It’s another hot one out there. I have two forlorn looking dogs who gleefully run outside when I first open the door and then they stop and turn and look at me accusingly as if to say, “mummy, why did you make it so hot!”
Then they come in and flop down on the linoleum because it’s cooler and they’re sulking.
They don’t move much when it’s hot, even when the air conditioning is on. I’m trying to figure out if this is normal behavior or they’re getting lazy in their old age. They’re now a year and a half old so they’re technically not puppies although there are times when they still behave like they are.
Mostly, their puppy behavior is when they’re outside. I love to watch them run across the yard. There’s nothing that makes me grin more than when one of my little dachshunds sees me and comes running towards me. Watching dachshunds run is just funny because they have short little legs and such long bodies. It’s an endearing thing especially when they look like their grinning.
They also have a bit of a bad habit of running across my vegetable garden. I’ve tried to protect the plants with tomato cages and stakes but those aren’t much of a deterrent when a rabbit, chipmunk or squirrel has been spotted. No, those little furry critters are like crack to a dachshund and nothing else matters, especially not my tomato plants.
This is why I have one less tomato plant and another that is hanging on for dear life, protected by a tomato cage but still looking rather wilty. I even planted my veggies with a fairly wide berth for the Dachshund Race Track but, alas, it is to no avail.
Speaking of the Dachshund Race Track…fellow dog owners, do your canines also have a set route at which they run around the garden? My two girls have a very specific path that they take from the back door all the way around the garden. They don’t deviate from this path, no matter how fast they run. This is why their paws have worn the path into the grass and my vegetable garden and around the tool shed. My parents’ dogs also have a path so I’m wondering if this is usual.
Anyway, back to my tomatoes. They often get banged about by my little pets. I’m hoping this won’t damage them. I’m all about tomatoes this year. My mother kindly gave me quite a few plants for my garden. The only thing is that she grows several kinds- large and cherry sized but she doesn’t label the pots so I never quite know what type of tomatoes I’ll get until they actually appear on the vines. It’s quite nice- a tomato grab bag if you will. However, last year, I ended up with almost all cherry tomatoes so just in case, I went to this nifty nursery by my house and got a few larger heirloom tomato plants. I adore heirloom tomatoes. They’re yummy. They’re summery. They also incredibly pricy if you buy them from a store or even a farmer’s market.
Thus, I’m trying to grow my own. I just hope they survive the onslaught of the pups.
I’m also growing peppers. I have several healthy plants that already have some fruit on them. The other day, I noticed that a couple of my plants were not looking so healthy and the bottom leaves were dying. I couldn’t figure out why since I make sure they have ample water.
Then yesterday, I went outside and discovered that Sookie was laying happily beside one of the suffering pepper plants and was chomping on the leaves. I’m not sure what about the leaves appeals to her but she seemed quite engrossed in her nibbling. So far, the plants look like they’ll survive but they have less leaves below than they did before.
My dogs are strange in their tastes. Rory has become super finicky with food. She only eats chicken and duck treats. She doesn’t like bacon whether it be the doggie kind or the human kind. She likes pork chop bones but not the pork. She likes peaches and blueberries but doesn’t want to eat dog food.
I know, I should really feed her human food but it’s a bad habit that I shouldn’t have started. I still make them eat their regular dog food but I’m one of the bad dog owners who feeds them table scraps. This is actually becoming much easier now that Rory’s palate has become so fussy.
Sookie, on the other hand, will try anything. She doesn’t like everything but she’ll give it a whirl. She’s not the fruitarian that her sister is and doesn’t care much for peaches or blueberries. She likes the chewbones that have granola on them and will happily munch for hours picking off each piece of granola while her sister prefers the chewbones that are rawhide with a filling in the middle.
Sorry to blog about my dogs again but, like children, they show you something new every day. Today, they showed me that they’re now taking it rather personally that it’s so hot outside and even though they don’t really want to go for a walk, they’ll sulk until I take them on one and then, as soon as we’re twenty feet from the house, they’ll sulk because they’re hot.
There’s really no winning. It’s just the same when it rains. I get accusatory looks for that too- they run outside, stop dead in their tracks as they realize it’s wet and then they trot back inside, giving me the glare of disapproval.
Still, for all their temperamental, vegetable bashing, pepper-leaf chewing behavior, when we’re laying in bed in the morning right before the alarm goes off and I have a dachshund under each arm, snuggled up against me or when Sookie spots me and comes running across the garden with glee to throw herself up against me for a cuddle. ..it’s worth every chewed pepper leaf.
Of course, I may reconsider that if they start on the heirloom tomatoes but that’s if we ever get that far and they haven’t knocked them all over.
Happy Wednesday!
Tuesday, July 12, 2011
Monday, July 11, 2011
A Hot Summer Day
I think today is probably one of the hottest days we've had so far. As soon as I go outside, a wall of heat hits me. The air is thick and even the breeze is warm and provides no relief.
It's about that time of year where the weather stays hot for a while. We wait for storms in the simple hope that it means we won't have to water the garden. My garden is currently parched and the plants look wilted from the heat. They'll revive after I water them tonight but for now, they look rather pathetic.
The dogs don't waste much time out there either. As much as I try to take the girls for a walk every night, even if it's a quick one, tonight, they won't get their walk. It's too hot. The pavement is scorching and I'm afraid for their paws. Also, knowing my girls the way I do, it won't take more than a few moments of walking before Little Miss Rory decides that she's had quite enough, thank you very much and she simply sits down. Sookie will join her and our walk will disintigrate into Captain Monkeypants Attempts to Get Her Dachshunds to Stand Up and Walk Without Dragging them.
There's little sign of life out there anyway. This heat is too much even for the kids who usually have no problem running around, riding bikes and spraying each other with the hose. That's for ninety degree days. We're currently over 100 degrees with a heat index of 108.
It's times like this that I am grateful that my air conditioning is working and that I can escape from the heat into the sanctuary of a cool room. I've made a point this summer of trying hard to get outside as much as possible. I'm an indoor girl by nature but I try to at least sit outside and enjoy the summer once a day. At the moment, it's too hot to sit outside and far too hot to work in the garden. Besides, it's not pleasant to do so anyway. There are these nasty little black flies that converge on me the moment I start to sweat and even when I swat them away, they still feel like they're crawling on me. I'm not fond of that buggy sensation that the humidity brings.
It's the type of heat that makes me want ice-cream. I don't like ice-cream much except for when it gets hot. I've still resisted those Magnum Bars mostly because my parents tried them and said they weren't anything special. Here I was picturing them as the most luxurious combination of vanilla ice cream and Swiss chocolate and they're about comparable to a Dove bar. I don't mind the Dove bars but not enough to spend the calories on them- I'll stick with my Skinny Cow treats. They're yummy, low fat and rather tasty. Also, they're nice and cold and that makes them a nice treat on a hot day like this.
