Something is terribly wrong with me. I keep getting sick. I should bel happy that it's only on weekend mornings, but waking up to nausea is not fun. I am feeling better... thanks for asking.
I woke up hoping the weather people were going to be made asses of again, but no such luck. How many inches is it?? I need to check on that. I knew it had snowed as soon as I woke up and my room was glowing from the reflection outside. Damn that Mother Nature!
I spent the entire day attempting to keep food down and I finished watching 'Walk The Line'. I love Joaquin Phoenix, but I had a hard time seeing Johnny Cash in him except, perhaps, in the Folsom Prison performance scene. I really don't know much about June Carter so I don't really have an opinion on Reese Witherspoon's performance. I had no idea that June Carter Cash wrote "Ring of Fire"! I love that song!
After the movie I finally got up the energy to go outside and dig out my car from the snow trench that the lovely city of Dayton buried it under. I knew that if I waited until morning I would be in trouble. When I walked out my backdoor to open the garage door I noticed a couple of animal tracks in the fresh snow. One looked like a chicken but I am assuming it wasn't since I am not aware of any wild chickens on the east side. The other was something I didn't recognize but I think it might be a chupacabra. I called Becky and she said perhaps it was a rabbit? Maybe all the noises I hear upstairs are wild chupacabra and not ghosts as I suspected??
Rabbit or Chupacabra??
So there I was at work... bitching endlessly about having to help out customer service on the phones. My shift was from 12pm to 2pm. I despise having to talk to patients on the phone about bills. They never call because they are happy and want to thank you... they usually call because they are mad and want to dispute something... not so much fun, really! I was so happy when 2pm rolled around. I started getting my junk together when I happened to look up at the receptionist desk. There was a man with a flower delivery and they happened to be one of my favorite flowers... stargazer lilies! I kind of hid behind the computer and kept on talking to Felica since I had a feeling that they might be for me.
They were.
So, I was totally embarrassed (in a good way, mind you) as I carried my beautiful flowers from the amazingly wonderful Justin, back to my desk. It was so sweet. My hands were trembling and I was trying not to cry. I don't think I worked much for the rest of the day. I mean, how can you really work when you have fabulous stargazer lilies on your desk and a silly smile on your face??
Tonight Becky and Pam took me to see Dreamgirls for my birthday. How is it that Jennifer Hudson didn't win American Idol? She has an amazing voice! I wasn't really impressed with the theater at the Greene. It was a Friday night and there was no food ready for patrons. I really wanted pretzel bites but there was a 22 minute wait on them! Have you ever heard of such a thing? Having to wait for food to cook at a movie theater? Also, the chairs became uncomfortable about an hour into the movie and I think the sound quality in the theater was lacking. I hope that this isn't a regular occurrence! I did like the movie, however. I was looking hard at Beyonce on the big screen for any slight imperfection and just couldn't find one. Ugh!
Well, it's 2:33 am and I am offically 38 years and 3 minutes old. In 1,051,197 minutes I will be 40! It seems like yesterday that I was crying to Devin on the phone when I turned 30! Hmmmm... gotta go look for new wrinkles or crows feet... thank God for photoshop!
I was sitting here waiting for Justin to pick me up and I started thinking about the movies last night. We were one of the first people to go into the theater. Soon after two girls came in and sat DIRECTLY behind us. At this point there were many, many seats to choose from including the middle section of several rows in front of us as well as several rows behind us. These girls chose to sit right behind us and I was almost tempted to turn around and ask them why? I think I would have chosen to perhaps skip a row so as not to be on top of other people. I would understand if the theater was filled, but it wasn't.
Can someone please explain this to me?
My Aunt Donna passed away on January 2nd from lung cancer. She is the third person in my family in four years time that died from a smoking related illness. Actually if want to be technical it's under four years because my Dad passed on February 3, 2003.
I don't get it.
I am sure I will NEVER get it. I have tried to understand and comprehend but it just doesn't make sense. Perhaps cigarette smoking is wonderful and tasty and maybe I am just missing the point. I know it's an addiction but I think I would certainly make every attempt possible to quit if I saw my loved ones suffer and literally beg for help the way I, and other family members, have seen in the last couple of years. Some people try... some just don't.
Enough of the soap box.
I was doing some thinking on the drive to Illinois about my Aunt Donna. You know how you hear stories growing up about certain things that happened and you actually begin to think you remember them happening but you know deep down that you couldn't possibly remember because you were too young? Well, there are a couple of stories like that about my Aunt.
