Couple weeks ago I was frantically trying to find a pair of nice, non-matronly black pumps* for my trip Back East. It got to be Thursday, less than 48 hours before departure, and I hadn't found anything reasonable at the mall. And did I mention? I hate to shop. I especially hate to shop when I'm in a hurry. And I'm always in a hurry when I shop because I put it off until the last possible moment. Because I hate to shop.
(More than once in my life, I have found myself running through the mall trying to find a dress to wear to an event that very night. Shameful, but true. I'm pretty sure I'm female but I'd never be able to prove it based on my shopping skills. I am a complete disgrace to the female mega-shopper stereotype.)
Anyway, Mr. B was off from work that day running errands. I asked if he could swing through the Decent-Quality Discount Store to see if they had any sort of selection. He, being the agreeable sort, agreed.
He called me back a short while later to report that they did have a promising selection. And, by the way, he didn't feel at all self-conscious about walking through the women's shoe department checking out the heels.
I laughed so hard I almost PMP. It never even occurred to me that it might look a bit... suspect for a 6'4", 200+ lb, 50-something guy to be casually strolling through the women's dress shoe aisle checking out the heels.
I told him as long as he didn't lean over to sniff them or ask the clerk if they came in a size 13, he probably escaped detection.
What a good sport, eh?
*With less-than-3" heels, closed toe, of non-man-made materials -- ha! Apparently it can't be done in my neck of the woods.
Monday, June 2, 2008
Sunday, June 1, 2008
Day of rest?
I'm supposed to start working on clearing out my garage today. I've been 'supposed to start clearing out my garage' for six months now. Instead, we're going to The Big City to visit the hugastic Asian market.
Oh well. Maybe next weekend?
Oh well. Maybe next weekend?
Friday, May 30, 2008
Reprieve
Whew! That was awkward.
Coming back to work after a trip only to discover we were 24 hours into a 48-hour ISP outage... may I just say: Ouch. We finally rejoined the civilized world about three hours ago. There was much rejoicing. No, really; we were just convening to share a coffee cake to celebrate a birthday when the data started flowing.
The best part was having to explain to more than a few of my coworkers (and one of the owners) that no, there would be no flood of emails and web orders awaiting us when the issue was resolved. Since we host our website on an internal server, no ISP --> no website, no webstore, and no email. We effectively ceased to exist on the interweb. That caused a few assholes to pucker, I tell you.
The second best part was bearing the brunt of the irritation of my coworkers for the ISP's hardware failure and the fact that the ISP apparently doesn't keep spares for every single system on hand at all time. (Smile and nod, smile and nod...)
Also, one coworker asked why I wasn't screaming at the ISP over the extended outage. A of all, I am not a screamer. B of all, I'm thinking that the privilege of screaming at a customer support person who has nothing to do with the repair should be reserved for someone who pays the bill; namely, one of the owners. But maybe that's just me.
And I wonder how, in the name of all that's good and beautiful in the world, I spent the first 15 years of my work life sitting at desks without internet access. It's like trying to remember the world before ATMs, microwaves, and cable TV. I simply can't do it.
Needless to say, it's now Friday afternoon and my concentration is shot. I should be able to get my shit together over the weekend and be back at it good and proper on Monday. See y'all then!
Coming back to work after a trip only to discover we were 24 hours into a 48-hour ISP outage... may I just say: Ouch. We finally rejoined the civilized world about three hours ago. There was much rejoicing. No, really; we were just convening to share a coffee cake to celebrate a birthday when the data started flowing.
The best part was having to explain to more than a few of my coworkers (and one of the owners) that no, there would be no flood of emails and web orders awaiting us when the issue was resolved. Since we host our website on an internal server, no ISP --> no website, no webstore, and no email. We effectively ceased to exist on the interweb. That caused a few assholes to pucker, I tell you.
The second best part was bearing the brunt of the irritation of my coworkers for the ISP's hardware failure and the fact that the ISP apparently doesn't keep spares for every single system on hand at all time. (Smile and nod, smile and nod...)