Summer is fully upon us. It has been for a while but this is the first time she's truly pulled out all the stops and said HERE I AM! I'M GOING TO MAKE YOU MELT! It does make me miss the days of those 78 degree temperatures and cool nights but then again, without summer, I probably wouldn't appreciate them so much. What I do wish I had, however, was a pool. I'm not much on swimming- I never have been. I didn't learn to swim until I was 11 and I've never much liked swimming. I do, however, like floating in a pool of cool water or doing the dog padde onto a floating raft and letting the cool water slowly evaporate as the sun takes it away and then doing it all over again. One of my favourite hot day memories of late was at a spa in California where my friend and I lay on rafts after doing spa-type of things all day. The air was warm but the wetness of our swimsuits kept us cool and we just relaxed, talking and laughing and enjoying the peace of the day.
I like that feeling. I like that summer makes that feeling even better because of the relief the water gives you from the heat. I don't really want a pool- my garden isn't big enough- but I'd quite like to float again on a raft somewhere. The trouble is, all the public pools are filled with cannonballing kids and there's never enough space to float on a raft. Also, this is going to sound a little snobby but with all those kids and a pool of water, I've always worried how much pee is actually in the pool. I know, I know, I can't think of that and that's why chlorine is good but, well, I still think of it anyway.
I don't even have a hose that works. Stupid me left it out over the winter and it sprung a million tiny leaks when I turned it on in the spring. Besides, since I only have a privacy fence on one side of my garden, the other sides might find it a little crazy if I stand there and hose myself. It's the type of thing you might do when you're alone or if you were playing around with other people but to do it alone in full view of the neighbourhood...well, I'm odd but not that silly.
So, for now, I'll stick to my air conditioning and enjoy the relief it brings. I'll continue with the ice-cream and try to keep the dogs cool. If a storm comes, I'll welcome it and, if not, I'll have to water my plants.
Ah, summer...you're fun but I'm glad you only last three months.
Happy Tuesday!
It's about that time of year where the weather stays hot for a while. We wait for storms in the simple hope that it means we won't have to water the garden. My garden is currently parched and the plants look wilted from the heat. They'll revive after I water them tonight but for now, they look rather pathetic.
The dogs don't waste much time out there either. As much as I try to take the girls for a walk every night, even if it's a quick one, tonight, they won't get their walk. It's too hot. The pavement is scorching and I'm afraid for their paws. Also, knowing my girls the way I do, it won't take more than a few moments of walking before Little Miss Rory decides that she's had quite enough, thank you very much and she simply sits down. Sookie will join her and our walk will disintigrate into Captain Monkeypants Attempts to Get Her Dachshunds to Stand Up and Walk Without Dragging them.
There's little sign of life out there anyway. This heat is too much even for the kids who usually have no problem running around, riding bikes and spraying each other with the hose. That's for ninety degree days. We're currently over 100 degrees with a heat index of 108.
It's times like this that I am grateful that my air conditioning is working and that I can escape from the heat into the sanctuary of a cool room. I've made a point this summer of trying hard to get outside as much as possible. I'm an indoor girl by nature but I try to at least sit outside and enjoy the summer once a day. At the moment, it's too hot to sit outside and far too hot to work in the garden. Besides, it's not pleasant to do so anyway. There are these nasty little black flies that converge on me the moment I start to sweat and even when I swat them away, they still feel like they're crawling on me. I'm not fond of that buggy sensation that the humidity brings.
It's the type of heat that makes me want ice-cream. I don't like ice-cream much except for when it gets hot. I've still resisted those Magnum Bars mostly because my parents tried them and said they weren't anything special. Here I was picturing them as the most luxurious combination of vanilla ice cream and Swiss chocolate and they're about comparable to a Dove bar. I don't mind the Dove bars but not enough to spend the calories on them- I'll stick with my Skinny Cow treats. They're yummy, low fat and rather tasty. Also, they're nice and cold and that makes them a nice treat on a hot day like this.
Summer is fully upon us. It has been for a while but this is the first time she's truly pulled out all the stops and said HERE I AM! I'M GOING TO MAKE YOU MELT! It does make me miss the days of those 78 degree temperatures and cool nights but then again, without summer, I probably wouldn't appreciate them so much. What I do wish I had, however, was a pool. I'm not much on swimming- I never have been. I didn't learn to swim until I was 11 and I've never much liked swimming. I do, however, like floating in a pool of cool water or doing the dog padde onto a floating raft and letting the cool water slowly evaporate as the sun takes it away and then doing it all over again. One of my favourite hot day memories of late was at a spa in California where my friend and I lay on rafts after doing spa-type of things all day. The air was warm but the wetness of our swimsuits kept us cool and we just relaxed, talking and laughing and enjoying the peace of the day.
I like that feeling. I like that summer makes that feeling even better because of the relief the water gives you from the heat. I don't really want a pool- my garden isn't big enough- but I'd quite like to float again on a raft somewhere. The trouble is, all the public pools are filled with cannonballing kids and there's never enough space to float on a raft. Also, this is going to sound a little snobby but with all those kids and a pool of water, I've always worried how much pee is actually in the pool. I know, I know, I can't think of that and that's why chlorine is good but, well, I still think of it anyway.
I don't even have a hose that works. Stupid me left it out over the winter and it sprung a million tiny leaks when I turned it on in the spring. Besides, since I only have a privacy fence on one side of my garden, the other sides might find it a little crazy if I stand there and hose myself. It's the type of thing you might do when you're alone or if you were playing around with other people but to do it alone in full view of the neighbourhood...well, I'm odd but not that silly.
So, for now, I'll stick to my air conditioning and enjoy the relief it brings. I'll continue with the ice-cream and try to keep the dogs cool. If a storm comes, I'll welcome it and, if not, I'll have to water my plants.
Ah, summer...you're fun but I'm glad you only last three months.
Happy Tuesday!
Sunday, July 10, 2011
Markets, Salesgnats and Other Weekend tales
It's hard to believe that another weekend has passed and it's already winding down. It feels as though I just got off work on Friday and am about to start relaxing.
Still, for a weekend where I didn't have any plans, it ended up being rather productive, as weekends so often are.
I decided that even though I'd gone to Findlay Market here in Cincinnati last weekend with my mum, I'd go back again this weekend. One of my favourite vendors at the market is Kroeger and Sons who specialize in meats, particularly sausage. They make a wonderful Swedish potato sausage that has the best flavour- I'm not quite sure what they add in with the pork but I know there's coriander in there. The sausage is tangy and delicious both hot and cold. My dad is a huge fan of these sausages and I'd promised we'd get him some last weekend. Alas, being the weekend before the Fourth of July, they were already sold out of the Swedish potato sausage last week just over an hour after they opened.
