Oh Wal-Mart, why you gotta do me like that?

So after a not-so-quick stop at the post office this morning (1 clerk, one customer at the desk, I was 1st in line, 20 minute wait) I head on over to Wal-Mart for this item. Sarge has found that his addiction to Vicks inhalers has caused a resistance to it's effects, and I'm suffering from seasonal allergies for the first time in my life. So hey, why not shoot some saline up your nose?

But of course they don't have it.

So I wander around and eventually see these!

Those buttons!!! SO CUTE!! Cannot resist! Could I make some cuffs?
Fabric, $1.00 a yard!! AAAA!!! Maybe I'll make some of these cute tanktops. How about matchy-matchy, mother-daughter tanks for our trip to Hawaii? They would also be great as quilt bindings.

And there's already this stack of projects just waiting to be started.


Oh Wal-Mart, how I love you.

And this is why I don't have friends

Well, not friends IRL, here in my immediate area. I do of course have old college friends like The Librarian, and blog-o-sphere e-friends.

Anyhoo, there is a mother of one of the girls that goes to pre-school with Piko. I guess you could say that we are friends. Our girls like to hang out together, and have fun. The Mom and I enjoy each others company and for the past 3 or 4 months have made plans after school and on the occasional weekend. She would call me when she was bored at work, and I would attempt to give her gym advice, and listen to her marital problems.

This mom is almost 10 years younger than I am, not that it matters, but I guess it's worth mentioning. So, her husband and Sarge work in the same field, but not in the same office, or on the same shift. Sarge also outranks him, so I'm sure that it makes him a little uncomfortable to socialize with us. Well, Sarge would rather not socialize with anyone, so it really is a non-issue.

I guess being young, the Mom is a little unhappy with where her life is going, or not going I guess. She is not quite 25, has 2 young children, stays home most of the day, and works at a retail job in the evenings several times a week. (I'm not knocking retail at all, I made my bones at a large multi-national book selling chain.) She mentioned to me that sometimes she lies in bed at night and thinks "So is this it? This is the rest of my life?" I'm guessing that she does not have any hobbies that she alone does that do not involve her husband or children. Which I believe is the key to my sanity and general happiness.

So what does this have to do with friends?

Well, recently there was an incident at Sarge's work. It's kind of a sensitive subject, and not something that should be getting around the base. Sarge told me about it, and he knows that I know better than to discuss his job and the doings on there with anyone else. I'm just the one person that he can talk with about things that are bothering him or stressing him out at work. It's basically my job, and it's one that I'm happy to do. And I'm careful to protect his confidence, or he may decide he has to keep all of his stress inside, and that's not healthy for anyone.

Well, the Mom mentions the incident to me one afternoon, and says that she heard about it from a friend of a friend who works at Sarge's office, and they were trying to find out if it was true, and who exactly was involved. Well naturally she had already asked her husband about it, and he got pretty upset that they were discussing the incident outside the office, and actively attempting to verify it. To me, other than being a sounding board for my husband, it really was none of my business. I claimed ignorance about the whole thing.

Ok, so now I have to go home and tell Sarge the scuttlebutt that is going around the base. He's not mad, but a little concerned that people should be discussing sensitive issues with us civilians in such an inappropriate manner, and he wants the Mom's husband to call him. Just to verify the people involved in this little chain of gossip. Lucky me, I get to tell the Mom that Sarge wants to talk to her husband about it.

This was about a week ago. We usually go to gymnastics or ice skating once a week together, and the kids usually have an afternoon play date, and this week. Nothing. I called her a couple of times to see if they wanted to come to the pool with us, or just to see what she was doing. Nope, too busy, too lazy, just gave the kids a bath. Excuses, excuses. I feel like I'm back in school, and I just don't have time for that kind of juvenile BS. The only one who is really going to lose out in this is Piko, because she wont get to see her friend anymore.

