WHO'S A F**KING RETARD???? I'LL GIVE YOU THREE GUESSES....

This past weekend was the weekend from hell. I was looking forward to having a quiet weekend and watching the Super Bowl - but we had other issues to deal with.

Theson had been feeling quite tired and exceedingly thirsty for days, so I made him an appointment with our family doctor (I suspected diabetes), and he voluntarily fasted, in case labs would be prescribed. Good call there.

We hurried home from the hospital, stopping at the grocery store for last minute items, since we were expecting a huge snowstorm. By the time we got in the house, there was a message on the answering machine from the doc...his sugar levels were dangerously high and he recommended that he get back to the ER as soon as possible. Theson was considered "totally dry" and needed to be re-hydrated - at least four liters of fluids.

Since the snow was already falling and it was possible that he would be admitted, he drove himself over to the hospital. He called me as soon as he got there, and the waiting began. After three hours, he called and said they were probably admitting him - ON AN INSULIN DRIP. Now I become the worried mother, which I do so very well.

It never fails, you never want something so bad, as when you can't have it....in other words, the snow was accumulating rapidly, and I knew I couldn't drive to the hospital to see my son - and the anguish sets in as well. He was being admitted to ICU - as that is the protocol for one on such an IV infusion. (His other option was pediatrics - he balked). Patients do not have phone's in ICU, but he was allowed to use his cell, since he truly wasn't incapacitated...but as luck would have it, he didn't have a phone charger with him and the phone died by late evening.

To make a long story short, he is now home, my neighbor did take me over Sunday to see him (relief), and now he is on an insulin regimen at home. This is all new to us, but he is doing real well.

I got to watch the Super Bowl with thegrandson (thedaughter was at work), and I was texting three different people during the entire game - just shoot me now. I was quite happy with the Saints win - and that BALLSY ONSIDE KICK!!

But the apex of the weekend had to be listening to the bits and pieces of Palin's Teaparty speech (couldn't pay me enough for a speech by her in its entirety)!! I must love pain to even consider turning the channel.

I can assure everyone, her intelligence quotient has not risen any since I last posted about her. Hell, she has even re-invented her own palm-prompter! As for the "hopey - changey thing" she referenced....I still have hope and change is downright necessary.

As for her getting irate over the "retard" comments...I say GET A FUCKING GRIP!!! She should actually open the dictionary and read the definition of the word. It means "slow" and that is not derogatory, just factual. Sarah Palin, from the bottom of my heart...YOU ARE retarded. Without your palm prompter and speech writers (bad ones at that), your word salads should be coherant - hasn't happened yet! Colbert handles all this quite well here:

The Colbert Report	Mon - Thurs 11:30pm / 10:30c
Sarah Palin Uses a Hand-O-Prompter
http://www.colbertnation.com/
Colbert Report Full Episodes Political Humor Economy

We are now getting another snow storm, and theson has gone in town to get a glucometer - since the pharmacy had NONE yesterday. I only hope he can get his truck home.

RANDOM PICS...AREA BEING FILMED!

Traffic in this little burg has been far worse than anyone was told to expect. there are cops on every street corner, and traffic is being halted in 15 minute intervals - and some people are on the verge of "road rage" I do believe. Small business owners and banks surrounding the area of the train tracks, were assured that their businesses would not be compromised, but some headaches have arisen. The Family Dollar store situated directly by the spot where the "train supposedly derails", has had to close. Hmmmm....interesting.



This arched stone bridge is in the Historical Register due to age and style. the train bridge in the forefront actually "Y's" off the main arch structure.




Although this train track/trestle has not been used in many years, and allowed to overgrow with weeds, it is still a magnificent structure.



This open lot (called the pipe yards) has been allowed to grow over as well, but the film crews have cleared it for their purposes, and my understanding is that the train will "derail" into this lot. There are spots marked with florescent orange paint - so we will see what happens here.



The runaway train will be coming across this steel bridge east to west (right to left), which is an extension of the stone arch bridge.



This is our old toll bridge, which was used in the film Silence of the Lambs. It has been closed since 1991, and that signal,ed the demise of our fair little town. It's not being used in this film.