So, this weekend, I decided to go back and get my dad his sausages. In addition, it was a wonderful excuse for me to go back and get some more fresh veggies from the farmer's market as well as some sausages for my own freezer. Sausages aren't exactly the healthiest thing when you're watching your weight like me but I've learned if you moderate what you eat with them, they make a fine dinner.
So, I got up even earlier on Saturday than I normally do to go to work. This is because of my Fear of Finding Parking at Findlay Market. However, even though I managed to get up, get the dogs walked and hitting the road by 7:30 a.m., the fates were against me. There was construction on the interstate.
This was a nuisance because they had closed two lanes. The annoying thing was that when traffic slowed, the 'smarty pants' drivers all decided, "Hey, look! the left lane is moving fast, why don't I hop over there." These Smarty Pants people clearly hadn't read the giant flashing "Left Two Lanes Closed on S. I-75" sign that I had. These stupid twits in their eagerness to bypass the traffic jam ended up being the CAUSE of the jam as they slowly realized, "Oops, I have to get over, my lane is closed".
I felt like I was back in L.A. Fortunately, this meant that I kicked into my, "sigh...freeway traffic blows" mode and relaxed while caterwaling along with Def Leppard, Green Day and Lady Gaga.
By the time traffic improved and I made it to the market, it wasn't nearly as early as I'd hoped it would be. Nevertheless, the fates decided to be nice and I found a parking space easily.
The market wasn't as bustling as last weekend and I got my sausages, fresh bread and veggies without much bother. I also relaxed with a cup of coffee in the earlyish morning sun with a good book. It was a lovely start to the day.
I decided then to investigate the unfinished furniture store I"d found online. The prices they listed were very reasonable and i had visions of getting a few pieces, staining them in antique-y Tuscan colours and finally finished my Tuscan room.
Alas, this was not to be. The store was a third of the size I'd envisioned and I was...the only customer in there. I'm sure you've experienced this phenomena. It's horrible. This means the salespeople leech onto you and you can't look even when you politely tell them you 'just want to look.'
Sadly, the furniture was over double the price they'd advertised online and, while nice, was not what I was seeking. I was also being watched like a hawk. Thus, I was relieved when another customer came in. I seized my chance to leave while the salespeople were converging on her.
I decided to continue my morning of 'New Things' and decided to give in to the cupcake obsession that Saz instilled in me by introducing me to the Magnolia Bakery in New York. I had done my research and found that the second best place for cupcakes in Cincinnati was downtown. The first best place was, unfortunately, closed this weekend due to vacation.
Thus, I headed to Abby Girl cupcakes in Downtown Cincinnati. I rarely go downtown so it was actually a treat to be reminded of...why I don't go downtown. As most downtowns are, it's a mixture of one-way streets, hard-to-see traffic lights and 'no turn on red lights'. I found the bakery, got by cupcakes and headed home.
I'm sad to say the cupcakes were...ok. They were better than the average grocery store but lacking in flavour. They missed the bite and tang I'd been spoiled with in New York.
I thought I was done for the day but I got a second wind and decided to go to the Value City Furniture by my house to see if they had anything remotely Tuscan.
This was a bad idea. Value City Furniture was even worse than the place I'd been to that morning. The salespeople were like those gnats that find you when you're outside. No sooner have you swatted one and squashed it and there's five more. It made the whole experience extremely unpleasant. All I wanted to do was look and each aisle I walked down had a salesperson waiting. I was approached no less than seven times in ten minutes. This is not an exaggeration. Needless to say, I got tired of being harassed and I left. I simply don't understand why you can't browse without someone trying to help. If I need help, I'll ask which is what i politely told the first four salespeople. I didn't have energy to say that to the last three and by the time the last one approached me, I'd had enough and I walked away, leaving the store.
Still, salesgnats aside, it was a nice Saturday. Sunday has been nice too. I managed to mow the lawns, whack some wheeds, plant some flowers, edit a novel, make my first homemade mojito and am now blogging. I plan on spending the rest of my evening relaxing.
So, even though the weekend whizzed by, I can't say I wasted my time. I find that as I get older, it's harder to sit around and do nothing. In my younger days, I enjoyed turning on the TV and finding something to watch. Now, I'd rather weed, work outside or find something to do.
I'm sure the rest of my evening won't be wasted either. I find that productive weekends make it far easier to go back to work, even though I have to face the start of a Monday. I'm hoping this won't be a tradition, moody Monday but, even if it is, I'll just look back and think about what a nice weekend I've had.
And, also, thank my lucky stars I don't work in a furniture store.
Thanks, as always for reading. Have a great Monday!
Still, for a weekend where I didn't have any plans, it ended up being rather productive, as weekends so often are.
I decided that even though I'd gone to Findlay Market here in Cincinnati last weekend with my mum, I'd go back again this weekend. One of my favourite vendors at the market is Kroeger and Sons who specialize in meats, particularly sausage. They make a wonderful Swedish potato sausage that has the best flavour- I'm not quite sure what they add in with the pork but I know there's coriander in there. The sausage is tangy and delicious both hot and cold. My dad is a huge fan of these sausages and I'd promised we'd get him some last weekend. Alas, being the weekend before the Fourth of July, they were already sold out of the Swedish potato sausage last week just over an hour after they opened.
So, this weekend, I decided to go back and get my dad his sausages. In addition, it was a wonderful excuse for me to go back and get some more fresh veggies from the farmer's market as well as some sausages for my own freezer. Sausages aren't exactly the healthiest thing when you're watching your weight like me but I've learned if you moderate what you eat with them, they make a fine dinner.
So, I got up even earlier on Saturday than I normally do to go to work. This is because of my Fear of Finding Parking at Findlay Market. However, even though I managed to get up, get the dogs walked and hitting the road by 7:30 a.m., the fates were against me. There was construction on the interstate.
This was a nuisance because they had closed two lanes. The annoying thing was that when traffic slowed, the 'smarty pants' drivers all decided, "Hey, look! the left lane is moving fast, why don't I hop over there." These Smarty Pants people clearly hadn't read the giant flashing "Left Two Lanes Closed on S. I-75" sign that I had. These stupid twits in their eagerness to bypass the traffic jam ended up being the CAUSE of the jam as they slowly realized, "Oops, I have to get over, my lane is closed".
I felt like I was back in L.A. Fortunately, this meant that I kicked into my, "sigh...freeway traffic blows" mode and relaxed while caterwaling along with Def Leppard, Green Day and Lady Gaga.
By the time traffic improved and I made it to the market, it wasn't nearly as early as I'd hoped it would be. Nevertheless, the fates decided to be nice and I found a parking space easily.
The market wasn't as bustling as last weekend and I got my sausages, fresh bread and veggies without much bother. I also relaxed with a cup of coffee in the earlyish morning sun with a good book. It was a lovely start to the day.
