Salem MA, Thanksgiving trip 2006 (Part 1)

So the much waited, long anticipated Thanksgiving trip has taken place without any loss of limbs, trips a mental ward, or my threatening to leave any family members either (a) home or (b) in Salem. I have to say it was a great trip, and I am so glad that mom came with us, wanted to come with us. Above is a photo of The House Of The Seven Gables....you know the book Nathanial Hawthorne had written way back when. But I guess as is true with any story, it's best to begin at the beginning.

The five of us: Mom, Ida, Pooka, Cro`i and myself left for Salem on Wednesday, 11/22/06 and took the ferry from Orient Point, to New London CT...where fromt here we'd drive 2 1/2 hours. I was nervous about how the mckittens would do on the ferry, and we opted to leave them in the car so as not to catch a draft while on the water. They didn't seem any worse for ware when we got back in to the car and began our driving portion. On occassion Pooka would cry for his sister, and Ida then decided it best to keep the two cats in one carrier except seperate. Making excellent time, we didn't hit much traffic until we neared Salem and Danvers (which is the town next to Salem.) Turned out that there had been a MASSIVE explosion at a chemical plant, so strong that residents in New Hampshire felt the vibrations. So many roadways were closed and cars detoured. We got to The Salem Inn just at 5pm, and I was glad for it. My bladder needed a break. Upon checking in, found out that our suite was on the 4th floor, and being that the Inn isn't handicapped accessible, I carried all the luggage up 4 flights of winding, narrow stairs. Mom and Ida followed, and we realized that the suite was (a) BEAUTIFUL, and (b) really too big for our needs. But this room was only for one night, so what the heck. Below you'll see Ida sitting in a rocker, and also I'm including some of the mansions from Chestnut ST.

For our first night in Salem, we ate at The Salem Beer Works, which is just your local brewery/restaraunt type of joint like a John Harvards. Mom and Ida both had burgers, and I had a chicken sandwich. Mom and Ida had soup, mom- the New England Clam Chowder (which was DELISH), and Ida had French Onion which she enjoyed. Mom and I both tried the beer sampler, which consists of 4 4oz. tastings of beers. We had: Pumpkinhead Ale, Red Witch, Seven Gables Pale Ale, and Salem Light. Our two favorites were the Pumpkinhead, and the Red Witch. We drove around a bit, and then hit the hay as we were exhausted. My roll-away bed was a bit squeeky.

Thanksgiving was a wet day, up in Salem, but from what I understand not as nasty as it was in NY. We tried not to over-do it at breakfast, as it is a continental buffett. But the lady who runs the dining area kept trying to fill us up. We got dressed, and headed down in to Boston to the Omni Parker House for an early dinner. Our room that we had moved in to, on the first floor of The Salem Inn was way smaller than the suite, but we made do and were comfortable. The Omni Parker House Thanksgiving dinner was served as a buffett, and we were left wanting NOTHING. Tables of food, ice sculpters adorning the buffett, staff waiting to fulfill your every whim. Table one was hors' durves and tropical shrimp salad, grilled veggies and Butternut Squash Soup. Table two was all different salads, pate, and breads and meats and cheeses. Table three had all the trimmings you would have at home, and then some. Table four had: turkey and stuffing, ham, poached filet, and beef tenderloin. Table five was EVERY delicious dessert you could dream up, from traditional pies, to flan, to cakes, and mousse filled chocolate pumpkins. We weren't piggies, and shared what we took for dessert, but even then we couldn't finish.

Back from Salem, Ma and a wonderful Turkey day, mini-vacation. But that's going to be in the next post...or one of the next posts. I have photos to share, and stories galore. But I feel guilty about not blogging before I left. Anyway, as I went to check out my pal Claire's blog...see that she had a meme that she stole. So to get back in to the blogging swing of things I am stealing the meme from her. Claire-bear...I miss you!

1. When you looked at yourself in the mirror today, what was the first thing you thought? Hello curly-girl!

2. How much cash do you have on you? I think I have $2.00 and some change.

3. What's a word that rhymes with "DOOR?" Floor. As in, I am so tried, I could take a nap on the floor.

4. Favorite planet? Saturn.

5. Who is the 4th person on your missed call list on your cell phone? Engine House Pizza, from Salem MA. We ordered a pizza to be delivered to our room one night and I gave my cell number as a point of contact.

