Random Thoughts....

This is What Boredom Will Get You

It's Friday night. Wayne and all the kids are doing what they always do on Friday nights. Hanging out outside with the neighbors. Me? A little bit of a neighborhood lovefest goes a long way. I'll sometimes go out for a little bit and hang out but never the whole time. I think they must have decided to skip the firepit this week though. So not as many kids. Jack and his friend Jonathan keep running in and out to devise their plans for what to do next. I've got chocolate muffins on the stove that I'm trying to get rid of. I don't want them and I don't want them hanging around either. There are only 2 left.

I did my usual Friday afternoon thing and took a nap. Then I got up and ran a few errands. Was force fed a bite of chicken by a neighbor who's wife must love to cook because she's always sending things out for them when they hang out there. I hate to be rude and say no everytime so after I quizzed him to death about what was on it I ate one bite. I think he feels this obligation to offer me something everytime he sees me because yesterday he offered me a beer. Of course I passed. I'd sooner drink the tap water (and I won't do that).

This morning I did something that I will NEVER do again. I took Giacomo with us when I walked the boys to school. The main problem with that, aside from having to carry poop bags, is that Giacomo is too friendly. People don't necessarily know that and I guess he might look menacing to an unsuspecting customer so people grab their kids and will quickly past if they don't know him. Of course Giacomo is a local celebrity in our neighborhood. I say of course, but not really of course. I mean why should it be of course? But he is, most people in our neighborhood know Giacomo by name and like him. But anyway. This 70 pound (or thereabouts) beast was dragging me down the sidewalk at one point in his excitement. It didn't take long for me to realize the error of my ways. So he won't be joining us on walks to school anymore. Aren't bulldogs supposed to be lazy anyway? I guess he is that, but he's also very social. I'm sorry Giacomo, I just have to restrict your social life.

That is all. Carry on...

Watch Wayne, I'm Blogging!

So today we went out for a quick lunch. Starbucks for me (turkey/swiss sandwich & unsweetened passionfruit tea) and Burger King for Wayne. I need a new food processor. I broke my old one when I made some cranberry relish over a year ago. So I've been using the mini one instead. It works well but was not the right thing for a big batch of this stuff. So I wanted the Big Mouth one. But in black, not white. So Wayne bought me the next one up in the series because it was black. Sweeeet! :)

We went back to look at the laptops because he needs one for when he deploys in March. While we were dealing with that, she was telling Wayne their exchange/return policy. Bring it back because of this...or that....or because you just don't like the color. I thought that was funny and asked her if people really do that. Yep, they do. Just a few minutes later, check this out...another saleperson comes up and is talking about how someone had just returned.....a GREETING CARD! Oh but it gets better, it was a greeting card that had been WRITTEN in!!! LOL I would love to have seen that!

I'm really about to fall asleep right here on my keyboard. I've been doing good with no naps and very little caffeine (surprise to everyone) but I just can't sleep through a whole night. I guess I truly do sleep like a baby. I'm good with it until about...yeah, about this time of day. Right before I have to go pick up the boys from school. I may actually cave this afternoon because I just don't think I'm going to be able to keep my eyes open this time. It's real cloudy and overcast and grey today so that's probably the reason. 

And one other thing while I'm here. Soap operas are lame! 

Awww, he likes me

I just got back from a marshmallow run with Brent. I guess the neighborhood expects to roast marshmallows in our firepit on the weekends because Brent got texts about it and people stopped by to ask if we were doing it. Anyway, we were out of marshmallows so I offered to go get some and let Brent drive. We started out fine, but after we went to the shopette and struck out we had to drive to Mililani for a 24 hour grocery. Yeah, they're not everywhere here. So off we go and Brent...bam, bam, bam makes 3 or 4 mistakes in a row. I was like, "Dude! Brent! Listen to me!!" He did better after that, but seriously the boy needs to slow it down a bit. He'll be fine though by the time he's ready to get his license.

What I really wanted to say though is I think it's so sweet how boys like their moms. Little boys, yeah, they really really like their moms. Then it kind of goes away a little bit with some of them. I have 4 so yeah, I can say "some" of them. But Brent he's always been really close with me and he'll come to me and talk to me about pretty much anything. I guess I'm "safe". But that's good I think. He knows he'll get an earful from me sometimes (like tonight when he drove the wrong way down a one-way street! LOL) but he still talks to me. Especially when it's just he and I driving somewhere. Oh man he just tells me every little thing that's going on with him. I think it's so cool that he'll do that.

