Wednesday, February 27, 2013

I just want to play hookie today......

I would really like to have stayed in bed with my honey bunny today.  But no, we got up to face the grind.  I feel bad, because I snapped at Roger just before he left. I was frantically trying to finish the tuna salad (see recipe below), when he commented that he was just going to eat a sandwich.  Wrong thing to say, and the inner Hulk in me came out.  He took the tuna salad.  And, in true Roger style, he still did the Roger dance for me as he walked down the hallway.  You see, every morning, when Roger leaves for work, I stand at the door and waive, and he wiggles down the hallway, shaking his butt and waiving and blowing kisses.  He's like my teenage boyfriend, and I love it!

Anyway, another shooting in Jacksonville last night.  A man was gunned down in the Walmart parking lot. I think we have one murder every day......

Last night I actually got some cleaning done, so I'm super happy.  And, tonight is date night!  Wheee.

So, I hope you have a great Wednesday!

Here's my tuna salad recipe: 2 cans white albacore (drained), 1 jalapeno (cut in half, de-seeded, and cut in slices width-wise), 1 small stalk of celery (cut in strips width-wise), a handful of dried fruit (cranberries, or a mix), 1/8 to 1/4 cup diced red onion or green scallions, about 1/4 cup mayonnaise, salt and pepper to taste.  Yuuuuummmmmyy!

Here's a song:


Tuesday, February 26, 2013

So Tired

Well, I got up to make Roger and I some lunch and see him off to work.  Then, I jumped in the shower.  As I was furiously rubbing my eyes under the water, the burning sensation started.  EVERY TIME, I cut up jalapenos or habaneros, I forget to wash my hands well, and end up burning some body part.... Sigh....

It's been raining here for two days.  In, fact, we're under a tornado watch. I think us Floridians should get rain days.  Who wants to work when it's gray and wet?  We should get to lay in bed and watch movies on those days........

Roger and I have been unusually tired. He's working too many hours and I tried to cram a 40 hour work week into four days last week.  Now I just want to sleep.  And the weekends are just flying by....And I finally got hired for my second job as a tutor.  Looks like I'll be the only one for the company in Duval county!  Yeah!~!!!!

Sunday, Roger and I decided to try some Peruvian cooking.  We made roasted chicken.  The only thing I perfected was how to grill a sweet potato.  I didn't like the flavor of the chicken at all, but the experiment was fun!



Friday night, we saw a super cool band from Scotland at Fionn MacCools.  Long haired Scottish men in kilts beating on drums while another played the bagpipes.  I want to be in a band like that!

Saturday, we went to the flea market in Ramona.  It's VERY rare that Roger and I are the most normal looking people in an area!  :) Then we went to visit my grandparents.  In fact, yesterday was my Papa's 85th birthday.  We were supposed to meet for dinner, but he didn't want to venture out in the rain.

Sunday, we went to church. They had a visiting choir from a local black church.  Their singing literally moved me to tears.  Our choir didn't even bother to clap.... Sad.

Anyway, I hope you have a great week!  Tell me something happy.  Hug your neighbor.

Here's a song:




Friday, February 22, 2013

Cop Cart

Well two things.... after I watched the tight pants video, I realized there's a whole series of videos by that group. Super funny.
And two, this is what passed me on the crosswalk on the way to work. Not sure where the golf course is in downtown Jax. Oh that's right, there isn't one. These cops are in their way to 7-11 for coffee.  For real-i-o! lol

Call Me Oscar....

Man, I woke up grouchy!  I attribute this to the following reasons:

  1. the last thing I smelled before I went to sleep was Roger eating potted meat;
  2. I didn't sleep well at all.  My pillow wasn't positioned right and I kept waking up;
  3. When I got up super early to use the restroom, I weighed and found I gained 3 pounds in the last two days. I didn't overeat!  I actually ate less. :(  ;
  4. It's foggy and rainy outside.  The city looks grey.
  5. When I turned on the news, I found there's a group of scientists here studying all the sharks. Booo.  I have been waiting for the day when it will be warm enough to go to the beach, but now I can't swim because there's too many sharks......; and last but not least,
  6. Our apartment is really messy the last two days.
Here's the view I see now from bed:



















So, how to turn my frown upside down...?!?!??!  A song!
O.K., so this was my first pick, but when I was trying to cut and paste, the second video below caught my eye.  Hilarious!  I am officially happy now....

