A Couple of Things…

Posted on January 18, 2014 by A Couple of Things by Pam Baumgardner

1. Every year on the anniversary of the Northridge earthquake, I am reminded of the first time Sydney Rose kicked me (in utero). I guess my adrenalin must have woke her up. It was as if she were saying, “WTF?” I was about five months pregnant. I felt a slight fluttering movement inside my tummy. Another amazing pleasure moment in life. I still miss that sensation.

2. Look who got a bath!!!

3. This winter weather in the 80s is quite delightful.

4. I heard a great line while listening to a rerun of Will & Grace as given by Karen Walker: “You know what I’m not hearing? An actual apology or a decent Rolling Stones song since 1973.”

5. I don’t stalk. I do recon.

6. Recent Headlines seen:

“Kangaroo Found in Drug Store”
“Mom Revives Blind Pet Chicken”
“Theif Nabs 384 Pounds of Meat”
“Hunter Shoots Man on Toilet”

7. I got a lot of feedback on my last post wondering how exactly am I politically incorrect. I’ll let one out of the bag. I admit I find the pictures of Christ found in nature fascinating. The one on the dog’s butt is just ingenious. And speaking of Christ humor, have you seen the poster of the kids in the museum next to the painting of Christ? The tagline is “Blasphemy: A Ticket to Hell has never been funnier.” Google it.

Honestly, God has got to have a sense of humor. Just look at butt chins.

(I can’t help but wonder how long the person was looking at their dog’s ass before they realize what it looked like.)

8. Funniest Tweet recently on Twitter from Stephen Colbert, “I didn’t win a Golden Globe, but it’s an honor just to assume I must have been nominated.”

9. Let’s me honest. It’s not that you don’t have time to exercise, it’s that you don’t want to. As with everything, if it’s that important, you’ll make it go right.
My best advice, “Baby steps.” Don’t go too steep a gradient. The next time you exercise, if you’re comfortable, take it to the next level. But find something you enjoy!! Don’t let it be a chore.

10. I completely felt the love when my friend stated that she loves me more than chocolate.

11. Colbie Caillat performed two songs at a local club (W20) here in town Thursday night. It was a showcase for new performers her father Ken Caillat (famous record producer, Fleetwood Mac, Pink Floyd, Paul McCartney) has on his new label. All were pretty good, but I’ll be watching for great things from Lola Delon.

12. From my Favorite quotes file: “Bad choices make good stories.” Ellis Vidler (Novelist)

Thanks for listening!

A Couple of Things…

Posted on January 12, 2014 by A Couple of Things by Pam Baumgardner

1. Some day I’m going to write a post about all the politically incorrect things about myself. Until then, I’ll just have a Cheshire smile from time to time.

The legendary Albert Lee, Kelly Zires, Me, Jan McWorter, Robin Dodson

2. I was planning on attending a fundraiser recently, but the day before I learned that “hands-on-help” was needed. All the hard work had been done previously with the booking of bands and gathering of raffle and silent auction items, so it was a no brainer to help organize and man the door taking donations. Over $10,000 was raised. The headliner was the legendary Albert Lee, but over a dozen amazing musicians (including Curtis Salgado and Sugaray Rayford) showed up to help raise funds. I love this town!!! And I love being able to help good friends. See full story: Benefit for Jacob

3. How cool would it be if schools taught these abilities?

Accountability
Reliability
Responsibility

4. Sammy is softly snoring, taking one of her many naps. Life is good.

5. I gained 5 pounds over the holidays and I swear, my running shoes are even tighter!

6. I’ve heard that people take the way the toilet paper should be placed on the dispenser too seriously. Over, under, whatever!! Let’s talk about leaving the toilet seat up. Now that’s a discussion!

7. I don’t do drama. Well, the truth is, I don’t do drama well. So when there’s drama, I end up looking like a bitch because I don’t engage in it.