Big circus like tents have been set up in the baseball fields, just .2 mile from my house, and a dozen tractor trailers have taken over the parking lot to the high school football field. I can't remember the last time there was this much activity in this town.

Chris Pine (from latest Star Trek movie) is staying at Oglebay Park in Wheeling, WV., and filming his part at the present time. Denzel Washington is still filming in the Pittsburgh area and should be here the end of this week or beginning of next week.

Thedaughter and I are going to see if we can get some better pictures later this evening, and I'm sure thegrandson will enjoy that excursion.

Theson sent me an email of his itinerary - and he should arrive home on November 28th. He is going to do some sight-seeing in Jordan (which I am not overly excited about) and then to visit a former co-worker in Spain before coming back to the U.S. I am so looking forward to seeing him - it's been almost 11 months - and I'm a worrying mother to boot.

I'm going to finish up some laundry now....so have a great afternoon.

later....................



DON'T FORGET TO STOP BY: PAST THE VELVET ROPE (FRIDAY POSTINGS)

CATURDAY...AGAIN!!!!!

Yes, it's CATURDAY again! But first I just have to post this video for theson. Everything to him is "mathmatical" and thought he would appreciate this new ad for Intel!



Now, on to the CATS!!!

This video was stolen as you can see, but I thought it was great. there is a youtube clip of this cat - and the orchestra has managed to compose a piece to coodinate with the cat's accomplishments. Cool


(H/T to 43-Ideas-Per-Minute)

Have a great weekend............later.................

DON'T FORGET TO STOP BY: PAST THE VELVET ROPE (FRIDAY POSTINGS)

TAKE THE TIME...TO DROP BY.........

PAST THE VELVET ROPE!!!!


ANOTHER EXCELLENT LIST OF THOSE "ACCEPTED" OR "REJECTED"

A SOLICITATION FOR........THESON!!

Theson has started up a new blog...one which has more of a political slant, without going into a lot of depth. Past the Velvet Rope, is a project he has been mulling for quite some time. With the help of his best friend Chump, of the B-Town Boyz, he is now debuting this new site.

I believe there are two posts, to date. Chump, is the graphic designer (and what a great job he did on the header), and theson is making the personality comments. That may change over time - but theson, being the intelligent comedian he is - has done a great job.

I sometimes pat myself on the back, that he is a free thinking independent/liberal. But that is neither here nor there...I LOVE the new site.

If you have a chance...amble over there and leave a comment or possibly a recommendation for his list(s) - Accepted or Rejected to go Past the Velvet Rope.

Thanks friends......later...........

POTPOURRI MONDAY.....

For openers, check this out. Theson has been in Egypt waaaay too long now. Luckily he had his camera with him and got a pic of this business sign in Alexandria. Scary, huh??? I can see all the child porn/pedophiles heading there now!

About 1 am this morning, I was awakened by very loud noises on my front porch (my bedroom faces this porch), my dog and cat both darted out of the bedroom, my heart is racing - having no idea what the hell is going on. I'm not sure how to explain that "fear" that goes through your body - but I trudge straight to the living room door and open it to see WTF is going on. Never thinking that someone could have a hammer or weapon to "do me in" at any time. As I get ready to open the storm door, I hear a cat's WAILING, and now figure it is the neighbor's tom cat Oreo. As soon as I opened the door - I see a black and white flash go off the porch and across the street - yep, that would be Oreo. I never even gave another thought as to what the cat was carrying on about.

I get up this morning to water my plants and this is what I see behind my glider:



Cat hair everywhere. Behind the glider, in front of the glider, all over the porch. I tried to sweep the hairs off and since the deck is newly stained - the hair does NOT want to be picked up and swept away. I'm going to have to get the hose out later.

Oreo is, as I stated a tom cat and the neighbors living behind us, recently found and adopted a female cat (Kit Kat) which is not allowed indoors and now roams the neighborhood. That is one thing we have never really had a problem with here - dogs running loose, yes - but not cats. By the looks of all the hair - I would say Oreo managed to get Kit Kat pretty good - in one way or another, if you catch my drift.

I'm surprised I didn't hear the cat screams sooner than I did - but I know my pets knew everything long before me.

