"Laugh Of The Day"

This morning I sat quietly at home, enjoying my morning coffee and reading e-mails. When I look at the clock, it was 7:00 and I still hadn't showered and gotten dress. And so began the frantic rush to get ready for work. I never cease to amaze myself, in 20 minutes, I showered, dressed, brushed my teeth, made my "travel coffee" and headed out the door.

To my surprise there was very little traffic as I sped off to work. Don't tell anyone but I was doing about 75 the whole distance! It's about a 5 minute walk from the parking lot into the building today I was doing a fast walk and made it just in time to punch in and not be marked late. As I walked through the office I looked at the clock. Something isn't quite right - did someone change the clocks? Yep, it was only 7:00 AM and I didn't need to be here until 8:00 AM.

Oh well, atleast I can enjoy my coffee and have a chance to relax before the rat race starts.


Note to self: Finish first cup of coffee before looking at the clock!!

Have you ever noticed some "bloggers" take the written word too seriously to notice when people are being funny? To those people I say, lighten up and laugh once in awhile. Life is too short to take seriously all the time!

Adoption

As I noted in a previous post, there has been a VERY friendly kitty hanging around. It runs down the road to greet me when I come home. It's outside my door when I leave in the morning. It has even come into the house a few times. I talked with my neighbor yesterday and apparently when I don't see the kitty it's because SHE has brought it inside. During the snowstorm she found the cat huddled next to our dryer vents trying to keep warm and dry.

This morning, I found the cat on my front steps, shivering and hungry so I let it inside. Since I still have food and kitty litter, I decided the kitty will stay inside today. The cat went through 2 cans of food before I left the house! I just have one really major problem -- I'm allergic to long haired cats!!! Because of this, I don't know how well the kitty is going to work out being in here.

Don't ask me if it's male or female --- there is too much fur to tell at a quick glance. At the moment, the kitty is playing "cat in the bag" in the kitchen and having a great time! It managed to find the catnip stash while I was at work. It's a long-haired pale orange cat - very pretty, very friendly and very affectionate. As for a name, well it has to be unisex for now so I'm thinking of "Bumble". It would be named after the snow monster in "Rudolph". Then again, I may come up with a completely different name.

I guess I just broke my promise to myself! Only time and allergies will tell if kitty gets to stay or not.

Strange Happenings

Apparently I have recently been adopted. Stay tuned for further details.

Video Voyeur - Norwich/Colchester CT Searcher

I have noticed my site has been found several times by a person/people searching for information on a video voyeur in the Norwich CT area. Curiosity has gotten the best of me and I would like to know if you are looking for information regarding Ronald LaMontagne. I wish I had more information than what is posted but I don't. The State Police never contacted me after I gave my statement. If you happen to have information on the case, that I have not mentioned. I would appreciate hearing from you.

Sorry I haven't posted much lately. I've been keeping myself busy at work and at home. Yes, I do miss Smokey but I'm feeling MUCH better about my decision and enjoying no kitty underfoot in the kitchen. A new kitty in the neighborhood has been hanging around and greeting me every day. It's a lovely cat - very friendly, talkative, light tan and long-haired. The cat runs up to my car as soon as I get in the driveway, walks me to the house. It even comes inside to visit for a few minutes and then leaves. There is no chance it will become a replacement for Smokey. I'm allergic to long-haired cats. Besides, I think the cat belongs to a neighbor. I just think it's funny the way the cat greets me and visits. Last night, the cat saw me coming down the road and ran to my driveway.

This week was a comedy of errors for me. Most of you know I love to bake and I also decorate cakes. We celebrated a co-workers birthday yesterday and I volunteered to bring the cake. On wednesday evening I mixed up the cake batter, poured it in the pan, only to discover the pan required TWO cake mixes. At 7:45 pm, I found myself getting dressed and running to the grocery store for another cake mix. First mistake - always buy TWO cake mixes for large cake pans.

Thursday night was for making the frosting and decorating the cake. From past experience I have learned to mix only one batch of frosting at a time. I've blown the motors in two mixers trying to save time and double the frosting batch. I mixed the first batch and frosted the cake. Knowing I wanted green as the main color, I made the remaining frosting dark green and decorated all the borders of the cake. Then it was time to mix the 2nd batch of frosting. I had all the ingredients in the bowl and was adding the powered sugar. That's when I realized error number two - always read the recipe!!! I was so used to making a double batch of frosting, I had doubled the amount of water needed. Of course I don't keep extra baking ingredients on my shelves, so another 8:00 pm trip to the grocery store was necessary.

Finally all the frosting is made. The next color I needed was a light shade of purple. Having only the basic colors - red, blue, green, yellow - I knew mixing red and blue SHOULD give me purple. Well that didn't happen Thursday night. It came out the most disgusting shade of brown I have ever seen!!! That bowl of frosting went into the trash and so did my thoughts of how to decorate the cake. I needed light purple to make Forget-me-nots or violets.

At this point I have a cake frosted in white with green borders. If I use red as a secondary color, it beomes a Christmas cake. Yellow alone doesn't look good on a white cake. Blue just doesn't go well with green. Brainstorm hits! BALLOONS!! Red - yellow and blue balloons! I mixed a little of each color went to work. Since I was only going to use a little of each color I opted to not use a pastry bag. Instead I filled a decorating tip with the frosting and pushed it through with my finger. Gee, I forgot just how well food coloring works on fingers.

Finally, Friday morning arrives - the cake is all decorated and I'm wrapping it in plastic for the trip to work. After the cake was wrapped, I looked at it to wondering if it would make it to work in one piece. That's when one more minor error jumped out at me. I spelled the person's name wrong!! At that point I said "fuck it" and prayed no one would notice.

After all that I went through to make the cake, decorate it and get it to work, no one was hungry enough to eat it!!!! We had a "pot luck" lunch and everyone was full from all the baked ziti, salad, kielbasa, chicken wings ..... Around 3:30 I made the birthday girl cut the cake and hand it out. She brought 1/2 the cake home with her.

"It's Over"

I brought Smokey to an emergency clinic and she was put to sleep today. The Vet said she was very dehydrated, showed definate signs of a stroke and quite possibly experiencing kidney failure as well. She couldn't be completely certain without testing but the signs all pointed in that direction. Knowing there really wasn't much I could do, I had her put to sleep.

I know she's happier now and no longer lonely. It's just going to take a lot of tears and major adjustments for me to get past this.

"Not a good weekend"

For the last several months I've been very concerned about my cat, Smokey. She had lost a lot of weight and the move seemed to have a large effect on her. Suddenly she was in a new home and minus her two playmates, Demitasse and Binky. She was very lonely and depressed without her playmates. She wandered around the apartment, yeowling and looking for them. I know her hearing was going and the yeowl was probably what she thought was a meow.

She had started to get used to being an only cat and having me home all day when I started my new job. When I came home at night, she would be at the door crying for me. That's the same place she would be when I left in the morning.

Last Thursday, I fed her and we went through our morning ritual of her crying at the door as I left. When I came home, she seemed to be walking a bit strange, sort of staggering and not very vocal. I didn't think too much of it, fed her again and went about my business. Before I went to bed, I noticed Smokey hadn't eaten her food. She can be very picky and we occasionally go through these "I'm not eating that" fights. Smokey has discovered, I can be just as stubborn as she is finicky and usually gives in.

By Friday morning, the food was still there, so I put down fresh food. She sniffed it and decided to drink her water instead. When I returned home on Friday, the food still hadn't been eaten, now that's not like Smokey to not give in. I tried fresh food and she still turned her nose up at the food and instead drank water. At this point I knew something wasn't right with Smokey. Just to be certain I went to the cupboard for a can of people tuna. She NEVER turns down people tuna but she did this time.

In the meantime, Smokey is holding her head strange. It's hanging down and she looks up at me through the corner of her eyes. She appears to be having a difficult time walking, it's more of a stagger, and she only walks a few feet at a time.

I spent Saturday, doing housework and trying to get Smokey to eat ANYTHING. She has turned her nose up at all food. She does drink a little water but that's all. I tried giving her chicken broth (Jewish penicillin) and she won't touch that either.

In my mind, I know what has to be done and I just can't handle it. Seeing her suffer is heart wrenching but so is having put to sleep. Smokey is 14 years old and I've had her since she was 4 WEEKS old. Her sister, Bandit, was put to sleep several years ago, after being diagnosed with terminal cancer. Having gone through this before, I can't handle it again.

So, here I sit, knowing what MUST be done and I can't do it! Just writing about it has me in tears and thinking about something a lot stronger than coffee for a morning drink.

Bad Me!

Shame on me for not taking a few minutes to update my blog. I've been keeping pretty busy at my new job. I don't get home until after 5:00 and then I spend atleast an hour sorting through e-mails and making my Scrabble moves. By the time I finish that, dinner is ready and soon I'm off to bed.

Last weekend, I attended a "spur of the moment" wedding. My sister-in-law called me about 10 days prior to announce her dad (Bill) was getting married. Bill and his fiancee, Carol, were going to get married by a JP and then tell the family. Well they changed their minds and wanted a small church wedding with a reception at my sister-in-law's house. Everyone pitched in to make the wedding and reception a success. I made about 80 finger sandwiches (ham salad and chicken salad) for the reception. Since they were trying to save on the costs and didn't require gifts, I also played wedding photographer. Now I'm waiting for the pictures to come back to see if they came out ok. I'm having them put on CD and will also set up a webshots page for the couple. This will allow them to share the photos with family and friends much easier than having reprints made.

