Restart

I may be ready to start up blogging again. I've been knitting up fish hats galore. Tomorrow I'll post the pictures.

Years of the Socks II

This will be the year of the sock. I've finished the first pair and I'm almost done the first sock of the second pair.

Entitled

I work in retail. Most customers are pleasant people. Some aren't. While the ones that aren't pleasant are frequently annoying, the up side is we can always laugh at them.

Being rude or condesending to clerical staff doesn't mean you are smarter then we are or better then us, it just means you have issues. Being angry with me because I don't have the book you want in stock doesn't mean I'll suddenly become clarvoyant and know what you want before you do. It just means you are rude. Leaving trash (used tissues, food trash or papers you no longer want), doesn't mean your time is more important then mine, it just means you are lazy or disqusting or both.

While that kind of behaviour annoys me it also makes me laugh. I laugh because it shows people being themselves. People's weaknesses are easy to spot'

You Are Never Too Old To Kiss Your Mother

Getting kisses off teenage sons is tough. I have to bribe my boys to get a measly peck on the cheek. And if truth be told the rare cheek kiss is get is just not enough kisses.

Albert thinks that now he is in college he is too old to kiss his mother. Luckily I have the car keys and the money. Every once in a while I refuse to give him one or the other or both if he refuses to give me a kiss. He hates it.

Sock Of the Month Club

I joined a Sock-of-the-Month club, the kind where once a month they send you a pattern and enough yarn to make a pair of socks. I've received 3 kits so far and finished about 1/3 of one sock. And I'm not following the pattern. I almost never -- well maybe never--follow a pattern. I have more fun making up my own as I go along.

Of course there are problems with never following a pattern. The gloves I made for sweetie are the prime example. They are beautiful but they are two different sizes. And I remade the second one twice. I have learned to keep count of the stitches. So I think the socks will both be the same size.

Back to the sock of the month club. I am in a sock making frame of mind. I plan to make lots of socks this year. Socks will be given as gifts. But I need to pick up the pace. I've been in the SOM club for 2 months and am 1/6th of the way through one set. At this rate Al is the only one who will experience the Joy of Socks.

People

The more I work for the public the less I like people. I stop seeing that the vast majority of people are pleasant and thoughtful and see the minority who just don't care for any one but themselves. The thoughless few wear me out. Recent examples include the mom who told me I wasn't looking hard enough for the book her daughter needed for a report due the following morning, even though I was on my knees looking book by book, or the parents who allow their toddlers to pull books off the shelves and gleefully tell other parents how nice it is to be out and not have to clean up after their kids, or the people who leave trash, tissues, used diapers for one of us to clean up.

I don't forget about the many adults and children who thank me for my help, who cleanup after themselves or tell me how much they love the store.

I'm tired of allowing myself to be brought down by the negative few. I think I'll start paying attention to the nice folks. I'll make a mental note of the people who are thoughtful or kind. I'm going to work on noticing the good and ignoring the bad. I love this job. I want to continue to enjoy it.

I'll be a single parent for a few days

Al will drive down to to pick up our number one son and bring him home for spring break. I think he is looking forward to a few days away from the routine. I'm wishing it was me that could go, and if it were me I would go down a week early.

Oh well, I need to save my vacation days for the summer. When it is nice and warm and I can spend the days at the beach.

Work is Called Work for a Reason

I spent all day changing over displays from one set of books to another. I like interacting with people, not moving books around. It seems that more and more of my job is moving books around. It makes me wonder what I my ideal job. What do I most want to do?

I don't want to subsitute at the local elementary school.
I don't want to go to my pre-retirement job.
I don't want another job in retail.
And I don't want to sit at home all the time.
So what are my options?

It's Been a Year

Dad died a year ago today. It's been a rough day.

I miss him.

My Boys Are Here

I haven't seen the boys in almost 3 weeks.  I've missed them.  But finally they are here.  They flew in this evening.  I met them in the airport and promptly broke into loud discordant sobs.   It had been so long since I had seen  them, it felt so good to hug them.  My sons are with me and it feels good.

Of course the minute I started to cry the boys told me to stop.  And they told me I could never meet me at an airport again.  I don't care.  My boys are here.

I'm In Heaven

I am in the middle of a month's vacation in Myrtle Beach and it truly is my idea of heaven, or as close to it as is available on earth. Mom and I (the mom part of that is going very well) took several days to get here. We spent the first night with my nephew and his wife and the next two nights with mom's cousin and her husband. Both of those visits were wonderful. But I was really anxious to be in my own little house near the beach.