I hate when I am startled awake such as this - because it takes forever for my heart to settle down, and I started having chest pains shortly after. It seemed like it took forever for the pain to subside. Since I had the triple bypass years ago (6 or 7 - can't remember) I was never given anymore nitro pills...so I just do some deep breathing to get as much oxygen flowing as possible. I was very close to calling 911 or getting thedaughter awake. I won't even begin to start on falling through the cracks of health care. I am feeling better now, that is what counts.

Yesterdays temps may have broken records for being the coolest in a long while. The high was 67* and cloudy. Today is supposed to be mid 70's and rain - lovely. I am hoping to start washing the walls in the bathroom here in short time. I've been putting it off, as it involves a lot of stooping and up and down off the step stool - but I have to get this chore completed. Again with my OCD I guess.

Till something more newsworthy happens....I shall return...later..........

THESON - CAR ACCIDENT IN ALEXANDRIA, EGYPT...

I love my son dearly and he is a grown man, but I worry about him constantly. He is a walking accident sometimes. What with two "bot" fly incidence, tripping over or off of steps while inebriated, etc...

Now I read his blog today - Nomadic Tendencies, and find out he has been in an accident.

I need to dig up the video I have from my visit to Cairo last May. Theson's driver is an excellent driver - but I had to get some video of the craziness of most Egyptian drivers. There were times that I just closed my eyes, and kept faith in the man at the wheel.

I'm so happy that theson is well and uninjured, and able to blog about the event, with pictures.

Found the video - this was taken on our way to The Citadel. There are no lane markings, and you can see how people just "make their way" around and into traffic.

There were worse incidents, but I never had my camera at the time.

I shall return.....later..............

I HAVE THE "BEST" SON IN THE WORLD....BELIEVE ME!!!

A couple of weeks ago, theson mentioned to me that he had purchased laptops - one for thegrandson and one for thedaughter. There were a few hitches in the ordering process (isn't there always), and after I contacted the company from here, the order was processed. Since theson is out of the country, there always seems to be glitches, as I'm sure some of the transactions are suspect - out of country IP - American citizen - credit card transaction - red flags all the time. Usually, the situations are corrected quickly though.

Anyway, he sent me an e-mail this morning that the laptops were to be delivered today, and right after reading the email - the doorbell rang and the UPS guy had a silly grin on his face. **We always say that our address is punched in to FedEx and UPS, as theson orders regularly.

Here they are. they were supposed to be the same, but as you can see, one has a touchpad, the other just a "tit." So the one with the touchpad is going to thegrandson, and I am downloading his programs, as I type. He will be sooooooo surprised when he gets home from school. I'm going to have it on and ready for him.

He is surprisingly adept at the computer. He knows if I need to find something for him I use "Google." To the point, that now - he tells me to google everything. There are controls installed to ensure he doesn't download porn or order sex toys - so we are good.

Theson has stated the rules: If one would break, that individual will bear their own suffering. They cannot take over the other computer. Actually, both are very good at taking care of the electronics.


I shall return later, as I have to tend to the "downloading" of an anti-virus and such.

THANKS SON!!! I KNOW BOTH CARRIE AND COLTON LOVE YA!!

THANK YOU SON...ANYWAY!!

I had a lovely Mother's Day, and I even got to speak and see theson (via Skype) in Egypt and share some laughs. My son never forgets a holiday and usually takes advantage of the internet for purchases for delivery. Which makes perfect sense when he is so far away from home. My mother's mind assumed (never a good idea) that something would be delivered to the house FOR ME - for Mother's Day.

Apparently, thedaughter took a phone call from some lady representing a MAJOR floral agency (begins with F ends with D) on Saturday night - being told that the item theson ordered cannot be delivered, but they will make something else of equal or greater value to be delivered on Monday or Tuesday with his consent. Thedaughter and this ladies voice agree that future calls will be directed to her or via email.

That didn't happen. I get a call this afternoon asking for theson - I explained he was out of the country, and then this lady asks when I expect him back - I reply end of July, possibly. Now there is silence....I finally tell her my name and the item ordered is for me. She then proceeds to make the same statement to me as was the information thedaughter gleaned on Saturday night.

I asked, how can there be no F*D florists that can put this thing together? There are probably 10 associate florists in this area. She said well, he didn't make the order till the 9th. I had to explain that he is 7 hours ahead of us and they probably received the order earlier than she thinks. I then proceeded to tell her that he would never have made an order like this with no guarantee of delivery.

