Last night hubby and I were watching TV. This is not a rare occurrence, but what is rare is for us to be watching the commercials. You see, we have a DVR and because of it we hardly ever see those annoying little 30 second ads. So, there we were grumbling; our attention spans pleading for the show to start again. Then we saw it. It was an ad for SLO Jobs, I suppose it’s like a temp agency for San Luis Obispo. Anyway, they left out the word way on the screen telling people “There’s a better way to find and hire local employees”. Not the best way to showcase your company. I had hubby rewind and rewind again for me to see the typo and also for me to tape it. I can’t believe they let this get on the air! Now, I realize it’s only a local ad – but come on – couldn’t they have found a temp to at least check their ad?
Well, here’s the commercial (pay no attention to me laughing at the beginning):
Where does the time go. Tonight is New Year’s Eve and silly me, I didn’t purchase a funny hat or noise maker. I frankly didn’t realize it was New Year’s until I happened to look at the little date at the lower right of my computer screen. Shit! December 31st! Good bye 2007 I hardly knew you. 2008 kind of sneaked up on me. I knew it was getting close – I should have given it a packet of tick-tacks so I could here when it was coming.
Well 2007 is certainly ending, and I have to find my new desk calendar I purchased last month. Scheduling stuff for January has been rough – I have little notes under December, hopefully I can decipher my chicken scratching and half written words (not that I really have much to schedule).
I really can’t believe 2007 is ending. A few days ago I took a little internet quiz on the happenings that occurred in 2007. A lot of the questions were based on popular culture and because I’m a fuddy-duddy I failed miserably. On that same fuddy-duddy note I will be going to bed around 10:00 and will not be staying up to be rowdy at midnight. I’m hoping people in our neighborhood don’t go crazy at the strike of 12:00. But considering most of the people that live in my neighborhood are retired I don’t think much noise will be produced.
Speaking of production, I’m hoping 2008 includes a baby for hubby & me. I’d also like the living room finished, exterior of the house to be painted, and the front yard to be re-landscaped (I’d like all of those completed in no particular order, we can throw a baby in between living room design and landscaping if need be).
So, farewell 2007. Now, where did I put that desk calendar …
When hubby and I were in “lovely” Bakersfield we saw some movies to pass the monotonous time that accumulates in the central valley. The two movies we saw were ‘The Golden Compass’ and ‘No Country For Old Men’. Both are drastically different. Hubby wasn’t too thrilled with ‘The Golden Compass’. He thought it was definitely a “chick flick”, being that the main character and narrator of the film was a little girl. I agreed with him somewhat, but I thought the movie was more a kid’s movie rather than a “chick flick”. Also, I thought the anti-religious tone was going to be much stronger. But, being an atheist I didn’t have a problem with “dust” and souls being out side the body in the forms of animals (and might I add, who was high when they thought that up).
Now onto the “guy’s movie”. I’ve just seen ‘No Country For Old Men’ twice and frankly I think it’s a “guy’s movie”. I do think the film is very well done and the acting is great (how incredibly scary is the psychopath killer). Hubby thinks that “No Country” is a fabulous movie, one of the best he’s ever seen. I was a bit too tense through the whole movie to really enjoy myself – even the second time around when I knew what was going to happen. Maybe because the film centers around men I feel as if it’s a “guy’s movie”? I really don’t know. All I know, is that ‘No Country For Old Men’ makes me tense and frankly I’d rather watch a “chick flick”.
What springs to mind when mentioning a Christmas movie. ‘A Christmas Carol’? ‘It’s A Wonderful Life’? or perhaps kid friendly flicks like ‘Frosty the Snowman’ or ‘A Peanuts Christmas’. However, when I think of a Christmas movie I of course think of ‘Die Hard’.
It’s just not Christmas with out Bruce Willis and his bloody feet running around after German “terrorists”. Just the line “I now have a machine gun. Ho-Ho-Ho.” Puts me in the holiday spirit. Forget the egg nog. Yet, for me this is a recent holiday movie. I didn’t start watching ‘Die Hard’ until I got married. Thanks hubby for making me realize there’s more out there then George Baily and Scrooge.
