Whoosh - busy two days

Once again I was up again at the crack of dawn - not my favorite time to be up and:

It took them 8 solid hours but the basement is now officially waterproofed; the sump pumps are now up to code and the basement is a mess - disorganized and not real useful. My husband's "office" is now set up on the dining table and we can't really access anything in the basement since every thing had to be pushed to one side, and has to be left there till all the repair work can be done. We do have a separate laundry room which is easily accessible so that's a huge plus.

The cats are not at all thrilled with the basement - they no longer have access to the windows, so they go down there and cry. The windows are level with the sidewalk and have 2-foot deep sills - really nice place for kitties to hang out. The window sills are about 5 feet from the floor so we had storage cubes at varying heights under the windows so they could jump up in stages. The cats are not happy campers.

Snow is predicted for tonight and/or tomorrow. I hate snow. We had reserved a car for Saturday to go to the grocery store - we changed it to this morning at 9 am and would you believe the supermarket was PACKED - at 9 am - on a Friday! Sheesh. We haven't been in a grocery store in close to 6 weeks so we had a huge amount of stuff to stock up on. $243 worth...which seems like a lot for 2 people but really not, since we only do this, as I said, about every 6 weeks. We have big heavy things delivered - mostly kitty litter and my husbands soda...As much as I hate shopping, particularly grocery shopping, being in the store let's you snap up some good bargains. I do shop with a list and the only things I got off-list was body wash - 66 cents a bottle, I got 4. A box of White Castle hamburgers - I know, I know, but they are the stuff of happy childhood memories and actually taste quite good; some stuffed grape leaves and tiny vinegar peppers off the appetizer bar and really those were the only things off list. There were no frozen baby brussel spouts to be had - huge disappointment, it seems that is one of the few veggies my husband will eat.

Speaking of veggies, tonight I am making this great pasta dish for dinner - zucchini, eggplant, onions, tomatoes sauteed together and poured over pasta - Mmmm Yum. I may actually bake some cookies this weekend and I will make my super-magnificent lemon bars for Christmas - even people who prefer cake and cookies kill for my lemon bars. See, now that's what I forgot in the store - lime juice - now I may have to walk up to the super expensive crappy Acme market to get it (frozen spinach in ShopRite = 99 cents, same exact package and brand in Acme = $1.29 - where do they get the balls?)

So I am all happy, happy because while I normally hate to cook I am looking forward to making and eating dinner tonight. I'm looking forward to doing a little baking - I can almost taste my chocolate cookies (I'm adding filbert nuts - whee-oo) and especially the lemon bars. I am making meatloaf for Christmas dinner, with mashed potatoes and gravy for my husband - I'm not a big meat eater but I do love me my meatloaf - my husband is drooling for it now - big baby. I know that doesn't sound so festive but it's a dinner we both enjoy - plus asparagus of course. Hey, we are just not turkey/ham people, what can I say. And there are only two of us - so...

Enjoy your weekend folks - come back for Sunday Serenade for some sappy holiday music.

Chaos R Us

So yesterday we moved my husband's office from the basement to the dining table and now there is just one small edge for us to use for eating and such. The litter boxes are now in the bathtub, nothing is where it should be and we will be living like this for several weeks because they are digging up one side of our basement today. So up come the tiles, off comes big chunks of the drywall, out goes the toilet-thingy. In goes a trench, some pipes and a small sump pump. Then the other two sump pumps will also be replaced.

After all of that is done they will cement over the floor they dug up, and put plastic over the holes in the drywall (so the cats won't get into the walls) and yeah and did I mention, we may (may not) lose the bottom stair step.

Ah the joys of flood prone Philadelphia (someone please remind me again why the hell we moved here? Any one? No?) And don't even ask how much this is costing - no, no, don't do that.

Next week we are having 2 different guys coming in to give us estimates on fixing all this: laying floor tiles; repairing drywall; replacing the step, if necessary; painting and some other odds and ends around the house (maybe doing something about the lopsided window???)

You all know that I can't stand for things to be out of place, right? How crazy it makes me? So, like, someone send valium - or whatever the current fashionable tranquilizer is.

And then to make it all even better my husband has some kind of cold/flu; he's all tired and achy and I've got it in the stomach - whatever I catch always hits me in the stomach; I'm hungry but can't eat - water makes me nauseous.

