We're Not In Kansas Anymore....

Who would have ever thought that living in Brooklyn you needed to worry about tornados??  I turned on the TV last week just in time to see "Tornado Warning, take cover in the the lowest part of your house"!  I never thought I could move so fast!  I got my fat butt in gear, scooped my daughter up in my arms, grabbed my son by the hand and FLEW down the flight of stairs! We took cover as best we could and waited for it to be over.  I don't know why, but I have always been afraid of tornados. Since I live in Brooklyn I always thought it was an irrational fear.  I guess I was wrong.  My other irrational fear is Zombies.....What are the chances?





Join the Friday blog hops and have a fun filled weekend everyone!

Frustration

The last two days have been filled with rather frustrating conversations with my husband.  Here is one example:

I had just put pasta in the boiling water and asked my husband to watch Princess K (Our 2 1/2 yr old daughter), so that I could go upstairs and take a quick shower.  After I got upstairs I decided to ask him to give the pasta a quick stir.

Me:  Honey....(no answer)
Me:  Honey...(no answer)
Me:  HONEY!!!!!

Him:  Yes?

Me:  Could you please stir the pasta?

Him:  OK.

TWO SECONDS AFTER I GET IN THE SHOWER I hear Princess K knocking on the bathroom door.

Princess K:  Mama, Mama, Mama

Me:  Honey....(no answer)
Me:  Honey....(no answer)
Me:  HONEY!!!!

Him:  Yes?

Me:  I thought you were watching Princess K?

Him:  Well, you asked me to stir the pasta.

Me:  And?

Him:  And, I can't do two things at once!

ME: #!&*@#!*?#@!?!!!!!!!!

Can you just feel my frustration?

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On a more calm and relaxed note...I went to some great garage sales over the weekend and got some fantastic bargains.  The one item I am most excited about is a digital camera!  Yeah!!!  I can now publish pictures on my blog again.  I also found toys and books for my daughter and a new purse for me. 

I LOVE garage sales and try to get to one every weekend.  I think I can get a few more in before the cold weather comes and garage sale season is over. 

What is the best item that you ever found at a garage sale?

Max Lucado

Although I LOVE reading (hence the title of my blog), This is the first time I have had the pleasure of reading  Max Lucado's books.  I've heard many good things about his writing and can now say I agree.  I just finished reading two of his new books and absolutely loved them.

The first book, One Hand, Two Hands is a children's book which teaches children that their hands are a blessing from God and can be used for many things including, helping others.  I read this book to my 2 1/2 year old daughter (more than once) and she and I both loved it.  My favorite part of the book was the page that shows a mother and daughter washing dishes together.  My daughter and I wash dishes together almost every morning while we sing songs.  She makes a big mess, but I don't mind because it is a special time of day for us before I have to leave for work.  I would recommend this adorable book to anyone with a small child at home, the story is sweet and the pictures are beautiful.

The second Max Lucado book that I just finished is Outlive Your Life.  Much like the children's book, "One Hand, Two Hands", this book shows how every person has the opportunity to make a big difference in this world.  As each of our lives touches anothers and each of our actions has an impact on this world, Max Lucado shows that we can all "Live our lives in such a way that the world will be glad".  If you are looking for great inspirational reading, I suggest you pick up a copy of this book.

I am grateful to Booksneeze and Thomas Nelson Publishers for providing me with both of these wonderful books to read and review.

How do you erase a childhood?

How do you erase the memories of your childhood?  Oh, don't get me wrong, it is not that I had a BAD childhood, in fact I had a pretty good one.  I was born into the typical American family:  Stay at home mom, who cooked, cleaned and took care of the kids; a hard working father who did whatever was necessary to support his family; two older brothers that were into muscle cars, Led Zepplin and hanging out; then there was me, the baby of the family.  Sounds perfect right?  Well, for a while, I guess it was.  Then things started to change.  It was a slow transition that led to a complete breakdown of the family I once knew.  My mother began her downward spiral into the world of hoarding, just as one of my brothers began his decent into the world of drugs.  In the beginning, the rest of us did our best to help my mother and brother overcome their demons.  In the end, the demons won and what was left was a broken and shattered family.  I no longer speak to my mother or my drug addicted brother, my other brother is a work-a-holic who I have little contact with, and my father has moved out of state.

