Fun with baby

I went over to babysit so my sister could go to an eye appointment her husband escorted her to. She had laser surgery to correct some vein problems in her eye. Her husband said she was a brave girl when they stuck a long needle under her eye to numb it. He held her hand as her eye swelled causing her to look like a prized boxer. Then later treated her to ice cream. She originally had asked me to drive her to the appointment, but then her husband had the day off so I babysat. I told her I would not have held hand or treated her to ice cream.

Baby started her nap as I arrived and my sister jerked open the door so I wouldn't ring the doorbell. I noticed their Christmas tree is very bare due to the baby removing ornaments. She slept for 2 hours before I heard her crying. I am sure she was surprised to wake up to see me and find her parents missing from the house. I changed her diaper and fed her a snack. She soon gave me books to read and dolls to make speak. I make better sound effects and voices than any battery operated toy. She fed the doll her snack and I made the eating noises. She looked at me as if she knows it's me making those noises and not the doll. She pushed on the belly of a Christmas bear than played Jingle Bell Rock and danced to the music. I made the dolls dance with her. Since she kept hitting the bear tummy, I decided to turn on the stereo for longer periods of music. We also played the piano and a doll played too with her hands and feet. My niece loved that. We had to get off the piano bench when I smelled a dirty diaper and my niece suddenly felt uncomfortable. That is a good sign she is getting ready for potty training.

Then her parents came home and the baby had supper. We read more books. My sister talked on the phone. Her usual babysitter's nephew died in a car wreck and the funeral is tomorrow. My sister called Mom to watch the baby, then discussed Mom spending the night instead of taking baby to my parents' house. My parents' house is not baby-proof. My sister made the argument that she may be a sweetheart, but she does get into things you do not wish her to get into, especially when it is at her level of reach. The baby does reach up on her tippy toes now and grabs things off counters and tables.

I made a sudden departure when my time of the month came unexpectedly and cramps were starting to kill me. The baby said, Bye (my name), as I put on my coat. I was so touched. When my sister tries to get her to say my name, she won't do it. I came home to turn on my Christmas lights around my living room. It is like a winter wonderland. Then I emailed my sister to explain I wasn't trying to be rude with my disappearing act, just in pain. Post later. Bye!

Xmas cookies

I finished 1 batch of Christmas cookies. I made sugar cookies cut out into candy cane, gingerbread man, tree, and star. I mixed regular canned frosting with coloring and extracts from mint and lemon. I hope people enjoy them. I can't eat 4 dozen cookies by myself, I'll get sick of looking at them after a while. I ate one tonight. They are very good. Though the frosting was slow to dry on the cookies so they are a bit messy.

Later this week I plan on making gingersnaps and Hersey kiss cookies. But washing the dishes must be done first. Tomorrow I babysit while my sister goes to a doctor's appointment. My poor sister has had more than her fair share of health problems. This time she is blind in one eye from her high blood pressure. She describes it as holding tissue paper up to your eye and seeing perfectly out of the other eye. I saw a picture of a test she did that looks like Mars. The problem is the optic nerve being damaged, and not all the damage can heal. My poor sister.

I plan on taking my cookies to work Thursday as I pass out Christmas cards. Yes I am an early bird in the holiday arena. I get everything done ASAP so I can sit back and enjoy the rest of the holiday season without stress. Post later. Bye!

No snow today

It is over 40 degrees so we are getting rain today, no snow as predicted. I got the plastic over all my windows and balcony door, flannel sheets on my bed, and plenty of cocoa mix. I am ready for winter.

Today I will attempt to mail my niece's birthday package, put up the last of my Christmas decorations, do a load of laundry to wash the old sheets and and few jeans (I'm wearing the last clean pair), and maybe if there is time start on my Christmas cards and cookies for my coworkers. Ah, a day off at last. Post later. Bye!


Update: I accomplished everything above and took pictures of my decorations. Now I'm hungry. It is hard to think of food when you are busy.

Snow storm a coming

They predicted snow for Monday. There were plenty of flights cancelled at the airport so several people wanted cars to take one way. Some didn't like our prices or selection of cars available. One guy said he wanted a car overnight because they changed their flight plans until tomorrow. He then asked for the weather report. Um, well, I told him he might leave tomorrow, depending on the snow due to come in.

I have Monday off so I will be sitting at home drinking cocoa while everybody else is crashing into ditches. I need to mail my niece's birthday present, but that can wait an extra day. She turns 18 on Saturday. I feel so old. Post later. Bye!

