Spare Change

Mr. A is running for class representative. If elected, he’ll be an ambassador for his school at many community events… among other duties. To keep it from being a complete popularity vote there are three criteria for electing the rep: student votes, teacher recommendations, and how much money the applicants can raise for the school scholarship fund. The applicants are required to carry a donation can around school and can only ask money from fellow students. (Images of Ferris Bueller's Day Off are going through my head.)

Last night Mr. A asked for my creative help. Naturally, he shot down my first idea. But he liked my second idea and we ran with it. We decided to do a parody on the Obama “hope” poster design and his one-word-slogan “Change”. Can I take a moment to tell you just how much that one-word-slogan annoyed the daylights out of me! But I digress.

I’ve seen many renditions of the Obama graphic treatment online and thought that there must be some kind of filter available to modify our own photo. After looking for a while, I got frustrated, gave up, and decided to do it by hand in PhotoShop. It only took me about 30 minutes. But as soon as I was finished, Mr. A came in with a photo of himself that he ran through a filter he found online. Argh! I proceeded to throw small stationery items at him for not telling me what he found. So we ran the photo I used through the filter and we decided that we liked my job in PS better. At least I hope that Mr. A likes my version better and not afraid that I would throw the stapler at him next.

I wonder how many of his classmates will get the joke…

How do your panties travel?

First of all, I can't believe that I'm posting this blog...

I saw this ad in a rather high-end magazine and burst out laughing. Why do my panties need separate luggage??? I completely grasp the concept of the fem-tote and love the idea. But the panty pouch just makes me giggle.

If you would like more info, check out their website: Intimate Apparel Solutions

The Danish Furniture Saga

Around 1960 when my parents bought their first house they also bought some affordable, contemporary Danish furniture. Nowadays, this type of furniture is referred to as Mid-Century Modern Danish. If it had never been used, it'd be worth a fortune! Instead it has been a part of my family.

Some how over the past 50 years this set of one sofa and two arm chairs has survived: numerous moves, myself and my older siblings, 15 years in my sister's possession (barely), and now it's in its latest incarnation in our living room.

Below is a pictorial journey...

The baby in the above photos is my older brother (again). My grandmother is on the left and the leggy redhead on the right is my Mom! The sofa was originally russet with navy blue stripes. The arm chairs were teal with navy stripes.

When my sister bought her first house, my parents had the Danish furniture re-upholstered and gave it to her. She had it for 15 years. Two years ago, my Mom and I made a 20-hour round trip to North Carolina to pick-up the furniture my sister no longer wanted. The above photos somewhat show the condition of the pieces. I have no idea what happened to the back cushions. My Sweetie re-glued the arms of the chairs, replaced the jute strapping that my nieces broke while using the sofa as a trampoline, and buffed the crayon off the wood. But you can still see some lovely artwork on the above cushion. I can't even begin to explain how the cushions smelled.

For two years the wooden frames were disassembled and stacked off in our bedroom. I wanted new cushions but I went back and forth about the expense. I knew that I wanted ultra-suede but couldn't afford it. Then one day my Mom and I found the most beautiful aubergine ultra-suede on sale! Instead of $50/yard I paid $3.50/yard. That's right, for the price of one yard I bought 13 yards! I saved so much money that I was able to have the cushions professionally sewn. Yeah!!!! I picked-up the cushions today and above is the finished product.

Baby Faces

While looking through some old family photo albums at my father's birthday party this evening, I came across the photo on the right of my older brother. I was blown away by how much Mr. A. looked like his uncle at the same age. I also got goosebumps because I had just picked the photo on the left at random the other day to post on my blog.

Fair is Fair

Last week I posted a cute photo of G-Man as a baby. As anyone with more than one child knows, what you do for one, you have to do for all. This week is a photo of Mr. A. when he was ll months old.

Unwanted Voicemails

Somewhere in the world a Ms. Carmen Menendez is having financial difficulties. She’s also bilingual. How do I know this? Because she has given out my cell phone number to all of her creditors. For a few weeks I’ve received up to five voicemails per day and some of them in Spanish. Obviously, the people calling for Ms. Carmen didn’t listen to my greeting or just thought I was fibbing about my name.