So, how do you erase the memories of a childhood that now seems like just a dream?  Those people no longer exist.  Never will exist again... and it is too painful to remember them the way that they were. 

Meet Me on Monday!! 14th Edition.

Hi everyone!

Hope you all had a good weekend.  Here are my answers to this weeks edition of Java's Meet Me on Monday blog hop.

1. What is your favorite pasta dish?

ANYTHING!  I love all pasta!  Of course, I drown it in parmesan cheese.  Hmmmm....Maybe that's the reason I can't lose weight!









2. What is the last thing you do before going to bed?

Give my kids hugs and kisses. 










3. How many nights a week do you go out to eat?

Unfortunately, we do not go out to eat too often (the whole being in debt thing tends to get in the way.)

4. Are you an avid book reader?

Yep.  Love, Love, Love books.  Always a book in my reach (bathroom, bedroom, desk, kitchen). With my love of reading you would think I would have a better grasp on grammar. 

5. Would you rather have x-ray vision or bionic hearing?
Neither.  I do not want to hear or see anything that is not meant for me.

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September 11th

Like every American, I am sure, I remember exactly where I was on September 11, 2001.  I was at work , when a client came in and asked "Did you hear that a plane hit one of the towers?"  My first reaction was "Oh, those poor people".  My heart went out to the people on the plane and their families.  I knew that nobody on the plane could have survived and I wondered how many people in the building were injured.  I turned on the news to get more information and saw that a second plane struck.  Immediately, I knew that this was no accident.  I rushed out of my office, jumped in my car and raced to get my son out of daycare.  I wanted to pick up my husband from work but the school where he worked at the time was on "Lock Down".  Nobody was allowed in or out.  As such, I went home with my baby boy to wait.  Wait to see what would happen next.

I kept trying to reach my two best friends Chill and Rah Rah,who rode the train to work in Manhattan every day.  I knew the route led them right under the towers and I was scared for their safety.  For hours I kept trying to reach them.  Finally, Chill called me to say that she was alright  and was walking over the Brooklyn bridge, towards home because all trains were shut down.  There was no word from Rah Rah and I prayed that she was safe.

Around this time, my father called to tell me that my nephew's father, who was a first responder, got called to the towers and has not been heard from.  My young nephew watched the horror play out on every channel of the TV, wondering if his father would be coming home that night.  He didn't.   He died a hero, giving his life saving others.

My cousin worked at the towers and was outside smoking a cigarette when the first plane struck.  If she was inside, she would have died, as her office was located on one of the floors impacted by the crash.  I bet this is the first time a cigarette has SAVED a persons life.

My friend Rah Rah had borrowed a strangers cell phone and called her mother to let her know she was safe and in the process of making the trek over the Brooklyn bridge.  She had been stuck underground in the train for hours, until the authorities led them to safety through the subway tunnels and out to the street.  Thank God, she was safe.

For days, a light flurry fell in my neighborhood.  It wasn't snow.  It was the burning paper from the Twin Towers being carried all the way to Brooklyn on the slight breeze that was blowing.  Each flake a reminder of the horror that occurred.

In the days, weeks and months that followed, the only positive thing to come out of this tragedy was the kindness that everyone displayed toward one another.  We had patience for one another.  We helped total strangers.  We were just plain NICER to everyone around us.  This attack made us all realize how lucky we were to be alive and how fragile each life is.  Although the events of 9/11 remain fresh in our memory, over time we seem to have forgotten the importance of embracing each other with respect and kindness.

On this anniversary, let's honor the memory of all the brave men and woman who lost their lives.  Lets honor them by making a commitment to continue being kind to one another, coming to the rescue of strangers, being a blessing to each life we touch.

Love and Blessings to each one of you.
Brooklyn

Junior High

Today was my son's first day of Junior High.  It is also the first time I don't have a "first day of school" picture.  Since I was pick pocketed last week and my camera was stolen, I will have to capture this moment in my memory instead of on film.  I watched him as he walked out the door in front of me, wearing his blue plaid shirt, Levi's jeans and Sketchers sneakers.  My husband and I had put aside some of our tax refund so that we could buy him nice clothes for school.  It was worth it because he looked so handsome.