6. What is your favorite ring tone? Sexy Back, by Justin Timberlake. And that scares me, because I'm a rock chick.

7. What shirt are you wearing? A cream colored thermal (the silk kind) which is under a fur-trimmed poncho.

8. Do you "label" yourself? I normally don't...but I would have to go with "generous".

9. Name the brand of the shoes you're currently wearing? Bass...but I am not the original owner of these boots.

10. Bright or Dark Room? Bright. I hate working in a poorly lit room.

11. What do you think about the person who took this survey before you? I admire her greatly. She is more put together at her age, than I was at that age...and she's younger than I am. She is also a great friend.

12. What does your watch look like? It's a Fossil...silver links with a blue face.

13. What were you doing at midnight last night? Catching up pn the stuff I dvr'ed when we were away.

14. What did your last text message you received on your cell say? I don't know. I HATE text messaging...so I always delete them without reading them through.

15. Where is your nearest 7-11? 5 minutes from my house in any direction. I am surrounded by them.

16. What's a word that you say a lot? "Alrighty", "crap", and "Damn it'.

17. Who told you he/she loved you last? My Uncle Lou in California.

18. Last furry thing you touched? My poncho.

19. How many drugs have you done in the last three days? Do prescribed count?

20. How many rolls of film do you need developed? Probably at least 4. From a trip to Arizon and california a few years back.

21. Favorite age you have been so far? 7

22. Your worst enemy? I'd like to think I dont have any. But probably a relative who is obsessed with cats.

23. What is your current desktop picture? At home, wall paper for Happy Feet, and at work, wall paper for Flushed Away.

24. What was the last thing you said to someone? I need a nap.

25. If you had to choose between a million bucks or to be able to fly what would it be? Million bucks.

26. Do you like someone? I like lots of people.

27. The last song you listened to? I Can't Drive 55...by Sammy Hagar

28. What time of day were you born? 9-something in the morning.

29. What's your favorite number? 3 or 7.

30. Where did you live in 1987? Mom's house, Long Island. I was 11.

31. Are you jealous of anyone? Any broad who boffs Colin Farrell. How shallow am I?

32. Is anyone jealous of you? I don't get why they would be....but yes.

33. Where were you when 9/11 happened? In my car, on my way to work.

34. What do you do when vending machines steal your money? Shake it, hit it, kick it.

35. Do you consider yourself kind? Absolutely.

36. If you had to get a tattoo, where would it be? I have 9 tattoo's...so this is hard. Probably the small of my back (I have one there as it is.)

37. If you could be fluent in any other language, what would it be? Spanish or Italian.

38. Would you move for the person you loved? Sure. Why not? Unless it was somewhere really insane. Like, oh I don't know. Hondoras. *wink*

39. Are you touchy feely? Absolutely!

40. What's your life motto? Treat others the way you'd like to be treated.

41. Name three things that you have on you at all times? Keys, wallet & make-up.

42. What's your favourite town/city? This is HARD! NYC, NY...Salem, MA & Boston MA.

43. What was the last thing you paid for with cash? Yogurt parfeit.

44. When was the last time you wrote a letter to someone on paper and mailed it? Not too long ago.

45. Can you change the oil on a car? Yes.

46. Your first love: what is the last thing you heard about him/her? He died.

47. How far back do you know about your ancestry? Let's not go there. I am bad with this stuff.

48. The last time you dressed fancy, what did you wear and why did you dress fancy? It was last month, for a frien's wedding. I wore a black halter dress with beading.

49. Does anything hurt on your body right now? My back.

50. Have you been burned by love? Who hasen't? I certainly have.

Hugh Jackman double feature

So today was movie madness it seems, when in fact I had wanted to do a light laundry, and pack for our trip to Salem on Wednesday. (On a side note, I think it is going to be COLD up in Salem. Ida is already planning our return in June. LOL.) So anyway, knowing that our cousin's daughter wanted to see 'Happy Feet', mom mentioned to our cousins we would take her.Turnes out we didn't just take her. Ida, mom, our cousin Lynn, little Gabby and I went to the movies this afternoon to see 'Happy Feet'.

