Thanks

Turkey is in the oven. Casseroles (one green bean [family favorite] and broccoli [new addition this year that I hope will become another favorite]) ready to pop in the oven. Pies are store bought and I have no guilt about that. The price was great and we were able to get a berry (my favorite), a pumpkin (a family favorite) and an apple (just because) for $12. Still loving the new Raley's!

Chloe spent the morning in the kitchen with me while I cooked sausage, mushrooms, celery and onions for the stuffing. Yesterday, I made homemade cranberry sauce and candied some mandarin oranges. I was reading blogs and came across a recipe for pumpkin flan - and since I had some simple syrup left from candy-ing mandarin oranges to add to the sweet potatoes - I decided to make it. It was delicious - though the caramel got a little 'over-done' and are basically discs of amber colored candy. They are delicious - and so is the flan! I have to work on my caramel method but the custard is delicious and all things considered, it was pretty easy.

Just got a big hug from son #1 who is thankful for fresh baked cinnamon rolls and obvious evidence of a delicious dinner to come. He is also thankful that the car accident he was in on Tuesday night was not as tragic as it could have been. He was making a left turn and collided with a bicyclist - who miraculously and thankfully, is absolutely fine. Declined medical attention at the scene twice - and our insurance company advised yesterday that they have contacted him and he is fine. They said he is being very reasonable...thank God for that. B. was shaken and worried but we're moving past it. The Acura was towed to the body shop yesterday - it's not drivable because the windshield is shattered from the helmet on the guy's head. And thank God for that helmet. If it had been his head, he probably would have died. There is some body damage to the bumper and the hood of the car - all will be repaired. The guy rides a custom graphite bike - the wheels alone are $2,000 each - but our insurance company has been very great and reassuring and they will work with him to either repair or replace the bike. It could have been so much worse. B. was going the speed limit and somehow, just didn't see the bike coming towards him as he turned. He learned a very valuable lesson.......you cannot be too careful and you must be hyper-vigilant. All the time. Scary time but we're doing OK.

So here's my list of things I am thankful for today - there are too many to list but these are my highlights this year:

• My husband - he is a wonderful, loving, caring, giving person who has blessed me with love, companionship, laughter and all the wonderful things that define marriage - and I can't imagine being married to anyone else.
  
• My kids - who teach me patience and forgiveness and how to love everyday. They pain me, challenge me, bless me and make me happy and angry and sad - frequently at the exact same moment. I love them and being their mom is one of my life's greatest blessings. I'm trying to remember that as we watch the contrail of their childhood's slip away into their adult-ness.
• My job - it is a great job and in this economy, I'm blessed to have it. I love what I do and while it's stressful and time consuming and sometimes a lot to handle, I am grateful for the learnings and the fun and the challenges presented each day. And I really mean that. (Remind me of that on Sunday when I will have probably worked most of the upcoming three 'days off' just to keep up and will be wondering when/if I ever truly get any real time off, ever). And for J.'s job, too - for all the amazing things having great jobs makes possible. Like Cancun....and a roof over our heads, food in the pantry, etc.
  
• Faith. If you have it, then you know exactly what I'm talking about. If you don't, I hope you find it. It is His most fervent desire to have a relationship with you. It is all He truly wants. And it's really so incredibly simple....and yet, it's hard to do. But it is possible. And once you have it, then life becomes so much sweeter and easier. Not that it's a cake walk - it's not always easy to believe when you can't see or touch what you believe in. But faith just makes everything so much MORE - it's very hard to describe. If you know what I mean, way to go! Isn't it mind-numbingly awesome? If you don't, I wish that for you - on this day when we tend to 'take stock' of our lives and our dreams. I wish it for you....
• Family and friends. You know who you are - and even if I haven't met you, if you read this blog regularly, I'm thankful for you, too. This blog has been my 'therapy' and my diary - and it amazes me that people read it... thanks for that!
  

Time to work on clearing off the dining room table and setting out the 'good' china. Our twice a year 'unwrap the wedding china' meal - and I love those dishes. I pray I have a daughter-in-law someday who will love it, too - that it won't end up on EBay someday for sale for $20 a setting. It's a discontinued pattern and it's beautiful and hard to find....and I hope it's in our family for generations.

I'm thankful for generations......

Empty and Beautiful

These are perfume bottles.

They are empty.

Four recently finished perfume bottles of four of my favorite scents. I know it's hard to have multiple favorite scents - but I do.

They are clutter.

Unnecessary.

And I cannot bring myself to part with them.