Because I knew he would freak out if I displayed ANY type of affection when we got to the school, I stopped him a block away and gave him a BIG hug.  I thought an entire block was a safe enough distance from school to show him how much I love him.  WRONG!!  He did not react to well.  What is the acceptable distance these days?  Is two blocks safe to grab a quick hug?  What about three blocks?  Will that get me a kiss on the cheek?  My son was not amused.  He quickly informed me that any displays of affection are not permitted beyond the front door of our house.  How depressing.

Well, only six hours to go until he gets home from school.  You can bet that I will be waiting by the front door for my big hug and peck on the cheek!

Pick Pocketed (Literally and figuratively)

I will not be able to put any pictures on my blog for awhile.  My camera has been stolen.  I went to Family Dollar to buy diapers for my daughter and when I returned to my office I realized that the side pocket of my purse was unzippered.  Although I thought it was strange, it didn't occur to me that anything would be missing.  I just figured it was me being a "clear head" and I had forgotten to zipper it.  It wasn't until I went to take a picture of the wild parrots that live on the utility wires in Brooklyn (I wanted to show you guys the beautiful parrots and their huge nests), that I realized my camera was gone.  I had so many beautiful pictures of my kids on that camera, pictures of my beloved pets that passed away, pictures of me pregnant with my daughter.  None of which I had thought to print out.  I just enjoyed having them on my camera to look at whenever I wanted to.

As for the figurative pocket picking, my husband and I just got some crappy news.  My husband's union had a class action lawsuit against the city.  We always hear in the news about class action suits paying out big money to the participants.  A such, we were making plans for paying off some of our debt with the settlement money.  Well, we feel as if that money was plucked right out of our pockets because we received the news yesterday that the case settled and our share of the settlement comes to $1,200.00   WOW.  Talk about disappointed.

You ever get the feeling that you just can't catch a break?

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Have a safe and fun holiday weekend everyone!

Microchips are amazing!

This cutie was found wandering in traffic.  She is an old girl who, I believe is deaf.  I say this because her ears don't perk up when I whistle to her or when I squeeze a squeak toy.  She is a real sweetie, sleeping under my desk at the moment  The crossing guards that brought her to me, put up signs in the neighborhood.  I hope somebody claims her soon.

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Good news.....I located her owner!  By the time I had to leave work for the day, I had not received any calls in response to the *FOUND* flyers that were posted around the neighborhood or the ad that the local human society posted on their website.  Thankfully, a foster home in Long Island agreed to take the dog.  I brought the dog to the vet in order to get her a check-up before her trip to Long Island.  While there, the vet scanned her and low and behold the dog was microchipped!  What a fantastic invention.  I wish they had this years ago when I lost my beloved cat Harry.  The vet's office called the contact number listed for the owner.  When I saw that it was a Manhattan number I wondered how this old girl wound up in Brooklyn??  It turns out that the owners are on vacation in Spain and left the dog with a dog-sitter in Brooklyn.  They gave me the dog-sitters number and some background on the little dog.  Her name is Hershey and she is 12 years old.  She was adopted by the family two years ago after she was found wandering in Central Park and brought to the pound.  Thankfully this family adopted her or she would have been euthanized.

I called the dog-sitter and arranged for him to pick the dog up from my house later that night.  When he arrived, he told me that he was in his underwear when he saw Hershey slip through the fence.  He ran to put on pants but, by the time he made it outside, the old girl vanished!  My office is about 12 blocks from his house.  Who knew she could move that fast!  When he could not locate the dog, he said he got down on his knees and prayed that Hershey would be safe and that a good person would find her.  He thanked me for my help and said the Lord had answered his prayers.  This little dog had many people looking out for her that day, not just me.  Hershey's real heroes are the crossing guards who brought her to me and then used their lunch break to post fliers all over the neighborhood.  If it weren't for them, who knows what Hershey's fate would have been.  Thank you girls for being Hershey's guardian angels.