Let me tell ya something boys and girls....'Happy Feet' isn't a totally HAPPY movie. For a kids cartoon which had singing and dancing...there was more adult humor and politics than Oh...I don't know, 'Mary Poppins'? It was cool, because there was A LOT of real penguin behavior in it, and if anyone had seen 'March Of The Penguins', would totally be smiling and nodding along saying 'oh yeah, I remember that.' There was social issues about accepting someone for who they are, environmental issues with the polluting of natural resources, oceans. There was protecting of a species, and the evils of aquariums in this movie. On more than one occassion I was a bit shocked by the not so discreet message in the film or worrying about Mumbles Happy Feet getting back home. The movie was great, it had me laughing, and it DID have me tapping my feet. But it was totally not what I thought it would really be.

After the movie finished, the theater had said if anyone had wanted to go in to see 'Flushed Away'....we'd be more than welcome to, as they were very slow. So Gabby & her mom went their own way and mom, Ida, and I went in to 'Flushed Away'. It was GREAT. I loved the humor of the script, the talent of the actors, and the creativity of the animation. Again, there was a lot of adult humor, but it wasn't a 'G' rating.

Hugh Jackman is flooding the theaters with his presence this year. From XMen III, the Scoopes, The Prestiege, Happy Feet, Flushed Away, and the upcoming Fountain. It makes me wonder if he is going to tire us out, or show us he isn't just a wolf in man's clothing.

My celebrity matches

Please support our troops...Cool link

I think this is an AWESOME idea. However you feel about the war or our leaders….remember we, Americans have FELLOW Americans overseas. And spreading holiday cheer and SUPPORT of them is something we should do. Please join in this, and forward along to all you know!

http://www.letssaythanks.com/Home1024.html

Monday Madness, and weekend recap

So it's Monday, and another week of hecticness in the office. 'The Chief' didn't come in to work today, and I'm concerned. 'The Chief' is one of those people who don't miss a day of work for ANYTHING. He had gone on vacation a few weeks back (because each year if we don't use our time, we lose our time), and got sick. Then he came back to work and deels with all the bullcrap, and stress and has gotten sicker. Last week it sounded like he would cugh up a lung,,,and finally relented on Friday to leave work early, and go to the doctor. Now today he is out again, and I'm concerned.

9 More days until Salem, MA! I am counting like a school kid ticks off the day until winter recess. Peace and quiet, and complete autumn weather. Delicious foods on turkey day, and some Christmas shopping to boot. Oh, the dude from The Hawthorne Hotel did call me on Thursday night to see if I wanted to book the 11am Thanksgiving dinner reservation. He was polite, and not at all snarky (of course I didn't say 'hey dude...I'm the chick you blasted in her own blog.') But again, I had to for-go an 11am Thanksgiving dinner, because who the hell can eat dinner that early? And when I asked him if they had later seatings, was told absolutly not! *Shrugs* I give up. So Turkey day WILL be spent at the Boston, Omni Parker House.

Last night I watched Desperate Housewives, and can honestly say I'm just not feeling it this season. I watch for lack of more amusing programming at that hour (for me anyway), but plus I hate giving up on shows I used to love. last weeks episode kicked ass, in my opinion. I had figured they'd bump off Nora....but it was done in just a calculated, and cold way it was classic. Have to say though, that last night's episode is haunting me, and not in a good way. When Lynnette and Parker ventured in to 'Protector Man's' house without being invited in, I knew we'd be in for some kind of jolt. I figured we'd see him and his invalid sister getting it on or something. (No...I'm not a perv, just trying to think like the writers would.) Instead we find pictures of half naked young boys hung up, in a VERY Sexual pervert way. Why? Why'd they have to go in that direction? Why not have 'Protector Man' be a GOOD, DECENT guy, who'd be considered abnormal, for being a normal man on Wysteria Lane? In todays world where too many horrors happen to children, I find this being in poor taste to be written in to the show. A show which is black comedy. If indeed this character is a child molestor, than it is Lynnette's duty to report what she found, although she had been in his home illeagly. If she does not report it, it really shows what poor parenting skills she has.

