Bad weather

It’s sleeting with ice pellets and snow. They (the wonderful weather people) says that Tulsa could have up to 10 inches of snow. Wow and whoa. I’m just want to get home and out of the weather. Short post as I’m off to make some coffee. New job is going just wonderful today. First day of training on audit. Not too hairy. But anyhoo-be careful out there on the slick roads. Ciao

Christmas already

This is my 401st post-amazing. Been keeping this blog for two years now and still no one reads it! Well, no except my hubby. Not much going on today. Slow-very slow for being fairly full. The BMXer’s crashed a wedding reception we had last night. Wonderful little brats aren’t they?

So I’ve been scouring the web just having fun and goofing off. Came across on MSN a Top Ten things to do this holiday. I was interested but quickly disappointed. It was very city specific. Their 10th item was to go see A Christmas Carol at the Guthrie Theater in Minneapolis, Minnesota. Yeah-I’m going to be in Minnesota for the holidays. That’s 701.84 miles from Tulsa (thanks Map Quest). The rest of their list: Galleria Ice Skating Center in Houston (499.28 miles), Glory of Christmas at Crystal Cathedral in Garden Grove California (1445.13 miles), Santa’s Enchanted Forest in Miami Florida (1440.7 miles), Christmas Celebration by the Dallas Symphony Orchestra (261.09 miles), Black Nativity by Langston Hughes in San Francisco (1743.26 miles), Deck the Palms in San Diego California (1466.76 miles), Macy’s State Street Holiday Windows in Chicago (686.56 miles), Boston Ballet’s The Nutcracker (1583.16 miles), and the number one thing to do is Rockefeller Christmas Tree in NYC (1342.06 miles). That’s a lot of miles from the Tulsa, Oklahoma. So I am going to try my hand at coming up with a list you can apply in your neck of the woods.

1. Check out the PAC (performing arts center) nearest to you and see what Christmas shows are available. A Christmas Carol will be performed in Tulsa along with The Nutcracker by the Tulsa Ballet. Go see a classic performed on the stage.
2. Music is an integral part of the season. If you can go see Handel’s Messiah if for nothing else than to hear the Hallelujah chorus being sung. Perhaps there’s going to be some Christmas concerts available. If all else fails call your local elementary, junior high, and/or high school and find when their Holiday Concerts will be performed.
3. Decorate for the holiday your way. My first tree when I first moved out was very formal-burgundy, golds, opaque whites and lots of white lites. This year, nearly five or so years later it’s going to be fun. Mismatched ornaments, colored lights and outdoor lights to please myself. This isn’t about out-decorating the neighbors or having the perfect accessories it’s about having the holidays reflect who you and your family really are. Experiment. Who says white trees with blue and silver ornaments are from the 50’s. If that’s what you want, then go for it.
4. Spend time with loved ones. Take time out for coffee or breakfast or dessert with different members of your family.
5. Go look at Christmas lights. Take along a thermos of coffee or hot chocolate and share. Find holiday tunes on the radio. If need be, ask friends and coworkers where the biggest displays are to be found. Spend an evening discovering your town and your neighbor’s creativity.
6. Go see a living nativity if there’s one in your community.
7. If you can go ice skating. Some communities have a outdoor arena others have an indoor skating rink. Try it out or go for the first time in a long time.
8. See a Christmas Parade. There’s lots of parades in our area as a lot of the suburbs have them. Go and enjoy the horses and motorcycles and floats and Santa.
9. Attend a religious service. Whatever your religion and however long you’ve not been going to services. Go at least once.
10. Light candles, say a prayer, and relax. Ask the the hubby for help or the kids if they can. Guess what? December will roll around again next year. This doesn’t have to be the perfect Christmas. Try shooting for the best Christmas for us this year.

So, a few ideas to get y’all started. Hope everyone has a safe, relaxed Christmas. As for today, I’m off to goof some more. Ciao!

Mini Thanksgiving Day

Well, it’s another wonderful night in the neighborhood. Just two nights left and I want to go home early. The wonderful wonderful BMXers have been quiet so far. We shall see what happens this morning with them.

