Obsessions

I might have a tendency to become obsessed about things. The proof of that is in the number of blog entries when I started this blog. I also have a tendency to not keep up with former obsessions. The proof of that is the number of blog entries in the last few months. If you want further proof look for my entry about music obsessions and becoming obsessed with a song.

However, I became obsessed back in the beginning of August with writing a romance novel. Now, I'm not going to say it's good, though Music Man and DolphinLady might if I pay them enough, but it has been an enjoyable experience.

I finished my first one and while writing it had inspiration for another 4 stories. The basic premise is the the stories are about five brothers and their journey from tragedy to love. The first story came together very quickly as did the second one. I'm working on the third story now and enjoying myself a lot.

The problem comes from my obsessive tendencies. When I'm writing I tend to talk about one thing and one thing only. Primarily, my stories. Any thoughts on how to keep me from being boring and only talking about my obsessions? It's kind of annoying those around me.

You Know You're Married to a Musician When...

1. Your spouse drums on everything: tables, counters, walls, you.

2. Your spouse looks around the house and says, "I think we can fit a grand piano in here if we take out the kitchen."

3. The books in your house run the complete gamut: from classical composers life stories to why Tupac was shot.

4. In order to take a bath you have to move the tuba out of the tub where it's been placed to dry from it's bath.

5. iTunes sends you a thank card for all the music you've purchased.

6. You ask your spouse to pick up some paper for you and they bring home music manuscript paper.

7. All matter of man and beast near your home are soothed.

8. Someone says, "Do you know how to get to the post office?" and your spouse replies, "If you hum a few bars I can fake it."

9. Buying a car involves bringing every instrument you own to make sure it all fits.

10. All your neighbors houses are for sale.

15 years ago today

I gave birth to a beautiful baby girl. I'd post a picture but my scanner isn't compatible with Vista, so you have to settle for this past Christmas. I love her with all my heart and am thankful everyday for her.



Today, her dad and I took her and her friend out for pizza and to play mini golf. If there is a monster mini golf near you, I suggest going and trying the place out. It was a lot of fun for all of us.

Happy birthday, Baby Girl. I love you!

Happy Birthday Sissy

March is a wonderful time of year. I always feel rejuvenated at the beginning of March. I think it's the prospect of spring. It energizes me and makes me feel like I can accomplish anything.

Then my grandma's birthday passes and I feel a little less energetic, but still pretty good. The next ten days pass and all is quiet. Next thing I know it's St. Patrick's Day and when I was a kid that always induced a panic at the prospect of getting pinched all day.

The day after the pinching is my sister's birthday. I remember when she came home from the hospital. I remember seeing my mom when she was in the hospital to have her. Not that I was allowed on the floor she was on, but my mom came to the window and waved to me. I think she was on the third floor. I remember I was allowed to look in the nursery window and see my new sister before they brought her home. I was so excited that one of those little babies was coming to our house. I wasn't sure which one, I just remember being happy.

I also remember cleaning the house for Mom and Sissy to come home. We spent what seemed like days cleaning. It was probably a couple of hours at most. Oh and my brother had to mow the lawns and that annoyed him.

After my sister's birthday it gets quiet again. Until the 27th, which is when my daughter's birthday is. My sister and I both share our birth months with our nieces which I think we couldn't have planned better if we'd tried.

By the time March is over, I'm tired. Tired of cleaning for parties, tired of cake and sweets and tired of hearing the birthday song.

Thank God, I have a few weeks until my birthday in May.

Happy Birthday Jujubee! I love you!

Happy Birthday Grandma

Today we celebrated Grandma's birthday. Her birthday was actually ten days ago, but this was the first chance we got to have her over. My cousin, Miss B from an A state was in town hogging her. Just kidding, Miss B! However, my cousin was in town with her quiet yet nice boyfriend/father of her child, and her adorable son, little L.



I'd tell you how old Grandma turned but well, I'd have to think awful hard. Okay, Grandma was 25 when she had my mom. My mom was 21 when she had me. I'm not going to tell my age. So never mind. Here is a nice shot of Miss Goofy with Grandma.