I suspect that her husband was quite ticked off at her for even asking him about it the first time, and then got even more upset at her for talking about it to me. And then to top it all off, my husband is one of the people directly involved in the incident (not that she knew that). And now she's mad at me. I guess I can kind of understand why, but really? I apologized to her just in case she was mad that I mentioned it to Sarge, and I made sure to mention to her husband that Sarge did not think that he was involved in the gossip.


Sarge feels bad, because as he puts it:
"I would hate for you to lose your *ONE* friend" And he really did emphasize the "one". Yeah thanks for your concern Sarge, but I just don't need that kind of shit.

So was I wrong to tell Sarge about it? Am I in the wrong at all?

Le Sigh, only one more week of pre-school, and then I guess it won't even be an issue anymore since they won't be going to the same kindergarten.

PAY ATTENTION!!!

Just a minor annoyance from the E-Bay world.

I've been listing a hoop of needlepoint canvases that I am brokering for a friend of a friend. Why is it that people do not read auction details?!?! I think I get about 8 or so emails asking if I combine shipping. DUH!! It says so right there!! What is the canvas count?? UM, 13, LIKE IT SAYS IN THE AUCTION!!!

AAAAAGH!! FRACKING PAY ATTENTION!!!!

But thanks for looking!! :)

Go Pies!

Now I know that this is an old game I'm talking about. We get them quite delayed here in the US.

My Pies came out ahead tonight after a nail biter of a first half against the Carlton Blues, 17.17 (119) to 14.11 (95)

The big news of the night though is that my favorite (hot) player Shane Wakelin kicked his first goal for the Pies in 121 games! Woooo!!! He's mainly a defensive player, usually on team goal, so he does not see that much of that end of the pitch.
Go Shane!

Edited to add this picture to prove to SheSaid that he is not a bear!


And another observation I made.
This is Travis Cloke

He's got a bit of "Greg Sanders" going on. Don't you think?

Maybe just me, but that's all I can think of whenever I watch him play. Ok, that's not *all* I think about.

de Gallo Dielemma

Darn kindergarten all to heck!! It's really messing up our travel plans! We really have to plan ahead now, and can't just take off whenever we want for however long we want to.

Just kidding!! I love that Piko is starting school. LOVE IT!!

Anyhoo, that is not the dilemma we(I)are having.

Booster seats.

We are traveling to Hawaii late in the summer to visit my family, and of course we don't pack up our booster seat for the trip. We have to make sure that there is room in the baggage allotment for GOLF CLUBS!! Anyway, I'm having my mom buy us a booster seat for our use while we're there, and then they can keep it at their house for whenever we come and visit. We used to have our old car seat there, but I'm sure that Piko 1) will not fit in it anymore, and 2) it will be more than 5 years old when we get there.

So, I'm wondering, all you parents out there in Bloggerland. Should I go with a full back booster? Like this

Or do the no back booster like this?


I looked around on the net, and did not really find any info that would lead me to believe that one is any safer than the other. Piko by the way is 38lbs, and 41" tall.

My gut instinct is to go with the full back model, it just seems safer to me. But the no back one is about 1/2 the price. Not that price is an issue when it comes to safety for my Pwessous Wittle Purl. Just that if both are equal in safety, then why not save a couple of bucks, and then Sarge and I can get popcorn while we watch TRANSFORMERS!! IN THE THEATRE!! Gads, I love family babysitters.

NICE!

Once again, via Strollerderby.

Piko de Gallo was quite the Laurie Berkner enthusiast in her earlier days, so it cracks me up to no ends to see this.

Mother's packing secrets.

For She Said.

Just the day after you had posted your part 2 sort of rant regarding packaging, my mom sends me a package.
Here she demonstrates her "green" packing method.

Yay! A package from Grams!! It's books!


And food!



Cookies!!

Not just any cookies either, CHOCOLATE DIPPED SHORTBREAD!!!!


Bloody fracking hell! I go to the gym for a reason WOMAN!
I love you mom.

So, OW! Right?