Thursday, February 21, 2013

Mushy Mushy

This morning I got a text from the best husband ever wishing me a happy aniversary. I had to think for a minute... We met on September 21, 2011. We got married in St. Augustine on October 1, 2012. Then , we got married again in church on December 21, 2012. So he's right. Today marks 17 months since we met and started dating and 2 months since we've been married in the eyes of God.  Thank you, Love of My Life, for remembering.  Do I get two presents!!??  No? What if I bat my eyes and smile pretty? ;)

(As an aside, who knows a song where the guy sings "bat my eyes and smile pretty"?)

Now I Remember

Oh snap!  Now I remember the last thing I wanted to say: I want a hand gun.  I've never cared anything about guns.  I haven't been following all the debates about should we or shouldn't we restrict guns.  I didn't care.  But I've had three dreams recently that someone broke in our apartment. I'm a light sleeper (even in my dreams), so when they broke in, I heard it.  In each dream, I frantically tried to wake up Roger, but he did the same thing he does in real life: he sat up and said "What?! What's happening? What's wrong?" as loud as he could.  So, at this point, in my dreams, I knew the robbers were alerted to the fact that we knew they were in our apartment.  But since Roger and I don't own a gun, we were helpless.  There was nothing we could do but hold each other and wait while we hear the foot steps approaching our bedroom.  (Remember, we don't have doors in our place except for the bathrooms.

In one of the dreams, we hid in Roger's closet in his bathroom, but we were sitting ducks and we knew they were coming for us.

Anyway, the point is, I don't want to be helpless if something bad happens.  I don't want my only weapon to be a shoe, or "Fork Jesus" from the wall beside my bed......


It Must Have Been the Velveeta and Jalapenos......

Yesterday was one of the happiest days I've had in a while.  I just decided to ignore everyone and be happy.  I went to work and smiled my brightest smile and said "Good Morning! Happy Wednesday!", even to those people who ignore me or act like I'm invisible or noticeably frown at me.  I didn't care.  And, by the end of the day, people who never talked to me before, were stopping by my cubicle to chat, or confiding their darkest secrets to me....

After work, I walked to the Phoenix Bar.  Roger agreed that we could have a weekly happy hour. It's within walking distance from home, and they have 2-for-1 specials on the local IPA beer that I really like.  So for $6.00, we can each have two good quality beers, and be in a young atmosphere with music and trendy people. :)

(As I'm typing this, there is the strangest sound that I've never heard before coming from one street over.  It sounds like a giant fog horn from a barge.  If I don't finish my post, something happened and you might want to check on me........ Never mind, it's gone now.....)

Anyway, so last night, Roger and I had the weirdest dreams.  We are both very active and imaginative dreamers, but last night we seemed to be more so.  He dreamt that we were rushing to find a secret meant for us and while we were doing so, a black cat was trying to follow us and come in our house to find out what the secret was.  In the end, the secret was that for us to be happy, we had to change and help others, and we had to convince other people that they have to change and help others, too.

I had two dreams that I can remember.  In the first one, I had to go to Denver Colorado for work.  And I was driving up this mountain side and noticed these beautiful purple flowers on the embankment.  So I pulled over to take a picture to send to Roger.  When I got out of this old green Ford Explorer, I heard this noise above me.  When I looked up the hill, I saw that something was ripping the trees out of the ground and they were starting to fall on the road around me.  It turned out that it was these giant moose/elk like animals.  And I mean GIANT.  They were running over trees to get to where I was so they could stomp me.  So, I jumped in the truck and started driving, trying to dodge these animals.  I shouted at one asking why they were doing this to me and he replied it was because I was on their land.  I told him I thought it was a public road, and that I was sorry, and that I would leave, but he said it was too late.  He was so big however, that every time he tried to jump on the truck, I ended up between his legs and torso.  I finally got away.