8. 12 Shocking Sex Facts seen on Time Magazine website written by Eliana. I wasn’t so shocked about any of them until I came across this fun fact: “Wearing high heels can negatively affect a woman’s orgasm.” I KNEW IT!!! (I now have a justification for rarely wearing them) But my favorite was: “Being well hydrated leads to better orgasms.” Great! Now I get to feel self-conscious for drinking so much water!

9a. The problem with being far sighted is that it’s a bitch to find your reading glasses…unless they’re across the room.

9b. When asking where my glasses are, by daughter’s standard answer (without even looking up), “Are they on your head?”
Unfortunately, more times than not, they are. (Case in point, see photo at top of page).

10. One of the best pieces of relationship advice I’ve heard, “Make sure you’re the crazy one.”

11. I can’t believe I haven’t been out to catch a Pirate’s basketball game yet this season. Both men and women’s Ventura College teams are known to be kick ass. I have it on my calendar for this week. If I play my cards right I can catch both games. Can’t wait!

12. I love people with good manners.

13. Sydney’s visit over Christmas has been added to my list of my life’s favorite moments. We had so much fun running around, visiting some relatives, hanging out, going out for lunch. Our week-long visit ended too quickly. I miss her, and cherish these moments.
Thank you baby!

The best way to find out if you can trust somebody is to trust them. Ernest Hemingway

Thanks for listening

Best Christmas Ever!!!

Posted on December 26, 2013 by A Couple of Things by Pam Baumgardner

So for the past month or so I’ve been sharing my sad story about how I would be without my Sydney Rose for Christmas this year (witness my last post). I had no Christmas tree, no decorations except for my white lights on my front kitchen window and little Christmas wreathes on the silly pink flamingos down in the side yard.

I had been looking at past Christmas photos and missing my baby for several weeks. She’s a good daughter and calls me and lets me know what she’s up to and what her plans are. Remember she moved to Oregon last summer so it’s nice to be kept in the loop a little. My understanding was that she would be flying with her employer to Florida and while there working as a nanny, she would be spending Christmas with her dad. She had told me she would keep in communication on travel day as is SOP (Standard Operating Procedure). We always let each other know when we land safely. But to add insult to injury, Syd Rose being the good daughter she is, decided she would also call me when she actually got on the airplane. Now I’m not one to turn down a phone call from my daughter so I did not balk at the fact that it would be before 6:00 in the morning on Monday and so I was expecting that call.

Sydney called me at 5:45 am to let me know she was on the plane ready to take off. She said, “Okay Momma, I’m on the plane, I’ll call you on my next stop.” With that assurance, she hung up and I laid in bed waiting for the alarm to go off in fifteen minutes to start my day. A few hours later I got a text saying she was running to the next terminal and that she would call when she landed next in Florida, which as it turned out, she never did.

About an hour or so after getting her text, I decided I should finally confront and start my Christmas shopping. I already knew I was already going to be mailing Sydney a year’s supply of contact lenses, but I still needed to get something for my Dad and Nancy. Sergio, who works me me at City Hall, asked what my lunch plans were, and I told him. I didn’t think anything of it, because we sometimes work out for lunch (them cross-fit training, me shooting hoops) or we head downtown as a group and grab something to eat. But I told him I was shopping, which I quickly did, then headed back to work for the shock of my life.

I arrived back at my office and turned the corner to my work cubicle and there was a stranger sitting in my chair. At first my mind couldn’t register what I was seeing. The office was pretty much empty and the front door locked during the lunch hour, and while my first thought was Sydney Rose, my mind wouldn’t allow me to grasp that at first. But clearly her smile and “Hi Momma!” assured me my mind wasn’t playing tricks and I realized that she really was here in Ventura, not in Florida! I dropped all packages, jacket and purse on the ground and grabbed her and kissed her and cried tears of joy. I asked how long she would be here, thinking maybe she had just made it go right to swing by to see me on her way to her dad’s, but she said it was for a complete week! Shocked, I asked how long had she known, and she said for over a month!! I had no clue, no idea, and I learned how everyone had been in on it including my dad, several of her friends and Sergio (who had been texting her and letting her know when I was out of the office).
What a rush! What a relief! What a gift!! I left work early and spent the rest of the day catching up, holding hands or just being with her with my arms around her, and just enjoying her company.