Ok, I've vented enough. Time for me to get back to work. :-)

Please visit & support: www.one.org

Right now, three human beings are attempting the impossible – running 4,000 miles across the Sahara Desert to raise awareness for the 1.2 billion people around the world who don’t have access to clean water. They will run 50 miles a day - for around 80 days - an amazing feat of human will and endurance.
Get updates on the run and join me in the fight for clean water
Earlier this spring, my friends at the ONE Campaign and DATA brought me to Zambia and South Africa, where I witnessed extreme poverty and the role that clean drinking water plays in getting millions out of danger. I learned that a child dies every 15 seconds due to diseases from dirty water.
Upon my return, I wanted to do something.
Through some friends, I learned about three men who will undertake a quest so amazing and symbolic that it could do an immense amount of good for Africans in extreme poverty. In a bold expedition that has never been attempted - 3 men, from 3 nations will run from the Atlantic coast of Senegal, through Mali, Mauritania, Niger, Libya, to the Red Sea in Egypt.
My colleagues, including James Moll - a great filmmaker who won the Oscar for Best Documentary in 1999 - are documenting and promoting the expedition in our project called "Running the Sahara". As part of this effort, we've started a charitable initiative called H2O Africa, in a large part to raise awareness for clean water programs on the continent.
Get updates on the run and join me in the fight for clean water
One of the reasons I got involved in the project was because of the day I spent with a 14 year-old girl in Zambia earlier this year. I walked two miles with her to the closest water source, a well outside her village. I asked her if she wanted to stay in her village when she grew up, and her face exploded into a huge smile. The translator said to me, "She is being very shy...she says that she wants to move to big city - Lusaka - she wants to be a nurse." And it was clear to me at that moment that if this well were not there for her, she would never even be able to entertain the concept of planning for the future - she would have been trying to survive just for that day.
This one well was giving hope to thousands of people in the surrounding area, and this hope translates into something concrete - that girl can now fulfill a dream to become a nurse, and can become an economic contributor to the Zambian economy.
Running the Sahara is happening NOW. These guys are there and they are going for it. And we want the world to sit up and take notice. These guys are my heroes, and I want to do whatever I can to support them and their mission.
Please join me
Thank you,
Matt Damon, ONE Member
P.S. Stay tuned! Next week ONE is sending a small team to Mali to catch up with the runners. The team will upload video and blog reports about the progress of the expedition!
ONE.ORG PRIVACY POLICY

Falling apart Friday…and other funny notions:

I am wearing musical pants. You heard me…mus-i-cal. And I love it, it cracks me up. In the ‘real world’ we all call ‘musical pants’ corduroy. But I will now refer to them as musical pants, because of the *shwoosh-sfffzzzttt-shwoosh* noise they make. I was unsure if my musical pants would be allowed as the place I work is cracking down on our business casual dress code. It seems the all high-and-mighty mucky-muck did not appreciate it when two women who work on the second floor wore their corduroy pants. So this morning as I dressed, announced I didn’t care if he was anti-musical pants, and if they tried to send me home to change would refuse to come back. So far no one has comments on my lovely black musical pants.

I am in pain. Let me just share with you all: Hip Hop dance class and 30 years olds do not mix. I repeat. Hip Hop + 30 years old = pain! I would like to think of myself as somewhat in shape, and at the beginning of September decided to return to dance class. So I took on tap (which I did for 16 years) and hip hop. Well my hip hop instructor who is 20 has concocted a new combo for us to learn which is going quite lovely. According to her, anyway. So now with the new combo we’re doing, at one point we go down on our knees, spin, lay down on the floor, pop up, spin, get up, then we do this whole arms over our heads, fold ourselves in half up again thing. Two days later, it hurts me, to even stretch for a pen. Not my knees or abs, but my shoulder and arms. Because I must be so old or so inflexible, I’ve pulled all my upper body muscles. And woo-hoo….I get to do this combo again on Wednesday night. I get to feel the agony for a second week because I have no upper body strength or definition.