My mother collected bottles. All shapes, all sizes, all types. Avon perfume bottles were a favorite. As were old pharmaceutical bottles; old liquor bottles; old soda bottles, etc. Bottles covered every open inch of our home - and when she ran out of room inside, she put them outside. She loved them. And over time, I came to love them, too.

She always said I should take the bottles when she died - but in truth, we lived in a condo and had absolutely nowhere to put them. And back then, I didn't want them. Thought them silly and superfluous. And also considering I had two young boys running around, a hazard of ginormous proportion. So I did not take them. As far as I know, they are still in storage in Arizona somewhere. I think about them occasionally and today is one of those days. My home is full of 'ledges' that would be perfect for the bottles. I still don't really think I want them - but these four empty perfume bottles have me consumed with thinking about the collection of bottles....boxed up somewhere.....

Today would have been my mom's 85th birthday. She lived to be 75 - and 10 years ago this weekend, we were celebrating her 75th birthday with a ginormous surprise birthday party. It was fun and crazy and hectic and she loved every minute of it. All of her kids in one place for the first time since my wedding 10 years earlier. Her surviving siblings from out of state plus cousins and friends and family. It was a great time. She died six months later. So we're approaching the 10th anniversary of her death - and I can't believe that. I can't believe it's been a decade without her. It feels like yesterday....but it isn't. It was ten years ago. My sons are young men now - not little boys....

So I keep trying to toss these bottles into the recycling bin, but I really can't do it. I've tried - but I go retrieve them before they go to the outside bins.

I keep them because they are beautiful. And because she would appreciate how pretty they are. She would never get rid of them - she'd find a place to keep them and look at them and enjoy them.

And in honor of her 85th birthday, I'm starting my own little bottle collection. I won't scour flea markets or antique stores for them; I won't go to estate sales or cruise the internet for them. But when I have a pretty bottle that is beautiful to look at, I'm keeping it. These four are going on a shelf in my bedroom - I will see them everyday and think of her - I think of her everyday anyway but now, I'll have something 'tangible' to remember her with.

She will be glad I didn't toss them. And she'll keep me on the look out for them - trying new scents I wouldn't normally try because the bottle is pretty. She would appreciate that.

Happy Birthday, Mom. I miss you. We all miss you.

Harried

We have been reconnected since late last week...and are enjoying the return of Dish Network. We will never leave you again, Dish. I promise. NEVER.....

There are various happenings to report - none particularly stellar but hey, that's what this blog is about - just a way to chronicle my daily happenings so in my old age, I can read back and remember....

B's band (Suburban Summer - the best name they've ever had, in my opinion) had a big gig on Friday night at The Fat Cat in Modesto - the happening place to be in Modesto on Friday night. Tickets printed, etc.... And sadly, the gig did not happen because one of their band members is not yet 18 and they were not allowed to take the stage. Bummer. They are playing again this Sunday at Slim's in San Francisco and this is an 'all ages' venue, so we don't think there will be any problem. And I'm looking forward to going 'cuz I don't have work on Monday (technically) so we can sleep in. Should be fun.

B. has registered for his second college semester and seems excited. He's now thinking about minoring in psychology - a good choice for law enforcement, I think. I will be paying the tuition tonight and he'll be officially on his way to completing his first year of college. We still haven't seen any grades - and he did drop his Theater class - he had no interest in the history of theater and decided to drop it. He did that without consulting us but oh well - he's 18 now, so he doesn't technically have to consult us for anything. Sometimes, the lack of communication royally pisses me off but I'm learning to adjust. Trying to let go. Which would be a whole heck of a lot easier if he weren't still living with us, but that day will come soon enough.

I am off all next week - at least on paper. I do plan to be off as much as I can, but the timing of the December board meeting combined with the number of items on the agenda that are 'mine' might complicate that a bit. So I'm plugging away at work to get as much done as I can and hope for the best. We'll see....it's just us this year and then J. and the boys will go visit his brother in Oakland with a turkey dinner in tow.

H. is around and dealing with his parents ability to get online and check his grades - which led to him being totally and completely restricted until he's 30. Really. It's that bad. Poor kid. He works hard; we loosen up on the 'restrictions'; he goes out and 'chills' with friends; and then WHAMMO, we check grades again and reel him back in. It's like the great 'circle of life' in Lion King, only it's the dismal 'slow moving drain' of high school grades.

