Life's out there just waiting to be grabbed by the balls!

My idea of grabbing life by the balls may be very different from yours but who's to say which view is normal. I work too much by some people's standards and it has been said I have less class then a burned down school house on several occasions. May very well be true. I have no grounds to argue these accusations but everywhere I go I try to find a good time... even if it hurts.

It sometimes does. I have woken up in pain from a hard night of tearing up the dance floor many times in my life. I have also been known to imagine a dance floor that doesn't exist and make it reality before your very eyes. I haven't been tested but I think I'm of sound mind and mostly sound body so why not shake it whenever the opportunity presents itself? I was working the Fall Halloween event at the Mystic Aquarium today and my new best friend Jeff and I did a little of that to brighten our day. Jeff is an outgoing young man who worked at the stand next to me. We only met today but I knew right off I would like him when he announced to me that he was Jeff and he was obnoxious. Those were his words exactly so you can imagine how elated I was to learn this when I was to be working beside him for about 9 hours today and another 5 hours tomorrow that I can only hope are just as full of wonder as today was.

This festive event has combined many things considered Fallish if I can be so bold as to make up a word. They had kids in costumes, pumpkin snacks, crafty crap galore, hot cider and then nestled in there where I don't quite belong was me and a cart full of frozen lemonade. Who wants that on a brisk October day you ask? Exactly 18 people. It is a shame to not sell much but the event is a great networking opportunity so I hope it's worth it. I enjoyed making a new friend in Jeff anyway.

There was a DJ present at the Aquarium today and although they seemed to have run about 7 songs on a loop the entire day it gave us music to warm up to. Jeff and I seem to be cut from the very same cloth and we boogied the day away together stopping briefly here or there to serve a customer. We bounced and jiggled and danced around in the space our two booths occupied all day. I'm surprised it's legal to have that much fun while working! We practiced the moon walk and wished we knew the choreography for Thriller since we only heard it 400 times. All of this went on and only now do I stop to think that people may think we should have been bouncing around in a rubber room. It is ironic that we thought it appropriate to mock some of the passers-by and giggle to ourselves while people- watching when we were putting on such a show ourselves without giving a second thought to what others may be thinking. I'm sure more then one had the idea that we were on some good drugs or someone spiked our cocoa or something but truth is we were just high on life and for no other reason but why not!

I know myself enough to not be surprised that I made a connection with a perfect stranger and acted like I was in an episode of Glee right there on the sidewalk in Mystic but I can't help but be thankful that I can have moments like these amidst the crap heap that real life is most of the time. I miss Uncle Andy everyday and this year has been tough but days like today make me remember him and his attitude toward life. He smiled all the time and even when he worked he laughed and joked and nothing was so serious that it had to ruin his day. I'd like to think that Andy would be proud that I embrace life giving me frozen lemonade on a down right chilly October day and me making it into a party where there's dancing in the streets. Here's to you, Andy! You taught me more then you ever knew about what life should be and I love you so much for that. I miss him very much but I'm going to get out there and grab all the balls I can and even some for Andy! ...That didn't come out right but you know what I mean.

Just another example of how sick and juvenile I am...

I work with a young man at Del's named Brad...or B-Rad as I and I'm sure many others refer to him. He is in fact, quite RAD in his own right. He and I had a text conversation while I was sitting in the Del's truck at the flea market and he was working in the store last Sunday afternoon and I would like to let you enter our world and see this foolishness. It is not for those with a weak stomach so consider yourself warned.

Last chance to turn back...

...TOO LATE...

Here is our conversation as it happened:

August 15th 1:00 pm

B-Rad: I don't think a year old frozen snickers agrees with my stomach too well :/

Kim: Oh no! Did you pee out your bum?

B-Rad: Hahahahaha no not at all. I just don't think my stomach enjoyed it too much.

(pause)

B-Rad: P.S. What a way to phrase a question. Hahaha.

Kim: It is an accurate description of what happens. 1st your tummy grumbles. Then something drops in your belly causing your bum to feel somehow heavy. Then... you pee out your bum. I don't make the rules. Nature does.

B-Rad: You are truly a marvel :)

Kim: Like a comic book? I love those movies! I'm not sure if would be a stinky evil villain or a heroine handing out pepto bismal. I will have to think that over in the porta- potty...

B-Rad: Hahahaha! Lemme know what you come up with:0

Kim: Incidentally, the porta- potty would be the perfect evil lair should I go that route...

... Now you see how something simple and innocent in my hands turns so quickly to just over the top?! I have no explanation for this phenomenon and I refuse to apologize for it. Just thought I should record this exchange by means of a public service announcement. You know the sort of things that go through my sick head so you have no one to blame but yourself if I someday offend you with some form of my verbal diarrhea.

Thank you and good night.

Summer days are by no means lazy days!

I have been working two jobs here for about 3 months and life is a tad hectic so I've missed writing for a while now... but I'm back today to catch up a little so buckle up! It's going to be a crash course.

I should have called this one "Kimber's Life Lately" but that would kind of imply that something interesting was going on and the truth is... not much has time to happen at all. I am working 7 days a week and attempting to squeeze in a little Q.T. with as many family and friends as possible but, alas, I fall short all too often. I did however get to hang out late one Saturday evening with my favorite person. My grandfather turned 81 the end of July and I got to sit down and eat some johnny cakes and dried beef gravy with him and chit chat a little. That just makes everything stressful melt away for a little while. Erastus is a phenomenal man and he has taught me what it is to be loved more then anyone else I know.

My younger brother is here working for the summer and also very busy but we don't waste any opportunity to tease on mom. I went over her house for dinner on night and while in the kitchen noticed she got a freezer and tucked it in a corner near the table. Now her house is about as big as a shoe box so I would really need the storage if I were going to take up what little room I had with an appliance like that. So naturally I commented on it and she began to explain how cramped her freezer was on her side-by-side fridge and the trouble she had cramming things in there. My brother took that opportunity to invite me to take a look at what she couldn't fit in the normal freezer but deemed important enough to warrant the purchase of this new chest freezer. He beamed as he opened the top to show me that she had one lone ice cube try sitting in the bottom... and that's all. She had started laughing before he got across the floor to reveal this to me because it was already a joke between them. She had put the ice cube tray inside to test it out and show when it was up to temp before she relocated other things but of course that was a moot point to my brother and I who love things that seem ridiculous at first glance even if the explanation makes perfect sense. None of that matters when there is a joke to be made at mom's expense especially. Good thing she knows we are both wise asses and loves us anyway because she really takes a beating sometimes.

