I really hate my job. OK. I don’t hate my job so much as I hate not having anything to do. I come to work every day, and I’m here for 9 hours but I don’t really do anything all day other than mess around on the computer. I go home and feel like I’ve just been released from prison. Every once in a while I’ll have a project to work on but those are far and few between. I don’t know why they brought me back from unemployment. I could have kept coming in on a part-time basis and been fine. I’d still have been able to collect my unemployment benefits, plus a little extra on the “side”. I really wish I had a “job” to do rather than sit here waiting for the God damned phone to ring. The highlight of my days is when I can tell a New York stock broker that there’s no way they’re getting through to my boss. How pathetic is that?
They used to have me work on mini-jobs – like a small window take off or something like that – but ever since they landed this big job that we’re not making a worthwhile profit off of, they’re so consumed with that job that they’re not really looking into any smaller stuff. If they are, they’re not telling me about it.
I miss Osman. I miss having a “job” to do, and an office with a door. Even when we were slow at Osman there was work to do. Here there’s nothing. It’s partially because MB is so hard to ask for something to do. He gets so into a project or a takeoff, that if I bother him by asking for something to do he has a tendency to get crabby. It’s also partially because C micro-manages.
There’s nothing worse than someone giving you a job/project to do and then watching over your shoulder while you do it. I swear C makes me so mad sometimes. It’s like he doesn’t think I’ve ever held a job before. I know how to write a letter. I know how to proofread a letter. I know how to file. Anything that’s “typical” office work – I can do and do well, but he insists on explaining EVERYTHING to me. Even when I insist “I can do it, C” he insists on proofing my work, or sending it to him first. It’s bullshit.
He also doesn’t know how to delegate. He’s so concerned with things being done “his” way that he refuses to delegate any work to me. I could type out all his correspondence – P.O.’s, Change Orders, RFI’s, Letters, etc – but he refuses because he wants to do it himself. Then he complains, “Oh, I have so much work to do. You don’t even know. I’m so busy.” I’m telling ya, I could buy him an extra two hours a week, at least, if he’d just dump all his typing on me. When I see letters that he’s written to GC’s it makes me cringe. He’s got paragraphs starting with an indent, and run on sentences galore. Business letters do not require an indent at the beginning of the paragraph. You only do that when you’re writing a letter to grandma. You don’t do that when you’re writing a letter to the Big Boss Man who’s running your job. It makes you look like a pansy.
Now I found out last night that they're letting B go on Friday. This sucks. He's my comic relief here. He and I get along well and now he's going to be gone. I can't even tell him! That sucks more than anything else. I wish so badly that I could tell him, "Don't waste your money on hockey equipment because you're going to need that money for rent and food." Can you claim unemployment if you get fired? I don't know if you can or not. I hope for his sake he can.
I do know that he's pretty fed up with his job so maybe it won't be as bad as I think. I know he's been looking online for a new job because he and C don't get along too well, but I think it was more wishful thinking than actual hardcore job hunting. While the economy seems to be picking up it's still not an ideal time to be out of work.
On the other hand, and I feel awful saying this, maybe with B being gone I'll get more stuff to do. Ha! Yea, right. Who am I kidding? C will take it all on. Or R will pick up a little bit, but I'll be the last person they ask to do anything.
I miss my old job.
Lianna & Kiley
Thursday, May 27, 2010
Monday, May 17, 2010
Attitudes and More Attitudes
Has anyone else heard on the radio or TV commercial about this “technique” you can purchase that promises to change your kids’ attitude or “your money back”? I find this whole idea skeptical. If someone really had the magic cure to treating bad attitudes, do you think they’d advertise it on late night TV? On the other hand, if they really do produce what they claim then I’m all in! I wish I could change K’s attitude as easily as I can change the TV channel.
She got herself all worked up last night because I asked M to turn off the show we were trying to watch because I couldn’t hear it over the kitchen faucet. I couldn’t turn off the faucet because K was washing a pan or something. I walked over to her to put my glass in the dishwasher and she said under her breath, in her typical snotty attitude, “Because it’s always my fault.” I’ll stop you from asking right now – no I didn’t smack her. Would I have liked to just smack her face for her attitude and disrespect? Of course, however I didn’t because I honestly didn’t think I’d have been able to stop. It doesn’t matter what you say to that girl, she automatically takes a defensive stance no matter what.
You could tell her that she can’t start a load of laundry right this moment because so-and-so is in the shower, and K’s reply would be “It’s always me who can’t do what I’m supposed to do!!” Or my personal favorite “You told me to start my laundry, pick up my sweatshirt, and put my shoes away! Now you’re saying not to do it! MAKE UP YOUR MIND! WHAT DO YOU WANT ME TO DO?!?!” Never mind the fact that if she’d pick up her sweatshirt and put her shoes away first, by the time she was ready to start the laundry so-and-so would be finished in the shower.