Many of you know I cruise with lots of friends from on-line. Every year there are several "land parties" where we gather for a "meet and greet". This year, I'm planning the first ever New England Bash and it's going to be held in October. Many of the cruisers want to be in New England during the fall folliage season. I started to set up a web page with all the details for the cruisers party. So far it looks pretty good. I have my own folliage pictures but if anyone has some good folliage pics they can e-mail to me, I would appreciate it. Make sure you tell me where the picture was taken. Some cruisers may ask me these questions. Also, if you know of any great spots for leaf peeping, let me know and I'll include it on the web page.

Busy time

It's great to be busy again! After months of job searches and sitting at home, I now look forward to a busy schedule. By the time I get home from work, cook and eat dinner there isn't much time to do things like housework. I spent yesterday doing just that -- housework. Cleaning, laundry, trips to the bank, grocery store and video store took up most of the day. It felt great being able to balance my checkbook and pay bills with out worrying I'll have nothing left over for groceries!!!

I finally rented "Harry Potter and the Sorcerer's Stone" and watched it while doing laundry and cooking dinner. Excellent movie, as usual though, I liked the book more than the movie. I also rented "Dreamcatcher". It's based on a Stephen King novel by the same name. It didn't do well in the theaters but most of King's movies don't do well in the theater. I've read the book and enjoyed it, now it's time to see if I like the movie. If I do, then I'll probably buy a copy and add it to my King Collection of books and movies.

Today will also be a busy day. I'll be meeting Colette in Middletown about 10:45 and we'll be attending a Psychic Fair. There is a shop in Middletown, The Knight People, that has a psychic fair the first sunday of every month. Whenever I attend, I make sure to get an appointment with Dee. She's the most popular reader and in my opinion, very accurate. There have been things Dee predicted that I thought would never happen in a million years. After the reading we're going to lunch and catch up on some "girl talk".

After Middletown, it's a drive up to Suffield and install a web camera for Wig and set up AOL software for Bill. I've never set up a web camera before so it should be an interesting challenge. Then it's a walk across the street to the Super Bowl Party. I'm not a sports fan but I do love a good party and I'll watch some of the game. I'm not sure I'll stay for all of the game since it's about a 30 minute ride home and I don't like starting my work week being tired.

Great Neighbors!

This morning, I was prepared to offer a neighbor cash if he would clear my driveway and sidewalks with his snowblower. I went through my regular morning routine and still didn't hear the snowblower running, so I headed out the door with shovel in hand. When you aren't sure which house the neighbor lives in, it's not nice to go knocking at 6:30 am. I shovelled a small path to my car and by the time my car was cleared off the guy (Wayne) was out with the snowblower. I went over and introduced myself and asked if he could do my sidewalk and driveway. He explained he was already late for work but would be happy to do it when came home. That was fine by me, my little car wouldn't have a problem getting out of the driveway.

When I arrived home, about 5:30, my driveway was clear, sidewalks all clear. It was great!! Wayne was outside using a shovel on his back walk so I went over to pay him. That's when I found out, he had just gotten home and didn't do my driveway and sidewalk. My neighbor, Debbie, shovelled everything!! I immediately knocked on Debbie's door to thank her and pay her shovelling. She refused to take the money. I need to find a way to say "Thank you" to her and I'm open to suggestions.

In the meantime, Wayne has agreed to do our driveways and sidewalks for the rest of the winter!!! YIPPEE!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

SUCCESS!!!!!!!!!

As I was getting ready to leave work yesterday, I FINALLY figured out why I can not connect to the Watkins Intranet. The connection that was being used is so antiquated, I had only heard stories about the connection and how it worked. It was the dust bunny connection!! They link together for a direction connection to the server in Lakeland, Fl. Unfortunately, I can not recreate the connection since these were version 2.7 dust bunnies and they were tossed out when I cleaned. The current version is 352.7 and no longer contains the static electrical current necessary for the connection.

BUSY first week!

This week has been FULL of work to do. Not only am I learning new jobs (time card/payroll, cash deposits) I'm also secretary to the Terminal Manager. Between last night and today, he had 2 dock performance meetings, one all day budget meeting and a customer appreciation dinner tonight. I spent yesterday locating, updating and printing (on paper and overheads) various charts, graphs and agenda for the dock meetings. Then it was onto gathing budget (actual and projected) information for the all day meeting, setting up a few spreadsheets (thankfully no calculations) writing the agenda and creating identical folders for all the managers that would be in the meeting. I was doing all this while attempting to fix the intranet connection for my computer --- it's still not working!

When I arrived at work today, my first call went to the Help Desk -- my password was locked out for some reason. About 30 minutes later I placed another call to the help desk about my intranet connection. A gentleman from the networking group finally called back about 9:30 -- we spent TWO HOURS!!! trying to get my computer to a "custom" intranet logon screen and finally gave up. Neither of us has a clue how my predecessor was connecting previously. We set up an terminal emulation program so I can sign onto the mainframe and process the cash deposits. However, the time card/payroll function is a network based program. So, until I get a new computer, I must use someone else's PC to access the software.

After I finished "playing" with my PC, it was back to the learning phase at another computer. The time cards/payroll is suppose to be done by 10:00 but because of the computer problems, we've been late. Today we finished up about 1:30, just in time for the Watkins Birthday Party. They opened our terminal 4 years ago today. There was a pizza party and cake for lunch today. The afternoon was spent creating placecards and a cheat sheet for tonight's customer appreciation dinner.

Now for the fun news. I had the pleasure of breaking the news to my new boss, the PC I have WILL BE REPLACED within the next 6 months, by corporate. All those documents (HUNDREDS OF THEM!!) I have been complaining about, must be weeded through and either deleted or saved. Watkins is currently going through the same process I went through at International Paper. They are replacing old PC's and installing new ones with Windows 2000. Any software we are currently using (hmmmm bar code scanner software) will need to be upgraded as well. Thankfully he was very understanding and said my predecessor was afraid of corporate doing just what they are now doing. He will contact corporate and try to obtain a schedule so we can be prepared for the new PC.

Oooooo I'm having so much fun!!

Great First Day!

The morning was rather slow but interesting. I spent about an hour filling out forms. You know all those tax, health insurance, life insurance, 401k, disablity forms we so dearly love. The rest of the morning was spent watching video tapes about Watkins, phone etiquette, customer service and proper procedures for hazardous waste handling. The hazardous waste video came with a test that I needed to pass. It's not as easy as it may sound. Mostly because it's not just the proper handling of the material as much as what information must be included on the shipping papers and it must be in the proper order. Of course, I probably will never need to use the information but everyone must know the procedures.

All that took me right up to a few minutes before lunch. That is when James (HR Manager) finally showed me that I have desk. There isn't any place close enough for a 30 minute lunch but the usually order out and one person picks up for everyone. They do have a lunch room and there I met a few of the guys that work on the dock.

This afternoon was spent CLEANING my desk. Tomorrow I will be armed with 409 and paper towels, to complete the cleaning task. There was a guy in the position previously and he apparently didn't clean. Everyone else has nice clean work areas --- not so with this cubicle. I'm also "special", I have the only PC that works as a stand alone or on the network. Yes, I will be "tweaking" this PC and cleaning up the hard drive before I create more data. They do not have internet access via their network, which surprised me. However, I have a dial up modem and will have my own internet access. I haven't been shown what they have yet for dial up access. Sorry Vic and Bonnie but I won't be doing many Scrabble moves during the day.

I couldn't have hand picked nicer co-workers. There is also a good possiblity these people are crazier than the zanies I worked with at International Paper. I will definately fit in there!!! They are all extremely friendly, joke around with each other and just plainly have fun during the day. That was something I picked up on when I interviewed and my first day proved my thoughts to be accurate.

The commute this morning wasn't as bad as I anticipated. The roads were in better shape and I forgot today is a holiday. It was about a 35-40 minute ride but tomorrow will be a better judge on the timing.

Now for the funny part of my day. When I returned home, I had a message waiting. Apparently Henkel-Loctite is still asking for me and wants to know if I am happy at my new job. I guess they didn't take me seriously when I said I really don't want to work 3rd shift. The money at Henkel is really good but sometimes it's just not about the money.

Watkins

Today I start working for Watkins Motor Lines. Currently I have a severe case of the first day jitters and "let's skate into work" today shakes. Mother Nature decided to show me the bad part of my 35 mile commute on the first day of work. My car is in the process of de-icing itself, while I sit cozy and warm inside.

I am more nervous about starting at Waktins than I was at Scan-Optics. That could be simply because the job at Watkins is not working in IT. I'll be an Administrative Assistant at Watkins. While I am certain I can do the job, it's still a new challenge for me and there is always an uncertainty when faced with a new challenge. One aspect I am looking forward to is "playing" with PowerPoint. While I have viewed presentations, I haven't been involved with creating them.

Well, I guess it's time to put on the coat and head out the door. Cross your fingers for me today!