Now, I am pissed - not at theson, but at this inept person on the phone. I told her to just e-mail theson (gave address) and ask him what to do - to which she agreed. I then Skyped theson (it was 10:30 pm Egypt time), and told him to expect this e-mail and to PLEASE, tell them to shove it!! Have his account credited and not to worry about anything for me.

I'm satisfied with theson's intent - because I know it was probably something beautiful and worthy of a photo - but I refuse to allow this company to whine and whinny through this sale. Theson agreed with me. This is a case of "it is the thought that counts." That means more to me than anything.

When one has to jump through hoops just to get something delivered that was ordered "with specifics" via the internet - it is so not worth the effort.

Have to run - thedaughter has to take me to pick up my car - apparently I used the brakes too much, they needed replaced, rotated, reversed, spinned or whatever the hell you do to them. I want the car in good shape for our vacation (leaving June 8th) and we have a medical run to Columbus next week.

Take care and I shall return......later...........

YES SON...I MAY HAVE TO THROTTLE YOU......

As proud as I am of my son, sometimes I go into I "want to beat some sense into you" mode!! As seen on his latest post, he is again dealing with a possible "bot fly" incident. He already has a massive scar on his arm, from when he was "infested" in India...now I have to worry about this problem on his wrist (hand). Don't check the site out, if you are squeamish (He gives the same warning on the site).

I texted him earlier and he is supposed to see a doctor tomorrow - so he better CALL OR TEXT WHEN THAT HAS BEEN DONE! He knows my profession as primary worrier, so he deliberately did not tell me of this problem. Arghhhh...

While stumbling around again, I ran into this picture, and I wanted to ask my kilt loving son, if he ran into any barstools like this while in Scotland...Hmmm...



Amazing what oddball things run through my brain at times. I definitely know that the political BS never seems to go away. It appears that the GOP is almost manning a war-room, to prepare for any nominee to the Supreme Court (to fill Souter's position), by Pres. Obama.

My memories of growing up in a totally republican family almost makes me ashamed. The party of today is most assuredly the party of NO. The tables have turned from such a short time ago - and the belligerence of these talking heads, has become quite annoying. They are the proverbial "sore losers." I believe Souter's retirement was unexpected during the election months, but as this year began and he had yet to hire any law clerks - his decision was becoming more apparent.

I should hope and actually feel quite certain that Pres. Obama will nominate a deserving person to this position. His knowledge as a constitutional lawyer will help with that decision.

Have a great evening and I shall return....later............

FIRST OLDSMOBILE...NOW PONTIAC....

I have no room to complain about the end of an era for Pontiac, as I was a wee tad upset when it was announced that Oldsmobile would be a thing of the past.

My two favorite cars (owned) were a 1966 Pontiac Bonneville convertible, and a 1996 Oldsmobile Cutlass Supreme. See below:

I had some good times "cruising" around in this convertible (yes, mine was yellow), and my friends were always ready to go when I called. Black leather interior, lovely 8 track tape player (how's that for a memory?), to me it was top of the line. I would hate for winter to come and have to keep the top closed. Although I worked to pay for this car, and I was living at home, the mean parents made me give it to my brother. Was I compensated for my investment - no frigging way! That was just one of many absurdities I had to endure while living under "their" roof.

Although there were several cars between these two...the '96 Olds Cutlass Supreme was my ultimate favorite. It drove well, minimal maintenance, and the most mileage I put on the car was travelling between home and Case Western Reserve University - to see my son, while in college. I believe initially, I drove up every weekend, then twice a month till I bought him a used car in his junior year. As much as I loved that car, I loved my son more...and on graduation day, I gave him the keys to this car, and I drove his used vehicle after that. He was off to a new job with a major corporation, and I wanted to give him a nice ride.

At this strategic time in the auto industry, eliminating various makes or models appears to be a sane move. As far as I can see, the market is flooded with new vehicles at this time - with very few individuals in the market to buy. I'm sorry that these auto workers will be furloughed, but such is the world today.