Oh and you will recall, from when Mr. Gaw-juss visited, our basement is not closed off - so how do we keep the cats from wandering where they shouldn't, hmmmm? They are cats, they jump, they squeeze between the railings....

I'm not happy....

Oh and a reminder - today is Thursday and at 4 pm eastern time, you can listen to the live radio show Talk-N-Angels . You don't need any special programs, it will play in iTunes or Windows Media Center. This weeks guest is a medium and the first hour they will be taking calls and doing readings. Yeah I know, but this is my latest enthusiasm, so humor me. Maybe I will call in and they can tell what the hell Frankie-Fat-Butt is seeing that we can't. If this place had spirits attached to it I would have know a long time ago...she was totally crazy last night, trying to grab something from the air and scrambling at the wall - she sees something, we don't.

Take a deep breath Grace, calm yourself, and repeat, "everything will be fine, everything will be fine" Oy!

No good deed goes unpunished

Okay, so I shouldn't go so far as to say "unpunished" but you have to wonder what goes on in the minds of the fund raising departments of some non-profits. For instance:

ASPCA: I have sent them money twice this year, most recently about 2 weeks ago. Here is what irks my soul - I get mail from them about once a week - for the last month I get mail from them about twice a week. I get one or two emails a day from them. Exactly how much money do they think I have? Do they really think that if they bombard me with mail and emails I will send them even more? And what pisses me off to the nth degree is all the money that is being spent on mailings and mailings filled with junk - stickers, labels - all of this stuff goes in the recycle bin and I'm wondering where exactly my hard earned money is going - not to animal welfare it appears.

St. Joseph's Indian School: These people are the second worst. We have sent them money on occasion and again we get mailing after mailing after mailing, all include some tacky piece of junk. Again, where is our money going? Not to the children because no matter how cheap and junky the "gifts" are they still cost money.

The worst of the worst? The VFW. Somewhere along the line my husband sent them money and they haven't stopped. We move and they find us. The very gall of these people, that after you send them money, they send you a letter two weeks later asking you when you are going to send some more. What the hell? I mean they really do that.

We are grateful that our situation right now allows us to make charitable contributions, it wasn't always so. They aren't huge contributions but we do contribute consistently throughout the year.

I sent emails to these three organizations today to take us off their mailing lists because I got mail from each of these organizations today on top of the mail I got from them last week and the week before. Actually I believe I have received 2 pieces of a mail a week from the ASPCA and the VFW. Enough already - this goes on all year not just at holiday time.

I think it's time we found other organizations to contribute to - there are folks every where trying to make the world a little better, I think I'll help them out instead.

For Lin of Duck and Wheel with String a traditional Christmas song:

Color My World

From the time I could articulate a favored color that color was red. Always red. I was told a story about my parents attempting to buy me a snow suit, so I was maybe 2 or 3, maybe. Every time they would try one on me I would cry and point to a red one. Finally my father said, "Just give her the red one". The saleslady said "Well, if she were my kid.." My father stopped her and said "She's not your kid and she has to wear it. Give her the red one". This story was told to me so I have no idea if it was true but from then on my father always bought me red clothes. I remember being around 11 or so and finally saying stop already with the red but it remained my favorite color.

Until about 8 years ago. I suddenly developed a passion for purple. Amethyst purple, not lilac, or violet, or fuchsia, not reddish purple or blueish purple but real deep purple. Along with purple I added another all-time favorite color - yellow - any shade of yellow really except perhaps "caution tape" yellow LOL I began to wear the gem stone amethyst all the time. There was no rhyme or reason to it - I just HAD to.

About 2 years ago when I was in the local new age/mystic/spiritual store I was discussing this with one of the owners and she said "Wow, you went directly from the bottom to the top" It seems red is color of the lowest chakra and violet is the color of the highest chakra - who knew? Not me.

I just looked up chakra colors and their meanings and they seem to distinguish between indigo and violet. The violet on the chart seems a bit pale for my taste and the indigo looks just about right. Naturally I had to google indigo and according to that article the color I crave is "Pigment indigo (web color indigo)". Of course everything could look a little off on my computer screen but...

Searching a bit more I found this site , which is looks to be fascinating, give a clearer understanding of chakra colors, and from it's color example, their violet is much more in tune with the purple I crave.

Colors have an affect on us whether we are aware of it or not and I have been criticized for not liking to have any shade of green around me. I was thinking about that the other day and realized I like green only as it naturally occurs in nature, like grass or leaves or emeralds, I just don't like it when it is a paint color or fabric - naturally occurring green is soft and comforting - hmmm, should look that up on the chakra chart - just a minute, I'll be right back - talk among yourselves...I'm back, it appears green represents the heart chakra, interesting.