Dilemma

Here's a dilemma for you.... With all your honor and dignity what would you do? This test only has one question, but it's a very important one. Please don't answer it without giving it some serious thought. By giving an honest answer you will be able to test where you stand morally. The test features an unlikely, completely fictional situation, where you will have to make a decision one way or the other.  Remember that your answer needs to be honest, yet spontaneous. Please scroll down slowly and consider each line - this is important for the test to work accurately. You're in Florida...In Miami, to be exact. There is great chaos going on around you, caused by a hurricane and severe floods. There are huge masses of water all over you. You are a CNN photographer and you are in the middle of this great disaster The situation is nearly hopeless. You're trying to shoot very impressive photos. There are houses and people floating around you, disappearing into the water. Nature is showing all its destructive power and is ripping everything away with it.

Suddenly you see a man in the water, he is fighting for his life, trying not to be taken away by the masses of water and mud. You move closer. Somehow the man looks familiar.

Suddenly you know who it is - it's George W. Bush!

At the same time you notice that the raging waters are about to take him away, forever. You have two options. You can save him or you can take the best photo of your life. So you can save the life of George W. Bush, or you can shoot a Pulitzer prize winning photo, a unique photo displaying the death of one of the world's most powerful men.

And here's the question (please give an honest answer):

Would you select color film, or rather go with the simplicity of classic black and white?

Do I feel like an ass!

I came home straight home tonight, to wait for my new laptop to delivered. I need to install Cox Internet before I can bring it to Scan-Optics for them to install VPN and install their software.

While waiting for the delivery, the phone rang. It was Michelle in HR at Scan-Optics. They have apparently hired my replacement and she will send me a paycheck for last week and the two days I worked this week. She was under the impression the VP had spoken to me (no, had not!) and told me they weren't ready to have anyone to start working from home yet. He had mentioned it to me last week, but I was under the impression everything would be in place for me to start working from home, on the 19th.

So as it stands right now, I no longer work for Scan-Optics and won't be until someone gets off their ass. Needless to say, I believe I just spent $1200, on a laptop, needlessly!! They way this has been handled has not left me with a warm and cozy feeling. Michelle left it with "We'll call you when we're ready to set people up at home."

I AM NOT A HAPPY CAMPER!!!!!!!!!

Ex US-Treasury Chief: Saw No Evidence of Iraq WMDs

"In a new book chronicling his rocky two-year tenure and in an interview with CBS's "60 Minutes" aired on Sunday, O'Neill said removing Iraqi leader Saddam Hussein was a top priority at Bush's very first National Security Council meeting -- within days of the inauguration and eight months before the Sept. 11, 2001, attacks. "

Job Updates

I started working at Scan-Optics, tuesday morning. The work is mindless data entry work but it's money coming in. When I arrived home tuesday, I had a message from Watkins -- I HAVE THAT JOB TOO!!! When I explained about working for Scan-Optics and currently in training. We arranged for me to start at Watkins on the 19th. This will give me a chance to complete the training and get set up, to enter the data from home.

Friday, I spoke to the IT person at Scan-Optics to make certain my system is able to run their software. Bad news -- I need a MAJOR upgrade to my system. I held off upgrading the operating system because I knew it would require major work to upgrade. Now I have a choice, either buy a new hard drive, install a new operating systems (roughly $400) and then reinstall all my current software on the new harddrive. This will take me most of the week to accomplish. OR I can bite the bullet now and purchase a new system with the "bells and whistles" I have been wanting - like a CD writer.

Well, today, I bit the bullet and called my parents for a loan. I found a Compaq Presario laptop with everything I want, already installed. The cost after rebates -- $1000 plus tax from Office Max. The only software I need to install prior to working at home will be my Cox Internet connections. The other software (Office Pro 2000, Webshots......) I can install whenever I chose.

This week has been a little hectic, trying to get back into the working mode. Last night I joined several friends at J&G's to celebrate my return to work. It's nice to have a place to go where people know your name..... Yes, it IS a lot like Cheers in the atmosphere but not the decor. I was given many hugs, congrats, hand shakes, free drinks.... and all from people I call my friends.

IT'S PARTY TIME!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

I have officially re-joined the ranks of gainfully employed people!! This morning, I was interviewed, offered and accepted a position at Scan-Optics in Manchester. Tomorrow morning, at 7:30 am, I start training in Data Entry. I will be starting as a data entry clerk and at the end of the training period, depending on my abilities, move to the open supervisor's position. While the pay isn't even close to what I was making, it is close to home - less than 5 miles and 1st shift hours.

I am also waiting for a call today from Watkins Motor Lines. The hiring manager at Scan-Optics is aware of the possible job offer from Watkins. If Watkins offers a position to me, I can accept and work for Scan-Optics on a part-time, work from home basis. So, by the end of the day, it's possible that I will have TWO jobs and not just one.

Today's Musings

There are so many times I want to post but never know quite what to post or where to begin. For today, I shall let my brain wander and see where it leads.

I have 3 possible jobs in the works. One at Watkins Motor Lines as an Administrative Assists, another at Henkel-Loctite is a 1-yr temp Computer Operator on 3rd shift, the last is at Home Depot in Enfield doing Data Entry.

The job at Henkel-Loctite is a position that was available in November 2002. After the 2nd interview, I discovered the position was strictly 3rd shift (not 2nd as was advertised) and I withdrew my name from consideration. I knew I wouldn't be happy working 3rd shift and would continue looking for another job. It didn't seem fair to other applicants, the employer or myself to accept the position, knowing I wouldn't stay. If I had been offered the job and turned it down, I would have also lost my Unemployment Compensation (UCI). Having a full savings account and UCI coming in, I thought it the best decision, at the time. If offered the job now, I would have to say "screw being fair" I am looking out for me. The salary at Henkel is close to what I was making in 1998, but since it's a temp position, there are no benefits.

The job at Watkins is an interesting position. It's the Administrative Assistant to the Depot/Terminal Manager. I've interviewed there twice and the people are very nice. While the money is barely 1/2 what I was making at International Paper, I can see myself enjoying this job and staying there for many years. Included in their are fully paid medical and dental for their employees. For the next year, I would have about a 30 mile commute to Cheshire. Watkins has already purchased land and hopes to move to Windsor around January 2005.

Home Depot, well that will be an interim job. I don't care to be a data entry clerk but I'll do it simply because it's a job. I have no idea what the pay scale or benefits are at this point. I wasn't not pleased with the manager that kept me waiting for 45 minutes because he was late getting to work. The hours could be day or evenings and the stores are open 7 days a week. Those aren't to my liking but as I said - it's a job.

Christmas Day was good this year. Unlike last year, I was not snowed in at home and unable to enjoy the holiday with my family. The fun part of the day wasn't even opening gifts. It was the Cool Whip fight my Mom started. She got my nephew, Ricky, first. For some strange reason, he decided it would be more fun (probably safer) to go after my SIL, Debbie. There was Cool Whip flying all over the kitchen. By the time Debbie and Ricky finished, both were in need of showers and clean clothing.

Rick and Jasmine (brother and sister-in-law) left Hawaii on Christmas morning for the Philippines. Jasmine is from Manilla. I'm praying they won't have a problem returning to Hawaii with the heightened security alert. They were married in June or July or 2001. It only took 18 months before Jasmine's VISA was approved and she was able join Rick in Hawaii. They were hoping to fly to CT in January but there's nothing definate planned. It would be nice to finally meet Jasmine. So far she has only met my parents and that was because they went to Hawaii in April.

Marsha is having a New Year's Eve party for a small group of people. Nothing spectacular but a group of single friends getting together to welcome in the New Year. She has plenty of room for people to crash at her house. We don't want anyone drinking and driving. We have the food planned out (spaghetti dinner), BYOB, now we need some kind of entertainment. Any suggestions?

A friend of mine posted White Trash Christmas to a newsgroup. Enjoy the laugh.

MERRY CHRISTMAS!

Last night I joined the annual Christmas Eve celebration at J&G's. Every year, Manny & Johnny close the restaurant at 6:00, to the paying customers. The "regulars" and staff stick around and have a party. One of the regulars, Steve Howard, took over tending bar so the bartenders could join in the festivities. Marsha joined me for the evening, as did Wig & Sonny. At one point we joined together and assisted Elvis with his rendition of "Blue Christmas". Although it still doesn't feel like Christmas, I must admit, I had a really good time last night and feeling a little more festive.

In just a few hours, I'll be packing the baked goodies into my car and driving to my parents house. We'll celebrate the holiday with way too much food, exchanging gifts and hopefully plenty of laughter. Hmmm, I wonder if the spa is available for today? That would be a nice way to spend Christmas -- relaxing in the spa.

Have a Merry Christmas!!!!!

More white crap falling!!

With Christmas only 11 days away, I'm finally getting to the task of baking. I've been procrastinating and put off the baking long enough. With today's snowfall, it's a good time to be inside with the smells of fresh baked goodies. Sorry, I can't say exactly what I'm baking, my friends and family will just have to wait to see what they get.

I've decided to not decorate this year. I love a having a live tree and I simply can not justify the cost a tree, to throw it away after a few short weeks. It's fun to put up the decorations but taking them down is a chore that I hate. This Christmas isn't a joyous one and the post-holiday depression will hopefully be lessened without the extra chore of undecorating.

