Friends Always Make the Weekend Fly By!

Friday night was the bomb hanging out with my friends at the tavern. So long since I'd seen them so it was hard to fully catch up with all.  Son Sam even joined us. At one point a drunken fool draped his arm around me and was making lascivious comments to me. Sam immediately said "Uh that's my mom so watch it."  That took care of that matter!!

Ended up leaving after 11 and going to bed around 12:30.  You know, the fact I get less sleep turns into more of a hangover than drinking. Took my aspirin and water before bed so no headache but I was sure dragging yesterday.

Received a surprise call from sis Julie, who was at Arlene's house. They invited me to lunch so I cleaned myself up and joined up with them for a lunch at Parkers in Castle Rock. I love that place - always great food. We ate, we talked, and it was nice catching up.  Julie even brought me some river rocks for my painting projects.

After, I swung by Walmart for groceries then went home and took a much needed nap!

Last night I sliced up red onion and, along with shredded carrots, put those in a pickling sauce to sit overnight. I really love chicken banh mi sandwiches so that will be on the menu today.

This morning I slept in then started a load of laundry before going to town on my rocks.  As always, I'm avoiding cleaning my room but I MUST do it today!!  It's been the thorn in my side for so long that it's just got to be done.

Still browsing POF as my side hobby for entertainment. Humans are funny people!

Well although Sam promised to mow the yard for his ma, I've not yet seen him. Therefore, it appears mowing will on the menu for today.

Random Reflections on Being Single

Friday could not come fast enough!  Highlights of this week included:

Had a second date last Saturday with New Guy.  Things were going fine until Wednesday when he became incommunicado until I received a text that said he was very busy.  This is after two weeks of texting and 2-hour long conversations.  Okay then, moving along so New Guy is now Disappear Guy so I’m on to greener pastures.

Former BF saw me on-line so sent me a few messages proclaiming anger and misunderstanding over our break up.  And that it was my fault and I need to see a psychiatrist to figure out my problems.  Okay then.  Thankfully I’m a tolerant person and simply wished him well.  Sad situation when in order to make myself happy it resulted in the sadness of another person.  But as I’ve learned in the last year (due to my therapy along with self-reflection and a whole lot of damn thinking), one cannot forego their own happiness in order to make another person happy. 

 

My perusal of the on-line dating site has been off and on.  In the last two weeks, I’ve uninstalled and reinstalled the app three times.  Began getting a ton of messages from a variety of men – age 40 to 70.  Some seemed nice, acceptable, tame; others began with lines such as “do you like to cuddle?” or “you are a hot, pretty lady – would really like to meet up with you.”  Ugh.  I have to say it appears to be more for entertainment value than meeting my soul mate.

Tonight I’m meeting up with my pals at a local bar to eat dinner, drink cocktails (well, beer actually), and shoot the shit.  Will be a great opportunity to vent about single life, dating, work, and life in general.

Tomorrow will be a day for my nails as well as talking son Sam into mowing my overgrown yard.  If he is unable I will simply have to take the mower by the horns and do it myself.  The backyard is so overgrown I can no longer see my Stubbs when he goes outside.

Have a great weekend readers!!!

St. Helens Stories

Weekend over already!  It was pretty relaxing other than second date with new guy on Saturday.  Drove to St. Helens and was given a tour of the city, including the marina which was scenic.

New Guy is a St. Helen's boy born and bred so has lots of stories about his community. At one point we drove by a house (or was it a wrecking yard?) that contained a pink kid-like drag car. I mentioned it and he told me a dad had built it for his kids.  Apparently this dad was really mean which later resulted in two of his teen sons killing him, burying his body in the barn, then having a party on top of the floor under which mean dad was buried.  Wow!  Talk about small town legend.

After the town cruise we wound up for dinner at a teriyaki place.  Great food and great conversation.  After dinner he took me over to see his '70 Chevelle in storage then to his place to see the '69 Chevelle he's owned since high school.

His place was a typical bachelor's pad with lots of car stuff and Chevelle pics.  Yes Chevelle obsessed, which is fine because there are a lot worse habits to be addicted.  One of the pluses about New Guy is his closest friends are those he's known his whole life. Speaks well of a person who has long-term friends.

Nice evening and the drive from my place to his was shorter than I thought.

Pretty lazy day today aside from a trip hiding rocks at Willow Grove then stopping at Walmart and Target before coming home.

I tell myself to go to bed by 10pm; it's now almost 11 and I need to be moving.  Have a super week fellow divas!!

Inspiration from Odd Places

Inspiration comes from different places. Lately what's been on my mind due to the new guy, along with BF Lynn, has been Chevelles!  Odd I know but it drove me to create a rock for the man. Not perfect but it'll do!

The River Keeps My Head On Straight

There's something to be said about the sun, sand, and surf that can bring peace and calm to a person.

Today was one of those days when I over thought conversations, actions, words, and situations.  Overthinking can be mentally exhausting.  To get my head back on straight, after work I threw on my overalls, grabbed Stubbs then headed out to Willow Grove.  It was about 63 degrees, sunny and gorgeous out.