This is what I spent my morning working on decorating. It's a really simple cake and the idea came from the back of the package of Easter M & M's. Don't you love commercialism?

Happy birthday Grandma. I'm glad we could have you over for lunch. We love you!

It's Naptime

Here is Courage doing his favorite thing these days:


We think he got the idea from Thatcher:


I bought the blanket Thatcher is sleeping on for Music Man for Christmas. It has a polar bear on it and it's very soft. Thatcher likes to curl up on it and knead. Courage likes when it gets knocked off the bed at night. He scoots under it and snuggles in.

They're both in a really snuggly mood lately.

Ah A New Year

A new year and it's time to come up with some resolutions. Normally when I do this I spend about a week, usually at the end of December, thinking of what I'd like to change in the coming year. Then I spend a few days trying hard to work on making the changes. I spend the next few weeks feeling guilty for not making the changes I want to. Then I just completely give up and decide to try again next year. So this year I've decided to make a list of resolutions that I might actually keep.

1. Listen to obnoxious music (I'm doing that one as I write this)
   
2. Annoy the hell out of my husband and friends (This will be easy as well as fun)
   
3. Write (Okay, I admit it, I'm writing a romance novel. Actually I'm working on the third in a series. Want to read it? Let me know and I'll send it to you.)
   
4. Cook dinner at least once a week (Let's be real here I could aim high and try for more often but why set the bar too high)
   
5. Clean each room in the house at least once this year (Again if I aim low I may achieve this)
   
6. Educate Miss Goofy (This one is real)
   
7. Convince the dog that he doesn't need to play in the snow (Brrr)
   
8. Teach the cat to vacuum (I can dream!)
   
9. Tell my family and friends how much I love them (This one is real too, not sarcastic)
   
10. Blog more often (Keep dreaming!)
    

Love to all my family and friends! (Woo Hoo that took care of number 9)

Taco Tuesday part 2

We went to Taco Tuesday last night. Boss Man and his daughter couldn't join us. But we did sit in the bar. We got a front row seat for the karaoke. Ralph was there.

Ralph always starts off the night with Open Arms by Journey. It's a nice enough song, a little sappy like most ballads of the early 80's. I've always enjoyed the song. And then Ralph sang. Boss Man pointed out a few weeks ago that Steve Perry had a high voice and the song could be a challenge to someone who doesn't have a high voice. My thought is if you don't have a high voice then why torture all these people while you attempt the song.

However, Ralph's version of Open Arms was fantastic when compared to his version of Heaven by Warrant. He stumbled through about half the first verse before he had the DJ stop and try another song. It was painful.

On the plus side, there is an older couple who also sing. They do a wonderful job. I'm not familiar with their songs but they have nice voices and understand little details like rhythm, tempo, and pitch. Now if the DJ would learn what the gain on the equipment is for, we'd be set.

The really sad thing is the older couple, Ralph and the DJ are the only ones who sing. At least they are the only ones who I've seen up there. Here's hoping for some new blood with a decent voice.

Miss Goofy's Pumpkin

This was our pumpkin for this year. Miss Goofy painted the orange pumpkin green then added the face. She has a "wart" (pinto bean) on her "nose" (stem). Her "hair" is orange and black tissue paper. She got the idea from a magazine. Next year she wants to do a cat and a mummy. I think she did a really good job with her pumpkin.

Taco Tuesday

We have started a tradition. Well okay we started it this summer. One of our local Mexican restaurants started having "Taco Tuesday". I think they were trying to increase their traffic during the week. Anyway, Music Man's buddy Boss Man, who by the way is no longer Music Man's supervisor but is still a really good friend and a lot of fun to hang out with, and Boss Man's son, Little Boss Man, discovered this restaurant does "Taco Tuesday". They have tacos for $1, originally it was in the bar or on the patio only. Now just about anywhere you sit, they'll serve them to you.

So the day after the two Boss Mans discovered this dining experience Boss Man, the big one, shared the knowledge with Music Man. Since then we have missed Taco Tuesday maybe half a dozen times.

