I have learned, if there is any activity coming from my husband's office, it's in both of our best interest if I just stay away. Some men have a garage, some men have a workshop. My husband has his "office". Yes, there is computer equipment, a couple of desktops, a server of sorts, and the last time I was in there, I counted 4 monitors. But this is so much more than a typical office...I think this fact really resonated with me when I watched him, clad in his Dickies cover-alls, baseball cap slightly askew and safety glasses firmly in place, walk through the living room, with handsaw and shop vac in tow, headed with a mission to the office. Quite certainly this piqued my interest...what in the sam hell could he possibly be doing now??
His "desk" is actually an old dining room table, and a good sized one, but you wouldn't know this because there's not one single bare spot on the "desk"...it's completely covered with paper, wires, cables, tools, a wide variety of nuts, bolts, all types of items in various stages of assembly or disrepair...I dare not think of cleaning or straightening up the desk "I know exactly where everything is like this" is his reply when I even mention it. "I might need that 'specto-graph-topographlic-meter' when I'm fixin' something" is his reasoning for keeping things the way they are. And believe me, when he's looking for something around the house, I say a quiet, pleading prayer that he doesn't ask me to go look for it in the office...I'm seriously afraid that if I go in the office, I might not find my way back out. I think the wall calendar is still on February....
One thing you must know about my Marcus is his unwavering determination...when he is on a mission, come hell or high water, he's going to complete it. This can be both a blessing and a curse. Case in point, the time he had the entire door of my car completely apart and splayed out on the driveway, in exact placement so it resembled the schematics of the manual, piece by piece, all to replace the door handle. Yes, I have a new door handle and the "left-over" parts were immediately placed on the desk...for when he might need them to fix something else.
Yesterday, I was truly impressed with his "southern ingenuity" and sheer determination. When his iPhone met its demise Sunday, my husband immediately went on "defcon level 1 office mission" to get a working phone. I'm not exactly sure what he did, like I said, I tend to steer clear of that side of the house when he is in "fix-it" mode. But I do know, after finding an old Razor phone, some finagling with a paperclip, asking me for an earring back (the small, circular, rubbery kind) and his soldering iron, he now has a working phone. MacGyver would be jealous!!! The look on my husband's face was amazing! He was so proud of his handiwork. Smile beaming from ear to ear, "I'll be damned, I fixed the phone!"
Looking at my husband at that moment made me realize how proud I am of HIM! If anything around the house breaks, he finds a way to fix it. I love the way he finds a way to figure out what is wrong, how it works and what it takes to fix it. He truly enjoys figuring out electrical things like a puzzle then putting his knowledge to use and repairing them. And I enjoy watching him accomplish his missions with such pride and joy. When he goes in that office, I know he's doing something he enjoys and is helpful around the house. I wouldn't change a thing about his office...except maybe the calendar.
Tuesday, August 28, 2012
Wednesday, August 15, 2012
This here's gonna be a rant for sure...
Please, someone, tell me when it became ok to not have simple manners? Here are some examples of very small instances where I think people should have common courtesy...and Emily Post would most definitely agree with me, if not smack someone for committing any one of these offenses:
1. It's common courtesy to wait for all passengers to exit an elevator before stepping in...when you come barging in before everyone's had a chance to get out, you are one giant road block. You've already waited a whole 7 seconds for the doors to open, another 5 isn't going to ruin your day. And if it does, just go the hell home, go back to bed and start over tomorrow...
2. It should be illegal to prepare or reheat any form of tuna in a community break room, especially at lunch time. Other people might be trying to eat their less offensive smelling lunch. If you must have a large intake of protein due to exercise or special diet...chicken, pork or even turkey have the exact same amount of protein per serving..common courtesy is an understatement here, even if that smeller below your eyes doesn't work, other peoples' do!
3. This goes without saying, but talking on your cell phone in a public restroom is not only rude, it's tacky and gross!! For this one, I have come up with a clever little "intrusion" to these "potty talks"...when I'm the victim of this and I don't care how many stalls separate me & the offender (public bathrooms are large and do echo..) I just start flushing...whether I'm done or not...flush, flush, flush, flush...one right after the other. It usually only takes about 4 or 5 flushes for the person to get the hint and hang up!