We have also welcomed a new roommate into the apartment this summer. The girlfriend of my original, less then tidy, sometimes very hairy original roommate has joined the ranks. She is doing her very best to whip him into shape and I must say she has done a bang-up job in a short time! He has been one to throw me into a state of shock and sometimes terrified awe when he blows through the place like a tornado leaving his wake of destruction from the kitchen to the bathroom. It has showed me how different men and women really are.

They made a pact and she is trying to get him to be more organized and he is trying to get her to eat more healthy foods... or at least he calls them healthy. I come from a family where we eat meat and taters and they are separate on the plate. I am not a huge fan of vegetables. In fact I'm not a huge fan of anything but sugar as I have mentioned before so his idea of healthy is my idea of suicide. I literally cringe when he comes at me with a spoonful of who-knows-what. He begs me try it but If I can't recognize it, I don't consume it. Sometimes more to the point, if I do recognize it, I definitely don't consume it. I am very particular about smell and texture and I have a powerful gag reflex. He is very passionate about cooking and really enjoys doing it for others so I feel bad but I just really can't stomach some of that stuff.

He loves tomatoes and I am of firm belief that they are red little devils sent here from Hell. Onions not only make me cry but dry heave as well. Peppers, celery, lima beans, peas and the list of filthy things goes on and on. I love green beans only in a can, corn, lettuce, carrots, cucumbers, potatoes and i can eat beats and broccoli but would really rather not so pretty much every time he strolls in with a prideful smile and a spoon in hand, all I can think is "Oh no! What torture is coming my way? Where can I hide?" I know he is worried about my diet because admittedly I eat worse then a frat boy and I am too sick for that but I would starve to death any other way I fear. If you took out everything I shouldn't eat but do, the only thing left would be bottled water I think and he pointed out that I even manage to buy the kind infused with chemicals so I don't even do water right.

Anyway, things are pretty good but very busy and I don't really have a whole lot of time for the things I love but I have made some time to explore a few new movies and T.V shows and hunt for cool music. I bought season 1 of United States of Tara with Toni Collette. This show is fantastic! Toni is pretty much genius in everything I have seen her in but the writing paired with the talented acting really makes this show great. I started Glee on DVD as well when a few people recommended it. It's fun and amusing but not exactly top 10 material. I love The Office, 30 Rock, Arrested Development, Will and Grace, Ally McBeal, LWord, Big Bang Theory, Samantha Who, Men in Trees, Castle, Absolutely Fabulous and now United States of Tara has joined my list of epic shows. Many of them are very different but they all have qualities that make them great.

I pick up movies here and there and every now and then one really surprises me. This happened with Brother's Bloom, Jane Austen Book Club and Lars and The Real Girl this summer. All very good movies I really enjoyed watching. I have a very eclectic collection and I love all kinds of movies from classics like Houseboat with Sophia Loren and Funny Girl with Barbara Streisand, or action like The Brave One with Jodie Foster or super hero movies like Iron Man. I also love the more whimsical, childlike films like Secondhand Lions, Matilda and Mr. Magoriums Wonder Emporium and then the ones that are too clever to ignore like The Prize Winner of Defiance Ohio or Definitely Maybe. I could never forget the love I have for the cinematography displayed in Moulin Rouge, Chicago and NINE. Humor is all too important to me in this uptight world so also among my favorites would lie British Comedy like Death at a Funeral or those outrageous comedy gems like The Sweetest Thing.

So I haven't been able to explore a whole lot this summer but I love talent and look for it everywhere. Beauty can be in the grain of a piece of wood we put down on a deck or in the smile of a stranger I sold a lemonade to at the flea market. It can be in a movie or T.V show, a photograph, the lyrics in a song or in the sunset happening right outside your window. I found it in the quiet dinner conversation I had with my grandfather that may have otherwise been taken for granted if it weren't for the immense respect and love I have for him and the fact that I cherish the time we spend together so much. Art is art because someone finds it beautiful for some reason and there is art all around us, we just need to take the time to see it. It may require you to sit back and focus a little differently then you normally do. Try to squint a little or cock your head to the side or hang upside down and see what you see. You may be surprised at what was right in front of you all the time.

Today... I...am...30...

...GULP!! And it hurts... BAD!

I'm not usually the type to be fretting something like this but it's painful. Luckily I have my great friends to take my mind off the doom with another overnight Boston trip last night full of fun and festivities!

I have considered the idea of trying to act like a grownup now with this mile stone on it's way. I have been accused of being juvenile, believe it or not. I know what you're thinking... "Not you, Kim"! That's what I thought, too. Crazy! It has been suggested through my entire life that my diet should be altered as well. Apparently a human being should not survive one sugar and poptarts. Who knew?

My roommate experiments with different foods and healthy diets and such. He is currently working on a dairy-free, vegetarian way of life and tries to consume mostly organic sustenance. This would not work for me. The smells that emanate from our kitchen are far from appetizing. I happen to be owner of a hyper- sensitive sniffer and a very particular palate. I have trouble with texture and some of the things he cooks up like a scientist in his laboratory give me the dry heaves just to look at it.

A few weeks ago he got a new organic BBQ sauce and thought I should try it. He brought a spoonful to me in my room and shoved it in my face. Upon visual inspection, I noticed UFO's or "unidentified floating objects" within. I declined but he insisted the idea that things that are good for me almost always taste like poo was all in my head and I like an idiot let my guard down. That BBQ sauce did taste like what I imagine poo to taste like and that is bad. I immediately reached for my wooden salad bowl full of candy for a packet of Fun Dip to remedy the problem. For those of you who may not know what Fun Dip is let me describe for you this wonderful palate cleansing delight. It is a packet separated into two sections. The large pouch houses lovely sugar powder that comes in many delicious flavors while the second has a pure sugar stick with witch to eat the colorful sugar found next door to it. You simply lick the sugar stick then dip it into the colored, flavored sugar packet and enjoy. Then repeat this process... or if you have no patience as I often times do, just dump the sugar straight into your face and then eat the stick on it's own. Both are acceptable methods. Either way, Mary Poppins was on to something with her song about a spoonful of sugar helping the medicine go down.

One night I arrived home from work and announced that I craved one of my favorite things; a grilled cheese sandwich dipped in ketchup. My roommate who I can only assume is either deaf or delusional says in response "I made some very good lentil soup". Now I thought this to be an asinine thing to say since lentil soup in no way resembles fried buttery bread with decadent melted cheese inside and therefore made no sense to even verbalize such a thing unless he wanted praise for his accomplishment. It just seemed unwarranted and unrelated to me.