It's not about the tacos, which most of the time are okay if not fantastic, it's about sitting at a table, eating tortilla chips, watching Boss Man's daughter and Miss Goofy get some serious cases of the sillies, and listening to really bad karaoke.

When I say really bad karaoke, I mean not enough alcohol in the bar to make this stuff sound good. There is one guy, Ralph is his name. I'm using his real name because well, I seriously doubt he'll ever read my blog and if by some chance he or a friend do read it, they'll never believe it's him. And if by some miracle he does know I'm talking about him, then he's ready to hear the truth.

Ralph, you suck. I know that sounds harsh. I know it takes guts to get up there and do that, and Lord knows I don't have that much courage. But Ralph, let's be honest, you have that much guts from all the beer you drink. Oh and the beer doesn't help your singing at all. Okay I think I'm done bashing Ralph.

That said, it's become a lot of fun to go hang out with Boss Man and his kids, we even took The Weather God and DolphinLady with us when they were in town. They may never forgive us. My advice to everyone is go find a local restaurant that does something like this and go enjoy yourself. It makes for a nice night out and if you're lucky enough to share it with friends, then count your blessings.

Enjoy the tacos

Strange Things I've Seen

That's a good title, right? I mean I've seen some weird stuff and today is no exception.

So, Miss Goofy and I went to get lunch at a fast food restaurant that specializes in sort of Mexican food. It wasn't Taco Bell. To be honest I don't know how far this chain reaches but I do know that the original restaurant was in Barstow, Ca and my brother-in-law, The Crazy Hispanic Guy, (love you!) was friends with the owners kids. I think. I think that's what he told me. I haven't talked to him in a while. He's a hoot and I love that he takes such good care of my sister and their kids, but that's a post for another time and I'm digressing.

Back to the car with Miss Goofy and I, we were listening to Kid Rock's newest CD, Rock and Roll Jesus, and having a deep philosophical discussion. I know those are two things you don't expect to read anywhere but it's true. Don't believe me? Go get the CD or google the song "Amen" by Kid Rock and give it a listen. You'll be having philosophical discussions with yourself.

Sorry, I'm digressing again. Back to the car, so we're discussing the state of the world and listening to music, when I notice there is a guy across the street and I realize he's pacing. No big deal right? Except he's in a wheelchair. So, he's pacing up and down the street in front of his house in a wheelchair.

Just when I thought it couldn't get any weirder, I noticed he was also smoking and his cigarette was nearly gone. Apparently he's a heavy thinker when he smokes. And he's got to pace. And if that doesn't start conversations, I don't know what will.

My Thoughts on SpongeBob

I used to hate SpongeBob SquarePants. In fact, I actually told my mom that she needed to stop buying SpongeBob stuff for Miss Goofy. He is annoying. Maybe annoying is to nice a word. He is so irritating I thought my ears were going to bleed at the sound of his voice. That is a much more graphic description. And more accurate. I also thought him to be completely childish and a waste of time. I wouldn't allow Miss Goofy to watch him. My mom bought her a DVD that was around 5 hours of SpongeBob. I nearly cried when she did that.

And then one day I found myself stuck in front of the TV. I think I had the flu and for some reason SpongeBob was on. The remote was across the room and I was not up to moving. So I watched SpongeBob. I learned something. He is annoying.

He also is honest, a hard worker with a good work ethic, tries to be friends with everyone, and when he does something bad, he tries to fix it. SpongeBob tries to be a good person. Sponge. Whatever. He is teaching millions of people how to behave. He doesn't lie and cheat. He works hard at his job and enjoys his job. He is friendly to everyone, including those who are rude to him. If he makes a mistake or hurts someone, he goes overboard trying to put things right.

He's still annoying. The other thing that bothered me was the waste of time watching him. Especially after I found out the show was a favorite among college students. Then one day after an especially difficult math lesson, Miss Goofy sat and watched him during lunch. After lunch, she got right back to work and didn't have any difficulties. It finally occurred to me that college students like him because he relaxes their mind. Sure he's inane and annoying. And that's why he's so effective at relaxing the mind. It's safe to relax.

