Well, they're there......

Two of my kids have moved to North Carolina--Wake Forest, to be exact. A group of five people--along with four cats--just packed up and moved. One of them has a job. The new house they (actually, the one with the job) bought in Hattiesburg less than a year ago is on the market. Which means they are still responsible for the mortgage payment....

So. They've been in Wake Forest for a week and a day. As far as I can tell, they are: Renting a house that is way too expensive for them. Renting a house that is way too big for them. Looking for jobs....while renting this big, expensive house. Checking out shopping centers....while looking for jobs and renting this big, expensive house. I could go on, but--it doesn't get any better.

Have they lost their minds?

Will they all stay at least a year? (If they don't, the one with the job will have to pay back her relocation money.)

Will the MS house sell, quickly?

....Why am I worried? They made the choice. They're smart and capable. They're happy. They're excited.

Yet I can't help wondering--have they lost their minds!

The new advertising campaign

Yes, NOLA is trying to get back into the tourism business. After reading their new ideas/slogans, I can't wait for Monday because you can bet your bottom dollar that local talk radio and TV will be all a-buzz about those slogans. I have little doubt people will be saying they feel: amused, insulted, astonished, indignant, ashamed, proud.... Take your pick.

Nothing can get their fellow citizens' dander up better than New Orleans drawing attention to itself. Well....actually, another local--Britney Spears--runs a close second.

Below is an idea of what the new ad campaign will be like.


(New Orleans, LA) -- The New Orleans Convention and Visitors Bureau has unveiled a new advertising campaign. Officials say it is designed to remind the world New Orleans is truly unique and authentic. The campaign also seeks to acknowledge and even use humor to look at the post-Katrina rebuilding. The overall slogan is "Forever New Orleans" with sub-themes of "New Orleans is Open. To Just About Anything," "Soul is Waterproof'," "Old World, New Promise," and "Dry' We're never dry."

Copyright 2007 Metro Networks Communications Inc., A Westwood One Company

Ummm....

I recently read an article stating how even though the Democrats are in control of Congress, we shouldn't expect any earth shattering changes because the majority of them share the view of the majority of the rest of us Americans on what we hold our government responsible for. The article went on to explain how--in the author's opinion--when compared to most other countries in the world, more Americans feel a personal, as opposed to a government, responsibility to provide for themselves. Sort of like....level the playing field, give me an equal opportunity, then get out of my way, and let me go at it--I guess.

If the author's observations are true, I'm sure the reasons are complicated and multi-layered, but that's not why I referenced the article. What brought the article to mind was Bush's State of the Union speech, and the fact that he didn't make mention of the on-going recovery of the Gulf Coast.

Should he have? Has it been long enough that individuals should be taking responsibility for themselves? Hasn't recovery money been allocated? And, if so, isn't the money there, or here, or available when a plan has been formulated, has a plan been formulated? Can New Orleans be protected? Should New Orleans be protected? Doesn't Bush have more pressing things on his "to-do" list than the Gulf Coast?

All the above questions (and plenty more) are still being discussed around here. Even so, after Tuesday night's speech, it was interesting to hear how tentative many people in my city were to voice their opinion on "W" not mentioning our area. (After a while it becomes whining, doesn't it?) This hesitancy caused me to remember the above mentioned article. Most of us, like the rest of the country, believe in self-sufficiency, resiliency....all that good stuff the article made mention of. But, there are myriad ways of expressing those traits.

A navy veteran, living in a FEMA trailer (or a house you wouldn't want your dog to live in) because he's lost everything. A retired couple, living in a FEMA trailer (or a moldy, mildewed home that's in tatters) because they've lost everything. Families, living in a FEMA trailer not enrolling their children in school because they still have hopes of going home. Children, living in FEMA trailers not going outside to play because there is nowhere to play outside. And....if there was space to play, God only knows who's living in the surrounding trailers because FEMA won't give BR a list so we'll know if there are those close by that the children should be protected from. The list goes on and on.

It may not be recognizable at first, but I think you'd be hard pressed to find better living examples of self-sufficiency and resiliency than many, many displaced New Orleanians. Just like with everything else, they are doing it in their own way. And, God bless them.

As for our president not using a few words to let many, many struggling souls know they are not forgotten....I'll just sum it up with what I've heard a surprising number of people around town say (some being Bush supporters)....

With due respect to the office--he's a friggin' idiot.

Travelin' down the Blues Highway

Saints: 14

Bears: 39

Oh, well. Bless the boys in black and gold, anyway.