4. All I'm going to say here: farting in a yoga or pilates class (I swear I apologized immediately and profusely!!)
5. If you are in an occupation that requires you to communicate or associate with a paying patron or in a government role that requires you deal with HUMAN lifeforms just trying to pay a ticket or some other government taxation....remember just that...we are HUMANS too...if you don't like dealing with people with a somewhat pleasant attitude, I'm sure there are more acceptable jobs for your attitude, like cleaning the bathrooms at Taco Bell...
6. Finally, if you are in such a hurry that you have to cut across 3 lanes of traffic, to turn left and not wait in the line at the light, like the rest of us, you should have left the house earlier and be prepared for what may happen!!! This moron lady acted sooooo shocked when she did this to me! I saw her coming, so I slammed my 4x4 3/4 ton Chevy dually into 3rd gear, floored it and squealed my tires, which "accidentally" caused me to t-bone her stupid little Prius, skidding her about 63 feet down the road...Ok, that didn't really happen, I drive a Mini Cooper at present....but I damn sure thought about it and you bet your sweet ass she deserved both "fingers" I had to show her, plus the colorful names I was calling her!
Whew, I feel better...thanks for letting me vent. I'll be the first to tell you I am not perfect - but I do have common courtesy toward others and I always try to display as such. And, while I'm still searching for another pilates class, I make it a point to treat people the way I want to be treated, it's common courtesy!!
Monday, August 13, 2012
Maybe Wendy's and Gain could sponsor me....
Ok, this is probably the best idea I've had in a while...so hear me out! I am a baseball girl, through & through! I'm a very loyal Houston Astros fan, despite the fact my husband has put a hex on them this season...something about I don't have to watch every single game, something about they play 160+ games a season and I can miss one or two..blah blah blah... Some may consider watching baseball on TV pointless and boring. I can see how non-baseball people might feel that way. The game on TV certainly doesn't have the same "energy buzz" that can actually be felt at a ballpark. At a ball park, there's a certain camaraderie between strangers, albeit fellow fans, that causes hugs and high-fives for everyone when a Grand Slam is cracked over the back wall. Not to mention, the smell of stale, warm beer, mixed with warmed peanuts and hot dogs. Or that one obnoxiously annoying fan who spends most of the game trying to get the rest of the crowd of 30,000+ to chant "Let's-Go-As-tros!!" at the top of her lungs. Ok, I only did that the one time and I'll have you know, by the middle of the 7th inning, I had most of my new fan-friends joined in with me and I'll also have you know I was not "ejected" from that particular game! I am a baseball girl! I do love going to the games and have been to see my boys play at Minute Maid park about a bajillion times.
Now, here's my glorious idea - and I think this will make Wendy's Hamburgers and Gain detergent boat loads of money. Since they have yet to contact me to pay me for the blatant product placement advertising in my earlier post this should be very appealing to them!
I want to experience a baseball game in every MLB ballpark in the US. There's only 30 of them, 29 if you take out Minute Maid park. Wait, that's the Astros park, so I better go to that one too... Wendy's and Gain can sponsor my little tour of the diamonds...ooohh, ooohh, that's what I'll call it, "Lara's Tour of the Diamonds" by paying for travel and tickets to the game.. I'll even put together a small entourage (my husband and our dog Lola :) who will be our mascot.) In return for their sponsorship - I will make it a point to wear logo laden clothing while holding up the biggest possible signs, doing what else? Advertising their products!! I will try my hardest at every game to get the announcers to interview me & Marcus as "fans of the GAIN" "or fans of the fries" (see what I did there ;-) ) Now we couldn't possibly hit up all 30 stadiums in one season, so we'll most likely have to sign a two season contract...one season for Wendy's and one for Gain...I'd bet my fancy luggage it would cost them less than one billboard, in one town for one month. I mean, how many different people actually read those things anymore? This is guaranteed exposure to millions! I'll even come up with a chant or two...and once I convince Marcus to help me chant, I'm sure we'll have at least TWO sections join in by the 6th inning! Ahhh...baseball, french fries and clean smelling clothes...I can see it now!
Now, here's my glorious idea - and I think this will make Wendy's Hamburgers and Gain detergent boat loads of money. Since they have yet to contact me to pay me for the blatant product placement advertising in my earlier post this should be very appealing to them!
