And the other shoe drops

I thought it would take a month or so, but it took less than a week for my daughter to break up with her boyfriend. She said she didn't want to, but felt like she had to. Translation - she loves him, but loves herself more. I'm sad for her and happy for her at the same time. It's hard to let go of a relationship that's lasted 18 months. It takes a lot of strength to say "this isn't going to work out for me". Especially when you still have feelings for the other person.

He still needs to be taken care of and she is too young to take care of anyone other than herself. She's also secure enough to know that she will be ok without a relationship. I think that's what hangs up a lot of women - men too. Being alone is too scary to contemplate, so they hang on even when it's time to let go.

She'll has a good support net, so I don't worry that she'll be ok, and now my waiting is over.

More with the old website

Did you know that GoDaddy has someone whose job it is to patrol the web looking for issues and trying to address them? Probably several somebodys. Well, one of these somebodys wrote me with an explanation for the expiration date that makes sense and a couple of suggestions. I had already tried to contact the registrant(spammer using my site for not good) and have been ignored. I'm not trying to contact the hosting company but based on their contact information it's going to be an uphill fight. They don't make it easy to get a hold of them and that's never a good sign. I really don't want the site, I just want my stuff taken down.

looking for love?

Name: Leonard
It aint official or nuthin but the ladies used to call me Dr Love. After a string of bad luck, I'm looking a get me a good woman who's got some dough.
Location: Southside Chicago, USA


started clearing out my spam folder today when I noticed an add for Russian mail order brides. So I clicked it. Basic find love today add but interestingly enough it said that 'this offer is not available in Ohio'. Lonely men in Ohio are out of luck it seems.

Now I'm curious. What about mail order husbands? I'm also lazy, so my research consisted of typing mail order husband into google. First site is the best. After reviewing the prospects I think I would go with Leonard if I were single. Shipping from Chicago is cheaper than from most of the other locations.

check it out at

http://www.mailorderhusbands.net/


really well done spoof. I love spoofs and this one made me giggle.

weirdness with godaddy

an old website of mine expired, I thought.

www.theballoonsrfunshow.com

I didn't plan to renew it, so it wouldn't surprise me if it expired BUT it's still there.

I don't own it, but I did create the site that's up. I did a whois on it and someone else owns it. The whois says it was created in july of 06, last modified 05 sept 08 and expires in july of 09. That's the part that doesn't work for me.

I bought it in July 06. They said it expired in September 08. That makes no sense. It would have expired in July of 2008, not Sept and if they bought it in September it would expire in September not July of 2009.

I will call again today to see if someone else has any answers.

I don't actually want the site. I do however want my stuff gone off of it.

Sweet Deals

To try a sweet deal for free I would sculpt a giant balloon hat with balloon food on it (ice cream, hot dogs, fries) and wear it in public. Even better I would make 3 and have my kids wear them in public.

I can see the heartbreak coming and I can't do anything about it

Today is one of those times when it sucks to be a parent.

My daughter and her boyfriend are breaking up. Only they don't know it yet. I can't tell her because she wouldn't listen and there's no real point in telling her anyway.

They've been living together and the lease is up. They had planned to move into a new place but money is becoming an issue with her job ending in March and him in danger of losing his. Last night she told him that she wants to move in with a friend, but doesn't want to break up with him. He agreed that living apart was probably a good idea right now since they are pretty young. (something I said when they moved in together, but that goes back to the not listening thing) he doesn't want to break up either. Yet they will.

It's not the young part that made living together so hard. It's the difference in who they are and what they want part. I know that the more time that they spend apart the more they will see that they may love each other, but love may not be enough to overcome the differences. I'm not saying that's a bad thing. I just dread the phone call where she tells me that they are no more. When she hurts I hurt. I can't do anything constructive to help her avoid this hurt. It's part of growing up. Just like being a parent is letting them get hurt even when you know you will cry too.

Frustrated

There is not a lot of customer parking in Westport. Everyone knows that. So why do the people who work at Hair, Edward Jones and the Thai restaurant insist on parking in the horseshoe customer parking? They leave the damned cars there all day.

I'm working to get the 2 hour time limit enforced. Maybe a ticket or two will get them to park around back in the area set aside for Westport workers.