The next evening, Christmas Eve, we had a big blazing fire in the fire pit in the backyard with my dad, Sydney’s friend Cheyenne who was home on leave (she enlisted last summer in the Navy), Steve and Eve Mimiaga and even Staci Brown came over to hang out. The warmth I felt that night could of been the warmer-than-normal weather, or the rum or the fire itself, but it was most definitely the warmth of love and friendship and family.
Christmas morning I woke up with Sydney Rose, she got up and baked a batch of delicious homemade cinnamon rolls and we made it down to Grandpas for breakfast. And we went to the movies in the afternoon with the Mimiaga family, and we had dinner at my dad’s as a family.

It was a typical Christmas, but it was also a sort of Christmas miracle for me. I had been resolved to be without my Syd for the first time since she was born. And though it was still a frugal Christmas, and we never did get that damn tree up or get the decorations out, I venture to bet it will always be my best Christmas ever.

A Couple of Things…

Posted on December 15, 2013 by A Couple of Things by Pam Baumgardner

1. Feeling both naughty and nice as Christmas quickly approaches. Sad because my Sydney Rose won’t be home with me, her first Christmas away and it’s a bit awkward because I have a new roommate, a virtual stranger in my home. Yet, I’m still determined to make the best of it. So happy to have Eve to lean on and keep our holiday traditions alive.

2. I love my string of little white lights and strings of snowflakes in my kitchen window. But to be honest, I think that’s as Christmas as it’s going to get this year without my Syd Rose.

3. At first I was embarrassed, when I realized that Tweakers and Twerkers are two different things. Of course that whole Miley debacle immediately took on a whole different meaning! I originally thought it a travesty…and you know what? I still do, but for different reasons now. 😉

4. I’ve yet to make it out shopping If I play my cards right, it’s all online this year! I know, I know, my time is running out!!!

5. Oh wait! There was a Christmas Elf who left wreathes on my silly pink flamingos to help get me in the holiday spirits. So a little more than twinkling white lights this year.

6. I love going out with friends, and then running into even more friends.

7. How cool would it be to have a menagerie of perpetual baby animals? I’d have bunnies, kittens, puppies, piglets, fawns, even baby hedgehogs. This makes me smile, and it’s the only thing I’m asking from Santa for Christmas this year.

8. We had our 2nd annual radio reunion a little over a week ago, with Tammy Myers and Brother Rob. Though the years have passed, and we’ve gone on to live our separate lives, raise families, start new careers, etc… some things never change! Love these guys!!!

9. My goal is to continue to love despite all the reasons why not. That does not mean that I forgive bad acts. In fact, I hold people accountable for their misdeeds. One must act to protect oneself, and you have to preserve order and decency. But you don’t have to hate or seek vengeance.

10. While wrapping up my blog this morning, Sydney Rose called to chat. I love my baby so much and I’m so proud of her. She got me caught up on the Oregon scene, baking, gift exchanges and the weather. She said it’s been extremely foggy and she was quick to remind me of that time years and years ago when I said, “Never drive with your high beams on in the fog.” Somehow that driving tip has stuck with her. She even remembers it was on one of those crazy winding back roads in Ojai while coming back from her friend’s house. Good to know some things sunk in!

And on that note, I hope you have a very Merry Christmas and that you are able to celebrate this time of year with family and if not, then with good friends. I’m here if you need me.

“The main reason Santa is so jolly is because he knows where all the bad girls live.” George Carlin

Thanks for listening

Protected: The Thing About Bullies…

Posted on December 9, 2013 by A Couple of Things by Pam Baumgardner

A Couple of Things…

Posted on November 20, 2013 by A Couple of Things by Pam Baumgardner

I-dont-need-to-flirt-I-will-seduce-you-with-my-awkwardness

1. I really suck at flirting!

Luckily for me, most of the time I’m not.