Christmas Day I'll be spending with my "family". By family I don't mean just my parents, brother, sister..... it also includes friends. When it comes to any holiday, my friends are my CHOSEN family. We are there for each other because we want to be, not because we are blood relatives. My Mother has always told us "there is always room for one more at our table." I have invited several friends to join our family for Christmas Day and hope they accept the invitation. No one should ever be alone or feel alone on any holiday.

Keeping Busy

Debbie and I finally went to the Bushnell for the Hartford Symphony and Hartford Chorale's performance of Handel's Messiah. It was originally scheduled for last Saturday night but postponed because of the storm. It was an excellent show and it's fun when you are familiar with the music. Debbie and I managed to bite our tongues and not sing along.

While the performance is a very serious one, I managed to find some things to make me chuckle. The first being a male in a tuxedo that looked just like Ian Normal people wouldn't find this sight to be funny. However, if you know Ian, you know you will never see him in tuxedo! Ian, in case you are wondering, you looked great that tuxedo!

The next chuckle came as I scanned the musicians prior to the performance. Wow, there was Scrooge playing violin! This guy looked like one of the "old" Scrooge characters from "A Christmas Carol" and could have played the part without makeup.

The biggest (and continuous) chuckle came from a tenor in the Hartford Chorale. As I listened to the music I noticed movement at the upper corner of the group. There was a tenor that was really in to feeling the music. He was bopping up and down, head going, shoulders moving..... That just struck my funny bone and I started to chuckle. Of course I had to point that out to Debbie, which got her to smiling as well. You just don't see people doing things like that, during classical performances. Just like a rubber-necker at an accident, I HAD to look. Everytime I looked, I chuckled.

There are a few things I've never quite understood about symphonies and The Messiah. First, why do people applaud when the first violinist comes onto the stage? I know it signifies the start of the performance. Why not applaud for the whole orchestra and not just the first violinist? If any of you have ever been to a performance of Messiah, during the Hallelujah chorus, it's customary for the audience to stand. It's probably a "religious" thing but it's not like we are in church. Personally, I saw it as a chance to stretch my legs.

Debbie, I want to say thank you for giving me a chance to get out of the house and find a few things to chuckle about. I know you planning on the chuckle part but you have to admit, that tenor was funny to watch!

OUCH!!!!!!!!

Well I picked up my car today. It does seem to run much better and it should!! At $598 for this month's repairs, the car should run like new!! Well now I know where the oil was going. I knew I needed a tune-up and just thought the car was burning oil. There were no oil spots on the ground to let me know there was a leak. As for the alternator no longer charging, I can't help but wonder if that was a result of the power steering fluid leak. According to Serge, the power steering fluid was spraying all over the belts, causing them to slip.

When it rains, it pours and I'm in the middle of monsoon season.

Good News, Bad News

The good news is that I don't need to clean the snow off my car this weekend! The bad news is because my car is back in the shop!!

I had an interview yesterday afternoon, for a temp holiday job in Centerbrook. Although I wasn't looking forward to the daily drive, the job would have brought in a couple hundred dollars. Well, my car had other plans for me. I was on Rt. 9, just past Middletown, when the "air bag" light decided to start flashing. Then it stopped flashing. A few miles later, it started again, my speedometer went crazy and bouncing all over and at on point staying at zero for about 10 seconds, they dashboard lit up and the car started to lose power. I got off the first exit and drove back to Manchester -- very carefully!! It happened again on the way home so I went straight to my mechanic.

Serge took the car in immediately and set it up on the diagnostics equipment. The news is NOT good -- my alternator wasn't charging AND the rear seal on the crankshaft decided to let go. Another few miles and I would have probably lost the last quart of oil in my car and blown the engine. Serge gave me a very rough estimate of $500 for repairs. The only reason I made it back to Manchester without my car stalling, was because I turned off everything except the engine.

Not only will I not be getting the temp holiday job, I get to max out my credit card with major car repairs. There goes any thoughts I had to pick up a few small Christmas gifts for my parents a few very close friends.

In the meantime, I submitted an on-line application to Stop & Shop last night. It was a difficult decision and one where I no longer have any choice. I'd love to see the HR person's face when they read the past salary and work experience then read that I'm applying for a job as a bakery clerk or cashier. I'm actually hoping for a job in the bakery simply because I enjoy baking and the bakery isn't open during the 3rd shift hours.

Holiday Depression

This time of the year there is a marked increase in depression. From my own personal experiences, the best remedy for me is to force myself into the Holiday Spirit. That includes decorating and enjoying the company of friends. Forcing myself to do things I KNOW are fun, but just don't feel like doing.

One of the most rewarding things I have done in the past, is to buy Christmas gifts for a needy child. There are Christmas trees set up at various places with decorated with tags. These tags have the name, age, gift suggestion for a child in foster care with DCF. Younger children usually have toys written for suggestions, while teens have clothing and sizes listed. These are gifts I actually enjoy purchasing. I know my purchase will be wanted and appreciated.

I recall one year, I chose a 5 year old girl. She wanted a black baby doll. Off I went to a huge toy store in search of the perfect baby doll. I must have spent two hours in the store to find just the right doll. Of course, it's no fun having JUST a doll, she needed clothing too! I had to buy several outfits for the doll. The sense of joy it gave me, to be able to make a child happy for Christmas, was unbelievable.

As I opened my gifts that Christmas, I could imagine the look on the little girl's face, knowing that "Santa" brought her just what she wanted for Christmas. To me, that was the best Christmas gift, I ever gave to myself!

Happy Holidays

I hope everyone had a great Thanksgiving. Mine was an excellent day shared with friends – Bill, Sonny, JR, Ann and Marsha. We chatted, watched football, teased Sonny about his losing football bets and ate way too much food. JR left soon after dinner because he had to be at work early today. You see he works for Northwest Airlines loading/unloading baggage. With all the holiday travelers, the next few days are going to be very busy work days for him.

Ann is mom to Bill & JR and a very delightful lady. I spent most of the afternoon listening to Ann reminisce. Prior to her marriage, Ann was in the theater as a singer/actress. She told me of the days spent traveling to Boston, NY, San Francisco and Toronto with the touring productions of South Pacific and Oklahoma. How she had been an understudy (I’m not sure in which play) and had to fill in for 3 performances opposite Ray Bolger. Even after she left the theater and had started her family, Ray Bolger remembered her and invited her to his performances. She told me how she and her husband, John, had met when she toured with South Pacific. Apparently a mutual friend sent John a note saying if you would like to have a night of fun, look up Annie while she’s in town. Ann still has the note and has it in a frame. Listening to Ann’s stories reminded me of times past, listening to Memere talk of how she met Pepere. In her words, “she chased him until he finally caught her.”

Today marks the starts of the Holiday shopping season and also the start of the days, I stay as far from malls as possible. While I love shopping for Christmas gifts, I HATE MALLS!!! I prefer to find little shops and special gifts for family and friends. Although this year will be a very poor Christmas for me, I will still manage to find or bake gifts for people I care about. I have discovered the joys of on-line shopping and will probably do most of my shopping through the internet and catalogs.

While decorating for the season is nice, I may pass it up this year. You see, I chose to have a den instead of a 2nd bedroom and that leaves me with no furniture in my living room. I was hoping to have a job by now and new living room furniture. I don't see any sense in filling an empty room with Christmas decorations. Then again, maybe I will fill the whole room with nothing but Christmas decorations. Turn it into my own "Winter Wonderland".

Good or Bad?

Is it good or bad when an agency searches Monster.com, finds your resume and calls you. After spending 10 minutes or so, speaking with the person, you find out the job is the same job you interviewed for on Monday.

When I left the interview, I was told they would be making a decision that day and contacting the agency later in the afternoon. When I didn't hear from the agency by Tuesday afternoon, I sent an e-mail, only to find out the company was interviewing someone Tuesday afternoon.

Here it is Wednesday afternoon and I haven't heard any feedback about the interview. However, I get a phone call from another agency for the same job.

I told the 2nd agency we could always submit my resume over and over, leaving them the choice of me or me :)

When it rains....

This week started off fairly good. I woke Monday morning knowing I had a job interview in the afternoon. Going into the interview, I was also aware they had postponed making a decision on Friday, because I have Lotus Notes installations/troubleshooting experience. Apparently no other candidate had experience with Notes. That's a big plus for me.

So I get myself ready for the interview, climb into my car and start it up. Hmmmm brake and battery "idiots" decide to stay on. Not good! Knowing it's been cold outside, I thought maybe the car just needed to warm up a bit. Well after 5 minutes, the brake light was still on. Decision time, do I chance driving to Norwich, with my brake light on (I was aware I would need brakes soon but have been putting it off until I had a job offer) OR do I cancel the interview and get my car to my mechanic? Hoping I was just low on brake fluid I decided to go to the gas station and have the fluid checked. About a block from my house, the light went off. At that point I decided to chance the drive to Norwich knowing my parents weren't far away from the interview site if I need assistance.

The interview went great! When I left, the HR person said she would be in contact with the agency later in the afternoon and would want someone to start immediately. Knowing I needed to have my car checked out, I contacted the agency to find out "just how immediately" is immediate. Realizing it would be a few days, I called my mechanic to schedule an appointment for Tuesday morning.