I decided then to investigate the unfinished furniture store I"d found online. The prices they listed were very reasonable and i had visions of getting a few pieces, staining them in antique-y Tuscan colours and finally finished my Tuscan room.
Alas, this was not to be. The store was a third of the size I'd envisioned and I was...the only customer in there. I'm sure you've experienced this phenomena. It's horrible. This means the salespeople leech onto you and you can't look even when you politely tell them you 'just want to look.'
Sadly, the furniture was over double the price they'd advertised online and, while nice, was not what I was seeking. I was also being watched like a hawk. Thus, I was relieved when another customer came in. I seized my chance to leave while the salespeople were converging on her.
I decided to continue my morning of 'New Things' and decided to give in to the cupcake obsession that Saz instilled in me by introducing me to the Magnolia Bakery in New York. I had done my research and found that the second best place for cupcakes in Cincinnati was downtown. The first best place was, unfortunately, closed this weekend due to vacation.
Thus, I headed to Abby Girl cupcakes in Downtown Cincinnati. I rarely go downtown so it was actually a treat to be reminded of...why I don't go downtown. As most downtowns are, it's a mixture of one-way streets, hard-to-see traffic lights and 'no turn on red lights'. I found the bakery, got by cupcakes and headed home.
I'm sad to say the cupcakes were...ok. They were better than the average grocery store but lacking in flavour. They missed the bite and tang I'd been spoiled with in New York.
I thought I was done for the day but I got a second wind and decided to go to the Value City Furniture by my house to see if they had anything remotely Tuscan.
This was a bad idea. Value City Furniture was even worse than the place I'd been to that morning. The salespeople were like those gnats that find you when you're outside. No sooner have you swatted one and squashed it and there's five more. It made the whole experience extremely unpleasant. All I wanted to do was look and each aisle I walked down had a salesperson waiting. I was approached no less than seven times in ten minutes. This is not an exaggeration. Needless to say, I got tired of being harassed and I left. I simply don't understand why you can't browse without someone trying to help. If I need help, I'll ask which is what i politely told the first four salespeople. I didn't have energy to say that to the last three and by the time the last one approached me, I'd had enough and I walked away, leaving the store.
Still, salesgnats aside, it was a nice Saturday. Sunday has been nice too. I managed to mow the lawns, whack some wheeds, plant some flowers, edit a novel, make my first homemade mojito and am now blogging. I plan on spending the rest of my evening relaxing.
So, even though the weekend whizzed by, I can't say I wasted my time. I find that as I get older, it's harder to sit around and do nothing. In my younger days, I enjoyed turning on the TV and finding something to watch. Now, I'd rather weed, work outside or find something to do.
I'm sure the rest of my evening won't be wasted either. I find that productive weekends make it far easier to go back to work, even though I have to face the start of a Monday. I'm hoping this won't be a tradition, moody Monday but, even if it is, I'll just look back and think about what a nice weekend I've had.
And, also, thank my lucky stars I don't work in a furniture store.
Thanks, as always for reading. Have a great Monday!
Thursday, July 7, 2011
Just Because You Can Report it, Doesn’t Mean You Should…
So, I’ve blogged a few times about the speed at which technology moves and how we, as humans, have become far less patient over time because we’ve got used to things moving so fast.
Nowadays, we don’t have to wait for much. In the ‘olden days’ people used to find out their news via word of mouth or, more likely, via the newspaper. Readers used to pour over their newspaper each morning to find out what was going on in the world. Then TV news became popular and people started watching that to find out what was going on. It was a little quicker and the news was freshly reported.
Nowadays, though we still have newspapers and TV news, we also have the internet. You can find what seems to be an infinite number of places to read news online. You can choose the category of news you want to read. It’s a virtual way of thumbing through a newspaper and pulling out only the sections you enjoy reading.
It’s quite useful, really. We no longer have to wait for breaking news to pop on TV with the verdict in a sensational trial or to find out there’s been a mass shooting or natural disaster. All you have to do is click on MSN.com or Yahoo.com or igoogle.com and the headlines can be right there, tempting you to click on the link and read the latest.
It’s a nice feature. It satiates our need for instant gratification. News is posted only seconds after it happens.
Yet, as with so many things in life, here’s a downside. It means that for every useful, worthy piece of news, there’s a lot of junk that goes with it.
For example, let’s just take something current: The Casey Anthony trial. What’s relevant in that news should be the verdict of a trial that’s been going on a while. A little girl died. Her mother was accused. A trial occurred. The jury deliberated. The verdict was reached.
This is the basics of what should be reported. Instead, the internet is saturated with everything from Jay Leno’s bad jokes about the trial to comments from jurors to editorials about why the jurors are idiots, why Casey should get murdered and why her parents are evil.
Today, I was on MSN’s main page. I got there because I sent an email from my Hotmail account and when I log out, this is the default page. I was assaulted by headlines. Yesterday, there was a story focuses on one of the alternate jurors who defended the verdict. Today, there was a story with an actual juror who defended the verdict. Except, they were the exact same article, the lead was different, the headline was different.
Why did I click on it, you ask? Because I couldn’t help it. I was curious. As a human being, it’s interesting to a) form an opinion and then b) have the tools to find out if you’re the only one to have this opinion. In addition, it’s interesting to see what other opinions/news is out there because it’s in my nature to be curious and get all the facts.
Except, the news stories that are popping up aren’t really facts as much as filler. The legal case is hot news so the internet resources are capitalizing on that. Even Entertainment Weekly has a lot of stories on the Casey Anthony case even though, technically, it’s an entertainment magazine and doesn’t really need to focus on current affairs.
What I’m saying is that I think we tend to abuse the instant nature of technology. I confess, I’m an enabler because I do click on a lot of the links because I’m being lured in by the promise of something interesting when, nine times out of ten, there’s nothing new, just more recycled information.
What I think about Casey Anthony doesn’t matter here or anywhere. I’m just using it as an example because it’s new and it’s current.
It’s not just oversaturation of the media with news stories that’s a problem. It’s the fact that some things just aren’t news worthy but they end up getting an article/blog anyway because there’s a precedent to ‘keep up with the joneses” as far as the internet goes.
This means, in short, that there’s a lot of absolute, ridiculous crap that masquerades as news. This is the stuff I don’t click on. For example, today, I saw a headline “Worst Celebrity Sunburns.”
Um, no offense to the poor burned celebrities but, who cares? I’m sure the intention was to show ‘celebrities are just like us’. We get sunburned, they get sunburned. WOW!
Except, again, who cares? Do we really need that? It’s just like an article the other day that I saw on several magazine sites about an actress cutting four-inches off her hair.
