Time for a break with tradition............................

After the last "not my usual, well thought out post," I spent all day yesterday trying to find some quality writing time to compose a better one. As you might have noticed, none was found.

The room I use for respite care has been working like a revolving door as of late. I am not complaining, NOT AT ALL, just explaining why my time has been tied up. In addition to that, my new resident is suppose to be moving in this afternoon. WoooHoo! I say "suppose to be," because the last I heard the doc says she is, family says she is, but she says, I'm not moving, didn't I tell you? Well, I know I told one of you." Or something to that affect.

Then there is the big ole loomin party, that the youngest is too busy to help prepare for. Now why did I have to go and grow her up so responsible that she actually puts the time needed into activities and projects to do them well? Darn it all.

You would all be proud of me for my attitude about the party though. I am actually buying some of the food prepared rather than make it all myself. First time ever (not counting what other people have brought to parties in the past). Things like the ham (I don't eat it, what do I care what it taste like. My mother-in-law always got the ham from that Heavenly Ham place. If it was good enough for her, it is good enough for all of my guests.) and the breads to go with it. I get my family bread from one of those specialty bread stores that have popped up in the last couple of years as a treat. This time I am treating myself and my dear friend that offered to make homemade bread and rolls for the party. If anyone deserves a break today it would be her (I am just tagging along for the ride on this one because I can). Hang on to your hat
T-girl, I am NOT making the graduation cake myself either (and folks, be sure and check out the two that T-girl created for her daughters second birthday party). The cake happens to be the one thing I HAVE taken care of getting ordered. I told the lady the name, the school, half chocolate, half white, and to have fun creating because we didn't care what it looked like, just that we have one.

This might not seem like much of a big deal to most of you, but it is huge for me. Not killing myself to get ready for the party is just one more way I am honoring and loving myself. Aren't you all proud?

So why no time you're asking, right? Well, as you probably already know, having a party is the perfect excuse for getting all those little things done that you have been putting off for say, FOREVER! Having a time deadline gives you something to race against,something to shoot for(and something impossible according to someone around here last night. Do the initials (m) M give you any clues?).

The last couple of days I have been waiting with To Do list in hand when (my) Mister walks in the door from work. Last night, things progressed nicely in getting stuff from the attic for the new resident. While waiting for him to finish up with that, I thought I would be helpful and start cleaning the fish tank for him, as it has not gotten done since I ask him last Friday. Not being the one in charge of the fish tank (if I were it would not have gotten to the point where this morning when I looked at it, along with the one remaining (algae sucking) fish (who I threatened to flush for falling down on his little algae sucking job BTW) I thought to myself, "Dang! I thought that fish was black...It is actually brown speckled.") it had gotten to be one EXTREMELY dirty looking tank.

Anyway, as I was totally making a mess trying to get the plastic plants out so I could scrub them, I spilled some water on the floor. (my) Mister rushed to get something to wipe it up with, and as he headed into the kitchen I motioned towards the linen closet where there were some older hand towels two inches from where he was standing, and ask him why he needed to go all the way into the kitchen (which is at least two feet farther mind you). I come back and he is wiping up the floor with A BATH TOWEL! After enduring my "Woe is me, don't I already have enough laundry to do" lecture, he really didn't appreciate the statement, "It is a good thing you are not my child or you would be sitting at the table right now writing I WILL NOT BE SO STUPID NEXT TIME one hundred times. I thought it was nicer than swearing at him, which he also doesn't like, and always takes w-a-y personal.

Next I took him outside to get his help with another little thing that has been driving me bonkers. Last year, when we did the addition, we had to move the garage door that is our access to the back yard. Well, the door got put in, but never got finished and never got steps going to the outside. Also, the area right outside the door ( along the side of the garage) is where I stuck some extra Iris a couple of years back, and it is all over grown. We have this makeshift path that we put in using old paver type brick thingies and that too is all overgrown. This is an area where party goers are going to be walking to reach the back yard. I fear for their lives and simply wanted to pour a little concrete in the area to make it more safe and maybe a bit more welcoming and attractive. A eight or ten hour job tops. Right?

Well, not according to (my) Mister. He starts by telling me he helped a guy pour concrete once upon a time and it took then much longer. I replied that was because he didn't have me helping him. Then later he tells me he doesn't know how the best way to do it is, and when I bring up that he did it before, he says, "Ya! Thirty years ago." So what's his point? Isn't pouring concrete like riding a bike? Once you learn... He goes into how you have to dig down four inches, level it off, build a something or other...I had stopped listening by that time. "To speed up the process we can just extend the raised beds right here, and then we don't have to haul the dirt. Right? See! This will take no time. And if we don't get it done in time for the party, we can make sure it is level and throw a tarp over it so people aren't walking in mud. Right?" And no I am NOT telling you what the winner of the bet made over whether or not we get it done in the two week time frame gets. Not even one tiny clue!

See why I can't post? I sit down to write a simple I will often be MIA from blog land for the next couple of weeks and it turns into a mini novelette. I am totally out of control. I think it is because I feel so relaxed with the clean fish tank and the rearranged living room that is not off balanced with all the heavy furniture at one end since taking the huge computer desk out after Christmas when my youngest got her laptop, and never getting around to moving things where they needed to be. (my) Mister actually thought I was nuts (not for the first time or the last I am sure) because I really did feel off balance and like I was being sucked to the right towards the "heavy" side of the room. Can I help that I am so sensitive?

Much as I would like to sit here all day and keep writing, my own To Do list is ever growing and not going to do itself. So, don't worry if you don't hear from me for awhile. Besides being able to count on the constants of death and taxes, I also give you my word that you can count on my being back as soon as possible. You get to decide if that is a good or bad thing to be able to count on.