Monday, June 25, 2007

Funny Memories That We Share

Some of the gals pals and I have been talking about this new " Nancy Drew " movie that has just opened. You can pretty much determine the median age of the group by having everyone relate not if they read the series, but which one was their first , and which one is the most memorable. Every one of the gals had ready answers, the memory of the yellow covers still bright and shiney , opinions on George and Bess, what Nancy's hair color should have been....the list goes on and on. For many of us, there wasn't another series when we were 11, 12 or 13. We were not a target market in the mid 1960's. Too young for Gloria Steinem or Helen Gurley Brown. Way the hell too young for Erica Jung or Xavieria Hollander, ( yes,.SU..I read " The Happy Hooker ") . " Nancy Drew " was the first moment that we realized that a girl ( us) could be independent. If she didn't need her father or the " Hardy Boys " to bail her ass out, neither did we. We hadn't quite graduated to the Georgette Heyers or other Regency Romances , and for me this was rather a straight line into an obsession with books. Nancy Drew to Georgette Heyer to " The Saint" by Leslie Charteris to " Charlie Chan " by Earl Derr Biggers to Perry Mason to Doc Savage to Agatha Christie to Edgar Rice Burroughs to Marion Zimmer Bradley to Frank Herbert to Anne McCaffrey and on and on and on. Throw in Tolstoy, Churchill, Bronte, Wilde, Shelley and it grows upward. There are authors that SU and I automatically buy, Clive Cusslers " Dirk Pitt " and the NUMA series, Robert Parkers " Spenser Series" , you get the idea.

Books have always meant an escape for me when I was younger , to a place where all things were possible. You always fit in, no one judges you, and if there was a crisis, more often than not, the plucky teenage girl would solve the mystery and save the day.

In many ways our children are growing up too fast, they have so much thrown at them from the earliest age , that there is no time or interest in the joy of a simple book. Their attention span is about thirty seconds at best, and the very idea of reading a book , and loving it so much that they want to re-read it is almost a foreign concept. Many have asked me why I was such a huge fan of " Harry Potter " . The answer was easy....it gave kids the idea that books were cool, and that the story engaged them. It made them talk about a book, an idea, and the fact that they were enthralled enough to re read the copies that they had in preparation for the next release or because they just liked the damn'd thing gave me hope that all is not lost in the world of reading.

I bet J.K. Rowling read " Nancy Drew ".

I know I did.

Have a great week.

Ciao,

Aunty Pol .


UPDATE :

I just spoke to SU. Our pal the Moron has just gotten word that the mass on the back of his neck near the spinal column is non cancerous.

WOOO F'G HOOOOOO

We have both been worried sick since we found out about it. This on top of some other dreadful news made for less than the stellar weekend aat Casa de Swamp. Th original MRI that the Moron had came back as " inconclusive " , which is neither good nor bad, but no definitive diagnosis scared the willies out of me and the SU . I will keep you posted on the Morons further medical adventures or " Moron's Got Something New To Bitch And Moan About. "

Blessed Be.

Aunty Pol.

Wednesday, June 20, 2007

Another Angel

Once again , I am strengthened by the group of people that I work with . We have often referred to ourselves as a " family" and while that might seem trite, there are times such as now that I know the truth of that simple declaration .

One of the dearest, nicest, kindest of gentleman lost his 22 month old grandson last night to Leukemia . Malachi was a sweet little guy and the apple of his Grandpa's eye, but between the last treatment and the infections he developed with a compromised immune system, it just wore him down . One of the hardest hit outside of the immediate family is another co-worker who's son has just gone through I believe 3 1/2 years of treatment. Missy will forgive me if the math is off . We had all followed Nicky's journey and were about to celebrate this victory tomorrow. Missy knowing this was the first to suggest that we postpone the do-dah out of respect and the managing partner suggested that we send all of the food to Malachi's family that we were going to have brought in.

There are days I simply detest my job, I debate the merits of it all...but for the most part it is because of the caliber of people I work with at this law firm that I come in every day with a smile..faked or not. Don't start..we all have those days.

