Whoops, did I forget to do that?

Here I am, trying to start my tax paperwork so that I can get my refund ASAP. I find that Turbo Tax is very helpful. You can do it all on line; then say "nah, I don't feel like paying for this", delete it, and you can take to someone else to screw it up for you instead. Truly though, it is helpful. It gives you prompts to remind you of all those deductions that you may not realize you can take.

For me, it was the yearly car registration. Of course, this also prompted me to check to see if I had renewed the cars yet (Feb 1 is the expiration date). So here I am, sifting through mounds of papers, saved through out the year in the hopes that some piece will be my saving grace, my refund magic.

Instead, I found the registration forms, neatly filed away unpaid. Whoops. I remembered receiving them, but I could have sworn I paid for them already. Although that would explain why I haven't received my new registration stickers. Luckily, they have online access for us forgetful folks. They don't do it out of the goodness of their hearts; mind you, there is an additional fee involved (actually 2 different fees). At least it is done. Let's just hope it goes through in time.

Secrets

Have you ever had a secret that you were just dying to tell, but couldn't? That's me. Right now, I am planning something that will completely surprise my man. I'd love to tell you what it is, but he sometimes reads this. It's very involved and will take months to achieve. All I'll say is that everyone but him is in on the surprise.

I feel better telling at least that much.

Secrets of the sink

I live in a new home, just under a year old. One of the benefits of a newly built home is that it is covered by a warranty, and everything is free to be fixed, you just have to call it in. Of course, after the year is up, you are pretty much on your own. So, I went through the house recently and listed every possible thing that I could think of and called Dave, our home repair guy.

The first thing on our list - the guest room sink. It's my son's bathroom and has been leaking for sometime, unbeknownst to me. I had noticed that the toilet paper he used often had a funny color to it, but I honestly thought that it was due to poor aim by him. I don't use the bathroom, so I let it go without investigation. Come to find out, the sink gushed water everytime he put the faucet on high. We store the extra rolls under the sink and they had been dripped on and then leached the color from the woodwork.

The plumbers came out to fix the sink. They decide I needed a new one, and had to take out the old one. I'm in the other room, reading a book, enjoying the first day back to school after break. I hear "Ma'am, could you look at this please? This is a child's bathroom isn't it?" My head races to try to figure out what could be down that drain to make him ask me this. I look over his shoulder, seeing just the pipe with water in it.

"What, what is it, I don't see anything"
"Ma'am, why is this water black?"
"I guess it is, isn't it."

Think, think, think. What has gone down this drain, what could have possible made it black? Then it hits me. My dear son had been painting a few days back and had decided to make a finger painting. It's just the paint washed down the drain. Whew, nothing dangerous. Once I told the plumber, he seemed to visibly relax. I can't help but wonder what he thought it could be.

Join Lightspeed panel

If you notice at the bottom of my blog, there is banner to join lightspeed. I highly recommend this site, since you get to give opinions on a variety of subjects, which gives you points which you then redeem for cash.

Giving my two cents and getting paid for that, well I love it. Plus, they don't sell your info to anyone else. Another positive - when you request you money, it comes within a week (at least the US affiliate does, I'm not sure about the other countries). Yes, it is available to you my worldwide friends!

How to contact any company

For those of you who have ever had trouble with a company or product, but didn't know where to write/call/threaten go to http://www.pueblo.gsa.gov/crh/corpormain.shtml
to find the address/phone number.

Corporate America beware: I've got your number and I'm not afraid to use it!

Absolute hell

For those who have lost family or friends in the great tsunami in Asia, my deepest sympathies to you.

At this time, there is nothing that I can to do to help, other than make a donation to a relief organization, such as www.redcross.org , which I have done.

I encourage others to do so as well.

Hug your family and take a moment to appreciate how quickly ones life can be turned upside down.

More holiday snafus

Another Christmas day gone by and I am left with a rumbling stomach. You see, I wanted to start a new tradition this year, since we weren't going to any big family dinners. I figured we could go out for Chinese food. This way, we would not be tempted by leftovers for the next week nor would we feel obligated to eat leftovers for the next week. Besides, the traditional beef or lamb roast does not appeal to me freshly cooked, nevermind as leftovers.

I did not take into account that Chinese restaurants in my part of town might actually be closed. Everywhere else we've lived, we could always count on them to be open on Christmas day, along with the local movie theatewr. We did get to see "Lemony Snicket's a Series of Unfortunate Events", but when we came out of the theater we noticed no cars in the lot of the Chinese food restaurant next door. So, after driving by 4 seperate restaurants, we came to the sad conclussion that dinner was not to be. Instead, we visited friends that informed us jokingly that "hear in the South, our Chinese are good Christians". It does seem to be so. Or it could be that since many of our Chinese restaurants are actually staffed by Mexicans, there may not have been anyone willing to work.

So, as my son chanted "your dreams are gone, your dreams are ruined" (which I thought rather unsettling), we headed back to our house for a less than inviting dinner of hard-boiled eggs and toast. Mmmm-mmm good. Hey, Mary and Joseph didn't have it easy either.