I am still holding firm to not turning on the heat until December. The kids have moved the space heaters back into their rooms - to take the chill off the room they are in without having to heat massive amounts of space where there is no one needing to be warmer. It would work like a dream IF they would pay attention to the thermostat control AND the timer. The other night, I kept hearing something odd - I'm a mom with bat ears and can hear the slightest difference in our houses noises, especially at night - so I investigated. I realize the low hum is coming from H.'s room - so I knock quietly and open the door. I am immediately assaulted by a blast of warm (VERY WARM) air and realize that H. has the space heater on. It is a balmy SEVENTY EIGHT degrees in his room - and he is sound asleep in shorts and a tank top ON TOP OF HIS BED SPREAD. Have you tried moving a 6 foot tall 16 year old from the top of his bed covers to under his bed covers when he's asleep? It was impossible - and H. in his deep sleep mode - kept mumbling 'why are you doing this to me?' I said 'because I'm turning off your heater and you are going to be cold in about two hours'. I finally gave up - he got a stern reminder the next morning that the beauty of the space heaters is to use the timer and the thermostat. We don't need each room we're sleeping in to be a tropical paradise - we just need to take the chill of while we're falling asleep....

It's a lot colder here this past week and I don't think making it without heat until December 1st will work - but it's a good goal.

J. left the house this morning in a shirt and tie - a Cal tie because it's Big Game week, don't you know! It's the one time each year that he wears a tie - and I always resist dressing in red. Not because I care about Stanford - but just because it keeps the fire in our marriage for me to taunt his obsession with all things Cal. We used to joke that one of the kids might GO to Standford - and then high school happened and we realized that was totally out of the question. So the only way to taunt J. would be for me to wear red - and thankfully, I don't own a lot of red clothing....so he's safe.

OK, time to leave the house for work. I'm 'late' and threw off the space time continuum this morning by 'sleeping in' until 5:53. Totally forgetting that H. has a 7AM class on Wednesdays and would be in the shower by 6:15 - which he was. And he used up most of the hot water, which made my shower at 6:30 invigorating and refreshing and very, very fast. I do feel rested, though, and have been doing a better job of waking up at 3 or 4 and just going back to sleep. My body is cooperating and actually GOING BACK TO SLEEP - so it's a win-win!

(Continuing to be) Disconnected

It's Monday afternoon, approaching 4:30. I left work at just after 3 - I was in very early today and tomorrow is a 12+ hour board meeting day, so I don't feel a bit guilty about leaving 'early'.

And I'm at Starbucks again getting in a couple hours of Internet before heading home briefly and then out the door again to a work social thing. It's always something.

I sort of like this 'routine'. Get a beverage; find a table; pay $3.99 and enjoy a couple hours just catching up on blogs, bill paying, etc. It's fun. I could get used to this...and it makes The Internet something you block/budget time for instead of realizing that you've surfed for a long, long time and are totally unaware of the passing of time whilst doing it. Maybe a 'forced' 2 hour per day every couple of days' is the way to go.

Though I am missing my farm...I'll be checking shortly.

I just miss J....it's more fun to hang out at the 'cafe' with my best friend. He's on his way home from SF shortly.

We have Wednesday as a mid-week day off! Love that!! and even J. (who hasn't previously gotten that holiday but through the miracle of [yet another] merger, DOES!) will be home with us!! Pancakes! mid-week!! Yippee!!

We hope to have Internet back tonight sometime. If not tonight, probably (hopefully) tomorrow.

Later, friends. Need to harvest my crops!

Disconnected

We have no Internet at Chez Majah this weekend.....I've been resorting to cleaning my own bathrooms (the shock); scouring my own bathtub (the horror); and a lot of other things that aren't nearly as fun as surfing the web and tending my various farms. We hope to be reconnected by Tuesday evening at the latest.

The tile floors and carpet look fantastic! Like new. The job they did - especially on the tile grout - is truly phenomenal. I'm torturing everyone by making them take off their shoes when they walk in the front door. We look like a Japanese restaurant now with shoes lined up in the entry way. I don't care! The floors look AWESOME and I'd like to keep them that way for as long as possible. At least until Thanksgiving.

J. and I are here at our local Starbucks, on our 2nd round of lattes. The boys are out and about this evening - B. is at a band rehearsal and hanging out with a friend visiting home from Sonoma State. H. is at Girls Treat, heading on a party bus to Capitola with 20 of his closest friends. We paid $3.99 for two hours of connection - which should be free, but our AT&T Internet ID's are not working. We are in 'limbo' between moving back to AT&T HighSpeed Internet from AT&T UVerse. It's like we don't exist....and it's been interesting to see how two divisions of the same company can mess something up. Though we have to say the young lady that tried to help J. yesterday afternoon (I got the feeling he was practically begging her to figure something out so he could avoid the whole 'I have to tell Majah we don't have Internet for the next FOUR DAYS' discussion) really, truly did everything possible to help. She even tried to just get us DIAL UP for the weekend - which totally would have sucked but would have been better than nothing. Just barely. So we paid for connectivity here - and at least we're 'online' for a couple hours tonight. We have church tomorrow morning and then I'll go into my office for a bit - so I can connect there. Can't farm there, though....bummer.