I want to experience a baseball game in every MLB ballpark in the US. There's only 30 of them, 29 if you take out Minute Maid park. Wait, that's the Astros park, so I better go to that one too... Wendy's and Gain can sponsor my little tour of the diamonds...ooohh, ooohh, that's what I'll call it, "Lara's Tour of the Diamonds" by paying for travel and tickets to the game.. I'll even put together a small entourage (my husband and our dog Lola :) who will be our mascot.) In return for their sponsorship - I will make it a point to wear logo laden clothing while holding up the biggest possible signs, doing what else? Advertising their products!! I will try my hardest at every game to get the announcers to interview me & Marcus as "fans of the GAIN" "or fans of the fries" (see what I did there ;-) ) Now we couldn't possibly hit up all 30 stadiums in one season, so we'll most likely have to sign a two season contract...one season for Wendy's and one for Gain...I'd bet my fancy luggage it would cost them less than one billboard, in one town for one month. I mean, how many different people actually read those things anymore? This is guaranteed exposure to millions! I'll even come up with a chant or two...and once I convince Marcus to help me chant, I'm sure we'll have at least TWO sections join in by the 6th inning! Ahhh...baseball, french fries and clean smelling clothes...I can see it now!
Sunday, August 12, 2012
Where the hell is my entourage?
The house lights go dark, a hush falls over the comfortably stoned crowd as the remnants of their "left-handed cigarettes" waft up to the rafters....The spot lights dart back and forth across the coliseum..."Ladies and Gentlemen...." and now the crowd lets loose a deafening roar..."please welcome LARA....." OR...."And the Oscar goes to...Lara!!" wooooooohhhoooooo!!
These were the dreams of my youth. By God, I was going to be famous, come hell or high water. When I was about 10, my mother bought me this bamboo style yellow bedroom furniture, complete with a canopy bed, which had tall posts to accommodate the canopy. How glamorous I felt in that canopy bed! When I had outgrown the canopy and grown into the delusion of being a rock star or A-list actress, the canopy came down and I somehow rigged a tennis racket tied with a shoe string on one of the posts to serve as my "microphone on a stand." Lord, the songs I used to belt out on that microphone, "Landslide" (the original one by Fleetwood Mac,) pretty much anything by Pat Benetar and even "Oh Mickey" by Toni Basil...the one that goes "oh Mickey, you're so fine, you're so fine you blow my mind, HEY Mickey, HEY Mickey." I'm sorry, but you will probably have that one stuck in your noggin for the next day or two and I gladly accept the curses you will send my way :)
There's no telling how many "acceptance speeches" I proudly proclaimed into that microphone: "First, I owe a world of thanks to my amazing agent, Rick Springfield..." because in those days he had transformed from Dr. Noah Drake on GH into my agent and the actors who played Bo & Hope from Days of our Lives along with Luke & Laura from GH were my best friends.
My point is, I had the moves of a singing sensation and the prolific prose of a great actress, I just knew I was going to rocket to stardom...complete with jet setting trips all over the world, with my entourage dutifully in tow, ready to grant my every whim & wish...like strawberries sliced just perfectly to sink snuggly to the bottom curve of the crystal champagne flute, which is filled with Dom and just a splash of OJ (mostly for color.) Or to tell me how amazing my portrayal of Jayne Mansfield was in my latest Oscar-worthy adaptation...
Fast forward 30 years and here I am...the only thankful acceptance speech I've given lately was to the lady at AutoZone for telling my husband which spark plugs were best for my car. That whole story will be written about too, I'm sure - so stay tuned for that one!
Here I am, about to transfer money to my daughter to buy a mattress for the new bedroom furniture she bought herself, for the new house she just moved into for her Junior year of college. Here I am, looking at pictures of my youngest she's just posted to FB, thinking "she's certainly not using the correct SPF level of sunscreen for a lifeguard who is in the sun all day, every day" because she has a rich, golden tan that accentuates her blond hair beautifully...Here I am, pausing my poignant pontificating so I can run to the office to play my husband's turn at Farkle so his brother in Denton doesn't beat him while he finishes up a chore I asked him to do last Tuesday.