Also, one coworker asked why I wasn't screaming at the ISP over the extended outage. A of all, I am not a screamer. B of all, I'm thinking that the privilege of screaming at a customer support person who has nothing to do with the repair should be reserved for someone who pays the bill; namely, one of the owners. But maybe that's just me.
And I wonder how, in the name of all that's good and beautiful in the world, I spent the first 15 years of my work life sitting at desks without internet access. It's like trying to remember the world before ATMs, microwaves, and cable TV. I simply can't do it.
Needless to say, it's now Friday afternoon and my concentration is shot. I should be able to get my shit together over the weekend and be back at it good and proper on Monday. See y'all then!
I'm in hell
No internet at work! When I go to hell, I will be sitting at a desk for all eternity with no internet.
I'll try to get caught up over the weekend...
I'll try to get caught up over the weekend...
Friday, May 23, 2008
Kiss me
On this Very Special Episode of Fridays Rock! I'm compelled to share one of my all-time favorite videos that you've never heard of.
Kiss me, Alphastates
Yes, that's Lovely Daughter* with the eyes and lips and hair, circa some four or five years ago. She and some drama pals were tapped to shoot this video for the Irish band Alphastates. It's very fun to watch now and wave at the kids, all of whom have long since moved on to various corners of the country. Especially the hands on her chest, which belong to her first gay husband, BC. I always give BC a shoutout when I see the hands.
This is Lovely Daughter's Very Big Weekend. She's turning 25 and graduating after seven years of college. Whatever I was doing on my 25th birthday, it sure as hell wasn't that cool. I can, however, pretty much guarantee it involved chasing a 2-yr-old. And wine. It definitely involved wine.
Maybe in that regard, her 25th and mine won't be all that dissimilar after all.
:)
(I'm positive this piece of 'ancient history' will mortify her, but that is my solemn duty as her mother, no matter how grown up she is. At least I didn't post her jr hi school pix... yet! Bwah-ha-ha-haaaa!)
Program note: Mr. B & I are headed Back East to join the Ex, Young Son, Sis, Evil Twin, and the rest of the gang for the festivities. I'll see y'all next Thursday.
* Nope, she's not singing, just lip-synching.
Kiss me, Alphastates
Yes, that's Lovely Daughter* with the eyes and lips and hair, circa some four or five years ago. She and some drama pals were tapped to shoot this video for the Irish band Alphastates. It's very fun to watch now and wave at the kids, all of whom have long since moved on to various corners of the country. Especially the hands on her chest, which belong to her first gay husband, BC. I always give BC a shoutout when I see the hands.
This is Lovely Daughter's Very Big Weekend. She's turning 25 and graduating after seven years of college. Whatever I was doing on my 25th birthday, it sure as hell wasn't that cool. I can, however, pretty much guarantee it involved chasing a 2-yr-old. And wine. It definitely involved wine.
Maybe in that regard, her 25th and mine won't be all that dissimilar after all.
:)
(I'm positive this piece of 'ancient history' will mortify her, but that is my solemn duty as her mother, no matter how grown up she is. At least I didn't post her jr hi school pix... yet! Bwah-ha-ha-haaaa!)
Program note: Mr. B & I are headed Back East to join the Ex, Young Son, Sis, Evil Twin, and the rest of the gang for the festivities. I'll see y'all next Thursday.
* Nope, she's not singing, just lip-synching.
Thursday, May 22, 2008
Well now, wasn't that special!
Yay! Wednesday is over and everyone is more-or-less intact.
It was a long goddamned day, for sure. Just shy of 12 hours in the hospital plus 3 hours travel time. But Mr. B got a decent night's sleep and is now home in his bed with a laptop perched on his lap and his bottle of Very Good Drugs in his pocket.
I only hope I placed his wallet far enough out of reach. Surfing Under the Influence can be a costly endeavor....
It was a long goddamned day, for sure. Just shy of 12 hours in the hospital plus 3 hours travel time. But Mr. B got a decent night's sleep and is now home in his bed with a laptop perched on his lap and his bottle of Very Good Drugs in his pocket.