Chris and I (okay I) have decided that that either next Monday or Tuesday (probably Tuesday) will be a mini-Tday recreation. Not sure how mini it will be since it will involve both ham and turkey. I’m thinking of the sides to add to it. Going to make a pumpkin pie and buy a pecan pie. A little expensive, but we can dine on leftovers for a couple of days. Freeze some of the ham and turkey meat for later in the week. Cook the turkey carcass on Wednesday for soup a couple of days down the road. Freeze the ham bone for ham beans and corn bread. I will probably have to get a couple of meats to stretch the two weeks between paychecks but hopefully it won’t be too bad money wise.

Slept some today and went over to the in-laws house so Chris could do something on line. For the first time I had a decent conversation with my mom-in-law. She’s a real space cadet at times. I haven’t heard from my mom since Thursday and I’ve got a feeling I’m going to be headed over to get my big pot and lid, pie pan, Tupperware container, 8×8 and 9×13 pan. These will be needed for my mini-Tday.

If we had a Tivo or similar device I could have recorded the Macy’s day parade. Thanksgiving that I grew up involved a little parade and a lot of hard work. The glass panes in the doors and windows would get steamed from all the cooking. The back door would be opened so cold air could cool the kitchen. I love to cook. I’m just know realizing how much I love this particular hobby. Perhaps that’s why I want to spend Tuesday afternoon in the kitchen creating love in the form of food instead of doing anything else on my day off.

So much rattling around in my head today. Yet, clear coherent thoughts are not available. It’s almost like my subconscious is working away. When things become clear I’ll know that I’m done thinking. Sounds almost like New Age stuff don’t it? So since I can’t compile too many more clear and coherent sentences I’m going to move on. Ciao

Thanksgiving Update

So Turkey day has come and gone. Did y’all get enough ham and turkey? I enjoyed a nice big plateful at my parents with the idea of ‘continuing first’ as I couldn’t fit everything on my plate so you keep filling it up as you get holes. We had a fairly traditional dinner except no cranberries or stuffing. And my sister’s significant other had to have cornbread with dinner. The first bite of turkey/gravy/mashed potatoes/noodles was pure heaven. After stuffing ourselves at mom’s we went to Chris’ parents. They had lots of family over and I actually knew most of them. Chris’ brother Alex was back from China. Chris got a kick out of seeing his little brother. Then to home where we laid in bed and just thought.

Thanksgiving was good but this year just seemed to have a huge ‘but’ attached to it. I did get over to mom’s in time to help her out some. I didn’t cook enough of the dinner to please myself so it was nice to be helpful. I wonder how my desserts turned out as we didn’t eat any. But-I told you there’s a but-things were a little tense with my sister. She walked by, and around, me but never said one word to me. She decided that even though she doesn’t cook at all she was going to conquer the ham. Chris said it was dried out and slightly burnt. Then she attempted the sacred casserole dish. For some families this is a green bean casserole but for the Greens it’s an asparagus casserole. It tasted okay but it looked funny. The best part about asparagus casseroles is the buttery chunks of bread baked to a golden, crispy wonderfulness (it that’s even a word). She used canned crumbs that were very fine. Did not look like asparagus casserole we all love.

So things were good till my sister showed then it was tense. Didn’t get desserts. Got to see the in-laws. Didn’t get my turkey/mashed potatoes/gravy/noodles all-in-a-Tupperware container supper for work. Next year I think things are going to be different. I want pumpkin pie!

Well, I think Christmas will be different. I’m going to fix quickie cinnamon rolls before I go to work on Christmas Eve. Chris gets off a 6 am and I get off at 700 am. Throw the rolls in the oven, make the drizzle, put some coffee on, and leisurely enjoy our Christmas time. Sleep, maybe make a quick round for family, and eat a ham dinner somewhere (or at home).

Well, we’re headed into Christmas. Every fool will be out early this morning looking for great deals. I, however, will be headed home at seven am. I am not going anywhere or doing anything today. Screw it. Y’all want look under the covers cause that’s where I’ll be.

