Paper Bags....

I just need a moment to vent:

Being the environmentaly conscious consumer I am, when I go grocery shopping, I always get paper bags instead of the flimsy plastic ones. My mom always said that you can get more stuff in a paper bag and they dont roll arund your trunk on the way home. Plus they double as my garbage bags. Then why is it that when I ask for paper bags, the bagger always sighs and looks at me funny and then proceeds to pack as much as they can into 1 paper bag?????? I am actually doing THEM a favor but not wasting 26 plastic bags and only uising 2 paper bags and that is how they repay me? Sheesh..every time I leave the grocery store I have one 35 pound paper bag as everyone else is carrying their 10 plastic bags with ease to their cars. That does not seem right does it? I have one girl put every canned food item into ONE bag! Do you think she could have spread out the weight a little bit? Nooooooooo...... so then, as expected the bag breaks as I try to lift it out of my trunk. I think they secretly have it out for us paper baggers. All right then, the bagger versus paper bag customer war is offically on!

Gabby...once again

Now, I do give Maggie a lot of attention. Mostly because she REQUIRES a lot more attention. By no fault of her own Gabby tries to make up for that fact and do things on purpose to get in trouble or do something silly so I can look at her. The above was today's "look at what I am doing" moment.

Get Elfed!

Happy Thanksgiving everyone!
This is totally cute:

http://www.elfyourself.com/?id=9610176878

Cousins.....

Those of you who do not see me on a daily basis do not know that I recently found out that I have cousins! You see... I have 2 aunts, both of whom never had children. In May my Grandma Wilson died unexpectedly, at the funeral service, Sunny and I found out that our Aunt Terry had babies! TWINS! So we have been keeping in touch on a weekly basis and last weekend I went to their first birthday party! We had so much fun, they had a huge blue blow up slide as you can see in the pictures, and the kids had a lot of fun! Yes...I did manage to make it down the slide. But any pictures of me taking the plunge I managed to delete. No evidence!!! Ha! Here are some pictures of the little rascals....

My Aunt in the red shirt and her best friend Kay. She is holding Sydney.



The adorable Sydney.... Grandpa is in the background.

Sydney on the left and Darby on the right...muggin' for the camera!

Playing Catch-up!

Wow! It has been a busy summer and I have not posted anything on here for almost a month! Well here is a little refresher: Towards the end of September, the family and I took a trip to Clearlake. We had a great time, although the accomodations left a bad taste in our mouths as well as a lingering stench in our clothing! Overall, I would not have traded that time for anything in the world. We took Grandma with us this time, which added a whole other level to our insanity! Our days were spent swimming, sunbathing, playing games, fishing and cooking, as well as all day cocktails! Here are some highlights from our trip:



The cabin actually looks nice from this angle! It did have a lovely dock...

Nick enjoying the sunshine!

We had a private Beach! Maggie furthered her swimming knowledge!

Me on what we thought was a normal air mattress...we called it the burrito after this:

Jeremiah and his prized catch!

A lovely time was had by all. And Nick and I celebrated our 3rd wedding anniversary while we were there. It was really fun! I cannot believe it has already been 3 years...wow time flies!

Country Mouse in the Big City!

Let me just start off by saying that I am a country mouse through and through. I went to Los Angeles for my girlfriends bachelorette party over the Labor Day weekend. Now I am VERY comfortable in big cities. Stick me in a fancy restaurant in San Francisco and I will completely blend, but boy did I stick out like a sore thumb in LA! I felt like I had a sign above my head flashing "COUNTRY BUMPKIN!!!" I cannot stand that city, I don't like anything about it: The traffic, the attitudes, the snotty salespeople, the airports, blah blah blah! In fact when we went out to dinner in Malibu, the restaurant charged us $24.00 for our WATER!!! It was unbelievable! Enter the country bumpkin mentality "Now how do they get off chargin' us that kinda dough for that there water?" Well the weekend was not about me or my cheapness. We did our best to get Tara sloshed and our mission was accomplished as of 8am on Sunday morning. But we knew that was coming after Tara did her best impression of a frustrated Homemaker (see above picture). Now don't get me wrong, we went to some really beautiful "fancy" places, but hell....all I wanted to do was go home and go to the little Mexican Cantina down the street, at least the water is free!

