The Rich, The Famous and the Stupid

5/31/2018

I'm climbing up on my soap box today.  So, you know that I feel passionate about what I'm going to write today.

First, I want to say that, as a woman, I am genuinely disturbed by the number of women who have come forward to meet their predators.  I applaud them for putting themselves out there. I'm also really troubled when an actor, for instance, that I like, finds himself in the cross hairs of a case of he said/she said.  For the most part, I side with the women, who have said and/or done very little through the years, until the "me too" movement began. 

When I started my career, just a few years past the "stone age", that was the early 70's, women, and myself personally, were harassed continuously.  We had no voice. We sucked it up, because speaking up would likely as not, would have your employment terminated.

As a young woman, working for a large company, I literally had to ask my supervisor if I could go to the bathroom.  I know that sounds horrible reading about it today, but that's what the women in the office endured.

I worked for another company, and I was the only woman in the department.  The men, decided to give me a task.  I was supposed to divide some horrifically high number by two, until I came up with zero.  Trouble is, that number would never go to zero, but I didn't know that.  I worked and worked on this, until the men told me that it was a joke.  Was it?  Not in my book it wasn't, it was just mean spirited.

I've had a stapler thrown at me, endured rude remarks and questionable actions by men.  In one company, I took my shoes off while I worked.  Unbeknownst to me, until the end of the day, that the men had taken away one of my shoes.  Determined to not let my anger show, I drove home, with only one shoe.  The shoe was returned the next day, but in my book, it was a little to late.

Fast forward to the present.  Roseanne is just one of the rich (I assume she is), and famous (more or less) who wrote in a public forum, a vial and racist comment.  I admire the studio, cancelling her show on the spot.  Good for them.  For me, it would serve her right if she was shut off from all acting jobs in the future.  When you go public with your opinion, regardless of who you are, you'd better watch out for the backlash.  It's bad enough that Roseanne was fired, but by her actions, the rest of the cast are out of their jobs too.  Was it really worth it? Um, playing "Sunday quarterback", perhaps Roseanne is regretting her action, but apologies, at this point, are worthless, in my opinion.  

I'm sure before the week is out, give or take a week or two, some other powerful man will come under public scrutiny.  And, that's just sad.

P

 
 



 

An Officer and a Gentleman

5/30/2018

This week, Jeff and I watched a documentary on HBO about Senator John McCain.  Now, I don't normally watch documentaries, because well they are documentaries.  And, for me, sometimes just a snooze fest.  This documentary was the exception.

If you have HBO, this documentary is worth your time to watch, regardless of your political views. It was heart wrenching to see McCain, return to Vietnam.  While, he was there, he returned to the "Hanoi Hilton", which is what the prisoners called it.  McCain was there for 5 and 1/2 years. His wartime injuries have left him now with the inability to put his arms over his head.  And, yet, he survived.  There is no doubt in my mind, that McCain is an officer and a gentleman.  These two positive attributes, is pretty much all you need to know about him.

He has weathered all these years, through both good and bad times, and yet he always stands up straight, and never afraid to both battle a medical problem, or issues on the Senate floor.

As we go about our daily lives, whining about, in the big picture, mundane and small problems.  When I think about my own issues, medical and mental, I will always remember that McCain is a man, who is still standing tall.

P

 

What's In Your Closet?

5/29/2018

Interesting article in the paper today.  It was about people writing in talking about older clothes that they still have.  A favorite sweater, a suit, varsity jacket and things like that.

This got me thinking about my own closet.  What's hanging in there.  An item(s) I will never wear again, so why keep it?  The answer is simple.  For me, it's a memory thing.  To be sure, I can no longer fit into any of these clothes, but that's not the point.  They give me a pleasant memory when I think about where I wore the dress, how old was I.  Mundane stuff like that.

Not hanging in my closet, but is inside my hope chest, is my wedding dress.  Why do I keep it around?  It's not like I have a daughter who might wear it.  I keep it, because my Mother made it for me, and it's simple but beautiful.  I also have Wendy's wedding dress, and can't see myself getting rid of it anytime soon.  These dresses don't take up a lot of room, and I know that perhaps someday the hope chest will be opened by our sons, and with few exceptions, things will be thrown out.  On some level, I'm okay with that.  The things inside the chest, are really only relevant to me and/or Jeff.