New idea

I was making ornaments for my Christmas tree on my door to win the door decorating contest at my apartment complex. I needed cheap and easy things I won't feel heartbroken losing if they are swiped off the door. I had white pipe cleaners, but not red to twist with making candy canes. I had some glitter fabric paint so I spiraled it on the white pipe cleaner to get an adorable candy cane. I liked the idea so much I painted some for my secret santa this year. Post later. Bye!

Regifting?

I read a magazine article about holiday ettiquette today. One item on the list was a Regifting rule. The rule was to make sure and double sure you will not get caught. Pardon me? It is only acceptable to Regift only if you do not get caught? Isn't that the attitude that gets athletes in trouble with drunk driving and steriods?

In other words, it is wrong to regift because it is thoughtless, deceiving, and easily can offend someone. Think about it. Someone you love buys you a gift they think you will love receiving. You do not like it so you give it to someone else thinking they will love the gift they are receiving.

I must have been raised wrong because I was taught to say "Thank you" whether I liked the gift or not. If I didn't like any gift, we either took it back to the store and exchanged it, or stuck it on the garage sale pile. My parents are pack rats with cardboard boxes full of objects ready for the annual garage sale. Sometimes my Mom called a local charity to come out after the sale was over and take whatever they wanted, free of charge of course. We still have the habit of hand me downs in my family. Whevever we get rid of things, we announce it and see if anyone wants any of our usable junk. Last week I got free snowman salt and pepper shakers with a purchase of 3 greeting cards the sales clerk insisted I take with me. I asked my sister if she would want them, if not I would ask Mom the same question. She said she could use them for a snowman display at work.

What does one give to an ungrateful wrench, like my sister who hates every gift she is given and insists on stopping gift exchange all together, for Christmas, or birthdays, or Mother's Day? I have learned to stop giving so many presents and give gift certificates where you know they shop or perishable food in tins as gifts. But then one year I made Christmas cookies for my sister and placed them in a shoe box to hear her announce she went on a diet the day before. My Mom shunned my sister after I locked myself in the bathroom and everybody could hear me crying. Then there is the donation to a charity in someone else's name, or money, or bonds if they are children, or paying for dinner at a restrauant. Who said presents have to be clothes, jewelry, or the latest gadget?
Post later. Bye!

Annual Christmas letter

Hey there. Taking a break from decorating my apartment, I wrote out my Christmas letter I send out with my Christmas cards.

Merry Christmas and Happy New Year to all my friends and family. This year has flown by waiting to be rejected by book publishers. If you have forgotten, I wrote a fairytale for my niece and completed it over a year ago. I keep telling myself that I will never be published if I give up now. I started a second novel for other my niece, but am stumped deciding where to take the story. I shamefully admit not working on it very much this summer because I let other things get in the way. Hopefully I can concentrate better next year.

I thought it a little odd we had to change the clocks at Palm Sunday and Halloween, but at least they were holidays people remember when they are. I spent my Easter at work as usual since I work Sundays. Yes, I do work every weekend and call myself the weekend warrior. Customers often feel sorry for me, but really, I hate shopping on weekends because all the parking spaces are taken.

In the spring I attended a rock concert, the Pella Tulip Festival with my sister and her baby, my nieces' dance recital, and began volunteering at a museum. The rock concert was amazing. Pella was crowded, but we had fun feeding the baby her first root beer float. The recital had a surprise ending of men in tutus dancing a mock ballet before jumping off the stage. Many school children came to visit the museum so that left little time for me to learn much. When school let out, they conducted day camps where each day the kids learn a new activity. At my post, they made Kringla which is a Norwegian cookie. A few times I helped the kids retrieve wood outside to bring inside the wood box. Most of the day I played with the ball and cup where one swings a ball tied to a string into a cup holding the handle. I scanned Around the World in 80 days when I became really bored. When the new Harry Potter book came out I brought that to read and covered it with brown paper. Kids were excited that a grown up loves Harry Potter as much as they do. After I finished the book, I reread all the Harry Potter books to refresh my memory. A mysterious clue was plotted at the end of the new book and I was determined to unravel it. We shall see if I’m right or wrong when the last book comes out as soon as J.K. Rowling finishes writing it.

Summer also flew by fast with visiting my hometown for the 4th of July. Soon after I attended a family reunion on my mother’s side, her sisters and cousins with their families came. Then I had fun at the local amusement park with my sisters, brother-in-law, and nieces. My sister and her family were on their family vacation and drove on to Virginia after our big day. They stayed overnight at my other sister's house and fought over holding my baby niece. No time is ever long enough when holding a baby on your lap. Over the summer the baby learned to say my name. Music to my ears.