Nanu Nanu Nano!

This was Nick's birthday present to me. Remember my frustration at trying to learn how to use the other MP3 player? Well frustrated no more! Yowza... what a fun thing this is! I swear I hooked it up and was using it within 30 minutes. YAY! I knew it could not be ME that was the problem!!! hee hee! Anyway...and it is hot pink! Double bonus points. I am going to be the most stylish bike rider on the deserted trail behind our house, oh yes I will!

Bringin' in 30 with a thud!

WOW! What a great time was had by all. Jim Gaffigan was hilarious as to be expected! We were all in tears. And I discovered a new affinity for Vodka Tonics, the result is displayed above...

What a fun little town, yes they allow smoking EVEYWHERE, but that was the only downfall I came across. Even my walking shoes smelled like cigarettes! Ew...but all in all we had a blast! Our hotel was great, and after 2 room switches we finally found "the one" complete with an area for dancing and a mini fridge for Grandma's fried chicken and Sobe Green Tea's!!!! Yes...it was perfect!

I don't think there are 2 more fun individuals than my mom and my sister. Boy! Me, not being the big drinker was sticking to me faithful Midori (tastes like a slurpee) Sour until I discovered the refreshing concoction of the blissful Vodka Tonic. Everytime I would tell my sister "Ooohhh this tastes good!" She would say "Keep drinking keep drinking!" Little devil! No police were called on us, we were not kicked out of the hotel nor did we need to call Nick to post bail, but Mom saw a different side of me, and said "boy, ya get a couple pops in her..."

Mission accomplished! Here is to a great 30th birthday! *Cheers*

This is why Maggie hates me...

I can't help myself. Once I set my mind on something, I HAVE to do something about it. The latest obsession? Maggie's fur. Her fur on the couch, her fur all over the carpet because she sheds like crazy, Pieces of bark getting tangled in her fur, you get the point. So Saturday at 8 o'clock at night I decide to shave my baby. So I found Nick's hair trimmers and went to work. needless to say, she hated the buzzing but I think all in all she is happier now. I took off so much fur! The only down side? Her poor little bum! As you can see, it took a bit of a whacking! Poor little munchkin butt! She is very self conscious of it, she knows her butt looks silly, so she is avoiding showing us. Of course me chasing her with a camera and a flash going off on her ass does not add to that feeling does it? hee hee......

Grandma is at it again!

Mom and I took Gram shopping on Saturday.

The result? An 86 year old Snow Bunny!

Gabby, plain and simple...

I don't often write about my Gabby because frankly she does not really like us that much. She tolerates us, lets us pet her and occasionally will grant us the favor of her presence unless she has a previous engagement like licking her butt or destroying my upholstered chair. She does enjoy getting herself into trouble though. She loves to climb into drawers or sneak outside by shredding our screen doors and such. I came home from the gym the other night and this is what I captured:

"Gabby get away from the bag" I tell her, "Gabby, I mean it." As you can see, she really pays attention to what I say. And the licking of her lips after she is in the bag was just the final F.U. to me. Isn't she just precious? *She says sarcastically*

Getting ready for the big 3-0!!

As most of you know, I am turning 30 on the 21st of August. Last years birthday sucked so for this one, I am going to LIVE IT UP! 29 sucked for me: people close to me were in accidents, died, I lost my job after I resigned leaving me unemployed for 1 month, I barely saw Nick, my moms truck got stolen, just a whole bunch of crap. So this year is already a vast improvement for me. Hey...anything could be better than last year! At first I wanted Nick to throw me a party, but quickly changed my mind after he wanted it to be at our house! I don't want to clean up after my own party! So mom decided the thing I need is to live it up Reno style! So on the 18th, we are going to see my favorite comedian Jim Gaffigan at the Silver Legacy. Being I have never been to Reno, I have absolutely no idea what to expect.... lots of drinking and laughing I suppose! But that is what birthdays are supposed to be like right? Pictures will most likely be posted following the debauchery!

Poor Momma.....

My momma needs to SLOW DOWN...... This one was a result of carrying too much at work instead of taking two trips.....