The other thing that drives me bonkers and makes me want to shake her is when I ask her to do something and she stays exactly where she is and doesn’t reply. Then I get angry and tell her again only louder. Her reply is “I’M GOING!! GOD!! WHY DO YOU HAVE TO TELL ME FIFTEEN TIMES?!” It really irritates me when I ask her do something and instead of getting up and doing it, she slithers off the couch then plays with the dog for a minute, then watches TV for another minute, then saunters over to whatever it is I asked her to do. I know that I’ve allowed this to manifest. I take responsibility for the fact that I didn’t instill in them at a young age that when I ask them to do something – they do it.
However, I will say that I’ve been told by numerous people on numerous occasions that my children are very well behaved. Which, let’s face it, who doesn’t like to hear that? It solidifies my belief that I haven’t completely screwed up. If they can behave like decent, polite, normal human beings in public then I’ve done something right. I just need to figure out how to get K to stop being so… lazy is the word that comes to mind.
My brother, EJ (who has no children so it kind of irritates me when he does this) but EJ will observe something between K and I, and he’ll turn to me and say “Are you going to take that?” Yes, EJ, I am going to take it. Here I will take it when I’m out in public and don’t feel like getting arrested for child abuse, I will take it. But I sometimes wonder if I don’t “take it” at home too. I don’t smack my kids. On a rare occasion I have but not often. I wasn’t a spanker either. Again, on rare occasions I did, but not often. However, I’m beginning to really wonder if what K needs is one good beating. I sometimes wonder if I started smacking their mouth every time they got snotty, or they yelled at me for bullshit like K does, if they’d eventually knock it off.
On the other hand, I wonder if they’d end up at the school social worker claiming child abuse….
She got herself all worked up last night because I asked M to turn off the show we were trying to watch because I couldn’t hear it over the kitchen faucet. I couldn’t turn off the faucet because K was washing a pan or something. I walked over to her to put my glass in the dishwasher and she said under her breath, in her typical snotty attitude, “Because it’s always my fault.” I’ll stop you from asking right now – no I didn’t smack her. Would I have liked to just smack her face for her attitude and disrespect? Of course, however I didn’t because I honestly didn’t think I’d have been able to stop. It doesn’t matter what you say to that girl, she automatically takes a defensive stance no matter what.
You could tell her that she can’t start a load of laundry right this moment because so-and-so is in the shower, and K’s reply would be “It’s always me who can’t do what I’m supposed to do!!” Or my personal favorite “You told me to start my laundry, pick up my sweatshirt, and put my shoes away! Now you’re saying not to do it! MAKE UP YOUR MIND! WHAT DO YOU WANT ME TO DO?!?!” Never mind the fact that if she’d pick up her sweatshirt and put her shoes away first, by the time she was ready to start the laundry so-and-so would be finished in the shower.
The other thing that drives me bonkers and makes me want to shake her is when I ask her to do something and she stays exactly where she is and doesn’t reply. Then I get angry and tell her again only louder. Her reply is “I’M GOING!! GOD!! WHY DO YOU HAVE TO TELL ME FIFTEEN TIMES?!” It really irritates me when I ask her do something and instead of getting up and doing it, she slithers off the couch then plays with the dog for a minute, then watches TV for another minute, then saunters over to whatever it is I asked her to do. I know that I’ve allowed this to manifest. I take responsibility for the fact that I didn’t instill in them at a young age that when I ask them to do something – they do it.
However, I will say that I’ve been told by numerous people on numerous occasions that my children are very well behaved. Which, let’s face it, who doesn’t like to hear that? It solidifies my belief that I haven’t completely screwed up. If they can behave like decent, polite, normal human beings in public then I’ve done something right. I just need to figure out how to get K to stop being so… lazy is the word that comes to mind.
My brother, EJ (who has no children so it kind of irritates me when he does this) but EJ will observe something between K and I, and he’ll turn to me and say “Are you going to take that?” Yes, EJ, I am going to take it. Here I will take it when I’m out in public and don’t feel like getting arrested for child abuse, I will take it. But I sometimes wonder if I don’t “take it” at home too. I don’t smack my kids. On a rare occasion I have but not often. I wasn’t a spanker either. Again, on rare occasions I did, but not often. However, I’m beginning to really wonder if what K needs is one good beating. I sometimes wonder if I started smacking their mouth every time they got snotty, or they yelled at me for bullshit like K does, if they’d eventually knock it off.
On the other hand, I wonder if they’d end up at the school social worker claiming child abuse….
Fucking Know It All
If there's one thing I can't stand it's someone who has to put their two cents in for EVERYTHING. I received an email today that included a Letter to the Editor that never got published. Supposedly because the paper it was submitted to didn't have the same view on the subject that the letter was about. Whatever. I thought it was right on the money. It was about Illegal Immigrants who come to the US and think that they have access to the same rights that Legal Immigrants have. Notice the two very important words before the word "immigrant" that I've used. Illegal vs Legal. There is a difference and if you think there's not - look it up.
