Category Archives: Uncategorized

Computers are great…

… except when they aren’t.

Mine aren’t.

Blogging is difficult without a computer. Some people can blog from their phones but our , (yup our, John and I still share) iPhone 4 (yeah, that’s right, no “S”, Siri and I aren’t even friends) and I are not up to the challenge.

Of course, contrary as I am, this means I have a million things I want to blog about. Sadly they’ll all have to wait until we solve our computer woes.

Until then, know I haven’t abandoned you all, I’m still here, I’ll just be swearing at my computer until further notice.

Good thing that phone and I can still manage Instagram, maybe I’ll see you there!

(Also if you think helping people pick out computers is super fun send me a message- we need help!)

Planning the Future

I am great at planning for the future.

I have a yearly step by step plan on how I’m going to finally get myself those goats that I’ve always wanted.

I know which trees we should take down for firewood now and which ones I want to take down next year.

I have the order figured out for all the things I would build as we finish the upstairs of the garage.

I know what trees and shrubs I want to plant next year and where I want to plant them.

Put me in front of one of our apple trees and I’ll tell you which branches we are going to prune now, which ones we will prune next year and what branches we are using to eventually replace old limbs.

I even know where we are going on vacation this year and when we are doing it.

What? Tomorrow?

Psh! Tomorrow! That little day doesn’t matter!

…

Which is why “today” always greets me with terrible surprises. Did you know that people, particularly small people, expect to eat three meals a day? I hear that this is easier if you plan ahead and that sometimes people even do this as soon as the day before.

I wouldn’t know.

In other terrible news of “today,” I hear they are going to want to eat three times again tomorrow! But I can’t possibly plan what that might be because I’m far too busy running in circles doing all these things that I planned last week/month/year that for some super strange reason now need to be done today!

It’s shocking.

Every day it’s shocking.

So I make lists.lists

Sadly, I can’t always read them.

So, it’s still shocking.

But I am great at planning for the future, just ask me about my multi-year landscaping plan…

The Lies of Locke Lamora by Scott Lynch

I’ve fallen head over heels for the Gentleman Bastards. 

It might be their ruthless ways, or their surprising morals, their amazing heists or quite possibly their sassy talk. But certainly the combination all wrapped up in a city full of canals, fantastic towers, blood thirsty sharks (literal sharks people, literal sharks) and a tinge of magic has me sold!

Would I recommend it? Yes!!!

 

“Cleaning”

…Five. … Six! …

I was cleaning the girls’ room…

…SEVEN!!! …

…emptying out the space behind the door, on top of and under and over the doll bed that was hiding there.

…EIGHT!!!

Finding eight dirty, crumpled socks smashed in the doll bed along with old school papers, an assortment of toys, random bits of garbage and other dirty laundry sent me into full blown mom freak out mode.

Perhaps you are familiar. It involves high pitched squeaky voices, excessive use of the word “seriously”, a significant amount of arm waving and glassy eyed children who just show up to watch the spectacle without taking in any of the information.

When the arm waving wound down and the children went back to “cleaning” other areas I stomped downstairs with an armful of things that belonged elsewhere in the house wondering why on earth the kids thought it was acceptable to just throw stuff in piles in the corner and call it clean.

Seriously, don’t they realize that their toys have places to go I thought as I chucked tape into the dresser drawer that houses the world’s largest “junk” drawer.

“These things have places they belong!” I hollered up the stairs as I tossed crayons and markers onto a shelf in the office.

At what age do they actually put things where they belong instead of just throwing them in piles I fumed as I tossed nail polish on my closet shelf. I had to do it twice. It fell off the first time because of the pile of unused baby carriers, clothes that are only “barely” dirty (different from kinda dirty – those go on the chair), clothes that need mending, a bag of nail polish that was never unpacked from Thanksgiving, jeans with a broken button, and an old e-reader.

…

*sigh*

It’s possible some of us never learn.

 

 

 

A Wish Come True

Once Upon A Time…

A little girl brought to her mother a special stone from a far away land. The sweet child earnestly explained that the special stone was, in fact, a wishing stone and that they must both rub the stone and make a wish.

And so they did.

The bright and cheerful little girl wished with all her heart to become a fairy-princess-mermaid while her fair and tired mother wanted nothing more than an afternoon nap.  Sadly the world was a harsh place. The little girl had been born to common parents and even after her wish seemed to be entirely devoid of wings or tail. Her mother had dinner to make, laundry to fold and a lawn to mow, it seemed that neither of their wishes would come true. Undaunted they resolved to be hopeful.

There is always tomorrow and one never knows what tomorrow will bring.

Then, one fine day, a messenger came to the house with a mysterious looking brown box. They examined the box thoroughly but could find no markings that showed where it had come from. Mystified the pair opened the box and found a note within.

