Woman in the Middle

Last Wednesday I took the day off work so I could go with my brother to a doctor’s appointment. After I got on the freeway he got a call from the doctor’s office asking him to come in early, because the doctor had been called into a meeting at my brother’s appointment time. Sigh! Well, the infamous 91 freeway was backed up like you wouldn’t believe. I called Hubby who raced from work on a different set of freeways. But it was all for nothing, as we couldn’t get Big Bro to the doctor in time and the appointment had to be rescheduled. Altogether a frustrating time!

Hubby had to go back to work but Big Bro and I decided to make the best of it. Have you seen the cable show “Storage Wars?” That is filmed here in So Cal and it just so happens that the thrift store owned by Brandi and Jared (who are on the show) is not too far from Big Bro’s place. So off we went to check it out. When we got to the unassuming strip mall where their store is located, one of their moving trucks was in the parking lot with a driver in it. You may have guessed from the following photo of my brother I posted a month or two ago that he is a real character:

Big Bro will start talking to any body, even more than I will. He has absolutely no shame or embarrassment in that regard! So Big Bro went right up to the truck driver and started chatting him up. He asked if  he was ever on the show (I didn’t find out the answer to that as I was busy taking photos and being slightly embarrassed). Big Bro found out we just missed Jared and that Jared is a nice guy, not the hard a** he appears to be on the show. We went in and poked around in the store for a bit, went to the used bookstore next door and then got lunch.

As my minister told me later, Big Bro probably needed that a lot more than he needed another doctor’s appointment. And she was probably right.

The new appointment was this morning and Big Bro got the results of his latest PET scan. It was good news! The chemo is working and holding the bad stuff in check or even shrinking it a bit. So, after our bad/good day last week, today it is all good! Whoo Hoo!

I have been so lucky in my life. I had a great Dad and my Hubby is a great father to my girls. It dawned on me, in contemplating Father’s Day, that I have never really written about my Dad in this blog. It is certainly time to rectify that omission!

My Dad was tall, and that kind of spoiled my in my teenage years. Aren’t all men 6 feet tall? No, no they are not! He loved sports, but basketball was his favorite. He played basketball in high school. In my sophomore year of high school, before I became too cool to be seen in public with my parents, my dad and I went to basketball games together at my school. At one particular game, Dad was yelling at one of the players, as people tend to do at basketball games. He was saying something like “Get your hands up” or “Play offense” except that he was using the player’s name. Oh, I was so embarrassed! I told Dad to stop it, and he said, “Why? His dad is yelling the same thing!”

Another funny memory also comes from those teen age years. Dad and Mom were going to get pizza with a couple they knew. Dad came out of the bedroom with a pair of medium brown pants and a shirt that was primarily pink. (Keep in mind, this was the 70s) I was appalled by this color combination! Dad didn’t agree and I keep harassing him with how awful the shirt looked with those pants. I just about had him convinced that he needed to go change his shirt when there was a knock at the door.  Their friends had arrived.   When Mr. and Mrs.. Skinner walked in the door, Mr.. Skinner was wearing almost the EXACT same outfit as my dad, except his shirt was a lavender print, instead of pink. This was not lost on my Dad and he shot me the biggest grin! Needless to say, I lost that argument big time!

My Dad didn’t go to college, but he sure wanted me to. When my first quarter grades came out, I had gotten a C minus in my English class. Dad didn’t say a word to me but, instead, consulted with a man he respected, a man who had gone to college and whose children had gone to college. That man, Mr. Taylor, told Dad I would be fine. And guess what, I was! That was the type of man my Dad was, not afraid to seek out the consul of others who might have more knowledge than he did.

My Dad was amazing, as I am sure your Dad was (or is)! Hope you have a great Father’s Day!

It is definitely June here in So Cal. How do I know? June Gloom! We just love to name our weather phenomena around here.

Assuming you aren’t a sun worshiper, June Gloom is actually quite nice. What is called the “marine layer, ” a layer of clouds, forms over the ocean. After midnight the wind kicks up which pushes the clouds inland. Sometimes the clouds just stay along the coast, but other times they get quite far from the ocean  Right now the June Gloom is really coming ashore quite a distance, making it all the way to my neck of the woods, day after day.

