Juel's Journal

The Last Day of August

I hate to see it go. September 1 tomorrow, fall is already breathing down my neck. Not that I don't like fall, it's the best time of the year! (They're all good!)
It's just that time is flying so unbelievably quickly. Egads, it was just spring.

Lisa's birthday is September 25, 40 years old. So many unbelievable things happening lately. 40. My kid sister. Is that for real or just some big assed cosmic joke? Dad's already crept into his 60's. Mom's eyeballing 60's. The babies technically aren't even babies anymore. I don't even want to think about how old my own daughters are getting.

Lord, it's a good thing I don't age like they're all doing!

Looks like Dad's going back to Florida on Sunday. I sure hope they change their minds and tell him to wait until hurricane Francis visits there. HEY! I just remembered! The Passion of the Christ comes out tomorrow! Or..was it today.. chit, I hope it's tomorrow! If it was today, they'll be sold out around here I bet until next shipment.. BAH on my memory!

It was a pretty hard day here today. Bon and I quarrelled, I think she doesn't help me enough here in the house, I want her to clean up her own messes, and she thinks that since I clean up after Sarah's babies, I should clean up after her too. I wish she'd stop thinking like that, e-gads!

Shannon came out to Lisa's tonight.. I escaped for a while to go see Lisa and just talk and have coffee without the babies.. her (shannon's) house burned down last week.. the gal lost every material thing they had. Thank God though, that no one was hurt. That was a mighty big blessing.

Mom's doing pretty good. *grins* SHE IS! She's still not behaving though.
*big fat false sigh*

The babies are fine, Mikyla, as always kept me laughing today.. that kid's something else. She was jumping on my bed earlier today, I told her to stop before she fell.. she didn't listen and fell, bumping her head on the trunk. It scared me, but when she came running to me crying, I checked her, thankfully she was fine.. she said, "Oh mammy you were right, I did fall and busted my head! I won't jump there again!"

Mallory. She still has more hands than she has teeth, but she's a sweety too...
Still bringing us food, snacks, blankets, socks, trying to mother us. If she were one of the characters in the Little Women story, she'd be Beth. Mikyla would be Jo.. Breanna would be Meg, and .. well.. we don't have one who would be Amy.
NOOOO Sarah, we don't NEED one who would be Amy, don't even LOOK like you're thinking about having another one!! LOL

Joleybean is going everywhere he wants to go.. walking and even running, this wild looking walk, his neck stuck way out, his arms outstretched like Frankenstein, to keep his balance, he's so comical to watch, always smiling, if not laughing right out loud that he's accomplished not only standing alone, but going any dang where he wants! He's a good baby.. he really is.

The girls are here spending the night with me tonight, Joel's in his room sleeping, the house is quiet now. Mallory is already sleeping but Mikyla is still watching Finding Nemo. She's almost asleep. They were wore out.. Sarah said Mik didn't go to sleep until 3 this morning, and they got back up at 6. No naps today, so they'll sleep late tomorrow. Unless the phone or doorbell wakes them up.

It looked like it was going to storm all day today, but we didn't get any rain.. just the big dark clouds. It was nice, not overly hot or cool, just right. I love fall weather the best. :)

Well, I've yammered enough for one night. Goodbye August of 2004. Hello Fall.

Near Pot!

I've always loved the smell of marijuana. Woodsy.. more pungent than burning leaves..it smells like fall to the 2nd power. The other day, someone was burning some outside (I think someone's pot field caught fire, or else the National Guard was burning it or something like that.. it was a BIG pot smell!) and it smelled so good! I was walking Sarah to the car and paused, and asked her if she could smell it.

She said yes..that it smelled like burning socks to her. *laughs* So.. i had to inhale more deeply to be sure that's what I was smelling..and then more deeply, then even more deeply.. the stuff just smells so good, you realize! She shot me a look and I had to confess.. I just like the way it smells! I can't understand why no one's thought to make something that smells like that for incense and potpourri.

Marijuana scented fabric softner, pot scented carpet freshner! So many possibilities! Pot scented pipe tobacco, pot scented cigarettes! They make Near Beer, so why not Near Pot?!

Sarah said they don't do that because pot stinks. Bah!

There'd be a big market for Near Pot. Others like me enjoy the scent, and still others.. would be able to mask their actual use of pot.. like.. No! Mom! That's not pot in my room, it's my new Near Pot! INCENSE!!

No officer, I'm a good law abiding citizen, I don't use marijuana.. (pointing to the little marijuana leaf shaped cardboard that's hanging from the rear view mirror) ..that's my Near Pot air freshner!

As I said.. the possibilities are endless!

Big Hair is Back.

