Thursday, August 31 0 comments

Bangkok House


We head to Bangkok House for dinner again.

The waitress comes over to take our order.

She says to me, "Pud Bean Sprout, no mushroom, right?" in her broken English.

Then she says, "You cut your hair! It look very nice."

I was wondering if I've been going there a little too often. Not wondering anymore.
Sunday, August 27 0 comments

The Rosebud

Tonight we went to The Rosebud. It's a really cool movie theater with sofas, end tables, and coffee tables. They only show one movie, so it's not like one of those multiplexes where everything feels so sterile. There isn't even a booth for ticket sales, you have to buy your tickets at the concession counter.

And the concession counter isn't what I'm used to either. You order food, beer, snacks, candy, whatever you want and they give you a number. You put the number on the top of your sofa and when your order is ready, they deliver it to your sofa. This was the coolest movie experience I've ever been to.

And the movie was Beerfest - not something I would normally choose, but I laughed from beginning to end, curled up on a sofa!
Saturday, August 26 0 comments

It's one of those days

It's one of those days where my brain isn't working right. Everything I want to do isn't turning out quite the way it should. Mostly because I'm not thinking clearly.

I got up and blanched tomatoes immediately. I really wanted this putzy messy job to be done. So it was done pretty early. Since I had all the equipment out, I figured I would add all the other ingredients to can some salsa. I added onions, garlic, and green peppers. I got to the jalapenos knowing very well what can happen when you don't wear rubber gloves when chopping those nasty little devils. But I was getting tired of the whole thing and chopped the peppers without gloves. My hands were on fire. At least I did have the common sense not to rub my face or eyes causing extreme pain to places other than my hands. Dumb. Dumb Dumb. And lazy.

I did get all my laundry done but again, I wasn't thinking. Jeff mentioned that he had some stained shorts that needed to be treated. I did all the laundry then thought about the shorts. Duh.

I knew I was the communion assistant at church today and most times (not always) I also have to bake for the fellowship that follows. I ordered the bread yesterday and picked it up this morning but I wasn't thinking about baking. So an hour before I had to leave for church I discovered that I had to bake! I'm frantically looking for an easy recipe. Luckily the lazy daze cake only takes a half hour. I can preheat the oven, mix the ingredients together and pour them in a pan to bake for 20 minutes. While that's baking I will mix up the topping ingredients, take the cake out of the oven, cover it with the topping and put it under the broiler for 4 minutes. There we have it, a half hour later it's cooling in the window and ready in time for church. Whew.

At least we got to church on time, bread in hand, and cake ready to eat. I picked up a special offering envelope for roof repairs. After church, I wrote a check, put it in the envelope and sealed it up. Between cake and fellowship I inadvertently dropped the envelope back into my purse instead of turning it over to the church. Geez.

On our way home from church, Jeff asked me what I wanted to eat. I decided Panera for soup (it's right down the street from church in the direction heading towards home). As we headed out I changed my mind, I thought let's just go home and cook. Of course there was nothing thawed so I threw a package of ground chuck into the microwave and hit the defrost button. I then headed to the freezer to get some buns out to thaw. I was gaining some efficiency. I chopped up some onion, lettuce, and sliced tomatoes to add to the burgers. After that, I forgot about the whole thing and went upstairs. Good thing Jeff went into the kichen and finished or I would have never had any dinner.

Time for a beer to kill even more brain cells.
Friday, August 25 0 comments

A Creature of Habit

I've been looking at this sticker stuck to the floor all week. Every time I see it I wonder what it's supposed to be. I guess it's either the number '89' or '68' depending on the direction I'm standing (or sitting). I imagine that it's one of those 'inspected by' stickers that get attached to clothing at the time of purchase. Something someone overlooked when they ripped the tags off their new shirt/skirt/pants/dress. This could never happen to me. I must wash my new clothes before I wear them so if I did inadvertently leave the stickers on, they would have fallen off into my wash machine, or to my dismay, lodge themselves like cement to the inside of my dryer from the heat induced permanency. On second thought, it could happen to me if the item is a 'dry clean only' piece then it's going to be worn more than once before it ever gets clean. But I am careful to remove all evidence of newness to my clothing - don't want to be walking around looking like Fannie Flagg on Hee-Haw.