I only hope I placed his wallet far enough out of reach. Surfing Under the Influence can be a costly endeavor....
Tuesday, May 20, 2008
When it rains...
Look! A missive from Evil Twin, just in time to save you from having to read something totally lame about how stressful this week is turning out to be*.
She's my hero! We get to meet up with her (and hubby, thankfully) this weekend at Lovely Daughter's graduation. Can't wait!
* Don't despair. I'll be sure to post something lame tomorrow while I'm waiting at the hospital for Mr. B's procedure to be over.
We just received 4.5 inches of rain over Mother's Day weekend, on top of 3.5 inches last Thursday and Friday. Somehow, the $6,000 we spend on "french drains" (oo-la-la) and a sump pump in the basement sounds like a better investment. I looked at the output yesterday afternoon, and saw the pump shoot out a gallon of water every 40 seconds. That works out to 2,160 gallons over 24 hours. That's far better than listening to Hubby run the shop-vac for hours on end, and dumping the results in the sink.
(You DO remember the storm last year when he took off from work, ran the vacuum for 12 hours straight, and emptied it in the sink, rather than the floor drain on the other side of the basement? That was a classic.)
In any event during the height of this storm, I noticed that one of the gutters was overflowing, and (stupid me) told Hubby. He was out there in his foul weather gear -- still has it from the CT hurricanes -- and dragged the 12-foot step ladder out to the front. This involves unlocking the gate to the back yard (to stop criminals), and then unlocking the shed (to stop criminals from getting the tools and ladders to break into our house), getting the step ladder out from behind the garden tools, dragging it around to the front yard, and setting it up under the power lines to the house (in the rain, on a metal ladder). "I've done it hundreds of times! Quit telling me what to do!". He gets up the ladder, missed the lines by inches, cleans out the gutters.
Ah, idiot-saved by God, once again. Daughter is going nuts -- "Mom, stop him!" All I can say is, "Just don't watch. He doesn't want our input, and he won't listen anyway". I mean, I love him and all, but we HAVE been married 28 years, If he wants to be the latest entry into the Darwin Awards, I can't deny him that joy. I just don't want my daughter's last image of her father to be:
She's my hero! We get to meet up with her (and hubby, thankfully) this weekend at Lovely Daughter's graduation. Can't wait!
* Don't despair. I'll be sure to post something lame tomorrow while I'm waiting at the hospital for Mr. B's procedure to be over.
Monday, May 19, 2008
Joke of the night
Scene: Young Son's room, around midnight last night. He'd been drifting in and out of sleep in between coughing jags for the last couple of hours. Things were finally starting to calm down. We were both exhausted.
He rolls over on his side and is drifting off to dreamland....
Ba-da, dum! Thank you ladies and gentleman, I'll be here all week. Enjoy the veal and be sure to tip your waitress.
He rolls over on his side and is drifting off to dreamland....
YS: Mom, can I tell you something? What does a stick figure look like from the side?
M: I dunno, what?
YS: A stick.... zzz....
Ba-da, dum! Thank you ladies and gentleman, I'll be here all week. Enjoy the veal and be sure to tip your waitress.
Friday, May 16, 2008
Na-naa, na-na-na-na-naaaa...
Beck, Thursday, May 15, 2008
Owwww!
Location: Sabino Canyon, Tucson AZ, Feb. 2008
To quote Young Son*, 'My, that's oddly specific!'
All of a sudden I'm noticing more amusing (to me) road signs. I may have to start a collection. Unfortunately, that implies more drive-and-shoot action.
Hmmm... wonder if there's a caution sign for that**?
* Who is quoting a cartoon, I'm sure.
** Note to Evil Twin: Pssst! That's your cue.
To quote Young Son*, 'My, that's oddly specific!'
All of a sudden I'm noticing more amusing (to me) road signs. I may have to start a collection. Unfortunately, that implies more drive-and-shoot action.
Hmmm... wonder if there's a caution sign for that**?
* Who is quoting a cartoon, I'm sure.
** Note to Evil Twin: Pssst! That's your cue.
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