Waffles and laughing

I love people who find humor in things. I've mentioned it before that I laugh at everything - even things that probably shouldn't be laughed at, but humor is healing, people! To prove my point, my bestest friend lost her baby daughter at 9 days old from "probable SIDS" (I quote that because I don't agree with it, but that's another blog post). I didn't attend the wake because they were having an open casket and I couldn't bring myself to see little Katarina like that. I just couldn't. As much as I wanted to be there for Missy, I just couldn't. But she understood. Why, I don't know, but she did. Kat was being cremated after the wake and Missy had mentioned that the "box" that they put her in was really cheesy looking, but they just couldn't afford an urn. The day of the funeral I walked up to Kat's "box" with Missy and I just stared. At first I couldn't see it... I mean, where was it? I didn't see any fancy gold box... there were some flowers and a cookie tin. Missy had to point it out to me and it was the cookie tin.... it looked like a square cookie tin! Thankfully, Missy has the same need for humor as I do, so the cookie tin became sort of a "inside joke", so to speak with us. We laughed that day about it. Yes, we were laughing at Kat's funeral, but you know what? Missy needed to laugh and so did I.
To this day Kat is still in her cookie tin and that's what it is still called - Kat's Cookie Tin. And we still laugh about it, smile about it and sure, tears are shed occasionally but you can't spend your life crying. You need to laugh.

Which brings me to the email I got last night. Have you ever seen the t-shirts that say "I don't have ADHD, I just... hey! Look a squirrle!"?? I personally do not have any in my shop, but a lady emailed me last night and asked me to make her a design with a waffle that says "I don't have ADHD, I just... hey! Do you like waffles?". I don't know the meaning behind it because I didn't ask, but I love that whoever this gift is for can laugh about their ADHD disorder. There are far too many people who use disorders, sicknesses & diseases as an excuse or a crutch. Heck with that! Embrace it if you have it! Laugh about it... enjoy it, because it's who you are.
I plan on laughing, cracking stupid jokes and smiling up until my last dying breath. I don't want to go out of here sad or miseralbe, I want to go out knowing that I was happy with the way things were - or at least found humor in it. You can find humor in anything - even death. Smiling is the best healing out there.... so many people need to learn how to laugh and smile and heal themselves.

The world would be a much better place if we all just laughed a little bit more.

10 Things I Love Talking About

1. My pets. That is definitely #1. I guess its like when my kids were little and they always did something cute everyday that I wanted to share with the world. Pets never grow up!
   
2. Days of our Lives if I can find someone who still watches it.
3. My childhood and my family's past.
4. My shops
5. My forums and people have to stop and ask me WHO I'm talking about and then I get the "oh people online" like they aren't real people or something. How rude.
   
6. Religion. I love learning about other religions & different views, but to find someone who can question religion is hard. The coolest thing was when I found out one of my closest friends was a Jehovah Witness! I love listening to her explain her beliefs!
   
7. Gossip. I admit it. *whew* what a relief off my shoulders that I've come clean with that!
8. Old times. Different from my childhood & such - I love reminiscing about high school & such.
9. Fine. I'll say my kids. I do like to talk about them. Not as much as when they were cute babies and toddlers... I loved bragging about their first word or a funny thing they said, but now I'm usually just bitching about their PMS teenage hormones or attitude or something.
   
10. Did I mention pets?
    

Next week: 10 Things That are Going to Happen in the Next 4 Years (once we decide who the president will be)

Manic Monday - TV, senses & wacky beliefs

How many hours of TV do you watch per week? Do you feel that's too much, not enough or just right? Less than 10. I suppose it's enough but there are always shows I miss.

Which of the 5 senses do you feel is your strongest sense? My sense of smell because I always think I smell something burning. I must have some hidden fear of the house burning down or something because at least a few times a day, out of the blue, I will smell burning something - food, plastic, whatever. It drives me nuts.

What's the wackiest belief you held as a child? You are gonna love this - that there was an Indian boy named "Falling Rock" in the Rocky Mountains that was lost and his Indian Chief father made the government put up all those "watch for falling rock" signs all over the mountains.

I still hate my dad for that one.

Video games are ruining our kids...

So CNN reports this morning that violent video games are linked to child aggression.

About 90 percent of U.S. kids ages 8 to 16 play video games, and they spend about 13 hours a week doing so (more if you're a boy). Now a new study suggests virtual violence in these games may make kids more aggressive in real life.

My first thought? Why aren't the 30-somethings walking around with a hatred for ducks? I would think that Duck Hunt could ruin anyone's mood... ok, so maybe we don't have a hatred for ducks, but I know a few people who wanted more than anything to kill that fricken laughing dog!!!
Why can't people just open up their eyes and see what the real problem is? It's us. Plain and simple. Turn on the news... there is more violence in that 1/2 hour of TV than 12 hours of video games. And lets see - the news is REAL, video games are fake. I think even kids can figure that one out.
Let's stop wanting the big bucks cars, houses, boats, diamonds and all that other fancy shit and stop and pay attention to our kids once and awhile. That might just help a tad bit.