So go ahead and annoy me SpongeBob. At least my mind will be relaxed.

Update on Grandma

I know you're used to hearing how Grandpa is, but, I'm sure you know that he passed away last week. So today I'm updating on Grandma. I just saw her at the grocery store.

She asked how I was. Nearly made me cry, that she's worried about me. I'm doing alright. She says that today she's okay. She doesn't know how she'll be tomorrow or Saturday but today she's okay. She was in good spirits and cheerful. We talked about this weekend and she told me that several of my relatives who we weren't sure were going to be able to come to the funeral will be able to attend. That makes me so happy and proud of everyone who is coming. Even some of the family who is mourning their own loss will be with us and I am grateful to them for the effort. To those who can't make it for one reason or another please don't misunderstand I completely understand and am in no way upset with anyone. This is a difficult time for everyone and some people just can't go to funerals.

Unlike me. I was thinking yesterday while I was in the shower and I realized I have been to more funerals in my life than weddings. So either people don't like me enough to invite me when they get married, but you can't stop me from attending when you die or I need to hang around people who are way younger. Or maybe this means that everyone who is left is immortal and I won't have to attend anymore funerals. Hey I can dream, right?

In any event, thank you to everyone who has written/emailed/called, etc. to offer support and sympathy. We are okay. We will get through this.

Oh and Uncle Bunky, sorry if I confused when I called and told you about Grandma's taillight. She backed out of her parking space and I followed her out the driveway and onto the street. When she stopped to turn onto the street I noticed her taillight was out. Hopefully that made more sense although I'm not convinced it did.

Keep Grandma in your prayers and I'll see you at the funeral.

Bad Month

Yesterday I posted about having had a bad couple of weeks with Miss Goofy out of town, missing my parents and my uncle having passed away. The news keeps on coming.

I got off the phone with my uncle a little over a half hour ago. My grandpa passed away. We suffered while he had Alzheimer's and while he hadn't been Grandpa for several years, it's still a shock to hear that he's gone.

And yet I can't help but feel happy for him. While I hurt he is surrounded by family that loves him and has just been waiting for him to join them.

Don't grieve for him. Grieve for the ones he left behind. There's a lot of us who lost our hero today.

Good-bye Grandpa, we love and miss you.

Where Have I Been?

Don't you hate it when you keep checking a blog and they don't update for weeks? Me too. I do have an excuse this time.

First I was busy getting Miss Goofy ready for her trip. Then while she was gone, frankly I was enjoying being lazy. I didn't do much while she was gone.

Then Wednesday the 13th, I was having an awful day. I was so depressed. I missed Miss Goofy, I missed my mom, I missed my dad. I was really no fun. I woke up the 14th and felt so much better. I knew I had stuff that had to get done, and I was full of energy and ready to get to it. I had several errands that I had to get done.

I left the house around 10:30 and headed for my first stop: the post office. I was filling out the form that I needed when my phone rang. Now I hate when people take calls on a cell phone in public, but it was my grandma and I wasn't about to not take the call. If it had been Music Man I would have told him I'd call him back, but something about it being Grandma made me take the call. It turned out that one of her brothers had died. I remember my uncle Orin. He and his wife were always so nice to me when I was a kid. I actually have a picture of Uncle Orin and my grandpa in my grandpa's garage that I took. I took it cause Grandpa told me I need to take pictures of people when they weren't expecting it. So I took their picture. Orin is turned sideways and laughing. Grandpa has his mouth open in surprise. I don't think he expected me to take that picture. I tried to scan and post it but I'm having issues between my scanner and Vista. We won't discuss it here.

But I'm digressing. So, I knew I needed to get to Music Man's work before I lost it. I finished at the post office, went home so the dog could use the little puppy's room, called Music Man and asked him if he'd like company for lunch. He seemed concerned cause I hate coming down the mountain to the town in which he works. I told him I'd tell him about it when I got there.

