Barking Mad

Because I Pretty Much Feel Like This Every Single Day!

 

 

This e-card is so much more apropos for my life right now than I can even begin to describe.

Not only am I not back into the swing of things at Y on the regular basis that I was a couple of months ago,  I have now managed to completely turn my internal clock around, so that I am sleeping during the day and awake at night thanks to a rash of no fewer than 15 car larcenies in our area and 9 home burglaries . . .in our neighborhood.  While people are sleeping.

It's not a gross exaggeration to state that I am completely paranoid when it comes to the topic of home invasions.    I have always been that way.  I actually have a semi-amusing/possibly pathetic story about how my paranoia led me to do something utterly ridiculous during the summer of 1985, but that m'dears is a story for another blog post.

Right now I need to clock in to the night shift and find something on TV to keep me company while I wile-away the hours until daylight. 

Let's just hope that I don't ever have to literally run from life, like from a burglar, that thinks we're all sound asleep.  Because like the card above says, I'm pretty sure I would die!

Once Upon an Autumn's Afternoon Walk

What's better than a walk with an adorable companion on a cool, crisp, autumn afternoon?  Not much!

Gaby and I walk by this house every single day on our way to and from the bus stop.   But lately there's been something that's caught her eye.  Can you see it?   She's not very fond if it, at all, and the quicker we pass this house, the happier she is!

Here's a closer shot of the spooky Halloween decoration Gaby could do without . . .

It's not long before we happen upon what we're really after - some of autumn's finest and most beautiful productions!

Not too far away from the house that Gaby doesn't like, sits another that is well atop her "love" list!   She's given all of the cats, bats,  and the witch, names!

Then it's onward toward more of these!

We can finally begin the walk back home once Gaby has enough leaves for her version of a beautiful, vibrant autumn bouquet!

Those leaves are almost as gorgeous as the little girl holding them.  Almost.

Today was a good day!  A very very good day!

Beating the Heat...Well, How WE Do It Anyhow!

I think I'm finally at a place in the nasty chore of unpacking after a move, in which I can treat myself to some time spent writing.   Of course my semi-blogging hiatus has been more the result of wanting to write but not only not having the time, but backing off of my "no holds barred" writing for fear of pissing certain people off, than it has been the act of delaying gratification.   However, it does feel good, sort of like cracking into a slightly slushy, icy cold Coke, to be able to sit down and write.

Amidst all the non-blogging, we've also been doing a lot of...well, a lot of living.  Living.  Really enjoying life.  I know?  I'm just as shocked as you are.   God forbid Audrey should have some fun and actually crack a smile.     Once you see all the photos I'm about to bomb you with, you'll see just exactly why it was so hard to keep from smiling.

To steal some of Gaby's very own words, "Mom, you sure are smiling a lot more lately.  I like your face when you do that!"

It's been hot lately.  'Wicked-hot' as folks 'round these parts tend to say. OK, so folks in these particular parts don't say it so much as back in New England, but hey, I'm technically less than an hour away from the New England border, so just humor me.   Anyhow, we do whatever we can to cool down and keep Gaby and her friends cool as well.  

Enter the inflatable swimming pool...

Then one must fill the inflatable pool!

This right here is how we beat the heat 'round these parts. 

This right here is what summer is all about.

This right here is what living is all about!

 

Feed the Pig

If it's Tuesday, that must mean it's time for another post. 

I really did mean to start posting more, but last week was sort of a cluster**** leading up to Memorial Day Weekend when we were insane enough to have our first ever yard sale.  

We decided to sell everything.  Well OK, not everything but damn near!   We had intended to have a pretty massive yard sale anyhow, but because our financial need was pretty huge, and the house we're moving into is pretty small (think tiny house living, except with maybe 500 more square feet than the Tumbleweed I linked to.  For us, that's a huge deal because we went from 3700 sq ft in Maine to 2200 sq. ft.  here in NY and now we're moving into a home that's roughly 900 sq ft.  Thank gosh it has a full basement and garage - something we don't currently have!)  and we have a lot of stuff that we don't need and had to get rid of, including...

Our dining room table and 6 chairs that we bought less than two years ago.

Solid Oak futon and brand new mattress .

Dressers.

Book shelves.

Coffee table.

Entertainment unit.

night stands.

200+ DVD's.

150+ books.

4+ years worth of baby and toddler clothes.

Brand new swing that Gaby used once and hated.

Pack N Play.

Nealy new car seat and high chair.

And hundreds of other things that we've accumulated over the years and really have no use for.

We just had no clue what we were in for when it came to organizing something like this, especially when the weather was iffy and we had furniture that was cumbersome and heavy to move.   I can tell you, without hesitation now that it's all said and done, I won't ever undertake anything like this anytime soon again!