Technologically Inept

As most of you know, I consider myself to be a fairly intelligent person. I can set up my own computer system, burn cd's, copy discs, even make myself a cappuccino with my fancy espresso machine that I did not need directions in order to use. So why is it so damn hard to figure out how to set up my MP3 player? Ugh!!!! Nick bought me a "Sansa" MP3 player last year on my birthday to use when I go for walks and stuff. Great! How exciting...I love new stuff. Well joy quickly turned to frustration when I could not figure out how to use the stupid thing. Do I need to hire a 13 year old kid in order to learn how to use it? In case you failed to realize this before, my birthday was almost 1 year ago. Every couple weeks I get a hair up my ass to try again, and only after a few hours of irritating error messages and me imagining I am throwing the computer out the window that I realize my efforts are not worth while. Sadly, it is one of those nights tonight. I got home from the gym and felt confident I could beat the computer....

ERROR!!!!!!

Toy Entrails Part Deux

Well...Maggie the destroyer has struck again. Sad to say that another beloved "baby" has bit the dust. We had dubbed him "Floppy Dog" due to his floppy ears.They come and go so fast in this household. Nick and I were sitting on the couch when we heard her squeaking Floppy Dog like crazy and before I know it I am picking up guts again. The above picture is once again of the carnage left in Maggie's path. In fact the last picture was taken a day before Floppy's demise, notice how intent she is on biting his head off!! Too bad too, because she was particularly fond of this one. Her daddy had brought it home with him from the grocery store and had become an instant favorite. She liked to get it in her mouth and then throw it from side to side whipping herself in the face with it. Needless to say Floppy was given a quick trash can burial along side its predecessors Happy Dog 1, Happy Dog 2 and countless other nameless stuffed toys and shoes. So long Floppy.... I guess it is off to Petsmart tomorrow.....

Mamma's got a brand new.....

Well, Nick has wanted to get me an old car for a long time now. For the last 8 years I have been hesitant, but I could not resist this one. It is in FANTASTIC shape and hopefully will be running in amatter of 2 months or so. So say hello to the latest addition to our collection: a 1956 Oldsmobile. Let me know what you think.....

Oh the Horror.....

My boss said something very important today, he said: "If you can't laugh at yourself than what's the point?" Okay...words to live by and with the depressing and challenging events in my life as of late I thought this would be the perfect opportunity for others to laugh at me as well. Never mind the fact that I have NO makeup on in the above posted picture, but try not to be blinded by the yellow confection that sits atop my head. I thought I would "save" money and try to highlight my hair myself. Bought a special kit and everything.... oh, was I SOOOOOO wrong! Nick the professional photographer took this lovely picture after I yelled at him to really try to get how YELLOW the hair was. So this is only proof that for a mere hour I was officially a blond. Oh it was so bad...... and this picture gives it no justice. If you need a point of reference just look at the black roots and then the platinum piece in front of my eye... or just check out the eyebrows. Needless to say to after throwing a hat on to my still wet hair, I drove my ass down to Longs at 10 pm and bought yet another box of hair color. I am almost 30 years old, have I not learned anything from the hair colors of my past? Did pink hair not scare me enough? Or what about the green tinted hair that I had Sophomore year? I guess some things never change....

In the words of Carlos Mencia "Dee Dee Dee"

My Biggest Fan...

My whole life, my grandma has always cheered my on from the sidelines. She was the kisser of the scraped knees, the referee during sister fights, the one to hold our place in line at Disneyland while we went for a soda or ice cream. She has never been one to say, "No Erin, I don't think you would be good in that play" or "Maybe you shouldn't play soccer, you're very clumsy." She was the one encouraging me to stretch beyond what I was comfortable with.

Tuesday April 10th my heart stopped with one phone call: "Grandma's in the emergency room."

Until that day I had taken advantage of the fact that my Gram is so healthy and so independent that I have carelessly overlooked the fact that she is an 86 year senior citizen. To me she is just "Gram." I don't look at her like she is "old" because to me she can never be old. She will always be the one on the chaise lounge watching us swim in Clearlake or tucking us in our beds while sleeping over. The ally in the "grand kids versus Poppy cookie war." I look at her and her face has not changed, her smile is still the same warm smile I have known all my life.