And then it hits me: "Where the hell is MY entourage??" This is not what I had planned!!! This is actually better than what I had planned. I have the best life I could have ever dreamed! I love the fact that the only spot lights I need are the ones we have to bust out to go find Lola when she escapes to terrorize the kids down the road. Not to mention that my actual singing talent is best left to when I'm in the car, alone....with NO ONE around to hear me. I'd bet my fancy luggage that if you ever heard me sing, you would agree, without a moment's hesitation.
I don't have an entourage. I have a FAMILY!!! One that makes me so proud I can barely breath. One kid smart & responsible enough to be at A&M, one smart & responsible enough to be trusted with people's lives and a husband who actually helps out around the house. Entourage, smontourage...I love my family and I love my simple, Houdini chihuahua chasing life. Who cares that the mimosa is in a mason jar and that I forgot to get strawberries at the grocery store :)
These were the dreams of my youth. By God, I was going to be famous, come hell or high water. When I was about 10, my mother bought me this bamboo style yellow bedroom furniture, complete with a canopy bed, which had tall posts to accommodate the canopy. How glamorous I felt in that canopy bed! When I had outgrown the canopy and grown into the delusion of being a rock star or A-list actress, the canopy came down and I somehow rigged a tennis racket tied with a shoe string on one of the posts to serve as my "microphone on a stand." Lord, the songs I used to belt out on that microphone, "Landslide" (the original one by Fleetwood Mac,) pretty much anything by Pat Benetar and even "Oh Mickey" by Toni Basil...the one that goes "oh Mickey, you're so fine, you're so fine you blow my mind, HEY Mickey, HEY Mickey." I'm sorry, but you will probably have that one stuck in your noggin for the next day or two and I gladly accept the curses you will send my way :)
There's no telling how many "acceptance speeches" I proudly proclaimed into that microphone: "First, I owe a world of thanks to my amazing agent, Rick Springfield..." because in those days he had transformed from Dr. Noah Drake on GH into my agent and the actors who played Bo & Hope from Days of our Lives along with Luke & Laura from GH were my best friends.
My point is, I had the moves of a singing sensation and the prolific prose of a great actress, I just knew I was going to rocket to stardom...complete with jet setting trips all over the world, with my entourage dutifully in tow, ready to grant my every whim & wish...like strawberries sliced just perfectly to sink snuggly to the bottom curve of the crystal champagne flute, which is filled with Dom and just a splash of OJ (mostly for color.) Or to tell me how amazing my portrayal of Jayne Mansfield was in my latest Oscar-worthy adaptation...
Fast forward 30 years and here I am...the only thankful acceptance speech I've given lately was to the lady at AutoZone for telling my husband which spark plugs were best for my car. That whole story will be written about too, I'm sure - so stay tuned for that one!
Here I am, about to transfer money to my daughter to buy a mattress for the new bedroom furniture she bought herself, for the new house she just moved into for her Junior year of college. Here I am, looking at pictures of my youngest she's just posted to FB, thinking "she's certainly not using the correct SPF level of sunscreen for a lifeguard who is in the sun all day, every day" because she has a rich, golden tan that accentuates her blond hair beautifully...Here I am, pausing my poignant pontificating so I can run to the office to play my husband's turn at Farkle so his brother in Denton doesn't beat him while he finishes up a chore I asked him to do last Tuesday.
And then it hits me: "Where the hell is MY entourage??" This is not what I had planned!!! This is actually better than what I had planned. I have the best life I could have ever dreamed! I love the fact that the only spot lights I need are the ones we have to bust out to go find Lola when she escapes to terrorize the kids down the road. Not to mention that my actual singing talent is best left to when I'm in the car, alone....with NO ONE around to hear me. I'd bet my fancy luggage that if you ever heard me sing, you would agree, without a moment's hesitation.
I don't have an entourage. I have a FAMILY!!! One that makes me so proud I can barely breath. One kid smart & responsible enough to be at A&M, one smart & responsible enough to be trusted with people's lives and a husband who actually helps out around the house. Entourage, smontourage...I love my family and I love my simple, Houdini chihuahua chasing life. Who cares that the mimosa is in a mason jar and that I forgot to get strawberries at the grocery store :)
Saturday, August 11, 2012
Sweet Lord, I want waffle fries dipped in mayonnaise.
For those of you who know me, know that french fries are my weakness, my all time, without a doubt favorite food. I'm normally a "Wendy's" patron because of their thick, natural cut french fries sprinkled with just the right amount of course sea salt which are melt in your mouth crazy good when they are almost too hot to eat..(my mouth just watered a bit.)
