"Hunger Games"...

So my daughter is reading the "Hunger Games" series of books." Mom, you have got to read these books, They are great!" my sweet little girl tells me. Yeah, yeah I'll get to it I've got a lot to do. She rips through the first one, "Wow, it was so powerful, mom, I can't wait to get the next one". Okay, I'll read it, I mumble as I look through the kindle list and lo-and-behold, they have the whole series bundled together. I reluctantly begin reading. Several hours later my daughter asks me how far I am. "Go away....I'm reading", I bark. "Well I thought you should know it is dinner time and we are hungry", she says as she stomps off. Honestly, who was it that pestered me into this book. I finish the book (after I make dinner) and I realize I am cold and the sun is coming up."Holy cats, what time is it?" Well, it has been sometime since I was so wrapped up in a book to just read it straight through. And...luckily... I have all of the books loaded on to my kindle.....

Okay, short nap and a brief cry, very nice series. No spoilers here, just read it. Now I have to go buy the last book for my little pusher daughter. Also, those kindles can be a little too convenient. Peace and love to you all....

Growing old....uh, I mean older....

So there I was, channel surfing, and I stumbled upon "House Hunters", when I began getting texts from my mom. Texting is another technology that I find hard to follow. When I was a kid we just talked to people. But my mom is all modern and trendy, so during the conversation she texts, "My bad"... Oh my God, I am so old and my mom is so cool. I go back to my show. I am loving "House Hunters", it is really quite funny. People are purchasing a new house for whatever reason and their observations are just so comical. "Oh honey, look at this door handle. I just hate it,I could never live in a house with this kind of door handle. The realtor just doesn't understand us". The realtor looks at the camera and says, "You can change them" in this deadpan kind of tone which says, "Kill me now". Priceless, I was laughing, oh excuse me ROTFL.

When they say fifty is the new thirty, they weren't talking about me. I don't like new things; learning new technology. I don't even like it when they change the TV schedules. There is only one prime time show that I watch the "Big Bang Theory". Everything else is just occasional noise. That means "BBT" is the only show for which I know the schedule. I prefer the radio, because I can do things and listen with out having to become one of the sitting dead. So, my mom is cool and I'm an old fart.

They say your kids keep you young. Right, I want to slap who ever "they" are, but with arthritis, fibromialgia and carpal tunnel I don't need that kind of pressure. Does that sound negative? My bad. I'm not an unhappy person, I just hate it when the dog laughs at me because I can't find the second sleeve on my jacket. My daughter walks by with her Mp3 player on and grabs the end of my jacket, and in one smooth move, slips the sleeve on my arm and continues on her way to her shower. I hope she is done when I come back in and need to take off the jacket.

So, gone are the days of garden sculpting by lifting and moving 150lb rocks to the "right place". Gone are the days of rototilling the whole orchard with a walk behind tiller. Gone are the days of.... hey, what am I saying. Fifty ain't so bad. Bring on the days of no cavities. Bring on the days of over fifty discounts. This is looking pretty good. And my daughter is finished with her shower so I can take off my jacket, yeah. This is turning into a great day, peace and love to you all...

I love snow and other lies...

Well, guess what I woke up to this morning, SNOW! That's right gentle frozen fairies of moisture; soft, shimmering lace drifting onto ones eyelashes as snowbirds sweet song tickle your ears in the slowly expanding light of morning. sigh.... horse crap! I was pelted in the face by the flying ice monkeys of frozen hell sent by the winter witch of the north. I grabbed the dog for his morning business and opened the door. Usually he is doing back flips of joy in anticipation of his morning walk, but not this time. I opened the door and he sat down. "Hey, you like snow, get out there" I swear I saw him shake his head. He looked back over his shoulder at the front bathroom, "Oh no buddy, out you go" and I gave him a push. I could see the advantage in not needing to have his nails trimmed this week because of my dragging him down the concrete walk way. His entire body stiff with protest also gave me the opportunity for a little extra exercise. That's just me, always trying to be positive, smile. Warning, keep your eyes on frozen paths, I did a little Looney Tune kind of dance as my feet lost traction and I took several steps without moving forward. On the positive side, the dog began laughing so hard that tears formed on his cheeks and I was eventually able to pull him down to the driveway. I think I heard him say a dirty word, but I'm not sure.

He finally resigned himself to his duty and all seemed well. Until we made it to the lawn. Yes , it was frozen too. And yes, he did not like it. I have never seen a German Shepherd mix dog walk on his front feet before...now the tears formed on my cheeks. Unfortunately he saw this and circled me. Then he gave a tug on his leash. Bad dog, no cookie! I limped back into the house, dragging man's best friend behind me. And so sitting with my knee in a brace and my dog on his bed, chuckling under his breath I say again, "What global warming?!" Winter is here in case you missed it. Drop by, I'll let you walk my doggie. Peace and love to you all....

Winter...la la-la la-la....

How can you say there is no winter this year? The next groundhog I see, I'm gonna' slap him silly. So many people I talk to keep asking where winter went. It is all around us. I have been lucky enough to witness winter from Hawaii to New Jersey and many places in between. This is winter honey. Stop obsessing with the weather already. I, for one, refuse to believe what I am being told. Global warming, ha, ice age, bull, I have heard it all before. So the sneaky ex-politicians and junk scientists now call it "climate change". Hm mm, that's amazing, you mean that thing we have been calling seasons? Hey, look over there, I think I see a unicorn.

I am looking for the genuine and real. I am looking for....Adele and crying with real snot. Because life is real and life is messy. I want real, not some one's spin. I want to be able to struggle and succeed or fail because of my struggling. I am sick of the Sorros and Winfrey types, who abandoned their origins after they achieve unimaginable wealth and power, telling us what we can and can't do/believe/achieve. After the Oxygen network which failed and the OWN which is failing you would think the O would get it too.

Oh,oh, there is that throbbing pain in my head again...my eye, my eye is twitching. I feel the need to say," Get off my lawn". Peace and love to you all...

Remembering Daddy...

My Dad's birthday is February 23, so this is the month that I think of Daddy. He an Mom were married on February 2, 1961. It was a lovely ceremony, I thought, and he was a Great Man. Many people don't really know what that means, Great Man. It doesn't mean he was saintly, but he lived greatly. He was shy, but fought that with bravado. While most people ask "Why?" he always shouted, "Why not?!" Many times he should have stopped and considered things more cautiously. Unfortunately, when anyone challenged his decision making, he could be a bully. He never wanted to second guess himself. And, he always said that our family was not a democracy, but a dictatorship. He was hard to love.

He was harsh to the women our family, his wife and daughters, but it made us strong. It reminds me of the Johnny Cash song, " A Boy Named Sue". He taught me through reverse psychology. He gave some poor moral examples which has made me eschew so many of his choices. I can proudly say I have never been arrested. He would say that I have no sense of adventure. While I have been furiously angry with him, I loved him very much, and I miss him everyday, but mostly in February.

I can see him now with his, "Who me ?" expression. And while he wasn't the best father, he was such a good grandfather. Proof that we learn through-out our lives, "Hey Dad, you can teach an old dog new tricks"(wink) He taught my son how to write his name, in the snow. He taught him how to use a screwdriver and a bottle opener. He taught my daughter that covering him with stuffed animals would put him to sleep, and that a 6'1" 300lb man with a beard and stern expression could be coaxed into a tea party and playing with Barbie dolls.

He was larger than life which has made it hard to live without him. So, Here's to my Dad. I love you and miss you....