Walgreens - my new favorite store

It is the night before Christmas and all through the house, I am scurrying and searching for those gifts hidden months ago.

I found most of them, but had a bit of a scare when I realized that I had nothing for the stockings. For some this may seem trivial; but for us, stockings can be more fun than present opening. Those empty stockiong looked extra long too. I think someone has been hanging himself on them while they've been hung by our fireplace.

Off I went to my local CVS drugstore, only to find it closed. But what light yonder breaks, but the red flashing sign of the Walgreens up the street. Dashing through the snow (flurries) I arrive to find them not only open but actually stocked with all that I need; from candy to socks, to elctronic gadgets that will end up in my junk drawer before the end of the year. They are open untill midnight so I still have an hour in case I forgot anything else. I think I'm good - I just found the present I had hidden next to my laptop, so with it wrapped I should be done.

Merry Christmas to all and to all a goodnight.

Baby it's cold outside

Here in Texas we are actually getting some cold weather for a change. This actually helps put me in the mood for the holidays since I am originally from the New England region.

I have a tough time getting into the "spirit" of Christmas, since it just seems like an over commercialized holiday to me. When I lived in Italy, I enjoyed it much more. There was more of a focus on the religous aspect of the holiday, without the hurried commotion of shopping, shopping, shopping for a gift for a cousin you only see once a year. I remember strolling the plaza, enjoying the sights, and just relaxing in the glow of the nativity star (it was about 50 feet long, they do go for some tackiness).

This year is especially tough for me since I will be away from my extended family during the holidays for the first time in 6 years. I do enjoy spending time with them; appreciating how my family can lift my spirits, even when they might not be on my good side. I would skip celebrating altogether if it weren't for my son. The wonder of the season captivates him, and the joy on his face Christmas morning is priceless.

In case you were wondering, Santa does not spoil him. In fact, my son leaves presents for Santa, so that he (Santa) can take them to other boys and girls who are not as lucky as he is. All on his own one day, my six year came up with this idea. I could not not support his generous spirit.

To all of you, I hope the magic of the season captures you and brings you joy and happiness.

You Bastard

Something has been troubling me for a long time, and I'm hoping you, my loyal readers, can help me understand. Let me preface this by saying I have grown up in a family of Italian Catholics. I love them dearly, and have nothing against them.

As you may or may not know, a Catholic is not allowed to divorce per se, but the marriage is allowed to be annulled. In fact this is neccessary if you wish to remarry in the church. My question is: Are the children of that annulled marriage now considered bastards by the church? After all, the original marriage has been made nonexistent.

I would love to hear your answers.

I'm not in a bad mood so stop asking

Have you ever noticed that you can be minding your own business, just thinking of what you are going to have for dinner, when a co-worker, relative or loved one comes up to you and asks "Why are you in such a bad mood?" Your reply is "I'm not in a bad mood" and of course, "No, I can tell you are. What is wrong?" soon follows. By this time you are getting a little peeved, but still deny the bad mood. Of course friends never seem to drop this topic until they do put you in a cranky mood, to which they reply "I don't understand, everytime I see you, you are always upset".
My response now - "I'm in a bad mood because I like the view". It makes no sense, but they stop asking that stupid question.

Stupid blogger

So, I’m thinking of selling ad space on my site. I’m rather curious as to what I could earn. Of course, I would have to post more frequently, with more scintillating topics. Just think, I could earn residuals like people in commercials that run once a year every holiday season. I'd love to get a check in the mail for doing absolutely nothing.
This is assuming that I could post at all, which I having quite a bit of difficulty with as of late. This stupid blog site takes forever to load when it does load at all. Yes, I so enjoy reading the “HTTP 500 Internal Server” error message. That just makes my day. Especially since those are usually the days when my creative juices are really flowing. Stupid blogger.

A nip in the air

Ahh, here in my part of Texas we finally have some cool weather. Temperatures are in the mid 50's, so it is time to pull out those sweaters. Well, if you are a native Texan, you'll pull out your hat and gloves, at least that is what I've observed so far.

I was wondering when this cold weather would come. I've been here in TX for less than a year after coming from up north, and I was getting a little tired of the warm weather. One can only enjoy 80 degree weather for so long. I need season change. Yes, I know if I was up north right now I would be saying "#@$^*#@ weather, I wish it were that warm here"; but it does get tiresome. You should not be able to go swimming in an outdoor pool and be comfortable on Thanksgiving (which for you non-Americans, is Nov. 25 this year). There should be snow, or at least a hint of it. If nothing else, all the trees should be bare of their leaves. Here, the flowers are still blooming. It's just not natural.

The Day After

It's a gray, bitter day here in the midlands. It goes with my mood. I've got a bad feeling about these election results. I hope this vile feeling in the pit of my stomach is not a premonition but just a result of too late a night with too much Halloween candy thrown in the mix.

We needed a decisive win for either candidate, not a repeat of 2000. Maybe I should go hide in an underground bomb shelter for the next 4 years. Will someone come knock on my door in 2008? It should be safe to come out then.