Tomorrow is mum’s birthday. Plans had been made and changed. Yet when I called to check in on her today at her office, and she told me they were having birthday cake I was dumbfounded. “Whose birthday is it?” I asked innocently enough because for the life of me, I couldn’t think whose birthday would be now, as she hates half her co-workers. “What do you mean whose birthday?” she demanded. “You one and only mother’s…that’s who.” Oh-uh…my bad. Guess that’s what happens when being sleep deprived for 2 months and last night being the doozy of all insomniac evenings.

In other interesting me-ness:

1. Ida and I have decided ti is a boxer that we want. We are giving up the Boston Terrier theory. Mom is all for a Boxer. Now just to break the news to mom the dogs anme is going to be Aislin (which is Celtic and means 'dream'.)
2. UUummmm I have not been very productive work wise this afternoon and doubt that my inability to focus on work since I came back from lunch will change. I am more sleepy now than I was this morning.
3. 12 days until I go away for Thanksgiving! Woo-hoo!

You just never know who is on the other end of the phone

So scares or scares today. My cell phone rings when I am at the office, and I look at the caller id, not recognizing the phone number. Expecting a phone call in regards to getting automatic start put in both mine and my mother’s cars I pick up, with an extra friendly ‘hello.’

**precursor to this entry: I have answer back ring tones on my cell phone.**

Me: “Hello?”

Caller: *laughing* “You have music on your cell phone now?”

Me: (not recognizing the voice) Yes I do. Whom am I speaking to?

Caller: “”You know who this is. What are you doing?”

Me: “No…I don’t know who this is. Whom am I speaking to?”

Caller: “Your dad.”

Me: “I highly doubt that, because I don’t have a dad.”

And there it is. My heart stopping. Because my father has elected not to speak to me since I was 20 years old….I hadn’t seen him since I was 18 and suing him for child support, so I could attend college. Because, you see…the man who is my father is a selfish, manipulative man. This is a person who when I was 15 told me he was: ‘angry at my mother for having me and wished I was never born.’ He also told me that ‘He didn’t want me or love me.” There is a lot of stuff that this man (whom I only refer to as my father when pressed) did to me in the past. But it has taken me a long time to forgive him, and move on, for MY benefit.

I was fortunate to have my mom’s oldest brother be a HUGE part of my life. My Uncle Frank was everything from my hero, to my best friend, to my partner-in-crime, to my ‘dad’. Sure, like any real father & daughter, we had our ups and downs….but above all my Uncle Frank and I were the light in one another’s lives. Unfortunately, he passed away 6 years ago.

So when I got the response from the caller, this morning as: “Your dad.” I panicked. Because (A) I knew it wasn’t Uncle Frank calling from beyond the grave. (B) And if it was indeed, my father calling…how the hell did he get my cell number. But it was neither of these. It was simply a man who misdialed his phone, when attempting to call his own daughter. I confirmed that when he read me off the number he thought he reached. I could tell he was embarrassed, and I was pleasant enough to let him know there were no hard feelings about the wrong call.

Say it ain't so Jason

This just in from Dave Navarro's blog:

I just received news that Jason Newsted will not be joining Supernova on the upcoming tour. He has apparently sustained a serious shoulder injury and will be out of commission for up to 9 months. That... SUCKS!!! Word on the street is that his bass head fell on him. Jason, I feel your pain... I hope you make a swift recovery. I know from Jerry Cantrell, who had shoulder surgery earlier this year, that it's probably one of the worst things that can happen to a touring bass or guitar player. We wish you well!!!

Bitch-fest Wednesday

*Scowls* Today is not a happy hump day. It had started out that way. But it has quickly turned in to a 'bite me', 'what the fuck were you thinking', 'why do I have to be surrounded by incompetants' and 'what happened to me living my life' day. No, it's not that time of the month...it has just quickly turned in to a shitty day. Perhaps my mood will change later, but as of now, there is no chance in hell that would happen.