That's the tip of my index finger on my right hand, and my thumb. It's really all my fault. I refuse to wear a thimble when I sew, and I just finished this.

A pretty green quilt for my pretty green girl. This is only my second fully finished quilt ever. I have made others before, but I was very lazy about them. This time I was very careful with my cuts, tried to mind my seam allowances, and almost all of my patches lined up. I guess it does not really matter that much with this pattern, but I am getting alot better. And I also freehand, hand quilted it, which led to the lovely fingertip. I played around with the width of the binding, and went with 5 inches, but I think that I prefer a thinner edge, it is easier to finish, and I think I like a tighter rolled sort of look. I know that pink and red binding does not really go, but that's the fabric she picked out for it. As she said:
"Green is my favorite color, but I like pink and red too."

It made the perfect stage curtain today for an impromptu concert.

And then later for a nap.

Gone Fishin'

Well, not exactly, but it's SUMMER!
So we've been outside alot lately.




Be back soon with my Mother's day story.

Not Perfect

Piko's annoying habits. Yes, I'll be the first to admit that my child is not perfect. For one, she does not like potatoes. Not even french fries!!! She's an alien I swear!! She would also rather watch Mythbusters (Science YAY!), Surprise By Design (She loves that Robert Birdie), or Take Home Chef (Takes after mom, likes that Aussie accent)all day than anything else on TV. I'm actually quite glad of that, because The Wonder Pets have rotted my brain, Joe wears too much makeup, and she never wants to watch Lazytown and that hottie Sporticus.

Anyway, on to the annoying. And this is just a sample of the past couple of days.

The inability to close a door quietly. This has become more pronounced ever since Sarge had begun working nights. She'll be up in the morning, and I'll hear her opening and closing her door. Not quietly either, there must be some level of satisfaction with not quite slamming it, but closing it firmly. And to add another level of annoying gooeyness, she does a double close. You know, where the door bounces off the jam, and you have to pull it back again to close it. Then, there's something about the door knob that seems to fascinate her, sometimes I'll just hear "rattle, rat-rat-RATTLE, CLICK!!! rattle, rattle, CLICK! CLICK!!!!" AAAAAAAAAA!!!!!!!!!!!!!

Stating the obvious. Yes, I know she's 5, and that's what 5 year olds do. But this happens almost every morning. I'll get up, and see what she's doing, and then tell her I'm going downstairs to let the dog out. I come down, let Dog out, boot up the old claptrap of a compuper, get the morning paper, start the coffee. 20 minutes later, from the top of the stairs I'll hear:
"Mommy?.....Mommy......Mommy! Mommy?"
"YEEEES!?!"
"Are you downstairs?"
AAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAA!!!!!!!!!!!!!
Sometimes I'll get sarcastic and say no. But she's too smart for me! Can't trick her!
"YES YOU ARE!!!!!!"
Oh crap, Sarge is trying to sleep!

And what's up with not remembering to
1. Wipe after going #1
2. Flush the toilet
3. Wash your hands?
And then topping it off by coming back outside with the whole front of her dress stuffed into her underwear. OK, that last part is kind of funny. But I'm getting awfully tired of finding logs in the pool at bedtime that have been there since 7am.

de Gallo Family Dynamics

This is actually hilariously funny now, but trust me it was not funny when it happened.

Last night Sarge came home to get his dinner, and after he left I let Dog de Gallo out to do her nightly business. She came back in and then started upstairs as I was making the rounds locking doors, and turning off lights. She waited for me on the landing, and we started up to the bedroom.

I didn't really see what happened next, but caught the tail end of it.

The Cat came out of nowhere, and jumped on Dog. All I saw was teeth and claws. Cat did not actually get Dog, but she sure scared her. I guess Cat is usually in Piko's room when Dog and I go to bed, so Dog was not expecting the sneak attack. Poor Dog runs right into our bedroom and onto her bed. Cat went the other direction into the guest room.