I resorted to leaving a rather lengthy greeting on my voicemail. The good news is that all of the unwanted phone calls have stopped within a week! I really couldn’t believe that it worked so fast! If you have a similar problem, you’d might want to try something like the following message:

“This is Pines Lake Redhead’s voicemail. If you are a telemarketer, please hang-up and remove this number from your list. If you are calling for anyone other than Pines Lake Redhead, please hang-up and remove this number from your list. Pines Lake Redhead no habla Español. If you would like to leave a message for Pines Lake Redhead, please do so after the beep.”

Of course, you may want to use your own name. :-)

How a 3-yr-old Selects a Restaurant

This is an actual conversation with an actual 3-yr-old...

Child: Mommy, I want to go to Outback Steakhouse.

Mom: Okaaaay, why?

Child: Because they don't have rules there!

The Facebook Experiment

I work the marketing field at a non-profit. Just like everyone else, we've experienced budget cuts. Unfortunately though, our budget was pretty slim to start with already. Since we would like to attract a larger audience of 25-40 year olds, we decided to look into more social marketing... ie: Facebook, YouTube, blogs, etc...

I apologize if I'm boring everyone but I love this stuff.

It was decided that we would each start a Facebook page, network with as many people as possible and try to direct them to our website. What a flop!

First of all, I found Facebook very un-user-friendly at the beginning. I cursed the creators. It's about as easy to use as the Apple software I need to update my iPod. But just as with the iPod, I got used to it (I'm still a PC girl at heart). When I asked my 15-year-old son for help in setting up my page, he replied with, "Facebook? Who uses Facebook?" At least then I knew that we had the correct target age group.

Once you get set-up in Facebook it's like a vortex that sucks you in. It becomes addictive and you could spend all day playing in it. I did reconnect with some people from high school and the military so that was a bonus. One major thing I disliked that if you wanted to use many of the applications, you had to consent to let Facebook share your personal information limitless. WTF? Definitely not!

My original goal was to use Facebook daily for one month. Then I changed my deadline to two weeks. I planned to go around the Museum grounds with my personal camera and create a photo album on Facebook. My thinking was that people would see the photos of the fabulously beautiful location and would want to learn more.

I haven't bothered with the photos yet. I may still do them but I'm not in a hurry now. After one week I had 25 "friends" and 15 of them were co-workers! The age group was right but still not the target audience we were looking for.

Conclusion: I plan to stick with my blog and check back on Facebook occasionally.

Swing for the Pure Joy of Swinging

It's been another looooooong week. I won't bore you with the details. Also, instead of complaining about it, I'd rather post this cute photo of G-Man when he was about 7 months old. The sheer joy on his face is enough to make anyone smile.

25 Random Things

I'd rather post this here than on Facebook. Twenty-five random things about myself:

1. My favorite food is birthday cake.
2. I like Carvel ice cream cakes simply for the chocolate crunchies between the layers.
3. I loved climbing trees as a child.
4. The mention of eyeballs or kneecaps gives me the willies.
5. My husband is the love of my life.
6. I'm extremely proud of our sons.
7. I love saying "our sons".
8. I love being a mom.
9. I try not to pay retail.
10. I've never purchased an impractical handbag. But I want to.
11. I'm more comfortable in the water than on dry land.
12. I was a lifeguard for 5 years.
13. I've had skin cancer.
14. I've never left the North American continent.
15. If water, hot black tea, and Coca-Cola were the only beverages on the planet, I'd be content.
16. I can memorize color, even though science says it isn't possible.
17. I'm more afraid of a gator attack than a shark attack.
18. I've been mistaken for my teenage son's sister more than once.
19. I've been in business meetings with people dressed as clowns.
20. I love buying stationery, journals, and books just for the feel of the paper.
21. If I won the lottery, I would donate our current house to my favorite charity.
22. I sing along to the radio - the kids have finally learned that asking me to stop doesn't work.
23. The scent of honeysuckle reminds me of my childhood.
24. While listening to my iPod, I like to dance - even at work.
25. I've been carded for alcohol as recently as 2 months ago.

