Bracing for a Winter Storm

This week coming up is an exciting one for a lot of people. It is the week of Thanksgiving, when a lot of people made a big effort to gather with family and enjoy a big traditional meal together. But it is also the early weeks of winter, and it looks like we are bracing for a winter storm this week, which will probably affect a lot of travel plans. I worry about big holidays when so many people are on the highways. You know that some people are going to be in wrecks, some will break down, some will have major problems when they arrive – it can be so stressful and dangerous.

I hope all my friends who are heading “home” this week are super extra careful when driving and that they arrive safely. I hope that the family dramas are limited and you find a reason to be grateful for having people who love you and the chance to share a wonderful meal.

I plan on staying home and just cooking a small turkey breast. I already bought everything at the store yesterday and am ready to cook on Thursday morning while I watch the Macy’s parade. I love Thanksgiving for a lot of reasons, and wish I could get home but that’s just not practical this year. Maybe next year I can invite a lot of family to join me here in my home and I will cook for a crowd. That will be a nice change!

In the meantime, I got my grocery shopping done for keeping my pantry stocked and for cooking the traditional turkey meal. I also bought some extra baking supplies, so if we really do have bad weather this week, I can try some recipes out and spend some fun hours in the kitchen baking. There are a whole pile of new recipes sitting on the desk that my friends have been sharing on Facebook and Pinterest. This might be the right time for trying them out!

 

An Ex’s Birthday

Even though we broke up with a lot of bitterness and hard feelings, I still care a little bit about my ex. I don’t ever search him out or try to talk with him, but I do think of him every now and then. I know that his birthday is coming up in two days. I am not going to send him a card or call him up or anything. But I do remember the last birthday we shared together and how special I tried to make his whole day and night.

Unfortunately, he never much effort to reciprocate. My birthday was a huge disappointment, especially since we had celebrated his in November, so he had several months to figure out what to do to make mine special. But he didn’t bother, and to be honest, I think that disappointment was the start of the end of our relationship.

It was then that I realized he wanted all the attention on him and was never going to be as giving or considerate as I wanted in a partner. And I also realized that the only reason he made such a fuss on Valentine’s Day was not because he was expressing his love for me. He was just dutifully buying me thing so he could have a night of great sex. I’m glad I didn’t waste any more time on him than I did, and although I recognize that his birthday is two days away, I no longer care if it is a happy day for him – or not.

Must We Wake Up Already?

Last night was so much fun. I had a blast in the restaurant where a bunch of Facebook friends decided to meet up. We all got together at Puckett’s Grocery downtown. It’s not really a grocery – it s a bar, restaurant and place to hear live music every night of the week from local talent. The food is great and reasonably priced, and it’s a casual, friendly place. I had a blast!

This morning I am paying for it, though. I am SOOOO tired! I think I am allergic to mornings anyway, but this morning it is especially hard to wake up and get started on my day. Ugh. But I have a long list of errands and chores, so I had better get off the computer and get busy. Later, taters!

Public School Report Cards Already!

School has been in session for 5 weeks already, which means that school report cards come out next week for all the public school kids in this area. We do 6 week grading periods, and the first reports are supposed to be parent teacher conferences. I’m not sure they still do that in every school, but I sure used to hate the 6th week of school when I was a kid. My parents would go to the school and sit on these tiny chairs and listen to the teacher bitch about me for 30 minutes, then they would come home and beat my butt for whatever holy sin I had been committing in class, like “not paying attention.”

Then the next 6 weeks would be hell, because I’d have lost all my privileges and was not allowed to watch TV or play outside with friends or do anything except homework or read library books. OMG! I hated my teacher AND my parents for those second 6 weeks.

But then, strangely, my next report card would always “show improvement”” and I would be not grounded any more and life would go back to normal. I don’t recall doing anything different during those 6 weeks except suffering – but I managed to get through it and my parents felt better about themselves for being “responsible parents” and my teacher would get panties out of a knot and accept the fact that not every student is going to be a perfect student.

 

Technology Changing So Quickly

Thinking back to when I was a young child, my parents had analog telephones scattered throughout the house. They started with one incoming telephone line, then when my sisters and I were teenagers and hogging the phone talking to all our friends, they got a second incoming line for us girls. Then we started getting online which tied up the phone line and no one could call us without getting a busy signal. So they got a third phone line – primarily for internet but also a backup line for us girls. After all, three teenage girls can do a whole lot of talking on the phone, between their girlfriends AND their boyfriends!

But now, we’ve grown and moved out, we all have cell phones and we get online using cable instead of the telephone line. So my parents decided to give up the home phone line and save $50 a month. I don’t blame them!

Another big technology change has been instant messaging and texting. What a great convenience that is! Especially when you just need to push a message to someone and not really talk to them or engage in a 2-way communication. I use texting all the time with my sisters and my parents, and I love the way they can get in touch with me any time, even if I am on the phone and on the internet, all through my cell phone.

