Over My Shoulder

From: Precious.Oldest@school.com
Sent: Thursday, February 26, 2009 2:34 PM
To: Fannie@work.com
Subject: Spring break

Hi! I was just curious as to when your concert was over break. Linds wants to know if I can judge their national CFL forensics tournament towards the end of break, and I don't want to miss your stuff. How are you, by the way? I sent you a text yesterday, but you never look at your phone!
=[

Miss you!
Precious Oldest

From: Fannie@work.com
To: Precious.Oldest@school.com
Sent: Thursday, February 26, 2009 2:37:11 PM
Subject: RE: Spring break

I don’t TEXT. The concert is Wednesday the 18th. After that I’ll be dead.

Mom

From: Precious.Oldest@school.com
Sent: Thursday, February 26, 2009 2:39 PM
To: Fannie@work.com
Subject: Spring break

But you can LOOK at texts from me! Little notes to remind you that I love and adore you! Yayyyyyy!
<3

Delayed Hangover

So I was merrily going about my business this morning and long about eleven o'clock I started to feel puny. You know that kind of tired, kind of queasy, kind of headachey feeling?

I couldn't imagine what was wrong and then I remembered I threw a little Mardi Gras party last night .


I made this. This is the lazy version of red beans and rice. The one where you come home from work and don't feel like chopping and soaking and whatnot.









But if you throw in enough of this it's pretty darn tasty if I do say so myself. And my sister made delicious bread pudding which I wish I'd thought to take a picture of.










Anyway, you're probably wondering about the whole kind of tired, kind of queasy, kind of of headachey feeling.



I also made Mother's Ruin Punch.
Take a tip from Fannie; you can file that recipe away under "Delicious but Deadly". I'm just sayin'.

Grace in Small Things, part 13

The Saint Edition

1. Giving the smelly dog a bath AND following up with the requisite brushing.


2. Installing a program on my laptop BEFORE I pulled all my hair out while trying to finish a project.


3. Going to the bank safe deposit box AND the dry cleaners.


4. Working the concession stand on Sunday to raise money for Precious Youngest's robotics team.


5. Scratching that incredibly itchy place on my back that I CAN NOT reach to soothe with lotion.

Static

For the past couple of months the same scene has played itself out nearly every morning at 7:30 AM. Precious Oldest gathers her things to leave for school. I am generally in my bathroom getting ready for work.

Precious Youngest: “Bye mom, love you.”

Fannie: “Bye Sweetie, love you too, have a good day.”

Precious Youngest kisses me goodbye and

Fannie: “GAH, YOU SHOCKED ME!”

Precious Youngest: “GAH, YOU SHOCKED ME!”

It takes us by surprise every time.

Two Weeks

Two weeks from today I'm going to be on a beach in Mexico.

Two weeks from today I'm going to be on a beach in Mexico at a lovely resort.

Two weeks from today I'm going to be on a beach in Mexico at a lovely resort, with the Saint.

Two weeks from today I'm going to be on a beach in Mexico at a lovely resort, with the Saint, on a trip that someone else is paying for.

Feeling Deja Vu? Well, winter can still just kiss.my.ass.

Overhead At the Office

My co-worker is on the phone and I hear the following -

Co-worker: "May I put you on hold for just a moment?"..."Thanks!"

*puts call on hold*

Co-worker: "To quote Fannie, FOR THE LOVE OF ALL THAT IS HOLY WHAT IS WRONG WITH THESE EFFING EFFERS!"

*takes call off hold*

Co-worker: "I'm back, let's try looking at this another way!"

Wow. Glad to see I'm rubbing off on people in such a positive way.

Grace in Small Things, Part 12

Valentine's Day Edition

1. Kir Royale
2. Oysters with Mignonette Sauce
3. Duck Confit
4. Foie Gras
5. Easy Conversation

Quiz

1. Fried chicken
2. Mashed potatoes
3. Ice cream cake
4. A nap

What can this mean? The Saint is fifty two today. He is a man of simple tastes . Happy Birthday!

Q and A

There's this interview thing going around. Green Girl was nice enough to agree to interview me. She sent me the questions via e-mail. Which I promptly deleted or some such thing. So I had to e-mail HER and ask if she would send them AGAIN. She's VERY understanding. So first, the "RULES":

1. Leave me a comment saying, "Interview me."
2. I will respond by emailing you five questions. I get to pick the questions.
3. You will update your blog with the answers to the questions.
4. You will include this explanation and an offer to interview someone else in the same post.
5. When others comment asking to be interviewed, you will ask them five questions.

Here are her questions and my answers:

1. What childhood personality trait did you outgrow or give up since becoming an adult? Was there a reason for doing so?

I was painfully shy as a child. All of my report cards said essentially “Fannie is an excellent student, if only she would speak up in class.” (No one who knows me now believes this.) When I was in high school Sister Eustasia, my English teacher, told the class that everyone should take debate. I promptly signed up for debate the next year. (BTW? I was the only one of her students who did!) That class literally transformed my life.

2.Describe 3 daily rituals that you never miss taking part in.

Good God, I'm borderline OCD! Only three?

1. I shave my legs every day. 365 days a year. No shit.
2. I drink coffee and V8 juice every morning and wine every night. 365 days a year. What?
3. I clean my bathrooms every day. 365 days a year. I KNOW!

3. Have you become the person you thought you'd grow up to become? What part of adulthood is markedly different from what you believed when you were young?

I always new I would get married and have children, but I never suspected how much I would enjoy being a mother and a homemaker. It was the best job I ever had and I miss it every day.

4. Given no limitations, what would be your ultimate vacation?

I kind of already had it, but no limitations? I'd bring my whole family and do it for six months.

Several years ago the Saint and I spent two weeks in Italy and in the middle of the vacation we rented a villa in Tuscany with friends for a week.

It was absolute bliss!






5. Write your first sentence/paragraph for NPR's "This I believe."

I believe you should be nice to the new kid. I moved around a lot growing up. Three elementary schools on the east coast, junior high in the Rockies and high school in the Midwest. I have a lot of empathy for the new kid; even as adults they're everywhere Introduce yourself, introduce them to anyone you know that has things in common with them. Offer to take them to a meeting, invite them to a luncheon, put them at your table for a church event.

Now it's your turn. If you want to be interviewed leave me a comment. I'll interview the first five to leave a comment.

P.S. Happy Valentine's Day

Spelling Bee

Announcer: The word is “Demoralized”.

Contestant: “Demoralized”. Can I have the definition please?

Announcer: “Demoralized” To have one’s confidence undermined, to be disheartened.

Contestant: “Demoralized”. Can I hear it used in a sentence please?

Announcer: “Demoralized” After a long day at the office she felt “demoralized” when her family turned up their collective nose picked at her homemade, cooked from scratch dinner.

Contestant: “Demoralized”, D-E-M-O-R-A-L-I-Z-E-D, “Demoralized”.

Announcer: Correct.

Grace in Small Things, Part 11

1. Shopping and dinner with Precious Youngest
2. Chili and cornbread
3. A visit and dinner with Precious Oldest
4. The morning sky at sunrise



5. Sitting in the sun on a warm Saturday afternoon

Did your mother ever tell you?

If you don't have anything nice to say, then don't say anything at all? Yeah, mine too. Which is why it's a wee bit dark over here. And will remain so for the foreseeable future.