I walked, picking up various driftwood and rocks, tucking them inside my beach bag to use in future craft projects.  Stubbs ran and peed then ran and peed some more.

I also spent some time thanking the Lord for such a beautiful day. It's funny how a person can get wrapped in their own little corner of the universe and forget how many blessings we have for which to be thankful.

Returning home son Sam called and invited me to dinner - his treat.  We ended up going to a close by Mexican restaurant for dinner.  Great food, great conversation, and a chance to catch up with my son.

Capped the evening off with more entertaining conversations with not only BF Lynn but also the new guy I'm getting to know.

Once my over thinking stopped, it wound up being an excellent day!

First Date Follies

A week ago I decided to play the field and signed up again for on-line dating. It was pretty entertaining - tons of men checking the 'wants to meet me' box along with many messages.  It's always hard to sort through possible potential compared to sex-driven psychos.

However, there was one guy who appeared to be normal.  We messaged, we text, then we began talking every night for 2+ hours.  He asked me out for Saturday and I agreed.

It's interesting when you've had in-depth conversations about everything under the sun yet you haven't met. When Saturday arrived, I was nervous, sweaty, and wound up.

We survived our face reat time and have already set up a second date for next Saturday.

Here's to getting to know someone!!

 

Puts A Little Poppins in My Step!

Yesterday I grabbed several rocks from a dry pond at work. Got the approval to take them so it wasn't an issue that I was out browsing the stones and stuffing them into my lunch bag.

Came home and promptly went to work decorating them with a Mary Poppins theme.  Once done, I posted them on the Facebook site.

One of the readers messaged me to see if I could let her know where I hid the spoonful of sugar rock.  Her son has a variety of ailments and each time he has to take medicine he has a small glass of sugar water.  She thought he would enjoy the rock.

Well based on that story I told her I would deliver the rock to her!  After work I stopped outside of her apartment where her daughter met me to get the rock. I asked her if she liked hiding the rocks and she said yes so I gave her all the ones I had to hide.  That sure put a smile on her face!

Later on line I saw that someone has found one of the rocks in Safeway so they didn't waste any time hiding them.

When Pity Turns to Psychology

I’m not sure how many of you have watched Brokeback Mountain, but if you haven’t you are missing out.  I’d only seen it once and decided to watch it again on Saturday.  Such a wonderful, sad love story.  Of course I bawled my eyes out at the end.  Heath Ledger hugging Jake Gyllenhall’s jean jacket.  Torture!!! 

It got me to thinking about "The One" and having a little bit of a pity party.  I look around at my long-time friends and family and they have all found “The One.”  What’s wrong with me?  Why have I been gypped from finding the one for me?  Lord knows I’ve tried – three marriages, assorted boyfriends, and endless blind dates and for what?  Nothing.  Alone.  Just me and my dog. 

All this pity led me back to browsing the on-line dating apps as much from boredom as from curiosity.  What is out there?  Who is out there?  Could there be The One for me?

Yep, that ain’t gonna happen.  Some of those people scare me!!  Shallow, superficial, desperate, lonely – these descriptions do not fit me but certainly fit the majority of the men who tried to contact me.

The more I thought about it, the more I decided that when I least expected it I had found The One.  And I need to treat that one with kid gloves, realizing The One needed kindness, compassion, trust, a listening ear, regular compliments, honesty, and respect.

As you may have guessed, The One is me.  Just hanging out by myself is far more entertaining than being forced to have a conversation with someone simply because they are of the male species.  Or dumbing myself down to make it through a conversation about taxidermy, muscle cars, or the high brow acting career of Steven Segal. 

At some point in my life, God will bring me The One but until that time, I’m going to let Him work on me and the areas of my life that need forgiveness rather than blame.  So what if my love life hasn’t been successful?  Even though my romantic partners have not panned out, there are countless people in my life who love me unconditionally.  Why do I need The One when I have the many?

Here’s to on-going self-improvement, self-esteem, and as always maintaining my sense of humor in this crazy world! 

 

Lazy Days and Sundays

This weekend has been pretty darn lazy.  When I have no plans, I usually end up crafting and cooking, which was no exception this weekend.

Made shortbread cookies on Friday, two loaves of pumpkin bread yesterday, and today I painted rocks. Fit in some movies along with naps and by God Monday is almost here!!

Sun, Sand and Stubbs

Spent the afternoon with a Stubbs at Willow Grove today. Thankfully the rain had stopped and didn't return until after we had left.

Pulling the Plug on the Predator

Facebook is my guilty pleasure. I post goofy TGIF memes, say happy birthday to friends, play trivial quizzes, and catch up with family.  I also receive friend requests from people - usually co-workers, friends of friends, or at times people I don't know, who are promptly deleted.

The other day a man friend requested me who I thought was a friend of someone I knew.  It wasn't. This guy started FB messaging me.  Obviously a single dude my age who was trying to make a connection with other singles via Facebook.

