Ketchup

Gotcha!  The title was interesting so you thought "How can she possibly have an entire blog posting about ketchup?".  Wrong.  Today I've decided to do a little "ketchup" to update you on some things I have posted about in the past.  This should bring you up to speed:

-  We have found insurance for our vacant property through a different company.  We were contacted by our Nationwide agent after the holidays at which point he told us they had an underwriter who would gladly handle our needs.  We asked for a quote.  Four days later, he called again while we were out.  He left a message (at closing time on a Friday) but no quote and then wished us a Happy Holidays even though it was nearing mid-January.  This just confirmed for us that they don't care, they don't want our business, and they don't look at the calendar.  We never received a quote in the mail.  We did receive a phone call a few days AFTER our drop date.  They tried to sell us life insurance.  If you have Nationwide Insurance through our former agent, you have my pity.  (See "Insuring a Perfect Holiday")

-  We are headed this Friday to our interview at the other county's social services place.  I don't know if I really want to be doing this or not.  It feels like a commitment even though I know that we can still say no if we want.  Just not looking forward to going in there and defending myself from the attack that is sure to happen.  We have a few other leads we are following that we are more interested in and look more promising.  I will be sure to medicate before the interview. (See "Under the Microscope" and "Moving On, Hanging Out and Trying to Look Up")

-  I am sick of snow.  After a few more snow storms and an ice storm, I am ready for winter to be over.  Luckily, during the ice storm we did not lose our power but we did lose our cable which is enough to make you lose your mind.  After reading, stitching, scrapbooking, playing Wii, playing games and watching movies, we were out of ideas.  We tried to be thankful that we still had power but it was hard to feel good about our situation without the TV to show us people in even worse situations.  The news may be full of negativity but it sure makes you feel good about your own life.  (See "I'm Dreaming of a White Tuesday)

-  Not all children in foster care exclusively love horses.  Most love dolphins as well.  While the horses seem a constant staple, the dolphins appear to be growing in popularity.  I am all for this since I don't recall being allergic to dolphins.  Not that I've really had the chance to find out, but I've been to Sea World and didn't sneeze even once.  Anyway, I'm going to emphasize my family's love of dolphins in the hopes of distracting from the fact that I don't have a horse . . . or a trampoline.  (See "Wanted: Family - Must LOVE Horses")

 -  After much internal wrestling with the subject, I mellowed out a bit on "the song" from the show.  I had to do some coercing of Hubby to get him to accept going to the show, but eventually he did.  So we all went to see the show and heard "the song".  Some of the subject matter was a bit adult oriented.  I'm not sure our daughter got all of the jokes and if she did - I don't want to know.  The show was hilarious and we thoroughly enjoyed it.  Overall, it was a nice afternoon out - even with the erection.  (See "Sex Education: The Musical Version" and "Sex Education: The Musical Version - The Sequel")

So that's about all there is.  If I have forgotten to update you on something and you are interested in hearing more about it, just comment on this posting and I will try to catch you up even more.  Until next time, enjoy your ketchup.

Peace, Love, and Pajamas

And today on a lighter note - I love my pajamas.  I stay in them all day if I possibly can.  My family even has "Pajama Days" where we do.  If I didn't have to go to work and retrieve food from the local mega-store, I would live in my pajamas.  There is nothing more comfy and fun than a pair of fuzzy flannels with duckies or monkeys or owls all over.  I love my jammies so much that I have no problem going out in the car in them.  I drop my daughter off for school some days in them.  I pick her up from activities in them.  I will even go through a restaurant drive-thru in them.  I see nothing wrong with this.  My daughter has grown accustomed to seeing me waiting in the car in my pajamas.  My hubby thinks I am insane.  He does not agree with my casual-day-to-the-extreme attitude.  He thinks if you leave the house for any reason, you should get dressed.  I agree with that to a point.  If you are going further than the driveway/mailbox or are getting out of the car, then by all means, get dressed.  But for most of us our car is just an extension of our home anyway.  Why not feel comfortable there?  I wish it was socially acceptable to wear my jammies everywhere.  Imagine being that comfy and cozy at work.  Or how much better shopping would be if you were able to do it in your jammies.  Many people enjoy these now through the magic of the internet.  What is the big attraction to working or shopping from home?  That you can do it in your jammies.  I think that if we all wore our jammies around, we'd be a lot nicer as a people in general.  Can you really be rude to someone decked out in a sheep print?  Could you get made at someone wearing a cows jumping over the moon print?  I think the world would be a much better place if we all wore our jammies around.  Maybe this is it.  The answer to world peace.  Pajamas.  Someone call the UN and tell them I've solved world peace with my jammies.  Now if only I could solve world hunger with my Snuggie.  Hmmmmm . . .