I started out and realized he might be concerned about Grandpa so I called him on my cell phone (yes, I used my ear piece, I didn't need a ticket on top of everything else) and told him that Orin had passed away. He was sorry to hear to about Orin.

I got to his work and came into his office. He closed the door and hugged me. Seldom has a hug ever felt so good. I told him I wanted to go to the funeral. It's in Reno. He says okay to start making the arrangements. He put his boss on alert that he was going to need to go out of town for a funeral and they were very kind about it. Boss Man, who isn't actually Music Man's boss anymore but is still a good friend and lived in Reno gave us some tips on hotel rooms. He also checked to make sure that I wasn't leaving from the shop and that Music Man would need a ride home. What a wonderful friend. And I mean that, I'm not being sarcastic like normal.

The funeral was set for Friday the 22nd and we took Grandma with us. Oh and Miss Goofy came home too. The four of us went up for the funeral and while it's not high on my list of fun things to do, it was nice to see so many family members. It did make me and one of my mom's cousins really miss my mom though. My mom was the one who could have told us who everyone was and how they were related us. Although my cousin did a pretty good job. And a big thank you to you. You know who you are. I don't like to use people's names without their permission.

Anyway we came home on Saturday and yes, we tried to get the brakes on the rental car fixed and no they wouldn't fix them without approval from corporate which would have meant staying Saturday and Sunday night and not going to work on Monday for Music Man. So, we drove home carefully and arrived safe and sound. Although I think we had some very busy guardian angels on that trip. The rental company did take $40 off the rental for us though, so the really good deal we were getting was even better.

One good thing about this whole month, I had an idea for a story and I was able to work on it a lot the last few days. I have the outline done, now I just have to write it.

That's all the news from here. Have a good day and remember to pray for your guardian angel. They work harder than we know.

Things My Credit Counselor Has Beaten Into My Thick Skull

Wow, that's a long title isn't it? It might have been easier if I didn't have trouble hearing on the phone and a short attention span. In any event, he's taught me three things that are very important and I will share them with you now.

1. Never pay a collection agency. I know it goes completely against everything in your being, unless you're just a deadbeat. When people say we owe them money, our first instinct is to pay them so that we don't look like a deadbeat. Here's the problem and I never thought of this, you don't owe money to the collection agency. You may or may not owe money to the "original creditor" but you don't have an agreement with the collection agency, your agreement was with the "original creditor". The problem in paying a collection agency is two-fold: one, you may not really owe the money to anyone. Collection agencies frequently look in the papers for people who have died and then try to collect from the next of kin. Two, how do you know the money is actually going to the company that you supposedly owe unless you check with the original creditor. Remember it's always best to call the original creditor and pay them directly. It's in their best interest to have you pay them because then they get all the money and they don't have to pay the agency for collecting from you.

2. Don't use your debit card to pay for things. This is your money and you are giving away a lot of information about how to get your money. Use cash, a check or a credit card. It's much easier to have a charge reversed with a credit card than with your debit card. The reason is you have to sign with the credit card. You don't with the debit card.

3. Always look over your bank and credit card statements. If something doesn't look right, investigate it. Report possible identity theft immediately. Look at your credit report periodically too. You have the right to challenge anything on your report that you think is inaccurate. Remember that time you paid your credit card one day late? Check your report does it say you were 30 days late that time? That will hurt your credit score and the three credit reporting agencies have to report it correctly and accurately. That means it must say you were one day late, not 30.

Miss Goofy Goes on Vacation

Sounds like the name of a children's book, doesn't it? I can picture it now, Miss Goofy getting into all kinds of trouble in New York City. Maybe a Nora story?

Anyway Miss Goofy is leaving either Saturday or Sunday to spend either 9 or 10 days with our good friends TheWeatherGod and DolphinLady. So, what should I do with myself while she's gone? I'm thinking enjoy the quiet and miss her terribly. Music Man is always a mess when she goes to spend time with someone else. He misses her a lot. I do too, but I try to stay busy. Poor Music Man is stuck at work all day with nothing to do except worry about his Miss Goofy. And you know payroll, invoicing, billing, write his paper for school, and whatever else Mr. Division Manager throws at him.