Ahhh poor Serge, I told him about the idiot lights being on and left him with explicit instructions. "If you find anything else that should be fixed, unless it's a safety issue, DO NOT TOUCH IT!" Then I explained about being out of work for over a year and funds are running low.

Well, I knew I was in deep shit when Serge called, later in the morning, about my car. Front brakes were shot, rear brakes were leaking fluid --- ok, new brakes needed all around. That explains the brake light. Now the battery light was on because the battery wasn't charging properly. Apparently the belts were slipping because they were covered with power steering fluid that was spraying out of the power steering hub. Yep, I need a new power steering hub to go with the new brakes. Estimated total for all this -- $950!!!!

My sanity is clinging to small thread of hope that I get this job (or any job) before the bill comes in, at the end of the month. Being a "long term" customer, my mechanic bills me for repairs.

Is anyone having a better week? I could use some good news for a change.

I haven't had much to say lately so I thought I'd post a list of "one liners" recently sent to me. Need a chuckle -- then read on!


1. Now that food has replaced sex in my life, I can't even get into my own pants.

2. Marriage changes passion. Suddenly you're in bed with a relative.

3. I saw a woman wearing a sweat shirt with "Guess" on it. So I said "Implants?"
She hit me.

4. I don't do drugs. I get the same effect just standing up fast.

5. Sign in a Chinese Pet Store: "Buy one dog, get one flea..."

6. I live in my own little world. But it's OK. They know me here.

7. I got a sweater for my birthday. I really wanted a screamer or a moaner.

8. If flying is so safe, why do they call the airport the "Terminal"?

9. I don't approve of political jokes. I've seen too many of them get elected.

10. There are two sides to every divorce: Yours and Shithead's.

11. I love being married. It's so great to find that one special person you want to
annoy for the rest of your life.

12.. I am a nobody, and nobody is perfect; therefore, I am perfect.

13. Everyday I beat my own previous record for the number of consecutive days I've
stayed alive.

14. How come we choose from just two people to run for president and 50 for
Miss America?

15. Why is it that most nudists are people you don't want to see naked?

16. Snowmen fall from Heaven unassembled.

17. Every time I walk into a singles bar I can hear Mom's wise words: "Don't pick
that up, you don't know where it's been!"

If anyone has gone to my webpage, you've noticed I don't update it frequently. The photographs take up quite a bit of space and I keep running out of room. I shouldn't complain - it is free. The pictures also take time to load when viewing them. Because of these problems, I am in the process of moving my photographs to Webshots. People will have the ability to download pictures and/or order prints. Currently I have loaded the GGC2002 (Great Group Cruise) pictures and recent pictures from my "fall foliage" trek. Eventually I will remove most of the photographs from my webpage.

Today looks a little brighter (not outside) on the job prospects than it has recently. I have an interview with a temp agency this afternoon. Temping is not what I would like to do but $10/hr. is better than no income at all. Knowing quite a few companies hire their temps, is another reason for the interview.

After the interview I'll head up to J&G's (they still allow smoking!!) and meet up with Debbie. Hopefully toss back a few Margarita's, maybe have dinner and shock the regulars because I'll be dressed up.

I finally heard from the company I interviewed with about 3 weeks ago. Apparently they are also interviewing internally for the job opening and hope to reach a decision by the end of the week. Why they couldn't return my calls and tell me this before, I have no idea. What I did to finally get a response was to e-mail the hiring manager, he forwarded my e-mail to HR and they responded.

I give up!!!

I am no longer looking for a job. They just aren’t out there and I can’t handle the stress of waiting for a semi-decent job to come along. Then again, the jobs are out there – they just don’t want me. Don’t ask the reasons because I get the vaguest fucking answers when I try to find out – over qualified, under qualified, “not the right fit” give me a fucking break and TELL ME!!

Two weeks ago, I interviewed for a job working 3rd shift. So far, I have called them twice and still have not gotten any response about the job status. My guess is that any day now, I will receive a “We think you can walk on water but hired someone else instead” letter. Now there’s a nice kick in the morale booster!

To make matters worse, mom calls every couple of days to ask about the job hunt. I know she means well but my patience is running in the negative. I’m ready to explode and it won’t be a pretty sight. I’m finding it difficult to control my anger when speaking with friends that mean well but have never been in this situation.

How many of you know just how demeaning it is to have 20+ years of experience and not be able to find work in your field? To know that every day you are out of work means your skills are one day closer to being obsolete. To have scrubbed toilets to pay bills (Yes! I did that for work while going to school) only to end up back in the same fucking place after 20 years. I just don’t have the energy, drive or even the will to start my life over.

E-mail from a friend, posted with his permission

Ian had returned from Beirut a short 4 1/2 months prior to the bombing.

Beriut Anniversary

Today is the 20th anniversary of the bombing of the Marine Barracks in Beirut, Lebanon.

On October 23rd 1983, at approximately 6:00 am, a truck laden with an estimated two tons of explosives and driven by a member of the Islamic Jihad terrorist group crashed past the Marine security guards on duty and through the front doors of the five story building nicknamed the "Beirut Hilton" on the Beirut International Airport and exploded. The blast killed 241 Marines and Navy Corpsman.

The Marine guards on duty had been instructed by their commanders to keep their weapons UNLOADED. I know one of them, and he will forever have nightmares of desperately fumbling with his magazine, trying to get it inserted into his M-16 so he could stop the attack. He saw the truck circling the parking lot, building up speed, and watched as it headed towards the building.

I also know several of the survivors (215 were pulled from the rubble), and one says that only a few men were awake and moving around... the vast majority were sound asleep in the first soft bed they had seen in months. (They normally slept in sandbagged bunkers that lined the perimeter of the airport.)

I lost a lot of friends that day... mothers lost their sons, wives lost their husbands, families lost members... and the nation lost alot of very good men.

Let's not forget, okay?

Ian Egan
Sgt. USMC
1979 - 1983

THE WEEK IN REVIEW

Last weekend, as most of you already know, was THE PITS! I won’t go into details because I don’t care to relive even the memory. Let’s just say, it was extremely depressing.

On Monday, a friend of mine, Wig, insisted I join him for lunch and drinks at J&G’s. Knowing I needed some major cheering up, J&G’s is the place for that to happen. Arriving about 11:30 AM, it was a bit too early for Margarita’s. I didn’t have my first drink until after I had eaten lunch. There was a new item listed on the lunch specials - Shepard’s Pie. You and I know how Shepard’s Pie is made - layer hamburg with a little gravy, then corn (or veggie of your choice) top with mashed potatoes and baked. They had all these ingredients but added a few of their own. First, they added, what I believe were chili spices to the hamburg. Second, there was no gravy, instead they had a tomato sauce over the top of the potatoes. Third, they topped the sauce with mozzarella. While I will say, lunch was edible, I won’t order it again. I think I need to have a talk with the owner’s and explain they should not be turning an English food into a Greek version of an Italian food.

Anyway, the afternoon was spent picking on JC, one of the regulars. How can you not pick on someone that tries to look as though he just stepped off the pages of GQ? “Taliban” Bobby is great for picking on people as well as just teasing. Bobby has done some strange things and got his nickname by coming out of the men’s room with a towel turban and dancing around the bar. All the horsing around, one-liners, and visuals (thanks to Bobby) made for an afternoon of laughs with occasional tears from laughing too hard. By the time I left J&G’s my depression was fading away. THANK YOU WIG!

Wednesday, I had a job interview with Retail Brand Alliance. This is the corporate office for a group of clothing stores. They own Casual Corner, August Max Woman, Petite Sophisticates and Brooks Brothers. I have a couple of friends, Lynn & Andrea, that work at RBA. Andrea had contacted me when she heard about the job opening in Computer Operations. When I told her I was definitely interested, she passed my resume on to the Supervisor. Anyway, when I arrived at RBA, whom do I see but Lynn, having a smoke. Seeing me in a skirt, was a bit of shock for her. She commented that she didn’t know I even owned of those. After a few minutes of chitchat and chuckles, I was off to the interview. The previous week’s major rejections, took its toll on me emotionally. Before going into the interview, decided I wasn’t going get my hopes up or speculate on how I felt about the interview. That didn’t last long. The interview went great. I’ve heard from Andrea, the manager was very impressed with my qualifications and me. He is now waiting for his boss to return from vacation, to get “things” moving along. Exactly what that mean, I don’t know. It could mean he is going to make me an offer or it could mean I need to go in for another interview or ….. I’m hoping to hear more this week.

Wednesday is also poetry night at Klekolo and it was my turn as host. The feature was Cynthia Peck. I decided to surprise people by remaining in my interview clothing. My normal Klekolo attire is jeans. The skirt must have scared them all away because I almost cancelled the reading due to a lack of poets. At 9:00 pm, only one poet had signed up for the open mic. Karl & Victoria showed up around 9:20 pm. That gave us two poets, a feature and me. Instead of having Cynthia feature, it was decided to just have an open mic with three poets and myself. It was a short night and by 10:30 pm, we were ordering drinks at Cornerstone’s.