Ok, now that most of the poop about Chik-fil-a has died down, I can say, without fear of retaliation, or God FORBID, someone "de-friending" me on FB, that I desperately want waffle fries and I want to dip them in mayonnaise!!! There, I said it...it doesn't matter that I haven't actually ordered, let alone eaten, waffle fries dipped in mayo in probably 17 years, back when I thought it would be cool to be like the British with "fish & chips".
Do you want to know why I said it?? Because ever since this shit storm started, that's all I've been able to think about!! I drive by a CFA and damn near have to wreck my car to keep from going through the drive thru...for waffle fries & mayo!
HUGE props or kuddos or high-fives or whatever to whomever at CFA saw this as the marketing pinnacle of excellence that it is and ran with it!!! That person deserves some kind of award.
Never have I felt so compelled to buy from a company...EVER...and not for the reasons being fought in the media. I have my personal beliefs about equality and I have my business beliefs about how a company should market their products. Basically, let people be who they are, live their lives and if they happen to do something you don't like, just remember YOU are also doing something someone, somewhere doesn't like. If they aren't harming anyone, what harm is there in letting them live, the way they want to...just like you do. I also believe companies are in business to make money, plain and simple. If CFA didn't want to make money, they would have been out of business years ago. As a business, they have that right. When a company wants to make money, they market a certain product to the majority demographic appeal that product was created for. For example, I see a lot of commercials for laundry detergent, house hold cleaners and such when I'm watching Lifetime network...because the audience seeing those commercials on that particular channel are the ones who will purchase those items during next week's trip to the grocery store. I just love how the Gain detergent commercials are so bright, and sunny and just look so fun and outdoors-y...guess what type of laundry detergent I use?? :) Lord help me if "smell-o-vision" ever makes its way to mainstream commercials in the average household.
Here's the difference with CFA - this didn't just market one special style of sandwich or salad - this episode marketed the ENTIRE company. This had people talking about the company as a whole for weeks. I'd be willing to bet my fancy luggage, if you pulled reports on sales, CFA probably saw a huge spike in revenue during this time! And you know what the sheer genius about it was?? It did NOT COST CFA a single dime. That's right - they sold, not one special sandwich marketed to a certain age group, but their entire product line probably saw a increase in sales, which of course is an huge increase in profit because they didn't have pay for it! I'm sure they lost some business...but my point is, (and it's just me I'm talking about here, because I don't have the right to speak anyone else's point) before any of this happened, I wouldn't have thought of waffle fries. Now, I'm thinking I want waffle fries. I'll always remain true to my first fries love with Wendy's, but I'm thinking about buying waffle fries, which will probably lead to me buying waffle fries...I'll skip the mayo because I think mayo is just down right gross (have you ever seen what happens to mayo when it's left out in the sun & heat...blahhhGAG!!!!) In the end, I'm buying what I'm hungry for, not for any person or company's beliefs but my own...waffle fries sound good!! And CFA, probably more inadvertently than not, made money without spending money and made me think waffle fries sound good. Good for them! They have that right as a business. Speaking of making money, I wonder if Gain or Wendy's will pay me for the blatant ads I just placed for them, sans mayonnaise?? (see what I did there? :)
Ok, now that most of the poop about Chik-fil-a has died down, I can say, without fear of retaliation, or God FORBID, someone "de-friending" me on FB, that I desperately want waffle fries and I want to dip them in mayonnaise!!! There, I said it...it doesn't matter that I haven't actually ordered, let alone eaten, waffle fries dipped in mayo in probably 17 years, back when I thought it would be cool to be like the British with "fish & chips".
Do you want to know why I said it?? Because ever since this shit storm started, that's all I've been able to think about!! I drive by a CFA and damn near have to wreck my car to keep from going through the drive thru...for waffle fries & mayo!
HUGE props or kuddos or high-fives or whatever to whomever at CFA saw this as the marketing pinnacle of excellence that it is and ran with it!!! That person deserves some kind of award.