Drag Race episode 4

Shannel juggled! I like her so much more. :-) I went from laughing at RuPaul's Snakes on a Plane line about Jade. - Hard time tucking because it's a little to big to tuck. Then I ended up crying when happy, bouncy Ongina revealed that she's been living with HIV.

Probably why I don't follow reality shows too often. When you like the characters it's an emotional roller coaster.

Waiting for Lefty

http://cas.umkc.edu/theatre/Playbill/08-09/Lefty.htm

My daughter is the stage manager. I don't know exactly what she does, but I've been told that she's darn good at it.

Trying to do the right thing doesn't always work

I posted before about my friend that got laid off.  I was talking to his wife and got this horror story.

They don't qualify for food stamps because they show as having an income since he worked last month.  He worked last month but DOESN'T HAVE A JOB NOW.  The caseworker said that since they have an income she has 30 days to evaluate their case.  They do not qualify for emergency food stamps and they don't have any money.  The spent the last paycheck - a bit over 200 on utilities and the one before that went to the mortgage and food.  They've never been rolling in the dough.  Now they won't get food stamps for at least 30 days and then it will be based on their 'income'.  They'll have to appeal the amount and get it reevaluated.  Because he chose to work for a living instead of living off of welfare.

The woman that lives across the street from them lives off welfare.  Has the entire time I've known her.  She gets section 8 housing.  A big 4 bedroom house for her and her over 20 daughter.  She get s welfare and food stamps and DOES NOT WORK.  By not  working she gets everything.  My friend worked and he got crap.

Sucks

So much work

So little motivation.

I will get it done, but my current schedule is totally screwing up my ability to get creative stuff done.  Most importantly my website.  I normally work on that from 11 - 1 or so.  Now that I have to get up at 5am it's not getting done.  I need my night owl hours or I'm just shot for the rest of the day.  5 hours of solid sleep from 2am - 7am is all I ask for.  Really, is that too much? 7 hours is heaven, but that never happens.

One of the projects I am working on is the reward for grades program we are trying out here.  I've gotten a couple of other merchants to go in on it with me.  Basically it's a free gift for any kid who brings in a report card with all A's and B's on it.  No purchase required or anything.  I've got to finish up the art work and posters for that this week and hopefully find another merchant or two who wants to go in on it.   The schools in Flour Bluff used to have a list of places kids could bring good report cards to for a free gift.  The kids loved it and I hope to get that started here.  If you want to participate, let me know.

Need a welder?

Just found out that a good friend of mine has been layed off.  He's a welder, but willing to do pretty much anything.  With 3 kids they were living pretty close to the edge anyway, so I'm keeping my fingers crossed that he won't be out of work for long.  I know so many people are looking, so it's rough.  If you have any leads send them my way.  I'll pass them along.

Parental Popularity

I know at least two moms who really worry about their daughter's popularity.  One has a kid in middle school the other in high school.  In both cases I suspect the mom wasn't very popular in high school.  Of course I've also heard of moms who are disappointed if their daughter's are not as popular as they were in school.  The same is probably true of dads and sons.

I went to two high schools.  In the first I felt accepted and popular.  I moved to the other for my senior year and never quite fit in.  Those are my memories to carry and I make an effort to not relive my life over  via my kids.  I worry more that they have the strength of personality and confidence to go beyond what people think and focus more on what they want to be or do. 

It's hard sometimes.  You worry that they are not going to be invited to parties or that nobody will come to theirs.  One of my sons once went to a party for a very sweet boy and he was the only one who showed up.  That had to hurt the kid, but I know that it hurt the mom too.  Today this boy is still sweet and he's smart, funny and pretty confident about himself.  Why?  I think it's because his mom didn't make a big deal about things like that party.  She gave him so much love, support and guidance that he didn't need to search for it in others.   Not all moms do that.  I have seen grown women in tears because their kid was excluded.  What message does that send?  How can it say anything other than "You're not good enough unless someone likes you?"

Too bad more parents don't follow this mom's example.  She's a great mom who has raised two great kids.  Think of how better the world would be if more people thought of how things will affect their kids BEFORE they said or did things.  Sadly so many try to gain or recapture the popularity of youth though the lives of their children.

New Stuff!!!!

I got new stuff today.  I won't have it on display until Tuesday, but I wanted to share.  Genea  brought in some of her lampwork.  It's amazing.  I'm in love with the gummi bear cell phone charms.

It's going to be hard not to buy it all.