Oh I forgot he's also looking for houses in his spare time. Cause we're moving. Eventually. Someday. Somewhere. Maybe. If we find a place. And he doesn't lose his job pining for Miss Goofy. And pretending to write his paper.

Thatcher and Mom's Table

This is Thatcher. He is laying on the coffee table. I don't know why exactly. I just know that Miss Goofy saw him and snapped a picture of him before he moved. I do know that if my mother had caught him on her coffee table when I was a teenager I would be mourning the loss of my cat. However before she passed away she had relaxed a lot about this table and cats. She actually thought it was funny when Dad's cat would crawl up and stretch out on the table. Just on the coffee table though, she still got upset if he got on the dining table.


Maybe her relaxed attitude came from the relative peace and quiet of the mountains. Maybe she was just mellowing. Maybe she had decided that she'd had that table long enough and it was time to move on. For the record, she bought that table after my real dad passed away. It was in a box and she had to assemble it. The kit included 2 end tables and she assembled all three of them and was so proud of herself. Jujube (aka, my sister) and I were proud of her too.

My desk

Once again my desk is a mess.

I've had plans to booby-trap it. I've had thoughts of taking everything off of it and not letting anyone near it. I've even tried leaving it full and messy. Then I had to find something. It's weird because I didn't think I used my desk that much until now. I now see that I use my desk a lot during the day. A whole lot more than I thought. I always thought my desk got messy because it was so small. Now I marvel at how I kept everything on it without a major avalanche. I also am realizing that my desk is more than just where I keep the computer. It's where I start my day and check in on the world. I make my daily list here. I set stuff here to deal with later, not because I'm procrastinating but because I'm in the middle of six things at once.

It's the heart of my day. It's where I go when I need to rest. Or to see what I need to do next. It's where I make plans. It's where I dream. It's where I write.

So, please stop putting stuff on it!!!! I know I told you to, ignore me. Make me deal with whatever it is now. My desk needs to be clean. For all of our sakes.

California is shaking again

7:42 am on October 1, 1987 in Whittier, Ca a magnitude 5.9 earthquake hit.

5:04 pm on October 17, 1989 near San Francisco, Ca a magnitude 6.9 earthquake hit.

4:31 am on January 17, 1994 in Reseda, Ca a magnitude 6.7 earthquake hit.

11:15 am on December 22, 2003 near San Simeon, Ca a magnitude 6.6 earthquake hit.

11:42 am on July 29, 2008 near Chino Hills, Ca a magnitude 5.4 earthquake hit.

We had an earthquake today. To my family in LA, I know you know about the quake. I hope you're all safe. Email me when you can. You are in our prayers.

These are the earthquakes that I have felt in recent years. I know I've felt others, but these stick out in my mind.

The Whittier quake I was in the car on the way to school. I didn't really feel it, but the wheels on the car tires did feel weird. For the San Francisco quake, we felt it. It was weird though because we knew it wasn't near us. The Reseda quake or as it's more commonly called the Northridge quake I was on the second floor of the motel that we worked at. I was also pregnant with Miss Goofy. That one we felt. Boy did we feel it. It was hard enough to walk across the floor being 7 months pregnant, but the shaking building really didn't help. The San Simeon quake I remember only vaguely. It was so close to Christmas I think I was more worried about other things. I did go see Hearst Castle a couple of years later and was sad to learn that some other property had been damaged by the quake. Today's quake, I will remember mostly cause it made me really dizzy afterward.

I do love the fact that one hour after the earthquake there are people all over LA talking on the news about how they were shook up but life goes on.

The biggest blessing comes from the quake not causing more damage and as of now only minor injuries and no deaths. That is subject to change, but for now, minimal damage and injury.

By the way, Courage is fine. Thatcher was pretty freaked out but is now napping. Courage would probably be better if I hadn't stepped on his tail. Poor dog. Survived an earthquake and then panics when I step on his tail.