The thing that bothers me about the sticker being stuck where it is is that it's on the floor in the third bathroom stall on the third floor of the building where I work. It makes me think the cleaning crew needs to do a better job. Of course, I could just bend down and pick it up, but the thought of doing that without the benefit of rubber gloves grosses me out. So I leave it there. I first viewed it on Monday morning, it was still there on Tuesday, and by Wednesday I was thinking that I am now on a mission to see how long it goes before someone picks it up. Now it's Friday and it's still there. The more I dwell on it the more I question my own character. Am I that arrogant/lazy that I cannot bend down and pick the thing off the floor? And why is it that I always choose this exact same stall to use when I go to the bathroom? Why am I such a creature of habit?

I wonder if that sticker will still be there on Monday.
Wednesday, August 23 0 comments

Night on a Yacht

Last night we were invited by the Marshalls to join them on a boat ride. We rode through Lake Michigan and turned into channel that leads to the Milwaukee River. The really cool thing is that I got to drive! Going under the bridges was really cool, but a bit scary. The trick is to line up the center of the boat with the two red lights that are located under the bridge which from my view were hanging up above. That is the highest point of the bridge. We were on a 40-foot boat that had more than enough room to hold all 16 of us. Some were down in the galley mixing drinks, some hung out off the back of the boat and some were stretched out on the hull. I tried to stay close to the back so I could get the best view without the boat being in the way. I could look behind the boat at the coastline or off to the sides where the slips were and the open water. Such a gorgeous view.
Wednesday, August 16 0 comments

Top 10 Reasons that I am hip and trendy

Top Ten Reasons that I am hip and trendy:

1. I have an iPod mini and I use it regularly.
2. I have a belly ring.
3. I know who Narles Barkley is.
4. I have tattoos.
5. I like to spend time at the bookstore drinking lattes.
6. I have a blog.
7. I know what a meme is.
8. I am into running. I wish this wasn’t hip and trendy so all those people who took it up to be cool would just disappear leaving me more space on the running paths.
9. I drive an SUV. Oh wait, this should be on a not hip list.
10. I download music off the Internet.
Tuesday, August 15 0 comments

Top 10 Reasons that I am not hip and trendy

Top Ten Reasons that I am not hip and trendy:

1. I've never seen a reality television show. I hear about them during the morning radio talk shows on my way to work, but I've never actually seen one.
2. Who is Lindsay Lohan and why should I care about her celebrity status? I think she's on the television show Desperate Housewives but since I’ve never seen that show, I really can't say for sure.
3. I hate everything Oprah.
4. I think McDonald's coffee is better than Starbucks.
5. Cell phones should be used to make phone calls, not to take photos or listen to music. They should ring like phones so I want to answer it, not get up and dance.
6. I don't understand what the big deal is about lunch meat wrapped in a tortilla. It's still lunch meat with 3,000 milligrams of sodium so how can it be called a healthy choice?
7. I still think Cosmopolitans are yummy. I know Sex and the City was cancelled a few years back now and that the Cosmo craze died when the show died but after all, I live in Milwaukee, we're just getting into crop pants and iPods.
8. I believe that tennis shoes a.k.a. sneakers a.k.a. athletic shoes should only be worn in the gym. I don't care if they are as expensive as a pair of Jimmie Choos. They are still just gym shoes.
9. I have never and will never try sushi.
10. I do not use text messaging. See #5.
Saturday, August 12 0 comments

Where Did Mary Go?

I've been running regularly for about 5 years now. I've even trained for a marathon a few years back. So I've piled on many miles, got my routine down, and know my routes very well. Back when I started running I had a simple goal, to make it around the neighborhood. I started heading east then north through the sub-division, turned north to head out onto Drexel Avenue, then south down 13th Street, back east and then home again. As I developed my running legs, I ventured further by winding through the parkway paths to increase my distance. After a few months I worked my way up to the 4-mile route that goes from Drexel Avenue to 13th Street to Puetz Road, then to Howell Avenue, back to Drexel and home again. The route was familiar. I know exactly where the tree branches hang too low, where the residents park their cars over the sidewalk, and the dogs bark too much. I pass the same runners going in other directions and see mostly the same people on the paths during my runs.