Work. WORK SUCKS ELEPHANT SCHLONG today. I used to love my job, love the people I worked with. I used to actually look forward to coming to the office. But just read past entries of this blog, and you will see how my mood and attitude about this place has changed. I am not going to rehash. I will go on to say, that I love working for my immedate boss, 'the chief'. I do not have a problem with him. But he has been taking a lot of flack for the crap that has been transpiring in our department. Things such as work not being done fast enough (due to lack of man power or supplies needed for the job.) Paperwork being misfiled, not signed or just outright paperwork missing due to another employee's lack of organization skills. Now I'm not talking about my co-worker that I have had problems with in the past. She just can't file to save her life. This problem I am talking about now, pertians to an older (sweet) man who just either doesn't care anymore or perhaps isn't able to keep on top of it. I dunno which it is. But I do know that by his staying on his game, and I have CAUGHT this....he is making my job here harder. So yet again, I am going to have to sit in yet ANOTHER meeting tracking down this damn paperwork, and practically fall asleep as he goes over his 'tracking system' which pretty much resembles columns and columns of running numbers.

Saturday I was supposed to get my roots and hi-lites touched up. But yet again, I have to change MY plans, Turns out, being that we've recently change car insurance, they want a photo of my car to prove it is in pristine condition. The place is only open until 1pm on Saturday, and being that I work for the hell-hole I ranted about just above...only have time to do this on a Saturday. But my aunt needs me to have it done THIS Saturday, because she doesn't drive and my mother refuses to drive my SUV...so its not like I can switch vehicles for a day with my mother to do me this favor. Did I have to reschedule my hair appountment? According to Ida no, but I HAD to be to the car place no later 1pm. So stress me out even more about missing that appointment. SO what do I do? I rearrange MY hair appointment.

I'm tired guys. I'm tired of having stomach issues. I'm tired of working for a company that runs backwards. I'm tired of feeling like I go out of my way. I'm tired of feeling like all of the things I just complained that I'm tired of.

** Like I predicted to a friend of mine...my mood would lighten up a bit from when I started this post. By 2:30, I was over my ranting, and was able to actually joke and smile with some of my co-workers and family. I was glad to see that I wasn't so cranky.**

***Forget my comment about being in a better mood. Mom, Ida & I went to Burger King for dinner, so we could get Happy Feet kids meal toys. Everything was fine, and we were having an enjoyable BK meal. I was looking forward to going to dance class and working up a sweat. Then a bunch of high school aged kids (maybe junior high school kids) came in and were acting all idiotic. They started a spitball fight and after a while their skeezy spitballs wound up in my dinner. So very firmly, yet politely I said 'dude...your spitballs are going in my food.' Of course I wasn't about to eat that then...because who knows what kind of germs were oozing from their spit. Did I get an offer to have my salad replaced or the money given to me? HELL NO....got a bunch of smack spoken to me, so I had to engage in childish banter with them.***

Things to ponder when suffering from insomnia

So on top of all the other daily junk going on, I have been suffering from insomnia yet again. Normally it lasts for a few days and goes away (for me anyway.) But for the past 2 months I have been waking up LIKE CLOCKWORK between 2:00-4:00 am...almost every day. Sometimes it is just to go to the bathroom, then to pet and lpay with the cats for about 10 minutes and I'm off to bed. More frequently though it is becoming toss-n-turn and wind up padding down to put on early morning tv. I used to be a night owl...I used to have no problem with staying up and then getting up for work. But now I am 30, and need my REM cycles like a fish needs water. And this has been going on for 2 months. Falling asleep when I go to bed...not a problem at all. It's the 2am-4am wake up that's doing me in. And last night/this morning these were the things that went through my head, as I lay curled on the bordello couch, praying for sleep to come.

1. Blog entry for 11/7/06. Maybe I will fill everyone in on 'the bordello couch'.
2. How cold will it be when we're up in Salem, just 2 short weeks away.
3. When should I break out my knitting kit to attempt this hobby I have so long wanted to do?
4. Maybe I'll take it with me when we go to Salem...because the ferry ride will give me ample time to start.
5. Holiday Christmas gifts- the ones I make for people. Candles or cookies in a jar?
6. What the hell is chichuachua cheese?
7. Why can't I remember what my uncles voice used to sound like?
8. Can I get electrocuted from the static electricity sparks that my blankie makes friction on 'the bordello couch' whilebeing curled under it? Because in the pitch darkness, those sparks and cracks are big and loud.
9. Should I make pasta or appatizers for mom's b-day dinner Saturday?
10. Why am I cursed with having one of the most annoying people in the world in the cube next to me in the office?