Autumn came as the museum began conducting school tours again. This time around there were less students than in the springtime. I learned to crochet my last few weeks there and made a washrag for them to use. I doubt I’ll ever crochet again. I much prefer painting and writing. I celebrated my 30th birthday with a bang and went barhopping with a friend at work and her friend. I had so much fun I was actually happy to become middle aged. We stopped at 2 bars and I danced with a man (Yes, a live, human, breathing man) at each bar. I had my fill of Amarillo sours when the second bar closed and my friend drove me home. It was a great birthday.

The day before my birthday I attended my mother’s cousin’s wedding so I received my birthday cards at the ceremony. My sisters took me out to the next to the museum I volunteer at for a free birthday supper. The baby was quite happy coloring her picture when her mommy took another niece out to the wagon rides. She usually cries when she leaves the room, but I was helping her color so it was a good enough distraction. I pointed out the house I volunteer in, but it was hard to see from the parking lot. The ladies sang Happy Birthday to me, though quietly so not to embarrass me in public.

I dressed up as The Cat in the Hat for Halloween. Often I am the only one wearing a costume, but this Halloween someone dressed up as a surgeon so I was not alone. Little Annika celebrated her 2nd birthday with my parents, her parents, and me. By now, she has taken on a habit of squealing every time she sees me or hears my name. One thing she got was an Elmo Goes Potty doll that talks. I will be so happy no longer changing diapers. Sure accidents happen, but we can hose her down easily. We took my niece’s picture on my camera to order prints for their Christmas cards faster, but sadly the baby did not like sitting with her hands laying in her lap and knees together like a lady. Naturally, I have plenty of shots of her misbehaving.

I visited my parents’ house for Thanksgiving and saw the new Harry Potter movie with my brother. I am responsible for getting my brother hooked on the story series. I was amazed how many adults were present. This Christmas I will visit their house again. Next year I plan to get a kitten from a car rental gal next door who has a pregnant cat. Sorry I can’t bring it home until spring because the age for a kitten to be separated from its mother is 3 months. By Christmas, my precious should be born. I have picked a name for he or she already. Precious, from Lord of the Rings. I thought of getting a boy cat so I can say I have man in my home, but most people agree that girl cats are more affectionate. I’ll just choose the cutest kitten in the litter, boy or girl. I can’t wait for next year, maybe I will finally be published.

So Happy Holidays to all my friends and family.

Taking pictures of baby

Here is a sample of the 20+ photos we took of my baby niece last Sunday in her red party dress to show how easy she is to photograph, especially after 5 takes.

Happy Thanksgiving. I'll be visiting my parents' house with cornbread, soybean candies, and brown and serve rolls. Their water heater broke so I am doing my must have clean clothes today. On Thanksgiving, my brother and I plan on watching one of the many showings of the new Harry Potter movie. Post later. Bye!

New perfume

I went shopping yesterday for perfume. Sure I can buy the same scent every time, but where's the fun in that? I am quite dangerous around perfume counters. I like to smell every one, which means I can obtain 5 scents on each hand. I may seem picky, but at least I know what I like. I think I made to sales clerk cough from all the perfume on my hands. There were also some paper cards to sniff the testers with. I refuse to buy a scent without a tester displayed, no matter whose name is on it. I did sniff Paris Hilton's and Brittany Spears's scents. Sorry I didn't care for the celebrity scents. Though Brittany's new Fantasy scent was very sweet like candy, but I prefer not to smell of food all day. After washing my hands twice, my hands still smelled of perfume. Today the scents are much fainter. Now my hands all itchy, probably dry.

So what did I end up buying? Very Irresistable Givenchy. My old scent was Tommy Girl that I have a touch left in the bottle. The thing about expensive perfume is that the bottles are so large it takes a year to use it all. I did wonder about the weird bottles shapes. Some are geometric while others are large balls. I like tall and thin bottles to easlily grab and spray with one hand. Post later. Bye!

Christmas shopping

I went shopping for Christmas presents tonight. I checked out the Elmo doll aisle because my baby niece likes Elmo. I was a bit disappointed with the selection. Every doll and product with the character's face was a talking toy. I try to avoid glutting my niece's world with talking toys. Sure at her age (2) everything is shiny and new so hitting a button to get sound X is alright. She learns animal sounds and baby sounds that way and it also tests a child's memory. But talking toys also rob a child of their imagination, a extremely vital part of childhood. So far I'm not worried because often my baby niece is more fascinated by the box than the doll in it. I ended up getting an Elmo tree ornament and some books. She loves books too, especially me reading them. Post later. Bye!