2. Do you ever, and I believe I’m speaking to you ladies, step on the scale in the morning and either exclaim, “Yes!” or you slump your shoulders in total defeat? Yeah, me neither.

3. I’m having a hard time with the “Localist” or the “Locals Only” mentality, it’s fairly prevalent in beach communities. Face reality, unless you’re of Native American descent… What matters is how much you contribute back to your community and help to improve conditions. THAT earns respect. That makes you a viable member of society. Of course when you’re talking about the next wave…

4. As I don’t make my living being a professional photographer, I am quite honored when I see a photo I shot a year ago, come up on the news feed of Facebook where somebody had just seen it and shared it. These are typically photos I’ve shot around Ventura, and of course some of the bands from around town. I don’t think the pros should actually share their photos online because they should be paid for their work. It’s a double-edge sword. On one hand, people see how good you are, on the other hand, why pay if you can get it for free?!

photo taken 11/27/13 — Parked on Chestnut in front of Starbucks

5. I admire pacifist. But there are at least 2% of the population who are truly evil. I don’t think setting a good example will change them. That being said, I do think that there is so much abberation in the world that if you (yes I’m talking to you) start being the change you want to see in the world (Gandhi), then it would start to be contagious and those 2 percenters? They’ll actually start to look like 2% and not like the majority. I’m in. Let’s start!

6. I’m not a big fan of passive aggressiveness.

7. I’ve learned a lot from my Aunt Angie. She is the matriarch of my dad’s side of the family. I would feel guilty for not having talked to her for some time and she’d assure me that she completely understood that she knew I loved her but that I have my own life to live. Makes me want to keep in touch even more! Shrewd? I say not. I say she’s a remarkable woman whom I admire and respect.

8. The most frustrating thing about grocery shopping is buying only what I need. I don’t need a whole loaf of bread. I only need half cans of beans, soup, or sauces. The containers are mostly for more than one serving. IT’S JUST ME!! I DON’T LIKE TO FREEZE SHIT! I DON’T HAVE TIME TO COOK, LET ALONE PLAN LEFTOVERS!

I would pay 25 cents for a stalk of celery. That’s about what I use before the rest goes bad.

9. I’ve been spending time with Cat Steven’s “Tea for the Tillerman”. Freakin’ amazing stuff…still.

10. Things that drive me crazy: Facebook posts that say something along the lines, “Repost if you are against Child Abuse. I bet 50% of you won’t, but I’m sure the people with heart will.” So if I don’t repost, I don’t have heart? How strong am I that I don’t comment with a “Fuck You.”

11. I have a confession. I’ve read the Twilight series more than once. There! I said it.

12. We just celebrated Thanksgiving and like most people, it was a time to reflect what I’m thankful for. Family, Samantha “Boom Boom” Baumgardner, a job where I help improve conditions in my community working at City Hall, VenturaRocks.com, amazing friends, a home, my church, basketball, this beautiful town…

12. “Humility is not thinking less of yourself, it’s thinking of yourself less.” – C. S. Lewis

Thank you for listening!

A Couple of Things…

Posted on November 10, 2013 by A Couple of Things by Pam Baumgardner

1. Staci Brown has been my roommate for about eight months and I JUST learned that she enjoys from time to time a little bit of coffee with her creamer. I’m going to miss her when she moves out this month.

2. Syd Rose is doing well. She did get her car insurance cancelled which freaked her out, but found another company with same coverage for $100 less. Blessings in disguise rock!

3. I love it when you can figure out what people are mouthing (without speaking), like “Oh my God!” or “What the fuck?” But then I realized deaf people do this all the time, so not so special a skill.