*********************

I'm still doing a bit of moving furniture and taking breaks, because it is so damn hot. So I watch a little CNN...move another piece of furniture. The breaking news appears to be an outbreak of swine flu - with "pandemic" thrown into the mix. Now I have something else to be afraid of - if something is "going around" - it always stops here.

Theson just drunk dialed me (from Egypt) not once, but twice. Ya gotta love him. I spoke with his friend Neil who is from York (U.K.) and has invited me to visit him anytime, and then theson called back, because the bartender wanted to speak to me. I'm loved all over the world, what can I say. I love talking to him (theson) drunk or sober, because I have not seen him now since he returned to Alexandria the beginning of January. Thankfully, we have our blogs and Skype to keep in touch.

Back to work for now, so kick back and enjoy the day....later...............

POOR LITTLE GUY...IT'S ALWAYS SOMETHING....

It has been just over a year since thegrandson was hospitalized with a flesh eating bacteria. But at that time, the doctors, and there were many, all told us that if any skin ailment would present itself - to immediately seek medical attention.

Yesterday, thegrandson grabbed his ear and screamed that his ear hurt (exterior), and when I looked at his ear, it was quite red and to me appeared to be sunburned. We put some salve on his ear before he went to bed, but he had a terrible night and could not sleep because of the pain. When I got up this morning I realized that thedaughter and thegrandson had NOT left for school and something was amiss.

Thedaughter made an appointment at the doctor's for 11:30 am, and she had to call off work (that's another story in itself) in order to make this appointment.

Since baseball practice began last week, we both were assuming that it was a sunburn from the three days of practice. Realistically, the sun was not warm enough to cause any sunburning on any of those days, and the doctor made that observation. The ears are now blistering and the doctor has prescribed some more lotions, but says this appears to be a chemical type burn. Egads...we have no clue how that would happen.

According to the doctor, it could involve picking an item up, and then wiping his face with his hands. Again, no clues here. I am checking with the neighbor, as he was playing on their new gym set, and possibly the wood has been treated with some chemicals.

At the present time, there are white blisters appearing around the edges of his ears and he is plain old miserable. When the little guy hurts - I hurt!! He will go back to school tomorrow, but there are precautions involved. When these blisters pop, a secondary infection is possible - so playing in the dirt is out of the question for the moment. With Spring here (except for snow tomorrow) recess time at school is played outside - he will not be allowed to participate at this time (poor baby.) Time....it will all just take time and patience, and all will be well...I hope.

Theson's package came today from the SomethingStore.com. Apparently one pays "X" amount of dollars and you receive a package, not knowing what will arrive. I took pictures of all the contents and forwarded those pictures on to theson. I just want to thank theson NOW - for all MY new stuff!! After he has seen the pictures, I will post them here - so if anyone is interested in ordering from this place, they can see the quality of the products.

Back to work for now...everyone behave and play nice today. I may be back later today or just.........later............

CAN WE ALL AGREE TO HATE MONDAYS???

This morning started, just as any typical morning. Wake up, scratch ass, grab a cigarette and head to the bathroom, finish there and proceed to computer to see what cataclysmic event may have happened during a fitful sleep.

Egads...an email from theson in Egypt and he has major issues - begging me to look for an important article - adding it may be in this spot or possibly in his room...which all sets my heart racing. Now, don't ask me why I let little things like that bother me...BUT I DO!! If this "issue" cannot be rectified - it could cost him major $$$, and as a mother - I want to do ALL I can to ensure things and life move smoothly.

One thing I avoid, is going upstairs (the netherworld) for any reason. My adult children and one grandson are the proud denizens of that universe. BUT...I am now forced into going UPSTAIRS...blood pressure raising...potential nosebleed coming...to forage through the MESSIEST room I have ever seen. (I take that back, I remember cleaning thedaughters room once when she moved out!) I now take a mental note, that after tax season, theson's room is on the list to be cleaned, along with the basement and pretty much the ENTIRE house.

I move and toss quite a few articles, and cannot find this specific item...but I did find a receipt with appropriate numbers (my great sleuthing abilities), and can now MAKE THIS PROBLEM GO AWAY!! Yippee....Mommy to the rescue and I won!

I then have to DESCEND the stairway back to computer world...which brings me to the reason I hate stairs. My legs and hips (arthritis) just abhor being stressed on steps. Silly me, one foot after the other and before you know it - at the bottom. Cool!