Don't get me wrong, we needed to get rid of everything we did.  Not only will we not have the room for a lot of this stuff, but we hadn't used a lot of it in ages.   Most important of all, by selling it to people who could use it, we made up almost all of the financial need we still had, outstanding.  We're only a little under $300 shy of where we need to be and I have faith that we'll be able to pull the rest of it together.

Despite the stress and strain, not to mention utter brain and physical drain of the weekend, we were blessed not only in a financial way, but a huge blessing came in the guise of meeting someone who can only be described as an angel.  A very funny, very generous (she bought ALL of our big ticket items...even when we put out new stuff, she bought it!) , kind and serendipitous soul who happened to come across our yard sale, but who was really more of a kindred spirit than anything else.  "AC" not only helped our family out in a huge way, but she put my mind at ease about the new school district we're moving into and helped reassure me that even though we were moving out of one of the best school districts in NY, the school system we are moving into is just as good!  

AC also confirmed my impression of our new neighborhood as one of little to no pretension and very friendly.    That's the one thing we have not had here and the thing I think has made my adjustment to life in NY so hard...too much pretension and zero sense of neighborhood where we live.  

I wish you all could have met AC.  There's just something wicked-special about this woman that you can't help but be drawn to.    She has a charisma and joy that I haven't seen in a long time and one that I'd love to be able to emulate myself.

The weekend also brought out the entrepreneur in Gaby! 

She wanted to have a lemonade stand during the yard sale but I was hesitant to do that so I suggested she sell bottles of water, pop, and fruit flavored water packs.   And ya know what?  The kid has some mad sales skills!

I made a deal with her that she could keep half of the profits from her "Icy Cold Drinks" table.  Well that was the original plan.  I gave her $22 on Sunday and she was so excited to "feed her pig" and I was so wooed by the huge smile on her face, that I gave her all of the profits...all $44 were hers to keep.  She did such a great job on both Saturday and Sunday with absolutely no coaching from Gareth or me.  She asked almost everyone she came across how they were.  She smiled and then she asked them if they'd like a cold drink...it was such a hot day and she had lots of icy cold drinks.   I don't know about you, but I would be hard-pressed on a day when it was nearly 90F outside, to resist the smile on her face, or her charm. 

I also let her make the choice to either take her money and spend it on two of the new Monster High dolls she doesn't have but wants, or save it for a while and get something even better down the line, or keep saving her money for however long she wants.  I reminded her that once she's spent her money, unless she does something to earn more money, it's gone.    We've really been trying to instill financial prudence in Gaby because this kid wants every thing she sees!  She is especially interested in the above mentioned Monster High dolls, and lately, clothes! 

So, what did she decided to do...?

Take a look!

She loves her pig and wants to it grow fat and big and healthy! 

Gaby also told us that she wants to take her pig to the "big people bank and put it in a giant pig there!"  You have no idea how happy that made us, especially considering up until the past couple of years, Gareth and I were a couple who always had a healthy cushion in the bank.  We hope in time, to rebuild that.  I can't even, nor do I want to, begin to imagine how much worse things could be for us if we didn't have that cushion there when we did.  Especially after Gareth lost his job and in the midst of ongoing medical bills, a move and adjusting to the outrageous prices of everything, here in NY.     While there was absolutely nothing that could have prevented us from being where we are now (well, that's not true...we threw good money after bad by trying to keep the house in Maine despite a poor market, no rental market and having to pay rent and expenses here in NY at the same time!),  we were fortunate that the money we did have, held out until the end of 2009. 

So here I sit, late at night, sun burnt from a weekend spent hawking a lot of stuff (because seriously, that's all it is!  It's stuff.  Stuff we don't need and that someone else who doesn't have a lot of money to spend, could use!), sore from moving incredibly heavy furniture, and wondering what life without a table to eat on is going to be like...but I'm happy.  Most of all, I'm blessed.  Blessed in a way that I haven't felt in a very long time.   More than that?  I'm blessed because I'm finally regaining the ability to realize that I am blessed in ways that are so much more important than the material, superficial and outward. 

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As a small aside, yes I did take down the "ChipIn" widget after only one...ONE complaint from "Savannah" in or around Saint Meinrad, IN.   It was enough to make me not really want to deal with anymore "Savannah's" or anyone else that might have come over as a result of me calling out a certain prolific blogger for her lapse in judgement and potentially careless and reckless handling of animals.  