He didn't expect that I'm a smart cookie. I asked him a lot of questions and his answers were:

• Wife was murdered 5 years ago in Berlin;
• Son hasn't spoken to him in 3 years;
• Only child;
• Parents are dead;
• Works in Afghanistan in the service but is from Ohio;
• Is 53 but has only been in the service 15 years, which made him 38 when he joined;
• Hasn't been on a date or had a girlfriend for 5 years since his wife died.

So, along with Facebook Google is also my friend. In another life I was born to be a detective. I searched this guy's info - nothing.  No family, tragic events, and shady military history added up to a big mystery.

At that point he began referring to me as Hon so the jig was up.  Does any of his info sound believable?  Perhaps to a desperate single woman but not to this diva.  I blocked that Internet predator faster than my Stubbs wolfing down a Milk Bone!

While it was an entertaining event, I won't accept friend requests from people I don't know again. A little too creepy for my taste!!

Hanging with Paul and Joanne

Today was a very long day at work so I relaxed tonight by watching a Paul Newman/Joanne Woodward movie From the Terrace (long and boring) and surfing Pinterest. Here are a few items of interest:

Names.org.  in my past life I was a shepherd.  Gee what a coincidence!!

Makeup memes.

That was it!  Good night all!!

Sunshine and Wicker on this Monday

Highlight of my Monday was snagging some free wicker furniture!!

Co-worker Tiffany was moving from her place and there was wicker porch furniture that had been left by one of her previous roommates.  I had seen it before and told her if she ever got rid of it I would take it. Well that's just what happened!!

Tiff moved out officially last Friday.  Today after work we made a rendezvous at her old place in hopes the wicker remained. Score it did!!!  Now to get it into the car.

It was obvious we were not engineers as we struggled to fit a loveseat, two chairs and a table into the car. We pulled, we pushed, we wrangled.  The best we could do was fit the couch, one chair and the table. Tiff was kind enough to take the other chair and haul it to work so it can be taken home tomorrow.  

This was how my drive home played out. 

Once home the furniture was unloaded and placed on the front porch. Ended up moving existing decor around then decided to go all out and brave the downstairs closet for pillows and throws. 

This closet seems to be the one where we toss everything. About a year or so ago I actually cleaned it out; however, once again it has become akin to the proverbial junk drawer with all sorts of odds and ends winding up in that tiny space. 

Digging through the closet amounted to me laying on my stomach over a variety of items. Mismatched shoes, cast off clothes from the boys, boxes, and a stuffed snowman softened my bones as I reached toward the back to grab a perfect pillow. I grabbed, I flung, and finally it was time to get myself up out of there, which was a lot easier said than done. 

Gripping the wall, my body moved slowly to my knees while visions of tomorrow's headline rose in my thoughts. "Middle-Aged Woman Breaks Leg in Hoarder's Closet."  Or better still "Trapped Woman Perishes After Choking On Christmas Snowman."  Yep such is my life. 

The good news is I made it out alive and continued on my redecorating.  Fluffed up the wicker, added throws, burlap, driftwood and pillows, and the task was done. Moved the previous bench, a wooden number with the carving of two horse heads (a castoff from horsey sister Eilene, which never fit into my beach theme) further down the porch. Placing a large driftwood plank on the seat, an aqua throw was carefully folded to camouflage the battling horses.  

After a final sweeping, the deed was done. Turned out pretty good if I do say so myself. Now to figure out where to put the second chair that will be arriving tomorrow.  Please say a small prayer that nothing will be needed from closet hell which will require my return to the abyss.

On a side note, the sun was out today, which puts me in a much better mood. Despite a regular intake of Vitamin D and B12, gray rainy weather just doesn't sit well with me.  Perhaps spring is finally here. And the best part?  Son Sam stopped by and mowed my front yard with a promise to mow the back yard and weedeat tomorrow!!  Life is certainly good!!

A Meringue Kind of Weekend

Last week was so packed full of work activities that I made up for it this weekend by relaxing.

Friday night, after having two nails come off, the evening was spent clipping and picking off all my nails because why not?  Hello short stubby fingers!

Slept in Saturday then spent the morning cleaning the kitchen, vacuuming, and the usual chores.  After looking at my little scruff meister Stubbs, I decided a trim and bath was in order. Mainly trimmed his face and feet then gave him a soapy scrubbing. He smells so much better but that trim job wasn't so great - he looks like a pudgy puff ball with four twigs for legs. Poor little pup.

Then of course with all that dog hair my allergies came to a head.  Took a shower then downed a benadryl to control the symptoms.  It was soon naptime.

That afternoon I made shrimp pasta salad along with some meringue cookies with lemon curd filling.  Yummy but too many for me so to off work they will go.

Yesterday I dinked around home then stopped at Goodwill to see if there were any acceptable movies. Snagged one of my favorites that I hadn't seen in a very long time - Glengarry Glen Ross, a David Mamet written film about salesmen and filled with swearing.  Al Pacino, Alec Baldwin, Kevin Spacey, Jack Lemmon - beyond excellent cast. It was good but not as great as my memory recalled.

And here it is Monday once again. Back to the grind, which should be busy since spring break is upon us.