She was in the hospital for 4 days. The longest 4 days of my life. For the first time in my life I had to picture what my life would be without Gram in it. It was a very bleak and dark picture, because no matter where she is, she is always the bright center of everything. She lights up a room. She is so humble and unpretentious and does not give herself credit for anything. Yet she is so much smarter and more amazing than she will ever know.

When I was little and did not feel good, I would just lay my head in her tiny lap and she would rub my head and suddenly things were not so bad. Now it is my turn to rub her head and tell her everything is going to be okay. Unfortunately I will never be able to erase that picture of my grandma laying in that hospital bed, bruised and bleeding. That image is forever burned into my memory. The only thing that makes me feel better is that due to her pride and determination, she has almost made a full recovery.

Things have changed though. She is not as invincible as I once thought, she cannot defy death and she certainly cannot outlive me so I don't have to be the one to say goodbye to her. She is the love of my life and my biggest fan and I would be nothing today if it was not for her. And at least she can know that she has had such a profound effect on my life, that she is the star in my eyes. And she has a fan that loves her just as much as she loves me.

10 Reasons Why I Love My Sister...

1. She is the air-guitar to my air-drums and she knows what it means to "add instruments"

2. Her laugh is so infectious, it makes your heart swell just hearing it!

3. She is allergic to my cat but still insists on snuggling her and rubbing her nose in Gabby's fur.

4. She can always be counted on to car dance and sing at the top of her lungs.

5. Disneyland trips are nothing but painful and hysterical with her and no doubt you will leave with swollen ankles, a limp and a enormous smile on your face!

6. She still has scars that I gave her when we were little and she does not hate me for it.

7. We can communicate with each other with out saying a word out loud...

8. She is a master Puzzle Doer!

9. She is the car graveyard...it is where cars go to die! They could be on their last leg or she will kill them.

10. She is the most beautiful person whether it is her sense of humor, her laugh, her sarcastic wit or her smile.

The Perfect Sunday

Once in a while a day comes along that reminds you why life is beautiful. In the middle of the Delta, slightly past the Ryde Hotel is a small little island called Hogback. My parents used to take me there as a kid and I introduced Nick to it last summer. Well after a very busy and exhausting week, we decided that Sunday was going to be "our" day. No yard work, no home improvement or laundry, just us. We decided to pack a lunch and take Maggie to Hogback. Armed with a book and a chaise lounge, I had all the makings of a perfect day. We found a little spot away from the other 4 families that were there and unloaded. After our picnic lunch, we watched some boats go by and chased Maggie around and soaked up every bit of glorious sunshine we could. After a couple hours of reading and sun bathing I looked to my left. Nick was peacefully napping on the blanket with his hat covering his face and to my right my baby Maggie was also enjoying her nap on the cool grass. I sighed and smiled and thought to myself was one of the best moments of my life....

The Brow Affair

What was I thinking? Why did it never occur to me to do this ages ago? It is not the cost that was prohibiting me...what else could it have been? Surely it was not the pain factor, when in fact plucking my eyebrows at least 5-10 minutes a day for the past 14 years has accounted for 3,664 minutes of my life. That is over 61 hours of my life that are lost forever. That is almost 3 days that I will never get back. Those 3 days could have been the best 3 days of my life, you never know! Those could have been the days that I bought the winning lottery ticket, or the day John Mayer happened to breeze through the small town of Brentwood looking for a new girlfriend! Or the day they were giving out free liposuction at the local surgeon and I could have had thinner thighs by summertime! YOU NEVER KNOW! Why did 25 minutes and $18.00 give me such pleasure? Let me explain:

At the urging of a brilliant coworker, I made an appointment to have my eyebrows waxed in two weeks time. I put away the tweezers and vowed to leave my eyebrows alone no matter how bad I looked! And believe me... for an Italian/Portugeuse girl, not plucking her bushy eyebrows for two whole weeks was a challenge. I felt like no matter who I talked to they were staring at my brows thinking "Is she just lazy or does she think that looks good? Is there something wrong with her, or is that how her hair naturally grows?" It was not pretty....