There has been some cool music written down this way to honor the amazing ride the Saints have been on this/last season. Maybe the song below can be resurrected next year.

Go here and then click on "Download Super Bowl Mambo Here!!!

The Saints are going Bear hunting this weekend......

In the sneaux snow!


BELIEVE!

RV-ing

Last weekend, this movie was on PayPerView for $1.99, so I rented it.

Why, you ask?

Because we (J & I & #3 son) lived the RV lifestyle for close to ten years. While I'll admit that it had its moments, on the whole, it was hell.

Think about it. Moi was stuck in the RV, homeschooling #3 son while J was out and about working. OK! So he was working -- but, still, he wasn't stuck in the RV.

Think about what I just said: RV. Nine year old son. Husband gone all day (or night, if he was working the night shift). RV park. ....Get the picture?

We have lots of memories of those dazes -- lots of memories. We worked (and pulled the RV) all across this wonderful country. We met lots of people -- all memorable in their own ways. So this movie provided me with some laughs.

Living on the road had its challenges, but the straw that broke this camel's back was trying to keep up two households. While traveling, we, of course, kept our home. (Thank the good Lord for that!) And....while we were traveling, at least one (at times, two) of our children were living in the house while they were....in college, working, in college while working, working while in college.

What this meant was that I had two households to oversee -- one on the ground and one on the road. It wasn't fun.

For the last two years, J has been working in BR, just down the road from our house. But....that 5th wheel is still parked in the back yard -- waiting.

I'm glad our neighbors aren't close enough to hear me saying, "Screw you," as I pass the trailer.

The $102.54 ham......

Yep. That's what our Christmas ham cost, and....I gotta tell you -- it was good, but not that good.

Of course, it wasn't supposed to cost that much (it was just a HoneyBaked ham, after all). Actually, it should have been free, because it was a gift from my brother. But......

I learned two lessons from the experience. First: when you know something isn't right -- do something about it then! Don't take the lazy way out and wait till you get home and call. Second: (This should probably be first, but....that goes to show you how I found myself in the situation I ended up in.) So, second (or first, as the case may be....) have an idea how much things you pay for should actually cost. D'oh!

These were two lessons I knew I needed to learn, and hopefully, I have.

Here's what happened (in a nutshell). My brother sent us a ham as a Christmas gift. I went to the store to pick it up -- along with lots of other stuff I grabbed while waiting. When my turn came at the cashiers, she inadvertently charged me for the ham (which my brother had already paid for). At the time, I thought that's what was happening (why, oh why, didn't I say something then??). When I got to the car, I checked, and....yep! she had indeed charged me for the ham. Why, oh why, didn't I just get out of the car, walk back into the store and get it fixed? Who the hell knows!

When I got home and called the store, instead of receiving a credit, I ended up being charged AGAIN. After many phone calls, and lots of time wasted on the phone, it's settled. Thank Gawd. But it could have been so much easier if I'd just done what I should have, when I should have.

Oh, well. You live, you learn.

Instead of calling my brother and blessing him out for not having the ham delivered, and making me go to the store to pick up the ham......and blaming him for the whole problem, I just took responsibility and, hopefully, learned from the whole experience.

I'm have no doubt my brother would be pleased -- were he to know. But, next Christmas, I think I'll get him to have the ham delivered.

I'm becoming a tea drinker......

I still must have my morning pot of good strong coffee, but....my children brought me some lovely English teas back from London, and I'm having such fun trying them all out. Celestial Seasonings is my usual brand of choice but I must say that these English teas are tip top.

My only problem has been that the English teas give instructions for brewing a pot of tea. I brew it by the mug. On the boxes, the English instructions say to brew a mug of tea - "....to the strength required." How the hell do I know what strength I require without being told?

Is it an American thing (or, as J tells me -- the German part of me) that I want directions on how to do unfamiliar things (like brew British tea)? I want directions, rules. Give me a framework and I can get started. Now....I can't promise that I'll stay within that framework when all is said and done (I do like choices), but....without a frameword it's damn hard for me to get started.

So....I looked up Whittard teas online, and on their website I found my answer. Somewhere on their site it said that "old man Whittard" (they called him that -- not me!) ....that old man Whittard said that brewing tea should be part of the ceremony of the tea drinking process. That you learn, as you brew, how you like your tea. (Now I'm paraphrasing here -- in a way that 'old man Whittard' might not have agreed with, but....I am an/a 'Merican, after all.)