Thursday, it was time to enjoy the beautiful day outside. With temperatures close to 80, I went for a ride, in search of fall foliage. My first stop was at Cynthia’s – she forgot her wallet at Cornerstone’s. Next, I just picked a road and drove until I decided to turn. I drove around for a few hours, admiring the scenery and hissing at the political signs that take root every autumn. Before I knew it, I was at the back entrance to Buckland Hills Mall. There were a couple of things I needed to pick up at Michael’s Crafts so I a made a quick stop and then headed home.

Friday, I was lazy and did nothing J Actually that’s not quite true, I repotted 3 plants and I hung a few pictures.

Here is it, Saturday, and I’m planning to head to my parents house this afternoon. I’ll bring along my camera and again, search for the perfect autumn foliage picture.

Who knows what tomorrow will bring…….

I wonder if any more protests are being planned?
Protesters Mourn Tech-job Drain

Attitude Adjustment Needed

It's a bitch when you know your attitude sucks but it's a valid attitude. People keep telling me "things will get better" and "it just takes time" and for over a year, I have believed them and hoped for those same things to be true. The fact is people, it's NOT getting better -- look at the unemployment figures, they aren't going down!!!

After 20+ years in IT, and being out of work for 13 months, I came to the realization, I will probably NEVER work in IT again. That translates to 20+ of experience means nothing! I have nothing to show for all of those years. I don't own a home, no retirement funds or no savings left, no benefits. My car is 7 years old, in need of a tune-up, tires and probably in need of brakes. People wonder why I have such a negative attitude. Try to imagine throwing 20 years of your life out the window and starting over, at the age of 46, with nothing! That is what I have been FORCED to do. It's terrifying!!

How do I start over? I don't have a clue!! I do know, the first thing is to find a job - any job, with benefits!! Hopefully one of the benefits will be tuition reimbursement. Then I will have the ability to go back to school and be retrained. There are certain jobs I would like to do, but I don't know if I have the time, money or even the energy left to explore those options. Most IT jobs seem to be moving to foreign countries. I will not consider training for anything in IT, even though I enjoy the work.

While working at Wiremold, I had taken a "Professional Skills and Assessment" test. Scoring high in artistic and nurturing categories the following careers paths were suggested - Childcare, Culinary Arts, Teaching, Nursing. Who knows, maybe I can teach children how to cook? What I do know is that is that any choice will be a long, hard process rebuild. My only choice is to "just do it" or work at a mindless job until I am forced into retirement or drop dead.

I know everyone means well when they tell me to "look on the bright side" and "things will get better". Look at what have left for choices and tell me HONESTLY that you would not have the same "I was fucked over again" attitude.

You think your day was bad.....

Saying I am not having a good day would be an understatement. I've been out of work for over a year and had TWO very promising job interviews recently. Today I received rejections for BOTH of those jobs. Unemployment has run out and I have maybe $5,000 dollars left to my name. At the age of 46, I have NO medical insurance, NO retirement, NO savings, NO job prospects and NO great "love of my life". Needless to say, my first drink was poured about fours hours ago and my opinion is that "LIFE FUCKING SUCKS!"

"National Bernie Rejection Day!"

Take your best shot at me! After TWO very promising job interviews. I had TWO job rejections in one fucking day, take your best shot at me. Fair warning to all --- don't be surprised if I shoot back!

We've lost another great star :( Donald O'Conner

Cafe Downtown

Tonight I went to Cafe Downtown and listened to some great music. Pete Serge opened for Perfect Silence tonight. I won't bother to tell you Pete was great (he'll do that :) ) Tonight was the first feature gig for Perfect Silence and they were fabulous! Hopefully I managed to get some great pics. After I left, I realized I should have asked Pete, Dan and Sarah to pose for a few shots together, oh well, I try to remember next time.

ADD perhaps?

Media Not Paying Attention

I have finally made it to THE END!!!

DWP – 9/21/03 Write about a daydream

Admit it, we all daydream. I would even wager we have one daydream in common – to hit it big in the lottery. Having been out of work for more than a year, I believe I have perfected this daydream. Yes, the normal, pay off all the bills, monetary gifts to family and close friends would be done. My daydream has added some extras to normal

I have many friends on-line and we cruise (on cruise ships) together. Over the years, a handful of friends have become very close. Our love of cruising brought us together but sharing our daily lives, made us friends. Quite a few of my friends read my blog entries and know these people. I will not name my friends, fearing I will forget to mention someone and cause hurt feelings. To thank my friends for being there for me, during good and bad times, I would take them on a cruise. I have not chosen the ports of call, they do not matter. I do know it will be on a Carnival ship – we love having fun on Carnival. Friends would receive first class airfare and/or limousine service to a luxury hotel, near the embarkation port. The night before embarkation would be spent with our usual “Meet & Greet”, fully catered with open bar. I would pick up all hotel charges, including meals and arrange for limousine service to and from the cruise ship.

If my friends compare their cruise documents, they will discover everyone has a Cat. 12 Suites. This will give us one major benefit – priority boarding and personal escorts through the long lines and directly to our suites. Once on board the ship, all bar tabs would be mine to pick up. No one will be driving that week except the ship’s captain. Now, he can join in our fun, but only if it turns the keys over to his second in command. Cruising with a large group, we rarely are able to dine together on formal night. Therefore, I would arrange one formal night for all my friends in the supper club. I am sure I can dream of more ways to thank my friends while on the ship. Sharing this information, lets them know how much I appreciate them and enjoy their company.

Of course, I can’t neglect the items I would purchase for myself after winning the lottery. I long to build a dream home on the northern coast of Maine. As I mentioned earlier, I have been out of work for over a year. This has given me plenty of time to daydream on the Internet. You see, I have had time to locate the plans for my dream home. There would be some modifications made to the plans. The most important changes would be an indoor heated swimming pool and a fireplace in the master bedroom. The “bonus room” would become a recreational area with pool table, sound system and bar.

With my love of cruising, you are probably wondering why I chose Maine instead of the Caribbean, for a dream home. I happen to love 3 out of 4 seasons. You can probably guess which season I do not like. Therefore, I intend to also purchase a custom built yacht and hire a full crew. My winters will be spent going from island to island in the Caribbean. Again, I have had plenty of time to search the Internet and I “think” this custom built yacht would work nicely for me. I would change the interior décor, since it is not to my taste in decor. Friends and family are more than welcomed to cruise with me. When the yacht is not in use, I might be coaxed into loaning it out to certain people.

You can see, I have spent a considerable amount of time daydreaming about winning it big in the lottery. Ahhhhh to dream……

Autumn

I love days like today, sunny with just a little nip in the air. The leaves are beginning to change colors. In a few short weeks, the hillsides will be dotted in shades of yellow, orange, red and green. These are the days; I love to take long rides in the country, browsing antique shops, orchards, and search for the perfect Jack-o-lantern pumpkin or simply laze by a stream.

It would be nice to share these rides with someone special, maybe take along a picnic lunch. One of my favorite stops is a state park in eastern Connecticut called Devil’s Hopyard. People rarely use the picnic areas, they are too busy walking the trails and viewing Chapman Falls. During past visits I have taken a few excellent (IMHO) pictures of Devil’s Hopyard, with the falls and stream covered with snow and ice. Although the pictures are in color, they appear almost black and white. Maybe this will be the year I get those great pictures of the fall foliage.

To me, Devil’s Hopyard is the perfect place for an autumn picnic. Since I’ll probably be there alone, it’s also a great place to quietly sit alongside the stream read a book, write, or simply become lost in daydreams.

AOL Survey

This is a survey being done on AOL. Granted, this isn't a valid method of polling people but I think the results still speak loudly!


In retrospect, what do you think of Bush's case for war?

48% He deliberately misled the public 51,131
30% It was completely legitimate 31,688
22% He may have stretched a little, but the overall reasoning was sound 23,384

Total votes: 106,203

Another sad day

Sheb Wooley, most noted for "Purple People Eater" passed away on 9/17.

Religious Solicitors

It appears my neighborhood is in need of "religious salvation". Almost every weekend, since moving in, someone has tried to "save my soul". Normally I am a non-violent, polite person. However, it's getting to a point where these people are going to be threatened if they knock on my door again. I have seriously thought of posting a sign stating "Religious solicitors will be shot upon knocking." Somehow I think that sign wouldn't be appreciated by the police department.

I have tried being polite, saying "no thank you" and closing my door. I have tried, not answering my door (they just come back later). Once in a prior apartment, they have actually had their children look in windows to see if someone was home. I wasn't very nice to those people, nor to their children.

Does anyone have suggestions for a way to "legally" stop these people?

Pirate Profile:

You are The Cap'n!

Some men are born great, some achieve greatness and some slit the throats of any man that stands between them and the mantle of power. You never met a man you couldn't eviscerate. Not that mindless violence is the only avenue open to you - but why take an avenue when you have complete freeway access? You are the definitive Man of Action. You are James Bond in a blousy shirt and drawstring-fly pants. Your swash was buckled long ago and you have never been so sure of anything in your life as in your ability to bend everyone to your will. You will call anyone out and cut off their head if they show any sign of taking you on or backing down. You cannot be saddled with tedious underlings, but if one of your lieutenants shows an overly developed sense of ambition he may find more suitable accommodations in Davy Jones' locker. That is, of course, IF you notice him. You tend to be self absorbed - a weakness that may keep you from seeing enemies where they are and imagining them where they are not.