Again, who cares? I’m sure it was a big change for the actress but do we really need to know that? Do we really need headlines all over the internet telling how Natalie Portman has finally told the world the name of her baby. I’m happy for Natalie and her boyfriend. I’m more happy for the baby that it has a name because that makes life easier for everyone. Sure, it’s a bit of news, I suppose but does it really rate as many links online as…real news?
Then there’s Charlie Sheen. I find him just ridiculous, honestly. I never thought he was much of an actor and while I find his whole drug-addled meltdown slightly fascinating from a psychological point of view, I think that if the media didn’t report every idiotic thing he said and did, he might stop doing them and get some help for his drug problem.
Generally speaking, most celebrities thrive in the spotlight. They like attention. They do silly things for attention. Sometimes, because of the blur between reality and slanted media coverage, we tend to forget they’re human beings. Take Lindsay Lohan. Everything that girl does is covered by the media whether genuine news or paparazzi-fueled rubbish. I think she’s made some terrible choices. She’s got terrible parents. Frankly, she sort of makes me want to take a shower because, well, she has that effect.
Yet, she has a problem. She’s clearly an alcoholic. Her attempts at rehab have all been spotlighted in the constant presence of the internet news/paparazzi sites. How can she ever attempt to get real help for her problem when she can’t do it in private? She likes the attention, I’m sure that’s part of the reason she’s always doing silly things. Yet she doesn’t seem to have anyone sensible around her to tell her to drop out the public eye, get some real help and work on reconstructing her life.
I’m soapboxing, I know. I apologize. My real point is this: Just because it could be news doesn’t mean it should be. I think every site online that reports news should be forced to run their stories through a filter consisting of the following questions:
1) Is it really news?
2) If it is really news, what is the who, why, what, when, where and how of it?
3) If those five W’s and the H aren’t there, it’s not news. It might be a feature article.
4) If they are there, have they been the same for a story of the same topic in recent days/hours/minutes?
5) If it’s a feature article, is it something that people NEED to know? Will it benefit their life at all to see, for example, Jennifer Anniston with a sunburn?
I’m sure there are more questions but that’ll do for a start. Of course, I can help contribute to the cleaning up of internet news junk by not bothering to read it.
Which is why I refuse to read about sunburns, haircuts, jilted celebrities and who said what about Casey Anthony.
You have to start somewhere, right?
Thanks for letting me rant.
Happy Friday and have a great weekend!
Nowadays, we don’t have to wait for much. In the ‘olden days’ people used to find out their news via word of mouth or, more likely, via the newspaper. Readers used to pour over their newspaper each morning to find out what was going on in the world. Then TV news became popular and people started watching that to find out what was going on. It was a little quicker and the news was freshly reported.
Nowadays, though we still have newspapers and TV news, we also have the internet. You can find what seems to be an infinite number of places to read news online. You can choose the category of news you want to read. It’s a virtual way of thumbing through a newspaper and pulling out only the sections you enjoy reading.
It’s quite useful, really. We no longer have to wait for breaking news to pop on TV with the verdict in a sensational trial or to find out there’s been a mass shooting or natural disaster. All you have to do is click on MSN.com or Yahoo.com or igoogle.com and the headlines can be right there, tempting you to click on the link and read the latest.
It’s a nice feature. It satiates our need for instant gratification. News is posted only seconds after it happens.
Yet, as with so many things in life, here’s a downside. It means that for every useful, worthy piece of news, there’s a lot of junk that goes with it.
For example, let’s just take something current: The Casey Anthony trial. What’s relevant in that news should be the verdict of a trial that’s been going on a while. A little girl died. Her mother was accused. A trial occurred. The jury deliberated. The verdict was reached.
This is the basics of what should be reported. Instead, the internet is saturated with everything from Jay Leno’s bad jokes about the trial to comments from jurors to editorials about why the jurors are idiots, why Casey should get murdered and why her parents are evil.
Today, I was on MSN’s main page. I got there because I sent an email from my Hotmail account and when I log out, this is the default page. I was assaulted by headlines. Yesterday, there was a story focuses on one of the alternate jurors who defended the verdict. Today, there was a story with an actual juror who defended the verdict. Except, they were the exact same article, the lead was different, the headline was different.
Why did I click on it, you ask? Because I couldn’t help it. I was curious. As a human being, it’s interesting to a) form an opinion and then b) have the tools to find out if you’re the only one to have this opinion. In addition, it’s interesting to see what other opinions/news is out there because it’s in my nature to be curious and get all the facts.
Except, the news stories that are popping up aren’t really facts as much as filler. The legal case is hot news so the internet resources are capitalizing on that. Even Entertainment Weekly has a lot of stories on the Casey Anthony case even though, technically, it’s an entertainment magazine and doesn’t really need to focus on current affairs.
What I’m saying is that I think we tend to abuse the instant nature of technology. I confess, I’m an enabler because I do click on a lot of the links because I’m being lured in by the promise of something interesting when, nine times out of ten, there’s nothing new, just more recycled information.
What I think about Casey Anthony doesn’t matter here or anywhere. I’m just using it as an example because it’s new and it’s current.
It’s not just oversaturation of the media with news stories that’s a problem. It’s the fact that some things just aren’t news worthy but they end up getting an article/blog anyway because there’s a precedent to ‘keep up with the joneses” as far as the internet goes.
This means, in short, that there’s a lot of absolute, ridiculous crap that masquerades as news. This is the stuff I don’t click on. For example, today, I saw a headline “Worst Celebrity Sunburns.”
Um, no offense to the poor burned celebrities but, who cares? I’m sure the intention was to show ‘celebrities are just like us’. We get sunburned, they get sunburned. WOW!
Except, again, who cares? Do we really need that? It’s just like an article the other day that I saw on several magazine sites about an actress cutting four-inches off her hair.
Again, who cares? I’m sure it was a big change for the actress but do we really need to know that? Do we really need headlines all over the internet telling how Natalie Portman has finally told the world the name of her baby. I’m happy for Natalie and her boyfriend. I’m more happy for the baby that it has a name because that makes life easier for everyone. Sure, it’s a bit of news, I suppose but does it really rate as many links online as…real news?
Then there’s Charlie Sheen. I find him just ridiculous, honestly. I never thought he was much of an actor and while I find his whole drug-addled meltdown slightly fascinating from a psychological point of view, I think that if the media didn’t report every idiotic thing he said and did, he might stop doing them and get some help for his drug problem.
Generally speaking, most celebrities thrive in the spotlight. They like attention. They do silly things for attention. Sometimes, because of the blur between reality and slanted media coverage, we tend to forget they’re human beings. Take Lindsay Lohan. Everything that girl does is covered by the media whether genuine news or paparazzi-fueled rubbish. I think she’s made some terrible choices. She’s got terrible parents. Frankly, she sort of makes me want to take a shower because, well, she has that effect.