Last night my family sat around and watched ‘Die Hard’. My mom had never seen the movie, and was on the edge of her seat the whole time. After watching the movie we all commented on the fact that times have changed so much – maybe not for the better. Back in 1988 when you said “terrorist” the police department didn’t even bat an eye. They just reluctantly sent out that guy from ‘Family Matters’ (you know who I’m talking about). But now, unless you live under a rock, you know what kind of reaction the word “terrorist” has. Also, today with cell phones and all sorts of communication tools I don’t know how anyone can have a group of hostages anymore (ah, the good ‘ole days), without one of them being able to contact the police.
Anyway, my Winter Solstice was fun. I do have some interesting family tales to tell. However, I’ll just keep those to myself. Hope everyone had a good holiday as well.
I don’t know what it is, but I’ve noticed that clothing today has a lot more wool and other natural fibers in them then they did in the past. Has cotton really become that scarce? Or do clothing manufactures think we really like our skin to be inflamed all day? Recently I was shopping at Banana Republic and noticed that even their even light weight sweater “t-shirt” type tops had wool in them. They were soft, however, if a top can’t be thrown into the washing machine then it’s not going to thrown in my shopping basket. Just try to find a sweater that doesn’t have some sort of wool in it. I dare you.
Ug. Wool, cashmere, merino … blah blah blah, all those natural fibers mean itchy, annoying and has to be dry cleaned. Give me cotton any day.
Who knew that Santa’s Workshop is in Paso Robles? Let alone disguised as a Target and Ross? You see, today was Christmas present buying day & I have to thank Target & Ross for saving my sanity. I didn’t even complain that I had to drive 40 minutes to Paso down the curvy 41, because I’ve gotten all my Christmas presents for my whole family (and that family would be my husband’s family, my family doesn’t really exchange gifts – yeah, we’re weird). Not only does hubby’s immediate family exchange gifts but his whole family does a secret Santa gift exchange. The pressure was on to find great gifts for everyone and I’m thrilled to say that I did. Now, the next task is to wrap and bag them all up for giving. Crap! I just realized I didn’t buy any scotch tape. I wonder if silver duct tape would look tacky. It is silver after all, and isn’t that kind of festive?
Yesterday we had a “big storm” in California terms. It rained a bit, and the wind blew pretty hard (enough to knock down some neighbor’s Christmas decorations and knock our patio umbrella askew). We also lost power yesterday morning and let me tell you I was not happy when I first woke up.
So, I wake up and flick the bathroom light on, nope no light. Damn it. Next, I survey the rest of the house. Yep, no coffee maker, no stove, no hair dryer, no TV, no computer and finally no heater to warm the house. My morning cereal is kind of out of the question too, because I don’t want to open the fridge and let what little cold air is in there out. The house is freezing, dark and the people living in it are caffeine junkies. That’s right … it’s Amish time.
I snuggle up on the couch under a big comforter and read my book that I’m half way through and start to forget that I’m cold and caffeine deprived. I actually start to enjoy myself. I hardly ever just sit on the couch and read. I’m always too busy on the computer or doing whatever I feel is more important than just sitting and relaxing with a book. It’s nice to be forced to just sit and do something so simple. Then there’s a knock on my door.
My mom is standing there all bundled up. She blurts out is: “Your power’s out too! Starbucks! What do your guys want?” My brain registers my surroundings again. “Ah … ug … grande Chai tea!” Off my mom goes in a flurry and I return to my book. She arrives 20 minutes later, hands me my grande Chai Late and then rushes off to her own dark and cold house. Two hours later I see a PG&E truck roll by, yellow lights flashing & I gaze at the black holes that are my TV and computer. Maybe after the power goes on I won’t turn you guys on today. Then click, every thing goes back on. The heater immediately starts blowing and I decide I think I’ll try to read a few more chapters.
The Amish don’t know what their missing, though. I really don’t think I would have been as happy with out my grande Chai Tea Late & my forced air heating system.
Guest bathroom you’ve served me well. I’ll miss scrubbing dishes in your tiny sink with tiny faucet. You see, after months and months of being with out a proper kitchen the kitchen remodel is finally winding down. I knew there was light at the end of the tunnel when the counter tops finally were put in. A few days ago our back splash glass tiles were installed and grouted. I must say the kitchen looks lovely and works wonderfully. I’m having a good time putting stuff back into the cabinets and going through all our pantry items that were once crammed into our guest bedroom & living room bookcase (I had no idea I had so much canned soup). I’ll post pictures later once the appliances are put back and every thing is totally completed. All and all we are very happy with the way everything turned out.