Anyway, I forwarded this email to several people and my lovely brother, EJ, decided that now is when he's going to play Policically-Correct-Gym-Teacher:
"The person who wrote that letter obvioulsy has no clue what it means to be an AMERICAN "freedom". Erin please stop sending me these racist and biggot filled emails they are absolutly disgusting, I hope you are not teaching your daughters to think this way."
By the way, in case your wondering, this comes from the person who has, in my opinoin, the biggest vocabulary of racal slurs and uses them whenever he feels like it. Never is a black person just a black person to him. They're "Spider Monkeys". A Mexican isn't a Mexican. They're "Lawncare". And the list goes on. However, suddenly I'm the one who's a biggot and a racist.
Here's the email I sent:
"My wife, Rosemary, wrote a wonderful letter to the editor of the OC Register which, of course,was not printed. So, I decided to "print" it myself by sending it out on the Internet. Pass it along if you feel so inclined. Written in response to a series of letters to the editor in the Orange County Register:
Dear Editor:
So many letter writers have based their arguments on how this land is made up of immigrants. Ernie Lujan for one, suggests we should tear down the Statue of Liberty because the people now in question aren't being treated the same as those who passed through Ellis Island and other ports of entry.
Maybe we should turn to our history books and point out to people like Mr. Lujan why today's American is not willing to accept this new kind of immigrant any longer. Back in 1900 when there was a rush from all areas of Europe to come to the United States , people had to get off a ship and stand in a long line in New York and be documented. Some would even get down on their hands and knees and kiss the ground. They made a pledge to uphold the laws and support their new country in good and bad times. They made learning English a primary rule in their new American households and some even changed their names to blend in with their new home.
They had waved good bye to their birth place to give their children a new life and did everything in their power to help their children assimilate into one culture. Nothing was handed to them. No free lunches, no welfare, no labor laws to protect them. All they had were the skills and craftsmanship they had brought with them to trade for a future of prosperity.
Most of their children came of age when World War II broke out. My father fought along side men whose parents had come straight over from Germany , Italy , France and Japan . None of these 1st generation Americans ever gave any thought about what country their parents had come from. They were Americans fighting Hitler, Mussolini and the Emperor of Japan . They were defending the United States of America as one people.
When we liberated France , no one in those villages were looking for the French-American or the German American or the Irish American. The people of France saw only Americans. And we carried one flag that represented one country. Not one of those immigrant sons would have thought about picking up another country's flag and waving it to represent who they were. It would have been a disgrace to their parents who had sacrificed so much to be here. These immigrants truly knew what it meant to be an American. They stirred the melting pot into one red, white and blue bowl.
And here we are with a new kind of immigrant who wants the same rights and privileges. Only they want to achieve it by playing with a different set of rules, one that includes the entitlement card and a guarantee of being faithful to their mother country. I'm sorry, that's not what being an American is all about. I believe that the immigrants who landed on
Ellis Island in the early 1900's deserve better than that for all the toil, hard work and sacrifice in raising future generations to create a land that has become a beacon for those legally searching for a better life. I think they would be appalled that they are being used as an example by those waving foreign country flags.
And for that suggestion about taking down the Statue of Liberty , it happens to mean a lot to the citizens who are voting on the immigration bill. I wouldn't start talking about dismantling the United States just yet."
For the record - I've never had an issue with anyone coming to this country to better their way of life. That's what this country was founded upon. I do, however, have an issue with someone coming to the US in an ILLEGAL way. That is the word I have a HUGE problem with. You want to come here and earn a better living? Go for it. You want to come here and have a better quality of life for your family? You have my blessing. You want to come here to escape a corrupt government and have the ability to worship how you want, or don't worship at all? Wonderful! I wish you all the luck! DO IT LEGALLY!
I'm so fucking pissed right now, and the fact that EJ decided to tell me that I'm racist and a biggot is just half the part that I'm upset with. He can go fuck himself for all I care. Him and his beast of a girlfriend (but she's a whole other blog story). What I'm angry about is that I sent that email to several people. People I thought would read it and say - Hmm... Maybe this writer has a glimmer of something here. You wanna know who got his reply? Everyone I sent the email to in the first place.
It doesn't matter what I do or say - he's got a fucking comment about it. I let my girls watch horror movies. They like them. I think it's good that they're not sissies about that stuff. Apparently, according to EJ, I've desensitized them to gore. What does that even mean?! I let L stay out on weekends until 10:30 pm. According to EJ, I'm not supervising my children properly. What? She's a 15 year old Freshman for fuck sake!! What am I supposed to do? Put her on a fucking leash like some parents put on their toddlers in the mall? K is trying to find out what sport she likes. We've tried several. She was in karate for several years and got tired of it. I didn't renew her school's contract and let her try cheerleading. According to EJ, I don't make her finish what she starts. She did karate for 4 FUCKING YEARS!! Finish what she started? What the hell didn't she finish?! What, because she didn't get a black belt?!