Well, off to do some more work. Ciao!

Weekend and Thanksgiving

What a great weekend! Chris’ colonoscopy came out wonderfully. He liked the anesthesia part of it all. We found a great way to clean out your colon-Fleet Phosophosoda. Just make sure to carry reading material into the bathroom. Chris was on the throne for an hour. I was passed out-I sure didn’t miss anything this time!

With Thanksgiving being held later today I am going on my Thanksgiving diet-not eating till turkey has been placed on the table. Asparagus casserole, carrots, rolls, pumpkin pie. We are only eight hours away at this point. I made a couple of new recipes for the dessert table-Eggnog Pie and Lemon Pound Cake Bars. My bars fell-there’s a nice well in the middle and the glaze doesn’t even begin to cover it up. Glad I’m not cooking for professional chefs.

Back to work for my last week. We have BMX riders in house and there are awful guests. Demanding and rude and just don’ care about anyone else. Then we have airline crews who see a bunch of kids running around without parental supervision and demand their own floor. Life is wonderful.

Well-I’m off to do some more surfing and possible Babble. Maybe I’ll do some more work. Ciao!

Love and Marriage

It may sound incredibly simple but in my marriage I’m always striving for ways to make it better. Seems like it’s working too based on the discussion held on Sunday between the hubby and I. Some simple things I try to remember every day (and sometimes every hour!).

Put each other first. This is about a relationship, a partnership, not a “me” endeavor.

Put God first. As Christians we should make God our priority.

Don’t panic. Four months and counting and I’m looking at my husband and thinking, “This is him?” Yes, it is him. Things are going to be just fine as long I don’t panic.

Marriage is hard but worth it. The moments of wanting to shoot him or me are few and far between. The good days (and okay days) far outlive the bad ones. Work through the issues.

Don’t expect them to read your mind. They (especially men) won’t know what you want unless you verbalize. Speak up!

Communication. Along with care and trust is the most important thing in your marriage. Talk, talk, talk, and then talk some more.

Remember who is in front of you. It’s not your dad, your brother, a previously abusive boyfriend, or anyone whoever mistreated you.

Marriage isn’t about you. This may have been covered all ready but treat your marriage as a partnership not as a vehicle for what you want and need.

Say thank you. For taking out the trash, for the roses, for loving you. Tell him that you appreciate what a great man he is. We all like to hear how wonderful we are.

Kiss hello, goodbye, and good morning. Nothing quite like a kiss to start or end things.

Ask for what you need. Your spouse isn’t physic so let them know. Show them. Ask.

Laugh. Laugh often and early. Laugh late at night. Laugh together. Never lose your sense of humor.

Hang on…Especially to each other. This world isn’t easy to a person so hang on to your other half. It’s makes facing the mean world just a little easier.

It could always be the last time. Never let them leave with a kiss and a I love you. Even to the corner store for a soda pop. Nothing in this world is permanent. Don’t leave with indifference or anger in your wake.

Memories

It was a great weekend. Nothing happened and maybe that’s why it was so great. We got lots of sleep (in fact, we missed a couple of doctor’s appointments, oops). Finally popped that champagne and we talked and laughed and had a great weekend. I think that sometimes we look to hard for memories. I know that I’ll treasure the memory of a rainy Tulsa night when we popped champagne to celebrate each other, new jobs, and new home. Standing at the back door, watching the rain pour down, leaning on my hubby. Memories are made of this.

The one discord in the weekend is that we went to Blockbuster. We can agree on movies at the theater. But Blockbuster. I actually picked one movie out-found an old Billy Bob Thornton movie I (we) hadn’t seen. Told Chris to pick one out. It would have been easier to pick out a country to bomb! Finally he picked up 16 Blocks. The Bruce Willis flick-nope I didn’t last. Watched fifteen minutes off it, rolled over (we made a pallet on the floor) and slept through it. Slept well, I might add.