I am so excited!

Drag Race

I don't generally like 'reality' shows, but I have found one that I love.

RuPaul's drag race

http://www.logoonline.com/shows/dyn/rupauls_drag_race/videos.jhtml

yeah, it's campy and corny and over the top - but it's all of that in a good way.  I like the contestants and feel more empathy with them than on any other show of this type that I've ever watched.

And Shannel has the BEST fake boobs EVER!!!  I mean in the history of men dressing like women these are the best fake boobs to be strapped on.  Better than  most fake ones women get too.  I feel inadequate after seeing her rack.

I'm rooting for Nina Flowers because she interests me the most.  Ongina is cute and funny.  Great boobs or not I'm starting to dislike Shannel.   

Great..now I can't make fun of people who like reality shows.

very relaxing

I don't know how the video works for weight loss, but I have found it to be very helpful in settling down and meditating before opening the shop.  Sometimes I get too restless and can't calm my mind enough to focus.  For me the audio on this one works better than just music.

don't know if I'm going to help yet or not

Someone I know fucked up BIG TIME.  I can help them save their ass, but I don't know if I am going to.  Since what they did was a betryal of me I will have to see how I feel about it.  And if they continue being an ass about everything I won't help them and they will get fired. 

This person isn't a bad person overall and probably doesn't deserve to get fired, so if they act nice I will get them out of this.  

but it's not looking that way.

why do some people think acting like an asshole is the way to get people to do stuff for you?

You might be a Geekette if

Say the word geek and most people picture a guy with glasses, button up shirt who loves star trek, battle star galactica and knows a lot about computers.  Say the word Geekette and the picture is a bit fuzzier.

A couple of thoughts on the subject

You might be a Geekette if....

You know more than the "service" guy who's been sent to fix your station at work.

You would rather go to Microcenter than Nordstrom's.

You've ever used a webcam instead of a mirror when putting on makeup.

You understand

Roses are #FF0000

Violets are #0000FF

My <3 belongs to you.

Bonus points if you think it's funny

You've ever made up technical terms to confuse and embarrass the cable company guy that is there to set up your home network.

You've ever fixed the crappy  job the cable company guy did on the home network.

Math doesn't frighten you.  

So what other Geekette things should be on this list?

fake at 70 looks like fake at 30

Doesn't Mamie Van Doren look a lot like Holly from Hefner's slut show?  I guess plastic ages well.

How the F do you explain that to your mortgage company?

The state of Kansas may not have enough $$ to make payroll.  How does a state employee explain that to their mortgage company?  How to they explain it to their kids who want to eat?

so much for government jobs being secure.

KC Juice

KC Juice is now open.  They are on Pennsylvania right next to McCaskill's office.   they  make good smoothies.  I mean REALLY good smoothies.  They opened on Saturday and the owner tells me that Sunday and today have seen a few repeat customers.  It was slow on Saturday - which is not uncommon this time of year - so that means a high percentage of the people who went on Saturday came back Sunday or Monday.  I know I did. mmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmm

Go there

And make time to talk to the owner.  He's a very cool guy.  From Nebraska, but he went to school here and is committed to the local economy.  It's also his business, not a chain.  He's the only employee and he is very concerned with making the best product he can.  It shows with every sip you take.

again - GO THERE

yummmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmm

omg

my daughter's boyfriend was STABBED last night at work.  He's ok because his reflexes are good and he got his arm up.  If he hadn't it would have gone straight into his stomach.  

This happened at the Ward Parkway Taget in the West parking lot.  

I so want him to get a different job.

25 things

It's on facebook and now showing up in my email.  To my friends who have sent it to me - here you go.  I'm answering all at once.  Just don't look for deep meaning

1.  I believe in ghosts. 

2.  I have been dying my hair red since I was 18.  It is naturally very dark brown - almost black.  This color works for me, especially with my green eyes.

3.  Because of a thyroid problem I started going gray when I was 22.  I ended up about 30% gray by 25.  It's stayed the same since then.

4.  I won't take synthetic thyroid because I am convinced that it is linked to thyroid cancer.

5.  I have danced in front of the screen at a Rocky  Horror showing.  I wasn't drunk at the time.

6.  I have had 4 c-sections and the thought of actually giving birth normal scares the hell out of me.  I had to have the sections because of problems, but after the first one (and 24 hours of labor hell) I was relieved to have the other 3 via section.