Mom and I got her Thursday afternoon. It is such a pleasant house. It is quiet, no kids, no animals, no TV, no radio--no husband. I do what I want, when I want and how I want. I'm working on quilting, knitting, sunning myself and reading a book a day. It's the life for me. At least for a couple of weeks. I miss the boys and I really miss Al. I have no one to snuggle next to in bed, to bounce ideas off. I miss him. But even so, it's nice to be here. I'm glad I came.

Being with my mother is nice. It is going better then I expected, but in a way it is a little sad. It's as if our roles are reversed. I am the responsible adult and she is -- oh she is somewhere between the obedient child and the well mannered guest. She is happy to go along with what ever I plan, happy to help in any way possible, but not willing, on anything more involved then what she wants for dinner, to take charge or make make a suggestions. This is not the mom I know and it's not the mom I really want. I would like our time here to be more equal, to be a partnership. That said, I am having a good time, and I am seeing her in a different light. I hear more if her stories from her childhood and her young adult hood. Not only am I enjoying them I can relate to them on a woman to woman level.

Too Dang Much Going On These Days

This is a tough year. I had cancer, my father died and now my mother has breast cancer. Sometimes life is just hard. Of course there is always a silver lining. I am almost done treatment, dad did not have to be in a nursing home and mom's cancer was caught early. Her surgery (lumpectomy) was today and she did well. Thank goodness.

Otherwise things are going well. I have been writing post in my head,but not getting around to really writing. One would have been about Michael Phelps's and his new book "How To Train
With a T-Rex and Win 8 Gold Medals". He caused a minor sensation in the area by agreeing to a book signing in the store a week or so ago. He was popular. Lots of people came to the store and he sold lots of books. He was there, he did his job (signing and selling books), but he was not very personable. I guess that makes sense. Too many people must want to meet him, talk to him, get a piece of him. And I have read and heard that people with such a specialized skill-interest are so highly focused they miss out on many other skills-such as socializing. But dang, it would have been nice if he could at least have thanked the staff for their assistance. By the way, I don't like his book.

Al and I spent a wonderful weekend in Western Virginia with friends. The only problem was that I am I want to relax and the friends were let's do this, then that, then tother. So we did this (miniature golf) -- (related bird story coming up), that ( tie dye t-shirts) and tother (find an immediate care facility on Sunday morning). I woke up with a bad headache, a fever and an infection.

The same weekend was the boy's first time staying home alone over night with out us. The boys managed well and even cleaned up after themselves. I even managed well and didn't worry about them. At least not too much.

Related bird story. -- When we went to miniature golf we heard this loud disjointed sound. We looked around and around and finally saw a cute little momma bird sitting on 3 or 4 eggs about 2 feet away from where we were standing. She had no protection other then a rail fence. She was beautiful and very protective but not very safe. I wanted to bring her home, but figured the cats would be a little to appreciative. Rumor has it she is a kildeerplover. Pretty bird. Not too bright.
S

It Has Been Ages

This is a tough year and I am not coping as well as I wish I was. Oh well, it has to get better.

There have been a few things that I have been meaning to write about. I am a reader. I love books. I love working in a book store, being surrounded by books, recommending books, hearing about my co-workers favorite books. Reading, for me is a pleasure, an education, a mind expanding experience.

Since I love reading so much it has always saddened me that neither of my boys has been a reader. In yet another attempt to interest them in reading I told them they had to read at least 3 books this summer and to show how important it was to me, I would pay them for each book they read. It's working, kind of. Ben is reading (Harry Potter) slowly. Albert is going to town on that series. He is on the last book and is planing to read Angles and Demons next. While I would love to take credit for the reading binge, the credit belongs partly to his girl friend for telling him to read but even more to his own good sense. He finally is realizing that reading can be fun.

Big Fire In Myrtle Beach

Thank God it is, at this point a good bit north of our new house.

We took Albert to orientation at Coastal Carolina University last week. The college was welcoming but the sessions were long and boring. The good news was that we got to spend time in our new house. It is beautiful, open, bright and airy. We all were impressed. We pulled into the SC house around 9 or so Thursday night. And wandered around this bright, gorgeous house that had no beds, in fact no furniture of any kind. This was the first time in a long time I slept on the floor, not that I really slept. I spent way too much of the night wandering around a dark empty house. I couldn't read because there was nowhere to sit and keep warm. I had brought down a number of blankets, but we were using them as mattress and blankets both. It was a long night.

