early to bed, early to rise....

....makes me yawn & stretch & time to come alive. (like Dolly!)

wow it feels crazy to be up this early without a perfectly good reason. i think the last time i purposely crawled out of bed and into the shower at 4:30 in the morning was when i worked for the trucking company back home & had to be there by 6. i was off by noon. that job was AWESOME. i think i loved every second of every day there, really & truly. the only reason i left was because we moved here.

i will never forget the look on my boss Butch's face when i gave my notice. he was a big tough guy, super clean cut, would put you in the mind of the guy who played THING on Fantastic Four ( pre-turned-to-stone-hulky dude of course!). and since he was a graduate of VMI, he knew exactly what i would be in for moving to Virginia.

"shellshock" is what he said. i didn't believe him. he spent 6 days trying to talk me out of it. after that he made peace with it and said if he couldn't stop us, then we had his blessing.

the big undercover sweetheart that he was made a few phone calls to a friend of his who worked for a sister company out here in a place called Portsmouth, told him i was headed this way & said he'd be a fool not to hire me. so the guy did. right there, over the phone one day. but i never took the job.

turns out, i was utterly and completely shellshocked. Butch was right. i called him to say as much and you know what? he never once muttered the words "i told you so". because awesome people don't do that shit.

i kicked and screamed and pitched a fit every week wanting to go home those first two years. eventually i settled in. or maybe i just got tired of fighting a losing battle.

but that restless feeling is back. Virginia is not our forever home. it's a lovely area in alot of places, but the people....well, i just can't figure them out.

~have an amazing day! peace out.

and ps: holy crap but that pic made my eyes well up with tears. that dude looks so much like Butch, makes me miss him all over again.
best.boss.ever.

The One Where My Wallet Performs A Vanishing Act

Not to be a Debbie Downer, but you know what sucked in 2010? Getting my wallet stolen.

Or at least I think it was stolen. 

I did all the usual brain-wracking & visually re-tracing of my steps, but none of it conjured up images of having put it anywhere other than right back in my purse. 

I called the grocery store where I had last been, but they said there was nothing in the lost & found box. Then I went there in person, because you never know if the gum-smacking Flo on the other end is really looking, y'know? You'd wanna be sure too. 

Panic had settled in for the long haul and I couldn't sit still at work while my Betty Boop wallet was missing instead of tucked in my purse where it belonged. Plus a long holiday weekend was looming. My drivers licenses (current VA and sentimental CA), my social security card, my cards. No cash though. But the whole reason there was no cash is because there was a debit card - the only one linked to the bank account where I had just deposited my paycheck. GASP! No access to bank means NO access to grocery store. I had to go!

I ran home where hubby had searched high and low but to no avail. Then I RE-searched high and low because, Hello, he's a man and sometimes when he's looking in the refrigerator he can't see the butter for the milk. 


After that, I dug out my birth certificate, our marriage certificate, bills for proof of address - more panic! OMG, what will they think at DMV when they see that my gas bill is past due? Oh hell, no time for that. Go! Go! Go! 

I got ahead of myself earlier because this is the part where I stop at the grocery store to look over gum-smacking Flo's shoulder while she roots through the Drawer Of Lost Mittens & Baby Teething Keys. Do people really go back looking for baby's lost teething keys? That's just all kinds of gross. Even if you boiled them why would you want to stick them back in your kids gummy little mouth ever again? I guess people don't which is why they are still in that drawer and in which case why doesn't Flo just throw them away so she can better search for my Betty Boop wallet? No use. They could dump the drawer completely out and it still wouldn't be in there. 

The assistant store manager offered to let me come back later & watch the surveillance footage. How friggin awesome is that?! I'm sure its because I told them about the old man in the Dallas Cowboys coat who had asked me for money in the parking lot the evening before. Even though I told him I didn't have any he still took my buggy back to the cart return for me. He even waved goodbye. Someone mentioned that he could have pick-pocketed me but he never got that close. The shopping buggy was always between us and the guy is there alot. I'm not sure what his gig is, but he's not gross or creepy. He sometimes mentions having a wife but I think he drifts down from the veterans hospital and hangs out. 

It suddenly occurs to me that I know way too much about the Dallas Cowboy panhandler. But I'm observant when in parking lots thanks to my fear of someone stealing all my groceries while I'm loading them into the car. 