Never have I felt so compelled to buy from a company...EVER...and not for the reasons being fought in the media. I have my personal beliefs about equality and I have my business beliefs about how a company should market their products. Basically, let people be who they are, live their lives and if they happen to do something you don't like, just remember YOU are also doing something someone, somewhere doesn't like. If they aren't harming anyone, what harm is there in letting them live, the way they want to...just like you do. I also believe companies are in business to make money, plain and simple. If CFA didn't want to make money, they would have been out of business years ago. As a business, they have that right. When a company wants to make money, they market a certain product to the majority demographic appeal that product was created for. For example, I see a lot of commercials for laundry detergent, house hold cleaners and such when I'm watching Lifetime network...because the audience seeing those commercials on that particular channel are the ones who will purchase those items during next week's trip to the grocery store. I just love how the Gain detergent commercials are so bright, and sunny and just look so fun and outdoors-y...guess what type of laundry detergent I use?? :) Lord help me if "smell-o-vision" ever makes its way to mainstream commercials in the average household.
Here's the difference with CFA - this didn't just market one special style of sandwich or salad - this episode marketed the ENTIRE company. This had people talking about the company as a whole for weeks. I'd be willing to bet my fancy luggage, if you pulled reports on sales, CFA probably saw a huge spike in revenue during this time! And you know what the sheer genius about it was?? It did NOT COST CFA a single dime. That's right - they sold, not one special sandwich marketed to a certain age group, but their entire product line probably saw a increase in sales, which of course is an huge increase in profit because they didn't have pay for it! I'm sure they lost some business...but my point is, (and it's just me I'm talking about here, because I don't have the right to speak anyone else's point) before any of this happened, I wouldn't have thought of waffle fries. Now, I'm thinking I want waffle fries. I'll always remain true to my first fries love with Wendy's, but I'm thinking about buying waffle fries, which will probably lead to me buying waffle fries...I'll skip the mayo because I think mayo is just down right gross (have you ever seen what happens to mayo when it's left out in the sun & heat...blahhhGAG!!!!) In the end, I'm buying what I'm hungry for, not for any person or company's beliefs but my own...waffle fries sound good!! And CFA, probably more inadvertently than not, made money without spending money and made me think waffle fries sound good. Good for them! They have that right as a business. Speaking of making money, I wonder if Gain or Wendy's will pay me for the blatant ads I just placed for them, sans mayonnaise?? (see what I did there? :)
Friday, August 10, 2012
Elevator whisperer
Have you ever pushed the button for an elevator because you want to go up or down? I'd bet my fancy luggage we all have at one point or another. Have you ever pushed the "up" button and the "down" arrow lights up and the doors open? What do you do? Do you break out in a sweat, thinking "but I want to go UP?? I can't possibly get on this elevator! I better wait for the correct elevator." Or do you get on and take a chance? What's the worst that could happen? You go down, what? one, maybe two floors at most, out of your way...It's a ride...take a chance, right? That's what I say!!
Ethel and I had been out to smoke (ok, ok...I know, blech..smoking is bad...so is murder...so I choose smoking at this point in my life for tension release...hate if you will, one day I will quit.) We were presented with this conundrum...we want to go "up", but the light shines "down" and the doors open...I do not hesitate one bit and step immediately in the elevator. We're on the 2nd to lowest level of a 7 floor building...where could we possibly go but down one then up? I see the sheer panic in Ethel's eyes! She's almost frozen with panic outside the elevator. She even says "Luce, that elevator is going 'down'. What are you doing??" So I simply say "get in and watch..." I push the 6 button, and direct Ethel's gaze to the interior direction lights of the elevator...low and behold, the "down" arrow magically disappears and the "up" arrow illuminates brilliantly and we begin to climb, upward...Ethel's comment: "Well, aren't you some kind of 'elevator whisperer'" Needless to say, this is followed by her contagious, ground shaking laughter, to which I can not help but laugh along with her.
Let me pause here to say, since I'm new to this building and 5 of the 7 floors are dedicated to another company, chances are I do not know my fellow riders. There are times when I soooo badly want to burst into "Grease is the word, is the word, is the word" song when I'm in a full occupancy ride...but I don't, out of respect.
Sorry, I just had to share...
Back to the magical elevator ride with Ethel. And it was magical, because we had such a soul-soothing laugh together and were able to say "I sure love our laughs together...at the stupidest shit....", "yeah, we have some good times, don't we! Remember that time when...." and we laughed all the way back to our desks. We had one more "elevator whisperer" moment after that, the whole, up but down light thing and we laughed so hard we almost peed ourselves.