Yet, she has a problem. She’s clearly an alcoholic. Her attempts at rehab have all been spotlighted in the constant presence of the internet news/paparazzi sites. How can she ever attempt to get real help for her problem when she can’t do it in private? She likes the attention, I’m sure that’s part of the reason she’s always doing silly things. Yet she doesn’t seem to have anyone sensible around her to tell her to drop out the public eye, get some real help and work on reconstructing her life.
I’m soapboxing, I know. I apologize. My real point is this: Just because it could be news doesn’t mean it should be. I think every site online that reports news should be forced to run their stories through a filter consisting of the following questions:
1) Is it really news?
2) If it is really news, what is the who, why, what, when, where and how of it?
3) If those five W’s and the H aren’t there, it’s not news. It might be a feature article.
4) If they are there, have they been the same for a story of the same topic in recent days/hours/minutes?
5) If it’s a feature article, is it something that people NEED to know? Will it benefit their life at all to see, for example, Jennifer Anniston with a sunburn?
I’m sure there are more questions but that’ll do for a start. Of course, I can help contribute to the cleaning up of internet news junk by not bothering to read it.
Which is why I refuse to read about sunburns, haircuts, jilted celebrities and who said what about Casey Anthony.
You have to start somewhere, right?
Thanks for letting me rant.
Happy Friday and have a great weekend!
Wednesday, July 6, 2011
Some Days Are Just Not My Days...
Today was one of those days again where I woke up and needed at least another hour of sleep. This is my own fault for staying up too late. The problem with reading instead of watching TV in the evenings is that with TV, there’s usually a set schedule and when the program is done, you turn off the TV. When you’re reading, it’s so easy to talk yourself into “just one more chapter” that another hour can pass before you realize it.
This is why I’m crotchety today. I stayed up too late reading and then had trouble sleeping for no apparent reason.
When I got to work, I realized I was not in a good mood when I got an email from one of my coworkers with a resume she’d found on Monster.com and a subject line of “CALL NOW!!!!!!!!”. As soon as I saw the email come in, I had an uncontrolled burst of irritation and I was annoyed.
The reason I was annoyed is that this coworker isn’t a recruiter like me. She’s an account manager. This means it’s her job to bring in jobs for us to fill and the recruiters will fill them. She still likes to recruit though and it’s a compulsion of hers to go on Monster first thing in the morning and find new resumes. Most mornings, it irritates me a little but I don’t let it bother me because that’s what she does. Today, it irritated me because I was already grouchy. The major problem I have with it is that Monster.com is one of my resources and I have my own system of finding resumes. Half the time she sends me resumes, they’re people I’ve already called and talked to or I haven’t been able to get hold of them. The other half are for jobs we have open that I’m not really working on and the emailed resume serves as a distraction because I’m in the middle of doing something else.
Still, most days, as I said, I can live with it because it’s just what she does.
The rest of my morning, I felt tired and useless. I’m having another one of those periods at work where I’m just not getting anywhere. Even when I find good people for jobs, the companies either move too slowly and my candidate takes another job or there’s something that the company doesn’t like and my candidate doesn’t get the job. Mostly, it’s just part of the package of being a recruiter. Yet there are some days where it just makes you feel beaten down because there’s no real positives happening.
By lunch time, I was hoping for a break to revive a little. It didn’t help that my left eyelid was twitching all morning which, according to Google, is a sign either of allergies or tiredness. Since it only twitches when I’m already stuffy and watery-eyed from allergies and I’d run out of Claritin, I figured that, at least, was something I could take care of to make the afternoon better.
So, I decided to stop at CVS on the way home to buy some Claritin. Because I find that the stuff you can buy off the shelf doesn’t really do anything, I had to go to the pharmacy for the ‘controlled substance’ version with the pseudoepinephrine (sp?) in it. No problem. I got my little cardboard picture of the medicine and took it to the pharmacy county. I handed them my driver’s license with my normal flush of resentment towards the crystal meth makers of the world for making hayfever make me look like a druggie. The pharmacist took my license, swiped it and…it froze. I stood there for ten minutes while she and the other pharmacists tried to get their computer working but, in the end, they couldn’t and I left empty-handed having killed 15 minutes of my lunch hour waiting in line in addition to actually driving to CVS. Irritated, I headed home to let the dogs out. Naturally, at the place where I turn into my neighbourhood, there was a utility truck and the road was closed so I had to go all the way around.
When I did get home, I greeted the pups, let them out and started to make a quick plate of salad for lunch. Then I heard a peculiar sound- it sounded like something heavy fell over followed by a high pitch whine of what sounded like pain.
I abandoned my salad-making and went outside, worried one of the girls had hurt herself. Instead, I was greeted by a small brown rabbit that ran right by my feet, pursued by two avid dachshunds.
The rabbit ran, the dogs followed. Around and around the garden they went. They were whining with their ‘need’ to catch the bunny and the poor creature, no matter how hard it tried, could not find its way out of my fence because of the security measures I’d taken to keep Rory in.
The bunny kept running, throwing itself at the chain link fence to try to find a way out. Seconds later, the dogs caught up and the bunny ran again. Given that it was so hot outside, I was getting worried that the dogs would get overheated but they obviously didn’t share the same concern.
Finally, just as I was about to open one of the back gates to try to shoo the rabbit out, it found a small gap under the fence and ran for its life across Possibly-Joe’s garden.
My dogs proceeded to try to follow it. I checked to make sure that the fence was secure. It seemed to be but the problem with dachshunds is that they’re obsessive. They won’t stop until they find a way out if pursuit of a small furry creature is possible.
Thus, though I brought the girls inside, they insisted on going back out and since they had to do their business still, I let them. This meant I spent the time I was eating worrying about if they’d find their way out. Needless to say, it was not relaxing.
So, when I went back to work this afternoon, I still was not in the best of moods. The afternoon didn’t get any better as my coworker delivered the news that one of my most solid candidates did not get the job for which she was literally quite perfect.
By the time I’d left, I wrote the day off as being ‘just one of those days.’ I’ve had a few of those lately and I need to do something about it.
I think I’ll start by getting more sleep. Even if tomorrow is bad, it’s easier to face if your brain isn’t fuzzy and, well, you have to start somewhere.
Happy Thursday. Thanks for reading!
This is why I’m crotchety today. I stayed up too late reading and then had trouble sleeping for no apparent reason.
When I got to work, I realized I was not in a good mood when I got an email from one of my coworkers with a resume she’d found on Monster.com and a subject line of “CALL NOW!!!!!!!!”. As soon as I saw the email come in, I had an uncontrolled burst of irritation and I was annoyed.
