My 3 day weekend started today at 1:45 when I left work. So nice!
As I sit here typing I can hear my Zoe playing happily in her bathtub. It used to be my bathtub but I gave it away. She collects her toys and puts them in there and then plays in there many times a day. Right now she is playing with a bottle cap from a soda bottle. Out of all her toys, her favorites are not the ones I spent a lot of money on but instead the free ones (i.e. bottle cap). This story leads me into my next story which is not so cute but entertaining nonetheless. People who really know me know that I am not a big fan of jewelry. Some of it's pretty and certainly if someone wants to buy me a round cut diamond, I would make the sacrifice and wear it. I don't see that happening so I revert back to the minimal jewelry thing. I have a few rings, very few, that I have received over the years or else purchased myself. I don't wear them but I have them and am fond of them. I have 2 tanzanites, 1 sapphire, 1 pearl, and 1 apatite. I keep them on a ring holder on my dresser. Well at least I used to. One day I came home to find the ring holder on the floor and the rings were gone! No sign of them anywhere. I looked for them to no avail. The rings were stolen and the ring holder knocked on the floor. I kind of had an idea what kind of thief I had but one is certainly innocent until proven guilty. Fast forward a couple of days... I am in bed asleep and hear the usual bathtub playtime commotion. I keep hearing a "clinking" sound. I finally got up to see what was going on and to my amazement there was a sapphire ring being batted around in the tub. I snatched it up and hid it. The next night? A multi-colored stone ring that I got in Catalina one year. I hid it. A week went by and I heard the "clink". Ran into the bathroom and much to my joy...my tanzanite. This wasn't just a tanzanite but a rather special tanzanite that I had received for my 42nd birthday. Not something that came out of a gumball machine. I was SO thankful to get it back. And last night? 1 pearl ring showed up. In the bathtub of course! Luigi found my other tanzanite on the floor in the bedroom. I am down to the apetite ring. I really would like it back. It's a light aqua stone - very pretty. I eagerly await the "clink".
Damn kitten! Here she is with her bottle cap...
And no, I do not shower with Dawn dish soap! Like I said, the bathtub belongs to Zoe. In addition, I have given up my whole bathroom to Zoe. That would be her dish soap for when she scrubs out her litter box. Uh huh - she's quite self sufficient. And I am lying. And that's all I've got for tonight! ♥
THIS WAS SUPPOSED TO BE POSTED ON CHRISTMAS MORNING...MY BAD!
Merry Christmas! My favorite holiday.
Christmas Eve day was crazy busy for me. I took Roxie to the doggie salon in the morning. She was shaking because she hates going to the groomer. Her tail was tucked and she was pulling me back out the door. I feel so horrible making her do something she doesn't want to do. I had tears in my eyes when I left her there. I am hopeless!
I stopped at my very favorite coffee place...Ryan Bros Coffee in San Marcos. Here is why I no longer go to Starbucks...I walk in and while I am placing my order I see the manager go into the kitchen. She comes out with her bag of dog biscuits and says "Julie take what you want for her". (they usually have them outside in a container next to a bowl of water). Who at Starbucks knows that my dog is always in the car and knows that where there is coffee, there are dog biscuits?! No one! Ryan Bros is the best. And they have a motto that I try follow but fail quite often. "Life is too short to be bitter". Yes it is.
I know there is a psychological term for my behavior in what I am about to say but I can't remember what it is. I took psychology in college but that was, well...never mind - a very, very long time ago. The boys upstairs had a party last night. They have been so quiet lately that sometimes I forget they are up there. I have called Travis the Sheriff on more than one occasion to go upstairs and quiet them down. It's really bad. But last night I decided to feel the Christmas spirit and let them party all they wanted. It was hard but I did it. And I was so proud of my loving heart. And this is where my twisted and warped brain kicks in. This morning I was getting in my car. Our condo and the one upstairs where the boys live both have 4 windows facing the parking lot. So on one hand I let them make noise out of the goodness of my heart and on the other hand? I couldn't help it that I hit the red panic button on my car and let it rip! I have such an annoying alarm. And I got such pleasure in setting off that alarm and hoping beyond hope that it was truly bothering them as they slept in this morning! Good morning boys...rise and and shine!