There is something to be said for routine. It gives me the ability to get comfortable with my surroundings. That helps me run. And running isn't easy. It takes perseverance, dedication, and imagination. All are important in keeping up the routine but the one thing that means the most is imagination. Imagination helps keep me from getting bored; it makes me forget when my shins begin to hurt and my legs start getting heavy. There are moments when I want to quit and make excuses as to why I should just start walking or turn around and go back home. Taking my mind to another place helps me get through those times and before I know it, the run gets easier and I'm back in the game.

Which brings me to Mary. Mary is a consistent figure on my path. She is always there to greet me as I go by. Her arms are stretched out as if welcoming me into them and the serene look on her face brings me a sense of calmness and reassurance to both my mind and body. Whether it’s 20 degrees outside or 90, she is there. When the wind is whipping the fall leaves swirl around her and in spring she stands in the mud after the rain has come. I can always count on Mary. She is standing 15 strides from the turn in my path. As I turn the view towards the sky is incredible. I look up and see the blue sky framed by the edges of the tree tops on all sides. After I do the sign of the cross and pray for Mary's blessing I always say out loud, "Thank you God for another day," as I peer into this little portrait of heaven. But Mary is gone now leaving me in a state of confusion.

The statue stood in the front yard of this house as long as I've been running. Once in a while I got a glimpse of the owner. He was a frail man confined to a wheelchair. I don't know if anyone else lived in the house, there were no clues to tell me one way or another. With some homes I run past I can get a pretty close idea of the family that lives there. The swing sets and small bicycles tell of toddlers, the 10-speeds and skateboards hint of teens, and the houses with four or more cars tell me the kids have grown. But this home had no real signs of life outside of the man in the wheelchair seldomly sitting in his garage. There was a car in the garage so either he could drive it himself, but I doubted that since there was no handicapped plates or hang tag, or someone else lived there, but I also doubted that or he just kept his car even though he couldn't drive it anymore. My theory is that he couldn't give up his car even if he couldn't drive it – sort of giving up a last piece of independence.

As the years passed there were small hints of change. Five years ago the grass was always cut and the trimming was done. Mary stood among the flower bed, no weeds to bother her. As time passed, the grass stood taller around Mary, but the grass was still cut. I wondered about the old man. Was it getting harder for him to find someone to help? I doubt that he could do the yard work. Maybe he couldn't afford to pay someone anymore. I worried. This spring things got much worse. The grass wasn't cut at all. It got taller and taller. It finally got cut but since that time, it's never been kept as groomed as it used to be. I couldn't help but think about whether the old man was OK or not.

Today I think the message was clear. He is not OK. Today the house has a ‘for sale’ sign in front of it and Mary is gone. Gone. I almost stopped in my tracks. She is gone. I turned the corner trying to push on in my usual fashion, looked up and said my words in prayer..."Thank you God for another day," without much feeling. I did push on. My thoughts were making me dizzy. I wondered why I was so upset over a silly little statue. It seemed a little crazy. It's just a cheezy version of Mary, Mother of Jesus in the flower bed. I can still offer a prayer when I go by, but it's just not the same. And what of the old man? Is he dead? Gone to a nursing home? Where did he go?

My brain tells me that it's just a symbolic gesture and I can continue with the same routine even without Mary if I really want to. I think part of my problem is how important this was in my routine. It's like taking a piece of my daily life and removing it without notice. I’m thinking about calling the realtor. I need to know about the old man.

On a selfish note, I wonder if Mary is for sale.
Thursday, August 10 0 comments

Still

Still got Shama-lama-ding-dong playing in my head.
Wednesday, August 9 0 comments

A Call to Microsoft or Welcome to India

I had to call the Microsoft help desk tonight. All I wanted to do was register my MS Office Professional that I just finished installing on a brand new computer. Because I installed it on my old computer, it required a phone call, it would not allow me to activate over the Internet. So here’s how the conversation went:

Tech: “Good evening, welcome to Microsoft. Are you calling regarding Office Professional 2003?”

OK, apparently the number I dialed is directly linked to MS Office Products, good job Microsoft!

Me: “Yes. I need to activate my software.”

Tech: “May I have the first 6 digits of your activation ID?”

Me: “011014”

Tech: “011?”

Me: “Yes, zero one one zero one four.”

Tech: “014?”