7.  I am terrified of spiders.

8.  I once accepted a ride from a neighbor who apparently planned to rape me.  He drove to a field and parked.  I had found a wrench by my seat so I hit him with it as hard as I could and got away. 

9.  I have lived in Arkansas, Louisiana, Mississippi, Alabama, Florida, Georgia, Hawaii, California, North & South Carolina, Texas & Missouri.  Most of them more than once.  

10.  I have visited but not lived in Arizona, Tennessee, Pennsylvania, Maryland, District of Columbia, Oklahoma, Kentucky, Ohio, Nebraska, Illinois, Massachusetts, New Mexico, Nevada, Utah, Virginia, New York, Indiana, Iowa

11.  Outside of the USA I have been to Mexico, Germany, France, Spain, The Netherlands, Austria, Switzerland.  I would have been to Canada, but couldn't convince Dan to go - even though the border was only 30 min away.

12.  I occasionally get migraines.

 

13.  I do cry at sad movies, but not around my husband.  He likes to make a big deal about how 'sensitive' he is and how he cries at sad movies, commercials etc and I don't.  The result is that I don't feel comfortable being emotional about things like that around him.

14.  my favorite color is green

15.  I really don't like my mother-in-law.  My first interaction with her was a phone call in which she told me to break up with Dan because I was just a rebound relationship anyway.

16.  I refer to Jimmy Buffett as the "King of all music", but I really listen to almost anything except violent or vulgar rock/rap.

17.  I do things just to fuck with people.  Pretend to take their pictures with my cell phone, stand backwards in an elevator...that sort of thing.  No reason other than it amuses me.

18.  I have given serious thought to killing two people.  I didn't because I didn't want to leave my kids and go to jail, but I still wish them dead.  (they hurt my kid)

19.  If I could look like a person of a different race it would be Wanda Sykes or Whoppi Goldberg.

20.  I have killed and prepared a chicken. The insides of chickens are NASTY.  Plucking one isn't all that easy either.

21.  I like fan fiction - but I HATE slash fan fiction.  It always comes across to me as women who love the characters and want to write a sexy story - BUT can't deal with the characters being with any woman who isn't them.  So they write it using males.  Problem is they make the men act like women which isn't really how most gay guys act. 

22.  When I was thin with great boobs I dressed to show them off.

23.  I am starting to buy into the theory that total economic collapse is going to happen.  

24.  I love meat, but can't eat it.  The hormones they give animals mess with me - and since I won't take my meds, I can't eat the meat.    When I ate beef it was always rare and even occasionally raw.  (not chicken or pork - and I hate fish)  I am not grossed out by cultures where they eat dog or monkey or cat - meat is meat.  If it were legal I would have my body turned into dog food rather than cremated.  Seems a waste to burn it when it could just be recycled.

25.  I have no paitence for stupid people.

Sometime the obvious is really the answer

I only claim to sometimes be psychic - usually when the kids want to know how I know what they are up to.  This time you don't have to be psychic or even that great a judge of character to know something is wrong with this story.

Haleigh Cummings is missing.  She's 5 and vanished in the middle of the night from her bed in a mobile home in Florida.  No sign of forced entry and the back door was open.  If that were the whole story I would buy into the theory that a stranger took her BUT

She vanished from a bed she was sharing with her father's girlfriend.  His 17 year old girlfriend.  They would have us believe that in the middle of the night a stranger came in took the child and the girlfriend didn't notice until 3am.  A stranger snatching a child from their bed in the middle of the night isn't going to do so without scaring the child and making some ruckus.  Maybe it will be quiet enough that someone in another room wouldn't notice, but someone in the same bed?!?!  I don't think so.  And in a trailer to boot.  It's hard to hide a whisper in most of them.

17 year old girlfriend!  WTF?!  Why is a man old enough to have an ex wife, a 5 year old daughter and a 4 year old son doing with a 17 year old girl?  Where are HER parents?  This whole situation is screwed up on so many levels.

Contrast to those Missouri Scumbags

Unlike the wife who let her husband rape their daughter and helped deliver the babies - this wife turned her husband in when she suspected her husband was involved in the rape of a child.

But detectives said it ultimately was Hernandez Monzalvo's wife, Eustolea Ortega, that tipped off investigators. She called them and asked to come to the home on Citadel Drive where both men live because she suspected Morales was involved.