So maybe potty humor and the notion that the food pyramid should have two sections that consist solely of sugar and fruit cups are ideas that only an adolescent could get away with. Maybe a 30 year old shouldn't go to Stop and Shop in her pink pajama pants looking a bit like I was on my to a slumber party and I got lost and just wandered in for shelter. It is possible that all this is true but I figure my way of thinking has served me quite well these past 30 years and the old adage if it aint broke, don't fix it is a popular one for a reason. I stand firm on the fact that Toys R Us and I have the right idea when we say, "I don't want to grow up" and I intend to stay this way for at least the next 30 years or so.

Nyquil is nothing to mess with.

I recently had a cold or sinus infection or some such thing that made sleeping into a very difficult task. Whenever this happens I reach for good ol' Nyquil and I sleep like a corpse. This time was a bit different for some reason and I still can't say why.

I am not one to pay particular attention to the dosage amounts. I just tip that jug over and swig until the urge to vomit overwhelms me which usually hits around the 4th or 5th gulp. Then I put it down, screw the top on tight and shake my head vigorously which is not within my control. I think they should put that warning on the label in fact because someone could get hurt if they aren't prepared and end up in a neck brace or traction and that's a whole set of problems I wouldn't trade a good coma like sleep for no matter how tired I was. Whiplash is serious people and so is Nyquil so use caution.

So I would settle into my bed with my dogs Riley and Mollie and prepare to pass out for as far as I was concerned could be about 2 weeks. I would pop in a movie and fluff my pillows after making sure tissues were readily available at my bedside. I started to notice that with only one eye open I was subconsciously fighting slumber. This was new. I'm not one to fight the Sandman because I am always tired. For some reason I wake up many times in the night and have a not-so restful sleep 99% of the time.

I had been taking my best friend in a bottle for about 3 nights but still woke up during the night in the throws of a coughing fit usually reserved for people who have been smokers for about 70 years. I would keep a bottle of water by my bed so I could calm this beast in a timely manner to avoid asphyxiation. This of course would cause me to be awakened by the urge to pee like never before at the unholy hour of about 3 a.m. I would stumble out of bed, somehow maneuver over the dog gate at my door, wobble to bathroom like a drunk after a good night out and turn on the light. Just before I would go, I would get this feeling of concern about whether I had actually woken up and made it to the toilet or if I was just dreaming and was about to wet the bed like a toddler... or a drunk after a good night out.

Now comes the part where you get to climb inside my brain once again. I sat there resisting until I could be sure I was actually perched atop my throne and not about to soil myself. Trying to figure out how I could know without a shadow of a doubt that it was safe to release the flood gates and commence evacuation. My logic may have been clouded by the nearly double dose I'm guessing I had consumed but it worked every time.

In our apartment we have no light switches, all pull strings. Now on a day to day basis I consider this to be an annoying thing as I stand below the spot I think the light is and wave my arms around like I'm at a rave so I can shed some light on the subject of not tripping over something and cracking my skull open in the dark. That's a mess I'm not interested in cleaning up. I convinced myself in my drunken stupor that if I were dreaming, our bathroom would clearly have had a switch in it and I distinctly recall the rave dance being even more difficult to execute in my state of Nyquil induced zombie sleep walking. Once that logic presented itself, there was no question I was all clear for take off.

Lucky for me my sick twisted mind didn't fail me in a pinch. I got through that cold and only washed my sheets when it was over to exorcise the demon germs. I never peed the bed the whole time so that's good news. Nyquil is still my favorite soft drink when I'm sick even though I seem to react a little differently to it these days, but now I know to look out! It's going to be a wild ride every time so I'm going to buckle up!

What's so funny about poops and farts, anyway?

I do not have a very scientific answer but it would suffice to say EVERYTHING! We were at the hospital today visiting my grandmother who recently suffered a heart attack and stroke when we heard a woman bellow over the loud speaker "Code gray in room 305" a few times and this started a trend for us that will last for generations I think. We all sat and speculated upon what a "Code gray" could be possibly. Some thought maybe gray was code for deceased and they were paging someone from the morgue to retrieve the gray but we have someone in our family who works in a hospital so instead of playing guessing games all day, my Aunt/Cousin texted the question to her husband for an answer that would not be purely from the bowels of our own imaginations. He quickly responded with something along the lines of "Security risk. Trying to give bodily harm." or some such nonsense and I thought how foolish that the color doesn't correspond in some logical way to the visuals of the situation. We then went perhaps too far with the subject for oh, I'd say the next few hours and I'm sure it will carry on.

We then texted him with more colors and forced him play along with our little game. "What's code purple teal and chartreuse? Is code silver a missing wig?" we all joked. We learned that "code blue" is death and "code pink" is possible baby abduction and so on and so forth. Take notice of my clever use of color above to add flair for visual appeal. My blog is nothing if not colorful and today I have taken that new levels! We went down to the cafeteria and got some snacks and sat down. Part way through our face stuffing we realized there was a foreign beverage in the middle of the table and I challenged my Uncle to taste and thought it may entice him to do so by my suggesting it might be Root Beer. It did not. Then from across the table, my Aunt/Cousin yells out "Code Brown" should mean that someone had abandoned a root beer. Now anyone with half a brain in their skull should be able to surmise that "Code Brown" would be far better used to describe a turd emergency of some kind and it is indeed code for, and I quote what the hospital working husband said here, "Someone shit themselves" Now that makes perfect sense. Way more then the gray code in my opinion. Then the cafeteria worker came to claim his soda and I handed it to him and said "Oh! So you are the code brown!" We got the joke. He did not.

The conversations I hold for the most part are infantile in nature by choice. I enjoy lightening the mood and living in a neighborhood at least a few blocks from Seriousville. My Aunt/cousin and I went to the family waiting room to wait for our turn to go sit and visit with grandma. I am generally a gassy person and I'm not shy about that fact because I don't have much choice in the matter. I have ulcerative colitis and Crohn's Disease so much of the last 18 years or so of my live I have been followed around by a green cloud much like the dust that is behind Pig Pen from the Peanuts. Poor Aunt/cousin fell victim to post-meal fart fest courtesy of me. My dad says I'm his desert flower and an uncle once said I let one that brought a tear to his eye. It was said once by a sister that I "...was over there farting like it was my job!" If that were an occupation, I would be a millionare! I was also asked quite often during relapse to go out on the porch when I needed to pass wind. Not something to be proud of but in some sick way I kind of am. I may live a just over the border of Freakin' Nuts Town??