That's all it took. I understand now. I'm supposed to learn by doing. I can do that. But, it would have been so much easier for me if they'd just printed to brew a mug of tea for "....2 to 3 minutes. or ....4 to 6 minutes." Then....I could have started to enjoy the tea drinking process much easier and sooner.

For what it's worth....I did pick up one little ditty from their website that will probably stick with me like the "Hide from wind. Run from water." saying resounds in my mind. Here's my new saying. "The smaller the leaf, the stronger the tea." ....Who knew?

Let me quickly say that as far as shopping is concerned, LONDON ROCKS!

I want all my Christmas presents to come from London from now on....

Guilt trip......

For the last two days, every time I look out my back doors I see a fat little hummingbird buzzing around the hummingbird feeder -- the feeder that I've yet to take down. ....What's with me this year! I can't seem to get anything done in a timely manner.

There is food in the feeder, but I'm not sure how old it is. Not a good thing. This is the first hummingbird I've seen in quite a while. Not one hummingbird chose to visit my feeder all last summer....which is very unusual (and I did keep it filled with fresh food). Usually there are several who visit regularly. Is there a neighbor who's enticing them with trendy, upscale hummingbird food from Whole Foods? Of course, the persnickety little beasts sweet little birds would prefer the healthy organic stuff. So would I.

Well....instead of sitting here writing about it, I guess I'll get my butt in gear and go out and....clean the feeder, and fill it with fresh food. Damn! First I have to make it. Frickin' hummingbirds.

At least it's a beautiful day. 52 degrees at the moment.

Twelfth Night has come and gone......

....and I haven't managed to pack away our Christmas decorations yet. (!!) I have collected them from all over the house and piled them in the middle of the floor. So, at least they are resting in one place....ready to be packed in their boxes and carted to their resting place.

I think part of the problem is that we celebrated Christmas at least three times this year. Once....before the kids left for London (to give them their presents -- money to spend in London). Again....on the day itself. And, yet again....on New Year's Eve (when the kids came and gave us the presents they bought us in London). Can we stop now?

Maybe I'll get around to hauling all the stuff out of the house today. Or.... better yet, maybe I'll go see if the King Cakes are out.

Taking stock......

I had no intention of making New Year's resolutions this year -- I rarely do. But.... for some reason I find I cannot resist the requisite year-end life review. I imagine it's because I cannot escape alllllllll the talk about it. It's almost as if it's programmed into us to stop and take stock at certain points in our lives.

So...... here's mine.

I'm beyond a point in my life where I need to move on. I was working on doing this a while back, but Katrina interrupted that plan -- funny how a disaster (even if it only touches the fringes of your life) can play havoc with your plans.

So, here I sit at the beginning of 2007, in the same predicament I've been in for many, many years. One that's not going to change. I've finally realized/accepted that. So, it's time (actually, past time) for me to move on. It's sad, yet necessary.

I'm not sure what I'm going to do, but I'm going to do something by year's end -- that's my deadline. I'm looking into a post-graduate certification program in New York. ....Wouldn't you just know that what I'm looking for is offered in one of the most expensive cities (housing-wise) in the U.S.?

If that program doesn't come through -- and based on my age and the years I've been out of the work place, I wouldn't bet on it happening -- I may just move up there anyway. Is that not the most absurd statement you've heard lately?

When you think about it, it's downright scary what can be done online. Last night I came within a hair's breath of renting an apartment online for three or so months in New York. I've been researching for months now, so I have bookmarks at the ready.

I cannot get this idea out of my mind. Is it mid-life crisis of some kind or is it something I need to do? (One thing I know for sure -- it's not menopause.) ;)

It's almost as if it is someting that I must do, although it makes no sense -- and I realize that. When I try and logic my way out it, the reasons to go seem (to me) to out weigh the reasons to stay. It's like a compulsion.

So, at the beginning of a new year, I sit here with the knowledge that what I feel compelled to do makes little sense -- logically. Yet, for some reason, I feel I must try. If you believe in signs (as I do), I've gotta tell you....the signs are in my face to move on. Trying to ignore them or tell them you'll deal with them later (as I've done for years) isn't working anymore.

So....I'm moving forward one step at a time. I may end up settling for something further down the list, but....for the moment I'm gonna start at the top and work my way down (if necessary).

Stay tuned. It'll be a slow process, unless I decide tonight (or tomorrow night) to click those computer keys that will magically allow (or force, as the case might be) me to wing my way into a new start.

To ESPN et al.

BITE ME!



The man is in the house!

Here's hoping BAMA's gonna be competitive once again.

ROLL TIDE ROLL!