In the second dream, I was working for a bank and we were having a bank picnic in the park.  Alex was there as a 8 or 9 year old.  While we were by the lake, I suddenly sensed that something bad was about to happen, so I grabbed his arm and told him to start running.  We ran to a massive oak tree and I ordered him to start climbing.  We got about half way up and I realized that he was wearing a red collared shirt and we would probably be visible, so we climbed higher.  Then we waited and sure enough bad guys showed up with guns.  People started running everywhere and screaming.  Some of them passed our tree and saw us.  They begged us to let them up, but I insisted they keep going.  Finally guilt overwhelmed me and I agreed they could come up if they were quick and quiet.  Alex finally got tired of standing on the limb and I begged him to crawl in my lap so I could hold him.  He sat there for a second, put my face in his hands, and said, Mom, I don't want to live like this.  He kissed me and climbed down the tree and calmly walked to the lake where the bad men were.  That's when I woke up.

Some people always ask what you ate before you went to bed when you say you had bad dreams.  All I can think of is it must have been the macaroni, Velveeta and jalapenos..........

Now, I need to make sure I call Alex later to make sure he's o.k., especially in light of his current depressed state.

Oh, and now's the time for me to provide my public service announcement.  This one is about SunTrust.  Don't bank there!  I made a deposit last week by taking a picture of a check from my Seacoast account.  I watched the deposit in a pending state for two days.  That  was fine.  Finally, the funds became available at SunTrust and I checked my Seacoast account and saw the funds had been debited.  So, I paid some bills and made some purchases on-line.  The next morning, I checked my SunTrust account to see if a purchase was debited, and found that I was overdrawn. So then, I had to sneak in the supply room at work to make a phone call to customers service.  They told me my deposit was being held because they couldn't verify funds.  I tried to explain in my best whisper scream that the funds were being held, the funds were released, and the monies were already debited from my other account.  I asked if my items would be returned and they said possibly, and that I needed to go to the bank.  So I counted seconds until it would be acceptable for me to take my lunch break and walked the two blocks to SunTrust.  I explained to the teller (the only person working) what was happening and he gave me some canned response about he was sorry I had a bad experience.  He called customer service and they said the same sh** about my deposit being held because they couldn't reach Seacoast to verify my funds.  Livid, I called Seacoast my self and tried to get the teller to talk to the customer service rep. He refused.  Then, he hung up with his customer service and said, "O.K., we can call Seacoast now...."  AGGGGHHHHHH!  So, we called and he was told that actually the funds were debited from my account TWO DAYS PRIOR!  So, he released the hold.  Then, Monday, my renters insurance debit was denied when I had way more money than the premium that's auto debited from SunTrust every month.  So I had to go back yesterday to ask about that.  They claimed they never rejected the debit.  So, I closed my account. I don't have time for games or poor business practices.....  Two thumbs down!

Well, I was going to write something else, but I lost my train of thought.  It must be because my alarm clock keeps going off, advising that it's time for me to get up and face the world.

Oh, and a shout out to Theresa Rico for being the only person to respond to one of my questions yesterday.  Thank you my FFF!

I hope you have a great day.  Happy Thursday!!!!!!

Here's a song:

Wednesday, February 20, 2013

A day of questions.....

