Let The Holiday Hoo Hah Begin For 2007

I for one am glad that for all intents and purposes that Halloweird is almost over. Jeebus H...The last few years, the building I work in and my office in particular have just veered closer to batshit every year. Don't get me wrong, Halloween is fine if you have kidlets , and I have visions of my great niece just being too cute for words in a costume, they are that way at her advanced age of 20 months or so. So cute , it makes your eyes bleed. That is fine....but as for the rest of it...pffft. The day after Labor Day, the stores have all of their krep out clogging the aisles, tho I swear it seems earlier every year. At some point the krep will just be out all year long. But I promise you, if I see one more celebutant with her ass or clamato hanging in the breeze, one more faux Hollywood dress up party to " raise awareness for Breast Cancer" , I will puke. Product placed endorsements to give for the charity, ads showing picture perfect white chicks and or fashionista's begging you to wear pink.....GAH ! Where are all the other women ? The Latina/Asian/Black sisters..the middle aged, the , low income who have no bloody insurance represented ? The gays, the bi's and all the other women who don't pass the realistic standards set by those like Richard Avedon ? Where ? It is also " National Domestic Violence Awareness " month..did you know that ? Did Ya ? Oops..those photo ops aren't as pretty as the ones begging us to wear pink, what was I thinking ? Yes I donated to Susan G Koman, through a silent bakery sale at the office and through their web site. Did I make a difference...hope so. Did I feel better..yeah for a nano second...did I pray that I will never be among their statistics...every damned day..every damned day.

Charity is something we should do freely without being forced or coerced. It should take more than a ribbon, and more than a month.

Think about it...really..please do.

Ciao,

Aunty Pol.

Rocky Can Take A Hike

It seems that we have a problem here at Casa de Swamp. We have an unwanted guest. When Hisself and I got home, as per normal we let Andy Panda Pants in for TREATS ! I noticed right away that he was acting odd....yes he's a cat...I know.....he was all twiterpated and nervous. He got his treats and rather than say " Thanks..now let my fuzzy butt back out , he appeared to be scared.

Hmmm.....

Hisself had mentioned that he's seen a raccoon in the back yard ..and as usual , to be honest , it kinda went in one ear...yada yada. Hisself has a rather quirky habit of saying bullshit so it takes a finely tuned ear to know when he is just being an idiot and when he is in fact being serious. It's only taken me 20 years to be able to tell, and yes there are times that it pisses me off when he does that, but that is the way he is and I know this.

He was serious.

He's seen Rocky, and from what he says, it appears to be an adult..and no, I don't give a rats ass as to gender. He has seen the lil sharecropper.

ON THE PATIO.


Andy must have had a run in with the critter. He is fine, I checked him over...twice. Andy is in for the night and if he has to potty , some one will go with him. He is scared and I can understand that.

And it pisses me off.

Our weather has been cool in the mornings so he has been all bouncy baby boy to get back outside as soon as he can, but evidently now..not after dusk.

Part of the problem is that in the last few years , with the airport expansion and other development, a lot of the trees and such have been cleared. We no longer see deer across the road at the airport. The poor critters have no where to go.

Except to suburbia.

I don't want to hurt the raccoon, I want him to leave, but he is feral and my overactive mind goes..." Pol....rabies....etc.

Andy will be in at night till we figure this one out. Yes, I have lived in the country before. I know the drill..but I don't want to kill an animal unless I have to.


If anyone has an idea..let me know.


Have a great weekend,

Ciao,

Aunty Pol



**** UPDATE *****

Hisself, bless him re-did the coffee pot for me before going to work . He is now working half days every Saturday till who knows when. We have a habit of leaving post its on the coffeepot and he let me know that the boy was let out at about 5:30 a.m. When I got up at 8:30 and started coffee and laundry, I saw that Andy was okay in the yard. I guess that during the day he will be fine, the doggy d's next door make enough racket during the day , besides Bernie , the Grey Parrot , that Rocky stays away..after dark is another story. Andy will be inside after dark, and if he has to go potty, he will have an escort.....sigh.

Fall ~Finally in Tejas

We don't have any sort of seasons down here on the third coast , except for Hurricane and the coldest part of the year, also known as the week before the rodeo . It's either hot or rainy or often both . This spring was really odd though due to all of the rain that we had. Great on the water bill but when you start to set records, it gets old really fast. On the plus side, we get to wear shorts and sandals for the most part , and a transplant will finally accept that appropriate wardrobe for the holidays often does mean shorts and tee shirts. Because of this, when it does get a tad cooler in October and only about 80 degrees, everyone goes bonkers in their yards, I am no exception .