Now here is my story relating to today's title...It seems to me that a lot of women have crushes on "hot" men. I can't think of a single actor who I think is hot. They do nothing for me. I don't get many crushes but about 15 years ago my parakeet was sick so I took him into the vet and they scheduled me to see Dr. Bausone who specializes in birds. I took one look at Dr. Carmine Bausone and I thought I was going to faint. I had an instant crush on him. I think one of the things about him was that he was tall. I like tall men. And he had dark hair - perfect. And handsome - yes, he was handsome. Just perfection (to a 30 year old). As time has gone by - I have always been more than happy to take my parakeets in to see the "bird doctor". I even took Emily my kitty in to see him one day. Dr. Mosley was out that day and they said I could see Dr. Bausone. Yes! Be right there! Over the years I haven't had much opportunity to see Carmine Bausone. Sometimes will catch a glimpse of him at the office when we are there to see the girls' doctor. I just knew he would be my forever crush. Until today. No, nothing bad happened today. Except a strong dose of reality. I was at the vet's office waiting for Zoe to come out and a woman walked in with 2 hyper kids and 2 hyper dogs. She breezed past reception and said she was going to take her dogs right to the pet resort. I then heard the receptionist at the front desk call back to the pet resort to let them know that the BAUSONE FAMILY was walking back there. And the next event is what made me realize that my long term crush and forever love affair has ended. Zoe and I were walking back to the car and there parked next to me was the Bausone Family. My tall handsome Dr. Bausone is just a regular husband and father. His hair is ugly. He has quite a bit of insulation around his middle. And to top it off and seal the deal...Dr. Bausone drives a blue, boring, and outdated MINI VAN! There he was climbing into his light blue mini van aka a looser cruiser and drove his family off down Citracado Pkwy on the way to Christmas vacation. My 16 year romance...broken in a turn of the key starting up a mini van. It's over. Kapoot. Done. True love is quite over-rated I'm afraid! Geez, I sure hope my parakeet, Blueberry, never gets sick...
I did a good thing which turned out pretty darn funny. I was at the grocery store in the afternoon and there was the Salvation Army girl out there ringing her bell. I decided to give her all the spare change I had. I dug in the bottom of my purse and came up with a couple of dollars in quarters, dimes, and nickels. I stopped to drop this change in her red can and let go of my cart. Runaway cart heads into parking lot straight for a line of cars. Good deeds never go unpunished! Some guy grabbed my cart but was scared of me because he thought I would think he was grabbing my purse out of the cart! I told him no worries that he was welcome to my purse and if he had any luck finding something in that quagmire that he was welcome to it!
So last night we needed to stop at Vons. Nothing like last minute Christmas Eve needs. Luigi went into the store and I said I would wait in the car. I do that a lot when we go to the store. Sorry Luigi! Anyway...as always he wants me to lock the doors to stay safe. But to no surprise to him he came out of the store and I was gone. I had been watching a homeless man and his dog standing near the store. I couldn't stand it anymore and had to go talk to them. That is where Luigi found me...hanging out with the guy with no teeth and his dog named Tequila. And what a blessing I got from both of them. I know a lot of people (esp women) are afraid to talk to people like that but it's hard to keep me from them. I saw him and told myself that whatever money I had in my purse (remember, I had no change as that was in the Salvation Army can), was going to him. I emptied out my purse and came up with $3.00. And I also raided Roxie's cookie bag for the dog. Roxie looked at me like I had lost my mind. I told her sorry but she has endless cookies and that black lab look like she needed a cookie. I got out of the car and walked over to him. I handed him the $3.00 and asked him if his dog could have a cookie. He said of course. She was SO happy to get the cookie. I think happier than he was to get the $3.00. He had Tequila do tricks for me and then we talked about Christmas and he told me how his Christmas' used to be when his kids were around. I petted Tequila. He offered me a bag of mistletoe that he was selling. I declined but thanked him. It was a really cool conversation on a cold Christmas Eve. Glad I got out of the car and talked to him. I thanked God for all I had and asked him to please watch over the man and his dog.