The best is when he criticizes me. I didn't finish college because it got too expensive, and I didn't have the time anymore. I apparently set a bad example for my kids teaching them that when school gets too hard you can quit. I'm so sorry. At the time I was working one full-time job, two part-time jobs, and school was enough work to be considered full-time, but supposedly I quit because it was too hard? Fuck him.
Anyway, I forwarded this email to several people and my lovely brother, EJ, decided that now is when he's going to play Policically-Correct-Gym-Teacher:
"The person who wrote that letter obvioulsy has no clue what it means to be an AMERICAN "freedom". Erin please stop sending me these racist and biggot filled emails they are absolutly disgusting, I hope you are not teaching your daughters to think this way."
By the way, in case your wondering, this comes from the person who has, in my opinoin, the biggest vocabulary of racal slurs and uses them whenever he feels like it. Never is a black person just a black person to him. They're "Spider Monkeys". A Mexican isn't a Mexican. They're "Lawncare". And the list goes on. However, suddenly I'm the one who's a biggot and a racist.
Here's the email I sent:
"My wife, Rosemary, wrote a wonderful letter to the editor of the OC Register which, of course,was not printed. So, I decided to "print" it myself by sending it out on the Internet. Pass it along if you feel so inclined. Written in response to a series of letters to the editor in the Orange County Register:
Dear Editor:
So many letter writers have based their arguments on how this land is made up of immigrants. Ernie Lujan for one, suggests we should tear down the Statue of Liberty because the people now in question aren't being treated the same as those who passed through Ellis Island and other ports of entry.
Maybe we should turn to our history books and point out to people like Mr. Lujan why today's American is not willing to accept this new kind of immigrant any longer. Back in 1900 when there was a rush from all areas of Europe to come to the United States , people had to get off a ship and stand in a long line in New York and be documented. Some would even get down on their hands and knees and kiss the ground. They made a pledge to uphold the laws and support their new country in good and bad times. They made learning English a primary rule in their new American households and some even changed their names to blend in with their new home.
They had waved good bye to their birth place to give their children a new life and did everything in their power to help their children assimilate into one culture. Nothing was handed to them. No free lunches, no welfare, no labor laws to protect them. All they had were the skills and craftsmanship they had brought with them to trade for a future of prosperity.
Most of their children came of age when World War II broke out. My father fought along side men whose parents had come straight over from Germany , Italy , France and Japan . None of these 1st generation Americans ever gave any thought about what country their parents had come from. They were Americans fighting Hitler, Mussolini and the Emperor of Japan . They were defending the United States of America as one people.
When we liberated France , no one in those villages were looking for the French-American or the German American or the Irish American. The people of France saw only Americans. And we carried one flag that represented one country. Not one of those immigrant sons would have thought about picking up another country's flag and waving it to represent who they were. It would have been a disgrace to their parents who had sacrificed so much to be here. These immigrants truly knew what it meant to be an American. They stirred the melting pot into one red, white and blue bowl.
And here we are with a new kind of immigrant who wants the same rights and privileges. Only they want to achieve it by playing with a different set of rules, one that includes the entitlement card and a guarantee of being faithful to their mother country. I'm sorry, that's not what being an American is all about. I believe that the immigrants who landed on
Ellis Island in the early 1900's deserve better than that for all the toil, hard work and sacrifice in raising future generations to create a land that has become a beacon for those legally searching for a better life. I think they would be appalled that they are being used as an example by those waving foreign country flags.
And for that suggestion about taking down the Statue of Liberty , it happens to mean a lot to the citizens who are voting on the immigration bill. I wouldn't start talking about dismantling the United States just yet."
For the record - I've never had an issue with anyone coming to this country to better their way of life. That's what this country was founded upon. I do, however, have an issue with someone coming to the US in an ILLEGAL way. That is the word I have a HUGE problem with. You want to come here and earn a better living? Go for it. You want to come here and have a better quality of life for your family? You have my blessing. You want to come here to escape a corrupt government and have the ability to worship how you want, or don't worship at all? Wonderful! I wish you all the luck! DO IT LEGALLY!
I'm so fucking pissed right now, and the fact that EJ decided to tell me that I'm racist and a biggot is just half the part that I'm upset with. He can go fuck himself for all I care. Him and his beast of a girlfriend (but she's a whole other blog story). What I'm angry about is that I sent that email to several people. People I thought would read it and say - Hmm... Maybe this writer has a glimmer of something here. You wanna know who got his reply? Everyone I sent the email to in the first place.