4. To the question, “Is everything expensive or am i just poor?” The Answer is, “If you have to ask, yes and yes.”

5. I’m going to go out on a limb here, but I think I get the most hugs from the Blues loving crowd…Just saying.

6. My six year anniversary with the City was this past week (November 6), my boss brought in bagels in my honor. How sweet is that?

7. You know that expression from the movie Field of Dreams? “If you build it, they will come?” Well it turns out, not so true.
You have to nurture it, you have promote it, you have to create something people actually want. Starting a new business? Find out if it is needed and wanted. Have a struggling business? Do surveys and see if people actually like what you are providing.

8. Recent news headline: “Birthday Cake Is the New ‘It’ Flavor (Bye-Bye, Bacon).” I couldn’t agree more. I already love Birthday Cake flavored ice cream, plus my favorite body wash is in fact, Birthday Cake scented. TMI?

9. Have you ever met people who do things for you in order to make you indebted to them? Yeah, me neither.

10. I think there should be a law that if you get one of those designer license plates, then your license plate holder should spell out what the fuck you’re trying to convey. Some are obvious, others, not so much.

11. I love it when Syd Rose accidentally butt dials me.

12. What really confuses me is the ongoing debate of which one is correct, “Catercorner” or “Kitty-Corner”. I tend to go with Catercorner because in the dictionary, under Kitty-Corner, it says its a variant of Catercorner. Plus I believe it’s mostly a Canadian term, so there you go.

13. Have I mentioned recently how much I love my town?

14. From my favorite quotes file: “Treat people as if they were what they ought to be and you help then to become what they are capable of being.” Goethe

Thanks for listening!

A Couple of Things…

Posted on October 29, 2013 by A Couple of Things by Pam Baumgardner

1. One of my co-workers, Sergio, shared with the crew an idea that his friend came up with, instead of Daylight Savings Time, we should all get off of work one hour early on Friday, then on Sunday, we put the hour back for the extra sleep needed to recuperate after the weekend.

I like it!

2. So Sydney placed an ad for Portland, Oregon, on Craig’s List to sell my wrecked up car. It’s a 2007 Nissan Altima and the estimate to repair it was $8,000. I think she went online to do it on Saturday. She called to see if any leads came in by Sunday afternoon but not one person had contact me. I was bummed. But then at 9:00 Sunday, calls and texts starting coming in. She had gone back on Craig’s List and discovered it was still in DRAFT mode. She forgot to PUBLISH it!

The car sold by 8:00 AM the next morning for my asking price of $3,000. It was perfect until I told the next inquirer that I sold it for 3 and he came back immediately with, “I can bring $3500 cash right now!!!”

Live and learn. I kept my agreement with the first guy, I don’t need any bad Karma.

3. How embarrassing is it to mistake high school homecoming pictures for Halloween hooker costumes? Never should homecoming be the same weekend as Halloween parties. Just saying.

4. The site of dolphins swimming by still takes my breath away. So freakin’ cool!!! I love living at the beach!
Of course I didn’t realize there was a dolphin passing by until I looked at my photos later. I was actually focusing on the couple. But, at that point they took my breath away!

5. Bacon cupcakes?!!! Yeah, I think I’m gonna pass on this one.

6. Headline seen: “Touching Pregnant Tummy Banned”
It’s now illegal to touch a pregnant women’s belly in Pennsylvania. This was pursuant to a harassment case against a man who kept tummy-touching a pregnant lady against her will. (k, go ahead and snicker, I did).

I never minded people rubbing my belly when I was pregnant. Come to think of it, I still don’t!

7a. My email not only got hacked but apparently the mutherfuckers installed a virus on my computer which hacked several of my websites which resulted in Google Chrome blocking access to them and saying “THE WEBSITE AHEAD HAS MALWARE!” So yeah, it’s been quite a nightmare.

7b. I JUST discovered typing this, that my spell check points out that “mutherfuckers” is misspelled and they suggest I meant to write “muckrakers.” But when I type “motherfuckers”, nothing. They accept that but not the ghetto spelling? I call racism.