I have two "fake" but very well made fur coats.  They don't fit me now, but one of them, was worn by Wendy on her wedding day.  So to be on the safe side, I keep them both.

Over time, I have thinned out my closet(s), though I'm pretty sure Jeff wouldn't agree (insert smile here).  I always swear, as do most women, that I have absolutely NOTHING to wear.  Let's face it, women love getting new clothes and/or shoes.  Maybe it's in our DNA.  Who knows?

There are other clothes in my chest: the outfit Benjamin wore when we took him out of the hospital, the outfit he wore to Wendy's funeral, his firt pair of crocs (they are so tiny).  Who wouldn't want to keep those?

I'm probably too sentimental.  Pretty sure that's true, because any number of people tell me that I keep too much stuff.  I always date every picture, and/or every card I have received in "x" number of years. They don't take up too much space, and when I sit down and re-read them, with the exception of sympathy cards, enjoy the sentiments.

So think about what's in your closet, clothes that you hold onto,  because you can't give them away.  Too many memories.

P

Revision to Memory Lane Post

7/28/2017

Jeff, brought to my attention that my math was off concerning how long we've lived in our two houses.  What I wrote, when you add the numbers they don't add up correctly.  I never said that I could do math!  Apologies.

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Wandering Through Memory Lane

5/28/2018

This morning, after breakfast, Jeff and I and reminisced about our life together.  After 44 years together, we have built up a lifetime of memories.  Some funny, some pleasant and a few really bad memories tossed in there.

In California, where we lived until 1986, Jeff and I, experienced many things.  The birth of Scott and Andrew.  When I worked for a large corporation, I played Mrs. Claus while I was pregnant.

Dressing up as a clown, in a costume mother made for me.  I don't remember why everyone was in costumes, I just know it was a lot of fun.

The girls I worked with coming to our house, to make cookies to take to work the next day.  Halloween cookies comes to mind.

Watching Kenny play soccer on Saturdays, and he was good.  Then, watching Scott play soccer, for only one season.  Scott was more interested in looking for flowers and other things like that, then he was in actually playing!  It's how he was.

Taking shorthand and calligraphy classes with my sister.  Aerobics, ceramics, and playing racquet ball once a week.  Driving with my sister, in the pouring rain and at night, to pick up our Tupperware orders.  The distance in miles is somewhere around 47.  I have become less adventuresome, as I have grown older.  But, back then I was pretty "ballsy".  

Going into Los Angeles to see a play with our best friends, and stopping at midnight at a bagel store, to buy fresh bagels.

Thinking that our living room could use a window on the street side of the house, Judy, my best friend and I came back from shopping, to find a big hole in said wall!  That wasn't the last thing that Jeff and Skip (Judy's husband) did to our house.  They built a room, as well as a garage.  When it was time to put stucco on the garage walls, everyone showed up: Skip, my Dad, Jeff's grandfather, as well as other friends. My Dad, having the best intentions, never quite got the hang of putting the stucco (exterior cement plaster) on a wall.  He tried, but as soon as he would put the stucco on a tool of some kind to spread the stucco, the stucco would slid back down.  While my Dad wasn't particularly handy or in this case, helpful, he remained a constant cheerleader in our lives.  I miss him still.

Buying an unclaimed box at a storage auction, simply because it said electronics on the side.  Trust me, there were no electronics in that box.  On the other hand we were all sunburned when we got home.

Renting a house at Newport Beach, and taking the boys to the bay side, where there were no waves, and it was easier to watch Scott and Andy play in the water and sand.  Those were very good times in deed.

Having a yard sale in 1986, prior to our moving to Maryland.  Jeff was selling his cement mixer.  Negative Nancy (me), told him that nobody wanted a cement mixer.  Well, I was wrong, because it was one of the first things sold!

Building a time capsule and putting some treasures inside, and burying it in the yard. I suppose someday, someone will find the capsule, and might find it interesting to read about us as well as the things we also put in our capsule.

Watching United Van Lines, come into our house to pack us all up, load everything into the van, including our car, which was hanging atop the furniture.  Closing and locking the door to 3857 Mattie Place, the first house we bought. We lived in that house until we moved in 1986.  The only other house we lived/live in at the moment for 32 years.  Jeff and I don't move around very much!!