Blog Lurkers

You know who you are.

Friends and family members visit my blog each day. Sometimes they email or phone me to comment. Most of them haven't grasped the concept of posting a comment on the actual blog. Then there are fellow bloggers like Uncommon Blonde who do comment and provide sympathy (thank you!). There are also the visitors who are just passing through.

But right now I'm talking about people who visit a blog, spend some time reading what I spent some of my time writing, and then move on. It's kind of like the magazines in the grocery store check-out. If you're passing through a blog, it's like glancing at the magazine covers. However, spending some time in a blog and not leaving a post is akin to reading the magazine while in line then putting it back in the rack.

I only mention this because I had more than 50 visits to my blog yesterday. That's a lot for me. If my x-rays were truly that interesting, then I wish more people would let me know!!!!

I'm sure there must be some blog etiquette. But I don't know what it is. I'll have to check with Emily.

Screwed In Tight

Today was my 6-month post-op with Dr. S. for my spinal fusion. Technically, it's been 7 months.

Everything looks perfect! I've included some scans of my x-rays that were taken today. I've marked the implant (via the XLIF procedure) located between the L4 and L5 vertebra. On the second image I also marked my bra clasped (it took me a second to figure it out when I saw it). To give you some perspective the rods are 6 inches long. Not sure how long the screws are but there are six of them.

Dr. S. said that I've been a very good patient and I don't need to go back for 6 months. Yeah!

So now that you can see the pictures, do I get extra sympathy????

Love is All You Need

My 18-yr-old niece recommended that I watch Across the Universe, a musical love story set during the civil unrest of 1968 to the backdrop of Beatles tunes. I immediately thought several things to include: a) The Beatles are highly overrated and b) What does an 18-yr-old know about good music???

When I finally stopped making assumptions I remembered that this is my brother's child and therefore, via genetics has excellent taste in music. So I gave the movie a try when I noticed it was playing on cable. I absolutely love, love, love this movie!!! The next day I bought the full soundtrack and DVD.

The film is beautifully done. The music is "adjusted" a tad bit to lend itself more to the storyline and all the actors do their own singing. I will admit that the war protests and the drug references make me uncomfortable simply because those two things go against my very nature. But that time period can't be accurately depicted without either one of those things.

That's when I had my realization... All my life I've thought the Beatles overrated. Now I know it's because of the the war protests and drugs. Those two things aren't a part of me but the rest of the Beatles music is. While watching the movie (or listening to the soundtrack) I know almost every word to every song. I was a baby when they broke up but their music has been with me all my life.

The movie is fun to watch. It's like one big music video. I won't let the boys watch the whole thing because of the drug references and some slight nudity. But I did let them watch Bono sing "I am the Walrus". Big mistake. If I hear "Goo goo g'joob", one more time I may scream.

Below is the link to watch the trailer on IMDB. Sorry, I haven't firgured out how to insert video clips into my blogs yet.

http://www.imdb.com/video/screenplay/vi95748377/

If It Wasn't So Funny, It'd Be Wrong

Still on the movie theme... there are so many good, funny movies in the world. But to date I only know of two movies that contain scenes that make me laugh until my side hurts just by thinking about them.

Until recently, there was only one movie that had that effect on me. But over Christmas break I discovered another movie that has a scene of the same comedic caliber.

I was astonished to realize and now slightly ashamed to admit that both movie scenes achieve humor at the expense of an animal (a Hollywood stunt animal I might add!). Please don't judge me too harshly...

1. National Lampoon's Christmas Vacation - Everyone knows this is my 2nd favorite Christmas movie of all time. The entire movie is hilarious! But the sequence of scenes with the cat is priceless. I have seen this movie many times over the years and I still laugh just as hard each time. I highly recommend this movie... except maybe to cat-lovers.