Got great news on Wednesday-got the job I wanted at another hotel. I’ve left my note on my boss’ desk so she’ll get it when she gets in. Chris and I are both not sure what to expect. Will they let me finish my two weeks, beg me to stay till they find a replacement, get rid of me ASAP? What ever happens, I will be gone by November 26.

Chris is off the next couple of nights cause he’s gotta start taking some time off. So he’s delivering some cold pizza to me. Yeah. I’m gonna run. Ciao!

Entertainment News

Well I’ve got some entertainment news for y’all today. MSN has released news on upcoming releases for November, December, January. Decided to highlight some that I’m looking forward to seeing. A lot of these will go on Netflix for me but hopefully we’ll get to the cinema to see some of these.

A couple of passings to pass on to y’all. Ed Bradley passed away late this week. Bradley was a journalist on 60 Minutes. Also passing is Jack Palance. Palance did a lot of work but I remember him in City Slickers and the one arm push-ups on the Oscars that one year.

So lets talk movies. Most of my info has come from MSN and but you can visit IMDB to see what’s going to be coming out. So we will start with Bond.

Casino Royale is the first Ian Fleming novel to feature the 007 Agent and was made into a disastrous movie in 1967. Royale (circa 2006) features Daniel Craig in his first outing as the agent where he has to earn his right to kill (perhaps he’s only a 006). So Craig is a cutey with big blue eyes so I’ll go see it with the hubby when it comes out November 17th.

Rocky Balboa-wow. Somehow I managed to not see Rocky (it came out three years before I was born!). Somehow I’ve managed to avoid Rocky II, III, IV, and V. But I think the hubby wants to see this. It’s Rocky-lots of blood, boxing, come-back kid stuff. And it’s arriving just in time for the holidays- December 22.

Mel Gibson is back on December 8th. What the movie is about I couldn’t tell you from the trailers at the movie but the Internet says it’s about a young warrior not wanting to be a human sacrifice. I’m really not interested in this one. Come on, Mel, give us a warrior flick along the lines of We Were Soldiers or The Patriot.

Zodiac plays on something I enjoy watching: true crime. It’s based on the Zodiac killings in San Fran in the 60’s and 70’s. With Jake Gyllenhaal and Anthony Edwards this will be something I’ll be watching when the hubby is at work. Releases January 19th (possibility of that being pushed back to March).

Ashley Judd is returning to the big screen this winter and I’m still on the fence about Come Early Morning. It’s a chick flick and it could either be a total washout or something that turns out to be decent. It came out November 10th.

This is biopic season and this year is a political ‘pic. Bobby is about the last hours of Robert Kennedy.One of those pics you’ll recognize lots of faces in it and is directed by Emilio Estevez. Can’t wait to see this on the 17th of November.

Heath Ledger is back after playing a gay cowboy. This time he has a girl and they have a thing for heroin. Candy looks like it could be sex-n-drugs type of picture but I’m interested. It comes out November 17th also.

There’s a nativity story out this season and it’s not animated. The Nativity Story (how original) is about the journey to Bethlehem. I would like to see this one just not sure why. It drops December 1.

George Clooney, Toby Maguire, Cate Blanchett, and black and white filming. I’m interested. The title is The Good German comes out December 8th and is a murder mystery set in Berlin after WWII. Very interested in this one-but I think I’ll have to fly solo to see this.

Will Smith has a movie out December 15 but I think I’ll pass. I’m just not the biggest Smith fan. This one is called Pursuit of Happyness and is based on a true story of man making something of himself.

Good Shepherd looks very interesting to me. It’s directed by Robert DeNiro and has him, Matt Damon, Angelina Jolie, and Joe Pesci in it. It’s about the start of the CIA and is sorta based on a real guy. This definitely looks very promising and comes out December 22.

A football movie on the 22nd of December looks good. Based on a true story We Are Marshall stars Matthew McConaughey. The story is about rebuilding a college football team after a horrific plane crash. This is another one I want to really see.

On I’m not sure about (and that releases on Christmas Day) is the girl group saga Dreamgirls. Beyonce and Jaime Foxx are in this and it’s about a girl group in the 60’s hitting it big.