This makes for cool overcast mornings. Considering what is in store for us later this summer, I am thrilled with the cool mornings. It means I can open my windows at night and cool off the house. The AC comes on less and my pocketbook likes that!   The only people that get annoyed with June Gloom are the mothers of school age children. When June Gloom hits, it is too cool in the morning to send the kids off to school without a jacket. But, by lunch time, the sun is shining and it is warm. Of course the kids don’t know that. They head off to lunch with their jacket on, run around a bit, get warm, and off comes the jacket. It along with hundreds of other June Gloom orphans end up in the school’s lost and found. Most will remain lost, few will ever be found, take my word for it!

Eldest Daughter shared an interesting theory with me. She thinks that  Blackie the cat isn’t a cat at all. She thinks he is an alien life form that is masquerading as a cat to study humans. She believes his natural (alien) form is some type of ooze, like the Odo character on Star Trek Deep Space Nine. She feels that this alien can’t completely hide his real, ooze like nature. You know, if she is right is would explain so much….

If you are still not sure that Blackie is an alien from outer space, this next picture might convince you!

The weather was great here for the 5K walk/run Hubby and I participated in on Saturday. Some people had a light jacket on at the 6 am start time but we were fine without one. When we arrived we found Eldest Daughter and her friends. One of her friend’s mother was also there so Hubby and I got to meet Lynne for the first time. When the race started and the girls sprinted off Lynne stayed with us and we had a very nice time chatting for 3.6 miles. An unexpected benefit of the race was a new acquaintance! Below is the beginning of the race, with everyone sprinting off ahead of me and my walking pals.

We began near the front of the pack but got over to the side to let the serious people who planned to run the race by. At the quarter-mile mark Hubby looked behind him and I asked how many were still behind us (thinking it would be quite a big group still). He said “Oh, a few.” so I looked around and maybe a dozen people were behind us. Humm….

Soon after that I saw this unexpected sight, an Emu!

Just before the mile mark was a real killer hill. Oh my, I just about lost it there! You know it is bad when you start looking around for a good place to throw up….but I didn’t, I am pleased to report. At the top of the hill was water and a flat spot. I eventually recovered my breath and it really was smooth sailing from there on out. However the crowd had really thinned out back where I was….

By the half way mark it was us three and two other couples bring up the rear.

We traded spots a little here and there, depending on the terrain, but in the end it was Hubby, Lynne and I that crossed the finish line in dead last place. I had a flash back to high school PE and all of those races I came in last…. The young man who won the race covered it in 17 minutes and 25 seconds. We covered the same course in 1 hour and 9 minutes!

Youngest Daughter told me she was proud of me for doing something so outside my comfort zone. Eldest and her friends waited for us at the finish line and cheered our arrival.  I met someone new who I really liked. And, except for Killer Hill, it wasn’t bad at all. I will do more 5ks in the future and I highly recommend it. Especially if you can find one without a big hill and you don’t mind coming in last!

I don’t know why, but I signed Hubby and I up for a 5K walk/run, which happens to be tomorrow. Two months ago when I signed us up is seemed like a good idea. Get some exercise and a free t-shirt. Because it can get hot in this neck of the woods they are starting the race at 6 a.m. Can you hear me crying yet? I keep telling myself that I walk a MINIMUM of 5 kilometers every time I go to Disneyland. But tomorrow at 6 a.m. I won’t be at Disneyland. Me and 300 or so other crazy people (and Hubby) will be pounding the pavement in my fair city. Good times! I will tell you all about it Monday. Oh, Eldest Daughter will be doing the run/walk with some friends as well. That noise you hear in the morning will be her grumbling.

Every once in a while I entertain myself by looking at the search terms that lead people to my blog. They are weirdly fascinating, kind of like a train wreck. Some I can figure out, kind of, what post they relate to. Others, who knows! Here are a few.

In the category of Absolutely No Clue, i.e. I have no idea how their search term led people to me and my blog::

sauna must haves

woman with arrows

graceland mid cat

pictures of a fat woman yelling at another woman

photo of woman at the window

me I passed my weekend not bead

Then there are some that I do know what they are referring to, but I still have a hard time figuring out how Google made the connection.