10 in 2010

As this extended new year's weekend passed, I thought more about the year ending and a new year beginning.  So many people focus on the new year and what it holds, they forget about the year that just passed and what they may have learned.  So I decided to take stock and look back to remind myself of the top ten things I learned in 2010.

10) My life is not exciting enough to blog about it every day.
9) You can shop without buying something.
8) There is such a thing as too much NCIS.
7) Wii Fit is tough and exhausting.
6) I am a grown-up no matter how hard I try not to be.
5) My dad is amazing.
4) Bad things don't just happen in threes.
3) Walking in a snuggie is an acquired skill.
2) Birds can detect tornadoes.
1) The child welfare system in this country is majorly whacked up.

Dia de los Pajamas

Today I would like to introduce you to something very important and close to my heart.  It should be a part of everyone's life every now and then.  Its fulfilling and enjoyable beyond your wildest dreams.  Its a pajama day.  In case you're unaware, a pajama day is a day where you stay at home in your jammies all day long.  That's right - all day long!  You relax.  You indulge in whatever your heart desires as long as you stay in your pajamas.  I'm not saying you can't be productive.  Catch up on your e-mail, pay some bills, do a load of laundry but do it all in your pajamas.  It's a sanity day of sorts.  Everyone needs to take a break from the rat race every now and then and its a forced break.  Whenever we try to plan a day where we just kick back and relax, it never fails.  We always remember something we forgot to go get or something we should have done.  We then end up going out and not relaxing.  With a pajama day, there is no choice but to stay home.  You can't exactly go get groceries in your pajamas (although I think I have seen some people do that at the Kroger).  You won't be as eager to run to Wal-mart or Target in your pajamas.  You can nap and read and do the things that you like to do.  So plan out some sanity time by scheduling a pajama day.  You'll enjoy it.  I'll bet my jammies on it!

You've Got Mail

Some of you may think its geeky, dorky, childish or all of the above but I have penpals.  People I have met through one means or another (but not in person) whom I keep in contact with through good old-fashioned snail mail.  I enjoy writing letters.  There is just something liberating about sitting down, taking a pen and some pretty paper and writing.  Telling someone somewhere out there in the world what is going on with you and your family and your adventures and all of it.  It's therapeutic.  The time it takes to actually write a letter lets you figure out a lot in your own head while your writing.  I've solved problems, came up with ideas, all while writing letters.  It keeps me busy.  And there is nothing better than going to your mailbox to find something other than bills and junk mail.  It makes you smile.  It brightens your day.  To hold a piece of paper and think that a week ago this was being written for you somewhere in South Korea or Norway or Brazil.  Hearing the different customs and lifestyles.  Seeing the different art on the stamps.  Even exchanging little gifts.  Its an educational experience beyond words.  I actually know some of these friends better than I know my friends here in Suburbia.  Because they are at a distance and we don't really share many mutual friends, I feel I can tell them things that I wouldn't tell anyone else.  Some of them know my secrets and I know theirs.  There's just something more personal about snail mail than e-mail or telephone calls.  I don't know why but I like it.  For the price of a stamp, you get a wonderful friendship.  Here's to all of my penpals!  You make the world a better place!  Thanks for being friends with geeky, dorky, childish me :)

Come On. You Know You Wanna. All the Cool Kids are Doin' It.