8. I’m a big fan of the LBD (Little Black Dress). I use to wear them for the slimming effect. But now, as an older woman, I like them for the Audrey Hepburn effect.

9. As you can probably tell, I love lists. I enjoyed item #9 on the list called, “16 Awesome Hidden Gems You Must Experience at Disneyland.” I’ve been to Disneyland probably a hundred times and I was aware of most of these. But this one caught me off guard regarding Big Thunder Mountain: “Once you get to the second hill (the one with the snakes), start looking for the Billy Goat, who should be raised up on your right. Stare the goat down and don’t take your eyes off of him. You’ll experience a dizzy, disorienting feeling that will make the ride even more exciting.”

How gullible do they think we are? Yeah, I’m gonna try it.

10. George passed away last week, one month shy of his 8th birthday. George made the Guinness World Record in 2010 as the world’s tallest dog at 5 feet. . RIP Giant George.

11. Speaking of birthdays, My dad’s 79th birthday is today, October 29. He still loves going out to hear live music, especially jazz, he still has a wicked sense of humor, and he still drives me crazy. . . which I hope he continues to do for many many more years to come. Happy Birthday Dad!

12. “Women are angels. And when someone breaks our wings, we simply continue to fly…on a broomstick. We’re flexible like that.” Anonymous

Thanks for listening!

A Couple of Things…

Posted on October 24, 2013 by A Couple of Things by Pam Baumgardner

1. It seemed to me that time stopped when I received the news that my only daughter, Sydney Rose, had been in a pretty bad car accident in another state where both airbags were deployed. Even though it could of been much worse and no one was severely injured, I felt completely helpless. Her car was substantially damaged and understandably, she was in tears. My motherly instincts cried out to coddle and protect, but I had to be the strong one, calm, cool and collective, to walk her through it, albeit, long distance. I’m proud to say that she has come through the incident with flying colors. I, on the other hand, grew a few more gray hairs.

2. I’m excited to say that I was asked to write a column for the Ventura Breeze about what’s going on with music here in Ventura. How cool is that? I get to write about whatever I want and promote it as Ventura Rocks! What a privilege. See: www.VenturaBreeze.com

3. I think it’s really terrible when someone does not accept an apology. Of course the apology has to be sincere and the person trustworthy; so there are circumstances where not doing so is warranted. But I confess that this has happened to me twice in my life, and trust me, it doesn’t feel good. Thank God neither was family or friend. One was a work associate, the other a stranger. I’ll be honest. Both stung. But now that I look back, I truly believe that that was their intent, to hurt. You know, dominate – avoid domination? So in the end, I guess I actually won, because neither would have been a good friend to have in the first place.

4. I don’t understand why people have conversations on Facebook. Pick up the phone! Send a text! I don’t care if you want to have lunch with someone, or you are having lunch with someone or you had lunch with someone. . . that is, unless that someone is George Clooney, then yeah, I’d like to know where too.

5. WHY Oh WHY do we still call it a “glove compartment?” I mean I know why it was called that initially, but seriously, I’ve never seen gloves in anyone’s before. I think the only solution is finding an old pair of gloves and putting them in mine. I think that would make me happy and “at one” with my car.

6. Another local newspaper, the VC Star, wrote an article recently about the price of gas dropping. They reported, “The average gas price Friday in Ventura County is $3.79, down a penny from Thursday.” Is that really news??

7. Henrik Edberg wrote a blog called “Mark Twain’s Top 9 Tips for Living a Kick-Ass Life.” Some of them were obvious, for instance, “Approve of yourself.” But others, not so much. Like, “Release yourself from entitlement.” He says, “Don’t go around saying the world owes you a living. The world owes you nothing. It was here first.”
Another one I know quite intimately, “If you’re taking a different path, prepare for reactions.” But my favorite is “Don’t focus so much on making yourself feel good.” He adds, “The best way to cheer yourself up is to try to cheer somebody else up.”

