Nothing to Complain About

My blog fodder's been pretty dull lately and I've had nothing to complain about. But that's a good thing.

School's out, so I don't have to work. Frank and Ernest put together and sealed these great chairs to lounge in. The chairs were on sale at Ace Hardware for Memorial Day Weekend...$29.99 each, I think. They ordered the ottomans for me. I think I still need to pay the guys for their labor. The store would have charged $10 each for assembly.

I have to drive Ernest to the zoo a lot, but then I get to hang out in paradise.


The zoo, the beach, the art museum, and several movies. It's cheaper for me to go to the movies...I could spend far more money in 2 hours than the price of the matinee. I've seen The Beginners, Bridesmaids, Cave of Forgotten Dreams, Midnight in Paris, The Tree of Life. All those kinds of movies that my guys aren't interested in. With the guys, I've also seen Pirates, X-Men, Super 8 (fantastic) and Green Lantern (forgettable).

Handy Qed some tri-tip out of the freezer this week and complained how full it was. It is a very small freezer. So I've embarked on "Clean Out the Freezer Week." I threw out some odd chicken parts from 2010, but the rest of the cache isn't too old. Tonight is chili -- I only have to warm it up.
Whoo-hoo.

So let's recap...lounging, movies, easy cooking. I have it made.

What's going well for you this week?

Sunny Shoreline Saturday

The June Gloom actually lifted for a change!

I caught a lizard sunning itself.

And a rare treat, a small flock of pelicans.

Oh, I do love that camera.

The Reason for the Pelican

The reason for the pelican

Is difficult to see;

His beak is clearly larger

Than there's any need to be.

It's not to bail a boat with-

He doesn't own a boat.

Yet everywhere he takes himself

He has that beak to tote.

It's not to keep his wife in-

His wife has got one, too.

It's not a scoop for eating soup.

It's not an extra shoe.

It isn't quite for anything.

And yet you realize

It's really quite a splendid beak

In quite a splendid size.

by John Ciardi

Abiding

Concert season started with a trip to a local bar to see Jeff Bridges and the Abiders.

The Dude, man!

We stood right behind the "celebrity table" with Peter Noone, David Crosby, and Sam Elliot, whose grey mane looks just as good in person.

Today's Horoscope

While some horoscopes might be spot-on and timely, I'm at odds with mine today. (Not that I ever pay attention to them, it's just this one caught my eye this morning.)

There is safety in numbers. Participate in a group discussion, join a local club or go out on the town with the gang. The friendlier you are towards others, the more likely you will gain acceptance.

Hello? Today I am HOME alone with no driving anyone anywhere and I planned to stay home and indulge myself with solitary type activities.

Your amazing personal energy leads you to see things through another's eyes. It's one of those days when you're sure to learn something new -- and maybe feel differently about a bad situation.

Energy? What energy? After being sick for a week and having the weird headache?

Be open and communicative about your feelings today, Taurus. Most people find it easy to share facts or concrete information. The challenge is to share something from your heart. Don't think that feelings always need to be kept secret. Just the opposite is true. Make sure you leave the channels open for emotional expression.

But wait, I was going to stay home alone and not share a thing!

Spoke too Soon

I've has this weird cold for over a week, every day a new symptom. A sore throat on Wed., sneezes on Thursday, coughs on Friday. Saturday brought me a sinus headache which changed on Sunday to a sharp intermittent pain behind my left ear: the temporal/mastoidal area to be exact. I warn you: do not Google search that... you do not want to know about mastoidectomies and temporal arteritis.

So I've had the stabby headache for several days...pain relievers did not help but plain old caffeine did. So did a glass of wine. Yesterday it was better...only an occasional toothpick poke in the head instead of a bamboo skewer stab and I prematurely posted this as "At Last" meaning at last it was over, but it was back again in the middle of the night. Again, after a cup of coffee this morning, it subsided. But I can't drink coffee all night!

(Note to self...do not try to post from phone when using big words. That is a different kind of headache. Mr. Spellcheck, I really did mean to say "arteritis," not "asterisk!")

Meanwhile, I've got 4 days of Driving Mr. Ernest ahead.

Thursday's movie will probably be Cave of Forgotten Dreams.

Sent from my iPhone, edited on the computer.

Vendredi, du sublime au banal

Friday was my first official day of no work but it was also a Driving Mr. Ernest day. I like his schedule this year...it's a little later in the day so I can squeeze in a movie instead of sitting around waiting.

I saw Midnight in Paris. Wonderful movie, full of beautiful music.






And click here for Bistro Fada.
Stephane Wrembel | Bistro Fada | CD Baby

And from the sublime music to some mundane trivia...

On a less than beautiful note, Ernest explained to me how they were manufacturing poop for Duncan the Dinosaur. I'm sure it's a secret formula so I won't reveal the exact contents. Let's just say that they haven't hit on the perfect formula yet so Duncan's still a wee bit constipated.

Medium Tech

I'm not high tech by any means. I'm often behind the curve and late in adopting new technology. But I do adapt to it.

Here are my medium tech marvels for the week...

1) I don't have TiVo or a DVR. I do have an old DVD/VCR combo that records onto DVDs. This is only important because Ernest was going to be in a news segment the other night. So wouldn't you know, the darn thing wouldn't open the DVD tray. I gave it to Frank and Ernest, and they got it to open up, but later it didn't record anything. Fortunately, the high tech world surrounding me has an online link to the clip. Which I embedded right here...