Cate Blanchett is in another film that drops on Christmas. Notes on a Scandal also stars Judi Dench. It’s about a teacher having an affair with one of her students. The subject matter doesn’t interest me but I really like Cate Blanchett.

Will Ferrell’s newest came out November 10th and I’m very interested. Stranger than Fiction looks like it will be a trip with Ferrell living a humdrum life that gets a little spice when he hears Emma Thompson’s voice narrating his life.

Christmas movie that opens on November 22 with Danny DeVito has caught my eye. Called Deck the Halls and it’s about one man and his mission to make his house visible from outer space. Yep, this one is right up my alley.

I actually want to go see a Ben Stiller movie. December 22 Night at the Museum releases and I can’t wait. Stiller plays a security guard at a museum where hijinks’s ensue. Looks like a good time.

Billy Bob Thornton has new one coming out called Mr Woodcock. Releases January 19th and he plays an evil gym teacher falling for someone in town. Gotta go see this one.

So that’s what is on my movie radar. Now I’m off to do some more work. Ciao!

Low Fat

For Chris’ health insurance we needed to get a him a physical/check up done. We got that accomplished this weekend. Also got blood and urine work up done, a chest x-ray, more test scheduled. Found out that he has high cholesterol so we’re on a low fat diet. Still trying to get info on that and find out exactly what needs to be done. Busy weekend.

When you think about it, going on a low fat diet is kind of perversely funny. I tend to avoid anything that says “low fat” in it because a) I am afraid it will taste awful and b) I’d think that I’m healthy as a horse. Well, we are healthy as a horse, but this horse has to start eating better. So now I get to hunt down all the “low fat” items that I can.

I’ve got a job interview tomorrow (today, whatever). Still not sure what to think of everything. It felt this way after I got the job at Comfort and hadn’t left Hampton yet. Sort of surreal and that everything was going better. Am I really leaving? Sooner or later, yes.

I ate just before I blogged and now I’m sleepy. Today I’ve got to hit the library. Didn’t get to it on my day’s off. I’ve got several things to get off of the hold shelf. Including some Anne Murray and Robert Randolf. Yes, my musical taste are eclectic.

Short post I know but I’m off. Ciao!

Hungry jokes

I am hungry-starvin’ Marvin hungry. I had a snack sized container of peaches before I went to bed. Then I was up at 600 pm cooking biscuits and gravy. Snacked on some cheese and crackers. Didn’t eat a lot of supper. Ate about a 1/4 of a brownie. That’s it today. No wonder I’m starved. I want a hamburger. Not a wimpy McD hamburger unless it’s a double quarter pounder. I want a half pound burger just falling off of it’s bun because it’s so big. And then the McD’s fries to round it out.

Speaking of food, tonight mom and dad are coming over for sup. Not sure if kids are coming but definitely the ‘rents. I’ve came up with an appetizer-garden dip in phyllo shells. Something I’m throwing together. Can’t wait till tonight. Gonna be good.

Can’t wait for the days off. Wednesday morn I have a meeting at work. Hopefully about an hour or so. So I’ve got to get up for that. Not a lot on the schedule. I need to set down and work on budget. Go over what we’ve got and where it needs to go. Chris needs an oil change. I would love to get a trim. We’re going to pop the cork on the champagne come hell or high water this weekend. For some reason I can just see Chris and I on the roof of our place with the bottle and glasses as water rises.

That reminds me of a bad joke-which I will of course share. Two ladies are on the roof of a house in the middle of a torrential downpour. The water has risen so that the house is flooded. But there’s a red ball cap going back and forth in lanes that they keep watching. Finally one lady looks to the other says, “I wonder what your hubby is doing?” And the other lady replies, “I told him come hell or high water he’s mowing the lawn this weekend.” Yeah, I did tell you bad joke.

Well, I don’t have much else to say. Can somebody make a quick run to Taco Bell? There’s one that’s open till 400 am on the weekends. Please? Okay, I’ll make it another three hours. On airplane peanuts and Runts, but I’ll make it.

Chat tomorrow. Ciao!