Next stop, the credit union. Where more awesome people work. The bank manager was super kind and very understanding and even printed out a ginormous copy of my drivers license that they had on file. Not that anyone will accept it as a legal form of identification, but it helped me. I still can only spout my California DL number. I've never memorized my Virginia one. I'll work on that this year. 

Twenty minutes later I had a brand-shiny-new atm card in my hand and was headed to the DMV.

I bet those three little letters made you cringe huh? They do me that way too. 

DMV: The place nobody ever likes to go because it's always something.


Long lines, dumb people, rude people, mean people, the stupid eye charts, the picture taking. Do they get hand me down camera's from the cops or what? I don't care who you are, you know you look like a convict on your driver's license. All that's missing is booking numbers. 

But guess what? I was in and out of there in lickity split time too. The lady at the information counter didn't even need to see my past due bill or anything! She gave me a form and a bingo number and pointed to a bank of chairs. I looked for an area with at least 2 or 3 empty seats surrounding it. I don't like to sit right next to people if I don't have to. I didn't find one so I had to sit next to this guy with, you'll never guess, a twitch. If ever I have to sit directly next to a person in a row of connecting seats they always have to have a twitch. Or the sniffles. It's my lot in life. I can never meet the "good" kind of interesting people, always the twitchy/sniffly/humming/gassy kind.

I didn't last long. I filled out my form, checked the bingo board to see how close I was to getting my number called, and headed to the ladies room. (Can I just say I don't think actual "ladies" use that room? More like they brought in some monkeys from the zoo to let them bathe in the sinks & splash water everywhere. Gross.) I went to grab a wad of paper towels to dry off a place on the counter so I could set down my wallet-free purse. Evidently, paper was not on the supply list this week. So I gripped my purse between my thighs and rearranged my bangs and removed the eyeliner smudges from under my eyes. 

Then I stood back and stared at myself in the mirror, realizing with defeat that on my new government issue I.D. I was going to look like the offspring of Medusa and Gene Wilder. Only less cute.

The little old man from UP processed my new drivers license for me. He even sort of grunted as he worked (see lot in life comment above). Grunting and chicken pecking keyboard skills aside though, he was very efficient and he didn't make small talk. Two qualities I prefer in a DMV employee. 

Feeling a little tornado-whipped, I returned to the office where I finally allowed myself the time to think about the possibility of my wallet having been stolen there. We had a worker guy come in to pack up the holiday decor that I felt uneasy about. Someone who many people have told me worrisome things about, including my coworker who mentioned double checking the safety of her own wallet when she saw him the last time. I'm not used to being around people like that and I don't really like it. I hate to sound so judgmental and base my opinion of someone I don't even know on the stories others have told me, but at the same time, I'd be stupid to not at least heed the warning. 

I shared my concern with my boss who immediately felt that my fear was probably not true but understood my need to ask. She has known the guy for a long time and provided him with side jobs and says he has always had her trust. That was total crap. When she helped to look it wasn't to ease my worries, it was to save face because I'm pretty sure she knew her creep worker had taken it. Ok thats not nice. In fairness, he had but one opportunity to really take it (and he probably did) and there's no way of knowing for sure if he did or not (except my Jedi-mind powers tell me so). 


My gut is so not satisfied. 

And what exactly do you do when you have a gut feeling but absolutely no proof? Well, I'll tell you.You alert everyone linked to anything in your wallet and you start over. It sucks. But it is what it is and I can't just go around pissing people off without evidence. 

I still haven't found a replacement wallet yet. The one I had was given to me by my kids several years ago. I'll keep looking. Wallet shopping is not as easy as it sounds. I keep comparing everything to the Betty Boop one I'll never see again. 

Now where is my crochet hook? I have a pizza scarf to get busy on....

Oooooh, aaaaah, MALABRIGIO WOOL hand dyed to look like cheesy goodness!

it doesn't matter who's wrong or right.....