When you've been married as long as we have, you definitely build a lifetime of shared memories.  This September, Jeff and I will have been married for 44 years, and by today's standards, that's a long time.  I've told Jeff that to celebrate our 50th anniversary, we're going to go back to Maui.  It's not up for discussion.  While we celebrate in Hawaii, I'll be bringing a beautiful candle that we bought while on our honeymoon.  It seems only fitting, to light that candle, representing 50 years of marriage.

We, like all other couples, have memories.  And, sometimes, it's good to just sit and pull those memories out of our heads, and share them with each other.

P

Loosing Track of Time

5/27/2018

Today is Sunday.  However I had to verify this with Jeff, feels like a Monday to me.

Jeff and Bella went out to Andrew's house yesterday to get some mowing done.  They were gone a long time, which wasn't a problem for me, because I was engrossed in a really good book.

While out at Andrew's house, Bella had several hours to run and explore.  She must have been tired, because when Jeff put her in the car, she laid down immediately.  She never does that.  Depending on how long our road trip is, it will take her sometime before she gives up and lays down.  Daisy, on the other hand, once she's in the car, she immediately finds a corner in the backseat, curls up and there's not a peep out of her.

I have misplaced (lost actually) my pain stimulator. I haven't used it in a long time, and now can't remember where it is. I have looked in drawers, baskets, etc., and the stimulator is nowhere to be found.  I hate losing things, particularly when I have no clue where to look.  Of course, on the plus side, I found all kinds of treasures that have been locked away in containers.  I have rounded up a whole bunch of pens, and you can never have too many of those.  Puzzle books and books in general.  Why I would store away some of the things I did, is beyond me.

It's warming up to be hot today with humidity.  Basically, leather sticking to your body kind of day. In the winter, when you get into your car, the leather seats are cold, and thank heaven for heated seats!  Now, that it's summertime, the seats are hot and equally uncomfortable.  

I've programmed the weekly television shows, and as our favorite shows are winding down, that may mean that Jeff and I will have to talk to each other (horrors)!!

So once I get things tidied up a bit, I'll head for my chair and continuing reading.  Some people just have to leave the house, they hate being cooped up.  That's not the case for me.  Mentally healthy? Pretty sure not.  But, I like our house and am very comfortable being inside.  The house is cool (thank you Jeff) which is  just the way I like it.  We both prefer that when it's bedtime, that you absolutely have to pull up the covers.  We like the bedroom cold, and in case we get chilly, there are two dogs ready to get next to you!

Enjoy today, and for sure enjoy tomorrow.  Tomorrow, in my mind, marks the beginning of summer. But, the calendar says it starts next month. The kids will only be in school for a few more weeks. And, when Jeff and I were parents of school age children, summer time plans had to be made for the boys.  There were day camps as well as overnight camps.  And, then they were teenagers, and left at home.  I'm happy to report that Scott and Andy were pretty good on their own.  

Signing off now.  More tomorrow.

P

 

 

Unicorns

5/26/2018

It's Saturday, a good day to sleep in.  However, the girls decided that we needed to get up at 7:30 to feed them. Thankfully, Jeff takes over that chore.  I'm at a loss as to how much wet and dry food they get.

I'm in the middle of a good book, so during and after breakfast, I did some reading.  And, as soon as possible, I'll return to the book.  I mostly read books on Kindle now, where I can adjust the font to be super large and easy to see.

I've had a thing for unicorns and rainbows since last year.  Every time I see a doctor, those two things are what I'm expecting.  Sadly, with the exception of the back surgery earlier, no unicorns or rainbows have come my way.

But, and this is the interesting part, I see unicorns everywhere now.  You probably have noticed them too.  There are too many places where I've seen a unicorn, so I'll just say that, for some reason or other, unicorns seem to be everywhere.  I have noticed though that you only ever see one unicorn. Imagine if we're loading Noah's Ark, and putting on animals two by two, and then we come to a unicorn.  I know it wouldn't matter, because unicorns are mystical creatures, and really only exist in our imagination.  If a unicorn came walking across the lawn, I'd surely die from a heart attack!  But, we know that I'm safe, because there are no live unicorns!  But, I'll keep a look out for them, just in case.

P