So finally yesterday rolls around and I go in to the salon and prepare myself for the results. In a matter of a moment I sat up and looked at my face in the mirror...Oh my goodness...was that MY face? My gosh... my eyes looked different, I even looked happier! WOW! What a difference $18.00 makes. Think of all the extra time I will save, the minutes per day I can save, I can even get to work earlier because of my eyebrows! Lola at the Oasis Spa, I thank you so much! I thank you for not only making my face look better but giving me back precious time! Giving me back my freedom....maybe you can even make George Clooney come to town looking for his next leading lady! Geez...has anyone seen his eyebrows lately?

The Death of Happy Dog....

My dog Maggie is quite the connoisseur of toys. She has her favorites of course, one of which we have dubbed "Happy Dog" due to his enormous smile and bright shiny teeth. When I got home from work tonight, I was wet from the rain, a little hungry and a lot sleepy. But none of those things mattered when I saw my baby Maggie. She was so adorable on the couch with her sick daddy that I had to go over and shower her with kisses. Kisses led to scratches ad scratches led to her jumping off and engaging us in a game of "tug the baby out of my mouth". That is Maggie's favorite game. Pair that with Happy Dog and Maggie is in fact a very Happy Dog.

Well tonight marked the demise of Happy Dog as he was thrashed and bit and ripped and all around molested and ravaged. Poor Happy Dog...he met his untimely death at the mere age of 2 months. You see...this is the second reincarnation of Happy Dog since Happy Dog 1 met the same fate. Nick and I slyly tried to fool her by buying Happy Dog 2 and rubbing it with Happy Dog 1's spit and scent and then quickly throwing out the carnage. Maggie is a smart dog and of course she did not fall for such a blatant ruse. Luckily for us, #2 was just as loved and adored. I guess I was a little too rough when playing tug, because before I knew it, Happy has busted a gut and was spewing cotton puffs of guts! As you can see in the pictures I posted, Maggie lies happily among the result of her kill.

So proudly she feasts on tufts of cotton before tiring of the flavor and moving on to her daddies hand. So I bid thee farewell Happy Dog 2, you were a favored and skillful play partner. You will be sorely missed by all...until the arrival of Happy Dog #3!

The Mission

Nothing like a nice relaxing Saturday! I spent most of the day working like a dog in the backyard. Went to the nursery ad bought some plants for my pots and some more filler for the flower beds. After about 6 hours I decided to stop since I had a hot date to get ready for. Nick and I were going to have a nice romantic dinner at the Foreign Cinema in San Francisco. It is right in the heart of the Mission district. Being that we got there an hour before our reservation, we decided to drive around a bit. I was not going to park and hoof it in 3 inch Anne Kleins! I love the Mission, it is such a funky, lively area that you almost don't notice the vagrants or any garbage, all you see is little outdoor vendors and corner produce markets and wall murals and jazz clubs. We even saw a Greek Import store that made Nick perk up. We drove all the way down to 30th and oh the sights we saw! Of course just driving down 10 blocks took about a half hour but it was fun sightseeing. The Foreign Cinema is an incredible little hole in the wall restaurant that you would not even look twice at passing it by. It is between 21st and 22nd and has a weird industrial looking door that leads to a long concrete hallway. Last night the hallway was lined with votive candles and cherry blossoms in big vases. You come to the end of this dark hallway and it opens up to a tiny bar and the most beautiful outdoor patio where they show movies on the brick wall at the end of it. Last nights movie was Breakfast at Tiffanys, but of course I already knew that and that is why I made these reservations a month ago! Our dinner was fabulous. Now...I am not an adventurous eater by any means but I always try something different when I go there and have yet to be diappointed. In fact, I even ate the vegetables that graced my plate! Yum! So un-Erin. The movie was a little hard to pay attention to since the speakers were not at our table and there was alot of chatter. Fabulous none the less. But the reason you go there is for the ambiance and that we were overwhelmed with. I love going to San Francisco. It is a place were you can get lost and end up finding the most incredible little gems and treasures. Nick finds it hard to get past the homeless issue and says that I romanticize the city but I don't necessarily think that is a bad thing. We are so lucky to have such beautiful and historical playground right in our own backyard. If anyone has any other "gems" please let me know...I am always up for a hunt!

www.foreigncinema.com

One more thing...