"I think about that girl. This is terrible. You can do whatever you want, but no, not to..." an emotional Ortega told WFTV Thursday morning, struggling to find the English words to describe exactly how she felt 

"The female who was at the house was fully cooperative in the investigation, she was disgusted at the events that took place to this child and wanted everyone at the house to give DNA," said Mankewich.

http://www.wftv.com/news/18696289/detail.html

I die for bananas

The zombie nightmare that is Rachel Zoe has trademarked the word bananas and the phrase I die.  WTF, how can she claim to have sole use of bananas?  

If I had the time and spare cash I would start a class action lawsuit against her for theft.  She stole those words from the rest of the English speaking people in the world.    Granted I'm not 100% sure how the whole trademarked word thing works, but Zoe-Zombie did stop some artist in New York from using them on t-shirts.  If words are up for grabs I think I want to trademark guava. I like guavas.  Oh, and balloon artist.  If I beat the other balloon artists to the punch will they have to call themselves something else?

Go back to the grave Zoe-Zombie

4 months old

On Sunday my big yellow birthday balloon turned 4 months old.  That is so rare for a balloon.  With this kind you usually expect a month or maybe a 1 1/2 months, but not 4.  I really don't think it will make it until 5 months.  I'm just hoping it makes it through the weekend.  I inflated it the day I started to move stuff from the old space to this one and it's been in the window ever since.  

I can't be sick

I can't be sick, I can't be sick, I can't be sick.  That's been my mantra for the past 48 hours.  So far it's only helping a tiny bit.  I can be as sick as I want to next Sunday.  I can be sick for an entire week - just not until AFTER Valentine's day.

I love having a big family, but there are downsides.  One of them is the extra exposure to germs.  Kids go different directions and each brings home different germs.  This lovely Darth Vader of a cold came home from state band with Teddy.  I was already a little down and the germ saw opportunity and attacked.  bleah

Lots of water, sleep when I can and I keep repeating "I can't be sick, I can't be sick"  At least today I don't look Nick Nolte's mugshot.

I had forgotten how much work Valentine's Day is for a retail balloon shop.  I have fantasy flowers to make and deliveries to schedule.  Yesterday wasn't much fun.  I was closed,  but still had to make flowers.  Out of consideration for my customer I wore a mask which made the whole thing that much less fun.  Still, I prefer not to send out toxic flowers.  It would be pretty sucky to get a Valentine's gift that just kept on giving - in a very unpleasant way.

I will be better by Saturday or I'm gonna have to fake it.  Either way I'll get through it.  then I'm taking a few days off to sleep.

I need a model

My daughter is sick.  Not bad sick, just a cold and she'll be better in a few days.  I doubt she will be well enough by Friday to work for me though, so I have to find a model.

If you know anyone willing to wear a balloon dress and pass out coupons to people at First Friday, let me know.  The job is just to wear the dress, walk around, hand out coupons and get your picture taken.  

If you know anyone have them email me or call the store.

I have a new cash register

I got it off of ebay for $50 and had to pick it up in Lincoln on Sunday.  It's not totally functional, but I hope to get it restored.  

What I know so far is that it is a National Cash Register and was made in 1948.  It is electric with a crank for times when the power goes out.  At least it used to be electric until I cut the cord off today.  The guy described the motor as 'humming' when he plugged it in.  He neglected to mention the sparks and plumes of toxic smoke.  I say toxic because my lungs still hurt.   That's no huge worry for me.  I wanted it as a large cash box that would be hard to steal.  The guy who sold it to me  never had any  luck getting the drawers open.  You can see where he tried to pry the drawers out and even where he tried to remove the bottom.  luckily for me I own a screw driver and know how to use it.  It took about an hour for me to disassemble it and get the 3 of the 4 drawers open. The latch on the bottom one is stuck, but I'll worry about that later.

The whole thing weights upwards of 200 pounds.  Right now it's on the floor until I get both boys up here to help get it to the counter.  I wanted a cash box that was harder to steal than my current bunny box and this fits the bill.  Eventually I'll find someone who can get it running again for me.  The motor is shot but the gears and so forth are in fantastic shape.  I've never seen any machinery of this age that is so pristine and well oiled.    Like I said I want to get it fixed, but until this it's still a very cool cash box.