It doesn't matter what I do or say - he's got a fucking comment about it. I let my girls watch horror movies. They like them. I think it's good that they're not sissies about that stuff. Apparently, according to EJ, I've desensitized them to gore. What does that even mean?! I let L stay out on weekends until 10:30 pm. According to EJ, I'm not supervising my children properly. What? She's a 15 year old Freshman for fuck sake!! What am I supposed to do? Put her on a fucking leash like some parents put on their toddlers in the mall? K is trying to find out what sport she likes. We've tried several. She was in karate for several years and got tired of it. I didn't renew her school's contract and let her try cheerleading. According to EJ, I don't make her finish what she starts. She did karate for 4 FUCKING YEARS!! Finish what she started? What the hell didn't she finish?! What, because she didn't get a black belt?!
The best is when he criticizes me. I didn't finish college because it got too expensive, and I didn't have the time anymore. I apparently set a bad example for my kids teaching them that when school gets too hard you can quit. I'm so sorry. At the time I was working one full-time job, two part-time jobs, and school was enough work to be considered full-time, but supposedly I quit because it was too hard? Fuck him.
Wednesday, May 12, 2010
Chores and Teens
Am I the only parent who makes their kids do chores? Does anyone else remember having to do chores when they were little, or am I an abnormality? Both of my kids, well if I’m being honest it’s more K then L, but both of them complain that they’re the only one of their friends who has to do chores. They insist that none of their other friends have to do chores, and I truly believe this to be bullshit.
Since I’m being honest, I agree that my kids probably have more daily chores than the “normal” kid, but I really don’t think it’s a big deal. Let me show you what I mean.
L’s daily chores:
Room picked up before she leaves for school
Vacuum front room & entryway
Pick up dog poop
On Tuesday nights take garbage to the curb (bring cans in on Wednesday afternoon)
Every other day – dishes (includes cleaning up from dinner) and sweep kitchen floor
K’s daily chores:
Room picked up before she leaves for school
Vacuum TV room & dining area
Pick up dog poop
Bring in the mail
Every other day – dishes (includes cleaning up from dinner) and sweep kitchen floor
The reason they’re responsible for vacuuming the front room, entryway, TV room, and dining rooms is simply because of the dogs. If we didn’t have hardwood floors, and two dogs who shed like CRAZY then that chore could possibly be an every other day thing. And the dog that creates the most fur is their dog anyway. I don’t think that list above, for either child, is excessive. However, if you listen to K it’s like I’m asking her to be Little Orphan Annie.
Then she complains “you don’t do any work. We do all the work around here, and we don’t even get paid for it!” My standard response is that I go to work every day to help pay for the food in her stomach, the clothes on her back, and the roof over her head, and I buy the food that I cook for her – those are my chores.
I ask you – am I asking too much from these kids?! Keep in mind that they’re not toddlers. They’re able bodied teenagers.
Since I’m being honest, I agree that my kids probably have more daily chores than the “normal” kid, but I really don’t think it’s a big deal. Let me show you what I mean.
L’s daily chores:
Room picked up before she leaves for school
Vacuum front room & entryway
Pick up dog poop
On Tuesday nights take garbage to the curb (bring cans in on Wednesday afternoon)
Every other day – dishes (includes cleaning up from dinner) and sweep kitchen floor
K’s daily chores:
Room picked up before she leaves for school
Vacuum TV room & dining area
Pick up dog poop
Bring in the mail
Every other day – dishes (includes cleaning up from dinner) and sweep kitchen floor
The reason they’re responsible for vacuuming the front room, entryway, TV room, and dining rooms is simply because of the dogs. If we didn’t have hardwood floors, and two dogs who shed like CRAZY then that chore could possibly be an every other day thing. And the dog that creates the most fur is their dog anyway. I don’t think that list above, for either child, is excessive. However, if you listen to K it’s like I’m asking her to be Little Orphan Annie.
Then she complains “you don’t do any work. We do all the work around here, and we don’t even get paid for it!” My standard response is that I go to work every day to help pay for the food in her stomach, the clothes on her back, and the roof over her head, and I buy the food that I cook for her – those are my chores.
I ask you – am I asking too much from these kids?! Keep in mind that they’re not toddlers. They’re able bodied teenagers.
Monday, May 10, 2010
Weddings & Mother's Day
My Weekend Recap (and a little bitching):
Saturday was an eventful day. It was TM & T’s One-Year Anniversary slash Wedding. Kind of confusing, I know, but trust me it’ll all make sense in a moment! On May 8, 2009 T and T got married at a courthouse in Rockford. Supposedly it was because TM wanted T to fix his missing tooth before they had “wedding” photos and the only way to do that was to get T on TM’s insurance. Because they didn’t have the full-on wedding TM’s Mom, who we all call Mom by the way, threw her a “Wedding” for their anniversary. Complete with the wedding gown, attendants, reception, and the works. Saturday was their anniversary and the “wedding”. T still has a missing tooth. Go figure. Either way it was a very nice vow renewal ceremony and reception. TM looked wonderful in her red and black wedding dress, and the wedding party looked good, too. I’m not just saying that because I was in the wedding party – I’m just sayin’!