Worms in the carpet after washing (I had a post about finding an earthworm on my bedroom carpet. I do not have worms in my carpet, but apparently lots of others do as many similar inquires have found their way to my blog. Just one word: Eeww!

Forced to wear pantyhose by my grandmother (I did do a post about putting on my pantyhose because I was serious about something. But my grandmother never ever forced me into pantyhose. And even if she did, I wouldn’t Google it!)

“keep our plunger in the garage” toilet (I think there was a post about modern toilets and their need for plungers. But no mention of the garage. Again, why would someone have to Google that?)

city employees with most fun (I am and have been a city employee. I probably have mentioned that in a post. I am sure I have never  mentioned the word “fun” with city employment. It is a job. If it was fun it would be a vacation.)

brother harass ( I have a brother. Maybe I harass him sometimes, but I don’t think I have blogged about it. I don’t want to create a permanent record of it that he could hold over my head!)

Last but not least, there is the “I Just Don’t Want to Know” category. I have no idea how this search term lead to my blog and I don’t think I want to know….

santa’s naked little hussies

nude Barbie shop

nude photos “Jurupa valley”

1. It is turning warm in inland So Cal and I am sitting here appreciating my air conditioner. I am only half kidding when I say I will stop eating before I stop that amazing machine that keeps me from sweating.

2. My faithful computer buddy is lying on the floor next to me, adding to the hair balls that already populate the carpet in that particular spot. I know she is dreaming because she is breathing very fast. I expect to see her little feet move any minute.

3. My Eldest just informed me she was cleaning her room. Being the smart woman that I am I asked her who was coming over. I was right, a friend will be dropping by very soon. But I don’t care what the reason is, I am just happy for the cleaning.

4. Speaking of cleaning, my house still sparkles from the thorough cleaning it got for a meeting I had here this week. Love that sparkle! Hate what I have to do to get it there!

5. I got to hand out a certificate at a high school senior awards night. An organization I belong to gives scholarships to high school seniors every year and I am scholarship chair. In a life often packed with the mundaine or annoying, that was one really nice thing to get to do!

Hubby is once again trying to hire someone at his business. I asked him to keep an eye out for any funny things that pop up in the dozens of resumes he has been wading through and he is kindly doing so. I thought we could all do with a laugh and, sure enough, Hubby was able to come up with a few things to tickle our funny bones. Needless to say, the following folks aren’t getting an interview with Hubby’s company.

I am able to transcending global languages, tri-lingual, eager to learn, team work oriented, well organized, fast learner, presentation skills, self starter, committed and results oriented. (Maybe not quite tri-linguel?)

 My goal is to work for a World Known Corporation, where I could acquire experience, learn and become a professional. (Is Well Known different from well known?)

Dear Hiring Manager; I enjoy chemistry. However, sometimes what you enjoy may not necessary be what you are really good at. …I am still immature and purposeless like I was during my undergrad years. That is why I have decided to go out and get a job and hopefully to change my lifestyle for the better. (So, this fellow admits to being not so good in chemistry, but is applying for a job as a chemist, and describes himself as immature and purposeless…and he thinks anyone is going to hire him????)

The people we bought our house from must have used the Big Book of Invasive Plants to plan thier landscaping. We have a number of things in our yard that would take over vast reaches of the neighborhood given a little time and a lack of attention on our part. But one of the worst, I think, are the Morning Glories. Those pretty big purple/blue flowers just lure you in, and then, one day, you realize that all that green in your front planter isn’t the plants you normally see there, but a huge big mound of smothering Morning Glories!

Hubby and I are being vicious this year, and are doing our best trying to keep the little creepers at bay. We have waded in to the front planter and ripped out Morning Glories left and right. In a few spots we even managed to pull up some roots, which is so gratifying! I am sure the hydrangeas and camelias are very grateful for our work!

I have heard that back east, where they get a hard freeze every year, Morning Glories aren’t such a problem. They don’t come back unless you replant them. But here in So Cal they are a perennial plant, perennially trying to take over my yard every spring and summer! My adice to any of you that live in a temperate climate: DO NOT PLANT MORNING GLORIES!

What is in your yard that you are very sorry you (or someone else) planted?