Which doesn't appear at all on my preview but it seems to be there when I publish. Sigh.

2) I used an old memory card in my new camera, and it worked fine on the ancient archaic elderly old computer. When I got a new memory card, the old computer couldn't read it. With a small amount of begging Ernest to let me use his computer detective work, I found it does work fine on Ernest's massive gamer computer, wouldn't ya know. Which he won't let me touch without his permission. But I can plug the camera in with a wire, so there's my medium tech fix.

3) I learned to blog from my iPhone. So far this has been the greatest success. See the wine picture.

Tech or not, what have been your successes this week?

A to Z

Borrowed from Kcinnova's World and The Jason Show, here is my A to Z.

Fair warning---this changes frequently. I started it a couple weeks ago and I had to change things already. I reserve the right to change my mind at any moment. It's my inner P, which is often hidden by my outer J. Myers-Briggs explanation here.

• Age – 51
• Bed size–California King (although the queen in the guest room has a certain snore-free allure)
• Chore you hate – Cleaning the cat box. Oh, Homer.
• Dogs –Nope, I'm a cat person, despite the above.
• Essential start of your day – coffee
• Favorite color – purple
• Gold or silver – both, but I have more silver.
• Height –5’6″
• Instruments I play (or have played) – piano, clarinet, zills
• Job title – as of 6/9 I was laid off, or "retired" as I call it
• Kids – "Frank," age 20, and "Ernest," age 15
• Live – a small town
• Mom’s name – for privacy, I'm not going to give you this
• Nickname – ditto, but I'll give you my mom's nickname: "Weasel Puss." I kid you not.
• Overnight hospital stays – only for the babies
• Pet peeve – too many to count...bad drivers, jaywalking tourists, and parents texting at a piano recital currently top the list.
• Quote from a movie – "Hello. My name is Inigo Montoya. You killed my father. Prepare to die." My favorite quotes change frequently, too, but this one I always remember.
• Right or left-handed – right
• Siblings – none
• Time you wake up – It was 6:30 but now that school's out for summer I could sleep as late as I please...unless I have to drive Ernest somewhere.
• Underwear –yes, please,
• Vegetable you dislike – eggplant
• What makes you run late – I don't. Period. I hate being late.
• X-rays you have had done – my wrist, when I fell while roller skating when I was 20ish. Roller skating is not my bag, man.
• Yummy food you make – everything I make is yummy...look at my husband's waistline for proof!
• Zoo animal – river otters and capybaras, but I am looking forward to seeing the penguin with the Teva boot.

Zero!

I could cry "Freedom!" like Mel in Braveheart. Or I could just celebrate quietly with this nice gift from my teacher. Aaah, vacation, I love you. However, I have 3 days in a row of Driving Mr. Ernest.

1

Walk like an...

I e-mailed this photo to my husband.

(Photo by Frank who says he could have taken a better picture

if Ernest had given back the camera.

My new very popular camera.

Every day I come home and there is a new stealth cat photo.)

He said, "She looks Egyptian."

Don't all cats?

But does she walk like one?

Board Game Day

(Counting down...3 days left!)
I brought 3 bags of board games to school today...we have a closet full after 20 years with children. Ernest still regularly whips my *** at Monopoly and Life, but he won't play Scrabble with me. Do I know too many words? I should start playing Words with Friends.

I am not quite up to speed on some of the new games. One boy brought an Angry Birds card game. And there is Star Wars Trouble now.

One of my favorite games as a kid was Seance.


I was fascinated by the teeny tiny record player inside the desk. Even more than the game, I loved putting together the set. I wish I still had it.

We've got the classics: Candyland, Chutes and Ladders, Monopoly, Life, Clue, Scrabble, Twister, Sorry, Trouble, Jenga, Yahtzee (although I still don't know how to play it), and some others too: Jumanji, Zathura, SpongeBob, Goosebumps Terror in the Graveyard, Whack-a-Mole, Harry Potter Levitating Challenge. Yea, yea, the kids picked out those. The aMAZEing Labyrinth is different every time we play it.

And there are even more in the cupboard. Do you play board games? What's your favorite?

5

No, hold on a minute. I waited too long to post this, so now the count is down to---



Today was our last Friday. Everyone is counting down now. Teachers are saying Aloha on Facebook. No one's going to learn anything next week. Here's our schedule:

Monday - Board Game Day

Tuesday - Sports Day

Wednesday - Pajama Day

Thursday - Last Day

I'm happy that on Tuesday, the 2nd graders will be out on the playground, away from the windows that overlook the k/1s enjoying their Bubble Day. Good planning, teachers.

In other unrelated news, I am pleased to report that Homer, who hijacked my blog the other day, got his revenge. He peed on Frank when Frank picked him up. Homer hopes it will stop all that going outside business.

ENJOY YOUR WEEKEND!

It's a Hard-Knock Life

Homer here. I have a tough life. I really do.

Every time I settle down for a nice catnap in a sunny spot, someone comes along with that flashy thingy and disturbs my rest.



And even worse, they try to pick me up and take me outside. I know outside. I've been outside before and I do not like it. You don't know where your food is coming from. I prefer to stay near the dish.



I'm due for another nap before someone grabs me again.