A bit later as I'm settling in to do the crossword in bed (highlight of my day >dorky!<), it smells like poo! What the hell? Why does it smell like poo? I go check out the litter box, but that's not it, I just cleaned it. Get back into bed, must be my imagination. No, it still smells like poo. So I start looking around.

DOG! Why is there a nugget of poo on your bed!! Have you been eating your poo again?! CRAP!!! I stepped in it!!! F**K!!! IT'S ON THE BED!!!!! MOTHER LOVING...$#@**!!!!

So I'm traveling the upstairs scrubbing bits of poo off the carpet, stripping the bed, wiping Dog's butt. I checked her feet thinking that maybe she stepped on a fresh one when she went out. Nope, it was dingle berries, hanging on. Nice.

I had to remake the bed (which I hate doing on a regular non-poo day), set the poo sheets in the wash to soak overnight. Though I'm not sure I'll ever be able to use those sheets again. Wash my feet and hands, and change my clothes. Ugh. And then I was not able to finish the crossword.

Sarge gets into bed this morning, and I tell him that the cat literally scared the shit out of the dog. He can't stop laughing, and honestly neither can I.

Poor Dog, we have got to get rid of this cat.

Mother's Day Crap

Stroller Derby has a funny ongoing set of articles about the crap jewelry out there being offered for Mother's Day.

And I agree, that crap is FUU-uuuuugly!! Although I have to fess up that Sarge and I bought his mom and grandmother those birthstone pendants.

I remember the first Mother's Day after having Piko de G, Sarge and I were reading the Sunday paper, and I was looking at the advertising inserts. I warned him that he should never, ever, EVER! even think about buying me a "#1 MOM" anything. Barf. I would much rather prefer a bag of Lindt Dark Chocolate truffles. BLUE!! BLUE WRAPPER!!

Actually don't get me jewelry ever. I know, I'm crazy!

I'm not saying that Sarge has bad taste in jewelry, that is simply not the case. He has a very simple classic taste, and chooses items that have a longevity to them. And, it's not like I don't like jewelry, I like it very much. The thing is that I already have a ring for each hand, a very nice Hawaiian Bracelet(though it does not say Kuuipo), and some great pendants and chains. I'm afraid if I wear too much jewelry I'll end up looking like the teller at my bank. She has a ring(sometimes several) on each finger of both hands, about 30 bracelets on each arm, and enough bling around her neck to make Mr. T jealous. Not so much the look I'm going for. Jewelry is also such an expensive gift, that's a lot of money to spend on something I might not like, or use too often.

If you want to spend some buck on me, and make me happy buy me this, and give me a whole, uninterrupted day to go crazy on it! YEAH!

I'm so easy.

Sarge's "No-Friends Barrier"

How I ever managed to marry a man even more anti-social than I am is a true mystery to me.

I have witnessed Sarge's "No-Friends Barrier" technique in person. I have heard tell of it based on descriptions given of my husband (people say he's really quiet, act all surprise when I tell them he's a barrel of laughs), but never have I witnessed it first hand. Until now.

This happened the other day while we were out in our back yard enjoying the nice weather, and freshly mown grass. Our neighbor wandered over to chat with us. The neighbor works in the same area as Sarge, but on a different "team", different "job", and different schedule. Sarge also out-ranks him, but is not his direct supervisor.

Anyhoo. The method.

The neighbor was talking about something, and mentioned Sarge as an example. He does not call Sarge, "Sarge". He calls him "Master Sargeant de Gallo". In fact I have noticed that he always calls him that whenever we see him. He lives right next door, we see him all the time, and I don't imagine them moving anytime soon.

That would be like if a mother of one of Piko's friends called me Mrs. de Gallo all the time instead of using my fist name. Weird.

Later I asked Sarge why he didn't just tell the neighbor to call him Sarge.
"Nope" he says, "that just encourages friendliness, and I just don't need that."

I know that he needs to maintain a certain level of separation between himself and another person of a lower rank, but wow. Just wow. I have to bow down to that level of Anti.