Birthday party

We had a birthday party for my baby niece yesterday. I went over and my sister took photos of the baby in her red dress to place on their Christmas cards. My sister didn't like any of them and complained how poor quality they are. That did surprise me since she has viewed photos from my camera before. I think she expected high quality professional perfect photos from a low quality camera. She tried to reset it to get better photos to discover it is on the top quality photo setting. When she said she should have gone to a professional to obtain her perfect photos, I lost my patience with her repeated complaining and we had a fight. It ended when I told her not to ever borrow my camera again if the quality upsets her. She is the one who asked me to bring it to get quick photos in the first place.

We had cake and ice cream. The baby has been liking the Elmo character from Sesame Street. She had an Elmo chocolate cake with white frosting and opened presents with Elmo paper. I ended up unwrapping them because my niece would not rip any paper. She got a baby doll and Elmo doll that goes potty from her parents. My parents gave her a snowman sippy cup and pair of blue pants. I gave her dishes and bath toys. My mother had to announce to all that gave too much stuff in my present. What difference did it make to her?

Anyway we had fun searching for the batteries that were included with the Elmo doll. I found the batteries inside Elmo, they just didn't work. I replaced them and screwed the cover back on. When things sit on a shelf for a long time, batteries tend to do that. When we ate supper the baby was not very hungry and wanted down from her high chair. When my supper was finsihed cooking, she wanted food off my plate. Funny kid. We got the baby ready for bed and I left because my nieces tend not to calm down when I am around. All 4 nieces get excited seeing auntie. When I got home I realized I forgot the connecting cord for my my camera at my sister's house. Post later. Bye!

Mr. Maybe

I am beginning to understand why old maids have a house full of cats and unfriendly to all who approach them. Frustration gets to them and they eventually stop reaching out to people.

I am exhausted from doing all the work with my matches I find on my dating service to receive a reject notice in return. I am emailing someone outside the dating service, but that's the probelm. I email, he replies. Same goes for my family, 90% of the time at least. Perhaps I should stop emailing everyone for a week and see what happens. I'm emotionally drained and have come to the point I have little love to give. I hope I will be forgiven for withdrawing into myself where nobody can find me. Post later. Bye!

Freak strikes again

The car rental guy next door I have nicknamed Freak comes up to me and starts talking to me, while I am helping a customer. How rude is that? Of course I ignore him, directing my attention the customer. He continues as if I'm listening, to details I could not care less about. Since in his babbling he implied he was leaving, I gave a curt, "Good-bye". Now I think a farewell is a very straight forward message, but I suppose not with a weirdo with boundary issues. Then at a pausing point (we have slow printers) he asks if I'm working tomorrow. Odd question since my schedule never changes, unless he overheard me tell someone about my niece's birthday party tomorrow. As I have my customer sign the paperwork, I answer I will not be here tomorrow. Freak then grabs the book my coworker left behind and I explain I have nothing better to do than read books. I explain to my customer where the car adding a "I will be coming that direction in a few minutes". Freak must have figured out we are not parked in the same lot and would not very receptive to his long-neglected escorts. Last night I walked to my car and he rode the bus, thus blocking my car as I was leaving. I admit getting lazy by not moving my car because he has not been walking me to my car. Anyway, Freak starts talking to a janitor and I start printing my closing paperwork. My customer returns with a question and Freak finally leaves the building. I finish my paperwork and I walk to my car, alone. Sure some mothers would panic at the thought of a tiny woman walking in a dark parking lot alone, but I assure anyone that I do not require a babysitter. Besides, we have the police, bus drivers, parking lot booths with cashiers inside, and janitors within yelling distance at the airport. I think I have a better chance slipping on ice than being attacked by a criminal. A car rental next door gal slipped on ice this week and broke her hip. I heard she came home today from the hospital. Post later. Bye!

Interesting day

Yesterday was an interesting day. The Christmas trees and Christmas wreaths are up at the airport now. Then a little old lady crashed her car into one of the police cruisers outside.

Today we gave the new papa at work a hard time for neglecting to pass out candy cigars out. he is avoiding cigars because he quit smoking them for the baby. Then the bossman came by and I toldhim were busy picking on the new papa for not passing out cigars. He laughed adding how people are teasing that the baby has more hair than the new papa. He took the guy outisde to work so we would stop picking on him. One gal exclaimed, "Oh, you boys are so much nicer." Next on the way hokme I heard a Christmas song playing on the radio. I freaked. It's too soon for Christmas music. The most annoying thing about Christmas is the 24 hours, 7 days a week of Christmas music playing everywhere. There is no escape from it.
Post later. Bye!