The only hitch, besides not being the Maid of Honor (which is another story completely and I’ll get into later) is that TM’s Step-Dad wasn’t there. Mom and MS (Step-Dad) are separated for reasons that I’ll not divulge here as it’s not my story to tell, but TM wanted MS at her wedding regardless of the issues Mom and MS have. He’s been more of a father to TM than her biological father was (he passed away a few years ago). TM begged MS to be at her wedding. She told him that she wanted her Dad there to walk her down the aisle and to dance with. (She’s always called him Dad.) He promised her he’d be there – then sent a text message to Mom minutes before the ceremony was to begin telling her simply “I’m not coming”. No explanation. No nothing. Luckily TM’s brother was there to dance with her. I’m just glad that was the only thing that didn’t go according to plan. Other than that it was good party.
My issue with this “wedding” is that while I’ve been TM’s best friend for nearly 20 years I was not the Maid of Honor. And the reason I was given as to why I wasn’t the Maid of Honor was simply because I was at the courthouse last year so TM thought it only fair to J that she be the Maid of Honor. OK. Lemme get this straight. Yes, I was at the courthouse last year. Yes, J was not at the courthouse last year. However, J wasn’t at the courthouse because she and her husband, S, spent two days telling TM and T what a mistake they were making in getting married. That they didn’t agree with them getting married so they couldn’t support TM and T in their decision. And what was their reward for being such callous assholes? They receive the top honor in any wedding party – Maid of Honor and Best Man. However, I was there saying “if you love him and he makes you happy then I support you.” Just like I have supported you for twenty friggin years!!! I haven’t yet said anything to TM about how badly she hurt my feelings but I am going to. I didn’t say anything to her before the wedding because it was her wedding. She could chose whomever she wanted to have whatever roll she wanted in her wedding.
I’ll tell ya what though. J wasn’t doing anything that the Maid of Honor was supposed to do. She would announce to anyone who’d listen “I’m J. I’m the Maid of Honor.” Yet she didn’t lift a finger to help with the wedding. She didn’t help Mom prepare for the Bridal Shower, she didn’t do anything for TM for a bachelorette party, she didn’t help stuff invitations, she didn’t even show up to Mom’s house on Saturday on time to help get TM ready. Everyone was supposed to be at Mom’s house by 3pm on Saturday. We were all going to get dressed together, help TM get into her dress, etc. I was there at 3pm and no one else in the bridal party (except the Junior Bridesmaid, E, who lives there) was there until nearly 4pm. J didn’t even show up until 4:30. And that’s because she’s an idiot. She knows she has a 1 ½ hour ride from Rockford but she makes her hair appointment for 1:30 – in Rockford. Who does that?! Not only that but she was too preoccupied with looking at herself in the mirror in the Living Room to help TM get dressed. Guess who helped? That’s right – Me. I was there helping fasten her bra, get on her garter, her petticoat, and her dress. I was the one fixing her veil when it fell out (too many times to count over the course of the evening!). Where was her Maid of Honor? She was checking out her cross-eyed self in the mirror. Newsflash J – You’re a selfish Bitch and slightly goofy looking to boot. But… The rest of the party was great, like I said before, and I think everyone had a good time.
Saturday morning M and I went to pick up a new cage that I won on eBay. I’m very pleased with my purchase. It’s a 20 gallon tank with a stand that I got for $38. Brand new it was probably worth close to $150 or more. On the way back we stopped at Woodman’s; which is a HUGE grocery store in either Carpentersville or Algonquin. I know that a little further up the road its Algonquin and a little farther down the road its C’Ville so it could be either one. M loves this store. They have a chip aisle that runs half the span of the building – and the building is HUGE. We got a cartful of groceries for exactly $100. At a regular grocery store like Jewel or Dominicks, even Ulta or Butera, that cart would have been significantly more expensive. M also pointed out that we needed eggs, sausage, and even hash browns. I was a little leery because he’ll cook an egg for breakfast in the mornings, but never sausage or hash browns. It turns out that he was buying them for me for my Mother’s Day breakfast. He actually cooked me breakfast. Although I didn’t get the hash browns, but that’s OK. I can use them to make a cheesy casserole that’s pretty darn good.
After breakfast we went to the pet store to get M his snake. He was hoping I’d choose the snake when I was picking out my Mother’s Day present last week, and he was disappointed that I chose the Leopard Geckos instead. Since I got the bigger tank, and we therefore had an empty one he decided he needed the snake. Whatever. As long as I don’t have to feed it or clean its cage – I’m good. He’s a feisty one though. He’s already bit at M but we think it’s because he’s stressed from being moved from the pet store to our house. We need to let him rest for a little bit like we had to do with the geckos. My main concern with the snake is what I remember from when our friend, C, had a Ball Python (same kind M got this weekend). I remember her being in her own room which I remember as very warm and kinda smelly. M insists that this snake probably won’t get as long as Sebastian did (she was nearly 6 ft long), and he insists that we can keep him in the front room. I’m not so sure of that. During the spring time, like now, we open the front door and the back door and windows to let the breeze in, which blows right by the snake’s cage. He’s a cold blooded animal. He wants warmth not cool breezes. We may have to move him. It’ll be a lot of trial and error these first few days.