It was the 80's. My sister loved big hair. She wore it so big that if she was driving, those of us in the back seat couldn't see past her hair out the window. We would tease her so hard about it.. but it was pretty on her, stiff.. cuz it took so much hairspray to hold it out that far, but it suited her. She looked a lot like a slimmer Delta Burke.

When it went out of style, she clung stubbornly to her big hair.. for a while. Finally, when she was sure it was really and truly gone, she changed styles and forgot (I thought) about the big hair.

It's back. Big hair. And she's thrilled. *laughs* She went to the salon today, got her hair layered and styled and while she didn't have it poofed way out there, it certainly does have poof potential! It looks so nice on her! Way to go, Lisa! Big hair is back!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

A Dream

Last night I dreamed I was back in Michigan with my mom, but I was the age I am now, I wasn't a child. We were there to buy property. We were at the apartment where I'd actually lived in as a child, on Casgrain, looking to buy the apartment next door, (which was actually a house, not an apt, tho it was an apt building in this way odd dream) which was in bad shape. Broken windows, men throwing old tile outside into a pile... and mom just piped up and told me she and Marge had bought that building already.

I wanted to go inside and look around, and did, and in this big kitchen, an hispanic gentleman was wearing a chef's outfit, hat and all, and in broken english, asked me to read the spice bottle to him.. that itty bitty print that I can't even see. Suddenly Rose was standing there, (yes, you, Holly) and she took the bottle from me and proceeded to read it to the fella. I started wandering the halls looking into doors and then suddenly I was outside of the first house my parents had bought back when I was 5.

Mom was on the porch with Nancy and her kids. They were still little like they were back then.. and Nancy was so sad. She told me she hated that mom was selling the house and then she asked me if I could remember her old phone number, and if seeing the house again brought back any memories.

I told her yes, that I could remember every pepparoni on every pizza I'd ever eaten in that house, and then I asked her kids, Tracy and John, if they would like to go to the attic, where I had left my own toys, to pick out some to take home with them.

I took them upstairs and let them pick what they wanted, and the only thing I can remember that was taken, was John picked up a pair of boxing gloves, he said he'd always wanted them, and I told him to take them, and be sure to sneak them out because if Nick saw them, he'd surely want them. I remember telling Tracy to pick out some things, but I can't remember if she did, or not.

That was it.

Orbs at Lisa's.

Ghost Busters!

Lisa, Sarah and Bonnie. Sarah's the one with the bionic ear.

Tattoos. I think..

I might get one. A little Casper style ghost. On my ear lobe. First, I'll have to find out if there's any social meaning to having one earlobe tattooed. I'd hate to go giving out a message to the public, unaware that I'm shrieking to the knowledgable that I like to .. ah.. say.. eat raw beef under willow trees on tuesdays.

Systems!

I got all excited with the new "Mopping Systems"! Oh JOY! Now we have "Sleep Systems & "Toilet Cleaning Systems" Too! Goodness, how wonderful it is to be alive in this day and age!

I LOVE SYSTEMS!!!

Didja ever just have a peeve?

One that grows each time you bump into it again? I despise wet washcloths that are left in the bathtub. Every time Bonnie does it I get so.. tense. More tense, each time.

She's always gone by the time I go to get into the shower, so I have to pick it up and move it in the hamper. The hamper's 3 feet from the tub too. Just.. a cold, soggy lumpy, slimy, icky, germy, contaminated lump of cloth, just.. sitting there like a slug in my tub. YUCK

One of these days Imonna take it and lay the ol' soggy, lumpy thing on her pillow. Bet that'd remind her to pick them up!

I doubt it'd teach her to actually clean the tub when she's done, but I bet she'd stop leaving that rag lumped up in there!

*laughs* bait and switch! think it'll work?

I need a babysitter Saturday night. For 6 kids. Now.. I don't just trust anyone with the little ones, so .. who do I need? I need my mom. *laughs*
But.. she can't like babysitting. She'll watch one for a while. 2 for a minute. 3.. not on our lives. so.. how am i gonna con her into watching 6 kids.

I have an idea.. a plan. it's ingenious, really.

Here's the deal.

Bait and Switch.

I'll have 5 of them hunker down in the car so she can't see them. I'll have Mikyla skip up the walk, holding my hand, smiling sweetly, "Dranny can you babysit for a while?"

Mom.. unsuspecting, will say "Why sure I can babysit! Come on in."

At which time, I will call to the others in the car to get out.. and they will.. looking like those clowns at the circus, that just keep spilling out of a teeny car, leaving you to wonder how the hell they all got in there in the first place.

They'll go to the door, shining eyes and rosy cheeks, 6 beautiful little children, expecting home made cookes that I will have promised she'll make for them, and I'll run. I'll run before she can say, HEY!! WHAT THE HELL'S UP WITH THIS????!!!!!

*laughs*

Yes. I think that's what I'm gonna do.