At the moment he's out front irritating his "girly-friend's" boyfriend. It seems we have a little competition here. Brent has not made move #1 for this girl. She has a boyfriend. So that's respectable right. I mean it's pretty obvious that she likes him and she'd probably dump her boyfriend in a second for Brent, but really I think he's too chill for that right now. Anyway, apparently this guy cannot STAND Brent, for obvious reasons. I'm sure the girl's just playing them both a little bit for the attention. But her boyfriend is just really anti-Brent. Well we pull up from our marshmallow run and who's sitting out there with Hannah (oh, that's the girl's name)? Her boyfriend. In our yard. I couldn't believe he'd purposely hang out over here knowing this is where Brent lives. But as soon as Brent went out the guy gets up and walks off telling Hannah that she can go back and hang out with Brent if she wants. Drama!! But it's so funny to me and Wayne.

Anyway, Brent's a semi-hazardous driver at times, but better than I was at his age. He really, really likes me (which I love). And he's in the middle of a puppy love triangle. LOL That just cracks me up because you should see Brent. He won't have any of it. He's like, "Dude! It's my house, don't try to start something with me."

And that's what's going on here, As the World Turns...

He's My Kid & Brent's Got a Girly-Friend (you must say this in a sing-song voice)

First off because I know the curiosity from the second you read the title to this line is just eating you up. It's not technically a girlfriend. In fact, technically this girl has a boyfriend and it's not Brent! But she sure does like to come over and hang out with him. She's not the cheerleader I picked but she's cute. I didn't like her at first because her voice got on my nerves, but she's sweet enough. It's nothing serious. It's really actually nothing at all, I just think it's fun to tease Brent!

And this afternoon I was walking to pick up Wayne's Pro Bowl ticket because they wouldn't give it to him since it was in my name. Even with the receipt. I'm telling you it's like trying to get into Ft. Knox to get those tickets! Even when I went in to pick it up I got looked up and down skeptically and then they have to study the receipt and then get a book and match things up and then you sign the book. And then, you have to prick your finger and leave a mark of blood beside your signature!! LOL I'm just kidding about the last part. But it did seem like an ordeal to pick up a ticket that I bought a month ago and they were supposed to CALL me when it came in but they didn't CALL me. 'K, that's out of my system.

Anyway, I was walking up there with Jack. He wanted to come along so I could buy him some chapstick. He felt his lips weren't quite up to their full potential and they needed some moisturizing. LOL As we were walking and talking, I didn't say half the things I wanted to.... Oh wait, sorry I lapsed into a Taylor Swift song. Really now, we were talking and I was just struck that he is SO me! He's loud and totally random. I think he has that thing like me where he just kind of says whatever comes into his head. We'll be talking about one thing like "drop off school" (whatever that is) and then he'll ask me about pandas or something. He had found a kid's nametag in the grass after school today and had it clipped to his shirt. I did tell him he needs to turn it into the office first thing tomorrow so the kid doesn't get charged for a new one. Plus that's how they pay for their lunches. Anyway, he had it clipped to his shirt and said to me, "I'm someone else today." Steven Griffiths to be exact. I told him, "Jack, I think YOU'RE a pretty good person to be!" He just laughed at me. But seriously he is. He is just Mr. Popularity around the neighborhood. Every single day it somebody or another at the door for Jack. The kid is never without friends. It's funny too because he can be almost stoic about it, like it would be a crime if he smiled, but you can tell he's TRYING not to smile. He's so crazy and so cute!

This morning on the way to school Rhett wanted to ride his scooter to school. So I reluctantly let him. Because honestly I thought it was going to be a huge hassle. But it wasn't he did AWESOME! Jack though, thought it was a bad idea all the way around. I called him Mr. Rain Cloud because he was constantly telling me as we walked, "Mom, I don't  think you should let him ride it", "Mom, but he has to cross the street", "Mom, how far ahead are you going to let him go?", "Mom, sometimes he falls off", "Mom he has to WALK it across the street". LOL He's just so unique and such a cool kid!

And not to be left out because I know I'll hear it if I do! ;) Seth is taking Chinese! That sounds so out of left field doesn't it?! It's just a quarter I think, but I think it's interesting and I think he might too. Certainly none of the rest of us have taken Chinese!

What Shall I Complain About Today?

LOL, nothing! I seem like I go on and on about my back or whatever a lot of the time don't I? I guess it's filler for when I don't have any stories about how some yahoo cut me off in traffic or somebody doesn't know how to use the self-checkout at the store that day or whatever. I do have a self-checkout story come to think of it, but it's from a while back. I might have even told it. Wanna re-run? O.K. you've twisted my arm.