JUST BEAT IT!

michael jackson's music is so insanely addictive! it doesn't seem to matter where you are, when michael's music plays people sing along. ever notice that? tell me you haven't busted out with a high pitched "heee, heee" at least once in your life. bet ya have. people don't even have to be a "fan" per se to suddenly find themselves claiming not to be billie jeans lover or trying to moonwalk to smooth criminal, they just do it naturally. like itching a scratch (scratching an itch?).


right now the kids (max, aj, & aj's girlfriend "t") are playing this michael jackson game for wii that "t" brought over - and it's the awesomest game ever! i simultaneously love it and feel really aged by it. hello, you can't not feel old when your kids are dancing to music that came out when you were still wearing florescent tights & braided headbands. (two things which have never come back into fashion.)

my kids, like most i am sure, think they have the market cornered on all things music, movies, and mtv. they think their generation is THE generation. i want to tell them "just you wait and see" but i can't bring myself to use those words, because those were the words my own parents used and i'd like to refrain from turning into them for as long as possible! so instead i sit here and laugh - with them and at them. mostly at them. because thats the awesome kind of mom i am.

i am really looking forward to the new year but i haven't made any resolutions yet. i've heard people say they are resolving not to make resolutions and even though i know they are just being funny, it does sort of sound like a good plan

you know what another good plan would be? going to bed early. i'm fighting a head cold thanks to a walk on the beach during sunday's blizzard. not the smartest idea, i know, but it was a romantic one considering mr. jones rarely likes to go for walks on the beach.

warm summer evening, a cool breeze coming in off the water -
ME: honey, wanna go for a walk?
HIM: nope.

freezing winter day, the most snowfall virginia has seen in 30 years -
HIM: baby get your boots on, lets go see the 5 foot waves!
ME: uuuuh, sure.

yeah, even the kids were smart enough to sit this one out. they stayed inside, warm, drinking hot cocoa by the light of the fire their video games. but it was totally worth it. and probably the exact scenario vicks had in mind when they invented nyquil.

the snowfairies came thru!

thanks to a foot of snow outside i get to stay home warm, cozy & SAFE with my guys. my family back home will be relieved to know that yes, i did finally call in (after a few hours of waiting for someone to call me) to find that no, i did not have to slip & slide my happy tail in to the office today. our little blizzard back here made the news out on the west coast & knowing i don't still have my 4 wheel drive - well, they were worried.

its pretty weird to be home on a monday when you are used to working. i did a little laundry & baked some cookies, played on facebook for a long while, and am now taking a break surfing the web for yarn storage idea's. i want something that allows me to see what i have at a glance but still protects it from dust bunnies. i love the idea of Ikea-ish boxy but narrow floor to ceiling shelves, but how is that protective? plastic bins are protective, but how is that attractive? decisions, decisions.

crochet, much like blogging, is another little hobby of mine that got put on the back burner this past year. i never completely stopped, but my heart wasn't always in it either. i let people who don't really matter get into my head way more than they deserved to be. but having realized that people can only steal our joy when we let them, i'm snapping out of all that. when i've had a particularly stupid experience or edgy day i make a point of picking up my yarn & channeling that energy into something fun, and it works! i've also been making a point of spending at least one evening a week with girlfriends. laughter is an amazing attitude adjuster.

those of you on facebook have already seen these snapshots but i'm sharing them again here because...because....well, because i can! :)

my mom & step dad "commissioned" me to make these hats for the kiddo's in the family....my nieces & nephews that i have yet to meet because they live so far away. two live along the puget sound of washington state and two are in las vegas. i can't wait to meet them someday soon! in the meantime i await pictures of them in these adorable (if i do say so myself) beanies:

these came on the heels of 3 orders i had just completed for neighbors and 2 others for my older boys' girlfriends....so i've kinda been the mad-hatter-mama lately. fine by me! fun fun. :)

its lovely weather for a sleigh ride together

...if only we had a sleigh! 


Christmas was lovely and I hope that you all enjoyed a very merry gathering with loved ones as well. 


The snow began late last night, technically giving us a "White Christmas"...but not really because the festivities were pretty much over except for the fat lady singing before the flurries truly began. This morning though, well this morning is a completely different story. We have 4 to 6 inches out there & the news is telling us we're snowed in! 


I'm sure our neighbors to the north, in true snow country, are probably having a nice little chuckle at our expense. Remember the movie Crocodile Dundee where a hoodlum tries to mug Mick (Paul Hogan) with a switch blade? And then Mick's all "that's not a knife...THAT'S A KNIFE!" and he pulls out a bowie knife?

Well that's the tone I imagine the northerners are using..."that's not snow....THAT'S SNOW!"

Oh well, we may not be waist deep but it's still snow! And snowfairies willing, there will be no work tomorrow. 