This  particular blogger who has stated over and over again that her goal is to be as Christ-like as possible and to live a more Godly life, then went and mocked the people who commented out of a genuine concern for these animals (one of which was less than TWO WEEKS out from major surgery) she was taking on a willy-nilly road-trip across the US, and openly allowed her commenters to use obscenities when describing those people who were expressing their trepidation over her judgement - including myself.   You then come over here in the droves (I deleted most comments as they were demeaning, defamatory and a couple mocked my older children), and judge me for reaching out and asking for help?   

Rather than deal with any more of her devoted followers, I took the widget down.  I have enough stress and don't want to have my own ethics called into judgement.  I was skeptical about putting it up there in first place, especially when I had witnessed the vitriol slung at other writers and bloggers who had done something similar.    Those close to me said I should have left it up and perhaps they were right.   However, I took it down anyhow. 

Gareth and I are so incredibly grateful for those who "chipped in" not only because of their generosity, but because they know the in-depth story of everything that's gone on and why the need was there in the first place, unlike the "Savannahs" of the world, who don't know jack shit about my family's life or what led us to be where we are.

At the end of the day, it's all good.  Whether it's God, The Universe, or The Powers That Be...we're going to be alright.  Every little thing is going to be alright.

Let it Snow Let it...Oh, Who Am I Kidding?

The first snowfall of the season is always so pretty.  Everything is blanketed in soft white drifts of freshly fallen snow.  There's often a hush that accompanies a deep blanket of snow as the noise is muffled by all that pretty whiteness.  Then there is the gleam and glitter that always accompanies a full moon shining down on freshly fallen snow.   It really is lovely to this here girl who grew up in southern California, who, if she wanted to see snow when she was growing up, had to traipse up to Mt. Baldy, Lake Arrowhead or even Big Bear, in the winter.

So, here I sit after having survived version 2.0 of Snowpocalypse 2011, and ya know?  I'm over it.  Seriously.  It was beautiful the first time around.  Then there was a little more snow.  Then we had Snowpocalypse version 1.0 the day after Christmas and I was annoyed.   A couple of weeks later we're down to horrible looking piles of dirty gray snow that line the roads and make me want to scream.   Today?  Today we're once again digging out.  Seems we're always digging out 'round these parts come winter time.

That's one of the things that has always annoyed me about living in the snowbelt.  There comes a time, usually mid-March when I just want to pull my hair out (OK truthfully, by that point, I'm looking to inflict the pain on someone else and pull THEIR hair out!), because I'm sick to death of seeing huge piles of dirty snow that line every road, street and highway!  We can't forget about the mountains of snow that get piled in the parking lots of stores of other businesses because there's no where else to put all that damned snow!  So there goes roughly 1/3 of the available parking spaces due to snow storage! 

Rarely does a winter go by that I don't have at least one episode of slipping and falling on my ass.  At least I can already cross that off my list this year. 

You'd think with all the bitching and moaning I'm doing about this, that I'd want to move somewhere else...somewhere with winters that don't include snow shovels, possessed snow blowers, ice melt and road grit that cover cars with a nasty, dusty chalk like substance in which people think they're being funny by using their fingers to write, "Wash Me!"  Yeah, that's not funny.  There's no point in washing your car between the months of November to May, if you live in the snow belt.   Take my word for it.  

You might assume I'd be ready to trade my parka in for a bikini.  Nope, not so much.   As much as I complain about the winter, I do actually enjoy having four discernible seasons and not Hot, Hell, Hell 2.0 and Monsoon.   Where I grew up in southern California, those were the four seasons of the year.  Yeah, I don't do so well in hot temperatures.   Someone once suggested Florida.  Again, nope.  I'm not down with flying cockroaches, alligators that might take up residence in my crawl space and then eat my cats instead of paying rent, and the humidity would kill me within five minutes.  Arizona?  Don't think so.  They have scorpions and snakes and again with the heat.  I know I know..."but it's a dry heat."  I don't think I could adjust to bitching about having to run my air conditioner in January when I'd much rather be bitching about having to use cat litter because I ran out of ice melt! 

Besides, what's a little Nor'easter when you end up with pictures like this...

You can't make snow "butterflies" (she has to be different! Snow angels weren't cuttin' it!) in Florida now can you?

 

5 year olds in Houston don't get the privilege of being bundled within an inch of their lives, in winter!

When was the last time you saw someone try to catch a snowflake on their tongue in Palm Springs, CA?

Of course, it pretty much all went to hell in a handbasket when Geronimo tried to make a run for it, and got outside.  He wasn't sure just what the cold, frozen stuff, falling out of the sky was all about...

Despite the occasional inconveniences and my complete lack of coordination on slick-as-snot ice-covered surfaces, I'd rather live in the northeast than just about anywhere else!

And by the way, moonlight reflecting on freshly fallen snow really is almost magical.  Gaby is absolutely positive that snow faeries dust the ground after a snowfall with tiny little diamonds!

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