It is my belief that if you use the self-checkout (and I don't particularly care if it's the store's policy or not) you should NOT have a cart full of stuff. You should NOT have a week's worth of groceries. You should NOT have all the fruits and vegetables you need to start this week's diet in little produce bags so that you have to look up all the codes. You should NOT have 50 pieces of pvc to scan individually. You should NOT have a million itty bitty jars of baby food. And you should NOT rip open your bag of beef jerky while you're trying to scan your bazillion items. It's already clear you don't have a clue, so don't make it worse by trying to do two things at once. Is it obvious that these things have happened to me? On one such occasion semi-recently I just had had enough. So while Wayne stood in line I went to speak to the manager. I told him it was just common sense that you should not crowd up those lanes when you have SO much stuff. Wanna know what he said to me? 'Cause this is good! He said, 'have you ever seen common sense in here?' He had me there, can't say that I have. Besides that his main thing is that it would be inconvenient to those people to make a rule that you had to have something like 15 items or less to go through the self checkout.  ?!?!?!  For real yo!

..........................................................................

And perfectly on cue I'm up at 2:30 a.m. Why? I don't know. Maybe I like to torture myself. I like to see how grumpy and tired I can make myself by 10 a.m. I was about to fall asleep where I stood last night around 6 p.m. so why I couldn't sleep is news to me. But it's always fun to have a bout of insomnia isn't it? It's the perfect sarcastic start to my sarcastic day. It's gonna be BEAUTIFUL!! ;)

Well I'm Just Bored....((sigh))

I can't figure out what I want to do. I'm tired and bored and I don't feel like sleeping. I would hop on the treadmill but I also feel a little sick to my stomach. Wayne and I were at Wal-Mart a little bit ago and I was perfectly fine when we got there, but halfway through I got sickly hungry. I ended up getting an egg salad sandwich at the shopette (love me some egg salad). But I still feel kind of off. So no treadmill for me. You know what I think it is, is the past few nights I've been sleeping really badly. My back is so jacked up that every move I make is an ordeal. It's like after I had the kids and couldn't move myself very well in the hospital bed. More physical therapy tomorrow though, so hopefully I'll be one more step closer to feeling better.

I scrapped a page tonight (Sunday night):

 

Brent got the picture for me. I'm getting so jealous of Stephanie's pictures of Anna lately that I'm going to HAVE to figure out my manual modes on my camera. I know she's been doing a lot of reading and researching, I just wish I could learn it by osmosis.

It's been so cold here lately that I have to pathetically report that Saturday night when Wayne and I went to P.F. Chang's for dinner that we had to politely refuse being seated on the patio. I usually am more than happy to sit on the patio. But it's been just downright cool the past few days. I know that I won't be getting sympathy from anyone on this because most of you probably have way below freezing temperatures right now. If this keeps up I may have to break down and order a Snuggie! Have you seen those commercials on late night t.v.? Wayne and I always laugh at them. But with no way to heat the house when it's cold here I might just have to resort to looking like a monk in a red Snuggie. LOL

Alrighty y'all, I'm out...

File This Under Weird and Just Slightly Unbelievable

O.K., that's a bit long to have on a file tab, but come on now... I find out Thursday afternoon that school for Friday has been cancelled. Why, you ask? Excellent question!! And I have an excellent answer for you. Wind. Oh yeah, and maybe rain. If this actually pans out I will be amazed. Almost everyday it looks like it's going to storm. Like at home (in TN) it would get all dark and cloudy on the horizon and you knew a storm was coming right? Well here, it's like a big game of chicken or a the boy who cried wolf or something. It'll rain, but nothing as menacing as the clouds would have you believe. Yesterday Wayne heard there were 30 foot waves up at North Shore. We drove up there on his lunch break but didn't see anything I considered all that grandiose. And Jack's been telling me all week that a storm hit the Big Island over the weekend or sometime. And we have had wind advisories, but seriously nothing more than a really windy day. So there may be some credence (sp?) to the forecast, but I don't know if it's worth calling school off  in advance for. It's just so weird. I guess they can afford it though with the semi-year round thing they've got going on here. It does buy me an extra day to sleep in so it's not all bad. Even though that's probably not good for me to get into that habit again when I've only had two days of having to get up. Ah well, if this is a gift from a horse I guess I better not look at it in the mouth. :)

Luckiest Girl in the World

I've come to the conclusion that even if Hawaii isn't everything dreams are made of and there's a lot we (I) miss about the mainland that I'm very lucky. We have an opportunity to LIVE in a place that so many people only dream of visiting. There are a lot of beautiful things to see here that you wouldn't see just anyway. Although, after living in so many places I don't know that you can really quantify one place over another. Every place has it's beautiful scenery and special things about it, they're just different from one another. We'll get to try lots of things we wouldn't otherwise and see things we wouldn't otherwise. We get to be surrounded by another culture. Even though it's American it is different in some ways. The kids are getting unique experiences especially. And maybe what makes me the luckiest of all is that I get a ticket back to the mainland when our time here is over. We here a lot, well not a LOT, but often enough about how people want to "get off this rock" or how people have never left the island. Well, I get to do that. I don't have to figure out a way to get myself to the mainland. I don't have to hope I get into a school to get me "off this rock". We get to come and experience the best parts of island living and see some of the best (along with the not-the-best) parts and then go home. So that makes me lucky enough. :)