As usual he worked on Saturday and since it was so beautiful, I decided to finish cleaning out the beds where the crepe myrtles are by the wrought iron fence . Out came all of the overgrown ground cover, the grass, the weeds etc. I also found that the hibiscus had the beginnings of a white fly infestation, a common malady to them so Hisself brought home some bug juice to zap them. The plumbago on one side of the arbor was pruned, so of course Andy Panda Pants is mighty miffed at me , it being his favorite vantage point for the tree rodent watch. The passion flower on the other side got cut back, pots of mums potted, others re potted as needed..yeah. I over did it again. Having suffered with allergies and ragweed for three weeks, I really over did it. Yesterday since he played goof, I did the usual inside stuff : laundry, hoovering, mop floors and then went out back to finish up and tidy up from the day before. When I talk about pruning the plumbago, bear in mind that the cuttings fill at least 2 or more large garbage bags. Not to mention all the other stuff.

And so, as per tradition, I completely over did it...and the back is making me pay for it today . I can barely straighten up, and if it falls on the floor, it's gonna stay there. Period.

This was going to be longer , but I can barely focus...back to bed for me.


Have a great week.

Ciao,

Aunty Pol

" Let's Meet The Neighbors "

OMG..We may never live this one down.

Last night Hisself was feeling a tad mo bedder so off he goes to the Crazy Cajuns for the weekly poker game............ho hum. As asked, he set the sprinkler in the front to water the drangeas and I know when to turn it off. While watching " Smallville", ( oh, like " Dancing With The Stars " is any more high brow ?...Pfffttt)....anyhoo...I wait for the commercials so that I can putter...go refill Andy's kibble and water...la de dah...I step out grab said bowls and go back in. Next commercial I take them back out and I blink.

Blink again.

Whoa.

There is a moderate gray haze all over my back yard. I put the bowls back down and Andy and I go to the front..yup..gray smoke. I call the NG's and tell them to come out back . There we stand with our cordless phones , looking at each other through the wrought iron fence. Off we go all Nancy Drew-ish to investimigate. Three women clutching phones..no flashlights, Moi sans footwear...as we proceed to investigate. Not the crazy neighbors on the other side, thank you Jeebus...we'd never, ever hear the end of that. Two doors down from crazy's , we can see the location of the smoke.

" Is it this yard or the cul de sac ?"

" Dunno".

" Lets check it out ."

" M'kay."

Turns out that the neighbor cleaned off his roof ( HINT to EL Hubbo..Some actually do this dear) and since there was no burning ban in place , Frankie Firebug decided to burn all of the crap from his roof. Mind you, there was no wind, much less a breeze to dissipate this last night so all of the smoke drifts toward our houses. Frankie and his lil woman are now convinced that we three are nuts. To which I reply , " So being wrong is preferable to your house possibly being on fire ? Good to know."

This dim wit finally grasps that we don't in fact care that he is burning stuff in his yard. We do care enough to investigate whether we need the fire dept.

Silly us.

We did also find out that the neighbor on the other side of Crazy's ( 2 doors down from Casa de Swamp ) has a pit bull and that Frankie almost capped this dogs ass the other night.

Again , good to know.

As we trot home, I reminded one of the NG's that she needs to bring this up at the HOA meeting next week.

Poor Frankie.

Little did he know when he moved in , that the house on the corner has as an occupant , one of the few hardy souls that actually attend the HOA meetings. Not to mention the fact that the constable sits in front of our house on a regular basis to catch all those who blow through the corner stop sign.

Might want to re think the gun thing there Frankie.


Lordy Jeebus, please let Frankie and the Lil Woman be renters.

Have a great weekend.

Ciao,

Aunty Pol.

She was soooo right.

During the course of almost any day, I trade e mails with one of my 2 closest and unfortunately longest distance friends . She is one of the two friends I truly consider the " Sister of my heart,"and I miss her and the Mullet Man ( LOL..you knew I'd do that , big boy) , more than I can say. I've known LALA and the Mullet Man for jeebus...30 years now, beginning back at the big WAZZU. They have been through miscarriages, tolerated and maintained radio silence with respect to the first husband , no easy feat there , and overall been one of those people you want with you in the foxhole when the mortars start. Just as the DH has the Crazy Cajun and his wife, I have these two ..people you have known for so long , that you pray like mad they like your spouse the first time they all meet..no matter how long you have been married. When their only child was born, they waited over two years to have the child christened so that I , as the Godmother could be there. I think my Godson still remembers the hat I wore..and hopefully story time from the book I gave him. He is getting married next year and I am going to be there..come hell or high water. Ask DH or anyone who actually , really knows me, when I say I am going to do something..consider it done.

LALA is an only child, living in a town where her family goes back at least four if not five generations that I know of , it's a college town so you're either a townie or the dreaded student/staff member/faculty . LALA and I worked together in the same building at WAZZU bit for different depts. After I left, she basically took over my position more or less and stayed until she retired while also earning her degree. Mullet Man still works for the University and they still live in the house her father was raised in , and his family before that. They've held on to the homestead through thick and thin, one way or another and I so admire that. Living down here for the last 25 years is as close to that as I can come, having grown up in the military. Even if I had to , I wouldn't leave Tejas. I belong here. Mullet Man's family is originally from Virginia, so he understands, and LALA to this day claims that even when I lived up north, I was still " very Southern." Virginia is the home to the other sister of the heart and while I don't object to visiting her and so forth, I wouldn't move there either, there are many memories from years ago , that are just too heart breaking to risk the deja vu of that pain. Sorry. Thats just the way it is.