Went to the mall this afternoon. I can't even begin to describe the crowds. And the strollers. Honestly, they are the most annoying contraptions. And where are the kids that should be in these strollers? Why are they not in these puke-stained cheerio encrusted little seats on wheels? I will tell you where they are. They are looking one way and running into me at full speed. Kids are the craziest little beings. They look one way, walk another, and then when they run into you they give you the look. The "what the hell" look. If they could think and talk fast enough they would be saying "I'm telling my mommy you biznotch". Meanwhile...back at the mall...Mommy is pushing this creepy looking stroller with a crazed look in her eyes and she has completely filled this thing with shopping bags. I'm pretty sure that there are shoppers in the mall who leave the kid at home and just take the stroller. I'll bet you big money on that one! It's a sure-fire way of getting everyone else to move the heck out of the way or get crushed! Craziness I tell you.
I had a coupon for a free burger at Red Robin and it's at the mall so I wanted to redeem it. They call it the birthday burger. Hey, what a concept. Anyway, it's nice to get a free $10 burger. But as I found out today, nothing is free. The other night I was at PF Changs. The server brings me a dessert and discreetly says "happy birthday". And my dad says "aren't you going to embarrass her and sing"? And the server whispers..."we are not allowed to sing - we will get fired if we do". Amen to that! My kind of place. Back at Red Robin...they give you this free burger and you think they couldn't possibly want to do more for you. Wrong. I am pretty sure about 87 employees walked up to the table. The server placed a hot fudge sundae in front of me, and they all belted out some sort of crazy sounding birthday tune. I was completely surprised and embarassed! And as you sit there while they are serenading you, can see all the other customers staring. Stop staring, people! Take your strollers and get out!
On a serious note, as we sat in Red Robin a woman came along pushing her elderly mother in a wheelchair (NOT a stroller). She got her mom seated - it was just a small table for 2. It was one of those half-booth, half-tables. Mom sat in the booth. But instead of this woman sitting in her chair she went and shared that small little space on the bench with her mother. It was sweet to see. They both ordered a glass of Cabernet Sauvignon and they sat there enjoying the wine and sharing a chicken quesadilla. They didn't talk. I don't know why but I guess they didn't really need to. Will I do something like that someday with my mother? Well...no. She does not like Red Robin, she does not like cheese quesadillas, and she certainly would not like a glass of cab. But this mother and daughter did and it seemed as if they were having a delightful meal. Like I said, it was sweet.
It's past midnight. It is officially Christmas Eve Day and tomorrow is Christmas 2010. Wish I were having Christmas where it snows...♥
I am now 46 years old and I'm ok with that. Can't say I feel any older. Yesterday was a nice birthday. Got my first call at about 2:30 in the morning! Actually someone called me by mistake but I still consider it my very first call to welcome in a new year! It rained all day. I took a nice long nap. Had dinner at PF Changs and then went to my church's Christmas program. It was the strangest performance I have ever been to. I just didn't get it. It took a whole lot of artsy fartsy confusion to get to the core of the story at the end which was about Jesus. Frankly, it was a nightmare. I think it was too trendy and modern for my simple tastes.
I am in the process of making 21 Christmas treat boxes for Luigi's employees and his bosses at Henry's Market. I tried to figure out something cute yet cost efficient. I found boxes like Chinese food take-out boxes that were for Christmas. Found those at Michael's for a dollar a piece. I'm going to layer in them. Bottom layer will be homemade caramel corn, next layer cookies, and the top layer will be decorated chocolate covered pretzels and peppermint bark. A Candy Cane on the outside and we're good to go!
Went to Target today. Awful. Crazy people out there. Not much more to say about that.
Leaving on another cruise in just about a month. Please don't envy me. I'm going with my parents. Not much more to say about that one either. I'll bring it up again later in January. I am scared. Very scared.
Very busy work week ahead. I have an ugly project to do. But the 4 days should go by pretty quick. And then it's my favorite holiday...Christmas! ♥