The reason I was annoyed is that this coworker isn’t a recruiter like me. She’s an account manager. This means it’s her job to bring in jobs for us to fill and the recruiters will fill them. She still likes to recruit though and it’s a compulsion of hers to go on Monster first thing in the morning and find new resumes. Most mornings, it irritates me a little but I don’t let it bother me because that’s what she does. Today, it irritated me because I was already grouchy. The major problem I have with it is that Monster.com is one of my resources and I have my own system of finding resumes. Half the time she sends me resumes, they’re people I’ve already called and talked to or I haven’t been able to get hold of them. The other half are for jobs we have open that I’m not really working on and the emailed resume serves as a distraction because I’m in the middle of doing something else.
Still, most days, as I said, I can live with it because it’s just what she does.
The rest of my morning, I felt tired and useless. I’m having another one of those periods at work where I’m just not getting anywhere. Even when I find good people for jobs, the companies either move too slowly and my candidate takes another job or there’s something that the company doesn’t like and my candidate doesn’t get the job. Mostly, it’s just part of the package of being a recruiter. Yet there are some days where it just makes you feel beaten down because there’s no real positives happening.
By lunch time, I was hoping for a break to revive a little. It didn’t help that my left eyelid was twitching all morning which, according to Google, is a sign either of allergies or tiredness. Since it only twitches when I’m already stuffy and watery-eyed from allergies and I’d run out of Claritin, I figured that, at least, was something I could take care of to make the afternoon better.
So, I decided to stop at CVS on the way home to buy some Claritin. Because I find that the stuff you can buy off the shelf doesn’t really do anything, I had to go to the pharmacy for the ‘controlled substance’ version with the pseudoepinephrine (sp?) in it. No problem. I got my little cardboard picture of the medicine and took it to the pharmacy county. I handed them my driver’s license with my normal flush of resentment towards the crystal meth makers of the world for making hayfever make me look like a druggie. The pharmacist took my license, swiped it and…it froze. I stood there for ten minutes while she and the other pharmacists tried to get their computer working but, in the end, they couldn’t and I left empty-handed having killed 15 minutes of my lunch hour waiting in line in addition to actually driving to CVS. Irritated, I headed home to let the dogs out. Naturally, at the place where I turn into my neighbourhood, there was a utility truck and the road was closed so I had to go all the way around.
When I did get home, I greeted the pups, let them out and started to make a quick plate of salad for lunch. Then I heard a peculiar sound- it sounded like something heavy fell over followed by a high pitch whine of what sounded like pain.
I abandoned my salad-making and went outside, worried one of the girls had hurt herself. Instead, I was greeted by a small brown rabbit that ran right by my feet, pursued by two avid dachshunds.
The rabbit ran, the dogs followed. Around and around the garden they went. They were whining with their ‘need’ to catch the bunny and the poor creature, no matter how hard it tried, could not find its way out of my fence because of the security measures I’d taken to keep Rory in.
The bunny kept running, throwing itself at the chain link fence to try to find a way out. Seconds later, the dogs caught up and the bunny ran again. Given that it was so hot outside, I was getting worried that the dogs would get overheated but they obviously didn’t share the same concern.
Finally, just as I was about to open one of the back gates to try to shoo the rabbit out, it found a small gap under the fence and ran for its life across Possibly-Joe’s garden.
My dogs proceeded to try to follow it. I checked to make sure that the fence was secure. It seemed to be but the problem with dachshunds is that they’re obsessive. They won’t stop until they find a way out if pursuit of a small furry creature is possible.
Thus, though I brought the girls inside, they insisted on going back out and since they had to do their business still, I let them. This meant I spent the time I was eating worrying about if they’d find their way out. Needless to say, it was not relaxing.
So, when I went back to work this afternoon, I still was not in the best of moods. The afternoon didn’t get any better as my coworker delivered the news that one of my most solid candidates did not get the job for which she was literally quite perfect.
By the time I’d left, I wrote the day off as being ‘just one of those days.’ I’ve had a few of those lately and I need to do something about it.
I think I’ll start by getting more sleep. Even if tomorrow is bad, it’s easier to face if your brain isn’t fuzzy and, well, you have to start somewhere.
Happy Thursday. Thanks for reading!
Tuesday, July 5, 2011
Don't Rush Me Through the Seasons!
I never did see any fireworks last night. Instead, as expected, I had two rather frightened dogs curled up next to me- woofing and jumping each time one of the bangs and whistles of the fireworks got too loud.
Now, the skies are silent and Independence Day has passed again for another year. Summer is solidly underway.
As I said in my blog from the other day, I’m learning to appreciate summer a little more with age. Without the heat and humidity, the bright neon shades of plastic tablewear and the sound of children biking through the neighbourhood, I wouldn’t appreciate the other seasons. That’s always the way.
However, there’s a time and a place for appreciating the other seasons and sometimes, it’s just too soon to start doing so. For example, I went in a store the other day and they were selling all their spring/summer merchandise at a discount and were already displaying Halloween and Autumn décor.
Don’t get me wrong. When it comes around, I’m a huge fan of Autumn. I love the cooler, crisper nights, the leaves as they turn colours and the smell of pumpkin-scented everything.
Yet, it’s not time yet. We still need the intense heat and humidity of summer to oppress us to the point that we feel we can’t take it anymore. The grass is still green and healthy. When it’s a dried shade of greenish yellow because the dryness and heat of the summer has taken it’s toll, then it might be time for the autumn décor.
It’s much like seeing Christmas merchandise in stores at this time of year. It has no power over us. In July, the Santa Clauses, the cuddly snowmen and the sparkle of tinsel are just items that might register in our awareness but they don’t matter. Not yet. I don’t know about you but there’s something that happens to me when I find a clearance shelf in a store that’s riddled with super cheap Christmas stuff in July. The thing that happens to me is that my brain simply doesn’t pay it any mind. It simply is just ‘junk’ that has most likely been sitting there so long that it’s broken, chipped or just not worth buying.
It’s interesting because when it’s in season, I love Christmas. I’m always sad when it’s over and I hold onto it as long as I can. Yet, as the weeks pass, so does the urge to eat candy canes and drink eggnog.
Well, actually, since I think eggnog is quite revolting, that’s a bit of a fabrication but you know what I mean.
My point, and I do have a point, is that while time passes quickly, more so as we get older, it doesn’t help when things are unnecessarily rushed. I know there are crafty folk out there who like to get a head start on the seasonal stuff and it makes sense that you can buy supplies for that whenever you need to do so.
However, for the rest of us, it’s unnecessary to be looking at a jack o’ lantern or a witch holding a jack o’ lantern in July.
I know I’ve blogged about similar things before, primarily with the holidays. Stores now start stocking Christmas stuff before the Halloween candy is even needed. I fully expect to go to Target in a month and start seeing the first red and green tones of the festive holiday season creep in and take over the space formerly occupied by lawn chairs and grills.
The thing is, life passes quickly enough on its own. No matter how hard we try onto certain moments, feelings and memories, time keeps moving forward and creating new ones. We don’t need to be rushed forward any more that life already manages to do.