Luckily we had planned well and had the basic furniture delivered. A bedroom set for Ben, 3 mattress sets (one for Ben, one forAlbert and one for us) a sofa, an armchair and foot rest, and a table and chairs. Life was good.

I Am Just About Ready To Complain About My Hair

It's at an awkward stage. It is too short to do anything with, but it just looks messy.

Of course it wasn't too long ago that I was whining about not having any hail

Life is tough.

Thursday we will be on our way to Myrtle Beach. Albert is scheduled for orientation at his college and we are all going too. We want to learn what we need to learn about college and see our new house. I can't wait.

It's about time I posted again

Standing on my feet for a 40 hour week, even if it is at a job I love, wears me out. I am off today and have cleaned house, run errands, started going to a quilt guild and felt a bit more alive.

Life is good.

Quilt guild.

It is hard to go join a large group of women is hard. At least for me it was hard.

I had heard about the group from a woman who came to the book store looking for a donation for the guild quilt show. She was nice and told me about the guild and invited me to come. Unfortunately I didn't see her when I entered.

I was a big girl, I pasted a smile on my face and looked for a friendly face. All I saw were faces of ladies working on quilts and talking to friends. I thought about backing out and pretending I had a home emergency, but instead I found a place to sit pulled out my quilt.

Eventually the woman next to me started to talk to me. Her name is Carol and she is quite nice.
So was the woman next to her, and the woman across from me and the woman on the other side of me and the ...well you get the picture. I had fun and plan to go back.

My Father's Memorial Service.

My sister arranged a beautiful service. I was pleasantly surprised by the number of old family friends who came.

Two brothers, about my age, came from New York. My oldest (longest duration) friend came from Princeton and brought her mother and her sister. Their coming meant and still means the world to me. One of the men and my childhood friend both talked about what my father meant to them. Thinking about it still brings tears to my eyes. It helped me to see my father from a different perspective.

Apple Cider Vinegar Hair

The other day, while working, a woman asked me to help her find a book about the apple cider vinegar diet. I found the book and placed it in her hand. She immediately opened it and showed me the value of this diet on helping to grow strong and healthy hair. I think she was trying to help. After all my hair is only about a half an inch long.

I don't think the apple cider vinegar diet helps with the chemo cut.

It is hard to be without my father, even though I wasn't really with him all that much. It is hard to lose him. I am sorrier for us then I am for him. I know he had a good life. But I don't know how my mother will do with out him. I am sorry for myself for not having him in my life and even more so in the life of my children. The sad part is that for my children, I miss more life my father shared with them when he was younger and more able. These last few years he has been too feeble and tired to have much of an impact on their lives. It is sad.

My Father Died Today

I know he was happy with his life, his wife, his family. I know he lived a good and productive life. I know he loved and was loved. I know he was 91 and his health had been declining for years. He wasn't ready to go and I wasn't ready to have him leave us all.

It comforts me that he, as Dylan Thomas' famous poem demanded, did not go gentle into that I good night. My father fought death long and hard. It took at the age of 91 nearly 2 weeks in intensive care and three abdominal surgeries before he gave up. He fought hard and long and that knowledge gives me comfort.

I love you Everett Clyde Ham. I will always remember that you were the first person to walk (and ride your tricycle) on the moon.

I Love Story Time

My store has story time twice a week. The clerk in the kids department gets to choose what to read. I usually get to read at least one day a week. I love it.

Wen usually have a group of 5 to 10 preschoolers and moms. I usually read at least one day a week. Generally I choose what to read but occasionally a boss will make a recommendation. Book choices give me a little insight into their personalities. One boss likes stories with morals, a woman boss likes stories staring strong and independent girls. I

What do my choices say about me? I read stories , like The Strong Pajamas, or Skippy John Jones, about kids who have adventures but come home safe to mom.

Dang Somewhere between .5 and 1 Million per Year

An article in this week's Newsweek, stated that Dooce earns between $500,000 and $1,000,000 dollars a year from the ads on her blog. Wow, I don't even like her. I think she is whiny and too thin skinned. But dang, that is real money.

I figure if I put ads on here I could make, oh maybe a dollar or two a year.

I have fuzz. I like my hair short and think I will keep it short. But not this short. I found a site on the web, zazzle, that makes buttons. I ordered a bunch that say "LOVE FUZZ!" . I'm going to wear one and give them to my fuzzsy headed co-workers. In fact I will give them to anyone who wants one. We can be an army of fuzz lovers. And we will be cute.