Wanna know why kids are aggressive? Because they are pissed off that they were brought into this world by two people that don't spend more than 2 hours of waking time at home.

On the subject of video games, I've recently been explained something that made far too much sense. Are video games all that bad for kids? Is limiting their computer time to an hour a day really smart? Look around - what does our world consist of? Computers. Technology. It's a sad fact - maybe not so sad - but those kids who are sheltered from computers, video games and the like are going to step into the world as an adult and not understand a fricken thing that's going on. And, not to mention, jobs. What kind of good paying job doesn't have something to do with computers? I'm not saying sit your kids in front of the stuff for 18 hours a day, but have you ever noticed how much these kids are learning?

It's not the world we grew up in, people. It's time for us to just adjust to that. We can't raise our kids the way we were raised. It's just a fact.

Sunday Stealing

Cheers to all us thieves!

Sunday Stealing: The McDanger Meme

What are your nicknames? All of them? Puppet, from my childhood but a few people still call me that (one of my brothers) and I really don't care. Lee, which I haven't be called in YEARS. Angel, which only a few people called me. Currently; Ber, Ber-butt (my bestest friend calls me that), BerBear (my best friend calls me that) and Honey, which is what my husband ALWAYS calls me (he never calls me by my name).

What TV gameshow or reality show would you like to be on? Wife Swap. Well, not really, I'd be scared to find out how messed up I really am, but if I had to pick one :)

What was the first movie you bought in VHS or DVD? I didn't buy it, I got it as a gift, and it was James Dean's Rebel Without a Cause.

What is your favorite scent? baby powder

If you had one million dollars to spend only on yourself, what would you spend it on? I couldn't do it... I hate buying things for myself.

What is one place you've visited, can't forget and want to go back to? My childhood

Do you trust easily? Yes, and it's a weakness of mine.

Do you generally think before you act, or act before you think? I act before I think. Far too often.

Is there anything that has made you unhappy these days? the demons fighting like 2 year olds on a daily basis. I wish they'd grow up.

Do you have a good body image? as in, how I see myself? Kinda. I guess I do physically, too.... sort of. I don't understand the question....

What is your favorite fruit? strawberries

What websites do you visit daily? Oh my. All of them? Facebook (you can add me if you want!), Insanity Cafe Forums (you should join!), my CafePress account, Local6.com, my hometown newspaper, Yahoo News, a whole bunch of blogs, my GoogleBase Feeds... this could really get time consuming listing all these!

What have you been seriously addicted to lately? nicotine.

What's the last song that got stuck in your head? The WitchDoctor, thanks to Demon #1's ringtone

What is your favorite thing to wear? jeans & one of the husband's t-shirts

Do you think Rice Krispies are yummy? no.

What would you do if you saw $100 lying on the ground? pick it up. Duh.

What items couldn't you go without during the day? coffee and my contacts.

What should you be doing right now? going to the bathroom because I really need to pee.

Words Ending in TER ~ I Say You Answer

~Words Ending in TER ~ I Say You Answer~

1. My Computer...is my bread & butter... and jelly

2. Tap Water...might not be as good as bottled water, but it's cheaper! And I often wonder if it's not just tap water in those bottles anyway.

3. Mystery Writer...never really understood the point.

4. Sign of Winter...long johns!

Camera Critters Version 11.01

We've had an interesting week in the feline department. (I've talked about her here and here) My parents found a kitten that was starving and even though they aren't the most "animal lovers" they couldn't leave her. I took her home to litterbox train her, but she is now all cozy at my parents house. It's been a tough week for that little girl, who they have named "Princess". She was abandoned (or lost, we aren't sure), she was starving, found, taken home, vaccinated, dewormed, rehomed.. and yet she seems to have adjusted very nicely. She's still a little sick (a little kitty cold) but she seems to be doing very well.

Some of these pictures I've already blogged, but I'm sharing them again because they are perfect for the Camera Critters meme.

As you can see, she took to the dogs IMMEDIATLEY, but she wanted NOTHING to do with the other cats and she never did warm up to them. She's a one-cat-per-house kind of kitty, but dogs are allowed! Saki really took to her and the mothering instinct set in, I think. Saki is officially a year old next week. The kitty, Princess, got more baths from Saki than I think she got from her kitty-mama.

Chico liked her too, but not as much as Saki did. I think the fact that the kitten tried to nurse off of him turned him off.

Halloween, football and why I'll never be president

Halloween went better than I expected. Our high school football team was at the semi-finals out of town last night so everyone figured that, no pun intended, that this town would be a ghost town. We had quite a few kids, it was fun. A friend of ours who I used to work with pulled up in his hearse for his yearly drive through town dressed up as the Grim Reaper. Gotta love him.

Our team got their ass kicked. We usually have these obnoxious scores of 64-0 or something stupid like that and they sulked away with a 30-0 loss. To quote this mornings news:

“They just seem to go to the state tournament every year,” said New London-Spicer fullback Taylor Dammermann of the Huskies, who have been to state 18 times since 1974.

See? I love my high school and all that, but these constant trips to the prep bowls gets old.....