So Happy Monday. Today's weather sucks! I finished up the Walmart post and decided to add on another tidbit from my day. So today I leave the house looking and feeling fresh and cute. Yikes...that did not last long. I have the luxury of working 2 miles from home and therefore get to go home on my lunch break to relax. Relaxing was not in the cards for Miss Erin today! Not only do I get caught in storm hell on the way back to the office but the rain is pelting my back. Nevermind that I do have an umbrella but that is just covering my face and hair (thank goodness...minimal frizzing) meanwhile the whole length of my backside is exposed to the rain. I get back into the office and leave it to me to wear a sweater with lambs wool in it. So what happens you ask? Well, not only are my pants soaked and the back of my knees soaking but now there is a pungent smell coming from my sweater!!! Quite hilarious once I start thinking about it. Coworkers were quite understanding but I almost lost it when my boss emailed me a message with a heading that read "You Stink"!!! I thought that was the perfect way to end my day. Sitting in my chair, soaked in water...left to smolder in stankness! hee hee!!!!!

I Hate Walmart.....

But DAMN do they have some deals! So for the past 3 years, our "Outdoor Furniture" has consisted of a $30.00 lightweight table we bought from Rite Aid and 4 plastic chairs that we need to replace every year. This year I promised myself that I would indulge in a proper outdoor dining set. And by golly...one just happed to appeared to me while a recent visit to Walmart. A few weeks ago I HAD to go to there even though I loathe it to buy a camera for my mom, and damn it they have good deals! Well while I was in that hell hole, I happened to see this patio set that had 8 pieces for only $198.00! How is that possible Walmart? How do you sell your inventory for so cheap? I would like to know. So being the cheapie that I am I drag Nick to Walmart yesterday to buy this $198.00 box of joy. Well only after we arrive did I realize that it was "Sunday at Walmart" day...oh holy crap...
Kids everywhere, not on leashes, carts filled every possible aisle. I felt my blood pressure rising just entering through the doors. Every language you can imagine is spoken at Walmart, it is amazing. So I find my patio set, and then set out to pay for it. Let's just say the longest possible line is always the one you are in, right?SoI finally get to the cashier and tell her I want to buy a patio set. Then came the Big Wait. Waiting for someone to come and take it down from the towering wall 0' crap. 25 minutes later I had resorted to the childish rant of "I HATE this place!!" Nick had just taken up residence on a far better quality patio set than I had just purchased. He was just silent and irritated. Nothing like spending almost an hour in a place that makes your lips curl. So to make a very long and boring story short, we finally wrangled a patio set, hecka cheap too might I add, and ended up just scooting the boxes into the garage because we both did not want to even look at it being that it had just come from Walmart. Nothing against it's workers, employees etc. It is just a bargain mecca and therefore every possible weirdo has to enter the store. Geez...at least my patio will look fab this year and not an ounce of plastic in sight! YAY!

Day 2 at the Beach House:

February 18th, mom's birthday weekend. Everyone is having a wonderful time. Lots of sunshine, laughs and cocktails. Maggie has been relatively well behaved, and by relatively I mean 3/4 naughty and 1/4 sleepy from all the naughty things she has been up to! Day 1 consisted of knocking Nana down into the ocean and then rolling over her to run and attack an unassuming fluffy mutt who was minding his own business.

Todays activities included Nick and I walking her 1/8 of a mile down the sidewalk of Steamer Lane and having to bring her back since she wanted to fight every dog she saw. I felt like I was lifting weights all day by the way I had to hold her back on her leash. We are very limited to where we can take her due to rambunctious behavior. Geez who would have thought that 1 little red dog could be so misbehaved, but then again, this was the doggy who was the "bully' of her obedience training class.

Mom on the other hand is having a great 55th birthday and that is the most important thing. In fact, as I was thinking about the subject matter of this blog, she was pleasantly napping on one of the balconies, book in her lap and sunflower seeds speckling the chaise lounge around her. That spells happiness to me!

Sprinkle, Sprinkle...