After many more IM's, I believe theson may have had the onus of possible penalties off his mind, and I then completed another chore for him to purchase a product online. All in a mornings work - for a MOM! It's definitely a good thing that I love these critters so much - or they would not know what to do.

Since I have a NEW chore added to my days list (mail the sons form), I cancelled my tanning - because I was now running very late. Oh well, I guess new cancer cells can wait till tomorrow.

I have been trying to get this posted for the past 3 hours...but oh no, clients calling and still dropping off information. Crapola...I have made an executive decision - the rest of the day is MINE - no tax work at all. I will clean the bathroom, since I asked thedaughter to do it this morning (right?!?!) Then decide what I will add to my salad for dinner that is new and calorie free. The decisions are killing me today.

I'm outta here before something else happens.....later............

THESON FINALLY POSTED....."THE CUTTING"....

Theson has finally posted a video on his site - a painful one for me - of his "first" haircut in 15-16 years. I took this picture in April of '08, when he was home for his best buddies wedding. When his hair was wet - you can actually appreciate the length - and the CURLS!! Women were always telling me they would "kill" for his curls alone. Being the "mom", I always enjoyed combing it and occasionally braiding those thick tresses. Ahhhh, NEVERMORE!

In this video, filmed by his friend and co-worker Ken - his hair is dry and looks so much shorter - and I have to admit, I cried watching it being sheared. Theson was going to ask his girlfriend to marry him - but that didn't work out and they have now gone their separate ways. But this video will be memorable for nothing else than - THE HAIRCUT.

This was filmed in his apartment in Maadi, Egypt, where I stayed with him last May on my once in a lifetime trip. He is the best son in the entire world...I miss him, but thank heavens for Skype.

Enjoy.

LOST GENERATION....I DON'T THINK SO!

Theson sent or posted this a while back, and my niece in Florida e-mailed it to me this morning. I still think it is worthy of posting again. Definitely gives one pause.

Later...........

AND THEY WANT US TO PAY HIGHER POSTAGE....

Now I just wonder WHY the Postal Service is getting the ire of the public - from the purchase of a $1.2 million home?!?!?! This is not rocket science, given the economic situation of the country, and those corporate giants on bended knee begging for and getting government bailouts.

The USPS purchased this home from an employee so he could relocate. And now it appears that, knowing the downturn in the housing market, this house if re-sold, will be done so at a loss. Not a bad little hovel - 8,400 square feet with six bedrooms.

The USPS falls into the corporate strata, as it is technically considered a semi public corporation - with a government charter. This agency is also said NOT to be supported by taxpayer funds, but I find that to be a rhetorical statement.

If anyone has the answer here, I'd be glad to hear it - how can they validate upping postage, while offering executive perks such as this??? I know many who are employed through this agency, and they make a pretty penny in wages and benefits. Their employees are not hurting by any means. Considering the postal service is a necessary evil, they always manage to get everything that they desire.

I use very little postage, and hate the fact that I have to buy stamps at any time. I pay most of my bills online, which they (USPS) are constantly griping about. I have no complaints if the delivery days are cut to save them money - my delivery man (we are friends) says that will never happen, as they are a much needed service area. Right - trust me - we can adapt.

I can see if the USPS pays relocation costs, such as moving vans, housing searches, and minor inconveniences, but to purchase the homes - NOT. This is frivolous at best. Just another incident to get my "dander up."

***************************

I am also upset that Bernie Madoff's "wicked" portrait did not get ONE single bid, at the art auction at the Armory Show in Manhattan.

This is one scary "portrait." I have to ask myself - "who in their right mind would even consider buying a portrait of this thief." If I had inconsequential bucks to throw away, I might bid fifty cents - to have an effigy to burn when he is convicted. Oh, did I mention the "minimum" bid of $100,000?



I finally got to speak (and see) theson via Skype last night...this always makes me a very happy camper. I had to call him back, as I was trying to back out of a running program - and it froze up - causing me a lot of grief. But at least I got a good visual - I haven't talked to him in over a month (maybe longer). He makes me laugh, and raises my spirits, when I am in a funk...what more could a mother ask???


Have a good one all - I'm tired and going to head to bed really soon...chat..Later.....