Pest Control in November?

I received a notice of pest control coming by on Monday to spray for bugs. It is November, all bugs are dead by now. Why is pest control necessary? Post later. Bye!

Christmas gift????

I know what one gift for Christmas will be this year. A donation to a local animal shelter on my behalf, $25. In shock, I said that would be acceptable.

The past couple years my sister has been crying how she never gets what she wants for Christmas, usually objects out of our price range. One year she asked us to doante to charity on her behalf because she keeps opening crappy gifts from us she has to return or tolerate in her house so our feelings don't get hurt. Another year she asked for money only since they had their girl in November. Then she tried last year to cancel gift exchanges between family members, which would mean I would receive no presents during the Christmas holiday. I shouldn't be surprised at this gesture, she is turning into Scrooge as she gets older. I much prefer a new hand mixer costing about $4, but we can't pick our gifts anymore than our weird relatives. Post later. Bye!

Strange

Today I opened my mailbox to see a slip of paper stating I had a package over at the office. Strange, I was home all afternoon and never heard anyone knock on the door. I guess after walking in slush and wind, the mail carrier didn't want to trod up 3 flights of stairs to see if I was home. We have strange weather this week. 9 tornadoes in Iowa last week and now a snowstorm.

Though I never planned on giving my strongly hated coworker a baby gift for his newborn son, I went shopping with a 10% off coupon and bought baby's 1st Christmas ornaments complete with gift bag ensemble. I couldn't resist, the ornaments were so cute. I can give the delusion that I care. It has been a strange day. Post later. Bye!

First snow contest

Whoever picked November 15 in the first snow contest has won themselves a new snowblower. We got our first snow today. And I don't have the plastic over my windows yet. I lacked feeling cold air as I held my hand next to the windows and sliding door, maybe I'm ok. The weather kept warming up everytime it got cold so I never taped up the plastic. I love winter, less sneezing.

I started my Christmas shopping last night. I got some miniature stockings for my pen pals and nieces. I planned on writing their names on them, but then thinking I have long names to write; like Jennifer, Annika, Alexandria, Victoria. Then I got some pink and yellow rubber bracelets from the Breast Cancer Society. I sent out an email asking for ideas on Christmas gifts, since certain people must complain what crappy gifts I hand out on Christmas day. Ideas are good to have.

I keep reading in magazines how it is not necessary to give bosses or coworkers Christmas presents. Well at my jobs, I have always given out Christmas cards to everyone I know the name to and a small ornament I made or pencil with it. Giving a boss a gift may seem like sucking up to higher authority to others, but if one is giving every coworker, janitor, mail delivery person, etc. a card and gift it seems rude to exclude the boss. My current boss has said he admires my enthusiasm for special days when I emailed him a Happy Birthday greeting after eating a piece of his birthday cake. Though, this year I can't find any craft ornaments to make for 40 people. Maybe this year I'll make cookies to pass out instead. I don't think anyone will complain about that. Besides that, any recipe makes several dozen so it would take me forever to eat 4 dozen cookies. Post later. Bye!

Slip of the tongue

As I was preparing my list of reservations, I realized a different coworker was coming in later and got excited. A coworker's wife had a baby boy so he took a week off. The next minute, the bossman calls over and we go through the usual, How are you?, riff. I replied that I was enjoying my (coworker's name) free weekend. He replied with an unemotional, Well that's good. Later I thought, maybe I should not said that. I am unsure if the bossman is aware that everybody hates this coworker. He knows now I don't like this guy. Post later. Bye!

beasts of no nation

I finished reading the book, beasts of no nation by uzodinma iweala. A debut novel by a Harvard University graduate, making me jealous of this author already, it tells a story of a child recruited by rebel forces during a civil war inside an unnamed African country. The boy envied soldiers before the war strutting in uniforms gaining much respect and admiration from the villagers. The boy Agu dreams of being a soldier until he finds out that soldiers hurt people.

I would not recommend this book to someone unless they are sure they can stomach reading vivid details of murder, sexual abuse, drugs, and starvation. I was reminded of a line from The Last of the Mohicans: Death and honor are often thought to be the same, today I have learned they are not. If you have seen Saving Private Ryan or The Last of the Mohicans without puking or nightmares later on, I think you can handle reading this book. I like the ending where the followers of a greatly feared commander lose their fear of him, and leave him to go home. The boy Agu is only surprised that this escape didn't happen sooner, it was so easy to do.