We're headed out to play in a bit, gonna wander out on the beach and maybe build a snowman where there are usually only sandcastles. Unfortunately pics will have to be taken with my Blackberry though....the camera cord has performed yet another disappearing act. Typical in a house with teenagers. SIGH!

hobbies

a hobby, by definition, is "an activity pursued for pleasure or relaxation and not as a main occupation". 

and you know what i think they should add to that definition? i think they should add that hobbies have healing powers unmatched by any modern medicine; with an ability to reach in and soothe the soul.

do you have a hobby? what is it? when did you discover it?

if you don't, you totally should. people without hobbies are scary as hell and you really don't want to be one of *them* do you? you know....the kind always running off at the mouth spewing garbage like "oh i don't have time to do that because i have to work all the time. i work, working is my hobby, i work work work, busy busy busy." 

i suppose they think they are a) one-upping me or b) patronizing me or even c) impressing me. but all i hear is "blah blah i suck. alot blah. i measure my self worth by how busy i am because i have nothing else in life to validate me and i have a need to make you feel less than so i can feel greater than. blah." 

ok, so maybe not everyone without a hobby sounds exactly like that, but i know you know the ones i am talking about. or am i the only magnet for this particular brand of idiot?

i crochet alot, not nearly as much as i would like, but a fair amount. i also bake and imagine becoming the keebler elf of bundt cakes. i read funny books and i spend time quality with girlfriends. i'm learning to sew and getting ready to start up my education again to achieve a 20 year old goal. and i don't know why, but there are people i know in life who like to poke at me for these various things. they say i am such a grandma with my little grandma hobbies. they say i must be bored to tears if these are things i choose to spend time doing. sometimes they say they wish they had time to pursue a hobby, if only they had "as much time". and you know what i wanna say? PISS OFF! 

i am a wife and a mom of THREE boys of various ages and stages. i have a full time job maintaining a family plus spend 40 ridiculous hours a week in an uninspiring little room doing a job as best i can. i am busy too. its not about finding time its about MAKING time.  

so there.

whew! 

and even though i know i am just preachin to the choir here in blogland, that still felt really good to get off my chest dammit!

last year my grandmother died on december 1st. a month later on january 8th, her mother, my great-grandmother, died. the loss of these two women was devastating to me, and when i got around to getting out of my own head i realized just how truly devastating it was to my grandfather. he spent 60 years married to his sweetheart and the last 16 of those years he even had his mother-in-law under the same roof. then just like that, his home was down from 3 to 1 - and in the course of another months time, his home was completely emptied and he had moved 300 miles to live with my mom. can you imagine that? life & death play no favorites, that is for sure. 

fast forward about 8 months & gramps has realized he's ready to switch gears one more time. living with my mom was great but he felt like a burden - he totally wasn't but you know how old folks are. he'd been scouting out & researching veterans homes & found a new veterans retirement community down in the desert of california. don't let that idea conjure up depressing images of sad old soldiers sitting around telling war stories, waiting to die, because kids, its totally NOT like that. its a beautiful place with lots to do and he's all set up in his own little apartment, only a hop, skip, & a jump away from Vegas. also? its co-ed. not that gramps is ever gonna want a hook up for a booty call or anything! stop it! just means some of them are married couples and they have a well rounded atmosphere. 

since moving there on his 77th birthday this past september, gramps has joined the vets bowling league and he now bowls one night a week, just like he used to. he's also joined the vets billiards team and shoots pool in tournaments one night every week, just like he used to. he's also gotten into making clocks and bird feeders, un-like he's ever done. and with his new bad-ass wifi laptop my mom set him up with, he made me a christmas card that includes a picture of him jokingly sitting on santa's lap...wearing a santa hat. see:

this right here, is the healing power of HOBBIES in action.

he also sent me a present that i intend to open first on christmas morning...something tells me its HANDMADE!

LOVE YOU, MEAN IT!

 

Well Well Well...

Whaddaya know? It seems I've found my way back to blogland after all. Honestly, I wasn't sure I would be able to return after such a long drought. I sort of let others bully my mojo and let go for awhile. I even tried to come up with a new blog identity a time or two, nothing seemed right. Eminem mighta snuffed Slim Shady, but me? Well, I just couldn't auff Sweet Mama Jones. So I'm back. 

And those bullies? 

Can suck it.

LOVE YOU, MEAN IT!