Hi Jessie, Sometimes wishes do come true! Now go take a nap! OOXX

Hi Jessie, Sometimes wishes do come true! Now go take a nap! OOXX

Under the message was a magical outfit that turned the happy little girl into the mermaid she had so fervently wished to become.

(She tells me this is how the fancy mermaids get their picture taken...)

(She tells me this is how the fancy mermaids get their picture taken…)

Mother and daughter were incredibly grateful to whomever sent the mysterious box and overjoyed to find that their wishes had indeed come true!

And they all lived happily ever after.

The End.

We really don’t know who sent it and Jane about fell over with excitement as she thanked me over and over and over again for the gift while I kept repeating that it wasn’t from me. She slept with it under her pillow that first night to keep it safe! 

Just Because

Just because sometimes, even when – especially when, things don’t go quite as planned I need to remember that it’s always worth it to take a moment, stop – and smell the roses.hydranga

Even when the roses are hydrangeas.

60 Random Questions

Every so often I see a list of questions making the blogger rounds, sometimes it even gets sent to me but, and I know I’m a blogger so this sounds weird, I don’t actually want to sit down and list answers to a bunch of questions all about me. However, one night last November, John and I answered a giant list of questions together.  That was a whole different story, we laughed and talked and teased and discussed and had a lovely evening and then the list and answers were forgotten. Today, I was prowling through my drafts looking for inspiration and pulled it up. The answers are still all true so if you want to know what John and I think of a whole lot of random things read on…

Do you sleep with your closet doors open or closed? Both. It doesn’t matter until winter when it’s really cold and then we have to close them because our closet is quite possibly the coldest room in the house.

Do you take the shampoos and conditioner bottles from hotel? No, John just shaved his head again and they never put anything worth taking in them.

Do you sleep with your sheets tucked in or out? Nothing may be tucked in because that would make your feet trapped and claustrophobic and who could sleep in a situation like that?  (To let the record show, John thinks its ridiculous!)

Have you ever stolen a street sign before? John has, and other random acts of vandalism, I have not.

Do you like to use post-it notes? “Dear God, it’s one the best inventions ever!” – John  And yes, I like them too.

Would you rather be attacked by a big bear or a swarm of bees? Bees. Bees don’t actually attack when they are swarming-  big bears do.

Do you always smile for pictures? Mostly.

What is your biggest pet peeve? “People who don’t throw away the sandwich box at work. What a stupid question. Why isn’t it everybody’s?”- John  We are both surprised that I can’t think of one, must have been a good day.

Have you ever peed in the woods? The question should be, “Have you peed in the woods today?” John-yes, Jessie- not since yesterday

What about pooped in the woods? Yes.

Do you ever dance even if there’s no music playing? You don’t need music to spontaneously dance in the kitchen together.

Do you chew your pens and pencils? “Pens? Pencils? I never chew my keyboard” – Jessie “I’m a chemist, lord knows what’s on the pens and pencils.” -John

What is your song of the week? Shut up and dance with me is stuck in both of our heads, possibly the kids’ fault.

What’s your least favorite movie? Jessie refuses to answer because that’s by nature a ridiculous question. John, apparently, hates the LEGO movie.

Where would you bury hidden treasure if you had some? If we told you it wouldn’t be very well hidden now would it. But it would for sure be in a tin, because I love tins.

What do you dip a chicken nugget in? We are a BBQ or Ranch house.

What movies could you watch over and over and still love?  John can re-watch movies an alarming amount of times, I don’t.

Were you ever a boy/girl scout? No Boy Scouts and one short stint as a Brownie.

Would you ever strip or pose nude in a magazine? No, we are too old for that shit.

When was the last time you wrote a letter to someone on paper? When our friend’s husband died.

Can you change the oil in a car? John is a super fantastic oil changer – so I don’t have to be.

Ever gotten a speeding ticket? “The more interesting story is when I talked myself out of a speeding ticket by telling the officer I was going to study organic chemistry at 7 on a Friday night, sadly it was the truth.” – John “Nope, I drive nice and slow, that way everyone else wants to drive so we get there faster, then I don’t have to drive and we get there faster – win win.” – Jessie

Ever ran out of gas? Yup.

What is your usual bedtime?  12 – 1 Am

Are you lazy? John isn’t lazy, he says he could be, but he isn’t. I’m not lazy it’s just that after a day of super productiveness I sometimes need to reward myself by reading an entire book.

What is your Chinese astrological sign? Apparently we are a Monkey and a Snake – and we are not impressed.

How many languages can you speak? We are pretty good at English and if pressed John thinks he could still navigate a French speaking country. I however panic in the face of foreign language and could not.  (Update: In the last year we have now learned to sing in Portuguese, though we don’t always know what we are singing about and John can count to ten in Korean.)