The book is written from the point of view of a child so it is not written in proper English with colloquial language in quotes only. This book has no quotes, just commas when someone is saying something. That can be a little irritating if one is accustomed to reading books using proper English. The title and author's name on the cover also are not capitalized, if you didn't notice that. Otherwise, it was an important read to understand children thrust into adult situations without thinking like adults, because after all they are children. Post later. Bye!

Windy night

Today when I came in to work it was cloudy, but warm. Hours later the winds were so strong that I commented to a customer that the hurrican had come too far north. I heard from customers that they were delayed and diverted because of the strong wind. One guy said there were tornadoes in the eastern part of the state. I assured one lady the car is heavy enough and won't fly away. Coming home I almost fly away taking wiht car with me. It is suppose to be nice tomorrow. Post later. Bye!

This is security?

After Sep. 11, 2001, the FAA (Federal Aviation Administration) mandated that parking lots so many feet from the an airport be gated and only certain personnel are allowing through with an employee badge.

Today 2 customers got through the gates blcoking their entrance into the lot. The first one followed a car rental driver into he lot squeaking by before the arm went down. He parked his car and cusseda at the employee informing him that he is not to be parking here. She threatened to call security and he said he had a plane to catch. He gave me his keys and said he did not need a receipt.

The second guy drove through the gates' opening blocked by two orange cones, knocking over the orange cones and scratching the car against the arms. My outside guys witnessed it and took the car for washing. I hope the owner charges for the scratches he made. It did make me wonder if we have cameras out there, I want a copy of him squeezing the car those arms. I'm surprised the car went through.

This is security? If the tightened security at the airport makes you feel safe from terrorists, I'm laughing at you. Post later. Bye!

First night

I reached the end of my first night without my allergy medicine. Armed with aspirin that upsets my stomach, expired cold medicine that tastes awful, my inhaler, and anti-itch creme I managed to calm the burning itch sensation that felt like I was hit with a blowtorch. My chest aches from all the coughing and sneezing. I contemplated going out in the middle of the night in my pajamas to a open 24 hrs. grocercy store to get an allergy medicine without the decongestant just to stop the itching so I could get some sleep, but no, I hung on to the thought that hoepfully my ordered medicine would come today. My nighmare night over with I try to calm my nerves and eat something, since allergies are psychosomatic meaning stress can make them feel worse. Now I have to visit the office to grab my book purchase that I know arrived just as I was leaving for work yesterday.. Post later. Bye!

Work drama

Tis the season for gossiping about coworkers.

One guy at work is in deep trouble with a bank. His old girlfriend and him bought a car together and he cosigned the loan. Well, they broke up and she quit making payments, so the bank is going after him. He believes they won't get anything from him. A coworker tried to explain what cosigning means. It means the bank has the legal right to garnish his wages and there is nothing he can do about it because he cosigned the loan. The moral is not to cosign things if you are not willing to pay for it.

Another screwed up some contracts when the computers went down. He used the wrong contract paper, sent the wrong car across the country, and the other coworkers had to clean up his mess. One coworker said they could use his Christmas bonus to pay for a plane ticket to the place he sent the wrong car to and bring it back. Then she said since someone else had to type in his contracts into the computer, that person should get the commission he got from them. I think she was just teasing him.

Then another coworker is a proud new papa who took a week off for the baby boy. His wife was suppose to delivery in December, but few babies arrive on time. He said last week they were having trouble coming up with boy names and had a dozen girl names ready. How ironic.

Next is another coworker had a drive-by shooting take place 3 houses down from hers last night and a neighbor was arrested as he came back from work because he matched the shooter's description.

Finally, my own drama. How is it that one order that is shipped 5 days after another order arrives before the first order? This should teach me not to use free shipping on my over the counter drugs. I'm completely out and miserable, but can't can't go buy any because stores I know quit selling what I need. I pray it comes tomorrow. I'm an inch from insanity of itching, sneezing, and coughing. All the drama tonight. Post later. Bye!

Good night and Good luck

I finally saw the movie. It came to Des Moines last week. Not as dramatic and heart wrenching as Lord of the Rings or Saving Private Ryan, but it is an excellent movie I would receommned to anyone interested in history repeating itself. Is it just a coincidence this movie comes out during the government's witchhunt for terrorists? I noticed we don't hear much on catching terrorists from the enacted Patriot Act taking away the citizen's rights to privacy after the panic over September 11. Then the government criticizes the media for being too liberal from reporting governmental goofs. As Joe McCarthy discovered, do not ever take on the media or reporters because they control a lot of public opinion that gets people elected.