What's Yer Inner Pirate?
brought to you by The Official Talk Like A Pirate Web Site. Arrrrr!

More lies exposed!

US team finds no smallpox in Iraq

Now the "shrub" finally admits Saddam was not involved in the 9/11 attacks, only that Saddam has "al-qaida ties". Any bets on how long before he says he never claimed there were WMD's in Iraq?

badbinky2 in five years

Occupation: Calendar Designer

Prized possession: A death-dealing coin-collection.

Favourite film: Harry Potter and the Flowers of Thriftiness

Age difference: One month older due to time travel.

LiveJournal Blurty Neither Fully coded by ianiceboy

Uninvited Wedding Guest

I don't envy this couple!!

Enough Procrastinating!

I have been procrasting way too much recently. There are boxes still stacked in my living room which MUST be unpacked or moved into storage. Therefore, I am grounding myself! My computer will be turned off, daily, until a minimum of 1/3 of the boxes (each day) has been eliminated from the living room.

DWP 9/16/03 Write about something you would do differently.

Ah, if I could live my life over. It is great to dream about changing our past. That is all it is, a dream. You see, your past is what has made you the person you are today. Every minor choice, every turn in the road is what brought you here. One minor change can have a major lasting effect on who you are today, even if you would still be here.

There was a Star Trek episode where the Enterprise returned to Earth but in the early 20th century. Captain Kirk, Spock and Dr. McCoy beamed down to Earth. While there for only a few minutes, they changed history and there was no Enterprise orbiting the Earth to beam them up. They simply pushed a woman out of the road, saving her from being hit by a car. This same thing would happen if we made changes to our past. To re-write our past, would be to also re-write the world’s history.

Of course now it is time for me to dream about the effects of changing my past. There is only one change I would make – not to marry my ex-husband, Charlie. If I were to make this one change, I know I would not be the person I am today. I would have missed a major change in my life, had it not been for this marriage. That change, I grew as a person, and became emotionally strong enough to leave him. It taught me about myself and to lower tolerance for verbal and mental abuse. I learned to stand up for myself, even when terrified of the possible outcome. It taught me be very wary of the person that says, “I love you” but not how to stop my heart from loving them.

I cannot fathom of how my life would have been different without Charlie. Who knows if I would have met and married my “soul mate”? Who knows if I would have had the family I always wanted? Who knows if I would be financially secure? Who knows if I would have found the same kind of person, married and been physically abused? Who knows if I would be a cynical old bitch, simply because I never found love?

My world would definitely be different today, had I not married Charlie. Would it be better? I certainly hope so, but I don’t believe it would be better, just different. I know it would not be perfect; there will always be something that could have been done differently. Thanks but I think I will keep MY past, I know the outcome.

WTG Dave Barry!!!

"Barry Turns Tables on Telemarketers"

DWP - Write about a fragrance

Have you ever noticed how a scent triggers memories? My favorite floral scent is Lilac and the scent always brings a smile to my face. In Old Town, Maine, we had several lilac bushes in our front yard. The bushes had grown together and created a sheltered area, just large enough for a little girl to play house, with her dolls and cat. I would spend hours in my make believe world. Stone tables held make believe meals, created with dandelions, clovers, grass and of course, lilacs. The food may not have been edible but it did look pretty. I was “mommy” to my dolls and dressed Tiger, my cat, in doll clothes. Tiger was the best pet any child could have. He would let me dress him in doll clothes then walk him up and down the street in my doll carriage. He just lay there, enjoying all the attention. In the spring, I had the prettiest house with the lilacs in full bloom. Now I gather lilacs, breathe in their scent, and recall innocent days of childhood. When I had no concept of time, work, and responsibilities… just my imagination running free.

Investigation Continues!

Police: Man Illegally Videotaped Juvenile
August 28, 2003
By TRACY GORDON FOX, Courant Staff Writer

A former Colchester resident has been arrested and charged a second time with illegally videotaping a female, this time a juvenile, in his home without her knowledge, state police said.

Ronald A. LaMontagne, 43, who had lived in the Westchester section of Colchester, was charged with one count of voyeurism and one count of risk of injury to a minor, police said Wednesday.

LaMontagne had been out on bond and living at 19 Sherburne Ave. in Worcester, Mass., since his initial arrest in May on two counts of voyeurism and 20 counts of disseminating voyeuristic material to Internet users throughout the country and as far away as Algeria, police said.

Wednesday was the first charge involving a minor, and police say they are looking for other possible victims.

Detectives began investigating LaMontagne in May after they received a complaint from a woman who said LaMontagne might have videotaped her. Investigators found that clock radios in his home housed pinhole cameras connected to surveillance equipment that could record images from 100 feet away. Videocassette recorders in his bedroom were set up to make copies, police said.

Police said they believed that LaMontagne secretly filmed at least four women in their 20s, then disseminated the tapes to Washington, Illinois, Oklahoma and Texas.

The most recent case was the result of a follow-up investigation after LaMontagne's arrest in May, police said. Detectives identified a teenager whose image was recorded without her knowledge and contained on a videotape seized during a search of LaMontagne's former home.

LaMontagne turned himself in to state police Wednesday and was held with bail set at $100,000, police said.

Detectives are asking anyone who is a female friend, associate, co-worker or past renter of LaMontagne's property in Colchester, or who worked with him, to call the state police Eastern District Major Crime Squad at the Colchester barracks at 860-537-7500.

Gas Prices

I've put it off as long as possible but today I MUST put gas in my car. This will be the first time, I've filled up since the prices soared. Hoping the oil companies really meant this was only a temporary price hike, I have waited until the tank is on E before putting in gas.

Can someone PLEASE explain to me, exactly what the fuck a power outage and a broken pipe in the southwest, has to do with the price of gasoline?!?!?!? Am I too dumb to understand or too smart to believe the reasons, that are being shoved our throats?

DWP - A December Memory....

My Christmas Tree 2001

Spending my first Christmas in an apartment with 16' ceilings, my eyes were bigger than my strength when I picked out a 9 ft Christmas tree. Needing assistance to move this monstrosity, Marsha came over and we managed to get it leaning up against my car only to stand there and wonder "How the hell are we getting that into the building, down the hall, into the elevator, up to the third floor, down another hall and into the apartment?" It had only taken us about 15 minutes to get the tree standing and not without incident. Marsha got in the way and was pinned against the car. I stood there; arms and legs spread wide and told her to lean the tree towards me so she could get out. We tried to stand it in a cart that I have but the wheels kept moving away from us. At one point we lifted the base of the tree, only to stand and stare at the cart that needed to be pushed UNDER the tree! Well a very nice neighbor, Erin, asked if we needed help. At that point we had a "Three Stooges" thing oing on just trying to get it from my car to the building! With his help we managed to lay the tree across the cart and get it to the door. At which point I was pinned between the door and the tree and there was a staircase in our way! Erin suggested that he "attempt" to drag the tree up 3 flights of stairs (yeah right!) but I couldn't let him do that. He had already been a big help and I was afraid he would hurt himself. Anyway, we moved the tree and leaned against a fence outside. Silly Erin thought someone might steal the tree. I reminded him it took 3 of us and about 20 minutes to get it across the parking lot! I decided to call the building manager in the morning and ask if the maintenance guys can bring it in. If they couldn't I would leave it where it is, decorate with suet, bird seeds and corn cobs and let the critters enjoy my tree as my neighbors laugh at the fool on the third floor.

The maintenance guys DID move my tree inside and sort of managed to get it standing. It was in the tree stand but leaning against the wall. According the Jessica, the building manager, they muttered 4-
letter words that she had never heard before. All Greg kept saying is "That's one hell of a BIG tree!" I owe the guys BIG TIME for getting the tree up here. I think a large bottle of "whatever" and homemade Banana Bread should get me back in their good graces again.

Now the task of decorating the tree is at hand! I started with the lights and ran out about 1/3 of the way down the tree. While I was putting the lights on, I realized I couldn't put the Angel on top, only because I can't reach the top. Anyway, the next day on my lunch break I ran out to buy 1000 lights. Have you ever tried to buy white lights the week before Christmas? Don't bother - it's impossible! I was standing in the store and mulling over the possibilities - Green,Purple, Yellow, Pink and Blue. Then I remembered how many lights I needed and that narrowed the choice down considerably -- Green or Pink. So, I have 1000 Pink lights to twinkle on my tree (thank God they aren't flashing!).

I get home and take down the white lights I painstakingly put on the night before and start with the pink lights. Having gone through this the previous night, I concluded it would be easiest to divided the tree in 1/3 strips to put the lights on.

My tree now fully decorated tree, aglow in pink lights still lacking a treetop. My angel would never be seen on top of my tree -- if I could get it there. I amusingly chuckled to myself the perfect top would be a pink flamingo lawn ornament.

I had been telling my co-workers and a few members of a cruisers group, each day about this weird tree and shared my private chuckles with them as well. When I got to work Thursday, a co-worker, walked up to me with a very sly grin and handed me a pink flamingo lawn ornament!!!! You got it! I now have a pink flamingo nesting atop my Christmas tree!!!! I have also been forewarned to expect packages from fellow cruisers Ermalee, Becca and Lori. I'm sort of afraid to open them but I will proudly display whatever it is, on the weirdest, biggest and funniest Christmas tree I have ever owned!!!

