1. For those who never read about why I started this blog (Read “About Pam”), here it is in a nutshell: “It’s therapeutic as it takes my thoughts out of my head, and frees up that much needed space for handling life.”
The photo I use on my blog is of me and my daughter, Sydney Rose, celebrating my birthday a couple of years ago. THIS is how I take on life!
2. I read a blog called “31 apologies you should make to your bartender.” I’m sharing my two favorites, the first of which resonates totally with me, the second is just funny:
#6. I’m sorry I ordered Cabernet in a bar and then made an icky face like I expected it to be good.
#12. I’m sorry I told you my drink was too strong. Who does that?
3. I had never been a fan of the marmot, that’s not to say I didn’t like them, but I just didn’t give them much thought until I saw this video from Greenpeace. They were doing a time lapse video at Glacier National Park when this furry guy came along and ruined it. They weren’t too mad about it though, how could you be? Check it out:
4. I saw a story called, “Famous products back from the dead”, one of them was the Astro pop. I gotta get me one of them!
5. I rarely have nightmares, in fact I can’t remember the last time a bad dream woke me up, but when I do they are usually one of three recurring scenarios all stemming from real life stressful situations:
- The DJ nightmare – where there is dead air and I’m running around trying to get the next song on, but the equipment won’t cooperate.
- The waitress nightmare – where too many people are seated in my section for me to keep up with them.
- And finally, the smoking nightmare – where I realize I’m smoking after having quit for over twenty years…because IT”S REALLY HARD TO QUIT and who wants to go through that again!?
6. On the other end of the spectrum, there are simple things that ALWAYS make me smile:
- The feel of the warm sun on my shoulders when I come out of an air-conditioned building or car.
- Hearing the trolley make its stop around the corner from my house.
- Hitting a three-pointer.
- Pictures of most baby animals.
- Getting a message from my daughter.
- Seeing my dog, Samantha “Boom Boom” Baumgardner, waiting for me when I return home.
- Seeing dolphins in the ocean.
- Hearing the perfect drum fill/solo.
- Hitting all green lights.
- Walking into a venue and seeing someone sporting the ever popular VenturaRocks.com t-shirt.
Scanned from my photo album
7. Another great memory of being married was when Sydney Rose was born. Because of all the horror stories you read about how hospitals can mix up babies, Syd’s daddy never let her out of his sight while they cleaned her up and he made sure they put the proper i.d. bracelet on her. It really was sweet.
And though I was dead tired after being in labor since 5 in the morning (I gave birth at 7:10 that evening), I couldn’t sleep. I got up after midnight and made my way down the hallway to the nursery where they let me hold my baby. I couldn’t stand to be apart from her.
8. I hate that expression, “Only the Good Die Young.” In fact, I call BULLSHIT!!! After a certain age, are we all Bad??? And what age is that?
People resort to that expression because they remember Billy Joel singing it, and you may or may not know, it was actually about a young teen trying to deflower a Catholic girl: “You Catholic girls start much too late,but sooner or later it comes down to fate.I might as well be the one.” Suggesting even the good people die, so you might as well be bad.
I say we retire that expression…of course unless you’re a horny teenager. 😉
9. Sometimes I worry about writer’s block; I worry mostly because I have a deadline for my Ventura Breeze column that I write twice a month. I have to come up with 500 words about Ventura’s music scene. Luckily there is an abundance of music and I have enough contacts to get the inside scoop. I post them here (along with other editorials when I get a bee in my bonnet): http://venturarocks.com/blog/category/ventura-rocks/
10. From my favorite quotes file: “People who think they know everything are a great annoyance to those of us who do.” – Isaac Asimov
Thanks for listening!
A Couple of Things... 
Hi, Pam!
The Cabernet bartender apology rang a bell. A few years ago I took Sally, for the first time, to the little town in Michigan where I grew up. After about a six minute tour of the points of interest: the one stoplight, the movie theater that closes in the summer when the drive-in opens up … we wander into a bar that is quite full despite all other businesses being in their death throes. You have to understand that this might as well be a saloon from the Old West. You either order beer or whiskey … or both. The waitress comes by and Sally cheerily chirps: “What kinds of Chardonnay do you have?”. There is instant quiet, all eyes turn toward us and I pray that I might have dormant powers of invisibility that suddenly kick in. Ultimately, the waitress rummages around in the back and digs up a cardboard box of white wine. After profanely solving the mystery of the dispenser, she serves up the “wine” in an ice-filled tumbler. I convey to Sally that if she even considers sending it back that I will abandon her. True story!
This weekend is filled with family social events. Fortunately, they are of the celebratory variety: grandson’s sixth birthday, sister-in-law’s retirement party from a job she has hated for thirty years being among them. Unfortunately, I’ll be missing Doug Webb (whose recordings, coincidentally, are produced by a friend of mine, David Horner) and the whole Spencer Makenzie thang.
Have some fun for me and take pictures.
HAHAHA! Cute story Steve! Sorry I’ll miss you this weekend, but I’ll definitely take lots of photos. 🙂