The BOX has finally arrived....3 months later....

I have blogged about awaiting the arrival of theson's personal belongings, which he shipped home (here) the beginning of November. What a colossal clusterfuck. Theson had no "tracking number" or bill of lading to reference, so until 2 weeks ago - we had no idea where this package was - in transit.

After conversing with the shipping company in New York last week, arrangements were made to get this LARGE box shipped to the house. Money was mailed and verifications made. After being assured the delivery was being made in a 25 foot box truck by the NY company - all I had to do was await word from the local trucking company, as to specifics of date and time for arrival. Hell, then we had the hassle of a semi trailer - and the weather and omg - I wanted to shoot someone.

But today - a smaller truck located - the package arrived and all is safely within the confines of the house.

Thedaughters friends helping to unload the monster box - weighing 440 pounds.




Now I am armed with scissors and utility knives to break the box open - as it contains multiple, individual boxes - but I encounter two 1 1/2" wide metal straps encasing the behemoth. Grrr...well, one of the guys is smarter than me and used pliers to twist and break the strapping.

The second picture shows ALL the individual EMPTY boxes that were used as packing material. The fun part came when I had to break down all the boxes. That job is now complete and all the packing material is in the back of theson's truck awaiting a trip to the recycling center and landfill. Whew...I'm so glad this task is complete and very thankful for the assistance from our friends.

I have some smaller boxes I now have to open and go through, as theson purchased a boomerang for thegrandson, on his Australian vacation. The little snot will be so excited when he gets home from school this afternoon.

So there son - you can see that your stuff is finally here. Gotta run, things to do...I shall return...later...............

Kids never cease to amaze me....

I believe I have noted here in the past, that this is primarily a household of women - myself, thedaughter and then we have her 8 year old son. He is so outnumbered unless his uncle makes an annual appearance.

The little stinker enjoys all the amenities of PSP, PS2, DVD's...you name it - he definitely is not deprived. We are supporting all male activities (baseball, other sports, etc.) and expose him to many positive male role models. Of course, this is definitely due to the asshole sperm donor being absent - and to be honest - we like it just the way things are!

Last evening, as I was sitting here at the computer messing around as usual, the grandson ran past me and trudged upstairs.

He yelled down "Mom, what did you want?"

Me, being in a room between the two, asked what he was looking for and received the reply, "never mind, I found it."

He comes back down the stairs with 3 tampons in his hand and I asked what the heck he was doing - he retorted "Mom, needed one, so I got her three and that will last her for a long time!"

Alrighty then...knock me over with a feather. I have no witty comeback, except to laugh uproariously. I then broke the news to thedaughter that she NOW had to make sure that those three necessities lasted for a loooooooong time! The dumbfounded look on her face was priceless.

This all came on the heels of having a Skype conversation (webcam) with theson in Egypt, of which he may have no recollection. When the call rings through, both webcams load and I can then see into his hotel room and if he is there we will start up a conversation. This event will last in my memories forever.


As soon as the connection is made, I can see into his room - theson is not visible, but I hear something like a rodent moving around, and the webcam is vibrating slightly. Out of the nether regions of his room I hear "Hey!" OK, I recognize theson's voice and ask "where the hell are you?" You'll love this..."I'm down here on the floor." Thinking sanely, I ask if he is working on computer wires or something and he says "Nope, it's comfortable here!"

I cannot stop laughing, realizing that I am sure he may be intoxicated (slightly), and then a hand appears on the screen, then the computer moves again and I am looking at my son laughing and laying on this hotel room floor.

We had over 20 minutes of laughing conversation - one would have to understand how absolutely hysterically funny my son can be - to appreciate this tale. I took three pictures with the webcam but have no idea how to convert them, or I would have them on here in a heartbeat!

Theson is such a sweetheart and never ceases to perk up my spirits when they sometimes drag the ground. And yesterday was just another one of those times. I am sure he is much more sober today, remembering very little of this fine humorous moment - but fear not, I am here to constantly remind him!!

So, my friends (sounds like Johnny McC huh?), if you ever need a humorous uplift in life - I can refer you to theson's site. Hopefully he wouldn't kill me...but I am themom!!

Have a great evening and I will be back....later...............