Letters to 2007 & 2008

Dear Old Man 2007,

I wish I could say that I am sorry to see you leave, but instead, I am offering to pack your bags, call you a cab, and shut the door the minute you have stepped foot out of my house. You have been a rude, unattractive, stressful house guest and one that I hope not to see for a long time to come. Your year has been chocked full of stress, strain, lack of focus, and bad decisions. It has been a time of back steps and back slides rather than moving forward and ahead. You have seen the worst in me and very little of the optimism, love, laughter, and drive that I am so capable of. We were not meant to be together and so finally, with all the excitement I can muster, I am moving on.

Dear Baby New Year,

I feel like I have been waiting on you for the full 12 months of 2007. You bring so much change and new beginnings to my life. We come together with a new job in a new industry, there will be a new house, and there is a new & wonderful relationship in my marriage, my daughter will go to kindergarten and my son to college. There will be difficulties and sadness, but I am hopeful that there will be progress and consistency. I am looking forward to all that you offer to my life.

Here's to you kid,

CScott

I am working on resolutions, but in the meantime, read Jennifer Lancaster's entry about hers - it is hilarious (www.jennsylvania.com)
I read Jocelyn's blog this morning as well. If you do not read her, you should! (www.ilovepauljack.com)

See you on the flip side!

Ok, enough with the snow.

This has been the best Christmas ever. Of course, I said that last year, but this year my "Little" is a month from turning four and really gets it this year. Santa was great to her and she actually hugged her CD player. So I am happy, really happy and content and things are going my way in small doses. So the really question is when will the other shoe drop and what type of shoe will it be? A black strappy high heel sandal? The most perfect snake skin kitten heel, a Franco Sarto knee high black leather pointy toed high heeled boot, or a crimson patent leather flat? Or will it be the Sorrel snow boot variety? I am trying to keep my optimistic outlook, but you know- we have had a really rough few years, so I realistic. But maybe we have paid our dues and things will get - I hate to say it, easier!

So "Little" and I went to see Enchanted yesterday. She is out of school for the week and G is working to finish a project at work that will go live after the 1st of the year. It was a great feel good movie and had Patrick Dempsey in it - which can never hurt! We did a little shopping, had lunch - thank Ruby Tuesdays for turkey burger minis (yum), and spent the day being girls together. Susan Sarandon played the evil witch and did such a great job, though she was a tad over the top. I recommend it if you love Happily Every After Disney Princess movies.

I am getting a little stir crazy in the house as it snowed all day on Christmas and then again today. I am not getting as much exercise as I wanted to get and will pay for it when my trainer gets back - Lord help me! I am tracking my steps though, or lack there of with the weather.

I plan to write a letter to Baby New Year and Old Man 2007 at some point, so watch for that.....
By the way, if you are not reading Jennsylvania and Ilovepauljack, make it a resolution to do so. I laugh my ass off every time I visit these talented girls.

It's A Jolly Holiday With Mary

I love the holidays......ABC Family runs Mary Poppins during the holidays. Who does not love Mary Poppins? Dick Van Dyke is a blundering idiot and as my "Little" says, Julie Andrews has such a "pretty voice". Plus, Mary Poppins schools a bunch of men, although cartoons, and wins the horse derby. Girlz Rule!

In other news, I saw The Golden Compass and have to say that I liked it. I had no intention of seeing it, had no idea that it was a three book series, and would not have paid any attention had the Catholic church not made such an issue. So that I am perfectly clear let me plainly state that most anything the Catholics ask people to ban, boycott, etc, I am participating in - as long as I can maintain moral integrity. So here is what I find funny....The church is upset that a book written by an atheist has been made into a movie and if it does well, the other two books will also be converted as well. As with all movies, there is a bad guy and in this case, the religious leaders are the evil doers. I am not sure how the dark side of the church is any different in this movie than it is in Robin Hood, The Three Musketeers - which has been made a number of times, or The Princess Bride, but maybe it is that The Golden Compass was written by the atheist. But the church is sure that children that are allowed to see the movie, despite the fact that it is not a children's movie, will turn their backs on the religious institution. So it is not the fact that their Bishops continue to be charged on charges for raping young children that will turn the next generation off of the Catholic church, or the fact that the church continues to preach outdated doctrines, it is INSTEAD a movie that most people will mindlessly enjoy for ENTERTAINMENT purposes.

You have two ears and one mouth

Ok, this is what I have to say about interviewing: Talking about myself makes me feel arrogant and obnoxious. Like I get that it is my mission to make myself stand out from other potential candidates, but I am not a big ego type. What makes me such a great sales person is that I like to listen to others. If you shut your mouth long enough, people will tell you what they need, what their concerns are, and why they are talking to you in the first place. It is hard to hear all of that if you are constantly talking at people. I always get the question, "are you self-confident and assertive". Yes, I am both - especially when it comes to business. What I am not is an over-bearing, demanding ego-maniac. The best question I had was "What do you think is worth standing up and fighting for?" WOW - bravo to whomever came up with that one. My answer: Freedom, Human Rights, and the Safety of Children. I tell my husband often that in any other country, I would have been stoned to death long ago! God Bless America!

P.S. God Bless Jocelyn for admitting that she too watches Run's House. So maybe I am just the right kind of crazy!

Laura Ingalls Wilder and Champagne

I swear I am not hiding from the holidays or from my blogging duties. I am truly busy and a little lazy when it comes to posting - or having a thought to post. My tenor of unemployment is coming to an end I feel and so I am trying to enjoy every last minute. I have been working out with a personal trainer and a couple of women I know and love, cleaning out the house, selling stuff on eBay, reading, walking, trying to cook/eat better, having lunch with my husband, I took my "Little" to the Disney Princesses on Ice (midway through, I started thinking about my friend Slappyjack (www.slappyjack.com), who apparently went to dinner with his ex-wife and my wonderful friend Jocelyn (www.ilovepauljack.com), and working for a friend who owns a business and needs little things done to make her life more sane and manageable. All this and I am addicted to Run's House, Code Blue, and Life in the E.R.

Last night was the holiday party for my book club. I made cheese grits - yummy! and drank strawberry Bellini's made with champagne. Our gift exchange required that we bring our favorite book from when we were eight. I took the first book to the Little House on the Prairie set. I loved those books so much. I would love to hear what books you read when you were 8 that have had a lasting impact. Back to the girls, It is amazing how different we are, but how well we mingle and converse. There is a sense of sisterhood among us and we are friends. I love these women and am so thankful that I have this in my life.

I have phase one of an interview for the job I actually want - so keep your fingers crossed!!