Anyway, I did cut one and then giggled as is appropriate for the average 30 year old. My poor Aunt/cousin then yelped and said "EWWWWW! I tasted it like I took a puff off a fart hookah!" That struck me as very funny because immediately a mental picture began to get painted in mind. I imagined a wall with hoses poking through little holes and people standing on one side with some toot stench catching machine right by their butts just shoveling baked beans in their traps while some evil man stood on the other side of the wall convincing unsuspecting fools to take a long drag off the other end of the toot tube. That's how my brain works. I can't help it but the sick thing is I'm not alone because when I mentioned it to my aunt/cousin, she jumped right into my fantasy. She could see it too! This proves two things: I was not adopted and do indeed belong in this family of kooks! Second: I should not procreate and pass any of this on to another and adoption should be my only choice should I decide that by some delusion I am fit to mother anything!

I am amused by almost all bodily functions and of course the sounds produced by said functions. As long as I have to be sick with a chronic incurable disease, one that forces funny noises from nearly every orifice seems oddly appropriate to me. They called me the Fart Queen in high school and Belch Wench has been coined more recently. I almost had to leave work early one day when I witnessed the horse of one of our customers sneeze with such gusto he ripped one and the blast blew his tail right up in the air! It was better then anything I had seen even in a Ren and Stimpy cartoon and I laughed doubled over atop the 8ft step ladder I was holding onto for a solid 2 minutes and I still reenact that scene to this day to anyone stupid enough to listen to me talk and watch me contort my face to mimic a flatulent horse.

I even get a chuckle out of synonyms for the words "poop" and "fart". Anytime excrement or human waste is uttered I lose it. Appointments with my G.I (Gastro-intestinal) doctor are particularly hard for me to get through. For a feeble mind like mine, it's almost unbearable to be asked on such a regular basis the size, shape, color, frequency and consistency of bowel movements. It's just like filling out a mad lib. I want to be serious for my own health and well-being but to try to shock the pooper doctor would be fun for me.

As you can see, nothing is off limits for me and I will make fun of even myself. I figure you have to make lemonade out life even if sometimes it's a shit storm. Laughter is medicine as I've said before and we don't do enough of it. We all need to laugh until we pee a little every now and then just to get back on track. Get out there and wet your pants! You'll feel better. It's good for you.

I needed a good time and I got one!

Picture it. Boston, February 27th, 2010. Seven hot chicks out looking for a good time.

We started out at the apartment of one of our good friends. She had a nice bunch of snacks set out for us to munch on before our night began in the city. My friends really are top notch hostesses all the way. They open their homes all the time and make us feel so welcome and loved and this trip was no exception. We arrived around 4 0'clock and couldn't wait to get ready! We had a night of dancing and entertainment planned and I for one really needed to relax and unwind. I was really excited to go out and tear the town up.

We ordered pizza for dinner and the 7 of us began the process of dressing and getting made up. Me being so low maintenance, it took me about 10 minutes. I put on my cowboy boots, jeans, a button-up shirt and one of my signature hats. I still don't know how to apply make-up so I went out plane faced as always. I love the quote from "The Mirror Has Two Faces" when Barbra Streisand was confronted about her lack of make-up. She said "What's the point? I would still look like me only in color" and that seems pretty logical and economical from where I sit. A real money and time saver for me so I live by it. We drove into the city and went to a place called Jacques. Now this is a place that I could learn a few things about make-up. It is home to a cabaret with talented drag queens and it provided us with smiles that didn't quit the entire time. My friends and I are a big bunch of goof balls and we ham it up everywhere we go and tonight we were out and true to form. We had a great time and took some priceless photos and made memories that at least myself and the one other sober one of the group will remember and share with our less then lucid pals for years to come.

After the show at Jacques was over, one friend had to go home but there were two more meeting us at The Roxy for some dancing. After a few mishaps, we settled in happily and danced and laughed the night away. My girls really know how to cut a rug! I don't know how they do what they do in the shoes they wear, they defy the laws of physics, logic and gravity! I go for comfort over style and knowing that a few of the ladies may tip back a few, and it is winter in New England I thought it best to be in practical footwear. My instincts were dead on.

The walk back to the parking garage was confused and cold and worked my upper body strength. We were heckled by boys who passed by but any lady worth anything knows to expect that and knows how to handle herself in that situation and the 7 remaining did just that every wobbly step of the way. We finally found the correct garage and our transportation for the evening and hopped in for the ride home. We already began reminiscing and laughed the whole way back with a few threats of peeing and lots of shivering and complaining about sore tootsies. Some of these poor girls really had barkin' dogs after all that dancing and walking around aimlessly about the city of Boston.

We got back to the apartment and blew up air mattresses and dug in to chow down on the leftover pizza and chips and things. We just laughed and repeated funny quotes that spilled from my friend's pie holes throughout the evening that will only be inside jokes and "You shoulda been there!" kind of stories forevermore. We changed into PJ's and slipped off into sweet slumber.

We all awoke this morning and slowly gained momentum. We picked up, packed up, dressed and hugged each other and prepared to bid each other farewell until the next adventure we embark on together. I've said it before and I'll say it again, my friends are the BEST and they can always pull me from a slump. If ever I want to learn the art of make-up application, I will turn to them over the ladies at Jaques. I really trust my friends with my physical and emotional well being without a doubt. Jacques gals are glamourous but my gals are beautiful both inside and out and am truly blessed to love and be loved by them. Thanks again for being my trusted bitches. I love you all forever, and the Jaques gang hold a special, sick place in my heart as well. *Wink

I'm Hooked on Billboards!

Today my dad was holding his 4 month old niece, and remarking about how she was getting talkative, nosey and figuring out how her hands worked and things. He began reminiscing, telling my "aunt/cousin" stories about when I was younger. I have always been a big fan of games and one of my favorites was Memory. He claims that even when I was younger I wasn't one of those kids who would cheat like my 3 year nephew does at Candy Land. I'm not sure it's cheating, really. He is mainly focused on getting the cards with the characters on them. Whether it moves him ahead or behind isn't that important to him. I, on the other hand, really tried to win and a lot times I would beat him even when he was trying. He didn't have to throw the game to save my feelings. I could handle it myself. I did however have to get the bunny match or I would cry.