Amen brother.

8. Going to a luau on Maui was about one of the goofiest things I’ve ever done. If you can’t embrace being a tourist, I don’t recommend attending one.

9. When I saw one of my favorite local venues, Squashed Grapes, advertise Jazz Punks last week, I HAD to check them out. Jazz and Punk? I was so in. I’m happy to report they freakin’ rocked! I bought the CD, I bought a t-shirt. DO NOT MISS THEM the next time they come around. . . which is November 15 at Amigos. www.JazzPunks.com

10. There are certain movies when they come on TV, I must stop and watch: Stranger Than Fiction, The Green Mile, Fight Club, A Few Good Men, Independence Day, My Big Fat Greek Wedding, Field of Dreams, While You Were Sleeping, Bull Durham, Finding Nemo, Not all chick flicks by the way.

11. From my “Favorite Facebook Posts” file: “I would take a bullet for you…not in the head, but like in the leg or something.” – Unknown

Thanks for listening!

A Couple of Things…

Posted on October 12, 2013 by A Couple of Things by Pam Baumgardner

1. You ever feel like the odd man out? Yeah, me nether.

2. First recognizing that you have fixed ideas is pretty powerful. That takes an amazing amount of selflessness on your part. But to actually see other points of views, and decide which is for the greater good, now that’s awe-inspiring. Not many people have this ability. And please understand, this is an ability.

3. I feel bad for people who have either a phobia about touching other people, or they just don’t like to be touched. I love hugs, the bigger the better!! That is, of course, unless I don’t like that person, then not so much.

4. I swear to God this was a news story on Yahoo. The headline: “Los Angeles Students Get iPad for Classroom, Play Video Games Instead.” Duh!!! That’s just good stuff. They seriously didn’t see this coming??? One week after distributing the hi-tech tool to kids, someone hacked it and discovered how to disable the security restrictions blocking games, Facebook, etc… These kids at least are thinking outside the box.

5. I love a really nice full radio voice. But seriously, there are people who walk this earth who think they are “on-the-air” ALL THE TIME. Also, I have a hard time with DJs who sound like they’re trying to having a “radio voice” as oppose to just speaking naturally.

6. Seen on Yahoo Health, “8 Comfort Foods that Burn Fat” The article listed pumpkin pie, hot chocolate, oatmeal, chicken soup, pot roast, roasted veggies, potatoes, and chili. You could actually make a 4-5 course meal with all these items. I wonder if you did, would you lose weight? Yet another experiment I could get behind.

They also go on to say that hot cocoa can possibly ward off dementia in elderly people.

7. New Pearl Jam? New Stone Temple Pilots? I’m in!

8. I attended a family party last weekend. Several of my cousins I grew up with were there. I always love seeing them and catching up. It use to be tradition that my cousin Michael would pick up Syd Rose and carry her around on his shoulders. Well since she wasn’t there because SHE IS IN OREGON, he decided we should take a picture of me on his shoulders. I was scared to death he was going to hurt his back. We sent the photo immediately via text message to Syd who got it while hanging out with friends in Portland. She loved it! I posted it on Facebook, however, I did not post the photo of Michael after he put me down.

9. I pity the child whose parents put the fear of the world in their heads.

10. I use to dress up for Halloween when we would take Sydney Rose out door-to-door. One year we were Madeline and Miss Clavelle; another time she was a vampire, I was her victim, and yet another time we were Indians, she was Pocahontas. It was more important to me that Sydney Rose embraced the goofiness, than me retaining my dignity.

My dignity has been through the wringer. And somehow, I just get goofier as I get older.

11. Speaking of losing my dignity, I once walked out of the restroom at work (not City Hall) years ago, with my skirt tucked up in my panty hose. Main reason I no longer wear them! Panty hose that is, not skirts! (Yeah, I don’t have a photo for that one).

12. “The guy who isn’t rowing has time to rock the boat.” – Jean-Paul Sartre

Thanks for listening!

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