Update on the back front. LOL...back...front. I had my first physical therapy appointment Wednesday. I basically had to show her my range of motion, explain how I thought this happened, when it hurts, etc... Then she massaged the area which felt really good and she had me do some exercises. After that I was able to move better. Not perfectly but better than when I came in. Then she hooked me up to the electric stimulation machine and that felt o.k. Kind of warm and fizzy. When that was done is when the problems began. All that limbered up feeling was gone. I was oh so stiff again. I booked my next 3 appointments (next one is Friday) and left. All downhill from there. My back was on fire with pain and shooting pains were, well, shooting down my hips. I was in absolute misery! I tried to call my doctor that I saw last Friday to see if he would call in something for the pain. He wasn't there but my regular dr. was so I left a message. Only she didn't call me back before the end of the day. I'm hoping she will in the morning. I ended up just having to go to bed. After a couple of hours I was back to the normal pain, not the on fire pain. It's amazing to me how bad this has gotten. I walk like I need a cane and like I'm about 95 years old. I'm hoping that after another couple of times with the physical therapy things will get better. The therapist said she thought it could be worked out. Not any sort of specific diagnosis, just that my back is locked up and my alignment is a little wonky. My back is overly arched...So she worked on adjusting all that. I think I just her to follow me around all day.

Anyway, I really just wanted to pop on here and put up my newest kit. It's Dollar Day at the shop so lots of good "shopportunities". Here's Fiddle-de-Dee

http://www.funkyplaygrounddesigns.com/store/images/P/lbratcher-fiddlededee-preview.jpg

Couldn't Sleep

2:30 in the morning and I'm up after giving a good effort at sleep. I really want an orange soda right now but I know that won't help my cause. So I'm up doing a little bit of work that I had on my mind before I went to sleep, or tried to that is. That might be part of what was keeping me up anyway. I hate losing ideas once I have them. That happened to me the other night and I was kicking myself the next day. I wish I could just take a mental picture of what I have in my head and then print it out. Out of my ear I guess, I don't know but somewhere. It would be awfully helpful.

My middle of the night observations are that....

I'm thirsty, but afraid to drink because one way or another that'll keep me up.

My hair smells really good right now. I think the flat iron takes the good shampoo smell out. That's unfortunate.

Even Hawaii gets cold. It's all relative, but when you feel cold you feel cold.

My back is killing me right now. And yes, I did go to the doctor.

I love my treadmill.

I love Wayne for getting me whatever I want. ;)

'K, that's enough of that. I think it's clear I have way too much brain activity right now to go to sleep. That plus now I'm starving. I'm just screwed for tomorrow, oh, I mean today. I'll just have to keep myself up all day and go to bed at 7 p.m. I guess.

Over the weekend I did scrap a page. Some pictures I took of the boys a week or two ago out back.

And I have a new element pack up in my shop today:

 

And, well, I guess that'll be it for now. Signing off...

Popping In

I'm sitting here with my headphones listening to a mix cd that Brent made me a while back. I'm working on a little something for the shop maybe next week. I'm trying to get a little ahead, I've been running behind so long. So I've got a little musical motivation going. Brent's also in here baking cookies that Jack coerced him to bake. I was just thinking how Daddy has made so many mix cds and how much Brent likes to do it to. He likes to get all technical with how well things flow together and stuff. It's funny and annoying but he's good at it. So while that's going on I'm also making Brent's ears bleed with my awesome vocals. :P And since I've got the headphones on he's hearing me and only me. LOL I can't help it if Stephen Tyler's voice is higher pitched than mine. Well really I have no pitch, but whatever....

While I'm on the subject of Brent, I finally wrangled his permit from him so I could scan it. He didn't want me to because he doesn't like the picture, I think it's good though. He has to wait 6 months before he can go for the license. Blech! I dread him driving here alone. On to McLovin's legal proof though:

 

I've been hobbling around like an old woman today because something is up with my back. I've been having back pain for a month or so and I think I can guess why. Normally I sit in our recliner with my laptop to do my work and probably that's taken it's toll. So I've got myself set up now in the dining room on the bar so I can sit up or stand up. But for some reason the past couple of days it's the worst it's been. It'll catch when I try to change positions from standing to sitting or vice versa. I've actually had to have Wayne hold my hand to walk down stairs. Such a sweet picture. ((eyeroll)) Or an embarrassing one. Just bring me my cane. So I need to dig up the phone number to get a doctor's appointment. That'll not be so fun since it was lost with the great phone fiasco of Christmas 2008. I've been putting off the doctor thing because...well, because I'm Laura and that's what I do. But I guess I'll have to bite the bullet. Besides I need to get my iron checked again and if I can multitask while at the doctor even better!

So there you go, that's my latest. Have a good weekend!! Ciao!