We love Northern California don't we? The sunshine, the beautiful scenery, the ocean, the mountains... we tend to be spoiled. We are spoiled civilians. We don't have to worry about shoveling our driveways after a snow or invest in chains just to drive to work everyday. Which explains how many of Californians do not know how to drive in adverse weather conditions. Take for example yesterdays freeway debacle and the countless tiny fender benders. Face it... people do NOT know how to drive safely and defensively in the rain. Either people drive WAY to cautiously and cause back up and slow downs or they drive like bats out of hell and undoubtedly are the cause of ridiculous accidents. In fact, on my way home last night I passed 2, count them...2, rear end accidents on the side of the road. Obviously someone was following too close and was not paying attention. Maybe the fast action of his or her (probably HIS!) windshield wipers prevented him from making a conscious decision to abstain from investigating someones tiny bumper sticker. Either way someone's insurance is going to raise and those same people will be angry when they call me to explain how such a thing should happen to them. "Why should my insurance double because I hit someones fender?" Well, the answer is clear: "You should have thought about that before tailgating Dum Dum!" Are people just so important and busy they cannot afford to slow down and take time out for safety? Apparently not. Here is an example of a normal rainy day situation:

drop...drop....sprinkle...sprinkle...CRASH!

Someone gets rear ended or worse. All it takes is a few precious drops of water that we so desperatly needed this year and suddenly everyone needs to go into what I refer to as "Idiot Mode". My friend Autum called yesterday and gave me this precious gem: "It is a good thing California does not get much snow otherwise there would be a lot less people" I found that statement to be quite true.

It is just condensation. It falls from the sky in liquid form. Yet it manages to turn Californians into complete panic mode.

It baffles me. Even so, I wish you all good luck and happy and safe driving. Especially the commuters.

Maggie's Spoiled Days

My Dog Maggie is a Chow/ Golden Retriever mix and she is the cutest little puffball ever! This is a day in her life:

- She wakes up in her warm bed right next to her Mommy's.
- Once awake, realizes that the cat has not been chased in 6-7 hours and proceeds to do so, causing Mommy and Daddy to wake, this usually happens about 5 am.
- After being yelled at, she drags herself to the sofa in the family room and jumps up followed by a mid morning nap.
- Mom and Dad get ready for work and kiss her on the nose before leaving the house. Leaving her unattended in the house.
- A few hours of tormenting the cat go by and after yet another restful snooze, the Mommy comes home on her lunch break to feed and let Maggie out for Potty and then back into the house for snuggles and pets before Mommy leaves yet again to go back to work.
- Soon after, Nana comes by to pick her up and take her for a 3 mile walk on the trail to chase after other dogs who are far less fortunate than herself and bark and run without a leash to confine her.
-She gets away with bloody murder at Nana's since there are no rules and dinner usually consists of kibble topped with warm soup or other delicious confections.
- Finally mommy comes to pick her up and take her happy ass back home where she tops off the evening on Mommy's bed while she reads. Lots of snuggles and pets follow this.
-Blissful slumber follows until the next day arrives full of possibilities and a lot more naps!

1986

I was nine and I had my first reoccurring flying dream: I was wearing a white eyelet nightgown in the backyard in the middle of the night. Running around the perimeter of our small yard trying to get up enough speed to take off. I had tried countless times and had crashed into the fence several occasions. Except once. I ran and ran and finally felt my toes lift gently off of the cool grass. I felt my stomach tighten, even as I was sleeping.
I looked down at my feet as my nightgown grazed the neighbor’s fence. I was flying! And the sensation was so real and incredible that when I woke up, I almost had to make sure I was lying down.

17 years later, I bought a convertible and felt that same sensation all over again. The wind whipped through my hair, my face was warm from the sun, and as I peaked at the top of Vasco road the perfect song came on. I will always remember that feeling. I felt like I could do anything. Like I could fly.

Now, in the year leading up to my thirtieth birthday, I am frantically trying to recapture that feeling. The feeling of lifting off instead of falling down. Why is it that as we get older things look downward instead of flying upwards? Our breasts droop, our time gets shorter, days fly by endlessly. How? Last night I had the same dream, the same one I did when I was nine. Which is why I started this whole idea in my head. I find it quite interesting that at this pivotal time in my life, I am reverting back to childhood dreams and images. How I wish to be so young and spread my wings and sail through the sky. Feeling the evening sky on my face. The tops of fences whisking under my feet.

Just a thought...