Ethel died suddenly two weeks later, on Thursday, July 5th. I was sent home from work Friday, 7/6 when they told me she was gone. I don't know how, but I managed to drive the 36 mile trip from my office to my home. When I walked in the door and saw my husband, I lost it...I broke down, cried, screamed, basically spent the weekend in shock. I mustered up the courage to go to work Monday. I had taken this job after a month of harassment from Ethel, after all (another story I will tell at some point I'm sure.)
On this first day back, I get to the elevators, push the up button and the down arrow shines like the bulb is about to blow! I mean it's so bright I'm glad I hadn't taken my sunglasses off. I get on, fighting back tears, push 6 and the ride goes UP! Ethel was telling me, in true "elevator whisperer" style...she is and always will be with me! I shit you NOT - this truly happened! The very day I return to work! Some will say it's just semantics...it's going to happen with elevators. But I choose to see it as her way of showing me, in a way I WILL KNOW, she is with me, the "elevator whisperer"!
Ok, I know I said this wouldn't be a "boo-hoo" blog...and it's not! But, if you ever have the chance to go one, maybe two floors out of your way, take it! You might have a memorable, soul-soothing laugh...TAKE IT!! It's a ride that might make all the difference in the world! And if you are ever on an elevator and hear someone singing (horribly, I might add. I know this and accept it) "Grease is the word, is the word, is the wordddd" just know there is such a thing as an "elevator whisperer" so get used to it or take the stairs!!
Here we go!
I'm not a philosophizer, prolific writer, or thinker for that matter, but occasionally I like to ramble with words. I'm starting this blog mainly because I recently lost the best friend a girl could have. You know the one, that person you could tell anything to and she would laugh with you, cry with you or tell you to snap the hell out of it...Ethel was that friend for me. Her real name was Suzanne, but we had plenty of episodes (many of which I will probably retell here) that caused us to start calling each other "Lucy & Ethel". Of course I was Lucy because I was younger. So going forward, you now know who "Ethel" is.
Since Ethel passed, just over a month ago, I have found I have so much I want to tell her. Of course, I know she's up there somewhere, watching over me, hearing and seeing everything I need to tell her - but I need to verbalize it just the same.
Please know this is not going to be some "boo-hoo, I miss you" tribute. I, personally, do not need that negative sadness around me. Therefore, I do not wish to project it on to anyone else. This is mostly going to be just me, writing!
Oh yeah, I'm most certainly, undeniably a Southern Girl (said with gleaming pride) and will do my best to convey as such in my writings and story-telling style. "Please don't mistake my southern accent for ignorance..." Just take it like you should my grammar, humor, and thoughts on everything that will piss anyone off...it's just how I am, love it or leave it.
Ok, that being said, now the word of warning: I do not proclaim to have a firm grasp (nor do I wish to) of proper grammar laws, spelling etiquette or proper placement of adjectives or the like. And occasionally, I will purposely break these so called "laws" for emphasis, reiteration and/or deliberate snub to Ethel, who was very "Hitler-like" with sticking to said "laws"...If you can get through all of this and keep reading....Bless your heart and HERE WE GO!!
Since Ethel passed, just over a month ago, I have found I have so much I want to tell her. Of course, I know she's up there somewhere, watching over me, hearing and seeing everything I need to tell her - but I need to verbalize it just the same.
Please know this is not going to be some "boo-hoo, I miss you" tribute. I, personally, do not need that negative sadness around me. Therefore, I do not wish to project it on to anyone else. This is mostly going to be just me, writing!
Oh yeah, I'm most certainly, undeniably a Southern Girl (said with gleaming pride) and will do my best to convey as such in my writings and story-telling style. "Please don't mistake my southern accent for ignorance..." Just take it like you should my grammar, humor, and thoughts on everything that will piss anyone off...it's just how I am, love it or leave it.
Ok, that being said, now the word of warning: I do not proclaim to have a firm grasp (nor do I wish to) of proper grammar laws, spelling etiquette or proper placement of adjectives or the like. And occasionally, I will purposely break these so called "laws" for emphasis, reiteration and/or deliberate snub to Ethel, who was very "Hitler-like" with sticking to said "laws"...If you can get through all of this and keep reading....Bless your heart and HERE WE GO!!
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