Do you have any magazine subscriptions? Only nerdy ones. National Geographic and Discover.

Which are better, legos or Lincoln logs? That’s… That’s… such a ridiculous question. You can build houses, barns, other square buildings, and fences with Lincoln logs. You can build ANYTHING with Legos. Also I might have a MiniFig obsession…

Are you stubborn? “I’m gonna let you take this one…” – John.  “Yes. I think yes is the correct response here.” -Jessie

Who is better, Leno or Letterman? John says Letterman, I dislike them all.

Ever watch soap operas? John hasn’t but in college I was a regular Days watcher.

Are you afraid of heights? John climbs high things for fun while I try not to watch.

Do you sing in the car? Totally.

Do you sing in the shower? Never. That would mean you would be wasting time in the shower and then you’d be in there longer and that would be ridiculous.

Do you dance in the car? Only when there isn’t oncoming traffic watching.

Ever used a gun? Not today, and that’s a serious issue when it’s November.

Do you think musicals are cheesy? Of course they are it’s part of their charm.

Is Christmas stressful? No. Having a kid’s birthday on December 23 might be though.

Ever eat a pirogi? “What’s that?” – Jessie  “Yup, made by a polish woman.” -John

Favorite type of fruit pie? Apple… or blueberry.

Occupations you wanted to be when you were a kid? Paleontologist, Astronaut, Doctor, Veterinarian, Elementary School Teacher. You can guess who’s who on those.

Do you believe in ghosts? “Nope.” -John  “Except when its a dark and stormy night and I hear funny noises then my imagination tries to convince me otherwise.” -Jessie

First concert? I don’t remember. John saw Air Supply with his mom.

Nike or Adidas? Ummm dude, shoes are foot coffins, they are both evil!

Cheetos or Fritos? Doritios is the -itos we should be talking about here!

Peanuts or Sunflower seeds? John loves sunflower seeds, but they aren’t really food so I’m choosing peanuts for both of us.

Ever take dance lessons? They don’t give those out in cars so no. John took a swing dance course in college though.

Regularly burn incense? Does burning oak in the wood stove count?

Who would you like to see in concert? The Piano Guys, Little Big Town (but I couldn’t remember their name so I’m probably not going to make that happen) John’s adding Rush, I don’t even know who that is.

What was the last concert you saw? Great Big Sea

Are you patient? Do elephants fly?  

Which are better, black or green olives? Ick. I give all my olives to John and he says their isn’t’ enough data in the question to make an informed decision. Fancy green, canned crap, black.

Can you knit or crochet? I could knit, not sure I remember how anymore though.

Best room for a fireplace? The middle one.

Who was your HS crush? Somethings should die with High School.

Do you cry and throw a fit until you get your own way? No, that’s what the three year old tries and it doesn’t work for her either.

Do you have kids? Three

Do you want kids? Three is good, no more please.

What’s your favorite color? Blue

Do you miss anyone right now? Not more than usual.

 

How about you?

Have you ever answered questions with someone before?

 

The Chains of Good

Recently my best friend’s sister-in-law was murdered.

It has been just as tragic, raw and sad as one would hope to never need to imagine.

But the other day my friend told me a thing that brought tears to my eyes in a whole different way. She told me that through all the hard and sad and horror that has been going on, what has really come clear to her is that evil deeds exist as points.

Single instances.

But good makes chains. Chains of loving people, kind words and gracious acts. Loving family and friends lead to kind strangers.  And the good deeds from all of them exist in chains that can stretch on and on.

I’m linking to the Go Fund me account that has been set up for the family. I’m not expecting you to donate, though the family would be grateful.  I just wanted to remind you that even the small kindness you add to the world makes a difference when they join the chain.

In Memory of Jenn Ward

https://www.gofundme.com/2hhxyy4

It Can’t Be Snowing

There should be a word for it.

That feeling you get when you can’t shake a dream.Willows with sparkle

When the world gets a little more blurry and the blowing willow tree seeds look just like snowflakes dancing in the breeze.

But, they can’t be snowflakes because the sun is shining and it’s too hot outside.

And you couldn’t have been chased by men with knives, been betrayed by your friend or broken anyone out of prison.

But it does look like it’s snowing, and the feelings are there.

The terror of the night, the hurt and anger live on.

They are real in your mind.

It was all real in your mind.

Even now, when the sun is shining and the snow is falling, the feelings cling.

And it might be real- after all it’s snowing.Willows with sparkle

But it can’t be snowing, because the sun is shining and it’s too hot outside.

 

I wrote this right after I discovered that I’m not the only person who has overly vivid dreams and then has a terrible time moving on from them once morning comes. It can be confusing for me and frustrating to family members who have angered me in my sleep that I’m still mad at them when morning and reality come.

Do you have dreams that stick with you longer than you wish they would?