Joel, Acey, Mallory, Mikyla, Breanna, and Nick.

*just cracks up*

Bait and Switch!

Ladies, the problem lies within us, not the guys.

I think this is true. Over the past few years I've watched and wondered what the hell's going on that so many men/fathers/boyfriends are so...icky. Then I got to watching Wild Discovery, this animal's mating habits, that one's mating habits...and seeing how the female was very choosy about which male she was going to mate with, it occurred to me. We're just not being choosy enough.

The female zebra has high standards in her prospective mate, and if he doesn't meet those standards, he doesn't get any!

The lioness won't have the lion if he's not the strongest out of the guys, because she wants protection for the cubs, and if he's not giving it, he's out of luck.

Even female birds. The one I was watching, I forget the breed, but she flat got down into his nest and checked that sucker out, trying it on for size before deciding if he was the one for her or not. If the nest didn't have a little blue in it, and it wasn't roomy enough, or it didn't look well made, she just flew off to check out another fella's domicile, and kept doing her inspecting until she was satisfied that this one was the right one.

These animal females are all choosy. Not a single one pulled any of that.. "well.. his feathers are gone, and he doesn't want to build a nest, but his eyes are to die for" stuff. None of that.. "Gosh, he doesn't bathe much, the smell turns me off, but I think I can change him", business, the female birds didn't pick the bad boy birds who were all sprawled out in the pot fields, high on those bitter but oh-so-fun marijuana seeds they'd eaten for lunch. THEY ARE CHOOSY!

Maybe we female humans should pay closer attention to this.

Maybe if we did, we'd not lament our "terrible luck, and lot in life" years later down the road when our fellas turn out to be assholes. Assholeness didn't just happen...it was there all along, we just didn't look closely enough to notice.

What I noticed in these animals, is that there is "No Second Chance". They get one shot to prove themselves, and if they haven't.. it's goodbye buddy. "One shot, screw up mister and I'm out of here!" None of that make up, break up, make up stuff. I don't care how many wild roses the boy bird tries to bring the female, she'll just flog his ass and send him packing!

Let's face it. We got the equipment the fellas want. (well.. most times, anyway)
We can afford to be choosier than what we are. Because if there's one thing males understand, it's sex, and the lack of it. And eventually it will occur to them.. "Damn. I'm gonna have to clean up my act if I want to get some."

Stop overlooking the sweetheart for the badboy. He's out there. He's just more rare. It takes more time to find him. But when we consider the consequences of "settling"... we have to also blame ourselves later when we're up to our eyeballs in debt, despair, when we're stuck a badly built nest with genetically challenged offspring. It's our own faults. Stop blaming the guys, be choosier, ladies!

Goat Number 2.

Nick gave me his brown goat. He doesn't like fooling with it, hates watering it, so...

The neighbor said he loves to hear the sound of a goat. We all have weeds. An interprising business, perhaps?

Goat for rent. Will "maaaaaa" all day, and eat your weeds. 2 dollars an hour. Less than Minimum wage! Retain one today!

Delft Blue

Yeah! In the kitchen. Oh god this house is a messssss! Calgon take me away!

NYC Garbage

www.nycgarbage.com

The stray cat has holes in it.

I've seen this on cats before...and thought there was some wicked kind of worm eating the cat from inside out. An online search about this though, taught me that these are abscesses, caused most often by other cat's bites. It turns out that cats have lethal bacteria in their mouths, and when they're protecting their territory they'll bite the intruding cat on the rump area, usually, and if it's not treated, it gets very ugly.

I guess Shay was guarding her territory. "Move along missy, or I swear I'll bite you until your fur falls out and you get holes in your skin." I guess the stray didn't listen. She's sitting on top of the dollhouse now, all... holey. That would so SUCK to have skin that gets holes in it like that. Poor thing.

Such a sweet, sweet smile. :)

at 11:30 tonight Sarah brought the girls in to spend the night. No one was going to get any rest otherwise...Mikyla was all squiggley and wasn't about to rest unless she was here at my house. So.. without calling the bomper, she got to stay.

When she and her sister came in, Mallory went straight to bed, but Mikyla had to pause and give me a hug and kiss and then show me her little magnetic phones that she'd gotten today, then she had me put on a movie.. "George of the Jungle".. and wahlah, she got into my bed, happy as a clam beside Mallory and as I sit here typing, she's over there watching the movie.

I just glanced over at her and she didn't see me watching, she was engrossed in the movie, just smiling the sweetest smile...I think she was about to cackle when she noticed me watching and so she just kept smiling, though her smile turned sheepish. I smiled back and asked her if it was a funny part.

"Yes", she said, "Mammy that was pretty funny."

She went back to her movie and I came back to my typing. I think I'll remember that moment of joy and that smile for all of my life. How sweet. :)