Change: constant.

Lately I've been thinking a lot about change. And how it can be so gradual. Who hasn't felt completely overwhelmed with an event, only to later look back and think, "Why was I so freaked out about that?"

Like being a new parent...I remember thinking what have I gotten myself into? Will I ever feel "normal" again? Will I ever be able to shower? Go out? SLEEP? And guess what....Time passed and I figured out how to shower on a regular basis and time to time actually slept through the night.

But at the moment when the new born was home for the first time, I felt completely out of whack and overwhelmed.

I adapted. I changed.

Or when I moved. I wondered if our new place would ever feel like "home" and then one day I pulled into the driveway after a long day and thought "Home sweet home." How did that happen? My good friend change helped.

Benjamin Franklin said: When you are finished changing, you are finished.

So as I get ready to flip the calendar over to a new year, I will embrace the changes that come in 2011. It proves I'm still ticking.

Am I on candid camera?

Have they decided to relaunch the oh-so-funny show?

So after a long day at work, (which should be it's own blog entry. I realize I haven't given it proper props. Quick summary: working at a local community paper covering lifestyle and culture of the county. I am thrilled to be finally putting my journalism degree to use....and get to meet some interesting and kind people that I otherwise wouldn't have met. I'll write more later.)

ANYWAY....so it's Christmas Eve-Eve and I'm finished with work and stop by the grocery store for a few things and find out they are out of butter. I need butter. I have to make my grandmother's famous potato recipe and it practically uses a stick of butter per serving. How can they be out of butter?

I'm heading home, feeling happy (but yet frustrated with lack of butter) when I receive a call from Brian.

"When are you going to be home?" he asks. I tell him I'm about 5 minutes away.

"Okay," he says. "Don't park in the garage though. The dogs peed all over the presents under the tree and I've stacked them in the garage."

WHAT?? Wait a second....what???

So, yes, I come home to urine soaked gifts in the garage and a mess under the tree. Upon discovering the pee, Brian realized it had soaked under the adjacent rug as well. The dogs (and by dogs I mean Lucy, the repeat offender) must have used this spot for awhile, because there are now LARGE pie-plate size black spots on the wood floor from where her urine sat, unnoticed for days? weeks?

Breathe. Breathe.

Meanwhile, I go to investigate the gift damage. Luckily, most items were wrapped in boxes so the actual contents were okay. I did have to wash a few items of clothing that Brock was receiving. "Merry Christmas! Your gift is in the dryer."

Now, Brian and I have to rewrap the gifts. But do we really? Would it be wrong to traipse in and out of the garage when it's time for another gift?

This morning, probably because they were jealous that the dogs received all the attention for the present fiasco, I woke to cat pee on the mud room floor.

Remind me again why we have pets?

At least the cats had the decency to pee on flooring that is easily cleaned.

Once I cleaned up the early morning pee, I go to get a cup of coffee only to find that the coffee maker isn't working. And the Christmas lights aren't working. And the fridge is off. And gosh it's cold in here. Oh of course! The heat won't turn on.

Okay candid camera. Show your face. Don't ruin any more of my Christmas.

Just incase, I'm bracing myself for the next logical event: the crashing of the Christmas tree.

It's really only a matter of time. The tree we happened to pick out leans a bit (okay a lot) to one side. Straightening it out involved using stacks of magazines and free weights to hold down the base.

Merry Christmas everyone!

A Public Service Announcement:

It is perfectly acceptable to begin decorating for the Christmas Holidays. It's wonderful to spread cheer in your neighborhood with festive lighting and whimsical characters.

However, please remove the rotting jack-o-latern from your front porch, and the scarecrow sign from your front door. You should never-ever-ever overlap holiday decorations.

As cute as the pumpkin bag stuffed with leaves once was, when you break out the moving reindeer, it's time to retire the pumpkin.

Thank you for your understanding.

I've never....

I've never played a round of golf and I've never run out of gas. I realize those are two completely unrelated activities, but one almost happened yesterday.

When I went to go run some errands yesterday afternoon, I turned on my car in the garage and saw this:






That's right. 0 miles 'til empty.

Perhaps I should have stayed home, but I was feeling daring and decided to go ahead and push my luck. Plus, the gas station is less than two miles from my house, so if worse came to worse, I could be one of those poor souls you see carrying a red gas-can down the highway.

Of course, the stop-light-gods were working against me. I had to stop and wait at the two stop lights between my house and the gas station.

I turned off the heat and the radio. I am fairly certain that the radio runs off the battery, but I thought it wouldn't hurt to turn it off.