He went on to tell about how he started a game with me when we were in the car to learn my letters. We would try to find letters on billboards and license plates we passed by. This made me learn how to read a little early. It was a tad inconvenient when my grandmother wanted to hide things from me. He remembers her doing the thing where you spell out a secret to disguise something from the youngins. My dad could see the gears turning in my brain. When I figured it out, the lightbulb came on and I told her, "You can't fool me, gram. I know what you are talking about!"

To teach me to count, he would let me count his coins in his pockets every night and if I didn't mess up I could have them all to put in my piggy bank. If I did mess up he would put them up in a dish on his dresser and I didn't cash in that day. He told the story before about one night when he was downstairs watching T.V on the couch after work. He noticed the pitter- patter of my little mischievous feet. He could hear that I was going from my room into theirs and back again repeatedly. He began to put two and two together and hollered up to me asking what I was up to. I didn't want to be found out so answered with the typical kid answer of "NOTHING!" He knew that almost certainly always means "SOMETHING!" I had been going into his change dish and robbing him of his loot one coin at a time and scampering my treasure back to my room and dropping it straight into my piggy bank like a squirrel stacking nuts for the winter.

I guess I was a precocious child as my aunt Carol has told me. She tells me I even had an unusual number of teeth early as well as my other abilities and thought that was remarkable. The fascination probably has far less to do with me being an exceptional child and more to do with the fact that I was the first niece and grandchild born in the family so people took more notice of things then they do when the 6th grandchild is developing amidst the older 5 making a ruckus and running amuck. I certainly don't think myself a genius by any stretch of the imagination.

It does make me wonder though... do we really want to buy things like "Hooked on Phonics" or "Your Baby Can Read"? Kids these days already seem far smarter then the generation before them with all the technology at their fingertips. It's to the point where parents can't help their children do their homework past the 4th grade. I mean, we have a game show on T.V entitled "Are You Smarter Then A 5th Grader?" and I haven't seen many winners yet. If back then I had the idea to rob my dad of his jingle because I was so smart from our little game of "Hooked on Billboards", just think the heist that a preschooler could pull off these days with things like "Baby Einstein" to get them started even earlier! We are breading a generation of brilliant criminals starting before they can wipe themselves so we had better stay on our toes.

Dedicated to Uncle Andy.

This entry will be a serious one. Our family suffered a terrible loss Wednesday morning, February 10, 2010. The last few days have been the hardest of my life. My Uncle passed away in a car accident at the young age of 38 on his way to work on 95 that morning. This tragedy has hit our family so hard and so deep. I am very proud to be part of this family despite all of my teasing in the past. Everyone rushed together that day and we have all been so focused on the pain my grandparents are suffering through the loss of their son and making this process as smooth for them as we can.

If you knew Uncle Andy, you knew he would do anything for anyone. Chances are, if you lived in or around Westerly you would find that if you didn't know him directly, it wouldn't be hard to find someone in your life that was touched by him at some point. What brought him immense joy in life was helping the people he knew and cared for and he took great pride in being a hard worker.

Andy was a very unique soul indeed and had an unmistakable laugh. He had diabetes since he was 2 and had other health issues but you would never know. If asked how he was, he always answered with a huge smile on his face saying something like, "Never better!" without fail. He joked constantly and loved animals and cutting wood. He was someone who truly cared for others above himself. A man who was easily pleased most by making those around him happy.

As painful as the loss for me is, seeing how much it is hurting my family, primarily my grandma and grandpa is agony. It absolutely rips my heart out every time one of them breaks down. It will be a long time to heal but together we will get through and I can only hope we don't forget what Andrew stood for and his passion for loving others. I need to remind myself that sweating the small stuff is a waste of energy and holding a grudge is a waste of time. We never know how much time we have and every minute and everyone in our lives is a gift we should cherish. Andy left a legacy behind of love and laughter and I pray my family and I can make him proud and carry that on in his honor.

I'm so sorry you are gone but I am confident we will see you again some day. Until then, keep them laughing in Heaven, Uncle Andy. You are so loved and missed by so many and I was blessed to be one of the people you loved and watched over in your short but full lifetime.

Let's play "The Screwly Wed Game!" We put the "FUN" in dys"FUN"ctional!

I attended a lovely fundraiser dinner last night where they played a little game that tested a husbands knowledge of his wife's favorite color and other little details similar to the popular game show from the 70's, The Newly Wed Game. We all had fun watching these 5 poor suckers sweat when asked what food their wife liked best and the locations they chose to propose. I especially had fun when my father was one of these unfortunate men. Then I was surprised at the knowledge he had about my step mother when I have personally witnessed on many occasions the two of them carrying on two entirely different conversations, to each other mind you, as if they were talking about the same subjects. I guess being that my father works alone all day and my step mom sleeps during the day because she works 3rd shift, they just need to talk even if there isn't anyone on the other line.

Now this kind of game is particularly funny for my family for many reasons and I will detail some of those right now. One of the questions was "Where did you meet?" Now I had to laugh because I know the "who, what, when, why and where's" of this quandary and they are funnier then time allowed for last night. My parents divorced when I was 9 and from that time until my step mother came on the scene we ate in two local restaurants every weekend when visiting dad given his limited culinary skills. It was grilled cheese and tomato soup or grilled cheese and pea soup if we are depending on dad to be chef for the evening. So we went to the Brick Oven on Saturday and Pizza Hut on Sunday, typically. My step mom happened to be a waitress on Sunday nights at Pizza Hut so thus began this fractured fairy tale. They met when she served up a slice of piping hot Pan pizza to my dad, my brother and me but my brother is really responsible for the match- making. She went to the table next to us to clean and wipe it and my brother took notice. He complimented her fine technique and then went on to explain to her that we needed someone to help dad clean because he had to take eggs that stunk up the refrigerator and burry them in his sandbox to dispose of them because dad wasn't much of a housekeeper. This made her chuckle and quite frankly take pity on us. We talked to her every week we went and finally dad asked her to a concert for their first date. So a romance began and we were all along for the wild ride.

By "all" I mean us kids. She had 3. Two daughters, one older then myself and one younger, and a son who was her youngest. My dad had myself and my brother who was 4 years younger then me. A while down the line they found out they had another on the way and we had to form a sort of Brady Bunch. In the summer of 1992 Little Hayley made her way into our brood. They stuffed 5 kids in a small bedroom for a while and we all made it work somehow. That brings me to a few of the other questions. "Where and how did you propose?" and "What color were the brides maids dresses at your wedding?" When Hayley was over a year old, they decided to flee the circus and go to Vegas to marry. Shot gun wedding? I guess not when the gun went off and the smoke cleared over a year ago. So we all went to our other parent's houses and Hayley went to an aunts house while they went and made honest people out of one another without their herd of children. No brides maids dresses or anything. Maybe Elvis was in attendance, I don't know.