In thinking of Malachi, I think of the Bug and her parents and grandparents and how much they adore her . She is younger than Malachi was and she is their world, and to a degree mine and the SU's. And I'm only her Granty. And I adore her.

If you have a grandbaby or a child..hug them extra tight. Hug your loved ones at home and away in any way you can. life is just too damn'd short to let even one day slip by.


Blessed Be,

Aunty Pol

Monday, June 11, 2007

Dibs and Dabs ~ LOL

Well kids, it was an interesting weekend. Friday morning I trot out to the kitchen , headed to the car when I see that SU has taken the coffee pot completely apart. Completely apart. My fancy ass brew monkey cannot handle the minerals we have here..thank you Houston. In all fairness , neither one of us has been good on the cycle vinegar through it....so it gets all cranky and pissy and slow. Great.....he says he can fix it which means I will no longer be able to sneak an extra 20 minutes ZZZZ in the A of M. .....Sh*t....that sucks.


Onward.

Friday continues...............


The day from hell..long story , new group of attorney..no..I did not make a typo . The guy is a super nice dude..so is his staff....I can say no more..kill me now. Clients every 15 minutes...I am NOT making this up.

Time to go home....sweet jeebus...at last.


SU got a gift card to Chrome Depot from his boss for his birthday and Moi being Moi sez " I can always use some more hydrangeas ....and new leather gloves...lol. Note to self..Hey Idjit..green might not be the optimum color choice for prunning gloves...like the rose cane colors...ya think ??

Saturday Morning.

As usual he worked which is fine, we have come to expect that and the overtime helps a lot. I woke up at 7 a.m...I don't know why ..sheesh..maybe it was the swim meet at the subdivision pool kitty corner from us.,....maybe the bull horn...maybe the kids going berserker mode kitteh when they are woken up from what ever passes for a cats deep REM state. Insert " Losing My Religion " melody here..mwahahahah...it's stuck in your head too , isn't it ??

I haul the arse out to the kitchen...Mr. Krups you are my hero . I didn't know my brew buddy was high dollah as we say here till I saw it in a show on HGTV..no..not the one with Roger...the one where the cost of the renovation is more than I make in a year..yeah..that one. Off to the garden...it by the way is already in the 90's here ..in friggan June people. Water, prune, fertilize..um...NG ( neighbor gal # 1 ) -can I I borrow your miracle grow feeder..mine' s kersplat. Kewl..Thanks. Prune..water..feed...Krap. Oscillating sprinkler kaput. Oh NG on the other side ..yup..can I borrow dat ? Kewl...Work, sweat..more of each..go in. Aw hell..too hot now..start house work inside....lalalal.."

He had gone off with the Crazy Cajun and the Mrs to see a local community theater production, which I pass on. I honestly had a couple of things planned and some phone calls to make, getting caught up with the gal pals on the other coast. Plus, I'd begun cleaning the front part of the house..really cleaning....door lintels, hanging art...hoovering the crumbs from where Andy has to eat his special treaties...he likes those hard whisker lickings fish shaped things so we break them up and make a mound on the carpet..with his 1/4 tab pill buried . I don't think he knows he just snarfed up a pill ..bright boy that . Record a cpl hrs from the history channel...off to bed..dead stone worn out . Then up the next day to finish Bedrooms..I get clinically insane a this point..lets clean all of the Mardi Gras masks we've collected that are hanging up on the bedroom walls. No..they are not the cheap shit..we carefully chose them , each and every one..many are very unique and not cheap from NOLA . Then...lets clean the rest of the hanging art..especially the large pictures we bought from Huanna Glass , a local artist. By the time I am done..my house is all but staged...clean enough to satisfy my parents...and I am beat. I l ike doing it but get carried way too far off the deep end...clean all inside windows...check...wash all the drapes except the new chenille ones...check...hoover furniture...check....find tylenol...check....


Next weekend promises more of the same..get the PTU out for the boys 9 a.m. vet visit /follow up. SU is playing golf..I will be cleaning carpets and or back in the garden.

On the up side..Dr. appt tomorrow for new glasses..I am soooo stoked..plus hopefully hair before the wing ding...oh you know you will hear about that...be patient.


Take care .



Ciao,

Aunty Pol