I never been interested in chakras and all the other ooga-booga; I get impatient with people putting names on every damn thing, some things just are, experience them or not; my frankfurter is your hot dog.

So now, think of your absolutely favorite color and then check it out on the chakra chart. And then think about how your favorite color may have changed over the years, check the chart again - Any interesting observations?

Sunday Serenade

The always surprising and delighful, Miss KD Lang

Talking Angels

Monday, at a class I sometimes attend, there was a guest speaker, an angel communicator'faciliator - I don't what else to call her, her business card reads "Personal Empowerment Consultant". Rita Strough is a down-to-earth (no that's not a contradiction), Italian Jersey-girl. Actually she is a hoot. She does angel readings, among other things. After the class was over she offered to do angel readings for folks in the class but there wasn't any time because she had ridden in with the class instructor and he had to go. So she offered to do an angel reading by email for anyone that wanted one. I emailed her and she sent me back the reading which was actually very spot on as to what is going with me and it was a joy to read.

She "works" with another woman, Anne Ford and they have a radio show every Thursday from 4 to 6 pm. You can listen via your computer and you can call in for an angel reading or to chat with them. They usually have a guest who works in some facet of the spiritual/self-empowerment area. You can access their web site and radio show at Talk-N-Angels click on the "About Us" tab for some interesting information about them. These ladies are not all ooga-booga, they're funny, they're real people - you-and-me people. On yesterday's show, after they finished with their guest, a life coach person, Rita said "Should we take a little break now?" Anne said "I don't know, why?" Rita said "Well, I have to tinkle" Okay, Rita, TMI LOL But thats how the show rolls. It's like sitting at your kitchen table with a couple of friends just laughing and talking.

Visit their web site, again Talk-N-Angels, noodle around, and if you remember, next Thursday listen in on their radio show - it will play in iTunes or Windows media center, no extra downloads necessary. I might also add that Rita is a mainstream-religion affiliated person, so if any of you, because of your religious beliefs, shy away from people like this, don't. For those of you who have moved differently along their spiritual journey, substitute the word "angel" for whatever you call these energy-entities, and you will enjoy what they have to say.

Any way you see it, it will be fun, informative, and perhaps may provoke some thoughtfulness.

Quick Up Date to Thursday's Post

Folkies, you can get my nifty cup by Googling "I am not a paper cup" it is sold in lots of place with a range of prices. Many stores are sold out, I guess a lot of people thought it would make a great gift. And it will. I don't promote any products but when I find something I like, I share. So Google and choose your own store.

The recordable storybook is a Hallmark product and you can find them in Hallmark stores but again Google it because I saw them on sale at other web sites but they are definitely a Hallmark product.

Fun Stuff I Found While Christmas Shopping

You may have noticed there have been no pictures of Mr. Gaw-juss in months. Not since they moved to New Mexico where they have no internet connection. I saw these recordable storybooks advertised, they were pushing "The Night Before Christmas". I thought, WOW, what a great idea. Grampy and I could read the poem and we could kinda be there with Mr. Gaw-juss. I gotta tell you these are pricey little items but if you are far away from your Grand kids it might be a nice thing. I've got to check to see if there are other recordable books - I just think it is so neat. We get to read a bedtime story to our grandson even though we two thousand miles away - I like this idea.

I spend most of my time at my desk mucking around on the computer. I am very careful about having no food or drink at my desk. But I really need to drink more liquids - water, tea - anything. I swear I am part camel because I rarely ever feel thirsty. I've got a shelf full of what I call sippy cups, none of which I really like. I hate the plastic sport/water bottles because I hate plastic. I've got two different stainless steel bottles but you can't put hot liquids in them and they are not nice to drink out of. So while I was "shopping" I came across this totally cool travel mug called "I Am Not A Paper Cup". It looks just like one of those paper coffee cups you get from a deli or diner except it is ceramic with a silicone lid - it is so neat. When I showed my husband he said "I got one of those for my brother a while back, don't you remember?" And no, I didn't remember. If I knew this item existed I wouldn't have a shelf full of plastic and steel bottles - Jeeze! And how come he didn't buy ME one, I'd like to know.

Anyway, I am just tickled with these two items - so much fun.