This couple isn't the strangest in my family though. My mom has managed to marry and divorce 3 men herself in her pursuit of happiness and marital bliss. She has learned, I think, that it's far better to be happy by herself then miserable with someone else. It's true, too. Her taste isn't great in men, sadly. Most of them ended up unemployed while she worked 2 jobs and they had similar, less then desirable physical characteristics. Some were fat, some hairy and some were missing teeth. A few embodied all 3 of these traits. I would stay single too if thats what I ended up with more then once. Yeesh!

She had quite the model to fashion her marriages after unfortunately. Her father has passed but grandpa was a bit grumpy sometimes, to say the least. Her mother is one those outspoken, loud chicks who is Hell bent on not being pushed around by any man so the two of them made quite a pair. She could never do or say or cook anything right and when he spoke up, she would too but LOUDER! Family meals often ended up with all of sitting quiet after the exchange that took place between them. She would sit at one end of the table and he at the other trapping the rest of in the line of fire. Grandpa would say something like "I can't eat this shit" to which she would lovingly reply "Then don't eat it and die, you Sonovabitch!" Sometimes he would take a bite and mumble just loud enough for her to hear, "Ugh! This shit's cold" with a scowl on his face and without skipping a beat or even looking up she would fireback with "Shut up and eat it" or "Then nuke it, you Bastid" and he would turn and say to one of us "See how this classy bitch talks to me?" I think they were playing a game of "Who will out-live the other" and grandma won... at least I think she won. They both loved their kids and grandkids very much and I'm pretty sure they loved each other, too. They clearly had a little trouble with expressing it to one another.

We have a few more "different" relationships so keep reading. I have an Aunt/Cousin and an Uncle/Cousin too but it's not like it sounds so don't panic. It seems somehow fitting that they live Hope Valley, though. Jerry Springer wasn't called or anything but it's a funny story and here it goes. Where to begin... Ok, so sitting next to me at this dinner was this particular couple and when the "Where did you meet" question came up we all looked at each other and wished it was them up there playing this twisted newly wed. See, my dad's brother married my mom's niece so it's all very innocent. No blood relation but we get a good laugh at it when the opportunity arrises. Had they been asked to participate, her answer would have to go something like this: "I met my husband when my aunt and cousins came to visit our family. They brought with them the former brother-in-law of my aunt to go four-wheeling. We began a long distance relationship and then got married and started a family joining the 2 families again." I guess this makes the whole in-law stereotype null and void for them since we all stayed pretty close even after my parents split and the 2 families always got along for the most part. Pretty convenient when you think about it. Anyway, they are happy and just had a beautiful baby we call my cousin twice removed with 3 steps back... or something like that. The family tree takes a few twists and turns but even in all these circumstances it grows healthy and strong some how.

I guess every family is a little weird and we certainly are no exception. Every one in my family has some humorous little back story and they just keep adding pages to it, lucky for me and my blog. I tease my mom that there are too many crazies around for me to really part of this family and I insist that there was a mix-up at the hospital or I was adopted or something. One of my Uncles only furthered my suspicions when he told me as a young child that my mother purchased me with a coupon at Almac's Grocery Store. She laughs and reminds me of the old adage "the fruit never falls far from the tree" and you know what, she's right! I am just as nuts as the rest of them, maybe more... and I wouldn't want it any other way!

A model I am not!!

Unless... I am possibly doing a hand modeling gig for men's gloves or something. My hands are anything but dainty. I did however walk the runway in my Bridesmaid dress from Jen's wedding in the Bridal Fashion show at MGM at Foxwood's this past weekend. I love fashion and all the glamour that goes along with it but I have to giggle when I think of myself doing something like that. I'm just not the type but I will admit I had a great time with Jen and the others and it was a fun experience.

In order to not look so much like the "I don't give a rat's ass" girl that I am, I went and got spray tanned. I couldn't even do that right. I wore boy-cut underwear and somehow couldn't be bothered to stand up straight so the lines are a bit mottled. I have a strange line on my stomach from hunching over like I belong in a bell tower that looks like I asked them to air brush just one, neat and very defined AB upon my belly. My friends and I got a chuckle over it at the little sleepover we had at Jen's the night before the fashion show. I also painted my toe nails...and half my feet a shade of pink that matched the pink fabric under the breast on the dress. Pretty girly, huh?!

We watched chick flicks and ate junk until we almost burst the night before we walked the runway. Maybe not such a good idea when we were already worried about fitting into the dresses 5 months later without the use of extreme force. We managed to stuff ourselves in and not die from lack of oxygen so no harm, no foul.

I have been lucky enough to spend lots of time with my friends lately. I have an almost weekly movie night with one of my friends where we hit up the Red Box for something entertaining and we hang out. I have been to see Sherlock Holmes and NINE with another one of my pals in the past month as well. I enjoyed Sherlock very much. I almost always enjoy Robert Downey Jr. though ever since Ally Mcbeal met her quirky little match in a character played by him on the show. He just has this way about him but all his characters seem to have that way about them... no matter. I like his quick wit and delivery so I forgive that most roles he plays resemble each other.

NINE though is in a class all its own. A fantastic film from open to close. The lighting and camera angles perfectly make their point. The emotion comes right off the screen. Sophia Loren is wonderful and as full of grace and beauty as ever. The scene with Fergie is a masterpiece. The sand and song come together and form a feast for the eyes and ears. Brilliant.

I love my friends. All of them have wonderful, fun qualities and thankfully all of them are so beautifully different. I have friends that accept and love me with all my OCD and crazy tendencies as well as my outbursts of embarrassing behavior, sometimes quite in public. Thanks to all of you for seeing me for what I am and understanding it's all in fun! I think you guys are why I'm proud to say they broke the mold when they made this model for the first time in my life.

OMG at The O.G!