2. Mummy 3 - I bought this movie on impulse to watch on New Year's Eve with the kids. It's a lousy movie. If it weren't for the dignified & graceful Michelle Yeoh, it would be an awful movie. If it weren't for Geraldine the Yak, it would be a humorless movie. Who puts a yak on an airplane anyway???? (Trying not to laugh while I type). I tried to find a clip on YouTube but couldn't and I'm not techsavy enough to pull a clip from the DVD. I'm not suggesting that you run out and rent the Mummy 3 at all. But it you happen to stumble across it while channel-surfing, look for Geraldine. Wendy, you will love Geraldine!

Movies That Make Me Cry

While I was sick for a week I had plenty of time to sleep and think of blogs that I want to write. I have about half a dozen rolling around my brain and I just need to pace myself.

I have come to the realization that a lot of movies make me cry. Oh sure, there are the usual suspects: Out of Africa, Bridges of Madison County, The English Patient, and any movie that shows a coffin draped in an American flag.

But then there are the unexpected movies that make me cry. Are you ready?

1. Gladiator - Yes, the blood & guts action movie. But at the end when Maximus defeats the evil emperor, rights all wrongs, dies and is reunited with his family in Elysium I sob so hard that I can barely breathe. Granted there is the inconsistency that Elysium is Greek and Maximus was a Roman general.

2. Armageddon - Voted one of the most scientifically inaccurate movies of all time. Anyway, when Bruce Willis' character says good-bye to his daughter (Liv Tyler) tears stream down my face.

3. The Chronicles of Narnia: The Lion, The Witch and The Wardrobe - When I saw this movie in the theater with the boys I was not expecting the opening sequence. I didn't stop to think that the director needed to set the stage of WWII London for modern-day audiences. So I was a bit confused when I saw German bombers on the screen. As a mother, the first six minutes of that movie are agony! First of all, how did anyone survive four years of the London bombing? The poor mother. Her husband is serving in the military. She's home alone with four children and has to get them in the bunker when the sirens start. The next scene they're at the train station and she's sending all four of her children off to a stranger in the country for their own safety. She doesn't know if she will live to see them again and she has to do it all with "a stiff upper lip".

Do I cry too much? My Sweetie says I'm empathic. I just think I'm a sap.

You Made Me Cry

My dearest friend, the Divine Miss M, doesn't post on my blog. But she reads it every day and emails her thoughts. Today was too good not to share...

i saw your blog this morning and just starting crying what a great picture. its amazing how much you look like your mom. seeing your face reminds me how much i miss you and dont get to see you. I do love you though and miss you a great big bunch. M

Pleasant Surprise

It's been a long week. I've been sick since last Friday and G-Man has been sick for the past two days. I could go on with my list of woes but I'd much rather show you this photo of my mother and I. My Sweetie must have snapped it this past summer when I made my first outing to the beach after my back surgery.

Bless Your Heart Wednesday

Welcome to "Bless Your Heart Wednesday" as created by Seven Chicks.

You want to know what brand of hair color I use... my hair is natural... Bless your heart.

You think it's a shame that I cut my hair so short... I donated it to Locks of Love... Bless your heart.

You think working at an art museum is stressful? Try commercial real estate... Bless your heart.

Yes, both my husband and I have full-time jobs... that we enjoy... Bless your heart.

No, I don't have a cleaning lady... Bless your heart.

You may make more money than I do but my children have manners... Bless your heart.

Don't tell me that I should shop at Wal-Mart because Publix and Target are too expensive... Bless your heart.

Don't whine to me about being on a tight budget... I was a military wife for 5 years with two babies... Bless your heart.

That's enough for one week. God bless us all!

No Ballet for Me

Apparently, the football gods are more powerful than the ballet gods. Rather than going to the ballet tonight, I'm at home with bronchitis and 102 fever. My Sweetie and the boys are watching the "big game" and I'm trying very hard not to pay attention. My mother, on the other hand, is taking my very reluctant father to the ballet.

Note to self: don't ever mock the Super Bowl again.