Next project … the living room is going to be painted and wallpapered. Then onto the landscaping and painting of the exterior of the house. However, once we probably finished everything we’ll move. Isn’t that always the case?
Oh, and I must wish a HAPPY BIRTHDAY to my cousin Laura.
A few days ago hubby & I saw the movie ‘The Mist’. The movie looked fun and a great way to spend an afternoon. Alas, I was a bit let down (as I am with most movies these days). I don’t know why, but the movie had a feeling of a made for TV movie. The movie was based on a Stephen King novel of the same name. Hubby had read the book, so he knew what was going to happen, however I didn’t. This made the movie a bit more enjoyable for me, but I still could see exactly where it was going. Most of the initial dialog seemed almost ad libbed. There was also very little dramatic build up; as the movie begins they see the mist across the lake, then the main character goes into town and all of a sudden the mist just shows up. The sound track for the movie (or lack there of) didn’t help with building suspense either.
What’s hard to believe is that ‘The Mist’ was directed by the same guy who did ‘The Shawshank Redemption’. Knowing that makes ‘The Mist’ seem all that more disappointing and armature for such a director.
Our theater going experience probably didn’t help things either. When we first took our seats, previews were showing (some horrible looking “comedy” featuring Matthew McConaughey) I thought alright this better be worth $7.00. However, soon the previews stopped and the lights soon came on. As we looked around bewildered an usher entered and told us (all 10 of us) we had to move to another screen. Well darn it. When we arrived at the new screen the movie had already started (about 10 minutes into it) and some lady very loudly made all of us aware that she knew it as well. I expected another usher to arrive and tell us that they would restart the movie, but no one came. Also, annoying was the fact that half of the lights never completely went out.
Damn, $7.00 wasted on a made for TV movie. It was a nice way to spend an afternoon, too bad I wasn’t sitting on my couch at home.
Now, let me first state that I’m an atheist … so there isn’t going to be anything religious at all in this blog post. That being said, it stuck me as odd that people at Christmas time go bananas when decorating. Would Jesus approve? Did they even have electricity back then?
Anyway, it seems just after Halloween people start putting up those annoying (and just plain stupid) fake icicle lights. Hey neighbors, we’re in California and you are not fooling anyone. Who in their right minds thinks they actually look like icicles? I’m actually kind of fond of those big bulbed green, red and orange lights they had on houses when I was a kid. I miss those … but I digress. Along with icicle lights people seem to enjoy those big inflatable creatures that pass for decorating. The constant hum of the generator would drive anyone insane. I feel bad for the ones that don’t get inflated and just lay there on the lawns looking all sad and melted like the wicked witch in The Wizard of Oz.
Also popular are those moving lighted reindeer and snowman, and whatever creatures companies have discovered how to light up and animate. I like when people have a bunch of them all around each other in a haphazard manner. For example I’ve seen it where they will have a medium sized reindeer and a giant polar bear and maybe a snowman in for good measure.
In our old neighborhood (a typical southern California subdivision of Mediterranean tract homes) our neighbors went all out decorating. Every inch that could be covered in lights was most certainly illuminated. You could read a newspaper in our driveway at midnight. Our neighbor directly across the street from us was the biggest offender. First he started with the icicle lights covered with traditional red and green twinkle lights. Next, blow up creatures appeared and hummed their lovely tune on his lawn. Then came the animated reindeer, snowman, polar bears and whatever other creature he could buy. Color changing trees lined his front walk and above his garage door were over-sized ball ornaments next to the big red velvet bows. Our house by contrast was like this black hole surrounded by tacky Christmas glitz.
In our new neighborhood the decorations are a bit more muted, however they still appear the day after Halloween … if not sooner. We might actually have to break down and buy some sort of lighted twinkling Christmas glitz ourselves. I don’t think Jesus would approve … a nativity scene perhaps? Perhaps not.
My name is Karen Ferguson. I’m in my mid-twenties, married, have a BA in interior design, an atheist, a vegetarian (who eats fish), a Green Party member, and am a paraplegic in a wheelchair. I live in Los Osos, California.
Basically this blog will consist of judgements of others and silly comments about the world around me. Also, all of the things I listed above, in no particular order. Did the ‘paraplegic’ & ‘wheelchair’ in the list make your head spin for a moment. Yeah, most people can’t get over those either.
