Random thoughts that came from laying in the sun!

So our trip to San Diego was INCREDIBLE! Loved it! Will go back once a year if I can! :) And I have tons of pics to post but cannot for the life of me find my cord to download pics from camera to computer...may need to head to Best Buy to buy a new one...lovely...

In the meantime...I had random thoughts throughout the trip that I thought all put together might make for some interesting comments...so here goes....

1). Is it just me, or have halloween costumes for girls been narrowed down to basically two things...princesses or sluts? While at SeaWorld over the weekend, they were having a spooktacular event...apparently every weekend in October. Kids were encouraged to show up at Sea World dressed up and could go around and trick or treat (costumes not necessary but for kids who live in the area it makes for a fun Halloween event) and do Halloween activities etc. Boys costumes are pretty much timeless it seems...the 'super hero' of the day, mummies, monsters...same old same old 'boy' themes. But it seemed to me that all the girls were either one of two things like I said at the beginning...a Princess or a slutty girl. Now I know I am biased in this because I HATE the whole 'bratz' craze. Refused to buy Paige anything Bratz. I also do not like Hannah Montana, High school musical or any of these other popular shows whereby young girls are portrayed as 'sexy' and 'hot' and 'bitchy' and it's all ok...and the networks are quite blunt that their target market are girls 6-12~ are you kidding me? So anywho...there were either cute little Disney Princesses or girls in all forms of 'sexy' costumes...and a lot of these little girls were LITTLE GIRLS in sexy outfits!!! I find it sad....very sad. And for the record, Paige is going to be neither one this year. She wants to be an Owl! :)

2) Does it not bother anyone else that if you go into a business in the United States of America and speak English to the employees, they don't understand you? I am all for being a melting pot. I am all for ethnic diversity. I truly enjoy other cultures. But in America, it should be a requirement that you speak ENGLISH along with any other languages that you may choose. I would never move to another country...get a job and NOT speak the native language....

3) What is the secret of little hole in the wall restaurants that make their food a million times better than fancy places? Is it that they concentrate on just a few items and perfect them? Is it that they are usually somehow tied to the food they serve, either culterally or otherwise? We had the BEST Greek food in San Diego...little hole in the wall place. Sat at a table by the window and watched all the people go by (better than tv ANY day!) while we dined on chicken rice lemon soup (yup..you read that right! LEMON in it...and YUMMO it was), Greek salad....REAL Greek salad, not a 'version' of, Chicken slouvaki, spanokopita and a gyro. Oh. And this was all included in ONE meal. And it was only 9 bucks. Amazing.

4) Why is it that when people are drunk and it's 3am, they invariably hit their car alarm about 15 times before they figure out that they aren't doing anything more productive than hitting their car alarm at 3am? And why is it always in the car that is right outside YOUR hotel room?

5) Do people seriously think it's not doing their children any harm when they carry them around while they are smoking? Are people REALLY that stupid?

6) A dollar can't buy much these days. Try to take a dollar and go into a store and buy something...including tax, what can you buy for a buck?
I'll tell you ONE thing you can still buy for a buck. You can buy the sight of your child summoning up all his courage and diving into the deep end of the pool, even though he KNOWS it will mean his face goes under. It buys that look on his face when he surfaces that says "I DID IT"!!! It only costs a dollar...but that look is surely worth much more! :)

7) Why is it that when you are doing something NOT fun, time drags by, but when you are having a blast, time flies?

and finally, why am I blogging at 1030 at night after getting up at 4am to fly home? :)

Hugs to all, pics to follow as soon as I find that damn cord!
Jaye

I'm leaving on a Jet Plane

One of the oddities of Marks job is that there is no schedule. Well, there IS, but we like to say that 'schedules in the Navy are set in Jello'! So it was with great surprise that he pulled into San Diego. After a bit of research and planning it was decided that it was feasible for the kids and I to fly down for a long weekend!

We are looking forward to seeing Mark..it's been awhile. The kids are so excited it's like they have eaten 15 cupcakes with frosting and sprinkles and are on a sugar high! haha...

Many of the parks there are doing the 'salute to our Heros' special, so we are going to SeaWorld for FREE, as well as able to go to the Zoo for FREE! We really don't want to go to the zoo, but Ben has his heart set on it. Maybe we can bribe him by taking him to the beaches?

I fully plan on eating some great food down there. Funny how you can find that certain cities have GREAT food in general and San Diego is one of them!

