Novem-berrrrrrrr

I dislike cold, rainy, winter weather. We have been lucky so far, it's the end of November and we've had temperatures into the 50's. Yet, that's still too cold for me.

Just at the end of Don's canal,heading out into Lake St. Clair.
It was foggy!

This past Saturday, Don and I took advantage of what very well may be our last time fishing before he has to pull the boat out of the water. The morning started out foggy and crisp, but when the sun came out it was beautiful. I had on 3 hoodies and a couple long-sleeve T-shirts, but the sun was warm on our faces. The lake was calm and the fish were, meh, but it didn't really matter, we were having a great time.

********

One of Don's friend's band was playing at a local pub Saturday night so we went to see them. Don and John have been friends for a long time. Don wanted to wear a certain shirt that night, all in jest for his friend. Actually he has worn it before to the casino for luck. I love the shirt, I think he wears it well. Its black, accented in red velour, [yes you read that right] and the buttons are dice. When I saw what John had on ... it was clear to me why they are friends!


I never got a straight answer on the name of the band. I think these guys have played together for a long time switching out players at times, regrouping and renaming. They were quite good.

As I watched them and looked at the cast of characters, I realized they were all 180 degrees different from each other, but whatever, it worked!


The keyboard player was a Napoleon Dynamite clone, the bass player Jack Black, and the guitar player was the "fat middle school kid with beet red cheeks that takes guitar lessons to attract girls." He was awesome, probably the best musician in the band. The lead singer was right out of Liverpool England (well, in his mind) looking like a 60's Beatle boy. Don's friend was the drummer. He reminded me of Woody from Toy Story. It was a fun night, I look forward to seeing them again.

Happy Thanksgiving to you and your families. I count my blessings and I am truly thankful for my health, my job, friends, and family.

Voted 2009 Word of the Year

UNfriend

The prestigious New Oxford American Dictionary has chosen their 2009 word of the year. The definition is:

unfriend - verb - To remove someone as a 'friend' on a social networking site such as Facebook


I have a FaceBook account, as well as MySpace, Twitter, and this blog. I never update or use MySpace, in fact I should just delete it. My blog has taken a back seat to my busy summer and my addiction to FaceBook.

My FaceBook account is a quick easy way to keep up-to-date with some bloggers, friends, and family. I've recently been using it to connect with classmates I lost touch with.

::: Waving hi to Barb, Angie, and Diane :::

I had acquired a couple hundred "friends" and started to wonder ... why am I on these friend lists and why do I have so many I don't really follow? I started looking through my list.

Some were bloggers, people that I still read their blogs, yet have no idea about their day to day lives and therefore, I'm lost in the dust with their "status updates." I had quite a few friends and family that didn't keep their news feed up-to-date, and rarely, if ever, commented or left a note on my FB wall. Even my kids friends have "friended" me. Ironically, they comment on my wall more than some of my personal friends.

Point being, I had more "friends" that sat along the wall, not a peep or update out of them, than active connections.

Don and I have "friended" some of the same people. One night, we were both on FB and I saw updates from mutual friends that weren't showing up on my wall. After checking around, I found out FB doesn't post every update, how could they? It's more of a random thing. So if you have a few hundred friends, you're not getting every ones status updates.

I suppose it's no big deal, but there are some people that I enjoy their humor, or their news links and they were getting bumped by my having friended so many.

So, I did the unthinkable ****G A S P **** I unfriended people off my list. I started slicing and dicing and knocked off close to 75 names. After the purge, I did a "status update" about it and I had several people follow suit, saying they totally agreed, and pared their lists too.

Now, I get more updates from the majority of the people on my list. I no longer go crazy trying to go back through updates seeing what I missed, and I'm able to comment more on others updates.

I was listening to a debate on a radio show on this whole issue. The callers and the radio personalities were hilarious with their opinions. You can just imagine ... the whiners, the politically correct theories, the friend collectors ... a whole blog post of its own!

How did we ever survive without social networks?

Conversation Hearts: Blonde to the Roots, Dumb like a Fox

For new readers, my tag "Conversation Hearts" has always been about my daughter Caitlin.

It's been awhile since I've written about her, or my son Bryan. When Cait was at home, it was easy pickings for blog fodder. She has always been the light in a room and the never ending ball of energy.

As both Bryan and Caitlin get older, I try to hold back on the writing and keep theirs lives private. Plus, if they ever decided to write a blog, yikes, the "Mom" stories they could pay me back with! J/K .... sorta.

When Caitlin was a junior in high school, she decided she wanted to become a cosmetologist. Although I'd have preferred the path to a 4 year degree, I know my kid. Strong willed! I wonder where that comes from? [looking everywhere except in the mirror]

Cait went to beauty school in 11th and 12th grade, graduated from high school and beauty school within a month of each other. At age 18 she moved out to be the 2006 version of Mary Tyler Moore [throws hat in air] "You're gonna make it on your own."

She immediately began doing hair while keeping her waitress job that she had since age 15. When the salon she worked at begin to feel the hard times most small businesses in Michigan are, she found another to work in. She stayed on at that salon until the day the locks were changed, it had to close too.

Not one to miss a beat, she kept her waitress job, began to do hair out of her my kitchen, and started cleaning offices at night.

The maintenance company sold a few contracts and that job ended. She still has the job at a local pub, but it's so slow, they cut her hours. And hair? Yes, she still has her clients, but most are stretching their appointments as far apart as possible because of their financial crunches.

I know things are tight for her. She has an apartment and the bills from living on her own to go with it. I offered her to come live with me. She teases we'd not last a week under the same roof together, but in truth, I know she's her mother's daughter.

I moved out at 18 and never moved back home, part being bullheaded, but mostly because I wanted to be independent. I think Cait is like me in that way. I'm lucky both my kids have been financially self-supporting. I've never had to pay car insurance, cell phone bills, bail them out of over extended charge cards, or buying expensive"peer pressure clothing" for them.

Cait had a rough month. As hard as she tried, she felt in a slump. Then, she totally blew me away. She decided to go talk to a counselor at a local college. She took some tests and took their advice on a career change.

I asked her about financing. She has it handled. First year should be fine. No student loans, she qualified for a couple grants. She'll start next semester. Yet, in all the excitement, she STILL was applying for jobs. [She's never been without a job] She starts tomorrow at DSW [shoes] ... oh the joys! At the end of the week my Imelda Marcos Caitlin will have to sign over her check. ;)

Oh, her tests? Pharmacy. She's going to become a pharmacist.

I am so proud of her, she's still the brightest light in the room!

Cait and Lola

To read some funny/cute "Cait" stories, click on the Conversation Hearts tag below: