Category Archives: Best Husband

January 18, 2010 · 3:59 pm

Going Places.

Since you last saw me, I’ve been to northern California and back. Monterey/Salinas area to be precise. The handful of times I’ve been there was with my ex-husband and while I loved that area, he had a tendency to cast a pallor of gloom over everything. A little advice right here? If you have a suspicion that you’ll love some place, don’t let someone who’s a weenie take you there. Or just avoid weenies.

Anyway…

One of my friends from high school, Bridgett, lives up there and so it worked out that we were able to hang out with her quite a bit of the time, which was thoroughly enjoyable. The last time I saw her was in 2001 and we determined that nine years is far too long of a time between visits. She and her roommates were incredibly hospitable, generous and welcoming to us. In fact, I’d never met her roommates before in my life, but felt as if I’d known them for years. I love people like that.

Bridgett is a starving artist, or we can call her a cartoonist at large! She’s had creative artistic talent for as long as I can remember and I think high school art class is actually how we met. She did something with it, though, as far as college and schooling and education, and her comic strip recently made it into the local paper. I’m so proud of her. You should be, too, because I said so and also, because she was really tolerant and humble when I embarrassed her by making her autograph everything she gave me. A copy of her cartoon on the front page of the Monterey Herald’s Sunday funnies? Please autograph. A piece of paper with directions? Please autograph. HAA!

Bridgett’s strip, Squid Row, on the front page of her local newspaper… autographed

You can find her stuff here: LINK

Besides visiting with her and touring her studio, or rather, her Cartoonery, other highlights while visiting the area included driving the 17 Mile Drive and ogling the breathtaking scenery, which included enormous waves colliding with immense power upon boulders and sheer cliffs, Bird Rock covered with so many sea lions that it looked as if, from a distance, it was covered with brown, wiggling worms, but we could hear them noisily expressing their opinions from shore, and in contrast, deer quietly standing alongside the road with green beards of grass dangling from their mouths as they quietly observed us taking their picture, and, of course, the Lone Cypress secured to the rock upon which it stands with cables, a stark silhouette against a gray sky, reminiscent of Charlie Brown’s Christmas tree when compared to the lush cypress trees nearby.

Bird Rock with sea lions…

The Lone Cypress

Deer with beards…

When we picked Tony up from the San Jose airport on Saturday, we visited the Winchester House. Truly, a spectacular experience. I took a ton of pictures, many of which were highly illegal (you know me and my pictures!). We did both the Mansion Tour and the Behind the Scenes Tour and they were equally entertaining, fascinating and informative.

One thing, though, if you have kids who are under 5 years old, I would not recommend taking them on any tours of the mansion. Kids love stairs and, yes, there’s a whole lotta stairs. The problem occurs when you pull the child away from the stairs to stay with the tour, and you combine that with a tour time when your child would normally be napping. Can you say “meltdown?” One child with a non-stop, hour long, shrieking meltdown equals 25 unhappy tour guests. Ugh. The tour guide offered them a credit if they wanted to “take a tour at a later time” and suggested that they could “leave and join the tour at any time”… but the parents resolved to stay with the tour, for what purpose I have no idea. It’s not like they (or anyone else) could HEAR anything the guide was saying over the 100 decibel siren that was squirming in their arms. Common sense, people, common sense.

We also went to the Steinbeck Center, which was a really educational and interactive experience. Since Salinas is a valley whose main history is rooted in agriculture and farming, and the cycle of same, and Steinbeck’s life was influenced by that, there was also a section in the museum showing the stages of crops and how they get from the fields to our kitchens. Another section in the museum was dedicated to the fine arts and local artists, however, we didn’t visit that part since Bridgett wasn’t featured in it! We could have spent much longer there, but we needed to head off to the airport… two hours is enough time to get a good feel for the place.

Oh but that all crossword puzzles could be solved just by pushing a button!

In the agriculture museum, I got to be a trucker!

We had dinner out a couple of times, once in Salinas at a wonderful Italian restaurant and once at a restaurant on Fisherman’s Wharf in Monterey. Both restaurants were suggested, and dinner was generously gifted to us, by Bridgett and her roommates. I truly am blessed to have good friends.

Sadly, we didn’t have time to go to the world-renowned Monterey Bay Aquarium (they have an octopus!!) because we departed Sunday afternoon, just before The Big Storm of California, January 2010, swept through the area. I’m currently listening to it beat down on the roof of my home and I’m so glad to be here and not out there in it traveling in a tin can through the sky.

Soooo, what have you done since last Thursday?

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Filed under Best Husband, I have Family, I have Friends, I Left Home for Awhile, I Stimulate the Economy, I'm Never too Old to Learn

January 3, 2010 · 1:27 pm

2010 Rose Parade Recap.

It all started sometime in November, when Big Brothers of Orange County contacted Tony and asked if he and his Little, Michael, wanted to ride on a float in the Rose Parade on New Year’s Day.

They attended a publicity photo shoot at the Rose Parade Mansion in November, which is also when they first met representatives from Honda America, as well as the other float riders, and saw the float model. Then they were given t-shirts with the Big Brothers’ logo, then the realization that it would be cold the morning of the 1st, so they were also given logo jackets. Then, a couple days before the parade, they were informed that the fire marshall was requiring all the riders to wear hats, because there were fireworks and other pyrotechnics on the float. So they were given hats with logos, too. Almost a full wardrobe of things with the Big Brothers’ logo!

Michael & Tony & the Honda float model.

On 12/27, we attended the “VIP float decorating event,” where we viewed the Honda float from a catwalk, and then decorated pieces of the float that were laid out on tables. We noted on judging day (12/31) that, in actuality, the only pieces we decorated that showed up on the float were the Honda side pieces, and they were re-covered with flower petals.

My mom putting seeds on the Honda logo

The Honda float, sails down and being decorated. Visible is the rear of the float and the “fireworks boat”

On the 31st, they required the riders be present for the float judging ceremony, so we headed up to Pasadena bright and early (around noon). Seeing the float fully decorated and fully functional was an awesome sight indeed. To see my husband on the float made it spectacular!

In front of the Honda float

One thing I’ve learned in life is, if you walk or drive like you know where you’re going and act like you’re supposed to be there, more often than not you’ll get to go there whether you’re “supposed” to be there or not. That served me well several times through this event. Particularly since I have a case of laryngitis, thanks to this nasty cold I’m battling.

I’ve also learned that laryngitis sucks.

New Year’s Eve … blue moon

New Year’s eve found us staying in a 4 star hotel, courtesy of the Big Brothers organization. Unfortunately, all four of us were in various stages of battling colds… imagine, if you will, trying to cough, snort, hawuck, sniffle, etc., all quietly because you don’t want to wake the others in the room who are trying to sleep, while worrying about the 3 AM wake-up time looming over your head. I ask you to imagine that because that’s what everyone was doing in our hotel room on New Year’s eve.

At midnight a text message on Tony’s phone blared. Michael sat straight up in bed and exclaimed, “What?? It can’t be 3 AM yet, I haven’t gotten to sleep yet!!” It was the ice breaker that allowed us to give up the pretense of sleep. We opened the drapes just in time to see the last bit of fireworks off in the distance… well, I did. We laughed, chatted (some chatting was more annoying than others) and rearranged ourselves. When it all sorted out, we all ended up getting about 2 hours of sleep and mine happened on the floor of the closet in a 4 star hotel. That’s right. I stayed in a 4 star hotel and slept in the closet!

My closet bed

Beyond seeing my husband on a float in the Rose Parade, a couple highlights for me included meeting Captain Sully on the 31st. Yep, the Hudson River flight navigator himself! He said to me, “Hello! How are you doing?” I gave my standard answer that I give to all strangers who put me on the spot, a quiet “Hi!” and a big grin. This particular “hi” had the bonus of being a bit froggish, given the status of my laryngitis. I did manage to take his picture, though.

Grand Marshall for the 2010 Rose Parade, Captain Chesley B. “Sully” Sullenberger

Another highlight involved coffee and donuts! The morning of the 1st, I desperately needed something hot to drink. One of the white suited fellows directing people said he had visited the VIP/media area for his coffee. He said I could probably get in there if I smiled at them like I was smiling at him, and that worked great the first time. On my way down for a refill, I offered to get him a refill, too. He was so surprised that someone had thought of his needs! Sadly, the pretty smile didn’t work, so I explained my intentions (getting the white suited guy a refill) and as it turned out, my good intentions were my VIP pass the second time.

Me and my “boyfriend”, the Farmer Insurance Group’s “Salute to the Bands” float. We stared at each other for a good 2 hours the morning of the 1st. I was glad he left me when the parade started.

And my final highlight was that I somehow managed to avoid all vehicular traffic. I kept thinking I was lost or on the wrong road, because I made it to all my destinations with zero traffic. I think my drive to Pasadena was just early enough (I got there before my parking lot was even open) and when leaving the parade, I took lightly traveled streets which paralleled the main thoroughfare, which was terribly congested. Whatever the trick, I was glad for it, because I hate driving in traffic at events. Everyone drives like they forgot their brains at home, and that annoys the crap out of me.

The Rose Parade was spectacular. When I was a teenager, I went up 2 or 3 times with family friends and watched the parade toward the end of the parade route. This year, Honda gave the families of the float riders complimentary grandstand seating just before the media/VIP area. Our grandstand got extra time with each float and band because they paused for several seconds in front of us to wait for their turn in front of the media. Being at the start vs. the end of the parade makes a difference — the floats are up, and everyone is fresh and perky, including the flowers. At the end of the parade route, everyone is tired, hardly anyone is waving or smiling and the floats are down (from having gone under the bridge) and many of the floats are being towed. Also, being there in person is a far better experience than watching it on TV. This year was really a special experience.

Honda’s “Ship of Dreams,” with Michael and Tony on the rear balcony

Michael and Tony

When we finally got home the afternoon of the 1st, I took a shower and crashed. I slept from 3:30 PM through to 9:30 AM on the 2nd. I think it’s safe to say we were all exhausted.

I’ll let pictures and video tell the rest of the story. Happy New Year, everyone!

Float Decorating VIP party pictures: Link to pictures

Photo album of the 2010 Rose Parade: Link to pictures

2010 Float Judging Ceremony, the Honda float was awarded the “Tournament Special Trophy”: Link to video

ABC’s coverage of the Honda float (about 2 minutes): Link to video

Welcome to 2010!

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Filed under Best Husband, Entertainment can be Cheap, I did something Special, I Left Home for Awhile

November 12, 2009 · 2:56 pm

Dress Code.

I present my new favorite t-shirt.

I told Tony I’m gonna wear this t-shirt every day, 24 hours a day, from now until I get a job. Except when I’m interviewing.

He said he’s looking forward to that… me getting a job, that is. Not seeing this t-shirt on me every day.

22 Comments

Filed under Best Husband, Entertainment can be Cheap, I feel Amused

October 29, 2009 · 12:00 pm

Halloween Decorations!

In the last post, I showed you one of my inside decorations. I thought I’d also take a moment to share our outside decorations that Tony put up this year.

Here’s our Halloween flag. I know, we’re supposed fly our freak flag, but a Halloween flag with a cute black kitty on a pumpkin and “Happy Halloween” will have to suffice.

In our staircase window we have these light-up decorations… at the top, a spider & web, then a witch on a broomstick, then a pumpkin and at the bottom some scary RIP headstone thing.

In the evening, our blow up decorations come alive. We have two black kitties that puff up. Our neighbor’s kids love to come over and look at these, I think it’s part of their nightly ritual. I should get a picture of them one of these nights, it’s cute.

Here’s a view down the scary walkway to our front door. Last night I heard some solicitors go to our neighbor’s house. I was listening for them to come to my front door, but instead all I heard them say to each other was a low, “Ohhh, let’s keep going…”

Somebody’s grave is next to our house. Eep! Poor fellow, it gets moved every year. We should call him the traveling grave. Heh

View of our front door…

Plant with kitty, headstone and a huge spider protecting it all…

Another headstone that disguises the fog machine, which will gear up for Halloween night… wooooooo, spooky! We have black lights up above that illuminate it all in the evening.

In case you didn’t know…

Tug says “Hi.”

On our front door…

In our entry way…

There’s one other window with decorations and I still need to get a picture if it.

So that’s what our house looks like right now.

32 Comments

Filed under Best Husband, I did something Special

October 13, 2009 · 1:45 pm

Love & Loathe — 10/13/09

Love:

* Wearing my Halloween apparel. Fuzzy “Boo” socks, scary underwear and t-shirts make for a very happy Jammie J.!

* Poached eggs for breakfast.

* Swimming laps in the rain.

* Kisses from my nephews. Completely delectable. Num, num, num.

* I got dark chocolate covered rice cakes (brought back from Ireland) in the mail from my east coast sister-in-law and persimmons from my father-in-law (Tony says I’m clearly the favorite daughter-in-law because of that!).

Loathe:

* How Firefox delights in crashing every few websites I open. Hello, Firefox? How about we get the crashing bug fixed?? Can I help you in any way, because I’m available for employment!

* How people in this world have become so non-responsive, which I think is incredibly rude. Is it really so difficult just to send back a two word e-mail or text message, like “Not yet…” or “Not today…” or “thank you”. Yes, silence is it’s own answer, but how did we get this way and how did it become OK?

* Ants that transported in with the persimmons. Blech. A necessary evil, but still… blech.

One Last Thing:

How I freak my husband out when he comes home from his second job… just leave a certain bottle sitting in the middle of the bathroom counter, all loud and proud like this:

What I heard was, “Uhhhh, sweetie? What is this? This isn’t funny.”

Me, “Yes, it is. That’s ALWAYS funny!”

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Filed under Best Husband, I feel Amused, Love/Loathe

October 6, 2009 · 4:01 pm

Love & Loathe — 10/06/09

Love:

* A freshly emptied trash can!

* Getting checks in the mail. Today was “pay day” and I got more than I expected. Grow, money hump, grow!

* I registered with a temp agency today. My intake person told me that they’ve recently started getting admin jobs at my level again. This is good news, people!

* All my fish are in one tank, meaning my male is in there. They are very busy chasing each other in circles and I love watching them.

* Swimming. I’ve been lengthening my swim times, I’m up to an hour of non-stop laps and I feel as if I could swim all day long.

Loathe:

* So far, the fish haven’t mated. It’s only been a couple of days, and I’m OK with them taking their time. It just means my girls ain’t easy. Mmm-hmmm, their mama taught them right. But they better mate at some point.

* Our refrigerator’s automatic ice-maker is on the fritz. It makes ice erratically, which is incredibly annoying.

One Last Thing:

A few nights ago, I crawled into bed around 1 AM. Tony had already been asleep a couple of hours. I was very careful to not move the bed or do anything that would jolt him awake. Although, usually my care is unnecessary because the dude sleeps like a rock.

I turned on my side to settle in, arranging the covers just so and I felt gas pressure. So I let my fart flag fly. It was quite a bit louder than I had intended, it startled even me.

It got about mid-note and Tony rolled on his back and moaned out an emphatic “Noooooo!”, pulled the sheets over his face and resumed snoring.

Which left me shaking quietly with laughter. The man didn’t even wake up, but his subconscious knew it wasn’t a good thing. I’m thinking it was a good thing that he didn’t remember it in the morning.

14 Comments

Filed under Best Husband, Kid Substitutes, Love/Loathe, Mermaid Envy, Money Hump Building

October 5, 2009 · 3:00 pm

Good Things.

I participated in a Miata run this weekend up to the mountains. Tony came along, too, but in his OTM (Other Than Miata). He followed behind all of us Miataphiles and I guess the run leaders forgot to tell the sweep car that he was with us, because the sweep car kept trying to shoo him past us.

It was the first time my car has been to the family cabin up there, and even though our visit was just for one night, it was a refreshing time for us. We surely do enjoy being with each other. *goofy grin* We watched the squirrels and blue jays appear and disappear with the peanuts we put out on the deck. The squirrels were burying the peanuts so fast, they were shrouded in a cloud of dust! The desperation of their attitude makes me wonder if it’s gonna be a cold, long winter up there. Also, we managed to get in our traditional visits to the candy store, our favorite breakfast place and to KMart.

When we got home last night, Tony pulled out all the Halloween decorations and started setting them up. He also bought some of those Pillsbury Halloween sugar cookies to make. Aahhhh, how I love that man.

For me, since I knew I’d be awake anyway last night (Sunday night insomnia), I decided to move Mr. White (my male fish) into the tank with The Ladies. We’re gonna try for some fish babies. It’s something I’ve been talking about doing for nearly a year now, but had to work up the nerve and get all my fish healthy. It was a project (you can read about it on my fish blog) and more traumatizing to me than to them. But all is well, for now, and it looks like they’re over there working on getting frisky with each other.

Not the best picture of him, but he’s “swishing” at the front of the tank…”

The weather has turned downright chilly and I’m loving it. We’re having crockpot beef stew tonight for dinner. The appetizing aroma of it is scenting the house right now. Maybe I’ll make some hot chocolate, too.

Right now, I have my cat on my lap keeping me warm, some gourmet chocolate from the mountains on my desk, a hummingbird contentedly passing time in my back yard, our bird just started a chirpfest upstairs and my fish are moving rocks.

For now, life is good.

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Filed under Best Husband, I ♥ My Miata, I Left Home for Awhile, Kid Substitutes, We Love to Decorate

August 20, 2009 · 12:16 am

Our Anniversary.

It’s been four years since we trekked to the mountains and then hiked a mile, with a little rock climbing thrown in at the end, to get married in the place where he proposed to me. It was a unique wedding, to say the least, and it was perfect for us.

At the time, I didn’t feel ready to be married … I was scared, I was overwhelmed, I still had healing to do, I was still carrying emotional baggage. I thought I had to be in the perfect place emotionally, physically and at the perfect time in my life — like getting on a ship. If the anchor wasn’t cast to hold things in place, and the loading ramp wasn’t lined up perfectly, then I’d end up adrift in the ocean.

But then I realized, marriage isn’t like a boat ride… in a good marriage, you aren’t tethered to shore or anchored to the bottom of the sea. Marriage is like a hike. Sometimes the path is carved out of granite and the going is dry, tough and not very pretty. Other times, there are waterfalls and shady areas that take your breath away for the sheer beauty and spirituality. When you get tired along the way, you have someone to hold your hand or cradle your head while you rest. You don’t have to be perfect to get married, you just have to be strong enough to be “weak” — willing to be vulnerable, to let him into the inner core, to let him help you heal. You should have the freedom to choose which path you take, as long as you always end up back together, facing the same direction. Facing life together, with family and friends surrounding you in love.

Marrying this man is like a little slice of heaven pie each day for me. There is so much more to him than I would have ever guessed when we first met and every day I love getting to know him just a little more. There are so many of his virtues I could extol, but I really don’t want people throwing up just because they read my anniversary post on my blog.

So, I’ll just finish by saying that when I look at couples who have been married 20+ years, I know that four years seems like a piece of sand on the beach — there’s a whole lot more sand to cover. But then I think about all we’ve done together and, boy, have we made every single piece of sand in our marriage count so far. We are really good at making memories that last.

Happy Anniversary, babe.

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Filed under Best Husband

August 16, 2009 · 6:03 pm

In the Air.

Someone’s Birthday

I can’t believe it’s August already. Tony’s 36th birthday is tomorrow (the 17th). We met when he was 28, he’ll be 36 tomorrow. Makes a person wonder where the time goes, doesn’t it?

This man makes me laugh so hard. We had date night on Friday, and went to our local Red Robin for dinner. As we sat there eating, one of us decided it would be entertaining to do body builder postures. And so, there we sat, with every bite of food we took, posturing to flex our biceps or quadriceps or neck muscles or whatever sitting pose we could invent to flex a muscle. “Hey look! Our car is that way!” Flexing a bicep to point repeatedly. “Oh yeah, well this chicken wrap is the best I’ve ever eaten!” Overflexing chest muscles to pick up a green burrito looking thing. On and on it went. We were laughing so hard we nearly had tears running down our faces. The waitress must have thought we were insane but, I’m telling you, it was the funniest dinner I’ve ever eaten.

Happy Birthday, babe!

No Shampoo, etc., Week 13.

May 17th was the last day I used shampoo — that was 13 weeks ago. Hard to believe, but it’s not really any big deal anymore. In fact, I’m slowly but steadily whittling away the inventory of shampoo by using them as a post-swim body wash. Outright discarding them seems wasteful. I have no plans to ever use shampoo to clean my hair again.

I use my baking soda/water rinse every 2 to 3 days, as needed, and my recipe for that concoction has never changed.

We have really hard water, so I boil 32 oz. of tap water, turn the heat off and add 1/2 c baking soda. I then wait until it cools and pour into a squeeze bottle. I use only on my scalp while showering. For soft water, you would just add the baking soda to the water without boiling and shake.

I’ve finalized my apple cider vinegar rinse recipe, and it’s now fine-tuned to what my hair needs — I use this every day, since I swim every day. I add 1 c aloe vera juice, 1/4 c apple cider vinegar, a 10″ stalk of fresh rosemary and fill the rest of the 32 oz. bottle with tap water. As I mentioned, I use this every day and I use it on the entire length of my hair. Takes about a cup per use.

I’ve completely stopped using Scalpicin, I don’t need it anymore. My scalp is healthy with no inflammation or itching. Occasionally, due to a preference for lovely smells, I’ll use a small bit of sulfate free conditioner or a small bit of sulfate free oil. Loreal has a wonderful line of products that I love.

In addition, I keep a small plastic container by my sink of baking soda. This I make a paste of when rinsing my face. It makes a great makeup remover and exfoliates my skin.

Here’s a picture from last week, after my hair cut:

Yeah, I figured you wouldn’t be able to tell…

Anybody but me feeling the change of the seasons? There’s something in the air, isn’t there? The smell of autumn, a little bit of a chill at night that wasn’t there a week ago? Hmmm.

8 Comments

Filed under Best Husband, Hair Can Be a Topic of Conversation

June 5, 2009 · 11:24 pm