So that is MY plan for the weekend! How are YOUR plans going? :)

Hugs
Jaye

Quiz results....eerie!!

Ok..I took a quiz posted on an acquaintances site just out of curiosity...you know...that thing that killed the cat? Well, most of these things are a waste of time, but hey..I had a few minutes to waste so what the hey right? It was two questions. The results? SPOOKY. It is ME to a T!! BIG TIME.
WOW....so here are my results!

Your result for Are You a Jackie or a Marilyn? Or Someone Else? Mad Men-era Female Icon Quiz...

You Are a Marilyn!

You are a Marilyn -- "I am affectionate and skeptical."

Marilyns are responsible, trustworthy, and value loyalty to family, friends, groups, and causes. Their personalities range broadly from reserved and timid to outspoken and confrontative.

How to Get Along with Me

• * Be direct and clear
• * Listen to me carefully
• * Don't judge me for my anxiety
• * Work things through with me
• * Reassure me that everything is OK between us
• * Laugh and make jokes with me
• * Gently push me toward new experiences
• * Try not to overreact to my overreacting.

What I Like About Being a Marilyn

• * being committed and faithful to family and friends
• * being responsible and hardworking
• * being compassionate toward others
• * having intellect and wit
• * being a nonconformist
• * confronting danger bravely
• * being direct and assertive

What's Hard About Being a Marilyn

• * the constant push and pull involved in trying to make up my mind
• * procrastinating because of fear of failure; having little confidence in myself
• * fearing being abandoned or taken advantage of
• * exhausting myself by worrying and scanning for danger
• * wishing I had a rule book at work so I could do everything right
• * being too critical of myself when I haven't lived up to my expectations

Marilyns as Children Often

• * are friendly, likable, and dependable, and/or sarcastic, bossy, and stubborn
• * are anxious and hypervigilant; anticipate danger
• * form a team of "us against them" with a best friend or parent
• * look to groups or authorities to protect them and/or question authority and rebel
• * are neglected or abused, come from unpredictable or alcoholic families, and/or take on the fearfulness of an overly anxious parent

Marilyns as Parents

• * are often loving, nurturing, and have a strong sense of duty
• * are sometimes reluctant to give their children independence
• * worry more than most that their children will get hurt
• * sometimes have trouble saying no and setting boundaries

Go ahead, take the quiz....see if it's as accurate for you as it was for me (heck..it even said we "Marilyns' usually come from abusive homes.....yikes!)..

Hugs to all,
Jaye

Happy Canadian Thanksgiving!!

The second Monday in October is Canadian Thanksgiving. This has always felt like the start of the "Holiday Season" for me. Moving to the States I quickly found that Halloween was the start of the season for Americans, so I quickly re-educated my beloved and his family! :)

Tonight we had our 'feast'...ham, mashed potatoes, corn, yams (with cinnamon,brown sugar and butter!),cranberries, rolls and dessert. I made two desserts this year. Apple crisp and Chocolate mousse in chocolate cups...yummo! I also found little foil wrapped chocolate turkeys at World Market (my FAVORITE store!) and so we had those beside our place cards (yes, I make place cards each year). The kids love being 'half Canadian/half American' as they say, and so this holiday, while MUCH more low key than American Thanksgiving, has become a part of our blended family tradition. Blended in that we have two merging families of children as well as two countries.

So to all my family and friends...Happy Canadian Thanksgiving..I hope you all have much to be thankful for....as much as I do!

Hugs
Jaye

Odds and Ends...

So many little bits to add. Not enough time! hehe....

First, Mark is out to sea AGAIN. I look forward to his retiring. Maybe. It will probably drive me nuts having him home all the time and having to share the remote. And not be the boss in everything! haha....but for now, I miss him. His new assignment takes him away from home more than he is at home. I look forward to him having a week off at Christmas.....and his retiring from the Navy.

I still need to post pics of our cranberry bog trip. I will do that this weekend! I LOVE three day weekends! Speaking of three day weekends, Happy Canadian Thanksgiving!!!! We are having a feast on Monday of course. It is always the start of our Holiday season.