This week has been so hectic.  This is the first time I've had to visit my blog and compose some thoughts.  So, today I have some questions.  Since many people cannot sign in to write comments on directly in Blogger, please feel free to email me at doanyelle@gmail.com if you have any answers for me.
  1. I have always said that everyone has a "given."  I call it the free-pass in life.  No matter what other chaos is in their life, they have that ONE thing going for them.  They are smart, or funny, or pretty, or rich, or have some kind of natural talent.  They are good at organizing, or baking, or have impeccable taste.  Well, I have never figured out what my "given is."  I don't know what MY one thing is that I can say, 'Well, at least I'm good at ___________,' or 'At least I'm ____________!'  Yes, I have super sweet grandparents and some extended family members who love me.  Yes, I have a husband beyond what I could have ever hoped for, but I'm talking about something that has to do with ME.  So, my question is, do you know or have any idea what my "given" is?
  2. Do you look at other people to get ideas of how life should be?  Sometime, I feel totally clueless how I'm supposed to be as a mom, or a wife, or a friend, or a sibling, or an employee, yada yada yada.....  So, I sit back and look at people, like an observer at the airport.  I try to see how people dress, or how they interact with each other, or listen to conversations that people have with their children.  I can't seem to find a manual for things like this, and I'm always desperately afraid that I'm failing.
  3. What do you think is the MOST important key to losing weight.  Exercise, protein, diet, some miracle food, genetics, ......?  
  4. What do you think financially successfully people do to get that way?  I look at people who have the multi-hundred-thousand dollar houses, that dress in only name brand clothes, drive cars that cost over $50k, send their children to college without blinking twice, eat out for lunch every day, and the list goes on.  I often wonder, how do they do it?; and what makes them different from me?  Don't get me wrong.  I'm not jealous.  I don't want most of the things I just listed.  I just want to live beyond paycheck to paycheck.  Here's the four things I would change if I had money: A) I would pay for Alex to go to school, including room, board, and a modest vehicle; B) I would buy a giant warehouse and covert it into a loft house, with open living space upstairs, and a car garage, photo studio and art studios downstairs.  Like this picture below.  C) I would plan a three week vacation every year to a different country and be able to buy whatever I wanted (only on the trip); and 4) I would pay off all my credit cards, student loan, and car without anyone's help.  I don't want a fancy car, or fancy clothes, or jewelry, or a four bedroom house with a pool.... :)Starke But still, how do other people do it?  Do they make more money, invest wisely, gamble successfully, have family money?  What is it they do?
  5. What would you do if your child kept saying he didn't want to live any more?  Alex keeps saying this because life isn't going his way.  I keep offering to go get him and provide a roof and shelter and help him get on his feet, but he doesn't want it.  I keep asking him what he DOES want, but he doesn't know.  My greatest fear is that I'll do the wrong thing and he'll be dead and I can never undo my actions or lack of actions.  Any suggestions?
  6. And last, because we HAVE to end on a happy note, what makes you happy?  A funny movie, a call from a friend, happy hour, a visit with a loved one, a blind date, a good day at work.... What makes you happy?
I hope you have a super great Wednesday!  Thank you for reading my blog.

Here's a song:

Thursday, February 14, 2013

Happy Valentine's Day!!

Happy Valentines Day.  When I was single, today was the day that made me the saddest.  I just wanted someone to love me.  I wanted a surprise delivery of a giant bouquet of flowers, with a mysterious love note attached.  Or a little jewelry box that held a trinket of affection.

Last year was the first year I ever had a Valentine.  Roger and I agreed to have a contest for who could give the cheesiest gift.  I gave him a body pillow with hearts and "I Love Yous" written everywhere, a generic box of chocolate with a cartoon bear and a card.  He won the contest, hands down, with a three-foot stuffed dog, a Mylar balloon and a two-foot card.

I'm not sure what the plan is for this year.

Anyway, all this time I was missing the love of the most important person- ME.  No matter what happens in life we should always love ourselves.  If we can't love ourselves, the person we are most intimately familiar with, how can we possibly truly love anyone else?

So along those lines, here is one of my favorite poems.  I printed it and put it by my bedside.  But I was always too busy and forgot to read it.  So, this week I'm going to work on starting that habit.  I hope you like it.....

I have to live with myself, and so I want to be fit for myself to know.
I want to be able, as days go by, Always to look myself straight in the eye.
I don't want to stand with the setting sun, And hate myself for the things I have done.

I never can hide myself from me; I see what the others may never see.
I know what others may never know; I never can fool myself, and so,
Whatever happens, I want to be self-respecting and conscience free.

In life, we sometimes have to make decisions that other people don't understand or approve/agree.  But we have to live with ourselves first; and if we always do what we think is right and just, then no matter what anyone else thinks of us, we can always stand in front of the mirror and like the person we see.

So, have a great day, love one another, and remember to always love yourself! (And no matter who you find yourself crazy-in-love with today, DON'T tattoo anyone's name on your body!)

Here's a song:

Monday, February 11, 2013

Time to Re-Group

For many months, Roger has been trying to teach me the importance of ditching things in our lives that are toxic towards our happiness.