And I decided this morning that I will never run for president of the United States. Sorry to disappoint you all, but I'd be screwed. I've spent the last few weeks listening to all of these people (ok I'm not just talking about the presidential candidates here) apologizing for things that they said that somehow or another were taken out of context. Or not apologizing, whatever. Like McCain and his "that one" comment. I honestly didn't even catch any offensiveness when I heard him say it and I still think it's the stupidest thing to make headlines and end up on t-shirts all over the country. I'd say something stupid the first day of my campaign, I know I would. I say stupid things at least 10 times a day. Sometimes just to the dogs or the cats and I'm sure they are offended, but luckily they can't tell me they are and thankfully, if I ever did run for a position, they can't dial the phone and tell people the stupid things I've said.
With the end in sight I hope everyone has made up their minds by Tuesday. I don't know how they can - there is so much mudslinging going on that both of the candidates look like complete assholes. I'm just voting for who the majority of my family is voting for. At least they told me good things about the dude.
And then... we have these states who have this electronic voting machines problem. Votes being switched, votes not being counted. WTF? I head some guy say on some news station last night that we can stick a card in an ATM and get cash and our bank knows exactly how much we took out, we can buy a lottery ticket and not have that messed up but the government can't figure out a voting machine? I think it's time to go back to the old fashioned "check here if you wish to vote for this person". Lets hope it's not another year of a 6 year wait to see who will win.

I'm sure it will be a close race, so I could see it happening.

And today the husband is headed out to sight in the gun he's using next weekend for deer hunting. And do a bunch of other stuff, too I guess. He'll be gone for 10 days.... that's gonna be strange. Well, less than that if they get their limit of deer. That'd be sweet. I want a freezer full of venison hamburger when this is all said and done! Num Yummy.

Friday Fill-ins

And...here we go!



1. My favorite food seasoning is Tastefully Simple's Seasoned Salt.
2. "You've Got Mail" is music to my ears when I see it's a sale from one of my shops!
3. Lucky is a cat or dog who is blind, deaf and missing one leg and still has a warm bed to sleep in at someone's house.
4. Humor is something I take very seriously.
5. Many people take life too fricken seriously.
6. A carton of cigarettes was the last thing I bought at the store. (yep, we fell off the non-smoking wagon)
7. And as for the weekend, tonight I'm looking forward to seeing how many goblins show up at our door tonight, tomorrow my plans include helping hubby and Sunday, I want to get more laundry done. Well I don't want to, but I probably will anyway!

Saki & her new friend

I think Saki's gonna miss her....

Holy crap, we're purple

I got a little bored this morning and splashed some purple paint around the place....

In other news, the kitten is leaving today. She's litterboxed trained (like that was hard) and she's poopin' pretty solid poops. It was runny yesterday due to change in environment, stress, shots, dewormer or all of the above. I went to the vet and grabbed some anti-diarrea meds for her and it took hold overnight. She's all set to go to my parents when the girls get home from school. (They insist they are the ones that deliver her. Whatever.) I also got one of our extra litterboxes that weren't being used, some litter, food, toys, treats, scratching thing and a bed. My parents are all set to take their kitten.

Michael Jackson, glue, walls, popcorn, TP & animals

Welcome to the October 29th version of Thursday Thunks!
Where we make you think a little bit before you blog!

You gonna go play or what?

This week we will answer some unusual questions, brought to you by Berleen, the color black and the number 13.
And now for my answers... Demon #2 answered this yesterday!

1. Would you let your children go Trick or Treating at Michael Jackson's house? Why not? I have girls, no worries there. They would be in costume, he'd never recognize them on the street anyway. He probably gives out the best candy! It's not like we'd be going inside of his house or anything.
   
2. Did you eat paste and/or glue as a child? I can honestly say that I did not.
3. Look at the wall to your right, what is on it? A wooden harley that the husband's grandpa made.
   
4. Do you put butter and/or salt on your popcorn? Both. I like my food with heart attack possibilities.
   
5. What does your favorite coffee cup look like? It has a pictures of the demons and says "Moms Goofballs" on it.
   
6. What was your favorite Halloween costume? I tried to find a picture of it online, but I can't remember what it was called. It was this big blow-up head thing that you wore on your head? I think it was 1980 or 81. *edit - thanks to Debbie over at Through Thick n Thin (because obviously we had the same kick-ass taste in Halloween costomes!) I now know what it was. Kooky Spooks - I had the black one... looking at them now, they were sort of lame, weren't they?
   
7. Toilet Paper - hard, soft, extra soft? Extra soft. Charmin. Ultra soft. Enough said.
   
8. Have you ever rescued/taken in a stray animal? Yep. Just this week.
   
9. Name 3 things you want your kids to learn before they grow up. (if you don't have kids, feel free to skip this one or add your own twist to the question) How to turn off lights, but then again when they are paying the electric bill in their own house I don't care if they know how to or not. How to take "no" for an answer. How to cook without the use of a microwave, because microwaves are just a fad, ya know.
   
10. Pick one of the Thursday Thunk players and say something about them. I'm going with K, too. (same as the demon) I think it's fun that someone came crawling out from my past and started playing... plus she is much more creative & better at writing and stuff than most of us so she will be an excellent addition!
    

and that's the end.