And now something fun

You Are: 50% Dog, 50% Cat

http://images.blogthings.com/areyoumorecatordogquiz/animal-3.jpg"> You are a nice blend of cat and dog. You're playful but not too needy. And you're friendly but careful. And while you have your moody moments, you're too happy to stay upset for long.

Are You More Cat or Dog?

Operation Obtain Puppy in 2007 update

Our puppy will be one of these:

It has been decided that the pup will be a girl, and it's down to either a Boxer or Boston Terrier for sure. But naming this pup has become a challenge. Again, why name the puppy before we have her? Who knows. I guess I just like knowing that so-and-so will be a member of our family. I've always prenamed my pets. That's just how I operate. I want to name the puppy a Celtic name (to keep in the tradition we have with Pooka & Cro`i's heritage....the cats are Irish ya know.) Mom wants to name the puppy something like Sam or Max or Storm. Ida just wants to name the puppy something she can pronounce easily.

Either way, here are some of the names that we like. (We being Ida and me.) Want to give suggestions, input, critiquing?:

1. Aislin
2. Trinity
3. Shaylee
4. Dempsey
5. Rori
6. Diva
7. Devon

I have more on a list at home, but of course being 30 years old, can't remember them all unless I'm LOOKING at the list.

Getting stoned at work.....

This post is exactly what you think it is about. I returned from lunch, and approached my office door (the outside door off the parking lot mind you.) And *sniff sniff* notice a peculiar odor. I walk in and the smell is overpowering....a cross between paint, paint thinner, and some other fumes. I asked 'the chief' "Are we painting?' as there has been a recent rash of construction taking place in my building.*sniff sniff* I am told 'yes, and if it gets too much for you let us know.'

The quiet boy in my office is getting affected by the odors, *sniff sniff* and now I start feeling icky. But 'the chief' has escaped to fresh air, by going to lunch so I can't tell him I don't know if I am ultra silly or ultra barfy because of the fumes. *sniff sniff* (Oh look at all the pretty colors and the dancing daisy's).

My best friend can't even sit back here because of his asthma and came to tell me something of work related importance. My head is on my desk, and I am goofy and he is concerned. But I refuse to leave...because for the first time in my life, I am huffing. You know that thing kids do, when in school to get cheap highs.

'The chief' just came back from lunch and thinks we should have a canary here to test the fumes. He said if me and quiet boy want to escape for fresh air we can. But why do I want to do that when I am stoned? *sniff sniff*

Because in all my life, I have never huffed or did whippits or anything of that nature. And here I am 30 years old, working for a billion-dollar company who is making their employees inhale fumes of all sorts of nature. Because I sit in an office, off a warehouse, with no windows. *sniff sniff* (Oh did the photo of my cat just wink at me?)

Stoned, thanks to my company. Expected to do decent work. *Sniff sniff*

November count down

10 Days until the mother's birthday. She will be 65 years old and I am taking her to an Italian restaraunt, in NYC that she used to go to often with the family back when we lived in Brooklyn. We're also going to take her to Jacques Torres chocolate factory, so she can expierence the chocolatly-goodness that Ida and I had back in June.

21 Days until we go back up to Salem, MA for Thanksgiving. We will be staying at The Salem Inn once again. Our original plans had been to split our stay between the Inn and the Hawthorne hotel. However the Hawthorne Hotel was asking for an unreasonable amount of money for the cats to stay as well. (The Salem Inn is waiving the fee because I am a returning guest.) We had wanted to have Thanksgiving dinner at the Hawthorne Hotel, and when I called to make a reservation, they were only taking bookings for 11:30, IN THE MORNING. The reason is: 'they haven't gotten around to doing the seating chart for the afternoon session.' So we'll be driving down to Boston for Turkey-day dinner, and eating at the Omni Parker House.

The Omni Parker House has a lot of history to it. JFK has dined and made speaches there. Many a politician and high mucky-muck has stayed, drank, or dined there. The Omni Parker House also is where Parker Roles, and Boston Cream Pie were invented.

Very cool game!