The rest of my Mother’s Day consisted of lying on my bed with L watching as many of my taped shows as possible before my Mostaccioli dinner and going to JE and JU’s to watch the Blackhawks fail miserably. I had a very enjoyable weekend and I’m looking forward to this coming Saturday when M and I get to go to Texas de Brasil for a retirement party for a gentleman I work with. M lovingly refers to the restaurant as “the meat factory”. If you’re not familiar to this restaurant it’s a Brazilian Steakhouse. You get a little card about the size and shape of a coaster that is red on one side and green on the other. They have Gaucho’s walking around with all kinds of meat on skewers. If your card is green they will stop at your table and slice off some meat for you right there. If you’re full or taking a break all you do is turn your card to red and they’ll pass you by until you flip it to green again. It’s a wonderful restaurant and I recommend it or any one like it to anyone who is a meat eater. If you’re a vegetarian I definitely do not recommend this restaurant to you although their “salad” bar is phenomenal as well!
Beijos!
Erin
Critters and Contacts
This is a post I wrote about a week ago, but never got around to uploading! Enjoy!!
L and K are two of the biggest Drama Queens I know; Drama Queens and Hypochondriacs. I blame their father’s side of the family. He’s got a brother who’s a hypochondriac. The guy would get a cut on his finger and swear that it was going to fall off due to gangrene.
Thursday night L fell asleep before taking out her contacts. I don’t wear contacts (I only need glasses for close work like reading, computer work, taking out splinters, etc) so I’m not sure how someone can accidentally fall asleep in them, but she did. When she woke up Friday morning she was complaining of pain in her eyes and her eyes wouldn’t stop watering. Being the horrible mother that I am, I told her “Tough. You’re going to school anyway. Take your glasses.” I ended up driving her to school that morning and as I dropped her off I saw that by now her eyes are really puffy and she’s having a hard time opening them. I kicked her out of my car anyway. Needless to say I got a call from the nurse at school as soon as I walked in the office door. I turned around and went to pick her up again.
It turns out that when you sleep in your contacts they can dry out your eyes; even the ones that are extended wear. When L woke up and removed her contacts she removed some of the cells covering her eye as well – thus the pain. Of course her Optometrist isn’t in the office on Fridays so I had to take her to the Urgent Care. The Dr. there put some numbing drops in her eyes, then some stain in her eyes, and looked at her eyes with a black light. The numbing drops were to take away the pain and make it so she could open her eyes for the amount of time the Dr needed to be able to look at her eyes, and the stain was to see if there were any scratches on her eyes. I was able to look at her eyes under the black light and with the stain in them, and it was pretty cool! Her eyes glowed like a cat’s. I also saw where she’d removed the cells off her eyes when she removed her contacts.
The good news is that she didn’t permanently damage her eyes, and there won’t be a need for a follow-up Dr. visit, just medicated eye drops several times a day for the next week. The bad news, for her, is that she’s not allowed to wear her contacts for 7 days. We are talking about a 15 year old girl. Needless to say, she’s chosen to be blind for the next 7 days rather than wear her glasses because she’s too vain.
I’d like to find out where K has gone. The being that has inhabited her body is too well behaved to be K. I’m not sure where she’s been taken, but I have to say I kind of like this new K-Child. There were no major arguments over the past few days. She did get grounded on Friday due to not doing several chores over the course of several days, but even her reaction to that news was well received. I’m still trying to figure out what she wants, but I’ll enjoy the new K-Child until the ulterior motive is revealed.
I got my Mother’s Day present early this year. M and the kids decided that they would get me Geckos for Mother’s Day. I’ve always loved reptiles and have wanted one, several kinds actually, for quite awhile but have never gotten one. They can be expensive, but a local pet store had a sale on terrariums and all the equipment needed (lights, cage lining, temperature gauge, cage, lid, etc) as well as the animals themselves.
I chose to get Leopard Geckos. Originally I was only going to get one Gecko but decided at the store to get two because they were 50% off. When we were almost ready to leave the store M decided that we should get a third because they only had three to begin with. Apparently in M’s mind the third Gecko would be lonely if we took his “friends” away. We decided to name them Dragon, Night Hawk, and Geico. Stepbrothers is M’s favorite movie of the month which is where Dragon and Night Hawk come from. Geico is… well it should be obvious.
When we got home and I started to look up information on the Leopard Gecko I found out that while they can live together in a group they don’t tend to do so in the wild. I found out that you can’t positively tell the sex of a gecko until they’re about 6 – 12 months old. I also found out that if you have a males and females in one cage this could be a problem. Oh, lucky me. Apparently if you have more than one male they can possibly fight to the death in an attempt to prove dominance. If you have one male with several females they will reproduce - constantly.