AS IN OLIVE GARDEN! But that's not where this should begin so be patient, folks! I'm going to start at the beginning because... as Julie Andrews once sang in the classic The Sound of Music, "... That's a very good place to start". And she was right! My day began when I awoke around 7 am and took the dogs out to... to put it politely, "make", as they say. I had an appointment to get my eyebrows waxed and harass my friend /hairdresser at 10 am so I shlumped around for a few hours like the college student I never was. By the way, I LOVE getting waxed! It feels so good that I often wonder if I would enjoy being waxed further but then I remember I am friends with my hairdresser and would like to keep it that way. To ask her to wax more of the fuzz off of me would be detrimental to our friendship. I'll just shave and/or keep it covered like always. The extent of my body hair will stay my little secret. Incidentally, we encountered someone else today with an overabundance of fluff which I will detail later on. Let's just say that when you are at Babies R' Us searching for crib blankets with a cute little Monkey pattern on them for an upcoming baby shower, you do not plan to catch a glimpse of someone bending over exposing more hair then you see on a chimpanzee at the zoo! Yikes!

But I digress...

So waxing went as planned, I headed to Walmart for a few essentials and texted my gal pal, Jennifer because I was jonesing for some shopping and I can always count on her to tell the truth as we well know, no matter how much it may hurt. I both love and hate that about her. Mostly love because if she didn't say it others would think it but talk about it when I left the room. She saves me from this particular form of embarrassment. She had plans to meet another friend of ours in Warwick and invited me to come along. How lovely. Two friends for the price of one!

We had to stop off at the Bridal Shop we got the dresses for her wedding at to drop off pictures from her beautiful day and I got jostled into doing a Bridal runway show along side Jen next weekend at the MGM at Foxwoods. Goody (insert sarcastic intonation here)! Oh well, a reason to wear to the dress again. Those things are pricey for a one day showing! It will be fun none the less because Jen is a kick and fun follows her wherever she may roam.

Now we were headed to meet our other friend at one of our favorite places, Target. We have some friends who are expecting so we were in baby mode and headed right for the onesies and other baby crap. The three of us are all childless and haven't much patience for the little ones in public to be frank. I adore my nieces and nephews but I don't have to haul them around and listen to them scream all day without ceasing. Some kids got pipes, man! They are loud and shrill and touch everything and are always in the dang way. The fact that Jen had to keep ahead of me and the cart rearranging the racks to make room to get through the isles made things tricky but with ankle biters on the loose all around us, it was a dangerous driving environment, really. I could have run over a few and barely noticed if they were small ones! We found a few cute things and moved on to Babies R' Us where the real fun began!

We went in to the place where we shop for overpriced gifts for our friends in an effort to say, "I'm sorry you won't sleep, have any money or be able to even go to the bathroom in peace for at least 18 years to come". As if that's a good trade off. Anyway, we are dodging carts being manipulated by people who look to be the unhappiest folks on earth. Inside these wagons sitting comfortably are the short captains that drool all over and run every aspect of their lives. Seems bass ackwards to me but I'm not a parent so maybe I'm not supposed to get it. We printed up a registry 15 pages long and set out to find these treasures. We came across a beast in the bedding isle, the memory makes me shudder. We rounded the corner and Jen spotted it first but we weren't far behind! The horror on Jen's face said "don't look" but like a car crash or one of those plastic surgery shows you see on the discovery channel, you never listen to the disclaimer read to you before hand and you watch anyway all the while grimacing in horror at the sight before you. There it was. Grown man, hairy butt crack! Not that uncommon, yet painful to look upon. Our other friend tried to warn me with a large claw to my back but it was too late. The damage was done. We fled that scene in a hurry and somehow still had an appetite so we decided a nice late lunch would calm our nerves. We sped on down to Olive Garden or as we nick named it, The O.G. and despite the trauma we suffered when we narrowly escaped a few collisions in the very crowded parking lot, got in and settled down to wait for a table. They said 15 minutes but they lied as they often times do. We were glad they fibbed today because we got to see a celebrity right there in Warwick O.G. Jen was standing holding the buzzer trying to will it to light up and vibrate before we passed out from starvation when all of sudden a large party exiting began filing out. We all looked up just in time to see James Woods leading the herd towards the door. Jen's eyes nearly bulged clean out of her head and she yelled out "OH MY GOD!" Cheri and I were sitting in disbelief beside her as he turned and looked right at me with a smile and said a very polite "Hello". My response was a very cool "Hi" followed with a few nods as if I had known him for years and was in fact planning to meet up with him later on this very night! I have no idea how I pulled that off but my friends looked at me a little sideways and we all simultaneously turned bright red in the face and began giggling like 13 year olds who just saw a star from that Twilight mess I refuse to get mixed up in. We were a little star struck because we just saw and talked to someone that was featured on Family Guy and how cool is that!! We are also fans of his work of course, but come on. Family Guy mentioned James Woods because he is after all a Rhode Islander and it turns out he likes cheap fast fake Italian food from the Olive Garden just like we do! Wicked awesome!

That wasn't all we were shocked by at The O.G today, though! Oh no. We were also very surprised that the cook time on a bowl of ordinary salad is at least 15 minutes and there was a very large chested women with cleavage spilling all over the restaurant attempting to kill whatever was left of our appetites from our hairy ass crack encounter from before. I'm afraid this recession is affecting peoples abilities to afford mirrors in their homes thereby forcing them to go out in public in an unsatisfactory state! Congress should really get on passing some mirror welfare programs and leave our health care system alone because I think less people will get sick if we solve the mirror crisis of 2010. I know I feel queasy way too often from people stuffing themselves into clothes they seemingly took accidentally from the closet of their children and wandering out into the streets putting us all in harms way from lack of funds for mirrors. I vote "YES" to mirrors and clothes that fit! Vote for Kim!

So that was my super fun day with 2 of my friends exploring and observing the wildlife in Warwick, Rhode Island. Look out! It's a jungle out there. The breasts... I mean beasts are on the prowl.

I love the smell of comedy in the morning!

That's just what I woke up to this morning, too. I recently finished the Biographies of Marlee Matlin, and Chelsea Handler's two books and went right out to buy Kathy Griffin's book. I just read the first few chapters of it first thing this Saturday morning and am excited to press on. Ironically, she begins with a sarcastic little note to one of her idols, Oprah and I referenced her book club in a previous blog so that alone brought a twinkle to my eye.

I love these women and admire something similar in the three of them. They are all funny, witty women who can take a joke and deliver one with grace. People I think are way too stuck on the idea that life is a very serious affair and everything is taken to heart. In reality, there is no need for so much care about what the guy next door is wearing when mowing his lawn or who we saw so-and-so with the other night. Why do we care about who someone loves or what they do since it really has no bearing on our lives? I just want to be happy and loved and if someone else can be, then that just gives me hope that someday I may be, also.