Much anxiety is missing since we know at the beginning of the movie Edward Murrow is honored for taking down Joe McCarthy, kinda similar to the second trilogy of Star Wars. Can you tell I'm reading a book on how to write a dramatic story? I like that it was completey in black and white, a touch of "A long time ago" feeling. The lesson of the movie I received was not to attempt to be a hero if you are not willing to accept shots fired back at you. I think Edward Murrow was willing to accept the consequences of his actions. The music numbers with the singer in the recording box was a nice way of setting the mood for the next scene, I think that was done in Chicago. I don't know if it will win a Oscar, but I enjoyed myself. Thank you George Clooney. Post later. Bye!

Retirement meeting

I attended the company retirement plan meeting. It was a good sales pitch to encourage us to invest in the company plan. Though, I already have an IRA account so not much will be placed in my 401K account. The difference between the 2 is taxes. 401K requires taxes be paid upon withdrawal because contributions are made with pre-income tax dollars. Roth IRAs like I have(Individual Retirement Account, not Irish Republican Army) are paid with post-income tax dollars so taxes are already paid upon withdrawal. There is a IRA for pre-tax dollars that does require taxes be paid upon withdrawal.

The main theme of the meeting was uncertainity of the future; like inflation, wars, law changes, stock market crashes, technology advances, health advances, and family changes. The guy sitting next to me make a joke when the lady said they had a client in her 90's in good health. His father suddenly died a while ago. It freaks my Mom (age 66) out looking at obituaries in the paper to see someone her age or younger died of a heart attack or cancer. I don't think many of us at the table will make it to age 90 in good health despite medical advances and a pill for all ailments like the lady said. I work with a lot a smokers and heavy drinkers. It is also very hard to determine how much to save for retirement with so many uncertainities, especially 30 years from now. We can be retired for 20 years or less. I try to save what I can and hope for the best. My Dad's parents had plenty of money left in their retirement account for him and my aunts to spend. Post later. Bye!

Rules, Rules, Rules

I read in a paper about the how to's in tipping. Everybody knows waitresses and baggage handlers are suppose to be tipped. But bartenders, maids, strippers (ok I know strippers go to men holding out money), bellhops, taxicab drivers, theater usher, and hairstylists. Are we really expected to remember all this advice? Then you have the problem of some companies forbidding taking of gratuity and others allow it within the same type of business. No wonder people are so confused on the rules. Post later. Bye!

Junk mail

Why are postal workers so insistant that we receive our junk mail. I received a notice that a package awaited for me in the management office last night. I'm thinking it is my medicines that I ordered over the internet, good thing too since I'm almost out. No, it is a disc to receive trial aol internet service. What!? I came all the way over to the office for junk mail. Unbelievable. Post later. Bye!

New management

We have new management at my apartment community. That usually means higher rents and new rules. These people are putting up new siding on all the buildings (hint: higher rents to pay for it). It looks very nice. In the newsletter, they asked us take down pictures that might not be able to handle the pounding on the walls and warned us that strangers might be standing on our balconies. Also in the newsletter, they now allow dogs into the apartments and are having a drawing every month for $50 off your rent for all the tenents who pay early. They also changed the late fees for overdue rent.

Tonight I took down my pictures along the outside walls and my breakable doll collection on the corner shelves. I do wonder if they changed the pet fees too. I'll find out when I get my cat next spring. Post later. Bye!

Freaks

I work with freaks from outer space. Tonight, a coworker said another coworker's condom idea would not work. Whoa...did I miss a story here? The other day my 2 coworkers and a guy from another car rental were conversing on condoms and Star Wars at the same time. Someone had the idea of glow-in-the-dark condoms resembling a Star Wars light saber. But, it must sound like one or it wouldn't work. How does get a piece of plastic to sound like a light saber? They came up with wires and a battery in the condom and one asked about being electricuted by the battery. It took about half an hour for me to stop laughing. Thanks for the imagery, Fred.

Later the guy at the other car rental called over asking if we had a minivan available and could he have sex in it using Star Wars condoms. Post later. Bye!