The countdown starts

I just got back from voting and I am just giddy with joy over it. It may be a bit strange, but I approach voting with the same excitement others have for a fun day at the carnival. While at the polling area I had to refrain from breaking out into a song and jig. I love voting. The power that we the people have is amazing.

There was a woman in front of me, a late 20's hispanic, casting her vote for the first time. She is the voter that Kerry and Bush have been chasing (sorry Bush, she voted for Kerry). The "get out and vote" campaign is working. Our polls were full, and people were waiting patiently. Everyone wants to be able to say, "yes, I voted, it counted, I made a difference."

Yay democracy!

If you have problems at any of your polling places, call 1-866-myvote1

Vote or Die

Tomorrow is election day here in the states. Sadly, a turnout of 50% of registered voters is considered a "successful" election. Too many people do not value their right to vote.

I have voted in every election that I could, not just presidential elections. Even when I was overseas, I sent in my absentee ballot. It is too precious a gift to just throw away.

I've actually been involved in politics since I was in my pre-teens. You see, my mother was a local politician (or trying to become one), and insisted that we beome part of the process. I have stuffed envelopes, gone door to door for signatures, and passed out many a flyer in the pursuit of democracy.

I've also worked at the polls, and was even put in charge of maintaining the security of the votes cast. Sadly, I received absolutely no training as to how I was supposed to do this and may have cost the election for some individuals. There were the questions from the other poll workers that I could never answer - such as do we let this person vote; it looks like s/he is registered for the other party, but who could really tell? I always just let them vote, why hold it against the person if s/he voted republican last time. I didn't have the poll open on time, causing individuals to leave before they cast their votes, and when I closed the polls I think that I may have misread or even erased some of the booth tallys.

I say this to bring to light how easy it is to disrupt an election's results, unintentionally or intentionally. Although I truly value our democratic system, I do wonder about its efficiency.

I guess we'll find out tomorrow.

Now what do I have to live for?

Although I don't know if I should actually be posting this, since the game is not over, but "way to go Red Sox!" It looks like they are going to win the World Series. If they do, what do we, the fans, do? Part of the allure of the Sox is their never-ending talent of turning the tide against themselves. Every good fan knows you can count on them to blow it, they always do. Of course, I am breaking every rule of the Sox fan by saying they are going to win this early in the game. As a clarification, until the final out is scored in the final inning, be it the ninth or the fifteenth, it is always to early.

Shhh...don't tell anyone, but I actually feel optimistic. I can't help it.

Don't worry, if they lose you can blame me and my jinx. We'll see how it goes - it's the bottom of the fifth.

Take me out to the ball game

The penant series is heating up and I'm stuck between a rock and a hard place. As a native Rhode Islander, I grew up watching the Red Sox. Even though they continously failed, I still believed that they would go to the World Series and blow it in the 7th. The curse of the Bambino is alive- ask Bill Buckner; that is, if you can find him. I think he went into witness protection after his famous world series blunder.

I have been watching their series against the NY Yankees through my fingers (my eyes have been covered the entire time). The Sox play the same, tired or rested, but the Yanks need their sleep and they haven't been able to get it.

Now the rock - I live in Texas now and the Astros are about to go to their first World Series. I would like this team to win too. The fans around here are so energetic. They have "Go Astros" days in school. I know that NY doesn't, nor does MA; at least not whileI lived there during playoff times.

So who do I support? Well, I figure if either one makes it to the World Series, I'll route for them. If both go, I think I'll just have to turn the tube off and get a book from the library.

Sex,sex, sex

I just wanted to up the number of hits to my blog.

Stupid people shouldn't breathe

A person I hold near and dear to my heart asked me "Why do you blog, you don't even like people?" This is true, I do hate people. That is why my chosen profession is archaeology - I only have to deal with dead things. The other choices; if I hadn't gone into archaeology, would have been forensic medicine or county coroner. When I was a child of about 8, I used to wear a pin which said "stupid people shouldn't breathe" (either you get it or you should hold your breathe until I say stop).

Of course, when people first meet me and I tell them "I hate people, I'm not nice and I never claimed to be". I don't try to mislead anyone about the type of person I am. They laugh and say things like "you're so funny" or "you don't mean that". Often times they will bring up my past occupations as evidence that I do like people. One they like to bring up is when I was an EMT on an ambulance. "You have to care about people, look at all the lives you've saved." Not true. I enjoyed being an EMT because those people were suffering, they had a reason to be whiny self-serving idiots. They needed me and knew it. Plus, I didn't look at the patients as people, I looked at them as medical cases. Therefore, they weren't human beings in my eyes. I had a patient come up to me days after an incident to thank me for all my help, and I hade no clue who she was. Why? Because the last time I saw her she was unconscious and naked on a shower stall floor. When she was dressed, she went back to being an annoying oxygen stealing person. I got joy out of the job, but that was from my skills as a medical professional not as a caring individual.

Yes, I come off as a hardhearted bitch, but I'm not going to change. Who needs friends anyway? ;)

I didn't say stop yet.