I coasted down hills and up hills as far as I could go.

I was living on the edge.

AND I made it. Suckers! 0 miles 'til empty....whatever! Now I know how far I can push my empty gas tank. I wonder if it will display negative miles....because what's the point of 0, if they don't really mean it?

Crossed the line.

When I worked in retail, my Thanksgiving holidays were always a bit "sad". I knew I'd have to be rested and ready to open the store at 6am for those Early Bird Specials. As much as I dreaded it, it was at least doable. Now days, stores are opening on "Black Friday" earlier and earlier....I've seen advertisements for 4am openings.

But this takes the cake. OPEN ON THANKSGIVING! Is nothing sacred anymore? I lost some respect for Old Navy on this one. I believe they are under the impression: Open and they will come. I urge you to resist the temptation for screaming deals on fleece and denim. Wait until the civilized hour of 4am on Friday. Instead, spend Thanksgiving hanging out with those you love, or at least can tolerate. Trust me. You will remember those moments for a much longer time than the $2 Hoodie your scored while your turkey charred in the oven.

BFF LYLAS 4EVR

Happiness is when one of your oldest and dearest friends comes to visit. It makes you feel like you are 12 again, back when you were goofy and silly. Who am I kidding? I'm still goofy and silly and with Fran I have a partner in crime.

We even got crafty and built replacement noise canceling headphones to replace the ones she left on the plane. We are a resourceful duo. Don't be getting all jealous. For a small fee, I'd be happy to make you a pair of sweet recycled jar headphones. (In all honesty, they actually worked. When she had them on, I tried to talk to her and she couldn't hear.)

We spent much of the weekend reminiscing and jamming out to Journey and Chicago. Having a friend that gets you, and understands your crazy thoughts and feelings, is a gift that I cherish.

Tuning out but ready to tune in....

Enough already! I can't wait for tomorrow (Election Day) to be over so our radio and TV waves are no longer filled with negative, hateful and confusing commercials.

What will play in their place? How will the media survive without them? Oh. I know...it's time to break out the holly and the bells. It's time for Christmas Commercials, my most favorite time of the year.

I'm not kidding. I love the way Christmas/Holiday commercials make me feel. All cozy and warm with the hint of excitement.

This one can still make me choke up a bit. So does this one. Notice I didn't list any Macy's, Kohls or Wal-Mart commercials. Retailers need to go back to the classic styles. Give us meatier commercials! Draw us in....make us remember, make us feel.

A must read.

Wow. I don't recall ever reading a news story like this one.

Seattle Times Article

Is it true? Was it Kenny's mind playing tricks on him? I have often had weird visions in my dreams, and have chalked them up to just that. Dreams. I have wanted to believe that my dreams were actual messages from loved ones. Maybe they were......

Any thoughts?

Surprisingly, no saga.

He did not make the JV team. Only 12 kids did. Instead, he is one of 36 kids on the C Team. The last time I checked, the game of basketball requires five players on the court at a time. How will they manage a roster of 36? It will also be interesting to see how many C Team players quit because they didn't make the star team. Maybe the roster will get smaller.

We are growing up. And by we, I mean my son and me. Brock and I took the news well. I think it especially helped to see that many talented kids were on the C Team, even some talented 8th graders. The process seemed as fair as it could be. No dads on the side lines picking their favorites. No cliques. No secret meetings. Just good ol' fashioned school sports.

Phew. I was prepared for a storm of drama. Instead, I was met with a gentle breeze that didn't even ruffle our feathers.

Here we go again....

Just when I thought it was safe to relax, Brock decides to try out for the junior high basketball team. EEK! Tryouts begin this afternoon and run through Wednesday.

Brock's grade is known for having stellar athletes who also happen to be stellar jerks. In fact, it's a serious enough issue that it's often brought up at school district meetings. Teachers ask, "What's with the class of 2016?"

I actually discouraged him from trying out. If he ended up making the team, why would he want to hang out with a group of bullies? His response was that if he makes the team, he will be proud of himself. I told him I have never been more proud of him than when he was "demoted" in soccer, but continued to hold his head up high and practice extra hard. He showed great character. The way he handled himself was amazing, and something I don't know if I could have done. That my son, is something to be proud of and is a skill that will serve you well in life.

I think during tryouts, the junior high basketball coaches should give the kids a manners and personality test along with their skills. That would be a sure-fire way to weed out the bad seeds. Shouldn't your personality and sportsmanship play a part of whether make the team?

Stay tuned for the try-out saga. And I'm 99% sure it will be a saga.