Me: “Yes, I mean no..well sort of... zero…one…one…zero…one…four.”

Tech: “011?”

Me: “YES, ZERO…..ONE…..ONE…..ZERO…..ONE…..FOUR!”

Tech: “OK.”

Me: “May I ask your name?”

Tech: “My name is Shamaramu.”

Is it because Animal House has been on HBO at least 10 times in the last week or did I really just hear him say Shama- lama-ding-dong?

Tech: “Is this software installed on another computer?”

Me: “Yes, it’s on my laptop and now I want to put it on my new computer.”

OK technically I lied, I want to put it on Jeff’s new computer and I know that Microsoft doesn’t allow you to share software among family members, but I am a user of this computer so I say no harm no foul.

Tech: “Did this software come with the new computer or did you purchase it separately?”

Me: “Well actually, neither. I am a beta tester for Microsoft so they sent me the software for free as a thank you.”

Tech: “Did this software come with the new computer or did you purchase it separately?”

I think he’s reading a script. I bet he can’t really even speak English. Pick one of the two answers, dummy.

Me: “I purchased it separately.”

Shama: “OK. I will give you the activation ID number 6 digits at a time. Please type in the appropriate boxes… nnnnnn-nnnnnn-nnnnnn-nnnnnn-nnnnnn-nnnnnn.”

This took 5 minutes because he talked so slow. I thought I would never get through it. I wish I would have written it down, I had enough time!

Me: “The numbers are in I clicked next.”

Lama: “Please click next.”

I KNEW he was reading a script.

Me: “OK.”

Ding-Dong: “Please click finish.”

Me: “OK. It’s working. Thank you.”

Tech: “Is there anything else I can do for you.”

Me: “No, thank you.”

Tech: “Have a good evening.”


That must be confusing there since it's gotta be close to morning there.
Tuesday, August 8 0 comments

Wisconsin State Fair 2006

Things we did at the fair:


  1. Saw the world’s largest shoe.
  2. Drank wine with a snack of grapes, bread & olive oil at the Stones Throw Winery.
  3. Listened to a jazz band.
  4. Admired all the quilts and the clothing on display in the Wisconsin Expo building.
  5. Ran the other way from the junk peddlers in that building.
  6. Walked through the DNR Park and checked out the deer antlers and the fish.
  7. Ate mozzarella cheese sticks.
  8. Stopped at the WE booth to see about getting a new cookie cook book.
  9. Ate a tostada.
  10. Ate a spring roll.
  11. Checked out the 2007 Harleys.
  12. Strolled through the Wisconsin Products Pavilion to see the prize winning foods.
  13. Jeff got a strawberry sundae and I got a chocolate milk.
  14. Jeff bought me a ‘got milk?’ glass. It’s really cool.
  15. Walked through the barns.
  16. Petted a baby cow. Jack and Jill were born two weeks ago, and Jill was out for a walk.
  17. Walked the AG building. There was a veggie race going on, didn’t stay to see if the squash or the potato won.
  18. Perused the Milwaukee Mile Marketplace. Same old junk.
  19. Got in the cream puff line and picked up a 6-pack of cream puffs to take home.
Monday, August 7 0 comments

MS Best Dam Bike Tour 2006


I never rode my bike like this before, so many miles, so many hills. What a great time. The scenery was beautiful, the people were friendly, the ride was well planned out. The volunteers were wonderful and I will do it again.

Things I learned on this ride:

  • Pack more clothes. It rained and I should have brought a jacket.
  • Train on hills and in the wind. I could handle it but it would have been
    nice if it was easier.
  • Take Monday off. It's hard to get up at 5 on Monday morning when I had to
    get up at 5 on Saturday and Sunday. I need a day to sleep in.
  • Don't spend so much time at the rest stops. Get water and get going.
  • Eat big at breakfast and light at lunch. Lunch wore me down.
  • Use the services that are offered. I should have gotten a massage.
Friday, August 4 0 comments

Five on Friday Meme

Name your top five favorite television shows that have been cancelled.

1. Thirtysomething
2. St. Elsewhere
3. Evening Shade
4. Northern Exposure
5. Cybill


I could also list Murphy Brown, Six Feet Under, Chicago Hope, and Soap in this category. Since I don't watch much TV, I'm surprised I came up with so many answers.
 
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