Oh and just for "ha-ha's" I took out my tape measure and couldn't believe my eyes. I actually thought I was buying about a 9 ft. tree -- try it's 10 ft and leaning!!! If it were standing straight it would probably be closer to 12 ft. high!!!!!!!!! I've already decided the tree will be leaving here in pieces --- probably branch by branch with the help of Dad's hacksaw.

Well the packages from Ermalee, Becca and Lori all arrived and I cautiously opened them. You never know what these people would send through the mail! To my surprise, I now have a "Flamingo Beanie
Family" in my tree with several beautiful ornaments. As strange as this tree looks, I must say, it is one of the prettiest trees I've seen.

To answer the big question – How did I get the tree out of my apartment – it was in pieces!! I borrowed a hack saw from my Dad with the promise to not remove any of my limbs. After removing all
the decorations and carefully packing them away, I proceeded to de-branch the tree! Starting at the bottom, I sawed of branches and stuffed them in large plastic trash bags, to be carried outside to
the dumpster. I have no idea how many bags I filled but I had the tree about 2/3's stripped before I attempted to cut off the top and carry that down the stairs. While dragging it out the door another
tenant saw me and commented on what a beautiful little tree that must have been. All I could do was laugh and let them know I was dragging out just the TOP of the tree!!

I usually have a difficult time thinking of what to write in my blog on a daily basis. Victoria mentioned a Yahoo! Group called DailyWritingPrompt and they send out a topic daily. I decided to join and see what I can come up with for writing.


My mother once told me ….

When you grow up related to half the population of a small town, you have no fear of strangers – they are just your relatives. Our street, a dead end street, had about a dozen houses. One house was ours and four others were relatives. Two of these houses were my grandparents, Memere & Pepere lived at the bottom of the hill, Grammy & Grampy lived across the street at the top of the hill. At less than 5 years of age, I would frequently “visit” my relatives, of course, never telling Mom I was leaving the yard. Mom managed to solve the problem by creating a harness/leash and tying me to the fence in the yard.

The leash worked great at keeping me in the yard, while at home. The problems came in when we would visit my grandparents. When we visited Memere, I would run to the top of the hill and visit Grammy. While visiting Grammy, I ran to the bottom of the hill to visit Memere. Stubborn child that I was, I insisted on visiting where ever my Mom was not visiting.

After several weeks my Mom finally caught me running up the hill to visit Grammy and proceeded to lecture me about the dangers of the world. Her very understandable instructions were “When I’m at the top of the hill, you are not to run to the bottom of the hill. When I’m at the bottom of the hill, you are not to run to the top of the hill.” Wanting to be certain I understood exactly what she was saying, she asked me to repeat her instruction, which I did. She then asked “What are you going to do the next time.” With a very straight-laced face, I told her I would walk. Even at that tender age, I was a smart-ass. After all, she didn’t mention walking, just that I couldn’t run up and down the hill.

Mom, chuckled the whole time she told me of this incident. When I came out with my reply, all she could do at that time, was turn around and laugh. That was when she realized, I was going to take after her side of the family – a family of quick-witted practical jokers.

My Bloginality is INFJ!!!

The Interview Game

My questions came from Subversity


The rules of the Interview Game ...

- Leave a comment saying you want to be interviewed.
- I'll reply and give you five questions to answer.
- You'll update your web-log with the five questions answered.
- You'll include this explanation.
- You ask other people five questions when they want to be interviewed. And it just keeps going, and going, and going.

Here are your five questions ...

1. What's the best gift you've ever received?
I sit here pondering this question simply because I’ve received many excellent gifts over the years. Now that I’ve mentally inventoried all the gifts I have been given, one gift stands out as the best anyone could ever give or receive but is not sold in any store – the gift of life.

2. What's your favorite book of all time?
This one is easy – The Stand by Stephen King. I’ve read the original twice and
the unabridged version once. Until the good vs. evil came into the story line, the book was too close to what can happen in reality!

3. Name something you've always wanted to do but didn't have time for.
I can’t say I didn’t have “time” for anything I have wanted to do. If there is something I really want to do, I’ll make the time. It’s usually needing funds that will keep me from doing things. I would love to travel more frequently, go to school for culinary arts, learn to pilot a plane. While I have the time for these things, they also require money.

4. If you could change something about yourself what would it be?
My shoe size! I have BIG feet!!! Of course, if my feet were smaller, they would look out of proportion and probably not support my large bone structure. However, it would be so nice to be able to walk into any shoe department and find shoes in my size. To date, there are only two stores where I can buy shoes. One has a small selection of inexpensive shoes. The other is a specialty shoe store, with a large selection and high prices to match.

5. Tell us something about you that would surprise us.
I read these questions Friday morning before leaving for Ohio. This was the one question that stayed in my mind all weekend! There are things that would surprise some people but not all people. Probably the only thing that would surprise everyone is knowing I have gone into a bar and ordered a glass of milk!! As I recall it, this even surprised the bartender!!!! What can I say, I just didn’t feel like drinking that night. Now has everyone recovered from that shock? Well if not, prepare yourself for the next shock, in high school I was know as “sweet and innocent”. My first look at a Playgirl magazine was with my hands over my eyes.

The Pope
Circle I Limbo

Greens
Circle II Whirling in a Dark & Stormy Wind

Bill Clinton
Circle III Mud, Rain, Cold, Hail & Snow

Libertarians
Circle IV Rolling Weights

Democrats
Circle V Stuck in Mud, Mangled

River Styx

Republicans, Uday Hussein, Qusay Hussein
Circle VI Buried for Eternity

River Phlegyas

Saddam Hussein
Circle VII Burning Sands

Osama bin Laden
Circle IIX Immersed in Excrement

George Bush
Circle IX Frozen in Ice

Design your own hell

Bush needs a reality check! Unemployment in CT is NOT down!!! Check out this news story on unemployment in CT from CTNOW.COM I was laid off 8/30/02 and I am still searching for a job. Of course, when I was searching out of state, unemployment was a problem nationwide and no one was hiring. Now I have a new apartment with a 1-yr. lease and it appears CT's economic recovery is going in the opposite direction.

Loving someone hurts too much to ever fall for it again! Someone always gets hurts and I'm tired of being the one crying.

Pledge of Allegiance Rant!

Recently my mailbox was inundated with e-mails insisting the Pledge of Allegiance wording "under God" should remain and boycotting companies that refuse recognize this wording. Since I refuse to inflict my beliefs upon friends and family, I thought a response in my Blog would be a more appropriate venue for voicing my opinions.

While listening to the news one day, I heard the ORIGINAL, Pledge of Allegiance. What we recite today is not the original pledge. I searched and found a history of the Pledge of Allegiance . The words "under God" were added to the pledge in 1954 when the Knights of Columbus (a Roman Catholic organization) campaigned to create a combination pledge AND public prayer.

I was raised in a devout Roman Catholic home, complete with enrollment in Roman Catholic schools. As a non-practicing Roman Catholic, I do not believe the words "under God" belong in ANY government documents. Whatever happened to the separation of Church and State? Then again, as a Roman Catholic we are taught our allegiance is to God. So why are we pledging to a flag? In my opinion that is no different than worshiping a golden calf.

One reason settlers came to the “new world” was religious persecution. What right do we have to force others to pray to a God they may not believe exists? Not everyone believes in the same God, or even in a God. This is a case where “majority” does not rule but the premise for which this country was founded DOES rule. That premise is RELIGIOUS FREEDOM. I, for one, will not force others into adhering to MY religious beliefs!

As for the flood of e-mails, I will not respond to each. However, I will respond with a link to my Blog. If friends and family do not care for my opinions, then they should not force theirs upon anyone else.

I'm finally all moved into the new apartment and very slowly getting things unpacked. Saturday, I went shopping for a new bed. Now I'm waiting for it to be delivered and set up today.

While out and about saturday, I was looking for matching shower and window curtains. I have come to the conclusion they are a figment of my imagination! At Walmart, I decided to settle on a pleated shade with a burgundy valance that will match my current shower curtain. Now Walmart is not on my list of favorite stores, I shop there ONLY as a last resort! Saturday's experience reminded me why I hate this store!! First, there were no shopping carts available. The store was crowded but the employees had atleast 50 carts tied up with merchandise they were moving around. My philosphy is, if you want me to buy items, provide a cart so I can carry them! Second, were the screaming kids running rampant in the store. Parents, watch your kids, not everyone thinks they are adorable. Third, inconsiderate shoppers blocking aisles, cutting you off without so much as an "excuse me". Fourth, when I went into the store, my patience was almost non-existent. By the time I reached the checkout lines, waited for 10 minutes and the line still had not moved, my patience left completely. I threw my hands up, said "Fuck it", leaving my cart, in line, I walked out of the store - empty handed! I could understand if this was the first time I had this experience at Walmart, but it's not! Every time I have gone into this store, I have the same problems. Are all Walmarts like this?!?!?! This particular store is located next to Buckland Hills Mall. The area department stores (Ames, KMart, Bradlees) have all closed because of losing business to Walmart. The only deparment store left is a KMart in a neighboring town. Yes, I went to that KMart and from the looks of their shelves, they won't be around much longer.