some people just won’t care. Always move forward but with the occasional eye-check on that past so you don’t go there again. Do what needs to be done. Help where you can. Sometimes you never know what kind of impact you have. Hope for the positive. I definitely do not want to go on and on today because I am no authority on these kinds of things and tons of other people can tell a ten-times more interesting story with a better philosophical ending. I have none. And I’ve been trying to think of something! I am just going to enjoy the silence for a bit longer, drink my coffee, and be happy for this particular moment. It’s good to remember. Don’t let it freeze you in time though. Never forget.
HAPPY BIRTHDAY!!!
TO ME!!
It’s probably kind of weird that my first post, after quite a while, is about me, but, hey, it is MY site!
So anyway, that picture is of a drink that I am NOT having right now, but doesn’t it look tasty? It’s my own recipe. I call it “Quick Margarita”.
Just put ice in a cup, pour in the tequila, the sweet/sour mix, triple sec (if you have it, it’s nice but not necessary), stir it up with your fingers, and sprinkle salt on top of the ice. I just use regular old salt from the shaker. As you can see I got a little fancy with the salt around the edge. This is also very easy. Before you put the ice and alcohol in the cup just swish some water on the rim and salt like you would a sweet corn cob, then follow the directions as given above. That’s it. If you absolutely MUST shake it, follow my recipe, pour the whole thing into a shaker, shake it, and pour it back in the glass. At least now you will have liquor residue on the rim and the salt can stick to that!
Time required to create this masterpiece: As fast as you can pour stuff in a cup without spilling.
After a few of these quick drinks, you will find that it becomes even easier as you start skimping on the slower aspects of the recipe. Salt? Eh…we can skip that. Triple sec? I mean, come on the sweet/sour is prob good enough. Sweet/sour? The glass? Tequila drinks just as well from the bottle as it does from a cup.
So anyway, that’s it for now. It’s my birthday. I am 42. I became an RN just a few weeks ago. It has been my adult goal for the last 5 years. I am happy. No job yet, but I am waiting. Apps are out and I still have 15 days on the master plan. Panic will ensue then.
It’s supposed to be hot again here in Chicago. A blazing 90-95 that will feel like 100-105 thanks to our nasty humidity. Stay cool as you can and have a drink for me/with me/because of me! It’s our day! Have a great one!
One last thing. I’d like to dedicate this little bit of silliness to my cousin Lorraine. She’s an avid follower of my goofy site here and she’s basically, just all-around, awesome! She’s definitely what people call “a cool chick”. This is for you! You rock!
I can finally use my cup!!!
It’s officially official!! I am an RN!!!
I passed NCLEX and even got my official letter in the mail telling me I passed and would I please fill out this one last form and send 50 more dollars to the state and we will issue a brand new fancy official nurse license!!! GLADLY I will. I had that check written and mailed within an hour!
I took the test at the end of July, got my internet result in 2 days and got the official letter last week. I haven’t posted because, one, the shock and numbing disbelief that it could really be done and true still hasn’t worn off, and two, the BF was on vacation so we took that week to do TONS of back breaking, hard labor on the house and catch up with all the chores we have neglected up to this point. I cannot begin to tell you how good (and suspicious) it feels not to have ANYTHING to study for. Literally. Nothing. I am done with that whole part. Now it’s just adding letters to my name and RN status. I will just become MORE of a nurse, with specialized skills and advanced degrees. That feels so good to type.
Anyway, the house looks great. Nice and fresh and up-kept. We even ordered the last of the windows to be put in before winter. Laundry is done. House is clean. I went thru my school notes and recycled the things I will never need again. And I am weeding out the closet-crap that has built up from many months of shoving things away, out of sight. Even my mom and sister were shocked at how clean the house actually looked! That means it must have been pretty bad. Oh well, no time to worry now. It will stay this clean for approximately 5 more days as the kids are due home from their very, seemingly, long vacation. I miss them a ton, actually. This particular 2 weeks seems extra long this year. Time ticks. They keep me up and moving forward.
There is still much to do, but I feel happy. And hopeful. The hard part of my 1000 day journey is over. I have 38 days left of it to get a job. Then school must start again. For all of us. Kids are rounding out Junior High, 7th and 8th grades this year, and the BF and I are in a race to the Bachelor’s. Who will get theirs first?? My classes start next week and I think I have fewer to take. The BF’s start the week after, but his courses are shorter AND online. So I will keep you posted. Then we have moving to think about and a whole other 1000 day plan to institute, although I think I am going with 500 days this time, with possible extensions.
It’s exciting to go down a brand new road, I’ve been on that other one a long time now. Even though I said it publicly on facebook, I will say it here too…this whole trip was not possible without the love and support of my kids, my BF, my family and friends, who constantly had to hear every detail and live thru every one of my ups and downs, passes and failures, and fears of failing, whether warranted or not. All the late nights, the early mornings, the constant brokeness; the take out food, the dirty house, the piles and piles of laundry and stacks of books; for all the stuff I missed and all the things I was too tired to do; for wearing all those wrinkly clothes and never complaining!! I love my kids. I love my family. I love my friends. I love my BF. Without him by my side and patiently waiting for the end, and taking care of everything that I couldn’t…thank you. I love you. I could not be here without you.
And that’s really it for now. Last chapter of this gripping tale coming right up. Where will I work??? Mystery! Stay tuned! Here is one final shot of the proof that I had to have to believe my dream had finally come true!
What a glorious, beautiful 4-letter word! Say it with me….PASS!!! Cheers!
Just breathe and relax. I am almost done!
A few soothing pictures in my favorite colors to help me maintain some peace and calm. All is well. And hopefully all will be better in about 72 hours. I am signing off of here for the next few days. Thank you for any and all support, well wishes, etc! It’s been a crazy few weeks (and years) and it’s so close to the end of this particular ride! Congrats to Noelle–I’ll prob see you Wednesday. Mom–I will call you on Tuesday, after I am done. And a special thanks to my sissy Amanda…you kept me nice and straight and soothed my very last nerve! You rock. Later.
just shy of pretty 