Thursday, November 29, 2007

The dance

Dale and I went dancing the other night and we have video of it. I haven't danced in years but I think I held up pretty well.

Check it out.


Saturday, November 24, 2007

Ima Weener!

I entered some mosaic pieces in the fair this year.... and WON!!

First place on the table and second on the wall hanging.


Feels good.

Mom entered a macrame piece also and won first place.

Thursday, November 22, 2007

Questioning that that should not be

Every parent has asked some pretty weird questions of their children. I wish I had written down some of the doosies I have asked in the past; but better late than never.

Questions I asked today:

Why is there a lolly pop attached to the closet door?

I didn't get an answer, yet it is still there.


Why is there a Lazy Susan in the middle of my bedroom floor?

Jessica answers from her bedroom, "Sorry, I was sitting on it." Then, from the living room I hear Jason say, "Who is Susan?"

Wednesday, November 21, 2007

How

Okay, I'm talented but not this talented!


Your Native American Name Is...

Nina Tis-See-Woo-Na-Tis


Your name means: Strong Woman Who Bathes With Her Knees

Bathroom blues

Jessica got locked in the bathroom today.

I was in my bathroom at the time. Apparently she spit on Jason and Jason chased her into the bathroom and he pushed on the door or something... and it jammed.

Who knows what really happened. They both deny any wrong doing. All I know was that the door wouldn't open but the knob would turn. It was stuck just like my closet door.

It wasn't funny at first, but after a few minutes, I was cracking up as I listened to her going through stages.

First was awareness. Something was wrong with the door. I could hear her all the way in my bathroom... tugging, turning, rattling, banging.

Next was panic. She realized the door was not going to open; she couldn't get out. She began screaming that the door wouldn't open. I came as quickly as I could but couldn't get the door to open.

At this point she was freaking out. I got her calmed as best as I could and ran to call the management company.

Then came anger. As I was on the phone, I could hear her ranting and raving like a sailor... and I was in the kitchen. That picture of her on Halloween came to mind.

Next was acceptance. There was nothing to do but wait until the repairman arrived, so I began to shove magazines under the door. Anything that would fit. Her friend Rob called and, as I was telling him that she was stuck in the bathroom, she told me to put the phone up to the door. Amazingly she could hear him through the door so I leaned the phone on the floor so she could talk, laughing as I went for the camera. This was too funny.


Finally came relief. After about 30 minutes, the repairman arrived and freed her. She ran out of the bathroom and gave me a huge hug.

Like the other knobs, the insides were plastic and broken. The repairman replaced it with a metal one. I told the management company that they should let the owner know that all of the door knobs should be replaced (after all this has happened four times now) and the woman said she would put in a work order.

Friday, November 16, 2007

A taste of wine

Went to my first wine tasting last night.

I rarely drink wine.... and when I do, I get tipsy after a few sips. The last time I had any was a year ago at a workshop in Charleston, SC. The swanky hotel I stayed in had a wine and cheese reception every afternoon from 4:30 until 6:00 (after training had concluded for the day mind you) so I had a glass the second day I was there and found myself giggling uncontrollably while trying to compose an email to a coworker. The third day I had two glasses and proceeded to wander the streets of historic Charleston in search of food.

Anyway, Dale wanted to go and it seemed like something sophisticated grown-ups did, so I was game.

It was held at ABC Liquors near the FSU campus. We arrived around 6:30 p.m., paid the $5.00/per person entrance fee, and collected our wine glass (I thought it was neat that we got to keep our glass.).

We could barely get in the door. The store is not big at all and it was filled with college students! I should have known that offering tastes of different wines (and beer) for a meager $5.00 would attract them.

There were three stations serving various types of wine. I couldn't really see what was being offered though because of the crowds. Eventually, we pushed our way to a station in the back. The woman serving began to explain the different types of wines she had for the tasting. I know absolutely nothing about wine except that it comes in red and white, so I listened intently as she described what she had to offer... Pinot Noir, Chardonnay, Chablis. When she finished, she looked at me patiently waiting for my decision. I had no clue what she had just said.... it was like listening to a foreign language, so I told her I wanted something red. I am sure she thought I was the cultured one!

She poured a small amount of "something red" in my glass and I walked off down one of the many aisles filled with bottles. It was very dry but not bad. Dale joined me and we stood there away from the crowds. After I was finished, I decided to try a white wine. So I pushed my way back to the woman and told her I wanted to try something white. She proceeded to speak in her foreign language, describing the two white wines she had. Again, I had no clue what they were so I just pointed to the one on the left. It was much better.

After a few more minutes, we maneuvered around to another station that was serving different imported beers and Dale tried a few. After that we left. It was just too crowded and I was feeling kind of sick from the wine. We went to the Hobbit for wings and beer... more my style.

It was a neat experience and I am glad I went, but I don't know if I'll go to any more.

Tuesday, November 13, 2007

Mule Day

Dale, Jessica, and I went to Mule Day up in Calvary, GA, a few weekends ago. I hadn't been since I was a child, so I was excited to experience it with an adult perspective.

Dale, and others, told me that we needed to get there early... like 6:00 a.m. early.... in order to snag a good parking spot. So I set the alarm for 4:30 a.m. so we would have time to wake up and make the 30 minute drive up there. When the alarm went off, however, it was quickly reset for 6:00 a.m. It's just not right to get up that early on a Saturday!

We arrived around 8:00 a.m. and it was already pretty crowded. We paid $5.00 to park in the middle of a pecan orchard, but it was relatively close. We made our way down a narrow road toward a huge field filled with tents in the foreground and campers behind.

Mule Day was huge. It was totally different from my childhood recollection. All I remembered, actually, was seeing harnessed mules attached to a pole of some sort following a circle path beat into the dirt. They were grinding sugar cane into molasses.

I was hoping Jessica would get to see that as well, but there wasn't any sugar cane making going on; at least as far as I could tell. Instead, there were lots of food and craft booths and a stage where different groups of cloggers danced to what seemed to be the same song... something country.

People were selling everything from quilts, to Christmas ornaments, to hats, to beautiful fused glass (my personal favorite). Someone was actually selling a "bottle tree" which consisted of a pole with dowels extending off (like a tree) with plastic bottles stuck on the ends. Who would pay money for that? Dale wondered how bottle trees were grown so I told him they started out as baby bottles. [Okay, I know that was pretty bad].

We walked around until our feet hurt, stopping to buy sugared pecans, fudge, back scratchers, and miscellaneous other items. We decided we had better leave before the parade began at 11:00 a.m.; otherwise we would be stuck until it was over because the parade route went between the field and the exit road.

We were too slow, however, and had to wait until it was over. Luckily we didn't have too long of a wait. As I was watching the myriad of horseback riders and mules pulling wagons make their way up the parade route, I laughed as a teenage girl rode past me while talking on her cell phone. It seemed strange to have cell phone usage and horseback riding together in one parade. What could be so important that her phone call couldn't wait until after the parade?

At least 60,000 people attend Mule Day each year. About 20,000 were leaving with us after the parade, just as the other 40,000 were arriving. It was a mad dash to get back to the car and get out ahead of the others.

The main drag through Calvary is a two-lane road, so you can imagine the traffic jam. Both lanes of traffic were backed up as far as you could see and even further... and both were at a complete stand still (well our lane was moving more than the lane into Calvary). Surprisingly, it only took us about 15 minutes to get out of the chaos. I felt sorry for the semi driver obviously passing through and unaware of Mule Day. He looked very unhappy as we passed him. And we saw people parking as far as two miles away.

Now I know why they say get there early.