Just like Statler and Waldorf (Betty, this one's for you!)

My normal 'seat' at the council meetings is in the first row of the gallery, directly behind the Director of Public Works. At one meeting this year I showed up a few minutes late, and the gallery was FILLED with people. I think it might have been the night the throngs came out to talk about what was going to happen with the Dr. G. W. Williams S. S. There were three people sitting on my bench. I had no choice but to sit in the media box on stage right.

Then Betty showed up. It wasn't until Betty arrived that I realized I may be in the wrong seat, but nobody said anything, so there I stayed. I think I may have got up to let her have the inside chair, but I don't remember exactly. Before the end of that council meeting I decided I really liked Betty. She knew who was who and where they stood on many issues. We spent a lot of time whispering back and forth like schoolkids. I learned a lot.

I met up with Betty this weekend. I hadn't seen her in a long time. I told her that I missed her since she'd been 'fired' from her job, and that's the truth. We were like the 'grumpy old men from the muppets' sitting up in the gallery whispering back and forth. I didn't know until just a few minutes ago that those guys had names.

I'll see you soon Betty!

Toaster Turmoil

Today's Newsflash - I do not own a toaster. I would like one, and have looked for one in every store I've visited for the last two months. I'm a child of the 70's, and in the 70s and early 80s we had a toaster that was chrome, with black ends. It did have a 'lighter/darker' indicator on the side - but the toast always seemed to be just right, no matter how you fiddled with the toggle.

The chrome sides of the toaster got HOT. I don't know that they got hot enough to seriously burn skin, but they were hot enough that once you discovered they were hot, you didn't touch them again. That's what I'm looking for...just a skinny, plain, unadorned toaster. Do you think I can find one?

Nyet.

To top it all off, we were at the grocery store today, stocked up on Eggo Waffles and syrup. On the way home, the young genius in the passenger seat says, "Hey, if we don't have a toaster, isn't it going to be hard to toast all those waffles we just bought?"

Yep. Incredibly hard. I've since added "small toaster with NON-cool touch sides" to my Christmas wish list.

Wowsers!

Anybody who's ended up here from over there (and there seems to be many of you - I've had 16 visits today, all from local ISPs. 16 is astronomically high for this blog)... should at least hear me out here. (Read me out?) How about, please read what I have to say.

I made a flippant comment on Evelyn's blog as a response to an anonymous comment. I've always been one to comment using my name. I'm not afraid to say what I think. Unfortunately the written word doesn't lend itself to 100% understanding. There are no facial expressions in writing. It's sometimes hard to portray emotions; and when you write something you never know how the reader is going to interpret it.

I didn't understand why someone would post anonymously and ask about women living in the household and where the men were/went. First of all, that doesn't strike me as anyone else's business. And if you wanted to know out of genuine concern - then why didn't you sign your name so a response could be directed back to you personally? Or, you could certainly have emailed Evelyn directly.

No further comments are being published from that post. We can still see them all come rolling in, but no more will be posted. Some were not nice. Some were quite nice, and some were down right strange. Not that it matters - but I really wasn't trying to stir up anything, and I certainly got more than I bargained for.

What I was attempting to convey through my 'flippant' comment was that I didn't think the question about men really had anything to do with the topic at hand. To the person who posted the really long saddening comment - thank you for sharing so much.

Go placidly but have fun!

Too Enthusiastic?

After a bout of bad news yesterday, I was seriously hoping today would be more positive. There's something to be said for your day following the attitude you start out with. Today wasn't great.

There was something going on at work that I was hoping to be chosen for - and the 'judge' told me I was too enthusiastic. I have lots of energy, etc. Perhaps they were looking for slugs? I don't know. I did congratulate my two colleagues that were chosen though - because I think they'll do well.

And, GUESS what!? The Dominion grocery store chain stopped carrying raclette cheese over a year ago. And guess who got her hands on $40 worth of fromage d'oka/raclette direct from La Belle Province!? Guess who's going to be having raclette supper once she's in her new digs? Yep, me! ME!

And you know what... if being 'too enthusiastic' means I can't get excited about the simple things in life, that's too bad. I didn't get this way over night and there's no changing me now. Besides, I have a lot to be enthusiastic about this month. Moving. A wedding. A birthday. A solid week with my boy while his Dad goes hunting. It's all good. Life is grand.

And every day I'm just a little bit more convinced that there is a big hand up there in the heavens - moving around puzzle pieces that turn out to be lives here on earth. Every once in a while something just clicks. Friends, situations, sometimes things just work out.