LALA and I were " talking" yesterday about how much we both miss our grandparents, especially our Grandmothers. Her grandmother died only a few years ago and mine about 18 years ago , give or take a year. LALA was there at the end for her grandmother, and she is very grateful for that. I , on the other hand, having always lived far from the Grandparents, only had a chance to see Grandma once before her passing. That is not to say that we didn't see her when we were kids , I only saw her that one time when she was so ill. Sometimes I wish I hadn't. Grandma died from cancer. Bear in mind , my maternal grandparents were really larger than life. Grandma was built ( so it seemed to me as a kid) like Marjorie Main, hell... even the dresses were much the same. To see this woman , who could silence the most rambunctious kid with a look, frail and wasted from this disease is something I shall remember all my life , and not in a good way. I had no clue when I went back that she would have no idea who I was , or that I was the oldest grandchild. I had become a strange face to her , not frightening, just no connection to be made. I cried all the way home on that flight to IAH. Grandpa...big, stern, loving,...his word was law. You did not cross the Reverend. They were the glue that held us all together. My uncles, aunts and cousins all lived within in driving distance so they got to have their parents/ grandparents in their day to day lives much like LALA did. I used to and still envy that, I can't help it. Yes, I wrote my grandparents every few weeks, and yes, DH and I called Grandpa every week after Grandma died. This husband was lucky enough to meet Grandpa, and it meant the world to us that if things had been a bit easier financially , he would have been tickled to have married us up there. He understood the elopement, and completely supported our reasons for it , so his rapport with the DH was an extra gift to me. This month marks either 13 or 14 years that Grandpa has been gone. I won't speak for my surviving family but with the loss of my father, their son in law, , the feeling of any form of connection to my mothers family evaporated. Dissipation began in 1981 when mother died. It was completed four years ago this coming January. We were always the ones that were gone. I was unable to make it there for Grandma's funeral service, but since I had seen her, I was at peace with that . When Grandpa died, my cousins were " amazed " that DH and I came to the funeral. All the way from TEXAS...! Yowza ! That clued me in right there, even though DH had already picked up on it. The ones who are gone from the family dynamic miss it the most it seems , and strive the hardest to create it and their place in it. My mother made this mistake, and so did I. There is a difference between having a close knit family and being close within that family. I recognize that in DH's and LALA's family , mostly because it does not exist in mine. That is neither good nor bad, it simply is. You cannot make or force a happy family . You can treat all the members with courtesy and respect , and accept that often that is all there will ever be . That makes no one the " bad guy" and is no ones fault, it just is. I love my family, but to be honest I don't really know them, I haven't been around them , and have no clue as to their thoughts or feelings. Time and logistics have a lot to do with this, and it was no ones choice, just the way it all worked out.

Many people have no family at all, I consider myself lucky, I have the one I was born into , and I have the family that I made...Malibu's, Mullets, Cajuns n all.

Have a great week, you deserve it.

Ciao,

Aunty Pol

This Has Gotten Old !

Between hisself and yours truely, we have spent the better part of the last 10 days sick. We sound as if we have escaped from a TB ward and are on the run.

This shite is old.

I have always been able to just look at him and tell if he is coming down with something. The eyes , the voice , the look...I am 99.9 % accurate within a 24 hour window. This by the way sucks and is in no way, shape or form something I brag about. It just is. Ordinarily, he hates soup..won't have it..runs from it. When he is sick..the complete opposite. He has to have his chicken soup with a healthy shot or 3 of tabasco and club crackers. I keep it well stocked in the larder.

In his work, he no longer grinds plaster or metal, but it is there at the job site, in the air and it can and does irritate nasal passages...yes dear...it does. I've suggested wearing a mask, which he won't and I don't nag about this...he is a grown man and I am not his Momma , thank you very much. This latest bout started as a scratchy throat, and some congestion.

Ok.

Fine.

This will pass.

Wrong.

Head congestion did what it usually does, it drained into his chest. Before this happened, he had in fact tried every sinus, decongestant claritan sudafed tablet that we had..no , not all at once...he's goofy..not stupid.

Results ?

NADA.

ZIP .

ZERO.

So there he is , poor thing, now with the wretched cough that you just can't get under. The hacking, rib bruising , cuts off air exausting sort.

We tried Mucinex and initially it helped..then quit .

It dawns on us because we have been down this road before that he has walking pneumonia so he will be going to the Doctor on Monday. For anyone who knows him..yeah...he's that sick.

Me ?

F'g Ragweed.

The count has been off the charts this week , so I also have the hacking cough . It was bad enough that yesterday at the hairdressers when it hit with particular force, poor thing, I literally scared her half to death . She was about to 911 me when I finally stopped. Hence hi lites took twice as long to do. It was however, way over due and completely worth it.

Mine will get better.

I will eventually get some rest , but right now it's hands full with taking care of him, house , cats, yard, work.

I am sooooo tired.

Ciao,

Aunty Pol