I just love how technology is changing so quickly. Now if they will just start reducing the monthly charges. I don’t see how they can justify these high prices for phone service any longer – they are not spending money on expensive phone lines and cables – it’s all digital.

Single and Not Minding That

Yes, I’m single and I’m OK with it on Valentine’s Day. In some ways, it is better to be single and dating several guys – you get more gifts! I resent a Facebook friend’s comment that I should be eating ice cream and crying tonight.

The guy is a family friend is serving in the Navy and he recently got engaged. Of course, I am happy for him and his fiance, but I do wonder if this is going to be a long term, successful relationship. Almost all of their communication has been long distance phone calls, which have to be short because of the expense, and emails. I do not think that you really get to know someone well after less than a year’s emails and short phone calls. I hope they don’t get married right away – in my opinion they should wait until he is out of the Navy and they have more time together in person.

One of the fun things about being single is getting to know other people. I have found that it takes time to get past the fake bravado and extra efforts that people make for their first impressions. I want to know what the guy is like when real life happens, not just dates. How does he handle an emergency? How does he act when he doesn’t get his way? What does he do when he is not with you? How does he interact with children and senior citizens? All of these things have to do with character and values. If his values are far different from yours, you need to know that before going deeper into a relationship.

Anyway, I’m dating three different guys right now. I am not looking for a husband as much as someone to spend time with doing fun things. I am very happy being single and I loved getting roses, candy and a beautiful necklace from the guys in my life. I can assure my FB friend in the Navy that were no tears and ice cream for me tonight.

 

New Converts Can Be So Annoying

This girl who used to work with me keeps popping up around town. I have seen her at a couple of restaurants, at the YMCA, and in the grocery store. I always make an effort to go up to her and say hello, ask how she is doing, etc. But she is a new convert and last night, when I saw her at the grocery store, she started preaching a bunch of stuff about being saved and told me that I am going to Hell. I’m sorry, but I don’t want to get into a deep religious discussion in the produce section of my grocery store.

I think the annoying part was her judgment of me and attempt to convert me along with her. She asked me the most bizarre question and since I didn’t giver her the answer she wanted, she started attacking my personal beliefs. I had to raise my voice and tell her to back off – in the middle of the grocery store! Good grief!

Oh, her question to me was, “How do you know that you are going to Heaven?” and it wasn’t really about her caring about me so much as an attack on my beliefs. That really pissed me off. If you want to talk about religion with me, invite me over to your place some night and we can share a glass of wine and talk about it in a constructive conversation. Don’t ambush me in the grocery store and tell me that I’m going to Hell.

Hot Yoga Pants

photo yoga pants
My girlfriend Natasha is a yoga instructor and very enthusiastic about her yoga classes. She keeps inviting me to come, but I have never really been a fan. I don’t like to exercise and this does not look like something I would enjoy doing.

However, these yoga pants are really hot and I would be fine with buying them to wear around the house. I even see girls at the Food Lion wearing yoga pants while they shop. I guess if you are well toned and not fat, you can get away with wearing pants like this out in public.

I’m not fat, but I think yoga pants don’t look good on a lot of people and unfortunately some people don’t seen to realize that fact. When I see a fat girl walking around in leggings or yoga pants, it makes me want to go up to her and slap some sense into her. Seriously!

Big Party Weekend in Washington DC

Tonight starts one of the biggest party weekends for Washington DC – the Inauguration! I actually know people who are going to one of the Inauguration Balls and loaned one of my girlfriends a gown to wear. How funny to think that my dress is going places that I cannot!

I wanted to know what is going on besides the Inauguration Balls, which are just party of all the festivities in DC, and found a complete schedule of the inauguration events, with names of the celebrities and performers on the ABC News web site.

While surfing around some other sites, I found a playlist of songs by the scheduled singers and bands on Spotify. I think that was a good idea to put together and will check it out next time I’m on Spotify – probably sometime late Saturday, while my dress is dancing with the stars in Washington, DC.

Friday Feels Like Wednesday This Week

All these holidays days off earlier in the week plus bookended by weekends have got my internal date/day/time clock totally messed up. I still know about what time it is, but my days are so confused. This does NOT feel like a Friday. I cannot believe that tomorrow is Saturday and I have two days off again so soon.

I did enjoy having Christmas on a Tuesday. That gave me the whole weekend plus Christmas Eve being on a Monday was like a free bonus day to get all the last minute things done. I know a lot of people took off Monday completely or were able to leave early to get home and prepare for Christmas day.

This weekend is my R & R weekend. I don’t have to clean anything, the tree and decorations are already put away, and I think I will stop by Redbox for a couple of movies to take home with me for a Friday night movie and popcorn night.

Tomorrow I will deal with a little bit of paperwork – I have to make new files for the bills and taxes for 2013 – that means I will get some practice writing 2013 and letting the fact that this really is a new year sink into my brain! Then I might call a friend and see if anyone wants to go to the movie theater and watch either the Hobbit or Lincoln with me. If you want to go, hit me up!