Comedy is something I treasure and attempt to invite into my everyday life in one way or another. I am very sarcastic and try to find humor hidden in anything. I realize that it is a business however and that just because someone pokes fun at someone or something doesn't necessarily mean that they detest the subject of the joke. I suppose that helps me to appreciate things that some other people who are less open minded can. How sad for them.

Let's try to loosen up here in 2010 and learn to laugh a lot and love so much more. The idea that we exclude people for petty reasons is a very silly notion. Ultimately we rob ourselves through this practice. Love people for who they are instead of hating them for who they won't be for you. Life should be fun and can be if we open our eyes and hearts to the beauty around us. And for goodness sake... LAUGH! Laughter is the best medicine after all and it burns calories. Something we can all stand do!

Complicated hardly explains it...

I went to see the movie "It's Complicated" last night. That Meryl Streep is a genius! She is wonderful in everything I've seen her in but opposite Alec Baldwin... well, they are quite a team. Steve Martin plays a role in the hysteria also and does not disappoint as is true to his form. Some of the lines in that movie are fantastic and the situation reminds me very much of one of my other favorites, "That Old Feeling" with Bette Midler. Although the relationships don't quite end up in the same way, the comedic value in the two movies combined with the actors who play out the hysterical scenario are very entertaining indeed.

Both movies involve a couple who are divorced and seem to loath the sight of one another and have anger that they bottled up for years since their marriage failed because of infidelity among other things. The pent up anger somehow disappears when stored up desire rears its ugly head and takes over. The couple carries on an affair that seems familiar yet new and exciting and adding to this excitement is the fact that they keep it all a secret but not for long. In both cases the relationship is found out and the silliness that follows is great to watch.

Being a child of divorce and remarriages myself, I can't even imagine something like this happening. My parents don't even seem like they are from the same planet let alone the same household. I suppose that would explain my martian-like personality and for that I thank

them both. Still, the idea is a great one and although both movies play it out differently, they are sure to make you laugh out loud. They show you in different ways that "It's Complicated" if ever "That Old Feeling" comes creeping back.

Honda Accords are NOT 4 wheel drive all terrain vehicles?

It has become increasingly more evident during the few snow storms that we have recently had that I should invest in a large piece of property and a 4 wheeler quick before my car takes a major hit! I love to drive in the snow and play around but I may have overestimated the capabilities and performance of my little silver bullet. The other night I drove home in the dark and went in the back driveway and it looked clear until I got half way down the hill. Then I realized there was a 3 foot flaw in my little plan! There happens to be an excess of wind gusts where we live and it blew all day long shoving snow into a large pile on the right side of the driveway and not allowing me to pass. Silly me thought I could fight nature. Since I couldn't back up the slippery slope I thought why not give it a shot and I pressed onward into the drift. BIG mistake! My car was now up in the air like we were in the bad part of town in the South Pole and punk elves put it up on snow blocks and were going to steal my tires. My roommate and I shoveled and pushed and not an inch was gained since my tires were quite literally unable to obtain traction in thin air. I did get rescued when my uncle came to my aid and pulled my car off it's icy plateau with the greatest of ease with a 4 wheel drive pickup truck. I love snow but it really set me up for a cruel joke that night and I was to cold and sore from shoveling to be laughing!


I'm not typically playing the role of damsel in distress but the snow and my love of slipping around in it puts me in that position from time to time. That same uncle has had to pull out of a few different driveways and I'm afraid one day he won't show up because he thinks I need to learn my lesson and stay inside on snowy days like everyone else in New England. I just can't though. I hate those people. The ones who hear we may get 2 inches and rush into the stores to stock up on supplies as if they just got word Armageddon was heading straight for us. It's certainly not that urgent and we won't be stuck at home for weeks on end over a few flakes so whatever milk and bread you have on hand will get you through the 2 hours it takes to plow our little Winter Wonderland.


So next time the snow flies I will have to try to be on my best behavior. When Mother Nature puts up a barricade I should not try to steam roll over it and if I do pull a Dukes of Hazard stunt I shouldn't be surprised when I am forced to pay the toll. This little Daisy can't help herself when there is mud to fling and mischief to get into so I will more then likely find myself in a heap of cold, white trouble again this season.

Merry Christmas and Happy New Year...and New Room for my mom!

Holiday vacation? What Vacation? I can't wait to go back to work just so I can slow down my heart rate. My brother flew in from Jacksonville for Christmas break but it wasn't to relax. We had work to do and that work multiplied at every turn. We were originally supposed to replace some of the original plaster and lath mess, put the window I picked up many moons ago in and paint the tiny room at my mom's house. At the end of our whirl-wind week of work days that began at 8am and ended many nights not before 11:30pm, we have taken out ceiling and walls of plaster and lath, rewired outlets and lights, straightened ceilings and walls, put in the window, took out a different window altogether framed it in and covered it over, removed a chimney that only existed on the second floor of the home we found buried in the walls (Very safe, wouldn't you say?), removed a wall separating that tiny room from another tiny room making one less tiny room out of the two, framed in a new large closet, framed in the new doorway for the new space, insulated, hung drywall and secured her railing that used to pull out of the wall at the top of the staircase. Now my mom just left to take my brother to the airport and I feel I can breathe again for the first time in a week!

Things were stressful when we had so much torn down and so little time to make it function again. We had to put it together enough so the furniture and things that lived there could go back to their rightful home at least until we had the time to finish the job completely at a later date. She had shelves and clothes and chairs and all sorts of nicknacks everywhere else in the house to make room for the demolition. My mom was a bit panicked when her home was torn up and my brother and I are banging and cutting pieces of it up and throwing them out the window onto the lawn below. I can't say I blame her, dust everywhere and tools strewn about and materials leaning waiting for their turn to take their place in the new room.

Our Aunt came over some days and assisted in dragging the junk out of our way and our Uncle took a few trips to the dump for us to dispose of the large mound of 1870's home we had laying in the grass and snow outside. Overall it was a great week with my brother and the rest of the family that helped and hung out to entertain us and keep the mood light and I really like working with my brother so it was a good experience. I can't say I'm looking all that forward to the demolition and rebuilding of the other half of the room or the taping and mudding, painting and trimming of the entire space but we will get it done in time. For now it's a much larger spot for mom's crap to go and that is more then we expected Santa to fit down that half a chimney so we feel pretty good about our "Christmas not-such-a-break"!