I need a new chiropractor

Today I received a billing for a service done 4 months ago. I thought I paid my full bill at the time I wrote my check at the office. The secretary told me there was an outstanding credit on my account, so I didn't owe as much. No, I was just charged half and now I am told to pay the other half, including interest for being late. Huh? According to the bill that includes services and payments from 4 years ago, there are lines for insurance. I take it that means they are so accustomed to people having insurance that they do not know how to handle someone without it. Unless they tried to charge the insurance company on my records 4 years ago and were refused payment because I cancelled it 4 years ago. Sometimes I just I hate people. Post later. Bye!

No refunds

What to know what I don't like about shopping on the web. You can cancel a service within 5 minutes after receiving it simply because you barely know what you are buying before paying for it and there is no refund whatsoever. That should be a warning sign of a poor quality service. If you are curious, it was perfectmatch.com I cancelled service to.

When looking for a job I hated that in certain want ads where the ads says how much money you can make, but neglect to mention what the job is. You have to apply and fill out a survey before the people tell you what the job is. I hate businesses like that. If you are curious, the jobs ended up being door to door salesperson. Real bad job.

Post later. Bye!

I cleaned

Today I cleaned my windows to get ready to tape plastic over. Naturally, when I think to cover them with plastic it warms up and I open the windows. Perhaps closer to Thanksgiving it will stay cold. People on TV are saying we are in for a rough winter. One item in the paper reported on corn stoves that burn corn as fuel. Too bad those who need a cheap heating source can not afford the corn stove itself. Already we have a decrease in reservations for rental cars. During the winter, the car cleaners get so bored they push each other in wheelchairs into snow drifts. I include a photo of a typical winter of my parents' backyard a few years ago.

Winter at the car rentals can be fun. People call worked up about the brakes shaking (antilock brakes working) and the windshield wipers do not work (snow must be removed first before the wipers can move). Then people want 4-wheel drive cars that are no safer than 2-wheel drive cars. Iowa does a good job clearing roads quickly and spreading a corn substance before it snows to melt the ice when it hits the pavement. Plus, most Iowans know how to drive on ice and snow, very slowly. Next we get people from warm climates demanding us to provide them with snow chains. We do not provide people with snowchains. And um, I have a pathetic tiny car without snowchains and drive around quite fine. But cell phones come in handy when stuck in the snow, just don't expect a quick response if you are driving in a snowstorm. Actually, when planes get diverted to our airport because of a snowstorm we try to talk people out of driving to their destination shocking them that we would dare attempt to lose a sale. We know they will later hurl anger at us when they get stuck in the snow and hurl more anger when a tow truck will take longer than 5 minutes to rescue them. And, we get a good laugh at people returning from warm climates in shorts and t-shirts. We know they will freeze once they step outside.

When my coworker from Florida first came he was excited for snow days thinking he will get out of work. No, the boss will send a suv to get an employee. We are open 365 days a year. In reality, we don't get paid if we don't come to work encouraging us (and many other professions) to drive in bad weather. We can only hope the bad weather occurs on our day off. I love sitting at home drinking cocoa watching the news in my slippers. When spring comes it feels shocking and relieving to be busy again. Post later. Bye!

Why can't men be like women?

I watched the Oprah Show today where a panel of men explained why men do things the way they do. Though it was not stated, I am sure many women watching asked "Why can't men be like women?". There were discussions on porn, strip clubs, golf, and picking up messes.

I can always be wrong, but I think many women object to porn because they were raised to be good girls and porn was taught to be dirty. Good girls do not argue, never are agressive, do not wear clothes tight or revealing, and make their men happy while ignoring their own needs. A man viewing naked women offends because many women thnk it is evidence of their failure to please their men. Of course men do not take on that view when lookig at naked women. And there are many insecure women who are threatened by any woman more pretty, more smart, more skinny, more tall that they are because they fear they will be abandoned for someone better than they are.

I remember an episode of Married with Children where the husband met a gorgeous woman, went home, gave his wife a wig, and carried her up the stairs. If I had a man who told me I was the most beautiful woman in the world when he came back from a strip club, I would not be objecting to him visiting them. I read somewhere that men love to be told how wonderful they are (more than once). Women love that too (more than once). And often there is often confusion which is worse, the crime (like viewing porn)or the lying about it. Most people are more angry of the lying and the covering up a crime than the crime itself. Apologies and flowers are most effective in receiving forgiveness from a woman.

And as for messes not being picked up. If you want a smoker to stop, you don't blow smoke in their face every day. If want a man, or child, to pick up their own messes, then never pick up their messes. Eventually that person will figure out the mess stays put until they clean it and get tired of looking at it. Post later. Bye!