So I've confirmed our credit card payments posted; tended to my Facebook farm and apartment and am enjoying a Cinnamon Dulce latte and a rice krispie treat. Checked emails. Read a couple blogs. All the normal Internet-y things that fill the time.

I have many posts 'in process' and will hopefully have more time to write next week. We have Veteran's Day off - a nice treat after a board meeting day which are always really long....

Back in a few days....take care!

Grand Opening Part Deux

Returned AGAIN with a friend from work. Scored BIG Crest toothpastes for 50 cents a tube - will buy six more tomorrow and we won't need toothpaste until 2015! Also got two roasts. And sushi!! Freshly made California rolls - buy two, get one free! DINNER for me and J. tonight. I will send H. back with $$ to get Chinese from their in-store Chinese deli! More Kleenex! TeJava for 99 cents a bottle! J.'s going to have to go back with me for more stuff!! Got another shopping bag! More note pads!

Grand Opening

Today is the long-awaited opening of Raley's in Tracy! Right down the street from our house! Our part of town has been waiting for a REAL shopping center to open long before we moved here in 2000 - and it's finally happening! So far, there are signs up for a Super Cuts, Subway, Wells Fargo, Chase, a taqueria, a nail place.

I braved inflated Foster Farm chickens the size of a house and a packed parking lot to visit this morning. Scored a free fabric shopping bag (and got 5 cents off my order for using it!) and other perks. A bag with an icing spreader thing, notepads, magnetic clips! Things you can never have too many of - seriously. J. tried to toss a tote bag he got from some event he went to way back when and I stopped him. You never know when another tote bag will come in handy!

The store was controlled chaos which only made it more fun. I have to be at work at 11 briefly (taking another non-work day today) so I couldn't linger too long - but I will be going back this evening to browse the meat specials and procure some deli Chinese food for dinner. Oh, and SUSHI! They make fresh sushi ALL DAY LONG! I think I'm in heaven! AND, they have special parking places for hybrid cars! SCORE!

I've been in love with grand openings since my days at Mervyn's. There is nothing like opening a new store. Nothing. It is so incredibly exciting and fun and hectic and exhausting. And the big day arrives and your dead on your feet - and you're so proud to be a part of the opening! There are always (ALWAYS) people in suits walking around, checking out the place. It's so much fun. You'll just have to trust me - it's really like nothing else when you're one of the 'workers' that created the 'buzz' that is now a full-fledged store. I tried so hard to encourage B. to apply there - because being a part of that 'building from the ground up' really bonds a group of people into steadfast friends. I have friends from my Mervyn's days (25 years ago!) that I am still in touch with.

I have waited at 4AM for the opening of a Target Greatland in San Ramon many years ago. Was also in line at 4AM for the Krispy Kreme opening in Union City - even got interviewed for the morning news there, proclaiming my love for hot, gooey pastries. When the reporter asked me 'what's so special about these donuts?', I replied 'have you had one?'. 'No'. 'Well, then, I really can't describe it to you - you just have to try one for yourself'. I was obsessed....I realize that now. Grand Openings are just the best thing EVER...even with the inflatable chickens that are frankly, terrifying.

When I worked at Mervyn's and moved into the 'corporate offices', working in the credit division, I frequently was sent out to store openings all across the country. Those times were so fun - we went as a team and had an absolute blast. Working our asses off for days at a time and sleeping little because when we weren't working, we were partying! It was so much fun -

I am heading out to help a co-worker procure shelving that is available at Costco....and then back home to continue working on prepping the house for the floor cleaning tomorrow. And tons of 'work' stuff to take care of - things I schlepped home. I'm not really sure what I was thinking trying to wedge in these couple days off...but I needed them. So I took them.

I will return to Raley's again to score beef roasts for $1.67 per pound! I didn't even get near the deli...but I will. Oh yes, I will.....

The only 'not great' thing is: they have an in-store Pete's Coffee. Blasphemy. But oh well. I will give it a try 'cuz we have two buy one get one free coupons! and the kids are always up for frozen, caffeinated beverages with whip cream!