Seasons should be organic and natural. When summer is really winding down, we know. Here in the Midwest, it comes with the slow and gentle fading out of the crickets and cicadas. The grass, as I mentioned, starts to lose it’s green sheen and becomes lackluster. There’s the slightest hint of a chill to the air though it hasn’t arrived yet. The summer clothes and flipflops start feeling wrong. The appeal of a thicker sweater, socks and closed-toe shoes grows.
At this point, it’s time for Autumn décor. It’s time to bring out the scarecrows, the cider and the pumpkins.
The same goes for every season. With winter, no matter how much I love snow, the sudden appeal of daffodils, sunshine and blue skies arrives. The bulky winter clothes start feeling like too much. The taste of root vegetables and gravies is no longer as pleasurable and the longing for a fresh, sunwarmed tomato and the smell of fresh basil grows.
You get the idea. It’s an organic thing. We just know. We don’t need stores to try to force the process. As consumers, we know when it’s time. It’s just as when we go in the store, see Christmas displays and suddenly feel a leap of pleasure at the cute snowmen, shiny Santas and peppermint stripes.
As I said, we just know when it’s time. It’s an innate sense of knowing when the seasons are changing and we must keep up. You can’t force it.
This is why I can continue to enjoy the sounds, smells and taste of summer without feeling a sense of panic that it’s almost over already. There are still several moments of heat. We haven’t even hit the ‘dog days’ yet.
By that time, I might just be ready for pumpkins and scarecrows. But for now…I’m not. I’ll stick with my butterflies and flowers.
Happy Wednesday!
Monday, July 4, 2011
The Snap, Crackle and Pop of an Extra Long Weekend...
It's a very sticky 4th of July evening. The humidity is pressing close and the heat seems magnified by the close air.
At present, I'm sitting outside. Even though it's hot and humid, it's not altogether unpleasant and it seems right to write this outside. Occasionally, I'm hearing the odd pop of a firecracker. I don't know if there will be more fireworks later tonight or if my neighbours got them out of their systems over the weekend. All I know is that from Friday night through Sunday night, I had two alert dachshunds who were a little afraid of all the bangs and whizzes coming from local firework lighters.
It's been a nice weekend. Mother Monkeypants came down to stay and we had a very nice time. The wonderful thing about my mother is...well, she's my mother. We can do something or nothing and be very happy. We ended up doing some things but we also ended up just relaxing which I think is the best way to spend time with someone you love.
She left not too long ago and the house seems empty as it always does after a guest leaves. THe pups seem a little lost too. All weekend, they've had their choice of laps and attention and now they're back to just me.
It seems strange that we have to go back to work tomorrow. It makes sense, of course. It'd be greedy to expect more than a three day weekend but it seems so...anticlimactic to have a holiday and then...boom, right back to work. Yet it's the way of the world and so off tomorrow, to work I shall go.
On the plus side, it's only a four-day work week so I won't complain. It's only four more days until the next weekend. That's definitely not a bad trade off.
As I write, aside from the odd snap, crackle and pop of fireworks, the neighbourhood seems quiet. I think lots of people must be away for celebrations. My family sometimes has a gathering over the 4th even though, technically, as Brits, we're not exactly Independence Day celebrators. Yet, it's a good excuse to get everyone together.
This year, I had the luxury of having my mum come and stay and my siblings spent their holiday with their family. It's actually nice to spend a holiday like this in my own home as much as I like seeing everyone get together. It's been two years officially since I started to move into this house and I spent the long weekend painting my living room a shade of cranberry red. This weekend, I planted a tree, shopped, cooked and spent the time hanging out with my mother. I feel like I've come a long way.
The firework sounds are getting a little more constant and a little less sporadic. I think as darkness starts to fall, the sounds will intensify. My guess is that I will have two little dogs cowering inside, woofing at each crack and pop. I might stick my head out and see if I can see any fireworks but I haven't decided yet. It's been that kind of weekend where it's been nice to play things by ear and not have a firm plan. While it's nice to be organized, there's something to be said from being spontaneous and unplanned.
Whether or not I decide to look for fireworks tonight, I plan on relaxing and enjoying the last waning hours of a fun, extra-long weekend. I hope you, too, make/made the most of it.
Happy July 4th and happy Monday!
At present, I'm sitting outside. Even though it's hot and humid, it's not altogether unpleasant and it seems right to write this outside. Occasionally, I'm hearing the odd pop of a firecracker. I don't know if there will be more fireworks later tonight or if my neighbours got them out of their systems over the weekend. All I know is that from Friday night through Sunday night, I had two alert dachshunds who were a little afraid of all the bangs and whizzes coming from local firework lighters.
It's been a nice weekend. Mother Monkeypants came down to stay and we had a very nice time. The wonderful thing about my mother is...well, she's my mother. We can do something or nothing and be very happy. We ended up doing some things but we also ended up just relaxing which I think is the best way to spend time with someone you love.
She left not too long ago and the house seems empty as it always does after a guest leaves. THe pups seem a little lost too. All weekend, they've had their choice of laps and attention and now they're back to just me.
It seems strange that we have to go back to work tomorrow. It makes sense, of course. It'd be greedy to expect more than a three day weekend but it seems so...anticlimactic to have a holiday and then...boom, right back to work. Yet it's the way of the world and so off tomorrow, to work I shall go.
On the plus side, it's only a four-day work week so I won't complain. It's only four more days until the next weekend. That's definitely not a bad trade off.
As I write, aside from the odd snap, crackle and pop of fireworks, the neighbourhood seems quiet. I think lots of people must be away for celebrations. My family sometimes has a gathering over the 4th even though, technically, as Brits, we're not exactly Independence Day celebrators. Yet, it's a good excuse to get everyone together.
This year, I had the luxury of having my mum come and stay and my siblings spent their holiday with their family. It's actually nice to spend a holiday like this in my own home as much as I like seeing everyone get together. It's been two years officially since I started to move into this house and I spent the long weekend painting my living room a shade of cranberry red. This weekend, I planted a tree, shopped, cooked and spent the time hanging out with my mother. I feel like I've come a long way.
The firework sounds are getting a little more constant and a little less sporadic. I think as darkness starts to fall, the sounds will intensify. My guess is that I will have two little dogs cowering inside, woofing at each crack and pop. I might stick my head out and see if I can see any fireworks but I haven't decided yet. It's been that kind of weekend where it's been nice to play things by ear and not have a firm plan. While it's nice to be organized, there's something to be said from being spontaneous and unplanned.
Whether or not I decide to look for fireworks tonight, I plan on relaxing and enjoying the last waning hours of a fun, extra-long weekend. I hope you, too, make/made the most of it.
Happy July 4th and happy Monday!
Subscribe to:
Posts (Atom)