the pile

Hello! Its been a while since we've chatted. I've had the flu. Not the nasty piggy flu...I don't think. Just the regular one that makes you sound like Brenda Vaccaro. If you're not old enough for that reference just imagine a nasty smokers cough and you're in the ball park. Anywhoooo, I'm close to getting back to my old self so i thought i'd give you an update on the house. At this time we have something in the backyard we like to simply call "The Pile." Once upon a time "The Pile" was actually sheets of concrete the previous owners poured to cover a nasty blackberry thicket. I went to the local hardware store and laid down my hard earned 30 bucks for the finest concrete smashing device on the shelf. Yep, a good ol' fashioned sledge hammer. Me and my trusty sledge hammer smashed and banged and crushed all that cement into baby concrete balls. It took a full weekend but i did it. Which i neatly piled up in the corner of the yard. and there it sits. In the corner. for weeks now. It talks to me at night. It tells me i'm a hillbilly for leaving a big pile of cement in the corner. It whispers as i leave for work each morning. "Here i am.. that big ugly pile of rocks you left in the corner." We finally made some calls to see if we could get someone to release me from the grasp of "The Pile." So far the offers are almost as bad as just leaving the pile for the next owner of the house to deal with. The offer on the table is: He drives his big ol' dump truck over to the house. Leaves it over night and WE (two little ladies) load the cement pile into a wheel barrow and roll it out to his big truck and load it for him. Then he shows up the next day to drive it to the dump. And guess how much he wants for this service? 350 BUCKS! Are you kidding?

So there "The Pile" sits. Staring at me. Laughing at me..... taunting me............

BIRTHDAY!!!

On this day...once upon a time, a little girl was born.

HAPPY BIRTHDAY MICHELLE!!!!!!

sunshine

We have those lights in the new house...those kind that are in the ceiling? Those little pocket lights? Right. So all of the bulbs in the bedroom are burnt out except for one. The one directly over my pillow. That one particular working light is hooked up to a dimmer switch. This, of course; makes for an irresistible prank for Michelle. She gets up earlier than me and every morning leans in and sloooooooooooooowly raises the light directly over my face as she sings, "Here comes the sun..."

mmmhum. funny. really funny.

HOT

WE HAVE HOT WATER!!!!!!!!

sit

Now that there is quite a distance to travel between work and home i have been taking the train in the morning. I must say I'm running into a dilemma that i haven't had to deal with before. If I'm sitting down and an older person gets on the train of course i will get up and let them have my seat. My momma taught me a FEW manners. BUT, how do you gauge how old is old enough to warrant my standing up? I mean, if a lady gets on the train and she's say.. 50? Wouldn't she be insulted by me jumping up and offering my seat? But what if said 50 year old has a bad hip and i don't get up for fear of insulting her? Or...what if an 80 year old man gets on? Am i supposed to offer my seat to a man? Aren't men supposed to offer their seat to me? No matter the age? And what about that guy next to me? Shouldn't he get up before me? I have been so stuck on this question mentally that i just sit there and pretend like i don't see the old people at all. But now I fear retaliation. I'm worried the next time i enter a train I'll be over run by a mob of angry old people whacking me with their walkers and throwing aspirin bottles at me! I'll be known throughout the land as the evil-no-getter-upper.

Iguana

I read recently that the iguana's in Florida are dropping out of the trees because its too cold for them. I guess they sort of freeze up and cant move until the sun hits their skin. I think i might be part Iguana. I just cant seem to work out in the winter. I can feel the fat building on my thighs with every bite i take of that wholesome winter food. But, seriously...i just cant get myself to do anything about it. I think subconsciously I'm waiting for the sun to hit my skin. I've resolved to just wear bigger pants until April.

still..

Still no hot water....