When we my Mom and my Aunt got together it is inevitable that the story about me in the backseat comes up. Story has it that I was hanging on the front seat asking (for the millionth time) "are we there yet??" and Donna (who was driving) had just stepped on the break and I fell back and hit the back seat. She laughed uncontrollably and I ever-so-seriously said "It ain't funny Aunt Donna!" the other story is that we were at Six Flags in St. Louis and my Aunt wouldn't ride this horrible barrel ride... you know - the one that spins so fast it sucks everyone to the wall and then the floor drops about 5 feet? Yeah, I think I was five or six and she was in her late twenties or early thirties. I actually remember this happening and I was scared to death on that ride.
One of my favorite stories about Aunt Donna is when Mark and I went to Illinois (before continuing on our White Trash Tour to the Bridges of Madison County and down to Graceland) for Denise's wedding. Donna made me and mark stuff these horrible little crocheted baskets with candy for the wedding guests. We needed some coaxing so Donna brought out the Drambuie... then the other bottles of liquor that followed. We were drunk... all three of us... laughing, talking and crying (or as Mark calls it "boozers gloom") Around 6 am we heard a noise and Donna started laughing because it was the automatic coffee pot. It was time to get up. Uncle Dave came into the kitchen and he was not at all pleased. It was a rough day for Donna, being the Mother of the bride and all. I can't really say that Mark and I were ever good influences when we got together!
One summer Aunt Donna and Uncle Dave came to Charleston and they were dining at the Holiday Inn that overlooks the Charleston Harbor. Donna was amused that she saw dolphins swimming in the harbor and proceeded to ask the server what time they come up to feed... as if the ocean was Sea World! I think this is the same trip when we were headed to the beach and she stopped in the middle of the road because she saw there was a bridge ahead of her. She was afraid of bridges and made me drive from there. Apparently she wasn't aware that wherever you drive in Charleston there are bridges!
Then there were the green beans... At Denise's wedding to Mike there was this really weird guy who was a friend of my cousin Dave. We called him "Matrix". We were cleaning up the hall and he saw that Donna was going to throw away this huge bowl of green beans and he asked if he could have them. He handed her a plastic bag to put them in. Someone had taken all the utensils so Donna started grabbing handfuls of green beans and put them in the bag. I watched in horror, but Matrix said he was a hungry bachelor. I love that story.
She not only made me laugh, she also took care of me. When I moved to Illinois she hooked me up with a really cheap apartment. She and Uncle Dave loaned me money to fix my car when I was totally broke and my freeze plug decided to explode. She stayed with me at the hospital when I had my kidney stone surgery, took me home to her house to rest so I wouldn't be alone and let Linda stay with me while she went to get my prescription filled.
I could torture you all day with stories about Aunt Donna but I will spare you. In her high school yearbook the caption on her senior picture says this: "Loves to have fun and is loads of fun."
I would definitely agree with that.
When I was at my Aunt's funeral this weekend I didn't come prepared with tissues. I thought, for some strange reason, that I would be able to hold out and not cry. (Um, whatever!) Well, as soon as I walked in the door and saw her laid out, I was done. I turned to Peggy and asked her if she had a tissue. She held out what I think was a handkerchief and then went to the bathroom to get me some form of kleenex. The closest thing the church had to offer was those really hard folded hand towels - not very good for hard crying. I think I have abrasions on my face from it.
So, all of this got me thinking about how nice it would have been to have a nice, soft handkerchief of my own. I have never thought of owning one... I mean, it's kind of old fashioned, no? I don't think I would ever use it for nose blowing or anything like that because that is kind of nasty. I have been to more funerals than I care to go to and I always have tissues that crumble and fall apart. I think I need an monogrammed one... don't you think?
I became so curious that I googled the word "handkerchief" - actually to be honest, I spelled it wrong at first. Who knew it had a "d" in it?? I clicked on the Wikipedia link and learned a little more about my new obsession. Who knew there was such a debate going on about hygiene?? I scrolled down to the section that says "See also" and the item "Handkerchief code" caught my eye. Um, whoa. Carpenter Sex?? Ponyism?? Sitophilia?? Definitely worth the click for all you perv's...
Now... I'm not even sure what color I should get!! Something so simple is all too confusing! Do these rules count for women, also??