Luckily I have a friend who has several Geckos so I’m going to see if we can get together so she can tell me more about raising these little lizards. The pet store told me that the Geckos I purchased are too young to determine the sex of them yet, so I’m hoping that I have time to sort this out! I will also need to get a larger cage for them. They are ok in the cage I have now but they will soon outgrow it. I also want to get a small table to put the cage on in my room. I’d rather have them out of sight of the dogs while we’re not at home. That makes me a little nervous.
Monday, May 3, 2010
Dumb Stuff Kids Do
My daughter, L, has a guy friend, Z, who is a complete Dumbass. This kid is 15 years old and has been busted for drinking and smoking, he runs away from home, has lived with his Grandmother for a few weeks at a time several times, and is quite frankly - annoying. However, knowing that the more I say "you are not allowed to hang around Z" the more L will be inclined TO hang around him. So instead, I've been keeping tabs on him. Just kinda keeping up to speed as much as I can as to what they're doing, where they're going, who they're with, etc.
L comes home the other week after hanging out with a bunch of kids and says to me "I need to tell you something and I think you're going to be mad" which in kid-speak is a definite clue that she's done something really stupid. She proceeds to tell me that sometime during that afternoon/evening Z decided it would be funny to pull a knife on some unsuspecting guy in Blockbuster. After the kids left Blockbuster and headed elsewhere, L and her girlfriends lost Z and the other guys they were with. Upon coming out of another store the girls saw the guys - getting handcuffed and being put in the back of a police cruiser. The guy from Blockbuster called the cops on Z. I don't blame him however the only reason that L told me about this incident is because Z is being charged with whatever charge pulling a knife on someone would be. Z's Mom told L and her friends that the only way they'd have anything to do with these charges is if Z's lawyer needs witnesses.
My response to L's confession was that I'm not sure I want her to hang out with Z anymore and he's definitely not allowed to be at our house either. When I saw Z at one of L's soccer games he apologized to me and "promised" to think about his actions from now on, but I'm pretty confident that he was being an ass-kisser. I haven't changed my mind. His actions that day could have gotten someone really hurt. When it comes to my kids, my job as a parent is to keep them from being hurt. Z's reason for pulling the knife on this guy was because this guy was "fat" therefore what was he gonna do? When I told my fiancé, M, this he said "I'm fat. Let him pull a knife on me and see how quickly I kill him." I just can't believe that Z would think that it's acceptable to do that. More so that he thought it was funny!
I get that people, especially kids, make mistakes, but aren't you supposed to learn from your mistakes? Z may not have pulled a knife on someone previously but he's done enough stupid shit that he should be thinking about what he's doing. I think he was trying to impress the kids they were all with.
Either way - Z's been banned from our house for an indefinite amount of time. I'm not sure if I'm going to lift that ban either. I'm pretty close to telling L that she's not allowed to hang out with Z at all. For the moment she hangs out with him in a group setting or at his house, but that obviously doesn't stop him from being an idiot.
L comes home the other week after hanging out with a bunch of kids and says to me "I need to tell you something and I think you're going to be mad" which in kid-speak is a definite clue that she's done something really stupid. She proceeds to tell me that sometime during that afternoon/evening Z decided it would be funny to pull a knife on some unsuspecting guy in Blockbuster. After the kids left Blockbuster and headed elsewhere, L and her girlfriends lost Z and the other guys they were with. Upon coming out of another store the girls saw the guys - getting handcuffed and being put in the back of a police cruiser. The guy from Blockbuster called the cops on Z. I don't blame him however the only reason that L told me about this incident is because Z is being charged with whatever charge pulling a knife on someone would be. Z's Mom told L and her friends that the only way they'd have anything to do with these charges is if Z's lawyer needs witnesses.
My response to L's confession was that I'm not sure I want her to hang out with Z anymore and he's definitely not allowed to be at our house either. When I saw Z at one of L's soccer games he apologized to me and "promised" to think about his actions from now on, but I'm pretty confident that he was being an ass-kisser. I haven't changed my mind. His actions that day could have gotten someone really hurt. When it comes to my kids, my job as a parent is to keep them from being hurt. Z's reason for pulling the knife on this guy was because this guy was "fat" therefore what was he gonna do? When I told my fiancé, M, this he said "I'm fat. Let him pull a knife on me and see how quickly I kill him." I just can't believe that Z would think that it's acceptable to do that. More so that he thought it was funny!
I get that people, especially kids, make mistakes, but aren't you supposed to learn from your mistakes? Z may not have pulled a knife on someone previously but he's done enough stupid shit that he should be thinking about what he's doing. I think he was trying to impress the kids they were all with.
Either way - Z's been banned from our house for an indefinite amount of time. I'm not sure if I'm going to lift that ban either. I'm pretty close to telling L that she's not allowed to hang out with Z at all. For the moment she hangs out with him in a group setting or at his house, but that obviously doesn't stop him from being an idiot.
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