And speaking of Holiday Season. I already have ALL of Marks presents bought. They will start to arrive this coming week- I LOVE online shopping! I have several of the kids presents bought AND wrapped! :) I know what we are getting for everyone so that part is done...now it's just buying and wrapping. I have several gifts for family already bought and ready for shipping. I am SO on top of it this year. Heck, I had our Christmas cards ordered in June and they arrived in August! :)

We now have FOUR frogs and two baby lizards. Paige brought another frog home (lucky lucky me) and a few weeks ago my great mighty hunter man went out to get a deer and instead came home with two baby lizards. Lovely. So now I have big crickets for the tree toad in one critter keeper. Small crickets in another critter keeper for the peep frogs and baby lizards. Flightless fruit flies for variety...and prozac for me! :)

My life is beyond busy. I'd really like to take a vacation, but that isn't going to happen any time soon. I AM taking the kids to WI for the month of August. Sam won't be coming as he will be working after graduation (I HOPE AND PRAY...for a job...not graduation! haha). So the little bits and I will spend a month losing 10 pounds sweating in the humidity of a WI summer! And seeing family...and friends...and I can't wait to move closer!!!! However, I STILL want to pack my little bikini and head to the bahamas. I told Mark when he retires, I am leaving the kids with him and me, myself and I are headed somewhere warm for a week. I think the three of us will have a GREAT time! :) And anyone can join me...there are just a few rules! NO kids. NO whining. Turn me over every half hour so I don't sunburn and keep my drink glass full at all times! :)

I am sitting here looking at the view of the mountains from my living room...we have a 180 degree view of mountains in the whole front of our house...it's really quite nice..which is why we paid the price we did for the property! lol..anywho...up until yesterday morning they were green! Now they are dusted with snow! YAY!!! I LOVE the snow! I don't like being cold, but then I am always cold...guess I need to fatten up! haha....but I DO love watching the cold from inside my warm house while I sip my mocha! lol...

So have a great weekend all!

Happy Canadian Thanksgiving eh!!!!
Hugs
Jaye

Is stupidity a requirement nowadays?????

Ok...would SOMEONE please tell me why companies only hire STUPID people! Can they pay them less? Do they pay them with M & M's ? What the HELL?????
Ok....here goes...

Five years ago this spring, we moved into our lovely new home. We ordered Dish Network satellite as it was going to cost us over $10,000 to run cable down our driveway (I don't love tv THAT much!). So...Dish Network here we come. Simple. Every single month, we pay our bill. ON time, IN FULL....EVERY MONTH...for almost four and a half years.

I payed our bill in June as usual. Then about the third week in June, my phone rings. On the caller ID it says "Mark and Jaye Greene" and I am thinking 'ok..one of the kids is being a lazy smartass and calling me for something from the other end of the house'. I answer the phone and it's DISH NETWORK with a lovely promotional offer for me. USING MY PHONE NUMBER TO CALL ME LONG DISTANCE!!!!! Nice! So I hung up and called the company...told them what had happened and said "I don't know how you did it but you have found a way to use MY phone number to call ME to promote your stuff". The answer I was given was 'it wasn't us, we use a contractor' (like THAT makes a difference to me! jeepers people!). So I clarified to Ms.Rocket Science that no matter WHO made the call, they used MY number to make a long distance call to ME to promote THEIR stuff. NOT OK with me! She got rather snotty (after all I was bothering her by calling her with a customer service issue.....) told me she'd 'look into it' and hung up.

End of August. I start getting messages one day flashing across the T.V screen saying 'service will be interupted if you don't pay your bill'. And I am like "huh?". So I check my web bill pay records and sure enough, almost three months and I haven't paid a Dish Network bill. So I start to dig through my paper files (yes, I am anal..I keep electronic AND paper files, sue me....at this point I'd relish a good legal battle! hehehehe)....and I realize that 'coincidentally' since my call in June, I've not recieved a bill from them. So I promptly call them up and pay the three months of arrears (over 100 bucks!) and said 'I am not getting bills, please start sending them to me'. The response? "Oh we are sending them, they must be getting stolen from your mailbox'. Yah...that's right...out of ALL the mail I get every month, some weirdo is taking my Dish Network bill......anywho...

I get another call tonight..."Pay your bill or service will be interupted". UGH. Now I've been keeping an eye on this and we are only one month behind (not really....just the one month is due in five days...) and I STILL am not getting bills. So Mark calls them...and yup...you guessed it...THEY are sending bills, but some freak is stealing them from our box. Mark just got this 'are you freaking kidding me' look on his face and hung up! HAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHA.

So dish network, I SENT the payment....it was just stolen from your mail pile!

BUHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHA....

Hugs to all,
Jaye