Together, we experienced ten years of life changes in a matter of months.  This time of readjustment has been very hard on my self esteem, as EVERY aspect of my life transformed into something different and unfamiliar.  Through all this, I kept hoping that my family would be a source of strength for me.  And while my grandparents and my aunts and uncles continue to demonstrate unconditional love, my immediate family has been the source of many sorrows for me.  I've received phone call after phone call from my siblings, my parents and my child who "innocently" tell me the things my other siblings, parent or my child has said about me.  To hear that my sister doesn't support my parenting decisions, or my siblings and a parent aren't going to send me a card to acknowledge my wedding, or my parent telling my son that if he's going to end up like his fucking mom, is absolutely devistating.

I'm not quite sure why this is happening.  I try to stay out of everyone's way. I try to love everyone the best I can and always do what I think is right.  And, since October, I've tried to focus on my new marriage.  I had no idea that my immediate family dislikes me so much.  And for the other parties involved, they seem to find pleasure in calling me and hearing me cry after telling me what the other person said.  I don't understand that kind hurtful behavior.

So, after giving undying support and unconditional love for my siblings and parents, I'm finally going to listen to my husband and let go.  I'm not going to be hateful or mean, I'm just going to avoid any contact with people who are toxic.  It doesn't mean I love them less, it just means I love ME more, and in order to be open for Grand Adventures, I have to be at my best- in my happiest state of mind.

So, goodbye Drama.  I want no role in your play.

Happy Monday.  It's going to be a great week!

Here's a song:  (we don't want no drama-ama.....)

Sunday, February 10, 2013

A Quiet Weekend

I finally got some rest after a month of no sleep.  This weekend was peaceful, restful, and quiet, with the the love of my life.

Yesterday, we took our vehicles to be serviced, saw the movie Identity Theft, and ate sushi at the Osaka restuarant.

Today, we slept in, then went to the Jacksonville Car Show.  I found a Volvo and I picked out a bike for Roger.  We'll put those in our Save For Later shopping cart....






Let's pray for a good week- full of new adventures. 

Here's a song:

Thursday, February 7, 2013

Tender Words

Jacksonville has a weekly "artsy" paper called Folio.  In this week's addition, they published love notes.  Here are some of my favorites:

  • "... So let me do the dishes in our sink, Put you to bed when you've had too much to drink. I could be the man who grows old with you.  I wanna grow old with you.
  • I would rather sit in the rain with you than walk in the sun with anyone else.
  • Jesus doesn't love the little children as much as I love that dog.
  • Ouch... OUCH!... I love you so much it hurts.
  • When Death comes for me, i twill reach into my chest only to find nothing at all.  And when he asks where it is, I will tell him you have it.
  • I've tripped over many things in my life, but you are the only one I look forward to fall for, again and again and again.
  • Hey Starbuck, what do you hear? Nothing but the rain, sir.  Then grab your gun and bring the cat in.  I frakkin love you.
  • They say a picture is worth a thousand words, but when I looked at yours, I was left speechless......
  • You and me, baby.  We're like a kaleidoscope, our colors come alive when I am with you.
  • Lets keep a secret.... I won't tell anyone that your voice is my favorite sound.
  • I love you.  For who you are and who you aren't.  For what you do and what you don't.  For all the ways- big and small- you make sure I know I'm loved.  No one else has ever taken the time to make me feel so special.
  • I'll give you 12 roses, 11 real and 1 fake.  I'll stop loving you when the last one dies.
  • I love you with all my butt.  I would say say hear, but my butt is bigger.
Very sweet.  These are words from the heart!! What will Valentines day have in store for me?

Wednesday, February 6, 2013

I'm back......

In the famous words of Jack Nicholson.... I'm back!!!!!!


After my hiatus during a very trying two weeks while Roger was in Peru and a dose of temporary insanity, I'm starting to feel like myself again.  Time to get the creative juices flowing.

So Happy Wednesday!

Here's a song. It's long (5 min), but I promise it's worth it!  :)  For those who don't know who Falco is, he's the one that sang Rock Me Amadeus back in the 80's.  (um um Rock Me Amadeus oh, Rockkkkk Me Aaaaaaamadeus- sung in a high pitched voice.... )  Tell me something HAPPY!!!!!!!?!???????

4