Happy Blogiversary to me!  I can't believe I've been blogging every day for more than an entire month.  Even more unbelievably, I have been able to uphold a level of non-coma-inducing topics and have not lost every "peep" I have gained.  I appreciate all of my readers and encourage you to share with your social networking friends the blogs that you find particularly amusing.  I would love to expand my audience, the next step in my pursuit of world domination - I mean, spreading humor and cheer.  I love the feedback that I get and would like to create a more interactive environment by addressing some issues supplied by my "peeps".  Blogging has been a great way for me to do some real soul searching and almost has a therapeutic quality about it.  (I say almost because if I admit it is truly therapeutic I would feel obligated to pay you each as I pay my real life therapist.)  I have realized some things about myself over the last month that I was not even aware of.  I have learned by the labels with which I categorize each post that I am often filled with "frustration" and there is a bunch of "crap I don't understand".  Remembering that every post is public has been a challenge but for every subject I tackle, I become more secure in who I am and what I stand for - a great way to progress in the world of self-improvement.  So, if you've ever had the inkling, I encourage you to jump on the band wagon and become a blogonista too.  I'd love to hear what you have to share.

Buffalos Don't Even Have Wings

Ok.  I have a silly declaration to make.  Its not monumental or anything but I would just like the world to know the truth.  Buffalo wings are buffalo wings.  If said buffalo wings do not contain the bone portion, they are still buffalo wings.  They are then called boneless buffalo wings. All buffalo wings are chicken but just because a buffalo wing does not contain a bone does not make it simply chicken.  If anything, it is the sauce that defines a buffalo wing.  If one orders buffalo wings, bone in or bone out, and chooses to get barbecue sauce on the wings, then they are simply wings or chicken.  It is the buffalo sauce that makes them buffalo wings.  So if one orders boneless wings but with buffalo sauce and another orders bone in wings with just plain barbecue sauce who is being more true to the buffalo wing consumption?  This will go down in history as one of life's great conundrums.  Which came first the chicken or the egg?  If a tree falls in the empty forest does it make a noise?  Is it the sauce or the bone that makes a buffalo wing?  I vote sauce.  So while I consumed boneless buffalo chicken wings, others were partaking in eating barbecue chicken wings.  'Nough said!

This blog is dedicated to my father-in-law.  If they were real buffalo wings, let's face it, you would have been sweating.  Mine were just as much buffalo wings as yours were.  That's my story and I'm stickin' by it.

I'm Putting the Fun Back in Funeral

I know that it may be morbid, but often times I wonder - Would anyone come to my funeral if I died today?  Funerals upset me and not just because someone has died but because they are sterile and generic.  Maybe the family chooses some readings and some hymns but overall they are all the same.  A bunch of teary eyed mourners in an uncomfortable setting where nobody really knows what to say.  Not my funeral.  My funeral will be different.  Instead of mourning the loss of me, it will be a celebration of my life.  I've talked with my husband at length about this and he knows my wishes.  To start, I will be buried in my pajamas.  If I'm going to the eternal sleep, I want to be comfortable.  I want everyone at my funeral to have good memories of me by experiencing the things I love.  There will be readings but at least one will be from the great Dr. Seuss.  There will be music but we're not talking hymns, we're talking Green Day.  Instead of debating on whether they are obligated to come, I want people to not want to leave.  I want there to be cotton candy and snow cones.  Oooo and an airbrush tattoo artist.  I have yet to figure out how to get the skeeball machine to spit out memorial prayer cards instead of tickets, but I'm working on it.  There should be goodie bags for all who attend.  Take away something more than wadded up, used tissues.  When I die I want people to say "Woo hoo!  Bring on the funeral!"  Planning ahead is key.  Some people may think its gruesome, but I think that if deceased people could rate their funerals from the great beyond most would probably be a bit let down.  I don't want to have regrets from the other side.  I want people to have fun.  I want to give people something to talk about.  I want to be a scandelous rebel - even in death.